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Muhyiddin’s should stop his “double-speak” as his open threat of 47% minority government penalizing 51% majority of voters is the latest subversion and not defence of national institutions of the country

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin should stop his “double-speak” as his open threat on Saturday of 47% minority government penalizing 51% majority of voters is the latest subversion and not defence of national institutions in the country.

It is surprising that Muhyiddin could be guilty or such “double speak” uttering totally contradictory sentiments at the same function, i.e. the BN thanksgiving function in Kundang Ulu, Johor.

Although Muhyiddin claimed that Malaysian voters have conveyed a clear message in the 13GE that they want the government to be more stern and bold in defending the important institutions in the country, “enforcing the law, upholding the country’s Constitution, and fighting crime effectively as well as eradicating corruption”, Muhyiddin has completely nullified these high-sounding sentiments with his threat to discriminate and penalize 51% of the popular vote who supported Pakatan Rakyat and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in contrast to the 47% of the voters who supported Barisan Nasional and Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Surely, Muhyiddin’s declaration that the BN administration will direct “greater assistance” towards the communities that backed it during the general election, implying a punitive policy of neglect and discrimination for the 51% majority of the popular vote, is the most powerful proof that Najib has a long way to go to prove that he is Prime Minister of all Malaysians and not just 47% of Malaysians!

Or do we have a situation where we have Najib who wants to be Prime Minister of all Malaysians but Muhyiddin only wants to the Deputy Prime Minister for 47% of Malaysians?

When Muhyddin talked about the people’s “clear message” in wanting the government to defend the important institutions in the country, he has missed the Elephant in the Room as it is UMNO/BN who must bear the full responsibility in the past three decades for undermining and subverting the key national institutions in the country. Continue reading “Muhyiddin’s should stop his “double-speak” as his open threat of 47% minority government penalizing 51% majority of voters is the latest subversion and not defence of national institutions of the country”

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A constitutional blunder by Najib

by Tommy Thomas
Malaysiakini
Jun 1, 2013

COMMENT The first task that Najib Abdul Razak faced upon being sworn in as prime minister on May 6, 2013 after leading the BN to victory in the 13th general election, was to form the cabinet.

Constitutionally, the prime minister does not have a free hand in his choice of cabinet ministers. Article 43(2)(b) of the federal constitution provides that cabinet members shall be “members of either House of Parliament”.

Traditionally, the cabinet is dominated by members elected by the people to serve in the Dewan Rakyat. However, prime ministers often do appoint a few cabinet members from the Senate (Dewan Negara).

It is important to keep in mind that unless a person is a member of either House of Parliament, he cannot be a cabinet member. This is consistent with the position in other parliamentary democracies.

Further, our deputy ministers and parliamentary secretaries also have to be parliamentarians, as per Articles 43A(1) and 43B(1) of our federal constitution. Only political secretaries are exempt from this strict requirement.

It was therefore shocking to note the statement made by Paul Low on May 24 that he has not yet been sworn in as a senator. Yet he “purportedly” took the oath of office as a cabinet minister before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on May 16.

Article 43(6) of the constitution reads: “Before a Minister exercises the functions of his office, he shall take and subscribe in the presence of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong the oath of the office and allegiance and the oath of secrecy set out in the Sixth Schedule.”

The oath of office and allegiance that Low had to take under the Sixth Schedule of the constitution reads: “I, ……., having been appointed as a member of the Senate, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully discharge my duties as such to the best of my ability, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to Malaysia, and will preserve, protect and defend its constitution.”

One other cabinet minister (Abdul Wahid Omar) and three deputy ministers who have not been appointed senators also took their oath of office before His Majesty on May 16.

All these appointments are plainly and clearly unconstitutional.

If they uttered the words stated above in taking their oath of office before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, they told an untruth because none of these five men had been appointed as a senator prior to becoming a minister or deputy minister. Continue reading “A constitutional blunder by Najib”

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Zahid may want to be an UMNO “hero” for the upcoming UMNO party elections by being a macho and belligerent Home Minister who dare to declare DAP unlawful even if it is gross abuse of power

The statement by the director-general of Registry of Societies (RoS) Datuk Abdul Rahman Othman that many DAP members who were eligible to attend its national congress on December 15 last year did not receive notice to do so is both baseless and most unprofessional.

It is a “political twist” to the RoS investigations into the DAP and I see a political “black hand” behind it – all the way to the new Home Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Zahid Hamidi.

Since becoming the new Home Minister a forthnight ago, Zahid had tried to politicise all the departments under him.

Firstly, being the most “political” Home Minister in partnership with the most “political” Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar, he has created mayhem to police priorities, allowing crime and the fear of crime among Malaysians to run riot because he is obsessed with using police powers to crack down on Pakatan Rakyat leaders and social activists – not having said a single word on the primary duty of the police to keep crime rate low as well as to eradicate the people’s pervasive fear of crime.

As a result, Zahid’s two-week term as Home Minister takes on the hues of a return of Mahathirism, with arrests and prosecution of Pakatan Rakyat leaders and social activists while Umno/BN leaders and their kind enjoy immunity and impunity for the most sedious and racist utterances. Continue reading “Zahid may want to be an UMNO “hero” for the upcoming UMNO party elections by being a macho and belligerent Home Minister who dare to declare DAP unlawful even if it is gross abuse of power”

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Does the EC No.2 take us for fools?

– Kunjuraman Karuppan
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2013

MAY 26 – The Election Commission (EC) is now speaking about redelineation of both state and federal constituencies as the last one was done a decade ago.

Now, this is a good move as there has been an increase in voters since then. We now have 13.3 million voters and that is set to increase by the time the 14th general elections take place.

But why is EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar taking us for a fool when he was quoted in The Sunday Star today for explaining that the difference in electorate sizes is due to reasonable access to services from the local lawmaker and local councils.

Now, is that the EC’s primary concern? Is it the commission of ensuring everyone has access to their lawmaker and council or to conduct elections in a free and fair manner? And to ensure that every vote is equal in value.

We now have ridiculous statistics of Putrajaya having nearly 16,000 voters while Kapar has some 140,000 voters. Continue reading “Does the EC No.2 take us for fools?”

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Shrill Umno rhetoric betrays legitimacy doubts

– Peter Chong
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2013

MAY 26 – Barisan National (BN), the ruling coalition in Malaysia, might have returned to power at the recent national elections, but the response from Umno is far from celebratory.

The Prime Minister, Najib Razak, led the outbursts of anger by blaming Umno’s poor showing on a “Chinese tsunami”. Mohd Noor Abdullah, former Appeals Court Judge, took it a step further by warning Chinese to prepare for a “Malay backlash” for their “betrayal” in voting for opposition parties.

New Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, joined the attacks by saying that the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition can “migrate elsewhere” if it is not satisfied with the country’s electoral system.

The tone became even more jarring when Umno information chief Ahmad Maslan, called on the opposition PR coalition to stop “sodomising” the people’s minds in questioning the legitimacy of BN election victory. At time of writing, news has emerged of arrests of senior opposition leaders as Umno hardens its position.

There is no doubt that Umno is trying to find a scapegoat for their poor showing and using race to create division is an old Umno favourite. The upcoming party election is another reason for the shrill tones as Umno leaders scramble for leadership positions. Continue reading “Shrill Umno rhetoric betrays legitimacy doubts”

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Why the 10-day impotence and hiatus by Najib to rectify the constitutional farce of illegally swearing in two Ministers and three Deputy Ministers without first appointing them as Senators?

Yesterday, Malaysians saw the sorry spectacle of Paul Low who took his oath as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department on 16th May 2013 before the Yang di Pertuan Agong at the Istana Negara pathetically telling the media to “Ask Putrajaya” when questioned about the legality of his appointment to the Cabinet as he has not been sworn in as a senator yet.

This is the first time in the 56-year history of Malaysia where two Ministers and three Deputy Ministers have been placed in the Cabinet and constitutional limbo for ten days after the announcement of their ministerial appointments, as they had the dubious honour of being illegal Ministers and Deputy Ministers during this period as they have not been sworn in as Senators yet.

I had expected very quick and efficient end to the constitutional farce of two illegal Ministers and three illegal Deputy Ministers by having the five to be sworn in as Senators on the very night, even if it is midnight, when I issued my statement pointing out the grave constitutional oversight – i.e. on Friday 17th May 2013.

But I was wrong. Day after day, the two Ministers and three deputy Ministers did not know whether they were coming or going, become butts of jokes as illegal and unlawful “backdoor” Ministers and Deputy Ministers – with the sorry and pathetic spectacle of Paul Low yesterday as the latest example.
Continue reading “Why the 10-day impotence and hiatus by Najib to rectify the constitutional farce of illegally swearing in two Ministers and three Deputy Ministers without first appointing them as Senators?”

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Najib should disclose who must bear responsibility and take the rap for the constitutional farce and embarrassment to the YDPA with oath-taking of two Ministers and three Deputy Ministers on Thursday unlawful, null and void

In his two-hour address to the first meeting of the new Cabinet of 30 Ministers and 27 deputy ministers at Putra Perdana on Thursday after their swearing-in before the Yang di Pertuan Agong at Istana Negara, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak invoked the spirit of exemplary service to the ministers by giving their best to the people and the country.

Najib said cabinet members must “add value” to their services by engaging the public in public forums, face-to-face sessions and even social or traditional media.

Unfortunately, Najib’s post-13GE Cabinet, which is already the most “unimpressive” of all six Prime Ministers in the nation’s 56-year history, started off with great egregious disservice to the people and nation as the oath-taking of two Deputy Ministers and three Deputy Ministers were of unlawful, null and void.

Najib also failed to “walk the talk” to engage the public by observing thunderous silence in the past three days dodging my expose on Friday that two Ministers, Datuk Paul Low and Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar (both Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department) and three deputy ministers, Waytha Moorthy (PM’s Office) , Dr. J. Loga Bala Mohan (Federal Territories) and Datuk Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah (Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism) have illegally been sworn in when they could not be appointed whether to the post of Minister or Deputy Minister for the simple reason that they are not qualified to hold any Cabinet office without first being sworn in as Senators. Continue reading “Najib should disclose who must bear responsibility and take the rap for the constitutional farce and embarrassment to the YDPA with oath-taking of two Ministers and three Deputy Ministers on Thursday unlawful, null and void”

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What a constitutional farce – Paul Low and Abdul Wahid Omar not legally Ministers and Waytha, Loga and Ahmad Bashah not legally Deputy Ministers as they have not been sworn in as Senators

It is neither a good omen nor a good start for Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s post-13GE Cabinet.

Already Najib’s new Cabinet labours under a cloud of legitimacy for the simple reason that Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Prime Ministership is under a cloud of legitimacy – not only because Najib and Barisan Nasional got 47% popular vote as compared to Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan Rakyat’s 51% popular vote, but also because the 13GE was the most unfair and dirtiest general elections in the nation’s history.

If the 13GE had been clean, free and fair, with a level playing field for both coalitions, Anwar and PR would not only have an increased popular vote over 60 per cent or even exceeding 65 per cent, but would also have won a majority of the 222 parliamentary seats in the country.

Now, Najib’s post-13GE Cabinet has also become a farce and even a joke as it has two illegal Ministers and three illegal Deputy Ministers although they have gone through an unlawful oath-taking ceremony before the Yang di Pertuan Agong yesterday.

It is sad and shocking that the Prime Minister’s Department and the various government departments involved have become so careless, negligent and remiss that the fullest compliance with the proper laws, regulations, proprieties and protocols have been ignored or even violated – which should never have happened in a 56-year-old parliamentary democracy under six Prime Ministers.
Continue reading “What a constitutional farce – Paul Low and Abdul Wahid Omar not legally Ministers and Waytha, Loga and Ahmad Bashah not legally Deputy Ministers as they have not been sworn in as Senators”

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Are we really independent?

P Gunasegaram
Malaysiakini
Mar 29, 2013

QUESTION TIME On the eve of the general election, it is appropriate to take a moment to reflect on how independent are we really.

What a moment it must have been when Malaysia (then Malaya) achieved independence from the British on Aug 31, 1957 and the flag of the newly independent country was raised.

At five years old, I was too young to remember what it was like then but have vague memories of my brother getting lost on a family visit to Kuala Lumpur town during the celebrations and being taken care of by policemen, before he was reunited with our parents.

It must have held so much hope for Malayans of all races and religions who put aside their differences to work for the formation of a new nation.

Tunku Abdul Rahman declared himself the happiest prime minister in the world and was proud of the fact that independence was achieved via negotiation without a single drop of blood being shed.

To be sure there were differences and in the years before independence there was much debate and agonising over how a disparate country of Chinese and Indian immigrants, many of whom had nowhere else but Malaya to call home, were to be integrated with the majority Malay community.

But there was a plan and everyone stuck to it and the country became independent. The communist threat had been beaten back although it would take until the sixties before they were more or less completely vanquished.

We were independent but how free were we? And did not independence mean freedom as well? Continue reading “Are we really independent?”

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Court turns a blind eye to justice

P Ramakrishnan
Immediate past president, now Aliran executive committee member
27 March 2013

Malaysians were rudely shocked to learn that the High Court in Shah Alam put itself in a straitjacket and refused to see the glaring injustice that was clearly highlighted by Klang MP Charles Santiago in a suit that was decided on 14 March 2013.

Mr Santiago wanted the Court to review the principal and supplementary electoral rolls for his parliamentary constituency.

It was very disappointing that Judge Vernon Ong said that the Court was bound by Section 9A of the Elections Act 1958 and cannot review a gazetted electoral roll, literally throwing to the wind the conventional wisdom that “where there is a malady the Court will provide a remedy” – even if it has to use its inherent powers.

The Judge further noted that the Court could not compel the Election Commission (EC) to respond to the queries of the MP as there was no provision in the Act for it to do so. While it may be true that there is no such provision, what is far more important is whether there is specifically any provision in the Act prohibiting the EC from responding?

Why was this logical point entirely overlooked by the Court? If the Court was the bastion of justice as provided by the inherent powers of providing a remedy for a malady, it would have been the natural consequence to fall back on this logic. But surprisingly, this was not the case.

While it may be true that the Court was bound by Section 9A of the Election Act, shouldn’t the Court invoking its overview functions have also looked into the legality of this section?

Is it constitutional? Is it constitutional to perpetuate a wrong in spite of fraud, probably even of a criminal nature, that were clearly established by Mr Santiago? Continue reading “Court turns a blind eye to justice”

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Time starting to run out for BN

― Fikry Osman
The Malaysian Insider
March 28, 2013

MARCH 28 ― The Negri Sembilan state assembly ran out of time and all the mentri besar could do is say that his is now the caretaker state government.

What kind of leadership is this? As the state’s chief executive, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan should have had the scrotal gumption to dissolve the legislature and notify the Election Commission (EC).

It would be up to them to decide the timing for polls, whether to hold it first or wait for the other assemblies and Parliament to also be dissolved.

Instead, he waited until time ran out and reportedly said, “There has to be a caretaker government because we will have to pay wages and look into other matters during the period… without a caretaker government, there will be anarchy.”

That is stating the obvious. Of course there is a caretaker government until the polls are held, whether he dissolves it or it is done automatically.

He should have just gone ahead and done it himself instead of looking like a clueless politician waiting for further orders from Putrajaya. Continue reading “Time starting to run out for BN”

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14-Day Countdown to 13GE: Unhealthy Federal-State relations where Negri Sembilan State Assembly automatically dissolved midnight last night because of a “kiasu” and “kiasi” Prime Minister

Another dubious record by Datuk Seri Najib Razak as the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia – Malaysian history’s first “automatic” dissolution of a State Assembly at midnight last night not because of a conscious and deliberate decision by the Negri Sembilan Menteri Besar but because of a “kiasu” and “kiasi” Prime Minister embroiled in a Hamlet agony unable to decide when to dissolve Parliament for fear of becoming the last Umno/BN Prime Minister.

The automatic dissolution of the Negri Sembilan State Assembly last night, with Negri Sembilan now without a single elected State Assembly members in the sixty days until May 26 – the last date for the election of the new Negri Sembilan State Assembly – is a major blow to healthy Federal-state relations, as it is a classic case where a State Government has been deprived of its constitutional right to seek a new mandate from the electorate solely because of extraneous and even unconstitutional considerations – the indecisiveness of the Prime Minister!

This is not the Federal-state relations which the country’s forefathers and the founders of the country’s Constitution had ever envisaged or desired more than half a century ago – for the autonomy, independence and prerogatives of each state government in the federation of Malaysia is to be jealously protected and honoured.

I am sure if Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, Tun Tan Cheng Lock or Tun Sambanthan had been asked 56 years ago whether under the 1957 Merdeka Federal Constitution a state government would be deprived of the power and have to surrender its prerogative to dissolve the State Assembly to seek a new mandate at the end of its five-year term to the Prime Minister until he could decide when to dissolve Parliament, the answer from all the fathers of Merdeka would be a loud, clear-cut and categorical “No! No! No!” Continue reading “14-Day Countdown to 13GE: Unhealthy Federal-State relations where Negri Sembilan State Assembly automatically dissolved midnight last night because of a “kiasu” and “kiasi” Prime Minister”

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An oath of office

by KJ John
Malaysiakini
Mar 5, 2013

Wikipedia defines an oath of office as:

An oath or affirmation a person takes before undertaking the duties of an office, usually a position in government or within a religious body, although such oaths are sometimes required of officers of other organisations. Such oaths are often required by the laws of the state, religious body, or other organization before the person may actually exercise the powers of the office or any religious body.

It may be administered at an inauguration, coronation, enthronement, or other ceremony connected with the taking up of office itself, or it may be administered privately. In some cases it may be administered privately and then repeated during a public ceremony.

Some oaths of office are a statement of loyalty to a constitution or other legal text or to a person or other office-holder (e.g., an oath to support the constitution of the state, or of loyalty to the king). Under the laws of a state it may be considered treason or a high crime to betray a sworn oath of office.

Any oath of office is also usually a position of legitimate authority assigned, ascribed, or appointed, upon a qualified person to hold some public office.

Usually, to assume the office there is a ceremonial procedure for the assumption of the formal office and consequent title. Often, before the actual assumption of the new role and responsibility, the incumbent must take the oath of office. The oath is a proper symbolism for officially assuming the new appointment in public. Continue reading “An oath of office”

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Revoking citizenship status for who?

— The Malaysian Insider
Mar 07, 2013

MARCH 7 — While the country’s attention has been focused on the military offensive to get rid of Sulu gunmen in Sabah’s east coast, Umno-controlled media TV3 and its sister stations are highlighting demands calling for politician Chua Tian Chang’s citizenship to be reviewed and revoked.

Demanding citizenship to be revoked is now new in Malaysia. Other groups have asked the same for Bersih co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan for her call for electoral reforms.

Now the PKR vice-president, popularly known as Tian Chua, is the latest to get that treatment for allegedly questioning who is behind the Lahad Datu standoff and violence.

This comes at a time when both sides say the issue should not be politicised as security forces need to focus on getting rid of the Filipino militants who want to claim Sabah in the name of the Sulu sultanate.

Now what if the shoe is on the other foot? Will TV3 report it and devote 15 minutes of airtime to cover such events?

Have they covered testimony of Umno officials involved in Project IC — the citizenship-for-votes caper now being investigated by a royal commission of inquiry (RCI)? Continue reading “Revoking citizenship status for who?”

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35-Day Countdown to 13GE – Three top questions for Najib in “Conversation with the PM”: caretaker PM, National Integrity Pledge and failures of Transformation policies.

There is a whole-page advert in the New Straits Times today on “Conversation with the PM” with the invitation: “Do you have any questions on current issues for the Prime Minister” and the announcement:

“Please email your questions to q&[email protected] by March 8, 2013. Dato’ Sri Najib Razak will appear ‘live’ on a special TV programme to be broadcast soon, where he will answer some of your questions ahead of the 13th General Election”.

I have three top questions for Najib on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the 12th Parliament on March 8, 2013, which witnessed the “308 political tsunami” of the 12th General Elections, viz:

Question 1: Caretaker government. Does Najib accept the concept and the conventions of a caretaker government limited to day-to-day administration of government on expiry of Parliament’s tenure, most notably between the dissolution of Parliament and the formation of a new government after a general elections?

This question is particularly pertinent in the case of Najib, who is going down in Malaysian history as the longest unelected Prime Minister on probation without a mandate of his own from the electorate – for nearly four full years!

Is Najib prepared to respect and abide by the Caretaker Government Conventions and best practices in other functioning parliamentary democracies, including:

  • No major policy decisions by the Caretaker Government except on urgent matters and then only after formal consultation with the Opposition.
  • No Significant appointments of major public officials, except in an acting or for short-term durations.
  • No major contracts or undertakings during the caretaker period. If it is not possible to defer the commitment until after the caretaker period, for legal, commercial or other reasons, there would be consultation with the Opposition to ensure that contracts include clauses providing for termination in the event of an incoming government not wishing to proceed. Similar provisions cover tendering.
  • No international negotiations and visits.
  • No public service involvement in election activities with the public service adopting a neutral stance while continuing to advise the Government.

Continue reading “35-Day Countdown to 13GE – Three top questions for Najib in “Conversation with the PM”: caretaker PM, National Integrity Pledge and failures of Transformation policies.”

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Fear factor and Mahathir

by K. Siladass

The fear factor has finally caught up with Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. The fact that Dato Ambiga Sreenevasan, a former President of the Bar Council and currently the co-chairman of Bersih Movement, has been making constructive suggestions for the clean and proper conduct of the forthcoming general elections is well known. Mahathir, alike all his cronies and supporters fearing that the wind of change in the thought process of the Malaysians is actually blowing, had begun to make frantic undemocratic demands-one among them is the call for the revocation of Ambiga’s citizenship. Does this remind of Idi Amin of Uganda?

Has Ambiga said anything that would constitute as an attempt to overthrow the government? Hardly so. All her comments, suggestions, criticisms were objectively aimed at improving the standards of the voting procedure. Any citizen could make suggestions so long it is not contrary to law. Neither she nor Bersih advocate the transformation of illegal immigrants to legal immigrants with voting rights. It is those who violated the Country’s citizenship, immigration and election law, who should be dealt with according to law.

It is also hardly correct to assume that Ambiga alone had formulated all the comments, suggestions and criticisms; instead, she represents a movement and her expressions are those of the movement, hence, would it not be appropriate that all those who are linked with her and the Bersih Movement should receive like treatment? All who support the Bersih Movement should have their citizenship revoked. If this sounds very puerile, then, why single out Ambiga? When we are talking about democracy and democratic government we are indeed talking of Government by discussion. This does not mean discussion only amongst ruling party members but must also include the views from the public, of which the opposition and civic movements are a part.

From the Mahathir’s outburst it could be discerned that he and his followers are unable to match up with reasonable, rational and sensible argument, and argument has always been the core principle in democracy. Continue reading “Fear factor and Mahathir”

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Mahathir’s false accusation of Tunku

by K. Siladass

Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, former prime minister had indeed accused Malaysia’s first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman of having done something not permitted by law by granting citizenship to one million foreign immigrants.

Historians of repute will be quick to confirm how inhuman, unsound, flippant and exasperating is Mahathir’s allegation. The granting of citizenship to “foreign immigrants” was not the work of one man – Tunku alone. Besides, it is wicked of Mahathir to claim that one million or so residents in Malaya were purely immigrants ignoring the fact that they had lived in this country for generations; and had been an integral part in the resistance against the Japanese occupation and in the fight against communism. Those one million or so “foreign immigrants” as Mahathir arrogantly and wickedly describes are the ones who saw the economic progress of this country from the time the East India Company arrived here, under constant perilous conditions.

It is indeed shocking that Mahathir had not acquainted himself of the negotiations among the Alliance Partners consisting of UMNO-MCA-MIC, the predecessor of Barisan Nasional (BN) which played a prominent role in achieving Merdeka. Aside this, it is also shocking that a man of Mahathir’s stature would descend to cheap politics in hurling condemnation against the late Tunku, who was indeed instrumental in ensuring that the radicals from all sides did not scuttle the movement towards Merdeka by their emotional actions. Continue reading “Mahathir’s false accusation of Tunku”

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Is Malaysia’s monarchy “above politics”?

by Pak Sako
CPI
01 February 2013

Speaking at the launch of a book on the Malaysian monarchy, Malaysian prime minister Najib bin Razak said that the Malay Rulers “are above politics” (see ‘Najib: Constitutional monarchy fosters stability, prosperity’, The Malaysian Insider, 30 Jan 2013).

He said that the Malaysian monarchy “provides a solid foundation” for turning Malaysia into a high-income nation.

To be above politics means to not interfere in the political workings of the country and to take no sides in party politics.

To act as a foundation to the economy so that Malaysian citizens enjoy high incomes means abstaining from and disapproving the undemocratic use of the public’s wealth and resources.

So is the prime minister’s statement about the Malaysian monarchy true?

The evidence paints a different story. Continue reading “Is Malaysia’s monarchy “above politics”?”

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Stop delaying action against Ibrahim Ali, says former A-G

By Amin Iskandar
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 31, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 31 — The authorities must speed up action against Datuk Ibrahim Ali over his Bible-burning threat, says retired Attorney-General Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman, adding any further delay in acting against the veteran politician could be held against the establishment ahead of Election 2013.

The vocal Ibrahim, who heads right-wing Malay group Perkasa, had sparked a firestorm last week when he reportedly called on Muslims to torch Malay-language copies of the Christian holy book that describes the Christian god as “Allah”, an Arabic word many Muslims here believe to be exclusive to their community.

“The issue is not the burning of the Bible. What is in the issue is, did he utter those words?” Abu Talib told The Malaysian Insider in an interview.

“If so, whether those words were seditious within the Sedition Act, reading it as a whole and in the context it was made. So, whether the Bible was burned is not material though helpful in the prosecution of the case if he is charged,” he said.

The government’s former top lawyer noted the police reports filed complaining about Ibrahim’s provocative remarks were related to the “Allah” dispute that has been simmering for the past four years.

He said there was no reason for the law enforcers to procrastinate deciding whether or not to prosecute the independent federal lawmaker who has been accused of inciting tension among Malaysia’s Muslim majority camp and followers of other faiths. Continue reading “Stop delaying action against Ibrahim Ali, says former A-G”

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Sabah churches demand action against anti-Christian frenzy

— Bob Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
Jan 24, 2013

JAN 24 — Sabah churches want the government to act decisively against the latest round of anti-Christian frenzy.

“We see the increasingly provocative attacks against the Malay-language bible — Alkitab — by certain quarters as a direct attack on the rights of Bumiputera Christians in Sabah to religious freedom as enshrined in both the Sabah and the Federal Constitution,” Rev Datuk Jerry Dusing, chairman of the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Commission of Sabah Affairs (NECF COSA) said.

“We, therefore, urge the authorities to act immediately against such groups and individuals to the full extent of the law before the anti-Christian frenzy gets out of hand,” he said in a statement.

Dusing said it must be remembered that Sabah has always enjoyed complete religious freedom since time immemorial. Sabah was guaranteed certain safeguards known as the 20-points as a condition for the formation of Malaysia. It is no coincidence that the first of these twenty points pertains to religious freedom.

He also said the majority of Christians in Malaysia are Malay speaking Bumiputeras mainly in Sabah and Sarawak whose use the Alkitab as their Bible for their liturgy and devotional reading.

As many East Malaysians are working or studying Peninsular Malaysia, the Alkitab is also extensively used by them over there. Any attack on the Alkitab is an affront to their faith and religious liberty.

“We now see our religious freedom yet again under threat as the anti-Christian frenzy threatens to get out of hand. A right wing Malay group has even called for bibles, including the Alkitab, to be seized and burned. This is irresponsible and incendiary hate speech,” said.

Although he did not name the group, he was referring to Perkasa which made the threat three days ago. Continue reading “Sabah churches demand action against anti-Christian frenzy”