Positive Suggestions for The Opposition

For the OPPOSITION!

Here are some positive suggestions:

On the election:
If you join the election, join it!
Threatening to boycott the election is a rusty, old and dull chisel. Declaring the election process as unfair, not free and yet participating in it anyway is another weakness that makes the world getting whacked. The CPP knows this well and use it to its benefit. If you join the election, join it. Ask the world to come in and help monitor the election. Don’t stop them. Why the fear? When you find that the election is rigged and unacceptable, prove it and show it to the world and help correct it with positive attitude. If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.

On your Opponent:
Learn from your Opponent!
The Opposition needs to learn from the CPP. Many CPP ‘s Opponents are blinded by their hatred, anger, revenge and are biased to the point that they do not want to learn from what the CPP has been doing to keep on winning. They resort to personal attacks. When they watch Hun Sen’s speeches, they only see the bad remarks that he makes and don’t bother to realize that Hun Sen does not speak to “the world” but to those who speak the same language as he does—the average Cambodians. They should realize that the world don’t and can’t vote, but the average Cambodians do and can.

On your image: 
Arrogance is destructive!
The Opposition leaders need to stop being arrogant. One of the behaviors that the Opposition needs to change is to stop looking down on the CPP leaders as monkeys, an ignorant bunch, animals, criminals, traitors and all other negative adjectives that if people of the world really know what they mean they will view the Opposition as extremists. Such destructive expressions and behaviors will repel not only voters at the grassroots levels mostly controlled by the CPP, but they will make the “International Community” think twice. Remember, birds of a feather flock together.

On the Vietnamese issue:
Work with the Vietnamese, not for them or against them!
Show the world that you can work with the Vietnamese, not against them. The Opposition needs to stop instilling fears into Khmer people’s mind about the Vietnamese issue. Fears feed more fears. Racial connotations should be tuned down and toned down. Teaching the people to understand our history and to help stop illegal immigration does not have to include racial attacks and or painting people with the same brush. Bigger nations like the United States and other democratic nations that deal directly with Vietnam won’t be able to help you much. Remember, it’s the economy stupid. The world now is different.

On your organizational structure:
Help close all leaks in your organization, morally, financially and materially! 

Organize your mind first and close all leaks of your good morality if you have it. If you need help, get help to gain or regain your good moral conducts. There are plenty of institutions that can teach you and some of them are for free---good Buddhist temples. However paying someone to help you and your organization is better, because you will value it more. But, the best person who can help you most effectively is YOU. 

Don’t trade your integrity with the immoralities found in the current society that you want to change. Keep your ethical conducts checked if you want to give your life to the public and if you want to make a living from serving the people. Your mind is the ground for all things. Therefore your outside organization is only as good as your inside one. 

If you fail to clean your mind then you won’t be able to have a clean and uncorrupted organization. If your organization is corrupted, your political life or public life will also end sooner or later. In addition, you will not be able to challenge others about their weaknesses because you also have your own. Two wrongs can’t be right. Two rights can’t be wrong. So, be on the right side. You are in the business to save our country, don’t mess up our country with your immoral activities. 

Good morality is the most important. Once you apply it, others will follow. It begins with your admission that your own past is imperfect but don’t use this “no one is perfect” reason as an alibi to continue doing the same things. 

Tell everyone in your organization that you and everyone will start it freshly and get him or her involved in special training for political and professional ethics and moral principles. Once your members at all levels improve their morality, you will see less corruption inside your own organization. You will save money, time and effort. This can be translated into more votes. And even if your opponents wrongly attack you, the whole world will know, especially your own little world will judge you appropriately. 

For now, as I can see it, your organization is like a Swiss cheese with holes, close them holes. Begin it now with the correction of your morality. 

You may tell us the “it’s easy said that done” jingle and use it as an alibi not to correct your mental attitude, but remember this: You are in the business to do the hardest thing for our country. If it were easy, someone else would have done it long before you. 

Just do it.

Timothy Chhim
June 24, 2013