Addressing the transboundary haze problem: Open letter to the Indonesian ambassador
— Lim Guan Eng
Malay Mail Online
October 27, 2015
OCTOBER 27 — Your Excellency Ambassador Herman Prayitno,
We are deeply concerned about the ongoing transboundary haze pollution which has adversely affected the wellbeing and livelihood of millions of people in the region, including Malaysians and Indonesians. We would like to express our deepest sympathy and solidarity with our fellow Indonesians who are suffering much more, living so much closer to the forest fires hotspots.
In Malaysia, as air quality deteriorates, schools are frequently closed and consequently half a million of students are affected. The negative impact on our economy resulting from cancelled outdoor events, falling tourists arrival and overall declining productivity — although difficult to accurately assess at the current moment — are huge and irreversible. Read the rest of this entry »
Was there a draft charge sheet in the Attorney-General’s Chambers against the Prime Minister related to corruption before Gani Patail was sacked as Attorney-General on July 27?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Crime, Human Rights, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 1:27 pm
Today is the 28th anniversary of the Operation Lalang dragnet of Oct. 27, 1987 which saw the mass arrest of 106 people under the detention-without-trial Internal Security Act, with 49 persons, including Members of Parliament and social activists, served with formal two-year detention orders and the closure of three major newspapers.
It is sad and tragic that today’s 28th anniversary for one of the darkest periods for democracy and human rights in the nation’s history coincides with a global report which is a damning indictment on widespread abuses of power against critics and dissenters by a Prime Minister who had come to power six years ago promising a new era for democracy and human rights in Malaysia, who even had the temerity to launch a global movement of moderates which now lay in ruins.
The New York-based watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW)’s 145-page report “Creating a Culture of Fear: The Criminalisation of Peaceful Expression of Malaysia” documents not only Najib’s repeated breach of his promise to repeal repressive and draconian laws, but the institution of new regime of fear and terror where criticism has become a crime.
This regime of fear and terror have escalated in the country with the twin mega-scandals of RM50 billion 1MDF and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts spiralling out of control, not only in the country but internationally, with half a dozen foreign countries opening separate investigations. Read the rest of this entry »
I would have asked Najib whether more than RM2.6 billion “donation” had been deposited into his personal banking accounts and if so, what was the final total of the “donation, if I had spoken on the 2016 Budget debate
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Najib Razak, Parliament on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 8:09 am
At the launching of Pakatan Harapan Negri Sembilan in Seremban on Sunday night, I said that I would have advised the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to refund the RM2.6 billion “donation” to the Treasury as one way to resolve the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal during the debate on 2016 budget if I had not been suspended from Parliament for six months.
But before I made such a proposal, I would have asked Najib to “come clean” about the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal, at least in five instances, viz:
1. Whether more than RM2.6 billion “donation” had been deposited into his personal banking account at AmBank, and if so, the total amount of “donation” that had been deposited into his personal account before the 13th General Election.
2. Who are the “donors” who deposited billions of ringgit into Najib’s personal banking accounts for the 13th General Election campaign funding.
3. The respective percentage and breakdown of these “donations” into foreign and local sources.
4. Who were the recipients and beneficiaries from these billions of “donations” deposited into Najib’s personal accounts, in particular those who are in the present Cabinet and Parliament, as well as the UMNO/BN candidates in the 2013 General Elections.
5. Whether he would submit all bank records of such “deposits” and payments to the Public Accounts Committee and the Attorney-General for investigation.
Multibillion-dollar scandal in Malaysia has echoes for American conservatives
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 27 October 2015, 1:23 am
By Thomas Lifson
American Thinker
October 26, 2015
As scandals go, the current imbroglio in Malaysia ring a lot of bells for American conservatives accustomed to home-grown crony capitalism: a gigantic Stimulus-like program intended to spur lagging growth, billions of missing dollars, allegations of missing money used in an election, donations from a mysterious Middle East party, affirmative action, and even Goldman Sachs. Tom Wright and Ken Brown report in the Wall Street Journal:
A scandal involving a government investment fund in Malaysia is drawing world-wide attention and has led to calls at home for the ouster of the country’s prime minister. It is also affecting U.S. diplomacy in a strategically important part of Asia. The fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd., or 1MDB, is under investigation in five countries. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia in political stalemate
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, Pakatan Harapan, Politics on Monday, 26 October 2015, 5:53 pm
By Murray Hunter
On Line Opinion
26 October 2015
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib is facing accusations of fraud with the 1MDB fiasco, and the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaaribuu, while the economy is going into a ‘nosedive’.
After six and a half years in office, Premier Najib presides over a nation with contracting growth, rising inflation, growing unemployment, a Ringgit at a 20 year low against the US Dollar, significant capital flight, a massive debt problem, disappearing sources of income, and low consumer confidence.
Although some of these problems are the result of global factors such as declining oil and gas prices, low commodity prices, and sluggish growth of major trading partners, Malaysia’s problems also greatly exist today as the result of policy failures. Extremist policies have also led to social and ethnic tensions within the country. In addition, the depreciation of the Ringgit and introduction of the GST have put undue hardships on the people. Read the rest of this entry »
I would have advised Najib to refund the RM2.6 billion “donation” to the Treasury as one way to resolve the RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal during the debate on 2016 budget if I had not been suspended from Parliament for six months
Posted by Kit in Budget Debate, Najib Razak, Pakatan Harapan, Parliament on Monday, 26 October 2015, 8:44 am
The 1MDB “Monster” is claiming more and more victims, and I am only the latest one – suspended from Parliament for six months because I had said what is in the heart of all thinking and patriotic Malaysians, viz:
*firstly, that the Public Accounts Committee investigations into the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal should not have been suspended for three months as national interests demand that 1MDB investigations should be conducted as a matter of greatest urgency and priority; and
*secondly, there has been too much avoidance and evasion of responsibility by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his government in giving full accountability for the twin mega scandals in the country, the 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts resulting in an unprecedented crisis of confidence in the Malaysian government.
This is why the Malay Rulers on October 6 had come out with an extraordinary statement calling for 1MDB investigations to be completed “as soon as possible” and for the “appropriate stern action” to be taken against all found to be implicated. Read the rest of this entry »
Mr Speaker, Sir: You are primarily responsible for Kit Siang’s suspension!
Posted by Kit in DAP, Parliament on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 8:08 pm
P.Ramakrishnan
Aliran
25th Oct 2015
The Speaker, Pandikar Amin Mulia, stated that the MPs, not the Speaker, made the decision to suspend Getang Patah MP Lim Kit Siang from the Dewan Rakyat. His claim is not entirely true. He is trying to extricate himself and convey the impression that he was blameless in this episode. But he had a hand in this unjust suspension.
The Speaker cannot push the blame to others and absolve himself for the suspension of Lim Kit Siang from Parliament. Try as he may, but he cannot escape the fact that he was primarily responsible for this eventuality. He set the ball rolling. The others took the cue from him.
Mr Speaker, Sir, you said, “Please tell Gelang Patah, the next time he comes, he must apologise unconditionally and retract his remarks as he had said that I abused my powers as Speaker. This is an insult of the first degree. If he refuses, a motion will be tabled and he will be suspended if the House passes it.” Read the rest of this entry »
Battle between Najib’s 300 UMNO chieftains and the three million UMNO members will be a major factor to determine the fate of Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, UMNO on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 5:34 pm
The reservations and opposition by UMNO leaders, like the UMNO Deputy President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Vice President Datuk Shafie Apdal and former UMNO Deputy President Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad about the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s role in the two mega scandals in the country – the RM50 billion 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion ‘donation’ in Najib’s personal banking accounts – and by the 14 UMNO Branches in Telok Kemang calling for Najib’s resignation must be given serious consideration.
In fact, the battle between Najib’s 300 UMNO chieftains and the three million UMNO members will be a major factor to determine the fate of Malaysia, whether Malaysia will hurtle headlong to become a rogue and failed state because of breakdown of rule of law, rampant corruption and abuses of power, and the collapse of good governance or whether Malaysia can pick herself up, re-strategise and reunite to strike forward to fulfill our national potential when we were on verge of becoming one of the Asian tigers before the 1997 financial crisis.
I agree with former International Trade Minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz that Malaysia can rise from its current state again as the country has all the factors for success. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib’s 2016 Budget made history as a budget which could not generate any budget euphoria as it was snuffed out within seconds of delivery by phalanx of Opposition MPs standing up and displaying “Mana RM2.6 billion” placard
Posted by Kit in Budget Debate, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 7:57 am
Prime Minister-cum-Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 2016 Budget made history as the first Malaysian budget which could not generate any budget euphoria as it was snuffed out within seconds of delivery by the phalanx of Opposition MPs standing up and displaying the “Mana RM2.6 billion” placard.
Normally, the budget presented by a Finance Minister in Parliament on a Friday would be able to generate a budget euphoria for weeks, or at least for the immediate weekend, with glowing economic reports and superlative accounts of the government’s budgetary plans, but Najib’s 2016 Budget failed dismally on this account, with the country overcast with hazy sky and noxious air which for weeks had closed schools, disrupted the economy and created havoc in the life of Malaysians.
In fact, events in the 24 hours after Najib’s delivery of the 2016 Budget had continued to be relentless in stamping out any ember for any post-budget euphoria, for instance:
1. the report by The Australian yesterday that a sixth foreign government, Australia, has joined five other countries, namely Switzerland, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore and United States in the ever-widening international inquiry into Malaysia’s biggest scandal in history, the RM50 billion 1MDB (well exceeding the RM42 billion normally associated with the scandal, according to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in his last speech as Deputy Prime Minister to the UMNO Cheras Division on July 26); Read the rest of this entry »
Can Malaysia withstand external headwinds?
Posted by Kit in Budget Debate on Sunday, 25 October 2015, 5:48 am
Penang Institute
Malaysiakini
24 Oct 2015
In the last year or so, the Malaysian economy has been affected by two main external headwinds. Firstly, the fall in commodities prices has dented the country’s finances. Secondly, the possibility of US increasing its interest rate has caused some repatriation of foreign investment funds, thus affecting investment climate and ringgit’s value against major currencies.
Therefore, can the Budget 2016 help the country withstand further external economic headwinds given that the US Federal Reserve has hinted that interest rates are projected to rise? A separate press statement will cover the Budget’s impact on households. Read the rest of this entry »
Budget 2016: Subsidy cuts and other things Najib didn’t tell you
Posted by Kit in Budget Debate, Najib Razak on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 10:40 pm
Nigel Aw
Malaysiakini
Oct. 24, 2015
Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak offered a list of good news under Budget 2016 which included a hike in civil servants’ pay, increase in BR1M cash handouts, and Goods and Services Tax rebate for mobile phone purchase.
But where is all the money coming from when the country is facing falling revenue from a slump in commodity prices?
Malaysiakini uncovers the ‘bad news’, by breaking down Budget 2016 for you based on ministries which have suffered the worst cuts.
What the premier failed to mention in his budget speech include the likelihood of pricier cooking oil, more expensive train and flight tickets on ‘uneconomical’ routes, the poor having to pay for their electricity bills, and other subsidy cuts. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s 1MDB scandal: Australian connection in Malaysia scandal
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 7:29 pm
Ben Butler
The Australian
October 24, 2015
Sitting on the canals behind the glitzy towers that line Broadbeach, on Queensland’s Gold Coast, the low-rise Icon Corporate Park doesn’t look much like the kind of place you’d find a funds management company looking after billions of dollars caught up in a financial scandal that is rocking Malaysia.
But this modest address, at a modern low-rise located at 2 Miami Key, has emerged as host to Australian key players, some with colourful histories, caught up in the controversy engulfing Malaysia’s debt-ridden sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB.
In Malaysia, the scandal involving hundreds of millions of dollars allegedly paid into the bank account of the country’s Prime Minister, Najib Razak, has left behind a trail of arrests, accusations and alleged murder.
In August, police arrested three senior officials at the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission, which has been investigating 1MDB, over alleged leaks to London-based website Sarawak Report.
The controversy has also touched Australia’s ANZ Bank: it owns a quarter of Malaysia’s AmBank, which loaned 2 billion ringgit ($660 million) to 1MDB and where Mr Najib kept the account in question. Read the rest of this entry »
The Speaker, the Deputy Speaker, the BN MPs – are they fools?
Posted by Kit in DAP, Parliament on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 3:36 pm
P. Ramakrishnan
Aliran
23rd Oct 2015
The Speaker, the Deputy Speaker and the BN MPs took exception to Lim Kit Siang’s remarks which rightly criticised the lack of seriousness shown in the investigation of the 1MDB scandal.
Consequently, Kit Siang was unfairly suspended without the benefit of defending himself – which went against natural justice.
In all fairness, he should have been referred to the Rights and Privileges Committee under Standing Order 80 for it to probe and establish whether Kit Siang had indeed insulted the Speaker and Parliament. The manner that he was suspended reminded one of Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice, where a pound of flesh was insisted upon, come what may!
On 22 October 2015, Parliament was, as it were, baying for blood and it succeeded in its effort. As a result, Parliament has lost a voice that had always spoken with conviction and conscience, without fear or favour, to raise issues that reflect the concerns of the people. Much input into the budget debate has been denied – which is a pity. Read the rest of this entry »
Aussie authorities looking into businesses associated with 1MDB, says report
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 10:54 am
The Malaysian Insider
24 October 2015
Australian authorities are investigating key players connected to controversial state-owned investment firm 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), The Australian reported today.
The daily said the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (Asic) had in December launched investigations into Avestra Asset Management, located at 2 Miami Key, Icon Corporate Park, which has become the centre of a full-scale probe.
Avestra, along with another company known as Bridge Global Securities, was linked to a Cayman Islands entity called Bridge Global Absolute Return SPC Fund (BGARF), which according to the report was used to cover up a US$2.23 billion hole in debt-ridden 1MDB. Read the rest of this entry »
What happened to high-income agenda, economists ask of Budget 2016
Posted by Kit in Budget Debate on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 10:41 am
by Anisah Shukry
The Malaysian Insider
24 October 2015
Economists said they had expected far more from Budget 2016 that is supposed to propel Malaysia towards high-income nation status in five years’ time.
Economic analyst Dr Muhammad Abdul Khalid said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had inadvertently revealed in his speech yesterday that the country was not entirely on track to becoming a high-income nation in five years.
“According to the Performance Management Delivery Unit (Pemandu), the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) should grow by 6% each year for Malaysia to achieve high-income status yet Najib said GDP will only grow between 4% and 5% in 2016.
“Even this year, GDP is expected to expand between 4.5% and 5.5% only, not 6%,” Muhammad told The Malaysian Insider.
He said Najib, who is also finance minister, had also not addressed the fact that the ringgit’s depreciation against the US dollar would make it more difficult for the country to achieve high-income status.
He explained that a high income nation requires the country to have USD$15,000 GDP per capita, but with the weakened ringgit, Malaysia was off target by 17% “just by doing nothing”. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s Broken Biotech Dreams
Posted by Kit in science/technology on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 10:24 am
By Wan Izzuddin Sulaiman
Asia Sentinel
October 22, 2015
Aspirations to make the country a major biotech player are mostly a failure
A decade ago, then-Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi ushered Malaysia into the biotech era with the opening of the BioMalaysia 2005 conference, aimed at making the country a global player by building a conducive environment for R&D through leveraging existing strengths, particularly in biodiversity and bio-resources.
But that policy lies in a shambles, having eaten up huge amounts of money and having produced almost nothing of value. The 15-year master plan (2005-2020) crafted by the late Jamaluddin Jarjis, then the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), who unfortunately was killed on April 4, 2015 in a helicopter crash, has almost been abandoned.
Among the main biological processes that catapulted the biotechnology revolution worldwide are the genetic manipulation of microorganisms for the production of new drugs, the cloning and manipulation of selected genes in animals and crops to introduce improved varieties, the sequencing of the entire genome including the human one to better understand diseases, and the use of stem-cells in curing chronic diseases. These technologies were mainly originated in laboratories operated by leading universities and research institutions, mostly in the developed countries. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib had turned Parliament into a circus with a 90-minute 2016 budget without a single reference to the two mega-scandals in the country’s history – the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib’s personal banking accounts
Posted by Kit in DAP, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, Parliament on Saturday, 24 October 2015, 9:18 am
Communications and Multimedia Minister Senator Salleh Said Keruak hit the nail on the head when he said yesterday that Parliament should not be turned into a circus.
However, Salleh would not have the guts and gumption to tell it to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who is most guilty of turning Parliament into a circus when he delivered a 90-minute 2016 budget without a single reference to the two mega-scandals in the country’s history – the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion “donation” in Najib personal banking accounts in March 2013.
Salleh would not have the guts and gumption to tell Najib not to turn Parliament into a circus or he would have lost his passport of backdoor entry into Parliament!
The placard “Mana RM2.6 billion” (Where is the RM2.6 billion) which opposition MPs displayed in Dewan Rakyat after Najib’s budget speech resonates in the hearts and minds of 30 million Malaysians, even the three million UMNO members, and a few UMNO/BN Members of Parliament as this the topmost question they want answer from Najib’s 2016 Budget speech.
This was the huge elephant in the Dewan Rakyat Chamber which the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, his Cabinet and most of the UMNO/Barisan Nasional MPs refused to see or acknowledge, although the Opposition MPs, the 30 million Malaysians (including the three million UMNO members), and a few UMNO/BN MPs could see clearly before their eyes. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s Mahathir: strongman turns activist to unseat former protégé
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Mahathir, Najib Razak, UMNO on Friday, 23 October 2015, 9:54 pm
Oliver Holmes and David Munk in Kuala Lumpur
Guardian
23 October 2015
‘Father of modern Malaysia’ brought down two former allies groomed to succeed him. Can he topple prime minister Najib Razak, his most stubborn heir?
He makes a most unlikely blogger. And, for many, an even more unlikely full-throated advocate of freedom of speech.
But that is the role Mahathir Mohamad has carved out for himself in Malaysia, the nation he is credited with transforming into a regional economic powerhouse.
As he enters his 91st year, he has become the country’s most prominent and undoubtedly most effective activist.
He has come out of retirement to throw allegations of arbitrary arrest, throttling of the press and corruption against current prime minister Najib Razak – similar to accusations that were lobbed against him during his own premiership from 1981 to 2003.
Sitting in his cavernous office and surrounded by gifts from world leaders, the man whose two decades in power are described by rights groups as autocratic has slipped seemingly with ease into his new role. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysian PM Najib used state funds for ‘bribery’, says former leader Mahathir
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Friday, 23 October 2015, 9:39 pm
Oliver Holmes and David Munk in Kuala Lumpur
Guardian
23 October 2015
Mahathir Mohamad launches fresh attack on scandal-hit former ally in interview with the Guardian
Malaysia’s former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has accused his protégé and current premier Najib Razak of driving a debt-ridden state fund into the ground by using it for bribery.
In an interview with the Guardian at his office in the administrative capital Putrajaya, Mahathir said Najib had confided to him months ago that “cash is king”, during a terse meeting in which Mahathir told the man he once groomed for the country’s top post that he had lost his support.
“What he is telling me is that bribery is OK. If you bribe with a few dollars, I suppose it doesn’t work, but if you give [money] to a person who has never seen a million ringgit he will turn around,” he said, referring to the local currency.
Najib is battling for his political life after media reports said investigators had found that nearly $700m (£456m) linked to the troubled 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) state fund was transferred into the prime minister’s private bank accounts. Read the rest of this entry »
Reality check on Malaysia’s lofty S&T achievement, goals
Natalie Heng
SciDev.Net
23/10/15
If one were to take the press release issued by the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) on 28 September at face value, one could be forgiven for assuming its lead announcement about Malaysia’s GDP per capita exceeding for the first time the average of all nations was somehow connected to developments in the country’s science, technology and innovation scene.
The press release notes down the role of the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC), run jointly by MIGHT and the New York Academy of Sciences, in advising how science and innovation should be incorporated into Malaysia’s ambitious goal of upping its GDP per capita to reach the threshold of developed country status by 2020.
The press release alludes to a variety of collaborations and initiatives to reach this goal, featuring selective quotations from the Global Innovation Index (GII) report crediting Malaysia as an innovation achiever in the last four years.
Despite all this talk, there are long-standing challenges that form a bottleneck to Malaysia’s success when it comes to fulfilling our S&T potential. Read the rest of this entry »
