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Dyna Sofya Shoots Down A Political Frog

Koon Yew Yin
5 June 2014

Two years ago I wrote a piece titled “Dissecting Tunku Abdul Aziz” in which I wrote that Tunku Aziz was a conservative and pro-establishment figure right from his early days. Also contrary to the public persona that he was trying to cultivate that he has always been an independent and neutral public figure, he was in fact an insider in the corporate world who had benefited from opportunistic moves in advancing his career. It was not ideals that motivated the man but really his super-sized ego and concern for status.

Thus it was was not surprising to me that after a short stint in the opposition, he quickly moved back to the political center right where he has always belonged. My conclusion after his futile attempt to repair his damaged image was as follows:

But what I and most Malaysians find completely unacceptable, objectionable and disgusting is Tunku Aziz’s transformation from being the vice chairman of the largest opposition party to being Prime Minister Najib Razak’s cheerleader.

He has now gone on record to say: “What the prime minister has done now is the right thing and we need to support him”.

He has also said that Najib’s transformation process for change and improving the democratic process would certainly take time.

Earlier, Tunku Aziz was one of those who said that more than enough time had already been given to BN and Najib in ruling the country. Now, he has changed his tune.

To my mind this political somersault is unprecedented in the annals of Malaysian political history….It is tantamount to saying “Vote for the BN” despite all the corruption and abuses of human rights and democracy from someone who claimed that he was anti-Barisan.

No wonder Najib, Muhyiddin Yassin and Dr Mahathir Mohamad are praising him to the sky and using him as part of their anti-DAP and anti-Chinese rhetoric. Continue reading “Dyna Sofya Shoots Down A Political Frog”

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Tunku Aziz’s exit from DAP

By Sakmongkol AK47
The Malaysian Insider
May 19, 2012

MAY 19 — It offends UMNO that Malays choose to join DAP. Why does the action of Malays joining another legitimate political party which is not UMNO, induce that feeling? It springs from arrogance and political xenophobia. UMNO is the chauvinist party that sees people who reject it ( for whatever reasons they choose) as a betrayal to UMNO. That is what offends UMNO actually. They can’t understand why people can be `disloyal’ to UMNO. UMNO expects Malays to be loyal to it- but what principles and values does it offer that can sustain the much desired loyalty?

UMNO arrogantly believes that an UMNO Malay is the only Malay. So it offends UMNO to see Malays abandon UMNO as though, the Malay has converted into another race. UMNO is fast adopting the Hassan Aqidah Ali mentality.

Next it offends UMNO not being able to see an exodus of other Malays from DAP. Suddenly UMNO has credited Tunku Aziz with some extraordinary attributes that must without fail, encourage other Malays to leave DAP. Alas, Tunku Abdul Aziz is alone. UMNO’s hope that Tunku Aziz’s action can serve as the catalyst prompting other Malays in DAP to do likewise crumbles. Indeed, Tunku Aziz’s action reinforces the determination of Malays who joined DAP to stay put despite his U-turn. Continue reading “Tunku Aziz’s exit from DAP”

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Tunku Aziz – lets move on in our separate but still common destiny to create a clean Malaysia which upholds integrity, human rights and the just rule of law

I would have been the first to welcome any change of mind by Tunku Abdul Aziz about his resignation as DAP National Vice Chairman and DAP member but I fully respect his decision if his mind is set on resignation.

Over the decades, I have known Tunku Aziz as a man of principle and integrity and my views have not changed one dot, as Tunku Aziz would have known in our three recent meetings, twice at his house and the third time in Parliament.

If a parting of ways with his resignation from the party is unavoidable, let it be as gentlemanly as possible with the minimum of rancor and acrimony. Let us move on in our separate but still common destiny to create a new and clean Malaysia which upholds integrity, human rights and the just rule of law with an equal place under Malaysian sun for every Malaysian. Continue reading “Tunku Aziz – lets move on in our separate but still common destiny to create a clean Malaysia which upholds integrity, human rights and the just rule of law”

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DAP Is big enough for Tunku Aziz to remain as National Vice-Chair

by Lim Guan Eng
DAP Secretary-General

When announcing his resignation from DAP, Senator Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim cited “irreconcilable differences” with the party leadership in dissenting with DAP’s official position to support Bersih 3.0 to conduct a peaceful sit-in protest in Dataran Merdeka to press for clean, free and fair elections.

DAP is big enough for Tunku Abdul Aziz to remain as National Vice-Chair and accomodate his” irreconciliable differences” with the DAP on Bersih’s quest to conduct a sit-in protest in Dataran Merdeka to press for clean elections

Malaysiakini reported Tunku Abdul Aziz as saying his open disagreement with DAP made Tunku himself choose not to be re-nominated as a senator for Penang when his term expired on 30 May 2012, and stated that he was not sacked from his Dewan Negara’s post by DAP.

Tunku Aziz had also suggested to the party leadership that DAP should subject him to the “same disciplinary procedure as any other party member” for his dissent. As disciplinary action from DAP was not forthcoming he had decided to resign from the DAP to avoid further embarrassment.

I would like to express my sadness at Tunku’s announcement. DAP believes in freedom of speech and that every member and leader has a right to differ. I don’t agree that any disciplinary action should be taken against Tunku for differing with the party on Bersih’s right to do the sit-in protest in Dataran Merdeka. Continue reading “DAP Is big enough for Tunku Aziz to remain as National Vice-Chair”

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Open season on Lim Guan Eng

By Tunku Aziz | April 06, 2012
The Malaysian Insider

APRIL 6 — Umno has apparently declared “open season” on Lim Guan Eng. That they have been stalking their favourite target for years, even well before he came into prominence, is an open secret.

If they had not maligned, abused and subjected him to unremitting muck-raking and mudslinging, these Umno stormtroopers would have felt totally inadequate and that something was missing from their miserable existence.

They would, like their brown-shirted, fair-haired and blue-eyed Aryan cousins of the Third Reich, have felt that they were not fulfilling their historic destiny which is to cause as much mayhem as the police, in their accustomed manner and wisdom, would allow. It is all in the name of upholding “ketuanan Melayu”, and nothing should be allowed to stand in their way, not even the rule of law. Years of blatant abuse with impunity by Mahathir Mohamad who, in cahoots with his Umno henchmen, succeeded by means fair and foul, mainly foul, in distorting the systems of orderly governance as provided for under our constitutional arrangements.
Continue reading “Open season on Lim Guan Eng”

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An incident that ‘should not have happened’

by Dina Zaman
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 21, 2012

MARCH 21 — Excerpt from Memali incident chapter.

Tunku Muszaffar Shah Tunku Ibrahim’s book, Memali: A Policeman Remembers is a first-hand account of the tragedy. It is an emotional book, written by a man with deep regrets. It may have served as a cathartic tool for the writer, but nevertheless has mythologised Ibrahim Mahmood nee Libya, and Memali as a martyr and a victim of a political bung-up.

On page 49, he wrote, “… the instruction given by those higher up that under no circumstances were the police to use force. Instead, they were to withdraw if there was retaliation.” This sentence was published, in bold. On page 71, he and the Director of Internal Security and Public Order entered Libya’s home, after the fracas, and Tunku found a woman and a child hiding under a bed. No weapons were found in the house.

“It would have been more appropriate for the Special Branch to arrest (Libya) when he was on his way to give political talks in Selama Kedah/Perak,” instead of attacking the man and his people in his stronghold (Page 79).

The book also included the infamous White Paper which tabled out 79 points of facts and dates leading up to the Memali Tragedy. It was signed by the then Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia of 1986, then Datuk (now Tun) Musa Hitam. Continue reading “An incident that ‘should not have happened’”

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Malay courtesy under threat

— Tunku Abdul Aziz
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 03, 2012

MARCH 3 — The spectacle of Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng being subjected by some Malay thugs to public harassment and humiliation on February 26 as he was leaving the anti-Lynas rally at Padang Kota in Penang caused a great deal of genuine pain to the sensibilities of men and women of goodwill in this nation.

Is this what the notion of “the new Malay” is really all about? Have they totally abandoned the natural courtesy and graciousness of their forebears? What has happened to the “adat”, or have they forgotten that too?

We may not like his politics but was that appropriate behaviour towards another human being? Lim is the head of government and must be shown all the courtesies attendant upon that position. That, in my book, is the norm of a civilised society, and anything less is unacceptable.

I attended a similar rally in Kuantan on the same day. It was a joy to see a well-behaved crowd of mainly young people from all over the country, including some from overseas, lending support to an important environmental concern without resorting to unruly and obnoxious behaviour.

The Kuantan police deserve the highest praise for their professionalism. They were there when needed, but otherwise remained in the background.

The Penang police, by comparison, were a disgrace to their uniform. They stood there, taking it all in but did absolutely nothing to stop the rowdyism that was showing all the signs of developing into violence. Continue reading “Malay courtesy under threat”

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DAP mahu rakyat buat perubahan

– Muda Mohd. Noor
Free Malaysia Today
August 27, 2011

PETALING JAYA: Naib Presiden DAP Tunku Aziz Ibrahim menyeru rakyat di negara ini melakukan perubahan kerana kerajaan Barisan Nasional sudah lama sangat memerintah negara ini.

“Sudah tiba masanya rakyat melakukan perubahan kerana selama 54 tahun itu kerajaan yang ada tidak pernah berubah atau melakukan reformasi,” katanya ketika ditemui FMT pada majlis iftar Ramadhan anjuran parti itu di ibu negara kelmarin.

Ujar beliau, “saya percaya perubahan yang akan berlaku nanti (dalam pilihan raya umum ke 13) merupakan satu perubahan yang sangat bermakna kepada rakyat.” Continue reading “DAP mahu rakyat buat perubahan”

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50 years on, returning to my university

by Tunku Aziz
The Malaysian Insider
Aug 19, 2011

AUG 19 — I have just returned from a pilgrimage of sorts to my old stamping ground, Hobart, Tasmania where I went to university. It was exactly 49 years ago that I arrived to take up residence at Hytten Hall.

This recent visit was made in response to an invitation by the Chancellor of the University of Tasmania to accept the degree of Doctor of Laws (h.c) in recognition of “your long-standing campaign to promote transparency and integrity in government and business…”

It was a humbling experience that my own university had seen fit to honour me in this way for my small contribution to the fight against corruption inside my country as well as in the wider world. You could have knocked me down with a feather when I was told some months ago that the Council of the University of Tasmania had decided to admit me to the degree of LL.D honoris causa. Continue reading “50 years on, returning to my university”

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‘Someone had to say it’

By Aneesa Alphonsus
June 8, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: Twenty years ago, a book like Someone Had to Say It by Tunku Abdul Aziz would have been ‘launched’ very quietly or not all since his strong opinions about the ruling party were written without any apologies.

It would have been deemed seditious and defamatory. A book like this would be heard only in the grapevine . Purchasing such an elusive book would only be possible via various non-governmental organisations or from some other related gathering.

Today, you can walk into any good bookstore, and find it standing upright on the shelves. The times they have changed indeed, Tunku Abdul Aziz writes about what many other Malaysians are thinking but lack the avenue and perhaps writing skill in order to express it.

He describes Some Had To Say It as a book which, “… cover a wide range of topics; social, economic, political and ethical issues that I felt to be in need of ventilating in a responsible, open and direct manner. Continue reading “‘Someone had to say it’”

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Tunku Aziz: I have failed to attract Malays

By Shannon Teoh
May 18, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 — Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim admitted today that his appointment as DAP vice chairman in 2008 has failed to bring in Malay support to the party that has been labelled as Chinese chauvinists by its critics.

However, he said that this was not the fault of the party whose members are largely Chinese as it has shown its commitment to multiracial policies, but that Malays and Bumiputeras were the ones choosing to hold back.

“If it was to recruit more Malays, then I admit that I’ve failed completely,” he said of his appointment as vice chairman three years ago. Continue reading “Tunku Aziz: I have failed to attract Malays”

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Now every crook can fight corruption

by Tunku Aziz
The Malaysian Insider
1st April 2011

April 01, 2011APRIL 1 — In late 2006 as I was completing my term of office as a Special Advisor to the Secretary-General of the United Nations in New York, I received an unexpected invitation to deliver a speech at an anti-corruption conference in Jerusalem, Israel. It was an important gathering of academics, senior government officials and NGO luminaries.

The president of Israel, Moshe Katsav, the guest of honour, made a stirring speech about the evils of corruption, enjoining us all to fight it in our society.

Even as he was extolling the virtues of integrity in personal and public life, the police were crawling all over the presidential mansion rummaging through documents as part of an investigation into multiple allegations of rape and sexual harassment by several members of his female staff, over an extended period of time going back to when he was the tourism minister. He was finally sentenced to seven years in prison last week by a Tel Aviv District Court.

I mention all this for two reasons. The first is that I have never known any president, prime minister, chief minister or even a garden variety politician, however corrupt he is known to be, opposing measures to fight corruption. Many are so sincere and convincing that you think a new corruption-free dawn is about to break.

In our case, we have political leaders swearing blind that corruption is evil. They, by any standard, even if you want to be charitable, cannot in all honesty be described as morally upright where corruption is concerned. Continue reading “Now every crook can fight corruption”

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A gun for hire I am not

By Tunku Abdul Aziz
8.1.2011

One of the crucial qualifications required of a politician, even one subsisting on the fringe of the magic circle such as I, is a capacity to develop a thick hide, quickly, to absorb, withstand and endure cheerfully the innuendos, aspersions and imputations of improper motives, that will assuredly come his way whatever he does, says or writes.

Although I am much the same person that I was before I made a conscious personal decision to throw in my lot with the DAP, I am today viewed with a degree of suspicion.

Some of my readers believe that I write as a party propagandist, yet others are of the view that I should refrain from commenting on the shortcomings of the Pakatan Rakyat, and worse, I should not say anything that might cast a shadow on my own party image.

I write as an independent columnist and comment on issues of the day as I see them, motivated not by sycophancy, as accused by a New Straits Times leader writer and others of his ilk or out of a misguided sense of loyalty to my own party, no matter what.

I despise anything that smacks of the putrid odour of decaying doctrinaire with its cultivated blindness to the importance of critical thinking. I am not a party political spin doctor. For that you must turn to APCO. Continue reading “A gun for hire I am not”

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Singapore redefines braggadocio

By Tunku Aziz
MySinchew.com
2010-12-18

FOUR years ago, on 18 October 2006, I wrote an opinion piece from my 30th floor office in the UN Secretariat, New York, for the New Sunday Times. The title, Singapore is simply a neighbour too far, I thought fairly described my assessment of the state of our relations with neighbouring Singapore. It upset a great many Singaporeans; it also made many realise that “what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.”

A Singaporean behaves too much like an insecure lover, forever seeking assurance that she is the fairest of them all and that she is much admired and loved. The insatiable craving for praise and adoration would, in normal circumstances, point to a serious flaw in the national character. This much I remember from the Child Psychology lectures I attended in college all those long years ago. How else can you explain their supercilious behaviour towards us, the Japanese and Indians, all falling into the category of “stupid?”
Singapore is not an unknown quantity to us in Malaysia. In a sense it is of us, but not part of us. Forget the so-called historical ties that are supposed to underpin our relations because they amount to nothing in practice.

To view them through rose-tinted spectacles as is our wont would distort even further a relationship that has never been known for its convergence of views on even the most pedestrian of issues. Rather, it has always had all the makings and attributes of a potentially protracted and acrimonious future. Continue reading “Singapore redefines braggadocio”

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The unfinished Malaysian corruption story

By Tunku Abdul Aziz

I was honoured last month by the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association with an invitation to deliver the International Keynote Address at their 2010 Conference at the Sydney Hilton.

Three hundred corporate lawyers participated in the two-day conference, with some 400 attending the ACLA Awards Dinner. I was invited to perform a similar task last year by the association, but to my regret and utter shame, I was forced to cancel, at great cost to my Australian hosts, my appearance in Melbourne, their 2009 conference venue.

I found myself a reluctant patient at the Gleneagles Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, with a serious lung infection. The doctor pumped, yes, pumped enough antibiotics into my body to float a destroyer and maybe keep our two valiant submarines happily submerged forever.

It transpired that I had picked up a virus in the Netherlands while attending an ethics conference at the Amsterdam Free University. I was very surprised, to say the least, when I received a repeat invitation from ACLA very early this year. I asked the organisers, in jest, if they realised that they were taking a risk as the same thing might happen again.

Overcoming Corruption: A Regional Challenge was the title of my address. I assured them that there was really no need to feel concerned about the state of health of corruption in the region. Continue reading “The unfinished Malaysian corruption story”

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Daulat Tuanku!

By Tunku Aziz
My Sinchew
3.12.10

In an article I wrote recently, Rulers for all Malaysians, I had suggested, in a spirit of helpfulness, that their highnesses the rulers should drop the word “Malay” and instead use the more commonly understood title Sultan, for example, of Selangor or Sultan of Kedah as the case may be.

Continuing to describe themselves as Malay Rulers at a time when inclusiveness is what is required as part of the process of integrating our disparate community of races seems to be a little perverse.

His Highness the Sultan of Selangor, in decrying the suggestion I had made in my article, has, I fear, got the wrong end of the stick. Even a cursory reading of the article will show that the position of their highnesses in the constitutional arrangements of our nation remains inviolate, and Malaysians do not want it any other way.

We recognise the crucial importance of stability in the life of a nation. Stability is inherent in the system of constitutional monarchy. Rulers in today’s terms must be forward looking and open to ideas. It is no longer appropriate, at the drop of the hat, to invoke the divine rights of kings, used in the past by kings and emperors the world over, to legitimise absolutism. Nothing in the nature of things is permanent and if we cannot adjust to change, we are doomed to extinction.

Of course, we respect the institution of rulers because we respect our Constitution. We believe the institution represents all that is noble; the fountain of honour and justice for all. It would be senseless to replace an institution that has worked well. Continue reading “Daulat Tuanku!”

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Rulers for all Malaysians

By Tunku Abdul Aziz

NOV 2 — “RESPECT CONSTITUTION” screamed the New Sunday Times front page. There is really no need for the “Malay rulers” to have undue misgivings about their humble subjects occasionally dipping into the Constitution and questioning some aspect or other they do not fully understand.

Common, ordinary people like me are not Constitutional experts, unlike at least one of their Highnesses. Fear us not because we are not thinking even remotely of storming the Bastille. Such an unworthy thought has never crossed our minds, and certainly not mine.

We only want to know, as citizens, where we stand in Constitutional terms. It is our right to be enlightened. In other words, what are our Constitutional rights and obligations?

I can understand the rulers’ unease and apprehension after what Mahathir did to denigrate and run their institution into the ground, spewing filthy lies and uncharitable innuendoes against them individually and collectively. And, generally, he succeeded in causing public disaffection. Why was he not charged?
Continue reading “Rulers for all Malaysians”

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CORRUPTION: The Pass Mark Eludes Malaysia

by Tunku Abdul Aziz

Judged internationally, by almost every performance indicator known to man, Malaysia is a duffer, and that is putting it charitably. Our report card is drowning in a sea of red ink. The 2010 Corruption Perceptions Index just released shows Malaysia scoring 4.4 points at number 56 out of 178 countries surveyed. Many have questioned the methodology used and have gone so far as to suggest developing our own index. But let me just say this. Whatever we may think, the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index enjoys a reputation second to none as the world’s most authoritative index of its kind. A similar sentiment has been expressed about the world’s top universities index. Shoot the bearer of bad news and retreat to hide under our tempurung and croak our lungs out for the entire world to hear about our version of Malaysia’s achievements. We have become a nation of bad losers.

When Datuk Anwar Fazal, Raja Aziz Addruse, Datuk Param Cumaraswamy and other like minded men and women of the highest integrity met in the Royal Commonwealth Society one night many years ago to discuss forming the Malaysian Chapter of Transparency International Malaysia, they had seen enough, and had become greatly concerned at the speed with which corruption in national life had destroyed the moral fabric and consumed the very soul of our people. It was not the easiest of undertakings to operate an anti-corruption non-governmental organisation during Mahathir’s corrupt and repressive regime.
Continue reading “CORRUPTION: The Pass Mark Eludes Malaysia”

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Carnage on our roads

By Tunku Abdul Aziz
The Malaysian Insider
16th October 2010

[Tunku Aziz, one of the prime movers in setting up Transparency International Malaysia, in happier times was regarded by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi as “one man (who) was able to harness his personal passion and deep commitment to the values of ethics and integrity, give it a larger purpose and meaning, and turn it into a force to transform society for the better.” Why then was he left out of the MACC Advisory Group? He is regarded as being too outspoken for comfort and, therefore, difficult to handle.]

Much of Malaysian television news time is taken up by ghastly scenes of unspeakable carnage on our state of the art highways. We have the highest number of fatalities of any country in the world based on car ownership per capita.

The road transport department, long known for providing a haven for some of the most corrupt civil servants in the country, must accept full responsibility for the abysmal driving standards and the shocking road manners that contribute to an unwholesome and dangerous experience for law abiding motorists whose only wish is to be left alone to complete their journey in one piece.
Continue reading “Carnage on our roads”

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A plea for sanity over Perak DAP crisis

By Tunku Abdul Aziz

Perak DAP leaders must try, if they possibly can, to subordinate their personal ambitions and put the interests of the party above all else. The unseemly internal squabbling over local leadership is already causing considerable damage to the reputation of the DAP which has earned for itself, over the years in the face of great odds, enormous goodwill and credibility. Do you think it fair to put all the hard work and personal sacrifices of thousands of party members at risk to satisfy your craving for personal glory and power?

What has happened to the declaration of high-minded devotion to duty in the public interest? DAP does not exist in isolation. It is a vital part of the nation’s social, political and economic mosaic in a vibrant tangle of races, cultures and religions. We have as a party derived legitimacy from our consistency of purpose for the greatest good of the people of Malaysia. It is the height of lunacy to jeopardise what we have achieved so far and the party’s future prospects by greed-driven, irresponsible, behaviour.
Continue reading “A plea for sanity over Perak DAP crisis”