Up to the Moon

Even before the election fever started, we had been looking forward to listening to the campaign ceramah(s). In 2004, we had great fun trailing the DAP as they organised ceramah here and there. Since we were mostly around this Bukit Gambir area, we of course braved the massive crowds and pushed our way through to hear Karpal Singh when he was fighting for the Bukit Gelugur seat. (This was before he met with the accident so this was before he became wheelchair-bound. Poor guy!)
Last Wednesday night, we were again on our rounds to Air Itam to look for the DAP ceramah. Sadly, DAP could not get a permit and didn’t manage to hold a ceramah at the appointed place!
This year too we wanted to go to a DAP ceramah, if only to hear blogger Jeff Ooi speak! I know many bloggers in Penang are working hard for him either helping him on polling day or at least helping him spread the news and vote for Jeff Ooi/ vote for Jelutong, THE place where the Tiger of Jelutung (Karpal Singh) used to be.
DAP Penang ceramah
But finally hear Jeff Ooi we did. I must say he did floor me with his arguments which were rather well-thought out with extremely hard hitting facts. Although he spoke with an American drawl, he spoke well too in Hokkien, Mandarin and Bahasa Malaysia.
The very large crowd on Saturday night at Han Chiang Stadium made parking a terrible process. Everyone parked haphazardly. Finally we parked a good way off and walked to Han Chiang which had a carnival-like atmosphere. Aunties, uncles, kids, teenagers and grandmas and granddads of all colours, shapes and sizes were hurrying onwards like ants.
We couldn’t even push our way into the stadium! It was packed to the rafters with people. And so that was how we ended up at the car park area, sitting on the hard ground and looking at the big projector screens.
DAP Penang ceramah
Everyone who came late also decided to do as we did, and we made a good sizeable crowd (which later Anwar Ibrahim said amounted to 10,000 people but of course some media would say it would be 200 people only-lah. He was also soooo baddd to the mainstream media like TV3, RTM, etc. etc but it was so much fun when he was grinning in a mad and bad way).
Oh yes, the star of that night was ex-Deputy Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, who came and went like the wind. But charisma, yes, he had plenty of that too. His supporters were cheering him on and on, and he turned ever so often to his left to acknowledge the cheers from that side of the stadium.
DAP Penang ceramah
And bloody hell, it started to drizzle when Lim Guan Eng took to the podium. And a drizzle became a downpour. I started running for cover but Nic braved the rain, saying that it made more visual impact if one could see and hear the speaker. Ya, but I’m not planning to be sick on polling day.
DAP Penang ceramah
Can you spot my mad husband sans umbrella, sans poncho?

So we stood for almost 5 hours. But heck, it was worth it. Hearing from Guan Eng, Karpal Singh, Chin Tong, Jeff Ooi and other DAP candidates (FINALLY!) made the rain seem so trivial. The jokes were splendidly Lingam in nature. I even learnt what Makkal Sakti meant having had to stand next to an Indian guy who said it meant People Power. Oooo!
I believe that the crowd that night (which really was 10,000 people, you know) came because of SMSes and emails. The power of technology!
Anyway, I look forward to more ceramah/s – I get more news compared to reading the newspapers which these days are full of utter filth anyway or some stupid propaganda.
One thing about the DAP – they’re smart enough to cannibalise the BN’s Chinese slogan “Zhai zhuan pian” (meaning Keep Reinventing) and added on their own sassiness. So everyone that night knew that when the DAP yelled “zhai zhuan pian” the crowd shouted back “Thouw hwo chien” (or “vote the rocket”). It’s a clever way to get back at one’s political nemesis, no?
DAP Penang ceramah
He’s more of a political animal than me…
Make sure you vote this Saturday then!

3 thoughts on “Up to the Moon”

  1. gonna be interesting one this year ya? been reading jeff’s blog too, guy with guts and good isi. polling day happens to be my birthday too, Oooo… i get to vote on me birthday, wonder got free gift or not when present my ic… hahahaha! 🙂 pls dun remind me its the same birthday as semi value (samy velu)’s birthday! eeeewwww!

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  2. Yes, got your sms.
    Yes, got stuck in the post traffic jam along Greenlane.
    Yes, my wife is voting (but at the moment, she doesn’t know who for).

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  3. Hi Alison: So you’re a Piscean too hah? Ya, they should give you a gift on polling day. 😉 There’s a big ceramah happening tomorrow night at the same place. Semi value? Urrghhh, that guy isn’t even worth a mention.
    Hi D: Use your powers of persuasion…which I know you have in bucketloads. If the bigwigs lose big time, my friend told me that they may be sore losers. Real sore losers. We’re meeting up soon??

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