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Some of the unthinkable scenarios which Malaysians must think about and even face in the extraordinary political circumstances Malaysia is in today

I have been suspended for six months for pointing out in Parliament that the Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia did not have the power to bar the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) under the Deputy Chairman Dr. Tan Seng Giaw (Kepong) with the proper PAC quorum from continuing its investigations in August into the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal.

My suspension, and the two questions that are being asked all over the country as to from whom and to whom the RM2.6 billion “donation” in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal banking accounts have gone to, are just symptomatic that Malaysia is very “sick” where a proper parliamentary system and the principles of accountability, transparency and good governance cannot function normally and effectively.

Malaysia is in very abnormal political times – in the interregnum between the fall of an UMNO-led government coalition which had been in power for 58 years but have led the country into a rut after losing its moral compass and sense of responsibility as a government and its replacement by a new coalition committed to defend the democratic freedoms and human rights enshrined in the Malaysian Constitution.

This is the time for Malaysians to think unthinkable scenarios and face up to extraordinary challenges in entirely new political circumstances taking place in Malaysa today.

Before the 2008 elections elections, it was unthinkable that the UMNO/Barisan Nasional government in Malaysia could be replaced, but after the 12th general elections in 2008, nobody doubts this question as it was no more “whether” but “when” the UMNO/BN Federal Government in Putrajaya would be replaced.

Similarly, Malaysians must think of what appears to be unthinkable scenarios and be prepared to face the new political challenges presented by them, including the following: Continue reading “Some of the unthinkable scenarios which Malaysians must think about and even face in the extraordinary political circumstances Malaysia is in today”

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Obama should be asked specific question when he visits Malaysia whether FBI and US Department of Justice are investigating Najib under the DOJ’s Kleptocracy Assets Recovery Initiative 2010 in connection with the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal

Together with DAP National Political Director and MP for Kluang, Liew Chin Tong and DAP MP for Segambut Lim Lip Eng, we have just arrived in Sandakan, whih is the last place of the three-day six-stop launch in Sabah of the “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang and Mana RM2.6 billion?” campaign as part of the nation-wide movement to make 30 million Malaysians realise that they are all victims of the RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB mega twin scandals.

Malaysians all over the country, regardless of race, religion, region or political affiliation, are increasingly asking two questions about the RM2.6 billion “donation” deposited in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal banking accounts for the 13th General Election, where the RM2.6 billion came from and to whom the monies went to.

Najib should realise that these two questions are not going to go away, and the longer he procrastinates in giving a full and satisfactory explanation as to where the R2.6 billion came from and to whom they had been given to, the worse it is for Najib in terms of his credibility and legitimacy as Prime Minister of Malaysia. Continue reading “Obama should be asked specific question when he visits Malaysia whether FBI and US Department of Justice are investigating Najib under the DOJ’s Kleptocracy Assets Recovery Initiative 2010 in connection with the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal”

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Call on Malaysian public to help the police and AG by producing evidence of Ali Tinju’s speech in Low Yat riots to lead to his prosecution under Sedition Act

The interview today of the new Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali in The Malaysian Insider on how Ali Tinju’s sedition charge had been dropped is neither convincing nor reflection of professionalism of the new Attorney-General and the police to bring to book those who openly flout the law to undermine national unity and harmony in the country.

Apandi said the sedition charge against Mohd Ali Baharom was dropped because the police could not come up with the audio recording of the alleged inflammatory remarks the ex-soldier made outside Low Yat Plaza in July.

Apandi said that without the evidence, he was unable to pursue the case.

He said:

“The actual recording was not enough. It was only a few seconds… We missed the ‘seditious’ part.

“They (the police) couldn’t find it. It wasn’t forthcoming. I told them, ‘this isn’t enough, go find more’. They said, ‘cannot find’. So that put an end to it.”
Continue reading “Call on Malaysian public to help the police and AG by producing evidence of Ali Tinju’s speech in Low Yat riots to lead to his prosecution under Sedition Act”

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Call for a national roundtable conference of eminent citizens, community and religious elders, political and civil society leaders to brainstorm to search for an exit for the country’s unprecedented quandary and to restore Malaysians’ lost self-confidence to compete with the best in the world

I thank the people of Sabah who have shown unstintingly their support for the “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang and Mana RM2.6 billion?” campaign in the past two days during our tour of Tenom, Keningau, Kudat and Kota Kinabalu, continuing tomorrow to Tuaran and Sandakan.

The “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang and Mana RM2.6 billion?” campaign is not about me, but the future of 3.3 million Sabahans and 30 million Malaysians – whether Sabahans and Malaysians have the right to demand that their elected representatives raise the issues that matter to the people in Parliament and the State Assemblies, like Prime Minister’s Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s RM2.6 billion “donation” and the RM50 billion l1MDB twin mega scandals.

Malaysia is now in unprecedented times and we are in fact in “no man’s land” in terms of our political and nation-building experience.

There have been many strange goings-on in our country in the past year demonstrating that what we see openly and publicly may not reflect the many powerful under-currents flowing below the surface in our political society. Appearance is not the reality, as things may not be what they seem on surface.

I will give three illustrations. Continue reading “Call for a national roundtable conference of eminent citizens, community and religious elders, political and civil society leaders to brainstorm to search for an exit for the country’s unprecedented quandary and to restore Malaysians’ lost self-confidence to compete with the best in the world”

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Najib should not have halved Suhakam’s budget from RM10 million but should have abolished the BTN and save over RM50 million

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak showed his true colours of basically unsympathetic to democratic and human rights of Malaysians when he more than halved the 2016 budget of Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) from over RM10 million this year to RM5.5 million for 2016.

What Najib should have done is to maintain Suhakam’s RM10 million ringgit budget and abolished Biro Tata Negara (BTN) which would have saved the government some RM54 million budgetted for next year – especially as BTN has continued to be unrepentant and continued its its negative, divisive and anti-national activity of inciting racism, disunity, bigotry and intolerance instead of fostering patriotism, unity, inter-racial and inter-religious understanding and goodwill.

Even former top Malay civil servants in G25 have condemned BTN of being “ultra Malay-racist”. Continue reading “Najib should not have halved Suhakam’s budget from RM10 million but should have abolished the BTN and save over RM50 million”

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DAP offers to champion and defend Najib if the Prime Minister can prove that he is a “scapegoat” of the RM2.6 billion and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals

I am prepared to champion and defend the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, if he can prove that he is a “scapegoat” of the RM2.6 billion and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals which are the major causes of the prolonged crisis of confidence, both national and international, which had hounded Malaysia with such serious adverse economic consequences, whether the devaluation of the Malaysian ringgit, the plunge in the Malaysian stock market, the fall in Malaysia’s international reserves, the flight of foreign capital and the avoidance of Malaysia as a destination by foreign investors.

I am reminded of the saying that with such friends, one does not need enemies when I read what the PPP President, M. Kayveas said at the PPP Deepavali Open House in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Kayveas made the astonishing claim that Najib is being made the 1MDB scapegoat when the company’s management should have taken full responsibility for the poor performance of the government investment fund.

This was exactly what the then Deputy Prime Miniter Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had proposed, suggesting to Najib that the Barisan Nasional federal government should sack the entire board of the debt-laden 1MDB, but Muhyiddin was sacked as DPM instead! Continue reading “DAP offers to champion and defend Najib if the Prime Minister can prove that he is a “scapegoat” of the RM2.6 billion and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals”

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Has the time come for Sabah or Sarawak to produce a Prime Minister?

The choice of Tenom and Keningau today to launch in Sabah the “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang and Mana RM2.6 billion?” campaign is most significant.

The campaign is part of a movement to instill in Malaysians a consciousness of their democratic rights and national inheritance so that they can stand up as one people to defend not only their rights but those of future generations.

In Myanmar, voters lined up as early as 3 am on Sunday (November 8) to vote, an indication of how eager the people of Myanmar are to seize a chance for freedom after five decades of military rule.

The latest results showed that Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) has won a landslide victory, winning 78 out of 88 seats for the lower house of parliament for which the election commission has final results. The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) party has won five.

The road for the return of democracy in Myanmar will a long and uneasy one, as much trouble, trial and tribulation lie ahead.

The democratic and electoral process and experience in Myanmar, despite their numerous weaknesses and defects, hold an important lesson for us in Sabah and Malaysia – that it is finally the people themselves who must stand up to claim and protect their democratic rights and national heritage to defeat the designs of those who want to deny them their basic human rights and legacy. Continue reading “Has the time come for Sabah or Sarawak to produce a Prime Minister?”

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Najib will have to resign as Prime Minister if the 47 Barisan Nasional Members of Parliament (22 from Sabah and 25 from Sarawak) vote down the 2016 Budget in Parliament on Monday on 16th November 2015

Will the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak be toppled on Monday, 16th November 2015 when the 2016 Budget is put to a vote in Parliament?

Pakatan Harapan Members of Parliament from DAP, PKR and Parti Amanah Negara total 72, but there are only 71 votes as I have been suspended from Parliament for six months (i.e. until the end of April).

To have an absolute simple majority of 112 Members of Parliament to defeat the UMNO/BN government in Parliament, at least 42 UMNO/BN Members of Parliament have to cross the floor to support the 71 Pakatan Harapan Members of Parliment, as PAS has announced that it will not support any effort to reject Najib’s 2016 Budget.

It is a very tall order indeed to expect some 40 UMNO/BN Members of Parliament to join Pakatan Harapan Members of Parliament to reject Najib’s 2016 Budget.

There are 47 Barisan Nasional Members of Parliament in Sabah and Sarawak – 22 from Sabah and 25 from Sarawak.

If all the 47 BN Members of Parliament from Sabah and Sarawak reject Najib’s 2016 Budget next Monday, that will be Najib’s last day as the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia. Continue reading “Najib will have to resign as Prime Minister if the 47 Barisan Nasional Members of Parliament (22 from Sabah and 25 from Sarawak) vote down the 2016 Budget in Parliament on Monday on 16th November 2015”

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Call for a new political consensus to tackle Malaysia’s multitude of economic, political, good governance and nation-building crisis and restore Malaysians’ self-confidence in our ability to compete with best in the world

The speech by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to the Malay Contractors Association on Saturday night that blame should not be placed entirely on the government for what is happening in the country right now, especially with the weakening ringgit, is symptomatic of the seriousness of the denial syndrome afflicting the government of the country.

Instead of uniting the national energies and creative talents of the country’s plural people to find solutions to the prolonged crisis of confidence bedevilling the nation, threatening to reduce Malaysia from a first-world “hopeful” to a mediocre third-world nation, Najib is more obsessed with denying or underplaying the seriousness and magnitude of the crisis of confidence in the country or inventing excuses for the nation’s woes by blaming them on everybody else except his leadership in the country.

Despite his earlier signature policy of 1Malaysia and his promise to be an open, moderate and liberal Prime Minister, Najib is turning out to be a very polarising Prime Minister who have allowed his followers to play the race and religious cards to perpetuate his political position in party and government.

It is sad and tragic if Najib’s premiership is remembered and identified by the M2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals, instead of by his political initiatives like 1Malaysia policy, the National Transformation Programme or the Global Movement of Moderates which have been effectively abandoned in deed if not in words, gathering dust in the archives of Najib’s administration.

In the sixth decade of our nationhood since the achievement of Merdeka in 1957 and the formation of Malaysia in 1963, Malaysia has lost its way.

I still remember the heady days of Merdeka in 1957, when I was in secondary school, when the people in the country had high hopes and ambitions. Continue reading “Call for a new political consensus to tackle Malaysia’s multitude of economic, political, good governance and nation-building crisis and restore Malaysians’ self-confidence in our ability to compete with best in the world”

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Malaysia’s ‘strongman’?

BY BRIDGET WELSH

As Malaysia’s premier Najib Tun Razak holds onto power the crisis surrounding the country’s sovereign development fund, 1MDB, has deepened.

In preparations for the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) General Assembly next month, there are moves afoot to purge critics from the party. It had become apparent that Najib will do everything to stay in power.

Short-term Najib has increased his chances for political survival, but in the longer term he has weakened his political foundation by narrowing his base of political support and undermining the political fortunes of his own party.

The following examines several key features that distinguish Najib’s management of the 1MBD crisis from those of earlier premiers. Responses to the scandal suggest that Najib has weakened his leadership.

Past crises

Political crises in Malaysia are not new. The most damaging ones have arisen from within UMNO, the political party that has controlled national government since independence.

From 1969 to 1999, each crisis has seen challenges arising from declining leadership confidence, fierce personalised battles for position, selective arrests of critics, damage of political institutions including the judiciary and the police as well as rises in racial tensions. Continue reading “Malaysia’s ‘strongman’?”

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Five things I will do on RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals if I am Chairman of Public Accounts Committee

These are the five things I will do on the RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals if I am Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee:

Firstly, I would have summoned the former Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail as a star witness of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) investigations, in particular to testify whether there was a draft corruption charge sheet against the Prime Minister, Datuk Sri Najib Razak related to 1MDB and whether this was the real reason why Gani had been summarily sacked as Attorney-General although he was three months short of compulsory retirement?

Gani’s presence and testimony is all the more urgent as a result of two recent developments: the statement by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on Oct. 22 that it had never denied the authenticity of a draft charge sheet against the Prime Minister and Gani’s first public appearance at the Bar Council forum on Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma) on 3rd November rubbishing the government claim that Gani was removed for “health” reasons as Gani had showed up at the public forum not in a wheelchair or as an invalid but looking very “hale, hearty and healthy”! Continue reading “Five things I will do on RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals if I am Chairman of Public Accounts Committee”

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Tun Dr Ismail’s son wants Jakim abolished

by Anisah Shukry
The Malaysian Insider
9 November 2015

There was a time in the country’s history when the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) did not exist, Putrajaya did not tell Malaysians how to practise their faith, and no one batted an eye when Muslims owned dogs.

And the former deputy prime minister Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman’s eldest son, Tawfik Ismail, wants those days back.

The main step is to dissolve Jakim, Tawfik said during an interview in conjunction with the release of “Drifting into Politics”, a collection of his late father’s writings during the nation’s formative years, edited by Tawfik and academic Ooi Kee Beng. Continue reading “Tun Dr Ismail’s son wants Jakim abolished”

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Political change in Malaysia: Will there be a new normal?

Abdillah Noh
Straits Times
9th November 2015

Despite voices calling for reform, there is a leadership void

Talk of political change in Malaysia has become more intense in the last few months.

Malaysia’s continued political imbroglio puts the economy at risk. Even with an improved fiscal deficit and an economy averaging growth of 5 per cent, critics are not impressed, preferring to focus on the political reform story.

The big question they raise is: Will there be a new normal in Malaysian politics? Continue reading “Political change in Malaysia: Will there be a new normal?”

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Five factors why Najib cannot shift responsibility for the country’s woes to external causes – twin mega scandals and prolonged crisis of confidence in Najib premiership

Yesterday, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak told the Malay Contractors Association that blame should not be placed entirely on the government for what is happening in the country right now, especially with the weakening ringgit, as the main factors causing this are external and out of the government’s control.

I do not think Najib would find much sympathy or support for his attempt to “pass the buck” and blame external factors for the country’s woes.

Najib is guilty of serious denial syndrome in refusing to accept that while the falling oil prices have a huge impact on the depreciation of the Malaysian ringgit, the prolonged crisis of confidence and the political turmoils in the country have been major factors undermining the economy.

Let me outline five factors why Najib cannot shirk or shake responsibility for the country’s present prolonged woes: Continue reading “Five factors why Najib cannot shift responsibility for the country’s woes to external causes – twin mega scandals and prolonged crisis of confidence in Najib premiership”

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Tun Dr Ismail would’ve been disappointed with current leadership, says son

by Anisah Shukry
The Malaysian Insider
8 November 2015

Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s second deputy prime minister, would have been disappointed by the state of the country’s leadership if he were alive today, his eldest son Tawfik Ismail said.

The government is paralysed and the country is “in a mess” because leaders are preoccupied with defending Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak over issues, such as 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and his RM2.6 billion donation, says Tawfik in an interview with The Malaysian Insider.

“I think he would have been disappointed with the way the leadership is right now,” said the 64-year-old in an interview in conjunction with the release of Drifting into Politics, a collection of writings by Dr Ismail himself.

It was also the 100th birth anniversary of Dr Ismail on November 4. Continue reading “Tun Dr Ismail would’ve been disappointed with current leadership, says son”

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Just as Deepavali celebrates eternal battle and victory of light over darkness, the darkness of the RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals must be exposed by the light of integrity, transparency and good governance

Deepavali celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, of truth and justice over falsehood and oppression.

The course of human history is replete with examples in different countries and civilisations of the hard and difficult battles fought by righteous men and women down the ages to uphold truth and justice against injustice, falsehoods and oppression and how eventually, light prevailed over darkness.

We must always be mindful that the darkest hour is just before dawn!

For me, the Deepavali this year will be quite out of the ordinary, for I have been suspended from Parliament for six months not because I had committed any crime but because I was speaking what was in the hearts and minds of ordinary Malaysians in Parliament – that the three-month derailment of the Public Accounts Committee in its investigations into the RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals was wrong and unacceptable and that the Parliament Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia had no such powers to stop the PAC from continuing with its 1MDB investigations for three months. Continue reading “Just as Deepavali celebrates eternal battle and victory of light over darkness, the darkness of the RM2.6 billion “donation” and RM50 billion 1MDB twin mega scandals must be exposed by the light of integrity, transparency and good governance”

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“SAYA ORANG TUA DARI SASTERA, ORANG MUDA DARI SIASAH”

By ~ A. SAMAD SAID
UCAPAN MALAM SOLIDARITI BAGI LIM KIT SIANG @5.11.15

SETIAP kali kerajaan dikritik atau ditegur
biasanya sangat cepat ia ditafsir atau didakwa
sebagai hajat atau upaya menggoyah kerajaan.
Tidak ditanya apakah selaran atau kritik itu
sahih atau palsu, berdasar atau tidak, seolah-
olah ia tidak perlu.

Tampaknya, teguran atau saranan itu sentiasa
bermula sebagai salah atau sememangnya nakal.
Kerajaan kita kini seolah-olah menganggap yang
menegur tetap seteru, tidak kiralah apa yang ditegur,
sementara kita orang biasa atau kelompok
oposisi, alhamdulillah, masih berupaya coba tetap
berarah. Malah, jika berkhayal pun, masih tetap
berniat sihat.

Lihat, kini yang mengkritik atau menegur kerajaan
bukan lagi melulu pihak oposisi. Sebaliknya,
semakin ramai dan bergema yang resah membantah
mula datang dari kalangan parti pemerintah
sendiri. Khusus tentang kesamaran 1MDB, yang
menegur, malah ketika-ketika tidak tersangka,
datang dari tokoh-tokoh UMNO yang terpenting. Continue reading ““SAYA ORANG TUA DARI SASTERA, ORANG MUDA DARI SIASAH””

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If DAP and Pakatan Harapan are only interested in our own political interests, we will do everything possible to ensure that Najib will remain as Prime Minister and lead UMNO/BN into the 14th General Elections because he will be an easier target

If DAP and Pakatan Harapan are only interested in our own political interests, we will do everything possible to ensure that Datuk Seri Najib Razak will remain as Prime Minister and lead UMNO/Barisan Nasional into the 14th General Elections because he will be an easier target with so many political and economic scandals exploding all over the place.

We will not force an issue of a vote of confidence in Parliament, whether in the form of a no-confidence motion or in defeating the government on an important measure like the Second Reading of the 2016 Budget which will be voted on Monday 16th November at the end of the three-day Ministerial winding-up of the budget debate.

But our national interests must override all our political party interests for we want to send a clear and unmistakable message that the present state of national affairs where confidence, whether national or international, has plumbed to the lowest depths in the nation’s history, cannot continue for the next two-and-half-years before the 14th General Elections, as the country cannot afford the great economic and nation-building costs of such prolonged crisis of confidence.

November 16. when there will be a vote in the Second Reading of the 2016 Budget, will be Najib’s first test of leadership in Parliament.

Pakatan Harapan has 72 Members of Parliament, but only 71 votes, as I have been suspended from Parliament for six months. PAS has declared that it will not support any effort to vote out the 2016 Budget.

In these circumstances, is it possible to expect 41 Members of Parliament from UMNO/Barisan Nasional to cross the floor on Nov. 16 to support Pakatan Harapan Members of Parliament to vote down Najib’s 2016 Budget by ensuring that there is an absolute simple majority of at least 112 votes out of a Parliament of 222 Members of Parlaiment? Continue reading “If DAP and Pakatan Harapan are only interested in our own political interests, we will do everything possible to ensure that Najib will remain as Prime Minister and lead UMNO/BN into the 14th General Elections because he will be an easier target”

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Police and MCMC raid of Malaysiakini and Star Online must be condemned in strongest possible terms as part of a repressive plan to create culture of fear to stifle freedom of expression and dissent in country

The police and Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) raid of Malaysiakini and Star Online yesterday must be condemned in the strongest possible terms as part of a repressive plan to create a culture of fear to stifle freedom of expression and dissent in the country.

Pakatan Harapan leaders had been on the receiving end of lies and criminal defamation for years but I do not see the police and MCMC taking any action against the UMNO/BN and pro UMNO/BN media or cybertroopers for these flagrant lies and falsehoods.

A classic case is the Utusan Malaysia front-page report that the DAP wanted to create a Christian Malaysia, which was not on a most mischievous, malicious and diabolical lie – but no action had been taken by the authorities against Utusan Malaysia not only in this instance but also many similar such cases by the same guilty parties. Continue reading “Police and MCMC raid of Malaysiakini and Star Online must be condemned in strongest possible terms as part of a repressive plan to create culture of fear to stifle freedom of expression and dissent in country”