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Najib buckles under pressure to renounce the repeal of Sedition Act and becomes hostage to rightists and extremists who are opposed to policy of moderation and GMM

Although the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s buckling under pressure to renounce the repeal of the Sedition Act, which he had promised two years ago in July 2012, has not come as a total surprise to Malaysians, it is nonetheless heart-rending to see the sixth Prime Minister succumbing to threats by rightists and extremists in UMNO and UMNO-sponsored NGOs and becoming a hostage to elements which are opposed to the policy of moderation and the Global Movement of Moderates (GMM).

Now I understand why the sudden urgency for the Prime Minister to table a White Paper and move a motion in Parliament to condemn Islamic State yesterday – which was made without any advance notice to MPs as the decision was apparently made only on Monday night: – i.e. to camouflage Najib’s betrayal of the cause of wasatiyyah and his initiative of the Global Movement of Moderates, which had been the subject of his three speeches to the United Nations General Assembly since Sept. 2010, when he delivered his UMNO Presidential Address this morning.

The rightists, extremists and the opponents of the campaign of wasatiyyah have cause to celebrate, for they have made it very clear that they will be drawing the line in the sand at the 68th UMNO General Assembly whether to tolerate or topple Najib as Prime Minister and UMNO President before his terms were up.
Continue reading “Najib buckles under pressure to renounce the repeal of Sedition Act and becomes hostage to rightists and extremists who are opposed to policy of moderation and GMM”

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As Umno opening acts, analysts see wings telling stale tale with ‘regressive’ rhetorics

By Zurairi AR
The Malay Mail Online
November 27, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 27 — For all their sound and fury in opening the much-anticipated Umno general assembly, its youth and women’s wings appear to be mired in partisan and parochial issues that political analysts said is distancing the ruling party from its ambitious reform agenda.

After a full day of speeches from the wing leaders and delegates which one analyst called “regressive” rhetoric, several pundits recommended Umno work on offering fresh ideas that will bridge the divide among the different races in order to capture the attention and imagination of their countrymen for the future.

“I think Umno needs a new voice, not one that reminds us of old news… Umno leaders need to come up with extraordinary ideas, only then can they show their leadership,” Prof Dr Jayum Jawan, a political analyst with the National Professor Council, told Malay Mail Online over phone.

“We need new ideas to strengthen Umno, its unity, and the good relations between Malays and non-Malays. Coming from its important wings, this is pretty disappointing from Umno’s top leaders.”

In his winding-up speech yesterday, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin called on Malays to rise and defend themselves from an onslaught of insults and challenges to their special position in the country, declaring that the country’s majority ethnic group has been patient enough. Continue reading “As Umno opening acts, analysts see wings telling stale tale with ‘regressive’ rhetorics”