Mr Speaker, Sir: You are primarily responsible for Kit Siang’s suspension!

P.Ramakrishnan

Aliran

25th Oct 2015

The Speaker, Pandikar Amin Mulia, stated that the MPs, not the Speaker, made the decision to suspend Getang Patah MP Lim Kit Siang from the Dewan Rakyat. His claim is not entirely true. He is trying to extricate himself and convey the impression that he was blameless in this episode. But he had a hand in this unjust suspension.

The Speaker cannot push the blame to others and absolve himself for the suspension of Lim Kit Siang from Parliament. Try as he may, but he cannot escape the fact that he was primarily responsible for this eventuality. He set the ball rolling. The others took the cue from him.

Mr Speaker, Sir, you said, “Please tell Gelang Patah, the next time he comes, he must apologise unconditionally and retract his remarks as he had said that I abused my powers as Speaker. This is an insult of the first degree. If he refuses, a motion will be tabled and he will be suspended if the House passes it.”

Evidence shows that you initiated this suspension, Mr Speaker Sir. It was your insistence that resulted in Kit Siang’s suspension. You wanted a motion to be tabled if there was no apology. And so a motion was tabled to suspend Kit Siang.

With regard to your ruling putting the meeting of the PAC on hold, Kit Siang disagreed with your decision. He reiterated, “There are no provisions to give the Speaker authority to stop a special committee such as PAC from holding meetings.”

He pursued this issue by way of a question addressed to Mohamed Hanipa Maidin (Amanah-Sepang) seeking his view whether  the Speaker’s ruling in connection with PAC was tantamount to abuse of power as it delayed the 1MDB investigation unreasonably.

“There are no provisions to give the Speaker authority to stop a special committee such as PAC from holding meetings.

“Does the Honourable Member for Sepang (Hanipa Maidin) agree the abuse of power by the Speaker should not have taken place and this is a sabotage of investigations into 1MDB,” stated Kit Siang.

Kit Siang was merely asking for an opinion. It is difficult to understand how a query can be accepted as a statement of fact!

Kit Siang did not make a direct accusation. From the facts it would appear that he did not address you and say that you had abused your position and that you had delayed the 1MDB investigation.

(Hanipa Maidin apparently did not confirm this otherwise he too would have been cited for insulting the Speaker!)

According to Kit Siang, “What I said when I sought clarification from the MP for Sepang, Mohamed Hanipa bin Maidin, who was speaking on the debate on the appointment of the Chairman of Public Accounts Committee was whether he agreed that the Speaker has no powers under the Standing Orders to stop the Public Accounts Committee, in the absence of a PAC Chairman, from continuing with its 1MDB investigations and which was therefore an abuse of power.”

Mr Speaker Sir, had you accepted Kit Siang’s explanation in good faith as to what he meant by his remarks, the matter would have ended there and then. But no, you wanted that apology that you demanded irrespective of Kit Siang’s clarification, and it seems that you had achieved your declared intention to suspend him.

Malaysians are not convinced by your attempt to wash your hands off this unjust action under Section 27(c) of the Standing Orders.

If Kit Siang had been referred to the Rights and Privileges Committee under Section 80(A) of the Standing Orders, Malaysians would have accepted the outcome because Kit Siang would have been given a chance to defend himself. As it were, he was convicted without the benefit of defence which was totally unfair to him.

The 107 Barisan Nasional MPs have concurred with the Speaker and have suspended Kit Siang. But the tens of thousands of Malaysians outside Parliament think otherwise and will remember this injustice that had robbed the voice of the people so unfairly and undemocratically.

Let’s take comfort in Terence MacSwiney’s words, “It is not those who can inflict the most, but those who can suffer the most who will prevail.”

*NOTE:  Terence James MacSwiney was an Irish playwright, author, politician and Freedom Fighter. Coincidentally, he passed away on this day today, 25 October, after 74 days on hunger strike 95 years ago in 1920

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 8:08 pm and is filed under
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Najib’s 2016 Budget made history as a budget which could not generate any budget euphoria as it was snuffed out within seconds of delivery by phalanx of Opposition MPs standing up and displaying “Mana RM2.6 billion” placard

Prime Minister-cum-Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 2016 Budget made history as the first Malaysian budget which could not generate any budget euphoria as it was snuffed out within seconds of delivery by the phalanx of Opposition MPs standing up and displaying the “Mana RM2.6 billion” placard.

Normally, the budget presented by a Finance Minister in Parliament on a Friday would be able to generate a budget euphoria for weeks, or at least for the immediate weekend, with  glowing economic reports and superlative accounts of the government’s budgetary plans, but Najib’s 2016 Budget failed dismally on this account, with the country overcast with hazy sky and noxious air which for weeks had closed schools, disrupted the economy and created havoc in the life of Malaysians.

In fact, events in the 24 hours after Najib’s delivery of the 2016 Budget had continued to be relentless in stamping out any ember for any  post-budget euphoria, for instance:

1.	the report by The Australian yesterday that a sixth foreign government, Australia, has joined five other countries, namely Switzerland, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore and United States in the ever-widening international inquiry into Malaysia’s biggest scandal in history, the RM50 billion 1MDB (well exceeding the RM42 billion normally associated with the scandal, according to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in his last speech as Deputy Prime Minister to the UMNO Cheras Division on  July 26);

2.	The demand by thirteen Umno branch chiefs from Telok Kemang in Negri Sembilan who declared they had lost confidence in Najib’s leadership and urged him to step down as party president in order to restore Umno’s credibility before the next general election.

3.	The continuing revelations of the hanky-panky in the two mega scandals of RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts, all to way up to Cabinet level, by UMNO Deputy President and former Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin in Johor Baru at a Bicara Minda dialogue session organized by Karangkraf and Sinar Harian.

4.	The statement by UMNO Vice President and former Rural and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal in Semporna that the 2016 Budget failed to address investor confidence in government.

Actually, Najib’s 2016 Budget made double history, not only was it unable to generate any budget euphoria after its delivery, it was unable to garner any positive pre-budget vibration as enjoyed by other budgets.

In the  very week of the 2016 budget presentation, any positive vibration for it was destroyed by the  four-day parliamentary proceedings, which had been soured and bedeviled by the 1MDB “Monster”,  with Ministers running helter-skelter to avoid answering questions about the twin mega-scandals, the two-day suspension of two DAP MPs, Lim Lip Eng (Segambut) and Gobind Singh Deo (Puchong) and my six-month suspension from Parliament.

On the very day of the Budget presentation, former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir in an  interview with the British daily, The Guardian described Najib as the most corrupt leader of the nation who would cling on to power at all cost.

Looming in  the background were other developments which happened in the past weeks which were inimical to any positive outlook for the 2016 Budget, particularly the unprecedented statement by the Malay Rulers of Oct. 6 calling for 1MDB investigations to be completed “as soon as possible” and to take “appropriate stern action” against all found to be implicated; the inability of the government for over a month  to contradict or clarify media reports about United States Department of Justice investigating Najib under its Kleptocrtacy Assets Recovery Initiative 2010 and raising the question whether Malaysia has a kleptocrat as a Prime Minister; and the coming of the “perfect storm” of combined political, economic, good governance  and nation-building crises hitting Malaysia.

This is why 2016 Budget was such a great let-down, for it failed to deal with the most critical issues affecting the confidence and trust deficit of Malaysians and foreign investors – the twin mega scandals of the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts.

In the process, Najib has disappointed 30 million Malaysians, including the three million UMNO members, as well as the Malay Rulers.

In the 2016 Budget, Najib has concentrated further powers in himself, with the Prime Minister’s Department getting a record budget allocation of RM20.3 billion or 7.6 per cent of total budget,  the highest ever for the Prime Minister’s Department under six Prime Ministers since 1957.

In fact, the Prime Minister’s budget for 2016 is about 25 times the full Federal Government budget in 1957 when the country achieved Merdeka 58 years ago, which was around  RM800 million.

In 1957, the Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman had a Cabinet of 10 Ministers, but Najib now has 10 Ministers parked in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Is the Malaysian Cabinet today, with a jumbo size of 37 Ministers, as effective and productive as the 10-Minister Merdeka Cabinet of Tunku Abdul Rahman?

Instead of further aggrandizement, Najib should have set an example of budget down-sizing by reducing the 2016 budget for  the Prime Minister’s Department to below RM10 billion and slashing the 10 Ministers in the PM”s Office by at least half, instead of cutting down on essential expenditures on education, health and welfare.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 7:57 am and is filed under
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I would have advised Najib to refund the RM2.6 billion “donation” to the Treasury as one way to resolve the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal during the debate on 2016 budget if I had not been suspended from Parliament for six months

The 1MDB “Monster” is claiming more and more victims, and I am only  the latest one – suspended from Parliament for six months because I had said what is in the heart of all thinking and patriotic Malaysians, viz:

*firstly, that the Public Accounts Committee investigations into the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal should not have been suspended for three months as national interests demand that 1MDB investigations should be conducted as a matter of greatest urgency and priority; and

*secondly, there has been too much avoidance and evasion of responsibility by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his government in giving full accountability for the twin mega scandals in the country, the 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts resulting in an unprecedented crisis of confidence in the Malaysian government.

This is why the Malay Rulers on October 6 had come out with an extraordinary statement calling for 1MDB investigations to be completed “as soon as possible” and for the “appropriate stern action” to be taken against all found to be implicated.

In their statement, the Malay Rulers stressed that all concerned should extend “real and sincere” co-operation for the 1MDB investigations to achieve their  objectives and that the findings of the investigation “must be reported comprehensively and in a transparent manner so that the people will be convinced of the sincerity of the government which shall not at all conceal facts and the truth”.

The Malay Rulers, like all Malaysians, are clearly not convinced that the government is sincere in wanting all the facts and  truths about the 1MDB scandal to be out in the open, or there would be no stalling of PAC investigations into the 1MDB investigations for such a prolonged period of three months!

Najib’s 2016 Budget presentation in Parliament on Friday was a disgraceful “wash-out” because he glaringly omitted what the government was going to do with regard to Malaysia’s first international financial scandal – the 1MDB scandal.

I have no doubt that the placard “Mana RM2.6 billion” (Where is the RM2.6 billion) which opposition MPs displayed in Dewan Rakyat after Najib’s budget speech resonated in the hearts and minds of 30 million Malaysians, even among the three million UMNO members and patriotic and conscientious  UMNO/BN Members of Parliament,  as this was  the topmost question which Najib’s 2016 Budget speech had failed to address.

If Najib is not prepared to give sincere and truthful answers in Parliament about the two mega scandals of the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in his personal banking accounts, then it is for the 30 million Malaysians to demand  answers from Najib and the Umno/BN government.

Not only Opposition MPs must display placards asking “Mana RM2.6 billion”, Malaysians all over the country should also display placards asking “Mana RM2.6 billion”!

In fact,  the three million UMNO members should  take the lead to display placards “Mana RM2.6 billion” in all the UMNO branches and divisions.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi yesterday dismissed the call by the 13 Umno branch leaders in Telok Kemang for Najib to resign as UMNO President, saying that the call meant little as there are 20,000 such leaders nationwide.

“They were 13 out of 20,000,” Zahid said, in a cynical tone.

I believe that if they had been  given the chance, the 20,000 UMNO branch leaders in the country would also want Najib and the top UMNO leadership to come clean about the two mega scandals in the country, and not to create a situation where not only Malaysians as a whole, but the three million UMNO members, cannot hold their heads high as the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals have brought shame to Malaysia, not onlyl nationally but also world-wide.

In fact, a day after Najib’s 2016 Budget presentation in Parliament, the Australian press reported that  a sixth foreign government, Australia, has joined five other countries, namely Switzerland, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore and United States in the ever-widening international inquiry into  1MDB scandal.

Most shameful of all, neither Najib himself nor any of his Ministers dare to contradict or clarify US media reports that Najib is being investigated by the US Department of Justice under its Kleptocracy Assets Recovery Initiative 2010, which means that the Malaysian Prime Minister is being investigated by the US authorities as to whether he is a kleptocrat!

If given   a chance to state their position, the majority of the three million UMNO members will  surely state their great embarrassment  at Najib’s failure to give a full accountability of the two mega scandals afflicting his administration – which has even caused grave concern to the   Malay Rulers.

The problem is that the three million UMNO members have no voice or rights at all as compared to the 300 UMNO chieftains, as Najib ensured  the support of the 300 UMNO chieftains whether at the UMNO Supreme Council or at the UMNO Divisional chief levels while those who refused to toe his line, like Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal are being increasingly isolated and marginalised.

The ratio of 300 Umno chieftains to three million UMNO members is not one per cent or 0.1 per cent but  merely 0.01 per cent to the total UMNO membership!

Why is 0.01 per cent in UMNO allowed to deny the  three million UMNO members their democratic and patriotic right to demand full accountability by Najib with regard to the two mega scandals, which have brought such enormous shame to Malaysia internationally as well as the cause of  the worst crisis of confidence in the country with such great economic costs to the people of Malaysia?

I would have advised Najib to refund the RM2.6 billion “donation” to the Treasury as one way to resolve the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal during the debate on 2016 budget if I had not been suspended from Parliament for six months.

I believe such a proposal would find support not only from Malaysians but a majority of the three million UMNO members.

Would any UMNO/BN MP dare to make such a suggestion to Najib in the Parliamentary debate on the 2016 Budget?

(Speech at the launch of Pakatan Harapan Negri Sembilan in Seremban on Sunday, October 25, 2015 at 10 pm)

                This entry was posted on Monday, 26 October 2015, 8:44 am and is filed under
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Malaysia in political stalemate

By Murray Hunter

On Line Opinion

26 October 2015

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib is facing accusations of fraud with the 1MDB fiasco, and the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaaribuu, while the economy is going into a ‘nosedive’.

After six and a half years in office, Premier Najib presides over a nation with contracting growth, rising inflation, growing unemployment, a Ringgit at a 20 year low against the US Dollar, significant capital flight, a massive debt problem, disappearing sources of income, and low consumer confidence.

Although some of these problems are the result of global factors such as declining oil and gas prices, low commodity prices, and sluggish growth of major trading partners, Malaysia’s problems also greatly exist today as the result of policy failures. Extremist policies have also led to social and ethnic tensions within the country. In addition, the depreciation of the Ringgit and introduction of the GST have put undue hardships on the people.

Malaysia is going through a very intense period of political infighting at the highest echelons of power within the dominant party within the Barisan Nasional (BN), UMNO. Premier Najib recently sacked his Deputy Muhyiddin Yassin, and other ministers and officials in desperation to maintain his grip on power, while the former PM Dr. Mahathir is leading a vanguard of senior UMNO stalwarts to remove Najib from office.

Within corporate Malaysia, there is now a deep realization about how fast Malaysia is falling behind the rest of the world. Many believe that the Prime Minister has not grappled with the real problems facing the nation. This thinking according to sources goes right to the board rooms of companies like Sime Darby and Petronas, some of the premier financial institutions of the land, as well as a number of Royal Households.

However there is a large split in thinking about how to solve the problem, as the Mahathir forces are still viewed with great suspicion by many sections of royalty. Thus any possibility of him being an immediate interim prime minister would never be considered. There is also a general disdain for the weak and incompetent opposition in the country, which instead of showing leadership has allowed infighting to surface publicly and dissolve the Pakatan Rakyat.

Consequently, there is no planned takeover of power, coup, of method to remove Najib from office in existence. The prevailing view is one of being stunned and a feeling of impotence, as Premier Najib has managed to centralize most power in the country around the Prime Minister’s position.

The immediate task at hand for Premier Najib was to deliver a national budget. There has been massive revenue shrinkage due to falling oil revenue and a corresponding reduction of dividends paid by Petronas to government consolidated revenue. The unpopular GST will not make up the projected short falls over the coming years, which will increase the budget deficit, if government spending is not drastically reduced. This would be politically unpalatable, particularly at a time when Najib is so unpopular. Najib also has to contend with growing unemployment and will be pressured to maintain infrastructure spending, so lucrative contracts can continue to be given out to his supporters.

The flip side for Najib is that with the falling Ringgit, and rising debt, ratings agencies will be looking for fiscal responsibility in the budget. A fiscally irresponsible budget could increase capital flight which is already a major problem for Malaysia’s balance of payments.

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Najib has tried to do all this. He has chosen the path to spur the economy through nine infrastructure projects, of which a high proportion are in rural areas, Sabah and Sarawak. In addition, a lot of ‘sweeteners’ have been added into the budget, which are no doubt aimed at shoring up his popular base. From this point of view, it could be construed as an election budget, giving Najib the option to call a snap election, if necessary. At the same time a number of reforms for the civil service have been announced as well as a projection of a lower budget deficit of 3.2% of GDP, down from 6.7% the year before, in an attempt to win support of ratings agencies.

It’s a budget that BN members of Parliament would find it difficult to vote against, due to the large numbers of specific programs benefitting their individual electorates.

The weak opposition has become Premier Najib’s great strength. PAS President Aman Hadi’s push for HUDUD laws eventually broke up the opposition alliance, Pakatan Rakyat. In addition Hadi’s indecisiveness on whether PAS would support any no confidence motion against Najib in parliament this week was seen by many in the opposition as treacherous.

The handling of the no confidence motion showed complete incompetence. The fact that DAP MP Hee Loy Sia filed a motion of no confidence before PKR leader Wan Azizah, has led to questions in the local media about whether the new alliance Pakatan Harapan actually wants to remove Najib from office. The opposition seemed to be more interested in who would make the motion of no confidence, rather than actually making this symbolic move in parliament, which would have failed anyway, due to lack of numbers of support the motion.

Others felt that the whole matter of a no confidence motion was just a waste of time, as there is no chance of and mass defection of Barisan MPs. UMNO backbenchers have shown no sign of wavering, as have Sabah and Sarawak MPs, along with Gerakan and MCA members.

There is also worry about the opposition’s policy proposals to solve the financial crisis. The opposition proposal to put 1MDB into administration in Wan Azizah’s budget speech would only lead to an asset fire sale. In addition, blocking TNB from taking over 1MDB assets is just sabotaging any initiatives to reduce debt.

There is no end game in sight.

It is rumoured that Najib’s mother and at least one brother has asked him to make a deal with Dr. Mahathir on safe passage out of Malaysia and immunity from prosecution. However, upon Najib’s wife, Rosnah’s insistence, he is taking up the fight to survive with a new and ruthless political secretary in charge. Such a deal anyhow would provide Najib with no guarantee, as Dr. Mahathir has no legal or political standing to make such a deal.

No doubt, Najib will pass through this session of parliament with the partisan speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia, and the UMNO AGM in December. In theory Najib can continue right up to 2018 as party president and prime minister. However, the pressure of a quickly deteriorating economy and a poor budget reception could change that timing, particularly is any other unforeseen event arises over the next few months.

The advantage to Najib is the extremely poorly coordinated opposition that has shown itself to be in disarray with the PAS/Parti Amanah Negara (PAN) split. Ironically, Dr. Mahathir looks and appears to be the only effective opposition leader in Malaysia today. Yet the Mahathir forces themselves are also impotent (something he admitted himself) against the Najib forces which control the powerful PM’s office, ministers, UMNO, and police.

Overall, Mahathir has been disappointing in his handling of Najib, which has only in reality showed up his impotence in standing up to his old protégé. He has failed to show the strength he once had as a leader and politician.

Muhyiddin and Tunku Razaleigh have primarily been on the side-lines, unwilling to take any lead.

Najib’s best action would be to go for an immediate snap election after the budget and catch the opposition ‘off guard’, and weaken them further. By placing his people in winnable seats, Najib could further his strength within UMNO and government, and even weaken the Mahathir forces mortally.

The recent poll stating the unpopularity of UMNO and its leader with the Malay electorate was urban biased, thus such a result would be expected. The general election is won or lost in the heartland, not the urban areas, so UMNO can still win.

However, there would be very little incentive to do this as parliament still has two years to run until an election is needed. Nevertheless, it could be tempting to wipe out PKR, PAS, and Harapan Baru all at once, as PAS is likely to stand candidates against PKR and DAP leading to three-cornered contests. The opposition also has a major credibility gap with the Malaysian public.

A new parliament after an election would most probably be dominated by UMNO and DAP, which is set to make massive gains.

Najib’s best and only option open to him at the moment is to stay in power to protect himself, and the interests of his family’s businesses, controlled by his brothers Nazir, Ahmad Johari, Mohamed Nizam, and Mohamed Nazin Razak. These business interests include a number of high profile corporate assets, entangled with a number of close associates including Tan Kay Hock, Shahril Shamsuddin, Mohamed Azman Yahya, Rohana Mahmood, Azman Mokhtar, Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd. Salleh, and others, who could stand to lose many of their assets should Najib no longer be prime minister.

Najib seems very hesitant to go the election track and may rely on police repression to maintain his grip on power for the time being. Najib’s new DPM Zaid is like a ‘pitball’ and his new political secretary Muhd Khairun Aseh Che Mat has shown himself to be a ruthless political operator. Attacks on dissenters and the arrests of those trying to expose Najib, like Khairuddin and Matthius Chang under the anti-terror SOSMA laws, shows what Malaysia may be install for in the near future.

This would leave the leadership crisis in stalemate, where Najib can choose his own time to step down, while the economy continues to deteriorate into the foreseeable future.

To this point in time, primarily due to the lack of incentive to unite, Najib’s detractors are powerless to make any decisive constitutional moves against him.

No one is able to convince to UMNO/BN politicians, except for the Najib forces, who are keeping a tight rein on them. So any move by former senior UMNO leaders to push for an interim government through the parliament and constitution is not a possibility.

Najib, who was once Dr. Mahathir’s protégé has proven himself to be more skilful and cunning than the master.

Yet the biggest tragedy for Malaysia is that the Najib regime has no vision for Malaysia, and thus the longer he stays, the more damage that will be done.

There is also little hope in any post-Najib era as well. The opposition is only coming out with ad hoc policy measures, which may even make worse some of the problems, and the Mahathir forces are totally silent about what they would do.

                This entry was posted on Monday, 26 October 2015, 5:53 pm and is filed under
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I would have asked Najib whether more than RM2.6 billion “donation” had been deposited into his personal banking accounts and if so, what was the final total of the “donation,  if I had spoken on the 2016 Budget debate

At the launching of Pakatan Harapan Negri Sembilan in Seremban on Sunday night, I said that I would have advised the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri  Najib Razak to refund the RM2.6 billion “donation” to the Treasury as one way to resolve the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal during the debate on 2016 budget if I had not been suspended from Parliament for six months.

But before I made such a proposal, I would have asked Najib to “come clean” about the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal, at least in five instances, viz:

1.	Whether more than RM2.6 billion “donation” had been deposited into his personal banking account at AmBank, and if so, the total amount of “donation” that had been deposited into his personal account before the 13th General Election.

2.	Who are the “donors” who deposited billions of ringgit into Najib’s personal banking accounts for the 13th General Election campaign funding.

3.	The respective percentage and breakdown of these “donations”  into foreign and local sources.

4.	Who were the recipients and beneficiaries from these billions of “donations” deposited into Najib’s personal accounts, in particular those who are in the present Cabinet and Parliament,  as well as the UMNO/BN candidates in the 2013 General Elections.

5.	Whether he would submit all bank records of such “deposits” and payments to the Public  Accounts Committee and the Attorney-General for investigation.

In my speech on the 2016 Budget in Parliament if I had not been suspended, I would remind Najib what his former Cabinet colleague, former International Trade Minister, Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, had said publicly, that the grave crisis of confidence the country is facing today had nothing to do with race but is one about governance, transparency and integrity.

Najib should have used the 2016 Budget to heed the advice of the Malay Rulers who, in their unprecedented statement of October 6, called for the 1MDB investigations to be completed “as soon as possible” and for “appropriate stern action” to be taken against all found to be implicated.

Instead of swift and expeditious investigation into the 1MDB scandal, there  a further stain on Malaysia’s international reputation when normal parliamentary proceedings was interrupted last Thursday to use the UMNO/BN majority in Parliament to suspend a senior Opposition Member of Parliament for six months for the “crime’” of articulating what is in the heart and mind  of all thinking and patriotic Malaysians – that the Parliament Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia should not have locked out the remaining Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC) members from Parliament and stopped the PAC  from continuing its investigations into the 1MDB investigations after the promotion of the PAC Chairman, Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamad and three other PAC members as Minister and Deputy Ministers, resulting in a shocking and inordinate delay of three months when time is of the essence to complete investigations into the 1MDB scandal.

Is it any wonder that Malaysians and the world are outraged that so far  no one is being penalized for the twin mega scandals of the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts, but a senior MP could be suspended from Parliament for six months for disagreeing with the Speaker and stating that the Speaker had no powers to stop the PAC from continuing its investigations into the 1MDB scandal?

Although I cannot participate in the parliamentary debate on the 2016 Budget to ask the five above-mentioned questions to Najib, will the Prime Minister undertake to answer them in the winding-up of the policy debate of the 2016 Budget on 16th November as he should know of these questions?

I have always been  bewildered as to how Najib, who had been in public life for nearly four decades, serving at different times as Mentri Besar, Cabinet Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Prime Minister for six years, had not realised the gravity of his misjudgment and error in receiving foreign funds for general elections campaigning in the country.

DAP had never received a single sen from any foreigners in the past five decades, as UMNO/BN leaders would pounce on DAP and accuse us of being anti-national and even guilty of treason if  we had received  even a  puny  sum of foreign funds.

RM2.6 billion (and it could be more) is an astronomical figure, and is in fact 26 times more than what was permissible to be spent by all the 222 Parliamentary candidates and 505 State Assembly candidates of the Barisan Nasional in the 13th General Elections.

The maximum expenditure which is legally permissible for a parliamentary candidate is RM200,000 while the maximum legal expenditure for a State Assembly candidate is RM100,000.

With 222 Parliamentary candidates and 505 State Assembly candidates, the maximum legal electoral expenditures for all the 222 Parliamentary and 505 State Assembly candidates of UMNO/Barisan Nasional in the 13th General Election will come to RM44.4 million for all parliamentary candidates and RM50.5 million for all state assembly candidates or a grand total of RM94.9 million – not even reaching RM100 million!

The RM2.6 billion in Najib’s personal accounts for the 13th General Election is therefore more than 26 times the legally permissible limit to be spent by all the BN parliamentary and state assembly candidates in the 13th General Elections.

This could be more if the total donation into Najib’s personal accounts for the 13th General Election was more than RM2.6 billion.

How many of the Ministers, Deputy Ministers and UMNO/BN MPs are tainted by this foreign funding of RM2.6 billion in Najib’s personal accounts for the 13th general election?

Former Minister and Barisan Nasional Backbenchers’ Club (BNBBC) Chairman Tan Sri Shahrir Samad had admitted that he was one of the beneficiaries and receipients from this foreign funding via personal accounts for the 13th General Election campaigning.

I want to draw the attention of  all Ministers, Deputy Ministers and MPs to Dewan Rakyat Standing Order 35(6) which stipulates that “A Member shall not speak on any matter in which he has a direct personal  pecuniary interest (other than the matter of remuneration under any provision of the Constitution) without disclosing the extent of that interest.

I call on all  Ministers, Deputy Minister and MPs who had been beneficiaries from this foreign funding in the last general elections to also “come clean” in the current 2016 Budget debate and declare how much they had benefitted from Najib’s “largesse”.

In fact, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, should have declared under SO 35(6) whether she has any pecuniary interest in the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal before she moved a motion in Parliament to suspend me for six months for disagreeing with the Speaker’s decision to stop the PAC from continuing investigations into the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals.

It is still not too late for Azalina to declare whether she has any pecuniary interest in the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 8:09 am and is filed under
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Multibillion-dollar scandal in Malaysia has echoes for American conservatives

By Thomas Lifson

American Thinker

October 26, 2015

As scandals go, the current imbroglio in Malaysia ring a lot of bells for American conservatives accustomed to home-grown crony capitalism: a gigantic Stimulus-like program intended to spur lagging growth, billions of missing dollars, allegations of missing money used in an election, donations from a mysterious Middle East party, affirmative action, and even Goldman Sachs. Tom Wright and Ken Brown report in the Wall Street Journal:

A scandal involving a government investment fund in Malaysia is drawing world-wide attention and has led to calls at home for the ouster of the country’s prime minister. It is also affecting U.S. diplomacy in a strategically important part of Asia. The fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd., or 1MDB, is under investigation in five countries.

It is a story of political intrigue, backroom politics and billions of dollars in missing money. At the center of it all is Prime Minister Najib Razak, who founded 1MDB. A Malaysian government probe found that nearly $700 million moved through banks, agencies and companies linked to 1MDB before being deposited into Mr. Najib’s alleged private bank accounts ahead of a close election. The source of the money is unclear, though in August, Malaysia’s anticorruption body said the funds were a donation from the Middle East. The donor wasn’t specified.

The story goes back to 2009 when PM Nijab founded the fund to borrow money to invest in the Malaysian equivalent of shovel-ready jobs.

Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reaped hundreds of millions in fees for its work with 1MDB, according to fund documents and people familiar with the matter, leading critics to say the fund overpaid for the bank’s services.

The Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi has been deeply involved with 1MDB. It guaranteed 1MDB-issued bonds in 2012 and more recently, it helped to shore up the fund’s finances. Abu Dhabi officials recently said they haven’t received roughly $2.4 billion in payments that 1MDB said it sent to them. 1MDB didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The context is important here. Malaysia has a diverse population, with Muslim ethnic Malays in a smallish majority, but with a substantial minority of infidel Chinese and Indians. The Malays insist that the country is officially Islamic, and resent strongly the economic success of the minorities, so much so that affirmative action with explicit quotas has been practiced for many years.

When Nijab became PM in 2009,  he promised to wind down the affirmative action while taking Malaysia into higher tech and higher value-added industries. The country has a lot of oil income, and has managed to attract so called middle level manufacturing of  goods such as electronics and machinery. As well as semiconductors. But the allegations are the 1MDB has become a fount of crony capitalist corruption.

Nijab denies everything and no charges have been brought.

With the downturn of oil and other commodity prices, Malaysia will ace many challenges, and with radical Islam increasingly influential among its Muslim majority, there is a lot that could go wrong.

As scandals go, the current imbroglio in Malaysia ring a lot of bells for American conservatives accustomed to home-grown crony capitalism: a gigantic Stimulus-like program intended to spur lagging growth, billions of missing dollars, allegations of missing money used in an election, donations from a mysterious Middle East party, affirmative action, and even Goldman Sachs. Tom Wright and Ken Brown report in the Wall Street Journal:

A scandal involving a government investment fund in Malaysia is drawing world-wide attention and has led to calls at home for the ouster of the country’s prime minister. It is also affecting U.S. diplomacy in a strategically important part of Asia. The fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd., or 1MDB, is under investigation in five countries.

It is a story of political intrigue, backroom politics and billions of dollars in missing money. At the center of it all is Prime Minister Najib Razak, who founded 1MDB. A Malaysian government probe found that nearly $700 million moved through banks, agencies and companies linked to 1MDB before being deposited into Mr. Najib’s alleged private bank accounts ahead of a close election. The source of the money is unclear, though in August, Malaysia’s anticorruption body said the funds were a donation from the Middle East. The donor wasn’t specified.

The story goes back to 2009 when PM Nijab founded the fund to borrow money to invest in the Malaysian equivalent of shovel-ready jobs.

Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reaped hundreds of millions in fees for its work with 1MDB, according to fund documents and people familiar with the matter, leading critics to say the fund overpaid for the bank’s services.

The Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi has been deeply involved with 1MDB. It guaranteed 1MDB-issued bonds in 2012 and more recently, it helped to shore up the fund’s finances. Abu Dhabi officials recently said they haven’t received roughly $2.4 billion in payments that 1MDB said it sent to them. 1MDB didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The context is important here. Malaysia has a diverse population, with Muslim ethnic Malays in a smallish majority, but with a substantial minority of infidel Chinese and Indians. The Malays insist that the country is officially Islamic, and resent strongly the economic success of the minorities, so much so that affirmative action with explicit quotas has been practiced for many years.

When Nijab became PM in 2009,  he promised to wind down the affirmative action while taking Malaysia into higher tech and higher value-added industries. The country has a lot of oil income, and has managed to attract so called middle level manufacturing of  goods such as electronics and machinery. As well as semiconductors. But the allegations are the 1MDB has become a fount of crony capitalist corruption.

Nijab denies everything and no charges have been brought.

With the downturn of oil and other commodity prices, Malaysia will ace many challenges, and with radical Islam increasingly influential among its Muslim majority, there is a lot that could go wrong.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 1:23 am and is filed under
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Was there a draft charge sheet in the Attorney-General’s Chambers against the Prime Minister related to corruption before Gani Patail was sacked as Attorney-General on July 27?

Today is the 28th anniversary of the Operation Lalang dragnet of Oct. 27, 1987 which saw the mass arrest of 106 people under the detention-without-trial Internal Security Act, with 49 persons, including Members of Parliament and social activists, served with formal  two-year detention orders and the closure of three major newspapers.

It is sad and tragic that today’s 28th  anniversary for one of the  darkest periods for democracy and human rights in the nation’s history coincides with a global report which is  a damning indictment on widespread abuses of power  against critics and dissenters by a Prime Minister who had come to power six years ago promising a new era for democracy and human rights in Malaysia, who even had the temerity to launch a global movement of moderates which now lay in ruins.

The New York-based watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW)’s 145-page report “Creating a Culture of Fear: The Criminalisation of Peaceful Expression of Malaysia” documents not only Najib’s repeated breach of his promise to repeal repressive and draconian laws, but the institution of  new regime of fear and terror where criticism has become a crime.

This regime of fear and terror have escalated in the country with the twin mega-scandals of RM50 billion 1MDF and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts spiralling out of control, not only in the country but internationally, with half a dozen foreign countries opening separate investigations.

Freedom of expression and opinion, especially in criticism of the government-of-the-day is increasingly become a very prohibitive exercise of one’s fundamental rights in Malaysia, with a government which has no compunction to bend laws and institutions and violate democratic freedoms and human rights of Malaysians to impose a climate of fear and a culture of silence to  perpetuate their hold on power.

 This is why the assurance given by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi  that there will be no abuse of power in the prosecution and investigation of cases related to sabotage, espionage and actions detrimental to parliamentary democracy, in reply to my parliamentary question, cuts no ice and convinces no one.

Parliament had been assured three years ago when enacting Sections 124B to 124N of the Penal Code that these new offences related to “activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy” were meant to arm the nation against the threat of terrorists, and would not  be used against critics and dissenters who have no relationship whatsoever with any form of terrorism.

These assurances are still fresh to the ears of Members of Parliament  in 2012 as they were made only three years ago, but these laws are already being abused to deal not with terrorists, but critics and dissenters, including whistleblowers of the greatest financial scandals in the nation’s history – the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts scandals.

It is not only a travesty of justice but the most “detrimental activity against parliamentary democracy” to invoke  and abuse the draconian offences under Section 124 of the Penal Code to silence exposes of the great est financial scandal in the nation’s history – as those who want to expose the mega scandals are patriots while  those who are trying to foil them are the real traitors of the country.

This is the time when men and women of principle, conviction and ideals, particularly in Cabinet and Parliament, should stand up and be counted for justice, freedom, good governance and the higher interests of the country.

But such men and women are nowhere to be found, particuarly among the Cabinet front-benches.

Yesterday, the Umno Youth leader and Youth and Sports Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin, asked all parties not to interfere in the probes into   the twin scandals of 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” to guarantee  the credibility of the investigations.

I just cannot understand how a Cabinet Minister like Khairy could claim that the MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) is investigating the 1MDB scandal, when the MACC has stated very clearly in public that it is not investigating the 1MDB scandal.

In fact, it was only a few days ago that MACC in a statement stressed again that it was not investigating  1MDB as it was a police matter, expressing the hope that no parties would make any statement that MACC had cleared them on the issues relating to 1MDB.

The MACC statement on Thursday is most intriguing, stating that it never denied the authenticity of a flow diagram published by Malaysiakini on the money trail involving SRC International or that it had denied the authenticity of a draft charge sheet against the Prime Minister.

Was there a draft charge sheet in the Attorney-General’s Chamberrs against the Prime Minister related to corruption before Tan Sri Gani Patail was sacked as Attorney-General on July 27?

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 1:27 pm and is filed under
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Addressing the transboundary haze problem: Open letter to the Indonesian ambassador

 — Lim Guan Eng

Malay Mail Online

October 27, 2015

OCTOBER 27 — Your Excellency Ambassador Herman Prayitno,

We are deeply concerned about the ongoing transboundary haze pollution which has adversely affected the wellbeing and livelihood of millions of people in the region, including Malaysians and Indonesians. We would like to express our deepest sympathy and solidarity with our fellow Indonesians who are suffering much more, living so much closer to the forest fires hotspots.

In Malaysia, as air quality deteriorates, schools are frequently closed and consequently half a million of students are affected. The negative impact on our economy resulting from cancelled outdoor events, falling tourists arrival and overall declining productivity — although difficult to accurately assess at the current moment — are huge and irreversible.

2. The haze is a by-product of past or still ongoing forest fire on Indonesian territories, mainly from Sumatra and Kalimantan. Apart from causing problems to Malaysians, we understand that millions of Indonesians are also suffering the hardships brought about by the health-threatening haze. While we are aware of the increasing efforts by the Indonesian government to address the forest fires and haze pollution, such as the ratification of the ASEAN Transboundary Haze Agreement by President Joko Widodo on September 16, 2014, haze pollution unfortunately remains a very serious, persistent and recurrent threat to us.

3. As the Secretary General of the Democratic Action Party (DAP) which is the second largest party in the Malaysian Parliament, we are obliged to make the following recommendations to your government to address the haze pollution and haunted our health and economy with incalculable losses:

I That Indonesian government gives serious consideration to the technical assistance and offer of Malaysian and Singaporean government to send equipment and professional firefighters to control and extinguish the forest fires in Indonesia in the spirit of ASEAN cooperation and solidarity.

II That the Indonesian government expedite the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Malaysian government on detailed cooperation mechanisms to jointly overcome the haze pollution. We were informed by the Malaysian Environment Minister, Yang Berhormat Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, through Parliament proceedings on October 21, 2015, that the signing of this MoU has been postponed twice from the original intended date in September this year. We call for the signing of MoU to be prioritised and expedited.

III Realising the fact that there are Malaysians and/or Malaysian companies involved in causing forest fires in Indonesia including at least one convicted case by the Indonesian Court, we urge the Indonesian government to communicate effectively to the Malaysian government and also to the public the detailed information of Malaysian companies accused and/or found guilty of allowing open burning on land under their control in Indonesia so that appropriate action can be taken against these companies in Malaysia.

IV We are also looking forward to greater commitments by the Indonesian government to commit to greater cooperation in solving the haze pollution at the upcoming ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Environment and the Conference of Parties (COP) on Haze Agreement schedule at the end of October 2015 in Hanoi, Vietnam.

V We also urge the Indonesian government to play a proactive key role in the soon to be established Council of Palm Oil Producer Countries (CPOPC) to ensure sustainable planting practices that will minimise the occurrence of open burning.

We wish to propose that such collaboration to battle haze pollution should be done on a year-round basis, not on an ad-hoc basis only when there is haze pollution. By monitoring and enforcing punishment round the clock the whole year round, only can hopes of checking haze pollution succeed. With that, I look forward to your timely response and positive reply. Thank you.

* Lim Guan Eng is Secretary General, Democratic Action Party, Malaysia.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 6:47 am and is filed under
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In debate on 2016 Budget, I would have urged PAC  to summon Gani Patail and Hamid Bador to testify whether there was a draft corruption charge sheet against Prime Minister Najib related to 1MDB

The announcement by the new Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Datuk Hassan Arifin yesterday that the PAC will meet for the first time on Monday after a three-month interregnum is welcome, although parliamentary and public expectations of the PAC would not be as high as previously.

If I am taking part in the 2016 Budget debate, I would urge the PAC to do two things when it meets on Monday:

Firstly, for the PAC to set an example to Parliament with every PAC member declaring whether  he or she has any pecuniary interest in the  twin mega-scandals of RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s personal banking accounts for the 13th General Election, and those who have  pecuniary interest in these two mega scandals should excuse themselves from participating in any PAC hearings on them.

Dewan Rakyat Standing Order 35(6) stipulates that “A Member shall not speak on any matter in which he has a direct personal pecuniary interest (other than the matter of remuneration under any provision of the Constitution) without disclosing the extent of that interest.”

If it is a breach of Parliamentary Standing Orders for an MP to speak on any matter without disclosing the extent of his or her pecuniary interest on the subject, it is all the more  a violation of parliamentary privilege for a PAC member to be involved in any investigation into the twin mega scandals of RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” for the 13th General Election if he or she has any pecuniary interest in the two financial scandals.

Former Minister and Barisan Nasional Backbenchers’ Club (BNBBC) Chairman Tan Sri Shahrir Samad had admitted that he was one of the beneficiaries and receipients from Najib’s personal banking accounts with the RM2.6 billion “donation”.

Why are the other UMNO/BN Ministers and MPs keeping their silence as to whether they have any pecuniary interest in these two subject-matters?

They should emulate Shahrir’s example and declare if they had been beneficiaries of Najib’s RM2.6 billion personal banking accounts, and it is for this reason I had asked the Minister for Prime Minister Department in charge of parliamentary affairs, Datuk Azalina Othman Said, whether she has any pecuniary interest in the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal as she had moved the motion to suspend me from Parliament for six months for questioning the Speaker for abusing his powers in stopping the PAC from continuing with its 1MDB investigations for three months.

Secondly, the PAC should resolve on Monday to summon former Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail and the former Special Branch deputy director Datuk Abdul Hamid Bador to testfy to  establish whether  there was a draft corruption charge sheet against Prime Minister Najib related to 1MDB.

The question whether there was a draft corruption charge sheet against Prime Minister Najib related to 1MDB  returned to the public domain as a result of a statement by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) last Thursday

The  MACC statement, which  had said  that it was not investigating 1MDB as it was a police matter, stressed that  it never denied the authenticity of a flow diagram published by Malaysiakini on the money trail involving SRC International or that it had denied the authenticity of a draft charge sheet against the Prime Minister.

The question that jumps out of the MACC statement is whether there was  a draft charge sheet in the Attorney-General’s Chambers against the Prime Minister related to corruption before Tan Sri Gani Patail was sacked as Attorney-General on July 27?

In denying SRC International’s claim, the MACC statement of Oct. 22 by the MACC director of investigations Azam Baki said:

“The MACC denies SRC International’s claim.

“This is untrue because our Aug 3 statement did not make any reference to the draft charge sheet or the fund flows diagram, as claimed by SRC International.

“We would like to remind SRC International or any others to never ever implicate MACC in their press statement because this will cause confusion.”

The question whether there is a draft corruption charge against Najib  in connection with the 1MDB scandal in the Attorney-General’s Chambers, and whether this was the real reason  for the sacking of Gani Patail as Attorney-General, is an important issue which the Public Accounts Committee must establish if its 1MDB investigations is going to command credibility, not only in Malaysia but  also in international circles.

I had mentioned Datuk Abdul Hamid Bador because  the former Special Branch deputy director had revealed that Gani Patail had consulted the police intelligence unit on various matters that impacted national security.

Admitting that he and Gani had met at the latter’s house two days before the Attorney-General  was removed from his post, Hamid questioned if that was the reason for his transfer out of the Special Branch and into “cold storage” at a new security unit in the Prime Minister’s Department.

The PAC should get to the bottom of these conundrums and report to Parliament in its investigations into the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals.

Hamid Bador had told The Malaysian Insider that he  was insulted with how his transfer was handled.

“I feel insulted to the lowest level… as if I am not entitled to wear the police badge. It makes me wonder if it has anything to do with me being at Tan Sri Gani Patail’s house or solely because I have been constantly criticising the direction and the slow progress in the 1MDB investigation.”

Hamid was transferred out of the Special Branch mid-August to a new transnational crime division reporting directly to the prime minister.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 12:35 pm and is filed under
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#Merah169 youths say stung by toll rates hiked by government they defended

by Syed Jaymal Zahiid

Malay Mail Online

October 28, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 ― After genuine belief that their lives could be improved by joining the controversial #Merah169 rally, the sense of pride and optimism among the many poor urban Malay youths who took part in that movement is now fading.

Less than two months after the controversial gathering here in the capital city, ostensibly to uphold Malay dignity in the face of Chinese insults, the angst that drove them to proudly don the movement’s colours has found a new and ironic source ― #Merah169’s own backer, Umno.

“My family was upset about the toll hike. My mom only sells kuih and my dad has little income. Can you imagine what the increase will do to our expenses?

“And who did this? It’s the Umno government… it’s a Malay party,” Alif Fikri, who was interviewed by Malay Mail Online in a special report on urban Malay racism, said when met last week.

Like other urban Malay youths who took to the streets on September 16, Alif believed that much of the economic hardship that he and his family endure was caused by the oft-claimed Chinese domination of the economy.

But that view has since changed just three weeks after the writer spoke to him; the catalyst to the reversal of Alif’s anti-Chinese conviction is the rise in living costs brought about by Putrajaya’s announcements of intracity toll rate increases in the Klang Valley.

“My father was infuriated. My mom looked saddened. The increase is definitely going to shoot prices up. How can a government of Umno people say they want to help the Malays, but do this?

“And what did the #Merah169 organisers do? Did they even speak up?” the 20 year-old unemployed graduate lamented.

Two weeks ago, Putrajaya announced that tolls at highways operated by 11 concessionnaires in the Klang Valley would be raised between 20 sen and RM3.

The reception to the increase was naturally hostile as the announcement came amid inflation concerns triggered by ringgit’s sharp drop and a new consumption tax introduced in April.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak subsequenly announced  a raft of “people-friendly” measures in Budget 2016 for the lower-income group, including a RM50 to RM100 increase in the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M) cash handout programme.

“RM50 increase? What do you expect to do with RM50? Less than half a day it’s gone.

“You take the AKLEH toll alone you pay RM5 a day. In 10 days you’ll finish up that RM50 and you still have 20 more days left from the month,” noted 21-year-old Adeng, who lives in Cheras and frequently uses the Ampang-Kuala Lumpur Elevated Highway for work.

Like Alif, he also joined the #Merah169 rally out of belief that the reasons behind the Malay’s economic plight is the claimed Chinese control of the economy. But that has since changed, he admitted.

“I’m not too sure anymore. On one side, people are saying it’s the Chinese’s fault. But when you look at it carefully, the prime minister is Malay. His deputy is Malay. This government is Malay (controlled). It’s not the Chinese who decided to increase the tolls,” he said.

In the Malay Mail Online report on October 12 delving into what drove youths to join #Merah169, Yin Shao Loong, executive director of PKR-linked think tank Institut Rakyat, said he believed that most poor Malays who resented the ethnic Chinese were systematically trained by the ruling party to blame their problems on the minority community instead of the policy makers.

“Grouses about being poor are legitimate. They are also victims of economic structure… poorer Malays primarily consume government-controlled media sources which shape their perceptions,” he said.

Another youth who joined the so-called “Red Shirt” pro-government rally admitted that he no longer believed in #Merah169 as a genuine movement to help the Malays, but saw it as a facade created by politicians for personal gains.

“If they really want to help us speak up against GST. Against the toll hike. I feel stupid sometimes..I don’t know lah. To me I’m quite disappointed that Umno is doing this to us,” the youth, who asked to be named only as Adik, told Malay Mail Online.

When asked how he now feels about the Chinese, Adik replied: “I don’t know anymore. It’s the Malays that are actually stepping on our head. Macam harap pagar, pagar makan padi (harmed by those that are supposed to protect us) “.

Thousands of Malays wearing red shirts marched at the pro-government #Merah169 rally here on Malaysia Day.

#Merah169 leader, Umno Sungai Besar division chief Datuk Jamal Md Yunos, continues to hold and plan rallies, this time to protest against the Selangor government for allegedly failing to keep its election promises.

But while an estimated 50,000 attended the September 16 rally, just 200 showed up for the movement’s latest protest in Ampang earlier this month.

“Maybe people have grown up. Maybe they know now it’s all a lie. I certainly have opened my eyes,” Alif said.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 9:44 am and is filed under
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Najib set a bad, undesirable and unacceptable parliamentary precedent of choosing the date to answer parliamentary questions about 1MDB which will be followed by other Ministers undermining Parliamentary control over the Executive

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, has set a bad, undesirable and unacceptable parliamentary precedent of choosing the date to answer parliamentary questions about the twin mega scandals of RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in his personal bank accounts for the 13th General Election, undermining the important principle of parliamentary control over the Executive.

On the first day of the present parliamentary meeting on Monday, October 19, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said,  in her replies to Members of Parliament including  DAP MP for Bagan Lim Guan Eng and the DAP MP for Segambut Lim Lip Eng, said the government will answer questions about the RM2.6 billion donation received by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and other related queries during the current sitting of Parliament.

She said the  government will also answer questions related to the alleged missing US$993 million payment from 1MDB to International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC) but the exact date for this would be determined later.

She said in written replies that answers to  similar questions would be made at a date to be determined later, during this parliamentary session.

Guan Eng had asked Najib on the source of the RM2.6 billion donation, how was it spent and how much balance is left.

The Penang Chief Minister also wanted to know who the money was spent on, if taxes were paid and if there was a formal declaration.

Lip Eng’s question was in regard to  the RM2.6 billion donation and the missing US$1 billion payment to IPIC.

The Speaker, Tan Sri Pandkar Amin Mulia should not have allowed Azalina to evade parliamentary answer to questions posed by Members of Parliament, which undermine the principle of parliamentary control of the Executive, and which could be followed by other Ministers making a total mockery of the doctrine of the separation of powers.

When Azalina said that the government would answer the questions directed at the Prime Minister about the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals at the date of its choice, which has not been decided, could it end up on the last day of the 25-day budget parliamentary meeting on Dec. 3, allowing MPs no room or opportunity to pursue the question if the answers are totally unsatisfactory – which MPs would be able to do if such unsatisfactory answers had been made in the first week of the six-week budget meeting?

Furthermore, what could be the reasons why Prime Minister is unable to answer the questions which Members of Parliament had to submit by September 23, 2015?

Does this mean that the control-and-command headquarters of the Prime Minister’s Deparment could not decide on how to answer questions about Najib’s various goings-on with regard to 1MDB and related matters despite a month’s notice and even more worrying, about matters and happenings in the 1MDB scandal going back to a few years?

The imagery of top officers and highly-paid propagandists in the Prime Ministers’ Department spending day after day for months to decide what answers to give to Members of Parliament about the mega scandals of 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” do not inspire confidence about the openness, transparency, accountability, sincerity, uprightness and integrity of the Najib government or about its competence, efficiency and professionalism.

Has the Najib government come to a stage where even the highest-paid propangadists in the world find it a herculean task to package the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals in the best possible light in their answers to Members of Parliament, despite months of mulling and strategizing over the subject?

Will the whole sorry story of Najib’s Parliamentary democracy in Malaysia end up with Members of Parliament given unsatisfactory answers on the 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals on the last day of the budget session on Dec. 3, which would not permit MPs to pursue the issues any further?

When answers are given on Dec. 3, with questions having to submitted by Sept. 23, this would mean that the Prime Minister  would have close to three months to prepare for the replies – which is not an advertisement of a competent, go-getting, vigorous and vibrant Prime Minister!

Even more shocking, will this set a disastrous precedent for Ministers to evade and avoid answering parliamentary questions posed by Members of Parliament by pushing the questions to the very last day with totally unsatisfactory and unacceptable answers?

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 4:56 pm and is filed under
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So, where did the RM2.6 billion go? Tell us, Najib

Phlip Rodrigues

Malaysiakini

25 Oct 2015

COMMENT
 When a sea of placards washed over the face of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak on Budget Day, it created huge waves in the annals of Malaysian politics. Never before in the history of parliamentary democracy had a prime minister had to face the ignominy of seeing his role flashed in loud, clear and bold message across the national stage.

For Parliament is the time-hallowed podium where the actions and thoughts of the elected representatives are in full play for all to see. What the opposition lawmakers did on that memorable day is an act of patriotism: they do not want to see the country destroyed by a prime minister whose every action is a tight slap on democracy.

Parliament is a fitting place to debate with intelligence and vigour the problems and ills of the country – be they social, economic, political. More importantly, it is the ideal arena to drill the prime minister on his deeds as the head of government.

But Najib chooses not to engage in the cut and thrust of political life, which is the hallmark of a healthy and vibrant democracy. Instead, he treats Parliament with contempt when he ignores the existence of the opposition and cares only for his own skewed views.

His words have become his laws and as a result, justice and truth have taken a terrible beating. He comes and goes as he wishes and most of the time, his seat, given by the people to serve the people, is left cold and empty.

Not on high moral ground

Najib knows he cannot take the heat from the opposition in Parliament simply because he is not standing on a high moral ground. If question time is made compulsory, and the prime minister must attend to take all the questions thrown at him, he will most likely crumple. For his misdeeds are too heavy and glaring to be hidden away in the dustbin.

He will not be able to explain to the full satisfaction of the country his role in the 1MDB scandal and the diversion of RM2.6 billion into his personal bank account. The opposition knows the true story of the sordid tales surrounding the person of the prime minister – and so do the people.

The only avenue left for the prime minister is to make a disappearance for the duration of the parliamentary sitting and let the BN foot soldiers do the dirty job. Better still, he can issue written replies to all the important queries linked to the stinking scandal and shady donation.

This way, he need not have to take the flak from his political enemies; he can blissfully do his rounds in the rural areas and pull the wool over the eyes of the innocent, simple folks there.

But the prime minister must know that his “sins” will not go away even when he is not in Parliament. All his written replies will not change a word in the sordid stories that have been sending shock waves throughout the country and even beyond our shores.

He and his spineless, political stooges can run down the opposition however much they like but they cannot save the big boss from certain political eclipse. They can throw out and wave goodbye to the people’s elected representatives sitting on the other side of the divide but they can face the same fate through the ballot box.

What the country is crying out for is for the truth to emerge unscathed and unvarnished and for Najib to stand up and account for his actions to Parliament.

The people have sent the opposition lawmakers to Parliament to keep an eye on the government to ensure the affairs of the country are run according to the dictates of parliamentary democracy and not at the whims and fancies of bigoted politicians.

They want a leader who can make the country proud at home and abroad and not someone who is an advertisement for all that is wrong and unethical. So (dis) honourable prime minister: where did the RM2.6 billion go? If Najib still maintains his inelegant silence, the placards will hang like a millstone around his neck.

PHLIP RODRIGUES is a member of the Malaysiakini team.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 9:00 am and is filed under
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Time to take stock of Malaysia, change mindsets, says Rafidah

by Jennifer Gomez

The Malaysian Insider

28 October 2015

Malaysia must identify what has made it fall behind and determine whether such factors were reality or people’s perceptions, outspoken former minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz said today.

She said the country must take stock of what areas needed to be transformed, adding that transformation could not take place in conferences, seminars or laboratories.

“You must have a developed country that is matched by a society that can think forward, that is not lagging behind in terms of expectations of a developed country,” she told reporters after speaking at a conference by the Malaysian Institute of Accountants in Kuala Lumpur.

The former minister of international trade and industry added that mindsets needed to be transformed first, and that Malaysia had to move away from politicising important issues.

“Mindset moves everything.

“We are politicising education to the disadvantage of our future generation, we are politicising issues based on the racial divide.

“We are politicising issues based on the gallery we speak to which is very divisive, we are politicising issues, which are far removed from the good of the people and the country.”

Rafidah has of late been vocal on social media about current issues affecting Malaysia, including the country’s political turmoil and lack of confidence towards the government.

She has urged national leaders to provide clear answers to alleged wrongdoing involving the government, and only yesterday said Malaysia, which once enjoyed rapid economic growth, needed to rebrand itself.

Rafidah today said the school system must also be revamped so that students were taught correct values such as integrity and honesty.

Asked about Budget 2016 meeting the targets of becoming a high-income nation, Rafidah said there should not be too much excitement about it, given that it was just financial planning for one year.

She said instead, there should be more concern about longer term strategies to move towards 2020.

“The budget is just an annual allocation of funds, collection of revenue and programmes and projects, residual from previous years.

“I am not concerned so much on the quantitative aspect, money spent and projects done. I’m more interested in the mindsets of the people.

“Are the mindsets oriented towards first world mindsets?

“Are we readying the young to be the workforce of the first world?

“Are we readying the young to be able to interact globally?” she asked, adding that there was only five years left to achieve this. – October 27, 2015.

–

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 28 October 2015, 7:17 am and is filed under
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Najib government too “economical with the truth” when it would not clarify after two weeks of Parliament whether Muhyiddin was right in his last speech as DPM three months ago that 1MDB scandal had mushroomed from RM42 billion to over RM50 billion

The Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his government were too “economical with the truth” when it would not clarify after two weeks of Parliament whether Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was right in his last speech as Deputy Prime Minister to the Cheras UMNO Division three months ago that the 1MDB scandal had mushroomed from RM42 billion to over RM50 billion.

There was not a single reference whatsoever to the two mega scandals which had been dominating international headlines about Malaysia for the past few months, the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts for the 13th General Election, in Najib’s much-awaited 2016 Budget – fully justifying Opposition MPs resorting to the unorthodox but very creative ploy of collectively displaying the placard “Mana RM2.6 billion” (Where is the RM2.6 billion) after Najib’s budget speech.

This action of Opposition MPs  resonated in the hearts and minds of 30 million Malaysians, including the majority of the three million UMNO members, although there are those who excoriated such a creative ploy as “uncivilized”,  as if they more Umno than Umno!

For the past two weeks, UMNO Ministers have been fighting a guerrilla war to avoid giving full and proper accountability for the two mega scandals in Parliament, with the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said, committing the ultimate contempt of Parliament by claiming that the Prime Minister had the right to choose when to answer questions about the 1MDB!

She did not seem to realise that in refusing to provide answers to questions on the two mega-scandals directed to the Prime Minister on the first day of Parliament and  claiming that the   Prime Minister has the “prerogative” to choose the date when to answer these questions – even if it is on the last day of the 25-day budget meeting of Parliament on December 3 – she was turning the principle of parliamentary control of the executive on its head!

What is even more alarming is that Ministers can now follow Najib’s bad parliamentary precedent and claim that they need not answer an embarrassing question on the day a Member of Parliament had placed it on the Order Paper but could choose another date of his choice to answer it!

This is not fulfilling but evading Ministerial responsibility to Parliament! So much for parliamentary reforms!

It is sad that the Malay Rulers’ concern about the 1MDB scandal had fallen on deaf ears in Cabinet and Parliament.

In an unprecedented statement on Oct 6, the Malay Rulers called on the government to complete the 1MDB investigation as soon as possible and to take “appropriate stern action” against all found to be implicated.

The Malay Rulers also called on the findings of the 1MDB investigations to be “reported comprehensively and in a transparent manner so that the people will be convinced of the sincerity of the government which shall not at all conceal facts and the truth”.

It is just not good enough for the 1MDD CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy to go on Bernama TV to claim that there is “no absolutely no cover up on 1MDB” which fly in the face of the facts of such “cover-up” which included the sackings of the Deputy Prime Minister, a Cabinet Minister and the Attorney-General; the three-month stoppage of Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) investigations into 1MDB; the  dissolution of the multi-agency Special Task Force on 1MDB;  the suspension of The Edge publications and the abuses of power in the arrest and prosecution of 1MDB whistleblowers under various sections of Section 124 of Penal Code for “activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy” which were enacted to combat terrorism.

Arul’s claim of “absolutely no cover up on 1MDB” is proof that the Najib government and 1MDB do not take the Malay Ruler’s views  as expressed in their statement of Oct. 6 seriously.

In fact, the Malay Rulers’ concerns are being belittled – in particular when the Malay Rulers said that the 1MDB scandal has resulted in a “crisis of confidence” with adverse consequences including “the plunge in the value of the Malaysian ringgit, impacting the country financial market and economic climate negative and at the same time adversely affecting the world’s view of Malaysia”.

The Malay Rulers reminded all  leaders “to always adhere to the Rukun Negara principles of Upholding the Constitution and the Rule of Law” and “constantly ensure that justice is meted out equitably and transparently based on the law”.

They also urged all enforcement agencies and regulatory institutions such as the Police, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Bank Negara, Attorney-General’s Chambers and the Judiciary, as well as related government bodies, to be  “worthy of God’s trust and the people’s faith with transparency, credibility and integrity”.

The Malay Rulers’ unprecedented concern and statement should be one of the central themes in the parliamentary debate on the 2016 Budget.

How many UMNO/BN MPs have referred to the Malay Rulers’ Statement of Oct. 6 during the 2016 budget debate?

The Malay Rulers’ unprecedented statement of Oct. 6 would have been  the centrepiece of my speech if I had been able to participate in the parliamentary debate on the 2016 budget, which I am unable to do because I have been suspended for six months for saying that the Speaker has no powers to prohibit the Public Accounts Committee from continuing its 1MDB investigations for three months  after the PAC Chairman, Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamad and three other PAC members had been promoted as Minister and Deputy Ministers.

Would Najib and his Ministers stop being “economical with the truth” about the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals, stop their guerrilla warfare in Parliament to avoid answering the many questions raised by MPs and answer directly and squarely to all issues raised in Parliament about these two mega scandals?

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 29 October 2015, 8:09 am and is filed under
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What has the Najib government done  in the past fortnight of parliamentary meetings to address the concern of Malay Rulers and Malaysian citizenry that IMBD investigations be completed “as soon as possible”?

Some three weeks ago, the Malay Rulers issued an unprecedented statement urging the government to complete the 1MDB investigations “as soon as possible” and to take “the appropriate stern action” against all found to be implicated.

Such crisis of confidence, among other things, have caused “the plunge in the value of the Malaysian Ringgit, impacting the country’s financial market and economic climate negatively and at the same time adversely affecting the world’s view of Malaysia” – and if not “wisely handled”, could “jeopardize the country’s economy and the livelihood of the people”.

The Malay Rulers wanted the findings of the investigations to be reported “comprehensively and in a transparent manner” so that the people will be convinced of the government’s sincerity not to conceal “facts and truth”, as such failure to give “convincing clarifications and answers…is feared to have resulted in a crisis of confidence”.

Although the language is somewhat convoluted,  it is the result of trying to diplomatically convey the messages (i) that  the Malay Rulers were very  concerned at the worsening crisis of confidence caused by the two mega scandals in the nation’s history, the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts, which had brought together a conjunction of political, economic, good governance and nation-building crises which threaten to produce the first  “perfect storm” to hit Malaysia for six decades; and (ii) that the government had not conducted itself in a frank and transparent matter it should have done in these two mega-scandals.

What has the Najib government done in the 24 days since the Oct. 6 statement of the Malay Rulers, or in  the past fortnight of parliamentary meetings, to address the concern of Malay Rulers and Malaysian citizenry that IMBD investigations be completed “as soon as possible”?

Absolutely nothing!

In fact, if the Najib government had taken the Malay Rulers’ statement of concern  of Oct 6 seriously, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said would not have committed the parliamentary faux pax in trying to set the bad, undesirable and unacceptable parliamentary precedent in the name of the Prime Minister of wanting to choose the date to answer questions about the 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals when asked on the first day of Parliament on Oct. 19.

On October 19, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Azalina in written replies to Members of Parliament including  DAP MP for Bagan Lim Guan Eng and the DAP MP for Segambut Lim Lip Eng, said the government will answer questions about the RM1MDB and  RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals  received by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and other related queries during the current sitting of Parliament but the exact date would be determined later.

This is the first time since I entered Parliament 46 years ago in 1969 to have come such across such a devious way by the Ministerial front-bench  to evade and avoid the principles of parliamentary scrutiny and Executive accountability.

All the other previous five Prime Ministers, from Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, Tun Hussein, Tun Mahathir and Tun Abdullah never had to resort to  such parliamentary subterfuge.

Why is Najib setting such low standards of Executive responsibility to Parliament.

If this bad, undesirable and unacceptable precedent of allowing the Prime Minister to choose the date when he wants to give answers to 1MDB or RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals in the current meeting of Parliament is allowed to be established unchallenged, then all the other Ministers will gladly follow the precedent, postponing answer to embarrassing or difficult questions until  a date “to be determined later” – making total mockery of the principle of parliamentary control of the Executive and the doctrine of the separation of powers.

A reform-minded Speaker would not have allowed Azalina to get away with such parliamentary subterfuge, which undermines Parliament’s role in the system of checks-and-balances essential in Malaysia’s parliamentary democracy.

However, the Speaker was more obsessed with seeing “insult” to him where it did not exist, and used the UMNO/Barisan Nasional mindless majority to suspend me from Parliament for six months for  pointing out that he had no powers as Speaker to block the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) from continuing investigations into the 1MDB scandal  for three months despite the elevation of PAC Chairman and three other members as Minister and Deputy Ministers.

It is indeed supreme irony. The Malay Rulers were concerned about the pace of 1MDB investigations and wanted “appropriate stern action” to be taken against those implicated.

What happened? I got suspended from Parliament for six months for pointing out that the Speaker had no powers to delay the PAC investigations into the 1MDB scandal for three months!

Azalina has given a pathetic reply, denying that the Najib government was trying to “dodge” the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals in the current meeting of Parliament.

She said:

“The government is not trying to avoid in giving an answer but has decided to answer in one go to all verbal and written questions on the same matter.

“The government will answer in one go in this parliament session itself.

“The government’s decision does not contravene any parliamentary rules.”

Azalina is doing her previous stint in Parliament, both as a Minister and as an ordinary backbencher, no service for she should know from her parliamentary experience that what she had done on Monday evading parliamentary answers  had never been done by any other  Minister in Parliament since 1959.

It is already the common practice for Ministers to answer in one go parliamentary questions on the same subject-matter, but not at the date of the  Minister’s own choosing as the answer must be given on the dater an MP had put own a question.

Surely, Azalina’s prevous stint as Minister and MP cannot be so unproductive as not to know that  although  it had become the common practice for  Ministers to answer questions on the same subject-matter “in one go”, the Minister could not choose the date he or she wanted to answer, but must answer the first question on the subject matter when it came up in Parliament.

Azalina claimed that she had not broken any parliamentary rule in trying to establish a new-fangled parliamentary practice to allow the Prime Minister or Minister to answer all questions on the same subject matter on a date of his or her choice.

Can Azalina point out what parliamentary rule allow such avoidance of  the principle of parliamentary control of the Executive by a Minister?

There has been talk of parliamentary reform to introduce a Prime Minister’s Question Time where the Prime Minister must be in the House to answer questions – which is commonplace in other Parliament but a rarity in Malaysia.

In fact, we are already establishing a new-fangled parliamentary practice where Ministers in the House do not have to answer questions but leave it to their Deputies – which is unheard of in other Parliaments.

If Azalina’s new-fangled theory is allowed to become parliamentary practice in Malaysia, may be we should introduce Last Day for Ministers’ Replies, where Ministers can  choose to give their written answers on the last day of a parliamentary meeting (say on Dec. 3 of the current 25-day budget meeting which started on Oct. 19), which would  prevent MPs from pursing the subject-matter if unsatisfied with the answers as Parliamentary meeting would have ended.

Is this the “parliamentary reform” that Azalina is trying to introduce in the Malaysian Parliament?

I call on the Prime Minister Datuk Najib Razak to set an example for his Cabinet and Government to show full seriousness to the Oct. 6  statement by the Malay Rulers about their concern about the multifarious adverse consequences of the two mega scandals in the country, by appearing in Parliament to answer all the questions on 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandals which Azalina had avoided in the first two weeks of Parliament, as well as to give a proper government response to the Malay Rulers’ Statement of Oct. 6.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 30 October 2015, 8:18 am and is filed under
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As Najib’s Prime Minister popularity rating  among Malay voters have fallen below 30%, the three million UMNO members must decide whether UMNO’s survival in the next general election will lie in having a new UMNO head and Prime Minister

It is reported today that at least 154 out of 191 UMNO division chiefs want the party’s supreme council to take against errant party leaders, referring to former Deputy Prime Minister and still Deputy UMNO President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, former Rural and Regional Development Minister and UMNO Vice President, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, and even former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir and former Cabinet Minister and former UMNO Secretary-General Tan Sri Sanusi Junid.

This is the result of an internal poll in UMNO conducted among 170 UMNO division leaders in an exclusive WhatsApp programme.

However, the result may be different if a poll is conducted among the three million UMNO members as it is becoming quite clear that for the first time since Merdeka, UMNO has never been so  fragmented and fractured between the 300 UMNO chieftains versus the three million UMNO members.

The   300 UMNO chieftains are primarily  Umno Supreme Council members and Umno division chiefs who are mostly in the pockets of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak the majority of whom will toe the Najib line,  as compared to the three million Umno members most of whom must be very embarrassed by the two Najib  mega-scandals of  the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation”, and the lack of political will to resolve these two scandals until they mushroom to become international scandals,  and the move to  penalise UMNO leaders for speaking up against  these two scandals.

All over the country, the question that is commonly asked is how long Najib can survive as the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia, whether he would suffer the fate of his predecessor, Tun Abdullah in having to give up the Prime Ministership before the end of his term.

Although speculation is  rife as to whether Najib can survive as Prime Minister in  the present  six-week budget parliamentary term ending on December 3, with a  no-confidence motion by the Parliamentary Opposition leader as well as  possible votes on the 2016 Budget or other major government proposals in the present meeting of Parliament, I am not optimistic that there would be sufficient numbers involving UMNO/BN Members of Parliament  joining Opposition Members of Parliament to vote out Najib as Prime Minister.

This is of course subject to the qualification of great changes that can take place in the next few weeks., Former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson has said that “a week is a long time in politics” but we are seeing in UMNO that “a day is a long time in politics”.

With the majority of the 300 UMNO chieftains mostly in his pockets, Najib seems to be quite safe and secure as Prime Minister and UMNO President, and could even go on the offensive against his detractors in UMNO, whether former Deputy Prime Minister or the longest-serving former Prime Minister, but  the support of the three million UMNO members may not be so sure and secure.

It was recently reported that Malay voter  approval for Najib’s government has reached an all-time low and Najib’s government had,  for the first time,  lost the approval of the majority of Malay voters.

The mid-October report by Singapore’s Straits Times cited a survey by independent pollster Merdeka Centre, that  only 31 percent of Malay voters is satisfied with the government in a survey conducted in Peninsular Malaysia in August.

This is the first time approval for the government among Malays has fallen below 50 percent since Merdeka Centre began recording the data in February 2012.

The fall among Malay voters  to 31 per cent  was drastic as it had stood at 52 percent this January.

The government’s overall approval rating also plummeted to 23 percent, the worst since the polls started in 2012. In January this year, the UMNO/BN coalition government’s approval rating remained at 38%, the same as the previous poll last October.

As for Chinese voters, only five percent approved of the government compared to 11 percent this January.

The survey found the government’s falling approval rating was largely attributed to its handling of the economy.

The survey found only 17 percent of respondents were satisfied with how the government was handling the economy, compared to 78 percent who were dissatisfied.

There is no reference to Najib’s  latest approval rating as Prime Minister, which dropped to 44% in January this year from 48% in October 2014, although from various accounts, the Prime Minister’s approval rating would have fallen to the lowest ever of  below 30%.

This is the silent war that is being fought out  in UMNO and Barisan Nasional.

Although overall Malaysian support for the UMNO/BN government had hovered between 50% – 55% in the three months before and after the 13th general elections in May 2013, Malay voter support for the government had been fairly constant  at the 67% level.

In the  2013 general election, where UMNO/BN secured only a minority of 47 per cent of the popular vote (although a majority of the parliamentary seats, resulting in the first minority Prime Minister in the nation’s history), the racial breakdown  for UMNO/BN was  Malay voters 64%; Indian voters 38% and Chinese voters 14%.

The plunge of overall Malaysian support to 23% and Malay voter support to 31 per cent in  August – and most likely  lower now for both indicators  some two months later in October with the aggravation of multitude of political, economic, good governance and nation-building scandals   – are new political phenomena which cannot be ignored by the three million UMNO members, even if the 300 UMNO chieftains continue to belabour under a denial syndrome.

In these circumstances, although Najib seems quite safe and secure in his support among the UMNO 300 chieftains even though his Prime Minister’s popularity rating among Malaysians have fallen below 30% and he has also lost the majority of support of the Malay voters, the three million UMNO members must decide whether UMNO’s survival in the next general elections will lie in having a new UMNO head and Prime Minister.

(Speech at the Skudai DAP Dinner at Maedo Restaurant in Skudai, Gelang Patah on Friday, Oct. 30, 2015 at 9 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 31 October 2015, 8:08 am and is filed under
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