Return of Mahathirism – footage of Perak Speaker dragged out of Assembly on May 7 Day of Infamy banned from being aired on television stations
Posted by Kit in Media, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 13 May 2009, 9:04 am
Malaysiakini today reported that footage of Perak Speaker V. Sivakumar being bodily dragged out, in Speaker robes and Speaker chair, from the Perak State Assembly by police officers and goons on May 7 Day of Infamy has been banned from being aired on television stations.
Malaysiakini reported that a TV station has video footage of the “enduring image” of the May 7 Day of Infamy – the dramatic moment when the Perak Speaker, in his robes and chair, was physically removed from the Assembly – but Malaysians did not get to see it on the orders of its owner, Media Prima.
Media Prima, which is believed to be linked to ruling party Umno, controls the country’s four free-to-air private TV stations – TV3, NTV7, TV8 and TV9.
According to a source who requested anonymity, the staff were given ‘directives’ from senior managers on the evening of May 7 not to screen the controversial footage despite one of its stations had captured the whole incident on tape. Read the rest of this entry »
The Texture Of Justice
By Malik Imtiaz
MAY 12 – It was to be expected. As news of the decision of the High Court in the matter of Nizar v Zambry filtered out, many were quick to give thanks and express encouragement for what they perceived as a courageous judgment.
Some even expressed the hope that the judiciary was recovering its independence.
The judgment did, after all, run counter to the entrenched positions of the Prime Minister, who was the Perak Umno liaison chief at the time power was seized in the state, the Barisan Nasional leadership and the Federal Government they have constituted, and His Royal Highness the Sultan of Perak.
As has been the case when other seemingly “courageous” or “independent” judgments were handed down by the courts had led to such expressions of encouragement, there were those who made the point that the judiciary was praised only when it gave decisions against Umno or the Barisan, and the governments they constitute.
They ask why it is the courts are “kangaroo courts” when they decide in favour of the Barisan but not when they hand down judgments against it.
In so asking, they suggest that criticism against the Judiciary and the Federal Government in this regard is unfair and self-serving as the judicial process is capable of producing judgments that run either way. To them, the good must be taken with the bad.
Read the rest of this entry »
Perak in limbo with no Mentri Besar – PR lawyers to set aside Court of Appeal single-judge “stay” decision
Datuk Zambry Abdul Kadir has likened himself to Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, causing all-round derision, outrage and revulsion.
If Zambry dreams of being a Gandhi, he would not want to be an illegitimate and unlawlful Mentri Besar even for a second.
He would not lay claim to be the Perak Mentri Besar as after the Nizar vs Zambry judgment of Justice Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim yesterday, he is doubly illegitimate as the Perak Mentri Besar.
Zambry went against everything Gandhi stood for in announcing that he would again “gate-crash” the Perak State Secretariat building tomorrow to illegitimately re-occupy the office of Mentri Besar!
Zambry was defaming the memory of Gandhi in suggesting that the great Indian moralist would have approved Zambry for being a doubly illegitimate MB.
The most astounding single-judge Court of Appeal decision to grant stay of the Abdul Aziz declaration does not in any way salvage Zambry’s position as a doubly illegitimate MB.
Abdul Aziz declared Zambry as an unlawful and illegitimate MB and Nizar the lawful and legitimate MB.
Read the rest of this entry »
Perak has no one who can legitimately occupy the MB’s office
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Perak on Tuesday, 12 May 2009, 4:01 pm
The incipient hope of start of restoration of public confidence in the independence of the judiciary sparked by the courageous and landmark judgment by Justice Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim in the Nizar vs Zambry case was cruelly crushed in less than 24 hours.
The Court of Appeal’s super-fastracking of the appeal by the usurper and illegitimate Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Zambry Abdul Kadir for a stay of the declaration by Justice Abdul Aziz, with the stay granted by a single judge, has created a firestorm of outrage and disillusionment that justice and fair play can be expected from the present judiciary.
This is one email which I received immediately after the extraordinary speed with which Zambry’s application for stay was granted by the Court of Appeal through a single judge:
“I only wish that the courts act like this in all cases, super fast and super efficient. I am intrigued why in some case, it takes months or even years, when, in the above situation and case, it only took several hours for a panel to be set up.
“Why the double standards?
“The man who steals a loaf of bread has to rot in jail for months before his case is even heard. The rationale behind this and the usual excuse is that there is backlog of cases.”
Najib – cut losses and hold Perak state elections or he will fail his “important quest” to regain public trust
Twitter Flash : 12/05/09 13:40
The Court of Appeal fast-tracked Zambry’s case originally fixed to start at 2.30 p.m. – decision delivered at about 1.20 pm granting stay.
12/05/09 13:28
Court of Appeal (single judge Justice Ramly Ali) grants stay to Zambry. Does this mean Nizar moves out and Zambry moves in to SUK?
—-
In his keynote address at the 13th Malaysian Banking Summit, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said that he was now on the “important quest” of “regaining public trust”.
If Najib is serious about his “important quest” to regain public trust, he should not prolong the Perak political impasse; be bold enough to “cut losses” and stop all appeals against the judgment by Kuala Lumpur High Court Judge, Justice Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim yesterday in the Nizar vs Zambry case declaring that Datuk Seri Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin is the valid Perak Mentri Besar; and agree to the dissolution of Perak Assembly to hold new state elections for Perakians to elect the government they want.
Najib should pay heed to Tengku Razaleigh’s call to the Sultan of Perak to dissolve the State Assembly to end the Perak crisis.
Read the rest of this entry »
Hishammuddin – revoke all the ISA conditions imposed on Manoharan and 4 Hindraf leaders
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Crime, Hindraf on Tuesday, 12 May 2009, 12:54 pm
Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein should revoke all the conditions imposed on DAP Selangor State Assemblyman Kota Alam Shah and the other four Hindraf leaders, P. Uthayakumar, K. Vasanthakumar, Ganapathi Rao and R. Kenghadharan as Hishammuddin said yesterday that they were no more a threat to the country.
Hishammuddin said the government had tried to be fair by releasing them as they were no more a threat to the country, and that they should be fair in their actions in future.
If Manoharan, Uthayakumar, Vasanthakumar, Ganapathi Rao and Kenghadharan are “no more a threat to the country” in the eyes of the Home Minister, then why have restrictive, unjust, undemocratic and draconian conditions been imposed on the five, disenfranchising them as free and equal Malaysian citizens in barring them from speaking freely in public, taking part in political and NGO activities, and restricting both space and time as barring them from leaving their restricted locality, to be at home every night and requiring them to report regularly to the police?
The two cousins, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Hishammuddin should realise that they are nullifying all positive benefits to the government with the release of the five Hindraf leaders with such unacceptable conditions.
Read the rest of this entry »
2nd twittering morning – Nizar and Excos return to office after judgment
http://twitter.com/limkitsiang : Nizar and Excos return to office after judgment
12/05/09 11:49
(The below are from the PC by Ngeh at the SUK)
12/05/09 11:47
“Sukan Perak this year cancelled – allocation chanelled towards districts sports level. We’ll redeem the 3 month wasted during Perak crisis.
12/05/09 11:46
“Industries in Perak given a boost with Invest Perak to be more active in attracting investments.
12/05/09 11:45
“Parking fees to be reduced to 30 sen ASAP. Premier University to launch in July ’09 with groudbreaking ceremony – intake of 2K students.
12/05/09 11:43
“Ipoh Central Bus project to proceed as planned. Sultan Azland Shah Airport to resume flights ASAP. Airasia keen to fly from Ipoh Airport.
12/05/09 11:42
“Also 817 village chiefs have been issued letters to carry out their duties. Land Office also instructed to issue freehold titles.
12/05/09 11:42
“All Exco has started working w’out wasting time. 14 local councils to swear in councillors latest by tmr in order to function properly.
12/05/09 11:40
PC starts with senior Exco Ngeh Koo Ham announcing that MB is still at the Istana. Exco will meet tomorrow at 10am.
12/05/09 11:19
Finally, MB press conference is going to begin any moment after the press are allowed in.
12/05/09 11:18
The letters of suspension State Secretary/State Legal Adviser now posted on all notice boards in and around SUK building
12/05/09 11:12
In Ipoh SUK, press barred from entering to attend the MB press conference.
12/05/09 10:59
From Thomas – Zambry’s application for stay is fixed for today.
Read the rest of this entry »
Back to the People
Posted by Kit in Farish Noor, Perak on Tuesday, 12 May 2009, 7:50 am
by Farish A. Noor
With the High Court deciding that Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin was and is, after all, the rightful Chief Minister of Perak we seem to have returned to square one all over again. Obviously it is too soon to tell whether the imbroglio in Perak will now wind down to a stagnant non-issue, or whether the Barisan Nasional will not allow the matter to rest and take the issue to the Federal Court next. Perakians – like most Malaysians – are a trifle tired of the ongoing drama but at the same time no-one can afford to relent at this stage due to the stakes in the contest.
To underscore this fact, one simply has to take a peek at the video clips that are on the internet at the moment and witness the unseemly spectacle of Speaker Sivakumar being unceremoniously manhandled and dragged out of the State Assembly. No, my friends, this was not a scene from ‘The Last King of Scotland’, the film about the brutal dictatorship of Idi Amin Dada that brought Uganda to the level of primordial violent madness. This was closer to home, happening right here in Malaysia, ‘Truly Asia’… Read the rest of this entry »
From May 13 to 1Malaysia – The Future of Malaysian Nation Building
Posted by Kit in Announcement on Monday, 11 May 2009, 5:28 pm
Sticky Post – Scroll down for latest posts.
Live webcast @ http://tv.dapmalaysia.org
Watch live video from DAP Malaysia on Justin.tv
Public forum: “From May 13 to 1Malaysia – The Future of Malaysian Nation Building”
Date : 13 May 2009
Time : 8.00 pm
Venue Civic Hall, MBPJ, Petaling Jaya, Selangor (MAP)
Enquiries: 016-323 1563/ 016-291 3453
Opening by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
Speakers:
- Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader, Ipoh Timur MP
- YAB Datuk Seri Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin, Menteri Besar Perak, Bukit Gantang MP
- Tunku Abdul Aziz, DAP National Vice Chairman/Penang Senator-designate
- Khalid Abd. Samad, Shah Alam MP
- K. Ragunath, President of Bar Council Malaysia
- N.H.Chan, Retired Court of Appeal Judge
- Prof. Azmi bin Sharom, Law Professor
- Tricia Yeoh, Research Officer to Selangor MB
- Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad aka (Dollah Kok Lanas); Former NST Group Editor-in-Chief
My first twittering day
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Court, Perak on Monday, 11 May 2009, 5:03 pm
This is the twitter updates from KL High Court in Nizar vs Zambry case. From 3 – 4pm
# great judgment nizar will seek audience with sultan for dissolution
# judge rejects stay appln
# zambry counsel applying for stay of declaration
# judge declares nizar lawful mb
# judge – mb can only be dismissed by no confidence motion in assembly
# judge – assembly never had no confidence motion, material
# judge – mb can request dissolution without having lost majoritya
# judge upholds stephen ningkan judgment
# judge rejects ag’s ‘deeming’ argument – no ambiguity in constitution
# judge says perak constitution does not contemplate mb dismissal by sultan
# judge says once mb appointed by sultan, mb is answerable to assembly
# kl high court judge delivering judgment so far so good keep fingers crossed
# Will try to tweet the High Court decision later using my handphone. (1pm)
5.30 pm – Deborah Loh of TheNutGraph has given the following report of the historic High Court judgment by Justice Datuk Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim: – Read the rest of this entry »
Najib’s “open mind” to resolve Perak constitutional/political crisis with PR leaders “refreshing”
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Crime, Najib Razak, Perak on Monday, 11 May 2009, 12:19 pm
At a media conference in Alor Setar on Saturday, I said that the time had come for the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to meet with Pakatan Rakyat leaders to resolve the three-month-long Perak constitutional and political impasse so that Malaysians in Perak and the country can focus single-mindedly on tiding the nation through the world’s worst economic crisis in a century.
This had become imperative after the May 7 Day of Infamy which brought unprecedented international shame to Malaysia as a modern and developed country not only by the trampling of human rights and the rule of law in the gross abuse of police powers in the completely unjustifiable lock-down of Ipoh but also in the flagrant violation of the doctrine of separation of powers highlighted by the photographs and video clips flashed around the world of the Perak Speaker, V. Sivakumar in Speaker robes and in Speaker Chair being bodily dragged out of the Legislative Assembly.
The image that the May 7 Day of Infamy projected to the world is that Perak and Malaysia are degenerating into failed states like Zimbabwe, Somalia and Congo in Africa rather than a nation aspiring to first-world developed-nation status.
This was why my first reaction to the scandalous spectacle not only of two Mentris Besar but also two Speakers and two Assemblies in Perak, and the physical removal of the Speaker – the most shameful episode in the history of parliamentary democracy, not only in Perak, Malaysia but also the world – was to point out that the biggest casualty of all was Najib’s “1Malaysia” slogan, which had been “shredded into smithereens” by the May 7 Day of Infamy.
Read the rest of this entry »
RM12 billion PKFZ scandal – stop appointing MCA lackeys as PKA Chairman
Datuk Lee Hwa Beng should have been sacked instead of being re-appointed as Port Klang Authority (PKA) Chairman as he is not efficient, competent or professional about the release of the PricewaterhouseCooper report on the mega-billion ringgit Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
The Edge weekly (April 27 – May3, 2009) which carried the cover story of “Total PKFZ bill – RM8 billion?” published a letter from Datuk Lee Hwa Beng responding to the Edge expose, saying that the Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat had in early April made a statement that the release of the PKFZ report was “up to the PKA” but as his term as PKA Chairman “had technically expired on March 31 this year, I was not able to respond” to the Edge report.
This however did not prevent him from saying that he had read the PwC final report and saying that it “cannot be released while awaiting declassification by other government departments”. Read the rest of this entry »
The Lesson From Perak
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Constitution, Judiciary, Perak, Police on Monday, 11 May 2009, 5:47 am
by M. Bakri Musa
The current political paralysis in Perak reflects the major failures of our key institutions. It is a total breakdown at the palace, the legislature, and the permanent establishment. It also exposes the glaring inadequacies of the judicial system which has yet to adjudicate this critical and urgent matter of state.
It is not however, the failure of the people, as some pundits have implied by quoting the old adage that we deserve the government we get. It is the voters’ prerogative whether to grant the incumbent party a stunning victory, humble it with an unstable slim majority, or even throw it into the ranks of the opposition. Canada and Italy have a long history of minority governments, and they have managed well.
A mark of a mature democracy, or any system for that matter, is the transfer of power from one entity to another smoothly and predictably. Perak is a spectacular failure; it is also a preview for Malaysia. Read the rest of this entry »
A number 1BlackMalaysia day indeed
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, nation building, Perak, Police on Monday, 11 May 2009, 5:17 am
by Beth Yahp
Malaysiakini
May 7, 09
Yesterday I was hoping against hope that everything I know about the current political culture in Malaysia would today be proved wrong.
I’d hoped that democratic ‘due process’ would indeed take place in the Perak state assembly—and its environs—and that it would be upheld by lawmakers, police, civil servants, and the courts of justice who purportedly serve the Malaysian people who put them in office and, directly or indirectly, continue to pay their salaries.
Instead, what I’ve watched unfolding today is a scene directly from a police state: barbed wire cordoning off a democratic house of assembly; activists, lawmakers and ordinary rakyat being intimidated and arrested like criminals, because apparently it’s now a crime to wear black and have breakfast in the vicinity of the one place where your voice as a citizen is supposed to be heard. Fairly and freely. Read the rest of this entry »
Why Najib’s good Vesak Day message fell flat
Posted by Kit in Hindraf, Human Rights, Najib Razak, Perak, Police on Sunday, 10 May 2009, 1:40 pm
I commend the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak for a great Vesak Day message, when he called on Malaysians not to focus on differences between one another, but to look for similarities and common ground,
Although Najib invoked the call “In the spirit of human progress, in the spirit of developing this great country, in the spirit of 1Malaysia”, it unfortunately fell flat because the actions of his government in his first month as Prime Minister failed to match his slogan of “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now.”
Despite his attendance at the Vesak celebrations at the Fo Guang Shan Dong Zen Buddhist Temple in Jenjarom yesterday, Najib had not been able to evoke the electrifying effect his predecessor, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi created in his first Christmas message as Prime Minister in his second month in office in December 2003, and when he was guest-of-honour at the Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM)’s Christmas reception in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur six years ago.
Najib and his think-tank should give deep and serious study as to why his premiership has not been able to launch off successfully despite various goodies and promises of more to come. Read the rest of this entry »
RM12 billion PKFZ scandal – six times bigger than RM2.5 billion BMF scandal of Mahathir
Posted by Kit in Corruption, MCA, PKFZ on Sunday, 10 May 2009, 7:21 am
MCA President and Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat should stop running from the question why he had failed to honour his repeated public undertakings to “tell all” and make public the full report of the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) audit into the mega-billion ringgit Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal. Malaysians want to know what he is hiding.
The PwC audit report into the PKFZ scandal has been described in the media as “a damning disclosure of mismanagement, clandestine deals, conflicts of interest and a total disregard for transparency and accountability” for a project which was supposed to cost RM1.845 billion in 2002 under the then MCA President and Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Ling Liong Sik but ended up at RM4.6 billion under MCA Deputy President and Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy.
Now, horror of horrors, it is reported that the final cost of the PKFZ scandal under MCA President and the third MCA Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat is the frightening figure of RM12 billion, which would have to be borne by the Malaysian taxpayers although the Cabinet had been assured in 2002 that the PKFZ project was a feasible, self-financing project that would not require a single sen of government financing!
If the PKFZ scandal had ballooned from RM1.8 billion in 2002 to RM12 billion in seven years under three MCA Ministers, it will be six times bigger than the first Mahathir mega financial scandal – RM2.5 billion BMF scandal! Read the rest of this entry »
Hold fresh elections to end the Perak constitutional impasse
Posted by Kit in Constitution, Dr. Chen Man Hin, Perak on Sunday, 10 May 2009, 5:04 am
by Dr. Chen Man Hin
Prime Minister Najib Razak was reported in the press to have cautioned elected Perak state representatives to follow the rule of jaw, as the pandemonium on Thursday 7th May and that unruly behaviour of elected leaders followed the law of the jungle instead of the rule of law.
Well said, except that the party that begun the law of the jungle was none other than UMNO, the party of the Prime Minister because he master-minded and executed the take-over of the Perak state government by using unconstitutional means. Read the rest of this entry »
Preamble to a Penanti proclamation
Posted by Kit in Azly Rahman, Elections, nation building on Sunday, 10 May 2009, 4:26 am
by Azly Rahman
Two scores and ten years ago, our forefathers and foremothers brought forth in this kampong the plan for a just republic that never materialised. We argued and waged peace for a republic of virtue but instead were given a warmongering State of Denial.
We toiled to establish a kingdom of peace and tolerance but saw instead the evolution of a dictatorship of plutocracy and totalitarianism. We have become ‘It’ in our journey towards the ‘Thou’. The “I” in us has gone astray, intoxicated by the “it-ness” of things.
Two scores and ten years ago, we thought we had Independence – given on a silver platter by a dying imperial power. But what we got was a state that evolved out of ketuanan Melayu. We wanted Liberty but we got Plutocracy.
Two scores and ten years later we are seeing a country divided, sub-divided, and further sub-divided into tribes and post-industrial tribes. The politics of race have strengthened and inspired the few to plunder and patronise the many. We are seeing chaos disguised in the name of consensus. Read the rest of this entry »
Remove restrictive ISA release conditions, lift ban on Hindraf and appoint Uthayakumar as member of Royal Commission of Inquiry into marginalisation of Malaysian Indians
Posted by Kit in Hindraf, Human Rights, Indians, Najib Razak on Saturday, 9 May 2009, 7:30 pm
I am calling this media conference on the release of the three Hindraf leaders, P. Uthayakumar, DAP Selangor Assemblyman for Kota Alam Shah M. Manoharan and K. Vasanthakumar from Kamunting Detention Centre under the Internal Security Act (ISA) two hours ago.
The formation of Hindraf, the arbitrary, undemocratic and unjust detention of the five Hindraf leaders in December and the Makkal Sakti phenomenon were important factors resulting in the March 8 “political tsunami” in last year’s general election.
The time has come for the Barisan Nasional government not just to release the three remaining Hindraf leaders under the ISA today but to come to terms and address the root causes for the alienation and marginalisation of the Indian community in the country after half-a-century of nationhood.
Neither the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak nor the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein should entertain any notion that the Malaysian Indians should “membalas budi” for the release of the Hindraf leaders, as they should not be detained without trial under the ISA in the first place.
To realistically and boldly address the root causes of the Hindraf and Makkal
Sakti phenomena, I call on Najib to implement three measures: Read the rest of this entry »
Hishammuddin more incompetent than Hamid Albar as Home Minister, requring longer time to release 13 ISA detainees?
Posted by Kit in Hindraf, Human Rights on Saturday, 9 May 2009, 8:15 am
Is the current Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein more incompetent than Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar that the former must take a longer time than his predecessor to release 13 Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees?
When Datuk Seri Najib Razak was sworn in as the sixth Prime Minister on Friday, 3rd April 2009, he announced in his maiden address to the nation telecast live at 8 pm the same night the release “with immediate effect” of 13 ISA detainees, including two Hindraf leaders Ganapathi Rao and R. Kenghadharan.
I had at the time expected the 13 ISA detainees to be released from Kamunting Detention Centre latest by the next day, Saturday, 4th April 2009.
This was not to be and Ganabatirau and Kenghadharan’s families were made victims of a cruel police game of “cat and mouse” lasting some 46 hours, as both of them were only released to their homes in Selangor at about 6 p.m. on Sunday 5th April 2009 – despite Najib’s “immediate release” announcement on Friday night and the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan’s undertaking on Saturday midday that the 13 ISA detainees would be allowed to leave Kamunting Detention Centre on Sunday morning.
Now, is Hishammuddin going to take longer than 46 hours to release another 13 ISA detainees, including the remaining three Hindraf leaders under the ISA, P. Uthayakumar, DAP Selangor State Assemblyman for Kota Alam Shah, M. Manoharan and K. Vasantha Kumar? Read the rest of this entry »
