Makers of men, creators of leaders

Kalimullah Hassan

The Malaysian Insider

May 29, 2011

MAY 29 — In the movie “Scent of a Woman”, actor Al Pacino plays the character of the blind retired US Army Lt Col Frank Slade who befriends young Charlie Simms. Charlie, despite his disadvantaged background, is a student at an elite school — Baird — which has produced some of America’s great business and political leaders, thinkers and scholars.

Charlie witnesses an act of vandalism, a schoolboy prank, by three of his schoolmates, all of whom are from old money and privileged backgrounds. The school, supposedly standing by its tradition of integrity and propriety, demands that Charlie Simms tells on his friends and even entices him with a scholarship to Harvard if he does. This was the moral dilemma he faced — sell his soul and be rewarded, or, keep his integrity and be punished.

Charlie kept his silence and refused to blow the whistle on his friends. His friends, on the other hand, kept their silence to save their skins even though it meant that Charlie would be punished.

At the disciplinary hearing, before the whole school, the three pranksters had their well-known fathers and family present to support them but Charlie was alone as his parents could not afford the trip to Baird from Oregon.

I have always cherished the scene in the movie when the blind Lt Col Slade turns up at the hearing just as the disciplinary board was about to pass judgment on Charlie. The headmaster had just finished chastising Charlie, saying he had no choice but to expel him because Charlie was “not worthy of being a Baird man.”

That’s when Frank Slade stands up and says, “Mr. Simms doesn’t want it. He doesn’t need to be labelled…” still worthy of being a Baird man.” What the hell is that? What is your motto here? Boys, inform on your classmates, save your hide; anything short of that, we’re gonna burn you at the stake?

“Well, gentlemen, when the s*** hits the fan, some guys run and some guys stay. Here’s Charlie facing the fire, and there’s George (one of the perpetrators) hiding in big daddy’s pocket. And what are you (the school) doing? You’re going to reward George … and destroy Charlie?

“I don’t know who went to this place. William Howard Taft (the 27th President of the United States), William Jennings Bryan (a prominent US politician in the 19th century), William Tell (the legendary Swiss folk hero), whoever …

“(But) their spirit is dead, if they ever had one. It’s gone. You’re building a rat ship here, a vessel for seagoing snitches. And if you think you are preparing these minnows for manhood, you better think again, because I say you are killing the very spirit this institution proclaims it instils.”

In a powerful performance that perhaps only few like Al Pacino could deliver, Frank Slade rounds up his argument by saying these telling words: “As I came in here, I heard those words: (that Baird is) ‘the cradle of leadership; makers of men, creators of leaders.’

“Well … be careful what kind of leaders you are producing here. I don’t know if Charlie’s silence here today is right or wrong; I’m not a judge or jury. But I can tell you this — he won’t sell anybody out to buy his future! And that, my friends, is called integrity. That’s called courage. Now that’s the stuff leaders should be made of.

“I have come to the crossroads in my life. I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew, but I never took it. You know why? It was too damned hard. Now here’s Charlie. He’s come to the crossroads. He has chosen a path. It’s the right path. It’s a path made of principle … that leads to character.

“Let him continue on his journey. You hold this boy’s future in your hands. It’s a valuable future, believe me. Don’t destroy it. Protect it. Embrace it. It is going to make you proud one day, I promise you.”

Why do I love this story? Because, like Lt Col Frank Slade, I believe most, if not all, of us know what the right path is. But there are very few amongst us who are steadfast in always doing the right thing — because we are human; because compromise is easier; because, like Slade said, following the right path is “too damned hard.”

For the rare few who stand tall amongst us — like Rev B H Balderstone and Rev D D Moore who stood in front of our own Methodist Boys School in Penang when it was first started in 1891 persuading children to come and study there — perhaps doing the right thing came easy. But for the vast majority of us, character came from those who made an effort to mould it — our parents, perhaps, but most of all the teachers, the educators, who guided us from the early years of our life.

As an alumnus of Pykett Methodist School in the 1960s and Methodist Boys School until 1974, I vividly remember and can still see the faces of my teachers in primary school like Ho Thow Kim, Chuah Thean Choon, Khor Kim Leng, Miss Khoo Chiew Geok, Mrs Kanagaratnam and our principal Mr D S Ramanathan. In MBS, who among my generation can forget Mr Stanley David, who taught us Japanese songs he learned during the Second World War, or our sports teachers like the indefatigable Mr R D Sharma and the disciplinarian Tan Poh Seng; or the kindly Mr Yeoh Seng Hong and the eccentric Mr Khoo Teng Joo; or the humorous Pastor Hwa Jen and the sometimes caustic Teh Kee Lin; or the Jawi-writing Paul Chong and the tall, sturdy Yew Chin Wah who later became a pilot, and by that strange stroke of fate that we sometimes see, is now a senior pilot in Air Asia X, in which I am a founding member of the board of directors?

It was they and the long line of illustrious teachers before and after them, who kept to the traditions and spirit on which MBS was founded and built, and who taught us how to laugh at ourselves, how to be disciplined, how to persevere in doing the right thing and how to blend with and support each other and become the kind of society and community we wished for.

Yes, we were caned; and yes, we were made to stand on chairs or outside the classroom for schoolboy pranks or for not doing our homework. Mr Chuah Thean Choon did not believe in sparing the rod. I was caned 10 times by him — and I remember many of those canings vividly — when I was in his class in Standard Four. I was one of the lucky ones because most of my other classmates were caned more times than that. That would not be possible today, would it?

If there were still Chuah Thean Choons around, they would have been hounded out by indulging parents and Parent Teacher Associations; but perhaps, I am too nostalgic of an era when there were different values and different norms.

Nevertheless, it was these teachers and it is the tradition on which MBS was founded that has seen this school produce no less than a prime minister of Malaysia, top scientists, academics, soldiers, businessmen, sportsmen, civil servants, judges and doctors.

I have walked down the heritage hall here many times and each time, as I look at the pictures on the walls of the luminaries who passed this way, I burst with pride that I am from this school. Even from my year of 1974, I see how many of my classmates and friends are today driving forces not only in our country but in the region — as CEOs, senior civil servants, entrepreneurs, doctors and academics. But most of all, there are many of them who are just ordinary good people of good character. I, perhaps, was one of the few playful and not-so-clever enough to get into university then. But MBS, I would like to believe, made me a better man. While there is wistful regret that my four children did not go to my alma mater, I believe that I have imparted the values that I acquired in this school to them. For that, they are better people than me and, I hope and pray, that they will continue to be good Malaysians who will contribute to their society and their country.

Bishop Dr Hwa Yung says in his opening message on our school’s 120th anniversary that things seem to have changed for the worse. I could not agree any less with him. These are challenging years for our country and our countrymen. But then again, looking at our own history at MBS, I ask myself what could have been more challenging than the times of Rev Balderstone, Moore and Pykett who had to start up this institution that we are so proud of today, standing on street corners to persuade people to get an education? What could have been more challenging than to get dedicated educators to build a tradition and a heritage that allows us to walk with our heads high and say proudly: “I am from MBS.”

Like Bishop Hwa Yung, I believe that in recent years, we have been sliding — not only in education, but also as a society and as a country. The famous poet Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Ozymandias is a sound reminder to us all.

OZYMANDIAS

I met a traveller from an antique land

Who said: “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,

Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown

And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.

And on the pedestal these words appear:

`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:

Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!’

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,

The lone and level sands stretch far away”.

Whenever I read this poem these days, I think of the challenges our society and country today face. Sometimes, it appears as if the dreams, the ideals, the spirit we had as a young nation are precariously clutching on to a fragile foundation, fearful of a strong gust of wind that will blow these dreams and ideals away.  Will the challenges we face today result in a future where, like Ozymandia’s great empire, all that remain are a “colossal wreck, boundless and bare,” and where “the lone and level sands stretch far away”.

For 120 years, Methodist Boys School, like many premier institutions throughout the country, was the “cradle of leadership; the maker of men, the creators of leaders.”

Lt Col Frank Slade asked the administrators of Baird: “What is your motto here?”

The MBS motto is: “Whatsoever things are true; whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.”

And in our school song, which most of us have not forgotten for the sheer reason that it inspired us, we used to sing:

Pykett came to blaze the trail

There’s no room for hearts that quail

Learn that there can be no rest

Till you have given off your best

If the students of MBS today and in the future continue to hold on to our motto of whatsoever things are true, if the many dedicated old boys and teachers like Dato Lim Cheng Chuan (Chairman of the Board of Governors) continue to contribute with selfless dedication, if our society and countrymen emulate that spirit of giving our best, then, perhaps, we will continue to overcome the challenges and decades from now, long after we are gone, our Heritage Hall may have to find a new home to accommodate the continuing list of illustrious Malaysians from MBS.

As for me, I will always be proud to be an MBS boy. Because it taught me, like the fictional Charlie Simms in “Scent of a Woman”, that when the s*** hits the fan, we don’t run; we stay. That if we maintain our integrity and courage, if we follow the right path and stick to our principles, if we don’t sell our soul for our future, our spirit will remain intact. And we shall overcome.

* Kalimullah Hassan, a former journalist and a businessman, is a member of the Board of Governors of Methodist Boys School Penang. This article was published in the souvenir programme of the school’s 120th anniversary on May 28, 2011.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 31 May 2011, 8:36 am and is filed under
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Negara Ku no more

By
CeeKay

May 30, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

MAY 30 — I was born in 1958, a year after Merdeka. My dad came from China and my mom was born in Kota Bahru, Perak. I have known Malaysia to be my one and only home and I am proud to say that I am a Malaysian anywhere I go despite all the shortcomings of this nation.

I grew up in a kampung near Alor Star where there were fewer than 10 Chinese families but we were treated well by our Malay neighbours. We celebrated Chinese New Year and Hari Raya together, visiting each others’ homes, with no fear of whether the food was halal or against our religion?

Konfrontasi bought the villagers together and I can remember my Dad and my brothers helping out doing guard duties together with our Malay neighbours. May 13 came and went without any incident and, in fact, the Chinese families were escorted out to town by our Malay neighbours. Some of my best friends were from this kampung; we swam in the stream and played in the padi fields. These are fond memories.

After Form Six, I came down to KL to study at UM with a loan from the state government which I am grateful for till today. Graduated and started my career with a big MNC. Settled down in KL/PJ area till today and I must say that I have been blessed so far.

I was lucky to be appointed CEO of an MNC at the age of 34 and today, I am the managing director of a French company. Life has been good with regular overseas trips both for business and pleasure for my family and me and I have always asked myself this question: Would I be what I am if I have left the country in the early ‘90s? Would I have been able to make it to the CEO’s position if I had left for Australia like many of my friends? The answer is NO. And I have never regretted my decision to stay on in this beloved country of ours.

But things are changing; in fact the changes started over the last 15 to 20 years. We are more polarised now, no thanks to the politicians… something which I don’t want to elaborate here. I am beginning to ask myself whether this is the country that I know.

My two sons do feel the outright discrimination. Both are straight As students and thanks to their dad who can afford to fund them through private colleges/universities, they are OK. My eldest son left for a university in the US after his pre-U here and was offered a partial scholarship based on merit even before he landed in Milwaukee.

He graduated in 2008 and is now pursuing his PhD in molecular biology at a renowned university in Texas. Guess what? Do you think he will return to Malaysia after his post-graduate studies? Can Talent Corp entice him back in view of the current political situation? The answer is NO!

My second son is a qualified accountant and is with one of the Big 4 firms. He is doing well and if there is an opportunity for him to move elsewhere, he has my blessings. Malaysia will always be home and all that is required is a bit of travelling after my retirement to visit them and also their annual trips back.

Yes, this is a great place to live, a great place for hawker food and everything else but would I want to be selfish and allow my grandchildren to suffer and endure all these discriminations? Unless there is a political will to change for the better. Until that day happens, I am sad to say that this is no longer the country that I know, that I had enjoyed my childhood and growing up years in. This is Negara Ku no more!

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 31 May 2011, 9:56 am and is filed under
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Umno — self-induced rigor mortis

Sakmongkol AK47

The Malaysian Insider

May 30, 2011

MAY 30 — I have written so many essays critical of Umno in the past.

Friends asked me why am I still in Umno? How can I write many nasty things about Umno and seemed to get away with it — why haven’t I been hauled up by the Umno disciplinary committee or something and not ticked off? Isn’t there anything good that Umno has done.

Let’s clear one thing first. This is the source of many of Umno’s problems. Some people assigned to themselves the right to determine who should or shouldn’t be in Umno. They then judge others in terms of their thinking and criteria. Pak Lah or any others can’t measure up to Mahathir in many aspects. But they are not necessarily inferior to Mahathir. They are different. They must be judged on objective terms, not the subjective standards of one Mahathir.

Najib doesn’t seem to do things anything right according to Mahathir. The old man is so stressed up and suffers physical debilitations.

The problem worsens to become person-centric. One person determines and defines Umno. Inevitably, the right to be in or out of Umno depends on loyalty to individuals and not on the political ideals, ideas, shared vision and so forth.

The problems become multiplied many fold, when Umno ‘farms’ out the responsibility of sieving and determining leadership material to hired hands outside the party. These are the intellectual hacks and overrated audio visual and print media practitioners who arrogate to themselves the ultimate discretion of how should Umno behave.

Hence there are people who think Umno is the personal kingdom of some people and that the issues of these individuals exist to inherit the kingdom of Umno.

What has Umno become then? It becomes an organisation feudal in nature where its leadership depends on being from the right loins. The leadership in Umno is therefore no different from the method of ascribing extraordinary abilities by being conceived from a buloh betong, materialising from a cow’s vomit or suddenly beamed from across the terrestrial highs to bukit si guntang Mahameru.

From thereon, the majority of Umno suckers pledged eternal loyalty to the blue blood.

This is the earliest symptoms of the inability of Umno to manage success. For over the years, Umno attracts a multitude of thoughts, aggressive and independent minded individuals, a vibrant ward of supporters, personalised political inclinations as success unavoidably do, that its continuity and longevity, depends ultimately on the ability to manage all that diversity.

This, the current crop of leadership spawned unfortunately during the Mahathir years failed to do. Umno has generally failed to spawn ‘elastic’ leadership that is capable of adapting. Instead it has led to the emergence of a leadership hell-bent on preserving freakish control and one opposed to internal transformation.

I can only answer by asking why shouldn’t I be in Umno? Umno isn’t the property of the present crop of Umno leaders. Some of them are there because of some unexpected happenstance. They have the right ‘bins’.

You are bin somebody, therefore you are leadership material. This is a fundamental defect of Umno’s leadership. Which I will continue to offer criticisms.

Secondly, I believe I have done nothing wrong to be the guest of the disciplinary committee. Finally, there are of course many good things that Umno has facilitated, whenever there was good leadership.

There are of course the people whose replies are directed ad hominem.

My personal problems used as weapon to demolish my arguments. My service as a one term Umno ADUN taken as an indication that I have not performed well. To the first approach, it only serves to entrench my conviction that the majority of Umno members and supporters do not have the stuff to win over people with reasoned arguments. I employ the term stuff as a mild description. To the second, I myself can’t defend my track record. You asked my detractors they will give you the answers you desire to serve the purpose by which you set out in the first place — i.e. to look for ‘facts’ that can vilify me.

In the not so distant future I hope to be able to tell you my side of the story. I believe it will show that it is not I who will be found wanting — but we will discover that I am put in an environment where Umno can’t manage success.

This then is the biggest problem with Umno now. It just doesn’t know how to manage success. It can’t because it doesn’t have the right leadership with the right values, the right institutions to manage the overall success that Umno has generated for the country.

It is still a party held back by old tools of the trade unable to deal with new realities. The development brought possible by Umno — general rise in educational level, rising expectations, infusion of new values, new experiences, all are never appreciated to the full by Umno. As a result, it’s a party that has refused to adapt. DS Najib as the current Umno president is now desperately trying to force Umno to adapt. — sakmongkol.blogspot.com

* Sakmongkol AK47 is the nom de plume of Datuk Mohd Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz. He was Pulau Manis assemblyman (2004-2008).

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 31 May 2011, 8:17 am and is filed under
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Why I returned

By
Walter

May 30, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

MAY 30 — I left Malaysia in 1988 not long after the upheavals in the Malaysian political scene, which included Operation Lalang and the sacking of the Lord President.

I spent a total of 16 years away — in Singapore, the Middle East, France and the US — as an expatriate, and experienced living abroad. During the period, I had many opportunities to become a permanent resident elsewhere but home is where the heart is… and my heart was not in any of those places. Once our youngest child left for university in 2004, I chose to return to Malaysia. Why?

1. This is my country; I was born/raised here and my family and friends are here, regardless of what label others may put on me.

2. I remain optimistic that better days are ahead. There are other similar minded citizens of all backgrounds in this country and if we combined our time, talent and treasure, we can change the system.

3. It may take us more than one general election but I shall remain resolute and, to borrow the words of Martin Luther King Jr, dream our dream that one day our children and our children’s children will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the strength of their character.

4. I choose not to let a small group of selfish men with puny minds continue to plunder the nation’s wealth and waste the lives of the next generations.

I want to stand and be counted. Come the next general election, the person or persons who share such hopes and aspirations will have my vote and I will persuade others to join me in this campaign to make the difference.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 31 May 2011, 9:51 am and is filed under
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A fight for Malaysia

—
Dr Kamal Amzan

The Malaysian Insider

Jun 01, 2011

JUNE 1 — The country of nasi lemak, rendang, pasembor, rojak and yong tau hu.

A nation of colourful festivals and public holidays that dot the yearly planner, turning any calendar into a polka-dot collage.

It is where you find everyone is related. We are somebody’s “uncles”, “aunties”, “pak ciks” and “mak ciks”, akin to a super big family celebrating our differences in fashionably colourful ways.

A country blessed with pristine, tranquil mountaintops, sandy white beaches and whatever remains of our rich rainforest heritage everywhere.

A place where the east converges before greeting the west.

This is my country. My home, my heaven and my paradise.

I was offered many jobs with mind-boggling salaries and better working conditions overseas. To the cynics: I turned them down, not because I was stupid or short-sighted.

I turned them down because this country means more than just money to me. Its magic and splendour cannot be translated in terms of ringgit and sen. It is indescribable in words, and lost in translation should I even try.

That is the very same reason why I want my children and my grandchildren to live and grow up here. I remain to allow them to experience life and see all the cultures as I saw it, through their eyes and grow up into a being of tolerance and moderation.

Where else can they experience Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Deepavali, Christmas, Thaipusam and Hari Gawai under one roof and receive colourful green and red packets for luck?

My future children and grandchildren aside, I remain here on a quest to make my home, a home to my fellow countrymen who have been disillusioned by the politicians that pollute this beautiful country with racial ideologies for an inch of political mileage.

I want my countrymen to be my brothers and sisters, living in an environment that promotes respect, tolerance, and celebration of each other’s differences, and not one that antagonises, suspects and oppresses one another. This should be the country where we stand equally tall, speak equally loud and strive equally hard to realise each and every one of our dreams.

I remain to ensure that this fight continues, and that this beautiful country remains in the hands of Malaysians, and not those of the pirates who misinterpret our Constitution to justify their greed, which if left unchecked, will threaten to rip the very colourful fabric that makes Malaysia Malaysia.

I remain in this country for all that, and then so much more.

I grew up reciting the Rukunegara every morning. It was a pledge I made, and it is a pledge I plan to keep.

As long as I live, a Malaysian I will remain. So help me God.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 11:09 pm and is filed under
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Can PAS help bring about change in M’sia?

by
Koon Yew Yin

Centre folr Public Initiatives

A few days ago, someone sent me an anonymous e-mail appeal addressed to voters.  According to the appeal, the coming elections, more so than others, is a vital election because we are at a crossroad.  If we get it right we will prosper; if we get it wrong, we will suffer as we have seen in our neighbouring countries.  I cannot agree more with these sentiments.  In the last three years, I have written about the socioeconomic and political crossroad that the country is at, but that has been to a general audience.

I am glad that I now have the opportunity to share my thoughts on this subject with a PAS audience. This is the first time that I am addressing PAS supporters and this is also probably the first opportunity PAS has had to interact with someone like me.

Let me begin by posing a question.  The question that I and many other Malaysians want to ask PAS is how will PAS help the country and ordinary Malaysians take the right road to a brighter and harmonious future?  Which is the road that PAS and its leaders want Malaysians to follow?

The wrong road

Let me tell you which will be the wrong road.  The wrong road is one which aims at setting up a religious state.  The wrong road is the one which seeks to ‘Arabize’ our country or wants to ‘out-islamicize’ Umno.  The fact is that we are a multi-religious and multi-racial country with a constitution based on the principle that Malaysia is a secular state and with Article 3 providing for Islam as the religion of the Federation. This is a principle that all Malaysians accept and no party should undermine in any way.

The great majority of Malaysians – if a referendum is taken right now – will reject the establishment of a religious state. It is not only Malaysians who are not in favour of a religious state.  This is the same everywhere in the world – whether in Asia, Europe, Africa or the American continent. Even in the Middle East which is the heartland of Islam, the clamour of the masses – especially the young – is not for an Islamic state.  Allow me to read you this analysis of the ‘Arab Spring’ or what is happening in the Middle East today:

Motivations

Numerous factors have led to the protests, including the 2009 Iranian protests, dictatorship or absolute monarchy, human rights violations, government corruption, economic decline, unemployment, extreme poverty, and a number of demographic structural factors, such as a large percentage of educated but dissatisfied youth within the population. The catalysts for the revolts in all Northern African and Persian Gulf countries have been the concentration of wealth in the hands of autocrats in power for decades, insufficient transparency of its redistribution, corruption, and especially the refusal of the youth to accept the status quo. (Wikipedia, ‘Arab Spring’)

Clearly the motivations for change are not for a religious state.  They are about the elimination of bad governance.

The right road

From what I can see, the fight against corruption and injustice is also what is driving PAS and its supporters in Malaysia.  Affirmation of this can be seen in the mission statement of PAS which refers to the need for a clean and virtuous government.  This is also apparent from the preamble to the PAS constitution which provides the reason for the party’s mission. Page 1 of the PAS constitution 2011 reads:

BAHAWA dengan sesungguhnya adalah diisytiharkan, demi untuk menyempurnakan taqwa kepada Allah dan kebaktian kepada sesama manusia, yang dijadikan bagi menegakkan al amru bil ma’ruf wan nahyu ‘anil mungkar dalam kehidupan bermasyarakat dan bernegara, maka inilah diisyiharkan sebuah pertubuhan yang dinamakan “Parti Islam Semalaysia.
English translation

“Therefore verily it is hereby proclaimed, that to be pious to God, and to do good works amongst mankind and in establishing virtue (truth) and forbidding evil (falsehood) in the society and nation”, the organization named Parti Islam Malaysia is established”.

It is important that PAS supporters realize that no religion has a monopoly on truth or goodness; and that a similar focus on a clean and virtuous government is emphasized by all other religions, and perhaps even more, by secular faiths and value systems.

As to the right road ahead, the direction is clear from the last elections and it should be continued for the coming elections. In the last election, PAS teamed up with PKR and the DAP to reject the road that the BN has taken the country down.  That election saw the PR – against all odds – win unprecedented support from the public.  The PR coalition in Perak in particular – under the outstanding leadership of Datuk Seri Nizar [Jamaluddin] – provided hope to all Perakians that the state would enter a new era of corruption and crony-free development in which racial and religious fairness and moderation would not be given lip service but would be prioritized and implemented in the policies and programmes of the state government.

In the first year of the PR state government in Perak between March 2008 and Feb 2009 – before the BN coup d’etat – many people-friendly and non-discriminatory actions and initiatives were undertaken by the PR state government. In particular, Datuk Seri’s administration’s grant of freehold title to Perak land owners – many of them non-Malay new village landholders – deserves a place in our history books.  This initiative was intended to correct a major historical injustice which was blatantly ignored, if not perpetrated by Barisan state governments for the past 50 years.

From what I understand, as many as 7,000 lot owners in 134 new villages and 102,000 lot owners in 349 planned villages in Perak (Malays and non-Malays) would have been allowed to convert their land titles from leasehold to freehold. The thumbs-up to this wise and brave initiative is best reflected in the words of former MCA secretary-general and minister of Housing and Local Government Tan Sri Ting Chew Peh who was quoted by a Chinese newspaper as saying: “Upon hearing the good news, my townsmen, relatives and friends applauded till their hands hurt! One who wins the hearts of the people wins the world. Pakatan Rakyat has brought the house down this time.”

Let me also refresh your memory that almost every act of the Perak PR administration was criticised by the Malaysian mainstream press, especially by Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian which embarked on a campaign of hate and poison.  Not only that, but Nizar’s administration was hounded by constant accusations of selling out to the non-Malays.  These dirty tricks and political spinning have not only continued but have gotten worse. Increasingly racial and religious extremist sentiments are coming to the forefront which all of us, especially PAS, needs to condemn more vigorously if our country’s social fabric is not to be torn apart.

When Nizar was first appointed as Menteri Besar many non Malays, including I, were apprehensive of PAS but as time went by, Nizar won the approval of the non Malays.  During that period of uncertainty, I wrote an article to appeal to the Perak Sultan to dissolve the State Assembly so that the people could vote again to choose the Government of their own choosing. Although the Sultan has the right to dissolve the State Assembly he did not do it. Allow me to reproduce the relevant excerpt of my article on this issue which is especially pertinent in view of the coming elections.

Duty of Perak royalty :

“To safeguard the interest of the country and the institution of the monarchy, the voice and will of the rakyat must be respected. It has to be called on to be heard – in one way or another – because though the wheels of justice grind slowly, they grind exactingly.

To the letter of the law a government must be answerable, and the one standing above politics must be accountable as well. In my humble opinion, Perak will regain its shine and the people’s trust when the Sultan accedes to the dissolution of the state assembly.”

Finally, I am optimistic that PAS with its progressive and multi-racially and multi-religiously oriented leaders such as Dato Seri Nizar is up to the challenge of working with fellow Malaysians of all races and religions to bring about the positive change that is badly needed in Malaysia.

To show my confidence in PAS, I would like to make a donation of RM100,000 to the party to be used to support its work in the coming elections.

* Speech on occasion of PAS fundraising gathering, Ipoh (May 28, 2011),  first published in the Centre for Public Initiatives website.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 9:31 pm and is filed under
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Current Bumi economic agenda not viable, says UDA chief

By
Yow Hong Chieh
 | June 01, 2011

The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, June 1 — Putrajaya cannot keep throwing money at agencies tasked with furthering the Bumiputera economic agenda without consideration for profit unlike in the past, says Umno leader Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed.

The UDA Holdings Bhd chairman warned there will come a day when the government, whose finances were “being stretched over time”, would no longer be able to dole out grants to statutory bodies like Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) as it does currently.

He said this was particularly true now as the Najib administration grapples with ballooning subsidy costs and a widening budget deficit following a sharp rise in global crude oil prices.

“The money is to be used in a more efficient manner because the government cannot afford to give funds like it did before,” the accountant by training told The Malaysian Insider last night.

“It has to have a return as well because you need to reinvest whatever that was set aside for the Bumiputera so that the Bumiputera can have future sources of income… instead of being spent 100 per cent.”

The Pulai MP said the expectation that everything must be given on demand to further the Bumiputera cause must give way to a more nuanced allocation of funds.

UDA has come under attack from Umno and Utusan Malaysia for allegedly abandoning the Bumiputera agenda after it chose not to appoint Bumiputera joint-venture turnkey investors for the proposed Bukit Bintang City Centre, located on prime land in the heart of Kuala Lumpur’s Golden Triangle.

Nur Jazlan (left) denied the accusations yesterday, pointing out that the corporatised government agency had no choice but be competitive to survive as it no longer received any direct assistance from the government.

“Most people don’t know that UDA Holdings no longer receives any form of special treatment from the government, whether in the form of grants or cash injections or sale of land at nominal prices,” he said.

The wholly-owned unit of the Finance Ministry, whose assets are estimated to be worth RM2 billion, is over RM900 million in debt and free cash flow of RM90 million now.

Nur Jazlan said UDA also “owes” the government RM104 million, paid market prices for the Pudu Jail land and still has to pay RM134 million in land premiums for the property by September.

He added that the company needed to be prudent and work with strategic partners instead of contractors as the cost of developing Bukit Bintang City Centre could reach as high as RM4 billion.

The UDA board has selected a partner to develop the prime piece of land but several disgruntled Malay businessmen fear it could go to a foreign developer instead of them, as part of the Bumiputera economic policy.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 5:35 pm and is filed under
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DAP: IPP deals bleed consumers, fuel tariff hikes

Malaysiakini

May 31, 11

The DAP has hit out at the federal government for raising the electricity tariff but without first restructuring the lucrative independent power producers (IPP) sector.

Currently, IPPs are charging Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) high prices despite facing relatively low production costs, DAP publicity chief Tony Pua said in a statement today.

“And the key reason for this is the unfair power purchase agreements (PPA) which result in ridiculously high levels of electricity reserve margins.

“According to TNB, our reserve margin was 54.6 percent in 2008 and 52.6 percent in 2010, which is double that of Thailand and Java, Indonesia, at 25.4 percent and 26 percent respectively.

“The net effect is TNB is forced to purchase electricity it does not need from the IPPs, resulting in inflated costs for TNB and correspondingly inflated profits for the IPPs,” Pua (right) said.

Yesterday, the government approved of an average of 7.12 percent increase in the electricity tariff, which only affects households that use more than 300 kWh a month.

It said this was necessary to reduce the government’s subsidy bill and that only those who consume large amounts of electricity would pick up the burden.

Tariff should be 17 percent lower

But most consumers will eventually feel the pinch from the tariff hike because all major industries will now pay an average of 8.35 percent more for electricity, said Pua.

“This will inevitably fuel further inflation and reduce the competitiveness of our goods and services,” he said.

“Our export industries, which are already affected by the strong ringgit, will be dealt with a bigger blow due to higher electricity prices compared with the region as a result of an inefficient and distorted power sector that profits only the IPPs.”

In Thailand, Pua said, commercial electricity tariff is only 0.4 percent higher than in Malaysia, despite natural gas prices in the country being 68.6 percent more expensive.

“Using Thailand as a benchmark, Malaysian electricity prices should be 16.9 percent cheaper, based on the existing subsidy rates. Instead, the BN government does the exact opposite by raising the electricity tariffs,” he said.

Dismissing Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nor Mohamad Yaakop’s claim that the government was trying to correct ‘market distortions’, Pua argued that the distortion lies with lopsided IPP contracts.

“The fact that the government chooses to punish our consumers and industries, without laying a finger on the IPPs only serves to prove that the Najib administration has no political will to carry out the necessary reforms to our economy, contrary to the rhetoric we hear every day.”

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 8:26 am and is filed under
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Election ala Malaysia

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 10:07 am and is filed under
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Gov’t a monster at times, a mouse at others

Malaysiakini Your Say

‘Peter Chin’s statement that ‘the government has got no power to reveal IPP contracts’ sounds like the lamest excuse given by any politician.’

Minister: Gov’t has no power to reveal IPP contracts

Susah Kes:
 Funny. For a government that places people under the Internal Security Act, uses police or judiciary powers to suit its whims and fancies, has no qualms about hijacking state governments, has enough thick skin to try and bribe voters, and is not shy in booting Anwar Ibrahim out of his position as DPM in an atrocious manner, Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Peter Chin’s statement that the “government has got no power to reveal IPP contracts” sounds like the lamest excuse given this year by any politician.

Prussia blue:
 By that logic, TNB and the independent power producers (IPPs) also don’t need government’s approval to raise the electricity levy, but that is not the case, isn’t it?

Why is that, especially when the government is a stakeholder. As a party that has an interest in the matter, of course the government can reveal it since the document is also in the government’s possession.

What are TNB and IPPs going to do, sue the government?

Watchful eyes:
 Electricity is an issue of national security. The way the government puts it, it’s as if it has lost total control over this crucial energy source. As far as I know, it’s the government who moved for the IPPs’ involvement. Now they look powerless to stand up to them.

Who grants the IPPs subsidised fuel, the government or someone else? Who pays the subsidies, the government or someone else? What kind of irresponsible government is this?

On your toes:
 TNB is a private entity? Yes, it is private in management and ownership perhaps (even that is doubtful). But TNB is certainly performing a public function because it is a public utility and a monopoly.

Quigonbond:
 The contract is signed between two parties, let’s say Government of Malaysia and YTL. If the government wants to reveal the terms of the contract, all it needs to do is, subject to the nature of confidentiality clause in the agreement, get consent from YTL to do so.

Now, if YTL for its own self-serving reason refuses to allow the government to disclose, at least Malaysians know what a marvellous corporate citizen YTL is, and YTL’s Malaysian customers can react appropriately.

As all the IPPs will reveal the terms, there is no question of disparity of information giving advantage to any IPP or future IPPs.

Standardisation of fundamental contract terms are not alien to Malaysia. After all, every developer in this country has been subject to standard sale-and-purchase agreements for a long time now, and yet they remain in competition.

Justicekini:
 Peter Chin, you think the rakyat are stupid fools? If the cabinet can declassify documents like the ones on the PKFZ (Port Klang Free Zone) issue, why not the ones involving TNB and the IPPs?

Are they above the government? Or is this the usual lame excuse?

KJ John:
 Excuse me, Minister Chin, this is flawed logic. Is not the government the major shareholder of TNB? Did not the government agree to the terms of the TNB-IPPs contract? Is not power production a government-controlled public good? I rest my case.

Minister, you are better off saying that the government has no political will to make the contracts public because they are one-sided. That, at least, is the truth.

Wfworker:
 Chin, if you and gang have no intention to tell the truth; just shut up. The more you explain, the more problem you going to get.

You sign the contracts on behalf of all Malaysians and now you are telling us we have no right to it? We all know the main objectives of all such contracts – to enslave Malaysians through a new version of piratisation or financial colonisation.

Kita:
 When it comes to make public statement without making much sense, it is Peter Chin. Just last week, he claimed that the subsidy given to IPPs is not subsidy but a loss of profit by Petronas, which contradicted the statement of fellow minister and Pemandu CEO Idris Jala.

Can he really not understand basic English and does not know what power the government can exercise?

M’siaKiniFan:
 Government is a ‘nobody’ when they try to protect their cronies’ benefits but a monster when it comes to controlling the MACC, police and judiciary.

Salleh Nordin:
 Why so secretive about a contract which involves public money lest you have something to hide?

If it was done with public interest in mind and not to fill up pockets of some unscrupulous politicians, then I think we should have nothing to fear and bring it out in the open.

We should not go down the undignified route of Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his merrymen in making corruption a way of life in Malaysia.

Sarawakian_3ff9:
 The question still remains: why are we the taxpayers subsidiing these rich companies? Or is this too difficult for Peter Chin to answer?

When it comes to cronies, all sorts of excuses are used to protect them, but we consumers are taken for a ride by the government every time.

Ferdtan:
 By saying that the government has no power to reveal IPP contracts, Peter Chin is what I suspect most ministers in the BN cabinet are – “Stupid is as stupid does”.

This line is from the movie ‘Forrest Gump’, which means that you cannot expect anything except stupidity from a stupid person.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 10:14 am and is filed under
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I believe in us

Phua Kai Lit

The Malaysian Insider

May 31, 2011

MAY 31 — I had the opportunity to work and settle down in two rich foreign countries. Why did I return to Malaysia (in 1996, with a PhD and years of work experience in hand) and stayed?

Growing up in Kuantan (now in grave danger of being turned into a dumping ground for toxic waste material) and Malaysia during the 1960s and 1970s instilled in me a deep love for this country and appreciation of its mix of peoples and cultures — best exemplified by our wonderful food and our delightful dialect of English called “Manglish.”

Living in two foreign countries for almost 20 years (the years of study and work drifted by quickly — the thought of emigrating never even crossed my mind right from the beginning when I first went overseas for my higher education on a generous scholarship from a foreign university) made me realise that one can never feel truly “at home” in a foreign country even if one has lived in that foreign country for years and years.

In spite of the many things that are wrong with Malaysia today — e.g. the decay of our political institutions and the greatly coarsened state of our political discourse and deplorable public policies which are threatening to turn us into a Nigeria-type “failed state” — there is still hope that Malaysia can change for the better.

This is why a patriot like me who wishes to contribute to the betterment of our society is staying. If enough of us say, “Enough is enough!” and work actively together for change, Malaysia can truly become a better home for ALL Malaysian citizens.

Whom do I mean by “us”? “Us” means the vast majority of decent Malaysians who are sick and tired of unprincipled politicians who play racial politics to divide and fool the people so that they can continue to enrich themselves at public expense; who are sick and tired of racists/fascists who engage in irresponsible stirring of racial tension; who wish to see a society where there are no desperately poor people living in a country blessed with an abundance of rich natural resources; who wish to live in a truly democratic country where there is rule of law, where the economy is properly managed, where corruption is under control, where poor people get to share in the fruits of economic growth, where there is affirmative action for the poor of all ethnic groups, where there is equal opportunity for all, where there is tolerance of the cultures and beliefs of others.

I believe that the “us” consist of people of all creeds and colours and make up at least 75 to 80 per cent of all Malaysians. I also believe that this “us” can come together in social solidarity and change things peacefully through the ballot box. In other words, I believe that Malaysia can change for the better, and that change is possible. This is a major reason why I am STAYING!

Finally, a message for the estimated one million overseas Malaysians and ex-Malaysians: please work with us who stayed for change too. Come back and vote, contribute financially to progressive groups in Malaysia, provide moral support.

In return, we will all work together to pressure for public policies that make it easier for ex-Malaysians to be granted Malaysian permanent resident status and to regain your Malaysian citizenship (such as through the government’s recognition of dual citizenship).

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 12:30 am and is filed under
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I will not give in to fear

—
Lim Ka Joy

The Malaysian Insider

Jun 01, 2011

JUNE 1 — Dear Malaysia,

It is with great joy and hope and also some apprehension that I undertook this task of writing why I have decided not to forsake you even though I have watched you grow from bad to worse over the years.

I speak to you as a single entity because that is what you are. You are a nation. Though not every part of you will understand this, but I am sure your brain does and that is all we need at the end of the day.

Just for the purposes of a personal intro, I am your average Gen-Y Malaysian who hails form Kuching, Sarawak. I was a victim of discrimination after SPM and STPM. However, thanks to my parents who funded the major portion my tertiary education, I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in December 2008.

That year, my dad encouraged me to look for a job overseas. “Don’t work in Malaysia,” he said, “it is not worth it. Salary is one reason for leaving, but with the current un-meritocratic and un-progressive stance on politics, education, economics and social issues, our country is going down the proverbial drain.”

I knew where he was coming from. He is not the only one who has been asking me to migrate overseas. My relatives have asked (and are asking) me to follow in the footsteps of my cousins who have migrated to Australia, United States, Canada, Singapore and New Zealand to chase economic opportunities.

And yes, they are now earning big bucks (if converted to ringgit) and driving cars like Audi, Lexus, Peugeot etc. Even my friends who furthered their studies overseas did not return to you for good (though they did say that they might consider spending their old age in Malaysia!) Some went to the extent of giving up their Malaysian citizenship. None of them, it seemed, were proud to be a Malaysian. I do not blame them.

Truthfully speaking, Malaysia, I am frustrated at how you are being run. I feel destitute and utterly overcome by your current state. I remember Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala saying [1] Malaysia will be bankrupt by 2019 if it does not cut subsidies and rein in borrowing, only to be [2] refuted by Deputy Finance Minister Senator Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussein a few days later. So who’s telling the truth?

I have heard of many instances of scaremongering — threats of not getting any development if the people do not vote for the ruling party, [3] threats of crusades and holy war. I saw the race and religion card being played — accusations of being a racist party that used racial politics to win nearly all the seats it contested.

I saw how the Performance and Management Delivery Unit spent taxpayers’ money to put an advertorial in major newspapers defending and promoting the RM50 million private-sector 1 Malaysia Email Project; and how the government allowed some people who have been inciting racial disharmony to be let off the hook.

I read about [4] the new Istana Negara bill rising to RM935 million from the original RM400 million. I read about the [5] government spending RM3.4 million in 2010 to maintain the official residences of the prime minister, deputy prime minister and ministers in the Prime Minister’s Office.

Now, what about the PKFZ case (which I shall not go into detail here on the grounds it is subjudice), and [6] the stolen jets? Need I mention more? Then [7] the government increased the price of sugar, citing reasons that the country could no longer maintain the current subsidies. Yet, our 1 Malaysia People First, Performance Now government has millions of ringgit to spend on themselves. Oh, [5] the government is setting aside RM65 million to renovate the Prime Minister’s official residence over the next two years!

So why am I still here, Malaysia?

The stubbornness in me refuses to move. I’d prefer that each person maintain a distinct individuality, instead of being part of a group consciousness. I always believe that we should make our own choices and decisions, not just follow the majority. Just because most people I know have migrated does not mean that I have to follow suit.

My friends think that one of the reasons why I am still living in my country of birth is because of the lack of an ability to separate myself from it when required. But that is not the case. I know that there is hope for you, Malaysia. I know, some day, we can change the direction you are heading towards. That is why I chose to work here — to build a better Malaysia.

**

“Are you sure you want to remain in Malaysia?” my dad asked upon hearing my decision.

“Yes,” I replied, “I do not think Malaysia is a lost cause. *308 has proven it. We have people like Tony Pua, Nathaniel Tan and Nik Nazmi with rock solid credentials coming back to serve the society and country into which they were born.

Remember, Tony’s an Oxford graduate, Nathaniel’s a Harvard graduate and Nik Nazmi’s a King’s College, London graduate. They could just as well remain there and earn USDs and pounds, but they did not. What about the Sim Tze Tzin who left his USD-paying job in California to become a political aide to Anwar? These outstanding talents came back to help change Malaysia to a better Malaysia. That is why, Daddy, I feel that I have to remain in Malaysia to support the cause of those who are fighting for a better Malaysia.”

He sighed. I could sense his disappointment. I knew he cared about my future. I knew he wanted the best for me.

“How do you intend to help those YBs?” he asked.

I kept silent for a while thinking about the concept of democracy. “Daddy, all of us have friends who are apathetic. But the irony of some is that they complain, and complain about how Malaysia is being run, and when it comes to actually doing something, they sit back and do nothing. We have to change their mindset. We have to get them to register as voters and come polling day, we have to get them to cast their votes.”

Today, I am glad my parents are still proud of me even though family friends and relatives think that I have wasted my future by staying in Malaysia. During those “parent-talk” sessions (where parents come together over a meal or drinks, having children working overseas entitles one to some bragging rights), my dad stands up for me.

**

Malaysia,

Deep down in my heart, I am convinced that my decision to remain here was the right one, even if the effect has not been pleasing to my material assets. My income is not rising at the same pace as the cost of living but I am sure that everyone in Malaysia is in the same predicament, except for those walking the corridors of power who do not seem to understand the sort of lives and problems that normal Malaysians face.

I hope it is a consolation to you, Malaysia, that I feel honoured to be your citizen. Above all, Malaysia, I want you to know that the decision I made to remain here — whether right or wrong in the eyes of others — was born out of my love for you. I know that I am not walking this road alone and there are many others who hold you in their hearts. Though we have been victimised in one way or another, we know, Malaysia, it is not your fault because you are only a country. After all, Malaysia, you are our home and we are Malaysians (although I have been labelled a “pendatang”). We can never throw away who we are.

Malaysia,

Your 13th General Election is coming soon. It is my Constitutional right as your citizen to have a say in where you will be heading in the next five years. I will vote according to what I believe is best for your future and I hope every Malaysian will do the same too. I will not give in to fear. The collective heart and the kindness of your people have saved you and will continue to save you. After all, you are our country. Your beauty is legendary and your food arguably one of the best in the world.

Yours truly,

Lim Ka Joy

P.S. To my brothers and sisters who have not given up hope on this country of ours, I am proud to be in your company.

Footnote:

*308 in the political lexicon of numbers refers to the 12th General Election which was held on March 8, 2008.

[1] Idris Jala: M’sia must cut subsidies, debt by 2019 or risk bankruptcy. Taken from http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?sec=nation&file=/2010/5/27/nation/20100527171008 (http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?sec=nation&file=/2010/5/27/nation/20100527171008)

[2] Malaysia will not go bankrupt in 2019. Taken from http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Malaysiawillnotgobankruptin2019/Article/#ixzz1NK6sTwje (http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Malaysiawillnotgobankruptin2019/Article/#ixzz1NK6sTwje)

[3] As police probe, Ibrahim Ali threatens crusade against Christians. Taken from http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/as-police-probe-ibrahim-ali-threatens-crusade-against-christians

[4] New palace bill rises to RM935m. Taken from http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/new-palace-bill-rises-to-rm935m/

[5] RM1.76m to maintain Seri Perdana. Taken from http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/rm1.76m-to-maintain-seri-perdana/

[6] Stolen jet engine “tip of the iceberg”. Taken from http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Malaysia/Story/A1Story20091220-187021.html (http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Malaysia/Story/A1Story20091220-187021.html)

[7] DPM signals price hikes. Taken from http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/dpm-signals-price-hikes/

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 9:47 pm and is filed under
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Intel report sees strife in BN, Pakatan

Malaysiakini

Jun 1, 1
1

Specialist publisher Economist Intelligence Unit has warned that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak may face political revolt within Umno and from coalition parties in Sabah and Sarawak, should he fail to secure a clear victory in the next general election.

Divisions among the three Pakatan Rakyat component parties are also likely to widen if PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim is jailed for sodomy, the publisher said in the June report for Malaysia.

It predicted that Malaysia’s political stability will come under moderate threat in the next five years due to internal strife within the two main political alliances.

While the BN is set to remain in federal power in the next general polls, its performance will depend largely on whether it manages to keep its power base intact in Sabah and Sarawak, which contribute more than one-third of its current total of 137 MPs.

“Unresolved issues, such as illegal foreign immigration to Sabah, may cause the BN parties based in (Sabah and Sarawak), or individual MPs from that region, to defect to the opposition in Parliament or use the threat of such action to secure greater influence within the coalition in the run-up to the next general election,” the report said.

The outcome of the Sarawak election in April was not the resounding victory that the BN had hoped for, it noted.

Should BN fail to secure a clear victory at federal and state level in the upcoming general election, Najib’s (right in photo) position as Umno president would be at risk in the next party polls, which have been postponed until 2012.

“The most likely contender to become Umno’s next leader is deputy (party head) Muhyiddin Yassin (left in photo).”

The report pointed out that, by tradition, the BN has preferred to call a general election about a year before the end of its term. If this holds true, the next polls could be held in early 2012.

It said snap polls are unlikely this year because BN would fail to obtain the full support of Chinese voters, which is crucial to regaining its two-third majority in Parliament and wresting back the four states ruled by Pakatan.

“The BN is well positioned to win the poll, although how wide its margin of victory will be remains unclear.

“Najib has worked hard at presenting the image of a politician who is committed to economic reform, but this attitude has yet to resonate among the country’s ethnic-minority population, the majority of whom voted for the Pakatan in the 2008 general election.”

In addition, support from a significant number of educated, liberal middle-class Malays may continue to decline as Internet news sites and blogs have exposed government corruption and the political intrigues of BN leaders.

The report also said Umno may turn its attention to securing a larger proportion of the Malay vote.

Another important reason that general polls will not be called this year, according to the report, is the rumour that Umno’s campaign funds have been heavily depleted due to Sarawak election.

On Pakatan and Anwar

The report also stated that Pakatan could be undermined in the next polls by the newly formed civil rights group, the Malaysian Civil Liberty Movement (MCLM) and the recently founded Parti Kesejahteraan Insan Tanah Air (Kita) led by former PKR leader Zaid Ibrahim.

“Pakatan currently has 76 parliamentary seats and it is possible that at least one-half of these could be contested by the MCLM, (Parti) Kita, or both, thereby potentially taking votes from the opposition alliance.”

It opined that  Pakatan “still does not offer a sufficiently credible, stable alternative to the BN”.

On Anwar’s future, the report said he is likely to be convicted for sodomy in the coming months, hence putting the alliance among three Pakatan component parties at risk.

“Without him, the ties that unite the disparate parties making up the Pakatan – PKR, PAS and DAP – are likely to fray.

“The process of choosing a new Pakatan spokes(person) could deepen the divisions within PKR as well as between the (other) member parties.”

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 7:32 pm and is filed under
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Kalau ada ‘fulus’ apa pun boleh lulus

—
 Aspan Alias

The Malaysian Insider

May 29, 2011

29 MEI — Ramai juga yang tidak selesa dengan komen saya dalam banyak isu yang berkaitan dengan ‘intution’ saya yang tidak begitu sedap dalam menghadapi pilihanraya yang akan datang. Kadangkala saya berfikir juga kenapa saya perlu sibuk untuk menulis tentang isu-isu itu kerana ianya hanya memungkinkan saya di rembat dengan hebatnya oleh pihak yang tidak gemar dengan pandangan saya.

Kadangkala ada juga penyesalan kerana saya terlibat mengambil tahu tentang politik ini. Walaupun tidak bergiat secara fisikal lagi benak saya tetap berfikir tentang politik ini. Saya tetap juga memberikan pandangan secara terbuka kerana saya tidak pernah berusaha untuk menaiki tangga kejayaan politik dan saya tidak pernah menyesal dengan keadaan itu.

Oleh itu saya tetap dengan pendirian untuk bercakap dan menulis ketika ada ruang untuk berbuat demikian kerana saya tidak dapat mengelak dari melihat dan mendengar apa yang berlaku di sekeliling saya. Saya bukan seorang ‘social climber’ dan apa yang saya perkatakan itu adalah pemikiran yang sejati tanpa dikotori oleh kepentingan peribadi. Justru saya tidak ada perasaan gentar dan takut untuk memberikan buah fikiran dan pandangan saya secara terbuka.

Mungkin apa yang saya perkatakan tidak keseluruhannya benar, tetapi terpulang kepada sesiapa yang terbaca untuk menilainya dan membuat komen yang berpatutan tanpa menggunakan bahasa yang kesat dan mengkritik saya secara peribadi. Saya mengalu-alukan jika pandangan serta komen yang di berikan itu hanya dalam ‘parameter’ isu dan tajuk yang saya perkatakan sahaja dan tidak menyimpang darinya.

Yang terbaik sekali komen itu biarlah menggunakan bahasa yang baik dan tidak menggunakan bahasa yang kotor kerana bahasa itu melambangkan bangsa. Menggunakan bahasa yang baik juga akan membawa maksud yang sama untuk menyatakan perbezaan dengan pandangan saya. Tetapi ianya memberikan perbezaan yang amat ketara untuk memberikan penilaian dan membezakan tahap budi dan keperibadian seseorang pengomen itu.

Saya tidak segan dan silu untuk menzahirkan perasaan kurang keyakinan terhadap ‘jargon-jargon’ besar yang diwar-warkan kerana masa yang begitu lama terlibat dan bergiat secara kecilan dalam politik memberikan persepsi yang segala-galanya adalah retorik politik kosong yang akhirnya akan kita sama-sama melihat kegagalannya.

Bermula dengan retorik slogan bersih, cekap dan amanah dahulu. Akhirnya bersihnya berkurangan , cekapnya tiada dan jauh sekali beramanah. Zaman slogan ini lah pelacuran terhadap semua institusi demokrasi berleluasa dan di zaman ini jugalah korupsi dan sifat tidak amanah itu mula hidup subur. Akhirnya zaman slogan ini berkumandang inilah segala budaya negatif dalam politik dan kerajaan menjadi masalah kepada negara dan kita sekarang sedang berperang mulut di atas isu-isu ini.

Sejak dari saat itu semuanya telah hilang dari kawalan seolah-olah kereta dipandu hilang kawalan sehinggakan terjunam ke dalam gaung yang dalam dan tidak tahu bila boleh keluar dari kejatuhan yang begitu dalam itu.

Apabila seorang lagi pemimpin datang dia minta pula semua orang bekerja bersama beliau dan jangan bekerja untuk beliau. Akhirnya kerja pun tak ada untuk kita bekerja dengannya sampailah beliau meletakan jawatan.

Datang pula seorang pemimpin yang lain dengan slogan 1 Malaysia. Entah mana letaknya 1Malaysia itu kita pun tak tahu. Satu Malaysia tak faham sehinggakan Dr Mahathir sendiri mengaku tidak faham. Slogan hanya tinggal slogan. Masih lagi sekolah Cina naik macam cendawan tumbuh. Setahu saya jika benar untuk menjayakan 1Malaysia ianya mesti bermula dari sekolah dengan hanya mengadakan satu jenis sekolah sahaja seperti di Indonesia dan Thailand misalnya. Saya tidak menerima slogan ini kerana saya bersetuju dengan adanya sekolah yang berbagai di dalam negara ini.

Lain yang dislogankan lain pula yang dibuatnya. Ini semua membuatkan orang tertanya-tanya, mana dia 1Malaysia itu. Maka ini satu slogan yang lain. Kita akan menyanyikan slogan yang berlainan mengikut siapa yang memimpin. Tidak ada dasar yang kekal untuk rakyat melaksanakannya. Dulu tidak ada slogan-slogan canggih tetapi tidak pula ada banyak masalah yang membebankan rakyat. Seingat saya hanya satu slogan yang amat berjaya di dalam sejarah negara, iaitu slogan Muhibbah. Tetapi slogan itu telah dibiarkan begitu sahaja kerana tidak secucuk dengan pimpinan Dr Mahathir itu.

Lepas pimpinan Najib ini tidak tahu slogan apa pula yang akan dinyanyikan media letronik kerajaan. Akhirnya kita kenyang dengan slogan. Dalam pada itu sahajalah rakyat dikelirukan semata-mata kerana hendak meletakan jenama kepada kepimpinan yang memimpin waktu itu. Sekarang kita boleh mengagak mana pemimpin yang akan berjaya atau mana pemimpin yang akan gagal semasa awal-awal pemerintahannya. Jika pemimpin itu bermula dengan slogan yang canggih-canggih, kita boleh membuat penialaian awal yang ‘conclusive’. Pemimpin itu akan gagal dan dia akan terus-terusan beretorik kosong.

Slogan-slogan sekarang ini ibarat lagu pop yang hanya popular sementara sahaja. 1Malaysia kata orang 1Malaysia kata kita. Hasilnya entah di mana. Yang sesuai dengan kehendak negara masih lagi slogan Muhibbah sebenarnya. Slogan ini amat penting kerana rakyat tidak lagi hidup dalam muhibbah samada intra kaum mahu pun inter kaum.

Dalam perpecahan rakyat yang mendapat keuntungan dan labanya ialah pemimpin yang lemah yang disaluti dengan imej rasuah dan imej-imej yang tidak keruan. Ramai orang yang menyampah kerana saya tidak berhenti bercakap tentang rasuah. Mereka kata mereka sudah jemu dengan isu itu.

Kepada mereka yang memberikan pendapat itu, saya ada jawapannya. Perasaan jemu saudara itu merupakan perasaan yang ‘mutual’ dengan perasaan saya sendiri. Mereka jemu kerana saya tidak berhenti menulis tentang isu rasuah, saya pula jemu kerana ramai pemimpin yang tidak berhenti melakukan rasuah itu.

Isu yang terkini, iaitu isu tanah lapangan terbang tentera udara Sg Besi merupakan satu lagi yang akan menimbulkan kemarahan rakyat ramai. Semua orang tahu apa yang sedang berlaku di dalam kes ini dan siapa yang mendapat laba besar dengan pemindahan lapangan terbang ini ke Sendayan Negri Sembilan. Segala khabar angin tentangnya dahulu sudah menjadi kenyataan.

Satu lagi khabar angin yang akan menjadi kenyataan ialah tentang harga tanah yang bakal dibayar oleh 1Malaysia Development kepada kerajaan. Blog ini tidak payah bersusah payah memberitahu apa-apa lagi. Semuanya akan terbongkar dan menjadi pengetahuan umum.

Apa pula alasan yang akan diberikan oleh penyokong membuta tuli terhadap pimpinan yang hangat dipersoalkan rakyat ini. Yang rakyat persoalkan ialah moral yang menyelubungi projek pembangunan yang akan dilakukan oleh 1 Malaysia Development ini.

Kita diminta menyokong segala kerja yang tidak mempunyai moral ini. Kita tidak faham kenapa ada setengah orang yang tidak boleh nampak tanah rakyat yang kosong. Apabila nampak sahaja tanah kosong mereka akan menjadi seperti anjing nampak tulang … air liornya melelih tidak dapat dikawal.

Nasib baik mereka ini tidak jadi pemimpin Saudi Arabia. Kalau mereka menjadi pemimpin Saudi Arabia tidak terkejut kalau Ka’abah pun dialihnya. Kerana apa? Kerana ‘fulus’. Ada ‘fulus’ semua boleh lulus. — aspanaliasnet.blogspot.com

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 7:41 am and is filed under
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Malaysia needs a second chance

Lee Choon Kit

The Malaysian Insider

May 31, 2011

MAY 31 — We give people who have wronged us in the past second chances, in hopes that he or she can learn from whatever mistakes they have made. Malaysia needs a second chance from the people. In retrospect, the country has not wronged any of its people. It is after all built on the thoughts and foundation of equality.

I am not trying to antagonise any of the people who left Malaysia behind for the pursuit of affluence and happiness. I am no better myself, as I am pursuing my Bachelor of Arts in Australia; a degree of which can be obtained in Malaysia just as easily.

In my short four months here in Australia, I had an epiphany (or so I thought). I am contributing to the Australian society and my dear Malaysia is left out cold in the curb. I signed a petition for gay rights in Australia but I never did so in Malaysia. I pay tens of thousands of Australian dollars to the university every semester and the lecturers aren’t any better than the ones we have in Malaysia (arguably worse perhaps).

I buy Australian produced groceries in their supermarkets, thus contributing to their economy. Then something struck me; all these efforts and money could have been spent in Malaysia. I could have been a part of a civil rights movement (even if it’s just a signature on a petition); the money could indirectly contribute to our economy; I could have been helping Malaysia.

There is a profound need for talent in Malaysia, Malaysians are neither stupid nor moronic. It’s just a huge chunk of these talents chose to leave Malaysia behind. We always expect change to come from others but not ourselves.

I remember asking one of my Christian friends to vote during the 2008 elections. The response I got from her was, and I quote “I don’t vote because I’m not interested in politics *giggles*”. She wasn’t the only one. I was appalled to have received the same response from other fellow Christians.

All of them passionate about change in their ministry. I have attended countless prayer meetings when fellow Christians cried out for God and seeking divine intervention to change Malaysia. Well, I have news, people! Don’t expect God to smite the corrupted with lightning bolts. The only smiting comes from us; through voting and participating in the fight for equality and accountability from the government.

God doesn’t need to vote. He can’t. We can. Hundreds of thousands of Malaysians have left Malaysia; if only each and everyone of them voted for change; participated in rallies; pressuring the government for accountability; stood up for what they believed in; we probably wouldn’t be knee deep in inflation.

Malaysians love to complain, but we hate to appreciate (except for food, everyone loves the food). I didn’t appreciate Malaysia when I left for Australia. But there is still so much good and potential underneath all the corruption and ignorance, waiting to be harnessed.

Malaysia only seems hopeless because we have judged it so. How many us have actually done something about the inequality that haunts us still? How many of us wrote to our members of Parliament to encourage them? How many of us joined an NGO and sacrificed some of our time to fight for the causes we believed in? How many eligible voters have actually voted? We cannot abandon our home without trying!

Change doesn’t come from a celestial being prancing on the clouds, nor does corruption come from a malevolent spirit that roams beneath the grounds. It comes from us. Malaysia needs this second chance. Come home.

I am Lee Choon Kit and I am proud to be Malaysian.

* Disclaimer: I realise that not all Christians are as oblivious and ignorant as I have portrayed above. I am simply speaking from experience. That being said, I am extremely proud of my Senior Pastor Rev John Kok for speaking out against emigration from the pulpit and I have met many Christians who have committed their lives in fighting for our nation.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 12:23 am and is filed under
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Maybe the ‘mamak’ leaders can help Indians?

Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz | May 31, 2011

Free Malaysia Today

 Its perhaps time for Malaysian Indians to emulate their Chinese brethrens and dump MIC.

COMMENT

The Malaysian Indians should emulate their spirited Chinese brothers. Once a leading member of the Chinese business community declared that the Chinese don’t need Chinese politicians and ministers to represent them.

That statement sapped the smugness off the MCA. Really, Indians too don’t need to be representation by the MIC.

Maybe they can do so through Nor Mohamad Yakob, Naina Merican, Azeez Rahim, Zambry Kadir?

They too can also talk direct to Malay leaders the way the Chinese do.

Just see how Tony Fernandes (AirAsia) does it and Ananda Krishna (Measat) seems to know how to do it. So to does Ravi Menon (Ara Corporation), Arumugam and G.Gnalingam (Westport). Even the one time driver Kenneth Eswaran (Maicci president) knows how too.

They ALL know how to talk to Malay leaders. So, forget MIC and forget its president G Palanivel.

Vigneswaran’s capitulation

They should now demand to know what actually happened to the RM100 million suit against Samy Vellu and the seven MIED trustees.

How much money was actually lost? And how will the Indian community be compensated for the loss?

High Court Judge Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim granted MIED’s application for leave to withdraw its suit over alleged mismanagement which it claimed caused the education arm of the MIC to incur losses.

The suit was withdrawn last Friday after former MIC Youth chief SA Vigneswaran, who initiated it, was appointed to sit on the MIED board as observer for one year from May 12.

Will the Indians now accept that their interest in the field of education has all this time been depending on the resolve of one Vigneswaran?

And now that he has wilted, their hopes are also dashed?

Don’t you want to graduate from being a seller of pirated CDs to owning airlines, from advertising salesman to owning ports, airports, controlling the media?

Vigneswaran agrees to withdraw because he is now appointed a board member as a mute observer.

You do know that an observer is not allowed to talk, unless invited by the board chairman to speak.

I think public spirited Malaysian Indians must now check up the story behind Vigneswaran’s capitulation.

Who’s behind Deloitte?

I think they should also check out who is behind Deloitte Corporate Solutions Sdn Bhd which has been appointed as the management consultants/management accountants for MIED.

MIED is now charged to adhere to full disclosure of major transactions and matters relating to MIED at board meetings.

Come again, did I hear this wrong? You mean all this time it hasn’t and that must be one of the reasons why Vigneswaran brought the suit in the first place.

How is Vigneswaran’s personal constitution? Is he of unimpeachable character?

Vigneswaran’s withdrawal must have brought relief to former MIC president S Samy Vellu, his successor, Palanivel and team-mates M Mahalingam, T Marimuthu, Dr SK Ampikaipakam, Karnail Singh Nijhar, K Kumaran and G Vadiveloo and audit firm Kumpulan Naga.

Counsel Gurupatham told reporters that his client withdrew the suit in the best interests of the Indian community so that MIED would be run in a transparent manner.

What about the RM100 million?

The other counsel for MIED, Vasanthi said the judge was pleased that settlement had been reached for the benefit of MIED, and granted the application to withdraw the suit with no legal costs.

In the suit, MIED claimed the defendants had breached fiduciary and statutory duties, and failed to discharge their responsibilities as trustees and auditors, which caused the institute to suffer huge losses.

How big was the loss to the Indian community?

MIED also wanted a court order to make Samy Vellu compensate all the financial losses incurred by the institute in the time he had administered MIED as its chairman as well as special and general damages over the alleged losses, which it claimed totalled RM100 million.

Is Samy Vellu going to return all monies or profits made from MIED, either by himself or through family members and close friends?

The excerpt is from the writer’s blog sakmongkolak47. The writer is an FMT columnist

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 8:10 am and is filed under
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More Malays in Australia now, says academic

The Malaysian Insider

May 31, 2011

MELBOURNE, May 31 — Thousands of Malays have migrated to Australia, citing career and business opportunities as reasons for their decision, said a Malaysian academic.

Universiti Utara Malaysia’s Dr Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani said in the in the state of Victoria alone there were about 5,000 Malays, three-fourths of them either permanent residents or Australian citizens, according to a Bernama Online report today.

He said they were both professionals — doctors and engineers — and support staff.

The fellow at University of Melbourne’s Asia Institute said most of them arrived after 1981 under family, skilled workers or business provisions for migration.

The increase coincided with Australian policy changes allowing overseas students to apply for stay extensions. Ahmad Zaharuddin explained this led to many students staying on indefinitely.

His research resulted in the book “Malays in Victoria”, which was the idea of Victorian Malay Organisation president Zulkifli Ahmad.  The Australian Multicultural Foundation released it last week.

Ahmad Zaharuddin said further that educational opportunities for their children also encouraged the migration, together with better work benefits, healthcare and Australia’s multiculturalism.

The academic however was unhappy with Malays abroad who dissociate themselves from their ethnicity. He feels Malays should be proud although he admitted the term “Malay” was difficult for people abroad to understand.

Ahmad Zaharuddin gained his PhD from Universiti Malaya and has a Master of Theology degree from University of Nottingham.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 7:51 am and is filed under
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Panel: Waste won’t be 100% radiation-free

Malaysiakini
 | Jun 1, 11

The international expert panel reviewing the controversial Lynas rare earth plant has conceded that the waste produced from the plant cannot be 100 percent radiation-free.

Based on Malaysian Medical Association’s (MMA) notes of the panel’s hearing yesterday, a panelist said that it was “very unlikely” to achieve zero thorium or uranium – both radioactive elements – in the waste produced.

This was the response to the MMA delegation’s question on the veracity of Lynas’ claims that the neutralised underflow residue (magnesium rich gypsum) and fuel gas desulphurisation residue (synthetic gypsum) have zero thorium or uranium.

To another question posed by MMA, a panelist replied that it was impossible to ensure that the radioactive content of the two elements would be 100 percent neutralised.

“There are processes to reduce the radioactive content – we hope for 99 percent efficiency but it will never be 100 percent,” said the panelist, according to the MMA report.

During the closed-door hearing, the MMA delegation also pointed out that numerous studies have shown that rare earth refineries in China, United States and Malaysia have had a negative impact on the environment.

Was there ever a ‘safe’ rare earth plant?

Asked if the panel could furnish any evidence of a “safe” rare earth refinery, the reply was that no such data was available.

“It is not easy to do a study on the impact of health from a rare earth plant as it requires a

large number of samples and a long duration of study to demonstrate statistically significant results.

“So, those available results online need to be interpreted with caution as they may be biased. We have examples of safe uranium plants, (we) will email (it) to Pahang MMA later,” a panelist said.

The MMA report does not specify the individuals behind the question and replies, but it did specify that its three-member delegation included its Pahang chapter chairperson Dr Ailin Razali, secretary Dr Chong Jen Lim and member Dr Carmen Chew.

The panelists, comprising of experts from United Nation’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), are Tero Varjoranta, Horst Monken Fernandes, Jan van der Steen, Hanna Kajander and Leo M Lowe.

They are part of a nine-member team on a five-day fact finding mission on invitation of the Malaysian government, who is acting on public concern over the project.

Panel mum on waste management

After concluding its investigations and meeting stakeholders, the panel will submit its recommendations to the federal government.

Malaysiakini has obtained a copy of the MMA report, signed by Chong, on the closed-door hearing held yesterday morning.

Below are some of the questions from MMA and replies from the panel, edited for clarity, contained in the report:

Question: To ensure safety of this plant, the regular monitoring and enforcement of law and regulations are crucial, however, in developing countries, all these might be not as good as developed countries.

Answer:
 We agree with that. The regulatory board plays a very important role in terms of monitoring the safety of the plant. If needed, overseas experts should be sought to monitor the safety of the plant. Ultimately, Lynas is responsible for the total safety of the plant, its workers and the affected public.

Do you think the Environmental Impact (EIA), Risk Assessment Report (QAR), Radiological Impact Report (RIA) were all preliminary?

Yes. Detailed reports are required as per international standard.

In those reports (EIA, QAR and RIA), the internal radiation was not dealt with.

Detailed reports (are) needed, we will address the issue in the review. Actually there are formulas to calculate the internal radiation based on the exposure pathway analysis.

As per the RIA report and Lynas, there is no definite plan on the management of radioactive waste. RIA only did the assessment up to 10 years. Lynas is only doing R&D (research and development) on the recycling of the radioactive waste, which means (there is) no solution at this moment of time.

Currently, the radioactive waste is going to stored at the Residue Storage Facility (RSF) (and if it is) full, (another decision would be made) later. What is the definite plan for management of these radioactive wastes?

(We) will answer that in detail in the final report.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 11:34 am and is filed under
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Pass through… What??

By Shanker | June 01, 2011

The Malaysian Insider

JUNE 1 — I refer to the prime minister’s statement that independent power producers (IPPs) would not benefit from a power hike, as he’s quoted by The Malaysian Insider — “It is a pass-through tariff so nobody benefits.”

Er… what’s “pass through”? Could someone please explain in plain English, what is this new terminology? For the life of me, it sure seems to have escaped the notice of renowned economic and financial experts; don’t think you’d find it in anything that, say Paul Krugman, writes.

Yeah, and you thought Najib Razak’s acronym laden programmes were too much to stomach…by the time you managed to connect the ETP to the GTP and how it’s intertwined with the EPP which is then managed by the KOPI…

You get the point.

Now, if we could put away this seeming penchant that our PM has for acronym and terminology driven smoke screens, I’d sure like to try to make it plain and simple. Why, just a couple of days earlier, the Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Peter Chin took a shot at providing an explanation: Hey folks, them subsidies, aren’t really subsidies. Yes sirree… all that happened was that Petronas sold gas below market price to the IPPs and in that process, ended up foregoing RM19 billion worth of profits.

Wow.

Either we have a minister who is trying to buy some breathing space by confusing us or he is pretty much confused himself.

What happens when a nationalised industry, such as Petronas, decides to forego profits? It means that the RM19 billion, which was intended to be social profits for the benefit of many, ends up instead as dividends accruing to a few shareholders. Whichever way you see it, what remains is that Petronas’s RM19 billion loss became the IPP’s gain.

Folks, if that isn’t subsidy, then I don’t know what is. Now, that’s the real pass through — RM19 billion “passed through” the rakyat.

RM19 billion’s a lot, isn’t it? Now, what would have happened if Petronas had actually realised that sum by selling the gas at market prices? The government’s kitty would have ended up with a couple of more billion ringgits. Think we could have done some good stuff with RM19 billion?

Hmmm.

Well, perhaps it could have provided scholarship funds for all high achievers in school, so that we don’t have to put up with the same, lame excuse of “tak cukup” allocation, year-in, year-out.

Gee whiz, I sure don’t want to start dreaming of more hospitals, schools, better transportation system, or better pay for our civil servants so that maybe, we get to hear less of “macam mana mau settle?”

And here’s the icing on the cake — the government says it has no power to make IPPs reveal the terms of contract.

This, coming from the same government that has no qualms incarcerating individuals without trial… since when did commercial contract rights become more important than human rights?

Mr PM, if you can authorise an on-the-spot RM15 million cheque in Sibu with “I help you, you help me” thrown in, then I am pretty sure you can bring those IPPs boys to the negotiating table. And if that doesn’t work, then I’d like to recommend to you that wonderful government mechanism known as tax. Try it. You might just impress Barack Obama. At least that’s what he tried to impose on CEOs who were given huge bonuses in the aftermath of the sub-prime loans fiasco.

And as for your “nobody benefits”, here’s a suggestion. Why don’t you make public the contracts, and let the rakyat judge if anyone benefits or otherwise? Surely the days of “government knows best are over”… no?

So, in plain layman’s language, that is what I understand as “pass through”. For the past 30 years, we had to endure many losses. According to Barry Wain, as much as US$100 billion had “passed through” the rakyat  as a result of Umno’s failure at governance. I don’t really have to detail it; just read The Malaysian Maverick.

Mr PM, I sense the days are slipping further away from you, for you to make a firm and principled stand on socio-economic and governance matters that plague this country.  It doesn’t help that every time you appear to try and move towards progress, all that is needed are a few barks from Perkasa or Utusan Malaysia and you pull back.

If all our pleadings for reform continue to falter at your doorstep, then I cannot wait for the day when Umno and company are made to pass through Putrajaya after we vote them out.

*
Shanker reads The Malaysian Insider.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 4:37 pm and is filed under
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People come first – reveal the power agreements

Malaysiakini Your Say

‘If Mahathir could compel them to sign the deal with IPPs at a giveaway rate, why can’t they be asked to similarly disclose the agreements?’

Minister: Gov’t has no power to reveal IPP contracts

Swipenter:
 This is one of the many ways the Umno-led government abuse and misuse OSA (Official Secrets Act) for the self interests of their cronies in the privatisation of essential utilities.

Sometimes we wonder why we are paying taxes to the government when we still have to pay market price for essential services, which in the first place should be provided at minimum cost to us by the government from taxes collected from us.

To add insult to injury, the government subsidises these privatised operators of essential services at an escalating pre-determined price (profit) over the privatised period and pass the price increase to us, the end-users.

The end-users must stand up to such abuses and vote the BN (Barang Naik) out in GE13. Revenue of Petronas belongs to Malaysians, not to Umno/BN. They are just custodians on our behalf (or so we think?).

Black Mamba:
 Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Peter Chin is telling us some cockamamie story. On one hand, he says it’s an agreement signed by private entities, why then the OSA is being used?

We were not born yesterday but a good half century ago. You may kid the children who attend the World Youth Day event to defend “your” Putrajaya, which incidentally doesn’t belong to you but us, as we are the ones who decide who should be there.

When we throw the BN government away in the next general election, make sure you are around to defend your stand or be prepared to go to prison.

The IPP (independent power producer) deals are no different from PKFZ (Port Klang Free Zone) scandal. If there is an iota of neligence, fraud, mismanagement or collaboration to deceive, cheat or mislead the rakyat, the minister shall be held accountable and be scrutinised in the court of law. Be very afraid.

GI Joe:
 Millions of people are affected by the increase in tariff and yet the government is so concerned about the PPA (power purchase agreement) being a private document and that this cannot be revealed to the public.

I am no lawyer but surely the right of the general public is paramount over the few IPPs. After all, BN always say ‘people come first’. Refusing to reveal these documents will only prove that they have something big to hide.

TehTarik:
 What baloney! Instead of trying to protect the interests of the citizens, the minister is using the OSA to shield the IPPs. So whose interest does the minister represent?

TNB (Tenaga Nasional Berhad) is a government-linked company and can easily be told that the agreements be made public. Peter Chin, you are the energy minister and can always demand that the contracts be released. What are you trying to hide?

The lopsided contracts are gravely disadvantageous to TNB. Many of these one-sided contracts were signed during the hey days of Dr Mahathir Mohamad. So is Peter Chin trying to protect Mahathir and his cronies?

Burstaxon:
 I’m resigned to the fact that we get the government that the majority of us voted for.

And apparently the majority of us live hand to mouth, no need to pay income tax, use less than 300 kW/h electricity, less than 20 cubic meter of water, live where there is no toll, can’t tell a Cayenne from a Wira, that English is not important, and so forth. Sigh. GE13 won’t change a thing.

Save Our Children:
 What a load of rubbish by an absolute fool. Former TNB chairman Ani Arope publicly said he was forced to sign the IPP agreements. And when he refused, he was sacked.

The agreements caused massive losses to TNB and the public. If in fact such an agreement was signed by a public servant, who is under oath to protect the public interest and the terms of the agreement are so one-sided that no reasonable government official would sign, then such an agreement can amount to an offence under the Penal Code, where the individuals involved can be charged with cheating.

Petronas, TNB and the other signatories of these agreement must be brought to justice and the assets of these companies be confiscated for all the wealth they have stolen from the public. If you don’t do that, then you are aiding and abetting a crime.

Bluemountains:
 Peter Chin is indirectly telling the rakyat that the government has nothing to do with the lopsided PPA (power purchase agreement) and therefore has no power to reveal it.

If it is just between two private entities, how could the government interfere by classifying it under OSA? The rakyat deserves a more intelligent answer.

Fellow Malaysian:
 The government has no right to get TNB to disclose the IPP agreements? TNB is very much a GLC (government-linked company) and if Mahathir could compel them in the 1990s to sign the deal with the IPPs at a giveaway rate, why can’t the government-owned company be asked to similarly disclose the agreements?

Malaysians Are Not Stupid: What is so secretive about a commercial contract that it needs to be classified secret? Surely there are a lot of hanky-panky that don’t see the light of day.

Anyway, what is it that the government cannot do if it has the political will to do so? Just amend the act or pass a new act to compel the IPPs to release the contract.

Nicole:
 Peter Chin has also (in)famously said that nuclear energy is ‘green’. Really? He loves to turn us livid.

TC:
 First we had S Samy Vellu now we have Peter Chin to utter stupidity in public. Do they ever look at themselves in the mirror?

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 1 June 2011, 10:16 am and is filed under
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