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December 29 Kelantan State Assembly special sitting to implement hudud will be a point of no return for both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat

The December 29 Kelantan State Assembly special sitting to implement hudud will be a point of no return for both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat.

The stand of the first three Prime Ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak and Tun Hussein Onn were crystal clear, that hudud laws are at variance with Malaysia’s Constitution that Malaysia is a secular state.

This was also the position of the other MCA and MIC founding fathers of the nation, Tun Tan Cheng Lock, Tun Tan Siew Sin and Tun V.T. Sambanthan – as well as Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu who was the second MCA President in 1958 and subsequently left MCA and became the second President of Gerakan from 1969 – 1980.

Indisputably, this was also the position of all the founding fathers of Malaysia from Sabah and Sarawak.

If the Kelantan UMNO Assemblymen are allowed to vote in support of the proposal to implement hudud at the Kelantan State Assembly special sitting on Dec. 29, the whole character and basis of Barisan Nasional would have undergone its most radical transformation in the history of the ruling government coalition in the country.
Continue reading “December 29 Kelantan State Assembly special sitting to implement hudud will be a point of no return for both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat”

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Despite Pakatan’s hudud row, grass not greener on BN’s side, analysts say

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
The Malay Mail Online
December 23, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 23 ― A public and intractable row over hudud is raising questions over the viability of Pakatan Rakyat (PR), but Barisan Nasional (BN) faces equally awkward problems despite its calmer surface, according to several political analysts.

They believe that while PR’s public disagreements ― especially between DAP and PAS ― could affect the pact’s future, the disputes were reflective of the equal footing the two parties have along with PKR.

The same cannot be said of BN where Umno stands above and apart from the rest of its coalition partners, the analysts added, citing issues such as Malay rights and even the same Islamic penal code that is giving PR such grief.

BN’s apparent calm was the result of Umno asserting its dominance and political agenda at the expense of the ruling coalition’s weaker component parties. Continue reading “Despite Pakatan’s hudud row, grass not greener on BN’s side, analysts say”

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Najib should stop being “absentee PM”, declare national economic crisis, form a bipartisan BN-PR Council for National Economic Salvation and summon emergency Parliament

(Winding-Up Speech at the DAP Gelang Patah forum “1MDB in RM42 billion debt – Is Malaysia on the Verge of Financial Turmoil” in Johor Baru on Tuesday, 16th December 2014 at 10.30 pm)

During the Q-and-A session, a member of the audience asked what should be done in the face of the multiple national crisis confronting the country.

I will make four proposals:

Firstly, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak should stop being an “absentee PM”.

Secondly, he should declare a national economic crisis to rally all Malaysians to focus on the multiple economic challenges facing the country, now that Malaysia is regarded as South East Asia’s weakest spot with the multiple plunge of forex and equity markets and current slide in prices of global crude oil and other commodities.

Thirdly, form a bipartisan Barisan Nasional-Pakatan Rakyat Council for National Economic Salvation.

Fourthly, Najib should be a Prime Minister for all Malaysians, and not for any race, religion or region. As such he should steer clear of politics and policies of exclusion and extremism and advocate politics and policies of inclusion and moderation, where every Malaysian, regardless of race, religion, region, gender, age or even political party, can unite on a common platform to save the country from the looming economic crisis. Continue reading “Najib should stop being “absentee PM”, declare national economic crisis, form a bipartisan BN-PR Council for National Economic Salvation and summon emergency Parliament”

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Will MCA, Gerakan, MIC and the Sabah/Sarawak BN component parties leave Barisan Nasional if UMNO Assemblymen in Kelantan support hudud implementation in the Kelantan State Assembly special meeting on Dec. 29?

The man who is today preening himself with pride in successfully carrying off the “greatest political coup in UMNO history” will be none other than the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom, who hatched his political plot par excellence with a statement in Parliament on March 27 which completely took PAS leaders by surprise – that the Barisan Nasional Federal Government was prepared to assist the Kelantan PAS State Government to implement hudud laws.

This was a plot to save UMNO and BN, which former Election Commission Chairman/Secretary for 25 years have said are in their “death throes”, and Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin conceded that UMNO/BN would be ousted from power if the ruling coalition loses just two per cent of voter support in the next general elections – by creating division in Pakatan Rakyat over the issue of hudud implementation.

But there is also a bonus in the plot – in providing a life-line to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who is facing relentless attack and the greatest pressure in his five-year nine-month premiership over the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal.

Najib has attracted brickbats over the mega 1MDB scandal not only from Pakatan Rakyat led by MPs Tony Pua and Rafizi Ramli but also from inside UMNO led by none other than the formidable fourth Prime Minister of 22 years, Tun Mahathir, and others like Tun Daim.

The Kelantan Special State Assembly on Dec. 29 on the implementation of hudud would be like manna from heaven for Najib, as it would provide precious diversion and distraction from the mega 1MDB scandal! Continue reading “Will MCA, Gerakan, MIC and the Sabah/Sarawak BN component parties leave Barisan Nasional if UMNO Assemblymen in Kelantan support hudud implementation in the Kelantan State Assembly special meeting on Dec. 29?”

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False choice to believe that PAS depends on hudud issue to stay in power in Kelantan in 14GE when PR common programme on good governance and justice can ensure PR victory in Putrajaya and Kelantan

The announcement by the Kelantan PAS Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob of a special Kelantan State Assembly on Dec. 29 to amend the Syariah Criminal Code Enactment II 1993 as a prelude to the tabling of a private member’s bill in Parliament to seek approval for Kelantan to enforce hudud has caught PKR and DAP leaders, as well as the Pakatan Rakyat Leadership Council, by complete surprise as there had been no prior hint or information whatsoever.

Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has confirmed with me that he is in the dark about the Kelantan PAS government’s plan to hold a special state assembly sitting on the implementation of hudud.

This is a breach of the Pakatan Rakyat consensus that any new measures on hudud will first be discussed in the PR Leadership Council, while taking note and respecting the previous PAS Kelantan decisions on hudud before the formation of PR.

This is not the way to restore public confidence in Pakatan Rakyat which had been seriously shaken by recent developments, or to take full advantage of the latest political landscape where a former top civil servant, who had led the Election Commission for a quarter of a century, either as Election Commission Secretary or Chairman, has passed the judgement that UMNO and Barisan Nasional are in their “death throes”.

Even the Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy UMNO President, Tan Sri Muhhyiddin Yassin knows that the ruling coalition for 57 years is in dire straits when he recently admitted that UMNO/Barisan Nasional would be ousted from power if the ruling coalition loses just two per cent of voter support in the next general elections.

For the first time in the nation’s history, UMNO/BN is poised of being toppled from power, not only in Putrajaya at the federal level, but also in the various states. Continue reading “False choice to believe that PAS depends on hudud issue to stay in power in Kelantan in 14GE when PR common programme on good governance and justice can ensure PR victory in Putrajaya and Kelantan”

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DAP shows ‘Malay face’ as party targets Umno

By Nigel Aw
Malaysiakini
Dec 14, 2014

Urgings for DAP to shed its Chinese-centric image and embrace more Malay members have been a staple message since the party’s rise in 2008 but something was visibly different at the party’s convention today.

The difference was probably most felt among some of the Chinese-speaking elderly DAP members who had complained they could not understand “90 percent” of the speeches.

The apparent gulf between the party’s elderly members and its mostly young speakers who spoke at the convention in Subang Jaya was perhaps symbolic of the transition the party was undergoing.

Speeches at the DAP convention in Subang Jaya were predominantly in the national language, peppered with Chinese, English, compared to its previous more Mandarin-oriented tone.

But the changes were not only confined to speeches as there were a visible number of Malay delegates, ranging from a pakcik clad in jubah to a middle aged men sporting a kopiah or women with tudung.

The sight was unusual for a party that had often been attacked by the ruling coalition as being “Chinese chauvinist”.

The gradual change of the party’s face in just a matter of years is perhaps facilitated by DAP’s tendency to place potential leaders into key positions regardless of seniority. Continue reading “DAP shows ‘Malay face’ as party targets Umno”

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Great battle for the soul of Malaysia – politics of inclusion to unite all Malaysians to make Malaysia a great nation in international society vs politics of exclusion based on hate, fear and imaginary enemies to further divide and polarise races and religions in Malaysia

We are now engaged in a great battle for the soul of Malaysia – the politics of inclusion to unite all Malaysians to make Malaysia a great nation in international society versus the politics of exclusion based on hate, fear and imaginary enemies to further divide and polarise races and religions in Malaysia.

The UMNO General Assembly last month is a classic example of the politics of exclusion where the politics of hate, fear and lies reigned supreme, creating imaginary enemies and fears – that the Malays and Islam are under siege, that the Malays could suffer a fate similar like the Red Indians in the United States, that the Malays have become slaves in their own land, that the Chinese are out to grab the political power of the Malays, that ”if UMNO loses, Malays may never rule again”, and the “mother of all lies”, that the Chinese in Kedah burnt the Quran “page by page during a prayer ritual”!

The politics of exclusion is the politics to sow hatred, distrust, disunity and division in our multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-cultural and multi-lingual Malaysia based on The Big Lie that the Malays and Islam are under attack in Malaysia.

It is inconceivable and unimaginable that Malays and Islam are under siege after 57 years of UMNO government and six UMNO Prime Ministers, and this is why such exclusionary politics of fear and hate have to be based on The Big Lie.

In Malaysia on the eve of welcoming the new year of 2015, Malays and Islam are not under siege although UMNO and in particular the UMNO leaders and their cronies are under attack – the Umnoputras and not the bumiputeras are under siege!

Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy UMNO President, Tan Sri Muhhyiddin Yassin recently admitted that UMNO/Barisan Nasional would be ousted from power if the ruling coalition loses just two per cent of voter support in the next general elections.

This is why UMNO and their cronies, the UMNO-puteras are under siege, and not Malays, Islam and the bumiputeras.

For the first time in the nation’s history, UMNO/BN is poised of being toppled from power, not only in Putrajaya at the federal power, but also in the various states. Continue reading “Great battle for the soul of Malaysia – politics of inclusion to unite all Malaysians to make Malaysia a great nation in international society vs politics of exclusion based on hate, fear and imaginary enemies to further divide and polarise races and religions in Malaysia”

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Pakatan Rakyat leaders must be responsible to the 52% of the voters who had supported the PR in the 13 GE and should not continue to leave PR in a limbo

I welcome the proposal by the PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar that the Pakatan Rakyat parties resume discussions and deliberation among its top leaders.

Pakaan Rakyat parties must be responsible to the 52% of the voters who had supported the PR in the 13GE rendering the UMNO/BN Federal Government the first minority government in the nation’s history, and PR leaders should not leave PR in a limbo.

The resumption of deliberations among the top PR leaders is an urgent agenda after a lapse of over six months, and the first task of the PR top leadership is to assure the 52% of the electorate who had put their hope and trust in the PR that the PR is intact, and to reaffirm the PR common policy framework which had brought the DAP, PKR and PAS together to form a coalition in the 13GE remains the core policy framework for PR and that the consensus principle which had been the fundamental operational principle of of PR decision-making process will be fully respected and adhered to.

I personally hope that the new year 2014 would not end without a meeting of the PR leadership council to set the PR in a new direction for the new year, putting all the past aches and pains of PR firmly behind it.

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Umno seen losing grip on Johor bastion

by Yiswaree Palansamy
The Malay Mail Online
December 7, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 7 — Johor may be the birthplace of Umno but its status as the Malay nationalist party’s fortress is increasingly under threat, according to political analysts and observers.

Growing urbanisation and rural migration have put Johor under the same conditions that led to Umno and Barisan Nasional’s hold loosen before it was eventually broken in states such as Selangor and, briefly, Perak.

“The trend in Johor is just the same as with other states, whereby the more urbanised it becomes, the more likely it is for the Malays in Johor to question the long term dependency on Umno and not stick to the idea of being loyal to a particular party,” Wan Saiful Wan Jan told the Malay Mail Online.

The chief executive of think tank Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs said, however, this decrease in blind loyalty to any particular party was necessary for a healthy democracy to flourish. Continue reading “Umno seen losing grip on Johor bastion”

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Can Pakatan Rakyat build on the momentum of 13GE to create the two per cent shift of votes from UMNO/BN to bring about the first catalytic change of federal government in the 14GE?

The greatest challenge in the next 14GE, whether in 2017 or 2018 , is whether Pakatan Rakyat can build on the momentum of the 13th General Elections to create the two per cent shift of vote from Umno/BN to bring about the first catalytic change of federal government.

Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin warned the recent UMNO General Assembly that BN will be ousted from power if it loses just two per cent of support in the next general election.

Let this be a reminder to all Malaysians throughout the country as to how close the UMNO/BN government would have been voted out in the 13th General Election in May last year, if the electoral process had been really clean, free and fair, minus all the constituency gerrymandering and the undemocratic abuses and malpractices in the country.

Furthermore, it should also be reminder as to how close Malaysians have come to achieve the catalytic change of federal of power in Putrajaya – as all that is needed to win Putrjaya is another two per cent of voter support that had gone to UMNO/BN.

Muhyiddin admitted that a loss of two per cent voter support will translate to Barisan Nasional being reduced from its 133 seats won in the 13GE to 103 federal states, less than half of the 222-seat Parliament – comprising 68 UMNO seats and 35 non-UMNO seats.

A loss of five per cent voter support would have slashed the total BN seats to 81, comprising 53 UMNO and 28 non-UMNO seats.

It is precisely of this fear of losing Federal power that UMNO propagandists have gone all out to drum up fear and hate through lies and falsehoods to conjure imaginary threats and enemies to convince the Malays and Muslims of The Big Lie that Malays and Islam are under threat.

Will Pakatan Rakyat be able to rise up to the challenge in the 14GE, debunk The Big Lie and win Putrajaya or will it disintegrate to give UMNO/BN an unexpected bonus? Continue reading “Can Pakatan Rakyat build on the momentum of 13GE to create the two per cent shift of votes from UMNO/BN to bring about the first catalytic change of federal government in the 14GE?”

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PKR, PAS support cut by Selangor MB saga, DAP intact, survey shows

by Zulkifli Sulong
Features and Analysis Editor
The Malaysian Insider
14 November 2014

PKR and PAS’s image took the heaviest beatings over the Selangor menteri besar (MB) imbroglio, compared to the DAP which was largely unaffected, a survey by Universiti Malaya’s Centre for Democracy and Elections (UMcedel) has found.

The findings were released by UMcedel director Dr Amir Saifude Ghazali for the survey that was conducted after Mohamed Azmin Ali was sworn in as menteri besar in September.

Across the major ethnic groups in Malaysia’s wealthiest and industrialised state, most people surveyed agreed that PKR and PAS suffered the most drop in support, with figures for PKR higher than for the Islamist party.

The UMcedel survey showed 52% of Malays in Selangor agreeing that the MB saga had reduced support for PKR, the lead party in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) pact, while 25% Malay respondents disagreed.

Chinese and Indian perceptions of PKR due to the impasse was also substantial, with 46% of Chinese and 45% of Indians agreeing that the multi-racial party was the most affected by the crisis.

PAS came a close second,‎ with 42% of Malays surveyed agreeing the Islamist party’s support was affected by the imbroglio, while 33% said there was no impact.

Among the Chinese, 43% said support for PAS was affected, while 41% of Indians surveyed also believed that the party’s support had been eroded. Continue reading “PKR, PAS support cut by Selangor MB saga, DAP intact, survey shows”

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In UM student protest, leaders see third-wave rising for reform

By Zurairi AR
Malay Mail Online
October 28, 2014

PETALING JAYA, Oct 28 ― Malaysia looks to have a brighter future with a new generation of student activists who last night stood up to an authoritarian administration to preserve their academic freedom, several civil society leaders and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers said.

The prominent speakers at a fundraising dinner attended by close to 1,000 people here last night pointing to the mammoth in-campus demonstration in Universiti Malaya (UM) led by its student council to show solidarity for alumnus Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who returns to the courtroom today to challenge his controversial second sodomy conviction.

“I say we need a third wave of uprising. An uprising of the people of Malaysia to fight and arise,” said DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, to much applause from the crowd.

According to the Gelang Patah MP, the “first wave” happened in 1998 following Anwar’s sacking from government and first sodomy charge. That period in time has come to be knows as the “reformasi” period.

The “second wave”, Lim added, was in 2008 when PR was formed to go toe-to-toe against the Barisan Nasional (BN) ruling coalition in the 12th General Elections. Continue reading “In UM student protest, leaders see third-wave rising for reform”

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Pakatan needs revamp and reboot, not just recommitment

– T K Chua
The Malaysian Insider
22 October 2014

Lim Kit Siang is one politician I admire and respect for a long time. Usually he is realistic and accurate in his assessment of events or happenings in the country and abroad.

However, his recent warning to Pakatan Rakyat (PR) against complacency and his call for the coalition to “regain bearings” and a recommitment to Common Policy Framework and Operational Principle of Consensus may fall short of his usual astute discernment.

I think what happened to PR lately was more than what he described. I think PR needs total revamp and rebooting, not just refocusing or recommitment, if the coalition ever harbours the hope of governing Malaysia someday.

The dichotomy within PR is just too wide and too irreconcilable. The Common Policy Framework is just a Panadol, not a cure. It states what the coalition partners agree, but it ignores and denies what they disagree. Continue reading “Pakatan needs revamp and reboot, not just recommitment”

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Latest poll on rebound of public support for PR in Selangor confirmation that PR can restore political momentum provided it can learn the right lessons from the self-inflicted wounds in the eight-month-long Selangor MB crisis

The latest University Malaya’s Centre for Democracy and Elections (UMcedel) polls on the rebound of public support for Pakatan Rakyat (PR) in Selangor is confirmation that Pakatan Rakyat can restore political momentum provided it can learn the right lessons from the self-inflicted wounds in the eight-month-long Selangor Mentri Besar crisis.

The survey was conducted three days after Mohamed Azmin Ali was sworn in as the new Selangor Mentri Besar from Sept. 26 to 28, polling 1,165 respondents in all 22 Parliamentary constituencies in Selangor and covering all races.
It showed that PR’s support in Selangor had rebounded to 43%, after taking a beating five months ago when PR’s support in the state nosedived to 35% in a survey conducted from May 10 to 19 – a 15% fall from 50% recorded in September 2012 in an earlier UMcedel survey.

The rebound in public support for PR in Selangor to 43% would have been even more significant than just jumping eight percentage from 35% as public frustration and disillusionment with PR in Selangor would have plummeted to lower than the 35% registered in May, especially in the months from July to September which saw the greatest heights in public disenchantment with PR in Selangor until the resolution of the crisis.

Indisputably, the rebound in support for PR in Selangor would have gone through double-digit percentage points. Continue reading “Latest poll on rebound of public support for PR in Selangor confirmation that PR can restore political momentum provided it can learn the right lessons from the self-inflicted wounds in the eight-month-long Selangor MB crisis”

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UMcedel poll shows Malaysians know better despite political shenanigans

COMMENTARY BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
20 October 2014

Trust Malaysians to be able to read between the lines when it comes to politics.

The days of just listening to propaganda or swallowing hook, line and sinker from some politicians are over. A case in point is the results of a recent Universiti Malaya Centre for Democracy and Elections (UMcedel).

The survey carried out between September 26 and 28 showed that support for Pakatan Rakyat (PR) in Selangor has rebounded to 43% after taking a beating five months ago largely due to infighting in the opposition coalition.

Support for Barisan Nasional (BN), meanwhile, dropped by five percentage points from 25% last May, the UMcedel survey also revealed. Continue reading “UMcedel poll shows Malaysians know better despite political shenanigans”

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PR leadership council should meet during Parliament budget session to answer whether PR is still relevant and to restore public confidence

It is now two weeks since the PKR Deputy President Mohamad Azmin has been sworn in as the Selangor Mentri Besar but the question whether Pakatan Rakyat is still relevant to the hopes and expectations of Malaysians who had looked up to PR for political leadership and change have yet to be answered.

There can be no denial that Pakatan Rakyat suffered its worst crisis and haemorrhage and the most serious blow of public confidence in its six-year existence as a result of the protracted Selangor Mentri Besar crisis, and the jury is still out whether PR can recover from such a major crisis in the 14th General Elections.

The saving grace of the protracted and avoidable Selangor Mentri Besar crisis is that the Selangor Barisan Nasiona/UMNO was so weak that they could not exploit it to their advantage.

I can understand Tun Mahathir’s disappointment, frustration and anger that Selangor UMNO was not able to capitalize on the PR “disarray” and “imbroglio” in the Selangor Mentri Besar crisis – but the next time, the PR is not going to be so lucky. Continue reading “PR leadership council should meet during Parliament budget session to answer whether PR is still relevant and to restore public confidence”

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PAS badly needs to rejuvenate to stay relevant

By Mohamed Hanipa Maidin
Malaysiakini
Oct 5, 2014

MP SPEAKS It is a great relief the crisis of Selangor MB has finally been laid to rest. But rest assured Pakatan’s nightmares are far from over. A lot of soul searching needs to be done. The top leaders of Pakatan badly need to go to the drawing board again to devise and revise its strategies and priorities in order to reclaim the support from all Malaysians.

As far as I am concerned PAS is the most vulnerable at this juncture. Its flip flop stands in Selangor fiasco puzzled not only its friends in Pakatan but also some of its own leaders. Maybe Umno also shared the same puzzlement so much so it did not feel there was a need to capitalise the issue to its political advantage.

Umno’s inefficiency in capitalising on the Selangor issue appears to have upset former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad. To be fair to Umno, when its political enemies had assumed Umno’ role in self-destructing their own political survival, what more it could do to aggravate the damage?

No doubt PAS is the most important partner in Pakatan. Whatever one may perceive about PAS, the destruction of PAS is not good for Pakatan. In the same vein the strength of PAS is a bonus to Pakatan.

Be that as it may, the partners in Pakatan must galvanise all the options they have to ensure PAS remains in Pakatan. No doubt the only winner if PAS is out from Pakatan would be BN. Continue reading “PAS badly needs to rejuvenate to stay relevant”

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PAS reactionaries strike back

By Bridget Welsh
Malaysiakini
Sep 22, 2014

COMMENT With emotional outbursts, walkouts and contradictory statements, PAS’ 60th muktamar last week was more of a confrontation rather than a celebration.

With the PAS president referring to the Islamic party’s Pakatan Rakyat partners as “minor enemies” and its members who stood with ally PKR as “lackeys”, it has become evident that PAS under the leadership of Abdul Hadi Awang appears to be no longer a party that can be trusted to listen to the people and work with other parties to bring change to Malaysia.

There is a sense of betrayal among the public, whose hopes have been dashed by a reactionary faction of conservative ulama within PAS who think they are the ‘chosen ones’ – many of whom who have acted in a manner that is neither in keeping with their religious values nor reflects wisdom.

In the wake of this muktamar, where the reactionary forces have dominated the bitter discourse, the Pakatan coalition has suffered a serious blow from within. It appears that the opposition coalition is over.

This conclusion is understandable but – for now – premature.

Pakatan is clearly deeply wounded, but the intensity of the battle inside PAS reveals an ongoing struggle that suggests that there are many more battles ahead and the fight to develop an alternative political narrative is not over. Continue reading “PAS reactionaries strike back”

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Malaysia’s Opposition Alliance At The Crossroads: Beginning Of The End? – Analysis

Yang Razali Kassim
Eurasia Review
October 2, 2014

The Malaysian Pakatan Rakyat opposition alliance is at a crossroads following the recent crisis over the Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) of Selangor: Whether the three partners, PKR, DAP, PAS, part ways or remain together depends on how the surprising turmoil within the Islamist party PAS is resolved.

The Malaysian Islamist party, PAS, held its muktamar or annual congress, in the southern Johor town of Batu Pahat on 18-20 September 2014. Watching the tension-filled muktamar was like waiting for a slow burning fuse to explode, as one after another, the party leadership responded to delegates’ criticisms of their handling of the Selangor Menteri Besar or “MB” crisis. That was essentially an internal squabble of its opposition partner PKR over its attempt to replace its chief minister in Selangor state.

However what began as a PKR problem quickly and surprisingly spread to engulf PAS, primarily because the spillover was not well handled by PAS’ president, Hadi Awang. For some inexplicable reason, Hadi had refused to go along with PKR’s sole nominee for the post, Dr Wan Azizah – its president and wife of Anwar Ibrahim, even though the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Alliance) which also included the DAP had agreed to this. Hadi’s resistance divided PAS internally and even threatened to bring down the entire alliance. Though the PAS leaders defended their positions during the muktamar, they only succeeded in stirring up the deep division between the party’s two pillars – the ulama or clerics and the professionals whose influence has grown over the years. Continue reading “Malaysia’s Opposition Alliance At The Crossroads: Beginning Of The End? – Analysis”

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Reaffirmation of common policy framework and the consensus principle are the two prerequisites to restore public confidence in Pakatan Rakyat and save it from the fate of being a one general-election wonder

Pakatan Rakyat has emerged from its worst crisis in its six-year history.

Pessimists, whether inside the coalition or outside, have grave doubts about the continued viability of Pakatan Rakyat while optimists are a distinct minority.

Meanwhile UMNO/Barisan Nasional leaders and strategists are working overtime to sow dissension and fan division in Pakatan Rakyat.

Yesterday, for instance, the UMNO mouthpiece Mingguan Malaysia carried a special article entitled “Nasib Pas selepas muktamar” alleging that PAS was being “bullied” by DAP while elsewhere in the non-Malay media, MCA and Gerakan leaders continue with their propaganda that DAP was being bullied by PAS.

Both allegations are equally preposterous and untrue, but the UMNO/Barisan Nasional propagandists are not interested in upholding the truth but in disseminating lies and falsehoods to sow dissension and conflict within the Pakatan Rakyat.

It will be a bonus to these UMNO/BN propagandists if they could get a few in PAS to believe that the PAS is being bullied by DAP and a few in DAP to believe that DAP is bullied by PAS in Pakatan Rakyat, for this will aggravate tensions and conflict in the Pakatan Rakyat. Continue reading “Reaffirmation of common policy framework and the consensus principle are the two prerequisites to restore public confidence in Pakatan Rakyat and save it from the fate of being a one general-election wonder”