Day: December 5, 2011

by Nigel Aw
Malaysiakini
Dec 5, 2011

A day after the Umno general assembly concluded with the beating of war drums and vows to wrest back Pakatan Rakyat-held states, the federal opposition went on the offensive as well.

PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim, the star at a rally of 5,000 in Shah Alam last night, said Pakatan will not only defend Selangor, but improve its electoral performance in the state.

“(Prime Minister) Najib Abdul Razak said he wants to recapture Selangor (but) we tell him that he can keep dreaming about Selangor – and that we will capture Putrajaya,” declared Anwar.

He picked apart Umno’s Malay credentials which the party has attempted to project in the run-up to a looming general election.

“Do you believe that Umno defends the Malays? If they defend the Malays they would not sell Malay land.

“The last bastion of Malay land in Kuala Lumpur (is Kampung Baru). They (the government) wants to hand it over to (Federal Territories Minister) Raja Nong Chik under the Kampung Baru Development Act.”

Also present was DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang who moved to deflect Umno’s relentless attacks on his party during the general assembly. Continue reading “Bring it on, Pakatan tells Umno”

I challenge Deputy Prime Minister and UMNO Deputy President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to substantiate his UMNO General Assembly speech that DAP wants to abolish the system of Malay sultanates and set up a republic or he should apologise for the lie.

In his speech opening UMNO’s Wanita, Youth and Puteri wings’ annual general assemblies on Tuesday, Muhyiddin appeared to substantiate his allegation of a DAP agenda to form a republic when he followed up with a rhetorical question:

“If not, do they dare suggest the prime minister’s position be selected based solely on elections and without being chosen by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong? What is the meaning of this?

“It means that the democratic parliamentary system and the constitutional monarchy which we have been practising thus far no longer suit their interest to seize power.”

But this is a downright lie as no DAP leader had ever made such a statement. Continue reading “Challenge to Muhyiddin – substantiate his UMNO General Assembly speech that DAP wants to set up a Republic or apologise for the lie”

By Bakri Musa
Chapter11: Embracing Free Enterprise

In the decade following independence, the Tunku’s administration adopted a laissez-faire attitude towards the economy. He was committed to free enterprise and capitalism, but he wrongly read the Malaysian economy and marketplace. They were neither open nor free. Powerful forces effectively controlled the economy and marketplace. The first were the large and entrenched foreign-owned corporations (usually British) that essentially corralled the major sectors (the “commanding heights”), from plantations and mining to manufacturing and banking. Through their sheer size and well-established network, these companies ensured that their dominance was never threatened. They neither welcomed nor tolerated new entrants and competitors. The second group was made up of ethnic Chinese and Indian “mom and pop” retailers and sundry merchants. Their enterprises were small family affairs. They too protected their economic turf ferociously. They effectively controlled their domain through their clan organizations, often using extralegal means to enforce their code. The “triad” organizations of secret societies are manifestations of this phenomenon.

Between the ethnic retailers and the major colonial corporations, the economy of Malaysia was essentially “locked up.” They imposed stiff and insurmountable barriers to new entrants. In short, despite the government’s commitment to a free market, the economy was far from being free. The game was rigged. Had there been enterprising and competent Malays, they would have been effectively shut out. Even a super entrepreneur like Ted Turner or someone with a Harvard MBA would have a tough time cracking in an honest way such a closed and rigged system. Continue reading “Malaysian Capitalism”

When Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2011 was released Thursday, Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) said Malaysia’s latest ranking is the worst in 10 years – falling from 56th place last year to 60th place out of 183 countries while its CPI score fell to the lowest-ever of 4.3.

The TI-M statement is incorrect. In fact, Malaysia’s 2011 TI CPI ranking is the worst in 17 years since the introduction of TI’s annual CPI in 1995.

In the nine years from 1995 to 2003, Tun Dr. Mahathir as Prime Minister saw Malaysia’s TI CPI score stuck in the narrow groove between 4.8 in 2000 to 5.32 in 1996 while the CPI ranking fell 14 places from No. 23 in 1995 to No. 37 in 2003. (10 is highly clean while 0 is highly corrupt)

In the five-year premiership of Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Malaysia’s TI CPI ranking fell 10 places from 37 in 2003 to 47 placing in 2008, while the CPI score stuck between 5.0 to 5.1.

In his 2 ½ years as Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak presided over the worst TI CPI ranking and score for Malaysia on many fronts, viz:

* worst single-year plunge in TI CPI ranking of nine placings. i.e. fall from No. 47 in 2008 to No. 56 in 2009.

* most precipitous fall in TI CPI ranking in 2 ½ years under Najib’s premiership, falling 13 placings from No. 47 in 2008 to No. 60 in 2011; when in five years under Abdullah, Malaysia fell 10 places from No. 37 in 2003 to No. 47 in 2008 and in nine years under Mahathir, Malaysia fell 14 places from No. 23 in 1995 to No. 37 in 2003. Continue reading “Najib’s Transformation Programme in fighting corruption a major wash-out when TI CPI 2011 shows Malaysia in 2½ years under the new PM is more corrupt than 5 years under Abdullah and 22 years under Mahathir”