Archive for category UMNO
Dr. Mahathir’s Attempt at Redemption
Posted by Kit in Mahathir, Najib Razak, UMNO on Tuesday, 29 March 2016
Koon Yew Yin
29th March 2016
Like many Malaysians who followed the Citizen’s Declaration Congress which was televised live yesterday by our internet media (thanks to our brave independent media for daring to put it out for public viewing!), I thought that the star of the daylong event was Dr Mahathir.
Although the oldest speaker there by a big margin, at 90 years old, he appeared the youngest and smartest of the group of 19 speakers! We could all see that his mind is still sharp; his wit is one of a kind; and his political instincts still intact. His was also the most enjoyable speech to listen to.
Earlier, UMNO’s Secretary General, Tengku Adnan put out a stern warning to UMNO members not to attend the Shah Alam gathering as he saw it as a platform to destroy an institution and create chaos while serving to achieve certain individuals’ goals and agenda.
What silliness coming from someone who is leader in a so-called democratic party. This was a stupid action and shows the extent of desperation and authoritarianism found in the party’s leadership. I am sure despite his warning tens if not hundreds of thousands of UMNO members will have tuned to the websites to view the programme.
And if Tengku Adnan himself and the other apple polishers and “Cash is King” followers in UMNO were also listening to Dr. Mahathir’s speech – as I think many of them would be doing – I hope they not only feel fearful but also feel ashamed for blindly supporting the Prime Minister in this period of our political history. Read the rest of this entry »
Success of UMNO/BN strategists in distracting national attention from the second political event of the year – the March 27 Citizens’ Declaration “People’s Congress” in Shah Alam bridging racial, religious and political divides to Save Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Corruption, DAP, Najib Razak, UMNO on Sunday, 27 March 2016
Give credit where credit is due.
This is the first time that the expensive coterie of strategists and propagandists of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak have scored a bull’s-eye in their propaganda offensives as they had been firing blanks all these years.
Their success is to distract national attention from the second political event of the year – the March 27 Citizens’ Declaration “People’s Congress” in Shah Alam this evening, bridging racial, religious and political divides for Save Malaysia!
From the television time and pages of newspaper space in government and UMNO/BN owned or controlled printed media devoted to the issue in the past 10 days, one should be excused for thinking that Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s purchase of RM2.8 million bungalow is the biggest scandal not only in Malaysia but in the world – one thousand times bigger than Najib Razak’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal, when RM2.6 billion is about 1,000 times more than RM2.8 million!
This is not to say that a RM2.8 million corruption scandal involving a DAP leader is acceptable or excusable, but so far there is nothing to show that Guan Eng has a case of corruption in the purchase of the RM2.8 million bungalow to answer. Read the rest of this entry »
What is the whole fuss on the CM’s house about?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, DAP, UMNO on Sunday, 27 March 2016
P Dev Anand Pillai
Malaysiakini
25 Mar 2016
Everyone seems to be asking Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to go on leave, the question is why should he if he has done no wrong? Since when do we have a law which forces the willing seller of a property to sell one’s property at market price? Who determines the market price?
We have the freedom to contract in this country and that is what most of those who wield power in Putrajaya do when it comes to the huge and luxurious properties that they have amassed in their list of properties that they own.
If the seller chooses to sell at a certain price which the Valuation Department of the Inland Revenue Board thinks is below the market rate determined by its valuers, then the Department values the property at the market rate and determines the stamp duty payable, although the purchase price is lower than the so-called market price.
The Valuation Department always takes the higher amount. Therefore if the property is actually valued at about RM6.5 million as the dissidents seem to accuse the purchaser of escaping, then there must a clear reason for this.
Are all the properties in the famed Taman Manggis that expensive? Read the rest of this entry »
‘Don’t think I am a crook’: Malaysia’s Najib Razak lashes out at critics
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Tuesday, 22 March 2016
Lindsay Murdoch, South-East Asia correspondent
Sydney Morning Herald
March 20, 2016
Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak has declared he is not a crook despite refusing to explain how hundreds of millions of dollars turned up in his personal bank accounts.
“I will not take the people’s property, don’t think I am a crook … I am prime minister for the people,” he told a political rally in Kuantan, a city on the east coast of peninsular Malaysia.
Facing a growing movement aiming to remove him from office, 62 year-old Mr Najib lashed out at his critics, saying they are trying to tarnish his image while he struggled to defend people’s welfare.
“You already know me, I am not like what is said by people over there … if I had wanted to rob, I would have robbed the forest here long ago.”
Mr Najib has refused to clarify how almost $1 billion came to be deposited into his personal bank accounts in 2013 or to explain what happened to millions that remains unaccounted for. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib Razak: ‘Don’t think I am a crook’
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Tuesday, 22 March 2016
Jeevan Vasagar
Financial Times
March 20, 2016
Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak, mired in a growing international scandal over state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad, urged a rally of supporters at the weekend not to think of him as a “crook” as he fights to retain control of the ruling party.
Mr Najib said that he had never misappropriated public property. Malaysia’s government is battling pressure from global regulators over allegations of corruption linked to 1MDB. Read the rest of this entry »
Sanusi: Instead of Kit Siang, Umno should be wary of Jho Low
Posted by Kit in Corruption, DAP, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Saturday, 12 March 2016
Malaysiakini
11 March 2016
Umno veteran Sanusi Junid has hit out at some in Umno for demonising DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang, arguing instead that the person who is more dangerous to Umno and the country is billionaire Low Taek Jho, popularly known as Jho Low.
Jho Low has been linked to the 1MDB and RM2.6 billion scandals which are threatening to tear Umno apart.
“The Chinese that we should abhor, is Chinese like that Jho Low… and the scoundrels that are his friends, those are the ones we should hate, but that is the person which is seen as a good person (by Umno).
“If he is asked to go before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), he wants that his testimony be kept secret. Cannot be revealed to the people, because it might show his bad side,” he lamented in an exclusive interview with Blogger Din Turtle.
Sanusi sarcastically pointed out that despite being opposed to Umno for many years, Lim has not done Umno and the people any harm, hinting that Jho Low has perhaps had a hand in worse things. Read the rest of this entry »
Fears Over Malaysia Mecca Fund Test Najib’s Main Support Base
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Thursday, 10 March 2016
Shamim Adam
Bloomberg
March 10, 2016
For Malaysia’s 18 million Muslims, the ultimate in holy duty is to travel to Mecca, a pilgrimage that can require decades of saving. Now the fund that holds much of their money is under a cloud, a fresh challenge for a scandal-hit government.
Concerns over unpopular and unprofitable investments at the government-linked fund may erode loyalty to Prime Minister Najib Razak among his main supporters — rural-based ethnic Malays — and potentially do more damage than a clutch of political funding probes that have been running for months.
The premier has so far weathered the fallout from a $681 million donation investigation and alleged financial impropriety at state investment company 1Malaysia Development Bhd. But controversy over the Hajj fund known as Lembaga Tabung Haji — a statutory agency under the Prime Minister’s Department — cuts to the heart of religion in the secular Muslim nation, and the fund has almost 9 million depositors. Read the rest of this entry »
Dr M’s exit matters little to ordinary folk
Posted by Kit in Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, UMNO on Wednesday, 2 March 2016
Mariam Mokhtar | March 2, 2016
Free Malaysia Today
Comment
The disgruntled Umno-Baru members who are unhappy with Prime Minister Najib Razak should realise that he is not the only problem. The party itself is very much a problem.
Haven’t the rakyat been complaining about the excesses of Umno-Baru’s leaders and senior party members for decades? This is not an overnight occurrence. The problem has been around for at least four decades. Why have these disgruntled party members kept quiet for so long?
Former PM Mahathir Mohamad quit Umno-Baru because, he claimed, he could no longer recognise the party he once led. According to him, Umno-Baru’s sole function now is to protect Najib.
“I can’t be a member of such a party,” he said. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s Institutions Come Unraveled
Posted by Kit in Mahathir, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, UMNO on Wednesday, 2 March 2016
by Joshua Kurlantzick
Asia Unbound
Council on Foreign Relations
March 1, 2016
On Saturday, as the Diplomat reported, Malaysia’s former deputy prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, released a statement on Facebook warning that the country was slipping into dictatorship. Yassin lashed out against Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak for overseeing this reversal from democracy. “In the face of public outrage at his leadership, Najib is using all the power that he has to suppress the voice of the opposition and silence his critics,” warned Yassin. “We are really witnessing the collapse of democratic institutions and the emergence of a new dictatorship.”
This was not new criticism by Yassin, but it was probably his harshest attack on the prime minister to date. Najib sacked Muhyiddin Yassin last year, after earlier revelations in the 1MDB scandal reportedly prompted Yassin to call for Najib to step down. Yassin’s political career has been on a downward spiral ever since. Last week, already stripped of his Cabinet position, Yassin was also suspended as the deputy president of UMNO, the main party in the governing coalition. Read the rest of this entry »
Reverting to type, Dr Mahathir forces a high noon with Najib
Posted by Kit in DAP, Mahathir, Najib Razak, UMNO on Monday, 29 February 2016
NEWS ANALYSIS BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
29 February 2016
Reactions are coming in fast and furious from all quarters since Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced that he had quit Umno – the second time he had done so since 2008.
His supporters believe this announcement will shake Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak while his critics say good riddance to a has-been. The Malaysian Insider attempts to make sense of Dr Mahathir’s move and sort out the fact from the hyperbole.
The reality is Dr Mahathir knows that he no longer has the influence or the levers of power in Umno to force Najib’s resignation. Read the rest of this entry »
Nazri calls Muhyiddin a dog; Muhyiddin’s deputy calls Nazri a pig!
Posted by Kit in Martin Jalleh, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, UMNO on Friday, 26 February 2016
By Martin Jalleh
From greatest hope to scandal-ridden, a look at Najib’s 40 years in active politics
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Najib Razak, UMNO on Sunday, 21 February 2016
by Sheridan Mahavera
The Malaysian Insider
21 February 2016
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak commemorates 40 years in politics today but the milestone comes at the toughest period in a career, which has seen him go from being the hope of Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) to one now besieged with allegations of financial scandals.
Besides a growing rebellion among ordinary Umno members demanding he resign, the party’s sixth president is running a country where in the last general election, 52% of voters rejected the coalition he leads.
Najib’s own ambitions of being a reformer or “transformer” is in tatters after becoming embroiled in two financial scandals – 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the US$681 million (RM2.6 billion) “political donation” that flowed into his personal accounts. Read the rest of this entry »
I never said Muhyiddin is my “latest recruit – “University of UMNO graduates” who are UMNO cybertroopers should polish up their English and general comprehension
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, UMNO on Wednesday, 17 February 2016
Late last night, I was quite tickled by a flurry of headlines in news portals like “Muhyiddin says not Kit Siang’s latest recruit in ‘Save Malaysia’ campaign” (MMO); “I’m my own man, not your recruit, Muhyiddin tells Kit Siang” (Malaysiakini); “I’m nobody’s recruit, says Muhyiddin” (TMI) and “‘I am not Kit Siang’s recruit’, says Muhyiddin” (FMT).
I never said that the former Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyddin Yassin was my “latest recruit” in my speech at the Johor Pakatan Harapan Chinese New Year Open House on Sunday night.
Let me reproduce the relevant part of my speech about the three messages the Johore Pakatan Harapan wanted to send out from the Chinese New Year Open House in Muar: Read the rest of this entry »
What other intellectual and mental prowess and feats are University of UMNO “graduates” capable of?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Elections, Islam, Najib Razak, UMNO on Monday, 15 February 2016
In the last two days, “graduates” of University of UMNO have been showing off their intellectual and mental prowess and feats.
The first was the new UMNO information chief, Tan Sri Annuar Musa who declared that the RM2.6 billion donation deposited into Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal banking account is “not a big sum” to face one general election.
Can Annuar share with ordinary Malaysians who do not have benefit of being ”graduates” of University of UMNO what would be “a big sum” to face one general election in Malaysia – RM50 billion, RM100 billion or RM200 billion?
Malaysia’s election laws stipulate that the maximum expenditure legally permissible for a parliamentary candidate is RM200,000 while the maximum legal expenditure for a State Assembly candidate is RM100,000.
With 222 Parliamentary seats and 505 State Assembly seats contested in the 13th General Elections, this meant that the maximum election expenditures permitted by Malaysian election laws came to RM44.4 million by all UMNO/BN’s 222 Parliamentary candidates and RM50.5 million by the 505 UMNO/BN State Assembly candidates, or a total of RM94.9 million – just short of RM100 million!
The RM2.6 billion “donation” to Najib is 26 times more than the legally permissible election expenditures for all the 222 Parliamentary and 505 State Assembly candidates from UMNO/Barisan Nasional.
But this is clearly only “chicken-feed” for fighting one general election as far as the new UMNO Information chief is concerned. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s sovereignty lies somewhere between A-G and IGP
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Corruption, Najib Razak, Police, UMNO on Thursday, 11 February 2016
– Sir Wenger Khairy
The Malaysian Insider
11 February 2016
For the last 58 years, brave men in uniform fought and died to protect the sovereignty of the country. By the term “sovereignty”, I mean the power or authority of the country.
If the country is invaded by the Royal Sulu Army, or if the communists attack and set fire to villages and plantations, it is quite clear to see that those two agents were engaged in acts that challenge the sovereignty of the country.
The same is true if a political leader engages in corrupt acts and there is no action taken against the leader. This is because the leader breaks the laws of the land and challenges the power and authority of the Parliament and the Yang DiPertuan Agong, as the supreme authority in the country. Read the rest of this entry »
UMNO defeat in next general election is not only good for UMNO but also good for the country
Posted by Kit in Elections, Najib Razak, UMNO on Thursday, 11 February 2016
I cannot agree more with veteran journalist A. Kadir Jasin who said today that defeat in the next general election will be good for UMNO.
I will go one step further and say that UMNO defeat in the next general election is not only good for UMNO but also good for the country.
Kadir Jasin said it is only after UMNO suffers defeat in a general election that it is likely work towards regaining the prestige it once had. Read the rest of this entry »
Was Psy of “Opah Gangnam Style” brought to Penang for the Barisan Nasional CNY Open House on 1MDB expenses?
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, UMNO on Thursday, 11 February 2016
I am reminded of the unforgettable Barisan Nasional Chinese New Year Open House in Penang in February 2013 and the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s equally unforgettable public relations disaster when he introduced the top South Korean pop star Psy of “Opah Gangnam Style” asking four times “Are you ready for Psy?” followed three times with the question “Are you ready for BN?”
The crowd at Hang Chiang College field shouted “Yes” to the question “Are you ready for Psy?” but were equally vehement in their shout of “No” when Najib asked “Are you ready for BN?” – a video which went viral throughout Malaysia during the Chinese New Year before the 13th General Election.
This recollection was prompted by the report quoting Najib as saying that every working visit he makes was all for him to be with the rakyat, to listen to their problems and find solutions together.
A question that is still unanswered is whether Psy was brought to Penang for the Barisan Nasional CNY Open House on 1MDB expenses?
Probably the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) can find the answer to this question before it winds up its investigations on 1MDB today and tomorrow, as announced by the “cari makan” PAC Chairman, Datuk Hasan Arifin. Read the rest of this entry »
Is the 30-man demo at the Penang Chief Minister’s Chinese New Year Open House yesterday the first “handiwork” of the new czar of UMNO cybertroopers, Ahmad Maslan?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, DAP, Najib Razak, UMNO on Tuesday, 9 February 2016
The 30-man demo at the Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng’s Chinese New Year Open House at the SPICE Arena in Penang yesterday is most intriguing not only as a “no brainer” but whether it is the first “handiwork” of the new czar of UMNO cybertroopers, Ahmad Maslan.
An “intelligent” person would not have anything to do with such an unMalaysian demonstration.
Firstly, it crossed the line which should not be violated by anyone who claims to be a Malaysian by showing open and extremist contempt for another Malaysian’s racial or religious festivities and sensitivities, as this is the first known such demo since Merdeka in 1957 at the Open House festivity whether Prime Minister, Chief Minister or Mentri Besar to celebrate Chinese New Year or Hari Raya Aidilfiltri.
Secondly, the grounds for the protest were so outrageous and preposterous that no top UMNO or Barisan Nasional dare to seen publicly associated with them, as nobody in sane mind would have any respect for such personalities.
Such demonstrations are in fact an attack on the competence, efficiency and professionalism of the Prime Minister, the entire police, Special Branch, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Bank Negara and the Attorney-General’s Chambers that they did not know about the scandal of RM1.2 billion donation from Israel to the DAP for the 13th General Election in exchange for an Israeli naval base in Port Dickson. Read the rest of this entry »
UMNO bukan lagi pilihan anak muda
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, UMNO on Saturday, 6 February 2016
This is the cry of a young UMNO activist in Penang over the summary and ignomious removal of Mukhriz Mahathir as Kedah Mentri Besar:
“Selepas TSMY dan DS Shafie Apdal, Kini giliran Mukriz pulak.
Sibodoh yang tak faham politik pun bijak menilai kenapa.
Benar bahawa pemimpin datang silih berganti.
Kepentingan parti perlu diutamakan.
Tetapi atas kesalahan apakah Mukhriz Mahathir perlu dihukum sebegini rupa?
Hanya kerana Mukhriz Mahathir lantang bersuara?
Pemimpin kami diatas dah kurang mendengar.
Di pekakkan telinga, dibutakan mata dan masih dalam sindrom penafian.
‘Menjaga’ pemimpin Bahagian dengan beri habuan semata-mata untuk mengekalkan kuasa.
Kami bukan pekak. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia PM tightens grip on ruling party after critic toppled
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, UMNO on Thursday, 4 February 2016
Michael Peel in Bangkok
Financial Times
February 3, 2016
Najib Razak, Malaysia’s prime minister, tightened his grip on the country’s ruling party on Wednesday after the son of his predecessor, was toppled for what he claimed was criticism of the premier’s involvement in a financial scandal.
Mukhriz Mahathir, son of Mr Razak’s most high-profile critic Mahathir Mohamad, quit as chief minister of the northern state of Kedah after losing the support of his state assembly.
Analysts see Mr Mukhriz’s removal as another sign of Mr Najib’s political strength, despite the efforts of a clutch of senior figures and opposition parties to unseat him.
“It’s revenge for Mahathir Mohamad going against Najib,” said James Chin, director of the Asia institute at the University of Tasmania, who added that Mr Mukhriz was also seen as having performed badly during his three years in office. “Mukhriz had supported his father against the prime minister.” Read the rest of this entry »
-
You are currently browsing the archives for the UMNO category.
