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Fulfilment of 30-year dream of Sabahans in the hands of Sabah BN MPs

The three-decade dream of Sabahans for a Royal Commission of Inquiry on illegal immigrants in the state will be realized tomorrow if the 24 Barisan Nasional Sabah MPs join the 82 Pakatan Rakyat MPs to support the amendment to the Motion of Thanks for the establishment of such a Royal Commission.

For the past thirty years, calls for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the illegal immigrant problem had been made in Parliament, the Sabah State Assembly as well as in the public domain but they had been totally ignored.

Now, for the first time in three decades, it is possible for such a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the long-standing and intractable problem of illegal immigrants in Sabah, which had reduced Sabahans into a minority to foreigners, to be established provided the 24 Barisan Nasional MPs from Sabah walk the talk about their concerns about this issue and support my amendment to the Motion of Thanks for the Royal Address to set up such a Royal Commission.

The support of the 24 BN MPs is all that is needed to secure the necessary majority in Parliament to direct the Cabinet to set up such a Royal Commission of Inquiry as there will be 82 Pakatan Rakyat MPs in support of the proposal. Continue reading “Fulfilment of 30-year dream of Sabahans in the hands of Sabah BN MPs”

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Mahathir ups the ante

Three immediate questions on Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad’s shock decision to quit Umno:

1. Was it the direct result of the Cabinet decision on the Lingam Video Clip Royal Commission of Inquiry report directing the Attorney-General to investigate Mahathir and five others for any offences committed by them?

2. Was it part of a larger grand plan to escalate pressure both inside and outside Umno to force Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to step down as Prime Minister and Umno President?

3. Was it an act of desperation at his failure to influence events in Umno so far?

Time will soon tell.

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Idiotic pride displayed for all to see

by Dr. Azly Rahman

Recently, Johoreans formulated a resolution on ketuanan Melayu. I do not know what this means at a time when our political-psychological landscape has changed.

They met at a time when Umno is so messed up and its old and new presidents are fighting like the Jacobins and the Girondins, and Parliament looks like the trading floor of the New York Stock exchange in the days of ticker-tape.

The Johoreans are doing the ketuanan Bahasa Melayu thing when Malays and Malaysians are in need of powerful mastery of the English Language to not only progress but also to understand why the majority of Malays are digressing while the powerful few are plundering.

Is this what Johor Malays are good at, in their critical analysis of society? Or is this the hypocritical sensibility the Melayu Bangsawan Johor possesses?

I do not know. Having been born and raised in Johor, I have a different view of this Johor hegemony.

This is the Berita Harian report on the resolution, as cited on the Malaysian Bar Council website on May 5, 2008:

Kongres Permuafakatan Melayu bertemakan ‘Kedaulatan Melayu Paksi Kewujudan Bangsa’ selama tiga hari di Johor Bahru yang berakhir semalam, menyaksikan usaha bersungguh-sungguh lebih 2,000 peserta mewakili 200 pertubuhan bukan kerajaan Melayu dari seluruh negara mahu bangsa Melayu terus unggul…. Mereka mahu kuasa, kedaulatan dan ketuanan Melayu terus dipelihara, bukan membiarkannya diancam oleh pihak lain.

It’s a very powerful resolution. Sounds like a reiteration of the ideology of the Biro Tata Negara. There is nothing wrong with holding a conference to reiterate the need to feel good about oneself from time to time. But I wonder if it is about critical sensibility or hypocritical one-dimensionality.

I am familiar with the mind of the Johor Malay, having being raised in that sub-culture. It has its progressive streak but it has its digressive streak as well.

The resolution highlights very critical issues for the ‘survival’ of the Johor Malays, as they would contend. Continue reading “Idiotic pride displayed for all to see”