Penang Watch

Frogs hate to be frozen!Who ever say that the hopping season has not started in Malaysia's numerous political divides? Apart from the much trumpeted BN to PR hop -which are still in future tense but affect the media and politicians currently, there are already numerous high profile hops so far:

* Hop out of Gerakan : Lee Kah Choon, Reena Bhar ; About to hop: Tan Kee Kwong;

* Hop out of MIC: Nijar

* Hop out of MCA: Lim Boo Chang(about to hop into another PR party)

* Hop out of UMNO: Tun M & Son Mohzani, Sanusi

* Hop into UMNO: Ezam and his boys; Nallakarrupan

* Hop into PKR: MDC chairperson and supporters;

* Hoping to hop somewhere: Ibrahim Ali(independant)

What are the effects of hopping/frogging?

* it causes political change to switch from being decided through people's voting to the politicians' voting; Did voters ever give them-if they are elected reps, such mandate to change government? Frogging undermine the legitimacy of elections which is the bastion of our democracy;

* it will be `justified' through the `bigger good' that the political change caused by hopping, will bring; What is left unsaid is: 2 wrongs don't make 1 right; Both BN & PR are enjoying the hops when they are heading their way and sulk when he hops are away from their way; Strange: they can at the same breath say the same things to the hops: when the hops are to their way `between the 2 the frog choose us because they find us better'; When the hop is away from them: `the frog/s will not affect our party-they can't contribute to us-so good luck to you who welcome them!'; Even more funny: Ex-frogs: `those who left us are traitors! Frogging is not our culture!' -forgetting that they themselves had just done double hops-1 out and another back in! Even a politician whose father was a doble-hop frog said so! Every frog has a identity crisis: `I'm NOT a frog!'-just like someone who said : `I'm NOT drunk!' These lingo makes enough of the growing frogology discourse.

* Putting the `morality' issues aside ther are now a growing school of frog thought: The tips for frogs when contemplating hopping: No.1 -examine the lauch pad: are they given a good kick when you hop? The bigger the kick to the party you dump the more value you will get from the landing spot! Case study: When Lim Boo Chang and Lim Chien Aun of Gerakan hopped to MCA it delivered such a kick to the Gerakan that Gerakan almost lost the CM position to MCA! As a result both Lims were allowed to stand as candidates in subsequent elections; Unfortunate for them voters at that time didn't warm up to the frogs and both got fried!

Tips No. 2: Have a good look where yo want to hop! Your landing spot may make or unmake your political/frog career! Refer to the fate of the 2 Lims above for bad experiences; Also there are many DAP frogs who landed in Gerakan and MCA and had done very well since eg Richard Ho landed in high position in MCA after leaving DAP;

Tips No.3: Have a good excuse to cover up the traitorous hop. It is really a drama with a fixed plot: first the intending frog criticise the existing leadership for weaknesses; Then he/she claims that he/she can't get a good reply from the hopeless leadership and so he/she is leaving for greener pastures; Then the welcoming party from the other side who arrange a membership form delivery ceremony with media in attendant; It is mandatory that the party who lost their frog/s said that the leaving party is `bought' over; while the receiving party denying that money had ever changed hands! But there was a case reported in the media where some huge debts were cancelled after a hop! Some well travelled road for frogging had established lingo for hoppers and their points of hopping: Leaving UMNO usually is excused on `corruption' while returning to UMNO: `for unity of the Bangsa'. Ezam didn't invent any new lingo for his hop recently-he just rehashed the tried and accepted cliche; There is always a lot of `principles' to hop over-hopping principles and principles that hops are interchangable-at least for frogs;

Tip No.4: Bring along a load of other supporters to create an impression of a big hop-say` 100 branches' hop along with the said frog; But the media never seems interested to verify the claims of the frogs -this seems to be a media taboo! They also never asked if the folks standing besides the frog leader has been a party member of the `sending' party or not;

Tip No.5 : `timing is everything' -so said a big time frog hunter recently; So hopping is for the `rainy season' only eg near an election/by-election. Sometimes it happens after elections-like now! Nothing seems to focus the voters' mind than frogging...

Tip No.6: Just when you think hopping is so `immoral'-actually the legal minds/human right advocates/Judges confirmed that hopping is a human rights' even though only frogs hop every so often! It is only human to hop -and but hoping is 2nd nature to frogs! Hop to improve your fortune seems like a `natural' `rational' thing-something you always like to do more than you speak openly about; So don't be the last one in town who had not hopped! Writing a `how to hop' guide book will be a future best-seller....