Power is knowledge

Posted by B4Orafter on November 18, 2002 at 12:44:45:

hai Jabbers,

B4 dah cakap, pasal

Pentagon's "Scientia Est Potentia" = knowledge is power.

The reverse is also true, that is to say " Power is knowledge" or in Latin "Potentia Est Scientia".

Your reasoning is commenable for it is a truism (not 100% mind you) to say that:
The Bibau, Biatah and Bisadong are disaffected, disadvantaged and seemingly isolated. We MUST know that this is infact the truth. This is the first part of the knowledge. YES, a big YES, we are disaffecetd, disadvantage and isolated. The knowledge that we know that we are DISAFFECTED, DISADVANATGE AND ISOLATED is POWER.
Because we know, we MUST act.
BUT before we act, we MUST also know the power we have!
BUT before dissecting these existential questions let us just analyse B4's pertinent questions.

1. Is this because they have no voice?
The answer to this is clearly a big NO.
The BiBau, BiAtah and BiSadung do have a BIG voice.
Oh yes, can we discuss also, how we should spell BiBau etc.
My understanding of the Bidayuh way suggest that Bibau, should be spell as BiBau. The capital letter indicate the geographical region. This means also that BiBau refer to "The people of Bau". It should not be equated with say "Penangite" or Isrealite etc.
The "Bi" refers to "the people".
Now back to B4's question of NO VOICE.
We have. We know we have! We know we have the potential to have!
The problem is (to my uneducated, apolitical mind) that we are not aware of this. Therefore according "Scientia Est Potentia", we are not absolutely aware of the knowledge that we have the voice, therefore, since we do not know, we would therefore have NO power!
We have the voice. BUT, how do we use this voice.
In politic, the Bidayuh are so split into SPDP, SNAP, PBB,PBDS, SOUP, Star, UMNO. What the hell is going on?
In every Bidayuh kupuo, there are SNAP, SOUP, PBB, PBDS and now SPDP members. The result; Disunity!
Our voice MUST be unity. According to my naive mind, one way to do this
is to elect a Bidayuh paramount chief, something like the Ibans, The Orang Ulus in the past and the Kadazandusun now.
But who should this person be? If we are not careful, this could contribute towards further disunity.
In my mind, I can see a few suitbale candidate from Singghai, Bau, Penrissen and Serian. The criteria for election/appointment should
to my apolitical mind include the following: political credential, administrative experience, personal power, network, charisma, personal attributes etc.
BUT this is institutional (including DBNA lah, just in case somebody get unpset). How about individual voices.
After all the roar of the wind they say "results from the billions of little voices of the air". Or some people may say, the deafening torrential rain, result from billions of raindrops.
Britong is one group voice. DBNA is another. Our own grouping or friends is another. The politician form another.
Since B$ brought up the matter about UNIMAS, yes, where are the Bidayuh. One may rightly ask " Why no Bidayuh Professor in the world so far?" This is NOT something that is beyond us.
Look at the splendid Melanau group, YES, they have a number of Professors. Why can,t the Bidayuh? A matter of VOICE,...
"Potential Est Scientia" or is it "Scientia Est Potentia".

B4 asked "Is this because they are not heard?" My friends, power only listen to the roar of angry lions!
My friends, the disunited voice of sheep is nothing to fear! The squaking of chickens and ducks is only a sign of their heading for the chopping block!
The Bidayuh should roar like a lion, fight like a wounded tiger, charge like an abuse elephant, attack like a shark, stalk like a jaguar, strike with the force of 170,000 tons. Hunt like a pack of hyenas! Communicate with the haunting call of the wolves.
Learn from the Melanaus. If the Melanaus can do it why can,t we? Yes, for sure there are difference, Yes, but we must learn from their great chief "White hair sitting bull".
Why can we also have a chief "black hair rabid woverine?"
BUT knowing a little about the Bidayuh, I seriously doubt, whether we can ever be united! I mean (no disrespect), we are rather parochial. We want a Bidayuh paramount chief from our own area, don,t we? Honest! We stab at each other, don,t we? Honest? Have you seen such things among the Melanau?
We are only confine to formerly, Kuching Division, yet, we are not so united. Compare to the Melanau! They are disperse in many division, yet they are united! What is their secret? Sure, one of their super glue is their paramount chief.

Sorry to drag the Ibans into the discussion. No disrespect to our Ibans brother, but, seriously, to my mind the Ibans are as badly disunited as the Bidayuh! But this is only a recent thing. Under the late Tun Jugah, they were united! Sorry to suggest something that may be so rediculous. But, sometime maybe it is not worth inventing the wheel, thus what, yes, what if I suggest that we Bidayuh enblock start calling ourseleve Melanaus (honorary or whatever)? I mean why have another paramount chief when we know that their is already a much more powerful chief White hair sitting bull! I mean look at the history of the American wild west.
Don,t you think that too many chiefs is not good for the Indian? Why not consider ourselves as the Indian. It doesn,t really matter, whether we are Cherokkee, or any other of those numerous Indian tribes. Suppose those Indian were united under Chief Sitting Bull, would history be different.
After all, in Sarawak, we are only and really is one Indian (Sarawakian), so why don,t we all start calling ourselve Melanau. What is wrong with that? Our Melanau brothers would naturally be a little unhappy, but what if we become adapted by Melanau family.
I think I will do that, ahem....jangan mareh eh...
or maybe kahwin Melanau.... tak borek kah?
B4 asked "Is this because they are ignored or rejected?". Nope the answer is a resounding NO! Look, years ago, even under the colonist, the Bidayuh were never ignored or rejected. Look back at history. See, there was various Bidayuh Temenggong. There was Datuk Dago right there with Tun Rahman, Ningkan. Yep, that is no evidence of being ignored or rejected!
That was in the ancient days. In recent years, the Bidayuh are not ignored or rejected. Sure there were brief episode, when some section of the bidayuh community were rather too clever by half. There were people who believe in confrontation! Yes there were time, when my kupuo were deprive of development for 4 years, cos, the people voted a firebrand, who promises everything under the sun, but were actually dim witted not to realise their terrible errors.

Today, we may feel rejected or ignored, NOT because we are rejeceted and ignored. It is merely, the idea that we are ignored, so "scientia Est Potentia".

The wrong knowledge that we are ignored and rejected make us lost power.
The message and the idea we should propagate to the Bidayuh community is this

"WE HAVE THE VOICE,
WE HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE,
WE ARE NOT REJECTED,
WE ARE NOT IGNORED"

WE ARE PART OF THE POWER.
WE WORK WITH THE POWER.
WE TALK WITH THE POWER
WE DISCUSS WITH THE POWER.

MOST OF ALL WE MUST BE UNITED UNDER THE POWER.
NOTHING IRRITATE THE POWER THAN DISUNITY.
I mean who to trust, if the Bidayuh themselve cannot trust their own leaders?
Points to ponder brothers!