M. Bakri Musa
After nearly four years as Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has clearly demonstrated that he is not fit to lead the nation. He does not have what it takes to hold the nation’s top post; he must be relieved of his office.
The man is too incompetent to be even aware of his own incompetence. His trademark answer to every serious query is a plaintive, “I dunno!” There is not even a hint of embarrassment on his part, or the desire and curiosity to find out. Truly revealing!
Consider this latest blunder: As Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Abdullah is blissfully unaware of the RM5 billion blunder now unfolding at the Port Klang Free Zone project. If he is not aware (much less on top) of that impending financial implosion, chances are he is unable to comprehend the wider and more treacherous economic ramifications. Abdullah is instead riled up over some sophomoric rap rendition of the national anthem. Small mind, trivial preoccupation!
His election promises of 2004 turned out to be nothing more than the typical politician’s empty words, a cruel hoax perpetrated upon trusting citizens. For all his talk about greater transparency and combating corruption, it is nothing more than, to put it in the vernacular, “cock talk!” Under his “leadership,” all these are now much worse. His overly displayed public piety and religiosity are obviously for show only, as he is not fearful of Allah for having not kept his promises to the people.
He is consumed with the expensive trappings of his office, with luxury corporate jets ready to fly him and his family all over the globe. It is amazing how fast this kampong imam from Kepala Batas, a backwater of modern Penang, is acquiring the extravagant taste of the jet set, all at public expense of course.
Those closest to him personally and politically are serving their selfish interests in indulging his fantasy, or more correctly, daydream. The old man can hardly keep himself awake!
Unfortunately, it is the nation that is bearing the terrible consequences. The longer he stays, the heavier will be the burden, and costlier the price. We are now close to the point where the damages wrecked by this man would be irreversible. We cannot risk such a fate; the time for action is now!
This is a sobering thought, a definite damper on the current joyous mood in celebrating our 50th anniversary of Merdeka. Fortunately, despite Malaysia’s short history, the nation is sufficiently rooted in democratic principles and practices that it could effect leadership change without resorting to unconstitutional means.
There is little to learn from other Third World countries, with their predilection for assassinations, military coups, and other unsavory methods, in getting rid of ineffective leaders. Those who grab power are by nature ruthless and not likely to give it up willingly. Consequently, the end result is invariably much worse. However, considering Abdullah’s current sorry ineptness, such a scene is difficult to imagine for Malaysia.
Malaysia once suspended its constitution, following the May 1969 riot. That was in response to an emergency, when the dangers and damages were physical and thus readily comprehended by the citizens. Consequently there was general consensus to a rule by decree.
Today’s dangers are more subtle and insidious, but the consequences could be even more catastrophic. The nation is being lulled into irreversible mediocrity, condemned to perpetual third-rate status.
Another major factor to the acceptance of the 1969 Emergency Rule was that we knew who would be taking over: the able and decisive Tun Razak. Malaysians had faith in the man’s ability and integrity. They were not wrong. A few years later with law and order established, Razak re-instituted parliament and voluntarily gave up his dictatorial power. To this day, his action remains the rare exception; the general rule is for dictators to cling on to power until they die naturally, get killed, or are ousted.
I also do not think it necessary to strain the constitution with, for example, the King exercising his power to remove the Prime Minister. That would create a dangerous precedent. Besides, Abdullah is just not worth a constitutional crisis.
Tips From the First World
While the Third World cannot offer us lessons on changing leaders orderly outside of elections, we can learn from the First World. Even hitherto able leaders could be removed without compromising constitutional or democratic principles. Britain’s Tony Blair is a recent example.
Blair led his Labor Party to three successive electoral victories. Yet when he overreached and joined Bush in invading Iraq, a few of his ministers resigned in protest. That in turn emboldened Blair’s challenger, Gordon Brown.
While former Prime Minister Mahathir admitted to making a colossal mistake in appointing Abdullah, Malaysia should not and cannot be held hostage to the mistake of one man. There is no reason to be fatalistic or just sit back and suffer the consequences. While Mahathir is trying hard to undo his mistake, the primary responsibility in ridding Abdullah ultimately falls on the citizens collectively, not on any one person no matter how eminent and influential he or she may be.
That said, a single individual — even one of no particular distinction — can often initiate and effect significant change. Again referring to May 1969, it was one man who initiated the process that eventually led to Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman leaving. The Tunku was a much-revered leader, the “Father of Independence,” yet the one man instrumental in Tunku’s downfall was a defeated government backbencher.
A defeated candidate normally would have little clout, yet there was Mahathir able to effect seismic changes in the nation’s leadership with his now famous letter to the Tunku demanding that he quit.
Easing Abdullah Out
The most effective way to disabuse Abdullah of his delusion and puncture his leadership fantasy would be for his ministers to have a vote of no confidence in him. That would be dramatic, but unlikely to happen. As some of his ministers are also leaders of the component parties, such an action could split the coalition and risk paying the ultimate price: defeat at the general elections.
A more practical reason for this not happening is that his ministers are more followers than leaders. There are no jantans in the cabinet, only jantan wannabes. They were appointed not for their leadership qualities or executive talent but for their ability to grovel to and humor the leader of the day.
Recently in an unprecedented move, the entire non-Muslim ministers except one (he was abroad at the time) wrote the Prime Minister to express their displeasure over the increasing Islamization of his administration. They quickly backed down when UMNO hound dogs snarled back. That again reflected the spinelessness of these ministers.
Nonetheless their subtle message — they do not have confidence in Abdullah — was delivered. The only problem was that everyone missed that too subtle a message.
As an aside, although I share their concerns I condemned those ministers’ action. Far from challenging Abdullah, they merely exacerbated the Muslim/non-Muslim divide. They would have been far more effective had they acted individually, and backed their words with actions, as with resigning and taking their party out of the coalition. That would have startled Abdullah enough to wake him up. His hound dogs in UMNO Youth would be too rattled to spring into action. It might even embolden a few UMNO ministers to do their part and trigger a soft in-house coup.
Do not however, expect a Malaysian Gordon Brown, ready and able to take over. Brown had proven himself formidable as Chancellor of the Exchequer, a more than worthy successor, while Abdullah’s deputy, Najib Razak, carries considerable political and personal baggage. More than likely, the change process would also consume him.
When President Nixon was threatened with impeachment over the Watergate crisis, senior leaders of his party was able to persuade him to resign and thus spare the nation a constitutional crisis. Unfortunately UMNO is bereft of senior leaders with stature. Musa Hitam in theory would be a prime candidate, but since getting his Tunship, Musa is so beholden to Abdullah that he (Abdullah) can now do no wrong.
One leader (apart from Mahathir) who could tell Abdullah to his face would be Tengku Razaleigh. However he would not be credible as his efforts would be viewed as self-serving: to further his own ambition of becoming Prime Minister.
Alternatively, UMNO Supreme Council could express its lack of confidence in Abdullah. With Abdullah no longer its leader, he would have to give up his office and UMNO would have to convene a leadership convention. That would open wide the field and help ensure that the party would get a more capable and credible leader.
UMNO Supreme Council is a much larger and more independent body than the cabinet. Except for the ten members appointed by and thus beholden to Abdullah, the others are voted directly by the members. They are immune to his influence except in so far as promises of ministerial and other political appointments. There would be enough members not beholden to him who could initiate a no-confidence vote. Even if it fails, it may just rattle the old man that he may decide to spend more time with his new wife.
If all else fails, voters could always teach Abdullah a lesson. If they were to give him and his party a severe thumping in the next election, that could precipitate an internal grumbling within UMNO enough to trigger an insurrection.
The next election however need not be held till May 2009. By that time the country would have become irretrievably damaged under Abdullah’s leadership, or more correctly, lack of one. Corruption would be so endemic and embedded such that the election itself would be meaningless; it would be effectively rigged. At which stage Malaysia would join the ranks of Nigeria, Pakistan, and Zimbabwe, doomed to perpetual mediocrity.
It is thus urgent that we relieve Abdullah now of his job before it is too late. We owe it to our children and grandchildren.
We have a Prime Minister who is unable to comprehend what’s going on around him. He doesn’t even know the difference between an Islamic State and an Islamic Country. Even our lower secondary school kids know that.
He just reads what his speech writer pass to him. He is more committed in his new found love than this nation and he is not over with his honeymoon yet.
Now who is running this country? Where are all the ‘jantans’ in UMNO? Do something, damn it !
i know. i know.i know.
so what . so what . so what.
I am sceptical! So Agong can sacked the Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and M Bakri Musa and many Malayians want Agong or the Malay rulers to show what they are capable of, but what’s probably is the question right now, is this what all Malaysian wants? To see their Prime Minister being forced down from office? I mean of course it is better that Abdullah step down peacefully but will he?
What I think we don’t see if Abdullah Badawi and his cronies won’t do just what we want, they want to stay on, simply because they need to stay there to protect all their ill-gotten gains. What will you do if are are Abdullah? What will you do if you are Khairy Jamaludin? What will you do if you are corrupted UMNO members, plead for leniency? Although that ninety one percent mandate given to Abdullah no longer means anything to Malaysians, but to Abdullah it means that you can’t do anything to me.
Then RPK talks about civil disobedience, seriously, we all are, but UMNO will? How are we gong to deal with a bunch of barbarians who threaten blood whenever their position or special right is question? Silent protest isn’t one way to bring this government down, let me assure you that. It is not effective, it is not motivating and it took hell lot of time, Malaysian simply don’t have the determination to go through all that. Trust me!
It is a matter of confronting our national crisis with a determination to stamp out corrupted govt once and for all, to save Malaysia from destruction under the regime of BN lead by Adbullah Badawi and his new religion Islam Hadhari, one day we are secular, the other we are Islamic state. If the Malay rulers really wants to take action now, they must also take it from here whatever that may happen next if Abdullah and his UMNO won’t concede. And you know what that means?
Still, we hope the ballot box will do us justice, forget it.
The Wijaya Group has just been awarded a RM340 million flood mitigation contract. This is the same group that screwed the PKA until the government had to bail out the PKA with a soft loan.
Islam Hadhari – you get screwed if you believe, and you get screwed if you don’t.
I will want to put it that is one of the failures of our democratic system which allows the PM to appoint a successor. Unlike the system in the US where the top government post (ie. the president) is elected by the people, but here in our bolehland the PM appoint a successor and there is a good possibility that the PM can nominate a successor whose intelligence might only be good enough for selling kachang putih (which is happening now) or one with great intelligence but will use it wrongly. Both are just as dangerous but the former is more likely to happen. A bad and selfish PM will beget another bad PM as he will want somebody whom he can play puppet.
To get rid of this menace for the country we have to change our system and the PM cannot be given so much of powers.
If M Bakri Musa is for real, he should know who control the army and the police force right now? Whoever had control over this two subjects hold the power dictate Malaysia. Who’s gonna arrest IGP Musa? Let’s make some deal.
It really send cold shivers in me if the present PM were to nominate his successor now. It might be one who cannot count from 1-10 or recite a-z. The reason is obvious.
UNFIT TO LEAD
A definite YES, but he is only fit to lead his goats with 10 kids.
YAwnnnnn……… i’m so sleepy… i need a bed..
CNN Reporter: Mr. Abdullah, what is the most common phrase or answer do you normally give when you are being questioned? No prize for guessing the correct answer.
AAB: I don’t know! (He’s not giving the answer but merely portraying his ignorance)
CNN Reporter: Mr. Abdullah, spot on! This is the first time you really “know” about something. Tahniah! (with a sarcastic tone)
AAB: Really?! What do you mean? (he didn’t realise that the reporter was being sarcastic)
CNN Reporter: Well, you just gave the correct answer didn’t you? (again, sarcastically)
AAB: Oh, you mean that was the answer? I didn’t know that. I’m so glad that I got it right the first time you asked me.
CNN Reporter: *LMAO*
Performance evaluations given to our pm
“He sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them”
“He is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot”
“He should go far, and the sooner the better”
“A gross ignoramus – 144 times worse than an ordinary ignoramus”
“He brings a lot of joy whenever he leaves the room”
“A prime candidate for natural deselection”
“Donated his brain to science before he was done using it”
“If you give him a penny for his thoughts, you’d get change”
“It’s hard to believe that he beat out 1,000,00 other sperm”
Actually….all of you all got it wrong……AAB was a brilliant government technocrat……..until he went for his bypass surgery at IJN…..and got his brain fried…….he actually failed his medical to become PM……but Malaysia Boleh maaaa……..which is why he has asked KJ to run the show so that the throne won either by fate or crook stays with the Badawi family until KJ is ready……but will the good people of Malaysia be suckered in……by past records…….that has to be a resounding YES…….
in conclusion, who is the alternative??
Heard about a joke where a man went for a brain transplant, the doctor said AAB brain is good and cheap and hardly used!
I hope the Ministers and umnoputras read Bakri Musa’s article. And lets all hope for the best.
With all critical problems/issues unresolved, do you know what the PM likes to spend his precious time on? He likes to plaster himself on poster at the Damansara toll, on banners hanging from the lampposts and on TV tourism advertisements. He has nothing better to do OR HE JUST DOESN’T KNOW.
While we are tying to change the PM, let’s not stop there.
Let’s change the whole political system. Let us have a Prime Minister who is TRULY Malaysian and not based on any race.
Are we really going to be able to do that for our children and grandchildren?
Sorry for being slow, actually never follow the local politic till lately. Just heard from my in-law last nite that DAP wiped clean all 7 state seats in Kuching last yr. BN pans down. Well done guys.
Nothing is impossible. Working harder guys, co-operate and work closely with other opposition parties like PKR and kick this self-serving corrupted BN out of the coming election.
Hope Gerakan will pull out from BN. From what I intepreted from The Sun yesterday, Gerakan Senior Lim said he is ready to go to jail for speaking out. Like the way he talks, sometimes really give you good laugh. Actually the old man got gut to stand up, also very down to earth and humble though sometimes listen to him one wonder how he got his doctorate … hehe. Salute him.
Pak Lah really is yhick skin. Bakri Musa has aske him to resign quite a number of times. Not only that, Malaysians too have asked him to retire.
He stillthink ythat he is a good leader. Ha!Ha!
This shows that he did not know anything.
Now he declare Malaysia is an Islamic state pula!!! only a few days he said we were not.
He does not know any thing la!!! Time to go Pak Lah.
Let us go back in time to the moment when Tun Doctor Mahathir Mohammad made up his mind and declared Datuk Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as the next Prime Minister of Malaysia. What was in TDM’s mind and what are his plans ? TDM, a Prime Minister of 22 years, changed much of Selangor’s landscape and is an intellect decided to let someone who is so different from him take the helm of power. Why didn’t he appoint one who has the same taste ? Is this what you guys call the controlling factor ?
It was obvious, TDM thought a successor of mediocre intelligence was easy to control, would still crawl to him his advice. TDM thought he could still pull the puppet strings from the comfort of his Langkawi home but to his disappointment, it was not to be.
Mahathir couldn’t care less if Malaysia go to the dogs. Getting an able successor was not important. What was important was one he could still control, protect his policies and be forever grateful to him.
Malaysians should take a leaf from Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his wife Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah who enjoy tending to their garden which is planted with vegetables and herbs at their official residence, Seri Perdana, in Putrajaya.
The prime minister said that, in fact, he had two Jamnapari goats in his hometown of Kepala Batas which were later stolen.
Abdullah mentioned this when opening the national-level Farmers, Livestock Breeders and Fishermen’s Day 2007 at the Batu Buruk Public Park here today.
He said his late wife Datin Seri Endon Mahmood had a keen interest in batik, songket and handicrafts but Jeanne, whom he married recently, is into agriculture, vegetables and fruits.
“We have a garden at Seri Perdana where we grow our own herbs, to keep me healthy,” said Abdullah who also grows plants like rock melons.
The prime minister said the stolen goats had since been replaced and the animals now had 10 kids.
Abdullah said as prime minister, he had to personify the “leadership by example” slogan in efforts to develop the country’s agricultural sector.
Our current PM only knows how to give motivational and positive talks about the country is developing fast and strong, the economy is flowing well, the investors are very very very interested to put their money with us…
but…
the truth is our ringgit is going toward the likes of rupiah…
few days ago, I was accompanying my friend to go exchange some foreign currency and what I saw on the currency rate board was shocking…
the currency exchange rate for:
previous year(py)
today(td)
soon(sn) “after few months”
AUS dollar to RM = 2.6(py), 2.8(td), 2.9(sn)
US dollar to RM = 3.8(py), 3.4(td), 3.5(sn)
Canadian dollar to RM = 2.6(py), 3.1(td), 3.3(sn)
last but not least
Rm to thai bath = 10(py), 9.7(td), 9(sn)
even thailand, which we alwiz consider its development to be slower than msia has actually been developing very very fast MAN!!…
what is the government doing!!?? eat my FOOT!!
Ahhhhh…I “donno” whats happening! Let me ask the rite ppl to investigate la…but make sure plant vegetable behind your backyards and eat em..and taxi taxi..pls la ..dont cheat publics..!Ah..any Toilets to officiate ah?
This PM is not only unfit to lead, he has many other great personality traits too, just name a few:
1. He has taste. He like expensive silk batik.
2. He likes to fly. He got a brand new jet plane for himself.
3. He is lazy. He does not read. He does not think. He day dreams all days and all nites.
4. He likes Australia. Not long ago, he flew to Australia in the dark without telling anyone and without any purpose!
5. He is very [deleted] diplomatic. He recently sent a very junior deputy minister to airport to welcome the arrival of the Prime Minister of Japan. Till now the Japanase communities are still very furious on Lah’s rudeness!
test
Badawi seems incompetent but he brought in the SER. This project seems full of potential and we will know if this PM really work
AAB,was good ,clean and god fearing,but after a few months in office ,”i use the word was” after seeing all the corupption going every where he turn,he have to put behind bars 100 % of his cabinae members
So he did the next bestthing ” HE JOIN THEM ” Confusious say if head is rotten the body shut down, That is what happening now .May god help us all
“Dereliction of duty while PM” should be made an offense under the country’s Penal Code.
So Kit, please raise this issue in Parliament ASAP. Then move a motion for a vote of “No confidence” against Pak Lah.
I disavow any connection to him as my adopted father. He shall be referred to simply as Abdullah Badawi.
Dr Bakri, you are dead wrong ! AAB is loved by the UMNOputras because he gives them full freedom to do as they like. They run rings around him, and they decide on who gets what project. He can’t remember who is doing what, so that’s great for the vast majority of UMNOputras who make hay while the sun shines.
He doesn’t mind being contradicted by his own people because he can’t remember what his original position was on each and every issue.
This is one hell of a guy – a leader who allows his subordinates to run riot and steal in broad daylight. These thieves want him to stay on, believe me.
Basic MBA declares that the strength of any organisation can be uncovered by its succession plan:
Lets revisit AAB’s promotion to PM:
Answer: By DEFAULT!
Practically being offered on a platter by TDM, who now regrets it like sh*t!
But the scary thing is the question of who will succeed Sleeping Beauty?
Remeber RAHMAN? Nazrin?
Godfather, you are spot on!!!
UMNO putras ae having field days , helping themselves to the coffer of the country while Pak Lah is honeymooning with Jeane.
They wish Pak Lah would be PM forever!!!
By the time Pak Lah wakes up from his slumber, only God help us!!!
Sekarang duk honeymooning, jangan kacau
Remeber RAHMAN? Not Nazrin but Noree’s mat rempit husband
He is a moderate PM if his racist son-in-law does not exist on the earth.
The PM is obviously lacking in leadership quality but has all the quality of a corrupt PM.
“I also do not think it necessary to strain the constitution with, for example, the King exercising his power to remove the Prime Minister. That would create a dangerous precedent. Besides, Abdullah is just not worth a constitutional crisis.”
The Agong has no such powers. In the case of Malaysia with two-thirds control held by the national coalition, it is Parliament that is supreme – not the constitution as many of us would like to believe.
The procedure is to file a motion of “no confidence” in Parliament supported by the majority of MPs from both the government and the opposition. Parliament is supreme and not the Agong who as everybody knows is a constitutional monarch. Period.
/// grace Says:
Pak Lah really is yhick skin. Bakri Musa has aske him to resign quite a number of times. Not only that, Malaysians too have asked him to retire. ///
grace, I don’t think Bakri Musa is the Agung. And there are divided legal opinions on whether the Agung can sack the PM. Much as we don’t like the PM or his performance, he cannot be removed simply because a Malaysian who chose to reside overseas ask him to resign, and quite a number of times too. So, it this your idea of how democracy works? If you don’t like your PM, just ask him to resign? Think! What will this lead to?
Just a day away from Merdeka Day I have to be reminded by Dr. Bakri how Tunku was removed by Dr. Mahathir “with his now famous letter to the Tunku demanding that he quit”. It’s not the facts stated by him but it’s the timing and the smugness that irritates me. Merdeka Day is about Tunku and not about Dr. Mahathir or how he removed Tunku.
I think the troubles face by Malaysia all started from Dr. Mahathir. LKY had correctly described him as a Malay “Ultra”. Dr. Bakri try to downplay and sweep under the carpet by saying “While former Prime Minister Mahathir admitted to making a colossal mistake in appointing Abdullah, Malaysia should not and cannot be held hostage to the mistake of one man”. And the good doctor even considered replacing AAB with Najib, Tengku Razaleigh or Musa Hitam! LOL. These are a bunch of dead woods.
Whereas Dr. Bakri’s articles provide pleasant reading, they don’t match up to those of
Farish A. Noor’s or Azly Rahman’s. Dr. Bakri is a Mahathir worshipper and he has difficulties transcending himself above his race and religion.
“Grace, I don’t think Bakri Musa is the Agung. And there are divided legal opinions on whether the Agung can sack the PM.”
I don’t think the legal fraternity is divided on the issue.
The Agong cannot sack a duly elected representative of the people. The closest the constitutional monarch can come to that is when he withholds his consent to a request for dissolution of Parliament so general elections could be held which could pave the way for a new Prime Minister.
Yes, the Agong has some discretion when it comes to that. But it does not come even close to anything like sending the PM to an early retirement.
He made great promises when he took over from Dr. M. He had such ideals, but look at what he has done! Prices of things have spiralled, people living in agony, crimes everyday everywhere, and he had the time to re-marry!