Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Money matters
- Giving New Meaning to Reverse Takeover
- A Sting job in the air?
- Cyberspace - Out of Control?
- A morning session with The Oracle of Syed Putera-Part 2
- New Revelations Link FBC Media To BN’s Dirty Tricks Blogging Campaigns
- Hasan Ali Is Pakatan's Ibrahim Ali
| Posted: 08 Aug 2011 03:40 PM PDT The US government debt is projected by S&P to hit 11 trillion this year, which would be equivalent to 75% of its gross domestic product or all the wealth that the US economy would generate this year. S&P also estimated the debt would increase to $14 trillion by 2015 and top $20 trillion by 2021, which at that point would mean that it will be 85 per cent of GDP. In a grim postulation, S&P says in a worst-case scenario, US government debt could outstrip all the wealth generated in the world's largest economy by 2021. (source: here). With those kind of numbers, it was not surprising at all that the US credit rating was downgraded a notch from AAA rating to AA+. (source: BBC report). How do all these affect us? Back home, the numbers aren't all rosy as well. As of last year, our national debt was down from RM236.18b in 2008 to RM233.92b. (source: the Star report). That sounds good as it is on a downward trend. However, an analysis of our foreign debts as compared coupled with our domestic borrowings as well as the percentage in the increase of our debts as compared to the increase in our GDP over several years paints a really worrying picture. See the analysis here. The points are these:
What the above means is that we are borrowing faster than we are producing income. According to the US Census Bureau, between the months of January to May this year, the US' exports to Malaysia totals USD6.1b while our exports are worth USD10.5b. The US Department of State's website shows that he United States is Malaysia's third-largest trading partner and Malaysia is the eighteenth-largest trading partner of the United States with annual two-way trade amounting to $33b. The United States is the largest foreign investor in Malaysia on a cumulative basis, and was the largest source of new foreign direct investment in Malaysia in 2010 with direct investment in the manufacturing sector in Malaysia as of year-end 2009 of $15.1 billion, with billions of dollars in additional investment in the oil and gas and financial services sectors of the economy. Such is the importance of the US to Malaysia. It goes without saying that a US in financial bad shape would inevitably equal to a Malaysia in economic doldrums. Meanwhile, Malaysia's Economic Transformation Program (ETP), an ambitious project to convert the country into a fully developed nation by 2020 remains critically linked to foreign investment. The ETP requires annual foreign investment in the range of $11 billion to fund a quarter of the proposed projects. However, average annual investment since 1997 has only been $3.1 billion. A March 2011 report by Bank of America Merrill Lynch ranked Malaysia the second least popular market after Colombia among global emerging market fund managers. Malaysia, thus, is in no position to project a picture of chaos and disruption to the investors from outside. In addition, recent well known events, the details of which are all too familiar to many, if not all of us, do not endear Malaysia too well to foreign investors despite strenuous efforts by the government to attract them. Yesterday, Goldman Sachs revised our GDP forecast for this year from 5.4% to 5% with a similar cut of 0.4% next year from 5.6%. (source: the Malaysian Insider report). Considering the state of the US economy and its burgeoning debts, the US government might just increase interest rates in order to lessen public spending; impose higher import duties on certain goods; impose some strict import conditions as well as broaden its protectionism policy over some industries.
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| Giving New Meaning to Reverse Takeover Posted: 07 Aug 2011 10:21 PM PDT Today, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers demanded an emergency sitting of Parliament over claims that 1,600 foreigners had been given citizenship and voting rights, claiming that if left unchecked it would erode Malaysia's constitutional monarchy. But the new (post-Merdeka) immigrants into Malaysia do not face death in their country. They do not owe Malaysia their lives. They are merely 'economic refugees'. It's all about money. Their loyalty is to money, not to Malaysia. What Malaysia could have on its hands is a time-bomb ticking its way to a socio-economic disaster. The prevailing situation is somewhat like a Reverse Takeover whereby you acquire something and then what has been acquired ends up owning you instead!! In short, the hunter has now become the HUNTED!!! Note also, in the corporate world, a 30% stake in a public enterprise is as good as a controlling stake. So beware. If you think you will limit this exercise to only 30%, it may end up with you losing control. According to The Malaysian Insider, PR had also claimed that 1,108 permanent residents in the Klang Valley were given the status of full citizens on August 2 alone, and ridiculed the notion that over 1,000 identity cards were issued within a day. Most alarmingly, PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub also showed documents claiming that between 1.06pm and 2.30pm on August 2, three voters had their status changed from permanent residents to citizens "in the blink of an eye." The Kubang Kerian MP said that the information was downloaded from the NRD website itself and we have a total of 1,597 cases across the country. These are official statistics. What about the dark figure then? (The dark figure represents the discrepancy between actual statistics and those that are not reported.) Personally, many perceive this is the tip of the iceberg. In my post on Immigrants and Emigrants - Facts and Figures, I wrote:
Clearly, the Pakatan lawmakers and RPK are on the right track in highlighting this impending doomsday scenario awaiting Malaysians. We can talk till the cows come home about 1Malaysia and unity/harmony and all that jazz but if the gene pool of the population is in imbalance, what will happen? Obviously, they will not be loyal citizens.
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| Posted: 07 Aug 2011 03:33 PM PDT You see Malaysians are easily duped into believing that something of this magnitude suddenly crops out. As if, yesterday those people in Khazanah and the current CEO of MAS who is so forgettable in accomplishments, woke up and realize hey man…..MAS is in a mess. The mess my friends were created a long time ago, the origins of which can be traced when that ex Shell man took over MAS. He quickly undertook a scorched earth policy, selling off assets and whatever else was salable to clean MAS books. They have a refined term for it- asset unbundling which in reality is just asset stripping. If you allow us a little permission to shout out loudly, we will say FU!. Yes, the subject did crop up when I was with the Oracle. I asked him what does he make of Fernandes's posturing to move Air Asia's whatever office to Jakarta. In Jakarta the situation is even more chaotic, so that if ever Fernandes thought of the idea of moving there, he must be examined in the head. There is absolutely no commercial justification of moving to Indonesia. Now with these maneuvers Fernandes has proven one thing. Any peddler of pirated CDs can also run an airline. You got chance, ma……. When I asked the Oracle about this, he said, watch the next moves. There must be something behind the threats to move out to Jakarta. Has Air Asia settled its debts to MAB? Maybe in return to being coaxed and persuaded not to move out to Jakarta, the PM authorizes the writing off of AA's debts to MAB or forced MAB to take a haircut maybe even a crew cut ? Two, the threat was the harbinger of what is now taking place - in order not to move out to Jakarta, the Khazanah Mafiosi, headed by the capo dei capi, Amokh, recommended that Fernandes's Tune Air Sdn Bhd be given a sweetener in the form of ownership and possibly the running of our national asset MAS. Now let's ask a stupid question? Can a CEO of your rival company be given a chance to take up position in your company and asked to manage your company at the same time? Isn't there a conflict of interest here?Or is Fernandes being prepared to take over MAS itself? The move or its threat to move to Indonesia can be regarded as treasonable or at the mildest, putting the country at ransom. These robber barons aided by the comprador capitalists masquerading as consultants and economic experts, residing temporarily in Khazanah are pushing this country to its limits. The majority shareholders of Air Asia are who? Khazanah and EPF? These are government entities. So how can our government, kick itself in the groin by allowing Fernandes to even make that statement in the first place? Or was it part of an elaborate set up of mind conditioning? That statement was later attributed to the silliness of the journalists quoting Fernandes or something. That also tells us the mental capacity of the journalists we send to cover stories about corporate moves. If they don't understand, don't waste your money sending them. What happened to MAS actually? I asked the Oracle. The oracle asked me whether I know where Munir Majid, connoisseur of Dom Perignon, appreciator of paintings by the masters spends his time? Most of the time he is in London running MAS from there perhaps. |
| Posted: 07 Aug 2011 04:00 AM PDT
Raja Petra Kamarudin has responded to these issues in his latest No Holds Barred post called You need brains to do it (UPDATED)  What the authorities do not seem to realize is that there is a new nation in existence sporting a diverse populace with its own unique and varied culture. However, its boundaries are defined by silicon wafers, fiber optic cables, and dancing electrons. This nation is not a physical entity but rather, one of the mind and certainly a force to be reckoned with. Its name is cyberspace. And it is powerful in its pervasive influence with defining qualities that give this body of people its singular identity. Despite claims that ours is a democratic society, we ironically lament our limited opportunities to voice our discontent about issues that concern and affect us. Since the importance and effectiveness of the MSM is declining drastically, we have to depend on online oppositional power if we intend to effect any change in our country. Many write about a broad range of public issues to express their dissent. Whenever major events or crises occur such as in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest, readers can invariably turn to blogs and online news portals for the latest information and more importantly, critical commentaries which are virtually absent in MSM. Fully aware of the expectations of their audience, activist-bloggers have to keep abreast with their critical comments and observations. Blogosphere culture requires bloggers to write for their audience with specific objectives in mind. Online activism hardly happens out of the blue, but has found a social basis, especially in Malaysia, because of the many structural flaws in society. Furthermore, online activism has succeeded in sustaining its power because it fills the void that has been created by the failure of mass media to play its role in society. In democratic societies, despite whatever rights we may pretend we have, many people do not have an opinion about major issues such as the "non-attitudes" problem or political ambivalence. Judging from the messages in both mainstream and online websites, the different styles of framing of questions can solicit and mould public opinion. Such a situation certainly raises questions about the ability and competence of ordinary citizens to play the expected roles in a democratic society. However, the Internet has changed all that for us - for the better! Recently, if not for Tweeter and global cable networks, protests in Iran would not have become so widely known and influential. In the same vein, online protests about the "Green Dam" software in China gained momentum when even some official media stories questioned the policy. A little closer to home, we saw how news about Bersih 2.0 rally spread like wildfire via Tweets and updates in various social media. All this goes to show that we cannot underestimate the pervasive power of the Internet. Those who decry the positive influence of cyberspace have failed to realize how the constant updates of news feeds from tweets, blogs and Facebook have fuelled news reporting in online mass media. The fact is clear - web power has become an integral part of mainstream media power. And the authorities are losing ground in cyberspace and they are afraid. In their fear, they choose to breed fear by spinning all kinds of yarn. From my observations, it appears that the "old" and "new" media are converging and, whether we like it or not, the variety of media channels has vital connections, each of which enhances and strengthens the links in the chain. And the authorities are definitely NOT happy that these links are growing in number and in strength!
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| A morning session with The Oracle of Syed Putera-Part 2 Posted: 06 Aug 2011 04:23 PM PDT I had a good laugh when someone suggested that the Oracle is Sanusi Junid. That someone commented I was lucky to be an intimate acquaintance of the illustrious Sanusi. That is not possible. Sanusi as many of us know has just survived a quite serious heart attack. The Oracle recounted the day Daim receiving a text message a few weeks ago informing that Sanusi was critically ill. Happily he is doing well now. We wish him a speedy recovery. He is an estimable combatant and a worthy opponent. The Oracle told me, he and Daim rushed over to the hospital to see how Sanusi is faring. I am happy to be told by the Oracle- Sanusi is Sanusi, weakened but indomitable in his unrelenting criticisms on how Najib is handling this country. Here is the problem says the Oracle. The low estimation of Najib as PM and UMNO president is no longer just confined to the man in the street whose opinions may be justifiably dismissed as idle talk of the chattering class. The same opinions are being said and repeated, by UMNO luminaries, people of some significance indicating a very serious perception problem. Opinions of people of influence can snowball into a movement. And Sanusi is also a committee member of the PENAWAR NGO whose members are made up of previous UMNO MPs. It's led by a former political secretary of Tun Mahathir and a Mahathir loyalist, Aziz Shamsudin. But the Oracle isn't ready to concede any consequence to the group led by Aziz Shamsudin. Precisely because it's led by Aziz Shamsudin. I thought Aziz is a Mahathir major domo? Mahathir's dogsbody? No, you are not quite correct, said the Oracle. Aziz has proven himself to be a man of all seasons. He was with Tengku Razaleigh then switched allegiance to Mahathir. After Mahathir to Pak Lah. And now? Penawar hasn't got the impact potential. Not at the moment anyway. Unless the Old Man throws his weight into the ring. I haven't updated myself on this Penawar grouping having just come back from overseas following Tun Daim. I will know more when we meet up with Dr Mahathir. The Oracle wasn't even aware that the PAS Ttiwangsa MP, Dr Lo' Lo' has passed away. Many of us have fond memories of Sanusi for 1001 reasons. He can be comical at one time, deadpan serious at another. Sanusi used to regal many of us with his caustic remarks aimed at disarming Najib or discrediting Najib as it were. He related his many conversations with Tun Razak and how Tun Razak was sighing about how Najib can't cut his teeth into politics. Sanusi would let out a half smile when he tells us of the moment when he cheekily asked- why Tun? Too much skirt chasing, came the answer. Look, say the Oracle- there is a growing divide between the UMNO president and UMNO and the Malays. What is he doing now? He's seen as busy finding ways to find money for Chinese National Type schools and that alienates the Malay voters farther. He's seen as appeasing non Malays more and more. It seems to me his way of solving problems is by paying his way through. Yet the UMNO warlords from which UMNO and its president depend for political power are not amused. They are NOT receiving projects for their areas. The UMNO leaders in Kedah are complaining for example. They are asked to set the agenda to retake Kedah , yet they are not given resources to go into battle. Speaking about Kedah, I interjected- what's your take on the 3 M grouping of Mahathir, Muhyidin and MUkhriz? I wouldn't give much credence to the 3M thing. For what purpose? For Muhyidin to ascend to the PM post? He can do that by other means at his disposal. He is enjoying better credibility with his Malay first, Malaysia second attitude with the Malay hoi poloi. To prop up Mukhriz so that Mahathir will lend his weight to Muhyidin? That, possibly. But how long can Mukhriz survived in politics by hanging on the coattails of the father? It's like you said about Najib being cornered to come out with his last resort defense when attacked on his policies. All he could muster was- He is Tun Razak's son. How long can you sell that? We all have to admit Dr Mahathir somehow refashioned Malaysia after his dynamic personality. But that is soon going to be history as the new generations of voters are more comfortable at accepting the general level of development which we are now enjoying, for granted. Who was behind our country's drive to modernization isn't as significance as we of the older generation holds it. So no, Mukhriz isn't going to last long banking on the popularity of his father which is beginning to diminish now.
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| New Revelations Link FBC Media To BN’s Dirty Tricks Blogging Campaigns Posted: 06 Aug 2011 10:51 AM PDT We can now reveal an even darker side to this campaign. The same contracts also included a series of negative blogging campaigns targetted against BN's political opponents. All these dirty tricks have, of course, been conducted at the expense of the Malaysian taxpayer! Details of the FBC Media contract Sarawak Report has exclusive details of the contract agreed between FBC Media and Abdul Taib Mahmud, which includes a commitment to mastermind a cyber-war against online critics of the Chief Minister's corrupt government, such as this blog. In a letter to the Chief Minister in January the Chairman of FBC Media, Alan Friedman, pledged to "assist in countering false and negative perceptions that have been spread at home and abroad" and stated that he had "the tools and international experience to make a genuine and visible difference". The tools outlined by Friedman were "television reporting and an interview with yourself plus press tours and online sites and special blogging that should provide a blanket of positive messaging about you and Sarawak to the Western media". The PR/ production company chief explained to the Chief Minister that he would "work both on the positive messages and to counter negative perceptions and falsehoods that have been spread unfairly about environmental matters ranging from the Bakun Dam, timber, mining and palm oil. We would also counter false allegations that have been made about corruption." FBC would then work to "bounce back" into the Sarawak Press "this international recognition, thus bringing positive results for the people of Sarawak to see" . In other words he was proposing to cheat people in Sarawak with his manufactured publicity (funded by taxpayers) into thinking the world was impressed by Taib! In his attached contract proposal, which amounted to a staggering $5 million for the first year alone, Friedman allocated $55,000 (RM165,000) per month just to the blogging operation. For this he was providing "Online digital strategy and blogging, site creation and management, blogging and articles, video reports on line". For another RM 138,000 per month Friedman added "in-bound press and blogger visits, press, foreign visit support, interview placement, writing, disseminating, media training, media analysis, mapping" services! Anwar Ibrahim and Sarawak Report become top targets for bloggers
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| Hasan Ali Is Pakatan's Ibrahim Ali Posted: 05 Aug 2011 09:44 PM PDT Malaysia is plagued by the 'Ali Problem'. We have Ali Baba businessmen - Umno Malays who help Chinese cronies to get rich. Then there are followers of Ali, the Shi-ites being arrested for spreading Islam and Ibrahim Ali, Dr Mahathir's spanner-in-the-works to undermine Najib and bring him down. Now, we have Hasan Ali (regarded by many as Umno's Trojan Horse in Pakatan, the man who is rooting for the Umno-PAS 'Malay unity' talk) whose role in the JAIS raid of DUMC could be the undoing of PAS. Upon closer analysis, one wonders of the possibility of it being an Umno conspiracy to get PAS to do something stupid that will hurt Pakatan. A case of history being repeated?
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