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BN will recapture all Pakatan states, win two-thirds majority, say Umno leaders

By Clara Chooi
The Malaysian Insider
Dec 01, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 — Umno is confident of wresting back all four Pakatan Rakyat-led (PR) states and even recapturing its two-thirds parliamentary majority in the coming polls, buoyed by a strong belief that the Najib government’s reformist measures have successfully impressed the Malaysian electorate.

Several leaders told The Malaysian Insider that Umno is now fully prepared to march to the battle lines, having struggled through four years of heavy transformation from the party’s administration to the mindsets of its over three million members.

Emerging fully charged after the second day of the party’s assembly here yesterday, the leaders wasted no breath in declaring that achieving two-thirds is no longer an aspiration for Umno but a comfortable reality.

“Of course,” Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said, when asked if the party was confident it would once again occupy two-thirds of Parliament’s 222 seats after the polls.

“I believe that we will win back two-thirds and we will get back at least all the four Pakatan states… including Kelantan and Penang,” he added. Kelantan has been in PAS’s hands since 1990. Continue reading “BN will recapture all Pakatan states, win two-thirds majority, say Umno leaders”

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UNODC clarification that it was not passing judgment about corruption in Malaysia welcome especially as MACC’s credibility at lowest ebb after pre-IAACA and post-IAACA blows

I welcome the clarification by the chief of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)’s corruption and economic crime branch, Dmitra Vlassis to dispel perceptions that at the recent 6th International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA) Conference and General Meeting, he was commending and passing judgment about the Malaysian government’s efforts to fight corruption.

I had issued a statement last week questioning news reports about his commending the Malaysian Government for its “serious efforts” in fighting corruption.

I had pointed out at the time that anti-corruption campaigners in Malaysia had been horrified by such a commendation as “they regard this as a major blow by the United Nations anti-corruption agency undermining their efforts to get the Najib government to have the political will to really walk the talk to fight corruption, in particular ‘Grand Corruption’ involving VVIPs, especially top political and public personalities”.

I had also said:

“Furthermore, they are mystified as to how the Malaysian government could merit praise for its anti-corruption efforts when from the 17-year history of Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perception Index (CPI), Malaysia’s ranking and score for 2011 on both counts is lowest on record – ranking No. 60 and score of 4.3 when in 1995 Malaysia was ranked No. 23 and attained a score of 5.32 in 1996.

“In simple terms, TI CPI 2011 underlined the brutal fact that corruption in Malaysia under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is worse and more intractable than at any time under his predecessors, whether the five years under Tun Abdullah or the 22 years under Tun Mahathir.” Continue reading “UNODC clarification that it was not passing judgment about corruption in Malaysia welcome especially as MACC’s credibility at lowest ebb after pre-IAACA and post-IAACA blows”

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Police report on corruption against Attorney-General Gani Patail based on lawyer Zainal Abidin’s book “Tan Sri Gani Patail: Pemalsu, Penipu, Penjenayah (Fraud, Liar, Criminal)?” still under investigation

I have received written replies by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, to some of the points on corruption which I had raised in my speech on the 2013 Budget in Parliament on Oct. 4, 2012 but which the Minister did not have the time to respond during his winding-up on Monday.

In my speech I had called on the Prime Minister to give Parliament and nation an update of the actions being taken by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) with regard to the various police reports lodged against the “trio” of Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud, the Sabah Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Musa Aman and the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail.

I had specifically asked what is the outcome of the police report lodged with regard to corruption allegations against the Attorney-General, in particular with regard to lawyer Zainal Abidin Ahmad’s recent book, “Tan Sri Gani Patail: Pemalsu, Penipu, Penjenayah (Fraud, Liar, Criminal)?”?

This is Nazri’s written reply:

“Yang Berhormat Ipoh Timur ingin mengetahui tindakan terhadap dakwaan rasuah oleh Peguam Negara Malaysia sebagaimana dalam buku tulisan Zainal Abidin Ahmad yang bertajuk ‘Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail Pemalsu, Penipu, Penjenayah’. Untuk makluman Ahli Yang Berhormat, buku yang ditulis oleh Zainal Abidin Ahmad mengenai dakwaan rasuah terhadap Peguam Negara yang bertajuk ‘Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail Pemalsu, Penipu, Penjenayah’ masih dalam siasatan pihak polis.”

On corruption reports against the Sarawak Chief Minister, Nazri’s written reply states:

“Yang Berhormat Ipoh Timur, Yang Berhormat Bandar Kuching, Yang Berhormat Sibu, Yang Berhormat Puchong dan Yang Berhormat Serdang ingin mengetahui hasil siasatan tuduhan rasuah yang melibatkan YAB Ketua Menteri Sarawak. Untuk makluman Ahli-Ahli Yang Berhormat, isu ini masih dalam siasatan SPRM. Siasatan kes-kes rasuah yang dibuat oleh SPRM adalah berlandaskan undang-undang dan memerlukan beban pembuktian yang cukup kukuh sehingga mencapai tahap (dengan izin) beyond reasonable doubt. Ini kerana penyiasatan sesuatu kes itu menjurus kepada intipati kesalahan yang melibatkan keterangan saksi, dokumen dan bukti-bukti lain yang mampu menyokong kes berkenaan.”

Continue reading “Police report on corruption against Attorney-General Gani Patail based on lawyer Zainal Abidin’s book “Tan Sri Gani Patail: Pemalsu, Penipu, Penjenayah (Fraud, Liar, Criminal)?” still under investigation”

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Migrants, church may end BN’s Borneo vote bank

Reuters/The Malaysian Insider
Oct 08, 2012

KOTA KINABALU, Oct 8 — Housewife Fawziah Abdul wants to thank former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for making her a citizen 10 years after she illegally slipped into Borneo from the southern Philippines in search of a better life.

The 50-year-old lives on the outskirts of Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah, where her tin-roofed shack jostles for space with more than 1,000 others in a slum where children play beside heaps of rubbish.

She is hopeful that her three children will get a new home and identity cards if she votes for the government again.

With a general election due within seven months, the 13-party ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition is banking on Sabah and neighbouring Sarawak to prolong its 55-year grip on power.

But its support in the two Borneo states, which account for a quarter of Parliament seats, is showing signs of slipping. Continue reading “Migrants, church may end BN’s Borneo vote bank”

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Has Najib “natural abhorrence” of corruption as to appear in Parliament to report on the “test of the trio” – Taib Mahmud, Musa Aman and Gani Patail – on updates of inquiries into allegations of corruption and abuses of power?

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced RM1 million contribution to the newly-established International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) in Vienna but this could not salvage or buy off the total lack of credibility of his “big speech” on fighting corruption at the launch of the sixth International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA) Annual Conference and General Meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

The launch of the international anti-corruption meeting yesterday must be the most uncomfortable programme Najib had to attend since becoming the Prime Minister 42 months ago – delivering a speech on a subject he himself does not believe in and knowing that it would be received with scorn and contempt, politely by the IAACA Conference delegates, but with derision and disdain outside the four walls of the IAACA Conference at the KLCC.

Surely Najib is not so naïve as not to realise that when he called attention to the “bigger picture” of graft and declared that the fight against corruption must go beyond political and public service borders, it is seen instantly as an excuse to justify the utter failure of his administration, the Government Transformation Programe and NKRA in combating corruption, which is amply borne out by Malaysia’s worst 60th ranking and lowest 4.3 score in the 2011 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index.

Furthermore, when Najib said countries needed to instil a “natural abhorrence” of corruption in society, he is only provoking the question whether he could point out a single member of his Cabinet who is recognised by Malaysians as pre-eminent in the “natural abhorrence” of corruption?

If he could not name a single member of his Cabinet with a “natural abhorrence” of corruption, what about he himself? Does he qualify as a leader with a “natural abhorrence” of corruption? Continue reading “Has Najib “natural abhorrence” of corruption as to appear in Parliament to report on the “test of the trio” – Taib Mahmud, Musa Aman and Gani Patail – on updates of inquiries into allegations of corruption and abuses of power?”

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Call on all MPs, BN or PR, in Sabah, Sarawak or Peninsular Malaysia to support a RCI to assess whether dreams and aspirations of Sabahans and Sarawakians in forming Malaysia had been fulfilled or betrayed in past five decades

On the occasion of the 49th Malaysia Day, Catholic Bishop Datuk Cornelius Piong in his message questioned if a 49-year-old agreement symbolised by the Keningau Batu Sumpah to uphold religious freedom and other native rights and customs had been kept.

Piong said that 49 years ago leaders from the federation of Malaya promised the people of Sabah they would progress together and have their basic human rights protected, as part of a campaign to convince them to join forces and form Malaysia, with partner states Sarawak and Singapore.

The three key pledges Piong highlighted were guarantees that Sabahans would have freedom of religion, their native land would be safeguarded by the state government and the federal government would respect and protect Sabah local customs.

“Are these promises still being respected and honoured?” Piong asked in his Malaysia Day message.

He said: “The agreement was carved on an oath stone (Batu Sumpah Peringatan) which is still visible read and remembered.” Continue reading “Call on all MPs, BN or PR, in Sabah, Sarawak or Peninsular Malaysia to support a RCI to assess whether dreams and aspirations of Sabahans and Sarawakians in forming Malaysia had been fulfilled or betrayed in past five decades”

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Pakatan Rakyat 2013 Budget pledges a New Deal for Sabah and Sarawak

The Pakatan Rakyat’s 2013 Budget recognises and addresses the three “Cs” of corruption, crime and competitiveness – the trio of problems which are the bane of the Malaysian economy and if unresolved, will condemn the country to mediocrity and even towards the direction of a failed state.

The PR 2013 Budget is also a pledge for a New Deal for Sabah and Sarawak, comprising five elements:

(1) Reaffirmation of the Kuching Declaration of Pakatan Rakyat of 16th September 2012 to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of the people of Sabah and Sarawak in terms of infrastructure development and protection of their fundamental rights in forming Malaysia 49 years ago in 1963;

(2) Pakatan Rakyat pledge to honour the increase of petroleum royalty to Sabah and Sarawak (as well as to Terengganu and Kelantan, the other oil producing states) from 5 to 20%; Continue reading “Pakatan Rakyat 2013 Budget pledges a New Deal for Sabah and Sarawak”

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Bruno Manser Fund asking for global bank freeze on Taib assets

— CPI
The Malaysian Insider
Sep 25, 2012

SEPT 25 — The Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) is a well-connected international organisation “committed to maintaining the threatened tropical rainforests with their rich plant and animal life, and to campaigning, in particular, for the rights of the peoples who inhabit the rainforests” with an especial focus on Sarawak.

One of the BMF principals — its eponymous founder Bruno Manser — was a Swiss activist who lived in Sarawak with the Penan between 1984 and 1990. He famously disappeared without trace in May 2000 after his last journey to the state.

The rich and infamous

BMF recently conducted an investigation into the wealth of Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and his family. These family members include: Continue reading “Bruno Manser Fund asking for global bank freeze on Taib assets”

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Najib has completely discredited MACC when he dismissed latest allegations that Sarawak CM Taib Mahmud had amassed billions in wealth as it signaled a clear “hands off” directive by the PM to MACC not to initiate any investigations

Sad and tragic. The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak single-handedly demolishing the credibility, integrity and professionalism of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

And this happening just 48 hours after the MACC’s latest artificial but carefully-crafted publicity blitzkrieg to present itself as a fiercely independent, intrepid and professional anti-graft body comparable to Hong Kong’s world-famous Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) – with government-paper New Straits Times front page report “MACC gains in graft war” on Thursday and a special editorial on MACC on Friday – all collapsing like a house of cards.

MACC claims that it had seized “a whopping RM66 million worth of properties, including bungalows and luxury cars” and arrested more than 900 individuals in its “war against graft over the past two years” paled into insignificance when Najib dismissed allegations that Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud has amassed billions in wealth.

Najib told a press conference this morning after the launching of the Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) – new name for Pudu Sentral: “There are all kinds of allegations, don’t bothered about it (jangan kita layan)”.

This is a most disappointing and even irresponsible response by the Prime Minister to a ground-breaking but explosive report by the Swiss-based NGO Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) which estimated the assets of Taib Mahmud’s family at US$21 billion (RM64 billion), with the wealth of Taib himself put at a whopping US$15 billion (RM46 billion) making him Malaysia’s richest man outstripping tycoon Robert Kuok who has US$12.5 billion. Continue reading “Najib has completely discredited MACC when he dismissed latest allegations that Sarawak CM Taib Mahmud had amassed billions in wealth as it signaled a clear “hands off” directive by the PM to MACC not to initiate any investigations”

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Najib-Taib “love fest” in Bintulu for Malaysia Day celebrations camouflaged the fact that Taib has won hands-down his political tug-of-war with Najib

The 49th Malaysia Day Celebrations in Bintulu on Sunday witnessed a “love fest” between the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud, with each crooning the greatness of the other.

Najib praised the co-operation and support for the Federal Government from Taib and the Sarawak state government, and even alleged that “certain states” are not as developed as Sarawak because other state governments “prefer to politicise issues instead of working with the Federal Government”.

On his part, Taib gave his blessings to Najib as the Prime Minister when he said that it would be a loss to the nation and people “if we lose the continuity of the good government in the form of the Barisan Nasional government”.

Taib added that “there is no political newcomer that can produce miracle to say they can do better than Barisan Nasional government which has run the country so well for more than 50 years”.

But what the Najib-Taib “love fest” in Bintulu camouflaged was the clear victory “hands-down” by Taib in the political tug-of-war with Najib. Continue reading “Najib-Taib “love fest” in Bintulu for Malaysia Day celebrations camouflaged the fact that Taib has won hands-down his political tug-of-war with Najib”

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The Kuching Declaration

THE KUCHING DECLARATION
(adopted by Pakatan Rakyat in Kuching at Pakatan Rakyat Malaysia Day Celebrations at Chonglin Park, Kuching on September 16, 2012)

LEST WE FORGET, AND LEST ALL THE PEOPLES OF OUR GREAT NATION OF MALAYSIA FORGET, WE, THE UNDERSIGNED, DO ONCE AGAIN FIRMLY, RESOLUTELY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY PLEDGE AND PROMISE BEFORE THE WHOLE NATION OF MALAYSIA AS OUR WITNESSES, ON THIS HISTORIC DAY THE 16TH OF SEPTEMBER, 2012, IN THE CITY OF KUCHING, AND ON BEHALF OF OUR RESPECTIVE PARTIES AND PAKATAN RAKYAT AS A WHOLE, THAT WHEN WE FORM THE NEXT GOVERNMENT OF MALAYSIA, PAKATAN RAKYAT WILL HONOUR ALL ITS PLEDGES AND PROMISES TO THE PEOPLES OF MALAYSIA.

WE WILL HONOURABLY EXECUTE ALL THE POLICIES SET FORTH IN THE BUKU JINGGA SO THAT MALAYSIA WILL ONCE AGAIN BE A GREAT NATION, HER PEOPLES PROSPEROUS, HER FUTURE SECURE AND PEACEFUL, AND HER NAME CELEBRATED BY ALL THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD.

WE WILL HONOUR THE SPIRIT OF THE MALAYSIA AGREEMENT OF 1963 WHICH OUR FOUNDING FATHERS PUT THEIR HANDS TO, AND AS A SIGN OF OUR DEEP COMMITMENT TO THE PEOPLES OF SARAWAK AND SABAH, CONSISTENT WITH DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES AND JUSTICE FOR ALL MALAYSIANS, IN PARTICULAR:

ARTICLE ONE: EQUAL PARTNERS

We will restore the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement and the position of Sarawak and Sabah as equal partners within Malaysia by restoring autonomy to Sarawak and Sabah within the framework of the Federal Constitution. Continue reading “The Kuching Declaration”

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Call on all Sarawak and Sabah MPs, whether BN or PR, to give unanimous support in Parliament to proposal for a RCI to assess whether the dreams and aspirations of Sarawakians and Sabahans in forming Malaysia had been fulfilled or betrayed in past five decades

This is the third year Malaysia Day is celebrated as a national public holiday – as it has taken 47 years before Malaysia Day on September 16 was accorded proper recognition as a national public holiday by the Barisan Nasional federal government, starting from 2010.

This was thanks to two events: Firstly, the public pledge by Pakatan Rakyat that a PR government in Putrajaya would do what the Barisan Nasional had failed to do, i.e. declare September 16 as a national public holiday.

Secondly, the “political tsunami” of the March 8, 2008 general election which caused the belated realisation by the Prime Minister and the BN leaders in Sarawak and Sabah that the BN MPs in the two states occupy a strategic “kingmaker” role determining the survival of UMNO hegemony and Barisan Nasional federal government.

The BN suffered a severe thrashing in the 2008 general election, winning 140 seats against the Pakatan Rakyat’s 82. However, 54 of these BN parliamentary seats come from Sarawak and Sabah – Sarawak 30 and Sabah 24.

Without these 54 BN MPs from Sarawak and Sabah, BN would be reduced to 86 seats out of 222 MPs in Parliament, a reversal of the political demography in Parliament and evicting B N from Putrajaya into the Opposition ranks.

Although PR and the 2008 “political tsunami’ have combined to force UMNO/Barisan Nasional to concede in according Sept. 16 as a national holiday, this is a half-hearted gesture and not really meaningful as Malaysia Day is treated as a mere Sarawak and Sabah event instead of a national celebration by UMNO/Barisan Nasional – making a full mockery of Najib’s 1Malaysia slogan and policy. Continue reading “Call on all Sarawak and Sabah MPs, whether BN or PR, to give unanimous support in Parliament to proposal for a RCI to assess whether the dreams and aspirations of Sarawakians and Sabahans in forming Malaysia had been fulfilled or betrayed in past five decades”

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Lets make the 50th Malaysia Day next year really meaningful and historic not only to Sabahans and Sarawakians but to all Malaysians

49th Malaysia Day Message
15th September 2012

At a Sabah DAP forum in Kota Kinabalu on the 45th Malaysia Day on 16th September 2008, I pledged that a Pakatan Rakyat government in Putrajaya would do what the Barisan Nasional had failed to do – declare September 16 as a national public holiday.

This forced the hand of the sixth Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who announced six months after assuming the premier’s office in October 2009 that Malaysia Day on September 16 would be a national holiday from 2010.

It took the Barisan Nasional 47 years to accord proper recognition to Malaysia Day on September 16, but the Barisan Nasional government has yet to seriously and fully address the frustrations, grievances and alienations suffered by Sabahans and Sarawakians for three generations at not being given full and fair treatment as Malaysian citizens.

Furthermore, Malaysia Day on September 16 cannot really be meaningful when it is regarded as in the past three years as a mere Sabah and Sarawak event rather than as a national celebration – making a mockery of the Prime Minister’s 1Malaysia slogan and policy. Continue reading “Lets make the 50th Malaysia Day next year really meaningful and historic not only to Sabahans and Sarawakians but to all Malaysians”

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Jabu gets a tongue-lashing

Joseph Tawie | November 24, 2011
Free Malaysia Today

A landowner has accused the deputy chief minister of twisting the truth over a joint-venture project.

KUCHING: A native customary right (NCR) landowner gave Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu Numpang a verbal slap yesterday for twisting the truth and claiming that the government was supportive of native rights.

Declining to be named, the landowner said he and many others were present during the “Kanowit incident” in 1996 which Jabu had referred to at the State Legislative Assembly sitting yesterday.

“We were there in 1996. We know about the joint-venture (JV) concept. We were cheated of our rightful dividends,” he said in reference to Jabu’s accusation that DAP was the stumbling block to poverty eradication programmes among the rural community.

Jabu, during his debate on the state’s 2012 budget yesterday, revisited the 1996 Kanowit incident and recalled that some 20 to 30 DAP members had objected to the government’s NCR joint-venture poverty eradication programmes to assist rural Sarawakians.

“In 1966, about 1,500 landowners turned up for the launching of the NCR joint-venture concept at the Dewan Suarah Kanowit. We then saw some 20 to 30 DAP members climbed on stage to protest against the programme,” said Jabu.

He also pointed out that Machang assemblyman Gramong Juna and Land Development Minister James Masing were also witnesses to the incident. Continue reading “Jabu gets a tongue-lashing”

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The Dayak tea party

by June Rubis
The Malaysian Insider
Sep 10, 2012

SEPT 10 ― It must have been a beautiful day for an outdoor tea party in West Kalimantan. It is the early 1980s when Borneo’s forests are still comparatively lush although the forests would have to struggle to survive an onslaught of slash-&-burn for commercial rubber plantations and wide-scale logging.

In the meantime, all is serene along the banks of the Kapuas River where the Javanese and Sumatran wives of managers of a rubber plantation wait for their guests to arrive.

The guests were the wives of local Dayak tribesmen, who upon arrival, gathered up all the food, and left, leaving their shocked hostesses in their wake.

The managers dismissed this as part of the “strange and difficult culture” of the Dayaks, while ignoring the fact that this behaviour was aberrant in Dayak culture and thus was a political statement of conflicting economic and political interests.

The Dayaks of the area were facing the loss of their forests and subsequently source of food, due to the appropriation of traditional lands for the rubber plantation. There were reports that the Dayaks were unhappy with the compensation received.

An eye for an eye, albeit a small victory of appropriating the plantation’s food, in protest of unfair appropriation of their native lands, one might say. Continue reading “The Dayak tea party”

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Review 18-Point Agreement to end Sarawak CLIB curses

The Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak will lead the Federal Cabinet to Bintulu on September 16 to celebrate the 49th Malaysia Day.

I still remember that on the 51st Merdeka Day on 31st August 2008, I reiterated my call that Malaysia Day on September 16 should be declared a national public holiday, which would mean that Malaysia would have two National Days each year – August 31 as Merdeka Day to commemorate Malaya’s Independence in 1957 and September 16 as Malaysia Day to celebrate the formation of Malaysia with Sarawak and Sabah.

It was only in the following year that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced that Malaysia Day would be a national public holiday from 2010 – an example of the change DAP and Pakatan Rakyat can bring about although we are still in the Opposition, whether nationally or in Sarawak and Sabah.

After 49 years in Malaysia, Sarawak is afflicted with the curse of CLIB – corruption, Land (NCR) injustices, Infrastructure (backwardness) and Borneanisation (breach). Continue reading “Review 18-Point Agreement to end Sarawak CLIB curses”

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A test of will between Najib and Taib – “who will last longer politically?”

This is what I have just tweeted: “Bau became famous when Pandelela Rinong, a Bidayuh from Bau, won London Olympics bronze medal for diving. Next let Bau make history in 13th General Election for Pakatan Rakyat”.

Throughout the country, including Bau, Malaysians have been waiting impatiently for the 13th General Election for close to two years, with many expecting it to fall on 11.11.2011 or “11.11.11” in view of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s special preference for “11”.

However, one man is not ready – with one scandal after another, like the RM250 million “Cow Condo” scandal, or one P.R. (public relations) disaster after another like the Bersih 2.0 of July 9, 2011, Bersih 3.0 of April 28, 2012 and most lately the defection of two Barisan Nasional MPs in Sabah at the end of July which repeatedly caused Najib to vacillate and keep pushing off the GE date.

All this because of Najib’s pathological fear and total lack of confidence in his own ability to lead UMNO/BN to victory in Putrajaya in the 13th GE.

Now, all speculation of 13GE date is again focused on Najib’s favourite number of “11” – November this year, ranging from Nov 3 to Nov. 29. There seems to be greater credibility this time, as the de facto Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir has given his blessings for November general election although he had earlier warned of dire consequences to UMNO if the13th General Election was called before UMNO was ready. Continue reading “A test of will between Najib and Taib – “who will last longer politically?””

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A new dawn?

— May Chee
The Malaysian Insider
Aug 31, 2012

AUG 31 — Woke up around 7am today, after about five hours of sleep. By the way, “Selamat Hari Merdeka” folks!

My husband and I went for the Janji Demokrasi Merdeka Countdown at the clock tower in Malacca last night. Again, it was another heartwarming experience. Syabas to all those who gathered there and elsewhere for the Janji Demokrasi!

This time around, no untoward incidents, I hear. That’s good, really good. See, if we have everyone’s good intentions in mind, all would be swell.

We left our house at 9pm. There was ample parking around the designated area. As we walked towards the clock tower, we could see cops and Rela personnel already in position. Since we were early, we walked towards Jonker, hoping to join some people at the stage. Along the way, we met some friends, so we headed for the stage together. Some yellow shirts were walking in the opposite direction. They were heading towards the clock tower. All youths. Good, I thought!

At the stage, there was a handful of yellow shirts and a group of around 15 members from the Unit Amal PAS. By 9.30pm the group had swelled to quite a huge number. After taking a group photograph at the foot of the stage, our Unit Amal youngsters led us to the clock tower. Before that, we were told to be at our best behaviour, not to provoke nor hamper the traffic. We walked on the pavement and at all times, the Unit Amal boys made sure traffic for the public was smooth. Though the folks along Jonker were burning incense and some other stuff (Ghost Month?), the Unit Amal boys admirably braved the ashes (some flying into their faces) to guide us. Continue reading “A new dawn?”

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Defections raise Anwar election chances

By Anil Netto
Asia Times
August 24, 2012

PENANG – The defection of two key ruling coalition parliamentarians to the political opposition has shifted Malaysia’s pre-election equation and highlighted the importance of the crucial swing states of Sabah and Sarawak in what is expected to be a neck and neck contest.

Historically a “fixed deposit” of votes for the Barisan Nasional (BN), the coalition that has ruled the country consecutively since independence from colonial rule, Sabah and Sarawak are expected to play a prominent role in the coming general election pitting Prime Minister Najib Razak versus opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

BN won 140 of 222 federal parliament seats at the 2008 elections, a result that saw the Pakatan Rakyat opposition win control of five of 13 federal states. After the recent defections, BN holds 20 of 25 federal parliament seats allocated to Sabah and 29 of 31 in Sarawak on the island of Borneo.

If the recent defections signal a gathering trend away from BN, as some political analysts suggest, the two states have the potential to swing the next general election in favor of the opposition. The present parliamentary term expires in April 2013 and general elections must be held by October, although Najib has the prerogative of calling a snap election at any time. Continue reading “Defections raise Anwar election chances”

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Ignorance on Sabah: Nuid must take the rap

Ket Shin Pua
Malaysiakini
Aug 23, 2012

The recent police report made by Rozza Rothman against people from the peninsula insulting Sabah in Facebook postings reminds us again of the long and unceasing attitude of Malayans looking down on Sabah and Sabahans.

This is due mainly to the misconception created by the failure of the efforts of national integration and national unity made under the National Unity and Integration Department (Nuid) which has been operating since 1969 (after the May 13 riots), spending hundreds of millions of ringgits trying to bring together Malaysians in the peninsula and those in Borneo.

The Malaysian blog reported in July 2006 that “Probably 99 percent of Malaysians have not even heard of the very existence of the National Unity and Integration Department.

Ironically, as its name suggests, it is the one entrusted to ‘integrate’ and ‘unite’ the people and therefore should have been very familiar to the public!” the writer even commented, “What the devil have you been doing all these years except collect your monthly pay?”

The biggest problem with the Nuid is its plain ineptness, lack of creativity and drive. And the over-dominance of peninsular officers who have the attitude that it is the Borneons that need to be rehabilitated from the wild, to be civilised, so they can be on par with the more civilised Malayans.

There is less thought about rehabilitating the peninsular Malaysians into learning about Borneo which to them is unimportant and not even part of the real Malaysia. Continue reading “Ignorance on Sabah: Nuid must take the rap”