A week ago, I challenged former and longest-serving Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who has become the most powerful person in UMNO/BN and the person whom the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak fears most, to a series of seven public debates on his 22 years as the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia.
This is because of the very clear and systematic attempt to revive Mahathirism, a campaign led by none other than Mahathir himself.
This series of seven public debates with Mahathir will cover an entire spectrum of achievements and failures, in fact national disasters, of the 22-year Mahathir premiership with its host of human rights violations, mega-financial scandals, rampant corruption, collapse of educational standards and the across-the-board subversion of independent national institutions like the judiciary, the police and the civil service in the country during the long night of the 22-year Mahathir premiership.
But Mahathir has declined the invitation to the series of seven public debates in Gelang Patah to examine his legacy and the baneful effect of Mahathirism on Malaysian nation-building although he has no qualms whatsoever to continue to pump racist poison, lies and falsehoods into the mainstream of Malaysian public discourse, including his seditious, inflammatory and baseless accusation against me for wanting to create a racial confrontation by contesting in Gelang Patah and his open call to the people of Johore to make Gelang Patah my “political graveyard”.
I now invite Datuk Ghani Othman, who is the BN candidate for Gelang Patah to a series of seven public debates in Gelang Patah on the importance of the 13th GE to Johore and Malaysia – the first one to be held before Nomination Day on April 20, for the following reasons:
- Yesterday, I invited Ghani to join me in making Gelang Patah the model constituency of clean, free and fair elections out of 222 parliamentary and 505 state assembly constituencies in the country in the 13GE as it is expected to be dirtiest in election history in Malaysia, with two of us reaching a five-point accord as follows:
- No personal attacks or character assassination, not only by the candidates, but their election teams and workers;
- No playing the race or religion card, as the 13GE should be an occasion to promote and foster greater and closer race relations among the races to promote national unity, and not an occasion divide and polarise further the diverse races and religions in the country.
- No politics of money or the use of money to buy votes, which is the root cause of the rampant corruption in Malaysia.
- Commitment by both of us to condemn and dissociate ourselves from “dirty tricks” perpetrated in Gelang Patah, even by anonymous quarters.
- Ghani and I should sign the Transparency International-Malaysia’s Election Integrity Pledge (EIP) with the establishment of a EIP Watchdog Commission in Gelang Patah constituted by Malaysians of impeccable character.
- Today I issue a second invitation to Ghani to make Gelang Patah the model of public discourse and debate as well as the cynosure of the 13GE focussing on the importance of the 13GE to Johor and Malaysia, as well as to future generations.
This series of seven debates with Ghani can be a useful substitute of the proposed debate with Mahathir on the 22-year Mahathir premiership because:
(i) Ghani is the proxy of Mahathir in the agenda to “bury” me in Gelang Patah, with Ghani flying the standard for the revival of Mahathirism in Malaysia; and
(ii) Ghani will be a suitable candidate for a public debate on the 22-year Mahathir premiership because he is a creature of Mahathirism – first becoming a Senator in December 1984, elected to Parliament in 1986, serving respectively as Deputy Minister for the Ministries of Energy, Telecommunications and Pos as well as Finance from 1987 to 1993 and elevated to be Minister of Youth and Sports from 1993 – 1995. He was appointed by Mahathir to become Johor Mentri Besar in March 1995, serving four terms in this post.
- Ghani owes not only the voters of Gelang Patah but also the people of Johore and Malaysia a clear exposition of his stand on Mahathir’s concept of Bangsa Malaysia and Vision 2020 as well as Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia concept – in particular whether he agrees with Najib or the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassinn on the 1Malaysia policy
Once Ghani agrees to a series of seven public debates on the importance of the 13GE to Johore and Malaysia, we can appoint our representatives to finalise the details about the date, place, time and topics for the public debate series. However, the first of the series of seven public debates should be held before Nomination Day on April 20.
I hope to get a reply from Ghani before my third invitation.
I like this. I’ve been reading some news articles where it appears that there’s Ghani bashing, calling him a retiree or an UMNO reject etc. I think that line of attack won’t work. What will work is a policy debate befitting the stature of both candidates.
Similarly, attacking the “cowardice” of MCA may not work either because that may come across as high school taunt. What will work is to say that without MCA contesting, the real UMNO hegemony shows – and BN is nothing except UMNO – and BN is no longer representative of the demographics of Malaysia, and a contradiction to the 1Malaysia billboards BN has been putting up to great expense. What will also work is to tie MCA to UMNO culture of cronyism, corruption and abuse of power – and to lament their complicity in setting back Malaysia.
I hope Ghani takes up the debate. Though, I pretty much suspect he would. Of course, if Ghani takes his gloves off and attack Uncle Kit below the belt, then I think it’s fair game to go after him personally as well.
That chief snaky sucker, Bakkuthair, dares not to face the strong man like LKS. He is only snaking and sucking around to gain supports and get the limelight from the media in Bolehland only. In overseas, he is like a tortoise hiding inside its own shell.
Hey snake, you can crawl out of your stinky hole to face LKS in debates! True sucker without guts…
Malaysians and malaysia stand to lose more
(a) if Ghani loses; or
(b) if uncle Lim loses?
Johorean, Have you ever wonder why, 100 ringgit become less than SGD41, when you cross to S’pore? or
why some Johorean need to send their primary n secondary children to study in S’pore? so inconvenient !
Anything to do with support BN for far too long,
AQsk ordinary Penang Malay n see if DAP is anti Islam? don’t listen to the penipu.
Why Johorean had to pay highest water tariff in Malaysia? even though not high population density, and good water natural resources?
Bijan’s subtle game is to tie up Musiden in Johor by turning GPatah into a Johor BumNo task. With this, Musidin people in Pekan must stop damaging Bijan there and come out helping Johor BumNo.
If Kit and PR win in Johor, Gunny is buried of course. But Musidin’s hope to become the next PM is practically gone, because his power base and authority in BumNo will be badly eroded.
Floom is trying to control Madey too, who will be Bijan’s greatest opponent after GE13. When IbAliPerkasa is dumped and Mukiss dropped from parliament seat, Madey’s power in BumNo is practically locked in the red Birkin bag.
We will witness the biggest ever infighting in BumNo BeEnd now. GE13 is a drama impossible made possible in BumNo BeEnd, and a mission impossible made possible by PR.
Gee, Mr Lim. It is not even Nomination Day yet but you already look so terrible. Sure you can last ? Better take care not to overdo it.
Name me 1 UMNO B leader who is a gentleman. Name me 1 UMNO B leader who is sincere in ‘championing’ the Malays and Islam. Name me 1 UMNO B leader who is not tainted by corruption. Name me 1 UNMO B leader who is not a hypocrite. If there is just one in the whole of UNMO B, all 35 votes from my family and relatives will go to UNMO B /BN
I am really interested in who DAP is going to put in Labis. Have worked people like CTY before – they are not good at what they do and so they excuse themselves to sink to new lows based on excuse that other people also do some.. He deserved to be no less than complete and total humiliation – both him and his depraved father..
That one Mamak is an enemy of our 1st Prime Minister Bapa Malaysia
Go tell the Malays, your are fighting against 1st Prime Minister Bapa Malaysia’s Enemy
Help you with it
That one Mamak is an enemy of our 1st Prime Minister Bapa Malaysia
Go tell the Malays, your are fighting against 1st Prime Minister Bapa Malaysia’s Enemy that one Mamak
Go tell them
Send Kit for retirement , we need young leader
Najib is playing his game well. He is taking steps to neutralize his enemies from within. As for CTY in Labis, this sen wise and riggit foolish accountant is not worth the ink and paper. The MCA people will bury him themselves!
Mr Lim, Ghani would definitely avoid a public debate with you. BN have too many skeletons in their closet. Any mention of the rampant corruption in the country or the lop-sided contracts that the Government signed with the concessionaires, the scandals involving Bumiputra Malaysia Finance, Perwaja Steel Mills, PKFZ etc. would leave Ghani dumbfounded. To ask UMNO to abide by the rules is like telling a habitual thief not to steal. They won’t listen. They just want to win. Expect more vilification and demonization from UMNO as the campaign heats up. Ghani may be a gentleman but we are looking at the macro level. A vote for him still means a vote for corruption, abuse of power and many other excesses.