Scandal Politic

M'sia charges trio over billion-dollar trade zone scandal

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:41:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia Thursday charged a former port chief and two other figures over their roles in a multi-billion-dollar cost blowout at a free-trade zone that has become a major financial scandal.

The Port Klang Free Trade Zone, a commercial and industrial project south of the capital, was conceived as a 1.82 billion ringgit (S$746 million) venture constructed over 1,000 acres (405 hectares).

However costs are now expected to balloon to 12.5 billion ringgit, making the affair one of the country's biggest financial scandals and a major embarrassment for the government.

A report by the Port Klang Free Trade Zone's external auditors has indicated it would be loss-making until 2029 because of debt servicing costs, and would only break even in 2051.

Prosecutor Manoj Kurup said that O.C. Phang, the former head of the Port Klang Authority which runs the zone, had been charged at the Klang Sessions Court with three counts of criminal breach of trust.

She pleaded not guilty to the allegations over payments worth 254 million ringgit to the project's developer. She faces 20 years in jail if convicted.

Two other individuals, the chief executive of the developer and a consultant architect, also denied charges of cheating in relation to an amount of 122 million ringgit, the prosecutor said.

"They were charged for basically certifying work done when that work had not been done, and as a result of their certification the port authority paid out the money," he said.

The pair face up to 10 years in jail as well as a whipping if found guilty.

In November, a parliamentary committee into the affair recommended the anti-corruption authorities investigate Phang and former transport minister Chan Kong Choy.

The committee said they had issued letters to help secure loans for the project developer, owned by a powerful lawmaker in the ruling coalition, that placed the government as guarantor without authorisation.

Committee member Tony Pua said the developer ran out of money and received loans from the government and letters from Chan to guarantee a 3.6 billion ringgit bank loan.

The government is now liable to bear that amount owed by the developer to the banks, he said.

Prime Minister Najib Razak, who set up a high-level taskforce to look into the affair, has pledged his government would not hinder the investigations.

Najib came to power in April with a pledge to tackle corruption which is endemic in Malaysian politics and society, and a key factor behind the government's disastrous performance in 2008 elections.

Mahathir’s big comeback

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:25:00 +0000

SEPT 11 — When Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad retired in 2003, everyone hailed him as a statesman; someone who did not choose the LKY-route. You know, in Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew maintained a direct line to the Singapore govt by keeping a cabinet post — first as Senior Minister and now Minister Mentor.

Nevertheless, less than two years after he stepped down, he began to attack his hand-picked successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, through his popular blog. The man who started the MSC and went after websites that attacked his administration suddenly discovered that the cyberspace worked both ways — he could use cyberspace to after Abdullah regardless of what the mainstream media says.

Mahathir played a major part in Abdullah’s downfall. It is almost certain that his son would have been appointed a full cabinet minister if he had won the Umno Youth’s post and it was the Mahathir name that gave the son the deputy minister’s post and his position in Umno Youth.

Mahathir’s influence has now gone further than the Malay vote — Subra is using Mahathir’s name to try to win MIC votes for the party’s deputy presidency. It does not matter that MIC blamed him for marginalising the Indians during his 22 year rule which directly lead to the rise of Hindraf. It does not matter that Samy Vellu said Mahathir “did nothing” for the Indians.

Here lies the supreme irony. Why is Mahathir —the main all Indian politicians attack as doing “nothing” to help the Indians — still able to draw support in MIC? The fact that Samy and the MIC Youth Wing had to ask Mahathir to stay out of the MIC contest suggests that Mahathir is still influential in BN politics, not just Umno politics. It also shows how shallow Malaysians, especially the non-Malays, are.

People forget easily, as Mahathir reminds us. How true. Here is the man who ruled Malaysia for 22 years with a big stick. And he was not afraid to use it. Operasi Lalang, Memali, BMF scandal, Lingam judge-fixing affair, sacking of Supreme Court judges, the Anwar black eye incident, executive dominance of parliament, human rights abuses, privatisation which lead to road tolls, and more all happened when Mahathir was in charge. Yet today many Malaysians look back at the “good old days”. If those days were the “good old days” then get me out of here!

This problem is not unique to us — when Suharto died, many people praised him including the current president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono — all the thousands who died under his military dictatorship were forgotten instantly. I will not be surprise if one of his sons becomes the Indonesian president in the future.

Why is it that we cannot confront our history honestly? How can’t we look at our recent history and admit to ourselves that all of today’s political problems — from racial to deepening religious divide — are caused by policies implemented in the past one or two decade.

We let the leaders of the era off the hook so easily that it is as if we are a people doomed to repeat all the mistakes made in the recent past. We forgive easily because as Mahathir said famously “Melayu mudah lupa”.

Mahathir is the master of understanding the political psyche of the typical Malaysian. When he resigned back in 2003, all was instantly forgiven. All the mistakes and policies were instantly forgotten.

I don’t deny we need to look at the good and the bad. All I am saying is that Malaysians tend to look at the good and completely ignore the bad. Perhaps it’s human nature to forget the bad but by looking at the good and misreading the past, we are bound to repeat all the terrible mistakes of the recent past.

If Subra wins the deputy presidency tomorrow, Mahathir successfully deposed two BN leaders in “retirement”, i.e. Abdullah and Samy. In the meantime, I can’t wait for one of the two MCA camps to get his endorsement.

Battle between the old and new MCA

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 01:19:00 +0000

Sacked deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek must consider the interest of the party and back down from a destructive confrontation with president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat if he does not wish to see the party broken into pieces.

DATUK Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek is half right about the leadership conflict in MCA. It is not about him or Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat.

It is not even a “class conflict” as claimed by his supporters. Dr Chua, a medical doctor, is hardly a grassroots leader.

It is a tussle between the old and new MCA. It is a tussle between a group of party leaders and members who want to keep the old political and business nexus alive which can be used to shelter tainted leaders and their wrongdoings and those who want the party to regain its political potency.

Some of us had poked fun at a few ex-leaders of the party for not being able to stand up against the excesses and arrogance of its coalition partner.

They were seen as carrying too much baggage to be able to do much without being told to shut up or risk their own personal scandals being exposed.

Ironically, some of the party leaders and delegates are striving to do exactly the same — reinstating morally tainted leaders back to the leadership hierarchy.

More than a thousand delegates may be enough to challenge the power equilibrium of the party.

But can they help to restore the battered image of MCA which has been long associated with its deep interest in the old patronage system?

Can these delegates help the party recapture the seats it lost in the last general election by continuing to hold on to the old MCA?

The involvement of past MCA leaders in the PKFZ fiasco is a prime example. So far, none of them has volunteered enough information to help with the investigation.

Can these tainted leaders project a solid moral authority to help ensure that this Government remains clean, honest and responsible?

Hence, the sacking of Dr Chua has given a chance for some leaders and members of the old network who were uncomfortable with the recent PKFZ expose to unite and pool together their resources in trying to return MCA back to its status quo.

The old MCA would have been able to continue to shield them from any further expose and prosecution.

Dr Chua was a good leader who was involved in a career-ending sex scandal. He calls it unfortunate, we call it tragic.

He should have accepted that the final curtain of his political career had drawn down.

He should be grateful that the party was ready to groom his son and had even allowed him to take over Dr Chua’s former parliamentary seat.

A writer asks “Can a minority of individuals punish a duly elected leader proven to have been forgiven, reflected by the voting support given to him by MCA central delegates despite them knowing the full background of Dr Chua’s controversy incident?”

Calling it an incident is a joke. But a larger question which must be asked by the members is whether the people can accept Dr Chua’s stewardship of MCA?

In the last general election, a number of leaders who had enjoyed unsurpassed support from their party grassroots were easily defeated by less prominent opponents.

Public perception is most crucial in politics. Politicians often ignore this fact at their own peril.

As a prominent leader, Dr Chua has to be fully aware of the power of perception and he must be brave enough to put his party’s interest before his.

His sex scandal does not dilute his political contribution to his state and country. But it has created a blot on his credibility which makes it detrimental for him to continue leading his party, especially in a country where some moral guardians cannot even tolerate a beer drinking model.

The current dispute between Dr Chua and Ong is very destructive to the party. However, the fault does not lie with the two leaders alone.

The disciplinary committee should not have allowed Dr Chua to contest in the last party election until he was fully cleared. They did not act in his best interest.

It would have been better for Dr Chua to be fully cleared of his offence before being allowed to make a political comeback. For this, we call it unfortunate. It was a comeback made too early.

After his election as the deputy president of MCA, only Dr Chua can confirm if he had put undue pressure on his president to consider making him one of the four ministers or be given other prominent positions.

If Dr Chua was aware of the power of public perception, he should have exercised more restraint and understanding that his request would have put the party president in a very difficult position.

The ball is now in Dr Chua’s court. His next action will determine if he has reached a point of no return. He has to choose between mediation and confrontation.

The latter, supported by those who are rallying behind the call to “Save Chua – Knock out Ong” may end up seeing MCA break into pieces and vanish into a permanent political oblivion.

This is a sad episode for the second biggest party in Barisan.

The party leadership should have focused on redeeming its political image by helping and supporting its new president to tackle the biggest financial scandal in the history of Malaysia, and not distracting him with an internal uprising and threats to displace him from his party position.

Ong must be given a chance to prove his worth in the PKFZ investigation.

Tee Keat pledges to pay for 'freeloader' flights from own pocket

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:09:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 15 – Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat’s office says he will personally honour all payments for flights he took on the private jets owned by a company linked to the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.

The response from the transport minister’s office comes after he was accused this week of being a freeloader by Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB).

Apart from having to explain why he was using private jets owned by a company which is linked to KDSB, Ong had to also deny this week allegations that he had received a RM10 million donation last year from KDSB CEO Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.

A statement sent by his political secretary Simon Lim today did not explain why he did not use the commercial services of Malaysia Airlines, Air Asia or Firefly.

Details provided by KDSB show that Ong used KDSB associate Wijaya Baru Aviation's private jets on the following occasions: February 19, from Subang to Johor Baru at 7.55am on a Gulfstream 450, returning 10.30pm; March 7, from Subang to Kuantan at noon on a Learjet 60, returning 10pm; March 24, from Subang to Johor Baru at noon on a Learjet 60, returning 10pm April 20; from Subang to Johor Baru at 5.30pm on a Gulfstream 450, returning 11pm.

Ong's request for a Learjet 60 to fly from Subang to Kuantan and back on April 24 was rejected.

KDSB has said that it could not bill Ong because the company does not have a charter license. What it wants Ong to pay for are the fuel costs and landing charges which are estimated to be close to RM140,000.

“I would like to make clear that flights booked by the Ministry of Transport for Dato’ Sri Ong Tee Keat in whatever capacity are generally confined to services offered by Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia or Firefly.

“In the rare occasions when flights taken are not for official functions, these are paid for from the personal account of Dato' Sri Ong. The services of airlines other than the ones mentioned above are only utilised in very rare cases of emergency or urgency. These are also paid for from the personal account of Dato' Sri Ong,” Lim said.

Lim did not say whether the flights taken on KDSB’s aircraft was a result of any emergency or urgency.

The government's General Orders, however, does not allow him to use services which are more expensive than what Malaysia Airlines offers.

The statement from Lim also did not explain the cozy relationship he appeared to share with KDSB.

That relationship seems to have broken down beyond redemption this week after Tiong, who is also Barisan Nasional (BN) backbenchers chairman, alleged that Ong had accepted a RM10 million donation from him last year.

Ong has vehemently denied this and is threatening to sue Tiong.

Tiong's and KDSB’s attacks against Ong was preceded by the special task force investigating the PKFZ’s findings this week which said there were questionable claims of at least RM500 million made by KDSB, the project’s turnkey contractor.

A police report over the questionable claims was also lodged this week by Port Klang Authority (PKA) chairman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng.

Besides giving BN a headache, the tiff between Ong and Tiong has sent MCA into a tailspin. Ong had won the MCA presidency last year on a platform of integrity and good governance.

While he has denied the so-called RM10 million donation, he is still finding it hard to explain why he took rides on KDSB’s private jets.

In a signal that his position in MCA is precarious, he has called for a special closed-door briefing on the issue to party divisional leaders tomorrow.

“Dato' Sri Ong has and will always be firmly committed to the principles of Integrity and governance in daily administration of the office of the Minister of Transport. For example, personal letterheads are utilised in respect of correspondences of a private nature that are not related to the affairs of the Ministry.

“I wish to further reiterate that as at date neither Dato Sri Ong nor his office received any statement or invoice requesting payment from Wijaya Baru Aviation Sdn. Bhd. Dato’ Sri Ong will honour all his payment and any obligation that is due.

“Needless to say, the payment will be made through the personal account of Dato’ Sri Ong, after ascertaining that the quantum is reasonable,” said Lim.

Roadblocks to democracy

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 03:35:00 +0000

The Prime Minister denounced the recent anti-ISA protests as being an inconvenience. Well, he obviously stayed at home on Saturday and failed to notice that the real inconvenience was not the protests but the wantonly placed police roadblocks all over the city.

Little plastic tables and chairs were placed on many major arterial roads leading into the city by policemen who assiduously sat down and spoke to each other while ignoring the fact that they had turned these roads into massive car parks.

One by one, cars were forced into a bottleneck ushered by cones that squeezed three lanes into one for no greater reason but to slow progress into the city and form large roadblocks against the inalienable and democratic right to assemble peacefully.

The trouble with democracy is that you often have to put up with points of view that are not necessarily yours. The beauty of democracy is that you may at the same time freely choose to disagree with these points of view and proffer your very own opinion.

Unfortunately for this country, the Government of the day can neither be bothered to put up with the trouble nor is it too concerned with appreciating the beauty of democracy. It fails to realise that dissent is almost always a sign of loyalty to the country and not treachery.

UMNO Youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin nonchalantly brushed aside the significance of the protests on the grounds that it comprised members of the opposition and not the general public. A man of his intellect should know that every citizen including members of the opposition is part of the general public.

In fact, this country achieved its independence through the exercise of the right to assemble and oppose. Tunku Abdul Rahman in his book Political Awakening acknowledges this fact in beginning of the chapter “Victory at Last” where he says:-
“The constitutional battle to back up our demand for election began very soon after the Alliance decided to ‘go it alone’. Alliance members went round the country whipping up support from among the people; and we were encouraged to see the response, which was spontaneous and most enthusiastic.

Very soon the Government changed their attitude. They must have felt the gathering momentum, and felt that unless something was done the situation could get very serious and out of hand. We held demonstrations, and presented appeals to the Rulers to join us. Banners splashed across the length and breadth of the country making demands for self-determination and ultimate independence. Other parties who were not members of the Alliance also took part in our demonstrations, with the Umno members wearing red armbands.”

The right to demonstrate and splash protest banners were therefore part of the nucleus that eventually sparked independence. It is therefore bizarre that the Government of the day would try so hard to suppress these basic freedoms.

The march was against a draconian law which allows for detention without trial at the behest of the Home Minister. This is no trivial matter and neither is it a racial matter that some have painted it out to be. The fact that laws similar to the ISA exist in other countries makes no difference whatsoever.

It is a law that could cost you precious time in detention simply because the Home Minister makes a mistake as seen in the case of journalist Tan Hoon Cheng and blogger Raja Petra Raja Kamarudin.

If it could happen to them, it could happen to you. All that is needed for this abuse prone law to survive and continue clamping down on human rights in this country is for the general public to be silent.

Speaking of clampdowns, news that the Government of the day plans to introduce internet filters to block certain websites and blogs must, if true, rank as the worst decision taken by the Najib administration thus far. The very idea is repulsive.

Apparently, the grounds for this foul policy are that the filter is necessary for the maintenance of racial harmony. This is a load of nonsense and it paints Malaysians out to be fools so easily swayed or influenced by random internet content. It also reflects the Government’s lack of confidence in the Malaysian people.

The Government should not worry itself to much about this as many Malaysians, Malays included, have by themselves been able to filter out the unrestrained racist drivel coming out of Utusan Malaysia’s pen for so long and dump the same into our mental thrash folders.

It cannot be the duty of the Government to descend into the arena of determining what we read or watch. The moment this happens, this country’s spirit will be broken and we will have a society that is unable to exercise the discretion to make informed choices.

Quite apart from the grave effects this filter will cause, can we really trust Government officials with this important task of sieving our information consumption?

Last Thursday, BFM radio interviewed t-shirt designer Patrick Saw who runs a t-shirt shop in Bangsar Village. At the height of the V.K. Linggam scandal Patrick created and sold t-shirts bearing phrases such as “Correct, correct, correct” and “Looks & sounds like me, but so does Brad Pitt”.

During the radio interview, he mentioned instances of raids on his shop by Government officials from the Publications and Quranic Texts Control Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

They apparently seized pop art t-shirts created by Patrick that take the mickey out of Chairman Mao with words and illustrations such as “Mickey Maos” and “Mao Tais”.

The Publications and Quranic Texts Control Division considered these t-shirts to be subversive as they glorified communism.
If these Government officials cannot tell the difference between pop art and communist paraphernalia they are not qualified to decide what we can or cannot read and watch.

At the end of the day, we need to start resisting these roadblocks to democracy before they become permanent fixtures in our daily lives.

Chinese trust prostitutes more than government officials

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 04:13:00 +0000

Prostitutes are considered more trustworthy in China than government officials and scientists, a recent survey of more than 3,000 respondents showed.

The online survey of 3,376 Chinese showed that 7.9 percent of respondents considered sex workers trustworthy, putting them in third place after farmers and religious workers, the Insight China magazine said on its website.

“A list like this is at the same time surprising and embarrassing,” the China Daily said Tuesday in an editorial, commenting on the result of the survey, which was carried out in June and July.

“The sex workers’ unexpected prominence on this list of honour… is indeed unusual.”

The newspaper said the list showed scientists and teachers ranked “way below, and that government functionaries, too, scored hardly better.”

Soldiers and students were ranked after sex workers on the list of trustworthy professions, the Insight China magazine said.

“Given the constant feed of scandals involving the country’s elite, this is not bad at all,” the China Daily editorial commented.

“At least (the scientists and officials) have not slid into the least credible category which consists of real estate developers, secretaries, agents, entertainers and directors.” – AFP

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PAS wants Ronnie Liu’s head on a silver platter. The whole issue is about the sale of beer in some parts of Selangor that are regarded as ‘Muslim majority’ areas. Ronnie is a DAP ‘nominee’ in the Selangor State EXCO.

Actually, it is not up to PAS to determine who DAP nominates to sit in the Selangor EXCO. The three Pakatan Rakyat coalition members -- PKR, DAP and PAS -- are allocated a certain ‘quota’ with the positions agreed upon. It is then up to each individual party to determine whom from their party gets these positions.

This is also how Barisan Nasional operates. Each of the 14 component members of the ruling coalition is allocated a certain quota. They then nominate those from their party to fill up these quotas.

That is how it works. Umno can’t tell MCA, MIC, Gerakan or any of the other ten coalition members who they should choose, or vice versa. They get their quotas with the agreed positions and the personalities are an internal matter of each party.

Umno may not like Samy Vellu or Ong Tee Kiat. But if MIC and MCA respectively want them to become Ministers, then Umno has no choice but to accept it. This is MIC’s and MCA’s prerogative, not Umno’s choice. This happened during the time of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in the case of Tan Koon Swan and S. Subramanian. As much as Mahathir wanted Koon Swan and Subramanian in the Cabinet, and as long as MCA and MIC did not want them, there was nothing Mahathir could do about it.

PAS can’t tell DAP whether it wants Ronnie in the EXCO -- which is a sort of state cabinet -- or not. That is DAP’s choice, not the choice of PAS. In fact, most of us do not want Hassan Ali in the Selangor EXCO because from way back we have suspected him of being an Umno mole, a Trojan Horse of sorts, whose mission is to create chaos in the opposition. But as long as PAS wants him then we will have to hold our tongue and accept the decision of PAS. We do not demand that PAS drops him.

Anyway, the issue of the sale of beer is a non-issue. There is no law that says one can’t sell beer in Malaysia if the establishment concerned has a valid licence to do so. If this is really an issue then how come Malaysia’s national airline, MAS, also sells liquor? Should not Hassan Ali and his gang of Islamists take aim at MAS, a GLC?

And what about the Pernas chain of hotels? These GLC owned hotels too sell liquor in its bars, pubs and discos. Pantai Primula in Kuala Terengganu too used to sell liquor (I don’t know whether it still does because I have not updated my information but I heard they no longer do so). And this was during the time of Wan Mokhtar Ahmad, the Umno Menteri Besar of Terengganu.

Pantai Primula was then owned (still is, in fact, although it now carries a different name) by the Terengganu SEDC. So it is a state GLC. And Wan Mokhtar is considered an ulamak whose function was to read out the doa (prayer) during the Umno annual general assembly. And ‘ulamak’ Wan Mokhtar was the Chairman of the Terengganu SEDC.

There is no law against the sale of beer or liquor as long as you have a licence to do so. The only way they can ban the sale of beer or liquor would be to pass a law making it illegal to sell them.

I am not saying I agree that beer or liquor should be allowed. Fine, ban it if you wish. I can live with that. But there must first be a law to ban it. You just can’t create your own rules as you go along and make a decision to ban something that you feel should be banned in spite of it not being illegal.

The Malaysian government bans public rallies, marches, demonstrations, and whatnot. This is in fact the law -- the Police Act. So there is a law that allows the police to arrest anyone who assembles in a crowd of more than four people. Yet PAS does not recognise this law. PAS says that is an ‘illegal’ law that violates the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. And as recently as last Saturday PAS ordered its supporters to defy that law and take to the streets in the tens of thousands.

That is the law. But it is a bad law. It is a law that violates the Constitution and denies Malaysians their right of assembly and freedom of association and expression. So PAS ignores that law even though it is a law passed by Parliament.

PAS chooses to ignore laws it does not like. It defies the Police Act that takes away our Constitutional-guaranteed right of assembly. And it also defies the law that allows the sale of beer just as long as you have a licence to do so.

What does PAS want? It boggles the mind that PAS is losing the plot and is no longer in touch with reality. PAS made it the last general election not purely because of the Muslim vote. Okay, maybe in Kelantan, which has a 97% Muslim population, it was the Muslim vote that got them in. But they did not do too well in the recent by-election in Kelantan where it scraped in with the skin of its nose. PAS almost lost that by-election in spite of the large Muslim majority.

PAS is not a party merely for Muslims. If it were, then it would have done better in states such as Terengganu, Perlis, Pahang, Johor, Melaka, and Negeri Sembilan, which the opposition did not win. The states, other than Kelantan, which the opposition won, were Kedah, Perak, Selangor and Penang. These, except for Kedah, are not Muslim majority states. So it is not the Muslim vote that gave the opposition its victory, even in Kedah.

‘PAS untuk semua’ (PAS for all) is the party’s rallying call. The keyword is semua, meaning all, not ‘PAS untuk Muslim sahaja’ (PAS only for Muslims).

Has PAS forgotten its own rallying call?

There appears to be another thing that PAS has forgotten. In fact, all the seven parties appear to have forgotten this as well. And this is The People’s Declaration (Deklarasi Rakyat) which the seven parties endorsed in the run-up to the 8 March 2008 general election. Just before the general election they all enthusiastically endorsed The People’s Declaration. Immediately after the general election they conveniently forgot the Declaration that they signed.

As I said, prostitutes take your money and you get a good screw. Politicians take your money and then turn around and screw you. You certainly can trust prostitutes more than politicians.

We need to teach politicians a lesson. The civil society movements are going to soon launch ANAK BANGSA MALAYSIA. This project is being spearheaded by my good friend, lawyer, fellow Blogger and comrade, Sam Haris. Stay tuned for the launch soon. We are going to galvanise the rakyat into a non-political party based movement in the hope we can realise our aspiration of ONE NATION, ONE PEOPLE, ONE VOICE.

It is time we took back the country from the politicians. Politicians, both sides of the political divide, are just not delivering. They are screwing us good and proper. Politicians just can’t be trusted. If Barisan Nasional kicks Pakatan Rakyat out come next general election it is not because Barisan is strong, it is because Pakatan is weak.

We took 30 years since 1978 to get where we got in March 2008. The last ten years since 1998 was on a Reformasi platform. In just over a year the politicians are undoing 30 years of hard work.

Victory did not come easy on 8 March 2008. I wasted more than half my life to see what we saw in March 2008. And now they expect us to just sit back and watch them undo everything through their arrogance, ego, short sightedness, lust for power, selfishness, and self-centred and narrow-minded political agenda.

Give Pakatan more time, they say. You can’t expect overnight success, they argue. Barisan took 50 years, you can’t expect the opposition to achieve results in just one year, they scream.

No, I don’t expect overnight results. I am prepared to see the opposition build back, brick by brick, what Barisan Nasional destroyed over 50 years. But Pakatan Rakyat is not rebuilding. It is destroying even more. It is creating as much damage as what Barisan Nasional did in 50 years.

I can be patient and move forwards slowly. But we are not moving forwards. We are moving backwards. And I have no patience when it comes to stupidity.

Pakatan Rakyat must remember that it was not they who won the 8 March 2008 general election. It was the rakyat who did. And now the rakyat is no longer part of the equation in whatever they do.

Pakatan Rakyat must be given a tight slap on the face. And I hope the ANAK BANGSA MALAYSIA movement can continue what Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional have failed to do.

This nation does not belong to just the Malays. This nation does not belong to just the Muslims. This nation belongs to all Malaysians of various ethnicities and religious persuasions.

This, Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional do not appear to comprehend. And screw the beer issue. We have bigger fish to fry. Even if beer is banned this will not make Malaysia a better country. Banning beer will not eliminate corruption, wastage of public funds, abuse of power, police brutality, and whatnot, or guarantee us our fundamental liberties, which are being denied by the present government.

Racial Tensions Rise in Malaysia

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 17:39:00 +0000

Smiles fading between Malays and Chinese

The political aspirations of Malaysia’s ethnic minorities are rising uncomfortably, threatening the country’s delicate racial balance, analysts in Kuala Lumpur say.
The minority communities’ political discontent over 40 years of entitlement programs given to ethnic Malays helped fuel the results of the 2008 national elections that saw the opposition gain power in five states and the federal territory of Selangor.
Existing tensions have been exacerbated in recent weeks by a number of issues, including the suspicious death on July 16 of Teoh Beng Hock, an aide to a top opposition Democratic Action Party (DAP) leader, whose body was found atop a building next to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission headquarters. He had been taken there to be questioned over allegations of wrongdoing by his boss but his death was ruled a suicide. The incident is only one of many unexplained deaths at the hands of law enforcement officials in Malaysia over recent years, but since the victim was Chinese, racial overtones have become unavoidable.
In addition, the MACC is believed to be investigating an unknown number of DAP lawmakers on corruption charges, leading to allegations that the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition is using law enforcement agencies for political purposes. Barisan figures, however, argue that the MACC is after their people as well.
At the same time, the umbrella Pakatan Rakyat coalition, which made stunning gains against the ruling coalition in 2008, is fraying at the edges due to squabbling between the Malay fundamentalist Parti Islam se-Malaysia and the DAP, which is dominated by Chinese, over a variety of issues including an attempt by a DAP councilor to stop a PAS raid on beer supplies at a 7-Eleven, and the destruction of a pig slaughterhouse in the northern state of Kedah.
The infighting has become so intense that Lim Kit Siang, the venerable leader of the DAP, issued a statement warning that the alliance could become a “one-term wonder” if the spat isn’t settled.
Malaysia has existed in an uneasy racial mix since July 1969, when hundreds were believed killed in pitched battles between Malays, who make up more than half the population, and the Chinese, who make up about 25 percent. The Chinese continue to control most of the country’s economic wealth despite the 1971 imposition of an affirmative action program for ethnic Malays called the New Economic Policy. Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader, has called for an end to the NEP, charging that it has only enriched a handful of rent-seekers and cronies of the United Malays National Organisation.
“Overlaid with the current problems is rising ethnic awareness,” said a longtime political analyst with a Kuala Lumpur think tank. “Hope that a multi-racial opposition would dilute ethnicity in politics hasn’t happened. Instead, the opposite has happened. A group in PAS feels ignored, or slighted, or exasperated and is now flexing its muscles in Pakatan. And this group finds common ground with UMNO, which is prompting growing rapprochement between the two political parties.”
Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, who came to power in March, is attempting to pull together what one longtime political analyst called a “Singapore model” — economic liberalization coupled with political authoritarianism. Opposition rallies have been raided or declared illegal on a regular basis, even down to busting up a birthday party. The latest occurrence was an announcement Friday by Rais Yatim, the information, communications and culture minister, that the country is considering a “green dam”style Internet filter to stop access to undesirable websites, particularly pornography. Even the Chinese government has backed away from instituting such a policy in the face of international criticism.
Najib’s tactics appeared to be working at first. He came into office even less popular than his predecessor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, tarred by a wide range of scandals ranging from allegations of bribery during his stint as defense minister to questions over his involvement in the murder of a Mongolian woman jilted by his best friend. However, his economic policies pulled up public approval sharply for UMNO, the leading ethnic party in the Barisan.
However, continuing public fury over Teoh’s purported suicide cut into Najib’s good news, especially after the water cannons and truncheons came out at a massive (by Malaysian standards) demonstration on July 31 to protest the government’s continued use of the colonial-era Internal Security Act, which allows for detention without habeas corpus. The demonstration drew as many as 20,000 participants; some 600 were arrested amid a haze of tear gas in the crackdown.
“If you’re Chinese you’d like to believe the Malays killed him,” says a lawyer connected to UMNO. “But so many Malays die in police custody. Prior to this, the MACC investigated 22 UMNO MPs and 12 were charged. But as soon as the MACC investigates five Chinese, it’s the MACC targeting Chinese. The DAP has made this into a race issue. No, we have a serious race problem in this country. Perhaps that’s what everybody wanted – push the envelope to see what happens.”
Certainly, there is plenty of envelope-pushing on all sides. In a flamethrowing article earlier this week in the UMNO-owned Malay-language Utusan Malaysia last week, journalist Noor Azam called on ethnic Malays “not to be cowards anymore and rise up to face the challenges being posed by the Chinese and Indians in Malaysia.” The article accused the DAP of manipulating Malay leaders in the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition and warned that should it come to power, “Malay special rights and the NEP are no more.” He accused the opposition of stirring race hatred and called ethnic Malays “a race of stupid cowards, and people who are cowards will die before even their deaths.”
The temperature is set to rise higher during expected annual district and regional conclaves for UMNO, when the rhetorical pitch grows more intense. There is spreading anger among Malays over a remark by Jeff Ooi, a blogger and popular DAP activist from Penang, who called Jemaah Islah Malaysia, an Islamic missionary organization, extremist for advocating shariah, or religious law.
“That’s an insult to all Malays,” said the UMNO lawyer. “It’s an insult to all of Islam. All of us Malays would like shariah law.”
The question is whether the anger will play itself out in yet another by-election. The Pakatan Rakyat coalition has won five of six by-elections since the March 2008 national polls eliminated the Barisan’s longstanding two-thirds majority in the parliament.
On July 31, a PAS assemblyman from the Permatang Pasir district in Penang died of a heart attack. The lawmaker was PAS’s only representative in the Penang state. The by-election, for which the date has yet to be set, will determine whether the Pakatan coalition’s political strength is still rising.
In the most recent by-election, in the heart of opposition territory, the Pakatan candidate won by only 65 votes. Permatang Pasir is part of Anwar’s stronghold. If the opposition loses the seat, or even does badly, it will be an indication that its popularity is declining.

Dozens in lockup after Malaysia police crush rally

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:44:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Dozens of people, including a minor and a senior opposition politician, remained in custody Sunday after Malaysian police violently put down a mass street protest against a law that allows for indefinite detention without trial.

Opposition activists say the government’s high-handed response underscores their concerns that Prime Minister Najib Razak will not fulfill his promises to protect civil liberties.

Police used tear gas and chemical-laced water Saturday to disperse an estimated 20,000 people in downtown Kuala Lumpur who were protesting the nation’s Internal Security Act.

Almost 600 people were arrested in the protest, the country’s biggest in nearly two years. Most of them were released, but 39 remained in custody late Sunday, said opposition lawyer Latheefa Koya.

Kuala Lumpur police Chief Muhammad Sabtu Osman said those held were being investigated for illegal assembly — an offense punishable by up to a year in prison and a fine.

He reportedly said protest organizers, including opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, would also be questioned. Police had declared the planned protest by opposition groups as illegal.

Koya said those still in police custody included a senior opposition politician and the 16-year-old son of a terror suspect detained without trial for eight years under the security law.

The politician and others are expected to be charged in court Monday, she said. Two other minors, aged 13 and 17, were released Sunday.

“It is clear that nothing has changed in this country,” Anwar said in a posting on his blog Sunday. “Whenever there is a peaceful assembly, the police are used by the elite powers … to prevent the people from expressing their views.”

Government leaders have dismissed the protest as an attempt by the opposition to gain political mileage. Najib said the protest was “unnecessary and only caused hardship to the people” as the government had already pledged to review the controversial law.

But analysts said the police action was a step back for Najib, who has been battling efforts by opposition parties to portray him as a leader who disregards public opinion on issues such as human rights and freedom of expression. He has been struggling since taking office in April to revive his government’s popularity amid public dissatisfaction over economic mismanagement and racial tensions.

Ramon Navaratnam, chairman for the independent Center for Public Policy Studies think tank, said the crackdown showed that the government had failed to learn the lessons from a poor showing in general elections last year when it lost its traditional two-thirds parliamentary majority.

“(Najib) has said the right things but it’s not materializing sufficiently…. Is he serious about it — to be liberal and reformist?” Navaratnam said.

Ibrahim Suffian, director of independent research firm Merdeka Center, also said the opposition had managed to wrest back some of the spotlight.

“Najib is trying very hard to show that he is concerned about reform,” he said adding that the crackdown will be a boost for the opposition’s claims that Najib won’t tolerate dissent.

Saturday’s protest was the biggest since November 2007 when tens of thousands of ethnic Indians demonstrated against perceived discrimination of their minority community.

Human rights activists have held numerous smaller protests over the years against the Internal Security Act, claiming it has been used in the past to jail hundreds of government critics. They say at least 17 people are being held under the law, mainly for alleged links to militants and document forgery. Since taking office, Najib has released 26 detainees, including five leaders of the ethnic Indian protest.

Anwar Ibrahim's wife pays last respects to Cory

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:33:00 +0000

MANILA - Wan Azizah, the wife of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, on Sunday personally went to the wake of former leader Corazon Aquino in La Salle Green Hills to express her condolences to her family and support to the Filipinos.

“I feel deeply the loss not only for the Filipinos but for me personally,” she said.

Wan Azizah is regarded by some political observers as Aquino's counterpart in Malaysia.

Aquino's spokesperson, Deedee Sytangco, meanwhile, said East Timor President Jose Ramos Horta is also coming to the Philippines to attend the funeral.

Thousands of mourners paid their final respects to Aquino Sunday, lining up to file past her coffin in silent tribute to the "People Power" democracy leader.

Aquino, who died at the age of 76 on Saturday after a long battle with colon cancer, led millions of Filipinos in protests against dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a popular revolt in 1986, before taking over as president.

World figures led by United States President Barack Obama paid tribute to Aquino as "an inspiration", while President Arroyo declared 10 days of mourning for the woman she described as a "national treasure".

Aquino was to be buried on Wednesday after a family-led ceremony, in accordance with her wishes not to be given a state funeral, the presidential palace said. Schools across the country were to close for the day.

She will be laid to rest beside her husband, Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, who was assassinated in 1983 after he flew back to the Philippines from exile in Boston to seek an audience with Marcos.

On Sunday, thousands queued up to see the former president lying in state at a Catholic school in Manila, many of them wearing yellow clothing or yellow ribbons, the symbol of the "People Power" movement that swept her to power.

Her body arrived in a solemn ceremony on Saturday in a coffin draped in the national colors, accompanied by a military honor guard. Weeping family members and close friends showered her coffin with yellow confetti.

The line of mourners on Sunday stretched down the street outside the school, with dignitaries and ordinary Filipinos alike wishing to pay their respects.

One woman had to be carried away after becoming overcome with hysteria.

Tributes came in from around the world for the woman who served as president from 1986 to 1992, during which time she restored the country's democratic institutions and survived several military coup attempts.

Obama said in a statement he was "deeply saddened" by Aquino's death, adding that "her courage, determination, and moral leadership are an inspiration to us all and exemplify the best in the Filipino nation."

Pope Benedict XVI remembered Aquino as a "woman of deep and unwavering faith", while former first lady Imelda Marcos said her family joined the nation in mourning and praying for the former president.

Manila newspapers marked Aquino's passing with emotional headlines such as "Farewell Tita (Aunt) Cory" and "What a great gift we've lost."

In Manila's Makati financial district, huge posters of Aquino went up while neighbors left flowers at the family home. Requiem masses were held in Catholic churches nationwide.

Aquino, who described herself as "a simple housewife" was catapulted to prominence when her husband, who was seen as the main figure opposing the Marcos regime, was shot dead.

She reluctantly agreed to become the opposition figurehead and ran against Marcos, who jailed thousands during his 20-year rule, in "snap" elections in 1986.

Massive cheating by Marcos allies during the elections ignited the revolt that eventually sent the dictator fleeing into exile and installed Aquino as president.

The soft-spoken Aquino rewrote the country's constitution, freed all political dissidents jailed by Marcos, and initiated peace talks with insurgent groups.

But problems in her coalition later emerged, and she survived a series of bloody coup attempts by the same forces that went against Marcos.

"I realized that I could have made things easier for myself if I had done the popular things rather than the painful but better ones in the long run," Aquino once said while reflecting on her presidency.

Until March last year, when she withdrew from public life after being diagnosed with colon cancer, she had been active in street protests denouncing government corruption.

She had repeatedly demanded that Arroyo, a former protege whose nine-year presidency has been marred by scandals, step down. ANC and Agence France-Presse

Panel wants limit to political involvement in PKFZ, PKA

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:28:00 +0000

PUTRAJAYA, July 29 — An ad-hoc committee set up to improve corporate governance in the scandal-hit Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) has recommended greater board independence with fewer political or even ministerial appointees.

The panel also wants the appointment of the general manager of the Port Klang Authority (PKA) to be approved by the board to prevent the holder of the position from being beholden only to the transport minister.

But the PKA was non-committal when its chairman was asked if it would adopt the long list of recommendations given by the committee which consists of members of Transparency International Malaysia, the Malaysian Institute of Accountants, the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance and National Audit Department.

The committee’s findings and proposals comes a month after it was set up to look into ensuring that weak practices of the past were not repeated.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat had announced last month the formation of the committee as part of the government’s efforts to turn around the PKFZ project which has escalated from an initial cost of RM2 billion.

A report from auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) released on May 28 showed the project’s cost may ultimately spiral to as much as RM12.5 billion.

Speaking at a press conference here today, the committee chairman Datuk Paul Low said the structure of PKA did not make it possible for the body to be involved in business.

“The regulator cannot go into business enterprise,” said Low who presented the committee’s 38-page report today.

As such, Low said that among the recommendations were that board members of PKA and PKFZ be independent of each other and at least one-third of both board members be independent non-executive directors.

The committee also defined independent board members as those who are not political appointees and also not a nominee of the transport minister.

The committee also wants the appointment of the general manager of PKA to be approved by the board.

“The general manager in PKA who by virtue of the powers in the Act is appointed by the minister and therefore, may erroneously assume that he is only accountable to the minister and not the board,” said the report.

But the committee blamed past board members for negligence which resulted in violations of governance.

The committee also recommended the strengthening of the internal audit mechanism by not having the chief executive or the general manager as the head of the audit department.

“It is apparent that the former general manager being the CEO also chairs the audit committee and the staff of the internal audit department were accountable to her directly,” said the report.

The committee also suggested the formation of various internal committees on ethics and corporate governance.

The report of the committee has been submitted to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat.

PKA chairman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng who was also present at the press conference refused to say whether the body would adopt the recommendations saying that it would be discussed at the board meeting on Friday.

100 days hence: A destroyer has emerged, not a builder

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:24:00 +0000

Not only did he alienate the non-Malays with a power grab in Perak, he fractured his own community with his proposals of “unity” with PAS, the second biggest Malay party after Umno.

By Wong Choon Mei, Suara Keadilan

As his supporters busied themselves showering and shielding him with praises, Prime Minister Najib Razak is actually sitting neither pretty nor securely at all despite the massive outpourings of sycophancy.

Sycophants may be voters but not all voters are sycophants. No amount of contrivance can hide the under-performance nor the fact that he will go down in history as the PM who caused the greatest disunity amongst the people in his first 100 days in office.

Not only did he alienate the non-Malays with a power grab in Perak, he fractured his own community with his proposals of “unity” with PAS, the second biggest Malay party after Umno.

Najib also shattered the integrity of the country’s judiciary with pressure on the courts to dish out extraordinary rulings that have been condemned by the legal fraternity.

While this helped him cling to power in Perak, the seriousness of the loss of confidence in the country and its system has dealt a death-blow that has yet to be fully felt by Malaysians. The repercussions cannot be under-estimated and will reverberate on the economy for years to come.

As for his 1Malaysia slogan, it is better known as 1BlackMalaysia and wearing black has become de rigeur amongst the young and the professional despite a nationwide scare campaign he launched with the help of his cousin, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.

We know what he has destroyed, but what has he built?

So in the past 100 days, what has Najib done? The pattern that has emerged is one of destruction, not construction. Ask yourselves, what has Najib built?

On the economic front, he has tried to create an image of change by liberalizing the economy but whether the headline announcements will do anything to bring back investments to the country is doubtful. Again TRUST is the all important word and once broken, it may be forever lost.

Confidence in the rule of law is vital, not just to foreigners but also to Malaysians. And this must be as per international standards, not according to his warped views nor those of his Chief Justice Zaki Azmi!

But sadly, what people see when they look at the country these days is the corruption, which has not changed, the police brutality, which has also not changed, the sham trials in the Perak crisis, which are new, and the overt manipulation in the sodomy case against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim, which has recurred.

Is it surprising then that they see in Malaysia a country that can no longer be TRUSTED? For this deterioration, Najib will have to take the blame.

Even in the dismantling of the PPSMI, the policy of teaching Math and Science in English, his government looks insincere by setting a far-off 2012 implementation deadline instead of 2010. After wasting six years and at least RM4 billion of taxpayers’ money, will Najib really make the switch or will he find a new excuse later on?

A preference for form rather than substance

It has also become obvious in the past 100 days that ‘face’ is important to Najib. A vain personality, he has shown ruthlessness in standing his ground even when he is in the wrong.

Flashy overseas trips, including to China and South Korea, plus incessant talk of his “late father” were his reality. All these while ordinary Malaysians were struggling with a fast-sinking economy, job losses, gross abuse of power by the police, rising tensions in Perak and merciless crackdowns on democracy.

In his first 100 days, Najib also arrested more people than even ex-PM Mahathir Mohamad did during the infamous Operasi Lalang in 1980s.

Ask yourselves, which other Malaysian PM has ever resorted to banning people from wearing black shirts? Indeed, this triviality is the real revelation of his calibre, not the massive public relations nor obligatory round of cheers ringing through the Umno-BN media. That is merely sham praise for a sham PM.

For a true PM would listen to the people and try to correct the wrongs and reinforce the rights. He would build, not destroy.

The Pakatan Rakyat did not have to do anything to whittle down his 1Malaysia concept, he did it all himself with his doublespeak. It is on record for Malaysians to assess for themselves if he is indeed a leader whom they can and should trust.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–
Suara Keadilan appends below comments from across the political divide sourced from various media and leaves it to Malaysians to tell the PM and his coalition what they really think about him through the ballot box.

Lim Kit Siang, DAP adviser
Can Najib’s upsurge in popularity on his 100th day be sustained with a Barisan Nasional victory in Manek Urai by-election in Kelantan next Tuesday and is he confident enough of his national popularity to seek a motion of confidence when Parliament reconvenes on Oct 19, something he had not dared to do in the recent three-week meeting of Parliament?

Let Najib answer on his 100th Day – is he confident enough that his popularity is on the rise and public support for his policies and pledges, particularly his slogan of “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now” and his slew of economic and educational reforms as to seek a motion of confidence from Parliament on the sixth month of his premiership in October?

Najib should know that his political, economic and educational reforms have feet of clay. For instance, what credibility could his 1Malaysia slogan command when Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is only prepared to say that “Umno will fight to the last drop of blood to protect Malay rights”, but not prepared to say that Umno will similarly fight to the last drop of blood to protect the rights of all Malaysians, regardless of race?

Najib said recently that the Chinese in Malaysia are most concerned about education, economy, religion and crime and he believes that if these four issues can be resolved, the Chinese will continue to support the Barisan Nasional government. It is not just the Chinese, but all Malaysians regardless of race, who are also concerned about these four issues of education, economy, religion and crime. What must be added are corruption and Malaysian citizenship rights.

Just on crime and corruption. Is Najib prepared, on the occasion of his 100th Day, take bold measures to send unmistakable messages that he hears and endorses the cries of Malaysian for change, viz:
- Ensure that the country has a new Inspector-General of Police to provide new police leadership to focus on the core functions of police, particularly to keep crime low and make Malaysians feel safe again in their own country; and
- An all-out battle against corruption and malpractices by establishing two Royal Commissions of Inquiry,
1. into the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal and
2. into the RM24 million Istana Khir Toyo scandal of former Umno Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Khir Toyo?

M Kulasegaran, DAP MP for Ipoh Barat
So far his tenure has been filled with controversy and uncertainty. His dubious 1Malaysia is a copy of DAP’s Malaysian Malaysia. He should be the prime minister for all but he acts for one race but speaks and sounds as if he is representing everybody.

Tony Pua, DAP MP for Petaling Utara
Seems like he has been in power forever, fumbling from one crisis to another. His multiple stimulus packages have not worked, then we have the Perak crisis which is still not resolved. His 1 Malaysia message is at odds with what Umno stands for and we have his attempt to wash his hands of the country’s biggest financial scandal – the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone.

Anwar Ibrahim, Opposition Leader
Some of the liberalisation measures are needed at least for his own survival and the survival of this country’s economy. It is not whether he wants it or not. Look at the latest figures, both in terms of the recession and also the failure to attract foreign investment. It is disastrous.

We have not had the opportunity to look at the details, like Ekuinas, what it means and why the need for a new agency, how transparent will it be? These are the issues that needs to be resolved.

I think if you look at the way dissidents and opposition leaders have been treated, the issue of judicial independence, crime rate, the utter failure of the police force in trying to bring confidence and the brutal measures taken for dissent. These things are really worrying signs and this has not been communicated to the masses.

Jonson Chong, PKR director of communications
Najib’s administration, right from day one, has been all about hype and slogans with little substance. Indeed, some of what the Najib administration has done are actually contradictory; e.g. releasing ISA detainees and supposedly reviewing the Act but detaining more people under the Act.

Whatever it is, Najib should be judged by what he actually does rather than what he says; and, so far, he has done little except to use the mainstream media in an attempt to improve his public image. Particularly, the regular Malaysian on the street have yet to benefit from his so-called liberalisation efforts, and I doubt very much that what he says will be translated into reality by his administration.

Saifuddin Nasution, PKR MP for Machang
Najib has successfully hijacked the ideas of Pakatan to win back the support of the non-Malays. The liberalisation of the 27 sub-sectors of the services industry, the national scholarships based on merit and the lifting of the 30 per cent Bumiputera quotas, I see it as Najib ripping off the ideas originally from Pakatan. But he cannot go on copying our original ideas.

If it had been from us, the BN-controlled media would have said we are betraying the Malays. But when it is from Najib, he is hailed as a great leader.

Mahfuz Omar, PAS vice-president
He has yet to clear his name on Altantuya’s case and dispel the perception that his wife has been interfering in the administration as admitted by Lee Kuan Yew who said that the duo work as a team. And Najib, in less than 100 days of taking over, has been criticised heavily by Tun Dr Mahathir for his liberalisation policy, for Petronas and his tainted Cabinet members. I foresee a major split in Umno.

Nasrudin Hassan, PAS Youth chief
I am not satisfied, there are still many unresolved issues like the petroleum royalty for Kelantan, the independence of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. And also other demands made by the people are yet to be fulfilled such as abolishing the ISA. I did not see positive development in the first 100 days.

Salahuddin Ayub, PAS vice-president
Many questions remain unanswered. He did not start well, there seems to be invisible hands. Dr Mahathir continues to criticise his policies and he has yet to show his strength.

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, president of National Human Rights Society or Hakam
I think the lack of focus on issues of civil liberties is disappointing. His inaction is a tacit endorsement of what is widely perceived to be a violation of human rights which is not encouraging.

On that score, I would rate his first hundred days very low. It has been tainted by apparent abuses, which as a leader he has left unsettled. Key among them have been the politics in Perak, the lockdown of the assembly, which point to abusing greatly the police powers. Rather than dealing with abuses, he has endorsed them. He must remember that he is the Prime Minister; and that it is his problem.

Wong Chin Huat, civil rights activist
This Saturday will mark Najib Razak’s 100 days as prime minister. Be prepared for the swamp of praises for Malaysia’s sixth prime minister and for his 1Malaysia vision. Three months ago, upon his succession, even his pinkish skin complexion was a subject of compliment in a Sin Chew commentary.

To win back the non-Malay Malaysian vote at all cost, Najib seems willing to dismantle the ethnocracy his late father built with the New Economic Policy (NEP) and other pro-Malay policies after the 1969 post-election riots. The crude choice before Najib is abandoning Umno’s economic ethno-nationalism in the hope of saving the party, or risk having both Umno and its ethno-nationalism swept away by Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Rakyat come the next elections.

So are Najib’s reforms thus far about creating an “meritocratic ethno-theocracy”, where you are allowed to make money freely but must uphold Malay-Muslim (read: Umno-PAS) hegemony? I can’t speak for others, but this is definitely not good enough for me as a Malaysian citizen.

Mahathir Mohamad, former prime minister
Well, I’m sorry to say this but more negatives than positives. I saw somebody has made an assessment and almost nothing is positive. I’ve got this printout from the Internet – no freedom of the press, no information, OSA is still there, ISA is still there, everything is wrong. But that’s not my opinion lah.

There are a number of things. I said just now about the bridge. The third bridge appears to be suggested without any proper study. If you do that, I’m afraid you will not solve problem of traffic in Johor Baru. At the same time, you might create a problem for ships doing into Pasir Gudang. Things like that. And also, certain appointments of people who have been found to be corrupt by the party are still holding office in the government. And there are a lot of others.

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Umno MP for Gua Musang
Whether or not some of our leaders are ready for it, we are maturing as a democracy. We are beginning to evaluate our governments more by the results they deliver over time than by their rhetoric. As our increasingly well-educated and well-travelled citizens apply this standard, they force our politicians to think before they speak, and deliver before they speak again.

As thinking Malaysians we should look for the policies, if any, behind the slogans. What policies are still in place and which have we abandoned? What counts as policy and who is consulted when it is made? How is a proposal formulated and specified and approved before it becomes policy, and by whom? What are the roles of party, cabinet, King and Parliament in this process? Must we know what it means before it is instituted or do we have to piece it together with guesswork? Do we even have a policy process?

BN was returned to power in the 12th General Elections on a manifesto promising Security, Peace and Prosperity. It is this manifesto against which the present administration undertook to be judged. The present government inherits projects and policies such as Islam Hadhari and Vision 2020. If these are still in place, how do they relate to each other and to 1 Malaysia? How do we evaluate the latest slogan against the fact of constitutional failure in Perak, the stench of corruption in the PKFZ project and reports of declining media freedom? What do we make of cynical political plays on racial unity against assurances that national unity is the priority? We need a Malaysian New Deal based on the same universal concerns on which the NEP was originally formulated, but designed for a new era.

Ong Tee Keat, MCA president
He has expounded the need to change the way we think and the way we act and do things. He rightly asked that we go beyond tolerance to acceptance of differences so that we can live and work together as one people to build a nation that can truly compete internationally on merits.

Some of the reform-centred changes may not be popular but Najib has taken the bull by the horns. The prerequisite for change is a strong leadership by one who is not only dynamic, innovative and creative but also open-minded.

Koh Tsu Koon, Gerakan president
By promoting 1Malaysia based on unity in diversity and implementing economic liberalisation, Najib has infused fresh air and new energy to Malaysian society and the economy. In his first 100 days, he has stayed focused and firm in underlining management performance. In three months, he has led Cabinet ministers in three workshops to work on KPIs, motivating and galvanising all of us to forge ahead.”

Samy Vellu, MIC president
Only a visionary leader could have such a desire to succeed and remain in touch with the people.

Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, Umno Wanita chief
He is very proactive, effective and disciplined. His years of experience will stand him in good stead. Malaysians must give him a chance and he will steer the country out of the downturn.

Mustapha Ong, Umno veteran
On the political front, I believe that prime minister Najib has yet to make his mark in the political game of Malaysia, in order to recapture the BN governance state of Selangor, Penang and Kedah while the state of Perak is still being disputed by the previous PR government. I opined that the sudden take over of the Perak government based on the interpretations of the Federal Constitution and the State Regulated Constitution was legal, but rather hasty without having gone through the state political process in the State Legislative Assembly.

There is also an urgent need for Najib to consolidate his power within Barisan Nasional with absolute political will and transparency in time to face the coming 13th general election. We shall wait and see whether BN will remain the political force of this country after more than 52 years of its governance. Najib is seen as a political agent to consolidate and enhance the cooperation within BN as well to check the power of the opposition under the leadership of PAS, DAP and PKR which is at its lowest ebb.

May I ask you, Mr Khir

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:17:00 +0000

There are two notable figures in the Malaysian politics--one young and one old--who love to juggle with the issues and repeatedly stun the nation with their explosive remarks.

Even if I don't go any further, you might have got them right!

Exactly, that is our most revered former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

As for the younger chap; he is nowhere near Dr Mahathir in stature, just a dentist who has earned a multimillion mansion pulling out the teeth of his patients.

Although Tun Mahathir does not seem to like Datuk Seri Mohd Khir Toyo, the former Selangor menteri besar's gossipy style is beginning to look increasingly Mahathir-like, and perhaps much more annoying.

Pardon me for putting things so crude: to get these two big guns to shut their mouths is next to impossible!

These two old-and-young pair: one leaving his office on own accord, another thrown out of office by voters--have nevertheless something in common: they both have a strong lingering passion for their glorious past.

They even share an identical fate: directly or indirectly implicated in scandals after relinquishing their official duties.

The judicial scandal that has shocked the nation has invariably dented Tun Mahathir's reputation, eroding his seemingly formidable status in the nation's history.

Khir is similarly entwined in scandals involving the former state administration. A good deal of old sores have been dug out, and to top if off, a multimillion mansion that almost puts his glamour on par with that of the former prime minister.

Talking about strength and prowess, Khir is faintly comparable to Dr M, that kind of leader who glows with overpowering charms. Khir is but a distant backseater!

But talking about nonsensical remarks, Khir is by no means inferior. He seems to enjoy his old antics even though each time he opens his mouth, he has invited drones of negative responses and nothing else.

For instance, he openly accused Selangor menteri besar Khalid Ibrahim of absue of power and misappropriation of public funds.

After the Elizabeth Wong incident came to light, he was the first to hop out and urge Eli to resign. In the more recent incident of Teoh Beng Hock's tragic death, where MACC was the obvious target of public wrath, Khir was among the very few to back the anti-corruption agency in totality.

Khir opened his mouth again several days ago. This time, he seemed to have developed a special passion for the gang issue. He "disclosed" that "a secret society was at the back controlling the sand quarry, massage parlour and illegal betting activities in the state, even helping some of the candidates win the elections last March so that they could go on their evil trades.

Corruption, immorality, secret society activities must indeed be weeded out. That said, many people in the street fail to understand why Khir has remained tight-lipped over the threats received by MCA president Ong Tee Keat from secret society people.

Scandal politics in Malaysia

noreply@blogger.com (wan_toya) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:19:00 +0000

Here's my bought about scandal politics in Malaysia

Malaysian sex scandals, especially Malaysian ministers in sex scandals, seems to be more scandalous than most.

Perhaps it is because Malaysia is a society distilled from it’s sexuality where sex is one of those things that people don’t talk about. Openly, at least. Unless, of course, it’s a sex scandal. That seems to be the only time when Malaysians talk openly about sex.

So it came with little surprise that with the revelation of the latest Malaysian sex scandal, that the entire world seems to have picked up on it. Of course, the fact that it features a minister in a sex scandal just makes it that much juicier.

As sex scandals in Malaysia go, the story was uncovered when VCDs of the minister having sex were circulated in a suburb in Johor (hmm, think he had any enemies then?). When will politicians, and I’m referring to politicians the world over, when will they stop recording their sexual exploits? Or find themselves in situations where it is recorded unknown to them.

This particular Malaysia sex scandal reeks of setup though. Apparently the right honorable MCA Vice President and Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek got caught doing sexually scandalous deeds with, of all people, a florist from Datu Pahat.

I searched online for “malaysian minister sex scandal video” and found this video clip. But don’t get too excited, it only serves to strengthen a little pet conspiracy theory of mine and has nothing exciting going for it. It shows the room in which this Malaysian sex scandal allegedly took place. Supposedly, the former Health Minister refered to the woman in question as his “close personal friend”.

In the little bit you can see in the sex scandal video clip, he doesn’t seem to act like a minister about to get it on with a close personal friend though. Is having an extra marital affair with a close personal friend less scandalous than admitting you had sex with a prostitute?
Also, the recording of the screen, which was showing the sex scandal video clip, shows the screen split into four, like surveillance equipment or CCTV, which means that either this room was frequently used for creating a varied variety of sex scandals (and thus, it is unlikely that it was his close personal friend and more like a paid friend of the fleeting kind), or the proprietors were expecting a certain Minister and his close personal florist friend for some scandalous, how shall we put this, carnal arrangements. It reeks of setup to me.

A speculative theory that I heard on the grapevine goes like this. Corruption in Malaysia is rife, as it is in many other countries. When the heat gets a bit much in the kitchen, some Malaysian political parties like to demonstrate how transparent they are, and how tightly their righteous members walk the rope – especially in the vicinity of an election.

Now, I’m not suggesting that this is what happened, but when an example needs to made of a member who might be rumoured to not be as righteous as the people would like, what better way to do it then set up a certain minister and his close personal friend. Just catch them in the act of scandalous sex, and bam, you have yourself a minister in a sex scandal ready to be made an example of.

All you do is, you out him in public by, lets say, distributing VCDs showing the minister having sex, set him up for public judgment and have him quit (ostensibly before you can publicly humiliate him by firing him). Suddenly your party is pure, white, righteous, for the people and for the family unit and high morals again.

Besides, we all know there no such thing as bad publicity – and what better way to get your struggling party’s name on the lips of the (soon to be voting) nation?

Oh, and don’t look too hard for video clips of the minister in the sex scandal. You can bet your ass that as fast as you are typing “malaysian minister sex scandal“, as fast the Special Branch guys are doing the same and having those sex scandal video clips removed.