Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- General Election 2013 – BN, Shifting From Strategic Defence to Strategic Offense
- Khalid’s future cloudy as PKR mulls Selangor candidates list
- Pakatan gives up on SAPP
- Subramaniam confident of retaining Segamat seat despite rumour
- Jeffrey to Sarawakians: Learn from Sabah
- BN’s Vishwaroopam is getting ugly
- Stop playing with our sentiments, Hisham
- Mahathir’s Tall Tales on Sabah!
- In the name of Allah, The Gracious The Merciful...
- Dr M must apologise to Ambiga, Bar Council
- Place winning Putrajaya before candidacy, Zuraida tells Sabah PKR reps
- Been there, done that
- Ronnie Liu: 'Jawatan Jefrei sudah lama dilucutkan'
- Najib out-Gangnam DAP?
- Dr M: Struggle for PM post dividing Malays, empowering minorities
- Ignore Deepak, Dr M tells Najib
- Over 1,700 Malaysians abroad register for postal voting
- ‘BN leading Malaysia to destruction’
- ‘High property prices due to Pakatan policies’
- Hindraf’s ‘carrot’ to Pakatan
- Fresh DAP candidates likely for Penang
- ‘Ang Pow-Kau Kau-Mai Mai-Yam Seng’ society
- Time for a new government
- Psy’s Gangnam parody in Penang: Oops, joke is on BN elites
- Malaysia’s shocking collaboration with the CIA in the extraordinary rendition of two Libyan ...
- Opposition leaders urged to retract decision on use of 'Allah'
- Whitney Houston, died 11th February 2012, hit voted best love song in US poll
- PKR bimbang dengan cara MB Selangor menyelesaikan krisis air
- Don’t boycott postal votes, Nurul Izzah tells overseas citizens
- Bringing up children
- Muslims told at Friday prayers to ‘hate’ Valentine’s Day
- Chinese New Year and the Worlds Between This One
- Ronnie Liu's aide resigns, citing dissatisfaction
- The decline and fall of Najib
- ‘BN to win election but no two thirds’
- Yazid’s wife denies terrorist links
- Yazid charged with promoting terrorism
- Does Suing MRT Co Make Us Pinggir Za'aba, TTDI Residents Elite?
- Is Taib-Jeffrey alliance in the making?
- New voters add mystery to Perak contest
- MCA’s empty threats
- BK Residents Are Exposed to Life Threatening Toxic Gas!
- Bukit Koman air full of poison, says green group
- Rais: Media should be thinkers, critics prioritising harmony
- Anwar Ibrahim and his promises!
- What would we have been, if not for UMNO/BN?
- Malaysian Loves Corruption & Can’t Live Without It
- Slashed over hanging of BN flag, banner
- Ex-ISA detainee Yazid held under security laws
- When white is not white
| General Election 2013 – BN, Shifting From Strategic Defence to Strategic Offense Posted: 09 Feb 2013 06:19 PM PST
The Opposition has also run out of ammunitions and their rank and file is woefully battle-fatigued. Self-doubts have emerged and major policy disagreements between DAP and PAS have divided the rank and file as well. Karpal Singh has done an invaluable service to the BN government. Whatever surprises that were touted as game-changers, such as the so-called political realignments in Sabah, could not be sustained and have not been transformed into any major groundswell. By Matthias Chang – Future Fast-forward In my previous articles, I suggested several reasons for having a General Election in 2013, one of which was that as long as the Opposition controlled four State Governments, it would be a strategic disadvantage to the BN Government to have an early election. The four State Governments controlled by the Opposition parties would not be dissolved in the event of an early election so that they could harness their limited resources and concentrate on the Parliamentary Election in an attempt to seize Federal power. The four State Governments would be the "impregnable forts" offering shelter and resources to opposition forces and afford them opportunities to conduct strategic forays in BN controlled areas. Since 2010, the strategists in the Opposition camp have been baiting the BN Government to hold early elections and each time, I had warned of such a danger. The four "impregnable fortresses" have now been encircled and whatever forays outside the fortresses had limited battlefield success. If I were Anwar Ibrahim, I would sack those strategists who were conducting continuous and relentless battles against the BN government since 2010. If Tommy Thomas was one of them, he should be the first to be "decapitated", figuratively speaking. How can any strategist be so stupid to adopt the blunders of Brutus (especially riding on the wrong tide) in the famous final Battle of Philippi as the winning strategy for the Opposition? Brutus, casting aside the advice of the more cautious Cassius, misread the tide and plunged into a disastrous defeat. To salvage what little honour remaining, Brutus committed suicide, as did other conspirators who murdered the great Caesar on the false pretext that the assassination was necessary to save Rome. And as they say, the rest is history! History will repeat itself in the "Second Battle of Philippi", which will commence soon enough. One must not ride on the crest of every tide for there are tides that will assuredly lack the force and momentum to guarantee victory. Low tide comes to mind. In July 2012, the strategic balance changed for BN – from Strategic Defence to Strategic Parity. Since December 2012, we are witnessing a new phase – Strategic Offense – the gathering momentum for an irreversible High Tide! A good analogy of what has happened would be the great victory by the greatest boxer in history, Muhammad Ali over the big puncher, George Foreman in Africa. Employing the "rope-a-dope" tactic, Ali baited George Foreman to punch relentlessly for eight critical rounds until exhaustion took over. Ali took every punishing blow to the head and the body, absorbing the pain and the relentless pace. When Foreman was all spent and worn out, Muhammad Ali unleashed a devastating blow that floored Foreman for good. Well, the Opposition has thrown every conceivable punch at the BN for the last three years but there was no knockout punch. Like the abovementioned boxing match, the pace was relentless, and the blows punishing but BN took it all and is still standing. The Opposition has also run out of ammunitions and their rank and file is woefully battle-fatigued. Self-doubts have emerged and major policy disagreements between DAP and PAS have divided the rank and file as well. Karpal Singh has done an invaluable service to the BN government. Whatever surprises that were touted as game-changers, such as the so-called political realignments in Sabah, could not be sustained and have not been transformed into any major groundswell. Initially, the Opposition held the high ground, having the tactical advantage and when they over-estimated their strength, they launched a blitzkrieg offensive on several fronts, all at once and gained massive ground. But, the offensive sputtered in the second half of 2012 and by December stalled. It is clear that the Opposition "Generals" are at a lost as to which front-lines are to be abandoned, the troops pulled back to a more defensible perimeter and how to prepare for the inevitable counter-attack. Napoleon made the same strategic mistake and so did Hitler when they attacked Russia. The critical blunder was to launch a broad frontal attack in the hope of a rapid collapse of enemy's forces thereby exposing the weakness of the supply lines, stretched thin by the wide frontlines. When the great Marshal Zhukov counter-attacked, the entire Eastern Front collapsed leading to the defeat of Nazi Germany! The Opposition has now consolidated and reduced their frontlines to the battle for Penang and Selangor with expeditionary forces in Sabah and Sarawak as diversions. But, it is too late. Exhausted troops are manning the frontlines, not sure of fresh supplies or reserves. If truth be told, the Opposition has no reserves at all. The Barisan Nasional has already launched its counter-attack with a full Division of fresh troops kept in the rear as reserves for two years for this one objective. And they have abundant supplies. Additionally, the Opposition's propaganda campaign is losing momentum and has no longer any bite. It was a huge strategic mistake for the Opposition to latch on to the coattails of Deepak, a blackmailer whose agenda was hijacked by an opportunist legal goon to project himself as the "Knight in Shining Armour", who has opened himself to future prosecution for being complicit in drawing up the so-called first statutory declaration for private-eye P. Balasubramaniam. My reasons are as follows. The clue is in the followings words of the press release dated December 20, 2012 by the solicitor of P. Balasubramaniam: "As far as I am concerned, the 1st SD was transcribed, produced and eventually affirmed by my client over a period of two months during which time every detail was painstakingly checked and cross-checked to ensure the highest accuracy…" (and as reported by Malaysiakini) Based on the above statement, the rakyat is told to accept as Gospel truth what is stated in the Statutory Declaration (SD). Who did the checking and crosschecking? The lawyer? The private eye? Some other third party? If it is the lawyer, what are the implications? Let me just say, he is on shaky grounds to assert so boldly that "every detail was checked and cross-checked". But, there are no statements as to how the checking and crosschecking were conducted and with whom did the lawyer and or the private eye checked and crosschecked the so-called details! By the way, there is no such hotel as the "Prince Court Hotel" where it was alleged that the 2nd SD was executed. There is however a "Prince Hotel & Residence" in Kuala Lumpur and a "Prince Court Medical Centre" also in Kuala Lumpur. Was this fact checked and crosschecked by the solicitor when he released his press statement, I wonder? If not, why not? The location of an alleged crime scene is most important. But, this is now open to doubt notwithstanding that the crime scene was identified as the non-existent "Prince Court Hotel" by a member of the profession that prides itself as being honourable! If every detail relating to the 2nd SD was not meticulously checked and cross-checked as it should be, then one has to question the accuracy of the 1st SD and no one should take the word of the solicitor as the absolute truth. Even the contrived "Deepak Scandal" did not have the desired effect. The goons behind this pantomime who postured as "knights in shining armour" were in fact muckrakers, peddling trash. The orchestrated press conference consists of innuendos and subtle speculations but devoid of hard evidence. The conductor of this third rate pantomime, if truth be told, is an opportunist and a coward. Let's call a spade a spade – the conductor of this sordid pantomime was orchestrating an insidious blackmail and his co-conspirators who pride themselves as honourable were up to their eyeballs in this cesspool. The entire political campaign of the Opposition (save that of PAS) was grounded on emotions and hate. In essence, the political campaign of the Opposition is a "Hate Campaign" – to demonise and politically assassinate the leaders of the Barisan Nasional (past and present). More important issues are at stake and Malaysians should take time to analyse some critical facts with regard to the leading members of the Opposition parties. Take Lim Kit Siang. Politically as a member of parliament, he can be likened to a "rolling stone", one who has no loyalties to his constituency. How else can one explain his track record as an MP:- • Bandar Melaka (1969–1974) • Kota Melaka (1974–1978) • Petaling Jaya (1978–1982) • Kota Melaka (1982–1986) • Tanjong (1986–1999) When his Tanjong campaign to take over Penang failed in 1995 and 1999 (he was rejected and defeated in Tanjong together with Karpal Singh in Jelutong in 1999), he gave up totally the campaign to capture Penang. What happened in 2008 was unexpected, for if DAP was so sure of taking over Penang he would have waged battle in Penang. The DAP Chief in Penang, Chow Kon Yeow publicly declared in 2003 that there would be no more Tanjong 3! So, Kit Siang ran to Perak to seek greener pastures. • Ipoh Timur (since 2004) Karpal Singh is a lesser rolling stone. Karpal's political career began in 1970 when he joined the DAP. He won the Alor Setar Bandar state seat in Kedah in 1974. He was first elected to parliament in 1978 when he won in the Jelutong constituency, Penang, as well as the Bukit Gelugor state seat. Karpal held the Jelutong seat for more than 20 years until losing it in 1999. He held the Bukit Gelugor state seat until 1990, moving on to contest the Sungai Pinang and Padang Kota seats in subsequent elections but was defeated. In the 2004 general election, Karpal returned to parliament with a 1,261-majority win in the new Bukit Gelugor seat and retained his seat in the 2008 election. Lim Guan Eng has a similar pattern. Lim was first elected as a Member of Parliament for Kota Melaka in 1986, after defeating Soh Chin Aun and was re-elected in the subsequent 1990 and 1995 general elections, albeit with reduced majority votes. He was ineligible to contest in the 2005 election on account of his conviction for sedition. He suffered a personal setback when he and his wife came in last and second-last respectively in the election for the DAP Malacca Committee. It came as no surprise therefore, that in the 2008 General Election he switched to Penang as it is clear he did not enjoy much support in Malacca even within his own party. The unexpected DAP victory in Penang in the 2008 general election allowed Lim Guan Eng to become the Chief Minister of Penang replacing the former Chief Minister, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon even though Lim Guan Eng is not from Penang. Senior DAP leaders of Penang such as Lim Hock Seng, Phee Boon Poh, and Chow Kon Yeow were bypassed and were instead appointed as excos. The above, by any measure, is a reflection of the political opportunism practiced by the three top leaders of DAP and I would urge the Malaysian voters to be very cautious in entrusting the fate of our country to such leaders. I must give credit where credit is due. It can be said without any fear of contradiction that of the three Opposition parties, PAS is the most consistent in its political aim of setting up an "Islamic Welfare State" whether one agrees with that agenda or not. PKR has similar political origins as the former Semangat 46, both came into existence as a result of differences within UMNO. But, DAP is a totally different political entity. Throughout its history, it could not forge any lasting cooperation with other opposition entities and or project a leadership role. It was only when Semangat 46 and PKR came into the ranks of the Opposition that DAP gained a wider acceptance. However, this was and is purely tactical so as to garner more electoral victories. DAP never aspired to be the ruling party and therefore had no long-term vision for the country. Being part of the "ruling coalition" that captured Penang and having the coveted Chief Minister post was a political bonus beyond its wildest dreams, as they had in 2003 given up all hope in capturing Penang when it abandoned the Tanjong 3 campaign! Given the inherent political contradictions between DAP and PAS with regard to the establishment of an Islamic Welfare State, there is just no way that DAP will give support (other than lip-service) to PAS in those constituencies where DAP may have some influence over the Chinese voters. The stand taken by Lim Guan Eng on the "Allah Issue" will be the straw that will break PAS' camel's back. Given that this issue is so close to the hearts of all PAS members and the blatant and very public refusal of DAP's leadership (especially Karpal Singh and Lim Guan Eng) to make a tactical compromise is an indication that when the crunch comes, the retention of Penang as a DAP stronghold is a bigger prize for DAP than the prospect of securing Federal power. The cold calculation is simple. If the Opposition loses out in the General Election, for DAP it is better to have "a bird in hand (i.e. Penang) than two in the bush" for it can survive such a defeat. And to buttress its long-term survival, it is not beyond DAP's calculation to offer an olive branch to the BN on a similar understanding as what Gerakan accomplished in 1973. Given this final equation, it is utterly stupid for the Chinese voters to give any support to DAP. DAP in Chinese parlance is a "Fun Kuat Jhai" i.e. a traitor, for DAP will assuredly betray PAS! The soothsayer has spoken, "Beware the Ides of March" but this time, there will be no assassination of a Caesar, but instead we will witness the burial of Malaysia's Brutus, Cassius and the other conspirators after the Second Battle of Philippi! | ||
| Khalid’s future cloudy as PKR mulls Selangor candidates list Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:53 PM PST
Syed Jaymal Zahiid, The Malaysian Insider Uncertainty hangs over Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim's political future in Selangor as sources in Pakatan Rakyat (PR) have indicated that the first-term mentri besar could lose his post even if the pact retains the state in Election 2013. The PKR leadership has so far refrained from confirming if Khalid would be selected to defend his seat, in light of growing anger among locals who purportedly view the politician as an "absent" representative. The Malaysian Insider understands the party leadership had also, at one point, considered dropping Khalid as its Ijok candidate following concerns that the mentri besar could lose the seat. "Locals see him as an absent representative, that he is never around so there is a perception. Sometimes we understand that he is the MB but even his people are never around so it's hard to work on the ground," a high ranking PR leader told The Malaysian Insider. Talks that Khalid would be dropped first surfaced when PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced in October last year that the former would remain as PKR's Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary candidate but did not state if Khalid (picture) would defend Ijok. The announcement fuelled suspicion that the party was planning to replace him with current PKR deputy president Azmin Ali, who had purportedly vied for the post. It also invited accusations that to placate Khalid, Anwar would promise him a federal post should the PR wrest Putrajaya. "Did he state if Khalid would contest for Ijok? No he did not. You can make your own assumption," said one PKR official who spoke on condition of anonymity. PKR secretary-general Datuk Saifudin Nasution, who sits on the party's candidate listing committee, dismissed the rumour as baseless but did not confirm if the party's plan to revamp its Selangor state-level line-up would exclude Khalid. "I am very aware of every detail and there was no such thing. The party's committee on candidacy chaired by Anwar is still engaging state level leaders on this matter," he told The Malaysian Insider when asked to verify claims that PKR had once considered dropping Khalid from Ijok. Spurring rumours of Khalid's removal are problems afflicting the local PKR machinery. Sources said Khalid has not been able to campaign effectively following the ongoing animosity between him and key campaign staff members, which has purportedly left the machinery near-paralysed. There were talks that local leaders had refused to cooperate after Khalid rejected their demands for "payment" in return for their loyalty, as well as claims that Khalid's poor communication skills and "arrogance" had triggered the rift. PKR's Ijok machinery chief staff Abdul Rahman Umar shrugged off the allegations but admitted that the central leadership has yet to confirm if Khalid would contest for the seat again. "There is no confirmation...but we did nominate Tan Sri Khalid for Ijok," he told The Malaysian Insider. Abdul Rahman, a popular local figure known as Cikgu Rahman, explained the perception that the machinery was not with Khalid may have come from the drop in its campaign pace since April last year after there was no indication that elections would be held last year. "Now we know the elections is near we have start working. Ijok is a small kampung (countryside) community. They will help. When the time comes they will help," Abdul Rahman said.
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| Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:42 PM PST
(The Star) - Pakatan Rakyat and Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) have ended their recent months of courtship with two top Parti Keadilan Rakyat leaders saying that "we will go separate ways." PKR deputy-president Azmin Ali and vice-president Tian Chua made it clear yesterday that there will be no more negotiations with SAPP president Datuk Yong Teck Lee for a seat-sharing pact to confront Barisan Nasional in a one-to-one fight in the general election. Tian Chua described SAPP's continued demands for a large share of state seats during negotiations as "unreasonable and reflects their insincerity and commitment towards an Opposition pact to oust Barisan in Sabah. "If SAPP maintains that they must be given a large share of the seats which makes it impossible for an agreement to be reached, we can only interpret it as their not being interested in the cooperation. "This means we have to go separate ways," he told a press conference here yesterday. Tian Chua dismissed the possibility of the opposition losing the support of Sabah voters if local-based SAPP was excluded from the Pakatan pact as he believed it would have minimal impact on them. "In the coming polls, the people will choose between Barisan and Pakatan. "Any other force will not have any substantial impact on the choice of the voters," he said. He said that Pakatan was willing to work with any party in Sabah to remove Barisan from Putrajaya. "Pakatan parties are willing to cooperate with all forces if they are genuinely committed to our common struggle to topple Barisan," he added. Tian Chua's public stand on SAPP was in tangent with Azmin's statement to an online news portal which quoted him as saying that SAPP was "completely out of the list and out of our formula" as far as seat negotiations were involved because of the party's unreasonable demands. Azmin stated that Pakatan was close to concluding a seat-sharing deal with its new Sabah allies Angkatan Perubahan Sabah (APS) and Pertubuhan Pakatan Perubahan Sabah (PPPS). APS is led by Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Bumburing, the former deputy president of Upko while PPPS is led by Datuk Lajim Ukin, the Beaufort MP and former Umno supreme council member. Pakatan party leaders including Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had previously agreed in principle to work out a seat-sharing agreement with SAPP for the 60 state and 25 parliament seats in Sabah. Besides having problems with SAPP, the Pakatan parties also face problems in working out a seat deal with Sabah STAR, led by Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan who is pushing for a Sabah for Sabahans agenda. Both SAPP and Sabah STAR believed that state-based parties should be allowed to contest the bulk of the state seats while Pakatan parties should focus on parliament seats.
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| Subramaniam confident of retaining Segamat seat despite rumour Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:37 PM PST
(The Star) - MIC deputy president Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam has rubbished talk that his Segamat Parliamentary seat is among those in danger of falling to the Opposition because a majority of the constituents are Chinese. The Human Resources Minister said his Chinese constituents, who make up almost half of the electorate, were aware of the work he had done for them, expressing confidence that they would continue supporting him. "I know my constituents, especially the Chinese, well. I have resolved the issues affecting the community and they have no reason not to support Barisan," he said after opening a RM1.9mil new block at SJKT Ladang Labu near here. The Opposition has been claiming that Segamat was one of the Parliamentary seats in Johor that it was confident of winning. Talk is also rife that either DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang, who is now Ipoh Timur MP, or Johor PKR chief Datuk Chua Jui Meng may be fielded in Segamat for the Opposition to make inroads into the southern state. Dr Subramaniam defeated DAP's Pang Hok Liong with a 2,971 vote majority in the 2008 general election by obtaining 15,921 votes against his opponent's 12,950. On another matter, Dr Subramaniam said the Indians should continue supporting Barisan as the ruling coalition had done a lot for the community. "We received RM100mil last year which was used to finance the construction of 21 new Tamil schools that were relocated from rural areas and estates and to upgrade another 184 Tamil schools. "We have received another RM100mil this year which we plan to use to upgrade between 150 and 180 more schools," he said. Dr Subramaniam said that due to this, more parents were now sending their children to Tamil schools with the ratio being at 52:48 in comparison to national schools.
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| Jeffrey to Sarawakians: Learn from Sabah Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:30 PM PST The Sabah STAR chief says he admires Taib's resolute stand not to allow Umno coming into Sarawak. Luke Rintod, FMT KOTA KINABALU: Sabah State Reform Party (STAR) chief Jeffrey Kitingan has defended his call to Sarawakians to support local instead of peninsula-based parties, saying he meant well for Sarawak after Sabah's own experience with outsider party. "I wanted to share with Sarawak, Sabah's own experience with Umno's colonisation in the state so that what happened to Sabah would not happen to Sarawak in the future," he said in response to Sarawak PKR leader Baru Bian's response that the former's call was confusing Sarawakians. Jeffrey, who is also chairman of NGO United Borneo Front (UBF), clarified that his "support local party" call has nothing to do with Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud. Speaking exclusively to FMT here, Jeffrey stressed that what he meant was that (a) local party would be the best vehicle for Sarawak and Sabah. "I admire Taib's resolute stand not to allow Umno coming into Sarawak. The moment the people there supported (an) outsider party over local, they would lose their autonomy. "I have a message to Taib too, that is the Sarawak local parties under BN right now should be open to work with whoever Sarawak is more comfortable with after the coming general election. "It doesn't mean I am asking the people of Sarawak to support BN, not at all, but that local parties would be the best and ideal vehicle," he said. He said his message was clear and that is to empower the people in the two states and never to surrender their franchise under any threat. He said sometimes this 'franchise' comes masquerading as offer to help or empower them by outsider political parties or leaders. "Just look at Sabah, the moment Umno came in place of a local party, Kuala Lumpur started calling the shots, making the state government powerless on Sabah's destiny until the state leaders were mere puppets of outsiders. And now Sabah is the poorest state with a myriad of KL-made problems," he said.
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| BN’s Vishwaroopam is getting ugly Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:26 PM PST Stop just looking at the bigger agenda. BN and Najib must also know how to sort out the smaller issues if they want to win over voters. K Kabilan, FMT (Vishwaroopam in Tamil means the true face. It is also the title of a Tamil blockbuster which is still awaiting release in Malaysia due to its supposedly controversial theme.) Sometimes one does wonder if the government is really concerned about the peoples' wishes. Is it even listening to what the people are saying? It appears as though the government is more interested in doing things which it thinks will be good for the rakyat. Najib Tun Razak's earlier clarion call that his government was not one which subscribed to "government knows it all" seems like a half-baked lie right now. Take, for example, the decision to fly down South Korean megastar Psy for the Barisan Nasional Chinese New Year open house in Penang. A cool RM3 million was reportedly spent for this. Of course, it was not the rakyat's money as the Gangnam ride was reportedly sponsored by private parties. Still, that much for a singer who has only one known mega hit? And at a time when people are complaining of not getting real value for their money? What about the Ponggal festival at Dataran Merdeka on Feb 2? Of course, it was deemed to be a mega success, by MIC standards. It would surely be if RM5 million was reportedly set aside to get the crowd. Word has it that almost 1,400 buses were chartered to bring in Indians to the capital city to show that they all love our prime minister. In return, they did get a full meal of nasi briyani, courtesy of the BN government. Is this how Najib wants to get the people to back him and BN again? This method seems so archaic, but it must be working for them to be doing it repeatedly! But it goes back to the main question once again. Isn't Najib interested in what the people really want? Does the rakyat still want the government to dictate what's good for them? The death of a security guard The first is the death of security guard C Sugumaran who died after allegedly being beaten by policemen and members of the public on Jan 24. The first post-mortem stated that he had succumbed to a heart failure. The family wants a second post-mortem and that's where things have started to break down. Sugumaran's body still lies in a mortuary while his family wants the know the true cause of his death. Very simple request. Any caring government, or a home minister, or prime minister, would have made the all-important call so that truth and justice are served. But what we have here is the prime minister asking for a forensic report to be passed to him, and then even 10 days later, making no decision on the matter. In the meantime, the home minister sits quietly, letting the police handle the matter. The police, on their part, want to follow rules and regulations to the letter while not doing anything conclusive at all. It's a merry-go-round with a family still waiting for answers, and closure as a result of the death. Is there an easier way to solve this problem? Yes, there is. It is actually as easy as Najib going to the local radio stations and trying to impress the Chinese voters with his Mandarin. But will he take the easy way to solve this problem? I doubt it!
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| Stop playing with our sentiments, Hisham Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:20 PM PST So Dato Hisham, please stop beating around the bush and tell us frankly: is the movie Vishwaroopam going to be released at all? By S Vell Paari, FMT It is as a result of these four NGO's, the Malaysian government has yet to approve for the spy thriller to be released in local cinemas even though the Censor Board has approved the second edited version. The decision to release or not to release this movie is Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein's call. My questions to Hishammuddin are these: 1. In what way is the Muslim sentiment of the Tamil speaking Indian Muslims of Tamil Nadu, Singapore and rest of the world, together with the local 60 Indian Muslim NGOs, different to the four NGOs currently objecting to the movie? I can understand if it's the case all over the world. Malaysia has the highest edits, 16 in total as opposed to seven in Tamil Nadu. Are you saying these four NGOs' ideology to Islam is different to the rest of the world? This decision is no different to PAS ruling on the Chinese attire issue in Kedah. 2. The Home Ministry (KDN) speaks of sensitivity but where was this sensitivity in regards to the controversial book Interlok which was deemed to be insensitive to the Indian community? It took such a long time for a decision to be made to remove the book from school syallabus. Are you punishing us for objecting to Interlok? 3. This movie was cleared for general viewing in local cinemas by the Malaysian Censor Board. It was then banned by the ministry after a single show following complaints from the local Indian Muslim NGOs (the first group). So are you saying that the Malaysian Censor Board was ignorant of the feelings of Muslims in our country? 4. Where was this sensitivity when the cow-head incident happened in Selangor in 2009? And weren't you the one who said we must understand the feelings of the protesters? Why is it that when we (the Indian community) were subjected to abuse, we must understand the feelings of those abusing us? Why is it that our sensitivity is never taken into consideration? Why? Is it because we don't have feelings or are we not entitled to have feelings. 5. Pirated versions of the movie are flooding the local market. Your Home Ministry has helped to boost the income for the SME piracy market. These pirated DVDs and VCDs are uncut versions of the movie. So what did the four NGOs (the second group) and you achieve with the continued ban of Vishwaroopam? Will the police force be now instructed to arrest the families of average Malaysians of Indian origin who decide to buy the pirated version of the movie due to KDN's double standard? Will we be seeing kids handcuffed and dragged with their parents into police vehicles? What a disaster! With such stunts from KDN, who needs a tsunami? Working against Najib It's a clear case of insubordination by you against the direction and vision of the prime minister. You are clearly becoming a millstone around Barisan Nasional's neck. So Dato Hisham, please stop beating around the bush and tell us frankly: is the movie going to be released at all? What is so sensitive about the feelings of these four NGOs as against to the wishes of the other 60 Indian Muslim NGOs (with whom MIC had come to an agreement to allow for the release of the movie with mimimum edits) and the balance of the Indian community?
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| Mahathir’s Tall Tales on Sabah! Posted: 09 Feb 2013 08:22 AM PST
Putrajaya has no business whatsoever, under the constitutional documents on Malaysia, to block recommendations from the Sabah or Sarawak Governments on permanent residence in their respective territories. Yet we are told by Mahathir that he liberally gave out citizenships in Sabah during his 22 years in office as Prime Minister. Joe Fernandez We have heard it all now on Sabah from former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. In his latest take on the on-going Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) in the state, Mahathir claims that he instructed that only those eligible in Sabah should be granted citizenship. This is rich! He's degenerating before our very eyes even as a poor liar. There's an old Malayalee saying with which Mahathir should be familiar: "Once you tell a lie, you must tell a thousand other lies to cover up the first lie." No wonder there's an old Jaffna joke going around about the tragic fate of a cobra that was unfortunate enough to bite a Malayalee. The cobra died! The Jaffna people claim that they were chased out of Kerala and into northern Sri Lanka by the Malayalees who first welcomed the migrants from Tamil Nadu by draping them in yellow cloth, literally speaking, but later allegedly tried to slit their throats. Citizenships are not based on any so-called directive from the Prime Minister, the Home Minister or the Federal Cabinet.
Citizenship is based on the Federal Constitution, the only Social Contract between the State and the people. So, Mahathir could not have issued such a directive on the grant of citizenships. There was no need for one since there was no basis. His so-called directive on citizenships is another red herring meant to divert attention from the tainted electoral rolls in Sabah and whether his family from Kerala, southwest India, ever determined their citizenship status in the wake of the British departure from Malaya in 1957. But more on that story in a little while. The issue (child) of a citizen by operation of law – i.e. the latter holding no citizenship papers – or an issue of a citizen by registration – i.e. the latter with citizenship papers – is eligible to be citizen by operation of law whether born in the country or abroad. Those born abroad must have had their births registered at the nearest Malaysian High Commission or Embassy, or at the British or a Commonwealth mission, where's there's no such representation.
The Federal Constitution is clear on this point. The Government of Malaysia has no prerogative and discretionary powers on citizenship under the Federal Constitution except the Federal Cabinet when it comes to resolving the citizenship woes of Malaysians. The Federal Cabinet can act in this case. Many of those eligible to be citizens by operation of law in Malaysia are stateless because they carry no birth certificates like their parents, grandparents and ancestors. These include Indians and the Orang Asal (Orang Asli) in Peninsular Malaysia and the Orang Asal – Dusuns, Muruts, and Dayaks -- in Sabah and Sarawak. The sea gypsies or Bajau Laut -- Pala'u – in Sabah are also stateless. The issue of a citizen by naturalization – i.e. the latter a foreigner who obtained citizenship in Malaysia – is eligible for citizenship by registration. If born overseas, there are the other requirements to be met. Failure to register as a citizen or failure to register the birth if born overseas would mean that the issue would be considered a citizen of the naturalized citizen's old country. There are many in Malaysia in this category as a result of being born in Brunei, Indonesia (Kalimantan) and India, among other places. They are permanently doomed to carry red (permanent residence) and green cards (temporary residence) or even Special Passes (white) from the Immigration Department.
Citizenship by naturalization is a long process which begins with entry permit and work permits. However, foreign spouses of Malaysians need only to get a social visit pass in lieu of entry permit. The catch is one cannot apply for a work permit on a social visit pass. The next step for the foreigner would be to acquire temporary residence – green card – followed by permanent residence i.e. red card. Given the required numbers of years in residence in Malaysia, police clearance from the old country and the Malaysian Police, a foreigner can apply for citizenship by naturalization. By right it should be a hassle-free process but the truth here is stranger than the fiction. Anything can happen at this juncture from long delays to an ominous silence from the authorities concerned. It would be interesting to know on what basis and by what authority citizenships were issued to foreigners in Sabah. Mahathir had previously acknowledged that he gave out 200,000 citizenships in Sabah to those "who had stayed there for a very long time, spoke Malay unlike the Chinese etc".
This is the same man who denied even permanent residence in Sabah to some 300 deserving foreign professionals serving in the state, many for even up to 30 years. The Sabah Government recommended them for permanent residence in Sabah and Malaysia. The matter was only resolved when Chong Kah Kiat, as Chief Minister, personally called upon Mahathir at his office in Putrajaya and brought up the matter. It transpired that the little Napoleons in Putrajaya had been routinely consigning such applications from Sabah to the wastepaper basket. The fact that the professionals concerned were non-Muslims may have had something to do with their long wait. Putrajaya has no business whatsoever, under the constitutional documents on Malaysia, to block recommendations from the Sabah or Sarawak Governments on permanent residence in their respective territories. It's back to square one today in Sabah and perhaps in Sarawak too. Yet we are told by Mahathir that he liberally gave out citizenships in Sabah during his 22 years in office as Prime Minister. Being in Malaysia a very long time and speaking Malay are not by themselves sufficient qualifications to be granted citizenship in the country. One must go through the proper procedures and process as set down in the Federal Constitution. In Sabah and Sarawak, there are added criteria under the Malaysia Agreement. The Governments of these two Borneo Nations in Malaysia must be the initiating and recommending body for foreigners in their territory who apply for citizenship.
The Federal Government cannot take it upon itself to issue citizenships to foreigners in Sabah and Sarawak. Anyone who holds citizenship in Malaysia in violation of the Federal Constitution holds no citizenship at all. It's a nullity in law from the very beginning. The same fate applies to those who obtained citizenship by furnishing false and misleading information with or without the knowledge of the authorities concerned. The revelations at the RCI tell of foreign-born applicants obtaining Malaysian personal documents merely on the strength of Statutory Declarations wherein they claimed birth in Sabah. The crux of the story in Sabah, and one for the RCI to determine, is the extent to which the electoral rolls in the state has been tainted by those ineligible to be there. That's not the end of the story.
We have also heard at the RCI that duplicate MyKads of Malaysians had been issued by the National Registration Department (NRD) to foreigners for the purposes of voting. These foreigners apparently voted on behalf of Malaysians who had registered as voters but seldom turned up on polling day. Other Malaysians who were eligible to register as voters didn't bother to do so. This provided another great loophole to nefarious elements who did not hesitate to issue duplicate MyKads to foreigners to enable them to register as voters on behalf of Malaysians. Mahathir has been silent on these allegations which emerged during revelations at the RCI. Instead, he keeps harping on what his directives were on the issuance of citizenships in Sabah and claimed that "other people including Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim may have gone off at a tangent in Sabah" and obviously "unknown to him". Mahathir is one lie after another on Sabah. He has yet to come clean even on his own family from Kerala, southwest India, being in Malaysia. Again, we are reminded of the old Malayalee saying on lies.
______________________________________________________________________ Joe Fernandez is a mature law student, among others, who feels compelled as a semi-retired journalist to put pen to paper – or rather the fingers to the computer keyboard -- whenever something doesn't quite jell with his weltanschauung (worldview). He shuttles between points in the Golden Heart of Borneo formed by the Sabah west coast, Labuan, Brunei, northern Sarawak and the watershed region in Borneo where three nations meet.
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| In the name of Allah, The Gracious The Merciful... Posted: 09 Feb 2013 08:13 AM PST
"ALLAH" IS FOR THE WHOLE OF MANKIND, SAYS THE QURAN Have you yourselves read the Book and fully understood its contents? Have you been instructed in the Book to forbid mankind from calling the one and only God as ALLAH? Are you responsible if the ignorant ones make a mockery of God? Student of The Qur'an The ongoing controversy among the Malaysian population as to whether Christians in the country can use the word Allah in their Malay language Bible has prompted me to write this article in the hope that the dispute, which has the potential of threatening the peaceful coexistence of peace loving Malaysians, would be eliminated. I am not a religious scholar but a concerned citizen who looks forward to living in harmony in this well-endowed multi-racial, multi-religious country of ours. Since the objection for the Christian community to use the word Allah comes from the Muslims, let us use the Muslim holy book, THE QUR'AN, as the basis for our search to find the answer to this problem. It is not disputed by Muslims throughout the world that The Quran is the word of God (the one and only God known as ALLAH in the Arabic language) and that it is a Message for the whole of mankind revealed through Muhammad, Allah's messenger and the seal of the prophets (peace be upon him). "This (Message) is no less than a reminder to mankind." Ch. 81 Verse 27 25 names of messengers are mentioned in The Quran (right from Adam to Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, peace be upon them all). All these prophets and messengers brought the same Message from God to mankind, but the messengers were rejected. When God made an agreement with those who were given the Book [saying]: In the Quran, we find the word "ilah" which refers to any god other than the One God, which the ignorant people have taken as an object of worship. The One and Only God in the Qur'an is known as ALLAH (the prefix "AL" (the) combined with "ILAH" (god) to define the sole divine entity as THE GOD). "Do not set up any other god besides God lest you incur disgrace and be forsaken." Ch.17 Verse 22 "He who invokes another god along with God, - a deity of whose divinity he has no proof, - will be brought to account by his Lord. Certainly, those who deny the truth shall never prosper." Ch. 23 verse 117 Allah, the One God is also known in the Quran through His numerous attributes, some among which are as follows: We are asked to call Allah by any of His beautiful names: Muhammad, the messenger was told by God to tell the believers: And the believers are told to do it with wisdom: The messenger would not have forced the people to believe him after hearing this commandment from God: Now, the controversy arises as a result of the doctrine of Trinity held by the Christians, whereby God is referred to as The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost, which will not be accepted by the Believers of the Qur'an as the truth. The people of the Book (Jews and Christians) have been reminded by Allah about this through His messenger Muhammad in Chapter 4 verse 171 of the Qur'an: The above verse clearly indicates that during the prophet's time the Christians were already believing in the concept of trinity; and Allah, through the prophet wanted to remind them not to believe in such a doctrine and to abstain from it for their own good. Thus, we as Muslims today, should also emulate the prophet in clarifying to the Christians the true concept of one God or Monotheism. This should be the paramount duty or focus of the Muslims rather than bickering over the usage of the term "God" or "Allah." Allah says: The messenger was only instructed to reveal God's Message to the people and to make them aware of the worship of the One God (Allah), the God of both the believers and the disbelievers. He was merely responsible for delivering the Message (as had been done by other messengers before him) and not for their actions or their disobedience after hearing the Message. If Allah had commanded His messenger to call people to the One God, Allah, who are we, the so-called Muslims of today, to forbid mankind from calling their god Allah, since Allah is God for all the people! If a community insists on calling its god Allah, but continues to practise idol worship, which is an unforgivable sin in the sight of Allah, that community would be answerable only to God and not to any other authority. "God does not forgive the sin of considering others equal to Him, but He may choose to forgive other sins. Whoever believes in other gods besides Him has indulged in a great sin." Ch. 4 verse 48 The duty of a rightly guided Muslim would be to explain clearly the concept of Monotheism to those who may not be aware, and not to convert or dispute with or deny them the opportunity of recognising the true God and calling Him Allah. "Unto every community have We appointed [different] ways of worship, which they ought to observe. Hence, [O believer,] do not let those [who follow ways other than yours] draw you into disputes on this score, but summon [them all] unto your Sustainer: for, behold, you are indeed on the right way." Ch. 22 verse 67 – 69 The Quran also tells us that although the people who heard the Message of God defied the messengers, nevertheless, they conceded and acknowledged that their god was Allah when questioned about their Creator. Say, "To whom do the earth and all therein belong?" Tell me, if you have any knowledge. They will say, "To Allah!" Say: "Yet will you not receive admonition?" Say, "Who is the Lord of the seven heavens, and of the Glorious Throne?" They will say, "(All this belongs) to Allah." Say, "Would you still not fear Allah?" Ch. 23 verse 84 – 87
Say (unto them, O Muhammad): "Who provides for you from the sky and the earth, or Who owns hearing and sight; and Who brings forth the living from the dead and brings forth the dead from the living; and Who directs the course?" They will say: "Allah." Then say: "Will ye not then keep your duty (unto Him)?" Such is Allah, your true Lord. What is there, besides the truth, but error? How then can you turn away? Ch. 10 verse 31 - 32 After having provided all of our basic needs and equipping us with what is required for our survival on this beautiful earth, what Allah expects from us is justice among mankind and responsible behaviour towards each other, for which everyone shall be accountable. "For, verily, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Sabians, and the Christians - all who believe in Allah and the Last Day and do righteous deeds - no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve." Ch. 5 verse 69 So, brothers and sisters, who proudly call yourselves Muslims, let me ask if you have done your job of supporting your prophet by revealing the Message of Allah to your fellow mankind, who may have not yet read Allah's last revealed Book, THE QUR'AN? Have you yourselves read the Book and fully understood its contents? Have you been instructed in the Book to forbid mankind from calling the one and only God as ALLAH? Are you responsible if the ignorant ones make a mockery of God? Is not Allah the All-seer, the All-hearer, the All-knowing, the All-mighty, the All-wise? Allah is not weak. He is the All-powerful, but He is also the All-forgiving and the All-compassionate. And how are we taught in the Quran to recognise Allah? Say: "He is Allah, the One and Only, Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He does not give birth, nor was He born, and there is nothing like Him." Ch. 112 verses 1 – 4 "All praise is due to Allah Who has never begotten a son and Who has no partner in His kingdom; nor does anyone aid Him because of any weakness of His. Proclaim His Greatness." Ch. 17 verse 111 Brothers and sisters, let us all hasten to do righteous works and strive towards establishing TRUTH AND JUSTICE on this earth, instead of focusing our attention on petty issues and arguments which bring about split and discord among mankind. The world is already full of turmoil; let us not exacerbate the situation further by using faith as the basis for highlighting irrelevant issues for personal and political gains. May ALLAH guide us all to the straight path and may we spread PEACE and LOVE on earth, which is the very essence of Islam! Salaam (Peace),
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| Dr M must apologise to Ambiga, Bar Council Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:24 PM PST
Bersih says Dr Mahathir Mohamad should not make threats to revoke S Ambiga's citizenship. (FMT) - Bersih wants former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to retract his statement that the federal constitution must be amended to revoke the citizenship of "errant lawyers" like Bar Council leaders and Bersih co-chairperson S Ambiga. Bersih, a coalition of non-governmental organization fighting for free and fair elections, said Ambiga did not deserve such a comment. "What did Ambiga do to deserve such comments. There is nothing wrong in wanting a free and fair election. We just want for the government to deliver what the rakyat want," Bersih steering committee member Maria Chin Abdullah told FMT. Earlier today, the former prime minister said the government needed to amend the constitution if it wanted to strip off the citizenship of lawyers such as Ambiga who go against the government. "To strip a person's citizenship, you need to amend the constitution. And to amend the constitution you need two-thirds majority in Parliament. So, I ask that you give two-thirds majority to the BN government," said Dr Mahathir. He said this in response to a question after a talk on national security and the constitution at a forum. Mahathir was asked how the government could strip the citizenship of errant lawyers like Bar Council leaders and Ambiga, who were persistent in challenging the government and questioning the federal constitution. Maria said it was very unbecoming of Mahathir to make such a statement. "He is no better than Ibrahim Ali (Perkasa president). We want Dr Mahathir to retract and apologise to Ambiga and the Bar Council. "The statement is actually very racist in nature. Dr Mahathir should not put himself so low as to want to strip people of their citizenship. They are not terrorist or did anything to endanger the lives of fellow Malaysians. "We are fighting for the better Malaysia. We are trying to do good for the country and her people…so Dr Mahathir should not use us as political pawns to win votes for the ruling Barisan Nasional," she said. He said Dr Mahathir should not use race as a tool to divide and threaten Malaysians.
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| Place winning Putrajaya before candidacy, Zuraida tells Sabah PKR reps Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:18 PM PST
Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider In the aftermath of Thursday's resignations by 14 Sabah Wanita PKR members, Zuraida Kamaruddin has reminded all party members to prioritise Pakatan Rakyat's (PR) Putrajaya dream instead of clamouring to be candidates in the coming polls. The Wanita PKR national chief admitted to The Malaysian Insider that there is still a lingering dissatisfaction among Sabah PKR leaders over the possibility of losing their bid to contest the coming polls. But she pointed out that this was inevitable as the party would have to cede some seats to accommodate PR's new Sabah allies Angkatan Perubahan Sabah (APS) and Pertubuhan Pakatan Perubahan Sabah (PPPS). "I can't say there is none (dissatisfaction). But they have to be rational. Are they in this for the short term or the long term?" Zuraida (picture) said in a phone call from Sabah yesterday afternoon. "In the interest of fighting Barisan Nasional (BN) and Umno, what we are doing is we are putting out our best in the contest," she added. APS is led by Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Mojilip Bumburing, formerly the deputy president of BN's United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO), while PPPS is led by Beaufort MP and former Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin. Both men left BN last year to form the PR-friendly movements are currently working out a seat-sharing formula with PR's DAP, PKR and PAS, turning the Sabah opposition front into a very crowded battle. Winnie Juani, who is Sabah Wanita PKR vice-chairman, Penampang wing chief and the wing's Sabah election strategist, quit the party on Thursday along with 13 other elected and appointed leaders from the division. She told The Malaysian Insider that they had no particular reason for leaving, except that they needed to "take a rest" from the hectic life of politics. The 52-year-old Juani also denied that she had left because her party leadership could not confirm her candidacy in Moyog, a state seat under the BN-held Penampang parliamentary constituency. Zuraida said she spoke to Juani after the latter's sudden move to quit and decided to respect her decision. "She said she wants to rest and take care of her family. Some can't take the stress and the pressure and need time to rest... so let them take their rest, we are not short of leaders and women candidates," she said. Zuraida would not confirm speculation that Juani had left because of the candidacy issue but said repeatedly that in the interest of PR's plan to wrest federal power, all party members need to put their personal interests aside.
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| Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:49 PM PST
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin Hindraf has laid out six conditions for both Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional to agree to before it decides which of the two coalitions it will support in the coming general election. Five of those six conditions were actually addressed in The People's Declaration exactly five years ago in February 2008. In fact, The People's Declaration is in even more detail because it comes to almost 20 pages. The problem is most people did not read it because, according to them, The People's Declaration is too lengthy. If less than 20 pages is 'too lengthy' then I really do not know what to say. They should be reading at least 100 to 150 pages a day or go through a 300-page book in two or three days. Some PhD students here in the UK, Malaysians of course, told me that they hardly read a book a year save for their text books. That is pathetic. And these are the same people who whack Umno and blame Umno for the 'poorly educated' Malaysians. I just don't get it how you can blame Umno for your low-level education when you refuse to read a book a year and you declare that 20 pages are too lengthy to read. Anyway, save for item 2 in Hindraf's list of six demands, five of these demands have actually been addressed in The People's Declaration, as you can see below. I admit that The People's Declaration is not specific to 'Indian issues', as it tries to address policies to make things more equitable, and so that the beneficiaries of these policies would be on a need basis rather than race-based. Nevertheless, if there were any particular ethnic group that is in need, then it would automatically become that beneficiary. For example, if you build houses for the needy, and if the Indians are in need of houses, then the Indians become the beneficiary of those houses since the spirit of The People's Declaration is to do away with race-based policies in favour of need-based policies.
Many people have asked me what is the source of what they view as my 'falling out' with Anwar Ibrahim in late 2010 and why two months later I started 'whacking' Anwar Ibrahim. Well, if they were to view that video of our meeting in London in 2010 on Youtube then they need not ask this question. In that meeting I stressed that Pakatan Rakyat had signed an agreement that they will adopt The People's Declaration and later, in Australia, Anwar did a U-turn and rejected it. Basically, what Hindraf is asking for has already been laid out and agreed by Pakatan Rakyat (plus PSM, mind you) five years ago in February 2008. And The People's Declaration has more details. Will Pakatan Rakyat now say yes to Hindraf when it has said no to The People's Declaration -- after saying yes earlier? Anyway, while we await a reply from Pakatan Rakyat, maybe in the meantime you can compare what Hindraf wants to what was agreed back in February 2008.
Hindraf: 1) Stop displacing Indian plantation workers and provide reasonable compensation as well as offer skills training to them. The People's Declaration: Form a framework of tripartite consultation that is effective, just and democratic, and amend laws relating to labour, trade unions and industrial relations consistent with it; fix a reasonable monthly wage for estate workers and seriously implement a housing scheme for estate workers; and introduce re-training programmes for retrenched workers.
Hindraf: 2) Resolve Indian stateless issue. The People's Declaration: None.
Hindraf: 3) Provide equal education opportunities to all Indian students via meritocracy; The People's Declaration: Establish a National Education Consultative Council to ensure that the practice and implementation of the national education policy and philosophy is both effective and just; allocate the education budget in a fair and equitable fashion, without neglecting any group; provide more scholarships and other financial assistance on the basis of need; and increase the number of mother tongue schools and upgrade their facilities according to need and demand.
Hindraf: 4) Provide equal job and business opportunities to Indians; The People's Declaration: Establish an investment fund, under-written by the government, for the development of small and medium enterprises and allocated according to performance and not political favouritism.
Hindraf: 5) Stop police brutality and death in custody, and set up the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC). The People's Declaration: Sign and ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; restore the image and status of the Royal Malaysian Police by means of a permanent committee as the Police Commission to receive and consider petitions by the people on police behaviour; improve the quality and effectiveness of human rights education at all levels of education and institutions of higher learning as well as training centres for public servants; and improve prison administration and conditions in line with international standards.
Hindraf: 6) Stop institutionalised racism and ratify United Nations convention against racial discrimination. The People's Declaration: Immediately dismantle any and all remaining practices of "divide and rule" in public administration from the days of the BN administration; put in place an affirmative action programme at Federal and all State levels to eradicate poverty and marginalization from amongst the weak and backward groups irrespective of race, social background and religion; and establish an independent Ethnic Relations Council, reporting directly to Parliament to help in building a united Bangsa Malaysia.
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| Ronnie Liu: 'Jawatan Jefrei sudah lama dilucutkan' Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:33 PM PST
(Sinar Harian) - Exco Jawatankuasa Kerajaan Tempatan, Kajian dan Penyelidikan, Ronnie Liu menegaskan bahawa tindakan bekas Pegawai Khasnya, Jefrei Nordin mengumumkan peletakan jawatan sebagai satu penipuan. Katanya, Ronnie, Jefrei telah lama dilucutkan jawatan sebagai pegawai khas beliau kerana tidak hadir di pejabat Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri (SUK).
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| Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:20 PM PST
KTemoc Konsiders I wouldn't dare claim that the Han Chiang School in Penang is Pakatan's equivalent of Tahrir Square, but as The Malaysian Insider reported in its headline news article Guan Eng trying to politicise CNY, says Najib as follows: According to BN sources, Han Chiang has been Pakatan Rakyat and DAP's stronghold for fund raising and rallies and is infamous for the 2008 catalyst rally which caused the Chinese wave of voters to swing to PR and DAP. In earlier days the chief financial sponsor (backer) of independent Chinese language education (up to pre university or HSC level) was Lim Lean Teng, one of the early Penang millionaires, who believed very strongly in Chinese language education and put his money where his mouth was. Even as a kid I came to know of him (because of his Chinese education sponsorship) and learnt where his mansion was located along Penang's 'Millionaire Row', what is today's Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, very near Kedah House (or Istana Kedah today?).
The alumni of Han Chiang School may be found throughout SE Asia, especially in Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Brunei, etc, where their rich parents sent them to the only place (then) in the region to provide traditional (pre Communist China) style of Chinese primary and secondary education. I presume Taiwan was the only other source but alas, outside the SE Asian region, while Hong Kong provided such education in the Cantonese (but not Mandarin) language. TMI informed us that the new backer of Han Chiang School is Tan Sri Tan Kok Ping, a matey of Penang CM Lim Guan Eng. It's claimed that Han Chiang is Pakatan's or more correctly, DAP's 'hallowed grounds' as it was here that the DAP rally in 2008 'convinced' Penangites to ubah (change) the state government once again, after 40+ years. Thus the rumour has been that DAP is particularly upset by the BN staging its Chinese New Year (CNY) celebrations cum 'Open House' at the school facilities, right at its politically 'hallowed grounds'. The guest of honour at the BN CNY celebrations is PM Najib Tun Razak, and the star attraction the man from Korea, Gangnam style rapper Psy, but as reported, the location of the event rather than Psy has the greater political significance. Unfortunately, as I mentioned in a previous post Silly season & serious scrutiny, DAP has unwittingly allowed DPM Muhyiddin to seize the moral high grounds by its silly spoilsport campaign against the BN's CNY event. In that post I had written: As a DAP supporter, I'm actually embarrassed by DAP and Pakatan's campaign against the BN 'Open House', UNLESS of course DAP can show that the event involves expenditure of public funds. Yesterday, when I read Malaysiakini's Vox Populi, I was amazed that more than a few readers actually (and stupidly) urged Psy not to come, as if the Korean would forego his handsome fee to take sides in Malaysian politics. This sort of emotional outburst, going to the extent of expecting a foreigner to take up partisan allegiance and show biased sympathy in Malaysian politics, is regrettable, immature and disappointing. If indeed the event starring Psy is funded by the BN or private sources, then Pakatan has not only gone silly but in the process has unwittingly and lamentably elevated low brow Muhyiddin to high moral grounds when the DPM stated in today's Malaysiakini that Guan Eng aims to spoil BN's CNY bash. Well, realizing BN now has a winner, PM Najib has swiftly jumped on the Muhyiddin's bandwagon to also play victim by stating:
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| Dr M: Struggle for PM post dividing Malays, empowering minorities Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:07 PM PST
Zurairi AR, The Malaysian Insider Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today likened the Malay politicians in both Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to "political beggars", saying their scramble to be prime minister has led them to plead for support from the country's minority races. The influential Umno veteran pointed out that while these minority groups become more politically powerful, the Malays were becoming increasingly divided by fighting among themselves. "The majority is split into three, we're fighting among ourselves," the former prime minister said here. "Umno, PAS, PKR all have become beggars." He likened the situation to the strife between the Islamic sects of Sunnis and Shiites in the Arabic world, which has resulted in violence and killings. Dr Mahathir (picture) also compared the disunity to how the Malays were united when they were fighting against the British rule. "Back then when we were fighting the British, we had political strength. The Malays were united under Umno. "The British became so afraid seeing Malays united, that they had to drop the Malayan Union."
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| Ignore Deepak, Dr M tells Najib Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:03 PM PST
Zurairi AR, The Malaysian Insider Datuk Seri Najib Razak should not entertain any accusations put forward by controversial carpet dealer Deepak Jaikishan, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad advised today. The businessman has been in the limelight of late, lobbing repeated accusations against Najib and Umno leaders, and has promised to dish more dirt on other scandals linked to other politicians and even the prime minister's family members. "I don't think he should do anything," Dr Mahathir (picture) told reporters here. The longest-serving prime minister said that Najib should expect various allegations to surface while holding a political post, drawing parallels to his time in administration. "When I was prime minister also they accused me of corruption ... I don't have to respond."
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| Over 1,700 Malaysians abroad register for postal voting Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:58 PM PST
A total of 1,779 applications for postal voting have been received from Malaysians abroad so far since online registration was launched on December 21 last year. Election Commission deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said the highest number of applications came from Australia with 406, followed by the United Kingdom (323), the United States (131), China (104) and Qatar (91). "The EC's decision to allow all Malaysians abroad to register online and through e-mail has proven to be effective as many took the opportunity to do so. "We estimate about 100 Malaysians abroad will register with the EC each day and we hope this trend will continue and increase daily," he said on Bernama TV's Helo Malaysia show here tonight. He said among the requirements for Malaysians to vote overseas were that they must already be a registered voter and have returned to Malaysia within 30 days in a five-year period before Parliament is dissolved. Wan Ahmad said Malaysians overseas who have registered as a voter and would like to use postal voting can download the application form (Borang 1B) through the EC website, http://www.spr.gov.my.
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| ‘BN leading Malaysia to destruction’ Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:41 PM PST The litany of scandals revealed in the past year, has shown that 'BN will not change". Joseph Tawie, FMT KUCHING: Sarawakians were today warned not to succumb to the guiles of the hypnotic 'snake' which spun illusions of cheer, harmony and promises of development in their bid to continue ruling the country for the next five years. Alluding to Barisan Nasional, Sarawak DAP said the Dragon Year (2012) had exposed a litany of scandals involving the ruling regime in Putrajaya and in Sarawak. The finals weeks of the dragon year was filled with testimonies and disclosures of 'high level' involvement in a systematic plan to re-engineer the population's race and religious ratio in Sabah (and across the nation). In a Chinese New Year statement on behalf of the party, state secretary Chong Chien Jen said: This is very frightening if we view the many scandals that are happening in the country. "As we welcome the Year of the Snake, we witness the Barisan Nasional leading Malaysia down the path of destruction. "We see scandals like the exposures by (Sabah) Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) of the BN government granting Malaysian ICs to illegal immigrants in Sabah in the 90s for the purpose of overthrowing the then ruling opposition party. "We see also that the Malaysian Anti-corruption Commission's non-action in the last two years in respect of allegation of corruption against Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud." Chong, who is the MP for Bandar Kuching, said that the nation is also being burdened by national debt which had escalated to RM500 billion. He said other scandals that could destroy the nation included a rising household debts (housing loans, car loans, credit card debts, etc) reaching RM700 billion, the illicit outflow of money from Malaysia amounting to more than RM196.4 billion in 2010 alone and the call by extremist PERKASA to burn Malay versions of the Bible bearing the term 'Allah' and the worsening of security due to thefts, burglaries and murders. "The decline in the standards of mathematics and science in our secondary schools as revealed by the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is also a cause for concern," he said.
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| ‘High property prices due to Pakatan policies’ Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:39 PM PST Penang developers now have to pay the state government three times more dues than under BN. Athi Shankar, FMT GEORGE TOWN: Nibong Tebal MP Tan Tee Beng has blamed the inflated property prices in Penang on the Pakatan Rakyat state government's policies. He said the exorbitant increase in developer contribution for not building low-medium cost (LMC) units and in development charges for increase in build-up plot ratio were the main causes for the unscrupulous property price hike in the island state. Under the urban housing policy, he said the developer must pay contributions to the local government for not building the pre-conditioned 30 per cent unit of LMCs in a housing development scheme. "The government will then bear the responsibility to build the affordable housing," Tan told newsmen here yesterday. Since Pakatan took over Penang five years ago, he said the LMC contribution charge has leapt to RM120,000 per unit, three times up from previous RM40,000 per unit under Barisan Nasional pre-2008 rule. For instance, he said a developer has to fork RM3.6 million per 100-residential unit if they chose not to constructing 30 LMCs now. Previously they would have paid RM120,000. For an increase in build-up plot ratio rate, a developer has to pay RM15psf for the extra units. Previously it was RM5psf. Increase in costs Citing an example, Tan said if a developer increased the build-up per plot ratio from 15-units per acre to 87 – units per acre, the developer would have to pay some RM930,000 for the extra 62 units. This was based on RM15 x 1000sf per unit x 62-unit.
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| Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:34 PM PST But the opposition coalition must first endorse Hindraf's blueprint on alleviating the Indian community's problems. Anisah Shukry, FMT Hindraf has offered Pakatan Rakyat "thousands of volunteers" which it says is crucial for the opposition pact to overthrow Barisan nasional in the upcoming general election. The 'carrot' however comes with a catch. Pakatan must endorse the group's six-point blueprint to "bring the Indian marginalized and poor into the mainstream of National Development", said Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy. "We are no doubt willing to make Pakatan's dream to capture Putrajaya a reality but we have a dream too – we dream to find a permanent solution to the problems of the Indian poor and marginalized. "Hence it is crucial that Pakatan endorses the Hindraf Blueprint which encompassed this dream before we activate thousands of our volunteers to go nationwide to campaign for Pakatan," Waythamoorthy said in a statement yesterday. The movement had previously said that it would support any political organisation that would agree in writing to adopt the blueprint, which recommends a five-year programme aimed at the betterment of the Malaysian Indian community. The six points of the blueprint are: 1) Stop displacing Indian plantation workers and provide reasonable compensation as well as offer skills training to them; 2) Resolve Indian stateless issue; 3) Provide equal education opportunities to all Indian students via meritocracy; 4) Provide equal job and business opportunities to Indians; 5) Stop police brutality and death in custody, and set up the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC); and 6) Stop institutionalised racism and ratify United Nations convention against racial discrimination. But the blueprint appears to have been largely ignored by parties from both sides of the divide since it was launched on Nov 25 last year. Thus far only Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), a Pakatan-leaning party, has announced its support for the six demands. "It is in the interest of PR (Pakatan) to sign the blueprint soonest rather than hoping that Hindraf would compromise on its Blueprint program at the last minute," said Waythamoorthy. "We are ready to activate our machinery and start joint campaigns with Pakatan the moment there is a signed agreement," he added. Indians on the fence Waythamoorthy added that almost 50% of Indian voters were still undecided on whom to cast their ballots for, and said this was because Hindraf had not declared its support for any party.
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| Fresh DAP candidates likely for Penang Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:32 PM PST Speculations are rife that several incumbents in Penang may move to give way to the party's 'young and capable talents'. Hawkeye, FMT Bukit Bendera MP Liew Chin Tong is expected to be part of an anticipated reshuffle in DAP's list of candidates for the coming general election. Barring last minute changes, which is common in any party's line-up, Liew, 36, is expected to relocate to Johor, a state declared as a frontline battleground by Pakatan Rakyat. It is learnt that the academically-inclined politician had revealed to his inner circle in Penang that he was willing to relocate to Johor to help PKR strongman Chua Jui Meng to penetrate Barisan Nasional's fortress there as well as to help boost the morale of the opposition's alliance. If true, Liew will be the second Pakatan leader to relocate to Johor after PAS vice-president Sallehuddin Ayub. Sallehuddin had earlier reportedly declared that he would move from his Kubang Kerian parliament seat in Kelantan to his birth-state in Johor. Liew however has reportedly urged the public not to read too much into the speculation. When asked, he reportedly said: "Nothing is confirmed. There's no point for us to go into the discussion (of me contesting in Johor)." Liew's move is expected to spark speculations of similar moves by other DAP leaders in Penang. Among them, are Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr P. Ramasamy and state DAP chairman Chow Kon Yeow. Other assemblymen likely to move are Koay Teng Hai (Pulau Tikus), Koid Teng Guan (Sungai Pinang), Tan Beng Huat (Jawi), Phee Boon Poh, Paya Terubong (Sungai Puyu), Yeoh Soon Hin (Paya Terubung) and Lau Keng Ee (Pengakalan Kota). Ramasamy and Chow are put in a spot due to the insistence of DAP chairman Karpal Singh that all DAP candidates should only contest in one seat as the party is now brimming with young and capable talent. Karpal's assertion, was confirmed by a state DAP insider here, who preferred not to be named. The insider claimed that besides the 45 party incumbents in Penang, there are some 30 other aspiring candidates, who are also keen to contest in the 13th general election. DAP has become a brand name here. Ramasamy and Chow hold one parliament and one state seat each. Both had earlier said they were fine with contesting one seat. Their willingness sparked speculations that both Ramasamy and Chow may only retain their state seats since DAP was aiming to consolidate its clout in Penang.
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| ‘Ang Pow-Kau Kau-Mai Mai-Yam Seng’ society Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:16 PM PST
What has Malaysia turned into as we celebrate the Year of the Snake? With unending reports about the government dishing out cash to those voting folk young and old without rhyme or reason, as if we are now in possession of Zimbabwe dollars or play-money Monopoly-game money - what have we fallen into as we see bribery in broad daylight becoming a culture of might is right? Are we all living in Trump towers of the famed New York City real estate gambler? While in the word of Malay politics and Malay society we have seen the rise of the 'Tongkat Ali' society - of libidinal politics of material pursuit of living a life of lesser-dignity. We are seeing now in the Year of the Snake the evolution of yet another form of life – the rise of the 'Ang Pow-Kau-Kau-Mai Mai-Yam Seng' society. We are seeing voters being bought over by the 'Hijau ka-Merah ka-Ungu ka' materiality of mad money dished out to kampong and town folks desperately in need of these in order to keep afloat and alive in the Master-Slave society. 'Ang Pow' or packets of gifts of money replacing the traditional gift baskets called 'hampers' are dangled or even sent out via post service in tune with the last hurrah and hoopla of the infamously styled Malaysian postal voting. 'Kau kau' or 'the best of the best' of offers a la The Godfather movies' quote of "I-will-make-you-an-offer-you-can't refuse" type of sensibility is the genre of is what the ruling regime is promising as 'you-help-me-I-help-you' type of gifts are being dished out. "Mai mai" or "come one come all..." (in Kedah dialect to connote alluring) type of announcement is being sent to voters dangled with money, money, money... so the culture of not having to work hard but gaining nonetheless through gifts from "the hands that feed and shan't be bitten" shall be initiated and shall take root in a society increasingly drowned in materialism. "Yam Seng" or loosely translated as "let's toast-to that" will be the ultimate triumphant cry of the winners of this years' general elections that promises slithering, scheming, and sickening politics to date. We have perfected the art and science of creating a culture of shameless venomous election campaigning since the end of the 1990s when the public space and social discourse have been smeared with pus and blood and deadly-viralled mucus of 'pornographic politics' enabled by the Fourth Estate controlled by those who owns the means of dirtifying consciousness and corrupting spirituality. Children now learn words denoting and connotating vulgarism; that have been all the while reserved for adults to be used in all wee-hours of "Yam Seng" drunked-ness in country clubs, nights clubs, and all-men and womens' clubs. I don't know if all these make sense to you readers out there. I have been accused many times of writing incomprehensible essays under the influence of my own way of looking at things that might have been simpler than they should. Or perhaps, we all should take things as they are and wait for Divine Justice to show its beautiful face amidst this ugly world plagued by snakes slithering all over and all levels of society. I don't know. Such is what I am thinking - in thinking about the archaeology of metaphysics as this phrase suddenly proposed its hand in marriage with a society that has become an 'Ang Pow-Kau Kau-Mai Mai-Yam Seng' entity, apropos to the Year of the Snake we celebrate in good health and prosperity. READ MORE: http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/2013/02/archaeology-of-metaphysics-anyone.html
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| Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:12 PM PST The cover of Aliran Monthly back in 1993: It's been a long journey for Malaysians longing for change Even a cursory consideration of the Pakatan performance as administrators of five states will establish that they are fair, reasonable and, most importantly, not corrupt, observes Tommy Thomas. Imagine Britain being governed by the same political party, say, Labour, for 55 successive years from 1957. Or the United States by the Republican party for the same continuous, unbroken period. That has been Malaysia's fate since Merdeka. The 13th General Elections, which must be held before 28 June 2013, gives Malaysians an opportunity to break free from the monopoly of political power exercised by Umno, first, in the guise of the Alliance and subsequently as Barisan Nasional. Umno dominance The five years between the 12th General Elections in March 2008 and the 13th have been a watershed period in post-independent Malaysia because of the establishment of a truly functioning two-party system, with a strong opposition capable of forming the next government. But it took half a century for our nation to accomplish this stage of democratic development. Like many peoples of nations emerging from colonial rule in the Third World, Malaysians were very grateful to the Alliance party, led by Prime Minister Tengku Abdul Rahman, for gaining independence from the British. The reservoir of goodwill for nationalist independence fighters greatly assisted Umno in the early decades. Race, which the colonial power had exploited in its divide-and-rule policy, became the singular fundamental feature of Malaysian politics since Merdeka, reflected at the centre by the Alliance coalition comprising Umno, MCA and MIC, each representing a specific race, and expected to pursue the interests of its ethnic constituency. In the early days, Umno acted as the elder brother, with a semblance of contribution from its junior siblings, MCA and MIC. But there was never a question of parity. After the National Operations Council (NOC) through its Director, Tun Razak, assumed actual power in the wake of the 13 May 1969 riots (which itself was a coup de' etat against the continued leadership of Tengku), Umno's ascendency and dominance were never questioned. Hence the practical reality since the early 1970s is that Barisan is actually Umno, and major decisions affecting the nation are more often than not taken in the inner recesses of Umno, rather than the Cabinet. Ayatollah Khomeini's rise to power in the Iranian Revolution of 1979 resulted in an Islamic resurgence across the globe. It had its influence in Malaysia by the mid-1980s, when Prime Minister Dr Mahathir decided to outflank Pas by taking up Islam as a political ideology and weapon. Thus, Umno added religion to race, a powerful emotive cocktail in a plural society. Race or religion infects nearly every decision made by Umno, and the state apparatus controlled by it. It will therefore not be an understatement to describe race and religion as the fundamental elements of modern Malaysian politics. Perhaps the most unacceptable consequence of a lengthy rule by Umno is its control over all the nation's public institutions, like the media, the universities, the civil service and the police. Length of governance creates rulers who believe they have a divine right to rule, that,there is no longer any difference between the nation state and the ruling party – they become inseparable. Thus, Umno has behaved as if its interests are identical with those of Malaysia's. When genuine support for Umno ebbed over time, a climate of fear was developed, with the spectre of May 13 repeated time and time again to intimidate and frighten the electorate, especially the older generation and non-Malays. The success of Pakatan in depriving Barisan of the much vaunted two thirds majority in Parliament, winning 10 out of 11 Parliamentary seats in Kuala Lumpur, and capturing power in five states in March 2008 forever demolished the myth of Umno's invincibility. Even if ethnic-based politics played a role in securing Merdeka and governing an infant nation, they have long outlived their use, and should be jettisoned. The next stage in Malaysia's evolving democracy is a change of national government. As night follows day, it will inevitably happen. The Deepak saga currently hogging the internet media, which has for all practical purposes became the mainstream media for millions of Malaysians disgusted with the putrid reporting of newspapers, epitomises the depths to which our public life has descended: only a basket nation like Zimbabwe can provide an adequate parallel. Here is an absolutely unknown businessman of a minority ethnic group without any known institutional support mocking the Prime Minister and his wife for over one month without anyone from Umno defending them. One would have thought that such repeated public criticism of Umno's president constitutes a direct challenge to the entire party, which in the past was always met with a stinging rebuttal from Umno, and thereafter by the full might of the state. One only needs to recall strident calls just months ago to revoke the citizenship of Ambiga Sreenevasan, also a member of the same minority ethnic group, when she bravely led Bersih's legitimate struggle for electoral return. What must be kept in mind about Deepak's allegations is their gravity: after all it concerns the barbarous murder of a Mongolian mother visiting her alleged lover in Kuala Lumpur, and its cover-up. The critical issue in her murder – who gave the instructions to the two patsies to C4 her – has never been investigated, and the perpetrators have never been charged. Read more at: http://aliran.com/11506.html
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| Psy’s Gangnam parody in Penang: Oops, joke is on BN elites Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:10 PM PST Gangnam District in Seoul: The epitome of the materialistic, consumerist life-style - Photograph: Wikipedia Psy is actually making fun of people who are so materialistic and obsessed with a worldy life-style while being cut off from the rest of society. Doesn't that remind us of our ruling elite, asks Anil Netto. On Monday, 11 February Psy is due to perform his signature Gangnam song-and-dance routine at a BN-organised event in the Han Chiang School in Penang before a crowd of 60000 people. BN leaders are obviously hoping this large crowd – and the spillover effect – will translate into votes for the BN in Penang and beyond. But little do they realise the joke is on the BN! For many of us, Gangnam is just a fun and catchy song-and-dance, which makes little sense. But scratch below the surface and you will find a biting social critique. Few realise that Gangnam is actually a parody of the affluent, materialistic life-style which the BN elites are known for. Gangnam is actually the name of an affluent relatively new district of Seoul, south of the Han River. It is the location of the headquarters for some of the leading global brands and some 7 per cent of South Korea's wealth can be found in this 40 square kilometre area. This 'Johnny-come-lately' part of Seoul is thus where many of the country's richest 'one per cent' of the population congregate- including those who have wholeheartedly embraced the materialistic, consumerist life-style. Many others aspire to this same high-flying life-stye – even if it means racking up their credit card debt (South Korea's credit card debt has soared). The closest Malaysian equivalent I can think of is Bangsar. Like Gangnam, Bangsar sprouted with earnest from the 1980s and is today the place where people hang out to see and be seen. It is the epitome of the kind of materialistic life-style which many Malaysian yuppies and others aspire to.  Bangsar by night: Op-Op-Oppa Bangsar-style – Photograph: asiawebdirect.com If we were to translate "Gangnam-style" into "Bangsar-style" (nothing personal against you Bangsar residents out there!), we might get a better understanding of what Psy is singing and prancing around about. The local translation for "Oppa Gangnam-style" would be something like "He (is living) the Bangsar life-style" i.e. materialistic, consumerist, trendy (you know, the life-style of the BN and other elites) but in hindsight somewhat empty and often just a mirage. (For examples of this mirage in the Gangnam music video clip, please do read this blog on Korea that details the real meaning and illusion behind Psy's rendition of Gangnam.) Read more at: http://aliran.com/11517.html
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| Malaysia’s shocking collaboration with the CIA in the extraordinary rendition of two Libyan ... Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:05 PM PST
This treatment by the Malaysian government against the couple is shockingly hypocritical and shameful to say the least, as Malaysia has been a severe critic of the Bush administration's "War on Terror" that had inflamed relationship between the "US-West" and the "Muslim world" – and here we have the Malaysian government actively collaborating with the US in persecuting "suspected terrorists". Eric Paulsen, Lawyers for Liberty Lawyers for Liberty is shocked and outraged at Malaysia's involvement in a CIA extraordinary rendition process that was recently revealed in Globalizing Torture: CIA Secret Detention and Extraordinary Rendition, a report by Open Society Justice Initiative. Extraordinary rendition is the transfer without legal process of a detainee, often "suspected terrorists" to the custody of a foreign government where they are detained in "black sites" for the purposes of CIA detention and interrogation where they will be subjected to "enhanced interrogation techniques," – a euphemism for torture and other cruel, degrading and inhumane treatment. The report detailed the 2004 rendition of Libyan nationals Abu Abdullah al-Sadiq (Abdul Hakim Belhadj) and his wife, Fatima Bouchar who was pregnant at the time. They were arrested by Malaysian authorities in Kuala Lumpur and detained for 13 days under bad conditions and the wife was further denied medical attention. Both were later "transferred" to Thailand where they were tortured and finally sent to Libya where Abu was detained until 2010 while his wife was released shortly after she had given birth. Documents discovered in Tripoli in September 2011 showed cooperation between the CIA and the Malaysian government in effecting Abu's transfer. A memorandum dated 4 March 2004, from the CIA to the Libyan government states "[w]e are working energetically with the Malaysian government to effect the extradition of Abdullah al-Sadiq from Malaysia. The Malaysians have promised to cooperate and arrange for Sadiq's transfer to our custody." This treatment by the Malaysian government against the couple is shockingly hypocritical and shameful to say the least, as Malaysia has been a severe critic of the Bush administration's "War on Terror" that had inflamed relationship between the "US-West" and the "Muslim world" – and here we have the Malaysian government actively collaborating with the US in persecuting "suspected terrorists". What is further outrageous and a greater cause for concern is that the Malaysian authorities had arbitrarily and secretly detained two foreign nationals who seemingly have not committed any criminal offence in the country that warranted such an overreaction from the Malaysian authorities. The arrest and detention seemed to have been done without any legal basis, due process and had operated outside the realm of the Malaysian Constitution and other legal safeguards including access to legal counsel or hearing by a Magistrate during remand. Instead, the arrest was seemingly done at the direction of the CIA or other foreign authorities. We call on the Malaysian government to explain the extraordinary rendition of this particular case and to disclose of any other collaboration between the Malaysian authorities and the CIA or other foreign authorities where individuals have been detained, interrogated, tortured and transferred around the world at the behest of foreign governments. We further call on the Malaysian government to refuse to participate in any other extraordinary renditions and to ensure that the rule of law is strictly observed – that any arrest, detention or deportation (of foreigners) is done transparently and properly in accordance to Malaysian and international law and legal processes.
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| Opposition leaders urged to retract decision on use of 'Allah' Posted: 07 Feb 2013 08:06 PM PST
(Bernama) - Some 30 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and PAS members today held a rally urging opposition leaders to retract the decision allowing use of the word 'Allah' in the Malay version of the Bible. Jaringan Melayu Pulau Pinang spokesman Arif Ibrahim said the opposition's persistence in defending their stance had turned the issue into a polemic among the people. "We also appeal to the Conference of Rulers that will meet at the end of this month to issue a decree prohibiting the use of the word 'Allah' in the Malay Bible to immediately stop debate on the issue," he told reporters after Friday prayers at Masjid Kampong Rawa here. During the rally lasting 30 minutes, the group also trampled on banners that read 'January 8 decision brings woes' while chanting words of protest against the decision. They also distributed stickers that read 'Save Kalimah Allah' to Muslims after Friday prayers. Some 10,000 stickers were printed for distribution to Muslims in Penang. On January 8, the Opposition Leadership Council decided that the word 'Allah' can be used in the Malay bible provided it is not misused. The decision was announced after a meeting of top opposition leaders attended by PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang and PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
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| Whitney Houston, died 11th February 2012, hit voted best love song in US poll Posted: 07 Feb 2013 05:45 PM PST  (Reuters) - With Valentine's Day just a week away, singer Whitney Houston's classic ballad "I Will Always Love You" has been voted the most popular love song in a US poll. The signature song of the Grammy-award winning singer, who died suddenly a year ago, scored 38 per cent of the vote among all adults in the Harris Interactive survey, and was the top pick among all divorced, separated or widowed Americans. Houston's hit from her 1992 movie, "The Bodyguard" was a cover of a 1974 song written and recorded by country singer Dolly Parton. The Righteous Brothers' "Unchained Melody," Percy Sledge's "When a Man Loves a Woman," Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful," and the Bees Gees' "How Deep is Your Love" rounded out the top five songs. "Romance is about making an emotional appeal to the senses, and to the heart," Aaron Levine, of Sony Electronics Home Audio, which commissioned the poll, said in a statement announcing the results. "So, turn down the lights and turn up the sound." More than 2,000 adults who voted in the online poll were asked to pick their favorite love songs from a list of more than 40 tunes spanning several decades. Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" came in sixth, followed by Patsy Cline's "Crazy", Foreigner's "I Want to Know What Love Is," Bryan Adams' "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" and "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye. To mark the first anniversary of Houston's death on February 11, organisers of the Grammy Awards said they will honour the singer with an hour-long TV special entitled "The Grammys Will Go On: A Death in the Family" that will air tomorrow, the day before the 2013 Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles. yDhxKVuVYaY SEE ON YOUTUBE HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDhxKVuVYaY
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| PKR bimbang dengan cara MB Selangor menyelesaikan krisis air Posted: 07 Feb 2013 05:32 PM PST
Md Izwan, The Malaysian Insider Menteri Besar Selangor Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim ditegur dalam mesyuarat Biro Politik PKR Rabu lalu supaya mengambil langkah lebih proaktif dan pantas dalam menangani isu air, menurut satu sumber yang juga merupakan ahli biro politik PKR. The Malaysian Insider difahamkan, perbincangan dan perkara yang dibangkitkan dalam mesyuarat kebanyakannya menjurus kepada isu air memandangkan kehadiran Abdul Khalid (gambar) dan juga lanjutan pengumuman bantuan tambahan kewangan RM120 juta oleh Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak kepada Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (SYABAS) baru-baru ini. "Semalam (Rabu) MB Abdul Khalid hadir sama, jadi banyak perkara yang dibincangkan semalam adalah melibatkan isu krisis air di Selangor. "Isu air ini akan menjadi modal utama Umno dan Barisan Nasional dalam berkempen di Selangor. Malahan langkah Najib baru-baru ini mengumumkan bantuan kewangan jelas menunjukkan isu air ini akan dimainkan mereka hingga pilihan raya," kata sumber. Menurut sumber itu lagi, Abdul Khalid dianggap kurang proaktif dan lembab bertindak dalam menangani krisis air yang berlaku di Selangor menyebabkan ia memberi laluan mudah kepada media arus perdana mudah menghentam pentadbiran PR. "Beberapa inisiatif dibincangkan supaya MB mengambil langkah yang lebih proaktif dan cepat bagi mengelak masalah ini berulang lagi. "Antara cadangan yang dikemukakan ialah supaya kerajaan negeri mengambil inisiatif sendiri menyediakan lori tangki air untuk menyalurkan bantuan selain pam-pam tambahan bagi menangani bekalan terputus air," kata sumber itu lagi. Dalam pada itu, sumber juga memberitahu ahli biro politik membayangkan syarikat air SYABAS bersama kerajaan pusat berkemungkinan bersekongkol untuk sengaja mencipta sabotaj besar-besaran pada pilihan raya nanti dan menggesa Abdul Khalid untuk berwaspada dengan ramalan tersebut. "Kami jangkakan dan mendapat maklumat akan berlaku sabotaj besar-besaran pada pilihan raya nanti. "SYABAS dan kerajaan pusat mungkin akan sengaja merancang bekalan air putus," tambah sumber lagi. Selain isu air yang dibangkitkan, mesyuarat itu juga menyentuh tentang perbincangan persediaan jentera menjelang pilihan raya yang dijangka akan diumum dalam tempoh terdekat ini. Kerajaan negeri Selangor masih lagi bergelut dengan kerajaan pusat dalam isu pengambilalihan air di negeri tersebut, malahan permohonan kepada Menteri Tenaga,Teknologi Hijau dan Air Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui juga masih belum menerima jawapan muktamad sehingga kini. Minggu lalu, Abdul Khalid mengumumkan Selangor bercadang mengambil alih perkhidmatan air dari syarikat konsesi air di negeri itu dalam tempoh 14 hari dan menghantar surat bertulis kepada kementerian berhubung perkara tersebut.
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| Don’t boycott postal votes, Nurul Izzah tells overseas citizens Posted: 07 Feb 2013 05:20 PM PST
Zurairi AR, The Malaysian Insider PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar today asked overseas voters not to boycott postal voting despite disagreeing with its implementation. She reminded voters that they may risk their suffrage if they do not return home to cast their votes, or at least register to become postal voters. "Malaysians who have for so long been deprived the right to vote must take this opportunity to return the principle of one citizen, one vote," Nurul Izzah (picture) told reporters here. Despite that, the Lembah Pantai MP shares the same position as election watchdog NGOs Bersih and My Overseas Vote that changes to the postal voting regulations by the Election Commission (EC) are unconstitutional, discriminatory and arbitrary. Nurul Izzah however declined to state which part of the changes is unconstitutional, asking reporters to refer to Bersih instead. According to her, the EC has informed PKR that as of Wednesday morning, only 1,574 voters have registered to become postal voters. She put the number of voters residing overseas at around one million people, with 400,000 in neighbouring Singapore alone.
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| Posted: 07 Feb 2013 04:45 PM PST
Let's not talk about politics today and instead look into the mind of an innocent toddler and how he perceives religious teachings, which sometimes do not make sense to small minds that can think better than mature minds. NO HOLDS BARRED Raja Petra Kamarudin Dad! Yes, son. How did I get here? Err…hmm…why don't you ask your mum? I want to read the papers. I did and mum said to ask you, dad. Ah…well…the stork brought you. Oh. But my Sunday school teacher said we all came from Adam and Eve. Well…that is also true. You mean we all came from Adam and Eve? Yes. Now run along and play. I want to read my papers. My Sunday school teacher said Adam and Eve were the first two people on earth. Yes, that's right. So who married them then? What do you mean? Aunty Sara and Uncle Bill got married by the priest. So who married Adam and Eve if they were the only two people on earth? Err…no one. So Adam's and Eve's children are all bastards then? Hoi…where did you learn that word from? You must never use that word. I heard you saying that, dad. Me? Yes, you said that your boss is a bastard. I asked Mike what bastard means and he told me. How do you know that your boss is a bastard like Adam's and Eve's children? That was merely a figure of speech. I did not mean it literally. Oh never mind. No. Adam's and Eve's children are not bastards even though Adam and Eve never got married by a priest. Oh, okay. Now run along son. But who did Adam's and Eve's children marry? They married each other, son. You see, there were no other people on earth other than just Adam and Eve and their children. So does that mean I can marry Kate when we grow up? No, son, you can't. Kate is your sister. Oh. But Adam's and Eve's children were also brothers and sisters. Yes they were. But at that time it was okay for brothers and sisters to get married. Now go outside and play. We were also told the story of Noah and his yacht. That's good son. But it was called an ark, not yacht. Now go and play. Did you know that Noah got all the animals onto the ark before the great flood and he saved all the animals? If not there would be no animals around today. Yes, I know that, son. But how did he feed those animals, dad? I suppose he also had food on the ark, son. But lions and tigers eat other animals. Won't they eat up all the other animals on the ark? No they won't, son. Then how did they stay alive for so long without food if the lions and tigers did not eat up all the other animals? I don't know, son, but I am sure that Noah had figured all this out before he took all those animals onto the ark. My Sunday school teacher said that every animal alive today was on that ark. That is true son. Even penguins? Yes, even penguins, son. But there are no penguins living in the desert, dad. Where did Noah find penguins? I am sure there were penguins in the desert at that time or maybe Noah found a way to get some from the North Pole. But penguins live in the South Pole, dad. Whatever. Did Noah have a freezer on the ark? Freezer? Yes, penguins need the cold. They cannot live in the hot desert. MARTHA! Yes, John. We have to stop sending Tim to Sunday school. I don't think they are teaching him the right things. Thanks, dad. Can I go outside and play now? | ||
| Muslims told at Friday prayers to ‘hate’ Valentine’s Day Posted: 07 Feb 2013 04:42 PM PST
(The Malaysian Insider) - "Create a feeling of anti-Valentine's Day in your hearts and minds, start hatred of celebrating it," Jakim's sermon told Muslims nationwide. Federal religious authorities today warned Muslims against celebrating Valentine's Day next week, in a message that consistently crops up annually in February, by pointing out that it could lead to pre-marital sex. Today's Friday sermon by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), read out at mosques nationwide, comes amid a campaign called "Mind the Valentine's Day Trap" launched together with about 250 non-governmental organisations last month. "Create a feeling of anti-Valentine's Day in your hearts and minds, start hatred of celebrating it," Jakim's sermon told Muslims nationwide. Jakim expressed its worry that Muslims celebrating the day will go dancing and organise candlelight dinners, which will then lead to "kissing in gardens" and pre-marital sex to prove their romantic loyalty. The religious department referred to an oft-quoted writing of a Ken Sweiger (sic) who allegedly said that "Valentine" was a Latin term, meaning "The Mightiest, The Strongest, and The Most Powerful", used to exalt Nimrod and Lupercus, the deities of ancient Rome. Therefore, Jakim warned that by asking someone to "be my Valentine" is tantamount to idolatry by glorifying a mortal to the same level as God. In his online article "Saint Valentine's Day: Should Biblical Christians Observe It?" a pastor called Ken Swiger warned his congregation called the Seventh Day Christian Assembly of the celebration. Swiger linked Valentine's Day celebration to a pagan celebration of intimacy dedicated to a primitive deity called Lupercus, who might refer to the biblical Nimrod the great hunter, the great-grandson of Noah. He wrote that the name Valentine came from the Latin word "valens", meaning "the strong, powerful or mighty one", in reference to Nimrod, thus making the celebration "blatant idolatry". Muslims were also told in Jakim's sermon that the directive against the celebration should not portray the department as killjoys who are against the latest trends, but it was just following the Quran and the Prophet's teachings. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/muslims-told-at-friday-prayers-to-hate-valentines-day/
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| Chinese New Year and the Worlds Between This One Posted: 07 Feb 2013 04:27 PM PST
Ang pows, like everything about Chinese New Year, remind us that forms and rules cannot be ignored. Just because those dancing lions aren't real, it doesn't mean they don't matter for what's real. Alwyn Lau This Sunday the Year of the Snake begins and getting an ang pow is the only time people love to see red. These flaming packets though, come with rules. For example, you never give an ang pow if you're not married and for those who tied the knot less than a year ago, it's two packs per pax. It totally isn't cool to give cheques or coins. Don't ever give an empty packet; like most symbolic gestures, the thought isn't the only thing that counts. Don't ever commit the Ibrahim Ali boo-boo of giving a white packet thus turning a family celebration into a death in the family. Never give ang-pows before the first day of CNY or after the fifteenth day; kick-off begins on the dot and there is no extra time. Also, always accept the ang pow with two hands; the giver isn't a TESCO cashier handing you change. Never send or receive electronic ang pows; 'virtual' ang pows makes as much sense as virtual air. Finally, no matter how much the Chinese talk about wealth and prosperity, one does not simply give CNY cash to people without the red packet (it's safer to walk into Mordor naked).
'Pointless' Yet Productive Ang pows, like everything about Chinese New Year, remind us that forms and rules cannot be ignored. Just because those dancing lions aren't real, it doesn't mean they don't matter for what's real. Firecrackers, the Mandarin oranges, not sweeping the floor for fifteen days, winning at Black Jack - and even the colour red – they mirror a world (of spirits, of convention, of the virtual) co-existing with our 'everyday' world (of cheese-burgers, traffic jams and Windows crashes). The 'fiction' of giving money in a shiny crimson paper envelope upholds our being 'wrapped up' in roles and identities not quite our own. This is a game of Pretend at its communal best – it may be 'fake' (or so we think), but it still 'works'. For isn't it true that every day we play pretend and it's not all fun? We pretend to care, to bother, to know, to be thinking. We pretend to be more than we know we're not. Every hour we struggle with roles like 'parent', 'spouse', 'leader', 'activist' - even 'human'. We're wearing so many hats we sometimes wear another hat simply to minimize the trauma of hat-wearing. What's more, we also need to be pretended to - life would be unbearable if everyone was completely honest with us. Our world would shatter if people smiled at or greeted us only 'if they felt like it'. The financial world would collapse if bank brochures told the truth that everybody pretends they don't already know: that the only thing worse than robbing a bank is starting one (i.e. one makes thievery an anti-social felony, the other makes it a politically protected privilege). The social world would be in disarray if 'pointless' statements like "How are you?", "What's up?", "Hi/Bye" (or our all time favourite, "I love you") were probed too deeply for their essences and sincerity. We're all in this together. Yet by feigning, we commit ourselves to each other even if we 'really' don't want to. We help others create fantasies for their world even as we rely on everybody else acting as if they believe what we do. These are the worlds 'in between' this one: The mutually constructed yet non-negotiable holograms we need in order to exist socially. They are pseudo-realities everyone makes and half-breaks every day and moment. They appear through our words, his façades, her cries, their hand-shakes, those emails and everybody's silences. We survive by pretending and we cannot live if others don't. Occasionally, our fragile veils are taken off and we detect strange things in others but also - thankfully - the desire to be loved and to contribute despite having had their innermost lives exposed (or status-updated).
Worlds Dark and Divine Of course, the worst kind of feigning – and thus the blackest of realities produced - is by leaders who make it a point to deceive or incite all in order to strip society of its resources and values. This is the most insidious sort of masquerade because it hides the wilful exclusion of others, especially the least of the least. Thus, Tun Dr Mahathir can pretend to care about the citizenship status of immigrants to Sabah whilst hardly pretending to care about the living conditions of the orang asli and the poorest in that very same state. Our dear PM himself can pretend to care about Chinese and Christians whilst he allows folks like Ibrahim Ali to continue being entirely honest about how much he hates them. The only good news from all this is that the veils can't hide the darkness anymore. In such a rot, the people are forced to throw off all pretenses, not to mention the gloves (think HINDRAF, BERSIH). And then there is a more sublime kind of unveiling, showing off a better kind of world. It's the kind that Michelle Ng alluded to in her Feb 5th essay, written in the context of the on-going 'Allah' controversy. She, a Christian, declared to her Muslim friends that: "(Even if) the day comes when Christianity is prohibited in Malaysia, when our churches and bibles are forced to cease to exist, I can assure you that we will still welcome you into our homes with open arms; we will feed you when you're hungry and we will care for you if need be; and we will pray for you every day." That's our new world right there. An in-breaking imaginary which not only brings hope to the country's politics but also redefines the political. Ng's promise to forgive and pray for those who persecute her is undoubtedly too Christian for many Christians; we should only hope it's not too un-Malaysian for Malaysia. Her remarks proclaim another world so blindingly beautiful that most folks can't deal with the shock of taking Ng seriously. Maybe this proves that the best kind of world is that which has to remain obscure for now, and presented to us in drama, sign, gesture and spectacle - like a wooden lion turned on by cymbals and drums, suddenly needing to gyrate and eat oranges and lettuce. Chinese New Year is not only a celebration of a new twelve months under the Lunar calendar, but it can also be a declaration that enjoyable fiction begets new realities. The noise, the food, the colours - they all point to the casting out of evil and the inviting in of the good. It's a 15-day nation-wide concert to ask the universe to do it again – better this time. Red storm rising, new worlds coming. Happy Chinese New Year, Malaysia.
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| Ronnie Liu's aide resigns, citing dissatisfaction Posted: 07 Feb 2013 03:57 PM PST
Edmund Lee, The Sun Daily The Selangor exco Ronnie Liu's special assistant Jafrei Nordin has announced his resignation with immediate effect after voicing his dissatisfaction towards his boss Ronnie and the DAP party. Jafrei made the announcement with the presence of Nibong Tebal MP Tan Tee Beng at around 10.50am at the latter's residence in Silverton today. When asked why he chose Penang to announce his resignation instead of in Selangor, the shaken Jafrei pointed out that he was worried about his family's safety as it would be a big implication after his resignation. "That's why I contacted my friend (Tan) and ask for his permission to hold a press conference in Penang today," the nervous-looking Jafrei told a press conference early this morning. Jafrei added that he will be submitting his resignation letter in a couple of days. Throughout the press conference, Jafrei who was appointed by Liu in 2008, said his resignation was due to loss of confidence towards Liu and that he has a deep disappointment after Liu had failed to explain the various allegations of graft and misuse of power against him. Jafrei claimed that Liu and Selangor DAP had no respect over PAS and PKR in the state as he alleged there were intentions by certain quarters inside the party to unseat the two parties, which as a result, the state DAP could hold on as a dominant party in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR). He also alleged that he knows every single plan by Liu and state DAP to undermine PAS and PKR, including plans to persuade Malay leaders such as prominent lawyer Datuk Zaid Ibrahim to contest under DAP ticket in the upcoming 13th general election. "This will ensure that DAP could form a new state government in Selangor and sideline PKR candidate to become Mentri Besar." Jafrei who is also DAP activist since 2004 claimed that Liu and other DAP leaders had even labelled current Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim as "Khalid Gagap" (Nervous Khalid). He also claimed that DAP had been using their "election specialist" in shifting their target from UMNO to PAS as the party believes Barisan Nasional (BN) would lose up in the election battle anyway, therefore makes PAS the more relevant target for now. Meanwhile, Liu has denied that Jafrei was his special assistant as he had already terminated one who was holding the position under his portfolio. "He is talking nonsense and a liar," Liu said when contacted today questioning why Jafrei held a press conference in Penang if he was indeed Liu's special assistant. He alleged that Jafrei had secretly printed a business card to prove that he was Liu's assistant. Liu added that he had also maintained a very good relationship with the state PAS members and even with the Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.
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| Posted: 07 Feb 2013 03:40 PM PST The prime minister had the perfect opportunity to act, but he neglected to do so. Consumed by greed and power, like many politicians in Malaysia, he looked the other way. Mariam Mokhtar, FMT As soon as Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak announces the date for 13th general election, it will probably sound his political death knell. For the benefit of the rakyat, and in front of the television cameras and news photographers, Najib and his Cabinet present a united front; but behind the scenes, another story emerges. Damaging leaks about the shortcomings of his leadership continue to undermine Najib. His grip on the party is tenuous. His strongest ally, the self-styled First Lady Rosmah Mansor, will do her utmost to ensure he succeeds. Last month, the independent organisation, the Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research, found that Najib had high popularity ratings of 63% among voters in Peninsular Malaysia. For the sake of "completeness", why not a survey among voters in Sabah and also, Sarawak? It would have been interesting to gauge Najib's popularity in Sabah, before and during the proceedings of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) for Sabah. If the same survey had been conducted among ministers in Najib's own Cabinet, the results would be a good gauge of their confidence in his leadership. The war that is being waged against Najib is on two fronts – he has to defend himself against the opposition and fight off guerrilla raids from invisible enemies, within Umno. Najib, the son of Malaysia's second prime minister, has had a poor grounding in life. Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he is only exposed to the suffering of the rakyat, in the months before election. To alleviate their pain, Najib distributes bags of rice and food, and tars their roads, rather than sorting out the issues which have plagued the people, over the past five years. The prime minister's privileged schooling is denied to the ordinary Malaysian. Najib may have been a product of a mission school, but mission schools are dying a slow death, deprived of money and support from the Education Ministry. In his secondary schooling at Malvern College, a Church of England school, Najib would have attended daily chapel services, compulsory Sunday service, Remembrance Sunday, and Carol services in the Christmas term. Najib has remained a Muslim despite attending these services, but he would have gained a thorough understanding of Christianity. Despite that, he has said nothing to persuade the extremists in Malaysia to practise tolerance and moderation. He missed the chance What can one expect from a career politician? When he defended his father's seat, which had become vacant on his death, he won, presumably because of the sympathy votes. How can a man who has not experienced the perils faced by the unskilled worker, the struggling graduate, working man and father know what it is like to live in Malaysia, where house prices are beyond most people's reach, where car prices are jacked up, where justice is sold to the highest bidder and where most services require a sweetener? Najib's education has not been put to good use to help his fellow Malaysian.
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| ‘BN to win election but no two thirds’ Posted: 07 Feb 2013 03:25 PM PST The Economist Intelligence Unit predicts Barisan Nasional as likely winners because of Pakatan Rakyat's costly promises. Lisa J. Ariffin, FMT The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has predicted Barisan Nasional (BN) as the likely winner in the upcoming general election. However, analysts predict the ruling coalition will probably fail to attain the two-thirds parliamentary majority to make constitutional changes unchallenged. The Economist Intelligence Unit is part of London's Economist, a weekly global news magazine. In a recent report on their website, EIU claims Pakatan Rakyat (PR) have been making "costly promises" to gain power. However, the opposition alliance's efforts have attracted less attention than the generosity of BN, which had spent lavishly in two consecutive budgets to please voters. "In addition, the government is offering many local incentives to ensure the return of BN representatives at federal and state level," it said, elaborating that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak recently offered Penang's Pakatan-controlled state assembly 20,000 affordable houses and a monorail to ease traffic congestion. "The next election is likely to be a tight race, but we do not expect the outcome to lead to a dramatic improvement in the public finances," it added. The EIU also said it is "clearly not feasible" for Pakatan to implement all of its campaign promises in one go. "For example, providing free secondary education would cost the government RM43 billion, while abolishing car duty would cut tax revenue by RM4.6 billion a year," it explained. It also pointed out that Pakatan had been accused of breaking its promises that include financial assistance for pre-school education, and for university students, senior citizens and the disabled; free healthcare for those over 65; lower property taxes; and assistance for home buyers. Citing Malaysia's richest state Selangor as an example, the report quotes BN as claiming Pakatan had implemented only 15 per cent of the RM2.4 billion-worth of its 31 election pledges made in its 2008 manifesto. "Selangor's Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim, commented that a manifesto is not a promise but conceded that voters may think otherwise," it then said. The report also quoted latest opinion polls which showed Najib's approval rating of more than 60 per cent, but noted 47 per cent ofthose surveyed saying that they were satisfied with the government.
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| Yazid’s wife denies terrorist links Posted: 07 Feb 2013 03:21 PM PST The 48-year-old mother of four says that her husband was with her all the time. K Pragalath, FMT Former Internal Security Act detainee Yazid Sufaat's wife Chomel Mohamad has denied that her husband has contacts with a Malaysian terrorist shot dead in the Philippines as alleged by the police. Speaking about Yazid's arrest yesterday, the mother of four said she returned from the market at 11.30am and saw their assistant Mohd Hilmi Ahsin being handcuffed. "There was a huge crowd at the canteen and I even spotted the arresting officer who arrested my husband previously, Inspector Ravi," said the 48-year-old mother of four. "Yazid said the police mentioned someone by the name of Fikrie. "We were never in contact with Fikrie and my husband doesn't go anywhere. He only helps me to operate my business from 7.30am to 4pm. I know his activities. We don't even know who Fikrie is," she added. According to The Philippine Star, Mohammad Noor Fikrie Abdul Kahar is a suspected Jemaah Islamiyah bomber who was killed in Davao City in December last year. Yesterday Yazid, Hilmi and Halimah Hussein were detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA) for promoting terrorism. Under SOSMA, police could detain anyone for 28 days without trial, and deny access to lawyers during the first 48 hours. Yazid an ex-ISA detainee was formerly detained in 2001 and released seven years later for alleged involvement in an Indonesian-based terrorist movement called Jemaah Islamiyah since 1993. Hilmi is Yazid's worker. Both were detained at the Jalan Duta High Court canteen where Yazid's wife operated a cafetaria. Halimah was detained in Taman Sutera, Kajang at noon. National news agency Bernama yesterday reported that the trio were believed to be active members of Jemaah Islamiyah attempted to recruit more than 50 students from institutions of higher learning. Quoting police sources, the report stated that the recruits were trained in a neighbouring country for specific missions such as suicide missions in Europe. The sources also believed that there were training grounds within the country. 'Deeply flawed law' Meanwhile, Chomel also told the press that after Yazid's arrest, the police raided their house in Taman Bukit Ampang.
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| Yazid charged with promoting terrorism Posted: 07 Feb 2013 03:07 PM PST Yazid Sufaat, a former ISA detainee, is facing a 30-year jail sentence after being accused of promoting acts of terrorism in Syria. K Pragalath, FMT Yazid Sufaat was not charged under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act. He was instead charged under Section 130 G (a) of the Penal Code for promoting acts of terrorism. He was accused of promoting acts of terrorism in strife-torn Syria. The section provides for a maximum prison sentence of 30 years for inciting, promoting or soliciting property for the commission of terrorist acts. The charge sheet stated that Yazid committed the offence between Aug 1 and Oct 20 last year at his house in Ampang. Meanwhile, housewife Halimah Hussin, 52, was charged under the same section as well as Section 109 of the Penal Code for abetting Yazid during the same period of time. The pair were charge at the Ampang magistrate's court this afternoon. Earlier, the defence counsel for both Yazid and Halimah argued on the legality of Section 130 G (a) of the Penal Code. "The section was amended on Dec 25, 2003 but there are no gazetted dates for the enforcement of this section," argued Amer Hamzah Arshad. "This proceeding cannot proceed and this court has no jurisdiction to hear this case," he added. The prosecution team led by deputy public prosecutor Hanafiah Zakaria countered that the gazette date cannot be given but it is still enforced before magistrate Zulyana Zollkapli. This prompted Zulyana to adjourn the court for 30 minutes. Following this, Hanafiah clarified that the section in question had been gazetted in March 2007. Hanafiah also requested for both cases to be transferred to the Shah Alam High Court which Zulyana allowed. After the hearing, Yazid, a former Internal Security Act detainee, was sent to Sungai Buloh Prison whereas Halimah was sent to Kajang Prison. The date for the hearing in Shah Alam High Court has not been fixed.
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| Does Suing MRT Co Make Us Pinggir Za'aba, TTDI Residents Elite? Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:50 PM PST
Some wondered why I used my father's Tan Sri title in the press release - it is to clearly showcase that the suit is being brought by BN supporters against a BN project. It is not political - the plaintiffs are not politicians. They are aggrieved citizens that have a case. They need the government to listen. Akhramsyah Muammar Ubaidah bin Sanusi I'll begin first by thanking my good friend and occassional mentor, Ahiruddin "Rocky" Attan, for highlighting Pinggir Za'aba's suit against MRT Co. This suit is very much a private matter to the plaintiffs, my wife being one of them. I also thank those who have commented for and against the suit in Rocky's blog and hope they continue their interest here, and in the interest of getting some good feedback, I will also relax my typical restrictions to commentaries. For those who have misunderstood Rocky's definition of Elite, please have a look at the images of the houses of most of the plaintiffs on Pinggir Za'aba that I have attached below. Pinggir Za'aba is a long road, just as TTDI is a large housing area. The part of TTDI directly effected by the MRT has neither bungalows nor semi-D's and whilst we are not the poorest of citizens, we are not among the most affluent either. We are Elite though, in that we are nearly all tertiary educated, most are or were professionals, managers in corporations or civil servants.   Having heard the views of many, allow me to present my reason for supporting my wife's decision to join the civil suit against MRT Co. Metaphorically and in brief, I can say that the reason for my support of the suit is from my reading of Clausewitz's On War, where the great Prussian military philosopher describes War as simply the continuation of Politics or Policy by other means. Hence, this suit, is simply the continuation of Pinggir Za'aba's engagement of MRT Co by more aggressive means. To elaborate on the why, ever since residents of Pinggir Za'aba were informed our homes would be impacted by the MRT's construction by notices put up on trees along our road by SPAD some 2+ years ago, we have been trying our best to engage various government agencies. Understanding that the MRT is a nation-building project of some importance, we have never asked for it to be scrapped, but rather preferred re-alignment or an underground route for it, and failing that, that were at least hoping to be given due compensation either for damages to or for having to abandon our homes. The PR and engagement from SPAD and Prasarana was to me actually quite poor, though I would put more blame on SPAD for this - Prasarana seemed in these engagements as being victims of circumstance. SPAD's position was often inconsistent, its approach to engagement shoddy (beginning with notices put up on trees remember!), but at least there were no empty promises. Where they could not deliver on our suggestions of hopes, we received non-commitals and silence, which sounds bad, and may even sound strange for those who went to the PR 'roadshows', but worse was to come. Read more at: http://thoughtsintangents.blogspot.com/2013/02/does-suing-mrt-co-make-us-pinggir-zaaba.html
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| Is Taib-Jeffrey alliance in the making? Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:32 PM PST
Will wily old Taib Mahmud, who has kept Sarawak out of Umno's greedy clutches all these decades, outmanoeuvre Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak? Joseph Tawie and Pushparani Thilaganathan, Free Malaysia TodaySpeculations of covert conversations between "cornered" Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and Sabah State Reform Party (STAR) chief Jeffrey Kitingan gained ground in Kuching following Jeffrey's call to Sarawakians to "support local parties". During a recent visit, Jeffrey advised Sarawakians not to support peninsula-based Pakatan Rakyat but instead to give their backing to local parties. The call, while confusing to some, has lent credence to rumours that Taib was keen on Jeffrey's Borneo Agenda and had met with him to discuss an "alliance". Local parties in Sarawak are Taib's Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP). All of them are currently aligned to Barisan Nasional in the federal capital. However, in recent months this "allegiance" has become suspect, partly due to the goings-on in Sabah and the peninsula. Within Taib's PBB and BN coalition itself there appears to be those who have sold their souls to Putrajaya and who are working below the line to ensure he is forced out "once and for all" and this "includes using the occult". But a PBB insider said Taib was well aware of these moves and the people involved. "He has his own plans and finds in Jeffrey and [Pakatan's Opposition Leader] Anwar [Ibrahim] a common agenda. "Both want to get rid of Najib [Tun Razak] and Umno-BN. "It works for Taib because now all three have a common agenda. Taib has nothing to lose at this point," the insider said, adding that it was a bonus for Jeffrey and Anwar that Taib could be a "generous man" when the need arose. The insider also said the latest rejection by Kuala Lumpur to his demand to be appointed Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sarawak (head of state) in return for stepping down was pivotal to his decision to engage Jeffrey. "Taib wants the head of state's post but Kuala Lumpur has again rejected his demand. "By becoming the head of state, he can control state affairs, appoint the chief minister he wants, and escape the long arms of the law," said the insider. Jeffrey's remarks, which incidentally also had PRS president James Masing's reported support, came at time of great political confusion. Never before have so many political players been in so tight a race. According to FMT's sources, Taib is fully aware of a federal-funded attempt to oust him before the 13th general election and making use of his deputy Awang Tengah Ali Hassan to execute the plan. "The plan is to cut him off at every turn," said a source referring to Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's declaration that only (federal) BN-sanctioned candidates and incumbents can contest in the general election. This, the insider said, spoilt Taib's plan to field his own men and outmanoeuvre Najib who is trying to pick his own PBB lineup loyal to Umno-BN and not to Taib personally. "Najib wants to ensure that Taib does not play a double game so he [Najib] wants to have his 'loyalists' in PBB fielded. But Taib wants his men on the ground. He is ready to field his own people who are aligned to him but are currently independents. "Najib wants Awang Tengah and his boys to remove Taib before 13th general election to ensure support for BN in Sarawak is intact and ensure the other BN components will remain loyal to Kuala Lumpur," said the source. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/02/08/is-taib-jeffrey-alliance-in-the-making/ | ||
| New voters add mystery to Perak contest Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:26 PM PST
"I would say that the surge in the number of voters in Pasir Panjang, Bukit Gantang and Gopeng is very troubling because these are not areas with large numbers of new housing developments and new voters moving in. Chen Shaua Fui, fz.com FOR the very first time, Abri Yok Chopil, 34, wants to cast his vote in the general election. Abri, an Orang Asli from the Semai community who lives in Kampung Chang, Bidor, Perak, registered as a voter last year. Previously, he had not taken his vote seriously because he was not aware of the importance of voting, Abri told fz.com in a phone interview. Abri, who is an activist for Orang Asli rights, says no one from the government, especially the Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa) that is in charge of the community's affairs, had briefed the villagers on their rights as citizens and their role as voters. Instead, programmes like karaoke singing competitions are organised or handouts distributed to the families to keep them happy, he says. The Orang Asli in the kampung, which is about 5km from Bidor, rely on subsistence agriculture and collect forest produce to earn a meagre living, says Abri. When the elections come around, the politicians come around to distribute provisions and pay for a community feast, he said. However, Abri and many of his friends had a gradual awakening to the importance of their votes after going through an empowerment process organised by a group of activists. They believe there is a need to have a change. "The people can choose the leaders they want," he said, expressing confidence in the power of democracy. Abri belongs to a growing number of young people who are shedding a long-standing Malaysian trait of staying on the sidelines of political developments. A series of public rallies in recent years have drawn tens and hundreds of thousands of people, showing that there is a mood of popular empowerment afoot. These rallies would strike a chord with many young Perak voters, who turned out in droves to protest when the Pakatan Rakyat state government was ousted in a dramatic political crisis in 2009. In that event, the Barisan Nasional took control of the Perak administration after three state assembly members quit the Pakatan coalition just one year after it unseated the BN state government in the 12th general election in March 2008. Straw polls suggest that many young Perak voters are waiting for the 13th general election to make a stand on the issue at the ballot. The question on many minds is whether this young tide of support for change is strong enough to decide the outcome of the upcoming general election. According to the Election Commission, there will be three million new voters in the next election, out of an electorate of some 13 million. Merdeka Centre Research Manager Tan Seng Keat said that out of these new voters, half of them fall under the age group of 21-25 years old. However, he pointed out that new voters are not necessarily young voters or first-time voters; they could be voters who have moved into a constituency due to labour or social mobility. As political parties from both sides had been working very hard to register new voters since the 2008 general election, it is normal to have an increase of new voters in a constituency. However, political analyst Ong Kian Ming pointed out that the surge of new voters is above the average rate of increase in several closely contested seats in Perak. Ong, who recently became a DAP member and is the party's election strategist, has been compiling the data of new voters in Perak. The number of new voters in the electoral roll up to the fourth quarter of 2012 shows an increase of 217,796 (18%) new voters in Perak, compared with 2008.
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| Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:21 PM PST
Only businessmen who have secured corrupt business deals through their connections should be concerned with a change of government. An SME Businessman, The Malaysian Insider Many argue that the most important reason why Pakatan Rakyat must be elected the new federal government in the forthcoming general election is to bring an end to 55 years of Barisan Nasional government. While Umno's frequent threats that May 13-style riots will occur if the elections produce a new government have lost their effect, the MCA has now joined this "threat game". Seeking to claim its traditional role of the party of big business, its president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek was reported in the mainstream media over the weekend as saying that Bursa Malaysia will drop 500 points if Pakatan wins, which would "have a direct impact on the national economy". Chua went on to say "PAS has also mentioned that it will close Genting and the Bursa. All these will frighten investors, be they local of foreign". Clearly these are empty threats. For Pakatan to be elected the new federal government it must have a simple majority in the 222-member Dewan Rakyat, say, about 125 seats. Because of the gerrymandering of constituencies by numerous Barisan administrations, Pakatan must receive a popular vote exceeding 55 per cent in order to win that number of seats required to form a working government with a comfortable majority that can also withstand any party-hopping that may occur thereafter. In this scenario, surely the 55 per cent of Malaysians who voted for Pakatan will not wish to have their newly elected government destabilised at any level, including our economy. I for one would personally support the stock market if there is a panic sell by the weak-hearted or the cautious, as would many of my business colleagues. I have no doubt that millions of our fellow Malaysians would rally to support the stock market, as we did during the 1998 financial crisis. It is our public duty to support the new government which we hope to elect, and if that means buying shares on the Bursa, sufficient Malaysians will do that. In any event, if a major sell-down occurs in the Bursa as a result of a Pakatan victory, the nation's economic institutions like EPF, PNB, Khazanah and other GLCs would have to do their national duty by supporting the market, something they have done time and again under the Barisan government. Next, the PAS bogey. PAS has administered Kelantan for more than 20 years, and Kedah for five years. These two PAS state administrations have neither acquired nor appropriated property, assets or businesses belonging to non-Muslims. The rakyat should also consider the Selangor and Penang experience. The treasuries of both states have been prudently managed, deficits reduced and investments increased. Penang is, as a matter of fact, a grand success story. The four PR states of Penang, Selangor, Kedah and Kelantan have proven their ability by beating the other 10 BN states by attracting RM25 billion in investments comprising 53 per cent of Malaysia's total investments of RM47.2 billion in 2010. For the first time in history, Penang is the new champion of investments in Malaysia, coming out top in 2010 with RM12.2 billion. Even, the one-year administration of Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin in Perak was business friendly. The facts speak for themselves. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/mcas-empty-threats-an-sme-businessman/
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| BK Residents Are Exposed to Life Threatening Toxic Gas! Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:12 PM PST
Ahli jawatankuasa Pahang Raub Anti Cyanide di Perlombongan Emas (BCAC) telah memeriksa rekod pemantauan 12 Januari dan 20 Januari 2013 dan mendapati gas HCN telah dikesan setiap minit. Rekod pemantauan menunjukkan tahap kepekatan gas cyanide mencecah 0.5-0.8ppm kebanyakkan masa. Tahap kepekatan yang tertinggi adalah 1.11ppm!
Bancyanide BK Hasil Pemantauan Udara Menunjuk Bukit Koman Dicemari Gas Cyanide Yang Toksik!
Hasil dari pemantauan udara yang dilakukan oleh Jabatan Alam Sekitar (JAS) di SJK (C) Yuh Wah menunjukkan tahap hydrogen cyanide (HCN) yang tinggi menyebabkan udara di Raub telah tercemar dengan gas TOKSIK!
Jabatan Alam Sekitar negara kita telah menetapkan had piawaian hydrogen cyanide untuk kawasan perumahan Bukit Koman sebanyak 10ppm, jauh lebih tinggi berbanding had piawaian keselamatan dan kesihatan pekerjaan, iaitu di bawah tahap 4.7ppm!
Setakat ini tahap tertinggi gas cyanide yang pernah dikesan oleh pemantauan JAS mencecah tahap 1.11ppm. Lokasi pemantauan ini adalah lebih kurang 1km dari kilang perlombongan emas, oleh itu tahap kepekatan cynanide sudah tentu lebih tinggi didalam kampong Bukit Koman! Maka tidak ada sebab untuk membiarkan penghuni kawasan kediaman didedahkan kepada ancaman udara bertoksid selama 24 jam sehari!
Penduduk Bukit Koman Terdedah Kepada Gas Tosik Sepanjang Hari
JAS telah mula memasang alat pemantauan udara di SJK © Yuh Wah pada 3 Januari 2013 untuk menjalankan pemantauan selama 6 bulan. Papan tanda pula mula didirikan ditapak tersebut sejak 20 Januari. Hasil pematauan akan dikemaskini atas papan tanda tersebut setiap 5 jam. Menurut En Lokman, pengawai JAS yang bertugas di situ, JAS Negeri Pahang telah menghantar pengawai untuk menjalankan pemantauan tahap HCN dan pencemaran udara yang lain (10 parameter) sejak awal bulan Januari dan beliau menjalankan pemantauan selama 15 jam sehari. Ditanya mengapa tidak dapat menjalani pemantauan 24 jam, beliau jawab, "Saya dan mesin perlu berehat!".
Ahli jawatankuasa Pahang Raub Anti Cyanide di Perlombongan Emas (BCAC) telah memeriksa rekod pemantauan 12 Januari dan 20 Januari 2013 dan mendapati gas HCN telah dikesan setiap minit, tidak ada satu angka yang menunjukkan "sifar"! Kita juga dapati angka "sifar" jarang sekali muncul pada pemantauan hari –hari yang lain. Rekod pemantauan menunjukkan tahap kepekatan gas cyanide mencecah 0.5-0.8ppm kebanyakkan masa. Tahap kepekatan yang tertinggi adalah 1.11ppm!
Keadaan ini adalah sangat serius, kerana udara semula jadi tidak mengandungi gas cyanide. Hasil pemantauan JAS ini mengesahkan udara yang disedut oleh penduduk setempat telah dicemari gas cyanide dan pencemar toksik yang lain, malah tahap pencemarannya jauh lebih tinggi berbanding negara lain!
Sebenarnya piawaian udara HCN di kebanyakan negara adalah jauh lebih rendah dari 0.2ppm, dimana had piawaian New York adalah 0.03ppm, Soviet Union dan Republik Czech pula masing-masing ialah 0.009 / 0.007ppm. Hasil pemantanan di Bukit Koman menunjukkan pencemarannya jauh lebih tinggi dari piawaian udara negara-negara ini, malah adalah lebih 20 kali ganda dari piawaian New York yang dibenarkan.
Piawaian 10ppm Adalah Lebih Tinggi Daripada Piawaian Keselamatan Pekerjaan
Papan tanda yang didirikan JAS menunjukkan had piawaian yang ditetapkan oleh JAS adalah 10ppm. Setahu kita, Standard Kualiti Udara Persekitaran Malaysia (Malaysia Ambient Air Quality Standard) tidak merangkumi HCN, malah piawaian keselamatan perkerjaan (Occupational Safety and Health Act 1974) Malaysia adalah jauh lebih rendah, iaitu 4.7ppm! Kita nak tanya, bagaimana JAS boleh menetapi had piawaian di kawasan perumahan lebih tinggi dari piawian perindustrian / keselamatan perkerjaan?
BCAC pernah meminta JAS jelaskan had piawaian HCN berkali-kali, tetapi selama ini, JAS tidak pernah menjawab dalam laporan bertulis mereka. Pegawai JAS pernah menyatakan had piawaian yang digunakan adalah 10ppm, akan tetapi pihak JAS tidak dapat memaklumkan sumbernya. Kemudian dinyatakan pula, piawai yang dirujuk adalah digunapakai di Western Australia. Siasatan BCAC menunjuk tahap 10ppm sebenarnya adalah piawaian keselamatan pekerjaan untuk Western Australia, dimana piawai ini adalah tidak sesuai pakai di kawasan perumahan.
Piawaian keselamatan perkerjaan cuma sesuai digunakan untuk pekerja perindustrian, dengan had masa bekerja yang tetap (biasanya 8 jam); Berbeza dengan pekerja dalam kilang, penduduk di Buki Koman terdedah kepada ancaman gas cyanide selama 24 jam; piawaian keselamatan perkerjaan memang tidak sesuai digunakan untuk kampung yang mempunyai penduduk seramai 3000 orang ini.
Mengesahkan Aduan Kesihatan Penduduk Sejak 2009
SJK (C) Yuh Hwa adalah berjarak lebih kurang 1km dari kilang perlombongan emas, malah gas cyanide masih boleh dikesan di situ. Oleh itu kita percayai bahawa pencemaran dalam kawasan kampung adalah jauh lebih tinggi!
Selepas Raub Australia Gold Mine (RAGM) mula beroperasi pada Februari 2009, 300 orang penduduk dari kampung-kampung berdekatan melaporkan masalah kesihatan seperti gatal kulit dan ruam kulit, mata merah dan berair, ketidakselesaan tekak, sesak nafas, insomnia, mual muntah, sakit kepala, pening dan lain-lain. Pemantauan JAS ini sekali menunjukkan aduan selama ini adalah benar!
Tidak ada orang patut beritahu kita bahawa "angka-angka ini menunjukkan gas cyanide tidak melebihi piawaian, oleh itu tidak ada masalah!", malah ada laporan sains yang menunjukkan pendedahan kepada gas cyanide tahap rendah dalam jangka masa panjang boleh menyebabkan masalah kesihatan saraf, saluran pernafasan, saluran darah, dan kelenjar tiroid.
Nyawa adalah tidak ternilai! Kita menyeru kerajaan mengambil tindakan dengan segera dan menutup kilang Raub Australian Gold Mining di Bukit Koman untuk mengelakkan penduduk setempat dari terus dianiaya.
2012年2月7日
根据环境局在武吉公满育华华校所探测到的含山埃气体（氰化氢，HCN）指数已经说明，劳勿的空气已经被山埃污染了！
根据一些工业发达国家/ 先进国家的标准，山埃气体的允许暴露限值(工业安全标准限制)皆在4.7ppm以下！且暴露时间不能够超过10分钟~可是我国环境局却将武吉公满民宅区的含山埃气体指数顶限设为10ppm，远远高于我国的工业安全标准限制，这是极度荒谬和令人不能接受的！因为没有任何理由让人民居住的地方24小时暴露在工业有毒废气的威胁中！
目前测量到最高的山埃气体指数数据达到1.11ppm，探测地点距离金矿厂约1公里，所以从工厂所释放出来的山埃气体浓度肯定高出许多！
环境局在1月上旬开始派员到武吉公满新村每日探测HCN和其他污染指数，告示板则是在1月20日开始竖立。反山埃委员会第一时间到现场了解状况，在场驻守的环境局职员洛曼（Lokman）透露环境局于2013年1 月3 日开始在武吉公满育华华校架设空气探测器以进行空气探测，该空气探测器每日操作15小时，为期六个月，告示板的数据每五个小时更新一次。
委员会查阅了其中两天（1月12日和20日）的数据，发现探测器竟然每分钟都探测到山埃气体，没有一个数据显示"零"。后来再查阅其他日期的数据，发现出现"零"的次数极少。所看到的数据显示，大多数时候当地的山埃气体浓度高达0.5-0.8ppm，最高的指数1.11ppm。
这个情况非常严重，因为自然空气不含山埃气体，这些数据确认了村民呼吸的空气已受山埃气体污染，且污染指数远高于其他国家的限制！
上限竟高于工业标准
环境局竖立的告示板显示，该局设定的山埃气体标准限制是10ppm，但是马来西亚的空气素质指数（Malaysia Ambient Air Quality Standard）并没有涵盖HCN，有的只是工业安全标准，而且我国工业安全标准限制是4.7ppm，环境局怎么可能认为住宅区的上限还高于工业标准？
委员会曾多次向环境局询问山埃气体的限制标准，都得不到环境局的书面答复。环境局官员曾口头透露我国的标准是10ppm，但始终没法告知出处，后来则说是西澳标准，但经反山埃委员会查询后发现，10ppm其实是西澳的工业安全标准，不适用于公众民宅。
工业安全标准只适用于工厂内工作的员工，且都列明工作时限；有别于员工的是，居住在当地的武吉公满村民每天24小时都暴露在山埃气体中，工业安全标准肯定不适用于这个人口近3000的新村。
其实很多国家的HCN空气素质标准大都低于0.2ppm，纽约的标准是0.03ppm，苏联和捷克则分别是0.009/0.007ppm，武吉公满探测到的指数已远 高于这些国家的空气素质标准，甚至已超过大城市纽约的标准20倍以上。
长期暴露在山埃气体将严重影响健康
育华华校距离冶金厂一公里之外，尚能探测到山埃气体，相信村内的数据会更高。
村民也时常投诉在村里看到金矿厂发放烟雾，造成当地居民的健康频频出现状况，包括眼疾、皮肤病及呼吸困难的问题。
没有人应该告诉我们"数据显示山埃气体没超标，因此没有问题"，已有科学报告指出，长期低度暴露在山埃气体中可导致神经、呼吸道、心血管及甲状腺问题。
这次环境局的测试结果再次印证了村民多年的投诉和抗议。生命无价，政府理应即刻关闭村内的劳勿澳洲金矿公司，以避免武吉公满村民继续受害。
劳勿反山埃冶金委员会启
SJK(C) Yuk Hwa is more than 1 km from the RAGM CIL Plant can detected 1.1ppm! Can expected the Bukit Koman residents that nearer to the CIL Plant is expose to higher level of toxic gas
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| Bukit Koman air full of poison, says green group Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:09 PM PST
(Free Malaysia Today) - 'Cyanide exposure is more than 30 times higher than the level permitted in New York.' An environmental group has claimed that the use of cyanide in gold mining activities is causing excessive air pollution in Bukit Koman, Pahang. The pollutants include hydrogen cyanide gas, according to Sherly Hue, a leader of the Pahang Ban Cyanide in Gold Mining Action Committee. She told FMT that on a certain day in early January, the amount of hydrogen cyanide in the air around Bukit Koman was recorded at 1.1 ppm (parts per million), a level that World Health Organisation (WHO) considers hazardous. The reading was taken some time after Jan 3, the date on which the Pahang Department of Environment (DOE) erected a monitoring station next to SJK (C) Yuh Wah. The station measures the gas level for 15 hours a day. "According to WHO, the permissible levels for the gas exposure are 0.03 ppm in New York and 0.009 ppm in the Czech Republic," Hue said. "The cyanide exposure in Bukit Koman is 30 times above the safety level of New York." However, DOE has set the maximum exposure level at 10 ppm, as displayed on a board next to the monitoring station. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/02/07/bukit-koman-air-full-of-poison-says-green-group/ | ||
| Rais: Media should be thinkers, critics prioritising harmony Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:05 PM PST
(Bernama) - MEDIA practitioners, especially journalists, need to be thinkers and critics who always place importance on harmonious relations between countries in their writings, said Malaysia's Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim. He said in the context of Malaysia-Indonesia relations, journalists were an important component in imbuing thinking of whether to report the truth or not. In his keynote address at a grand dinner to mark the Indonesian Press Day and 67th anniversary of the Indonesian Journalists Association here Thursday, he said although the media or journalists were free to write, report and criticise on whatever, they must uphold the regional Malay spirit, harmony and mutual respect that had existed for such a long time. "We come from the same stock and if we, as writers, cannot convey our similarities to the masses, these similarities do not guarantee us anything. "We should therefore think of what would happen to the regional Malay community if we as writers don't play our role from the perspective of promoting the meaning of humanity and Malay brotherhood," he said. Also present were his wife Datin Seri Maznah Rais, North Sulawesi governor SH Sarundajang and Malaysia's Informaton director-general Datuk Ibrahim Abdul Rahman. Rais, the first minister outside Indonesia to be given the honour of delivering the keynote address at such a function which was attended by over 1,000 Indonesian journalists, noted that he came to Manado with the aim of strengthening Malaysia-Indonesia ties. Recognising the role of the media and journalists as writers, messengers and critics, he said that role could have a meaningful impact on society. He said as writers, especially in Indonesia where they were free to report on anything, their reporting must still be balanced. As such, he said, good things like the Indonesian workers in Malaysia remitting home about RM6 billion a year and that more than 90 per cent of traders in Kuala Lumpur's Chow Kit area were Indonesians, should be given due news coverage. "As writers we must always infuse a sense of responsibility in all our articles in order to prevent others from getting angry with what we write," he said. Rais also suggested that the television programmes on TVRI and RTM which had such a positive impact on the two countries' ties be revived with new content. When met by the media after the event, Rais said he was touched by being honoured to deliver the keynote address and to convey the message of enhancing the already close Malaysia-Indonesia relations. "It was a result of the roles played by Ikatan Setiakawan Malaysia-Indonesia and Yayasan Ikatan Rakyat Malaysia-Indonesia. This noble initiative should be continued in the interest of the region's Malay community," he said.
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| Anwar Ibrahim and his promises! Posted: 07 Feb 2013 01:01 PM PST
Anwar claimed that free education in Malaysia is achievable. But HOW? Till today, he and his party has yet to provide a logic explanation for such a policy to be implemented. Wong Saikim At the International Convention for Education 2013 at University Selangor (UNISEL) recently, Opposition supremo Anwar Ibrahim assured his audience that free education can be achieved even though taxes are low in Malaysia, that makes Malaysia to become the only country in the world to achieve such an accomplishment. Anwar claimed that free education in Malaysia is achievable. But HOW? Till today, he and his party has yet to provide a logic explanation for such a policy to be implemented. Anwar, who serves as Economic Advisor to the Selangor state government, should have actually advised the state Govt he advises to implement free education in Selangor so that it can be replicated in the federal level should they take over Putrajaya. Free education could have been given in UNISEL. But failing to do so clearly proves that his promises remains far-fetched promises which will never be fulfilled. The problem with being caught in the blame game is that other than making sweeping statements in the Buku Jingga, the Opposition has yet to provide suggestions or solutions to the grand abolishment and free goodies they have promised. Liquidity funds are an important component in building capacities for free education to be realized. The country would need to increase its inventory of qualified lecturers, infrastructure, and many others. As education minister, Anwar, other than introducing 'Bahasa Baku' that tainted our national language, has left us with nothing to be proud of other than the PTPTN that he institutionalized. A decade and a half later, even he himself does not believe some of the policies he engineered, calling for abolishment of PTPTN. How are Malaysians going to trust him with running a nation?
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| What would we have been, if not for UMNO/BN? Posted: 07 Feb 2013 12:53 PM PST
"What would we have been, if not for UMNO/BN, Mahathir, Pak Lah, and ...Najib" Celestine Ho To wade through today's murky political waters, it is important for voters to possess the appropriate tools to separate fact from fiction and make the correct conclusions. In the light of this need, it is necessary to revisit some of the postings on cyberspace that fly in the face of the truth. One such piece was written by lawyer and activist Haris Ibrahim headlined: "A glimpse of what might have been but for UMNO/BN,Mahathir, Pak Lah, and ... Najib". He implied that Malaysia could have become as 'successful' as Singapore but for... It is however more appropriate to ask the question: "What would we have been, if not for UMNO/BN, Mahathir, Pak Lah, and ...Najib" In his blog posted on 29 September 2012, Haris drew conclusions based largely on what former Singapore Premier Lee Kuan Yew had said in an interview with the New York Times in 2010. Haris asks what was it that Singapore had done right, and what was it that Malaysia had done wrong these past few decades. Haris illustrated his article by showing pictures that ostensibly showed Singapore's transformation from a riverine village to a modern metropolis, the implication being that Malaysia has remained in the backwaters since independence. Haris said LKY was quoted as having made the following statements (shown in italics): LKY: "I think if the Tunku ( Malaysia's first Prime Minister) had kept us together, what we did in Singapore, had Malaysia accepted a multiracial base for their society, much of what we've achieved in Singapore would be achieved in Malaysia." The fact however is that LKY cannot take all the credit for Singapore's economic success. Thanks to the colonial powers, Singapore was already a thriving entrepot trading post in the early 19th century--long before the PAP came into power. Malaysia, on the other hand, started almost from ground zero. At independence it was considered by foreigners as a basket case, with the same chance of success as the poorest of the global poor. Malaysia's economic success was therefore also spectacular. (See below) LKY: "We made quite sure whatever your race, language or religion, you are an equal citizen and we'll drum that into the people and I think our Chinese understand and today we have an integrated society. Our Malays are English-educated; they're no longer like the Malays in Malaysia and you can see there are some still wearing headscarves but very modern looking." Well, not quite true. Ask the Singaporean Malay and he will tell you • that there is discrimination in the award of scholarships. Last year (and for several years in succession) there was not a single Malay (or Indian) successful candidate among the list of local scholarship recipients. • that there is discrimination in the private sector. Advertisements for positions today simply state "Must be conversant in Mandarin" or "Must be effectively bilingual" as an essential requirement. This effectively cuts out Malays and Indians. • that the Chinese community has been the largest beneficiaries of all of the government's economic policies. • that there are elite Chinese only schools and co-ed Special Assistance Plans (SAP) schools where the Chinese outnumber the minority races by a massive ratio. Prestigious scholarships are virtually dished out to them annually by the private and public sectors. • that questions are being asked why many Malays are 'exempted' from serving national service. • that Chinese is the language that is spoken as the native tongue by the greatest number of Singaporeans. Malay was only chosen as the "national language" by the Singaporean government after independence from Britain in the 1960s to avoid friction with Singapore's neighbours. • Social integration is far from smooth on the ground. To some locals, newcomers —particularly Mainland Chinese — are commonly seen as uncouth and prone to objectionable behaviors. Similarly, South Asian construction workers and Filipino domestic workers have also been singled out as targets of public. A spate of online disputes in 2011 involving Mainland Chinese immigrants ridiculing Singaporeans as "ungracious," "disgusting and inferior" reveals the extent of social discord. In August 2011, an immigrant family from China went so far as to lodge a complaint against their Singaporean-Indian neighbors for the smell of curry emanating from their cooking. In response, a Facebook page urging Singaporeans to prepare curry on a designated Sunday drew over 57,600 supporters. • why is it that Singaporeans are not trusted to provide security services to LKY and the subsequent Prime Ministers at 38 Oxley Road? That job, for the last 50 years, had been outsourced to Nepali Gurkha soldiers. Another, more subtle, difference between Malaysia and Singapore is this: Singapore believes in a foreigners first, locals second policy. That is why Singapore is haven to the super rich of the world. Forty per cent of Singapore residents are foreigners. The local Singaporeans are beginning to resent their presence because they are partly the reason for the high cost of living. LKY: "Malaysia took the different line. Malay is the language of the schools although it does not get them into modern knowledge. So the Chinese build and find their own independent schools to teach Chinese, the Tamils create their own Tamil schools, which do not get them jobs. It's a most unhappy situation". That is a jaundiced view, not supported by the facts: A recent scholarly article by A. Abhayaratne of the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka said the following: "In the East and Southeast region, Malaysia stands out as one of the most outstanding economies in terms of the rate of economic growth and poverty reduction. During the last three decades, the annual growth of gross domestic product was higher than 6 percent except during the recession in 1985-86 and the financial crisis in 1997. This is a very impressive rate of growth by developing country standard. Consistent with the high growth rates during the period, per capita income increased from US$ 900 in 1970 to US$ 3400 in 2000 (Bank Negara Malaysia, 2000). Per capita income in Malaysia in 2000 was second highest in Southeast Asia and considerably higher than that of other countries of the region. "During the same period, the Malaysian economy experienced a dramatic reduction in the incidence of poverty. Poverty incidence in Malaysia fell from 52.4% in 1970 to 5.5% in 2000. There was also considerable progress in reducing hard-core poverty as well to only 0.5% by 2000. The reduction in poverty was accompanied by rising living standards with a relatively equal distribution of income. "It has been suggested by a number of studies that the large reductions in poverty incidence in Malaysia was the result of the high growth achieved by the economy. Some other studies suggest that this success in poverty reduction has not been a result of growth alone. They claim that this success was unlikely without the relentless efforts of the government in including poverty eradication as a major development objective and formulating specific policies and programs aiming at eradicating poverty." LKY: "We are non-corrupt. We lead modest lives". Sure. If other political leaders are also paid like Singapore politicians (the Prime Minister is paid US$1.7 million per year and the Cabinet Ministers also similarly high salaries), perhaps there will be little or no corruption. Haris then quoted a report by The Wall Street Journal that said Singapore was "the wealthiest nation in the world by GDP per capita, beating out Norway, the U.S., Hong Kong and Switzerland. But that doesn't say much about the quality of life of the Singaporeans. Every weekend, thousands of islanders cross the Causeway into Johor Bharu, and travel as far inland as Malacca for a taste of the good life. Consider these: • Four out of five Singaporeans live in cramped high-rise HDB flats. • More and more Singaporeans are packing up their bags and moving abroad. As of June 2011, an estimated 192,300 Singaporeans live abroad. An average of about 1,200 highly educated Singaporeans (including 300 naturalized citizens) give up their citizenship each year in favor of others. • In some social surveys among Singaporean youth, more than half of those surveyed would leave the country to build their careers if given the chance. • A recent report by the Economist Intelligence Unit said that Singapore was the sixth most expensive city in the world. By comparison, Kuala Lumpur ranked 62nd out of 79 surveyed. The cost of living in Singapore is 200% or 300% higher than in Malaysia. There are also other exorbitant costs in Singapore like the S$80,000 license to own a car. And consider these too: • KL is world's 10th top destination city What indeed would we have done without UMNO/BN, and Tun Mahathir Mohamad, Tun Abdullah Badawi and Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak.
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| Malaysian Loves Corruption & Can’t Live Without It Posted: 07 Feb 2013 12:41 PM PST
The voters who voted opposition back in 2008 did not do so primarily because the current regime was corrupted. If that was the main reason, how on earth could former PM Mahathir rule this land for a whopping 22 years, despite the fact that his regime opened the floodgates of corruption and racism? In actual fact, Malaysian Chinese and Malays love corruption, without them realizing it. Finance Twitter If there's one hot topic of discussion during the coming Chinese New Year, it has to be the Mother of General Elections – the 2013 Malaysia General Election. This is perhaps the final time family members would sit together, cracking garlic-flavour groundnuts sipping Anglia Shandy or Carlsberg, and debate over who and which party to elect – either current regime (BN) or opposition (PR). This is also the time family members get to brainwash each other on which party to vote for the next federal government. The swing in support to either BN or PR would be fierce and wilder than Dow Jones during sub-prime crisis. Of course PM Najib Razak's PR team realizes the significance of this and has spent many hours on the drawing board preparing scripts to attract Chinese voters. That's why PM Najib looks more Chinese than all the past prime ministers combined. To a certain extent, he's even more Chinese than the Chinese themselves (*tongue-in-cheek*). There're thousands hanging buntings by the roadsides depicting him wearing Chinese traditional costume with his Chinese New Year message. Heck, he even tried his Chinese-friendly trick on radio station by having conversation in Mandarin with his son, although the stunt turns out rather funny (*grin*) and weird. If only he has the stamina he may just put on the lion dance costume and jump around your house begging for your votes. Ultimately, the question will be – which party to choose and why? If your answer is the opposition because the current regime is corrupt, then get ready for a rude awakening – the so-called corrupt BN (Barisan Nasional) will win the next general election hands down. In case you're still scratching your head peeling kuaci, the voters who voted opposition back in 2008 did not do so primarily because the current regime was corrupted. If that was the main reason, how on earth could former PM Mahathir rule this land for a whopping 22 years, despite the fact that his regime opened the floodgates of corruption and racism? In actual fact, Malaysian Chinese and Malays love corruption, without them realizing it. Like it or not, corruption has been part and parcel of Malaysian culture, thanks to Father of Corruption – Mahathir Mohamad. That was why a study done some moons ago found that graduates actually thought corruption was not such a big deal after all. Corruption has been ingrained into the mindset of Malaysian citizens so much so that it's almost legal and inseparable entity from daily lifes. Corruption was like lion-dance during Chinese New Year and "meriam-buloh" during Hari Raya festivals. While Malaysian Chinese consider corruption as a main ingredient to get business going, Malaysian Malays consider corruption as "rezeki". That's why the opposition can only go so far by drumming government massive corruptions as the reason why they should be booted from Putrajaya. Do you really think corruption will disappear into thin air after opposition wins the next general election and form the federal government? Why do you think everybody rush to lick Lim Guan Eng and Anwar Ibrahim boots to be fielded as candidates? And do you really think Sabah's King of Frogs Jeffrey Kitingan, Wilfred Bumburing and Yong Teck Lee really want to take care of the Sabahan? Pleeeeze!!! With the exception of probably Lim Kit Siang and Nik Aziz, you can't really trust the rest of the opposition politicians. If they have no intention of enriching themselves, then President Obama is still a virgin. Ever wonder why Mahathir confidently declared he will not leave the country before the next election results are announced? That's because he was dead sure the current corrupt regime will still form the next federal government. If the recent AES implementation criticisms by the public was any indicator, it shows that the public can't live without corruption, well, at least majority of them. Malaysian drivers like to speed and drive as if they're Formula-1 drivers and they have no plan of changing their lifestyle (or rather drive-style). And AES was a classic example of how zero corruption will affect their lifes. While they accept the reality that they would be caught breaking the laws, they want the flexibility to negotiate their way out through bribes. And you can't "kautim" (settle) by giving money to the AES camera on the spot, can you? These people would rather pay RM50 as "coffee-money" for each of 10 traffic offences than to pay full RM300 for 2 offence tickets, literally speaking. From sales executives to company directors, 90% of their business deals involve "under-table" money, one way or another. If the only thing that opposition can promise is eliminate corruption, then a sizeable Chinese and Malays would rather vote for the corrupt regime, if that was how they secured their current businesses or "rezeki" in the first place. So, does that mean the current corrupt regime should be returned to power? Well, perhaps the answer can be found by the recent advise from Mahathir himself - choose between the lesser of two evils. Of course when Mahathir blogged his advise, he was referring to the possibility of violent demonstration should the opposition lose in the coming election, although I can't figure out till today how can one lose something that it does not possess in the first place (*grin*). Since the opposition has not win the federal government since independence, there's no benchmark of how corrupted they would become. Thus, the perception of the general public – the BN regime is tremendously corrupt while the PR regime will be mildly corrupt, if the latter choose to corrupt after all. The choice is pretty obvious based on Mahathir's "choose between the lesser of two evils" theory. The good news for the opposition fans – the corrupt Chinese businessmen are flexible to switch sides and butter the opposition's bread should there be a change in government. The bad news – the corrupt Chinese businessmen are worry and perceive a lesser corrupt governments to mean lesser business deals for them. Read more at: http://www.financetwitter.com/2013/02/malaysian-loves-corruption-cant-live-without-it.html#.URP_LyS0n9w.gmail And of course, there's this video: 7FTYE3rAu3k Or watch at: https://www.youtube.com/embed/7FTYE3rAu3k | ||
| Slashed over hanging of BN flag, banner Posted: 06 Feb 2013 10:21 PM PST
(NST) - A 31-year-old man was slashed on the back of the head after a quarrel over the placing of a political party flag and banner at Kampung Batu 5 1/2, Jalan Bendang Nyior here, yesterday. Mohd Dasuki Yusoff said he had scouted for a place to hang a Barisan Nasional flag and banner at a bridge, near his village, at 6:45pm when a car with three occupants in it stopped.
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| Ex-ISA detainee Yazid held under security laws Posted: 06 Feb 2013 08:48 PM PST Bukit Aman says that three people were arrested for allegedly recruiting others for terror activities. (FMT) - Ex-ISA detainee Yazid Sufaat was today arrested under the new security laws for alleged terrorism. Two others were held with him. The trio become the first persons to be arrested under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, the law which replaced the preventive law, the Internal Security Act. A team of police officers from Bukit Aman made the arrests. Bukit Aman said in a statement that the three were involved in recruiting others for terror activities. It did not release the names of the detainees. Human rights watchdog Suaram, however, identified Yazid and his worker Mohd Hilmi Ahsin as those being detained. It did not mention anything about the third arrest. Suaram said Yazid and Mohd Hilmi were arrested at about 12.30pm today at the Jalan Duta High Court canteen. The canteen was operated by Yazid's wife. It added that the arresting officers had said that they were being arrested for "promoting terrorism". No other details are available. Yazid was previously held under the ISA in December 2001 following a crackdown on terrorism activities here after the al-Qaeda attacks on the US Twin Towers in New York earlier that year. He was released in December 2008. Suaram also stated that Yazid was taken to his house in Taman Bukit Ampang where the police conducted a thorough check. It is unclear if they took anything from Yazid's house. Under the new security law, Yazid and the two others can be detained for 48 hours, after which they should be allowed access to their lawyers. It is not known where Yazid and the other two were held. Suaram, meanwhile, criticised the detention of the trio under the new law, stating that everyone had a legal right to be brought to the court within 24 hours after the arrest.
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| Posted: 06 Feb 2013 08:01 PM PST
So why is white good while black is bad? Why do we say 'we have seen the light' when something good happens to us, such as we have 'seen' God? And why is everything bad associated with black? Black-hearted. Black market. Black death (the plague). Black period in history. Black Friday. Black sheep of the family. Black eye. Black out. Pot calling the kettle black. Black mark. And so on. NO HOLDS BARRED Raja Petra Kamarudin I never know how my days are going to start or end. In fact, while I know how my life started, I really do not know how and when it is going to end either. I suppose that is the spice of life. If everything is laid before us in clear and precise details then there is really no more point in continuing, is there? It is like how I am going to start this article. I am not even sure if I do want to write any article today. I just opened my Microsoft Word and stared at this blank sheet of paper. Of course, it is not really a piece of paper in the physical sense. It is more like an electronic paper. But then is this not where the world is heading -- towards an electronic world? I have probably four or five bookshelves of books, physical books printed on paper. Since mid-last year, though, I have stopped buying physical books. If I continue buying books I will also have to buy a new house, as there is no longer any room to store all my books. My books from merely two months detention in Kamunting alone are already one van-load. Anyway, paper-based books are so yesterday. Today we read electronic books and I have already accumulated almost 1,000 electronic books, which I store on my Kindle, of which I have thus far read maybe only 25 or so. Hence I have a long way to go and I was told there are millions of e-books available. So I am going to run out of breath before I run out of books to read. The same goes for my music. I am constantly 'surrounded' by music, even when I read or write. I start my day quite predictably by booting up my Mac. Then I go to my favourite radio station, Magic 105.4, London's favourite radio station -- or at least that's what the sweet voice of the DJ keeps telling us. In a way music influences my mood for the day. Sometimes, when I am in an aggressive mood, I want to listen to rock music. When I feel slightly mellow I listen to Magic 105.4. I mainly listen to the rock stations that play 1960s music by Grand Funk, Uriah Heep, Santana, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Iron Butterfly, Jethro Tull, and the 200 or so bands and singers of 'my generation'. And to make sure I get the best in sound, I play them on my Bose speakers and turn my workroom into a disco minus the flashing lights and fog machine. Anyway, here I am facing a blank sheet of white paper and still not sure what I am going to write about today. Okay, the 'paper' is not quite paper in the dead tree manner of speaking but more like a plain page of my Microsoft Word. Nevertheless, it is still a plain white page. And why do we call it a plain white page? Well, that is because there is nothing on it. If it were filled with letters, words, numbers, or graphics, then it would no longer be a plain white page. So what does 'plain white' mean then? What do we understand by the phrase 'plain white'? Plain white means absence -- the absence of letters, words, numbers, graphics, etc. When things are absent then we call it plain white. Hence when there is nothing we call it plain white. Hence, also, plain white is what is meant by nothing. And white can only be seen when there is light. If there is no light we cannot see white and white would become black. Hence white is white only because of the presence of light. In the absence of light white will turn to black. If you were put into a pitch-dark room with zero light penetration where you cannot even see your hand in front of your nose and you were given a plain white sheet of paper could you see that white paper? The plain white sheet of paper would become invisible although it exists and you are actually holding it. Hence white does not exist. White is only what you see when there is light. What exists is black. And light also does not exist. Light is merely the absence of darkness. Hence when darkness is absent then light exists and because light exists then white would also exist, which would not exist otherwise if the darkness does not allow the light in. White, therefore, is what you see in the absence of darkness. Therefore, also, darkness exists while white does not. So why is white good while black is bad? Why do we say 'we have seen the light' when something good happens to us, such as we have 'seen' God? And why is everything bad associated with black? Black-hearted. Black market. Black death (the plague). Black period in history. Black Friday. Black sheep of the family. Black eye. Black out. Pot calling the kettle black. Black mark. And so on. Honestly, black is not ugly. Black is beautiful. So why associate everything bad with black? Black is beautiful Anyway, yesterday an insurance agent phoned me and asked for a minute of my time but took 30 minutes instead. This agent wanted to discuss the prospects of me buying life insurance. I am 62 so he suggested I should start thinking of my family's future in the event I suddenly died. That got my thinking. What if I bought a RM1 million policy so that if anything happened to me my wife would be taken care of? But then, if I were worth RM1 million dead, would that not tempt my wife to bump me off because I would then be worth more dead than alive? And one should never tempt one's wife with such notions. No, maybe a RM250,000 policy should suffice. The insurance agent then worked out the cost of the premium and because I sometimes smoked cigars the premium would come to quite a bit (even with the one or two cigars a month that I smoked). It seems the brand and quality of the cigars did not affect the premium at all. Now that is downright unjust. I asked him how much I would need to pay, say, if I took a 15-year policy -- and over that 15 years I would need to fork out almost RM150,000 in all. What happens if I survived till way past 77? Well, then that RM150,000 would be money down the drain. I get nothing. My wife can only collect RM250,000 if I died before 2027. And I must not die within the first year. I can only die from the second year onwards. In other words, if I died next year, then will we make a gross profit of RM250,000 on an investment of only RM9,000. If I did not die, then we lose RM150,000. So the profit would be in dying quick and not in living long. Hmm… you lose when you win and you win when you lose. I told the insurance agent I would need to think about it first. He then told me they can insure me until age 90 and that there would be a very good chance I will die before I am 90 as most people in England never live past 90. Ah, yes, but this insurance agent has probably never heard of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Anyway, I if I take a 28-year policy that expires at age 90 and I still do not die till past 90 I would have to blow about RM250,000 or so on a RM250,000 insurance policy. This was starting to become even more unattractive. Anyway, I decided instead to allow fate to decide what happens and jumped into my car to drive to Liverpool to join my friends for a jam session and to pick up my new (second-hand) drum set. The problem, now, though, is that I do not feel like writing anything today because I can't wait to whack my drums to Santana playing in the background. Sigh…why is life so complicated? Well, never mind, maybe I can go drumming and write my article tomorrow instead. At least today you do not need to read any cheong hei article from me. My 'new' second-hand drum set The jam session in Liverpool last night |
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