Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Welcome to the Philippines 81st province
- Don’t muddy the water issue
- Family of turmeric murder case C.Sugumar reject post-mortem findings
- Free education ‘possible’, say economists
- Incorrigible UMNO leaders continue to shamelessly equate “public interest” to “UMNO ...
- Awie Bakal Buka Tiga Lagi Kelab Malam
- Feel like kicking yourself
- Anwar: Not Lembah Pantai-bound, but certain on Permatang Pauh
- Ibrahim Ali called up by cops
- Batu Caves temple claims they’re being punished for protesting
- Xavier points finger at Public Complaints Bureau
- Burn the Bible, and you burn the church
- Perkasa says it has no role in Sunday’s Bible burning
- ‘Enough with the warnings, haul up Ibrahim’
- Penang goes all out to stop ‘fiery’ festival
- Of Bibles and crosses
| Welcome to the Philippines 81st province Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:51 AM PST
Mahathir used the ISA and Operasi Lalang to silence his critics. He created heavy industries and installed his own cronies in these ventures. He treated the Treasury like his own private kitty, bailed out favoured people, and thought nothing of losses being borne by the taxpayers. He brainwashed Malaysians, especially the Malays, into accepting a two-tiered society. Mariam Mokhtar, Free Malaysia Today It is believed there about 1.75 million Filipinos in Sabah, who were allowed to settle in the state during Dr Mahathir Mohamad's premiership. People should be able to place their trust in the prime minister to head the elected government; some prime ministers achieve greatness, others are best forgotten. Many are mediocre, others gain international acclaim. The future of one Malaysian prime minister might well lie in a cell. His crime? When he was in power, he did not act in the interests of the country, but was consumed by a passion to further his own political interests. He was prepared to sell his country to foreign nationals. Last week, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad admitted in a press conference that he had authorised the provision of ICs to Filipinos. The Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on Sabah revealed that between 1970 and 1984, around 73,000 Filipino refugees had been allowed to settle permanently in Sabah. Pundits claim that today, there may be around 1.75 million Filipinos. In 2011, the opposition alleged that around three million Indonesians had been absorbed into Malaysia and given citizenship, with Bumiputera privileges and most important of all, granted full voting rights. The Wikipedia entry for the Philippines states that there are 80 provinces which are grouped into 17 regions depending on their geographical, cultural and ethnological features. With these allegations, Peninsular Malaysia might as well be known as the 34th province of Indonesia, and Sabah should be recognised as the 81st province of the Philippines. Mahathir tried to deflect criticism from his "Project IC" by making unfair comparisons with the granting of citizenship to Malayans by Tunku Abdul Rahman. When he was stung by the criticisms of sullying the name of the Father of Independence, Mahathir tried to backpedal, but the damage was already done. Malaysians don't really care about Mahathir's racial origins, his ethnicity or his religious conviction. They do mind his deception and the manner in which he helped propel the Ketuanan Melayu myth to the detriment of all races and religions in Malaysia. He championed the Malays above everyone else, but left out other Malaysian-born citizens, and tagged them with the "pendatang" label. His adherence to his Malay bloodline, whilst ignoring his equally noble Indian ancestry, is what has probably made many people despise the Indian Muslims, through no fault of their own. Many disparaging remarks which appear to be directed at all mamaks, are in reality directed solely at Mahathir. Private kitty Mahathir used the ISA and Operasi Lalang to silence his critics. He created heavy industries and installed his own cronies in these ventures. He treated the Treasury like his own private kitty, bailed out favoured people, and thought nothing of losses being borne by the taxpayers. He brainwashed Malaysians, especially the Malays, into accepting a two-tiered society. Mahathir asked us to "Look East" because of his personal spat with the West, but unbeknown to us, he did a private deal with Margaret Thatcher in the Pergau Dam scandal. It is laughable that anyone should think the British will come and rescue Malaysia, like the cavalry charge in the cowboy movies. British Prime Minister David Cameron and his government are more interested in flogging their old weaponry to Malaysia, saving their firms in an economically stagnant Europe and rejuvenate their flagging property market with Malaysian EPF money. During Tony Blair's time, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) was told to halt its investigations into the BAE arms sale to Saudi Arabia. Allegations of kickbacks to a Saudi prince proved embarrassing and Blair claimed that he was acting in the "national interest". Will Cameron be any different? Recently, some professionals revealed that in their student days, they were not awarded scholarships or loans for further studies because they did not show allegiance to Umno, or that their parents were not pious Umno Muslims. These are revelations from Malays who did not have the right connections but were able to scrape up just enough money to pay for their own education. Anyone who thinks Umno helps all Malays is deluded. Umno only assists Umno Malays. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2013/01/25/welcome-to-the-philippines-81st-province/ |
| Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:41 AM PST
Syabas would have us believe that this has everything to do with the supposed water shortage in Selangor and the need for the Langat 2 plant and Pahang-Selangor water transfer project. This doesn't make sense, since the Langat 2 plant was slated for completion in 2014. The Wangsa Maju plant failure has nothing to do with Langat 2. Tricia Yeoh, The Sun THE water saga between the Selangor government and water operator Syabas took another turn in the latest episode of the Wangsa Maju pump station fiasco that affected more than 27,000 households in the Klang Valley. It is easy to confuse the many issues, thereby muddying them together. But first, some facts. The Wangsa Maju pump house – which is made up of four pumps and one for standby purposes – broke down on Dec 29 last year and Jan 1, and since then both parties have accused each other of being at fault. The pump house has a design capacity of 180mld (million litres per day). Syabas claims that the failure was due to "operating above its design capacity for a long period of time in recent years" (Syabas, Jan 15). Selangor state checks, however, revealed that throughout 2012, the pumps operated beyond their capacity of 200mld for only 18 days out of the whole year. The central issue here is whether or not the pumps have actually been well-maintained to operate consistently without breaking down. The responsibility to maintain these pumps falls under Syabas and not the Selangor government. According to standard operating procedure, "preventive periodic maintenance" is a basic requirement that should have been conducted by specific capable contractors. This was apparently conducted up to 2008, after which it was only done whenever a pump was damaged. Prevention is surely better than cure, something any water operator should have known at the outset. No regular checks by the appropriate technical experts were carried out, and this was the primary reason for the breakdown. Even if Syabas employees carried out routine inspections, why did they not realise the pumps were already faulty, and thereafter immediately alert their superiors? In fact, it was revealed that one of the five pumps was already reported as faulty since last year and this was not addressed. This brings us to the next issue of good governance. The water industry is regulated by SPAN (National Water Services Commission). Syabas has unfortunately demonstrated its inability to manage its equipment efficiently, when it should have investigated the root problem even before it became a problem by following SOPs and best practices. SPAN and the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water should use this opportunity to correct any inefficiencies in the water delivery system. Failure to reprimand only means it is silently supporting incompetency. It is not clear whether SPAN had instructed Syabas (or rather, Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd, the actual pump operator) to make urgent corrective measures. Added to this is a revelation in the Auditor-General's Audit Report for the operating period of 2009-2011, which showed among other things that the funds Syabas received for capital expenditure (capex) from the Selangor government were used for operating expenditure (opex). If such funds were necessary for the upgrading of water pumps, then they should not have been misallocated. Syabas would have us believe that this has everything to do with the supposed water shortage in Selangor and the need for the Langat 2 plant and Pahang-Selangor water transfer project. This doesn't make sense, since the Langat 2 plant was slated for completion in 2014. The Wangsa Maju plant failure has nothing to do with Langat 2. In earlier columns, I stated that this RM9 billion mega-project should be reconsidered in preference of other solutions like upgrading plants, rainwater harvesting, water recycling and treatment of Selangor's raw water resources. Some have also raised the question of why the Selangor government lays the blame squarely on Syabas when it holds 30% of its shares. Although this means attending board meetings and access to documents, Selangor is still the minority shareholder, and has no role in dealing with day-to-day operations. In fact, the federal government through its Finance Ministry Incorporated holds the golden share of Syabas, which allows them to flex some muscles. Nowhere in the concession agreement (which, by the way, is also signed by the federal government) does it say that maintenance of pump stations falls under the jurisdiction of the state government. Under Section 191(5) of the Water Services Industry Act 2006, the minister has the right to determine what amounts to national interest issues, and this determination would be "final and binding". This means the minister – and through its regulator SPAN – would be empowered to make the best decision to resolve the water problems of Selangor. Tricia Yeoh writes on national policy issues.
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| Family of turmeric murder case C.Sugumar reject post-mortem findings Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:36 AM PST  N. Surendran, Latheefa Koya We refer to the claim by Kajang police chief that police did not beat C.Sugumar to death and that he died of a heart attack. This statement is a blatant attempt by police to cover-up the case, with the connivance of the Serdang Hospital. Three eyewitnesses have come forward who have testified that Sugumar was chased down by police, handcuffed, beaten and smeared with turmeric. How can the police claim that there was no foul-play, when they have not even recorded the statements of these three witnesses?
The claim by Serdang Hospital that Sugumar died of a heart attack is inherently incredible. Sugumar had no health problems and was only 40 years old. It is unbelievable that a healthy man should suddenly collapse and die immediately upon arrest. When we viewed the body in the mortuary, the deceased was still handcuffed and there was turmeric powder on his face. There were also lacerations consistent with a struggle against the police assailants as described by the witnesses. The police attempt to exonerate themselves by issuing false statements is thus a serious perversion of the course of justice. It is claimed that the Serdang Hospital forensics department found that Sugumar died of a heart attack. It should be noted that the Serdang Hospital has a history of falsifying post-mortem findings in favour of the police authorities. In the A.Kugan case, Serdang Hospital falsely claimed that Kugan died of water in the lungs when in fact he had been beaten to death in police custody. The Serdang pathologist Prof Dr Abdul Karim Tajuddin was subsequently found guilty by the Malaysian Medical Council(MMC) of professional misconduct for falsifying Kugan's post-mortem findings. Yesterday, Serdang Hospital once again breached medical ethics by refusing to let Sugumar's family see the body, on instructions from the police. The family were only allowed to see the body upon the insistence of lawyers and activists, after 4 hours of waiting. Serdang Hospital and the Health Ministry have brought shame upon the medical profession. The family of Sugumar will lodge complaints against Serdang Hospital and its pathologists with the MMC in due course. We demand, on behalf of Sugumar's next-of-kin, that Sugumar's death be classified as murder under s.302 Penal Code. We further demand that all police officers implicated be immediately suspended and arrested to facilitate investigations. We also call upon the IGP to allow and facilitate the carrying out of a second post-mortem upon Sugumar's remains. Until the second post-mortem is carried out satisfactorily, the family will not claim the body.
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| Free education ‘possible’, say economists Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:30 AM PST
(The Sun Daily) - "If the government wants to do it, they just need to stop wasting money on things like BR1M, free tyres, RM100 for school children, petrol subsidy, and divert the money to tertiary education" Free tertiary education is possible if we cut down on "unproductive" spending, Malaysian economists have suggested. Their comments were solicited by theSun in the wake of national debate on the issue that has been stirred by an exchange between undergraduate K.S. Bawani, and Suara Wanita 1Malaysia (SW1M) president Sharifah Zohra Jabeen, at a forum in Universiti Utara Malaysia. The video of the exchange has gone viral on the internet. Chief Executive of Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS), Wan Saiful Wan Jan said the current government is capable of reducing the cost of tertiary education. "If the government wants to do it, they just need to stop wasting money on things like BR1M, free tyres, RM100 for school children, petrol subsidy, and divert the money to tertiary education," he said. He noted that the recent "free tyres and cash rewards" seemed to take precedence above cushioning the cost of tertiary education. It is only a matter of re-juggling priorities and putting tertiary education as priority above other "unproductive" spending, he said. "The cost will be removal of the wasteful spending and we will not receive the cash handouts and subsidies anymore," he added. The national education budget has been slashed from RM50 billion in 2012 to RM37 billion in 2013, which is a drop from 20% of the total national budget to 15%. Economist, Khoo Kay Peng, speculated that this is largely associated with government cash handout programmes such as BR1M and BR1M 2.0, and the RM200 rebate for smartphones. "The cut is unnecessary. Funds spent on one-time cash handouts and rebates do not create a lasting impact on the economy," he said. Ideally, Khoo sees that education funding should occupy 20% to 22% of the GDP. Another suggestion by economists to fund free tertiary education is to cut the defence budget. The director of Centre for Policy Initiatives, Dr Lim Teck Ghee, said the expenditure used in defence can be cut back to cushion the cost of tertiary education. "If we cut back expenditure in sectors such as the defence sector where the rationale for large budgets is not sustainable and reduce the cost of doing business due to rent seeking, patronage and opaque government procurement, it can generate tens of billions annually," he said. While it woud be great to have blanket tertiary education, economists argue that it is not a civic obligation to provide free tertiary education for all, neither is it economically-wise in the long run. Wan Saiful pointed out that we already have a deficit budget and blanket free tertiary education will increase the deficit. "I must add at this point that making tertiary, or any other level of education free, is not a good move in the long term. It may not have a disastrous adverse impact now, but in the longer term the country will not be able to afford it. "The deficit spending incurred by the Najib administration will be a burden on society long after Datuk Sri Najib (Abdul Razak) and his ministers have left us," he argued. On civic-responsibility, he said education is ultimately the responsibility of parents and individuals. "It is immoral to pass that responsibility to others through the machinery of government and taxation. If we want society to help each other, than we must encourage voluntary help, not coerce people through taxation. "Our society today has become overly reliant on government so that voluntary help is diminishing," he said. Dr Lim does not favour blanket tertiary education as he said not everyone cannot afford university fees. "Students from rich families can afford to pay a portion of the tuition fees and they should be made to do so," he said. Along with easing tertiary education fees, Lim also suggested reform of the higher education sector. He noted that 10% of government expenditure is presently allocated to higher education. "We have to ask if we are getting value for our tax money being spent on higher education," he said. He highlighted large numbers of unemployable graduates, the low academic standards, and the poor quality of research especially in public colleges. Instead of free tertiary education for all, funds can be used to enhance the quality of public tertiary education system. "Free tertiary education should be for those whose parents earn a low income," said Khoo Kay Peng, who is also a political commentator. He highlighted that the government allocates RM200 million annually to retrain unemployed graduates. "It speaks volumes of a need to revamp the tertiary education system if an undergraduate has to be retrained after just spending four years on his education," he said.
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| Incorrigible UMNO leaders continue to shamelessly equate “public interest” to “UMNO ... Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:18 AM PST
He even defended that the project is beneficial to the public because "Umno members could get a 12 percent discount at the apartments" while ordinary bumiputras can get 7% discount. Tony Pua Despite the Prime Minister's continued assertion that UMNO has "transformed" and "learnt from the mistakes of the past", its leaders continue to be completely shameless when defending the obvious wrong doings of their past. In the latest expose by Ng Suee Lim and Shuhaimi Shafiei on the land grab by Kota Raja UMNO, the latter paid only RM1,000 in premium for 4 acres of land worth at least RM2.8 million in Section 25, Shah Alam. While the land was originally slated for building a sports and recreation complex with a community centre, the site visit had found only nearly completed apartments and shoplots. However, when queried by Malaysiakini, former Kota Raja Umno chief Amzah Umar has denied any wrongdoing over the latest allegations, saying that "the medium-cost apartments are meant for public interest." Amzah was also the former state assemblyman of Sri Muda. He even defended that the project is beneficial to the public because "Umno members could get a 12 percent discount at the apartments" while ordinary bumiputras can get 7% discount. It appears that the Animal Farm cannot be more true for UMNO – "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others". In fact, Amzah had the cheek to deny that there isn't "anything unusual" in that the Umno division and MBSA only paid RM1,000 in land premiums. It is obvious that UMNO is unable to differentiate between the interest of UMNO, the party, its leaders and members, from that of the interest of the public. They have shown no remorse over the fact that such actions is no different from stealing the wealth of the people to profit UMNO and Barisan Nasional. Based on the response of Amzah and other leaders over the earlier land-grab exposes in Selangor, it cannot be more clear that if Barisan Nasional is re-elected into Government, they will continue to pillage and plunder the wealth and assets of the state at the expense of the man-on-the-street. The contrast with the Pakatan Rakyat administration cannot be more stark. After 5 years of administration, no Pakatan Rakyat component parties or its elected representatives have received a single piece of land from the state government. We call upon Selangor Barisan Nasional and UMNO leaders, to announce that if these "projects" were indeed in public interest, then all profits arising from these projects should be returned to the State Government so that the monies could then be spent on the welfare of Selangorians as well as upgrading the infrastructure of the state. Despite UMNO having robbed 5.4 million Selangorians, the Prime Minister has chosen to remain elegantly silent on the above issue. Datuk Seri Najib Razak who is also the Selangor UMNO Chief must get his house in order by explaining the land grab scandal and accepting responsility for UMNO's sins. Otherwise, his call for "transformation" is nothing by empty rhetoric to hoodwink Malaysians.
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| Awie Bakal Buka Tiga Lagi Kelab Malam Posted: 24 Jan 2013 11:14 AM PST
mStar - "Saya bergiat dalam bidang hiburan dan tidak tahu cabang perniagaan lain melainkan cabang ini sahaja (membuka kelab malam). Takkan saya hendak jual nasi lemak yang saya tidak tahu caranya? Jadi apa salahnya saya jalankan perniagaan berasaskan hiburan? Jangan persoalkan mengenai hukum hakam hanya kerana saya seorang artis?" Ketika tindakan penyanyi dan pelakon Awie membuka kelab malam di Ipoh, Perak dipertikaikan segelintir pihak, vokalis kumpulan Wings itu sebenarnya sudah merancang untuk memperluaskan lagi perniagaannya dengan membuka tiga lagi cawangan baharu. Awie atau nama sebenarnya Ahmad Azhar Othman, 45, berkata, dia tidak akan mengendahkan kritikan orang sebaliknya mahu mengembangkan kelab malam berkenaan yang dikenali sebagai Malai Rock Station Bistro masing-masing di Kuala Lumpur, Johor dan Kuantan, Pahang tidak lama lagi. "Jangan melihat perniagaan kelab itu daripada pandangan yang cetek. Ia adalah sebuah perniagaan dan saya telah melabur ratusan ribu untuknya. "Malah saya juga merancang untuk kembangkan lagi perniagaan itu pada tahun ini selepas mendapat respons baik daripada pengunjung di Ipoh," katanya ketika dihubungi mStar Online di sini, Rabu. Awie berkata demikian sebagai mengulas laporan beberapa portal susulan perasaan tidak puas hatinya dengan pihak media yang bertanyakan perkara tersebut semasa malam gala filem Hantu Kak Limah 2: Husin, Mon & Jin Pakai Toncit dekat sini malam Selasa lalu. Awie menegaskan, masyarakat seharusnya berfikiran terbuka dan tidak mudah menjatuhkan hukum hanya kerana dia berstatus selebriti. "Saya bergiat dalam bidang hiburan dan tidak tahu cabang perniagaan lain melainkan cabang ini sahaja (membuka kelab malam). Takkan saya hendak jual nasi lemak yang saya tidak tahu caranya? "Jadi apa salahnya saya jalankan perniagaan berasaskan hiburan? Jangan persoalkan mengenai hukum hakam hanya kerana saya seorang artis?" jelasnya dalam nada kesal. Tambahnya, perniagaan pusat hiburan bukanlah sesuatu yang baharu dan sudah ramai ahli perniagaan Melayu lain turut menjalankan perniagaan berasaskan hiburan seperti itu. "Teruk sangat ke buka kelab malam? Apabila saya yang buka, semua mempertikaikan saya? Sedangkan benda ini bukannya baharu. "Di luar sana, lebih ramai orang Melayu yang berniaga kelab, hotel dan pusat hiburan lain tetapi kenapa tidak dipertikaikan? "Saya hanya berniaga bagi meneruskan kelangsungan hidup dan mencari rezeki untuk diri dan keluarga, apakah itu salah?" soalnya yang berharap isu ini tidak diperbesarkan lagi. Sementara itu, mengenai watak Husin dalam filem sekuel kepada Hantu Kak Limah Balik Rumah yang dilakonkannya itu Awie berkata, komitmen pada kali ini adalah lebih mencabar kerana dia perlu menterjemahkan Husin yang berada dalam kedukaan selepas diisytiharkan muflis. "Penceritaan filem kali ini lebih bersahaja tetapi berat. Watak Husin tidak jauh berbeza berbanding filem pertama Hantu Kak Limah Balik Rumah sebelum ini. "Cuma pada kali ini dia kurang ceria kerana berada dalam keadaan murung dan bersedih selepas diisytiharkan muflis," katanya yang baharu menamatkan penggambaran filem Zombie Kilang Biskut.
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| Posted: 23 Jan 2013 05:48 PM PST
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin There is an English saying: you feel like kicking yourself. This describes the situation where you have been an utter fool and now feel real stupid about it. Hence you feel like kicking yourself. I have noticed that many readers seem to feel exactly like this -- they feel like kicking themselves. Judging by the comments posted in Malaysia Today, many which are deleted merely because they keep repeating the same thing over and over again, quite a number of you fall into this category. I used to be a Tun Hussein Onn critic in the days he was Malaysia's Prime Minister back in the late 1970s. That was more or less the time I started to become politically conscious and when I began to realise that all was not kosher and honky-dory in Malaysia. Then, when Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad took over as Prime Minister, I did not care about Hussein Onn any more. He had already retired and was 'yesterday's news'. I began to channel my criticism towards Dr Mahathir -- even during the time when Anwar Ibrahim was yet to have his falling out with his master in 1998. Hence my criticism of Dr Mahathir did not commence only in 1998 when he threw Anwar into jail. It started even earlier than that, long before he and Anwar went into conflict. When Dr Mahathir handed over the reins to Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in November 2003, I became a Pak Lah critic. Dr Mahathir was no longer my pet hate. He was no longer the Prime Minister. Pak Lah was. So my new target became Pak Lah. Then Pak Lah retired and handed the country to Najib Tun Razak. From that day on I no longer talked about Pak Lah. I started to target Najib. He was now the Prime Minister so he should now become the focus of my attacks. I find, however, that no one talks about Hussein Onn, the Prime Minister before Dr Mahathir, or about Pak Lah, the Prime Minister after Dr Mahathir. But you do talk about Dr Mahathir. And you talk more about Dr Mahathir's Indian ancestry than about what he did when he was Prime Minister. Even if you do talk about what Dr Mahathir did when he was Prime Minister, most times you will make that comment in the context of his Indian ancestry. It is as if Dr Mahathir is what he is or is a bad person because he has Indian blood in him. It is as if that explains why Dr Mahathir is what he is -- because he is Indian. If I were asked to psychoanalyse you, I would most likely do so as follows. Back in the late 1980s, we had already told you what we knew about Dr Mahathir, Umno and Barisan Nasional. What we told you 25 years ago is basically the same thing as what we are telling you today. However, you refused to listen. In the 1990 general election, more than 53% of you voted for Barisan Nasional, giving the opposition only 53 of the 180 seats in Parliament (or 29%). We just could not get you to kick out Barisan Nasional and give the government to the opposition. No doubt when we point this out you will reply with all sorts of excuses to justify why you did not vote opposition and instead gave the country to Barisan Nasional. The normal excuses are: there was no Internet yet at that time (so we were not well informed), the opposition was not credible enough (so we had no confidence in the opposition), the opposition had not been tested yet (so we had more confidence in Barisan Nasional), the mainstream media lied to us (so we were misinformed) and so on. Then, in the next general election in 1995, the opposition's share of Parliament seats dropped to just 30 out of 192 (which is only 15%). More than 84% of you voted Barisan Nasional. Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah soon realised that his attempt to kick out Barisan Nasional is futile. Malaysians just did not want the opposition to take over the country. They would rather that Umno and Barisan Nasional continue to rule Malaysia. Ku Li was better off just closing down his Semangat 46 and go back to Umno -- which he did soon after that in 1996. Nevertheless, many of us did not give up yet. We continued to support and vote for the opposition. In 1999, we went all out to campaign for the opposition. In fact, that same year I even went to work for Parti Keadilan Nasional. This was no longer just about supporting the opposition. We were literally working for the opposition. Unfortunately, in the 1999 general election, the opposition did even worse than in the 1990 general election. Almost 57% of you voted for Barisan Nasional (compared to 53% in 1990) and the opposition won only 23% of the seats in Parliament (compared to about 29% in 1990). The 1999 general election was supposed to have been the landmark election for Malaysia. We were supposed to have made history. But we could not even better the 1990 general election. What a letdown. And, yet again, the long list of excuses as to why you were 'forced' to vote Barisan Nasional rather than the opposition Barisan Alternatif. And the most classic excuse of all came from the non-Malays: we support you in our hearts but we have to vote Barisan Nasional for the sake of the economy. What a load of bullshit! In other words money talks, bullshit walks. And Barisan Nasional is about money while the opposition is bullshit. But we still did not give up. In November 2003, Pak Lah took over and four months later the general election was called. Dr Mahathir is a dictator. Dr Mahathir is vicious. Dr Mahathir is vindictive. Dr Mahathir is toxic. So we do not dare vote opposition when Dr Mahathir was Prime Minister. But now Pak Lah was Prime Minister. So surely all those excuses no longer applied. But no, in the 2004 general election, almost 64% of you voted for Barisan Nasional, giving them almost 91% of the seats in Parliament. This was the best ever performance for the ruling party since Merdeka. So this could not have been about Dr Mahathir this, that and the other after all, as what you told us in 1990, 1995 and 1999. I was a campaign manager in that 2004 general election. I was no longer just working for the party like in 1999. I was now 'on the ground' trying to help the opposition win. But we got whacked good and proper. We practically lost our pants. Many opposition candidates not only lost the election but lost their deposit as well. That was how bad it was. We were shocked. How could that have happened? And, yet again, a long list of excuses as to why you voted for the ruling party and not for the opposition -- the same long list of excuses that we heard in 1990, 1995 and 1999. That was when I decided we needed to change tactics. They say if you do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result that is a sign of lunacy. If we expect a different result then we need to do things differently. And that was when I decided to launch Malaysia Today and take our fight to the cyber-world. We can never win in 'conventional' warfare when we do not possess the firepower. So we need to embark upon an 'unconventional' war. And that would have to be in the Internet. I always use the Afghan Mujahideen fight against the Russians as my analogy. When they tried fighting the Russians in a conventional war they got whacked bad. Russia had tanks, helicopter gunships, rocket launchers and so on. And the Afghans suffered heavy losses. Then the Afghans changed tactics. They took the fight to where they were strongest, in the mountains. When the Russians tried to fight the Afghans in the mountains the tables turned. Eventually the Russians gave up and went home. Sun Tzu did say you must engage the enemy in your territory and not try to fight them in their territory. This was what the Afghans did. And this was what we also did in 2004 -- after we got whacked bad in the general election that year -- when we decided to engage Barisan Nasional in our territory, the Internet. Nevertheless, the opposition success in the 2008 general election was not any better than in the 1990 general election. Still 52% of you voted for Barisan Nasional, a mere 1% improvement over 1990. Yes, that's right, in spite of all that effort, in 2008 we improved only 1% over 1990, an era when there was no Internet yet. So, can the excuse that Barisan Nasional did well because there was no Internet yet at that time hold water? In 1990 there was no Internet. In 2008 the Internet had already fully matured. But in 2008 the vote improvement was only 1% over 1990. Most of you refuse to accept the fact that this is your fault. If you do then you would have to kick yourself. So you look for a scapegoat to pin the blame on. And that is why you are very nasty towards Dr Mahathir. You want to blame Dr Mahathir for your stupidity. You do not want to admit that it is you who are stupid. So you blame BTN. You blame Umno. You blame the mainstream media. You blame PAS. You blame the Islamic State. You blame Hudud. You blame the fact that Dr Mahathir has Indian blood in him. You blame the fact there was no Internet. You blame your parents who did not know any better. If you could, you would also like to blame Prophet Muhammad -- except that you are not quite sure how to do this. Ultimately, you are to blame. And pinning the blame on Dr Mahathir is your way of shifting the blame so that you need not kick yourself. And, soon, the next general election will be upon us. In two months time we shall know who is going to run the country for the next five years or so. And, yet again, Barisan Nasional is going to win the election. And, yet again, you are going to look for someone to blame. And this is just going to prove one thing that I have been saying for a long time -- and that is Malaysians are a bunch of losers. |
| Anwar: Not Lembah Pantai-bound, but certain on Permatang Pauh Posted: 23 Jan 2013 03:23 PM PST
(The Malaysian Insider) - Denying plans to swap constituencies with daughter Nurul Izzah, PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim nevertheless conceded that he was not guaranteed to contest in his Permatang Pauh stronghold. The opposition leader was responding to rumours that he may instead run for the Lembah Pantai federal seat now occupied by Nurul Izzah, who is expected to face stiff challenge there from Umno's Federal Territories and Urban Well-being Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin. "Why Lembah Pantai? I wasn't informed of this," he was quoted as saying in a Sinar Harian report, adding that Nurul Izzah will berate him if he decides to contest her seat. "God willing I will contest, but most probably there will be requests for me to consider contesting in one or two other seats," Anwar told Malay-language daily yesterday. Anwar held Permatang Pauh from 1982 until 1999, when he was convicted and jailed for corruption. The conviction was subsequently overturned. His wife, PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, contested and held the seat during his absence, before making way for Anwar in 2008. Election 2013 must be called by April 27, after which Parliament will automatically be dissolved and polls initiated.
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| Posted: 23 Jan 2013 03:08 PM PST
(The Malay Mail) - Penang police have called up Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali over his Bible-burning remark and will call him again to record a statement in two days time. Ibrahim confirmed in a short text message to The Malay Mail that the police were following up on a police report lodged against him. Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali also DAP can 'go ahead' to obtain a court order to comple the attorney-general to act against Ibrahim over his statement calling for Muslims to 'seize and burn' copies of the Bible which contained the word 'Allah' or other Arabic words. He was responding to a report in The Malay Mail yesterday in which the DAP national chairman Karpal Singh gave the attorney-general two weeks to act against Ibrahim. However, Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail had said police must investigate actual incidences of Bible0burning in order for any action to be taken. "It is their (DAP's) right to proceed with such actions. As a lawyer, he (Karpal) should be patient and should be aware of how such procedures are," said Syed Hasan. "If indeed Karpal is so concerned about such things, why doesn't he address other issues that may disrupt the nation's harmony such as with Patrick Teoh's remarks on Facebook, or the spreading of hatred by other religions towards Malays?" Syed Hasan was referring to Teoh's FB which ridiculed the Muslims, after which he posted an apology.
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| Batu Caves temple claims they’re being punished for protesting Posted: 23 Jan 2013 03:03 PM PST
(The Star) - The Batu Caves temple committee claims it is being victimised by the Selangor government for staging a protest against the construction of a condominium near the limestone cave site last year. Sri Maha Mariamman Devasathanam committee chairman Datuk R. Nadarajah alleged the state government, through the Selayang Munici-pal Council (MPS), had made bizarre requests, including asking for a building plan of the iconic staircase that leads into the main cave. "After we protested against the condominium, MPS sent us a barrage of letters, and one of them was to dispute the safety of the staircase. "The staircase has been around since the 1930s. Millions of people have been going up and down it and there has never been a problem. "And now they want a building plan for the staircase?'' Nadarajah said here yesterday. He alleged the state government was also punishing him by scrapping his plans for an Indian cultural centre as well as made him face a lot of bureaucracy over the Batu Caves cable car project. Nadarajah claimed the development order for the cable car was approved on Dec 31 last year, but MPS was asking for the building plan again. "That will take us another year of waiting. People are already asking about the cable car,'' he said. The cable car project was announ-ced in 2011 and was expected to be completed in 2012. He reiterated that the problems began after he started speaking againt the condominium project. "I protested and they are now coming after me,'' alleged Nadarajah. Nadarajah had led a protest against the 29-storey condominium project, located just 120m next to the Lord Murugan statue, in October last year, saying the development was too close to the limestone hills. He added that he would be revealing more next week as well as showing the letters from MPS.
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| Xavier points finger at Public Complaints Bureau Posted: 23 Jan 2013 02:55 PM PST
(The Star) - Selangor executive councillor Dr Xavier Jayakumar has alleged that the Public Complaints Bureau is responsible for the issuance of notice to the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Pekan Bangi Lama, Selangor, to tone down the excessive noise. He said the bureau directed the Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) to issue the summons to the temple in February last year and on Jan 8. "The bureau had directed the council to go ahead with the summons," he said. But bureau director-general Mahani Tan Abdullah denied that it had instructed MPKj to act against the temple. "My department has no authority to instruct a local council to issue summonses," she said. She said the bureau had received a complaint from a resident in Pekan Bangi Lama, who claimed that the problem of loud noise from the temple persisted despite lodging a complaint to MPKj. "We sent a letter to MPKj enquiring about the complaint made by the resident," she said. The temple was first issued a notice on Feb 17 last year and another notice was issued on Jan 8 which directed them to reduce the noise level and cease all religious activities after 6pm. MPKj has rescinded the notice. MIC Youth chief T. Mohan said Dr Xavier was attempting to shift the blame to others. "The bureau does not have the authority to dictate terms. It is very clear that the MPKj acted on their own," he said, adding that Dr Xavier should release the letter from the bureau so that everyone will know the truth. PKR Kapar MP S. Manikavasagam said Dr Xavier's statement was ridiculous as there is a directive that all issues related to places of worship had to be referred to the state government first. "The 22 councils in the state come under the purview of the state government and is he (Dr Xavier) implying that they are taking orders from the Federal Government," he said.
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| Burn the Bible, and you burn the church Posted: 23 Jan 2013 02:48 PM PST Pentecostal Churches of Malaysia representative Bishop Robert Judah Paul also expresses resentment against Perkasa chief's Bible burning plan. Priscillla Prasena, FMT Perkasa's plan to burn the Malay edition of the Bible, which carries the word "Allah" to refer to God, is equivalent to burning churches, the Pentecostal Churches of Malaysia representative Robert Judah Paul said today. "Burning the Bible is equivalent to burning churches and the churches have every right to bring it to their highest authority. Churches which are linked to international non-governmental organisations will seek the international voices to air their grievances… and this would reflect badly on the country," he told FMT in an interview. He said Pentecostal Christians will stand by the Catholics in protecting their religious rights if it comes to that. "Churches are united and we strongly feel it is a political move rather than a social threat," he said. Recently, Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali announced that the organisation will seek out Malay Bibles which carries the word "Allah" and burn them. This caused a furore among Christians in the country. While the issue is more religious in nature, politicians have not missed the bandwagon, especially with the general election just around the corner. About 9% of the country's 29.1 million population are Christians, practising various denominations of Christianity. "Ibrahim made a wrong statement which incites anger and hatred among Malaysians. We, as Christians are against the statement and totally abhor what he said," he added. Robert said if Ibrahim proceeds with the burning of the Malay Bibles, the Churches will initiate legal proceedings against him. He said there are various reasons why the Malay Bible was being targeted by the ultra-Malay group. "The Sikh holy book also refers to God as Allah while some Hindu scriptures also do the same. Why target just Malay Bibles? I feel that it is because Christianity is the closest to Islam. Maybe they see Christianity as a threat to Islam. "Christians will take to the street if our voices are not heard legally. Ibrahim and whoever are behind him are very narrow-minded and are not looking at the bigger picture", he added.
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| Perkasa says it has no role in Sunday’s Bible burning Posted: 23 Jan 2013 02:44 PM PST It denies knowledge of Pasukan Bertindak Anti Bible Bahasa Melayu. Anisah Shukry, FMT Perkasa today distanced itself from this Sunday's Bible burning in Butterworth, saying it had no knowledge of the group behind it. "Perkasa knows nothing of the group that intends to burn Bibles this Jan 27. That is not Perkasa's programme," Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali told FMT. The programme, planned by a group calling itself Pasukan Bertindak Anti Bible Bahasa Melayu, comes hot on the heels of Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali's controversial call for Jawi-scripted Malay Bibles with the word "Allah" to be burned. The previously unknown group refers to Sunday's programme as a "festival". Its flyer reads: "Our children and grandchildren will end up being apostates if you want to wait for our impotent government to act. "To Muslims who have copies of al-Kitab, bring them over to make our Bible-burning session merrier." Commenting on this, Syed Hasan said: "Perkasa will leave this so-called Malay Bible-burning event to the police." Syed Hasan also said Perkasa was worried that physical clashes would erupt over news reports of the alleged distribution of Jawi-scripted Bibles containing the word "Allah" to Muslim pupils in Penang. "For the record," he added, "Perkasa's online membership has surged dramatically in the past three days." He claimed he had received many phone calls over the alleged distribution of the controversial Bibles and said this was why his group was stern against those attempting to proselytize among Muslims. But Penang police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi told national news agency Bernama that all the Bibles were in the English language and did not contain the word "Allah".
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| ‘Enough with the warnings, haul up Ibrahim’ Posted: 23 Jan 2013 02:41 PM PST MIC Youth wants stern action against Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali, who has called on Muslims to burn the Al-Kitab. K Pragalath, FMT MIC Youth has urged Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein to stop pussy-footing around the contentious call by Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali, to burn the Malay Bible and instead take immediate action against him. "MIC Youth wants Hishammuddin to take action against Ibrahim. "Ibrahim's irresponsible action of inciting hatred against another religion can lead to this nation's instability," said the party's Youth secretary, C Sivarraajh. He was reacting to Ibrahim who urged Muslims to burn Malay Bibles known as the Al-Kitab which bore the term"Allah". Ibrahim, who is also Pasir Mas MP, made the call on Saturday in reaction to reports that the Al-Kitab is being distributed to Muslim schoolchildren. He said this at a Perkasa convention held in Penang. Following that call, DAP chairman Karpal Singh and a group of individuals have lodged police reports. Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail, meanwhile, told FMT that action will be taken only after the law had been breached. Describing Ibrahim's call as "outrageous", Sivarraajh said that it is time Ibrahim is brought to book since he has raised racial and religious sensitivities in the past. "Even though he has been warned many times, but he's still walking the same way and using the same old tune which made other people hate him," said Sivarraajh. In a related development, a little known group called Pasukan Bertindak Anti Bible Bahasa Melayu (Anti-Malay-Bible Action Force), urged Muslims to join in the "Malay Bible burning festivities" on Jan 27 in Penang.
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| Penang goes all out to stop ‘fiery’ festival Posted: 23 Jan 2013 02:38 PM PST The chief minister has asked the state police chief and the Seberang Perai Municipal Council to take action to stop the Bible-burning event. Athi Shankar, FMT Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng today gave an assurance that his administration will explore all ways and means to stop the Bible-burning festival from taking place in Butterworth on Jan 27. He said that such a shameful act, if allowed to take place, would not only disgrace Penang but also the country. "The state government will do all it can to ensure this vile and abhorrent act will not take place," Lim, who is also the Bagan MP, said in his blog posting. He also urged all peace loving Malaysians, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, to pray together for peace, harmony, religious respect and goodwill to prevail this Sunday. Early this week pamphlets were allegedly distributed by a little known group called Pasukan Bertindak Anti Bible Bahasa Melayu (Anti-Malay-Bible Action Force) urging Muslims to join in the Malay Bible burning festivities at the Dewan Ahmad Badawi's municipality field in Butterworth. Lim said he has issued a directive to Seberang Perai Municipal Council (MPSP) president Maimunah Mohd Shariff to bar anyone from entering into the field to burn Bibles or any other religious documents. He has also asked state police chief DCP Abdul Rahim Hanafi to take steps to stop the festival and ensure that the image and dignity of Penang is protected. Lim and the Christian Federation of Malaysia have also received the alleged pamphlets, which had emerged following Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali's call on Muslims to burn the Malay and Jawi versions of the Bibles containing the term "Allah" and other Islamic holy terms. Ibrahim, the Pasir Mas MP, made the call in wake of police reports lodged on alleged distribution of Bibles to Muslims pupils outside a school in Jelutong here early last week. At a press conference held after a Perkasa convention on "Economic and Education Transformation of Penang Malays" held at UiTM campus in Pematang Pauh last Saturday, Ibrahim called on Muslims to "seize and burn" such copies of the Bible if distributed to them. Police reports have been lodged against Ibrahim, the alleged distribution of the pamphlets and the alleged distribution of the Bibles to Muslims. Police have recorded statements from many people, including journalists, in connection with all three cases. Lim, the DAP secretary-general, also criticised Gerakan for joining hands with several federal government agencies to organise the Penang Run on Jan 28, which falls on Hindu grand festival, Thaipusam.
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| Posted: 23 Jan 2013 01:22 PM PST
The other day, I watched a rugby game which featured one of the top clubs in Malaysia. The club is run predominantly by Malays who are Muslims of course. The players are also predominantly Malay/Muslim. Majority Allah-fearing and hold steadfast to the pillars of Islam. But emblazoned across their jerseys is the name of a well-known beer. Mohsin Abdullah, Hornbill Unleashed While some Muslims may find the symbols 'sensitive', others don't mind 'haram' advertising of beer. I MUST admit I've not heard of it before. Apparently, there's a group in Penang which is called Persatuan Mukabuku Pulau Pinang Pinang. In English that should be Penang Facebook Association. Anyway, as we know recent media reports quoted the association president – a gentleman by the name of Salleh Ismail – as saying "two men were seen circulating bibles to students including Muslim students outside a school in Jelutong, Penang". And we also know Deputy Education Minister Dr Puad Zarkashi has asked police to investigate as, said the deputy minister, "proselytisation of Muslims is against the law in the country". Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom, Minister in the PM's Department meanwhile, has urged the police to "act fast as this is a very sensitive issue". That's the law of the land. Hence must be respected. Let the police probe. Without going into that particular "case", I find myself asking this question. If, for some reason, someone comes up to me and hands me a copy of the Bible, what would I do? Well I can: 1) Turn it down ie do not accept the "gift"; 2) Accept politely, say thank you, put it away somewhere and forget about it totally; 3) Read the Bible although I'm not sure if I can understand or comprehend; 4) Study it. After all, the late Ahmad Deedat, the Muslim missionary studied the Bible and the knowledge in his own words made him stronger in his belief of the Islamic faith. Some even called him the "Great Islamic Scholar of the Bible". Whether one agrees with that or for that matter Ahmad Deedate's "style" of teaching and propagating Islam is another matter. Point is he wasn't, for want of a better word, "afraid" of the Bible. Unlike many or some (definitely not all) Malay/Muslims in Malaysia. Read more at: http://hornbillunleashed.wordpress.com/2013/01/24/40685/
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