Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
| What can Saiful’s father offer PKR? Nothing! Posted: 16 Mar 2013 02:30 PM PDT
What is the rationale in PI Bala, Deepak and Saiful's father being put to the fore by PKR, by Anwar, as a battering ram against Najib and Umno? CT Ali, FMT Mercenary, turncoat, scum, spin doctor, fiction writer, Umno mole! Even as I am being called these names, Saiful Bukhari Azlan's father Azlan Mohd Lazim joins PKR a day after insisting that his son was being used by several unscrupulous people, including a special officer to the PM, to fabricate lies against the de facto leader of PKR, Anwar Ibrahim. Now which part of S.T.U.P.I.D does PKR not understand? First PKR has Johari Abdul facilitating the press conference where Saiful's father announced that his son was being manipulated by the other side. The very next day, the same Johari Abdul is there again when Saiful's father announced that he is joining PKR. Now who is this Johari Abdul? He is the PKR member of parliament for Sungai Petani with a Master Degree in Strategic Studies. Simple rule of thumb for PKR in any future expose: if you want the Malaysian public to believe that Saiful's father did all that he did on his own volition, then do not have Johari or any PKR operatives near him when he makes the announcement. Better still, make sure no PKR operatives are even in the same room, same building, same locality. Why? Because when you do that, then right thinking Malaysians may believe that Saiful's father is doing it all on his own convictions. Then if he does want to join PKR, please lah, give a decent interval between that announcement and having a photo opportunity for Johari Abdul so that the Malaysian public may be persuaded that he joining the PKR has got nothing to do with him calling his son a liar who is being manipulated by unscrupulous men connected to Najib. But this Johari does not seem to have the ability to understand these simple niceties, and he has a Masters in Strategic Studies? Some of you cannot see beyond the tip of your nose, what more the ability to follow the chain of events of why and how things happen in this sandiwara and odious drama that passes for politics in our country. Ignorance I can understand, but stupidity I cannot tolerate. For me Najib Tun Razak, Umno and all that are remotely within its sphere of toxicity are a lost cause. So I would prefer to work on what is not yet a lost cause in as far as I am concerned. Pakatan Rakyat, PKR and Anwar Ibrahim are not a lost cause yet! They potentially can be the future we aspire to. They can potentially be the government we need in Putrajaya. They are our hope for change, but only if they are deserving of our trust and worthy of being leaders capable of good governance. We are not imbeciles He had the opportunity of being PM once – he was just a step away from it happening. All it would have taken for him to be Prime Minister then would not even be 10 % of the effort he has put in the last nine years to get where he is today. Now again he has been give this opportunity to be the PM designate if Pakatan Rakyat wins government in this 13th general election – and is he once again going to shot himself in the foot? Of course I am angry! How many politicians have a shot at the PM seat even once? Only Anwar had – and is he going to screw it up again? And why am I angry? Simply this – I have been blogging for the past three years and all this time I have worked on my blog for Anything But Umno (ABU). By default Anwar will lead Pakatan into the 13th general election to make ABU a reality because no one else, at this pointof time, can do it better. I am but one of the many thousands of people who have done work for ABU, for Pakatan Rakyat and for Anwar to be the change we want through what I write. However small my contribution has been, it has been work I have done because we have no other choice but Pakatan if we want a new beginning. And then we see the late P Balasubramaniam, Deepak Jaikishan and this Father of Saiful being put to the fore by PKR, by Anwar to be used by PKR and Anwar as a battering ram against Najib and Umno.
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| Posted: 16 Mar 2013 09:22 AM PDT
The long wait for the general election to be called is almost over as all the signs point to the Prime Minister making the big move this week. Joceline Tan, The Star EVERYONE thinks it is going to be any day now. They are, of course, talking about when Parliament will be dissolved for the general election. Last Wednesday, there was a mild speculation frenzy after the Prime Minister's black Proton Perdana Executive was spotted going through the Palace gates early in the morning. A Malay daily tweeted about it and soon the chatter was Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had sought the King's consent for the dissolution of Parliament. Najib did indeed have an audience with the King as he does every Wednesday before chairing the weekly Cabinet meeting, and many people had a good laugh at themselves after that. Speculation about the dissolution date has gone from "Is it going to be next month?" to "Is it tomorrow?" or even "Heard that PM is meeting the (Yang di-Pertuan) Agong this afternoon." The window is getting smaller and every little move by Najib is scrutinised and analysed for hints. But even those with access to him are flummoxed. "We keep watching PM's body language but no hints at all from him. When we ask him, all he says is, be ready," said Umno executive secretary Datuk Rauf Yusoh. A few days ago, PKR deputy president Azmin Ali tweeted that Parliament would be dissolved on March 18. But the opposition parties have been predicting the general election since 2010 and we are still waiting. The Prime Minister is as ready as can be, according to several top editors who met him at his office on Monday. It was a sort of tea-chat where they exchanged views over a variety of issues. And, of course, there was the burning question of the day: When? Nobody really expected him to say when but what came across during the exchange was how visibly confident Najib was. "He was upbeat, he looked at ease. I think he is ready. He has an impressive report card in terms of the Government's economic transformation policies. He has responded to the new political landscape in terms of social and political reforms. He's got his finger on the national pulse, he has reached out to everyone and he's tuned in to issues of the day," said one of the editors. Najib told them he is "cautiously optimistic" about Barisan Nasional's chances in the elections. It is a phrase he has used whether in private or in public. During a televised town hall-style session titled "Conversation with the PM" a few days ago, he had said: "I say cautiously optimistic because we cannot take anything for granted. But I am very encouraged by the people's response especially when I go round. At the same time, we have done our assessments, numbers and we believe the rakyat is behind us and the rakyat feel that their future is more secure with Barisan Nasional." He has put his heart and soul into his work and those close to him said he has every reason to be confident and that he has his sights set on regaining Barisan's two-third majority in Parliament. But like all seasoned politicians, he knows that this is the time when politicians are about to approach the people to ask for their precious votes and support. Humility is important and it is not the time to talk big or be presumptuous. Najib has often been described as a wartime prime minister given the challenging post-2008 political landscape. But the terror intrusions in Lahad Datu has lent an uncanny meaning to the sobriquet and he has been able to draw on his experience as Defence Minister in handling the crisis. He has been visibly saddened by the deaths on the battle front and his focus over the last few weeks has been as much on the situation in Sabah as it has been on the polls. The crisis is under control but far from over. It has also taken on a life of its own in terms of national impact. There has been a surging tide of nationalist and patriotic sentiments especially among the Malays. Many have been moved by the nightly reporting from the battle front and the televised replay of the Jalur Gemilang-draped coffins emerging from the belly of army aircraft as solemn military music played in the background. Malaysians have been galvanised by what is happening in Lahad Datu and what it means to the country's national security. They are angry there are people out there who have attempted to ridicule the gravity of the situation. For instance, Wong Chin Huat, a leading figure in the Bersih group and now working for a Penang government think-tank, had in the early weeks of the crisis tweeted that the Sulu intruders were here for Chinese New Year, they would be getting ang pows, they decided to stay for Chap Goh Meh, they enjoyed it so much they extended their stay. He probably meant it as a joke but it was not funny when people, especially our police personnel, began dying. PKR vice-president Tian Chua is facing sedition charges after dozens of police reports were lodged over his alleged remarks that the Sabah intrusion was a political conspiracy. Very few are keen to talk openly about how Lahad Datu will impact on the political prospect of either Barisan or Pakatan Rakyat. It would be in bad taste given that the armed forces are out there, putting their lives on the line for the nation. But the political mood in Sabah is very different today compared to a month ago and talk about "Ubah" or change has quietened somewhat. Pakatan leaders have been going on about how they are going to take Putrajaya. They have been reluctant to say how many seats they can possibly win to form the government but are making a concerted bid to win more seats in Johor, Sarawak and Sabah. They have been very strategic in focusing on these states where there are a sizable number of Chinese-majority seats because they have won all the Chinese seats that they could possibly win in other states on the west coast. But they have been tactically silent about the fact that Kedah and Selangor are looking wobbly. They may also lose seats in several other states that were won thanks to the political tsunami. For example, at least five parliamentary seats are expected to fall to Umno in Kelantan. In Penang, Umno is sure of taking back two parliamentary seats from PKR while in Perak, at least four Pakatan parliamentary seats are in danger. This means that the gains Pakatan makes in their frontline states may be negated by losses elsewhere. State seats usually carry parliamentary seats and if Kedah and Selangor fall, Barisan will be looking at a two-thirds majority. The general consensus is that Barisan will still be in Putrajaya after the general election. It will win with a comfortable margin but will fall short of a two-thirds majority. Besides, very few democracies in the world enjoy two-thirds majority governments. "Only the size of the majority remains uncertain," said Asli CEO Tan Sri Michael Yeoh. Yeoh put it in a nutshell when he said that there are basically three possible outcomes for the elections: > The status quo remains for Barisan at around 140 parliamentary seats. > A reduced majority for Barisan. > Barisan regains two-thirds majority. Najib, said Yeoh, will campaign from a position of strength that is premised on his personality, the hard work he has put in and his track record of policies and programmes. One of the reasons why Pakatan's recently launched manifesto has not had the traction of the earlier Buku Jingga is because of Najib's Janji Ditepati reputation, which has been in sharp contrast to Pakatan's excuse that "manifesto bukan janjian" (a manifesto is not a promise). He has shown that it can walk the talk and deliver on its word. "However, the urban voters are still largely with the Opposition. The urban Chinese support for DAP is strong and as high as 85% of urban Chinese may vote for it," said Yeoh. Umno, he said, will be the big Barisan winner and DAP will be the big Pakatan winner. Malaysian politics is likely to get even more racially polarised. It has been a long wait for the mother of all battles. During a pre-election briefing for the editorial staff a few weeks ago, this paper's group chief editor Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai asked how many in the auditorium were covering the general election for the first time. On seeing the number of hands, he said with a laugh: "Never mind, don't worry. The last five years have been one long election campaign." He is so right. It has also been five years of endless politicking over almost everything and anything. And just as you thought that it could not get any more complicated, you have Saiful Bukhari Azlan and his father Azlan Mohd Lazim contradicting each other on Saiful's sex allegations against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. But nothing could have been more stunning than how the Lynas campaign has unfolded. Lynas leader Wong Tack is now a DAP election candidate and he has veered from wanting to burn down the plant to okaying Lynas if it "goes through the front door". On the other hand, Anwar said Lynas may be allowed to operate but his PKR Wanita chief Fuziah Salleh went the opposite direction with a firm "No". The saying that fact is stranger than fiction has been all too true when it comes to politics since 2008. Publisher Datuk A. Kadir Jasin's gripe about some of the greenhorn politicians swept in by the political tsunami is that they have been like "ayam jantan baru belajar berkokok" (cockerels learning how to crow). "They not only crow at the wrong time, they are also out of tune and are a nuisance to the whole kampung," said Kadir. The result has been some questionable Yang Berhormats who have a talent for saying the wrong things at the wrong time about issues which they are less than qualified to talk about. Malaysians have had ample time to assess what the two coalitions are about. And that is why candidates are going to be a big factor in the elections. Najib will meet the King again on Wednesday prior to the Cabinet meeting. But this time, according to insiders, this might just be the day when he seeks His Majesty's consent to dissolve Parliament. If that happens, he will then return to inform his Cabinet before making a public announcement. The long wait is almost over.
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| Posted: 16 Mar 2013 09:20 AM PDT
Politicians and wannabe politicians have hijacked the green movement to pursue their political goals at the expense of genuine environmental concerns. Wong Chun Wai, The Star HIMPUNAN Hijau activist Wong Tack has found himself facing a barrage of criticism after deciding to contest under the DAP banner in the coming general election. His fellow members in the anti-Lynas movement feel let down because they see his decision as politically opportunistic. They want him to step down from the movement but he says it is unwarranted because Himpunan Hijau isn't registered anyway. He is even saying that his position as chairman is not an official position. But what Wong has not said is that all this while, he has been freely making press statements in that capacity. Dr Kua Kia Soong, adviser for human rights group Suaram, has expressed similar sentiments about Wong, saying the latter must step down. Dr Kua was a Chinese educationist who quit the United Chinese School Committees' Association of Malaysia (Dong Zong) in 1990 to contest under the DAP in the 1990 general election. He won the Petaling Jaya Utara parliamentary seat but he did not last long in the DAP as his idealism and uncompromising principles did not fit in the opposition party. The respectable human rights activist, who was detained under the Internal Security Act in 1987, left the DAP bitterly and ended up pouring out his frustrations in a book, Inside the DAP: 1990-1995. Dr Kua has returned to NGO activities. As he rightly wrote recently, "Politicians like to spout the platitude that 'politics is the art of the possible', but movements must bear pressure on them to make their demands possible. "Now, before Wong has even started his career as a politician, he is already faced with his first dilemma." Pakatan Rakyat chief (Datuk Seri) Anwar Ibrahim, Dr Kua wrote, "has demonstrated the 'art of the possible' by declaring that if Pakatan comes into power, Lynas will be given a chance to prove the plant's safety". Wong, when asked to respond to what Anwar had said, was quick to support the Opposition Leader's statement. That was a far cry from his earlier pledge to burn down the Lynas plant himself if Pakatan comes to power. That's precisely the trouble with NGO leaders, especially some activists in Penang, who decide to take a partisan political stand. They begin to make compromises and, worse, they begin to lose their neutrality as they openly side with Pakatan. At least one former NGO leader has taken up a Senator's post while others have been co-opted into various state government posts. Others cannot remember which hat they were wearing when they made statements. The only beacon that stands out in Penang, home of NGOs, is the Consumers Association of Penang, which has consistently spoken out about issues affecting the country and state. Unlike many NGOs which are actually one-man shows, CAP is professionally run and is focused on education and research. It does not need to flirt with politicians and has kept its credibility fully intact. Wong obviously owes the thousands of people who took part in the anti-Lynas protest walk an explanation. Was he using them to increase his profile so he could secure himself a candidacy? His commitment to the environment itself has now been questioned as he has maintained a stoic silence on the blatant raping of forests in Kedah and Kelantan, two states run by PAS, a partner in the Pakatan. Again, I quote Dr Kua in reference to NGO leaders who have wavered after becoming involved in politics: "Is it because they are so caught up with the political hoopla they have also stepped down a notch from their previous uncompromising stand? "It's time they found their own voice now that their erstwhile chairperson has gone on to pursue his political career." There have been high hopes that environment issues would play a major role in this coming election but it would appear that much of it has been tainted with political motives. Politicians and wannabe politicians have hijacked the green movement to pursue their political goals at the expense of genuine environmental concerns. Take, for example, the Bukit Koman gold mine issue. Purported environmental activists have claimed that the mine's use of cyanide caused medical problems among the residents nearby. Until now, however, not a shred of evidence has been produced to support their claims. Last year, DAP Kepong MP Dr Tan Seng Giaw, a skin specialist, said "there is still no evidence to show the occurrence of skin problems among Bukit Koman residents in Raub is linked to cyanide used in gold mine activities". "It is difficult to attribute the skin problems to a certain substance as it is a very slow process. I think we should approach this issue in a rational manner," he said. Yet, the same allegations have been recycled, with the hope that if a lie is told a thousand times, it will become fact. Interestingly, the gold mine employs over 300 local residents, and Barisan Nasional is claiming that most of the protesters are actually from outside Raub. It is also interesting to note that a gold mine operator in PAS-run Kelantan uses cyanide and actually explained its operations on its official website. But there's not even a whisper of protest against it from pro-Pakatan environmentalists, who seem to choose their targets. Two other gold mines in Pahang are said to also use cyanide but again they are not in the political spotlight. Bukit Koman, however, is in the Raub parliamentary constituency, which the opposition feels it has a chance of wresting from the Barisan. Environmental awareness is crucial and important. Malaysians must demand that protection of our environment be included as part of the national agenda. This newspaper has exposed wanton logging, illegal or otherwise, in Pahang, Kedah, Kelantan and Perak. We have highlighted the problems of the natives in Sarawak and incurred the wrath of politicians and developers over our reports on the excessive hill development in Penang. Then there is the never-ending issue of illegal sand mining in Selangor. Our reporters have been threatened by both sides of the political divide but that's the price we have to pay if we are to pursue the issue passionately. The Buku Jingga, for example, is totally silent on the customary land rights of the orang asli, public transport system and even a sustainable energy policy. Environmental groups and voters must insist on these when the Barisan unveils its manifesto.
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