Category: Election

Former PAS leader and Kelantan State Assemblyman for Salor Datuk Husam Musa has predicted that the 14th general elections is likely to be held in March or April, as he expects PAS President Datuk Seri Hadi Awang’s private members’ motion to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Juriseiction) Act 1965 or Act 355 to be debated only after the 14th general election.

Husam sees the move by Hadi to table and defer his private member’s bill motion for a second time on the last day of the 25-sitting budget meeting on Thursday as a ruse and “effective gambit” to create a “win-win” situation for both PAS and UMNO – where PAS can show that its “355” gambit was not a failure, and where UMNO can “milk” political capital from the issue not only in next week’s UMNO General Assembly but also in the 14GE.

Husam may be right, but there is another possible scenario – with Parliament meeting in March, but no debate on Hadi’s private member’s motion.

Instead, the UMNO/BN government will take over Hadi’s private member’s bill, which had not even reached the “first reading” stage in Parliament, and present it to Parliament as a government bill for first reading. An all-party Parliamentary Select Committee will then be formed in the March meeting of Parliament to study the UMNO/BN government’s “takeover” of Hadi’s private member’s bill for a report to be submitted to Parliament, whether in the July/August or October/November meetings of Parliament. Continue reading “The battle lines in the 14GE is “democracy vs kleptocracy” and the political challenge is to create an united opposition coalition committed to constitutional and democratic reforms in Malaysia”

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”

Sarawakians and Malaysians must be shocked to read about the speech by the PAS President, Datuk Seri Hadi Awang at a ceramah in Kuching that only a Muslim bumiputera can be Chief Minister of Sarawak and not a Chinese or a non-Muslim bumiputera.

It is very sad and shocking to see PAS advocating such narrow and divisive politics, when everyone should be promoting unity, harmony and togetherness in our multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-lingual and multi-cultural society.

For promoting such a narrow, negative and divisive stand, all the 11 PAS candidates in the 11th Sarawak state general election deserve to lose their deposits on May 7 Polling Day.

Sarawak and Malaysia should be going forward to weld a greater unity out of the rich and diverse ethnic groups, languages, religions and cultures in our midst instead of segregating the diverse ethnic groups, languages, religions and cultures into their separate silos which is not to promote greater national unity but engender greater distrust, division and disunity in our plural society.

I met the first Sarawak Chief Minister, Stephen Kalong Ningkan half a century ago when DAP was established in 1966, and after Stephen was toppled as Sarawak Chief Minister, he was succeeded by another Iban, Tawi Sli.

Sabah had also a history of Chief Ministers who is not a Muslim bumiputera, with personalities like Peter Lo, Joseph Pairin Kitingan, Yong Teck Lee, Chong Kah Kiat and Bernard Dompok.

It is sad that instead of going forwards to promote greater unity, there is a political party which is advocating that the country should go backwards to erect artificial walls to divide the people in Sarawak and Malaysia. Continue reading “If DAP succeeds in forming Sarawak State Government in next general election in 2021, the first DAP Chief Minister of Sarawak is unlikely be a Chinese but most likely be a Dayak”

Only eight days into the 11th Sarawak state general election on May 7, Sarawak Barisan Nasional is running the most schizophrenic election campaign in Malaysian election history, painfully reflecting the confusion, “double vision” and split personality of the Sarawak Barisan Nasional campaign.

The best example is the reaction of the PBB Deputy President Abang Johari Abang Openg who warned Barisan Nasional not to be lulled into a false sense of security by my statement that DAP risks losing seven seats.

Abang Johari should not be accusing me of employing a “ploy”, but should direct his attack on the Sarawak Chief Minisrer, Tan Sri Adenan Satem, as I was only taking Adenan seriously when he declared two days ago that Barisan Nasional would win at least 70 of the 82 seats in the May 7 polls.

This would leave at most 12 seats to be won by the Opposition. Baru Bian predicts five seats for PKR, which leaves only some five to seven seats for the DAP – which fits exactly the worst-case scenario described by Adenan, and why I had warned in Sarikei on Saturday night that DAP risked losing more than half of the 12 seats won in the 2011 general election.

If I am wrong, then it was Adenan who was wrong in publicly declaring that BN would win at least 70 out of 82 State Assembly seats on May 7. Continue reading “Sarawak BN is running the most schizophrenic election campaign in Malaysian election history”

Are the voters of Tasik Biru prepared for their rendezvous with history on May 7?

The famous gold-mining town of Bau had been replete with history, going back some 200 years.

There was a historic episode in Bau in 1837 and another in 1857, but on May 7, 2016, the people of Bau and the voters of Tasik Biru are set to write a new and greater history for Sarawak and Malaysia in the 11th Sarawak state general election by spearheading a third wave of political change in the country.

I first visited Bau in September 1978, after the Great Fire of Bau on 24th September 1978 when Bau town was virtually razed to the ground. Continue reading “Are the voters of Tasik Biru prepared for their rendezvous with history on May 7?”

The various combinations and permutations in the Malaysian political arena, not only in the ruling coalition of UMNO/BN parties but in the Opposition, seem to be the hot topic of the day.

Yesterday, there was the grand announcement of new political alignment and co-operation between PAS and Perkasa, but such a development would not forestall the holding of three-cornered fights in the 14th General Election which must be held in 2018.

May be one way to avoid three-cornered fights in 14th General Election is for PAS to concentrate in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah and Perlis while Parti AMANAH Negara focuses on all the other states, subject to adjustments to the arrangement by two political parties.

This may or may not be a workable proposition as I have not discussed it with any other political party or personality. Continue reading “One way to avoid three-cornered fights in 14 GE is for PAS to concentrate in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah and Perlis while AMANAH focuses on all the other states, subject to adjustments to the arrangement by two parties”

by Greg Earl
Australian Financial Review
Sep 2 2015

The idea of Singapore founder Lee Kuan Yew breaking into tears when he announced the city’s separation from Malaysia 50 years ago is now as much a part of the country’s foundation ideology as its lack of natural resources.

It has been both celebrated during this year’s 50th anniversary and disputed by those who think Lee was a cynical politician not unhappy to be carving out some space from the Malay world.

But one thing is certain as Singapore prepares for an election next week: few people are shedding any tears about being separated from the political train wreck underway across the border. Continue reading “Singapore and Malaysia on diverging election paths”

By AMBIGA SREENEVASAN
New York Times
AUG. 20, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia’s ruling party is facing its greatest crisis of legitimacy yet. Long seen as a modern and moderate Muslim democracy, Malaysia has been riding on its economic growth and good diplomacy for years, and the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), which has led coalition governments for nearly six decades, has been claiming the credit.

But rampant corruption, curbs on freedom of expression, a slowing economy and a currency in free fall have eroded public trust in the government’s stewardship. It hasn’t helped that Prime Minister Najib Razak recently reshuffled the cabinet, and sacked the deputy prime minister and the attorney general for asking uncomfortable questions. Or that once again the ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional (BN), is using its influence over government agencies to bypass or manipulate electoral rules to its advantage, most recently through gerrymandering in the eastern state of Sarawak. Continue reading “Malaysia’s Many Scandals”

David Pilling
Financial Times
August 19, 2015

Once a model of development, the country’s reputation is sinking and so is that of the PM

The story is that in March 2013 one or more unnamed Middle Eastern donors transferred a total of nearly $700m into the personal account of Najib Razak, prime minister of Malaysia. The generous amount was a donation to be lavished on that year’s election campaign of the ruling United Malays National Organisation as Mr Najib saw fit. So sordid are the goings-on in Malaysia these days that, astonishingly, this is not the case being mounted against the prime minister. This is the case for Mr Najib’s defence. Malaysia’s widely lampooned prime minister is in such a deep, dark and money-stuffed hole that this is the version of events being promoted by his allies.

It was also the finding this month of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. It turns out that an anonymous donation from a foreign benefactor is the least damaging explanation of how 2.6bn ringgit found its way into Mr Najib’s account. The prime minister has denied committing any wrongdoing or accepting money for personal gain.

If this is the positive take, the negative version is worse. Continue reading “Najib Razak has too much power for Malaysia’s good”

I have given the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the expanded Cabinet of 37 Ministers 96 hours to prove that they are sincere in political funding – and this 96-hour challenge expires at the Cabinet meeting later in the morning.

Will there be any surprises from Najib and the Ministers in announcing steps and measures to demonstrate that they are sincere in political funding as a follow-up to the Prime Minister’s recent proposal for a national consultative committee of political parties, NGOS, civil societies and youths to formulate guidelines on political funding with the aim of ensuring that funds are sourced with integrity?

Malaysians do not expect any surprises, and will in fact be shocked if the Cabinet could produce a rabbit from the hat and come up with initiatives to demonstrate that it is sincere about regulating the baneful effects of money politics in Malaysia.

Najib suffers from a grave case of trust-deficit in the country, but he is making a grave error if he thinks Malaysians suffer from an equally serious case of judgment-deficit.

All Malaysians can see through what Najib is up to when he proposed a National Consultative Council on Political Funding which will be given a year to come up with proposals and guidelines in place in time for the next general election.

Najib wants to buy time for up to one whole year to be able to continue stonewall from giving a full and satisfactory account of the RM2.6 billion deposited into his personal accounts in AmBank in March 2013 before the 13th General Election – where the money had come from, who had received handouts from Najib’s accounts, what is the remainder in the accounts after the 13th General Election, and whether there is any truth in last Saturday posting on Sarawak Report website that over US$650 million (RM2 billion) was transferred from Najib’s AmPrivate Bank account in Kuala Lumpur to an account in Singapore after the 13th general election. Continue reading “Will Cabinet today resolve that all Ministers and Deputy Minister should seal their lips on the amounts of funds they received from Najib’s RM2.6 billion personal accounts for 13GE campaigning?”

Mariam Mokhtar
Free Malaysia Today
July 18, 2015

Lim Guan Eng shares his thoughts about the state of the country, the death of Pakatan Rakyat and the Opposition chances in the next GE.

Lim Guan Eng, the chief minister of Penang, was in London recently but took time-off from his busy schedule to meet some Malaysians and share his thoughts on a variety of issues. These ranged from the Malaysian mess to Malay votes, the economy to the end of Pakatan Rakyat, and the challenges of Sarawak, to his choice of a cell-mate. Here is a condensed account of that interview.

1.“Malaysia is in a mess.” What solution does DAP have to take Malaysia out of its predicament?

Malaysia is not in a mess, but in a state of crisis. We have a challenging year ahead and we must not lose hope and faith. Our economy is tanking because of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), and the ringgit is dropping. Our leaders are not saving the economy but are only saving themselves.

The first step will be a change of leadership. To get to the root of the crisis, Najib Abdul Razak must take a leave of absence. The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Bank Negara Governor, and Inspector-General of Police (IGP) are all under the authority of the prime minister, so they are unable to conduct an independent and neutral investigation of their own boss.

We cannot continue without change. In the short-term Najib must go on leave. In the long term, there must be free and fresh elections, so that a new, clean and legitimate government can be elected. Continue reading “Guan Eng on the road ahead for Malaysia”

Malay Mail Online
July 17, 2015

KUALA LUMPUR, July 17 — Malaysia ranked fifth from the bottom in a survey of 54 countries on the integrity of campaign financing in elections, amid allegations that Barisan Nasional (BN) abused government money to fund their Election 2013 campaign.

The “Checkbook Elections” study by the Electoral Integrity Project (EIP), based at the University of Sydney, Australia, in collaboration with Global Integrity and the Sunlight Foundation for the Money, Politics and Transparency Project (MPT), also showed Malaysia with an average score of 19 out of 100, compared to the highest score of 79 by Georgia, and to its Southeast Asian neighbours like Thailand (50), Indonesia (47), and the Philippines (43).

“Reporting requirements are light: according to the law, parties must report on their finances annually, and candidates must do so only once, in a single post-election report,” the MPT noted.

“Reports are not completely itemised, and in practice, do not disclose a complete list of donors or donations. Of the information that is submitted, no party reports are made available to the public, and candidate reports, in practice, are accessible only in hard copy for a period of six months after the election,” the MPT added.

According to the survey, Malaysia’s “in law” and “in practice” scores were 26 and 15 out of 100 respectively. Continue reading “Malaysia near bottom in survey on money in politics”

DAP welcomes like-minded Malays and Muslims to join the party in pursuit of the nationalist and patriotic cause to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state because of rampant corruption, injustices and collapse of good governance.

DAP is not a non-Malay or non-Muslim political party and we must not allow ourselves to be locked into non-Malay and non-Muslim areas and spheres of activities in the country, as the DAP had right from the beginning of our formation some five decades ago in 1966 espoused the Malaysian Dream to advocate justice, freedom and human dignity for all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region.

This is why the DAP had always presented a multi-racial slate of candidates for parliamentary and state assembly constituencies in general elections from the very first general election contested by the DAP in 1969.

In Perak, DAP had elected five Malay state assemblymen into the Perak State Assembly from the 1969 to 1990 general elections – Ibrahim Singgeh (Tapah Road – 1969) followed by Daing Ibrahim bin Othman (Pasir Puteh – 1974), Salleh Nakhoda Hitam, (Guntong – 1974 & 1978), Fadzlan Yahya (Pasir Bedamar 1982 & 1986) and Asri Othman (Dermawan – 1990). Continue reading “DAP welcomes like-minded Malays and Muslims to join the DAP in furtherance of the nationalist and patriotic cause to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state because of rampant corruption, injustices and collapse of good governance”

One of the most accident-prone government front-benchers, the Deputy Finance Minister, Datuk Ahmad Maslan announced yesterday that nation-wide roadshows to explain the 1MDB scandal and other government controversies will be launched at the state levels during the second week of Syawal.

I would advise the Federal government to scrap the 1MDB nation-wide roadshows as they will end up as disastrously as the “Nothing2Hide” 1MDB Forum at the Putra World Trade Centre in KL on June 5 where the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak ignominiously backed out of appearance because of Mahathir’s presence, unless Najib could immediately explain whether 1MDB funds had been misused for the UMNO/BN campaign in the 13th General Election, and are now being spent and misused in Sarawak for the forthcoming Sarawak state polls.

Najib’s thunderous silence on the third day of the Wall Street Journal expose on Friday that the 1MDB funds running into billions of ringgit had been used to bankroll his 13th General Election campaign does not brook well that the Prime Minister’s credibility can recover with any “Public Relations” gimmicry like 1MDB nation-wide roadshows.

Why is Najib incapable of giving a detailed and convincing rebuttal to the Wall Street Journal allegation that one “trick” of using 1MDB billions of ringgit to bankroll Najib’s 13GE election campaign was through the artifice of 1MDB making overpriced purchase of power assets from Genting Group in 2012 – paying RM2.3 billion or around five times for a power plant that was only worth RM400 million, with Genting make a subsequent donation to a foundation controlled by Najib for the 13GE campaigning purposes. Continue reading “Scrap the 1MDB roadshows as they will end up as disastrously as the “Nothing2Hide” 1MDB Forum”

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak cannot keep silent about the serious allegations by Wall Street Journal yesterday that the 1MDB funds running into billions of ringgit were used to bank-roll his 13th General Election campaign.

A Wall Street Journal report yesterday said this was achieved by having 1MDB make overpriced purchase of power assets from Genting Group in 2012.

Genting then made a donation to a foundation controlled by Najib before the 13th general election and it claimed the funds were used for campaigning.

The WSJ report said:

“The 1MDB fund in October 2012 acquired a Genting unit that owned a 75 percent stake in a 720-megawatt coal-fired power plant near Kuala Lumpur.

“The price, which was equivalent to about US$740 million at the time, came to RM2.3 billion.

“A few months after the sale, a unit of Genting called Genting Plantations Bhd made a donation of about US$10 million to a Najib-linked charity, according to a spokesperson for Genting Plantations.”

Continue reading “Najib cannot keep silent about the serious allegations by Wall Street Journal that 1MDB funds running into billions of ringgit were used to bankroll his 13th General Election campaign”

by Eileen Ng
The Malaysian Insider
22 December 2014

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s warning that the Malays are losing political dominance and may end up being left behind was meant to strike fear into the community and ensure that Umno remained in power, analysts said.

Observers said the former prime minister was also looking at matters through a racial lens, which was ironic considering that he was a proponent of Bangsa Malaysia policy of an inclusive national identity.

Professor James Chin said it was impossible for the Malays to lose power to the minority races in the country as all the top positions, from the Malay rulers to the civil service, were dominated by that community.

Citing examples, the academic with Monash University Malaysia said the posts of prime minister and deputy prime minister, at least half the Cabinet postings as well as senior positions in the government service were held by Malays.

“He is stating that to play up the racial card and to scare the Malays to ensure Umno remains in power,” Chin told The Malaysian Insider. Continue reading “Dr M fear-mongering, playing race card to keep Umno in power, say analysts”

Yesterday, I said more and more lawyers and Malaysians are asking how an extremist with racial and religious prejudice like Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad could rise up to become Chief Justice, the top judicial officer of the land.

Similarly, more and more Malaysians are also asking how a closet racist and extremist like Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman could hide his true colours to dominate the Election Commission for a quarter of a century, as he was appointed Election Commission Secretary in 1979 and was Election Commission Chairman from 2,000 to 2,008, responsible for six general elections and three constituency delimitation exercises in 1984, 1994 and 2003.

When Rashid, who is now Perkasa Vice President, first joined the extremist and racist UMNO-funded NGO in November last year, he said his objective was to champion Malay rights and ensure Malays retain power.

He told the media at the time that as Election Commission Chairman, he knew how to keep the Malays in power.

He said three redelineation exercises of electoral boundaries which were done during his time with the Election Commission had ensured Malays remained in power. Continue reading “How could a closet racist and extremist hide his true colours as to be the Election Commission Secretary/Chairman for 25 years, responsible for six general elections and three constituency delimitation exercises?”

(Media Statement in Teluk Intan on Monday, 26th May 2014)

Poor Mah Siew Keong. Even during the Teluk Intan by-election, he cannot get the recognition of Umno and Barisan Nasional leaders as Gerakan President and candidate to respect his authority and the law, then how can he get the respect and recognition from Umno and Barisan Nasional leaders after the by-election even if he wins on May 31st?

This is the only conclusion to be drawn from Mah’s pathetic plea at the launch of his Teluk Intan by-election manifesto this morning that he cannot be held accountable for the promises made by ministers in his absence.

In the past week, UMNO Ministers and Deputy Ministers have made a bee-line to Teluk Intan and never before in the history of Teluk Intan or in any by-election, have so many Umno Ministers and Deputy Ministers “descended” on Teluk Intan or in any by-election as the by-election has been transformed from a contest between the DAP vs Gerakan into DAP vs UMNO.

Even the eminence grise of UMNO, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who seems to be the “de facto” Prime Minister after the mystery of the disappearance of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak at the same time as international tragedy and disaster of the 79-day disappearance of the MH 370 with 238 passengers and crew on board, was the first to open the savage attacks against the DAP/Pakatan Rakyat candidate for Teluk Intan, Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud, by launching an offensive against Dyana’s family for failure as a UMNO family to bring up children who love and are loyal to UMNO. Continue reading “Poor Mah Siew Keong – even during Teluk Intan by-election he cannot get the recognition of UMNO and Barisan Nasional leaders as Gerakan President and candidate to respect his authority and the law, how can he get the respect and recognition after the by-election?”

(Media Statement in Teluk Intan on Sunday, May 25, 2014)

I call on the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to repudiate, condemn and apologise for the sexist and personal attacks against DAP/Pakatan Rakyat candidate Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud both before and during the by-election campaign.

The first question I want to ask Muhyiddin is whether he would approve or denounce a vicious, devilish and sexist attack on his daughter should she ever become a candidate for parliamentary or state assembly elections, like the sexist attack against Dyana with the circulation of her in fake bikini photograph, when the person in bikini was Filipino actress Pauleen Luna and not Dyana Sofya?

I am sure Muhyiddin would have reacted in anger and outrage against such despicable lies and calumny against his daughter – but why is he so heartless, unprincipled, opportunistic and even cowardly as not to react with anger and outrage against the dastardly sexist attacks on Dyana and put an immediate halt to such despicable tactics during the Teluk Intan by-election campaign, whether in Teluk Intan or on the social media?

The Barisan Nasional leaders, whether in Teluk Intan or outside, could deny until they are blue in the face that they are responsible for the sexist attacks on Dyana but no one whether in Teluk Intan or in the country would believe that Barisan Nasional/UMNO are not responsible for the fake bikini photograph trying to character-assassinate Dyana, particularly when it was the blogs of the UMNO cybertroopers who were the first to carry the fake bikini photo. Continue reading “Call on Muhyiddin to repudiate, condemn and apologise for the sexist and personal attacks against Dyana Sofya, especially the fake bikini photo and character assassination of her as mindless and even a fraud”