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Is Najib’s statement on Sirul’s claim that he acted under orders exculpatory or incriminating?

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, has made a most rash and imprudent outburst at the MCA Chinese New Year open house today, when he said that former police commando Sirul Azhar Umar’s claim that he acted under orders to murder Altantuya Shaariibuu was “utter rubbish” and “total rubbish”.

Was the Prime Minister’s outburst exculpatory or incriminating?

It would be exculpatory if he is asserting that Sirul was talking “utter” or “total rubbish” that he murdered the Altantuya in 2006 together with Chief Inspector Azila Hadri under orders as there were no such orders to the two former police commandos to murder Altantuya.

The question that immediately arises is how Najib knows that the two convicted police commandos had not received any such orders from their superior to kill Altantunya and destroy evidence by blowing up her body using C4 explosives?

He can say there was no such “order” from him, but how could he say that there were no such “order” from other people? How can he be so sure? Continue reading “Is Najib’s statement on Sirul’s claim that he acted under orders exculpatory or incriminating?”

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Why have the police, the Attorney-General and the judiciary ignored the “elephant in the room” in Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case – that Sirul and Azilah could not have killed the Mongolian whom they did not know without a motive and a mastermind?

The Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case is the second case in Malaysia to kick up an international storm after the Federal Court’s 5-0 conviction of Anwar Ibrahim on Sodomy II and five-year jail sentence.

Although the Federal Court decision on the Altantuya murder case was made on Jan 13 finding the two former police commandos Sirul Azhar Umar and Azilah Hadri guilty of the murder of the Mongolian in 2006, the Altantuya case did not become an international storm until after Anwar’s Federal Court decision when Sirul, seeking refuge in Australia, announced that he was thinking of “telling all” about the murder of Altantuya.

Sirul said: “If I die today, I would not find peace. I did what I was told and this is what I get in return.”

I believe the entire Malaysian population can share Sirul’s sense of injustice if he has to pay for the murder of Altantuya, but the mastermind who had the motive and ordered the killing is able to get away scotfree. Continue reading “Why have the police, the Attorney-General and the judiciary ignored the “elephant in the room” in Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case – that Sirul and Azilah could not have killed the Mongolian whom they did not know without a motive and a mastermind?”

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Law don grills Shafee’s ethics after Anwar attack

By Gurdial Singh Nijar
Malaysiakini
February 16, 2015

COMMENT Several interviews in national daily newspapers given by the lawyer engaged as a prosecutor, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, have reignited issues surrounding the conviction of Anwar Ibrahim.

In a rather brutal attack on Anwar, whom he helped put away for a five-year jail term, Shafee implied that the accused would have been torn to shreds if he had testified, instead of giving his ‘evidence’ from the dock. He labelled Anwar a ‘coward with something to hide’.

I do not recall any such condemnatory remarks being ever made publicly by the former lawyers from the Attorney-General’s Chambers who conducted the prosecution at the earlier two judicial tiers – the High Court and the Court of Appeal.

Such statements seem to be at odds with established ethical standards – as applicable to lawyers appearing as defence counsel or for the prosecution. Continue reading “Law don grills Shafee’s ethics after Anwar attack”

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What could Sirul tell us?

– Nawawi Mohamad
The Malaysian Insider
19 February 2015

The order to kill the Mongolian beauty Altantuya Shaariibuu must have been cascaded down the line of command from someone above. Ultimately Sirul Azhar Umar was the one who had to do all the dirty work and take all the blame when things went wrong.

Thus when any person along the line of command is removed, the others will be insulated and will not collapse like a domino.

Therefore allowing Sirul to slip off to Australia could be part of the plan. Sirul may be allowed some freedom and may also tell his story, but he could only put the blame on his immediate superior.

Sirul telling his story also acts like a pressure release valve, since the Altantuya murder case has heated up like the pressure in a volcano that increases from time to time.

In court, Sirul mentioned that it was Azilah Hadri who instructed him to ensure that Altantuya was really dead. Sirul may not know firsthand on who actually gave the order.

The one who gave the order must have been wise enough to insulate himself or herself from the crime through the line of command. Thus whatever Sirul will say, he cannot say for sure say that such and such person instructed them to kill. Continue reading “What could Sirul tell us?”

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1MDB-PetroSaudi deal includes repaying US$700 million debt, says whistleblower site

The Malaysian Insider
18 February 2015

Online news portal Sarawak Report has published a 26-page document, revealing sovereign fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) had paid US$1 billion of public funds into a shady venture with Petrosaudi International, despite its lack of a tangible track record.

“What the document reveals is that the prime minister and his advisors at 1MDB paid USD1 billion of borrowed public money into a venture that already carried a USD700 million debt in the form of a loan from PetroSaudi’s parent company to the subsidiary that was entering into the joint venture, PetroSaudi Holdings (Caymans) Limited,” it said in its report.

“Crucially, under the terms of the joint venture, agreed to by 1MDB, the Malaysian development fund had committed to pay back this whopping great loan to the parent company, PetroSaudi International, on day one of the joint venture!,” it added. Continue reading “1MDB-PetroSaudi deal includes repaying US$700 million debt, says whistleblower site”

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Reveal Shafee’s fees as it’s from public funds

By Mohamed Hanipa Maidin
Malaysiakini
Feb 17, 2015

MP SPEAKS When government opted to appoint Muhammad Shafee Abdullah as lead prosecutor in handling Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim’s appeal, it implied that Anwar’s case was too big and too serious that the Attorney-General and his team was not confident enough to conduct the appeal.

Maybe, in the eyes of the AG, the murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibuu murder was less significant than Anwar’s ‘crime’ so much so that he did not consider fit and proper to engage a private lawyer to secure conviction for political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda (left) so that Razak could have been served with a death warrant.

Razak was acquitted by the High Court but the AG did not lodge an appeal against such a decision. On the other hand, when Anwar was released by the High Court, the AG proceeded with the appeal and used public funds to engage a lawyer who is well known to charge exorbitant legal fees for his services.

Both Razak and Anwar are linked to the Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Razak was Najib’s close associate and Anwar is his political enemy. His associate is now in London and his political rival landed in Sungai Buloh’s prison. Continue reading “Reveal Shafee’s fees as it’s from public funds”

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In the court of public opinion, is Putrajaya or Umno fighting Anwar?

COMMENTARY BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
18 February 2015

There is a very fine line, between defending one’s party and excoriating political opponents in the battle for the hearts and minds of the electorate. And all the more so when it comes to a criminal case.

Sixteen years ago, the prosecution led by then Attorney-General, Tan Sri Mokhtar Abdullah and aided by Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail, presented the state’s evidence against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and got him convicted and jailed for sodomy and abuse of power.

Umno and specifically then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was blamed for that episode. It cost the ruling Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) Terengganu in the 1999 general election.

But there was no roadshows to debunk political conspiracy theories by Anwar’s supporters. None. The prosecutors did their job and that was that, no matter the international outrage, public opprobrium and the weekend public protests.
Last week, the Federal Court upheld the Court of Appeal’s verdict to convict and jail Anwar for five years in another sodomy case. Again, Anwar said it was a political ploy to keep him and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) from capturing Putrajaya.

Again, there was international outrage, public opprobrium but not much public protests as most vented their spleen online and got back to their ordinary lives.

But this time, it was Umno lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah who led the prosecution at both the Court of Appeal and Federal Court levels. And this time, Umno decided to take Shafee on a roadshow to explain the verdict. Continue reading “In the court of public opinion, is Putrajaya or Umno fighting Anwar?”

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Najib should make a ministerial statement when Parliament reconvenes on March 10 on the actual status, job specification and remuneration paid to former APCO Malaysia boss Paul Stadlen to mastermind the Prime Minister’s communications

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak should make a ministerial statement when Parliament reconvenes on March 10 on the actual status, job specification and remuneration paid to former APCO Malaysia boss Paul Stadlen to mastermind the Prime Minister’s communications operations.

I have also sent in a specific oral question to the Prime Minister asking him to confirm the veracity of a report in the Sarawak Report website that Paul Stadlen is being paid millions of ringgit to mastermind his communications policy, and whether the Paul Stadlen outfit was responsible of the infamous 109-word three-paragraph statement in the name of the Prime Minister’s Office that was issued of February 10 praising the Federal Court’s decision dismissing Anwar Ibrahim’s appeal in Sodomy II, not only within minutes of the two-hour delivery of the judgment by the Chief Justice, Tun Arifin Zakaria but before the sentence was passed!

Many questions cry out for answer.

Firstly, are there no local public relations and communications experts who could be entrusted with the responsibility of masterminding Najib’s communications policy, especially as it has been reported that Stadlen’s firm was retained by the PMO at a minimum of RM3 million a year and was also commissioned for a 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)-related project worth another RM1.5 million? Continue reading “Najib should make a ministerial statement when Parliament reconvenes on March 10 on the actual status, job specification and remuneration paid to former APCO Malaysia boss Paul Stadlen to mastermind the Prime Minister’s communications”

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Anwar will not be forgotten

– P. Ramakrishnan
The Malaysian Insider
18 February 2015

We are here to send a clear message that opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will not be forgotten. What he stood for and fought for will not be forgotten. The injustice and abuse that was inflicted on him will not be forgotten.

If anything, all this will be remembered and kept alive. And someone will pay for it. There is no doubt about it.

Whether inside or outside prison, Anwar is a force to be reckoned with. Charismatic and effective leaders will not disappear from the consciousness of the nation or from the memory of grateful citizens.

They locked up Gandhi and Martin Luther King many times. But they could not stifle what they stood for; they could not prevent their ideas and struggle from perpetuating on their own steam.

You can imprison a man but you cannot imprison his spirit; you cannot imprison his ideas; you cannot imprison the ideals he stands for.

So it will be with Anwar! No force or power can halt this determined struggle to bring about a change in government. Continue reading “Anwar will not be forgotten”

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Controversial Malaysian Investment Fund’s Computer Records Wiped Off

By Our Correspondent
Asia Sentinel
February 15, 2015

All computers and servers at 1Malaysia Development Bhd, the troubled investment fund backed by Malaysia’s Ministry of Finance, were called in and wiped clean just before the end of last year, the investigative blog Sarawak Report reported on Feb. 13.

1MDB employees told the blog that all computers and records at the fund were called in and cleaned, including personal computers and mainframe servers, supposedly because the fund’s system was hacked.

The chief economic advisor of the fund, which was started in 2009, is Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. It reportedly faces RMB43 billion (US$12.01 billion) in debt and has been unable to meet loan payment dates several times. It was forced to go to Bank Negara, the country’s central bank, to ask for an extension in the payment dates, raising concern that its financial problems could threaten the entire Malaysian banking system. The bulk of the loans were made by the government-linked Malayan Banking Bhd or Maybank, and RHB Bank.

Sources confirmed the story to Asia Sentinel but the reason for the action appears unclear. It may stem from the fact that Sarawak Report, which is published by Clare Rewcastle Brown, announced last September that she had access to the fund’s emails. Continue reading “Controversial Malaysian Investment Fund’s Computer Records Wiped Off”

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Malaysia’s retreat from modernity

Rakyat Times/The Australian
18 February 2015

While Malaysia’s charismatic opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was being jailed for five years for sodomy on Tuesday last week, the country’s Prime Minister, Najib Razak, was participating in the nearby launch of an index to assess levels of compliance to sharia law.

Najib said he hoped the government’s own sharia observance would become “a culture of collective practice”.

Two years ago he became the first non-Arab government head to visit Gaza. At a joint press conference with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Najib said he came “to express my solidarity with the Palestinian people”.

A few weeks earlier, he had told a New York audience: “The problem in today’s world is not between Christians, Muslims or Jews but it’s really between the extremists and democracy.”

He said “moderation is, you know, based on certain principles and very sound values, like justice. It calls for us to be bold enough to occupy the centre stage and the moral high ground.”

He responded in part to the recent Charlie Hebdo slayings: “If you criticise other religions because of freedom, it will have severe repercussions.”

Anwar’s jailing – widely condemned by foreign governments including Australia and the US, and by legal and human rights org­anisations – raises questions about which is the real Najib, the real Malaysia, about how moderate, democratic and ultimately modern the country truly is. Continue reading “Malaysia’s retreat from modernity”

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Sodomy II is not Saiful v Anwar

– Nawawi Mohamad
The Malaysian Insider
18 February 2015

To everyone who thought that Sodomy II is the case of opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim versus his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan – you got it wrong.

Sodomy II is Umno versus Anwar. Saiful is just the pawn who played his part and after the first stage of the plan to jail Anwar was accomplished, the next stage and the rest of the stages were taken care of by Umno.

Everyone in the team against Anwar – the police, doctors, chemist and judges – are government servants appointed by the arms of the Umno-Barisan Nasional (BN) government. Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah was also under the government’s payroll. So could they really be fair and independent?

We have witnessed a concerted effort during the trial of the Altantuya murder case that no one asked the duo Sirul Azhar Umar and Azilah Hadri who gave the order to kill and get the motive of the murder despite knowing that they were paid to kill.

Similarly the whole exercise in the Sodomy II trial, everyone wanted to make sure that every event, evidence, person and witness involved, no matter what, must lead to the jailing of Anwar. Continue reading “Sodomy II is not Saiful v Anwar”

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Nik Aziz dianggap liberal dalam usaha pecah tembok perkauman, kata pemimpin PAS

The Malaysian Insider
18 February 2015

Sebelum sebahagian pemimpin dilabelkan sebagai liberal dan mengamalkan pluralisme agama, Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, mursyidul am PAS yang meninggal dunia Khamis lepas, terlebih dahulu menerima label sedemikian, kata Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.

Pengarah Pusat Penyelidikan PAS itu berkata, golongan agamawan, sama ada dari luar mahupun dalam parti PAS sendiri, tidak memahami strategi siasah dan pendekatan dakwah Nik Aziz dalam memecahkan tembok perkauman dan agama di negara ini.

“Hanya dengan ilmu yang mengizinkan Tok Guru meneroka dan merentas keluasan siasah dan dakwah serta faham batas-batasnya,” kata Dr Dzulkefly dalam satu tulisan sempena mengingati pemergian Nik Aziz, yang juga dikenali dengan panggilan Tok Guru, pada usia 84 tahun minggu lalu.

Label itu katanya, diterima Nik Aziz kerana orang tidak memahami pendekatannya yang luar biasa dalam menangani masyarakat plural dan pelbagai agama dan kaum di negara ini. Continue reading “Nik Aziz dianggap liberal dalam usaha pecah tembok perkauman, kata pemimpin PAS”

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Public corruption in China: Then and now

Richard Wong
South China Morning Post
17 February, 2015

China has waged a campaign against public corruption for the past two years and there is no sign of abatement. At first, there was speculation it was a cover for a power struggle and therefore would be short-lived. Increasingly, it appears to be a means of forging a new social contract for the post-Deng era.

The social contract forged by Deng Xiaoping traded market-driven economic growth for political stability. Some individuals and families amassed huge fortunes in the process. Many were private entrepreneurs whose gains were made through fair market competition, but others were public officials who captured economic benefits through the exercise of political influence. The rise of this public corruption has incensed the public.

Some commentators allege that corruption might be inherent to Chinese culture because, for over two thousand years, the traditional Chinese economy was quite corrupt despite failing to grow.

But the public corruption that existed in traditional China is fundamentally different in nature from that which has appeared in a modernising China. Continue reading “Public corruption in China: Then and now”

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DAP’s SSS (Support Sympathy Solidarity) Anwar Ceramah has 3SAVE objectives – to save Anwar from prison, to save Pakatan Rakyat from disintegration and to save Malaysia from becoming a “failed state”

This is the third DAP SSS (Support Sympathy Solidarity) Anwar Ibrahim Ceramah, the first in Taman Cheras Jaya in Selangor on Sunday and the second at the Han Chiang School Hall in Penang last night.

DAP proposes to organize hundreds of SSS Anwar ceramahs, vigils, gatherings and events throughout the country in the next three years before the 14th General Elections with 3Save objectives – firstly, to save Anwar from prison, secondly to save Pakatan Rakyat from disintegration and thirdly, to save Malaysia from becoming a “failed state”.

Anwar has exhausted the judicial process and lost out when the Federal Court returned a shocking 5-0 unanimous decision to dismiss Anwar’s appeal, as even the most pessimistic about Anwar’s chances believing that he would lose in the Federal Court appeal had expected either a 3-2 verdict or at worst a 4-1 decision.

Everybody was floored by the unanimous 5-0 decision. There were not only no dissenting judgment, there was no other judgment from the five-member Federal Court quorum, apart from the single judgment by the Chief Justice, Tun Arifin Zakaria!

Anwar may have lost in the courts of the Malaysian judiciary, but he has won two battles in the first week of his five-year jail sentence – firstly, the court of public opinion in Malaysia and secondly, the court of international opinion, as it will not be easy to find another Federal Court judgment in the past two decades which had met with such instant universal condemnation, not only inside the country but also outside. Continue reading “DAP’s SSS (Support Sympathy Solidarity) Anwar Ceramah has 3SAVE objectives – to save Anwar from prison, to save Pakatan Rakyat from disintegration and to save Malaysia from becoming a “failed state””

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From Sodomy I to Sodomy II – Malaysia regressing to the darkness and repression 17 years ago when the country should be moving forward to greater freedom, justice, prosperity and confidence after the passage of almost two decades

Wishing all Malaysian Chinese as well as Malaysians, regardless of race or religion, a Happy Chinese New Year as it is now a festivity celebrated by all Malaysians regardless of race and religion.

Chinese New Year, which begins on the second new moon after the winter solstice, has been described as the most important holiday for Chinese people worldwide.

In China, it is marked by the world’s largest annual human migrations with 2.8 billion trips made across the country in the mass exodus of students, migrant labourers, factory workers and office employees making their long journeys home to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

Chinese New Year in Malaysia has become a very Malaysian affair, despite its ethnic origins and associations.

In Malaysia, the Chinese New Year is also marked by major human migrations, but not confined to the Chinese as it affects other ethnic groups as well.

Many issues will jostle for top attention among Malaysians during the Chinese New Year. Continue reading “From Sodomy I to Sodomy II – Malaysia regressing to the darkness and repression 17 years ago when the country should be moving forward to greater freedom, justice, prosperity and confidence after the passage of almost two decades”

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Will Cabinet meet tomorrow to resolve once and for all Ismail Sabri’s racist call to Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses or will the Cabinet play truant and will not meet at all or will meet but evade the issue?

Will the Cabinet meet tomorrow to resolve once and for all the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri’s racist call to Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses which had dragged out for two-and-a-half-weeks without acceptable solution and conclusion or will the Cabinet play truant on the ground that it is Chinese New Year Eve and will not meet at all or will meet but evade the issue?

I do not know whether to laugh or to cry when it was reported that Ismail Sabri had said he would not attend the Chinese New Year event held in his Bera constituency in Pahang as the “brouhaha” over his racist fulminations calling on Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses has yet to die down.

He claimed that he had received a tip off that if he attended the Chinese New Year event, DAP supporters may attend too and some may throw objects at him.

This is his second reckless and irresponsible statement in a matter of weeks, reinforcing the question as to his fitness to continue as a Minister for all Malaysians in a plural nation like Malaysia.

It reminds of the Chinese idiom of “mouthing blood to smear people”, a most despicable and dishonourable act by anyone, not just by a person holding the high status of being a Cabinet Minister of the land!

Bera DAP officials were spot-on when in their denial that there were any such a plot and accused Ismail of being guilty of “yi xiao ren zhi xin du jun zhi zhi fu” (gauge the heart of a gentleman with one’s own mean measure). Continue reading “Will Cabinet meet tomorrow to resolve once and for all Ismail Sabri’s racist call to Malay consumers to boycott Chinese businesses or will the Cabinet play truant and will not meet at all or will meet but evade the issue?”

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With old guards bowing out, how will Barisan and Pakatan change?

BY ANISAH SHUKRY
The Malaysian Insider
17 February 2015

Old guards in Malaysia’s political parties are slowly leaving the scene paving the way for younger leaders to come forward, but between the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) and the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR), the pace of rejuvenation differs vastly.

Both sides have hugely respected and influential stalwarts but the number has dwindled down to one each – in BN, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah is the sole veteran still in active politics as Gua Musang MP and in PR, Gelang Patah MP Lim Kit Siang is still DAP adviser.

In PR, there is potential now for younger leaders to rise and develop even more responsibilities with the passing of PAS’s Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat and DAP’s Karpal Singh, as well as the incarceration of PKR de factor leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

In BN, party’s top posts are filled with second-generation leaders, such as Datuk Seri Najib Razak, the Umno president and prime minister, and Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, an Umno vice-president and defence minister.

But the crucial difference between the two coalitions was that with BN, the party’s rejuvenation process seems to have come to an abrupt stop with Najib’s generation, while in PR, younger leaders continue to join the coalition and rise up the ranks, analysts said. Continue reading “With old guards bowing out, how will Barisan and Pakatan change?”

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Call on all Pakatan Rakyat leaders and supporters to save Pakatan Rakyat from latest UMNO/BN wiles by uniting behind a Eight-Year PR Roadmap to save Anwar

I call on all Pakatan Rakyat leaders and supporters to unite to save Pakatan Rakyat from the latest UMNO/Barisan Nasional (BN) wiles to sow discord and distrust among Pakatan Rakyat parties and leaders with the agenda to divide and destroy the most formidable challenge the ruling coalition had ever to face in its history.

The latest UMNO/BN gambit is to fully exploit Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s five-year incarceration and the passing of Tok Guru Nik Aziz resulting in two by-elections, the Permatang Pauh parliamentary and the Kelantan Chempaka State Assembly by-elections, with UMNO staying out of the Chempaka by-election but going all out in the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election.

This will be a revival of the plot by certain UMNO schemers and strategists to promote the UG concept or “unity government” of UMNO and PAS, but which have not been able to make much headway to date because of the staunch and uncompromising opposition from Nik Aziz.

To these UMNO schemers and strategists, the death of Nik Aziz brings new hope for their dormant “UG” conspiracy.

I am very intrigued however as what the promoters of “UG government” really meant, when it is obvious to all that there is no unity in UMNO itself, with former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir going all out to topple Datuk Seri Najib Razak as Umno President and Prime Minister of Malaysia. Continue reading “Call on all Pakatan Rakyat leaders and supporters to save Pakatan Rakyat from latest UMNO/BN wiles by uniting behind a Eight-Year PR Roadmap to save Anwar”