Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- DAP candidates to contest 2 seats if needed
- More than meets the eye in Kedah PNG project
- Bung Mokhtar hits out at Syed Mokhtar, Zeti
- Politicisation of hudud angers Dr M
- Germany’s past anti-Jew policy inspired Dr M’s banking reforms, says Sanusi
- Shahrizat backs Raja Nong Chik as Lembah Pantai BN candidate
- Homophobia on the rise in Indonesia, survey says
- Why not anti-hudud law, Lim?
- Greedy, corrupt leadership caused Malay agenda to fail, says Malay chamber
- Foreign-funded NGOs: PAS man wants answers
- Let’s debate on Suhakam reports, says Nazri
- Pakatan divided on secular state issue
- Malaysia's Missing Police Chief
- Bersih sees red over ‘bizzare’ episode
- Nazri: Michael Chia never arrested in HK with Sabah Umno cash
- EC upset over Suara Keadilan report
- Hudud: ‘MCA hitting below the belt’
- ‘Malays not ready for hudud’
- Nazri: M’sia not a secular state
- Mat Sabu: MCA insulting Islam
- Auditing of S’wak govt agencies ‘superficial’
- 5 of Najib’s Filipino maids barred from flight at Naia
- Ex-IGP denies tell-all Altantuya media conference in Bangkok
- MCA defends hardline stand on hudud
- Najib: Malays have had enough of DAP
- Chua: Pakatan’s shameful democracy
- Jingga 13 Questions Top Leader on Ex-Maid's House in Indonesia
- Explosive Altantuya Revelations Coming?
- Chua: The verdict is still open on Chinese support for Barisan
- Wee: PAS in favour of the dark ages
- Pakatan must endorse Johor Demand
- Poll registration law to go
- Chua: I agree PAS condones raping of non-Muslim women
- Kong: DAP is sinful for helping PAS' hudud
- HK dropped Musa’s case after MACC probe, says Nazri
- Nasha likely to go on baiting PAS
- MCA’s death knell gets louder
- Discontent in KL: ‘People First’ debunked?
- Umno forms panel to act on errant members
- Nazri: I did not interfere with probe
- Siva, Xavier accused of betraying the poor
- Anwar: Straight fights in Penang for 13th GE
- Senators keen on contesting in polls
- EC: Bersih ‘backstabbed’ us
| DAP candidates to contest 2 seats if needed Posted: 23 Oct 2012 12:34 AM PDT
(The Sun Daily) - Federal opposition party DAP will allow its candidates to concurrently contest two seats – state and parliamentary – if the situation calls for it. DAP national vice-chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the party's leadership had discussed the issue at length earlier this year and concluded that it would decide on the matter on a case-by-case basis. He said factors such as political circumstances and environment will dictate whether party candidates can contest both parliamentary and state seats. "If there is a proposal for a candidate to contest two seats, the party will look at it," he said at a press conference today. The issue arose earlier this year when DAP national chairman Karpal Singh proposed that Pakatan Rakyat (PR) candidates only contest one seat in the next general election. The Bukit Gelugor MP had reportedly expressed his desire that the DAP lead by example by setting a one-seat policy before the polls. Karpal, however, added that the chief minister and mentri besar, who are state assemblymen, should participate in Parliament for the benefit of their respective states. He was also reported to have postulated that there might be "exceptional cases" such as in Sabah and Sarawak where the party might not have enough candidates. On whether any DAP candidate is slated for contesting two seats, Chow said the decision has yet to be made. He said the party has a pool of candidates but has not decided who will contest. Chow, who is Tanjong MP and Padang Kota assemblyman, also side-stepped the question of whether he is going to defend both his seats, quipping that he has yet to be nominated. The Penang DAP chairman also dismissed criticisms that the party practises "dynasty politics". He said the child of a politician who decides to enter politics should be judged as an individual in "his own right, capability and capacity". "Not every father encourages his son to join politics ... especially in the Opposition. How many want their sons to follow in their footsteps? ... Because it is not easy," he said.
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| More than meets the eye in Kedah PNG project Posted: 22 Oct 2012 08:17 PM PDT
(Bernama) - Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak broke his silence Tuesday over allegations of losses incurred by a state-owned company in a project in Papua New Guinea, and seemed to have opened a Pandora's box. He said a senior officer of the state-owned Kedah Corporation Bhd, who had since gone missing, had secured a USD40mil (RM122.1mil) offshore loan from a bank in the United Kingdom in 2009 without the knowledge of the board of directors and had worked with another company to invest in a plantation and logging project in Papua New Guinea (PNG). "After learning of the irregularity, a committee was set up to investigate Kedah Corp's operations and it was learnt that the PNG project was unprofitable and was terminated," he told reporters when approached at the handing over of Aidiladha sacrificial cattle to Federal and state departments and agencies at the Suka Menanti Stadium, here. Azizan said the state government ordered the termination of the transaction by the UK bank but was forced to settle RM1.4mil in consultancy fee to a company. He also said that the state government would not hesitate to reclaim RM1.3mil from the company with which the missing officer had dealt with as the owner had promised to return the money. "I am prepared to hand over the file on the case to the police, and to have the officer who has gone missing traced," he said. He denied that the Kedah government was involved in irregularities in the PNG project and invited immediate investigation by the police and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) into the case highlighted by the Auditor-General's Report 2011. The report had stated that Kedah Corp had obtained a RM135mil offshore loan to finance the project. Azizan dismissed allegations that the state government was at fault for having caused Kedah Corp to suffer a loss of RM13.49mil in the project. Azizan claimed that many more cases of GLC mismanagement had driven the government helmed by him to incur debts, which had to be settled. "I am forced to examine all the agreements reached to ensure that the state government does not incur losses, including the 99East project, a development on Bukit Malut in Langkawi involving 145.6 hectares of state land," he said.
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| Bung Mokhtar hits out at Syed Mokhtar, Zeti Posted: 22 Oct 2012 07:42 PM PDT
The Kinabatangan MP urges the government to stop Syed Mokhtar from monopolising business in the country and get someone to replace Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz. G Vinod, FMT Kinabatangan MP Bung Mokhtar Radin launched a broadside against business tycoon Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary and Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz at the Parliament today. In his criticism against Syed Mokhtar, Bung Mokhtar questioned the Finance Ministry's rationale in allowing the billionaire to control mega businesses in the country at the expense of other businessmen. "He wants Keretapi Tanah Melayu, he wants Mass Rapid Transit. He wants everything on land, sea and air. Given a chance, he will even do business in the graveyard," said the outspoken MP. He also said that it was not fair for other businessmen and pointed out that there were other capable bumiputeras out there who could work on projects as effectively. "Even open tenders for small businesses, Syed Mokhtar will be there. Don't let one man control everything," said Bung Mokhtar. He also said that the government should be mindful as the people were watching and urged the relevent authorities to come up with a mechanism to keep tabs on monopolistic system. "This thing keeps happening. Last time we had Tajuddin Ramli controlling MAS but what happened? At the end, government had to take responsibility for its losses. "That's why I object to monopoly. Don't depend on one person to control our economy," said Bung Mokhtar. On Zeti, Bung Mokhtar urged the Finance Ministry to probe the Bank Negara governor for allegedly being negligent in monitoring the rising numbers of gold trading companies in Malaysia. He was referring to the recent raid by Bank Negara on four gold trading companies for allegedly being involved in various malpractises.
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| Politicisation of hudud angers Dr M Posted: 22 Oct 2012 07:39 PM PDT
But the former premier is vague if he objected to MCA's move to exploit the issue to gain Chinese votes. Syed Jaymal Zahiid, FMT Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he detested the ongoing politicisation of the hudud debate but made no clear position on MCA's move to exploit the issue to win the Chinese votes. "I am disappointed that hudud is being used for the gains of certain quarters… the issue is not a religious one but a political one," the former premier told reporters here today. "I am against hudud being used as a political issue," added the nation's longest serving PM whose administration was known for its promotion of moderate Islam and anti-hudud stand. The longstanding controversy over the Islamic penal law resurfaced when the ruling coalition's Chinese component party, MCA, at its annual general assembly last weekend played on the issue apparently aimed at shoring up support from the community. MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek had said that a vote for rival DAP would mean support for PAS' push for hudud to be implemented if the federal opposition bloc wins the general election. Chua had also said that PAS condoned the rape of non-Muslims. PAS and DAP are allies in Pakatan Rakyat but the two clash ideologically with one pushing for an Islamic state and the other being staunch secularists. To date the hudud issue had not been resolved and political rivals have used the debacle to drive a deeper wedge between the two but PKR, the leading moderates in Pakatan, have so far been successful in containing the conflict. PAS leaders said Chua's comments were an insult to Islam and that MCA, with drastic drop in Chinese support, had played the religious card to stay relevant. Malaysia a Muslim country The Chinese form the second biggest electorate next to the Malays in Malaysia. Its support for the ruling coalition had fast dwindled since the landmark polls in 2008 with analysts saying the worse is yet to come for MCA. Mahathir too admitted that MCA had tried to use the hudud issue to scare the Chinese from voting DAP.
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| Germany’s past anti-Jew policy inspired Dr M’s banking reforms, says Sanusi Posted: 22 Oct 2012 07:34 PM PDT
Lee Wei Lian, The Malaysian Insider Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was inspired by Germany's past policy of limiting Jewish financial influence to help the Malays but it was later thwarted by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, former Cabinet minister Tan Sri Sanusi Junid said today. Sanusi told a Malay economic forum that Dr Mahathir and former Finance Minister Tun Daim Zainuddin were hoping that Malays would control the economy but when they saw progress was slow, they decided to follow the German example of not granting banking licences to Jews. But the plan failed when Anwar became finance minister and approved two banking licences to non-Malay banking groups — Alliance Bank and Hong Leong Bank. "We thought that if we can't control the economy, we would follow Germany," Sanusi said at the Malay Economic Congress here. "In Germany banking licences are not given to the Jews." He said while pre-existing licences had been given to non-Malays, Daim made sure that all banks had Malay directors, which was important to ensure all banks had Malay influence. "But unfortunately a huge disaster happened (kecelakaan besar); when Anwar became finance minister he approved banking licences for Alliance Bank and Hong Leong bank," he said. "We didn't want to give." Sanusi said that as a result there are now "two non-Malay banks without Malay influence." Malaysia's banking system was formerly largely controlled by the Chinese but many were taken over by or forced to merge with government-controlled entities. The loss of Chinese-founded banking institutions is widely perceived by the Chinese community as of one of the ways they have been discriminated against under the guise of helping the Bumiputera community. The Umno-led Barisan Nasional government however had previously maintained that direct intervention was required to uplift the Bumiputeras and that mergers would help create stronger banks that could withstand globalisation.
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| Shahrizat backs Raja Nong Chik as Lembah Pantai BN candidate Posted: 22 Oct 2012 04:38 PM PDT
(Bernama) - Wanita Umno chief Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalilopenly declares her support for Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin as the Lembah Pantai Barisan Nasional candidate in the coming general election. The former Lembah Pantai MP said there was no one more qualified for the post than Raja Nong Chik, who is also an Umno Supreme Council member, due to his hard work in the constituency. Shahrizat, also the former Women, Family and Community Development Minister, said: "Actually, I have supported Datuk Raja Nong Chik since three years ago, but I'm declaring it only today. "This is because we had been working together for 15 years when I was the Lembah Pantai MP for three terms," she told a press conference here yesterday. Raja Nong Chik was also present. Shahrizat was Lembah Pantai MP from 1995 after she defeated former chief justice Tun Mohamad Salleh Abas from Semangat 46 with a 13,361-vote majority, but failed to retain her seat in the 2008 general election. In that elections, she lost to PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar, who had a 2,895-vote majority. Raja Nong Chik said he always had a good relationship with Shahrizat, although there were allegations that he had caused the end of her political career. "I used to sit next to Datuk Seri Shahrizat in the Cabinet. I admit that sometimes we had differences of opinion but we had never quarrelled. "Actually, it's the Opposition who wish to see us quarrel. They want Umno to be divided so that they can easily win (the elections)," he said.
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| Homophobia on the rise in Indonesia, survey says Posted: 22 Oct 2012 04:14 PM PDT
(The Jakarta Post) - JAKARTA - A new survey published on Sunday revealed that intolerance of minorities is growing, with the highest level of hostility directed at the gay and lesbian community. The Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) found in its most recent poll that a staggering 80.6 per cent of its sample population objected to having gays or lesbians as neighbours. The figure has jumped significantly from 64.7 per cent in 2005. LSI found that intolerance of homosexuals was higher than the respondents' aversion toward people adhering to different faiths, which stood at 15.1 per cent. For the survey, LSI interviewed 1,200 respondents between Oct 1 and Oct 8. The respondents even preferred to live next door to what they deemed as followers of deviant sects like Shi'ism and Ahmadiyah, rather than with gays or lesbians. The survey revealed that 41.8 per cent and 46.6 per cent respectively of the respondents would feel uncomfortable living next to Shia or Ahmadiyah followers. "Most of the respondents who showed intolerance [toward these minority groups] are male, low-income and limited-education people," LSI researcher Ardian Sopa said during a press conference on Sunday afternoon. Close to 60 per cent of respondents who admitted intolerance were men. More than 67 per cent of them were uneducated or senior high school graduates at best. The LSI also found that 63.4 per cent of respondents who admitted to being intolerant of minority groups earned Rp 2 million (S$254) or less per month. Earlier in June, a survey published by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) confirmed the widely held assumption that religious intolerance is on the rise in the country. The CSIS survey conducted between Jan 16 and 24 this year, found that although 83.4 per cent of the respondents said that they had no problem with neighbours from different ethnic groups, 79.3 per cent objected to inter-religious marriage. Director of non-profit group Denny JA Foundation, Novriantoni Kahar, said that the survey showed that Indonesia had a long way to go before being able to accept homosexuality. "This will be very difficult because the level of acceptance is even lower than that given to people of different religions or ethnicity," he said. Novriantoni said what the government needed to do was to improve people's welfare, as intolerance was mostly shown by poorer citizens. "The government needs to do more to improve socio-economic conditions. People who are unemployed or poor can easily be goaded into attacking minority groups," he said. Contacted separately, Hartoyo, an executive of an LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) empowerment organisation, blamed radical Islamist groups and the media for the growing homophobia. Hartoyo said that the majority of the population subscribed to ideas promoted by hard-line Islamist groups, which condemned homosexuality as sinful conduct and a product of Western culture. In May, radical Islamist groups broke up the launch of a new book by Canadian liberal Muslim activist Irshad Manji for fear that she would promote lesbianism in the country. The media also shared the blame for only promoting stereotypes and caricatures of gay people, Hartoyo said. "Some media outlets, mainly online news portals and TV channels that are easily accessible to people tend to give imbalanced reports about us or portray us only as clowns." He said that in the long run, the growing homophobia could further worsen injustice against the community. "Just look at Dede Oetomo, a renowned sociologist and human rights activist. After he was named as a commissioner candidate of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), the public started fussing about his sexual orientation and overlooked his impressive achievements. So, how is it possible for a person like me to be a minister?" Hartoyo said.
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| Posted: 22 Oct 2012 04:01 PM PDT
Gerakan challenges Penang CM to enact an anti-hudud legislation to show DAP's firm stance against it Athi Shankar, FMT Instead of mooting an anti-hopping law, the Penang Pakatan Rakyat government was today challenged to to enact an anti-hudud legislation. Baljit Singh, Gerakan's legal and human rights bureau head, said Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng should enact an anti-hudud law to emphasise DAP's firm stance against it. He said Lim was fully aware that a state anti-party hopping law would contravene Articles 10(1)(C) and 48(6) Federal Constitution and a 1992 Supreme Court ruling. Article 10(1)(C) grants the citizenry rights to freedom of association. "He knows very well that an anti-hopping law simply won't work. He just wants to milk maximum publicity with his typical Malacca wayang kulit," said Baljit. With Pakatan's two-third strength in the state legislative assembly, Baljit said Lim can easily enact the anti-hudud law, especially since it would run parallel to the Federal Constitution. Pakatan has 29 state seats – DAP's 19, PKR nine and PAS one, against Barisan Nasional's 11 Umno state assemblymen. Baljit said Lim would not face a problem in getting an anti-hudud law through, as religious matters come under state jurisdiction vis-Ã -vis Schedule 9 of the Federal Constitution. By passing an anti-hudud law, he said Lim can assure Penangites that hudud would never find its way to Penang. "Lim should demonstrate DAP's commitment and sincerity in opposing hudud," said Baljit. Lim, the DAP secretary-general, said yesterday that his government would table a bill at the next assembly sitting to amend the state constitution to legislate an anti-party hopping law. Baljit claimed that Lim's insistence on introducing the anti-hop law reflected the chief minister's lack of confidence in facing the next general election. He said Lim may have realised that it would be difficult to repeat the 2008 success, let alone better it. Private member's bill Hence, Baljit said Lim could be trying to shackle potential post-election political frogs to safeguard his and his party's interests. Baljit said even DAP supremo Karpal Singh, a staunch advocate against elected political frogs, had pointed out that any anti-hopping legislation would only be effective if, when and unless constitutional barriers of Articles 10(1) (C) and 48(6) were removed. "Can there be a better constitutional law expert for DAP than its own national chairman? If he can't listen to Karpal, who else will Lim listen to?" asked Baljit, a lawyer by profession.
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| Greedy, corrupt leadership caused Malay agenda to fail, says Malay chamber Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:42 PM PDT
Syed Ali said leaders need to have a 'clean heart' to develop the Malay community. Lee Wei Lian, The Malaysian Insider The Malay economic agenda failed to achieve its objectives due to corruption and greed, Malay Chamber of Commerce Malaysia (DPMM) president Datuk Syed Ali Alattas said today. He said dozens of government agencies had been set up and billions of ringgit had been used to help develop the Malay economy but the Malay community was at the "lowest level of achievement." "What's gone wrong? That's what is being asked," Syed Ali said at the Malay Economic Congress here. "There is a lot of carelessness and not enough responsibility among leaders which caused Malays to fall behind," he said. "Corruption and greed caused the Malay agenda to fail." Syed Ali said leaders needed to have a "clean heart." He said the Malays are now at a "crossroads" and have put their hope in the community's leaders. "The fate of the Malays today and the future generations will depend on the current leadership," said Syed Ali. He claimed that the Malays have less than 10 per cent control of the economy in terms of equity, businesses and shops. "I am brave enough to say that there is not one shop in the centre of Johor Baru that is owned by a Malay," he said. The commerce chamber chief also said that programmes such as an UDA (Urban Development Authority) scheme that allocated 1,500 acres a few kilometres from Johor Baru specifically for Malays to do business should continue. Efforts to lift the community economically have been surrounded by much controversy due to programmes that have been implemented such as race-based quotas for contracts, licences and employment. The Najib administration has embarked on reforms to make ethnic-based affirmative action more merit based by supposedly helping only deserving Malays. Critics of the race-based policies say that it is too open to abuse and has benefited mainly the Malay elites.
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| Foreign-funded NGOs: PAS man wants answers Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:27 PM PDT
The renegade PAS MP queried the Home Ministry on what is being done to monitor these NGOs, in an apparent posture against Suaram. Patrick Lee, FMT Suaram it seems, not only has opponents within Barisan Nasional, but also from Pakatan Rakyat. This was seen in a recent query by PAS-Bachok MP Nasharudin Mat Isa, who asked the Home Ministry what is being done to monitor NGO activities and their respective funding, especially that of foreign origin. He also asked how many NGOs are registered in Malaysia. In a Parliamentary written response, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said that Malaysia's 46,249 registered NGOs are monitored through their annual statements. These contained reports on their activities, finances, annual general meeting minutes and a list of their committee members. He added that this annual statement needed to be sent to the Registrar of Societies 60 days after an NGO's AGM is held. If there is no AGM, then the statement would have to be sent 60 days after the end of the calendar year. Nasharudin's query is suspect, given the recent government-led investigations on Suaram. Noted for its role in spearheading the controversial Scorpene scandal, the group, along with others, has been recently accused of receiving foreign funds. This led various figures in the political realm to denounce the group as a traitor. Although Nasharudin did not attack Suaram directly, it is believed that by drawing attention to Suaram's foreign funds, the PAS MP is also going against Pakatan's views on the matter. Recently, DAP-Petaling Jaya MP Tony Pua filed a parliamentary motion aimed at cutting Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob's pay by RM10. Pua did this claiming that Ismail was "selectively persecuting" Suaram for Barisan Nasional's agenda. The motion was rejected by Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia yesterday. Nasharudin's actions also seem to show a growing opposition for Pakatan, especially that of DAP. Early this month, the Bachok MP claimed that DAP is trying to turn Malaysia into a Christian state. Both DAP and PAS leaders have criticised Nasharudin for his allegations.
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| Let’s debate on Suhakam reports, says Nazri Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:24 PM PDT
Suhakam's reports have never been debated in Parliament, leading to the perception that the human rights commission is a 'toothless tiger'. But the minister wants this to change. Patrick Lee, FMT Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz today mooted the idea of discussing Malaysian Human Right Commission (Suhakam's) reports in Parliament. He acknowledged that though Suhakam had been sending its reports to Parliament for many years, MPs had not debated on its contents. "I agree that Suhakam's reports have not been debated before, and it's not fair to them," he told the Dewan Rakyat. Nazri was responding to a query by DAP-Ipoh Barat MP M Kulasegaran who raised Suhakam's perception as a "toothless tiger". At the same time, Nazri said that Parliament should not stop there. He added that there needed to be a permanent committee to address issues raised by Suhakam, much like the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee. Despite being in existence since 2000, none of Suhakam's reports have ever been debated in Parliament. Kulasegaran also compared Suhakam's role to that of foreign equivalents, such as South Africa's Human Rights Commission, which he said had regulatory powers. He also said that countries such as India and Indonesia had specific Human Rights Courts, promising that if Pakatan Rakyat were to take over, it would set up these courts here as well. Nazri however denied that Suhakam was a "toothless tiger", adding that the role of the commission was not to take action against human rights violations. "Suhakam can't arrest people. If a person needs to be arrested, then it must be reported to the police," he said. Powers of Suhakam commissioners
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| Pakatan divided on secular state issue Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:07 PM PDT
While DAP insists Malaysia is a secular state, PKR says it is a non-issue while PAS says the matter is best debated when the political climate is more 'free'. G Vinod, FMT Pakatan Rakyat MPs are divided on the issue of whether Malaysia is a secular state or otherwise. While DAP insists that Malaysia is a secular state, PKR and PAS MPs were non-committal, saying what matters most is to rejuvenate Malaysia democratic space. Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Aziz told the Dewan Rakyat that Malaysia is not a secular state as the Federal Constitution is "silent" about it. But the Padang Rengas MP did not state if Malaysia was an Islamic state either. However, he added that the country had been using secular laws which had been brought over from before Independence, through Article 162 of the Federal Constitution. Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua was not impressed with Nazri's answers and accused the minister of being in denial syndrome, to serve the political interest of Barisan Nasional. "It's like saying you're neither a man nor woman," said Pua. The DAP publicity chief also said that Nazri's refusal to recognise Malaysia's secular constitution was a clear attempt to influence the Malay voters. "There is nothing wrong with a secular state having Islam as the official religion. It just means that everyone is free to practise their own religion," said Pua. Respecting the constitution Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar said that BN had always used the secular state and Islamic state argument to confuse the masses for its own political advantage. "I think it's a bait. As far as we are concerned, we will continue to uphold and respect all that is enshrined in the constitution," said Nurul. Whether Malaysia was a secular state or otherwise, Nurul said it was a non-issue. "The point is that our constitution has helped navigate Malaysia as a moderate Muslim state. The most important thing now is to improve our democratic state to realise our potential to be a beacon of democracy," said the PKR vice-president.
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| Malaysia's Missing Police Chief Posted: 22 Oct 2012 02:01 PM PDT
What did Musa Hassan know, and when did he know it, and did he intend to tell it? The mystery "hasn't made much, if any, impact as yet on the Malaysian scene," a veteran political observer in Kuala Lumpur said. "There is so much spin going on from both sides, the public is sceptical. Furthermore, Musa has denied it and many people I spoke with think that this was probably just an Anwar spin," a reference to Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. "I don't think it's going to have the same impact as Wang and Bo Xilai. It's just another day in Malaysia's gutter politicking." John Bethelsen What happened to Musa Hassan on his way to Bangkok – if indeed he was going? The retired national police chief was said to be giving a press conference with "new revelations" in the 2006 murder-for-hire of Mongolian beauty Altantuya Shaariibuu by two elite bodyguards for then-defense minister Najib Tun Razak. Read more at: http://asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4917&Itemid=178
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| Bersih sees red over ‘bizzare’ episode Posted: 22 Oct 2012 01:55 PM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The steering committee has expressed incredulity that its Sabah-born member was barred from entering the state and pens a letter to the IGP and immigration department. A "bizzare" situation involving a Bersih steering committee member has prompted the election watchdog to pen a letter to Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar and Immigration Department director-general Alias Ahmad. In the letter dated Oct 23, Bersih leaders expressed incredulity that Sabah-born Ahmad Syukri Che Ab Razab was forced to board a flight back to Kuala Lumpur despite being scheduled to speak at a workshop in Kota Kinabalu. Bersih wanted an explanation on this issue as the movement saw no justification in prohibiting a native Sabahan from entering his own state. Other Bersih members were also barred from entering East Malaysia. None of them had received any explanation on these harassments. "This latest episode shows the escalation of unreasonable and arbitrary administrative actions in our country, as in the past several civil society members from West Malaysia have been barred from entering East Malaysia. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/10/23/bersih-sees-red-over-bizzare-episode/
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| Nazri: Michael Chia never arrested in HK with Sabah Umno cash Posted: 22 Oct 2012 01:45 PM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Putrajaya revealed today that businessman Michael Chia was never caught in Hong Kong holding large sums of Singapore currency as reported, in the latest twist to the saga over a RM40 million political donation for Sabah Umno. "According to MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission), Chia was never arrested in Hong Kong... that is the MACC's answer. "And (Hong Kong's) ICAC (Independent Commission Against Corruption) never caught Michael Chia," Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz (picture) said when wrapping up committee stage debates on Budget 2013. The Padang Rengas MP explained that the RM40 million, which was allegedly meant for Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman, was actually frozen in an investment account in Hong Kong. Nazri admitted, however, that he was not certain of the exact details but said that the money in the Hong Kong account was later meant to be transferred to an account in a Swiss bank. "That is my understanding of the case," he told the House. The minister was replying to a question from Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timor) who had asked why the Malaysian authorities had not sought information from the Swiss government when investigating Musa for graft. Lim had cited reports claiming that Chia was holding more money for Musa in a Swiss bank account. "This matter raised about the Swiss bank account is actually the same as the one frozen in Hong Kong that was yet to be transferred to the Swiss account. "Therefore when it was discovered that the cash was not corruption money but a political donation, so the question of seeking information from the Swiss government did not arise," Nazri said. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/nazri-michael-chia-never-arrested-in-hk-with-sabah-umno-cash |
| EC upset over Suara Keadilan report Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:49 AM PDT
He told the writer Hishamuddin Rais to check the facts before coming out with the innacurate report, he described as malicious, discrediting the country's independent electoral body. Kamaruddin said all names were cross-checked with the National Registration Department (NRD) which verify they are Malaysian citizens, including those using the MyKad state code "71" in the electoral roll. "If the writer thinks this is a big issue, then he should take into account that the MyKad state code of several Pakatan Rakyat leaders is also listed as "71"," said Kamaruddin. Weird names of voters listed in the report including Bukit bin Batu, Harimau bin Buaya, Kijang anak lelaki Ular, Jintan bin Bawang, Dubai bin Abu Dhabi, Sungai binti Laut and Koma binti Noktah were not in the electoral roll. "We admit there are names such as Sitti Hairan binti Jauharatil (Kg. Padang Serigala), Kereta binti Laut (Kg. Samuran), Kucing anak Tedong (Lutong Sec School), Batman bin Bakke (Rh Nyuak) and Proton Saga a/l Kelambu (Jentong) in the electoral roll. "They may sound weird to Hishammuddin but not to the owners," he added. On claim that there are 46 voters registered at a single address at No. 994 Jalan Papan Klang, Kamaruddin said they were squatters living around a bungalow and some of them were still using the postal address. |
| Hudud: ‘MCA hitting below the belt’ Posted: 21 Oct 2012 07:41 PM PDT
PAS MPs said that the hudud bashing was not the way to win votes and MCA should have focused on national issues such as good governance. G Vinod, FMT PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub described the hudud bashing session over the weekend by MCA as 'hitting below the belt." Speaking outside the Parliament today, Salahuddin said that he was especially disappointed by the statement made by MCA's youth chief Wee Ka Siong. "We are leaders of tomorrow. You should talk about national issues like good governance. Even if you want to fish for votes, you shouldn't do it this way," said the Kubang Kerian MP. Over the weekend, MCA leaders went on a hudud bashing spree during the party annual general meeting in their attempt to win the hearts and minds of Chinese voters. MCA Wanita vice-chairperson Heng Seai Kie accused PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat of condoning rape on non-Muslims, and her allegation was endorsed by party president Dr Chua Soi Lek. Plus, Wee also accused PAS of trying to bring Malaysia back to the Dark Ages by implementing a theocratic state. Whether such talks would alienate Malay-Muslim votes from Barisan Nasional, Salahuddin said," I don't know, but I don't think this kind of talk would benefit anyone." Fellow vice president Mahfuz Omar showed on how Umno would just allow anyone to attack Islam just for the sake of gaining political power. "Mind you, all these statements were made in the presence of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak," said the Pokok Sena MP. He also said that he was disappointed that MCA had made such statements without allowing any chance for anyone to rebut the statements. "This is should be an eye opener to Muslims out there on Umno's true colours," he said. PAS MP Hatta Ramli, on the other hand, refused to comment on the matter saying the people would judge them for their deeds.
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| Posted: 21 Oct 2012 07:37 PM PDT
Incessant politicking, the lack of understanding on hudud and the need for a proper model are all major barriers for the Malays, say the experts. Alyaa Azhar and Anisah Shukry, FMT Malays are not ready for hudud in Malaysia, experts said, citing incessant politicking, fear, lack of understanding and the need for a proper model on the Islamic criminal law. "Mentally and spiritually, Malays are ready for hudud but they need to be more enlightened on the issue and to move away from the shock factor," said Muhammad Fauzi Asmuni, vice-president II of Islamic NGO Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (ISMA). Hudud is a strict Islamic criminal law famous for resorting to punishing offenders through physical means, including slicing thieves' hands, stoning adulterers to death and flogging those who consume alcohol. But Muhammad Fauzi told FMT that only a minority of Malays in Malaysia actually feared the law, and that most had the intention to be governed by Islamic laws. He said that the fear stemmed from the fact that the people had no proper model to refer to with regard to the implementation of hudud. "The people need a model because there's none in front of their eyes, there's no model that they can hold on to. "The only thing they see is the Taliban regime, and also how Iran and Saudi Arabia govern their people. This is why the fear towards hudud comes," he added. He said that if Malaysian leaders truly wished to implement hudud in Malaysia, they must first allay fears by educating Malaysians on the law. Politicians are at fault Meanwhile, Professor Dr Mahmood Zuhdi Abdul Majid of IIUM told FMT that heavy politicking had not only set the nation backwards in terms of implementing the law but was also the reason why many Malays were frightened of hudud. "If we do not politicise it, we Malays are definitely ready [to implement hudud in Malaysia], but if we were to look at hudud as a political issue, then it becomes a problem," said the professor from the department of Fiqh and Usul Al Fiqh (Islamic Jurispudence and Roots of Jurispudence). PAS had long championed the criminal law, despite it not being included in the opposition pact's common manifesto, and this created a rift between the Islamist party and its political ally, the Chinese-dominated DAP. Meanwhile, MCA had seen fit to perpetually warn the Chinese community of the "dangers" of hudud should Pakatan come to power – even though PAS had promised that the Islamic criminal law would only be applied to Muslims. "There is this misunderstanding that hudud is all about cutting hands solely, but in fact hudud is actually a law to prevent people from committing a crime in the first place," said Mahmood. "The cutting only comes later on, but that is only for those who actually commit the crime," he stressed. He said that while hudud could certainly be implemented now, everything depended on the politicians.
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| Nazri: M’sia not a secular state Posted: 21 Oct 2012 03:14 PM PDT
At the same time, the minister does not say if Malaysia is an Islamic state. Patrick Lee, FMT Malaysia, according to the federal government, has never been defined as a secular state. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz said this in the Dewan Rakyat today, adding that the word "secular" was not even present in the Federal Constitution. "…the allocation of the law shows that it is clear that Malaysia has never been determined or declared as a secular state," he added. He was responding to a question by DAP-Seremban MP John Fernandez, who asked Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak about the decisions made by the former Lord President Tun Salleh Abbas in the case of Che Omar Che Soh vs the Public Prosecutor (1988), where secular law came into question. At the same time, Nazri did not state if Malaysia was an Islamic country. However, he added that the country had been using secular law which had been brought over from before Independence, through Article 162 of the Federal Constitution. The article states that laws existing before Merdeka Day 1957 would continue to be enforced.
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| Posted: 21 Oct 2012 03:11 PM PDT
Nomy Nozwir, The Malaysian Insider PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu today accused political foe MCA of having insulted Islam and not only the Islamist party when it alleged that PAS condones the rape of non-Muslim women. He cautioned the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition's Chinese component against making such statements. "MCA should be careful when making such statements, because it is no longer insulting the party but insulting the religion. Do not twist Nik Aziz's statement," Mohamad(picture) told The Malaysian Insider. The opposition leader was responding to MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek's remark over the weekend when agreeing with a Wanita MCA leader's view that PAS condones the rape of non-Muslim women, pointing out that PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat had made the opinion clear in a speech four years ago. Dr Chua alleged that in the 2008 speech, Nik Aziz had said that women who do not "tutup aurat" (protect their modesty) "deserved to be raped". "And the reason he gave was that this is because the eye is connected to the genitalia so when you see… you get provoked. "This is not what I am saying… this is what Nik Aziz said. I can get you a tape immediately if you are interesting in seeing (Nik Aziz's speech)," he told reporters after chairing a special briefing with MCA delegates ahead of the party's main annual general meeting (AGM). Dr Chua was ask to comment on a Malaysiakini report quoting Wanita MCA vice-chairman Senator Heng Seai Kie as saying during the wing's AGM earlier that PAS condones the raping of women who do not conform to the Islamic dress code. According to the news portal's report, Heng, in trying to explain how Islamic hudud law would affect both the Muslims and non-Muslims, had cited Nik Aziz's 2008 speech, which can be found on YouTube. "If you watch the YouTube clip, you would know that Nik Aziz had once said that a woman should 'tutup aurat' (protect their modesty), otherwise the woman should be raped. "From Nik Aziz's speech, we can conclude that Nik Aziz openly asked Muslims to rape non-Muslims, am I right?" Heng was quoted as saying on the portal. Appearing to agree with Heng's point, Dr Chua pointed out again that Nik Aziz's speech had been recorded. Asked, however, if Heng had twisted the matter out of context as Nik Aziz had purportedly only been speaking about Muslim women, Dr Chua said: "I think you missed the part where Nik Aziz explained why you need to tutup aurat… because if you do not tutup… then it provokes, you know, all these young men. You understand? "When a Muslim man wants to rape, it does not mean he must rape only a Muslim, right? He can rape anybody… so do not spin it out of control."
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| Auditing of S’wak govt agencies ‘superficial’ Posted: 21 Oct 2012 01:58 PM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - Some 30% of Sarawak's annual budget go into a government approved agencies 'trust fund', information to which no one has access too. A Sarawak DAP leader has expressed deep dissatisfaction over the Auditor-General Report on Sarawak's financial issues, describing it as "superficial", especially with regard to the auditing of government-owned companies. State party secretary Chong Chieng Jen said the AG's report was a piece of "peripheral auditing" focusing on unimportant issues. "I call the report of peripheral auditing, because it is auditing on less important issues while skirting and skipping key issues of Sarawak's financial position. "When we look at the AG report, we all know for a fact that Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) had borrowed a sum of RM15 billion to construct dams and this RM15 billion debt loan is not mentioned in this AG report. "Why? Because, they call off the balance sheet debt of the government. So the balance sheet of the state government does not contain all these debts. "If you don't see all these debts reflected in the report, you see a picture of good management of Sarawak government. "SEB's balance sheet debt for instance is not highlighted in the AG report and SEB is wholly owned by the government," he said. Chong said that the state annual budget had what is known as a 'black hole'. "Under our state budget every year there is one item – government's contribution towards government approved agencies trust fund – which is a black hole. "For this fund the government sets aside every year some money. In 2007, RM1 billion was channeled into this trust fund and in year 2008 and 2009 it was RM1.7 billion and RM1.8 billion respectively. "In 2010 the government allocated RM1 billion while in 2011 the amount was RM1.3 billion, bearing in mind that Sarawak annual budget is around three to four billion ringgit. "This amount (to the trust fund) represents 30% of the annual budget," Chong disclosed. He claimed that until today the Sarawak government has refused to release information or explain in the State Legislative Assembly as to where the money went. "Is this money going to approved agencies? And what are the agencies that receive this money? "It was never disclosed. Even the Auditor-General did not dig into it and to tell us who are these agencies. They only say it is the government's obligation towards the repayment of debts. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/10/22/auditing-of-swak-govt-agencies-superficial/
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| 5 of Najib’s Filipino maids barred from flight at Naia Posted: 20 Oct 2012 11:40 PM PDT  Jerome Aning, Phillipne Daily Inquire Five Filipino members of the household staff of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak were barred from their flight at Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Tuesday after a confidential agent of the Bureau of Immigration reportedly suspected them of being job seekers planning to enter Malaysia as tourists. The Filipinos—identified as Maricel Cancejo, Decemera Salceda, Wendelyn Tacotaco, and Janeth and Rene Revadona—were supposed to return to Kuala Lumpur onboard a Malaysian Airlines flight (MH-803) set to leave Naia Terminal 1 at 6:30 p.m. when they were ordered to disembark by the BI agent identified as Nelia Buenaflor. When contacted by reporters, BI spokesperson Ma. Antonette Mangrobang declined to confirm the incident but said the agency's main office was awaiting the official report of Benito Se, chief of the BI-Airport Operations Division. The Inquirer tried but failed to locate Buenaflor at the BI office in Naia. According to BI employees, she was a nurse who worked for Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David when he was still the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff. While in Manila, the five Filipinos attended to Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor. The couple, together with Foreign Minister Anifah Aman and other top Malaysian officials, graced Monday's signing in Malacañang of the historic framework agreement between the peace panels of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Philippine government. Najib, his wife and the other Malaysian officials left on a private plane on Tuesday morning, leaving their staff and other aides to book a commercial flight. Sources said the five were already lining up for the final security check when they were told by another immigration officer to return to the Travel Control Enforcement Unit. The Filipinos, who had been cleared at the immigration counter, said they had already presented to the TCEU their working and travel papers issued by the Malaysian government which indicated that they were part of Najib's entourage. Buenaflor, however, reportedly profiled the Filipinos as possible "tourist workers," according to the sources, and refused to let them leave. The Malaysian foreign minister later called Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario to complain about the BI's action and to confirm that the five were legitimate employees of Najib. Missing their Oct. 16 flight, the five Filipinos had to rebook their flight the next day. Despite stringent guidelines governing the operation of BI agents, many departing international travellers have complained about being offloaded or denied permission to leave on mere suspicion of illegal activity despite their presentation of valid travel papers. The agents, however, maintain that they were just being vigilant since they could be dismissed from the service for allowing undocumented workers or human trafficking victims to leave the country. |
| Ex-IGP denies tell-all Altantuya media conference in Bangkok Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:22 PM PDT
Amin Iskandar, The Malaysian Insider Former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan has denied he will speak to reporters in Bangkok tomorrow about the murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu. and is puzzled about the speculation about his activities. The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCTT) had put up a notice of the press conference but said it was not a club event but organised by other parties. "I was shocked to hear the news. I only found out about this when reporters contacted me yesterday. There is no such thing, I am still here (in Malaysia)," Musa told The Malaysian Insider. The event headlined "New exposés in the Altantuya murder" was scheduled for 11am Bangkok time and comes six years after she was blown up with explosives by two Malaysian security escort policemen in Shah Alam. Both were convicted of the crime but they have appealed against the death sentence. "I don't understand why recently I've been the target of so much speculation. I hope these irresponsible people will stop disturbing me," added the former national police chief who retired in 2010 after his contract ended. Incidentally, the two former police Special Action Squad commandos sentenced to death for the murder will have their appeal heard October 31 and November 1. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, 34, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 39, were convicted and sentenced to death by the Shah Alam High Court in 2009 for murdering Altantuya, 28, at Mukim Raja between 9.45 pm on October 18, 2006 and 9.45 pm the following day. Political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, 50, was also charged with abetting the duo but was acquitted by the High Court on October 31, 2008, on the basis that there was no prima facie case against him.
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| MCA defends hardline stand on hudud Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:18 PM PDT
Chua Soi Lek denies playing up hudud scare, saying that the issue itself poses great impact to the country. Leven Woon, FMT MCA has been attacking PAS and its hudud agenda in a bid to persuade the anti-establishment Chinese voters to abandon PAS and its ally, the DAP, and return to MCA's fold, said its president Dr Chua Soi Lek. MCA's anti-hudud campaign reached a feverish pitch during the ongoing MCA annual assembly with all top party leaders raising a huge red flag against PAS' Islamic agenda. MCA leaders argued that they needed to "enlighten" the public on hudud, and why it should be objected. At a press conference today, Chua defended the anti-hudud campaign, saying that the issue itself was of utmost importance to the country. "We feel that the use of word 'play' is wrong, because there is great impact (of hudud) on socio-economics and the country's political climate. It is not fair to say we play with the issue," he said. He said MCA was duty-bound to "further enlighten the people" of the consequence of PAS's hudud agenda. Chua also pointed out that the PKR-led Selangor government has not seen the opening of any new cinemas since Pakatan took over the state in 2008, a vivid evidence that PAS was dominant in the Pakatan coalition. "…everybody in Pakatan is frightened of PAS. PAS is still the taiko (big brother) because of the resources and the fact that they have more members," he said. When asked to comment on MCA Wanita chairman Yu Chok Tow's remark that Umno parliamentarians would support the PAS's hudud proposal, Chua branded the matter as being hypothetical and refused to answer directly. "Why we have to go to that stage, we don't have to. If all Malaysians are aware, PAS and hudud are bad to the country and if they unite against hudud, then we will never reach that stage," he said.
The assembly today saw the delegates dressing the trademark BN blue tee-shirt that had anti-Pakatan slogans on the back. The slogans, reading "Ubah? Bankrupt in two years", "stability above chaos", were the same phrases used on the anti-Pakatan banners decorating the event venue, Wisma MCA. Chua said the tee-shirts and banners were used to point out that Pakatan was an empty shell and would lead the country to bankruptcy should they ever come into power.
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| Najib: Malays have had enough of DAP Posted: 20 Oct 2012 04:13 PM PDT
Reformasi is just a mere Pakatan slogan, says the premier. (Bernama) - Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said the Malays have had enough of DAP, challenging the party that claims to be multiracial, to contest in a Malay constituency. "If DAP is a multiracial party, I dare them to stand in a Malay constituency. You know Malays have had enough of DAP… all are rubbish," he said at the launch of MCA's 59th Annual General Assembly, here today. Among those present were MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek, Deputy President Liow Tiong Lai, Vice Presidents Dr Ng Yen Yen, Senator Donald Lim Siang Chai and BN component party leaders, including Gerakan President Dr Koh Tsu Koon, MIC President G Palanivel and Umno Secretary-General Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor. Najib also agreed with the MCA president that DAP leaders have only been preaching multiracialism but it was never shown in reality. "Being democratic…are they more democratic than us (the BN)? If you want to know, ask Tunku Aziz (former DAP national vice-chairman Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim), he will tell you," said Najib adding with a firm tone that BN's message is that real change and progress was taking place in Malaysia. "Reformasi is just a mere slogan," he said. Najib said, one could question the fairness and policies of the government but shoud never question the fundamental of this country which was built based on the constitution. Najib said the government has been making many politically-risky decisions just to ensure that it would be fair to all the people of this country. On that basis he said, the government was also fully aware of the four basic needs that are the centerpiece of the Chinese societies' struggle, thus always striving to meet the needs of the group, where ever possible. The needs include, to have a stable and vibrant economy, fair and just country, good governance and education. "Our country's economy is among the best in the world currently. There are visitors who are impressed with Malaysia. They say many cranes in Malaysia and they are all working. "Our economy is progressing well and out budge is people friendly and fiscally responsible. On the contrary, the opposition budget in populist and fiscally irresponsible…vast difference," he said.
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| Chua: Pakatan’s shameful democracy Posted: 20 Oct 2012 03:18 PM PDT
MCA chief Dr Chua Soi Lek questions the status of Anwar, Kit Siang and Nik Aziz in their respective parties. Leven Woon, FMT MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek today used his presidential speech at his party's annual meeting to snap at Pakatan Rakyat in a way to boost morale for his cadres in the run up to the general election. He lashed out at Pakatan for claiming to be advocating democracy when the three main leaders of PKR, DAP and PAS were not elected to their positions in their parties. Hitting out at PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang and PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, Chua said it was embarrasing for Pakatan to claim that they were key promoters of democracy and reforms. "The three big Pakatan leaders – Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang and Nik Aziz – have something in common. They are appointed leaders and not elected. "There is no direct election. They choose themselves as the supreme leader of the party but keep chanting about democracy. How shameful!" he said. In comparison, Chua praised Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak for amending the Umno constitution to increase the number of delegates eligible to elect him as party president from 3,000 to 400,0000. The MCA's 59th annual general assembly will be the last one before the polls are called – legally must be called by end of April next year although speculations are rife that Najib would be doing so sooner. MCA is trying its best to boost the morale of its members following a deflating show in the 2008 general election, attempting to regain the lost support among the Chinese community. MCA ready for GE war Throughout his 45-minute fiery speech, Chua repeatedly said that MCA was ready for an election "war" and would march to the battlefield once Najib "beats the war drums". Chua urged MCA members to be confident of the party as they have frequently defeated arch rival DAP in the previous elections. "We have fought with the DAP in the last 10 general elections and the record shows that we have defeated DAP seven times, lost to them twice, and drawn once," he said. In an attempt to urge party members to close ranks, he also announced that the party would expel party saboteurs. He said from now on, members should now focus on the objective of strengthening MCA and to defeat Pakatan. "(You should) think and discuss about how to defeat Pakatan in the morning, afternoon, night or even late night," he said. Kit Siang's volte face "The rakyat should be reminded that the PTPTN which exists today was introduced by Anwar Ibrahim when he was the deputy prime minister. "The parliament Hansard on May 14, 1997 indicates that it also received support from the then Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang," he said.
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| Jingga 13 Questions Top Leader on Ex-Maid's House in Indonesia Posted: 20 Oct 2012 11:24 AM PDT
(Malaysian Digest) - PKR-linked NGO Jingga 13 has questioned a top politician over how a former maid has managed to afford a luxurious RM100,000 house in Indonesia. Jingga 13 coordinator Fariz Musa, who submitted a memorandum to the office of the said politician yesterday, alleged that the maid could not have purchased the house based on her low income earned in Malaysia.
"Our accompanying Indonesian friends have told us that her house is estimated at RM100,000."
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| Explosive Altantuya Revelations Coming? Posted: 20 Oct 2012 11:04 AM PDT
(Asia Sentinel) - Retired Malaysian police chief schedules mysterious Bangkok press conference Monday to announce "new revelations" in murder for hire case The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand announced Saturday that Musa Hassan, who retired recently as Malaysia's national police chief, would hold a Monday press conference in Bangkok with "new revelations" over the 2006 murder for hire of Mongolian beauty Altantuya Shaariibuu. Read more at: http://www.asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4913&Itemid=178
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| Chua: The verdict is still open on Chinese support for Barisan Posted: 20 Oct 2012 11:03 AM PDT
(The Star) - IT is an open question whether the Chinese will vote for the Opposition because recent events have shown a reversal of the trend from the last general election, said MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek. "The verdict is still open this time around as to whether the Chinese will come back to vote for Barisan (Nasional) or they (will still) vote for DAP. "The Chinese voted DAP (in 2008) because DAP kept promoting a self-perpetuating lie that the Chinese are very angry with the Government and they have no choice but to vote for DAP. "But most Chinese who are businessmen, traders and hawkers are also very concerned over bread and butter issues and progress, and for this BN stands tall, way above Pakatan (Rakyat)," Dr Chua told The Star. He also noticed a "positive change" in the attitude of the Chinese towards the MCA and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Citing the MCA's nine mega dinners, Dr Chua said the party had initially targeted just 5,000 people per dinner but the response was overwhelming. "I am surprised but cautious. Prior to this, the people had also been receptive to our roadshows where we provide services like free medical screening. "As for the mega dinners, each guest had to pay RM30 for food and listen to political speeches and nothing else. "This shows the people still have hope in MCA and just want to confirm certain things," he said. He reminded the Chinese voters that Malaysia was a multi-racial country and there was a need to "strike a balance as the country does not belong to any one race". Dr Chua said the Chinese community must not let their "anger" over perceived discrimination and injustices, which had been stoked by the Opposition, to cloud their judgment. "Do not destroy the (present) Government unless you are very sure you can vote in a better government," he said. "But look at the four Pakatan-ruled states. The Chinese can see that their perception that Pakatan is fairer to the community is wrong."
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| Wee: PAS in favour of the dark ages Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:54 AM PDT
The MCA Youth chief says that it was only after the separation of politics and religion that the European countries prospered. Leven Woon, FMT MCA Youth chief Wee Ka Siong attacked PAS for trying to return the country to the dark ages by implementing a theocratic state, which he said was a feudal political system. In his opening address at the 48th MCA Youth Annual General Assembly meeting today, Wee said that the European countries have spent thousands of years to do away with a political system that combines with religion. "It was only after the separation of politics and religion that saw the birth of the Renaissance and eventually the Industrial Revolution" he said Wee told some 600 delegates that it would be mockery should PAS strive to reintroduce a system that had been abandoned by the world. "We must remember that the democracy and human rights which we have today is the result of the separation of politics and religion. "We must not allow PAS to return us to an age that has long past us. This ideology must be rejected by the people of this country," he said. He also took a jab at DAP's inconsistency on the hudud issue, saying that the party chairman Karpal Singah and advisor Lim Kit Siang once made a strong stance against hudud law, but not the current leadership. "The new generation of leadership in DAP has changed their stand by saying that there is no need to fear an Islamic state as long as you don't steal or rob," he said. Later at a press conference, Wee was asked if MCA's constant harping on hudud issues would translate to Chinese support to BN. Sarawak's SUPP also highlighted the hudud issue but they did not do well in the state election last year. Wee said the opposition's reaction would not have been so great if the Chinese were not concerned by the hudud issue. MCA deputy president Liow Tiong Lai, who was also at the press conference, believed in the Chinese's wisdom to differentiate between a national election and a state election. "(In a national election), you elect the federal government, where the Federal Constitution is of utmost importance to the nation. You can't allow PAS to become the government to implement such a policy in this country," he said.
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| Pakatan must endorse Johor Demand Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:51 AM PDT
The Johor Friends of Suaram and Hindraf Makkal Sakti said only then will Pakatan get their electoral support. Athi Shankar, FMT The Johor Friends of Suaram and Hindraf Makkal Sakti have come up with a Johor Demand and wants Pakatan Rakyat to endorse it. They say Pakatan must endorse it, if they want their electoral support in Johore In a joint-statement here today, Friends of Suram coordinator, Ang Pei Shan and Hindraf's Y Mohan said Johore Demand constituted three major demands: racism, "nationalisation" of alien workers and Pengerang. Mohan said the NGOs would want pre-election commitment from Pakatan to implement their demands if the coalition took over power in Johor or Putrajaya. Yesterday, he said, the Johore Demand was submitted to the state branches of DAP, PKR and PAS. "Our support for next general election must be on a win-win strategic alliance," Mohan said. The NGOs' main demands were:
They said the unequal provision in Article 153 had given a legal basis for UMNO-dominated Barisan Nasional ruling elites to practise institutionalised racism, create two classes of citizens of Malays and non-Malays. The NGOs said the NEP and bumiputera quota system allowed BN ruling clique and cronies to enrich themselves while the Malays at large remained poor and live in abject poverty. In this era of China and India emerging as big powers, they said any attempt to eliminate Chinese and Tamil education for the 6.96 million ethnic Chinese and 2.07 million ethnic Indians is wrong. The NGOs want the authorities to establish more Chinese primary schools in Chinese dominated areas and Tamil primary schools in Bukit Indah, Mount Austin, Kota Tinggi and other areas in Johore. The NGOs also want authorities to approve the application to revive the Segamat Chinese independent secondary school and give due recognition to United Examination Certificate (UEC) and degree of Southern College University. The groups called on the state government to allocate land for Masai Hindu cemetery, which has now been hit by land shortage. They said this would prevent poor Indian families from falling prey to loan sharks, who collect exorbitant interest on loans taken for cremation. The groups resolutely opposed Project Mahathir because it was highly prejudicial to Malaysian citizenry rights. Through Project M, the groups claimed that Umno elites has legalised illegal immigrants in Sabah and now in Peninsular. According to conservative official statistics, they said three million aliens have been legalised and, issued long-term work permits and identity cards.
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| Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:47 AM PDT
The EC will see that the regulation will be abolished and reviewed after the next general election. Patrick Lee, FMT After the next general election is over, the Election Commission (EC) will do away with a law that governs the registering of voters in Malaysia. Deputy EC chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said that the Registration of Electors Regulations 2002 was littered with problems, causing many public complaints. "Next year, after we're done with the election, we're going to abolish the present law… The EC has decided that there will be a big working committee to go on every point of the law and to improve it," he said. Wan Ahmad said that the law would then be reviewed in full, with help from the Attorney-General's Chambers. He said this while speaking at a National Institute for Electoral Integrity (NIEI) forum today. Wan Ahmad said that Malaysia had the misfortune of having a very complex electoral roll, which he said had been "rolling" ever since the EC was formed in 1958. He added that at least 50% of the names present on today's electoral roll had been registered before 2002. Before then, he said, voter registration was extremely loose. "…forms could be filled up without proper checking. There was no online registration checking. It was completely dependent on the declaration by the person who came to register," he said. Wan Ahmad suggested that this was a reason why the electoral roll was so convoluted; a point of contention by various election watchdog groups in recent months. On top of that, he said that the EC had sacked 250 assistant registrars for not meeting with those they registered before putting them on the rolls. He added that there were 10.7 million registered voters in the 2004 general election, compared with 13.05 million now. As a result, Wan Ahmad hinted at a mountainous workload for the EC. He was also present at the NIEI event to hear the findings of a study that surveyed the accuracy of the current electoral roll. Study results
NIEI acting chairman K Shan said that the study showed that 92% of the addresses surveyed were identified as valid. From this chunk, a further 74% were identified as recognisable voters. From this final group, the study determined that only 31% of the voters stayed in the addresses that they were registered under. The survey covered 2,400 respondents across 240 polling districts from 60 parliamentary constituencies. This, Shan said, had resulted in a false representation of the constituency, and would lead to a dilution of "voting wishes". He added that the EC appeared to have a lack of auditing and verification exercises to deal with these matters.
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| Chua: I agree PAS condones raping of non-Muslim women Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:40 AM PDT
The MCA president said there was nothing wrong with Wanita vice-chairman Heng Seai Kie's interpretation of Nik Aziz's statement. Leven Woon, FMT MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek agrees with Wanita vice-chairman Heng Seai Kie for saying that PAS condones the raping of non-Muslim women who do not conform with the Islamic dress code. Earlier today, Heng produced a video showing PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat giving a speech four years ago in which he said that women who do not protect their modesty deserved to be raped. She said that Nik Aziz was instigating the Muslims to rape non-Muslim women. When asked to comment on Heng's statement, Chua said there is nothing wrong for Heng to interpret Nik Aziz's statement that way because rapists do not choose their victims. "When a Muslim rapist wants to rape, it doesn't mean he must rape a Muslim. He can choose anybody. "You cannot say I am not a Muslim, please don't rape me," he said at a press conference after chairing a delegates' briefing session this afternoon. Earlier today, Heng urged MCA Wanita members at the party's AGM to go all out to stop Pakatan from taking power, or risk seeing the implementation of hudud law. MCA Wanita chairman Yu Chok Tow also raised the possibility that all Muslim MPs, including those from Umno, would support PAS' hudud proposal should Pakatan win the next general election. "Due to religious concerns, Umno and PKR Muslim parliamentarians will have no choice but support a [hudud] bill…" she said. On a separate issue, Chua said that Pakatan Rakyat's proposed floor wage of RM1,100 would incur RM10 billion to RM12 billion extra costs to employers a year. He said the proposal would put 1.2 million people out of job and cause unemployment rate to increase.
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| Kong: DAP is sinful for helping PAS' hudud Posted: 19 Oct 2012 06:01 PM PDT  Delegates welcoming Kong as he arrives at the AGM (The Star) - KUALA LUMPUR: The DAP will become a sinner to the Chinese for helping PAS turn Malaysia into an Islamic state, said MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha. He said the PAS leadership at all levels had repeatedly spoken that they would not give up on hudud, the party's main agenda. The DAP was opposed it initially, but it had slowed down on its criticisms over time, Kong said in his speech at Wanita MCA's 37th annual general meeting here on Saturday. Kong added that the DAP was also told to leave the Pakatan Rakyat pact if it could not accept PAS' agenda. "Why has PAS never stopped emphasising Hudud law, is it part of the common agreement?" said Kong. He said the DAP has been misleading the public by saying that they do not have to be afraid of hudud. Indeed, he said, Islamic state and Hudud law would affect daily life, deprive women of their rights and bring negative impact to the economic. |
| HK dropped Musa’s case after MACC probe, says Nazri Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:49 AM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Putrajaya has confirmed that Datuk Musa Aman was only cleared of corruption after Malaysian graftbusters told Hong Kong authorities that a RM40-million cash contribution allegedly meant for the Sabah chief minister was a "political donation" to Umno. De facto law minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz told The Malaysian Insider that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) probe on Musa was initiated after Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) requested for information on the issue. He said the ICAC had asked for MACC's co-operation after Sabah timber trader Michael Chia was arrested and charged with money laundering in 2008 for attempting to smuggle S$16 million (RM40 million) out of Hong Kong. According to media reports, Chia had at the time told Hong Kong authorities that the money belonged to Musa. "MACC agreed to co-operate with its Hong Kong counterparts and found that the money in question was not for Musa's personal use. "The agency then reported back to ICAC with the information and the Hong Kong authority decided to drop the matter and pull its complaint from the Swiss court," Nazri told The Malaysian Insider yesterday. The minister was asked to respond to DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang's accusation that he had been giving conflicting reports to Parliament on which anti-graft authority ― Malaysia's or Hong Kong's ― had first cleared Musa of graft. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/hk-dropped-musas-case-after-macc-probe-says-nazri/ |
| Nasha likely to go on baiting PAS Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:46 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The sooner he is sacked, the better it may be for the party. PAS is playing a dangerous game in its refusal to sack the maverick Nasharuddin Mat Isa over his latest and perhaps most energetic round of Pakatan Rakyat bashing. Even novice political observers can guess the rationale behind the apparent leniency. Having learnt a lesson from PKR's sacking of Zahrain Mohd Hashim and Zulkifli Noordin and its own sacking of Hasan Ali, PAS does not want to play Nasharuddin's game. Like those three other Umno lackeys, Nasharuddin wants to be sacked rather than tender his resignation because the second option will expose him to accusations that he has been bought by Umno to cheat those who voted him to public office. Nevertheless, according to insiders, Nasharuddin's case is slightly different from those of Zahrain, Zulkifli and Hasan. As former deputy president of the party, he is said to enjoy some support from the rank and file, including some members of the Syura Council. PAS does not want to alienate these people. But insiders who are losing patience with Nasharuddin fear that he will escalate his attacks as the general election gets closer in order to help Umno score points with conservative Malays. They note that his audacity has grown following the slap on the wrist that he received for criticising PAS' decision to replace its Islamic state agenda with a welfare state programme. It was for a similar offence that Hasan was sacked. Nasharuddin was merely told to stop making public statements against the change of agenda. He has largely obeyed that order by the letter, but not by the spirit. Indeed, he has grown more vicious in openly questioning the moral validity of PAS' continued cooperation with DAP in the Pakatan pact and, more recently, creating doubts about PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim's Islamist credentials. And he has not been shy of being seen cavorting with Umno president and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. When the Syura Council met last month, it was widely anticipated that it would announce some form of action against Nasharuddin. At the very least, some thought, he would be kicked out of that powerful consultative unit of the party. However, party president Abdul Hadi Awang emerged from the meeting only to say that the council did not discuss any action against him. Risk worth taking The council's stance shocked quite a number of members, including some in leadership positions. But a source had in fact told FMT prior to the council session that Nasharuddin was safe because too many of the councillors were "Nasha's men" – that is, leaders who support the proposal for PAS and Umno to form a "unity government". In the last party elections, the so called pro-Erdogan team won most of the central committee positions. But the failure to act against Nasharuddin clearly indicates that the unity-government camp still has control over the PAS leadership, especially through the Syura Council and, some say, the Ulama Council. But then again, as some would argue, the PAS leadership is perhaps merely fearful of a backfire. For sure, if Nasharuddin were to be sacked, there would be no end to Umno's spinning of the issue through its newspapers and the public-owned electronic media. However, if one were to take the long view, it is a risk worth taking. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/nasha-likely-to-go-on-baiting-pas/
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| Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:44 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The party goes into a crucial annual assembly amidst doubts over its chances of recovery. Chinese voters are no longer asking whether MCA will remain credible as part of the ruling coalition, but whether it will survive even as an opposition party. The general belief is that it will do worse in the 13th general election than the bruising it got in 2008, and most of the blame is placed on Dr Chua Soi Lek's leadership, or rather the lack of it. At the party's 59th annual general assembly this weekend, Chua will no doubt try to boost party morale in preparation for the impending election. Sources familiar with his style predict that he will use emotional rhetoric aimed at imbuing the rank and file with the fighting spirit necessary to pull off the miraculous feat of winning more seats than the party did in 2008. He is also expected to emphasise that he has brought unity and stability to the party, as he has done on many occasions. His detractors in the party say the claim sounds more hollow and frivolous with each repetition. Chua, 65, limped into the MCA presidency in April 2010, carrying a tremendous amount of moral baggage. Since then the party has plunged ever more deeply into the political abyss, with no convincing sign that it will recover any time before the election. Such is the pessimism within a sizeable section of the membership. But many prefer to whisper to each other about their grievances and frustrations rather than discuss them openly, mostly for fear of being accused of disloyalty in the face of a seemingly formidable Pakatan Rakyat, specifically DAP. When Chua took over as the MCA's ninth president, many party insiders regretted, saying the event was an ugly stain on the legacy of the third largest Chinese organisation in the world. They were not referring only to the confession two years earlier that he was the protagonist in a widely distributed pornographic video, but also to his alleged plotting against rivals as he worked his way to the top. Some have said that his political machinations were even sleazier than his sexual indiscretion. Details of the alleged plotting against former presidents Ong Ka Ting and Ong Tee Keat might one day emerge. For now, however, insiders claiming to be in the know would only speak in general terms, perhaps out of love for the party and in the hope that it will somehow tide over these trying times and one day regain its lost glory. Recalling Chua's assertion that he was not interested in any executive position in MCA, they say he was in fact all the while manoeuvring his way to the top, getting himself appointed as Barisan Nasional's chief coordinator, and then contesting and winning the deputy presidency of MCA and eventually the presidency. They accuse him of being behind the "Save MCA Campaign" that forced an open inquiry into a so-called "snoop squad", which in turn undermined the credibility of then president Ong Ka Ting. Glaring favouritism They note that many of the party activists who lobbied for the March 2010 EGM that installed him as party president have been rewarded with ministerial and senatorial posts and top jobs in the party and agencies linked to the party. Others are potential candidates in the coming general election. Such glaring favouritism makes nonsense of his claims of success in uniting the party. Detractors say he had better leave out any talk of unity in his speech this Saturday (today) unless he is not concerned about being called a liar. Like Umno, MCA is facing the grim possibility of losing votes from even its traditional base of supporters. Analyses of figures from the 2008 election show that sizeable numbers of card-carrying members rejected both parties. The question now is not whether those members will return to the fold this time around, but how many more will join them in giving votes to the opposition. What about Chinese voters not affiliated with either MCA or any of the opposition parties – the so-called fence sitters? Since they are not involved in any factional animosity, is there any chance that they are impressed enough by Chua's leadership to give their votes to MCA? "Me and my friends are not supportive of MCA as a party and consider its role as no longer relevant," Gary Lim, a 32-year-old insurance executive, told FMT. Lim, like many voters in his age group, said he resented being treated like a fool by MCA's propaganda machine. Referring to what he described as "distortions and lies" about PAS, he said: "It's as if we're all so ignorant, or we don't have other sources of information. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/mca%E2%80%99s-death-knell-gets-louder/
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| Discontent in KL: ‘People First’ debunked? Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:35 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - From temple demolition to traders, KTM employees to taxi drivers, BN must take note of the growing discontent on the ground. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's slogan of "People First" is nothing but a myth and this is proven true by five groups of people in five instances highlighted below which serve to show that there are quite a number of discontented people in Kuala Lumpur. Therefore this means that all is not 100% well in the Najib administration. The first issue, as above all else, concerns the divine and it pertains to the demolition of the Sri Muneswaran Kaliyaman Temple located in Jalan P Ramlee near Bukit Nanas in KL. On Sept 25, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) had issued a notice that the temple is to be vacated within 30 days so that it can be demolished. According to PKR vice-president N Surendran, Federal Territories and Urban Well-Being Minister Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin has promised that no temples will be demolished. "Why are Indians being treated in this manner?" asked Surendran. DAP's M Manogaran, the Teluk Intan MP, is of the view that "it is very strange that this happens close to the general election and that this sort of incident is not the first time". Indian voters have to take note of this issue. The second issue concerns the privatisation of Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) to MMC Corporation Bhd (MMC). The president of KTMB's workers union, Abdul Razak Md Hassan, has informed PKR's Kuala Langat MP, Abdullah Sani, that MMC could not guarantee that no one would be laid off. KTMB has about 5,600 employees. Abdullah Sani has stated that KTMB chairman, who is also the Selangor BN co-ordinator, Mohd Zin Mohamed, would be replaced if Pakatan Rakyat were to form the federal government as the latter was only a politically-appointed person tasked with furthering the interests of Umno, which included advertising the prime minister's picture and message on the commuter train coaches and placing BN flags at the premises of the Shah Alam commuter station. Again, the rakyat's interests have been relegated. Traders in a spot As for the issue involving traders, the night market traders in Kampung Kerinchi have been instructed to move to a spot near the Universiti LRT station. This new trading spot, however, could only accommodate 30 traders whereas the old spot in Kampung Kerinchi could accommodate up to 60 traders. In addition to the above problem, 56 traders have been asked to move out of Kompleks Niaga Utama Bandar Utama Bangsar as this building will be demolished. These traders have turned to PKR's Lembah Pantai MP, Nurul Izzah Anwar, for help in highlighting their plight. So fair, Raja Nong Chik has not been helpful and attempts to meet the Datuk Bandar have failed. A representative of the traders, Fizan Mohd Nor Ar-Jamli, has forwarded a memorandum to the prime minister on this issue. As shown in the above instance, the slogan of "People First" is plain empty rhetoric. Another burgeoning issue concerns taxi drivers. They have a few grouses but one of the major ones concerns the issuance of too many taxi permits and the monopoly of taxi permits by certain quarters. Then there is also the MRT-Jalan Sultan issue where tunnelling works are to be done below the properties in Jalan Sultan, but the property owners prefer the MRT line to be moved to the main road of Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock nearby. Where is MCA's voice in this issue? If "People First" is the philosophy, why are the property owners being inconvenienced? They may even need to move out when the tunnelling works are being carried out. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/discontent-in-kl-people-first-debunked/
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| Umno forms panel to act on errant members Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:33 AM PDT
(fz.com) - Umno will form a special committee to act against errant party members to curtail acts of sabotage and treachery in the run-up to the general election, said party president Datuk Seri Najib Razak. "We have decided to take up a proposal mooted by the (party) management committee to empower a special committee to monitor and take immediate action against any party member who commits an act of treachery, sabotages the party or Barisan Nasional candidates," he said after chairing Umno's supreme council meeting on Friday. The prime minister said that the committee will be made up of supreme council members who do not hold other positions in the party as well as members of the disciplinary council. The committee will be overseen by the disciplinary committee chairman, Tan Sri Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen Tengku Ismaill. The move will enable the committee to suspend or sack any party member who jeopardises the party's interest, he said. According to Najib, appointments will be made at every division to keep track of the members and update the special committee. "Complaints can also be made online or sent directly to party headquarters," he said Asked on the necessity for a special committee when there is already an existing disciplinary council, the Umno president said: "We want to speed things up. We want to be proactive." |
| Nazri: I did not interfere with probe Posted: 18 Oct 2012 07:00 PM PDT
With public criticism coming hard and fast after the Home Ministry confirmed that his son was in the clear, Nazri Aziz today clarified that he did not interfere with police investigations. Teoh El Sen, FMT Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz has denied accusations that he misused his position to influence the outcome of the criminal investigation involving his son. "I did not interfere at all in the investigations," the de facto law minister told FMT today. However, Nazri declined to comment on the cases itself, pointing out that it would be a conflict of interest to do so given his ministerial position. "I can't comment because that is my son… I cannot be using my government post to say something that may be favourable to my son," he explained. He also said that since the parliamentary reply had come from the home minister himself, and not something from his ministry, he was not in a position to clarify. "The answer [regarding his son] came from the home minster. I'm not the home minister. I wouldn't know anything about it," he added. On a similar note, Nazri also said that he did not blame the public for being interested in the case. "There is nothing I can do. I am a very important person. I am very influential. My children know this and we all [my family] know that their lives will always be affected. We have to face such public scrutiny. This is something we have to accept," he added. The minister said that he did not feel that it was unfair that people questioned the cases. "I don't think it's unfair. When it came out in the papers today, and I just found out, I realised that public scrutiny will always be there. If I cannot take it, I leave politics," he said. Nazri said that neutral parties, such as the police investigators, should clarify the facts of the case. Asked if the media could interview his son, Nazri said: "He would (most likely) be bias, and defend himself. I think there is no need. Go to the neutral authorities. Talk to the police, don't talk to me." On Wednesday, the Home Ministry confirmed that Nazri's son, Mohamed Nedim, was not involved in an assault case in March this year and a murder in 2004. The parliamentary written reply to a question posed by Kelana Jaya MP Loh Gwo-Burne stated that Mohamed Nedim's bodyguard, and not him, was the one involved in the alleged assault of a security supervisor at a luxury condominium in March 2012.
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| Siva, Xavier accused of betraying the poor Posted: 18 Oct 2012 06:57 PM PDT
Former Bukit Raja estate workers tell Pakatan to sideline them. B Nantha Kumar, FMT Former employees of Bukit Raja Estate today accused Subang MP R Sivarasa and Seri Andalas Assemblyman Xavier Jayakumar of betraying them and demanded that they resign their offices. Their spokesman P Mathialakan said the two had made false statements to the media about the allocation of land on which Sime Darby, their former employer, would build houses for them. The long simmering issue made the news again yesterday when the Star quoted a Sime Darby Property (SDP) official as saying that his company had identified an 15-acre plot for houses costing RM77,000 each for 75 families. Mathialakan recalled that both Sivarasa and Xavier had stated that Sime Darby did not allocate 15 acres, but a much smaller plot for the houses. Sivarasa, who has been representing the former workers as their lawyer in the tussle with Sime Darby, was reported to have said that there was never any promise of a 15-acre plot. Xavier, who heads the Selangor executive committee responsible for the welfare of plantation workers, has made a similar statement. "After SDP's statement, we now know who is trying to cheat the poor of their land," Mathialakan told FMT. The former workers have faced a long and bitter struggle to get their houses. In 2007, the Barisan Nasional government in Selangor allocated 15 acres for the houses. However, according to the former workers, after Pakatan Rakyat took over Selangor, it diverted eight of the 15 acres for a project to build luxury homes. "We have a letter from Sivarasa himself that Sime Darby had given 15 acres for low cost houses, Mathialakan said. "But now to the media he says we were not given 15 acres." Claiming that he was not against Pakatan Rakyat, he called on the opposition front's leadership to sideline leaders who were not truthful to the poor. "They have not only betrayed us, but the entire Indian community, which supported Pakatan in 2008," he said. Both Sivarasa and Xavier are PKR members.
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| Anwar: Straight fights in Penang for 13th GE Posted: 18 Oct 2012 06:53 PM PDT
(The Malay Mail) - PAKATAN RAKYAT (PR) leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim confirms that Penang will see straight fights between the coalition and Barisan Nasional (BN) in the 13th general election. Speaking to journalists after making a courtesy call on Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng at the state administration centre in Komtar today, Anwar said the seat PR allocation was almost complete with just one or two seats still being deliberated between PAS and PKR. "Our seat allocation among the three parties here is ninety per cent complete and the status quo of the 2008 election remains. However, there is still dispute over one extra seat. That seat is contentious because it is being coveted by PAS and PKR. "But in the spirit of PR normally all three parties would be involved in the sense that DAP would have to be made aware of the issue, although in the end the issue would have to be resolved between PAS and PKR. "Umno is praying that there would be a split (between the three parties) but we will prove them wrong. So, I can say there would not be a two party contest within PR here," said Anwar who is defacto PKR head. Anwar's statement seemed to have quelled speculations stemming from leaked meeting minutes between Penang PKR chief Datuk Mansor Othman and PKR leaders. In the meeting held in March, Mansor was alleged to have asked his state vice chair Law Choo Kiang to draw up an extra list of candidates for several seats in the off-chance DAP or PAS was adamant at fielding its people on present PKR seats. Since 2008, PAS has been making strong efforts to reclaim the Sungai Acheh state seat on the mainland which the party traditionally contests in but loses to BN in every general election. However, after sacrificing that seat to PKR, who again lost, in the last election, PAS has become more determined to wrest back that seat whilst retaining its present Permatang Pasir state seat, also on the mainland. Anwar also welcomed the idea of DAP fielding Malay candidates in Penang although he saw no reason to prove to BN that the party was indeed multiracial. "DAP has never considered itself to be a non-Malay party and if it wants to field Malay candidates here, I welcome that. They have done in the past. It is not something new. For instance, (the late) Ahmad Nor contested Bayan Baru in 1990. "Perhaps there would be a slight increase of Malay seat allocations by DAP here, Johor, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan. In fact, PKR has also fielded Chinese, Indian, Dayak or Kadazan candidates. "The issue of candidates is decided by the respective parties but we keep each other informed. For instance, Mansor would have to brief Lim as leader of PR in the state about PKR candidates. "Similarly, (DAP national adviser) Lim Kit Siang would signal to me about one or two candidates in other states and to firm up the candidature. That is the spirit of comradeship there. I may lobby for someone but I won't influence the party," Anwar said.
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| Senators keen on contesting in polls Posted: 18 Oct 2012 03:33 PM PDT
(The Star) - Several prominent senators who are ministers and deputy ministers are expected to stand as candidates in the 13th general election. Among those tipped to contest are Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin, MICpresident Datuk G. Palanivel, Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu and Deputy Foreign Minister A. Kohilan Pillay. DAP's S. Ramakrishnan is also touted to contest in Johor. It is an open secret that Raja Nong Chik is expected to be fielded in Lembah Pantai, which is currently held by PKR's Nurul Izzah Anwar, who beat incumbent Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil by 2,895 votes in the 2008 general election. "I have indicated to the Prime Minister many times that I wish to contest in Lembah Pantai," he said, unfazed by talk that he would be facing a tough fight there. Gan, who is also MCA vice-president, is touted as a potential candidate for Kluang as he has been seen there attending to people's needs weekly. Gan, 48, said: "Given my age, party positions in national and divisional levels and my desire to continue my political career, it is only natural that I contest,'' he said. According to MIC sources, Palanivel is slotted to be fielded in Cameron Highlands, where he has been making frequent trips. However, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department did not confirm where he would contest.
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| Posted: 18 Oct 2012 02:01 PM PDT
Sean Augustin. FZ.com The Election Commission (EC) and Bersih were not always at loggerheads - initially, the commission considered the electoral reform group a partner in striving for better polling process. However, the relationship soured after the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections allowed opposition politicians to shape their agenda, said EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar. In a frank interview with fz.com, Wan Ahmad said he was 'happy and excited' when Bersih was formed in 2006. This, he said, was because he was looking forward to input from civil society when it came to elections, traditionally retrieved from the media, politicians and their officers. But the moment Bersih allowed opposition politicians to take part in its activities, which included street rallies, its objective as a civil society flew out of the window, said Wan Ahmad. The group, he claimed, had evolved into a political party. "Pity, because I admired what she set out to do," he said, referring to Bersih 2.0's co-chairman Datuk S Ambiga, who took up the mantle in July 2011. (The coalition was relaunched in April 2010 as an entirely civil society movement known as Bersih 2.0, unaffiliated to any political party.) Wan Ahmad's aversion to Bersih was also spurred by the allegations against the EC made by the group. "I felt backstabbed," he said, claiming that the allegations hurt more than those made by political parties. Wan Ahmad said Bersih's allegations, including that the EC was pro-government and that it had not implemented recommendations by the Parliamentary Select Committee on electoral reforms, damaged the commission's reputation. Naturally,the allegations made the EC review its "relationship" with Bersih, he said. The commission "would not want to deal with them anymore", especially after the street rallies and also because Bersih had turned down invitations to discuss matters raised. "There is no point of talking to people who won't work with us," he said. When contacted, Ambiga said Bersih had initially postponed its meeting with the EC ahead of the Sarawak state election last year. But as the system was "so flawed", she added, talking to the EC was a "waste of time". Bersih, however, is not trying to avoid the EC. "We are still prepared to debate them publicly," insists Ambiga. As for opposition politicians taking part in Bersih's activities, the former president of the Malaysian Bar said that from the outset, the group had also invited those from Barisan Nasional. There was nothing Bersih could do, she said, if politicians from the ruling coalition did not want to take part. "It doesn't mean we support the (opposition) political parties," she added. Bersih has so far held three rallies, the first in November 2007 which attracted an estimated 50,000 people,which is credited with helping to shift the political landscape in the country.
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