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Is Utusan Malaysia capable of paradigm shift to be true standard-bearer of a 1Malaysia concept or will it continue like Canute to spearhead the resistance to the tide of change in Malaysia?

In his speech at the ground-breaking ceremony for the new Utusan Malaysia headquarters in Kuala Lumpur this morning, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak urged the 72-year-old Utusan to transform itself if it is to stay relevant.

He said Utusan must be more than Umno’s mouthpiece and must be a medium to build an intellectual culture and a critical society.

He said that the groundbreaking ceremony must coincide in a paradigm shift for the newspaper – going beyond “race, Islam and country” to play a pivotal role in helping the government achieve its transformation plan.

But is Utusan capable of being Najib’s “partner to government” in forging a 1Malaysia and to implement the New Economic Model (NEM) reforms to overhaul the Malaysian economy to break away from the decade-long economic stagnation and middle-income trap to take the quantum leap to become a high-income developed country?
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Will IGP try to understand the public and agree to a public inquiry into police shootings now that there is another police report lodged by port worker Sharil Azlan?

The Malaysian Insider headline “Understand cops, IGP tells public” sums up what the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan has to say on TV3 last night.

I would be the first to agree with him, and this is the reason why I had consistently advocated and supported improvement in the wages and working conditions of the Malaysian police force in my four decades in Parliament.

But can the IGP fathom that the Police must understand the public who want to have an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service singled-mindedly focused on three core functions: to keep crime low, to eradicate corruption and to uphold human rights – the very words used by the Dzaiddin Police Royal Commission in its report released in May 2005?

Musa said: “The people must understand that if there was a police road-block, they must stop and not ram into a road-block. By doing so, police will become suspicious, because they might be criminals or drug traffickers or they just want to run away from the law.”

Musa said police would act according to the law when handling such situations, including using deadly force, when trying to defend themselves (police) or others.
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Call on Najib to suspend UUCA for five years to demonstrate he has the political will to implement NEM priority to “retain and attract talent”

Congratulations to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak that Malaysia has broken into the top 10 list of the world’s most competitive countries, taking the 10th spot on the Switzerland-based IMD’s World Competitiveness Yearbook for 2010 – up from 18th placing last year.

Malaysia, however, has still a long way to go if we are to break away from the decade-long economic stagnation, escape from the middle-income trap and take our rightful place in the international community of nations, catching up with nations which have overtaken us economically although we were ahead of them when we achieved Merdeka 53 years ago – like South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

For a start, has the Najib premiership the political will to break the logjam of resistance by vested groups represented by former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and various interest groups which have been outsourced by Umno to champion rightwing, extremist and racist views like Perkasa and Gertak?

As a test whether Najib has the political leadership and will to implement New Economic Model (NEM) reforms, I call on him to suspend for five years the Universities and University Colleges Act which acts like a suffocating blanket stifling creativity, innovation and excellence among university lecturers and students, reducing the public universities into second class universities not only in the world but also in the country.
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Putrajaya dream not far-fetched, says Kit Siang

By G Vinod | FMT

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat’s victory in the recent Sibu by-election proved that all is not lost for the coalition in its hopes of winning the 13th general election, and forming the next federal government.

In his blog, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang also said the days Barisan Nasional considered Sabah and Sarawak as its “fixed deposits” are over.

“The BN survived the onslaught of the 2008 political tsunami due to the support from Sabah and Sarawak.

“However, it must have realised now that it cannot take the voters of the two states for granted by disregarding their legitimate grievances and discontent,” he said.
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Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #15

By M Bakri Musa

Chapter 2: Why Some Societies Progress, Others Regress

The Seminal Role of the Individual

The preceding discussion focused on society. It is the function of society and its culture to mould its members into a preexisting pattern through socialization and acculturation. The intention is to maintain the status quo; it is necessarily static to ensure that the values and nature of that society are propagated and maintained; it is a mechanism to ensure societal stability.

Individuals are by nature unique, each of has our own preferences and choices, our likes and dislikes. Left to our own devices, human society will not be possible. We would be like a bunch of wild cats, marauding on our own. Ever try to corral a bunch of them? But even with wild animals a certain pack behavior is identifiable – a primordial societal form.
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What more do we want from the Chinese?

BY HOWL PILLAI | CPI

I find myself in a strangely odd position – an Indian speaking up for the Chinese. It has recently been asked of them: “What more do the Chinese want?”

If it were merely rhetorical, I will defend the right to ask questions of such a nature in the name of free speech and healthy discourse. Unfortunately it is not a question. It is a blatant threat. The politicians behind the threat have clearly identified themselves. They have also now shown their hand. They are shamelessly indulging in the gutter politics of communalism.

A demonstration 10,000-strong had been planned for May 13 in Terengganu. We should reject this threat for the same reason we reject a bribe. Racial politics and corruption are slowly and surely destroying the very fabric of nationhood. A country that was put together carefully with effort, toil and sacrifice deserves better.
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Surprising signals from Sibu

By Bridget Welsh

The real measure of change among the electorate is how they mark the ballot paper.

This analysis explores how people voted in Sibu, drawing from the polling station results and local interviews. The results from the Sibu by-election point to major transformations in voting behavior in Sarawak.

T?hey show swings among voters of all the different ethnic communities towards Pakatan and consistent youth disenchantment with the BN.

The results also reveal a crack in the rural-urban divide in Sarawak voting. Even the composition of the low voter turnout under close scrutiny points in Pakatan’s favour.
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