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Merdeka social contract/Malaysia Agreement principle of secular Malaysia “driven underground”?

This Parliamentary Roundtable on the occasion of the nation’s 50th Merdeka anniversary is to reaffirm the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as official religion and not Islamic state.

One of the causes of gloom for many Malaysians on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary comes from the question whether Malaysia has lost one of its fundamental nation-building underpinnings agreed by the forefathers of the major communities in the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement half-a-century ago that ours is a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state?

I have no doubt that the first three Prime Ministers, Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak and Tun Hussein would have had no hesitation in any period of their lives to reaffirm that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state.

It is a sad reflection of 50 years of Malaysian nation-building that this cannot be said for the present generation of government leaders.

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said last Saturday that Malaysia was not a secular or theocratic state but one which was based on parliamentary democracy.

What Abdullah did not say is as important as what he said. Although he deliberately omitted reference to the Islamic state, the “929 Declaration” of the then Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad on Sept. 29, 2001 that Malaysia was an Islamic state and the “717 Declaration” of Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak on July 17, 2007 that Malaysia was an Islamic state was not and had never been a secular state remain unchallenged.

Tun Dr. Mahathir said in Langkawi on Tuesday that Malaysia is an Islamic state even though it is not officially called that.

He said: “Officially we are not an Islamic state, neither are we a secular state. But by definition, as recognized by most international societies, Malaysia is an Islamic state.”

For 44 years until the Mahathir’s “929 declaration” in 2001, the position of the UMNO and Barisan Nasional leaders were clear and unequivocal – that Malaysia was conceived as a secular state with Islam as the official religion and that It was not an Islamic state — backed up by constitutional documents and history as well as the highest judicial pronouncements of the land.

On the 50th Merdeka anniversary, the position has varied to: Malaysia is not a secular state. It is an Islamic state. It is not a theocratic state. Continue reading “Merdeka social contract/Malaysia Agreement principle of secular Malaysia “driven underground”?”

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The Private and Public Dimension of our Dismissal

Dr. Azly Rahman
Dr. Mutiara Mohamad

Since we highlighted our plight to the media we have stated that we were dismissed by Universiti Utara Malaysia on two counts; being denied a non-paid leave upon the completion of our studies and refusing to sign the Surat Akujanji. The application for a non-paid leave is a “private” matter explained clearly to the university and the Surat Akujanji issue is a “public” matter of interest. Let us make the two clearer so that the issue of “being ungrateful and not wanting to serve the country” will not arise.

We believe that the public is not interested in reading the following legitimate and personal reasons behind our requests for extensions for our study and then for a non-paid leave till September 2006 upon the completion of our studies. In no particular order of importance, among the reasons are:

– having to endure extreme financial, and economic hardship as a direct aftermath of the Asian Financial crisis of 1997 that happened at the beginning of our studies, in which we were suddenly living below the American poverty line with the loss of 75% of our finances and had to take up minimum-wage jobs while attending graduate school and supporting our family,

– having a loved one with a terminal illness that consequently resulted in death,

– Dr. Mutiara Mohamad experiencing years of debilitating medical condition in which it has recently culminated in a major surgery,

– undergoing numerous hospital and specialist’s visits when one of our children underwent the diagnosis of the causes of his unilateral loss of hearing,

– undergoing the long process of rigorous requirement of Columbia University doctoral candidacy (90 graduate credits and two comprehensive exams plus a dissertation),

– having to go through the long and arduous process of preparing a Columbia University dissertation report,

– needing several changes of dissertation advisors, and having to coordinate for the availability of the full dissertation committee for the final defense,

– experiencing the emotional trauma from the September 11, 2001 attacks on The Twin Towers which happened literally in our backyard,

– enduring the discontinuation of scholarship and all forms of financial aid from UUM towards the end of our studies, and a host of other hardships we finally overcame and persevered even when all means of economic resources have dried out.

In the course of pursuing studies such as a doctoral degree, one had to sometimes battle circumstances beyond one’s control. We are sure UUM have had the experience of dealing with its faculty members caught in similar circumstances. Only perseverance and strength of will will decide if one triumphs against all odds. We were dismissed for not reporting home when we needed extra time to resolve the economic repercussions due to some of the above issues.

Having reluctantly revealed the “private” reasons, we believe the public is more interested in understanding why we were dismissed for refusing to sign the Surat Akujanji and for asking the university what the last two clauses mean. We failed to get satisfactory answers on how our rights will still be protected by agreeing to sign the letter. We had refused to sign the pledge after being repeatedly asked to do so. Continue reading “The Private and Public Dimension of our Dismissal”

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Parliamentary Roundtable reaffirms Malaysia a secular state and not Islamic state

Statement unanimously adopted by Parliamentary Roundtable (10th August 2007) to reaffirm Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement on the occasion of 50th Merdeka anniversary that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the religion of the Federation and not an Islamic state

When Malaya achieved independence in 1957 and Malaysia was formed six years later in 1963, a national social compact was reached that the nation shall be a secular state with Islam as the religion of the Federation and not an Islamic State.

The Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the religion of the Federation and not an Islamic state was given expression in the Federal Constitution, articulated by the founding fathers of the nation including the first three Prime Ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak and Tun Hussein and given full recognition by the highest court in the land.

For over four decades, there was national consensus of the secular character of Malaysian nation-building which was only disrupted in the past six years, raising questions about the national commitment to protect and sustain this fundamental cornerstone of Malaysian nation-building.

The Parliamentary Roundtable on August 10 2007 resolves to reaffirm the Merdeka social contract and the Malaysia Agreement that the nation was conceived and shall remain a secular state with Islam as the religion of the Federation and not an Islamic state.

This is to send out a clear and unequivocal message on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary of the nation in 2007 that the Merdeka social contract and the Malaysia Agreement that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the religion of the Federation and not an Islamic state must continue to be the bedrock of the Malaysian nation-building process.

We urge Malaysians regardless of race, religion, political affiliation or territory to come forward in a national campaign to reaffirm this fundamental nation-building principle as agreed in the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement.

Continue reading “Parliamentary Roundtable reaffirms Malaysia a secular state and not Islamic state”

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Secular/Islamic state contention just word-play or argument over labels?

As I said at the DAP public forum “An Islamic State after 50 years?” at the KL/Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall on 25th July 2007, there are diverse non-Muslim responses to the “717 Declaration” by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak on July 17, 2007 that Malaysia is an Islamic state and not and had never been a secular state.

One is to deride the claim that Malaysia is an Islamic state, asking how anyone could entertain the notion that Malaysia is an Islamic state when gambling and alcohol are allowed in the country.

Another is to ask how Malaysia could be an Islamic state when there is no full implementation of the hudud and syariah laws.

I also quoted an Islamic scholar Asghar Ali Engineer as representing another school questioning the validity of the “Islamic state” claim, arguing that an Islamic state should have the following characteristics: (1) it should be absolutely non-discriminatory on the basis of race, colour, language and nationality; (2) it should guarantee gender equality; (3) it should guarantee equal rights to all religious groups and accept plurality of religion as legitimate; and (4) lastly it should be democratic in nature whose basic premise will be human dignity. Asghar Ali Engineer concluded his contention: “Only those states which fulfill these criteria can be construed to be Islamic in nature. Thus an Islamic state is the very epitome of modern democratic pluralistic state. (The Concept of Islamic State — Asghar Ali Engineer)

There is certain validity in these three and other arguments challenging the claim that Malaysia is an Islamic state, but they failed to capture the whole dynamics and implications of the Islamic state contention. Continue reading “Secular/Islamic state contention just word-play or argument over labels?”

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Merdeka statement – Cabinet should deplore the Zainuddin-led attack

With two Muslim groups joining the Information Minister, Datuk Zainuddin Maidin in his attack on the Merdeka Statement initiated by the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli)’s Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS), which had the endorsement of 42 supporting organizations, the Merdeka Statement has proven to be more than right when it said “recently the state of unity has been fraying at the edges”.

The Merdeka Statement said:

“Ethnic, linguistic and religious divides have deepened, causing genuine pain and hurt to many in our nation. Such a fragile state of unity should not have happened after 50 years of nation building”.

The accusation of the two Muslim groups, Allied Co-ordinating Committee of Islamic NGOs (Accin) and Muslim Youth Movement (Pembela), which have opened their fire at those behind the Merdeka Statement for having a hidden agenda to renegotiate the social contract is most shocking, as it is clear that this was never the intention of the Merdeka Statement.

Such an accusation is most surprising coming at a time when the country is witnessing a blatant rewriting of the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement, totally in an arbitrary, undemocratic and unconstitutional manner, with regard to the fundamental nation-building principle of Malaysia as a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state.

The Merdeka Statement is a commendable roadmap to achieve a more united, competitive, innovative and prosperous Malaysia, which celebrates the nation’s diversity and avoids past pitfalls and mistakes.

If such a sincere, genuine and patriotic effort to help chart future nation-building directions could be the subject of a Minister-led attack for being “anti-national”, it raises grave questions as to whether any purpose is served in having grand and costly “sight-and-sound” celebrations of the 50th Merdeka anniversary without addressing the issue why Malaysians seem even more divided than ever before in the nation’s half-a-century history.

The solution is not to impose further clampdown on public debate on the future direction of the nation but to have trust and confidence in the maturity, good sense and patriotism of Malaysians after 50 years of nationhood to have open, rational and responsible discussion of the best nation-building policies for the country. Continue reading “Merdeka statement – Cabinet should deplore the Zainuddin-led attack”

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PM should invite Raja Nazrin as personal adviser

by Dr. Chen Man Hin

Raja Nazrin’s deep and superb insight and analysis of the country’s political situation makes him eligible to be personal adviser to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

This was demonstrated by his keynote address to students at the first Malaysian Student Leaders Summit 2007 on Sunday.

He deplored the lack of national unity and commented that “..yet, 50 years after Merdeka, we are still grappling with concerns about unity.”

This is happening because of the strains on unity by introducing a bumiputra policy in 1966, the NEP in 1970 and Islamic state during Dr Mahathir’s premiership.

To make matters worse, at the UMNO general assembly last year, the ultras rejected the concept of ‘bangsa malaysa’ and proposed the implementation of a ‘Malay agenda’ where Malays are conferred ‘ketuanan melayu’ status, while the rest are plain or ordinary Malaysians.

Then last month, the deputy prime minister heightened the unease amongst the people when he unilaterally announced that Malaysia was Islamic and not secular, claiming that the constitution did not state Malaysia was secular. This claim was contrary to the declaration by former prime ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak and Tun Hussein Onn that the Malaysian constitution was secular.

Raja Nazrin called on the students (and the people) to get a copy of the Constitution. He said “the Constitution is the supreme law of the land. It guarantees the rights of every Malaysian. The integrity of that document must be protected at all cost.”

This is the constitution which is the basis of the “Social Contract” agreed on by our forefathers. The contract knows only citizens as Malaysians and not bumiputras and non-bumiputras. Continue reading “PM should invite Raja Nazrin as personal adviser”

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Changing Malaysia from “Islamic to theocratic state” will be much easier compared to the quantum jump from “secular to Islamic state”

One of the causes of gloom for many Malaysians on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary comes from the question whether Malaysia has lost one of its fundamental nation-building underpinnings agreed by the forefathers of the major communities in the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement half-a-century ago that ours is a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state?

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said in Bukit Mertajam on Saturday that Malaysia was not a secular or theocratic state but one which was based on parliamentary democracy.

What Abdullah did not say is as important as what he said. He deliberately omitted reference to the Islamic state. Is he saying that Malaysia is or is not an Islamic state?

Abdullah’s omission is understandable as general election is around the corner and he wants to make life easier for the Gerakan, MCA and other non-Umno Barisan Nasional leaders to mislead the people that the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement were still intact and honoured although one of the core nation-building principles had been demolished.

Although Abdullah studiously avoided any reference to Islamic state, nobody can accuse Umno leaders of camouflaging their clear intentions as the declaration that Malaysia was an Islamic state had not only been made by Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad as Prime Minister on Sept. 29, 2001 but reiterated by Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak on July 17, 2007 who went on to say that Malaysia was not and had never been a secular state.

Furthermore, there had been unanimous support by Barisan Nasional leaders to Mahathir’s “929 Declaration” that Malaysia was an Islamic state, with the then Gerakan President, Datuk Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik even anticipating Najib’s “717 Declaration” arguing at the time that Malaysia had been an Islamic state from Day One of the new nation!

After the next general election, what is there to stop the stitching together of these various declarations by the top Umno leaders which have received explicit support of the other Barisan Nasional leaders into one all-encompassing declaration that Malaysia was an Islamic state and was not and had never been a secular state? Continue reading “Changing Malaysia from “Islamic to theocratic state” will be much easier compared to the quantum jump from “secular to Islamic state””

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National Integrity Plan an abysmal failure – public hearings in JB, Malacca, Ipoh, Alor Setar

I have received public inquiries as to whether the second series of public hearings of the Parliamentary Select Committee of Integrity will be held in Johor Baru and Malacca on Wednesday (8th August) and Thursday (9th August) respectively.

As many seems to be in the dark, I want to publicly confirm that the second series of the public hearings of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity will be held in Johor Baru, Malacca, Ipoh and Alor Star this week and next on the following dates and venues:

  • Johor Baru – August 8 – 10 am
    (Bilik Gerakan Tun Razak, Dewan Undangan Negeri Johor, Johor Bharu)

  • Malacca – August 9 – 10 am
    (Bilik Gerakan Tun Mutahir, Dewan Undangan Negeri Melaka, Melaka)

  • Ipoh – August 15 – 10 am
    (Bilik Gerakan Negeri, Dewan Undangan Negeri Perak, Ipoh)

  • Alor Setar – August 16 – 10 am
    (Bilik Gerakan Dewan Undangan Negeri Kedah, Alor Setar, Kedah)

The announcement of these public hearings is also available at the parliamentary website, http://www.parlimen.gov.my/, inviting organizations, associations and individuals to the public hearings to give their views and proposals on integrity, in particular the National Integrity Plan.

This is an opportunity for Malaysians to express their views on the betterment of the nation on grave issues of integrity, corruption, abuses of power and lack of good governance, particularly on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary, which should not be missed. Organisations and individuals from Negri Sembilan who wish to appear before the Select Committee should make it to the JB or Malacca public hearing as it is unlikely that there would be a separate public hearing date for the state. Continue reading “National Integrity Plan an abysmal failure – public hearings in JB, Malacca, Ipoh, Alor Setar”

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Cabinet must be made collectively responsible for the crime situation with weekly crime report which must be made public

Malaysians are horrified by the brutal rape-and-murder of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) student Tang Lai Meng from Menglembu, Perak at Bandar Mahkota Cheras three days ago, which has again reminded Malaysians on the occasion of the nation’s 50th Merdeka anniversary that they have lost the most precious of all human rights — the fundamental right to be free from crime and the fear of crime, whether in the streets, public places or the privacy of their home.

There is a danger that Malaysians, whether the authorities including the police, and the citizenry have become numbed to the vicious spiral of the crime index in the country as to accept that the escalation of crime is an inevitable part and price of Malaysia’s development.

This is not acceptable and Malaysians from walks of life must make it clear that their most important wish on the occasion of the nation’s 50th Merdeka anniversary is the restoration of a safe country where Malaysians can walk the streets and public places as well as return to their home without fear of being victims of crime.

A crime-infested society knows no race, as illustrated by the case of the Malay woman motor-cycle pillion rider in Johor Bahru two days ago who was abducted, gang-raped and robbed by six robbers.

I call on Cabinet Ministers to be collectively responsible for the worsening crime situation in the country and to demand weekly police report on security situation until the crime rate is brought down to pre-Royal Police Commission period. Continue reading “Cabinet must be made collectively responsible for the crime situation with weekly crime report which must be made public”

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RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal – heads must roll or Abdullah’s integrity campaign in tatters

The RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal will be top agenda in the forthcoming parliamentary meeting — as I have submitted a question asking the Finance Minister to explain in the first week of next Parliament later this month why the multi-billion ringgit malpractices and cost overruns were not checked despite warnings from Attorney-General and Auditor-General.

I also wanted to know whether the Federal Government has now decided to bail out the RM4.6 billion PKFZ project with taxpayers’ money.

It is most regrettable and irresponsible on the part of both the Finance Minister and Transport Minister that they had maintained a deafening silence despite many disturbing reports in the past two months about the RM4.6 billion PKFZ scandal — in particular recent reports in Malaysiakini and Singapore Business Times, viz:

  • That the development costs for PKFZ have ballooned to RM4.63 billion from the original estimate of RM1.1 billion;
  • That the government has to step in to salvage the 405-hectare PKFZ project with a bail-out package as a result of massive cost overruns;
  • The PKFZ had been approved on the assurances that it would both feasible and self-financing. It has proved to be neither.
  • The controversy over the purchase of the 1,000 acres of land for the PKFZ, with the Finance Ministry and Attorney-General Chambers proposing forcible land acquisition at official valuations — then RM10 a sq foot — but the port authority got its way to buy it at RM25 per sq foot on a willing-buyer-willing-seller basis and the Transport Ministry’s assurance that the PKFZ would be both feasible and self-financing.
  • The multi-billion ringgit cost overruns were unauthorized and therefore illegal as any RM100 million increase in a project’s cost had to be approved first by the Ministry of Finance, which had not been done.
  • The Transport Minister had illegally and without sanction from the Finance Ministry issued letters of support to enable Kuala Dimensi, the private company tasked by the Port Klang Authority to develop the site, to issue bonds in excess of RM4 billion to cover its costs — the totality of which have now to be bailed out by the Federal Government. The unauthorized and unlawful letters of support by the Minister of Transport “were instrumental in getting the bonds at the time a triple-A rating” as such letters “are akin to government guarantees”.
  • The Cabinet has ordered the Chief Secretary to investigate whether the Transport Ministry had wrongly issued the letters of support which has resulted in the RM4.6 billion PKFZ scandal.

Has the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi given his approval for the first multi-billion ringgit bail-out operation in his premiership? Continue reading “RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal – heads must roll or Abdullah’s integrity campaign in tatters”

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What a shame — ignominous setback instead of historic 50th Merdeka breakthrough!

What a shame indeed! It should have been a major breakthrough for Malaysia giving special meaning to the 50th Merdeka anniversary but it has turned out to be an ignominous setback.

It would have been the first occasions all religions in Malaysia coming together in recent times to unite on common ground and speak on the human rights to water.

Even more significant, this one-day event entitled “United for Water: Religions Speak on the Rights to Water” is to be held at the Conference Centre of the National Mosque, Kuala Lumpur tomorrow, to be attended by some 200 people representing NGOs, civil society, religious groups and residents’ associations.

This program to bring together various religions in Malaysia to deliberate religious views on the human rights to water, with specific reference to the United Nations’ General Comment No. 15, seeks also to raise awareness among Malaysians to conserve water and respect and protect the human rights to water as a key responsibility.

But it was not to be. Although the National Mosque authorities were ever-ready to make available their Conference Centre for the path-breaking event, the police had scuttled the programme on the ground that there could be a protest demonstration. Continue reading “What a shame — ignominous setback instead of historic 50th Merdeka breakthrough!”

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Is Tsu Koon, new leader of Gerakan, “conscience of BN”, prepared to back Bernard Dompok?

The honest, principled and courageous statement by the UPKO President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Tan Sri Bernard Dompok yesterday that Malaysia is not an Islamic state was completely blacked out by the mainstream media, both printed and electronic.

This is the first time that an important pronouncement of a Cabinet Minister on a grave and fundamental national issue had been blacked out by the mainstream media.

It happened on the fourth year of the Abdullah premiership which had promised greater openness, respect for diversity of views and preparedness to listen to the truth from the people, however unpleasant. Such a “blackout” never happened in the 22 years of the previous Mahathir administration.

What does this foretell about the future of Malaysia in terms of freedom of expression, free press, human rights and democracy after the 50th Merdeka anniversary celebrations, especially after the 12th general election?

One can disagree with Bernard Dompok but why should his statement be blacked out when it is to correct growing misperceptions, both historically and constitutionally, that Malaysia is an Islamic state when the fundamental nation-building principle going back to the Merdeka social contract 50 years ago and the Malaysia Agreement 44 years ago was that Malaysia shall be a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state.

Has Malaysia reached a stage where through sheer majority rule and administrative fiat, the Constitution can be revised without any parliamentary amendment and fundamental rights subverted without any legal basis — like the ban on mainstream discussion of the 50-year nation-building principle for a secular Malaysia with Islam as official religion and not an Islamic state.
Continue reading “Is Tsu Koon, new leader of Gerakan, “conscience of BN”, prepared to back Bernard Dompok?”

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2nd series of public hearings of PSCI – Malaysians can pass judgment on “All-Clean Verdicts”

It is a strange phenomenon. With the “All-Clean Verdict” pronounced by the Attorney-General, Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail for the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan, the Deputy Internal Security Minister, Datuk Johari Baharum and the former Anti-Corruption Agency Director-General, Datuk Zulkipli Mat Noor, the country should be suffused by the aroma of cleanliness and integrity that three top officers of the land accused of corruption have been proved clean and pure.

The perfume of cleanliness and integrity from the “All-Clean Verdict” should be blowing all over the country and be the high-water mark of the Abdullah premiership which had started some four years ago with the promise to make eradication of corruption and the promotion of integrity its top priority — especially as it has nothing else to show on this score, after the escape of the 18 “big fishes” into the South China Sea.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. More questions have been raised instead about national integrity confined not just to the independence, professionalism and credibility of the “All-Clean Verdicts” and their investigations, but the very independence, impartiality and professionalism of the Anti-Corruption Agency, the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the police.

This is why in the first week of Parliament beginning on August 27, I will be asking the Prime Minister to explain why the Attorney-General’s “All-Clean Verdict” for Musa, Johari and Zulkipli on corruption allegations have raised more questions about the government’s commitment to “zero tolerance for corruption” and whether he will introduce legislation to have an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) and an independent ACA.

The Malaysian public will have an opportunity to give their views about this strange phenomenon as well as to pass judgment on the National Integrity Plan in the second series of public hearings of Parliamentary Select Committee on Integrity in four states this month, viz

Johor Baru – August 8 – 10 am
(Bilik Gerakan Tun Razak, Dewan Undangan Negeri Johor, Johor Bharu)

Malacca – August 9 – 10 am
(Bilik Gerakan Tun Mutahir, Dewan Undangan Negeri Melaka, Melaka)

Ipoh – August 15 – 10 am
(Bilik Gerakan Negeri, Dewan Undangan Negeri Perak, Ipoh)

Alor Setar – August 16 – 10 am
(Bilik Gerakan Dewan Undangan Negeri Kedah, Alor Setar, Kedah)
Continue reading “2nd series of public hearings of PSCI – Malaysians can pass judgment on “All-Clean Verdicts””

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Health care proposals by Karl Karol

by YELVERTON

And what of Karl Karol, appointed by the EPU and MOH, to provide healthcare changes to a much vagaried population here in Malaysia not to mention health care staff. Well, they appeared to have zeroed in onto a few points and appear to be here to rubber stamp proposals by the same officials from the MOH who put us into our predicament in the first place. Government hospitals are today seen as giant, and on quite a few occasions, crumbling mortuaries with babies getting mixed up, dengue patients dying days later with no treatment, specialists who cannot string a proper sentence in English and of course now the home of the infamous petrolless ambulances.

KARL KAROL’S FINDINGS

1. Health care funding must come from the public’s purse and not taxes.

Meaning why in God’s name are we paying taxes for then? Our education system is in the gutter. Already our graduates have been made debtors for life and Mustapha has even taken it a step further by revoking their civil liberties by taking away their passports after, of course, humiliating them, their family, relatives and friends by splashing their names in our papers about their misdeeds of not paying up their PTPN loans although they may be unemployed. Our air force copters keep crashing. We pay tolls for our roads. And our soccer team doesn’t need our money because I am sure most Malaysians will now agree we ought not to have one. So why do you need our taxes. Oh OK. Inflation, etc, etc… .so whatever we are paying is just to “top-up” the short fall.

2. All government hospitals are to be corporatised for greater efficiency.

This sounds fair enough. Only problem is will the hospitals, just like MAS, Telekom and TNB supposed to continue employing deadwood or can we VSS them and will the government pay them off. And worse still as in MAS and PROTON, will the government continue with its lingering interference by placing retired Pengarahs to sit in as directors of these newly independent hospital boards complete with golf memberships, first class travel and holidays abroad? Will politicians walk in and scream “Saya tak mau bayar bill”. Continue reading “Health care proposals by Karl Karol”

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DBKL high-handed policy

by “Angry Housing Developer”

What I am going to relate did happened and if you are doubtful you may check with other developers from the Klang valley who were called to attend a meeting at DBKL on 31st July 2007.

The meeting was for the purpose of releasing the overdue bumiputra quotas of houses which had remained unsold after having complied more than once the stipulated conditions of DBKL.

All the developers who attended the meeting had already complied with the conditions of publishing in the major newspapers for sale of bumiputra units and in addition we were told to book a space in Mid Valley or a designated place for further campaign to sell the bumi units.

The above exercise does not come cheap. Advertising space in the major papers and rental of space at Mid Valley cost us close to RM20,000. Can you imagine our frustration when we were told to repeat the whole exercise when we could not sell the bumi units.

In exasperation I told the DBKL officials that even if we were to give 20% discount to the Malays they would not buy our houses because it was located in Salak South, Sg Besi, an exclusive middle class enclave of the urban Chinese. Nearby there is a market selling pork and a Chinese school. Also in the vicinity is a food court selling non halal food. So would any Malays want to buy them? No said the official, “You have to advertise in the papers again and do the campaign at Mid Valley again” without any compromise.

We are a small housing developer and the total units built was 40 and the bumi allocation was 12. At RM420,000 per unit an amount close to RM5 million was tied down to the project. No wonder alot of small companies were forced to abandon their projects. We had complied with all the stipulated conditions and now after more than a year of waiting DBKL still did not want to release the units to be sold to non bumis. Continue reading “DBKL high-handed policy”

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The ‘Stupid, stupid, stupid!’ Minister

by Martin Jalleh
(3 Aug 2007)

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s (PM’s) Department, Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, is living proof that it does not require much intelligence to be a Minister in Bolehland. Before one can be a Cabinet Minister one has to be a Member of Parliament (MP) of a component party of the Barisan Nasional (BN) — and this too is peanuts (nothing to do with monkeys, surely). One only needs to be spineless, silly, sexist and of course ‘stupid’.

Nazri has also very successfully shown by his trademark threats and theatrics, why he deserves the role of the Minister overseeing parliamentary affairs. When intelligent debate and delivery is demanded of him, he would choose to dish out a diatribe of great distinction.

Bark & Bull

Following the detention of blogger and PKR webmaster Nathaniel Tan on July 13 for an investigation under the Official Secrets Act, and a high-level police report lodged by UMNO against the web portal Malaysia Today, Nazri warned (Bernama, 24.07.07):

‘The government will not hesitate to use the Internal Security Act (ISA), the Sedition Act 1948 and Section 121b of the Penal Code against bloggers (who make ‘disparaging statements’). The government has exercised restraint in the matter for a long time and the time has come for it to act according to those laws.’

The government (read as ‘UMNO’) is desperate. For so long it has succeeded in dominating and dictating the thinking of the citizens of Bolehland. The age of information technology has changed this, but the nation’s political dinosaurs still living in an ice age refuse to budge but prefer to bark and bull with the same old tone, tune and threats.

Nazri accuses bloggers of making ‘disparaging statements’ — yet he comes from a party tainted with a culture of political assassinations, poison pen letters and provocative religious statements and racial slurs and stunts. He threatens bloggers with a slew of repressive laws — whilst inferring there is greater freedom now in comparison to the previous regime of the ‘lack of freedom and some dictatorial tendencies’ (NST, 20.09.06).

Nazri should give ear to the wisdom of woman activist Zainah Anwar (NST, 27.07.07): ‘I wish our political leaders and government servants would wake up to living in the information age. There has been a seismic transformation in how people receive information and form opinions. Those with formal authority are no longer the authorities in the age of information technology. The government can no longer maintain control over what people read, hear, watch, let alone think.

‘Mainstream journalists are no longer the gatekeepers over what the public knows. The ability of technology to cause change is much faster than the ability of government to control change… The big losers in this age are those who hold traditional power.’ Continue reading “The ‘Stupid, stupid, stupid!’ Minister”

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Malaysia not Islamic state – Bernard Dompok commended, which BN Minister next who dare to speak the truth?

I congratulate Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, UPKO President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, for his honesty, courage and conviction in speaking the truth today that Malaysia is not an Islamic state.

On the occasion of the nation’s 50th Merdeka anniversary (but 44 years of the Malaysian Federation for Sabah and Sarawak), Bernard has made Sabahans and all Malaysians proud.

At the launch of ‘The Merdeka Statement’ by the Centre for Public Policy Studies in Kuala Lumpur, Bernard said the nation’s founders did not have in mind an Islamic state when the Federation of Malaysia was formed in 1963.

He said: “I think my colleagues in the government will forgive me for saying that I will not agree that we are an Islamic state.”

Bernard is right. That Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state was one of the fundamental principles of nation-building in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 for the establishment of Malaysia with Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore, which left the federation two years later in 1965.

What is most shocking is that for past six years, no Sabah or Sarawak leader, whether Minister or Deputy Minister, whether at the national or state level, had come forward to state such a simple historical truth.

Bernard must be commended for being the first Minister from Sabah and Sarawak with the political principle, conviction and integrity to speak up to defend and uphold the fundamental principle of nation-building in the establishment of Malaysia. The question is which next Minister or Deputy Minister, whether at national or state level, Sabah or Sarawak, will now emulate Bernard to speak and defend the truth. From PBS in Sabah or SUPP in Sarawak?

This crucial issue concerns not just Sabah and Sarawak but the whole Malaysian nation — for the fundamental principle that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as the official religion and not an Islamic state was not only the crux of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 but also of the Merdeka social contract leading to the attainment of national independence 50 years ago. Continue reading “Malaysia not Islamic state – Bernard Dompok commended, which BN Minister next who dare to speak the truth?”

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Should Malaysia’s RM11 billion health service be privatized?

Should Malaysia RM11 billion health service be privatized

by YELVERTON

And so the Aussies have ventured to set right our stone-aged health care system to see if we can kill less people. Looks like Malaysians cannot do anything right for themselves these days. Certainly any proposal has to be better then anything our clueless Ministry of Health officials can come up with but unfortunately the Aussies have failed to emphasize on one main factor… who holds the money? And is the MOH, currently so inefficient that ambulances run out of petrol midway to an accident scene, willing to take their fingers off the pies of equipment purchases, bloated IT budgets and crumbling hospital buildings.

When Thatcher ruled and decided the NHS needs new directions she became hopelessly unpopular to the glee of Labour. But Blair didn’t do a good job either. He stuffed down doctor’s throats MMC’s (Modernizing Medical Careers) without their consent not unlike Malaysia’s notorious Private Healthcare, Facilities and Services Act immediately alienating doctors provoking them to march in mass protests in London and Glasgow in March this year. This was followed by the resignations of Professor Alan Crockard as national director of Modernizing Medical Careers, Alex Liakos as adviser to the MMC and Professor Shelley Heard as MMC National Clinical Advisor prompting the Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt to apologize both in public and parliament.

The BMA (British Medical Association) unlike our muted MMA (Malaysian Medical Association) rightly pointed out that apologies were not enough as the entire training system has been put into jeopardy as changes have clearly not been thought through, throwing the futures of doctors and consequently healthcare into disarray. Till this day if you walk into any NHS hospital you will find notices advising doctors not to cooperate in the MMC. This move has also seen British doctors flying off to Australia and New Zealand for a “better rounded training”. Clearly Labour had forgotten the guile of Aneurin Bevan, the Guru who was instrumental in the successful initial implementation of the NHS. Continue reading “Should Malaysia’s RM11 billion health service be privatized?”

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Wanted – White Paper on “All-Clean Verdict” for Musa, Zulkipli and Johari

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should present a White Paper giving a full report exonerating the Deputy Internal Security Minister, Datuk Seri Johari Baharum, the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan and former Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) director-general Datuk Seri Zulkipli Mat Noor as the first step of the government’s national integrity policy of “zero tolerance for corruption”.

Although Abdullah expressed relief on Saturday that both Musa and Zulkipli had been cleared of corruption by the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail, he also made two remarks which were not in keeping with his pledge to lead a clean, incorruptible, open, accountable and transparent administration, viz:

  • That these corruption allegations should no longer be debated following the closure of investigations by the Attorney-General;
  • His retort when pressed for details of the investigation reports: “Don’t ask me about the contents of the investigations. That is not my job.”

As Prime Minister, Abdullah should realize that the final responsibility of a clean and incorruptible administration rests with him and not with the Attorney-General, and he has the duty and responsibility to satisfy himself about the integrity and incorruptibility of Musa and Zulkipli in view of the critically important posts they were entrusted with.

Gani has ordered the ACA to close their investigations into Musa and Zulkipli. Was this at Gani’s own behest or was it on the directive of the Prime Minister, who would have been informed beforehand that the Attorney-General would be publicly clearing Musa and Zulkipli of corruption. Continue reading “Wanted – White Paper on “All-Clean Verdict” for Musa, Zulkipli and Johari”

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50 Years of Merdeka – rumblings, rantings, reflections

This 50years independent of my country Malaysia …
by Nizam Mashar

What else should we expect from this country of ours …
50 years of independent, even 50 years of independent,
when a child sees frogs and birds as monsters,
and McD, Big Bird Sessame, Sinchan and Barbie as their friends and buddy,

when man and women, “car”ing while the hens are sleeping and back when the owl had rest,
for the dime, dollars, cent, ringgit and rupiah,
and more more more more,
for what ever cost; friends, family, corruption, nepotisme, oppression
… are another bussiness plan of the day,

when the academia, write and research, -for the sake of the world NOOOOOOOOT,
its for the three little word,
read me PhD, spell me PhD, write me PhD,
and the glitters that comes with it,
the benefit of my studies are for the TNCs whose paying me,
or the government who spend money to put me unreadable thesis in the library,
what farmers? what fishermans? what people? … they are no scholars who intellectually capable to pronounce PhD.

When business maintain…
Business as Usual…
The word “sustainable development” can always be put anywhere in the “EMP” (“environmental managment plan”),
The independent scientist in our payroll; says them; can always put the label on our containers saying “Safe and Healthy ” with enriched vitamin C,
and of course nothing to worry …
As the man, woman, tua, muda, child, youth, have been cast the make believe spell of our Advert Mania and “Macam-macam ada”

when the sivil servant is read as political servant,
which eat, drink and what ever had been “aku janji”,
and the fear of demotion, salary cut, transfer, ISA, AUKU, and macam-macam lagi,
is far ever important than the nation, the people and their least dignity
… if ever they still have one … Continue reading “50 Years of Merdeka – rumblings, rantings, reflections”