No reason  why a competent, efficient and  professional police force could not re-unite Indira Gandhi with her nine-year-old daughter Prasana Diksa three days after the Federal Court judgement

Long-suffering mother Indira Gandhi has made a most heart-rending plea that she only wants to see and hold her daughter, Prasana Diksa, who was taken from her nine years ago when she was only nine months old when her ex-husband Muhammad Riduan Abdullah unilaterally converted Prasana to Islam.

Indira has said that she wants to put aside the issue of religion as her concern as a mother was to ensure her wellbeing.

There is no reason  why a competent, efficient and professional police force could not re-unite Indira with her nine-year-old daughter three days after the Federal Court judgment, and the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun would have a lot of explaining to do when Parliament reconvenes in March in five weeks’ time if the Police is unable to respect and enforce the judgment of the highest court of the land.

The question asked by Indira yesterday is being asked by all Malaysians”: “My ex-husband is not a terrorist, why is it so hard to find him?”

Let all Malaysians and organisations commit themselves to uphold the rule of law as the basic tenet of the Malaysian Constitution and a fundamental principle of Malaysian nation-building to ensure that Malaysia as a multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-lingual and multi-cultural nation can become a showcase to the world  of peace, unity, harmony and success in a plural society.

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Thursday, 1st February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 1 February 2018, 6:41 pm and is filed under
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If there is no cheating in Malaysian elections, why is Malaysia occupying a lowly ranking of No. 142 out of 158 countries in Electoral Integrity Index, lower than Indonesia, Singapore and Philippines?

I fully endorse the challenge by former Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to invite independent international observers from the Commonweath, the European Union and the  United Nations to monitor the 14th General Election if Najib is sincere and genuine in declaring that there will be no cheating in the 14GE.

There are enough reasons for Malaysians and independent observers to expect the 14th GE to be the dirtiest in Malaysia’s history.

If there is no cheating in Malaysian elections, why is Malaysia occupying a lowly ranking of No. 142 out of 158 countries in Electoral Integrity Index, lower than Indonesia ranked No.68, Singapore ranked 94 and Philippines ranked 101?

Cheating is in fact institutionalized into the electoral system overseen by the Election Commission whether in the electoral redelineation exercise or  the voters’ registration campaign with voters in BN strongholds moved to seats BN won win a slim margin and polling districts in marginal seats the opposition won removed to increase the chances of BN winning these marginal seats.

One of the greatest failures of the Election Commission is to shirk its primary  constitutional responsibility to ensure that short of introducing the system of automatic registration of  voters, every eligible and  qualified  voter will be able to register on the electoral roll with the minimum of fuss and with without any  bureaucratic obstacle to be able to exercise the constitutional right to vote in the every general election.

It is an indictment on the Election Commission that some three million eligible voters are not yet on the electoral roll to enable them to exercise their constitutional right to cast their vote in the 14GE.

What is the Election Commission doing  to remedy this grave constitutional defect and to prepare a comprehensive and inclusive electoral roll for the 14GE?

It is sad that Malaysia has an Election Commission whose chairman and commissioners are not aware of their constitutional responsibilities.

Two decades ago, I had told Parliament that in New Zealand, its Election Commission could register voters on the eve of polling day to enable them to cast their vote the next day.

Why is the Election Commission in Malaysia so outmoded and antediluvian as to be unable to provide a more efficient and up-to-date voter registration mechanism?

If in New Zealand as far back as twenty years ago, an eligible voter can register on the eve of polling day as to vote the next day, is it totally beyond the IT competence, capability and professionalism of the Election Commission to ensure that eligible voters could still register as a voter two weeks before Polling Day of the 14th General Election, whether in April or May this year?

I call on the Election Commission to have an emergency meeting to introduce the system where an eligible voter can register to vote in the 14GE two weeks before Polling Day.

(Speech at the DAP Kopitam ceramah at Karpal Singh Drive, Penang on Thursday, 1st February 2018 at 8 pm)

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 February 2018, 8:14 am and is filed under
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Pakatan Harapan Federal Government will introduce a new Federalism to devolve more powers and allocate more funds not only to Sabah and Sarawak but also  to the various state governments in Peninsular Malaysia

As Penang DAP State Chairman and Penang Executive Councillor Chow Kon Yeow observed just now, this gathering is quite unique and historic as we have  here three persons closely connected with the political development of Tanjong constituency, two former MPs and the current MP for Tanjong Parliamentary constituency, as I had been Tanjong MP for three terms from 1986 – 1999, Chow Kon Yeow MP for Tanjong for three terms from 1999 to 2013 and Ng Wei Aik, Tanjong MP since 2013.

When I moved from Kota Melaka to contest in Tanjong parliamentary constituency in 1986, the objective was  to make  Penang the front-line state for political change in Malaysia for democracy, human rights, justice, the rule of law and an united, harmonious.

It was not a simple or easy task, and it was not until 22 years later in the 2008 General Election that the DAP succeeded in making Penang the front-line state for political change in Malaysia by capturing and forming the Penang State Government with our political allies.

Malaysians from all over the country outside Penang are very impressed by the political changes in Penang since the 2008 General Election and hope that they can bring about similar political changes in the other states in the country, except for a few  who want to put the clock back by bringing back the past where Penang is basically an UMNO state, as what  UMNO decided even in the innermost UMNO councils were the law of the land, whether nationally or in the Penang  state.

The 14th General Election will be held in the next 100 days, most likely in April or May.

If Pakatan Harapan of DAP, PKR, AMANAH and PBBM succeed in the uphill and formidable task to create history in the 14th General Election and topple Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and for the first time in 60-year electoral history, send the UMNO/BN coalition into the political wilderness, there will a new Federal Government in Putrajaya with Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad as  the seventh Prime Minister and  Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail as the Deputy Prime Minister, as well as  Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as  the eighth Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Even more important than having a new Federal Government and a new Prime Minister (or the return of Mahathir to the Prime Minister’s Office after having been Prime Minister for 22 years at the fourth PM of Malaysia), there will new policy changes with a whole gamut of institutional and systemic reforms so that Malaysia can re-set nation-building policies and directions to return to the constitutional compact when Malaya achieved Merdeka in 1957 and Malaysia was formed in 1963.

The Chowrasta Market which I visited just now was a completely different market from the Chowrasta Market during my time as MP for Tanjong, but despite the RM13 million renovation by the Penang state authorities, the Penang State Government faces grave financial constraints and limitations.

Penang’s financial  dilemma is best illustrated but the fact that the Penang State Government’s annual  budget is less than 0.5 per cent of the federal budget, but it  still pays the most tax per capita compared to other states while getting the least federal budget allocation per capita.

A new Pakatan Harapan Federal Government in Putrajaya will introduce a new Federalism, devolving powers and funds  not only to Sabah and Sarawak but to the state governments in Peninsular Malaysia by ensuring that they are allocated more  funds and  powers to directly uplift the quality of life of all Malaysians.

In the 14GE, the front-line state for political change  has moved from Penang to the other states, particularly Johor, for  if we are to create history first time in 60 years to bring about a new Federal Government government in Putrajaya, the voters of Johor must join the people of Penang to spearhead the demand for political change and reform in the country.

(Speech at the Tanjong Kopitam ceramah in  Penang on Friday, 2nd February 2018 at 9 am)

                This entry was posted on Friday, 2 February 2018, 1:15 pm and is filed under
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Another sign of Malaysia becoming a failed state – Razaleigh says “our civil servants can’t even write a simple letter”

Yesterday, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said that a former UMNO leader who claimed Malaysians are embarrassed by their nationality should be cast into the ocean.

Najib cannot be more wrong.

Is Najib saying that Malaysians should preen with pride  when they are overseas and berated for being Malaysians as the country has ascended the stratospheric but  exclusive club of “global kleptocracy” –castigated by the US Attorney-General Jeff Sessions at a recent  international conference as practising “kleptocracy at its worst” in the case of the international multi-billion 1MDB money-laundering scandal?

Any Malaysian who is proud at such an infamous appellation for Malaysia overseas is neither patriotic nor loyal to Malaysia.  He is guilty of fake patriotism and fake loyalty!

Unless the long-running international multi-billion dollar 1MDB money-laundering scandal and “MO1” are all fake news – but dare Najib make such  claims publicly and internationally?

Malaysia has come a long way since our Merdeka 61 years ago in 1957 and the formation of Malaysia 55 years ago in 1963 when the sky is the limit to our dream to become a world-class nation in every field of human endeavour and accomplishment.

Former Finance Minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has given another example why Malaysia is fast becoming a failed state, relegated to the backwaters of the world if we do not urgently pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.

Razaleigh told the news portal Free Malaysia Today in an exclusive interview that he was shocked when he found that some civil servants today could not even write in proper English.

He said the country’s international standing has taken a dip to the point that Malaysians are no longer sought after for their academic and language skills.

Following Najib’s logic yesterday, are Malaysians to feel proud at such lowering of Malaysia’s standards – and that they should not feel any embarrassment at all?

Razaleigh told Free Malaysia  Today:

“A lot of our people, even in the civil service, cannot even write a simple letter. I am very embarrassed. I can only point out that it is education that is pulling our people back. Who suffers? The whole country.

“I go to a lot of international conferences.

“Before, as we all could speak English well, though not very well, they always called us. Not Indonesians, not even the Filipinos who speak English all the time.

“They’d rather have us to draft communiques and press statements, or sit in caucuses and mini conferences. We Malaysians were always singled out.

“But now nobody wants us, because we can’t even write, and with what is written, we can’t even read!”

Razaleigh said many neighbouring countries have done better, leaving Malaysia behind.

He said: “That reflects very badly on us because of the lack of education. We are unable to catch up.”

What Razaleigh said is a powerful reason why Malaysia must re-set nation-building policies and directions, starting with the replacement of the UMNO/BN Federal Government in Putrajaya by a Pakatan Harapan government in the 14th General Election which will be held in the next 100 days – sending out to the world a  clear and unmistakable signal that Malaysians want to Save Malaysia and do  not want to be trapped in the trajectory of a failed, rogue and kleptocratic state!

(Speech at DAP Kopitiam ceramah in Pasir Pinji, Ipoh Timor on Saturday, 3rd February 2018 at 10 am)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 February 2018, 5:53 pm and is filed under
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Call for establishment of a bipartisan Parliamentary Select Committee on the Election Commission’s 2018 constituency redelineation proposals which should conduct national hearings in the Peninsular states and to submit its report to Parliament within a month

The Najib government, through the Minister for Rural and Regional Development and UMNO Supreme Council member who hopes to rise up to become UMNO National Vice President, has expressed its opposition to any independent international bodies to monitor the 14th general election, claiming that is  an attempt at inviting foreign interference in the country’s administration.

Sabri Yaakob is talking rubbish, but what is significant is that this statement was made after the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had proudly declared that there would be no cheating in the 14th General Election.

If there will be no cheating in the 14GE, then why is the Malaysian government afraid of international scrutiny of the electoral process in the 14GE?

Sabri Yaakob is gravely ignorant or misinformed when he alleged that the proposal for independent foreign observers is meant to to cast the Election Commission in a bad lighr as the Election Commission had handled thirteen general elections “without any issues”.

Sabri Yaakob should read the Malaysian Insight report  today on “Dr Mahathir allowed foreign observers to monitor 1990 polls”.

I met Mahathir in the Prime Minister’s Office on July 9, 1990 on the Commonwealth Observers to the Sept. 1990 General Election.

Memory can be faulty after 28 years, but the following is from my media statement dated 10th July 1990 on my hour-long meeting with Mahathir on the Commonwealth Observers for the 1990 General Election:

“In my hour-long meeting with the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, in the Prime Minister’s Office yesterday, I gave Dr. Mahathir the DAP’s views on the commonwealth Observer Mission.

“Dr. Mahathir did not agree that the Commonwealth Observer Mission should be invited in the name of all political parties, and that an all-party committee should be established to handle all matters concerning the Mission.

“He agreed with the DAP that members of the Commonwealth Observer Mission should come from countries with parliamentary democracies and general elections which are recognised internationally, and not from countries ruled by military juntas or one-party or no-party states.

“He agreed that the Commonwealth Observer Mission should have the widest brief to observe that the next general elections are ‘free, fair, clean and honest’. He is of the view that it is up to the Mission to decide on its modus operandi, and said that the government would not put any restriction or limitation on the activities of the Mission. The Government would give the Mission every co-operation and furnish it with whatever information it needed.

“In my meeting with Dr. Mahathir, I stressed that a ‘free, fair, clean and honest general elections’ does not merely mean the voting process on polling day, but the whole elections process including the media coverage, access for completing political parties to reach out to the voters like public rallies and public meetings, campaign funds, and all aspects to enable the voter to exercise his right to vote in an informed and intelligent manner.”

Is Najib prepared to meet a delegation from Pakatan Harapan on the Foreifn Observer Missions for the 14GE, whether Commonwealth, European Union or United Nations?

In fact, I call on the Election Commission to conduct a deep soul-searching why it has fallen so abysmally from a world-class credible Election Commission when the country achieved independence six decades ago to the lowly position today, when Malaysia’s ranking on the Electoral Integrity Index is the lowly position of No. 142 out of 158 countries, lower than Indonesia ranked No.68, Singapore ranked 94 and Philippines ranked 101!

To re-establish its world-class position in terms of credibility, authority and professionalism, I would call  for  the establishment of a bipartisan Parliamentary Select Committee on the Election Commission’s 2018 constituency redelineation proposals which should conduct national hearings in the Peninsular states and to submit its report to Parliament within a month, before any parliamentary voting on the Election Commisions’ Redelineation Report.

Would Najib agree to this proposal?

(Media Conference after the DAP kopitiam dialogue near Pasar SPPK, Ipoh on Saturday, 3rd February 2018 at 9 am)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 February 2018, 12:36 pm and is filed under
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Is “MO1” fake news?

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has jumped on US President Donald Trump’s “fake news” bandwagon, with the same objectives – not to uphold the truth and factual reporting, but to use the “fake news” cover and  offensive to achieve the twin objective to discredit stories about legitimate and negative media coverage while  spreading lies and falsehoods about Opposition leaders.

This is why the establishment of a government committee to tackle fake news, headed by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department with representatives from the police, the Atttorney-General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Multimedia and Communications is so laughable – as it  utterly without credibility  just like asking thieves to catch thieves.

It is an incontrovertible fact that in Malaysia today, the biggest manufacturer of fake news and false information is none other than UMNO/Barisan Nasional government, led by none other than the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, himself.

I am one of the biggest victims of Najib and UMNO/BN manufacture of fake news – and even  the UMNO General Assembly had been used as platforms for Najib to disseminate such fake news, as for instance, Najib’s trio of fake news the UMNO General Assembly in the past two years, viz: that

1.     That the 14th General Election will be a contest between UMNO and DAP;

2. That the DAP is anti-Malay or anti-Islam.

3. The “nightmares” Malay will suffer if UMNO loses power in the next general elections.

Will Datuk Najib appear before the Fake News Committee to publicly apologise for  the manufacture and dissemination of the trio of fake news against the DAP in the recent UMNO General Assemblies?

In 2011, my 15-year-old grandson was the victim of malicious “fake news”,  that he had sexually molested a girl student in his school, and photographs and identity of the girl was even identified – an international chess play Anya Corke from Hong Kong, who had never met my grandson and was not even in the country.

No action had been taken against those who perpetrated the “fake news” against my grandson, although a police report was lodged by his father, Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng.

Would there be such inertia and inaction if the victim of the “fake news” allegation of sexual molestation had been the son of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister or the UMNO/BN political leaders?

With such an example of selective investigation and prosecution, who has any confidence in the Fake News Committee headed by Azalina Othman, as it is none other than a UMNO/BN Fake News Committee to promote fake news against Opposition leaders.

Malaysians must beware not only of fake news and  fake news committee which promote UMNO/BN fake news, but also  fake news analysis, fake patriotism and fake religious piety.

A few days ago, a political analyst wrote a long political analysis on my speech at the launching of the DAP election centre in the Ayer Hitam parliamentary constituency in Johore last Sunday, on the basis that I had said if Pakatan Harapan wants to take over Putrajaya, it has to wrestle Ayer Hitam from Barisan Nasional.

I never said such a thing. What I said in Ayer Hitam was that if Pakatan Haran can win Ayer Hitam parliamentary seat, then both the Johore State Government and  the Federal Government would change hands in the 14GE, as Ayer Hitam is not among the 40 marginal parliamentary seats Pakatan Harapan is targeting to effect a change of Federal Government in Putrajaya in the 14GE.

But this did not prevent the production of long fake news analysis, based on something which I had never said.

Today, the Prime Minister said that a former UMNO leader who claimed Malaysians are embarrassed by their nationality should be cast into the ocean.

This is fake patriotism. It is  those who claim that Malaysians are not embarrassed because Malaysia is regarded as a “global kleptocracy”, where thieves and knaves have become leaders of the land, are guilty of fake patriotism.

Najib even said that 1MDB’s RM42 billion debt is not a loss claiming that the money never disappeared.

Najib  should answer the questions whether “MO1”, the international multi-billion 1MDB money-laundering scandal and the US Department of Justice (DoJ) litigation and investigation into the 1MDB  corruption and money-laundering are just “fake news”.

Only two weeks ago, on the 17th January 2018, the 1MDB kleptocratic scandal was one of three cases mentioned by the US Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney-General, Criminal Division, M. Kendall Day in his testimony before the US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs hearing on “Combating Money-laundering and other forms of illicit finance”, where it was revealed that out the US$3.5 billion worth of “corruption proceeds to date” seized or restrained under the US Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, half or more than US$1.7 billion in assets were associated with the 1MDB sovereign fund in Malaysia.

As Kendall Day told  the US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs on January 17:

“The Malaysian government created 1MDB to promote economic development through international partnerships and foreign direct investment, with the ultimate goal of improving the lives of the Malaysian people.

“However, corrupt 1MDB officials treated this public trust as a personal bank account.

“Between 2009 and 2015, those corrupt officials and their associates took more than $4.5 billion from the development fund in four phases.

“These funds were laundered through a complex web of opaque transactions and fraudulent shell companies with bank accounts in countries around the world, including Switzerland, Singapore, Luxembourg, and the United States.”

Were these all fake news?

Were the corrupt misappropriation of the 1MDB funds to purchase dubious  assets, including a $261 million, 350-foot yacht; a $35 million jet; masterpieces by Van Gogh, Picasso, and Monet; and a motion picture company that used the funds to finance, among other things, the production of the films ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ ‘Daddy’s Home,’ and ‘Dumb and Dumber To’ and RM144 million for a pink diamond necklace for the “wife of MO1”, all “fake news”?

Malaysians have also to contend with “fake religious piety”, as we have  Malaysians who can on the one hand claim religious piety to the faith they profess and yet in the same breath express their support for grand corruption, global kleptocracy and “MO1”!

(Speech at the DAP  Kopitam ceramah in  Bukit Mertajam on Friday, 2nd February 2018 at 9 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 3 February 2018, 12:55 am and is filed under
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Malaysians must beware not only of fake news but also of fake elections

I welcome the late-night announcement last night by the  Election Commission Chairman, Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah that the Election Commission will invite international election observers and appoint local NGO representatives as observers for the 14th General Election which will be held in a hundred days.

Several  UMNO Cabinet Ministers opposing international observers to the 14 General Election, in the wake of the boast by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak that there would be no “cheating” in the general election, were clearly shooting  UMNO/BN in the foot – made worse by their belated discovery that Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad had agreed to Commonwealth observers to the 1990 General Election.

This is what I said in my media statement on July 10, 1990 on my hour-long meeting with Mahathir in the Prime Minister’s Office a day earlier on international observers for the 1990 General Election:

“To my suggestion that the Commonwealth Observer Mission should not have any monopoly of observing the general elections, and that any international group which wants to send Observer Mission should be free to do so, Dr. Mahathir said he had no objections to their coming.”

Are Najib and the Election Commission prepared to adopt the open-minded position of Mahathir in 1990 that any international group are welcome and free  to send an observer mission for the 14th General Election, especially as it is going to the most crucial general election in Malaysian history as it would decide whether there would be a change of Federal Government in Putrajaya for the first time in 61 years?

Up to now, the Election Commission has adopted a narrow and  restricted position on the invitation of international observers for the 14th General Election – that it be  confined to foreign election observer groups which had invited the Election Commission previously.

This is clearly unacceptable.

The Election Commission should conduct a deep soul-searching why it has fallen so abysmally from a world-class credible Election Commission when the country achieved independence six decades ago to the lowly position today, when Malaysia’s ranking on the Electoral Integrity Index is the abysmal position of No. 142 out of 158 countries, lower than Indonesia ranked No.68, Singapore ranked 94 and Philippines ranked 101!

There is an urgent need to legitimise and improve both the country’s election process and the Election Commission’s credibility, independence and professionalism.

This is why the Election Commission should not shirk its primary  constitutional duty to ensure that  short of a system of automatic registration of qualified voters, the highest percentage possible of eligible voters are registered on the electoral roll to entitle them to exercise their constitutional role to vote in the 14GE.

But having over three million eligible voters not yet registered on the electoral roll when the country will be having its 14GE in a hundred days  is  really scandalous and reflects poorly on the efficiency, competence, professionalism and dedication of the Election Commission.

This is because  at the third quarter of last year, 14.8 million Malaysians are  registered as voters but more than three million Malaysians who are over 21 years old have not registered.

I am surprised that the Deputy Home Minister, Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed objected to my proposal that  the Election Commission  ensure that two weeks before Polling Day,  qualified voters could  register as voters to enable them to cast their votes on  Polling Day – when twenty years ago, as I had pointed out in Parliament in the nineties,  countries like New Zealand can have voter registration systems which allow qualified voters to register on the eve of polling day and cast their vote the next day.

This is an example of power going to the head which  changes a person’s perceptions and character as I have no doubt that Nur Jazlan would have fully agreed with my proposal if he is still a backbencher or Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee.

To re-establish its world-class position in terms of credibility, authority and professionalism, I have proposed the  establishment of a bipartisan Parliamentary Select Committee on the Election Commission’s 2018 constituency redelineation proposals which should conduct national hearings in the Peninsular states and to submit its report to Parliament within a month, before any parliamentary voting on the Election Commisions’ Redelineation Report.

Does the Election Commission agree with the proposal for a bipartisan Parliamentary Select Committee on the Election Commission’s 2018 constituency redelineation recommendations?

In this era, Malaysians must beware not only of fake news, but also fake elections.

(Media Statement in Penang on Sunday, February 4, 2018)

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 February 2018, 8:21 am and is filed under
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Replace the Azalina Committee on Fake News with a bipartisan committee on fake news to draft laws and mechanism to tackle fake news without giving more powers to authorities to harass and persecute dissent which is no different from   “using democracy to destroy democracy”

The statement by Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that the creators and propagators of fake news will be punished for the wrongdoings is a  new fable in the stable of  UMNO/Barisan Nasional political propaganda with no credibility whatsoever.

This is why human rights groups and NGOs in Malaysia fear that free speech would be curtailed by the proposed legislation to curb fake news.

What is the answer of the Azalina Committee on Fake News to consider legislation and mechanism to tackle fake news to the human rights concerns by human rights organisations like Suara Rakyat Malaysia, Article 19 and Lawyers for Liberty?

No one would disagree that fake news designed to incite hatred and poison the minds of the people, which affect both the government and opposition, must be dealt with swiftly and severely, but what credibility does the Azalina Committee on Fake News, comprising representatives from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police and the Ministry of Multi-media and Communications, command when Opposition parties, human rights groups and NGOs believe that the proposed new laws and mechanism against fake news would only arm the UMNO/BN government with new powers and instrument to harass and persecute dissent in the country?

For the past year, the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia has a special fact-checking website to combat fake news called sebenarnya.my.

Can the Minister for Communications and Multimedia, Datuk Seri Salleh Syed Keruak give the country a report of the achievements of this special government website to combat fake news, in particular  to let Malaysians know how many  and what were the fake news against Opposition and NGO leaders this government website had debunked?

The UMNO/BN government does not have a record of fair, non-discriminatory and even-handed use  of laws and powers.  In fact, one reason why there must be a change of Federal government in Putrajaya, the first time in 61 years, is because national institutions in the country ike the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the civil service  have lost their independence, impartiality, efficiency and professionalism and dragooned to perform the dictates and ‘dirty work”  of UMNO even when this is against national interests, giving rise to selective prosecution and investigations and blind-eyes  to blatant and flagrant crimes and corruption like the international multi-billion dollar 1MDB money-laundering scandal.

It is an incontrovertible fact that in Malaysia today, the biggest manufacturer of fake news and false information is none other than UMNO/Barisan Nasional government, led by none other than the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, himself.

I am one of the biggest victims of Najib and UMNO/BN manufacture of fake news – and even  the UMNO General Assembly had been used as platforms for Najib to disseminate such fake news, as for instance, Najib’s trio of fake news at the UMNO General Assembly in the past two years, viz: that

1. That the 14th General Election will be a contest between UMNO and DAP;

2. That the DAP is anti-Malay or anti-Islam;

3. The “nightmares” Malay will suffer if UMNO loses power in the next general elections.

Will Datuk Najib appear before the Azalina Fake News Committee to publicly apologise for  the manufacture and dissemination of the trio of fake news against the DAP in the recent UMNO General Assemblies?

In 2001, my 15-year-old grandson was the victim of malicious “fake news”,  that he had sexually molested a fellow girl student in his school, and photographs and identity of the girl was even disseminated  – an international chess play Anya Corke from Hong Kong, who had never met my grandson and was not even in the country.

No action had been taken against those who perpetrated the “fake news” against my grandson, although a police report was lodged by his father, Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng.

Would there be such inertia and inaction if the victim of the “fake news” allegation of sexual molestation had been the son of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister or the UMNO/BN political leaders?

With such examples of selective investigation and prosecution, who can have any confidence in the Fake News Committee headed by Azalina Othman, as it is none other than a UMNO/BN Fake News Committee to promote fake news against Opposition leaders and to allow fake news to be spread against the Opposition.

If the UMNO/BN government is sincere in wanting to address the scourge of fake news, then dissolve  and replace the Azalina Committee on Fake News with a bipartisan committee on fake news to draft laws and mechanism to tackle fake news without giving more powers to the authorities to harass and persecute dissent which is no different from  “using democracy to destroy democracy”.  Here, it is using the excuse of exposing fake news to disseminate fake news!

Representatives from human rights organisations and NGOs should also be fully represented in such a bipartisan committee  on fake news.

(Speech at the DAP Penang Retreat at Batu Feringghi on Sunday, 4th February 2018 at 11 am)

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 4 February 2018, 6:40 pm and is filed under
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We are living in the  era of fakeries – fake news, fake committee on fake news,  fake news analysis, fake elections, fake patriotism and even fake oaths

This is the era of fake news, fake news analysis, fake committee on fake news, fake elections, fake patriotism and even  fake oaths.

With the approach of the 14th General Election in a hundred days, Malaysia is awash with fake news, defined as a type of yellow journalism or propaganda that consists of lies, deliberate misinformation or hoaxes spread via traditional print and broadcast news media or online social media designed to incite hatred and poison the minds of the people.

There is now a proposal for a Fake Committee on Fake News headed by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman with representatives from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police and the Ministry of Multimedia and Communications.

The  Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has warned that the creators and propagators of fake news will be punished for the wrongdoings but  human rights groups and NGOs in Malaysia fear that free speech would be further  curtailed by the proposed legislation to curb fake news.

No one would disagree that fake news designed to incite hatred and poison the minds of the people, which affect both the government and opposition, must be dealt with swiftly and severely, but what credibility has the  Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News that it will not end up as a latest weapon to arm the UMNO/BN government with new powers and instruments to harass and persecute dissent in the country?

For the past year, the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia has a special fact-checking website to combat fake news called sebenarnya.my.

Can the Minister for Communications and Multimedia, Datuk Seri Salleh Syed Keruak give the country a report on the achievements of this special government website to combat fake news, in particular  to let Malaysians know how many  and what were the fake news against Opposition and NGO leaders this government website had debunked?

One reason why there must be a change of Federal government in Putrajaya, the first time in 61 years, is because national institutions in the country like the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police and  the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission have lost their independence, impartiality, efficiency and professionalism giving rise to selective prosecution and investigations while they turn the  blind-eye  to blatant and flagrant crimes and corruption like the international multi-billion dollar 1MDB kleptocratic money-laundering scandal.

It is an incontrovertible fact that in Malaysia today, the biggest manufacturer of fake news and false information is none other than UMNO/Barisan Nasional government, led by none other than the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, himself.

I am one of the biggest victims of Najib and UMNO/BN manufacture of fake news – and even  the UMNO General Assembly had been used as platforms for Najib to disseminate such fake news, as for instance, Najib’s trio of fake news at the UMNO General Assembly in the past two years, viz: that

1.     That the 14th General Election will be a contest between UMNO and DAP;

2. That the DAP is anti-Malay or anti-Islam;

3. The “nightmares” Malay will suffer if UMNO loses power in the next general elections.

In 2001, my 15-year-old grandson was the victim of malicious “fake news”,  that he had sexually molested a fellow girl student in his school, and photographs and identity of the girl was even disseminated  – an international chess play Anya Corke from Hong Kong, who had never met my grandson and was not even in the country.

No action had been taken against those who perpetrated the “fake news” against my grandson, although a police report was lodged by his father, Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng seven years ago.

Would there be such inertia and inaction if the victim of the “fake news” allegation of sexual molestation had been the son of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister or the UMNO/BN political leaders?

But we seem to be in the era of fakeries – fake news, fake committee on fake news,  fake news analysis, fake elections, fake patriotism and even fake oaths.

Members of Parliament are all required to  take an oath of allegiance to faithfully discharge their duties as Members of Parliament to the best of their ability and to “bear true faith and allegiance to Malaysia and will preserve, protect and defend the Constitution”.

But yesterday, a political leader from a party with MPs and State Assembly representatives in the various State Assemblies openly advocated an obnoxious  political system which undermines the very basis and  most subversive of the fundamental principles of the  Constitution which they had sworn to “preserve, protect and defend”.

We are living in very trying times.

(Media Statement Gelang Patah on Monday, 5th  February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Monday, 5 February 2018, 6:32 pm and is filed under
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What is the use of setting up the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News when for over five years, the AG’s Chambers, the Police and Ministry of Communication and Multimedia  had been collectively negligent and impotent to tackle the mountain of lies, fake news and false information churned out by UMNO/BN-funded cybertroopers?

A fortnight ago, the Director of Australian National University (ANU) Malaysia Institute, Ross Tapsell, said that Barisan Nasional is now winning the social media war, as it has improved its social media presence since Election 2013 and now has a stronger presence online compared to the opposition.

Tapsell  said that BN had recognised its shortcomings in previous elections and has since effectively mobilised its resources to take on the opposition in cyberspace.

He said: “They have a far stronger presence on social media and on digital media in general in a variety of ways. There are far more pro-government blogs, websites, social media messaging in short there is a clear increase of volume compared to the 2013 elections.

“They know what they are doing this time around, they recognise the importance of new media and are engaged in a big way. Even the Prime Minister Najib has public said they had ‘lost’ the social media front in 2008 and 2013.”

Tapsell said: “The social media content coming out of the opposition camp is not as fiery as it used to be and is not gaining traction as compared to what is being put out by the government,” he said.

The new UMNO czar of cybertroopers, Datuk Ahmad Mazlan, the head of UMNO Information Technology Bureau for the past two years, should be very pleased with Tapsell’s analysis, as it meant that his mandate to assemble and lead  a new army of UMNO/BN cybertroopers to counter the influence of opposition supporters on the Internet and eradicate the negative image of UMNO/Barisan Nasional  Government is making headway.

The 2008 general election saw a change in electoral campaigns with the opposition coalition, then Pakatan Rakyat, using social media tools to reach out for  support.

Prime Minister, Najib Razak had  conceded that the Internet was among the main reasons for BN’s substantial losses, including the loss of its two-thirds parliamentary majority and control of the state governments of Selangor, Kedah, Kelantan, Perak and Penang.

Since then, Umno and BN have made several attempts at raising cybertroopers to conduct its online war on perception.

In 2012, he hosted 10 conventions in several states for users of new media, hoping to raise 10,000 cybertroopers in preparation for the general election of 2013.

For the 14th General Election,  Najib had called for a new group of soldiers, the keyboard warriors, to wage the UMNO/BN’s war on the Internet.

But I don’t think Ahmad Mazlan could be very happy, as Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi had almost at the same time revealed that a recent study revealed that  only 6.6 per cent of the country’s cybertroopers are supportive of BN, while the rest are anti-establishment.

Speaking  at the end of last month when launching Wanita UMNO’s Skuad Komunikasi dan Media, Zahid  estimated that ”for every pro-BN cybertrooper, there are 15 others who are working against the government”.

Zahid added that according to another study conducted by a group of academicians, 87 per cent of Malaysians hold negative perceptions of BN.

He said: “We almost lost the 12th and 13th general elections because we failed to create a presence on social media” and urged  Umno to work harder to win the war of perception against the opposition.

Is the proposal to set up a Fake Committee on Fake News under the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, and comprising representatives from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police and the Ministry of  Communications and Multimedia the latest UMNO/BN gambit to weaponise UMNO/BN cybertroopers to  combat Pakatan Harapan and  opposition presence and influence on the Internet?

What is the use of setting up the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News when for over five years, the AG’s Chambers, the Police and Ministry of Communications and Multimedia  had been collectively negligent and impotent to tackle the mountain of lies, fake news and false information churned out by UMNO/BN-funded cybertroopers?

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Tuesday, 6th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Tuesday, 6 February 2018, 10:35 am and is filed under
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Can the Azalina Committee on Fake News ascertain whether allegations that DAP had spent RM100 million to RM1 billion before last general elections to maintain a 3,000-strong cybertrooper Red Bean Army was fake news or not?

The Azalina  Committee on Fake News should find out what were the millions or even tens of millions of ringgit which UMNO and Barisan Nasional had spent on cybertroopers to manufacture and disseminate fake news in the country in the past five years.

An indication of the sums of monies expended by UMNO and Barisan Nasional on cybertroopers could be gleaned from the allegations made by UMNO/BN propagandists about the money the DAP spent on cybertroopers, particularly on the fictitious “Red Bean Army”.

Immediately after the last general elections five years ago, UMNO/BN propagandists went to town to allege the DAP funded a fictitious “Red Bean Army” (RBA) of 3,000 cybertroopers with a budget of RM100 million to RM1 billion in the previous six years to attack the UMNO/BN authorities and to defame UMNO/BN leaders  over a whole variety of issues.

They even alleged that the RBA had two operational centres, one in Hotel Concorde in Kuala Lumpur and the other based in Komtar in Penang.

I recalled that when the UMNO/BN propagandists stepped up their barrage of lies, fake news and false information about the DAP-funded RBA, I led a team of DAP MPs accompanied by journalists to make a surprise visit to Concorde Hotel on the night of  July 4, 2014.

We found Concorde Hotel – which was supposed to be one the two operational centres of the billion-ringgit Red Bean Army – crawling with UMNO leaders and operatives but no Red Bean Army. We found something even more shocking – that the exorbitant ice-kachang in Concorde Hotel had no red beans at all!

As a result, the UMNO/BN fairy tale of DAP-funded RBA became a national standing joke and it died a natural death, until half-hearted attempts were made desultorily in the past two years to revive the spurious allegations.

However, what was interesting  about the UMNO/BN allegations about the RBA was that it revealed the modus operandi of UMNO/BN in recruiting cybertroopers, especially the funding involved – as no UMNO/BN cybertrooper or election worker will volunteer for free or work only for “water and sunshine”  but had to be paid, and paid very handsomely!

The going rate for the UMNO/BN cybertroopers  would be RM500 to RM3,000 monthly, including free telephone gadgets and laptops.

Last November, the UMNO Information Technnology Bureau organized a convention for some 3,500 UMNO cybertroopers.

Taking an average expenditure of RM2,000 a month for each UMNO cybertrooper, this would come to some RM7 million a year, and this would not include the expenditures incurred for cybertroopers engaged by other units or state outfits of UMNO/BN.

Who would finally foot the bill for these astronomical expenditures, if not the Malaysian taxpayers themselves?

Would the Azalina Committee on Fake News establish whether the fictitious Red Beans Army (RBA)  with some 3,000 cybertroopers which the DAP had allegedly maintained before the 13th General Election,  costing from RM100 million to RM1 billion, existed or not.

If yes, to produce proof; and if not, to come out with a clear-cut statement on  the allegations was the fake news concocted by UMNO/BN cybertroopers?

(Media Statement on Wednesday, 7th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 7 February 2018, 4:07 pm and is filed under
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The five-year RoS ordeal is only one of three trials and tribulations devised  by UMNO/BN strategists to break the  spirit and struggle of DAP and Malaysians for a just, democratic and united Malaysia

I want to thank Malaysians for their concern, well wishes and prayers for my operation and recuperation.

The battle for an united, just and democratic Malaysia that can be a showcase to the world of the  political, socio-economic, educational  and nation-building  success of a multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-religious and  multi-cultural nation   must continue whatever the odds and vicissitudes.

Tonight we have another reason for celebration.  For five years, the UMNO/Barisan Nasional government had tried to carry out the  “death sentence” for the DAP, falsely claiming that the DAP had in December 2012 undemocratically and illegally elected its Central Executive Committee.

There was even a time when it would appear that the DAP  could not use the DAP symbol, the Rocket, in the 13th General Election in May 2013, when we had used the Rocket symbol for nearly five decades through ten general elections.

The five–year ordeal that the DAP suffered because of UMNO/BN machinations to kill the DAP should never have happened in a country which practices good governance and upholds the rule of law.

Where in the world does the Registrar of Societies inform a political party that its national party elections over four years ago was illegal and forced it to hold fresh party elections?

What DAP had done in the DAP national party leadership elections in December 2012 was honest,  open, transparent, democratic and fully in compliance with the party constitution and the laws of the land, and we had no problem in complying with the RoS’ (Registrar of Societies) most arbitrary, unlawful and improper instruction, forgoing the legal option of challenging the RoS’ decision in the courts of law.

The five-year RoS ordeal is only one of three trials and tribulations devised  by UMNO/BN leaders and strategists to break the  spirit and struggle of DAP and Malaysians for a just, democratic and united Malaysia.

The UMNO/BN leaders and strategists have lost one gambit, but will do their utmost to succeed in the other two gambits, viz. to maliciously charge  the DAP Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for corruption while turning a blind eye to the real corruption in the country, whether the international multi-billion dollar kleptocratic money-laundering scamdal, or those involving FELDA, MARA, Tabung Haji, etc; and secondly, the baseless accusations and polemics  on the proposed undersea tunnel in Penang.

I believe  that truth and justice will finally prevail.

Malaysians must never lose faith and hope that they have within their hands the power to effect changes in Malaysian politics, particularly in the forthcoming 14th General Election,  to make all Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans or Ibans, proud of Malaysia not only because they can fulfil their full potentials as a Malaysian but also because Malaysia is capable of accomplishing its full promise and greatness as a united and successful nation,  wipe  out the infamy and ignominy of being regarded as a “global kleptocracy” and Save Malaysia from  the trajectory of a failed and rogue state.

(Speech at the DAP Kopitiam ceramah in Kinrara, Puchong on Tuesday, 6th February 2018 at 9 pm)

                This entry was posted on Wednesday, 7 February 2018, 12:51 pm and is filed under
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The abortive five-year conspiracy to ban DAP as a legal party is the biggest UMNO/BN Fake News plot in recent years trying to turn lies into “post-truth” and why Malaysians must beware of the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman , has finally brought out “national security” as reason for her Fake Committee on Fake News which comprise representatives from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Police and the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia.

To Azalina, “national security” could  cover a multitude of sins.

However, Azalina is unable  to answer the simple question as to what “national security” she is talking about when the government authorities, whether the AG’s Chambers, Police and the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia had been collectively negligent and impotent in being unable to tackle the mountain of lies, fake news and false information churned out by a multi-million ringgit UMNO/Barisan Nasional cybertrooper operation against the DAP and Pakatan Harapan.

Can Azalina explain what “national security” she is talking about with reference to the fake news by UMNO/BN cybertroopers that DAP is anti-Malay, anti-Islam, wants a Christian Malaysia, had a budget of RM100 million to RNM1 billion to fund a  Red Bean Army (RBA) of 3,000 cybertroopers operating out of Concorde Hotel, Kuala Lumpur to attack and defame UMNO/BN – with the latest recent fake news that I was in a coma in a Singapore hospital waiting for my end?

Can Azalina explain what  was the “national security” in the five-year long abortive conspiracy to ban DAP as a legal party, which was the biggest UMNO/BN Fake News plot in recent years, trying to turn lies, fake news and false information to a “post-truth”?

Azalina cannot have any answers to these questions and this is why Malaysians must beware of the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News, for this is not a genuine effort to combat fake news but merely the latest UMNO/BN gambit to weaponise UMNO/BN cybertroopers to harass and persecute Pakatan Harapan and independent NGOs.

Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that laws being drafted to curb the spread of fake news is not meant to conceal the truth from the people.

Zahid need to convince the people that this is the case, for if the government is genuinely concerned about fake news, which affect both the government and the opposition, why is the government afraid to have a bipartisan committee which involves the civil society to be entrusted with the task of discussing what laws and mechanism is suitable for Malaysia to combat fake news?

Pakatan Harapan leaders and MPs are prepared to co-operate with the government to discuss the best ways and means to tackle fake news, but we will not remain silent to any attempt by UMNO/BN  to use “fake news” as an excuse to arm itself with more powers to undermine free speech and the democratic rights of Malaysians.

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Thursday, 8th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 8 February 2018, 12:38 pm and is filed under
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Will Hadi next say that Nik Aziz had endorsed Hadi’s support for “MO1” and Malaysia becoming a “global kleptocracy”?

PAS President Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang claims that the  former PAS Mursyidul Am, the late Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, had noticed before his passing that there were “problems” with DAP.

Hadi has joined the ranks of those who manufacture lies, fake news and false information when he  claimed that the DAP had become arrogant because it had won more seats in 2013, “always fanning racial sentiments” which “led to racial tensions”.

Like UMNO/BN propagandists and cybertroopers, Hadi would not be able to cite a single instance to substantiate his lies, fake news and false information.

He has even swallowed hook, line and sinker the UMNO/BN propaganda that DAP was pulling Pakatan Harapan chairman Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad’s strings.

Will Hadi next say that Nik Aziz had endorsed Hadi’s support for “MO1” and Malaysia becoming a “global kleptocracy?

Hadi’s argument that DAP became more arrogant because the DAP won more seats in 2013 does not stand up to scrutiny as this was also the case in the 2008 general election.

Clearly, it rankled Hadi that DAP won more seats than PAS in both the 12th and  13th General Election.

In the 2008 General Election, DAP won 28 seats and PAS won 23. In the 13th General Election, DAP won 38 MPs while PAS won 21.

The real problem, however, is not over the number of seats, but DAP’s refusal to support Hadi as Prime Minister-designate.

On the eve of the 13th General Election, Hadi approached the DAP and wanted support for the proposal to replace Anwar Ibrahim with Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah as Pakatan Rakyat Prime Minister-designate, and he was very disappointed when DAP did not agree as it would be contrary to the DAP commitment that Anwar Ibrahim would be the Prime Minister under a Pakatan Rakyat Federal Government.

Hadi had hoped that the DAP would support Hadi himself as the Pakatan Rakyat Prime Minister-designate, as PAS had not agreed to Anwar as Prime  Minister-designate and PAS could not secure DAP’s agreement for Tengku Razaleigh as the Pakatan Rakyat Prime Minister-designate.

This was probably the beginning of Hadi’s decision to scuttle and destroy  Pakatan Rakyat, which he succeeded in doing after the 13th General Election.

And now Hadi has joined the ranks of those who concoct and disseminate lies, fake news and false information!

(Media Comment in Gelang Patah on Thursday, 8th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Thursday, 8 February 2018, 2:20 pm and is filed under
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If Najib is genuine in wanting a progressive Malaysia, then he should do two things immediately: ensure Rafizi does not go to jail or disqualified as MP for doing a national service in exposing the RM250 million NFC scandal and cleanse Malaysia of international obloquy of a global kleptocracy

If the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is genuine in wanting a progressive Malaysia, then let him do two things immediately:

(i) Ensure that PKR Vice President and MP for Pandan Rafizi Ramli is not jailed or disqualified as a Member of Parliament for doing a national service for exposing the RM250 million National Feedlot Corportion (NFC) scandal; and

(ii) Cleanse Malaysia of the international obloquy of being a global kleptocracy in the past three years, and clean up the Augean stable of corruption affecting Felda, MARA, Tabung Haji and other government outfits.

In his pre-election visit to northern Johore today, Najib

reminded the people, particularly Felda settlers, to always embrace the BN and Umno struggle to ensure that the country remained progressive.

My first reaction was whether Najib was joking, as under Najib Malaysia had gone backwards and become very regressive, whether political, economic, educational, social or nation-building, and not moved forward to become more progressive, open-minded and accountable.

This is why the international multi-billion dollar 1MDB money-laundering scandal has become “fake news” to Putrajaya and swept under the humongous “carpet” in Malaysia.

Najib has achieved what five former Prime Ministers in more than half a century had failed to do – made the stratospheric ascent to become known as a global kleptocracy, with all the infamy and ignominy of the appellation.

This is very sad, as yesterday as the birthday anniversary of Bapa Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman who, like Datuk Onn, Tun Razak, Tun Hussein, Tun Mahathir and I believe Tun Abdullah, would never have conceived that Malaysia would suffer the shame and humiliation of being regarded worldwide as a global kleptocracy.

Furthermore, never before in Malaysian history have so many people’s representatives whether Members of Parliament or  State Assembly members been harassed and hounded, including being selectively prosecuted in the courts under the variety of repressive and undemocratic laws to take away their liberties as well as to remove them from the legislative chambers in the land.

Even 93-year-old Tun Siti Hasmah, wife of former premier Tun Mahathir,  was not spared.

I fully agree with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that the sentencing of Rafizi Ramli to 30 months’ jail for blowing the whistle on the NFC scandal shows the country needs to change its leadership, as the present nation-building trajectory can only lead to a regressive, failed and rogue state and not a progressive, prosperous and united Malaysia.

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Friday, 9th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Friday, 9 February 2018, 3:40 pm and is filed under
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Najib and Hadi have formed an UMNO-PAS unholy  alliance to induct Malaysia into the world of fake news and “post-truths”

The surreal world of “fake news” and “post-truths” have  finally come to Malaysia, with the PAS President, Datuk Seri Hadi Awang showing his hand.

Hadi’s propaganda offensive in the past few days, echoing Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s baseless  attacks on the DAP as anti-Malay, anti-Islam, the dominant power in Pakatan Harapan with all other leaders, whether Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail or Mohamad Sabu as mere DAP puppets and stooges, marks an UMNO-PAS unholy alliance to induct Malaysia into the world of fake news and “post-truth”.

Undoubtedly, the Najib-Hadi  duo would have top any “Fake News Award” in Malaysia.

May be Malaysians should thank the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News for  finally driving home to Malaysians the ubiquity and iniquity of fake news, false information and “post-truths”.

With the approach of the 14th General Election in less than 90 days, there is an urgent need for Malaysian voters to be aware of the ubiquity and iniquity of fake news and false information to influence the  Malaysian electorate on polling day and skewer election results.

According to a recent report, a study showed that  two thirds of Irish are concerned about fake news, as trust in traditional journalism has rebounded while faith in social media platforms has fallen.

Trust in traditional reporting in Ireland has increased by five percentage points to 53 per cent while trust in search engines and social media platforms has dropped eight percentage points to 33 per cent.

The study shows that a significant majority (64 per cent) are concerned about “fake news”, and claims there is “a yearning” for journalism that provides “accurate, credible information”.

According to the study, a majority of Irish people believe that traditional journalists are meeting expectations in terms of investigating corruption (56 per cent), guarding information quality (54 per cent) and educating on issues (61 per cent).

The study finds that at a time when people are struggling with who and what to believe there is a notable rise in trust in journalism.  It said: “People’s trust in social media as a source of news is collapsing, leaving an opportunity for journalists and bona fide experts to inform society.”

In Malaysia, there must a greater awareness among the people about the ubiquity and iniquity of fake news, false information and “post-truths” but there is  little hope of traditional journalism restoring trust to provide accurate and credible information, as the mainstream media, in particular the UMNO/BN owned and controlled ones like Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times, Berita Harian and Star are  among the worst culprits in disseminating fake news and false information in the service of their “political masters”.

Who for instance were the purveyors of the fake news that DAP spent a budget of RM100 million to RM1 billion to fund a Red Bean Army (RBA) of 3,000 cybertroopers operating out of Concorde Hotel in Kuala Lumpur to attack and defame UMNO/BN – if not the UMNO/BN mainstream media?

The abysmal failure of rhe authorities to take action against the UMNO/BN owned and controlled mainstream media for their fake news, false information and lies about the Pakatan Harapan and independent NGOs is the strongest proof that Malaysians must be beware of the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News – for it seemed to be the latest Trumpish effort to weaponise fake news against Pakatan Harapan and independent NGOs under the guise of combating fake news.

Malaysia has arrived in the world of fakeries – fake news, fake news analysis and fake news analysts, apart from fake elections and fake government.

Let me say a few words about “fake news analysts”, who  belong to a new breed of self-proclaimed journalists who dare not praise UMNO and BN parties and leaders because of their unpopularity and kleptocratic ways  but choose to  run down Pakatan Harapan leaders and NGO leaders at every possibility.

For instance, they would cast doubts on the sincerity and integrity of DAP and Pakatan Harapan leaders but have nothing to say about the misdemeanours of UMNO and Barisan Nasional leaders,  whether about the international multi-billion ringgit 1MDB money-laundering scandal, “MO1” or the history created by the top three MCA leaders contesting in parliamentary constituencies where the largest voting ethnic group are Malays and not Chinese.

Is MCA representing the Chinese in Barisan Nasional or are they representing UMNO to the Malaysian Chinese?

In Bentong, the parliamentary constituency of the MCA President and Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, the racial breakdown of the electorate in the second quarter of 2017 are Malays 46.1%, Chinese 42.4% and Others 2.6% – as compared to the voter racial breakdown in 2004 General election of 48.6% Chinese, 40.5% Malays, 9.4% Indians and 1.4% Others.

In Ayer Hitam, the parliamentary constituency of MCA Deputy President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong, the voter racial breakdown in the second quarter of 2017 were  Malays 57.6%; Chinese 38.3%; Indians 3.9% and Others 0.2%.

When Wee contested in the Ayer Hitam parliamentary seat in the 2004 General Election, the racial breakdown of the voters in the constituency were 55.5% Malays, 40% Chinese; 4.3% Indians and 0.3% Others.

In Tanjong Malim, the parliamentary constituency of the MCA Secretary-General and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, Datuk Ong Ka Chuan, the current racial breakdown of the electorate is Malays 55.4%, Chinese 25.8%, Indians 13.2% and Orang Asli 5.6%, as compared to 2008 General Election when Ong first contested in the constituency – Malays 51%, Chinese 31%, Indians 15.1% and Orang Asli 2.9%.

The statistics speak for themselves about the sincerity and integrity of the three top MCA leaders!

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Friday, 9th February 2018)

                This entry was posted on Friday, 9 February 2018, 8:27 am and is filed under
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A Pakatan Harapan victory in the 14th General Election will open wide the mystery of the 1MDB scandal which Najib had been trying his utmost to dismiss as non-existent and a fake news

The Pakatan Harapan victory in the 14th General Election expected to be held in 90 days will launch Malaysia into new waters, one of which will be to open wide the mystery of the 1MDB scandal which the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had trying his utmost as the top government leader to dismiss as non-existent and a fake news.

Many countries in  the world have been investigating the 1MDB scandal and several people implicated in the international multi-billion dollar 1MDB money-laundering scandal had been convicted and even jailed as in Singapore; several banks and  finance companies including quite prestigious and long-standing financial institutions had been closed down or heavily  fined as in Singapore and Switzerland; and worst of all, the largest kleptocratic forfeiture litigation amounting to nearly US$2 billion had been launched by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ), described as the “world’s worst kleptocracy” by the United States Attorney-General Jeff Sessions, resulting in Malaysia pelted with the ignominy and infamy of being regarded worldwide as a global kleptocracy.

But in Malaysia, the 1MDB scandal has been manipulated by the Najib government as a non-event, even as a fake news and sheer concoction of those who have only malice for Malaysia!

But for how long can we put up with such pretences?.

Yesterday, the Malaysian government claimed  in court that it was not connected to Prime Minister Najib and 1MDB regarding a controversial multi-billion-dollar loan settlement with an Abu Dhabi investment firm, and that their conduct has no bearing on its liability.

In its statement of defence yesterday filed in a local litigation, the Federal Government said there was no “nexus” between the allegations against Najib or the state investment fund.

The case is in relation to a debt payment dispute in 2016, in relation to a British Virgin Island phantom company when the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) sought US$6.5 billion (RM24 billion) from 1MDB and the Finance Ministry.

In May last year, a settlement was reached in London, which Pakatan Harapan youth group Gerakan Anak Muda Tolak Najib (GANT1) is taking to court, to declare it void.

In its statement of defence, the government denied “vicarious liability” towards the liabilities of Najib or 1MDB, which went against the public position taken by the Second Finance Minister Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani on August 1, 2016, that 1MDB would “fight” and not pay the US$6.5 billion in claims made by IPIC and its subsidiary, Aabar Investments PJS (Aabar Asli), via the London Court of International Arbitration.

Johari had said: “We want to fight, and we want to win this case. We cannot make statements that might weaken Malaysia’s position.

“Based on the documents that 1MDB had forwarded to us, I’m very confident of a positive outcome.

“We are taking the position that we are not paying the interest. We shouldn’t pay. We must win this case.”

The Federal Government, whether the Finance Minister who is also the Prime Minister himself, or the Second Finance Minister, must clear the public doubts caused by these conflicting and contradictory government positions.

I do not expect the Najib government to throw much  light on these 1MDB contradictions and conflicts, and we will have to wait for an UMNO/BN defeat in the 14th General Election and a change of Federal Government, with Tun Mahathir taking over as the 7th Prime Minister followed by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the 8th Prime Minister, to get to the bottom of the gargantuan 1MDB kleptocratic scandal, and to cleanse Malaysia of the international infamy and iniquity of a global kleptocracy.

(Speech at the DAP Kopitiam Ceramah in Kulai on Saturday, 10th February 2018 at 11 am)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 10 February 2018, 3:45 pm and is filed under
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Najib has not yet called general elections because he is not confident UMNO/BN will be re-elected  despite the mountain of fake news and false information UMNO/BN had spread about  Pakatan Harapan

Despite the outward show of confidence, the fact is that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has not yet  called general elections because he is not confident that UMNO/Barisan Nasional will be re-elected as the Federal Government despite the mountain of fake news and false information which UMNO/BN had spread about Pakatan Harapan.

The stakes for Najib are unbearably high,  for if he loses the general election,  he will not  only lose the Prime Ministership, the international multi-billion dollar 1MDB kleptocratic money-laundering scandal which had been swept under  the carpet will be  exposed to intense national and international scrutiny, with all the attendant consequences.

Today Najib has come to northern Johore, for he knows that Johor, which had been a fixed deposit state for the ruling coalition  over half a century until the 13th General Election, will be a critical state to determine whether he could be returned to Putrajaya as Prime Minister in the next general election.

If Najib had called for national election after the Sarawak state general election in April 2016, or after the two Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar  parliamentary by-elections in June 2016, or even last year, the chances of  Najib winning the 14th General Election would have been quite high

But Najib has missed the opportunity in his procrastination in calling for  general elections in 2016 or 2017.

Najib is hoping that the gerrymandering from the  redelineation of electoral constituencies would provide him with a sure formula for UMNO/BN to be returned to Putrajaya, even with a two-thirds parliamentary majority which UMNO/BN had lost in the last two general elections in 2008 and 2013.

But if there is a political tsunami, not only in the urban areas but also in the rural and Felda areas, then the redelineation of constituencies is not going to save Najib.

Najib is presenting a very bold front of being very optimistic about the next general elections, to camouflage the quaking he is feeling about the uncertain prospects for him and UMNO/BN in the next general election.

In Muar today, Najib talked about the need for a party that was strong on its own and not relying on parties that depended on other parties.

Was Najib referring to the other Barisan Nasional component parties, like MCA, MIC ad Gerakan?

In the Pakatan Harapan, all the four component parties of DAP, PKR, AMANAH and PPBM have their own respective strengths, and it is from the unity and solidarity of the four parties in Pakatan Harapan that we hope to create history by evicting the UMNO/BN coalition from Putrajaya for the first time in 61 years in Malaysia.

It is very different however from the other Barisan Nasional component parties.

For instance, all the three most important leaders of MCA depend on UMNO’s votes to get elected as MP and then to become a Minister, raising the question whether MCA is representing the Chinese in Barisan Nasional or whether they  are representing UMNO to the Malaysian Chinese?

In Bentong, the parliamentary constituency of the MCA President and Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, the single biggest ethnic  bloc of voters are the 46.1% Malay voters, as Chinese voters represent 42.4%, Indians 9.0% and Others 2.5%.

In Ayer Hitam, the parliamentary constituency of MCA Deputy President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong, the largest ethnic group of voters are the 57.6% Malay voters, with the Chinese 38.3%; Indians 3.9% and Others 0.2%.

In Tanjong Malim, the parliamentary constituency of the MCA Secretary-General and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, Datuk Ong Ka Chuan, the largest ethnic group of voters are again the Malays 55.4% with  Chinese 25.8%, Indians 13.2% and Orang Asli 5.6%.

In fact, in Malay voters represent the largest ethnic group in

six of the seven parliamentary constituencies won by MCA in the 13th General Election.

As MCA fits the bill of Najib’s attack in Muar, can the Prime Minister explain why he is assaulting the MCA?

In his speech in Muar, Najib called for the people to support UNNO/BN to support a progressive Malaysia.

Ifi Najib  is genuine in wanting a progressive Malaysia, then let him do two things immediately:

(i) Ensure that PKR Vice President and MP for Pandan Rafizi Ramli is not jailed or disqualified as a Member of Parliament for doing a national service for exposing the RM250 million National Feedlot Corportion (NFC) scandal; and

(ii) Cleanse Malaysia of the international obloquy of being a global kleptocracy in the past three years, and clean up the Augean stable of corruption affecting Felda, MARA, Tabung Haji and other government outfits.

Najib has achieved what five former Prime Ministers in more than half a century had failed to do – made the stratospheric ascent to become known as a global kleptocracy, with all the infamy and ignominy of the appellation.

This is very sad, as yesterday was the birthday anniversary of Bapa Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman who, like Datuk Onn, Tun Razak, Tun Hussein, Tun Mahathir and I believe Tun Abdullah, would never have conceived that Malaysia would suffer the shame and humiliation of being regarded worldwide as a global kleptocracy.

Furthermore, never before in Malaysian history have so many people’s representatives whether Members of Parliament or  State Assembly members been harassed and hounded, including being selectively prosecuted in the courts under the variety of repressive and undemocratic laws to take away their liberties as well as to remove them from the legislative chambers in the land.

Even 93-year-old Tun Siti Hasmah, wife of former premier Tun Mahathir,  was not spared.

I fully agree with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that the sentencing of Rafizi Ramli to 30 months’ jail for blowing the whistle on the NFC scandal shows the country needs to change its leadership, as the present nation-building trajectory can only lead to a regressive, repressive, a failed and rogue state and not a progressive, prosperous and united Malaysia.

(Speech at the DAP kopitiam ceramah in Gelang Patah on Friday, February 2018 at 8 pm)

                This entry was posted on Saturday, 10 February 2018, 7:25 am and is filed under
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Shahrir should state his stand on  the disruption of the Pakatan Harapan programme in Kg Bakar Batu in Johor Baru last night

It is most regrettable that a Pakatan Harapan programme in Kampong Bakar Batu in the Johor Baru parliamentary constituency last night for the DAP State Assemblyman for Stulang, Andrew Chen Kah Eng, the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) Johor Secretary and former three-term Assemblyman for Kempas, Datuk Osman Sapian, and the PKR Johor Information Chief, Akmal Nasir, AMANAH Johore Baru deputy chairman Muadz Jamaluddin and myself to meet and dialogue with the people in the area had been disrupted and cancelled.

If this had happened 50 and 60 years ago, it would not have been surprising.

But for such a regrettable event to happen 61 years after the achievement of Merdeka in 1957 and thirteen General Elections had been held in Malaysia shows that to some people in the country, the spirit and commitment to parliamentary democracy is very skin deep.

It highlights what should be a very sobering reality that Malaysia lags behind, not only the West whether the United States, United Kingdom and Europe, but even Asian countries like Japan, India, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia in practicing parliamentary demoracy.

We still have quite  a distance to go to become a normal democracy where the people can change the government through the ballot box without any dire  warning or threat of disaster for the country, or for any community whether racial or religious, and where political parties can freely, democratically and peacefully meet and dialogue with the people about the problems of the country and their plans for the future.

This is why my first reaction last night to the regrettable event was to ask the long-standing Member of Parliament for the area, Tan Sri Shahrir  Samad, who had been MP for Johor Baru for six terms since 1978, for clarification as I cannot imagine that Shahrir could be the mastermind or even countenance such an undemocratic event.

I have always known Shahrir as one of the UMNO leaders who is more committed to the principles and practices of parliamentary democracy, and I will be most shocked if he has so changed as to mastermind or countenance what happened in Kg Bakar Batu last night.

It is most regrettable that the Umno leadership, led by the Prime Minister and the UMNO President, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has continued with their lies, fake news and false information which he repeated during his visit to northern Johore two days ago that the DAP is anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

In my five decades in Malaysian politics, I have never accused UMNO or any of the past UMNO Presidents and Prime Ministers for being anti-Chinese, anti-Indian, anti-Christian, anti-Buddhist, anti-Hindu or anti-Sikkhism.

Why?

This is because as political leaders, we must set an example to strive to become representatives of all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or background.

This is why I have been able to work with three of the former Prime Ministers after their retirement, namely Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Hussein Onn and Tun Mahathir Mohamad – whose premiership span 40 of 60 years of the nation’s history.

I may have political differences with Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Hussein Onn and Tun Mahathir Mohanad when they were Prime Ministers, but  I had never accused them of being anti-Chinese, anti-Indian, anti-Christian, anti-Buddhist, anti-Hindu or anti-Sikkhism,  for political leaders whether from the government or opposition must strive to be leaders of all Malaysians!

The Minister for Communications and Multi-media, Datuk Seri Salleh  Said Keruak recently blogged that Najib is a gentleman.

If so, can Salleh or the Prime Minister explain why Najib continues to disseminate lies, fake news and false information that DAP is anti-Malay and anti-Islam?

Tun Mahathir and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had admitted that these allegations which they had made against the DAP when they were in UMNO were untrue and baseless.

When will Najib face up to the truth and stop disseminating lies, fake news and false information – or Malaysians have to wait until he is evicted from Putrajaya?

This is why Malaysians have grave reservations about the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News, for the government has lost all credibility and is unable to convince Malaysians that it is not embarking  on an effort to weaponise fake news against Pakatan Harapan and independent NGOs under the guise of combatting fake news.

The latest UMNO/BN fake news is that Tun Mahathir is leading a Pakatan Harapan delegation to the United States to meet American political leaders to seek foreign help to topple Najib as Prime Minister, with the UMNO Vice President and Defence Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein peddling the fake news by accusing Mahathir and Pakatan Harapan of  “hypocrisy”.

The fake news that a Mahathir-led Pakatan Harapan was leaving for the United States in a fortnight  to lobby for foreign support came as a total surprise even to me, as I am no more in the Pakatan Harapan Presidential Council, as there is no iota of truth in it.

Will Hishammuddin be hauled up by the Azalina Fake Committee on Fake News for peddling the latest fake news against Pakatan Harapan?

One of the most pernicious and iniquitous fake news is the one favoured  by UMNO leaders that if UMNO is defeated in a general election, Malays will lose political power and become strangers in their own land as they will never recover such political power.

This is a double lie, for the Malays will not lose political power if UMNO is evicted from Putrajaya, so the question of the Malays recovering political power never arises.

No UMNO leader had been able to answer the two questions which had been posed by the National Laureate Pak Samad to expose such political lies, viz:

*How are Malays under threat? How can religion (Islam) and Malays be threatened when those in power have been Malay for six decades?

*What have they (Malay leaders) been doing in six decades (if Malays can be under threat)?

A few UMNO leaders have realised that such fake news and threats of dire consequences  to hold the Malays to ransom would not work.

The best rebuttal to the UMNO leaders’ warnings that the Malays will perish if UMNO is defeated in the forthcoming general election had come  from the Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan in his speech at the opening of Hishammuddin’s Sembrong Division UMNO delegates’ conference in Kluang last August.

Mohamad said Umno must woo the Malay voters to get the support of the majority of the people so that BN wins the 14th general election.

He said Umno could no longer think that the Malays needed it but instead it was Umno that needed the Malays in order to survive.

He said: “The Malays now have many choices such as PAS, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu). We (Umno) cannot be complacent saying that the Malays need us.”

Mohamad failed to mention DAP, as the DAP is party which will defend the uphold the interests of all Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans, Ibans or Orang Asli.

But  Mohamad Hassan is very right.

UMNO leaders have been holding onto power by generating the fear that if UMNO is defeated in a general election, Malays will lose political power and become strangers in their own land as they will never recover from such loss of political power.

This is a great lie, for the Malays will not lose political power if UMNO is evicted from Putrajaya, so the question of the Malays recovering political power never arises.

The demographic reality is the surest guarantee that the Malays will not lose political power whatever happens to Najib or to UMNO in the next general election, as the Malays in Malaysia will continue to exercise political power in Malaysia as there is no way they will lose political power.

In 1957, Malaya’s population comprised 49.8% Malays, 37.2% Chinese, 11.1% Indians and 2% Other.s

In 1970 Malaysia’s population comprised 44.32% Malays, 34.34% Chinese, 8.99% Indians, 11.89% non-Malay Bumiputeras, 0.67% others.

In 2010, the percentage of Malays in the Malaysian population increased to 55.07%, Chinese reduced to 24.34%, Indians dropped to 7.35%, non-Malay Bumiputeras maintained at 11.94% and 1.3% others.

The Chief Statistician Datuk Dr. Hassan Abdul Rahman has predicted that the Chinese percentage of the population would shrink to 19.6% in 2030 and 18.9% in 2035.

Why are the UMNO leaders continue to beat the drum of the “Chinese peril” in Malaysia?

During the 13th general election, 52.63% of the voters were Malays, 29.68% Chinese, 7.31% Indians, 8.96% non-Malay Bumiputeras and 1.43% others.

Out of the 165 Parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia, 114 are Malay majority seats representing some 70%, 22 Chinese majority seats (13%) and 29 mixed seats. There is not a single Indian majority seat.

These triple factors, which will be a continuing trend in the coming years, establish the overwhelming Malay predominance in the Malaysian political scene – the demographic make-up of the general population, the electorate and the parliamentary constituencies – and why there is no way the Malays can lose political power if UMNO is defeated in a general election!

I call on UMNO leaders to stop the campaign of lies, fake news and false information and stop invoking the fictitious “Chinese peril” in Malaysia.

(Media Conference Statement in Johor Jaya on Sunday, February 11, 2018 at 9 am)

                This entry was posted on Sunday, 11 February 2018, 8:18 am and is filed under
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Call on Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan leadership to make a commitment to conduct fair, clean and honest politics, including not peddling fake news or disrupting activities of opposing political parties

I find the explanation of the UMNO/BN MP for Johor Baru, Tan Sri Shahrir Samad to the latest blackmark to Malaysian democracy, the disruption of the visit of Pakatan Harapan leaders to Kampong Bakar Batu in Johor Baru on Saturday night, to be most lame, pathetic and disappointing.

Is “kampong customs” all that Shahrir can say to defend the rude and thuggish behavior of UMNO members who disrupted the Pakatan Harapan programme, which involved the  Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) Johor Secretary and former three-term Johore State Assemblyman for Kempas, Datuk Osman Sapian, the PKR Johor Information Chief, Akmal Nasir, AMANAH Johore Baru deputy chairman Muadz Jamaluddin, two DAP Johore State Assemblyman namely Andrew Chen Kah Eng (Stulang) and Cheo Yee How (Pengkalan Rinting) and myself?

Can Shahrir explain what are these “kampong customs” which justify rude and thuggish behavior against the peaceful and democratic political visit of Pakatan Harapan leaders?

What is even shocking is the fake news that was immediately  manufactured and peddled on Whatsapp yesterday by UMNO cybertroopers who accused Andrew Chen of attacking the Kampong Bakar Batu Malays as “sangat biadap dan kurang ajar” for the incident, when Andrew Chen had never said such things.

I call on both the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan leaderships to make a commitment to conduct fair, clean and honest politics, including not peddling fake news or disrupting activities of opposing political parties.

I am making this call as I am not on the Pakatan Harapan Leadership Council.

I have no doubt that the Pakatan Harapan leadership would have no problem in making such a public commitment, but I am rather dubious that the UMNO/BN would be prepared to make such a commitment.

This is because the UMNO/BN would have to run down their campaign of lies, fake news and false information against Pakatan Harapan leaders and parties, after spending quite a fortune running into tens and even hundreds of millions of ringgit recruiting quite an army of cybertroopers to concoct and dissemate lies, fake news and false information against Pakatan Harapan.

It would also mean that UMNO/BN, like Pakatan Harapan, must be prepared to withstand public scrutiny to ensure that they and their supporters cease and desist from gangster politics as well as lies, fake news and false information.

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak claimed yesterday that Barisan Nasional  can’t cheat in the 14th general election, or the BN would not have lost five states in the 2008 General Election.

The fact of matter was that Barisan Nasional lost the five states despite widespread cheating in the 2008 general elections!

But if Najib is sincere in that the Barisan Nasional would not cheat in the forthcoming general election, why should Najib have problem in the Barisan Nasional making a public commitment to conduct fair, clean and honest politics, including not peddling fake news or disrupting activities of opposing political parties, in the run-up to the 14th General Election?

The Minister for Communications and Multi-media, Datuk Seri Salleh  Said Keruak recently blogged that Najib is a gentleman.

If so, can Salleh or the Prime Minister explain why Najib continues to disseminate lies, fake news and false information that DAP is anti-Malay and anti-Islam?

Tun Mahathir and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had admitted that these allegations which they had made against the DAP when they were in UMNO were untrue and baseless.

When will Najib face up to the truth and stop disseminating lies, fake news and false information – or would Malaysians have to wait until Najib is evicted from Putrajaya?

One of the most pernicious and iniquitous fake news is the one favoured  by UMNO leaders that if UMNO is defeated in a general election, Malays will lose political power and become strangers in their own land as they will never recover such political power.

This is a double lie, for the Malays will not lose political power if UMNO is evicted from Putrajaya, so the question of the Malays recovering political power never arises.

A few UMNO leaders have realised that such fake news and threats of dire consequences  to hold the Malays to ransom would not work.

The best rebuttal to the UMNO leaders’ warnings that the Malays will perish if UMNO is defeated in the forthcoming general election had come  from the Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan in his speech at the opening of Hishammuddin’s Sembrong Division UMNO delegates’ conference in Kluang last August.

Mohamad said Umno must woo the Malay voters to get the support of the majority of the people so that BN wins the 14th general election.

He said Umno could no longer think that the Malays needed it but instead it was Umno that needed the Malays in order to survive.

He said: “The Malays now have many choices such as PAS, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu). We (Umno) cannot be complacent saying that the Malays need us.”

Mohamad failed to mention DAP, as the DAP is party which will defend the uphold the interests of all Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans, Ibans or Orang Asli.

But Mohamad Hassan is very right.

UMNO leaders have been holding onto power by generating the fear that if UMNO is defeated in a general election, Malays will lose political power and become strangers in their own land as they will never recover from such loss of political power.

The demographic reality is the surest guarantee that the Malays will not lose political power whatever happens to Najib or to UMNO in the next general election, as the Malays in Malaysia will continue to exercise political power in Malaysia as there is no way they will lose political power.

In 1957, Malaya’s population comprised 49.8% Malays, 37.2% Chinese, 11.1% Indians and 2% Others.

In 1970 Malaysia’s population comprised 44.32% Malays, 34.34% Chinese, 8.99% Indians, 11.89% non-Malay Bumiputeras, 0.67% others.

In 2010, the percentage of Malays in the Malaysian population increased to 55.07%, Chinese reduced to 24.34%, Indians dropped to 7.35%, non-Malay Bumiputeras maintained at 11.94% and 1.3% others.

The Chief Statistician Datuk Dr. Hassan Abdul Rahman has predicted that the Chinese percentage of the population would shrink to 19.6% in 2030 and 18.9% in 2035.

Why are the UMNO leaders continue to beat the drum of the “Chinese peril” in Malaysia when Chinese population percentage have fallen from 37.2% in 1957 to 34.34% in 1970, and further down to 24.3% in 2010, and expected to  fall below 20% after 2030?

(Media Statement in Gelang Patah on Monday, 12th Febrary 2018)

                This entry was posted on Monday, 12 February 2018, 1:01 pm and is filed under
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Will Malaysia join the ranks of South Korea, Taiwan, Bangladesh and Pakistan whose leaders are jailed for corruption after they have fallen from power?

Last Wednesday’s conviction and 30-month jail sentence passed on PKR Vice President and MP for Pandan, Rafizi Ramli and former Public  Bank clerk Johari Mohamad have brought back to the national limelight one of the host  of financial scandals in Malaysia which the authorities had  hoped had been successfully been swept  under the carpet – the RM250 million National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) cow-and-condo scandal.

As a result, the RM250 million NFC cow-and-condo scandal, together with Rafizi’s conviction and jail sentence, will take their rightful place together with other financial scandals, like the world-trotting 1MDB financial scandal, the MARA, FELDA, Tabung Haji and other financial scandals, in the forefront of issues in the forthcoming 14th General Election to be held within the next 90 days.

One question uppermost in the minds of many ordinary Malaysians as well as political leaders is whether Malaysia will join the ranks of South Korea, Taiwan, Bangladesh and Pakistan whose leaders are jailed for corruption after they have fallen from power.

A few days ago, the former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia was convicted of corruption and sentenced to five year’s in jail.

In Pakistan last year, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was indicted on corruption charges and an anti-corruption court in Islamabad issued a warrant of arrest in relation to the wealth owned by him and his family.

The cases of South Korean President, Park Geun-hye, two former South Korean Presidents, Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo (the corruption investigation of another former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun was closed after Roo leaped to his death) and the former Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, who were all jailed,  and the campaign against “dragons”, “tigers”, “crocodiles” in China and Indonesia are further salutary lessons for political leaders in Asian countries that they will have to pay  dearly for “grand corruption” during their years of power whether as President or Prime Minister.

It is tragic and a national humiliation that Malaysia had achieved world notoriety as a  global kleptocracy because of the 1MDB scandal, which had been described as the world’s “worst kleptocracy” by the United States Attorney-General Jeff Sesssions at a recent international conference.

Indonesia’s Suharto and Philippines’ Ferdinand Marcos had previously been known as among the top 10 corrupt world leaders.

Is Malaysia trying to make up  by becoming known as one of the top global kleptocracies, beating Indonesia, the Philippines and China?

Already Malaysia has been named as among the five “worst corruption scandals of 2015” by the Foreign Policy website because of the international multi-bililon dollar 1MDB money-laundering scandal.

Is Malaysia heading to  top the world in terms of kleptocracy and corruption?

This is one of the important issues to be decided in the forthcoming general election – whether we are to Save Malaysia to re-set nation-building policies and direction to achieve our Malaysian Dream to be  an international show-case of unity, harmony, integrity, good governance, development, progress and prosperity in a plural nation or to be  trapped in the trajectory of a failed, rogue and kleptocratic state!

(Speech at the DAP kopitiam ceramah in Johor Jaya on Sunday, 11th February 2018 at 10 am)

                This entry was posted on Monday, 12 February 2018, 10:26 am and is filed under
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