Jumaat, 3 Jun 2011

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Mustafa Akyol: Faith versus tradition in Islam

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 04:01 PM PDT

Mustafa Akyol is the deputy editor of the Turkish Daily News. Mustafa Akyol talks about the way that some local cultural practices (such as wearing a headscarf or tudung) have become linked, in the popular mind, to the articles of faith of Islam. Has the world's general idea of the Islamic faith focused too much on tradition, and not enough on core beliefs?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

First of all, see the video here:

OR SEE VIDEO HERE: http://www.ted.com/talks/mustafa_akyol_faith_versus_tradition_in_islam.html?

Mustafa Akyol is Turkish. Turkey's population is higher than that of Britain (72 million) and 70% of Turks live in urban areas with only 30% living in the rural areas. But there are many reasons why the Turks are more modern than Muslims of other countries, as explained by Mustafa Akyol in the talk above.

The reason I am writing this article today is to respond to what the MCA Chinese leaders have to say about PAS's 'dress code'. Actually, if you go to the Sultan of Selangor's palace, you also have to observe a dress code and if you do not wish to comply with the dress code then you are at liberty to decline all invitations to the palace and boycott all palace functions -- if that so pleases these MCA Chinese.

But then these MCA Chinese people will even dress in monkey suits if they are ordered to do so just as long as they can go to the Sultan of Selangor's palace to receive awards, medals or datukships. That is the hypocrisy of these MCA Chinese people. They will drop their pants and bend down if they can get datukships. Even Chinese gangsters and underworld bosses pay RM250,000 to get datukships and they don't mind wearing suits and songkoks to attend the palace functions.

Try walking into Selangor Club or the Lake Club dressed in shorts and sleeveless T-shirts and see what happens to you. In fact, even the National Press Club (NPC) has a dress code and those dressed in slippers, shorts and/or collarless T-shirts will be denied entry to the club premises (which happened to me and my guests a couple of times).

In Turkey, women are banned from wearing the tudung in the parliament building or on the grounds of the universities. They must remove their tudung as they enter the gate or else will be denied entry. This is of course the opposite of the 'compulsory tudung rule'.

In short, whether you enter a club, university, palace, mosque, parliament or whatever, it is up to the building owner to decide on your dress code. In England, in some places they enforce the coat and tie rule -- even in some restaurants -- and if you are not dressed properly they will be very happy to lend you a coat and tie.

Try walking into Masjid Negara (the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur) dressed as above. And note that the National Mosque is NOT owned by PAS but by the government of Malaysia. You will certainly be denied entry.

Does MCA have a problem with this? Foreign tourists who visit the National Mosque do not complain and they are very happy to follow the dress code (or do not visit the National Mosque if they have a problem with the dress code).

Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa says that the non-Muslims are kurang ajar (insolent) and are questioning Islam. Maybe Ibrahim Ali should address this to MCA. The non-Muslims in Pakatan Rakyat are not complaining. It is the MCA Chinese who are members of Barisan Nasional who are.

The MCA Chinese are those who are the real kafir kurang ajar whom Ibrahim Ali is talking about.

Anyway, PAS did not impose the tudung ruling on the non-Muslim women attending their annual assembly. So the issue is a non-starter. It is just that the MCA leaders are trying to mislead the nation and are pretending that PAS imposed this when actually it did not.

That is the real issue here. So, as Mustafa Akyol said in the video above, we must understand what is Islam and what is tradition. Some Muslims are confused between the two. And some non-Muslims whack Islam also because of their misunderstanding about what is Islam, what is dress code, and what is tradition and culture (which may not be Islam at all).

 
Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

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Maybank or CIMB, EPF?

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 12:54 PM PDT

By P Gunasegaram, The Star

THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) will soon be in a happy predicament, if it is not already. That's because it will be negotiating to sell its 45% stake in RHB Capital to one of the two largest groups in the country – Malayan Banking or CIMB Group.

It is a stake that EPF did not really want but nevertheless acquired after warding off other parties in a takeover battle in 2007. It did that to protect its interests in RHB Cap but ended up with majority control and in a a situation in which it controlled a large commercial banking group.

That's not a good position to be in because it is better that a provident fund should concentrate on fund management instead of managing a bank and all the problems and potential conflicts that come with it because the EPF is after all the largest player in the local capital markets.

Thus, the EPF cannot hope to be in a happier position than this where two of the largest banking groups in the country and among the largest regional players want to get their hands on RHB Capital.

That accomplishes three things for EPF immediately. First, it no longer has to involve itself in the running of a banking group. Next, if there is a share exchange involved, it offers it the opportunity to have a meaningful but not controlling stake in the largest Malaysian banking group, thereby allowing it to be a passive investor as funds should be. And finally, it can expect to get a fair deal and withdraw its investments in RHB Capital at a considerable profit.

Both Maybank and CIMB have been given Bank Negara approval to negotiate with RHB Capital and its major shareholders. Indications are that the preferred route that either banking group will take is the asset and liability method.

Under this, RHB Capital shareholder approval will be sought for the sale of the business. Under recently revised requirements, the sale will require the approval of 75% of shareholders, which means the deal cannot be done without EPF approval.

The other substantial shareholder of RHB Capital, with a 25% stake, is Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank or ADCB. ADCB wants to sell its stake and is already looking for buyers.

It would be prudent for it to wait to see how Maybank's and CIMB's offer pans out before it makes its mind up.

On the surface, it would seem logical that EPF (and ADCB) simply take the best offer and be done with it. That would be the right thing to do if the deal was going for cash.

But what would EPF do with all the cash that it would get – more than RM10 billion? EPF would plausibly like to be invested in the enlarged entity via a share exchange, a smaller stake in a much larger bank with a strong regional presence.

If that is the case, then it has no choice but to consider who will make the better fit with RBH Capital in terms of the merger – Maybank or CIMB. If it is a share exchange, valuations are unlikely to be very different.

It will be foolhardy to accept a proposal because the dowry is highest. Happiness, well-being and prosperity in the long-term will depend even more on the characteristics of the bride and the one who would be groom – compatibility in other words. As in all marriages, one can never be sure.

That's why the EPF (and perhaps ADCB too) should not necessarily choose the higher bidder. And that's why Maybank and CIMB should not bid their prices up to astronomical levels and put the very merger itself at risk.

Lay down your reasonable bids and let the better, not necessarily richer, man win.


‘Yayasan is facing losses’

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 12:51 PM PDT

By Martin Carvalho, The Star

PETALING JAYA: The Selangor Government's decision to reject temporary occupation licence (TOL) applications by nursery operators in Sungai Buloh and instead award it to Yayasan Selangor is to save the foundation from financial losses, the Federal Government charged.

Agriculture and Agro-Based Indus-tries Minister Datuk Seri Noh Omar said prior to 2010, the foundation was said to have RM80mil in its coffers.

He claimed a recent audit revealed that Yayasan Selangor was RM7.4mil in the red.

Noh said his ministry was willing to assist the 50 nursery operators if their plight remained unsolved.

"I am willing to meet them to discuss the matter," he told The Star.

Yesterday, The Star highlighted the plight of the nursery operators and reported that their applications were rejected on May 25 although they were advised by their elected representatives to apply for TOLs three years ago.

Noh said the state government's action to reject the applications and award the TOLs to the foundation ran counter to its election promise to help the people.

"The nursery operators have contributed a lot towards the development of horticulture and landscaping industries," he added.

Noh, who is also the Selangor Umno deputy chief, cited the state government's recent attempts to evict villagers on TOL land in Kampung Sungai Kerandang, Hulu Selangor as another example where land was being acquired at the expense of the people.

Selangor MCA secretary and Kuala Kubu Baru assemblyman Wong Koon Mun said the TOLs in Sungai Buloh could have been awarded to the foundation as a pretext for the state government to develop the land in the future.

"They (the Pakatan Rakyat-state government) know that the nurseries are located on prime land as there are plans to develop the Sungai Buloh Rubber Research Institute," he added.

Khaled: PAS will eventually break up with DAP

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 12:48 PM PDT

By Melissa Chi, The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, June 3 — Datuk Seri Mohamad Khaled Nordin expressed confidence that PAS will not stay with the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance for too long, despite the party president's assurance today.

The Umno supreme council member spoke to reporters after the first National Student Consultative (MPPK) meeting of the year, stopping short of saying that PAS will unite with Umno.

"Last time they said PAS will not cooperate with DAP. Now they cooperate. Today they say they will never break up with DAP. One day they will break up.

"It's the same thing, all these are political rhetoric. Why take it so seriously?" he said.

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang earlier today had put an end to any question of the party leaving PR for Umno despite whispers of unity talks between the Malay parties emerging early this year.

Abdul Hadi stressed that the difference between PAS in PR and Umno in Barisan Nasional (BN) was that the latter sacrifices Islamic principles.

The subject of unity talks between PAS and Umno had dominated the 2009 PAS muktamar, which saw a number of leaders keen on exploring talks with Umno emerging big winners.

 

READ MORE HERE.

Battle For Sabah

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 02:16 AM PDT

Selvarajasomiah's Weblog

PERCEPTIONS may vary on the balance of power in Sabah's political arena and the outcome of the impending elections, 60 state seats and 25 parliamentary seats are up for grabs, but observers as well as practitioners of different brands of politics agree on one thing: that elections, scheduled to be held soon, could well be the most significant in the history of Sabah in the past two decades. They have arrived at this conclusion after studying the situation from their own view points.

According to Chief Minister Musa Aman and the Barisan National led by him, Sabah has witnessed a social, political and economic paradigm shift in the last eight years under his rule. Musa Aman contends that this shift will be reflected in new political parameters with development as the key factor, pushing aside considerations based on Kuala Lumpur's dominance and interference that have for decades dominated the State's electoral politics.The Barisan National's coalition partners in the state, largely shares this perception, though some sections in the party are sceptical.

The Pakatan Rakyat and the SAPP led by Taiko Yong Teck Lee, which constitute the main opposition, dismiss the "paradigm shift" premise as baseless and assert that these elections will, as always, be dominated by "Sabah For Sabahan" (Sabah Rights) sentiments and community considerations and illegal immigrants.

"Sabah for Sabahan" sentiments and illegal immigrants, of course, have traditionally dominated elections in Sabah. Elections have been fought and won on the basis of careful manoeuvreing of "Sabah for Sabahan" sentiments coupled with some deft social engineering via illegal immgrants. This time, however, a significant number of political activists and observers agree with the Chief Minister's assessment. Governance under the Barisan National government in the past eight years, they say, has changed society and politics in the State, allowing the urge for "development" to sideline "Sabah for Sabahan" considerations.

At a ceramah recently, Musa Aman said: "In the past eight years, the whole political grammar of Sabah has changed. The beginnings of the same were seen even in the 2008 polls when Sabahans decidedly voted for a change and gave Barisan National 59 State seats out of the 60 State seats and 24 Parliament seats out of 25. Over the past eight years, more and more sections of society have joined that process on account of the policies and governance we had adopted and the net result has been the concretisation of the change in political grammar." He added that despite this obvious change, his principal adversaries, Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang and Taiko Yong Teck Lee and even Chong Kah Kiat now, were clinging to the "old syllabus" based on sentiments, confrontation, race permutations and combinations. "They will soon be brought to realisation with a thud," he said.

A large number of people in and outside the State endorse his view. They believe that development has been brought firmly on the State's radar and that nobody would want to upset that. However, the other side sees the Chief Minister's claims as just so much rhetoric. For Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang and Taiko Yong Teck Lee, the "development" story is a creation of a pliant media rather than a realistic assessment of the situation on the ground.

As for the UMNO, which heads the ruling Barisan National at the Centre, it is ready to admit that the State has witnessed better development under Musa Aman than under earlier governments since 1963. But it asserts that this was made possible by the substantial funds that Kuala Lumpur made available, the political stability and the security factor "The Feds" has provided his government.

READ MORE HERE

 

EIU: Inflation to follow subsidy cuts

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 06:28 PM PDT

The London-based intelligence unit foresees inflation rising 3.3% this year following the government subsidy cuts.

(Free Malaysia Today) - The Economic Intelligence Unit's (EIU) latest report on Malaysia has confirmed that consumer price inflation will closely follow the government's move to slash subsidies.

The London-based research arm of the Economist weekly anticipates inflation to accelerate to an average rate of 3.3% this year and 3.5% between 2012 and 2015.

Earlier this week, Prime Minster Najib Tun Razak announced a power tariff hike of 7.1% as the country's subsidy bill doubled to nearly RM20.83 billion this year. While fuel subsidies remain untouched for now, analysts are certain that a price increase is on the cards.

The EIU attributed the impending inflation mainly to higher global prices for crude oil and non-oil commodities but added that government efforts to rationalise the extensive subsidy scheme was a strong contributor.

"Another source of inflation will be the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) which the government will attempt to introduce early in the forecast period," the report said.

However, it added that these factors would be balanced out by equally strong disinflationary influences including the removal of trade barriers and greater regional economic integration.

"As a country that is heavily dependent on international trade, Malaysia will not be able to escape the effects of growing competition and import penetration in its domestic market," the report noted.

"Another factor that will help to keep inflation in check will be the forecast appreciation of the ringgit against the US dollar in 2011-2015. Since most of the country's imports and exports are denominated in US dollars, imports will consequently become cheaper."

READ MORE HERE

 

MIC man lauds ‘colour-blind’ DAP, PAS

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 05:59 PM PDT

S Vell Paari also takes a swipe at those who criticise the two parties, saying multiracial politics is the way forward.

(Free Malaysia Today) - The move by several opposition parties to field multiracial candidates in the next general election received support from an unlikely source – a MIC leader.

Commenting on the DAP, MIC publicity and communication chief S Vell Paari said the opposition party appointed a Malay and Indian as deputy chief ministers despite being accused of being a Chinese chauvinist outfit.

"Look at their success in Sarawak. It's their multiracial approach that helped them in the state election," he told FMT.

Vell Paari was commenting on MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek's statement that Malaysians should stop identifying themselves to the racial group they belong to and accept the multi-racial reality of the country.

The MIC leader also said that it was not fair to criticise DAP for wanting to field more Malay candidates in the next general election.

On May 22, Umno vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that DAP planned to field more Malay candidates, especially in Negri Sembilan, Malacca and Perak.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also defence minister, said this was to accommodate DAP's move to install their own party member as the mentri besar of those states.

Following this, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin called upon the Malays to be wary of DAP's plan, claiming that it was a ploy to shore up Malay support.

'The youth are different'

However, Vell Paari said this was not the first time DAP would be fielding Malay candidates.

"Besides, is it a crime for DAP to field more Malay candidates? Despite being labelled as a chauvinist party, a lot of Malays are warming up to DAP and its ideology. So where does the problem lie?" he asked.

The MIC leader also commended PAS for opening its doors to more non-Muslims by setting up a non-Muslim wing.

"Even the so-called extremist party has embraced its non-Muslims brothers knowing multi-racialim is the way forward in Malaysia," he said.

READ MORE HERE

 

Zaid stares into the GE crystal ball

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 05:34 PM PDT

 

The Kita boss predicts that Pakatan Rakyat may win fewer seats in the next polls, and share his views on BN winning back opposition-held states.

"I wanted the three parties to solve their problems. One way to solve this, is to have a single organisation. That is when you have to have the 'ketua' (chief), the 'timbalan' (deputy), the vice-president. You have to share power with the three parties. They never wanted to form a single party. Why do you think Anwar refused to form the shadow cabinet?"

Mariam Mokhtar, Free Malaysia Today

Having brushed off the criticisms which Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim levelled at him, Zaid Ibrahim then set out to explain how his party would contest in the next general election.

He aired his views on Pakatan Rakyat's chances "with or without Anwar" as well as Barisan Nasional's ability to retake the opposition-held states.

As for his fledgling Kita, Zaid stressed that his party's vision "was based on the principles by which I live my political life".

Zaid, who once promised to reveal his party's leadership structure once "things had settled", confirmed that Kita's leadership was already in place and that its manifesto would be unveiled at the end of June.

He then set about the strategy that he would use, to guide Kita in the forthcoming general election, such as the number of seats to be contested and the calibre of candidates to be chosen. He also stressed that the party had to "live within its means".

Perhaps unsurprisingly, he also rubbished the claim that Anwar was a reformist, calling the latter a master spinner instead.

Commenting on Kita's electoral chances, Zaid said: "I don't know how many seats (we will contest) but we will only field credible candidates in that particular area and if that person has the resources."

"I don't have that kind of money to support the candidates."

The former man Umno, who joined PKR, and then later quit PKR to form Kita, also revealed the source of his party's funds. "I am funding the party. Parties don't need that much money, if they have a limited programme, limited scope and do not contest in every seat. We will just live within our means."

According to Zaid, Kita has 3,000 members and although he did not know how many women there were in the party, he hoped they would hold important posts.

"The party is not interested in looking for big numbers because we don't think that model works. More members mean more expenses and more problems. What we need are more supporters; people who believe in the party's struggle. They don't have to be members. Just support us."

When he was in PKR, Zaid was in charge of putting together Pakatan's common policy. Asked if he has seen his common policy for Pakatan being implemented, he replied: "They will dispute whatever they have got now. When I left the party, they said my rôle was minimal. That's their style."

"They wanted to reduce my importance but the fact remains that before I joined, there was no convention of Pakatan. There was no common policy platform. People can reason for themselves who contributed to that."

'Pakatan will win fewer seats'

To a question if Pakatan would remain strong post-Anwar, Zaid was emphatic. "If PKR can form the next government, then the answer is 'No'".

"Whether they can get some seats in Parliament, similar to what they have now? Maybe. I am inclined to think they'll probably get fewer seats."

And he emphasised: "With or without Anwar."

Zaid's responses, when asked if Pakatan was doing the right, or possibly the wrong things, compared to BN, were revealing.

"I think the state government in Penang is doing well. DAP is able to manage the economy. I think Selangor is doing as well as it can. So it is good they are doing that because you must show the people, for them to decide."

People now have experienced both BN and opposition governments. Selangor and Penang are doing okay.

"I think PAS will win in Kelantan, but PAS has been there for 22 years. There's always a problem over governments which have been around for too long. There's a certain staleness in Kelantan now. I think that's the place to watch."

Kedah was one place which Zaid was unfamiliar with. "I don't know much about Kedah although I imagine that it will be difficult to unseat an incumbent. There will be a good fight in Kedah. As much as it will be difficult to unseat BN at the federal level, it's difficult to unseat the state government, even if it is held by the opposition."

Asked if there was any truth in former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad manipulating behind the scenes to position his son Mukhriz as a possible future menteri besar of Kedah, Zaid scoffed at the suggestion.

"I'm not surprised, if that's the plan. But I don't know if Mahathir's son can even take Kedah."

Zaid then cited Najib Tun Razak's mistake in Perak. "DAP is very strong and has 18 seats there. The chances of the opposition are not bad if PAS can deliver the Malay votes."

When reminded about the way Perakians reacted with fury towards Najib's coup, Zaid was quick to censure the prime minister.

"Najib made a mistake for BN to take over in that process. Although the courts decided in favour of the federal government, the reasoning was flawed. It was not good for democracy."

"The people should accept the election outcome. Regardless of whatever flaws, there is no perfect system. I think BN will be better off fighting rather than using this method or 'crossing over'. That is not a good precedent."

Give EC more powers

Elections in Malaysia are perceived to be neither free nor fair, and Zaid was asked for his views on how to resolve the election rigging, because ultimately, Kita would also be affected. "I wouldn't say our elections are rigged… then the opposition wouldn't have won so many seats. So I don't agree that our election system is so bad."

"I agree that a lot of the powers are not with the Election Commission (EC). That's why the EC is weak. I don't believe there is a deliberate attempt to cheat in the election by the EC. If that is true, then BN would have won all the seats. Our elections laws are outdated and the power is not given to the EC."

"Whenever there are problems, they have to check with the attorney-general and police. Even the posters are security issues. I wouldn't say that the EC is engaged or actively involved in cheating. It is not a perfect system and we can do a lot more to enhance the EC. Our EC needs to have the powers to investigate and decide."

"Our EC is just to manage the election, to set up rooms, booths and counters. We can empower the EC by changing the law. That's the way to address the issue. The BN government is very insecure and it wants to keep all the power to itself. That's not good for democracy."

Zaid then talked about the Kita manifesto which he hoped to launch at the end of June. "Manifestos are your policies, your wish-list, what you hope the government will do for the country. We can propose many things but if the politics of the country is such or if the people are not ready, then we will try to be as compact as we can."

Zaid was asked if he thought the Pakatan coalition of DAP, PKR and PAS would be able to put aside their petty squabbles and contest as one organisation. He was also asked if Kita would join the coalition.

"Pakatan cannot contest under one banner. It is not possible as it comprises three different parties. When Pakatan was formed, I insisted that we should have one party. I was asked to be the pro-tem chairman of that party. Anwar would tell people I insisted on it, but it's not true."

"I wanted the three parties to solve their problems. One way to solve this, is to have a single organisation. That is when you have to have the 'ketua' (chief), the 'timbalan' (deputy), the vice-president. You have to share power with the three parties. They never wanted to form a single party. Why do you think Anwar refused to form the shadow cabinet?"

"He didn't want to face the truth. This is how power is going to be shared. His people are going to hold the posts. He just wants to gain power and decide on issues later."

Asked if Anwar was a power-hungry individual, Zaid said: "I am glad you used that word because I am just telling you what happened in my one year there."

READ MORE HERE

 

Mustafa Akyol: Faith versus tradition in Islam

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 04:01 PM PDT

Mustafa Akyol is the deputy editor of the Turkish Daily News. Mustafa Akyol talks about the way that some local cultural practices (such as wearing a headscarf or tudung) have become linked, in the popular mind, to the articles of faith of Islam. Has the world's general idea of the Islamic faith focused too much on tradition, and not enough on core beliefs?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

First of all, see the video here:

OR SEE VIDEO HERE: http://www.ted.com/talks/mustafa_akyol_faith_versus_tradition_in_islam.html?

Mustafa Akyol is Turkish. Turkey's population is higher than that of Britain (72 million) and 70% of Turks live in urban areas with only 30% living in the rural areas. But there are many reasons why the Turks are more modern than Muslims of other countries, as explained by Mustafa Akyol in the talk above.

The reason I am writing this article today is to respond to what the MCA Chinese leaders have to say about PAS's 'dress code'. Actually, if you go to the Sultan of Selangor's palace, you also have to observe a dress code and if you do not wish to comply with the dress code then you are at liberty to decline all invitations to the palace and boycott all palace functions -- if that so pleases these MCA Chinese.

But then these MCA Chinese people will even dress in monkey suits if they are ordered to do so just as long as they can go to the Sultan of Selangor's palace to receive awards, medals or datukships. That is the hypocrisy of these MCA Chinese people. They will drop their pants and bend down if they can get datukships. Even Chinese gangsters and underworld bosses pay RM250,000 to get datukships and they don't mind wearing suits and songkoks to attend the palace functions.

Try walking into Selangor Club or the Lake Club dressed in shorts and sleeveless T-shirts and see what happens to you. In fact, even the National Press Club (NPC) has a dress code and those dressed in slippers, shorts and/or collarless T-shirts will be denied entry to the club premises (which happened to me and my guests a couple of times).

In Turkey, women are banned from wearing the tudung in the parliament building or on the grounds of the universities. They must remove their tudung as they enter the gate or else will be denied entry. This is of course the opposite of the 'compulsory tudung rule'.

In short, whether you enter a club, university, palace, mosque, parliament or whatever, it is up to the building owner to decide on your dress code. In England, in some places they enforce the coat and tie rule -- even in some restaurants -- and if you are not dressed properly they will be very happy to lend you a coat and tie.

Try walking into Masjid Negara (the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur) dressed as above. And note that the National Mosque is NOT owned by PAS but by the government of Malaysia. You will certainly be denied entry.

Does MCA have a problem with this? Foreign tourists who visit the National Mosque do not complain and they are very happy to follow the dress code (or do not visit the National Mosque if they have a problem with the dress code).

Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa says that the non-Muslims are kurang ajar (insolent) and are questioning Islam. Maybe Ibrahim Ali should address this to MCA. The non-Muslims in Pakatan Rakyat are not complaining. It is the MCA Chinese who are members of Barisan Nasional who are.

The MCA Chinese are those who are the real kafir kurang ajar whom Ibrahim Ali is talking about.

Anyway, PAS did not impose the tudung ruling on the non-Muslim women attending their annual assembly. So the issue is a non-starter. It is just that the MCA leaders are trying to mislead the nation and are pretending that PAS imposed this when actually it did not.

That is the real issue here. So, as Mustafa Akyol said in the video above, we must understand what is Islam and what is tradition. Some Muslims are confused between the two. And some non-Muslims whack Islam also because of their misunderstanding about what is Islam, what is dress code, and what is tradition and culture (which may not be Islam at all).

 

Sex is nobody's business but your own

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 03:48 PM PDT

Everyone has secrets -- that is what people realise too late when a surveillance society falls softly into place. Think about your own privacy and secrets. If you or your spouse strayed, would you want to discuss it in private, or have the world discuss it with you -- or have a government official tell you that he will discuss it with your spouse, unless you do as requested?

By Naomi Wolf, New Straits Times

IT is impossible to hear about sexual or sex-crime scandals nowadays -- whether that involving Dominique Strauss-Kahn or those of former New York governor Eliot Spitzer, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, or the half-dozen United States congressmen whose careers have ended in the past couple of years -- without considering how they were exposed. What does it mean to live in a society in which surveillance is omnipresent?

Like the heat beneath the proverbial boiling frogs, the level of surveillance in Western democracies has been ratcheted up slowly -- but far faster than citizens can respond.

In the US, for example, president George W. Bush's Patriot Act is being extended, following a series of backroom deals.

Americans do not want it, and they were not consulted when it was enacted by their representatives under the pressure of a government that demanded more power in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept 11, 2001. That does not seem to matter.

A concerted effort is under way in the US -- and in the United Kingdom -- to "brand" surveillance as positive. New York City subway passengers are now advised that they might experience random searches of their bags. Activists in America are now accustomed to assuming that their emails are being read and their phone calls monitored. Indeed, the telecom companies Verizon and AT&T have established areas on their premises for eavesdropping activity by the National Security Agency.

The spate of sex scandals is a sign of more serious corruption and degradation than most commentators seem to realise. Yes, sex criminals must be punished; but political career after political career, especially in America, is ending because of consensual affairs.

Consensual sex between adults is no one else's business. But now that public figures -- especially those deemed to be "of interest" to intelligence agencies -- are susceptible to being watched three-dimensionally, the chances of being compromised are far higher than they were in the days of the UK's John Profumo affair, which brought down a British politician in the early 1960s. And there is no end to this crash-and-burn surveillance strategy, owing to the nature of the information that is caught in the Internet.

After all, the human sex drive, especially if it compels risky or self-destructive behaviour, has held appeal for dramatists since the ancient Greeks, who originated the story of Achilles and his vulnerability. And, because sex scandals are always interesting to read about -- certainly compared with yet another undeclared war, or a bailout that created jobs costing an estimated US$850,000 (RM2.6 million) each -- they will always be useful diversions.

Citizens' attention can be channelled away from, say, major corporate theft and government malfeasance towards narratives involving two hapless individuals (and their wives and children, who are usually suffering quite enough without the media's heavy breathing).

Another reason to mourn the normalisation of a surveillance society lies in the link between sexual privacy and other kinds of psychological liberation. That is why closed societies monitor their citizens' sexual lives. The combination of sexuality and privacy has an anarchic, subversive effect on citizens. Connecting with another person in an unscrutinised, uncivilised, unmediated, unobserved way inevitably reminds people that there are aspects of the human soul that cannot and must not be subjected to official control.

For this reason, closed and closing societies have always feared sexual liberationists, and have sought to link political dissidence with sexual anarchy. In the 1950s, communism and the homosexual "threat" became wedded in the American public imagination. In Britain's decadent 1890s, feminists, socialists, and Utopians were portrayed as free-love menaces to family life -- even if they had no sexually transformational agenda at all.

Everyone has secrets -- that is what people realise too late when a surveillance society falls softly into place. Think about your own privacy and secrets. If you or your spouse strayed, would you want to discuss it in private, or have the world discuss it with you -- or have a government official tell you that he will discuss it with your spouse, unless you do as requested?

You might even choose not to address it at all. Most people take for granted that they would have that choice, because they do not realise that living in a surveillance society means that eventually everyone must face the same anxieties about exposure as public figures do.

Of course, the issue is broader: if you are a recovering alcoholic, make a pass at someone of the same gender, have a gambling problem, suffer from bipolar illness, or have had a conversation with your accountant about your taxes that skirted what was proper, are you ready to be "outed"?

Official surveillance has been marketed as a national-security imperative. In fact, it gives the state the power to blackmail anyone it wishes. Consider the official US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks that revealed that State Department employees were asked to obtain "biometrics" on public officials at the United Nations. Are we entering an era of geopolitics by blackmail?

Perhaps we should defuse the threats posed by a surveillance society by having an annual day of amnesty. On Amnesty Day -- not a state holiday, to be sure -- we would reveal to our loved ones, constituents, or employers the secrets that we think put us at risk.

Or we could work to eliminate the threat of exposure of private behaviour. For example, as consumers of media, we have power: the next time you are peddled a sex scandal, refuse to buy it. Sexual impropriety - of whatever flavour -- is not among the most important things in the world; the loss of freedom is. -- Project Syndicate

Naomi Wolf is a political activist and social critic

 

Mat Sabu: Masih ramai keliru konsep ulama-profesional dalam PAS

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 03:26 PM PDT

 

"Tiga perkara yang akan saya lakukan adalah menangkis propaganda Umno-BN mengenai masalah Melayu kononnya orang Melayu tidak akan terjamin sekiranya Pakatan Rakyat memerintah, ini persepsi yang salah dan propaganda ini harus ditangkis, PAS perlu bertindak segera untuk membalas serangan yang dibuat Umno-BN ini," kata beliau.

Mohamad Sabu, yang bertanding jawatan timbalan presiden buat kali kedua menegaskan, konsep kepimpinan ulama sepatutnya ditekankan dalam Majlis Syura, bukannya diterjemahkan ke atas jawatan-jawatan eksekutif parti Islam itu.

Mohamad, 56, atau lebih mesra dengan panggilan "Mat Sabu" berpendapat bahawa konsep kepimpinan ulama telah menjadi kekeliruan di kalangan ahli menyebabkan golongan profesional sukar mendapat tempat dalam jawatan tertinggi parti itu.

"Bagi saya presiden dan ke bawah boleh sesiapa sahaja yang layak untuk memimpin tiada masalah baik ulama atau profesional.

"Majlis Ulama ini yang perlu ditekankan bukan jawatan eksekutif, ia perlu dipertingkatkan dalam organisasi ini.

"Sebab itu, kalau kita lihat banyak ahli yang salah erti konsep kepimpinan ulama ini dan ia menimbulkan sedikit kekeliruan," katanya yang terkenal di kalangan akar umbi ahli-ahli PAS dan parti pesaingnya.

"Namun saya pasti perubahan sudah mula berlaku dalam PAS," kata beliau kepada The Malaysian Insider menjelang muktamar kali ke-57 yang bermula hari ini.

Beliau yang juga ahli jawatankuasa kerja PAS pusat bagaimanapun berkata akan terus menyokong konsep kepimpinan ulama dalam Majlis Syura.

"Soal kepimpinan ulama ini diperkenalkan pada zaman kami masih Pemuda PAS pada 1982 yang mana ketika itu ketuanya adalah Datuk Mustafa Ali ... memang tidak dapat dinafikan ketika itu anak muda terpengaruh dengan revolusi Islam yang berlaku di Iran yang dipimpin golongan ulama," katanya.

Mohamad menambah beliau akan terus mendokong konsep kepimpinan ulama dan Majlis Syura perlu diperkukuhkan agar PAS tidak terkeluar daripada dasar perjuangan Islam.

Selain Mohamad, turut bertanding jawatan itu adalah penyandangnya Nasharudin Mat Isa dan Naib Presiden PAS Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man. Bagaimanapun kedua-dua calon itu tidak dapat diakses untuk ditemu bual khas.

Sebagaimana disaksikan tahun-tahun lalu, soal kepimpinan ulama dan profesional kembali muncul dalam menentukan penyandang jawatan nombor dua parti komponen Pakatan Rakyat itu.

Minggu lalu, Mursyidul Am PAS Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat menafikan wujudnya soal kepimpinan ulama atau profesional dalam parti itu.

Malah Ketua Dewan Ulama PAS pusat Datuk Harun Taib menegaskan kepimpinan ulama harus diteruskan dalam parti itu walaupun ia tidak termaktub dalam perlembagaan parti Islam itu.

Ditanya apa matlamat utama yang akan dilakukan sekiranya terpilih untuk jawatan nombor dua itu, Mohamad berkata, PAS perlu bergerak lebih maju ke hadapan selain bertindak lebih agresif menangkis serangan dilakukan Umno-BN terutamanya dalam menghadapi pilihan raya umum ke-13.

"Tiga perkara yang akan saya lakukan adalah menangkis propaganda Umno-BN mengenai masalah Melayu kononnya orang Melayu tidak akan terjamin sekiranya Pakatan Rakyat memerintah, ini persepsi yang salah dan propaganda ini harus ditangkis, PAS perlu bertindak segera untuk membalas serangan yang dibuat Umno-BN ini," kata beliau.

Perkara kedua, menggerakkan usaha bagi PAS mendapatkan sokongan orang bukan Melayu secara berterusan kerana jika tidak berterusan hasrat Pakatan Rakyat untuk menawan Putrajaya akan terbengkalai.

READ MORE HERE

 

PAS yakin dakwaan terhadap Husam tidak benar

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 03:07 PM PDT

(Harakahdaily) - Setiausaha Agung PAS, Datuk Mustafa Ali berkata, sebelum ini beliau pernah menyiasat dakwaan terhadap Datuk Husam Musa dari pihak yang sama dan mendapatinya tidak benar.

"Saya yang siasat sebelum ini dan didapati dakwaan itu tidak benar...saya yakin kali ini juga tidak benar," kata Mustafa dalam sidang media bersama Presiden PAS hari ini.

Mustafa mencelah soalan wartawan kepada Datuk Seri Tuan Guru Abdul Hadi yang bertanya mengenai dakwaan seorang blogger, Kickdefella, Syed Azidi Syed Abdul Aziz yang didakwa menerima RM300,000 dari Husam.

Semalam Husam menafikan laporan itu manakala Syed Azidi juga menafikan menerima wang itu dan tidak pernah ke China sejak tahun 2009 apabila beliau kali terakhir ke sana pada tahun itu.

Para blogger Umno membuat pelbagai dakwaan kononnya Syed Azidi menerima wang RM300,000 dari Husam untuk membantu beliau dalam pemilihan muktamar kali ini.

Mereka mendakwa, Husam menyerahkan wang itu kepada Syed Azidi di China melalui wakilnya.

 

PRU 13: PAS tetap bersama Pakatan, tawar kebajikan

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 03:06 PM PDT

(Harakahdaily) - Presiden PAS, Datuk Seri Tuan Guru Abdul Hadi Awang menegaskan PAS akan tetap bersama rakan Pakatan Rakyat yang lain membuat perubahan menggantikan Umno BN.

Jelasnya walaupun dasar dan konsep antara PAS, PKR dan DAP berbeza, namun ketiga-tiga komponen tersebut tetap mempunyai matlamat sama memperjuang keadilan untuk semua.

"Walaupun mungkin adanya perbezaan dasar dan konsep dengan rakan-rakan yang lain, tetapi banyak titik persamaan dalam pelaksanaan dan objektifnya dalam aspek pentadbiran dan penglibatannya ke dalam masyarakat majmuk.

"Walaupun berbeza dalam perkara halal dan haram, tetapi kita tentunya bersama dalam menegakkan adil untuk semua dan menentang kemungkaran, kezaliman dan penyelewengan  seperti rasuah dan sebagainya,"katanya ketika menyampaikan ucapan dasar presiden pada muktamar PAS Pusat di Dewan Datuk Faghil Nor di KUIZM, Taman Melewar hari ini.

Tegasnya, kerjasama politik atau Tahaluf Siyasi yang diamalkan oleh PAS, telah menjadi sebahagian daripada Feqah Politik Islam dan ianya berbeza kerjasama wala' antara Umno dalam BN, yang mengorbankan prinsip dan menghilangkan jati diri Islam daripada bangsa Melayu yang beragama Islam, seterusnya menghanyutkan Islam yang sebenar.

Berucap atas tema "Membangun negara berkebajikan", Tuan Guru Abdul Hadi berkata, PAS adalah parti yang paling berpengalaman, termasuk menjadi pembangkang hanya dengan satu kerusi.

"Di sepanjang perjalanan beberapa dekad dan generasi, kita adalah parti yang paling berpengalaman, kita berpengalaman menjadi pembangkang hanya dengan satu kerusi, menjadi kerajaan diperingkat negeri, menyertai kerajaan pusat dan kosong tanpa kerusi, kita pernah bersendirian, pernah menyertai kerajaan campuran dan  kita juga melaksanakan tahaluf siyasi,"katanya.

Sehubungan itu katanya, PAS akan terus bergerak dan tetap istiqamah di atas landasan Islam.

"Kita tidak akan mengubah matlamat perjuangan kita walau apa pun gelombang, ribut dan badai yang memukul bahtera kita, dan ternyata bahtera kita masih kukuh dan selamat hingga ke hari ini,"katanya disambut laungan hadirin.

Mengulas lanjut, beliau memberitahu PAS memilih pendekatan demokrasi kerana bertindak secara muwajahah silmiyyah, sama ada menang menjadi kerajaan, atau pembangkang atau melahirkan bantahan secara terbuka di mana sahaja ruang yang ada.

Bagaimanapun PAS perlu menggunakan uslub terbaik untuk mengembalikan umat Islam khususnya masyarakat Melayu yang digulakan dengan semangat perkauman sempit dan tidak berpijak kepada dasar Islam yang sebenar.

Mengulas tema ucapan dasarnya itu, presiden PAS itu berkata, perjuangan mengembalikan kebajikan rakyat adalah paling utama mendepani Pilihan Raya Umum ke-13 yang dibayangkan sangat sengit berbanding sebelumnya.

Rakyat katanya kini tertekan dengan dasar Umno BN yang memangsakan rakyat untuk mendapat hasil kepada negara.

Ianya termasuk mengurangkan subsidi kepada rakyat dengan menaikkan harga barangan.

Oleh itu kata beliau, negeri-negeri yang diperintah Pakatan Rakyat perlu menunjukkan komitmen berkebajikan kepada rakyat agar mereka boleh melihat keikhlasan pakatan menjaga kebajikan rakyat berbanding BN.

"Maka di atas komitmen ini, tibalah masanya pula kita memperkukuhkan konsep dan objektif kebajikan secara menyeluruh dalam urustadbir yang kita bawa.

"PAS wajib melenyapkan budaya mendapat hasil secara membebankan rakyat yang diamalkan Umno BN,"katanya.

 

‘DAP failed to deliver on Sarawak 416 promise’

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 02:48 PM PDT

DAP has reached its peaked in Sarawak and now must steamroll Sabah to stay relevant, says SAPP.

Chances of a unified opposition in Sabah are rapidly receding following unrelenting attacks by the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) over a faux pas last weekend by DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang.

Lim had told SAPP, during a Kaamatan dinner thanksgiving celebration here last Friday, it needed to join the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition to have any hope of toppling the Barisan Nasional (BN) government.

His innocuous comment during his speech sparked a vociferous backlash from SAPP president Yong Teck Lee and several of party leaders that has yet to abate despite Lim's apology for sounding harsh and arrogant.

Yesterday, SAPP secretary-general, Richard Yong, went on a different tack, accusing DAP of failing to deliver on its promise of change following the Sarawak state election on April 16.

He said that what had happened instead was that it had landed the Chinese community there in the opposition while the Bumiputeras were represented by other parties and remained in government.

"This is the 'two-party system' championed by DAP, with the Chinese in the opposition and the Bumiputeras in the government.

"This is the DAP '416′ promise of change of toppling Taib Mahmud (Sarawak Chief Minister) on April 16.

"Instead, '416′ turned out to be Taib's victory because Taib was sworn in on the evening of '416′.

"This is why SAPP urged DAP greenhorns in Sabah not to be over elated by their so-called success in Sarawak.

"Sarawak '416′ is neither a success for the opposition nor for Sarawak nor for the Chinese community," he said.

He said this while presenting SAPP's analysis on the implications of the Sarawak election on Sabah.

SAPP aims for autonomy

Yong said that SAPP also disagreed with Lim's view that "to change Sabah, we must have change in Malaysia".

"In fact, to change Malaysia, we must have change in Sabah. This is because if the national opposition cannot win in Sabah and Sarawak, then there is no change in Malaysia.

"SAPP aims to restore autonomy to Sabah by having a change of government in Sabah and in Putrajaya. It is not sufficient to have a mere changing of urban representatives like what happened in the recent Sarawak election," he said.

For Pakatan Rakyat to achieve its target of 15 MPs from Sabah and Sarawak, the combined Sabah opposition (Pakatan plus SAPP) has to garner 10 to 12 out of the 25 MP seats in Sabah.

"To achieve this target, SAPP respects the wishes of the people that the opposition works together.

"SAPP has been playing its part; our leaders have met with PKR and DAP leaders at various levels from top to bottom, attending Pakatan functions and building mutual confidence," he said.

Yong also explained that the purpose of sharing the party's analysis on the Sarawak state election with the public was in view of the "super confidence" of DAP that only they can bring change to Sabah.

"We wish to share with the public our party analysis of the DAP performance in the April Sarawak state election and its implications on the coming general election," he said.

SAPP had sent five teams to lend moral support to Pakatan and to learn about the Sarawak elections, he added.

READ MORE HERE

 

Bangkai gajah masakan boleh ditutup dengan nyiru!

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 02:26 PM PDT

Aspan Alias

Jika kita melaksanakan tanggungjawab dengan tidak berlandaskan moral akhirnya akan disebut oleh rakyat juga. Apa pun yang kita lakukan, kita wajar melakukannya dengan penuh tanggungjawab dan bermoral. Jika kerajaan selalu mengungkit-ngungkit apa yang dibekalkan kepada rakyat serta mengumpat rakyat kononnya tidak berterima kasih setelah mereka dibekalkan denga jalanraya bertar, api, air gigi palsu percuma rakyat juga akan mengungkit tindakan salah kita.

Apabila tindakan itu memberikan keuntungan besar peniaga dengan keterlaluan yang berlipat kali ganda 'on the expense of the rakyat', ianya akan menjadi isu yang panas dan boleh sahaja menukar persepsi ramai terhadap kepimpinan walaupun beliau telah bersara dengan gelaran 'negarawan' dan segala pujian dan sanjungan rakyat.

Bak kata perbilangan, 'bangkai gajah masakan boleh ditutupi dengan nyiru'. Dalam isu pembekalan kuasa tenaga oleh IPP ini sebenarnya sudah lama diketahui oleh sebilangan rakyat. 'Bangkai Gajah' ini telah ramai yang nampak tetapi mungkin baunya belum di hidu oleh ramai orang. Sekarang semua orang telah terhidu busuknya maka cerita lama kembali muncul di depan mata rakyat yang sedang merasakan keperitan kerana tindakan kita memihak kepada peniaga 'lintah darat' yang menggunakan pemimpin agong yang mahu pula dipergunakan oleh 'lintah darat' yang menghisap darah rakyat selama ini.

Segala kesalahan lampau seperti isu TNB membeli kuasa dari IPP secara 'paksa' oleh pihak EPU kembali menjadi isu hangat. Saya secara peribadi telah menulis dan mengkritik tindakan 'zalim' pihak EPU yang secara 'remote' dari pemimpin sokongan rakyat untuk mempastikan TNB membeli kuasa tenaga dari syarikat IPP yang menjadi kawan rapat Perdana Menteri semasa itu.

Jabatan Economic Planning Unit (EPU) Jabatan Perdana Menteri (JPM) telah memaksa TNB untuk menerima sahaja kandungan penting di dalam PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) di antara TNB dan syarikat IPP yang dimasudkan ini (YTL). TNB telah dipaksa membeli tanaga dari YTL Power dengan harga .23 sen per kWh dari syarikat ini dengan jumlah yang ditentukan tidak kira samada jumlah itu digunakan atau pun tdak. TNB juga dipaksa untuk membelinya selama waktu yang ditentukan dan ini tidak dapat dikategorikan sebagai peniagaan atau rompakan kolar putih yang tidak ada tolok banding dahsyatnya.

Di waktu yang sama ketika itu ada pihak lain yang mampu membekalkan Tenaga dengan .12 sen bagi 1kWh tetapi EPU tetap memaksa TNB untuk membeli .23 sen per kWh dari syarikat 'istimewa' yang rapat dengan pucuk pimpinan. Inilah yang menjadikan Tan Sri Ani Arope, pengerusi TNB tatkala itu terpaksa berpecah arang dengan pucuk pimpinan kerana beliau menentang cara EPU memaksa TNB menerima sahaja tekanan dari EPU yang digunakan oleh seorang pemimpin itu untuk melakukan niat yang berunsurkan rasuah dan salah guna kuasa itu. 

READ MORE HERE

 

WIKILEAKS: Perak coup: ‘A play of brute and refined force’

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 02:14 PM PDT

A leaked WikiLeads cable reveals that US diplomats visited Perak after the BN coup and concluded that only the BN has the clout to muscle its way to power.

The US diplomats had visited Perak one year after the BN takeover, and just after a February 2010 Federal Court ruling which affirmed BN's Zambry Abd Kadir as the righful menteri besar.

K Kabilan, Free Malaysia Today

 

The Barisan Nasional (BN) takeover of Perak indicated clearly the ruling coalition's clout and ability to manipulate and muscle its way to power, noted US diplomats.

The BN victory in Perak was a "successful political power play both in terms of brute and refined power".

"(This) reminds us that of the two coalitions, only the BN has the clout, money, and ability to manipulate the government system (election commission, courts) to muscle its way to power," added the US diplomats.

The diplomats also felt that while Pakatan Rakyat leaders have been critical of the manner in which the state was taken away from their control, there were also cracks appearing in the Pakatan coalition.

"They (Pakatan) remain somewhat fragmented both within their coalition, and within their component parties," added the diplomats, referring specifically to the internal fight for influence in the Perak DAP.

These comments were made by the US diplomats based in the US embassy here to their State Department in Washington in a confidential cable dated Feb 19, 2010.

Details of the cable were leaked by WikiLeaks to popular blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin who had published the leaked cable in his Malaysia Today website today.

The US diplomats had visited Perak one year after the BN takeover, and just after a February 2010 Federal Court ruling which affirmed BN's Zambry Abd Kadir as the righful menteri besar.

"The BN now has firm control of Perak and is working to regain some of its lost influence among voters, having allocated resources into projects to win back support of the people," added the diplomats in the cable.

"With the Chinese vote firmly supporting the opposition, the deciding votes in any future election rest with the ethnic Malays," they added.

They also noted that the Malay support was split between the ruling coalition and the opposition.

Zambry vs Nizar

The diplomats had also met up with politicians from both BN and Pakatan during the visit to Perak, including meetings with Zambry and Pakatan's menteri besar Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin.

Both sets of politicians had claimed that the people of Perak supported them, and had slammed the state administration of the other.

While Nizar had said that his short administration was "successful and people-friendly", Zambry had said that he had the will of the people to rule and had pointed out his "people-friendly policies".

Zambry had also informed the US diplomats that he was confident of winning snap polls if it had been held then – in 2010 – saying that BN would win 34 out of 59 state seats.

He, however, ruled out calling for a snap election, saying that "the Perak BN state government does not operate based on the dictates of the opposition".

Nizar, meanwhile, had informed the US diplomats that he had the support of 80% of the Chinese and Indian vote, and at least 50% of the ethnic Malay vote.

However, he admitted that even with fresh elections, there was no guarantee that the Pakatan would win a majority of seats to form a government.

"Nizar stated that the BN has managed to 'poison the minds of the rural Malays' by convincing them that he was 'a lackey of the DAP' and 'had committed treason by defying the Sultan' after the defections," noted the diplomats in the cable.

Non-Malay support

The cable also spoke about the meetings between the US diplomats and non-Malay BN leaders on the support of the Chinese and Indian communities for BN.

Gerakan deputy president and state chief Chang Ko Youn openly blamed Umno's racist policies as the reason for the Chinese voters to "desert the BN by droves" in the last general election.

He also added that the Chinese media were "unfriendly" towards BN, stating the Chinese newspapers were more independent and at times favoured the opposition rather than BN parties.

He had also said that it would be difficult for BN to win over the Chinese voters in the next general election.

However, this view was not shared by MCA's Mah Hang Soon, who said that BN was "now more aware of the Chinese problem" and was "working on overcoming it". Mah is the state MCA Youth chief and the sole non-Umno state rep.

He said the state BN had given land titles to Chinese farmers and had funded nine independent Chinese schools in the state, admitting that in the past, the BN state government had completely ignored the plight of independent Chinese schools.

As for the Indian community, the BN state assembly speaker and state MIC secretary, R Ganesan, was of the opinion that the BN government "has enacted numerous polices for the benefit of non-Malays".

"Ganesan proudly stated that for the first time the state government has allocated funding for Hindu temples," added the cable.

The cable also noted that the previous Pakatan government started the policy of allocating funds to non-Islamic religious institutions, but it is the BN which was seeing this through.

The cable also quoted Ganesan as saying that he could see the Indians returning to the BN based on the number of people attending BN-sponsored meetings and political rallies.

READ MORE HERE

 

Well-connected IPPs, Badly Conned Consumers

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:24 PM PDT

After being "royally screwed" by the IPPs, of course TNB passes the cost on to us consumers. The other method for TNB to turn around is to encourage higher consumption of electricity which is why the hectic rush to build more and more hydroelectric power dams all over the place.

By Dr Kua Kia Soong, Director of SUARAM

 

As a result of the 1992 energy crisis during Mahathir's term in office, Independent Power Producers (IPPs) were foisted on the country and TNB as a fait accompli. These well-connected IPPs have managed to secure a pretty good deal out of the power purchase agreements with TNB and brokered by the Economic Planning Unit. The problems and contradictions within TNB have been exacerbated as a result of the entry of these IPPs and this has affected TNB's share market performance through the years.

I brought up the scandal at Tenaga Nasional in Parliament in November 1990 alleging that this privatised energy was riddled with corruption, cronyism and mismanagement. This and other aspects of the Malaysian energy industry can be read in my 1996 title: "Malaysia's Energy Crisis: the Real Issues". 

Twenty years later, we are counting the costs and still bearing the burden of the BN government's cosy relationship with these IPPs as reflected in the power purchase agreements contracted and the increase in electricity tariffs.

For a start, the IPPs are getting fuel supplied by TNB who then use the IPPs to produce electricity and sell it back to TNB. So they should be able to control prices there too. But TNB is taking the risk but not the profit of operation.

The prime minister announced recently that Bakun tariff is 6.5-7 sen/kWh. IPPs are selling electricity in Malaysia for at least 16 sen. In the US the hydro electric tariff is 1.2 US cents/kWh; in China it is US 1.2-1.5 cents/kWh.

 

The Failure of our Privatised Services

While the IPPs have reaped millions through Mahathir's privatisation exercises, for privatisation to be in the rakyat's interest, certain criteria must maintain:

(i) The privatised service must be cheaper and better than that formerly provided by the state. If not, what benefit is it to the people?
(ii) The privatised service must be more efficient than that provided by the Government.
(iii) The privatised industry must not have assistance from the Government in order to be viable.

Here, the IPPs have been relying on their connections with the ruling elite for access to licences and other conveniences, especially sources of funding. They have failed to get international banking sources and have instead relied on EPF, the pension funds of Malaysian workers for funding. The control over the EPF by genuine workers' representatives who invest the funds in their interests is long overdue.

In terms of unit cost, the electricity which these IPPs produce is more expensive and thus fails the first criterion set out above.

 

Contradiction of Viability and Conservation

Caught in the bind of the heavily IPP-biased power purchase agreements, TNB could only think of one way to be viable, namely, encouraging Malaysians to "use more power". Indeed in 1994, the executive chairman of TNB Tan Sri Ani Arope was quoted in the press as saying:

"We hope to get more people staying in condominiums to dry their clothes using electricity." (The Star, 19 Oct 1994)

This exposes the hypocrisy displayed by the government over conserving one hour's energy on Earth Day.

Among the government's panic measures since the 1992 energy crisis when the Big Blackout happened, has been the indiscriminate granting of licences to IPPs to build power stations. The country was told that this excess capacity is a wonderful thing and that it can be exported:

"IPPs generate, Tenaga buys. This is like buying under duress. We have excess power now. This doesn't solve stability problems. Also, the IPPs built stations at sites of their choice, not necessarily where they were needed and stable for the system, such as areas of high power consumption." (Sunday Star, 1 Sept 1996)

The total lack of planning and a total energy policy was exposed when the Energy Minister suddenly announced in late 1994 that TNB would maintain 70 per cent of power supply while the IPPs would be restricted to only 30 per cent. The price of TNB shares dropped so drastically because economic analysts could see that "Tenaga has been royally screwed." (Malaysian Business, 16 November 1994) TNB's plunge also affected the slide in the KLSE's Composite Index at the time.

After being "royally screwed" by the IPPs, of course TNB passes the cost on to us consumers. The other method for TNB to turn around is to encourage higher consumption of electricity which is why the hectic rush to build more and more hydroelectric power dams all over the place. We can see why the government is in no great hurry to implement a national energy policy which encourages energy conservation.

 

Lack of Planning and Energy policy

The country is told that excess capacity can be exported. The on-off submarine cable project to transmit Bakun energy to the peninsula since it was first brought up in the Eighties shows the alarming lack of planning and total energy policy. The on-off contracts with the aluminium smelters since the Seventies reveal the complete absence of concrete energy demand projections. If the highly toxic aluminium smelter projects are approved, we will no doubt see yet another protest by the people just as at Lynas and Bukit Merah. The hypothetical demand for Bakun energy by the Indonesians in Kalimantan likewise exposes the indiscriminate hunger for mega projects without the required feasibility studies and realistic demand projections.

The Perlis power plant was also meant to supply excess energy to the Thais. But was there a study done to see if the Thais needed this power? And if they did need power, what was there to prevent them from making use of their own IPPs to do the job? IPPs are by no means a Malaysian innovation!

The Bakun dam with its 2400 MW generating capacity and many more dams in the pipeline when the total demand in Sarawak is not more than 1000MW is another example of wanton profligacy. The World bank has recommended reserve margins of not more than 10 per cent otherwise all that plant is sitting idle and costing us a lot of money.

Thus it looks as if those in power are more interested in making mega bucks out of the mega projects rather than a responsible and sustainable energy policy and plan.

In Malaysia, we do not have a prudent energy policy. We do not even have a proper energy needs inventory giving us reliable data on the possible sources of renewable energy and detailed breakdown of domestic and industrial consumption. All that we are given by the Government whenever energy needs are discussed are total production and consumption patterns. This is not good enough. 

 

A Golden Age of Mediocrity

Disaffected by such a culture in our infrastructure ministries exacerbated by the racialist excesses of the New Economic Policy, many of our top engineers and scientists who were responsible for building the infrastructure in the first place have left in disgust. They are now helping other countries such as China, India, South America, and Eastern Europe to develop their industries, using their skills which could help Malaysian industries.

Thus, while the rest of the world is powering ahead, with even countries like Vietnam and Cambodia aspiring to be the next tigers, we seem content to remain in what I call, "a golden age of mediocrity".     

Takeover the IPPs, Not Renegotiate

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:21 PM PDT

Why are contract negotiations being carried out with IPPs which have been a drain on the resources of Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and a burden to the consumers? Why not let TNB take over the IPPs?

By S.M.Mohamed Idris (President)

The Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) is concerned that the government is already renegotiating with independent power producers (IPPs) whose contracts will be expiring soon.

Why are contract negotiations being carried out with IPPs which have been a drain on the resources of Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and a burden to the consumers? Why not let TNB take over the IPPs?

This is not a radical suggestion considering that in 1982 the National Electricity Board (the predecessor of TNB) took over the Perak River Hydro Electric Power company (PRHEP) and its subsidiary Kinta Electrical Distribution Co Ltd. PRHEP which built the hydro-electric station and dam at Chenderoh, was at one time the largest power supplier
in Malaya.

In 1976, National Electricity Board had also replaced the Penang Municipality in supplying electricity to areas serviced by Huttenbach Ltd, a private power company which had earlier been taken over by the Penang Municipality.

TNB, with decades of experience in energy production has the capacity to produce energy more efficiently and at a lower cost than the IPPs. Moreover, profits coming to TNB, a government-controlled company, will benefit the people and the nation rather than private companies.

‘The Gods must be crazy’ in Malaysia

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:17 PM PDT

Suddenly everyone is springing up as an authority of sorts in representing God. Some are even going the distance to be the interpreters of God. It is no surprise to be hearing from politicians today what the respective followers of a faith must do and to do it all in the name of their God.

 

By J. D. Lovrenciear

 

In this age and time, believe it or not, we have got ourselves all entangled in the God-war. When nations elsewhere are fighting tooth and nail to keep their territorial borders intact we who have no border wars are instead using God as the currency to pit one against the other over God related matters, i.e. religion.

 

We are trying by all means to rile people up within the country by raising issues and concerns that hinge on God-issues. We are so busy debating whether a Muslim or a non-Muslim can lead the country. Meanwhile other nations are coming together focussed on getting just the best man for the top job. We on the other hand are so God centred.

 

Other nations are busy battling erratic weather patterns to keep their crops but we are just too darn busy about issuing edicts and debating what this God is saying and the other God must listen. And so we had the Christian Bible fracas.

 

Suddenly everyone is springing up as an authority of sorts in representing God. Some are even going the distance to be the interpreters of God. It is no surprise to be hearing from politicians today what the respective followers of a faith must do and to do it all in the name of their God. Meanwhile other nations' politicians are busy seeking the support and agreement of followers – irrespective of which God they follow to believe their offer of socio, political, economic and environmental solutions.

 

In short we are playing God but other nationals are playing plain mortal man.

 

God-labels are increasingly given importance. That is already enshrined permanently in your IDs, Birth Certs and many more documentations. The State has become the monitor for God and needs to know in no uncertain terms which God label you carry. Other governments only want to know which is your country that you call homeland. It is just nationality for them but for us being a citizen is not enough; we must also have an official God label.

 

How you choose to pray to your God is also a preoccupation in Malaysia at national level. Politicians will not lose out in capitalizing on this God matter too. If it can be drummed up for political mileage it will, at all costs, be done. We have seen it in the past. We will continue to witness it in the future. In other countries it is purely a religious matter left to leaders of the respective faiths to lead their followers. For them it is never an issue. For us we are so God focussed that it is a biggie-sort of an issue that must be exploited.

 

Politicians must therefore stay clear and out of any God debate. Leave it to those who are qualified, sanctioned by the faithful and learned in their respective faiths.  

 


Crusaders for Cruelty

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:12 PM PDT

New and "improved" laws with enhanced sentences and fines are worthless without competent and impartial enforcement of said laws

By Shenaaz Khan (President, Malaysian Animal Welfare Society)

Rulers often give a rather realistic imitation of altruism. They purge pluralistic promises to mask their innate ruthlessness. In Malaysia, prominent among the false whiskers wearers is the Department of Veterinary Services. Of all the malingering and slothful Government agencies, the DVS has proven to be amongst the most ineffective and worthless of the lot.

The perfect rot that they are, they appear to also be the most competent of liars. So marvellous is this prowess that they've consistently used it for decades to detract, defuse and dictate the welfare of animals in this inhumane country. With their moribund state of practices, dwindling with obsolescence, they have made dead sure that almost all animal abusers, animal killers and animal neglecters enjoy punitive immunity and eternal freedom.

Of course, their blatant ineptitude has been aided by a government and system that thrives on corruption and cruelty. Datuk Dr Abdul Aziz Jamaluddin, the Director General of the DVS, is undoubtedly the proud product of such a government. He is utterly useless, besmirched and ever ready to cool simmering public opinion by spewing media friendly untruths!

Case in point is the supposed BAN on dog shooting in Malaysia. In November 2010, following the ghastly council killing of a pet dog in Ipoh, Dr. Aziz smugly announced a ban on dog shooting in Malaysia. Animal lovers celebrated with hopeful hurrahs. How ignorant they were for Dr. Aziz was yet again doing what he does best - telling a barefaced lie. Truth be told, the ban merely applied to DVS officers. (Note: DVS officers have not shot dogs since rabies was eradicated some 50 years ago).

The ban, however, DID NOT apply to council dog catchers, whom many a decent Malaysian would recognise as monstrous murderers of innocent animals. Alas, amidst his grand announcement and nauseating smirks of accomplishment, Dr. Aziz failed to ooze out this vital piece of information. So for all intents and purposes, the dog shooting ban was no ban at all!

Thus, the statement by Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Noh Omar on a shiny smashing new law holds very little promise for animals of this country. New and "improved" laws with enhanced sentences and fines are worthless without competent and impartial enforcement of said laws! But competence and impartiality is clearly beyond the skill set of the Malaysian government, hence their unrelenting reluctance to act against real criminals committing real crimes.

The continued barbarianism perpetrated by councils and individuals speaks volumes of the government's effectiveness in combating cruelty. Periodical rhetoric on animal welfare, be it at open dialogues or closed door meetings, can best be described as political posturing and has no real value or worth.

The Serdang kitten killer, the poodle abuser and the Batu Pahat Council dog catchers, all of whose hideous acts were videotaped, are still at large. Despite such gripping evidence, the DVS and the Attorney Generals Chambers seem to think bringing these criminals to book a rather superfluous exercise. And so these monsters continue to roam our streets, unpunished and unrepentant. And the grisly plight of animals remains unchanged.

With Noh, Aziz and their repellent gang of callous colleagues at the helm of animal protection laws, cruel councils and animal annihilators will be allowed to further nourish the inhumane tide engulfing this country. And the crusaders of cruelty shall continue their wickedness with a wink and a nod from the powers that be.

Powerless or Powerful?

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:58 AM PDT

By Tony Pua

The Minister of Energy, Water and Green Technologies, Peter Chin had earlier in the week expressed that the Government is helpless in "declassifying" the Power Purchasing Agreements (PPAs) between the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) in the light of the demand by the public.

The Ministry's reply to me back in 29 February 2009 for my parliamentary question said the exact same thing, which at the very least showed that they are steadfast and consistent in backing the interest of the IPPs.

The Minister then had replied to me that "dokumen Perjanjian Jual Beli Tenaga (PPA) merupakan satu dokumen perjanjian antara dua entiti swasta, iaitu di antara Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) dan pihak penjana bebas (IPP) yang terbabit. Di bawah perjanjian tersebut, kedua-dua pihak perlu memberikan persetujuan terlebih dahulu sebelum mana-mana kandungan perjanjian tersebut boleh diumumkan. Sekiranya pihka TNB bercadang untuk menamatkan perjanjian PPA tanpa sebab yang kukuh, TNB perlu memberi pampasan penuh kepada pihak IPP."

The Ministry's reply to me on 23 March 2010 again emphasized the Government's sheer reluctance to right the wrong in the PPAs which make the rakyat pay significantly more for its electricity.

"Kerajaan sentiasa menghormati sebarang perjanjian atau kontrak yang telah ditandatangani oleh pihak Kerajaan. Oleh yang demikian, Kerajaan tiada rancangan untuk merombak semula atau menamatkan kontrak Perjanjian Pembelian Tenaga (PPA) secara unilateral dengan pihak IPP sebelum tamat tempoh kontrak tersebut. Sebaliknya, pendekatan yang diambil oleh Kerajaan ialah supaya PPA tersebut dirundingkan semula.Memandangkan rundingan semula PPA merupakan perkara yang rumit dan memerlukan tempoh masa yang agak lama untuk menentukan hasilnya, ia akan ditangani secara berasingan."

The "powerless" nature of the BN government when it comes to declassifying and renegotiating the PPAs, is in direct contrast to the "powerful" role it played to ensure that the IPPs were ensure astronomical profits.

In a revealing interview published by The Star on 26 June 2006,  former TNB chairman, Ani Anope who was "involved" in the power agreements with the IPPs had said:

"There was no negotiation. Absolutely none. Instead of talking directly with the IPPs, TNB was sitting down with the EPU. And we were harassed, humiliated and talked down every time we went there. After that, my team was disappointed. The EPU just gave us the terms and asked us to agree. I said no way I would."

As for the pricing and terms of the contracts, "It was all fixed up. (They said) this is the price, this is the capacity charge and this is the number of years. They said you just take it..."

Hence when TNB was forced to sign these lobsided PPAs, it was the Prime Minister's all-powerful Economic Planning Unit (EPU) which dictated all terms. But when it comes to making public these PPAs, its now TNB's own choice as a "private company" and there's not the Government can do about it.

The responses from the Minister are at best "misleading" and at worst a lie, for the Government has a vested interest in not declassifying these contracts, for it was the BN government itself who dictated the terms of these contracts to be signed. Now it just does not want the public to know what it did, and the fact that it prioritised the astronomical profits of these IPPs at the expense of the man-on-the-street.

In fact Ani Anope disclosed that an agreement has been struck between TNB and an IPP, understood to be Genting Sanyen for the former to purchase electricity at 12 sen per kWh. However the "EPU said that unless the IPP raised its price, the contract would not be given to the IPP. So he got it for 14 sen per unit," while other first generation IPPs got 16 sen per kWh.

Now that the interest of the IPPs have been served, the Government reverts to its meek and timid role using the excuse that its an agreement between "private entities" and that any renegotiations can only be done after the existing contracts expire.

On the contrary, as there is no "contract" between the Government and the rakyat, the Government can choose to raise electricity tariffs any time it so chooses, even if it were to mean that these IPPs were to continue to profit at the expense of increased sufferings of the rakyat.

The Prime Minister, Najib Razak must demonstrate moral and economic leadership by doing what is right and just for the people, instead of dithering over the declassification of the PPAs as well as their renegotiation.  Otherwise, all the rhetoric of "transformation" becomes just a facade for continuity and business as usual, where political cronyism comes first.

 

TONY PUA is DAP National Publicity Secretary and MP for Petaling Jaya Utara

Targeting RM800b oil 'field'

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:55 AM PDT

By Eileen Ng, NST

KUALA LUMPUR: A one-stop centre to coordinate and promote the country's oil field services and equipment (OFSE) industry, to be known as Malaysia Petroleum Resource Corporation, will be set up, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

This government body will look into creating an attractive business environment for industry players and investors.

"The government is in the midst of establishing the corporation to attract multinational companies by ensuring administrative ease as well as to promote Malaysian OFSE industry to overseas companies and investors," he said in his speech at the 13th Asian oil, gas and petrochemical engineering exhibition (OGA 2011) yesterday.

Touted as the largest oil and gas show in the region, the event attracted some 1,500 oil and gas companies from over 50 countries, with products worth more than RM100 billion on display.

Saying that the global OFSE market stood at RM800 billion and had undergone an annual growth rate of 25 per cent in recent years, Muhyiddin said the Asian market for oil field services alone had grown by 20 per cent per year over the past decade, primarily driven by the shift towards more technically challenging fields and increases in the price of crude oil.

Currently, there were gaps in the domestic OFSE industry, with Malaysian companies lacking capabilities and experience, limiting their ability to gain a strong share in the regional market, he said.

Muhyiddin said Malaysia's aspiration was to attract 10 to 20 major international companies to bring 10 per cent of their OFSE business operations to Malaysia.

"This could translate to around 40 per cent of their regional activities and would mean positioning Malaysia as a cost-competitive base for engineering, procurement and construction as well as a strategic base for installation activities in the Asia-Pacific region.

"As Malaysia is undertaking aggressive efforts and developing innovative solutions to drive the reserve growth and get more from existing fields, advanced technology and capability is crucial for us.

"International companies have the cutting edge technology and expertise to assist Malaysia in the deep water sector and exploration services. Our local oil and gas players can also grow their capabilities by working together with these international companies."

He said Malaysia was targeting five per cent annual growth for the energy sector from last year until 2020. "This target translates into an increase of RM131.4 billion in the period from 2010 to 2020.

"There are significant number of business opportunities in the oil, gas and energy sector. Malaysia's offshore producing fields are more mature than those of our Southeast Asian neighbours.

"There will be tremendous commercial opportunities for maintenance and replacement of assets in addition to development of new fields, which will continue to drive growth in this key sector."

Muhyiddin added that another growing business opportunity was the regional midstream logistics market for oil and oil product storage, with crude oil consumption expected to grow by 420,000 barrels per day annually from 2010 to 2015.

Malaysia, he said, was well-placed to complement Singapore and collectively operate a hub similar to Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp.

"This hub can complement each other in areas of refining capacity, independent storage and blending capacity as well as access to markets."


Where is Sabah’s oil money going?

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:51 AM PDT

By Queville To, Free Malaysia Today

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah, as major gas producing state in the country, should not be included in the electricity tariff hike or in any fuel susbidy cuts.

Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) women's wing chief Melanie Chia said yesterday that there "is no reason to revise electricity tariff in Sabah, more so when Sabah is a major producer of gas in the country".

Chia, who is the state assembly representative for Luyang, questioned the logic behind the increase, citing that being a net exporter of crude oil, the government was supposed to be making a huge profit each time there is an increase in the oil prices in the global market.

"The government has repeatedly said that they need to review the subsidies because of the increase in the prices of oil and gas.

"But it has been reported that every time the price of oil and gas increased by US$1, there is an additional income of RM500 million.

"The US$1 increase will increase the subsidy by RM350 million, there is still a net excess of RM150 million.

"So, where has this excess gone to?

"By this calculation, the recent increases in the prices of oil and gas should have brought about a win-win situation to the government and the people of Malaysia.

"If the government has to cry foul each time the price increases, we need to ask the government where has the excess due to the higher prices of our natural resources gone to?

"Instead of a win-win accruing from our natural endowment, we are burdened with the eventuality of higher cost of living.

"Where is the logic?" she asked.

Why a refinery in Johor?

SAPP is also demanding accountability and transparency in the dealings of Petronas since Sabah is a major producer of oil and gas in the country, but is not represented in the advisory board of national oil company.

"Before our natural endowment in oil and gas is depleted, the Malaysians living in Sabah need to be assured that Sabah will benefit from the exploitation of the oil and gas here.

READ MORE HERE.

Is Pairin winding down his political career?

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:49 AM PDT

By Luke Rintod, Free Malaysia Today

KOTA KINABALU: Speculations are rife that a subtle power shift may be taking place in Parti Bersatu Sabah.

Indication of change came to light with rumours that Kota Marudu parliamentarian Maximum Ongkili was shifting his political base to his hometown in Tambunan where his family is building a big house on an ancestral land, just a stone's throw from his uncle Joseph Pairin Kitingan's home.

Pairin is currently Tambunan assemblyman and also Keningau MP.

Pairin, 71, is said to be contemplating winding down his public roles, which have reportedly been quite taxing for him. He's had to deal with complaints about his productivity and efficiency.

The aging Pairin has been an assemblyman for Tambunan for the past 35 years, uninterrupted since 1976 when he was still with Berjaya.

He also is the 'Huguan Siou' or paramount leader of the Kadazandusun, a Deputy Chief Minister-cum-state Minister of Rural Development, president of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), president of KDCA (Kadazandusun Cultural Association) and sits in many committees, including the Asean Eminent Persons Committee.

Maximus, 58, being a senior deputy president of PBS and also KDCA, seems the obvious choice to takeover some of Pairin's
roles.

But observers say there is discontent with Maximus, both within PBS circles and in Kota Marudu, lending credence to rumours that he might be moving to Tambunan or Keningau in the coming general election.

Maximus, who is a federal minister, has held Kota Marudu since 1985 when it was known as Bandau.

His fourth term as MP, has seen a steady fall in his popularity which has been translated into less votes in Dusun majority areas.

Poor track record

In the 1995 general election, when pitted against another uncle, Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, then of Barisan Nasional, Maximus won by garnering 64% of the total votes cast.

In 1999, while PBS was still in opposition, Maximus defeated yet another BN candidate, local boy Maijol Mahap, but garnered only 51% of the total votes.

In 2004 general election, Maximus, who by then was in the ruling BN, retained his seat, defeating his closest rival, the relatively unknown Anthony Mandiau, by garnering 56% of the votes.

In the 2008 general election, he once more defeated Mandiau but his previous popular votes was slashed by 2%.

Maximus has been in the federal cabinet since 2004, but his vast constituency of Kota Marudu is still lagging in infrastructures and economic opportunities.

In many places the roads are in a deplorable condition.

READ MORE HERE.

PAS — opposition power house or federal ruling party?

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:47 AM PDT

By Sheridan Mahavera, The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, June 3 — There are two competing but telling narratives of PAS, the Islamist and second largest party in Malaysia post-2008.

In Kedah, there are grassroots members and Muslims who voted for them who complain that there are more karaoke joints and pubs that have sprouted up in the past three years where the Islamist party has been in power.

Also in Kedah and every other state in the peninsula, there are significant numbers of non-Muslim supporters who compare PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat to Mahatma Gandhi, the world symbol of all non-violent revolutions.

Both of these groups of people helped give the party its historic 23 parliamentary seats and its two state governments. The party also scored a bonus by getting the post of mentri besar in three of the five states Pakatan Rakyat won.

Yet these sentiments also pose a dilemma. If PAS decides to please its traditional supporters and go back to the PAS of old, with its focus on anti-vice laws, moral policing and its version of an "Islamic state" it alienates its new non-Muslim and moderate Muslim support base.

But if it holds off on realising hudud law (which calls for cutting off the hands of thieves and stoning adulterers), some its most hardcore supporters feel they've been betrayed. 

And then there is the possibility of co-operating with arch-nemesis Umno. Though it has been fervently refuted by its leadership, the matter still crops up and haunts the imagination of many members.

So when the party meets from today for its 57th party muktamar (assembly), it will have to decide which narrative or combination between the two will decide the party's direction moving into the 13th general election.

Its Pakatan Rakyat (PR) partners the DAP and PKR are keenly watching this muktamar. Not just because of the elections taking place but because the party's leadership will have to chart PAS's direction going into the 13th general election which they expect to be later this year.

What comes out of the muktamar will determine if PAS can live up to its billing as the "Umno of PR" who will gain the necessary Muslim support to propel PR into federal power.

Movement or ruling party?

PAS members, says one Kedah party activist, can be roughly divided into two types. And no, it's not "Erdogan"/professionals versus ulama/conservatives.

One type believes that PAS is, first and foremost, an Islamic movement. Its main purpose is to spread the religion and pressure the government to adopt so-called "Islamic laws" such as hudud and qisas and to outlaw unIslamic practices such as gambling.

"The idea is that PAS should just preach Islam to the public, regardless as to whether people listen or not," says Mohd Monier Mat Din, a member from Padang Serai.

READ MORE HERE.

Malaysia plays hardball over asylum swap deal with Australia

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 11:46 AM PDT

(The Malaysian Insider) - KUALA LUMPUR, June 3 — Malaysia is pushing hard over the proposed refugee swap agreement with Australia and has removed all references to human rights in the deal.

According to the draft agreement obtained by Australian broadcaster ABC TV's Lateline, Malaysia wants to decide which asylum seekers it accepts and for Australia to cover almost all costs of the refugee exchange.

"Where the Transferee do (sic) not agree to return to their country of origin, voluntarily forced returns may be necessary. In this event, the Government of Australia will be fully responsible to accept and ensure voluntarily forced returns," stated the document, as quoted by ABC.

ABC said Malaysia has insisted on sending 4,000 refugees to Australia, regardless of how many asylum seekers it accepted in return.

Malaysia also does not want the United Nations Refugee Convention, which it is not a signatory of, to cover its side of the agreement.

"The treatment of the Transferee while in Malaysia will be in accordance with the Malaysian laws, rules, regulations and national policies," said the document.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has expressed concerns with Malaysia's amendments to the agreement that were made last Monday.

"What the document shows is that there is a real reluctance by Malaysia to commit to a clear inclusion of human rights standards and guarantees," Australia's Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre co-ordinator David Manne was quoted as saying.

"For example, in the document refugees are referred to as illegal immigrants. There's no reference to the word asylum seeker. There's certainly no reference to human rights," he said.

An internal UNHCR document has also suggested that Australia had a position on sending children to Malaysia, according to ABC.

"AUL (Australia) doesn't want to provide exceptions for UAMS (unaccompanied minors) and vulnerable individuals for fear if (sic) this being a pull factor exploited by smugglers," the document said.


READ MORE HERE.

PAS ulama to table motion on sex video at party assembly on Friday

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:19 AM PDT

(BERNAMA) - The PAS ulama assembly unanimously passed a motion Thursday to bring the sex video issue involving a man resembling an opposition leader for debate at the party's 57th muktamar (general assembly) on Friday.

The motion will be tabled by a member of Kelantan PAS ulama council, Nik Razi Nik Mat, and seconded by a delegate from Kubang Pasu, Kedah.

Nik Razi is Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat's youngest brother.

He said the move would allow the delegates to identify the reasons behind the distribution of the sex video recording.

Perkasa: Respect Malay rights, then talk national unity

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:07 AM PDT

National unity can only be forged if all Malaysians respected the special privileges accorded to the Malays, says the Malay rights group

(Free Malaysia Today) - Only when the special privileges accorded to the Malays is respected by all races can national unity be forged, said Malay extremist group Perkasa.

Its secretary-general, Syed Hassan Syed Ali, disputed MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek's call yesterday to think as Malaysians first to work together to maintain a peaceful nation.

He said it was not wrong for Perkasa to voice out issues affecting the Malay community.

"Even other races vent out on issues affecting their respective communities," said Syed Hassan.

The English daily, The Star, quoted Chua as urging Malaysians to stop identifying themselves with the racial group they belonged to and accept the multi-racial reality of the country.

Syed Hassan said national unity could only be forged if all Malaysians respected the special privileges accorded to the Malays under the Federal Constitution.

"We respect anyone who identifies himself as a Malaysian but we will continue voicing out for the Malays as long as we are neglected," said Syed Hassan.

On whether Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties such as Umno should the spearhead the unity call by turning itself into a multi-racial party, Syed Hassan said Malaysians were still not ready for it.

"Even when DAP calls itself a multi-racial party, who calls the shots? Do the Malays get equal representation in the party?

"However, BN itself is multi-racial as it has all the races in the coalition," he said.

Umno MP Abdul Rahman Dahlan echoed Chua's sentiments but pointed out that not everyone who fights for their own race were racists.

"Umno is the protector of the Malays and we are not shy about it. However, that doesn't make us racists," said the Kota Belud MP.

'Respect the nation's history'

He said that it all boiled down to how people interpreted what being Malaysian is all about.

"For me, a Malaysian is one who adheres to the Federal Constitution, knows our historical background and respects the understanding that allowed the formation of our country," said Rahman.

Citing an example, Rahman said it was all right for a citizen to think as a Malaysian and a Bumiputera at the same time.

READ MORE HERE

 

Get your ‘concert’ act together, Pakatan told

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:05 AM PDT

On the MTV concert in Shah Alam, Pakatan Rakyat leaders are at cross-purposes. The mentri besar is all for the show ,while his PAS colleagues are against it.

(Free Malaysia Today) - Pakatan Rakyat leaders in Selangor have been urged to stop confusing the people with "inconsistent" statements on the MTV concert to be held in i-City, Shah Alam, on July 24, Kedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang said.

"DAP should come out and state its stand. PKR and PAS, too. Better yet, all Pakatan Rakyat leaders should come out with a collective stand, and not confuse the people," he said.

"Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim is saying one thing, and PAS MP for Shah Alam Khalid Samad is saying something else ," said Tan.

Yesterday, the Selangor government gave the go-ahead for the MTV World Stage concert despite protests by Shah Alam residents and PAS.

The menteri besar said approvals for the concert were given last year and there is "no problem with the event", though some restrictions should be observed.

The restrictions were to ensure a minimum sound system impact on the neighbourhood and decent standards of dress and behaviour.

"This may be just a concert, but the implications are bigger than this. If PAS and Khalid (Samad) said it's about infrastructure, I can accept that, that's a fair comment… but is it really the reason behind their protest?

" If it is about western cultures which they deem immoral, then I think its wrong," said Tan, who thinks that PAS was trying to impose their own religious views on other non-Muslims.

"A concert is just an entertainment event where performers show off their singing and dancing. If there's a striptease, then it's immoral," he said.

"You remember when they wanted to ban alcohol in Selangor: first they wanted the ban (imposed), then the MB said there was no ban… what does that really mean? Pakatan leaders tend to portray themselves differently when a problem arises," said Tan.

Coalition of convenience

He said that Pakatan was merely a coalition of convenience and it is not good for the country to have a coalition that cannot have a common stand as it would cause instability.

MCA vice-president and Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu had reportedly said yesterday: "As usual, PAS is imposing its prejudices on things they don't even understand… sometimes, they are just playing to the gallery."

However, Khalid Samad today claimed that Gan had misunderstood PAS, which has started a petition campaign against the concert.

READ MORE HERE

 

WIKILEAKS: Power struggles in Perak

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:00 AM PDT

The BN now has firm control of Perak and is working to regain some of its lost influence among voters, having allocated resources into projects to win back support of the people. With the Chinese vote firmly supporting the opposition, the deciding votes in any future election rest with the ethnic Malays, not because they hold a majority among the populace (they represent just over 50%), but because their support is most split between the ruling coalition and the opposition.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 KUALA LUMPUR 000107

SIPDIS

FOR EAP/MTS AND INR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/18/2020

TAGS: PGOV, KDEM, KJUS, MY

SUBJECT: POWER STRUGGLES IN PERAK: RULING COALITION WORKING HARD TO REGAIN VOTERS' SUPPORT

 

REF: A. 09 KUALA LUMPUR 342 -- PANDEMONIUM IN PERAK STATE ASSEMBLY

        B. 09 KUALA LUMPUR 78 -- NAJIB LEADS TAKEOVER OF PERAK

        C. KUALA LUMPUR 92 -- COURT DECISION IN PERAK

 

Classified By: Political Counselor Brian D. McFeeters for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

 

Summary and Comment

1. (SBU) Poloff and Pol Specialist visited the politically turbulent state of Perak from February 1-3.  Perak is one of five states won by the opposition People's Alliance (PR) coalition in the March 2008 general elections, but through political defections in February 2009 it subsequently reverted back to authority of Malaysia's ruling National Front (BN) coalition (refs A and B), and is firmly under BN control after a February 9, 2010 Federal Court decision affirming the BN Chief Minister (ref C). 

Perak is a microcosm of Malaysia's ethnic diversity with party affiliation drawn clearly along ethnic and religious lines. Ethnic Malays are split between the BN's dominant United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party and the opposition's People's Justice Party (PKR) and Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), while nearly all ethnic Chinese and a slight majority of ethnic Indians support the opposition PR over the BN, according to a February 5 Merdeka Center poll.

2. (C) Comment:  Events in Perak are significant for two reasons.  First, for the past year it has been ground zero for the fight between the two political coalitions.  Perak is the only state that had an active fight over control of the state for the past 12 months, so the issues there reflect national sentiment.  Second, the fight and ultimate victory by the BN in Perak was a successful political power play both in terms of brute and refined power, reminding us that of the two coalitions, only the BN has the clout, money, and ability to manipulate the government system (election commission, courts) to muscle its way to power. 

The BN now has firm control of Perak and is working to regain some of its lost influence among voters, having allocated resources into projects to win back support of the people.  With the Chinese vote firmly supporting the opposition, the deciding votes in any future election rest with the ethnic Malays, not because they hold a majority among the populace (they represent just over 50%), but because their support is most split between the ruling coalition and the opposition.  That said, while the opposition PR is united in its criticism of the ruling BN coalition, they remain somewhat fragmented both within their coalition, and within their component parties.  End Summary and Comment.

Setting the Scene: Political Background

3. (SBU) Perak had been a bastion of the ruling BN coalition since Malaysia's independence in 1957 until the March 2008 general election, when the opposition PR coalition stunned the BN and took control of the state government by winning 31 of 59 state assembly seats. 

Within the PR, the Democratic Action Party (DAP) won 18 seats; the People's Justice Party (PKR) won 7 seats; and the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) won 5 seats.  Although the DAP earned more seats than their coalition partners combined, the position of Chief Minister went to PAS assemblyman Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin, because the Perak state constitution stipulates that only a Muslim can hold the position of Chief Minister (CM).

On the BN side, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) won 27 of their 28 seats while the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) took the remaining seat.  Two other BN partners, the Malaysian Peoples Movement Party (Gerakan) and Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), were all but rendered obsolete as neither won a single contested seat. 

The DAP's dominance came as a result of ethnic Chinese and Indian discontent with the MCA, Gerakan, and MIC, who traditionally have represented their interests within the BN coalition.  In February 2009, after 11 months in power, the PR state government lost its majority in the state assembly following the defection of three PR state assembly members to become independents friendly to the BN. 

The net change in 3 seats left the BN with the majority of seats and resulted in a protracted controversy when the Sultan of Perak replaced PR Chief Minister Nizar (equivalent to a governor of a U.S. state) with BN's Zambry.  The Federal Court ruled on February 9 that the change of chief minister was legal (ref C).

Insights from Perak Politicians

4. (C) Poloff and Pol Specialist visited Perak from February 1-3, and met with representatives from every major political party in peninsular Malaysia:  from the ruling National Front (BN) coalition, the coalition-leading United National Malays Organization (UMNO), the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), Gerakan, and the Malaysian Indian Coalition (MIC); from the opposition People's Alliance (PR), politicians from the People's Justice Party (PKR), the Democratic Action Party (DAP), and the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS). 

In a February 1 meeting with PAS Perak committee members at their headquarters, including former Perak Chief Minister (CM) Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin and Perak PAS Chief Ustaz Abu Bakar Hussain, Nizar called the policies implemented by the PR government from March 2008 thru February 2009 "successful and people friendly."  He noted that the current BN government has copied and implemented many of the PR's government policies while claiming full credit for them. 

DAP MP Fong Po Kuan later told Poloff that she didn't mind if the BN claimed credit for these policies, stating that it was more important that they were implemented, and that "they clearly benefitted the people." 

Nizar also claimed that during his term of office, the PR state government had managed to increase revenues by cutting waste and promoting open tenders.  In the past the BN government only extended "negotiated tenders to their cronies."

5. (SBU) In a brief February 1 meeting, current Chief Minister Zambry (UMNO), exuded confidence in his performance during his first year.  He saw himself as the rightful Chief Minister because "it is clearly the will of the people."

Zambry opined that the BN in Perak has acted in a more professional and competent manner than the PR did when they were in power.  Noted Zambry: "We were a responsible opposition for eleven months," but when the opposition lost the majority, they "refused to abide by democratic principles."  

Zambry commented that in the 12 months since the BN took back control of Perak, the BN has been working very hard to gain the confidence of the people, noting that the BN had embarked on "people friendly policies" -- the same term Nizar used -- by focusing on poverty eradication irrespective of race and a good economic development policy.

Perak State Secretary Dr. Abdul Rahim Hashim reiterated that the two policies were the main thrust of the BN government policies in the state.  Zambry said the results of the BN were showing, noting that when compared to opposition gatherings, "there is marked increase in support for BN gatherings" and that he has received feedback that "the people are generally happy with the BN state government."

6. (C) On February 2, Chang Ko Youn, the state chief and national deputy president for the marginalized Gerakan party, admitted that the Chinese voters "deserted the BN by droves" in the last general election. 

(Note: Gerakan went from 10 to 2 MP seats in the March 2008 general elections, and from 4 to 0 seats in the Perak state assembly.  End Note.) 

He cited UMNO's "racist policies" as one cause, adding that the Chinese media were "unfriendly" towards BN.  Chang pointed out that, unlike the government-influenced mainstream media, the Chinese newspapers are more independent and at times favor the opposition rather than BN parties.  The veteran leader said it would be difficult for BN to win over the Chinese voters in the next general election. 

7. (C) Dr. Mah Hang Soon, the MCA state youth chief and sole non-UMNO state assemblyman for the BN, was a bit more optimistic.  Mah noted that the BN is "now more aware of the Chinese problem" and is "working on overcoming it."  He cited the case of Chinese farmers, who have farmed on state land for decades, who were recently given land titles.  The state government has also started funding the nine independent Chinese schools in the state, whereas in the past the BN state government had completely ignored the plight of independent Chinese schools.  Mah opined that the previous PR government only "made promises" but the BN state government "is now delivering" on them.

Dr. Mah also noted that the Chinese community was especially concerned about the ongoing inquest into the July 2009 death of political aide Teoh Beng Hock while under investigation, opining that the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) needs to get to the bottom of this soon, even if they themselves are to blame.

8. (C) MIC Perak state secretary and new Perak state Speaker R. Ganesan echoed Mah's views, claiming that the 12-month old BN government has enacted numerous polices for the benefit of non-Malays.  Ganeson proudly stated that for the first time the state government has allocated funding for Hindu temples.

(Note: The previous PR government started the policy of allocating funds to non-Islamic religious institutions, but it is the BN who is seeing this through.  End Note.) 

Ganesan added that he could see the Indians returning to the BN based on the number of people attending BN-sponsored meetings and political rallies.

Both Sides at Risk as Snap Elections too Risky to Consider

9. (SBU) Prior to the February 9 court decision, both Zambry and Nizar publicly claimed that they had enough support from voters to win any snap election, fueling speculation that regardless of how the decision panned out, the legitimized Chief Minister would call for elections and end the controversy once and for all.  Zambry told Poloff on February 1 that if snap elections were held, he was confident the BN would win 34 out of 59 seats in the state assembly, citing discontent with PKR and PAS among voters. 

When asked by Poloff if he would call for snap elections should he win the February 9 decision, Zambry said he would not dissolve the state assembly, saying that "the Perak BN state government does not operate based on the dictates of the opposition."

Nizar, in turn, countered that he had the support of 80% of the Chinese and Indian vote, and at least 50% of the ethnic Malay vote, challenging Zambry that the only way to prove his claim would be to call for a snap election in Perak.

Nizar told Poloff that even with fresh elections, there is no guarantee that the PR would win a majority of seats to form a government.  Nizar stated that the BN has managed to "poison the minds of the rural Malays" by convincing them that he was "a lackey of the DAP" and "had committed treason by defying the Sultan" after the defections.  PAS State Treasurer Abdul Rahim Ariff concurred with Nizar's view, adding that if elections were held today the Malay votes would split evenly between UMNO and PAS, unlike in March 2008 when there was clear swing of Malay votes towards PAS and PKR.

10. (SBU) State senior UMNO Cabinet Minister Ramly Zahari concurred with the Chief Minister's views that the BN has no reason to dissolve the state assembly.  He stated that the opposition is the one who "started the game" by wooing BN Members of Parliament and state assembly to cross the floor. As such the veteran state UMNO leader added that when the BN managed to outflank PR, "the opposition now wants to rewrite the rules." 

(Note: Ramly is referring to an UMNO assemblyman who crossed over to the PR in January 2009.  A few days after the crossover, he returned to the BN and was joined by the three ex-PR assemblyman who claimed to be BN-friendly independents.  The opposition believes that the initial crossover was orchestrated by UMNO to prepare the ground for the three others to jump to the BN side. End Note.)

11. (SBU) DAP Perak State Chief Ngeh Khoo Ham and DAP State Secretary Nga Kor Ming (who are first cousins) were optimistic on February 2 that magic of March 2008 would continue to prevail in Perak if snap elections were held.

While admitting that there is a slight shift in Malay support in favor of the BN, Ngeh stated that a majority of urban Malays and most of the Chinese and Indians would vote for a PR coalition party.

After the Ruling: What's Next for PR and BN?

12. (C) PKR Vice President and MP in Perak Lee Boon Chye told Poloff on February 2 that despite the setback caused by the BN takeover and subsequent court rulings, the PR is still very popular in Perak.  Lee claimed that "80 percent of Perakians are still behind us." 

Ngeh and Nga (DAP) claim that the opposition has continuously been harping in their numerous political gatherings through out the state that the current state government "is an illegal court appointed entity" and vowed they would continue their disharmonious campaign after the Federal Court ruling of February 9.

However, Nizar announced after the court decision that the opposition would instead cooperate with BN.

13. (C) Zambry said on February 1 that PR leadership in Perak was becoming increasingly desperate.  Decreased numbers and a general lack of enthusiasm at recent opposition rallies showed that people were tired of the PR acting like a sore loser, and were ready to move on.  As a result, claimed Zambry, the PR has embarked on a strategy to smear the image of the BN-led state government. 

He cited two examples of the smear campaign: that he was accused of being denied entry to the US recently for "being involved in terrorist activities," and news reports that investors are shunning Perak since the BN wrested power. 

Zambry is suing the PKR newspaper "Suara Keadilan" for RM 400 million for what he says were libelous claims about his US trip.  He noted that investments have actually increased since the BN took over, claiming that the Perak state government has attracted RM11 billion (about USD 3 billion) in one year.

(Note: Regarding the investments, Nizar and other PR leaders in Perak dispute this figure, claiming that some of the investments came to the state when the PR was in power.  End Note.)  

Zambry expected the opposition to continue with their smear tactics, commenting that "their position is increasingly under threat."

Coalition, Party Infighting Continue to Impact Opposition

14. (C) DAP MP and Vice President Kulasegaran admitted that all is not well with the DAP in Perak.  Kula claimed that the "Ngeh-Nga clan" referring to the cousins, is running the show in Perak.  The veteran DAP leader claimed that the top party leadership is unable to control the two, as they have managed to bring the state DAP machinery completely under their control. 

Kula claimed that due to their dominance, the DAP may face some problems in the future because they are not popular among all the Chinese in the state.  For example, the cousins tried to force out popular DAP MP Fong Po Kuan from running in the 2008 general election in order to replace her with their own crony, but her constituency fiercely resisted this move against the three-term MP, forcing the cousins to back down. 

Poloff raised this topic while meeting Fong for lunch, but she refused to be drawn into a conversation on this issue.

Poll: Voters Split Along Ethnic Lines

15. (U) The independent Merdeka Center announced results of a poll taken of Perak voters on February 5.  Current CM Zambry has an approval rating of 43%, while former CM Nizar has an approval rating of 46%.  Zambry's base of support comes from 2/3 of the ethnic Malays and 1/2 of the Indians; Nizar's support comes from the remaining 1/3 of the Malays, the other 1/2 of the Indians, and nearly all of the Chinese. 

(Note: the ethnic breakdown for Perak's 2 million citizens is approximately 52% Malay, 32% Chinese, 13% Indian, and 3% others.  CM Zambry is an ethnic Indian but is Muslim by religion.  End Note.) 

In addition, 38% of respondents believed Perak is moving in the right direction, up from 31% polled in April 2009, while 44% believed the state was moving in the wrong direction, with distinct differences of opinion when broken down by ethnic lines.

KEITH

 

Scorpene deal: Najib must come clean

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:00 AM PDT

Suaram's suit over the Scorpene deal will be heard in a French court soon, and the onus is on Najib to prove his innocence, says PKR's Saifuddin Nasution.

(Free Malaysia Today) - Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak must come clean on the trip his associates made in connection with the Scorpene submarine deal.

PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said little is known about about the 2002 travel destinations made by his associates to broker the submarine deal.

He said the onus is now on Najib to prove his innocence in the RM6.27 billion deal between the Malaysian government and French company DCNS following an allegation of a "third person" in the negotiation that took place in Macau.

The allegation was made by local human rights group Suaram which also said that Mongolian Altantuya Shariibuu, who was murdered for her alleged connection in the deal, was also present in the meeting.

Saifuddin claimed it has now been established that the deal was brokered by Najib's close associates, including his one-time adviser Abdul Razak Baginda and Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT) chief Lodin Wok Kamaruddin.

Businessman Lodin Wok has recently been cited by WikiLeaks as one of Najib's close friends.

Lodin Wok was also stated to be one of the directors of Perimekar Sdn Bhd until last year.

Perimekar had acted as the go-between for the procurement of two French-made submarines by the Malaysian Defence Ministry. In the process, the company made RM534.8 million in commission.

Saifuddin said of the players one of them is already dead, and one of them was charged in court.

"One more is still alive and could be holding a high position… we don't know, but we will know when the trial starts," he told a press conference here today.

READ MORE HERE

 

Will PAS delegates rally behind Nik Aziz?

Posted: 02 Jun 2011 01:00 AM PDT

The battle for top posts will be a bellwether for the party as it gears up to face the coming general election.

(BERNAMA) -  As PAS delegates go to the polls at the party's muktamar (general assembly) tomorrow, many political observers are keenly watching if they will heed PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat's call for candidates from Kelantan to be elected to the party leadership.

Nik Aziz, who is also Kelantan menteri besar, has openly called on the delegates to pick candidates who can bring about what he called the "Kelantan experience" to the national level as he is seen to be very determined this time around to have leaders from the state at the highest level of the party hierarchy.

In the last party election in 2009, candidates from Kelantan were wiped out from the top leadership, including his (Nik Aziz's) golden boy Husam Musa, who was vying for the deputy presidency then.

"It is difficult to say. If Kelantan emerges as the winner this time, it will pose a big challenge for Hadi (PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang). It will show that there is persistent support for Nik Aziz.

"No doubt it will be a very hard tussle between all candidates, but I don't think they would settle for both Husam and Nik Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah this time around," said political analyst Sivamurugan Pandian, who is a lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Husam and Nik Mohd Amar are Kelantan state executive councillors and both of them are contesting for the vice-president posts against incumbents Salahudin Ayub and Mahfuz Omar as well as two other newcomers, namely Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin and PAS information chief Idris Ahmad.

Sivamurugan believes it will still be difficult for the leaders from Kelantan to make a breakthrough at this party election simply because he thinks the delegates will not want any split in the party as it faces the next general election.

"The same goes for the deputy president post. At the last election, the (Kelantan) group was pushing for Husam. This time around, they are pushing for Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who is also Nik Aziz's nephew. There must be some persuasion in order for Tuan Ibrahim to contest the number two post. However, I still find it difficult for the (Kelantan) group to make a breakthrough in this election," he said.

Trump card

Even though the PAS leadership has denied there is any such tussle between Hadi's supporters or better known as the "Terengganu Group" and Nik Aziz's "Kelantan group", some political observers believe the rivalry does exist.

They said even through Hadi has been unchallenged as president for the fifth term, the observers said things had not been normal since the 2009 election, which was billed as the most intense in the party's history and caused a rift of sorts between its leaders in Kelantan and Terengganu.

Some claimed that Nik Aziz still has not got over his disappointment that Husam lost in the fight for the No 2 post and this may explain why in this party election, the leaders from Kelantan have been making a strong bid for the number two and number three posts in the party.

Party insiders believe Tuan Ibrahim, a former lecturer, is the "trump card" by the leaders from the Kelantan group to split the ulama (religious leaders )votes while at the same time trying to persuade incumbent Nasharudin Mat Isa to give way.

However, till now, the effort has not been successful as Nasharudin, who is said to be aligned to Hadi, has said that he is staying put to defend the number two post.

Despite the setback, some leaders still believe Tuan Ibrahim will make it in this election as he is considered acceptable to all quarters.

"Tuan Ibrahim is known as the person who is very well accepted by the ulama as well as the professionals. The delegates will not have problems accepting him as he was voted in as vice-president in the last party election," said an insider.

However, PAS central committee member Kamaruddin Jaafar said the relationship between Hadi and Nik Aziz had improved as there were no more open clashes as had reportedly happened before.

Whether there are clashes or not, many are in agreement that the contest between Tuan Ibrahim, Mohamad Sabu and Nasharudin for the party number two post is still the most keenly watched by the political observers and party members in this election.


Behind and Beyond the IPPs

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 10:12 PM PDT

"There is nothing much TNB can do as long as there is no revision to the Power Purchase Agreements (PPA).

The IPPs were given favourable terms that cushioned them from many risks, which propelled them from obscurity to great fame and fortune. Business savvy and innovation do not account for their financial success. It is due to the one-sided and lucrative PPAs."

By Masterwordsmith

 

As we all know, power rates have increased by an average of 7.12% or 2.23 sen per kilowatt hour (kWh). Natural gas will rise to RM13.70 per British thermal unit (mmBtu) from RM10.70 and go up by RM3 every month until December 2015, after which market rates will apply (Source: FMT).It is a hefty increase to a retiree like me. Filled with much indignation, I started to read up on IPPs to unravel the true story behind the energy puzzle.


According to Jeff Rector in his paper The IPP Investment Experience in Malaysia:

A massive blackout in 1992 shut down much of the country for up to 48 hours, prompting a fierce public outcry and threats of lawsuits against Tenaga. An inquiry cleared Tenaga of negligence but the incident severely damaged its reputation.


In response to the blackout, Kuala Lumpur dismantled Tenaga's monopoly on generation and aggressively pushed forward the IPP program to restore an adequate safety margin of capacity and to ensure that the country could meet its anticipated future power needs. It seems that doubts over the managerial capacity of Tenaga were more important than a perceived lack of internal financing capabilities in the
decision to aggressively move forward with the IPP program.


The IPP licenses were highly sought after: when the IPP policy was first announced, more than 150 applications flooded in to the Economic Planning Unit.


Politically wellconnected groups were formed to bid for IPP licenses and investors in the first five winning IPPs included some of the biggest corporate names in Malaysia: gaming company Genting, media and telecoms group Malaysian Resources, giant multinational Sime Darby and construction firm YTL Corp, the state-owned investment company, Permodalan Nasional, and "tycoon" Ananda Krishnan.


It seems that experience in the power sector was not a necessary qualification for securing a concession, while the strength of connections to the government was of central importance. This may have made it difficult to get lending from some international financial institutions. "What has raised concern among banks is the companies getting the licences," reported a Singapore-based international banker. "They are run by well-connected individuals who are after lucrative contracts."


"The good news is the government is getting the IPP program going," said one analyst. "The bad news is that politics and connections are playing too big a role in the way the whole process is being carried out."


Tenaga became a twenty percent or ten percent minority shareholder in all but one of the first IPPs and a was a shareholder from the project inception for later IPP projects in order to hedge its bets and get into what was believed to be a very profitable sector in the business.


After being awarded concessions, these IPPs signed long-term power supply contracts with Tenaga. While the contracts were ostensibly ordinary private contracts, they were completed with the mediation, guidance and imprimatur of the government. According to separate interviews with a Tenaga official and an IPP owner, the PPA negotiations and some of the financing conversations were three way negotiations including the IPP, Tenaga, and the government.
 
READ MORE HERE.

Longing For A Free Mind (Part 13 of 14)

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:52 PM PDT

What I prefer would be to have the Koran taught in the best oral tradition, in the Socratic manner of open discussions and questionings. You are more likely to elucidate the truth of the message than with the current ritualistic and mindless recitations.

By M. Bakri Musa

[Presented at the Fifth Annual Alif Ba Ta Conference at Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, organized by UMNO Club of New York-New Jersey, January 29, 2011.]

Q&A (Cont'd): Islamic State and Leaders

Q9: Would you prefer a Muslim leader who is corrupt and incompetent over a non-Muslim who is both honest and competent?

A9: One of the speakers commented earlier that this is a difficult question. To me the choice is glaringly clear. Go for competence and honesty.

Let me go further. I want my leader to share my values and aspirations for my country. If a leader no matter how honest, brilliant and competent were to lead my country towards totalitarianism, I will be the first to express my opposition against her.

I also believe that there are leaders who do not share my faith but subscribe to my values and aspirations. They may believe in or pray to another God, but that does not make any difference to me. It is after all the same God, isn't it?

Your question gives a false choice; it implies that we lack honest and competent Muslim leaders. Yes, looking at the world today one cannot be faulted for drawing such a conclusion. For Malaysia, may I remind you that there was a time when we do not lack for Malay leaders who were both competent and honest!

The follow up questions should be: Why are Muslim specifically Malay leaders today so corrupt and incompetent? The other, how can we groom future honest leaders who are honest and competent? I hope the panel discussions we had helped answer that.

Q10: You criticized (former) Minister of Education Hishammuddin for making Malay school children read the entire Koran by end of their primary school. Do you not believe that there is merit in reading the Holy Book and that the exercise itself has educational value?

A10: Yes, there is great merit in reciting the Koran. The Koran is a guidebook from Allah to lead us along the Straight Path. When the Koran is recited properly giving due diligence to its exquisite tajweed, it brings tears to listeners. There is innate poetry and music to the verses of the Koran, quite apart from the spiritual values. However, far too often the Koran is recited merely as a ritual, with the overriding objective of getting it over as quickly as possible so food could then be served, or the sermon be over with and we can then leave.

I fail to see the educational value of having our kids recite the entire Koran in class. I would rather have them be taught a few short verses, especially the early Meccan ones, and to learn from those the beauty of the cadence, imagery and language, among others. Read the various translations of those verses and try to appreciate the differences.

The messages of the Koran were delivered to Prophet Muhammad at a time when the Arabs were still steeped in the oral tradition; the culture had not yet transited into the written word; thus the style. To read the Koran as you would a book (as Hishammuddin is advocating in our schools) would be as boring and as to hear somebody giving a speech reading from a text. Add a soporific voice and it would beat Ambien hands down in putting you to sleep.

What I prefer would be to have the Koran taught in the best oral tradition, in the Socratic manner of open discussions and questionings. You are more likely to elucidate the truth of the message than with the current ritualistic and mindless recitations.

Earlier Dr. Waleed asked you to cite a verse of the Koran that was most meaningful to you and why. An excellent exercise! I was touched by some of the remarks. That simple exercise conveys the richness of the Koran and its messages. It also made you think and communicate your ideas! So why not give our school children similar exercises, like giving their personal examples of what is meant to be gracious and merciful – the Arr Rahman and Arr Rahim of the al Fatihah, the opening and most recited verse.

Let me share a contrasting experience. I took an upper level year-long (two semesters) course on Shakespeare during my undergraduate days. Despite a full year-long course, we covered only about 15 percent of his works. Out of that we discussed in class only about a third, while the rest in the form of term papers and other out-of-class assignments. Meaning, at best we covered in class only 5 percent of Shakespeare's corpus.

However, by studying intensively only that 5 percent we could then on our own pursue the rest at our leisure. I favor that approach to studying the Koran in school.

Q11: Is Malaysia an Islamic state, and if it is not, should it be one?

A11: I have no clue what an Islamic state is. Those who vociferously advocate for one, whether from UMNO or PAS, have yet to clarify what they mean. What do they hold as the model Islamic state, Iran? Pakistan? Saudi Arabia? I shudder to think that we would aspire to be anywhere close to any of those states.

Tun Mahathir had at various times asserted that Malaysia is already an Islamic state. If that is so, then I would suggest that the further away we are from an Islamic state, the better. I want to be as far away as possible from where corruption is accepted and rampant, and where our basic human rights are being trampled daily as with the ISA and other brute laws. That is where Malaysia is today.

To Emory University's Abdullah An Naim, there is no such thing as an Islamic State; there never was. The concept of a state as a political entity is fairly recent. Up till the Middle Ages the world was essentially a collection of fiefdoms and villages headed by the various dukes and other hereditary rulers. So were the Arabs at the time of the Prophet, s.a.w.

Those advocates of an Islamic state look longingly to the leadership of Prophet Mohammad, s.a.w., who was not only a spiritual but also a political leader. His was a special circumstance, although many Muslim leaders today delude themselves into thinking that they are the modern re-incarnations of the prophet.

If those currently advocating for an Islamic state, however nebulous that concept may be, would instead focus on achieving the ideals of Islam in the administration of the state, then they would be much further ahead. By that I mean a state and leaders that, among others, respect the sanctity of our basic human rights and value us as individuals beyond our race or ethnicity. If that is what they mean by an Islamic state, then all Muslims would agree and few non-Muslims would disagree.

Instead what most advocates of an Islamic state are consumed with are such inanities as whether Muslim women should shake hands with men and non-Muslims, and whether the Azzan should be blasted in the early morning hours.

Get rid of corruption, eradicate poverty, respect your citizens' rights; those are the true path towards an Islamic state, or a state that cherishes Islamic values.

Q12: Why are we arguing about an Islamic state or doubt the ability of Islamic laws to carry our country forward? The answers to all our problems are right there in the Koran. Why not look there?

A12: As a Muslim, I believe the Koran carries the "message for all mankind, at all times, and until the end of time." That is a matter of faith for me as for all Muslims. Again, like all Muslims I regard the Holy Book and its message with deep reverence.

To treat it like a Merck Manual, where you would look up the index and then flip to the appropriate page to seek the remedy for what ails you, would be disrespectful if not downright blasphemous, quite apart from insulting the intelligence of Muslims.

The late Fazlur Rahman, the distinguished University of Chicago scholar, suggested an enlightened approach to understanding the Koran. The Koran teaches through parables, anecdotes, and concrete examples taken from the ordinary lives of those Arabs during the Prophet's time. That was the only and effective way to take the message to the people.

Obviously we Malays are very different from those ancient Bedouins, so too our culture, aspirations and environment. We live in a humid not dry climate, in lush jungles not sparse desert. We use water buffaloes not humped camels.

Fazlur suggested that we should deduce from the particularities of the Koran its underlying guiding principles. To do so intelligently would require us to understand the totality of the message, and to discern the texts and the contexts, to use the language of social scientists. Once we have established those underlying principles, then we should apply them to the particular problems we face today. Both exercises demand considerable intellectual exertion, not to mention humility.

Let me illustrate this point. If I were to explain gravity to the simple kampong folks, I would relate to them the apple (I would of course substitute coconut!) falling to the ground, as per Newton's original observation. Now if I were to take those folks on a Ferris wheel ride with an apple in their hands and then asked them to release it when they are at the top, the apple would fall skywards (assuming that the velocity was sufficiently high so the centrifugal force would exceed the gravitational pull). You all being engineers would readily comprehend what I am saying. To the village folks, however, the coconut falling towards the sky would seem to defy the laws of gravity. Thus we have to explain to them the more general and universal underlying principle to explain the apparent contradiction.

Now if I were to explain gravity right away as g=md2, where "g" is gravitational force, "m" the mass; and "d" the distance between the two masses, the elegant simplicity of the formula would enthrall only math geeks; those village folks would have their eyes glazed over.

Likewise in reading the Koran; we should go beyond the literal and simplistic apple falling to the ground and instead try to seek the underlying universal principles. The easiest and intellectually lazy way out would simply be to quote selected passages to support whatever viewpoint you advocate. Yes, the Koran says stoning to death for adultery. However, to have the necessary four eyewitnesses for conviction as specified in the Koran, you would have to be fornicating in the open park, and during broad daylight!

Far too often in our zeal with our newfound favorite verse to support our conviction, we forget the numerous other messages extolling the greater virtues of mercy and forgiveness.

I always have difficulty when I hear an Imam or scholar recite the Koran and then confidently if not arrogantly assert, "And it means …." Imagine! All translations are at best interpretations, yet that does not in any way disabuse these folks of their ingrained certitude. I have made it my practice whenever quoting the Koran to add the proviso, "approximate translation."

We carry that same certitude and arrogance in our understanding of hadith and sharia. There is a hadith to the effect that the ummah will be divided into 73 sects, and all but one will be doomed to Hellfire.

To many Muslims that hadith implies that his or her sect is the only right one, and the others wrong or misled. What is the consequence to that thinking? A messianic urge to "correct" the others; in the process we also become intolerant of their beliefs.

You are all engineers, comfortable with probabilities and quantitative valuations. If you were being told that you have a 1 in 73 chance (less than one and a half percent) of being right, what do you conclude? If I were to tell my patient that she has only a 1 in 73 chance of surviving an operation, no one except those with a secret death wish would submit to my operation.

So why not accept the quantitative risk expressed by the Prophet and assume that your sect is one of those 72 that have been misled. After all there is an over 98.5 percent chance of that being so. The immediate effect of such a posture would be that you become humble and tolerant of other sects and possible interpretations of our faith. Because you believe that your interpretation has a high probability of being wrong, you would want to learn about the other sects. You would have the urge or inspiration to learn from others, or at least be inquisitive of their interpretations. You would become more receptive and forgiving of those who disagree with you. And if you are a leader you would not likely condemn or arrest members of the other 72 sects lest you risk arresting those destined for Paradise and thus incur God's wrath.

As is evident, your whole attitude and mindset change towards being more healthy and positive. Remember this when someone quote you a Koranic verse or hadith and then confidently assert his translation is the only true one.

Back to the second part of your question about all the answers being in the Koran, Hamka once said that Allah in his wisdom and generosity had given us two Korans. One he revealed to Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w., which Caliph Othman, r.a., had codified in a written form. That is the Koran familiar to all Muslims.

The other Koran is the vast universe that Allah had bequeathed upon us. As His vice-regents, we have an obligation to also study this Koran. Just as Allah has provided us with Prophet Muhammad to guide us to the first Koran, He (Allah) too has provided us with the necessary tool to understand this second Koran: He has endowed us with an intellect, a gift unique only to humans. To me, cosmonauts exploring the outer reaches of the universe are studying this second Koran, just as the scientists slicing the genes are studying our inner living universe.

Likewise on Monday when you go back to the lab to discover the properties of a material or try a new circuitry, you too will be studying this second Koran. Yes the answers are all there in the Koran, the book as well as the universe, but we have to exert intellectually to find the answers. The answer will not come merely by looking at the index and then flipping the pages. Come to think of it, no one has indexed the Koran, and wisely so.

Next: Q&A (Cont'd) Contemporary Leaders

 

Politik dan Garis Politik

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:48 PM PDT

DARI JELEBU

Hishamuddin Rais 

Justeru untuk saya, perjuangan politik ialah untuk melupuskan kuasa kumpulan kaya yang sedikit dan mengambil alih punca-punca ekonomi yang ada dalam tangan mereka. Harta kekayaan wajib diambil kembali untuk di agih-agihkan kepada rakyat terbanyak.

BANGUN MELAWAN!



POLITIK DAN GARIS POLITIK

Saya selalu membaca dan mengamati tulisan, komentar dan analisa politik terkini tentang negara kita ini. Saya membaca dalam Bahasa Melayu dan juga Bahasa Inggeris. Ada yang menarik: sayangnya banyak pula yang membosankan. Membosankan kerana sang penulis hanya bergelut dengan personaliti individu - si politikus. Tidak lebih dari itu.

Politik bukan hanya tentang individu. Politik ialah tentang kuasa. Perjuangan politik ialah perjuangan untuk merebut kuasa. Merebut kuasa bertujuan untuk merebut punca-punca ekonomi. Di belakang punca ekonomi ialah kelas. Perjuangan politik ialah perjuangan kelas.

Kelas dan ekonomi tidak dapat dipisah macam santan dengan kelapa. Setiap sosok manusia tergulung ke dalam satu kelas. Secara kasar – ada dua kelas: yang memerintah dan yang di perintah i.e yang berkuasa dan yang tidak berkuasa. Yang berkuasa ialah mereka yang memiliki harta dan kekayaan. Yang tidak berkuasa ialah mereka yang tidak memiliki harta kekayaan dan gulungan miskin.

Dalam sistem ekonomi kapitalis seperti dalam negara kita ini – gulungan miskin adalah kaum tani, kaum nelayan dan kaum buruh. Mereka ini adalah kumpulan terbanyak. Manakala kumpulan terkaya tidak ramai. Kumpulan kaya amat sadikit – mereka adalah kumpulan minoriti. Tetapi mereka menjadi pemilik harta kekayaan yang terbanyak. Justeru melalui harta kekayan, mereka dapat membeli kuasa.

Ini bukan tulisan propaganda. Ini hakikat – fakta saheh - yang boleh di rujuk kepada Jabatan Statistik Negara. Fakta fakta – ekonomi dan kelas ini - menjadi kabur atau sengaja dikaburkan dengan agenda agama, dengan agenda bahasa, dengan agenda kaum dan bangsa. Politik ialah agenda merebut kuasa. Period. Khalas. Agenda-agenda yang lain hanyalah alat dan taktik untuk mengolah persetujuan orang ramai untuk bangun merebut kuasa.

Justeru untuk saya, perjuangan politik ialah untuk melupuskan kuasa kumpulan kaya yang sedikit dan mengambil alih punca-punca ekonomi yang ada dalam tangan mereka. Harta kekayaan wajib diambil kembali untuk di agih-agihkan kepada rakyat terbanyak. Ini seperti yang telah dan sedang dilakukan oleh kerajaan Selangor. Kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat telah mengambil kembali hak air dari syarikat Syabas dan memberikan secara percuma pada orang ramai.

Justeru berlaku perlawanan yang maha hebat antara Pakatan Rakyat dengan gerombolan United Malays National Organisation di Selangor. Perlawanan ini ialah perlawanan untuk merebut punca ekonomi. Ini adalah perlawanan dua kelas – kelas kaya yang menindas sedang berlawan dengan rakyat. Suara orang teramai - suara rakyat - diwakili oleh Pakatan Rakyat.

Hingga ke tahap ini, jika masih ada penulis dan pemberi komentar politik tidak memahami hakikat kelas dan ekonomi maka si Mamat atau si Minah itu wajib rajin membaca dan mentelaah. Panjangkan akal dan panjangkan ilmu. Sehingga ke hari ini memiliki akal fikrah yang kritikal masih belum dicukai lagi.

Read more at: http://tukartiub.blogspot.com/2011/06/memahami-garis-politik.html 

7 sins of addiction

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:39 PM PDT

The poorer you are, the harder you should work

By Lee Wee Tak

Najib has pin-pointed the cause of decades of budget deficits – Malaysia has a bunch of irresponsible addicts that consume petrol subsidy like as if there is no tomorrow and the solution is really market forces efficiency.

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http://wargamarhaen.blogspot.com/2011/05/fuel-susbsidies-are-like-opium-to.html

Fuel susbsidies are like "opium" to M'sians: Najib tells Oxford ...really..!!!
……

He said his government had budgeted for fuel subsidies to cost the economy RM11 billion this year but that the estimate had soared to around RM18 billion because of high international crude oil prices.

"Subsidies as a whole are like opium. Once you take opium it's hard to kick the bad habit; once you provide subsidies it's hard to take them away without some political cost," he told an audience at Oxford University's Centre for Islamic Studies
.

In March, Najib said he was committed to cutting subsidies long term, adding that the savings should be targeted to help lower- and middle-income people.

"Good economic and macro-management entails you reduce subsidies on a gradual basis. Then you will allow market forces to allocate resources efficiently

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Yeah, like Proton "another 10 years please", IPP "sign here or go, Ayob" and NEP which deviated from its original purpose beyond recognition*. All within the reaches of middle and low income groups.

(If Najib's dad bothered to speak to me, I would just like to point out NEP's corner stone should be 1) building up resilience and positive work ethic 2) have a deadline to avoid complacent mindset being cemented3) avoid the pitfall of making the target groups think it's source of easy comfort (the poorer you are, the harder you should work).

Anyway, since we are on the subject of opium and addiction, this is my personal list of top 7 opium and addiction in Malaysia:

1. Addiction to no competition
Some Malaysians are too nice and don't like competition. For example, Proton does not like competition from abroad.

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http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/business/article/proton-wants-investments-protected-in-liberalised-market/

Proton wants investments protected in liberalised market

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Some students are also willing to forgone academic competition to remain in a calm state, not even by a mere 10% .

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UiTM student protest spreads to Permatang Pauh campus

BUKIT MERTAJAM (Aug 15, 2008): About 5,000 students from the Permatang Pauh campus of Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) held a peaceful protest against the suggestion by Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim that the university open its doors to non-bumiputeras


Source: sun2surf website
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As a result, it is ok to produce non-competitive, non-employable graduates who end up in the only silo/refuge they can seek.

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http://www.malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/guest-columnists/35843-best-bloated-bureaucracy-to-bleed-bolehland-to-bankruptcy

With 1.3 million civil servants to a population of 26 million, Malaysia has one of the highest civil servants-to-population ratio in the world by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development standards.

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1.3 mil civil servants have to be remunerated by 15% of the population who pay taxes and 15% of 26 million is 3.9 million and gosh, the ratio of civil servants to tax paying Malaysians is a whopping 33%!

And if you think that 15% include persons who are both a civil servant and a tax payer then the ratio of civil servants to private sector tax payers is much higher than 33%! It turns my stomach to see the quality of public service in Malaysia, having sampled first hand the public services of Hong Kong and Singapore.

It gets worse because the daddy/mommy who grew up in a competition adverse environment, will pass on "tak apa" mentality to their offspring. There will be no end to this.

Read more at: http://wangsamajuformalaysia.blogspot.com/2011/06/7-sins-of-addiction.html

A riposte to Mukhriz's defence of brain drain policies of the father

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 09:30 PM PDT

He states that the NEP serves to "eradicate poverty, irrespective of race''. I believe we need to be convinced that the implementation matches the rhetoric. Sometimes it appears like "eradicate (some) race irrespective of poverty".

By Ice Cream Seller

Having got somewhat tired of the cesspool that has become of our politics, I found something to whet my appetite in reading Deputy Minister Mukhriz response to Shaun Tan's essay (World Bank 2011 - Brain Drain).

Reading the writings of his (Mukhriz's) sister Marina, it is difficult to believe they are siblings! Maybe she took after her mother!

Coming back to Mukhriz's article, he states that the NEP serves to "eradicate poverty, irrespective of race''. I believe we need to be convinced that the implementation matches the rhetoric. Sometimes it appears like "eradicate (some) race irrespective of poverty".

He contends that 70 % of our economy is private sector driven and not affected by NEP type policies. Then why can't all private sector companies bid for government projects or contracts? Take for example private sector developers. Can they sell their houses without imposition of a percentage for Bumiputras by local councils? Take the MNCs. Can they employ their management staff free of quotas?

When I got my first job in Malaysia, my expat MD told me that I got the job in part because they couldn't find a "chicken with teeth' (as he put it). That was in 1981!!!!!

He writes that he is pained to see structural discrimination being practised by those in the private sector.

No doubt, discrimination exists but let's look at the underlying reasons. After independence for 53 years, we are capable of looking at the larger picture. Private sector organisations are driven to make profits and they will employ people, consultants, systems that help meet that objective foremost. The ones most hungry, capable, honest, diligent, loyal and competent are always sought after. A competent Malay, capable Chinese, diligent Indian, loyal Eurasian put together in a team can be formidable. Even if one has one leg, 12 fingers or 3 kidneys, is he up to it and can he deliver?

This begs the question - who are hungry, capable, honest, diligent, loyal and competent? I suppose it depends to an extent through which lens one looks through. In the case of Ibrahim Ali, the lens will be as opaque and dense as that between his ears.

He attempts to have us believe that "the public sector (as the name implies) is open to public scrutiny whereas the private sector is 'kept nice and private'.

For starters, the public sector is synonymous with the OSA to many. We would like to scrutinise the accounts for example of some of the ministries - eg what it costs to run the NS.

Private (without govt. involvement) companies are not necessarily 'private' in many instances. Private sector companies which are listed are under very public scrutiny. On the contrary, 'public'corporations like Petronas are kept very private!!

An assertion is made that the wealthiest 20 in Malaysia are dominated by one race but argues that this is because of the conducive environment created by BN. With due respect, it should be stated as "DESPITE the environment created by BN". As I see it, with all the obstacles put in the way , they made it. It should be remembered that many of our 'businessmen' make a handsome sum clearing 'obstacles'.

Tellingly, he states that the big corporations that secured gaming and telecommunication licences SURELY DID NOT GET THEIR BIG BREAKS PURELY ON MERIT ALONE!!!!!! THEY WERE GIVEN IN EXCHANGE FOR THEIR IDEAS, ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND TAXES. That says it all doesn't it? What great idea is there in gaming? Was the exchange just ideas, entrepreneurship and taxes?

Deputy Minister Mukhriz refers to a pea to a durian example when relating to Singapore and Malaysia. To a degree he is right. But let's not forget that "pea'' was once part of our durian tree. In a biblical context, Jesus (Nabi Isa) asserted that if the tree bears bad/no fruit, cut the tree!!!! (Which is what I did to my durian tree at home after waiting for years for it to bear fruit. Should have called it the NEP tree!)

Towards the end of his article, he postulates that the government has to help rural folk keep up with the Joneses. I do believe most want dignity, basic amenities that work, good education, health services more than keeping up with the Joneses - or the Zakarias and Toyos.

Finally, he touches on the issue of corruption - by pointing the finger at the 'briber'. At least we agree that it takes two to tango. But let's stop the music and haul both the dancers into the sin bin. After all, the Mufti of Perak in his wisdom has outlawed the Poco Poco - let's extend it to the tango. Haramkan 'tango'!

What say you Mufti?

WikiLeaks Disclosures and Diplomacy

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 04:31 PM PDT

What did the diplomatic dispatches amount to? One view is that they are proof that the US was struggling to get its way in the world, a superpower entering a long period of decline. Another is that they showed the State Department staff to be competent and professional, hardworking and committed. 

Malaysia Digest

The release of US State Department diplomatic cables by a maverick website WikiLeaks since November 2010 has caused widespread embarrassment to many political leaders in countries around the world. The United States has been discomfited by the exposure of its secret communications and discussions about its friends and foes. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hit out at the concerted action as an attack not just on the US but also the international community. Some European and American politicians liken the massive disclosures to a diplomatic equivalent of the 911 attacks on New York's Twin Towers and the Pentagon in 2001. It is not clear if these politicians were referring to the leaked State Department cables alone or also the earlier release by the same website of 391,000 classifies military reports on the war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Whatever the case it is a moot question if the leaks had any substantive impact on US national security or cleared or clouded up the smoke and mirrors of US foreign policy. So what were the State Department cables all about? What are the implications for relations and intelligence exchange between nation states? The cables were dispatches from US embassies and consulates around the world, over 350 of them, ranging administrative matters to political reports and appraisals of the countries of their accreditation. There were some frank and unflattering assessments of political leaders. There were analyses, some of them of good quality, as well as comments about personalities, reports and records of meetings and summations of situations. There were essays on US-China relations or intractable problems and conflicts in the Caucasus. They highlighted the geopolitical interests and preoccupations of the US, such as nuclear proliferation and illicit drug trafficking, the supposed threat from Iran, the hard to control military situations Afghanistan and security threats in Pakistan.

The US embassy cables offered an incomparable detailed mosaic of life and politics in the early 21st century, as observed by American eyes. They also included disclosures of things that were of concern to citizens of the US and the world: human rights violations, corrupt practices and dubious financial ties between leaders of advanced countries. They spoke of corporate espionage, dirty tricks and hidden bank accounts.

What did the diplomatic dispatches amount to? One view is that they are proof that the US was struggling to get its way in the world, a superpower entering a long period of decline. Another is that they showed the State Department staff to be competent and professional, hardworking and committed. Most of the diplomatic corps were working to advance their nation's interests and their government's policies.

Implications for Relations

What are the implications for relations between the US and the countries reported on, and among those countries and third parties? Some leaders brushed off the embarrassing revelations, at least in public, while others went on the offensive. In some cases the US found it prudent to withdraw its ambassadors as their ability to function was compromised. In less prickly situations the offended countries registered their protests to the State Department.

Some examples from West Africa and North Africa are illustrative. Iran's President Ahmedinejad, who was depicted in the cables as being unpopular in the Gulf region, dismissed the WikiLeaks disclosures as "psychological warfare". He claimed that the US must have deliberately leaked its own files in a plot to discredit him. Saudi King Abdullah was reported to be discomfited by reports that he had urged the US to cut off the head of the snake, referring to the Iranian President's defiant posture on developing a nuclear capacity.

In Tunisia and Libya there was short-term fallout. Washington pulled out its Ambassador in Tripoli because Gaddfi has been stung by comments about his attachment to his "voluptuous blonde Ukrainian nurse". The US Ambassador in Tunis was similarly withdrawn though his unflattering reports Zein al Abdine bin Ali, the Algerian President and his son and the risks to the regime's long term stability, proved to be prescient. Within a month of the publication of the cable Tunis was the grip of what some called the first WikiLeaks revolution in Jasmin Square. Gaddafi warned Tunisians not to be tricked by WikiLeaks which, he said, "published information written by lying ambassadors in order to create chaos". Turkish Prime Minister reacted furiously to cables that suggested he was a corrupt closet Islamist. Mexico's President was enraged by negative reports of his conduct of the drug war in his country.

Damage Control

Secretary Clinton visited the Middle East in January 2011 on what she described half jokingly as an "apology tour". She had to reach out to leaders and others who had concerns abut either the general message of American confidential comments being exposed in this way or specific questions about their countries or themselves. That aspect of it had receded, she said, adding:  "I have not had concerns expressed about whether any nation will not continue to work with and discuss matters of importance going forward."

A study by IISS observed that the comparatively limited overall damage done to US diplomatic interests reflected the reality of the continuing indispensability of the US. As summed up by Defense Secretary Robert Gates," some governments deal with because they fear us, some because they respect us, most because they need us". Foreign governments, the report observed, have long recognized the "leakiness" of Washington and that the administration cannot guarantee that information or views will be immune from authorized disclosure.

The WikiLeaks deluge of secret diplomatic traffic, however, was extraordinary. And it came about as a consequence of a deliberate policy of the State Department to distribute data more widely across government departments. Under a post-911 information sharing initiative called Net-centric diplomacy, embassy cables were routinely distributed via SPIRNet (Secret Internet Protocol Router Network), a military operated b the US Department of Defense.

Communications that were marked SIPDIS for distribution via SIPRNt would be accessible to State Department employees as well as all members of the US military with "secret" security clearance. This meant that several million people had access to them. SPIRNet constituted an enormous bucket of information with huge potential for leaks. Recognizing this, US intelligence agencies stood aside from it and so have been peripherally affected b the latest disclosures. All it took was one disgruntled soldier or a low level analyst, based in Iraq, to spring the leak. He is said to have downloaded the cables on to rewritable CDs without being detected. Secretary Clinton has reportedly withdrawn the State Department from participation in SPIRNet.

Diplomatic Fallout

The US is not alone in sharing and exchanging assessment with other countries, particularly with allies and friends. Diplomats of friendly countries exchange notes about third parties in confidence. The online news portal Asia Sentinel published on January 20, 2011 the full cable from the US embassy in Canberra reporting an exchange of intelligence between officials of the US State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research and Australia's Office of National Assessments in October, 2008. They traded assessments on a wide range of subjects from Iran to Japan and Southeast Asian countries and their leaders. The officials exchange notes about what regional officials had told them about the politics and personalities of certain countries.

These comments, published by Australian newspaper, evoked strong reactions from regional leaders concerned. Indonesian President Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono was obliged to protest and dismiss suggestions of corrupt political funding by his acolytes prior to his election. Malaysian leaders too conveyed their displeasure with Singapore officials over their private comments about Malaysian political personalities, which they said were unjustified. Singapore's Foreign Minister (George Yeo) sought to play down the leaked cables and brushed them off as hearsay or gossip which did not form the basis of bilateral relations. In Thailand reports of comments by senior officials about the role of the monarchy in its tumultuous political events and the question of royal succession led to exchange of accusations of les majeste between political opponents.

In India the impact of the leaked cables was to compound the serial exposes of corruption which paralyzed the national parliament for weeks. In Japan the cables showed the tension between the US and Japanese governments over the relocation of a Marine air base in Okinawa and revealed how the two sides sought to promote or protect their national interests. Being the superpower it is, it is not surprising that the US employed "sharp elbows" occasionally, commented an academic analyst. The cables also showed how China exercised its influence on its neighbors through private diplomacy while making public pronouncements as measured instruments for conveying pressure.

In order to counter the WikiLeaks effect, government agencies need to strike a balance between the wider public's need to know and the value of confidentiality of their private negotiations. Two guiding principle are suggested: first, to be open about the ground for secrecy, with clear criteria which can be defended; second, protect less but protect it better. There is a vast amount of information that governments keep secret, argued a historian. Many of the reports classified as secret could easily have appeared as news analysis pieces in newspapers. Having decided what they really need to keep secret they should make sure to keep it secret, and not upload it to a data base accessible to all and sundry.

Long Term Impact on Diplomacy

The assessment of the impact of the WikiLeaks disclosures has wound down to a more realistic one of embarrassment to parties concerned, but no real harm done to the US and its partners. The exposures of corrupt practices or crooked acts in some developing countries or illicit deals between developed countries have had lasting effect on the countries concerned, because those are common knowledge to their people. The cables have shown that American diplomats are hardworking, well informed, quite reliable in their reporting and astute in assessing the situation in their host countries. They are assiduous in compiling profiles of political leaders and key officials to assess whether they are pro or against US interests. The cables are a trove of information or observations about countries and leaders around the world.

These cables serve as examples of what most diplomatic representatives do or should do for countries of major interest to their governments. Collecting information and assessing people, places, actions and events form the staple of the tasks of diplomatic missions, beside the promotion of good relations and exchanges of communications and visits between the leaders and officials of their countries. That aspect of diplomatic work will continue. And so will the collection of intelligence by agents and representatives of intelligence agencies posted overseas.

However, if anything, the US cables have shown the need for officials and political personalities to be more discreet and circumspect in sharing views about politics and personalities of neighboring countries with diplomats from the US and indeed all countries. The disclosures would probably result in a more cautious environment for diplomats in their interactions with local contacts and sources; the latter could well begin with a disclaimer that what they said was off the record, and certainly not for passing to WikiLeaks!

*Taken from dinmerican.wordpress.com. Mushahid Ali is a Singapore Ambassador and Senior Fellow of the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the writer.

 

Anwar Gets SNAPPED: The Failure of an Opposition Leader Comes Home to Roost

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 03:56 PM PDT

Hantu Laut

In a development that should be viewed as welcome by supporters of one of the relatively few functional Muslim-majority democracies in the world, signs are continuing to mount that Anwar Ibrahim's opposition coalition may be beginning to crumble.

Earlier this month, Anwar was sharply criticized by Sarawakians for only offering the Sarawak National Party (SNAP) three seats, which many Sarawakians considered to be an insultingly lowball number. Anwar attempted to deflect criticism for this move by claiming that he had an agreement signed in writing with the President of SNAP in which SNAP agreed to only contest three seats. SNAP's response, essentially, was to call Anwar a liar:

Sarawak Nasional Party (SNAP) has strongly rebutted PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim's claims that it had signed an agreement with the party, to contest only in three seats a few months before the recent Sarawak election.

SNAP Youth chief Dayrell Enterie said Anwar's statement was "totally incorrect".

"This statement of his (Anwar) is totally incorrect as neither SNAP nor its president (who was erroneously named Stanley Jugol in the Malaysiakini article) had entered into any written agreement whatsoever on seat allocations with PKR."

Fortunately (or, one suspects, unfortunately) for Anwar, his claim was not that he had a formal understanding or a verbal agreement with SNAP regarding the allocation of seats, but that he had an agreement in writing. Therefore, this whole matter ought to be easy to clear up for Anwar – all he has to do is produce the written agreement and all will be well. Given SNAP's flat denial of its existence, and given Anwar's failure to produce the written agreement when he first claimed it existed, it is not difficult to guess whether or not Anwar is lying about this agreement.

More ominous than SNAP's flat rebuttal of Anwar's specific claim, though is the clear signal from SNAP that it is willing to walk away from Anwar and PKR, if necessary:

"SNAP wishes to reiterate that it is not a push-over party for any West Malaysian entity nor is SNAP a Pakatan stooge," he said in a statement mailed to FMT.

These political troubles are anything but welcome for Anwar, who is trying together a bizarre coalition with disparate interests – almost none of which are any sort of good news for Western interests or for the ultimate fate of Democracy in Malaysia, especially given that Anwar has been apparently caught on a DNA test doing what the kids today refer to as "pulling a Dominique Strauss Kahn."

READ MORE HERE

 

PAS duel: Kelantan vs Terengganu

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 07:42 AM PDT

The media claims it is a contest between the clerics and professionals. But party insiders say the real battle is between Kelantan and Terengganu PAS.

Historically, Kelantan and Terengganu never liked each other. Their mutual dislike had its root in a brief territorial dispute in the 1800s over the district of Besut, which both rulers laid claim.

Hawkeye, Free Malaysia Today

The upcoming PAS election is not a battle royale between the clerics (ulama) and professionals, says former Perak PAS commissioner Awang Ahmad.

Rather, he said, the contest was about competency, where the 1,500-plus delegates would choose leaders capable of moving the party forward.

"It is not that the current leaders are not good. It's just that the members want those who can perform better."

Awang said that within the party ranks, no such camps representing the ulama and the professionals existed.

"All are the same," he said.

"The party has become appealing to all, hence the slogan 'PAS for all', but most importantly, the party needed a healthy blend of clerics and professionals."

Awang said party president Abdul Hadi Awang constantly advocated that both sides needed each other and could learn from each other.

He claimed that it was demeaning to PAS if the media continued to portray the party election as a contest between the ulama and the profressionals.

PAS supporters club council adviser Hu Phang Chaw said the description came about probably to make it easier for the delegates to differentiate between senior and junior members.

"The clerics are the veterans while the juniors are the professionals," he said.

Kelantan versus Terengganu

According to some party insiders, who did not want to be named, the real contest is between the Terengganu and Kelantan factions.

They said that the race is between Hadi and PAS spiritual adviser Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, who is also the long-serving Kelantan menteri besar.

On June 11, Kelantan would play Terengganu in the FA Cup football final, and this will surely be a hot topic when the Kelantan and Terengganu football supporters in PAS gather for their muktamar tomorrow.

Historically, Kelantan and Terengganu never liked each other. Their mutual dislike had its root in a brief territorial dispute in the 1800s over the district of Besut, which both rulers laid claim.

A local myth has it that the Kelantan royalty lost the district as a result of cock-fighting competition. It was also generally perceived that many people in Besut spoke the Kelantanese dialect.

A popular political humour making the rounds was that former Terengganu menteri besar Idris Jusoh was a Kelantanese, as he was the Besut MP.

Against this historical background, the PAS election will take place as the muktamar (assembly) gets underway tomorrow. Observers see it as a proxy fight between the Kelantan and Terengganu PAS.

In one corner is Hadi whose faction preferred a cautious form of politics to ensure the party does not lose its stake in the country's political future. In the other corner is Nik Aziz, who tends to emulate Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's style of a no-holds-barred campaign to dislodge the Barisan Nasional (BN).

PAS is now engaged in a "shadow play" (wayang kulit) where all its dealings will be conducted beyond the prying eyes of the media and even its Pakatan Rakyat partners DAP and PKR, insiders here said.

The candidates vying for party posts are expected to wage a personal campaign where SMS will be their tool to canvass for votes from the more than 1,500 delegates. They will also rely on private lobbying, feasts, and informal meetings in car rides.

Awang pointed out that the looming national election would have a bearing on who wins in the PAS contest as the party seeks to consolidate itself to prepare for a bruising battle ahead with BN.

"No delegate would want to vote along a pattern which will split PAS," he said.

PAS observer Mohd Sayuthi Omar, a veteran blogger who writes about Malay politics, said that the differences in style between Hadi and Nik Aziz could be traced back to the 1980s when both were upstarts under the former president, the late Fadzil Noor.

Then, Hadi was the aggressor and a hardliner; he was issuing controversial edicts (fatwa) against Umno, calling it an apostate at one time. Nik Aziz, as the Kelantan menteri besar, was preoccupied with defending the state from Umno's forays to overthrow PAS.

There is somewhat of a role reversal now: Hadi seems to be more tactful than Nik Aziz, who, like Anwar, is seen to be aggressive towards Umno, Sayuthi said.

Observers believe that Hadi changed tack when he became PAS president. He decided to be diplomatic, fatherly and cautious on the political front.

In contrast, Nik Aziz felt that PAS should go for the jugular by dismantling Umno when the latter suffered a drubbing in the 2008 general election.

Sayuthi also said that Nik Aziz nursed a grudge against Umno because the Umno-led government had imprisoned his son Nik Adli under the Internal Security Act in the early 2000s. His son was released two years later.

Unity goverment talks

The cracks in PAS surfaced weeks after the 2008 election when leaders in the Terengganu faction began to counsel Hadi about the new political shifts in the country.

A radicalised Umno has now emerged while its partners, MCA and Gerakan, went into decline when their political bases were hijacked by PKR and DAP.

They feared that if PAS did not adapt, it might either be trampled by BN or be sidelined in Pakatan.

The Terengganu-based advisers told Hadi to be on guard and not to place "all the eggs in one basket".

PAS was then positioned in the far centre rather than the left or right in the political equation, the insiders claimed.

PAS deputy president Nasharudin Mat Isa was appointed as an emissary to hold informal meetings with Umno to try to get the best for the party in the much-altered political scene.

But when news emerged about Hadi's sudden change in stance and that Nasharudin, the former golden boy of Kelantan PAS, had informal meetings with Umno, all hell broke loose in Kelantan.

The insiders said Nik Aziz was mad that he was not consulted about the informal chats with Umno and recently revealed that the latter continued to court him by promising PAS three ministerial posts in a unity government.

For the record, the unity government concept was first mooted by Kelantan prince, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, in 2008, as he had forseen that the Malaysian politics was full of uncertainty and needed a new approach.

But the idea was shot down by most parties.

In 2009, Nik Aziz immediately snuffed out all prospects of a strategic alliance with Umno while his proteges such as Husam Musa went on a nationwide roadshow to explain his mentor's contention.

The climax was the 2009 party election where Kelantan PAS was confident of doing well, especially its man, Husam, who contested against Nasharudin for the deputy president's post. But the latter prevailed against all odds to beat back the challenge and retain his post.

However, it was a hollow victory as Nasharudin was "chased" out of Kelantan when the state PAS made public about his role in the proposed Malay unity government talks with Umno.

Although Nasharudin is the Bachok MP, he was seldom seen in the corridors of Wisma Darul Naim, Kelantan's administrative seat.

Today, the Negri Sembilan-born Nasharudin is again fighting the odds – he is challenged in a three-cornered contest.

Pahang PAS commissioner, the pious and soft-spoken Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Mat, is vying for the number two spot and is seen as a leader capable of placating both Terengganu and Kelantan PAS.

The fact that he did not have any "political baggage" was a plus point and Sayuthi predicted that Tuan Ibrahim would have an edge based on the "mood" on the ground.

However, Nasharudin had proven that he cannot be discounted but one wonders whether the Terengganu faction was solidly behind him now.

READ MORE HERE

 

Nakhaie buries Najib’s 1Malaysia!

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 07:32 AM PDT

It is strange that even the PM has failed to protect his own slogan by not reprimanding Nakhaie for undermining his efforts in fostering unity, observes P Ramakrishnan

(Aliran) -If an ignorant man talks nonsense we can easily forgive him for you don't expect any spectacular wisdom from an ignoramus. But when a person who is perceived as educated and scholarly speaks rubbish, you are rightly outraged.

This is exactly what happened when Mohd Nakhaie Ahmad, the former president of the Islamic Da'wah Foundation Malaysia (Yadim) and one-time lawmaker-turned-traitor to the voters who elected him, came out with statements which are clearly scandalous, seditious and atrocious regarding the non-Malays in this country.

Nakhaie questioned the loyalty of non-Muslims in the country declaring that the community's rights must be re-evaluated – obviously forgetting his own shameful past when he showed no loyalty to the party that sponsored him as a candidate and those who elected him. He had displayed a total absence of integrity without any qualms when he became a frog and leaped over to the Barisan Nasional. He is not in the least qualified to talk about loyalty.

According to him, the treatment of non-Muslims must be based on the agreed social contract; he pointed out that the government had been too gracious to the community. Nakhaie absolutely doesn't understand that the social contract agreed upon is reflected in the Federal Constitution. The Federal Constitution is the outcome of that social contract. The rights and responsibilities of all Malaysians are laid out in this framework and guaranteed.

He is, of course, talking nonsense when he says, "Civil rights given to them include the right to vote, participation in politics, hold office, involvement in the military and so forth but we cannot just willingly give them everything." For the information of Nakhaie, these are unquestionable citizenship rights. For a one-time lawmaker to be totally ignorant of this fact indicates that he is hardly an enlightened leader and scholar. He shames himself by his ignorance and intolerance.

He declared, "If the agreement is broken then action must be taken against them. If they break our agreement then they are our enemy and must be expelled from the country. We must not compromise with them. We must be stern with them when it comes to the social contract agreed." The social contract is only broken when narrow-minded and intolerant bigots like him preach hatred and spread lies to inflame a certain strata of our citizens to view the non-Malays as enemies. He should be charged for stirring up inter-ethnic passions which could be dangerous for our multi-ethnic Malaysia.

He proclaimed that it is important that high level government positions not be awarded to non-Muslims for national security. "We cannot give them important government positions as it is not allowed for non-Muslims to become ministers in a Islamic state. Head of military must also not be given to non-Muslims." Nakhaie is totally ignorant of the Federal Constitution which laid the foundation for this nation to exist. He doesn't understand the concept of "equality before the law" and that the Federal Constitution does not discriminate against its citizens. The rights of Malaysians are guaranteed under the concept of equality before the law.

It is unfortunate that in all his utterances and ramblings there is no notion of justice or understanding of our history. He is blind to the fact that all citizens irrespective of race have an equal stake in this land of ours with unequivocal and inalienable rights as conferred by the Federal Constitution under Article 8. For the information of Nakhaie, the government doesn't confer these rights.

These citizenship rights and the responsibilities that go with it were put beyond the pale of discussion following our return to parliamentary democracy in1971 after the worst racial riots in our history in 1969. It is a criminal offence to question or challenge the citizenship of non-Malays.

READ MORE HERE

 

Walla’s commentaries on UMNO’s unfinished Revolution

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 07:19 AM PDT

SAKMONGKOL AK47

I simply must share this rapier sharp analysis from my intrepid commentator, Walla. I accept it as a singular honour that he finds time frequently to visit my blog. He does too on a few other blogs. When he drops in for a visit, he leaves behind valuable gems of thought.

A: 'I miss you, Sir.'

B: '(eyes pop, jaw drops, kretek embers land on sarung, burning hole size of ten sen coin)..You do? Well then, goodbye pink mop, and hello Sofea!'

A: '(looks at smoke spiraling up) Oh dear, is it hurting?'

B: '(grins bravely) Not yet.'

A: 'Emm, Shall we not focus on your sartorial simplicity for the moment but ponder what our blogger has written? I think he has written another intelligent piece.'

B: '(flicking ash off) that's hardly surprising, Sofea. With only a few exceptions, the others in the Umno leadership also display intellect too. Unfortunately all bovine. Kekeke.'

A: 'I see you have not lost your bite.'

B: 'But the other wire has also broken off....oh, never mind. What is it that weighs on your lovely brows, Sofea?'

A: '(eyes roll). I think Umno's revolution will never be finished because the brobdingnagian challenges it has been facing will soon consume it completely.'

B: '(jaw drops again, twenty sen coin). You mean its legacy problems of economics and politics? Give me a minute to respond. (Turns away, opens kamus)...

I think it's like this, Sofea. Every organism in life goes through its own phases of growth and decline. Under normal circumstances, they trace a sigmoid curve. First, slow palpable growth, then rapid accelerating growth, and finally slowdown to a plateau before decline to end somewhere.

The key to maintaining growth, or in this case political relevance, is to continuously find new S-curves before expiry of the old one.

What has been happening to Umno, Barisan for that matter, is that it has not been able to locate new relevance for itself anymore that can not only equal the original kickass spirit at the time of the formation of this country but also provide a real counterbalance to the emergence of new forces of change demanded by the rakyat.'

A: 'But, Sir, Umno's government has been delivering the goods to the rakyat, don't you think so?'

B: '(eyes glint). You really think so, Sofea? Let me ask you two questions.

Firstly, which government can govern for long if it doesn't deliver goods to the rakyat? In other words, any government run by any political party worth its salt will have to deliver goods to the rakyat. That's what governments are for, isn't it? So don't arrogate to Umno some transcendental right that only it knows best or can do best. It hasn't and it doesn't and, by the denouement of recent events, it won't. Remove the fulcrum of its spin and you will see its politics has devastated this nation. Let me put it bluntly - even if Umno wins the next general elections, the country loses, and frankly, i think it'll be the end.

Which comes to the second point. By itself, politics is just a tool. It is just a tool to levitate and moderate the economics of nation-building. And the fortunes of Umno and Barisan have risen and fallen with the economic fortunes of this land. We must understand why.

When Malaya started, much of the country was relatively under-developed so that the potential for growth and development was assured. With expansion of the population, demand for goods and services increased until we reached the high-flying days of the 70's when hot money flowed in followed by massive FDI that had helped build an industrial base beyond our plantations. Public finances were also shored up by oil and gas revenues.

Today, all that has changed. Hot money is only here to take occasional pot shots at punters in a market where share prices have had to be quoted in sen so as not to reflect how minute are the valuations. And that is because the fundamentals of good management to build real enterprises have been sacrificed for window-dressed performance not shored by real capabilities.

Next, FDI where it really matters is only going into industrial bases in Opposition-run states like Penang and Selangor. The others? Buildings again, as if another complex can produce things for export to earn currency to discharge deficits. Come to think of it, what has happened to Zamry's Perak state projects? He's quiet as a tikus, no? And other investment projects? The announcements are reruns of the same projects, like Rais' tv movies.

And let's not belabor how our oil and gas resources have depleted, even for their half-hearted verisimilitude of new finds. Aren't we now importing gas as well?

Sofea, the economic legacy of Umno's politics of the 70's is the problem today. That period was growth but few saw that it was growth borne by subsidy. Instead of realizing it hard enough then to build real capability for the future, they just sat back and milked the cash register.

So that now when reality has finally bitten, the entire Umno leadership is amok, and right after the Sarawak elections, if you would care to note.

Because they have suddenly found the twin threat to their personal survival from the convergence of economic non-sustainability and political irrelevance.

All those wild spending in the 70's went into crony projects and piratisation schemes but with financing charges for the treasury's attention.

Just imagine, one of many such financing charges is no less than USD1 Billion. The rakyat are indirectly asked to pay for generations to come for a project that was not tendered out properly but benefited cronies who declared huge dividends to themselves while protecting their turf by cabling into Umno to bear the risk on some flimsy rakyat-centric excusatory spin.

Now, how did this happen? It happened because someone whose son has just been paid RM90 million for the land where resides Pudu wet market thought he was clever by buying early ahead of future inflation but clean well forgot how financing charges can balloon the final cost, what more on depreciated items.

And who will ultimately be paying for these mega-projects from future benefits foregone? Our momentarily happy, jomhebohing, rakyat.'

READ MORE HERE

 

‘Remember Onn Jaafar’s ‘betulkan orang Melayu’ drive’

Posted: 01 Jun 2011 07:16 AM PDT

The Umno leadership today comprise 'sly politicians intent on making hay while it shines' with little reflection of the 'motivation and inspiration' associated with 1946 Malays.

What these examples show is that, by and large, the first generation Umno leaders were actually of selfless material, enjoying the trappings of power indeed while in office, but taking none after they leave.

Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz, Free Malaysia Today

When former Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein died, he had little money.  His only liquid asset of any merit was the Magsaysay Award.

He didn't have enough funds to finance his medical bills in England and after he died the government had to step in to give his wife a home for her and her children.

When Tunku Abdul Rahman died he too had no money. A few times he was saved financially by former Sabah Chief Minister Tun Mustapha Harun.

Now let's take the case of a more plebian leader – Khir Johari. When he was alive and in power, all sorts of accusations were hurled at him.

I remember looking at a picture of him and his wife donning traditional Chinese costumes wishing the Chinese, Happy New Year.
It was probably done in good sport.

Towards the end of his life, every one found out he had only one house in Bukit Damansara.

And the rights to that house were disputed. In the end he had to leave the house and move into an apartment where he eventually died.

What these examples show is that, by and large, the first generation Umno leaders were actually of selfless material, enjoying the trappings of power indeed while in office, but taking none after they leave.

Different material

Present day Umno leaders however are a world apart. The majority are loud in every sense of the word. This difference can only be explained by one factor.

Umno has been taken over by leadership of a different material who are conditioned by different experiences and having done less service to the public motives.

This may be a shocking admission – but I hope the present day Umno leadership is aware of the general perception that is getting stronger by the day – that present day Umno leadership consists of a bunch of sly politicians intent on making hay while it shines.

But certainly, what we could expect is to have those motivations and ideals behind the Umno of 1946, refined and enhanced.

From closed mind to openness, from debilitating traditionalism to modernism. These must the founding principles behind the 'betulkan orang Melayu' drive of Onn Jaafar.

Sad to say, Umno must bear the primary responsibility over the more or less unchanged mental landscape of Malays in general.

Umno alone is responsible for the regressive ideas of Malays.

If they have been sleeping over eons, they now have been given sleeping pills to slumber along while the world passes them over.

READ MORE HERE

 

An insult to Islam?

Posted: 31 May 2011 04:49 PM PDT

Should Malaysia become a secular or Christian nation, it will not be Islam that is offended. It's just people who obviously were not granted the brains, patience or even sensitivity to understand that the first basis of the religion itself is to find moderation.

Hafidz Baharom, The Malaysian Insider

First and foremost, having a Christian prime minister is not an insult to Islam, nor is allowing a nation to become secular or even Christian.

Take a look at Germany. Their president and chancellor belong to the Christian Democratic Union Party. Yet, Islam is still alive and well in their nation.

If that's too much for you to imagine, take a look at Netherlands then. Ruled by a monarch and extremely secular, their prime minister is from the VVD and his deputy is from the Christian Democratic Appeal party. Yet still, Islam is there, alive and well enough to be the cause of Theo Van Gogh's death.

Should Malaysia become a secular or Christian nation, it will not be Islam that is offended. It's just people who obviously were not granted the brains, patience or even sensitivity to understand that the first basis of the religion itself is to find moderation.

If a Muslim does wrong, he or she is told to repent. If a non-Muslim says something wrong, we are told, through Islamic teaching, to educate them and find a peaceful solution.

What I believe this means is that if we were to understand our religion properly, and if our muftis had any interest in preaching moderation, they would tell people to shut up and mind their own business instead of forwarding text messages of conversions to Christianity like a certain mufti, wreaking havoc and turmoil while fuelling Malay tabloids with enough material to incite hatred.

Islam dictates that we are only to resort to violence when there is clear provocation, not before. And a cartoon by a Norwegian newspaper is not a provocation enough to kill anyone nor is it a justification for a call to jihad and protest with placards written in bad English that just shows how bad your level of education is.

Muhammad (pbuH) and his followers would never have called for a jihad on the basis of a blog stating that there were people in Penang who said that they would make this 60 per cent Muslim nation a Christian one.

You know what he would do? Or what any rational leader would do?

Bring in the journalist and the bloggers, and ask them to produce witnesses to this so-called declaration. If he fails, cane him for the spreading of fitnah.

A leader, in this case, our prime minister, should know better than to just simply shrug the accusation off and explain parliamentary conduct to amend the Constitution. I think this is where Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his home minister of a cousin failed.

The lack of swift action or any action whatsoever against people like those in Perkasa, now that is an insult to Islam because, if anything, Islam cherishes harmony and tells us to act swiftly against rumours.

It also tells us to forgo belief in rumours without witnesses. But somehow, Malay genetics being what they are — a low brain cell count and a high hormone imbalance somewhere down the line — resulted in the Malay male population going out and protesting the dumbest things.

There is no greater insult to Islam than those who selectively preach the religion for personal gain. That goes for any religion. We saw it with George Bush, we saw it with PAS, and now, we're seeing it with Perkasa.

READ MORE HERE

 

Why sometimes I like to sound racial and scream: CINA BABI!

Posted: 30 May 2011 09:17 PM PDT

MCA Wanita secretary-geneneral Chew Lee Geok said that the requirement for female journalists to don headscarves and barring skirts and dresses was discriminatory. PAS election committee chairman Datuk Abdul Halim Abdul Rahman told The Malaysian Insider that he had not issued such a directive and refuted reports carried yesterday in the Chinese media.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

MCA flays PAS over muktamar dress code

MCA Wanita has criticised PAS for enforcing a dress code on non-Muslim journalists covering its annual general assembly over the weekend.

In a statement today, MCA Wanita secretary-geneneral Chew Lee Geok said that the requirement for female journalists to don headscarves and barring skirts and dresses was discriminatory.

"The choice of personal clothing is a fundamental and individual right. This is a clear example of PAS depriving people of their personal liberties.

"In a multiracial country, I absolutely respect the Muslim dress code, but we also want PAS to respect the non-Muslim customs and choices," she said.

Chew said that the rule shows that PAS held "extreme beliefs" and are "controlling individual rights". -- Malaysiakini

READ MORE HERE: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/165648

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PAS denies headscarf rule on non-Muslims

PAS denied today that it had set rules forcing non-Muslim female journalists to wear headscarves when covering the party's 57th muktamar this week.

PAS election committee chairman Datuk Abdul Halim Abdul Rahman told The Malaysian Insider that he had not issued such a directive and refuted reports carried yesterday in the Chinese media.

"As far as I know, there is no such condition," he said when contacted.

Committee officials later confirmed with The Malaysian Insider that only Muslim journalists are required to wear tudungs (Muslim headscarf) during the muktamar while the non-Muslims must dress neatly in non-revealing clothes.

"Both men and women are not allowed to wear shorts and t-shirts while the women cannot wear revealing clothes. Non-Muslim women are not required to wear headscarves," said an official.

According to a report in the Chinese-language section of an online news portal yesterday, PAS had issued a circular ordering all non-Muslim female journalists to wear headscarves and forbidding them from wearing dresses and skirts.

The report irked Wanita MCA secretary-general Senator Chew Lee Giok who likened the rule today as a form of "extremism, conservatism and discrimination against women". -- The Malaysian Insider

READ MORE HERE: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/pas-denies-headscarf-rule-on-non-muslims/

 

War is about winning, not about how you play the game

Posted: 27 May 2011 08:01 PM PDT

Another good use of 'turn coats' is to infiltrate enemy lines to spy on them. You masqueraded as the enemy behind enemy lines to gather intelligence on them. Then you went back to your own side and reported what you saw.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

SUPP makes a 360-degree turn

After thumbing its nose at the Taib government, party makes an about turn and decides it needs its two candidates in the state cabinet

(Free Malaysia Today) - KUCHING: The Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) has made a 360-degree turn. Last month, after its poor election showing, it said it wanted nothing to do with Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud's government.

The Central Working Committee (CWC), at a meeting last month, decided not to recommend any of SUPP's elected representative to serve in the cabinet of Taib Mahmud after the party's dismal showing in the election.

That decision nearly tore the party apart. But at today's CWC meeting, it unanimously agreed that Wong Soon Koh and Lee Kim Shin should represent the party and the Chinese community in the new cabinet of Abdul Taib Mahmud.

(Read more here: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/05/28/supp-makes-a-360-degree-turn/)

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Okay, that was what Free Malaysia Today reported today. I am not too sure, but I think they meant a 180-degree turn. If you do a 360-degree turn then you have not turned anywhere. Only if you do a 180-degree turn do you go in the opposite direction or backwards from where you were originally going. But then I suppose if you make two 180-degree turns then it becomes a 360-degree turn -- if that was what Free Malaysia Today meant.

Since the 2008 general election the terms 'frogs' and 'turn coats' have been used quite a lot to describe those who have changed sides or are perceived to have changed sides.

The use of the term 'frogs' may be because frogs hop and those who hop to the other side are then called frogs. But then people who change sides may not necessarily hop to the other side. They could saunter, stroll, walk casually, glide, skip, run, or whatever, to the other side. So maybe 'frogs' may not be quite the right word to use.

'Turn coats', on the other hand can mean many things.

This is the Oxford English Dictionary's definition of 'turn coat': As the dominions of the duke of Saxony were bounded in part by France, one of the early dukes hit upon the device of a coat blue one side, and white the other. When he wished to be thought in the French interest he wore the white outside; otherwise the outside colour was blue. Hence a Saxon was nicknamed Emmanuel Turncoat.

It used to be a tactic in the old days for soldiers to be given coats with their army's colours on the outside and the enemy's colour on the inside. This was so that when they spotted the enemy they could turn the coat inside out.

The enemy soldiers, seeing that the other chaps had their same colour coat, would come close. Then, once you could see the whites of their eyes, you would shoot the unsuspecting enemy dead.

This was basically a trap to lure the enemy close so that they can be killed. And you had to get them quite close to be able to kill them with those very unreliable flintlocks.

So, 'turn coat' is not just about changing sides or defecting. It is also about fooling the enemy into thinking that you are on their side so that they can be lured into a trap and killed.

Another good use of 'turn coats' is to infiltrate enemy lines to spy on them. You masqueraded as the enemy behind enemy lines to gather intelligence on them. Then you went back to your own side and reported what you saw.

This worked during the civil war between the Royalists and Republicans during the time of Charles I. The Republicans or Parliament's army wore orange sashes. And the fighting was everywhere -- in York, Birmingham, Reading, Oxford, etc. -- so there was no clear 'frontline'.

The Royalists lifted the sashes from the dead Republican soldiers and infiltrated the Earl of Essex's army. They then reported back what they saw so that Charles I could decide on his military strategy. Charles I, in fact, had spymasters working for him and their job was intelligence gathering.

Of course, this works well when both sides look the same and speak the same language and dialect. But if it were the Japanese fighting the Americans then this would not work as a Japanese could never pass for an American never mind what uniform he wore.

So, yes, sometimes it is good to have 'turn coats' in your army. 'Turn coats' make good spies and help with the planning of military strategies. Today, of course, in the age of technology, you have other more useful ways of spying on the enemy. But when the battle lines are not clear and you never really know who is fighting whom then 'turn coats' are a very useful tool in warfare.

Another good use of 'turn coats' is to send thousands of your men over to the other side to infiltrate the ranks of your enemy. For example, like during the Royalist-Republican civil war in England, many Royalists marched from London with the Republicans.

Then, when the Royalists met the Republicans on the battlefield, the infiltrators attacked from the rear and sandwiched the Republican army in between and slaughtered them. The fact that the Republicans outnumbered the Royalists two-to-one made this diversionary tactic necessary. When you lack the numbers you need to use a good strategy and dirty tricks to win the war.

We saw this in the last general election in Kelantan. Umno spent millions to send thousands of Kelantanese living and working in the West Coast back to Kelantan to vote. They were, however, mostly opposition supporters. So when they went back to Kelantan they voted for the opposition and not for Umno. And Umno financed this whole operation -- to send 'turn coats' back to Kelantan to vote for the opposition.

Considering that Pakatan Rakyat is 'outgunned' compared to the massive Barisan Nasional machinery we can't beat them in face-to-face combat. So we need to use all sorts of strategies and tricks to beat them. And 'turn coats', misinformation, disinformation, 'red herrings', diversionary tactics, etc., will need to be used to the hilt.

And we do not need heroes in a war. A dead soldier can no longer serve the cause. We should not die for our cause. We should make the other bastard die for his cause. As General Douglas MacArthur said: your job is not to die for your country. Your job is to make the other bastard die for his country.

And these are some other sayings of General MacArthur:

Only those are fit to live who are not afraid to die.

In war there is no substitute for victory.

We are not retreating - we are advancing in another direction.

You are remembered for the rules you break.

A general is just as good or just as bad as the troops under his command make him.

Age wrinkles the body. Quitting wrinkles the soul.

In war, you win or lose, live or die - and the difference is just an eyelash.

Never give an order that can't be obeyed.

Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.

The best luck of all is the luck you make for yourself.

They died hard, those savage men - like wounded wolves at bay. They were filthy, and they were lousy, and they stunk. And I loved them.

I am concerned for the security of our great Nation; not so much because of any threat from without, but because of the insidious forces working from within.

Our government has kept us in a perpetual state of fear - kept us in a continuous stampede of patriotic fervour - with the cry of grave national emergency.

One cannot wage war under present conditions without the support of public opinion, which is tremendously moulded by the press and other forms of propaganda.

 

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against…….

Posted: 26 May 2011 06:58 PM PDT

Barisan Nasional has still not learnt its lesson. Racism no longer works. Okay, maybe a few small-brained people are still gullible enough. But that group is getting smaller and smaller. Malaysians are becoming more internet-savvy and are no longer 'frogs under a coconut shell' like in the past. There is an expiry date on racism and that expiry date is getting closer.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

MCA sticks to its 'no govt posts' call if party performs poorly in polls

(The Star) - The MCA will stick to its 'no government posts at all levels' call, if the party performs poorly in the next general election, said president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek.

He said some quarters in the Chinese community had expressed their worries that they would have nowhere to go for help if MCA was not in the Government.

"We are not so fickle-minded. MCA has the integrity, courage and political morality to keep its words."

"If you still need us in the Government, you have to support us," he told a press conference here Thursday after a dialogue session with Chinese guilds and associations.

Dr Chua, backed by the party's presidential council, had recently called for MCA to give up government posts if the Chinese community did not support its candidates in the general election.

***********************************

Disgruntled members urged to return to Umno

(Bernama) - Umno members who feel marginalised or hurt by the party should rise above such feelings and return to the party's fold to help with the ongoing political and government transformation process.

Party vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said their contributions were needed to support prime minister and Umno president Najib Abdul Razak's push to turn Malaysia into a developed nation of high income.

He said Najib's approach was different from the ones taken by previous leaders and, for this reason, party members who felt marginalised, unwanted or hurt should return to the party.

The same goes for members who had previously been suspended from Umno or even those who had joined the opposition, he told reporters after opening the Alor Setar Umno divisional meeting in Alor Setar today.

"Others may have felt disappointed over not being chosen as election candidates.

"A study conducted following our experience in Perak in the 2008 general election which saw Umno losing seven seats showed that this was 100 per cent due to dissatisfaction among Umno members. Some had even sabotaged the party," he said.

Ahmad Zahid, who is defence minister, said experience would show that a decision made when a person was angry, sad or under pressure would not be an accurate one.

He recalled his own experience of being an Umno Youth chief without any government post.

"In Umno, we need to have resilience and competitiveness. We can already see changes among those who have opened up their minds," he said.

He said it was impossible for the government to achieve its goals without political supremacy and support from all Malaysians.

"Umno members must lead the way in casting aside feelings of hurt and dissatisfation," he added.

***********************************

Can you see the game they are playing?

The Chinese Barisan Nasional leaders are telling the Chinese community that if they do not vote MCA then they are not going to have any Chinese representatives in the government.

The Malay Barisan Nasional leaders are telling the Malays that if the Malays do not want to become slaves and second-class citizens in their own country then all Malays must unite under Umno.

The Indian Barisan Nasional leaders are telling the Indian community that…actually I don't know what the hell MIC is telling the Indian community because I don't speak Tamil.

Anyway, it's all about race. And they are even using religious leaders or ustaz and imams to spread the message of hate through sermons and talks. (See here: http://www.malaysia-today.net/component/content/article/58-video/40691-ustaz-kazim-elias-kutuk-cina-india-berita-hairan-online-).

And this is not an isolated case mind you. It is happening all over the country, even in the Kamunting Detention Centre (and I should know since I have been there).

In fact, one of the allegations against me, which resulted in my detention, is that I had insulted Islam. And the 'proof' that was used against me was my article about the mosques spreading hate sermons.

Barisan Nasional has still not learnt its lesson. Racism no longer works. Okay, maybe a few small-brained people are still gullible enough. But that group is getting smaller and smaller. Malaysians are becoming more internet-savvy and are no longer 'frogs under a coconut shell' like in the past. There is an expiry date on racism and that expiry date is getting closer.

When next you go out to vote just remember that:

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against racism.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against religious extremism and manipulation.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against sacrilege against Islam and the abuse of Islam for political gains.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against corruption, mismanagement and abuse of power.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against persecution and discrimination.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against gambling the future of our children and grandchildren.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against corrupt and lying politicians.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against distortion of the truth and manipulation of the media.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against the violation of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against a manipulated and non-independent judiciary.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against the use of all the instruments of government to stifle dissent and opposition.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against a fraudulent, unfair and unclean election.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against the stifling of a civil society.

A vote against Barisan Nasional is a vote against…well, why not you fill in this last one, which I sure many of you are capable of.

 

Three parties can’t form the federal government

Posted: 25 May 2011 04:58 PM PDT

If Barisan Nasional can't make it with just three political parties even with everything working in its favour (plus election fraud and vote rigging thrown in), what makes you think that Pakatan Rakyat can do so when the playing field is extremely far from level?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Way back in 1969, Umno already realised that it can't form the federal government with a coalition of a mere three political parties. At that time the coalition of Umno, MCA and MIC was called the Alliance Party. That was why Barisan Nasional was formed a few years later -- so that they could enlarge the three-member coalition to include more parties.

A total of 7,944,274 Malaysians voted in the 2008 general election. Umno garnered 2,381,725 votes while MCA and MIC garnered 840,489 and 179,422 votes respectively. Combined, the 'Alliance Party' managed only 41.89% of the votes.

In terms of parliament seats, Umno, MCA and MIC won 79, 15 and 3 respectively. But we must remember that Umno's 79 seats included 11 from Sabah. Therefore, minus Sabah, Umno won only 68 seats -- which means the 'Alliance Party' minus Sabah won only 86 out of the 222 seats in Parliament (or 97 seats if including Sabah).

With or without the 11 Umno Sabah seats, the 'Alliance Party' of Umno, MCA and MIC can't get enough seats to form the federal government. They need Barisan Nasional to be able to form the federal government. And, today, Barisan Nasional is a coalition of 14 political parties (if you do not include the Election Commission, Police, Judiciary, AG's Chambers, etc. -- which would then make it a coalition of 20 or more members).

The bottom line is: with a mere three political parties, Barisan Nasional can't form the federal government. It needs 14 political parties to do that.

Now let us look at Pakatan Rakyat. It is also a coalition of three political parties. If Barisan Nasional can't form the federal government with just three political parties (even with the help of the Election Commission, Police, Judiciary, AG's Chambers, etc.) can Pakatan Rakyat do so (with the Election Commission, Police, Judiciary, AG's Chambers, etc., all working against the opposition)?

I have said this before and I am going to say it again: Pakatan Rakyat must enlarge the coalition to include more political parties. It can't expect to form the federal government with just PKR, DAP and PAS. It needs more parties to join Pakatan Rakyat, not only from West Malaysia but also, and in particular, from East Malaysia.

Pakatan Rakyat, in particular PKR, must not be sombong. It can't make Pakatan Rakyat an 'exclusive club' of three parties. It has to reach out to more parties and invite them to join Pakatan Rakyat. If not Pakatan Rakyat is never going to form the next federal government.

The 2008 general election was the peak for Pakatan Rakyat. Pakatan Rakyat can't expect to better the 2008 general election result with just three parties. Even if Pakatan Rakyat can just maintain its 2008 election result that would be a consolation enough. My fear is that in the next general election Pakatan Rakyat will drop from its 2008 height of 82 parliament seats to a mere 52 seats or so (a repeat of what it did in 1999 when it used to be known as Barisan Alternatif).

Pakatan Rakyat, in particular PKR, should stop making enemies and start making friends. It should remove that chip from its shoulder and stop looking down on those who share the common agenda of seeing change in Malaysia. There are many who share this aspiration for change. But Pakatan Rakyat acts like only it has that exclusive right of fighting for change. That is very sombong.

Let me repeat that: if Barisan Nasional can't make it with just three political parties even with everything working in its favour (plus election fraud and vote rigging thrown in), what makes you think that Pakatan Rakyat can do so when the playing field is extremely far from level?

There are ten non-Barisan Nasional political parties. But only three are in Pakatan Rakyat. Why can't Pakatan Rakyat become a coalition of at least seven parties even if it can't be a coalition of ten parties?

 

WIKILEAKS: Islam as a tool of Umno's political game

Posted: 24 May 2011 01:00 AM PDT

In the current case, the three women, previously unknown to the public, were caned and the public was not informed for over a week.  The canings were administered by federal prison officials in a federal women's prison.  This gives rise to a possible violation of federal law that the GOM has yet to explain or address.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KUALA LUMPUR 000108

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2020

TAGS: KTIP, KCRM, KWMN, PGOV, PHUM, PREL, SMIG, MY

SUBJECT: CANING OF THREE WOMEN REFLECTS UMNO'S POLITICAL TACTICS

 

REF: A. KL 20 WHAT IS GOING ON IN MALAYSIA?

     B. KL 14 UPDATE ON THE ALLAH ISSUE

     C. KL 11 OVERNIGHT ATTACKS ON 3 CHURCHES

     D. KL 03 GOM APPEALS KL HIGH COURT RULING ON USE OF THE WORD ALLAH

     E. 09 KL 716 CANING PUNISHMENT POSTPONED

 

Classified By: Political Counselor Brian McFeeters for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

 

--- SUMMARY AND COMMENT ---

1. (SBU) Summary: On February 17, Home Minister Hishammuddin announced that three women and four men who had been found guilty of illicit sex under Syariah law had been caned on February 9.  The three became the first women to be caned in Malaysia. 

Caning of women in Malaysia had recently become the subject of international scrutiny, and Malaysian legal scholars are wondering what the decision means for the legal system, since caning of women is against federal law. 

On July 20, 2009, Malaysian Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a Muslim woman, was sentenced by a state-level Syariah court to six lashes with a cane and a fine for consuming alcohol in public.  To date, Kartika has not yet been caned.  Viewing the caning as a political maneuver, the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) was critical of the GOM's actions contending they were not consistent with Islam.  NGOs too were critical of the caning contending that it does not comport with federal law.  End Summary.

2. (C) Comment:  Kartika's case put Prime Minister Najib's new administration in the difficult position of balancing the competing forces fighting for Malaysia's Muslim identity. While concerned about preserving Malaysia's image as a moderate Muslim State, Najib has been unwilling to date to criticize Syariah law or otherwise downplay the seriousness of Kartika's offense for fear that it could damage United Malays National Organization's (UMNO) Islamic bona fides.

That the GOM chose to cane three anonymous women, rather than the internationally renowned Kartika, seems to be a tactical maneuver by UMNO to retain or lure back conservative Malay voters as well as perhaps a testing of the waters presaging Kartika's caning.  That Najib feels the need to placate the most conservative Malays suggests that his stated intent to change to a more inclusive, less Malay-centric economic and political model is facing considerable, resistance within his own coalition.  End Comment.

--- FIRST WOMEN CANED IN MALAYSIA ---

3. (SBU) Home Minister Hishammuddin announced on February 17 that GOM officials caned four Muslim men and three Muslim women found guilty of illicit sex under Syariah law.  Sex out of wedlock is unlawful under Syariah law.  The canings took place on February 9, and the three women are believed to be the first women to be caned under the law in Malaysia. 

Two of the women received six strokes of the cane and the other received four.  The women were caned in a female prison.

According to the Home Minister, one was released on February 14, one will be released in the coming days, and the third will be released in June.

--- MALAYSIA'S DUAL LEGAL SYSTEM ---

4. (SBU) Article 3 of the Malaysian Constitution states that "Islam is the religion of the Federation; but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation."  Article 3 further provides that issues of Islamic law are state, rather than federal, matters.  Thus, states, and the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, have individual Syariah law codes and have established Syariah courts, with jurisdiction over Muslims, to deal with family law and certain infractions under Islamic law. 

The constitution makes clear that federal law has precedence over state law (articles 4 and 75, "if any State law is inconsistent with a federal law, the federal law shall prevail and the State law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void").  Hence, because Syariah law is a state matter, any inconsistencies between these two legal systems should, according to the language of the Federal Constitution, be resolved in favor of the federal system.

However, Article 121(1A) of the Constitution, added under former Prime Minister Mahathir in 1988 says, "the courts referred to in Clause (1) (the High Courts) shall have no jurisdiction in respect of any matter within the jurisdiction of the Syariah courts."  This amendment introduced ambiguity about Syariah versus civil law that has yet to be resolved clearly.

--- CANING IN MALAYSIA ---

5. (SBU) Under federal law, Malaysian judges routinely include caning in sentences of individuals convicted of kidnapping, rape, and robbery.  The law also prescribes caning for illegal immigrants and their employers and as an additional punishment for those convicted of some nonviolent crimes such as narcotics possession, criminal breach of trust, and alien smuggling. 

The caning is carried out with a half-inch wooden cane that can cause welts and scarring. Federal law exempts men over 50 and all women from caning. Conversely, some states prescribe caning under Syariah law, for which there are no exceptions for women. 

In Syariah caning, a smaller cane is used and the caning official cannot raise the cane above his shoulder.  Additionally, the subject is fully clothed so that the cane will not touch the flesh.

Local Islamic officials claim that the intent is not to injure but to make the offenders ashamed of their sins and repent.

--- THE CURIOUS ROLE OF THE GOM IN CANING THREE WOMEN ---

6. (C) In the February 9 case, the three women were sentenced to caning for committing adultery in violation of Section 23(2) of the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Syariah Criminal Offenses Act of 1997.  The sentencing of women to such corporal punishment under Syariah law contradicts the federal law outlined in Section 289 of the Criminal Procedure Code that states that women are not to be subject to caning. 

In the current case, the three women, previously unknown to the public, were caned and the public was not informed for over a week.  The canings were administered by federal prison officials in a federal women's prison.  This gives rise to a possible violation of federal law that the GOM has yet to explain or address.

7. (SBU) The federal government has highlighted its role in meting out these sentences, indicating that the decision had Najib's support.  Home Minister Hishamuddin (Prime Minister Najib Razak's cousin) placed himself at the forefront of this issue, announcing on February 17 that the women had been caned, commenting that "the punishment is to teach and give a chance to those who have fallen off the path to return and build a better life for the future," sounding much like an Islamic cleric. 

In a February 19 interview, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin did not address the legal issue, focusing instead on the need to explain that Syariah caning is ritualistic rather than severe.  The government-influenced daily, Bernama, on February 19, quoted Minister for Religious Affairs in the Prime Minister's Department Seri Jamil Khir Baharom as saying that the women were remorseful and "welcomed their sentence." 

In a separate article, Bernama reported that Minister of Women, Family, and Community Development Shahrizat, said that her Ministry will monitor future caning of women noting that "as the minister in charge of women affairs in this country, I really hope that the whipping sentence on Muslim women will be carried out fairly and judiciously."

--- REACTION FROM PAS ---

8. (SBU) When the canings were announced, some observers wondered whether the punishments could be seen as an effort to divide the opposition coalition People's Assembly, expecting PAS to support the punishments, while the secular Democratic Action Party (DAP) would likely oppose the canings. However, PAS Central Working Committee Member and Member of Parliament Dr. Dzulkefly Ahmad of Selangor urged his party not to fall into the trap of allowing UMNO to portray itself as the defender of the Islamic agenda. 

He asserted that there is a political motive behind the caning of the three women.  If UMNO were sincere about upholding the principles of Islam, it would address the source of problem rather than just implementing the sentence and would be combating corruption, abuse of power, cruelty, and embezzlement of the wealth of the country by political cronies.  

9. (SBU) PAS Women's Movement Chief Nuridah Salleh asserted that the GOM's caning of the seven individuals did not conform to Islamic principles because it was done in private and not in the open as required by Islam.  She explained that canings are to be public in order to educate and instill awareness among the people and to ensure the violators do not commit the crime again.  She called on the Home Minister to remember this intent prior to carrying out future caning sentences.

--- REACTION FROM CIVIL SOCIETY ---

10. (SBU) Civil society groups have condemned the GOM caning of the women.  The Malaysian Bar Council, on February 18, issued a press release expressing its "shock and disappointment" and elaborating, "given that the Kartika issue remains unresolved and the public outcry on issues of constitutionality in regards to the fact that corporal punishment is forbidden for women under Section 289 of the Criminal Procedure Code, it is indeed shocking that the Government has made the announcement only after the punishment has been carried out."

Similarly, Sisters in Islam questioned the GOM's motive behind caning the Muslim women while the issue of Kartika's case remains unresolved. All Women's Action Society president Sophia Lim asserted that "the Home Minister needs to explain why the government allowed the punishment to be carried out in secret on an issue that is of high public interest with very far ranging and damaging consequences."

KEITH

 

The burden of proof

Posted: 23 May 2011 06:05 PM PDT

That's why! These lowly educated Melayu from Umno want to try to play psy-war and spin-doctoring. But they don't know how. Maslan may be the Umno Information Chief but that does not mean he is clever.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Ball is in Anwar's court, says Umno info chief

(The Malaysian Insider) - Umno information chief Datuk Ahmad Maslan said today that Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim must prove Datuk Shazryl Eskay Abdullah's allegations are false following the latter's exclusive interview with Utusan Malaysia.

(Read more here: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/ball-is-in-anwars-court-says-umno-info-chief/)

Shazryl Eskay gave a mere interview with Utusan Malaysia. I signed a legal document, a Statutory Declaration, and my lawyer, J. Chandra, sent it officially by way of letter to the prosecutors in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial.

Going by what the Umno Information Chief said, then the Malaysian government has to now prove that what I signed in that 2008 SD is false. I need not prove what I signed is true -- just like Shazryl Eskay does not need to prove what he said about Anwar is true.

This means the government has to first of all drop the three S.501 Criminal Defamation charges against me (not just 'discharge not amounting to an acquittal'). Then the government needs to investigate my SD and prove that what I signed is false.

Only when it is proven that what I signed is false can the government, again, charge me -- but this time for the crime of signing a false statutory declaration under S.203.

That's why! These lowly educated Melayu from Umno want to try to play psy-war and spin-doctoring. But they don't know how. Maslan may be the Umno Information Chief but that does not mean he is clever.

Remember, back in 1999 Anwar Ibrahim was convicted of corruption and sodomy and was sentenced to 15 years jail because, according to the court, he had failed to convince the court of his innocence.

Get it? Anwar was jailed 15 years not because he was found guilty. He was jailed 15 years because he failed to convince the court of his innocence.

Okay, our laws may be based on the doctrine of innocent until proven guilty. But that only applies to people who suck up to Umno. For those who oppose Umno it is the other way around.

So, can I hear it from the Malaysian government? Are you going to drop the three Criminal Defamation charges against me and, like what the Umno Information Chief said, prove that what I signed in my SD is false?

Then, and only then, if you can prove that what I signed in my SD is false, can you charge me for the crime of signing a false SD. This is what Umno says must be done and I, for once, would be most happy to listen to Umno.

 

Charity starts at home

Posted: 23 May 2011 07:10 AM PDT

If we attack the government we are towering Malays, great Malaysians, patriots, and all that crap. But the minute we expose the wrongdoings of the opposition we have been bought, we have turned, we have sold out, we are Trojan horses.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Raja Petra, a well known Malaysian blogger, would shock his audience by signing an affidavit implicating the current Prime Minister and his wife in that murder. Raja Petra has since retracted his claim, by saying that he only wrote what he was told. The curious timing of his retraction, coinciding with both the Sarawak elections and the upcoming open court hearing on the Armaris contract in France, has given rise to speculation that he has been turned. – Malaysia Chronicle

*****************************************

I have just finished watching the movie 'Fair Game'. I suggest you watch it as well. I am not going to spoil it all by telling you the whole story other than it is about how governments lie to us and manipulate us. It is also about how the media is used as a propaganda tool. The most interesting part is the closing scene. Take special note of the speech in that closing scene.

Why do we oppose the Barisan Nasional government? Or at least why do I oppose the Barisan Nasional government? Well, it is because the Barisan Nasional government is exactly like what the US government is as featured in that movie I am talking about. It is manipulative and it lies to us.

So I want to get rid of the Barisan Nasional government. I have said this before and I will say it again: either the Barisan Nasional government changes or we have no choice but to change the government. And you and I both know that the Barisan Nasional government is incapable of changing. So we have to change the government. There are no two ways about it.

But we want to replace the Barisan Nasional government with a government that is not also manipulative and also lies to us. That is the bottom line.

Now read what Malaysia Chronicle a.k.a. Suara Tian Chua wrote above.

"Raja Petra, a well known Malaysian blogger, would shock his audience by signing an affidavit implicating the current Prime Minister and his wife in that murder."


Okay, have you read my Statutory Declaration that I signed in 2008? In that SD I alleged that a certain Kolonel Azmi Zainal Abidin alleged that Rosmah Mansor and her ADC and her ADC's husband were at the scene of the crime the night Altantuya Shaariibuu was murdered (three people were named).

Let me repeat that: I alleged that a certain Kolonel Azmi Zainal Abidin alleged that Rosmah Mansor and her ADC and her ADC's husband were at the scene of the crime the night Altantuya Shaariibuu was murdered.

Now, do you see the name Najib Tun Razak mentioned anywhere in that sentence? Read it again. Do you see the name Najib Tun Razak in that sentence?

And did I allege that those three people were there or did I allege that Kolonel Azmi Zainal Abidin made that allegation?

That is point number one.

Point number two is the part that Malaysia Chronicle wrote: "Raja Petra has since retracted his claim, by saying that he only wrote what he was told."

Did I retract my claim or did I do the opposite: I reiterated my claim?

And did I not state in my 2008 SD that this is what I was told? And I still say this until today. So have I retracted my claim or have I instead reiterated my claim?

So you see, even the opposition manipulates us and lies to us just like Barisan Nasional. And we are trying to kick out Barisan Nasional and change it with another government because it manipulates us and lies to us. But the opposition is not even the government yet and it is already manipulating us and lying to us.

Since last year Malaysia Chronicle a.k.a. Suara Tian Chua has been doing this (long before my TV3 interview). It has been distorting the news and has been lying to us. But when I attack the opposition for acting just like Barisan Nasional they respond by saying that "he has been turned".

If we attack the government we are towering Malays, great Malaysians, patriots, and all that crap. But the minute we expose the wrongdoings of the opposition we have been bought, we have turned, we have sold out, we are Trojan horses.

As they say, charity starts at home. But then other things start at home as well. If the opposition can't be honest with us then what hope do we have of seeing change if we kick Barisan Nasional out and replace it with the opposition?

When Malaysia Chronicle attacked me from as far back as last year, I did not accuse Tian Chua of being Trojan horse, or having been bought off, or whatever. I took that as their right to disagree with me. Why can't they also allow me my democratic right to disagree with them?

Why must I automatically agree with everything that the opposition does? Don't I also have rights? And is not one of my rights is to agree to disagree? Why is it when I disagree with them then that makes me a traitor or is taken as 'evidence' that I have been bought off?

Yesterday, I published the second instalment of the Wikileaks cables on Malaysia. Free Malaysia Today and The Malaysian Insider both picked up the story and made a reference to Malaysia Today. Malaysia Chronicle also picked up the story but made no reference to Malaysia Today.

In short, Malaysia Chronicle stole Malaysia Today's story. Is this an honest thing to do? It just shows the 'journalistic standards' of Malaysia Chronicle.

I am not the opposition. Malaysia Today is not an opposition mouthpiece. But we do propagate a change of government. But we want a better government, a government that does not manipulate us and lie to us. However, if Malaysia Chronicle a.k.a. Suara Tian Chua is the example of the type of new government we are going to get, would you blame the voters for having second thoughts about the opposition?

Malaysia Chronicle a.k.a. Suara Tian Chua and opposition portals of their ilk can continue with these lies and deception if they so wish. They are only hurting themselves. The voters are watching and taking note. And the voters will demonstrate what they think of the opposition come the next general election.

We just can't whack Barisan Nasional and accuse it of all sorts of things and then act just like them. Do you think the voters are that dumb? We vilify Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian, New Straits Times, The Malay Mail, The Star, etc. -- and with just cause, may I add. Then we have Malaysia Chronicle a.k.a. Suara Tian Chua acting just like Utusan Malaysia and the rest of those scumbags and slime-balls, a.k.a the mainstream media.

So where do we go from here? Kick out Barisan Nasional and replace one lump of shit with another lump of shit?

Come on lah Brader Tian Chua. Stop hurting the opposition cause. It is people like you who are making the voters disgusted with the opposition. Why don't you do us a favour and go join MCA so that we can focus on our work of kicking out Barisan Nasional?

 

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