Tan Sri Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir told a press conference that Umno must “stop and abolish the despicable and disgusting acts of bribery and corruption.”

“This includes the political corruption whereby one has to pay money to his own fellow party members to be elected to various posts in Umno, including the top posts.

“If you give, it’s wrong. If you don’t, you lose. So it becomes widely accepted culture, so even leaders in top positions have to do it if not you lose,” the former Umno supreme council member said.

He cited as an example influential former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was unable to be elected as a delegate to the party general assembly after ending his 22 years as Umno president.

“Dr Mahathir has shed tears in his opening address at the general assembly, begging leaders not to buy votes. Can you imagine later he could not even win as a delegate?” Abdul Kadir said, adding he has never used money to win positions in the party.

The former information minister made headlines last month when he accused the ruling coalition of handing out RM200 to RM1,000 to win previous elections but said he personally did not use the strategy known as “bomb”.

He also repeated today that BN should “stop the ugly and primitive practice of bribing the rakyat… whether directly or indirectly, in order to win elections.”

Abdul Kadir, who was also a former culture, arts and tourism minister, told reporters today that he has been told that Umno’s disciplinary committee has been asked to investigate his comments although he has not received any formal notice.

“There is no need to investigate me because I will be sending them the full texts of the said interviews which are not edited in any way,” he said.

He said in his defence that Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak and other leaders “have gone around the country shouting we must change, otherwise we will be changed.”

“The question is what are those bad habits that need to be change of which the rakyat is so angry about?”

Abdul Kadir is now treasurer of Kulim Bandar Baharu Umno and deputy president of non-partisan pro-unity NGO Angkatan Amanah Merdeka (Amanah).

Author: Barry Wain, ISEAS

Malaysians expressed a collective sigh of relief when Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim was acquitted of sodomy charges in early January.Their groan of dismay over the prosecution’s subsequent decision to appeal was equally palpable.

For most Malaysians, despite being divided in their opinions of Anwar, the acquittal marked a chance to move away from the sleazy politics that has long dominated daily life. Now, they expect more of the same. Aware of public exasperation, Prime Minister Najib Razak was quick to seize on the not guilty verdict as proof of his ‘reformist’ agenda and Malaysia’s supposedly independent judiciary. But the appeal leaves him stranded, inclined to delay calling a general election, and acutely aware that he is under threat as much from within his own ranks as from the opposition. It seems likely that Najib will win the next election, but unless he scores big — which seems unlikely — his leadership could be at risk.

The old guard in Najib’s United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the core of the Barisan Nasional coalition government, has been trying to have Anwar convicted of sexual misconduct for more than 13 years. His first sodomy trial in the late 1990s was regarded as a miscarriage of justice, and the recently completed second trial was just as dubious, according to international legal and human rights organisations. Kuala Lumpur has a thriving gay club scene and nightlife, and the police — to their credit — do not hound homosexuals. But Anwar was hauled into court twice on a charge of ‘carnal intercourse against the order of nature’, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment.

The government’s deliberate targeting of Anwar is obvious. His arrest in 2008 came soon after he led a revitalised opposition to unprecedented gains in a general election, depriving the UMNO-led Barisan Nasional of its usual two-thirds majority in parliament. Subsequently, Anwar has spent much of the past three years caught up defending himself in the sodomy trial, when he might have otherwise engaged in consolidating the opposition coalition.

Despite, or perhaps because of, these efforts, the trial has become a liability for Najib. The value in distracting Anwar and trying to knock him out politically has been offset by the damage to Najib’s reputation as a putative reformer. Conscious that the long-term electoral trend is running against the ruling coalition, which has held power since independence in 1957, Najib has positioned himself as an agent of change, who is in touch with Malaysia’s younger generation. He has attempted to roll back unpopular elements of an affirmative action program designed to benefit the country’s majority ethnic Malay community, liberalise press restrictions and replace controversial security laws, including detention without trial. Still, Najib is yet to convert the rhetoric of reform into reality, which he must do to win back the alienated centre of Malaysian politics, where cynicism and anger run deep.

Najib is encountering entrenched opposition within UMNO, particularly from conservatives who favour continued Malay privileges and the flow of patronage to the party faithful. These older UMNO Malays and their supporters in the business world and bureaucracy — especially the police and prosecutors — strongly objected to Anwar being freed and lobbied hard and successfully for the appeal. In the end, Najib will lose the most. It seems he failed to stand up to these factions — again — and lost the public relations gains from Anwar’s acquittal.

The loss of the momentum that Anwar’s freedom initially gave Najib may persuade him to wait until later this year to call an election, which must be held by March 2013. Najib must gamble that the electoral climate will improve by this time. But the economy could slow and more political scandals could emerge — rampant corruption involving UMNO politicians has already hurt his government.

Free to campaign, Anwar will lift the spirits of the three-party opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition. But he is looking and sounding tired, and his own People’s Justice Party is rife with factionalism and squabbling. Although Anwar said recently: ‘My gut tells me we will win [the election]’, most analysts believe he will fall short, even if not by much.

While the opposition will surely live to fight another day, Najib may not have it so easy, even if he wins. Only the recovery of a two-thirds parliamentary majority will ensure his continued leadership of UMNO and Malaysia. Failing this, Najib could face pressure to step aside if he loses more seats, a fate that befell Abdullah Badawi, his predecessor.

Barry Wain is Writer-in-Residence at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore.

1)    11. 00 – 2.00 ptg – Rumah Terbuka Sambutan Tahun Baru Cina

            Lokasi: Lapangan Letak Kereta Sutera Mall, Skudai, Johor Bahru

2)    4.30 – 6.30 ptg – Hi-Tea Bersama Rakyat

            Lokasi : Rumah Pangsa Sri Alam, Pasir Gudang

3)    9.00 – 12.00 mlm – Majlis Kesyukuran dan Ceramah Umum

             Lokasi : Felda Ulu Tebrau, Ulu Tiram

4)    9.00 – 12.00 mlm – Ceramah Perdana – Demi Rakyat

             Lokasi: Felda Cahaya Baru, Masai

5)    Penceramah:

i)                   YB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim

ii)                 YB Sallehuddin Ayub

iii)               YBhg Dato’ Seri Chua Jui Meng

iv)               YB Tien Chua

v)                 YBhg Mazlan Aliman

Merujuk kepada komen Fuad Zakarshi (UM & BH 8 Februari 2012) yang mencadangkan agar saya ditarbiyah semula atas sebab enggan memberi komen terhadap Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim atas isu negara Israel. Ia sesuatu yang jelas tersesat.

Saya amat kesal atas pemikiran sekular seorang timbalan menteri juga bekas seorang guru Yayasan Anda di bawah bumbung ABIM yang dikatakan pernah menyokong kepimpinan Anwar Ibrahim kelihatan begitu dungu dalam menilai mana satu yang benar dan mana pula yang salah.

Sepatutnya sebagai seorang yang pernah mengagumi Anwar Ibrahim dan pernah duduk sebumbung Yayasan Anda/Markaz ABIM sepatutnya sudah tahu permainan kotor media tajaan Barat (WSJ) itu yang kerjanya untuk menjatuh kredibliti seorang yang tidak sebulu dengan Israel.

Begitu juga akhbar Barat dan pro-Barat juga yang acapkali mengulang-ulang kes liwat (menuduh Anwar) atas sebab untuk memalukan hamba Allah ini.

Apakah hak Fuad Zakarshi mencadang saya ditarbiyah semula? Sedang beliau sendiri sudah dilihat gagal memahami prinsip tarbiyah. Kalau benar dia memahami tarbiyah, masakan boleh membuat respon atas fakta yang diputar oleh WSJ, hantu media Barat yang sentiasa bertindak untuk memecah belah umat Islam. Logikkah saya mengulas atas fakta yang belum pasti benar kerana ia bukan dari sumber pertama.

Sebaiknya Fuad dapat berjumpa sendiri Anwar jika benar ingin mencari pencerahan. Kerana Anwar pernah jadi ketuanya.

Justeru adalah sesuai kalau dia ingin mencari kebenaran, baik sahaja pergi beribadat di masjid. Tapi bagi seorang yang mendokong ideologi kebangsaan sekular, sudah tentu tidak sesuai mencari kebenaran di masjid.

Saya cadangkan lebih baik mencari kebenaran di bilik tandas. Kerana dalam tandas sudah tentu sesuai––banyak syaitan dan iblis yang boleh merangsang fikirannya––menjadi waras selari dengan otak sekular.

Maka, tak payahlah asak dan menyibuk untuk mentarbiyah semula orang lain. Kerana asas tarbiyah itu hendaklah dipaksikan dengan keredahaan Allah.

Mana ada hak bagi manusia seumpama Fuad Zakarshi untuk mentarbiyah orang lain, sedangkan dia sendiri sedang menganut ideologi yang bercanggah dengan keredhaan Allah SWT.

Pengarah strategi PKR, Rafizi Ramli berkata, kenyataan Menteri Pertanian, Datuk Seri Noh Omar yang mempertahankan National Feedlot Corporation di Parlimen menjadi titik penting dalam isu berkenaan.

Selepas kenyataan itulah, beliau menerima satu salinan buku tunai berhubung projek fidlot tersebut melalui e-mel, kata Rafizi dalam satu wawancara dengan Malaysiakini minggu lalu.

Katanya, serangan PKR sebelum itu hanyalah berhubung
pengunegarahan projek kepada anggota keluarga menteri, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, yang tidak mempunyai pengalaman dalam bidang ternakan lembu.

Isu utama yang ditonjolkan PKR sebelum itu juga melibatkan prestasi projek berkenaan yang menurutnya tidak mencapai sasaran.

“Jika Noh Omar (kiri) tidak pergi ke Parlimen dan kata 8,000 lebih
lembu itu satu kejayaan nasional, (isu itu) mungkin mati di situ saja,” katanya.

Selepas kenyataan Noh Omar pada awal November itu, Rafizi berkata kemudiannya menerima salinan penyata yang menyenaraikan bayaran tunai itu daripada seorang yang tidak dikenalinya.

“NFC berkeras untuk mengetahui siapakah pemberi maklumat itu kerana mereka tidak mahu pendedahan lanjut.

“Tapi daripada cara email itu ditulis, (saya tahu pemberi maklumat itu) bukanlah kartel (daging) atau pekerja yang tidak puas hati,” katanya yang tidak mengenali individu berkenaan.

Sebaik sahaja beliau menerima buku tunai itu, Rafizi berkata, beliau kemudiannya menyemak senarai berkenaan untuk mengesan pembayaran yang diragui.

“Bayaran untuk kondominium, dan juga kepada pemaju hartanah mewah tidak… masuk akal dengan syarikat seperti itu,” katanya.

Selepas itulah PKR mengetahui mengenai pembelian hartanah, termasuk kondominium mewah di Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

“Kita sudah tahu perkara ini apabila kita mendapat buku tunai itu tetapi kita turun (untuk periksa). Saya rasa kami ambil masa
dua hingga tiga minggu sebelum sidang akhbar pertama untuk mendedahkannya.”

Katanya, 50 peratus daripada usaha itu merupakan kerja-kerja yang dijalankan untuk mengesahkan pembelian tersebut, termasuk melawat sendiri hartanah tersebut dan juga membuat semakan melalui sumber awam.

“Jadi 15-20 peratus lagi itu sebenarnya mengikut naluri dan risiko yang kami ambil… kerana jika anda mahu dapatkan dokumen lengkap, saya tidak fikir anda akan dapat apa-apa,” katanya.