Archive for category Lim Guan Eng

Let every Malaysian come forward to re-unite and dare to hope and struggle again to restore dignity and decency in a New Malaysia where there is unity, democracy, justice, freedom, excellence and integrity

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I call on Malaysians to come forward to re-unite and dare to hope and struggle again to restore dignity and decency in a New Malaysia where there is unity, democracy, justice, freedom, excellence and integrity.

In the past few days, apart from the political persecution of Betty Chew – just because she is the wife of Lim Guan Eng- Malaysia has been buffetted by a series of events which highlight a gross deficit of dignity and decency in Malaysian public life, which must be the concern of all thinking and patriotic Malaysians, regardless of race, religion, region, age or gender.

We read of netizens rallying behind a teenager who was fined RM1,000 for purportedly pulling down his face mask while waiting on a platform for a train.

Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng has offered to assist the teenager who was fined RM1,000 urging the student to contact him for help.

In fact, all members of the public in such circumstances should be refunded the bulk of their fines as Malaysians were right to question the seemingly uneven enforcement of the compulsory face mask rule with regard to a number of politicians who have been photographed without masks in public places.
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The lesson from the new political persecution of Lim Guan Eng and Betty Chew

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After 55 years in Malaysian politics fighting for a better Malaysia, I was inclined to take a back seat – especially after a recent hospitalisation laid me off from active operation for an extended period.

But this was not to be.

The lesson from the new political persecution of Lim Guan Eng and Betty Chew is the truism of the famous Edmund Burke quote that “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

Many Malaysians had been disappointed by the 22-month performance of the Pakatan Harapan Government but it had a mandate of five years to acquit itself.

When the 2018 General Election mandate was stolen in February 2020 by a backdoor conspiracy, there was widespread disillusionment, despair and even a sense of hopelessness that the country could fully develop its potential to become a world-class nation with unity, democracy, justice, freedom, excellence, integrity and decency.
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Open appeal to Prime Minister, Attorney-General and MACC to maintain some decency and honour in public life and drop money-laundering charges against my daughter-in-law Betty Chew

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I was shocked when Betty Chew, wife of Lim Guan Eng, was arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC) yesterday and was to be charged at the Butterworth court on Tuesday under the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act (Amla) as if she is a notorious and a big-time villain in Penang involved the crimes normally associated with money-laundering like drug trafficking, terrorist funding and rampant corruption.

I do not want to comment on the case proper and I will leave it to the lawyers to defend her.

But this is not the Betty Chew that I know for three decades. Her only fault was being a loving and loyal wife and mother of four great kids. I am proud of my daughter in law as a lawyer and a former ADUN in Melaka before she retired. I am even more proud that despite all the pressure from work, she looked after Guan Eng and brought up my four beautiful grandchildren.

I am not surprised by Guan Eng’s arrest and prosecution, as this is to break his political spirit as when he was previously imprisoned in 1998 for 18 months and disqualified as a Member of Parliament for defending the dignity and morality of an underaged Malay girl who was raped. Read the rest of this entry »

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Najib emulating Trump in using tweets to spread his politics of fear, hatred and lies

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, is clearly a secret admirer of the US President Donald Trump, as he is emulating Trump in using tweets to spread his politics of fear, hatred and lies.

This could be seen by Najib’s tweet this evening:

“Lim Kit Siang is Pakatan’s de facto leader. DAP should stop trying to hide it. Voters know DAP has the most opposition seats and Lim Kit Siang calls the shots.”

I am reminded by Najib’s earlier politics of fear, hatred and lies when he tried to panic and scare the Malays into believing that if UMNO loses, I will become the Prime Minister of Malaysia as I am anti-Malay and anti-Islam and that the Malays will lose all their rights in the country.

There is one fatal flaw in the UMNO/Barisan Nasional campaign of fear, hatred and lies because of one great inner contradiction of their campaign – UMNO leaders, propagandists and cybertroopers accuse former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir of being my puppet and stooge, while MCA and Gerakan leaders, propagandists and cybertroopers say the opposite, that I have become Mahathir’s puppet and stooge.

UMNO/BN leaders, propagandists and cybertroopers should straighten out their propaganda campaign of fear, hatred and lies – whether Mahathir is my puppet and stooge or whether I have become Mahahir’s puppet and stooge. It is one or the other, as it cannot be both.

In actual fact, all these are lies and falsehoods – that Mahathir is my puppet and stooge, or that I have become Mahathir’s puppet and stooge.

It is also a downright lie that I am anti-Malay and anti-Islam, or that DAP is anti-Malay and anti-Islam. Read the rest of this entry »

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Generation of “false news” and “big lies” about DAP by UMNO leaders and cybertroopers an index of their growing desperation about loss of credibility and public support because of rampant corruption, economic crisis and worsening racial and religious polarisation

It is ironic but true – the generation of “false news” and “big lies” about the DAP by UMNO leaders and cybertroopers are not a reflection of confidence and hope, but the contrary, an index of their growing desperation about loss of credibility and public support because of rampant corruption, economic crisis and worsening racial and religious polarization – particularly among the Malays in the country.

Just before I came to this dialogue, I was reading about the latest UMNO cybertrooper attack on me – ridiculing the statement by the Deputy Amanah Youth Leader Faiz Fadzil “yang berkata DAP yang hanya bertanding di 51 daripada 222 kerusi Parlimen tidak mampu menerajui kepimpinan negara jika pembangkang menang dalam pilihan raya umum ke 14” by twisting what I said on 31st December that “I expect DAP to double the number of Parliamentary and State Assembly constituencies to be contested in the 14GE as compared to 13GE”.

Yes I did say about expecting the DAP to “double” the number of parliamentary and state assembly seats to be contested in the 14GE, but I was not talking about Malaysia as a whole but specifically about Sabah state, where DAP contested in four parliamentary and eight state assembly seats in the 13GE.

A person who is honest, sincere, pious and God-fearing would not have twisted what I said, for it was very clear that I was referring to doubling the seats contested in Sabah and not Malaysia-wide, unless the UMNP cybertrooper has a very low IQ – but this is the quality of UMNO leaders, propagandists and cybertroopers attacking the DAP who have to be liars to tell downright lies and falsehoods about DAP leaders which cannot stand scrutiny or challenge at all! Read the rest of this entry »

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14th GE likely to be after 60th National Day celebrations in September as Najib would want to secure a first conviction for Guan Eng to disqualify him from standing as a candidate for next general election and to stop him from continuing as Penang Chief Minister

With the news that the Penang High Court had fixed 34 days next year for the corruption trial of DAP Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, most Malaysians would have wondered how many days would have to be set aside if the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had been charged locally for kleptocracy for the multi-billion dollar international 1MDB embezzlement and money-laundering scandal which is the subject of investigations in at least six countries, including Switzerland, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and the United States.

When Guan Eng was subjected to a three-day interrogation spanning some 23 hours by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in May this year in connection with the corruption allegations about the discount over his RM2.8 million bungalow, it was calculated that if Najib had been given the same MACC treatment as Guan Eng for his RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal, the Prime Minister would be questioned for over 12 years by the MACC.

This is because Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal is 1,500 times greater than Guan Eng’s RM2.8 million bungalow allegation, and if Najib is given the same MACC treatment as Guan Eng where the Penang Chief Minister was questioned for three days, Najib will have to be questioned 1,500 x 3 days, yielding 4,500 days. This works out to 12.3 year! Imagine Najib going in and out of MACC office to be questioned for 12 years and four months, from wake-up in the morning to retirement for sleep at night, and doing nothing else!

Similarly, if 34 days are set aside for Guan Eng’s corruption trial, then 34 x 1,500 = 52,500 days (or 143.8 years or more than two lifetimes for Najib) would have to be set aside if there is a kleptocracy trial for Najib in a Malaysian court!

The dates set for Guan Eng’s corruption trial are an important indicator for the 14th General Election as Najib would want to secure a first conviction for Guan Eng to disqualify him from standing as a candidate in the 14th general election and to stop him from continuing as Penang Chief Minister. Read the rest of this entry »

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Najib’s push for his own political survival is threatening Malaysia’s future

Editorial
South China Morning Post
06 July, 2016

A crackdown on opponents may strengthen his position, but is threatening the country’s racial and religious harmony and the possibility of clean and effective governance

A scandal that may well rank as Malaysia’s biggest has not dented the political fortunes of Prime Minister Najib Razak. His Barisan Nasional ruling coalition easily won two by-elections last month and a state poll in May, prompting a cabinet reshuffle and a fresh crackdown on critics. A prominent opposition figure has been arrested on graft charges and a new investigation launched against vocal detractor and former leader Mahathir Mohammad. The moves strengthen Najib’s position ahead of the 2018 national elections, but are also threatening the country’s racial and religious harmony and the possibility of clean and effective governance.

Lim Guan Eng, the chief minister of Penang and secretary-general of the Democratic Action Party, is the latest in a string of opponents to be accused of wrongdoing. Other critics, among them members of Najib’s United Malays National Organisation (Umno), the leading party in the coalition, have been removed for claiming the law has been selectively enforced over the money-laundering scandal involving the state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad. The latest are Umno vice-president Shafie Apdal, who quit the party after being suspended, deputy president Muhyddin Yassin and Mahathir’s son, Mukhriz Mahathir, who were both sacked. Read the rest of this entry »

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The man who could never be PM

Mariam Mokhtar
Malaysiakini
4th July 2016

COMMENT The plot thickens in the final lap towards GE14. If PAS is aiding Umno Baru to recapture Selangor, the arrest of the chief minister of Penang will be the precursor to the retaking of Penang by Umno Baru. These two moves are part of a bigger Umno Baru plan to regain control of Penang and Selangor, the most valuable jewels in the Malaysian crown, in GE14.

PAS’ role in the twin by-elections was crucial. Its hudud bill caused uproar and drove people towards the devil they know, Umno Baru. What choice did they have? PAS and hudud? The untested Amanah, a splinter group from PAS?

Umno Baru conceded that they would need more work to recapture Penang. So, why do you think that the Pahang mufti, Abdul Rahman Osman, stated that kafir harbi ought to be slain? Worse still, he equated DAP with kafir harbi, traditionally viewed as the people who oppose Islam.

The mufti’s remark was no coincidence. His motive was political, and delivering this message during Ramadan is sacrilegious. Gullible Muslims with closed minds had the message that DAP is kafir harbi etched in their heads for 10 days.

When the arrest warrant was issued for Lim Guan Eng, who is also the secretary-general of DAP, Umno Baru did not want the Muslims to support him; but they underestimated the rakyat’s intelligence.

The story about Lim Guan Eng is a story of triumph and tragedy. When he became chief minister, he dared to do the impossible and did away with the old Barisan Nasional work ethics. Read the rest of this entry »

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Bamiyan-isation of Lim Guan Eng

K Temoc
Malaysiakini
1 Jul 2016

When Lim Guan Eng led Pakatan Rakyat to a resounding victory in Penang in 2008, he became the state’s chief minister (CM) and since then has impressed Penangites with his state government’s governance, policies and programmes, endearing himself to the locals. Pakatan Rakyat’s second election victory in 2013 further enhanced his image in the eyes of Penangites.

Lim Guan Eng became known, initially jokingly but subsequently quite credibly as a ‘tokong’ (deity) to his Penang political parish. In the eyes of most Penangites he could do no wrong. Thus he is politically invincible, iconic and idolised by Penangites. He has been seen as politically un-removable, with his favourable image and status quo as CM almost set in concrete.

His popularity is such that the Pakatan government (despite the absence of an original Pakatan partner but now foe) is seen as likely to hold office (majority rule) for several election terms.

The Gerakan Party and the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) in Penang have been in deep, very deep political trouble and I dare say, might have virtually given up hope for their respective futures in the face of such a formidable political god confronting their election prospects. To defeat Pakatan in Penang they must first defeat Lim Guan Eng. That would be a Sisyphean effort, but nonetheless he must be destroyed.

Well, how does one demolish such an iconic personality whose character, charisma and charm are so influential and deep set in the psyche of most Penangites? So what can his political opponents do with such an invincible foe, a virtual ‘tokong’? Let’s first take a wee detour into foreign history. Read the rest of this entry »

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Dastardly distractions?

Rom Nain
Malaysiakini
4th July 2016

It is widely believed now that a snap general election (GE) will be held, possibly as early as in November this year.

Word in the grapevine also is that, leading up to the GE, numerous disruptive strategies will be implemented, meant to distract the people’s attention from the real issues at hand, especially 1MDB.

And to relate everything to race and religion, and, of course, to cripple if not totally destroy an already divided opposition.

That idiotic, evil and dangerous accusation of ‘kafir harbi’ hurled at the DAP (and those who support them) is a clear example of the form of ethno-religious distraction that is, yet again, being employed to demonise the secular political party.

That – and the highly-questionable assertion that DAP is an ethnically-chauvinistic party – has been the stock ammunition of a regime that for many, for a long time, has been devoid of any worthwhile ideas.

Truth be told, if the DAP is a chauvinistic party, what then does that make Umno, the MCA and the MIC? Read the rest of this entry »

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Instead of condemning the Pahang mufti for his dangerous classification of DAP and non-Muslims as “kafir harbi”, has Prime Minister’s Office invented a new Islamic term of “kafir harbi” who need not be slain?

Eighteen years ago, Lim Guan Eng was jailed, disqualified as MP for Kota Melaka, lost his parliamentary pensions and disenfranchised of his right to vote and stand for elective office for five years on release from Kajang Prison because he was defending the dignity and human rights of an underaged Malay girl.

Today, Lim Guan Eng faces another jail sentence, disqualification as Chief Minister of Penang and MP, loss of his Chief Minister and parliamentary pensions, and another period of civil enfranchisement because he wanted to introduce integrity and good governance in Penang, so that it could be a model state for the rest of Malaysia.

When Datuk Seri Najib Razak became Prime Minister of Malaysia in April 2009, he announced the 1Malaysia Transformation Plans, and the war against corruption was listed as one of the seven NKRAs (National Key Result Areas).

He announced “Big Results” as an important methodology to realise the National Transformation Plans.

Najib has succeeded beyond expectations in achieving “Big Results”, for his RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” twin mega scandals have reached global scale, catapulting the nation to its first global financial scandals in the world.

Something is very wrong with our national integrity system when seven separate countries are investigating into the 1MDB global multi-billion ringgit embezzlement, money-laundering and corruption but the RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” scandals are completely exonerated by the Attorney-General of the country. Read the rest of this entry »

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I will tour the country to hear views whether Guan Eng should resign as Penang Chief Minister or take leave facing corruption charges by the Najib government

Former Law Minister, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim said that going by the RM1 million bail for Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, if the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is charged, he will attract a RM1 billion bail.

If Najib is given the same MACC (Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission) treatment as Guan Eng in connection with the corruption allegation for his RM2.8 million bungalow, the Prime Minister would be questioned 16.4 years for his RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal.
This is because Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal is 1,500 times bigger than Guan Eng’s RM2.8 million bungalow allegation, and if Najib is given the same MACC treatment as Guan Eng where the Penang Chief Minister was questioned for some 30 hours for four days, Najib will have to be questioned 1,500 x 4 days, yielding 6,000 days. This works out to 16.4 years – imagine Najib going in and out of MACC office to be questioned for 16 years and 4 months, from wake-up in the morning to retirement for sleep at night, and doing nothing else!

A hot topic for the last two days is whether Guan Eng should resign as Penang Chief Minister or take leave facing corruption charges by the Najib government. Read the rest of this entry »

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Challenge to UMNO Ministers to cite just one case that I had been anti-Malay or anti-Islam in my 50 years in politics or they should stop their politics of lies and hatred and focus on how to unite and build an united, great, just and prosperous Malaysia

The statement by the UMNO Minister for Rural and Regional Development, Datuk Ismail Sabri Yaakob in Sungai Besar is typical of the lies and politics of hatred spouted by UMNO leaders, even in this holy month of Ramadan.

Ismail accused former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir of working with a group who wants to reject Malay special rights and Islam, and said that if Mahahtir is “with Lim Guan Eng and Lim Kit Siang that speak for itself”.

I challenge UMNO Ministers to cite just one case that I had been anti-Malay or anti-Islam in my 50 years in politics or they should stop their politics of lies and hatred and focus on how to unite Malaysians of diverse races and religions in the country to build a great, just and prosperous Malaysia.

I can cite a list of the racist speeches by Ismail and other UMNO leaders, including Ismail’s infamous call to Malays last year to boycott Chinese businesses, but can they cite just one instance of my being anti-Malay or anti-Islam in my 50 years in Malaysian politics?

I do not think there is another political leader who had suffered more sustained and greater demonisation in the past 50 years than myself, as I had been accused of all sorts of dastardly and evil deeds especially through the Barisan Nasional-owned and controlled mainstream media.

I have been accused of being anti-Malay, anti-Islam, anti-Malay Rulers, anti-Chinese-educated Chinese, anti-English-educated Chinese, anti-Indian, an agent of Russian KGB, agent of American CIA, agent of British M16, agent of Australian Intelligence Services, and a host of unimaginable allegations.

I had been accused of causing the May 13, 1969 riots in Kuala Lumpur, of having led illegal processions through the streets of Kuala Lumpur hurling anti-Malay slogans and provocations and even urinating in the house of the then Selangor Mentri Besar, Datuk Harun Idris, in Kampong Baru in Kuala Lumpur, as was portrayed in the film “Tanda Putera”!

But I was never in Kuala Lumpur during the May 13, 1969 days as I had flown to Kota Kinabalu early on the morning of May 13, 1969 to help in the belated election campaigning in Sabah and Sarawak and I learnt about the tragic events of the May 13, 1969 riots in Kuala Lumpur when I was whispered the shocking news while speaking at a massive public rally at the Sabah capital. Read the rest of this entry »

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I volunteer my services to Najib to nail the “lie” once and for all, provided he could prove to me that allegations that RM2.6 billion “donation” originated from 1MDB was a lie!

I tweeted “Najib’s strategists world’s dumbest unable to nail a lie!” when I read Malaysiakini’s report “PM’s aide: RM2.6b came from 1MDB a lie by Mahathir” last evening.

When Malaysiakini uploaded the Bernama report “Senators urge Mahathir to apologise to Najib”, it confirmed that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has a most dim-witted team of strategists, lacking nimbleness of wit and mind or the ability to improvise on-the-run, but continuing to expect UMNO/BN Ministers, leaders and MPs to follow a script which had already been discredited and should have been chucked into the garbage can.

Najib may have among the world’s highest-paid professionals in his propaganda and psychological warfare team, but what could they produce when they are headed by loud-mouthed and low-IQ czars for strategic media communications? Read the rest of this entry »

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DAP has temporarily weathered the three-week political typhoon to eliminate Lim Guan Eng as DAP Penang Chief Minister with the allegation of corruption to distract attention from Malaysia’s first global corruption scandal with the PAC report on 1MDB on Thursday

DAP has temporarily weathered the three-week political typhoon to eliminate the DAP Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng with the allegation of corruption to distract attention from Malaysia’s first global corruption scandal with the presentation of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report on 1MDB on Thursday.

This reminds me of the sudden tempest during the last general elections when there was a powerful and highly-financed operation to defeat Guan Eng in the Air Puteh state assembly seat, where money flowed like water in the constituency, with reported RM40 million spent to buy Guan Eng’s defeat in the 13,848-voter constituency and remove him as Penang Chief Minister.

Those people who were responsible for the gala time for Air Puteh voters – free food, drinks, lucky draw, generous angpows and even entertainment activities provided for FREE – are now back in operation, this time to remove Guan Eng as Penang Chief Minister on the ground of corruption in the RM2.8 million purchase of his bungalow. Read the rest of this entry »

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Ariff: Malays must shed fairy tales, false notions

Joe Fernandez | April 5, 2016
Free Malaysia Today

Mahathir, like the Malays, was wrong to assume that Najib Razak’s nobility can be equated to him doing what’s right and carrying out noble deeds
ariff,mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR: Raub MP Mohd Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz, taking to his blog, said that he was present at Dataran Merdeka on April 1 when former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, at 91, addressed the crowd at an anti-GST rally. “The gathering this time was not as large as that during the Bersih rallies although the issue was also about Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.”

“The weather was too hot and besides, the GST issue was too technical for many unlike what Bersih was all about.”

The people, added the MP, prefer the big picture. “The people want to see Najib out from Putrajaya and replaced by a government that’s aware of the environment.”

As Mahathir spoke, said Ariff, he couldn’t help but feel that Najib was also a result of the former Prime Minister’s fault. “It was a mistake on his part to believe that Najib comes from a noble family and will naturally do what’s right.” Read the rest of this entry »

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After Teoh Beng Hock outrage and tragedy, is MACC determined it will never again become a political pawn to persecute the Opposition?

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) must convince Malaysians that after the Teoh Beng Hock outrage and tragedy, for which there is still no closure for the Teoh Beng Hock family and justice-loving Malaysians for Beng Hock’s death at MACC premises, it is determined never again to become a political pawn to persecute the Opposition.

UMNO/BN leaders have accused the DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, of corruption in the RM2.8 million purchase of his bungalow resulting from the sale of Taman Manggis land to KLDIC.

Two wrongs do not make a right, and if Guan Eng is guilty of corruption in his RM2.8 million bungalow purchase, the full rigours of the law should be applied. However, the maxim that a person is innocent until proven guilty must be scrupulously observed.

In this case, the allegation of Guan Eng’s corruption over the sale of Taman Manggis land to KLDIC has proved to be baseless, as the Taman Manggis land had been sold by the Penang State Government via open tender to the highest bidder.

Even the allegation that the DAP-led Penang State Government had “robbed” the people of low-cost housing in Taman Manggis had easily been debunked with the declassification of the State Exco minutes of the Gerakan State Government in 2005 and 2007 which showed that the government back then had no plans whatsoever to build homes for the poor. In contrast, the DAP-led Penang State Government had commenced a separate low, low-medium cost and affordable housing less than two kilometres away in Jalan S.P. Chelliah which is nearly 10 times the size of the land in Taman Manggis.

While two wrongs do not make a right, this cannot be an argument to justify MACC abuses of power. Read the rest of this entry »

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Dust over corruption allegations against Guan Eng’s RM2.8 million bungalow clearing up while monstrous sandstorm over Najib’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” twin mega scandals building up to explosion point

After a two-week relentless barrage by UMNO/BN strategists and cybertroopers, fully supported by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the police, the dust over the corruption allegations against DAP Secretary-General and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng based on half-truths, lies and downright falsehoods, are clearing up while on the other hand, a monstrous sandstorm over Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” twin mega scandals is building up to explosion point.

UMNO/BN allegations that Guan Eng had purchased the bungalow as a result of corruption arising from the sale of Taman Manggis land to KLDIC has been proved to be baseless, as the Taman Manggis land had been sold by the Penang State Government via open tender to the highest bigger.

The other UMNO/BN allegation that the Penang State Government had “robbed” the people of low-cost housing has also been proved to be baseless, with the declassification of the State Exco minutes of the Gerakan State Government in 2005 and 2007 which showed that the Gerakan State Government at the time had rejected the use of the Taman Manggis land for People’s Housing Project (PPR) and proposed instead a mixed project of shophouses and government quarters. In 2012, the DAP-led Penang government had commenced a separate low, low-medium cost and affordable housing less than 2 kilometers away in Jalan S P Chelliah which is nearly 10 times the size of the land in Taman Manggis.

The MACC and Police have swung into immediate action, with some 15 MACC officers descending on the Penang Chief Minister’s office in Komtar, conducting a search for some four hours and carting away boxes of documents.

If the MACC had shown similar alacrity in investigating Najib’s twin mega scandals, MACC should be sending hundreds of officers to swarm and besiege the Prime Minister’s Offices in Putrajaya, and subject individuals involved in the twin mega scandals to intensive interrogation sessions, at least round-the-clock 12-hour interrogation sessions.

Would MACC dare to interrogate the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, on a round-the-clock 12-hour sessions? Read the rest of this entry »

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Lim Guan Eng: Penang’s crusading chief minister

Wataru Yoshida
Nikkei Asian Review
March 24, 2016

PENANG, Malaysia Lim Guan Eng, chief minister of Malaysia’s northern state of Penang, is invigorating the local economy through reforms and may inspire the country to set aside its protectionism to achieve sustainable growth.

On Feb. 8, Lim was celebrating the Chinese New Year with his supporters in a meeting hall in Penang. The hall was surrounded by about 30 men carrying placards denouncing him. “It is clear they have no respect,” Lim said. “If they had an issue to protest about, they could have done it at any other time.”

Lim is the only state chief minister of Chinese descent in Malaysia, which maintains a Bumiputera (“son of the land”) policy favoring ethnic Malays. Moreover, he comes from an opposition party. Eight years have passed since he became chief minister, and verbal attacks against him are still an everyday occurrence.

He has earned a reputation as a reformer. He introduced an open bidding process for state projects, abolishing the practice of awarding contracts preferentially to ethnic Malays and opening the door to all, including foreign and ethnic Chinese companies.

The state government handed over the operation of a golf course it owns to a Japanese company after the project was put out for tender. The decision led protesters to storm the golf course, but the company that won the order was relieved by Lim’s words: “To increase foreign visitors, foreign companies’ wisdom is needed.” Users of the golf course have grown 30% since the Japanese company took over the operation.

In another reform, he introduced performance-based pay for state employees, including those doing menial street sweeping jobs. “My dream is to transform Penang into an international and intelligent city. To wake up, we must be clean,” Lim said. The heaps of garbage littering the roadsides disappeared in a year. Read the rest of this entry »

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Guan Eng is an open book prepared to answer all questions about his RM2.8 million bungalow purchase while Najib is a closed book running way from questions about his twin mega scandals!

There are many reasons why Datuk Seri Najib Razak should step down as Prime Minister.
The first is of course the imposition of Goods and Services Tax (GST) which has caused great hardships to low-income Malaysians sandwiched between falling incomes and rising cost of living.

There are many other reasons why Najib should step down as Prime Minister, including:

• Catapulting Malaysia to the stratosphere and internationally regarded as among the top ten nations in the world infamous for global corruption because of the RM55 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” twin mega scandals.

• Refusal to come full and clean in accordance with the principles of accountability, transparency, democracy and good governance about the twin mega scandals, and even Parliament cannot be a venue to ask questions about Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal. After a year of adverse international publicity, Malaysians and the world still do not have answers to basic questions like: Where the RM4.2 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal bank accounts from 2011 to 2014 came from and where the monies have gone to.

• Failure to sue international publications, especially Wall Street Journal and Australian Broadcasting Corporation, the former for the revelation of RM2.6 billion donations in Najib’s personal banking accounts and the latter for the latest revelation that donations deposited into Najib’s personal accounts were not just RM2.6 billion but exceeded RM4.2 billion from 2011 to 2014. Read the rest of this entry »

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