Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- End of the rope for Najib
- It’s About Time
- Is the PR serious about becoming the next government of Malaysia?
- Let me tell you more about Tan Kay Hock
- UMNO, Najib and the 24 million ring
| Posted: 01 Aug 2011 04:09 PM PDT
From Douglas Tan, via e-mail, Free Malaysia Today Over the past few months, we have all seen the steep decline of our Prime Minister. From calling on youth to "defend Putrajaya" as though the nation is expecting an invasion, to being unable to back up his own 1Malaysia policy when asked by a student at a recent Malaysian Student Leader's Summit. It truly seems that Najib is unable to do anything right at the moment. First he attacks the Opposition parties outright, claiming that they would destroy this nation and that Barisan Nasional is the shining light to guide the nation forward. To ask the youth to help defend Putrajaya against the Opposition is nothing short of pretentious, as though Umno/BN has the divine right to govern this country infinitum. This was quickly followed by Bersih 2.0, where he exposed himself as a lame duck leader. Instead of assuming a non-partisan role and showing true leadership, he aligned himself more as Umno president than the Prime Minister of Malaysia by demonising the coalition as an "illegal organisation" and stooping so low to the extent of roping in mosque ceramahs to spread their propaganda of the so-called "perhimpunan haram". His handling of Bersih 2.0 in itself was nothing short of despicable. If he truly recognised the event to be a national crisis, he himself should have been in Kuala Lumpur that day to defuse the situation. Instead, he found himself in Terengganu, with his tail between his legs, smiling at the co-op event, as though he found the hyped-up illegal rally in Kuala Lumpur to be a mere inconvenience to his schedule. In the lack of true leadership, he "tai-chied" all of the responsibility onto his cousin's shoulders. Hishammudin didn't fair much better, especially with his justification of the clampdown on civil liberties, to the extent that those who knew him declared him as sounding "mentally impaired"! As though this was not bad enough, the cover up of Tung Shin Hospital episode, the police violence and the subsequent spread of lies through the media had caused a self-inflicted international black eye. Ignoring all of this, he proceeded to meet the Queen of England in a stunning yellow dress, just in case he failed to get the message. Although he had managed to establish ties with the Vatican, his subsequent comments to the Christian community did little to them to endear him, especially when he implied that Christians were intolerant, when that clearly is not the case. His wife's extravagance would distance him further from the grassroots as allegations that she purchased a US$24 million ring had sent shock waves through the community, especially at a time that the Rakyat are told to tighten our belts in the midst of reduced subsidies and rising prices.
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| Posted: 01 Aug 2011 01:11 PM PDT By Chee Chook Ying I can't believe we are turning 54 this year. With what has been happening recently, it does seem we are rolling back to "ancient" times, since some still want to hang on stubbornly to former social structures that are no longer suitable. Admittedly, we do need institutions put in place to prevent anarchy. However, humankind is constantly changing, led by the evolution in every sphere of life, be it technology, education, social, political, etc. Clearly, what were creatures of their time cannot be relevant today. If it were the case, what have we achieved to account for, these last 54 years? Nothing? Do skyscrappers mean anything if our mentalities have not changed? No wonder a part of our society appear to be in crisis! Are some of us still hanging on to ancient structures that are ill-adapted to present situations? I think it's quite dangerous to entertain the thought that by returning to the past, we can reestablish order. Definitely, some institutions today have to make way for a better tomorrow, for Malaysia. The reality today is, there's no room for absolute power. An enlightened conscience will tell you that. We are no longer a people afraid to make our own decisions. We are no longer a people afraid to take initiatives. We are not some medieval nation where theoretically, the leader will be God's representative and his people's servant but in reality, he will serve his own ambitions and oppress his people! We are a democracy, no leader is indispensable. Don't let some far-fetched propaganda We are going to face our 13th General Election soon. How should we vote? Who do we vote for? Bulging tummies are not a sight for sore eyes! They do say something about the owners. Lean and mean? Like the lean but not the mean. Saul, the first king of the chosen people, was courageous, yet obstinate, not wanting to take risks and was rather attached to the ideas of his time. He failed as a king as he was considered not humble enough to undertake new and great things without being afraid of possible failures. Granted that there is no political life without parties but one cannot confuse responsibility with abuse of authority, by not listening to the voice of reason, especially when one is so entrenched in a party that is so used to having its own way and this voice of reason is not from within. A leader cannot act according to his own judgement, especially when one is isolated from others (usually true when one is in the highest authority), becoming arrogant or worst still, pessimistic. As a leader, his destiny goes beyond the ordinary. He is the sacrificial lamb, not the other way around. Though he is not required to do an-Abraham, he cannot very well direct the destiny of a nation or measure up to such a responsibility if he does not listen to the voice of reason or that of his people, for We should not choose a leader who pretends to be more than the man (or woman) that he or she is. It is necessary to discover the values of this person and not be deceived by appearances, "to look into his or her heart". If we do this, perhaps we will be able to find the right people needed to animate our community instead of the purely ambitious ones who are full of rhetoric. If we care to take a leaf from out of the story of David and Goliath, we will realize that victory does not come to the ones who are physically stronger or heavily armed. Just ask anyone from the just concluded "Bersih Walk for Free and Fair Elections". Anyone dispirited from the experience? The resounding answer would be that all those who took part would work even harder now for change, for a better Malaysia, for all. It's about time. It's about time leaders get it into their thick skulls that we, the majority of Malaysians are rather united in wanting to build a better Malaysia for all. It's about time some of you numbskulls realize that the majority of Malaysians are very aware of the fact that they have been robbed of their birthright and that those of you purportedly looking out for the welfare of your kin are actually the culprits. It's about time, we deny those who seek to advance their own progress or that of their family another opportunity. It's about time those who wish to be elected realize that once elected, they are servants and not masters. They are to persevere in bringing about a Malaysia worthy of humankind, one where food, shelter and dignity are given to all. Why should anyone go hungry when those we put in office, spend billions on gadgets that don't work. It's a sin. Such elected representatives should be anathema, come GE 13th. It's about time we, Malaysians, all of us, practise what we preach. It really is about time we coexist as one, all of us. We can do this, we really can. |
| Is the PR serious about becoming the next government of Malaysia? Posted: 31 Jul 2011 08:02 PM PDT By batsman With talk of the 13th GE being just around the corner, all political parties should be desperately gearing up for the upcoming electoral battle that is going to decide whether Malaysia finally gets to have an equally matched 2 party political system. Unfortunately the component parties of the PR still appear to be frozen in limbo unable to take the leap to eternal glory. 3 years after the 2008 tsunami, component parties of the PR are still unable to come up with a shadow cabinet. Instead they are jealously guarding their own turf in the old ways and with the tenacity of old habits. With this, the Buku Jingga looks like just another excuse to engage in self-denial, to avoid coming up with a shadow cabinet and fail in their bid to become the next government of Malaysia. I wonder if in 3 - 4 short months when they do get elected into government, will they screw up the whole works with petty quarrels and old jealousies? Will they be able to form an effective working government or will they allow UMNO to play another successful dirty trick to re-capture the government without even going through the trouble of another GE while they quarrel furiously over who is to be Prime Minister or who gets the choice ministerial posts? All this is entirely possible unless the PR start to think of themselves as the next government of Malaysia and not just permanent opposition parties, fit only to govern a few states, but never the whole country. I admit I have never read C.H. Cooley, but this is what Martindale has to say.. "From Cooley's point of view, social organization is inseparable from collective psychology. Public consciousness comprises the conscious and unconscious process of forming mutual ideas and attitudes to which names "fashion", "tradition", "institution", and "tendency" are attached. At the bottom, social organization is a differentiated structure of thought and symbols. Social structure is a pattern of institutions. But institutions are, in turn, nothing other than definite and established phases of the public mind, ultimately akin to public opinion." (Don Martindale – Institutions, Organizations and Mass Society) This means that what constitutes a particular society is nothing more than shared ideas, psychology, values and belief systems. For political parties whose platform is reform, this is critical. If the political parties themselves are unable to create a common set of ideas, values and belief systems, what reforms are they talking about for the whole of Malaysian society in general and the Malaysian political system in particular? When they continually avoid reformist public opinion that they coalesce, strengthen and firm up their organization and structures to get ready to be the next government of Malaysia? As an example of permanent opposition thinking, let me quote the example of DAP's Tony Pua challenging NTR to defend 1Malaysia. NTR is the fisherman and 1Malaysia is the bait. Tony Pua is thinking like a leader of the fish in appealing to his shoal whether to decide to swallow the bait or not. If Tony Pua were to think like a member of the next government of Malaysia, he would be trying to be a fisherman in competition with NTR, not the leader of some fish species and the bait he would be using will be the policies of the PR if they were to be the next government of Malaysia. Unfortunately all these seem to be missing or lacking in substance. Instead, the opposition continues to challenge the fisherman over his 1Malaysia bait instead of competing with the fisherman himself. It is no wonder that UMNO has seldom used the lack of a shadow cabinet to attack the PR. This is because once there is a shadow cabinet, the PR will be starting to think of itself as the next government of Malaysia instead of being a permanent opposition. Besides, if there is a shadow cabinet, the transition to a full-fledged government will be fast and automatic, not delayed and giving time for UMNO to play dirty tricks. On the contrary, UMNO has always empathized those features and characteristics that split the PR and freeze it into the role of a permanent opposition including cultivating and manipulating the image of DSAI as a misfit to be the opposition leader and the next Prime Minister of Malaysia - throwing the PR into uncertainty and indecision. I think it is time for the PR to think of itself as the next government of Malaysia – with or without DSAI as the Prime Minister. The time for decisiveness and action is at hand. PR, please stand up to the plate. Translate reforms into reality through determination, belief in self and decisive action. The really hard question however is…. "Will the SUPPORTERS of the component parties of the PR allow these parties to forge ahead and become the next government of Malaysia or will they just cling on and hold back their parties in a clingy, insecure, small-hearted, small-minded fashion?" |
| Let me tell you more about Tan Kay Hock Posted: 30 Jul 2011 04:08 PM PDT
Healthy move: Muhyiddin witnessing the handing over of the mock cheque from George Kent chairman Tan Sri Tan Kay Hock to Dr Chua as MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai looks on yesterday. — Bernama Dear YM Raja Petra Kamarudin, In your latest posting dated 28th July, on the now very famous Tan Kay Hock, golfing buddy of current Prime Minister of Malaysia, I see you are very well-informed despite the fact that your feet (like mine) are not on Malaysian soil. I left the country I loved during Mahathir's regime when he was turning "the Malay Dilemma" to Chinese Dilemma. Like you, I still keep contact with my old schoolmates who remain in Bolehland, and update myself through these grapevines with the goings-on in my old homeland. Apparently, Business Times (NST) reported on 7th July, 2011 that George Kent (TKH's company) was confident of winning RM1.5 billion worth of contract for infrastructure works on the Ampang LRT line, and Tan Kay Hock openly boasted about it. Who gave him such confidence, and how was he to know about this even before the Ministry of Transport or PM made any such announcement? By the way, Tan Kay Hock is not working on bringing in CHEC (too messy after the Penang Bridge). He is said to be holding the representation of China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), and not China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC), the latter has given him a wide berth after your revelation of the RM500 million demand, proven true. In the Business Times of 7th July, CRCC was mentioned as Tan Kay Hock's horse. Can you imagine how a water meter maker with annual revenue of RM30 million and profit RM3 million take on a job of this magnitude? Where is the experience, let alone the financial requirements? Ah, but you need to go back just a little in time, say my old schoolmates via modern Internet, to see the link ("pun" unavoidable) that TKH has shrewdly built of late. Recently, TKH took George Kent shareholders' RM500,000 and donated to MCA medical fund to promote his own interest. In the cheque presentation photo published in a local daily, there were MCA President Soi Lek, Minister of Tranport Kong (MCA man), Idis Jalal (Minister in PM Dept in charge of SPAD, all mega projects) and DPM Muhyiddin Yassin. TKH is a very smart cookie for he knows MCA man always holds the Transport portfolio, so he sought out MCA to show his "generosity and care" for the poor needing medical assistance, with the money hijacked from shareholders of George Kent. Did you notice something amiss in that photgraph above? MCA Liow, the Minister of HEALTH was conspiciously absent though the stolen money was meant for medical purposes. Reason: TKH was not after a hospital project, he was going for a rail project, so the Transport Minister's favour must be high on his priority, not Health. With this impressive line-up, he is ready to boast to one and all, including the Chinese where his power lies. Also, it is with this line-up, Tan Kay Hock aims to be the super-crony-super-tycoon killer with guns pointing at the likes of Quek Leng Chan, Low Keng Huat, Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhary, Francis Yeoh, Vincent & Brother Danny Tan, as you said, Pete. But I can assure you that TKH can never get near to touch Lim Kok Thay and Robert Kuok, the empires of both these Malaysian billionaires have spread wings beyond the shores of Malaysia, and way beyond the crooked hands of TKH. Recently, TKH was rumoured to be scheming something with Tan Sri Khoo Kay Peng of MUI; do you know about this? The presence of Muhyiddin seems to tell us another story. TKH probably shaken by your first article about him demanding RM500 million (RM200 million for PM's wife, rest his). so he is changing horses (at both ends in China and Malaysia) for a number of reasons: 1. TKH knows Najib is about to fall flat on his face with all those unsavoury bric bracs hurled at the PM, and he also knows that Muhyiddin is knocking very hard at the PM's door impatiently to be seated on Najib's chair. UMNO insiders must have also approached him for fund to be channelled to DPM's aides, don't waste time with Najib. 2. Hishammuddin, besides being a Johorean and deemed an asshole, is also Najib's cousin, so TKH not using the son of Tun Hussein. But Tan Kay Hock needs Johor support to secure his second target, the RM7 billion Gemas-Johor Bahru double track rail, after the Ampang LRT, and probably he thinks he will need the Johore Royal seal which only Muhyiddin could deliver. 3. Unscrupulous TKH may even do a coup de grace to hasten the unseating of Najib and prove to Muhyiddin of his powess. His wife and Desmond's wife Cindy are very close to Lady Rose; they finance all her overseas shopping sprees. TKH may devise a plan to trap uncanny Lady Rose, and let Opposition (with interested UMNO's help) expose her corrupt life style, putting the last coffin nail to Najib's premiership. 4. Talking about Desmond Lim; his mammoth Pavilion Mall is not really as glorious as it looks since most of the shops and outlets are not doing good business. Many daily visitors to the Pavilion yes, but not many are shoppers, mostly there to enjoy the air-conditioning and bird-watching and drinking. Lately, there was a report that Malton (owners of Pavilion) was seeking KLSE's approval to list Pavilion (and suck public money) to pay off loan from Kuwait Finance. They must be close to defaulting now, the way it looks. So these two crafty Chinamen, TKH and Desmond, are prepared to sell (oops, urge) their wives to goreng Lady Rose while TKH ropes in Muhyiddin to do the "big kill". It does not matter what colour (Rosmah or Muhyiddin) the cat is just so long as it catches the rat, so said Deng Xiaopeng. Both Desmond and TKH were reported in The Edge as front runners in the Gemas-JB project. So Pete, there you have it, some unknown and untold tales of the Man who twists and turns in so many ways to achieve his evil goals (note the plural is used here, as his ambitions are boundless). Regards JO Justice For All
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| UMNO, Najib and the 24 million ring Posted: 30 Jul 2011 12:37 PM PDT
Rosmah and her USD120,000 Birkin handbag, one of the many she has in different colours By ViewAct Has it ever crossed your mind how and why dirt keeps being kicked up against PM Najib and his wife recently? Yet there doesn't seem to be much activity from his deputy. Have you also noticed that not many came to Najib's rescue when he screwed up big time against Bersih 2.0? Instead of his "Championed" Malay brothers, we saw MCA sending two representatives trying to shine his dirty shoe but to no avail. We also have a 24 million ring, and a "worth-a-fortune" bracelet allegedly belonging to the wife of the PM, and its photo and custom screenshot of the alleged purchase surfacing all over the internet. Well, this too receives much lesser "backing up" from all PM Najib's assistants. What is wrong with them now? Aren't they very good at jumping at trivial issues to "show" that they are loyal to the President, and display the "Please do notice me and pull me up and give me a ministerial post or something like that" attitude? Well, maybe they have smartened up and are now saving their breaths against making more mindless statements which will not only smear the issue further but make them look stupid. Just like what happened to the two MCA "tukang gosok" mentioned earlier. However, I think this is very unlikely as they wouldn't possibly be that "smart". The other possible explanation would be that, PM Najib has lost the support of his "backupers"; and they have decided to leave him to rot whilst asking around to "guess" who'll be put up next so that they can start "bodeking" him now. I think, very soon we'll see someone coming out to say something "important" and tons of others will start making opened/press statements supporting him. This man would then be the likeliest person to be fielded as the next "PM" candidate. Do observe their attitude and responses to statements made by any of their "high ranked" members and you may soon be able to guess who the man is. One character to look for is the one man who has hoped to get some high post by marrying a PM's daughter, only to find that PM being replaced before he could reach safe grounds. His desperation will have him trying to impress the next potential premier-in-line, to regain what he lost in 2008. It wouldn't be too hard to sniff this out as his "pheromone" level would surely be high then. I sometimes feel pity towards our PM as he is facing threats and challenges everywhere. His rivals, his subordinates, and now EVEN HIS WIFE is threatening his position as a PM. I am amazed at how he managed to hang on amidst all these "stresses". Maybe money's the motivation. But now, his challenge isn't only on threats to his POSITION. The threat is now on his character. He will either be seen as a man with no guts, or a man that would attract curses and spit when his name is mentioned. Why so? GE 13 is just around the corner, and his reputation is already in the gallows. His "gang" is abandoning him as there is no where he can take them to anymore. They need a better "ship" to sail on. While his successor can still win the GE with a simple majority and retain his presidency during UMNO's general assembly, Najib may not be so lucky as to go through all that now. His words are of very much lesser weight now and thus, UMNO is finding someone better to replace him before GE 13, or else, the majority (if there is any) would be even smaller. He cannot command the required support to sail through the election anymore. For that same reason, he wouldn't be able to stage an exit like Pak Lah did, for the pressure from the rakyat as well as the opposition back then wasn't as strong as it is now. Pak Lah was merely "inactive"; this one has too much "shit". However, if he quits now, he would be seen as a coward, who fails in times of turmoil. And if he hangs on, he's going to be ousted in a terrible manner too, and this would be a great shame to his family, especially to his late father. Besides that, his wife would surely get upset too as the jewelry and bags would stop. He is thus stuck, cornered everywhere. Story after story of the wrongs he has done keep surfacing, and I have a feeling they come from within the party itself. Just like how the Altantuya murder case got linked to him, I think many more shall surface, and it is all controlled by someone sitting in a high chair behind them all, the one man who wished to literally OWN Malaysia indefinitely. To me, the possession of the 24 million ring and the bracelet was a very stupid move by Najib and his wife. Someone might have seen her interest in jewelries and bags and cast the bait for her to fall for, and she did. Next time, if you want to assassinate a politician, GET THEM INTERESTED IN THOSE FANCY STUFF and gather evidence when they make purchases. Easier still, give it to them as gifts, and provide evidence of the transaction. Correct me if I am wrong. Gifts given by a corporation or any leaders of any country to a minister and his wife officially are PROPERTY OF THE GOVERNMENT and not for individual possession. They cannot sell or transfer the possession of these items to any individual. Due to the nature of their position they should also not accept expensive gifts personally, especially when it is unofficial and done secretly. Such an act can be classified as a bribe. So whether Rosmah bought the ring and the bracelet or not, they are doomed. If she claims that it is a gift, it would either be a case of bribery, or it would belong to the government and she would need to surrender it one day. On the other hand, if she claims that it was bought by herself, or by her husband, they would need to justify how they got the 24 million to buy that ring. And saying that they won Toto, Magnum or Damacai is totally unacceptable. The next question would be, was she really wearing them, or was the photo doctored? This, I shall leave to the experts and witnesses who have or have not seen her wearing it. Hmmm, by the way, for someone to notice the ring in the first place, that someone must either be really "expert" in high classed jewelry or he/she was leaked the news by some hidden hands. All in all, I have a feeling that UMNO is all out to kick Najib out. And they are not going to let him know until the very last minute. And by then, some devastating news would probably be deliberately leaked to get the public to force him down. At these crucial moments, a wrong move by PR's leader would also land them in Kamunting; and GE 13 would be one shocking General Election in the history of Malaysia. However, I do hope I am wrong on this.
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