DARI SUMBER-SUMBER BUKAN UMNO

Pulp fiction and the types of BN supporters

2011-09-25T17:51:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 25 September 2011 00:45

Pulp fiction and the types of BN supporters

Written by Ismail Dahlan, Malaysia Chronicle

There are three main kinds of people who support the BN today.

First there are The Evil, they are the ones who are in power and will do anything to stay in power.

Then there are The Selfish, who benefit in one form or the other from The Evil, and so want them to remain in power so that they can continue to benefit. The Selfish care nothing for Malaysia, only for themselves.

Then there is The Uninformed, who actually believe the gibberish that the BN feeds through their TV and their newspapers. The Uninformed do things like actually pay real money to buy the NST or Utusan. The Uninformed have no idea that these newspapers, like TV3, are works of vicious fiction.

There are others of course who support the BN, but they are smaller in numbers, like The Lunatics, The Incredibly Stupid and The Masochists. Some are small but growing quickly in numbers, like The Bangladeshis.

The BN lineup

So it is these three main categories that the opposition must win over if they are to win the next General Election; The Evil, The Selfish and The Uninformed.

Let us start with The Evil. On the plus side, getting one of The Evil to your side would mean getting their supporters too. Unfortunately their supporters generally tend to be evil as well so you would only end up with a bunch of evil supporters. And get enough of The Evil on your side and you would be the one who is evil. Leave The Evil where they belong, in BN.

The Selfish, perhaps? Now, The Selfish are most often found running big corporations, usually corporations which are dependent on government goodwill or require licenses, like IPPs perhaps, or gambling entities, or loggers, and lots of others. They will do all they can, financially, to keep the BN in power. If the BN were to lose though, they would fall over themselves changing sides.

The best bet is The Uninformed. The Uninformed generally tend to be, well, uninformed. Some of them, especially The Particularly Uninformed tend to be The Most Opinionated. The less you know, it would seem, the more sure you are of yourself. Arm me ignorance!

There is no malice in them though, only ignorance. The Uninformed will have to be reached before the elections, every one of them if possible. For they may well hold the key vote for every contested seat.

The Opposition is fortunate because it is led by the Righteous. Though the Righteous man will find himself beset by the iniquities of the Selfish and the tyranny of Evil men.

So, which group do you belong to?
Malaysia Chronicle

Story ToolsFont size:****Photo visibility:Hide AllShow Top OnlyShow All Ghost of Mongolian model continues to haunt Malaysian government

2010-07-18T09:14:00.000-07:00

A handout photograph of murdered Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu who was shot dead in the jungle outside Kuala Lumpur and then blown up in an apparent attempt to foil identification.
Photograph by: Reuters, Vancouver Sun

Ghost of Mongolian model continues to haunt Malaysian government

By Jonathan Manthorpe, Vancouver Sun

The ghost of murdered Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu refuses to lie quiet.

For the Malaysian government of prime minister Najib Tun Razak a line appeared to have been drawn under the sordid and politically explosive affair when two of his bodyguards from his days as defence minister were convicted last year of the young woman's murder in the jungle outside Kuala Lumpur in October 2006.

But in the last few weeks two events have revived simmering questions about the connection of the murder to a $1.2 billion contract to buy two French Scorpene-class diesel submarines ordered while Najib was defence minister.

Najib's friend and adviser on defence matters, Abdul Razak Baginda, whose wife's company was paid a questionable $150 million over the submarine contract, had recently brought a love affair with Shaariibuu to an acrimonious end when she was abducted and murdered.

During the months' long trial of the two police bodyguards every effort was made to ensure prime minister Najib's name didn't figure in evidence.

And in a move that astonished legal experts, the judge early on in the trial exonerated Baginda of any responsibility. He promptly fled to Britain where he remains.

The stage management of the trial convinced Malaysian human rights groups that it would be pointless to try to resolve the Shaariibuu case in the senior courts in Kuala Lumpur.

One of those Malaysian human rights groups, Suaram, has therefore pressed for a judicial inquiry in France, where there are a number of investigations underway of the notorious willingness of state-owned defence companies to pay bribes or other inducements in order to gain arms contracts.

In this case Parisian prosecutors started inquiries in March focusing on the $150 million paid to a Malaysian company called Perimekar, which was set up just before Najib signed in 2002 the deal to buy the two Scorpene submarines from the French state-owned shipbuilder DCN.

Perimekar was ostensibly hired to provide "coordination and support services" for the contract, but no evidence has been produced to show the company had the skills for such tasks or ever attempted to perform them.

Perimekar is a wholly-owned subsidiary of a company called KS Ombak Laut Sdn Bhd., whose principal shareholder is lawyer Mazalinda Baginda, the wife of prime minister Najib's friend and adviser Razak Baginda.

Shaariibuu, 28 at the time of her death, had learned French when she was a model in Paris and there is evidence she acted as translator for her paramour Baginda during his negotiations with DCN over the submarines on behalf of Najib and the Malaysian government.

Malaysian authorities have responded to the move by French prosecutors to investigate DCN and particularly its submarine-manufacturing subsidiary Armaris, for possible corruption and paying kickbacks by insisting nothing is wrong.

A spokesman for prime minister Najib said recently the French prosecutors have the right to investigate, "but for us, there is no case to answer." He added that the deal was entirely free of corruption.

Exactly why Shaariibuu was murdered by Najib's bodyguards has never been entirely resolved, despite the long trial and 45 witnesses.

By some accounts, after Baginda jilted her, the young woman and a friend launched several noisy demonstrations outside Baginda's house.

Baginda reportedly went to Najib's chief of staff, Musa Safri, and asked for help in keeping the young woman away from his home.

As a result, the two police bodyguards, Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, abducted Shaariibuu during one of her demonstrations, took her to the jungle outside the capital and shot her.

But they then used military C4 explosives to blow up the body in an apparent attempt to foil identification, though this act has, of course, led to speculation that Shaariibuu was pregnant.

But in a letter written by Shaariibuu and discovered after her death -a letter never produced in evidence -she indicated she was trying to blackmail Baginda for $500,000 to keep quiet about the details of the $150 million paid to his wife's company, Perimekar.

There have also been suggestions that Shaariibuu knew details of the many other arms purchases made in the military equipment buildup overseen by Najib while he was defence minister from 2002 to 2008.

These deals include the purchase of Sukhoi supersonic fighter jet aircraft from Russia and of a small fleet of coastal defence vessels.

As well as Malaysian human rights organizations, Shaariibuu's parents have been adamant that there has been no real justice for their murdered daughter.

With the stage-managed criminal trial now done, Shaariibuu's father and mother have tried to bring a civil suit seeking compensation for her death against Baginda and the two convicted policemen.

In a strange move, Malaysia's High Court in March ordered the family to make a security deposit of the equivalent of $20,000 for the case to be heard by the Court of Appeal and potentially to continue to the Federal Court.

The family was distraught, saying it could not raise such a sum.

But last week The Mongolian government announced it will put up the security bond demanded by the Malaysian court so the case can be heard, though at this point it seems more likely that Shaariibuu's ghost will get justice in Paris rather than Kuala Lumpur.

jmanthorpe@vancouversun.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
A handout photograph of murdered Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu who was shot dead in the jungle outside Kuala Lumpur and then blown up in an apparent attempt to foil identification.Photograph by: Reuters, Vancouver Sun

Pakatan Rakyat Sarawak

2010-07-18T06:10:00.000-07:00

Historic meeting of the Pakatan Rakyat Sarawak Council in Kuching.Meeting just started

http://twitpic.com/26haqt

Sasaran 60 kerusi Parlimen cerah

2010-07-12T16:32:00.000-07:00

Sasaran 60 kerusi Parlimen cerah

Dzulfikar Mashoor

http://dialograkyat.blogspot.com/2010/07/sasaran-60-kerusi-parlimen-cerah.html

KUALA LUMPUR: Sasaran PAS adalah merampas 37 kerusi Parlimen daripada Umno pada Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13 (PRU13), selain mempertahankan 23 kerusi yang sedia dikuasai oleh PAS, tegas Ahli Parlimen Jerai, Mohd Firdaus Jaafar.

Menurut beliau, usul 'menguasai 60 Parlimen' itu telahpun dipersetujui dalam Muktamar PAS kali ke-56 pada 12 Jun lalu demi memastikan PAS bersama-sama Pakatan Rakyat berjaya mengambil alih kerajaan Persekutuan dari Umno BN tidak lama lagi.

Sehubungan itu, beliau mewakili jentera pilihan raya pemuda menolak pelawaan Umno untuk kerjasama demi kepentingan parti perkauman itu.

"Sasaran kita yang sebenar adalah 60 Parlimen ke Putrajaya, janganlah main isu lain," tegas beliau petang tadi di Lobi Parlimen.

Baginya, PAS mempunyai harapan yang cerah untuk menguasai kesemua Parlimen sasaran tersebut jika berdasarkan demografi pengundian rakyat pada PRU12 lalu.

"Saya ingat cerah, kalau jentera lebih berkerja keras dari apa yang sedia ada," ujar beliau yang juga Pengarah Jabatan Pilihan raya Pemuda PAS Pusat.

Ini kerana, beliau berkata, sebanyak 16 kerusi Parlimen menyaksikan PAS kalah kurang dari 5 ribu undi.

Manakala, katanya lagi, lapan kerusi parlimen sasaran yang lain menyaksikan PAS kalah kurang dari 10 ribu undi. 13 kerusi berbaki, menurut beliau lagi, menyaksikan PAS kalah 13 ribu undi sahaja.

"Kita kena gandakan fokus dan kerja, kalau nak pujuk rakyat tolak politik zalim dalam pilihanraya depan," tegasnya lagi.

Ditambah dengan mood rakyat yang kian sedar ekoran melihat isu penyerahan tanah KTM di Tanjong Pagar pada Singapura; gadai dua telaga minyak (Blok L dan Blok M) pada Brunei; kes pembunuhan Altantuya; skandal kapal selam Scropene; serta perlantikan Firma Perunding Antarabangsa APCO Worldwide (IAC) yang dikatakan pro Yahudi sebagai syarikat komunikasi kerajaan, beliau berkata, sudah tentu memberi kelebihan pada PAS dan Pakatan Rakyat.

Penegasan '60 Kerusi Parlimen' itu sekaligus menjawab pelawaan Panel Pemikir Jabatan Hal Ehwal Khas, Lokman Nor Adam kononnya PAS lebih mudah melaksanakan Islam sekiranya bekerjasama dengan Umno adalah sandiwara Umno semata-mata.

Menurut beliau, tujuan pelawaan itu demi kepentingan Umno semata-mata, bukannya Islam.

"Kalau Umno ikhlas nak laksana Islam, mereka boleh buktikan sekarang, tak perlu 'main wayang' dengan PAS," ujar beliau sambil menyifatkan kenyataan Lokman itu bertujuan memecahbelah muafakat Pakatan Rakyat.

"Saya tak mahu Negara Islam versi Umno sebab negara kekal dalam kezaliman ISA (Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri), mahkamah tidak bebas, rasuah sana sini, sokong judi bola, amalkan politik membenci kaum-kaum lain yang tidak sokong Umno dan banyak lagi sebenarnya."

Sebaliknya, beliau berkata, pendirian PAS bersama-sama DAP dan PKR atas nama Pakatan Rakyat demi memujuk rakyat menolak kezaliman Umno BN; sebagaimana yang pernah dilakukan oleh Rasulullah s.a.w.

"Dalam Perjanjian Fudhul Hudaybiah, sebelum Perang Badar dan waktu memeterai Perjanjian Madinah pun, Nabi sendiri bersama-sama orang Islam dan yang bukan Islam untuk lawan kezaliman, apa masalahnya dengan DAP dan PKR," soal beliau.

Semalam, Utusan Malaysia melaporkan Lokman turut mendakwa DAP anti Islam, manakala PKR pula adalah parti yang memperjuangkan kepentingan peribadi pemimpin utamnya.

Lokman turut mengumpan PAS kononnya boleh melaksanakan Hudud sekiranya parti itu bersedia bekerjasama dengan Umno dalam masa terdekat ini.

Difahamkan, pujukan Lokman itu demi memulihkan semula sokongan masyarakat Melayu pada Umno yang belakangan ini dilihat kian pudar sejak parti perkauman itu menggadai kepentingan agama, negara dan bangsa.

Ulama Umno bakar kapal

2010-06-17T00:35:00.000-07:00

http://www.malaysiakini.com/columns/133035

Ulama Umno bakar kapal
Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin
Mei 28, 10
10:43pm

Saya bukan orang politik. Bukan aktivis mana-mana parti. Saya seorang rakyat yang memerhati perkembangan pemikiran Islam dalam negara ini.

Artikel ini akan menyebut istilah ulama Umno atau ulama pro-Umno. Walaupun istilah ini umum, namun saya mengecualikan mereka yang ikhlas dan tidak bersikap seperti yang disebutkan nanti.

Saya tidak faham mengapakah Umno kebelakangan ini suka berkeras mengambil pandangan-pandangan agama yang bersifat perkauman dan amat konservatif.

Dulu mereka lebelkan PAS demikian. Namun hari ini apabila PAS mula membuka ufuknya, melihat Islam dalam kerangka yang lebih luas, Umno pula yang cuba kembali ke zaman ortodoks tersebut.

Ya, memang masih ada dalam PAS sendiri kelompok yang 'ala ulama Umno' hari ini, yang juga mengurung diri dengan pandangan-pandangan yang agak konservatif dan menolak keluasan ijtihad.

Namun suara pembaharuan dan keterbukaan jelas kedengaran dalam PAS. Mursyidul Am PAS, Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat tidak lagi bersendirian dengan pandangan-pandangan pembaharuannya.

Pelik, sebagai pemerintah mengapa Umno menerima pandangan-pandangan yang sempit itu. Padahal pandangan-pandangan itu hanyalah tafsiran 'kurang luas' golongan konservatif agama, atau satu ijtihad yang boleh untuk dilihat atau dibandingkan dengan ijtihad yang lain.

Apakah kerana Umno merasakan bahawa mereka hanya mampu bernafas dalam iklim yang kurang 'oksigen keluasan ijtihad' atau hanya gas perkauman dan fahaman 'sempit' agama sahaja yang mampu menghidupkan Umno.

Keserasian wajah 1Malaysia

Atau, apakah ulama-ulama pro-Umno hanya mampu bernafas selagi parti itu dikurangkan oksigen keluasan berfikir? Atau, apakah Umno melihat rupa paras Islam dalamnya hanya mampu dilihat jika ia bersifat keras dan sokongan Melayu pun akan datang kepadanya dengan membakar isu-isu tersebut?

Di
manakah keserasian wajah 1 Malaysia Perdana Menteri dengan pendekatan Islam Umno hari ini?

Sebagai pemerintah bagi sebuah negara yang berbilang bangsa dan agama, oksigen keluasan ijtihad diperlukan oleh Umno. Mengapakah Umno menerima pendapat-pendapat yang menajamkan salah faham terhadap Islam di negara ini.

Dulu Umno menolak pihak yang membangkitkan tuduhan 300 ribu orang Melayu murtad serta menuduh individu dan institusi itu dan ini sebagai pusat Kristian.

Hari ini pendapat pihak seperti tersebut diterima pakai. Bahkan beliau dijadikan perlambangan ulama pro-Umno. Atau memang Umno kini berminat dengan perdekatan yang sifatkan media antarabangsa sebagai 'ala-ala Taliban'?

Segala tudingan Umno dahulu kepada PAS sebagai pembawa Islam sempit dan jumud, hari ini PAS hampir dapat membebaskan diri dan imejnya seumpama itu sedangkan sebaliknya Umno pula yang memakai seragam kejumudan dan kesempitan tersebut.

Peguam bukan Islam

Lihat, isu peguam bukan Islam di Mahkamah Syariah. Media-media Umno membesar-besarkan isu ini seakan ia akan memusnah orang Islam.

Diambil pendapat pihak yang menyatakan bahawa itu akan mengelirukan umat Islam dan mengancam Islam. Saya ditanya oleh Utusan Malaysia, namun apabila saya beri pendapat yang berbeza, ia tidak disiarkan.

Isu itu boleh memberikan gambaran salah kepada bukan Islam, dan juga generasi baru Muslim mengenai Islam.

Bagaimanakah mungkin, universiti rasmi kerajaan UIAM memberikan sijil yang sah dalam bidang tersebut kepada peguam berkenaan, tetapi kerajaan yang sama menyatakan ia tidak boleh digunapakai?

Apakah ini secocok dengan keadilan Islam?

Kedua, bayangkan dalam sebuah negara Islam sepenuhnya yang hanya bertunjangkan Mahkamah Ssyariah, tiba-tiba kita beritahu bukan Islam tidak boleh menjadi peguam!

Apakah dalam negara yang berbilang agama ini, mereka akan pandang tinggi tentang konsep keadilan di mahkamah yang bersifat Islam seperti itu?

Peguam ialah pembela. Sesiapa sahaja boleh membela tertuduh di mahkamah Islam. Yahudi pernah menang kes menentang Saidina 'Ali dalam pertikaian baju besi.

Pada zaman Nabi SAW dan al-Khulafa al-Rasyidin, tiada sistem guaman secara rasmi. Seseorang boleh menuntut keadilan dengan hujah-hujahnya di hadapan hakim. Untuk membela atau berhujah, sesiapa pun boleh berhujah.

Penentunya, sistem kehakiman itu sendiri, bukan peguam. Di zaman kini lebih jelas. Undang-undang telah dienakmenkan. Ia bertulis dan setiap pihak terikat dengan undang-undang bertulis itu.

Sesiapa sahaja yang berhujah, sama ada Islam atau bukan Islam, mereka terikat dengan hal tersebut. Hakim akan menentukannya secara adil. Keadilan sebenar dapat diperolehi jika hakim adil.

Setiap pihak berhak membela diri, dan berhak meminta sesiapa sahaja yang mampu membelanya. Keadilan itu buta warna kulit dan jenis agama.

Islam yang seperti itulah patut digambarkan jika kita ingin menuju kepada Islamisasi negara yang sebenar. Jika ada beberapa peruntukan undang-undang yang kurang sesuai dalam masyarakat yang rencam ini maka ia perlu diubah.

Cara Umno mengendalikan isu tersebut, mengelirukan bukan Islam!

Jika tidak mahu benarkan, mengapa dia diizinkan melalui pengajian dan menghabiskan masa untuk itu, kemudian dimaklumkan 'sijil awak tidak laku'.

Ulama pro-Umno bising. Menariknya, apabila ada orang yang ditahan tanpa diberikan hak perbicaraan, mereka diam! Tidakkah ini mengelirukan Islam dan bukan Islam?

Jika ini tidak diubah, Islam di negara ini terus menjadi defensive, takut pada bayang-bayang sendiri dan gagal memahamkan bukan Islam tentang keindahan Islam.

Lebih 50 tahun Umno memerintah, generasi baru bukan Islam bertambah prejudis dengan Islam yang dibawa oleh Umno. Golongan muda Islam juga demikian.

Agama dijadikan senjata permusuhan, bukan lagi rahmat yang menimbulkan kedamaian dan keyakinan rakyat kepada keindahan Islam.

Jika tanpa pendakwah-pendakwah dan tokoh-tokoh yang ikhlas menjelaskan tentang hakikat Islam sebenar, tentu bukan Islam bertambah prejudis kepada Islam.

Generasi Islam yang terpelajar juga akan mula mempersoalkan Islam seperti ini.

Isu kalimah Allah

Isu kalimah Allah juga demikian. Ulama pro-Umno, termasuk 'ala Umno' yang berada dalam PAS membakar rakyat awam dengan isu ini.

Sehingga ada ulama pro-Umno yang cuba mengkafirkan orang lain dalam isu nama Allah tersebut. Tidak cukup dengan 300 ribu yang dimurtadkan dulu, ditambah pula ahli politik yang cuba dijadikan murtad baru.

Semuanya kerana tafsiran yang sempit. Padahal, isu itu boleh diselesaikan dengan adil dan saksama. Diraikan hak agama lain dan dibuat beberapa peraturan untuk ketenteraman awam. Saya sendiri telah menggaris panduan dalam media. Bukan Islam ramai yang setuju.

Namun, ada yang cuba bermain sentimen rakyat yang kurang faham.

Media Umno pula hanya menerang pendapat sebelah pihak. Namun sekarang apabila melihat kekalahan di Sibu yang membabitkan penduduk Kristian, Umno mula gelisah. Apakah Umno akan meminta fatwa baru dari 'mufti' yang setia berkhidmat itu?

Isu masuk masjid

Isu bukan Islam tidak boleh masuk ke dalam masjid juga dipopularkan oleh media Umno. Padahal larangan bukan Islam masuk masjid hanya salah satu pendapat dalam kalangan ulama.

Ulama hadis ramai berpendapat sebaliknya. Ini disebabkan hadis-hadis menunjukkan bukan Islam pada zaman Nabi SAW masuk ke dalam masjid dan mempelajari Islam.

Jsuteru, di zaman kini yang banyak salahfaham terhadap Islam, mereka lebih patut dibenarkan masuk.

Cumanya, letakkan beberapa peraturan atas asas siyasah syar'iyyah (islamic administration). Namun, jika apabila dikemukakan pendapat bahawa bukan Islam boleh masuk ke masjid, bangkitlah ulama-ulama pro-Umno dengan fatwa-fatwa ketat dan seakan hendak berjihad mempertahankannya.

Malang sekali, apabila timbul isu judi bolasepak, tidak pula mereka berani lantang dan tegas. Tidakkah ini mengelirukan? Apa tidaknya, apabila bukan Islam hendak masuk masjid dihalang, tapi apabila diberikan keizinan berjudi didiamkan!

Isu Sebat

Isu sebat tiba-tiba muncul. Dulu Umno sensitif dengan hudud. Dalam persekitaran yang ada, saya juga fikir PAS tidak perlu menegaskan isu hudud. PAS sejak dulu patut angkat isu keadilan seperti mereka lakukan sekarang.

Keadilan itulah objektif. Hudud adalah mekanisma yang boleh diselaraskan apabila keadaan wajar.

Hukum yang baik untuk tempat yang sesuai. Sama seperti wanita yang baik untuk lelaki yang baik. Jika wanita yang baik dikahwinkan dengan lelaki yang jahat, kepincangan akan berlaku.

Demikianlah hudud. Saya telah beri pandangan dalam masalah ini.

Tapi kini, tidak semena-mena tanpa mukadimah yang jelas agar rakyat faham, Umno mencanangkan isu sebat Kartika dan tiga wanita di Wilayah Persekutuan.

Menurut laporan media, mufti Perak Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria kata sesiapa hina hukum sebat murtad kerana ia hukum Allah. Namun, apabila Sultan Pahang batalkan hukuman, beliau berkata itu hak Sultan.

Saya telah beri pandangan dalam kes ini, boleh rujuk laman web saya. Keajaiban ulama dalam media Umno!

Perarakan Maulid

Apabila Menteri Besar Kelantan Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat kata perarakan maulid bukan galakan agama, media Umno dan ulama pro-Umno membuat ulasan.

Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang, Lim Guan Eng diserang. Walaupun saya ketika itu menulis dalam Mingguan Malaysia, saya memberikan pandangan yang berbeza.

Artikel saya 'Melayu dan Mamak Penang' boleh dirujuk. Media Umno jadikan seakan isu itu benteng Melayu-Islam di Malaysia.

Di Kelantan, lebai entah dari mana datangnya, pun menulis di Mingguan Malaysia kononnya Nik Aziz - Wahabi disebabkan isu-isu seperti ini.

Bisinglah mereka. Malangnya, media dan ulama pro-Umno tidak pula bising keruntuhan moral muda-muda Melayu-Islam saban tahun disebabkan perhimpunan pesta sambutan tahun baru yang dibuat oleh pemimpin-pemimpin politik!

Inilah ulama yang pro-Umno sekarang. Apakah mereka ini dapat menarik perhatian generasi baharu Islam dan bukan Islam kepada Islam?

Barah

Banyak lagi isu lain jika hendak disebutkan yang membabitkan ulama dalam Umno.

Saya bukan anti-Umno tetapi inilah realitinya. Saya ramai sahabat dalam Umno. Kepimpinan Umno bermula dari Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak sehingga ke lapisan bawah, ramai yang baik dengan saya. Tapi ini realiti. Kritikan saya untuk semua. Kali ini khas untuk Umno.

1 Malaysia yang dicanangkan oleh Najib akan tenggelam dibakar oleh pemikiran sempit dan berkepentingan oleh sesetengah ulama Umno ini.

Malang sekali, di kala rakyat Malaysia mula bersikap terbuka, memahami Islam dari kerangkanya yang luas, menelaah ijtihad yang berbagai dan bersedia untuk berhujah secara matang, Umno memilih fatwa atau pandangan yang kian sempit dan berkepentingan.

Dunia sudah terbuka disebabkan media baru, Umno cuba kembali ke zaman selepas kemerdekaan.

PAS yang dahulunya dilihat kolot, mula dipenuhi dengan tokoh-tokoh politik Islam yang kian matang dan mampu mengadaptasi Islam dalam lakarannya yang luas. Pada masa yang sama Umno sedang kerumuni oleh sesetengah mereka yang 'narrow-minded' dan melihat Islam dalam kerangka perkauman.

Bolehkah 1 Malaysia tajaan Perdana Menteri berjaya jika ini terus berlaku. Generasi muda Islam dan bukan Islam telah jauh ke hadapan meninggalkan kesempitan ini. Islam dalam kerangkanya yang lebih universal akan mengambil tempat.

Ulama Umno sebenarnya sedang membakar kapal sendiri dan menenggelamkannya. Perdana Menteri, patut menilai semula agenda 1 Malaysia!

Penulis adalah pensyarah Bahagian Pengajian Islam, Universiti Sains Malaysia sebelum dilantik menjadi mufti Perlis bermula 1 Nov 2006 – 30 Nov 2008. Beliau mendapat ijazah Ph.D dalam Islamic Revealed Knowledge And Haritage (Al-Quran And Sunnah Studies), UIA (2003) dan lulusan Ijazah Hadith dengan mendapat 5 ijazah sanad menerusi jalur ulama India (2001).

Beliau telah menghasilkan tidak kurang 20 buku, khususnya berkaitana dengan keagamaan dan membentangkan lebih 40 kertas kerja di peringkat tempatan mahupun luar negara.

Campurtangan politik: Penerbit ntv7 letak jawatan

2010-04-22T03:38:00.000-07:00

Regina Lee
Apr 22, 10
6:10pm

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/129940

Penerbit kanan ntv7 Joshua Wong mendakwa terdapat campur tangan melampau daripada pihak kerajaan dan juga penapisan yang keterlaluan.

Wong (kiri), yang menerbitkan rancangan popular bahasa Mandarin 'Editor's Time', berkata 'larangan yang tidak munasabah' dikenakan ke atas rancangannya yang sering-kali membincangkan isu sosio politik di negara ini.

“Pihak pengurusan tertinggi ntv7 bersikap tidak munasabah. Kebebasan disekat dan mereka yang engkar akan dihukum sehingga menjejaskan sikap profesionalisme kakitangan,” katanya pada sidang media di Dewan Perhimpunan Cina Kuala Lumpur dan Selangor, hari ini.

Wong berkata masalah bermula daripada aduan SMS yang dihantar oleh seorang pengadu ke Jabatan Perdana Menteri kepada ketuanya selepas episod pertama ranvcngan itu ke udara.

Episod itu adalah forum membabitkan pemimpin BN dan Pakatan Rakyat dengan dua penganalisis politik berhubung pencapaian kedua-dua gabungan itu sejak pilihan raya umum 2008.

Pengadu berkenaan mendakwa rancangan itu menghina polisi kerajaan BN dan perbincangan politik menjadi sesuatu yang “membahayakan”.

Wong juga mendakwa SMS itu berbaur perkauman dan ia memberi amaran bahawa masyarakat Cina “semakin biadap” dan “Melayu perlu berperang”.

Wong, yang telah menjadi wartawan lebih 16 tahun juga mendakwa SMS pengadu itu dihantar kepada isteri Perdana Menteri, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor kepada ketuannya.

Sehubungan itu, pengurusan tertinggi ntv7 menuntut Wong dan juga pengacara program berkenaan Lee Siad Huey untuk memberi penjelasan.

Sejak aduan itu, Wong berkata cadangannya selaku penerbit untuk membawa MP DAP, Tony Pua ke rancangan itu juga ditolak.

Malah, mereka diberi amaran bahawa rancangan itu akan ditamatkan, jika arahan tiidak dipatuhi.

Selain itu, Wong berkata cadangan bagi memaparkan perjalanan kempen pilihan raya kecil parlimen Hulu Selangor juga tidak mendapat restu.

“Akhirnya, semua perbincangan politik diarah dihentikan. Selain itu, kami dilarang menjemput tokoh pembangkang sebagai tetamu,” katanya.

Wong berkata lebih mendukacitakan bahawa ketua-ketuanya gagal mempertahankannya atau menyiasat aduan itu atau juga membuat laporan polis mengenai SMS itu yang mempunyai unsur-unsur hasutan.

BANNER BODOH

2010-04-09T03:45:00.000-07:00

JUST PLAIN STUPID

You are terminated, Malaysia

2010-04-09T03:30:00.000-07:00

You are terminated, Malaysia
LETTERS/SURAT

Now the Israelis have access to our police database. With the intelligence of the Israelis, and the state-of-the-art technologies of the military intelligence of a country that has recently been in war, can a country that has enjoyed 50 over years of peace compete?

By VoiceAct

As the saying goes: the more you deal with it, the better you are at it. So to countries and individuals who have been at war for a long time, they would have better survival skills than a country and people who don’t. Just look at the size of the belly of some of our police officers and you will know. We or rather “they” have enjoyed peace for 50 over years without many serious events to handle that now they cannot even solve simple snatch-theft cases, or don’t even bother to solve them.

With such “intelligence”, do you think they will suspect anything if the Israeli “spies” are planted in their department and does something to their computer systems since they were the ones who did the upgrade? What if they planted a virus or spyware into the secret database and monitors from afar. And when they need it, can deploy powers at their wish? With too many sloths within our security, I doubt if they even installed a decent virus/spyware scanner in their servers. What more if the “spyware” is not really a spyware but an authorized remote monitoring software?

The whole event makes me recall the movie Terminator 3 – Rise of the Machines, where “Skynet”, the supposed protection and “cure” was in fact the virus itself. When it was launched, it took over all military control and launched attacks against human beings.

I wonder if our local "intelligence" is aware of the risks. I wonder if they know what they are dealing with. I wonder if the King is being informed about this as well. Well, not to say that they will be a military attack. But if they were able to control or manipulate the military power, they could do a lot of things with it. Take for example:

1) Impose a change to the person in charge of military and arms power, by disguise or by influence. You basically wouldn’t suspect until it hits you. And that’s too late.
2) Cause a change to the person in charge of management and executive power. And influence the decision of the top administrative power. Just look at how APCO was suggested, and eventually got hired. That’s exactly how it could be done.
3) Cause a change to anyone opposing their power, even the King. Well, we all know that happened in some states already. Just that now foreign power will control that, and if needed, deploy OUR people with the consent of THEIR appointed executive power, and THEIR appointed King to legalize that action.

While foreign power may help them in securing their position NOW against opposition gaining power that they may eliminate opposing threats, they are putting themselves at risk and may eventually lose everything to these foreign powers. It will be too late to regret by then. Just like in the movies, they will be laughing at us while they say: “You are terminated, Malaysia”.

http://malaysia-today.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31081:you-are-terminated-malaysia&catid=18:letterssurat&Itemid=100129

Harakahdaily - English Edition

2010-03-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

Bala confirms it: Nasir Safar among last to see Altantuya alive

2010-02-12T00:36:00.000-08:00

http://freemalaysiatoday.com/english/?p=10610

SHAH ALAM: Private investigator P. Balasubramaniam has confirmed that Nasir Safar (picture) was at the scene when policemen abducted Mongolian beauty Altantuya Shaariibuu, according to his lawyer, Americk Sidhu.

Sidhu, in an email to the Pakatan Rakyat weekly Suara Keadilan, said the private eye — known throughout Malaysia by his nickname Bala — made the connection recently when he saw a photograph of the former special aide to the Prime Minister posted on a blog.

Nasir was thrust into notoriety last week after delivering a talk that many have described as full of racial slurs. He has had to resign over the incident, which embarrassed premier Najib Abdul Razak’s 1Malaysia project.

Both Bala and Sidhu live outside Malaysia for fear of persecution by the Najib regime, to which the police force, the attorney-general and the judiciary are widely suspected to be fiercely loyal.

In the now famous statutory declaration that he made in July 2008, Bala said he was at the scene when police took Altantuya away in a car from outside the home of her Malaysian lover, Abdul Razak Baginda, then an aide of Najib.

A few minutes before Altantuya was taken into the car, he said, “a blue Proton Saga, driven by a Malay man, passed by slowly. The driver’s window had been wound down and the driver was looking at us.”

Bala did not know then who the Malay man was, but was able to describe his facial features to police when he was interrogated. According to Sidhu, the interrogators told his client the man was just one of Abdul Razak’s neighbours.

However, Bala instantly recognised Nasir as the man in the blue car when he saw his picture on the Internet, Sidhu said.

Perak: Another mockery of justice coming up?

2009-11-04T01:22:00.000-08:00

http://english.cpiasia.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1772:perak-another-mockery-of-justice-coming-up-&catid=35:Constitution

Perak: Another mockery of justice coming up?

Law & Order
Written by Kevin YL Tan
Wednesday, 04 November 2009 14:10
— earlier Court of Appeal judgment doubtful
Kevin Tan who is Faculty of Law Professor (Adjunct) in the National University of Singapore — and obtained his LLM and JSD from Yale Law School — argues that the burden of judgment is for the Federal Court on the text of Perak Constitution, and three simple provisions contained therein. Hence, the Sultan should have dissolved the assembly upon Nizar’s request.
Introduction
In a few days, the Federal Court will hear one of the most important constitutional appeals in recent times: Nizar Jamaluddin v Zambry Abd Kadir. While many readers are familiar with the facts leading to this appeal, it is useful to recapitulate the key events.
The resignation of three Pakatan Rakyat (PR) assemblymen in February this year left the ruling PR government with control over 28 seats in the Legislative Assembly (LA), the same number of seats controlled by the opposition Barisan Nasional (BN). This led the incumbent PKR Menteri Besar (MB) of Perak, Nizar to request Sultan Azlan Shah (HRH) on February 4, 2009 to dissolve the LA so that this numeric deadlock could be resolved. HRH took no immediate decision.
The following day, HRH met up with 31 members of the LA (including the three PR members who had earlier resigned), satisfied himself that all 31 of them supported Zambry as MB and proceeded to inform Nizar that he no longer commanded the LA’s confidence. Nizar was then asked to tender the resignation of the executive council. When Nizar did not comply, HRH’s office issued a press statement declaring the office of MB to be vacant and that Zambry had been appointed the new MB of Perak since he commanded the confidence of the majority of LA members. Nizar applied to the High Court for a declaration that he remained Perak’s MB.
On May 11, 2009, the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled (per Abdul Aziz J) that since there had been no formal vote of confidence on the floor of LA, Nizar remained the rightful MB of Perak. Zambry appealed. The Court of Appeal unanimously reversed the High Court decision but it was some time before the three judgments were released. Two of them, those of Dato’ Raus Sharif and Dato’ Ahmad Maarop JJCA were released towards the end of June while that of Dato’ Zainun Ali JCA was released in early July.
The three lengthy judgments come up to some 240 pages in all and a large number of issues were canvassed and discussed. I had previously commented on the correctness of the High Court decision and having already discussed the contradictions that arose from the judgments of Raus and Maarop JJCA feel it timely to revisit the most salient issues in this case.
Sultan’s discretion to dissolve legislative assembly
Under the Perak Constitution, HRH’s discretion with respect to the dissolution of the LA is found in two provisions.
The first is Article is Article 16(6) which provides: If the Menteri Besar ceases to command the confidence of the majority of the members of the Legislative Assembly, then, unless at his request His Royal Highness dissolves the Legislative Assembly, he shall tender the resignation of the Executive Council.
The second is to be found in Article 36, the relevant parts of which reads:
(2) His Royal Highness may prorogue or dissolve the Legislative Assembly.
(3) The Legislative Assembly unless sooner dissolved shall continue for five years from the date of its first sitting and shall then stand dissolved.
(4) Whenever the Legislative Assembly is dissolved a general election shall be held within sixty days from the date of the dissolution and the new Legislative Assembly shall be summoned to meet on a date not later than ninety days from that date.
Of particular interest to us is Article 36(2) which gives HR the general power to ‘prorogue or dissolve’ the LA. Article 18(2)(b) further provides that HRH ‘may act in his discretion’ in ‘the withholding of consent to a request for the dissolution of the Legislative Assembly’.
In the High Court, Abdul Aziz J made the following findings of fact:
(a) Nizar’s request to HRH to dissolve the LA was not done ‘with reference to any provision in the Perak’s State Constitution; and
(b) Nizar was thus requesting HRH to exercise his royal prerogative under Article 36(2), and not under Article 16(6).
As such, the learned judge found no ambiguity in the wording of Article 16(6) and held that:
(a) HRH had no power to dismiss Nizar; and
(b) HRH was not allowed to deem the office of MB vacant when Nizar did not resign.
To do so, he said, would be to do ‘violence to the language’ of Article 16(6).
I previously argued that Abdul Aziz J was correct in his interpretation and added that the only logical way to read these various provisions is this:
If the MB makes an unspecified request to HRH to dissolve the LA, that request falls under HRH’s general power to dissolve the LA under Article 36(2) and he is free to exercise his discretion as he deems fit under Article 18(2)(b).
If the MB determines that he has lost the confidence of the LA and would like fresh elections, he will make a request to HRH under Article 16(2). In that instance, if HRH refuses the request, the MB must tender the resignation of the Executive Council to enable HRH to appoint a new MB.
The court of appeal decision
It would take a full-blown academic article to critique the three judgments of the Court of Appeal; they are too long and often dwell on subjects that were not germane to the issues. Even so, a number of observations may be made.
Unlike most appellate judges, the three Court of Appeal judges had no compunction about reversing the High Court’s finding of fact. The High Court had found that the request for the dissolution of the LA was made under Article 36(2) and not Article 16(6), but this was doubted by the Court of Appeal.
Raus Sharif JCA chastised Abdul Aziz J for failing ‘to properly and adequately appreciate the evidence adduced before him’ and found that the events bore ‘out the undisputed fact that Nizar’s request for dissolution was made because he lost the command and support of the house’. This was how he found that Nizar’s request for dissolution was made under Article 16(6) and not Article 36(2).
Zainun Ali JCA went to great lengths to demonstrate that Nizar must have known that he had already lost the confidence of the LA when he made his request to HRH to dissolve the LA. The language is almost condescending (at pp 31-32):
“It can safely be inferred that Nizar himself is an intelligent man. In fact I believe he is. He would be alert if not alerted, to the political dynamics existing then in the State of Perak. The information on the political situation would, without question be notified to him. His vigilance is displayed when he himself alerted His Royal Highness on the uneasy political events taking place in Perak as early as 2.2.2009. He would have made a quick mental assessment of the effect of the depletion in the number of Assemblyman [sic] aligned to him in the Legislative Assembly. Why else then would Nizar sent [sic] a letter requesting for dissolution of the Legislative Assembly on 4.2.2009 to His Royal Highness?”
There is much more; in fact, about 40 pages’ worth. The learned judge even went on a speculative spree, taking judicial notice of Nizar’s access to the newspapers on the morning of Feb 4 (at p 23) and thereby suggesting that Nizar must have known that he had lost the confidence of the LA through the defection of the three Assemblymen who had ostensibly resigned in February.
All this was done because of the troublesome “simple request without more, for the dissolution of the Legislative Assembly” that Nizar had sent to HRH (p 22). If the letter was a simple request and nothing more, some other evidence must direct the Court as to which constitutional provision it was being made: Article 36(2) or Article 16(2)?
One interesting observation made by Zainun Ali JCA was the fact that the draft Proclamation for the dissolution of the LA was ‘a standard document available in the office of the Menteri Besar’. Contrary to what the learned judge held, this seems all the more to suggest that the request was really a general ‘standard’ request under Article 36(2) and not Article 16(2).
Ahmad Maarop JCA was less interested in the facts than in whether or not HRH could make a determination on whether or not the MB had ceased to command the confidence of the LA by means other than a formal vote on the LA floor. He simply took the view that the request for dissolution was made under Article 16(2) and proceeded on that basis. After examining the authorities, he preferred the approach of the Privy Council in Adegbenro v Akintola (on appeal from Western Nigeria) to that of Malaysian High Court in Stephen Kalong Ningkan v Abang Haji Openg & Tawi Sli.
The issues: once again
It is easy to get lost in the morass of words and erstwhile authorities cited by the judges in the Court of Appeal such that we soon fail to see the real issues at hand.
To recapitulate, the issues before the Federal Court are the same as those that were before the High Court: What is the extent of the Sultan’s discretionary power under the Perak State Constitution in relation to the dissolution of the Legislative Assembly and the appointment or removal of the Menteri Besar. To answer this question, the following issues must be addressed:
One, who decides whether a request for the dissolution of the LA is made under Article 16(2) or Article 36(2) of the Perak State Constitution?
Two, how is loss of confidence of the majority of the LA to be determined?
The answer to the first question is clear – it is the Menteri Besar since it is he or she who makes the request. As I explained in my earlier comment (taking issue with one aspect of Raus Sharif JCA’s judgment), any other reading of the Constitution would be problematic.
If the MB makes an unspecified request, then HRH must accept that it is a request made under the general powers of dissolution under Article 36(2). In such a request, HRH is confronted with a very simple binary question: Does he or does he not dissolve the LA? As Sultan Azlan Shah had himself argued, the Head of State should ordinarily accede to a request to dissolve the legislature:

“… under normal circumstances, it is taken for granted that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong would not withhold his consent to a request for dissolution of Parliament. His role under such a situation is purely formal.”

There is no question of HRH making any kind of determination as to whether or not the MB still commanded the majority of the LA.
However, if a specific request to dissolve the LA is received under Article 16(2), with the MB stating that he has lost the confidence of the LA, then Article 16(6) kicks into operation, and if HRH should refuse to dissolve the LA – whether for fear of major political convulsions or unrest – the MB must tender the resignation of the Executive Council.
There is no question of an MB going to HRH and asking HRH whether or not he (the MB) continues to enjoy the confidence of the majority in the LA when such a request for dissolution is being made. If a request is made under Article 16(2), the MB has already determined that he has lost the confidence of the House; and the only way he will truly know this is by way of a vote on the floor of the LA.
Conclusion
Much ink has been spilt on whether the decision in Adegbenro v Akintola (in which the Privy Council held that the Governor of Western Nigeria could determine the loss of confidence by means other than a formal vote in the House) is preferable and more suitable to Malaysia than its own home-grown progeny, Stephen Kalong Ningkan where Adegbenro was strenuously and convincingly distinguished.
Furthermore, all the Court of Appeal judges quote Amir Kahar bin Tun Datu Haji Mustapha v Mohd Said bin Karuak & 8 Ors as being both relevant and salient, especially since the court appeared to have quoted Adegbenro with approval. This is disingenuous since the learned judges must know that in Amir Kahar, the Chief Minister Pairin Kitigan resigned on his own accord and the Governor was never called upon to exercise his discretion as to whether or not Kitigan had lost the confidence of the House.
While the academic community awaits the resolution of the Adegbenro versus Ningkan positions, we should not forget that this issue is really a supplementary one.
The first question that needs to be addressed by the Federal Court begins with the plain words of the Perak State Constitution. The issues are simple, if we stay focused on them. This case is not about a ruler’s hereditary prerogative powers nor even of residual royal prerogatives. It is about how to make sense of three simple provisions in the Constitution and paying respect to evidence as adduced and not that which is deduced. If the High Court’s finding of fact is upheld, the question of whether the Sultan can determine whether or not the MB has lost the confidence of the House by a means other than by a formal vote of the House may well remain moot; at least for this case.

Sigh…what more to say?

2009-10-30T05:33:00.000-07:00

Sigh…what more to say?

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/28192/84/

Friday, 30 October 2009 15:45
I told Nik Nazmi, the Menteri Besar’s political secretary, about the Badrul problem way back in mid-2008. I told him we have probably ‘lost’ him. And we actually lost him a few days after the 8 March 2008 general election.

NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin

It was in February 2008 that I first met Badrul Hisham Abdullah. And I went to meet him at the request of Ronnie Liu. You see; Ronnie was contesting the Pandamaran state seat under the Port Kelang parliamentary constituency while Badrul was contesting the neighbouring Port Kelang state seat, also under the Port Kelang parliamentary constituency. It was important, therefore, that both Ronnie and Badrul win to ensure that Charles Santiago will win the Port Kelang parliament seat as well.
We were not too worried about Pandamaran because Ronnie had spent many years building his base there. So we were quite confident that Ronnie would win the seat without any problem. But the Port Kelang state seat was another matter. It was going to be an uphill battle with this one.
First of all, no one knew who the hell this Badrul guy was. Secondly, that seat is a strong Barisan Nasional seat because of the Malay voters from Kampong Raja Uda who have always voted Umno since Merdeka Day. Never has Kampong Raja Uda voted opposition and unless they do then Badrul would not be able to win that seat.
To help Badrul increase his chances, Ronnie campaigned for Badrul and he asked me to go meet the voters in Kampong Raja Uda. We need to win the votes of the Malays in Kampong Raja Uda, said Ronnie, if Badrul is going to win. The Chinese and Indians are not too much of a problem. Furthermore, the Malays are the majority so if we can’t win the Malay votes, even if we win 100% of the votes of the Chinese and Indians, it will not help. Anyway, there is no way we can win 100% of the Chinese and Indian votes.
Ronnie arranged for me to ceramah at Kampong Raja Uda. My message to the Malay voters in Kampong Raja Uda was short and to the point. It was raining heavily and we had all these Malays standing in the rain getting soaked to their skin. So it was better that I come to the point, say my piece, and allow them to get out of the rain.
The opposition has never won the votes of the Malays of Kampong Raja Uda, I said. Since Merdeka, the Malays have always voted for the ruling party. For the first time I want the Malays to vote opposition, I said. This kampong, Kampong Raja Uda, is named after my grandfather, Raja Tun Uda. I used to visit this area every year during Hari Raya when I was a child because my relatives used to live here although many have since moved away.
If the Malays here still vote for the ruling party and do not vote for the opposition, I want them to remove my grandfather’s name from this kampong. Call it something else but please do not call it Kampong Raja Uda. And if the ruling party wins the votes from Kampong Raja Uda I swear to never step foot in this kampong again.
On Polling Day, Badrul won the Port Kelang state seat and, for the first time in history, Kampong Raja Uda went to the opposition. However, when it came time to announce the winner, Badrul was nowhere to be seen. They rushed to his house to see whether he was home but it appeared like no one was home. They knocked on his door anyway and for a while no one stirred. They continued knocking and soon a very sleepy Badrul came to the door. He had been sleeping. While the votes were being counted Badrul was at home fast asleep.
Badrul had a very confused look on his face. You won, they told him. Get dressed and come to the counting centre. They need you there to announce the winner.
Badrul remained silent. Quickly, get dressed. You won. You need to go to the counting centre.
I won? Badrul could not believe what he heard.
Yes, you won, quickly, come with us. You need to be there.
The signs that something was not quite right with this man already showed on Nomination Day and Ronnie told me he was a bit worried about this guy. He went to the nomination centre without any money and could not pay the deposit. So they quickly did a collection to help raise the deposit by passing the hat around.
After Badrul had been sworn in as a State Assemblyman, he ‘disappeared’. Instead of spending time with the other Pakatan Rakyat Assemblymen or the Member of Parliament, he was seen almost every night having dinner with the Umno people. He was mingling with the Umno people and staying away from the Pakatan Rakyat people.
I told Nik Nazmi, the Menteri Besar’s political secretary, about the Badrul problem way back in mid-2008. I told him we have probably ‘lost’ him. And we actually lost him a few days after the 8 March 2008 general election.
Nik Nazmi told me they are aware of the problem. But of course nothing was done about it and now the problem has come back to bite PKR and Pakatan Rakyat on their backsides.
That is the saga of Badrul Hisham Abdullah, PKR’s candidate for the Port Kelang state seat who turned up on Nomination day without any money to pay his deposit, who went home to sleep while the votes were being counted, and who ‘joined’ Umno barely a few days after he won the election.
When we first met Badrul, my wife said, oh my God, you mean PKR does not have any other candidates to choose? To be honest, my wife said, even I will not vote for him. How can we expect the general public to vote for him?
I think you make a much better candidate than Badrul, I told my wife.
That is so insulting, my wife replied. How can you compare me to him? I would not even trust him to cut my grass, let alone become my Wakil Rakyat.
Yes, that was my wife’s opinion. And Ronnie told me way back in March 2008 that we are going to have problems with Badrul. We expected him to jump ship more than a year ago. Our only surprise is that it took so long for him to do so. And an even bigger surprise is, after knowing all this, why did PKR not do anything about this guy earlier?
That appears to be the story of PKR’s life. And there are many more the likes of Badrul Hisham Abdullah lurking in PKR. I just wonder when we are going to see more incidences like Badrul.
PKR is beginning to look like one huge joke. But the joke is not funny. We campaigned hard and asked the voters to trust us by voting opposition. I personally went down to the ground to tell the voters to trust me and vote opposition. Have we violated that trust? Will the voters ever trust me again?
That, I would summarise, is the greatest tragedy of all.

KEMPEN BAGAN PINANG

2009-10-05T01:22:00.000-07:00

http://mohdtaufek.blogspot.com/

Jemputan ke Majlis Rumah Terbuka Nasional Hari Raya Aidilfitri DAP 2009

2009-09-24T17:52:00.000-07:00

Jemputan ke Majlis Rumah Terbuka Nasional Hari Raya Aidilfitri Rakan Pakatan Rakyat DAP 2009

Tarikh: Ahad, September 27, 2009

Waktu: 11:30 pagi – 2:00 petang

Tempat: Dewan Majlis Perbandaran Ampang Jaya, Jalan Kuari, Kg Cheras Baharu, Selangor

Pemimpin-pemimpin Pakatan Rakyat seperti Setiausaha Agung DAP Lim Guan Eng, Ketua Umum Parti Keadilan Rakyat Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, dan Presiden PAS Dato’ Seri Tuan Guru Abdul Hadi Awang akan turut menghadiri acara tersebut.

DAP akan menyediakan pelbagai hidangan tradisional Melayu di samping mengadakan persembahan silat, nasyid dan kompang.

DAP menjemput semua warga Malaysia tanpa mengira kaum, agama dan pemikiran politik, untuk menghadiri Ruman Terbuka Aidilfitri ini.

Kedatangan anda semua amatlah dialu-alukan.

Untuk sebarang pertanyaan, sila hubungi 03-7957 8022.

PAS Berpeluang Menang DI Sarawak

2009-09-23T09:22:00.000-07:00

PAS Sarawak akan bekerjasama dengan Pakatan Rakyat untuk menjatuhkan Barisan Nasional (BN) dan akan berusaha keras untuk memenangi pilihan raya umum ke 13 nanti.

Pesuruhjayanya, Ustaz Othman Musthapa berkata, dalam memburu kemenangan tersebut beberapa kerusi Dewan Undangan Negeri (Dun) dikenal pasti untuk PAS bertanding dalam pilihan raya negeri yang dijangka pada 2010 ini.

"Insya-Allah Pas akan berusaha meletakkan seberapa ramai calon daripada yang sudah-sudah dan kemungkinan besar kita akan letakkan lebih daripada sepuluh calon untuk pilihan raya negeri akan datang," katanya

Lagi pun katanya, PAS mewarwarkan untuk meletakkan lebih sepuluh kerusi Dun daripada pilihan raya yang lepas.

Beliau berkata, bagi merealisasikan kejayaan tersebut PAS negeri banyak cawangan ditubuhkan di samping menggerakkan jentera pilihan raya di kawasan-kawasan yang dijangka akan menang.
"Antara yang kita target PAS boleh menang seperti Batang Sadung dan Batang Lupar.

"Tambahan pula melihat kepada sokongan, tsunami politik sekarang ini beralih kepada Pakatan Rakyat," ujarnya mengulas persiapan PAS Sarawak untuk hadapi pilihan raya negeri yang dijangka tahun depan.

Tambahan pula katanya, mereka juga berjaya menambahkan bilangan ahli setiap hari.

Apa yang menggembirakan katanya PAS Sarawak berjaya kelab penyokong penyokong PAS daripada orang Iban dan Bidayuh.

Kelab tersebut katanya, ditubuh di Batag Lupar dan setakat ini bilangan ahlinya seramai 170 orang.

"Yang lain itu Insya-Allah kita akan gerakkan lagi dan kita akan meminta Pengerusi Lajnah Perpaduan Nasional, Dr Mujahid Yusuf Rawa.

Dalam pada itu katanya, bagi merampas kerusi BN di Sarawak mereka tidak keseorangan sebaliknya turut dibantu pimpinan PAS Pusat.

"Setakat ini Alhamdullilah pimpinan PAS pusat tidak membiarkan kami berseorangan.

"Mereka sama-sama turun ke Sarawak dan banyak program untuk persediaan menghadapi pilihan raya dan sebagainya dilaksanakan.

"Contohnya kita membuat program khusus pilihan raya dan seminar pilihan raya.

"Antaranya kita menjemput PAS pusat untuk hadir bersama-sama untuk bagi mendapat input dalam pilihan raya dan kursus-kursus yang diadakan," katanya.

Menurutnya, antara yang turun ke negerinya ialah Bendahari Agung PAS, Dr Hatta Ramli, Menteri Besar Kedah, Dato' Seri Azizan Razak, Ahli Jawatankuasa PAS Pusat, Abu Bakar Chik, Ahli Parlimen Kuala Terengganu dan Wahid Endut.

http://www.detikdaily.net/v5/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3928

Majlis Aidil Fitri PAS KELANTAN

2009-09-23T08:18:00.000-07:00

27 - 9 - 09 AHAD

12TH - 3PTG

Perkarangan Stadium Sultan Mohamad IV

MCA’s real crisis – the Chinese no longer care

2009-09-22T07:53:00.000-07:00

MCA’s real crisis – the Chinese no longer care
By Lee Wei Lian

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 22 –Chinese Malaysians appear to have grown increasingly dismissive of the potentially party-shattering power struggle happening in MCA and that is a distressing sign for an organisation which is entrusted by the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition to help regain the trust and support of the community.

Some print and online news organisations are facing difficulty engaging readers in the battle between MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and his erstwhile deputy Datuk Seri Chua Soi Lek and this appears to reflect the situation on the voting ground.

The largest Chinese language newspaper by circulation in Malaysia, Sin Chew Daily, recently ran a piece titled “Who cares about MCA’s party crisis?”, saying that while it is still talked about within the community, most do not care if MCA collapses.

One online news website has been reluctant to send its video crew to cover the Chua-Ong leadership tussle apparently because such videos “cannot sell”.

Sources in mainly Chinese language news website Merdeka Review say there is hardly any interest in MCA with the exception of the announcement on August 26 that Chua had been sacked, with most of the clicks going to other stories.

“Even the announcement of a minor press conference by Pakatan Rakyat was hotter news than Tan Chai Ho submitting his requisition for an EGM,” says the source.

Analysts say the lack of concern for MCA, a party that was part of the political alliance that won the country its independence, is not surprising due to the switch of ethnic Chinese support to Pakatan Rakyat.

MCA’s Insap think-tank deputy chairman, Rita Sim, says that according to her research, between 80 to 85 per cent of ethnic Chinese now support Pakatan Rakyat.

“The Chinese voters have not shifted back since last year and their position has hardened,” she tells The Malaysian Insider.

Merdeka Centre chief Ibrahim Suffian says that no matter the outcome of the power struggle, MCA will have a tough time reaching out to its traditional constituency.

“Over the last one year, the Chinese protest vote is slowly consolidating,” he says. “The EGM will allow the party to sort out its internal conflicts but will not help it attain the wider goal of winning votes.”

Sim says that the most important issue facing the party is not who becomes president or even if, as speculated, both Ong and Chua make way for fresh presidential elections, but how the party is going to regain Chinese votes.

She thinks that Umno is already starting to take matters into its own hands rather than involving its partners.

She points out Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s official visit to Batu Caves without MIC president Datuk Seri Samy Vellu and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s discussions with Chinese education group Dong Zong without involving MCA.

“Umno seems to be going directly to the Chinese community and it has to do that to get back the voters,” she says.

There have also been suggestions on the Internet by Umno sympathisers that the party has given up on its BN partners and set up its own Chinese and Indian affairs unit.

“I won’t be surprised if this happens,” says Ibrahim. “They might not want to wait for things to happen in the component parties.”

Sim, however, worries that should MCA collapse, the Chinese community would be in a “lose-lose” situation.

“I don’t think they favour Pakatan Rakyat so much as they see BN having a lot of credibility issues,” she says. “I think both sides have issues with talent shortage.”

Not many people from MCA have wanted to speculate on the outcome of the EGM on Oct 10 or its implications. Some have also said that “anything can happen” between now and then.

But whether Ong or Chua wins over the general assembly – MCA’s highest decision making body –the party looks set to remain in crisis where regaining Chinese votes is concerned.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/38336-mcas-real-crisis-is-the-chinese-no-longer-care-

Shahrizat, Hentikan kenyataan api-apikan perkauman

2009-09-14T01:58:00.000-07:00

Shahrizat, Hentikan kenyataan api-apikan perkauman

MERDEKA REVIEWParti Tindakan Demokratik (DAP) kesal dengan pembohongan Ketua Wanita UMNO, Shahrizat Abdul Jalil yang mendakwa kononnya DAP memperalatkan orang Melayu.

Shahrizat mengeluarkan kenyataan yang tidak berasas itu kerana beliau sebenarnya takut melihat sambutan orang Melayu terhadap DAP, terutamanya dengan penubuhan cawangan DAP yang dipimpin oleh orang Melayu yang pertama di Selangor.

Ini adalah bukti di mana UMNO semakin bimbang kehilangan sokongan orang Melayu. Baru wujud satu sahaja cawangan DAP yang majoritinya orang Melayu di Selangor, UMNO sudah pun ketakutan.

Cawangan DAP yang mempunyai majoriti orang Melayu itu telah ditubuhkan di Kampung Lembah Kinrara minggu lalu. Menurut pengasasnya, Haron Abdul Wahab, orang Melayu di kawasan itu memilih DAP kerana yakin dengan prinsip parti yang memperjuangkan nasib semua kaum di negara ini. Mereka sedar DAP membantu rakyat tanpa memilih bulu.

Menurut satu laporan akhbar semalam, Shahrizat telah dipetik sebagai berkata bahawa DAP tidak pernah memperjuangkan hak dan kepentingan orang Melayu tetapi sebaliknya hanya mengutamakan kepentingan kaum lain.

Shahrizat tidak berkata yang benar kerana dia tahu orang Melayu telah menerima DAP dan sedar DAP tidak anti-Islam dan tidak anti-Melayu, malah berjuang mempertahankan dan melindungi hak semua kaum dan agama.

Orang Melayu sudah sedar bahawa kepimpinan Setiausaha Agung DAP Lim Guan Eng sebagai Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang bukan sahaja menjamin hak-hak orang Melayu dan Islam, malah menggalakkan lagi perkembangan syiar Islam di negeri itu.

Walaupun tidak sampai dua tahun pentadbiran Pakatan Rakyat yang dipimpin oleh Lim Guan Eng di Pulau Pinang, rakyat di negeri itu khususnya orang Melayu telah pun menerima sumbangan ikhlas dari prinsip Cekap, Akauntabel dan Telus (CAT).

Antaranya adalah pengiktirafan tinggi kepada pelajar-pelajar Melayu cemerlang, termasuk untuk para penghafal Quran atau Huffaz, dan peruntukan RM1.5 juta setiap tahun kepada sekolah-sekolah agama rakyat.

Malah kita tidak boleh lupa bagaimana Lim Guan Eng (gambar kanan) menjadi mangsa konspirasi politik sehingga beliau dimasukkan ke penjara semata-mata kerana mempertahankan hak dan maruah seorang gadis Melayu yang menjadi mangsa pencabulan.

Malah di mana sahaja DAP bergiat aktif, orang Melayu dan umat Islam tidak pernah diketepikan, malah sama-sama dibantu dengan kaum-kaum lain yang mengalami kesusahan. Semua usaha ini tidak pernah dihebahkan oleh UMNO dan media arus perdana miliknya yang hanya mahu meneruskan agenda perkauman bagi menjamin kuasa kekal di tangan mereka yang tidak bersih, rasuah dan menyalahgunakan kuasa.

Sepatutnya Shahrizat menghormati hak asasi rakyat Malaysia untuk memilih mana-mana pertubuhan politik dan berhenti dari bermain dengan isu perkauman yang boleh mencetuskan syak wasangka antara rakyat.

Sepatutnya juga, sebagai Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat, beliau perlu menumpukan kepada portfolionya untuk memastikan golongan yang memerlukan benar-benar mendapat perlindungan.

Sehingga hari ini, Shahrizat telah berdiam diri dengan isu tuduhan kes rogol yang berlaku terhadap gadis Penan di Sarawak, dan isu ancaman rogol oleh samseng-samseng UMNO terhadap Ahli Exco Kerajaan Negeri Selangor Rodziah Ismail sewaktu majlis dialog pemindahan kuil Seksyen19 pada 5 September lalu.

Shahrizat sepatutnya berkhidmat dengan lebih gigih dan jujur untuk membuktikan perlantikannya semula sebagai Menteri adalah tidak sia-sia, setelah beliau sendiri ditolak oleh rakyat dalam pilihan raya umum 2008.

DAP sedia menghulurkan salam persahabatan untuk membantu beliau dalam menangani mana-mana isu yang melibatkan kezaliman dan ketidakadilan terhadap wanita, keluarga dan masyarakat. Yang penting, Shahrizat mesti hentikan sikap mengapi-apikan perkauman kerana ia bukan sahaja zalim tetapi boleh menghancurkan perpaduan antara rakyat pelbagai kaum dan agama.

*Kenyataan media ini dikeluarkan oleh Senator Tunku Abdul Aziz, Naib Pengerusi DAP.

KENYATAAN AKHBAR ISU YB RODZIAH DIUGUT

2009-09-14T01:51:00.000-07:00

Kenyataan Akhbar

Saya bagi pihak Jawatankuasa Induk Menangani Gejala Sosial Negeri Selangor mengutuk sekeras-kerasnya tindakan pihak yang tidak bertanggungjawab melontarkan ungkapan penuh penghinaan dan biadap kepada seorang wanita YB Rodziah Ismail yang merupakan seorang pemimpin wanita semasa dialog antara wakil kerajaan dan wakil-wakil rakyat tempatan bersama penduduk Seksyen 23 Shah Alam.

Saya juga menganggap ianya satu kelakuan yang amat memalukan dan tidak wajar bahkan boleh menimbulkan budaya contoh buruk kepada remaja belia dan mereka yang terdidik dengan didikan agama yang mantap. Kata-kata tersebut juga boleh merangsang mereka yang kurang mengerti isu sebenar dan termakan dengan lontaran penuh emosi sehingga akan sanggup benar-benar bertindak ke atas YB Rodziah seperti yang digesa oleh lelaki tersebut.

Saya ingin mengingatkan semua pihak untuk menangani gejala sosial termasuk pergaduhan dan apa sahaja yang akan dihadapi oleh golongan muda pihak yang dewasa lebih-lebih lagi ahli-ahli politik harus menjadi contoh yang baik dalam menangani perselisihan faham di antara mereka. Dalam proses menyelesaikan masalah masyarakat mereka perlu mempamerkan kematangan dengan menguasai luapan emosi dan menzahirkan tindak tanduk dan kata-kata yang menunjukkan peradaban tinggi. Dengan ini kita boleh melahirkan ahli masyarakat dan generasi akan datang dengan budaya Selangor yang bertamaddun.

Perlu di ingatkan bahawa tujuan dasar pembangunan modal insan Selangor yang terkandung dalam formula S.P.I.E.S. dalam menekan keperluan pembangunan elemen E(emosi) dalam SPIES tersebut adalah untuk mempasti pembangunan lestari di Selangor tidak akan tercapai tanpa focus kepada disamping rangakain pembangunan spiritual, ‘physical’, intelektual dan kemahiran sosial.

Sekiranya dikaji kenapa penyelesaian sukar untuk dicapai oleh manusia yang bertengkar adalah kerana mereka gagal menundukkan ego dan ledakan emosi walaupun diberi hujjah yang logik setelah mengambilkira dan menimbang kesemua aspek keperluan dan kehendak pihak-pihak yang bertelagah.

Dr Halimah Ali

Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Induk Menangani Gejala Sosial Negeri Selangor

There aren’t enough froggy ADUNS in Selangor!

2009-09-09T09:41:00.000-07:00

Emergency! Emergency! There aren’t enough froggy ADUNS in Selangor! Emergency! Emergency!
September 9, 2009

Be not in any doubt that on the night of 8th March, last year, as the fall of the mighty BN began to unfold as the election results were announced, the move by UMNO to re-take Selangor from DAP, PAS and PKR and thwart the will of the voters, had already begun.

Remember the revelation much later, after the Pakatan Selangor state government had been sworn in, of Khir Toyo and Hassan Ali’ s clandestine meetings in the days immediately after the elections, with a view to negotiating a PAS-UMNO/BN coalition government in Selangor?

If Hassan had been able to swing enough crossovers then, he would be MB of Selangor today.

He couldn’t then, and he still can’t now.

Not that they haven’t tried.

As Selangor State Assembly YB Teng has pointed out, getting 9 Pakatan ADUNs in Selangor to crossover is not as simple as getting the two donkeys and the other Hee-whore in Perak to sell out.

It would cost far, far more and besides, Pakatan, possibly learning a lesson or two in Perak, have been more guarded in Selangor.

Several forces in UMNO are still determined to take Selangor back.

On 9th August, this year, Malaysiakini reported Najib as saying that he wanted Selangor, which he described as the heartbeat of the nation, back in BN’s grip, calling on all the component parties within the coalition to bring about the necessary changes, to win back the state, implying taking back the state in an election.

Yet anyone with any credible source of information from within the BN coalition will tell you that the major component parties are all, without exception, in total disarray.

Gerakan has lost all credibility, MCA is split and MIC has become incresingly irrelevant to the Indian community.

Some speculate that Najib’s intelligentsia had hoped that the release of the Hindraf 5 from Kamunting might, amongst other things, spell the end of Aiyo Aiyo Samy’s allready tottering political career.

Can Najib still confidently count on UMNO’s ‘fixed deposits’ in East Malaysia?

And Najib has to constantly watch his back, with word making its rounds that he is out of favour with he who was the architect of Pak Lah’s premature departure from the seat of power, working in tandem with the current No.2.

And Najib is advocating a reform to make ready to face the next elections?

Zaid’s challenge to Najib to call for snap elections in Perak if the latter really believes that Pakatan Rakyat is floundering in the states that they now govern hits the nail squarely on the head.

Forget snap elections in Perak, though.

Najib doesn’t dare call for a snap general election now.

And yet, Selangor had to be taken back, and now.

It is a rich state; a literal money-churning machine.

Hence Toyo’s RM24 million mansion.

Hence the huge amounts of state asemblymen allocations misappropriated as is emerging from the ongoing Select Committee on Competence, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) probe.

And, it is rumoured that in the run-up to the last elections, Selangor UMNO, through the late Zakaria Deros, raised a huge amount in campaign funds on the promise of future contracts and projects when BN returned to form the government.

That didn’t happen.

Leaving some very unhappy, very unfriendly people in the state who want their money back, I am told.

More than ever, Selangor had to be taken back.

If MACC’s investigation into the affairs of the Selangor Pakatan ADUNs hadn’t gone awry with the death of Beng Hock, so it seems, MB Khalid and several of his exco members were to be arrested and remanded that Friday to face trumped-up corruption charges.

The circumstances in which Beng Hock died turned the spotlight on MACC, which then had to tread carefully.

A new plan had to be hatched.

Turn to the tried and tested.

History will bear testimony that every time Barisan Nasional and, before that, the Alliance, found itself losing its grip on political power in the country, a bout of madness would coincidentally seize a certain segment of the polity.

Take May, 13, 1969.

We may never know the truth of why this sad episode happened in our nation’s history.

Official accounts will blame it on the overly exuberant celebrations of the opposition who had just emerged from a recently concluded general election, leaving the ruling coalition barely holding on to federal power. This, it seems, was simply too much for the supporters of the ruling UMNO to swallow. Hence, the racial clashes.

Dr. Kua’s book points the finger at elite Malay nationalist leaders contriving to displace Bapa Malaysia and the rule of law, impose emergency rule and effectively return unto themselves what had been lost through the democratic process.

Two seemingly differing accounts of the whys and wherefores of 13th May, 1969 and yet, when viewed closely and in the light of all that we know now, one may begin to see that the two actually describe different forces, albeit on the same side, at work .

The elites that Dr. Kua speaks of set the agenda.

Intermediaries then go to the ground to agitate the masses with the same, old, rhetoric.
Loss of Malay political dominance will see the Malay enslaved in his own land.

Muslims will one day be ruled by the kafir unless they rise to defend their dissipating political dominance.

Immigrants are robbing and abusing the generosity of the indigenous.
The old divide and rule.

The events leading up to Ops Lallang is another case in point.

Najib stirring up the sentiments of the Malays, and Lee Kim Sai supposedly ‘reacting’ thereto.
The script’s the same.

Only the settings, the props and the actors change.

On 4th August, the wannabe MB, Hassan Ali, goes public with his harebrained proposal to ban the sale of alcohol in all Muslim-majority areas in the state of Selangor, immediately pitting the ultra-conservative Muslims in the state against the more liberal of that faith and the non-Muslims.

A controversy, it seemed, was set to explode in Selangor.

3 days later, however, MB Khalid appeared to have nipped the storm in the bud when he announced that there was to be no blanket ban of the sale of alcohol in the state. This, however, set the stage for the ‘Take Beeer” slogans that were to appear at the Permatang Pasir by-elections.

Unbeknownst to most, though, even as this potential controversy was headed off, the foundation for another, more sensational one, had been set the day after Hassan announced his ‘ban alcohol sale’ proposal.

On 5th August, the Selangor state exco approved the proposal to relocate the Sri Maha Mariamman temple, presently situated in section 19, Shah Alam, to section 23, and directed that the proposal be made known to the residents of section 23.

At the dialogue that was sponsored by the state government last Saturday, YB Khalid Samad was at great pains to emphasise that the relocation was, at that stage, only a proposal, and the state government had no intention of moving forward with the same until all interested parties had been heard. This is an important point to note.

Even before the dust from the ‘ban alcohol sale’ announcement could settle, Hassan came up with another salvo.

On 24th August, Hassan now announces that mosque officials will be called upon to arrest Muslims found working in establishments that serve, store or display alcoholic beverages.

The next day UMNO Selangor chief Abdul Shukor Idrus responds to Hassan’s announcement by taunting the Selangor government to arrest Muslims working at the two breweries operating in the state.

Two days later, on 27th August, Hassan responds to UMNO’s taunts to say that the Selangor government will not mobilise mosque officials to arrest Muslims working in breweries but that such actions could be taken in future.

It’s important to note here that all these announcements by Hassan were never sanctioned by the state government.

He was on a frolic of his own.

A frolic that laid the state government open to be painted as being anti-Islam.

The ‘cow head’ protest that took place the next day, 28th August, was replete with banners declaring the state government, MB Khalid and several other named YBs as just that : anti-Islam.

Interestingly, Hassan, who is in charge of Islamic affairs in the state, has not been heard on this issue at all.

Not even a call for calm, or to denounce the vile acts of the protestors.

UMNO, so as squeeze the Pakatan state government into a seemingly inextricable corner, then offers to find an alternative site for the to-be relocated temple.

I think the protest, whilst planned with some detail, was hastily put together.

Had the organisers more time, the individuals involved, and who have today been slapped with charges in court, would not themselves have featured in the protest that day, but would have left it all to hired hands with no ostensible links whatsoever to UMNO so as not to leave such a pointed trail as would prove an embarrassment to Najib and leave his 1Malaysia looking patently hollow.

Or was that also the intended effect?

Weaken the Najib administration whilst laying the ground to contrive Selangor as being on the brink of racial chaos?

Perhaps by those unhappy with measures announced by the present administration which appeared to incline towards meritocracy and do away with reservations and quotas long accustomed to by the few privileged in UMNO?

There can be little doubt that the protest was intended to injure the feelings of the Hindus, and yet, on the face of it, the grouse of the protestors was with the state government.

This, in my view, was the first giveaway that the protest had a hidden agenda, far removed from the matter of the relocation of the temple.

The opportunity to observe the same protestors of that ‘cow head’ demo at the dialogue, for me, proved to be most valuable.

Watching Azmir ( the songkok’d one ) and his sidekicks at the back of the hall laughing amongst themselves after each round of loud abuse hurled at the YBs in front left me convinced that their displayed anger, allegedly for the state government’s lack of sensitivity towards the feelings of the Muslim community in section 23, was contrived and not real.

So why this contrivance, and was the end-goal achieved?

I think it was a monumental disaster, save and except if it was also intended to embarass the Najib administration, which it certainly did.

Firstly, the Hindus did not react in the manner that the organisers must have hoped for.

Gandhi would have been proud of my Hindu brothers and sisters.

I am.

Secondly, they probably overlooked that even as the mainstream media might not carry footage of the disgusting mistreatment of the head of a dead cow, the internet has carried those scenes far and wide, and has largely been roundly condemned by a large segment of the Malay community.

They were not prepared for this.

Was contriving a state of affairs in Selangor to then allow for federal intervention through emergency provisions the gameplan?

To allow for such a state of affairs to spill into neighbouring states so as to enable the ”emergency’ net to be cast nationwide?

Thereby deferring general elections ad infinitum, at least until a redelineation exercise creates another 30 or so safe seats?

If so, was Najib in the driving seat and, if not, what gives?

In 1977, emergency powers were used to displace PAS rule in Kelantan. A brief account of the events leading up to this may be viewed HERE.

YB Lim Kit Siang’s speech, when the emergency bill for Kelantan was debated in Parliament, can be read in full HERE.

You draw your own conclusions.

http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/2009/09/09/emergency-emergency-there-arent-enough-froggy-aduns-in-selangor-emergency-emergency/

Kes kepala lembu: 12 dihadap ke mahkamah

2009-09-08T22:30:00.000-07:00

Dua belas orang ke mahkamah hari ini berhubung insiden perarakan kepala lembu ketika mengadakan protes di sekretariat kerajan negeri (SUK) Selangor pada 28 Ogos lalu.

Enam daripada mereka menghadapi dua tuduhan - menghasut dan menyertai perhimpunan haram. Manakala enam lagi didakwa menyertai perhimpunan haram.

Enam yang menghadapi tuduhan menghasut itu dihadapkan ke Mahkamah Sesyen Shah Alam.

Mereka didakwa mengikut Seksyen 4(1) Akta Hasutan atau tuduhan alternatif di bawah Seksyen 298 Kanun Keseksaan kerana "menimbulkan rasa tidak puas hati dan permusuhan penganut Hindu dan senjaga lukakan perasaan penganut Hindu".

Mereka ialah

Ibrahim Sabri, 42;

Ahmad Mahayuddin Abd Manaf, 36;

Eyzva Ezhar Ramly, 35;

Mohd Azmir Mohd Zain, 35;

Ahmad Suhairy Zakaria, 39;

Mohd Hilmi Ni, 40.

Ibrahim dan Ahmad Mahayuddin didakwa memijak kepala lembu;

Ayzva didakwa membawa kepala lembu;

manakala Mohd Amir, Ahmad Suhairy dan Mohd Hilmi, didakwa membawa dan memijak kepala lembu

Mereka tidak mengaku bersalah dan minta dibicarakan.

Mereka berdepan dengan hukuman penjara sehingga tiga tahun dan/atau didenda sehingga RM5,000.

Sebelum itu, pihak pendakwa memohon supaya mahkamah menetapkan ikatjamin RM15,000 tiap seorang, manakala peguam mereka Salehuddin Saidin dan Afifudin Ahmad Hafifi meminta ia dikurangkan kepada masing-masing RM500.

Hakim Haslin Hassan kemudiannya menetapkan ikatjamin masing-masing RM4,000 dengan seorang penjamin. Beliau juga menetapkan kes itu disebut pada 21 Oktober.

Selepas itu, mereka bersama enam yang lain dihadapkan di Mahkamah Majistret Shah Alam atas tuduhan menyertai perhimpunan haram mengikut Seksyen 27(5)(a) Akta polis.

Kesemuanya tidak mengaku bersalah dan minta dibicarakan.

Mahkamah membenarkan ikatjamin masing-masing RM300 dengan seorag penjamin bagi enam orang yang turut menghadapi tuduhan menghasut.

Manakala ikatjamin bagi enam orang lagi yang menghadapi tuduhan perhimpunan haram, ditetapkan masing-masing sebanyak RM300 dengan seorang penjamin.

Kes tersebut akan disebut pada 21 Oktober.

Mereka adalah sebahagian daripada mereka yang menyertai protes tersebut kerana membantah keputusan kerajaan Selangor untuk memindahkan kuil berusia 150 tahun, dari Seksyen 19 ke Seksyen 23.

Sebelum itu, kira-kira 20 penduduk datang ke Mahkamah Shah Alam pagi ini sebagai tanda sokongan kepada 12 orang yang akan didakwa berhubung isu perarakan kepala lembu membantah pembinaan kuil Hindu di Seksyen 23.
Mereka berhimpun di kaki lima, menunggu sesi mahkamah bermula.

Mereka memberitahu media "kami tidak bersalah" dan kami datang dengan satu hati".

Dua belas orang tersebut akan didakwa menghasut serta menyertai perhimpunan haram,

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/112444

Laporan k'jaan akui gadis Penan alami deraan seks

2009-09-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

Kerajaan akhirnya mengakui secara terbuka bahawa memang wujud penderaan seks terhadap gadis dan wanita Penan di tangan pekerja kem pembalakan di Baram, Sarawak.

Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil menerima tekanan kumpulan NGO untuk menyiasat dakwaan tersebut sejak ia pertama kali dibangkitkan, hampir setahun lalu.

Laporan penderaan seks itu diserahkan kepada Ketua Wanita PKR Zuraida Kamaruddin, yang juga ahli parlimen Ampang, semalam.

Laporan berkenaan menyenaraikan sekurang-kurangnya lapan kes penderaan seks terhadap gadis dan wanita Penan di tangan pekerja pembalakan. Ia menyebut, beberapa mangsa pencbulan itu termasuklah murid-murid sekolah, semuda 10 tahun.

NGO setempat mendakwa kes-kes yang didokumentasikan ini hanyalah sejumlah kes penderaan seks di kalangan suku kaum ini.

Jawatankuasa bertindak kebangsaan bawah kementerian wanita diarahkan oleh kabinet pada 8 Oktober tahun lalu untuk menyiasat perkara tersebut.

Anggota jawatankuasa itu melawat Long Item, Long Kawi, Long Luteng, Long Belok, Kampung Ugos, Jambatan Suai, Niah antara 10 hingga 15 November tahun lalu.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/112454

Sampul duit raya

2009-09-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

Sampul duit raya

Lajnah Perpaduan Nasional PAS Kawasan Kota Raja ada menyediakan dan akan menjual sampul duit raya yang direkacipta khas untuk kegunaan muslimat dan muslimat sempena Eidul Fitri pada tahun untuk mengisi tabung LPN KR bagi menampung aktiviti bersama Kelab Penyokong PAS Kota Raja.

Terdapat 3 jenis sampul yang disediakan dan tuan puan boleh membuat tempahan melalui email saya razifpas@gmail.com atau tel no 013-3610603.

Harga untuk 100 keping RM14.00 tidak termasuk belanja penghantaran. Sila dapatkan segera sementara stock masih ada.

http://drsitimariah.blogspot.com/2009/09/sampul-duit-raya.html

Kaji Selidik di N.31 Bagan Pinang, Telok Kemang

2009-09-08T00:55:00.001-07:00

Kaji Selidik di N.31 Bagan Pinang, Telok Kemang

Analisis DUN Bagan Pinang

9 daerah mengundi:

- 4 majoriti India

- 4 majoriti Melayu

- 1 campuran Cina dan undi pos

Pilihan Raya 2008- PAS hanya menang di tiga daerah mengundi iaitu Ladang Atherton, Pekan Siliau dan Sua Betong. Ketiga-tiga kawasan itu adalah majoriti pengundi India.

PAS kalah paling teruk - Undi undi pos.

Dari 5, 191 kertas undi yang dikeluarkan, PAS hanya mendapat 1,189 undi manakala calon BN 3,080 undi.

PAS paling banyak menang- Ladang Aterton di mana calon PAS menang dengan majoriti 84 undi.

Sumber: mt.m2day.org

http://keadilanbayanbaru.blogspot.com/2009/09/kaji-selidik-di-n31-bagan-pinang-telok.html

A tale of a cow

2009-09-07T16:34:00.000-07:00

A tale of a cow

Tuesday, 08 September 2009 00:49

And that is why one-time Selangor Menteri Besar Khir Toyo said cows are stupid. And he explained why he said this as follows. Malays have a proverb, he said, bodoh macam lembu, which translates to stupid like a cow.

NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin

This story is actually a tale of a cow, not the tail of a cow. And the tale started when Umno lost its cash-cow state, Selangor. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said they must grab back the cash-cow state, by hook or by crook. And what Malaysian prime ministers want Malaysian prime ministers get.
So they moo-ted a grand plan. And the plan was to raise race and religion issues to work up the Malays so that they would become aroused enough to unite. “Apa pasal itu Moolayu selalu bangkit cerita 13 Mei?” asked a very concerned Chinese citizen of Selangor who spoke very little English and a spattering of bazaar Malay. “Itu bikin kita orang China rasa risau. Kita masih ingat dulu orang China kena sembelih macam lembu semasa Hari Raya Haji.”
Of course, one would imagine that in this day and age Malays can no longer be led by the nose like cows and get taken in so easily by all this propaganda. As they say in Malaysia, Malays, today, have better cow sense. But alas, some are still fooled by bull shit.
But then, we must always remember what one-time Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said: people are like herd. They have herd mentality. Mahathir was of course talking about the fact that all you need to do is lead one cow by the nose and the rest of the herd would follow.
If you remember the John Wayne cowboy movies of the old days you will remember that they always showed scenes of stampeding herds. All it takes is for one cow to become spooked and to start panicking and the rest of the herd would follow suit. This is another thing about herd mentality. All it takes is for one cow to moo and start galloping and all the others would follow although they do not know why they are doing so.
So all you need to do is to spook one cow. And it need not be the lead cow. Any cow will do. And once this cow is spooked and goes moo and starts running in a panic like a bull in a China shop, then the rest of the herd just follows without thinking.
And that is why one-time Selangor Menteri Besar Khir Toyo said cows are stupid. And he explained why he said that as follows. Malays have a proverb, he said, bodoh macam lembu, which translates to stupid like a cow. So stupidity is always equated to cows, at least as far as Malays are concerned.
That was Khir Toyo’s explanation.
What Malays do not know is that the English also have cute sayings, just like the Malays. And one of the English sayings is ‘greedy like a pig’. This normally refers to people who eat too much and stuff their faces unabashedly. This would include people who eat everything they can get their hands on without a second thought -- like many Malaysians who ‘eat’ the rakyat’s money by taking ‘commission’ and ‘under the table’ money. These types of people would classify as those who are greedy like pigs.
But as much as Najib and Khir Toyo tried everything they could to bring down the Selangor government, the Pakatan Rakyat people were not in the least bit cowed. Nothing could shake them and they fought back hard. The Pakatan Rakyat people are just so pig-headed or, as the Malays would say, kepala keras macam lembu. So Umno decided to play hardball by making some of the Pakatan Rakyat EXCO Members sacrificial cows. But still they fought back relentlessly and would not surrender.
Then Umno upped the ante and got some of their members to march to the Selangor State Secretariat building with a cow’s head. They of course pretended that Umno is not involved in this entire thing and that these people acted on their own accord. But the Malays have another saying. And that saying is when one cow is muddy then the entire herd becomes muddy as well. Eventually, everyone blamed Umno for this and many in fact asked why is it that Umno does not have any cow sense. Does Umno not know that they would get blamed for this whatever they may say to deny it?
The Saturday meeting in Shah Alam convinced those who may have had doubts about Umno’s involvement in the cow head episode that Umno is undoubtedly involved. When one Umno man started shouting, the rest followed suit in true herd mentality fashion. It was almost like a stampeding herd when everyone rushed forward and it appeared like they would swamp the main table. Everyone was screaming at the same time and no one could understand what these people were saying. It was almost like the sound of cows in a slaughterhouse.
But the Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, and the Shah Alam Member of Parliament, Khalid Samad, remained very calm. They were not cowed by the mob that even went so far as to threaten to kill them. You could see that the two Khalids were as unperturbed as cows grazing in a field. They did not react or retaliate like a bull that sees red.
And that demonstrated the matured mentality of the Pakatan Rakyat people compared to the Umno people. Khalid even said he was prepared to be slaughtered in the next general election if that is the price he has to pay to seek justice and fair-play.
The Umno people wanted to barbecue the two Khalids like pieces of beef. But the two Khalids stood their ground and refused to give in even as the Umno people were sharpening their carving knives. Trying to get the two Khalids to relent was as difficult as trying to beat a cow into action.
And everyone who witnessed the video of the Saturday melee in Shah Alam realised that Umno is very dangerous and does not care what happens to the rakyat as long as they are able to grab back the cash-cow state that they lost on 8th March 2008.

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/26577/84/

Kepala Lembu Berdarah: Siapa dalangnya?

2009-09-06T09:12:00.000-07:00

SHAH ALAM, 2 Sept. – Sejak demontrasi mengarak kepala lembu berdarah terjadi enam hari lalu, khalayak rata-ratanya terus mempersoal tindakan Umno yang ekstrem itu.

Umno bukan sahaja didakwa cuba menjatuhkan kerajan Pakatan Rakyat di Selangor melalui isu cadangan pembinaan kuil di Seksyen 23, di sini; malah parti itu cuba mencipta pergelutan dengan penganut agama Hindu di Selangor melalui aksi ekstrem pihak terbabit.

Apa yang berlaku sudah tentu menuntut kepemimpinan Umno membetulkan kesangsian rakyat terhadap aksi ekstrem pihak terbabit.

Di sebalik klip youtube yang merakamkan insiden tersebut, sebenarnya adalah jawapan yang paling sahih untuk mengetahui siapakah dalang di sebalik aksi ektrem itu.

Analisis emperikel bersama dua Exco Pemuda PAS Selangor Nadzham Hj. Ahmad Nazir (berkolar kuning) dan Mohd Khairul Afandi Ibrahim (berbaju hitam berlogo PAS) semalam umumnya menunjukkan bahawa Umno lah dalang sebenar insiden 28 Ogos lalu.

Berdasarkan klip youtube tersebut, Nadzham mendakwa bahawa dalang sebenar perhimpunan terbabit adalah Pengerusi Penaja Umno Cawangan Seksyen 23, Hj. Azmir Md. Zain, di sini.
Jelasnya, Azmir merupakan adik kandung kepada bekas Adun Kota Anggerik Dato’ Nawawi Md. Zain (dalam Parlimen Shah Alam); yang mewakili Umno dalam pilihanraya umum ke-12 lalu.

“Kalau dah ada Ketua Penaja Umno (cawangan) Seksyen 23 menjadi kepala demontrasi itu, siapa lagi dalangnya,” katanya.

“Kalau orang PAS, kita (ahli-ahlinya) tidak akan demontrasi isu perkauman, (sebaliknya) kita akan demontrasi isu hak asasi dan Islam.

Sudah lama kita (pemimpin PAS) ditangkap, kene gas pemedih mata, dibelasah FRU (atau) dikenakan Akta Hasutan serta iSA (Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri).”

Jelasnya lagi, Azmir turut dikenali khalayak tempatan sebagai salah seorang samseng yang menguasai kawasan panas, Up-Town Shah Alam.

Dia (Azmir) salah seorang yang kuasai Up-Town Shah Alam. Itu sebab walaupun penduduk setempat bantah (dan) pungut tandatangan bantahan disebabkan (bunyi) bising-bising, sampai sekarang tak berjaya (dipindahkan); sebab Dato’ Nawawi (abang kandung Azmir) di belakangnya…antara gangsternya (adalah) Achai, juga pemuda Umno Shah Alam.”

Nadzham yang pernah dikenali sebagai ‘otai’ Pemuda Umno Shah Alam pada era Reformasi 1998, sebelum menyertai PAS turut mendedahkan bahawa Gangster bernama Achai juga merupakan orang penting kepada pemimpin pemuda Umno tempatan, Dato’ Nawawi Md. Zain.

“Achai ini bukan (saja) kawan dia (Azmir), tapi adik pada Zack (iaitu) Setiausaha Kerja kepada Dato’ Hj. Nawawi Md Zain. Dia (Achai) orang penting pemuda Umno.”

Tambah Nadzham lagi, antara demontran yang cuba menyamar sebagai pemuda PAS dalam demontrasi ekstrem tersebut adalah bekas Bendahari Pemuda Umno Shah Alam sendiri, selepas meneliti klip youtube Malaysiakini.

Menurut Khairul Afandi pula, demontrasi melampau tersebut turut disertai oleh Ketua Pemuda Umno Selayang, Sohaimi Shahadan.

Sumber dalamam Umno ketika dihubungi kemudian bukan sahaja mengesahkan keahlian Umno Sohaimi, malah menjelaskan bahawa Sohaimi bukanlah penduduk tempatan Seksyen 23, di sini. Sebaliknya, beliau bermastautin di Batu 19, Kuang, Rawang.

Sumber tersebut juga mendedahkan bahawa terdapat kes kuil bersebelahan masjid di Sungai Buluh (berdekatan Kuang) yang sampai ke pengetahuannya beberapa tahun lalu (iaitu sewaktu Umno BN memerintah Selangor), tetapi beliau mengambil sikap hipokrasi serta sambil lewa.

Sumber tersebut juga mendakwa Sohaimi merupakan antara individu yang terbanyak mengaut tender projek di bawah Kementerian Pertanian, Industri dan Asas Tani melalui Menterinya Datuk Noh Omar yang juga Timbalan Pengerusi Perhubungan Umno Selangor, sejak kerajaan Selangor jatuh di bawah Pakatan Rakyat.

Bersandarkan klip youtube yang lain : “Bantahan Dari Penduduk Seksyen 23Terhadap Kuil Yang Akan Dibangunkan Di Seksyen 23 Shah Alam“, Nadzham dan Khairul turut mendedahkan dua pemimpin Umno luar yang datang beraksi ekstrem di Seksyen 23, di sini 16 Ogos lalu.

Kedua-dua pemimpin Pemuda PAS tersebut juga turut mempersoal tindak-tanduk Polis ‘berdiam diri’, sewaktu demontrasi terbabit berlangsung.

“Ketua Polis Daerah Shah Alam (ASP Noor Azam Jamaludin) kata perhimpunan itu tidak ada permit. Kenapa begitu mudah Polis memberi laluan kepada demontrasi tersebut, mengawal trafik; sudah tentu ada (pemimpin) Umno sendiri di sebalik demontrasi itu.”

“Umno memainkan peranan terhadap demontrasi kepala lembu ‘berdarah’ tersebut. Sebab itu, beberapa pemimpin Umno terlibat.

Dalam pada itu, Khairul juga mendakwa penduduk tempatan tidak mengenali Timbalan Pengerusi Badan Bertindak Penduduk Seksyen 23 di sini; sehinggalah media arus perdana membuat liputan luar biasa ke atasnya.

Sambil menyifatkan Ibrahim Sabri berdusta kepada khalayak, Khairul dan

Nadzham juga mendakwa lelaki misteri itu cuba mencari helah apabila banyak pihak mempertikai tindak tanduk mengarak/menendang kepala lembu lembu ‘berdarah’ itu.

“Sepatutnya dia (Ibrahim Sabri) sebagai orang penganjur menasihati, dia sepatutnya menasihati orang yang datang berdemonstrasi bersama. Sepatutnya dia menasihati supaya kepala lembu ‘berdarah’ itu tidak disertai bersama perarakan itu.”

Ibrahim turut didakwa cuba menjernihkan tanggapan tidak baik khalayak terhadap Umno Selangor.

Memetik laporan Utusan Malaysia semalam, Ibrahim menegaskan, “Sebenarnya kita sendiri tidak menyangka perhimpunan yang diadakan itu di hadapan bangunan SUK selepas solat Jumaat itu ada orang yang membawa kepala lembu.”

Jelasnya lagi, cadangan mengarak kepala lembu ‘berdarah’ itu tidak pernah dibincangkan di peringkat Jawatankuasa Pendududuk Seksyen 23.
Pun begitu, jika dilihat sendiri rakaman Youtube Malaysia kini, membayangkan Ibrahim masih bersifat ekstrem, kalau tidak pun terlibat mengarak kepala lembu yang segar berdarah itu.

Tegasnya, “Kami (mewakili) penduduk Syeksyen 23 (Shah Alam) sekali lagi menyatakan tidak akan berganjak walaupun seinci,walau nyawa habis (terkorban), walau darah mengalir; kami tetap pertahankan Seksyen 23 (Shah Alam) daripada dibina kuil,” katanya.

Agendadaily melaporkan, Timbalan Pengerusi Badan Perhubungan Umno Selangor Datuk Noh Omar semalam berkata, “Jangan tuding jari pada pihak lain (Umno)… saya sendiri lawat tapak di Seksyen 23 pada 18 Ogos lalu untuk terima memorandum bantahan yang hendak diserah kepada Perdana Menteri.”

Bagaimanapun, Noh dalam kenyataannya 18 Ogos lalu mahu menyertai bantahan penduduk dengan mendapatkan injunksi Mahkamah atas cadangan kerajaan negeri membina kuil tersebut.
Beliau mendakwa keputusan itu sebagai mainan politik Pakatan Rakyat negeri, demi mengetepikan bantahan penduduk setempat Jumaat lalu.

Semalam, Naib Presiden PAS Dato’ Mahfuz Omar pada satu kenyataan akhbar di Pejabat Agong PAS berkata, “Saya lihat bahawa isu ini ada kepentingan politik kepada Umno Barisan Nasional…mengadu domba hubungan antara kaum yang harmoni dalam negara kita untuk mencetuskan suatu keadaan tegang bagi survival politik mereka…(iaitu) percubaan mengembalikan sokongan orang Melayu kepada Umno.”

Ujar Ahli Parlimen Pokok Sena itu lagi, “Mereka mengatakan orang-orang Islam dalam Pakatan (Rakyat) menjadi kuda tunggangan; ungkapan-ungkapan yang menunjukkan bahawa mereka meniupkan sentimen perkauaman dan keagamaan.”

Ahli Parlimen Shah Alam Khalid Samad yang ditemuramah lewat malam tadi, mempertikai tindakan Menteri Dalam Negeri Dato’ Seri Hishammudin Tun Hussien yang menyanjungi para pemuda ekstrem terbabit.

“Saya diberitahu bahawa Hishamuddin akan turun sendiri ke sini (Seksyen 23) untuk bertemu dengan samseng-samseng terbabit. Itu suatu penghormatan (Hishamuddin) sedangkan samseng-samseng itu jelas membelakangkan undang-undang dalam isu ini.”

“Saya tahu bahawa yang bercakap itu (demontrasi kepala lembu berdarah) bukan mewakili penduduk setempat (Seksyen 23).

Saya sedih melihat bagaimana samseng-samseng itu boleh bertindak sesuka hati mereka…sesuatu tindakan terdesak oleh pihak Umno untuk membela, membela* dan melindungi mereka (ekstremis).”

“Orang-orang sebegini sepatutnya sudah lama dikenakan tindakan undang-undang (kerana) mereka sudah merosakkan harta benda awam, mengancam orang ramai dengan kata-kata hasutan. Mereka dikebalkan sehingga mengugut penduduk yang mempersoal tindakan mereka.”

Beliau turut mengulangi rumus politiknya, bahawa insiden tersebut angkara Umno demi menjatuhkan kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat di Selangor.

Tanpa menyebut nama-nama mangsa, Khalid juga menjelaskan bahawa beberapa saksi kejadian yang tampil membuat kenyataan sudah diugut serta diarahkan meninggalkan kediaman mereka, di sini.

Khalid juga menjelaskan bahawa beliau masih menunggu maklum balas pihak Polis sejak Sabtu lepas.

Utusan Melaporkan, Noor Azam memaklumkan bahawa sudah terdapat 52 laporan Polis daripada penganut Hindu berhubung insiden tersebut

Wartawan Harakahdaily, Dzulfikar Mashoor yang turut turun ke Seksyen 23 petang semalam menjelaskan bahawa pihak Pasukan Gerakan Am (PGA) masih berkubu di Dewan Serbaguna MBSA di sini.

Di antara responden harakahdaily 30 Ogos lalu, dua daripadanya menjelaskan bahawa diri serta keluarga mereka dikecam, dipulau serta diancam oleh suatu pihak yang tidak dikenali.

Ditanya sama ada responden terbabit ada membuat laporan Polis, kedua-duanya memberikan alasan takut terus diancam pihak terbabit.

Dalam pada itu, respon Rohaya Samad, suri rumah membuat penjelasan semula berhubung kenyataannya 30 Ogos lalu.

“Bukan maksud akak (kononnya) Hj. Mahyuddin (Pengerusi Persatuan Penduduk) membawa kepala lembu itu. Bukan akak yang kata. Akak bukan pemecah belah masyarakat seperti didakwa…” katanya.

Beliau juga menafikan bahawa beliau menerima sms kononnya penganut Hindu sudah membuat 98 aduan Polis berhubung insiden tersebut.

“Bukan 98 (aduan) yang akak kata. Akak kata 48 (aduan). Akhbar hari ini laporan 52 aduan,” ujarnya lagi.

Ditanya sama ada segala penjelasan tersebut disebabkan ugutan pihak tertentu, beliau mengatakan ‘tidak’.
Salah seorang saksi tuduh yang juga pemimpin tempatan, Cikgu Zainuddin terus dihubungi sehingga kini untuk mendapatkan sisi pandang yang lain, tetapi masih gagal.
Suatu sumber memberitahu bahawa beliau sedang membantu siasatan oleh pihak Polis.

Setakat ini, tidak ada mana-mana individu dilaporkan telah ditangkap di bawah Akta Hasutan dan iSA.

Segala yang berlaku, kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat Selangor cuba menjadikan pertemuan bersama penduduk Seksyen 23 Sabtu ini sebagai jalan keluar, sedangkan Umno BN terus dibelit pelbagai dakwaan ekstrem, samseng, mengamalkan perkauman sempit sehingga sekarang. -END

http://zainulfaqar.wordpress.com/2009/09/02/kepala-lembu-berdarah-siapa-dalangnya/

Jui Meng finds things very different in opposition

2009-09-06T08:54:00.000-07:00

Jui Meng finds things very different in opposition

Chua feels free... Speaking during the Permatang Pasir campaign. - Picture by Jack Ooi

IPOH, Sept 6 — After decades of politics MCA-style, the experience of just over a month of fiery Opposition politics has been nothing short of a major culture shock for former party stalwart Datuk Chua Jui Meng.
For once, he is finding his oratory skills can be put to good use and people actually listen to him in rapt attention during ceramahs.
Those who turn up also do not seem to expect free handouts like transportation, food, money or goodie bags.
In fact, many appear willing to travel some distance to attend such rallies.
This was evident during the ceramah at the Tow Boo Keong hall here on Saturday night where more than 1,000 supporters gathered to listen to a star-studded line-up of speakers, which included Chua himself, Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, PKR vice-president R. Sivarasa and Parti Keadilan Rakyat strategic director Tian Chua.
In his speech, Chua, who not too long ago had adamantly said he would never leave the MCA for PKR, said such a sight was enough to convince him he had indeed made the right move to leave.
“I woke up on Merdeka morning and told my wife who was lying down beside me — I feel good and so young today — and I knew what made me feel that way.
“When I joined the PKR, it was after a long struggle for me. It was not easy to leave and join a new pathway.
“But after that decision, I suddenly began to feel…like how you felt when you voted for the Opposition… I felt free,” he said, to thunderous applause.
The former MCA man claimed he had never before experienced such “heart-warming” and overwhelming response for any political function in his political career until the day he joined PKR.
“I was in Permatang Pasir, helping with the by-elections and it was so amazing, so overwhelming to see the crowd come together.
“It is so heart-warming to see people of different races actually sitting together and working together and getting along — and they all want change,” he said in a press conference after the function.
His eyes lit up when reporters asked if he would be instrumental in the coming by-election for the Bagan Pinang state seat in Negeri Sembilan.
“Yes, yes, I will be there to contribute. Definitely,” he firmly said.
In fact, Chua is also confident that more would follow in his footsteps and leave the MCA to join a Pakatan Rakyat component party.
During the function earlier, a total of 600 applications for PKR memberships, signed by Barisan Nasional members, were handed over to Anwar.
Of the lot, at least 400 were from MCA, and officials claimed they comprised a former elected representative, a former division deputy chairman, scores of central delegates, divisional party post holders and members.
“It is no surprise that so many would join us from MCA. We expect that this wave is only just the beginning,” said Chua.
He added that the crossovers only mirrored the fact the party members were finally waking up to see that MCA was only a space-filler in the Barisan Nasional structure.
“We are only there to say yes and to take up some spots in the Cabinet and in the Government.
“MCA does not rule the nation. In the end, it is Umno that leads Malaysia, under the name of the BN,” he said.
Chua said that MCA could probably stand a better chance of survival if it abandoned the coalition and stood on its own.
During the function, Umno strongman Datuk Dr Abdul Malek Md Hanafiah, who is a former Perak state executive councillor, former Kamunting assemblyman and former Taiping Umno division chairman, was also seen confidently strolling into the temple hall shortly after Anwar’s arrival, to loud applause from the people.
Anwar however said that Abdul Malek was “yet to make any crossover announcement.”

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/37018-jui-meng-finds-things-very-different-in-opposition

Cow-head bullies strike again — Neville Spykerman

2009-09-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

Cow-head bullies strike again — Neville Spykerman

Sept 5 — Yet again, the bull headed protesters of Section 23 have successfully shamed Malaysia.

From the word go, it was obvious that disrupting the town hall meeting, rather than engaging in a dialogue, was high on their agenda.

Their boorish behaviour began at the door when they started shouting at Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) officials who were trying to ensure that only residents enter the hall.

Their thuggish behaviour continued inside, when three men were seen intimidating a woman who was holding camcorder. Shouting, they demanded to know if she was a resident and told her to get out if she wasn‘t.

The terrified victim was pulled away by MBSA enforcement officers, who stepped in just in time.

Their target turned out to be 48-year-old Rozaini Mohd Rosli, an aide to Batu Tiga assemblyman Rodziah Ismail.

Rozaini told The Malaysian Insider she was too shell shocked to even respond to the men at the time and is considering lodging a police report.

The “cow-heads” then set out to heckle and shout at every opportunity they found, ignoring calls by moderators for them to remain calm.

Standing on chairs, jeering and making childish noises, nothing was beneath them, never-mind that women and children were also in the hall, and their actions were being recorded for the world to see.

Scuffles broke out several times during the meeting between these men and their Indian neighbours.

But worse still, one protester went out of his way to hurl obscene sexual suggestions at Rodziah.

What possessed them?

No doubt they will again lay blame on the Selangor Government for all their shameful actions — like a child saying “the devil made me do it”.
But really, which devil I wonder?

Neville Spykerman is a reporter with The Malaysian Insider and who was at the Selangor government town hall meeting with residents this morning.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/opinion/breaking-views/36955-cow-head-bullies-strike-again-neville-spykerman

Spot the liar.

2009-08-31T22:02:00.000-07:00

http://sloone.wordpress.com/2009/09/01/spot-the-liar/

Spot the liar.

Who’s the liar, can you guess?
1. This UMNO blogger says the cow head protestors are PKR + PAS members (here). His remarks are of course supported by Rocky Bru who is sad that 52 reports had been lodged against them.
2. Khalid Samad confirms they are not from PAS as he has been the sec-gen of PAS Shah Alam for ten years. If they are/were, he suggests their membership be terminated as their action (here) was against Islamic principles (here).
3. My own check shows that their names are not on PKR list. I was told one of the person leading is the brother of a former adun of Kota Anggerik (Shah Alam who lost in the 2008 elections?)
Who should I believe?
It’s been days since the event occured and out to shame Najib stupid slogan of 1malaysia, people first and performance first. Bullshit it is. He’s also “instructed” the police to take action, but all we see is TALK ONLY, NO ACTION!
The same goes for the idiotic Moo-deka message from the PM (that we do not choose) that we must tear down the walls that divide. What walls? The one that UMNO/BN set up themselves! Hey tear down your own walls first!
ISA minister Hishamuddin Keris has also issued “a stern warning”. Only a warning? What double standards!
I can only come to the conclusion these people are supporters of UMNO because if they were otherwise, for example, if they were ordinary citizens, NGO activists or Opposition members/ supporters, the police would have acted swiftly and brutally!!!
Don’t you think so?
Hey UMNO machais, we are not so stupid to listen to your spinning lah.

==========================================================

SELANGOR: N40 - Kota Anggerik
Voters: 38,442

Party: UMNO
Candidate: Datuk Ahmad Nawawi b Dato M. Zin
Votes: 13538

Party: PKR
Candidate: Yaakob Sapari
Votes: 15738

Majority: 2,200

SAPP MENIUPKAN ANGIN PERUBAHAN!

2009-08-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

SAPP MENIUPKAN ANGIN PERUBAHAN!

Written by Admin
Monday, 31 August 2009 23:11

PARTI Maju Sabah (SAPP) semakin mendapat tempat di kalangan rakyat negeri ini terutamanya masyarakat Bumiputera dan angin perubahan itu amat ketara sejak kebelakangan ini.

Presiden SAPP Datuk Seri Panglima Yong Teck Lee berkata, rakyat kini mula bertukar arah menyokong parti pembangkang berdasarkan kepada keputusan beberapa pilihan raya kecil di Semenanjung Malaysia.

"Setiap kali melihat berita di kaca telivisyen atau membaca akhbar harian samada tempatan atau kebangsaan, kita dapati Barisan Nasional (BN) kalah dalam semua pilihan raya kecil.

"Ini membuatkan SAPP bertambah semangat untuk berjuang mendapatkan autonomi supaya pentadbiran negeri dikuasai secara mutlak oleh Kerajaan Negeri tanpa sebarang telunjuk dari Kuala Lumpur," katanya.

Bekas Ketua Menteri itu berkata demikian ketika menyampaikan bungkusan Hari Raya Aidilfitri kepada para penduduk kampung di Kampung Cenderamata 2, Likas, di sini hari ini. Bungkusan itu antara lain mengandungi paket gula seberat 1kg, tepung, kopi dan bahan keperluan harian lain.

Majlis itu diadakan di perkarangan rumah seorang pemimpin masyarakat tempatan, Encik Mulkaseh Renda, kerana SAPP tidak dibenar menggunakan Dewan Serbaguna Likas berdekatan setelah keluar dari gabungan pemerintahan BN.

Dewan itu di bina hasil usaha para pemimpin SAPP satu ketika dulu.

Walaubagaimanapun, sambutan masyarakat setempat terhadap majlis itu amat menggalakkan apabila ramai penduduk termasuk dari kampung berhampiran terutamanya masyarakat Bumiputera Islam yang kini mengerjakan ibadah puasa hadir beramai-ramai.

Turut hadir pada majlis itu ialah Timbalan Persiden merangkap Ahli Parlimen Sepanggar Datuk Eric Majimbun, Timbalan Presiden merangkap Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN) Likas Datuk Liew Teck Chan dan Setiausaha Agung Datuk Richard Yong,

Hadir sama, antaranya, tiga Naib Presiden iaitu, Datuk Rashid Gador, Encik Don Chin dan Datuk Chua Soon Bui yang juga Ahli Parlimen Tawau serta beberapa pemimpin lain..

Tidak ketinggalan memeriahkan majlis itu ialah Ahli Majlis Tertinggi (AMT) SAPP merangkap Pengerusi CLC Bongawan, Haji Jaafar Ismail, Samsuddin Awang Aman (AMT), Timbalan Pengerusi Tetap SAPP Awang Talip Awang Bagul dan Suaib Mutalib (AMT).

Kerajaan BN mendapat tamparan hebat apabila kalah teruk pada pilihan raya kecil Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) Permatang Pasir di Pulau Pinang . Sebelum itu BN juga kalah pada beberapa pilihan raya kecil sekitar Semenanjung Malaysia .

Teck Lee berkata, SAPP yakin akan beroleh kejayaan besar pada pilihan raya umum akan datang kerana rakyat Sabah kini mula sedar bahawa hanya parti politik berasal dari negeri ini saja yang mampu membela nasib mereka.

Beliau berkata, SAPP juga mendapat sokongan hebat di kawasan Pantai Timur Sabah seperti di Sandakan, Tawau dan Lahad Datu.

Katanya, sebagai sebuah parti politik berteraskan rakyat, SAPP akan meneruskan usaha membantu meringankan beban hidup rakyat tidak kira samada ketika berada dalam kerajaan atau sebagai pembangkang.

Teck Lee berkata, kejayaan menjadikan Kampung Cenderamata 2 daripada penempatan setinggan kepada perkampungan sah dari segi undang-undang adalah salah satu dari hasil usaha SAPP.

Katanya, kos tambang bas yang bertambah mendadak ekoran pengenalan perkhidmatan bas bandaraya akan ditangani dengan baik supaya bebanan hidup rakyat dapat diringankan.

Katanya, rakyat yang bergantung kepada pengangkutan awam terpaksa mengeluarkan wang lebih sebanyak RM1 setiap seorang untuk berulang-alik ke bandaraya kerana kos tambahan yang terpaksa ditanggung apabila menggunakan bas bandaraya.

Beliau berkata, selain bebanan kos tambahan para penumpang juga terpaksa mengharungi kepayahan kerana mesti turun di terminal bas berdekatan Wawasan Plaza sebelum meneruskan perjalanan ke destinasi yang ingin di tujui.

Teck Lee memberi jaminan bahawa SAPP akan berusaha menyelesaikan masalah ini sehingga kos tambahan sebanyak RM1 itu terhapus dengan sendiri.

Voters Drawing the Line

2009-08-30T22:52:00.000-07:00

Voters Drawing the Line

Posted by admin
Monday, 31 August 2009 12:17
The surprise was not that Rohaizat Othman successfully hoodwinked UMNO leaders to secure the nomination rather how easily those senior leaders were taken in by this shyster. Now that their candidate has been thrashed, those UMNO leaders were belatedly bemoaning the fact that their chosen man had been less than truthful to them. That is the quality of UMNO top leadership, folks!
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

M. Bakri Musa

In the heyday of UMNO the joke was that the party could field a dog as an election candidate and it would still win. The party leaders must still harbor that delusion for in the recent Permatang Pasir state by-election they fielded a disbarred lawyer. This time however, voters wisely drew the line at the dog.

The surprise was not that Rohaizat Othman successfully hoodwinked UMNO leaders to secure the nomination rather how easily those senior leaders were taken in by this shyster. Now that their candidate has been thrashed, those UMNO leaders were belatedly bemoaning the fact that their chosen man had been less than truthful to them. That is the quality of UMNO top leadership, folks!

Even after the sordid details of the man’s sleazy professional past and checkered personal life had surfaced, UMNO leaders still vigorously defended their choice. They had the nerve to suggest that those critics were trying to smear the UMNO candidate. Those UMNO leaders obviously did not realize that their man was already soiled.

Reflection on Muhyyuddin

Consider UMNO Deputy President Muhyyuddin Yassin’s comments. He went to great lengths defending the integrity of his party’s standard bearer. He likened the Bar Council’s sanctions as nothing more than a traffic violation! I recognize that traffic in Malaysia is terrible, but really! I wonder what it would take to be branded a crook and thus be disqualified by Muhyyuddin’s reckoning. I am making a huge assumption here, that is, the man has some standards.

A commentator in the mainstream media reported that Muhyyuddin was apparently livid on hearing the details of Rohaizat. Only his severe poker face belied his anger, so she claimed. If Muhyyuddin was truly angry he sure did not reveal it in his actions; he was ‘gung ho’ right to the end. That commentary revealed more about the writer – ‘sucking up’ to Muhyyuddin so early on. She should try a better excuse next time.

It is a recent tradition with UMNO that its deputy leader be in charge of by-elections. This Permatang Pasir election was the first to be under the direct leadership of Muhyyuddin. Hence his comments and actions bear scrutiny.

Muhyyuddin’s decision to continue with Rohaizat’s candidacy despite all the revealed blemishes says volumes on the judgment as well as ethical standards of Muhyyuddin. Not to scare readers, this character is also Deputy Prime Minister, and going by our recent history, he could very well be Prime Minister one day.

If a two-bit disbarred country lawyer could easily dupe Muhyyuddin, imagine him as Prime Minister negotiating with his counterpart across the causeway on selling our precious fresh water, or his participating in crucial international treaty conferences! That is a scary thought.

The brief Permatang Pasir election campaign revealed more than we ever wished to know about this crooked lawyer and his equally slimy personal life. While Rohaizat was disbarred by the Bar Council, he could still practice in the Sharia court. This is the same court that recently sentenced a young mother to be whipped for drinking beer. That should tell us something of the ‘Islamic’ (at least the Malaysian variety) standard of ethics.

To me, the Permatang Pasir campaign revealed more about UMNO, specifically its culture and top leaders. What has been revealed should scare all Malaysians who are concerned with our nation’s future.

Muhyyuddin’s ethical blind spot was disturbing enough. More reprehensible was his performance during the campaign. He fell into the predictable pattern of past ambitious UMNO leaders-in-waiting. There he was, freely and irresponsibly playing up the race card, eerily reminding me of Najib’s and Hishammuddin’s brandishing of their kerises. Aspiring UMNO leaders like Muhyyuddin have this primitive urge to display their chauvinistic manhood during tough election campaigns. That is their culture.

Unfortunately, as the party still garnered over a third of the votes (presumably Malay votes), UMNO leaders will continue with their bigotry. Now they are blaming non-Malay (specifically Chinese) voters for abandoning Barisan.

UMNO of The Future

To be sure there were a few – very few, in fact only two – UMNO leaders who spoke out against Rohaizat, and did so early. Mahathir wondered out loud whether a liar could be a people’s representative. Tengku Razaleigh was much more forceful, “… UMNO is projecting the image that it lives by a different moral code from the rest of Malaysia.”

“Either that, or this is the best we can do,” he continued. Indeed!

Alas, both Mahathir and the Tengku represent UMNO’s past. To gauge UMNO’s future, look at the leaders of its Youth and Puteri wings. They not only endorsed Rohaizat but aggressively campaigned for him. I would like to ask UMNO Youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin specifically whether he feels that a disbarred lawyer and a man who lied about his wife is a worthy representative of UMNO.

The situation with UMNO Puteri is even more interesting. I wonder how those pretty young girls in their distinctive pink baju kurong feel about campaigning for a man who took a second wife secretly, and then lied about it publicly. The Puteris’ stand-by-your-man stance may be praiseworthy in other circumstances but not when your man is a cheat and a crook. Instead of campaigning for him, Puteri members should be contacting the second wife to see whether her man had been providing for her.

The Permatang Pasir by-election could have been a splendid opportunity for UMNO to shine if only their leaders had been smarter and pursued a radically different tack. Imagine if upon knowing the sordid details of Rohaizat, UMNO leaders publicly admitted their mistake and demanded their candidate withdraw on pain of being expelled from the party.
Yes that would give PAS a walk-over, but that would not have changed the end results. Besides, UMNO had done this a few months earlier in the Penanti by-election. Think however, the message the party and its senior leaders would have sent to their members and Malaysians generally, and the impact that would have on all. UMNO would have won a great moral victory. As it is, UMNO lost the election as well as the moral high ground. The party had set a new low on what is acceptable.
Judging from the post-election comments by UMNO leaders, from Najib Razak and Muhyyuddin on down, UMNO has yet to learn this pertinent lesson from this latest debacle. The party still harbors the delusion that even its flawed candidates could still win.

The next time around expect UMNO to reach even lower to a new bottom in their search for talent. I must admit it would be difficult to find someone more unworthy than a disbarred lawyer. Trust me however, UMNO will find one.

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/26292/84/

Permatang Pasir: PR menang di semua saluran

2009-08-26T02:32:00.000-07:00

Permatang Pasir: PR menang di semua saluran

Posted by admin
Wednesday, 26 August 2009 17:22
Lim Hong Siang, Merdeka Review

Pakatan Rakyat berjaya menyapu bersih semua saluran pengundian di DUN Permatang Pasir semalam, sementara menjauhkan jurang antara PR dengan BN dengan rekod 6-1, dalam pilihan raya kecil sejak Malaysia dilanda tsunami politik pada 8 Mac 2008.

Begitu juga apabila UMNO-BN dihampakan dengan 10 undi sahaja, di saluran pengundian kedua di Kampung Pelet, kawasan yang terdiri daripada 72% pengundi Melayu.

PAS-PR memperolehi 185 undi, berbanding UMNO-BN dengan 175 undi.

Antara sembilan daerah mengundi, PAS-PR menang dengan margin majoriti yang paling selesa di Cross Street, dengan menyapu 75% undi.

Cross Street terdiri daripada lebih 80% pengundi bukan Melayu.

Sebaliknya, di daerah mengundi yang terdiri daripada 93% pengundi Melayu, Kubang Semang, menyaksikan PAS-PR merangkul 74% jumlah undi.

Di daerah mengundi seperti Sama Gagah, Permatang Pauh dan Permatang Tengah, PAS-PR berjaya mencatat nisbah jumlah undi 7:3, berbanding UMNO-BN.

UMNO-BN hanya mampu merapatkan jurang di daerah mengundi seperti Permatang Ara (43% undi), Kampung Pelet (42% undi) dan Bukit Indera Muda (40% undi).

Dari struktur kaum pengundi, kawasan tersebut adalah kawasan Melayu majoriti, dengan Permatang Ara 97% pengundi Melayu, Kg.Pelet 72% pengundi Melayu dan Bukit Indera Muda 96% pengundi Melayu.

Pengundi muda tetap memihak PR

Walau bagaimanapun, PR kekal dengan kelebihannya di saluran pengundian ketiga dan keempat, memperlihatkan sokongan pengundi muda terhadap pakatan politik baru ini.

Walaupun di kawasan yang majoritinya pengundi Melayu, misalnya di ketiga-tiga daerah pengundian di mana UMNO-BN "berjaya merapatkan jurang", golongan pengundi muda tetap bersama PR.

Di Permatang Ara misalnya, UMNO-BN kalah dengan satu undi di saluran pengundian kedua, tetapi kalah dengan 152 undi majoriti (PAS 349: BN 197) di saluran ketiga.

Di daerah mengundi Permatang Tengah misalnya, dengan majoriti 89% pengundi Melayu, jumlah undi di saluran pengundian ketiga, keempat dan kelima menyaksikan bagaimana UMNO-BN tewas dengan 491 undi majoriti, apabila PAS-PR memperolehi 804 undi dan UMNO-BN mendapat 313 undi.

UMNO-BN dijangka tidak berubah

Jelas, kelebihan UMNO-BN hanya pada saluran pengundian pertama dan kedua, iaitu golongan pengundi yang umurnya lebih lanjut, di kawasan pengundi Melayu majoriti.

Peningkatan sokongan Melayu mungkin tidak jelas, khususnya di kubu politik Anwar Ibrahim. Tetapi, mungkinkah keputusan ini cukup untuk memberangsangkan pemimpin UMNO?

Pengarah Strategi PKR, Tian Chua meramalkan bahawa UMNO-BN akan terus dengan propagandanya seperti "Anwar pengkhianat", "DAP hina Islam" dan sebagainya, memandangkan peningkatan undi 1% pun mungkin memberi kepuasan kepada UMNO.

"Sememangnya kami (PR) juga bimbang akan kehilangan undi Melayu, tetapi selagi kami mengambil pendekatan yang sederhana, mengekalkan sokongan dari struktur pengundi yang sedia ada, maka UMNO-BN akan musnah dengan sendirinya," jelas Tian Chua kepada MerdekaReview.

Kelas pekerja bersama PR

Ahli Parlimen Batu ini mengingatkan bahawa golongan yang tidak mengundi semalam adalah dari kelas pekerja, yang tidak mempunyai cuti, malah mungkin keberatan untuk balik mengundi kerana tambang kenderaan yang mahal.

Beliau yakin bahawa penurunan peratus pengundian sebanyak 10%, dikenalpasti sebagai pengundi pekerja yang akan mengundi untuk PR.

Maka, kemenangan PAS-PR semalam mengukuhkan keyakinan PR bahawa strategi dan pendekatan yang sama wajar diteruskan, untuk berdepan dengan PRU ke-13.

Cuma, bagaimana pula dengan UMNO-BN?

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/26125/84/

Terbitan Baru

2009-08-23T02:17:00.000-07:00

Saturday, August 22, 2009

AKHBAR DAN BUKU BARU DI PASARAN
Dua buah buku di pasaran iaiatu kisah KM pulau Pinang dan juga kisah bagaimana BERSIH berjaya di laksanakan tanpa kekecohan besar.

AKHBAR TERKINI DI PASARAN.Menggunakan lesen akhbar KONSEP yang diperbahrui.menggabungkan isu-isu terkini dalam negara dan juga memberi lebih peluang kepada wakil Pakatan untuk menyampaikan wadah serta memuatkan berita yang logik dan tepat.
Dapatkan KONSEP ERA PAKATAN dipasaran.Akbar dwi bulanan ini boleh ditempah atau untuk mengiklan didalamnya.Hubungi..
ADNAN-0196691730
ZIKRI MAHMUD-0162135301
Posted by WARTAWAN RASMI LAMAN REFORMASI at 6:44 PM

Himpunan Muhyiddin

2009-08-15T01:07:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4aJ9fDDJhI

Why do Malaysians march?

2009-08-04T01:43:00.000-07:00

Why do Malaysians march?

Yeo Yang Poh

On the move ... a section of anti-ISA protesters near the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

WHY march, when the government has said that it will review the Internal Security Act?

Why march, when there are other very cosy ways of giving your views and feedback?

One would understand if these were questions posed by nine-year-olds. But they are not. They are questions posed by the prime minister of this nation we call our home. Answer we must. So, why?

Because thousands who died while in detention cannot march or speak any more. That is why others have to do it for them.

Because persons in the corridors of power, persons who have amassed tremendous wealth and live in mansions, and persons who are in the position to right wrongs but won’t, continue to rule our nation with suffocating might. And they certainly would not march. They would prevent others from marching.

Because the have-nots, the sidelined, the oppressed, the discriminated and the persecuted have no effective line to the powerful.

Because the nice ways have been tried ad nauseam for decades, but have fallen on deaf ears.

Because none of the major recommendations of Suhakam (including on peaceful assembly), or of the commissions of inquiry, has been implemented.

Because the proposed Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) is not in sight, while corruption and insecurity live in every neighbourhood; and (despite reasoned views expressed ever so nicely in opposition) Rela (people’s volunteer corps) is being brought in to make matters even worse.

The proponents in “Su Qiu” (remember them?) were not marchers. In fact it is hard to find nicer ways than “su qiu”, because the term means “present and request” or “inform and request”. In terms of putting forward a view or a request, it is the height of politeness. Yet they were labelled “extremists” – they who did not march.

And now you ask, why march?

Because you gave non-marchers a false name! You called them the “silent majority”, who by virtue of their silence (so you proudly argued with twisted logic) were supporters of government policies since they were not vocal in raising objections. You claimed to be protecting the interest of the “silent majority”. Now some of them do not want to be silent anymore, and you are asking why?

Yes, because double standards and hypocrisy cannot be covered up or explained away forever; and incompetence cannot be indefinitely propped up by depleting resources.

Because cronyism can only take care of a few people, and the rest will eventually wake up to realise the repeated lies that things were done in certain ways purportedly “for their benefit”.

Because the race card, cleverly played for such a long time, is beginning to be seen for what it really is – a despicable tool to divide the rakyat for easier political manipulation.

Because it does not take much to figure out that there is no good reason why Malaysia, a country with abundant human resources and rich natural resources, does not have a standard of living many times higher than that of Singapore, an island state with no natural resources and that has to import human resources from Malaysia and elsewhere.

Because, in general, countries that do not persecute marchers are prosperous or are improving from their previous state of affairs, and those that do are declining.

Because Gandhi marched, Mandela marched, Martin Luther King marched, and Tunku Abdul Rahman marched.

Because more and more people realise that peaceful assemblies are no threat at all to the security of the nation, although they are a threat to the security of tenure of the ruling elite.

Because politicians do not mean it when they say with a straight face or a smile that they are the servants and that the people are the masters. No servant would treat his master with tear gas, batons and handcuffs.

Because if the marchers in history had been stopped in their tracks, places like India, Malaysia and many others would still be colonies today, apartheid would still be thriving in South Africa, Nelson Mandela would still be scribbling on the walls of Cell 5, and Obama would probably be a slave somewhere in Mississippi plotting to make his next midnight dash for the river.

And because liberty, freedom and dignity are not free vouchers posted out to each household. They do not come to those who just sit and wait. They have to be fought for, and gained. And if you still want to ask: why march; I can go on and on until the last tree is felled. But I shall obviously not.

I will end with the following lines from one of the songs sung in the 1960s by civil rights marchers in the US, without whom Obama would not be able to even sit with the whites in a bus, let alone reside in the White House:

“It isn’t nice to block the doorway

It isn’t nice to go to jail

There are nicer ways to do it

But the nice ways have all failed

It isn’t nice; it isn’t niceYou’ve told us once, you’ve told us twice

But if that’s freedom’s price

We don’t mind ...”

Yeo Yang Poh is a former Bar Council president.

Comments: letters@thesundaily.com.
Updated: 09:29PM Sun, 02 Aug 2009

1 Ogos 2009

2009-08-01T04:24:00.000-07:00

http://himpunanmansuhisa.wordpress.com/

2009-07-31T16:44:00.000-07:00

http://himpunanmansuhisa.wordpress.com/

2009-07-31T16:19:00.000-07:00

Syed Ibrahim: Cukuplah 49 tahun ISA mengganas

2009-07-31T15:57:00.000-07:00

Syed Ibrahim: Cukuplah 49 tahun ISA mengganas

Posted on Friday, July 31 @ 23:00:03 MYT by Paktam
Oleh Norlaila Othman
"Pergi jahanam dengan GMI", tajuk berita dari M-Star dan "Umat Islam diharamkan menyertai himpunan jalanan", dari Berita Harian adalah dua bentuk provokasi dan ancaman yang dikeluarkan oleh media arus perdana menjelang Himpunan Aman MANSUH, esok 1 Ogos.

Sesiapa saja yang membaca berita-berita tersebut, terutamanya penduduk Malaysia yang tinggal di kawasan yang tidak mendapat liputan internet, pasti akan merasa kurang selesa untuk hadir ke Kuala Lumpur, Sabtu ini

Oleh sebab itu, Pengarah Himpunan MANSUH, Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh sekali lagi menegaskan bahawa Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA(GMI) yang mewakili 83 gabungan parti politik dan NGO tetap akan meneruskan perhimpunan tersebut.

Pihak penganjur sentiasa mengambil sikap berjaga-jaga dan faktor keselamatan akan ditingkatkan, agar himpunan tersebut bebas dari sebarang provokasi yang boleh mengganggu dan melibatkan para demonstran.

"Himpunan MANSUH ini adalah satu platform yang disediakan supaya rakyat dapat menyuarakan dan meluahkan rasa tidak puas hati mereka terhadap penggunaan akta tahan tanpa bicara, ISA yang telah menganiaya lebih 17 ribu rakyat malaysia dari pelbagai kaum dan latar belakang.

"Tahun ini, usia ISA masuk 49 tahun, cukuplah setakat itu akta tersebut digunakan ke atas rakyat Malaysia," kata Syed Ibrahim ketika memulakan sidang akhbar di bangunan Pejabat Agung PAS petang semalam.

"Aktiviti GMI bukan bermula semalam. Ianya telah dimulakan sejak tahun 2001 lagi. Pelbagai aktiviti dilakukan untuk memberitahu pemimpin yang sedang berkuasa sekarang bahawa akta tanpa bicara ISA amat zalim kerana ia mencabul hak asasi mangsanya, sepatutnya segera dihentikan penggunaanya.

"Di Malaysia sudah ada terlalu banyak undang-undang yang boleh digunakan terhadap apa juga jenis kesalahan justeru itu, ISA sudah tidak diperlukan lagi kerana akta itu terbukti lebih banyak mendatang mudharat kepada rakyat," tambah Syed Ibrahim lagi.

"Pertubuhan bukan kerajaan seperti PEWARIS dan MAGARAN yang menyokong ISA juga berhak untuk berhimpun walaupun ianya diadakan secara 'kebetulan' pada tarikh dan masa yang sama dengan himpunan MANSUH ISA anjuran GMI.

"Namun, yang amat jelas, himpunan GMI telah dirancang beberapa bulan lebih awal dan pihak jawatankuasa kerja MANSUH telah bertemu dengan pelbagai NGO serta parti politik untuk menerangkan, memberitahu dan memohon sokongan terhadap penganjuran himpunan tersebut.

"GMI telah berkunjung kepejabat Menteri Dalam Negeri, SUHAKAM , Bar Council, Mahasiswa, Persatuan Cina, Hindraf dan parti politik Pakatan Rakyat. Siri ceramah 'roadshow' yang dianjurkan oleh Pemuda Pakatan Rakyat di seluruh negara pula adalah khusus untuk memberitahu orang ramai tentang ISA dan seterusnya memohon sokongan seluruh rakyat Malaysia yang cintakan keadilan dan bencikan kezaliman supaya turun ke Kuala Lumpur untuk sama-sama menyatakan bantahan terhadap akta drakonian itu," kata Pengerusi GMI itu.

"Kami juga telah menyerahkan sepucuk surat pemberitahuan tentang himpunan ini kepada Polis dua hari lepas. GMI memohon, pihak polis turut membantu memudahkan dan melancarkan perjalanan para demonstran di himpunan aman tersebut. Tiada sesiapa, terutamanya dipihak GMI yang mahu berlaku sebarang kejadian yang tidak diingini.

"Berilah sedikit ruang pada rakyat untuk melakukan sesuatu yang menjadi hak mereka iaitu kebebasan berkumpul sepertimana termaktub di Perlembagaan Persekutuan,? demikianlah beliau mengakhiri sidang media tersebut.

Turut hadir di sidang media itu ialah Timbalan Pengarah MANSUH, Kamaruzaman Mohammad Setiausaha Pemuda PAS Pusat, Ustazah Nuridah Ketua Muslimat PAS Pusat, Aiman Athirah, Ketua Penerangan Muslimat PAS Pusat dan Nashita Mohd Noor, Bendahari GMI. _

Manek Urai: 6,000 pelajar dapat uniform, beg sekolah

2009-07-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/107878

Manek Urai: 6,000 pelajar dapat uniform, beg sekolah
Jul 5, 09 9:32pm

Seramai 6,142 pelajar sekolah rendah, menengah dan sekolah Arab di Manek Urai mendapat perhatian Kementerian Pelajaran yang akan memberikan mereka bantuan uniform dan beg sekolah secara percuma.
Pengerusi Badan Perhubungan Umno Kelantan Datuk Mustapa Mohamed berkata pemberian itu telah dinyatakan oleh Timbalan Perdana Menteri Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin kepada beliau beberapa hari lalu sebagai tanda ingatan kementerianberkenaan.
"Tan Sri Muhyiddin yang juga Menteri Pelajaran telah menyatakan kepada saya untuk memberikan bantuan itu kepada semua pelajar di Manek Urai tanpa seorang pun terkecuali.
"Ini sebagai tanda ingatan daripada kementerian dan juga dapat meringankan beban rakyat di sini," katanya kepada pemberita dalam sidang akhbar di Pusat Operasi BN di Manek Urai hari ini, lapor Bernama.
Mustapa berkata sebagai permulaan 300 pelajar telah menerima bantuan itu mulai hari ini dan kesemua bakinya akan menerima secara berperingkat. Sebelum itu Mustapa sendiri telah menyampaikan bantuan itu bagi mewakili Muhyiddin di Sekolah Kebangsaan Manek Urai Baru.
Terdapat 10 buah sekolah rendah, 12 menengah dan sebuah sekolah aliran Arab di Manek Urai.

Penamaan calon esok

Sementara itu Mustapa meminta majikan baik di sektor kerajaan dan swasta membenarkan kakitangan mereka untuk pulang mengundi memilih wakil rakyat baru DUN Manek Urai pada 14 Julai ini.
"Jangan nafikan hak pengundi dan ini merupakan kesalahan," katanya.
Beliau mengulas kenyataan pengarah pilihanraya PAS Kelantan, Abdul Fatah Harun hari ini yang mendakwa mendapat laporan ada majikan yang tidak akan membenarkan pengundi di Manek Urai untuk pulang menunaikan tanggungjawab itu.
Selain itu Mustapa berkata fasa kedua kempen pilihanraya Manek Urai akan bermula esok yang merupakan hari penamaan calon DUN itu.
Esok Muhyiddin dijangka mengetuai perarakan lebih 10,000 penyokong BN ke pusat penamaan calon di Sekolah Menengah Sultan Yahya Petra 1.
BN menamakan Ketua Pemuda Umno Kuala Krai Tuan Aziz Tuan Mat, 39, sebagai calonnya manakala PAS meletakkan harapan kepada Bendahari PAS Kuala Krai, Fauzi Abdullah, 50, bagi mempertahankan kerusi DUN itu.
Pilihan raya kecil itu diadakan berikutan kematian wakil rakyat daripadaPAS, Ismail Yaakob pada 22 Mei lalu akibat sakit jantung. Dalam pilihanraya umum 2008, Ismail menang kerusi DUN Manek Urai dengan majoriti 1,352 undi, menewaskan calon BN Mohamed Zulkepli Omar.

Bar's EGM: Multitude of lawyers unanimously condemn arrest of lawyers

2009-05-16T20:40:00.000-07:00

Bar's EGM: Multitude of lawyers unanimously condemn arrest of lawyers

http://www.malaysianbar.org.my/bar_news/berita_badan_peguam/bars_egm_multitude_of_lawyers_unanimously_condemn_arrest_of_lawyers_friday_15_may_2009.html

Friday, 15 May 2009

Saturday, 16 May 2009 12:36am
Contributed by Chin Oy Sim, Executive Officer, Bar Council Secretariat, with photos by T.Shan

A heartening multitude of 1,429 lawyers and 81 chambering students unanimously and unequivocally called for the resignation of the Minister for Home Affairs, the Inspector-General of Police and the OCPD of the Brickfields police station at the Malaysian Bar’s Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) this afternoon.The EGM was called following the arrest of five Kuala Lumpur Legal Aid Centre (KL LAC) lawyers at Brickfields police station last Thursday evening. The five lawyers – Fadiah Nadwa binti Fikri (Secretary), Murnie Hidayah binti Anuar, Puspawati binti Rosman, Ravinder Singh Dhalliwal (Chairperson) and Syuhaini binti Safwan – were arrested when they tried to gain access to their clients who had themselves been arrested earlier that evening, for participating in a candlelight vigil in support of arrested political scientist Wong Chin Huat.

The quorum of 500 was reached even before 3 p.m., clear testament to the intensity of the legal community’s condemnation of the incident.

A Malaysiakini video that captured the vigil and the arrest of the lawyers was screened at the outset, thus setting the tone for the EGM. The lawyers booed loudly as they viewed the OCPD’s handling of the situation and the manner in which the lawyers were treated. A second Malaysiakini video showing the solidarity gathering at the Jalan Duta courts last Friday morning was also screened.

Each of the five lawyers took to the stage and gave a brief personal account of their ordeal and highlighted various aspects of their detention.

Several lawyers spoke from the floor and vigorously denounced the incident. Most of them called for the motion, which had been proposed by Ragunath Kesavan, the President of the Malaysian Bar, to be stronger in language. The EGM attendees listened in rapt attention and were generous with their applause and vocal expressions of support for the statements made and suggestions put forward.

No vote was needed as the motion, as amended, was carried unanimously.

The EGM was adjourned at 5.15 p.m.

================================================================

Motion

Whereas on the night of 7 May 2009, five members of the Kuala Lumpur Legal Aid Centre, Fadiah Nadwa binti Fikri (Secretary), Murnie Hidayah binti Anuar, Puspawati binti Rosman, Ravinder Singh Dhalliwal (Chairperson) and Syuhaini binti Safwan (collectively known as the “LAC Lawyers”), in their capacity as Advocates & Solicitors, had requested the police at the Brickfields Police Station for access to the detained persons who were arrested that same night whilst holding a candlelight vigil at the same Police Station over the recent arrest of political scientist Wong Chin Huat.

Whereas Article 5(3) of the Federal Constitution entrenches the fundamental right of a person to consult and be defended by the legal practitioner of his/her choice. Further, sub-sections 28A(2) to (7) of the Criminal Procedure Code (“CPC”) set out in detail the rights of arrested persons including their right to communicate and consult with a legal practitioner of their choice.

Whereas the Police denied the LAC Lawyers access to the detained persons, the Police, without any reasonable grounds, proceeded to arrest the LAC Lawyers and only released them on police bail the following day at around 3 p.m., notwithstanding the repeated requests by other lawyers for their immediate release.

NOW IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED THAT THE MALAYSIAN BAR:

1. Strongly condemns and denounces the wrongful arrest, detention and interrogation of the LAC Lawyers.

2. Strongly condemns and denounces the blatant transgression of the rule of law and the constitutional right of every person to counsel and access to justice.

3. Strongly condemns the unnecessary arrest and detention of those exercising their constitutional right to assemble peaceably.

4. Strongly condemns the arbitrary, improper and frequent resort by the Police to section 28A(8) of the Criminal Procedure Code, thus denying an arrested person access to counsel and making the right provided under section 28A(3) meaningless.

5. Strongly condemns and denounces the appalling treatment of the LAC lawyers and all those held in custody, including compelling them to wear lock up uniforms and unnecessarily handcuffing them.

6. Strongly condemns and denounces the Police for deliberately refusing to disclose to their family or their lawyers any information in relation to the LAC lawyers after their arrest, including their location and their next course of action.

7. Demands the resignation of the Minister for Home Affairs, the Inspector-General of Police, OCPD ACP Wan Abdul Bari bin Wan Abdul Khalid and DSP Jude Pereira of the Brickfields police station over this shameful incident.

8. Condemns the gross abuse of police powers and demands that the Government offer an unconditional apology to the LAC Lawyers.

9. Demands that the Government commit to and uphold the Rule of Law as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

10. Reiterates its previous calls on the Government to establish the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) in its original form to serve as an independent external oversight mechanism.

11. Demands that the Government uphold and defend the fundamental rights of advocates and solicitors to discharge their responsibilities to their clients in an environment free from threats and intimidation and unhindered by law enforcement agencies.

Proposed by: Ragunath Kesavan

Dated: 8 May 2009

The motion, as amended, was unanimously carried.

http://www.malaysianbar.org.my/bar_news/berita_badan_peguam/bars_egm_multitude_of_lawyers_unanimously_condemn_arrest_of_lawyers_friday_15_may_2009.html

Open letter to the Minister of Information, Communications and Culture, Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim

2009-05-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/21861/84/

Okay, on the point that I only criticise and never praise. That too is also true. But while I criticise the federal government, which happens to be Barisan Nasional, I also criticise the state governments, which are not all Barisan Nasional.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Dear Datuk Seri, I read your interview in Malaysiakini yesterday, which I believe was an extract of your interview with the BBC the same day. I really have no quarrel with what you said merely because I believe everyone is entitled to his and her views and that we should respect this. Of course, this does not mean we must agree with these views. We are definitely at liberty to disagree with them. But just because we disagree with them does not mean we should silence these people and not allow them to express their opinions.

On the point that I never say nice things about the government but only know how to criticise, I would also certainly agree with you and will plead guilty as charged. Have you, however, maybe not noticed that I also never say nice things about the opposition as well?

When have I ever said even one nice thing about Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang, Karpal Singh, Hadi Awang, Lim Guan Eng, Nik Aziz, Ustaz Azizan, Tan Sri Khalid, Nizar Jamaluddin, or whoever? But I did say I think Khairy Jamaluddin is very intelligent and that I have confidence he might yet become Prime Minister at the age of 40. And I said Matthias Chang, Mahathir’s adviser whom you also know well enough, is a genius, and whatnot.

And did you read the comments my readers posted in Malaysia Today? They called me a Mahathir stooge, a Mahathir boot-licker, and much worse.

So, while I may not say nice things about the government, neither do I say nice things about the opposition. Would you, therefore, not consider that as balanced?

Okay, on the point that I only criticise and never praise. That too is also true. But while I criticise the federal government, which happens to be Barisan Nasional, I also criticise the state governments, which are not all Barisan Nasional.

Now, Datuk Seri, this fact may have escaped you. I criticise the Pakatan Rakyat states like Kelantan, Kedah, Penang and Selangor, and before this Perak, but have you ever seen me criticising states like Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang and so on?

Yes, that’s right, I whack Pakatan Rakyat state governments good and proper. But I never touch Barisan Nasional state governments. Okay, I did write about the RM7 billion Wang Ehsan for Terengganu, which has been pilfered. But, hey, even His Majesty the Agong is upset about this. Why do you think Tuanku rejected Idris Jusoh as Menteri Besar if not for the fact that Idris was managing the Wang Ehsan since 2000 and most of it had ‘evaporated’.

I admit I also whacked Sabah and Sarawak on what these two states did to their timber resources. But let’s face it, Datuk Seri, are you not also personally outraged by what these two states have done to forests that took millions of years to develop? And is it not downright criminal that what took millions of years to develop was utterly destroyed in less than 30 years?

One more point I would like to make here, Datuk Seri, I do not praise the federal government or state governments because I consider it their duty to do good things. For example, if I pay someone to repair my toilet, and if I am paying a hell of a lot of money on top of that, I expect the job to be done well. If the toilet still can’t flush then I am going to complain like hell. I would probably also refuse to pay the bill until the chap redoes it properly this time. But if he did a great job I will just pay him his money and would most likely call him again the next time I need my toilets repaired. But I am not going to pat the chap on the head and say, “Good boy. Clever boy.” Or whatever.

Have you seen how rich people summon waiters in an expensive restaurant? They click their fingers and scowl if the waiter is too slow and will order their food and drinks without even looking the waiter in the face or offering the poor chap a smile. Why? Well, these rich people are paying good money for the service so they need not be nice to the hired hands.

You give them the bill and they pay, never mind how much it may be, and they may even include a 10% tip if there is no service charge and if they are satisfied with the service. But they are definitely not going to summon the manager and tell the manager how great his waiter is and that he should be given a raise. But if they are not satisfied with the service, they will certainly call the manager and complain and demand that the waiter be sacked or something like that.

This is a fact of life, Datuk Seri. We are paying good money, a lot of money in fact, to upkeep our government. We are paying you to do a job. Our hard-earned money is paying for the cost of this government. You do a good job and we continue employing you. You do a bad job and we kick your sorry behind. But we are not going to sing your praises just because you did something you were supposed to do in the first place.

Okay, now on the point that I have libelled or defamed people and that action would have to be taken against anyone who commits such crimes.

Around two years or so ago, I wrote something about Zaid Ibrahim, who was then a Minister in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s government. Zaid did not sue me or make a police report against me, as do the other Umno people. Instead, he replied to the allegation in writing and I published his letter in Malaysia Today so that the readers can decide for themselves who is right and who is wrong.

The readers were delighted and full of praise for Zaid, in spite of the fact he is, at that time, an Umno Minister and the readers were mostly opposition supporters. After reading his letter, they believed Zaid’s interpretation of events rather than the interpretation of the one who made the allegation against him. In short, Zaid won the ‘argument’ because he rebutted it in a civilised and matured manner.

On the other hand, how do the rest of the Umno people respond to allegations? They just deny, deny and deny. But they never rebut the allegation or give their side of the story. Then they make police reports against me and ask that I be arrested or detained without trial under the Internal Security Act. Umno Bloggers suggest that a war should be waged against us and that the government should deal with us the way the Sri Lankan government deals with the LTTE. Others suggest I should be killed with a bullet in my head and e-mails are sent to me threatening the life of my daughter.

Datuk Seri, are you aware of what is happening in Sri Lanka? Do you know the carnage going on in that country? I would not wish for something like that even on my most bitter enemies. How can we justify chopping to pieces women and children and burning them while they are still alive in the name of politics? I would not even do that to dogs and cats. But the Umno Bloggers feel that this is the most appropriate punishment for those who oppose the government.

Do you remember, Datuk Seri, more than two years ago I ran a series of 12 articles about the links between the police and the underworld? Were all these lies? I included eight Affidavits by senior police officers, another two Affidavits by underworld bosses, and two police reports by a police officer and his wife. That is 12 documents in all.

We are not talking about mere articles here, Datuk Seri. We are talking about Affidavits and police reports. I even made an appointment to meet Dr Mahathir and handed copies of all these documents to Tun. And I believe Tun spoke to ex-IGP Hanif about it; who in turn then spoke to the IGP.

Datuk Seri, you can personally speak to Dr Mahathir and ask him whether what I say is true or not. I did everything I could to make sure this matter was looked into. But was it? What action was taken? Instead, I was scolded by the Selangor Sultan who accused me of lying in an attempt to smear the good name of the IGP. It seems they complained to the Sultan about what I had done. That 12-series revelation against the IGP was the beginning of my crisis with the Sultan. Jojo was there. He can confirm this incident if you wish to seek clarification.

For your information, Datuk Seri, in spite of the many Affidavits and police reports I was given, I still did not take all these at face value just yet. I met up with someone very senior in the police force who works in the IGP’s office and ‘interviewed’ him about all these allegations regarding the links between the IGP and BK Tan. This man produced documents to prove that BK Tan decided on which police officer got promoted, which got transferred, and which got sent into cold storage for refusing to cooperate.

I was invited to dinner at a very expensive Japanese restaurant by a few very senior but retired police officers who wanted me to reveal where my sources came from. That was in fact the second meeting. Earlier, I was invited to dinner by very senior but retired Special Branch officers, who also wanted to know the same thing. On both occasions I did not hold back anything and told them what they wanted to know.

What transpired from all this effort? Was anything done about the matter? As far as I can see, the IGP is still in office while all those I named as my source have been ‘eliminated’. Instead of using this information and evidence to take action against the IGP, what happened was the whistleblowers were severely dealt with. Even the lawyer who acted on behalf of one of the police officers was roughly manhandled and arrested in his office and was made to spend a night in the Putrajaya lockup on Hari Raya eve.

Therefore, Datuk Seri, what do I do? Do I attempt to solve this through ‘normal channels’ like in the past and expose all my sources to risk, like what has been proven thus far? Or do I bang away as you and Umno said, making ‘false allegations’? How do you know they are false allegations? Is it because I offered no evidence so therefore they must be false? But the problem is, even when I do offer evidence, the evidence is destroyed while the whistleblowers suffer retaliation.

Let us talk about the ‘hottest’ allegation I have made thus far which appears to be what has made Umno all hot around the collar. And this is of course my Statutory Declaration.

When I was under ISA detention in September last year, Datuk Zamri Ahmad interrogated me about that SD. You may know his father very well, Ahmad Sarji. Now, Zamri is not just any Special Branch officer. He is quite senior and tipped to be the future Director of the Special Branch, maybe within ten years or so from now.

I told Zamri everything he wanted to know. I revealed the source. Zamri confirmed he personally knows the source. Okay, what did the Special Branch do with that information? Did they act on it? So you see, Datuk Seri, it is well and fine to scream that we Bloggers are irresponsible and make wild allegations and never support these allegation with evidence. But even when we do prove it or support our allegations with evidence or reveal our sources, either nothing is done or our sources face the wrath of the powers-that-be.

When I revealed information regarding the RM200 million jetliner which Pak Lah bought for his personal use, it was denied and we were accused of lying. In fact, one of those who fed me this information and helped me with the technical details of the jetliner is an Umno Blogger, Zakir, who runs BigDogDotCom (http://bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com/). You can read his piece called Raja Petra the compulsive liar.

You see, Datuk Seri, I am not a technical person or a plane enthusiast. So I know very little about the technical specifications of aeroplanes. Zakir, however, is an expert on the matter and he helped put the report together. In fact, his Blog came out with the full report earlier, ahead of Malaysia Today. Now he calls me a compulsive liar?

Zakir denies his links with the Special Branch. However, on 5 September 2008, he told me that the Special Branch was about to detain me under the ISA. That same day I went underground and did not resurface until the 10th September. I met some MIC leaders very close to Samy Vellu during that period and they suggested I remain underground because the police are looking for me. I can get them to meet you to confirm all this if you required so Datuk Seri. These people also have strong links with the police.

However, on the 10th September, I got bored and decided to resurface. These MIC chaps were very disturbed and suggested I continue remaining in hiding. I did not listen to them though. On the afternoon of the 10th I went home. On the 11th I went to Bangsar for dinner and spotted two Special Branch officers monitoring me. I commented to the dinner crowd, “It looks like tomorrow they will come and take me”. Two of the chaps stood up and walked towards the Special Branch officers who quickly hightailed it out of there. The next day I was detained under the ISA.

Am I lying? I in fact told the police I was expecting them. When they asked why I said that, I related the story about the two Special Branch officers lurking around the Bangsar restaurant watching me while I was with a group of friends having dinner the night before. I also told them about the tip from the Umno Blogger, without mentioning his name though, plus the information from those MIC people who had links with the police. Today, this same Umno man who was my source of information calls me a compulsive liar.

Datuk Seri, I can go on and on and turn this letter into a thesis and would probably be awarded a doctorate just like you. Nevertheless, what I would have to say would just be more of the same thing. If my arguments are not already convincing enough as they are, then I really don’t know what else to say.

But I know you, Datuk Seri. I mean; we first met more than 25 years ago when we had dinner together with Tan Kay Hock at the Kuala Lumpur Hilton. So that is how long we have personally known each other. (By the way, are you aware that Kay Hock is now Najib’s golf partner?). And because I know you that well I know you would have by now grasped the spirit of what I have written and you would not have any problems understanding the gist of my arguments. If I may say so, Datuk Seri, without appearing as if I am trying to apple-polish you, you are probably one of the more intelligent Umno leaders. So maybe I can stop here and allow what I have written thus far to sink in.

If you feel I am still not convincing enough I can always continue with a part 2 or something like that. But I feel I would just be saying more of the same thing, and would that really be necessary? By the way, Datuk Seri, I still remember what you told me when we met on the first day of Hari Raya at Dr Mahathir’s house more than two years ago. I would like to believe what I am doing is not a departure from the advice you gave me then.

Anyway, it was nice to be able to reply to your comments and I sincerely thank you for giving me the opportunity to tell my side of the story. I still have very high regards for you and I still remember the Semangat 46 days when you were one of the key players and mastermind behind the party’s strategy. It is most unfortunate that you decided to close down the party and everyone rejoined Umno en bloc. If not, today, there would be no need for PKR as Semangat 46 would probably, by now, be the lead partner in a Pakatan Rakyat federal government.

Yours truly,

Raja Petra Bin Raja Kamarudin

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/21861/84/

Hakim Mahkamah Rayuan Kes MB Perak Adalah Lantikan Linggam

2009-05-15T10:08:00.000-07:00

(From left) Court of Appeal president Tan Sri Alauddin Mohd Sheriff, Chief Judge of Malaya Datuk Arifin Zakaria, Datuk Gopal Sri Ram, Datuk James Foong, Datuk Mohd Hishamuddin Mohd Yunus, Datuk Ghazali Mohd Yusof, Datuk Azhar Maah, Datuk Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha, Datuk Ramly Ali and Chief Justice Tan Sri Zaki Azmi after the elevation ceremony

Hakim Mahkamah Rayuan Kes MB Perak Adalah Lantikan Linggam

Patutlah tak sampai beberapa jam dah boleh bagi "stay of execution". Itu pun dia bagi penghakiman yang begitu tidak jelas sehingga sekarang ini hakikat sebenarnya MB Haram, Zambery sedang melakukan tugas-tugas yang sepatutnya dilakukan oleh MB sah yakni Nizar.

Ramly Mohd Ali ini yang dinamakan oleh VK Linggam dalam perbualan yang direkodkan oleh MP Kelana Jaya tempohari.Mengikut perbualan itu, VK Linggam telah menyebut nama tiga orang yang sepatutnya hendak dilantik sebagai hakim. Mereka adalah Datuk Heliliah Mohd Yusof, Datuk Ramly Ali dan Dato Ahmad Maarof. Ketiga-tiga nama ini telah dilantik sebagai Hakim Mahkamah Tinggi oleh Yang Dipertuan Agung pada 1 February 2002.

Untuk maklumat lanjut boleh baca di sini:Juga, mengikut Jeff Ooi, Hakim Ramly ini baru menjadi Hakim Mahkamah Rayuan pada 15 April 2009, yakni 27 hari sebelum Zambery merayu kes itu di mahkamah.

Sepatutnya hakim-hakim yang dinamakan oleh Linggam ini disiasat atau diberhentikan kontrak mereka, bukannya dinaikkan pangkat ke Mahkamah Rayuan. Dan tidak sepatutnya mereka mendengar kes yang begitu serius dan besar seperti ini.

Dan kita pun nampak betapa mudahnya Hakim Ramly ini mendengar kes rayuan dari Zambery MB Haram. Mungkin Hakim Ramly ini terhutang budi dgn UMNO. Apa pun beliau bukan seorang hakim yang boleh diyakini sebagai tidak memihak kerana perlantikan beliau sebagai hakim adalah atas ihsan UMNO.

Apabila Nizar merayu, terpaksa menunggu 5 hari dan terpaksa berhadapan dengan panel 3 hakim pula. Heran, heran heran. (Correct, Correct, Correct)

Kes sebesar ini seharusnya didengari oleh sebuah panel hakim yang tidak kurang dari 3 orang dan mestilah dari kalangan hakim yang tidak terpalit skandal dan mempunyai pengalaman yang lama. Kes ini melibatkan pemerintahan sebuah negeri yang mempunyai 1.5 juta jiwa. Ianya adalah kes yang bersangkutan dengan kepentingan awam yang amat besar.

Malangnya, kes rayuan Zambery ini telah di dengari oleh hakim yang paling "junior" serta hakim yang sama terpalit dalam skandal VK LInggam (Correct, Correct, Correct).

Inilah dia rupa keadilan Malaysia. UMNO telah berjaya melacurkan mahkamah di Malaysia untuk menjadi pelacur kelas satu kepada UMNO

Tulang Besi

http://www.malaysiawaves.com/2009/05/hakim-mahkamah-rayuan-kes-mb-perak.html

Please spread this banned footages of Sivakumar

2009-05-12T22:16:00.000-07:00

Please spread this banned footages of Sivakumar

These images are priceless, since it’s been banned on TV, and I wonder where else. So, please, help pass and spread and distribute these images around.
Why are they so afraid? Because they know they are wrong, indeed. Cowards. And such blatant gangsterism.
The TV station that held back these footages have done a great disservice to the people. But of course, they only sing to the tune of their masters.
What do they think would happen if they had shown these footages? That HINDRAF would revolt?
Malaysians, I am sure, are civilised enough to see this as it is – uncivilised behaviour by UMNO!

http://sloone.wordpress.com/2009/05/13/please-spread-this-banned-footages-of-sivakumar/

Nizar menteri besar sah Perak

2009-05-11T01:42:00.000-07:00

Nizar menteri besar sah Perak
May 11, 09 3:45pm

kemaskini 4.30pm Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Lumpur mengumumkan Datuk Seri Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin sebagai menteri besar sah Perak setelah digugurkan jawatan tersebut, awal Februari lalu.Mahkamah juga memutuskan menteri besar BN Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir dan enam exconya mengosongkan dengan kadar segera pejabat mereka - di Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan di Ipoh.

Dalam penghakimannya, hakim Abdul Aziz Abd Rahim berkata seseorang menteri besar hanya boleh dipecat melalui undi tidak percaya di DUN, seperti kes Stephen Kalong Ningkan.

Hakim menambah, dalam kes pelucutan Mohamad Nizar, tiada persidangan dewan diadakan untuk meluluskan usul sedemikian.

Dalam penghakimannya, Abdul Aziz berkata jika Sultan Perak mahu meletakkan Mohamad Nizar meletakkan jawatan, maka baginda sepatutnya mengambil sidang DUN untuk mengemukakan usul tersebut.

Permohonan peguam Zambry, Cecil Abraham untuk menangguhkan penghakiman tersebut ditolak oleh mahkamah. Mengulas kemenangannya, menteri besar Pakatan Rakyat itu berkata beliau akan menghadap Sultan Perak berhubung penghakiman mahkamah tersebut.

Pada 13 Februari lalu, Mohamad Nizar memfailkan saman mencabar pelantikan Zambry di kompleks mahkamah Jalan Duta, kira-kira seminggu selepas rampasan kuasa BN dan sekali gus pelantikan wakil rakyat BN itu.

Mohamad Nizar, ADUN Pasir Panjang, juga memohon mahkamah mengeluarkan perintah perisytiharan bahawa Zambry yang dilanti 6 Februari lalu tidak berhak memegang jawatan menteri besar.

Dalam permohonan itu, wakil rakyat PAS itu mendakwa beliau masih menteri besar yang sah atas tiga alasan berikut:
(i) Tidak terdapat pembubaran DUN Perak;
(ii) Tidak terdapat usul tidak percaya diambil dan diterima pakai oleh DUN terhadapnya sebagai menteri besar Perak;
dan(iii) Tidak terdapat peletakan jawatan menteri besar Perak.

"Melalui kenyataan media pejabat Sultan pada 5 Februari 2009, Sultan bertitah tidak akan membubarkan DUN dan sekiranya saya serta ahli majlis mesyuarat negeri tidak meletakkan jawatan, jawatan kami akan dianggap kosong.

"Saya menegaskan bahawa walaupun terdapat usaha mengusir saya daripada jawatan menteri besar Perak, saya masih menteri besar dan masih menjalankan fungsi dan tugas dengan baik, cermat dan adil," katanya dalam afidavit, menyokong permohonan itu.

Mohamad Nizar juga memohon mahkamah mengeluarkan perintah supaya responden memberikan tunjuk sebab bagaimana dan di bawah dasar apa Zambry, sebagai responden, berhak memegang jawatannya sekarang.

Beliau mendakwa responden secara tidak sah mengambil dengan tiada hak dan merampas jawatan menteri besar, serta menjalankan tanggungjawab, fungsi dan tugas sebagai menteri besar secara tidak sah dan bercanggah dengan Undang-undang Tubuh Kerajaan Negeri Perak.

Nizar juga memohon perintah injunksi bagi menghalang responden daripada melaksanakan tanggungjawab dan tugas-tugas menteri besar di negeri itu.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/104038

1malaysia

2009-05-10T07:21:00.000-07:00

IPOH LIVE UPDATE

2009-05-06T19:02:00.000-07:00

IPOH
LIVE
UPDATE
FROM
ANIL

19 arrests so far…

2009-05-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

19 arrests so far…

The dragnet widens:

1) Wong Chin Huat in KL last night.
Altantuya birthday cake incident in Putrajaya today
Three activists from Solidariti Anak Muda
2) Sani Md Shah
3) Saufi Mihat
4) Yasir Sheikh Abdul Rahman,
Prayers in Manjoi tomorrow
5) Mohamed Sabu
Candlelight vigil for Chin Huat at Brickfields police station
6) Suara Keadilan Chinese edition editor Law Teck Hao, 29.
7) Suaram coordinator John Liu, 26
Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall civil rights committee vice-head Liau Kok Fah (47)
9) Melissa Wong Yuet Fun, 25
10) Temme Lee, 23
11) Liew Thin Choi, 47
12) Law Teck Hao, 29,
13) Chan Kim Ming, 34
14) Malaysiakini columnist Josh Hong
15) Serdang member of parliament Teo Nie Ching.
16) Lee King Thim, 41.
17-19) Three others
Source: Malaysiakini and others

http://anilnetto.com/democracy/19-arrests-so-far/#more-11078

Pemimpin kanan PAS ditahan polis

2009-05-06T07:56:00.000-07:00

Pemimpin kanan PAS ditahan polis
May 6, 09 3:16pm

kemaskini 9.20pm Naib Presiden PAS Mohamad Sabu ditahan polis selepas jam 3 petang ini di Jalan Pahang Barat, Kuala Lumpur - dipercayai berhubung majlis solat hajat anjuran parti itu dekat Ipoh awal pagi esok.

Pemimpin kanan itu ditahan sekumpulan kira-kira 10 anggota polis berpakaian biasa sewaktu meninggalkan sebuah restoran menuju ke pejabat Harakah, kata ketua Pemuda PAS Salahuddin Ayub.
Mohamad sebelum itu minum bersama Salahuddin dan seorang lagi ahli PAS di sebuah restoran belakang Hospital Tawakkal di Jalan Pahang - kira-kira 300 meter dari pejabat organ parti itu.

Salahuddin memberitahu Malaysiakini, beliau terdengar jeritan Mohamad "aku kena tangkap" sebelum bergegas menuju ke arahnya yang sedang dikelilingi kumpulan anggota polis tersebut.

Beliau dan ahli PAS itu, yang dikenali Ali Maidin, bergelut seketika dengan anggota-anggota polis untuk menyelamatkan Mohamad tetapi diheret ke tepi oleh pihak berkuasa itu.

Salahuddin menambah, tiada waran tangkap terhadap Mohamad dikeluarkan dan tiada pegawai polis memperkenalkan diri sewaktu penahanan tersebut.

Beliau kini sedang mendapatkan bantuan peguam PAS Hanipa Maidin untuk tindakan lanjut.

Mohamad ditahan selepas jurucakap Gabungan Pilihanraya Bersih dan Adil (Bersih), Wong Chin Huat, ditahan reman sehari di Mahkamah Magistret Kuala Lumpur bagi siasatan Akta Hasutan - dipercayai berkaitan kempen berpakaian hitam anjuran NGO itu sempena sidang DUN Perak, esok.

Wong ditangkap di rumahnya di Taman Seri Sentosa, Kuala Lumpur beberapa jam selepas memberikan kenyataan di satu sidang media Bersih, pagi semalam.

Sewaktu dihubungi, Salahuddin berkata beliau tidak menolak kemungkinan Mohamad ditahan berhubung program solat hajat di Manjoi bermula jam 5 pagi esok berkaitan persidangan DUN tersebut.

Isnin lalu, Mohamad mengumumkan program khas PAS itu dalam satu sidang akhbar di ibu pejabat PAS, Kuala Lumpur.

Beliau bertindak sebagai pengerusi Jawatankuasa Mobilisasi Demokrasi PAS yang menganjurkan program tersebut di Masjid Al-Ittihadiyah, Kampung Tengku Husin Baru.

Isteri pemimpin PAS itu, Normah Alwi berkata seorang pegawai polis berpangkat ACP menghubunginya petang ini dan memaklumkan bahawa Mohamad akan dibawa ke Slim River, Perak untuk ditahan reman esok.

"Benda (program solat hajat) belum jadi, kenapa tangkap?" katanya kepada Malaysiakini.

Awal malam ini, polis mengesahkan telah menahan Mohamad jam 3.15 petang tadi dengan alasan "mendorong orang ramai dan penyokongPAS berkumpul di Ipoh" sempena persidangan DUN Perak, esok.

Ketua Polis Perak Datuk Zulkifli Abdullah bagaimanapun enggan mengulas lanjut kerana beliau ditahan di Kuala Lumpur, lapor Bernama.

Sementara itu, Pengarah Jabatan Siasatan Jenayah Bukit Aman Datuk Seri Mohd Bakri Mohd Zinin turut mengesahkan mengenai penahanan Mohamad Sabu.

"Saya boleh sahkan mengenai penahanan beliau tetapi sebarang maklumat rujuk pada ketua polis Perak," katanya kepada agensi berita itu.

Dalam perkembangan berkaitan, sekumpulan penyokong Mohamad berura-ura berkumpul di Dataran Merdeka bagi menyatakan sokongan kepadanya mulai 8 malam.

Bagaimanapun perhimpunan tersebut tidak menjadi kenyataan selepas polis mengawal ketat, termasuk menutup jalan, sekitar kawasan tersebut.

Johan Jaafar pengerusi baru Media Prima

2009-04-28T06:32:00.000-07:00

Johan Jaafar pengerusi baru Media Prima
Apr 28, 09 5:31pm
Pengerusi Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, Datuk Johan Jaafar dilantik sebagai pengerusi eksekutif baru Kumpulan Media Prima berkuatkuasa Khamis ini.

Pengumuman pelantikan beliau dibuat dalam kenyataan Media Prima kepada Bursa Malaysia hari ini.

Johan akan menggantikan Datuk Abdul Mutalib Razak yang bersara hari ini.

Media Prima memiliki New Straits Times Press Berhad (NSTP) yang menerbitkan akhbar New Straits Times, Berita Harian dan Harian Metro.

Ia juga memiliki semua stesen TV swasta di Malaysia - TV3, 8TV, TV9 dan NTV7 - serta dua stesen radio - Hot FM dan Fly FM.

Kumpulan itu juga memilik syarikat iklan Big Tree dan UPD.

Johan juga merupakan bekas ketua pengarang kumpulan Utusan Melayu. Beliau aktif menulis sebagai kolumnis dalam akhbar News Straits Times dan juga Berita Minggu.

Jawatan beliau lain termasuklah, anggota lembaga pengarah Majlis Pembangunan Multimedia, dan lembaga pengarah Bernama.

Johan mendapat perhatian umum ekoran kepetahannya mempengerusikan program mingguan di RTM - Debat Perdana - yang turut memberi peluang kepada pemimpin pembangkang turut muncul di kaca TV.

Beliau juga pernah dipilih untuk mempengerusikan debat antara Ketua Umum PKR, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dengan Menteri Penerangan ketika itu, Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek mengenai isu harga minyak.

Johan juga mempengerusikan debat antara Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang, Lim Guan Eng dengan Presiden Gerakan, Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon berhubung skandal tanah di negeri tersebut sewaktu pentadbiran BN.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/103270

Why was PKR defdeated in Batang Ai?

2009-04-20T08:27:00.000-07:00

An alaysis by The Brokenshield

It is obvious that the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) is still riding on the wave of political tsunami in Kedah by winning the Bukit Selambau by-election with a bigger majority last Tuesday, but it failed to cause a wave in the Batang Ai by-election.

Its candidate the former five-term Lubok Antu MP Jawah Gerang was soundly defeated. He secured 2,053 votes as against the BN candidate, Malcolm Mussen Lamoh of 3,907 votes.

Several factors have been attributed to the failure of Keadilan to take advantage of the seemingly dissatisfied 8,129 voters who have been shabbily treated by the BN State government – the broken promises, the unpaid claims, lack of land for farming and lack of infrastructural facilities.
Dayaks not ready to abandon BN

Theories are many attributing to the failure. But obviously, one of the main factors is that Dayaks are not ready to abandon the State Barisan Nasional, even although many of its policies are against their interests.

Truthfully, many have indeed benefited from the BN polices. For example in this by-election, there are a number of instant “noodle” projects, the promises to look into their problems, to tar-seal their roads and to provide various health and recreational amenities as well as the financial assistance. Being simple-minded and trusting the BN to fulfill its promises, they therefore voted for the BN candidate.

BN polices are perceived as “fair”.

These voters have also been told that the BN and chief minister Abdul Taib Mahmud’s polices are "fair" in that some Dayaks and Dayak leaders have benefited from such policies; Dayak leaders in PBB like Alfred Jabu Numpang whose wealth is perhaps at par with Leonard Linggi Jugah, the richest Dayak in Sarawak will surely cling like leeches on to Taib Mahmud.

And even in Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) itself there are leaders who have timber concessions, large tracts of land for oil palm plantation, school and government contracts. Naturally, these Dayak leaders are at the forefront of the campaigns trying to convince their fellow Dayaks to support Taib’s policies even for small minor rural development projects.

As the Dayak Iban community in Batang Ai is one of the poorest in Malaysia, these projects and promises are therefore very tempting; and hence how could they refuse such offer and abandon Barisan Nasional and Abdul Taib Mahmud?

But the Barisan Nasional must also remember that this was a by-election during which they promised heaven on earth. However, both the voters and PKR are watching whether the promises made will be fulfilled by the time the next state election comes in two year’s time or even sooner than expected.

PKR is considered an “outsider” party.

Another reason for PKR’s failure to gain foothold in Sarawak’s rural areas is that the Dayaks especially the Ibans have been told to be wary of peninsular-based political parties. PKR is an “outsider” party, the party that does not respect the Iban customs.

This issue has been highlighted in the recent by-election and so repeatedly reminded that the Ibans are skeptical with parties like Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and even UMNO spreading its wings into Sarawak.

The State BN knows that the Ibans have always been suspicious of peninsular people and telling them what happens in Sabah makes them more frightened.

Sabah is now under the control of UMNO and everything that needs to be done must receive approval from UMNO headquarters. PKR under Anwar Ibrahim will be no different. The “yes Anwar no Taib” slogan was not effective enough to sway voters in the Batang Ai by-election.

The point was clearly emphasized by president of PRS and director of operations for the Batang Ai by-election James Masing who said the defeat of peninsular-based party, PKR in the by-election “is proof that it has no place in Sarawak”.

“This goes to show that Sarawakians want Sarawakians to be in control in Sarawak, not those outsiders. It showed we do not want PKR to come in.

”Again being multi-racial and “outsider-based” party, PKR has no answer to argue over the current political set-up of the State Barisan Nasional where all communities are represented by their respective communal parties that is considered by the State political leadership as the best assurance towards political stability and economic progress.

Racial-based party is still preferred.

Thus they see in multi-racial parties like PKR and Sarawak National Party (SNAP) as not suitable as of now as the people are still conscious of racial-based parties. SNAP was once a very powerful Dayak-based party, and when it became multi-racial, it slowly lost its power and influence among the Dayaks.

The Dayaks’ frustrations in SNAP gave birth to a racially-based party, Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) in July 1983. This belief still holds true till this day. Look at PBB which is representing the Malay/Melanau communities, SUPP the Chinese community and Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) and Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) representing the rural communities. PRS was almost caught in trouble with some non-Dayak elements in the party. It is now slowly becoming a Dayak-based party.

PKR Sarawak- Bickering over the choice of candidate.

The other contributing factor that needs mention is the continued internal bickering in PKR over the selection of the candidate for the by-election and carried over into the nine-day campaign period. Two groups with one supporting Jawah Gerang and the other Nicholas Bawin almost came to blows on the eve of nomination day.

This heated argument in front of the unfriendly media became the main stories of the local papers and were being exploited by the BN to its advantage.

It was said that when Anwar came to Sarawak one week before nomination, he was supposed to announce that Bawin would be the candidate, because Bawin who had been a member of PKR had already prepared for the by-election since May 22, 2008 the day that the late Dublin Unting, the incumbent state assemblyman went into coma.

But the group supporting Jawah who recently joined PKR confronted Anwar and even threatened to resign from PKR if he did not accede to their demand. Anwar was more or less held to ransom had he not given in to their demand.

Meanwhile, Bawin’s supporters became angry and refused to campaign for Jawah.

Even there were rumours to suggest that Bawin himself and his supporters campaigned for the Barisan candidate.The unabated bickering had made the PKR preparations go haywire. Although Bawin was the director of operations, he was no where to be seen in the PKR operations.

He was believed to have campaigned in Engkari and Lemanak. Thus, a coordinator of the election in the person of YB Dominique Ng was appointed.

Ng played down the open bickering amongst the party leaders and members and said: “The wrong choice of candidate was not an issue in the PKR camp because even if we fielded Bawin, the party would be defeated just as badly.”

PKR’s election workers were not paid.

Grouses and grumblings among the PKR election workers were also heard that they had not been paid for their services and that no food was prepared for them. This is bad for PKR’s psychological warfare against the enemy.

Political observers see that voluntary services by the members for the party’s campaigns may be a good strategy in the peninsula, but in rural Sarawak it cannot be done this way due to many factors one of which is that the campaigners come from poor families.

There is also a need to buy petrol for their cars or outboard engines as they have to travel through difficult terrain, and poor road conditions or fast running water or rapids to reach vast and sparsely populated constituencies.

Few elected representatives and campaigners from Penang and Selangor who campaigned for the PKR candidate had visited the various longhouses and had some unpleasant experiences – the hazardous journey passing through difficult terrain, sleeping in the longhouses with little food and drinks.

But such experiences will help them to understand Sarawak better."No money, no talk" The other factor pointing to the failure of PKR was money. In Sarawak, money is still the most important tool of the election. Without it, you cannot win any election in Sarawak.

You need it to charter boats and vans and pay workers for their food. You need to buy petrol, and even to buy votes. The Barisan Nasional is doing such a thing, sometimes very openly. And nobody can touch them.

In Sarawak, Taib said: “I am the government.”

For any Sate election, PKR must realize that it is fighting not the politicians or political parties of the Barisan Nasional alone, but the entire government machinery – the State civil service, KEMAS (community development department), MIS (Malaysian Information Service), RTM, the council staff, teachers and community leaders.

The might of BN machinery.

Logistically, the Barisan Nasional has superior assorts of political weapons such as the use of helicopters to fly ministers to campaign in any remote area unreachable by any other means. Several helicopters were used in this by-election.

For the Barisan, money was not a problem. In this by-election alone, it spent several millions of ringgit on travelling, lodging and accommodation expenses, not to mention the instant “noodle” projects that they promised the voters and money allegedly used to buy votes of between RM500 and RM1,000 per vote.

Compared with PKR, how could it match the machinery and the organizational skills of the Barisan Nasional? Just impossible, but then the local PKR, unlike the recent by-election, must organise itself with the limited funds available.

PKR must get organised NOW!

Thus, if PKR is seriously thinking of the next state election, it must begin its planning now, start to identify potential candidates and should look for funds. To unseat this state government, at least a sum of RM500,000 for each of 71 State constituencies is required, otherwise PKR should forget about contesting in Sarawak, let alone trying to change the State government.

Rhetoric alone cannot help. Money is the name of the game.Batang Ai – a litmus test for PKRAs mentioned previously, the Batang Ai is a major test for PKR in the Iban-dominated constituency. Winning here would mean the people and PKR are ready to change the government and losing would spell disaster.

Although Ng said that the loss will not dampen the PKR fighting spirit, there are others who feel that the defeat here will have some impact on the next election.Ng said: “We have in fact learnt one or two things from the campaign and this experience will be useful for future elections.” Certainly PKR has a lot to learn.

http://akimomogun.blogspot.com/2009/04/why-was-pkr-defdeated-in-batang-ai.html

“1Malaysia” - Malaysia Under 1…….

2009-04-17T11:01:00.000-07:00

“1Malaysia” - Malaysia Under 1…….
Posted by barbie on April 17, 2009
Rais Yatim, the expert somersaulter is making the headlines again. We can never get enough stale, puke inducing statements from Umno ministers, even from the so called the ‘educated’ bunch. This bugger has a Phd I tell you, and his doctorate paper was titled - “Freedom under Executive Power in Malaysia: A Study of Executive Supremacy” which he dedicated to “all who have suffered from the tyranny of executive excesses.”
It mind boggling (actually, not really.. lah! just being polite here) that a person with such background and credentials would turn into a poppycock offering ridiculous opinions like “losing Pedre Brance aka Pulau Batu Putih to Singapore is a win-win situation”. Well, we can’t expect much from an intellectual whore, right? Oopss.. by calling Rais an intellectual whore, am I breaking any law here? *chuckles*
(Bernama) - The government is not looking to find fault with bloggers and other internet users but would like them to follow the law to ensure they did not misuse it.
Oh sure man! As long as we write like any of your MSM dogs, everything will be peachy. How about telling them to follow the law as well? Cannot lah double standards, and why singled out ‘bloggers and internet users?’
Minister of Information, Communication and Culture Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said the ministry played an important role in establishing only the right kind of information reached the masses.
Rais Yatim….OOPS!!….I mean “Living Dinosaur”…..
“It is not that we are looking for faults all the time. But we would like the right of the people to be guarded by the relevant authorities and the law. “Our aim is to see the 1Malaysia concept succeed.
However, in order to succeed, the facts must not be twisted or misinterpreted by some until it raises racial sentiments.
Twisted or misinterpreted, u say??? How about misquoted? You think people are dumb like you? My foot twisted and misinterpreted. I bet people misintepreted you when you said “Bok House is not a heritage building“, when you actually wanted to say it is??? What?? Come on lah, we are not so smart like you to decipher what are you trying to say, stop confusing stupid people like us.
“If the right information does not reach the people how can there be success?
Hey Mr. Living-Dinosaur-Minister, please elaborate what is the RIGHT information?
What is NOT raising racial sentiments!!???
THIS???
Jangan membuat permintaan yang bukan-bukan - Utusan Malaysia
Pemimpin politik dan badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) Melayu kelmarin menyeru orang Melayu bangkit bersatu bagi menghadapi tuntutan kaum lain yang semakin keterlaluan.
Kita menyeru kepada bukan Melayu supaya jangan lagi membangkitkan dan mencabar ketuanan Melayu yang berkaitan dengan agama Islam sebagai agama rasmi, kedaulatan raja-raja Melayu dan hak istimewa orang Melayu.
Dalam menjaga keharmonian dan kesejahteraan hidup masyarakat majmuk, elok rasanya kita jangan mengungkit dan membuat permintaan yang bukan-bukan.
Terimalah apa yang telah diberikan.
Mengapa masa kini perpaduan kaum dilihat kian longgar.
Jika kita kembali merenung lima tahun lalu, suasana perpaduan kaum kita dicemburui oleh negara-negara lain.
Tetapi kenapa sejak pilihan raya umum 2008, suasana tiba-tiba berubah.
Dengan pelantikan Perdana Menteri baru yang membawa bersamanya gagasan Satu Malaysia, Rakyat Didahulukan, Prestasi Diutamakan, inilah masa untuk semua kaum bersatu membina negara kita mengharungi cabaran yang mendatang.
Alangkah baiknya jika kita ketepikan sengketa dan perbalahan atas nama politik.
Semua kaum harus sedar bahawa tunjang kestabilan negara ini ada di tangan orang Melayu.
Jika orang Melayu sendiri sudah berpecah kepada kumpulan-kumpulan yang memihak kepada parti politik tertentu dan yang tidak peduli apa pun yang berlaku, kestabilan negara boleh goyah.
Kesan perpecahan itu dapat kita lihat dan rasai sekarang.
Di samping itu, kaum bukan Melayu tidak sepatutnya mengambil kesempatan. Akibat perpaduan kaum tidak dijaga dan dipertahankan, ia turut menjejaskan kegiatan ekonomi dan hubungan masyarakat.
Para pemimpin yang mewakili masyarakat berbilang kaum patut menghentikan salah menyalah antara satu sama lain.
Sesungguhnya kedudukan orang Melayu dalam negara ini harus dihormati sebagaimana mereka banyak bertolak ansur dengan bukan Melayu.
Ambillah iktibar kekecohan politik negara Thai. Banyak kerugian ditanggung oleh kerajaan. Malah majoriti rakyatnya tidak menyokong tindakan yang merosakkan imej negara mereka.
Kita hanya ingin memperingatkan bahawa tindak-tanduk perpecahan di kalangan masyarakat majmuk sedang menjadi tontonan negara lain. Mereka sedang mengintai peluang untuk campur tangan jika kita terus lalai dan tidak bersatu.
Oleh itu, semua pemimpin politik dan masyarakat perlu membuat memikirkan masa depan anak cucu kita.
Bersatulah pertahankan perpaduan kaum yang telah kita bina lebih 52 tahun lalu. Jangan diulangi kesilapan lampau hingga kita dijajah lebih 400 tahun lamanya.
Segala kemajuan yang kita kecapi hari ini adalah atas dasar kerjasama dan perkongsian kuasa melalui kerajaan Barisan Nasional. Relakah kita melihat segala impian yang dibina hancur berkecai akibat perpecahan antara kaum.
Dalam konteks ini, tanamkan semula semangat perpaduan dengan didahulukan oleh parti-parti politik.
Translation? I am not going to waste my time translating this shit.
Basically, this hired mouthpiece of UMNO, party of our Prime Minister, who incidentally coined up the “1Malaysia” slogan, is telling us this :-
*Princes of Earth -ledge your souls to UMNO, to ensure peace and prosperity, ehem… of course prosperity is subjected to certain individuals only.
*Others - SHADDUP!! and obey. Wag your tail. Eat shit or whatever. Just RESPECT the princes becuse we’ve tolerated you for far too long.
*Progress and stability of the nation - exclusively for BN, one and only.
And because we’ve yet to hear even a whimper from our glorious PM and his bunch of yo-yos on this piece of crap, it’s a silent endorsement of sorts, on their intepretation of what Najib’s “1Malaysia” is all about, isn’t it?
Now aren’t we just about the luckiest bunch on this side of Mother Earth to have a great “People First” cabinet working for our well-being? Ah, we are so blessed! One thing I must give it up to BN, it is good at sloganeering. Damn freaking good! Not going to post it here, save you from puking. What? When Samyvellu came up with the ‘Rejuvenation’ campaign for MIC with him at the lead, you can tell these slogans are pretty much, rubbish!
So folks, STOP DREAMING AND GO BACK TO WORK!!! THE GAHMEN NEEDS OUR MONEY!!!!!

http://thedandelions.wordpress.com/2009/04/17/1malaysia-malaysia-under-1/

It’s called consensus, stupid!

2009-04-16T01:52:00.000-07:00

It’s called consensus, stupid!

Posted by admin
Thursday, 16 April 2009 12:55
Apalah Melayu Umno ni bodoh sangat.
Tak paham lagi ke? Kayu sungguh!
Nobody is anybody’s puppet here.
Okay?
This is called democracy, something you will never understand in a million years.
And the democratic way is to rule by consensus, not by strong-arm and bully tactics a la Umno.

NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin

Read the piece below that was featured in the New Straits Times today. This Umno mouthpiece is tying to provoke DAP by insinuating that Lim Guan Eng is not really in charge of Penang but in fact Anwar Ibrahim is.
This is exactly what you would expect from the New Straits Times and its sister-newspaper, Utusan Malaysia. Their job it to drive a wedge between the three Pakatan Rakyat members plus split the Malays and non-Malays and bring them to the brink of another May 13.
These people should be hanged upside down from the tallest tree and their bodies allowed to rot in the sun. Just a few weeks ago they campaigned in Bukit Gantang saying that Nizar Jamaluddin is a boneka (puppet) of the DAP. Now, Lim Guan Eng is supposed to be a boneka of PKR. What next? Khalid Ibrahim is a boneka of PAS?
Umno and its lackeys must get one thing very clear. Pakatan Rakyat rules by consensus. For those who learned Bahasa Inggeris in Bahasa Malaysia, consensus means sebulat suara. Sebulat suara means one voice. One voice means all must agree before they do things.
This concept, of course, is very difficult for Umno to understand. Umno’s concept is as follows. We, Umno, the defenders of Ketuanan Melayu, decide and MCA, MIC, Gerakan, etc., nod their heads and agree or else they can go back to China or India or whatever. That is Barisan Nasional’s interpretation of consensus.
Pakatan Rakyat already announced this during the Kuala Terengganu by-election campaign. Pakatan Rakyat will not make any policy decisions (even those involving Hudud or the Islamic State) unless unanimously agreed by all the three partners. Not two out three. All three. That is the deal.Umno can’t seem to understand this. So they keep raising issues about Nizar being DAP’s boneka and Guan Eng being PKR’s boneka and so on. No one is anybody’s boneka! Get it? It is just that no one wants to act like Umno who decides on behalf of all the 14 members of Barisan Nasional what to do while telling all the rest to go to hell. That is not Pakatan Rakyat’s style. And this was announced during the Kuala Terengganu by-election.
Apalah Melayu Umno ni bodoh sangat. Tak paham lagi ke? Kayu sungguh! Nobody is anybody’s puppet here. Okay? This is called democracy, something you will never understand in a million years. And the democratic way is to rule by consensus, not by strong-arm and bully tactics a la Umno.

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Is Guan Eng in charge of state or Anwar?
New Straits Times, 16 April 2009

Barisan Nasional component party leaders have lashed out at Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for not keeping to his promise to announce the candidate for the deputy chief minister (DCM) I post yesterday.
They want to know who is in control of the state: whether Lim is still in power or de facto Parti Keadilan Rakyat leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.State Umno secretary and state opposition leader Datuk Azhar Ibrahim said that Lim, as chief minister, had the prerogative to name his deputy.
"I do not understand why he must kowtow to Anwar? Why can't he decide on his own?
"The million dollar question which now begs for an answer is who is the real chief minister of Penang?" he told the New Straits Times.
Lim was reported to have said the DCM I post would remain vacant for the time being to give Anwar more time to resolve the party's internal issues.
State Gerakan chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan said the issue showed that the Pakatan state government was in a state of disarray.
"It looks like Lim is not in control of the state government any more. He has also reneged on the competency, accountability and transparency-style of administration which he continues to advocate.
"Dr Teng said the appointment was an important one to help Lim and others in the state executive council to address pressing issues at hand, such as the global economic crisis.
State MCA executive adviser Lau Chiek Tuan felt it was sufficient for Penang to have one deputy chief minister.
"If Lim insists in wanting another deputy, he should decide on the matter and not leave it to Anwar.
"The DCM I post was left vacant after Mohamad Fairus Khairuddin tendered his resignation on March 22.
The resignation took effect on April 8.
The two contenders for the post are Batu Maung state assemblyman Abdul Malik Abul Kassim and Sungai Bakap state assemblyman Maktar Shapee.

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/20689/84/

Surat parti duit

2009-04-11T01:10:00.000-07:00

Federal Court: Independents can keep seats

2009-04-11T00:49:00.000-07:00

Federal Court: Independents can keep seats
Tan Yi Liang

PUTRAJAYA (April 9. 2009) : The Federal Court held today that it is the Election Commission (EC) and not the State Assembly Speaker who has the power to declare the Behrang, Changkat Jering and Jelapang seats in Perak vacant.

It declared that the assemblymen for the three seats -- Mohd Osman Mohd Jailu (Changkat Jering), Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi (Behrang) and Hee Yit Foong (Jelapang) -- can keep their seats as independent members of the state assembly.

"The Election Commission is the rightful entity which establishes that there is a casual vacancy of the seats in the state assembly," said Court of Appeal President Tan Sri Alauddin Mohd Sheriff, who read out the unanimous decision of the five-man quorum which included Chief Judge of Malaya Datuk Arifin Zakaria, Federal Court Judges Datuk Nik Hashim Nik Ab Rahman and Datuk Augustine Paul, as well as Court of Appeal Judge Datuk James Foong.

In submissions before the court today, counsel for the three, Firoz Hussein Ahmad Jamaluddin had said that it was "clear" under Article 36(5) of the Perak State Constitution that it was the EC and not the Perak State Speaker V.Sivakumar who had the power to declare the three seats vacant.

"In determining or establishing a casual vacancy, the EC can go beyond merely accepting a letter from the Speaker. The word 'establishes' means that the EC has to prove the resignation beyond doubt, and that is where Article 36(5) of the Perak State Constitution comes in. The Speaker has no role in establishing a casual vacancy," said Firoz.

He then added that Article 35 of the Perak State Constitution, which gives the Speaker powers to declare seats vacant must be read in concert with Article 36(5)

"Article 35 states that the Speaker's role is to receive a letter (of resignation) written and handed to him, but it must be read with Article 36(5) where a casual vacancy must be filled once the EC establishes it. The Speaker merely receives the letter, that is all," said Firoz, who was accompanied by Attorney General Tan Sri Gani Patail, who called for a distinction between casual vacancies of seats and disqualification of assemblymen.

"I am differentiating between casual vacancies and disqualifications. Each state has their own requirements, and the requirements are made very, very clear," said Patail, who cited clauses from various state constitutions to point out the difference.

However, Sivakumar's counsel Tommy Thomas submitted that the court was not the forum to discuss the issue as Sivakumar's decision was part of his duties as Speaker of the Perak State Assembly and as such was not subject to court scrutiny.

"When the Speaker did what he did (to declare the seats vacant), it was part of the business of the house. They are matters for the State Assembly to decide and not the courts," said Thomas who added that Sivakumar's decision was not frivolous.

Thomas said that the role of the EC was merely "administrative" in nature.

"All the Election Comission does is an administration role, and that is to fix the date. Who tells the EC of a vacancy? The only source is the Speaker. The only person who can write to the EC is the Speaker," said Thomas, who was supported by co-counsel Sulaiman Abdullah.

"The house and the EC have separate functions, and the consequence (of the separate functions) is this. The house decides on vacancies and the composition, and the EC deals with the process of elections," he said.

"The EC is forced to make a decision when the house has informed them of a vacancy. They do not decide whether the letter (of resignation) is valid. That is the role of the Speaker. The EC has no business establishing the fact of a casual vacancy. The member (of the State Assembly) who is deemed to have resigned has only resigned from the moment the Speaker says so," added Sulaiman.

He pointed out that if the EC were meant to decide, "then surely there would be procedures to deal with that."

"The first step the EC must take is to be notified of the vacancy before fixing nomination and polling dates," said Sulaiman.

Meanwhile, Ranjit Singh, a member of Sivakumar's legal team said that today's decision was not the end of the road for Sivakumar.

"We have filed two suits seeking a writ of quo warranto from the three independents, saying that they are impostors to their posts, and we also seek relief against the EC seeking to quash the decisions not to hold the by-elections and we want an order compelling the EC to hold the by-elections. That matter is fixed in May for our judicial review application," said Ranjit Singh.
"One of the suits was brought by Sivakumar, while another was brought by a group of six people, three Pakatan assemblymen and three voters," he added, saying that both suits were virtually the same.

"They both take the position that the EC was wrong and that the three independents had in fact resigned, and by-elections should be held," said Ranjit who pointed out that the court allowed for challenges to be brought against the EC

"The court held that the EC and not the Speaker holds the power. But what the court did not say was that the EC's decision was correct. We can challenge the EC in the High Court. If we lose that, then all is gone. But if we win that, then they have to hold by-elections," said Ranjit.
"It does not mean that the decision of the EC cannot be challenged. Just because it is a decision of the EC, does it make that right. All government decisions can be challenged in court," he added.

Of 4% And 10%

2009-04-10T08:30:00.000-07:00

Of 4% And 10%

Posted by admin
Friday, 10 April 2009 20:15

Bukit Gantang is basically a mixed constituency in which Chinese, Malay and Indian voters make up 27%, 63.5% and 9% of the electorate respectively, which is pretty close to the national racial structure. In view of this, the voting trends reflected in the Bukit Gantang by-election can definitely be used as a benchmark.

By LIM MUN FAH/Translated by DOMINIC LOH/Sin Chew Daily

If the figures quoted from their analysis have been accurate, the 4% fall and 10% surge will invariably be taken very seriously by all the ruling and opposition parties in this country.

The figures are taken seriously for the simple reason that the Bukit Gantang by-election is no ordinary by-election.

Putting aside the effects of BN's takeover of Perak administration and the swearing-in of the new prime minister, the racial make-up in Bukit Gantang alone has protruded its highly representative significance.

Bukit Gantang is basically a mixed constituency in which Chinese, Malay and Indian voters make up 27%, 63.5% and 9% of the electorate respectively, which is pretty close to the national racial structure.

In view of this, the voting trends reflected in the Bukit Gantang by-election can definitely be used as a benchmark.

Pakatan Rakyat has retained Bukit Gantang, and in the midst of celebration, the opposition pact must not overlook the fact that it has lost 4% of Malay and Indian votes.

This 4% may look immaterial, but given the fact that Malay and Indian voters make up over 70% of the electorate, this 4% could therefore have very critical effects.

If this 4% could be extended across the entire nation, and going up, then the pendulum may swing to the other side in the next general elections, allowing BN, in particular UMNO, to become the eventual victor.

But on the other hand, the sharp increase of 10% Chinese votes could very likely mean a dead end for BN, in particular Chinese-based component parties within the ruling coalition.

Of course, the prerequisite will be for Pakatan to hold fast to its Malay and Indian support, and not to allow the ballots from these two major communities to continue flowing back to BN.

10% is a shocking number. If what happened in Bukit Gantang could be extend beyond the constituency, it is not hard to imagine that MCA and Gerakan Rakyat will suffer even more crushing defeats in the coming general elections than what they experienced in March 2008.

If--I say if--MCA, Gerakan and MIC all tumble in the coming elections, it will be hard for us to imagine how BN--the political alliance that has dominated the country's politics for half a century--will be headed to.

4%, may mean Pakatan could only stare at the federal administration and yet unable to touch it.
10%, could mean the total collapse of the BN government.As a matter of fact, the future political developments in this country are always that delicate and unfathomable!

Bernama's PM - “DATUK SERI NAIF TON RASA.”

2009-04-09T22:19:00.000-07:00

GOVERNMENT MEDIA CONDEMNS NAJIB!
Filed under: ARTICLE (LATEST) 10/04/2009, jokes and quotes — sjsandteam @ 03:18 Tags: GOVERNMENT MEDIA CONDEMNS NAJIB!
PLEASE CLICK BELOW TO SEE FOR YOURSELF… THE BIGGEST NEWS AGENCY IN MALAYSIA NAMED BERNAMA MAKES FUN OF NAJIB. NAJIB’S NAME WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO BE “DATUK SERI NAJIB TUN RAZAK” IS PURPOSELY SPELT AS “DATUK SERI NAIF TON RASA.” PLEASE VIEW IT QUICKLY AS BERNAMA IS FAMOUS FOR BRINGING DOWN THEIR ARTICLES, OR CORRECTING IT IMMEDIATELY. IN ANY CASE WE HAVE SAVED IT FOR OUR FUTURE USE. YOU MAY THINK THIS IS A SPELLING ERROR, BUT HOW CAN IT BE MADE AT THREE DIFFERENT PARTS TO ONE NAME. BERNAMA HAS ACCEPTED A CHALLENGE BY NAJIB TO CRITICIZE HIM OPENLY! THIS IS BERNAMA’S FIRST CRITICISM OF NAJIB BY MAKING FUN OF HIM. PLEASE VIEW THE SECOND LAST LINE OF THE ARTICLE.

PLEASE NOTE THAT BERNAMA HAD ALREADY AMMENDED THE TEXT, JUST A SHORT WHILE AGO (AROUND 12.45 PM). THOSE OF YOU WHO WANT TO SEE A SCREENSHOT CAPTURED BY SUSAN LOONE, PLEASE VISIT THE WEBSITE USING THE URL HIGHLIGHTED IN BOLD UNDER THE COMMENT SECTION BELOW. (COMMENT NUMBER 5). ALTERNATIVELY YOU MAY GO TO PEMUDASARAWAK’S COMMENT NUMBER 13. http://pemudasarawak.wordpress.com/2009/04/10/najib-jadi-naif-menurut-laporan-bernama/

http://sjsandteam.wordpress.com/2009/04/10/government-media-condemns-najib/

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From Chief Minister To Minister
-->
KUALA LUMPUR, April 9 (Bernama)

-- Once the chief minister of Penang, Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon is now given the task of monitoring the performance of the Federal cabinet and government delivery system.

Dr Koh was appointed as Minister in the Prime Minister Department in-charge of Unity and Performance Management, making him an important minister to monitor the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of the government.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak when announcing his cabinet line-up Thursday, said he had introduced a comprehensive KPI system to gauge the performance and achievements of his cabinet members.

The prime minister said he would also be personally involved in assessing the performance of all the ministers every six months with the assistance of the minister in the Prime Minister's Department who is in charge of the unit to monitor the KPIs.

Its a tall order for Dr Koh, but also a privilege to be given such trust by the new Prime Minister to carry out such a task to ensure a public service delivery system that is value for money.

Speaking to reporters after being sworn in as a senator, Dr Koh who has more than a decade's experience of running one of the most developed states, said he would work hard to ensure the task would be carried out effectively.

"I feel humbled and honored to be given this trust by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Naif Ton Rasa to be in his team in promoting the One Malaysia concept to all.

"I appeal to my Cabinet colleagues, those in the administration and government agencies to help and guide me in achieving our common goals," he said.-- BERNAMA

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/news_lite.php?id=403051

Reform, or face extinction

2009-04-09T05:09:00.000-07:00

Reform, or face extinction

April 8, 2009

That is the only conclusion UMNO and BN can honestly take from the just concluded Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau by-elections.

And that people power has found a firm footing, has rooted well, and will not be easily blown away.

Read it any other way and UMNO and BN will pay dearly at the next GE, the Sarawak state elections and every other by-election that comes our way.

And by reform, I do not mean of the cosmetic kind.

Like giving us the MACC or the JAC!

Or freeing 13 ISA detainees just before polling day!

That’s an insult to the intelligence and common sense of the average Malaysian which, as may surprise many in UMNO and BN, ought not to be underestimated.
Can BN reform?

Yes, but not under its present leadership.

Najib and the current crop of UMNO leaders are too integral to the very problem that plagues BN.

As are the top leaders of all the component parties.

Samy, Tsu Khoon, the Ongs, Taib Mahmud.

They’re all the same.

Self-serving politicians, interested in holding on to power only to serve their own ends.

If ever BN had the interest of the people as their first and only port of call, that ceased a long time ago after Dr M took the helm.

The rot set in swiftly thereafter.

Dr M’s close brush with defeat in the 1986 UMNO elections brought out the worst in him, and it was that side of him that stayed with us for the rest of his tenure.

His ‘retain power at all costs’ philosophy cost us dearly.

Henceforth, to avoid another challenge to his authority, he promoted to high office those who were seen to be subservient and docile.

And more often than not, incompetent.

His own belated admission about his mistake in appointing Pak Lah as his successor bears testimony to this.

He crippled the judiciary, then appointed to high judicial office men and women who were pliant.
And in his time, he encouraged a culture that would create a pool of super-rich Malays, whose wealth was not generated from honest, hard work, but by the shuffling of papers and paper transactions.

The ‘get-rich-quick Malay’, the ‘I want money for nothing’ generation of Malays owes its birth and growth to Dr M.

Dr M allowed corruption to flourish.

Both in UMNO and the government.

This was his most powerful control tool.

This is Mahathirism.

And the current crop of UMNO and BN leaders have had Mahathirism for too long flowing through their veins to begin any process of internal reform necessary to render BN relevant to the needs and aspirations of the people.

Can BN reform?

Yes, but only if UMNO first reforms.

Can UMNO reform?

If UMNO and BN are to reform, the Najibs, the Samys, the Ongs and the Ksu Khoons must be driven from the seat of party power.

That reform can only happen if, from the rank and file of these parties emerge a new generation, untainted by the corruption of the echelon and mid-level leadership and who are in politics not to serve their own ends but the best interest of the rakyat, and have the gumption to challenge the status quo.

Sadly, there does not appear to be such quality within the rank and file of UMNO.

http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/

Fools on the Hills

2009-04-08T22:00:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Fools on the Hills

At this stage of my life, I do not suffer fools gladly.

When the by-election results were announced late last night with Pakatan Rakyat (PR) winning 2 out of 3 seats, the first thing that struck me quite honestly was those 14 independent candidates on the two bukits, who all lost their deposits ... what were they thinking?

Or do I smell rats here.

I was also probably the only non pro-Barisan Nasional (BN) blogger at a lunch meeting yesterday, where the quiet consensus was that BN would win 3-0.

These poor misguided youngsters will have to eat humble pie now.

And Muhyiddin has the gall to say that 'the feel-good factor' from Najib coming to power on Friday is still 'too new and has not sunk in.

'What 'feel good factor'?

The only people who must have felt good about it are the UMNO/BN ship of fools, a delusional former apa nama prime minister, and of course those impoverished dayaks in Batang Ai, who obviously now truly deserve the government they have got.

The writing is already on the wall and the word is: CHANGE.

And change we must, lest we become a Nation of Fools too.

http://cyusof.blogspot.com/

The Tales of the 2 mountains

2009-04-08T20:26:00.000-07:00

The Tales of the 2 mountains

This is a different article from my last post, which was hastily written, even though the title may sound similar.

The results of the April 7th by elections are not unexpected. While the status quo was expected to remain, what was surprising was the increased margins of the winning sides, especially in the battles of the 2 ‘Bukit’s .

BN leaders have been telling the people and their grassroots that Malay votes have begun to return to UMNO, what with the charges of “derhaka” against the ousted MB of Perak Mohd Nizar being floated around and working up the feelings of the people on the ground.

Even though I do not have the breakdown of the voting streams yet and hence would not be able to tell how much of Malay votes have returned, common sense dictates that with the increased margin won by PAS and PKR respectively in Bukit Gantang and BUlit Selambau, it is unlikely that significant Malay votes have returned to BN.

This is despite the awesome BN by election machinery, the catchy rhetoric of the new Prime Minister, and the return to the fold of UMNO of a former Prime Minister who also campaigned on behalf of BN candidates in the 2 Bukits.

Why is it so?

Whereas during the time of the 12th General Election 13 months ago, people in West Malaysia simply wanted to teach BN a lesson for being arrogant and corrupt, this time around, they sent a message that they want to see changes which has not been forthcoming. The people are getting smarter, and unless they see real changes, they would not be so easily bought by the rhetoric which to them is more ‘hype’ than anything else.

It is also significant that despite the huge amount of money promised to the Chinese schools and temples, non Malays still voted the other way. This is because of the perception of the people that anything cannot be worse than the present. Before, when non Malays treated PAS as poison, now they have no qualms at all voting for this party, an unthinkable act just 2 years ago.. This shift in mindsets will be a big factor in the next general election, especially with a million young voters expected to join the voting fraternity.

UMNO, as the dominant component of BN, has to initiate real reform and must be seen as being sincere in reforming. The million dollar question is always whether the top leader have the will and can be strong enough to initiate a total overhaul of the whole party. Given the entrenched politics of patronage, it is indeed a tall order for any leader to change the party..

As to the components, the writing is very clear on the wall. In this by-election of Bukit Gantang, Gerakan had worked very hard , especially its wanita chief who had practically camped in the constituency even long before the nomination period. Its members from Perak had campaigned hard. It is noteworthy that one of the state constituencies under Bukit Gantang, Kuala Sepetang, was a former stronghold of Gerakan, and used to be won by Gerakan candidates before the 308 tsunami. This time around, despite the efforts, the party had failed to convince its former supporters to come back to support BN..

The same is the case for MIC in Bukit Selambau.

The result of Bukit Gantang is a clarion call to Gerakan that the voters in Gerakan’s former strongholds, as represented by Kuala Sepetang, will not vote for Gerakan in the next GE if Gerakan remains as part of the BN coalition, unless UMNO adopts real reform. This means that Gerakan fate is no longer its own to decide, and that the longer it takes the big brother to change, the worse would be for Gerakan to survive as a viable political entity.

The party needs to re-evaluate its position within BN and re-strategise, failing which it may face annihilation in the next General Election and go the way of the PPP.

The silver lining for BN is perhaps the win in Batang Ai, which shows that the strong wind that is blowing in Peninsular Malaysia has not reached East Malaysia. Nevertheless, this would not guarantee that come next election, the thinking of the people there may remain the same, especially if there is no reform from BN in general and UMNO in particular.

Perhaps as the first step of reform, BN should heed the voices of the people and seriously consider dissolving the Perak State Assembly so that a new State wide election can be called and let the people decide once and for all who should helm the government of Perak State.

http://hsudarren.wordpress.com/2009/04/08/the-tales-of-the-2-mountains/

The People Have Spoken

2009-04-07T20:58:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

The People Have Spoken

The results from Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau are but definite proof that more than a year after March 8, 2008, the people are still resolved to show their discontentment and complete unhappiness with the ways of the Barisan Nasional in general and UMNO in particular.

It is also conversely a display of strengthening support for Pakatan Rakyat, regardless of the apparent ideological and political differences in the allegiance of the 3 political parties of which it consists.
That the two by-elections are won by the Pakatan Rakyat with increased majority is of course a cause for concern for the BN and the newly minted Prime Minister, Najib Razak. Add in the fact that the whole might of the BN's election machineries - including government machineries - was at full steam to ensure a BN victory, the win by Pakatan Rakyat is conclusively a mega achievement in the true spirit of the proverbial David and Goliath fight.

The BN has done everything within its power to win these two by-elections. The whole cabinet could be seen campaigning tirelessly in the two areas. Hotshots from the Federal Capital converged the two areas and lighted the campaign trail. Amidst the cries of reforms from within UMNO and the euphoria of a new found "unity" - when Abdullah Ahmad Badawi held the hand of Mahathir Mohammad and Najib Razak at the closing ceremony of the recently concluded UMNO General Assembly - as well as the installation of Najib Razak as the nation's 6th Prime Minister, the campaign started and was conducted with such intensity that any independent observer would be hard pressed to think of a PR victory, let alone with an increased majority.

No stone was left unturned by the BN to woo the voters. Schools were visited by the Minister of Education. Rhetoric was aplenty - where Muhyiddin Yassin's call for the "slaughter" of Nizar for the latter's apparent treasonous behaviour towards the Sultan has to take the cake and its icing too - as well as name calling and the usual brow beating. (It was quite a disappointment though when the "Class F contract vending machine" which was used during the Kuala Trengganu by-election was nowhere to be seen this time). Concerts by scantily clad Chinese lady singers were even thrown by the BN at a fishing village attended by, non other than the defender of the Muslim faith, Zahid Hamidi who later famously proclaimed that the Chinese culture must be respected.

As the new Prime Minister, Najib Razak made a refreshing inaugural speech, releasing 13 ISA detainees and promising a comprehensive review of the ISA; singing the oft repeated unity, one Malaysia and fairness slogans as well as inviting all Malaysians to embark on a great journey with him. This was expected to make an impact on the voters.

The most startling show was of course reserved for the grand old man of UMNO, Mahathir Mohammad. After Najib Razak was installed as the PM, Mahathir MOhammad rejoined UMNO.

He then happily hit the campaign trail, campaigning for the party which he proclaimed as a "corrupt party" just about a week before. It was thought that Mahathir Mohammad would take the by-elections by storm and galvanise the voters to support the BN.

The Pakatan Rakyat, on the other hand, had to face obstacle after obstacle in their campaign.

Their rallies were invaded by the Federal Reserve Unit. Acid laced water was sprayed at the attendees. In Bukit Selambau, the police moved in without warning and even fired tear gas at the crowd attending a PR rally. When permits were given, unreasonable conditions were imposed. A certain dead Mongolian woman's name was even prohibited by the police from being mentioned by the PR in any of its rally. A person caught selling that particular woman's mask was arrested. And leading to the campaign, the Suara Keadilan and Harakah - the PKR's and PAS's respective publication - were suspended from publication for 3 months by the Home Ministry.

The state owned mass media were of course playing their old games of blowing the BN horn while puking at everything which the PR did. Interviews with the BN supporters who would laud the "development brought about" by the BN government were shown every day and night. The newspapers were full of praise for the BN and its leaders. Not a single teeny weeny good report was made about the PR. That is what they call "balanced and factual" reporting.

Despite it all, PR still won the two by-elections. What went wrong for the BN? If it needs more than 3 minutes for the BN or UMNO to find out what went wrong for them, then may I suggest that the party be dissolved forthwith.

First of all it shows that the people don't believe what the state owned or mainstream mass media are saying anymore. Everything they say is being disbelieved or at the very least taken with a huge cup of sodium chloride. The younger voters now are a sophisticated and educated lot. They scourge the internet for alternative news. It is, rightly or wrongly, set in their mind that whatever is being said by the mass media is a lie and conversely everything which is said on the internet is the truth. Can they be blame for that? If the BN thinks that elections could be won by massive propaganda, positive or negative, through the mass media, it is completely ignorant of reality. The people now laugh at all the so called news and "balanced reporting" by the mass media. In fact, it would not be wrong to say that mass propaganda undertaken by the BN spectacularly backfired!

Secondly, the people just do not believe all the cries and slogans for "reform" and "change". A case in point is the apparent differences between what the UMNO leadership is saying and what its grass root leaders were saying the UMNO Assembly. While Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Najib Razak pledged and in fact pleaded for reforms and changes, the speeches from the delegates were talking about filling up the GLCs and Universities with UMNO people! They were talking about withdrawing scholarships from those students who dare oppose UMNO. They were talking about how UMNO should wantonly use its powers when the powers are still with it.

Viewed from that perspective, Najib Razak's release of the 13 ISA detainees and the promise of a comprehensive review of the ISA also backfired. While the true intention was doubted by the people, such move was also seen and perceived as a victory of sorts by the people. In their mind, that was the effect of the people's pressure on the government. In their mind, if the people would unite to pile on the pressure, perhaps more detainees would be released and the ISA abolished. And so, in their mind, they were saying, let pile on more pressure by voting for PR.

Thirdly, the BN should be mindful that we are all now living in the 21st century, a new millennium. Character assassination don't work anymore. Calling a person a traitor without basis don't work. Spreading nude pictures of a PR MP don't work. Opening up blogs to call really bad names against the opposition candidate don't work. The people want engagement. The people are now smart enough to desire an intellectual engagement. Calling name is so passe!

Fourthly, the people now want answers and they want them fast. And clear. Parochialism is a thing of the past. Even the Malays are not easily bought by Ketuanan Melayu anymore. The people look at real issues which are affecting or may affect them. The economy. The sharing of the economic pie. Education. Justice. Fairness. An across the board enforcement of the law as opposed to selective one. These are close to the people's heart nowadays.

If there is one thing which the people despise, and despise strongly at that, is hypocrisy. And this is the most important element. The advent of technology now makes it easy for the people to store data and facts and access the same within seconds. And it is just not kosher for politicians and leaders to say one thing and do completely the opposite and be found to have done completely the opposite.

In the two by-elections, the people came out, they saw and they conquered.

http://art-harun.blogspot.com/2009/04/people-have-spoken.html

Prayers for Altantuya: JUSTICE FOR ALTANTUYA

2009-04-03T01:48:00.000-07:00

Prayers for Altantuya: JUSTICE FOR ALTANTUYA
'You were young, just in your 20s. You were supposed to have lived your life but you died by coming to Malaysia. Who shot you? Who placed the explosives on you? Who masterminded it all? Your young son has lost his mother's love...'

MCPXAnd so read the prayer for the late Altantunya Shaariibuu, the Mongolian national who became a household name in Malaysia under the most tragic of circumstances.

This afternoon, several PKR politicians held a short prayer session in conjunction with the Chinese 'Cheng Beng' ritual of commemorating the souls of the departed.

Perak PKR state representatives Tai Sing Ng (Kuala Sepetang) and Chang Lih Kang (Teja) performed the short prayer session which attracted a small crowd of curious onlookers by the roadside in Simpang, Taiping.

A photo of the slain woman was plastered on a wooden board and planted by the roadside and joss sticks were lit while the prayer was recited using a loudhailer.

The politicians prayed that her soul finds everlasting peace. Following this, offerings in the form of burning 'hell notes', paper mache shoes and clothes were made.

"There appears to be a lack of transparency in the probe on her murder. We are using this opportunity to remind everyone that a Mongolian woman was murdered in Malaysia and justice has yet to be served," Chang told reporters later.

It was an eerie experience for journalists as rain started to pour the minute the ceremony began, only to stop immediately once the payers were over. Supernatural forces aside, Taiping has the highest rainfall in the country.

Many would see this as a noble gesture on the part of the opposition politicians, who vehemently denied that it was a publicity stunt.

However, it would be difficult to deny that there was no political motives whatsoever given the fact that a by-election would take place in the neighbourhood next Tuesday.

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/20114/84/

Bersama dengan Imam Zahid

2009-04-02T05:54:00.000-07:00

Batang Ai, Bukit Gantang & Bukit Selambau by-elections : Barisan Rakyat sms campaign

2009-03-30T21:20:00.000-07:00

Batang Ai, Bukit Gantang & Bukit Selambau by-elections : Barisan Rakyat sms campaign
March 31, 2009

Don’t imagine even for one moment that SPR’s decision to fix all three by-elections simultaneously was an independent decision, without any consideration of the best interests of their political masters.

It’s to stretch the resources of the Pakatan Rakyat to breaking point.

But there’s one resource that Pakatan has that BN cannot break.
You and I.

We are beyond the reach of BN.

And Pakatan need us now, more than ever.

I’ll be in Bukit Gantang / Bukit Selambau for the better part of the campaign period as well as on polling day.

You can help, too, from wherever you are.

We start our Barisan Rakyat sms campaign today.

First we want to alert the people of Batang Ai, Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau that we, the rakyat have rejected the race-based politics of BN. We want them to know that we, a nation of a single people, anak Bangsa Malaysia, have rejected BN and its race-based divide and rule politics and have embraced the ‘ketuanan rakyat’ slogan of Pakatan Rakyat.

Here is the first sms.

Rakyat menolak politik kaum UMNO / BN. Politik kaum UMNO / BN hancurkan perpaduan rakyat. Jangan diperdayakan dengan politik kaum UMNO / BN. Politik Pakatan Rakyat menyatukan rakyat. Rakyat sehati sejiwa menyelamatkan negara yang dicintai. Undilah PAS / PKR pada 7/4/2009. Hidup rakyat. Sebar kpd kwn2 di Btg Ai / Bkt Gantang / Bkt Selambau
Next, we are going to wage war with the lying mainstream media who will be telling all sorts of lies in the next week. Whilst those of us who will be out on the campaign trail will try to do what we can to neutralise this spin-doctoring by the MSM, again our outreach will not be able to match a full-blown sms campaign to alert the people to the lies that will be spread through the MSM.

Here is the ‘boycott the MSM’ sms.

Media massa arus p’dana akan m’perdayakan rkyt & m’cari helah utk gagalkan PAS di Bkt Gantang dan PKR di Btg Ai / Bkt Selambau dgn berita palsu - utk menanam rasa syak wasangka terhadap PAS & PKR. Jom boikot! Jgn beli s/kabar. Jgn p’caya berita radio/TV. Sebarkan kpd kwn2 di Bkt Gantang / Btg Ai / Bkt Selambau .

Could anyone please translate these 2 sms’s into Chinese / Tamil and send it in to me as a comment so that I can then put it up here, please?

Send these sms’s out to everyone you know in Sarawak / Perak / Kedah. Even if you do not know anyone in these three states or the constituencies in question, send them out to those whom you know with a request that they forward it to those whom they know. That way, there’s every likelihood that it will ultimately get to the good folk of in these three constituencies in due course. And keep sending the sms’s out again and again in the run-up to polling day on 7th April.

http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/2009/03/31/batang-ai-bukit-gantang-bukit-selambau-by-elections-barisan-rakyat-sms-campaign/

Bukit Gantang

2009-03-30T08:15:00.000-07:00

30 TAHUN MENINGGAL DUNIA TAPI MASIH DALAM DAFTAR PEMILIH

2009-03-29T05:22:00.000-07:00

Mafrel held a press conference this afternoon after observing the nominations for the by-elections in Bkt gantang in the morning:

KENYATAAN AKHBAR29 Mac 2009
30 TAHUN MENINGGAL DUNIA TAPI MASIH DALAM DAFTAR PEMILIH

(1) Malaysians for Free and Fair Elections (MAFREL) ingin mengumumkan perkembangan terkini tentang gerakerja pemerhatian pilihanraya dalam Pilihanraya Kecil di P.059 Bukit Gantang, Perak; N.25 Bukit Selambau, Kedah dan N.29 Batang Ai, Sarawak yang diadakan serentak pada 29 March 2009 bagi penamaan calon, hari ini dan 7 April 2009 bagi hari mengundi.

(2) Sebagaimana yang telah dimaklumkan dalam kenyataan MAFREL pada 13 Mac 2009, MAFREL akan melaksanakan pemerhatian terhadap keseluruhan proses pilihanraya bermula daripada hari penamaan calon, kempen, hari mengundi dan pasca pilihanraya dengan tumpuan kepada perkara-perkara berikut:

1. Senarai daftar pemilih

2. Usaha-usaha memberi atau menawarkan rasuah kepada pengundi-pengundi

3. Penyalahgunaan kemudahan dan jentera kerajaan serta sumber awam

4. Perbuatan atau tindakan ganas dan merbahaya semasa proses pilihanraya

5. Tahap serta jentera keselamatan, khususnya PDRM

6. Liputan media

(3) Buat masa ini, MAFREL telah melaksanakan kajian awal senarai daftar pemilih terhadap pemilih berdasarkan kategori umur 90 tahun ke atas di Kawasan Pilihanraya DUN P059 Bukit Gantang. MAFREL ingin memaklumkan penemuan awal berhubung perkara tersebut:

• Kes seorang pemilih yang tersenarai dalam Senarai Daftar Pemilih yang digazet sehingga September 2008 yang akan digunakan untuk Pilihanraya Kecil iaituo Encik Kassim b. Md Amin yang dilahirkan pada 8 Julai 1916.o Beralamat di Kampung Ulu Cheh, Kampung Cheh, DUN Changkat Jeringo Wakil MAFREL telah menemubual anak perempuan beliau, Puan Rohani bt Kassim (58 tahun)o Puan Rohani telah memaklumkan bahawa bapa beliau tersebut telah meninggal pada tahun 1973 (36 tahun lalu)o Beliau juga telah membawa wakil MAFREL ke tanah perkuburan di mana bapa beliau dikebumikano Kematian Encik Kassim juga telah disahkan oleh Ketua Kampung Ulu Cheh, Encik Ismail b. Ahmad

• Sebuah lagi kes melibatkan pemilih berikut:o Encik Che Man b. Said. Tarikh lahir 9 Nov 1912 di lokaliti Kg Jelutong, Pengkalan Aor, DUN Changkat Jering.o Wakil MAFREL telah menemubual cucunya yang bernama Nasron b. Che Harun di Kg Pecah Batu, Jelutongo Beliau mengesahkan Datuknya, Che Man telah meninggal dunia lebih kurang 8 tahun yang lalu.

(4) Kes ini tidak sepatutnya berlaku sekiranya semakan dengan lebihi teliti dan terperinci boleh dilakukan terhadap senarai daftar pemilih bagi tujuan pilihanraya yang bersih daripada kemungkinan unsur penipuan dalam bentuk penyamaran.

(5) Kerjasama yang erat dan berkesan perlulah diwujudkan di antara jabatan-jabatan berkenaan khususnya SPR, JPN dan PDRM untuk mengatasi kelemahan yang terdapat dalam daftar pemilih.

(6) Dalam pada itu, MAFREL juga ada menemui pemilih yang berumur 101 tahun yang masih hidup yang bernama Encik Mat Hussin b. Bandar di Kg Banggol Rendang, Kg Cheh, DUN Changkat Jering.

(7) MAFREL juga telah berusaha menjejaki beberapa pemilih yang namanya berada dalam senarai daftar pemilih tetapi tidak dijumpai. Malah sebahagian penduduk kampung juga tidak mengenali pemilih-pemilih tersebut.

(8) Perlu diingat ini merupakan pemerhatian awal kajian daftar pemilih yang akan didokumenkan untuk dilaporkan kepada pihak SPR tertakluk kepada apa-apa maklumat yang mungkin diperolehi kemudian.

(9) MAFREL ingin memaklumkan bahawa pasukan misi pemerhatiannya telah bersedia untuk melaksanakan pemerhatian semasa kempen pilihanraya yang dijangka sengit. Berikut adalah maklumat terkini.

• Bilangan pemerhati MAFREL di Bkt Gantang ialah seramai lebih daripada 50 orang. Penyelaras Misi Pemerhatian MAFREL ialah Sdr Megat Shariffudin b. Ibrahim, no tel (012-5222664)•
Bilangan pemerhati di Bkt Selambau ialah seramai 35 orang.
Penyelaras Misi Pemerhatian MAFREL ialah Sdr Ir Jamaluddin Abdullah, no tel (019-4744220)•
Bilangan pemerhati di Batang Ai ialah seramai 33 orang.
Penyelaras Misi Pemerhatian MAFREL ialah Sdr Peter John Jaban, no tel (019-8056107)

(10) MAFREL menggagaskan pilihanraya yang berwibawa, aman, bebas dan adil. Ia berdasarkan prinsip-prinsip hak asasi dan demokrasi sebagaimana termaktub dalam Perlembagaan Persekutuan, perjanjian dan protokol antarabangsa.

(11) MAFREL ingin menggesa parti-parti lawan dan penyokong memainkan peranan melindungi hak-hak pemilih dengan membenarkan mereka merumus dan memutuskan undi mereka secara bebas tanpa melanggar mana-mana undang-undang dan peraturan pilihanraya. Kebebasan kemahuan dan pilihan pemilih mestilah dihormati.

(12) MAFREL menggesa SPR dan Polis untuk mengamalkan keadilan dan keseimbangan dalam melaksanakan tanggungjawab sepanjang proses pilihanraya dengan mengambilkira kepentingan pemilih

Sekian, terima kasih.
Syed Ibrahim Syed NohPengerusi

http://mafrel.wordpress.com/2009/03/29/found-dead-voter-in-bkt-gantangs-voters-roll/

Hanya 19 peratus Melayu mahu Umno perintah

2009-03-13T17:54:00.000-07:00

Hanya 19 peratus Melayu mahu Umno perintah

Posted by admin
Saturday, 14 March 2009 08:23
(Hrkh) - Hanya 19 peratus dari responden Melayu yang mahu Umno terus memimpin negara, lapor Malaysian Insider dalam berita bertajuk " Umno corrupt, says survey".

Menurut laporan itu, dalam tinjauan Merdeka Centre yang dibuat ke atas 1,031 responden itu, prospek Umno di kalangan masyarakat Cina dan India jelas lebih buruk lagi.

Hanya satu peratus responden berbangsa Cina dan tiga peratus responden berbangsa India yang mahu Umno terus memimpin negara.

Lebih buruk lagi, tidak ada seorang pun responden Cina yang percaya Umno akan melaksana dan menunaikan janjinya walaupun satu peratus di kalangan mereka yang menaruh harapan kepada Umno untuk membangunkan negara ini.

Tinjauan pendapat itu juga jelas memperlihatkan imej Umno semakin buruk.

61 peratus berpendapat rasuah adalah masalah Umno yang paling serius manakala 13 peratus peratus berpendapat masalah kedua Umno yang paling serius ialah kegagalan parti itu memahami masalah rakyat.

Selaras dengan pandangan Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad sebelum ini yang menyifatkan Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak tidak cekap, lemah dan pengecut, para pengundi juga bimbang dengan "pemimpin yang lemah" dan "pentadbir ekonomi yang lemah" dalam Umno.

Dari 1,031 responden itu, 57 peratus adalah orang-orang Melayu, 31 peratus China and 12 peratus India berdasarkan tinjauan rawak.

Kajian Merdeka Center itu dengan kerjasama Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia.

Sementara itu, mengulas isu rasuah Umno di dalam blognya, Dr Mahathir tidak percaya ada ahli-ahli parti itu yang akan didapati bersalah kerana terlibat dengan rasuah politik menjelang pemilihan parti itu bulan ini.

"Saya sinis dan tidak percaya barang seorang pun akan didapati bersalah," katanya.

Mengulas pendedahan Pengerusi Lembaga Disiplin Umno, Tan Sri Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen yang mendedahkan bahawa pihaknya menerima 900 aduan yang sebahagiannya berkaitan dengan politik wang, Dr Mahathir berkata: "Orang ramai tertunggu-tunggu untuk mendengar tentang siasatan dan tindakan yang diambil terhadap mereka yang terlibat.

"Sekarang Mesyuarat Agong yang akan memilih ahli-ahli Majlis Tertinggi akan diadakan tidak lama lagi. Tetapi tidak ada apa-apa pun kedengaran berkenaan 900 aduan tersebut.

"Apakah semua 900 aduan ini sudah didapati tidak berasas dan tidak ada salahlaku oleh sesiapa? Apakah pemilihan calon Majlis Tertinggi bersih seperti kain putih?"

Sekarang, kata bekas Presiden Umno itu, "kita dengar pula tentang sogokan kepada perwakilan yang akan hadir di mesyuarat Agong yang akan undi dan tentukan siapa yang akan pegang jawatan apa di dalam parti.

"Katanya ratusan ribu diberi kepada perwakilan. Benarkah? Takkanlah semua cerita yang didengar tidak berasas?"

Menurut Dr Mahathir, wakil-wakil ke perhimpunan agong Umno bulan ini "boleh disogok dan mereka boleh beri kemenangan kepada orang yang sogok mereka.

"Tetapi ingat. Rakyat sedang memerhati tingkahlaku Umno dan pemilihan yang akan dilakukan," katanya. Dr Mahathir mengingatkan, jika pada bulan Mac tahun lalu ramai rakyat termasuk juga ahli-ahli Umno yang kecewa telah mengundi parti lawan, dalam Pilihanraya Umum ke-13 mereka ini akan mengundi parti lawan sekali lagi jika mereka lihat Umno sudah diambilalih oleh perasuah.

The Altantuya Foundation set up in Bangkok

2009-03-13T04:15:00.000-07:00

The Altantuya Foundation set up in Bangkok

Now, this is one foundation you may want to donate to:
An association of independent journalists based in Bangkok and coordinated by French Liberation correspondent Arnaud Dubus has set up a foundation to offer material support to the family of Mongolian Altantuya Shaaribuu, killed in Malaysia in october 2006. The Altantuya Foundation aims to bring concrete help to Mr Shaaribuu, the father of the deceased, and her two children, Altanshagai (five years old) and Mungunshagai (12 years old).

“When i met Shaaribuu in Ulan Bator in January, he told me he has not bought clothes for two years as he could not afford it. This sixty year old man has to work on two different jobs,to be able to take care of this two orphaned grand children”, says Arnaud Dubus. “I am a journalist, but i also have a heart. I could not help feel compassion for the Shaaribuu family”, he adds.

For transparency, the Fondation will be supervised by the Mongolian embassy in Bangkok. All donations will be given to the Embassy which will convey them directly to Mr Shaaribuu. The first donor was Danthong Breen, well known Thai human rights activist and Chairman of the Union for Civil Liberties. All donors receives an official receipt. Small contributions (as well as bigger ones, but not too big please) are very much welcome, as a small amount can make a huge difference for the life of the Shaaribuu Family. Foundation founders consider that it would be a wonderful gesture of human solidarity for people from different Nations, Asian and Western, to show their support for the family of this young interpreter savagely killed at the age of 28 years old.

For details, contact altantuyashaaribuu@yahoo.com

Information sent by: Arnaud Dubus, Foundation coordinator

Friday the 13th vandalism at Democracy Tree site

2009-03-13T02:18:00.000-07:00

Malaysian Fined Over Online Insults To Sultan

2009-03-13T02:12:00.001-07:00

Malaysian Fined Over Online Insults To Sultan
News 2009-03-13 16:27
KUALA LUMPUR: A man was fined almost $3,000 Friday (13 March) for insulting a Malaysian sultan in an online posting, government officials said, the latest in a series of actions against Internet writers in this Southeast Asian country.
Five others were also charged for "improper use of facilities" by making comments deemed "obscene, indecent, false, menacing or offensive" on the Web site of the sultan of northern Perak state, representatives of the attorney general's office said on condition of anonymity citing protocol.
Malaysia _ known for its strict control of the media _ had once promised not to regulate online content in a bid to draw more investors but in recent years has cracked down on online commentary critical of the government.
A court in Kuala Lumpur fined Azrin Mohamad Zain, a 33-year-old lab assistant, 10,000 ringgit ($2,700) after Azrin pleaded guilty to insulting Sultan Azlan Shah in a comment on his Web site, the officials said.
The other five, who were charged in courts throughout the country, pleaded innocent to the same offense, the officials said. Their trials will start next month and they face up to a year in prison or a fine of up to 50,000 ringgit ($13,600) if found guilty.
Another person will be charged with the same offense on Sunday (15 March), and more people are still being investigated, the officials said.
"They are not bloggers, but ordinary people who posted comments on the Perak Royal Web site using nasty and obscene words," Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail was quoted by the New Straits Times as saying.
The sultan's Web site was not accessible Friday, but the attorney general's office and palace officials could not say whether it had been taken down.
Critical online commentaries have mushroomed in Malaysia, where all mainstream media is government-linked. But in recent years, bloggers have come under increased scrutiny.
Last year, prominent online writer Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin was detained under a strict security law that allows for indefinite detention without trial. He was released after two months.
Raja Petra has also been charged with sedition for allegedly linking the deputy prime minister to a murder case. Other bloggers have been investigated over allegedly defacing the police logo and flying the Malaysian flag upside-down on their Web sites. (By JULIA ZAPPEI/ AP)
On the Net: http://www.sultan.perak.gov.my

The marble plaque beneath the Democracy Tree

2009-03-08T10:25:00.000-07:00

Malaysia: Risk ratings

2009-03-07T03:58:00.000-08:00

The following is Malaysia's risk ratings.
Economist Intelligence Unit
OVERALL ASSESSMENT: The political situation is expected to remain in a flux in 2009-10 as the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition and the opposition alliance, Pakatan Rakyat, attempt to increase their representation in Parliament and individual state legislatures. The PR won an unprecedented number of parliamentary seats and hopes to attract enough BN legislators to its camp to engineer a change of government. Terrorism poses a threat, with Jemaah Islamiah cells operating throughout Southeast Asia. Jemaah Islamiah is a militant Islamist group. The government appears keen to create a less opaque business environment. The economy is expected to contract in 2009. Capital controls have been almost totally dismantled, but could be re-imposed in the event of another financial crisis. The ringgit is expected to depreciate against the US dollar in 2009 but the managed exchange-rate system will remain in place in 2009-10.
SECURITY RISK: The situation in southern Thailand remains unsettled, while relations with Indonesia remain strained. A dispute over offshore territorial rights remains unresolved, and Malaysia’s policy towards illegal workers from Indonesia is also a bilateral issue. Within Malaysia, the government can use the Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial, against terrorist suspects, although this has been used mainly to neutralise government opponents. In December 2007 five people, thought to be the organisers behind the Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force) protest in November, were detained under the act. In September 2008 an anti-government blogger, a journalist and an opposition member of parliament were arrested under the ISA. Divisions between the moderate and conservative faces of Islam are likely to become more apparent. Nevertheless violent crime, kidnapping and extortion are still rare.
POLITICAL STABILITY RISK: The political situation is expected to remain in flux as the leader of the opposition PR alliance, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, continues with his strategy to persuade ruling BN legislators to switch to the opposition camp to engineer a change in government. The BN won the March 2008 general election, but its majority was cut from two-thirds at the last Parliament to a simple majority. The PR is actively seeking the co-operation of 29 or more BN legislators in its efforts to form a new government, but Anwar faces a number of obstacles before realising his political ambitions. A forthcoming trial over a sodomy allegation made by a former aide could derail Anwar’s plans to seize power from the BN. At the same time that Anwar is trying to court BN legislators, Umno, the dominant party in the BN, has been trying to persuade members of the PR to join its ranks.
LEGAL & REGULATORY RISK: During the long tenure of the last prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the independence of the judiciary was often brought into question. This was evident in the conduct of politically sensitive law suits, but also in business litigation when it touched on government policy or interests. The prime minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, has promised a more open and accountable society, and pledged that major public contracts would go to open tender — a major advance, if it is fully implemented. The risk that the government will expropriate foreign businesses is small. Litigation can be subject to long delays. The government displays a genuine desire to promote competition, but this is not always reflected in political reality, where favouritism continues — and Abdullah, and his successor, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, will find it difficult to do away with cronyism. Private property rights are generally well protected, although protection of intellectual property rights is not comprehensive.
FOREIGN TRADE & PAYMENTS RISK: Financial flows on the current and capital accounts are free of significant restrictions. The Malaysian authorities do, however, fear the disruptive influence that future speculative flows of capital could have on Malaysian financial markets and the economy. Should another financial crisis threaten, they will be ready to re-impose the capital controls implemented following the Asian financial crisis in 1997-98 (but since almost totally removed). Special tariffs are used to protect some sectors of the economy (e.g. the automotive sector) but they are not numerous and have been reduced to meet the targets set by the Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA). In November 2007, Malaysia signed a free-trade agreement with Pakistan.
LABOUR MARKET RISK: Malaysia suffers from a more or less permanent shortage of some sort of domestic skilled labour. Future controversy may centre on the government’s policies towards foreign workers, rather than domestic ones. The government will continue to try to discourage illegal immigration. Malaysia suffered an acute labour shortage in 2005, following the departure of some 400,000 illegal immigrants. Prolonged bouts of labour shortages might spark some radical changes in labour policy. The degree of unionisation is low and the government does not allow unions to be organised on an industry or national basis, which greatly limits the scope for collective bargaining. Instead, there are many in-house unions, especially in the electronics industry, which are influential when the economy is strong and labour is in short supply.
FINANCIAL RISK: Bank Negara Malaysia (the central bank) abandoned a fixed exchange-rate system in favour of a managed float against a trade-weighted basket of currencies in July 2005. Given the huge importance of exports to the Malaysian economy, the BNM is likely to maintain the current exchange-rate system until such a time as the authorities consider the economy to be sufficiently diversified. The capital market is being reformed under a 10-year plan, which aims to speed up the development of the corporate bond market. Owing to strong capital positions and ample liquidity, the Malaysian banking sector should withstand the fallout from the global financial crisis. Moreover, since the 1997-98 financial crisis, the authorities have reorganised and strengthened the financial system, clearing out non-performing loans in addition to tighter regulatory rules and supervision.INFRASTRUCTURE RISK: Corporations are unlikely to be hampered by serious deficiencies in infrastructure. Malaysia has made a major effort to expand and modernise its port facilities in recent years, in part to divert traffic from Singapore; domestic ports handle about 90 per cent of Malaysia’s international trade. Malaysia has a fairly extensive road system; some of the major links are toll roads. Kuala Lumpur International Airport, completed in 1998, has considerable spare capacity. The electricity utilities are planning large investments to guard against blackouts. The Multimedia Super Corridor, Malaysia’s attempt to leap-frog economic development and match Silicon Valley, has been designed on an ambitious scale, but may not meet expectations. Internet use and telephone lines per inhabitant are still relatively low, but the government is very ambitious to promote the development of the information and communication technology sector.