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Should Rukunegara be Preamble to Malaysian Constitution or be the Centrepiece of TN50?

The civil society initiative to make Rukunegara relevant again and be the guide for public policies and law-making is most commendable and timely.

The civil society initiative, known as “Rukunegara sebagai Muqadimmah Perlembagaan” (RMP) or “Rukunegara as the Preamble to the Federal Constitution”, is aimed at including the national document as the opening statement of Malaysia’s supreme law, the Malaysian Constitution.

I cannot agree more with RMP chairman Dr Chandra Muzaffar when he said the Rukunegara has been sidelined, giving way to other trends that threatened national unity and integrity.

He said at the launch of the RMP campaign: “If such trends gain more influence in the future, the characteristics of our country will change.

“This is why we Malaysians have to remind ourselves of the Rukunegara and how important this ideology is in a whole and inclusive society.”

I made a five-day visit to Jakarta and Jogjarkata in September last year together with three DAP MPs, Teresa Kok (Seputeh), Zairil Khir Johari (Bukit Bendera) and Steven Sim (Bukit Mertajam) to meet with leaders of political parties and Islamic organisations as well as public intellectuals, and one thing that struck us was the central place of Pancasila among the major Indonesian political and intellectual leaders in the nation-building process in the country. Continue reading “Should Rukunegara be Preamble to Malaysian Constitution or be the Centrepiece of TN50?”

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Liow should explain how MCA could reconcile its public stand to oppose Hadi’s private member’s bill with Najib’s announcement that Barisan Nasional government will vote in support of Hadi’s private member’s bill motion in March Parliament and government take over Hadi’s bill?

There is a rule of thumb in political exchanges that personal attacks or character assassination is the last resort of political opportunists and scoundrels who have run out of arguments based on facts and reason, and this is what the MCA President Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai resorted to when he launched a ferocious personal attack on me, accusing the DAP as a privately-owned “Kit Siang & Son Sdn. Bhd” and not a political party.

I can understand Liow’s frustration and exasperation, but it is no justification nevertheless for him to resort to personal attacks and character-assassination.

What was Liow frustrated and exasperated about?

The latest incident was the MCA leadership’s total inability to respond to my statement on Thursday catching Liow “red-handed” in saying one thing to the Chinese but giving a totally different impression to the Malays – which is the height of political dishonesty and chicanery at work in plural Malaysia. Continue reading “Liow should explain how MCA could reconcile its public stand to oppose Hadi’s private member’s bill with Najib’s announcement that Barisan Nasional government will vote in support of Hadi’s private member’s bill motion in March Parliament and government take over Hadi’s bill?”

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Have Liow Tiong Lai, Mah Siew Keong and S. Subramaniam secretly agreed with UMNO to support BN government take-over of Hadi’s private member’s bill that MCA, Gerakan and MIC cannot respond positively to the Pensiangan Formula to deal with Hadi’s private member’s bill?

I have been puzzled as to why the MCA President, Datuk Liow Tiong Lai, the Gerakan President, Datuk Mah Siew Keong, the MIC President, Datuk S. Subramian is so lukewarm to my proposal of a Pensiangan Formula to address the political and constitutional stalemate created by UMNO’s support for PAS President Datuk Seri Abdul Awang Hadi’s private member’s bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act (Act 355).

The Pensiangan Formula came to me when I was visiting Pensiangan on Thursday, 29th December after Tenom and Keningau in the interior in Sabah, where the overwhelming majority are Christians and non-Muslims – and after the inspiring and eloquent Christmas Message of the President of the Sabah Council of Churches, Rev Jerry Dusing, calling for the truth to be told on national issues concerning the people, whether 1MDB or Hadi’s private member’s bill.

Pensiangan is the parliamentary constituency of the Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of national unity.

But Kurup had failed in his Ministerial duty, as the country had never been faced with greater threat to national unity arising from the triple woes of racial and religious polarisation and the failure of Putrajaya to honour the Malaysia Agreement 1963 to give equitable and fair treatment to Sabah and Sarawak in the Malaysian Federation.

As a result, Kurup was not in much of a “national unity” mindset when he warned in May this year that Sabahans and Sarawakians may demand to split from peninsular Malaysia if Hadi’s private member’s bill is passed in Parliament.

If this should come to pass, it would be the greatest tragedy for the Malaysian Federation. Continue reading “Have Liow Tiong Lai, Mah Siew Keong and S. Subramaniam secretly agreed with UMNO to support BN government take-over of Hadi’s private member’s bill that MCA, Gerakan and MIC cannot respond positively to the Pensiangan Formula to deal with Hadi’s private member’s bill?”

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Message of wind-down of MACC special operations division is clear – MACC should catch more “ikan bilis” but leave the ‘ikan yus” alone!

2017 New Year Message

    In his 2016 New Year message exactly a year ago, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak told Malaysians that his RM50 billion 1MDB and RM2.6 billion donation twin mega scandals had been resolved and were no more issues.

    Najib could not be more wrong as Malaysia’s international repute and standing suffered an even worse battering this year with the ferocious pounding of the twin mega scandals in the international marketplace of opinion, to the extent that Malaysians felt embarrassed in admitting that they are Malaysians when abroad.

    In the past 12 months, Malaysia went from the third “worst corruption scandal of 2015” by international website foreignpolicy.com in the last week of last year, to second worst example of global corruption by Time magazine in March, second place in the index of crony capitalism by the Economist’s ranking in May, and full-blown “global kleptocracy” when in July, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed the largest kleptocratic lawsuits to forfeit US$1 billion of 1MDB-linked assets in the United States, United Kingdom and Switzerland from US$3.5 billion international 1MDB kleptocratic embezzlement and money-laundering scandal.

    These were not the only woes for the country for this year – as the country is going through the worst multiple crisis of confidence as evidenced by the worst plummeting in the value of the Malaysian ringgit, the worst racial and religious polarisation in the nation’s history and the unspeakable shame in being excluded from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)2015 because of data cheating and bungling by the Ministry of Education.

    We are ending the 2016 year with news of the downsizing of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) special operations division, which had handled high-profiled cases related to the 1MDB and Felda.

    The message is very clear – MACC should arrest and prosecute more “ikan bilis” but it should leave the “ikan yus” alone. Continue reading “Message of wind-down of MACC special operations division is clear – MACC should catch more “ikan bilis” but leave the ‘ikan yus” alone!”

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Pensiangan Formula to address the political and constitutional stalemate created by UMNO’s support for Hadi’s private member’s bill motion on RUU355

An idea came to me during my visit to Pensiangan and Sook in the last three days on a formula which could address the political and constitutional stalemate which had haunted Malaysia for the best part of this year as a result of the initially surreptitious support of key UMNO leaders for PAS President Datuk Seri Abdul Awang Hadi’s private member’s bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act (Act 355).

I was visiting Pensiangan as part of my visit to the Sabah Interior which also include Tenom and Keningau together with DAPSY leader and Perak DAP State Assemblyman for Canning, Wong Kah Woh; National DAPSY Publicity Secretary Henry Shim; Sabah DAP Chairman and MP for Sandakan, Steven Wong; Sabah DAP Adviser and MP for Kota Kinabalu, Jimmy Wong; Sabah DAP Deputy Chairman and Sabah State Assemblyman for Kepayang Dr. Edwin Bosi; DAP Sabah Vice Chairman and Keningau DAP Branch Chairman Peter Saili; Sabah DAP Publicity Secretary Phoong Jin Zhe; Sabah DAP Director of Political Education, Adrian Lasimbang; Melalap DAP Branch Chairperson Grelydia Gillod; Pensiangan DAP Assistant Co-ordinators Clare Taunek and Robinson Rusikan.

The majority of the people in Tenom, Keningau and Pensiangan are Christians.

The MP for Pensiangan is Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of national unity.

But Kurup was not in any “national unity” mindset when he warned Putrajaya in May this year that Sabahans and Sarawakians may demand to split from peninsular Malaysia if Hadi’s private member’s bill is passed in Parliament.

Kurup said Hadi’s private member’s bill risks dividing East and West Malaysia and called for its withdrawal.

He said: “If it is forced into Parliament and passed, I’m afraid it will trigger more feelings among the people of Sabah and Sarawak to go their separate ways.

“They [Federal government] shouldn’t have the slightest thought of introducing this law.”

On the last day of the Budget meeting in November when Hadi’s private member’s bill was expected to come up again, the MCA mouthpiece, The Star, devoted the whole of its front-page to Hadi’s private member’s motion with the headline “Solid ‘NO’ to Hadi’s Bill”, featuring the quotes and pics from leaders of five Barisan Nasional leaders, namely from MCA, Gerakan, MIC, PBB and PBS. Continue reading “Pensiangan Formula to address the political and constitutional stalemate created by UMNO’s support for Hadi’s private member’s bill motion on RUU355”

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The 13 other BN component parties should not walk into the trap prepared by some UMNO leaders and propose instead that the March Parliament set up an all-party Parliamentary Select Committee to strengthen inter-religious relations in Malaysia based on Malaysian Constitution, MA63 and Rukunegara

The Sabah Council of Churches spoke for Malaysians and not just Sabahans when during Christmas, it prayed for truth to prevail in Malaysia, especially among those in power.

In his Christmas Day message, Council president Rev Jerry Dusing said, among others, truth must be established on the issues concerning 1MDB and the “hudud bill”.

He asked: “What is the truth of 1MDB? As Malaysians are left in the dark, we find ourselves frustratingly waiting for foreign nations to expose the truth about this mystery.”

He said lack of truth on the matter compromises the willingness of the public and businesses to respond to public policies and contribute to economic recovery.

I am very disappointed that the Cabinet, at its last meeting of the year yesterday, had not heard Dusing’s Christmas Message and started the new year 2017 with a new commitment to tell Malaysians about the truth, whether it be on 1MDB or PAS President, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang’s private member’s bill motion to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act (Act 355).

There are six Ministers from Sabah in the Najib Cabinet, three of whom are Christians, one of whom is responsible for national unity as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Tan Sri Joseph Kurup.

It is the height of disappointment that none of the Sabah Ministers had raised Dusing’s Christmas Message at the last Cabinet of the year for the Cabinet and Government to start telling the truth to Malaysians. Continue reading “The 13 other BN component parties should not walk into the trap prepared by some UMNO leaders and propose instead that the March Parliament set up an all-party Parliamentary Select Committee to strengthen inter-religious relations in Malaysia based on Malaysian Constitution, MA63 and Rukunegara”

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The real reason for the sacking of Gani Patail as Attorney-General in July 2015 is one of the truths Sabahans and Malaysians have a right to know

During Christmas, the Sabah Council of Churches prayed for truth to prevail in Malaysia, especially among those in power.

Council president Rev Jerry Dusing said, among others, truth must be established on the issues concerning 1MDB and the “hudud bill”.

Another issue which Sabahans and Malaysians have a right to know is the real reason for the sacking of Tan Sri Gani Patail, a Sabahan, as Attorney-General in July 2015.

Health was given as the reason by Putrajaya for the termination of Gani’s position as Attorney-General three months before his retirement.

But Gani looked very “fit and healthy” when he was called to the Bar in the Kuala Lumpur High Court last Friday.

In fact, Gani was so “fit and healthy” that he has opened his own legal firm, Gani Patail Chambers at Kuala Lumpur Sentral to start a new career. Continue reading “The real reason for the sacking of Gani Patail as Attorney-General in July 2015 is one of the truths Sabahans and Malaysians have a right to know”

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As Najib has failed not only the nine strategic objectives of Vision 2020, but also Rukunegara and bedrock Constitutional principles, his Vision 2050 in NT 2050 cannot be anything exciting to shout about

Today is Dōngzhì (literally: “the arrival of winter”) or Winter Solstice Festival, where the Northern hemisphere has the shortest daytime and longest nighttime.

Traditionally for the Chinese, the Dongzhi Festival is a time for the family to get together for the making and eating of tangyuan (湯圓), which symbolizes reunion.

In four days times, Christians in Malaysia will celebrate Christmas.

Just over a week ago, Muslims in Malaysia celebrated Maulidur Rasul and at the end of October Hindus celebrated Deepavali.

This is the best time for Malaysians to reaffirm our uniqueness and strength, which lies in the diversity of our multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and multi-religious society, especially as in recent years, the voices of extremism and intolerance of the diverse races, languages, cultures and religions in Malaysia seem to be gaining traction, causing Malaysians to suffer the worst racial and religious polarisation in the nation’s history.

Malaysians should go back to the founding principles of our Constitution and nation-building process if we want to break away from the present trajectory towards a failed and rogue state – the building of a united, harmonious, democratic, secular, progressive and liberal Malaysia.

The first and third Prime Ministers of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tun Hussein Onn, were particularly concerned that Malaysia should not waver from our founding principle to be a secular nation with Islam as the official religion and freedom of religion in the country; while the second Prime Minister, Tun Razak (Najib’s father) wanted to highlight Malaysia’s commitment to be a liberal Malaysia, embedding in the Rukunegara the objective “to ensure a liberal approach to her rich and diverse cultural traditions”. Continue reading “As Najib has failed not only the nine strategic objectives of Vision 2020, but also Rukunegara and bedrock Constitutional principles, his Vision 2050 in NT 2050 cannot be anything exciting to shout about”

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Fourth tranche of five questions for Salleh from Musa Hitam, 1MDB, Islamic State to Hadi’s private member’s bill

The following is the fourth tranche of my five questions for the Minister for Communications and Multimedia, Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak to help him reinstate his right to ask questions and demand answers from others, after forfeiting such right when as Minister responsible for the portfolio of information, he failed to answer numerous questions about government scandals and failings:

Question 16:

Is the former Prime Minister, Tun Musa Hitam, right when he said at a forum yesterday that only the political bankrupts would use the politics of race and religion as gambling chits in the political arena, and one of the most egregious examples of such reckless exploitation of the politics of race and religion is none other than the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak in his UMNO Presidential Speech on Nov. 30? Continue reading “Fourth tranche of five questions for Salleh from Musa Hitam, 1MDB, Islamic State to Hadi’s private member’s bill”

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Worst BN crisis since 1973 – leaders of other BN component parties should cancel their year-end holidays overseas to requisition emergency meeting of BN Supreme Council to establish whether UMNO has smashed BN consensus principle into smithereens

The cat is out of the bag. UMNO leaders were determined right from beginning to outfox the other 13 Barisan Nasional component parties on Hadi’s private member’s bill and the strategy of how UMNO is going to support Hadi’s private members bill was revealed by two UMNO leaders yesterday.

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Jamil Kamil Khir Bahrom said Hadi’s Private Member’s Bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act (Act 355) enabled the government to circumvent the due constitutional process, as requiring consensus from all states, the National Islamic Council and the Rulers’ Conference.

Jamil explained: “You can’t bring it to the Rulers Conference if you don’t have consensus from 14 states, but a private member’s bill requires only one state or one person to table it.”

Jamil made this shocking admission at the Umno Overseas Club Alumni annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.Jamil said that when Hadi’s private member’s bill motion moves to the second reading stage, it would be taken over by the government and read out by him.

What Jamil did not mention was that this UMNO strategy to support Hadi’s private member’s bill not only tried to circumvent the constitutional process to secure the consensus from the 14 states and the support of the National Islamic Council and the Rulers’ Conference, it was also a ploy to circumvent the Barisan Nasional consensus of all the 14 BN component parties for any policy or measure to be adopted in the name of Barisan Nasional Government. Continue reading “Worst BN crisis since 1973 – leaders of other BN component parties should cancel their year-end holidays overseas to requisition emergency meeting of BN Supreme Council to establish whether UMNO has smashed BN consensus principle into smithereens”

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Call for amendment of the Malaysian Constitution to put Orang Asli on par with the Malay and Bumiputeras in terms of constitutional privileges

DAP will continue to support the special position of the Malays and Bumiputeras while protecting the rights of other ethnic groups as enshrined in Article 153 of the Federal Constitution. This means we also want help to be extended to all communities who are in need.

The special position is for the Bumiputeras who are in need, and not for the rich Umnoputras. It also means that the non-Malays who are backward and who need help must have access to the affirmative action programmes.

In this respect, I would like to point out that Malaysia’s first and original Bumiputeras – the Orang Asli – have long been neglected since Merdeka in 1957 – nearly 60 years ago.

They have been here for thousands of years, yet they were and are still being treated unfairly by the authorities. In terms of privileges, that no one is more deserving than the Orang Asli communities to be given such a special position. Continue reading “Call for amendment of the Malaysian Constitution to put Orang Asli on par with the Malay and Bumiputeras in terms of constitutional privileges”

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Can the Malaysian Parliament Move Against Prime Minister Najib Razak?

Koon Yew Yin
10th Dec 2016

Friends who watch the foreign TV news channel have asked me whether Malaysia will be able to follow the example of South Korea in the current leadership crisis found in that country.

In the case of South Korea, their lawmakers recently voted overwhelmingly in Parliament to impeach President Park Geun-hye over an influence-peddling and corruption scandal. If successful, it will set the stage for her to become the country’s first elected leader to be expelled from office in disgrace.

The impeachment motion was carried by a 234-56 margin in a secret ballot in parliament, meaning that at least more than 60 of Park’s own conservative Saenuri Party members backed removing her.

The votes of at least 200 members of the 300-seat chamber were needed for the motion to pass.

The Constitutional Court must now decide whether to uphold the motion, a process that could take up to 180 days. Continue reading “Can the Malaysian Parliament Move Against Prime Minister Najib Razak?”

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DAP wants to topple the UMNO/Barisan Nasional government for making Malaysia a “global kleptocracy”, but by constitutional means through the democratic process by the ballot box and not in any violent, unconstitutional or revolutionary manner

DAP National Organising Secretary and MP for Seremban, Anthony Loke is the first casualty of the Bersih 5 crackdown which have seen the arbitrary, indiscriminate and mass arrest of Bersih chairperson Maria Chin, other Bersih activists like Mandeep Singh, Hishammuddin Rais, Muhamad Safwan, student leaders Anis Syafiqah Md Yusof, Muhamad Luqman Nul Haqim Zul Razali and Pakatan Harapan elected representatives Zuraida Kamaruddin (MP – Ampang), Tian Chua (MP – Batu) and Howard Lee (Perak State Assemblyman – Pasir Pinji).

Anthony is held under the Sedition Act for his speech at the Pakatan Harapan Convention the previous Saturday calling for the toppling of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Let me make it very clear that the DAP and Pakatan Harapan is committed to the toppling of the Prime Minister, Datuk Najib Razak and the UMNO/Barisan Nasiuonal government for making Malaysia a “global kleptocracy”, but by constitutional means through the democratic process by the ballot box and not in any violent, unconstitutional or revolutionary manner. Continue reading “DAP wants to topple the UMNO/Barisan Nasional government for making Malaysia a “global kleptocracy”, but by constitutional means through the democratic process by the ballot box and not in any violent, unconstitutional or revolutionary manner”

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Had Pandikar committed the crime under section 124(B) of Penal Code of activity detrimental to parliamentary democracy when he egged on police investigations of three former Cabinet Ministers for their speeches on 1MDB in Parliament?

During the final winding-up of the 2017 Budget debate yesterday, I asked the Second Finance Minister, Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani whether and how the three former Cabinet Ministers, MP for Pagoh and former Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, MP for Semporna and former Rural and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and the MP for Tambun and former Second Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Abdul Husni Hanadzlah had violated Cabinet secrecy when they took part in the debate in Parliament on the budget.

Johari was unable to give a cogent and intelligible answer.

I in fact asked Johari why he dared not repeat inside Parliament what he had earlier said outside the Parliament chamber, that it was not wrong for MPs and former Cabinet Ministers like Husni to ask questions about 1MDB in Parliament.

There was no answer from Johari.

Although the Second Finance Minister, the Minister tasked with the final reply on the 2017 Budget speech, does not know that the three former Cabinet Ministers had violated Cabinet secrecy, the Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia seemed to know more about Cabinet secrets about the 1MDB than Johari with his media conference statement on Thursday, 27th October that the three former Cabinet Ministers might have broken their oaths of secrecy when debating the 2017 Budget.

This has shocked many lawyers and law professors, as well as the former longest-serving Attorney-General, Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman, who was AG for 13 years from 1980-1993, who expressed surprise and questioned how the Dewan Rakyat Speaker knew that three former ministers had revealed government secrets when they raised the 1MDB issue during budget debate.

Abu Talib wondered how Pandikar, as head of the legislature, knew that the Cabinet had discussed the 1MDB issue. Also, how did he know what was discussed was classified information.

Abu Talib asked whether somebody had told the Speaker about it, and if so, Speaker should have lodged a police report against that very person who told him.

However, this most important question is whether Pandikar had committed a crime under section 124(B) of Penal Code of an activity “detrimental to parliamentary democracy” when he egged on police investigations of three former Cabinet Ministers for their speeches on 1MDB in Parliament – especially as the police seemed to be using Section 124(B) against all and sundry, including university students and peaceful critics of the government-of-the-day! Continue reading “Had Pandikar committed the crime under section 124(B) of Penal Code of activity detrimental to parliamentary democracy when he egged on police investigations of three former Cabinet Ministers for their speeches on 1MDB in Parliament?”

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Sanusi confirms he will attend with Tun Mahathir the meeting in Parliament on Tuesday of MPs (including former MPs and Ministers) to discuss how to defend Parliament and MPs’ parliamentary privileges and immunities against insidious police encroachments

Former Cabinet Minister Tan Sri Sanusi Junid has confirmed that he will attend with former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad the meeting in Parliament on Tuesday of Members of Parliament (including former MPs and Ministers) to discuss the country’s latest constitutional crisis on the doctrine of separation of powers and how to defend Parliament and MPs’ parliamentary privileges and immunities against insidious police encroachments.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said yesterday that “3 ex-ministers under probe over 1MDB statements” (New Straits Times 5/11/06 headline p. 10) and this is most shocking for two reasons:

Firstly, when did the police have free roving liberty to investigate speeches by MPs (whether former Minister or not) made in Parliament, as if MPs’s traditional and constitutionally-entrenched parliamentary privileges spelt out in Article 63 (2) of the Malaysian Constitution and the Houses of Parliament (Privileges and Powers) Act 1952 do not exist in the eyes of the IGP.

Should MPs submit their speeches to the police for approval before they are delivered in Parliament. Is this what Malaysia has become, in the eighth year of premiership of Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak?

Secondly, is the IGP through his arbitrary and unconstitutional action sending out a message that 1MDB issue is a “banned” subject in Parliament, as MPs who raised the issue of 1MDB in Parliament could be next in line of police’s interrogation when the three ex-Cabinet Ministers could be targeted by the police for speaking in Parliament on 1MDB?

Khalid’s statement yesterday has laid bare the frightening and even Kafkaesque nature of the constitutional crisis on the doctrine of separation of powers among the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary which has been suddenly sprung on the nation when he said that the police had enough reasons to investigate former Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, former Rural and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal and former Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah as there was no immunity from seditious statements in Parliament. Continue reading “Sanusi confirms he will attend with Tun Mahathir the meeting in Parliament on Tuesday of MPs (including former MPs and Ministers) to discuss how to defend Parliament and MPs’ parliamentary privileges and immunities against insidious police encroachments”

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Is Speaker Pandikar capable of leading MPs to fend off Executive and police threats to parliamentary privileges and immunities by arbitrary, unconstitutional and illegal assumption of non-existing powers against Parliament?

Overnight, Malaysia is faced with a major constitutional crisis with the gravest threat in the nation’s history on the proper place and power of Parliament in our system of governance and the traditional as well as constitutionally-entrenched parliamentary privileges and immunities of Members of Parliament, regardless whether from the government or the opposition.

Central to this constitutional crisis facing Malaysia is whether the Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, is capable of leading MPs to fend off the Executive and Police threats to parliamentary privileges and immunities by arbitrary, unconstitutional and illegal assumption of non-existing powers against Parliament?

The latest incident in the insidious subversion of Parliament’s proper role and place in the Malaysian system of governance, based on the doctrine of separation of powers among the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary, is the shocking announcement by the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar that the police are now investigating former Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah for sedition over his speech in Parliament about 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), aside for alleged violations of the Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1972.

The Inspector-General of Police made the nonsensical statement that Husni’s case is also classified under the Sedition Act because the investigation into the state investment firm was still underway and that talking about it might jeopardise the process.

He said: “Even in Parliament, it doesn’t give an MP the immunity against the Sedition Act to speak about such matter(s).” Continue reading “Is Speaker Pandikar capable of leading MPs to fend off Executive and police threats to parliamentary privileges and immunities by arbitrary, unconstitutional and illegal assumption of non-existing powers against Parliament?”

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Call on Najib to come to Parliament on Monday to give assurance that his government would uphold and respect traditional parliamentary privileges and he would not countenance any police or criminal action against MPs for speaking up in Parliament on the 1MDB scandal

Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, who had been the eighth Speaker of Dewan Rakyat, should have known of the famous parliamentary episode in the United Kingdom some four hundreds years ago on 4th January 1642 when King Charles I entered the House of Commons to arrest five Members of Parliament for high treason.

When the King asked the Speaker at the time, William Lenthall, if he knew of the location of these members, the Speaker famously replied:” “May it please your Majesty, I have neither eyes to see nor tongue to speak in this place but as the House is pleased to direct me, whose servant I am here; and humbly beg your Majesty’s pardon that I cannot give any other answer than this to what your Majesty is pleased to demand of me.”

I am not suggesting that Pandikar should emulate William Lenthall and be prepared to sacrifice his political career let alone his life to protect Parliamentary honours, privileges and immunity, but I stand corrected if he is not the only Speaker in the world to openly suggest – or to use the words of Tun Mahathir’s lawyer, Haniff Khaliri, “incite” – police reports or police action against Members of Parliament when he called a media conference last Thursday to suggest that the three former Cabinet Ministers, former Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the former Rural and Regional Development, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and the Second Finance Minister, Datuk Husni Hanadzlan might have broken their oaths of secrecy as Cabinet Ministers when debating the Budget 2017 in Parliament – which was as good as a public reprimand of the Attorney-General and the Inspector-General for dereliction of duty and instigation for them to act against Muhyhiddin, Shafie and Husni.

I have re-read the speeches of Muhyiddin, Shafie and Husni in the Parliament Hansard, which confirm that neither one of them had said anything during their speeches in the 2017 Budget debate to reveal any Cabinet secret which Malaysians and the world have not known before about the 1MDB financial scandal. Continue reading “Call on Najib to come to Parliament on Monday to give assurance that his government would uphold and respect traditional parliamentary privileges and he would not countenance any police or criminal action against MPs for speaking up in Parliament on the 1MDB scandal”

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Pandikar should retract his media conference statement last Thursday which led to police reports and police probe into three former Cabinet Ministers for their speeches on 1MDB in Parliament and reiterate parliamentary principle that police should not challenge MPs’ parliamentary privilege and immunity except in clear-cut cases provided by the Constitution

The Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia should retract his media conference statement last Thursday that the three former Cabinet Ministers, former Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Mujhyiddin Yassin, former Rural and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and the former Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Husni Hanadzlah might have broken their oaths of secrecy as Cabinet Ministers when debating the Budget 2017 in Parliament, as it was such ill-advised and unfortunate statement by the Speaker which triggered off a chain of deplorable events – like the baseless police reports lodged by busybody-NGOs, the Malaysian Malay Network Organisation (JMN) and Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory N87 Club, and police action to investigate the three former Cabinet Ministers.

If the Speaker had not made the ill-advised and improper statement at last Thursday’s media conference, it would not have triggered off this chain of unfortunate and deplorable incidents.

Pandikar should accompany the retraction with a bold and clear-cut statement reaffirming the traditional parliamentary principle that MPs enjoy parliamentary privileges and immunity and the police should not challenge the parliamentary privileges of Members of Parliament except in clear-cut cases provided by the Constitution. Continue reading “Pandikar should retract his media conference statement last Thursday which led to police reports and police probe into three former Cabinet Ministers for their speeches on 1MDB in Parliament and reiterate parliamentary principle that police should not challenge MPs’ parliamentary privilege and immunity except in clear-cut cases provided by the Constitution”

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Three tasks for the 47 BN Sabah and Sarawak MPs to be kingmakers, uphold the secular basis of the nation, defend the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and save Malaysia from a “global kleptocracy”

For over four decades, the Members of Parliament in Sabah and Sarawak had been taken for granted by the UMNO/Barisan Nasional Federal Government, regarded as useful “cannon fodder” to make up the numbers to ensure UMNO’s increasing hegemony in the Federal Government but not critically important, as the ruling coalition had always won with two-thirds majority in Parliament.

The political landscape and electoral equation began to change in the 12th General Election in 2008, when the UMNO/Barisan Nasional Federal coalition government lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority for the first time in Malaysian history.

But the 57 Parliamentary seats from Sabah and Sarawak became critically important only in the 13th General Election in 2013, when the 47 Barisan Nasional MPs saved the UMNO/BN coalition from going to the opposition ranks.

This was because the UMNO/BN coalition only won 86 parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia, which was not enough on its own to constitute the simple majority out of a Parliament of 222 seats to form the Federal Government in Putrajaya.

It was only with the 47 Parliamentary seats won by the UMNO/BN coalition in Sabah and Sarawak that Datuk Seri Najib Razak could continue as Prime Minister with 133 parliamentary seats, though as the first minority Prime Minister of Malaysia as UMNO/BN coalition only won minority popular support of 47% of the national voter turnout.

The 47 Barisan Nasional MPs from Sabah and Sarawak were therefore the kingmakers of the UMNO/Barisan Nasional Federal Government after the 13th General Election in 2013, but unfortunately, they have so far failed to exercise their proper influence, role and input on national policy direction and developments.

Without the support of the 47 Barisan Nasional MPs from Sabah and Sarawak, Najib’s Federal Government in Putrajaya will fail and fall. Continue reading “Three tasks for the 47 BN Sabah and Sarawak MPs to be kingmakers, uphold the secular basis of the nation, defend the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and save Malaysia from a “global kleptocracy””

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Are MCA Ministers seeking “insurance” to remain in Cabinet as long as possible by equivocating on Hadi’s private member’s bill motion?

MCA Ministers led by the MCA President Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai must have thought that they are very smart and clever in finding a way to get “insurance” to remain in the Cabinet for as long as possible by equivocating on PAS President Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang’s private member’s bill motion.

MCA leaders have been going round the country declaring that MCA Ministers will relinquish their Cabinet posts if Hadi’s private member’s bill is passed.

This is begging the question as MCA Ministers are completely avoiding the issue which may come up in the first week of Parliament beginning on Monday as to whether Hadi’s private member’s bill motion will be debated and passed by simple majority vote.

Will MCA Ministers declare that they will relinquish their Cabinet posts if Hadi’s private member’s bill motion is passed in Parliament either next week or the last week of Parliament from Nov. 21 – 24?

And if not, why not?

This applies to the Ministers from Gerakan, MIC and other Sabah/Sarawak Barisan Nasional component parties.

By making an artificial distinction between Hadi’s private member’s bill motion and Hadi’s private member’s bill, MCA Ministers hope to get “insurance” to cowardly and cravenly hang on to the Cabinet for as long as possible – relying on Standing Order 49(3), (4) and (5) to argue that although Hadi’s private member’s bill motion had been passed in Parliament, Hadi’s private member’s bill had not yet been passed. Continue reading “Are MCA Ministers seeking “insurance” to remain in Cabinet as long as possible by equivocating on Hadi’s private member’s bill motion?”