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Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Beggar-Malaysians queue for rice, oil and flour, thanks to BN
- Makkal Sakti!
- Nurul Izzah’s statement “There is no compulsion in religion, whether for Muslims or ...
- Behind every politician are the Chinese
- The Election Commission should take action to prosecute irresponsible parties who are trying to ...
- Rafizi Ramli’s lawyers abuse Attorney General and Bank Negara Malaysia
- Oh My Malaysia Truly
| Beggar-Malaysians queue for rice, oil and flour, thanks to BN Posted: 15 Nov 2012 01:04 PM PST
How can a nation be of a developed-status when its citizens are given 'candies' in exchange for support? Truly if after five over decades of political supremacy, a party has to peddle freebies to garner support, it speaks volumes of Malaysia's political maturity. Beggar-Malaysian The popular trend these days is to announce through the grapevine that residents should rush to a nearby field or public centre as free rations of rice, oil and flour are being distributed. But before you can collect your bundle of aid on producing your NRIC, you have to sweat it out listening to some rhetoric on the microphone on why you should support a politician or his/her party, come GE-13. Many households now already will tell you they are having excess bags of rice, oil and flour. Some are wondering what to do with these more than ample supplies cramping their kitchen cupboards. Maybe, if there was a buy-back syndicate in operation, the beggar-Malaysians would be happy to trade-off the groceries for cash – never mind even if it is below market rates. At the rate the politicians are going around handing out rice, oil and flour and in some cases T-shirts and CDs, one certainly cannot be faulted for thinking that Malaysians have been hit so badly by some massive natural disaster that they now need help in the form of emergency food aid. Or has the economy being so rock-bottom that the government needs to give handouts to help relief starving Malaysians? What kind of political campaign is this? Sounds very much like a tribal tyranny does it not? When you take inventory of the numerous occasions all across the country where politicians are giving handouts in the form of groceries, you wonder if Malaysia really is a fully developing nation that is just a doorstep away from becoming a developed nation. How can a nation be of a developed-status when its citizens are given 'candies' in exchange for support? Truly if after five over decades of political supremacy, a party has to peddle freebies to garner support, it speaks volumes of Malaysia's political maturity. Firstly, it implies that we are a corrupt society with no qualms in having to bribe our way through, taking advantage of the hard-pressed working class. Secondly, it could also hint that Malaysians are so poor that they do not mind stooping so low to beg for a living. Third, it certainly does not translate to or provide that reputation of a caring leadership. If you still adamantly claim that it is caring for the welfare of the rakyat in these hard times, then the question is how come the citizens have been reduced to begging for essential goods when we had so much of resources and wealth generated from the oil-rich nation of which the BN was solely in-charge of all these five over decades. While the thinking rakyat munch over these thoughts, the gullible rakyat continue to await in eagerness of when someone else will come calling with more bags of rice, oil, flour and T-shirts.
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| Posted: 13 Nov 2012 03:13 PM PST
Nicole Tan Lee Koon I would like to comment on Aspan Alias latest article Kalau terasa akan kalah, biarkan sahaja Parlimen terbubar dengan sendirinya (READ HERE). In his article, he commented on how desperate BN are that they have to make use of the army and NGOs to organise their political functions in order to make the crowd. BN ended up spending the taxpayer's money to fund these programmes. Compare this to PR's recently held Himpunan Kebangkitan Rakyat. There were no free food and lucky draws. 30,000 people came and supported us despite the rain! I attended a Pakatan rally in Gemas for the launching of the NS manifesto in January this year. There were 6,000 people in the field with no free food or lucky draws. Most of them were sitting on the ground as there were no chairs provided. http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/01/16/anwar-a-hit-in-umno-stronghold/ For e.g., Madey said, "The Government is forced to take a firm stand to protect the people from being oppressed by the Rajas. Certainly, this stand was not made because of just these two incidents alone. There have previously been many incidents where the Rajas oppressed the people, the Rajas broke civil and criminal laws, the Rajas misused Government and national funds and assets, the Rajas pressuring and oppressing government officials. The incident in Johor is only, with your permission, 'the straw that broke the camel's back'. The people's reaction to these incidents clearly shows that they no longer accept and 'tolerate' these kind of acts".
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| Nurul Izzah’s statement “There is no compulsion in religion, whether for Muslims or ... Posted: 12 Nov 2012 06:34 PM PST
As Malik Imtiaz rightly opined, ''Malaysia is not an Islamic state, Malaysia is a secular state and the constitution is the supreme law of the land", in Malaysia the Federal Constitution prevails. Article 11 prevails. Article 160 merely defines who a "Malay" is. Nicole Tan Lee Koon I read with much excitement the current debacle over Nurul Izzah's (MP for Lembah Pantai) statement that there should be no compulsion in religion and that it applies to Muslims as well. Nurul Izzah is right in saying that all Malaysians, including Malays, have the right of freedom of religion, that is freedom to choose their own religion. This is a basic fundamental right as enshrined in Article 11 of the Federal Constitution. The legal perspective. Article 11 of the Federal Constitution provides that every person has the right to profess and practice his own religion. Every person has the right to propagate his religion, but the law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among Muslims. Article 160 defines a Malay as inter alia a person who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language, and adheres to Malay customs. Article 11 contains a proviso only against proselytising to Muslims but not a proviso against professing another religion. Therefore, under the constitution, a Muslim has the freedom of religion. If a person who habitually speaks Malay and practices Malay customs but does not profess to be a Muslim is by definition not a "Malay" under the constitution. I agree with Malik Imtiaz when he said that Nurul's statement is consistent with the Federal Constitution (http://www.freemalaysiakini2.com/?p=54761). As Malik Imtiaz rightly opined, ''Malaysia is not an Islamic state, Malaysia is a secular state and the constitution is the supreme law of the land", in Malaysia the Federal Constitution prevails. Article 11 prevails. Article 160 merely defines who a "Malay" is. Since I am not a Muslim scholar, I shall be reiterating what other people wrote on the scriptural perspective. Surah Al-Baqara 2:256 : "Let there be no compulsion in religion. Truth has been made clear from error. Whoever rejects false worship and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that never breaks. And Allah hears and knows all things." Surah Al-Imran 3: 85 : "And whoever desires other than Islam as religion, never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers. How shall God guide a people who disbelieved after their belief and had witnessed that the Messenger is true and clear signs had come to them?" I totally agree with Haris Ibrahim's scathing article against Nasharudin Mat Isa (http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/2012/11/11/do-you-have-licence-from-god-to-lord-over-us-nash/) that even God allowed the freedom of religion under Surah Al-Imran 3: 85-90 albeit those who chose to leave Islam shall be condemned to Hell. Anisah Sukry's article is like a compendium on freedom of religion with legal, scholarly and scriptural references : http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/11/12/apostasy-compulsion-in-religion-and-nuruls-point/. She deftly argued that what Nurul Izzah said is nothing new and has basis both in the Quran and in the viewpoints of certain Islamic scholars. My favourite is the one by the former chief judge of Pakistan, SA Rahman who wrote "There is absolutely no mention in the Quran of mundane punishment for defection from the faith by a believer, except in the shape of deprivation of the spiritual benefits of Islam or of the civil status and advantages that accrue to an individual as a member of the well-knit fraternity of Muslims. "He should, however, be free to profess and propagate the faith of his choice, so long as he keeps within the bounds of law and morality, and to enjoy all other rights as a peaceful citizen of the State, in common with his Muslim co-citizens." SA Rahman also added that apostasy is an offence in the realm of the rights of God, rather than the rights of mankind, thus there would be no pressing necessity to punish a peaceful change of faith. Dr Chen Man Hin (DAP's Life Adviser) said that the threat of apostasy was used frequently in the Middle Ages. Then, Christianity was a very strict religion. Wrongdoings were frequently said to be heresy and apostasy. One outstanding example was Joan of Arc. Her enemies used the church to discredit her despite her many exploits of heroism for France. She was burned at the stake for heresy. Sadly, some people in Malaysia are possessed with minds mired in the Dark Ages. Any Malay or Muslim who dares to think differently is quickly accused of apostasy. He or she is ostracised and denied the rights of a citizen. Nowadays, apostasy and heresy is not a crime in present day Europe. Likewise, the mindset of the our people must change. Nurul Izzah wants young Malaysians to be free and open minded so that they will be the scientists who can create a new society. She wants to encourage the people to be adventurous and enterprising so that Malaysia can play a dynamic role in the new century which is destined to be an Asian Century. Nurul Izzah is a courageous and conscientious leader. Malaysia needs such leaders in order to progress lest we stay in the Middle Ages' mentality. All the three Abrahamic faiths allowed for free will, lest we all become like robots. The choice is ours and we bear the consequences of our choices. Nurul Izzah has opened up a fundamental truth that religious freedom is for all, including Islam religion. Many Malaysian Muslims will sample a new freedom. I urge all you closet and/or "closed door" supporters to come out in full force to support Nurul Izzah as well ! Even Pak Lah said "Allow Muslims to convert if they choose to" (http://malaysiansmustknowthetruth.blogspot.com/2012/11/pak-lah-said-in-2007-allow-muslims-to.html) in 2007. I would like to end with Wen Jiabao's quote "I am neither nervous nor afraid because I speak from the heart." Nurul Izzah, we support you all the way !! Nicole Tan Lee Koon Secretary, Seremban branch, DAP NS Tweet handle : @loyarbaik Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/nicoletanleekoon Facebook Page : http://www.facebook.com/nicoleleekoontan |
| Behind every politician are the Chinese Posted: 12 Nov 2012 02:11 PM PST And the same applies to every single politician in Malaysia's brief history, campaigns need to be financed, monies paid, agreements made….and which community puts their money where their mouth is, the Chinese…..again and again and again, the hypocrisy astounds! Apaipache Dear RPK |
| The Election Commission should take action to prosecute irresponsible parties who are trying to ... Posted: 12 Nov 2012 01:53 PM PST The DAP in Negeri Sembilan took the initiative to lodge a police report in February 2012 to ask the Election Commission to investigate and charge the 2 Assistant Registrars whose status as ARs were revoked by the EC because they were found to have tried to register already deceased voters. But 9 months later, no action has been taken While the Election Commission should be given some credit for taking certain steps to clean up the electoral roll, it has failed to take any concrete action against persons who have been trying to and are still trying to manipulate the electoral roll. In a productive meeting between myself, as Project Director and DAP Election Strategist, with the Election Commission on Monday, 5th of November 2012, the Election Commission highlighted a few steps which they have taken and are taking in order to clean up the electoral roll. One such initiative is to locate the 12 digit IC number of all police and army voters to check that these postal voters were also not registered using their 12 digit IC number. Although this verification process is long overdue, it should be welcomed as a necessary step in cleaning up the electoral roll. The decision of the EC to require all new army and police postal voter applicants, starting from 2012, to include their 12 digit IC number in their application forms, is also a positive step towards ensuring that these voters are not registered twice in the electoral roll, once using their army / policy identity card number and once using their 12 digit civilian identity card number. MERAP has identified many past cases of such double registrations as well as cases whereby an army / postal voter has given their 12 digit civilian IC to their spouses to be registered as postal voters as well as army / postal voters who list themselves as their own spouse in order to be registered as postal voters using their 12 digit civilian IC numbers. Having the 12 digit civilian IC verification, hopefully, will prevent such cases from happening again in the future. I was also informed that the Election Commission has taken action to locate the 12 digit civilian IC numbers of all existing army / police voters. As of 15th October 2012, there remains 411 police and 613 army postal voters whose 12 digit civilian IC numbers have not been located. However, what is disappointing is that the Election Commission refuses to take any independent action against those who have tried to manipulate the electoral roll other than removing certain Assistant Registrars. For example, the EC found 60 voters who had tried to register as army / police postal voters AND as regular voters in Quarter 2 2012. This is a clear violation of Section 3 (1) (a) of the Election Offences Act 1954 which states that a person who 'knowingly makes any false statement on or in connection with any application to be placed on any register of electors' is guilty of committing an election offence which carries a maximum jail sentence of 2 years or a maximum fine of RM5000 or both. These voters in question clearly knows that it is an offense to register twice, once as a postal voter and another time as a regular voter since every voter has to declare that they have not registered as a voter in another constituency in Borang A Pendaftaran Pemilih. The presence of irresponsible parties and individuals who may have tried to manipulate the electoral roll was also detected in the Quarter 4 2011 electoral roll given to the members of the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on Electoral Reform. The analysis comparing the Date of Birth as well as the Date of Application for all voters found that 282,086 voters were registered before they turned 21. Indeed, there were voters whose Date of Application were before their Date of Birth! What is more worrying is the fact that the Election Commission knows of these attempts to manipulate the electoral roll. The Election Commission admitted that they have revoked the status a number of Assistant Registrars who tried to manipulate the electoral roll by, for example, registering voters who have already died. But this is not sufficient. It must take legal action against such parties / individuals in order to send a strong signal that the Election Commission is serious about maintaining the integrity of the electoral roll and to dissuade irresponsible parties and individuals from trying to manipulate the electoral roll. For example, the DAP in Negeri Sembilan took the initiative to lodge a police report in February 2012 to ask the Election Commission to investigate and charge the 2 Assistant Registrars whose status as ARs were revoked by the EC because they were found to have tried to register already deceased voters. But 9 months later, no action has been taken, either by the Election Commission, the police or the Attorney General's Chambers. As long as such irresponsible actions conducted by irresponsible parties and individuals continue to go unpunished, attempts to manipulate the electoral roll will continue. If the Election Commission is indeed serious about preserving the integrity and accuracy of the electoral roll, it must not only revoke the status of irresponsible Assistant Registrars and delete the records of dubious registrations, it must also take concrete legal action to see those responsible for these manipulation attempts charged and punished under Section 3 of the Election Offences Act 1954. When asked, the Election Commission admitted that to date, no one has been charged under this Section of the Election Offences Act for attempting to manipulate the electoral roll.
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| Rafizi Ramli’s lawyers abuse Attorney General and Bank Negara Malaysia Posted: 12 Nov 2012 01:40 PM PST Fabiani Azmi A few weeks ago the law firm of Shafee & Co issued a few media statements, one of which was to welcome the Attorney General's remarks, "The investigation did not reveal criminal breaches as far as the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry (MOA) is concerned" and the other to plead with the Attorney General and Bank Negara Malaysia to stand firmly rooted in the ground on the Banking and Financial Institutions Act (BAFIA) charges levied against Rafizi Ramli. These statements were issued to provide audiences a clearer picture of how Rafizi's lies, misrepresentations and distortions in the NFC issue had abused BAFIA. The defendant's lawyers then emerged to speak up against Shafee & Co saying the BAFIA request was "self-serving and preposterous." In their zeal, they went on to say a lot more. In the process, N Surendran and Latheefa Koya abused the Attorney General and Bank Negara Malaysia with their remarks. Blogger journo Fabiani Azmi examines the arguments. In the last 12 months, the opposition led by PKR Strategy Director Rafizi Ramli had been spewing statements on the project National Feedlot Centre (NFC), the company National Feedlot Corporation Sdn Bhd (NFCorp), and Wanita UMNO chief Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil and her family. Rafizi had taken advantage of the social media platform to create a political ruckus to sway public opinion in his favour. Rafizi had broken laws, lied, misrepresented and distorted to rope in the support for his political agenda and that of his master. To correct misperceptions by the general public, law firm Shafee & Co decided to offer its opinion on the Internet news portals as well. The learned Datuk Seri Dr Shafee Abdullah said, "Under the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010, a bona fide and a genuine whistleblower should report anything he thinks bordering on criminality or other wrongs first to the appropriate authorities, to allow for them to take action. By doing so this way, we have a situation where there is a bona fide whistleblower and the integrity of BAFIA would be protected. "However, if a whistleblower is allowed to just announce in public protected materials under BAFIA without first resorting to the proper agencies, we would be courting chaos in our financial system." Datuk Seri Dr Shafee added, "BAFIA is a statutory protection provided by Bank Negara Malaysia to customers of all banks. If BAFIA is allowed to be breached under the pretext of whistle blowing, the very stratum of banking collapses." However, lawyers N Surendran and Latheefa Koya who both represent Rafizi, told Datuk Seri Dr Shafee that it was because of the PKR strategy director's exposes that the firm's client NFCorp had found itself hauled to court. They said in a Malaysian Insider report, "The charges should be withdrawn as Rafizi had acted on public interest when he exposed the NFCorp's financial documents in public, even though his actions had violated the country's banking confidentiality laws." Another news portal MalaysiaKini quoted Rafizi's lawyers saying, "Abdul Gani should exercise his discretion by not charging Rafizi's 'brave and honourable act' which benefited the public. However, Shafee & Co argued that the 21 bank accounts exposed by Rafizi were nothing extraordinary to show any wrongdoing or were of any public benefit. Rafizi had done a dishonorable act violating BAFIA which did not benefit anyone but had brought great concern and worry to a highly regarded banking and financial system. Rafizi had lied, misrepresented and distorted the bank documents to allude that loans were taken for eight KL Eco City office lots. In Rafizi's effort to melodramatise his accusations, the bank documents that he had illegally obtained breached the provisions of BAFIA under Section 97(1). Rafizi obtained the bank documents without the permission of the account holders, the bank nor the permission of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the governing regulatory body. BNM Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz told Bernama at the height of the breach, "The confidentiality of customer information is clearly protected by the Banking and Financial Institution Act 1989." She pointed out that it was an offence under the Act for any officer of the bank to disclose any information relating to the account of its customer, and banks have in place control and effective processes to ensure compliance with this secrecy provision. Zeti added that it was only when there is a suspected offence under federal law or if there is a court order or where a customer has given consent, that relevant law enforcement agencies are authorised under the law to obtain information. This information must be obtained through BNM, and if the central bank says there is no foundation for it, the information will not be given. "Shafee & Co needs to understand that the BAFIA was never intended to be used to conceal or prevent the exposure of criminal acts," said Rafizi's lawyers But were there any wrong doings in those bank documents that Rafizi distributed to the media? It would appear that BNM and the Attorney General absolutely do not think so. That's why they did a dawn raid on Rafizi on 1 August, and had him arrested and charged. We are told no loans were ever taken by NFCorp or its directors for the KL Eco City properties which Rafizi announced at a news conference to suggest there was such a case. In fact, the personal bank loan documents given by Rafizi to the media went as far back as 2005, years before NFCorp was established and 2008, years before KL Eco City properties were even launched for sale in 2011. On that premise, Rafizi had not only breached BAFIA, he even breached the Evidence Act where banking information not connected to NFCorp had been presented to allude to wrongdoing. He lied, misrepresented and distorted his evidence. The debate heats up as audiences await if Rafizi would go to trial. Arguments abound aplenty. Who does the average bloke believe from the debate running wild and wanton on the Internet landscape? As founder of MARAH Dave Avran once expressed in Free Malaysia Today, "Clearly, there is manipulation of social media channels to form public opinion. Whilst Malaysians are quick in assuming that there are always hidden hands in every picture, we are also quick to judge on issues. "Have we had all the complete facts of the case to mull over and evaluate before commenting?" Looking at the comments section of some of the Internet news portals would have us think not. Almost every outpouring comment for Rafizi is not based on researched facts but riled and emotional sentiments. The facts have yet to be presented in court. The AG would be well armed and Malaysians would know the truth at a trial. On a public relations note, Rafizi's lawyers have dug a deeper hole for Rafizi in this debate when Surendran and Latheefa went on to say, "The A-G and the central bank had instead 'disgraced themselves' for using BAFIA on Rafizi, adding that the young politician was likely only charged as his exposes on the NFC had embarassed and 'politically damaged' UMNO and BN." "Do they seriously suggest that the UMNO or BN government would have taken any action against NFC in the absence of the public pressure created by Rafizi's revelations of the banking transactions?" they asked. A bit out-of-line against the BNM, the AG and the ruling parties, would you not say? Rafizi's lawyers would need to look at the bank documents and check if there was any wrongdoing unearthed from Rafizi's revelations of the banking transactions. "Obviously Rafizi's lawyers have misplaced their decorum. These are not the kind of statements to express insults against the BNM and AG on the Internet platform. It's tantamount to waging open war in the media. Malaysia's well-respected banking and financial systems should not be compromised whatsoever for political dramas and sensationalism. This is not only our view but that of the chief executives of many banks as well as the chairman of the Association of Banks in Malaysia who came out in media news reports to emphasise that client confidentiality or secrecy must be upheld at all cost, said Datuk Seri Dr Shafee. Rafizi has been charged under Section 97(1) of the BAFIA, for allegedly disclosing customer account profiles detailing the balance summaries of NFCorp, the National Meat and Livestock Corporation Sdn Bhd, Agroscience and Industries Sdn Bhd and NFCorp chairman Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Salleh Ismail. BAFIA's Section 103(1)(a) would also cause Rafizi to be fined a maximum of RM3 million and jailed up to three years if found guilty. This would seriously stumble Rafizi's chances of standing as a candidate in the 13th general election that must be held by April next year. About the Writer Fabiani Azmi is an avid reader of Malaysia Today, intelligent mainstream newspapers and Internet news portals. When not reading, he also enjoys the company of sapiosexuals. It's a highly stimulating discovery for him. Follow Fabiani Azmi at @FabAz88.
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| Posted: 12 Nov 2012 01:33 PM PST
The PM and DPM wished all Indians a very Happy Deepavali. Get your facts correct please. Malaysian not Asian okay! Oh you Chinese why do you only enrich yourselves when you can enrich your neighbours as well so that all can live happily and peacefully! Oh you Malays why do you always want the best of both worlds? Why can't you be more gracious and give some to the other Malaysians! Oh you Indians! Why do you slay one another and commit atrocities to your fellow Malaysians? There is so much for the taking if only Indians study and work hard like your God fearing forefathers who came to this land from India. Oh you Mamaks! (meant to be friendly not offensive) Why do you always play fiddle to the governments that are corrupt and their cronies. And why do your restaurants put up tables and chairs on the street until people can't park or use the streets at night! Oh you Satherjees! Why do you keep quiet and silent on so many matters that has engulfed the nation? Only Karpal and son seem to be lions of Khalistan! Where are the other Aslans that we so much need in dire times to uphold freedom and justice! Oh you Sarawakians! Why do still let your beloved state be plundered and your tribesmen be brutalized by a mere handful of crooks? All the more when these crooks are married to white and foreign men and women! Wake up and deliver Sarawak from evil less you too be destroyed with it! Oh You Sabahans! Why do you let illegal immigrants flood your land! Behold all you born in the land below the wind, make haste to flood them soon lest you be washed away in their flood! Last but not least Oh you Johor Bahru! Why have you literally become the anus of Malaysia! Not a day goes by that I cannot stop cursing all the people responsible for making my beloved scenic seafront home town that it was the quagmire that it is today! Woe to all of you especially all those corrupt and incompetent federal and state officials! P/S: Was watching the news on TV3 at 8PM on eve of Deepavali. A bit of advice to PM, DPM; kick your speech writers butts. The PM and DPM wished all Indians a very Happy Deepavali. Get your facts correct please. Only Indians of Hindu faith celebrate Deepavali and not all Indians! There are Indians who are Catholics, Christians, Jains, etc etc who do not celebrate Deepavali as it is a religious festival unlike the Chinese Lunar New Year. Saddens me that even after more than a century of Indians being in Malaya/Malaysia our leaders still can't get this simple and basic racial, religious and cultural facts right! And woe to all you Malaysians who read this and do nothing about making Malaysia better! But blessed be them who rise up to the occasions when they are needed! God Bless!
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