Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- 70% rakyat Selangor sokong Umno-PAS bergabung
- Karpal vindicated by FMT poll
- Remembering Istana Bukit Serene and Mr Douglas Gomez
- Hindraf doubts Najib’s sincerity
- Karpal: Three-man team to decide DAP election candidates
- UMNO sudah kehilangan hidayah
- Pahang mahu ihsan atau royalti 20 peratus?
- SapuraKencana moves to next level
- ‘Spent force’ Zaid should retire
- Freedom of religion only for non-Muslims: Masing
- Labis is where MCA’s haunted past may cause a GE13 disaster
- Freedom to choose religion equals changing faith, says Umno sec-gen
- DPM: We’ll continue to help Chinese schools
- PM hands out RM563mil to Felda households
- Religion is something personal
- Remembering the 2007 Bersih rally
- SIS: Recognise freedom to change faith
| 70% rakyat Selangor sokong Umno-PAS bergabung Posted: 10 Nov 2012 12:28 AM PST Berdasarkan satu kajian yang dijalankan majoriti penduduk negeri ini yang berbilang kaum mahu dua parti itu mengenepikan perbezaan politik. Jamilah Kamarudin, FMT Sebanyak 70 peratus rakyat Selangor bersetuju supaya Umno dan PAS bergabung bagi tujuan mempertahankan agama Islam dan kepentingan Melayu. Bekas Setiausaha PAS Selangor Norman Toha, kajian yang dijalankan sebuah agensi perunding menunjukkan majoriti penduduk Selangor yang berbilang kaum mahu dua parti itu mengenepikan perbezaan politik dan bergabung tenaga. "Kalau mengikut kaji selidik yang dibuat sekitar Mac 2012, 70 peratus penduduk mengharapkan satu kerjasama yang baik antara PAS dan Umno untuk mempertahankan Melayu-Islam," katanya dalam sidang media selepas mengadakan wacana 'Mengembalikan PAS ke Landasan Asal' pagi tadi di Hotel Vistana di sini hari ini. Wacana tersebut menurut Norman dianjurkan atas inisiatif individu ahli PAS yang mahu suara rungutan mereka diberikan perhatian. Katanya, peserta wacana itu terdiri daripada pemimpin dan penyokong akar umbi yang mahu memberikan pandangan serta luahan tentang kecelaruan hala tuju parti yang semakin tersasar daripada perjuangan asal. Resolusi wacana Wacana tersebut juga berjaya mencapai 11 resolusi yang mengandungi desakan supaya parti dan pemimpin PAS kembali kepada landasan Islam yang sebenar. "Mungkin kita akan ajukan resolusi ini kepada pemimpin tertinggi dalam masa tersekat. "Harapan kami supaya mereka (pemimpin PAS) agak terbuka menerima pandangan peringkat akar umbi yang sebenarnya sudah lama disuarakan," katanya. Sebelas resolusi tersebut adalah:
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| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 12:16 AM PST The poll carried out by FMT revealed overwhelming support for the DAP chairman's 'one man-one seat proposal'. Athi Shankar, FMT DAP national chairman Karpal Singh is vindicated by overwhelming public support for his "one man-one seat" proposal as indicated by a FMT poll. He said the news portal poll showed that his proposal had caught the public's imagination as it had become a major political issue of national interest. The FMT poll on "Do you agree with Karpal Singh's 'one candidate-one seat' policy?" showed 2,037 or 78% out of 2,622 readers, who voted as of today (Saturday) backing the formula. Another 499 readers or 19% did not support it while 86 or three percent voters were unsure. "The people overwhelmingly supported the 'one man – one seat' proposal. I feel vindicated," Karpal told reporters during his Bukit Gelugor parliamentary constituency visit here today. Asked on party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng's call on members not to discuss the issue in public, he concurred that the public debate should be laid to rest for now. But he conceded that it would be difficult and improper to control the public, especially party members, from airing their views on an issue of such importance. "The FMT poll showed it has become a major public interest issue," he noted. Currently, DAP had nine double seat elected representatives, both as MP and assemblyperson. Apart from Lim, who is Bagan MP and Air Putih assemblyman, Penang has executive councillor and party state chairman Chow Kon Yeow as Tanjung MP and Padang Kota assemblyman and Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy as Batu Kawan MP and Prai assemblyman. Perak had party's state chairman Ngeh Koo Ham as Beruas MP and Sitiawan assemblyman and secretary Nga Kor Ming as Taiping MP and Pantai Remis assemblyman. Selangor's executive councillor and party chairman Teresa Kok is Seputeh MP and Kinrara assemblyperson while DAP's Negeri Sembilan chairman and Youth chief Anthony Loke Siew Fook is Rasah MP and Lobak assemblyman. In Sarawak, there are Sibu MP and Bukit Assek assemblyman Wong Ho Leng and Bandar Kuching MP and Kota Sentosa assemblyman Chong Chieng Jen. CEC approved the formula Karpal also revealed that the party's central executive committee (CEC) had delegated its power to a three-man special committee to ultimately decide on the "one man – one seat" issue and its exemptions, and choice of candidates for each constituency.
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| Remembering Istana Bukit Serene and Mr Douglas Gomez Posted: 09 Nov 2012 11:46 PM PST  REST STOP THOUGHTS When I was a child growing up in Johor, my parents sometimes took the whole family for a picnic lunch in the gardens off Istana Bukit Serene in Johor Bahru. After eating, my brother and I would peer through the steel bars which surrounded the palace grounds and wonder whether princes had spiders which fought as well as those in our matchboxes. When I took driving lessons, my instructor told me never to overtake any car owned by or driven by a royal. He said if I didn't take his advice, tragic things could happen to me and my family. He said that it wasn't just about royals acting directly; he said royals also acted through the police and government officials, who wouldn't dare disobey them. The former Sultan of Johor had a colourful background. In 1977, when he was Raja Muda, he was convicted of "culpable homicide not amounting to murder." He was fined RM6,000 and sentenced to jail for 6 months. (He was pardoned). In 1983, when he was Sultan and a candidate for Agung, he was alleged to have said that when he became Agung he would declare an emergency and rule directly, bypassing the government. The Sultan's threat wasn't unthinkable. At that stage in our history, Chief Ministers of 2 states had to quit because their state's rulers wouldn't accept them. The Chief Minister of Johor, Othman Saat, was one of them. The government's response to the Sultan's threat was to take away from the Agung the power to declare an emergency and grant that power to the Prime Minister (Dr Mahathir). In 1992, the Sultan physically abused Mr Douglas Gomez, hockey coach of Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar, at Istana Bukit Serene. Mr Gomez was alleged to have acted disrespectfully. This is what transpired before Mr Gomez was summoned to the Istana on 30 November:
There was a public outcry over the assault on Mr Gomez and over the buckling of the state education director under the pressure placed upon him by the palace. The government, under the leadership of Dr Mahathir, decided to curb the powers of the Rulers.
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| Hindraf doubts Najib’s sincerity Posted: 09 Nov 2012 05:57 PM PST
(FMT) -- Hindraf has cast aspersions on the sincerity of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's invitation to hold a discussion. The premier's courtship, said Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy, had not left the movement flushed with excitement as it could be related to the coming general election. "We are not exactly excited about this invitation but we have decided to give him the benefit of doubt," he told reporters here. He said the invitation had come late on the part of the government since the Indian poor had been marginalised for decades. Waythamoorthy also urged Najib to lift the ban on Hindraf imposed by his predecessor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's administration. "It does not make sense for the prime minister to meet leaders of a banned organisation. "There is no timeline on when it should be lifted but of course we would like for the ban to be lifted as soon as possible," he added. Hindraf had become a foul word during Abdullah's tenure after the movement staged a massive street protest in 2007, which was seen as the catalyst for the following year's political tsunami. Meanwhile, Waythamoorthy also called on Najib to shed his "current box of thinking" in order to facilitate meaningful discussions between them. "He must be able to come far with us to consider our suggested solutions which are permanent, comprehensive and practical," he added. On Aug 29, Hindraf made open requests to both Najib and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim to hold discussions on finding solutions to the long-standing problems plaguing the Indian poor. Anwar responded first and talks between them had started, with more meetings in the pipeline. On a related matter, Waythamoorty said Hindraf would unveil its five-year blueprint to bring the Indian poor into the mainstream of national development on Nov 25. This would be its prioritised plan as derived from its 18-point demand given originally to the government in August 2007. Asked for a preview of the blueprint, Waythamoorty said he was not in a position to reveal its contents but gave an example of the condition of 350,000 stateless Indians in Malaysia. "The solution would be for anyone born in Malaysia from Aug 31, 1957 onwards to be declared as citizens of Malaysia. "A statutory declaration by those involved should be sufficient for the National Registration Department (NRD) to issue them with a blue identity card," he added.
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| Karpal: Three-man team to decide DAP election candidates Posted: 09 Nov 2012 03:02 PM PST
(NST) - All DAP candidates appointed to contest in the coming general election will now be decided by a three-man team. Party national chairman Karpal Singh, advisor Lim Kit Siang and secretary general Lim Guan Eng form the three team members. "we will look into all recommendations of candidates and then endorse it," Karpal said at a press conference in Air Itam adding that the trio were delegated the task by the central executive committee. Karpal also said he would want the discussion on the single seat single candidate policy to put to rest. |
| Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:48 PM PST  Oleh kerana pimpinan UMNO kurang berkemampuan untuk berfikir, kali ini biar rakyat yang memikirkannya dan kita lihat apa yang mereka (rakyat) lakukan tidak lama lagi dalam pilihanraya nanti. Dalam politik, persepsi rakyat itulah yang menjadi penentu samada parti itu kekal kukuh atau dilontarkan jauh-jauh oleh rakyat. Sebenarnya UMNO sememangnya sudah patut diketepikan lama dahulu kerana isu besar yang telah menyakitkan rakyat begitu banyak di hadapan mata kita. Aspan Alias Masalah UMNO ialah masalah yang diwujudkan olehnya sendiri. Tengku Adnan Mansor berkata, sebenarnya UMNO itu tidak ada masalah, hanya parti itu menghadapi masalah persepsi sahaja. Kata-kata Setiausaha Agong UMNO ini menampakkan satu fenomena, iaitu parti itu benar-benar terasa masalah-masalah yang dihadapi oleh parti itu. Hishamudin, Menteri Dalam Negeri, juga pernah berkata persepsi buruk itu telah berjaya di tempelkan kepada UMNO dan semua sekutu nya dalam BN oleh pihak-pihak yang berkempentingan. Komen saya senang sahaja. Untuk satu-satunya persepsi itu melekat kepada UMNO itu mesti ada sebabnya. Persepsi-persepsi buruk terhadap UMNO itu bukannya wujud dengan sekelip mata dan ia tidak wujud dengan senang sahaja. Ia tentunya wujud di atas isu yang 'real' dan nyata. Jika isu terhadap UMNO ini tidak 'real' bagaimana persepsi buruk itu boleh melekat dan menjadi 'stigma' yang tidak dapat ditanggalkan lagi dengan parti yang telah memerintah sejak merdeka dahulu. Dalam politik, persepsi rakyat itulah yang menjadi penentu samada parti itu kekal kukuh atau dilontarkan jauh-jauh oleh rakyat. Sebenarnya UMNO sememangnya sudah patut diketepikan lama dahulu kerana isu besar yang telah menyakitkan rakyat begitu banyak di hadapan mata kita. Tetapi semasa itu rakyat belum lagi menyedari yang perubahan itu adalah elemen penting untuk berlaku di dalam sesebuah negara yang telah matang dan lama bebas memerintah sendiri. UMNO kini sedang dikaitkan oleh rakyat dengan senarai-senarai negatif yang terlalu banyak sehinggakan parti itu telah dipersepsikan sebagai sebuah parti yang bermasalah besar. UMNO telah membiarkan segala perkara buruk untuk berlaku di dalamnya kerana pimpinan parti itu sejak 30 tahun dahulu tidak menghiraukan isu mempertahankan imej yang baik dengan serius. Pucuk pimpinan negara dalam tiga dekad yang lalu lebih mementingkan kehendak peribadi mereka sahaja dan tidak mengangkat jari untuk membetulkannya. Tetapi apabila masalah sudah menjadi besar barulah pimpinan UMNO bergegas untuk memperbaikinya dan usaha ini sudah terlalu lambat kerana yang hendak menyelesaikan masalah-masalah ini adalah dikalangan mereka yang terbabit dengan isu-isu yang besar dalam negara sekarang ini. Persepsi buruk bukan datang dengan saja-saja. Misalnya bagaimana hendak menolak persepsi buruk terhadap kerajaan dalam isu NFC misalnya. Tidak payah kita melarutkan isu ini oleh kerana semua orang sudah memahami tentang isu ini. Bukankah isu pembinaan stesen LRT Ampang itu merupakan isu penyelewengan yang 'real'? bagaimana rakyat tidak terbentuk persepsi buruk terhadap pimpinan kita kerana jelas-jelasnya harganya yang ditambah terhadap kontrak pembinaan stesyen itu mencecah hampir RM1billion? Isu PKFZ yang melibatkan RM12 billion, kerugian perdagangan wang antarabangsa yang di lakukan oleh Nor Mohamad Yakcop atas arahan Dr Mahathir yang melibatkan kerugian RM30 billion dan banyak lagi isu yang sangat besar berlaku di hadapan mata kepala kita. Isu pembotakkan hutan yang dilakukan oleh penyangak hutan di Negeri Sembilan yang melibatkan keluasan 8616 ekar tanah hutan simpan yang ada di Negeri Sembilan. Isu perlakuan pemimpin-pemimpin BN yang bersikap seperti gangster seperti Nazri Aziz. Kalau dahulu Nazri di isukan dengan permit teksi yang beribu-ribu permit yang beliau ambil, sekarang timbul isu menggunakan kuasa melindungi Micheal Chiah dan Musa Aman tentang wang misteri sebanyak RM40 million itu. Nazri mempunyai seorang anak yang hidup seperti 'anak maharaja arab' dengan kereta besar yang begitu sombong dan anaknya ini telah dikaitkan dengan banyak isu-isu jenayah yang diketahui umum. Cakap-cakap takbur Nazri kita dengar selalu. Beliau seolah-olah seorang yang begitu besar dan kuat seperti dunia ini pun dia bolih alihkan. Sikap kesombongannya seolah-olah beliau mampu untuk menahan dunia ini dari menghadapi kiamat. Apabila umum mengetahui isu-isu ini dan mereka lihat dilakukan oleh pemimpin dan keluarga yang berkuasa pula, maka dengan sendirinya persepsi buruk terhadap UMNO itu terbentuk kerana tidak ada contoh-contoh peribadi yang baik dalam pimpinan BN pada hari ini. Sikap mengaut kekayaan dengan menggunakan pengaruh keluarga dan pimpinan UMNO sudah menjadi budaya pada hari ini. Anak-anak Dr Mahathir kaya raya dengan pengaruh Mahathir yang telah menjadi PM selama 22 tahun. Anak-anak Dr Mahathir berniaga dengan jalan mudah tanpa menggunakan kepakaran mereka kerana jika mengalami kerugian pun Mahathir telah menggunaka dana rakyat dalam jumlah yang berbillion untuk menyelamatkan perniagaan anak beliau (Mahathir). |
| Pahang mahu ihsan atau royalti 20 peratus? Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:37 PM PST
Memberi royalti 20 peratus bukan satu janji melampau yang tidak masuk akal. Ia sudah jadi hak semasa bagi negeri pengeluar minyak. Kalau Indonesia boleh bersetuju memberi Aceh royalti minyak 20 peratus, maka mengapa Malaysia yang pentadbiran dan ekonominya lebih baik tidak boleh beri. Subky Latif, Harakah Daily Sekarang Pahang pula dipilih Allah dianugerah minyak dan gas. Rakyat Pahang wajar bersyukur dan rakyat Malaysia seluruhnya juga ikut syukur kerana rahmat yang datang ke Pahang itu akan dapat juga limpahannya kepada negara. Perdana Menteri sudah membayangkan wang ihsan yang bakal Pahang peroleh dalam masa yang tidak lama. Logiknya Pahang boleh jadi Kuwait baru di Malaysia selepas Terengganu.
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| SapuraKencana moves to next level Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:31 PM PST
Jagdev Singh Sidhu, The Star ON Monday night after announcing a US$2.9bil deal that will make SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd the world's largest tender rig operator, president and group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Shahril Shamsuddin got a phone call from the United States. It was from a fund manager of an institution who just heard about the deal with Seadrill Ltd.
"Someone called in last night asking for a placement of a block of shares. And these are big overseas funds, guys whom we saw in the US recently. Our company was fresh in their minds and we were at a certain ebitda level (before the proposed deal) and with this deal, we have crossed the threshold in terms of size and liquidity of shares," he tells StarBizWeek. The non-binding MoU with Seadrill, once completed, will see SapuraKencana take a 51% share of the global tender rig business, in the process making the company more appealing to investors who want exposure to large companies. With 21 tender rigs, and with its next closest competitor globally having four, the deal lifts SapuraKencana to another platform. Analysts too have become bullish on SapuraKencana, with many raising their earnings projections and target prices. "We are positive on this deal, operationally and financially speaking. This exercise instantly transforms SapuraKencana into the largest tender-assisted rig operator in the world, by fleet size. This is an earnings accretive deal," says Maybank Investment Bank in a note after the deal was announced. Amresearch raised its forecast of SapuraKencana's earnings per share for its 2014 and 2015 financial years by 24%-30%. It says earnings from the injection of 10 tender-assisted rigs (TAGs) plus a 49%-stake each in five TAGs was partly offset by a 7% increase in share capital. How the deal came about Prior to the merger between SapuraCrest Petroleum and Kencana Petroleum Bhd, the former had a working relation with Seadrill after Semdvig, a company it had a joint venture with, was taken over by Seadrill. The new-found relationship with Seadrill took off and Seadrill's chairman John Fredriksen started to work closer with SapuraKencana. He introduced the Malaysian company to Brazil where it won a US$1.4bil contract from Petrobas to build and operate three pipe-laying support vessels (PLSVs). Shahril says discussions then proceeded over combining the rigs SapuraKencana had with that of Seadrill. "We said why don't we combine and strengthen our position and instead of just the five rigs, why don't we look at the whole tender rig business. About a month ago, we looked at it again very seriously and in the last two weeks we intensely had negotiations. The deal was closed Friday night (Nov 2)." "It's a way for them to refocus and reposition their business and at the same time help SapuraKencana transform itself into a very solid high margin business. The tender rig business brings pretty strong margins and overall what will happen is our margins will be a bit more robust." The tender rigs bought by SapuraKencana have contracts up to 2019 and an orderbook of US$1.6bil. Furthermore, the tender rig business is a higher margin business and at 40%, is larger than what SapuraKencana is currently enjoying. Consolidating the operations also settles the issue of the company having 2 licences from Petroliam Nasional Bhd. One concern analysts have voiced is that the acquisition of the tender rigs will change the make-up of the group from an oil and gas service provider to that of a tender rig operator where the price earnings multiple investors are willing to pay is lower. Shahril disputes that assumption, saying the acquisition re-inforces the vision of the company to become a fully integrated oil and gas service company. "In our business there are four verticals. There is offshore construction services, fabrication, drilling and energy. Energy is the one that takes on all the RSC (risk-service contract) opportunities. And with RSCs, there are so many services that go into supporting that business and drilling is one of them. There are a lot of symbiotic relationships between the verticals to support each other." "The more rigs you have, the more chances there will be to mature. Overheads are spread over and we get scale. And in this business, it is very difficult to compete globally without scale. So the choice was very obvious. It is facilitated by the fact the relationship was good, the assets are young, it has a good backlog and it's margin enhancing and value accretive," he says. What it means for SapuraKencana Apart from being more profitable, the scale of the business will allow SapuraKencana to be more competitive in its bids. But it's the balance sheet size that was created from the merger between SapuraCrest and Kencana that allowed the Seadrill deal to happen. "You have to be of a certain size before something like this gets presented to you. The merger allowed us to get onto a lot of people's radar to see where the big deals come in," says executive vice chairman Datuk Mokhzani Mahathir. "But Seadrill is unique because of the relationship SapuraCrest has had, both on the personal and working level that has been established over many years. That's why this deal was made possible." "In terms of value, it meets all of the requirements the board has asked us to look at, such as in terms of value, synergy, growth, control and management... everything. So we are quite comfortable with it." Completion the deal will see SapuraKencana have an order book of RM18.5bil and its cashflow should improve as a result of the contracts the rigs have secured. It's ability to cross-sell its services will improve and Shahril says multiple rigs, newbuilds and the company's track record will help in access to new markets and opportunities. Shahril says the improved financials will help but the group has already planned and allocated on the capital requirements for the four segments it "We have almost fully invested for the next 5 years in offshore construction services with the 5 new vessels coming up. That's going to grow," he says. The transaction with Seadrill settles the expansion in the rigs segment and the company has already calculated just how much it needs to take advantage of the marginal oilfield business. Capex for the modernisation of its fabrication business has also been settled. Both Shahril and Mokhzani feel securing more marginal oilfields will depend on how the company bids and the larger tender rigs business will only help in its proposition to Petronas for more RSC jobs. "The more integrated services you have, the better chance you will have in order to quickly deploy the development of these marginal oilfields," says Shahril. Although the group's gearing will rise, Shahril says that's momentarily and will rapidly climb down after 2 years. "Any acquisition will have borrowings and the borrowings will be depleted over time as we payback. We are comfortable with the gearing and its in line with the growth companies in this sector anyway. " Shahril says allocating more cash for dividends as cashflow improves will be balanced by the needs of the business versus reward for shareholders. "Once the debt levels goes down in 2 years, then we will start increasing our dividend payments," he says, adding that the value of the company to shareholders will be either captured in dividends or in the value of the shares. If there is one risk from the transaction with Seadrill, it is the execution of the business. "Execution risk is always there. When you do business in the oil and gas, execution risk is everything. But we have the asset and the people to deploy and execute projects and in that sense, the risk is minimal for us anyway," says Mokhzani. "I don't think Seadrill would have sold this to anyone else because they know we can take care of this business for them. I think that is also why John Fredriksen has agreed to join the board because he is not going to let go of this business, this asset to anybody and he is comfortable with the people he is dealing with now." Fredriksen on board The acquisition of the tender rigs from Seadrill will see Fredriksen join the board of SapuraKencana, a move that both Shahril and Mokhzani feel will add value to the company given his experience, contacts and knowledge of the oil and gas industry. But is there also a risk in Fredriksen and Seadrill increasing its stake in SapuraKencana from 6% to 13% from this deal given his previous record of trimming down Seadrill's shareholding in SapuraCrest? "I don't see that, not with him coming on the board," says Shahril. "The last time he sold he had invested in the company when it was worth 49 sen and then the value of the shares grew tremendously. He had a US$450mil exposure in a company he had no control over. By him coming onto the board, he can have influence as opposed to before it was just an investment. So he liquidated half," says Shahril, who says Fredriksen liquidated the shares in the past and re-invested it with SapuraKencana in Brazil. Shahril also doesn't think Fredriksen on board will lead to a clash of personalities and influence. "Good solutions come out of constructive conflicts. Differences in ideas is not a bad thing. He identified with our direction and now he is endorsing it by coming on board. He will not have taken that step if he did not see the value in this company," he says.
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| ‘Spent force’ Zaid should retire Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:26 PM PST
(FMT) -- A PPP leader has suggested that former de facto law minister Zaid Ibrahim consider retiring from politics following his decision to quit the Kita party which the latter founded. In view of the uncertainty which Zaid allegedly created following his decision to leave Kita, Perak PPP deputy chairman Naran Singh said the outspoken personality should just leave politics. He said Zaid is showing the reflection of being a "spent force" by making statements that he wants to contest in the Pekan parliamentary seat where the incumbent is none other than Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. This, he charged, showed that Zaid wanted cheap publicity from this episode and many pundits are wondering if the latter is indeed sincere in carrying out his plan. "Zaid should contest against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim or PKR deputy president Azmin Ali if he wants to make a political impact," Naran added. The Kelantan-born political maverick was once considered a rising star in Umno and he was made a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (overseeing law) during former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's last tenure. He quit on principal grounds after disagreeing with the federal government's move to impose the now defunct Internal Security Act law on a few individuals including a vernacular newspaper journalist. Zaid subsequently joined PKR and was jostling for the deputy president post with the party's present incumbent Azmin. The lawyer, however, lost his bid for the deputy presidency and later quit PKR, citing voting irregularities as the reason. He eventually formed Kita but was then involved in a spat with one faction which broke away from the party before recently announcing that he was quitting Kita altogether. To this, Naran said Zaid was highly respected at one time, but now, many cannot seem to fathom what he wanted to do. The political leanings of Zaid also seemed uncertain as he seems to side with Pakatan Rakyat, but had previously lambasted PKR, Naran said, adding that the electorate now needed leaders with strong convictions on how to move the country forward. "Zaid must understand that voters prefer leaders who are steadfast in their struggle," he added. Meanwhile, Naran also lent his support to DAP chairman Karpal Singh for calling on the party to only allow its members to contest one seat each during the next general election.
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| Freedom of religion only for non-Muslims: Masing Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:10 PM PST
(Borneo Post) - Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) viewed the recent statement by Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar as nothing else but an attempt to gain popularity among the people. The party president Tan Sri Dr James Masing said he had always been given to understand that freedom of religion in Malaysia was only applicable to non-Muslims. "Therefore, I am surprised when she (Nurul) said that religious freedom in Malaysia is inclusive," he quipped. Masing, who is Land Development Minister, said the statement by the Lembah Pantai MP also shows that PKR was a populist party with no fixed agenda to administer the country. He stated this when commenting on Nurul's statement that irked many Muslims, including the Sultan of Selangor, Islamic scholars and some BN leaders. Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassan has described the statement as unwarranted especially when it comes from a fellow Muslim. Nurul was in the limelight after expressing her view on religious freedom by suggesting that Muslims should be allowed to follow any religion of their choice. Her father Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is the opposition de facto leader, in defending his daughter claimed that Nurul's statement was not only misinterpreted but also manipulated. |
| Labis is where MCA’s haunted past may cause a GE13 disaster Posted: 09 Nov 2012 02:02 PM PST
The next general election is expected to be the closest fight to form the new Malaysian government. And several seats across the nation are likely to be heated battles with the slimmest of majorities. The Malaysian Insider takes a look at some of these hot seats in what will be an intense election for control of Malaysia. Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider Labis feels like an island, secluded and quiet with nary a sound from the hustle and bustle one would expect to see in a constituency held for six terms by two prominent MCA stars — former president Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik and current chief Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek. Like its name, which some historians believe was derived from "labi-labi" or river terrapins, the daily pace here is almost tortoise-like; slow and sleepy. Most of its residents work in rubber estates or oil palm plantations, while the others are petty traders, government servants or merely passing through to the busier parts of Johor. Here, one can neither hear the buzz of industries nor see white plumes of smoke polluting the skies as the nearest factory is miles and miles away. After 7pm, buses no longer ply the town's roads — rarely do passengers get off at this stop, anyway. "Labis becomes a remote area after 7pm... a dead sea. The irony of it all... Ling Liong Sik was the transport minister when he held the Labis seat," local resident S. Madhavan remarked recently when met in the evening of a characteristically quiet Monday in this sleepy hollow.  Dr Ling held the Labis seat from 1986 to 2003. "MCA... they are all the same, aren't they? They have big-shot government posts and they forget who gave them the opportunity," he told this news portal. "There is so much anger with the MCA... sometimes, they are so angry that people cannot even remember why they are angry. But they know for certain that they want a change," said Tan Chin Guan, a local DAP leader. "The Labis people get slaughtered in so many ways... but many do not even know, they are so innocent. "But today, some have leapt off the fence... they say they want to try something new," former Education Ministry officer G. Krishnabagwan said. Madhavan, Tey, Tan and Krishnabagwan, who each spoke at separate interviews recently, are among the estimated 22,600 non-Malay voters who make up a sizeable 62 per cent of the 36,000-strong electorate in Labis. Their voices echo a growing resentment among the non-Malays here against the MCA and may well be the death knell for the party, which has been struggling since its dismal performance in Election 2008 to recapture at least some of its lost Chinese support. But during the interviews, there was one resounding sentiment that could not be avoided — Labis' non-Malay voters have largely gone pro-opposition. At every step of the way, those interviewed were too quick to blame the MCA and Barisan Nasional (BN) for every hardship they face — from the common flooding of their neighbourhoods and the lack of street lamps to the lack of job opportunities and affordable housing. Tan, a 60-year-old who spoke in halting English, lent voice to a perceived sentiment when he said that some voters feel so strongly against the MCA that they have even forgotten their reasons. "But it makes sense... when you see the same faces everyday, read about the same names, and your life remains the same, you tend to want something different. It's always been MCA's... Tun Ling for so many years, then Soi Lek... now Tee Yong," he said, the last referring to the incumbent MP, a son of Dr Chua, the town's previous parliamentary representative. "You begin to think to yourself, let's try something new. What's the harm in that? We could always change the government again," he said, during the interview at his home in the Labis town centre here.  Dr Chua won the Labis seat in the 2004 general election, but stepped down in late 2007 after a sex scandal. He was succeeded by Dr Chua in the 2004 polls, after which the latter was appointed health minister in the Abdullah administration. The seat is held today by Datuk Chua Tee Yong, son of Dr Chua, who took his father's place after a sex scandal in late 2007 forced the veteran politician to exit politics briefly, just months before the 2008 election, no less. Tee Yong is said to possess the same boldness and bravado exhibited by his outspoken father. Taking into account his relative youth — he is now 35 years — and his reputation as the man who accused the Selangor Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government of a RM1 billion Talam Corp accounting scandal, Chua junior is said to be a popular face among his Labis constituents. But youth and passion may not be enough to win the game for the MCA in Labis, which is fast becoming the stage for a political battle that could very well spell the party's demise in its southern fort. It is not Tee Yong that the non-Malay voters are against — it is the flag that he flies and memories of the years of alleged neglect that it carries with it. "The present MCA president, he is doing better. His son comes here often, we see him a lot. "Last time, Dr Ling never came at all... I think his reputation itself has ruined things for MCA," said one drinks stall owner, who only identified himself as Mr Tan. "Everyone called Dr Ling a yes-man. A weak man. The Chinese here, when we speak of MCA, we equate it to weakness. "It is not a deep-seated hatred. But for sure, the non-Malays are for the opposition, for the DAP," Mr Tan said. The father of two agreed that Labis town has seen no development over the past few decades, pointing out that its population is ageing and disappearing quickly to seek better opportunities elsewhere.
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| Freedom to choose religion equals changing faith, says Umno sec-gen Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:54 PM PST
(The Malaysian Insider) - Telling a Malay he can choose his faith is the same as telling him he can change it, Datuk Tengku Adnan Mansor said as he weighed in on the growing uproar sparked by a recent remark from PKR's Nurul Izzah Anwar expressing her support for religious freedom for all Malaysians. The PKR vice-president's remarks at a forum last week drew widespread backlash among conservative Muslim groups and Umno hardliners, who accused the opposition rising star of supporting apostasy. "Recently, we want to ask Nurul Izzah Anwar, what's the difference between choosing religion and changing religion?" Tengku Adnan, who is secretary-general of Umno, the country's oldest and largest Malay political party, told Malay daily Utusan Malaysia in an interview published today. "To me, it is the same but this is what she had applied and I am confident that in the end Malaysians will realise this." The veteran politician's comment backing the conservatives is likely to stir up religious debate and could drive a bigger wedge within the Malay-Muslim community, who form some 60 per cent of the country's 28 million population and whose vote is crucial to form the next government at the 13th general elections due soon. Umno, the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition's mainstay, has some three million members but the Malay-Muslim vote is split three ways with the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) pact's Islamist party PAS and its urban-based reform ally, PKR, drawing increasingly greater support. Race and religious issues are inseparable in Malaysia, where the Malays are constitutionally defined to also be Muslims. The country's supreme law states that Islam is the religion of the federation but also provides for other religions to be practised freely. Nurul Izzah has denied supporting apostasy and accused Utusan Malaysia and its other pro-BN Malay newspaper Berita Harian of allegedly twisting her statement. An Umno deputy minister has also said the first-term lawmaker for Lembah Pantai could be prosecuted for her remarks purportedly insulting Islam. "There are no such provisions for now, but it can be included under provisions on insulting Islam or causing Islam to be insulted," Datuk Dr Mashitah Ibrahim, deputy minister in charge of Islamic affairs, told Parliament last week. "Anyone who orally or in written form mocks or causes Islam to be degraded, can be imposed with a penalty of not more than RM3,000 or jail of not more than two years, or both." But Nurul Izzah has found support from popular Islamic scholar Datuk Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, who backed her remarks that there is no compulsion in Islam. The Univesiti Sains Malaysia (USM) lecturer said he had written an article two years ago titled "Iman Tidak Boleh Dipaksa (Faith Cannot be Forced)", and added that the content was "the same" as that which Nurul Izzah had stated. "Malays cannot be forced and [they] believe voluntarily. But, through preaching, a person can be brought back to the faith," he was quoted by another Malay daily, Sinar Harian, as saying last week.
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| DPM: We’ll continue to help Chinese schools Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:50 PM PST
(The Star) - The Deputy Prime Minister has reiterated the Government's assurance that Chinese schools will stay and that Barisan Nasional will continue to assist in their development. Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also Education Minister, said the Barisan government would continue to assist the national-type Chinese schools based on the real need of the Chinese community. "It is the wisdom of our past and present leaders that, not only is Chinese education preserved in this country, but it also becomes part of the national education system," he said when opening the 14th World Chinese Book Fair at the Mines International Exhibition and Convention Centre here yesterday. Also present were Deputy Education Minister Datuk Wee Ka Siong and founder of Country Heights Holdings Berhad Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew. Muhyiddin stressed that the Government was always committed to raising the quality of education in all types of schools. He hoped that the Chinese community would not fall prey to the agenda of certain quarters who liked to politicise education for their political gain. "At the same time, let us not forget the role of education as a means to unite Malaysians of all races. "Let us make all schools in this country as unity schools, where children of all races can mingle freely, learn to accept differences and respect each other," he said. Separately, Muhyiddin's nine-day working visit to Australia starting today will be used to gain new ideas especially in the field of education, besides forging closer bilateral ties, reported Bernama. Muhyiddin, who begins his visit to Australia in Melbourne, among others, will deliver a keynote address at the 4th World Chinese Economic Forum (WCEF) rganised by the Asian Strategic and Leadership Institute (Asli), the first time it is being held outside Malaysia.
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| PM hands out RM563mil to Felda households Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:47 PM PST
(The Star) - Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Saturday handed out RM563mil to 112,635 Felda households under the third phase of windfall handouts specifically targeted at the young generation of settlers. Each will receive RM5,000 each. The handout is the final instalment promised by Najib earlier this year, in line with the move to channel profits made by listing Felda Global Ventures on the stock exchange. The first handout of RM5,000 was given to the settlers and the second RM5,000 to their wives.
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| Religion is something personal Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:43 PM PST It has taken a rookie politician to put across get the message that no one has the right to play God. Jeswan Kaur, FMT Doubt is part of all religion. All the religious thinkers were doubters. – Issac Bashevis Singer, author and Nobel Prize laureate The antipathy being shown to Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar for her candid and forthright view that everyone is deserving of religious freedom, including the Malays, reveals the feared truth that religion is a personal choice and coercion simply does not work. The truth is Nurul Izzah has done the Malays especially a favour through her remark that religious freedom should be accorded to everyone. It is a different matter that her comments made in a forum entitled "Islamic state? Which vision? Whose responsibility" on Nov 3 came down with a 'Richter Scale'-like backlash. The statements coming from the Prime Minister's Department were typical. Minister Jamil Khir Baharom said Nurul Izzah's remark was "misleading" and "dangerous". His deputy, Mashitah Ibrahim, went further, calling for the young politician's prosecution on the charge of insulting Islam. How could any thinking person conclude that she was insulting Islam when the gist of her remark was her quotation of the Quranic verse that prohibits believers from compelling people to accept Islam? Mashitah even hinted that Nurul Izzah was encouraging apostasy, a claim which the PKR vice-president begged to differ. A pertinent question It appears that there are many in this country that are unwilling to tolerate such ingenuous view of a 'green' politician and that too one who is the daughter of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim. Granted that it was anomalous for Nurul Izzah to so bravely touch on a topic so sensitive in this country, Islam; sadly, unlike her, the minds of her fellow colleagues, especially in the Barisan Nasional camp, have yet to 'attain' maturity. Thinking out of the box or daring to make a paradigm shift has never been BN's interest nor strength, hence its 'condemn and ridicule' approach in dealing with anything its nemesis, the Pakatan Rakyat pact does or says. Nurul Izzah has posed a very pertinent question, one that forces everyone to ruminate and ask questions in order to penetrate to the essence of any religion. Most people who have even a rough understanding of Islam will agree that asking questions is not a sin in that religion. The outstanding problem in this country, however, is that one is given the impression that anything bearing upon the country's official religion and Malay rights and privileges is not to be questioned. Still, in light of all this, Nurul Izzah dared to state what she believed to be true. She certainly was not trying to ingratiate herself with anyone by speaking her mind. As it stands, the country's constitution says if you are a Malay then you are automatically a Muslim. It is given that the Malays will not go against the constitution, not when it comes to religion. But then what happens if a Malay individual wanst to denounce his religion? These are serious questions that need genuine answers, not rebuke and punishment. Why is there the fear of addressing of even acknowledging the fact that there are some Malays who are unhappy with their religion?
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| Remembering the 2007 Bersih rally Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:37 PM PST Five years after the historic first Bersih rally on Nov 10, 2007, EC's shenanigans and electoral fraud still continue to haunt us. Selena Tay, FMT Five years ago, exactly on a Saturday on Nov 10, scenes of the first Bersih rally took to the streets in Kuala Lumpur. The most famous scene was the one featuring the FRU (Federal Reserve Unit) truck firing the water cannon beneath the STAR-LRT line to Sri Petaling. The crowd then was estimated to be around 30,000 to 40,000. Who at that time would have thought that there would be two more Bersih rallies to follow? Be that as it may, that historic day on Nov 10 woke up some Malaysian voters just in time for the general election held on March 8, 2008 where for the first time in history BN lost their two-thirds majority and five states in the Peninsular although one of the states gained by the opposition, Perak, was subsequently recaptured by BN. Still, from Nov 10 five years ago till to-date, things have hardly changed but instead have become worst as the electoral roll is now much dirtier despite the Parliamentary Select Committee being set up. The BN government has also requested for an allocation of RM400 million to run the 13th general election whereas in the previous general election the allocation was RM203 million. Opposition Leader and Permatang Pauh MP, Anwar Ibrahim has questioned the high allocation and also highlighted the issue of phantom voters in the ongoing Parliament sitting. According to Anwar, those voters without application date (to be a voter) came up to 4,700 detected cases while 367 voters were granted approval to be inserted into the electoral roll even before they were born! Anwar gave the example of a phantom voter with an identity card number of 7908 from Parit Buntar, Perak who was born on Aug 23, 1979 but applied to be a voter on Jan 15, 1950. "This is a great record of a real phantom voter," said Anwar in Parliament. He also said there were 282 voters who were given voting rights on their date of birth for example one Nur Khalida of Serdang who was born on Oct 26, 1982 and the application to be a voter was made on the same day itself. There is also the case of one Mohd Najib of Temerloh, Pahang who was born on Aug 18, 1979 and given his voting right on May 16, 1991, just three months short of his 12th birthday. Approvals for voting rights given to secondary school students came up to 1,049 detected cases while approvals for those between age 17 to 20 totalled 12,000 detected cases and those between age 20 but less than 21 years of age came up to 186,000 detected cases. Anwar also gave the example of a teenage voter named Rusiati of Kinabatangan in Sabah who was born on Feb 19, 1978 and became a voter on Nov 27, 1992 at the age of 14. EC's shenanigans PAS MP, Dr. Mohd Hayati Othman for Pendang, Kedah complained that the Election Commission (EC) was slow to act when it comes to rectifying errors and only took action after being threatened with police reports. He brought up the case of Zakaria Daud, a male voter transformed into a female named Rafzah Muhammad Nasib although the identity card number ended with 5589 (odd number for males). The address on this voter's MyKad is in Pendang, Kedah but he/she has been transferred to Kelana Jaya in Selangor. The PAS MP voiced his anger that not only has the voter been transformed but also transfered without his/her knowledge.
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| SIS: Recognise freedom to change faith Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:33 PM PST The Islamic NGO condemns the attacks on PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar, and points out that faith by compulsion may lead to hypocrisy. Leven Woon, FMT Freedom of religion as a right enshrined under the Federal Constitution must also recognise the freedom to change faith, said Sisters In Islam (SIS). Rallying behind PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar's call for freedom of religion for all, the NGO said faith in any religion was based on free will. "How can Muslims demand this notion of religious freedom for those wishing to convert to Islam and at the same time argue the denial of this freedom to leave Islam? "Faith by compulsion may lead to hypocrisy," SIS said in a statement. The Muslim women rights advocate maintained a strong position against legislation of faith, saying that such practice was meaningless. "Islam itself means submission to the will of God – not the will of men. The willing submission of the self to faith and belief must therefore be attained through conviction and reason of the individual, not by coercion and duress. "This is clearly mentioned in the Quran, Surah Yunus 10:99, 'And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed – all of them entirely. Then would you compel the people in order that they become believers?'," SIS added. The organisation also condemned the attacks against Nurul over the latter's remark made during a forum last week, pointing out that it reflected the shrinking of democratic space for civil public discussion. It noted that Malaysians were routinely reprimanded or attacked for raising issues pertaining to freedom of religion even though the right was enshrined in Article 11 of Federal Constitution. It said problems and conflicts would always arise in a multi-religious society like Malaysia, such as non-Muslims who convert to Islam without resolving their duties to their earlier non-Muslim marriage and born-Muslims who never led a Muslim life as they were raised by non-Muslim families. There are also cases where one converts spouses to Islam unilaterally and coercively and born-Muslims who wish to leave Islam out of their free will. "There have been court judgments allowing Muslim converts to leave Islam. "The Administration of the Religion of Islam (Negeri Sembilan) Enactment 2003 contains legal procedures by which one may do so," it added. SIS noted that the Quran was explicit and consistent in its recognition of freedom of religion.
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