Just another election prediction

by Zairil Khir Johari

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 02, 2012

MARCH 2 — The art of prediction is such that one can only really predict things after they have happened. So goes a wise saying by the French-Romanian playwright Eugene Ionesco. Be that as it may, nothing will stop Malaysians from engaging in our favourite pastime — trying to predict the timing of the 13th general election.

For more than a year now, we have all been living in constant anticipation of an election that has been perpetually “around the corner.” It has even come to the point where no politician in this country is able to get through a single day without someone asking, “So when will the elections be?” Some have even fallen into the habit of continually predicting one to be just three months away, a cycle that has been renewed five times in the last 15 months.

I too am unable to escape this quintessential question that is thrown at me time and again. In tandem with the progression of current affairs, my answers have also undergone constant evolvement.

However, whenever I am asked when should the general election be held, I have held one constant response for more than a year: that it should have been held last year, in concurrence with the Sarawak state election.

In fact, I had been so convinced that the elections were going to be held together that it was a real surprise — and a pleasant one if I were to be honest — when the prime minister decided not to hold it simultaneously.

In my opinion, Najib Razak missed a great opportunity to deal a striking blow following a tumultuous year-end in 2010 for Pakatan Rakyat, especially with the coalition reeling in the aftermath of Keadilan’s infamous party elections and the departure of Zaid Ibrahim, then still commanding a modicum of respect.

In any case, there is no use speculating on what could have been. Looking to the future, the prime minister knows that his options are limited. The window from now until automatic dissolution on April 29, 2013 is getting smaller by the minute. And so, based on a confluence of factors that I will elaborate upon, I am now almost certain that we can realistically expect a June 2012 date for the next general election.

Firstly, every economist’s advice, including the ones whispering to the prime minister, concurs that sooner is better than later for the incumbent regime. This is based on an expected slowdown in global growth due to the debt crisis in Europe and a deflating American economy.

Presumably, one would also want to take advantage of the economic painkillers injected by the government in the form of the BR1M scheme, the recently announced EPF dividend of a decade-high six per cent and of course the expected windfall for FELDA settlers from the listing of FELDA Global Ventures Holdings due in May.

In the coming months, we can also expect the announcement of a slew of mega-projects encompassing five regions (northern, eastern, southern, Sabah and Sarawak) as a result of the five “corridors and cities” labs conducted by PEMANDU at the end of last year.

Secondly, logistical reasons make the second half of 2012 an unappealing option. Beginning with the fasting month of Ramadan starting in mid-July, followed by a month-long Raya period from August to September, and then the Haj season which culminates at the end of October, the Deepavali festival right after that and finally the monsoon period crippling half the country by then, it would be a logistical nightmare to slot in a month of electioneering.

The only time a general election has been called during the year-end period was in 1999 as the then-prime minister needed desperately to avert the gazetting of 650,000 new voters registered during the height of the Reformasi era. This situation does not exist today.

Thirdly, on the evening of September 15, 2011, the prime minister made a promise on “live” television to carry out sweeping reforms including the lifting of multiple emergency ordinances, reviews to the Police Act, the abolishment of the Internal Security Act (ISA), and the amendment of other laws such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA).

In addition, he also subsequently announced the formation of a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on electoral reform as well as the amendment of the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA).

While some of the promised reforms have been delivered, half-baked as they were, the key reforms such as the ISA repeal and amendments to the PPPA and UUCA have yet to be tabled. In addition, the PSC’s recommendations on electoral reform will only be presented to Parliament in early April. This makes the next parliamentary sitting starting March 12, 2012 a crucial one.

One might then argue that dissolution could occur immediately after the reforms are passed by the Dewan Rakyat. This is a fallacy, because any Bill passed by the Lower House must also be ratified by the Senate before it can be sent for royal assent. Now, the Senate is due to sit from April 21 to May 10, and so unless the prime minister isn’t serious about delivering on a promise made to millions of Malaysians on the eve of Malaysia Day, a dissolution before the full ratification process is complete is out of the picture.

Lastly, and perhaps more importantly, it must not be forgotten that besides the 13th general election, Umno is also due for an election that many, especially within the party, would argue is even more critical than the former. After all, the president of Umno has hitherto always been the prime minister of the country.

Having already been postponed for 18 months, the Umno party election is due within months of the end of this parliamentary term. Hence, holding the general election later than June would interfere with the elaborate, divisive and drawn-out affair of an Umno election that typically consumes every level of the behemothic party from branch to division to the general assembly itself.

The Umno election is at least a four- to five-month affair involving massive internal politicking and the dispensation of enormous resources. The only way to postpone it is to amend the constitution via an emergency general assembly, and any attempt to do so would be greatly resisted by vested interests within the party.

As every division head and supreme council member runs the risk of losing their party positions, and hence their candidacies as well as the power to control and disburse funds from the election war chest, it would only be natural for them to push for a general election first.

It was the same scenario in the months preceding March 2008, when the then-prime minister was unable to convince his party to hold their own elections before the general election. There is nothing to suggest that the current prime minister would be able to balk this trend.

Thus, an election held later than June would mean the prospect of two resource-intensive elections back-to-back; unlikely to be a pretty sight and definitely not what the prime minister wants.

Having considered all the points above, I am therefore reasonably certain that we are in for a mid-year pre-Ramadan election. In any case, if I am proved to be wrong, I will simply revert to the three-month cycle routine. After all, even the prime minister himself said recently that if one made enough guesses, one is bound to be correct.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 March 2012, 10:35 am and is filed under
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Not all of us are still blind, are we?

 — May Chee Chook Ying

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 01, 2012

MARCH 1 — Not too long ago in a land not so far-away, in the kingdom of the blind, a one-eyed led. The kingdom didn’t start out as having only blind citizens. The truth was; those seeing ones were incarcerated for precisely, having seen the light. As soon as anyone with a well-formed conscience saw it his duty to illuminate others, this one-eyed jack would throw him behind bars, using draconian laws and spineless institutions as his side-kicks.

Along the way, he promised the blind he would lead them to the Promised Land. That he would liberate them. That they would be blind, no more. That they would neither thirst nor hunger anymore. Today, he has seemingly succeeded in making only a handful free, see and who neither have to thirst or hunger anymore. Today, he stands, guilty of nepotism, cronyism and worst of all; he has made more gone not only blind, but totally dependent on “crutches”. All these were by design. His design, so that till the day he died, and maybe even beyond the grave, others would be beholden to him and all that he holds dear.

Is there no God that a mortal could play with our lives so wantonly?  So irresponsibly? So cruelly? Our beloved country has been plundered to feed his ego and greed. Our people have been maimed to allow him control. And we can’t stop him?

We, live, purportedly, in the best democratic country on earth and all the above can happen here, so easily? Who are we fooling?

“No man loses his freedom, unless, it is through his own weakness,” said Gandhi. Some of us here in Malaysia, have been “incarcerated” through our own making. That, I believe, is only a minority. He can’t be having a dossier on each and every one of us, can he? So, why let him continue to mess up our lives and our beloved country, Malaysia?

Every day, the headlines, of course not the mainstream media, scream out one scandal or another. There are days I wish I wasn’t a Malaysian. There are days I wish I had left long ago. I’m really paying a lot more to remain a Malaysian, forgoing a lot more to remain in these shores. Some days, I really cry when I pray for my country, Malaysia. Dear God, is there no stop to all these heinous “crimes” (for want of a better word), past and present? And someone got sent back to stare death in the face over a tweet? And some to have their liberty denied for a good many months, for having shoplifted milk for their young? And billions of dollars to be written off just like that, to erase an old lion’s wrongdoing? (That, too, came with shameless taunting!) Is there no sense of balance anymore in my beloved country, Malaysia? Didn’t we all have to slog for those billions?

Friends have asked, “Why didn’t you leave?” I used to say, “How can I leave my mum behind?” My mum died three months back. Do I still have any excuse? I do. I, really do. How can I leave the country I love so much behind?

I’m appealing to all Malaysians; I know the majority of you are right-minded. Please, you can put a stop to this “prevalent doom”. We are Malaysians, we can do this. We love our country, Malaysia and because of this, we shouldn’t allow her to be annihilated like this. She doesn’t deserve this. The majority of us, work night and day, to build up Malaysia. Our forefathers did, too, with their blood, sweat and tears! How can we let her go to the dogs like this? We are all Malaysians. Please, unite behind the truth.  Please, do not be divided by the cowards who still take us for fools. Please, do not let those one-eyed ones lead us astray anymore.  We are “seeing” people. We can take them on. We don’t need crutches. There is enough for everyone. For that, the plundering has got to stop! Period.

I would not say that I’m deeply religious but I believe that there’s a God. All these wonderful creations of God are meant to be shared by all mankind. One is not to plunder and deny his neighbour of his rightful stake. We are put on earth temporarily to care for God’s beautiful creations. In denying our neighbour, we do not do justice to the God we love. In denying Malaysia her rightful place in history, we, all but deny our very own existence and God’s wonderful creation. (What can I say; I’m a coward for I live my life in fear of God!)

I do not want to be responsible for a Malaysia with a blighted history. Do you?

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 March 2012, 1:22 am and is filed under
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Parti pemerintah guna kekuatan samseng, parti alternatif guna kekuatan pemikiran

By
Aspan Alias
 | March 02, 2012

The Malaysian Insider

2 MAC — Budaya samseng pula yang mula menular dengan cepat didalam Umno sekarang. Kejadian mengganggu majlis-majlis anjuran Pakatan Rakyat kini selalu diganggu dan dicemari dengan kekacauan yang dilakukan oleh kumpulan samseng upahan untuk menggagalkan majlis anjuran Pakatan Rakyat. Dunia dan negara sekarang sudah masuk ke alaf baru dan manusia kini menuju kemajuan dengan etika dan cara kehidupan yang bertamaddun.

Seorang yang dididik dengan baik dari keluarga yang baik dia akan menjadi lebih berhemah jika bersalah-salahan pendapat dan pandangan dan akan sentiasa menghormati orang lain seperti yang dituntut oleh agama dan budaya, apatah lagi kita orang Melayu yang beragama Islam ini. Seseorang yang beriman dan halus jiwanya akan memujuk hati dan nafsunya sendiri untuk tidak berbuat apa yang tidak baik dan ditegah oleh adat dan agamanya.

Sebaliknya sebahagian dari kita orang-orang Melayu khususnya orang-orang kuat Umno (OKU), bertindak diluar adat dan adab bangsanya serta agama mereka dengan membina budaya samseng dan budaya ini adalah budaya orang-orang zaman batu dahulu. Ini bertambah berluas-luasa akhir-akhir ini dengan mengganggu majlis-majlis yang dianjurkan oleh pihak Pakatan Rakyat.

OKU-OKU tempatan akan menggunakan cara yang amat biadab dengan mengganggu dan memukul orang lain semata-mata kerana tidak bersetuju dengan majlis yang dianjurkan oleh pihak yang kian hari kian mendapat sokongan ramai itu. Ada kalanya kumpulan OKU ini akan menyerbu didalam majlis ceramah anjuran PR dan mereka akan terus beramai-ramai kehadapan pentas untuk mengganggu majlis PR itu.

Apa semuanya ini? Kemana kah perginya adab dan tatasusila Melayu yang berhemah dan bertamaddun yang selama ini menjadi “attribute” asas orang Melayu itu? Kenapa kah bangsa kita sudah sampai ketahap ini untuk mengekalkan kuasa? Kalaulah dari dulu kita tahu yang Melayu dan rakyat yang bersokongkol dengan pihak yang memerintah tidak dapat menerima demokrasi, kenapa dari dulu kita memulakan negara kita dengan sistem demokrasi.

Kenapakah ada pihak hanya menerima demokrasi jika dapat kemenangan dan memperkayakan budaya samseng apabila dirasakan yang kemenangan yang diperolehi selama ini tidak akan berulang lagi? Jika kuasa itu merupakan perjuangan yang “ultimate” kenapa tidak menjaga mandat dan kepercayaan rakyat selama ini dengan jujur? Kenapa melakukan perkara-perkara yang tidak elok didepan mata rakyat tanpa segan silu? Kenapa begitu tamak dan berkehendakkan kepada semua perkara?

Jika benar Umno dan pimpinan tidak mahu terlepas dari kuasa tentunya ia memerlukan pengorbanan. Pimpinan parti pemerintah ini wajib berkorban nafsu dan itu wajib. Pimpinan wajib melawan segala nafsu yang ada didalam diri masing-masing dan itu pun perjuangan yang perlu yang dituntut oleh agama kita. perjuangan menentang hawa nafsu kita itu merupakan perjuangan sepanjang hayat… dari lahir sehingga ke akhir kalam. Elakkan dari segala kemungkaran politik dan ekonomi serta perjuangan untuk diri sendiri yang keterlaluan.

Obsession Umno untuk berkuasa tidak mengenal batas dan sempadan. Setelah tidak berjaya meyakinkan orang ramai untuk terus menyokongnya, Umno sedang menggunakan tektik samseng dan ia sangat menjijikan orang ramai. Segala usaha dilakukan untuk mendapat sokongan tetapi sokongan tidak juga kembali. Maka menggunakan cara samsenglah yang tinggal untuk memaksa rakyat menyokong mereka.

Jika cara samseng ini masih tidak dapat meyakinkan rakyat untuk bersama Umno lagi, cara apa pula yang akan diambil pula selepas itu? Jawabnya saya rasa, tidak ada lagi selain dari menerima kekalahan dan penolakan rakyat secara menyeluruh.

Kepimpinan yang merelakan budaya samseng ini tidak akan dibenarkan berterusan dilakukan. Rakyat tidak mahu melihat kepimpinan ala Robert Mugabe di Zimbabwe atau secara Idi Amin dari Uganda suatu ketika dahulu. —
aspanaliasnet.blogspot.com

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 March 2012, 3:08 pm and is filed under
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The system stinks – Dare Najib set up a judicial tribunal to investigate into serious allegations by former CCID director that AG had abused his powers?

The system stinks. For the first time in more than a decade, there are now serious allegations of gross abuse of power against one of the highest officers of the land – the Attorney General – by another high-ranking officer.

Dare the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak get the Cabinet to set up a judicial tribunal to investigate into the serious allegations by the former Commercial Crimes Investigation Department Chief Datuk Ramli Yusuf that the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail had abused his constitutional powers to ensure that there is justice and fair play in the land?

The serious allegations made by Ramli are not new to informed and knowledgeable Malaysians as they have been in the public domain for quite some time, but this is the first time that it has been made specifically by Ramli in public against Gani, which warrants serious and instant attention and action by  Najib if the Prime Minister is sincere and serious in wanting to carry out a government and national transformation in the country where abuses of power and corruption are regarded as anathema under his administration.

According to
Malaysiakini
 yesterday, Ramli had made use of his 60th leap year birthday celebration on Wednesday to describe in detail how he and his men had been fixed by the Attorney-General since 2007 and how they were vindicated by the courts in being acquitted of the charges.

He also described how Gani used the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) against him and his men.

Ramli said in his speech that it all began when his officers were entrusted with taking action against a syndicate member who was sent to Jeli, in Kelantan to serve restricted residence (RR) order.

The man had been accused of being involved in organised crime, including loan sharking, running an illegal lottery syndicate, prostitution and drug pushing in Johor.

Ramli said: “This information was given by the then deputy home minister (Johari Baharom), and the matter was considered a ‘top secret’ and highly confidential case. Later, I was told to report to him directly after the file was completed.

“Accordingly, I instructed my officers to put up the case against the syndicate member, which was subsequently submitted to the deputy minister for committal under the RR order. However, upon the advice of the AG, the syndicate member was subsequently released, unconditionally.

“Instead, my officers were charged with taking down false and fabricated statements that implicated the then inspector-general of police (Musa Hassan).

“That’s when AG Gani Patail called the original case file, which was classified as highly confidential, and passed it to the MACC to harass the witnesses.”

Ramli said he was thankful that the people who served under him were acquitted and discharged without their defence being called.

“There was no basis whatsoever for the prosecution to appeal. All of them have been reinstated.

“Tonight, I pay tribute to these fearless officers. All of them have been reinstated and promoted. To IGP Ismail Omar, I say thank you for recognising that they have been victimised and for giving them back their dignity and honour. I am glad that the (police) force has not forsaken them.”

Ramli noted that Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Khalid Abu Bakar had also investigated the same syndicate member and that the officers involved in that investigation were transferred out, including Khalid.

These officers were acquitted and discharged without their defence being called and were also reinstated.

Ramli said a month before he was charged, his lawyer and one time university mate, Rosli Dahlan,was arrested in “a most humiliating manner” by the MACC and held overnight, and charged a day before Hari Raya that same year.

“They falsely accused Rosli of failure to declare his assets. Their objective was to implicate him for representing me, after they found that all the sensational stories spread by them through the mainstream media about me being the RM27 million cop were nothing but blatant lies.”

The former top cop said the MACC was unhappy with Rosli because he helped us (Ramli and Johari) to prepare affidavits that were supposed to be prepared by a senior federal counsel with the Home Ministry.

“The AG (Gani) was angry with Rosli for pointing out that the refusal by the Attorney-General’s Chambers to prepare these affidavits (to challenge the release of the syndicate member) amounted to an abdication of his constitutional duties under Article 145(3) of the Federal Constitution.

“Because they were out to get me, and get me good, they pursued all avenues within their powers, regardless of the consequences on innocent parties like Rosli. This unconscionable conduct alarmed me as a law enforcment officer,” Ramli said.

Having served the police force with great pride for 38 years, he said, all that came to an abrupt halt on Nov 1, 2007, when, three months shy of his retirement, he was charged in court.

“On that fateful day, life was no longer as I knew it. Overnight, my career was destroyed, my reputation tarnished and the privileges accorded to me stripped away.

“Like living in a nightmare, I found myself being singled out as a corrupt officer and the full strength of multiple bodies in power at that period of time had their crosshairs on me.

“With God’s grace, I have now been vindicated of all the charges because they are nothing more than falsehood. Although there were many efforts made to condemn me in the public eye, I had decided after being a civil servant, the only way to proceed was to prove my innocence…”

Ramli said that though “the powers that be” were determined to use all possible means to see him be convicted, he was not called to make his defence on any of the five charges levelled against him.

“I am well on the way to complete exoneration. As they say, you can’t keep a good man down.  However, as of today, I am patiently awaiting one more appeal by the AG pertaining to a summons case, the most minor of the charges.

“I am, however, sad to point out that my pension and gratuity have been withheld since 2008,  as I am said to be not yet fully cleared of all charges against me. That to me explained why the AG Chambers have kept this appeal suspended to this day.”

He ended his speech by saying that he could not, and would not, allow such abuses to take place again and that he would not sit idly by letting such incidents to be repeated.

Gani Patail makes history as the Attorney-General in the country’s 55 year history who has got the most number as well as the most serious charges of abuses of power made against him.

With Ramli going public, accepting full consequences for making the specific charges of abuses of power against Gani, the Najib administration cannot continue to be like the three monkeys of having eyes that see not, ears that hear not and mouth that speaks not but must act to protect the integrity both of the Constitution and the highest offices in the land.

In view of the many serious charges of abuses of power which have been made against the Attorney-General, Najib should ask the Cabinet to set up a Judicial Tribunal to investigate into all these charges, and until Gani is cleared of all these charges, he should go on leave to allow an acting Attorney-General to be appointed in his stead.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 March 2012, 10:14 am and is filed under
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Malay courtesy under threat

— Tunku Abdul Aziz

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 03, 2012

MARCH 3 — The spectacle of Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng being subjected by some Malay thugs to public harassment and humiliation on February 26 as he was leaving the anti-Lynas rally at Padang Kota in Penang caused a great deal of genuine pain to the sensibilities of men and women of goodwill in this nation.

Is this what the notion of “the new Malay” is really all about? Have they totally abandoned the natural courtesy and graciousness of their forebears? What has happened to the “adat”, or have they forgotten that too?

We may not like his politics but was that appropriate behaviour towards another human being? Lim is the head of government and must be shown all the courtesies attendant upon that position. That, in my book, is the norm of a civilised society, and anything less is unacceptable.

I attended a similar rally in Kuantan on the same day. It was a joy to see a well-behaved crowd of mainly young people from all over the country, including some from overseas, lending support to an important environmental concern without resorting to unruly and obnoxious behaviour.

The Kuantan police deserve the highest praise for their professionalism. They were there when needed, but otherwise remained in the background.

The Penang police, by comparison, were a disgrace to their uniform. They stood there, taking it all in but did absolutely nothing to stop the rowdyism that was showing all the signs of developing into violence.

Based on the video clips I watched, they did not go to the aid of the chief minister when he needed their intervention. This is the kind of attitude and behaviour that the police must change if they want to earn our respect and support. The police must be non-partisan.

* Tunku Abdul Aziz is a former member of the Police Royal Commission.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 4:58 pm and is filed under
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Malaysia after regime change

by Thomas Pepinsky

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 03, 2012

MARCH 3 — As Malaysia prepares for its 13th general election, due no later than April 2013, the long-standing competitive authoritarian regime will face one of its most difficult tests. The 2008 elections dealt a surprise blow to the incumbent Barisan Nasional (BN), and ever since, Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government has struggled to protect its now-fragile majority. After four years of renewed opposition activism, rumours of defection from Umno, and the recent acquittal of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysians will have the chance to vote the BN out of office once and for all.

In a post-BN Malaysia, observers will closely monitor the role of Islam in public life. Much of what happens will depend on the shape of the government that follows. In terms of the composition of a post-BN government, two outcomes seem most likely: (1) a multi-ethnic Pakatan Rakyat-based (PR) coalition in which PAS, PKR and the DAP all participate, perhaps along with one or more east Malaysian parties; or (2) an Umno-PAS “Muslim-Malay” coalition, again perhaps involving the co-operation of one or more east Malaysian parties. Either way, PAS — an explicitly Islamist party — will be part of the government.

That PAS would advocate for a greater role for Islam in Malaysian public life is undeniable. PAS describes its goals as follows:

    Memperjuangkan wujudnya di dalam negara ini sebuah masyarakat dan pemerintahan yang terlaksana di dalamnya nilai-nilai hidup Islam dan hukum-hukumnya menuju keredhaan Allah. [Fighting to create a society and government that is run according to Islamic principles and the laws which please Allah]

    Mempertahankan Kesucian Islam serta kemerdekaan dan kedaulatan negara. [Defending the sanctity of Islam alongside independence and national sovereignty.]

The prospect of PAS in government alone is worrying for those many Malaysians (both Muslims and non-Muslims) who express concern about the Islamisation of Malaysian politics and society. Moreover, a PR-based government would struggle to balance PAS’s goals with the DAP’s largely non-Muslim constituency. That would make an Umno-PAS alliance all the more attractive to PAS, while Umno, whose membership is not restricted to Muslims but is overwhelming Muslim anyway, would likely not hesitate to return to power with a new coalition partner.

Questions about PAS after the BN may reflect the concerns that many non-Muslims in Malaysia have about the role of religion in public life, and Malaysia’s Hindu minority in particular has cause for grievance on this account. But this obscures the corrosive effects that six decades of ethnic partisanship have had on the prospects for Malaysian democracy. It is a mistake, in other words, to focus narrowly on PAS, or broadly on Islam itself, when anticipating Islam in a post-BN Malaysian political order. Doing so confuses the potential consequences of PAS in government with the factors that have contributed both to PAS’s popularity and to the current state of Islam in Malaysian public life.

PAS itself has not played a major role in the Islamisation of Malaysian politics or Malaysian society. Rather, it was Malay politicians in the pre-independence period (the very same group that went on to found Umno) who enshrined Islam in the constitution and legally defined Malay-ness with reference to Islam. This was done not in the name of Islam, but to protect what were perceived to be “Malay interests”. After independence, with communism illegal, social democracy discredited (through its historical affiliation with a largely Chinese opposition party), liberalism cast as antithetical to Malaysian values, multiculturalism or pan-ethnic solidarity discouraged through the party system, and the Bumi/non-Bumi split underlying every aspect of social and economic policy, the only “Malay” alternative to Umno’s Malay platform was PAS’s Islamist platform.

Today, in a society in which economic function and demographic characteristics such as urbanisation no longer distinguish Malays from non-Malays as easily as they once did, core issues such as religion have a new importance for voters whose political identities are constructed through an ethnic framework.

The strategic logic of political competition in Malaysia’s plural society therefore rewards parties seeking Malay votes when they appeal to the characteristics that define Malays in opposition to non-Malays. It should not surprise anyone that when Malay voters find Umno politicians wanting, they are likely to vote for the only opposition party whose political outlook has not been labelled as “un-Malaysian” for the past half century.

Facing this, non-exclusivist opposition parties such as the DAP and PKR have struggled to transcend the ethnic paradigm in Malaysian politics. The choice for non-Malay, non-Muslim voters has been whether to cast their lot with their own regime-allied (and ethnically-constituted) parties, the “un-Malaysian” multiethnic opposition, or the Islamist PAS.

The fundamental challenge for public life in a post-BN Malaysia is not Islam, it is ethnicity’s dominant role in defining Malaysians’ political identity, and this challenge just as pressing today as it would be if a new government with PAS comes to power following the upcoming elections. Of course, PAS’s explicitly religious goals are important to note, but there are few things that it could do in government that are not already within Umno’s capacity today.

Umno has presided over — and its campaign messages and public policies have encouraged — the rise of Islam in public life. It is tempting today to see what Judith Nagata called the “reflowering of Malaysian Islam” as merely a local instance of a global Muslim awakening, but this misses the very politics of Islamic politics in Malaysia.

In the Malaysian context, the rise of religion is the unavoidable consequence of the politicisation of ethnicity. A PAS-led government might go further than the BN has in prosecuting perceived insults to Islam, or in expanding the domain of Islamic family law, but such worries already mark Malaysian public life. The religious issues facing Malaysia are far deeper than the ruling party’s religious outlook, and having PAS in government is best understood as the outcome of decades of social change and religious conflict rather than a possible independent cause of future religious tensions.

It is reasonable to wonder what Malaysian politics would look like with an avowedly Islamist party like PAS in government, but as always, the meaning of Islam in Malaysian public life cannot be separated from the dominance of ethnicity in Malaysian politics.

The “solution” to the “problem” of Islam in Malaysian politics — if one believes that Islam is indeed a problem — is the same as the solution to many of the other issues that face contemporary Malaysian society: a post-ethnic movement (not merely a multi-ethnic one) in which Malaysians identify, assemble, and act as Malaysians rather than as representatives of ethnic groups in a zero-sum competition for power and resources.

This is what many hope that a PR government would mean, and in rhetorical terms, that is what Najib’s 1 Malaysia campaign promises. A recent article in the Economist suggests that many young Malaysians would welcome such a post-ethnic politics. But they will have to wait, for Malaysian politics as BN-versus-PR restates the ethnic politics framework without moving past it. — New Mandala

* Thomas Pepinsky is assistant professor of government at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. His work focuses on comparative politics and international political economy, with a special focus on contemporary issues in Southeast Asia. His interests include the politics of finance, authoritarianism, Islam, and finding a way to move Ithaca to the tropics.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 8:09 pm and is filed under
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Najib apologises for BN’s mistakes in move to cut opposition’s strength

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 03, 2012

BALING, March 3 – Datuk Seri Najib Razak apologised for Barisan Nasional’s (BN) past mistakes today that cost its two-thirds parliamentary majority and four states in 2008, recognising the groundswell against the ruling coalition remains ahead of a general election that must be held by next year.

The prime minister said the BN would rectify the mistakes and make up by serving the people as best as it can.

The voters’ rejection of the BN, like in Kedah, was in a way due to the mistakes made by the coalition, Najib (picture) said during a day-long visit to the state.

“I believe that we should not be arrogant. In a parliamentary democracy, we have to subject ourselves to the power of the people. We must have made mistakes for the people to have rejected us.

“We apologise for our past mistakes. The victors apologise, as do the losers,” he said at a meet-the-people session at the Kuala Ketil public field near here, according to a Bernama Online report.

The BN chairman said the ruling coalition will learn from the mistakes and rise again.

The Malaysian Insider understands that the latest Umno surveys show that there could be a repeat of the Election 2008 results but with Pakatan Rakyat (PR) getting at least 87 federal seats, five more than in 2008.

Among the issues blighting BN’s efforts to garner more support include a civil service pay revamp that has gone awry, the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal involving a minister’s family and the Lynas Corp rare earth refinery operations which has seen growing opposition to its plan to keep radioactive wastes in the country.

BN won 140 seats in the 222-seat Dewan Rakyat with the remainder going to PR but a series of defections have seen the opposition now having 76 seats. It also lost Perak to BN in 2009 after three PR lawmakers quit to be independents supporting the federal government.

PR now holds Kelantan, Kedah, Penang and Selangor but a brewing leadership crisis in Kedah could tilt the rice-bowl state back to BN in the next election.

Najib has yet to indicate when he will dissolve parliament for federal elections but he indicated his confidence today to win back Kedah.

“From the ruins of the BN in Kedah, we will rise and build a strong and sturdy ‘palace’. That’s our resolve. We resolve that we have learnt from our mistakes. We give the people an undertaking, that we will serve them to our best.

“Let the past remain just that. We promise a transformation for the people of Malaysia, and Kedah. The journey has begun,” he said.

Najib said that only the BN can provide the people with a good future.

“Our plans are clear. We have a well-organised agenda, we have a roadmap, we have facts and figures. Sufficient statistics to drive change, to take the nation towards realisation of a progressive high-income country. This is unlike the Buku Jingga,” he said, referring to PR’s roadmap for implementation if they captured Putrajaya.

He said the government wanted to send the signal and provide a clear picture that it is close to bringing about a transformation that will give great benefits to the people.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 8:15 pm and is filed under
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Najib should present White Paper to Parliament to present government case to justify a third bailout  of RM840 million for Tajudin Ramli

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak should present a White Paper to Parliament when it reconvenes on March 12 to present the government case to justify a third bailout of RM840 million for former Malaysian Airlines (MAS) chairman Tajudin Ramli – as well as reasons for the previous RM12 billion double bailouts for Tajudin.

The latest round of bailout revolves around the out-of-court settlement of Tajudin’s RM589 million debts which Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Bhd had obtained in a Kuala Lumpur High Court judgment in December 2009.

The Minority Shareholders Watchdog Group (MSWG) described the judgment as probably the largest sum awarded in Malaysian legal history and  computed that the total amount would have ballooned to RM840 million as the judgment allows Danaharta to charge an interest of two per cent over the base lending rate on the outstanding sum from Jan 1, 2006.

It raised questions all Malaysians are asking and which must be answered by the Prime Minister in Parliament, viz:

•	What could have prompted Danaharta not to exercise its legal right to collect the outstanding amount?

•	Why the government resorted to an out-of-court settlement despite winning the case in court?

The government write-off of RM840 million judgment debt due from Tajudin would at least be the third bailout of Tajudin using public funds, the first time involving RM1.8 billion bailout of Tajudin  in December 2000 paying RM8.00 per share for his 29 per cent stake in MAS or more than double its market price then; and the second bailout in taking over the some RM10 billion losses suffered by MAS after Tajudin’s take over from 1994-2000.

What public interests could Najib plead to justify a third bailout for Tajudin?

It is time for Najib to come clean with Parliament and the nation whether there is any truth to Tajudin’s claim that he was directed by former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and former Finance Minister Tun Daim Zainudin in 1994 to buy a controlling stake in MAS to bail out the government as a “national service” – to partly “bail out” Bank Negara from its RM30 billion foreign exchange scandal in 1992/1993 – and that there was an “Overriding Agreement” to indemnify him against any losses suffered.

Is it because what Tajudin was the truth despite the denial by Mahathir that was the reason for the series of Tajudin bailouts, including the current third Tajudin bailout of RM840 million?

If Tajudin’s claim is baseless, as asserted by Mahathir, then Tajudin had committed perjury in making a false affidavit. Why  then had no criminal action been instituted  against Tajudin?

Whatever the truth, Parliament and the country are entitled to know the facts  especially on why the Government of Malaysia has to embark on further billion-ringgit bailouts of Tajudin after the RM12 billion double bail-outs after the disastrous six-year “privatisation” of MAS to Tajudin from 1994-2000!

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 4:18 pm and is filed under
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Ramli: MACC used ‘shady character’ to frame me

Hafiz Yatim | Mar 3, 2012

Malaysiakini

Retired Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Ramli Yusuff revealed more on his Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) experience with details on how it used a convicted criminal to frame and press charges against him.

At his birthday speech on Wednesday, he said that the MACC had used this shady character’s statement while he was still in custody under the Emergency Ordinance, as the foundation to build up the charges against him, particularly those he had faced in Kuala Lumpur.

“Imagine this, the MACC relied on the words of a shady character who was under custody and detained under the Emergency Ordinance and then converted to restricted residence, and later released after they secured his cooperation to frame me by making allegations that in 1999 I was paid corruption money through an officer.

“These allegations were supposed to have come from a source involved in a slew of organised crimes, including illegal money lending (loan sharks), illegal character lottery, prostitution and drug pushing in Johor.

“The notes of evidence in court (proceeding) show so clearly that all these allegations were mere fabrications,” he said.

The MACC, Ramli added, did not even dare produce the man in court to prove that statement.

When criminal’s word is gold

Yet, he said, he was charged just based on the words of this known criminal became the MACC’s basis for saying that there were grounds to justify a notice to declare his assets.

“Nothing could be more perverse than what was done to me,” he added.

On Thursday, Malaysiakini reported that Ramli had accused attorney-general (AG) Abdul Gani Patail and former inspector-general of police Musa Hassan and the MACC of “fixing” him and his men.

The whole saga began when he and his team took action against a syndicate member allegedly aligned with former inspector-general of police Musa, where the person was placed under restricted residence.

However, on the advice of the AG, the syndicate member was subsequently released unconditionally while his officers were charged with taking down false and fabricated statements implicating Musa.

Abdul Gani subsequently passed the highly confidential case file over to the MACC to harass the witnesses, he claimed.

A string of court victories

Ramli had in 2007 faced three charges in Kuala Lumpur on failing to declare his assets and another on violating laws prohibiting civil servants’ involvement in private business.

However, he was acquitted of these charges by the Sessions Court in 2010, without his defence being called.

The decision was upheld by the Kuala Lumpur High Court last year, where one of the judges in a damning judgment wrote that the MACC should not have appealed the ruling on the charge of failing to declare his assets as they were aware the Sessions judge had said there was no premeditated offence as the MACC had relied solely on the words of an underworld syndicate member.

The Court of Appeal also upheld Ramli’s acquittal of the abuse of power charge when as Sabah police chief he allegedly used a Royal Malaysian Police Cessna Caravan aircraft to fly him and Brig-Gen (Rtd) Mohamad Yasin Yahya on aerial surveillance of two parcels of land in Ulu Tungku, Lahad Datu.

Malaysiakini also carried a special report on the apparent infighting in the police force in 2007, titled Top cop vs Top cop.

Ramli, in his speech to mark his 65th birthday, also said that he did not harbour any ill-will towards the force but only at those who misuse and abuse their positions for their own benefit.

“I came to understand that after I was charged, officers were demoralised and scared to make decisions and felt caged unable even use their discretion.

“It pains me to think how my indictment would mar the portrayal of my fellowmen in blue in this country.

“Chances are, they could also easily be hauled in for abuse of power or be fixed or transferred out to the remote districts of Sabah or Sarawak,” he said.

Ramli vowed that he would continue to speak out to ensure such incidents would not recur in the force.

Malaysiakini has texted both Abdul Gani and MACC chief commissioner Abu Kasim Mohamed and is still awaiting their response to Ramli’s allegations.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 8:23 pm and is filed under
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RM840m Tajudin settlement puzzles shareholders’ group

Malaysiakini

Mar 2, 2012

The Minority Shareholders Watchdog Goup (MSWG) is puzzled by last month’s out-of-court settlement between several government-linked companies (GLCs) and former Malaysia Airlines chairperson, saying the unpaid debt would now have ballooned to RM840 million.

Its chief executive officer Rita Benoy Bushon says in the MSWG Newsletter that Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Bhd, had in 2009 obtained a judgment for RM589 million against Tajudin from the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

“This is probably the largest sum awarded in Malaysian legal history. The judgment allows Danaharta to charge an interest of two per cent over the base lending rate on the outstanding sum from Jan 1, 2006.”

“A rough calculation shows that this amount would have ballooned to RM840 million. What could have prompted Danaharta tnot to exercise its legal right to collect the outstanding amount? We are somewhat perplexed by the out-of-court settlement,” Bushon said.

She also said it was unclear why the government resorted to an out-of-court settlement despite winning the case in court.

Established in 2000, MSWG is part of a broader capital market framework to protect the interests of minority shareholders through shareholder activism.

It is one avenue of market discipline to encourage good governance among public listed companies, with the objective of raising shareholder value over time.

The Court of Appeal on Feb 22 recorded Tajudin’s withdrawal of his appeal against the 2009 judgment and his RM13 billion counter-claim in an out-of-court settlement. The terms of the settlement are being kept secret.

Much criticism on the settlement

This move has received a lot of criticisms, with Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua also claiming that Tajudin’s Danaharta debt was written off as part of the settlement.

Among the litigants involved in the lawsuit are Telekom Malaysia Bhd, Naluri Corporation, Celcom (M) Bhd, Atlan Holding Bhd and CIMB Group, besides Danaharta.

Suspicions over the settlement arose after Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Abdul Aziz in a letter dated Aug 8 last year directing all the GLCs involved in the matter to settle their suits with Tajudin out of court.

Tajudin, a former MAS chairperson, had in his affidavit dated Feb 10, 2012, filed with the Court of Appeal, described Nazri’s letter as a directive for a settlement.

Asked about his letter, Nazri said it was merely an advice and not a directive to the GLCs.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court will on Monday decide on the government’s application to strike out Tajudin’s RM500 million counter-claim, and Tajudin’s move to strike out the MAS suit against him over an arbitration case in Germany, in which the national carrier had to pay RM174 milion.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 12:40 pm and is filed under
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The Lynas flip-flop

 — Sam Peh

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 03, 2012

MARCH 3 — For a government which is sure that the Lynas rare earth plant is safe, the flip-flops of the past 48 hours have been illuminating. After saying that the Lynas plant was scientifically and factually safe, Najib Razak did an about-turn and said that Lynas will be asked to store/bury the waste away from the local communities in Kuantan.

Oh let me see, where do we start? Which position should we accept as representative of the Najib administration’s stand on this investment from Australia?

The Atomic Energy Licensing Board aka official spokesman for Lynas (and a regulator which is participating in revenue share with Lynas): the waste from the rare earth plant is safe and can be stored in Gebeng.

Liow Tiong Lai, Maximus Ongkili and a couple of other ministers, obviously concerned with the political fallout rather than health concerns of residents: the waste must be shipped back to Australia. Never mind that the Green Party which keeps Julia Gilliard government in office would never allow the import of any waste.

Najib Razak: Lynas will be asked to store the waste away from Gebeng.

This flip-flopping and verbal gymnastics only serve to confirm what many of us believe: the government’s knowledge about this investment is sketchy at best and now that they have approved this investment they feel they can’t undo the damage completely without upsetting Australia.

Never mind that Australia is becoming synonymous for exporting their rubbish to us: Rio Tinto pollution-spewing smelter in Sarawak, Lynas rare earth plant and the controversial plan to send us some dodgy political asylum-seekers.

Najib may think that he has found a solution to the Lynas problem. He has not. He has only shown us another side to the incompetence of the government and its inability to protect us.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 March 2012, 5:20 pm and is filed under
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Forgive and forget, the Umno Way

— Gomen Man

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 04, 2012

MARCH 4 — This is the Umno way: Forget all debts and don’t bring up mistakes. And this enlightening statement is coming from Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the then-agriculture minister who approved the now-infamous National Feedlot Centre project.

This is a most self-serving and irresponsible statement, not to mention dangerous.

Is this what we are supposed to teach our children? Just say sorry and all will be forgiven. There is no need to show remorse, make restitution or pay a price for breaking the law.

How about the common Malaysian? Just say sorry and there will be no need to be punished for cheating, theft, robbery, murder, criminal breach of trust, etc.

Muhyiddin’s statement is very much in keeping with the ridiculous stuff that we keep having to put up with. Don’t bring up my past transgressions even though I have not owned up to it because it is in the past.

OK, let’s for a minute accept his ridiculous proposition. Let’s not bring up the RM250 million fiasco called the NFC or implicate Shahrizat Jalil’s family in it.

Stop talking about the RM850 million court judgment that, because of the government’s intervention, Tajuddin Ramli does not have to pay to Danaharta.

Don’t make fun of the government transformation programme and ETP just because the figures used by Pemandu are intellectually dishonest.

Stop going on a witch hunt for the people behind the RM2.5 billion losses just suffered by MAS and the cost escalation to nearly RM5 billion for a low cost terminal in KLIA.

Don’t bring up the RM500 million commission paid to certain individuals for the Scorpene submarine deal.

And since we are in such a forgiving mood, we should also include the rakyat and not hold anyone accountable for any transgression. As long as they give a blanket apology, everything is OK.

This, in essence, is what Muhyiddin Yassin said.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 11:09 pm and is filed under
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Has Najib issued a “blank cheque” apology, signifying nothing as to enable all the past BN mistakes of abuses of power, corruption and  lack of accountability to be repeated in even worse magnitude?

Yesterday, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak extended an apology to the people on behalf of the Barisan Nasional for the coalition’s mistakes in the last general election, which cost it several electoral seats and states including Kedah.

Najib said:

“I apologise for our mistakes prior to the 2008 general election. If we made mistakes in the past and the voters rejected us, we accept it.

“On behalf of BN, I apologise.  We have learnt from our mistakes, and we aim and promise the people that we will make amends and bring them to greater heights.”

I was immediately asked on the twitter: “accept or not” and my reply was: “Yes, should accept if Najib’s apology for BN’s past mistakes genuine. Is it genuine or just election gimmicry?”

I scoured the news reports to be able to say that Najib’s apology should be accepted in good faith as he has identified and  owned up to the BN’s past mistakes for which he and the present BN would make amends, but unfortunately, there is nothing whatsoever to come to such a conclusion.

In fact, one should ask whether Najib has issued a “blank cheque” apology, signifying nothing as to enable all the past BN mistakes of abuses of power, corruption and lack of accountability to be repeated in even worse magnitude?

For instance, in the fight against corruption. Previous Prime Minister Tun Abdullah had promised in the 2004 general election to end and reverse the tide of corruption which saw Malaysia’s Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perception Index (CPI) plunging from No. 23 placing in 1995 to No. 37 in 2003 with CPI score of 5.2 (10 being the best and 0 the worst).

Abdullah announced a  five-year National Integrity Plan targeting at least 30th position in TI CPI 2008 and the score of at least 6.5.

In actual fact, Malaysia fell another 10 places in the TI CPI 2008 and was  ranked No. 47 with a score of 5.1.

Najib’s anti-corruption target under his 1Malaysia Government Transformation Programme (GTP) proved to be another abysmal failure – instead of achieving the target to increase CPI score from 4.5 to 4.9 in 2010, the score plunged to lowest-ever 4.3 with CPI ranking at its worst of No. 60 in the 2011 TI CPI.

Is Najib apologizing for Malaysia becoming increasingly corrupt not only under the Mahathir and Abdullah years but also under his premiership which will be completing its third year next month?

Is Najib apologizing for the past and present corruption under Barisan Nasional, to the extent that Malaysia now runs the risk of losing out to Indonesia and China on the anti-corruption front in the TI CPI both in ranking and score before 2020?

Just before he became Prime Minister, Najib conspired and  plotted the illegal and undemocratic  power grab in Perak toppling the democratically-elected Pakatan Rakyat Perak state government headed by Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin as Mentri Besar.

Will Najib apologise for this illegal power grab  in Perak?

Mahathir’s 22-year premiership was dogged by a catalogue of financial scandals costing an estimated loss of RM100 billion to the country. Up to now, Malaysians are still paying for these financial scandals, as in the third and latest RM840 million bailout of former Malaysian Airlines (MAS) chairman Tajudin Ramli with his  out-of-court settlement with Danaharta and GLCs.

Is Najib apologizing for this?

In the past three decades, the independence, impartiality, integrity and professionalism of major national institutions, whether civil service, judiciary, police, elections commission or  anti-corruption agency were seriously compromised by executive interference and usurpation.

Any Najib apology?

Perhaps we should give the Prime Minister an opportunity to enumerate the past BN mistakes for which he is extending an apology and undertaking not to repeat them, so that Malaysians can conclude whether Najib’s apology is genuine and sincere or otherwise.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 12:49 pm and is filed under
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Najib mohon maaf

— Sakmongkol AK47

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 04, 2012

4 MAC — Sedikit komen keatas mohon maaf oleh Najib Razak.

Tugas dan misi rakyat semua ialah membantu Najib membuktikan kejujuran permohonan maafnya. Cara yang terbaik membantu PM Najib ialah memastikan dia menjadi ketua pembangkang dalam Parlimen yang akan datang.

Kenapa? Dengan cara yang demikian, pengucapan mohon maaf akan menjadi perbuatan dan perlaksanaan.

Ini bukan isu sombong. Kalau sombong, kita boleh melupakan dengan senang orang yang sombong. Ini isu kerajaan yang korap dan lemah. Ini isu sebuah kerajaan yang setelah 50 tahun lebih memerintah, masih gagal meningkatkan kesejahteraan rakyat Bumiputera.

Ini isu kerajaan yang kleptokratik, yang membenarkan pimpinan politik kerajaan dan pentadbir kerajaan menyalah guna kuasa untuk mendapat sumber kekayaan. “Kleptocracy” ialah kerajaan oleh pencuri untuk pencuri.

Penyenaraian FGV akan menyebabkan FELDA hilang RM2 billion lebih dari bajet untuk mengurus dan mentadbir Felda. Dari penyenaraian tersebut, Felda akan mendapat sebahagian kecil keuntungan dari IPO tersebut. Daripada bahagian tersebut, Felda akan bayar hutang EPF sebanyak RM3 billion. Dari bahagian tersebut juga Felda kena bayar durian runtuh kepada peneroka dan warga KPF.

Setelah tempoh bulan madu habis, apa akanjadi pada masa depan Felda dimana 112,000 peneroka terdiri dari majoritinya Melayu? Bolehkah Felda menyediakan kemudahan dan khidmat pada tahap yang sedia ada dengan bajet sebanyak RM 400-500 juta setahun?

Dan bahagian besar untung dari IPO pergi kepada mana? Ianya pergi ke kantung pejabat PM.

Dan PM Najib memohon maaf daripada rakyat diatas “corporate deception” ini?

Jika rakyat memaafkan dan menyambung hayat pimpinan Umno dan Barisan Nasional (BN), negara ini akan menuju kepada suatu mutation demokrasi-oligarchy iaitu pemerintahan oleh elit politik dan elit bisnes. Malah, inilah yang kita sedang lihat terjadi depan mata kita akibat merelakan pemerintahan Umno dan BN.

Kita kena faham mengenai saikoloji penyokong dan pimpinan Umno. Umno bukan dipacu oleh perjuangan suatu seruan. Mereka semua adalah “in business”. Budaya Umno adalah budaya “tender-preneurship”.

Kita jangan terpedaya apabila PM Najib memohon maaf diatas keterlaluan kerajaan BN pada tahun 2008. Disebalik permohonan maaf tersebut terkandung salah satu penyebab penolakan rakyat kepada BN. Iaitu bongkak dan sombong. Bolehkah sombong yang tersurat mahu di nyahkan dengan kesombongan yang tersirat?

Mohon maaf Najib sebenarnya, adalah “pompous arrogance” yang di salut dengan gula. Kenapa kita kata “pompous arrogance”? Kerana ianya mengandung fikiran bahawa Umno dan BN memiliki monopoli dan hakmilik kekal untuk memerintah negara sesuka hati.

Sudah sampai masanya rakyat menyedari bahawa semua kita, parti politik menawarkan diri untuk di beri peluang memberi khidmat, mengurus dan mentadbir kerajaan dengan baik. Bagaimana kita menawarkan diri? Dengan meyakinkan rakyat kita boleh menyediakan pimpinan yang terbaik. Bukan dengan mintak maaf. Kalau jujur undur diri bukan mohon maaf.

Kerajaan yang baik itu bergantung kepada satu perencah yang penting. Rahsia kerajaan yang baik ialah pimpinan yang baik.

Sebab terbesar Umno dan BN kian di tolak, ialah mereka gagal menyediakan pimpinan terbaik. Dan ianya bermula dari Najib sendiri. Sikap yang suka kepada membina palace plots, berpakat dengan kuncu-kuncu dan klik-klil, menunjukkan bahawa Umno dan BN tidak lagi mampu menawarkan kepada rakyat pimpinan yang baik.

Dibawah pimpinan Najib, yang kita lihat ialah kemunculan klik-klik kepimpinan yang beranggapan misi meraka bukanlah menawarkan khidmat dan permohonan di beri pelaung untuk “serve the country”, tapi untuk menentukan klik mereka mengatasi kilk yang lain berlumba mendapat kuasa. Apabila misi berjaya, maka, “to the victor, all the spoils”.

Kenapa, rakyat mahu memaafkan Najib, sedangkan dia tidak mahu berjajnji bahawa gejala to the victor belongs all the spoils di hapuskan? Ini punca dan penyebab segala rasuah, segala salah guna kuasa, segala kesombongan yang muncul dari pimpinan Umno dan BN. Helo pak Najib, ketaat setiaan rakyat di bina dengan fikiran dan penghujahan, bukan dengan pembayaran dan keganasan.

Kita mesti beritahu Najib dan juga warga PR, bahawa sesiapa yang memerintah, memerintah at the pleasure of the rakyat. Tidak ada orang mempunyai hakmilik kekal. Semua hanya mempunyai TOL yang kekal. Dan apabila pleasure rakyat terhakis dan bertukar menjadi displeasure, maka kerajaan akan di ubah.

Kita tidak boleh memaafkan rasuah dan salah guna kuasa yang di lakukan oleh pimpinan Umno. Kita boleh beri maaf tapi kita juga mahu menamatkan hayat pencetus segala angkara murka, iaitu kepimpinan Umno yang telah rosak dan tidak menguntungkan orang Melayu. — sakmongkol.blogspot.com

* Sakmongkol AK47 adalah nama pena Datuk Mohd Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz. Beliau merupakan bekas Adun Pulau Manis (2004-2008).

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 10:52 pm and is filed under
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Siblings of the same calling

Mohamad Tajuddin Md Rasdi |Feb 28, 2012

Malaysiakini

I wish to comment on Dr Hasan Ali’s concern over the alleged attempts of Christian missionaries in converting Muslims. He has alluded to the presence of the men-in-white who are secretly doing Christian ‘dakwah’.

I have known Hassan Ali for a long time and my respect for him was to the extent that I had prayed he would be one of Malaysia’s prime ministers.

I had entrusted my children’s religious and moral training to his ‘summer camp’ programme and I deeply respect him as a man who embodies much of the character of the Prophet.

Needless to say I had wished that I would have had half of his knowlege and perhaps ‘iman’ before I leave this world.

I do not wish to deal with allegations of him coverting the chief ministership of Selangor and that his latest ‘revelation of these Christian men-in-white affair is a tool to put him in the limelight and find favours with leaders of his own racist mindset.

In this essay I wish to put across three important points concerning this matter. My first point is that I find his allegation has little credibility.

My second point is that if Muslims were to have been converted to Christianity, why blame Christians and not our way of interpreting and teaching Islam?

My final point is that, I believe that all religions are like siblings in a family and that I have found great faith in delving into how each and every religion attempts to give solace to man concerning the right way to find happiness in this world and the next.

With respect to the first point, I find it hard to believe that such men-in-white actually exist. Why do I say so? Well after 50 years of living, this the first time I have heard of such a thing. Why have we not heard of this before?

Secondly, I have seen Christians visiting many houses in my housing estate and none of them has ever tried to strike up a converstaion with me or my family about Christianity. I wish they would so that I could invite them in!

I have only had the Tabligh group coming to my house inviting me to the surau or masjid. Once a Chinese lady called at my house and asked: “Hello, ini rumah orang Melayu?” When I said “yes” she said sorry and went away.

Universal act of helping others

I have also seen those whom I think were Christians visiting Orang Asli bearing gifts of food and other life’s necessities. Why should we be angry with the Christians? To me they are practicing what is perhaps a universal act of helping others in order to help our souls.

I have read about this in Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Islamic teachings. Universal! Except I do not see Muslims doing so in that manner.

The motivation gurus say that in order to stop anxiety and worry, talk to others who have an even greater problem and your worries or anxieties will become small in comparison.

Professor Dr Eaknath Easwaran says that “we can never make ourselves happy by doing things for ourselves, only the act of kindness and consideration to others will destroy the ego and then truly make us happy”.

Eaknath was of course deliberating from the Bhagavad Gita.

Finally, in a country like Malaysia with a police and military force made up almost entirely of Malay-Muslim population, I hardly think Christians would tempt fate foolishly in being too aggressive in their missionary works.

I think the Christians have great faith in their religion but they are certainly not stupid to do such a thing. So, I find Hasan’s allegation has little credibility, if any at all.

With respect to the second point, what if there were a few or many Muslims who have chosen to convert to Christianity, why must we blame the Christians?

Is it enough and hunky-dory to just pass a law that says no religion can tempt another of different faith to convert to their own? Such simplistic thinking indeed.

When I go to book shops to look for books on Islam to give my children, teenagers and young adults reading materials on Islam, I am at a complete loss since most of the books are too preachy and do not have any interesting presentation format to this kind of users.

In the Malay language, there is hardly any and in English, I would say very feeble attempts.

Our ulamas can preach long and loud, but they do not know how to speak to our young. Perhaps, we can train the likes of Azril to teach religious values in his many TV shows. He could pull in a big crowd.

Through their songs and novels

When I visit mosques to listen to ceramah and lectures, I am sad to find that their method of delivery is still the same with long-winded explanations without much appeal to the young. Most are without power points and the presentation formats are as dry as the bones of dinosaurs.

Now let us look at the TV shows. Well, there are some interesting ustaz trying to dump down some values to the public but the attempt is still too conservative.

We must have a ‘waktu rehat’ kind of a sit-com that might appeal more and perhaps then ask the ustaz to be more savvy with their moral examples and stories.

I like the books ‘Chicken Soup for …’ series and we should have this in Islamic frames. Incidently, I love the WALI band that sings religious rock songs and some of these lads were trained in Pasentran or religious schools.

I think Indonesia has a much, much better way at approaching dakwah to the young through their songs and novels. I do not like the dramas that are imported from Indonesia.

Perhaps, there are other religious-based ones that are more interesting but have failed to get pass our religious censor board.

I think we should set up an academy of creative arts and put young men with religious education and train them in the arts and multi-media in order to produce a generation of ‘hip ulamaks’ and make Islam more attractive to our young.

With respect to the third point, I hold to the personal view that all religious faiths are brethrens or siblings, Islam being the youngest in the family. Christianity and Judaism, I view as older brothers with Hinduism being the eldest to my knowledge.

The reformative ideas of Buddhism stems from Hinduism and can be considered part of the same family of religions. I can’t understand why Muslims hate to be viewed in this manner. My article on Malay-Muslims and the Perfect Religion Syndrome explains much of this view.

For me, I find great joy in reading many books about ‘Positive Thinking, Inspiring Messages’ and ‘You Are What You Think’ by the Christian psychologist Dr Norman Vincent Peale. His books have helped me a great deal in dealing with anxiety issues as well as cultivate a closer relationship with God.

He has virtually eliminated any feeling of resentment on those I find difficult to deal with.

The books of Eaknath on meditation, commentary of the Bhagavad Gita and controlling the mind, help train the mind to focus at will and not let it wander ceaselessly.

His commentary of the Bhagavad Gita teaches me that the path to the love of God is through subjugating the ego and the way to do that is to put others first.

Readings of Islamic religious texts gives me much information but their style is not as exciting and motivational as the books described above, simply because the texts are translation of classical work such as those of Imam Ghazali, Ar-Rumi and Abdul Qadir Jailani.

Two thoughts from YouTube lecture

Only the work of modernists like Dr Aidh in his famous book ‘Don’t Be Sad’ comes close to an easy and consoling motivational work.

Thus, if we view all religions as one big happy family, imagine the resources that we have to tap on in discovering the true meaning of happiness. Let us not get involved into a debate of ‘my religion is true ergo yours is not’.

Some Muslims insist that there must be somebody who is right and somebody that is wrong. Simple. Well, I beg to differ. If you have five children like me, can you claim to love one child less than the others?

I love all of them equally whether one is bad tempered or good natured or what have you, they are all my children.

If you were a parent who can insist that he or she loves one of his or her children more than the others, I am afraid to tell you that you are indeed a ‘bad’ parent to do so.

Finally I wish to summarise what I understand from a YouTube lecture given by Profesor Dr Muhammad Tahir al-Qudri on ‘Signs that Allah Loves You’. Two things caught my attention.

First, he said that we must annihilate our worldly-selves in order to open our hearts to the divine attributes of love from Allah.

We must disassociate from our love of positions, wealth, popularity and many other vices in order to receive the attributes of the divine. One of the attributes of Allah is that he loves all mankind, whether good or bad, wealthy or poor, Christians or Muslims and so forth.

So, if we Muslims were imbued with his love and attributes we too would love all mankind, whether Muslims or of other faiths. Even Khurram Murad in his book ‘In the Early Hours’ wrote that the Prophet says one of the signs of iman is to love all man for Allah’s sake.

Of course, those who have done wrong with criminal acts must be punished  and we shall hate their deeds but still open our hearts for them if they recite their ‘tauba’ or repentance.

Thus, if all religions teach that love for others is paramount to seeking true happiness and enlightenment, what are we doing mistrusting one another? Which religion is true and which is false? That is the wrong question and certainly the wrong discourse.

We should strive to be the best at attaining the divine attributes of love and care for others in whichever religion we profess, and let every individual choose their own path.

Lao Tze said “the way that can be told is not the eternal way”. Our own paths are ours and ours alone to determine and no one person can make this journey for us except our own self. The journey of a thousand steps begin with our own feet… and not others.

In closing, I wish Hassan Ali well in his career and hope that he can still be one of our great leaders of this country. I still have faith in him to do what is right for others in this country and not for his own selfish calling.

Only then is true leadership born. No self-appointed leader is acknowledged by history nor any that is propped up by parties of vested interests. I plead to Hassan Ali not to stoke the fires of religious and racial hatred in this country for the sake of his and my children and for the sake of all caring citizens of this country.

——————————————————————————–

PROF DR MOHAMAD TAJUDDIN MOHAMAD RASDI is a 23-year veteran academic and teaches architecture at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. He specialises in mosque and Islamic architecture particularly that which relates to Malaysia using a hadith-based and socio-cultural approach in order to create the total idea of built environment suited for a whole social structure.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 10:36 pm and is filed under
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‘Umno’s 2004 landslide victory a curse’

Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz | March 4, 2012

Free Malaysia Today

Former Umno assemblyman Mohd Ariff Sabri discovered that much of Daim’s ‘prophecies’ remain relevant.

COMMENT

This article is based on a 45-minute conversation I had with former economic advisor Tun Daim Zainuddin way back in early 2009.

However, I must say this. I did not take notes while we were talking as I wanted to savour the fullness of our conversation.

But as soon as I got back, I quickly wrote notes in my own little red book on what transpired. There was never a doubt in my mind that we would be talking with candour.

I would later discover, this larger than life figure possesses a rapier sharp mind. But most of all I would be disarmed by his willingness to speak easy.

It was obvious Daim was not restrained nor constrained. And our conversation touched a range of issues.

The conversation

I began with: “Tun, I have been meaning to ask this jackpot of a question as to how, before March 2008, you cautioned the government about the trouble in five states.

“And after the elections, you were proven right. And if I remember, many political leaders were very dismissive of you”.

Yes, Daim said.

Even Khir Toyo said before the 2008 polls: “What does Daim know, he has been out of politics”.

Daim said he felt the pulse of the nation then. A lot of grievances were detected on the ground. Business people were coming to talk to him, lamenting of grouses.

There were many issues not favourable to the government.

Daim said he went to see and talked to Pak Lah (former prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi).

He asked why Pak Lah wanted to call for general election when he still had time in his favour. The economy was not doing well; there were so many issues not settled – the Hindraf thing, and so on.

Pak Lah said he was confident of securing a two-third majority, added Daim.

He then went on to say that the 2004 landslide victory was actually a curse to Umno and Barisan Nasional.

It made them complacent and arrogant at the same time. That was a lethal combination.

Umno and the need for change

I then asked Daim on how saw the so called changes in Umno after the 2008 GE.

He said: “You know the Umno leaders are talking about change. But where are the changes are they talking of? Do you see any?”

Daim has been Umno treasurer for 17 years and he knows what’s going on with Umno.

Former Umno president Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, he said, was busy and so had left a substantial part of party matters to him (during that period).

Daim doesn’t see any substantial changes taking place in the party and he wasn’t confident of seeing any changes now either.

His opinion was that leaders are just interested in securing places in the sun for themselves.

My next question to Daim was: “Who does Umno now represent? Is it the Malays? Umno would be severely challenged at this claim”.

Daim mentioned what I have consisitently said in my blogs, that Umno has failed to secure the majority of Malay votes.

In the last elections there were 5.7 million Malay voters and Umno managed to secure somewhere in the region of two million votes.

There you are, said Daim.

Umno in a sorry state

Some 3.7 million Malays did not support Umno.

And he then quickly added “You tahu, Umno has what? Three over million members kan?

“Why did it get only two million votes? Then there are the young voters. What has Umno planned to rope these people in?

You can easily say, out of 10 young people, eight will likely vote opposition.

And here is a clincher.

Both Daim and I agreed that Umno now appears to be losing credibility. Whatever Umno says is no longer readily believable.

You have a situation where (allegedly sullied PKR de facto leader) Anwar Ibrahim, even if he were to come out and say something or anything, people will believe him.

Isn’t that an irony? Umno is in the sorriest state now.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman who joined DAP earlier this year. He is a FMT columnist.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 10:27 pm and is filed under
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You call this an apology?

 – Othman Wahab

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 03, 2012

MARCH 3 – I am stumped, I really am. Why can’t people really mean it when they say they apologise and say sorry. There should not be any qualifications or buts.

There must be sincerity. And I think that critical ingredient was missing today when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak told a gathering in Kedah that he would like to apologise for Barisan Nasional’s (BN) mistakes in 2008 which resulted in the coalition losing its two-thirds majority.

He then said that the BN would work hard to rectify its mistakes. But the “mistakes” according to Najib were made several years ago so why weren’t the mistakes rectified after all BN controls Putrajaya and all the purse strings and everything else.

So why weren’t the “mistakes” rectified. Najib has been PM since 2009 so he can’t blame Abdullah Badawi.

Apart from mentioning the arrogance of BN reps as one of the mistakes, he did not elaborate on other reasons which led to a strong showing by the Opposition. I can fill in the blanks.

* Corruption and abuse of power: there were the allegations against Khir Toyo and Zakaria Deros. PKFZ

What is still the same:

* Criminal breach of trust in the National Feedlot Corporation case and the controversial settlement of Tajudin Ramli’s close to RM590 million debt to Danaharta and the controversial award of a RM2.2 billion (project) to a company linked to Umno lawyer and the former Chief Justice.

* The compromised judiciary: Remember the VK Lingam tapes and the findings of the Royal Commission which implicated Vincent Tan and Mahathir Mohamad.

What is still the same:  All legal precedents were thrown out the window when BN usurped power in Perak.

* Clamping down on civil liberties: Force was used to put down the Hindraf gathering in 2007 and the activists were placed under the ISA.

What has not changed: Last july, police fired tear gas and chemical water against Malaysians who were marching for clean elections.

* Race relations: From the keris wielding by Hishammuddin Hussein to labelling non-Malays kaum pendatang to the unresolved issue of burial rites for converts.

What has not changed: Perkasa stoking racial tension, attacks on churches and suraus and Umno supporters dragging a cow head in protest against building a temple in Shah Alam.

This is what I can remember but I figure Najib has a lot to apologise for and to make amends. He has had two or three years but things do seem no better, even worse.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 March 2012, 9:43 am and is filed under
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Bagaimana hendak memaafkan mereka?

Oleh
Aspan Alias
 | March 05, 2012

The Malaysian Insider

5 MAC — Kali ini saya menulis lagi tentang PM Najib kerana apa yang beliau perkatakan di Kedah itu amat pelik dan membuat saya begitu berminat untuk memberikan pandangan. Najib memohon maaf diatas kesilapan yang dilakukan oleh BN sehinggakan BN telah kalah dibanyak kawasan dan hilang sokongan 2/3 di Dewan Parlimen. Najib mengakui yang BN telah membuat banyak kesilapan terhadap rakyat sehinggakan rakyat hampir mendamparkan BN dalam pilihanraya yang lalu.

Dengan permohonan maaf itu ianya bermakna apa yang dikatakan oleh rakyat termasuk parti pembangkang selama ini yang BN itu adalah parti yang tidak senonoh adalah benar belaka. Sekarang Umno sudah mengakui kesalahan mereka maka adalah wajar parti itu sedar dan insaf dan janganlah menyalahkan parti-parti pembangkang bermula dari sekarang. Kita tidak tahu samada permohonan maaf itu adalah satu kesilapan “political language” bagi Umno, tetapi yang jelas Umno mengaku yang mereka merupakan pihak yang bersalah di dalam kemungkaran politik dan ekonomi yang dihadapi oleh negara kini.

Bagi saya memohon maaf ini tidak ada salahnya dan memang patut BN memohon maaf kepada rakyat kerana telah “menipu” rakyat sebegitu lama. Rakyat hanya dididik untuk menjadi masyarakat yang materialistik dan segala-galanya berkisar kepada wang ringgit. Baru dua hari yang lepas Najib telah melakukan kesalahan lagi dengan menjanjikan rakyat Kelantan yang segala masalah mereka akan selesai jika mengundi BN.

Dimana letaknya kesalahan itu? Letaknya ialah diatas kemampuan BN untuk menunaikan janji-janjinya dan telah terbukti BN hanya berjanji semasa menghampiri pilihanraya dan begitulah sejak 3 dekad yang lalu. Saya sebut dalam posting saya yang lepas yang BN telah membuatkan negeri Kelantan yang dianggap Najib sebagai miskin. Najib memperolok-olokkan rakyat Kelantan kerana dimana-mana Najib bercakap beliau mempermainkan cerita rakyat Kelantan miskin dan memandang rendah terhadap rakyat negeri itu.

Saya terlupa dimana insiden ini berlaku. Dalam ucapannya dihadapan ramai hadirin Najib telah bertanya dengan sindiran kepada hadirin, “negeri mana miskin????”. Beliau bertanya berulang kali dan setiap kali beliau bertanya hadirin pula menjawab, “negeri Kelantan!!!” Ini dilakukan beliau berulang kali sambil senyum dan ketawa melihat rakyat Kelantan miskin dan isu itu dijadikan isu dimana-mana beliau berucap. Sesungguhnya Najib seorang Perdana Menteri yang takbur dan seolah-olah seperti orang yang kufur nikmat.

Najib begitu sombong dengan membawa orang dari negeri lain untuk mentertawakan orang Kelantan kerana kononnya rakyat Kelantan ini miskin. Najib bangga dengan kekayaan negeri atau keluarganya dan beliau bangga melihat negeri Kelantan itu miskin kononnya. Beliau berbangga yang pemimpin persekutuan telah merampas hak royalti minyak rakyat Kelantan yang berbillion-billion itu yang menyebabkan negeri Kelantan mendapat pendapatan yang rendah berbanding dengan banyak negeri yang lain.

Setelah mencuri wang rakyat Kelantan, beliau ke Kelantan dan meminta rakyat Kelantan memberikan mandat kepada BN dalam pilihanraya nanti dan menjanjikan rakyat Kelantan yang semuanya masalah akan selesai jika mengundi BN.

Persoalan saya, adakah ini sikap seorang Perdana Menteri yang mengaku bijak dan pandai yang boleh membawa segala transformasi kepada negara. Ini kah sikap baik seorang PM sebuah negara merdeka? Siapa yang membuatkan kerajaan negeri Kelantan miskin kalau tidak Pimpinan Persekutuan? Najib mesti bayar tunggakan royalti minyak sebanyak RM7.4 billion itu dan mari kita tengok negeri mana yang kaya dan mana yang miskin?

Di Kedah Najib bercakap dengan nada yang lain pula. Kali ini Najib membawa watak sedih pula sambil meminta maaf. Najib boleh membawa apa watak sekali pun tetapi janjinya untuk memperbaiki keadaan tidak mungkin dapat dilakukannya. Semasa beliau meminta maaf Najib masih melakukan apa yang dilakukan oleh BN dalam 2008 dan sebelumnya.

Rasuah bercambah-cambah, salahguna kuasa semakin menjadi-jadi, dan berbagai-bagai jenayah sedang bertambah dinegara kita. Jika Najib benar-benar mahukan perbaikpulih keyakinan rakyat, semua RM250 juta kes NFC mesti kembali kepada Perbendaharaan Negara. Dana Modal mesti kembalikan wang rakyat sebanyak RM50 billion yang dipinjamkan oleh kerajaan untuk diberikan kepada Dana Harta. Najib mesti memberikan penerangan kepada rakyat siapakah yang mengambil alih syarikat-syarikat yang ada dalam Dana Harta itu sekarang.

Kalau Najib hendak memberikan keyakinan, rakyat mesti melihat wang yang hampir RM2 billion yang diambil oleh anak seorang bekas PM yang termasyur didunia untuk menyelesaikan perniagaan anaknya. Najib jangan sekali-kali meneruskan penyenaraian FELDA kerana ia membawa maut kepada generasi FELDA dalam jangkamasa yang tidak lama lagi, walaupun sebahagian dari hasil penyenaraian itu akan diberikan kepada peneroka sebagai durian runtuh.

Najib mesti beritahu berapa billion ringgitkah yang dijanjikan akan mengalir kepada Jabatan di bawah Najib jika penyenaraian itu dilakukan juga dan berapa billion pula yang akan sampai kepada FELDA.

Adakah perkara-perkara yang sebahagian saya sebut ini usaha Najib untuk memperbaiki keadaan? Kalau inilah dia program membaikpulihan Najib, maka ia benar-benar satu kejadian yang dinamakan “tikus memperbaiki labu”.

Sebenarnya rakyat ramai tidak pernah membuat masalah kepada negara. Yang membuat masalah ialah pemimpin negara, bukan rakyat. Selagi pemimpin-pemimpin negara mempunyai air liur yang cair, selagi itulah masalah tidak akan dapat diselesaikan. Air liur itu sentiasa meleleh apabila melihat wang ringgit kepunyaan rakyat, dan tidak berdaya untuk menahan nafsu untuk mencurinya melalui berbagai cara tindakan rasuah. Itulah sebenarnya yang berlaku dalam isu penyenaraian Felda yang akan saya tulis tidak berapa lama lagi.

Oh ya, satu lagi perkara yang sangat “urgent” untuk diselesaikan oleh Najib ialah untuk memberikan kursus sivik kepada penyokong-penyokong Umno supaya memberhentikan budaya samseng yang sedang bercambah didalam Umno sekarang ini. Katakan kepada penyokong-penyokong Umno itu bahawa menggunakan samseng dalam politik itu adalah satu tindakan yang tidak bertamaddun.

Kalau Najib tidak boleh lakukan saya percaya Umno semakin hari semakin tidak relevan lagi. Bagaimana hendak menjadi relevan kerana parti itu sudah menjadi mahkluk perosak kepada rakyat yang inginkan kaedah berpolitik yang aman dan damai.

Bagaimana kita hendak memaafkan makhluk perosak kerana habis jahanam tanaman-tanaman kita sejak dua tiga dekad dahulu. Habis hasil mahsul kita oleh kerana makhluk-makhluk perosak ini.

Bagaimanakah makhluk perosak boleh memperbetulkan keadaan? Itu adalah perkara yang tidak menesabah. Ia terpaksa di perbaiki oleh pihak lain, bukannya oleh mereka yang telah merosakan segala-galanya.

Jika yang merosakan diharapkan untuk memperbaiki keadaan maka saya ulangi, ia adalah seperti “tikus memperbaiki labu”. —
aspanaliasnet.blogspot.com

                This entry was posted on Monday, 5 March 2012, 11:12 am and is filed under
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Courted today, cheated tomorrow

— Sakmongkol AK47

The Malaysian Insider

Mar 05, 2012

MARCH 5 — The second episode of “Lord Of The Rings” may come on (if Rais allows after reading this).

Watch the flip-flopping schizoid creature Gollum in action. One minute sweet-talking, next minute venomous and scheming. Gollum (aka Preciousss) only wants the Ring. Because the Ring confers power to protect the Evil One.
As Umno president, Najib has been flip-flopping from day one. His party has no winnable candidates.

That will explain all the forthcoming cheating at the polls of GE13. It will also explain all past moves and present manoeuvrings. If a party has to monopolise the mainstream media to obfuscate the rakyat and make use of a psych-op warfare unit to try and turn voters, you already know it is finished.

The Ring is to make sure Umno is returned to power so that we can get more cheap meat for the next five years?

Or for Felda settlers to sign off their fields, hearing sweet promises that those fields will never be taken away? After all, how can one move a fixed place? But never tell them that the ownership of the fixed place will change hands — for once in the market, who will own what will always be fleeting. That’s what markets are supposed to do.

Last but not least. Voters must stay focused from now on. Remember only one thing. Everything dispensed to you is but a small fraction of the bigger amount skimmed off for a few.

Shahrizat and Toyo are small fry useful as doorstops, respectively to lead Umno Wanita and Umno Selangor. The big ones are elsewhere. So too the bigger sums of the rakyats’ money siphoned off. It’s all about corruption of rakyat money using federal organisations by a combination of proxy process and coerced suppress.

If Umno tells you the Opposition only makes empty promises, hold Umno to it. Tell Umno to distribute more federal funds to Pakatan-run states so that the voters can see if those state governments will be doing any less than Umno-held state governments for the rakyat. Then come talk.

In fact, the Umno general members should vote for the Opposition wherever they be so that Umno can be put to sit in the opposition bench for one term in order to finalise the list of mistakes it should be apologising for.
With what it has been showing all this while, it is only pretending to be sincere, or worse, it doesn’t seem to know.

How else can one explain why the MOE is asking for feedback from the rakyat after half a century spending gruesome amounts of their money to create an education system only best for attracting toxic waste foreign investments and producing BTN-zombies who having been given British-best seats over others more deserving are now only good at badmouthing non-Malays behind their backs? — sakmongkol.blogspot.com (http://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 Monday, 5 March 2012, 8:03 pm and is filed under
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Halt Umno’s Horrific Hubris!

By
Martin Jalleh

Umno has drastically “changed” into a haven of

Hired thugs, ruffians, rowdies and rogues,

Hoodlums, hell-bent on creating havoc,

Hecklers, harassers, haranguers, hustlers, and

Herds of goons, goblins and gangsters!

The Umnoputras have become increasingly

Haughty and superior low-life creatures,

Hardcore pornography producers and purveyors,

Hoaxsters, hackers and haters and

Head honchos of ugly, gutter politics!

After 66 years, Umno can proudly boast of

Hypocritical leaders who hoodwink their own race,

Humbug ministers with endless hype on reform,

Hedonistic elites, corrupt, rotten to the core and

Half-past-six ministers with hollow promises!

As its political survival hangs by a thread, Umno has

Hijacked the independence of key civil institutions,

Handed out handsome, hefty sums to bribe a nation,

Heedless, that we are headed for bankruptcy

Hard hit by the heaviest debt in the nation’s history!

Umno’s Home Minister even gives a free hand to its

Henchmen so adept at honing a siege mentality,

Hordes of high-handed “little Napoleon mullahs”,

Hassan Alis, Harussanis, bigoted “heroes” and

Hideous editors spewing sedition so brazenly!

Umno’s hemorrhaging can also be seen in parliament

Hostile MPs abuse their unabashed brute majority,

Histrionics, hysterics are now a hallmark of Umno YBs,

Hogwash, half-baked answers are hollered in reply and

Heavy-handed actions by the Speaker complete the circus!

The world is equally humoured by Umno’s PM who

Holds his faltering image high with stunts and slogans,

Harps on unity whilst Umno divides, rules, dominates,

Hobbles, whilst puppeted by Dr M, the defacto PM and

Hums “change” whilst hemmed in by Umno’s hardliners!

                This entry was posted on Monday, 5 March 2012, 5:37 pm and is filed under
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