dari kacamata yang berbeza

Balada Petani Tua

Barjo tubuh sederhana

mata bulat kepala berkulat

kulit kematu -

di bawah mentari bulan satu

suatu harapan bumi tiada retak

Markonah isteri setia

mata cangkung tiga belas anak mengepung

berlindung di bawah kepak petani

tanah sekepal rumah sebuah pusaka mati

Justeru Tumin putera tua

sisa pertarungan manusia

menegakkan pepanji bangsa

telah cedera kaki tiada ertinya

Sedang Tuban putera kedua

gonjol - gilakan janda kaya

sehari kerja sehari melawa

usia kian memanjat senja

dunia tanpa difikir diri berkecamuk jua

Dan Gareng anak ketiga

tiga kali kahwin bercerai jua

betapa harta tiada berbudi sementara

ditambah bini-bini yang culas,curang dan meradang

tidak mengenal batas bertandang dan kecundang

Si Gawok puteri keempat

kematian suami anak empat

tutup lubang gali lubang

penebus kehidupan segala termengkalan

Sentot belia nganggur

putera kelima tamat sekolah atap

sijil berlipat menyogok harap

tukang sapu tukang angkat

Saring ada SRP pangkat C

putera keenam paling tabah

tiada pernah meminta-minta

surau dan gubuk istana perlindungan

hasrat ingin merakam seluruh kehidupan:

( keluarga kami petani tradisi

mahu mendaki ingin menguji

bangsa manusia tiada serupa )

Jemblong putera ketujuh paling gelojoh

ringan tulang kenyang berdagang

pengasih dan penyanyang -

ya, kesayangan ayahda bonda sekeluarga

malang bersekolah tiada

Gambreng dan Mumberuh kembar kemerdekaan

sekolahnya sekerat jalan

dangkal dan tawakal

mewarisi dan kekal

Seriwut putera paling pintar

sabar dan berlapar

ayahbonda telah berkerat-kelar

cita-cita dan debar

anaku ; Pemimpin besar

Bolot putera bungkus

satu kepercayaan amat kudus

berani, kebal macam Mat Kilau

pada dengan kalimah lebai bagai rasul

jauh dari fatwa yang unggul

dan lari dari pedih perit

bulan dan mentari sakit

kesal dan menyesak menggigit

Tomblok puteri ayu

timangan ibu segera bermenantu

pemuda kaya paling tiada tukang kayu

sedang tubuh berkudis buta

sekolah darjah dua

betapa saudara kandung hidup derita

Dan Jombot puteri bungsu

- tiga belas hatinya kelabu

tanpa pesta dunia maju

segala layu dan kaku

Sepasang petani tua

- bumi dan manusia

bersyukur atas segala pemberian

bertawakal dalam perjuangan

rezeki secupak bukan segantang jadinya

Dan hiduplah petani perjuangan

tidak mengukur baju dibadan orang

tetapi memacu tega belas jiwa

bagai buldoza raksaksa

sekali-sekala lumpuh kemahuannya

( S. Panit : Berita Minggu )

Parti

Aku yang bukan aku lagi di majlis ini

yang menilai erti tamadun dengan sinis sekali

yang menyerikan malam dengan nion warna-warni

dengan ganja dan malboro serta gadis lincah

yang manis yang manja yang menggila

yang sweet seventeen yang bermini yang membayang

dengan fesyen yang paling latest dipamerkan

yang ketat yang padat yang harum bau topaz

yang melondeh yang terkeweh di tengah gelanggang

Aku bukan aku lagi di situasi yang gentleman ini

yang harus sporting yang harus kontemporary

yang harus melonggarkan sopan-santun dan berbudi-budi

jika para peria dan gadis manisku yang di sini

yang ada siangnya memakai uniform seragam putih dan hijau

yang pada siangnya membimbit buku dan jalan atas batu

di malam ini ia ketawa dan ia rela disentuh raba

di malam ini ia girang ia tidak keseorangan

di sudut-sudut kelam dalam rangkulan peria berambut panjang

Aku yang bukan akau lagi dalam keadaan yang normal ini

yang harus menyangkutkan tatamoralis di gelas anggur

yang harus bermuka-muka sekali pun dengan egoku

jika tamu dan jagonya dari elite yang ideal sekali

yang senyum lebar ala hippies di atas pentas

berbicara lagak Tom Jones garau suaranya

dengan gadis manis beralis lentik Max Factor

menari menyanyikan lagu Love is Blue

penuh emosional dan menggetar kalbu

malam yang ganas yang lunak yang menghairahkan

tika kugiran kian rancak dengan caca dan twist

kini tiada yang abnormal dan mengantuk layu

segalanya segar bugar segalanya meloncat bersama pasangan

yang minum yang menanti yang terus menari

yang mesra yang membisik-bisik ke telinga

bertukar gelas bertukar tangan bertukar rangkulan

Aku yang kembali normal di malam itu

terasa jauh datarnya nilai reality ini

sekeping hati telah cacat cedera

dalam kehangatan itu ku hirup sebuah keruntuhan

gadis periaku yang hanyut di tengah jalan.

( Ahmad Sarju :Mastika )

GUNTOR SADALI:

Speech by Berita Harian Singapore editor Guntor Sadali, at the Berita Harian Singapore Achiever of the Year Awards ceremony on July 28, 2010: It is a fact known to all that Malays in Singapore are a minority. However this minority is quite different from other minorities in the world. Similarly, to some, Singapore is just a red dot in this vast Asian region. But it is no ordinary red dot. It is a grave mistake to equate size with ability, just as it is wrong to assume that being small and in the minority is to be weak and insignificant. The recent World Cup proved this. While Spain may be the world champion, it was minnow Switzerland that became the only country in the tournament that was able to defeat Spain. Forty-five years have passed since Singapore left Malaysia, yet every now and then we still hear non-complimentary comments from across the Causeway about the Malay community here. The latest came from former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who casually reminded Malaysian Malays not to become like Singaporean Malays. He did not make it clear what he actually meant, but the comment was made in the context of the possibility of Malaysian Malays losing their power in Malaysia. Again he did not specify what type of power, but it could safely be interpreted as political power. Now, what could have happened to the Malays here in the last four decades? What could have driven Dr Mahathir to voice his concern and to caution the Malaysian Malays? I wonder. The Malay community in Singapore, of course, know what has become of us here. First and foremost, we have become a completely different community from what we were 45 years ago. We have developed our own identity and philosophy of life that are distinct from our relatives across the Causeway. We may wear the same clothes, eat the same food, speak the same language and practise the same culture. However, the similarities end there. We are now a society that upholds the philosophy of wanting to stand on our own feet, or what is known in Malay as ‘berdikari’ or ‘berdiri atas kaki sendiri’. We do not believe in being spoon-fed or being too dependent on government help. In other words, we do not have a crutch mentality.We firmly believe that a community with such a crutch mentality will soon become a “two M” community – the first ‘M’ stands for ‘manja’ (spoilt), and the second for ‘malas’ (lazy). We definitely do not want to be labelled as a pampered and lazy community. That is why our Malay community here constantly work hard to raise funds to build our own mosques, madrasahs and other buildings in expensive and land-scarce Singapore. Over the years we have raised millions of dollars to become proud owners of these buildings. Through our own efforts and with the help of other organisations, we have also helped the needy not only financially, but also in equipping them with new skills so that they can earn their living. For Dr Mahathir, however, all that we have done and achieved so far are not good enough. He takes a negative view of our changed attitudes and different mindset, and has therefore cautioned Malaysian Malays not to be like us. What about power? For Malays in Singapore, power is not about wielding the keris. For us, knowledge is power. In fact we believe that knowledge is THE real power. The constant emphasis by the community on the importance of education and acquiring knowledge has led to the formation of institutions such as Mendaki, Association of Muslim Professionals (AMP), the Prophet Mohamad Birthday Memorial Scholarship Board (LBKM) and many others. These self-help organisations not only provide financial help to needy students, but also strive to nuture our students to their full potential. At the same time, these organisations help to tackle various social ills faced by the community. Again, we do these all on our own. Malay children here attend the same schools as other Singaporeans with a shared aim – to obtain a holistic education and, of course, achieve good examination results. Yes, it is tough. Like all other children, our Malay students have no choice but to work hard. It is a reality of life in Singapore that we have come to accept – that there is certainly no short cut to success. We do not believe in getting any special treatment, because it would only reduce the value of our achievements and lower our dignity. The meritocratic system that we practise here is, without doubt, a tough system but it helps us to push ourselves and prevent us from becoming ‘manja’ and ‘malas’. Still, Dr Mahathir and some Malay leaders across the Causeway do not like the way we do things here and have therefore warned Malaysian Malays not to be like us. On our part, there is certainly no turning back. Meritocracy has proven to be a good and fair system. It pushes us to work hard and makes us proud of our achievements. We can see how it has benefited us by looking at the growing number of doctors, lawyers, magistrates, engineers, corporate leaders and other professionals among us. It is the successes and achievements of some of these people that Berita Harian wants to highlight and celebrate when we launched this Achiever Award 12 years ago. Tonight, we have another role model to present to our community. So, the question is: Shouldn’t our friends and relatives across the Causeway be like us – Malays in Singapore? It is definitely not for us to suggest or decide. And we too have no intention of asking our own community if we would like to be like them either, because we have already chosen our very own path for the future. We, the Malays in Singapore, should be proud of our achievements, because we have attained them through hard work. It is true that what we have achieved so far may not be the best, and that we are still lagging behind the other races. There are large pockets in our community facing various social problems. We have achieved so much, and yet there is still a long way to go. But we should not despair. We can do a lot more on our own if the community stay united and cohesive. In critical issues, we should speak with one voice. We need to help and strengthen each other while at the same time reach out to the other communities in multi-racial, multi-religious Singapore. A successful and prosperous Singapore can only mean a successful and prosperous Malay community. Can we do it? Well, to borrow US President Barack Obama’s campaign slogan, “ Yes, we can”.

Hati Siapa Tak Terharu

Siapa yang merasakan miliknya tergugat

adalah rasa kesedaranmu penuh tanggungjawab

betapa terharu hatiku hatimu yang mencintai bumi ini

satu demi satu mereka lepaskan ke tangan orang lain

yang mereka kira itu suatu paksaan kerana

yang tak pernah mereka tangisi untuk hutang esok hari

bahawa haknya kini telah hilang kini

walaupun di tanahair sendiri.

Alangkah berhati mulia engkau para pembela

kerana engkau lebih dahulu melihat peristiwa itu

yang perlu diselamatkan dari kehancurannya

bilamana kita ditagih oleh anak-anak kita

- bumi inikah tanahair kita?

bilamana mereka akan terpesona dengan kegagahannya

dan betapa hancur kita tika mengakuinya

sedang model kebesaran ini milik siapa?

Hati siapa yang tak terharu mengenangkannya

patahnya percintaan tidak sederhana penanggungan ini

sekali pun segenggam pasir tiada harga

tetapi kerana ia pertaruhan maruah dan nyawa

maka perginya menjadi kehinaan seluruh bangsa

seperti kita tiada tenaga untuk melindunginya.

Aduh betapa berdarahnya hati yang sedia tersayat

menimbal-balik cerita lara para buruh, petani dan pelaut

kini ladang itu sawah itu telah lama hanyut

dibawa arus kepunyaan asing bumi kian surut

maka mereka pun melepaskan tak terdaya menebus kembali

kerana difikirkan hidup matinya untuk mereka sendiri

bahawa rumah yang didirikan dengan gagah tersergam

di atas tanah yang bukan miliknya lagi.

Betapa kudus hatimu

yang bisa melihat hari depan bangsamu

dan kini engkau menjadi penyelamat

kepada setiap inci tanah dan setiap bumimu

dan melindunginya dari sebarang kemungkaran

semoga bumi ini tidak pecah berserpihan

Aduh, pengertian ini melerai cerita semalam

melihat ladang melihat sawah hijau terbentang

berbelah bagi hati sendiri untuk menganalisakan

setelah seorang pengembara senyum-senyum menawarkan

suatu kebanggaan demi kegagahan bumi ini

sedang hati kita terus pedih dan terus kita lindungi

dengan suatu anggukan.

Kini ada suara dari hati yang tersembunyi

yang lebih lama menangisi cerita pedih ini

kemudian didirikan satu keyakinan

di seluruh hati bangsanya sambil bersuara lembut

selamatkanlah kerana perahu belum jauh hanyut.

( Dewan Masyarakat )