Archive for March 2nd, 2008

Successful breakfast ceramah in Tawau

First of its kind not only in Tawau but in Sabah and Malaysia as well – a breakfast ceramah at 7.30 am.

Turnout at Sin Onn Market, Tawau by Tawau voters and their families for the breakfast ceramah was over-capacity and overwhelmingly supportive and most encouraging – highlighting the reality that the battle in the Sri Tanjong state Assembly contest is between the DAP candidate Jimmy Wong Sze Phin and the Barisan Nasional candidate while the Tawau parliamentary contest is between the DAP candidate Chan Foong Hin and the BN candidate, although there is a third candidate in both constituencies.

If not for the third candidate in Sri Tanjong, Datuk Kong Hong Ming (Keadilan), many Tawau voters would say that “Tiger” Jimmy Wong would have an edge over the BN candidate, a DAP “renegade”, especially as Jimmy Wong had done more than the incumbent BN candidate to fight for the rights and welfare of the people of Tawau – especially in his successful espousal of the cause of the people of Tawau to defend their “open spaces” from despoilation by an irresponsible axis of the local government and developer, an issue which affects not only Tawau and Sabah but the whole of Malaysia!

In the circumstances, Datuk Kong cannot win on his own but can only draw votes away from Jimmy to ensure that the BN candidate is the sole beneficiary by slipping into victory with a minority vote, which goes against the larger state and national objectives to ensure the defeat of every BN candidate, whether at state or parliamentary level on March 8, 2008.

In the interests of the larger state and national objectives to ensure that March 8 general election delivers a major blow to Umno political hegemony, whether at national or state level, Datuk Liew should seriously consider withdrawing from the Sri Tanjong contest – or the voters should ensure that every vote is husbanded to defeat the BN candidate by voting singlemindedly for Jimmy Wong and not wast away their votes and fundamental constitutional rights through split votes which is the greatest hope and wish of the BN candidate!

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The Tale of the Rattlesnake

by M. Bakri Musa

Spring comes early in my part of California. Already there are exuberant splashes of dancing daffodils on the hillsides. Soon the colorful California poppies will pop up. With the weather becoming warmer, the rattlesnakes too will soon emerge from their winter slumber.

Talking of rattlesnakes, I am reminded of the story of the kindly lady who saw one such weakling that was dying from the long cold winter. Taking pity on the poor critter, she took it home and nursed it back to health. One day while she was feeding the now robust creature, it took a swipe at her hand and bit her.

As she lay dying she asked the snake why it had done that. “You should have known better, lady! You knew I was a rattlesnake, you should have killed me back then!”

On March 8, 2008, Malaysia will have a general election, with Prime Minister Abdullah seeking a second term, having secured an overwhelming mandate back in 2004. This will be the votersÂ’ collective judgment of what Abdullah did with that mandate.

If Barisan Nasional retains its supra-majority and Abdullah remains as Prime Minister, rest assured that he will continue the pattern he set in his first term. He will once again reward his cronies and family members with sweetheart mega billion contracts san competition, just as he has done during his first term. His excuse then was that he did not know that he was doing it! He will continue dozing off during meetings in the mistaken belief that Malaysians approve of such mediocre performances. Also, expect the bureaucracy to become even more bloated. This self-styled “number one civil servant’s” answer to every problem is to spend more money and employ more staff. Read the rest of this entry »

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Shanty Chong will be ideal Chairperson of Parliamentary Select Committee for Independence and Integrity of Judiciary

Over a thouand people at the DAP Sandakan ceramah last night for our parliamentary candidate and two State Assembly candidates in the Sandakan area.

DAP parliamentary candidate for Sandakan, Shanty Chong delivered her maiden political speech – humorous but hard-hitting which will strike fear and terror among erring Barisan Nasional leaders.

She had served 17 years in the judical service and very few can compare with her in integrity as nobody could or would doubt her incorruptibility.

No time to write more, except to record that I announced that she would make an ideal choice as Chairperson of a Parliamentary Select Committee on Independence and Integrity of the Judiciary in the new Parliament.

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‘Islam Hadari’ Cannot Correct Itself

BY Farish A. Noor

It would seem rather odd, not least for Malaysia-watchers overseas, that despite the talk of the ‘moderate and progressive’ brand of normative Islam that has been bandied about in Malaysia under the general theme of ‘Islam Hadari’ (Civilisational Islam) that the practice of normative Islam in Malaysia seems anything but moderate and progressive. Among the latest instances normalised abnormality include the seizure of Bibles from a Malaysian Christian returning from the Philippines, on the grounds that the Bibles had to be checked by the Ministry of Home Affairs for security reasons; the demolition of Hindu temples that were said to have been built illegally; the furore over the conversion of Malaysians from one religion to another, etc. Read the rest of this entry »

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Lim Kit Siang in Kota Kinabalu

Click on respective thumbnail for larger image.

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