The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) personally presented in Parliament for first reading yesterday by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi both fall far short of expectations and the promise of anti-corruption and judicial reforms.
The 15th anniversary today of the Highland Towers tragedy in 1993 which killed 48 people and over 1,000 people were made homeless, preceded five days ago by the Bukit Antarabangsa landslide disaster which killed four, with one missing while displacing some 5,000 people, should serve as wrenching reminders of the necessity for urgent and meaningful anti-corruption and judicial reforms.
Even the mainstream New Straits Times yesterday editorialized that “Everything from the loss of faith in national institutions, as measured in both the electoral vote and the rising crime rate, to the catastrophic failure of developed hill slopes seems at least partly attributable to the corrosion of corruption – of corners cut, blind eyes turned, and money paid for benefits unseen”.
The New Straits Times editorial could have cited as another recent example of the far-reaching consequences of the corrosion of rampant corruption – the road carnage in the express bus North-South Expressway (NSE) crash in Tangkak which killed 10 and injured 14 on Sunday.
The Highland Towers tragedy is also a case study of the urgent need for judicial reforms – with the indefensible and unconscionable Federal Court judgment of Feb. 17, 2006 in the Highland Tower case that local authorities are not legally liable for landslides, collapsed buildings and people dying when it should have struck a just and middle ground to hold the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council liable where negligence is established while taking into account the interests of the ratepayers for essential basic services.
Abdullah’s claim after the first reading yesterday that the MACC and JAC bills will restore public and investors’ confidence in the country’s battle against corruption and the judicial system is too premature, as this will depend on whether the two bills can result in meaningful and effective reforms in these two jurisdictions.
Can the MACC and JAC bills wipe out the negative perception, finally admitted by the Prime Minister himself, that the government is not committed towards tackling corruption or addressing the suspicions of investors about the integrity of the judiciary?
The MACC purports to create an independent anti-corruption agency, taking it out from the Prime Minister’s Department to be answerable to Parliament.
However, from the MACC bill, the Prime Minister’s influence and even control through the various provisions of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Bill are still over-powering and sufficient to undermine its independence and autonomy. For instance, it is the Prime Minister who will decide the appointments of the Chief Commissioner of the MACC as well as the two important “check-and-balance” mechanisms – the Anti-Corruption Advisory Board and the Special Committee on Corruption.
The Special Committee on Corruption is supposed to be the Parliamentary Committee to exercise oversight of the MACC, but who decides on its composition? The Prime Minister, who will advise the Yang di Pertuan Agong on the appointment of seven members from the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara, based on the nomination of the “Leader of the House of Representatives” who is none other than the Prime Minister himself!
Clause 58 of the Bill providing that an offence under the new law may only be instituted by or on behalf of the Public Prosecutor undermines the claim that the Chief Commissioner of the MACC will have absolute discretion to decide on prosecution on corruption.
The JAC Bill is also a letdown. I share the disappointment of Dato’ Param Cumarawamy, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers who have pointed out two salient points:
• Without amending article 121 of the Constitution to restore the doctrine of separation of powers and conferring the judicial power on the courts, judicial independence cannot be secured by merely conferring on the chief executive of the government the duty to uphold judicial independence.
• The power of the Prime Minister to remove the eminent persons in the Judicial Appointments Commission at any time without giving reasons pursuant to clause 9(1) virtually gives legal legitimacy for executive dominance over the judicial arm of the government.
From the Bill, the Prime Minister can finally ignore the recommendations of the Judicial Appointments Commission to recommend his own candidates for judicial appointments and promotions, which makes a mockery of such a judicial reform.
A meeting will be held to decide on the a common stand on the two bills to be taken by the Pakatan Rakyat MPs next week.
Najib needs to add a new minister inside his cabinet, that is Dollah as “Minister of Reforms”
Well, whatever bills we gonna pass won’t do any good unless there is a political WILL to put the society on a pedestal of honesty and corruption free. All the papers used to write them have no meaning! Tody even without any of those mentioned bills, if there is a clean HEAD, name him any name you want, only then things can change. This Bolehland has gone through all the motions just to pass time; finally we all come back to where we started!
The indoctrination of the mind set cannot be changed over-nite, at best we can create some diversion, and if we are lucky.
Chances are we are all rolling towards the same destination our Super-Ego’s friend is going! Yes, pay $23 million for a loaf of bread! Won’t that be nice, suddenly we are all trillionaires!!
“…all far short of expectations…”
I don’t know … whose expectations?
Malaysia “Business As Usual”.
JAC Bill’s half reform measure is as good as still born. For the PM to expect it to generate positive investor confidence is not just premature, it’s just a dream. It’s flawed for so many reasons
1) As the former CJ pointed out, there is insufficient quorum should the question of nomination of CJ and CA President comes up, since good practice suggests they should not vote in a matter of personal interest – there was a reason why Zaid wanted 13 members instead of 9, but Nazri thought of a pea brained solution
2) PM can sack the commissioners
3) Selection of commissioners need not go through a formal and transparent process involving public feedback. We have to rely on the good faith of PM to consult various stakeholders such as the Bar Council
4) If the PM does not like the nominees and asks for 2 other names, he need not assign reasons – also lacking transparency
5) The nomination process is also lacking transparency – there is no review period by the public to lodge any complaints
6) If the current crop of judges are not beyond suspicion, and they form the majority of any nomination process, the entire nomination process is tainted even before it begins – we need to clean up the house and resolve the Lingam issue and the current CJ issue first
7) PM gets to make orders to implement the Act – if this is not judicial interference, I don’t know what to call this
8) Seniority is not a criteria of selection – perhaps portends further leapfrogging by UMNO favoured judges?
The MCAC Bill won’t work because
a) salary paid out of PM Department – Executive interference
b) CC’s delegated prosecutorial powers can be retracted anytime the Executive thinks the commission steps out of line
c) Special Parliamentary Committee does not need to table report, have to rely on good faith of the PM to appoint opposition members – appointment process not inherently transparent
d) Complaints Committee – again, relying too much on good faith of the PM – selection process not inherently transparent
e) whistleblower’s punishment too severe
The bottom line – what the PM tries to do is to create an apparent/additional tier of “watchers”. But who watches the watchers? Looks like it’s back to the PM, and therefore for the time being UMNO. Malaysians should speak out loudly and reject the bills in their current form. Our message in March 8 has clearly not reached the ears of the PM or his deputy. They must pay the price come KT by-election.
So much for REFORMS by the government. All they want is control,anything they cannot control, they shall NOT pass. The ONLY thing the rakyat should do is REFORM the present government.
Long Live PR!!!
Malaysian today must be able to sacrifice a little today to save a lot tommorow. I hope & pray that Malaysians have come of age to KILL this HYDRA which is continuing to poison us.
Hidup Malaysia! Hapuskan Rasuah!
UNDI PR DI KT untuk demi masa HADAPAN yang cerah untuk Negara KITA yang kita cintai. Selamatkan Negara KITA daripada musuh musuh dalaman.
MACC and JAC is just BN drama of the last tango.
Dollah zzzzzzzz for the past 5 years. 3 mths left
he’s trying to jazz Altantuya murderer..
http://malaysian-all-bloggers.blogspot.com/
>>
Mr PM, if you are just making cosmetic changes in your reforms for JAC and MAAC, why waste the time of MPs on both sides of the house. After more than half a decade as PM, is that the best you can produce…no wonder, the rakyat call you ‘The Sleeping PM’.
All a waste of time :-
1. Bill clintons’ talking to the deaf
2. Branding forums when there is no meritocracy but full of corruption
3. reforms JAC & MAAC cosmetic changes when there is no sincerity and political will
As expected already what is to be expected from him.5 years to do it as he promised and we gave him the 91% but what a dissappointment and playout.now he just want to push it thru with cosmatic changes.What is he trying to prove?
The good news are to program Malaysians.. how good Dollah is.
THe newspapers are saying all things good..with hints…that not many ordinary Malaysian understands ..how cunning Dollah can be.
It’s like the many small prints that one don’t read in hire purchase and borrowing from banks..documents….just sign the doted line
UMNO always need final say in any law to protect their corrupted deeds.
There is no way any UMNO PM dare to give total freedom to legal matters. It’s all side shows by hypocrites.
Get rid of corruptions and ISA…you got to get rid of UMNO…so said RPK.
HK ICAC from Wikipedia
Hong Kong ICAC website
i think there’s a need for me to inform others how an independent anti-corruption commission should be…
Go ahead and compare it with Bolehland’s one.
Abdullah has been the con-man of the Century from the day he assumed office. Now he is a super con-man, a liar and cheat.
if you read Badawi’s interview with Terence Fernandez in the Sun a week or 2 before, you might form the impression that he is going to bring out some fundamental, earth shaking, awe-inspiring reform
reading the above, it is just like changing the bottle but retaining the same wine (whine)
Badawi, whether he manage to push throw his reform or not, is immaterial as it does not change the situation in Malaysia too much, if at all. He can leave office March without feeling a sense of failure. There is no failure when you are not trying to accomplish anything.
sorry, through, not throw
MACC & JAC put on a new clothing to cover the same nakedness.
Now that pariah old man Mahathir blame Abdullah giving too much freedom to Malaysians for the failures of UMNO..in his latest Forum talk.
This old man really have a stinking art to twist and turn..everything to his advantage.
We saw how his plan worked…shutting Anwar’s mouth for six years.
He jailed dozens under ISA..under Operation Lallang..to shut their mouths.
I guess…if he was still the PM….and if Dollah and Najib are his tool boys….as he planned..Operation Lallang 2 will be enforced.
ISA was meant to jail with no reasons on communists.
All gone..more more 20 years already.
I guess everyone against UMNO is a communist….while keeping quiet like nice lap dogs of MCA..MIC and Gerakan…..suits the fine…behaving like daylight robbers without fear….and call that……money politics…no sin at all.
They are so sinful….keep confusing their own race and relgion.
UMNO is the most sinful political party in the world.
Those are so deep rooted..just like Mahathir….83 years old….master of dirty politics..master of double talks..great thick skin liar….great diversion politician…….a dictator.. a devil reincarnated …..to keep dividing us.till his last breathe….to save his family.
Frankly, from day one when Badawi became the PM of Malaysia I was one of the few doubters who believed that he could do any thing meaningful in reforming the country’s damaged institutions.
My reasoning is this: Badawi has been with UMNO for a number of years. UMNO is the most corrupted party in Malaysia as well as in the whole universe we called Earth. For any one who has remained in UMNO for so long and did not see the rampant corruption that is being practiced at every level of the party, he must be totally blind and a foolish hypocrite.
However, due to the clever packaging that Badawi has been able to weave around him he was proclaimed as “Mr Clean” and when Mahathir was looking for a deputy to mitigate the sacking of Anwar, he cunningly choose Badawi. Not that he believe that Badawi is an honest and incorruptible man but he just wanted to capitalise on the weaknesses of Badawi. As the cunning fox Mahathir knows that Badawi is really a very nondescript person who does not distinguished himself in any capacity and that he can easily be swayed by his (Mahathir’s) strong personality. However Mahathir was also fooled by Dollah docility because Badawi is also ambitious and he also want to leave his own legacy of being the best PM of Malaysia. With the complicity of his SIL, Badawi chopped off all the mega projects that was introduced by Mahathir and instead launched his own mega-mega projects, like the dozens of corridors around the country; promotion of agriculture with its attendant red,blue, green books as potential money-spinning business ventures.
Knowing that the people is sick with the corruption and iron rule of Mahathir, Badawi cleverly embarked on a campaign of making reforms his central plank of his administration. Catchy slogans such as “I am the PM of all Malaysians”, etc captured the imagination of the populace and he was given a big mandate by the people.
However, I was not impressed by his big talk about reforms because the 2004 election was marked with controversies and he did not do anything to attend to this longstanding problem as a freshly minted reform PM. When I make the remark that I do not believe that Badawi can ever carry out the necessary reforms, I was chastised by many of my friends who told me that Abdullah needed the time. Well after 5 years of donkeying around as the PM I have been vindicated in my stand that Badawi is a corrupt, hypocritical and insincere man. Events has proven the insincerity and ineffectiveness of the so-called Mr Clean.
You don’t need to be a genius to tell the good from bad.
You can fool some people some time, but certainly you cannot fool all the people all the time, an adage too well known and time tested to be right.
Well guys, if ever there is any sincerity on the part of anybody, there is no need to beat about the bush; just straight thinking, straight talking and straight action would suffice. Anything else is crap and unnecessary.
Just call a spade a spade, nothing more nothing less.
At the heart of it all, just come up with as clearly defined a Bill as possible, with inputs from from all stakeholders, refined it until there are no loopholes for just anybody, including from the very top echelon to the very bottom of of the hierarchy.
If no one is above the law and all should be treated equally before the law, why should there be any immunity at all for any parties, individuals or personalities? To allow so would be making a mockery of whatever laws that are enforced in the land. And it certainly smacks of multiple standards.
Is this the kind of judiciary and legal approaches that the country is promulgating and perpetuating? I cry for Malaysia and Malaysians.
It seems that accountability is deliberately avoided and circumvented to protect those who had been entrusted with and had accepted the responsibilities to carry out duties toward the community and society.
In such a scenario the public at large would ultimately be at the receiving end of any injustices or mishaps that may ensued.
And the officers and officials and their agents, who should have been responsible, could get away scot-free without having to answer to any wrongdoings or shortcomings committed while discharging their duties. At times it was their negligence and non- compliance with their scope of duty and responsibility which resulted in calamities and tragic consequences.
Such officers and officials and their agents by right should be subjected to laws and regulations which any other individuals in all professions and jobs are subjected to.
Then and only then could it be said that there is accountability, integrity, transparency, justice, sensibility, impartiality, responsibility and equality before the law.
Immunity and unconditional protection from laws and regulations should not be practised at all and should be rejected outright and be made illegal. For NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.
The PM has no credibility left and these white-wash bills are proof of that.
The basic rule of a good saleman is to promise much and deliver more than you promise – that way your satisfied customer will be a powerful referral source.
But the PM’s talk about working “to the last second” does not convince me one jot that he seeks genuine reforms.
These bills only put a fine veneer on the old ways and in fact just cost more with change of stationary, PR campaigns etc.
A black core remains a black core no matter what colour the exterior assumes.
A genuine intention would be genuine no matter how you look at it. If it is not, no matter how genuine one makes it out to be, it remains fake.
A spade is a spade, no matter what you call it. If it is not a spade, even if you insist that it is one, it won’t turn into one.
Reality does not bluff. Deceit does.
Abdullah thinks Malaysian is stupid.
In politics there is no certainty…..
Today we quarreled, tomorrow we are seen as best friends……… or may be not as one has to go to jail…..
DSAI once placed Dr M as his mentor but unfortunately things didn’t turn out right…..
Dr M once placed Pak Lah instead of Dato’ Najib & things also didn’t turn out right…
Should one day come when MP from Rembau or Kamal has some issues….
Then perhaps it may be too late for anymore Judicial Review!
And regret will not be his only words…………..
It may just happen!!! What goes around comes back around!
“The Highland Towers tragedy ….the indefensible and unconscionable Federal Court judgment …that local authorities are not legally liable for landslides, collapsed buildings and people dying …” KIT
Is this one of those cases which involve the balancing of conflicting interests, that the court would have to come down on the side of “public interest” otherwise building of anything would grind to a halt because the process requiring approval would be ardously slow and painful?
The short answer to that question is NO – period.
Like the old Chinese saying goes, “It is an absolutely time-wasting vain effort trying to negotiate for the tiger leather with the tiger itself!”
Would Pak Lah be so nice to table some bills which when enacted could be turned into some kinds of spears or arrows to be used by his political foes such as Mukhriz Mahathir against Pak Lah himself or against his son-in-law Khairy Jamaludin someday in the future?
I think Pak Lah had better wisely stopped playing a joker’s role in the political theater by now because it is very disgusting for the people to see him continually acting hypocritically in the disguise of so-called political reform. If Pak Lah really wants to show his true sincerity in the judicial reform and the anti-corruption reform, he should at least not to fool around with the basic principle of Separation of Powers in the government. Apparently, Pak Lah does not seem to be sincere enough because he has chosen to adopt the fusion of powers instead of separation of powers in his recommended bills by vesting all powers of hire and fire of the key safeguarding personnels into the hand of the Prime Minister. Our Prime Minister is already the most powerful man in the world. What is the point of putting additional powers into the hand of the Prime Minister at the present dictatorial situation and then make it up nicely as a political reform through a political plastic surgery with two more rubbish bills?
Unless three key government officers, namely the Anti-Corruption Investigator, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor, and the Anti-Corruption Judge, can be appointed free of interference or intervention from the Prime Minister, Malaysians shall never expect to see the true reform happening to the core issues of corruption at the high rank profile. Who will dare to prosecute an alleged corrupted Prime Minister in the court if the investigator, the prosecutor and the court judge are merely the subordinates of the Prime Minister, who happens also to be their paymaster?
Therefore, I see Pak Lah’s proposed reform as just another funny joke attempting to belittle the people and to make an insult to the Malaysian citizens’ intelligence!
PPP will leave BN if ISA not amended
Dollah: OK, I’ll amend the ISA. “Detention without trial for 2 years” is amended to “Detention without trial for 24 months”
Kayveas: Thank you for amending the ISA, Datuk. Now PPP will not leave BN.
YB, this criticism of Chief Commissioner of the MACC should be an appointment by someone else other than the PM, who should, according to you, that “someone be”? Is it to be by Parliament ? If so, how? The BN has majority : don’t tell me some of its MPs who use profanities in Parliament would also have a say!
I think the part of MACC’s chief commissioner being appointed by the Yang Di Pertuan Agong on the advice of the Prime Minister is less objectionable – provided he does so in consultation with or at least without objection from various stakeholders including civil society and Opposition – than the other part, that the MACC’s candidate ought to be selected from among members of the public service. Why should such a commissioner be recruited amongst ranks of government bureaucracy/public service? Would this include an eminent ex judge?
The other criticism – that prosecution for an offence under MACC shall not be instituted except by or with the consent of the public prosecutor – is valid and important. MACC’s decision to prosecuite should be independent. It can not depend on discretion of the Public Prosecutor/Attorney General which so far has prosecuted no ‘big fish’.
In respect of the JAC, I agree that the PM cannot just remove its eminent members at his whims and fancies without defined parameters of misconduct. It does not make sense that if the PM cannot just remove a judge and chief judge at will how could he be allowed to do so for members of a body like JAC appointing the judge and chief judge? In fact the criteria defined for removal of judge and chief judge should be as if not more stringent as that prescribed in Federal Constitution for judges.
The other part about the PM being ultimately able to ignore the recommendations of the JAC in judicial appointment is also a valid criticism as it defeats the fundmental reason of existence of the JAC.
Beyond that it is hard to comment based just on secondary/selective reporting of Mainstream media unless we could peruse the detailed provisions of the bills on the Web.
All the two bill does is really create two new departments under the PM so instead of the PM deciding things outright, he will have a bunch of people beholden to him that decide things together. It provide a small check on extreme abuse BUT also provide more avenue for excuses given that a few more people have a say.
Independence is crap shoot depending on the personal willingness and abilities of the appointees. In the end its feudalistic and medieval. There is much more faith on personalities and morality of the powerful than on institutions and processes.
Does Parliament post such Bills on its website so that the public can have access and comment? What’s the website to read such?
Is there a ‘cooling off’ period here for public feedback before it becomes law? Or does it always have to be done the BN way – Boleh-Nah!
ENDANGERED HORNBILL
You mean you don’t trust the BN leaders to do what is right for Malaysia?
Just being cynical – no flame intended. Good feature in NST of rain water harvesting.
http://malaysiawatch4.blogspot.com/2008/12/malaysiakini-and-our-national-problems.html
k1980 has a good suggestion.
And just to hijack Pakatan’s cause name the ministry “Kementrian Reformasi”.
Acts and Acts and more Acts.
What happen if they all fail.
Well, it is Acts of God.
(from Malaysiakini)
In a written parliamentary reply to DAP MP Liew Chin Tong, Abdullah had revealed that the government forks out RM6 million a year for rental and maintenance works for his official residence, Seri Perdana.
According to the reply, RM4,149,000 is paid as rental to Putrajaya Holdings – the master developer of the federal administrative capital – while the remaining RM1,896,616 is for maintenance works.
The government also pays RM3.4 million (RM2,273,888 for rental and RM1,129,992 for maintenance) for Seri Setia, the deputy premier’s official residence.
In total, this works out to about RM26,000 per day for both residences. This is equivalent to RM13,000 per hour or RM216.67 a minute. And there are people in this country earning less than RM900 a month… OMG
k1980 Says:
Today at 08: 21.42 (3 hours ago)
Dollah: OK, I’ll amend the ISA. “Detention without trial for 2 years” is amended to “Detention without trial for 24 months”
Kayveas: Thank you for amending the ISA, Datuk. Now PPP will not leave BN.
//////////////////////////////////////////
Dollah already said, as reported in newspapers, “Feel free to leave if they have to rethink their position in BN.” So in some sense, its “You tak suka, you keluar.”
Can Jeff Ooi sing this ode to Dollah during the KT by-election campaign?
Oh yes I’m the great reformer (ooh ooh ooh)
Reforming everything under the sun (ooh ooh ooh)
My need is such
I reform too much
I’m lonely but no-one can tell
Oh yes I’m the great reformer (ooh ooh ooh)
Adrift in a world of my own (ooh ooh ooh)
I play the game
But to my real shame
You’ve left me to dream all alone
Too real is this feeling of make believe
Too real when I feel what my heart can’t conceal
Oh oh, yes I’m the great reformer (ooh ooh ooh)
Just laughing and gay like a clown (ooh ooh ooh)
I seem to be what I’m not you see (ooh you see)
I’m wearing my heart like a clown
Reforming everything under the sun
Yeah-eah, wooh hoo
Too real when I feel what my heart can’t conceal
Oh yes I’m the great reformer
Just laughing and gay like a clown (ooh ooh ooh)
I seem to be what I’m not you see
I’m wearing my heart like a clown
Reforming everything under the sun
From IPCC to MACC and JAC
Old habits die hard – don’t expect people who are in “corruption business” for years to propose bills that go against them!
k1980, nice song!
MACC and JAC bills are just a toothless tiger.Even an idiot will laugh cos without teeth,nothing much can a tiger do.It’s just a waste of the rakyat’s money.AAB and UMNO/BN are trying to kid us but we know the truth,thus making themselves looking like fools. Liked I said before and now saying again no good corruptors will set traps to trap themselves. Yeah yhsiew,old habit dies hard.
Quote:
(from Malaysiakini)
In a written parliamentary reply to DAP MP Liew Chin Tong, Abdullah had revealed that the government forks out RM6 million a year for rental and maintenance works for his official residence, Seri Perdana.
According to the reply, RM4,149,000 is paid as rental to Putrajaya Holdings – the master developer of the federal administrative capital – while the remaining RM1,896,616 is for maintenance works.
The government also pays RM3.4 million (RM2,273,888 for rental and RM1,129,992 for maintenance) for Seri Setia, the deputy premier’s official residence. -end quote-
The big question here is:
Why rent, and incur recurring exorbitant rentals month in month out, year in year out, when the government can buy the properties outright with ease? And save on unnecessary and avoidable charges?
It just doesn’t make economic sense. Something fishy here.
Perhaps scrutinise those properties and all other government properties for impropriety and irregularities?
The rakyat’s money has to be protected from being mismanaged and plundered.
When the rakyat suffered in all manners, government staff, from the highest echelon to the rank and file, who are ESSENTIALLY THE RAKYAT’S SERVANTS and trustees, lived in affluence and unchecked abundance and profligacy.
All at the rakyat’s expense. No wonder development funds dwindled unnoticed and even systematically, and at the expense of true developments which would benefit the rakyat directly or indirectly.
Wastages and unaccounted for expenditures in government offices continue to be a major drainage of public funds. Left unchecked, millions, perhaps billions of Ringggit would be unaccounted for (with some, perhaps substantially, getting into someone else’s pockets!).
There ought to be more stringent and strict checks and balances in government spendings and fundings. It makes no sense to urge the rakyat to save, while the government does not practise prudence in handling of public funds.
Dishing out policies is one thing, governing effectively and justly is another.
Perhaps it would be useful to arrange a MAJOR public debate on goverment spending to create awareness in the rakyat?
At the end of the day the nation’s wealth should be utilised solely for the benefit of the rakyat.
My dear one4all,don’t you get it.This is bolehland controls by the UMNOputras and warlords.The DPM’s residence is own by an UMNOputra or warlord and reason why a very high rental is charged.This is only a tip of the iceberg.Why do you think these guys hold on to the NEP ? They talked about malay supremacy/ketuanan malayu for what ? It’s only for the money,money.They are showing the kris for what ? It’s only to defend their ill gotten money and properties.Why do you think they made religion islam,ruler/agong/sultan,race and language their main agenda ? It’s only to win malay votes to keep themselves strong and happy in their comfort zone.It’s 50 years,the ordinary malay folks still believe in them.This is indeed amazing.It should be in the Guinness book of world record.Liked you said ” at the end of the day the nation’s wealth should be utilised solely for the benefit of the rakyat ” I would add unless the malay voters realise their mistakes. You may ask the ordinary malay folks why is it that they are yet to be awared that the UMNO/BN government is spending so much money and still have not benefited the raykat especially the malays. Well you guys out there and my dear brother Lim,I have a new asignment overseas,gotta go,bye for now and will get in touch again when I ‘ll be back. Brother Lim,good luck and best wishes.