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Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

Malaysians in Britain eager to vote
Bersih, Pakatan accused of using dirty tactics
Fong not contesting in GE13
EC: GE13 not dirtiest, but the best
GE13: Intense horse-trading among PKR hopefuls
GE13: Fernandez: Segamat surrender an act of treachery
RPK’s articles hurt my reputation, says lawyer
Malaysian Police Ready Two Election Plans
Undecided candidates?
Najib sets up Malaysian poll thriller
'400 armed sultanate supporters arrive in Sabah'
Rais: OK to use state assets ahead of campaign
Umno mulls straight fights with DAP, banks on Malay vote
Spending soars as BN sets out to conquer ad space
GE13: Temperature rising in Johor
PKR’s Dr Teo beats DAP to seat claim
Polling Day has been set for May 5

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 07:37 PM PDT

(Bernama) - LONDON: More than 70,000 Malaysians are now residing in United Kingdom (UK). Some are studying in colleges or universities and mostly working. Many have brought along families and have been staying in UK for more than a decade.

With the polling date for the 13th General Election (GE13) set on May 5, and Malaysians overseas for the first time allowed to vote as postal voters, Malaysians in Britain are eager to exercise their rights as voters.

Bernama's writer had the opportunity to look into the preparations being made by Malaysians in London for the GE13 as postal or absent voters.

"As of 24 March 2013, a total of 839 Malaysians have registered as postal voters in UK to vote during GE13," explained Malaysian High Commissioner to Britain Datuk Seri Zakaria Sulong to Bernama when met in London recently.

This is the first time in the country's election history, Malaysians have been allowed to vote from another country. Previously, only civil servants stationed overseas had the privilege of voting in absence but not the other employees and students.

Zakaria expects the number of Malaysian voters in London to increase on the run up to the election.

"Those who have registered as voters have to be at the High Commission office to certify their identity through their IC or passports before they are handed over their voting slip, on the polling day meant for postal voters,"explained Zakaria.

The Election Commission (EC) has set an early polling date for postal and absent voters on April 30.

The postal voters voting for the first time in UK will be receiving voting slips based on their respective parliament and state assembly seats.

Yet there are other loyal Malaysians who are planning to return home for the GE13 to vote at the respective polling centres.

Nevertheless, the postal vote facility helps to save cost as they don't have to waste money on air tickets to return home and there is no need to take long leave to be back home to vote in GE13 and the subsequent elections.

Moreover, postal voters need not have their fingers marked with indelible ink according to Zakaria because of the limited numbers of voters and as there is only one voting centre in London, the Malaysian High Commission.

A Malaysian, Wan Nur Suryani Firuz Wan Ariffin when met at the Kings College campus at The Strand, London, pointed out how easily she registered as a postal voter.

"It just took me a short while. I went into the EC website as required and submitted my application, received a message that my submission has been received in less than 10 minutes," explained Wan Nur who is into her sixth month of her Phd degree in telecommunication engineering at the prestigious college that boasts for 25,000 undergraduates and postgraduates.

When asked if her application to vote was successful, Wan Nur nodded with asmile.

"Alhamdulillah. I definitely want to vote in PRU13. Me and my husband who works at the immigration section of the Malaysian High Commission here will exercise our rights as citizens," he added, while walking to a restaurant for a tea break.

Meanwhile, S.Devina from Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, who continued her stay in Britain after completing her studies also concurred with Wan Nur that registering as a postal voter was easy.

"When is the election? I have been waiting all this while, and have been asking on the date. When ever I meet fellow Malaysians, I ask the same question," said Devina with a giggle.

Devina, who is fluent in the Malay language, is attached to the Southeast Asian and African Studies (SOAS) Department at the London University in Bloomsbury, got to know of the postal voting and the registration process involved through social websites.

"I welcome the opportunity to vote given to Malaysians overseas. This is a wise move of the Malaysian government. As soon as I heard of the announcement, I was exhilarated and waited for the postal voting registration to be activated,"added Devina when met at the Brunei Gallery, located right opposite of the SOAS building.

Malaysians working for locals or multi nationals in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia also underwent same registration process recently.

While the returning officer is in charge of the polling centres, the polling centre at the High Commission will be managed by an official and his assistant both appointed by the EC.

Apart from that, the agents for candidates also given the opportunity to observe the voting process like back home.

A clerk will be appointed to counter check the voters list at the polling centre in London and hand over to the voters the respective ballot papers.

After receiving the ballot papers, the voter then proceeds to the polling booth to make his choice and the marked ballot is then cast into a bag.

After the voting is closed, the bag will be taken by the official back to Malaysia using the fastest route.

"From London's Heathrow, there are two return flights to Malaysia daily, therefore the ballot papers can be dispatched speedily," explained Zakaria.

After the ballot papers arrive in Malaysia, they will be sent to the respective Parliament and state assembly polling centres.

Those who have registered as postal voters should take advantage of this opportunity introduced recently by the Malaysian government.

Malaysia is among a handful of countries that now allows its citizens to vote from outside.

Apart from that many of the outstanding contention that haunted the voters hither to will be over once they mark the ballot papers.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had signed a MoU with Transparency International to monitor and ensure GE13 freely and fairly to fulfill the Malaysians aspirations

Bersih, Pakatan accused of using dirty tactics

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 07:04 PM PDT

Former Transparent International-Malaysia president Tunku Aziz claims election agents and voters have been trained to create chaos on polling day.

Alyaa Azhar, FMT

Former Transparency International-Malaysia (TI-M) president Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim today urged Bersih and Pakatan Rakyat to state their stand on the purported strategies designed to create "chaos" on polling day.

"We have received related documents that appear to indicate that there are plans by certain parties to disrupt the 13th general election by creating chaos and besmirching the Election Commission [EC] to undermine the public's confidence in the integrity of the democratic electoral process.

"Training sessions, known as PACABA, have been conducted for polling and counting agents by the NGO Tindak Malaysia. One particular aspect of such training sessions is to teach the voter to guard the secrecy of his or her vote," he said.

He further claimed that people are being trained to demand for random ballot paper in order to guarantee the secrecy of their votes.

Tunku Aziz said asking for random ballot paper means that a voter will demand for a ballot paper from the middle or bottom of the pile and not the one on the top.

"The people attending such training are encouraged to challenge the election clerks on duty of committing an electoral offence if they refuse to issue a random ballot to the voter, while polling agents have been trained to support such a request by the voter.

"These people are specially trained to cause trouble and when the police have to intervene and remove the people involved, this would make it look like the election is dirty and video recordings of such instances will attract a lot of international attention," claimed Tunku Aziz.

He said that such training sessions have been conducted at various places, in "certain state-owned venues under the administration of the Pakatan state governments."

"They are teaching people to make a mockery of the democratic system. These are also strategies to demonise the EC and to make Malaysia look like a country run by a bunch of dictators.

"We have also seen an internal PKR document dated Dec 15, 2012 which lists out various steps to create chaos and dissatisfaction against the EC on polling day by raising repeated protests at the polling station so as to cause the other voters waiting in the queue to be unhappy and dissatisfied with the EC," he said.

Negative perception

He said this is to delay the entire voting process thereby causing long queues at certain designated polling stations.

"All these are designed to cast a negative perception on the EC and stir public outrage against the EC, bringing it into disrepute.

"The PKR document and what that has been promoted by Tindak Malaysia show how easily chaos can be created at polling stations on polling day," he said.

Tunku Aziz also urged Bersih co-chairperson S Ambiga to state her stand in the issue.

READ MORE HERE

Fong not contesting in GE13

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 06:23 PM PDT

The Batu Gajah MP cited personal reasons for her decision and said that she had informed of her intentions to Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh in September.

G Vinod, FMT

Batu Gajah MP Fong Po Kuan will not be contesting for any seat in the 13th general election.

She cited personal reasons for her sudden departure from mainstream politics.

"I have informed party adviser and chairman, Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh, of my intention way back in September itself," Fong said in a statement.

However, she vowed to play her role as a DAP leader to ensure Pakatan Rakyat captures federal power in the general election.

She also conveyed her appreciation to the party and voters of the Batu Gajah parliamentary constituency for giving her the opportunity to serve them since 1999.

"I would like to thank reporters and civil servants who have assisted me in serving my constituents over the years," said Fong.

On what is her future plans, Fong said with a chuckle, "Look for a job."

Fong won the Batu Gajah parliamentary seat for the first time in 1999 general election, held after the sacking of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Not only was she the youngest elected MP then, Fong also won the seat with a majority of over 2,000 votes.

Since then, Fong has made her mark as an outspoken MP and even earned the monicker "cili padi".

However, Fong almost quit politics in the run-up to the 2008 general election but was persuaded to stay on by Lim.

It was said that she made the decision after having a fallout with the Perak DAP leadership.

On March 25, several DAP members, on condition of anonymity, alleged that the Perak DAP leadership would be sending Fong to contest in Johor, in an attempt to bury her political career.

EC: GE13 not dirtiest, but the best

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 06:11 PM PDT

EC chief Abdul Aziz Yusof says contrary to the opposition's claims, the coming polls will be the best ever.

Leven Woon, FMT

Election Commission chairman Abdul Aziz Yusof has dismissed the opposition's claim that the 13th general election will be the dirtiest polls ever, saying that the EC has put in place various reforms to ensure the integrity of the contest.

Commenting on the claims that the frequent occurrence of political violence is a sign that the country is heading towards the dirtiest polls ever, Abdul Aziz said detractors failed to see EC's efforts of introducing 19 new rules to improve the conduct of the polls.

The regulations included the indelible ink, registration of advanced voters and postal voters, allowing advanced voting for military personnel and spouses instead of postal voting, abolishing the process of protest on nomination day, and allowing the disabled to bring a companion to help them to vote.

"I disagree that it will be the dirtiest. We have put in place so many changes… So we hope it will be the best election ever held," he said.

Abdul Aziz was addressing media queries at a conference after announcing the nomination and polling dates.

He contended that the level of political violence "is not very serious" and hoped leaders from various political parties can advise their supporters and members to be rationale.

Using government asset to campaign

On the concerns of the caretaker government using state assets to campaign for party interests, he said each state by right should abide by the code of ethics imposed by respective state administrations.

"However, the code of ethics is only a guideline, it is not a form of stipulated laws which can be tendered in court," he said.

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 04:11 PM PDT

(The Star) - With just less than a day until the Election Commission (EC) announces the polling and nomination dates for GE13, PKR saw intense horse-trading by candidate hopefuls.

The PKR headquarters here was abuzz yesterday with potential candidates jostling and doing some last-minute lobbying for a place in the general election.

Journalists had also taken to camping out below the headquarters, waiting for any announcement from the party over the finalisation of their seat allocations as well as the candidates' list.

Party deputy president Azmin Ali had previously said that the seat negotiations between Pakatan Rakyat parties would conclude earlier this week before the the EC's announcement of the nomination and polling dates today.

However, it was not to be as it is understood that several seats in Johor, Sabah and Sarawak are still in contention.

This has not stopped many of the party's elected representatives as well as potential candidates from lining up to meet PKR's top guns president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin.

Both Anwar and Dr Wan Azizah, who were seen leaving the building together, were tight lipped over the candidates, with the president blaming her sore throat for declining to answer questions.

"This is just PKR's meeting on the general elections," said Anwar.

Meanwhile, Azmin told reporters that Pakatan should conclude their talks today, adding that they were already "so close" with less than 10 seats still in contention.

"That I think is already quite an achievement. We only have less than 10 seats left out of all the 222 parliamentary seats and 505 state seats in the country," he said, playing down talks of discord within Pakatan.

However, he expressed surprise when told that PAS had announced most of their candidates.

Negotiations with former Barisan Nasional men Datuk Seri Wilfred Bumburing's Angkatan Perubahan Sabah and Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin's Pertubuhan Pakatan Perubahan Sabah had also concluded and they would announce their candidates on Thursday and Friday, added Azmin.

GE13: Fernandez: Segamat surrender an act of treachery

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 02:58 PM PDT

(The Star) - An "act of betrayal and treachery." That's how DAP state deputy chairman Norman Fernandez described the surrender of the Segamat parliamentary seat to PKR.

"(DAP secretary-general) Lim Guan Eng must be answerable to party members in Segamat and Johor for this," he said when commenting on the announcement by PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that Johor PKR chairman Datuk Chua Jui Meng would be the opposition front's candidate in Segamat.

Norman's remarks came after the disbanding of Johor DAP candidates' selection committee, of which he was a member together with state chairman Dr Boo Cheng Hau and secretary Tan Chen Choon.

Segamat which has more than 47,000 voters and encompasses the state seats of Jementah and Buloh Kasap, is regarded as DAP's "traditional" seat in Johor.

Norman said the hand over of Segamat to PKR proved that the decision of the selection team to disband was correct and justified.

It is understood the panel had faced criticism over the way in which the party leadership "parachute" candidates at the expense of diehard local campaigners.

Among those who opposed the move were Johor DAP vice-chairman Ong Kow Meng and Mengkibol assemblyman Ng Lam Hua, who was reported to be dropped to make way for state Youth chief Tan Hong Pin.

Tan, who was earlier slated for the Pekan Nenas state seat, is expected to be moved to Mengkibol to help secure votes for prospective Kluang parliamentary candidate Liew Chin Tong, the incumbent Bukit Bendera MP in Penang.

Norman said Chua had no desire to contest a state seat, proving that he was a state chairman who had neither the confidence nor the gumption to contest any seat allocated to his party.

"Instead, he only covets DAP seats. This speaks volumes about the candidate for Segamat," he said.

Human Resources Minister and MIC deputy president Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam has been the MP for Segamat Barisan Nasional since 2004.

Dr Boo said PKR should give up one of its parliamentary seats as a replacement for Segamat.

He said DAP would only contest six parliamentary seats in Johor compared with 12 by PKR, with PAS taking eight seats.

A total of 26 parliamentary seats and 56 state seats are up for grabs in Johor.

Among the parliamentary seats PKR would be contesting are Johor Baru, Tebrau, Batu Pahat, Muar, and Segamat while Gelang Patah and Kluang would be contested by DAP.

RPK’s articles hurt my reputation, says lawyer

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 02:33 PM PDT

(The Star) - Lawyer Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah contended that his reputation was tarnished due to the publication of three defamatory articles by Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin.

His lead counsel S. Ravindran said Muhammad Shafee had given evidence of his reputation during the hearing on assessment of damages in his defamation suit in chambers yesterday.

Speaking to reporters later, Muhammad Shafee said he had also given a copy of his curriculum vitae to the court.

"The CV shows what sort of reputation I have," he said.

Muhammad Shafee added that the articles were still available on the website although the court had held it was defamatory.

Raja Petra's lawyer Jadadish Chandra said he had asked Muhammad Shafee on the appointments and awards he had obtained after the publication of the articles on Aug 6, 7 and 11, 2008.

"He continued to get awards. He even got a Datuk Seri award in 2009. There was no damage (to his reputation) as alleged," he said.

Senior assistant registrar Farah Hana Hashim ordered parties to send written submissions by May 9 for assessment of damages.

In February 2011, Muhammad Shafee succeeded in getting a judgment against Raja Petra over three defamatory articles.

High Court judge Justice John Louis O'Hara held that the offending words in the articles were false, malicious and defamatory of Muhammad Shafee.

Muhammad Shafee made an application on Jan 26 for the disposal of his August 2008 suit based on a point of law without going for a full trial.

Malaysian Police Ready Two Election Plans

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 02:29 PM PDT

One if Anwar wins, the other if Najib does

Other sources say that the mood inside the "war room," or election headquarters at the United Malays National Organization is brimming with confidence. "I don't know why," an independent source said. "They must know something."

John Berthelsen, Asia Sentinel

For the first time ever, according to sources in Kuala Lumpur, the Royal Police have formulated two contingency plans for the night of Malaysia's 13th general election, expected to be on April 27 or after.

The first, a source said, is "how to whisk the Prime Minister from the Putra World Trade Center where the Barisan Nasional is holding its election night celebration, back to Sri Perdana, the Prime Minister's residence, safely in the event that the Barisan Nasional loses, or if there is trouble." The second, the source said, is how to bring Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim from his home to the palace to be sworn in if the opposition were to win.

Implicit in both of those plans are questions whether there will be violence started by the losing side.

Both plans are unprecedented because there has never been a time in the 57-year history of the country when anybody thought the opposition might actually win. It still may not. But the fact that the plans are in place is an indication that even the police think the election is too close to call.

A call to ACP Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf, the assistant director of management for public relations at the national police headquarters at Bukit Aman in Kuala Lumpur, to ask about the plans went unanswered.

"How it will pan out is something else - whether Anwar is allowed to be sworn in if he wins, etc." a source told Asia Sentinel. "But the fact that they have these contingency plans in place would suggest that despite the confidence shown by Najib and UMNO leaders, it is going to be a very close race."

Undecided candidates?

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 02:21 PM PDT

(Sin Chew Daily) - Candidate selection has always been a problem for the ruling and opposition parties in election. The situation in the BN, however, is more complicated than Pakatan Rakyat, particularly the BN is adopting the strategy of fielding only candidates with high winning odds this time.

It is puzzling that the BN has started from a relatively easier task, namely vote canvassing, and leaves the thorny problem of candidate selection until the last minute. Deciding the candidates first can at least leave room for remedy if they receive strong rebound from local members or an outbreak of factional problem. However, deciding the candidates only when it is close to the nomination day will leave no space to save the situation once there is an error.

Finalising the candidate list earlier also allows them to start the election campaign earlier, instead of leaving component party leaders and their grassroots to keep guessing.

It is unusual this time. BN leaders Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin have respectively met retired civil servants and education practitioners on Monday. Najib had also visited Perak on Tuesday. The previous practice was, BN chairman would call for a meeting with component party leaders to decide on candidates once the Parliament was dissolved.

Uncertainty is detrimental for the BN. For instance, it was widely rumoured that the People's Progressive Party (PPP) leader M. Kayveas, instead of a Gerakan member, would contest for the Kepong parliamentary seat. In this case, Kepong Gerakan would stop canvassing for the candidate.

Similar situation takes place in Gerakan's Kota Alam Shah (Selangor) and Jalong (Perak) state seats, as well as MCA's Kuantan (Pahang), Wangsa Maju (Wilayah Persekutuan) and Gelang Patah (Johor) parliamentary seats, and Kota Laksamana (Malacca) and Tronoh (Perak) state seats.

It is chaotic in Bandar Tun Razak even before the election. Banners opposing MCA's Datuk Seri Tan Chai Ho and his son can be seen in that area as the candidate has not yet been decided. The DAP has decided to field Liew Chin Tong to contest for the Kluang parliamentary seat, while there is no official announcement yet from the MCA on whether to field Datuk Dr Hou Kok Chung or Gan Ping Sieu.

If undercurrent within the party is not subsided as soon as possible, dissatisfaction emotions would be brewed and spread. It could then lead to an obstacle and thus, it is necessary to immediately pacify and appease them. The BN has not done enough in this part.

Of course, Pakatan Rakyat also faces the candidate selection problem, particularly in the front-line state of Johor.

After missing for 18 days and claimed he was homeless, Johor PKR chairman Chua Jui Ming returned and was named the PKR candidate for the Segamat parliamentary seat. And now, it is Johor DAP's turn to be unhappy. State DAP deputy chairman Norman Fernandez lashed out at secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and demanded him to explain to party members in Segamat, while describing the surrender of the Segamat parliamentary seat to PKR as an "act of betrayal and treachery".

It was reported that Johor DAP candidate selection panel chairman Dr Boo Cheng Hau has quit, along with Norman Fernandez and Tan Chen Choon. Sources said that they were unhappy when state DAP youth chief Tan Hong Ping was fielded by party central leadership to contest in Mengkibol state constituency.

In addition, Johor PKR is facing a problem, too. For example, the grassroots are not happy with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's decision to field former army chief Jen Tan Sri Md Hashim Hussein to contest for the Johor Bahru parliamentary seat.

However, there is still time to calm down and Pakatan Rakyat's candidates for Johor state seats have gradually unveiled, while the BN's candidate list is still undecided.

If the nomination day really falls on 20 April, the BN would then have only 10 more days to finalise its candidate list. In politics, one day could be one year. It is a misstep of the BN.

Najib sets up Malaysian poll thriller

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 01:45 PM PDT

Anil Netto, Asia Times

Malaysians are gearing up for what are expected to be the most closely contested general elections in the country's history. Prime Minister Najib Razak announced the dissolution of parliament on April 3, ending nearly two years of speculation over when the polls would be held. The Election Commission meets this week to set a date for polls, which must be held within 60 days.

Najib's earlier reluctance to call an election likely reflects his ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition's hesitation faced with the resurgent challenge of the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) opposition coalition. Parliament's current five-year term expires on April 28; no previous premier has ever dissolved the legislature so close to the end of its term.

Some political analysts believe the opposition is poised to make historic gains, or even win the election outright. PR won five of 13 national states at the 2008 general election, notching nearly 47% of the popular vote for federal level parliamentary seats. The result denied the BN a two-thirds parliamentary majority needed to change the constitutional and represented the BN's worst yet electoral showing.

The then prime minister Abdullah Badawi took responsibility for the slippage and handed the premiership to Najib the following year. Najib, who has not yet faced the electorate as BN's leader, has fared well in opinion surveys, despite a significant erosion in public perceptions of the wider BN coalition and its associated politicians. A Merdeka Center poll from February showed that popular support for the ruling coalition had fallen below 50%.

Najib has governed under the heavy shadow of former premier Mahathir Mohamad, who ruled with an iron fist for two decades from 1981-2003 and publicly sparred with Badawi during his tenure. Despite certain reforms, including abolishment of the notorious Internal Security Act (only to have it replaced by a new security law that also allows detention without trial), Najib's administration is viewed by many as carrying much of the legacy of Mahathir's old order, characterized by corruption, patronage and environmental destruction.

At the same time, Najib has notably shied from public debates with PR leader Anwar Ibrahim, who was famously sacked as finance minister and later imprisoned on corruption and sodomy charges under Mahathir after the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

In the wake of the opposition's 2008 electoral gains, Anwar vowed to bring down the BN government through parliamentary defections that never materialized. He faced down new charges of sodomy - a criminal offense in predominantly Muslim Malaysia - that many analysts believed were politically motivated to drain his coalition's political momentum.

Najib has warned that voting for the opposition would represent a step backward for economic reform and that a PR-led government would subvert the US$400 billion Economic Transformation Program (ETP) his government launched in 2010. The policy aims to lift Malaysia to high-income nation status by 2020.

Officials have pointed to rising household incomes, up from 4,025 ringgit (US$1,315) per month in 2009 to 5,000 last year, as indication of the policy's early success. Those income gains have been padded by a series of government hand-outs, including pay hikes and other financial perks for civil servants and employees of government-linked companies and agencies, that critics have said are tantamount to vote-buying.

Higher household incomes, opposition critics argue, mask the net economic pinch of faster-rising costs of living, including inflation in the prices of basic foods, education, health care and rental properties. They argue that the ETP policy is ultimately unsustainable and has wholly failed to address the still yawning income gap between rich and poor.

Over the weekend, Najib promised a raft of new handouts if elected, including direct cash payments to unmarried Malaysians of voting age, reduced car prices and a 20% reduction in Internet service charges. He also promised a pan-Borneo highway project to match the one on offer by the PR.

For its part, the PR has vowed to scrap the New Economic Policy, a race-based affirmative action program to uplift the economic position of the majority Malays and other indigenous groups known as bumiputras, long championed by the BN. The NEP expired in 1990 but its race-based philosophy has continued to underpin BN's economic policies.

Minority ethnic groups, including Chinese, who make up 25% of the population, and Indians, who represent around 7%, believe the policy has purposely discriminated against them. Only 34% of the Chinese population now supports the BN, according to the Merdeka Center poll. The PR has said it will replace the NEP with a non-ethnic, needs-based approach that will broadly assist the poor, including many bumiputras.

The PR has targeted the BN's history of official corruption and political favoritism, promising a more clean-hands approach to governance. By plugging corruption and leakages and reducing gas subsidies to independent power producers, the PR promises to save 46 billion ringgit lost each year to leakage.

This money saved, the coalition says, would be used to raise oil royalty payments to the oil-producing states where many of the poor in Malaysia live to 20% from the current 5%. The PR also wants to abolish highway tolls and study loans while providing free education and more affordable housing.

Despite these campaign promises, the PR is no shoo-in to win. ''It is going to be very hotly contested but hopefully we can go for a change,'' said Abdul Rahman Kasim, information chief for PR's PAS party in Penang state's Tasik Gelugor division. ''But it is very unpredictable… They are told if they vote for other parties they will lose [ethnic] Malay supremacy.'' The Islamic party PAS is one of PR's three component parties, the other two being Anwar's People's Justice Party and the Democratic Action Party.

'400 armed sultanate supporters arrive in Sabah'

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 01:43 PM PDT

ARMED. A captain of the Royal Security Force displays his bladed weapon inside their camp in Simunul, Tawi-Tawi. File photo by Karlos Manlupig

(Rappler) - At least 400 armed men from Mindanao arrived in Sabah to help the Royal Security Force (RSF) of the sultanate of Sulu who are faced with a full military offensive by Malaysian authorities, a member of the sultanate said on Tuesday, April 9.

Princess Jacel Kiram, daughter of Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, said these men volunteered to pursue the fight not just for the Sabah claim but also for Filipinos who allegedly continue to suffer from human rights abuses there.

"These are not members of the RSF. They volunteered to fight," Kiram said.

Kiram said the reinforcements reached Lahad Datu in two batches -- on March 20 and April 5.

Kiram's claim could not be independently confirmed at this time.

There have been no reports from Malaysian media about this arrival - a contingent that is twice the number of RSF members, estimated to be about 200, that first sailed to Lahad Datu in February.

On April 1, Malaysia activated the Eastern Sabah Security Command, a body tasked to watch the 1,400-km coastline of Sabah villages Lahad Datu, Kudat, Tawau, Kunak, and Sandakan.

After violence erupted between the Sabah claimants and Malaysian authorities in Lahad Datu, Malaysian security forces launched a crackdown on RSF members in Sabah -- setting up checkpoints and arresting those without proper documents. This caused a mass evacuation of Filipinos over fears of getting caught in between the conflict.

Sabah evacuees recounted stories of human rights abuses against Filipinos, especially against Tausugs.

At least 70 people have been killed since violence erupted in Lahad Datu, according to Malaysian authorities. As of April 7, a total of 135 individuals have been arrested under the Security Offences Act of 2012, state news agency Bernama reported.

Rais: OK to use state assets ahead of campaign

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:50 PM PDT

(Bernama) - An interim government has the right to use government machinery as long as campaigning for an election has not started, said Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim.

According to him, when the Election Commission announces nomination day and the campaigning period, only then government machinery cannot be used for party purposes.

"However, government machinery for administration and executive functions remain as normal. Only for campaigning government machinery cannot be used," he said.

Rais told this to reporters after making a walkabout together with street performers and members of Karyawan around Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Masjid India here yesterday.

He further explained that although the Dewan Rakyat had been dissolved, government departments and agencies could still function as normal as this was provided for by Articles 38 and 43 of the Federal Constitution, which cover the institution of the Malay rulers and functions of ministers

"Now we are in a situation of a caretaker government, the government is still in existence... all ministries and government departments continue to function as normal," he said.

However, he said after nomination day, all government departments and agencies cannot take part in any programmes that involved political parties.

Rais also said that the 10 minutes' airtime to be given to political parties to present their respective manifestos on Radio Television Malaysia (RTM) was a one-off offer.

He said no more airtime would be given to them during the campaigning period for the 13th General Election. He explained that based on discussions between the ministry and the Broadcasting Department, the time given (10 minutes) was enough, and in fact was longer than the five minutes given for this previously.

He said 10 minutes was enough to present five pages of text of single spacing.

"So in 10 minutes, the parties can forward their policies, contents of their manifestos and pledges," he told reporters after making a walkabout together with street performers and members of Karyawan around Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Masjid India here today.

As such, Rais said he hoped the opposition parties, which had turned down the offer, would change their minds as the opportunity was being given fairly to all political parties.

On another matter, Rais said he supported caretaker deputy prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's statement today calling on the National Fatwa Council to review all statements made by PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat relating to Islam.

"...this is a big matter...shocking and has never happened before...it is only right that the deputy prime minister ask the council to clear the matter," he said.

He was referring to the statement by Nik Aziz in which the Kelantan Menteri Besar had allegedly said that prayers by Umno members would not receive "pahala" (divine merits) and that the Barisan Nasional (BN) built mosques because of contracts.

During the walkabout, Rais also handed over a RM20,000 contribution to Karyawan and 80 1 Malaysia netbooks to street performers.

He also said the ministry planned to come up with a special insurance scheme to cover street performers as had been done for actors, artistes and other mainstream entertainers.

He added that the ministry and Kuala Lumpur City Hall were also working closely to ensure street performers gained the proper recognition and opportunities to raise their standard of living.

Umno mulls straight fights with DAP, banks on Malay vote

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:47 PM PDT

MCA president Dr Chua has refused to step up to contest in Gelang Patah.

(The Malaysian Insider) - Umno plans on fielding their candidates either in all of the DAP seats or most of them as the Malay vote is more dependable than Chinese support, say strategists.

The Malaysian Insider understands the Barisan Nasional (BN) war room believes Umno candidates can beat back the DAP attack in Johor and other Malay-majority states rather than MCA hopefuls.

"Umno candidates have a better chance of keeping BN seats than the MCA, so we're looking into pushing more Malay candidates," a ruling coalition source toldThe Malaysian Insider.

DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang is spearheading the move into traditional MCA seat Gelang Patah while party strategist Liew Chin Tong is eyeing the Kluang seat. Johor PKR chief Datuk Seri Chua Jui Meng has also been named for the Segamat seat held by MIC.

It is learnt that BN will use the race card in the strategy against Pakatan Rakyat's (PR) Chinese candidates, especially in the Umno bastion state of Johor where the coalition won 80 per cent of the Malay vote in Election 2008.

"The MCA stands zero chance of winning any battle with the DAP. So, we can definitely beat DAP with our Malay support and at least 25 per cent Chinese support," another BN source told The Malaysian Insider.

The Sin Chew Chinese daily had reported this week that MCA will "lend" its seats to Umno in Election 2013, in what is seen as an acknowledgement that the BN Chinese party is not confident of winning its seats.

MCA won only 15 out of the 40 federal seats in contested in Election 2008. It has also said it was swapping the Tronoh seat in Perak with MIC, which also suffered major losses in the 2008 general election.

But the move has not gone down well with MCA grassroots, who fear they will not get back their seats in future elections and reduce their power in the ruling coalition.

Spending soars as BN sets out to conquer ad space

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:39 PM PDT

(The Malaysian Insider) - Barisan Nasional (BN) and the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) spent at least RM73 million last month on advertising, as the ruling coalition launches an advertising blitz to keep Putrajaya in what is set to be the most expensive general election ever.

The PMO spent RM67.8 million on advertising last month according to data from consumer analysts Nielsen Media Research, earning itself the top place among advertisement spenders, well ahead of the RM43 million spent by classifieds, and the RM25 million each spent by Nestle and Unilever Malaysia.

Another report by Maybank Investment Bank (IB) Bhd last month noted that the PMO was also the top ad spender in February 2013, with its RM36.1 million spent comprising seven per cent of total gross advertisement expenditure (adex).

BN was ranked 45th in the Nielsen ranking, spending RM4.9 million in March. It also appeared in the top 20 spenders list by Maybank IB with roughly the same amount spent.

The Nielsen data is, however, based on the higher non-discounted rates, and does not include spending on billboards and digital advertising, where BN's spending was highly visible to Malaysians in recent months.

BN has gone on the offensive in the online advertising space early for this election, spearheaded by the BetterNation theme. The @barisanasional Twitter account started tweeting from May 2012, and has been featured as one of Twitter's "Promoted Account".

GE13: Temperature rising in Johor

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:30 PM PDT

(The Star) - Temperatures are rising in Johor which has been in the spotlight for several days with DAP heavyweight Lim Kit Siang contesting the Gelang Patah parliamentary seat, and now with PKR state chairman Datuk Chua Jui Meng slotted to take on MIC depuuty president Datuk Seri S. Subramaniam in Segamat.

But just when the question of Chua's candidacy seemed to have been settled, Lim appeared to have thrown a spanner in the works.

Lim Kit Siang throws things into disarray with 'condition' for giving seat

Opposition Leader and PKR adviserDatuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced last night that Chua would contest the Segamat parliamentary seat, but Lim in a press statement made it clear that DAP's agreement to this hinged on the two parties settling disputes on all seat allocations in Johor.

Even so, Chua's candidacy seemed all but certain.

Chua "disappeared" for two weeks after DAP adviser Lim was named as the candidate for Gelang Patah which the former MCA stalwart had apparently been eyeing.

Subramaniam, the Human Resources Minister, was the Segamat MP before the dissolution of the Dewan Rakyat on April 3, and is expected to defend the seat.

Chua admitted that it would not be easy for him to win over the voters in Segamat on very short notice.

"It is going to be a challenge for me as the voters are very different from those that I have been working with in Gelang Patah. But with full support from the local PKR and other Pakatan leaders in the area, I am confident we can win the seat," he said yesterday.

Datuk Seri S. Subramaniam has accepted a healthy challenge from Jui Meng

The Malays make up 43% and Indians 10% of voters in the constituency, with the rest being Chinese and a smaller number of Orang Asli.

In Putrajaya, Dr Subramaniam said that Chua was a "good friend" when the former Health Minister was in Barisan Nasional.

"He was one of those who campaigned from house to house for me, Now he is going to campaign against me.

"I'm looking forward to a good and healthy fight and I think that we (Barisan) stand a good chance of winning," he added.

Dr Subramaniam became a two-term MP in Segamat after defeating DAP's Pang Hok Liong by a majority of 2,991 votes in 2008.

He believed that the support of the Indian community for Barisan had increased since the last elections.

In Petaling Jaya, MIC secretary general Datuk S. Murugessan said the party was ready for the battle in Segamat "regardless of who we have to go against".

Datuk Chua Jui Meng says he's confident of wresting the seat from Subramaniam

He said that Subramaniam had worked hard to serve his constituents.

Meanwhile, Pang Hok Liong, who announced a few days ago that he would be fielded in Segamat, is expected to hold a press conference to express his displeasure over the latest development.

Pang, who had been contesting in Segamat since the 1980s, said recently that he was willing to give way to any PKR candidate except Chua, whom he described as a non-winner.

He has even threatened a three-cornered fight if Chua was to contest in Segamat.

PKR’s Dr Teo beats DAP to seat claim

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:28 PM PDT

(Borneo Post) - PKR Miri chairman Dr Michael Teo Yu Kheng yesterday put himself at the forefront to represent the opposition pact here by buying three sets of nomination papers and rolling out a brand new 4WD-Toyota Double Cab vehicle for his election campaign.

The bold move signalled PKR Miri's serious intention to win Miri parliamentary seat for Pakatan Rakyat (PR), as could be seen on the banner mounted on Dr Teo's newly-minted vehicle – Dr Micheal Teo Untuk Parlimen Miri.

It was a strong message to its PR partner DAP and the electorate that it wanted the seat despite earlier assertions by DAP's Lim Su Kien that she would go for the seat.

Lim's bid has been wrecked by internal political squabble in DAP Miri, in what was perceived by constituents as the high-handedness of the party's central body in handling dissent following differences in the party's choice of candidate.

The fallout, including the sacking of six key grassroots organisers, has resulted in a public backlash against Lim and the party, with the public giving lukewarm response to the recent four 'Ubah' talks in Miri.

Dr Teo contested and lost in the predominantly Bumiputera parliamentary constituency of Sibuti in 2008, but went within a whisker of winning in Senadin in the 2011 state election when he was beaten by a mere 58 votes by BN's Datuk Lee Kim Shin of SUPP.

His move may be seen as putting the cart before the horse because PR has yet to announce its candidates for Sarawak.

"I will also be hiring a small lorry to be converted into a mobile stage for election campaign," he asserted in a press conference yesterday.

Earlier on, Dr Teo lent his support to a group of 100 natives holding a demonstration at the car park of National Registration Department office here to demand that they be issued with identity cards.

Polling Day has been set for May 5

Posted: 09 Apr 2013 12:25 PM PDT

(The Star) - Polling for the 13th general election is on May 5 while nomination of candidates is on April 20.

This was announced by Election Commission chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak dissolved Parliament on Wednesday April 3, paving the way for the 13th general election.

The EC said all 222 parliamentary and 505 state seats will be decided on the same day.

Voters in Sarawak will not elect a new state assembly, as the current state government still has three years of its mandate left after the polls in 2011.

Earlier, the Election Commission began its meeting at 9.30am to finalise the polling and nomination dates for the 13th general election.

The much-anticipated press conference was covered by scores of print and TV journalists who arrived as early as 8.30am.

After a photo-shoot, the reporters waited at the media centre. They returned at 12.15pm for the press conference at which the dates were announced.

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

Rabu, 10 April 2013

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

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