Najib does not disappoint

By
Tunku Aziz

Datuk Seri Najib Razak does not disappoint. He is true to his values whatever they might be. He upholds his principles with messianic zeal. His principles are of indeterminate provenance, but Najib is not known to worry himself to distraction over such small matters. He has made many of us happy. It has nothing to do with his 1 Malaysia vision that he seems incapable of articulating to save his life, let alone convincing Malaysians who have decided that half a century of untruths and specious, convoluted political and social arguments should be more than enough for even the most sanguine of them.

Najib has made us happy not because in a fit of mental aberration or misplaced exuberance he has added to his fantasy world the even a more preposterous 1 World vision that flashed across his mind. I bet it was a very brief moment in time. Najib has made us deliriously happy because he has just done something blatantly cynical to confirm what we have known all along about his attitude to corruption. Najib does not disappoint.

His choice of Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad as the BN candidate for the Bagan Pinang by-election has left absolutely no doubt in our minds about Najib’s real attitude to corruption. He, ever the pragmatic, suave man about town leader of a country already systematically mired in corruption, sees it as nothing more that a necessary evil. If you cannot fight it, join it.

His matter of fact response that “Even those convicted by the courts get another chance” must surely single him out, like a sore thumb even among the corrupt leaders of 1 Malaysia, as someone totally devoid of ethical values. It also points to a complete lack of the political will to curb corrupt practices in our country. The gap between his rhetoric and constructive action against corruption is growing ever wider under Najib. Just in case he forgets, the Kuala Lumpur-based diplomatic corps and the wider international community are watching this development with some concern. Najib does not disappoint.

Bagan Pinang is a little backwater of a community on the Negri Sembilan coast. However, the choice of a candidate that even Umno, the party that sits well with corruption and takes it in its stride, was constrained to discipline marks a low point indeed. The much detested and reviled corruption-tainted and Isa has now been declared perfectly “kosher” to represent the country’s ruling coalition. Politics is indeed the art of the possible.

Can we trust a government that is prepared to trade integrity? And for a rural state assembly seat which, the winning or losing of which, is not going to have a material effect on the political fate of BN in overall terms? I, unlike Najib, do not subscribe to the second chance dispensation because political corruption will ravage national values and systems. Are we blind to the fact that it was Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s special brand of corrupt political stewardship, now still in place unfortunately, that has stifled our potential for dynamic growth, and kept us, in spite of the resources at our disposal, at the wrong end of the global competitiveness league table?

Political corruption if not dealt with decisively will destroy our nation because the national decision-making processes will be distorted and manipulated. “State capture” by corrupt elements will be the end result. We cannot allow the country’s future to be hijacked by unprincipled politicians, by default. Fighting corruption is our individual and collective responsibility as citizens. It cannot be left to the tender mercies of the corrupt in the corridors of power.

Now that Najib has dropped all pretence of queasiness about bedding down with corruption, he could do us all a big favour and save taxpayers a lot of money by closing down the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the National Institute of Integrity and all the other related agencies because he has made his position on corruption so clear. They are of no use to man or beast.

And while we are about it, Najib may want to propose a general amnesty for all who have been convicted of corruption as well as those who have committed corrupt acts, but lucky enough not to be caught. This is totally consistent with his belief that the corrupt deserve a second chance, an official passport to Najib’s 1 Malaysia where anything goes and the devil looks after his own. Najib does not disappoint.

Malaysians are now being treated to a display of arrogance unprecedented in the history of BN administration, and the choice of Isa, in all the circumstances, flies in the face of what little is left that is decent and honourable in our national life, worth preserving. Even by Umno’s and, by extension, Najib’s own standards, this is a very low point, and that is putting it charitably. Najib does not disappoint.

Little Bagan Pinang will without a doubt deliver the seat that Najib so devoutly yearns to have. He needs it to prop his shaky leadership. Bagan Pinang will in the end be remembered in history as the place where Umno lost its moral bearing, credibility and legitimacy to lead the Malays. Umno’s ugly nakedness in surrendering ethical values and principles to political expediency is here for all to see: it will be its undoing. Najib does not disappoint. He never does!

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 10 October 2009, 11:58 am and is filed under
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Three reasons why Najib should officially withdraw the 1Malaysia slogan from the Barisan Nasional Bagan Pinang by-election campaign before polling tomorrow

Election Commission has been taking down billboards and banners put up by Pakatan Rakyat in the Bagan Pinang by-election which offend their sensitivities – like those which castigate the Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad for corruption because of his  history of Umno money politics and the BN government for its record of injustices and gross abuses of power.

If any by-election campaign material should be taken down in Bagan Pinang by-election, it is the 1Malaysia billboards, banners and buntings
ad nauseam
 flooding the constituency with giant portraits and slogans of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

There are at least three reasons why Najib should officially withdraw the 1Malaysia slogan from the BN Bagan Pinang by-election campaign before polling tomorrow.

Firstly, what 1Malaysia can the BN talk about in Bagan Pinang when there is even no 1Umno, 1MCA, 1MIC or 1BN?

If there is 1Umno, Isa would not have become the BN candidate in Bagan Pinang by-election as evident from the strong objections from former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir and Umno stalwart Tengku Razaleigh.

There is no 1MCA or there will be no MCA Extraordinary General Meeting today in a life-and-death battle between the Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and Datuk Seri Chua Soi Lek factions. What 1MCA when there were four separate dinners in Kuala Lumpur last night with 320 tables or 3,200 places prepared for the 2,380 MCA EGM delegates?

Is there 1MIC although there is still 1Samy Vellu! What 1MIC  when Najib is publicly giving his blessing for the establishment of another splintered party for the Malaysian Indians, the Makkal Sakti Party today?

When  is there is no 1Umno, 1MCA or  1MIC, where is the 1Barisan Nasional?

Secondly, half the voters of Malaysia or more than half the voters in Peninsular Malaysia rejected the Barisan Nasional in the political tsunami of the March 8 general election last year. This has robbed Najib of any legitimacy to claim the support of  all Malaysians for his 1Malaysia slogan and policy, which have proved to be largely similar to the very policies which had been repudiated in the 12th general elections. Instead of producing 1Malaysia, 52-years of Umno/Barisan Nasional rule have produced a Half(½)Malaysia or 2Malaysia — a clearly DividedMalaysia.

Thirdly, if Najib is trying to craft a new 1Malaysia policy to unite Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region, he should be inviting leaders of all political parties, whether in government or opposition, to reach a national consensus of a unifying overarching national policy accepted and recognized by the  overwhelming majority of Malaysians as capable of qualifying to be termed 1Malaysia.

The last thing he should do is to turn his 1Malaysia slogan and programme into a divisive partisan question to be trotted out in by-elections as campaign issues.

In the Permatang Pasir by-election, Najib’s 1Malaysia theme was the centrepiece of the Barisan Nasional campaign, with the constituency also flooded with posters, banners, buntings and billboards blaring out the same slogan.

Would Najib concede that the BN’s resounding defeat in the Permatang Pasir by-election signified an unmistakable rejection of his 1Malaysia motto – which would be quite an unique record for a new Prime Minister in having his signature policy suffering such  humiliating rejection in its first popular test.

DAP and Pakatan Rakyat are prepared to support a 1Malaysia slogan and policy which really unite Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region but not  one which is a mere camouflage for the continuation of the divisive and discredited BN policies of the past.

This is why Najib should officially withdraw the 1Malaysia slogan from the Barisan Nasional  Bagan Pinang by-election campaign before polling tomorrow to remove it from the realm of political contention and to place it in a proper nation-building context transcending political party differences.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 10 October 2009, 11:58 am and is filed under
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Bagan Pinang by-election is another “no-winner” for Barisan Nasional for second  consecutive day

The Bagan Pinang by-election is another  “no winner” for Barisan Nasional (BN)  for the second  consecutive day after the MCA Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) yesterday which booted out the two MCA contenders, MCA President Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and the MCA Deputy President Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek.

If  the BN candidate Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad loses  in the  Bagan Pinang by-election or is returned with a smaller majority than the 2,333-vote won by the previous BN incumbent  in the general elections last year, it is a clear defeat for Umno and BN as the by-election will be a mini-political tsunami by itself.

But even if Isa wins the Bagan Pinang by-election with a bigger majority than last year (and Isa is boasting about a 5,000-6,000 majority), it is an even bigger defeat for  Umno and Barisan Nasional for it will be a loud, clear  and unmistakable message to all Malaysians that Umno and BN are totally irredeemable and  incapable of  internal change and reform and there is choice or alternative whatsoever  for Malaysians in the next general elections to sweep Umno and BN out of power in Putrajaya.

I cannot agree more with Tun Mahathir and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah in their public objections to Isa’s candidature.

Mahathir said Umno and BN can win the battle in Bagan Pinang but they  will lose the war in the next general elections.

Tengku Razaleigh has been more direct when he said today that it is better if Umno lost today in the Bagan Pinang by-election as Isa’s victory  would translate into an endorsement for corruption-as-usual in UMNO and the Barisan Nasional government.

Razaleigh said: “For the good of the party, the dignity of the Malay community it claims to represent and for the sake of the nationwide reform in governance and politics that we must undergo, it would be better if Umno lost today, and used the loss to begin internal reform.

“Corruption is the scourge of the country. Umno is a step away from being identified with that scourge.”

This is why the Bagan Pinang by-election is  a“no winner” for  Umno/BN as it is a Umno/BN defeat if Isa wins with a smaller majority but an even bigger defeat with a bigger Isa majority!

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 11 October 2009, 3:09 pm and is filed under
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PR rout in Bagan Pinang by-election – PR must go back to drawing board

Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad’s victory in the Bagan Pinang by-election was not unexpected, as in the by-election, Isa the candidate  bulked larger than Barisan Nasional the party.

This is the cause for the comment that BN can win the battle in Bagan Pinang by-election but will lose the war in the country in the next general elections, for Isa’s victory despite his record of Umno money politics would be a clear and unmistakable message that Umno/BN could not be redeemed or reformed to play any meaningful role to cleanse the country of deep-rooted corruption.

What was unexpected was Isa’s 8,013-vote and thumping majority of 5,435 votes sweeping all the eight voting streams – the result of gross abuses of power, money politics as well as the postal ballot chicanery.

The rout suffered by Pakatan Rakyat in Bagan Pinang by-election should destroy the myth entertained by any quarter that Pakatan Rakyat is embarked on a invincible path to victory in the next general elections whether national or state.

With the rout in Bagan Pinang, Pakatan Rakyat must go back to the drawing board and address the many issues bedevilling the coalition but which had been swept under the carpet, aggravating public concerns about its unity, discipline, cohesion, viability and sustainability as the alternative of the Barisan Nasional for federal power in Putrajaya.

For a start, Pakatan Rakyat leaders must stop being shy about the need to demonstrate discipline and  common sense of purpose at all levels of Pakatan Rakyat as well as  have the courage to admit and to resolve any crisis of confidence undermining public support for the coalition.

                This entry was posted on Monday, 12 October 2009, 12:51 pm and is filed under
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Landslide victory or political immorality?

By Azly Rahman

Isa Samad’s second coming – into Minangkabau politics – signifies the coming of a disturbing age of loosening morality. What does a landslide victory mean? Will we see a kingdom of peace on earth that the Minangkabau people inhabited? Will this “landslide victory” of an avalanche of postal votes establish another forty years of the reign of One Malaysia?

Let us look at the semiotics of Bagan Pinang – of the sign, signifier and the signified of this by-election that is telling Malaysians something about the shape of things to come.

The Negri Sembilan people have spoken. They have voted for corruption to reign. What does the victory say about hegemony and political immorality?

Thus spake the Minangkabaus

Negri Sembilan politics is “Menang Kerbau” politics. Hence, the name Minangkabau. It’s a blood sport of Toros bullfighting, only that it is happening in a Third World country. Sometimes I do not know what all these mean – the elections, democracy, and the fierce struggle for regime change.

How must a corrupt regime be allowed to sustain itself? How must voters be allowed to continue to choose leaders that are corrupt to the bone? Political questions become philosophical musings – ultimately forces one to become an existentialist.

We are living in a world of cynicism and hopelessness. Of course, we do not expect every Malaysian to become an existentialist thinker and abandon the advancement of political will, but there must be a period in our evolution wherein we ought to step aside and think what is right and what is wrong in politics and how we address the question of meaningfulness, alienation, and revolution.

Existentialist thinkers such as Jean Paul Sartre, Franz Kafka, and Soren Kiekaargard have addressed the issue of human condition in a time of hopelessness and hegemony produced by the government of the day. In a world of big-time bullfighting – this “Menang Kerbau” and cowhead protest era – in which winning is a Machiavellian act, one is faced with an existential situation – what do all these mean?

Bagan Pinang was a game of high stakes and low stakes politics, as the anthropologist Clifford Geertz would put it, as analyzed in his work, “Deep Play: Notes on a Balinese cockfight”. It is an occasion to symbolize the arrogant return of the politics of despotism – of the decadence of that two-decade rule. In this sign of arrogance lies the symbolism of a world of money-media-machinery-mind control.

In this symbolism lies the signifier of the continuation of old school hegemony and yet another phase of its transition. In this continuum of sign, symbol, and signifier lies a representation; that the people of Bagan Pinang specifically and Negri Sembilan generally are still mesmerized by the spectacle of old school hegemony and blinded by the argument of the “technicality of corruption”.

If corruption can be turned into a technicist construct, what must other forms of expressions of dehumanization – the Internal Security Act, The University and University Colleges Act, The Official Secrets Act, etc. – be called? We will see more of the acts of rationalizing conducts that are blatantly irrational. How else can we explain police brutality, torture, religious intolerance, unexplained political murders, the rise of Malaysia’s Hitlerian youth, the nexus between politics and the underworld, and so forth?

Tsunami of political immorality

Existentialists have generally abandoned the hope for divine intervention in the resolution of deteriorating human condition. Conditions in French Algeria particularly during the Algerian War, and the aftermath of World War II gave an inspiration for philosophers and humanists like Albert Camus, Jean Paul Sartre, and Franz Kafka to lose hope in Fate to intervene.

But in our times, religion need not be an opiate for the masses, nor a ‘ganja’ for the delusional. From the experience of the liberation theologists in Latin America, South Africa, and the Philippines we can see the power of the collaboration between radical critical theorists and religious reconstructivists.

In the face of hegemony, such as in the outcome of Bagan Pinang in which landslide victories signify the march of big-time irrationality and political immorality, our own interpretation of liberation theology can be constructed between the revolutionary forces of change within the parties in the counter-hegemonic coalition.

What the rakyat want, to be part of a tsunami, is to wipe off corrupt individuals, institutions, installations, and ideologies that have become part of the landscape of even the Malaysian mind. What is needed is a reconstruction of the philosophy of counter-hegemony in this game of ‘Menang Kerbau’, or the Malaysian buffalo or cockfight so that the revolutionary and religious elements of radical change can be constructed and hence the chi or the inner harnessed energy, like in the training of the Shaolin warrior, can be harnessed and used to transform society.

As long as there is no reconstruction of this philosophy, race can still be used by the oppressors as a tool to dislodge, divide, disengage, and ultimately destroy the force of change.

Is Bagan Pinang the beginning of more landslide victories? Or is it a lull before a tsunami? As an existentialist, I would say that only time will tell, and only after there is a serious reconstruction in the philosophy of the forces of counter-hegemony.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 13 October 2009, 9:26 am and is filed under
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Major cover up of RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal at work?

I had posed a question on the “mother-of-all-scandals”, the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak on the first day of the budget meeting of Parliament beginning on Monday, 19th October 2009.

I have just been informed that this question had disappeared altogether from the list of oral questions for Monday’s meeting of Parliament.

Signs of major cover-up of the PKFZ scandal at work?

DAP MP for Segambut, Lim Lip Eng’s question on the PKFZ scandal has also disappeared from the forthcoming parliamentary list of questions.

This is the question on the PKFZ scandal which I had submitted:

“19th Oct 2009 Monday

“To ask the Prime Minister the outcome of 2007 Cabinet decision commissioning the Chief Secretary, Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister’s Department to look into various aspects of irregularities in the Port Klang Free Zone scandal, including unlawful issue of four Letters of Support.”

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 13 October 2009, 6:06 pm and is filed under
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The demise of KD Seri Inderapura

From Friend in Navy

Through
Hussein Hamid

Surprised? Shocked?

No I am not surprised because a ship sustained fire damage. Fire on board is indeed a normal thing. What I am surprised at is that it took a time-consuming eight-hours before the fire was brought under control! Eight hours! Surprised because the ability to fight and control any fire on board a Navy Vessel is ingrained and drummed into sailors on a daily basis. And I am shocked that despite this the destruction of KD Inderapura is so severe that the ship is categorized as  ‘beyond economical repair’ (BER).

KD Rahmat, a ’state of the art’ (then) frigate tailor-made specifically by the Malaysian government in the mid sixties (originally the KD Hang Jebat) frequently also experienced the same problems. A number of fires occurred while it was still under construction and even after it was handed over to RMN. However it is not as bad as that which befell KD Seri Inderapura.

If fact the fire incidents on KD Rahmat is the highest amongst all ships within the RMN.

KD Rahmat was completed three years later then scheduled. In fact KD Rahmat spend more time berthed at the Malaysian Base Jetty (MBJ) Woodlands then going on maneuvers. During 1976 to 1977, KD Rahmat spent only about one month at sea, sailing through the South China Sea in Sabah waters and Sarawak. It was also open to the  public in Rejang, Labuan and Tawau.

If my memory serves me right three fires occurred in that year which involved the generator, switchboard and the engine turbine. However these fires were brought under control within a very short time because of the ability of its crew to handle the emergency situations.

TLDM personnel from Lumut can surely still remember how every evening, training or ‘drill’ fire fighting is done on a daily basis. In KD TLDM base Malaya in Woodlands at 5 o’clock in the afternoon the duty  ‘officer of the day’ (OOD) will direct lascar work while all gathered before the nearby fire-brigade office. If you failed to meet the target time, OOD will direct it to be done again. And again. And repeated until done right!

This fire fighting drill is drummed into us on a daily basis because our ability to do this drill well will determine the safety of our Navy Vessels and the lives of its crew.

Fire fighting drill training was also practised on board our vessels. Names such as Lt Ooi more known as  ‘zero zero one’, Lt Teoh from RMNVR and Lt Khusaini are some of those OOD who were much revered and respected for their firmness and insistence that these drills must be done the correct way. These officers do not compromise on any aspect of the training.  There will not accept that “this …OOD ok. He slipshod aje…”. They understood that in fighting a fire on board a vessel every second is critical. The better the ‘fire fighters’ the better their ability to minimize destruction level.

Are there still Officers of this caliber in the Navy? Or are these Fire Fighting” drills being practised purely as a routine exercise without drumming into the trainees the critical aspect of their work – that time was critical in saving a Ship and lives? That their prowess as fire fighters will make the difference between saving a ship or will mean its destruction? It would seem that these exercises are now being carried out without the dedication and commitment present during the time of those officers that I have mentioned before.

Maybe that was the difference between KD Rahmat and  KD Seri Inderapura?

Usually, each ‘compartment’ in a ship will have its own portable fire extinguisher tool. The effectiveness of these fire extinguisher tools will depend on the ability of its fire fighters to do their work. A well-trained crew will be able to do their work in a controlled and rational way and will be able to bring a fire under control in the shortest possible time.

If the ‘fire fighters’ within KD Seri Inderapura were able to effectively use these fire extinguisher tools placed in their strategic ‘passage way’ and use the available roll hose fire extinguisher which uses sea water – then with these fire-fighting tools and well-drilled fire fighters,  KD Seri Inderapura would still be with us today.

The question today is were the ‘fire fighters’ within KD Seri Inderapura adequately trained? Why did it take eight hours for the fire on board to be brought under control? Were the water pump and the motors working when needed? Were the maintenance level and attitude of the personnel on board KD Seri Inderapura wanting in their ability to meet an emergency situation as the one that occurred and resulted in its demise?

These are the questions that the Navy needs to answer or has it been answered with the demise of KD Seri Inderapura?

Answers are needed here and this matter should not be swept under the carpet again.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 13 October 2009, 12:06 pm and is filed under
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My question on RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal for first day of Parliament on Monday has been kicked off to seven weeks later to Dec 3

My question on the
RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal
 for the first day of the budget session of Parliament on Monday, 19th October 2009 has been kicked off to seven weeks later to December 3 at the tail-end of the meeting, as if the PKFZ scandal is a trivial and inconsequential matter.

DAP MP for Segambut, Lim Lip Eng, had also submitted a question on the PKFZ scandal for the first day of Parliament on Monday, and his question had also be knocked off to Dec. 1, 2009.

I had slated to ask the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak in Parliament on Monday “the outcome of 2007 Cabinet decision commissioning the Chief Secretary, Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister’s Department to look into various aspects of irregularities in the Port Klang Free Zone scandal, including unlawful issue of four Letters of Support”.

Why is the Prime Minister not ready to answer this question on Monday?

This has reinforced my reservations about the Super Task Force into the PKFZ scandal set up by Cabinet in early September, headed by the Chief Secretary to the Government, Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan.

The question that needs answer is what had happened to the Cabinet decision two years ago that the Chief Secretary head an investigation into the PKFZ scandal, including “determining the type of misconduct or criminal element on the part of individuals or entities involved in the project and recommend actions to be taken against them”?

If the Cabinet decision in 2007 could have ended in a blank, what guarantees are there that the Super Task Force set up in September this year would be any different?

I do not want to get involved in the intensifying MCA power struggle but many are seeing any departure of MCA President and Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat as the effective end for any full accountability and transparency of the “mother-of-all-scandals”.

Are all the Cabinet Ministers, whether Umno, MCA or the Gerakan Minister in charge of KPI, prepared to give a categorical commitment that there will be no compromise in the full disclosure of the PKFZ scandal – whatever happens to the MCA power struggle?

The displacement of the two questions Lip Eng and I had submitted on the PKFZ sandal for the first day of Parliament on Monday to some five weeks later in December does not inspire confidence whatsoever that we will head in this direction.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 14 October 2009, 11:27 am and is filed under
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Will History be kind to Najib?

By
Hussein Hamid

Thirty years from now when Historians write about the 6th Prime Minister of Malaysia – what will they write about The Most Honourable Najib Tun Razak? Will they write of your contributions in making Malaysia a land of equality and opportunity for its entire people or will they write of your part in hastening the demise of UMNO? Will history tell of your time as Prime Minister as being a time of revival and the getting of wisdom for UMNO or will it tell of how UMNO under your watch managed to sink deeper into the abyss of corruption, greed and deception started by Mahathir? What will the historians write?

First they will write of the forced resignation of Abdullah Badawi half way into his second term as Prime Minister. They will comment on the part that Mahathir played in the removal of the very man that he himself appointed as his Deputy earlier. There will be mention of Mahathir’s former two Deputies, Musa and Anwar that was removed by Mahathir and Mahathir’s relentless pursuit of Anwar through a Judiciary that did his biddings. Those who read what is written can make their own judgement of the circumstances that led to these events. Those with hindsight of past events will make their own judgement of Mahathir tenure as Prime Minister. But that is another story to tell.

There will also be mention that this same ex Prime Minister son went against the son in law of the previous Prime Minister for the UMNO youth leader’s post and lost. They will also write that despite Mahathir’s son losing, you Najib, took him into your cabinet – and left the elected youth leader out of the cabinet. If the historians are not kind to you there will be mention that in all probability the appointment of Mirzan into the cabinet was to pay back Mahathir for the work he did in removing the previous Prime Minister from office so that you could take over sooner.

Now into the period immediately before you took over as Prime Minister.

First they will write that in the weeks before you took over the role of Prime Minister you engineered a coup to bring back the State of Perak (then under Pakatan Rakyat) back into the fold of UMNO. You made a deal with three opposition MPs. One a lady who was refused a new car by her party and that she out of spite made a deal with your party to cross over to the other side. The other two were MPs awaiting trial for corruption. There was also another MP who was with UMNO and had crossed over to the opposition. Then you came into the picture and with your ‘persuasive skills’ managed to persuade this MP back into the fold of UMNO. And in so doing, you brought Perak back into UMNO but not before the forced removal of the Perak Speaker from the Dewan Chambers by Police. For those historian who chose to delve deeper into what really happened in Perak methinks that they too will not be kind to your memory. They will conclude that Perak was merely part and parcel of the rot that was to come with your assumption of the PM role.

They will write about your party putting a disbarred lawyer as your candidate at a by-election in Permatang Pasir.

They will also write about your decision to put Isa Samad, already convicted for money politics by the UMNO disciplinary committee as UMNO’s candidate in Bagan Pinang. There will be a comment that the chosen candidate was once an UMNO Vice-President, a Federal Minister and ex MB of Negri Sembilan. That he was suspended for 6 years and then reduced to 3. There will be questions asked as to why Isa who was once MB of that State and a Federal Minister would want to still contest at district level. Again if the historians are not kind there will be mention of the rich pickings to be had once Isa was back again as one of UMNO’s ‘preferred’ leaders.

About KD Inderapura. That as if heaven itself was making your reign difficult the Navy Vessel was destroyed by fire. And here again a mention might be made by these historians that the standards within the Armed Forces including the Navy had deteriorated as a result of the top brass in the Armed Forces playing politics to ensure that they stay on the good side of the power that be in Government that decided their promotions – among other things.

About Razak Baginda. That this man was your friend and possible business partner. They will question the RM500 million payment for services rendered for the purchase of the submarines from the French. Of the fact that eventually the French were adamant that it was not a commission but a bribe paid to secure the deal. And as an integral part of this Submarine deal they will mention the murder of Altantuya at the hands of UTK – that special unit of the PDRM trained to guard VIPS and “do the bidding of VIPS?” I am sure there will be historians who will chose to delve deeper into this events and they will eventually get to the bottom of what really happened. I have a feeling that your complicity in the whole matter will be proven beyond a doubt. But that will be for your grandchildren to know.

They will write about your meeting with Saiful and how you attempted to ‘manage’ the imprisonment of Anwar again under the same sodomy charges that he had been acquitted of before. There will be mention of Saiful and yourself invoking the name of Allah to advance your case in this matter.

They will write about the loss of Public confidence in PDRM and in particular MACC. They will write about the death of  Teoh Beng Hock as being a defining moment in the history of MACC that finally led to it being consign to the same dustbin as the ACA.

There will be a special mention about the influence of Rosmah not only in your personal life but also in the affairs of state.

They will write of 1Malaysia and they will summarize it with this words. Like the Rukun Tetangga, Islam Hadhari…it was a failure and served as a façade to present non existence values without substance to the public – who were not in any way persuaded of their relevance.

All these factors they will summarise, contributed towards the fall of UMNO at the 13th General Elections.

What good can they write about your time as Prime Minister? Possibly they could mention the establishment of University Malaysia  Pahang. That the campus in Pekan was finally opened after many years of delay and budget overruns.

That you loosened some Financial control to encouraged foreign investment in areas that would not affect the Malays economically.

That Malaysia did enter the pinnacle of Motor sports with the F1 Team Malaysia – at a cost of a few hundred millions a year – financed by Petronas and Proton and fronted by your cronies. That this venture did eventually result in Petronas coming out with a new engine oil additive that would give better engine performance for Proton cars – but that that same result could have been achieved for much much less by employing the right people in its R&D department – but with less glory.

This has already happened Najib and you are not even into your first year of the Prime Ministership. What is to come? I think history will not be kind to you. History will show you for what you really are. The man who could have saved UMNO but instead hastened its demise within your first term as its President.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 14 October 2009, 12:55 pm and is filed under
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Are Najib, Muhyiddin and Umno leaders prepared to pledge that they are “Malaysian first, Malay second” in keeping with the 1Malaysia slogan?

The 1Malaysia logo dominated the Umno General Assembly and 1Malaysia is clearly the fad of the day in the speeches of the Umno President, Umno Deputy President and the leaders of Umno Youth, Wanita Umno and Puteri Umno.

But are all the Umno leaders, including the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin really serious and fully committed to the 1Malaysia slogan as the overarching national philosophy in nation-building?

Without  having to go into details, the first test of whether Najib, Muhyiddin and the Umno leaders are serious about 1Malaysia policy is whether they are prepared to set the example of being “Malaysian first, Malay second” for everyone to be Malaysian first and Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan or Iban second?

Although the proof of the pudding is in the eating, there is no need to get to the eating stage even.

Are Najib and all the Umno leaders prepared to make a public commitment that in keeping with the 1Malaysia motto, they pledge to be “Malaysian first, Malay second” just as all Malaysians should pledge to be Malaysian first and Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan or Iban second?

Can we get to this pledge stage of a 1Malaysia slogan?

I have grave doubts.

I for one pledge to be “Malaysian first, Chinese second”. Let every Minister, Deputy Minister and MP declare in the forthcoming Parliament that he or she is Malaysian first and Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan or Iban second!

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 15 October 2009, 3:50 pm and is filed under
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Is Malaysia a Racist Country

By
Hussein Hamid

Is Malaysia a racist Country?

YES

455 (94%)

NO

29 (5%)

Vote on this poll

Votes so far: 484

Days left to vote: 1

With one day to go the above is the result of the Poll we had recently on
steadyaku47
. Number of Votes cast: 484. Of this number an overwhelming 94% were adamant that Malaysia is a racist country! Why do they think so?

Are the people racist towards each other? NO! Are the Malays treating the Chinese as second class citizens? NO! Are the Chinese preventing the Malays from going into their shops because they are Malays? NO. Are the Indians being prevented from riding in Public Transport because they are Indians? NO! We are free to go anywhere we like, do anything we want and between the races we are equal.

Malaysia is a racist country because of the policies of its Government whose Prime Minister ironically claims that its 1Malaysia is bringing the people together!

Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the 1Malaysia concept is nothing unusual as it is a continuation of the concepts to strengthen solidarity among the people which had been introduced by past leaders.?

Najib said that as a multi-racial and multi-religious country, the concept of solidarity certainly could not be ignored or treated lightly because it could pose a problem and destroy the inter-racial ties that had been nurtured all this while. “My predecessors had emphasised on national solidarity as one of the main pillars that would ensure Malaysia’s success and survival,” he said.

Amazing. If our Prime Minister and the Prime Ministers that came before him have all emphasized national solidarity as one of the main pillars to ensure Malaysia’s success and survival – then why did 94% of the 484 people that participated in this poll is of the opinion that Malaysia is a Racist country?

Here again I think our leaders need too be clear on what they perceived is the situation and what really is the situation. Yes we hear our Prime Minister talk up national solidarity many times but as the Malays say “cakap bukan serupa bikin”. In all seriousness Najib’s recent pronouncement “
Umno for all
” brought more laughter then a feeling of hope for better things to come in the future.

This is the sad thing about our country. Whereas in other countries the government would have to  legislate to ensure that there is racial equality this is not the case in Malaysia. Here it is the government that is quietly or covertly putting into practice policies and practices that discriminate and place those who are not Malays and who are in the minority at a disadvantage – in education, in seeking employment, in business – in all things Malaysians. And it is the people that is taking the lead to learn to live with each other in spite of these polices and practices by the government of the Barisan Nasional. What a sad commentary of the realities that exists in our country. We know it so and yet we have Najib declaring our national solidarity through 1Malaysia to a Global audience. When will he ever learn? When will he ever learn?

Just think what this country would be like if we the people did not take it upon ourselves to live with each other in harmony and goodwill? If we all did not understand that whatever racial problems we had was not of our doing but that of our government? If the Chinese, Indians and others were not able to accept that the Malays are in their ‘privilege’ position in Malaysia not because they asked to be so but because our government deem it fit to divide and rule and create a racial divide for their own vested interest. It hurts me so much when I think of this…this unnecessary racial divide that is artificially imposed upon us all by UMNO. Enough of this. We wait for the next GE to do what we must so that we can all live together as one!

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 15 October 2009, 10:36 am and is filed under
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Tee Keat clings on, Liow is No 2 and MCA heads for implosion

By
Lee Wei Lian and Leslie Lau

The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 — Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai was appointed deputy president of MCA today after a heated central committee meeting that saw him at loggerheads with party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat who says he will now call for another EGM.

Ong also refused to resign as party president today despite losing a confidence vote last week.

The party president will now use his powers to call for another EGM to decide if the party should have fresh elections.

Ong, Liow and other central committee members emerged from their meeting today without speaking to the press.

In a posting on his blog put up immediately after the meeting, Ong said he had directed MCA secretary-general Wong Foon Meng to call for an EGM under Article 30.1 of the MCA constitution to decide whether to hold fresh polls.

“The EGM/AGM will allow delegates to end the impasse over whether the central committee should seek a fresh mandate.

“I still have a long list of unfinished business involving party and public interests, like the direct election of the MCA presidency and the Port Klang Free Zone issue. It is my wish to see such issues addressed without any abrupt disruptions.”

He added that any hopes today, for fresh polls was dashed “because certain quarters are worried that I would renege on my words and decide to stay as the party president.”

“This is absolutely baseless.”

Despite being appointed the party No 2 today, a sombre-looking Liow also refused to talk to reporters.

The Malaysian Insider understands that the meeting was heated, with Liow and Ong at the centre of arguments.

As expected, Ong’s refusal to resign has split the party further.

Last weekend’s EGM was touted as a battle between Ong and Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek.

But while delegates voted for Chua to be only reinstated as an ordinary member they also passed a vote of no confidence against the president.

Ong is not constitutionally bound to resign as he can only be forcibly removed by two-thirds of the general assembly. Last weekend’s motion of no confidence was narrowly passed by only slightly over half of the delegates.

But the combative Ong had previously indicated he would resign if he lost the vote.

Today, he appeared to go back on his word to quit, by offering only to call an EGM.

Liow was appointed by a simple majority of the central committee today.

The appointment could potentially cause even more factions to emerge.

His fellow vice president Kong Cho Ha, who had in last year’s party elections secured the highest number of votes among the three VPs, had previously been arguing that he should be appointed No 2.

But Ong may find himself an unlikely ally in Chua, his most bitter rival, in calling for an EGM to decide whether fresh elections should be called.

Chua had earlier this week also called for fresh elections as the way out.

If fresh elections are called, both Ong and Chua are likely to contest for the presidency.

Earlier today, Ong’s supporters had orchestrated a show of support for him by organising a demonstration by hundreds of members outside Wisma MCA.

The supporters held up banners urging Ong, who is under probe for graft and who admitted to taking free plane rides from a contractor, to stay on as MCA president.

Full page advertisements suggesting the community was backing him were also placed in Chinese newspapers this week.

An online petition was also put up to appeal to Malaysians to support Ong.

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 15 October 2009, 7:09 pm and is filed under
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Deepavali greetings – triumph of good over evil to ensure unity, equality,  justice and harmony among Malaysians regardless of race or religion

Happy Deepavali to Hindu Malaysians and all Malaysians.

Deepavali is celebrated this year in the midst of the great fanfare of Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia slogan – which is in fact an admission of the failure of the 52-year nation building policy to create unity, equality, justice and harmony out of the diverse Malaysian citizenry, regardless of race, religion and culture.

This is the time for serious reflection how to go beyond sloganeering to end the disunity, discrimination and marginalization in Malaysia for the past half-century so that every Malaysian, regardless of race, religion or culture can find common pride as citizens  of this country.

Makkal Sakti for the triumph of good over evil to ensure unity, equality, justice and harmony among Malaysians regardless of race, religion or culture.

                This entry was posted on Friday, 16 October 2009, 1:34 pm and is filed under
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Change that does not short-change the nation

By
Augustine Anthony

The Prime Minister, Chief Ministers and Menteri Besar(s) are prisoners of our archaic system of governance that will turn even the most honest man into a political beast. How sad, indeed.

The system of governance is akin to a vehicle. If you give Lewis Hamilton a 1965 Morris Minor do not expect him to win the Formula One race against our local hero who sits in the latest McLaren-Mercedes car but I am also mindful of the saying that if you give a trainer a horse he might train it to be a race horse but if he is given a mule, do not expect the coveted Kentucky Derby roses.

The politicians are screaming for change. Echoes of these screams for better race relations, a system free of corruption, a nation nurtured with sound education inculcating a knowledge based society and equal opportunities for all but sensitive enough to the welfare of the poor are some of the tantalizing themes often heard everywhere but a theme devoid of tenacity may never clear the path for a national illumination.

Are all these changes attainable in a system of governance that is weighing down on every good man who occupies the seat of power?

Remember that good men will turn dire in a debilitating system of governance whilst evil lords do not have a choice but to accept and go with the flow in an invigorating atmosphere. As much as the mind cannot exist without the body, the system cannot survive without the people who perpetuate it.

If we want a better place for all in this country then we must understand the evolution of the system that is now in place and which has become unworkable. We must fervently work to re-engineer an effective replacement. The best and the most profitable companies that we know are not what they are because they consist of the most honest people but are companies that have put in place an effective and efficient system that curtails negative elements.

So what can we do?

Democracy:

Return democracy to its true worth in political parties.

Delegative Democracy was a workable concept 30 – 50 years ago when our country was still dependent on agriculture and mining activities as the main sector that propelled growth.  Delegates needed to carry the voice of people from isolated agricultural outposts and small towns that mushroomed around the mining areas. Democracy in its true sense can destroy the unattended farm/agricultural land and mining towns that depended on labor intensity, if everyone wanted to voice their intention by journeying to the central decision making conclaves. Thus Delegative Democracy was an effective and cost saving way in which rural populations could still be proud of their participation in our national decision making process in political parties.

But now in a world where business is done at the speed of thought, one wonders why political parties’ structures are still based on delegates baby sitting the voice of people who are party members. Is this fault only with the political parties forming the ruling coalition?

(Democratic system of governance/government had been articulated often by other authors thus there will no need here to repeat that line of discussions.)

Separation of Powers

The concept of separation of powers that we so often romanticize is a myth. It does not exist. Even the British Parliamentary System that placed so much emphasis on this concept only found time to create a greater separation of powers by
The Constitutional Reform Act 2005
 and with its implementation taking place even as we speak now.

Breathe true Separation of Powers

Allow the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Arm of the State (the term “government” is also used interchangeably here) to be truly independent.  Let democracy independently determine the vibrancy of these three arms.

Political parties in our current system create a scheme for the selection of legislators who will in turn decide the head of the Executive who will then recommend the Chief of the Judiciary to the Sovereign of the State. Some of these legislators will then become part of the Executive and maintain a tight grip on Judiciary. In laymen’s term, it is called you scratch my back and I scratch your back and together we scar the people who are already seared in this withering system of governance.

The Federal Constitution

The Federal Constitution is a living thing. Understanding the Federal Constitution is not a mechanical process. It must be a speaking document. As any extraordinary living thing it must glow, grow and age gracefully.

Prime Minister

He must not only be the voice of the people but the conscience of the nation. He cannot be both if he is a precious ornament hewn by a few thousand expert hands who have mastered the art of politics. He must be graced by the people’s spirit. Give more space for people to choose the man who will in turn shoulder the burden of the collective conscience of the nation. In this way the select few thousands cannot hold the honest Prime Minster to ransom and an incompetent Prime Minister cannot dwell in patronage whilst assuming his seat of power.

Remember the Federal Constitution is a living thing.  Amend it if possible for direct voting by the people for the office of Prime Minister. If we are afraid of failure, take heart that those who have made no mistakes are those who have tried nothing in their life.

A Prime Minister elected by this direct process should only be given short tenure of office with increased powers to hire and fire any of his appointees (may not necessarily be parliamentarians) with the option of renewing his term with fresh mandate from the people. Technological advancement dictates this condition where the Prime Minister serves a shorter term in office compared to the existing time in office.

The Federal Constitution formulated in 1957 and 1963. If in the 1950’s and 60’s people travelled the whole day to reach their destinations, now it is done in a matter of hours. Communications and documents that took days to reach its recipient are now accessible even before we can complete the phrase “rat in a hat”. So the expectation is reasonable that what took the Prime Minister to achieve in 5 years at the time of Independence can now be achieved in a much shorter time frame.

Further it must be borne in mind that the Barisan Nasional coalition government consisting of various political parties, had survived all these years because UMNO being the dominant party and exerting extreme dominance is able to maintain a stable government despite many competing political parties within this coalition.

However it will be quite a challenge for Pakatan Rakyat being a loose coalition with contradictory ideologies to maintain coalition discipline in the event it is able to garner enough parliamentary seats to form a government. Aspiring parliamentarians from within this loose coalition will scramble for power and prominence, the outcome of which is something predictable in view of the current level of cooperation that we witness in the various state governments under the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

Finally, if there is a contest for the Prime Minister’s position from within any of these political parties from the Pakatan Rakyat coalition, then expect the coalition cooperation to fizzle out even before take off. The only way out of this stalemate is to come to a consensus that direct electoral mandate will determine the choice of Prime Minister. By this way post election coalition bargaining for ministerial position can be averted if the Prime Minister is elected directly and given the free hand to decide all the Prime Minister’s men.

(This same concept advocated for the Prime Minister should also be extended to The Chief Ministers and Menteri Besar.)

The Speakers of the Houses Of Parliament and State Assembly

The provisions for the appointment and their respective roles in these houses are all spelt out in the Constitution. However for too long the public perception is that the Speaker is a “rubber stamp” and a “yes man” to the government of the day whilst in the conduct of the affairs of the house and its proceedings.

Bring independence to the office of the Speaker that includes its location and staffing. The constitutional provisions provide for a Speaker who is not aligned to any political parties. Would the decision makers have the political will to declare this chair independent of political parties? A truly independent Speaker can be a breath of fresh air in all house proceedings allowing lively debate whilst at the same time maintaining order in the house.

Members Of Parliament

The Federal Court is not the highest decision making entity in our country. The Parliament is. Parliament can veto the decisions of the Federal Court. The irony is while we expect the interpreters of the laws of this country (judges) to have a sound understanding of the law; it is rarely the expectation that the makers of law (parliamentarians/legislators) should have equal competence in at least on the overall apprehension of the policy making process.

It is no excuse to say that the ruling government has more parliamentarians to rush and push through various Bills that is against the aspirations of the nation. A parliamentarian with sound understanding of the overall implication of certain Bills  could still articulate them albeit unsuccessfully in parliament but he can always take heart that his argument will be well documented in the Hansard  that public can view at any time. A well argued point though unsuccessful could still be brought to the public and be rallied upon.

For example
The Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission Act 2009 (Act 694)
 contains provisions that are likely to give rise to abuses and violation of fundamental liberties of citizens but sadly we do not hear parliamentarians even whispering about it.

It is funny though that some parliamentarians have made a name for themselves by engaging in mostly irrelevant and unnecessary remarks.

Local Government

The clamouring for Local Council elections was after all a lip service. A process that can attain the same result if local council elections are held is available but never explored. The important thing is not about the election for positions in local council but attaining the
spirit of Section 10 of the Local Government Act 1976
. But sadly political patronage is still the order of the day regardless of political parties.

Youth

The biggest asset and the greatest treasure of this nation is its youth. For too long the creative thinking of our youth has been curtailed. The fear translated into legislations that involvement in politics will erode academic achievement of students and youths is as misplaced as the fear that involvement in sports will take away their academic concentration.

Youths have energy, idealism, boldness and flexibility of thought. Empowering and capacity building must take place at this stage to create a better future. As the political bickering of the “mature” people rages deep into the night, more and more serious crimes are being committed by our youths and this is clear evidence that there is a serious lack of gainful investment in our youths.

Sports/Sporting activities that unite youths under one national banner had been systematically destroyed by selfish politicians at great cost to the nation and its future.

Environment

While our local politicians busily bicker in the dishing out of an unholy share of logging compartments as an easy way out to instant riches, do they even bother that the ice sheet in the Arctic is melting ever so rapidly.

“Things could be very bad,” glaciologist Dr Gordon Hamilton tells. “If we don’t start to do something about it now we’ll very quickly reach a tipping point from which there’ll be no return. And the consequences for society as a whole would be catastrophic.” Source CNN – Greenland’s frozen landscape warming up.

But our environment that suffers from the senseless deforestations, the pollution of our watercourse, the large land clearance for mono-crop plantations that deteriorates the quality of our air and much more which are so intertwined with global warming that leads to climate change  does not seem to concern many of our politicians. It is important to remind ourselves that climate change is no longer a topic of scientific curiosity and scrutiny.  Do political parties invest in educating the aspiring election candidates on the importance of environment? Do the ambitious lawmakers have any basic grounding of how the environment affects almost all things that we do on a daily basis.

The lists of concerns for change are not exhaustive and while we are at it , all these attractive words and phrases such as
Inclusive, Blue Print, Road Map, Holistic Approach, Empowerment, Capacity Building
  means nothing if the leaders are only concerned about giving lip service to all these real anxieties.

In an uncertain political landscape with many politicians consumed by petty squabbles for their personal survival, change that does not short change the nation (which requires certainty of purpose) must never slip out from the thoughts and feelings of honest politicians and leaders.

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 17 October 2009, 3:26 pm and is filed under
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Proton should respond to the shocking report  from New Zealand where Proton Jumbuck turned in worst crash test ute performance and adjudged not fit for the road

Updated with video

The Proton management should respond to the shocking report from New Zealand where Proton Jumbuck turned in the worst crash test ute performance and adjudged not fit for the road.

The two-door Jumbuck utility vehicle (ute) was given dismal safety ratings by independent crash test organisation Ancap (Australasian New Car Assessment Programme) in New Zealand, awarded the lowest possible one-star rating after its performance in frontal offset and side impact crash tests.

Ancap scores vehicles from zero to five stars, depending on the safety features and protection of the driver and passengers.

The ute’s cabin was severely deformed in the 64km/h offset crash test. It offered poor head protection for the driver and passenger, and poor leg protection for the driver.

It also lacked airbags, ABS, and electronic stability control – a feature that senses skidding and individually brakes the wheels, helping the driver to regain control.

The Proton Jumbuck joined two other utes available in New Zealand in being given dismal safety ratings by Ancap

The New Zealand media today quoted Consumer NZ testing manager Hamish Wilson as saying that  potential buyers should steer clear of these utes.

“We don’t believe these vehicles should be allowed on the road.”

He said the minimum standard for a new ute should be four stars. The Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton and several Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore utes achieved this.

The difference in safety between a two-star and a four-star ute was significant, he said.

“It can mean the difference between walking away from a crash and being taken away in an ambulance.”

The following is the report from New Zealand Herald:

Malaysian ute’s crash-test score sparks Consumer NZ safety warning

4:00AM Friday Oct 16, 2009 | New Zealand Herald

A Malaysian-manufactured ute has turned in the worst crash test performance of any vehicle being sold here, Consumer New Zealand warns.

The Proton Jumbuck ($24,000) joined two other utes available in New Zealand in being given dismal safety ratings by independent crash test organisation Ancap (Australasian New Car Assessment Programme).

The two-door Jumbuck was awarded the lowest possible one-star rating after its performance in frontal offset and side impact crash tests.

Ancap scores vehicles from zero to five stars, depending on the safety features and protection of the driver and passengers.

The ute’s cabin was severely deformed in the 64km/h offset crash test. It offered poor head protection for the driver and passenger, and poor leg protection for the driver.

It also lacked airbags, ABS, and electronic stability control – a feature that senses skidding and individually brakes the wheels, helping the driver to regain control.

The two-door Chinese-manufactured Great Wall Motors SA220 ($22,000) was given a lowly two-star rating, with findings that its protection for the driver was poor and its passenger compartment buckled in a frontal offset crash test.

While Great Wall Motors’ larger four-door V240 ($27,000) model has dual front airbags and ABS brakes, it was also awarded only a two-star rating.

Consumer NZ testing manager Hamish Wilson said potential buyers should steer clear of these utes.

“We don’t believe these vehicles should be allowed on the road.”

He said the minimum standard for a new ute should be four stars. The Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton and several Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore utes achieved this.

The difference in safety between a two-star and a four-star ute was significant, he said.

“It can mean the difference between walking away from a crash and being taken away in an ambulance.”

– NZPA

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 17 October 2009, 10:15 am and is filed under
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Beng Hock’s bank account: It’s you, MACC, that’s broke

By
Helen Ang | Oct 16, 09 5:21pm | Malaysiakini

I refer to the Malaysiakini report
Ean Yong furious Teoh’s bank account revealed
.

I’ve always wondered who it is that frequent five-star shopping malls like the Pavilion or browse in those posh bungalow boutiques. Now I know it’s not Teoh Beng Hock. He was a lot like me, an ordinary wage earner.

We learn from the MACC that Beng Hock had slim savings amounting to RM3,611.36. Counsel for MACC at the inquest, Abdul Razak Musa inferred this to support his contention that Beng Hock was in dire need of money to get married at short notice…to what purpose this insinuation by the authorities, I do not know.

But here is a case of Razak being unfamiliar with Chinese urban lifestyle. Of all the Chinese weddings I know of, every single one has made a profit from the reception dinner. The ‘ang pow’ collection, more often than not, generously exceeds the cost of the banquet. After paying the restaurant bill, the bride and groom hosts usually have change left over.

The mainstream media and Umno bloggers have tried hard to push the theory that Beng Hock committed suicide, and financial problems being one of the triggers. Since Malaysia has a teeming working class, then it follows (if we concur with this Umnonista line of thought) that we must be a highly suicidal country with 30-year-olds plunging out of high-rise windows every three seconds.

We’re also told that Beng Hock’s pay was RM1,800 a month. After income tax, EPF and other deductions, it’ll be certainly somewhat less. Salaries for graduates have remained stagnant while the price of things have doubled and tripled.

What Beng Hock earns puts him in the salary range of the vast majority of Malaysian households. The Household Income Survey said 27.1 percent of households fall in the income bracket of RM1,000-RM1,999 (Statistics Department preliminary findings for year 2008.)

The next biggest category is 20 percent for the RM1,999-RM2,999 bracket.

Those earning less than RM1,000 make up 8.5 percent of households. Overall, 55.6 percent of Malaysian households earn less than RM3,000 monthly. Beng Hock was very much Encik Average in terms of income class.

Beng Hock’s fiancé is a schoolteacher. It’s not a career that rakes in big money either. But they had each other. And they had the happiness of expecting a child, and soon building a home.

Never mind that the cost of a piece of Italian tile from Mohd Khir Toyo’s RM24 million ringgit mansion is likely more than Beng Hock’s monthly disposable income. Not everyone can be the chief minister of an Umno ‘developed state’.

These two young people, Beng Hock and his fiancé, looked like a loving couple in the photographs we see. They would have had their own modest dreams and hopes for the future.

Nonetheless, Generation X in Malaysia are comparatively worse off compared to their parents’ generation – a bygone era when petrol prices did not keep going boing, boing like a pogo stick.

Today, for instance, many young newlyweds would be hard-pressed to afford a honeymoon abroad because of the ringgit’s adverse currency exchange rate. That is unless they or their parents belong to the 1.1 percent of Malaysian households earning between RM10k and RM11k a month.

The rich, those earning RM10,000 and above, comprise a total of 5.2 percent populating the upper reaches of household income. Hence we can see that the BN government, through its mismanagement of our economy the past decades, has truly benefitted only about five percent of materially successful Malaysians.

Whereas more than 50 percent have trouble making ends meet on RM3,000 or less a month due to our poor purchasing power.

In power for 52 years and squandering the country’s immense oil wealth, the Barisan Nasional government clearly has not done well by its people at all. If MACC is implying – by its line of questioning witnesses in the inquest – that the deceased was depressingly cash-strapped, then half of Malaysia is in the same boat when going by salary scale.

We’re talking here about the majority of Malaysians who make an honest living. They put in long hours at the office. Do overtime. Some even take on second jobs. That’s the sad lot of the Everyman.

Pictures of Beng Hock show him as a wholesome-looking young man. It would seem he was a prudent one too. At least he put enough by to afford a car.

Many Malaysians take the bus, crowd in standing-room only LRTs and even ride the KL highways on their motorcycles. In rain, under the sun, they’re exposed to soaking or scorching elements of nature. Should a traffic accident happen, flesh and bone will mesh with mangled metal for these motorcyclists and their pillion riders.

Indeed, given the atrocious state of our public transport system, I’d say the BN government’s

Infrastructure plans were ill-thought out. This has led to Malaysian roads becoming saddled not only with the ubiquitous ‘kap cai’ (but crispy Kancils that give rise to the same ‘body-meets-mangled-metal’ scenario when cars collide.

The sad plight of our nation could well be one of the reasons that Beng Hock chose, rather optimistically, to take a job with the Pakatan Rakyat state government. He’d wanted to help bring about reform because BN rule had dismally failed the common folk.

While I’m not aware of his personal financial circumstances, I am acquainted with someone else who took a pay cut moving from the private sector to work for Pakatan. Before signing on as the YB’s aide, Beng Hock used to be a reporter (a job that pays more).

While the mainstream media such as Utusan Malaysia has gone all out to portray the Chinese community as ‘ultra kiasu’ and avaricious, young idealists like Beng Hock and my friend mentioned above dispel their malicious and fallacious ethnic stereotyping.

When Beng Hock’s child grows older, I hope its mother Ms Soh Cher Wei will tell the boy or girl that whatever it says on Beng Hock’s payslip, whatever it says in his bank balance, all right- thinking Malaysians honour and respect Papa’s idealism.

So thank you, MACC, for your revelations which serve as a timely reminder on why we need to fight for justice for Teoh Beng Hock. He was clearly Everyman – one of our own.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 18 October 2009, 10:36 pm and is filed under
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Malaysia, a land of growth no more

By
Panglima Garang | Oct 1, 09 12:20pm | Malaysiakini

When I was at the KLIA airport recently bidding farewell to my family, the lingering thought in my mind was “Am I making a mistake leaving this country?”

The answer was just another question, “What good is there left in this country?”

I am not leaving Malaysia because I found something better. I am a bit tired of the social and economic mismanagement of Malaysia and racially anchored policies. I am already successful in Malaysia by any measure.

At the last count, I was in the top 1percent income bracket. I graduated from USM and joined the civil service just like any other Malaysian Indian did in the 1980s. I studied law at my own expense and time with numerous challenges just like many other Malaysian Indians did.

I awaited the first promotion you can get in civil service i.e. Senior Time scale A12.

However as per NEP policy requirements, I was not given the rightful promotion despite many recommendations by the head of the statutory authority who supported my promotion with quantitative and qualitative justifications.

Finally, he personally informed me to quit the service and leave for private sector.

I joined the private sector and in nine years I worked at the same level as I did in the government job but I leap-frogged my income and position.

In my definition I am successful as I have saved enough to educate my children overseas, became well known in my industry for certain skills and knowledge and also ran a non-profit fraternity specific organisation to improve my fellow professionals public standing.

So I am not one of those Malaysian who allowed himself to be left in the cold.

But where do I go from here? What does the future hold for this country which I dearly loved?

Professionalism at work?

How will this country survive the challenges of the future? And personally what can my children achieve in this country?

As a USM Mass Communication graduate, we were trained to be socially responsible.

At least the students of my era were! Thus, it always bothered me whenever I saw, heard and read about mismanagement of public monies through crooked and irresponsible means.

Sometimes it affected my sleep although I have nothing to do with it. I am no way directly and financially affected by such government wrongs and gross losses.

Then there are the “happenings” in the civil service which is close to my heart.

I note that it has gotten worse as many are not accountable, responsible or remotely knowledgeable.

There are so many promoted in the civil service due to family links and thus no one can take action against another for want of professionalism in work.

The NEP was a good initiative for the poor Malays to improve their lot but abused by some political masters including the previous prime ministers’ publically stated policy of making 1,000 Malay millionaires.

I am not sure where are these Malay millionaires now and what have they given back to the country which made them millionaires.

We can go on listing all the billions of losses and mistakes the political masters did for the past 40 years!

Of course the Chinese businessmen made a lot of mistakes in the first 10 years after Merdeka (they were racial and discriminatory in business practices).

Change came slowly but surely

I can quote real life examples but let’s keep to the theme here.

The BN thought they can go on doing the same political game as they believed “Malaysians have a short memory of six months of anything”.

The BN formula was so successful that to-date that it does not think anything is wrong with their formula but only people got it mixed up.

And then came the Hindraf (whom I myself, who is always on top of the social agenda, did not notice until October 2007) which changed the political thinking of the Indians first, then the Chinese and now the Malays.

I and many of my friends, who have nothing to do with the Hindraf leaders (to-date I have not met any of them), campaigned for the issues raised by them, first amongst the Indians (especially the well educated and “well-incomed” Indians).

Many Indians in my category of income and position did not relate to the issues and some were so oblivious to it.

We (in an uncoordinated form) spoke to the Chinese and Malay friends and somehow the fever for change took the form of SMSes, blogs, Facebooks, websites etc.

Suddenly the Malaysian public realised there were SO MANY corrupt actions, abuse of public authorities and powers, wrongs, mistakes and mismanagement of monies by the BN government.

This all led to one action required i.e. vote out the government.

Factors of past growth

Now, let us assess who and what was professional which led to Malaysia’s growth in 1960s,1970s and upto mid 80s:

Ministries were led by secretary-generals and their department directors. They had a say in the budget, allocations, management and public spending. The ministers consulted the government officials on public spending. We had government officials conducting opening ceremonies. Now, have you heard any government servant given the honour? Now ministers run to open restaurants!

Government departments were led by intelligent Malays, Chinese and Indians. They had the Malaysians at heart in their actions. We have programme like SOS (Sometimes called Sini Orang Susah), Flying doctors and others. Even the scouts and girl guides associations were given honour. Then came Dr Mahathir who wanted to destroy anything even remotely connected to our colonial past and wanted to reshape Malaysia in his image.

Banking. During Ismail Ali’s time (only downside was that he was Dr Mahathir’s brother-in-law), Bank Negara was the centre of fiscal and monetary policy.

There were proper checks and balances in various business practices. Officials supervising industries had competency, integrity, honesty and professionalism.

Otherwise action were taken. However now, just look at our insurance industry where Malaysians pay one of highest premiums but returns were full of loopholes.

Everyday new products are launched like the US derivates but do the public really benefit from these, or are they scams? They said an average Japanese has three insurance policies.

I think the Japanese believe in their insurance scheme but look at the Malaysian statistics on insurance. Do you know there is a specific regulator in Bank Negara for the insurance industry and he has to validate all schemes?

I suppose he can’t do much because all major insurance companies are co-owned by PNB, an Umno vehicle. Mahathir did not like many deposit taking and financing companies in Malaysia which you cannot control. So, he made it illegal for these companies to operate in 1980/90s. He wanted to put his kunchu-kunchus in charge of all these outfits.

During Auditor General Ahmad Noordin’s time, spending of government money was monitored. Of course the self declared CEO of the country Mahathir not only fired him for conducting the BMF scandal inquiry professionally but also disgraced him.

Money, money and more money

During Hanif Omar’s time as the inspector general of police, he had good relationship with the PMs but did not allow the police to be used for the whims and fancies of Umno. The police fought many criminal gangs like Botak Chin and we had many crime busters.

During Harun Hashim, Eusoffe Abdulcader, George Seah, Azmi Kamaruddin, Wan Hamzah, Wan Suleiman Pawanteh’s time, the judiciary was seen and heard as neutral to all people and businessmen. Mahathir hated this idea that they could make decisions without consulting him.

The Chinese worked hard in setting up industries and businesses. The Malays generally both in politics and government gave good leadership i.e. they supported the business and did not grab stakes or demanded contracts in businesses.

The food in the country was better. But now in Malaysia almost all restaurants use low quality ingredients and cheap meats. Just go to Singapore and eat a bowl of curry mee, nasi lemak or roti canai at a stall and you will feel the difference.

Even in Qatar which does not produce any vegetables, meat or milk, you can get high quality cow’s milk at affordable price, fresh vegetables at reasonable cost.

What happened to the Malaysian health inspectors who used to visit restaurants and food processing factories in 1970s?

The list can go on. Slowly these leaders and their ministries and departments began dying under the heavy weight of one self-proclaimed CEO of the country Mahathir.

He used the Malay sentiment to woo the Malays in the government departments and used them for his antics. He found that it was easy to sway the Umno Malays by claiming he knows all the medicines for the so called Malay problem. He wanted to make the Malays like Chinese.

As a result now we have Melayu Baru who want money, money and more money by hook or crook.

What is the cause of BN’s death?

The BN started dying after the coming to power of Mahathir. He did several things to aid and abet the death:

Umno was made mainstay party in BN to aid cronies to make monies.

Umno cronies were consulted on country policies/decisions.

Component party leaders were made weak/corrupted and subservient to the PM.

Government machinery and funds became subject to political leaders/Umno cronies.

The single most change which killed BN parties was Mahathir’s amendment to Societies Act after the Umno leadership tussle between him and Tengku Razaleigh

In view of the foregoing, there is no scope for BN to take back the votes of the Malaysians unless there is radical change in the composition and management of BN.

But BN leaders rather die than change.

By the next general election, the three enforcement bodies who are authorised to maintain law and order in Malaysia i.e. the Police, the MACC, the armed forces and its related bodies like immigration, judiciary and other ministries will only get from bad to worse as the political masters will continue using them in to stay in power.

I am not a doomsday prophet like Paul Krugman but the change in the world started taking place with the fall of the Russian empire as Glasnost in late 1980’s.

All the great regimes and governments which ruled the last 50 years have been collapsing (since WWII).

Fall before rising

Umno has to fail and fall before it is reborn. It “has to” fail like the conservatives in the UK, the Congress party in India, LDP in Japan, Suharto’s regime in Indonesia, and Marcos in the Philippines.

The question is not whether Umno will fall or not, but when Umno falls what will happen to Malaysia and its political, social, economic, cultural systems!

Umno will create a disaster as it will try to divert the course of nature and history by doing a Razak (declare emergency) or Mahathir (arrest everyone like Ops Lalang). The system will crash: Why? UMNO has created a mechanism where there is nO difference between Malaysia and Umno.

All these years Umno was fighting the battle with the Opposition using Umno’s internal strength. But Umno has realised it is left with no gurkhas or structures to fight with. Money in Umno kitty is gone with its previous treasurer, its state leaders have destroyed their own supporters due to corruption and cronyism. So in the last 12 months Umno is using its next bastion of power, the government machinery. Soon the army might be enlisted as well.

The abuse of government money and authorities to defend Umno and BN leaders and prosecute the opposition is so obvious even to a fifth former. Just read the Facebooks.

The political leaders of Umno have created a situation that when Umno crashes the country crashes. They will instil fear, enlist the army, police, FRUs and MACCs to go all out against anyone who may derail their plans to stay in power.

When that happens, where will Malaysia head then?

Panglima Garang
 is a pseudonym of a former civil servant, journalist and corporate professional. He is presently residing overseas advising a Middle East petroleum giant.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 18 October 2009, 9:49 am and is filed under
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Najib speaks with forked tongue

By
Kee Thuan Chye | Malaysiakini

Najib Razak contradicted himself in his speech last Thursday at the Umno General Assembly. He spoke of the all-embracing 1Malaysia concept on one hand and of the need to retain the New Economic Policy (NEP) on the other. The Native Americans in old cowboy movies might have said that he spoke with a forked tongue.

How can you have the NEP and at the same time say that we are all 1Malaysia? The NEP is exclusive to a particular group of people, and such exclusivity sets them apart. There is no 1Malaysia; there are 2Malaysias.

Does Najib not see that or is his 1Malaysia idea merely PR spin or marketing hype?

This central contradiction is what makes many non-Malays sceptical of what he is touting. The only non-Malays who will buy it are those who are not discerning enough or who are easily bought.

I’m almost tempted to include the Bagan Pinang voters in this category but their decision to support so strongly a politician with a corruption record in that recent by-election could be due to other concerns.

Why continue to have an affirmative action programme that is still based on race? Haven’t we moved on since March 8, 2008? How much different is Najib’s defense of the need for the NEP from that of his cousin Hishammuddin Hussein’s pre-March 8 keris-wielding pledge to defend it against adversaries? It’s merely less militant, that’s all.

Najib slammed the Malays who say they no longer need “crutches” and called them arrogant. He asked, “What about the Malays who still require help? Is it fair if the group who still need crutches are denied help?”

Why hasn’t he thought of providing help to people of all races who need “crutches”? Wouldn’t that be more in line with 1Malaysia? All he needs to do is look at the Malaysian Economic Agenda proposed by Pakatan Rakyat. Go back to basics – have an affirmative action programme based on need. Isn’t that the original intent of the NEP?

It looks like Najib was invoking the NEP at the assembly expressly to play to the Malay gallery, to ensure that his regular customers will remain faithful. Meanwhile, the non-Malay customers can wait. He will find some other occasion in the future to throw them small gifts and lure them to buy his merchandise.

That’s the kind of ploy we’ve been used to through the decades, but hasn’t it exceeded its sell-by date? Shouldn’t we reject it instead of fall for its trickery? Leaders of race-based parties like Najib must resolve their central dilemma – pander to their own race or be truly multi-racial. They can’t have it both ways.

This time around, Najib has chosen to stick with tradition. We must hold leaders accountable for their doublespeak. Similarly, we have to insist that Ong Tee Keat stick to his promise of resigning as MCA president now that a no-confidence vote has been taken against him.

If Umno is not racist…

At the Umno assembly, Najib also said that the Malays are not racist. He is absolutely right; they are not. But what about Umno? He said it is not racist too.

If Umno is not racist, why did it organise forums after March 8 in which Malays were warned that Malay power was being eroded and that Malay land had fallen into non-Malay hands?

If Umno is not racist, why does it maintain an indoctrination agency like the Biro Tata Negara (BTN) which inculcates in young Malay minds the idea of Ketuanan Melayu and wariness of the other races? (For more on the BTN, read Dr Azly Rahman’s chapter ‘On the Problem of Ketuanan Melayu and the Work of the Biro Tata Negara’ in the book Multiethnic Malaysia.)

If Umno is not racist, why does it allow the newspapers it owns, particularly in the Malay language, to run stories and commentaries that could easily be deemed seditious? Don’t tell me that it’s because Umno believes in the independence of the media and therefore does not intervene. I’ve been in journalism for more than 30 years and I know that’s a lie.

Najib also pointed out that the true meaning of racism lay in the apartheid policy that once held sway in South Africa. Well, he was not quite the pot calling the kettle black because it is true that Malaysia does not practise apartheid like the National Party of South Africa did. But why do non-Malay parents have to work so much harder to send their children for tertiary education? Why do they have to outsource such education overseas?

Why is there a restrictive quota for the intake of non-Malay students into our public universities? Why are there educational institutions that are strictly for Malays? And why was there so much hue and cry against Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim’s suggestion for Universiti Teknologi Mara to offer 10 percent of its places to non-Malay students?

Why is only a small percentage of government scholarships granted to non-Malays? Why do some non-Malay students who top their classes not get such scholarships? Do the non-Malays not pay taxes?

Why is the Malaysian Civil Service so understaffed by non-Malays? And of which race are the overwhelming numbers of high officials in the civil service, universities, police force, army and so on?

Is it not just a subtler form of apartheid that Malaysia practices? And is it not a fact that ours is one of only a few countries in the world that institutionalises racial discrimination? So, what is Najib talking about? Whom is he trying to fool? What nonsense is this 1Malaysia?

KEE THUAN CHYE is the man behind the book ‘March 8: The Day Malaysia Woke Up’, which is also available in Chinese translation.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 18 October 2009, 1:07 pm and is filed under
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The New God of UMNO

By M. Bakri Musa

In his celebrated novel Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan (RSJ – Spikes Throughout the Pathway), Shahnon Ahmad chronicles the seemingly endless traps of poverty endured by a kampong family.  Or in his elegant words, “bencana-bencana yang tidak bisa langsai selagi jantung berdegup [dan] nadi berdenyut … ” (never ending cycle of calamities endured as long as your heart beats and pulse throbs).  Shahnon asserts that the pain could only be felt by those willing to reflect on and empathize with the struggles of our pap-pak tani (peasant farmers).

       This thought haunts me as I reflect on the hoopla surrounding the recent UMNO General Assembly.  The soaring rhetoric of “1-Malaysia” and of reform is a universe away from the world inhabited by RSJ’s main character, Lahuma.  The irony strikes hard as the Lahumas are the very people UMNO professes to champion.

       The biting irony does not end there.  Many of the Assembly participants, including the high-flying ones, are only a generation or two away from the deprivations so painfully detailed in RSJ.  Those agonizing memories must have been seared into them by their parents and grandparents.  That should motivate anyone to do something to alleviate the debilitating poverty still experienced by so many today.

       Yet I did not sense even an inkling of that sentiment at this grand gathering of self-declared “defenders of the Malays.”  Even more bizarre is that these UMNO delegates still have friends and relatives in abundance who continue to suffer the pain of peasant life.  And let’s face it, stripped of their political patronages many of the currently high-living delegates would be reduced to a Lahuma existence overnight.

       I doubt that many of the delegates have heard of Shahnon Ahmad, let alone read his novels.  Hence they would not know what I am writing about.  I once tried to buy his books at one of KL’s major bookstores, only to be greeted by the sales clerk’s response of, “Shahnon siapa?” (Who?)  A stinging indictment of our education system!

       Thus a brief summary of RSJ is warranted before proceeding.  The book describes the endless cascading calamities of droughts, floods, and infestations suffered by one poor farmer (Lahuma).  His tragedy (but not the book) ends with his unnecessary death, from an untreated trifling sliver injury.  His demise compounds the anguish of his wife, who goes berserk and ends up being locked in a cage by her fellow villagers.

       Shahnon’s depiction of the tyranny of poverty is a universal theme.  We see this in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, the travails of a sharecropper’s family in drought-stricken Oklahoma of the Depression era, and Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth, also about a peasant family, this time in pre-revolution China.

       Today, the descendents of Steinbeck’s Tom Joad are busy running the thriving agro-businesses in San Joaquin Valley, while Buck’s Wang Lung’s grandchildren are actively trading in US Treasury papers.

       In contrast, Lahuma’s cicit (great grandchildren) are still scraping a harsh living in their disintegrating kampong; his fears of their being reduced to begging painfully prescient.  Over half a century of unchallenged UMNO leadership, Malays are reduced to begging:  begging for handouts from their government, begging for economic scraps from non-Malays, and begging for respect from others.

       UMNO leaders may have been to Oxford and resided in sophisticated capitals of the world, alas scratch their hide and the ‘kampongness’ oozes out of the pores.  They are still trapped by the same cultural genes as Lahuma’s.  Where he is crippled by religious fatalism – “Mati hidup dan susah senang dipegang oleh Tuhan” (Life and death, hardship and ease, are in Allah’s hands) – UMNO members are ensnared by the political variety.  They believe their fate is in the hands of the party; it is their savior, their new god – UMNO dulu, kini, dan selama nya! (UMNO – Then, now, and forever!)

       To UMNO folks, the party has replaced Allah as the source of bounty and benevolence, as well as the punisher and decider of their fate.  Corrupt leaders are forgiven not by Allah but by the party.  The benevolence does not end there.  Isa Samad had his political corruption sentence reduced, and then he was rewarded to be the party’s election candidate.  Khairy Jamaluddin had his “money politics” conviction essentially pardoned, and then blessed by being head of UMNO Youth!

       With such compelling examples, no wonder UMNO members turn to their new god with the gusto of a fresh convert.  Just as Lahuma would never question Allah’s design, UMNO members too would not dare question their god and risking his wrath.

       There was one obvious departure with this recent Assembly.  Gone were the obligatory race-taunting theatrics, shrill calls for defending the ‘honor’ of the Malays, and other ugly chauvinistic displays.  Time will tell whether this shift represented a change of heart or tactic.

       My take is that this is more of the latter.  For one, UMNO leaders have not been known to utter anything sensible.  When they do, one wonders whether it comes from within or merely the parroting of poll-tested printouts from their public relations hire.  For another, there is a huge gulf between what those leaders preach and practice.

       UMNO’s latest obsession is combating corruption and rejuvenating the party.  At least that is the impression their leaders give.  Yet when given an opportunity to demonstrate its resolve, as with the recent by-election in Bagan Pinang, the party chose a tired and tainted character to be its standard bearer.  I would have thought that it would pick someone who best exemplified the “new, rejuvenated” UMNO.

       In judging UMNO leaders (and thus Prime Ministers), there was only one who understood the plight of our Lahumas.  Because he understood them, Tun Razak was able to craft imaginative and effective policies, such as his massive rural development schemes, in particular FELDA.

       The Tun’s massive expansion of educational opportunities (Gerakan Lampu Suloh – Operation Torch) brought light to the families of the Lahumas, enabling them to escape the trap of poverty.  His expansion of health facilities in rural areas (Klinik Desa) ensured that they would not die unnecessarily from simple treatable diseases.

       Tun Razak did not belittle or poke fun at the cultural beliefs or biological heritage of the villagers.  While they fervently believed that their fate was in Allah’s hands, Tun Razak demonstrated there was much that his government could do to persuade if not prod Allah to alter that destiny.  He was more persuaded by another Quranic verse:  Allah would not change the condition of a people unless they first make an effort at it.  As leader, Tun Razak felt a great obligation to help his people change their conditions by bringing education, health care, and development to the villages.

       He could not care less about Malay leadership, Ketuanan Melayu, Glokal Malay, or any other cutesy slogans.  Take care of those three basics (health, education and economic development), and the rest will take care of themselves.  There are no shortcuts; stunt or showy development projects cannot replace the real need for improving our schools and healthcare, or bringing development to rural areas.

       Now that the delegates are back home to savor the memories of their brief moments in the limelight, I am left wondering what specifically did they do that would directly impact the lives of our villagers.  None!  The Pak Lahumas would continue enduring their dreary life, one that has remained unchanged for the past half a century under UMNO rule, save for Tun Razak’s brief tenure.  If UMNO gets its way, that life will remain the same for the next few generations.

       Pondering the fate and empathizing with the plight of our pak-pak tani are furthest away from the thoughts of these UMNO leaders.  They will however, make a brief and perfunctory show of both come election time, when our Lahumas can expect gifts of kain pelakat, in return for their votes of course.

                This entry was posted on Monday, 19 October 2009, 11:02 am and is filed under
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International Internet Bandwidth

Updated with data from 1992-2004 (from independent source)

Parliament Q & A:

Lim Kit Siang [Ipoh Timur]
 minta Menteri Penerangan, Komunikasi, dan Kebudayaan menyatakan dalam jadual dari tahun 1994 sehingga 2009, berapakah kapasiti jalur lebar Internet Antarabangsa (International Internet Bandwidth) yang dipunyai oleh Malaysia mengikut syarikat yang

memilikinya.

Jawapan :

Kapasiti jalur lebar Internet antarabangsa secara umumnya dimiliki oleh konsortium-konsortium anatarabangsa. Kapasiti antarabangsa ini disampaikan melalui 12 kabel dasar laut yang disambungkan melalui stesen-stesen pendaratan kabel di Malaysia. Telekom Malaysia (TM) selaku penyedia perkhidmatan Internet terbesar di Malaysia merupakan pengguna dan antara pemegang ekuiti utama di dalam konsortium terbabit.

Syarikat-syarikat lain sama ada tidak mempunyai sebarang pegangan, atau menpunyai pegangan yang amat kecil di dalam konsortium yang membekalkan kapasiti jalur lebar Internet antarabangsa.

Oleh yang demikian, kapasiti jalur lebar antarabangsa milik Malaysia secara umumnya diukur melalui kapasiti Internet antarabangsa yang dimiliki oleh TM mengikut tahun secara kumulatif adalah seperti berikut:

Telekom Malaysia (TM)

Tahun

Jumlah Kapasiti Antarabangsa (Mbps) (kumulatif)

1994-2004

–

2005

11,521

2006

16,328

2007

41,099

2008

64,121

2009

112,000

Nota: Pengumpulan data kapasiti jalur lebar antarabangsa hanya dibuat bermula 2005

—-

From
NationMaster.com

Year

Amount (Mbps)

Rank

2004

3,193

#41

2003

2,308

#36

2002

1,320.5

#40

2001

733

#39

2000

540

#33

1999

188

#30

1998

85

#10

1997

50

#7

1996

6.13

#9

1995

1.54

#5

1994

1.54

#3

1993

0.13

#4

1992

0.06

#4

Related Post :
Malaysia in unchecked plunge in IT international competitiveness as illustrated by another adverse global study – the 2009 Oxford/Cisco Global Broadband Quality Score (2 Oct. 2009)

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 20 October 2009, 10:05 pm and is filed under
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