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Najib misses opportunity in 11MP

– Ramesh Chander and Bridget Welsh
The Malaysian Insider
29 June 2015

As debate in Malaysia’s Parliament draws to a close on the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP) that lays out targets for the country to achieve “developed” nation status by 2020, the focus has primarily centred on the unrealistic assumptions contrived for the macro-economic framework for the blueprint.

Little attention has concentrated on the consistency of the assumptions and how the 11MP compares with previous policy frameworks. A close look at the 11MP reveals serious gaps and shortcomings, raising questions about whether the proclaimed milestones of development by 2020 can indeed be achieved. Continue reading “Najib misses opportunity in 11MP”

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UMNO party polls deferred by 18 months is in one sense good news as Najib will be an easier target in 14GE with avalanche of scandals and continued festering of internal UMNO warfare

In one sense, the 18-month postponement of UMNO party polls is good news as Datuk Najib Razak will be an easier target in the 14th General Election with the avalanche of scandals – socio-economic and political – as well as the continued festering of internal UMNO warfare.

Never before in Malaysia has a Prime Minister amassed such a huge brew of socio-economic and political scandals within so short a time, creating a most explosive mix with far-reaching consequences in the next general election.

Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor was not being candid when he merely admitted that the postponement of the Umno election was due to “current political crisis” but not related to 1MDB, as the truth was that the postponement was caused by “current political crisis arising from scandals like 1MDB”.

Unlike the 13GE, the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal will be the lead “scandal” in the 14GE although desperate attempts are being made to defuse it, including an elaborate script of “The Empire Strikes Back” based on the notion that the allegations of the 1MDB scandals were all based on the “tampered” emails (not only unsubstantiated to date but clearly impossible) including the last desperate option of a winding-up and asset-stripping of 1MDB.

But even after being wound up, 1MDB scandal will remain alive in the 14GE although it will be one in a shoal of seething multiple scandals – whether economic and financial like the Felda Global Venture (FGV), Tabung Haji, GST, weak Malaysian ringgit and now MARA’s Australia property scandals, or socio-political like Najib’s major failures including his signature 1Malaysia Policy, Global Movement of Moderates initiative, the National Transformation Programme, the worst racial and religious polarization in the nation’s history. Continue reading “UMNO party polls deferred by 18 months is in one sense good news as Najib will be an easier target in 14GE with avalanche of scandals and continued festering of internal UMNO warfare”

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Malay youths deny joining DAP to champion race

The Malaysian Insider
29 June 2015

Malay Subang DAP Socialist Youth (Dapsy) leaders have denied that they joined the party to champion their own race, saying instead that they fought for all Malaysians regardless o‎f their background.

They said they chose DAP because they were tired of race-based politics, and they believed a multiracial party was the best platform to ensure that democracy thrived in the country.

“In contrast to the allegations that we joined DAP to fight for Malay rights, we actually joined DAP because we are tired of hearing and seeing our country’s politics revolve around championing a certain race.

“‎We joined DAP not to alleviate our race’s leadership, but to raise the leadership of the rakyat. Not to fight for our race’s rights, but the rights of every rakyat as enshrined in the Federal Constitution,” they said in a statement.

The statement was signed by Subang Dapsy chief E‎dry Faizal Eddy Yusof‎,‎ Subang Dapsy vice-chief Young Syefura Othman, Subang Dapsy treasurer Tarmizi Anuwar and Subang Dapsy publicity chief Numan Saadan. Continue reading “Malay youths deny joining DAP to champion race”

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National and international shame that Malaysia’s anti-corruption ranking so low when MACC sets world record with the greatest superstructure with the most number of bodies monitoring it to uphold integrity and accountability

It is no use the Anti-Corruption Advisory Board coming out with a sanctimonious statement that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) should be given room to conduct a full and thorough investigation into the MARA property corruption scandal in Australia, and urging “all parties, including politicians” to refrain from making statements which could jeopardise the image of MACC.

Both the MACC and its Advisory Board should know that it is its own record and performance as an anti-corruption fighter which is the most powerful determinant of its image whether it is a fearless and feared anti-corruption fighter or just a “toothless tiger” as far as the corrupt among the “high and mighty” in the political world is concerned.

Next month is the sixth death anniversary of innocent DAP aide, Teoh Beng Hock, who lost his life in the very sanctum of MACC headquarters in Shah Alam on 16th July 2009, and up to now, no MACC officer has yet been penalised for Teoh’s death.

If MACC cannot even ensure that is officers uphold integrity and accountability in the death of Teoh Beng Hock, is it any wonder that public confidence in the MACC’s commitment to wage an all-out war against corruption and to upold integrity in high political places is virtually non-existent?

The MARA property corruption scandal in Australia will be an acid test whether the MACC is going to start showing that it has teeth and claws as far as fighting the corrupt among the high and mighty in the political world is concerned, or that MACC is only capable of abusing the powers as in the deaths of Teoh Beng Hock and Ahmad Sarbani Mohamad in April 2011. Continue reading “National and international shame that Malaysia’s anti-corruption ranking so low when MACC sets world record with the greatest superstructure with the most number of bodies monitoring it to uphold integrity and accountability”

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My Ramadan Prayer For Malay Salvation – Get Rid of JAWI and JAKIM

M. Bakri Musa
www.bakrimusa.com
29 June 2015

Ramadan brings exuberant displays of piety among Malays, consumed as we are with personal salvation. There is however, little reflection on our salvation as a society.

Hellfire or the ultimate punishment for us as a society would be to be dumped into the rubbish bin of mankind, dependent on the charity of others while living in a land so blessed by Almighty. The irony, as well as the fact that others thrive in Tanah Melayu, would make the punishment that much more unbearable.

We have ruled this country for over half a century; all instruments of government are in our hands, sultans as well as prime ministers are all Malays, and the constitution is generous to us. Yet we remain in a sorry state, reduced to lamenting our fate and blaming the pendatangs.

This lamentation is heard with nauseating frequency, coming from sultans and prime ministers to pundits and kedai kopi commentators. Seizing on that, some (and not just non-Malays) gleefully trumpet their own sense of superiority or denigrate the Malay culture and character.

A former chief minister of Trengganu, a predominantly-Malay and oil-rich state, asked how could we who have lived here for centuries, control the government, and are in the majority feel threatened by the immigrants. The fact that he posed the question reveals how clueless he was in addressing it. Alas his is the caliber of leadership we have been cursed with. Continue reading “My Ramadan Prayer For Malay Salvation – Get Rid of JAWI and JAKIM”

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Tunisia: murder of holidaymakers could dent tourism but not hope

Angelique Chrisafis
Guardian
26th June 2015

Hopes that scale of Sousse resort attack will not spark loss of confidence in a country regarded as relatively peaceful, compared with troubled neighbours

The slaughter of sunbathers and hotel staff on the beaches of a country that has always prided itself as a carefree, laid-back destination for package holidaymakers has dealt a huge blow to Tunisia.

The small north African country lit the first spark of the Arab spring four years ago, when its popular uprising toppled a corrupt dictatorship relatively peacefully. It is often looked to as the hope of the region. Unlike its troubled neighbours, it has managed to keep its political transition on course — crafting a new constitution, staging free presidential and parliamentary elections.

But with a struggling post-revolution economy that depends in large part on its beach resorts and foreign visitors, it was already facing the serious ongoing challenges of how to tackle unemployment, social unrest and strikes, and how to address the feeling among the poorest and the young that their demands, which inspired the revolution — the need for social justice, jobs and the fight to end corruption — are yet to be fully achieved. Continue reading “Tunisia: murder of holidaymakers could dent tourism but not hope”

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This Ramadan, a reminder of Islamisation

Zurairi AR
Malay Mail Online
June 28, 2015

JUNE 28 — To paraphrase a friend, Islamisation is no longer creeping in this country. Instead, it is marching down the streets banging the drums, and at no time is it as obvious as Ramadan.

There is just something about the combo of a blessed holy month with millions of hangry adherents that brings out the self-righteous and judgmental ones.

It is undeniable that there is a shift of public sentiment this year, with more and more Muslims publicly saying that fasting is their burden of faith alone, and non-Muslims should not be subjected to the same restrictions in public.

But perhaps we are not there yet. Continue reading “This Ramadan, a reminder of Islamisation”

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Apa lagi Melayu mahu sebenarnya?

Amin Iskandar
The Malaysian Insider
28 June 2015

Bukan Islam tidak boleh menggunakan kalimah Allah kerana ia boleh menyebabkan akidah orang Melayu tergugat.

Kanak-kanak bukan Islam tidak boleh makan di kantin sekolah pada bulan Ramadan kerana anak Melayu akan “terliur” dan terganggu puasanya.

Gadis bukan Islam tidak boleh berpakaian menjolok mata kerana berkemungkinan menyebabkan pemuda Melayu “tidak tahan”.

Sedangkan hampir di setiap kawasan perumahan terdapat masjid atau surau.

Setiap hari selepas sembahyang subuh, tazkirah atau kaset ceramah mengajak orang Melayu agar beriman dan membuat kebaikan dimainkan dengan kuat sehingga kedengaran walaupun dua kilometer jauhnya.

Akan tetapi orang Melayu masih lemah imannya. Jika terlihat sahaja perkara “mungkar”, keimanan mereka akan tergugat.

Apa dah jadi dengan orang Melayu pada hari ini? Continue reading “Apa lagi Melayu mahu sebenarnya?”