Archive for category Sabah

Can Pakatan Rakyat rise to the occasion to decide the political future not only of Sabah and Sarawak but the whole of Malaysia in the 14GE?

In my media statements in the past three days, I have argued the case, backed with facts and figures, that the three Pakatan Rakyat parties of DAP, PKR and PAS achieved their best parliamentary and state assembly results during their tripartite co-operation in the 1999, 2008 and 2013 General Elections.

This is not only the case for the Pakatan Rakyat parties in Peninsular Malaysia (which was the focus of my statements in the past three days), the same effect applies also in Sabah and Sarawak underlining the benefits of such co-operation among the Pakatan Rakyat parties.

Pakatan Raykat faces two unique challenges in Sabah and Sarawak.

The first is the accusation that the component parties, DAP, PKR and PAS are not ‘local’ parties but are merely extensions of the ‘main’ parties which are based in Peninsular Malaysia and are guilty of being peninsular-centric. As such, they cannot adequately represent the interests of Sabah and Sarawak.

The second is the much shorter history of cooperation among opposition parties, including between DAP, PKR and PAS in both states. Read the rest of this entry »

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Impian Sabah – like Impian Sarawak is an integral part of DAP’s commitment in pursuit of the Malaysian Dream to create a Malaysia for all Malaysians

In the 13th General Election, Pakatan Rakyat had targetted 33 seats from the 3 UMNO-BN “fixed deposit” states of Johor, Sarawak and Sabah. We failed to achieve our targets and won only 14 seats, with Sabah winning the least – 3 parliamentary seats – Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Penampang.

We were however able to “destroy” the “fixed deposit” moniker for Johor and Sarawak, by increasing our votes received significantly. For Johor, Pakatan Rakyat was able to increase our popular votes by 10.3% to 45%, while for Sarawak, we increased by 8.9% to 37.3%.

However, for Sabah, we were only able to increase our votes by 3.4% to 35.9%.

Hence it is undeniable that Pakatan Rakyat must pull out all stops to increase our electoral support in the state with 26 parliamentary seats (including Labuan).

Sabah should logically be the state most ripe for change given the degree of corruption and mismanagement, the poverty level and the lack of employment opportunities as well as the infiltration of illegal immigrants with the associated social and security problems.

Despite being among the richest state in natural resources, as well as being the richest state per capita income in the early 1970s, Sabah is now the state with the highest poverty rates in the entire country. As late as 2010, 43% of Sabahan households do not have access to clean or treated water while nearly 20% do not have access to electricity.
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Najib perlu memberi kenyataan kementerian di Parlimen pada hari Isnin ini tentang kelonggaran kawalan keselamatan Esscom sehingga menyebabkan seorang pelancong dari Taiwan ditembak mati dan isterinya diculik oleh kumpulan yang disyaki sebagai pengganas Abu Sayyaf di pulau Pom Pom berhampiran Semporna

Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak perlu memberi kenyataan kementerian di Parlimen pada hari Isnin ini tentang kelonggaran kawalan keselamatan Esscom sehingga menyebabkan seorang pelancong Cina ditembak mati dan isterinya diculik oleh kumpulan yang disyaki sebagai pengganas Abu Sayyaf di pulau Pom Pom berhampiran Semporna awal pagi ini.

Najib perlu memaklumkan kepada Parlimen tindakan apa yang akan diambil oleh Esscom untuk mengetatkan kawalan keselamatan supaya kejadian pembunuhan dan penculikan oleh para pengganas Filipina tidak akan berulang lagi di Sabah.

Laporan awal menyatakan bahawa sekumpulan lelaki lengkap bersenjata telah tiba di pusat peranginan Mandur Pom Pom dan menyerbu restoran di pusat peranginan tersebut yang ketika itu hanya dilanggani oleh pasangan dari Taiwan terbabit dan lalu melepaskan beberapa tembakan.

Mangsa tembakan Lim Min Hsu, 57, telah ditembak dua kali pada bahagian dada dan rusuk. Beliau meninggal di tempat kejadian. Isterinya, Lim Min Hsu, 57, dilarikan oleh kumpulan bersenjata tersebut dengan sebuah bot kecil ke arah Filipina selatan.
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Masanya sudah tiba untuk kita berusaha bersama demi merealisasikan Impian Malaysia, dan menyelamatkan rakyat daripada ‘Mimpi Ngeri Malaysia’ yang panjang ini

Masanya sudah tiba untuk kita berusaha bersama demi merealisasikan Impian Malaysia, dan menyelamatkan rakyat daripada ‘Mimpi Ngeri Malaysia’ yang panjang ini

Saya bangun untuk mengambil bahagian dalam perbahasan peringkat Jawatankuasa Bajet 2014 mengenai Jabatan Perdana Menteri dan Jabatan-jabatan yang lain termasuk Majlis Keselamatan Negera (MKN), Jabatan Perpaduan Negara dan Integrasi Nasional (JPNIN), Biro Tatanegara, Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM), Jabatan Peguam Negara, Pejabat-pejabat Setiausaha Persekutuan, Sabah dan Sarawak.

Pertama sekali, saya ingin merakamkan ucapan takziah kepada keluarga Allahyarham Mohd Raffli Abdul Malik yang mati ditembak di Kuantan, Pahang; keluarga Allahyarham Norazita Abu Talib, yang menjadi mangsa rompakan Ambank tempoh hari; serta Allahyarham Hussain Ahmad Najadi, yang turut menjadi mangsa tembakan beberapa lama dahulu.

Kesemua mangsa jenayah ini adalah korban-korban tidak berdosa akibat daripada kelalaian dan kerakusan pihak yang berkenaaan mengejar kuasa dan jawatan, sehingga mengabaikan persoalan integriti, tanggungjawab kepada negara dan impian besar rakyat Malaysia.

Saya juga ingin merakamkan ucapan takziah kepada keluarga mangsa warga Taiwan dalam tragedi pembunuhan dan penculikan di Pulau Pum-Pum beberapa hari sudah. Ternyata Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) tidaklah efektif dalam menjaga keselamatan negara sungguhpun ia ditubuhkan sebagai tindakbalas terhadap peristiwa pencerobohan di Lahad Datu. Walaupun Ketua Polis Negara dan Menteri Dalam Negeri menyifatkan ini sebagai kejadian terpencil, nyawa yang hilang pasti tidak dapat diganti. Keyakinan rakyat terhadap kesungguhan pihak berkuasa dalam melaksanakan tugas menjaga keselamatan negara dan rakyat jelata sekali lagi berkecai.
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DAP ready to work with Sabah and Sarawak leaders to fight for rights

The Malaysian Insider
November 17, 2013

DAP today said it was willing to work together and cooperate with state government leaders in Sabah and Sarawak to ensure that they retained their equal status in the Federation of Malaysia.

Pasty secretary-general Lim Guan Eng attacked Umno’s arrogance in assuming that they were the masters and everyone else had to submit to them.

He slammed Umno’s racist and extremist ideologies, saying it had warped and twisted the minds of the party’s young leaders and left them with the wrong perception.

Lim said Umno’s young leaders had been influenced by the party’s policies to the extent that they assumed the party were the masters and others had to be subservient. Read the rest of this entry »

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Just as 13GE ended Johore as BN “fixed deposit” state, PR must end Sabah and Sarawak as “fixed deposit” states to reach Putrajaya in 14GE

One of the highlights of the 13th General Elections was to transform Johore, one of the three “fixed deposit” states of Barisan Nasional with Sabah and Sarawak, into a Pakatan Rakyat front-line state.

During the last general elections, former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir not only led the campaign to ask the people of Johore to ensure that Gelang Patah become my “kubur”, Barisan Nasional leaders talking about making Johore into an “zero-opposition” state.

In the event, Johore achieved the greatest political breakthrough for Pakatan Rakyat in the 13GE, increasing from one parliamentary to five parliamentary seats (500% increase) and six State Assembly seats to 18 State Assembly seats (300% increase). In popular votes, Pakatan Rakyat achieved the biggest increase of 10.3% from 34.7% in the 12GE in 2008 to 45% in the 13GE – transforming Johore from a BN “fixed deposit” state into a PR “front-line” state. Read the rest of this entry »

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Najib should give Ministerial statement in Parliament on the Esscom security lapses resulting in a Taiwanese tourist shot dead and his wife abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf terrorists on Pom Pom island off Semporna

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak should give a Ministerial statement in Parliament on Monday on the Esscom security lapses resulting in a Taiwanese tourist shot dead and his wife abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf terrorists on Pom Pom island off Semporna early this morning.

Najib should tell Parliament what actions would be taken by Esscom to tighten security to ensure that such killing and kidnap by Filipino terrorists would not be allowed to recur in Sabah.

Initial reports indicated a group of heavily armed men arrived at the Mandur Pom Pom island resort and stormed into the resort restaurant, where the Taiwanese couple were the only customers and fired several shots.

The victim Lim Min Hsu, 57, was shot twice in the chest and ribs. He died at the scene. His wife, Lim Min Hsu, 57, was taken away by the gunmen who fled in a pump boat towards southern Philippines. Read the rest of this entry »

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‘Allah’ curbs hurting M’sia’s moderate Muslim image

Stuart Grudgings
Malaysiakini/Reuters
Oct 23, 2013

Malaysia’s self-styled image as a global leader of moderate Islam has been undermined by a court ruling that only Muslims can use the word ‘Allah’ to refer to God, with a growing number of Muslim scholars and commentators condemning the decision.

A Malaysian court ruled last week that the word was “not an integral part of the faith in Christianity”, overturning a previous ruling that allowed a Malay-language Roman Catholic newspaper to use the word.

Since then, confusion has reigned over the interpretation of the ruling, with government ministers, lawyers and Muslim authorities giving widely diverging views on its scope.

Critics of the decision have said it casts a chill on religious rights in Muslim-majority Malaysia, which has substantial minorities of ethnic Chinese and Indians.

Commentators in some countries that practice Islam more strictly than Malaysia have condemned the ruling, arguing that the word ‘Allah’ has been used by different faiths for centuries. Read the rest of this entry »

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Don’t secede, just leave BN!

– Sakmongkol AK47
The Malaysian Insider
October 18, 2013

We do not have to wait for GE14 to oust Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Barisan Nasional (BN). Nor have we reached a stage where conscientious lawmakers forget about being partisan and agree on a vote of no confidence against the PM. BN presently has the numbers and has the support of an equally partisan speaker.

Any motion of no confidence will be defeated. Jeffrey Kitingan’s talk about secession is super brave. It can be seditious or can be treated so. If the government wants to, it can treat Kitingan’s proposal as seditious. Umno and BN foot soldiers will likely do what they normally do – make police reports against Jeffrey and others dong the same brave talk.

If you look at point 7, it says there is no right of secession. What do Sabahans and Sarawakians want? Since secession is not possible, the next best thing is to kick out the Federal government which is the source of much of the East Malaysians’ discontent. Work with people who can make that possible. Read the rest of this entry »

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Winds of discontent over Borneo

– Murray Hunter
The Malaysian Insider/Asia Sentinel
October 08, 2013

Since Malaysia’s general election last May, Umno has been attempting to redefine its electoral base to include Bumiputera or native groups across the country, most of them in East Malaysia in Sabah and Sarawak, and not just ethnic Malays.

Malays and Muslim Bumiputera today account for 59.7% of the population, with non-Muslim Bumiputeras comprising another 7.6%. That is expected to rise to 67.9% by the next election. Umno strategists believe that if the party can successfully capture this constituency, it would garner enough votes for the party to continue governing Malaysia into the foreseeable future, simply continuing to disregard the votes of Chinese and Indian voters on the Malaysian peninsula, who turned soundly against the Barisan Nasional, or national ruling coalition in the May election.

A recent statement by Sabah Mulfti Bungsu @Aziz Jaafar calling for the government to classify all Muslim indigenous people as “Malays” seems to support this view. This has attracted criticism from some local components of the ruling state Barisan Nasional coalition, as it ignores the differing histories and elements of cultural identities of peoples of the peninsula and Borneo, and creates many complications around native land ownership because of provisions in state constitutions.

However, this strategy faces problems, with rising discontent in Sabah and Sarawak becoming more and more public. On the eve of a conference organized by the Borneo Heritage Foundation (BHF), former Sabah Chief Minister Harris Salleh personally entered the debate through the local media, saying all Sabah leaders are responsible for the current situation. Read the rest of this entry »

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Malaysia and the non-fulfilment of two agreements with Sabah and Sarawak

– Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah
The Malaysian Insider
September 26, 2013

It is my singular honour to have been invited to such an august gathering as this. I am privileged to have this opportunity to talk about the birth of Malaysia. Allow me, therefore, to record my gratitude and appreciation to our host, the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, for the invitation in the first instance.

The timing is apt, coming as it does eight days after the 50th anniversary of her founding. It is also relevant given that Malaysia is facing unprecedented political and economic challenges. These challenges are formidable and, if left unsolved, could cause damage to the economy and political integrity of Malaysia.

The legitimacy of the formation of Malaysia is based on the fact that at the time of her formation, Malaya was the only country that was independent and had a democratic constitution, with institutions supporting such a constitution, within this region.

Her economic foundation justifiably gave Malayans, at that time, a vision that we would one day be the shining example in South East Asia. It was with this perspective that Malaya, under the leadership of Tunku Abdul Rahman, took the initiative in helping to maintain stability in the region. This was at a time when British colonialism was forced by international opinion and in particular by Asia, to retreat as the colonial power without leaving a vacuum. Read the rest of this entry »

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Anwar tells of special task force to issue ICs to foreigners in Sabah

by Lee Shi-Ian
The Malaysian Insider
September 19, 2013

The Royal Commission of Inquiry on Sabah’s illegal immigrants problem today heard from Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that indiscriminate issuance of Malaysian identity cards had begun during the time of second Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein.

Anwar, the Deputy Prime Minister from 1993 until his dramatic sacking in 1998, Ibrahim, told the Inquiry that between 1972 and 1984, there was an influx of refugees fleeing fighting in the southern Philippines.

The refugees were granted identity cards indiscriminately between 1979 and 1990, said Anwar, who said a special task force was formed by the National Security Council for this purpose.

“The task force is still active today,” he said. Read the rest of this entry »

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Malaysia at 50 : Inclusive development, nation-building and human rights

– Simon Sipaun
The Malaysian Insider
September 15, 2013

In two days’ time on 16th September, 2013 Malaysia will turn 50 years old. For a country, 50 years of age is very young, although it is old for a human being. It does make me feel my age to realise that I am 25 years older than Malaysia.

I have reached the age described by George Burns as the time “where everything hurts, what does not hurt does not work”. The reality is “today is the oldest we have ever been, yet the youngest we will ever be”.

The theme of this RTD is Malaysia 50 years since formation: Inclusive development, nation-building and human rights. Indeed it is a very wide subject. It is a three-in-one. The three are closely inter-related.

Recognising Malaysia Day

In 2007, I used to see billboards at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport with the slogan “celebrating 50 years of nationhood” written on them. Of course, the truth is in 2007, Malaysia was only 44 years old. This is a classic case in which history is the distortion of facts by people in power.

I used to point this out at the slightest opportunity in the past but it felt like it was just a voice in the wilderness. I had the impression that the federal government was trying to make the people, especially Malaysians living in Sabah, believe that the formation of Malaysia was on 31st August, 1957. Read the rest of this entry »

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Sabah Illegal ICs: The Buck Stops with Mahathir

By Kee Thuan Chye
Yahoo! News
13th Sept 2013

Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad drew considerable laughter last Wednesday when he gave testimony at the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on illegal immigrants in Sabah. One hopes the laughter was laced with irony and scepticism.

Irony and scepticism because it seems unlikely, going by reports of the proceedings, that anyone listening to some of the things he said could find them acceptable.

The most unacceptable was his saying that he had not heard about Project IC or Project M (for Mahathir) until only recently, and that the Government could not be held responsible for the issuance of illegal identity cards (ICs) to immigrants who had entered Sabah illegally.

“These illegal immigrants may have been issued the identity cards erroneously or it may have been the wrongdoing of certain low-ranking civil servants,” he said, expressly passing the blame on to others. Read the rest of this entry »

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Using Dr Mahathir’s logic

– The Malaysian Insider
September 11, 2013

Raise your hand if you expected Dr Mahathir Mohamad to have a conscience attack and blame himself and the Barisan Nasional (BN) government for Project IC – that not-so-secret initiative to hand identity cards to thousands of illegal immigrants in Sabah.

Well, if you didn’t raise your hand, you are in good company because the former prime minister does not do well before a Royal Commission of Inquiry.

He had an acute case of amnesia when he appeared before the commission looking into the V. K. Lingam video clip in 2007 and there was every chance that he was going to hit the didn’t-do-it can’t remember-it mode today.

Why? Because the former prime minister does not lose sleep just because millions think he is being charitable with the truth. In his own perverse way, he must always come out on top. Read the rest of this entry »

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East Malaysia: primus inter pares

By James Chin, Guest Contributor
New Mandala
4 September 2013

Last Saturday Malaysia celebrated her 56th year of independence in Dataran Merdeka in central Kuala Lumpur.

Many people in East Malaysia, however, may not be celebrating. Why? 31th August is the date of independence for Malaya but not the Malaysian federation. The fact is, the federation of Malaysia was proclaimed on 16th September 1963, and the federation of Malaysia is 50 years old, not 56. This simple fact is often ignored by Putrajaya much to the annoyance of East Malaysians.

When Najib Tun Razak became Malaysia’s prime minister in 2009, he declared that 16thSeptember is be called “Malaysia Day” and added it as a public holiday in the country. Prime Minister Najib’s concession was no doubt linked to the 2008 general elections when voters from East Malaysia helped Barisan Nasional to retain power when voters in the peninsula abandoned the BN.

While recognition of 16th September is welcomed in East Malaysia, the bigger issues for most East Malaysians are the ‘20 Points’ and political recognition that East Malaysia should treated as an equal partner, not merely two of the 13 states in the federation. Read the rest of this entry »

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Will There Be Justice for Sabah?

Kee Thuan Chye
20th August 2013

The recent testimonies at the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on illegal immigrants in Sabah have certainly been revealing – to some of us, shocking.

To be sure, prior to the RCI, we had heard rumours and allegations of identity cards being given to illegal immigrants, under what has been called Project IC or Project M (after ex-prime minister Mahathir Mohamad), so that they could vote for the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) and keep it in power, but hearing it now from the mouths of people involved in the project confirms our fear that our country’s citizenships have indeed been given away cheaply and illegally.

One of the witnesses, former Sandakan chief district officer Hassnar Ebrahim who first gave out forms in 1981 to Filipino and Indonesian illegal immigrants to allow them to apply for ICs, gave damning indication that Mahathir must have given his approval to the project because an enterprise of such a magnitude would have required it.

Besides, Hassnar said he attended a “secret meeting” in the 1980s that involved officers from the Prime Minister’s Department, the Immigration Department and the police, and at this meeting, then home affairs minister Megat Junid Megat Ayub said Mahathir had approved the project.

It was proposed that 130,000 to 150,000 names be added to the Sabah electoral roll to boost the Muslim vote. Although there were protests from one of the officers present, the proposal was passed. Hassnar himself was given 30,000 HNR3 forms to take back to Sabah. These forms were for the immigrants to apply for blue ICs. Read the rest of this entry »

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DAP leaders and members to start preparing for the 14th General Elections with two-fold objective – to effect change both at the Federal and Sabah state government levels

Sabah did not achieve our Pakatan Rakyat objectives of winning at least one third of the 26 parliamentary seats in Sabah so that in the three “fixed deposit” states of Sabah, Sarawak and Johore, PR can win 33 parliamentary seats to help Pakatan Rakyat to provide the final cluster of parliamentary seats to win Putrajaya for Pakatan Rakyat.

In the event, the three “fixed deposit” states of Sabah, Sarawak and Johore won for Pakatan Rakyat a total of 14 Parliamentary seats (Sabah 3, Sarawak 6 and Johore 5), out of a total of 83 seats, i.e. 16.9% instead of the 33.3% targetted.

Although this target for the three “fixed deposit” states of Sabah, Sarawak and Johore to achieve a total of 33 parliamentary seats for Pakatan Rakyat had not been realised, one ineluctable fact to emerge from the 13GE is that none of the three states of Sabah, Sarawak and Johore can now be regarded as a “fixed deposit” state for Barisan Nasional and the contest and competition for the hearts and minds of the people of Sabah, Sarawak and Johore are now fully out in the open arena.

For Sabah, a lively and strong Opposition presence has now been restored to the Sabah State Assembly after an absence of two decades, with 11 State Assemblymen (DAP 4 and PKR 7) from Pakatan Rakyat and one from Star. Read the rest of this entry »

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Sekiranya Najib mahu menang perang persepsi, pentadbirannya harus berhenti mencipta Malaysia yang Kafkaesque

Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak semalam memberitahu perhimpunan pertama dengan petugas Jabatan Perdana Menteri selepas Pilihan Raya Umum ke-13 bahawa kerajaan perlu meningkatkan usaha untuk menangani persepsi negatif dan memberi amaran kepada penjawat awam supaya tidak leka dengan berlebihan bermain politik.

Sekiranya Najib mahu memenangi perang persepsi, pentadbirannya harus berhenti mencipta Malaysia yang Kafkaesque.

Dinamakan sempena penulis Franz Kafka, “Kafkaesque” digunakan untuk menggambarkan apa saja yang tidak masuk akal, tiada warna dan tiada titik rujukan. Ia menggambarkan sesuatu yang sangat rumit tanpa sebab, terutamanya merujuk kepada birokrasi.

Karakter Kafkaesque pemerintahan Najib ditonjolkan melalui ucapannya semalam, memberi amaran kepada penjawat awam supaya tidak dilekakan dengan berlebihan bermain politik sedangkan sesetengah penjawat awam sememangnya bersalah berlebihan bermain politik atas perintah tuan politik mereka pada bulan pertama selepas pilihan raya umum. Read the rest of this entry »

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If Najib wants to win the war of perception, his administration should stop creating a Kafkaesque Malaysia

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday told the first morning assembly with staff of the Prime Minister’s Department after the 13th General Election that the government must intensify efforts to address negative perceptions and cautioned civil servants against being distracted by excessive politicking.

If Najib wants to win the war of perception, his administration should stop creating a Kafkaesque Malaysia.

Named after the author Franz Kafka, “Kafkaesque” is typically used to describe anything that makes no sense, has no colours and has no points of reference. It describes something that is horribly complicated for no reason, usually in reference to bureaucracy.

The Kafkaesque character of the Najib premiership is immediately highlighted by his speech yesterday, warning civil servants against being distracted by excessive politicking when some civil servants have been guilty exactly of excessive politicking at the behest of their political masters in the first month after the 13th general elections. Read the rest of this entry »

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