DAP’s MENUS Budgetary proposals

Two days before the formal budget presentation by the Prime Minister-cum-Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Parliament last Friday, DAP presented its first alternative budget for 2008, themed “Malaysian First: Unity Driven Equity, Growth & Innovation”.

The proposed DAP 2008 Malaysian Budget focuses on the twin challenges of globalisation and the country’s  high dependence on oil and gas resources.

With increasing competition from other developing countries and the rapidly evolving technology markets, it is critical that Malaysia puts in place a system which will be able to exploit the opportunities provided by, and at the same time mitigate the negative impact resulting from, globalisation.

At the same time, a 40% dependence on government revenue from the oil and gas sector is of serious concern, especially in the light of oil reserves which will last for only another two  decades and Malaysia becoming a net oil importer by 2011.

The proposed DAP  Budget is meant as  a distinct departure from the current administration’s New Economic Policy (NEP) which is driven by race.  The underlying rationale and approach to the proposed DAP  Budget is the “Malaysia Economic & National Unity Strategy” (MENUS) which will be based on performance, competence and needs of all Malaysians.

The key policy measures proposed in the DAP  Budget  should be given full consideration by the government. In fact, a copy of the DAP budgetary proposals was presented to the Prime Minister’s Office  in Putrajaya on Thursday, the eve of Abdullah’s Friday presentation.

The key highlights of the proposed DAP Budget 2008 are:

1.	Legislating the use of oil and gas revenue to ensure that a substantial portion of the revenue is spent on education as well as research and development to build the necessary economic capacity for Malaysia, to ensure that the increases in productivity and innovation will more than compensate for the expected decline in oil revenues.  It is proposed that 50% of oil and gas revenues be invested in human capital and research and development, while another 25% be used to strengthen the social security for Malaysians who are in need.  Legislating the utilisation of funds will also prevent the mis-allocation of resources to bailout failed projects or other non-productive sectors.

2.	Hence, RM43.3 billion is allocated for education and training, accounting for 26.3% of the overall 2008 Budget.  The focus of the expenditure will be to enhance the qualitative elements of education instead of the quantitative elements.  Of 250 new schools to be built, 60 and 15 will be Chinese and Tamil schools respectively to resolve the often severe overcrowding faced by these schools.  RM3.2 billion has also been allocated for Research & Development.

3.	RM13.6 billion is allocated to improve the quality of the nation’s transportation infrastructure, particularly the public transport system.  The bulk of the increase goes to development expenditure for transportation, which will increase from RM7.3 billion to RM9.5 billion.  Key attention is given to the 3 highly congested urban centres — the Klang Valley, Penang Island and Johor Bahru.  A blueprint for the “Valley Circle” rail network will also be developed to improve inter-suburban connectivity, by-passing the congested Kuala Lumpur city centre.

4.	Barisan Nasional’s policies of guaranteeing highway toll concessionaires as well as independent power producers (IPPs) extraordinary profits with grossly unequal contracts with little or no risks to the latter are the clearest cases of the Government failing to protect public interest.  The impact of these policies are increasingly felt today with rapidly rising toll rates and energy prices.  It is hence imperative that the Government renegotiate these contracts to protect the interest of the public within a 6 month period.  In the event whereby no significant headway is made in the negotiations, it is proposed that the Government move to acquire the assets of these entities.  The resultant savings will then be passed on to consumers or be diverted to other public interest projects, such as the public transport system.

5.	When the Government launched the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) project 10 years ago, it promised to make every effort to grow and support local MSC status companies. However, despite the rhetoric, the Government being the largest consumer of information technology services in Malaysia has not given preference to  these companies.  Malaysian MSC status companies should be given specific preference in tendering for the Government IT-related contracts to help nurture these companies into successful regional players.

6.	As part of our philosophy that every person or community in need, irrespective of race or religion will receive   the necessary government assistance, proposal for “FairWage” Policy. This is  a policy to improve the livelihood of low-wage earners above the age of 35, which will at the same time incentivise employers to provide increased employment opportunities.  A “Malaysia Bonus” of up to RM1,200 will be granted to Malaysians with income not more than RM3,000 per month.  In order to assist the elderly above the age of 60, many who are having problems making ends meet, those qualified will enjoy the “Senior Malaysian Bonus” of up to RM1,000.  These bonuses are to be channelled into their respective EPF accounts.

The FairWage policy and Malaysian Bonus will cost approximately RM9.3 billion to administer.  It is part of the proposed programme to share the fruits of the nation’s wealth, particularly from the oil and gas sector with all Malaysians in need.  In the longer term, more assistance programmes will be carried out in this grant-based mechanisms which are means-tested instead of via subsidies which are distortionary in their impact, and often disproportionately benefiting the wealthy.

7.	One of the core pillars of MENUS is that all Government contracts should be tendered in an open, competitive and transparent manner.  All qualified companies shall be provided with equal opportunities to secure Government supply contracts and projects.  To prevent overwhelming disruptions to the current system, this policy, free from race-based requirements, shall be implemented on a gradual basis, commencing with projects or supply contracts sized above RM10 million for 2008.  In view of the challenges brought by globalisation, all tenders shall be made competitive, open and transparent by 2015.  Assuming a conservative 10% savings is achieved via the new tendering system, this will result in absolute savings in excess of RM5 billion per annum in conjunction with quality improvements.

8.	The transformation of the Malaysian economy into one that is knowledge-based will not succeed without the critical ingredient of innovation and entrepreneurship.  Therefore it is proposed that the Government set up a new RM250 million seed fund, STARTUP where we will act as a matching co-investment fund with reputable private investors who will assist in the mentorship of the start up companies.  To encourage private investor participation, losses incurred by such investments shall be tax deductible from the investors’ individual or corporate income tax.   To further boost entrepreneurship, start-ups shall enjoy full tax exemption on their first RM200,000 chargeable income for each of their first 3 years of assessment.

9.	Government revenue from small medium enterprises which constitutes more than 99% of all enterprises in the country has clearly declined with the dependence on oil and gas revenue.  To revitalise the SME sector, and to assist many SMEs whose counterparts in many countries in the region enjoy significant tax advantages, it is proposed that the tax rate for SMEs on their first RM500,000 chargeable income be reduced to 18% from the current 20%.  In additional a new partial tax exemption threshold will be set at RM200,000 and taxed at 12%.  This means that a SME with a chargeable income of RM900,000 will be taxed at an effective rate of 18%, in line, particularly with its competitors across the causeway in Singapore.  This measure will help make Malaysian SMEs to be more competitive and at the same time attract more SMEs to set up business in Malaysia, creating more employment opportunities.

10.	A 1% reduction of the top tax bracket to 27%.  More importantly however, there will be a revision and a simplification of the progressive tax brackets  which will result in significant reduction in taxes by all.  Most importantly, to assist Malaysians to cope with the rise in living expenses, particularly in urban areas, the first RM15,000 chargeable income will become tax exempt, with the subsequent RM15,000 taxed at 7%.  Currently, only the first RM2,500 is tax exempt while the next RM2,500 is taxed at 1%.  Based on the new tax structure, a married worker with RM3,000 pay per month, a full-time housewife who looks after 2 young children will pay no taxes, whereas under the previous tax structure, he will be expected to pay between RM55 to RM445 depending on his insurance premiums and medical expenses for his family, including parents.

11.	The rate of global climate changes is accelerating and it has become absolutely necessary for Malaysia to play its part in protecting the environment.  Hence, a “Green Tax” is proposed  to be implemented in 2010 whereby a “carbon tax” is charged at RM25 per tonne of CO2 equivalent, with the exception of methane emissions from the agricultural sector as well as special exemptions for carbon intensive businesses which adopts global best practices on emissions.  In addition, a 5% severance tax is proposed  on the extraction of metals and forestry products in the country.  However, companies which secure certification from The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) accredited certification bodies will be granted the severance tax exemption for promoting responsible management of the forest.

12.	As a part of our new source of revenue as well as to negate the rent-seeking culture, the approved permits (APs) current issued for free by the Ministry of International Trade & Industry to a select pool of “businessman” should  be auctioned to the highest bidders instead. Based on an estimated 70,000 APs issued per annum and a conservative RM25,000 market price, the auction will provide an additional RM1.75 billion to the government coffers.

13.	Women will also benefit significantly with the proposed extension of paid maternity leave from 60 to 90 days if they have worked for at least 180 days prior to delivery with the employer.  Their pay will be shared equally by both the employer as well as the government.  This together with other measures proposed in the Budget will play their role in strengthening the bond between the mother and child, promoting strong family values, while at the same time, encourage more women to join the workforce.  As at 2004, Malaysian women participation in the work force stands at 47.3%, significantly below that of our neighbours, Singapore and Thailand at 53.9% and 64.2% respectively.

14.	Finally, this proposed DAP  budget seeks active involvement from the civil society.  Instead of attempting to tackle all issues on its own, which the government will not be able to competently and effectively, sizeable grants will be made available to specialist non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to promote, educate and run various social causes and programmes. The sum of  RM240 million is proposed to be  set aside as partial or full grants for NGOs to pursue environmental causes, eliminating poverty, promote healthy living, managing women issues or assisting the disabled, to be disbursed over the next five  years.

(Speech 16 on 2008 Budget in Parliament on Monday, September 10, 2007)

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Improving productivity & competitiveness of delivery system

A Budget or a blueprint will only be as good as its execution.  In  the past decades, we have seen many ambitious plans announced  by the Government.  However, these projects have often ended at best, a qualified success without achieving its original objectives, such as the Multimedia Super Corridor project or at worse, an unmitigated failure such as the BioValley or the MSC e-Village.

In the past year, the administration has also launched several large-scale blueprints for various projects in Malaysia, including the Iskandar Developer Region (IDR), the Northern  Economic Corridor as well as the East Coast Corridor.  These efforts will all be in vain if they are not implemented with competence and integrity.

The focus of the  budget has to be on substantially improving the competence and integrity of our civil service and delivery system to ensure that the benefits expected from Government initiatives will be enjoyed by all Malaysians.

Centralised Agency for Shared Expertise

DAP proposes the setting  up of the Centralised Agency for Shared Expertise (CASE) department under the Ministry of Finance to consolidate common functions between the various Ministries.

CASE should aim to create synergies in the Government which will bring costs down and achieve greater efficiency through economies of scale, standardisation and streamlining of procedures.  A successful implementation of CASE will help the Government reduce up to 20% of its annual operating expenditure on the common functions such as human resources and finance functions.

CASE can also serve as an opportunity for the top performers in the civil service to climb the career ladder, upgrade and apply their skills on a broader scale, with an enhanced customer-oriented culture when providing value-added services to Government agencies.

As this is a new department, only candidates with sufficient competence and integrity will be selected to lead the agency.  If necessary, distinguished and proven personalities from the private sector will be head-hunted to join the agency.  It will also at the same time, remove the “maverick elements” in the various ministries, removing the influence of the “little Napoleons”, corruption, inefficiency as well as abuse of power.

Civil Service Excellence Initiative

Malaysia has one of the highest ratios of government civil servants relative to its population at 4.68%.  Even Japan, well known for its unwieldy civil service has a ratio of only 3.23.  Others, including our neighbouring developing countries — Thailand (2.06), Korea (1.85), Philippines (1.81), Indonesia (1.79) – are all well below half the Malaysian ratio.

To prevent the country from becoming the butt of jokes such as “the number of Malaysians needed to change a light bulb?”, it is essential that efforts must be made to contain the expansion of our civil service as well as boosting their efficiency and productivity.

The bloated civil service has also become a substantial strain on the Government budget particularly with the recent wage revision, which increased budgeted emolument expenses from RM25.8 billion to RM33.8 billion or 27.9% of all operating expenditure.  This amount hasn’t yet taken into account pensions and gratuities which cost the Government some RM7.0 billion a year.

DAP proposes that a Civil Service Excellence Initiative (CSEI) be developed by the newly set up Special Task Force on Service Delivery (Pemudah) which includes private sector representation to achieve a leaner and meaner civil service sector.

CSEI should aim to achieve headcount reductions through productivity improvements, job redesign or by re-prioritising functions.  The CSEI should also develop plans on how non-performing staff may be procedurally retired from the service.  In the process of retiring or reassigning job functions of the civil service, it must  be mindful to ensure that it isn’t the performers which are retired from the civil service, leaving behind the less competent.

A critical component of CSEI will be to incorporate the “stick” element for the civil service after the “carrot” in the form of higher pay has been provided.  In any organisation, private or public, the “stick” element is critical to ensure that workers will perform their tasks competently and efficiently, as well as to prevent a culture of doing the “minimum to get by”.  A dynamic and forward-looking public service will have to be nurtured through high quality training and development.

Revitalising E-Government
To improve customer satisfaction and investor confidence, we will need to develop a flexible and responsive government delivery system.  As part of this programme, we should strive the seek the following objectivesl:

a.	Make available government services via the Internet wherever possible,

b.	Integrate e-services to make them more customer-centric for public access 24/7,

c.	Improve accessibility of public services via the Internet and other digital channels through initiatives such as the Self-service Internet Terminals at government departments, particularly at the local town and city councils where the greatest amount of transactions takes place.

While the above initiatives are not new, Malaysia’s drive towards an e-government appears to have faltered in recent years as the global E-Government readiness ranking compiled by Waseda University showed that Malaysia has declined from 6th in 2004 to 14th in 2005 and 15th in 2006.  A separate ranking prepared by Brown University which covered a broader range of countries placed Malaysia at 36th position in 2006.

It is hence critical that for Malaysia to move up the value chain in the face of competition from other developing countries, our drive to create a more effective and efficient government must not be compromised in the pursuit of excellence.

(Speech 15 on 2008 Budget in Parliament on Monday, September 10, 2007)

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Letter to PM – urgent response to issues raised in budget debate in Parliament like RM4.6b PKFZ bailout, RM8.1b dev. est. discrepancy , e-Kesihatan rip-off

I have written to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, asking him to  respond to urgent issues raised in the first three days of the 2008 Budget in Parliament which cannot wait for Ministerial replies some two months later scheduled for  early November when the Dewan Rakyat reconvenes on Oct. 22 after  the 39-day break for the fasting month and Hari Raya holidays.

I listed four  urgent issues which had been raised in Parliament in the first  three days of budget debate earlier this week and which are  crying out for immediate government response and action, viz:

1. The RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) bailout scandal

Accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance principles demand instant end of the government’s denial syndrome both in and outside Parliament about the RM4.6 billion PKFZ bailout scandal — particularly at a time when the Prime Minister is  trying to assure Malaysians that the government  means business and would not brook any hanky-panky following the shocking exposes of the pervasive culture of impunity, corruption, waste and mismanagement of public funds in the 2006 Auditor-General’s Reports.

When compared to the RM4.6 billion PKFZ bailout scandal, the corruption and mismanagement of millions or tens of millions of ringgit of funds exposed by the 2006 Auditor-General’s Reports were mere “chicken-feed”.

However, if the Cabinet can be so irresponsible as to continue to deny that there is a  RM4.6 billion bailout of the Port Klang Free Zone scandal, while the culture of impunity persists in providing immunity  from legal and accountability consequences for those  responsible for the RM4.6 billion bailout when the government had right from the start been given a very categorical assurance that the PKFZ project was feasible, self-financing and would not require a single ringgit of public funding, a wrong message is being sent out – that all the public hullabaloo over the Auditor-General’s Reports 2006 are mere “sandiwara” and not meant to be taken seriously, as absolutely nothing would ensue.

The Prime Minister  said yesterday that the government would not hinder the Anti-Corruption Agency from carrying out investigations into the Auditor-General’s 2006 Reports.

However, conspicuously absent is any public assurance from Abdullah that the ACA is fully authorized to conduct full and unfettered investigations into the PKFZ scandal, including the  former Transport Minister Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik and the present Finance Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy who had abused their Ministerial powers in having unlawfully given government guarantees for the private  issue of RM4 billion bonds for the PKFZ project without Cabinet approval — forcing the Cabinet to give retrospective approval for the illegal guarantees in a  RM4.6 billion PKFZ bailout.

2. The RM8.1 billion difference for 2008 Development Estimates between the Finance Minister’s budget speech and the Finance Ministry’s Economic Report 2007/2008

How can  there be such a huge difference of RM8.1 billion for the 2008 Development Estimates between Abdullah’s  budget presentation on the one hand and the Finance Ministry’s Economic Report 2007/2008, all presented to Parliament on the same day last Friday?

There can be no justification for such a huge difference in the two sets of figures as the Finance Ministry’s Economic Report 2007/2008 was signed off by Abdullah   as Finance Minister in a preface dated 7th September 2007 (the very same day as the budget presentation).

A difference of RM8.1 billion would have sent the whole budgetary estimates awry, with the estimated budget deficit for 2008 estimated at 3.1 per cent of the GDP shooting up to 4.6 per cent — a most unfortunate reflection on the professionalism and competence of government budgetary expertise which could only undermine public and investor confidence.

3. The e-Kesihatan monopoly concession awarded to Supremme Systems Sdn. Bhd without tender

Public interest demand an immediate suspension of the 15-year e-Kesihatan monopoly  concession to Supremme Systems Sdn. Bhd,  which is to take effect next month, to conduct annual medical tests for commercial drivers.

The medical profession is up in arms against the e-Kesihatan scheme which seems to be  the  latest example of parasitic rent-seeking rip-off  monopoly in the region of hundreds of millions of ringgit at public expense to the benefit of a handful of cronies.

As there is already a system in place to provide medical tests for commercial drivers involving medical practitioners with the JPJ directly, this system can be  further improved to deal with abuses or weaknesses instead of creating a new system which is clearly purely rent-seeking in nature.

4. Cabinet decision of 5th September that Malacca pig farmers can apply for aid from Bank Negara’s Fund For Food to install proper waste system rendered meaningless by arbitrary and high-handed Malacca state government decision to reduce 97,000 pigs in 17-day period

In a week, the Malacca state government’s arbitrary and high-handed deadline for the reduction of 97,000 pigs in Malacca state in  17 days will expire on September 21 and is likely to spark off any another confrontation like  the nine-hour standoff as happened on September 4 – between an armed-to-the-teeth 2,000-strong multi-agency contingent, together with police FRU in full riot-gear, water cannons,  personnel in space-suits  and a helicopter in constant reconnaissance on one side, and defenceless men, women and children forming human barrcades on the other to protect their ricebowls.

The 4th September nine-hour standoff was a great shame and disgrace not only to Malacca but to Malaysia on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary celebrations.

There must not be another repetition of the Sept. 4 standoff  especially as the Cabinet at its 5th September 2007 meeting  had decided that Malacca pig farmers can apply for aid from Bank Negara’s Fund For Food to install proper waste system.

The Cabinet decision, as announced by the Human Resources Minister and MP for Alor Gajah, Datuk Dr. Fong Chan Onn, must not be  rendered meaningless by the  arbitrary and high-handed Malacca state government decision to reduce 97,000 pigs in 17-day period.

The Malacca State Government has escalated its policy of confrontation with the pig rearers in Malacca, making more and more unreasonable demands which can only further mar the 50th Merdeka anniversary celebrations.  The Cabinet must ensure that its Sept. 5  decision is not rendered meaningless and that all pig farmers could apply to Bank Negara’s Fund for Food to install proper waste system and that the directive to reduce 97,000 pigs by Sept. 21 is rescinded.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 14 September 2007, 12:11 pm and is filed under
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Orang Asli allocations – not how much but what reaches them

The Budget states that the government is committed to improving the quality of life of Orang Asli, allocating RM170 million to the Department of Orang Asli Affairs to carry out numerous programmes and projects.

We should listen to the views of the Orang Asli community, and the following are some feedback from the Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC).

With regard to the financing of Orang Asli development, the issue is not how much is allocated in the annual budget but how much actually reaches the Orang Asli in real terms, in concrete benefits.

Non-delivery of benefits

A survey conducted COAC, POASM, YKPM and other NGOs involved with Orang Asli issues found that subsidies and allocations meant for the Orang Asli were not delivered to them. This included the education support for students coming from poor households (which the PM announced last year was increased from RM30.00 per student per month to RM50.00).

In some districts, the transportation for Orang Asli schoolchildren was disrupted as the contractors were not paid their fees for months at a stretch (in Tapah this year, about 250 Orang Asli students had to skip school when the bus contractors decided to protest the 7-month delay in payment of their fees by refusing to transport the schoolchildren).

In fact, in yesterday’s NST, in a report on the launching of the K9 school for the Orang Asli in the DPM’s constituency, the Education Minister admitted that the Orang Asli are now getting what the Malays got 50 years ago!

Land encroachment and development

Encroachment into Orang Asli traditional lands — a result of non-recognition of these lands as titled Orang Asli territories — have led to logging, land-grabbing and outside development (for others).

It is now generally accepted, even by the Jabatan Hal Ehwal Orang Asli (JHEOA), that there can be no real development for the Orang Asli if there is no security of tenure.

Thus far, the courts have also accorded the Orang Asli recognition of full title to their traditional lands. The authorities, however, still choose to deny the Orang Asli this fundamental right, thereby allowing the remaining lands of the Orang Asli to be slowly whittled away.

Some of the lands that were approved for gazetting as Orang Asli Reserves as far back as the 1960s and 1970s were never administratively gazetted. In fact, some of these areas have now been reclassified as state land or Malay Reserve Land, or have been given to individuals and corporations — without the Orang Asli’s knowledge, let alone consent.

And while it is being bandied about that the proposed Orang Asli Land Policy will address the Orang Asli land problem by setting aside some 75,900 hectares for 30,000 Orang Asli families, the reality is that the Orang Asli will stand to lose 51,798 hectares (40 per cent) of the 127,698 hectares that the government already recognises in 2003 as Orang Asli lands.

Furthermore, these 6.25 acre (2.53 hectares) family plots are assigned to them on a 99-year-lease basis. Nothing can be more graphic of the Orang Asli’s fate — that their inalienable right to their land now has an expiry date.

Agricultural development contracts keeping Orang Asli in poverty

At a time when high commodity prices for rubber and oil palm are enabling smallholders to reap excess returns on their hard work, many Orang Asli cultivators are only enjoying dividends of about RM1,200.00 to RM1,500.00 per year.

This is because the JHEOA has contracted out the development and management of such agricultural schemes to contractors such as Risda and Felcra, as well as other private contractors,  who charge huge amounts as management fees, apart from deducting for fertiliser, labour (usually foreign), and other costs. The Orang Asli are treated as mere share-holders, enjoying the annual dividend that works out to about RM100.00 per month. In fact, there has been at least one case of an Orang Asli being arrested and put away in detention for tapping his own rubber trees (in RPS Betau, Pahang).

(Speech 17 on 2008 Budget in Parliament on Monday, September 10, 2007)

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Robust legal framework, economic efficiency

If the  budget is to succeed in bringing about a  significant shift of our economy to the next gear, our economic policies and reform must also be accompanied by significant reforms in our judicial system to ensure that foreign investors will have the necessary confidence in not just justice meted out but also the speed and efficiency at which disputes can be resolved.

Our judiciary system today leaves much to be desired.  There are thousands of cases in backlog, and often it takes more than five years before commercial disputes are even brought to court for trial at the High Courts.   Such inefficiency certainly benefits and incentivises the culprits and penalising the victims.

What certainly wrecks the confidence in our legal system is when a 19-year old, Lee Kwong Yong was jailed for 6 months while awaiting justice for being unable to produce his identity card when caught by the police.  The injustice would have been worse had it not been for a good Samaritan who chanced upon his case.

The DAP recommends that the Government do more to attract more experienced legal practitioners as well as industry specialists into the judicial profession to resolve the twin problems facing the Courts, a shortage of judges as well as a lack of professionals to manage the mounting backlog of cases.

There is a substantial disparity in income between the legal practitioners and judicial officers, making the latter profession unattractive to many.  In addition, the disparity creates a natural misallocation of resources as the top-quality legally-trained graduates will certainly prefer a career in the private sector instead of serving under the judicial system.

Therefore, it is proposed that the remuneration of judicial officers be reviewed to match their peers in the private sector.  In addition, experienced professionals who  are recruited into  the judicial service should  be remunerated at the same or near their last drawn wages.  Whilst this may involve substantial cost for the Government, its returns via a more professional, enlightened and efficient legal system will be immeasurable from both an economic and social perspective.

To assist in resolving the delays in producing judgments for cases which have been concluded, judges who are currently highly dependent on the assistant registrars to assist them, should be provided with legally-trained research assistants.  High Court judges should  be provided with one  research assistant while judges in the Court of Appeal and Federal Courts provided with two  research assistants each.

These proposed changes will only be most effective if they are  matched with improved performances from the respective judges. To monitor the performance of judges and judicial commissioners, an Independent Judicial Commission should be established.

Recognising the importance of such an commission independent of the executive branch of the Government, the British government has enacted legislation setting up a Judicial Commission with plenary powers to appoint Judges in the higher judiciary in England.

This commission will most certainly remove the mystery that surrounds the current appointment and promotion system. In particular there should be clear guidelines and greater transparency, which eliminates the potential for abuse when such powers rested on the shoulders of a single person, particularly when vested interests may be involved.

Although there is  a legal aid bureau under the Prime Minister’s Office, there is a severe lack of lawyers to assist with the numerous cases which arise on a daily basis.  To prevent cases such as Lee Kwong Yong from recurring in our legal system, the Government should set aside an initial juvenile legal aid fund of RM10 million to ensure that young Malaysians can  secure legal representation.  Lawyers who volunteer in juvenile cases should be reimbursed  for their time and expenses.  Such a  move will help  clear the backlog of juvenile cases in the legal system and prevent injustices recurring in the future.

(Speech 14 on 2008 Budget in Parliament on Monday, September 10, 2007)

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4-star accountability index – ministers should resign and SGs removed for failed rating of one star of less than 50%

The
proposal
  by the Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang to introduce from next year the  accountability index  which will award star ratings to all ministries, state governments and statutory bodies for their management of public funds, is a great and very innovative  initiative that must be lauded by all quarters.

Ambrin said the accountability  index will be an objective assessment of the financial performance of ministries, departments and state governments.

Marks
 will be given according to performance and will be translated into star ratings to measure compliance, viz:

	4 stars — Excellent (90% – 100%)

	3 stars — Good (70% – 89%)

	2 stars — Satisfactory (50% – 69%)

	1 star — Not Satisfactory (49% and below)

The promotion of secretaries-general and heads of department will also be tied to the index of their financial management performance.

When introducing the 2008 Budget speech last Friday, the Prime Minister-cum-Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had emphasized the priority and importance of raising  the level of performance of the civil service, which is critical in sustaining the competitiveness of the nation, especially  in the context of increasing globalization.

Calling for  best practices and the  culture of high performance in the civil service, Abdullah had announced that beginning on 1 January 2008,  Secretaries General of ministries and Heads of Services will be offered a three-year contract and their performance rewarded based on KPIs (key performance indicators).

This contract will be offered to officers who are currently serving in the Diplomatic and Administrative as well as in other relevant services.

Abdullah said that apart from ensuring excellent service, the contract period of three years will provide adequate time for them to plan and execute projects effectively.

The three-year contract offered to Secretaries General and Heads of Services should contain one specific clause for the  termination of contract for unsatisfactory performance — if  the ministry or department concerned fails in the accountability index, getting only one star with less than 50% compliance in the star-rating system,  where the Secretary General or head of department had completed a full year of contract to be audited by the Auditor-General.

This culture of responsibility must also apply to Ministers who are heading each Ministry.  Where a ministry fails in the accountability index in getting only one star in the accountability index with less than 50% compliance, the Minister concerned should also bear full responsibility and resign from the Cabinet.

It is only when a  Minister have to  resign and the Secretary-General removed if the Ministry concerned fails in the accountability index from next year, getting only one star with less than 50% compliance in the star-rating system, that the innovation proposed by the Auditor-General will have real bite and meaning  in enhancing public service integrity and accountability, instead of being relegated  to a long heap of fine-sounding innovations which are only good for the ears but have no impact whatsoever in improving quality, accountability and integrity of public service performance.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 15 September 2007, 11:42 am and is filed under
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Auditor-General’s Reports – ACA DG admits past impotence but will it be different this time?

I thank the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) Director-General Datuk Ahmad Said Hamdan for inadvertently
confirming
 what I had said in Parliament during the
2008 Budget debate on Tuesday
 — that the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report had been completed on 28th June 2007 and would have been submitted to the government shortly after.

I posed these questions in Parliament:

“Why are Cabinet Ministers only beginning to wake up now to the gross mismanagement, waste and abuse of public funds more than two months of the completion of the Auditor-General’s Report?

“Would the Ministers reacted to these gross mismanagement of public funds if no publicity had been given to the Auditor-General’s  Report?

“Were all the Ministers aware  of and had approved  the explanations which the various government departments had given, some most ridiculous and most unacceptable, to the strictures of the Auditor-General’s Report and which had been tabled in the House?

“Is every Minister prepared to appear before the Public Accounts Committee to personally assume responsibility for the mismanagement of public funds highlighted in the Auditor-General’s Report?”

When the Auditor-General’s Report is dated June 28, 2007, it would mean that it had been submitted to the Yang di Pertuan Agong under Article 107 of the Constitution, with copies available to the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and relevant heads of Ministries and departments in a matter of days.

This had been confirmed by the ACA director-general in the New Straits Times report

“ACA probe into audit cases ‘started earlier'”
where Ahmad Said admitted that the ACA had begun investigations into the Auditor-General’s 2006 Report “long before it was tabled in Parliament” on September 7.

He said the ACA had received copies of the report from the Auditor-General “sometime ago”.

He said: “We are investigating. You will have the result soon. Most of the things highlighted are already being investigated”.

The
NST
 report continued:

Although Ahmad Said did not give any details of the investigation, it is widely believed the ACA is looking at several cases highlighted by the media.

Among the prominent ones are:

 How the Youth and Sports Ministry paid RM8.39 million more than the market price for 13 items for its youth institute’s programmes.

Among these were RM224 for a set of four screwdrivers costing RM32 in the market; RM5.72 million for two crane towers against the market price of RM2.98 million; technical books consisting of 10 titles priced at RM10,700; and a 3.1 megapixel digital camera that was bought for RM8,254;

 The way the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry has been dishing out funds to non-governmental organisations which do not qualify for them; and,

 How two Social Welfare Department district offices in Raub and Bentong under the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry were found to have distributed RM113,035 aid to 36 people who had died.

If the NST report is reliable, it would mean that there are financial improprieties raised in the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report which are out-of-bounds for the ACA, such as:

	National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) paying RM5.59 million in advance to 4,183 students who did not apply for a loan; and

	Escalation of costs because of mismanagement and delays in the construction of six high-tech offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) by a whopping RM1.4 billion.

Why is this so?

Two days ago, I had
challenged
 the ACA to prove that it is not a “toothless tiger” and disclose how many persons had been arrested and prosecuted for corruption and criminal breach of trust from previous Auditor-Generals Reports.

The silence of the ACA Director-General to this challenge has come as no surprise, for the ACA has nothing to show whatsoever in  follow-up actions on the past Auditor-General’s Reports whether for federal or state governments resulting in prosecution of  public servants who had been corrupt or committed criminal of trust in mismanaging millions or tens of millions of ringgit of public funds.

Ambrin made a very revealing comment  about ACA producing a blank report card during his Q & A in the
New Sunday Times
report
“Constant monitoring will bring results”
 of September 2, 2007, viz:

Q: After the audit exercise for 2005, you said the Anti-Corruption Agency would be going after civil servants who swindled or mismanaged public funds. Are you satisfied with the action taken?

  A: Our reports are available to the ACA, which is responsible for investigating wrongdoings. If there is such evidence, it is up to them to take action.

  We just highlight the discrepancies, the rest is up to the relevant agencies and bodies to follow-up.

Ahmad Said’s cryptic remarks yesterday is tantamount to  a public confession of ACA impotence and failure to act on  past Auditor-General Reports. But  how different will it be for the ACA this time with regard to the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report when ACA had adequate and ample time with at least two months’ headstart to complete investigations already?

Or will the continued impotence of the ACA on the 2006 Auditor-General’s Reports be just further proof of the need for the ACA to be taken out of the Prime Minister’s Department to become  completely independent body, answerable only to Parliament?

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 15 September 2007, 1:14 pm and is filed under
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Rubella outbreak in Klang Valley?

An email from CL that there is a rubella outbreak in the Klang Valley which has been blacked out so as not to spoil the Merdeka anniversary celebrations.

Can the authorities in particular the Health Minister and the University of Malaya Vice Chancellor  respond?

CL’s email:

There is an outbreak of rubella in the Klang Valley and possibly nationwide as well.  Apparently this had been going on for the past two months but the power-that-be has chose to keep the news blacked out because of the impending 50th anniversary Merdeka celebration. The outbreak also occurred in the UM campus and the recently concluded convocation was almost marred. News of the outbreak in the campus only came out lately, in fact only a few days back. It is not immediately known how many students had been infected to date. However, official news of the outbreak has caused anger and anxiety among the “warga kampus”.

Rubella in the adults and adolescents is mild with nothing more than a flu-like illness with fever lasting a few days and associated with muscle aches and joint pains. Its mild nature cannot be said if an expectant mother who has no immunity, contracts rubella in the first 3 months of her pregnancy. The unborn foetus has a high risk of developing various abnormalities : small brain, cataracts, deafness, heart defects, mental retardation,  etc.

Because of the non-specific symptoms, most cases of rubella are diagnosed as a viral illness. The rash over the body and enlarged lymph glands behind the ears are typical but can be easily missed if not specifically looked for. The rash is very faint and lasts no more than 48 hours and often missed in the dark skinned. Hence many infected persons are not aware that that they are infected. This is a highly infectious disease and an infected person can transmit the infection (airborne spread) from one week before till at least 4 days after onset of the rash. This implies that by the time the index case is diagnosed, he/she would have transmitted to susceptible persons in contact with him/her. This is the reason why outbreaks usually occur in hostels, schools, army barracks. This was probably what caused the outbreak among UM students staying in the residential colleges.

Events happening over the last two months have indicated that the current outbreak has not been handled in the proper manner. Firstly there is news blackout of the rubella outbreak. This was done so as not to spoil the merdeka celebration. By so doing, pregnant women are been exposed unnecessarily to risk of getting infected and subsequently delivery of an affected baby. Secondly the government, till date has not advised the public who had not have rubella vaccination in the past to go for vaccination. Thirdly during the fasting month there will be lots of mingling of people and those “balik kampung” setting the stage for mass transmission of the illness.

In short the government has attempted to cover up an outbreak of rubella in the country at the expense of risks to unborn foetuses. By not taking quick and proper measures it has allowed the illness to spread to a stage that the government is now in a helpless state.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 15 September 2007, 9:07 am and is filed under
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Hishammuddin should set example for all Ministers & volunteer to appear before PAC

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairman Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad’s description of the PAC as having
“No bite but we can chase the truth”
 will not be agreed by many.

In an
interview
 with
New Sunday Times
, Shahrir had responded in a Q & A as follows:

Q: Some have described the PAC as a toothless tiger.

A: We cannot bite because we are not an enforcement agency.

But we can exert enough pressure and provide the relevant agencies, like the ACA, enough evidence.

The ACA works closely with us.

We are also free to revisit any case at any time we want if we are not happy with the follow-up action.

We have the power to order a review of the case, like what we did with the Middle Ring Road 2.

For us, a case is never closed.

Shahrir’s answer begs two questions:

Firstly, how many cases can the PAC claim credit as having provided the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) with enough evidence to prosecute, let alone convict,  corrupt or errant public officials.  As far as I know, the PAC score on this is zero. I am prepared to be proven wrong by Shahrir.

Secondly, can the  PAC really pursue a case to the highest reaches of responsibility to get to the very bottom of every instance of mismanagement of public funds?

Considering the make-up of the PAC, where 10 out of its 14 members are Barisan Nasional MPs (with the Chairman also from the BN), the onus is on the PAC to prove that it dares to summon serving Ministers to appear before the PAC to account for the corruption and mismanagement of public funds under its  stewardship.

The 2006 Auditor-General’s Reports concerning mismanagement of millions, tens of millions and even billions of ringgit of public funds are a case in point.

For instance, the stewardship of public funds by the UMNO Youth leader, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein when he was Minister for Youth and Sports from 1999 to 2004 is under public scrutiny — with the slew of cases of public fund mismanagement like the payment of RM224 for a RM32 set of screwdrivers,  paying RM1,146 for a set of pens costing RM 160, paying RM5,700 for a car jack worth RM50, etc.

The Auditor-General  reported that the ministry’s secretary-general, only authorized to approve contracts which did not exceed RM5 million, had approved contracts violating this rule to the tune of RM449.42 million.

In the Treasury memorandum on the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report which was also tabled in Parliament on Sept. 7, the Treasury stated that the Youth and Sports Minister gave a letter of authority to the secretary-general to sign the contracts which exceeded RM5 million each.

As the ball has been kicked from the then youth and sports ministry secretary-general to the then Minister, is the PAC prepared to summon Hishammuddin to appear before it to answer for all the instances of mismanagement of public funds  in the youth and sports ministry as highlighted in the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report?

Hishammuddin should  save the PAC from the dilemma of whether to summon him  to appear before it to account for his stewardship of public funds when he was Youth and Sports Minister.

Hishammuddin and all other Ministers whose Ministries, whether past or present,  are implicated in  the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report for mismanagement of funds should volunteer to appear before Public Accounts Committee instead of putting the PAC in an invidious position of whether to summon them or not.

Hishammuddin should set a good example for all other Cabinet Ministers to emulate, especially as he had publicly said that he had nothing to hide and that all claims on the misuse of funds by the youth and sports ministry under his stewardship should be investigated thoroughly.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 16 September 2007, 1:48 pm and is filed under
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Cabinet Wednesday should direct all Ministers with ministries implicated in AG’s 2006 Report to appear before PAC

Malaysians are quite weary of the annual season of  farce of the Audit-General’s Report exposing year-in and year-out corruption, criminal breach of trust and mismanagement of public funds followed by  the chorus of responses from the Public Accounts Committee, the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) and even from the Prime Minister and the relevant Ministers of  investigations and remedial action not only to deal with the errant culprits but to ensure that there could be no more recurrence of such  betrayal  of public  trust — all to taper off into public amnesia after a few days of media banner headlines until the ritual is repeated in the following year.

Last Tuesday (11th September 2007), the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said  at the Cabinet meeting the previous week (5th September), he had directed all ministers concerned to explain to the Cabinet why their ministries have been accused of mismanaging funds and other irregularities.  He said “each and every matter raised must be explained in detail”.

Three questions immediately come to mind, viz:

	Firstly, why did Abdullah delay for more than two months before raising  the subject in the Cabinet   when  he had first received the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report at the end of June?  Even the ACA director-general Datuk Ahmad Said Hamdan had publicly admitted that the ACA had received copies of the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report “sometime ago” and that the ACA had begun investigations into the Auditor-General’s 2006 Report “long before it was tabled in Parliament” on September 7;

	Secondly, will Ministers be required to explain to the Cabinet on Wednesday why their ministries have been accused of mismanaging funds and other irregularities, with each and every matter raised by the Auditor-General to be explained in detail? Will  the Prime Minister report to  the nation at the end of Wednesday’s meeting of the Ministers who have given satisfactory explanations and those who have failed to do so, and what he proposes to do with the latter?  Or there is no real intention whatsoever to hold a Cabinet inquest into the corruption and mismanagement of public funds into the various ministries as exposed in the 2006 Auditor-Gneeral Report?

	Thirdly, why are the Ministers only required to explain to the Cabinet and not to Parliament and the nation?

As all Ministers owe a higher duty to Parliament and the nation to comply with the principles of accountability, probity and integrity, the Cabinet on Wednesday should direct all Ministers whose  past or present ministries had been   implicated in the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report for mismanagement of funds to appear before the Public Accounts Committee to assume full responsibility and end all the annual “bellyaching” about taking action by various authorities but without any  concrete follow-up results.

It is only when the Cabinet is prepared to make such a decision requiring all Ministers to appear before the PAC to explain why their ministries, whether past or present, had been accused of mismanaging funds and other irregularities, with each and every matter raised explained in detail, that Malaysians can believe that the Prime Minister and his Cabinet Ministers are serious about accountability, transparency, financial probity and  Mnisterial responsibility.

Otherwise, nothing has changed whatsoever in the past four years of the Abdullah premiership and what we are seeing is  another annual season of farce and bellyaching about  accountability after the Auditor-General’s Report, but which means absolutely nothing.

                This entry was posted on Monday, 17 September 2007, 12:59 pm and is filed under
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Distilling the Essence of Islam

(Din Merican and M. Bakri Musa)

Dear Bakri:

I had the pleasure of chatting with Imam Feisal Rauf at the Blog House in Bukit Damansara last Sunday (September 9, 2007) after he led our Maghrib prayers.  The occasion was the special interfaith Doa Selamat prayers seeking Allah’s Blessings for Tun Mahathir’s speedy recovery from his second bypass operation on Tuesday September 4th.  As you know, The Tun had his first on January of 1989.

Apart from being the former Prime Minister and an outstanding leader, Tun Mahathir was also my mentor and hero.  Thus the multi-faith congregational prayers Imam Feisal led had a special significance for me.

            The Imam’s greater effort is in trying to bridge the divide between the West and Islam.  I thoroughly enjoyed his recent book and understood his theme:  the commonality of our faiths with their universal message of love, charity, and goodwill.

Until I met him, I did not know that he had studied at a local school in Kuala Lumpur.  That explained his impeccable Malay and special affection for Malaysia!

            I was also delighted to learn that he is the son of the distinguished and yet very humble Egyptian scholar-teacher, the late Tan Sri Professor Dr. Muhammad Rauf of Al-Azhar University, Cairo.  I must say that Imam Feisal also inherited his father’s handsome features!

The late Professor — I knew him as Dr. Rauf — was my professor at the University of Malaya when I did Islamic Studies in my first year (1960).  He (Al-Fatihah) taught Islamic History, the Quran, and the Hadith.  He had a huge influence on my thinking about and my attitude towards our religion.  Prior to that, my exposure to our Holy Book, like you I presume, was through the lessons taught by my simple kampong ustaz.

            Hence the special bonding I felt for Imam Feisal, as reflected in my affectionate hug after the Maghrib prayer that Sunday.  I had to hold back my tears.  I felt deep within my heart that he reminded me very much of my earlier special Professor of Islam.  Yet it did not occur to me to ask him whether he knew Professor Rauf!  Imam Feisal’s manner of speaking, appearance, and views on Islam were very much of my enlightened intellectual Professor Rauf, Imam Feisal’s father.

            I am happy to have met the Imam and to know that he inherited much of his father’s legacy.  Dr. Rauf was the first teacher who said to me that there is no compulsion in Islam.  He was always composed, rational, and very analytical in his discourses on Islam, the Quran and The Prophet, pbuh.

I still have Yusof Ali’s Translation of the Quran, which I acquired on his recommendation 47 years ago, as well as Professor Hitti’s History of the Arabs.  Both are very old and tattered volumes now.

            I saw Professor Rauf some years ago when he was the Rector of the International Islamic University.  I was very touched and honored that after so many years he still remembered me as “you are that student who came knocking at my office door” to seek clarifications on certain verses of the Quran which he had quoted during his lectures.  Once he cleared my doubts, he eased my mind.  He made me appreciate our religion and its theological and philosophical underpinnings.

            Strange as it may seem to some people, our teachers and professors do have a profound influence on our lives.  I am reminded of Surah Al-Luqman (Surah 31), which was first introduced to me by the Late Professor.  Luqman the Wise, for whom the Surah is named, counseled his son, among other things, to keep up his prayers, command what is right and forbid what is wrong, and to bear anything that happens to you steadfastly.  The late Professor Dr. Rauf was an Al-Luqman to me.  What a small world for me over 40 years later to meet his son, Imam Feisal.

Imam Feisal and I met almost by chance.  What brought us together at Blog House that Sunday was our genuine concern for the health and well being of Tun Mahathir whom we both admire for his many achievements as Prime Minister and a Muslim Leader par excellence.

Salam and Selamat Berpuasa,

Din

*            *            *            *            *

Bakri’s reply:

Dear Din:

Unlike you, I have not as yet had the privilege of meeting Imam Feisal.  I have viewed his lectures and interviews on television, and read a few of his books, including his latest, What’s Right With Islam:  A New Vision for Muslims and the West and What’s Right with Islam: is What’s Right with America.  The most memorable phrase I take from both books is that America is “the most Sharia-compliant” state today.  Food for thought for those ardent advocates of an Islamic state!

            Muslim leaders like Imam Feisal and the Aga Khan (who was also in Malaysia recently to officiate the famed architectural prize in his name) provide a much-needed counterpoint to the likes of the deluded Osama bin Ladin and the ever-growling Ayatollah.

Imam Feisal and the Aga Khan capture best for me the central Quranic message:  Command good and forbid evil.  From that central theme flow other subsidiary ones, like treating others as you wish to be treated.  That in essence is Allah’s message to all His prophets, and thus the major themes of all faiths.  If only our leaders — religious and secular — could emphasize this commonality instead of being obsessed with our differences!

That interfaith Doa Selamat prayer for the Tun is a superb example of this endeavor of using religion to bring people together and not to divide them.  I tip my songkok to Marina Mahathir for initiating this.  It gave an opportunity for all Malaysians to express their love and prayers for the Tun, besides bringing us together.  Marina is experienced at arranging these ecumenical gatherings when she headed the AIDS Council.

Of course there will always be the bigots who fear that such mixing of religions would “adulterate” our faith.

Such small mindedness is not confined to the uninformed or uneducated.  In 1998 when Hari Raya and Chinese New Year coincided, the government wisely seized upon the rare and unique opportunity to remind Malaysians of the virtues of generosity and tolerance by capitalizing on the dual joyous occasions.  Petronas came out with an imaginative and a memorably uplifting advertising jingle.

However at the Hari Raya prayers I attended at a mosque on the campus of University Islam, I heard very little of that spirit expressed in the sermon.  Instead, the Imam venomously lashed out at those who dared elevate non-Islamic festivities to the exalted status of Hari Raya, a direct assault on the government’s noble intention.

Long soporific sermons have their sleepy effect on me rather quickly, but the ferocious intensity of the Imam’s fulminating tirade kept me awake.  Words like “heathens,” “blasphemy,” and “sacrilege” were liberally sprinkled in his sermon, irreverently incongruous in a place of worship and at a traditionally forgiving season.

I am pleased that The Star will be publishing a regular column by Imam Feisal during this Ramadan.  The works of Muslim leaders like Imam Feisal and the Aga Khan capture best for me the meaning of dakwa (teaching) and zakat (charity).  Imam Feisal with his Cordoba Initiative and the Aga Khan with his string of universities and health centers give us a more enlightened meaning of the two important concepts in Islam.

I have another observation on Imam Feisal.  Unlike his father, the Imam is a product of America’s modern liberal education, having graduated in physics from Columbia, an Ivy League university.  Like the other religious leader I admire, Asghar Ali Engineer, Imam Feisal’s background in the physical science and his quantitative skills give precision to his thought.  In physics and engineering, you cannot simply agak agak (guesswork) or the bridge you designed would collapse.

Imam Feisal illustrates my point, elaborated in my book An Education System Worthy of Malaysia, of the need to revamp our religious stream.  Our future ulamas and religious scholars must be exposed to the widest field of study before embarking on their religious career.

Sallam and Selamat Berpuasa,

Bakri

                This entry was posted on Monday, 17 September 2007, 9:35 am and is filed under
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Uphold integrity/fight corruption – Abdullah risks being compared unfavourably with Mahathir

When Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi became Prime Minister in October 2003, he promised many things to the people of Malaysia, asking the people to “work with him and not work for him”  — towards the objective of  a clean, incorruptible, efficient, trustworthy, democratic, just, people-oriented administration which is prepared to hear the truth from the citizenry.

In less than four years, Abdullah’s report card on his many pledges is quite a blank. Even more serious, it runs danger of being compared unfavourably with the 22-year Mahathir administration even on the key planks of upholding integrity and fighting corruption.

I will give three examples.

(1) For the past ten days, the country has been revolted  by the exposes of the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report  about the pervasive  corruption, criminal breach of trust and mismanagement of public funds running into tens of millions, hundreds of millions and even billions of ringgit.

I remember that in the early years of the Mahathir premiership, there was a similar public revulsion when the  Report of the then Auditor-General, Tan Sri Ahmad Nordin exposed the notorious  “Instant Mee” scandal, where  the Defence Ministry paid RM4.90 per packet when the average market price was only 14 sen a packet.

A quarter of a century later, nothing seemed to have changed —  things have in fact got worse.  The “Instant Mee” scandal was a rip-off of taxpayers’ monies with the government paying some 350 per cent of the market price, but what we have in the 2006 Auditor-General’s Report is a rip-off by over 5,000 per cent in the case of the Youth and Culture Ministry paying RM5,700 for a car jack worth RM50!

(2) The Mahathir premiership started off with the RM2.5 billion Bumiputra Malaysia Finance (BMF) scandal, which the former Prime Minister had admitted at the time was a “heinous crime without criminals”.

The Abdullah premiership is starting off with a bigger scandal and a greater “heinous crime without criminals” — the RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Port (PKFZ)  bailout scandal.

The government was promised that it would not have to cough up a single ringgit of public funds for the PKFZ project, as it was feasible, self-financing and in expert hands.  But now, with RM4 billion now the drain, taxpayers are now required to bailout the project to the tune of RM4.6 billion — but without any accountability, transparency or responsibility!

(3) The 22-year Mahathir administration ended with Malaysia being ranked No. 37 on the Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perception Index (CPI) in 2003.

Although Abdullah promised in the National Integrity Plan which he launched in May 2004 to improve Malaysia’s TI CPI ranking to No. 30th position in 2008, the opposite has happened.

In three years, Malaysia’s TI CPI ranking has plunged to No. 44 in 2006, and there was not a single Barisan Nasional MP who dared to murmur dissent when I predicted at the recent meeting of Parliament that Malaysia’s TI CPI for 2007 would drop further, nearer to the 50th placing on the occasion of our 50th Merdeka anniversary.

Can Abdullah halt the slide in Malaysia’s TI CPI ranking, check the rot of rampant corruption in the system and begin to “walk the talk” of his pledges when he became the Prime Minister?

Abdullah won an unprecedented landslide victory in the 2004 general election winning 91 per cent of the parliamentary seats on his promise to be different from Mahathir, especially in upholding integrity and fighting corruption.  Will the verdict of the Abdullah premiership be: “He promised to be different from his predecessor. But his administration was worse”?

(Speech at the DAP 50th Merdeka anniversary dinner at Pandamaran, Klang on Monday, 17th September 2007)

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 18 September 2007, 12:01 pm and is filed under
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UPM more famous as Mat Rempit University than Research University

It is an academic disgrace that Universiti Putra Malaysia is more famous as a Mat Rempit University than as a Research University, a status it was elevated only last month together with three other universities — Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Just like last year, UPM has brought national and international shame to Malaysia academia with the Mat Rempit-antics of the campus security, acting in utter disregard of the fundamental rights of students in arrogantly and high-handedly seizing the laptop, mobile phone, MP3 player and 10 other items valued at RM6,000 from first-year UPM  timber technology  student Yee Yang Yang during a spot check of his hostel room on Friday night and questioning him about his involvement in student politics.

In 48 hours, there have been over 14,000  viewings of the
Malaysiakini videoclip
of the standoff between UPM students and the UPM campus security.  The video clip has also been uploaded on
YouTube
 in more than half-a-dozen sites in the past one day, with over 3,000 hits.

The UPM students must be commended for courageously standing up for their fundamental human rights and refusing to cow to a Mat Rempit-style of bullying by the campus security.

This is the second year that a disgraceful UPM episode has gone up on YouTube, which attracted over 200,000 hits  from multiple sites on  the video clip last year of unruly conduct of UPM student council leaders, condoned by UPM  security, against “anti-establishment” student activists.

The latest Mat Rempit antics of the UPM authorities raises very hard questions as to how academic and research excellence can flourish in UPM  when such Mat Rempit culture in the university administration  is allowed to run wild without check.

Even more important, it raises the more important question whether the  “Strategic Plan for Higher Education: Laying the Foundation Beyond 2020” launched by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at the end of last month to create world-class universities has any hope of success when mediocre minds appear to have an upper hand in running Malaysian universities.

I call on the Higher Education Minister, Datuk Mustapha Mohamed to condemn in no uncertain terms such Mat Rempitism in UPM and  contempt for student rights and to send a clear message to the UPM authorities that they are doing a great disservice to the nation in  bringing ridicule and dishonour to the Malaysian higher education system, undermining the national objective to turn Malaysia into one of the world’s education hubs.

Mustapha cannot run away from his responsibility to ensure that  the upcoming student elections in the public universities are held in a free and fair manner — or the first casualty will be his National Higher Education Action Plan 2007-2010 to generate “human capital with first-class mentality” and develop “intellectual capital of the highest quality”.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 18 September 2007, 10:38 am and is filed under
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Why Malacca State Excos of  MCA and Gerakan must resign from Ali Rustam government

The Cabinet tomorrow should censure the Malacca State Government and the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as Barisan Nasional Chairman should remove Datuk Seri Ali Rustam as Malacca Chief Minister for defiance of Cabinet decision on the formula to end the pig-rearing crisis in Malacca as well as spoiling the national mood and spirit of celebrations of 50th Merdeka anniversary in the whole country by all Malaysians.

It is shocking that Ali Rustam and his State Government were allowed to defy the Sept. 5 decision of the Cabinet that there should not be any destruction of pigs and the two-point formula to resolve the pig-rearing crisis in Malacca, viz: the Malacca state government to allow the pig rearers to change the use of the land and secondly, pig rearers allowed to get bank  loans for waste disposal systems with the state government giving the guarantee that it would not revoke TOL to ensure  security of the industry to justify such investments by the pig-rearers.

With such a Cabinet decision two weeks ago, why was the Malacca Chief Minister and his gang allowed to go through the charade and their “terror tactics”  of forcing the pig rearers to comply with the unreasonable and impossible target to cull or reduce 97,000 heads of pigs in 17 days by Sept. 21, or face another “show-of-force” like the Sept. 4 confrontation in Paya Mengkuang against defenceless men, women and children by 2,000-strong personnel including fully-armed police FRU, enforcement squads from multi-agencies including immigration, state and local authorities together with personnel in “space suits”, tear gas, water cannons, and a hovering helicopter?

What is most shocking is that such  arrogant, high-handed and coercive tactics employed by the Malacca state authorities violate every concept of a good and democratic governance, with the elected government shamefully treating law-abiding citizens making a proper and honourable living from the pig-rearing industry like criminals and even terrorists!

What is even more shocking is that the MCA was a party to the whole charade, as the actions taken against the pig-rearers in the state was not that of Umno Malacca State Government but that of the  Barisan Nasional Malacca state government, comprising MCA and Gerakan state excos.

It is utterly disgraceful that 50 years of Barisan Nasional “power-sharing” has totally changed character from “equal political partners” of Barisan Nasional component parties  to “UMNO political rulers and MCA and Gerakan subjects” in the State Government, with MCA and Gerakan state exco members denuded of any right to participate in the state government decision-making process.

It is very sad that 50 years after Merdeka and the “social contract”, MCA and Gerakan state excos in Malacca have been reduced to the status of “petition-writers” whose role is to  appeal to the Chief Minister, Umno State Exco members, State Secretary and even Umno parliamentary secretary to try to modify harsh and unreasonable decisions instead of ensuring that such decisions are not taken in the first place.

The Sept. 4 stand-off at Paya Mengkuang, the 17-day directive to cull or reduce 97,000 heads of pigs, the compulsory land acquisition notices and the show cause demands as to why properties should not be confiscated for improper  land use are instances of gross abuses of power and should never have been allowed to happen if the MCA and Gerakan are meaningful parts of the Malacca state government, and not just hangers-on and “petitioner-writers” after substantive decisions are taken whether with or without their presence.

This is why I had said that MCA and Gerakan State Exco members should quit the Ali Rustam Malacca State Government so as not to set a dangerous and disgraceful precedent of being silent part of the Malacca State Government oppression of the pig farmers.

Or has the MCA and Gerakan leaders, whether at state or national level, reached a stage where they dare not even express condemnation of Ali Rustam’s abuses of power and contempt for proper Barisan Nasional “power sharing” in the state?

What justification could there be for MCA and Gerakan to continue to be part of the Ali Rustam Malacca State Government even  if all the abuses of power could  be revoked  — the high-handed and unreasonable decision to cull or reduce 97,000 heads of pigs by Sept. 21, the compulsory land acquisitions and the refusal to comply with the Sept. 5 Cabinet decision to allow pig rearers in Malacca to get Bank Negara Fund for Food assistance for proper waste disposal systems with State government guarantee of security of tenure of the pig rearing industry?

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 18 September 2007, 2:50 pm and is filed under
Merdeka 50th anniversary
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Politics
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UMNO
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2nd Kong Choy scandal – suspend RM450-RM500 million e-Kesihatan middlemen rent-seeking scam

The week-long controversy over the
e-kesihatan scheme
has created more doubts and  confusion, with the public presented with a plethora of conflicting accounts while  the Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy emerged  from the controversy in a very sorry and  worst possible light.

From the present  RM10 payment for renewal of public service vehicle (PSV), goods driving licence (GDL) and conductor licence (KON) holders, the Road Transport Department is to  introduce a new mandatory health screening scheme beginning on Oct. 1 which would cost RM80 a year for a million commercial drivers.

In the latest revised figures in
the Sun
today, Datuk Nordin Yahaya, the  executive director of Supremme Systems Sdn. Bhd, the concessionaire awarded the monopoly for this scheme, claims that of the RM80, the company gets RM8 and Pos Malaysia RM2, while RM10 is for operating costs, RM35 go to the doctors and RM25 to laboratories.

Only three days earlier on Sunday, Nordin had given
different breakdowns
 — i.e. doctors paid between RM35 and RM45, laboratories between RM25 and RM35,  Post Malaysia RM2 and Supreme Systems Sdn. Bhd between RM8 and RM10.

These figures have  been disputed by the
Koperasi Doktor Malaysia Bhd chairman Dr. J. S. Deo
who said that the laboratory tests for the e-Kesihatan screening cost less than RM7, and not between RM25 and RM35 as claimed by Nordin earlier.

Dr. Deo said  that the tests to detect the presence of morphine, marijuana, amphetamines, methamphetamine and phencycledine, could be performed by a laboratory for a fee of RM5.90 for a minimum order of 1,000 units, or even lower with larger volumes.  Two other tests would cost an additional RM1.

Assuming that Supremme Systems paid the lab RM10 and doctors RM40 (gone down to RM35 in the Sun today), Dr.Deo estimates that the company would still enjoy a profit of RM30.

With a million applicants a year (i.e. taxi, bus and express bus drivers nationwide), this will rake in for Supreme Systems between RM450 million and RM500 million  for the 15-year monopoly concession.

Malaysian Medical Council President Tan Sri Dr. Ismail Merican had  criticized the Road Transport Department for being
too hasty
 in carrying out the e-Kesihatan scheme, as there were ethical and or public interest issues which had not been given proper consideration, including confidentiality of information.

The most irresponsible and disgraceful statement had come from
Chan Kong Choy
demonstrating either the Transport Minister is quite at sea and knows next to nothing about the e-Kesihatan scheme or he is just putting up a front of ignorance.

When asked on Saturday as to why Road Transport Department wanted the doctors involved in the scheme to register with a private company, Chan gave a most shocking answer: “I don’t think they are registering the doctors”.

When asked why a third party company was being given the right to operate the new system, Chan disarmingly replied: “I don’t have the details”.

Is Chan the Transport Minister or not?  Why is Chan so bent on creating another scandal, the e-Kesihatan scandal so soon after the RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone bailout scandal?

Since Chan is so ignorant about the e-Kesihatan controversy, this is an added reason why the  e-kesihatan scheme should be suspended until an independent inquiry including  medical and consumer representatives are satisfied that it is not a middlemen rent-seeking scam to fleece the public and other ethical and public interest issues have been addressed.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 19 September 2007, 12:27 pm and is filed under
Corruption
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Good Governance
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Health
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Lingam tape – Anwar’s  explosive video clip on Judiciary Compromised

Anwar Ibrahim
 has produced an explosive video clip on Judiciary Compromised which has set off reverberations  in the Palace of Justice, the corridors of power, offices and homes in the country as well as  internationally.

The time for reckoning for the restoration of a truly independent judiciary and a just rule of law cannot be put off any longer.

Malaysiakini
 has carried the
transcript
 of the conversation between lawyer V.K. Lingam with Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz sometime in 2002, as recorded in the
videoclip
, viz:

 “The CJ said he is relative to now Agong, so he wants to stay on to 68, so, Tengku Adnan, I told Tengku Adnan, yesterday I had a meeting with him.

He said PM is already very angry with him, he said no problem he is going to make you acting err.. confirm your position as PCA, working very hard then working very hard to get Tan Sri Mokhtar as CJM.

Ah, we just keep it confidential. I am working very hard on it. Then there is a letter, according to Tengku, I am going to see him tomorrow, there is a letter sent to CJ, I mean Tan Sri Dzaiddin, that Datuk Heliliah, Datuk Ramli, Datuk Ramli and Datuk Ma’roop be made judges, and he rejected Dr Andrew Chui and apa itu Zainuddin Ismail lah. Because Zainuddin Ismail condemned your appointment and Tan Sri Mokhtar’s appointment.

And then you also, you seems to wrote a letter for the remaining five be confirmed as judges. As per our memo I discuss with Tun Eusoff Chin and we sent the same memo to PM.

I just want to get a copy letter that that has been done.

And then Tan Sri Dzaiddin said he is going to recommend six people for the court of appeal, but until today the letter hasn’t come to PM. He never discuss, but neither he has sent the letter to PM. Yes he has not sent. I know it is under the constitution for judges all that is your job Datuk to send, but we don’t want to make it an issue now.

Ah. Ok Actually I told Tengku Adnan to inform PM, PM to call you for a meeting. I organize it so that Tengku Adnan will call you directly. And then I got your number, I will tell him to call you directly to for you to meet PM lah. So should be ok, then ar.. correct correct, it is very important that the key players must be there.

Correct x3. correct x2. You know that the same problem that Tun Eusoff Chin has. He tried to do all this and yet he has run out of soldiers. He couldn’t do it because many are from the other camp. Last time was unfortunate because Tun Daim was doing everything sabotaging, otherwise how are things with you – everything is ok?. No, don’t worry.

You know sometimes Tan Sri Vincent that half the time they are talking about judiciary rather than doing the work. But if I don’t do this part my work will be useless.

Ha ha ha. Ah yes.Correct x5, right x3 correct. Ah right susah. You see he has now up for six court of appeal judges, so that he can put his men before he retires.

Correct x3, ah and then ah, correct. But never-mind, I will do this, I will get Tengku Adnan to arrange for PM to call you and Tan Sri Vincent Tan for PM to call you. And you know why, actually, I am very grateful with Tan Sri Vincent Tan you know why, I brainwash you so much even I quarrel with him.

One day I went to Vincent Tan house, I fire him at the night in his house. I said bloody hell if you don’t do this who will do it?

All these people Tun Eusoff Chin, Datuk Ahmad Fairuz, Tan Sri Zainon all fought for that. Then he called Tengku Adnan. Tengku Adnan he said, saya bukan Perdana Menteri Malaysia lah, you know. If the old man doesn’t want to listen to me, go to hell.

He quarreled with me. I said never mind, never mind, you talk to PM again tomorrow morning to put Datuk Ahmad Fairuz to CJM. So next day morning he went and he called me back 9.30 that he said PM has already agreed.

So I said never mind, we hope for the best. So I said no harm trying, the worst that it can happen is that you lose. Being the old man, he is 76 years old, he gets whispers everywhere, and then you don’t whisper, he get taken away by the other side. But, now PM is very alert because every time he gets letters from Tan Sri Dzaiddin, he called Tengku Adnan, he said discuss with Vincent, come and discuss.

Yes yes, ya. Correct x2, ya, but you see although I know PM, I am a lawyer in practice my views are.. I go through them, I go through them lah. Ah x4.

And then Dzaiddin will call them telling that you went saw PM and you make a big issue out of it. Oh ya, I think so, I think so.

Ok, fine x4 ok x4

Ah x2 correct x2. Now I heard Raja Aziz, Raja Aziz two weeks ago spoke to my lawyer Thayalan, and another lawyer Ailan, in the high court, they have a case each other. So, Thayalan and Ailan asked Raja Aziz, how is Tan Sri Wan Adnan?

He said he is on his way down. But you know what is the shocking thing he said? Datuk Fairuz became CJM. He overruled everybody, in three months time, he is going be made PCA, and 6 months time he is going to be CJ. He said he can’t think, he’s shocked. He told us.

Ha, it seems that they are going to organize a campaign to run you down. But you just keep quite, don’t say anything. Even the press asked, you said I leave it to God, that’s all. Don’t say. I really like your message. You said you work very hard, what can I do? I leave it to God.

That’s the best answer Datuk that you can ever be.

Ah…  I will also get Tan Sri to remind PM to put a Tan Sri-ship this year lah. This will elevate you, you know.

Oh yes x4. ha. Steve Shim got so fast, Tan Sri Chong waited for whole year to get Tan Sri-ship.

Ah.. My god that’s why, ah. Correct x4, ya x4 right x3 correct x2

Don’t worry, we organize this. If Tan Sri Vincent and Tengku Adnan want to meet you privately, they will, I will call you. We organize in a private arrangement, in a very neutral place.

No don’t worry, Datuk, I know how much you suffer for Tun Eusoff Chin. And Tun said Datuk Ahmad Fairuz 110% loyalty. We want to make sure our friends are there for the sake of the PM and the sake of the country.

Not for our own interest, not for our own interest. We want to make sure the country come first. Well, you suffered so well, so much you have done. For the election, Wee Choo Keong, everything. How much, no body would have done all these.

Yes, you know. Good lah. Don’t worry. I am constantly working on this.

Ya ya, don’t worry x2. We work hard on this. And Datuk, and then if Tan Sri Vincent and Tengku Adnan want to see you, I will organize it in such a confidential place.

Ok Datuk very best. God bless you and your family.

Ok. Thank you thank you. Bye.”

An immediate response from Tun Fairuz is called for. Is he going to confirm or deny the phone conversation?

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 19 September 2007, 7:11 pm and is filed under
Constitution
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Court
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Good Governance
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Belgium in Tatters: Call the UN, quick!

By
Farish A. Noor

It seems that the state of Belgium has been without a government for more than a hundred days now; as the Belgians seem unable to decide on their future and settle upon a collective identity that can be shared by all. Divided between the more prosperous Flemish north and the less well-to-do French-speaking Walloon south, the country seems almost a textbook case of communitarianism run rampant and sectarian divisions tearing apart the nation-state.  On both sides of the ethnic-cultural-linguistic fence right-wing ethno-nationalist politicians take to the soapbox to bemoan the ills of the country and to lay the blame at the feet of their neighbours next door.

As an aside, the minorities of Belgium must be relieved that for once the stereotype of the evil nefarious foreigner is not being brought to the fore as the root of all that is wrong in the country. No, here the problem does not seem to be the dreaded Turk, Arab or Asian around the corner, but rather those familiar but different Walloons and Flemish down the road!

Now if Belgium was located elsewhere on the map, we would probably have heard calls for UN intervention by this point. For as we all know by now sectarian divisions anywhere else — be it in Africa, Asia or Latin America often enough warrants some form of international military intervention, ostensibly to save the natives from themselves. But after all, is this not a case of a nation-building programme falling to pieces before our very eyes,

with communal sentiments and parochial loyalties to race and culture being fanned in the public domain? Yet perhaps one of the most ironic twists to the story of Belgium today is the fact that the divisive politics we see in the country at the moment was also a rather noxious export that was taken as far as Africa by the Belgium government in the past.

Divisive politics should not be something alien to the Belgians by now, for Belgium’s colonial policies abroad have always been predicated on the logic of divide and rule anyway. The most noteworthy example here is the case of Rwanda and Burundi, of course: Two African nations that were first annexed by Germany and then taken over by Belgium in 1916.

In the decades that followed, it was Belgium that introduced a plural economic system of indirect governance by proxy, where the Tutsis were elevated to the status of compradore elites and used to govern over the Hutu population in the name of the Crown of Belgium. Convinced by their own racist ideology of racial difference and racial superiority (like all the other Western colonial powers then), the Belgians created and perpetuated a violent racialised social hierarchy that placed them at the top, the Tutsis as intermediaries and the Hutus at the bottom of the social strata. Coffee became the main export of the colony, the profits of which were siphoned back to Belgium to build those plush houses you see in the cities of Belgium today.

The net result of this policy of divide-and-rule was the racialisation of Rwandan politics and the growing antagonism that eventually led to years of systematic discrimination and institutionalised racism that finally boiled over and led to the inter-racial civil war and genocide the world has witnessed live on TV. Yet till today the Belgians have said and done little

in terms of compensating for the damage they caused there, as they did in other strife-torn colonies such as the Congo.

Is it therefore any surprise if Belgium today is also divided along racial and communal lines, where ethnic, cultural and linguistic differences have come to the fore to dominate the nation’s politics? The mindset that sees human beings not as members of one human family but rather as sub-sets to be divided and antagonised comes from a long history of racialised politics,

with its hey-day during the sad days of Empire. Ironically the proverbial chickens have come home to roost and now it would seem that the same divisive logic that was once used to keep the unruly natives at bay has settled in the countries that exported them to Asia and Africa in the first place.

A case of history repeating itself, or the irrepressible past revisiting the present? Whatever may be the case, it would be difficult for us today to utter the shallow prognosis that communal sectarian race politics is a malady of the Third World solely. Imperialism carries with it a terrible human cost, and that cost is often borne by the imperialists themselves.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 19 September 2007, 4:35 am and is filed under
Farish Noor
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