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Will CJ Zaki vindicate all doubters or prove them wrong by bold leadership of judicial reforms?

Tan Sri Zaki Tun Azmi’s appointment as Chief Justice of the Federal Court is the most controversial appointment of the head of the judiciary in the nation’s 51-year history.

Never before in Malaysian judiciary had the possible appointment of the new head of the judiciary been marked by more widespread reservations and public objections than Zaki’s elevation as Chief Justice, because of legitimate concerns about its adverse impact on fumbling efforts so far to restore national and international confidence in the independence, impartiality and integrity of the judiciary. Continue reading “Will CJ Zaki vindicate all doubters or prove them wrong by bold leadership of judicial reforms?”

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The RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 helicopter deal should be suspended until the outcome of PAC scrutiny

When the Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said in Pekan on Sunday that the Cabinet had agreed that the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) scrutinise the acquisition of the Eurocopter EC725 helicopters to replace the aging Nuri helicopters, it raises the serious question whether the Prime Minister-in-waiting fully understands and respects the principle and practice of parliamentary democracy and the doctrine of separation of powers.

In a country truly founded on parliamentary democracy, where the Cabinet is answerable to Parliament and not vice versa, the question of the Cabinet approving a parliamentary scrutiny of an Executive decision would not have arisen – as this is the unquestioned right and prerogative of Parliament in the discharge of its tasks to exercise check-and-balance on executive power.

As the PAC has decided last Wednesday to scrutinise the three mega-scandals highlighted by Pakatan Rakyat in the 2009 budget debate, the RM5 billion Maybank purchase of Bank International Indonesia (BII) at five times the book value, the RM2.3 billion defense deal for 12 Cougar EC725 helicopters and the awarding of the RM11.3 billion high-speed broadband contract to TM Bhd, is Najib suggesting that the Cabinet would only agree to the PAC scrutiny of the Eurocopter deal but not the two other mega-scandals?

Furthermore, what does Najib mean when he said the Cabinet has agreed to the the PAC scrutiny of the Cougar EC725 helicopter deal?

Last Friday, the Defence Ministry secretary-general Datuk Abu Bakar Abdullah issued a totally unsatisfactory statement to claim that the decision to procure the Europcopters was done following proper procedure and was not influenced by any party, as no satisfactory answer had been given to queries as to why the full technical evaluation process had not followed standard international practices and lacked transparency. Continue reading “The RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 helicopter deal should be suspended until the outcome of PAC scrutiny”

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Obama for Putrajaya

by Azly Rahman

“…Haji Ramli Street was a dirt lane where Obama used to while away the hours kicking a soccer ball. In the long rainy season, it turned to thick, mucky soup; Obama and his friends wore plastic bags over their shoes to walk though it,” said Adi, who at 46 is the same age as Obama….

“Neighborhood Muslims worshiped in a nearby house, which has since been replaced by a larger mosque. Sometimes, when the muezzin sounded the call to prayer, Lolo and Barry would walk to the makeshift mosque together.

… “His mother often went to the church, but Barry was Muslim. He went to the mosque. I remember him wearing a sarong,” said Adi. – reported by Paul Watson in The Baltimore Sun, March 16, 2007

“… given the increasing diversity of America’s population, the dangers of sectarianism have never been greater. Whatever we once were, we are no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers. …

And even if we did have only Christians in our midst, if we expelled every non-Christian from the United States of America, whose Christianity would we teach in the schools?

Would we go with James Dobson’s, or Al Sharpton’s? Which passages of Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which suggests slavery is ok and that eating shellfish is abomination?

How about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the Mount – a passage that is so radical that it’s doubtful that our own Defence Department would survive its application?”
– Barack Obama Call to renewal: keynote address June 28, 2006

Barack Hussein Obama for prime minister of Malaysia? Continue reading “Obama for Putrajaya”

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Another case of Deepavali insensitivity by Education Ministry under Hishammuddin

Letters
by Disappointed Teacher

I’m currently teaching in a secondary school in Johor and I am totally dissatisfied with an issue so I am writing this complain hoping that it will make a difference.

As most of you are aware of, we had just completed the PMR examinations throughout Malaysia. We as teachers also look forward to marking the PMR papers, as we will be able to gain experience and insights, which will be useful when conducting the Form 3 classes for the coming year.

However, all the hopes of Indian teachers are dashed to the ground as the meeting with the heads of the marking group is being held on the eve of Deepavali in some places.

These meetings are held over a span of two to three days so that each group is able to discuss with their respective group leaders on issues concerning the marking of the papers.

The examiners will also be given their scripts and briefed on the issues of marking. These meetings are essential and if they are held during the preparations for Deepavali, many Indian teachers will not be able to attend and thus they lose out as they won’t have the chance to mark the papers. Continue reading “Another case of Deepavali insensitivity by Education Ministry under Hishammuddin”

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Govt to pump extra RM5b into Valuecap

Letters
by WYT

First and foremost, I’m just a one of those silient supporters of yours and this is my first time voice up on issue such as the above subject mentioned.

I am really bugged to hear the goverment is pump in additional RM5b into the equity market. I’m not complaint the intention but the general public does not know where the money come from and where the profit goes. I would assume the money is drawed from us, the tax payers and my next question is why in this 5 years since ValueCap setup, there is no news about how is the fund performance and where is the profit earned (from KLCI index 700+ to 1400+ before the US credit crisis kick in) gone? This is not fair to us if we do not know this ValueCap performance.

I do not see the point why injection of additional fund is necessary when there is profit when KLCI climb to 1400 point and it will even be ridiculous if the fund fails to profit during the period and certainly an excuse should they say the gain has been wiped out because of the crisis, then where is our iniatial injection when the fund is being setup up. Continue reading “Govt to pump extra RM5b into Valuecap”

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Hamid should do his homework as Home Minister by reading/digesting 2005 Royal Police Commission Report

I am very disappointed by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar’s response to complaints by Taiwanese investors about the serious crime situation in the country which affects investment confidence.

In fact, this is not just the concern of Taiwanese investors but all foreign and local investors as well as ordinary Malaysians and visitors, as crime in Malaysia has become one of the biggest problems in Malaysia – with the exception of the Home Minister.

In fact, the problem of rising crime index has been a staple subject of DAP MPs in Parliament in the last two Parliaments.

I just cannot imagine how Hamid could be so unresponsive and irresponsible as to dismiss the Taiwanese investors’ complaints about the crime situation in Malaysia, claiming that the law-and-order situation in Malaysia has not reached a “red danger alert”.

Let me advise Hamid to do his homework by first reading and digesting the 2005 Royal Police Commission Report, or he would not have committed another faux pax like his earlier ridiculous statement that the Sin Chew senior reporter Tan Hoon Ching was arrested under the Internal Security Act for her own protection and safety! Continue reading “Hamid should do his homework as Home Minister by reading/digesting 2005 Royal Police Commission Report”

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Medical Graduates Unemployed!

(Now that Datuk Liow Tiong Lai has secured the second highest votes and elected as MCA Vice President, it is time that he returns quickly and diligently to his duties as Health Minister which he had considerably neglected of late.

As a result, Malaysians face many grave medical and health problems whether the dengue epidemic which has so have claimed at least 78 lives or the first major outbreak of chikungunya in the country, or the continued bumbling in the administration of the Health Ministry.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I remember when Datuk Dr. Chua Soi Lek was the Health Minister, he promised to end the long-standing hassle of new doctors having to wait for months on end to get their first posting after their graduation – which is criminal negligence when there is acute shortage of doctors in the public service.

Liow Tiong Lai has been sleeping on his job as seen from the following complaint emailed to me. Time for the Health Minister to wake up! I expect him to explain in Parliament this deplorable state of affairs)

I am a fresh medical graduate who is not satisfied with the way the MOH is working.

I have sent and went through all the necessary processes required to apply to work with the ministry. It was about 3 months ago and until now i have no reply from the ministry.

I tried calling the ministry and was told to refer to their Bahagian Latihan and i did as told and after countless time calling (with them refusing to pick up the phone); they finally took my call and the reply I got was that they themselves don’t know when the “kursus induksi” will start!!

I am now lost since I can do nothing for the past three months; just content to staying at home waiting for the letter everyday for the past three months from the ministry. Continue reading “Medical Graduates Unemployed!”

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“Assassinating a YB” vs Press Freedom

Public Forum: “Assassinating a YB” vs Press Freedom

Date: 23.10.08 (Thursday)
Time: 8.00pm
Venue: KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, Jalan Maharajalela, KL

Speakers:

1. Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader
2. Khalid Samad, Member of Parliament
3. Harris Ibrahim, Lawyer
4. Azmi Sharom, Academician
5. Wan Hamidi Hamid, Senior Journalist
6. Teresa Kok, Selangor Senior Exco

All Are Welcome!

Live Broadcast :

http://tv.dapmalaysia.org

Watch live video from DAP Malaysia on tv.dapmalaysia.org

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Will Abdullah again be humiliated at Umno Supreme Council meeting tonight?

Will the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi again be humiliated at the Umno Supreme Council meeting tonight or will he able to redeem dignity of his office after repeated battering in the past few months?

Abdullah will again be humiliated if the Umno Supreme Council ends tonight with a final modification of his original mid-2010 power transition plan, shortening it from June 2010 to March 2009 and then to December this year!

The mounting call led by Umno Vice President and Minister for International Trade and Industry, Tan Sri Muhyideen Yassin, and the Umno eminence grise Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad that the Umno party elections revert back from March next year to December is a subtle subterfuge to shorten Abdullah’s remaining five months as Prime Minister by another three months.

Will Abdullah be able to fob off the latest attempt in Umno to shorten his premiership and even to redeem the dignity of his office by getting full endorsement by the entire Umno leadership for meaningful reforms on the judiciary, police force and anti-corruption before he steps down as Prime Minister? Continue reading “Will Abdullah again be humiliated at Umno Supreme Council meeting tonight?”

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Challenge to MCA/Gerakan MPs – support parliamentary debate on ISA review

DAP MP for Seputeh and Selangor Senior Exco, Teresa Kok Suh Sim has given notice to move a motion deploring the Internal Security Act (ISA) detention of Sin Chew senior reporter Tan Hoon Cheng, blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin and herself last month and to call for the repeal of the draconian and undemocratic detention-without-trial law.

Teresa’s motion on the ISA is listed No. 41 on today’s Order Paper. Together with 33 other private member’s motion, Teresa’s ISA motion would not have a chance to see the light of day and being debated in Parliament unless the Barisan Nasional government agrees to amend the Order Paper to give it priority over all other parliamentary business.

Yesterday, the MCA’s 55th annual general assembly adopted a resolution urging the Government to review the Internal Security Act and establish a check and balance system to ensure that it strictly applies to terrorism and cases with subversive elements.

A week ago, the Gerakan’s 37th national delegates conference passed the resolution calling for the repeal of the ISA and the introduction of an anti-terrorism law in accordance with a proposal by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam).

The main burden of the speech by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in his capacity as Barisan Nasional (BN) Chairman at his last outing at the MCA general assembly on Saturday was to scoff at suggestions that Umno is the domineering partner in BN and to deny that UMNO is a “bully” vis-à-vis other parties in BN. Continue reading “Challenge to MCA/Gerakan MPs – support parliamentary debate on ISA review”

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Looking For UMNO’s Next Ex-Leader

by M. Bakri Musa

At a recent gregarious social gathering a colleague, whose luck in personal relationships could best be described as challenged, was teased on whether she was scouting for her next ex-husband! With the current frenzied UMNO divisional nominating meetings, I am tempted to ask a similar question of its members. Are they too looking for their next ex-leader?

If there is any lesson UMNO members should have learned is that the way they pick their leaders needs to be revamped. By now they should have realized the devastating consequences of the “no contest rule” for the two top positions and the onerous nomination quota system, as well as the equally atrocious track record of any one leader (no matter how seemingly wise and brilliant at the time) in anointing his or her successor.

There are indications that this reality is now gradually sinking in, at least on the brave and perceptive few. Thus far that is all there is, only a realization, and nothing more.

Shahrir Samad, cabinet minister and UMNO Supreme Council member, called for “a generational change” in his party’s leadership. He viewed UMNO as becoming overly bureaucratic, with heavy emphasis on seniority and hierarchy. At age 58, Shahrir considered himself too late and too old to go for a top post.

Whether that is a statement of reality or merely an undisguised expression of lack of confidence on the current generation of leaders is for Shahrir to clarify. Both Najib Razak and Muhyyidin Yassin, leading candidates for the number one and two slots respectively, are of the same vintage as Shahrir. Continue reading “Looking For UMNO’s Next Ex-Leader”

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When will petrol pump price revert to RM1.92?

It was only last week that the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Samad said that the price of petrol would revert to the old price of RM1.92 a litre which motorists had enjoyed before the 41% hike in June if the world crude oil price continued to dip to below US$72 a barrel.

At the time (October 10), the crude oil price was around US$88 a barrel.

Over the weekend, the world oil prices closed at a new 14-month low beneath US$70 a barrel, bringing its price to less than half its July record high – dipping to as low as US$68.57 a barrel.

Why hasn’t the petrol pump price reverted back to RM1.92?

Will this be announced tomorrow when Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak release his economic stabilisation plan to prepare Malaysia to face the world’s worst economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s? Continue reading “When will petrol pump price revert to RM1.92?”

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Can Abdullah’s last five months as PM survive the return of Mahathirism?

“Who is he, asks Abdullah” is the New Sunday Times headline for the report of what it described as “The gloves came off yesterday.”

The New Sunday Times reported from Kota Kinabalu yesterday that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s “patience finally wore off and he lambasted his predecessor, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad”, viz:

Abdullah said Dr Mahathir was acting as if it was he (Dr Mahathir) who should determine who played what role in the party.

“Who is he? He has left Umno but he still issues orders to members of Umno. The party does not need to take orders from anyone who is no longer a member of the party,” said Abdullah who was here to attend the Hari Malaysia and closing of the Merdeka month celebrations.

“He is trying to create a rift and (incite) anger and hatred. What is wrong with people who work with me? He is trying to teach people to hate one another.”

The Umno president said this in referring to a posting on Dr Mahathir’s blog, calling on Umno to rid itself of all those who supported Abdullah, referring to them as “toadies”.

“Who is he when he is no longer a member of UMNO?”

Abdullah cannot be naïve in not knowing the answer to his own query, although his rhetorical question is meant to convey his frustration, impotence and bitterness than to elicit a real answer. Continue reading “Can Abdullah’s last five months as PM survive the return of Mahathirism?”