The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Abdullah should not count the chickens before they are hatched as he did yesterday following the passage of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) Bills when he indulged in the following hyperbole:
MACC – “They (foreign investors) will know there is no corruption or very little of it”; and
JAC – “we will bring back the confidence of the public in the judiciary”.
As I said during the debates on the MACC and JAC Bills, nobody in Government really believe
(i) that the MACC could check the rot of corruption in the country and catapult Malaysia into the stratosphere among the world’s ten or twenty least corrupt nations, with the MACC able to rival the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in Hong Kong or the Corrupt Practices Investigation Board (CPIB) in Singapore; and
(ii) that the JAC could fully restore national and international confidence in the independence, impartiality and integrity of the judiciary after two decades of erosion and devastation or even to prevent in future the repetition of controversial appointments like the Zaki Azmi appointment as Chief Justice.
After the 1988 “mother of judicial crisis” which saw the sacking of the Lord President Tun Salleh Abas and two Supreme Court judges, the late Tan Sri Wan Suleiman Pawanteh and Datuk George Seah, the country had seen the appointment of six heads of the judiciary in the past 20 years, three of whom had brought shame and scandal to the institution of the judiciary in the country and the world spanning 17 years in the past two decades.
Could the JAC ensure that this long dark chapter of the Malaysian judiciary could never happen again?
The MACC and JAC Bills should pave the way for the restoration of public confidence in the independence, impartiality and integrity of key institutions in the country, but the signs are not there that this will be the case, with big question marks about the professionalism and integrity of key institutions remain unanswered – including those concerning the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General.
In these circumstances, instead of counting the chickens before they are hatched, what should concern Malaysians is chickens coming home to roost as a result of the MACC and JAC Bills.
#1 by Yee Siew Wah on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 11:36 am
I never ever going to believe whatever reforms (judiciary, corruptions, etc…)this sleepy flip flop lame duck guy proposed. The proposals are just his dreams and never work. Yet he got the cheek to say it will bring back public and investers confidence.
Again, he is still mumbling in dreamland.
Uncle Lim, please whack him up la.
#2 by Johorean on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 11:51 am
This is another example of this short sighted gomen or is it the current trend in our ministers’ mentality? They seems to be living in a land where everything is perfectly well and any thing that they pushed forward will work. Please AAB, let time tell whether your proposed bill will work. Do not just talk only and expect things to turn as “talked”.
#3 by tsalak on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 1:29 pm
It gives one a sense of foreboding that with all these financial turmoil hanging over us, the next 12 months may not be easy. If PM Abdullah is looking for a legacy he might get one with praises and accolades and might even get a Tun. Would that stop him from being prosecuted? Looks like it. Or is he just saying that this is just busy work – cosmetic, like a botox session?
Perhaps some might say that the walk over idea was wrong. It is a compromise of some sort and not unpalateable in the circumstances. But with the turmoil getting gloomier, the next 12 months should now put the crux of the matter right there on the table, as ever more critical as before. Will the botox treatment send the doctor running to the bedside? Or will the patient succumb?
#4 by k1980 on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 2:01 pm
Corruption will make Malaysia into another Indonesia
For decades, corruption has been a way of life in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, Indonesia. It permeates almost every level of society, reducing the country’s appeal to a wide array of foreign investors, and curbing Indonesia’s potential for growth and development so that it lags far behind its Asian rivals, such as China and Malaysia.
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSSP39313820081218
#5 by monsterball on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 3:09 pm
UMNO have a track record…have great ideas…and all spoiled by corruptions.
They will break all the rules….to protect themselves…as they control everything…..especially court cases.
Their reputations have nothing to be trusted as sincerely done for the country and people at all.
Just look at their so call ex UMNO man…Mahathir…promised to give out..full list of UMNO corrupted members…as if to tell Malaysian..he is a Saint.
All forgotten….never keep his promise..and what a way to show youngsters…how to lie and cheat….with no fear.
Tunku Ahmad Rithauddeen have said it all……and Mahathir tried to proof he is not corrupted. Can you ever understand how that man think at all??
What happen?? All forgotten.
This is a classic example of UMNO leaders…do one thing..say the opposite…..all in favour of them……..all to trap voters….never in their lives….really care for Malaysians…..but one race only…..and selected few only.
Until and unless Malaysians see actions with the BILLS…to catch corrupted crooks…starting by hauling one by one….how can one buy a brand new Merz …live in a RM2 million house..with a small salary….and charge them….if no good reasons given…and stop wanting this or that proof to charge.
Man made laws…and if laws need to be unreasonable to cut off corruptions…since crooks are smart to steal with good legal reasons…then our legal system is not good enough to catch crooks.
I bet you…those UMNO crooks have studied all the details of each BILL..and feel very safe…to talk big….to prove to Malaysians……UMNO ministers are non corrupted people.
Do we believe them?
#6 by luking on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 3:21 pm
actually,it is just that we don’t have confidence in them,and we know and they know that with just a little loopholes created on purpose they could abuse the system to cover and protect themselves when needed.Sendiwara reforms is the word.Without this they know they are dead ducks.But then again,the people and world knows how sincere are this reforms.
#7 by Godfather on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 3:24 pm
Kit:
Don’t count the chickens, but by all means keep the quotations in a book to be titled “The Quotable Quotations of a Malaysian Prime Minister”.
These quotations will be ranked in the same category of unforgettable quotes from Bodohwi such as “I have big ears” or “We are not in the business of cheating the people”.
Cemerlang, Gemilang, Temberang !
#8 by taiking on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 4:03 pm
Typical umno’s behaviour. Dont care. Declare success first. Must be thick skin. Come to think of it that is quite true of their mentality. Getting umno government contracts worth billions is all it takes to be successful. What happens thereafter is not important. Cannot deliver. Long delay. Badly executed works. Extremely poor maintenance. Etc. Etc. Well never mind all those. The reason is because success has already been achieved through the earlier declaration. So who cares what happens after that? Never mind. After all, God is ever present and ever ready and ever available to take the blame.
Psst! Lets not forget that we are talking about a bunch of meritless idiots.
#9 by k1980 on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 5:59 pm
The MACC and JAC Bills are tactics used by Dollah to divert the rakyat’s attention away from the high cost of living and the incoming economic meltdown
#10 by chengho on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 7:49 pm
monsterball,
May be most of them doing dvd , vcd and illegal parking lots that why they have rm2million house.
#11 by vsp on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 8:32 pm
The MACC/JAC bills are anomalies for a party as corrupt as UMNO. This party is the cause and creator of everything that is wrong in Bolehland. Do you expect a party that has mutilated the Constitution with a thousand knives be able to compensate with such watered-down bills and make amends for the tortured soul of Bolehland? Never!
This whole process is an exercise in smoke and mirrors. Badawi thinks that Malaysians are like before: make many mistakes, apologise with sweet words and expect the people to forget and forgive. This is the age of the Internet: the UMNOputras can never redeemed themselves with loads and loads of perverted truths because they are no more the monopolists of information.
Abdullah Badawi is the master of this art of deception and he has done it many times and people has already become blasé to the Badawi special effects. Never mind, this conjuror will pull out the last rabbit out of his trick bag, hoping to convince everybody that Bolehland is mending its ways. Cold comfort, whatever Badawi does now will never save Bolehland from teetering on the precipice of the damage that the UMNOputras have dealt to the body politic of Bolehland.
The MACC/JAC bills are not going to be the saving grace to the litany of stupidity that Badawi has committed. Instead, he will be remembered as the greatest DONKEY that Malaysians has unwittingly installed to the highest office of Bolehland (just as the Americans have installed the greatest joker in the person of George Bush).
Mahathir started the rot, Badawi exacerbate it and Najib will the one to bring everything into a final crash.
#12 by sheriff singh on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 9:34 pm
So why then did the Pakatan Rakyat MPs give their support to the passage of the two Bills? Were they totally happy with them? If you all had reservations, then you should not support but let the BN MPs pass them with all the deficiencies.
No doubt there are still alot of weaknesses and the rush to push through the Bills is most unfortunate. The Bills should be tested in court as to whether they conflict with the Constitution as some claim they do.
I do remember the Instituit Integriti Malaysia and the Corporate Governance Malaysia people said some time ago that we do have good laws (8 marks out of 10 they said) but as far as implementation and upholding them, they gave only 2 marks out of 10.
So let us see. Time will tell.
#13 by undergrad2 on Thursday, 18 December 2008 - 11:35 pm
You don’t count the chickens! You eat them if they are of the two-legged feather variety. If they are not, you do other things with them.
#14 by k1980 on Friday, 19 December 2008 - 8:26 am
IJN now sold off to Sime. Next, Supreme Court sold off to Proton and PDRM auctioned off to Scomi.
#15 by Bigjoe on Friday, 19 December 2008 - 9:39 am
MACC and JAC bill of course will not do what they hope for i.e., attract investors, faith in judiciary etc.. The real promise of MACC and JAC bill is that it puts a check on abuse getting worst and it would have been worst without it. (after all what police chief in the world act as a business lobbyist WHILE STILL IN OFFICE!!).
The truth is we can carry on for a while as is without things getting worst. Its not great and eventually it will be bad but for the time being we can carry on as is. This is what the MACC and JAC bill is for – perpetuation of mediocrity that UMNO-led BN rule is all about. In some ways, its actually the worst possible outcome. If things got worst without these bills, then change would have come quicker.
#16 by undergrad2 on Friday, 19 December 2008 - 10:30 am
Don’t count the chickens! Count the eggs.
#17 by vsp on Friday, 19 December 2008 - 2:12 pm
You don’t count the chickens! You eat them if they are of the two-legged feather variety. If they are not, you do other things with them – undergraduate2
————-
For the feather variety, you can eat them Kentucky style or turn them into some other delicacies
For the other variety, they are also two-legged but no feathers. Of course you can also eat them in a different way – ask Chua Sook Lek for the recipe and he can tell you how to do it.
#18 by k1980 on Saturday, 20 December 2008 - 11:13 am
The only way to reform a corrupt autocracy is to get rid of it, not to reform it.
http://asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1620&Itemid=251