Najib should heed  Musa Hitam’s advice and immediately go on leave as Prime Minister pending investigation by an independent commission of inquiry

Datuk Seri Najib Razak should heed the advice of his former mentor, former Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Musa Hitam that he should go on leave as Prime Minister pending investigation into the Wall Street Journal report and allegation of US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into his personal accounts in AmBank within to weeks of the dissolution of Parliament on 3rd April 2013 and his role and involvement in the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal.

Najib had accused former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir of “working hand in glove with foreign nationals” in “a concerted campaign of political sabotage to topple a democratically-elected Prime Minister”, but Najib cannot make such an accusation against Musa.

In an exclusive interview with The Malaysian Insider, Musa said Najib has three options: (I) to remain in office and fight the allegations; (ii) resign as Prime Minister; and (iii) go on leave pending investigations by a special government task force.

Musa personally would prefer if Najib takes the third option to allow for an open and transparent investigation, as he holds dear to the legal maxim that one is innocent until proven guilty and this applies to Najib.

Yesterday, Najib asked Malaysians “Don’t listen to nonsense” on the social media about him and his family, and that “We will ensure that truth emerges in the end.”

I fully agree and subscribe to the notion that Malaysians should be fair to Najib and the principle that one is innocent until proven guilty, but Najib must be fair to Malaysians and the nation as well, as his total silence on the specific allegations made in the WSJ about his having personal accounts in AmBank which received deposits of RM2.6 billion two weeks before Parliament’s dissolution in April 3, 2013 and the ensuing 13th General Elections, as well as the earlier WSJ report that Najib had used 1MDB funds for his campaign in the 13GE, have not been consistent with a plea of innocence or compatible with the clean and incorruptible image of the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

The allegation of Prime Ministerial misconduct, made by a reputable international publication which has repeatedly declared its reports against Najib were fair and

“solid”, is the first to be made against any Malaysian Prime Minister in the  nation’s 58-year  history of six Prime Ministers, namely Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, Tun Hussein Onn, Tun Mahathir, Tun Abdullah and Najib.

Also for the first time in the nation’s 58-year history, the wife of a Malaysian Prime Minister had become the target of allegation of impropriety, with the posting yesterday by the whistleblower website Sarawak Report, reported by news portals, alleging that RM2 million was deposited into a bank account purportedly belonging to Najib’s wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor.

Such an allegation  would be completely unthinkable during the times of the wives of the first five Prime Ministers  i.e. Tun Sharifah Rodziah Syed Alwi Barakbah, Tun Rahah binti Tan Sri Mohammad Noah,  Tun Suhaila binti Tan Sri Mohammad Noah, Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali, Tun Endon Mahmood Ambak  or Tun Jeanne Abdullah Danker.

The investigations into the allegations against Najib should be conducted by independent, reputable and credible Malaysians and definitely not the four Tan Sris heading agencies subordinate and subservient to the Prime Minister – Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar, the Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed.

The special task force comprising the quartet of these four government agencies should be disbanded and be replaced by a Royal Commission of Inquiry of independent, reputable and credible Malaysians who will be under no restraints or inhibitions to get to the bottom of the 1MDB scandal.

If Najib has nothing to hide and he had not been guilty of any malpractices or improprieties, he should even welcome and support the proposal that Tun Mahathir chair the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the 1MDB scandal, with commissioners including the strongest critics like DAP MP for PJ Utara Tony Pua and PKR MP for Pandan Rafizi Ramli!

It is utterly ridiculous for Najib, as the “accused” in the 1MDB allegations, to dictate the “scope” of the investigations, as when he revealed that the “scope” of the special task force investigating The Wall Street Journal’s claims against him was whether he used 1MDB funds for his personal interest.

Malaysians want Najib to declare without further ado whether the WSJ report was correct  as far as his personal bank accounts in AmBank were concerned, and the deposit of RM2.6 billion on March 21 and 25, 2013 into his personal accounts – just before the dissolution of Parliament on 3rd April, 2013.

And if so, where  the RM2.6 billion deposited into Najib’s personal accounts in AmBank came from and where they have gone to?

This is a test of Najib’s patriotism, whether he is prepared to end the government paralysis caused by the 1MDB scandal, reaching a new crescendo with the WSJ report and Sarawak Report allegations, by immediately going on leave while investigations by an independent Royal Commission of Inquiry are initiated.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 10 July 2015, 9:13 am and is filed under
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Survival, not politics or race, our concern, law grad tells DPM

by Anisah Shukry

The Malaysian Insider

10 July 2015

A video clip of a young Malaysian speaking of the financial struggles she and her generation face to an audience who included Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is making its rounds on social media.

In the video by the Malay Economic Action Council (MTEM), the 23-year-old law graduate, who only identified herself as Zahra, told the deputy prime minister how she had grown increasingly disappointed and angry that the life she is living was not what she had envisioned as a student.

“The reality of the working world is not as beautiful as people expect it to be – on the contrary, it is torturous. Yes, I drive to the office, but the car is not mine. I am borrowing it and pay RM500 each month to my father for it.

“Usually, by the end of the month, I take the LRT to the office because my pockets are empty by that time. It has become a routine, and I am ashamed to face my parents. I should be taking care of them, not the other way around,” said Zahra, at an event organised by MTEM on June 17.

But she said she had no other choice, as her salary was not high despite years of toiling for a law degree.

Buying a house would remain a dream for years to come, she said, as even paying the RM500 monthly rent to stay in a house with seven others was a struggle.

“I know I’m not alone. Many of my friends are suffering. We don’t see a way out. My future and that of millions of other Malay youth is bleak.

“Honestly, we Malay youth don’t care about political or racial issues, because what matters to us is the issue of survival,” said Zahra.

The video, which was uploaded on MTEM’s Facebook page on Wednesday morning, has drawn more than 452,000 views, received more than 34,000 likes, been shared more than 43,000 times and drawn more than 3,100 comments.

MTEM chief executive officer Mohd Nizam Mahshar told The Malaysian Insider that the video was part of the council’s social media campaign to engage with the youth so that they could up come up with better and more practical policy recommendations for the government.

He said the campaign, which uses the hashtag #sayaZAHRA (I am Zahra) and #sayasayangkanMalaysia (I love Malaysia), was born out of MTEM’s bid to put a human face to the economic targets set by the government.

“The 11th Malaysia Plan says we will move the bottom 40% into the middle class. So we want to show how hard it is in reality. We don’t want the targets to be just rhetoric. We want to show how difficult life really is for the people who have to go through this every day.

“Zahra is a real case, and that is her true story. We are trying to humanise these economic numbers and talk about the challenges of young graduates joining the ranks of unemployed.”

Nizam said the youth could sTan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (with tie) at the Malay Economic Action Council event featuring Zahra, who shared her story of trying to survive in the city with a low salary. – Screen grab from MTEM video, July 10, 2015.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (with tie) at the Malay Economic Action Council event featuring Zahra, who shared her story of trying to survive in the city with a low salary. – Screen grab from MTEM video, July 10, 2015.

hare their own economic difficulties with MTEM by posting it on social media with the two hashtags, or sharing it directly on the new Facebook page “Saya Zahra”.

He said MTEM had received more than 200 personal anecdotes so far since the video was uploaded.

He said they planned to compile the stories and use it in various mediums, such as in videos and forums, to raise awareness among those in power the extent to which the youth were struggling.

Malaysian youth were quick to share the video of Zahra on social media, saying that it encapsulated the sentiments of a generation struggling with low salaries, high student loans and soaring cost of living.

Syazana Azlan, 26, a graphic designer, told The Malaysian Insider that she shared the video on her Facebook because it highlighted problems close to her heart, yet were rarely featured in the media.

“Right now, it’s a matter of survival for us, and the government doesn’t seem to be doing anything for us. Zahra mentioned in the video how there are so many big luxury homes in the country, but they’re all empty – they were built for other people, not us, the majority.

“The people at the top will always have it easy, but what about us? You say, ‘people first’, but I don’t see that happening,” said Syazana.

Nizam added that the campaign was not restricted to Malays alone, as such issues were experienced by all Malaysians.

“Her video has resonated not just with Malay youth, but others. And Malaysians of all races are sharing their stories with us.

“So this shows to the government that economic problems are not confined to the Malays alone,” he said.

When asked how Muhyiddin reacted to Zahra’s speech, Nizam said: “You’ll have to wait for our next video for that”. – July 10, 2015.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 10 July 2015, 4:52 pm and is filed under
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The Peninsula dominoes

— Liew Chin Tong

The Malay Mail Online

July 10, 2015

JULY 10 — Let’s be clear, elections are won or lost in marginal seats.

For the new Opposition coalition to form the next government which is stable and with a strong legitimacy, defeating Umno in the Peninsula has to be the priority.

But to cause Umno to fall like dominoes, we should not set our sights on its strongholds but work on where it is weakest: the marginal seats.

Umno won 88 seats nationally, of which 14 are in Sabah and one in Labuan. The rest of the 73 seats are in the Peninsula.

Of these 73 Peninsula seats, Umno would win at least 30 rural seats, which were “tailored-made” for Umno in the first place anyway, with the “built-in” Felda votes, postal votes and government machineries assisting Umno in campaign. The Opposition should forget about these 30 seats.

But the rest of the seats, which are mostly multi-ethnic, are ready to fall on the back of antipathy against Umno since 2008 among non-Malay voters and a Malay tsunami against the economic hardships imposed by the Umno government.

Of the 38 marginal seats which Barisan Nasional won with less than 10 percent margin in the last election, 32 are Umno seats.

This is the battleground where the next election will be fought.

Focusing on the middle ground with strong leadership, clarity in policy and a convincing message to unite all ethnic groups while riding on the wave of a brewing Malay revolt could just tilt the balance.

The 6 per cent line

The balance is not difficult to tilt if one looks at the 37 parliamentary seats that Barisan Nasional won with a margin of less than 10 per cent in the 2013 general election. On top of the 37 seats, BN won Teluk Intan in a by-election in 2014 with a 0.6 per cent margin.

Indeed a 6 per cent uniform swing would wipe out 27 marginal seats and send Barisan Nasional to the opposition bench.

Of the 38 marginal seats, 10 were won with a margin of less than 2 per cent, namely P76 Teluk Intan (0.6 per cent), P89 Bentong (0.7 per cent), P96 Kuala Selangor (0.8 per cent), P159 Pasir Gudang (1.1 per cent), P93 Sungai Besar (1.1 per cent), P142 Labis (1.1 per cent), P29 Machang (1.6 per cent), P26 Ketereh (1.8 per cent), P12 Jerai (1.9 per cent) and P119 Titiwangsa (1.9 per cent).

Another 11 were won with a margin between 2 per cent and 4 per cent, namely P78 Cameron Highlands (2.1 per cent), P158 Terbrau (2.3 per cent), P58 Bagan Serai (2.5 per cent), P118 Setiawangsa (2.7 per cent), P140 Segamat (3.1 per cent), P144 Ledang (3.3 per cent), P53 Balik Pulau (3.6 per cent), P18 Kulim Bandar-Baharu (3.6 per cent), P3 Arau (3.6 per cent), P161 Pulai (3.8 per cent) and P67 Kuala Kangsar (3.9 per cent).

A further six were won with a margin between 4 per cent and 6 per cent, namely P146 Muar (4.1 per cent), P11 Pendang (4.3 per cent), P94 Hulu Selangor (4.6 per cent), P90 Bera (5.1 per cent), P92 Sabak Bernam (5.3 per cent) and P14 Merbok (5.7 per cent).

The 6 per cent line is significant. Umno retained the very safe seat of Rompin in a by-election in May 2015 but its vote share declined from 67 per cent to 61 per cent, a 6 per cent drop.

If the Rompin by-election result is a gauge of the potential Malay swing to the Opposition nationwide, Umno would have lost 27 marginal parliamentary seats.

A further 12 seats were won with a margin between 6 per cent and 10 per cent, namely P16 Baling (6.3 per cent), P42 Tasek Gelugor (6.4 per cent), P75 Bagan Datok (6.5 per cent), P13 Sik (6.8 per cent), P5 Jerlun (7.3 per cent), P141 Sekijang (8.2 per cent), P77 Tanjong Malim (8.3 per cent), P27 Tanah Merah (8.6 per cent), P41 Kepala Batas (9.1 per cent), P81 Jerantut (9.3 per cent), P61 Padang Rengas (9.4 per cent) and P2 Kangar (9.5 per cent).

Battles in mixed seats

Of the 38 seats, 5 seats have more than 90 per cent Malay voters, 6 seats with between 80 per cent and 90 per cent Malay voters, and 5 with between 70 per cent and 80 per cent Malay voters.

Another 8 seats have between 60 per cent and 70 per cent Malay voters, 7 seats with between 50 per cent and 60 per cent Malay voters, and 8 additional seats with Malay voters below 50 per cent.

In other words, of the 38 seats, there are 16 seats, which have Malay composition of more than 70 per cent, while the remaining 22 seats are mixed in nature with less than 70 per cent Malay voters.

West Coast battles

If one looks at the states of which the marginal seats are from, apart from the 3 Parti KeADILan Rakyat seats in Kelantan, which were allegedly lost due to sabotage by local PAS branches, and the 7 seats from Kedah, there rest are essentially West Coast Peninsula, semi-urban, multiethnic seats, most of them with a small Malay majority in ethnic composition.

Perlis – 2 seats – P2 Kangar (PAS); P3 Arau (PAS)

Kedah – 7 seats – P5 Jerlun (PAS), P11 Pendang (PAS), P 12 Jerai (PAS), P13 Sik (PAS), P14 Merbok (PKR), P16 Baling (PAS), P18 Kulim Bandar Baru (PKR)

Kelantan – 3 seats – P26 Ketereh (PKR), P27 Tanah Merah (PKR), P29 Machang (PKR)

Penang – 3 seats – P41 Kepala Batas (PAS), P42 Tasik Gelugor (PAS), P53 Balik Pulau (PKR)

Perak – 6 seats – P58 Bagan Serai (PKR), P61 Padang Rengas (PKR), P67 Kuala Kangsar (PAS), P75 Bagan Datok (PKR), P76 Teluk Intan (DAP) P77 Tanjong Malim (PKR).

Pahang – 4 seats – P78 Cameron Highlands (DAP), P81 Jerantut (PAS), P89 Bentong (DAP), P90 Bera (PKR)

Selangor – 4 seats – P92 Sabak Bernam (PKR), P93 Sungai Besar (PAS), P94 Hulu Selangor (PKR), P96 Kuala Selangor (PAS)

KL FT – 2 seats – P118 Setiawangsa (PKR), P119 Titiwangsa (PAS)

Johor – 8 seats – P140 Segamat (PKR), P141 Sekijang (PKR), P142 Labis (DAP), P144 Ledang (PKR), P146 Muar (PKR), P158 Tebrau (PKR), P159 Pasir Gudang (PKR), P161 Pulai (PAS)

There needs to be a separate set of strategies to win the Kedah seats that were actually won by the Opposition in 2008 but lost in 2013 due to a swing against the Azizan Razak State Government.

Beyond that, the characteristics of most other seats are relatively uniform: mixed, mostly semi-urban, West Coast.

In short, for the Opposition, the Peninsula battle is crucial in winning the next government and the legitimacy to govern. And to win in the Peninsula is to first concede about 30 of those “tailored-made” small rural Umno seats to Umno but to focus on the 38 swing marginal seats.

In the Malay economic tsunami that is to come, Umno will be buried in these mixed, semi-urban constituencies.

* Liew Chin Tong is the DAP National Political Education Director, DAP Johor Chief and Member of Parliament for Kluang.

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16th IACC Conference in Putrajaya in September should have sub-theme of “1MDB Financial Scandal” as it provides perfect and rare counter case study why the conference theme “Ending Impunity: People, Integrity and Action” so difficult to achieve

May be the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of integrity, Paul Low, is right – the 16th  International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) to be held  in Putrajaya in September should go on as scheduled as Malaysia would be presenting a perfect and rare  counter case study why  the  conference theme of “Ending Impunity: People, Integrity and Action” is so difficult or even impossible to achieve.

In fact, the 16th IACC, which has described itself as “world’s premier global forum for bringing together heads of state, civil society, the private sector and other stakeholders to tackle the increasingly sophisticated challenge posed by corruption” should have a sub-theme of “The Mother of all Financial Scandals in Malaysia – the RM42 billion 1MDB Scandal”!

The 16th IACC  is very lucky for it will have the special privilege and honour not only to have a major participant but the key player of 1MDB scandal to give the keynote address which will allow the 800 to 2,000 international participants an excellent opportunity to have special insights  to  discuss and dissect  a live case  example  of the need to achieve the conference theme  of “Ending Impunity: People, Integrity and Action” in the global fight against corruption.

In fact, not only the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak but the quartet of  four Tan Sris who head the special task force, Attorney-General Gani Patail, Bank Negara Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief commissioner Abu Kassim Mohamad should appear before the ICAC sessions to impart their experience and expertise to an international cionference as they must the only outfit in the world of subordinate officers investigating the No. One authority in government and nation, the Prime Minister.

As former Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Musa Hitam, conceded in his interview with The Malaysian Insider today, “An unprecedented thing is happening as a sitting prime minister is being investigated by a task force”.

Who believes that the four subordinate Tan Sris to Najib will be able to freely, independently and professionally carry out their investigation of the Prime Minister, even proposing that the Prime Minister should be removed and charged in court on corruption charges?

In fact, I have no doubt that if a vote is put to the IACC whether the participants approve of such an arrangement where a special task force of subordinates is established to investigate  the Prime Minister in the fight against corruption, the vote must be a decisive and even unanimous “No”!

As the IACC never had such an “unprecedented” opportunity before and will never again have such an opportunity in the future of a Prime Minister who is personally and directly involved in a roiling financial scandal which is snowballing into a great national and international  disaster and presenting of  direct counter  case study of how necessary but impossible to achieve the conference theme  of  “Ending Impunity: People, Integrity and Action”, the 16th IACC should make full use of this unprecedented opportunity.

I hope the Malaysian authorities will not back out of this global anti-corruption conference in Putrajaya with the Prime Minister as a rare guest speaker presenting his unique insights and  experience on the conference theme.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 3:19 pm and is filed under
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Answer critics, not accuse them of trying to topple you, Musa Hitam tells Najib

by V. Anbalagan

The Malaysian Insider

11 July 2015

Datuk Seri Najib Razak must respond decisively to serious allegations made against him and his administration over various issues, including the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) fiasco, instead of accusing detractors of seeking to topple his government, Tun Musa Hitam said.

The former deputy prime minister said toppling leaders and bringing down governments were part and parcel of politics.

“Instead of answering questions and doubts by his political opponents and well-wishers, Naib cannot make the accusation that this was done to topple his administration,” Musa told The Malaysian Insider in an exclusive interview.

Musa, who was deputy to former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad between 1981 and 1986, said this in apparent reference to Najib’s oft-repeated statements against his critics in response to issues related to troubled 1MDB.

Last week, Najib refuted what he termed “unsubstantiated and outrageous allegations” by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that US$700 million (RM2.67 billion) was transferred into his personal bank accounts, and said he had never taken funds for personal gain from 1MDB or any other entities.

Najib said the false allegations were part of a political ploy to topple him engineered by his opponents, including Dr Mahathir.

Two nights ago, Najib vowed to ensure that the truth about himself and 1MDB would emerge, as a special government task force began probing into the WSJ allegations.

“Don’t listen to nonsense. There is too much nonsense on social media. Don’t listen to it all. Not all of it is true. We will ensure that the truth will emerge in the end,” the prime minister said after breaking fast at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur.

Musa, who gained prominence during the tenure of second prime minister Tun Abdul Razak, said Najib, who is Razak’s son, must reply point by point to major issues raised.

He said previous prime ministers could have or were accused of doing the same thing as Najib was facing but they were lucky as they were not running governments in a digital democracy.

“They managed to survive but I am sorry to tell Najib that this cannot work as times have changed.”

The 81-year-old Musa said Najib started well after he assumed office in 2009 by further strengthening political and economic reforms but the prime minister was now under siege.

He said as time went by reports of misdeeds, alleged corruption and cronyism surfaced.

“An unprecedented thing is happening as a sitting prime minister is being investigated by a task force. This also shows that this government is operating in the manner it should be,” he said.

Musa said digital democracy with the emergence of social media has opened the government system and by implication, any wrongdoing by a leader could be exposed.

Blaming those handling Najib’s public relations, Musa said there was no positive reaction to correcting stories that appeared in the alternative media.

“This is almost nil from the leadership for putting things in the right respective by denying or affirming each accusation hurled.”

He said although Najib has been active in the social media in the last few years, the issues piled against him were not dealt with in a proper manner.

“I don’t want to list out the issues but 1MDB was a new thing that raised more questions that remained unanswered.”

He said Najib’s government was lacking in direction because the leadership was not providing what the people demanded.

Musa believed many people were no longer supportive of the government and only an open election would reveal that.

“They can redeem themselves by getting their act together. There are so many issues which have been left hanging and so much doubt.” – July 11, 2015.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 9:46 am and is filed under
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Apology that Pakatan Rakyat is dead but vow that PR Common Policy Framework aspirations for an united,   inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia will live on and  continue to be basis of DAP struggle for a new Malaysia until there is a new government in Putrajaya

I want to apologise to the people of Malaysia that after seven years, Pakatan Rakyat is dead but we vow  that the Pakatan Rakyat Common Policy Framework aspirations for an united,  inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia will live on and continue to be the basis of DAP struggle for a new Malaysia until there is a new government in Putrajaya.

We in the DAP recognize the political reality that under the present circumstances,  no single race or even single political party can rule multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia and that the  Federal Government from Putrajaya  and the various  state governments will have to be formed from  a coalition of political parties.

DAP is prepared to be a partner of coalition governments, but it must be a  coalition of common political principles and objectives and not a coalition of self-interests and political opportunism  just to cling to political offices and position.

This is why the DAP Central Executive Committee at its meeting on June 15 took two decisions:

•	Recognition  that the PAS top leadership had killed Pakatan Rakyat after the  PAS Muktamar resolution to sever ties with DAP and  repeated violation by the top PAS leadership of  the PR Common Policy Framework and the PR consensus operational principle in the past one year;

•	Full support to the  Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali to reframe the Selangor state government with a new functioning coalition based on the PR Common Policy Framework and the Selangor Pakatan Rakyat general election manifesto.

Recently, a video clip of a young Malay woman, a 23-year-old law graduate identified as Zahra,  telling the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin that the concern of the young generation of Malays is “survival, not politics or race” went viral.

Zahra spoke of the financial struggles of her generation and how she had grown increasingly disappointed and angry that the life she is living was not what she had envisioned as a student.

At an event  organized by Malay Economic Action Council (MTEM) last month, Zahra told Muhyiddin who was the guest-of-honour at the function:

“The reality of the working world is not as beautiful as people expect it to be – on the contrary, it is torturous. Yes, I drive to the office, but the car is not mine. I am borrowing it and pay RM500 each month to my father for it.

“Usually, by the end of the month, I take the LRT to the office because my pockets are empty by that time. It has become a routine, and I am ashamed to face my parents. I should be taking care of them, not the other way around.”

She said she had no other choice, as her salary was not high despite years of toiling for a law degree.

Buying a house would remain a dream for years to come, she said, as even paying the RM500 monthly rent to stay in a house with seven others was a struggle.

“I know I’m not alone. Many of my friends are suffering. We don’t see a way out. My future and that of millions of other Malay youth is bleak.

“Honestly, we Malay youth don’t care about political or racial issues, because what matters to us is the issue of survival.”

Zahra spoke deep  from her heart,  not only for the Malay youths but for all Malaysians regardless of race, religion or region.

This is the greatest challenge facing the country today, whether we are going to hear the cries of Zahra, who  represent not just the  Malay youths but young generation of all Malaysians regardless of race and religion, for good governance and a good Federal Government where the priority is to ensure a vibrant and prosperous economy,  with good jobs, decent salaries, good and affordable education, housing, hospitals, transportation and safe environment for all in every part of the country.

This is what the PR Common Policy Framework had sought to achieve  – a united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia where good governance in Malaysia  is the No. 1 concern of all and where Malaysians reject the narrow, petty, extremist, chauvinist politics of race and religion which are the playthings of  self-seeking irresponsible politicians  to continue to divide and not to unite Malaysians.

On Tuesday, progressive Members of Parliament and NGO representatives were locked out of the Parliamentary Briefing Room to discuss the  Wall Street Journal allegation that Malaysian government investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal bank accounts in AmBank just before the 13th General Election and the larger question of rampant corruption and abuses of power in Malaysia.

Malaysia is facing an unprecedented political crisis as never before in the nation’s history of six Prime Ministers in 58 years has any Prime Minister faced a direct allegation in an internationally influential and reputable publication of Prime Ministerial misconduct in having RM2.6 billion deposited into his personal banking accounts just before a general election.

I had hoped that a few progressive UMNO/BN MPs would turn up in  Parliament on Tuesday  to express concern and solidarity with progressive Opposition MPs and NGO representatives about the deplorable state of rampant corruption and abuses of power in Malaysia.

Is there not a single UMNO/BN MP who does not  feel outraged at the rampant corruption, abuses of power, socio-economic injustices and collapse of good governance in Malaysia?

I do not think so, and this is why I want to make a call to all progressive and patriotic MPs and political leaders, including those who are now inside  UMNO/BN,  to step forward to work with all progressive and patriotic MPs and political leaders outside the federal UMNO/BN coalition, to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state as a result of rampant corruption, abuses of power, socio-economic injustices and the  collapse of good governance.

This is the greatest gift the older generation of Malaysians can give to the young generation of Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Dayaks or  Kadazan-Dusun-Muruts.

(Speech at the “Buka Puasa bersama anak muda DAP” at Dewan Melati, Seksyen 7, Shah Alam organized by Bandar Utama DAP Branch on Friday, July 10, 2015 at 8 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 7:42 am and is filed under
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Clamour over 1Malaysia Development Berhad  falls on deaf ears

Michael Peel in Kuala Lumpur

Financial Times

10th July 2015

Malaysia is gripped by the biggest financial scandal in its modern history—although you might not know it from the reaction of Najib Razak’s

government.

Claims of large-scale misappropriation at a state investment fund now embroil the prime minister — but he and his administration are trying to shrug it all off by dismissing it as a political plot. That curt response to the ever-widening 1MalaysiaDevelopment Berhad affair tells of the grip on power enjoyed by the ruling United Malays National Organisation since independence in 1957.

“If there is no one shouting ‘I have been robbed’ why would anyone think there has been a robbery?” says Tony Pua, an opposition legislator, explaining the lack of official outrage over how a fund setup with the Malaysian people’s money came to be drowning in more than$11bn of debt. “That’s the problem at the moment.”

The long-running 1MDB affair took its most dramatic turn yet last week, when the Wall Street Journal and Sarawak Report website alleged that Malaysian investigators had found payments totalling$681m in March 2013 to a bank account in the prime minister’s name. The Financial Times has not been able to verify the claim independently.

Mr Najib has said he did not take any funds for personal gain and has denounced this and other allegations against him as “outrageous”, “unsubstantiated” and “political sabotage”. 1MDB has previously denied that it has ever given money to the prime minister. Neither Mr Najib nor 1MDBhas offered a detailed rebuttal of the latest claims.

The fresh allegations are now being investigated by a special task force, which took documents from 1MDB’s offices in central Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. Opposition lawmakers and Mahathir Mohamad, the influential former prime minister, have called for Mr Najib to step down at least temporarily.

But official reaction has been strikingly muted, aside from a measured call by Mr Najib’s Deputy for the claim to be investigated. The central bank has said nothing. The head of parliament’s public accounts committee did not highlight anything untoward from a unpublished interim report on 1MDBsubmitted by the auditor general on Thursday, except to say that the officials seemed to have had trouble obtaining some documents. The police chief announced a new 1MDBinvestigation—but into how the bank transfer records and other papers at the heart of the new claims came to be leaked.

The communications regulator has meanwhile stepped in to warn that people commenting on the affair online could end up in jail under computer crime laws. The hashtag 1MDBMovies went viral this week, spawning mock-ups of Mr Najib at the centre of film posters such as “Lord of the Ringgits”—a reference to Malaysia’s ailing currency, which hit a 16-year low against the dollar this week.

Nor have efforts by the divided opposition to press the government had much conviction. Nurul Izzah Anwar, an MP and the daughter of Anwar Ibrahim, the jailed opposition leader, said she had few hopes for the success of an effort launched this week to have the results of the contentious 2013 election declared void, on the grounds that 1MDB money may haveflowed into ruling party coffers.

Her remarks reflect a wider cynicism about whether the full truth about 1MDBwill come out anytime soon—and, if it does, whether it will be acted on. “We don’t expect much from the outcome,” she said of the legal challenge to the election. “But of course we are going to fight to win.”

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 9:26 am and is filed under
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Cut losses in 30 BN bastions, DAP strategist says in polls gambit

The Malay Mail Online

July 10, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 — The opposition should forgo 30 Barisan Nasional (BN) strongholds in its bid for Putrajaya and focus resources on 38 marginal seats to make Umno fall like dominoes, a DAP strategist said today.

Liew Chin Tong, the DAP election planner whose brazen plan to contest against Umno in its stronghold state Johor in Election 2013 saw Pakatan Rakyat taking five out of 26 seats, said the opposition should not stretch itself by trying to take seats where the odds of victory are low.

“Let’s be clear, elections are won or lost in marginal seats. For the new Opposition coalition to form the next government which is stable and with a strong legitimacy, defeating Umno in the Peninsula has to be the priority.

“But to cause Umno to fall like dominoes, we should not set our sights on its strongholds but work on where it is weakest: the marginal seats,” the DAP national political education director said in his analysis titled “The Peninsula Dominoes”.

For the 14th general election due no later than 2018, all the opposition has to do to win the peninsular Malaysia battle is to concede 30 small rural seats “tailor-made” for a safe win by Umno and focus on getting 6 per cent of vote swing away from BN in 38 marginal seats.

“Of these 73 Peninsula seats, Umno would win at least 30 rural seats, which were “tailored-made” for Umno in the first place anyway, with the ‘built-in’ Felda votes, postal votes and government machineries assisting Umno in campaign. The Opposition should forget about these 30 seats.

“But the rest of the seats, which are mostly multi-ethnic, are ready to fall on the back of antipathy against Umno since 2008 among non-Malay voters and a Malay tsunami against the economic hardships imposed by the Umno Government,” the DAP Johor chief said when dissecting the possibilities of the federal opposition taking over the 73 seats won by BN in Election 2013.

According to Liew, the 38 marginal seats are largely semi-urban and located on the west coast of the peninsula with a small Malay voter majority.

Despite Liew’s conclusion for the opposition to ignore the 30 safe seats for BN, it is uncertain how strong the ruling coalition’s hold on these seats remains amid widespread unhappiness over government policies.

In a by-election this May, Umno retained its traditional stronghold Rompin — a rural constituency with a sizeable population of Felda settlers —- but with voter support that Liew said went down by 6 per cent.

Economic gloom also overshadows the ruling government, with an unresolved controversy over state-owned firm 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a weak ringgit that fell to a 16-year-low earlier this week and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which has caused living costs to rise amid largely stagnant wages.

The federal opposition is itself undergoing political uncertainty as PAS mulls a final decision to cut off ties with DAP, while the imprisoned PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim previously leading the Pakatan Rakyat pact has spoken about a new opposition line-up.

In Election 2013, BN kept Putrajaya with a haul of 133 out of 222 federal seats, while PR won 89 seats. A win of 112 seats is needed for a simple majority and to form government.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 4:19 pm and is filed under
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Default risk climbs for Malaysia as Najib probe outweighs Fitch

The Edge

Bloomberg

July 10, 2015

(July 10): Less than two weeks after Fitch Ratings refrained from downgrading Malaysia, the cost of insuring the nation’s debt is at a six-month high amid a graft probe involving Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Five-year credit-default swaps protecting sovereign notes climbed as much as 12 basis points in July to 148 after the Wall Street Journal reported last week that $700 million of a state investment company’s funds may have ended up in Najib’s bank accounts, a claim he is disputing. The contracts could rise toward 200, a level last seen in 2011, according to Macquarie Bank Ltd.

Heightened credit risk is lifting bond yields, raising funding costs to build railways, roads and power plants as Najib presses ahead with a $444 billion development program. It’s also weighing on the ringgit, which has led losses among Asian currencies this year as lower oil prices hurt Malaysian exports. Brent crude is down 7.2 percent this month and is 49 percent cheaper than it was from its high a year ago.

“Everything seems to conspire against Malaysian bonds and the ringgit in the last couple of weeks,” said Nizam Idris, head of currency and fixed-income strategy at Macquarie Bank in Singapore. “The political scandal involving the prime minister was a big surprise that hit market sentiment” and the CDS price could surpass 160 and head toward 200, he said.

Credit protection on Malaysia’s bonds may rise to 150, said Tim Condon, the Singapore-based head of Asia research at ING Groep NV. The swaps reached a high of 213 in October 2011 in the midst of the European debt crisis.

‘Too Early’

The extra yield investors demand to hold Malaysia’s 10-year government notes over those due in three years has widened 28 basis points in 2015 to 73, data compiled by Bloomberg show. It increased to 89 on July 6, the most since February last year.

The political strife revolving around Najib, which has led to calls from former premier Mahathir Mohamad for him to step down, may drive up the 10-year yield to 4.5 percent, said Macquarie Bank’s Nizam. It last reached that level in 2008 in the wake of the global financial crisis and was at 4.02 percent on Thursday, up from 2015’s low of 3.72 percent in February.

A task force that includes the Auditor General, police and the central bank is investigating the alleged money trail. Investigations so far haven’t shown any suspicious activity, Public Accounts Committee Chairman Nur Jazlan Mohamed said on Thursday, referring to an interim report from the Auditor General. Najib ordered the 1MDB investigation in March.

“It is still too early to come to any conclusion as the A- G will take till the end of the year to complete his work,” Jazlan said, referring to the Auditor General.

‘Lagged Impact’

The yield spread on 1MDB’s dollar-denominated bonds due in 2023 over U.S. Treasuries widened to a record 562 basis points on Wednesday before narrowing to 498 on Friday.

The political uncertainty has prompted PineBridge Investments to take an underweight position on the nation’s local-currency bonds.

“We would prefer to assess the expected lagged impact of lower energy prices on government revenues and for the political noise to subside before changing our stance,” said Anders Faergemann, who helps oversee $3.7 billion of emerging-market debt as a senior fund manager at PineBridge in London.

Malaysia’s credit-default swaps have risen above those of lower rated Thailand and the Philippines, with the swaps for those countries at 105 and 96, respectively. When Fitch refrained from cutting Malaysia’s A- debt rating on June 30 and instead lifted its outlook to stable from negative, the contracts for the Southeast Asian nation declined for three days to 129 on July 2.

‘Najib’s Prospects’

The ringgit has fallen 7.6 percent this year as the plunge in Brent crude prices from a 2014 peak erodes government revenue for the net oil exporter. It declined beyond 3.8 a dollar this week, the level it was pegged at from 1998 to 2005, and was at 3.7865 as of 12:13 p.m. in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.

Najib might eventually be forced to resign and that also means sovereign support for 1MDB could be in doubt, widening the bond yield premium investors demand to own 1MDB debt over government notes, ING’s Condon said.

“At this point, the rating change outlook is totally forgotten,” said Condon. “We’ll probably hit 150 again and then we may trade in a new higher range on the five-year CDS that reflects the increased uncertainty about Mr. Najib’s prospects for staying in power.”

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 1:37 pm and is filed under
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Fissures appear in Umno as crisis deepens

By Bridget Welsh

Malaysiakini

Jul 10, 2015

COMMENT
As Prime Minister and Finance Minister Najib Razak faces explosive allegations of embezzlement, corruption and electoral manipulation that go to the very core of his leadership and the legitimacy of his government, the country is plunged into yet another crisis.

Sadly crises have become common developments of the Najib government, whose responses to 1MDB even before the revelations by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) brought to the fore questions of economic mismanagement which has undermined the reputation of the Malaysia’s financial institutions.

For many, the issue at hand is what Najib will do – he has already done serious damage to the country and unfortunately every day he stays in office, his leadership negatively affects the country’s reputation. Not only is Malaysia’s international credibility is on the line, its currency, access to foreign capital and future economic prosperity are at risk.

Unlike his father, Malaysia’s second premier Abdul Razak Hussien, Najib has apparently chosen to put himself first rather than the country. During his tenure, Najib has distinguished himself from Dr Mahathir Mohamad in his effectiveness in using the country’s political institutions to strengthen his personal position. He has indeed taken the office of the prime minister to a new low.

Najib deserves a fair and impartial investigation of the allegations made by WSJ. This can be done if he opts to go on leave during the investigation period and appoints respected impartial individuals to lead the investigation. Neither of these have been done so far, as the approach has been to issue denials, thus raising suspicions of a potential cover-up, and this sends conflicting signals about the investigation.

In a ‘fox guarding the hen house dynamic,’ members of the task force assigned to investigate are neither impartial nor distant from developments. In some cases, their job was to review these bank transactions and as such should also be subject to an independent investigation in their failure to act before the WSJ report. The lack on impartiality of the task force does not build credibility, especially in international markets.

Najib’s decision to hold onto power and stay in office compromises any investigation due to the inherent conflict of interests involved and this assures that any departure will be an even harder landing for himself, his family, his political party, Umno, and worst of all, the country.

A divided Umno

Najib’s decision to stay put as PM also indicates that other leaders will now have prominent roles in shaping the course of history. Increasingly Najib will have less control over what happens to his political future.

The main determinant of developments ahead will be Umno itself. Meetings have already been held with division chiefs who wield considerable power within Umno, with the numbers split into three camps – those in Najib’s camp influenced by personal loyalty and his generous patronage; those opposed to Najib cheered on by Mahathir but hesitant for an open challenge due largely to the largesse and levers of power they face; and those in the middle, waiting to be sure to land on the ‘safe side’ as this is the side that protects their political and economic survival.

Najib currently does not command a confident majority of the divisions, but relies heavily on those in the middle to stay in office. Over the next few weeks, this middle group will determine Umno and Najib’s future; they will determine whether the party’s and country’s interests are more important than any one individual’s interests.

At issue is whether the funds were used for the interests of the party or for ‘personal gain’. The alleged amounts in Najib’s bank account have created shockwaves, as Umno leaders know that even in the massive election giveaways in GE 2013, this sort of money did not all go down the patronage network.

As Najib has been a public figure since entering politics at the age of 23, his immediate family’s opulent lifestyle – best embodied by reports of his wife’s jewelry and shopping expeditions – has long been subject of criticism and questioned.

Sharp contrasts have been made between Najib’s wealth and his father’s in recent past. Key will be whether Umno decides that Najib as prime minister, the country’s leader, crossed the line of acceptability in the reported alleged embezzlement. Umno does not appear to have a moral compass, but it is said that even among alleged thieves there is a sense of honour.

The evaluations and investigation will be crucial in shaping perceptions, with potential efforts at discrediting the charges, ‘containment’ and ‘cover-up’, further reducing Najib’s ground and eroding Umno’s national standing.

A Pandora’s box has been opened that could put Umno under even more scrutiny, with pre-election deals closely examined and future deals canceled altogether, affecting the financial bottom-line of Umno’s now wealthy businessmen. The reality is that Umno is seen as already infected with the cancer of corruption, but the decision will be whether to opt for needed surgery for the party’s survival.

The young and old

The important individuals swaying these division chiefs will be senior leaders within Umno – those who have national standing and the groomed new generations of leaders in the party. The backroom meetings have been ongoing and will continue with the clamour of grassroots, as public denials of wrongdoing are not as easily dismissed in discussions behind closed doors.

Most attention has centred on Mahathir, who has been demonised by the very people he groomed and mentored in politics for his relentless attacks on Najib. Yet there are others who have influence and they recognise the seriousness of these issues for Malaysia’s standing beyond self-interest.

These individuals include former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam, former Back Benchers Club chairperson Shahrir Samad, and the longest serving parliamentarian Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, among other statesman leaders. One of the most important of these senior leaders is Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who continues to wield considerable support among many current division chiefs within the party. These senior leaders now have the choice whether to lead and to move the country out of the crisis it is facing.

A third group inside Umno are the younger leaders. Umno Youth is sharply divided over Najib’s leadership, reflecting the pattern within Umno itself. A recent resignation in Johor connected to the ‘Nothing2Hide’ forum is illustrative.

Those in the cabinet representing the youth appear to remain loyal to Najib and in this loyalty are showing their political stripes, but the explosive revelations have widened differences inside this key party organ.

It is after all Umno’s younger leaders that have the most to lose if Najib’s leadership continues its declining trajectory, as their political (and economic) futures will be damaged. Some believe that Najib can weather this crisis, having faith in the ‘dodge and deny’ dynamic, but others realise that the majority of Malaysians see the crisis for what it is – one of the most damaging political events for Umno in the country’s history.

Internationally, Najib’s credibility has been seriously damaged and domestically, he has the lowest public support recorded in polling of any premier. Umno leaders are rightly asking themselves, do they want the person who represents their party to be a potential electoral liability.

The situation today is not just about Najib – it is about Umno, its future as the ruling party and self-touted role in protecting the nation. Umno stakeholders can take the country blindly down a path towards greater uncertainty and decline, one filled with increasing international disdain and disappointment with a weakening economy and major trust deficit from its people, or it can be on the right side of history.

Opportunity for opposition

Out of every crisis there is opportunity. Claims of the opposition in a ‘mess’ reflect the frustrations the electorate about the lack of a viable political alternative and the reality that the opposition has not lived up to public expectations.

Today, former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim remains in jail and the fight within the opposition has been about who to replace him rather than to push forward the principles of reform that won support for the opposition in the first place. Power and personality struggles have paralysed effective opposition leadership.

The 1MDB crisis provides an opportunity for the opposition to regroup. The responses to the scandal reveal those who are genuinely interested in reform. To date, the defence of Najib by PAS’s appointed ‘spiritual leader’ Haron Din showed a lack of moral principles, and an effective endorsement of corruption and embezzlement.

The response by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang was even worse, as his ‘call for witnesses’ revealed a complete lack of understanding of banking and modern electronic transactions – another indictment of how inappropriate these leaders are for moving Malaysia forward. By not standing up decisively on the right side of history, they have blatantly revealed that they cannot be part of an alternative leadership.

Members within PAS are increasingly recognising how much of a mistake they made in electing leaders who are more grounded in practices of Umno rather than the moral principles PAS was originally based on.

Beyond serving to weed out those who were not with the reform agenda, the scandal serves as common ground to reaffirm principles of institutional integrity, anti-corruption, public accountability and good governance. The scandal comes at a time of a weakening currency, rising inflation from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and arbitrary reduction of subsidies – in short when ordinary people are hurting.

Despite many citizens not understanding the details of the 1MDB scandal itself, Malaysians are increasingly negative about contemporary conditions, especially those with lower incomes, and recognise that the government is not doing enough to improve their lives. They want optimism and hope. They want leaders they can be proud of and trust.

The test now will be whether the opposition will focus on shared interests for the nation or continue to disappoint. So far, the opposition has engaged in the latter, with a lack of unity and unable to focus on the core issues involved. The pattern has been to go-it-alone, with PKR questioning the results of the 13th general election (as it has done in the past) and others focusing on the 1MDB money trail.

The dominant mode has been to attack, to score points for personal or individual party gain. There appears to be little collaboration and focus on what Malaysia needs – a clear path toward greater reform, political stability and economic confidence.

Perhaps darker days ahead

This crisis will reveal the capability, character and mettle of opposition and Umno leaders alike. New alliances are likely to form as well. In this mix, old responses of using ‘divide and rule’ (aka an Umno alliance with ulama PAS), demonising ‘chauvinist’ parties, fueling ethnic and racial tensions are also possible.

The defensive destructive political repertoires of the past will cast a shadow on the promise of the future. In this evolving dynamic, leaders will consistently be tested about whether they are on the right side of history.

Frustration and cynicism has set in among many in Malaysia. Cries that there is nothing that can be done reflect the deepening sense of a lack of political efficacy post-GE 2013.

This current scandal will mark a turning point for the public as well, one in which demands for reform will be pitted against calls for complacency, democracy over denial, good governance over greed. At issue will be Malaysia’s future.

The government’s defensive response to the WSJ reports by using threats and fear has not worked. Malaysians are no longer afraid of speaking out, of calling a spade for what it is. A younger generation’s view of politics is being shaped and one can be sure they want leaders in office who represent their ideals and dreams.

Ordinary Malaysians in their judgements and assessments hold history in their hands. More than any group, the Malaysian public will serve as the country’s moral compass, by calling for truth and accountability, by asking for the dignity of the country to be restored and by reminding its leaders across the political divide that individuals in office represent and serve them, not themselves.

The current scandal may indeed appear to be one of Malaysia’s darkest times, and it cannot be ignored that there is the potential for even darker days ahead in the evolution of this crisis. But there are choices that can be made at multiple levels that can put the country on the right side of history.

BRIDGET WELSH is Senior Research Associate of the Center for Democratic Studies at National Taiwan University, an Associate Fellow of The Habibie Center and a University Fellow at Charles Darwin University.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 5:47 am and is filed under
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Musa Hitam can be caretaker Prime Minister if agreement can be reached for him to be elected to Parliament in an early by-election or the search should look at other candidates like Tengku Razaleigh or someone from Sabah or Sarawak

Although it is more than a week since the publication in the Wall Street Journal  (WSJ)  previous Friday on July 3 that Malaysian government investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal accounts at AmBank in March 2013, Najib has failed to answer four simple questions, viz:

*Whether he has three personal accounts in AmBank;

*Whether some US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) of funds were deposited into his personal accounts in 2013 just before the dissolution of Parliament on April 3, 2013 in the run-up to the 13th General Election;

*If so, where the RM2.6 billion came from; and

*Where these RM2.6 billion have gone to.

I call on Najib to publicly answer these questions before Hari Raya, latest in his Hari Raya message, so that the 1MDB will not become the dominant subject during the Hari Raya holidays and in the weeks leading up to the 58th Merdeka anniversary on August 31 and 53rd Malaysia Day anniversary on Sept. 16, 2015.

Najib had never  denied that he had personal bank accounts or that RM2.6 billion had been deposited into them, but he had repeatedly denied that he had taken funds for personal gain.

What does this mean?

Is Najib suggesting that the RM2.6 billion deposited into this personal bank accounts in AmBank had been used in the 13th General Election not for his own purpose, but for the campaigning of UMNO/BN candidates, including the Cabinet Ministers?

I call on Najib and all the Cabinet Ministers to declare that they had not profited from the funds deposited into Najib’s personal bank accounts in AmBank in March 2013 for their general election campaigning, or they would be guilty of gross conflict of interest if they participate in any decision-making relating to the WSJ report and allegation.

Human rights activist Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan suggested at the meeting of progressive MPs and NGO representatives at the Parliament Public Square on  Tuesday the formation of a caretaker government pending investigations into the serious WSJ allegation of Prime Ministerial misconduct.

However, if all the elected Cabinet Ministers had benefitted from the RM2.6 billion fund deposits in Najib’s personal bank accounts in the 13th General Election, then all the Cabinet Ministers except for the Senators should also be  disqualified from  continuing as Ministers pending the outcome of investigations.

This would mean the  appointment of a caretaker Prime Minister together with the formation of a caretaker Cabinet  as Najib and all the elected Ministers, including Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, are disqualified from continuing in their present Cabinet positions because of conflict of interest until the outcome of investigations.

This would mean sourcing for a caretaker Prime Minister and caretaker Ministers pending investigations into the WSJ allegation about RM2.6 billion deposited into Najib’s personal bank accounts in AmBank in March 2013.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Tun Musa Hitam would be a good candidate to be caretaker Prime Minister, but he has to be elected into Parliament first as the Malaysian  Constitution stipulates that a Prime Minister must be a member of Dewan Rakyat.

I think Musa would be ideal candidate for caretaker Prime Minister if agreement could be reached for him to be elected to Parliament in an early by-election.

Otherwise, the search should look at other candidates like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, MP for Gua Musang and  senior UMNO veteran  or someone else from Sabah or Sarawak.

Malaysia is definitely in uncharted political waters and to deal with the unprecedented political crisis facing the country, Malaysians must be prepared to think the unthinkable and grapple with issue which they would dismiss as impossible or improbable  only a week or a month ago.

(Speech  at the Majlis Buka Puasa at Kampung Pendas Laut, Gelang Patah on Saturday, 11th July 2015 at 7 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 11:39 pm and is filed under
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Najib Razak’s links to Malaysia fund need  transparency

Financial Times

July 9, 2015

Prime minister is under pressure over allegations regarding 1MDB

Ever since Malaysia gained its independence from Britain in 1957, the country has been ruled without interruption by one party, the United Malays National Organisation.

After more than six decades in power, UMNO, which represents the Muslim Malay majority, has much to celebrate. Malaysia has the third-largest economy in Southeast Asia, and is an all-too rare example to the world of a moderate and democratic Muslim state. But UMNO’s longstanding grip on power is under threat, raising doubts about the country’s political stability.

One sign of the pressure on the ruling party came at the 2013 general election, when Anwar Ibrahim, leader of the three-party Pakatan Rakyat coalition, came close to toppling UMNO from power. Campaigning to reform Malaysia’s political system, which he stigmatised as ossified and corrupt, Mr Anwar’s performance was good enough to raise fears within UMNO about a possible defeat at the next election in 2018.

In February, the opposition was dealt a crippling blow when Mr Anwar was imprisoned for five years by a court on sodomy charges —a case widely seen as politically motivated. Now, UMNO faces a new challenge that may be harder to brush aside. Allegations surfaced last week that almost$700m from 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB, a state investment fund, was paid into a bank account in the name of Najib Razak, the prime minister. The premier has denied taking money from 1MDB or any other public funds. But his long-ruling predecessor Mahathir Mohamad recently called on Mr Najib to prove he did not pocket state cash, adding that in many other countries a leader in his position would have been forced to step down.

Concerns over 1MDB, which is 100 per cent owned by the finance ministry and was set up by Mr Najib in 2009, have intensified in recent months. The fund was created with the aim of developing new industries and turning the capital, Kuala Lumpur, into a global financial hub. But it has financed itself through issuing debt, and today owes more than$11bn.

Concerns grew this year when the fund rescheduled debt repayments and had to rely on a $1bn  capital injection from an Abu Dhabi state fund to repay other loans. Here, too, Mr Mahathir has been on the attack, saying 1MDB borrowed too much and lacks transparency.

Mr Mahathir’s personal motives for speaking in this way are unclear, but his warning should be heeded. Mr Najib’s government should launch an independent investigation into 1MDB, one that throws a spotlight on its operations and investments. It must determine whether the prime minister, or any other individual or organisation, directly profited from the fund in any way.

The Malaysian government should understand why such transparency is needed. The economy may have performed well in 2014, with 6 per cent growth. But foreigners own about 40 per cent of Malaysia’s public debt. Worries the government may have to bail out 1MDB are preying on these investors and helped to push the ringgit to a 16-year low against the dollar this week.

In the meantime, UMNO’s leadership needs to contemplate Malaysia’s future more broadly.

The party’s six decade-long rule appears to have inculcated in its leaders a sense that they are somehow both indispensable to and indivisible from the state. Both the imprisonment of Mr Anwar and the apparent stalling over 1MDB give the impression of a party that denies the possibility of losing power.

UMNO should change course before it steers Malaysia into dangerous waters.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 9:59 am and is filed under
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New Islamist party has higher purpose than hudud, says Mujahid

Looi Sue-Chern

The Malaysian Insider

11 July 2015

The new political party being mulled by a group of “purged” progressive PAS leaders will take the position that Islam is bigger than just the Islamic penal code or hudud.

Former PAS central committee member Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa said Islam instructed its believers to preserve the greater peace, instead of bulldozing laws.

“This was why the late spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat put hudud on hold. He understood this very well. He knew that the issue had not been settled.

“Is hudud everything? It is just a criminal law,” he told The Malaysian Insider in an interview at his office in Parit Buntar.

Mujahid, when asked about the new party’s stand concerning hudud, said that there were bigger things in Islam than hudud, such as creating a better life for the people.

“You do that not by introducing Islamic criminal laws to curb crime. You fight for causes like minimum wage and reducing crime rates. All that has to be made part of the agenda.

“That is our stand when it comes to hudud… that was why they branded me as anti-hudud,” he said.

Mujahid, who is one of the most recognisable PAS leaders and known for his interfaith work to promote unity and harmony between Muslims and non-Muslims, said hudud needed to be viewed within the legal framework of the country.

“You have to balance between the legal framework and hudud as a requirement within the shariah criminal code. To implement hudud, you must look at the legal framework. To do that you must go through the democratic process.

“Talking about the process, you need to know what is the authority and jurisdiction you have. A state has the power but it is limited by the Shariah Courts Act, which states that the maximum punishment a state’s shariah court can sentence is three years’ jail, RM5,000 fine and six strokes of the rotan (whipping).

“When you look at that, you have to be practical as to how to go about it. You have to go through the democratic process and once you do that, you will also have to accept the result whether it (hudud) can be implemented or not.

“For our ‘Gerakan Harapan Baru’ (new hope movement), we look at hudud in that context. Not just a rhetoric, emotional or sensational thing,” the Parit Buntar MP said.

In the hudud bill to amend the Kelantan Shariah Criminal Code II enactment, among the penalties were the amputation of limbs, stoning and death.

However, it was recently reported that PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang’s private member’s bill to the Dewan Rakyat to amend the Shariah Courts Act did not include those punishments.

The hudud issue was the straw that broke the camel’s back, leading to the recent collapse of the opposition pact Pakatan Rakyat made up of PAS, PKR and DAP.

In March, the PAS government in Kelantan tabled and passed its hudud bill at the state assembly and incurred the wrath of DAP, which had always been against the implementation of hudud.

After heated exchanges between the two parties, PAS at its muktamar last month “purged” its PR-friendly progressive leaders and replaced them with conservatives from the ulama faction, before severing ties with DAP, which in turn declared the PR coalition dead.

As the progressives move towards its new party ambition, Mujahid said its constitution would clearly define its Islamic base and policy, and that they would also honour the Federal Constitution, the multiracial and multicultural identity and the common interest of the people.

He said although the party would use Islam as its guide towards nation-building, it would be more inclusive, as dictated by Islam.

“We want to present Islam differently from PAS. The issue now is people look at PAS and feel that the party no longer promotes Islamic aspirations.” – July 11, 2015.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 11 July 2015, 10:02 pm and is filed under
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After ‘failed’ PAS, Mat Sabu says new party will be Malaysia’s Islamic Renaissance ‘beacon’

by Kamles Kumar

Malay Mail Online

July 11, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — PAS’s ousted progressives plan to muscle their way ahead of the Islamist party back to the forefront of Malaysian politics with a new party one leader has described as a “beacon” of the Islamic Renaissance movement both locally and to the world.

The leader – Mohamad Sabu, who is more popularly known as Mat Sabu – said the current PAS leadership has deviated from the party’s original Islamic ideals, become corrupted by material wealth and lost its way.

The new yet-to-be-named movement of “new hope” or Gerakan Harapan Baru as it is referred to, will pick up the slack for the Islamist party, the former PAS deputy president said.

Speaking to Malay Mail Online in an interview yesterday, Mat Sabu said what he wants is to reunite “akidah” (creed) with “akhlak” (morals), both of which he said have been separated from one another due to corruption and materialism.

“If this new party is just to replace Umno or PAS, I don’t agree. But we must introduce that akidah and akhlak must go together in this party.

“Our akidah and akhlak is separated already. Now my struggle is I want to combine both of these back,” Mat Sabu said.

But the outspoken leader who, along with PAS’s progressive faction, was routed out from the party during its last internal polls, said the struggle must look beyond geographical boundaries.

He said Islamic movements from around the world like those in Afghanistan, Turkey, Iran, as well as Malaysia have failed for the past three decades to unite its people.

“The whole of the Muslim world must reintroduce the Islamic movement or the Islamic struggle because it has failed for more than thirty years.

“The renaissance or the re-emergence of the Muslim world must happen. It has not happened but people still have high hopes it will,” he told Malay Mail Online.

“I have talked to a few intellectuals locally and internationally, they agree that we must reintroduce the Islamic movement to the Ummah. So this new party will come up to do that,” he told Malay Mail Online in an interview yesterday.

Mat Sabu said those in “Gerakan Harapan Baru” are still fine-tuning the details of the new party’s formation on matters like whether its members would include non-Muslims and its formal name.

“Harapan Baru is not the name of the party but is the name of group that is behind the movement. We call it “Harapan Baru” until the new party appears, we might include the word Islamic in the name.

“We are still discussing between ourselves if it is going to be a Malay Muslim based party. We are like PAS but with a change in structure. It is not detailed yet but maybe we don’t have a Dewan Ulama or Syura Council,” he added.

Mat Sabu, claims that the group, which comprises leaders like Parit Buntar MP Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa and former Kuala Selangor MP Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, has also not decided just yet who will lead the party.

For the time being, he said the movement only has a steering committee.

Mat Sabu, despite having been a PAS member for three decades, said he was not afraid that the new initiative might cost him his membership in the Islamist party.

He said he has accepted the likelihood that he would be sacked from PAS once the new party is formed.

The leader even cheekily said that being sacked was something he was hoping for.

“That is good, that is something I have been waiting for. I don’t think he (PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang) will,” he said and laughed out loud.

Talks of the Gerakan Harapan Baru, which in English means “a movement of new hope” started emerging after the last Muktamar where 18 of the PAS progressives were ousted from the central committee.

The party elections, also saw the Islamist party severing ties with DAP which led to the makeshift opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat being declared dead.

Most of the progressives banded together with support from other component parties like DAP and PKR to set up a new party that seeks to replace PAS as the Malay-Muslim grassroots party in order to form a new bloc.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 12 July 2015, 5:32 am and is filed under
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DAP has made progress in ‘Malay-nisation’

By
Kow Gah Chie and Adrian Wong
 | 9:29AM Jul 9, 2015

Malaysiakini

INTERVIEW
 In the attempts to get rid of its Chinese-based party label, DAP’s pro-Malay approach has caused some anxiety among certain members who feel the party may gone overboard for the ‘hypercorrection’.

To this, DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said he wasn’t aware the party was now being perceived as pushing too hard towards being a Malay-friendly party.

“I am not aware. But whatever it is, we will continue to promote DAP as a Malaysian party. That will be the general answer,” he said in an interview with Malaysiakini last Thursday.

“At least, from being seen as a very pro-Chinese party to a very pro-Malay party, DAP is making some progress,” he quipped.

The party fielded Dyana Sofia Mohd Daud for the Teluk Intan by-election last year, with tudung-clad Syefura Othman and Jamila Rahim being among the young Malays roped in by the party.

And three days before DAP unilaterally announced the demise of Pakatan Rakyat, national laureate A Samad Said, who is fondly known as Pak Samad, was recruited into the party.

PAS member Sheikh Omar Ali also joined the party after the progressive faction in PAS was completely thrown out in the Islamist party’s leadership elections early last month.

Insiders point out this was construed as DAP being adamant to secure more Malay votes, since its move to sever ties with PAS would erode support for it from the Malay community.

‘We have kept the faith’

Analysts note that since the 13th general election, DAP has been actively reaching out to Malay voters, triggering a ‘Blue Ocean vs Red Ocean’ debate in the party.

“You have these two of the spectrum. What is important is that the party must give faith to the objective of being a Malaysian party,” explained Lim, who is also Gelang Patah MP.

The veteran politician reiterated that DAP remained a multiracial party and the uphill battle it faced would continue because of the reality of racial politics in the country that is spearheaded by BN and Umno.

In the midst of this, DAP and its leaders are slandered  and made the butt of various accusations, he added.

“There is a picture saying, ‘Lim Kit Siang is a communist’, with me wearing a five-star cap, so that I am to be regarded as anti-Malay, anti-Islam.

“DAP is accused of wanting to have a Christian state, I am accused of causing May 13… the impression is there and we are accused of being anti-Malay,” he said.

“It’s so easy to give up and become a Chinese party, but we have kept faith in the Malaysian objective and we soldier on,” Lim said.

“Do you know that in 1969, we had more Indian MPs than MIC? So that question is very peculiar isn’t it? Even at present, I think we have more Indian MPs than MIC,” he added, laughing.

However, the veteran opposition figure claimed he had been ignorant on the timing of Pak Samad joining the party, three days before Pakatan’s so-called demise as decreed by DAP.

“You seem to know more about me or DAP. I don’t know. I didn’t realise that,” he retorted.

“He (Pak Samad) said he wants to be a ‘slave’ (hamba). But we don’t want a mascot or slave,” he said.

Guan Eng’s term expiring

In an interview with Malaysiakini, Pak Samad, 80, said he was old and was no longer interested in obtaining party posts or to contesting in a general election, saying that he was willing to be a ‘DAP slave’.

“Whether Malay or non-Malay, young or old, man or woman, we want everyone to be able to contribute to the process of political change,” Lim said.

“Similarly, I am sure Pak Samad (photo) would be able to garner his experiences and his abilities for the cause of bringing a new Malaysia.”

With 37 parliamentary seats and 106 state assembly seats in hand, the country’s second biggest party after Umno must explore non-Chinese votes, particularly Malay, Kadazan-Dusun and Dayak votes, to achieve a bigger gain in the next general election.

However, this is also subject to how well the party’s succession plan goes as Lim’s son, Guan Eng, has to step down as party secretary-general, a post he held since September 2004.

This because the party constitution puts a maximum three-term restriction on a person holding the post of secretary-general.

Guan Eng therefore has to step down by September 2016 at the the latest. The mandate of the current 13th Parliament expires in 2018.

Lim dodged the question related to the party leadership succession plan, and whether Guan Eng’s (photo) absence from the post of secretary-general would have an impact the opposition’s plan to take Putrajaya.

“I have to look at the constitution. I am not following very closely on the party’s development. I have to check on that.

“You think I am masterminding everything? I am not,” he responded, and laughed while repeating that he would look into the matter.

Next generation leaders all set

Nevertheless, Lim said the party would face no problem in getting a successor to take over from Guan Eng, at any time.

He said this was because DAP did not lack frontline leaders to helm the party in facing the next general election.

“DAP does have quite a lot of new leaders. You don’t see anyone?” he asked.

The veteran party leader may have been referring to publicity secretary Tony Pua, organising secretary Anthony Loke, vice-chairperson Teresa Kok, political education director Liew Chin Tong, assistant treasurer Nga Kor Ming or assistant publicity secretary Zairil Khir Johari.

Lim, 74, also spoke about the political legacy he wanted to leave behind and how he wanted Malaysians to remember him.

“I think it’s the same thing that all DAP leaders have fought, struggled and sacrificed for and that is a  Malaysia which everyone fully identifies with, a country that is progressive, prosperous, just and free.

“Where we can, we fully explore our potential. I think that’s not just Karpal’s legacy, it will be legacy of all DAP leaders,” he said.

Lim was referring to the late DAP chairperson Karpal Singh, who died in a road accident in 2014. His funeral saw more than 15,000 Malaysians turning up to pay their last respects.

Lim concluded that he wanted to be remembered as  a leader who had  done something that was worthwhile and worthy for the betterment of all Malaysians.

“This will be good enough,” he said.

Part 1:
Door for PAS still open, says Kit Siang

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 12 July 2015, 9:48 am and is filed under
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DAP, NGOs fight the monsoon clock to raise RM2.5m for Kuala Krai flood victims

BY
MELISSA CHI

The Malay Mail Online

Saturday July 11, 2015

11:28 PM GMT+8

The DAP organised a fundraising dinner July 11, 2015 for its Gabungan Impian Kelantan project aiming to build 40 new homes for the village of Guchil whose occupants were displaced by last year’s floods. — Pix by Choo Choy May

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — With just four months to go before the northeast monsoon hits Malaysia’s east coast, DAP and several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are in a race against time to raise the RM2.5 million needed to rebuild homes for villagers in Kuala Krai who were badly hit by last year’s floods.

In the first phase of their campaign, dubbed the Gabungan Impian Kelantan, the participating parties hope to build 40 new homes for the village of Guchil whose occupants were displaced last year when muddy waters hit the state.

Collectively, the two-phase project will cost about RM3.2 million. During a fundraising dinner tonight at SRJK (C) Chung Kwo here, campaigners collected an impressive RM650,000.Seputeh MP Teresa Kok during the Gabungan Impian Kelantan fundraising dinner, July 11, 2015.

Seputeh MP Teresa Kok during the Gabungan Impian Kelantan fundraising dinner, July 11, 2015.

According to DAP’s Teresa Kok, it could take anywhere between six months to a year to raise the remaining RM2.55 million needed to build the homes.

But time is not something the Kuala Krai victims have, especially with the monsoon season around the corner in November.

“These people living at the roadside in tents could all be wiped out again and you will go up and help them again,” she said in her speech at the banquet hall.

Last month, the government revealed in Parliament that it has only built 33 houses in Kelantan.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had pledged to build 1,834 houses when he visited the PAS-led state during the floods.PAS’s Kuala Krai MP Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli speaking at the fundraising dinner July 11, 2015 for the Gabungan Impian Kelantan project.

PAS’s Kuala Krai MP Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli speaking at the fundraising dinner July 11, 2015 for the Gabungan Impian Kelantan project.

PAS’s Kuala Krai MP Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli told the crowd that he felt very lucky for the attention his constituency has received in the aftermath of the flood crisis.

“Kuala Krai is just an area in a rural area and we were doing the worst in Malaysia from development and this was before the floods, Kuala Krai was already been noted by a study by the government of Malaysia based on a long running data, Kuala Krai is the least developed district in the whole country.

“Surely we are very sad about that, we are very embarrassed but that is the reality and then came the flood and whatever they have, almost totally demolished by the floods,” he said.

He added that almost 2000 people had lost their homes, although he noted that only one, and not more lives were lost.

Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan offered her support during the Gabungan Impian Kelantan fundraising dinner, July 11, 2015. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Mohd Hatta also expressed gratitude to DAP leaders such as Kok, adviser Lim Kit Siang and Anthony Loke who have visited Kuala Krai multiple times after the floods

“The 40 houses mean a lot to my people. I hope the efforts made by Teresa and the gang will be successful and us in Kelantan, we feel very thankful and grateful and we hope Allah will give us good results so that as humans, we would live together in peace,” he said.

Former Bersih 2.0 co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan and DAP’s new member and national laureate Datuk A. Samad Said also offered their support tonight and addressed the crowd.

The houses for Gabungan Impian Kelantan each cost an estimated RM50,000 and will be built on five acres of land in Kampung Sungai Mas in Kuala Krai, Kelantan.

In the new village, Gabungan Impian Kelantan will also be building facilities fit for an entire community like a public hall, playground and even an aquaponics pond to farm fish and cultivate water plants.

New DAP member Pak Samad speaking during the launch of the Gabungan Impian Kelantan project.

The Impian Kelantan initiative comes amid criticisms levelled against Putrajaya and the Kelantan state government for moving too slowly in the rebuilding of homes, with Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim telling Parliament on Tuesday that only 33 homes have been built for the 1,900 flood victims so far.

Previously, Putrajaya had said that of the 261 units of new permanent houses to be built by the federal government for flood victims in Kelantan, 168 will be handed over before Aidilfitri, in late August.

The 261 units are part of the first phase of 1,255 housing units to be built by the federal government for flood victims in Kelantan.

The remaining houses will be built by the Kelantan government.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 12 July 2015, 4:00 pm and is filed under
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DAP’s door open to all Malays who share the Malaysian Dream of an united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia for all Malaysians

(Scroll down for English text)

Pintu DAP terbuka untuk semua orang Melayu yang mahu kepada Impian Malaysia yang bercita-cita untuk mewujudkan Malaysia yang bersatu, inklusif, progresif, adil dan makmur untuk semua rakyat Malaysia

DAP mempunyai lebih ramai Ahli Parlimen dan Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri dari kaum India berbanding dengan MIC – sama ada pada hari ini atau pada tahun 1969 apabila DAP bertanding pilihanraya umum buat kali pertama.

Selepas PRU13, DAP mempunyai enam Ahli Parlimen dan 13 ADUN dari kaum India mewakili Pulau Pinang, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Selangor dan Pahang.

Sebaliknya, MIC hanya mempunyai empat Ahli Parlimen dan lima ADUN walaupun tiada siapa akan tahu berapa ramai lagi Ahli Parlimen dan ADUN MIC yang akan tinggal selepas krisis dalaman yang sedang dialami oleh parti itu sekarang.

Tetapi DAP bukan parti kaum India.

Selepas PRU13, DAP mempunyai 30 Ahli Parlimen dan 89 ADUN dari kaum Cina yang mewakili 10 daripada 13 negeri di Malaysia – jauh lebih ramai daripada MCA yang hanya tinggal menjadi “parti 7-Eleven”, iaitu tujuh Ahli Parlimen dan 11 ADUN, manakala Gerakan cuma tinggal dua Ahli Parlimen dan tiga ADUN.

Tetapi DAP bukan parti kaum Cina.

Sejak awal lagi sewaktu penubuhan DAP hampir 50 tahun lalu, DAP telah berikrar untuk menjadi parti rakyat Malaysia yang bersungguh-sungguh mahu memenuhi perjuangan semua rakyat, tanpa mengira kaum, agama atau wilayah.

Inilah sebabnya DAP menjadi parti politik seMalaysia untuk semua rakyat Malaysia yang pertama, aktif dalam kerja-kerja politik di semua negeri sebelum parti-parti lain berbuat demikian, termasuk yang berada di pihak Barisan Nasional.

Inilah juga sebabnya mengapa sejak pilihanraya umum pertama yang ditandingi oleh DAP pada 1969, DAP telah meletakkan calon pelbagai kaum, dan sejak itu selama berdekad-dekad lamanya, kita telah mempunyai Ahli Parlimen dan ADUN dari kalangan orang Melayu.

Dalam masyarakat pelbagai kaum dan agama di Malaysia di mana mudah sekali orang memainkan serta mengapi-apikan sentimen kaum dan agama, dan apa yang berlaku kebelakangan ini adalah kesan daripada polarisasi kaum, jalan yang diambil oleh sesebuah parti pelbagai kaum adalah sukar lagi perit.

Namun, setelah hampir lima dekad, DAP tetap berpegang kepada matlamatnya untuk menjadi parti kepada semua rakyat Malaysia, dan bukan parti kepada kaum Cina atau India sahaja, walaupun DAP mempunyai lebih ramai wakil rakyat berbanding MCA atau MIC.

DAP perlu menggandakan usaha untuk menyambut kehadiran orang Melayu yang berjiwa demokrat menyertai perjuangan Malaysia untuk rakyat Malaysia.

Sebagaimana pintu DAP terbuka untuk kaum Cina, India, Kadazandusun dan Iban yang mahu kepada Impian Malaysia, pintu DAP juga sentiasa terbuka kepada orang Melayu yang mahu berkongsi Impian Malaysia; impian yang mahu melihat rakyat Malaysia bersatu, inklusif, progresif, adil dan makmur.

Saya berharap untuk melihat lebih ramai orang Melayu berjuang bersama DAP berganding tangan dengan orang Cina, India, Iban dan Kadazandusun, tanpa mengira kaum, agama atau wilayah, bagi mencapai cita-cita Malaysia di mana kita sama-sama boleh berbangga dengan pentadbiran baik yang mampu menjamin hak politik, ekonomi, pendidikan, sosial, budaya dan kerakyatan yang adil, dan di mana kebebasan demoktratik, kemajuan ekonomi, jaminan keselamatan peribadi, hak asasi dan penjagaan alam sekitar menjadi agenda utama kerajaan semasa.

(Ucapan di majlis berbuka puasa di Kampung Pendas Laut, Gelang Patah pada Sabtu, 11 Julai 2015)

—————————————————–

(English text)

DAP has more Indian Members of Parliament and State Assembly representatives than MIC – today as well as in the 1969 when the DAP contested our first general election.

After the 13th General Election, DAP had six Indian MPs and 13 Indian State Assembly representatives in Penang, Perak, Negri Sembilan, Selangor and Pahang.

In contrast, MIC  has four MPs and five State Assembly representatives in Malaysia and nobody knows how many MPs and State Assembly representatives MIC would have left after  the dust has finally  settled on the prolonged MIC internecine feud and strife.

But DAP is not an Indian political party.

In the 13th General Election, DAP elected 30  Chinese Members of Parliament and 89 Chinese State Assembly representatives in 10 of the 13 states in Malaysia –  far ahead of MCA which was reduced to  a 7/11 political party with seven MPs and 11 Stare Assembly representatives or the Gerakan’s 2/3 political score of two MPs and three State Assembly representatives.

But DAP is not a Chinese political party.

Right from the very beginning during DAP’s formation  50 years ago, DAP pledged to be a Malaysian party dedicated to serve the cause of all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region.

This is why DAP is the first Pan-Malaysian political party in the country, active in political work in all states in the country before any other political party, including those from the Barisan Nasional.

This is also why right from the very first general election fought by the DAP in 1969, DAP had fielded  a multi-racial slate of candidates, and over the decades since 1969, we had elected Malay Members of Parliament and State Assembly representatives.

In multi-racial and multi-religious Malaysia, where it is so easy to pander and even incite racial and religious sentiments, as is  unfortunately the case with recent political developments resulting in the worst racial and religious polarisation in the nation’s history, the  road of a multi-racial Malaysian political party  is a hard and arduous one.

However, for close to five decades, DAP has kept faith with the  goal to be a political party for all Malaysians, and not to be a party for Chinese or Indians only  although the DAP had more  Indian MPs and State Assemblymen than MIC or more Chinese MPs  and State Assembly representatives than the “7/11” MCA.

DAP needs to redouble our efforts to welcome like-minded Malays to join in the DAP’s Malaysian cause.

Just as DAP’s door is open to Chinese, Indians, Kadazans and Ibans in Malaysia who share in the common Malaysian Dream, DAP’s door  is always open to Malays who share the Malaysian Dream of an united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia for all Malaysians.

I look forward to more Malays joining the Chinese, Indians, Ibans and Kadazans in the party to fight the Malaysian cause where all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region, can walk tall as there is good governance with all citizens assured of their  basic political, economic, educational, social, cultural and citizenship rights  and where democratic freedoms, economic progress, personal safety, human rights and environmental concerns are the top priority agenda of the government of the day.

[Speech (2) at the Majlis Buka Puasa at Kampung Pendas Laut, Gelang Patah on Saturday, 11th July 2015 at 7 pm]

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