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Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- PAS ulama to table motion on sex video at party assembly on Friday
- Perkasa: Respect Malay rights, then talk national unity
- Get your ‘concert’ act together, Pakatan told
- Scorpene deal: Najib must come clean
- Will PAS delegates rally behind Nik Aziz?
- Umno has lost Malay middle class, says EIU
- Blogger given 14 days for defence over Rais suit
- Khairy calls IPP contracts ‘unfair’ to the public
- Anwar says SPNB now cash cow for UMNO
- 'General election this month'
- Both BN and PR shaky, says EIU
- More Trouble Brewing For SUPP
- Employability now included as a KPI in public varsities
- Refugees' claims of torture in Malaysia
| PAS ulama to table motion on sex video at party assembly on Friday Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:19 AM PDT (BERNAMA) - The PAS ulama assembly unanimously passed a motion Thursday to bring the sex video issue involving a man resembling an opposition leader for debate at the party's 57th muktamar (general assembly) on Friday. The motion will be tabled by a member of Kelantan PAS ulama council, Nik Razi Nik Mat, and seconded by a delegate from Kubang Pasu, Kedah. Nik Razi is Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat's youngest brother. He said the move would allow the delegates to identify the reasons behind the distribution of the sex video recording. |
| Perkasa: Respect Malay rights, then talk national unity Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:07 AM PDT National unity can only be forged if all Malaysians respected the special privileges accorded to the Malays, says the Malay rights group (Free Malaysia Today) - Only when the special privileges accorded to the Malays is respected by all races can national unity be forged, said Malay extremist group Perkasa. Its secretary-general, Syed Hassan Syed Ali, disputed MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek's call yesterday to think as Malaysians first to work together to maintain a peaceful nation. He said it was not wrong for Perkasa to voice out issues affecting the Malay community. "Even other races vent out on issues affecting their respective communities," said Syed Hassan. The English daily, The Star, quoted Chua as urging Malaysians to stop identifying themselves with the racial group they belonged to and accept the multi-racial reality of the country. Syed Hassan said national unity could only be forged if all Malaysians respected the special privileges accorded to the Malays under the Federal Constitution. "We respect anyone who identifies himself as a Malaysian but we will continue voicing out for the Malays as long as we are neglected," said Syed Hassan. On whether Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties such as Umno should the spearhead the unity call by turning itself into a multi-racial party, Syed Hassan said Malaysians were still not ready for it. "Even when DAP calls itself a multi-racial party, who calls the shots? Do the Malays get equal representation in the party? "However, BN itself is multi-racial as it has all the races in the coalition," he said. Umno MP Abdul Rahman Dahlan echoed Chua's sentiments but pointed out that not everyone who fights for their own race were racists. "Umno is the protector of the Malays and we are not shy about it. However, that doesn't make us racists," said the Kota Belud MP. 'Respect the nation's history'
He said that it all boiled down to how people interpreted what being Malaysian is all about. "For me, a Malaysian is one who adheres to the Federal Constitution, knows our historical background and respects the understanding that allowed the formation of our country," said Rahman. Citing an example, Rahman said it was all right for a citizen to think as a Malaysian and a Bumiputera at the same time.
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| Get your ‘concert’ act together, Pakatan told Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:05 AM PDT On the MTV concert in Shah Alam, Pakatan Rakyat leaders are at cross-purposes. The mentri besar is all for the show ,while his PAS colleagues are against it. (Free Malaysia Today) - Pakatan Rakyat leaders in Selangor have been urged to stop confusing the people with "inconsistent" statements on the MTV concert to be held in i-City, Shah Alam, on July 24, Kedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang said. "DAP should come out and state its stand. PKR and PAS, too. Better yet, all Pakatan Rakyat leaders should come out with a collective stand, and not confuse the people," he said. "Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim is saying one thing, and PAS MP for Shah Alam Khalid Samad is saying something else ," said Tan. Yesterday, the Selangor government gave the go-ahead for the MTV World Stage concert despite protests by Shah Alam residents and PAS. The menteri besar said approvals for the concert were given last year and there is "no problem with the event", though some restrictions should be observed. The restrictions were to ensure a minimum sound system impact on the neighbourhood and decent standards of dress and behaviour. "This may be just a concert, but the implications are bigger than this. If PAS and Khalid (Samad) said it's about infrastructure, I can accept that, that's a fair comment… but is it really the reason behind their protest? " If it is about western cultures which they deem immoral, then I think its wrong," said Tan, who thinks that PAS was trying to impose their own religious views on other non-Muslims. "A concert is just an entertainment event where performers show off their singing and dancing. If there's a striptease, then it's immoral," he said. "You remember when they wanted to ban alcohol in Selangor: first they wanted the ban (imposed), then the MB said there was no ban… what does that really mean? Pakatan leaders tend to portray themselves differently when a problem arises," said Tan. Coalition of convenience
He said that Pakatan was merely a coalition of convenience and it is not good for the country to have a coalition that cannot have a common stand as it would cause instability. MCA vice-president and Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu had reportedly said yesterday: "As usual, PAS is imposing its prejudices on things they don't even understand… sometimes, they are just playing to the gallery." However, Khalid Samad today claimed that Gan had misunderstood PAS, which has started a petition campaign against the concert.
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| Scorpene deal: Najib must come clean Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:00 AM PDT Suaram's suit over the Scorpene deal will be heard in a French court soon, and the onus is on Najib to prove his innocence, says PKR's Saifuddin Nasution. (Free Malaysia Today) - Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak must come clean on the trip his associates made in connection with the Scorpene submarine deal. PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said little is known about about the 2002 travel destinations made by his associates to broker the submarine deal. He said the onus is now on Najib to prove his innocence in the RM6.27 billion deal between the Malaysian government and French company DCNS following an allegation of a "third person" in the negotiation that took place in Macau. The allegation was made by local human rights group Suaram which also said that Mongolian Altantuya Shariibuu, who was murdered for her alleged connection in the deal, was also present in the meeting. Saifuddin claimed it has now been established that the deal was brokered by Najib's close associates, including his one-time adviser Abdul Razak Baginda and Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT) chief Lodin Wok Kamaruddin. Businessman Lodin Wok has recently been cited by WikiLeaks as one of Najib's close friends. Lodin Wok was also stated to be one of the directors of Perimekar Sdn Bhd until last year. Perimekar had acted as the go-between for the procurement of two French-made submarines by the Malaysian Defence Ministry. In the process, the company made RM534.8 million in commission. Saifuddin said of the players one of them is already dead, and one of them was charged in court. "One more is still alive and could be holding a high position… we don't know, but we will know when the trial starts," he told a press conference here today.
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| Will PAS delegates rally behind Nik Aziz? Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:00 AM PDT The battle for top posts will be a bellwether for the party as it gears up to face the coming general election. (BERNAMA) - As PAS delegates go to the polls at the party's muktamar (general assembly) tomorrow, many political observers are keenly watching if they will heed PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat's call for candidates from Kelantan to be elected to the party leadership. Nik Aziz, who is also Kelantan menteri besar, has openly called on the delegates to pick candidates who can bring about what he called the "Kelantan experience" to the national level as he is seen to be very determined this time around to have leaders from the state at the highest level of the party hierarchy. In the last party election in 2009, candidates from Kelantan were wiped out from the top leadership, including his (Nik Aziz's) golden boy Husam Musa, who was vying for the deputy presidency then. "It is difficult to say. If Kelantan emerges as the winner this time, it will pose a big challenge for Hadi (PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang). It will show that there is persistent support for Nik Aziz. "No doubt it will be a very hard tussle between all candidates, but I don't think they would settle for both Husam and Nik Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah this time around," said political analyst Sivamurugan Pandian, who is a lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia. Husam and Nik Mohd Amar are Kelantan state executive councillors and both of them are contesting for the vice-president posts against incumbents Salahudin Ayub and Mahfuz Omar as well as two other newcomers, namely Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin and PAS information chief Idris Ahmad. Sivamurugan believes it will still be difficult for the leaders from Kelantan to make a breakthrough at this party election simply because he thinks the delegates will not want any split in the party as it faces the next general election. "The same goes for the deputy president post. At the last election, the (Kelantan) group was pushing for Husam. This time around, they are pushing for Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who is also Nik Aziz's nephew. There must be some persuasion in order for Tuan Ibrahim to contest the number two post. However, I still find it difficult for the (Kelantan) group to make a breakthrough in this election," he said. Even though the PAS leadership has denied there is any such tussle between Hadi's supporters or better known as the "Terengganu Group" and Nik Aziz's "Kelantan group", some political observers believe the rivalry does exist. They said even through Hadi has been unchallenged as president for the fifth term, the observers said things had not been normal since the 2009 election, which was billed as the most intense in the party's history and caused a rift of sorts between its leaders in Kelantan and Terengganu. Some claimed that Nik Aziz still has not got over his disappointment that Husam lost in the fight for the No 2 post and this may explain why in this party election, the leaders from Kelantan have been making a strong bid for the number two and number three posts in the party. Party insiders believe Tuan Ibrahim, a former lecturer, is the "trump card" by the leaders from the Kelantan group to split the ulama (religious leaders )votes while at the same time trying to persuade incumbent Nasharudin Mat Isa to give way. However, till now, the effort has not been successful as Nasharudin, who is said to be aligned to Hadi, has said that he is staying put to defend the number two post. Despite the setback, some leaders still believe Tuan Ibrahim will make it in this election as he is considered acceptable to all quarters. "Tuan Ibrahim is known as the person who is very well accepted by the ulama as well as the professionals. The delegates will not have problems accepting him as he was voted in as vice-president in the last party election," said an insider. However, PAS central committee member Kamaruddin Jaafar said the relationship between Hadi and Nik Aziz had improved as there were no more open clashes as had reportedly happened before. Whether there are clashes or not, many are in agreement that the contest between Tuan Ibrahim, Mohamad Sabu and Nasharudin for the party number two post is still the most keenly watched by the political observers and party members in this election. |
| Umno has lost Malay middle class, says EIU Posted: 01 Jun 2011 05:45 PM PDT (The Malaysian Insider) - Despite continued support from rural voters, Umno appears to have been rejected by urban Malays, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Its latest country report on Malaysia said that the "decline in support may have intensified" among middle-class Malays due to Internet sites "exposing government corruption and political intrigues of individual members of the ruling administration." "Although voters in the rural heartland of Peninsular Malaysia continue to support Umno, there have been suggestions that the party has lost the support of a significant number of educated, liberal middle-class Malays," the research arm of the London-based Economist weekly said. But the EIU also warned that "conservative Malays have meanwhile been voicing concerns about the government's plan to reform policies favouring Bumiputera (ethnic Malays and other indigenous peoples), as they believe that the special rights accorded to them in the constitution may be rescinded." Racial and religious tension has escalated of late with right-wing Malays accusing the Chinese community of trying to usurp political power. A few weeks ago, Umno's Utusan Malaysia accused church and DAP leaders of plotting to install a Christian prime minister and turning Malaysia into a Christian state. The Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) has also strung together consecutive by-election victories recently in rural and semi-urban constituencies with an increased majority among Malay voters. But observers say that the April 16 Sarawak election saw an urban-rural divide which resulted in Pakatan Rakyat (PR) parties more than double its tally from seven to 15 seats in the 71-member state assembly. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is expected to call a general election within the year where BN will expect an improvement on the 2008 result.
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| Blogger given 14 days for defence over Rais suit Posted: 01 Jun 2011 04:27 PM PDT (NST) - A blogger sued by Information, Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim over alleged defamatory articles was given 14 days by the High Court to defend himself. Counsel Norhani Nordin, representing Rais, told the media that Judicial Commissioner Amelia Tee Hong Geok Abdullah ordered Ahmad Mutalib Mohamed Daud to file his statement of defence within 14 days from May 30. She said that Ahmad Mutalib had filed a memorandum of appearance on May 30. On May 23, Tee gave Ahmad Mutalib until today to file the memorandum of appearance. In the last proceeding, Norhani had said that Rais would enter a judgment against Ahmad Mutalib if he or his counsel failed to appear in court on June 2. Rais filed the suit on Feb 10 after four articles he regarded as libellous, dated Jan 1, Jan 3, Jan 5 and Jan 7, were uploaded by Ahmad Mutalib on the Sabahkini weblog. He also said the articles were absurd and wicked in misrepresentation of his character and office.
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| Khairy calls IPP contracts ‘unfair’ to the public Posted: 01 Jun 2011 04:08 PM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has added his voice to the growing chorus against the power purchasing agreements signed with independent power producers (IPPs), calling them "unfair" and "lopsided". The highly-profitable IPPs have come under renewed scrutiny following the government's decision to raise electricity prices earlier this week, prompting concerns that it would worsen inflationary pressures. Khairy (picture) said the system of procuring power from private producers needs to be revamped and instead of the concession-type purchasing power agreements (PPAs), which have thus far remained a secret, the government needed to move towards a transparent auction-based system instead. "Look at transparent auction systems for power in the future, not lopsided PPAs like those signed early on in the '90s. Those were unfair to the government and ultimately the people," said Khairy during a chat session with the public hosted by Internet portal Yahoo! Malaysia today. He added however that IPPs were still needed as Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) "cannot be the sole generator". The PPAs signed by the IPPs and TNB have been criticised as "sweetheart deals" but have remained confidential thus far. The prime minister said two days ago he would look into opening the books even as his Cabinet colleague Datuk Seri Peter Chin, who is in charge of the Energy, Green Technology and Water portfolio, said Putrajaya had no power to reveal the PPAs as the deals were between private companies. Malaysian Bar president Lim Chee Wee said today the federal government should and could make public the controversial PPAs in the public's interest based on the law. In a 2006 interview with The Star, former TNB chairman Tan Sri Ani Arope gave some insight into the PPAs when he claimed that TNB was "humiliated" by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and directed to accept terms and conditions that were "grossly unfair." "There was no negotiation. Absolutely none," Ani said. "Instead of talking directly with the IPPs, TNB was sitting down with the EPU. And we were harassed, humiliated and talked down every time we went there. After that, my team was disappointed. The EPU just gave us the terms and asked us to agree. I said no way I would."
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| Anwar says SPNB now cash cow for UMNO Posted: 01 Jun 2011 03:45 PM PDT (Harakahdaily) - Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has charged that funds from government-owned housing development company Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad were now channeled to UMNO. Anwar said SPNB, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Minister of Finance Incorporated which was established to undertake construction of affordable housing, had now become irrelevant and was acting like private developers.
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| Posted: 01 Jun 2011 03:44 PM PDT (Harakahdaily) - A political analyst has predicted that general election will be held this month. "A lot of factors have been thrown in this wild guess. But I opine that regardless of the impact from the hike in power tariffs, Prime Minister Najib Razak will meet Yang di-Pertuan Agong to dissolve the 12th Parliament in the nearest time – as early as June this year, yes, as early as this month!" said Ooi Heng, executive director of the political research group Kajian Politik Untuk Perubahan.
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| Both BN and PR shaky, says EIU Posted: 01 Jun 2011 10:08 AM PDT By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — Political stability will be under threat in the next five years due to internal strife within both Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR), according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). The research arm of the London-based Economist weekly said that BN was likely to remain in power after a general election expected with the year but Umno, the senior partner in BN, could see a leadership shakeup if BN failed to secure a clear mandate in the vote. Its latest country report on Malaysia also said that the tripartite PR could fray due to Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's "likely" sodomy conviction. "Political stability will come under moderate threat during the next five years, not because of any major shift in the balance of power, but rather owing to internal strife within both the governing Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition and the main opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance," the EIU said. Umno's party polls, to be held after the 13th general election, "could be a source of political instability... if the party fails to secure a clear victory at federal and state level in the next elections," the EIU said in this month's report on Malaysia. "Under such circumstances, the credibility of the prime minister, (Datuk Seri) Najib Razak, would be undermined, putting his position as president of Umno at risk. The most likely contender to become Umno's next leader is the deputy prime minister, (Tan Sri) Muhyiddin Yassin," the report said. Najib had replaced Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as PM after the latter led BN to its worst ever election performance, ceding a record 82 parliamentary seats and five state governments. BN will expect Najib to improve on the 2008 result and regaining the coalition's customary two-thirds majority in Parliament appears to be the only guarantee that the Pekan MP will stay in power. The EIU also said that PKR de facto leader Anwar "is likely to be convicted on a charge of sodomy in the coming months."
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| Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:06 AM PDT (Bernama) - KUALA LUMPUR -- A group of Sarawak United Peoples' Party (SUPP) grassroot leaders has given an ultimatum to their president Dr George Chan to convene an emergency Central Committee (CC) meeting within 14 days or face legal action. The group took the action after the Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting on May 27, which was chaired by Dr Chan, had rejected a requisition by 58 CC members to convene an emergency meeting to discuss several important motions. The ultimatum was contained in a letter dated May 31 and made through their solicitor Wong, Orlando Chua & Kuek Advocates to Dr Chan. "We are appointed by a group of SUPP party members and Central Committee members to apply for a court order relating to matters pursuant to Articles 23, 25 (9) and 25 (24) of the SUPP Constitution & Rules (the constitution). "Our clients were furious and disappointed when the Central Working Committee on May 27 rejected unconstitutionally the requisitions," a spokesman for the law firm said. In their opinion, the CWC has no authority to reject requisitions to convene a CC meeting rightfully requested by CC members under Article 23, and branches and sub-branches under Articles 25 (9) and 25 (24) of the constitution. Dr Chan, when contacted confirmed he received the letter and was disappointed with certain people in the party who had resorted to such a tactic, as the decision not to call for the emergency CC meeting was decided by CWC, hence it should be respected by all party members. "The party is already facing such a difficult time. This sort of action is the last thing that we need now. I can tell you that it is a personal attack against me. What they want is forcing me to step down immediately," he said. In fact, Dr Chan said, he and party secretary-general Sim Kheng Hui had already tendered their resignation letter, a day after the April 26 state election in which the party took a beating, losing 13 of the 19 seats it contested. "However, the emergency CWC meeting convened a day after we tendered our resignation letter rejected our resignation. They asked me to hold on until the year end when the party is scheduled to hold its triennial general meeting (TGM) as the party delegates will pick their leaders," he said. He explained that should the emergency CC be called, only a small number of CC members (about 130) could pick the party leaders and this might not go down well with the party members at the grassroot level. "Moreover, between now and the TGM is only a matter of another six months. Why do they need to do this?" said Chan, adding that he would seek legal advice on his next course of action. |
| Employability now included as a KPI in public varsities Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:05 AM PDT By Zuhrin Azam Ahmad, The Star PUTRAJAYA: Graduate employability has been included as a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for all vice-chancellors of public universities. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the move was part of the long-term goal to raise the quality and marketability of local graduates. "Others include introducing entrepreneurship curriculum, implementing soft skills programmes and student internship programmes in public and private corporations before the students graduate. "Continuous dialogue between the universities and industry is being held to raise the quality of the graduates, an approach which is expected to reduce the mismatch between supply and demand for skilled manpower," he said when launching the 1Malaysia Training Scheme (SL1M) here yesterday. Also present was Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. Najib said the Government was also implementing special programmes as a short-term measure to raise graduate employability and that included the training programmes carried out by the Higher Education Ministry, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Khazanah and the Skills Development Fund Corporation involving 12,000 graduates. He said this meant that out of the 20,000 unemployed graduates, 8,000 did not have the opportunity to undergo additional training to improve their marketability. "Some of them come from the rural and interior areas as well as from low-income families. "This background influences their character and self-confidence and affects their ability to secure employment "Thus, by carrying out a last mile intervention in the form of finishing schools, I believe they will become more confident, and they are the target group of the SL1M," he said, adding that the initiative was also for those who failed to be employed six months after graduating. Najib said the approach proved effective when Bank Negara, through the short training programme for 500 graduates, had enabled all of them to find suitable jobs. In this context, he said the SL1M programme should be expanded and made part of the corporate social responsibility of government-linked corporations (GLCs) and major companies. |
| Refugees' claims of torture in Malaysia Posted: 01 Jun 2011 08:53 AM PDT By Geoff Chambers, Herald Sun REFUGEES in Kuala Lumpur's suburban slums say they have been tortured in Malaysia's detention centres. Read more and WATCH THE VIDEO.
Gruesome personal accounts include claims of beatings with rattan canes and whippings - a fate that could await the 800 refugees the Federal Government intends to send to Malaysia as part of its controversial detainee swap. Lay Maung, who was caned three times, said he was tied up and made to turn his head away from the prison officer so he could not see his face during one ordeal. With the refugee's arms and legs extended, a man wielding a 1.2m rattan cane, pulled back and sliced the stick into his bare buttocks. Like the 55,000 Chin Burmese refugees, Mr Maung's crime was that he wasn't a Malaysian citizen. His UN Commission on Human Rights refugee card expired the day before he was arrested on the street in late 2009. "I fainted after one cane," he said through an interpreter. "They make you turn away from the man who canes you so you don't see his face. You can't sit or lie down for days. "I spent a year in prison after that." Pa Khau, 47, wanted in Burma because he is from the Christian minority, says he was whipped three times. And, pointing to his scarred, crippled hands, he told how soldiers broke his thumbs and fingers.
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