| Middle Malaysia Posted: 27 Sep 2011 11:39 AM PDT Instead of fighting a single opposition, BN perpetuated a structure which has two flanks — PAS for the Muslims and DAP for the non-Malays — and styled itself as the indispensable pseudo "centrist" coalition that caters for the interests across racial, religious and regional boundaries. By Liew Chin Tong (TMI) Middle Malaysia is elusive but it is clear that whichever coalition that is able to win across the traditional fault lines of race, religion and regions takes Federal power. Barisan Nasional is now the world's oldest elected government still in office. Its predecessor, the Alliance party, first won the Federal election for self-government in 1955. BN's longevity in government can be attributed to successful manipulation of the carrot and stick. Carrots range from contracts for big tycoons to rural patronage for the Umno base while the sticks are really big – dissenters can be put behind bars without trial for years while the mass media are muzzled. But there is something deeper: there is no alternative. Or more precisely, the ultimate use of the carrot and stick is to ensure that no BN-clone is allowed to exist. Instead of fighting a single opposition, BN perpetuated a structure which has two flanks — PAS for the Muslims and DAP for the non-Malays — and styled itself as the indispensable pseudo "centrist" coalition that caters for the interests across racial, religious and regional boundaries. Without a clean and fair electoral system and an unbiased mass media, the moment a moderate centrist coalition emerges it is destroyed without mercy. Elections in 1964, 1974, 1982, 1995, and 2004 saw a general swing of all ethnic groups in favour of Barisan Nasional for various reasons. Elections in 1978 and 1986 witnessed Barisan Nasional winning across the races but losing heavily among ethnic Chinese voters. A general anti-establishment swing across races in various degrees towards the Opposition occurred in elections in 1959, 1969, 1990, 2008 while the 1999 election was an oddity with Malays swinging massively towards the Opposition while more than 50 per cent of the supposedly more anti-establishment voted for the ruling coalition out of fear of the Islamic state claim and copycat violence a la Indonesia's anti-Suharto days. The de facto centre plus two flanks structure was almost broken in the 1990 general election until the final days of campaign when BN depicted Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah as a traitor to the Malays for wearing a Kadazan headgear with a symbol that looks like a cross. At the time, the majority of the ethnic Chinese and nearly half of the Malays were psychologically ready for a change of government. Since the 2008 general election, BN's formula to win the next election is not to recognise the two-party reality that it received only 51 per cent of popular votes. In fact, only 49 per cent in peninsular Malaysia voted for BN. Instead, apart from starving the Opposition of material resources and fair mass media coverage, the strategy is three-pronged – to destroy Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's credibility as the alternative prime minister at all costs, to lure PAS' leaders into the Malay/Muslim exclusivist discourse and to paint DAP as an extremist villain. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/opinion/article/middle-malaysia/ |
| PM: Break away from Bumi quotas Posted: 27 Sep 2011 11:30 AM PDT (Bernama) Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak said today that there was a need to "run away" from quotas for Bumiputeras but they must continue to be supported to grow. "You must run, go away from quotas. But you must support them (Bumiputeras) in a way that will allow them to grow from small and medium enterprises to get bigger and to become even regional champions," he said at a question and answer session at the Khazanah Megatrends Forum 2011 here.
The Prime Minister said that quotas could hamper capable Bumiputera entrepreneurs from developing their abilities. He feared that "if you give them quotas, they will rest on their laurels and eventually will not gain the expertise to manage businesses."
Najib said that one past criticism he had of the quota system was that the right kind of people was not being promoted. The affirmative action must now be based more on meritocracy.
"So, you must promote the right Bumiputeras. If you promote the right Bumiputeras, not only will they succeed, but the non-Bumiputeras will not begrudge them," he said. Najib alluded to the Bumiputera Agenda Coordinating Unit in the Prime Minister's Department which had identified more than 1,000 companies that would be assisted to grow.
The Prime Minister also said the cabinet will decide tomorrow on the timeline for the proposed amendments to security and press laws to enhance civil liberties in the country and make Malaysia a more modern and vibrant democracy.
In his Malaysia Day message on Sept 15, Najib said the government would repeal the Internal Security Act 1960 and the Banishment Act 1959 and review other laws, including the Printing Presses and Publications Act. Stressing that the government was serious about carrying out reforms, he said: "This coming Parliament session, you will see a slew of new legislation or actions." |
| Suspected teenage robber shot dead in Taman Tun Dr Ismail Posted: 27 Sep 2011 11:28 AM PDT (TMI) The suspects were distracted with picking up the items, giving the police officer time to draw his weapon and fire three times at his assailants. A senior police officer shot dead a 19-year-old, one of the six men who allegedly were attempting to rob him in Taman Tun Dr Ismail here, last night, Bernama Online reported. During the 9.45pm incident, the superintendent of police who had returned from dinner, parked at his residence and was about to leave his car when he a group of men with parang accosted him. He fled leaving some valuable items, according to City police CID chief Datuk Ku Chin Wah. The suspects were distracted with picking up the items, giving the police officer time to draw his weapon and fire three times at his assailants. Ku was recounting the events at the crime scene to reporters. The incident at Lorong Burhanuddin Helmi 6 ended the life of a 19-year-old youth, while rest escaped in their motorcycles. The body has been sent to Kuala Lumpur Hospital while police have launched a manhunt for the five other men. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/suspected-shot-dead-in-taman-tun-dr-ismail/ |
| Pakatan practising hypocrisy, says Chua Posted: 27 Sep 2011 11:26 AM PDT  (Free Malaysia Today) MCA launches fresh attacks on Pakatan for the latter's action to put a lid on the hudud controversy. KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat's gag order on the hudud debate drew instant flak from MCA which described the instruction as proof of the bloc's blatant hypocrisy. Its president Dr Chua Soi Lek said the opposition had "conveniently" tried to conceal its weakness by gagging its leaders from openly discussing the prickly issue that has reignited past hostility between PAS and the DAP. "It is their right (to issue the gag order) but every time they (Pakatan) have problems, they resort to using gag orders while preaching greater democracy, transparency, accountability and openness," he told reporters at the party's headquarters here. Chua, a former health minister, pointed out that Pakatan state leaders in Selangor had issued a gag order following a controversial raid by the state's Islamic Affairs Department (JAIS) on a church in Damansara recently, adding that going mute on the issue has not solved the debacle. "The issue is still unresolved. Until now we don't know if there was actually an attempt to convert Muslims to Christians," he said. The raid triggered animosity and heightened tension between Muslims and Christians amid efforts by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to improve relations by forging diplomatic ties with the Vatican last month. But while the issue slowly took a back seat, Kelatan Menteri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat gave non-Muslim the shivers when he said his party plans to implement hudud in the east coast state. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/09/27/pakatan-hiding-its-weaknesses-says-chua/ |
| Stupid law, stupid results Posted: 27 Sep 2011 11:03 AM PDT The 3 rules are designed to frustrate initiatives to detect and act against deliberate or mass manipulation of electoral roll. The people drafting and approving this piece of legislation clearly do not have idea what fairness and justice means, or worse, have certain agenda in mind and practice. By Lee Wee Tak Law is man-made regulations. People make mistakes and bad people makes bad decisions. When bad people make law, we ended up with bad laws. For decades, inadequate delivery systems have diverted our law makers from their original legislation duty to that of local councilors, rendering the due process of drafting progressive, fair and reasonable law as a secondary, or even ignored, role. World Class Parliament = World Class Law = Good Place to Live Crap Parliament = Crap Law = Crappy Place to Live Within the MP ranks, with characters such as "close one eye", "bocor" and "RM1 million FB page", how many right minded tax payers can safely say they have the utmost confidence in their ability then? This is what I have in mind when I read some of the laws relating to conduct of general elections. According to section 15 of AKTA PILIHAN RAYA 1958, PERATURAN-PERATURAN PILIHAN RAYA (PENDAFTARAN PEMILIH) 2002, 1. Objections to any addition to the voters' roll must be made within 7 days from the date the supplementary electoral roll is open for inspection; (supposedly every quarter hence 4 times a year) 2. A person can only object against up to 10 registered names only; and 3. A fee of RM10 is to be charged for each name being submitted for protest. Section 15 made me choked on my tau foo fah, I tell you. 1. 7 days only limitation Every quarterly updates may contain hundreds and thousands of names. Is it reasonable to allow only a 7 day window period for public to review and investigate? Revisiting the disgusting errors DAP recently discovered – lesbian marriage involving a female army personnel, dozens of army wives carrying IC which actually belong to their husbands etc. These are not innocent, straight forward errors but sophisticated mischief not visible to the naked eye or reasonable bystander. http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/reform-vote-now-as-evidence-mounts-says-dap-leader/ "This shows there are systematic way ways of planting voters by irresponsible parties..."  New voters have to wait for months before they can check if they are being registered properly so why the glaring double standard here? Income Revenue Board can investigate up to 7 years back, testing our memories to the limit and in case of fraud, there is no limit in the number of backlog years. Yet, how come the mistake ridden SPR / EC is so damn well protected with this 7 days only ruling? Does the legislators ever thought of interested citizens do have other things to do in life? After multiple orgamistic screaming of Rakyat Diutamakan, this punter is extremely disappointed with the fake front, all form no substance. How prominent and transparent are displays of these supplementary electoral rolls? We can see the newspaper publishing those lucky ones heading to National Service but where is the electoral roll being located for public inspection? SPR/EC has been doing a very poor job in this respect. 2. 10 objections per person Limiting a person's right to object more than 10, is without logic, especially with an error prone SPR/EC. If a policeman sees 3 men committing a crime should we legislate and limit him to say, he can only arrest 2 persons a day only? Would that make sense? Why limit pursue of correct records? To this tax payer, it appears to be a form of non-financial bailout of a Barisan Nasional dependent/supporting party. If there is a sysmatic abuse, e.g. the dozens of shemales in the army camp, then surely there would be more than 10. A talented and committed individual who uncovered this would be blocked by this stupid rule. I wonder what was said in the parliament when they scanned through this section, or did the ruling coalition bulldozed this through? 3. RM10 fee per protested person It is also adding insult to injury to penalize concerned and justice-minded citizens for RM10 when SPR/EC (already well funded by tax payers) is suppose to investigate and correct their own gross, laughable and irresponsible or even errors. Read more at: http://wangsamajuformalaysia.blogspot.com/2011/09/stupid-law-stupid-results.html |
| WIKILEAKS: NAJIB'S "ISLAMIC STATE" REMARK DRAWS THE IRE OF MALAYSIA'S MINORITIES Posted: 27 Sep 2011 01:00 AM PDT 
Responding to a reporter's question at the July 17 opening of the Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (IKIM)'s two-day international conference on "The Role of Islamic States in a Globalised World," Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak explained that Malaysia is not a secular state, but an Islamic state driven by the fundamentals of Islam. The reporter asked Najib if Malaysia was an Islamic state and to comment on concerns that Malaysia was moving from a secular government to an Islamic state. THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin 
1. (C) Summary: Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Abdul Razak set off a fire storm on July 17 when, in response to a reporter's question, he stated that Malaysia is and has always been an "Islamic state." Malaysia's minorities and opposition parties attacked the DPM's comments as violative of the nation's constitutional history and of the social contract which formed a single nation from Malaysia's Malay, Chinese and Indian ethnic groups. The ruling coalition's largest Chinese party, MCA, defended the country's status as a secular nation and declared secularism to be the unequivocal, original intention of the nation's founders. Former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Malaysian Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan joined the chorus of protesters decrying Najib's statement. Reeling from the growing backlash among Malaysia's minorities, the Ministry of Internal Security issued a directive two days later requiring all print media to cease publication of any discussion of Malaysia's status as a secular or Islamic state other than statements made by the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. Opposition party DAP vowed to continue the public discussion and plans to hold a public forum on the issue on July 26. Najib's statement may help the dominant UMNO party woo Malay voters away from the Islamist opposition party PAS; however, it also has opened a political can of worms for the non-Muslim electorate and could be used to attract already disenchanted minority voters away from the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. End Summary. "We have never been a secular state" 2. (U) Responding to a reporter's question at the July 17 opening of the Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (IKIM)'s two-day international conference on "The Role of Islamic States in a Globalised World," Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak explained that Malaysia is not a secular state, but an Islamic state driven by the fundamentals of Islam. The reporter asked Najib if Malaysia was an Islamic state and to comment on concerns that Malaysia was moving from a secular government to an Islamic state. Najib answered: "Islam is the official religion and Malaysia is an Islamic state, an Islamic state that respects the rights of non-Muslims and we protect them. I want to correct you, that we have never been a secular state. Secular by Western definition means separation of the Islamic principles in the way we govern the country. But we have never abdicated from those principles. Malaysia has always been driven by and adhered to the fundamentals of Islam. So your premise is wrong." 3. (U) Najib's impromptu remarks to reporters followed his delivery of the opening address to the conference, which he explained was in fact the Prime Minister's speech. The address focused on PM Abdullah's familiar themes of the importance of economic development and education in Muslim countries and references to Islam's golden age and status as the world's first "globalizing force." The address did not explicitly address the issue of Malaysia as an Islamic state, though this was the clear implication. The opening ceremony also featured a highly theoretical lecture by IKIM's Director General Syed Al-Attas on "What it Means to be an Islamic State," which argued that following Islamic principles and revelations was more important to the definition than Islamizing otherwise Western governmental institutions. 4. (U) Najib's words did little to elaborate on former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad's June 2002 remarks to Parliament when he declared that, "Malaysia is not a moderate Islamic state but an Islamic fundamentalist state as its policy is to abide by the fundamental teachings of Islam." Furthermore, Najib's statement does not reflect any current attempt to amend the Constitution or make any new institutional changes in favor of Islam. The Islamic state descriptor, however, goes to the heart of concerns from Malaysia's substantial non-Malay minorities, who make up some 40 percent of the population. Understandably, Najib's contemporary remarks on the eve of Malaysia's 50th anniversary of independence ignited a firestorm of criticism foremost from the Chinese community, but also from other supporters of secular government, such as the Bar Council. Coalition partner MCA fires back 5. (U) The Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), Malaysia's largest minority party and founding member of the country's original Alliance uniting Malay, Chinese and Indian political parties, took particular exception to Najib's remarks. Facing immense voter dissatisfaction for cowing to UMNO attacks during last year's UMNO general assembly (ref A), MCA could hardly afford to remain silent. On July 19, MCA's Secretary General Ong Ka Chuan took the lead on countering Najib's remarks. Ong delivered public remarks to the press, openly disagreeing with the Deputy Prime Minister. Ong stressed that, contrary to Najib's remarks, Malaysia hadalways been a secular state and that this was part of the original social contract. Ong quoted the September 27, 1956 Alliance Memorandum to the Reid Commission that stated: "The religion of Malaysia shall be Islam. The observance of this principle shall not impose any disability on non-Muslim nationals professing and practicing their own religion, and shall not imply the State is not a secular state." Ong further cited notes prepared by the Colonial Office dated May 23, 1957 at the London Conference Talks which said: "The members of the Alliance delegation stressed that they had no intention of creating a Muslim theocracy and that Malaya would be a secular state." "This was the unequivocal original intention of UMNO, MCA and MIC," Ong countered. Bar Council says Najib's father would disagree 6. (U) Malaysian Bar Council president, Ambiga Sreenevasan, an ethnic Indian and leader of Malaysia's mostly non-Malay legal profession, also lambasted the DPM's comments. In a July 18 written statement to the press, she too quoted Malaysia's founding fathers and even cited a report from the independence sub-committee chaired by the current DPM's own father, Abdul Razak, recognizing that Malaysia would be a secular state. "It is time," Sreenevasan wrote, "that the proposition that Malaysia is not secular, (which is a rewriting of the Constitution), be put to rest once and for all and that there is due recognition and reaffirmation of the clear legal and constitutional position that Malaysia is, and has always been, a secular State." Anwar joins attack on Najib 7. (U) Former Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the opposition People's Justice Party, Anwar Ibrahim, also joined in the attacks on Najib's declaration. Anwar lamented that Najib's "latest pronouncement about Malaysia being an Islamic state shows his dismal ignorance of what such a state really means. In an attempt to pander to communal and religious sentiments, Najib has chosen to blatantly disregard the provisions of the Constitution which, while stating that Islam is the religion of the Federation, safeguards the sanctity of other religions without discrimination one from the other." Media clampdown 8. (SBU) Responding in typical fashion (see refs A and C) to widespread criticism against the Government, and to hot-button racial and religious issues, the Ministry of Internal Security (MIS) issued an order on July 19 to all mainstream media banning any further discussion of the subject. Malaysiakini, the country's leading, independent, online news portal, quoted a senior MIS official: "Yes, we have given the directive to all mainstream newspapers. Islam is a sensitive issue. They cannot publish any news on whether the country is secular or Islam (sic)... Reaction from political parties and the public cannot be published, especially negative reactions." The officer told Malaysiakini that MIS is afraid that allowing such discussions would cause "tension." However, the MIS official said newspapers can still publish statements from the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister on the country being an Islamic state. DAP seeks to capitalize on Chinese reaction 9. (SBU) The country's largest opposition party, the Democratic Action Party (DAP), has already begun to capitalize on Najib's racially divisive statements as a rallying cry for their campaign and are seeking to attract even more voters away from MCA and Gerakan. Despite, and perhaps due to, the Ministry of Internal Security's ban on print media, DAP has already announced a public forum to discuss Malaysia's standing as a secular country to be held on July 26 at the Chinese Assembly Hall in Kuala Lumpur. Comment 10. (C) Najib's remarks come on the heels of the court decision in the Lina Joy apostasy case, which reassured Muslim conservatives and disappointed non-Muslim minorities (ref D). Whether planned or not, Najib's statement (like the Lina Joy decision) will play well among the constituents of the dominant United Malays National Organization (UMNO), and allow UMNO to solidify its Islamic credentials among Malaysia's Malay/Muslim majority. These and other issues set UMNO and the ruling government out as the defender of Islam; its increasingly privileged position in Malaysian society continues to polarize the country's ethnic communities. Divisive religious and ethnic issues have been growing in the Malaysian electorate. The 2006 Sarawak state elections, along with several by-elections earlier this year, reflected great voter dissatisfaction among Malaysia's Chinese minority (ref B). Following UMNO's annual general meeting last year, Malaysia's dominant Chinese political parties, MCA and Gerakan, found themselves facing even greater voter apathy and a growing dissatisfaction within their own communities. While Najib's comments certainly strengthen his position among the Malays, they unquestionably undermine the standing of BN's minority parties in their own communities and threaten to weaken Chinese voices within the ruling government. Chinese voters, however, face poor options. The alternative to UMNO as a Malay political partner is the unabashedly Islamist opposition party PAS, known for its advocacy of a much more conservative and far-reaching version of an Islamic state. 11. (C) The Government's heavy-handed order to cease media discussion of this "sensitive issue" came as no surprise to anyone in Malaysia. Although press freedom expanded at the margins following Mahathir's departure, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's 2004 campaign promises to foster freedom of the press never came to full fruition. Quashing media discussion of religious and ethnic divisions has remained a mainstay of UMNO political control (ref A). Despite threats to the print media, these "sensitive" discussions continue on the internet, and the chasm between Malaysia's ethnic and religious groups grows with each passing event. LAFLEUR (July 2007) |
| Ketua Polis Negara harus perjelas program Umno dalam Markas FRU dan logo Umno memenuhi ... Posted: 26 Sep 2011 10:48 PM PDT By Solidarity Anak Muda Malaysia
backdrop jelas tertera program Umno dan sekeliling Markas FRU penuh bendera Umno 
Ucapan Dato Ishak sungguh bersifat politik kepartian Pada 26 September 2011, bertempat di Markas Polis Simpanan Persekutuan - FRU (Unit 7 PSP NS) telah diadakan satu program bersama di dengan parti politik UMNO. Pada hari tersebut bendera Umno memenuhi ruang sekitar Markas FRU dan jelas tertera logo dan nama Umno dalam pemidang dibelakang pentas. Malah ucapan Ketua Umno Bahagian Seremban penuh bersifat politik kepartian. Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia Negeri Sembilan memandang serius perkara ini. Ini menunjukkan polis khususnya FRU sudah terjebak mengambil sikap dalam politik kepartian. Ketua Polis Negara harus tampil menyatakan pendiran dalam perkara ini. Dato' Hj. Ishak Ismail hadir bukan sifatnya selaku mana – mana kapasiti jawatan kerajaan tetapi hadir dan berucap atas kapasiti Ketua Umno Bahagian Seremban.
|
| Demotion or sack for three MACC ‘robbers’ Posted: 26 Sep 2011 09:56 PM PDT 
The trio to face disciplinary action for allegedly extorting and robbing three money changers of some RM1 millionn. (Free Malaysia Today) - The three senior Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers who allegedly robbed money changers of some RM1 million cash at KLIA airport could be demoted or sacked. The MACC said today that the three officers would face disciplinary action as an internal inquiry on them has been completed. "The disciplinary board which met today had decided that the three had committed a serious offence, which violates Regulation 37 of the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993," it said in a press statement. Under Regulation 37, a public officer can be dismissed if he has committed an offence that carries a criminal conviction. Other lesser punishments could also be meted out. MACC said that its internal probe and decision would not affect the ongoing police investigations into the case. FMT had reported that the trio, including an assistant commissioner, was arrested after allegedly extorting and robbing three money changers of almost RM1 million on Sept 15. Their remand has been extended for another three days yesterday. Following the incident, MACC had relieved them of their active duties, stripped them of any investigative power, and transferred them to its administrative division. The alleged victims were said to be money changers from Singapore who were at the KLIA to board a flight back home. They were carrying foreign currencies amounting to about RM2 million which they had declared to the customs authorities. READ MORE HERE |
| Kemungkaran politik dan ekonomi - Tanggunjawab rakyat menolaknya Posted: 26 Sep 2011 08:37 PM PDT 
ASPAN ALIAS Ramai rakyat berpendapat pilihanraya umum akan tiba dalam tahun ini juga. Faktor banjir musim tengkujuh tidak menjadi hal kerana jika di adakan waktu banjir yang kebetulan berlaku di dalam negeri-negeri tadbiran PR, banjir itu mungkin menjadi 'plus faktor' kepada BN kerana ramai penyokong PR di negeri-negeri itu katanya tidak akan dapat keluar mengundi dengan sepenuhnya. Betul atau tidak pandangan itu saya tidak tahu. Tetapi yang penting sekali kita lihat PM Najib sudah menjelajah ke seluruh negara mengumumkan peruntukan itu dan ini dalam jumlah yang sangat besar. Wang ringgit yang di salurkan kepada rakyat sekarang itu adalah wang rakyat termasuk wang rakyat yang tidak menyokong BN, bukannya wang BN.
Bajet 2012 yang akan dibentangkan pada 7hb Oktober ini adalah bajet pilihanraya. Keseluruhan bajet itu akan penuh dengan janji-janji dan selalunya sebagaimana pengalaman yang lalu tidak semua janji itu akan terlaksana kerana ianya hanya janji dan janji. Samada bajet itu cantik atau sebaliknya kecenderungan rakyat untuk melakukan perubahan semakin kuat dan nyata.
Yang pentingnya rakyat mesti seronok selepas mendengar pembentangan bajet itu. Semasa rakyat sedang seronok itulah pilihanraya akan diadakan kerana jika dilakukan lama selepas itu rakyat akan sedar bajet itu hanyalah janji untuk mendapatkan sokongan yang kebanyakannya tidak akan dapat dilaksanakan.
Najib tidak akan mengadakan pilihanraya sesudah rakyat sedar yang bacaan pembentangan bajet itu hanyalah satu pembentangan yang tidak mungkin terlaksana. Sebelum rakyat sedar pilihanraya mesti di adakan.
Banyak perkara yang akan dilakukan yang memungkinkan rakyat marah semuanya ditangguhkan. Cukai 6% keatas perkhidmatan pra bayar melalui perlaksanaan GST telah ditangguhkan selepas pilihanraya. Dalam isu ini semua rakyat tahu yang mereka akan dikenakan cukai ini selepas pilihanraya nanti. Justru mengundi BN kali ini ialah untuk mempastikan BN boleh mengenakan cukai terhadap mereka apabila mereka mendapat mandat nanti.
Tetapi BN tidak menyedari yang anak-anak muda mungkin tidak akan mengundi BN untuk mengelakan mereka dicukai sebanyak 6% itu. Pendek kata semua yang akan dikenakan kepada rakyat tidak akan dilakukan sekarang ini. Mereka akan dikenakan semuanya itu setelah mereka mengundi BN nanti.
Di peringkat parti-parti kedua-dua belah pihak BN dan PR mereka sedang berusaha menyelesaikan masalah yang ada di antara parti masing-masing. UMNO dan ahli-ahli komponennya sedang berusaha menyelesaikan masalah di antara mereka. BN sedang cuba mengatasi masalah beban yang sedang UMNO pikul untuk menjadikan MCA dan Gerakkan di terima kembali oleh pengundi.
Di pihak PR yang hanya belum selesai ialah masalah isu hudud yang sedang di usahakan untuk dilaksanakan di negeri Kelantan yang kini menjadi masalah di antara PAS dengan DAP. Kedua-dua belah pihak mempunyai masalah.
UMNO berpendapat (kata Muhyiddin) yang UMNO bukan menentang hudud tetapi undang-undang itu belum sampai masanya untuk dilaksanakan kerana belum bersedia. Tetapi kepada yang masih mempunyai daya ingatan yang kuat kerajaan Persekutuan telah menolak usul untuk mengadakan hukum hudud ini bulat-bulat semasa pimpinan Dr Mahathir dulu.
Saya tidak menyalahkan Dr Mahathir dalam isu ini tetapi apa yang salahnya beliau telah mengalihkan kesalahan itu kepada Karpal Singh bukannya disebabkan penolakan kerajaan Persekutuan. Memanglah Karpal menolaknya kerana pemimpin Islam seperti pemimpin UMNO sendiri menolaknya bagaimana pula kita hendak mengharapkan Karpal untuk memperjuangkan hudud itu.
Saya tidak mahu berbahas tentang hudud ini kerana saya tidak faham tentang sistem perundangan hudud ini. Tetapi apa yang saya faham hudud adalah 'preventive Law" sedangkan undang-undang civil itu adalah sebaliknya. Yang saya tahu di Saudi Arabia yang melaksanakan hudud ini pun tidak sampai sepuluh orang yang dipotong tangannya kerana kesalahan mencuri, kerana dengan undang-undang hudud ini orang ramai amat takut untuk melakukan perkara-perkara yang mempunyai elemen mencuri dan sebagainya.
Tetapi biarkan isu itu dihalusi oleh semua pihak dalam PR kerana BN memang tidak bersetuju dengan hukum hudud ini. Hukum hudud ini memang telah dimomokan sebagai hukum yang zalim oleh mereka yang takut menghadapi undang-undang ini. Dalam sistem hudud bukan senang untuk membuktikan kesalahan seseorang kerana saksi-saksi yang sekurang-kurangnya 4 orang itu mestilah dari mereka yang muktabar dan ini susah untuk dicari. Usaha untuk menentukan samada saksi-saksi itu adalah dari mereka yang muktabar itu sendiri adalah susah. READ MORE HERE |
| A global agenda for seven billion Posted: 26 Sep 2011 08:08 PM PDT 
(FMT) - Late next month, a child will be born Рthe 7th billion citizen of planet Earth. We will never know the circumstances into which he or she was born. We do know that the baby will enter a world of vast and unpredictable change Рenvironmental, economic, geopolitical, technological, and demographic. The world's population has tripled since the United Nations was created in 1945. And our numbers keep growing, with corresponding pressures on land, energy, food, and water. The global economy is generating pressures as well: rising joblessness, widening social inequalities, and the emergence of new economic powers. These trends link the fate and future of today's seven billion people as never before. No nation alone can solve the great global challenges of the twenty-first century. International cooperation is a universal need. The 66th session of the UN General Assembly is a renewed opportunity for the countries of the world to set aside narrow, short-term interests and commit to cooperative efforts to address humanity's long-term imperatives. At a time when all nations are experiencing individual challenges, we need to forge a worldwide common agenda that can help to ensure that the seven billionth baby and future generations grow up in a world characterized by sustainable peace, prosperity, freedom, and justice. To help create this future, I am focusing my second term as Secretary-General on five global imperatives Рfive generational opportunities to shape the world of tomorrow by the decisions we make today. Sustainable development The first and greatest of these imperatives is sustainable development. We all must understand that saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, and advancing economic growth are one and the same fight. We must connect the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy shortages, global health, food security, and women's empowerment. Solutions to one problem must be solutions for all. In the next five years, we need to create a new economic vision for sustainable development and forge global consensus on a binding climate change agreement. Fostering economic growth, realizing the Millennium Development Goals, and combating climate change will all depend on creating a new energy system for the twenty-first century and extending it to every person on the planet. Prevention as a framework for international cooperation is a second opportunity. This year, the UN peacekeeping budget will total $8 billion. Think of what we could save by avoiding conflicts Рby deploying political mediation missions, for example, rather than troops. We know how to do this. Our record proves it Рin Guinea, Kenya, and Kyrgyzstan. A third imperative is building a safer and more secure world. In this effort, we must be courageous in standing up for democracy, human rights, and peace. This year was one of signature achievements in restoring and securing peace Рin C̫te d'Ivoire, Darfur, Egypt, and elsewhere. But hatred and bloodshed still stand in the way of our vision for peace. In the Middle East, we must break the stalemate. Palestinians deserve a state. Israel needs security. Both want peace. A negotiated settlement can produce these outcomes, and the UN is a platform for forging such a peace. So, too, will we continue our efforts to foster democratic governance in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sierra Leone. And, in the name of all of humanity, we will continue to push forward on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, in service of realizing a world free of nuclear weapons. READ MORE HERE. |
| Hah! Padan muka! Posted: 26 Sep 2011 07:55 PM PDT 
Do you know how low I felt, the nephew of Malaysia's Agong having to join the ranks of the illegal Indonesian immigrants selling food on the streets of Sungai Buloh? I felt, in the interest of justice, I should have at least been given two months notice, not sacked on the spot just three days after the general election. NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin Yes, padan muka (serves you right)! I am talking about the two items below. Let's talk about the Human Rights Party (Hindraf) piece first (below). They lament that for 40 years the Indians have been sidelined. That means since 1970 or so. Why lament? I have been telling the Indians the same thing for 35 years or so since I first became politically active in the 1970s. I remember, when I told the Indians this, they refused to listen. So now, padan muka! You made your bed, now lie in it. And I hope you suffer more before it gets better. There is no better lesson than suffering. When I said that MIC cannot and will not look after the Indian interest, the Indians replied that they regard Samy Vellu as a God. They revered Samy Vellu even as the MIC President was selling out the Indians. Do you know how much Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad gave to MIC? But NONE went to the Indians. It all went into the pockets of the MIC leaders. Go ask Dr Mahathir if you want the full details. And while the MIC leaders plundered whatever Dr Mahathir gave the Indians, the Indians sembah Samy Vellu like he was God. I once asked (back in the 1980s) a senior Umno leader: why do the Indians still keep Samy Vellu as their leader when he is not helping the Indians? And this Umno leader replied that it is not the Indians but Umno who was keeping Samy Vellu as the MIC leader. This is because Samy Vellu works for Umno, I was told. Also, back in the 1980s, I had a meeting with Samy Vellu (I was then a central committee member of the Malay Chamber of Commerce and Industry) to discuss some issues concerning the Malay contractors (they were being bankrupted by the 1980s world recession). And do you know what Samy Vellu told me? He said: I am already doing so much for the Malays. I am a leader for the Malays, not for the Indians. Samy Vellu held up his right arm and said: Malay blood runs through my veins. Without Malay votes I will never become a Minister. So I will do everything within my power to help the Malays, he concluded. But when I revealed this to the Indians they still sembah Samy Vellu and call him God. I asked the Indians: why does Samy Vellu not negotiate with the government to start a FELDA scheme for the Indians, in particular the displaced and retrenched Indian estate workers? FELDA settlers are getting rich, I told them. They earn more than even university graduates. They are buying RM30,000 motorbikes (and that was back in the 1980s and 1990s mind you). We have FELDA settlements for retired army and police personnel. Why not also one for the Indians? But no, Samy Vellu is God, even though all he needed to do was move his fat arse and it would have been a fait accompli -- but he did not do so. I personally asked Dr Mahathir why he gave all those shares, etc., to MIC and not directly to the Indians -- like, say, start an ASI (Amanah Saham India)? Dr Mahathir replied that 90% of the Indians vote for MIC. So this means the Indians support MIC and regard it as their legitimate 'wakil'. So there you have it. 90% of the Indians vote for MIC. So MIC receives all the government aid on behalf of the Indians. But it never went to the Indians -- while they sembah Samy Vellu and call him God. Yes, I know, Raja Petra Kamarudin is a racist who whacks the Indians. Sudahlah! Podah! For 35 years I have been telling you this. And for 35 years you refused to listen. Now suffer. I am enjoying this 'I told you so!'. It's the best birthday present I ever had -- the pleasure I get from telling you 'I told you so' after 35 years of failing to wake you Indians from your sleep. Now, on the second piece (below). Pakatan Rakyat is grumbling that the mainstream media (MSM) is lying and distorting what they say. Again, padam muka! Soon after the 1999 general election -- together with Zunar, the late Rustam Sani, Zul Sulong and a few others -- we launched the 'Boikot TV3, Utusan and NST' campaign. The opposition coalition of PKN (now PKR), DAP, PAS and PRM -- called Barisan Alternatif -- shot it down. They disagreed. They said we must practice freedom of the media. So no 'Boikot TV3, Utusan and NST' campaign. We said that freedom of the media is fine, but not freedom to lie and distort. Eventually, we had to launch it as a 'private initiative' outside the party. The four opposition parties would not support the campaign. I was pissed big-time. During one press conference in the run-up to the 1999 general election, I chased TV3 out of the office and threatened them with violence if they ever tried to gatecrash again. The opposition leaders were very angry about this incident (which was reported on TV3 that same night). And, three days after the general election, I was sacked from my post of media coordinator. For many months my wife, Marina, had to fry curry puffs, which I went round Sungai Buloh to sell house-to-house. It was with tears in my eyes that I had to endure a life of hawking to be able to put food on the table -- all because I was a loose cannon whom the party can't seem to control. Do you know how low I felt, the nephew of Malaysia's Agong having to join the ranks of the illegal Indonesian immigrants selling food on the streets of Sungai Buloh? I felt, in the interest of justice, I should have at least been given two months notice, not sacked on the spot just three days after the general election. Later, during the PKR party convention in Kelana Jaya, my wife put up a notice banning the MSM from entering the hall. She also placed bouncers at the entrance with a mandate to beat up anyone who tries to force their way in. When the PKR Deputy President found out, he scolded us and told us to remove the sign. He instructed us to allow the MSM into the hall. My wife was fuming mad. Yes, it has always been an uphill battle to fight back against the lying MSM. And the obstacle has always been the opposition itself. Then, when I gave an interview with TV3 in February this year (like how I have taught to do so by the opposition since 1999), I get whacked to kingdom come and get called all sorts of things. I am happy that the opposition is now facing a problem with this Hudud issue that has been spun and distorted by the MSM. This is another lovely birthday present: the pleasure to say, "I told you so!" ***************************************** A.S.N. launched 40 years ago with World Bank funds but lost opportunities for Indian poor. Only rich & poor Malay/Muslims benefitted. With the RM 200 million pumped in to Amanah Saham Nasional (PNB) (presumably loan from the World Bank) this money was used not for all 1 Malaysian poor but for only the Malay-Muslims the rich and the poor. With this money loans were given to the Malay-Muslims to buy shares in PNB and the repayments were deducted from the dividends, bonus, etc. So the estimated 17 million Malay-Muslims got for "free" at tens of thousands ringgit each after 40 years. This was made possible largely by the UMNO government selling prime pieces of land in the KL city and in major towns. Also by the sale of the UMNO government blue chip shares and prime high yielding investments of PNB. Also this way PNB today after 40 years is worth RM 150 billion (source: PNB website). But only redistributed to the rich and poor Malays under UMNO's agenda in socially engineering the Indian poor if not to become poorer. And to the exclusion and segregation of the Indian poor many of whom have become relatively poorer in these 40 years. But 1Malay-sian Prime Minister Najib Razak says this is the real 1Malaysia. http://www.humanrightspartymalaysia.com/2011/09/27/a-s-n-launched-40-years-ago-with-world-bank-funds-but-lost-opportunities-for-indian-poor-only-rich-poor-malay-muslims-benefitted/ ****************************************** We never threatened to quit Pakatan Rakyat: DAP DAP has strongly denied that its secretary general Lim Guan Eng had threatened to quit Pakatan Rakyat's leadership council due to differences over the Hudud law, and said MCA-controlled The Star, which has been dedicating its pages on the Islamic deterrent punishment for serious crimes, had twisted his words. In a letter today, Lim's political secretary Zairil Khir Johari stressed that Lim had instead pledge that the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) would resign en-masse "if anyone can prove that Hudud law would be implemented in the Common Policy Framework (CPF) or Buku Jingga that has been presented to the public." Buku Jingga, or the Orange Book, outlines the coalition's common policies in governance as well as reforms it said would be carried out within the first hundreds days of power at the Federal level. According to Zairil, the paper had initially published a correct report on its online version, but the next day, it said DAP would quit PR, under the heading "DAP leaders threaten to quit Pakatan council". "This is categorically untrue as Lim had neither made any threats to quit the Pakatan Rakyat leadership council, nor the Pakatan Rakyat in general," he said, and urged the daily to explain the stark contradictions. Earlier, MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek threatened to pull out from Barisan Nasional if UMNO lent support to any attempt by Kelantan to implement the popular Hudud laws there. This followed a statement by UMNO deputy president Muhyiddin Yasin saying that as a Muslim, he could not oppose the laws, but would not implement them at present. Yesterday, PR issued a gag order on leaders across the three parties from issuing any statements on the hudud row, until they meet on September 28. "We do not want to blame anyone for having issued statements about hudud but it has been blown out of proportion now. "Hence we decided that until the 28th (Wednesday), there must be no longer any statements issued on this matter from all three parties, whether PAS, PKR or DAP," said PAS secretary general Mustafa Ali, in a joint statement with his PKR counterpart Saifuddin Nasution and DAP deputy secretary general Anthony Loke. http://en.harakahdaily.net/index.php/berita-utama/3569-we-never-threatened-to-quit-pakatan-rakyat-dap-.html |
| Dr M says fed up with MAS, backs AirAsia swap deal Posted: 26 Sep 2011 06:26 PM PDT 
(The Malaysian Insider) - Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad threw his weight today behind the controversial share swap deal between the national carrier and AirAsia despite strong opposition from the right-wing Malay ground and Malaysia Airlines (MAS) staff against Tan Sri Tony Fernandes' involvement. Critics have accused the budget carrier's ambitious boss of taking advantage of the loss-making national airline to fuel Fernandes' personal ambitions, the latest being the acquisition of English Premier League club, Queens Park Rangers. The national carrier will sponsor QPR's home jersey for the next two seasons, while AirAsia's logo will be emblazoned on the team's away and third kits. The still-influential former prime minister said today he was "fed up"with MAS' management over the years. "Government had supported MAS with funds and protection but MAS had never done well," the country's longest-serving prime minister of 22 years wrote in his blog today,comparing the two airlines. In contrast, he observed that AirAsia being a "newcomer" into the aviation industry had defied the odds and grown from a two-plane operation covering four routes into Asia's biggest budget carrier. "All I wanted to see is Air Asia's management playing a role, indirectly or directly in the management of MAS," said Dr Mahathir (picture). The 86-year-old appears to be pushing AirAsia to the forefront in recent months,including suggesting, during this year's Langkawi International Dialogue at Putrajaya last June, the budget carrier open up new routes from Malaysia to several African countries. MAS and AirAsia inked the deal on August 9, which allows the loss-making national carrier to swap a 20 per cent stake for 10 per cent in Asia's top money-making budget carrier. READ MORE HERE |
| MACC urged to probe not all sugar and sPICE deal Posted: 26 Sep 2011 06:01 PM PDT 
The BN Youth wing suspect something fishy in the way the contracts were given out for the RM300 million sPICE project. (Free Malaysia Today) - The proposed RM300 million subterranean Penang International Convention and Exhibition Center (sPICE) has got the opposition Barisan Nasional all riled up. The BN Youth wing feels that there is something fishy in the way the contracts for the project was handed out. The Youth wing has lodged a graft report at the Penang office of Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah here today. The report claims that the project contained elements of nepotism and cronyism. Its Youth chief Oh Tong Keong asked why under the deal, the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) was obliged to set aside a land for free to sPICE developer Eco-Meridian Sdn Bhd (EMSB), a subsidiary of SP Setia Bhd. He claimed EMSB/Setia is being allowed to build 450 low-medium-cost houses (LMS) on the free land and pocket all the proceeds from the sales. Oh also accused Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng of misleading the people by claiming earlier that the LMCs would cost below RM72,500 per unit. "However, under the agreement, the LMCs would be sold for more than that," he alleged. In the concession deal inked between MPPP and EMSB, SP Setia, which is financing the bulk of sPICE construction cost, will be allowed to build an extra 1,500 houses each in the various projects it would undertake in Penang island. The developer has also been given various tax concessions for the sPICE project. "Why SP Setia was given so many concessions? Is it an ad-hoc policy based on favouritism?" asked Oh, who is also the Gerakan state Youth chief. 'Guan Eng has misled the people' Previously, Lim claimed that MPPP, which currently maintains the Penang International Sports Arena (PISA), would invest only RM11.5 million in the project, via a public-private partnership agreement with EMSB. However, Gerakan lawyers, who were allowed to scrutinise the agreement under a controlled environment in Komtar two weeks ago, revealed that MPPP would contribute a whopping RM50 million for the project. READ MORE HERE |
| PKR to Najib: Use polls to gauge GST Posted: 26 Sep 2011 04:49 PM PDT 
By Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 — PKR today urged Datuk Seri Najib Razak to use the coming general election as a referendum to gauge public support for his plan to introduce the goods and services tax (GST). PKR chief strategist Rafizi Ramli told a press conference here that Putrajaya should be clear on its plans, saying that it would take between eight and 12 months to prepare for the GST and "dilly-dallying" the move would create uncertainties in the business environment. "If the government continues to dilly-dally, they will keep on paying for the readiness costs... that is why Najib needs to be brave — if he feels the GST will be key to overhauling the economy, then say it. "It is not about popularity here but it is about business certainty... this issue has dragged on for six to seven years," he said. Rafizi (picture)stressed that Malaysians needed to know if a vote for BN would be a vote for the new tax system and the coming elections would be an opportune time for the government to gauge public support. He said PKR did not entirely reject the proposal to implement GST as it was an effective tax system but insisted that the government first focus on how to improve the incomes of Malaysians. "We do not reject the GST but we are questioning its viability when only 1.7 million Malaysians are qualified taxpayers. This means most Malaysians belong to the lower-income category," he pointed out. He said in most countries that impose GST, the system is used in place of income tax. In most cases, he added, the income tax rate would be lowered accordingly once GST is introduced in order to lessen the tax burden on citizens. "Should GST be implemented in Malaysia now, 10 million Malaysians who are not qualified to pay income tax now will suddenly be burdened," he said. Rafizi added that implementing the GST should not be viewed as the only way to tackle the country's budget deficit problem. "If you implement the GST at a rate of four to five per cent, the taxes you would collect annually would only amount to some RM6 billion which is insufficient to cover our deficit of nearly RM40 billion to RM50 billion," he said. He said the government should first look at its expenditure and curb any leakages or misappropriation of funds before forcing GST on Malaysians and claiming that it was the best option to cut the deficit. Earlier this month, Najib announced that the government would introduce the GST only after the next general election but did not offer any specific date. READ MORE HERE. |
| Kes Ahmad Sarbaini gagal hapus kemarahan rakyat Posted: 26 Sep 2011 04:42 PM PDT 
(Harakah Daily) - Keputusan Mahkamah Koroner yang memutuskan Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamed mati kerana jatuh dari pejabat Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) gagal menghapuskan kemarahan umum, kata Naib Presiden PAS, Salahuddin Ayub. "Kita tidak berniat hendak mempertikaikan keputusan mahkamah tetapi apa yang nyata, keputusan itu gagal menghapuskan kemarahan umum yang meluap-luap apabila terbunuhnya Penolong Pengarah Kastam Selangor itu di premis SPRM.
"Dalam masa yang singkat, dua orang terbunuh di premis SPRM, iaitu Ahmad Sarbaini dan Teoh Beng Hock dan apa jua keputusan mana-mana institusi sekalipun tidak akan mampu meredakan perasaan marah masyarakat terhadap SPRM dan kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN)," kata beliau.
Salahuddin juga tidak menolak bahawa sebahagian besar rakyat semakin tidak sabar menanti tarikh pilihan raya untuk membalas dendam dan menghukum BN berikutan keputusan-keputusan berkaitan tragedi terbunuhnya Ahmad Sarbaini dan Teoh di premis SPM itu.
"Sebelum ini, rakyat marah apabila media-media yang dilihat pro Umno dan BN memberi gambaran bahawa Ahmad Sarbaini membunuh diri.
"Terbaru, ada pula blog pro Umno dan BN yang dilihat mengaitkan tragedi terbunuhnya Ahmad Sarbaini di premis SPM itu dengan video seks.
"Rakyat yang marah berikutan tuduhan-tuduhan dan keputusan-keputusan berkaitan kedua-dua kes itu pastinya tidak sabar-sabar lagi menanti pilihan raya untuk menghukum Umno dan BN habis-habisan," kata Ahli Parlimen Kubang Kerian itu.
Salahuddin juga bersetuju dengan peguam keluarga Ahmad Sarbaini, Awtar Singh yang menegaskan SPRM seharusnya dipertanggungjawabkan kerana tragedi terbunuhnya Penolong Pengarah Kastam Selangor itu berlaku di premis SPRM.
"Sama seperti terbunuhnya Teoh Beng Hock, bukan sahaja Ahmad Sarbaini terbunuh di premis SPRM malah beliau terbunuh ketika dalam siasatan SPRM," kata Salahuddin sambil menyarankan keluarga dan sahabat Ahmad Sarbaini terus mengadakan solat hajat memohon Allah membuat penentuan yang muktamad.
Ketika mengulas keputusan mahkamah koroner itu, Awtar juga berkata adalah sukar untuk dipercayai Ahmad Sarbaini memanjat pintu untuk melarikan diri.
"Apa perlunya dia buat begitu? Dia datang dengan kerelaannya sendiri. Lebih dari itu, tidak ada kesan cap jari yang boleh dikesan berdekatan tingkap berkenaan dan mereka tidak mengambil pakaian ketua SPRM Kuala Lumpur, Ahmad Fauzi (Husin), untuk melakuan ujian DNA," kata Awtar yang juga memberitahu pihaknya sedang mempertimbangkan untuk memohon semakan kehakiman.
Dalam penghakimannya kepada mahkamah yang penuh sesak, koroner Aizatul Akmal Maharani berkata, teori bahawa SPRM terlibat dengan kematian Ahmad Sarbaini tidak boleh diterima.
Sehubungan itu, beliau menolak bunuh diri, homisid ataupun penglibatan pihak ketiga bagi alasan kematian.
"Tidak ada tanda-tanda pergelutan pada kejadian itu dan mahkamah juga menolak bahawa dia membunuh diri."
Menurut koroner, beliau percaya Ahmad Sarbaini terjatuh dari bangunan itu dan dalam keadaan sedar semasa jatuh.
"Mahkamah juga mendapati dia mati serta-merta dalam kejatuhan itu dengan kakinya terjatuh dahulu sehingga mencederakan kedua-dua belah kakinya dan juga mengalami kecederaan teruk di kepala," katanya.
Sebelum terbunuh, Ahmad Sarbaini dilaporkan pergi ke pejabat SPRM secara sukarela untuk bertemu pegawai penyiasat suruhanjaya tersebut berhubung siasatan kes rasuah membabitkan 62 pegawai Kastam.
Kawan-kawan dan ahli-ahli keluarga mendakwa terdapat unsur jenayah dalam kematiannya.
Mereka berkata, Ahmad Sarbaini adalah seorang pegawai yang bersih dan telah merancang untuk menunaikan fardu haji tahun ini bersama isteri dan ibu bapanya. |
| Rosmah kawan baik saya bukan mak angkat - Jho Low Posted: 26 Sep 2011 04:36 PM PDT 
(Harakah Daily) - "Rosmah (Mansor) bukan mak angkat saya. Beliau adalah kawan baik saya," demikianlah tafsiran yang diberikan jutawan kontroversi, Jho Low kepada akhbar Cina Kwong Wah Yit Poh (gambar) , ketika ditanya hubungannya dengan keluarga Perdana Menteri, Najib Razak. Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor adalah isteri kepada Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Jho Low menjadi kontroversi apabila dilihat bersama dengan artis, Paris Hilton dalam keadaan artis itu berbogel di sebuah kapal mewah.
Beliau juga terlibat dalam kontroversi dengan parti-parti bersama artis terkenal di seluruh dunia. Beliau dikatakan juga terlibat dengan pembangunan semula tapak lapangan terbang TUDM, Sungai Besi.
Jho Low menjelaskan, "Anak Rosmah (Mansor) adalah rakan saya ketika menuntut di Britain. Saya mengenali anak Perdana Menteri dahulu, sebelum saya mengenali Perdana Menteri."
"Saya memperkenalkan ramai pelabur kepada Malaysia, justeru itu saya sering bertemu dengan PM," kata Jho Low sebagaimana yang
dilaporkan Merdeka Review.
Malah, Jho Low mendakwa dirinya mengenali ramai "putera" di negara yang berlainan, termasuk Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Saudi Arab dan sebagainya.
Oleh itu, Jho Low berkata dirinya mampu membawa ramai pelabur dari Timur Tengah ke Malaysia.
Beliau berkata demikian ketika menghadiri program Kayuhan Amal 1Malaysia Untuk Pelajaran di Straits Quay, Tanjong Tokong, Pulau Pinang pada 25 September 2011.
Laporan ini disiarkan Kwong Wah Yit Poh pada 26 September, pada muka surat A5.
Sebelum ini, Jho Low dikatakan sebagai kenalan rapat dengan anak Perdana Menteri Najib Razak, lantas mencungkil keraguan orang ramai sama ada Jho Low berperanan sebagai proksi, berikutan kemampuan graduan Wharton Business School ini dalam mengumpul kekayaan pada umur 20-an tahun.
Ketua Angkatan Muda, Shamsul Iskandar ketika menyampaikan ucapan dasarnya dalam Kongres Nasional AMK yang diadakan di Perdana Resort, Pantai Cahaya Bulan, Kota Bahru, pada 28 Mei 2010, memetik laporan New York Post pada tahun 2009, yang diulas kemudiannya oleh tabloid tempatan Malay Mail, bahawa seorang pemuda bernama Taek Jho Low membelanjakan USD50 ribu hingga 60 ribu, atau RM170 ribu ke RM205 ribu setiap hari.
Malah, Shamsul Iskandar ketika itu mendesak agar PM menjawab, dan mengesahkan sama ada tuduhan bahawa Jho Low mendapat kontrak pembangunan TUDM Sungai Besi yang bernilai kira-kira RM500 juta, dan memainkan peranan sebagai penasihat di sebalik Terengganu Investment Authority yang mengurus dana royalti minyak itu benar atau tidak.
*Kaleidoskop adalah "digest" kandungan media cetak. Akhbar yang dirujuk adalah Kwong Wah Jit Poh pada 26 September 2011, wawancara akhbar tersebut dengan Jho Low. Laporan dibuat berdasarkan teks asalnya dalam bahasa Cina. |
| Don’t pass the buck, Najib told Posted: 26 Sep 2011 04:25 PM PDT 
Responding to the move to pump gambling profits into the coffers of vernacular and mission schools, stakeholders say the government should not pass its responsibility to businessmen. (Free Malaysia Today) - Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has been reminded not to "outsource the government's responsibility to the private sector" with regard to the funding for vernacular and mission schools. Yesterday, Najib announced that a minimum RM100 million of gambling profit would be channelled to these schools annually through a fund called "Community Chest". The fund is run by a consortium of tycoons that paid over RM2 billion for billionaire T Ananda Krishnan's Pan Malaysian Pools Sdn Bhd (PMP) in July. It would be spearheaded by Lim Kok Tay of gambling giant Genting Bhd. Commenting on this, Tamil Foundation president S Pasupathy said the government should take more responsibility over vernacular schools and not ride piggy-back on the efforts of the business community. "It is a very good move but the government must go above this to assist vernacular schools. It is the government's responsibility to uphold the public school system. Najib simply cannot outsource his basic responsibility to the private sector," he added. The funding, he said, must be used to upgrade school facilities such as computers, libraries and human resource development as opposed to building new buildings. "That is the government's responsibility. The government is responsible for providing such basic capital expenditure like building construction," he pointed out. On the move being an attempt to win over Chinese and Indian voters, Pasupathy said that Najib must show sincere efforts to win votes instead of merely engaging in such "piecemeal" actions. He cited a long-standing problem that has plagued Tamil schools – relocation due to oversized classrooms. Pasupathy said that the federal government could display its sincerity by assisting in tackling this problem. "For example, the biggest Tamil school in Selangor, the Simpang Lima Tamil school in Klang, has always had the problem of overpopulation. So the Selangor government approved land for another Tamil school to be built in Taman Sentosa but the federal government has yet to grant the licence to build a school there," he said. He stressed that the government still had a big role to play in tackling the root problems facing vernacular schools. Such problems, he said, cannot be solved by funding and the people should not be "hoodwinked" by such things.
'Evidence of gross discrimination' Meanwhile, Dr Kua Kia Soong, who has been involved in the Chinese school movement since 1983, said the funding did not change the fact that Tamil and Chinese schools should be treated as national schools. "As usual, the Barisan Nasional government is trying to push its civic responsibility to businessmen who are reliant on the government," he said. READ MORE HERE |
| Prosecution alleges Khir Toyo conspired with valuer to set house price Posted: 26 Sep 2011 03:29 PM PDT 
By Yow Hong Chieh, The Malaysian Insider SHAH ALAM, Sept 27 — The prosecution in Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo's corruption trial has accused the former Selangor mentri besar of conspiring with a bank valuer to fix the price of his Section 7 house and land here at RM3.5 million. "I put it to you that the value (of the property) was determined by you, not the valuer," deputy public prosecutor Abdul Wahab Mohamad said to Dr Khir on the second day of the latter's defence. Dr Khir (picture), however, denied the allegation and repeatedly stressed that the value had been arrived at independently by Choy Yue Kwong, the Rahim & Co, a valuer appointed by HSBC. The former Selangor Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman is alleged to have obtained for himself and his wife two lots of land and a house at No. 8 and 10, Jalan Suasa 7/1L from Ditamas Sdn Bhd through its director Shamsuddin Hayroni in May 2007. The property was purchased at RM3.5 million although Ditamas had bought it for RM6.5 million on December 23, 2004. READ MORE HERE. |
| Maybank CEO backs low interest rates Posted: 26 Sep 2011 02:02 PM PDT 
By Yow Hong Chieh, The Malaysian Insider The central bank should maintain its low interest rate policies to spur growth given the expected slowdown in the world economy, Maybank president and chief executive Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar has said. "It is our hope that the low interest environment will remain so that the economic wheels will keep going," he (picture)told reporters after launching the new look Maybank branch at Kota Damansara here. Abdul Wahid pointed out that a strong domestic base was needed to drive the economy and that the role of bankers was to mobilise deposits to keep growth going. He said entrepreneurs would benefit from cheaper loans, and stressed that Malaysian banks were "very responsible" in passing the benefits of low interest rates to their customers. Abdul Wahid also said he hoped Budget 2012 next month would address the higher cost of living with accommodative policies that would encourage domestic consumption in light of debt woes in the US. He added that the Budget must also provide further clarity and reinforcement for projects identified earlier under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) as they would help boost the local economy. |
| ‘We did not conspire against Anwar’ Posted: 26 Sep 2011 01:46 PM PDT 
(FMT) - Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak admitted meeting Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan two days prior to the latter being allegedly sodomised by Anwar Ibrahim. However, Najib said he had no knowledge of the June 26, 2008 (alleged sodomy) incident and therefore could not provide any information or relevant evidence on issues raised by the defence in the ongoing Sodomy II trial. This was stated by Najib in his affidavit to support his application to set aside the subpeona compelling him to testify in the trial. His application would be heard on Thursday. He also stated that prior to or after June 24, 2008, he never met the complainant, instructed anyone or conspirated with any individual to incriminate Anwar. "I categorically deny any notion that my wife and I conspired in "mereka-rekakan ataupun mengada-adakan" anything which were very detrimental to the respondent (Anwar)," he said. The affidavit, affirmed on Sept 23, also stated that Saiful only informed Najib of alleged sodomy incidents which took place prior to the June 26 incident. The prime miniser said he had advised Saiful to let the police investigate the matter. Najib urged the court to set aside the subpeona on the ground that he strongly believes that the intention (to get him to testify) of the respondent (Anwar) was not in good faith. According to the premier, it was just an attempt to abuse the process of the court. Rosmah: I'm not a relevant witness Meaawhile, Rosmah in her affidavit stated that she had never met or spoke with the complainant, and like her husband, denied involvement in any conspiracy against Anwar. "I'm not a relevent witness in this trial, therefore the subpeona against me should be set aside," read the affidavit. READ MORE HERE. |
| Workers can continue until 70, says employers group Posted: 26 Sep 2011 01:35 PM PDT 
By G. Manimaran, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 — The private sector can employ a worker until he is 70 under a proposed law that mandates a minimum retirement age of 60, the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) said today. Its executive director Shamsuddin Bardan said the new law will raise the current retirement age from 55 but would still allow qualified employees to continue working according to their contracts. "The new law only sets a mandatory limit of 60 but if there are those who can work until 65 or 70, they can based on the availability and needs of employees and employers respectively," he told The Malaysian Insider today. He said the proposed Private Sector Retirement Age Act would bring Malaysia up to speed with other markets in the region which have already set the retirement age at 60. "The private sector has used this age (55) since independence. Then, the life expectancy was only about 50 years but now it has reached 73 to 74. We need to use experienced human resource," he said. The Malaysian Insider understands that only a few workers currently continue until 65 or 70. The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has also welcomed the government's move to extend the private sector retirement age. Its chief executive Tan Sri Azlan Zainol wants the law to be tabled at next month's parliamentary sitting. The Malaysian Insider reported yesterday that the government was drafting a law to raise the minimum retirement age to 60 with an option to extend for a further four years. READ MORE HERE. |
| DAP accuses The Star of misreporting hudud quit vow Posted: 26 Sep 2011 01:18 PM PDT 
By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 — The DAP accused The Star today of falsely reporting that Lim Guan Eng had threatened to pull the party out of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) if hudud became part of the pact's joint policy. Zairil Khir Johari, Lim's political secretary, wrote in an open letter to the English daily that the party secretary-general had merely promised that "the entire central executive committee (CEC) would resign to take full responsibility if hudud" became PR policy. "An initially correct report had come to be replaced by one that was imaginatively concocted," Zairil(picture) wrote. He said that a correct version of the article was uploaded on thestar.com.my on September 25 in which the reporter quoted Lim as saying that the party's CEC would resign if anyone could prove that hudud law was in the Common Policy Framework (CPF) or Buku Jingga. But a second version was uploaded the next day which changed the headline from "Guan Eng: DAP top leadership will quit if hudud law included in Pakatan policy" to "DAP leaders threaten to quit Pakatan council". Zairil said the second article "implied wrongly and falsely that Lim had threatened the resignation of the party's top leadership" from PR. PR issued a gag order yesterday on all PR parties, barring their members from speaking on the hudud issue until the pact's leadership meets tomorrow. The hudud issue reared its head again recently, reigniting the longstanding squabble among PR parties over whether the Islamic law, which prescribes stoning, whipping and amputation as punishment for criminal offences, should be implemented. Major newspapers front-paged yesterday the declaration by Lim that his entire DAP central leadership would quit if the controversial law was made a part of PR's Buku Jingga agenda. READ MORE HERE. |
| Whilst the nation inches towards financial ruin… Posted: 26 Sep 2011 07:51 AM PDT 
THE PEOPLE'S PARLIAMENT I have to confess that most times that Arthur engages me on the global capital markets, much of what he says is Greek to me. Still very much a kampung boy, I guess. Not so kampung boy, though, that I cannot make out from this report in the Malaysianinsider that the attention of the whole world is turned to how Europe and the US deal with their debt crisis that is threatening to wreak havoc in national economies worldwide. Well, the whole world except, it would seem, in Kelantan. Maybe even the whole country. Certainly, though, Kelantan seems oblivious to the impending financial crisis. Nik Aziz seems determined to see hudud made the paramount law of all Kelantanese who profess Islam as their religion. And the law applicable to any Muslim passing through the state. Prof Aziz Bari, as reported in Malaysiakini, seems dead certain that the majority of Kelantanese are all for hudud law being implemented in the state. Why, he says, the government is even prepared to take a referendum to the people on this issue. What's not clear from the report is, firstly, whether by 'majority of Kelantanese', Aziz also meant the non-Muslim community, and, secondly, whether the Kelantanese non-Muslim community would also partake in any state-wide referendum on the issue? What good, though, would such a referendum serve unless those who think it unwise to de-secularise Kelantan are given the widest possible berth to share those concerns with all the Kelantanese? Will PAS allow for this? Aziz is quoted as saying that he had the opportunity to listen to the sentiments of the grassroots and thereby discerned their inclination towards the implementation of hudud in the state. It would have been good if, even as he sought their views on the hudud, Aziz had also elicited from that same grassroot their thoughts and concerns about the economic development or, more accurately, the near absence thereof, in the state. Kelantan is, after all, ranked 5th amongst all the states in terms of the incidence of poverty. As PAS pushes to implement hudud, do they also have a plan to uplift the economic lot of the impoverished Kelantanese? That you do not need hudud law to rejuvenate the economy is exemplified by what the Pakatan state government has achieved in Penang these last 3 years. Aziz postulates that there is no restriction in the constitution for the introduction and implementation of Islamic law, including the hudud. His reasoning then, seems to be that as there is no such restriction and as the majority favour it, the will of the majority be done. Aziz must concede that there is also no prohibition in the constitution for the introduction into law of any Christian precepts. READ MORE HERE |
| The Hudud issue: FOR and AGAINST Posted: 26 Sep 2011 07:08 AM PDT Basically, you have a democratic right to dream about Hudud and to support it. And you also have a democratic right to have nightmares about Hudud and to oppose it. The problem is, both sides do not understand democracy and do not respect the democratic right of someone to support or oppose what they feel they want to support or oppose. NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin Let us first argue FOR.
We are always shouting and screaming that Barisan Nasional does not respect the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. We accuse Barisan Nasional of violating the Constitution. But is it only Barisan Nasional that is guilty of this or are we also guilty of the same?
What does the Constitution say? It says that religion (meaning Islam) is a state matter and comes under the Ruler of that state. In states that do not have Rulers, then religion comes under the Agong.
That means the states have power over matters involving Islam.
Now, this is what the Constitution stipulates. And if we don't like that or do not agree with that, tough! Then we shall have to amend the Constitution so that matters concerning religion can be brought under the control of the federal government.
However, to do that, we shall first have to control a majority in Parliament. And that means we will have to ensure that we vote in a new government that is prepared to make these amendments to the Constitution.
And if we can't find any government that is prepared to make these amendments then we are stuck. That means that particular Article in the Constitution will stay and cannot be amended.
Okay, since religion is a state matter, this means each state decides on all matters concerning the Shariah. For example, one state might ban Muslims from drinking and punish offenders with a fine. Another state might punish offenders with a jail sentence while, yet another, may impose whipping as the punishment. Then we might see a situation where a state does not punish offenders at all and just turns a blind eye to Muslims who drink.
Ultimately, it is entirely up to that state what it wants to do with regards to the Shariah, whether it involves liquor, illicit sex, or whatever. But in situations like prostitution, rape, robbery, murder, etc., where we already have federal laws concerning such crimes, then federal laws and not state Shariah laws would apply. Federal laws override state laws even in matters concerning Islam. Only when the federal laws are 'silent' would the state laws apply.
The bottom line is, the state decides what it wants to do in all matters concerning Islam unless there are already federal laws to address certain issues, mostly related to crimes.
So, 20 years ago, Kelantan passed a bill in the State Assembly to enact the Shariah law of Hudud and, ten years ago, Terengganu did the same. So what is wrong with that? Isn't that the powers of the states? Since it is legal then why are we making an issue out of it?
However, if it involves liquor, illicit sex and whatnot, the state can impose whatever punishment it wants. Only when it involves crimes already covered by federal laws will Parliament have to approve those new state laws first before they can be implemented.
And Parliament did not approve them. Parliament blocked the move by Kelantan and Terengganu and until today the Shariah law of Hudud can't be implemented in those two states. That is also correct. That is within the powers of Parliament. And, until the majority in Parliament votes otherwise, this state of affairs will continue.
Now, assuming they do a referendum and more than half the citizens of Kelantan and Terengganu (two states where 97% of the population are Muslims) vote in favour of Hudud and, say, Parliament decides (by majority vote) to approve these laws since a referendum has been taken and more than half the citizens of those states voted in favour of these laws, is this not democracy at work?
We say we want democracy. Well, that is democracy. Why then are we still shouting and screaming? So you see, democracy works both ways. And democracy may not necessarily always be good when we are in the minority. However, whether you like it or not, majority rules. And this is the reality we have to accept. Tough!
Now let us argue AGAINST.
The theists (in this case the Muslims) argue that the Shariah law of Hudud is God's law. And because of that they want the Hudud laws to be implemented in Malaysia.
That is well and fine if Malaysia were a theological state. But Malaysia is not a theological state. Malaysia is a parliamentary democracy modelled after Britain's Westminster system of government. In short, Malaysia is a Secular State with partial implementation of the Shariah -- but only in certain matters and certainly not in matters involving crime.
So, again, we have to go through the same process as what we argued above for the FOR. That means you need to get Parliament to approve these new state laws. And, to do that, you will need to control a majority in Parliament. And if that can't be done, tough! Then nothing is going to happen.
Chances are we shall continue to see different governments at state and federal levels for a long time to come. And that would mean the federal government would continue to move in the opposite direction to the state governments. And that means the Shariah law of Hudud will continue to remain mere talk and an aspiration of certain people who are never going to see it happen.
Yes, Malaysia is a democracy. So you are free to continue talking about it and aspire to see it happen. That is your democratic right. But whether you are ever going to see it happen is another thing altogether. And it is not right for those people who grudge you talking about it and stop you from aspiring to see it happen. You have every democratic right to wish for the Shariah law of Hudud and no one should tell you to shut up.
In this situation both sides are wrong. Those who do not allow those who support Hudud to talk about it are wrong. And those who want to force Hudud down the throats of Malaysians using the argument that this is God's law are also wrong.
Basically, you have a democratic right to dream about Hudud and to support it. And you also have a democratic right to have nightmares about Hudud and to oppose it. The problem is, both sides do not understand democracy and do not respect the democratic right of someone to support or oppose what they feel they want to support or oppose.
This is the crux to the whole matter and this is why we are seeing so much conflict amongst Malaysians with regards to this very touchy matter called Hudud.
|
| The Chinese ‘Third Force’ finally sees life Posted: 26 Sep 2011 05:04 AM PDT This is going to paint an entirely new scenario come the next election. MCA, MIC, Gerakan and Pakatan Rakyat are all fighting for Chinese and Indian support. But the Chinese and Indians are not impressed with political power (especially against the backdrop of an ineffective MCA, MIC and Gerakan and a not-going-anywhere DAP and PKR). They are only interested about anyone who can give them financial support, in particular for their education needs. THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin While politicians and political parties like MCA, MIC, Gerakan, DAP, and PKR, and movements like Hindraf, have been jostling and elbowing one another in trying to position themselves as champions of the Chinese and Indian communities, three leading Chinese tycoons have been quietly getting together without any fanfare to set up an education charity fund called the Community Chest.
The Community Chest, which will be dishing out RM200 million a year to support Chinese and Tamil-national type schools and mission schools throughout Malaysia will be managed by a Board of Trustees and chaired by Genting Malaysia chairman and chief executive, Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay. And the funding for the Community Chest will come from Pan Malaysian Pools, which is being acquired for RM2.1 billion.
The Community Chest, the brainchild of the three prominent Tan Sris (Lim Kok Thay, Chua Ma Yu and Quek Leng Chan), are going to do what the politicians and political parties just talk about but can't do -- finance Chinese and Indian education.
This has been brewing in the background for quite awhile and saw fruition a few days ago -- while MCA and Gerakan were busy threatening to leave the Barisan Nasional ruling coalition, Pakatan Rakyat was busy threatening to break up due to the conflict over the Hudud issue, and Hindraf was busy threatening to boycott the elections if it does not get the seats it is demanding.
Lim Kok Thay, Chua Ma Yu and Quek Leng Chan have pledged to plough back all the profits from Pan Malaysian Pools into the Community Chest. In other words, they are making this acquisition not for profit but to finance Chinese and Indian education needs.
This is one thing the Malays do not understand. The Malays have the impression that number one on the list of priorities for the Chinese is profit. Actually that is not so. Number one to the Chinese is education and these three tycoons have proven that.
This move suddenly makes political parties irrelevant. The Chinese are not concerned with political power. The Chinese politicians are, of course. But the man-in-the-street is more concerned with education and the Community Chest is just what the Chinese and Indians have been wishing for and is finally here.
This is going to paint an entirely new scenario come the next election. MCA, MIC, Gerakan and Pakatan Rakyat are all fighting for Chinese and Indian support. But the Chinese and Indians are not impressed with political power (especially against the backdrop of an ineffective MCA, MIC and Gerakan and a not-going-anywhere DAP and PKR). They are only interested about anyone who can give them financial support, in particular for their education needs.
Yes, say what you like, what we are seeing is the emergence of a new 'Third Force', a Chinese 'Third Force', that will command tremendous respect and goodwill from the voters.
RM200 million a year is no small potatoes. RM200 million a year will go a long way into helping the children of Chinese and Indians to get the education they need. Over the next ten years, that is going to come to RM2 billion, a colossal sum of money. And the fact that Lim Kok Thay, Chua Ma Yu and Quek Leng Chan have pledged not to take any of the profits but to plough back 100% of whatever they make into the education fund speaks volumes about their commitment to the needs of the Chinese and Indians kids.
My final word to the politicians, political parties and movements that claim to represent the interests of their communities, continue screaming. And while you scream and nothing gets done, people like Lim Kok Thay, Chua Ma Yu and Quek Leng Chan quietly go about meeting the needs of their community.
Now do you understand what I meant a year ago when I talked about THE THIRD FORCE? ***************************************
Genting to buy Pan Malaysian Pools for RM2.5bil?
(The Star, 5 July 2011) -- The market is again abuzz with speculation that Genting Bhd, whose businesses include gaming and leisure under Genting Malaysia Bhd in which the company has a 49.39% stake, is finalising the deal to acquire Tanjong plc's gaming unit Pan Malaysian Pools Sdn Bhd (PMP) for an estimated RM2.5bil.
While speculation of Genting having won the bid is not new, this time sources have told StarBiz that the deal was definitely going through.
"They'll be signing the deal on Thursday worth RM2.5bil," a source said, adding that four persons were involved in seeing the deal through.
However, another source said Genting's bid has too many conditions and therefore the other bidders have been asked to resubmit their offers.
Besides Genting, Tanjong's gaming arm has attracted other bidders including Olympia Industries Bhd, the Rimbunan Hijau group controlled by Sarawak-based tycoon Tan Sri Tiong Hiew King, Ekovest Bhd executive chairman and co-founder Datuk Lim Kang Hoo, Filipino tycoon Roberto Ongpin and the Cheng family, who operates slot machines in Kuala Lumpur.
A third source said that while the structure of the deal was always important, that would not prevent the deal from going through. "From what I understand, this deal will go through," he said.
Genting and Tanjong officials were unavailable for comment at press time yesterday.
PMP operates number forecast and race totalisator businesses as well as manages the 240-acre national stud farm in Tanjung Rambutan, Perak.
According to a gaming analyst, the impact on Genting would depend on the price. "A new entrant will intensify competition," she said.
Besides PMP, which has a 24% market share in the numbers forecasting business, the other operators include Berjaya Sports Toto Bhd and Multi-Purpose Holdings Bhd, which has 40% and 36% market share respectively.
Initial estimates from last year after Tanjong was taken private by T. Ananda Krishnan (who controls the company) last September valued PMP at RM2.3bil to RM2.5bil.
The decision to sell the gaming assets was to facilitate the entrance of other investors who could only invest in syariah-compliant businesses as Tanjong, which has a power-generation business, planned an expansion for this business. **********************************
Malaysia's Tanjong sells stake in gaming unit for RM2.1 billion
(Reuters, 1 August 2011) -- A firm controlled by Malaysian tycoon Ananda Krishnan has agreed to sell its stake in gaming operator Pan Malaysian Pools to a consortium of businessmen for 2.1 billion ringgit, the Edge Financial daily reported on Tuesday.
The paper cited unidentified sources as saying the consortium taking over the number forecast operator from recently privatised Tanjong included gaming operator Genting CEO Lim Kok Thay.
Lim's share in the consortium stood at between 250 million to 300 million ringgit.
Others in the consortium included Quek Leng Chan who controls Hong Leong Bank and conglomerate Lion Group CEO and Chairman William Cheng.
Tanjong officials and members of the consortium were not immediately available to comment
The Edge said the group's bid for Pan Malaysian Pools included plans to list the firm on the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange. A local bank will provide the group with a RM 1.5 billion loan to fund the acquisition.
Pan Malaysia Pools controls a 24 percent market share in the number forecasting business that's dominated by larger rivals Berjaya Sports Toto and Multi-Purpose Holdings .
Selling off Pan Malaysian Pools is part of Tanjong's plan to become more syariah compliant as it seeks to expand its power generation business by tapping markets in the Middle East.
|
| Rangsangan Kerjaya Siswazah Selangor Posted: 26 Sep 2011 01:00 AM PDT 
Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad menjemput semua siswazah dan graduan dari negeri Selangor yang masih mencari pekerjaan untuk menyertai program Rangsangan Kerjaya Siswazah Selangor (RKSS) yang dianjurkan di bawah agenda CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Perangsang Selangor. Antara pengisian Program RKSS ini adalah penyediaan kursus-kursus latihan secara PERCUMA seperti berikut:-
1. Sijil Program Pembangunan Kemahiran Siswazah (13 hari)
2. Sijil Pembangunan Usahawan Muda (23 hari)
3. Sijil Perbankan dan Kewangan Islam (13 hari)
4. Sijil Kemahiran Teknikal dan Bukan Teknikal (11 kursus) (5-10 hari)
Untuk mendapat penerangan lanjut dan mendaftar, sila hadir ke Majlis Pelancaran, Penerangan dan Pendaftaran pada 30 September 2011 di Auditorium Dewan Jubli Perak, Bangunan Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah, Shah Alam, Selangor. Majlis akan dirasmikan oleh YAB Dato' Menteri Besar Selangor.
Maklumat lanjut sila layari: www.kps.com.my/csr-events/latest
RANGSANGAN KERJAYA SISWAZAH SELANGOR |
| WIKILEAKS: Malaysia Promotes Islamic Finance: US Firms Concerned over Governmental Preferences Posted: 26 Sep 2011 01:00 AM PDT A primary constraint in developing the Islamic finance industry is the lack of consensus among Islamic scholars from the Middle East and Southeast Asia on what is permissible under Sharia (Islamic law). Two fundamental differences account for the main barriers between how Islamic finance is practiced in Malaysia vs. the Middle East: the selling of debt instruments and the mingling of conventional and Islamic funds. THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin
1. (U) Summary: Demand for Islamic financial paper continues to outstrip supply, due in large part to the growing interest of Middle East petrodollar holders to park their money in Sharia compliant instruments. The biggest success story to date is the Islamic bond (sukuk), the only product Islamic scholars from different parts of the globe have reached consensus on regarding their permissibility under Islamic law. The Government of Malaysia (GOM) continues to push for global consensus on a wider range of Islamic products and it is implementing regulatory and tax preferences for firms offering such products in an effort to make Malaysia a global hub for the industry in this growing niche market. As part of the GOM promotion effort, Malaysian Central Bank Governor Dr. Zeti Aziz has agreed to be the keynote speaker (see para 7) at a conference on Islamic Finance organized by the American-Malaysian Chamber of Commerce in Washington this October. Private sector views on the potential for Islamic finance are mixed but some U.S. firms have expressed concern that the GOM's preferential policies are creating an uneven playing field in Malaysia's financial market. End summary. Lack of Consensus on Sharia Compliance is a Major Constraint 2. (U) A primary constraint in developing the Islamic finance industry is the lack of consensus among Islamic scholars from the Middle East and Southeast Asia on what is permissible under Sharia (Islamic law). Two fundamental differences account for the main barriers between how Islamic finance is practiced in Malaysia vs. the Middle East: the selling of debt instruments and the mingling of conventional and Islamic funds. 3. (U) In Malaysia, Islamic scholars have accepted the practice of selling a debt instrument, while Middle Eastern scholars have determined that this is forbidden. In the Middle East, a bank practicing both conventional and Islamic finance conducts both types of business off the same balance sheet. In Malaysia a conventional bank engaging in Islamic finance is required to maintain a separate "window" with a separate set of books. The Islamic Bond: No Secret about its Success 4. (U) The concept of an "Islamic bond," however, has been accepted as Sharia-compliant by Islamic Scholars in both Southeast Asia and the Middle East. In fact, it is the only Islamic financial product on which consensus has been reached. This consensus is widely credited for driving demand for it through the roof. For example, earlier this year Khazanah, a Malaysian government-owned investment corporation, decided to offer a US$600 million equity-linked Islamic bond denominated in U.S. dollars. The bond was thirteen times oversubscribed; subsequently Khazanah decided to increase the amount on offer by 42% to US$850 million (REF A), with fifty percent of the issuance allocated to investors from the Middle East. Building Consensus on Other Islamic Principles 5. (U) Recognizing that consensus on Sharia compliance will be essential to developing this niche market, the GOM has established the Malaysian International Islamic Finance Center (MIFC) which includes a board of Islamic scholars from an array of different Muslim-majority countries. The GOM sponsors board meetings in Paris, London, and elsewhere in an effort to encourage consensus-building on Sharia compliant financial instruments. Central Bank Governor Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz told U.S. Ambassador Lafleur that she expected broad consensus among Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern Sharia scholars within two years (REF B). Consistent with the GOM's effort to promote Islamic finance, Central Bank Governor Dr. Zeti has agreed to deliver the keynote address at a conference in Washington, D.C. on October 18 entitled "Islamic Finance in Southeast Asia: Local Practice, Global Impact." Malaysia's Federal Budget Delivers More Favors for Islamic Finance 6. (U) The GOM is also using its Federal Budget Proposal for 2008, released September 7, to introduce provisions designed to promote Malaysia as a hub for Islamic Finance. These include: -- Non-resident experts in Islamic finance will be exempt from income tax, subject to verification of their credentials by the Malaysian International Islamic Financial Center (MIFC). This is designed to attract more talent from countries in the Middle East, many of which do not impose income tax. (This provision was championed by Citibank Malaysia which engages in both conventional and Islamic finance.) -- An existing tax exemption for management fees for Islamic funds for foreign investors will be extended to Islamic funds managed for local investors as well. -- Tax exemptions for issuers of Islamic Financing through Special Purpose Vehicles will be expanded. -- Specific tax provisions for Islamic insurance (takaful) operators will be introduced. Players Get Energized 7. (U) With such strong GOM encouragement, interest in Islamic finance is accelerating in Malaysia. On September 17 Bank Islam Malaysia signed a strategic partnership with London-based European Islamic Investment Bank PLC, according to press reports. The partnership is intended to link up the European and Asian markets for financial products that are compliant with the principles of Sharia (Islamic law). Bank Islam Managing Director Zukri Samat told reporters the bank planned to bid on arranging several Islamic bond issues, including one for US$300 million jointly with its new partner. Conventional Finance Being Crowded Out? 8. (SBU) Brad Bennett, CEO of American Home Assurance Company Malaysia, a wholly-owned subsidiary of U.S.-based American Insurance Group, told ECONOFF he was concerned that preferential regulatory treatment of Islamic Insurance (takaful) was crowding out conventional insurance products in Malaysia. The company had applied for a license to do Islamic insurance in Malaysia, but has yet to receive approval. Meanwhile, customers are switching, he said. On August 29, Central Bank Deputy Governor Zamani Abdul Ghani invited applications for reinsurance licenses (REF C). 9. (SBU) Citigroup Malaysia CEO Sanjeev Nanavati expressed similar concerns, saying the GOM's special concessions and incentives for Islamic finance gave its practitioners an unfair advantage. But Citi continues to believe Islamic finance faces so many obstacles that it will continue to struggle, even with GOM support. 10. (U) Comment: The Government of Malaysia is determined to make the country a global hub for the industry and thereby maintain the leading edge its financial firms currently possess in this growing niche. Moreover, it is coming through with the funding, the political pressure, and the regulatory and tax advantages to smooth development for financial companies in this highly regulated economy. Obstacles and opportunities in this niche market will be reviewed septel. (September 2007) |
| DAP like small child scared of ghosts, says Nik Aziz Posted: 25 Sep 2011 11:28 PM PDT 
(Bernama) - Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said the hudud law proposed to be implemented in Kelantan had nothing to do with non-Muslims and as such, DAP had no reason to oppose it. He likened DAP to "a small child who is scared of ghosts", and contended that hudud which was to be implemented in Kelantan, was fairer and did not involve the non-Muslim community.
"Why does DAP want to leave (the opposition pact)? Hudud is for the Muslims. So, what is DAP's connection with the Muslims? Some people are scared of hudud like they're scared of ghosts," he told reporters at the Menteri Besar's residence, here, today.
Yesterday, Nik Aziz said the hudud law would be implemented in Kelantan's syariah courts despite opposition from DAP. The DAP leaders, however, had reportedly said that they would resign en bloc if hudud implementation was incorporated into the common policy framework of the opposition grouping.
In KUALA LUMPUR, Pas secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali has asked all Pakatan Rakyat leaders not to make any statement on the hudud issue until their monthly meeting this Wednesday. He said this had been agreed upon between him, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and DAP Youth head Anthony Loke.
Mustafa said the meeting on Wednesday which should be discussing the 2012 Budget, would give priority to the sensitive hudud issue and that a joint stand would be made on it.
In TANJUNG KARANG, Selangor Umno liaison deputy chief Datuk Seri Noh Omar said PAS should withdraw from Pakatan Rakyat if it was really an honourable party and wanted to struggle for Islam.
However, whatever the 'dispute' or "sandiwara" (drama) created by Pas or DAP over the hudud issue, Noh believes that both parties will not leave the opposition grouping.
"Challenging and counter-challenging between Pas and DAP are merely political gimmick, to show to the public that they have a current issue to address," said Noh, after handing over contributions to 128 Haj pilgrims-to-be from the Tanjung Karang parliamentary constituency today.
Noh who is also Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister, said the opposition was especially fond of raising the hudud implementation issue whenever the general election was thought to be near. |
| Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #83 Posted: 25 Sep 2011 11:08 PM PDT 
That is why the West is so advanced. People there obey the law even when no one is watching! M. Bakri Musa
Chapter 10: Freedom, Justice, and the Law
No person is perfect enough to be entrusted with the liberty and dignity of others.
—Mahmoud Mohamed Taha (1909-1985)
Sudanese Reformist, executed by his country's military rulers. I was visiting Malaysia after being away for many years. It was right after the race riot of 1969. The streets were still deserted, and I was driving with my father when we came upon a stop sign at an intersection. I duly stopped, looked around, and finding no oncoming traffic, proceeded. My father asked why I stopped, and I responded that there was a stop sign. Startled by the unexpected question, I looked back to find him in a pensive mood, his face tilted, and his eyes looking far into the distance. After a long pause, he matter-of-factly murmured, "That is why the West is so advanced. People there obey the law even when no one is watching!"
Intuitively he had concluded that since my stopping at the stop sign was so natural, it must have been conditioned by my years of living abroad. He remembered only too well my driving habits at home a decade earlier! While I was studying abroad, my father always encouraged me to venture beyond the campus and be involved in and observant of the community at large. Canada, he wisely observed, must be very advanced to be able to offer scholarships to foreigners, and he advised me to use the opportunity to learn everything about the country, and not just come home with a degree. Thus my summers were spent working at such places as a dairy farm and a summer resort, working and interacting with ordinary Canadians. I would write home frequently about my observations. I described how efficient the modern dairy farms were, and of cows with humongous udders pouring out literally gallons of milk daily. Once I related how the farmer had unhesitatingly discarded a bucket of fresh milk, as he did not know whether it had been contaminated. That potentially spoilt milk, he noted, would be mixed with others, and thousands of customers would be sick. Besides, the reputation of his outfit could not be compromised or ruined for the sake of a few dollars worth of milk. On another occasion, after a bus trip, I wrote of my wonderment at Canadian bus drivers; how professional and proud they were about their jobs. Indeed they were dressed like pilots, with their crisp light blue long-sleeved shirts neatly tucked inside their dark blue pants, complete with a bow tie and a captain's cap. That bus driver had taken us through the neighborhood where he lived and proudly showed us, the tourists, his home. It was a neat, modest track bungalow in a clean pleasant suburb. I could not help but compare him with his Malaysian counterparts who for the most part had their shirts flying loosely untucked, with untied shoes or slippers, and generally looking disheveled. Through such regular commentaries my father knew firsthand about life in Canada. He had the right impression that the West was indeed advanced and wondered why or how it got that way while countries like Malaysia were still struggling. My father was on to something profound when he observed that obeying the law when no one is watching is a key ingredient to the West's success. To many observers, a respect for the rule of law is a prerequisite for progress. A modern society is ruled by law, and not by men. Progress cannot take place when there is callous disregard for the law. This respect for the law must be shown not only by ordinary citizens but also more importantly, the leaders. For when leaders abuse their privileges and flout the law, then there is little hope for the country. This abuse can come in many forms, from outright disregard of the law to more subtle forms as in selective prosecution and uneven applications of the law. When leaders and the elite do not respect the law, it sends a clear message to the masses to do likewise. Similarly all laws must be respected, even the seemingly minor ones. The contemporary American political scientist James Q. Wilson first made the astute observation that when we ignore violations of minor laws, this would later encourage the breach of more serious ones. Law enforcement agencies are now familiar with the "broken window syndrome," that is, when we ignore minor vandalisms like broken windows, we encourage others to commit even greater crimes, until the whole building is completely wrecked or burnt down by arson. New York police successfully reduced the rate of major crimes by first cracking down on such seemingly innocuous ones as loitering, jay walking, and littering. When ordinary citizens see that such minor laws are being strictly enforced, they rightly assume that other more serious infractions would also be vigorously pursued. Going back to my father, I should have given him an update on my driving habits now that I have lived in California for a while. Californians are among the worst drivers. They consider a stop sign only a suggestion; and a yellow traffic light a signal to step on the gas! Apart from respect for the law, another feature of the West is the premium it places on individual and personal liberty. Americans do not appreciate this freedom as it is taken for granted. They are sensitized only when that freedom is threatened or breached. Notice the current uproar over the president's proposal to detain potential terrorists without due process in response to the 9/11 tragedies. Americans become very much aware of their cherished freedom when they are abroad. Once on a flight to Malaysia I came upon an article in a regional publication that was supportive of Malaysia but contained some mild but valid criticisms of the leadership. I related that article to my Malaysian friend, and he too was interested to read it. I rushed to the nearest bookstore to get a copy of the magazine. (Having been away from Malaysia for a long time I have not developed the habit of swiping the airline's copy!) Imagine my horror when I could not find the article; the pages had been neatly excised! Some bureaucrats in the censors' office had the audacity to decide what I can and cannot read. How insulting! I felt violated. This blatant disregard for the rights and dignity of the individual is pervasive in the Third World. These poor societies fail to appreciate that in the final analysis it is individuals who effect changes, and thus progress. Western societies are more progressive because they place a premium on the individual. Eastern societies generally submerge the individual to the needs of the larger society. They emphasize society's goals and stability over that of the individual, as encapsulated by the Japanese saying: the nail that sticks out gets hammered. At least that is the perceived wisdom. I challenge that. Consider what the Sudanese reformist Ustaz Mahmoud Taha wrote in 1963, "Every individual is, authentically, an end in himself. He is not means to any other end. He – even if he is an imbecile – is a "God" in the making and must be given the full opportunity to develop as such. Liberty is the prerequisite need. Man must be free from all dehumanizing influences – poverty, ignorance, and fear." Fifteen years earlier, the United Nations, using far less elegant prose, said essentially the same thing in its Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In its preamble the document reaffirms the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all humans as the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace. The document's first article could easily have been taken from the Koran when it declares that all human beings are born free, with equal dignity and rights, and are endowed with reason and conscience. Many outside the West would challenge the universality of this UN Declaration, especially its statement reaffirming the primacy of the individual. But as the Islamic scholar the late Fazlur Rahman wrote, "Whether ultimately it is the individual that is significant and society merely the necessary instrument for his creation or vice versa is academic, for individual and society appear to be correlates. There is no such thing as a societiless individual." Next: Society and Individuals |
| Re: "Hypocrisy of Sin Chew at its best" by Josh Hong Posted: 25 Sep 2011 10:56 PM PDT It is so unfortunate that a newspaper that used to be the conscience and voice of the Chinese community in Malaysia has sold out the community by abandoning its state mission of preserving and promoting the fundamental rights of the Chinese community in Malaysia. By Johnny Yeoh and friends of Sin Chew We (six of us) refer to the article "Hypocrisy of Sin Chew at its best" by Josh Hong published in Malaysiakini and wish to give our five-sen worth on the issue. We fully endorse and support what Josh Hong said about Sin Chew and its boss C.C. Liew and senior writer Tay Tian Yan. We have been faithful readers of both the Chinese daily and its English news portal mysinchew.com for years. The paper used to be very brave and bold in publishing news without fear or favour during the 1980s and 1990s. However, since the beginning of the new century, after Sin Chew celebrated its 80th anniversary, the content of its daily paper has degenerated very much, like its English counterpart The Star, which has become a mere shopping guide with many advertisements and no real newsworthy content. We and many of us were elated when we discovered early last year in 2010 that the outspoken prolific Malaysia Today writer Thomas Lee had started writing a weekly column in mysinchew.com. We followed his brave and bold column, and were very impressed by his insight and interpretation of many vital issues
affecting the nation and people, issues such as the "Allah" and Malay Bible controversies, the Little Napoleons, and the MCA crisis. However, we were deeply shocked when Malaysiakini reported early this year 2011 that the courageous editor was given the boot by Sin Chew, apparently due to political pressure from the Barisan Nasional government. Since the sacking of Thomas Lee, mysinchew.com has become a dumping site for rubbish writings such as that by Tay Tian Yan, who usually repeats what has been reported in the mainstream media and add a little comment of his own, usually in support of the Barisan Nasional, especially the MCA. Lately, Tay has been sugar-coating MCA president Chua Soi Lek. It is so unfortunate that a newspaper that used to be the conscience and voice of the Chinese community in
Malaysia has sold out the community by abandoning its state mission of preserving and promoting the
fundamental rights of the Chinese community in Malaysia. Josh Hong is right that Sin Chew boss C.C. Liew has made himself very low by accepting the Tokoh Wartawan award, whose previous winners include the Mahathir loyalist Zainuddin Maidin. Within the intellectual circle and media fratenity, such awards for journalists and editors, including civil titles like Dato, are viewed contemptuously as rewards for being loyal political lackeys. The Star, for example, has several Datos who are known political lackeys of top Barisan Nasional political leaders. C.C. Liew had also received a Dato from Gerakan president Koh Tsu Khoon when the latter was Chief Minister of Penang. Josh Hong is spot on when he said that Sin Chew had sold out to the Barisan Nasional, currying favour with
Najib. He is also correct in questioning the dubious writing abilities of Tay and other senior writers of the
newspaper. Josh Hong said that the opinion pieces by the "so-called senior journalists" of Sin Chew are
"either wishy-washy or completely ridiculous". This is a very correct observation, and we hope the Sin Chew
management would not condemn Josh Hong for his honest view, but rather do something to correct the sad
state of affairs in the newspaper. And we would add that it is also such a shame that mysinchew.my, which could have been used as a viable
vehicle to promote the rights of the people and help in the nation-building process, is now in such a bad state, with not only poor content, but bad English to boot. We and our friends have stopped reading
mysinchew.com. There is no malice in our writing this letter, just doing our part as loyal readers of Sin Chew in wanting to see
the newspaper redeem and improve itself. We have confidence that Sin Chew can rise again as a great
Chinese daily newspaper in Malaysia if it is prepared to honestly and objectively consider the critical and
analytical comments by people like Josh Hong.
|
| Kod Negara 71: mistake or not? Posted: 25 Sep 2011 10:53 PM PDT By Lee Wee Tak This kod negara 71 business is getting more and more interesting. It is quite clear that it is not one of the 199 country codes listed by JPN in their official website. http://www.jpn.gov.my/kodnegara
A senior UMNO figure conducted a serious and vigorous defense on this matter.
http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2011&dt=0814&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Politik&pg=po_01.htm
His salient points are:
# some of the opposition figures are holding kod negara 71
# the code is really meant for people born overseas
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Kalau pemimpin pembangkang yang memegang kod negeri 71 pada MyKad mereka boleh menjadi wakil rakyat, jadi apa salahnya Mismah menjadi pengundi? Beliau telah berusaha sebanyak dua kali untuk menjadi warga Malaysia sejak 29 tahun tinggal di Malaysia.
"Justeru, saya minta pihak pembangkang untuk menyiasat berhubung perkara ini," katanya pada sidang akhbar selepas mengadakan pertemuan dengan keluarga Mismah di kediamannya di Desa Coafields, Sungai Buloh dekat sini hari ini.
Mismah telah mendapat Sijil Kewarganegaraan Malaysia pada 31 Januari lalu sekali gus melayakkannya memperoleh MyKad dan menjadi pemilih.
Berdasarkan maklumat dari Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN), kod negeri 71 pada MyKad adalah bagi mereka yang dilahirkan di luar negara.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The minister has made a misrepresentation base on JPN's information. From the JPN list, code 71 is not used at all hence it could either be interpretated as
1) isolated errors (the famous 0.0001% SPR argument)
2) used for people borned outside Malaysia but country of birth not known to JPN.
Explanation 1) is not acceptable.
170,818 71'ers registered successfully as voters for Q2 2011so it is no isolated errors but seems more likely a systematic arrangement of some sorts between JPN and SPR.
(unless there is a hell lot of love making by Malaysians overseas and Tony Fernandez take note...AirAsia baby making package Coming Soon)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.sinarharian.com.my/bterkini/14277.asp
42.33 % atau 72,742 pengundi yang tidak diketahui negara asal kelahiran ini adalah dari rumpun bangsa Cina iaitu Cina (71,252), Hokkien (521), Teochew (375), Cantonese (292), Foochow (135), Hainanese (119), Henghua (25) dan Hokchiu (23).
17.33 % atau 29,605 pengundi yang tidak diketahui negara asal kelahiran ini adalah dari rumpun bangsa India iaitu India (24,663), India Muslim (2,399), Punjabi (796), Sikh (639), Sri Lanka (346), Pakistani (328), Tamil (324), Tamil Sri Langka (67), Telegu (21), Malabari (12) dan Bangledeshi (10). Bangsa Bangledeshi adalah bangsa yang paling sedikit sekali menjadi pengundi di negara kita
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If the PAS can identify the "rumpun" of those 71'ers and JPN list clearely set aside the relevant country codes - e.g. China 71, India 75, Pakistan 76, Hong Kong 63, Indonesia 61, Bangladesh 79, Singapore 66, Brunei 60, El Salvador 90 (how many Malaysians born in El Salvador that you know?)...with such a great list how could they miss out?
Another reason for KN 71 to be rejected is that JPN have their own procedures and insist on proof of place of birth when issuing IC, see:
http://www.jpn.gov.my/perkhidmatan/kadpengenalan/orangbarutiba-warganegara
 http://www.jpn.gov.my/pengesahantarafwarganegara Can you imagine a JPN officer issuing MyKad without knowing where the fella came from?
So if Najib wants to give civil servants some more, even more and more than ever pre general election bonus, the least they could do is to do their job properly. Read more at: http://wangsamajuformalaysia.blogspot.com/2011/09/this-kod-negara-71-business-is-getting.html |
| Zaid to critics: Call EGM and sack me Posted: 25 Sep 2011 08:50 PM PDT 
The Kita boss shrugs off recent attacks against him as "trivial" and thinks the party's image is intact (Free Malaysia Today) - Kita chief Zaid Ibrahim has finally responded to allegations that he is tyrannical and that he flouts party protocol, dismissing them as "trivial" and "untrue". A number of party leaders and ordinary members have been hammering him for more than a week for his recent controversial and solitary decisions, but in an interview with FMT Zaid refused to make a counter attack or defend himself with a vigour that would match theirs. He invited his critics to back their accusations with proof and even suggested that they call an emergency general meeting to make good their threat to oust him. Zaid began courting internal dissent when he sacked central secretary Abdul Latif Thambi, treasurer Rashid Azad Khan and central executive committee member Muhammad Firdaus Christopher. Latif strongly protested his sacking, which he said was punishment for his refusal to disclose the password to the party's website. "Does it make sense for me to sack someone over a password?" Zaid said. "If I think the person is good for the party, why would I sack him? "I've spent a lot of time and effort building this party; so I will not allow anyone to sabotage or hamper its progress. I have my reasons for doing things. And whether the issue is trivial or not is my decision because I'm the boss. "When a secretary and a boss cannot see eye to eye, one of them has to go." Zaid said Latif was merely an administrator and not a political ally or the "centre of political decision-making" that he imagined himself to be. Firdaus has been steadily attacking Zaid on Facebook and Twitter since Zaid stopped paying his salary three months ago. Zaid denied Firdaus's allegation that he had financial difficulties. "We stopped paying his salary because the party has very little money," Zaid explained. "I don't have financial difficulties, but I don't have a lot of money either. "It was the same situation with Rashid, but he took it well. I told Rashid the situation we were in and suggested that he find another job to supplement his income, which he did. That's what Firdaus should have done, but he will never get a job now because people have seen his nasty streak." Asked why he had kept silent for so long in the face of Firdaus's allegations, Zaid said he was giving him time to blow off steam and was hoping that he would "come to his senses" soon enough for a proper conversation. However, he said, Firdaus went too far when he began undermining Kita in an attempt to cast him in a bad light. "But he won't succeed because people with sense will know what he's all about," Zaid said. "And I'm not concerned with whatever he says anymore because he has not succeeded in doing any damage to the party or to me. Anyone who has worked with me before knows I'm not like that. "But I'm not angry over the situation. What else can you do but move on? The more popular you are, the more people want to attack you so that they too can get in the news." READ MORE HERE |
| What a (mis)adventure Posted: 25 Sep 2011 08:12 PM PDT Nevertheless, only the good die young, as the saying goes. So this offers us very little incentive to be good. Anyway, as Marilyn Monroe said, "Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls have all the fun." So give me a bad girl over a good girl any time because the good girl would most probably be already dead and making love to a corpse is no fun as many Malaysians married for more than 50 years to the same woman would be able to tell you. NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin Misadventure comes from the old English word, misaventure, which in turn comes from the old French word, mesaventure, which means an instance of misfortune or a mishap. In law, this would translate to accidental death not due to any crime or negligence. I am raising this because it appears that many readers do not understand the meaning of the verdict by Coroner Aizatul Akmal Maharanion regarding the death of Selangor Customs Department assistant director, Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamed. This simply means, in short, no one can explain his death and since the CCTV recordings have been mysteriously erased -- and no one seems to know how that happened -- then no further investigation can be made as to whether there was any foul play involved. All we do know is that Ahmad Sarbaini died. Of course, you do not have to be a Coroner or doctor to figure that one out. And we all know that the cause of death was because the deceased stopped breathing. Again, you do not have to be a Coroner or doctor to figure that one out. Most people stop breathing when they die. Only a very few Malaysians are still breathing although we can consider them dead and wish they would quickly stop breathing so that we can send them to their graves without further delay. Nevertheless, only the good die young, as the saying goes. So this offers us very little incentive to be good. Anyway, as Marilyn Monroe said, "Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls have all the fun." So give me a bad girl over a good girl any time because the good girl would most probably be already dead and making love to a corpse is no fun as many Malaysians married for more than 50 years to the same woman would be able to tell you. And this poses a serious problem for the proposal by PAS to introduce the Islamic law of Hudud to Malaysia. Certainly, the severe punishment under those laws would make everyone become good. And this would mean many, if not most, Malaysians would die young. Now, the civil servants are asking the government to increase the retirement age to 60. Judges, who now retire at 65, would probably also want their retirement age increased to, say, 75. Considering that even at 85 our mind is still sharp -- as proven by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who still thinks and talks like the much younger Ibrahim Ali -- this makes sense. Age 56 or 58 is too young to retire. Hey, I will be 61 tomorrow and I still think like I am 21, although most of the time it is sex that I am thinking about. Anyway, the fact that judges can still sit on the bench until they are 65 or 70 and have not died yet can only mean that most judges are bad and that there are no good judges. If they were good judges then they would not be alive any longer since only the good die young and the bad continue to breathe, walk and talk, though most times it is talking cock. I know, at this point, most of you will whack Dr Mahathir and quote him as a good example of my prognosis above. And in the same breath you will also whack me and allege that I am a Mahathir lover. Never mind, whack on. Malaysia Today does, after all, practice freedom of expression, even the freedom to whack me. I know you feel that Dr Mahathir is 'interfering' in the running of the country and that he should lay off since he has already retired as Prime Minister eight years ago. But you must understand, Dr Mahathir was Prime Minister for 22 years, and with the vast knowledge that he has, what is the problem with him sharing his experience with younger leaders like Najib Tun Razak? Singapore, too, had its Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew. So what's wrong if Malaysia has a Minister Tormentor? That made Singapore great so maybe this will make Malaysia great as well. You must understand, under Dr Mahathir, Malaysia set many world records. Now that Dr Mahathir is no longer the leader, we have lost out on many things. We used to have the tallest tower, the longest bridge, the first national car in the world to be manufactured entirely using Japanese components, the first car to be parachuted into the North Pole (or was it the South Pole?), the first car attempted to be driven in the North Pole (or was it the South Pole) with the engine oil frozen solid, the first country outside India to have an Indian Prime Minister, the first country in the world to have an Indian Muslim Prime Minister, the first country after Nazi Germany to sack its Deputy on allegations of sodomy, and so on and so forth. Since Dr Mahathir left office, what has Malaysia achieved and what new world records have we set other than the first country in the world to have a husband and wife team as the joint-Prime Minister? Honestly, Dr Mahathir may have his faults, but he did also put Malaysia onto the world map. In the past, say back in the 1970s, very few people knew where Malaysia is located on the world map. I used to have to tell people, "You know Bangkok?" and the answer would of course be 'yes'. Everyone knows Bangkok. That is where you go to bang…well, you know what. Then I ask them, "You know Singapore?" And of course everyone knows Singapore as well. Singapore is a fine city. They fine you for everything, even for chewing gum. Then I tell them: well, Malaysia is sandwiched in between Bangkok and Singapore. "Ah!" they say. Now they know where Malaysia is. My relatives on my mother's side used to think we live in houses on stilts in Malaysia. This is because, soon after WWII, one of my uncles, who was in the Royal Navy, landed in Pulau Ketam off Port Kelang and he thought that the whole of Malaysia was built on stilts. It took a long time before they realised that Malaysia is not built on stilts but on a pack of cards. What surprised them even more is to see that the pack of cards has not fallen yet although other superpowers like Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain, etc., what we call PIGS, are crumbling even as we speak. That should be proof enough that khinzir is haram in case you Islam-bashers in Malaysia Today still want to argue that there is nothing wrong with pork. Anyway, I am digressing from the topic of the day, which is death by misadventure. Okay, in case many of you still do not get it, let me explain it this way. If, in a moment of weakness, I find myself in Rosmah's bed, and realising that this is a fate worse than death, I take Najib's gun and shoot myself in the head. That would be suicide. If Najib comes home and finds me in Rosmah's bed and he gets angry and shoots me dead, that would be murder. If Najib comes home and finds me in Rosmah's bed and he gets angry and shoots me but accidentally hits and kills Rosmah instead, that would be manslaughter. If Najib comes home and finds me in Rosmah's bed and he laughs so much at seeing something so ridiculous, and then when he slaps his thigh during a moment of uncontrollable laughter his gun accidentally goes off and the bullet hits and kills me, that would be death by misadventure. I trust now you can comprehend the Coroner's ruling on how Ahmad Sarbaini died. |
| The offences of not wearing what is mandatory and wearing that which is prohibited Posted: 25 Sep 2011 06:30 PM PDT 
THE PEOPLE'S PARLIAMENT Saturday morning, I spoke at the MCLM Citizen Empowerment School. Later, I headed out to a couple of meetings. Won't say where this happened as I do not wish to risk exposing the identity of the officers concerned. I turned left at a traffic light and was flagged down by a police officer. I immediately knew what the offence was. I wasn't wearing the seat belt. Pulled up and waited for the officer. He came round to my side, and then looked aghast at me and exclaimed, "Alamak, ini kesalahan besar, encik". I was puzzled, and asked him what was this 'kesalahan besar'. Pointing to my chest, he asked, "Mana boleh pakai baju tu?". I had completely forgotten that I was wearing my yellow 'BERSIH 2.0′ t-shirt. "Apa salah pakai baju ini?", I asked. By now, a second police officer came up to the car. "Encik, ini kesalahan serius ni, encik,", the second officer offered. "Pakai baju kuning salah? Ada lojik ke, encik? Encik nak cek kereta saya kalau ada senjata?", I asked the second officer. "Ala, encik mesti tahu kerajaan sudah haramkan baju ini. Tak boleh pakai. Kesalahan besar, encik,", the second officer shot back. "Encik berdua ada hadir kat himpunan pada 9 Julai, tak?, I asked them both. The first officer kept silent. "Ah, gila ke? Kita polis, lah! Mana boleh?", the second replied. "Saya ada diperhimpunan itu.Encik ingat saya hanya berjuang untuk masa depan anak saya, tak berjuang untuk anak encik berdua ini?", I asked. The first officer responded. "Kami tahu encik", was all he said. I shot another question to both. "Berapa gaji kamu berdua?", I asked. The seond officer appeared to take offence to my question. READ MORE HERE |
| PAS seeks royal probe on A-G Posted: 25 Sep 2011 06:23 PM PDT 
(The Malaysian Insider) - PAS is demanding Putrajaya form a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) to investigate allegations of misconduct against Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail or prosecute the latter's accusers for making false accusations. PAS vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar today asked why the government and Abdul Gani have chosen to ignore the allegations, which include several claims of corruption and evidence fabrication. Failure to act on the accusations, he added, would only tarnish the image, reputation and integrity of the Attorney-General's Chambers and the post of the Attorney-General, who serves as the country's highest-ranking public prosecutor. "If the government fails to take any action within an acceptable timeframe, PAS will initiate a petition calling for the formation of an RCI and submit it to the Agong," Mahfuz told a press conference here. The PAS MP listed several accusations against Abdul Gani including claims made by blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin that construction company Ho Hup Bhd had paid for renovations at one of the Attorney-General's houses; the A-G's purported relationship with Shahidan Shafie, an alleged proxy to former Malaysia Airlines (MAS) chairman Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli; and his alleged role in the case of murdered Mongolian model Altantuya Shaaribuu. Abdul Gani is also the centre of allegations by former senior police officer Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim, who has accused the former of fabricating evidence in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's 1998 "black-eye" probe. Mahfuz pointed out that if Abdul Gani's reason for not filing legal action against his accusers was because Raja Petra is abroad, the A-G could still sue Mat Zain. "If these accusations are untrue, why not take legal action? Or at the very least, the claims must be investigated and not ignored," he said. READ MORE HERE |
| Mat Zain: Charge Gani Patail, not change A-G’s powers Posted: 25 Sep 2011 06:18 PM PDT 
(The Malaysian Insider) - Taking away the Attorney-General's power to prosecute will not stop abuses of power, a former senior police officer said today. Former Kuala Lumpur CID chief Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim said that there was nothing wrong with the functions of the A-G as defined by the Federal Constitution, and charged that it was Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail who had abused his powers as the current A-G "several times over." "We should not blame the Constitution. It's the honesty of the person holding the post that matters. "Even if we were to separate the functions of the A-G and the PP, there are no guarantees that either one or both of them will not abuse their powers," Mat Zain wrote in an open letter to The Malaysian Insider. Mat Zain was referring to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz's recent remarks supporting calls to separate the functions of the A-G. In Malaysia, the A-G is the principal legal adviser to the government and also serves as the country's highest-ranking public prosecutor. The former policeman continued his attacks against Abdul Gani, accusing him of fabricating evidence in an investigation back in 1998. It is believed he was referring to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's controversial "black eye" incident. READ MORE HERE |
| DAP wants PAS president to make official stand on Islamic state agenda Posted: 25 Sep 2011 06:09 PM PDT 
(The Star) - DAP, apparently tired of dealing with Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, wants PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang to clear the air on the hudud controversy. DAP national chairman Karpal Singh said it was important for the PAS president to make a clear stand on the matter. He said Nik Aziz, PAS' spiritual adviser, is "not part of the leadership proper" in Pakatan Rakyat and had, therefore, no bearing on the coalition. "Hadi should come up with a statement as he is the authoritative figure in the party, especially as he had declared during the recent PAS muktamar that his party is no longer pursuing the Islamic state agenda," added Karpal. He said it was clear during PAS' muktamar in June that the party had given up on pursuing its Islamic state agenda. "Therefore, the hudud issue should not arise," he said. In his Facebook posting, Nik Aziz said he could resolve the matter with Karpal without involving the media. Hadi could not be reached for comments as he is currently abroad, believed to be in Iran. In SEREMBAN, DAP stalwart Dr Chen Man Hin said it would be a "mission impossible" for PAS to implement hudud laws in Kelantan with or without the support of its allies in the Pakatan coalition because the Federal Constitution does not allow it. "It is not wrong for PAS to think it is good to have hudud but they should also accept the fact that it cannot be done," said the former DAP chief, who is now the party's life adviser. Dr Chen, considered the Grand Old Man of DAP, once took the party into a coalition that also involved PAS and the now-defunct Parti Semangat 46 but left after a rift over the Islamic state issue pursued by PAS. He said Pakatan leaders should stop dwelling on the matter, adding that the Supreme Court had, in 1988, ruled that Malaysia is a secular state. Asked on comments by Nik Aziz and PAS Youth that DAP was free to leave the Pakatan coalition if it was not comfortable with hudud law, Dr Chen said: "They may be entitled to their opinion but it is not being diplomatic." When asked as to why Karpal Singh was the only DAP leader talking openly on the matter, Dr Chen said this was because he was a legal expert and one who had dealt with the issue for many years. "The DAP leaders talk about this among us and Karpal makes our stand public," he said. |
| Hudud ‘thorn’ will bleed Pakatan Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:35 PM PDT 
If unresolved, a political scientist warns, the opposition alliance may end up where it was prior to the 2004 general election, which saw BN winning its biggest mandate.
University Sains Malaysia (USM) political scientist Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the alliance should speak with one voice to convince the public that they are on the same page. "If Pakatan does not do so, they are back to square one as it shows they are unable to reign in their idological differences and that the pact is nothing but a marriage of convenience," he added. Hawkeye, Free Malaysia Today Pakatan Rakyat risks slumping back to square one if the alliance cannot conclusively tackle the proposed hudud legislation row. University Sains Malaysia (USM) political scientist Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the alliance should speak with one voice to convince the public that they are on the same page. "If Pakatan does not do so, they are back to square one as it shows they are unable to reign in their idological differences and that the pact is nothing but a marriage of convenience," he added. They may end up in the pre-2004 position rather than in the elevated post-2008 strength where they won an unprecedent level of support to deny Barisan Nasional the customary two-thirds majority. On one hand, the people have PAS, which is fundamentally sound about the need to adopt the hudud legislation as a prelude to the formation of an Islamic state governance in the country. On the other is DAP, a party steep in socialist principles, which champions secularism and upholding of the Federal Constitution. In the middle is PKR, whose political ideology is muted and mixed as the party is just a coming-together of all sorts consisting of disgrunted members from BN and non-governmental organisations with no clear political struggle outlined. In this context, Sivamurugan said there is a political impact from the hudud issue regardless of how Pakatan may want to interpret it. The hudud issue flared up again when Mentri Besar Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat spoke about adopting it and asked DAP to accept the law. Both Pakatan and BN have their loyal supporters entrenched in the present two-party system but their future would be determined by the fence-sitters. The fence-sitters now have a better prespective of things having experienced a taste of Pakatan's governance in Kedah, Penang and Selangor besides Kelantan while everybody knows BN, Sivamurugan said. They have also observed how Pakatan conducts itself as an alliance and as individual political entities, he added. He said the proposed hudud legislation is a thorn in the side of Pakatan but in its latest debate, the surprising outcome was Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's expression of support for the law. This alienates non-Muslim support for PKR, whom Anwar spearheads and perhaps can mean that the opposition leader is trying to reach out more to the Malay ground ahead of the next general election, he said. Seats allocation issue The hudud debate surfaced just when Pakatan is sitting down to mete out their seats allocation ahead of the general election. Political observer Jason Wong, who works with a Singapore-based think tank, believes that both DAP and PAS are trying to muscle out PKR from certain seats since the latter is reeling from a spate of defections. The sex allegations involving Anwar has also cast a cloud over the alliance's ability to compete with BN in all states. Anwar may need to placate PAS by agreeing to hudud while supporting DAP's quest to win over more Malay support by allowing them to field Malay candidates, particularly in semi-urbanised seats, where the Malay electorate is greater, Wong speculated. He claimed that the problem with Pakatan is the lack of synergy between what the national leaders are preaching and what the grassroots activists are clamouring for. "When we converse to both levels, we wonder who is the honest one here. The national or the grassroots leaders?" he said. READ MORE HERE |
| Sarbaini verdict: Death by misadventure Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:28 PM PDT 
(Free Malaysia Today) - The coroner's court today returned a verdict of misadventure at the inquest into the death of former Selangor Customs assistant director Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamed. In delivering his ruling, Coroner Aizatul Akmal Maharani said: "The evidence all supports the theory that this was an unintentional fall from a height." Aizatul said he agreed with a local pathologist's theory that Ahmad Sarbaini slipped and fell. He also said that he does not think there were any criminal elements as there were no defensive wounds found on the deceased or any signs of a struggle. He also ruled that Ahmad Sarbaini could not have committed suicide. Ahmad Sarbaini, 56, was found sprawled on the first floor of the badminton court at the Federal Territory MACC building in Jalan Cochrane, Cheras April 6. He was believed to have fallen from the third floor pantry of the MACC office after returning to the office. Ahmad Sarbaini, who was attached to the Port Klang Customs Department, was among the 62 officers detained on April 1 in a massive nationwide MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) probe over graft allegations of a "Customs syndicate" laundering billions through tax evasion. MACC, which said Ahmad Sarbaini had returned to change his statement, had also said an officer had left Ahmad Sarbaini alone in a third-floor room and had returned to find him missing. His body was discovered later. Following his death, police formed a special task force to investigate and later classified the case as sudden death and later confirmed that no elements of foul play were found. However, Ahmad Sarbaini's family and friends have consistently said it was impossible that he had committed suicide or had taken any bribe. The inquest, from July 4 to Aug 4, sat for 13 days. Among the 34 witnesses who testified were several FT MACC officers, two pathologists, a forensic officer, a number of Customs officers and the late Sarbaini's widow Masiah @ Maziah Manap. The inquest, provided for under Sections328 to 341A of the Criminal Procedure Code, is held to determine where, when, how and in what manner Ahmad Sarbaini died. Its three possible findings are: an open verdict, a verdict of misadventure, or death by person or persons unknown. It would not, however, find any criminal liability of any persons. During the inquest, MACC had submitted that the court should reach the verdict of an accidental death. Its lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah had submitted that "the absence of defensive wounds and DNA evidence connecting any MACC officer to the death, clearly indicate that no MACC officer was criminally concerned with regard to the death. There is also not a shred of proof that he was physically abused or mistreated during his detention by MACC." READ MORE HERE |
| Gag order on Pakatan leaders Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:26 PM PDT 
Top brass goes into damage control over the hudud controversy. (Free Malaysia Today) - Pakatan Rakyat top brass today placed a gag order on all its leaders from issuing further statements regarding the hudud controversy. The order will be in force until top Pakatan leaders, including PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and DAP national chairman, Karpal Singh, meet to discuss the matter on Wednesday. "Many people, including Muslims themselves, don't understand (the matter)," PAS secretary-general Mustafa Ali said at a press conference today. "Statements have been issued by numerous people and we don't blame them. Hudud is a sensitive matter that can be easily misinterpreted," he said. He was flanked by PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution and DAP representative Anthony Loke. DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng is currently overseas on an official visit as Penang Chief Minister. Mustafa said that even if Pakatan remained silent, Umno-BN will continue to exploit this matter to cause disagreement among the three parties in the opposition coalition. |
| ‘Anwar, hudud bad for Pakatan’ Posted: 25 Sep 2011 04:49 PM PDT 
The hudud spat and Anwar's craze for power is breaking Pakatan Rakyat apart, claims Kita chief Zaid Ibrahim. (Free Malaysia Today) - Pakatan Rakyat is breaking apart over the hudud law issue and there is nothing that its leader Anwar Ibrahim can do about it, Kita president Zaid Ibrahim said. "The opposition is woefully fractured, with a leader who has lost the plot and is behaving like a headless chicken roaming the political landscape. DAP remains speechless on the hudud issue, as is the so-called multi-racial party of PKR. "All reform-minded and peace-loving Malaysians… are asking if Anwar (Ibrahim) truly is the 'Renaissance man' he would like us to believe he is, or if he is actually a closet Islamic fundamentalist," he said. Zaid was referring to the hudud uproar that erupted within Pakatan following a dare by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Last week, Mahathir dared the PAS-ruled Kelantan to impose hudud, with Anwar voicing his support for the Islamic law. Since then, DAP leaders have opposed the idea, adding that the law was not suitable for Malaysia. Zaid said PAS' stance on the law, once shelved for not gaining political traction, was brought back after the Islamic party was supposedly done with its "consensus politics" within Pakatan. "The colour of the tide has turned a familiar shade of dark green," he said, referring to the PAS' logo. "And self-righteous political rhetoric proclaiming to also be God's work has taken centre stage once again." This did not help Pakatan's chances, Zaid said, given Anwar's past with Umno and the Malaysian Islamic Youth Front (Abim). "Anwar was never a reformer… he was instrumental in changing the education in Malaysia by injecting so-called Arabic ideas into the system and dress code," he said. Zaid added that Anwar's pushing for a constitutional amendment by putting the civil and the Islamic syariah courts on an equal legal standing did not make it easier for the judiciary. He also reminded Malaysians that Anwar was part of the Cabinet that removed Lord President Salleh Abas from heading the then Supreme Court of Malaysia, and that he was a firm supporter of the Internal Security Act as well as preventive detention. READ MORE HERE |
| Adakah KITA sedang mendekati Umno? Posted: 25 Sep 2011 04:09 PM PDT 
HELEN ANG Baru-baru ini timbul desas-desus yang Zaid Ibrahim akan membawa partinya KITA masuk ke pangkuan Barisan Nasional tidak lama lagi. Telahan bahawa Zaid akan merujuk dengan Umno diuar-uarkan ekoran 'mohon maaf'nya kepada Perdana Menteri Najib Razak minggu lepas. Zaid dipetik Bernama sebagai berkata: "Saya dahulu tidak yakin Najib mempunyai keberanian untuk membuat sesuatu yang besar dan hari ini saya minta maaf pada Perdana Menteri kerana akhirnya sanggup berbuat sesuatu yang bermakna dan besar untuk memansuhkan ISA ini."
Kenyataan tersebut membuat Zaid diragui sesetengah orang sebagai membodek Najib.  Namun mungkin Zaid dengan hati tulus merasakan langkah perdana menteri hendak menghapuskan ISA dalam masa terdekat adalah berani dan benar. Maka pohon maafnya adalah bersifat 'gentleman' kerana ramalannya yang meleset pada suatu ketika dulu.
Mungkin juga pada pandangan Zaid, reaksi pemimpin pembangkang yang begitu lantas memperlekehkan keputusan Najib yang mengejut itu adalah tidak wajar kerana bertindak dengan penuh syak wasangka walhal belum ada kepastian. Ataupun dalam bahasa Inggeris — not giving Najib the benefit of the doubt. Zaid juga seorang yang mahu "give credit where credit is due", bermaksud jika sesuatu tindakan itu betul, takkanlah kita menidaknya hanya kerana takut dicop sebagai juak Umno? (Bagi saya, pihak pembangkang pada tempoh hari menampakkan betapa kecilnya jiwa mereka. Pakatan jelas menggelabah sebab usul pemansuhan ISA pasti akan mematah momentum 'Vote ABU'/ Anything But Umno yang giat dipupuk di kalangan pemilih bandar.) Jeneral keseorangan Zaid kena tempias lagi justeru mengumumkan KITA akan mengadakan 'Democracy roadshow' selama sebulan (Sept 27-Okt 26) ke seluruh pelusok negara — difahamkan roadshow tersebut untuk menerangkan dasar-dasar transformasi yang diperkenalkan Najib. Mungkin Zaid menyokong Najib kerana perdana menteri kelihatan agak keseorangan. Timbalannya Muhyiddin Yassin serta Menteri Dalam Negeri Hishamuddin Hussein kedua-duanya pun seolah-olah caught off guard, iaitu sendiri terperanjat dengan pengumuman tiba-tiba itu. Peristiwa ini mengingatkan saya kepada seperkara yang pernah disebut Khairy Jamaluddin sewaktu beliau berceramah di satu jamuan (dinner talk) anjuran kelab sukarelawan Haris 'SABM' Ibrahim pada bulan Disember lepas. [SABM itu Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia] Khairy telah memberitahu hadirin bahawa Najib kurang mendapat sokongan daripada orang kuat Umno serta jemaah menterinya sendiri untuk melaksanakan inisiatif-inisiatif 'transformasi' yang cuba dikemukakannya. Peranan Najib sebagai 'great reformer' ibarat seorang jeneral yang tidak diiringi leftenan mahupun askar. Berkenaan ISA, bukankah Pakatan seharusnya bersorak-sorai kerana pelupusan undang-undang itu yang sekian lama dituntut mereka akhirnya dipersetujui Najib jua. Akan tetapi Pakatan tidak menghargai benda besar ini sebaliknya meragam. Janji nak mansuh ISA pun Najib disergah pembangkang. Beliau tidak mengaut apa-apa keuntungan (bukannya dia boleh melebihkan undi sebab para penyokong Pakatan tidak akan beralih) manakala puak Malay ultra seperti Perkasa pula menggertak (rugi undi Umno). Mungkin kerana kesemua faktor-faktor di atas, maka perlunya Zaid memberikan sokongan setakat mana yang boleh kepada usaha menjayakan penghapusan ISA. Kalau bukan Zaid siapa lagi? 'Track record' menentang ISA
Pada hakikatnya, Zaid memang ada locus standi (mempunyai hak serta kena pada tempatnya) untuk menyumbangkan input beliau sebab dialah yang mempelopori kajian terperinci reformasi perundangan. Zaid yang memantau undang-undang penahanan pencegahan selaku Menteri Undang-Undang (lebih tepat, Menteri dalam Jabatan Perdana Menteri dengan memegang portfolio undang-undang) dalam kabinet Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. READ MORE HERE |
| DAP 2.0 in bind over hudud Posted: 25 Sep 2011 03:59 PM PDT 
The English idiom to describe the DAP predicament with regard to the hudud crisis is 'caught between a rock and a hard place'. In 2003, Hadi issued his party's Islamic state document which avowed: "The publication of this document is sufficient evidence to squash allegations made by its enemies that PAS will not establish an Islamic state… Verily the responsibility of establishing an Islamic state is as important as performing the daily obligatory rituals of Islam." Helen Ang, Free Malaysia Today MCA reacted immediately to the PAS hudud drive by announcing that it would withdraw from the Barisan Nasional if Umno ever implemented the Islamic law that prescribes mandatory punishment. Gerakan, the predominantly Chinese party, followed suit, saying: "Gerakan's political cooperation with Umno will be untenable and will likely end if the latter wishes to implement hudud…" Umno responded with its assurance that the government would not enforce hudud. Hmm, the jostling seems sorted on the establishment side. At least for the moment. Now let us take a peep at the opposition players who would be fielded for the Pakatan Rakyat big match on Wednesday. Anwar Ibrahim, the de facto electoral pact leader, and "God's Gift" to PKR, has been flip-flopping but then that is the mercurial man for you. PAS Youth chief Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi declared that hudud has been and always would be part of the party's Islamic state agenda. This guy is remarkably consistent. The mursyidul am or spiritual leader of PAS Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat is adamant that DAP is free to leave Pakatan if the party disagreed with Kelantan's intent to push ahead with hudud. You really don't have to ask about the rest in the PAS ulama camp such as Nasharuddin Mat Isa, Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, Harun Din and Hassan Ali. PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang will, of course, stay the course.
PAS Islamic state blueprint In 2003, Hadi issued his party's Islamic state document which avowed: "The publication of this document is sufficient evidence to squash allegations made by its enemies that PAS will not establish an Islamic state… Verily the responsibility of establishing an Islamic state is as important as performing the daily obligatory rituals of Islam." The 2003 Islamic state blueprint also promised: "Should PAS be mandated to govern Malaysia, God willing, an Islamic state as outlined in this document will be implemented to the best of our ability. Towards Victory. Allahu Akbar!" On the matter of hudud, the PAS document stated that Muslims are naturally subject to syariah – hudud, qisas and ta'zir – while non-Muslims are given the option of either syariah or "the current penal code of the land". Even the PAS progressives, dubbed the "Erdogan" faction', support hudud. Party vice-president Husam Musa was challenged by Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin in their one-on-one debate in December 2008 to state his stand. Responding to Khairy's challenge, Husam replied that "Yes", hudud would be implemented if Anwar's planned takeover of the government on Sept 16 had materialised. The PAS Islamic state document covers the area of supremacy of God's law, the khilafah (custodians who administer the state according to Islam's teachings), taqwa (god-fearing), shura (consultation), and al-'Adaalah wal Musaawah (justice and equality), among others. Among the main characteristics of an Islamic state, according to PAS, are obedience to religion, obedience to the state and adherence to the exhortation to enjoin good and forbid evil. 'Amar ma'aruf nahi mungkar' Aaah, "enjoining good and forbidding evil". The phrase that DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng made famous throughout the country with his constant use of it and even putting up its Arabic version "amar ma'aruf nahi mungkar" on big billboards all over Penang. Lim, having trumpeted to the length and breadth of the land that his administration was modelled after the Islamic governance of the celebrated Caliph Umar Abdul Aziz, would (one hopes) carry himself as someone respectful of Islamic norms, forms and aspirations. The old guard of the DAP such as "over my dead body" Karpal Singh and "compulsory tudung is unacceptable" Lim Kit Siang would not have hudud as they are sticking to the idea that Malaysia is secular. But DAP 2.0 itself treats Karpal and Kit Siang as if the duo are twin dinosaurs fossilised in outmoded pre-March 2008 thinking. DAP 2.0 has, on the contrary, rebranded and packaged "inclusiveness" to appeal to Malay voters. Yet very few Malays and Muslims would agree that ours is a truly secular country (but we'll leave that quarrel for another day). In the meantime, let's just see how the Muslim politicians and opinion leaders have tackled the hudud bombshell. Note that they are very careful in choosing their words.
Muslim views on hudud Former Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin said Malaysia is not ready for hudud but "it can be implemented if all the conditions are met and the situation, conducive". Nonetheless, he added that it is important now to create the required situation by making the people understand hudud and undertaking other preparations to lay the groundwork. Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin is again as forthright as he was previously in acknowledging the importance of the Malay identity to him. Muhyiddin acknowledges: "As a Muslim, I cannot reject hudud law. This is a fact from the Islamic law aspect but its implementation has become a subject of debate today." Fair enough, and honest of him to speak plainly. Muhyiddin said he does not question the need to implement hudud but Umno's stand is that in Malaysia we cannot implement it in the present situation. Observe that Muslim politicians on the BN side do not question hudud but skirt around its suitability given the circumstances of a sizeable non-Muslim population. Which is also essentially the contention employed by Umno vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who opined that Malaysia's multi-cultural setting makes it unsuitable for hudud law to be implemented here. Kita president Zaid Ibrahim once challenged the 1993 Kelantan hudud bill in court but he was similarly careful to observe only that it is at variance with the Federal Constitution. Zaid's legal argument goes that federal legislation alone allows certain corporal and capital punishments, such as hudud's amputation and death penalties. The states cannot enact their own separate penal code with such heavy punishments. Muslim leaders are most meticulous to appear not to directly criticise hudud. READ MORE HERE |
| Antara "Dajal" Dan Laut Dalam Posted: 25 Sep 2011 03:47 PM PDT 
The Scribe A Kadir Jasin DALAM bahasa Inggeris ada satu ungkapan yang berbunyi "between the devil and the deep blue sea". Diterjemahkan literal ke bahasa Melayu ia bererti di antara dajal dan laut dalam yang biru warnanya. Ia merujuk kepada dua pilihan saya sama besar ancamannya. Ungkapan ini tidak asing kepada kepemimpinan politik dan orang ramai yang berpendidikan Inggeris, tetapi mungkin dianggap kasar atau kesat oleh yang tidak biasa dengannya. Dalam konteks pilihan raya umum yang akan datang, apakah ini pilihan yang ada kepada kita? Boleh jadi kerana tanggapan umum terhadap orang politik begitu negatif maka jarang mereka mengaitkan orang politik dengan laut dalam yang biru airnya. Mereka lebih kerap mengaitkan politik dan orang politik dengan dajal. Maka diciptakan pula frasa yang berbunyi "it's better the devil know than the devil you don't" – lebih baik dajal yang kita kenali dengan yang tidak kita kenali. Di Barat yang kini menjadi "kiblat" politik ramai Melayu dan bukan Melayu liberal, mereka sangat tidak menyukai dan jarang sekali mempercayai orang politik. Jadi, jolokan "devil" itu kerap dirujukkan kepada mereka. Hatta seorang pembesar politik yang dikagumi kerana kehebatan tindak tanduk dan tipu-helahnya pun dikaitkan juga dengan dajal. Dia dikatakan "devilishly clever" – cerdik macam dajal. Pilihan Dalam PRU Akan Datang Jadi, menjelang PRU akan datang, apakah pilihan yang ada kepada pemilih di Malaysia – adakah di antara dajal dan laut dalam yang biru warnanya atau antara dajal yang mereka kenal dengan yang tidak mereka kenal? Minta dijauhkan Allah, pilihan yang akan dikemukakan kepada kita nanti hendaknya bukanlah dajal sebaliknya insan-insan yang boleh kita panggil pemimpin. Barisan Nasional/Perikatan telah menguasai politik Malaysia (Malaya) sejak Pilihan Raya Dewan Perundangan Malaya tahun 1955. Di kalangan parti-parti Pakatan Rakyat pula, hanya Pas mempunyai rekod yang lama mentadbir negeri. DAP dan PKR baru pada tahun 2008 berkongsi memerintah negeri. BN menjadi sangat lemah ketika pentadbiran Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Beliau menang besar pada PRU 2004 dan kalah teruk pada PRU 2008. Abdullah menjadi mangsa liberalisasi politik yang tidak terancang dan pembawa-larian pentadbirannya oleh beberapa kerat "insider" yang digelar Budak-Budak Tingkat Empat. Mereka terdiri daripada ahli keluarga, rakan-rakan dan pegawai-pegawai peribadi beliau. Mohd Najib Abdul Razak naik menjadi Perdana Menteri pada tahun 2009 apabila Abdullah dihambat keluar oleh gabungan bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, dan Naib Presiden kanan Umno masa itu, Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin. Atas sebab itu, Mohd Najib terpaksa berhati-hati apabila berurusan dengan Dr Mahathir dan Muhyiddin yang kini timbalan beliau merangkap Timbalan Presiden Umno. Abdullah cuba menjadikan "Islam Hadhari" wadah perjuangannya dan jatuh tersungkur. Hari ini, Islam Hadhari hampir-hampir tidak disebut lagi. Mohd Najib mempunyai jauh lebih banyak gagasan dan slogan. Daripada 1Malaysia kepada rakyat didahulukan, pencapaian diutamakan, Pelan Transformasi Kerajaan (GTP), Pelan Transformasi Ekonomi (ETP), Pemandu, KPI, NKRA dan pada malam menjelang Hari Malaysia 16 September lalu, memperkenalkan pula "cool factor" dengan mencadangkan pemansuhan Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (AKDN) serta beberapa akta polok yang lain. Banyak pihak menyindir dan menyelar retorik beliau, tetapi kerana kepandaian beliau dan "handlers" beliau memperkenalkan satu demi satu penjenamaan, rakyat jelata keliru dan akhirnya lupa janji-janji yang belum ditunaikan atau gagal pelaksanaannya sebaliknya gembira dengan janji-janji baru yang diperkenalkan satu demi satu. Injit-Injit Semut Mohd Najib Ada kalanya beliau memaksa pembangkang menari mengikut rentak beliau dan ada masanya rentak tarian beliau sama dengan rentak pembangkang. Apabila beliau menguar-uarkan "package" liberalisasi politik yang termasuk pemansuhan AKDN, rentak beliau sama dengan rentak pembangkang sekian lama berkempen menghapuskan Akta itu. Tetapi, pokok pangkalnya Mohd Najib, Umno dan BN akan diadili mengikut kriteria yang lebih asas dan fundamental seperti prestasi ekonomi, kenaikan kos sara hidup, pengangguran, kadar jenayah dan isu-isu harian. Pemansuhan AKDN mungkin mempopularkan Perdana Menteri di kalangan pengundi minoriti Cina dan India, tetapi akan menimbulkan masalah di kalangan pengundi majoriti Melayu yang selama lebih 40 menjadi penyokong kuat ISA. Jentera BN meramalkan prestasi baik pada PRU akan datang, termasuk menawan semula Selangor. Kalau keyakinan ini ada asasnya, ia bukanlah kerana BN telah menjadi lebih kuat, tetapi kerana PR menjadi lebih lemah. Perkembangan dalam parti-parti PR dan di antara mereka memberi gambaran wujudnya masalah ideologi, dasar dan pendekatan yang luas. Tarik tali antara Pas dan DAP mengenai Negara Islam/Hukum Hudud lawan sekularisme tidak membantu memperkukuhkan PR manakala isu kesinambungan kepemimpinan terumbang ambil akibat kes mahkamah ketua mereka, Anwar Ibrahim. Keceloparan Timbalan Presiden baru Pas, Mohamad Sabu, membantu Umno kerana ramai anggota pasukan bersenjata dan perasanya marah kepada Pas. Undi pos polis dan tentera sudah dalam tangan BN. Tetapi dengan mencadangkan pemansuhan ISA, Mohd Najib mungkin melukakan perasaan kelompok yang sama yang mengorbankan nyawa dan jasad mempertahankan negara daripada keganasan komunis dan pelampau-pelampau lain. READ MORE HERE |
| Hudud dan Kelantan Posted: 25 Sep 2011 03:34 PM PDT 
Perlembagaan negara telah menyatakan dengan jelas bahawa di bawah Artikel 8 (5) bahawa hak sama-rata tidak boleh diguna-pakai. Sebagai contoh, jika orang Islam yang mempunyai hubungan seks dengan persetujuan orang bukan Islam, maka dia akan menghadapi tindakan manakala rakan bukan Islam akan terlepas dan dibebaskan. Aziz Bari, Harakah Daily Selepas melawat Kelantan dan memberi taklimat kepada Menteri Besar Kelantan Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, semalam serta mendengar sentimen daripada akar umbi, saya kini boleh meluahkan perkara berikut; yang masyarakat di luar Kelantan tidak boleh menghargai.
Saya akui bahawa apa yang saya lihat dan dengar semasa lawatan singkat itu telah mengubah perspektif saya mengenai isu berkenaan.
1. Hudud adalah tuntutan/hasrat rakyat Kelantan. Tok Guru berada di bawah tekanan dan saya fikir mereka sanggup mengadakan referendum atau pungutan suara bagi tujuan itu. (Penulis rencana, Profesor Dr Abdul Aziz Bari)
Berdasarkan sentimen ini, pemimpin Umno di Kelantan mengutuk Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak kerana menolak hukum hudud yang secara tidak langsung membawa makna Umno boleh gulung tikar di negeri itu.
2. Seminar yang dianjurkan itu bukanlah sesuatu yang baru, saya pernah menjadi ahli panel untuk acara Hari Hudud pada tahun-tahun sebelumnya. Ini adalah program tahunan walaupun sebelum Pakatan diwujudkan.
Bagaimanapun bagi tahun ini, media-media milik Umno telah memutar-belitkan isu itu atas sebab-sebab yang jelas: pilihan raya dan berharap ia dapat mengkucar-kacirkan Pakatan. Sebelum ini, Umno langsung tidak mempedulikan Hari Hudud.
3. Tetapi saya berpendapat Najib membuat langkah yang salah. Dengan menolak pelaksanaan hukum hudud, beliau berfikiran bahawa boleh mendapatkan sokongan dan undi masyarakat bukan Islam.
Tetapi Tok Guru bukan bodoh. Mereka mempunyai laman facebook sendiri dan berdasrkan yang diterima, PAS yakin bahawa Umno kini tergugat atau terdedah di kawasan Melayu/Islam. Berdasarkan sambutan di Facebook, tidak ada jaminan bahawa mereka akan mendapat undi bukan Islam. DAP juga membuat kesilapan di sini. Untuk Islam dan di Kelantan sahaja
 4. Tok Guru telah menyatakan dengan jelas: hudud adalah hanya untuk Kelantan sahaja dan untuk orang bukan Islam. Jadi apa masalah?
Saya telah berkata bahawa dari segi perlembagaan negara, ini tidak ada masalah. Masalahnya adalah dengan pengerusi DAP Karpal Singh dan parti itu yang yang berpegang pada keputusan mahkamah yang hakim itu sendiri - Tun Salleh Abas - mendakwa berlaku kesilapan.
Dan juga, apa yang DAP perkatakan bukan sahaja merupakan satu pandangan yang hanya betul. Ia hanya pendapat. Tidak ada kebenaran mutlak dalam hal ini.
Perkara yang paling penting untuk difahami adalah bahawa perlembagaan tidak melarang pemakaian undang-undang Islam. Malah Najib sendiri mengakui perkara itu sudah ada dalam sistem sekarang. Kini, PAS boleh berkata kepada PM: lakukannya.
5. Najib seolah-olah mengulangi apa yang saya katakan selama ini; bahawa unsur-unsur hudud sudah ada dalam sistem di negara ini.
Persoalannya jika demikian, mengapa menentang PAS berhubung isu itu? Umno sepatutnya membantu dan bukannya menjadi halangan. Atas alasan itu, saya katakan Umno berada dalam bahaya kehilangan undi orang Melayu beragama Islam dalam usaha mereka merayu mendapatkan sokongan masyarakat bukan Islam.
Dan masyarakat bukan Islam tidak semestinya mempercayai apa yang dilaporkan oleh media mereka setakat ini. Cuba perhatikan apa yang PAS akan lakukan mulai hari ini berhubung isu berkenaan. Tidak ubah dasar Pakatan
6. Tidak timbul persoalan mengubah dasar Pakatan, seperti yang didakwa oleh Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang, Lim Guan Eng yang juga adalah setiausaha agung DAP.
Hukum hudud adalah hanya untuk Kelantan dan untuk umat Islam. Malah di Kedah, PAS mempunyai dasar yang berbeza. Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Razak tegas berkata hukum hudud tidak akan dilaksanakan di negeri pimpinan PAS itu.
 Nampaknya DAP cuba membuktikan bahawa mereka mendahului MCA dan Gerakan dalam usaha menentang hudud. Mereka terlepas pandang hakikat bahawa Nik Aziz hanya mendengar dan bertindak mengikut sentimen akar umbi di negeri itu.
Yang DAP lihat dari perspektif ini - sama seperti Umno, MCA dan Gerakan - mengambil pendekatan tidak demokratik. Mereka menolak hudud walaupun ia tuntutan orang ramai dan permintaan seumpama itu dibenarkan oleh perlembagaan.
Di Kelantan, PAS dengan yakin mengisytiharkan bahawa mandat untuk memerintah termasuk mandat untuk melaksanakan hudud. Jadi, pada dasarnya, ini adalah mengenai menghormati permintaan ramai dan bukannya semata-mata melaksanakan hukum hudud atau mengkhianati rakan-rakan Pakatan.
Kita harus ingat bahawa permintaan hudud di Kelantan dilakukan melalui saluran demokrasi. Ini adalah apa yang Umno, DAP, MCA dan Gerakan perlu sentiasa ingat.
7. Saya bersetuju dengan Tok Guru bahawa tiada perubahan dalam sistem atau di dalam polisi. Ia hanya melakukan sesuatu yang boleh didapati dalam kerangka sistem sedia ada . Tetapi sudah tentu beliau menyedari bahawa ini hanya boleh menjadi kenyataan dengan kerjasama dari Umno.
Akta Mahkamah Syariah yang akan mengekang kuasa mahkamah syariah selama ini perlu dimansuhkan dan juga bagi membolehkan agensi-agensi persekutuan seperti polis dan sebagainya menjalankan tugas mereka di sisi undang-undang.
Jika Umno menolak melakukan ini, maka PAS boleh mencanangkan perkara ini ke seluruh negara bagi mendedahkan tembelang sebenar Umno. Selama ini, Umno telah melakukan pelbagai perkara untuk membuktikan bahawa mereka adalah pembela dan pejuang Islam yang sebenar. Antara contohnya, seperti serbuan gereja di Selangor, isu kepala lembu dan sebagainya.
Apabila Najib menolak hukum hudud, beliau sebenarnya telah merosakkan semua kerja keras parti dan ahli-ahli Umno lakukan selama ini.
8. Saya fikir PAS bersedia bertarung pada pilihan raya umum akan datang tanpa DAP. Mereka masih mempunyai PKR dan Dewan Phimpun Penyokong PAS (DHPP) mereka sendiri.
Saya tidak pasti jika DAP, MCA dan Gerakan benar-benar mewakili masyarakat bukan Islam. Masalah dengan parti-parti Cina adalah kerana mereka berfikiran hudud tidak boleh diterima meskipun perlembagaan tidak menyatakan demikian.
Golongan berkecuali atau atas pagar di kalangan masyarakat bukan Islam saya fikir adalah rasional, mereka tidak bimbang, khususnya selepas Tok Guru memberi jaminan bahawa hukum hudud akan hanya dilaksanakan di Kelantan dan untuk umat Islam sahaja.
9. Umat Islam liberal? Undang-undang adalah jelas. Malah, sekarang pun, mereka tertakluk kepada undang-undang Islam. Mereka tidak mempunyai hak untuk memilih apa undang-undang.
Perlembagaan negara telah menyatakan dengan jelas bahawa di bawah Artikel 8 (5) bahawa hak sama-rata tidak boleh diguna-pakai. Sebagai contoh, jika orang Islam yang mempunyai hubungan seks dengan persetujuan orang bukan Islam, maka dia akan menghadapi tindakan manakala rakan bukan Islam akan terlepas dan dibebaskan.
10. Nik Aziz berkata, beliau ingin cuba melaksanakan hukum hudud di Kelantan sekarang kerana majoriti umat Islam di negeri itu telah memberikannya mandat. Negeri-negeri lain, katanya, hanya perlu menunggu dan melihat bagaimana Kelantan melakukannya. Jika ia 'baik' dan berjaya, mereka boleh melakukan perkara yang sama.
11. NGO seperti kumpulan pendesak Melayu, PERKASA, Pembela Islam dan yang lain perlu menyokong Kelantan dalam isu ini. Jika tidak, mereka menghadapi risiko dilabel sebagai boneka atau barua Umno semata-mata. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Penulis adalah profesor undang-undang perlembagaan dari Universiti Islam Antarabangsa. Tulisan awal telah disiarkan dalam Malaysiakini. |
| Private sector retirement age to go up Posted: 25 Sep 2011 02:42 PM PDT 
By G. Manimaran, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 — Private sector employees will be allowed to work until they are 64, with a minimum mandatory retirement age of 60 under a new law being drafted by the government. The Private Sector Retirement Age Act will mandate retirement at 60, with an option for a four-year extension. "This means that the retirement age will be raised from 55 to 60. A technical committee has met two or three times with the last coming just before Hari Raya," Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) secretary-general Abdul Halim Mansor told The Malaysian Insider. The Malaysian Insider understands that the change, which will benefit six million workers, will also require an amendment to the Employment and Employees Provident Fund Acts. It is also understood that except for one employers' representative, there has been unanimous agreement on the proposal. Although the matter is being refined by the technical committee, Halim said the MTUC wants the welfare and benefits of employees to be given priority. "We ask the government to take into account the shortcomings of the Employment Act when laws on private sector retirement age are introduced," he said. READ MORE HERE. |
| Materialistic society paying a high price for choosing status over their needs Posted: 25 Sep 2011 01:26 PM PDT (The Star): Despite the rising cost of living, Malaysian consumers identify strongly with expensive branded products, said the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca). Its chief executive officer Datuk Paul Selvaraj said instead of buying cheaper in-house brands, consumers opt for branded items that are usually more expensive. "This shows we have become a materialistic society," he said during The Star's "Protect Our Pockets" roundtable on the rising cost of living on Tuesday. He said Malaysians have become obsessed with brands until they overlook cheaper price items which they think have less quality. "Appearances have become more important than substance. They buy a car not because it could bring them from one place to another but to make them feel better. "It is about our value system. One example is buying a Honda City when they can only afford a Perodua Kancil," said Selvaraj. Other panellists at the roundtable were Malaysian Retailers-Chains Associations secretary-general Valerie Choo, Carrefour marketing communications (Singapore and Malaysia) director Low Ngai Yuen, Pemandu director of National Key Result Areas and National Key Economic Areas D. Ravindran, Pemandu senior manager Philip See and The Star's executive editor Datuk Wong Sai Wan. Wong added that the basic rule of smart consumerism was spending within one's means and being mindful of consumption. "You can come out with all sorts of formulae, but you must spend less than you earn. Everyone should also set aside at least 30% of their earnings for emergencies," he said. Choo concurred, adding that: "Financial planning is more than just an ability to manage money but a value that is inculcated at a young age." She added that parents play a vital role as role models for their children on the importance of savings. |
| Is MCA In Better Position To Face General Election? Posted: 25 Sep 2011 01:05 PM PDT (Bernama) -- Come Oct 2, the MCA will hold its 58th Annual General Meeting (AGM), an important general assembly to be attended by party members and delegates, before it heads towards the 13th General Election (GE). No doubt, the second largest Barisan Nasional (BN) component is more stable and its leadership more focused on efforts to rebuild the party after two turbulent years, following the party's worst-ever performance in the last general election in 2008.
However, questions abound as to whether the MCA is really in a better position to face the next general election.
Party grassroots leaders such as Selangor MCA Public Complaints Bureau chairman Datuk Theng Book believes this is so.
He reasoned that people are generally satisfied that MCA is more stable and accomodating under current party president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek's leadership.
"So far, I have not met anyone complain about Dr Chua. They are quite OK, with the people saying he is capable. He has done his part, now it is up to the Chinese community to decide. I personally feel, under the current situation, when the party is facing internal and external threats, he (Dr Chua) is the best person to handle (such situations).
"We are not saying that under (Tan Sri) Ong Ka Ting, it was not okay. Under the current situation, Dr Chua is the best person to handle (whatever pressing issues) while the immediate past president (Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat) was more acting like the opposition," he said.
Ka Ting was MCA president from 2006 until October 2008 while Tee Keat was at the party helm from October 2008 until March last year before he was succeeded by Dr Chua, through a fresh party election to end the leadership crisis.
Theng Book said there was no logic to the notion that MCA would be wiped out in the next GE as the fact remained that opposition party DAP could not accept the more Islamisation approach taken by PAS, their partner in the opposition pact.
"If anyone says that MCA is going to close shop in the next election (GE), that person is either a supporter or member of the opposition party. If you look at what they have done, so far, in some states under their control, many people are also frustrated as they were given false hopes," he said.
Political analyst Dr Chin Yew Sing, who heads the Oriental Strategy Research centre, a think-tank under the Federation of Chinese Associations of Malaysia (Huazhong), also believed the party was in a better position to face the next GE.
He said MCA had become more agressive and vocal in voicing out issues related to the Chinese community.
"Whether it can be solved or not, is another matter, altogether. People know that issues can't be resolved overnight. Whether MCA is effective or not, also very much depends on how Barisan Nasional handles the issues. BN lost in 2008, not because of the opposition, but because of themselves," he said.
However, he said, MCA and BN were now seen to be working together to address some issues such as corruption, crimes and human rights issues, as well as funding for Chinese schools, as the government had introduced transformation plans.
Centre for Strategic Engagement (CENSE) co-founder Rita Sim said MCA appeared to be more stable under its "war time president" Dr Chua, who had come up with several good initiatives such as 1MCA medical fund and 1MCA scholarship, targeted at ordinary people.
"He works very hard on the ground. Whether it works or not, no one can be sure until the next general election. Certainly, if they (MCA) don't do anything, it would be even worse. MCA has wasted a lot of time due to the internal fighting," she said, adding that MCA's performance also depended on issues the voters faced near the election, as well as the mood of the voters at the time of the election.
However, Monash University political analyst Dr James Chin does not believe the MCA is in a better position to face the GE as the party still faced internal problems, but concealed the split by presenting a united front in the run-up to the GE.
"Although Dr Chua is seen to be moving on the ground and trying his best to revive the party, the bigger issue is how to select candidates for the general election. The split is still there.
"I believe the split will surface again when many are jockeying and lobbying for seats, closer to the election," he said.
Not only that, he said, MCA was facing difficulties to win back the tough urban constituencies which were known to be opposition strongholds as the party still suffered negative perception.
Meanwhile, (Rita) Sim pointed out the urban seats had always been difficult for MCA, but believed, should BN be able to improve the result even by a small margin, it would favour the coalition in the overall result.
"Even during the best years, the level of support for MCA in these seats was only between 35-38 per cent. During Pak Lah's (former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) 'feel good' general election in 2004, the support even went below 30 per cent. Now, it is only about 20-25 per cent.
"If they (MCA) can get back between four and five per cent, the result will certainly be better as many seats were lost, with the majority of less than 2,000 votes. If you can cut opposition support by between four and five per cent in these constituencies, it could tip the balance," she said.
The focus is not just on the Chinese voters, but also on Indian and Malay voters as a little increase of support from these two groups would contribute to better results for BN.
Another analyst, Khaw Veon Szu, explained there was no political party that could consolidate its members 100 per cent.
"If you can get 60-70 per cent, it is considered very good as you can do a lot of things."
Nevertheless, there are some political analysts who believe MCA is not getting the right approach.
A Penang-based political analyst at the Han Chiang College, Datuk Chech See Kian, believes that MCA fights for party survival, instead of focusing on the people's aspirations.
"For example, when they said MCA leaders would not take up Cabinet posts if they lost in the next general election...this is not good. You have to tell the people that you want to do more, not just maintain the status-quo. MCA must change its strategy, to be more sincere and focus on the people. Put the people first, not the party," he reasoned. |
| Hiccup at TGA, not end of SNAP Posted: 25 Sep 2011 12:51 PM PDT By Joseph Tawie, FMT KUCHING: Just out from an eight year political turmoil, Sarawak National Party is hit by yet another 'crisis' that forced the party's highest decision-making body, the central executive committee (CEC), to postpone its triennial general assembly (TGA) at the last minute. The TGA and the party's presidential polls was scheduled to have been held yesterday morning. Four days ago SNAP received a letter from peninsular-based People's Progressive Party (PPP) saying that presidential candidate Michael Lias was a member. SNAP's constitution does not allow for double memberships. Also Lias is currently a member of SNAP's CEC, the party's highest decision-making body. The disclosure threatened the polls. To preserve the intergrity of the presidential election, the CEC decided to postpone Sunday's TGA and polls to a later date. Explaining the situation, out-going SNAP president Edwin Dundang said: "We received a letter on Sept 22 from PPP saying that Michael Lias, who has offered himself as a contender for the post of president of SNAP is its member. "We don't want to deny him the right to contest, but we have to be very clear regarding his status in the party and to be fair to him and to the party, we give him a show cause letter and should come back to us within 30 days to answer and to clarify. "While waiting for all this, the CEC gives itself 60 days to organise the TGA. I hope this will give us a good breathing space," he said. Dundang said that Article 3 of the party constitution clearly stated that the party will never accept anyone who is known to be a member of other political party or someone who is known to be bankrupt or someone who has been jailed. He said: "If you are a member of SNAP and are found to be a member of other political party, you are deemed to have resigned from SNAP. "But if you are to rejoin SNAP, you need to reapply, and this has been the precedent and the case in the past. "Michael has been sitting as CEC member since 2009, because we did not know that he is a member of PPP," he said. Not a PPP member Lias however is insisting that he is no longer a PPP member. On his part, Lias has submitted a statutory declaration to SNAP stating that he did join PPP on Sept 14, 2009 as an ordinary member but had ceased to be a member as his yearly membership had been duly expired and was never renewed. READ MORE HERE. |
| Taking the fight to enemy territory Posted: 25 Sep 2011 12:31 PM PDT By Zainal Epi, FMT KUALA LUMPUR: Najib Tun Razak is on the offensive – the prime minister has gone down to the grassroots to make his case and at the same hitting out at the opposition. For the last two years, he has borne the brunt of the opposition onslaught on him – ranging from his personal life to the policies he had mooted and implemented.
Now he is taking the battle to the enemy territory and his intense "campaigning" has sparked strong speculation that the 13th general election is just around the corner.
Since taking over the helm of the nation in April 2009 from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Najib had straightened out and strengthened Umno, the backbone of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN).
The party has postponed its election this year to next year, a move aimed at staying united before the next general election. In many past instances, Umno has always been plagued with internal feud immediately after the party elections.
With Umno now united and strong, Najib feels more confident to lead the party in the "political war" against Pakatan Rakyat. Already, he has set his mind on taking back Selangor despite the state Umno being divided into three factions – each wanting its leader to be the next menteri besar if the Barisan Nasional succeeds.
Najib is not about to announce who he would pick to head the state if BN succeeds, as this would create more division and disgruntlement. Although Umno appears to be united, any wrong move by the prime minister could create unnecessary rift.
However, Najib's main worry is still the Chinese-based parties in the ruling coalition – MCA and Gerakan.
Worries for Najib
MCA under Dr Chua Soi Lek has been making all the appropriate noises in its bid to champion the Chinese cause, at times taking on a racial overtone. But the party has yet to regain the confidence of the Chinese community.
The Chinese abandoned the party in 2008 and until today it has yet to return, which is causing a lot of worries to Najib.
Hence, Najib is going to war in Selangor with only Umno following him while MCA leaders can only show moral support without the backing of the Chinese community.
MCA won only two state seats in Selangor in 2008 and has yet to recover from its devastating show. Najib expects MCA to do its work fast as the momentum for the coming general election picks up.
Najib needs Chinese votes to carry him through his plan to wrest back Selangor but MCA is not making things easier for him.
Gerakan, on the other hand, is a lost cause. The party has yet to pick up the pieces since it lost Penang and all the seats it contested in the 2008 general election.
To help Najib in the "Selangor offensive" is out of the question. Gerakan is currently facing internal turmoil, with members calling on their president Koh Ksu Koon to step down.
The internal feud in Gerakan is not about to end anytime soon or in the near future, thus putting the party out of action in the Selangor offensive.
Core issue
Umno and its BN partners have still not got over the 2008 electoral whacking it received from Pakatan allies – PAS, DAP and PKR – which grabbed Penang, Kedah, Perak and Selangor, and retained Kelantan. It also nearly took Negri Sembilan.
However, BN succeeded in taking back Perak when three Pakatan assemblymen crossed over to become independents. But the defections did not mean the voters have swung back to the BN camp. It is only the assemblymen who came over, and not the voters. READ MORE HERE. |
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
