Archive for May, 2013
Malaysia’s Najib: Jump or be Pushed
Posted by Kit in Elections, Mahathir, Najib Razak, UMNO on Thursday, 9 May 2013
by John Berthelsen
Asia Sentinel
Wednesday, 08 May 2013
Election aftermath could soon claim its real loser, the current PM
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, having been instrumental in driving his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi from power in 2009 after a poor electoral performance, now may be poised to try to do the same thing to the current prime minister, Najib Tun Razak.
It may depend on whether Najib jumps or is pushed, however. The premier is said to be disillusioned and discouraged and may leave the premiership at the United Malays National Organization annual general meeting in October, handing over power to the current vice president Muhyiddin Yassin, sources say – if he lasts that long. Najib led the Barisan Nasional to its lowest vote total since independence at 46.66 percent of the popular vote to the Pakatan Rakyat coalition’s 50.1 percent, taking a diminished 133 seats in the parliament to Pakatan Rakyat’s 89 – amid allegations of voter irregularities that put the Barisan over the top.
“I am told that Najib will hand over to Muhyiddin in October,” a lawyer with close contacts to UMNO said. “The change may finally come but voluntarily between Najib and Muhyiddin. We’ll have to let it play it out some more.”
That could foreshadow months of instability inside the UMNO leadership as a weakened Najib hangs on to power in the face of a wing of the party that wants to double down on the policies that have led to diminished returns in the last two elections. Toppling him now for Muhyiddin could well lead to costly party rifts, as it did in 2009 with the Badawi faction of the party. A change would probably signal that UMNO will steer to the conservative right, counterintuitive to what the electorate appears to have been saying. It was UMNO moderates such as Khairy Jamaluddin and Shahrir Samad who profited in the election while Malay nationalists Ibrahim Ali and Zulkifli Noordin were soundly defeated. Read the rest of this entry »
How Malays voted at GE13
Posted by Kit in Elections, Pakatan Rakyat, UMNO on Thursday, 9 May 2013
— Syed Muhd Khairudin Aljunied
The Malaysian Insider
May 09, 2013
MAY 9 — Speaking at a news conference a day after the release of the results of the general election, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak stressed that: “On the whole, the people’s decision this time shows a trend of voting polarisation…This worries the government, because if it’s not handled well, it could spark tension.” These comments were made in light of the premier’s knee-jerk observation that the increasingly politicised Chinese community have now swung towards the opposition unlike Malays who are firmly in support of Barisan Nasional (BN).
Compelling as such reasoning can be, Najib’s reflex reaction towards BN’s worst defeat since 1969 masks the deeper nuances of voting patterns and trends in Malaysia. While the results of the 13th general election (GE13) provide evidence that the Chinese-Malay divide in Malaysian politics has indeed manifest itself at the ballot box, there are other developments within the Malay populace in the country that have become more apparent and may follow a more protracted course in the coming years.
The rural-urban divide is the most obvious phenomenon that has emerged among the Malay electorate. Read the rest of this entry »
Kit Siang praises Pak Lah, seeks government post for defeated rival Ghani
Posted by Kit in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Elections, UMNO on Thursday, 9 May 2013
By Ida Lim
May 09, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 — DAP’s Lim Kit Siang today praised former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, while also asking that his polls rival Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman be given a post in the new Barisan Nasional (BN) administration.
Lim described Abdullah’s statement yesterday as being the “most sensible, level-headed and statesmanlike” comment on the results of last Sunday’s polls.
Despite holding on to power with its win of 133 federal seats, BN lost the popular vote and had a poorer showing this time round, which led the current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to suggest that it was due to a “Chinese tsunami”.
The DAP advisor also said Ghani was a moderate and rational man, saying that the former Johor Mentri Besar had contributed to the state and country’s development during his four terms of service. Read the rest of this entry »
Message from voters to BN — race card brings dwindling returns
Posted by Kit in Elections, Pakatan Rakyat on Thursday, 9 May 2013
By Leslie Lau
The Malaysian Insider
May 09, 2013
The Pakatan Rakyat rally in Petaling Jaya last night saw a very multiracial crowd. — Picture by Saw Siow MengMAY 9 — As if offended by all the post-election Chinese-bashing, a truly Malaysian crowd turned out last night at a stadium in Petaling Jaya to send a chilling message to the Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
The message was many ordinary Malaysians wanted an end to the race debate surrounding Sunday’s vote in Election 2013.
Instead of election fatigue many voters were galvanised by what they saw as unfair and dishonest polls as well as an attempt by BN to blame the Chinese.
Those who attended last night’s rally did not care about the police calling the gathering illegal.
And not all were loyal supporters of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, or card-carrying members of the three Pakatan Rakyat (PR) parties.
Chances are of course that they voted for PR parties.
But there were many young Malaysians and it was multiracial in nature.
This should serve as a warning to politicians that playing the race card is a strategy of diminishing returns. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib, Muhyiddin and Mahathir must each apologise for their irresponsible and unMalaysian remarks completely at variance with policies of 1Malaysia and Bangsa Malaysia if there is going to be genuine “national reconciliation” after 13GE
Posted by Kit in Bersih, civil society/NGOs, Court, Elections, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 May 2013
The most sensible, level-headed and statesmanlike statement completely in conformity with the policies of 1Malaysia and Bangsa Malaysia in the past three days since 13GE Polling Day came from former Prime Minister, Tun Abdullah, who demanded a stop to all attempts at racialising Sunday’s polls by blaming a particular community for Barisan Nasional’s poor showing at the ballot boxes.
Abdullah said: “This is unfair and unhelpful”.
Guilty of such “unfair and unhelpful” statements were none other than the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and former Prime Minister, Tun Mahathir, who indulged in irresponsible race-baiting and inflammatory incitements totally careless and reckless about the harm they are doing to race relations in the country.
For instance, immediately after the 13GE results were known on Sunday night, Najib talked about a “Chinese tsunami” when it was in fact a “Malaysian tsunami” caused by the political uprising and awakening not only of the Chinese, but all other communities as well, whether Malays, Chinese, Kadazan-Dusun-Murut or Iban communities.
Najib’s “Chinese tsunami” statement was immediately supported by Muhyiddin who said it was “unhealthy in a multi-racial society like Malaysia” to allow one community supporting one side and another race supporting another as it would lead to “tension in inter-racial relations and political instability”.
This is a conclusion based on a total fallacy, for the 13GE has not led to a situation of “one community supporting one side and another race supporting another” as the 13GE was not a battle between the Chinese versus the Malays, but one multi-racial coalition against another i.e. Pakatan Rakyat versus Barisan Nasional. Read the rest of this entry »
Vote-rigging helped BN win Putrajaya, Kit Siang tells rally
Posted by Kit in Elections, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 May 2013
By Boo Su-Lyn
The Malaysian Insider
May 09, 2013
PETALING JAYA, May 9 — Barisan Nasional (BN) would not have retained federal power if Election 2013 was free and fair, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang told a mass rally of tens of thousands last night.
Some 50,000, dressed mostly in black, packed Stadium MBPJ in Kelana Jaya here to the rafters at Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) rally against electoral fraud, shouting “Ubah” (Change) and “Reformasi” (Reformation) throughout the night.
“BN has 133 seats. Minus 30, they’re left with 103. Does he still qualify to continue to be prime minister?” roared Lim, referring to Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
“No!” the multi-racial crowd yelled in response, as they sounded air horns and cheered. Read the rest of this entry »
This Little Malay Ripple That Joined The Tsunami
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Elections, Najib Razak, nation building on Thursday, 9 May 2013
by Karina Bahrin (Notes) on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at 9:07pm
Dear Prime Minister and all in UMNO
I am, by your definition, Malay. Except it is said that in our family folklore, my paternal grandmother was probably biologically Chinese. And yes, my mother is a former Catholic from the Philippines.
Not that any of that should matter because, as far as you are concerned, I am Malay.
Only, I did not vote for you. And neither did a whole lot of other Malays,despite what you would like to think. Do the math. If 80% of the population voted, then surely, you cannot blame the erosion of your power on the Chinese minority. Or did you fail that subject too?
I voted for the Opposition because as a Malay, I myself have had enough. Not because I necessarily like all the Opposition leaders, but frankly, I just like you lot less. Because despite all your rhetoric about the Opposition being a lying, conniving bunch, I have personally born witness and been on the receiving end of YOUR lies and policies that stoke racial and religious polarity. Not the Opposition’s. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib Tun Razak, Chua Soi Lek, Ali Rustam, M Saravanan and Dr Mahathir should stop racializing the 13th General Election results and focus instead on Revamping the Electoral System, starting with asking for the members of the Election Commission to resign
Posted by Kit in Elections, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 May 2013
BN leaders should be ashamed of themselves for continuing to racialize the GE13 election results. This is thoroughly unbecoming of their status as national leaders and statesmen. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak continues to irresponsibly racialize the GE13 results when he refused to condemn the reprehensible and thoroughly disgusting headline of Utusan Malaysia yesterday on the 7th of May which read “Apa Lagi Cina Mahu?” (What more do the Chinese want?). Instead, his response which alluded that the Chinese papers were writing the same thing makes a mockery of his election night statement that he wanted to embark on a program of national reconciliation.
Dr Chua Soi Lek too has refused to apologize for making the remark that the country is now on a ‘two-race’ system. This is pure stupidity since 50 out of the 89 Pakatan MPs (or 56%) are non-Chinese (39 Malay, 10 Indian, 1 Kadazan).
Ali Rustam should also offer his profuse apologies to not just the Chinese voters in the constituency of Bukit Katil but also the Malay voters, who make up 53% of the voters in this constituency, and also the Indian voters, who make up 6% of the voters in this constituency for exercising their democratic right to choose their candidate of preference, which happens to be his opponent, Shamsul Iskandar, from PKR.
M Saravanan should also apologize for agreeing with Utusan Malaysia and with Ali Rustam by saying that the Chinese were ungrateful since I am sure that many of the 12743 voters who voted for his opponent (or 38% of the total vote) included Malay and Indian voters.
Do both of these leaders also mean to say that all those who voted against the BN, including almost half of the voters in the 95% majority state of Terengganu, are also ‘ungrateful’ voters?
The worst culprit of this race baiting is none other than Dr. Mahathir himself who continues to outdo his younger self in polarizing and dividing the country when he accused the Malaysian Chinese community of ‘rejecting the hand of friendship’ extended by the Malays. Read the rest of this entry »
What else do Chinese want?
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Elections, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 May 2013
by Allan CF Goh
This is my personal view, spoken out of my soul and conscience. Though I sincerely believe many intelligent and fair-minded Malaysians, including Malayans, Sabahans and Sarawakians, share the same sentiment, it remains my personal conviction.
Merdeka came in 1957, while I was still in an English medium school during the 50’s. Then life was very slow and simple. True values were the basis of one’s education and upbringing, cutting across the racial lines. Indian, Malay and Chinese classmates mixed around as fully accepted Malayans, without being aware of, or awkward about our different colours. We visited each other’s home, and sometimes ate the food offered, without hesitation. Some may recall, we even called each other “racist” names as endearment, in real friendship without malice. No offence was taken. I remember some Malay classmates even took Bible Knowledge in their Form 3 Examination, with the full blessing of their families. They still remain good, devout Muslims.
When merdeka arrived, all communities welcomed it with great hope and unity. Merdeka was pledged to all, without exception. Reading the Straits Times and Straits Echo in the school library (we could not afford our own newspapers at home) during breaks, we were constantly assured by the then Alliance leaders from UMNO, MCA and MIC, that all races would be treated equally. Read the rest of this entry »
Putting the record straight
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Elections, Media on Thursday, 9 May 2013
R. Nadeswaran
The Sun Daily
8 May 2013
The outburst in cyberspace reflects the anger of ordinary Malaysians who view such audacious campaigns as insulting their intelligence.
On a similar note, will the same newspapers publish an advertisement paid for by well-minded citizens which reads: “Can you trust a party which is led by a crook?”
This question can only be answered by none other than owners of publishing houses who have accepted and consented to publish those questionable and code-breaking advertisements.
– R. Nadeswaran, The Sun, April 25
I am disappointed with him because when I was president of the 4As, I sided with him when he took on the issue of corruption in the outdoor advertising industry. At that time, I received death threats after speaking up against illegal billboards in the Klang Valley.
After a year, the situation has remained unchanged. However, he has moved on from his anti-corruption stand to talking about advertising, but his own newspaper has accepted and carried the same advertisement.
– Datuk Vincent Lee, The Star, May 3
IN most newspapers, editors tell reporters to “write for the readers in simple language that they understand”. Readers of this newspaper will attest that we make a conscious effort to get rid of bombastic and pompous language. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib’s hollow victory
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Elections, Mahathir, Mariam Mokhtar, Najib Razak, Pakatan Rakyat on Thursday, 9 May 2013
by Mariam Mokhtar
Malaysiakini
May 6, 2013
It is widely believed that a happy and contented Singaporean is one who has achieved the 5Cs – cash, credit card, car, condominium and country club.
In neighbouring Malaysia, the victorious Umno Baru leader is defined by the 6Cs; corruption, chaos, cheating, cronyism, cowardice and concubine.
BN head Najib Abdul Razak injected many millions of ringgit into the country to secure a victory, and unleashed a violent campaign of ‘blood, sweat and tears’ to defend Putrajaya. In the end, he only managed a ‘win’ by a handful of seats.
For many Umno Baru leaders, the effort has been worthwhile because the alternative is a long spell behind bars.
Ironically, the worst damage inflicted on Najib and BN, was Najib’s own ‘1Malaysia’ slogan.
Malaysians are fairly reticent people and not known for outward displays of public-spiritedness, but yesterday, in the true spirit of ‘1Malaysia’, Malaysians of all races were united in defending their polling stations against foreign ‘phantom’ voters. Read the rest of this entry »
Lim: Stop racialising elections results
Posted by Kit in Elections, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 May 2013
G Vinod| May 8, 2013
Free Malaysia Today
The DAP veteran urges Barisan Nasional leaders to improve the fraudulent electoral system instead of racialising the poll results.
KUALA LUMPUR: DAP has criticised Barisan Nasional leaders for racialising the recent general election results instead of revamping the electoral system marred with irregularities.
Speaking at a press conference held at the party headquarters, DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang reiterated that the massive swing of support to Pakatan Rakyat was a Malaysian wave rather than a Chinese one.
“No doubt there are was considerable swing from the Chinese but it also involved the Malays and the other communities. Do you think I could have won the Gelang Patah parliamentary seat without the support from the Malays and the Indians?” he asked.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak attributed the heavy losses suffered by the ruling coalition due to a “Chinese tsunami.”
Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia yesterday carried a provocative headline, “Apa Lagi Cina Mahu?” (What else do the Chinese want) attacking the Chinese for backing Pakatan Rakyat. Read the rest of this entry »
A People’s Election
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Parliament on Thursday, 9 May 2013
In the aftermath of this historic election, we would like to thank all Malaysians for their support of DAP and Pakatan Rakyat. To all Malaysians, including those who did not support our coalition, we are indebted to the public for their extensive involvement in the campaign and commitment to the future of Malaysia. All races of Malaysians are united in one purpose to make our country strong and people stronger.
It is in this spirit of strengthening our country that we need to turn our resolve into the tasks that can move our country forward.
Foremost is the need to properly account for all of the irregularities during an election that was not only the dirtiest election in our country’s history, but also the most marred in its process. We support Bersih’s people’s tribunal as an essential step for justice and transparency. We call on all Malaysians to come forward to share their experiences and help us get to the truth.
We also will be supporting the electoral petitions to challenge the flawed contests where we have credible reports of tampering, electoral fraud and manipulation. The process for reform in Malaysia is ongoing, and we need to carry on. Read the rest of this entry »
Kit Siang denies ‘Utusan’ article, says it proves paper’s seditious act
By Ida Lim
The Malaysian Insider
May 08, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, April 8 — DAP today denied the allegations in an Utusan Malaysia article today, with the party’s advisor Lim Kit Siang saying that it was a self-admission by the Umno-linked paper that it had committed sedition.
“It is an admission that Utusan has committed seditious, incendiary and inflammatory articles and they justify by saying that ‘siapa dulu memulakan provokasi’ (who started the provocation).”
“We deny completely that we had anything to do with the various allegations made in this defence…we did not provoke them. We had nothing to do with all the things reported in this article,” Lim said at a press conference at the party’s headquarters here, referring to a piece titled “Siapa mula provokasi dahulu?” (Who started the provocation first?) by the Malay-language paper’s columnist Zulkifli Bakar. Read the rest of this entry »
‘Stop blaming one community for BN’s bad performance’
Posted by Kit in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Elections, Mahathir, Media, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 8 May 2013
BY CLARA CHOOI
The Malaysian Insider
May 08, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, May 8 — Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today demanded a stop to all attempts at racialising last Sunday’s polls by blaming a particular community for Barisan Nasional’s (BN) poor showing at the ballot boxes.
“This is unfair and unhelpful,” he said in a statement here.
The former prime minister, who stepped down in favour of Datuk Seri Najib Razak in 2009 after he led BN to lose its coveted two-thirds parliamentary majority in Election 2008, agreed that following Sunday’s polls results, there was a pressing need for the country to undergo the process of national reconciliation and unity.
He also called on the opposition to accept and respect the election results, despite the fact that they had lost by slim majorities amid claims of fraud and widespread irregularities in the polling process.
“Malaysians deserve stability and certainty that can only come with finality and closure from this election,” he said in his message to the opposition.
“Let us move on in the interest of all Malaysians.” Read the rest of this entry »
Kit Siang accepts polls results, but questions 30 seats affecting BN’s legitimacy
Posted by Kit in DAP, Elections, Najib Razak, Parliament on Wednesday, 8 May 2013
By Ida Lim
The Malaysian Insider
May 08, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, May 8 — DAP’s Lim Kit Siang today said he accepted last Sunday’s polls result where Barisan Nasional (BN) won the contest to be the federal government, saying he was only questioning 30 federal seats which could affect the coalition’s legitimacy.
“By and large, I accept the elections result, but 30 seats – the electoral fraud, electoral abuse, electoral irregularities – if these are proved, then they have to be corrected.
“And if they are corrected and Najib loses these 30 seats, he doesn’t have majority to be prime minister,” the DAP advisor said at a press conference at the party’s headquarter. Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t repeat the 1987 ‘fire’, Kit Siang tells Najib
Ram Anand
Malaysiakini
May 8, 2013
DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang has warned Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak not to “play with fire” by making “race-baiting” statements targeted at the Chinese after the Sunday polls.
Kit Siang said that Najib is risking a repeat of the racial tension that emanated prior to the 1987 Operasi Lalang.
Although Kit Siang did not elaborate on the matter, in 1987 there had been an allegation, which Najib had denied, about waving a keris and a pledge to “bathe it with Chinese blood” plus a combination of other factors that caused racial tension with the Chinese community.
“Najib must ask himself, does he want to be a prime minister for all Malaysians?” Kit Siang asked.
Kit Siang said that whilst Najib might be making those statements to appease the Umno grassroots, the latter mustn’t lose sight of the 1Malaysia concept that he had espoused four years ago. Read the rest of this entry »
The Dream Lives On
By Allan CF Goh
Election Day has now come and gone.
But our hopes have not been left alone.
Though BN won half of Malaysia,
Pakatan wins the ambrosia.
PR has won the plurality
With a national majority.
Pakatan ‘has won’ the election
By increasing its representation.
BN won by ways dark, secretive;
Losing its moral imperative.
Though it has won the seats of office,
Pakatan has won folks’ hearts, notice.
The wind of change is still blowing strong,
Most Malaysians still for “ubah” long.
The dream of citizens still lives on…..
For a true democracy to dawn.
Read the rest of this entry »
Disturbing questions surrounding GE13 polling
By Bridget Welsh | 12:05PM May 7, 2013
Malaysiakini
GE13 SPECIAL The GE13 results are in and the BN has managed to hold only power, winning by a 22-seat majority. This result is the worst performance for BN in Malaysia’s history.
For the first time, the incumbent government has lost the popular vote nationally (in 2008, it was only on the peninsula). The BN coalition has still managed to hold onto power. This piece, in a series analysing the election results, looks at the concerns raised regarding the electoral process and the potential impact these issues may have had on the final results.
In analysing the fairness of any polls, one asks whether the irregularities in the process could have affected the final outcome. Were the problems enough to change which coalition would have formed government? These issues will be debated and assessed in the days and weeks ahead. Let me share some preliminary observations that suggest that in this election, some things appear not to be quite right.
Integrity of electoral roll
This was the longest wait for an election, and both sides were extremely active in registering new voters, especially in the urban areas where the party machinery was well honed.
Read the rest of this entry »
BN’s victory ‘superficial’
Posted by Kit in Elections, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 7 May 2013
Jeswan Kaur| May 7, 2013
Free Malaysia Today
BN’s dirty tricks to win the 13th general election will never be forgotten; the time for retribution will come slowly but surely.
COMMENT
Ruling coalition Barisan Nasional has little reason to gloat over its win in the May 5 general election.
Violence, phantom voters and the unreliable indelible ink were only part of the shenanigans BN resorted to in its bid to secure Putrajaya.
Victory however was far from sweet for BN; not only did it fail to reclaim a two-third majority, the 13th general election also sent home the message that the rakyat, in particular the ‘thinking’ generation want “representatives” who respect them, their faiths and who ‘walk the talk’.
Despite BN’s extensive propaganda, good sense thankfully prompted voters to reject candidates such as Malay extremist party Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali who was knocked out by PAS’ Nik Abdul Nik Aziz in Pasir Mas, Kelantan. Read the rest of this entry »
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