Shifting Blame – Afraid Jabu’s Fear

By John Riwang <johnriwang@hotmail.com>

There was a time late last year when The Borneo Post Online decided to be on hiatus. The message “Our website is currently being upgraded. We apologize for the inconvenience” became its standard headline for over a month.

Because of their downgraded professionalism that desperately needed to be upgraded, a penniless boy like me had to spend my precious RM1 to buy the ‘hard copy’ version of the Borneo Post. What a pity. ‘A pity’ not because I was not able to gain valuable information from the local paper – that’s because it doesn’t have any. Rather I was deprived of my daily doses of laughter from reading the foolish statements made by our politicians.

But worry no longer, my friends! The Borneo Post Online has made its return to the cyberworld although, really, I can’t see their website being “upgraded” after the hiatus. Instead, they continue to publish our politicians’ habit of uttering remarkably witless statements in the paper. Oh, no, no. I am not ranting on the Batang Ai election drama. Everyone talk, write and blog about it these days. It’s too easy.

Today, I want to take you for a walk down the memory lane with The Borneo Post Online. Why? Well, people tend to easily forget these days, especially when stupid political statements are not repeated often enough in the media. Let’s consider this a gentle reminder of what kind of people we have governing our beloved state.

About Alfred Jabu to-day

Today’s article revolves around, yes, you guessed it: Afraid Jabu! This guy is really special, I tell you. Last December, The Borneo Post Online published an article December 11th, 2008 entitled ‘Jabu blames Bruno for Penan’s backwardness’, where Afraid Jabu sent a blistering attack on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for instigating the Penan to erect blockades.

He claimed these blockades have severed all kinds of “development” that the peritah planned to bring to the hapless Penan in the interior. Of course, this isn’t the first time he denounced such NGOs. At times, he blames the Penan too! Also, he’s fond of using that word “instigate” to get his point through to people. Try Google “Jabu instigates” and you’ll see what I mean.

Afraid Jabu’s wrath with NGOs and Penans

So, in this article, Afraid Jabu claimed that “the action of such NGOs…had tarnished the image of the country, and Sarawak in particular.” He was specifically referring to Bruno Manser Fund’s (BMF) allegations of sexual abuse of young Penan girls by timber company workers. Afraid Jabu conveniently dismissed this report and considered it “a waste of time to investigate.”

Now, after reading Afraid Jabu’s countless statements I can’t help but wonder if he’s really afraid of the NGOs or anything that is beyond his (shallow) worldview? What is he and his peritah hiding from the people? Is he blaming the NGOs – in this case, Bruno Manser and BMF – because the peritah has failed?

Is Afraid Jabu too afraid to admit that it’s the peritah‘s fault that the Penan is now so-called “backward”? Has Bruno Manser become the peritah‘s bogeyman that spooks the balls out of our politicians?

Instead of blaming Bruno Manser, Afraid Jabu should convince the Penan that he is better than Bruno Manser? How is it possible that the peritah is still being bullied by the specter of a dead Swiss guy, dressed up in loincloth and doesn’t have a gun? If the peritah is not able to win the hearts of the Penan, then why can’t they do a check up and see if there’s anything wrong with its approaches in dealing with the Penan?

Wanton logging destroys the Penans

Let’s start with the logging activities in the 1980s. If the peritah had thought that is the way how to develop the Penan then think again. What has logging brought to the Penan in the 1980s apart from bringing destruction of their livelihood, diseases, social alienation etc.?

In the 1990s, you have allowed these timber activities to thrive but this time under the disguise of international collaboration for sustainable forestry. Was the Penan receptive to it? No? Why? Oh, oh, was it because Bruno Manser was there to instigate the Penan?

Can one man, dressed in cawat (and probably dead) instigate the Penans in Limbang, Baram and Belaga to fight against these powerful, politically-backed up logging companies? If Bruno Manser is capable of doing all that then the peritah should be ashamed of themselves because they can’t even convince the shy Penans not to be instigated. Oh, why stop with the Penan.

Did Bruno Manser instigate the Iban in Bintulu to erect blockades against the logging companies or the oil palm companies in Suai too?

Blockades a native tool of resistence

All these blaming by Afraid Jabu seem to assume the Penan – and all the other orang asal of Sarawak – are naïve and does not have a real understanding of their political situation. It is as if only the peritah knows what is best for her people. It is as if the people’s blockades and protests are so strange of a concept to them that it must have come from outside. Little did Afraid Jabu know that blockades are just one of those tools of resistance, and don’t tell me that there have been no resistance in this state’s centuries of histories.

I’m not a political scientist but if there is a John Riwang school of thought, I would say the idea of shifting the blame to other parties when you – and your institution – have failed is a conventional political strategy applied by imbeciles. Like Afraid Jabu lah.

Blame shifting to defenseless victims: act of cowardice

Noam Chomsky once said that in order to establish one’s power, it is common to select and attack a defenseless target. By using the media – such as The Borneo Post Online – the target must be characterized as a massive threat and accused of causing disasters. In other words, an act of a coward! This is strange from a person who said “Bruno Manser and the NGOs are nobody in their own country…”

Isn’t it strange? A powerful minister that is afraid of any ‘nobody’.

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