Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- In Umno battle, Ali Rustam joins list of saviours protecting Malays from others
- PM Saves the World
- Interlok membara di Aswara
- Mind Your ‘Transformation’, Please!
- Making Corruption History – Cakap Kosong Je, ‘Jib!
- Lawyers question criteria for promoting judges
- Malaysia’s compromised electoral system
- EC must call for GE13 re-election
- DAP polls: Chin Tong tops the list
- ‘Beware of DAP’s gang of four’
- Malay History, Inferiority, and a Theory of Jealousy?
- Please prove us wrong then
- EC to announce Sungai Limau state by-election date on Oct 3
- Jamil Khir: ‘Shiah moles’ no power to change Islamic policy
- Mufti’s statement on ‘Malaynization’ regrettable – Leiking
- How the police won the RM6 billion turf war against RTD
- Ex-NST boss: Why, only now, is Anwar offering olive branch?
- DAP polls: Ngeh-Nga out of favour?
| In Umno battle, Ali Rustam joins list of saviours protecting Malays from others Posted: 29 Sep 2013 11:21 AM PDT
(TMI) - He said the biggest problem facing the country at this time was intolerance, and certain quarters were raising questions pertaining to equality and making comparisons with the special privileges for the Malays. "Some people just do not learn or respect. The Constitution lists in detail the Malay rights mainly, so stop questioning and respect the rights of the Malay," Add Umno vice-president aspirant Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam to the growing list of party officials who believe that the best way to win big in the party polls next month is to play the role of saviour to Malays under siege. The former Malacca chief minister, who blamed Chinese voters for his defeat in Election 2013, has been making the rounds to meet party delegates, using that loss and the current antipathy in Umno towards non-Malays to boost his chances of emerging as one of the three party vice-presidents in the October 19 elections. Other candidates in Umno such as incumbent vice-president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Umno Youth chief aspirant Akhramsyah Muammar Ubaidah Sanusi have also been playing the Malay rights card in this year's race. In an interview with The Malaysian Insider, Ali said his mission was to strengthen Umno against groups such as DAP and Chinese educationist group Dong Zong as only through political means can the Malays be kept safe. "Groups like DAP and Dong Zong are out to sideline Malay rights... they want to remove them from the Federal Constitution because they do not like it. But the Malays don't do such things towards other races," he said in a telephone interview. Ali said the demands of these groups were "unconstitutional". "This was what was feared before independence and it has now come true," he added. Asked if he intends to turn Umno into a right-wing Malay group akin to Perkasa, Ali said, "I do not want to refer to anyone, but we (Umno) have our own way of doing things." He said it was not necessary for Umno to emulate any Malay right-wing group or those calling for stern action to be taken against the alleged anti-Malay groups. "I will do things according to the Constitution, unlike some who have been very inconsiderate in their demands." |
| Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:46 AM PDT
Then the PM who refused to debate the Opposition Leader during the Malaysian election suggested to the UN, "All sides must come together to talk and work out solutions to problems together. It really is the only way!" Fake Malaysia News The Malaysian Prime Minister on the weekend called for an end to international violence and conflict. Speaking at the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) he addressed a captivated audience of foreign dignitaries. "What we all need to start doing," he explained solemnly, "is to try being nice to one another for a change. You know, just try overcoming our differences and getting along." The PM's wise words spread through the room and across the troubled earth like a healing balm. This message from a man on an unnecessary foreign junket, was the exact one the whole world needed to hear. "Allahu Akbah! The Malaysian Prime Minister is correct. Extremism isn't the answer!" said terrorists plotting in their caves and spontaneously disbanding. "We must change our ways." said the Jews controlling the money supply via the US Federal Reserve, "we must give Palestine their own sovereign state immediately and stop running the world by proxy!" "He is truly visionary" said the world's corrupt dictators and despots before stepping down, returning stolen assets to the people and calling fair elections. "Malaysia has lead the way!" said Russia, China and the US, disarming their nuclear weapons and agreeing to a harmonious future. "He is a bold man the Malaysian PM," a UN delegate told FMN, "I heard he tweeted in front of the Facebook CEO, then updated his Facebook status with the Twitter CEO. Now that takes cajones! It's a shame we don't have more technology savvy, astute leaders like him!" Read more at: http://fakemalaysianews.com/2013/09/30/pm-saves-the-world/ |
| Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:35 AM PDT
Kontroversi novel Interlok: Edisi Murid yang hangat mulai Disember 2010 nampaknya dihangatkan kembali. Bagaimanapun, pada kali ini, diberikan "twist" atau fakta dimanipulasi sesuka hati untuk menyampaikan gambaran yang tidak betul kepada khalayak. Uthaya Sankar SB, MMO Perkara ini berlaku semasa Seminar Sastera Pelbagai Kaum di Akademi Seni Budaya dan Warisan Kebangsaan (Aswara) pada 24 September 2013. Seminar dijadikan tempat untuk menegakkan benang yang basah. Pada mulanya, saya memilih untuk tidak mengulas mengenai perkara itu kerana tidak mahu "luka lama berdarah kembali". Akan tetapi, memandangkan isu sebenar dimanipulasi dan disajikan dalam versi "tidak benar" – sepertimana filem Tanda Putera (2013) – maka saya merasakan amat perlu untuk membetulkan fakta. Dr Lim Swee Tin yang menyampaikan ucaptama pada seminar bertema "sastera kebangsaan pemangkin perpaduan kaum" menyebut mengenai novel Interlok – tanpa menyatakan sama ada beliau merujuk pada versi asal (1971-2008), versi pelajar (2005) atau versi murid (2010). "Novel Interlok karya Sasterawan Negara Datuk Abdullah Hussain (Pak Lah) … novel yang mengambil kaedah realisme ini membuatkan orang kadang-kadang keliru bahawa ia sebuah teks sejarah. "Mengapakah karya sebaik Interlok yang telah ditolak keluar dari pagar sekolah tidak berani pula dibawa ke universiti-universiti dalam kalangan mereka yang boleh berfikir dengan matang dan dewasa?" Demikian kata-kata Dr Lim yang sudah dicalonkan oleh wakil Kumpulan Sasterawan Kavyan (Kavyan) sejak 2010 bagi Anugerah Sastera Negara yang membawakan gelaran Sasterawan Negara. "Berpolitikkah Dr Lim?" Demikian pertanyaan seorang rakan yang hadir sama ke seminar di Dewan Orkestra Aswara. "Eh, tidaklah! Saya setuju Interlok: Edisi Asal masuk IPTA. Wajar. Saya sokong," saya menjawab menerusi SMS sementara Dr Lim masih menyampaikan ucaptama dengan penuh bersemangat. Tentulah saya kurang bersetuju dengan kata-kata "ditolak keluar dari pagar sekolah" yang digunakan oleh Dr Lim tetapi saya setuju dengan persoalan "tidak berani pula dibawa ke universiti-universiti".
Menyalak tanpa tahu fakta Dalam kertas kerjanya yang lebih lengkap, Dr Lim berhujah: "Jika kabinet memutuskan ia (Interlok) perlu dikeluarkan dari sekolah, ia masih boleh digunakan di IPG-IPG, kolej dan universiti." Sewajarnyalah begitu! Dalam isu novel Interlok: Edisi Murid (2010), Kavyan sejak awal sudah menegaskan bahawa edisi asal yang terbit pada 1971 dan diulang cetak beberapa kali – terakhir pada 2008 – perlu dikekalkan dalam versi asal. Maknanya, tidak disunting, dicantas, dibuang dan "diperelokkan" bahagian-bahagian melibatkan watak-watak kaum tertentu sementara gambaran buruk melibatkan kaum lain dibiarkan; atau dijadikan lebih buruk! Saya menulis puluhan makalah berkaitan kontroversi novel Interlok: Edisi Murid sejak Januari 2011 dan boleh dibaca di blog saya. Sayangnya, puak yang bising dan menyalak ternyata adalah puak yang tidak (tahu) membaca. Malah, realiti yang melucukan dan amat menyedihkan adalah bahawa puak-puak yang kononnya mempertahankan novel Interlok adalah puak yang tidak tahu perbezaan antara Interlok edisi asal, edisi pelajar dan edisi murid. Sehari selepas seminar di Aswara, seorang kenalan berkongsi di Twitter bahawa "Dr Lim Swee Tin terkilan dengan drama yang dilalui Interlok. Uthaya sendiri mengakui, Interlok wajar dibaca di IPTA." Memandangkan hanya judul "Interlok" digunakan tanpa menjelaskan versi mana yang dimaksudkan, saya membalas dengan penjelasan berikut: "Harap maklum: Interlok Edisi Asal; bukan edisi yang disunting/dibuang sebahagian (oleh editor di DBP). Bukan juga edisi yang dibuang 20 halaman seperti dicadangkan Dr Lim." Untuk rekod, individu yang mula-mula sekali mengadu kepada saya betapa novel Interlok: Edisi Murid "tidak layak" dijadikan teks Komponen Sastera Dalam Mata Pelajaran Bahasa Malaysia (Komsas) ialah Raja Rajeswari Seetha Raman (20 Disember 2010). Pada Seminar Sastera Pelbagai Kaum (7 September 2012), penulis Bukan Melayu itu diangkat sebagai "satu-satunya penulis yang mewakili masyarakatnya" serta disarankan "masuklah Islam cepat-cepat dengan suami" berikutan kehebatannya menulis "sajak-sajak bertema Melayu dan Islam".
Dr Lim yang pernah digelarkan oleh Salbiah Ani sebagai "musang berbulu ayam" (Berita Harian, 3 Mac 2011) pula merupakan individu yang pernah mengemukakan cadangan supaya "penyuntingan berhemah" dilakukan ke atas novel Interlok: Edisi Murid dengan alasan novel itu "terlalu panjang" untuk dijadikan teks Komsas. "Penyuntingan yang dilakukan adalah amat minimum kerana ia hanya melibatkan pembuangan 20 halaman. … Novel Interlok: Edisi Murid didapati terlalu panjang, iaitu sebanyak 426 halaman," katanya dalam suatu cadangan rasmi (bertulis) yang dikemukakan pada Februari 2011. Berbalik kepada paparan menerusi Twitter pula, seorang wartawan sebuah akhbar arus perdana mengemukakan pertanyaan: "Yang edisi pelajar pun nak kena ubah/buang 100 perkara. Kalau edisi asal, berapa ratus perubahan pula?" Ya, memang susah melayan "orang bodoh yang menyangka dirinya pandai". Puak jahil seperti inilah yang sering menggunakan kehebatan serta kelebihan kebodohan mereka untuk mengelirukan orang ramai. Pada Januari 2011, Gabungan Persatuan Penulis Nasional Malaysia (Gapena) pernah membuat resolusi bahawa walau sepatah perkataan pun tidak mereka izinkan disunting dalam novel Interlok. Pertanyaan logik yang saya dan Kavyan kemukakan adalah "tidak boleh membuang walau sepatah perkataan dalam Interlok edisi asal atau edisi murid?" Kami berani bertanya kerana hanya golongan yang memahami isu sebenar serta sudah membaca ketiga-tiga versi (edisi asal, edisi pelajar dan edisi murid) tahu hal sebenar. Semasa kontroversi Interlok: Edisi Murid sedang hangat pada 2011, beberapa pensyarah tampil mengatakan bahawa pelajar-pelajar sarjana di universiti pernah mengkaji novel berkenaan. Ya, Mak Cik dan Pak Cik! Perkara itulah juga yang ditegaskan berkali-kali oleh saya dan Kavyan. Jadikan Interlok: Edisi Asal sebagai teks kajian sastera, sosio-budaya, politik, etnik dan sebagainya pada peringkat sarjana muda, sarjana dan kedoktoran di universiti. Pada masa yang sama, tolong jangan memalukan pangkat "pensyarah" dengan tidak tahu membezakan antara edisi asal, edisi pelajar dan edisi murid. Bolehkah, Mak Cik dan Pak Cik? Semasa Seminar Sastera Pelbagai Kaum di Aswara, Dr Ding Choo Ming yang berkali-kali mengaku dirinya hanya pakar kajian teks tradisional, turut tidak melepaskan peluang memperkatakan mengenai novel Interlok. Tentunya tanpa menyebut edisi mana yang dimaksudkan! Dalam kertas kerjanya, Dr Ding memetik pandangan Neil Khor dan Mohd Khaldun Malek yang disiarkan dalam jurnal Malay Literature: Interlok Special Issue (Vol. 24, 2011): "… if there are some passages in Interlok that some segments of Malaysian society finds offensive, the answer is not the wholesale rejection of the novel or the censoring of the so-called 'offensive' passages, but an intelligent conversation or critical appraisal of the novel. There is nothing wrong for teachers or students to disagree with the writer."
Semasa membentangkan kertas kerjanya, Dr Ding – yang suka membuat lawak "bodoh" untuk mengundang tawa berpanjangan daripada hadirin – menekankan frasa "jangan ditolak, jangan disunting" untuk mempertahankan novel Interlok dijadikan teks Komsas. Hujah-hujah yang dikemukakannya sangat tidak relevan kerana tokoh sastera tradisional itu ternyata tidak sedar bahawa novel Interlok: Edisi Murid (2010) sudah pun disunting daripada Interlok: Edisi Pelajar (2005) dan sangat berbeza dengan edisi asal (1971-2008). Lebih melucukan dan memalukan apabila Dr Ding memetik hujah Neil dan Khaldun dari halaman 194 jurnal Malay Literature. Malangnya beliau gagal membaca fakta yang dipaparkan oleh mereke berdua di halaman 191 pada makalah dan jurnal yang sama: "To fit into the reading capacity of Malaysian high school students, the novel had to be 'edited' to a suitable length. … these editors also decided to expunge what they considered the more controversial bits out." Gambaran yang masih cuba diberikan puak tertentu – dan ternyata disokong secara membuta-tuli oleh Dr Lim dan Dr Ding – adalah seolah-olah kaum India, Kavyan dan saya yang mendesak novel Interlok disunting. Mereka "menyembunyikan" fakta sebenar. Atau mereka tidak tahu fakta sebenar. Saya tidak pasti sampai bilakah manipulasi fakta akan dilakukan untuk memberikan gambaran seolah-olah "kaum tertentu" yang bersalah dalam peristiwa novel Interlok: Edisi Murid disunting. Kepada Dr Lim, Dr Ding dan pakar-pakar lain, usah dilupakan bahawa arahan yang disampaikan kepada Panel Bebas Mengkaji Pindaan Novel Interlok (Februari 2011) adalah supaya "buatlah seberapa banyak suntingan yang perlu, asalkan novel ini kekal sebagai teks Komsas". Usah lupa bahawa Kavyan yang mendesak secara berterusan supaya nama Pak Lah dicetak pada kulit novel Interlok: Edisi Murid – lihat edisi kulit biru (2011). Kavyan juga yang memperjuangkan supaya hak cipta (copyright) novel Interlok: Edisi Murid tetap dipegang oleh Pak Lah. Usah pula lupa bahawa pada Januari 2011, Pak Lah sudah memberikan izin agar perkataan sensitif dalam novel Interlok: Edisi Murid dibuang; tetapi pihak tertentu mendesak izin itu ditarik balik "demi mempertahankan maruah pengarang Melayu". Kepada Mak Cik dan Pak Cik yang budiman, kalau mahu membuka kembali kisah kontroversi novel Interlok, sila buka sepenuhnya. Bukan dibuka sekerat-sekerat. Buruk padahnya!
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| Mind Your ‘Transformation’, Please! Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:27 AM PDT
Looking at the definitions of persons who can be held liable under the PCA, you can see that almost anybody could qualify. As such, an amended PCA allowing for detention without trial can certainly be abused. In the wrong hands, it could take into detention more than just criminals. Kee Thuan Chye "Transformational" is getting to be a hollow word. And the Cabinet ministers who brandish it at will don't seem to understand its meaning. Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi just showed he doesn't when he said the bringing back of detention without trial in the newly proposed Prevention of Crime (Amendment and Extension) Bill was "transformational". Was he using it simply to be in fashionable sync with the Government Transformation Programme? Is something retrogressive transformational? Is a return to the provisions of the repealed draconian Emergency Ordinance (EO) and Internal Security Act (ISA) transformational? If it is so, then Malaysians are in for a big surprise. And a nasty one too. Both acts were considered reprehensible to the public, and therefore the Government was forced to remove them. But that was before the 13th general election was called. Now that it's over, the Government apparently sees no more need in appeasing the public. Pre-election pledges have gone out the window. A government that is transformational would not hark back to the dark days of Mahathir Mohamad's reign, when fear was the instrument used to keep people in line. It should instead be demolishing Mahathirism and restoring the damage done to our institutions. No wonder Mahathir is applauding the Bill and blaming the public for "not (being) that developed or educated to appreciate that the law is for their own good". But then, that's Mahathir. Always blaming other people. And always asserting that might is right. The new Bill proposes detaining a suspect for an initial two years, after which period if a review finds that the suspect should be detained further, he will be held for a further two years. This could go on indefinitely in a series of two-year periods. In this sense, it is no different from the EO and the ISA. The difference is that the detention order will now be decided by a three-member Crime Prevention Board headed by a judge. It will no longer be the decision of the home minister. The board's members will be appointed by the King – of course, at the recommendation of the prime minister. The unjust part about it is that the suspect will not be allowed legal representation during the inquiry to decide whether he should be detained. And if the board decides to detain the suspect, he will not be provided the grounds for the detention. Worse, the newly proposed Section 7C(a)(i) provides that one of the things the board shall consider when deciding on detention is that the suspect has previously committed two or more serious offences. It, however, would not matter if the suspect had been convicted of those offences or not. This gives immense power to the officers handling the inquiry, and subjects the suspect to their mercy. If you consider that even criminals are human beings and should have rights, you would think twice about condemning them to such a bleak situation, especially when they are not even allowed to have a lawyer to represent them. But Zahid assures us that despite all this, the Bill provides for a judicial review, i.e. if the suspect feels he has been wrongly detained, his lawyers "are given a chance to bring their case to court for a review". This sounds good on paper, but in real-case situations, it would still disadvantage the suspect. First, the act of detention without trial takes away his right to being considered innocent till proven guilty. Second, if he were truly innocent and got hauled in by mistake, he would still have to spend time in detention while his case was being brought to the High Court. Nobody relishes such an ordeal. Third, and perhaps most important, if the suspect is not provided the grounds for his detention, and the board is granted the option to decline providing any information to the court because it would be against the public interest to do so, how will the review be made? Read more at: http://my.news.yahoo.com/blogs/bull-bashing/mind-transformation-please-081233452.html |
| Making Corruption History – Cakap Kosong Je, ‘Jib! Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:21 AM PDT
Here is President Obama's (asset declaration), available publicly at: docstoc.com/docs/156786412/Obama-Financial-Disclosure. The simple eight-page report lists his assets and income, transactions during the year, gifts received (he had none), liabilities (his home mortgage), and contracts he is a party to (his old faculty appointment). M. Bakri Musa In San Francisco recently, Prime Minister Najib confidently declared "to make corruption part of Malaysia's past, not its future." The man's delusion never ceases to amaze me. The reality is of course far different; corruption defines the Najib Administration. Nonetheless if Najib is serious, then he should heed Tengku Razaleigh's call for Najib to declare his assets. Otherwise it would be, to put it bluntly in the vernacular, "Cakap kosong je 'Jib!" (Empty talk only!) Tengku Razaleigh's suggestion, if implemented, would do far more good than all of Najib's lofty declarations of "changing organizational as well as business cultures" or creating "a new governance and integrity minister" and "elevating the anti-corruption agency." Malaysians have heard all those ad nauseum, not only from Najib but also his predecessors. If after doing what Tengku Razaleigh had suggested Najib still aspires higher, he could begin by getting rid of those tainted individuals in his administration. Then if he is really committed to clean and effective governance, he should select only those with unquestioned integrity and solid accomplishments to be his new ministers and advisors. As Najib is slow to grasp concepts, let me elaborate on those three simple suggestions. Consider asset declaration. Najib does not need yet another highly-paid consultant advising him how to do it. There are plenty of effective models out there, including one recommended by the OECD. The simplest is the one used by American officials including the president, cabinet secretaries, and Supreme Court judges. It covers their spouses and all dependent children. Here is President Obama's, available publicly at: docstoc.com/docs/156786412/Obama-Financial-Disclosure. The simple eight-page report lists his assets and income, transactions during the year, gifts received (he had none), liabilities (his home mortgage), and contracts he is a party to (his old faculty appointment). Simple yet effective! As the declaration is filed annually, citizens could tract any sudden ballooning of assets, income, or extra-generous gifts that could prompt further enquiry, as well as monitor contracts and activities that could pose as potential conflict of interest. Obama and his senior officials go further; they release their full income tax returns annually. If Najib were to do likewise, rumors of his wife buying million-ringgit rings and getting extravagant gifts would not have arisen, indeed they were baseless. If Najib's ministers were also to declare their assets, then we would not have the silly specter of a cabinet minister feigning ignorance of her husband's quarter-billion ringgit government-funded business, as Shahrizat tried to do recently. The pathetic part was that she truly believed that the public would buy her swiftly-concocted story. Beyond publicly declaring his assets, if Najib aspires for a clean administration, then he should remove those tainted individuals in his administration. Since Najib is blind to reality, I will help him identify such proven shady characters. Read more at: http://www.bakrimusa.com/archives/making-corruption-history-cakap-kosong-je-jib |
| Lawyers question criteria for promoting judges Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:18 AM PDT
(TMI) - Six top judges are slated to be promoted to the Federal Court and Court of Appeal today against a backdrop of unhappiness in Malaysia's Bar Council for not being consulted on the latest judicial appointments. The Bar Council is unsure whether these judges are being promoted on merit or seniority. In today's promotion, Court of Appeal judges Datuk Seri Abu Samah Nordin, Datuk Ramly Ali and Datuk Seri Mohamed Apandi Ali will be elevated to the Federal Court. High Court judges Datuk Seri Zakaria Sam, Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim and Datuk Umi Kalthum Abdul Majid will be promoted to the Court of Appeal. The council, which covers all lawyers in West Malaysia, also feels it should have been consulted as it is an important stakeholder in the administration of justice in the country. One view is that it harked back to 1988 when the dismissal of then Lord President Tun Salleh Abas sparked a judicial crisis. "There was no communication due to bad relationship between the (Bar) council and the judiciary then," past council president Ragunath Kesavan told The Malaysian Insider. Current council president Christopher Leong when contacted said neither his nor the council's views were sought this time. "I am only invited to attend the oath taking ceremony for the judges at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya tomorrow (Monday)," he told The Malaysian Insider yesterday. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/lawyers-question-criteria-for-promoting-judges |
| Malaysia’s compromised electoral system Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:13 AM PDT
The EC is listed under the Prime Minister's Office on the PMO website. It's not the "foreigner watch", which I personally think is racist and problematic, that Malaysians should be most concerned about. The truth is that much of the election was already won before polling day. And what we should be most concerned about are the numerous amendments that have systematically opened up the electoral system to manipulation. These worrying amendments have also placed the Election Commission (EC) under the ruling party's control. Ding Jo-Ann, The Nut Graph OUR electoral system is in a mess. This I got from attending and volunteering with the recently concluded Bersih People's Tribunal on the 5 May 2013 general election. Many have touted the 13th general election since independence (GE13) to be the most hotly contested in our nation's history. That's a fair assessment. Tensions rode high amidst talk of illicit ballot boxes and "foreigners" impersonating voters. However, it's not the "foreigner watch", which I personally think is racist and problematic, that Malaysians should be most concerned about. The truth is that much of the election was already won before polling day. And what we should be most concerned about are the numerous amendments that have systematically opened up the electoral system to manipulation. These worrying amendments have also placed the Election Commission (EC) under the ruling party's control. What are some of the most damaging provisions in these amendments, and how did they come about? EC's independence A crucial element in ensuring a fair election is an independent EC. This has been under threat from the very start even before independence was attained. EC members are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. In our constitutional democracy, that means that the prime minister advises the monarch on who gets selected as an EC member. The Reid Commission originally proposed that these appointments enjoyed "the confidence of all democratic political parties and of persons of all communities". This specific wording, however, was watered down by a working group of British officials, rulers' representatives and Alliance members. It now reads that EC members must "enjoy public confidence"[1]. This broad and vague wording dilutes the EC's independence because it reduces the standard of acceptability for an EC member. The original wording would have ensured that an EC member must have the confidence of both government and opposition parties, and also that of Malaysia's multiethnic community. The current phrase in the law in fact makes the standard of appointment much lower. Indeed, there have been accusations that the EC now functions as a government department and not as an independent, impartial body. Currently, all seven EC members are retired civil servants. To compound matters, the EC is in fact listed under the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on the PMO website. The EC's deputy chair, Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar, has also described himself as a government servant "to this day". Read more at: http://www.thenutgraph.com/malaysias-compromised-electoral-system/ |
| EC must call for GE13 re-election Posted: 29 Sep 2013 10:05 AM PDT
We take it that RoS is a government agency with integrity and are following procedures according to the law of this country whereby party elections are deemed void when a handful of members make complaints to them without any real proof of wrong doings. We conclude that this kind of action by RoS is acceptable by the government and applies to all other agencies that deal with elections. Richard Loh Which is more important and critical in a democratic nation, a General Election or a political party election? From what we observed in this nation, political party like Umno and its component BN parties have been postponing their party elections due to an impending GE13 hovering between last quarter of 2011 to 2013. This indicates that General Election is more important and critical that over rides any matters in a political party.The overwhelming perception is that the laws of this nation can be manipulated, misrepresented and realigned to suit those in power. As they are only perceptions we will not take them as face value and assume that no one is above the law and those in power are acting accordingly and abide by the law. "RoS acted on the complaints of several disgruntled members who claimed the December election was not properly conducted after the party announced that a tabulation glitch had resulted in the wrong candidate being elected to the CEC." reported by The Malaysian InsiderAccordingly, RoS must have investigated the matter and came to the conclusion that DAP must hold a re-election. Their conclusion is not transparent without providing what exactly DAP has done wrong to insist that they hold a re-election but just base on complaints from a handful of members and an unverified anonymous handbook. Read more at: http://ousel.blogspot.com/2013/09/ec-must-call-for-ge13-re-election.html |
| DAP polls: Chin Tong tops the list Posted: 28 Sep 2013 11:55 PM PDT
The 20 members elected into the CEC were the same as the ones elected in the December polls although there were some differences in the final ranking and votes obtained today. P Ramani and Leven Woon, FMT The DAP central executive committee (CEC) re-election today produced a major surprise with its Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong claiming the top slot in the 20-member list with 1,438 votes. Liew received more votes than DAP giants such as parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and chairman Karpal Singh. Kit Siang obtained 1,436 votes while Karpal bagged 1,421 votes, taking the number 2 and number 3 spots respectively. Guan Eng who held the number two spot in the December election dropped to number 5, with only 1,304 votes. The 20 members elected into the CEC today were the same as the ones elected in the December polls although there were some differences in the final ranking and votes obtained in the re-election today. The party's office bearers would be selected from these 20 elected leaders. However no major changes are expected in the party leadership line-up. Ten other leaders will be appointed to the CEC. Major gainers Also making significant improvement in the ranking were Ipoh Barat MP M Kulasegaran and Seputeh MP Teresa Kok, who obtained 1,088 and 1,127 votes today, up from 984 and 925 they got last time. Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari remained the sole elected Malay candidate, but saw his votes increased from 803 to 1,132. In contrast, Taiping MP Nga Kor Ming and Beruas MP Ngeh Koo Ham recorded a tremendous drop in their votes, as they rooted to the bottom two elected positions with 956 votes and 809 votes respectively. Nga and Ngeh bagged 1,075 and 824 votes respectively in the last round. Their sudden drop in ranking seems to suggest that a widely circulated ouster attempt targeting them have taken effect. The re-election was held today after the Registrar of Societies (ROS) had declared the December polls as invalid following mistakes in vote tallying.
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| ‘Beware of DAP’s gang of four’ Posted: 28 Sep 2013 11:51 PM PDT
Disgruntled ex-Teratai rep Jenice Lee says Karpal Singh, Lim Kit Siang, Lim Guan Eng and Tan Kok Wai now hold immense power to decide the fate of all DAP elected reps. Leven Woon, FMT Former DAP's Teratai assemblywoman Jenice Lee alleged that DAP is now being run by a powerful gang of four that could make arbitrary decisions that overrule the party constitution. She told reporters that the gang involves DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, chairman Karpal Singh and deputy chair and disciplinary committee chief Tan Kok Wai. "They control everything in the party, the candidates, the organisation, etc. They no longer refer to the party constitution when deciding whether something can or cannot be done. "If they can make such arbitrary decisions, what for do we need our party constitution?" she claimed at the sidelines of the DAP central executive committee (CEC) elections today. She said for example, she has appealed against the party's decision to sack her in April within the stipulated 14-day period, but she never received a formal letter informing her the reason behind her sacking. Lee was accused of being involved in a corruption scandal, an accusation she vehemently denied. DAP then decided to drop her in the 13th general election in May, but she contested as an independent candidate against DAP and BN opponents. This resulted in her being sacked from the party. She also lost in the polls. However, in a turn of events, the Registrar of Societies declared that the party's elections last December as null and void, hence she was reinstated as a member as the body which sacked her was deemed unconstitutionally formed. As a result, she is entitled to vote in today's re-election as a delegate.
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| Malay History, Inferiority, and a Theory of Jealousy? Posted: 28 Sep 2013 11:46 PM PDT
by Azly Rahman Interesting proposition although I did giggle silently uncontrollably reading it.
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| Posted: 28 Sep 2013 07:49 PM PDT
The rakyat want answers to many of these questions from the government so that they can try to understand why some of these measures need to be continued. If we don't want to rectify them, how can we make that quantum leap and not risk making the same mistakes? Azam Aris, Fz.com SUCCESS in the future, almost always, depends on the ability to acknowledge the mistakes of the past, learning from them and not repeating them. But this seems a difficult thing to do in the case of the various socio-economic bumiputera empowerment programmes that have been introduced since the launch of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1970. Have we not learned from the mistakes of the past then? A fair assessment will show that the NEP and its various reincarnations – the National Development Plan (1991-2000), the National Vision Policy (2001-2010) and the current New Economic Model (NEM) – have yielded many successes. The NEP's main objectives – and that of the preceding policies – were to eradicate poverty irrespective of race and correct imbalances in society though affirmative action and the restructuring of employment patterns. As bumiputeras comprise the majority of the poor, the affirmative actions have a heavy bumiputera agenda. These include providing more opportunities in vocational and tertiary education, and special vehicles to create a viable bumiputera commercial and industrial community (BCIC), and restructuring of ownership in the corporate sector. Overall, these national policies have managed to nearly wipe out hardcore poverty and reduced the poverty level to 2%-3%. (However, this is based on an official poverty income level of about RM800 per household per month. Many argue that if the level were to be raised to between RM1,000 and RM1,500, the percentage of the poor will increase dramatically). The policies have created a larger pool of bumiputera professionals – doctors, engineers, accountants, managers, economists, academicians, IT experts, scientists – and increased the middle-class population. Bumiputera equity in the corporate sector has increased from a dismal 2% to over 23% but the efforts have so far failed to increase the size of the BCIC, including small and medium-scale enterprises, and grow the pool of talented, able and resilient members. So what does the community want now? Certainly, it is not just about poverty eradication and income alleviation. Depending on which groups they represent and their priorities, these could include wanting the 30% corporate equity to be achieved by 2020. Others argue a lot more needs to be done on a fast-track basis as the bumiputeras' corporate stake is only between 12% and 14%, and not 23% as stated by the government. Some want a bank for bumiputeras to be reintroduced, more university places, job opportunities, notably at managerial level, and tighter control of the supply chain so that the SMEs can have more businesses to sustain their commercial viability. They also want a bigger share of government businesses and contracts and for government-linked companies (GLCs) to have a specific key performance index on the bumiputera agenda. Another demand is higher ownership of property assets, notably residential and commercial. Can many of these measures be implemented within the existing bumiputera agenda's ecosystem, notably in the context of the NEM and the government and economic transformation programmes? No, according to many bumiputera pressure groups and the ultras in Umno, who have become increasingly more vocal after the last general election (GE), when Umno performed better even though its Barisan Nasional coalition registered its worst ever showing. They want the bumiputera agenda to be pushed further as part of the reward for keeping Umno in power. And reward it is. On Sept 14, when launching the new initiatives, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had this to say: "Based on the support of the Malays in GE13, the government has decided to take a quantum leap to implement concrete and thorough strategies and approaches. We call this bumiputera economic empowerment and it is to safeguard the community now and forever." The agenda focuses on five main thrusts: • Empowering bumiputera human capital; • Strengthening bumiputera equity in the corporate sector; • Strengthening bumiputera non-financial asset ownership; • Improving bumiputera entrepreneurship and businesses; and • Strengthening the services delivery ecosystem. To increase bumiputera equity in the corporate sector, Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) will launch Amanah Saham Bumiputera 2, which if fully subscribed, would pool RM10 billion from the community. Equity Nasional Bhd will play a greater role in helping bumiputera companies list on Bursa Malaysia. These measures will be implemented and monitored by the Bumiputera Economic Council chaired by the prime minister. The BEC replaces the Bumiputera Agenda Action Council. If one looks at the overall thrusts, they have been present within the present eco-system for many years. Why are they not effective then? How will they be more effective now? That is what we need to find out so that the rakyat – Malays, Chinese and Indians – know what the weaknesses are and why they have not been rectified over the years? Instead of just asking for more, the bumiputera pressure groups should be holding a special Bumiputera Economic Congress to analyse the failures and weaknesses of the past. Is it at the implementation stage? Why did we fail to create a more resilient BCIC? Have agencies like Mara and Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Bhd failed in this respect? What is their success rate? Was it wrong to sell NEP vehicles like Pernas and UDA – which originally had an important socio-economic bumiputera agenda role to play – to individuals? Why did Bank Bumiputera Bhd fail? How have all the previous bumiputera entrepeneur funds performed? What is the contribution of the successful bumiputera billionaires and multi-millionaires who are beneficiaries of the NEP to the BCIC's cause? How many entrepreneurs have been groomed by the likes of Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary, Tan Sri Rozali Ismail, Datuk Mokhzani Mahathir and Tan Sri Shahril Shamsuddin? Equally, have the GLCs, especially those controlled by PNB, been effective in helping to create a more resilient BCIC? How about the abuse part of it? Are there still many contracts given to those who are less capable but have close political links? How many of these contracts were later sub-contracted to Chinese businessmen and not to able bumiputera companies? Are there still many sleeping partners in the Ali-Baba (Malay-Chinese) joint ventures? Have the Malay car dealers stopped selling their approved permits to the Chinese car dealers? Shouldn't those who abuse the system be penalised and never again be given business opportunities? The rakyat want answers to many of these questions from the government so that they can try to understand why some of these measures need to be continued. If we don't want to rectify them, how can we make that quantum leap and not risk making the same mistakes? The government should also not play the equity chasing game if there are not enough resilient BCIC members. It is most unproductive if contracts are dished out and equity transferred to those who are less capable, in seeking to meet the 30% target. Read more at: http://www.fz.com/content/please-prove-us-wrong-then#ixzz2gHHTyx70 |
| EC to announce Sungai Limau state by-election date on Oct 3 Posted: 28 Sep 2013 07:44 PM PDT
(The Star) - The Election Commission will meet on Thursday to decide and announce the date for Kedah's Sungai Limau state seat's by-election. The by-election was triggered by the death of its assemblyman and former Kedah Mentri Besar Tan Sri Azizan Abdul Razak (pic) on Sept 26. In a statement, the EC said that it received a notice Sunday from the Kedah Legislative Assembly Speaker Datuk Md Rozai Sapian to inform the commission of a vacancy in the constituency following the death of Azizan. The meeting will start at 10am at the EC headquarters in Putrajaya and will be chaired by the commission's chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof. A press conference to announce the nomination and by-election dates will be held after the meeting ends. Meanwhile, in ALOR SETAR, Md Rozai said the by-election was likely to be held before the Kedah 2014 Budget meeting in mid-November. The state's four-day budget meeting is scheduled to be held from Nov 18. However, he stressed that the final decision on the date rested with the EC. Sungai Limau's incumbent Azizan had died due to blood infection and multiple organ failure at the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital intensive care unit. The by-election must be held within 60 days of the incumbent's death.
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| Jamil Khir: ‘Shiah moles’ no power to change Islamic policy Posted: 28 Sep 2013 07:39 PM PDT
(MMO) - Minister Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom is unfazed by claims that Shi'ites have infiltrated government religious departments, saying any such follower would not have the power to manipulate national policies. The minister in charge of Islamic affairs also warned Muslims against accusing others of being Shiah followers without sufficient evidence, to prevent any perceptions of unfair prosecution. "Actually, the question of manipulating policies does not arise... Our policies are not only made by one party," Jamil Khir told reporters after a charity golf event in Kota Kemuning here. The minister in the Prime Minister's Department explained that there are fatwa councils in every religious departments, whether at state or federal level. "At every level there are check and balances... It becomes a factor that will streamline each other," he added. A local Muslim non-government organisation (NGO) leader claimed yesterday that Shiah followers are infiltrating federal and state religious departments to manipulated religious policies in their effort to take over as Malaysia's foremost school of Islam. Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia's (ISMA) Mohamad Ismail told a thousand-strong audience at a Malay Muslim symposium that followers of Shiah are sowing discord among political leaders and Islamic religious scholars, or ulama, by trying to brand and discredit those who are anti-Shiah as followers of the fundamentalist Wahhabi movement. Shiah, also spelled as Syiah locally, is the second-largest sect in Islam after Sunni, with around 10 to 20 per cent of Muslims worldwide identifying themselves as a follower, mostly in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Bahrain. Malaysia only accepts the Sunni school of Islam as the official practice, other denominations are frequently regarded as deviant teachings. |
| Mufti’s statement on ‘Malaynization’ regrettable – Leiking Posted: 28 Sep 2013 06:24 PM PDT
"And as a Kadazan myself, I sympathize with him for his lack of historical knowledge about the major ethnics in Sabah," Leiking said in a statement emailed to the Borneo Insider. The Member of Parliament for Penampang, Darell Leiking, had today express his regret over the 'Malaynize' (to make Malay) programme proposal mooted by the Mufti of Sabah, Ustaz Bungsu @ Aziz Jaafar. Leiking also said the mufti also erred in his statement that the Kadazan race is an "invented" ethnic made of non-Muslim Kadazan-Dusun people who are mostly Catholics as it is a fact that the Kadazans had existed long in Sabah long before the independence. "And as a Kadazan myself, I sympathize with him for his lack of historical knowledge about the major ethnics in Sabah," Leiking said in a statement emailed to the Borneo Insider. Bungsu stirred up controversy when he told a symposium discussing the "Malay Leadership Crisis" that many of the indigenous Muslims in the north Borneo state still refused to call themselves Malay, unlike ethnic groups like the Javanese and Bugis in Peninsular Malaysia who today identify themselves as belonging to one Malay race. Unhappy with Sabah's Bumiputera Muslims for identifying themselves according to their tribal roots, the state's mufti proposed a programme to convert them into Malays. Said Leiking: "My stand is very clear on this matter. "Sabah agreed to form Malaysia together with Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore and Sarawak for security, economic prosperity, development, better education/healthcare and not in any way to become another Malay-majority state in the federation". Notwithstanding the issue is only related to the Muslim bumiputera in Sabah, Leiking also took a swipe at the Mufti for being narrow minded.  Ustaz Bungsu, the mufti "Let's take an ethnic A that has an equal ratio of Muslims and non-Muslims as an example. "Would it make sense if a programme to Malaynize the Muslims within ethnic A take place considering that their language and hereditary customs are totally different with the Malays in Peninsular Malaysia? "It is understandable for the Mufti to say that the Javanese and Bugis in the Peninsular now refer themselves as Malays since these 3 ethnics share the same language and hereditary customs but I don't think the Dusun and Murut ethnics in Sabah do," Leiking argued. The suggestion by the mufti clearly shows his lack of understanding and is a total mockery to the spirit of Malaysia Agreement espoused by the founding fathers of Malaysia, he added.
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| How the police won the RM6 billion turf war against RTD Posted: 28 Sep 2013 06:18 PM PDT  AES locations One thing is for sure – with the police at the helm, more motorists will tend to pay the fines because they may not be able to renew their road tax if they don't. But all it takes is one person to challenge the AES images in court for its implementation to be on tenterhooks again. M Shanmugam, managing editor of The Edge, fz.com THE Road Transport Department (RTD) lost its battle to implement the controversial Automated Enforcement System (AES) on Dec 18 last year when the Attorney-General's Chambers decided to suspend prosecution of traffic offenders caught under the system. It didn't happen last week, when acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein announced that the police, instead of the RTD, would be the primary agency responsible for issuing summonses to traffic offenders caught under the AES. The writing had been on the wall some six months earlier that the job would go to the police. The incentive to implement the project is huge. To give an idea, the amount of unpaid traffic summonses between 2000 and 2009 amounted to almost RM6 billion. The agency that can recover this amount has bragging rights and seek a bigger budget. With the police at the helm, the fine has been slashed by 50% to RM150, instead of RM300. But that amount will be increased if offenders take a longer time to pay up. So, at the end of the day, the fines could still be as high as RM300. The other significant shift is that private companies will no longer get a share of the fines paid by traffic offenders. This was the grouse under the previous system as the general public felt that the entire proceeds should go to the government. However, this critical flaw, which came about due to the AES' revenue-sharing model, could have been easily rectified. Under the revenue-sharing model, the two companies get a share of the proceeds from the traffic summonses that are settled, based on a formula whereby the amount decreases as the fines build up. The internal rate of return is capped at 17%. In return, the two companies – Beta Tegap Sdn Bhd and ATES Sdn Bhd – have to supply and maintain the entire IT backbone, cameras, systems and other facilities for the RTD to nab speeding motorists. It was essentially a supply contract that could have been modified because the two companies were looking for an amicable settlement after all the public hue and cry. Instead, the government decided to buy out the two companies. This raises the question of whether enforcement carried out by the police, instead of the RTD, will resolve all issues in relation to the AES. Does this mean that traffic offenders caught by the cameras will be prosecuted if they refuse to pay the fines? What has changed that will allow prosecution now compared with some nine months ago? Read more at: http://www.fz.com/content/how-police-won-rm6-billion-turf-war-against-rtd |
| Ex-NST boss: Why, only now, is Anwar offering olive branch? Posted: 28 Sep 2013 05:52 PM PDT
(MM) - Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's latest offer reconcile with political foe and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak four months after the divisive May 5 general election remains an object of deepest suspicion from within the pro-establishment ranks. Former New Straits Times (NST) group editor-in-chief Datuk A. Kadir Jasin questioned today the opposition leader's recent bid to bridge the yawning political chasm while abroad in New York City when Najib also happened to be visiting.
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| DAP polls: Ngeh-Nga out of favour? Posted: 28 Sep 2013 05:44 PM PDT
A 'menu' that urges DAP delegates to vote against Ngeh-Ngah cousins has appeared, while 17 candidates have pulled out of the race at the last minute. Leven Woon, FMT DAP's central executive committee (CEC) re-election today started with the circulation of a 'candidates list' that urged the delegates to vote against Ngeh-Ngah cousins, and withdrawal of 17 candidates from the race. Although Perak DAP leaders Ngeh Koo Ham and Nga Kor Ming formed an influential power bloc in the state, their names were however excluded from the favourable candidates list by the so-called mainstream fraction in the party. The 20-men name list, or "menu" in local political term, contained the names of most of the candidates elected in the December elections but left out Ngeh, Ngah and Johor DAP chief Boo Cheng Hau. Detractors have criticised Ngeh and Nga for running their own show in Perak, and said the duo's insistence in fielding their own men in the 13th general election as among the reasons for Pakatan to fail in recapturing Perak. In last December's CEC election, Ngeh clinched the 19th slot with 824 votes while Nga came at number 12 with 1,075 votes. The results have been declared null and void by the Registrar of Societies, resulting in the party holding a re-election today. DAP has 2,076 eligible delegates, of which 1,720 can cast the votes today, ad hoc returning officer Ong Kian Ming said. Meanwhile, 17 of the 68 candidates withdrew from contesting, adhering the call of the central leadership to maintain the same 20 candidates who were elected in December.
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