By Hussein Hamid

I am a nice person. I normally mind my own business and it does take quite a lot to rattle me or to get me up tight over anything. I prefer to walk away from any confrontational situation because life is to short to get aggravated over things that do not concern my family or me. Unfortunately this Azmi Anshar, one of those reporter ‘who is almost a writer’ working with NSTP has managed to upset me again. The first time was a couple of weeks ago when I ‘ter’ – that’s Bahasa for accidentally – when I terbaca what he wrote about TBH and MACC. I read only the first paragraph of what he wrote because even that much made me wonder what sort of a pretentious prick would write like that. In the first paragraph I had to reach for the dictionary four times! He has done it again today.

Again I am not going to read more then the first paragraph – that I have done and now I will say my piece. This was his headline:

DAILY DISPATCHES: Pakatan politicians want MACC to operate without element of surprise
2009/08/19
Azmi Anshar

A FUNDAMENTAL aspect in law enforcement investigations that leads to the arrest of the bad guys is the element of surprise – a very powerful constituent in the art of war or in the art of self-defence – to take down the enemy or opponent when they least expect it. It is an acceptable form of security marshalling.

As the headline indicates – he is talking about MACC and the ‘element of surprise’ as an acceptable form of security marshalling (impressive word here!) to take down your enemy (a very apt description of Pakatan Rakyat?).

In the first place, The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission investigates and persecutes corruption in the public and private sectors. You do not catch people who are involved in corruption the same way as PDRM go after robbers and lawbreakers. The most effective way of stopping them from doing what they are doing is to catch them red handed – the element of surprise is important – that is why you need the Police presence everywhere. To deter criminals. That they also collect ‘toll’ from the Rakyat is another story for another time.

But the MACC is tasked with “investigating and prosecuting’ corruption in the public and private sector. What element of surprise do you need? If there is any element of surprise that MACC need it should catching those Mata Mata taking bribes – and it is so prevalent that you do not really need the element of surprise. Can tangkap anytime – if MACC wants to.

What we do not want is to be surprised by MACC with the treatment they are going to give us when we turn up at their office to assist them in any of their investigation. Death for someone when he walks into MACC office when he is not even a suspect is a surprise – a surprise because as you say MACC used the element of surprise to “take down the enemy or opponent when they least expect it”. So please …no more surprises.

And by the way…Pakatan Rakyat is not the “ENEMY”. They are the opposition party and what seats they hold have been won through the election process. And MACC is not at ‘WAR’ and should not be at ‘WAR‘ with Pakatan Rakyat. Also what need is there for MACC to defend itself when they are going after Pakatan Rakyat or the “enemy” as you call them? There was only one Teoh Beng Hock being question. How many were there from MACC?

I think I need to remind myself NOT to go anywhere near NSTP early in the morning while I am having my cup of green tea – more often then not, doing so spoils my breakfast time. Please remember that all I could bring myself to read was the first paragraph of what he wrote. I know that he also has to ‘cari makan’ at NSTP – but please lah don’t play play with us. We can think for ourselves – we expect you to also do that once in a while.