Those who calculate that DAP will disintegrate if Guan Eng and I are jailed  cannot be more  wrong or mistaken

Those who are calculating  that if  Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng and I could be jailed,  DAP will disintegrate  cannot be more wrong or mistaken.

DAP is not just  about one or two persons, but represents the Malaysian Dream of Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region for an united,  clean, incorrupt, democratic, just,  inclusive, competitive and prosperous plural Malaysia, where all Malaysians can hold their heads high and feel proud as Malaysian citizens because of our world-class achievements and accomplishments in every field of human endeavour.

In the past few years, Malaysians have fallen sharply in international esteem and respect, to the extent that Malaysia is getting to be synonymous with corruption and mega financial scandals in the  world  – thanks to the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s infamous RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion  twin mega scandals.

It is just outrageous that after years of the RM55 billion 1MDB scandal, and almost nine months after the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal since the revelation first surfaced in Wall Street Journal in earlly July last year, Malaysians are none the wiser about both scandals as Najib and his government have be stone-walling and  refused to come full and clean about both scandals.

Even in the current meeting of Parliament, the government has refused to answer  questions or to speeches of Members of  Parliament about both mega scandals on the ground that  it is subjudice as there are cases concerning them in court.

This has led to the Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia reprimanding the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said usurping the Speaker’s powers by claiming that the RM 2.6 billion donation cannot be discussed  in Parliament.

This is a serious violation of parliamentary privilege by Azalina not for one day, but for a whole week.

Why has she not been referred to the Committee of Privileges for such grave violation of parliamentary privilege and ordered to answer all parliamentary questions which she had rejected on the ground of sub judice arising from the Bar Council’s suit against the Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamad Apandi Ali?

In the course of the past nine months, different versions had been given by UMNO leaders about the nature of the RM2.6 billion donation deposited into Najib’s personal accounts.

On August 11, Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said the donation was from a “brotherly nation” which wanted to see certain parties win the 13th general election because they were friendly to them.

Four days later, Umno Kuantan division chief Datuk Seri Wan Adnan Wan Mamat said the RM2.6 billion was from Saudi Arabia as a form of appreciation of Malaysia “championing Islam” and fighting militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis).

But on August 22, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi said the donation came from their “Muslim friends in the Middle East” to help Umno fight DAP in the 14th general election, as the party was funded by Jews.

Later that same day, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi said he met the donors’ representatives who informed him that the funds was in appreciation for the government’s efforts in countering terrorism, and to help Barisan Nasional (BN) maintain Malaysia’s status as a Sunni country.

After the A-G’s no-further-action decision on Najib at the end of January, the BBC reported an unnamed Saudi source as saying that the money was donated to help the prime minister win GE13 and counter potential Muslim Brotherhood influence in Malaysia as the Saudis consider the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organisation, and Malaysia’s opposition alliance at that time included PAS, “whose founders were inspired by the Brotherhood”.

Now, we are told that the  “donations”  deposited into Najib’s personal banking accounts exceed US$1 billion or more than RM4.2 billion, and not just RM2.6 billion.

How could the raising of questions whether during question-time or in debates on the veracity or otherwise of these claims, whether the total deposits in Najib’s personal banking accounts was RM2.6 billion or RM4.2 billion; where the monies came from and where they have gone to; what evidence were available that Najib had returned RM2.03 billion to donors in August 2013, be prejudicial to the suit filed by the Bar against Apandi?

Azalina and Ministers must be reminded that the  sub judice rule is to protect the courts from parliamentary interference and not to provide Ministers with a convenient device to avoid or escape parliamentary scrutiny and accountability in accordance with the principles of good governance and parliamentary democracy; or in this particular case, to enable the Najib government to sweep Najib’s twin mega scandals under the carpet!

Najib’s twin mega scandals have caused a tectonic shift in Malaysian politics and led to the historic and unprecedented gathering of 42 political and civil society leaders in Kuala Lumpur on March 4, 2016 bridging the political divide to sign and proclaim the Citizens’ Declaration to Save Malaysia – involving former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir, former Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and former Cabinet Ministers.

It is to deflect public attention to these two momentous political events, Najib’s twin mega scandals and the Save Malaysia Citizens’ Declaration, as well as to affect the outcome of the impending Sarawak state general elections, that DAP leaders have now come under intense and  systematic attack, with DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng accused of corruption like former Selangor Mentri Besar, Khir Toyo while over a hundred police reports have been lodged against me under the Sedition Act.

Is Guan Eng guilty of corruption like Khir Toyo?

The following Bernama report on June 13, 2011 entitled
“No Choice But To Sell Property To Khir Toyo At RM3.5 Million, Says Ditamas Director”
, clearly shows that the Lim Guan Eng case is completely different from the Khir Toyo matter.

‘

The Bernama report reads:

“SHAH ALAM, June 13 (Bernama) — A company director told the High Court here Monday that he had to sell two plots of land and a bungalow here at a price of RM3.5 million to former Selangor Menteri Besar Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo in 2007 for fear of jeopardising his housing projects in Selangor.

“Ditamas Sdn Bhd (Ditamas) director Shamsuddin Hayroni said he had to do so after taking into considerations his position as a businessman in Selangor and Mohamad Khir’s position as the then menteri besar.

“‘Mohamad Khir and I had discussed the price in 2004 and he wanted the property to be sold at RM3.5 million. I personally did not agree because it was too low and I told him that it should be at least between RM5 million to RM5.5 million.

“‘When I bought the property, it was priced at RM5 million and with renovation cost of RM1.5 million, the price should be RM6.5 million. I gave him a little discount and set the price at RM5.5 million, but Mohamad Khir did not agree with the price, saying that he could only afford RM3.5 million,’ he said when questioned by deputy public prosecutor, Abdul Wahab Mohamed.

“Shamsuddin was testifying on the fourth day of the trial of the former menteri besar who is accused of acquiring for himself and his wife, Datin Seri Zahrah Kechik, 45, two plots of land and a bungalow at No. 8 & 10, Jalan Suasa 7/1L, Shah Alam from Ditamas through Shamsuddin.

“Mohamad Khir is said to have paid RM3.5 million for the property in Section 7 here, which Ditamas had bought on Dec 23, 2004 for RM6.5 million.”

The intense and systematic attacks on the DAP have affected public attention on Najib’s twin mega scandals and the Save Malaysia’s Citizens’ Declaration, but the UMNO/BN strategists and cybertroopers will be mistaken if they think that the momentum to demand accountability for Najib’s twin mega scandals and the national movement to Save Malaysia can be stalled by focussing attack on DAP leaders or by sending Guan Eng and me to jail.

(Speech atthe Parti Amanah Negara Dinner at Senawang to launch off the AMANAH Negri Sembilan headquarters on Friday, 25th March 2016 at 9 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 26 March 2016, 7:00 am and is filed under
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Farewell to a Fearless, Forthright & Fiercely Independent Judge!

By Martin Jalleh

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 27 March 2016, 8:54 am and is filed under
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Not only IGP Khalid, but Home Minister Zaid Hamidi and former Home Minister Hishamuddin who should tender apology for the unjustified police shooting and killing of 14-year-ld Aminulrasyid Amzah in Shah Alam in April 2010

The Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar has said that he would not apologise to  Aminulrasyhid Amzah’s family after the Shah Alam High Court found him liable for public misfeasance in the case of the slain 14-year-old teenager in Shah Alam in April 2010, claiming that his statement at the time was based on the facts of the case.

The Shah Alam High Court ordered the Inspector-General and the Police to pay RM414,000 as damages to Aminulrasyid’s family for the unjustified shooting and killing six years ago.

Khalid had said in a statement the day after Aminulrasyid was shot dead in a car chase with the police that a parang was found in the car.

The court found that this was an attempt by the IGP to justify the actions of the police officer who had fired at the 14-year-old.

Khalid said that he never said Aminulrasyid had used the parang, only that it had been found in the car he was driving.

“There is no issue of me having to apologise because I purportedly made that statement to protect my men.

“I am not acting arrogant. I based it on the facts on the case.

“I never said that he used the parang. I only said that the parang was found in the car.”

It is a sad that Khalid continues to defend the unjustified police shooting and killing of the 14-year-old Aminulrasyid in Shah Alam six years ago, as it is a poor reflection on police professionalism of top police officers like Khalid and a slur on their duties to uphold the law and order – which must mean that they will not themselves break the laws of the land.

Nobody doubts that Khalid committed the public misfeasance to protect his men, but this is what he should not do. He must set an example to all police officers that while the police leadership will back up to the hilt police personnel who carry out their duties to uphold law and order, they should not expect indulgence or impunity  if they break the law in the discharge of their duties – as in the unjustified shooting and killing of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid in Shah Alam six years ago.

In fact, it is not only IGP Khalid, but Home Minister Datuk Seri Zaid Hamidi and former Home Minister Datuk Seri  Hishamuddin Hussein who should tender apology for the unjustified police shooting and killing of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah in Shah Alam in April 2010.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 27 March 2016, 2:35 pm and is filed under
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Success of UMNO/BN strategists in distracting national  attention from the second political event of the year – the March 27 Citizens’ Declaration “People’s Congress” in Shah Alam bridging racial, religious and political divides to Save Malaysia

Give credit where credit is due.

This is the first time  that the expensive coterie of strategists and propagandists of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak have scored a bull’s-eye in their propaganda offensives  as they had been firing blanks all these years.

Their  success is to distract national attention from the second political event of the year – the March 27 Citizens’ Declaration “People’s Congress” in Shah Alam this evening, bridging racial, religious and political divides for Save Malaysia!

From the television time and pages of newspaper space in government and UMNO/BN owned or controlled printed media devoted to the issue in the past 10 days, one should be excused for thinking that Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s purchase of RM2.8 million bungalow is the biggest scandal not only in Malaysia but in the world – one thousand times bigger than Najib Razak’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal, when RM2.6 billion is about 1,000 times more than RM2.8 million!

This is not to say that a RM2.8 million corruption scandal involving a DAP leader is acceptable or excusable, but so far there is nothing to show that Guan Eng has a case of corruption in the purchase of the RM2.8 million bungalow  to answer.

I confess that  that I was nonplussed when the Perda Chairman and UMNO MP for Tasek Gelugor Shabudin Yahaya opened the attack on Guan Eng in Parliament 10 days ago,  followed by a blitzkrieg of video clips, social media postings and whats app attacks on Guan Eng’s “corruption”, equating Guan Eng’s bungalow with former Selangor Mentri Besar Khir Toyo’s “Balinese” palatial home – “attack” materials which were clearly prepared in advance to be unleashed once Shabudin opened the assault.

I advised Guan Eng to open his bungalow house to media to visit to show there is nothing to compare his bungalow to Khir Toyo’s palatial home, while he rebutted allegations of corrupt practice in the purchase of the bungalow.

I was surprised that Guan Eng had difficulty in rebutting allegations of corruption, not because there is a case of corruption for him to answer but  because of a deliberate propaganda agenda  and campaign over government television and UMNO/BN owned or controlled printed media as well as the social media  to  paint an image that Guan Eng had been untrustworthy, “turning and twisting” and unable to come full and clean on the issue, when in fact he had done so.

For instance, for one long week, television and some print  and social media went to town to present the image that Guan Eng did not know the value of the bungalow he purchased and in the process, creating doubt about Guan Eng’s  honesty and credibility – which I agree would be most outrageous if true and Guan Eng would deserve to be pilloried for such dishonesty and pretension of ignorance.

But Guan Eng never said he did not know the value of his bungalow when he showed the media his house on 20th March, as Guan Eng  was specifically responding to a question by UMNO on whether the property was presently valued at RM6.5 million.

Guan Eng said he did not know whether UMNO was right in claiming that the current value of the bungalow was RM6.5 million , not that he did not know its value when he signed the Sales and Purchase Agreement and paid the stamp duty in 2015.

Guan Eng’s  reply and context was correctly reported by the MCA-owned Star, but the MCA Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Wee Ka Siong, could be so unscrupulous and  unprincipled as to join in twisting and distorting Guan Eng’s statement by asking  yesterday how a Chief Minister and an accountant could be so dishonest as to say he did not know the value of the bungalow he had purchased!

But then, one should not have any  high expectations of MCA Ministers and leaders of the MCA  would not have degenerated into a 7/11 political party.

There were other lies and half-truths in the blitzkrieg campaign against Guan Eng and the DAP leadership, like the lie that Guan Eng and the Penang State Government had robbed the land of the poor, which could not withstand any serious scrutiny.

But Malaysians must not allow the UMNO/BN strategists and propagandists to kill four birds with one stone, viz:

(1)	distract and deflect national attention from Najib’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6  billion “donation” scandals;

(2)	distract and deflect national attention from the Save Malaysia “Citizens’ Declaration” in general and the People’s Congress in Shah Alam today’;

(3)	undermine and attack the DAP’s integrity and credibility by launching a blitzkrieg of lies and falsehoods against the  DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, the Penang State Government and the DAP;

(4)	Influence the outcome of the impending Sarawak state general elections.

Malaysians must not be gullible as to fall victim to the blitzkrieg campaign of lies and falsehoods by the highly-paid UMNO/BN strategists and propagandists.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 27 March 2016, 10:40 am and is filed under
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What is the whole fuss on the CM’s house about?

P Dev Anand Pillai

Malaysiakini

25 Mar 2016

Everyone seems to be asking Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to go on leave, the question is why should he if he has done no wrong? Since when do we have a law which forces the willing seller of a property to sell one’s property at market price? Who determines the market price?

We have the freedom to contract in this country and that is what most of those who wield power in Putrajaya do when it comes to the huge and luxurious properties that they have amassed in their list of properties that they own.

If the seller chooses to sell at a certain price which the Valuation Department of the Inland Revenue Board thinks is below the market rate determined by its valuers, then the Department values the property at the market rate and determines the stamp duty payable, although the purchase price is lower than the so-called market price.

The Valuation Department always takes the higher amount. Therefore if the property is actually valued at about RM6.5 million as the dissidents seem to accuse the purchaser of escaping, then there must a clear reason for this.

Are all the properties in the famed Taman Manggis that expensive?

Or does a normal old bungalow house with some extensions here and there which even most civil servants of humble origins do to their houses suddenly become super-expensive because the buyer happens to be the chief minister of Penang?

If a closer look at the house is made, the house doesn’t seem that big and great at all! It is a normal double storey bungalow which is the types that were built during the 70s and early 80s. This kind of houses can be seen everywhere in most old housing estates in Old Kuala Lumpur, Cheras, Ampang, Old Klang Road, Petaling Jaya, Setapak, Klang, Ipoh and Taiping, to name a few.

For extensive renovations to be done to such buildings with a view to then hike up the valuation price of these properties to exorbitant amounts is just plain bulls**t.

Who governs this? Is the Valuation Department bothered? We don’t see Valuation Department staffers at the site of the properties which are in the midst of the process of being sold to actually take down details to prepare a valuation report! Only Bank valuers do that at the moment. So what a load of crap are most of these dissidents harping about?

Furthermore the seller has been very clear in her statutory declaration that she had intended to sell the house to the CM of Penang after having promised his wife that she would sell it to them at that given price once they are ready to purchase it. This purchase has been blown to this magnitude just because the purchaser of the property is none other than Lim Guan Eng who is a leader who is known to stand up to the notion of Malay supremacy and might which the ruling federal government expects every citizen in this country to conform to.

Most of the comments coming from the pallbearer parties within the federal ruling coalition don’t seem to make any sense at all. Have they perused the Contracts Act 1950 on the area of offer and acceptance before making their comments?

One is sure that Lim Kit Siang and his son Lim Guan Eng know that the entire Malay pro-establishment diaspora and those who are in blind allegiance to them will have a highly-powered magnifying glass from above looking into every detail of their lives to see if everything is above board so will there be any attempt to skirt around issues if there is one to begin with?

Now, there is a question of a purchaser having to know what the market price of a property that he or she is interested in before one starts the process of purchasing the said property; Yes, agreed. But what stops the seller from selling at a price which he or she prefers to sell? Even if the property is valued at say RM6.5 million, what stops the seller from selling at a lower price if he or she is willing to do it even if it is not at the behest of the purchaser?

It is the Valuation Department’s responsibility

Can the seller be forced to sell at the market price? Or must the purchaser be duty bound by a duty of care to remind the seller to sell him the property at the market price even though the seller is not bothered? The whole thing looks very stupid! It is the Valuation Department’s responsibility to use its resources to find out the actual value of the property and determine the stamp duty based on that finding.

This entire episode is nothing but an attempt to demonise and cook up false allegations on Guan Eng and to play it up continuously like what they did to Anwar Ibrahim and see if the intended victim falls but sad to say, they are dealing with a Chinese male with a lot of scrotal gumption which many Chinese males in Malaysian politics wish they had but they don’t.

Most will be cowed by the might of the state and the media it controls when they continuously peddle lies in the hope of making it true if it is continuously repeated and then bury the political opponent once and for all. Guan Eng is not so stupid to make mistakes or direct the Valuation department to be favourable to him because of his position.

What the United Malays National Organisation (Umno), its pallbearer coalition partners, new-found friend PAS and so many NGOs and civil society groups have done is to further enhance and sodify Guan Eng’s position as the victim in the political games and ploys which they play to demonise and destroy him politically.

They fail to realise that by doing this, they further alienate the ethnic Chinese voters to become entrenched voters of the opposition coalition. It is not about being cocky, arrogant or being a braggart, it is about standing up to the notion of Malay supremacy and might, until and unless that is done, the bullying will never stop.

P DEV ANAND PILLAI is a social observer with keen interest in history, law, politics and international relations concerning our country and one who believes that our multi-cultural fabric is our greatest strength.

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 27 March 2016, 8:18 am and is filed under
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Can Najib explain how  Clare Rewcastle could  be named among ”World’s 50th Greatest Leaders” for exposure of 1MDB scandal when she is blacklisted and declared persona non grata in Malaysia and access to her website blocked by MCMC?

One question which I raised at the Save Malaysia People’s Congress in Shah Alam yesterday was whether Malaysia has become a most abnormal country out of sync with international aspirations, trends and developments.

As an example,  I cited the example of the owner of the whistleblower  website, Sarawak Report, Clare Rewcastle Brown who was named one of ‘The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders’ for role in the exposure of the 1MDB scandal but is blacklisted and  persona non grata in Malaysia and her website blocked from access by Malaysian government as “detrimental to parliamentary democracy” for “undesirable content” in Sarawak Report  which could “could create unrest and threatens national stability, public order and economic stability”.

Named in Fortune magazine’s
“The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders”
, Clare Rewcastle shares the company of German chancellor Angela Merkel and Myanmar NPD party leader Aung San Su Kyi (ranked No. 2 and respectively) for “transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same”.

Can the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri  Najib Razak explain how  Clare Rewcastle could  be named among
”World’s 50th Greatest Leaders”
 for exposure of 1MDB scandal when she is blacklisted and declared persona non grata in Malaysia and access to her website blocked by  Malaysian Multimedia and Communications Commission (MCMC)?

Bersih Chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah said at the People’s Congress yesterday that Parliament is one of the national institutions which have failed the people.

I cannot agree more for we have the spectacle where Prime Minister’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion twin mega scandals are almost the daily subject of international news reports, being the subject of investigation of seven other countries, as well as the No. 1 conversational topic of 30 million Malaysians in warongs and coffee shops, but Members of Parliament cannot ask questions and get Ministers to give full and satisfactory accountability about them in Parliament.

Thanks to my six-month suspension from Parliament because of my persistent pursuit of answers to  Najib’s twin mega scandals, I have  been able so far to visit 98 parliamentary constituencies and the majority of Malaysians in these constituencies, including Kelantan, Kedah, Perlis, Pahang and Perak,  want answers to these twin mega scandals – in particular, where the monies for the RM2.6 billion (or is it more?) deposited into Najib’s personal banking accounts came from and where such astronomical sums of money have gone to.

Some twenty years ago, Malaysia pioneered the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) as a “gift to the world”, promising “No Internet Censorship” in a 10-Point Bill of Guarantees to pave the way for Malaysia to become an Internet Superpower.

Today, under the Najib premiership, Malaysia has not only violated the “No Internet Censorship”, blocking websites like Sarawak Report and news portals like The Malaysian Insider (leading to TMI closure), Malaysia is clearly going against international aspirations, trends and developments highlighted by the  blacklisting and demonization of Clare Rewcastle, who is regarded as among
 “The World’s 50 Greatest leaders”
 in “transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same”.

Does “the world” now excludes Malaysia?

Two days ago, CIMB chairman Datuk Nazir Abdul Razak said that lessons must be learnt and action taken on those responsible, to ensure scandals like the one involving 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) will never happen again.

He said: “The future is making sure that 1MDB – never again.

“In order to make sure 1MDB – never again, we got to look at the past and understand what happened so that we learn from the lessons.

“So that people who are responsible for it are held accountable for it and nobody does it again.”

Will the Najib government heed the advice of the CIMB Chairman?

If so, the first step is to remove the blacklist on Clare Rewcastle and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) should invite her to be the “star witness” at PAC hearings to produce proof and substantiation of all her allegations about Najib’s twin mega scandals.

Is the PAC prepared to convene an immediate emergency meeting to extend such invitation to Clare Rewcastle, promising that no harm would come to her in whatever manner in her visit to Malaysia?

                This entry was posted on Monday, 28 March 2016, 3:40 pm and is filed under
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Najib Critics Roll Out ‘Save Malaysia’ Campaign Against Premier

Anuradha Raghu/Manirajan Ramasamy

Bloomberg

March 27, 2016

Malaysian opposition politicians and leading critics of Prime Minister Najib Razak unveiled a fresh campaign aimed at ousting him, after months of attacks over a funding scandal failed to substantially dent his support.

Former premier Mahathir Mohamad and ex-deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin were among those who addressed more than 2,000 people at a convention center in the capital Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, with each of the 18 speakers conveying the same message: Najib must go now.

“The wait for two years for the next general elections is too long,” Mahathir said. “Our situation is very bad. We need to recover quickly and two years will be too late.”

Najib is facing his biggest political crisis since coming to power seven years ago as questions linger over $681 million which appeared in his accounts before the last election in 2013, funds the attorney-general said were a donation from the Saudi royal family. Mahathir, the country’s longest serving leader who governed until 2003, has waged a public campaign for months to get Najib out of office.

Mahathir Feud

From now until early June, Mahathir and Muhyiddin will drive the ‘Save Malaysia’ effort that will collect signatures from ordinary voters in various cities calling for Najib to step down, said Khairuddin Abu Hassan, a former official of the ruling United Malays National Organisation. Mahathir said he’s expecting a million signatories to the anti-Najib petition by the end of 2016.

Their feud has grown increasingly acrimonious, with Mahathir attacking Najib over a series of financial scandals and his economic record, and quitting the ruling party. While his influence has faded in recent years, the public sparring creates risk for UMNO, which has ruled since independence in 1957 but whose broader Barisan Nasional coalition won the last election in 2013 with its slimmest margin yet. The next election must be held by 2018.

Corruption Struggle

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Najib Razak, Malaysia is struggling with corruption and money scandals to an extent so serious that we have never faced before,” former law minister Zaid Ibrahim said at the rally. “We are ashamed of what is happening to the country now. We cannot be patient anymore.”

Najib has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said no “individual, however eminent” should try to interfere with or hijack his leadership. He retains the backing of the bulk of UMNO’s powerful divisional chiefs.

“This is the beginning of a long journey,” said Muhyiddin, who was suspended as UMNO deputy president for undermining the organization in his quest to remove Najib. “Our aim is for Najib to step down and not to topple the government. If we keep quiet and do nothing, they will say ‘look, no one is standing up against us,’” he said of those backing the prime minister.

Joining Hands

The effort to get Najib out of office has turned sworn political enemies into temporary allies. The government said this month that Mahathir’s move to align with opposition members showed the depth of “political opportunism and desperation.” Jailed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, a one-time deputy to Mahathir who was fired after a dispute over economic policies in 1998, is among those backing his former mentor.

Former UMNO leaders, who are “conspiring with the opposition,” do not respect democracy and the mandate given by the people, the official news agency Bernama reported Sunday, citing Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Azalina Othman.

Kamaruzaman Ismail, 63, was detained under the Internal Security Act when Mahathir was premier. He was among those at Sunday’s rally pledging support for Mahathir’s current efforts.

“What Mahathir did to me was personal,” said Kamaruzaman, an official with opposition group Parti Amanah Negara. “Why I am here today is for the country and the people. I will support this cause for the betterment of this country.”

Poorer Ranking

Malaysia’s score worsened in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2015 released in January, putting it on a ranking near Slovakia, Kuwait and Cuba. Issues related to troubled state investment company 1Malaysia Development Bhd. contributed to the nation’s fall on the global list to 54th from 50th in 2014, according to the Malaysian head of Transparency International.

“We have to continue with reformation, we have to overcome corruption,” said Ambiga Sreenevasan, one of the nation’s best known civil society group leaders and who met U.S. President Barack Obama when he was in Malaysia last year. “It is time to say ‘no’ to leaders who act as though Malaysia belongs to only them. We don’t want a dictatorship.”

Some of those at the rally expressed anger over rising transport and food costs. The government has removed subsidies from sugar to fuel in recent years, and it implemented a goods and services tax in 2015. Malaysian consumer prices in February rose at the fastest pace since 2008.

“I’m retired, now I have to be more careful how I spend my money,” Chen Soon Chin, 68, said outside the convention center. “I’m concerned about the Malaysian political situation — the corruption, injustice, abuse of power and people suffering because of the heavy taxes.”

                This entry was posted on Monday, 28 March 2016, 10:35 am and is filed under
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We deserve a Malaysia where Aminulrasyid, Kugan, Teoh Beng Hock and even Justice Singham do not become victims of injustices of an unfair and iniquitous system

The Save Malaysia People’s Congress in Shah Alam yesterday attended by some 2,000 people of all races, religions and political affiliations  was a vote of confidence  by the people of Malaysia in the future and salvation of Malaysia.

As I said at the beginning of my speech at the People’s Congress yesterday, the Tuns, Tan Sris, Datuk Seris, Datuks and ordinary men and women who gathered at the People’s Congress from various parties, NGOs as well as NGIs, are not “bad hats”, trouble makers, anti-national elements or traitors, but loyal and dedicated Malaysian patriots who love the country deeply and do not want Malaysia to hurtle down the slope of a failed and a rogue state.

Despite our differences – and there can be no greater differences between the former longest-serving Prime Minister for 22 years, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and myself spanning more than four decades –  the 2,000 people who gathered in Shah Alam were  united by one common noble and patriotic purpose, to save Malaysia, the country we love deeply and owe undivided loyalty, from continuing to be a land of injustices but could begin to  fulfill the promises of the Malaysian Dream where Malaysia can punch above our weight in international community because of our accomplishments and achievements of  various fields of human endeavor – political, economic, respect for human rights, good governance or nation building of a plural society of diverse races, languages, religions and cultures.

The events of the last few days have brought to the fore the tragic cases of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah, V. Kugan and Teoh Beng Hock  – the Shah Alam High Court award of RM414,000 as damages to the family of Aminulrasyid Amzah’s family for the unjustified police shooting and killing of the teenager in Shah Alam in April 2010, the death of former High Court judge V.T. Singham  reminding Malaysians of his courageous judgement in the case of A. Kugan’s death in police custody, and the high-powered campaign to accuse and tar DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng with the allegation of corruption for the RM2.8 million bungalow purchase, raising the question of the independence and professionalism of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in high-profile political cases.

One objective of the “Save Malaysia” campaign is to implement meaningful institutional reforms to restore the credibility, independence, professionalism and integrity of national institutions to ensure that we are a country where Aminulrasyid, Kugan and Teoh Beng Hock do not become victims of injustices of an unfair and iniquitous system – which had completely deviated from the guarantees of rule of law and  institutional checks-and-balance entrenched in the 1957 Merdeka Constitution and the 1963 Malaysia Constitution.

In fact, it is not only Aminulrasyid, Kugan and Teoh Beng Hock who had become victims of injustices of an unfair and iniquitous system, even Justice Singham himself was also a victim.

Yesterday, hundreds of people in Ipoh paid their last respects to Justice Singham, one of Malaysia’s  judiciary luminaries,  at his funeral service.

Malaysians joined distinguished Malaysian jurists like former Court of Appeal judge, Datuk Mohd Hishammdudin Mohd Yunus and former United Nations special rapporteur Datuk Param Cumaraswamy in mourning the death of Singham, one of the few great Malaysian judges who refused to kowtow or succumb to  the Executive and who strongly believed in the important doctrine of the Separation of Powers among the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary, resulting in his becoming  a victim of unfair and iniquitous system in being denied promotion as Court of Appeal and Federal Court judge.

As we are on the subject of “Save Malaysia” and the need for democratic and institutional reforms to return to the cardinal fundamentals of the 1957 Merdeka Constitution and the 1963 Malaysia Constitution, it is apt to consider the need for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to restore a just rule of law and truly independent judiciary in Malaysia.

I think there is no person more qualified to head such a Royal Commission of Inquiry to restore  a just rule of law and truly independent judiciary in Malaysia than former Court of Appeal Judge, Datuk Mohd Hishammuddin who was himself a victim of the unjust and iniquitous system and  denied promotion to be Federal Court judge because of his “without fear or favour” judicial qualities.

This is the relevance and importance of the Save Malaysia “Citizens’ Declaration” of 4th March 2016 and the Save Malaysia People Congress in Shah Alam yesterday.

                This entry was posted on Monday, 28 March 2016, 12:36 pm and is filed under
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Dr. Mahathir’s Attempt at Redemption

Koon Yew Yin

29th March 2016

Like many Malaysians who followed the Citizen’s Declaration Congress which was televised live yesterday by our internet media (thanks to our brave independent media for daring to put it out for public viewing!), I thought that the star of the daylong event was Dr Mahathir.

Although the oldest speaker there by a big margin, at 90 years old, he appeared the youngest and smartest of the group of 19 speakers! We could all see that his mind is still sharp; his wit is one of a kind; and his political instincts still intact. His was also the most enjoyable speech to listen to.

Earlier, UMNO’s Secretary General, Tengku Adnan put out a stern warning to UMNO members not to attend the Shah Alam gathering as he saw it as a platform to destroy an institution and create chaos while serving to achieve certain individuals’ goals and agenda.

What silliness coming from someone who is leader in a so-called democratic party.  This was a stupid action and shows the extent of desperation and authoritarianism found in the party’s leadership. I am sure despite his warning tens if not hundreds of thousands of UMNO members will have tuned to the websites to view the programme.

And if Tengku Adnan himself and the other apple polishers and “Cash is King” followers in UMNO were also listening to Dr. Mahathir’s speech – as I think many of them would be doing – I hope they not only feel fearful but also feel ashamed for blindly supporting the Prime Minister in this period of our political history.

Dr. Mahathir today appears to be the number one hate figure in UMNO’s ruling circles. He has been branded as a traitor to the Malay race. One Malay blogger has termed him as “Ku Klux Kling” and has described Dr. Mahathir’s position in UMNO in this way.

To see him now holding hands with those he incarcerated and when he was in power just who are (sic) also those who want to undermine the sanctity of Islam in this country, so he could oust the current Prime Minister, is heart breaking for lack of a better word. You don’t burn your house down or work with outsiders just because you have a quarrel with a sibling. Like it or not, Najib is the elder brother in UMNO and Mahathir has to respect that. He should not have resigned in 2003 if he cannot accept that his successors would have their own style and once gone he is a has-been. Working with the enemies of your party just so you can save the party is just a stupid excuse to cover up one’s insidious personal agenda.

Unfortunately for that pro-Najib blogger, it is not just Dr. Mahathir alone in UMNO who feels that Najib has to go.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin, Tengku Razaleigh (okay, Ku Li appears to be like a lallang and seems to have changed his mind now that he has signed on the Kelantan Declaration), former Minister Shafie Apdal, UMNO Division Chiefs in Gerakan Ketua Cawangan Malaysia (GKCM), Wanita member Anina Saadudin, the Teluk Kemang Umno Six and countless others who dare not surface openly or have chosen to remain quiet – these are all UMNO loyalists who realize that the party is overrun with people who are ‘pemakan dedak’ (literally, meaning those eating animal feed) and who see Najib as the major problem.

Dr Mahathir: Atoning for His Past Misdeeds?

Why has Dr. Mahathir put his exalted place in UMNO and Malaysia history on the line? Why has he teamed up with his most bitter enemies to fight the UMNO system which as we all know he was a major figure in creating? Why has he volunteered to drive the truck or lorry containing 1million signatures calling for Najib’s removal to the Yang Dipertuan Agong’s residence?

Various analysts have tried to put it down to his lust for power. Some have said that it is because Dr. Mahathir wants his son, Mukhriz, to have a shot at becoming UMNO President and Prime Minister. Others have said that he has gone senile.

But a senile man cannot argue the way that Dr. Mahathir has done in the Congress and many other public fora on the need to remove Najib from his position as Prime Minister.  The fact is that neither Najib nor anyone else in Najib’s corner dares to be put on a stage with Dr. Mahathir and debate with him on the 1MDB issue or any of the other scandals that have been part of Najib’s administration.

Dr. Mahathir could have enjoyed the last few years of his life spending time with his grand children and touring the world. He could have easily said “I have done more than enough” and walked away from the Malaysian political scene.

Instead he has chosen not only to return to the political rough and tumble but to take a position in which he risks everything he has accumulated during his years of power: fame, perks, privilege, reputation, wealth, and so on.  He knows that it is a fight in which he is out-numbered and is likely to lose. But he is giving it his best shot.

For this we have to take our hats off to him.

Tengku Adnan has described UMNO supporters who do not support the party President as termites who are better off leaving the party. Even if he does not succeed in reforming the party, the fact that he has been able to get some members of UMNO on the side of the opposition gives me hope that the next election may not go UMNO’s way as many are predicting.

In a strange way, Dr. Mahathir in his twilight years may yet again be the catalyst for change in the country. This time is for the better.

If so, he will have atoned for his past misdeeds and redeemed his good name – at least with me!

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, 5:23 pm and is filed under
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Ku Li, you have let the rakyat down

Mariam Mokhtar

Malaysiakini

28 Mar 2016

Politicians like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah cause the electorate to lose faith in politics. Affectionately known as Ku Li, he confirms our suspicions of him. He is all spin and no substance. He joins a long list of sycophants who should have had the interests of the rakyat at heart, but at the critical moment, let down the people and himself. Where are the men of integrity and honour?

Ku Li’s betrayal may not matter now, because a majority of the population still cast their votes. In time, this number will drop because they will see politicians as untrustworthy.

So, was it emotion, or political expediency which prompted Ku Li to sign the ‘Kelantan Declaration’?

The Citizens’ Declaration of the ‘Save Malaysia’ movement is supported by former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad. The Kelantan Declaration is just a vanity declaration, like a love letter for politicians. It is a tit-for-tat move to distract the rakyat from national issues.

So did Ku Li sign because of his 30-year-old grudge against Mahathir, whom he challenged for the Umno party presidency in 1987 but lost by a whisker? There were irregularities in voting, and Ku Li’s supporters mounted a legal challenge. The High Court declared Umno an illegal party and forced Mahathir to form Umno Baru, and Ku Li, Semangat 46.

Was Ku Li exacting his revenge on Mahathir? Or did Najib Abdul Razak whisper sweet nothings into Ku Li’s ears and promised him a role more prominent than that of a mere MP?

Ku Li is free to sign the Kelantan Declaration and express his loyalty to Najib, but in the past, why did he have to string some of the rakyat along, and say that he cared?

Ku Li has expressed dissatisfaction with the government on numerous occasions. When asked why he refused to leave Umno Baru and fight for change from the opposition benches, his answer was always “No!” He claimed to be more effective, fighting for change from within.

His critique of the government convinced some of the opposition that he could be an interim prime minister should GE14 result in a hung parliament, or if the no-confidence vote against Najib had been successful.

Some people may remember that at the convocation ceremony of the Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), in June 2014, Ku Li moaned about the division of race and religion, the low standards of fluency in English, and Malaysian education.

He reminisced about his teenage years when athletes were selected on their sporting prowess, and Malaysians were united in their support of them, irrespective of their race. He recalled fond memories of Wong Peng Soon, the All-England badminton champion, in 1950 and 1951.

Today, he supports the leader of a party which condones division in society.

In 2010, Ku Li said that in the 1980s, the government was spending money like water, and the Defence Ministry would purchase Exocet missiles, at RM2 million each, for target practice.

Why regurgitate these issues?

Why regurgitate these issues, decades later? He once held the portfolio of finance minister, and had to sign the chits, but did not complain about the frivolous spending on the armed forces.

He held two heavyweight ministerial posts, (finance and international trade and industry). His arguments would have carried weight. Why were these matters not highlighted, then?

A few days ago, Mahathir stunned Malaysians with the revelation that Ku Li and a group of Umno Baru leaders had secretly plotted to oust Najib. Mahathir said, “He (Ku Li) came and met me, and said he wants to push for a no-confidence vote. He said he can get the majority, but he failed.”

The irony is that having been defeated, Ku Li later signed his allegiance to the man he had wanted to topple.

How are we to have any confidence in our politicians, if they fail us when they fall at the first hurdle? Where is their persistence, and their moral duty?

On Sept 16, 2008, former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim failed in his bid to secure enough defections in Umno Baru to oust the erstwhile PM Abdullah Badawi. Anwar was subsequently demonised by Umno Baru politicians.

Today, the same politicians keep silent about Ku Li’s tactics, which were similar, and also failed.

If there is any threat to the stability and national security of the nation, it is from politicians who have abrogated their duty to serve the rakyat.

Our enemy is not from outside, it is from within. Our enemy is made up of politicians who fail to act against corruption, injustice, and divisive and racist politics.

Members of the political elite want only one thing, to hang on to their seats. And power.

You know what you must do in GE14.

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO).

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, 1:46 am and is filed under
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Muafakat Selamatkan Malaysia must go back to the fundamentals of the 1957 Merdeka Constitution and 1963 Malaysia Constitution to ensure democratic and institutional reforms especially  just rule of law and truly independent judiciary

The launching of the nation-wide Pakatan Harapan “Muafakat Selamatkan Malaysia” campaign tonight is line with the historic Citizens’ Declaration on March 4, 2016 to Save Malaysia by demanding the resignation for Datuk Seri Najib Razak as Prime Minister and the carrying out of meaningful democratic and institutional reforms to stop Malaysia from hurtling down the slope of a failed and rogue state.

The Save Malaysia campaign must go back to the fundamentals of the 1957 Merdeka Constitution and the 1963 Malaysia Constitution to ensure democratic and institutional reforms especially to ensure a just rule of law and a truly independent judiciary.

The Save Malaysia campaign can only succeed if Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or political affiliation, are prepared to take a common  national patriotic stand to oppose rampant corruption,  massive abuses of power, undemocratic practices and widespread socio-economic injustices in the country.

For this reason, all Malaysians, whether in the component parties of DAP, PKR and Parti Amanah Negara in Pakatan Harapan, or the 3.5 million UMNO members and one million PAS members, should come together on a common national platform to ensure that Malaysia becomes a world-class nation respected by the international community because of our accomplishments and achievements in   various fields of human endeavor – political, economic, respect for human rights, good governance or nation building of a plural society of diverse races, languages, religions and cultures – not because we have become among the world’s top ten countries in corruption.

This is the time for all patriotic Malaysians, regardless race, religion, or political parties or NGOs, to come together to stop the national rot and regain our national bearings.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim should be immediately released from Sungai Buloh Prison to participate in this new  national realignment, in the way that Nelson Mandela was freed from imprisonment after 27 years or 10,000 days of incarceration to take a full part and leadership in the process of national reconciliation towards a new  South Africa after decades of the horrors of apartheid rule.

[Speech (2) at the Pakatan Harapan ceramah for national launch of “Muafakat Selamatkan Malaysia” campaign at Padang MPAJ, Pandan Indah on Monday, 28th March 2016 at 11 pm]

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, 8:37 am and is filed under
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The Meaning of A Free Mind

Bakri Musa

29th March 2016

The meaning of a free mind can best be illustrated by this story of Mullah Nasaruddin, a fictitious alim known for his effective use of simple and often self-deprecating stories to drive home a point, illuminate a concept, or challenge conventional wisdom.

            He had a neighbor who was fond of borrowing items from him and then conveniently forgetting to return them. One day this neighbor came to the mullah to borrow his donkey. Anticipating this, the mullah had locked his animal away in the barn and out of sight. Upon hearing the request, the mullah confidently replied that his donkey had been taken away earlier by his brother. Just as the disappointed neighbor turned away, the donkey brayed. He turned around and remarked, “You said your donkey was gone!”

            To which the mullah replied, “Do you believe the braying of a donkey or the words of a mullah?”

            If you can accept that at times a donkey can be the bearer of the truth, and a mullah the purveyor of untruth, then you have exhibited a free mind, minda merdeka. There are many reasons why we continue believing the mullah despite the donkey braying in our face, and I will explore some of these subsequently.

            Our mission must be the molding of free minds, or to put in Malay, Mengasoh Minda Merdeka. We want Malays to believe the braying donkey even if the mullah were to say otherwise. Mengasoh Minda Merdeka is a nobler and definitely more productive pursuit than the current mindless obsession with Ketuanan Melayu or Agama, Bangsa, Negara. It is also a much more evocative mantra.

            Datuk Onn’s free mind enabled him to hear the braying of the donkey, the rakyats’ abhorrence of the Malayan Union Treaty, and wisely ignored the words of his mullah, the sultan. When you hear the donkey bray, do not let the sweet words of the mullah persuade you otherwise, lest you risk being made to look like an ass, or worse.

            Malays have been politically free since 1957, but the Malay mind is still entrapped. Time to liberate it, to grant its cherished freedom – Merdeka Minda Melayu! The philosopher Haji Abdul Malik Karim Amrullah, better known as HAMKA, described best what a free mind is with this last-but-one stanza of his poem, Nikmat Hidup (Life’s Bounty):

                        Menahan fikiran aku tak mungkin / Menumpul kalam aku tak kuasa.

                        Merdeka berfikir gagah perkasa / Berani menyebut yang aku yakin. (57-60)

            My approximate translation is:

                        Censoring ideas is not my deal / Nor putting to rest my writing quill.

                        Fearless are those who dare to think / And put to words their inner being.

            I challenge readers to find among Malay leaders today those who are Merdeka berfikir (free thinking) and gagah perkasa (fearless core). To be free minded is to be courageous to the core; that is what Hamka meant with his stirring line, Merdeka befikir gagah perkasa.

            Merdeka berfikir alone, courageous and laudatory as that may be, is not sufficient. You must also have the conviction to articulate your ideas and then share them with others. Otherwise it would be like a tree falling in the forest; with no one hearing it, will it make any sound? More importantly, will it matter? Thus Hamka’s berani menyebut! (Dare to voice).

            We can share our thoughts orally, with colleagues and friends over coffee, or more formally as at seminars and congresses. In such instances only those present would hear you, and they in turn would, it is to be hoped, spread the idea. Modern technology such as audio and video recording greatly expands the reach.

            The Ayatollah Khomeini triggered the Islamic Revolution from his safe sanctuary in France through audiotape recordings of his sermons. Those tapes were then smuggled into Iran. The digital revolution obviates the need for physical smuggling as those tapes could be digitized and then be made available worldwide in real time. I can listen to Mahathir’s speech at the Save Malaysia People’s Congress last Sunday, March 27, 2016 in the comfort of my living room, and with no risk of being harassed by the police.

            Writing extends this reach further through space and time. Writing, in the words of Prameodya Ananta Toer, is “one person speaking to many,” now and forever. Hamka is long gone but his wisdom lives on through his words.

            Writing, unlike speaking, imposes a certain discipline. You have to gather, organize, and then present your thoughts in a logical and attractive fashion so as to interest your readers. You do not have a captive audience. Readers could just toss away what they are reading if they think it is rubbish. No such constraints exist with talking. Undisciplined, it readily degenerates into nonproductive “coffee shop talk.” “Cakap kosong je!” (empty talk only!), as the villagers put it.

Back to a free mind, another way to grasp its meaning would be to seek its synonyms and antonyms. An open, liberated or flexible mind would mean the same as a free mind. Its opposite would be a closed or rigid mind. Malays have a saying, katak di bawah tempurung (frog underneath a coconut shell). That is an apt and beautiful metaphorical imagery of a closed mind, the very opposite of a free mind.

            A free mind is Allah’s command. Consider his command to Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w, as revealed in Surah Al-Rud (Thunder), “. . . Thy duty is no more than to deliver the message; the reckoning is Ours!” (13:40 – approximate translation). The prophet was to deliver the divine message but not to force it. This is reinforced in Surah Al-Rahf (The Cave, 18-29), “… Let him who will, believe; and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.”

            A faith enforced is no faith. That is the essence of those verses. We accept Islam of our own free will, not because it is forced upon us. A free mind is thus a necessary condition to being a believer.

            We have an obligation, to ourselves and to our Creator, not to let our minds be enslaved. Nor should we enslave others. The road to serfdom however, to borrow von Hayek’s phrase, is often laid with the best of intentions. We can be easily lulled into following the paved path that leads to our mental enslavement.

            We also have an obligation to those mentally enslaved, to help topple their coconut shell. To do so effectively, we first must appreciate and understand the challenges and obstacles they face. Our obligation extends beyond. Not only must we help them topple their coconut shell but we must also support them in adjusting to the new open world. Unprepared, they would find this new world far from exhilarating and rewarding but instead, disorienting and full of problems.

            With the old certitudes of life under the shell now gone, we grope for new ones. Unfortunately, there are few except this:  Have faith that a free mind will get you through. The corresponding beauty is that once a mind is free it cannot be fettered ever again. A free mind is the best guarantor that a new shell would never encroach upon us again. Our physical freedom can be taken away, often capriciously as in a country like Malaysia, but with a free mind we create our own freedom, as Pramoedya forcefully reminded us.

            A nation aspiring for greatness needs citizens and leaders with free minds. We can do without the Pak Turut (“Yes men”) leaders, content with echoing and regurgitating what they have been programmed to say, encapsulated in the hallowed ethos of our civil service, Saya menunggu arahan! (I await directives), or the equally servile Kami menurut perentah! (I follow orders). Their brand of “leadership” is merely to lead us plodding along the well-trodden path. They are incapable of carving new ones; they would persist along the same path even when it is riddled with potholes and ruts or ravaged by floods and landslides. They are also incapable of comprehending that the well-trodden path is often the one that leads to the garbage dump.

            Malaysia cannot aspire to Vision 2020, much less greatness, with such leadership. We need leaders willing and capable of paving new paths. In short, leaders with a free mind.

            To have such leaders we need citizens with free minds. Free-minded followers have free-minded leaders. Even without such leaders, our free-mindedness would enable us to carve our own path, to believe the braying donkey and not the smooth-talking Mullah. If we were to be successful, then others would follow and improve on our path. Then we would truly be makhlok soleh (exemplary being) and our society, masyarakat soleh (exemplary society).

Adapted from the author’s latest book, Liberating The Malay Mind, published by ZI Publications, Petaling Jaya. Its second edition was released recently on January 2016.

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, 5:07 pm and is filed under
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Will Guan Eng be arrested and charged for corruption in connection with his bungalow purchase  to deflect growing national and international attention on Najib’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” twin mega scandals?

Malaysia has become a most abnormal country out of sync with both national and  international aspirations, trends and developments.

The  Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion twin mega scandals have become the top daily conversational topic of 30 million Malaysians in the warongs and coffee shops, but Members of Parliament cannot ask questions or get answers from Ministers on Najib’s twin mega scandals.

Najib’s twin mega scandals have also become the staple of international news.

Earlier tonight, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in its 45-minute
“Four Corners”
documentary,
“State of Fear: Murder and Money in Malaysia”
, revisited Najib’s twin mega scandals.

The  ABC documentary reported on the extraordinary flow of funds into Najib’s personal banking accounts in AmBank between 2011 and 2014.

Among others, US$75 million (RM301 million in today’s exchange rates) purportedly came from a Saudi prince, while another US$80 million (RM321 million) came from the Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Finance.

A further US$120 million (RM482 million) supposedly came from an unnamed British Virgin Islands shell company. All three transactions were reportedly made by June 26, 2012.

The documentary also listed two transactions in March 2013 that supposedly came from another BVI company, totalling US$681 million. This is the often-reported RM2.6 billion political donation.

The total received by Najib, according to the documentary, was US$1.03 billion (RM4.14 billion) by April 10, 2013 – just over a month prior to the 13th general election.

The documentary claimed that Banki Negara was told at least three times about the enormous deposits into Najib’s personal banking accounts and that senior AmBank officials visited the Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Zeti Aziz to warn her about Najib’s personal accounts way back  in Sept 2012, that  the report was marked “highly sensitive” which  revealed  that almost USD300 million had already flowed into his accounts from several  mysterious donors overseas. Zeti merely thanked them for their   report and  handed it back.

Is this ABC documentary correct that AmBank senior officials had visited the Bank Negara Governor to warn her about the enormous flow of funds into Najib’s personal banking accounts?

The ABC documentary noted that the government had said two of Najib’s bank accounts at AmBank had been closed, but more accounts had been opened since.

Four Corners  established that three new accounts were opened in the Prime Minister’s name, and “the money just kept on pouring in”.

It said: “In June 2014 for example, the bank was notified of another £50 million (RM285 million) that was being wired to the prime minister’s name.

“There were also a series of cash deposits that raised money laundering alerts, here, inside the bank (AmBank)”.

Malaysians are entitled to “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”  and not snippets of information from a foreign broadcasting documentary.

If what the ABC Four Corners documentary claims is not true, is Najib going to sue the ABC to clear his name and that of the country or is there going to be a repeat of the Wall Street Journal episode which reported on the RM2.6 billion donations deposited into Najib’s accounts in early July last year, with Najib threatening to sue but which never materialized in the past eight months?

Despite herculean efforts to sweep Najib’s twin mega scandals under the carpet, as virtually banning  discussion of these scandals in Parliament, there is instead increasing national and international attention on the scandals, which explains the intense and systematic attack on  DAP leaders and in particular on the DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, in the past 10 days accusing him of corruption in his RM2.8 million bungalow purchase and the campaign of lies and falsehoods on issues unrelated to Guan Eng’s bungalow purchase.

Will Guan Eng  be arrested and charged for corruption in connection with his bungalow purchase  to deflect growing national and international attention on Najib’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” twin mega scandals?

(Speech at the Pakatan Harapan ceramah for national launch of “Muafakat Selamatkan Malaysia” campaign at Padang MPAJ, Pandan Indah on Monday, 28th March 2016 at 11 pm)

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 29 March 2016, 7:51 am and is filed under
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Guan Eng’s bungalow, Taman Manggis deal:   BN, you are hollow and hypocritical!

by P Ramakrishnan

Aliran

29 Mar 2016

A person can choose to sell his property at whatever price he wants to sell. It is his prerogative.

It can be way below market value or far above the market price. It is his property and it is his decision. That is not criminal in nature and he has not committed any crime in doing so.

However, if his property was sold below market value in order to receive kickbacks in return, then it is something else. Whatever kickback he gets out of this deal not only will make good what he had lost in the sale, but he will also reap a greater profit from it. That would involve corruption.

The MP for Tasek Glugor, Shabudin Yahya, had implied an element of corruption in the purchase of a house allegedly bought at below market price by the chief minister of Penang. Shabudin had claimed that the purchase of the house in 2015 had links to the 2012 sale of a piece of state government land in Taman Manggis to the private company Kuala Lumpur International Dental Centre Sdn Bhd (KLIDC).

In other words, it was imputed that that piece of land in Taman Manggis was sold below market price in 2012 so that Guan Eng could get his bungalow below market price – three years later – in 2015 as a favour for selling the land cheaply. If that indeed was the case – and if it could be proven conclusively – then there is no question that a corrupt act had taken place.

But is that the case? Mere speculation does not become a fact.

A stamp duty has to be paid on the value of the property bought at the rate of 1% for the first RM100,000, 2% after that till RM500,000 and 3% for anything above RM500,000.

The valuation is done by the Valuation Department, which is a government agency. If the buyer had quoted a certain price for the property and if the Valuation Department came out with a higher valuation for the property, the buyer pays the higher percentage based on the higher valuation, unless that buyer is prepared to challenge that valuation in a court of law.

In the instant case, since the Valuation Department decided that the market price of the property should be RM4.1m, the buyer have had to pay RM39,000 extra in stamp duty on the RM1.3m differential between the transaction price and the valuation level.

Nobody is ever charged for quoting a lower price. It is not a criminal act. It is not an issue at all.

Coming back to the issue of corruption, we are told that the buyer of the bungalow, the chief minister of Penang, was not the chairman of the Tender Board. He wasn’t even a member.

From the relevant facts made available, the Taman Manggis land was sold through an open tender chaired by the State Secretary. It would mean that there were other bidders for the land as well. If that was the case, who then would be the rightful buyer?

Surely it must be the highest bidder. If the land was bought legitimately through the proper tender process, how does the question of corruption come into the picture then?

Is it implied that the entire Tender Board had colluded with the chief minister in selling this particular piece of land to KLIDC below market price? Is the integrity of the members of the Tender Board being questioned? What is the basis for this?

Were the other bidders in the open tender exercise influenced not to offer a higher price so that KLIDC could buy this land at their offered price? Who would have that kind of influence? Was there a puppet master controlling the open tender exercise?

If the entire tender process was above board, how does the question of corruption arise? Is it a cooked-up notion?

Was the element of corruption wilfully manufactured to implicate Guan Eng in the purchase of his bungalow below market price?

If Shabudin has irrefutable evidence to back up his claim, then he should say this publicly outside Parliament. It is a moral obligation. We would support him – indeed urge him – to do so.

Guan Eng, who dismisses this allegation as lies, will be compelled to sue Shabudin, who can lay bare the evidence in Court and nail Guan Eng. If Shabudin is out to get Guan Eng for committing corruption, then this would be the golden opportunity for him to achieve this.

Much hullabaloo is being created now about the affordable housing project that was intended on Taman Manggis – but not implemented – by the former BN government. When the BN was in power, it could have easily completed the housing project for the poor on this piece of land. But it would seem it had squandered that opportunity.

By God’s grace, the BN had another opportunity to complete this housing project. It had the means, the capacity and the political will to undertake this project successfully. Indeed, it went out of the way to seek and grab this opportunity and boldly and loudly proclaimed that it was going to build affordable houses on this plot of land.

The BN made this a burning issue for the GE13, slamming the Pakatan Rakyat government for selling the 0.45ha (1.1-acre) Taman Manggis land rather cheaply below market price for RM11.5m or at RM232 psf to a private company. The BN contended that the price should be double of what was sold to the private company.

This prompted the chief minister to offer the BN to buy the land for over RM22m or RM450 psf. With much bravado, the BN chief, Teng Chang Yeow, immediately agreed to buy the land. The total cost was RM22,407,300.

The BN was so eager to purchase this land in order to build houses for the poor that it wasted no time and even paid 1% earnest money of RM224,073 on 3 October 2012.

The BN was so flushed with money that it brought that amount – almost a quarter million ringgit – in cash together with a counting machine. The BN State Youth chief, Oh Tong Keong, accompanied by Penang MCA Youth chief, Tan Hing Teik, and Tanjung Barisan Youth chief, H’ng Khoon Leng, went to the chief minister’s Office  to hand over the money at 11am that morning.

However, they were denied entry by the guards at Komtar. The CM’s special assistant, Faridah Hani M. Yaacob, who met the group, said the state could not accept the cash and told them to bank in the amount to the state via the state treasurer.

The Barisan leaders later banked in the amount at a Maybank branch in Komtar.

State Barisan Youth chief, Oh Tong Keong, emphatically stated that the payment was to show the state Barisan’s seriousness and sincerity in buying the land.

“The state did not ask for the 1% payment, but if we do not take any action, the state will accuse us of not being sincere,” he added.

The State BN had 30 days to settle the full payment. As such, the remaining amount of RM22,183,227 had to be paid in by 4 November 2012.

Subsequently, the Penang BN Youth chief, Oh Tong Keong, with gusto, declared, “The money and everything else is ready. We have successfully collected the remaining RM22.18m from Barisan supporters.”

Come 4 November, the BN failed to honour its remaining 99% payment. The Pakatan Rakyat government, in wanting to co-operate with the BN, gave an extended deadline of another month for the BN to meet its obligation. But this obligation was not fulfilled on 4 December 2012 and thus the 1% earnest money was forfeited.

The BN had two missions to fulfil:

(1) prevent the Pakatan Government from selling the Taman Manggis land at RM11.5m, considered by them as below market price; and

(2) give meaning to their great passion for the poor by building affordable houses on this plot of land.

But they botched both the missions, bringing to question their sinceriry.

After all the beating of the war drums about the Taman Manggis land, after displaying all the determination of wanting to acquire this piece of land to build houses for the poor and after having collected all the money necessary to conclude the sale, why was it aborted? Money was not the problem. Then what was the problem?

What happened to all that bravado?

To organise demonstrations and demand that houses be built on Taman Manggis land only reveals political opportunism and does not in any way enhance their credibility or establish their sincerity.

What the Penang Umno Youth chief, Rafizal Abd Rahim, told reporters after the 25 March 2016 gathering at Taman Manggis – “We want to protect the people’s interests as they need a more comfortable place which they can call their own” – has a hollow ring to it.

In 2013, BN was wallowing in money. A nameless stranger had mysteriously donated RM2.6bn. A small part of that money would have sufficed to build the affordable houses for the poor if there was the political will and genuine desire to help the poor.

But RM1.5bn was splashed without a care to buy and bribe voters to retain power.

BN, you reneged on your word, you broke your promise, you dishonoured your solemn intention.

You not only sounded hollow and hypocritical when you expressed your concern for the poor but you have proven yourself to be hollow and hypocritical in not fulfilling your solemn promise!

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 30 March 2016, 6:55 am and is filed under
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Interesting revelations by ABC Australia

Baru Bian

Malaysiakini

30th March 2016

On Monday, ABC Australia aired an episode of their programme Four Corners, detailing the shocking events surrounding the 1MDB scandal. The prime minister of Malaysia is alleged to have received vast amounts of money by improper means.

Yesterday morning, in a report entitled
‘Najib Razak 1MDB Scandal: Malaysian Prime Minister’s accounts triggered internal money-laundering alarm’
, ABC News disclosed that Najib’s account received more than US$1 billion in two years and that millions were spent on luxury hotels, cars and jewellery.

What was interesting was the disclosure that Najib used this money in his account to fund ‘political affiliates’ in the run up to the 2013 general election, naming the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) as one of the recipients of the PM’s tainted money. This is a serious matter which the leaders of SUPP must explain to the public. There are legal and ethical issues about being the recipient of the proceeds of corruption.

Besides that, one must ask what price the PM extracted from SUPP for his generosity. Blind and unquestioning support? Is this why the leaders of SUPP have not made any stand about the 1MDB scandal?

The other question that springs to mind is this: did the other BN component parties receive similar handouts from Najib? If SUPP was a recipient, it is logical to assume that the other BN parties were also on the receiving end of Najib’s generosity. This means that they are all beholden to Najib.

It is no wonder that they fall over themselves fawning over him when he comes to Sarawak, pledging their undying loyalty to him. It is no wonder that they are all silent about the 1MDB scandal. Is the price for this largesse that they all shut down their thought processes and not apply their minds to whether it is possible, in the face of all the evidence, that the PM is in fact engaging in corrupt practices?

I invite the leaders of all the BN component parties to come clean and tell the public whether they received money from Najib for GE13, before further disclosures are made by the investigative journalists. This 1MDB money belongs to the people of Malaysia and we have the right to know. They must explain to us how they can claim to be fighting to safeguard Sarawak’s rights when they are beholden to Najib for the huge sums of money given to them.

The chief minister must also make his stand on 1MDB. Just saying that a man is innocent until proven guilty does not work in this case as the accused has removed the parties who are believed to have intended to bring criminal charges against him. The gravity of the situation should not be lost on the BN leaders.

Human beings have been murdered over this scandal and I hope these leaders will ask themselves whether it is worth them sacrificing their conscience to continue to deny an unassailable fact. The prime minister is unable to explain this obscene amount of money flowing into his accounts. The story keeps changing. Nobody believes he is clean. Do not insult our intelligence by insisting he has done no wrong.

BARU BIAN is the state assemblyperson for Ba’kelalan and Sarawak PKR chief.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 30 March 2016, 8:19 am and is filed under
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Najib Razak 1MDB scandal: Malaysian Prime Minister’s accounts triggered internal money-laundering alarm

Exclusive by Linton Besser, Elise Worthington and Jaya Balendra

ABC News

29th March 2016

So much money was pouring so rapidly into the Malaysian Prime Minister’s personal bank accounts that it rang internal money-laundering alarms inside AmBank, a major Malaysian institution part-owned by Australia’s ANZ.

Hundreds of millions of dollars were being wired into Najib Razak’s accounts from the Saudi Arabian Government, a mysterious Saudi prince and two shadowy British Virgin Island companies, while the head of a Malaysian state-owned company topped up the Prime Minister’s credit card accounts with millions of Malaysian ringgit in cash.

Mr Najib’s Platinum Mastercard and Platinum Visa had been overdrawn thanks to a 3,320,670.65 ringgit ($US1,039,369.91) purchase of jewellery in September 2014 — a spending spree described inside AmBank as a “huge volume”.

Mr Najib’s wife Rosmah Mansor has previously been reported to have purchased a series of luxury items, from diamond jewellery to designer handbags, which appear beyond her husband’s $A130,000 official annual salary.

Between opening his account at AmBank on January 13, 2011 and April 10, 2013, Mr Najib received a total of more than $US1 billion — or, more precisely, $US1,050,795,451.58 — including a series of individual deposits that ranged between $US9 million and $US70 million.

Inside the bank, the Malaysian Prime Minister’s account was held under the codename “Mr X”.

The startling new banking records have been obtained as part of a Four Corners program that aired last night, and which resulted in the arrest of two members of its team, Linton Besser and cameraman Louie Eroglu.

‘Highly sensitive’ report flags PM’s unexplained wealth

The records also show that as well as spending some of the money on hotel accommodation and luxury cars, Mr Najib used the money to fund political affiliates in the run-up to Malaysia’s last 2013 elections.

Four Corners has established that Dr Zeti Aziz, the governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysia’s central bank, was repeatedly warned about the Prime Minister’s unexplained wealth by senior officials at AmBank.

At one such meeting in September 2012, the ABC has been told Dr Aziz handed back the bank’s report, which had been marked “highly sensitive”, not wishing for Bank Negara to have a copy on its premises.

When the ABC asked Dr Aziz what action she took when she received these warnings, she said there were limitations on the scope of investigations that Bank Negara could itself conduct, but that it always reported information it received to relevant authorities.

In January, the Malaysian Attorney-General shuttered a corruption probe of the Prime Minister, declaring Mr Najib had no case to answer.

Despite this, Dr Aziz said there remained ongoing investigations.

Asked who was behind the money flowing into Mr Najib’s accounts, Dr Aziz said: “I cannot comment on this, it is an ongoing investigation.”

‘Absolute discretion’ over use of ‘Gift’

The remittances between 2011 and 2014 seen by Four Corners include payments by the Ministry of Finance in Saudi Arabia of $US49,999,988 on August 19, 2011, and $US29,999,988 on November 29, 2011.

There are also deposits recorded by AmBank as having come from a man named Prince Faisal bin Turkey bin Bandar Alsaud, of Riyadh.

These began on February 24, 2011, and continued into 2012 with $US49,999,965 deposited into Mr Najib’s account on April 25, 2012, and another $US24,999,965 deposited on May 23, 2012.

These deposits were sometimes accompanied by letters to Mr Najib from a man described in the letter as “HRH Prince Saud Abdulaziz Al-Saud” which pledged gifts to the Malaysian Prime Minister which ranged from $US100 million on February 1, 2011, to $US800 million on March 1, 2013.

On November 2, 2011, for example, the letter pledged a grant of $US375 million, saying:

“This is merely a token gesture on my part but it is my way of contributing to the development of Islam to the world.

“You shall have absolute discretion to determine how the Gift shall be utilised.

“This letter is issued as a gesture of good faith and for clarification, I do not expect to receive any personal benefit whether directly or indirectly as a result of the Gift. The Gift should not in any event be construed as an act of corruption since this is against the practice of Islam and I personally do not encourage such practices in any manner whatsoever.”

Multi-million-dollar ‘donation’ returned

There was another major source of funds to Mr Najib that has troubled investigators — a British Virgin Islands-incorporated entity called Blackstone Asia Real Estate Partners Ltd, which channelled its deposits via Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore.

The ultimate owner of the company has not been established, but it has been reported the company is associated with Low Taek Jho, known as Jho Low, a playboy financier at the centre of a highly controversial 2009 deal involving Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB.

Blackstone Asia Real Estate Partners paid Mr Najib $US69,999,988 on January 3, 2012, $US24,999,998 on March 13, 2012 and another $US24,999,988 on May 23, 2012.

Attempts to contact Mr Low were unsuccessful, but he has denied wrongdoing over the 1MDB deal.

It had previously been revealed by online news site Sarawak Report and the Wall Street Journal that a mystery BVI company called Tanore Finance deposited a total of $US680 million into Mr Najib’s accounts in March 2013.

Two months ago Malaysian Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi Ali said $US620 million of this money was a “donation” that had subsequently been returned.

Now the new banking records show Mr Najib also received 4.3 million ringgit in cash top-ups that set off money-laundering alarms inside AmBank.

These were deposited by Nik Faisal Bin Ariff Kamil, the former investment director of 1MDB and chief executive of state-owned company SRC International. The files show he was a signatory to the Prime Minister’s account.

In January 2014 he wrote an apologetic letter to an AmBank manager to explain why he had to so hurriedly deposit large volumes of cash into the account, explaining that “there will be occasions when I won’t be able to provide necessary transfer authorisations to the account”.

Large sums spent on holidays, cars

SRC International has been in the spotlight since it emerged it made a 27 million ringgit payment that also ended up in the personal accounts of Mr Najib.

That payment formed the basis for a criminal charge that was going to be laid against Mr Najib midway through last year, but which was aborted after the Attorney-General was suddenly removed from office.

The bank records also detail how Mr Najib used his new-found wealth. Much of it went to political affiliates in the lead up to Malaysia’s last election in May 2013, including party officials, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Sarawak United People’s Party, as well as various advertising and media firms.

A company called Solar Shine Sdn Bhd received the largest distribution — 24 million ringgit or $US3.5 million today.

The company has been associated with an entity called 1Malaysia NGO which has run grassroots political campaigns on behalf of Barisan Nasional, the Prime Minister’s party.

A sum of 7.5 million ringgit or $US1.9 million went to the Rahah Foundation, which hit the headlines in Malaysia when it donated cows alongside Mr Najib to the Selangor police to be sacrificed for Eid al-Adha, a Muslim ritual feast celebrated each year.

But there are other payments too that may not have had a political purpose.

These include 360,000 ringgit spent with fashion house Jakel Trading, 395,782.40 ringgit at the Shangri-la Hotel Kuala Lumpur, 178,000 ringgit spent with a company called Two One Holidays Malaysia and another 167,959.50 ringgit with Signature Exotic Cars, a dealer that specialises in Audi, Mercedes Benz and Porsche.

The files show Mr Najib directed cheques also to prominent businesspeople, academics and lawyers.

The Malaysian Prime Minister did not respond to written questions from Four Corners.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 30 March 2016, 7:50 am and is filed under
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Najib’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal is history – as Malaysians should now refer to Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal instead

Ever since the beginning of this year, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had been declaring that  his twin mega scandals were no more issues as they had been “resolved”.

In a way, Najib is right, as his RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal is no more an issue as it has been replaced by  an even bigger RM4.2 billion donation scandal.

Najib’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal has become history, and we should now talk about Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal!

It is sad that Malaysians have to piece together from various bits and pieces of information  in the public domain to get a handle of the scale and  monstrosity of Najib’s twin mega scandals, as the Prime Minister and his Ministerial cohorts in Parliament have simply refused to give a proper, full and satisfactory accounting about the twin mega scandals even in Parliament.

The  Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s 45-minute Four Corners’ documentary “State of Fear: Murder and Money in Malaysia”  on Monday has  helped many Malaysians to realize that there were actually three separate tranches of deposits into Najib’s personal banking accounts at AmBank,  pre the RM2.6 billion donations, the RM2.6 billion donations itself and post-RM2.6 billion donations, viz:

(i)	some US$300 million from 2011 to March 2013;

(ii)	two transactions in March 2013 totalling US$681 (the often-reported RM2.6 billion political donation) – bringing the total deposited into Najib’s accounts to US$1.03 billion (RM4.14 billion) by April 10, 2013, just over a month prior to the 13th General Election; and

(iii)	deposits of  £50 million (RM285 million) as well as “a series of cash deposits” in June 2014 and after.

Najib had never contradicted these facts and figures, elevating Najib’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal into at least  RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal.

Former Kuala Lumpur police Criminal Investigation Department chief Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim had lodged a police report early this month against the attorney-general Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali, claiming that the AG was suspected to have “abused his powers, hidden information, and or used false statements” when clearing Prime Minister Najib of wrongdoing in the then  RM2.6 billion donation case.

In his report, Mat Zain dissected Apandi’s claims that the donation came from the son of a Saudi King, to prove his claim that the AG had allegedly given false information.

Citing the Forbes 2013 list of the world’s richest Arabs, Mat Zain said only four princes were in the list.

They are Prince Alwaleed Talal who then had a reported fortune of US$20 billion; Prince Sultan Mohammed with US$2.6 billion; Prince Abdullah Musaad with US$144.5 million; and Prince Mutaib Abdulaziz with US$110.1 million.

Of the four, only Prince Mutaib is the son of a king, but his US$110.1 million nett worth is far less than the US$681 million donated to Najib.

Mat Zain surmised that if Najib did return US$620 million to the donor in August 2013, the donor would have climbed up the Forbes list.

However, Prince Mutaib did not make it to Forbes’ 2014 list of wealthy Arabs, making Prince Alwaleed, Prince Sultan, and Prince Abdullah the only Saudi royals named in the annual shortlist.

Mat Zain said these deductions rendered Apandi’s remarks on the RM2.6 billion donation “false, and suspected to have been made up”.

What is the truth?

Malaysians are none the wiser some nine months after Wall Street Journal carried an exclusive report on the  RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal in early July – which was clearly a gross under-estimate as at least  RM4.2 billion “donations” had been involved.

The 1MDB scandal is no less perplexing.

According to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in his last speech as Deputy Prime Minister on July 26 last year, the total 1MDB debts were more than RM50 billion. By November last year, before the start of the “rationalisation” of 1MDB with the sale of Edra to China General Nuclear Power Corp Ltd. (CGN), the total 1MDB debts could have reached RM55 billion.

Why is Najib and 1MDB so shy in revealing 1MDB’s latest total debts before sale of Edra to CGN at the end of November?

This is because the oft-mentioned  RM42 billion figure is not the latest update figure, as it represents 1MDB’s total debts as at the end of March 2014 – 1MDB’s last audited accounts – and not in November 2015.

So have Najib’s twin mega scandals been grossly underestimated when they are close to RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion donation scandals?

Malaysia has indeed become a most extraordinary country, with the Prime Minister and the Malaysian Government regarding Najib’s twin mega scandals as “no problems” which cannot even be debated intelligently and fruitfully in  Parliament, while 30 million Malaysians and the world regard them as the top issues and scandals in the country.

Najib’s twin mega scandals are responsible for Malaysia being regarded as the top ten countries notorious for “Grand Corruption”, netting for Malaysia infamous third-ranking mention  in ForeignPolicy’s “world’s worst  corruption scandals in 2015” and a second-place mention in the recent Time magazine listing of  five countries notorious for “global corruption”.

Even more shameful, Najib is subject of investigations by United States Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and Department of Justice under the US Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative over the twin mega scandals.

Najib should take a courageous decision to give a full report to the current Parliament on the twin mega scandals which had been hounding and haunting the country for the past two years.

Najib should present a White Paper on his twin mega scandals to Parliament and slot the last two days of Parliament next Wednesday and Thursday for a full parliamentary debate on two scandals which had infamously catapulted to the top of the world for global corruption.

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 30 March 2016, 2:09 pm and is filed under
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