Archive for January, 2012
Sokongan mengusik jiwa
— Aspan Alias
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 17, 2012
17 JAN — Kali ini saya hanya menulis “article” yang pendek sahaja. Saya telah mendapat reaksi yang banyak kerana tindakan saya menukar wadah dalam arena politik. Perlu difahami bahawa saya tidak bergiat dalam politik melebihi satu dekad dan saya pada awalnya tidak mahu lagi terlibat dalam hal ini. Saya merasakan banyak yang tidak kena dengan perjalanan dan arah tuju politik Melayu, khususnya Umno, dan mengambil tindakan mendiamkan diri adalah satu tindakan yang “natural” bagi sesiapa yang menghadapi perasaan dan masalah seperti saya ini.
Saya hanya mengambil tahu hal keadaan politik dari rumah sahaja sambil-sambil menengok-nengokkan cucu saya yang kian waktu makin membesar dan bertambah bilangannya itu. Saya mengambil langkah untuk menulis sedikit sebanyak dalam blog kecil saya ini untuk mengasah otak saya supaya tidak menjadi tumpul. Tetapi dalam waktu pencarian ini saya nampak keadaan sudah terlalu menekan untuk saya kembali dan bergiat, setidak-tidaknya untuk memberikan sumbangan sedikit sebanyak kepada pandangan masyarakat yang dahagakan perubahan.
Tindakan saya menyertai DAP ini dilakukan setelah berfikir dengan mendalam dan mencari penyesuaian dan keserasian dengan perjuangan parti ini. Setelah saya menyertainya, saya telah mendapat puluhan atau ratusan sokongan melalui e-mail saya setiap hari, kecuali beberapa orang yang menentang kemasukan saya dalam DAP. Yang lain yang ramai-ramai itu telah memberikan saya galakan dan ramai (Melayu) yang telah menunjukkan sokongan yang begitu kuat terhadap tindakan saya itu. Read the rest of this entry »
Dengar cerita ‘anjing sukum’
— Aspan Alias
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 17, 2012
17 JAN — Dalam tahun-tahun awalan lapan puluhan ada seorang yang semasa itu merupakan seorang veteran yang duduk bersama kami sebagai AJK Umno Bahagian di tempat saya, bernama Yassin Mahmud. Beliau sudah tiada lagi bersama kita kerana beliau telah pergi menghadap Allah yang Maha Esa. Beliau seorang guru dan beliau juga adalah seorang yang serius tetapi nampak periang sifatnya. Beliau pernah menelah yang Umno akan menjadi apa yang kita lihat pada hari ini, iaitu sebuah parti untuk ‘warlords’ dan beliau selalu membuka cerita Umno ini dengan memberikan anologi yang melucukan terhadap apa yang akan terjadi kepada parti ini.
Beliaulah yang membuka cerita yang bertajuk ‘anjing sukum’ dan cerita ini pernah saya tulis tiga tahun dahulu. Anjing sukum ini pada beliau ialah anjing buruan yang taat kepada bossnya dan akan melakukan apa sahaja untuk menghambat segala binatang buruan bossnya untuk bossnya melapah dan memakan haiwan buruan, lebihan dari yang telah di jual oleh pemburu itu.
Anjing sukum ini dibela oleh pemburu itu guna untuk membantunya menghambat binatang buruan seperti rusa dan apabila rusa itu telah dihambat dan tidak berdaya untuk melarikan diri pemburu itu akan menembaknya. Setelah rusa itu jatuh maka pemburu itu akan menyembelih rusa yang di hambat oleh anjing sukum itu tadi.
Sedang pemburu itu melapah daging-daging rusa tersebut, anjing-anjing sukum ini menyalak-nyalak untuk mendapatkan habuan dan upah menghambat rusa itu tadi. Pemburu pantas memotong tulang-tulang rusa itu dan membalingkan tulang-tulang tersebut kepada tujuh lapan ekor anjing sukum itu. Maka anjing sukum itu pun terus diam sahaja dan berpuas hati dengan upah tulang-tulang yang dilemparkan oleh bossnya itu. Read the rest of this entry »
National Feedlot Corporation has given two powerful reasons why there should be a RCI into the “cattle condo” scandal focussing on the role and responsibility of Muhyiddin as Agriculture Minister who approved the RM250 million loan project before 308 “political tsunami”
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Muhyiddin Yassin on Tuesday, 17 January 2012
The National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) has today given two powerful reasons why there should be a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the RM300 million “cattle condo” scandal, focussing on the role and responsibility of Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who was the Agriculture Minister who approved the RM250 million loan project before the “308” political tsunami.
The company declared today that its contract for its RM250 million loan from the government was signed in 2007, disputing the Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) earlier claim that the company had received the sum before the contract was signed.
NFC said the loan agreement between the government represented by the Ministry of Finance and NFC was signed on December 6, 2007, and not in 2010 and that the first drawdown of RM7 million was in January 2008 “in compliance with proper procedure”.
It claimed that beginning this year, NFC “will start serving its loan repayment as stipulated in its loan agreement”.
Read the rest of this entry »
Five tests whether International Conference on Global Movement of Moderates is meaningful and Najib qualifies to be regarded as the voice of moderates in Malaysia
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak on Monday, 16 January 2012
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is to launch and institutionalize “the Global Movement of the Moderates” at the inaugural International Conference on the Global Movement of the Moderates in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow.
In international conferences in the past two years, whether at the United Nations General Assembly or in Europe, Najib had kept to the theme calling on the moderates of the world to unite against extremists.
However, when he returns to Malaysia, he has allowed the forces of extremism, unreason and falsehoods a field day to the extent that Malaysia had never been more polarised on ethnic and religious grounds in the first three years of a Prime Minister than under him in the history of the nation.
Tonight, I want to put forth five tests to determine whether the International Conference on Global Movement of Moderates is meaningful or an exercise in hypocrisy and double-talk and whether Najib qualifies to be regarded as the voice of moderates in Malaysia.
Read the rest of this entry »
“Temporary freeze” of NFC assets meaningless unless the collective monthly salaries of Shahrizat family in NFC also slashed by two-thirds from RM215,000 to some RM71,000
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Najib Razak on Monday, 16 January 2012
The announcement by the National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) executive director Wan Shahinur Izmir Salleh that It’s “business as usual” and NFCorp operations are uninterrupted despite the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s announcement two days ago of the temporary freeze of the National Feedlot Centre assets offends the most elementary sense of right and wrong of decent Malaysians.
It raises the critical question nagging thinking Malaysians whether the “temporary freeze” of NFC assets was nothing but a charade and a conjuror’s sleight-of-hand to appease an increasingly outraged Malaysian population – including more and more disillusioned Umno and Barisan Nasional members – but with little real meaning for the operations of NFC as appears to have been confirmed by Izmir.
When were the assets of NFC frozen? Who froze the NFC assets and who have the authority and what are the circumstances to unfreeze the NFC assets?
Most important of all, how much of the NFC assets have actually been frozen as Malaysians would not be surprised if NFC has been reduced to an empty shell with the many dubious corporate manipulations and hanky-lanky misusing NFC funds completely unrelated to the original objective to promote a high-impact project to ensure a higher level of beef self-sufficiency as have been publicly exposed in the past three months.
Read the rest of this entry »
Call for independent public inquiry into RM300 million NFC scandal – the role of implicated Ministers including Muhyiddin, Noh Omar and Shahrizat
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, UMNO on Sunday, 15 January 2012
The freeze of the assets of the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) pending investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Police is not adequate and does not inspire confidence that this is a prelude to a no-holds-barred full inquiry into the RM300 million NFC scandal.
Announcing the freeze on NFC assets yesterday, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said he had discussed with the Minister for Women, Family and Community Development Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil the decision to take three weeks leave from her ministerial duties, adding:
“I’ve discussed with her the decision to take leave. It is an appropriate decision as it allows the authority to carry out a thorough investigation.
“Datuk Seri Shahrizat said she was willing to be investigated fully. What happens after this will depend on the outcome of the investigation.”
Nobody expects Shahrizat to return to the Cabinet or Parliament after the expiry of her three-week leave expiring on Feb. 3, 2012.
But what is significant and ominous in Najib’s statement is the implication that before she was finally pressured to “voluntarily” go on three-weeks leave on January 12, she had successfully resisted any “full investigation” into her role in the RM300 million NFC scandal. Read the rest of this entry »
Solidariti ekonomi penawar kemelut
Posted by Kit in Zairil Khir Johari on Sunday, 15 January 2012
by Zairil Khir Johari
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 15, 2012
15 JAN — Sempena Persidangan Kebangsaan DAP 2012 tempoh hari, Jawatankuasa Tertinggi Pusat telah membentangkan “Deklarasi Shah Alam” sebagai juadah intelektual terbaru dalam agenda parti untuk Pilihan Raya Umum yang akan datang.
Perisytiharan yang dibuat ini melambangkan modal siasah baru yang cuba dipacu oleh DAP demi memupuk satu wadah kenegaraan yang berkisar pada dasar dan bukan sekadar isu-isu sensasi.
Teras asas dalam perisytiharan tersebut adalah isu ekonomi yang diulas melalui konsep “solidariti ekonomi”. Intisari perisytiharan tidak perlu diulangi di sini, namun saya ingin mengupas sedikit tentang tema yang boleh dikatakan menjadi “jiwa” yang menyelubungi jasad yang dipanggil Deklarasi Shah Alam ini.
Sesungguhnya tanggungjawab sesebuah kerajaan adalah untuk memastikan kualiti hidup yang selesa dan sejahtera bagi rakyatnya. Ini bermaksud kehidupan yang tidak dibebani hutang yang melampau, serta pendapatan yang memadai untuk membina rumahtangga dengan segala kelengkapan asas seperti rumah, kereta dan pendidikan anak-anak. Dalam erti kata lain, kesejahteraan ekonomi rakyat hendaklah dipelihara. Read the rest of this entry »
Opposition will devise plan to make country graft free
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Elections on Sunday, 15 January 2012
Himanshu Bhatt
The Sun
14 January 2012
ALOR SETAR (Jan 14, 2012): The Pakatan Rakyat will come up with an action plan to combat corruption, should they win the next general elections.
DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang said leaders of the three member parties – PKR, PAS and DAP – will discuss the matter and come with the plan prior the general elections, which must be held by April 2013.
“We will discuss the matter. And probably before the 13th general elections, we will come out with a proposal,” he at the PR’s 3rd annual convention at the Stadium Sultan Abdul Halim here.
“We want a graft free country,” he added in response to a query by guest speaker Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, who is also Bersih 2.0 chairman, Read the rest of this entry »
Kit Siang dares Najib to respect GE results if Pakatan wins
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Elections, Najib Razak on Sunday, 15 January 2012
Yow Hong Chieh
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 14, 2012
ALOR STAR, Jan 14 — Lim Kit Siang today challenged prime minister to promise that Barisan Nasional (BN) will respect the outcome of the next national polls and guarantee free and fair elections.
The DAP parliamentary leader also dared Datuk Seri Najib Razak to make good on his call for moderation by retracting the vow he made at the Umno general assembly two years ago to “defend Putrajaya with our bodies and broken bones”.
“This is not the voice of moderation, this is not the voice of moderation,” he told the PR convention here.
“We want the prime minister and all Umno leaders to declare that they will accept the decision in the 13th general election, even if Pakatan Rakyat forms government and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim becomes prime minister.” Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s Najib Readies for Vote
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Judiciary, Najib Razak on Friday, 13 January 2012
by James Hookway
Wall Street Journal
Malaysian leader Najib Razak pointed to the acquittal this week of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as evidence he’s serious about political reforms, even inviting an election battle that could propel him out of power.
Eager to paint himself as a leader of the Malaysia’s most sweeping political reforms since independence, Mr. Najib appears to be betting that the judiciary’s release of Mr. Anwar would help rather than hurt him politically.
Three days after Malaysia’s High Court acquitted Mr. Anwar on sodomy charges this week, Mr. Najib said in an interview Thursday that both the government and opposition camps will step up their race to claim the center-ground of Malaysian politics in the coming months—but that this will only strengthen the predominantly Muslim country and provide a fresh example that democracy and Islam can coexist. Read the rest of this entry »
Acquittal a teaser to another conviction
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Judiciary, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Friday, 13 January 2012
Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz| January 13, 2012
Free Malaysia Today
Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad will want Anwar Ibrahim stopped at all cost.COMMENT
Anwar Ibrahim is not out of the woods yet. Despite being acquitted, Anwar is circumspect about the judiciary.
His acquittal does not prove the judiciary is independent, he said.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, Anwar said this present case should not be considered as a landmark case representing the independence of the judiciary.
Now, that is somewhat ominous. Why would Anwar say that?
Anwar knows this: he is let off the hook this time – that’s what the government may want the public to think. So that they can say, this is proof that the judiciary is independent. Read the rest of this entry »
The party’s over
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Mariam Mokhtar, Najib Razak on Friday, 13 January 2012
By Mariam Mokhtar | January 13, 2012
Free Malaysia Today
Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was aware of the consequences of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim being jailed. With limited choices, he was forced to choose the unpalatable option of having Anwar acquitted.
In doing so, Najib’s reputation may have been enhanced, his party Umno-BN saved from the brink of annihilation at the polls and, most important of all, the creation of the powerful and feared martyr (Anwar), was neutralised.
For Anwar, acquittal meant he could concentrate on leading the opposition and making sure the government performs. Sodomy II was designed by Umno to be a distraction, for him and the rakyat. Valuable time and resources had been wasted on this sham trial which was designed to wear Anwar and the rakyat down.
Najib must think us fools to believe that Anwar’s acquittal signalled an independent judiciary. What about the many other cases which have been rigged in the past? Teoh Beng Hock, Aminulrasyid Amzah, Ahmad Sarbani, A Kugan.
Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia Election Around the Corner?
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Corruption, Elections, Najib Razak, Sabah, Sarawak, UMNO on Thursday, 12 January 2012
Asia Sentinel
by Our Correspondent
Thursday, 12 January 2012
With Sodomy II out of the way, looks forward to March polls — maybe
With the Sodomy II trial of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim now out of the way, it is probably time to start thinking seriously about Malaysia’s 13th general election, which most observers — but not all — believe will be called in March, during school holidays when the classrooms are empty.
Despite euphoria on the part of the three-party opposition coalition, the end of the trial doesn’t mean that Anwar’s troubles are over. One political observer in Kuala Lumpur told Asia Sentinel that the United Malays National Organization, the lead party in the ruling national coalition, will probably do its best to discredit him in other ways. Read the rest of this entry »
Anwar’s acquittal has bought for Najib his last but very short-lived chance to prove that he can walk the talk of a reformer and proponent of “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now” slogan
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, Corruption, Judiciary, Najib Razak on Thursday, 12 January 2012
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s surprise acquittal of Sodomy 2 charge on Monday has bought for the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak his last but very short-lived chance to prove that he can walk the talk of a reformer and proponent of “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now” slogan.
Nobody really believes the self-serving claims by Najib, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin and the Minister for Information, Communications and Culture Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim that Anwar’s acquittal was proof of the independence of the judiciary in Malaysia and would increase the confidence of Malaysians and international community in Najib’s transformation promises.
The 33 months of Najib’s premiership since April 2009 were lost months for reform and transformation as there were only empty rhetorics not backed up with any political will to bring about fundamental changes in all aspects of national life. Read the rest of this entry »
Anwar free: And now for Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Corruption, Elections, Judiciary, Najib Razak on Thursday, 12 January 2012
Dean Johns | Jan 11, 2012
Malaysiakini
Failing an appeal that may yet be made by the prosecution, Anwar Ibrahim is finally free of his latest spurious sodomy charge and the possibility of up to 20 years in jail.
And now, it’s time for the Malaysian people to win their freedom from 50-plus years – or the equivalent of more than two life sentences – of imprisonment and empoisonment by the rotten Umno/BN regime.
Though it could be argued that a great many Malaysians have nobody but themselves to blame for this punishing experience, having effectively held themselves captive by voting for their oppressors so repeatedly and for so long. Read the rest of this entry »
Judiciary still in winter of emasculation
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Constitution, Court, Judiciary on Thursday, 12 January 2012
— by Bob Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 12, 2012
JAN 12 — Let’s not be beguiled by Prime Minister Najib Razak’s claim of the judiciary’s independence following the High Court’s full acquittal and discharge of Anwar Ibrahim from the charge of sodomy. As succinctly put by an international civil liberties watchdog, the Opposition leader should not have been charged in the first place.
Anwar’s three trials over 20 years were simply an abuse of due process; nothing more than Umno’s dirty and sordid politics to rid itself of its arch nemesis involving all three prime ministers in a row.
Don’t be misled, a swallow doth not a summer maketh. We are still deep in the winter of an emasculated judiciary frozen since the Mahathir ice age. We need more evidence of courage and boldness from our judges before we can hope to thaw into a new spring.
But credit must be given to where it’s due. Recent judgments indicate some judges are willing to go into early retirement or be put into the cold storage by going the extra mile in their adjudication. The High Court’s judgment against the government in the Allah case is a case in point. There are a few others that are noteworthy. Read the rest of this entry »
Start law reforms by probing A-G, ex-cop urges PM
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Judiciary, Law & Order, Najib Razak on Thursday, 12 January 2012
By Clara Chooi
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 12, 2012
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 — Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim today insisted Datuk Seri Najib Razak prove his impartiality by calling for a royal inquiry on Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail over the Attorney-General’s alleged mishandling of several high profile cases.
According to Mat Zain, the prime minister should make formal representation to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the setting up of a tribunal to examine Abdul Gani’s actions.
“It would be the first step forward for PM Najib to restore the country’s criminal justice system which has been tainted for a long time. The people would accept no less than this,” the former Kuala Lumpur CID chief said today in a letter to Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar.
Mat Zain said that Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s acquittal on Monday did not prove the Najib administration had not interfered in the case or the judiciary’s independence. Read the rest of this entry »
Guan Eng says national debt ‘dangerous’, potentially disastrous
Posted by Kit in Economics, Finance, Lim Guan Eng on Wednesday, 11 January 2012
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 11, 2012
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 — Massive borrowing and irresponsible spending by the Barisan Nasional (BN) government will result in Malaysia becoming a fully indebted nation before the end of the decade, Lim Guan Eng said today.
The Penang chief minister said that Putrajaya’s debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio has increased yearly from 53.1 per cent in 2010 to 53.8 per cent last year and is expected to hit 54.8 per cent this year.
“This is extremely dangerous, and even more disastrous when coupled with statistics from Bank Negara’s Annual Report 2010, which revealed that Malaysia’s household debt at the end of 2010 was RM581 billion, or 76 per cent of GDP, thus giving us the dubious honour of having the second-highest level of household debt in Asia, after South Korea.
“In absolute terms, federal government debt rose by 71 per cent in four years to RM456 billion at (the) end (of) 2011 from RM266 billion at end (of) 2007,” said Lim in a statement today.
The DAP secretary-general said by following the same expansion rate, national debt would be a projected RM780 million by 2016 and RM1.3 trillion by 2020. Read the rest of this entry »
An independent judiciary… really?
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Judiciary on Wednesday, 11 January 2012
by Dr Kamal Amzan
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 11, 2012
JAN 11 — We are a funny lot.
Just because of one acquittal, we claim to have an “independent” judiciary. Forget about Eric Chia, forget about the first sodomy trial, forget about what happened to Teoh Beng Hock and let us all just focus on this one and only trial.
From the mainstream media to the online news portals, the response from the government and the opposition leaders to the verdict was akin to striking the lottery.
Today’s headlines in the Star and NST, “Government says it shows freedom of judiciary”, “Slow reassertion of Malaysia’s public institutions”, “Court ruling clears government of baseless accusations.”.
Really? I may be wrong but to claim the judiciary’s independence from one trial verdict seems a bit premature, no? Read the rest of this entry »
Time to Pull ‘CSI: Malaysia’ Off the Air
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Economics, Najib Razak, NEP on Wednesday, 11 January 2012
By William Pesek
Jan 11, 2012
Bloomberg: The Ticker
If there’s any economy in Asia that needs a change in narrative, it’s Malaysia.
When the resource-rich nation of 28 million people has made headlines globally in recent years, they have been about sodomy charges against opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, tension between Muslims and Christians, Beyonce’s bellybutton offending local sensibilities or murder investigations involving high-ranking officials. Malaysia really could have its own CSI crime drama.
Far from finding all this entertaining, many foreign investors eye Malaysia with skepticism. That’s a shame given the huge potential of an economy growing 5.8 percent. When you consider Asian economies that deserved far more attention in 2011 than they received, Malaysia is Exhibit A. It’s high time for Prime Minister Najib Razak to change the story, to shift the focus toward reforms, not tabloid scandals. Announcing the end of affirmative-action policies that hurt Malaysia’s competitiveness might be just the thing. Read the rest of this entry »
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