Anwar Ibrahim » Catatan

‘Pinjaman KWSP Perumahan Untuk Sembunyi Hutang’

Anwar Ibrahim — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:15:45 +0000

Pakatan Rakyat mendakwa langkah kerajaan untuk menggunakan dana Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja (KWSP) sebanyak RM1.5 juta untuk menampung pinjaman rumah kos rendah sebagai usaha untuk menyembunyikan hutang negara.

Naib Presiden PKR Nurul Izzah Anwar (kanan) dan Setiausaha Publisiti DAP Tony Pua berkata, berbanding langkah yang jarang diambil itu, ia biasanya dibuat melalui hasil cukai atau pengeluaran bon.

“Kami hanya boleh simpulkan kerajaan tidak mahu meminjam langsung dari KWSP, dan lepaskan tanggungjawab itu kepada KWSP untuk memberi pinjaman terus kepada pembeli rumah kos rendah kerana kerajaan tidak mahu terus menerima kritikan menggunung terhadap hutang yang sudah sedia tinggi,” katanya.

Dalam kenyataan bersama hari ini, mereka berkata, hutang negara sudah mencecah RM456 bilion pada penghujung 2011, peningkatan 88.4 berbanding hanya RM242 pada 2006.

Dana KWSP Diguna Ibarat Wang Saku BN

Anwar Ibrahim — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:38:25 +0000

Malaysiakini

PKR hari ini menyelar tindakan kerajaan untuk menggunakan RM1.5 bilion daripada dana Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja (KWSP) bagi membantu mereka yang gagal mendapatkan pinjaman bank bagi membiayai pembelian rumah awam kos rendah.

“Malah bank-bank juga tidak bersedia memberi pinjaman. Apakah yang dilakukan oleh panel pelaburan KWSP?

“Mengapa wang KWSP yang digunakan sebagai wang saku BN?” soal naib presiden PKR Nurul Izzah Anwar (kanan) pada sidang media hari ini.

Sekurang-kurangnya empat bank telah diminta membantu menggubal draf perjanjian pembiayaan, kata Nurul Izzah sambil menyoal mengapa dana KWSP digunakan jika bank komersial sendiri tidak menganggap skim itu sebagai berdaya maju.

“Kita tidak mahu situasi seperti krisis pajak gadai subprima di Amerika Syarikat, di mana peminjam tidak dapat membayar ansuran mereka, jadi KWSP bukan bank (dalam kesusahan),” katanya, sambil mengingatkan bahawa dana KWSP juga telah digunakan untuk membiayai projek transit aliran ringan (LRT).

“Kerajaan tidak boleh membeli undi sesuka hati semata-mata kerana pilihan raya semakin dekat.

“Awak (kerajaan) boleh membantu Projek Perumahan Rakyat (PPR), tetapi jangan gunakan dana KWSP bagi maksud itu,” kata Nurul Izzah yang juga ahli parlimen Lembah Pantai.

Isnin lalu, Menteri Wilayah Persekutuan dan Kesejahteraan Bandar, Datuk Seri Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin dilapor mengumumkan “skim pembiayaan mudah” untuk 20,000 penyewa PPR yang layak dan bakal pembeli yang tidak layak mendapatkan pinjaman bank.

Ketua Penerangan DAP Tony Pua juga menyelar tindakan itu dengan mengatakan bahawa peranan KWSP adalah memastikan pencarum mempunyai simpanan yang mencukupi apabila mereka bersara kelak.

Kedua-dua mereka, Pua dan Nurul Izzah mencadangkan Bank Rakyat dan Malaysia Building Society Bhd mengambil-alih tanggungjawab itu.

Jangan Putar Belit Kenyataan Demi Menghambur Fitnah

Anwar Ibrahim — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:43:05 +0000

Saya diwawancara oleh Wall Street Journal pada hari Khamis, 26hb Januari 2011. Antara soalan yang ditanya kepada saya adalah berkaitan dasar luar negara dan isu Palestin. Saya tuntas menegaskan bahawa kemahuan dan hak rakyat Palestin mesti dibela dan itu merangkumi hak untuk mendirikan negara sendiri serta tidak terus dizalimi. Saya juga mengungkapkan bahawa jika syarat ini dipenuhi maka wajarlah hak rakyat Israel juga dihormati. Berikut adalah jawapan yang saya berikan:

“I support all efforts to protect the security of the state of Israel,” said Mr. Anwar, although he stopped short of saying he would open diplomatic ties with the Jewish state, a step which he said remains contingent on Israel respecting the aspirations of Palestinians.“

Pendirian saya ini ternyata sejajar dengan prinsip perjuangan Parti Keadilan Rakyat yang menjunjung tinggi prinsip Keadilan Sejagat dan tegas membela hak mereka yang dizalimi. Selain itu pandangan saya ini ternyata selari dengan Resolusi 1397 Majlis Keselamatan Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu (PBB) dan Inisiatif Keamanan Arab (Arab Peace Initiative) yang berteraskan Penyelesaian Dua Negara atau lebih dikenali sebagai Two-State Solution. Malahan dasar luar negara juga menekankan prinsip Penyelesaian Dua Negara sebagaimana yang diungkapkan YB Menteri Luar ketika Perbahasan Perhimpunan Agung PBB Sesi ke-66 pada 27hb September 2011 di New York (GENERAL

DEBATE OF THE 66^TH SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY). Beliau menyebut:

“..Malaysia fully supports the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people for an independent State of Palestine, based on the two-state solution, taking into account the security concerns of both parties (Israel and Palestine).”

Ternyata dari kenyataan Menteri Luar Negara, dasar Malaysia adalah bersedia menghormati hak rakyat Palestin dan Israel untuk menikmati keamanan dan kedamaian. Akan tetapi kesediaan kita pastinya bergantung kepada syarat selagi mana hak rakyat Palestin tidak dicerobohi. Justeru saya memberi amaran keras kepada mana-mana pihak yang cuba memutar belit kenyataan saya semata-mata mahu menyebar fitnah kononnya saya mengkhianati aspirasi rakyat Palestin. Pendirian Parti Keadilan Rakyat adalah tuntas membela hak sesiapa sahaja yang dirampas dan dizalimi. Iltizam untuk memastikan keadilan buat semua tidak pernah surut malah pastinya digilap dan diperkukuh.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

—-

I was interviewed by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, 26th January 2011. Among the questions posed to me was concerning foreign policy and the Palestinian issue. I was firm in stating that the wishes and rights of the Palestinian people must be protected and that includes the right to form a independent and sovereign state of their own, and not to be continuously oppressed. I also posited that if these conditions are to be must be fulfilled, then by the same logic, the rights if the Israelis should also be respected. My full response to this matter is reproduced below:

“I support all efforts to protect the security of the state of Israel,” said Mr. Anwar, although he stopped short of saying he would open diplomatic ties with the Jewish state, a step which he said remains contingent on Israel respecting the aspirations of Palestinians.”

My position is clearly in line with that of the principles of struggle of the People’s Justice Party which values highly the Principle of Universal Justice and strongly defend the rights of the oppressed. In addition, my view runs concurrent with that of Resolution 1397 of the United Nations Security Council and the Arab Peace Initiative which promotes the Two-State Solution. What more, the same principle of the Two-State Solution approach had been addressed by the Hon. Foreign Minister at the General Debate Of The 66th Session Of The United Nations Assembly on 27th September 2011 in New York. He mentioned:

“..Malaysia fully supports the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people for an independent State of Palestine, based on the two-state solution, taking into account the security concerns of both parties.” (Israel and Palestine)

It is clear from the Foreign Minister’s statement that Malaysia adopted a policy of respecting both the rights of the Palestinians and Israelis to enjoy peace and security. However, this condition shall largely depends on the prerequisite that the rights of the Palestinians are not violated. Hence, I would like to sternly warn any distractor who wishes to twist and turn my statement and henceforth spread lies that I have turned my back on the aspirations of the Palestinians. The principle of the People’s Justice Party is very clear in defending whose rights have been denied and oppressed. Our commitment to uphold justice has never faded, in fact it is always renewed and strengthened.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

Tahniah Buat Zunar

Anwar Ibrahim — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:49:05 +0000

Syabas saya ucapkan buat Sdr Zunar kerana akan mengadakan pameran kartun-kartun politik di London pada bulan Februari depan bertemakan “To Fight Through Cartoon” (Berjuang Melalui Kartun). Pameran tersebut akan berlangsung selama satu bulan di Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London. Sebanyak 80 karya-karya kartun yang menyentuh isu politik, rasuah, penyalahgunaan kuasa serta pelanggaran hak asasi di Malaysia akan dipamerkan. Ucapan penghargaan juga buat Artikel 19, sebuah badan bukan kerajaan yang memperjuangkan kebebasan bersuara kerana menganjurkan pameran ini dan tahniah buat rakyat Malaysia di United Kingdom yang bertungkus lumus menjayakannya.

Saya difahamkan tema “Berjuang Melalui Kartun”dipilih oleh penganjur kerana kartun-kartun politik Sdr Zunar ternyata mendapat kekangan dan tekanan dari pemerintah Malaysia. Pada Julai 2010, kerajaan mengharamkan tujuh buah naskah komik kartun beliau dengan alasan kandungannya menjejas ketenteraman awam. Selain tu, pejabat Sdr Zunar di Brickfeilds, Kuala Lumpur sering diserbu pihak berkuasa dan komik-komik tersebut turut dirampas. Manakala itu kilang pencetak diugut agar tidak mencetak komik beliau atau menghadapi risiko kehilangan lesen. Kedai-kedai di seluruh negara juga diberi amaran agar tidak menjual komik-komik beliau. Pada September 2010, beliau ditangkap dan dimasukkan ke dalam lokap di bawah Akta Hasutan namun dibebaskan atas arahan mahkamah. Buat Sdr Zunar dan seluruh seniman, teruskan perjuangan anda semua, teruskan berkarya dan jangan sesekali tunduk menyerah kepada penguasa yang zalim serta rakus.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

Autonomi Untuk Universiti Mesti Merangkumi Pemansuhan AUKU

Anwar Ibrahim — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:10:51 +0000

Semalam Menteri Pengajian Tinggi Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin mengumumkan bahawa lima Institusi Pengajian Tinggi Awam – Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Putra Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia – akan diberikan autonomi. Walaubagaimanapun langkah ini tidak bermakna sekiranya Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti yang mencengkam kebebasan universiti masih berkuatkuasa.

Selama ini AUKU telah terbukti sebagai penghalang utama autonomi universiti dan kebebasan akademik. Keputusan kerajaan untuk meminda Seksyen 15 AUKU tidak membawa sebarang makna memandangkan pindaan ini tidak mengatasi budaya ketakutan dan pemusatan kuasa yang telah yang disebarkan oleh AUKU selama ini. Mahasiswa, masyarakat sivil dan pihak pembangkang telah secara konsisten menyatakan pendirian ini tetapi hanya keputusan UKM 4 yang membuatkan pihak kerajaan menerima hujah ini.

Kami juga masih menunggu jawatankuasa dwiparti yang diumumkan oleh Timbalan Menteri Pengajian Tinggi Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah untuk menjadi realiti. Jawatankuasa tersebut – sekiranya menjadi realiti – akan meneliti akta alternatif kepada AUKU yang telah dicadangkan oleh pimpinan mahasiswa pada 2008.

Pada masa yang sama, KEADILAN kesal dengan keputusan Kolej Universiti Insaniah Kedah (KUIN) untuk menggunakan AUKU terhadap lima mahasiswanya. Kami berharap keadilan akan tertegak di dalam kes ini dan semua negeri-negeri Pakatan menunjukkan komitmen mereka menentang AUKU dengan tidak membenarkan peristiwa tersebut berulang. Kita telah berjuang sekian lama untuk menentang ketidakadilan tersebut.

NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD
PENGARAH KOMUNIKASI
PARTI KEADILAN RAKYAT
====

AUTONOMY FOR UNIVERSITIES MUST INCLUDE DISMANTLING THE UUCA

The Minister of Higher Education Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin announced that yesterday five public universities – Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Putra Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia – are to enjoy autonomy. This move however is meaningless as the draconian University and University Colleges Act is still in force.

It has been proven time and time again that the UUCA has been a major hurdle for university autonomy and academic freedom. The government’s decision to amend Section 15 of the UUCA is a lame concession as it does nothing to address the culture of fear and centralisation of power that the UUCA has engendered. Students, the civil society and the Opposition have been consistently arguing this for decades but it took the UKM 4 landmark decision for the government to finally acknowledge this fact.

Indeed, we are still waiting for the bipartisan committee that the Deputy Minister for Higher Education Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, announced in December to materialise. Such a committee — if it does indeed take place — will look at the alternative legislation to the UUCA as proposed by student leaders in 2008.

At the same time, our party deeply regrets the decision by the Kolej Universiti Insaniah Kedah (KUIN) to apply the UUCA on five of its students. We hope that justice will prevail in this case and that all Pakatan states will show their commitment against the UUCA by not allowing a repeat of such incidents. We have fought for too long and too hard to allow such abuses of fundamental rights to continue.

NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
PARTI KEADILAN RAKYAT

Keratan Liputan Akhbar Prioritas Dari Indonesia: Wawancara Khas Bersama Yb Nurul Izzah

Anwar Ibrahim — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:32:07 +0000

Perutusan Tahun Baru Cina

Anwar Ibrahim — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 06:53:50 +0000

Saya mengucapkan Xin Nian Kuaile dan Gong Xi Fa Cai kepada semua kaum cina di Malaysia. Adalah diharapkan sambutan Tahun Baru Cina tahun ini lebih meriah dengan sambutan bersama rakyat Malaysia keseluruhannya.

Tahun ini merupakan tahun Naga. Ianya melambangkan, antaranya Keadilan, Keberanian dan Berhikmah buat masyarakat Cina. Oleh kerana itu sempena sambutan tahun baru, yang selalu dianggap sebagai satu titik permulaan serta memperkukuh azam, saya berharap kita bersama beriltizam membentuk Malaysia sebagai sebuah negara berbilang kaum yang adil dan saksama.

Perpaduan perlu dijalin demi kemaslahatan negara. Kita berhasrat Malaysia yang dicintai ini senantiasa makmur, bebas dari rasuah dan rakyatnya hidup dalam kerukunan serta harmoni.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

International Response Filters in, Condemning Najib’s U-turn on Anwar Acquittal

Anwar Ibrahim — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 19:28:38 +0000

Malaysia Chroncle
by Maria Begum

International response is starting to filter in on news that Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government has decided to appeal the acquittal of political arch rival Anwar, the Opposition Leader, who was found “not guilty” by a High Court judge last week.

Phil Robertson, Deputy Director of the Asia Division, Human Rights Watch was among the early bird to condemn the Najib administration for its latest flip-flop.

“The trial court gave the government a chance to bow out gracefully from Anwar’s politically motivated prosecution. It’s very unfortunate that they didn’t take it. This decision means the citizens of Malaysia will be further subjected to the more political machinations in the courtroom as the government perpetuates this travesty of a trial for a crime that should not be a crime in the first place,” Phil said in a statement.

Persecution, not prosecution

Meanwhile, Anwar’s lawyer Sankara Nair said he has yet to be notified of the decision. He slammed the move as an obvious case of “political persecution” and not prosecution.

“I have not been formally notified by the prosecution. However if it is true, then it is most regrettable and atrocious- given that the trial judge has stated succinctly, in his verdict that the crucial evidence was “tampered”,” said Sankara.

“Hence the substratum of the prosecutions case is fatally demolished,rendering any appeal, no matter how many times, an desperate act in futility. It appears to be a case of political persecution of Anwar and not prosecution.”

As for Anwar himself, he has said it was the Attorney-General’s right to appeal but warned that there should be no government or political interference. However, most Malaysians would tell him that this may be beyond the manipulative Umno, Najib’s party which has ruled Malaysia for the past 5 decades.

Judge conceded key DNA evidence was compromised

Malaysian prosecutors had filed the appeal papers at the High Court criminal registry at 4.30pm on Friday, January 20, according to criminal deputy registrar Halilah Suboh.

On Jan 9, Anwar was acquitted on a charge of sodomising his former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan due to a lack of corroborative evidence. Judge Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah delivered his decision to a packed courtroom, as more than 10,000 supporters gathered outside the court building to show their support for the charismatic and popular leader.

“After going through the evidence, I cannot be 100 percent certain that the evidence could have been compromised. Hence, the court is reluctant to convict on such corrobaration of evidence from SP1 Saiful. The court does not exclude the possibility the (DNA) samples were compromised. Therefore the accused is acquitted,” Mohd Zabidin told a stunned courtroom, that took a second before it burst into euphoria and loud cheering.

Najib’s weak leadership and global attention

The decision was praised throughout the world and Najib’s latest inability to stay the course, giving in to hardliners in his Umno party such as former premier Mahathir Mohamad, is bound to increase the negative impression of Malaysia that has furthered worsened during his watch. The move will also underscore Najib’s weak hand on the government as well as his inability to provide political stability and jump-start the already slowing economy.

“Anwar, I have just heard the news of the acquittal. Congratulations. There was never any doubt of your innocence. That it is confirmed for the world to see is a wonderful thing. We are all so very happy for you and for Malaysia,” wrote Paul Martin, the former prime minister of Canada.

Indeed, there is more than meets the eye in the sodomy charges pressed against Anwar, who has blamed Najib and wife Rosmah Mansor of hatching the plot together with complainant Saiful Bukhari Azlan so as to derail his political comeback. Given the flimsiness of the evidence, experts never expected Najib to take the case to the trial stage, but he succumbed to pressure from the Umno right wing, especially Mahathir, who still harbors a deep hatred for Anwar.

Pundits say Mahathir is also concerned that Anwar, his former deputy and who nearly toppled him in 1998, knows too much of his past wheeling-and-dealing. If not imprisoned, chances are high Anwar will become the next prime minister of Malaysia, leading the Pakatan Rakyat opposition to victory in general elections that must be held by April 2013.

Fair and impartial, says Saiful

Anwar was charged on Aug 8, 2008 under Section 377B of the Penal Code with committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature. He was accused of sodomising Saiful at the Desa Damansara Condominium in Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur, on June 26, 2008. If found guilty, he could be jailed for up to 20 years.

Meanwhile, in an immediate response, Saiful said the appeal shows that the Malaysian legal system was fair and impartial.

“My family and I would like to state that with the filing of the notice of appeal, my right to complaint as stated in my 2008 police report has been heard, and (went) through the proper process of justice all the way to the High Court. In accordance with the law (it) has been achieved,” he said in a blog posting.