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PM Abdullah abdicating from good governance

By Dr. Chen Man Hin

PM ABDULLAH SHOULD NOT ABDICATE FROM HIS DUTIES OF GOOD GOVERNANCE – REVOKE THE SODOMY II CONSPIRACY IMMEDIATELY AND INSTEAD LEAD THE COUNTRY TO UNITY, PROGRESS AND PROSPERITY

MARCH 8TH – A DEFINING DAY FOR NEW MALAYSIA, A DAY OF GRIEF AND BLOW FOR BARISAN NASIONAL AND UMNO.

The latest Merdeka Center Research report found that only 28 percent of registered voters polled in July felt encouraged by the country’s direction, a severe fall from 68% in late February.

Briefly, the causes for this rapid loss of confidence in the present Barisan government, are outlined below.

UMNO SHOCK DEFEAT ON MARCH 8TH

The prime minister was deeply upset by the poor performance of Barisan Nasional at the elections, when Barisan lost its two-thirds majority in parliament and only obtained 52% of the popular vote.

It was a body blow for Umno, causing it to be embroiled in self recrimination and loss of morale.

The PM was so upset by the loss and the resulting turmoil in Umno that he forgot his duties as head of government, which was to govern and bring development for the country. Continue reading “PM Abdullah abdicating from good governance”

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Anwar’s Sodomy II charge – morality/legitimacy of Abdullah’s premiership under question

I was not surprised when I received a call from Anwar Ibrahim at 11.38 am informing me that he had been asked to appear to be charged in court at 10 am tomorrow.

But the expectation did not diminish one whit the shock and dismay at hearing its confirmation.

For while like most Malaysians, who are not really surprised that Anwar is being dragged to court for the second time on a sodomy charge, we also nurse the hope and wish that sanity will prevail in our land and the country spared another traumatic political trial where Malaysia’s yet-to-be launched judicial reform to restore our international reputation two decades ago where there is just rule of law and a truly independent judiciary would not come to an abrupt end.

Just like Anwar’s Sodomy I trial, any Sodomy II trial is not going to be just about Anwar as the nation and our future will be on trial. Continue reading “Anwar’s Sodomy II charge – morality/legitimacy of Abdullah’s premiership under question”

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Call for RCI on MRR2 Scandal – Samy Vellu’s final folly with Malaysians again made the suckers

In May last year, I said that the old saying “once is accident, twice is coincidence, thrice is enemy action” could appropriately be modified to “once is accident, twice is coincidence, thrice is systemic government collapse” in reference to the spate of government mishaps under the Abdullah premiership.

I was referring to the spate of embarrassing defects in new government offices in a matter of weeks, viz:

• the landslide in Putrajaya (Precinct 9) only inches away from three 15-storey government apartments, damaging 25 cars and evacuating more than 1,500 people from Blocks A, B and C in Phase 11 of the government housing complex on March 22, 2007;

• the closure of the Immigration Department headquarters in Putrajaya after water flooded the seven-floor building following a failure in plumbing, turning away and evacuating more than 1,000 people on April 11, 2007;

• the collapse of a ceiling due to a leaky sprinkler system at the Entrepreneur and Co-operative Development Ministry in Putrajaya on April 28, 2007; and

• the ceiling collapse in a secretary’s room at the world’s largest court complex at the new Jalan Duta court complex in Kuala Lumpur on April 30, 2007.

This tag “once is accident, twice is coincidence, thrice is systemic government collapse” can again be invoked over the latest government scandal – the third closure with the reappearance of cracks on the Middle Ring Road (MRR) 2 in Kepong, less than two years after an atrociously exorbitant RM70 million repair of the RM238 million project. Continue reading “Call for RCI on MRR2 Scandal – Samy Vellu’s final folly with Malaysians again made the suckers”

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2-Year power transition – “headless government” in Malaysia?

A jumble of thoughts. A mish-mash of questions.

These describe my feelings when I sat in the cavernous plenary hall of the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre for the official opening of the 54th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference this morning.

I made a special point to be punctual as the official invitation card asked all guests to arrive by 9.40 am, with the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi scheduled to arrive at 9.50 am to officiate the opening ceremony.

But Abdullah did not turn up. It was Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who appeared instead.

Najib did apologise on behalf of the Prime Minister for being unable to attend the function but he did not explain what was the urgent business of state which had prevented Abdullah from fulfilling his long-standing engagement which would have been finalized well in advance with the Prime Minister’s Office.

One thought I could not push away at the KLCC this morning was whether we are witnessing a “headless” government in Malaysia – and whether this was the result of the two-year “power transition” plan announced by Abdullah on July 10 that he would hand over the offices of Umno President and Prime Minister to Najib in June 2010. Continue reading “2-Year power transition – “headless government” in Malaysia?”

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Mr. Bean, Death, and Taxes

by G. Krishnan

I can’t help it, but on more than one occasion, it’s been difficult not to have the image of the Rowan Atkinson character, Mr. Bean, come to mind while watching, listening or reading some of the comments of Abdullah Badawi. The most recent instance of this seemed to be during his address to the Malaysian Student Leaders Summit. Apparently, he wasn’t even in tune with the title of his speech! Beyond that, the hollowness of his comments in response to the students’ questions seemed to reflect contempt for the intelligence of the students. (see Malaysiakini)

I will admit, it’s difficult for me to decide if the Badawi I am watching or listening to is the real Badawi or if he’s simply putting on an act. Either way, it’s a rather disturbing and unsettling thought. Could our prime minister really be serious about some of the public pronouncements he makes? And does he really expect that the public is so gullible as to take it all in?

He comments – with seeming naivety – on an on-going police ‘investigation’ of an alleged sodomy case and prejudices the case with bizarre public pronouncements. And despite the nakedly transparent political motivation for this pursuit of Anwar, the prime minister, with a Mr. Bean like persona of artlessness and innocence, in a not so tacit fashion gives his blessings to this seemingly legitimate police investigation. How, in the name of justice can we expect such an investigation, where the political establishment doesn’t even attempt to disguise its prejudice about the matter, to have any ounce of credibility to it? But yet the prime minster, in a Mr. Bean like haze and stupor, seemingly finds noting problematic about the process. Continue reading “Mr. Bean, Death, and Taxes”

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Malicious Mindset and Perverted Priorities

BY: M. Bakri Musa

The continuing furor over a college dropout’s allegation that he had been sodomized reveals the malicious mindset and perverted priorities of the Abdullah Administration.

It is also a gross perversion of justice. Those who would have Anwar swear by the Quran and voluntarily donate his DNA to the police, whose reputation is only slightly less soiled than the criminals they apprehend, have it backwards. It is the norm of the civilized world that one is innocent till found guilty; it is for the state to prove its case beyond any reasonable doubt.

I can excuse law-illiterate Abdullah for not appreciating such nuances, but for his law-trained ministers like Rais Yatim and Syed Hamid not to know that is reprehensible. They are breaching their profession’s ethics and ideals.

Besides, since when has our Quran been debased to a lie detector? If only the truth could thus be readily sought, we would not need expensive forensic investigations! Such naiveté!

What with the economic challenges, endemic corruption, and rampant crime in the country, our leaders’ voyeuristic obsession on this alleged male-on-male khalwat represents gross misuse of scarce state resources, a flagrant perversion of priorities. Continue reading “Malicious Mindset and Perverted Priorities”

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Permatang Pauh by-election – turn it into a mini political tsunami

The voters of Permatang Pauh have a historic opportunity to create a mini-political tsunami in the impending by-election with far-reaching impact to the national political landscape far exceeding the fate of an individual or a constituency.

The stakes involved in the Permatang Pauh by-election is not just about an individual and a constituency but the future of the Malaysian people and nation.

The issue in the Permatang Pauh by-election is not whether Pakatan Rakyat leader and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim can win but whether he can achieve a thumping and landslide victory with a majority bigger than the 13,388-vote majority won by PKR President Datuk Seri Dr. Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in the March 8, 2008 general election.

If Anwar can win the Permatang Pauh by-election with an even greater majority won by Azizah five months ago, despite an even more massive onslaught by the whole weight of the Barisan Nasional juggernaut, it would have a special import in shaping the development of the Malaysian political landscape. Continue reading “Permatang Pauh by-election – turn it into a mini political tsunami”

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2 notorious cases challenge Malaysia’s modesty

International Herald Tribune
By Thomas Fuller

Friday, August 1, 2008

KUALA LUMPUR: Government censors in this majority Muslim nation uphold an ethos of modesty by snipping sex scenes from films and ordering entertainers to avoid outfits that reveal too much on Malaysian stages – bare belly buttons and figure-hugging outfits are off limits.

But these days Malaysians looking to avoid R-rated content might be advised to read past news reports about their own leaders. Top politicians are embroiled in two scandals involving accusations of sodomy and the gruesome murder of a Mongolian mistress.

Reports on the finer points of a rectal examination and revelations about the sexual preferences of the dead mistress make other sex scandals that once shocked people here – such as Monica Lewinsky and her blue dress – seem almost Victorian.

This is not the first time that sex and politics have publicly collided in Malaysia. The trial of Anwar Ibrahim, a former deputy prime minister, for sodomy in the 1990s featured, among other highlights, a blood-stained mattress being hauled into the courtroom.

This time, wider use of the Internet has helped disseminate documents, facts and rumors that would otherwise have been filtered out of mainstream news media tightly controlled by the government.

The two scandals encompass much more than just sex. They are part of a broader clash between two men vying for power: Anwar is facing new allegations of sodomy at a time when he is vowing to unseat the governing party, while the other scandal involves Anwar’s principal political rival, Najib Razak, the deputy prime minister and anointed heir to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

What is worrying for many Malaysians is that the gloves appear to have come off in the high-stakes fight between Anwar and Najib. Continue reading “2 notorious cases challenge Malaysia’s modesty”

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Drop Anwar’s Sodomy II persecution – 1st step to end Abdullah’s freefall of public confidence in PM

“Abdullah: We do not fear Anwar – ‘Govt won’t stop him from contesting but due process of law cannot be ignored’” – this Star headline today is symptomatic of what is wrong with the Abdullah administration, that it is terribly obsessed and mortally worried about the Anwar factor in Malaysian politics.

Otherwise, why should Abdullah be dwelling on the subject of Anwar in the past two consecutive days, as if he has nothing more important to fret about – with the grave political, economic and nation-building crisis faced by 26 million Malaysians as well as his possible legacy to go down in history as the worst Prime Minister of Malaysia despite his glorious electoral mandate in 2004.

Instead of being haunted by the Anwar factor, Abdullah and his Cabinet should focus on the latest opinion poll of the independent Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research, conducted between July 4-16 from 1,030 Malaysians, which found among others the following:

1. For the first time, Abdullah’s popularity has plunged from a record high of 91 per cent in November 2004 to 61 per cent in January 2008 (just before the March 8 general election), down to 53 per cent in April 2008. With the unchecked free-fall in the past three months, Abdullah’s popularity rating has crashed below 50% in the latest survey to 42%.

2. The popular “satisfaction” quotient with the Barisan Nasional federal government has also fallen below 50%, with 54 per cent either “somewhat dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with the Barisan Nasional government, while 44 per cent said they were either “very satisfied” or “somewhat satisfied”. Continue reading “Drop Anwar’s Sodomy II persecution – 1st step to end Abdullah’s freefall of public confidence in PM”

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Anwar’s Sodomy II – has it become Abdullah’s personal crusade?

I am flabbergasted.

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi seems very determined to provide examples to illustrate the continuing crisis of confidence in his administration.

Yesterday, in an interview with Associated Press, Abdullah went public on the Sodomy II allegations against Anwar Ibrahim in a manner which could only mean that he was in the thick of the decision-making process as to whether Anwar Ibrahim, the Parti Keadilan Rakyat adviser would be hauled to court for a second sodomy charge in a decade, when the Prime Minister has no business to be involved in the exercise of the discretionary power by the Attorney-General on matters of prosecution or otherwise.

How else could one interpret the following remarks by Abdullah yesterday:

“This man pleads for justice. We care about (Anwar) more than we care about this man? That is very odd. He needs justice; that is what he is crying for. We cannot ignore that.”

I am verily surprised that Abdullah had today repeated this obsession of “justice for Saiful” when he returned to the same subject today. Continue reading “Anwar’s Sodomy II – has it become Abdullah’s personal crusade?”

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Pump prices of oil should be reduced to old price now

by Dr. Chen Man Hin

AS AN OIL PRODUCER, MALAYSIA MUST USE ITS OIL INCOME TO BOOST THE ECONOMY AND RELIEVE THE SUFFERING OF THE PEOPLE. THE CABINET MUST BRING DOWN PUMP PRICES IMMEDIATELY.

The cabinet should not dither any more on the critical issue of bringing down pump prices. It must NOW act to bring down the price of pump oil immediately.

The economy has slowed down considerably since the price of pump oil was increased by 42% from RM 1.98 to RM2.70 per litre. All sectors of the economy have been affected, The manufacturing industries, transportation, tourism, hotels, restaurants, shops and even markets have been affected bady because of the high increase of oil by government.

The construction industry is badly hit because of the rapid and huge price increases for steel, concrete and other building materials. Many contractors have surrended back their contracts to govenment and developers. Continue reading “Pump prices of oil should be reduced to old price now”