Pakatan Rakyat’s second “crisis of confidence”
Posted by Kit in Pakatan Rakyat, PAS on Friday, 3 July 2009, 5:19 pm
(The headline for the Malaysian Insider “No let-up as Kit Siang continues attacks against PAS ahead of Kedah trip” is not correct, as it is not reflected in the contents of its report.
It implied that I was continuing to “attack” the Pakatan Rakyat government in Kedah. This is not the case.
It further implied that I had attacked the PR Kedah state government yesterday. This was also not the case.
Pakatan Rakyat is facing a second crisis of confidence and efforts must be made to resolve it.
This is why I am not only meeting the Kedah State DAP tomorrow but also have a dialogue with the people of Kedah in Alor Star tomorrow night. (New Straits Times today had wrongly reported that I would be meeting residents in the abbatoir area when I said I would be having a people’s dialogue in Alor Star).
Both the Malaysian Insider and New Straits Times report are reproduced below.)
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Federal intervention is only way out in Kampung Buah Pala, says Kit Siang
Posted by Kit in Finance, Penang Government on Friday, 3 July 2009, 4:30 pm
The Malaysian Insider
By Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani
KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 — The DAP wants former Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon to solve the Kampung Buah Pala fiasco by lobbying for federal intervention.
Lim claimed that Koh, now a federal minister, was responsible for the controversy as it was during the Barisan Nasional (BN) government’s rule of Penang that the decision was made to alienate the land concerned to a private developer.
“I think the only solution is for Koh Tsu Koon as the former chief minister, who is responsible for this problem in Kampung Buah Pala, to take it up with the federal government and ask the federal government for an allocation or a grant to the Penang state for an amount necessary to have a win-win solution,” he said.
A small number of families in Kampung Buah Pala, in the Glugor area of Penang, are facing eviction after a private developer won outright ownership of the land recently.
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Call on Najib and Hishammuddin to respect public opinion on the need for a new IGP who can translate the Police Royal Commission’s vision of “an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service” into a reality
Yesterday, I said that the country needs a new Inspector-General of Police to provide new leadership and vision to regain public confidence in the ability of the Malaysian police to live up to the benchmarks set by the Police Royal Commission Report in 2005 to be an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service with the three core functions to reduce crime, eradicate corruption and uphold human rights.
Instead, the current IGP, Tan Sri Musa Hassan, is lobbying support for another renewal of his term as the No. 1 police officer of the land instead of gracefully allowing a new IGP to take over the Malaysian police force.
No Minister or MP disputed me when I said in Parliament earlier this week that it is easy to give more than a hundred reasons why the country needs a new IGP and why Musa should not succeed in his lobby to get another term of renewal as IGP.
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Is Ong Tee Keat prepared to get declassification to submit all Cabinet minutes, memo and official papers on PKFZ to the PAC for a “tell all” probe into RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Parliament, PKFZ on Friday, 3 July 2009, 11:36 am
My three questions (No.103 to No. 105) on the 35th day in the current series to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat on the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal today are:
First Question. On Wednesday, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) decided to summon Barisan Nasional big-wigs like the two former Transport Ministers, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik and Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy, and the Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club (BNBBC) Chairman Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing to testify in its inquiry into the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal.
We read in the press today the announcement by Tiong, who is also the CEO of Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd (KDSB), the turkey developer for PKFZ that he would not attend the PAC inquiry to give any testimony.
This is a most extraordinary turn of events. Yesterday, Parliament just bulldozed through the report of the Parliamentary Select Committee set up to investigate into the intimidation and obstruction of DAP National Chairman and MP for Bukit Gelugor, Karpal Singh from carrying out his parliamentary duties in the parliamentary precincts on February 26 by Umno Youth leaders but which went outside its terms of reference to recommend the punishment of Karpal, myself and six other Pakatan Rakyat MPs for not attending or participating in the Select Committee’s inquiry.
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Procurement: A call for transparency
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Good Governance, Tunku Abdul Aziz on Friday, 3 July 2009, 9:39 am
By Tunku Abdul Aziz
JULY 2 — Public procurement is the single most important source of corruption in any country, including ours. This crucial process remains a great mystery to the public at large because it is shrouded in secrecy.
The mystery is heightened by the Official Secrets Act (OSA). The OSA has become a permanent fixture in many jurisdictions, and the Malaysian government is not about to toss it out of the window any time soon. The OSA hides a multitude of sins and it is an impediment to transparency.
The government finds comfort and safety by hiding all of its more questionable and corrupt actions that cannot stand close scrutiny behind the OSA. As we know, without transparency, there is no accountability.
Unethical public officials, including senior politicians whose numbers are growing according to independent surveys, stand to gain from a corrupt procurement system. They are not slow to create the entirely spurious impression that Malaysia operates a fair system, as good as any in the world, and they say that it should be left alone. Why, they point out, change a winning formula? But, is it really? In theory, yes, but the practice is an entirely different matter. The procurement system in Malaysia is more honoured in the breach than in the observance.
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Relativism and the Politics of Absolutes
Posted by Kit in DAP, Pakatan Rakyat, PAS on Thursday, 2 July 2009, 9:24 pm
By Farish A. Noor
Studying Malaysian politics is a chore in itself, but rewarding for the simple reason that it is one of the most plural, complex and complicated countries in the world. Among all the countries that I have worked on, it is Malaysia that continues to challenge my capacity to think (and relax) for the simple reason that its communitarian mode of sectarian politics is an odd blend of modernity and primordialism that is seldom equalled anywhere else.
At present the opposition coalition known as the Peoples Alliance (Pakatan Rakyat) is once again in a state a crisis – or rather manifold crises – as the component parties bicker over the mode of governance in the states that they won after the elections of March 2008. Bringing together the predominantly Chinese-Malaysian Left-leaning DAP, the multiracial PKR and the overwhelmingly Malay-Muslim Islamists of PAS was never an easy task; and it was said from the outset that the coalition was an instrumental one.
Today however the coalition is once again at breaking point after the DAP threatened to leave the coalition over a dispute over the destruction of a pig abattoir in the state of Kedah, disputes over contracts awarded to development projects in Penang and Selangor, and the lingering fear that the Islamists of PAS will push their Islamisation agenda in the states that have come under their control. Seemingly trivial matters such as the sale of pork and alcohol have forced all three parties to the defensive, with each party holding steadfast to its stand. Read the rest of this entry »
100 reasons why Malaysia needs a new Inspector-General of Police
The passage of the Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission (SIAP) Bill by Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday is the last nail in the coffin of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) proposed by the Royal Police Commission more than four years ago in May 2005.
It also marks the failure of the Barisan Nasional government and the police leadership to fully honour and implement the 125 recommendations of the Royal Police Commission set up by former Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi during his “First 100 Days” to revamp and reform the police, which had raised such high hopes and expectations among Malaysians creating such a national euphoria that Abdullah won an unprecedented landslide victory in the March 2004 general elections winning over 91% of the parliamentary seats!
Who must take the greatest responsibility for such a great national letdown and disappointment, if not the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan?
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PAC decision to summon Liong Sik, Kong Choy, Attorney-General to testify on RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal lauded though belated
Posted by Kit in Parliament, PKFZ on Thursday, 2 July 2009, 12:26 pm
My three questions (No.100 to No. 102) on the 34th day in the current series to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat on the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal today are:
Question No. 1 – This is the second day that I am starting my “three questions a day” with a welcome.
Yesterday I welcomed the Port Klang Authority (PKA) Board decision on the withholding of RM660 million in the next drawdown of the government’s soft loan of RM4.6 billion to pay the PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd. (KDSB) for the PKFZ land and construction.
Today I welcome the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) decision yesterday to summon in a fortnight the two former Transport Ministers, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik and Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy, as well as the Attorney-General, to testify over the PKFZ scandal. The PAC is also to summon the Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club (BNBBC) and MP for Bintulu Tiong King Sing, who is also the CEO of KDSB.
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Crucial to resolve conversion issues without delay: Lim
Posted by Kit in Human Rights, Religion on Thursday, 2 July 2009, 10:45 am
KUALA LUMPUR (July 1, 2009) : Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur) wants parliament to convene an emergency sitting to pass amendments to the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 not relating to Islam.
He said the announcement of Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz on Tuesday that laws on conversion would be indefinitely put on hold pending a decision of the Conference of Rulers was a great disappointment and setback in the resolution of such a “burning issue”.
“I call on the cabinet on Friday to take a bold decision on matters arising from unilateral conversions … these must be resolved without any delay,” Lim said.
“The Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act has nothing to do with Islam, and I call on the cabinet to make a decision so that parliament can convene an emergency sitting in July or August, specially to deal with this problem which has become so polarising and dividing,” he said at the parliament lobby.
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Penang Kampung Buah Pala controversy – Koh Tsu Koon should speak up as to whether he would make amends for his decisions as Penang Chief Minister by securing Federal Government grant to Penang State Government to resolve issue with “a stroke of the pen”?
The former Penang Chief Minister and now Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon should speak up as to whether he would make amends for his decisions as Penang Chief Minister in the Kampung Buah Pala, Penang controversy by securing a Federal Government grant to Penang State Government to resolve the issue with “a stroke of the pen”?
The Penang Pakatan Rakyat government is now caught in a vice created by Koh’s administration although it had prevented the eviction of the residents in the area since the middle of last year.
Firstly, Koh must explain why as Chief Minister, his Executive Council had approved the state government land of Kampung Buah Pala to Koperasi Pegawai Kerajaan Pulau Pinang, first time on 18th August 2004 and second time on 8th June 2005 at a very low premium of RM6.42 million or RM20 per square feet.
Secondly, why Koh and his Exco subsequently halved the premium to RM3.21 million or only RM10 psf on the recommendation of the Umno Deputy Chief Minister – far below the market price of the prime land.
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Is OTK prepared to convene a emergency MCA general assembly to secure endorsement for his handling of the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal as it is going to be Ong and MCA’s Achilles heel in next general election?
Posted by Kit in Good Governance, PKFZ on Wednesday, 1 July 2009, 11:31 am
My three questions (No.97 to No. 99) on the 33rd day in the current series to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat on the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal today are:
Question No. 1: I welcome the announcement by the Port Klang Authority (PKA) Chairman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng on the withholding of RM660 million in the next drawdown of the government’s soft loan of RM4.6 billion to pay the PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd. (KDSB) for the PKFZ land and construction.
Only yesterday, I had asked whether Ong would order a halt to all payments to KDSB until a full inquiry and parliamentary accountability on the PKFZ scandal is completed.
A week ago, I had publicly called on the Cabinet to stop making further payments for the troubled PKFZ until all issues related to the accountability and integrity of the project are resolved.
This was reported in the Edge on June 24 under the report: “Kit Siang: Govt should consider stop making payments on PKFZ”, which states:
The project to develop a transhipment hub hogged the limelight for the wrong reasons after its cost escalated from an initial estimate of RM1.96 billion to about RM4.5 billion. The owner of PKFZ — Port Klang Authority (PKA) — is unable to meet its debt obligations on bonds raised to finance the development, prompting the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to provide a RM4.6 billion soft loan to ensure PKA meet the obligations.
The next drawdown of the MoF soft loan is scheduled next week.
On this, Lim said the cabinet should meet to decide whether to stop payment or consider other available options. Read the rest of this entry »
If The Tang Hak Ju Land Scam Involving Undeveloped Quarry Land For A Period Of 15 Years May Finally Cost The State Government RM 40 Million, Forcible Acquisition Of Kampung Buah Pala Involving Developed Land Would Be Of A Frightening Magnitude
By Lim Guan Eng
If The Tang Hak Ju Land Scam Involving Undeveloped Quarry Land For A Period Of 15 Years May Finally Cost The State Government RM40 million (RM29 million + Interest), Forcible Acquisition Of Kampung Buah Pala Involving Developed Land Would Be Of A Frightening Magnitude.
The Penang state government wishes to rebut the lies of Hindraf leaders and collaborators of BN and MIC who claims that acquiring Kampung Buah Pala would cost at the most RM30 million or even very much less. Where is it stated in the land acquisition laws or approved by the courts that government can acquire land for the public interest at a sum far below the market price?
If the Tang Hak Ju land scam involving undeveloped quarry land for a period of 15 years may finally cost the state government RM40 million (RM29 million + interest), forcible acquisition of Kampung Buah Pala involving developed land would be of a frightening magnitude. The Penang state government simply does not have the financial capability to afford the acquisition of Kampung Buah Pala. We are not talking of millions of ringgit. Neither are we talking of tens of millions of ringgit here!
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A powerless SIAP in place of IPCMC
Posted by Kit in Crime, Parliament, Police on Tuesday, 30 June 2009, 9:04 pm
Part 1
Public Forum – RM12.5b PKFZ Scandal: No Competency, No Accountability & No Transparency
Posted by Kit in Announcement, PKFZ on Tuesday, 30 June 2009, 4:51 pm
Live webcast : http://tv.dapmalaysia.org
Title: “RM12.5b PKFZ Scandal: No Competency, No Accountability & No Transparency”
Date: 1st July 2009 (Wed)
Time: 8pm
Venue: Civic Hall, Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya (MBPJ) [MAP]
Inquiry : 016-5941995
Panelists:
- Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader
- Tony Pua, MP for Petaling Jaya Utara
- Charles Santiago, MP for Klang
- Ronnie Liu, ADUN for Pandamaran, Selangor State EXCO
- Dr Dzulkifli Ahmad, MP for Kuala Selangor
PKFZ scandal – why has OKT changed so much in 8 short months after becoming MCA President?
My three questions (No.94 to No. 96) on the 32nd day in the current series to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat on the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal today are:
Question No. 1: Ong, who had to abscond all the way to Paris to avoid ministerial accountability to Parliament for the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal on June 15, specially came to Parliament yesterday to repeat to reporters at the Parliament lobby that I am not qualified to challenge him to a public debate on PKFZ scandal.
What courage!
Ong, having become MCA President, now regards himself as ‘No. 1 under the skies”. His ego must have reached the skies as he has been named “World’s Most Outstanding Chinese Leader”!
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Penang High Chaparral Issue, statement by Penang CM
By Lim Guan Eng
Hindraf Must Wake Up And Realise That Kampung Buah Pala Is Still Standing Today Because The Penang Pakatan Rakyat State Government Had Successfully Prevented Them From Being Evicted In The Middle Of Last Year.
The Penang Pakatan Rakyat state government has never consented nor approved any demolition of Kampung Buah Pala. Any action taken is by the private developer via a court order issued by the relevant courts.
Up to RM200,000 per family was offered by the developer to the residents which was accepted by many families but not by those remaining in Kampung Buah Pala. The state government respected the decision of those remaining in Kampung Buah Pala to reject any compensation offer and to fight it out in courts.
If the state government had not been sympathetic to the plight of the residents, then the developer would have evicted the residents in the middle of last year when a court order was obtained. Only the determined preventive efforts by Penang DCM2 Professor P Ramasamy and Penang State EXCO Abdul Malek stopped the developer from entering the village with bulldozers several times last year.
All parties must therefore realise that it is only because of the efforts of the present Pakatan Rakyat state government that the Kampung Buah Pala residents are still living there.
Koh Tsu Koon Owes The Public A Full Explanation Why He Sold The Kampung Buah Pala At A Cheap Price Of Only RM10 Per Square Feet In 2007 And Without consulting the residents.
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What can SIAP do with regard to R K Krishnansamy on the police non-action on the murder of his father, former Tenggaroh Assemblyman and Johore MIC leader Datuk S. Krishnansamy on 11.1.08?
Posted by Kit in Crime, Parliament, Police on Monday, 29 June 2009, 4:37 pm
This is the email from Raj Kumar Krishnansamy on the murder of his father Datuk S. Krishnasamy, former Tenggaroh assemblyman and Johore MIC leader Datuk S. Krishnasamy on 11th January 2008, (with various names deleted).
I want to ask what SIAP could do with such a complaint as it is likely to be utterly helpless and powerless to do anything, unlike the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) as proposed by the Royal Police Commission as the key of the 125 recommendations to create a Malaysian police service which is efficient, professional, incorruptible and world-class.
R.K. Krishnasamy’s email on the murder of his father Datuk S.Krishnasamy reads:
Below is a synopsis of the case since Jan 11, 2008.
My father was the state Deputy MIC Chairman. A week before his murder, there was a lot of newspaper articles(Malaysia Nanban) that my father is planning to challenge the current Chairman, Datuk KS Balakrishnan and become the next state chairman. Datuk KS Balakrishnan’s son is Pannir Selvam. He was appointed by Datuk Bala to be the state MIC youth deputy chief. This was a move that my father objected as his son did not have the right character for the position. Both father and son could not go along with my father.
My father went into the lift after lunch at abt 2.20pm. He received a call while he was in the restaurant,then he left the restaurant to the office. Who called him, still a mystery till today as police do not want to reveal it.
Upon arrival, he went into the lift. It was in the lift that he was shot. Read the rest of this entry »
Ong Tee Keat has won the right to get into Guinness Book of Records twice, the second time for being the first MCA President in 60 years to be on the run, from Parliament and outside, on a national scandal
Posted by Kit in Parliament, PKFZ on Monday, 29 June 2009, 1:12 pm
My three questions (No.91 to No. 93) on the 31st day in the current series) to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat on the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal today are:
Question No. 1 – In response to my challenge to him yesterday to five public debates on the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal in Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang, Malacca and Johore Baru, where he could be assisted by the two former Transport Ministers, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik and Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy as well as MCA leaders who had served as Port Klang Authority (PKA) Chairman, Tan Sri Ting Chew Peh, Datuk Yap Pian Hon and Datuk Seri Chor Chee Heung, Ong responded that I was not qualified to debate with him.
What arrogance and “high-and-mighty” attitude after becoming a “small Minister”! What would he not do if he becomes a slightly “bigger” Minister?
A day after the release of the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report on the PKFZ scandal on May 28, 2009 the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak publicly directed Ong to reply to all questions about the PKFZ scandal. Has Ong forgotten the Prime Minister’s public directive, and if not, is he avoiding the 90 questions I have asked in the past 30 “three questions a day” as well as afraid of a public debate on the PKFZ scandal?
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1Malaysia cracked already!
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, nation building on Sunday, 28 June 2009, 6:20 pm
from http://twitter.com/limkitsiang
Patrick Teoh is rite http://tr.im/q2Bq 1Malaysia cracked already Look at pics in Star NST BH Utusan NYSP the big 1 behind PM n ors cracked!
10 minutes ago from web
