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National Security Council (NSC) Bill greatest security disservice to Malaysia as instead of uniting Parliament and nation with a single-minded purpose to defeat the threat of ISIS terrorists, it has divided the country with an unprecedented unconstitutional grab for power

The National Security Council (NSC) Bill is the greatest security disservice to Malaysia by the Najib premiership, as instead of uniting Parliament and the nation with a single-minded purpose to defeat the threat of ISIS terrorists, it has divided the country with an unprecedented unconstitutional grab for power by the Prime Minister.

After the shot-gun passage of the NSC Bill in the Dewan Rakyat on Dec. 3 as if “a thief in the night” without proper prior notice or consultation with MPs and the civil society, the country was assured that the NSC bill is aimed primarily at fighting terrorism particularly the threat posed by ISIS, and not intended to usurp the constitutional powers of the Yang di Pertuan Agong in declaring a state of emergency for country.

If the NSC Bill was designed primarily to deal with the threat of terrorism posed by ISIS, the logical thing to do is to park the proposed National Security Council under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) instead of creating a new executive body which is even more powerful than the Cabinet with far-reaching and new-fangled powers. Continue reading “National Security Council (NSC) Bill greatest security disservice to Malaysia as instead of uniting Parliament and nation with a single-minded purpose to defeat the threat of ISIS terrorists, it has divided the country with an unprecedented unconstitutional grab for power”

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What parliamentary charade!

What parliamentary charade!

What I had feared most has indeed come to pass – and what happened in Senate yesterday invokes Shakespeare’s immortal lines in Macbeth: “It is a tale, Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.””

Also come to pass was my warning yesterday, viz:

“BN Senators who have won new respect from Malaysians for daring to speak up to oppose the weaknesses, flaws and dangers of the NSC (National Security Council) Bill will forfeit their new-found public respect and admiration in a matter of 24 hours if they are not prepared to act on their conviction and vote for reference of the Bill for further study and amendment, as the NSC Bill in its present form is a blight on constitutional democracy in Malaysia.

“Which is better, to speak boldly against the weaknesses, flaws and dangers of the NSC Bill but to submissively vote in favour of the NSC Bill in the Senate; or to act like the BN MPs in the Dewan Rakyat, to keep their silence for the elected BN MPs know from the very beginning that they have finally to vote obediently for the NSC Bill, whatever their inner reservations and objections to the draconian Bill?”

I have to qualify my statement yesterday as the elected Barisan Nasional MPs in Dewan Rakyat need only be ”very envious and even jealous that their counterparts in Dewan Negara are allowed to speak up about their objections and reservations about the NSC Bill which they were not allowed to do when the NSC Bill was debated in the Dewan Rakyat on Dec. 3” only for 24 hours, as the Senate has been quickly reduced to its original form as no more than a rubber stamp after the parliamentary charade in the NSC Bill debate in the last two days. Continue reading “What parliamentary charade!”

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Let’s not have a parliamentary charade where BN Senators are allowed to criticize the NSC Bill but forced to vote for it at the end of the debate

Three cheers for the Dewan Negara.

For the first time in 58-year Malaysian history, the appointed UMNO/BN MPs in Dewan Negara have put the elected UMNO/BN MPs in Dewan Rakyat to shame not only for speaking up for the people, but even more important, for daring to speak the truth in accordance with the dictates of their own conscience.

The BN Senator who stole the limelight was none other than the Malaysian Senators Council (MSM) President Abdul Rahim Abdul Rahman who expressed concern that the NSC Bill may be unconstitutional and contravene other laws in terms of the extensive power given to the director appointed to a security area.

He called for amendments to the Bill so that it will not contravene the Federal Constitution.

Abdul Rahman hit the nail on the head for the pernicious and monstrous NSC Bill is unconstitutional on multiple fronts, not only in usurping the constitutional powers of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet, the Sarawak and Sabah Governments with regard to the autonomy powers conferred on them by the 1963 Malaysia Agreement and the 11 State Governments in Peninsular Malaysia, but also the many guarantees and fundamental liberties entrenched in the Constitution.

The Rukunegara principles on the Supremacy of the Constitution and Upholding the Rule of Law are blatantly flouted by the NSC Bill which grants protection to the authorities from legal proceeding and judicial review.

Abdul Rahman further questioned the power granted to the security forces to relocate people, as well as acquire land and properties, which clearly contravene Article 9 on Prohibition of Banishment and Freedom of Movement and Article 13 on Rights to Property of the Constitution.

But despite these trenchant and potent arguments against the NSC Bill, will Abdul Rahim vote for the NSC Bill at the second and third readings when the time for voting in Dewan Negara comes later today? Continue reading “Let’s not have a parliamentary charade where BN Senators are allowed to criticize the NSC Bill but forced to vote for it at the end of the debate”

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Najib and Hadi have reached rare unanimity that Najib does not have to answer the question “Mana RM2.6 billion?” but 30 million Malaysians, including three million UMNO members and one million PAS members, want Najib to give immediate answer without any more delay

This is the fourth of my five-whistlestop visit to Perak today as part of the “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang & Mana RM2.6 billion?” nation-wide campaign.

I started in Kopisan in Gopeng, went to Kampar, and now coming from Bidor, ending up in Hutan Melintang after this visit.

Everywhere I went, since the first day of this nation-wide campaign after my six-month suspension from Parliament for wanting the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to give full and satisfactory accounting for his twin mega scandals – the RM2.6 billion donation in his personal banking accounts and the RM55 billion 1MDB scandal – I found the question “Mana RM2.6 billion?” close to the hearts and minds of all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region.

They are also close to the hearts and minds of the three million UMNO members and one million PAS members, although their respective leaders, Najib and Datuk Seri Hadi Awang, are in advanced “courtship” based on the understanding that these twin mega scandals should be banished from the public domain in Malaysian politics. Continue reading “Najib and Hadi have reached rare unanimity that Najib does not have to answer the question “Mana RM2.6 billion?” but 30 million Malaysians, including three million UMNO members and one million PAS members, want Najib to give immediate answer without any more delay”

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If NSC Bill is aimed primarily at fighting terrorism, the National Security Council should be parked under POTA and not be created by another statute which empowers the PM to usurp the constitutional powers of the YDPA, the Cabinet and the 13 State Governments

The Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed has defended the National Security Council (NSC) Bill on the ground that it is part of Putrajaya’s bid to act more proactively in the fight against terrorism and not intended to usurp the constitutional powers of the Yang di Pertuan Agong in declaring a state of emergency for the country.

Nobody is really convinced by Nur Jazlan’s claim, but giving the Deputy Home Minister all the benefit of the doubt that the NSC Bill is not a dangerous grap for power by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak which will pave the way for a dictatorial regime, let Nur Jazlan explain why the National Security Council is not parked under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) instead of being created by another statute with such far-reaching powers, including the usurpation of the constitutional powers of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet and the 13 State Governments?

Furthermore, if terrorism is the real target of the NSC Bill, can Nur Jazlan explain why there was not a single reference to the threat of terrorism or terrorist attacks in the monstrous NSC Bill passed by the Dewan Rakyat which defined “national security” in so wide and catch-all a fashion that it could be interpreted to cover all situations, even those which would not normally be associated with national security issues arising from political, economic and nation-building factors and circumstances? Continue reading “If NSC Bill is aimed primarily at fighting terrorism, the National Security Council should be parked under POTA and not be created by another statute which empowers the PM to usurp the constitutional powers of the YDPA, the Cabinet and the 13 State Governments”

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What “olive branch” Najib could offer PAS in exchange for support of 14 PAS MPs to secure two-thirds parliamentary majority together with 134 UMNO/BN MPs to amend the Constitution for redelineation of parliamentary constituencies?

If by some miracle, it is possible to restitch back Pakatan Rakyat and get back together the three parties, DAP, PKR and PAS (plus a second miracle of re-uniting PAS and Parti Amanah Negara) under one roof for the 14th General Election, could the reconstituted Pakatan Rakyat defeat the UMNO/BN coalition by winning more parliamentary seats than the 13GE?

I don’t think so although UMNO in the 14th GE will be more fractured and weaker than in the 13GE with Datuk Seri Najib Razak as Prime Minister haunted and hounded by so many political and economic scandals as compared to the general election two years ago.

This is because the reconstituted Pakatan Rakyat in the 14th General Election will be fighting a losing battle just to win back the same number of parliamentary and state assembly seats, for the most important element which led to the 53% popular support for Pakatan Rakyat in the 13th General Election, resulting in 89 Parliamentary and 229 State Assembly seats (minus Sarawak) will be missing, i.e. absolute trust and confidence in the PR because of the people’s belief in the adherence and unswerving commitment of DAP, PKR and PAS to the PR Common Policy Framework and the PR consensus operational principle.

I am reminded of the nursery rhyme:

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

Like Humpty Dumpty after its “great fall”, it would not be possible to put Pakatan Rakyat together again. Continue reading “What “olive branch” Najib could offer PAS in exchange for support of 14 PAS MPs to secure two-thirds parliamentary majority together with 134 UMNO/BN MPs to amend the Constitution for redelineation of parliamentary constituencies?”

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The presentation of National Security Council (NSC) Bill to Senate should be deferred until all the 13 State Governments have been consulted and agreement given for the creation of a parallel NSC government vesting the Prime Minister with executive powers to interfere with the running of the 13 state governments

Today is Human Rights Day 2015 and we should be joining with peoples all over the world to celebrate another milestone in the promotion and protection of human rights in Malaysia – but the reverse is taking place.

On the Human Rights Day this year, Malaysians are facing with the greatest threat to democratic and human rights for over a decade since the retirement of Tun Mahathir as Prime Minister with the human rights horrors committed during his 22-year premiership, like the Operation Lalang mass arrests and closure of newspapers in 1987 and the assault on the independence of the judiciary beginning in 1988.

This is what has brought us to this forum “National Security Act: To Protect or to Oppress” tonight.

I had called the National Security Council (NSC) monstrous and pernicious because it was nothing less than a quadruple power grab, usurping the constitutional powers of the Yang di Pertuan Agong and the Cabinet on the proclamation of Emergency as well as the autonomy rights of the Sarawak and Sabah State governments, and it was rushed through the Dewan Rakyat “like a thief in the night” with a vote of 107 vs 74, in a late-night session on the last day of the 25-day Parliamentary meeting without any prior notice to the major stakeholders in the land.

On closer look, the NSC Bill is even more monstrous and pernicious for it would create a parallel government with an infrastructure of bureaucracy of its own, vesting the Prime Minister with executive powers to interfere with the running of the 13 State Governments without the consent or even consultation with the State Governments concerned. Continue reading “The presentation of National Security Council (NSC) Bill to Senate should be deferred until all the 13 State Governments have been consulted and agreement given for the creation of a parallel NSC government vesting the Prime Minister with executive powers to interfere with the running of the 13 state governments”

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A strict and no-nonsense Prime Minister would have sacked Abdul Rahman as Minister for his shockingly insensitive tweet about bomb explosion in Kuala Lumpur in an attempt to justify the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council Bill

A strict and no-nonsense Prime Minister would have sacked Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan as a Minister for his shockingly insensitive tweet about bomb explosion in Kuala Lumpur in an attempt to justify the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council (NSC) Bill.

Responding to tweets criticizing the NSC bill, which was passed “like a thief at night” at the late-night session last Thursday on Dec 3, the final day of the 25-day budget parliamentary meeting, and which conferred on the Prime Minister such absolute executive powers as to usurp the constitutional prerogative of the Yang di Pertuan Agong to declare an emergency under Article 150 of the Malaysian Constitution, as well as to oust the powers of the Cabinet and to undermine the autonomy powers of Sarawak and Sabah, Rahman had tweeted:

“If a bomb exploded in KL then perhaps you guys would have a different view. But sadly that would be too late.”

Rahman’s tweet is not only frighteningly insensitive but also outrageously illogical. Continue reading “A strict and no-nonsense Prime Minister would have sacked Abdul Rahman as Minister for his shockingly insensitive tweet about bomb explosion in Kuala Lumpur in an attempt to justify the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council Bill”

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Why was the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council Bill passed like “a thief in the night” in a late-night session on the last sitting of the 25-day Parliamentary meeting without any prior notice to the major stakeholders in the land?

Both the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid owe Parliament and the nation a full and satisfactory explanation as to why the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council (NSC) Bill was passed like “a thief in the night” in a late-night session on the last sitting of the 25-day Parliamentary meeting without any prior notice to the major stakeholders in the land?

Najib’s kitchen Cabinet of trusted Ministers and top government officers and advisers must be congratulated for pulling off one of the most remarkable feats in Malaysian government history, keeping the monstrous and pernicious NSC Bill completely under wraps without any one knowing about it, and even the snooping journalists with the most trained noses to sniff out the goings-on in the corridors of powers, have been completely bamboozled this time.

But this adds to the mystery – why was the NSC Bill kept under such tight lock-and-key that when it was first tabled in Parliament for first reading on Tuesday, 1st December 2015, it did not attract widespread attention and alert that it was such a monstrous and pernicious bill which not only usurped the powers of Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet and the powers of autonomy of the Sarawak and Sabah state, but would set the country off on the long dark road to a dictatorship? Continue reading “Why was the monstrous and pernicious National Security Council Bill passed like “a thief in the night” in a late-night session on the last sitting of the 25-day Parliamentary meeting without any prior notice to the major stakeholders in the land?”

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3 reasons you should be worried about the National Security Council Bill

Julia Yeow
The Malaysian Insider
6 December 2015

Just before the stroke of midnight last Thursday, December 3, Parliament passed the National Security Council Bill that nobody, not even the hawk-eyed opposition or the wide network of civil society groups, had any premonition of before it was tabled a mere two days earlier.

All peace-loving Malaysians regardless of your political affiliations, or even if you really couldn’t give two teh tariks for politics, have good reason to be concerned when this security law comes into force.

The manner in which it was bulldozed in Parliament, the ease with which it was passed and the ramifications of the vast executive powers it confers to members of the National Security Council (NSC) have left little to the imagination as to the sinister undertones of this Bill. Continue reading “3 reasons you should be worried about the National Security Council Bill”

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Islam in a Constitutional Democracy

— G25 Forum
Malay Mail Online
December 6, 2015

DECEMBER 6 — We, members of G25, at the conclusion of the Forum on Islam in a Constitutional Democracy at PAUM in Kuala Lumpur on December 5 and 6, 2015, agree on the following statement of reaffirmation:

Having discussed the role of Islam in a Constitutional Democracy under four themes namely;

i) The Federal Constitution and Shariah Law.

ii) Issues of Conflict between Shariah law and Civil law, and impact on the Federal /State division of powers in Malaysia’s legal system.

iii) Islamisation and its Consequences.

iv) Islam and Politics.:

Reaffirming our commitment to upholding the Federal Constitution as the Supreme Law of the Nation;

Reaffirming our commitment to upholding the Rukun Negara which articulates the principles and goals that should guide the Nation;

Reaffirming our belief that political stability and economic progress in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious nation like Malaysia can only be achieved when there is racial harmony, tolerance, understanding and co-operation amongst the various communities; Continue reading “Islam in a Constitutional Democracy”

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Challenge to Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Home Minister Zahid Hamidi to public debate on the National Security Council Bill as it paves the way for a dictatorship and does not safeguard public and national security

Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Home Minister, Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi has denied that the National Security Council (NSC) Bill which was passed in indecent haste by Dewan Rakyat 107 to 74 votes in a late-night sitting on Thursday had any political motive or gave absolute power to the Prime Minister.

Zahid claimed that the NSC bill was to strengthen enforcement in comprehensively looking after the security of the people in the country and the full executive power is not with the Prime Minister but with the National Security Council as had been done before with Poca and Pota, namely, the crime prevention law and terrorism prevention law.
He further claims that overall, the NSC Bill is aimed at safeguarding public and national security.

I challenge all these claims by Zahid and I further challenge Zahid to a public debate on the NSC Bill as it paves the way for a dictatorship and does not safeguard public and national security.

The public debate could be held in Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Penang or Johor Baru and I leave it to Zahid to decide on anyone or even at all of these five venues. Continue reading “Challenge to Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Home Minister Zahid Hamidi to public debate on the National Security Council Bill as it paves the way for a dictatorship and does not safeguard public and national security”

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What is the use of having seven Ministers and 25 Members of Parliament from Sarawak Barisan Nasional if they cannot even defend the basic rights for Sarawak autonomy which faced the greatest threat since formation of Malaysia in the form of the National Security Council Bill

The seven Ministers and 25 Members of Parliament from Sarawak Barisan Nasional would have made a great difference and stopped the National Security Council Bill – the greatest threat to the basic rights of Sarawak autonomy since the formation of Malaysia 52 years ago – in its tracks if they had spoken out against the Bill.

The National Security Council Bill is the most monstrous piece of legislation that I have seen since my election to Parliament 46 years ago in 1969, for it would confer the Prime Minister with dictatorial powers, and in areas which are declared as “security areas”, the Prime Minister’s National Security Council would be able to do whatever it deems necessary (which is completely unheard-of in modern democratic governance) but also confers immunity for whatever violations and atrocities against human rights, even involving deaths, committed under the auspices of the National Security Council.

This is because the National Security Council Bill specifically provides that there would be no accountability whatsoever (everything will be protected under the Official Secrets Act) and there is even no need for post mortems in cases of mysterious deaths in security areas. Continue reading “What is the use of having seven Ministers and 25 Members of Parliament from Sarawak Barisan Nasional if they cannot even defend the basic rights for Sarawak autonomy which faced the greatest threat since formation of Malaysia in the form of the National Security Council Bill”

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Senate should veto the National Security Council Bill as it is a quadruple power grab at the expense of Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet and the autonomy powers Sarawak and Sabah and refer it back to Dewan Rakyat after full national consultative process

The Senate should veto the National Security Council Bill which was rammed through the Dewan Rakyat in indecent haste in a late-night sitting last night, which was sprung as a total surprise on the nation as Members of Parliament on both sides of the House and the civil society did not have any clue beforehand that the government was preparing to enact such a monstrous legislation which is no less than a quadruple power grab at the expense of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet and the autonomy powers of Sarawak and Sabah.

The National Security Council Bill was surreptitiously presented for first reading on Tuesday on Dec. 1, and even without any briefing for Barisan Nasional MPs especially from Sarawak and Sabah, the second and third readings of this monstrous Bill was rushed through Parliament yesterday, with BN MPs particularly from Sarawak and Sabah voting for it blindly like robots although they did not fully understand its far-reaching implications, including undermining the very autonomy powers of Sarawak and Sabah which have become the burning issues in these two states.

In fact, I do not believe that the 37 Ministers of the Cabinet could have discussed, debated or understood the National Security Council Bill before it was presented to Parliament for a shot-gun passage, for no self-respecting Cabinet would have agreed to such power-grab by the Prime Minister, who is in fact setting himself up as a dictator who need not pay heed to what is already a very supine and servile Cabinet! Continue reading “Senate should veto the National Security Council Bill as it is a quadruple power grab at the expense of Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Cabinet and the autonomy powers Sarawak and Sabah and refer it back to Dewan Rakyat after full national consultative process”

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As IGP and AG have rubbished Charles Morais’ statutory declaration, an independent international inquiry into killing of Kevin Morais provides a golden opportunity to clear Malaysian government’s good name and integrity which have been dragged into the mud by recent scandals

As the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar and the new Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamad Apandi Ali have rubbished the shocking revelations in the statutory declaration by Charles Morais in connection with the murder of his brother and Deputy Public Prosecutor Kevin Morais, a golden opportunity opens up to clear the Malaysian government’s good name and integrity which had been dragged into the mud by recent scandals.

If there is no basis whatsoever to the shocking allegations in Charles’ statutory declaration in connection with the equally shocking murder of Kevin, an independent international inquiry into the killing of Kevin would clear and go a long way to rehabilitate Malaysia’s good name and integrity, especially in the important areas of law enforcement and the upholding of the rule of law.

It is trite to say that Malaysians have lost confidence and trust in the credibility and even legitimacy of any local investigations into “high profile” cases – whether involving the police and the Inspector-General of Police, the new Attorney-General (bearing in mind the circumstances of his sudden appointment on 24-hour notice job-switch from a Federal Court judgeship and the sacking of the Tan Sri Gani Patail as Attorney-General) or worst of all, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, now bearing all the “crosses” of his ever-ballooning twin mega scandals.

This is why at the “Solidarity with Lim Kit Siang & Mana RM2.6 billion?” DAP ceramah at Prai, Penang last night, I had called for a new, full and independent international inquiry into Kevin’s murder, following Charles’ statutory declaration. Continue reading “As IGP and AG have rubbished Charles Morais’ statutory declaration, an independent international inquiry into killing of Kevin Morais provides a golden opportunity to clear Malaysian government’s good name and integrity which have been dragged into the mud by recent scandals”

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A response to the Attorney-General

— G25
Malay Mail Online
November 15, 2015

NOVEMBER 15 — We, members of G25, wish to refer to the interview that the Malaysian Insider had with the Attorney-General as published in the Malaysian Insider on 14 November 2015 under the heading ‘Why the snub, Apandi asks Bar Council’.

We wish to make the following comments.

Firstly, we are perturbed to note that the Attorney-General is reported to have said —

‘G25 consists of those have-been government servants, isn’t it? Have-beens.’

With respect to the learned Attorney-General we consider it arrogant, crude and unnecessarily offensive for him to have referred to us as “Have-beens’.

Secondly, Tan Sri Apandi appears to be under the delusion that since we have retired from Government service therefore we could no longer contribute constructive ideas for the good governance of our country. Continue reading “A response to the Attorney-General”

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No “Lazy Malays” During The Japanese Occupation

M. Bakri Musa
www.bakrimusa.com
Oct. 6, 2015

The Japanese Occupation briefly interrupted British colonial rule. Japanese troops landed in Kota Baru in the early morning of December 8, 1941, and surrendered some 43 months later. That was only a blink in our history but to those who suffered through that terrible period, it was eternity. As brutal as it was, Malays as a culture and community survived.

There was one significant but not widely noted disruption and humiliation of Malay culture during that period. The Japanese, despite their reverence for their own Sun God Emperor, had little use or respect for Malay sultans. At least the British maintained the facade of respect even though those sultans were essentially colonial puppets.

The colonials saw in the institution of Malay sultans an effective means of indirect rule. The British knew full well the reverence Malays had for our sultans. The British must have learned a thing or two from observing kampong boys herding their kerbaus (water buffaloes). Pierce a ring through the lead buffalo’s nose and then even a toddler could effectively control the herd by pulling on the rope tied to that lead beast’s ring.

That essentially was the British approach to controlling the Malay herd; pierce a ring through their sultan’s nose. The rope may be of silk and the ring of gold, but the underlying dynamics are the same. Continue reading “No “Lazy Malays” During The Japanese Occupation”

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Support for the call by G25 Group of Eminent Malays for the separation of the powers of the Attorney-General as legal adviser to the government and that of Public Prosecutor to ensure that political influence is not brought to bear on prosecutorial decisions

The call by the G25 Group of Eminent Malays for the transfer of the prosecutorial powers of the Attorney-General to an independent office of the Director of Public Prosecutions deserves support and action by Parliament.

The G25 Group statement said:

“There is a fundamental conflict of interest in the functions and powers of the AG, which enables him to take action against national interests.

“It is poor governance that the AG is the legal adviser for the government of Malaysia and also the final arbiter on decisions to prosecute.”

The conflict-of-interest and the subordination of national interest to sectional and political interests that can arise as the result of the Attorney-General being vested with these two functions and powers has been most vividly and dramatically highlighted by investigations into the two mega-scandals of 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion “donation” in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal banking accounts – resulting in the shocking sacking of the Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail on July 28 amidst controversy that the Attorney-General’s Chambers was preparing to charge the Prime Minister Najib for corruption in connection with the 1MDB scandal, the dissolution of the multi-agency Special Task Force into the 1MDB scandal and the three-month stoppage of Public Accounts Committee from continuing its 1MDB investigations. Continue reading “Support for the call by G25 Group of Eminent Malays for the separation of the powers of the Attorney-General as legal adviser to the government and that of Public Prosecutor to ensure that political influence is not brought to bear on prosecutorial decisions”

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Bad week for rule of law and credibility and professionalism of key national institutions like police and judiciary contributing to the “Perfect Storm” confronting Malaysia

This is a bad week for the rule of law and the credibility and professionalism of key national institutions like the police and the judiciary with multiple developments.

I will just cite three instances.

The first is mystery of the sudden and shocking sacking of the Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail some two months before his compulsory retirement age and his disappearance from the public domain in the wake of speculation that Gani was on the verge of filing charges against the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak for corruption in connection with the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal and that Najib had pre-empted Gani from prosecuting him by summarily sacking him as Attorney-General.

Gani’s sacking was followed by inter-departmental internecine warfare with police arrests of key officials in the Attorney-General’s Chambers, Bank Negara and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission which degenerated into an intra-departmental police tussle, involving the No. 2 man in the Police Special Branch, Abdul Hamid Bador.

What is truth and what is fiction? Continue reading “Bad week for rule of law and credibility and professionalism of key national institutions like police and judiciary contributing to the “Perfect Storm” confronting Malaysia”

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Three lessons in a national soul-searching as to what has gone wrong with over five decades of nation-building that there was a Red Shirts Malay Rally replete with racial slurs and provocations on Malaysia Day itself and with government approval

Malaysians must conduct a national soul-searching as to what has gone wrong with over five decades of nation-building that there was a Red Shirts Malay rally replete with racial slurs and provocations on Malaysia Day itself and with government approval.

Police estimated that some 35,000 Malays from all over the country converged in Kuala Lumpur – a few not knowing why they were being brought to the Federal capital – to uphold Malay dignity on the ground allegedly that Malay rights were under threat.

UMNO veteran and stalwart, Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah rightly said today that he did not know where the perceived threats to Malays were coming from.

He said: “You have got the government that is headed by a Malay, state governments headed by Malays with the exception of one in Penang. The civil service is mostly made up of Malays.

“The army are mostly Malays and we also have Malay rulers. I don’t know where the threats are coming from.”

Even the fourth and longest-serving Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad said that he was clueless about the objectives of the Red Shirts Malay rally, although it was meant to be a counter-demonstration against the allegedly Chinese-dominated and DAP-masterminded (completely untrue and baseless allegations) Bersih 4 overnight rally on August 29 and 30. Continue reading “Three lessons in a national soul-searching as to what has gone wrong with over five decades of nation-building that there was a Red Shirts Malay Rally replete with racial slurs and provocations on Malaysia Day itself and with government approval”