Malaysia Chronicle
Yes, Mr Prime Minister you are right. Pakatan Rakyat is the Pied Piper of Malaysia not Hamelin. Let me refresh your memory, it seems to be a bit rusty.
In the town of Hamelin in Germany, the town was infested with rats and the people had to hire a man to get rid of these rodents. This man then used his magical pipe to lure the rats into a river, but the townsfolk reneged on their promise and refused to pay him. So in revenge, on a Sunday when all the folks were in a church, he played his pipe and lured all the children away to teach the people a lesson.
So that is the story of the Pied Piper, Mr Prime Minister. But the twist in Malaysia is different because the real pest here is you and your Government, who have been fleecing the people for past fifty-odd years.
Fresh start followed by destruction
It was a fresh start in 1957 when we achieved our independence as one nation with all the races on equal ground, but today your 1Malaysia has destroyed the very epitome of the one nation that was created 55 years ago.
Then in 1963, the Malaysia that was created with addition of Sabah and Sarawak – the land below the wind and land of the horn bills – was a pristine land with rich heritage, diverse and harmonious people, as well as enormous natural wealth. But that wealth has since been robbed, pillaged and plundered by irresponsible greedy leaders appointed by your Government.
Even the citizens of the states were short-changed by your appointed leaders who opened the doors to millions of foreigners, giving them citizen status and thus depriving local legal citizens of a decent living.
Mahathirism sounded the death knell
From 1982, the start of the Era of Mahathirism or the Malaysia Boleh Era, we saw and witnessed the euphoria of a false growth, the birth of cronyism and corruption, the emergence of Government Linked Companies and indiscriminate privatization for cronies. It was big time robbery and to cover it the Judiciary was stifled, the Police and the Attorney General’s office became puppets of the Puppet Master.
An illusion was created to show the people that the growth was immense, buildings, huge sky scrappers, new highways with tolls to burden the people, and a Vision 2020 that will never materialize to fool the people. This Era of Mahathirism plunged us to the bottom with its falsehoods and lies.
Badawism set us into hibernation
Then we went into hibernation when Abdullah Badawi took over from Mahathir. The Era of Badawism made us sleep like him. Although, the citizens gave him a good mandate to celebrate the departure of the Puppet Master and also in the hope of seeing changes being finally made, the Sleeping Beauty PM failed to live up to his promise.
The Puppet Master also made life difficult for the Sleeping Beauty and this resulted in the latter’s ouster. It was then that you were picked to replace Badawi and you gave us 1 Malaysia. Initially, there was hope and high expectation – just like for Badawi.
1 Malaysia or 1 Malay, 1 Chinese, 1 Indian …
But soon the people realized that 1 Malaysia was to divide Malaysians into 1 Malay, 1 Chinese, 1 Indian and 1 Every Other Race in this country. Even your Deputy says that he is Malay first and Malaysian second, so how can your 1 Malaysia survive in a divided country.
Now we have new issues in hand , a Cow Head and a Cow Gate scandal, both of which you condone. We have Churches raided and razed, we have Mosques desecrated with pig heads and paint, we have dangerous accusations being flung around of Christians proselytizing Muslims but nothing is done to punish the accusers despite their flimsy evidence.
We also have the racist Perkasa and Ibrahim Ali, who can get away with anything with the backing of the Puppet Master. And not a word will you utter to defend the minority, whom you are duty-bound to protect. What can we conclude but the obvious – you are also in cahoots with them.
And at your own personal level, don’t forget the Birkin bags, the Diamond ring, the taxpayers-paid private family holidays, shopping sprees and misuse of Public Funds on Personal Agenda such as your daughter’s engagement party. Not to mention the still unexplained murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu and the RM570million Scorpene submarines kickback.
The Pied Piper of Malaysia
So you see Mr Prime Minister, we do need a Pied Piper to get rid of all this evil. We are already hearing the tune from the magical pipe that the Pakatan Rakyat and its conductor Anwar Ibrahim, are blowing.
We are going to follow in droves to the polling stations soon to ensure an end to your Barisan National rule. So Pakatan, you are indeed the Pied Piper that the Prime Minister said you were.
And Pakatan should be proud of it because behind you will follow millions of Malaysians who will place their hope and aspirations in your leaders.
This then is the story of the Pied Piper – not of Hamelin – but of Malaysia. Not 1 Malaysia – but just Malaysia, and that is good enough.
It is a fundamental right for everyone who is charged in court to have a fair trial, and for a trial to be fair, both sides must have competent lawyers. But if the accused can’t afford a competent lawyer, the state must provide one. Of course, those with money can engage good defense lawyers. But for those who can’t, they will just have to swallow the unfairness of the system.
It is the same with education. Everyone in Malaysia has a right to education. Education is one of the necessities of life and nations which have developed have the best education systems are not surprisingly world leaders in almost every arena. As long as someone wants to get an education and is qualified to attend a certain course, then he or she must be given the right to pursue that knowledge. Is it fair if just because a person does not have the money, he or she is denied education while someone who is mediocre but has the money gets it?
Therefore providing education to its people is a must for any self-respecting government. It must ensure the right priorities in its spending priorities so that enough funds are allocated for education. The quality of education is also of utmost importance and the subjects taught must be relevant and improved with the times.
The UMNO-BN government has not been responsible
Unfortunately the UMNO-BN government has not been up to the mark in its responsibility to provide education to the people. Education in Malaysia has always been lopsided, controversial, inconsistent and getting more expensive by the day. There have been many arguments and discussions on the Malaysian education system but until now, there is no real direction at all.
“The bottom line is that education from the primary level to university level should be free,” Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim said at a seminar over the weekend.
“And when we talk about abolishing PTPTN, we are talking about free education for all especially the poor. Not about using Petronas money to repay the exiting PTPTN loans.”
Indeed, the most nagging problem facing Malaysian graduates today is the PTPTN, an acronym for the National Higher Education Fund Corporation, which has just been granted an additional RM6 bil to be lent to students for 2012 and 2013. “As at Feb 29, a total of 1.9 million borrowers had received funding from PTPTN to a tune of RM43.6 billion,” Khaled Nordin, the minister of Higher Education, announced over the weekend.
But PTPTN loans have not gone down well with the people. These are ‘imposed’ by the UMNO-BN government on those who wish to further their studies, with many citizens believing that education is the responsibility of the government and should be free.
To offer the carrot of higher education by building so many new universities, but then only allowing Malaysians the opportunity to study in these places if they can afford it is unfair and ridiculous. Obviously, those who cannot afford will have to assume PTPTN loans and this leaves young graduates with a ton of debt the moment they begin their working lives.
Hence the unhappiness and threat by youth and students leaders to stage a protest on April 14. The fact is, our graduates are now facing great uncertainties over their future. Getting a job is the first and main difficulty. How then to repay the PTPTN? Even those lucky enough to find employment have problems as they have to juggle their student loan installments with having a family, caring for parents, housing loans, car loans and other necessities of life. All these need money, where is the government when it is needed, where is the promised social safety net?
Regret
To be fair, when the scheme was first launched, it was welcomed by youths hungry for education. But after graduation, they learned the hard way that as long as their PTPTN loans were not settled, they were unable to enjoy peace of mind. In the end, most felt that their main purpose in joining the work force was just to repay the PTPTN loans.
Malaysia students began to ask, does not the government have a responsibility to raise the skills and knowledge levels of its people. Why must students pay their way? After all, when foreign universities get permits to operate here, they pay fees and annual taxes to the government – should not these be re-distributed to Malaysian students? Is this not part of nation building? Is the UMNO-BN government making money from the uncompleted cycle and siphoning away the funds midway?
Additionally, as Anwar has pointed even countries which are not blessed with natural resources such as Turkey have free education up to university level.
Many of those who took the PTPTN now regret taking the loans. Firstly, they have to start paying back the PTPTN loans 6 months after graduation whether employed or not. If not they will be blacklisted and penalties will be imposed due to late payment.
Of course, there are many who have balked at the unfairness of the conditions and refused to pay. Some are taking advantage of the situation and trying to avoid the responsibility for their loans. Some who can afford just refuse to pay because they prefer to spend their salary on other items. But by and large, the majority are genuine cases.
UMNO-BN has tried to provide different repayment schemes to make it easier and more flexible for the graduates but because of the sinking economy – again another problem that UMNO-BN is responsible for – salary increments just do not match or occur frequently enough to compensate for the graduates increasing spending burden.
Big rally on April 14
The tensions and frustration have culminated in students group Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM) deciding to hold a rally on April 14 to demand the immediate abolition of the PTPTN loans, a scheme they believe to be a burden, a social like opium, to university undergraduates.
Khaled, the higher education minister, was quick to respond by saying that if the PTPTN is abolished, Malaysia will go bankrupt. Yes, it is an odd logic. But to Khaled, if the government made education free, the private institutions will have to shut down as everyone would want to enter the public universities. He further pointed out that the government will have to build more universities, which it can’t afford. Moreover, Malaysia will not be the centre of learning for this region as envisaged.
“Our country’s tax revenues were RM169 billion last year. Under this year’s Budget, RM50.1 billion was allocated for the education sector, but only RM12.1 billion was designated for public universities. On the other hand, we see the total amount of loans approved by PTPTN was only RM6.1 billion, so in what sense can the government say they can’t afford to scrap it?” said Khaled.
Social groups immediately denounced and poked holes in his argument. Malaysia Reformist Student Club (Karisma) secretary-general Mohd Hafizuddin Abdul Mukti noted that even Sri Lanka and Mauritius have adopted a free education policy, alongside European countries such as Norway, Sweden and Scotland.
“Malaysia, as a country with rich natural resources such as petroleum and timber, has no excuse in not granting free education,” said Hafizuddin.
Real solutions needed, not ad-hoc patch-ups
Other Umno-BN arguments include that with free education, the students will not perform and many will take advantage just to waste time and delay joining the work force. This is indeed a very negative take on a nation’s youth. If so, it only confirms the UMNO-BN has done a lousy job in developing its society that the youth can be such irresponsible loafers.
Why can’t Malaysian authorities take the middle path? Some suggestions include the government converting the PTPTN loans to scholarship if the students can achieve certain marks, say 3.0 CGPA.
The PTPTN loans should also be interest-free and without any administrative charges as all the work done in administering the scheme should have already been budgeted for in the allocations to the Education and Finance ministries respectively. Other suggestions include, giving discounts if payments are on time and paid early.
But by and large, these are only ad-hoc measures to stem the cauldron that has been simmering for decades from exploding. It is due not to the quality of the youth in the country but to the management and leadership skills of the UMNO-BN. Above all, it has to do with integrity and corruption. If Malaysia was transparently and cleanly governed, there is no reason why education up to university level cannot be free.
In short, the UMNO-BN government which has mismanaged almost everything for the past 5 decades must resolve the issues; not just giving excuses and simplified justifications. And we can see with the latest additional RM6 bil additional allocation, UMNO-BN is starting to finally realize that the youth are much smarter than they have been given credit for. They won’t be fooled so easily.
If Anwar’s Pakatan Rakyat takes over the federal government, they have promised to scrap PTPTN. Given the response so far, UMNO-BN will have to do much more to match the Pakatan in word and deed. For example, it doesn’t make sense to increase the allocation when the scheme is already so unpopular, is it? More genuine long-term structural reforms are certainly called for, not excuses and flimsy short-term patches.
Jika Turki yang tiada sesen pun hasil minyak mampu memberi pendidikan percuma kepada rakyatnya, tiada sebab Malaysia yang mencatat untung RM90 bilion setahun dari sumber petroleum tidak berupaya melakukan kebajikan sama.
Ketua Pembangkang, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, berkata Recep Tayyib Erdogan memberi pendidikan percuma kepada rakyat dari peringkat rendah hingga universiti walaupun baru tiga penggal memerintah Turki.
“Bila kita sebut mansuh PTPTN, isu utama yang harus difokus ialah pendidikan percuma untuk semua rakyat terutama golongan miskin. Bukan isu nak pindahkan wang Petronas bayar PTPTN.
“Prinsip asasnya ialah pendidikan percuma dari peringkat rendah hingga ke universiti,” katanya pada dialog bertajuk ‘Pemberdayaan Kebajikan dan Ekonomi Rakyat’ anjuran Pejabat Penasihat Ekonomi Selangor di Subang Jaya 31 Mac lalu.
Beliau mengakui PTPTN adalah isu paling popular yang diaju kepadanya termasuk di facebook dan twitter.
Walaupun PTPTN dimansuh, Anwar berkata, Pakatan Rakyat memberi jaminan tidak akan membuang kakitangan di perbadanan itu kerana mereka akan diserap ke Kementerian Pelajaran dan Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi.
“Walaupun pegawai ramai, kita juga tetap pastikan khidmat atau mutu kerja mereka bertambah baik untuk rakyat,” katanya.
Mengenai pemberian 20 peratus royalti minyak kepada Sabah, Sarawak, Terengganu dan Kelantan seperti yang termaktub dalam Buku Jingga, Anwar berkata ia tidak akan menjejaskan negeri lain.
Ini kerana, katanya, 80 peratus hasil minyak itu mampu menampung perbelanjaan negara dengan memastikan royalti diurus mengikut pengurusan yang baik.
“Keutamaan royalti 20 peratus difokus kepada golongan miskin. Apabila kita menyebut kemiskinan ia merangkumi sama ada Melayu, Dayak, Iban, Kadazan, Cina dan India.
“Pada masa sama, kita memperketat prosedur kewangan selain pengurusannya dijalankan individu yang bertanggungjawab, amanah dan berintegriti,” katanya
Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has admitted that it would be difficult to predict the results of the 13th general election due to the “confusing” signals received from the ground.
“What is certain, it won’t be easy for BN to get two-thirds majority this time. The opposition now is not like that of the past, and the current situation is rather confusing,” Bernama reported Mahathir as saying.
Such an acknowledgement must have been hard for Mahathir to make, given that the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition is led by Anwar Ibrahim, whom he has tried hard to chop down to size and even oust from the political arena completely.
In 1998, fearing Anwar’s popularity and growing clout with the Malays, Mahathir threw trumped-up sodomy and corruption charges at his his former deputy and succeeded in jailing Anwar for 6 years. It was only after Mahathir retired that the Federal Court could summon enough courage to overthrow the charges and acquit Awar.
Now 64, Anwar is poised to lead the Pakatan into its second general election as a coalition. Although denied formal registration by the Registrar of Societies, the Pakatan parties of PKR, PAS and DAP have signed a Common Policy Framework and agreed on a joint manifesto – the Buku Jingga – for GE-13.Meanwhile, GE-13 is expected to be held before the end of this year.
Gaining strength
Since the 12th general election in 2008, the Pakatan has been gaining from strength to strength, with two of the four states it governs – Selangor and Penang – praised by the Auditor General as the best managed. Both Penang and Selangor have also drawn most FDI, trouncing the BN-ruled states.
A resurgent Anwar and Pakatan are now rated as having an even chance on improving on their 2008 electoral performance, with many pundits predicting they might even wrest the federal government from Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Mahathir apparently shares this view, saying that the various assumptions made about the support for BN were fluid, with some people saying it was increasing and others saying otherwise. Mahathir did not point the finger at anyone, but a day ago, he called on Najib to allow ‘outsiders’ to contest for seats under the Umno ticket.
Mahathir lamented the shortage of ‘smart’ Malays in Umno, a situation that perhaps he is most to blame for due to his refusal to soften his hardline stance during his 22-year rule from 1981 to 2003. Indeed, during his tenure, Malaysia experience huge ‘brain drain” including from the Malay community, but Mahathir had always dismissed the issue as minor and with a ‘let them leave if they wish’.
“None of Mahathir policies contributed to building a succession line in Umno, so what is there to say now. And the damage was not only to Umno but extended to the overall economy, where Malaysia lost talent beyond what it could afford. The effects on the economy are being played out now and if not reversed soon by fresh policies and reforms, we can expect further all-encompassing deterioration,” Ramon Navaratnam, the chairman of the Centre for Public Policy Studies, told Malaysia Chronicle.
Najib failed to deliver
In recent weeks, former Finance minister Daim Zainuddin had predicted BN would easily win in only three states – Johor, Melaka and Pahang. A large portion of the blame has been directed at Najib for failing to lead Umno-BN out of its quagmire.
Umno appointed Najib as their president in 2009 after forcing his predecessor Abdullah Badawi into early retirement for losing 5 states out of 13 to the Pakatan as well as the BN’s long-held two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Mahathir and other Umno leaders had hoped that Najib would reverse the slide and regain the crucial two-thirds majority, which would allow them to amend key laws to stay in power for perhaps a few more decades. But Najib’s clumsy political maneuvers were soon rejected by the people, who now see him as a fraud.
In his comments, it was telling for Daim to point out that if Najib failed to improve on Badawi’s results, he would have to step down in favor of either his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin or a ‘new challenger’. So far, no dark horse has emerged but bets are on that it could be Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, who has lambasted Najib for his uneven-handed policies and lack of leadership.
During Najib’s tenure which began in April 2009, Malaysia suffered its worst bouts of racial and religious intolerance. Extremist groups such as Perkasa and Jati were fostered and allowed to flourish. At the same time, Najib preached policies of moderation to the West. But it looks like even they have found him out, with the influential Washington Post slamming him as a “champion of double-talk”.
Nonetheless, even with his mandate to rule expiring in March 2013, Najib has continued with the same strategies of gutter politicking against Anwar, using racism and religious bigotry to scare the Malays into voting for Umno so that it can ‘protect’ them from the non-Malays.
Meawhile, the economy remains neglected and soft due to Najib’s frequent overseas trips which have been criticized for burning a hole in taxpayers’ pockets.
Corruption remains at a record high, with Malaysia slipping 4 spots to 60 in the 2011 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. Malaysia scored 4.3 compared to New Zealand, the least corrupt at 9.5, and Somalia and North Korea who each scored 1.0, making them the two most corrupt nations in the survey. In ASEAN, Singapore scored 9.3 and Brunei 6.3.
Ahli Parlimen Lembah Pantai, YB Nurul Izzah Anwar akan mengadakan satu sidang media berkaitan MASALAH DI ANTARA PENDUDUK DAN PEMAJU PEMBANGUNAN FLAT KG KERINCHI.
Dijemput wartawan dan jurugambar untuk membuat liputan sidang media tersebut seperti dibawah:
Tarikh: JUMAAT, 30 Mac 2012
Masa: 10.00 pagi
Tempat: Dataran Kerinchi, Blok F, Flat 4 Tingkat PKNS Kg Kerinchi
Sebarang pertanyaan boleh dikemukakan kepada Pengarah Biro Aduan & Kemasyarakatan, Izhar Yusof dan Setiausaha Parlimen, Ridzuan Othman.
“Demi Rakyat”
KEADILAN mempunyai bukti kukuh termasuklah laporan, surat menyurat dan dokumen-dokumen lain yang mengesahkan sikap talam dua muka Umno yang secara diam-diam merestui hubungan dua hala di antara Malaysia dan Israel sedang ia menyerang Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim sebagai ejen Israel.
Hubungan tidak rasmi di antara Umno dan kerajaan atau badan-badan Israel bukanlah perkara baru. Mantan Perdana Menteri, Tun Mahathir Mohamad menulis surat kepada 3 orang Perdana Menteri Israel yang berasingan menyatakan hasrat beliau yang mewakili Umno untuk menjalin hubungan diplomatik yang normal dengan Israel. Tindakan Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Razak yang melantik APCO yang diketuai tokoh-tokoh yang rapat dengan Israel mengesahkan lagi wujudnya hubungan baik di antara Umno dan Israel.
Malah, sikap ini turut menular di dalam dasar luar negara seperti yang ditentukan oleh Wisma Putra.
Hari ini, KEADILAN akan membongkarkan bagaimana Umno dan pimpinannya mengambil sikap berbaik-baik malah memohon bantuan dari Israel, walaupun secara rasminya Malaysia tidak mempunyai hubungan diplomatik dengan negara tersebut.
Bermula 4 hingga 8 Jun 2012, Malaysia akan menjadi tuan rumah kepada Persidangan Gas Sedunia (World Gas Conference) yang akan berlangsung di Kuala Lumpur. Persidangan ini adalah persidangan terbesar yang akan mengumpulkan syarikat-syarikat minyak dan gas dari seluruh dunia.
Penganjuran Persidangan Gas Sedunia dipilih melalui undi oleh anggota Pertubuhan Gas Antarabangsa (International Gas Union) yang turut dianggotai oleh negara-negara seperti Malaysia, Israel, Russia, Brunei, Indonesia dan banyak negara lain.
KEADILAN boleh mengesahkan bahawa semasa Malaysia melobi untuk mendapatkan hak menganjurkan persidangan ini dalam tahun 2005, Malaysia telah merayu bantuan Israel untuk menyokong cadangan Malaysia menjadi tuan rumah. Malah, Malaysia turut menawarkan secara tidak langsung untuk menguruskan penginapan dan pendaftaran wakil-wakil Israel ke Persidangan IGU di Tianjin, China.
Pendekatan merayu bantuan Israel ini mendapat restu dan atas nasihat Wisma Putra. Penganjurannya pula dikendalikan oleh Persatuan Gas Malaysia yang diwakili oleh PETRONAS dan dinasihati oleh Tun Mahathir. Malah, KEADILAN mempunyai bukti bahawa Tun Mahathir dan Wisma Putra sedia maklum mengenai pendekatan Malaysia merayu sokongan dari Israel untuk mendapatkan hak penganjuran tetapi merestui sahaja pendekatan ini.
Bersama-sama ini disertakan satu surat dari wakil Malaysia kepada wakil Israel yang mengesahkan bahawa Wisma Putra telah merestui pendekatan merayu bantuan dan sokongan Israel demi mendapatkan hak penganjuran sebuah persidangan antarabangsa.
Sikap Umno dan pimpinan mereka yang menentukan dasar Wisma Putra adalah bertentangan dengan keinginan rakyat Malaysia yang tidak mahu ada sebarang hubungan diplomatik sama ada secara langsung atau tidak langsung dengan Israel. Malah, pendedahan kali ini membongkarkan hipokrasi tertinggi Umno dan pimpinan mereka dalam isu hubungan dengan Israel kerana bukan sahaja mereka menyatakan hasrat untuk mengadakan hubungan diplomatik, malah terbukti mereka pernah melutut merayu sokongan dari Israel.
KEADILAN mendesak penjelasan dari Wisma Putra dan Tun Mahathir Mohamad mengenai pendirian yang telah diambil sehingga merestui pendekatan pihak penganjur Persidangan Gas Sedunia yang merayu bantuan dan sokongan Israel, kerana ini bertentangan dengan solidariti rakyat Malaysia dengan perjuangan rakyat Palestin.
KEADILAN akan terus menyiarkan dokumen-dokumen dan surat-menyurat bagi membuktikan bagaimana pimpinan Umno terlibat secara langsung di dalam perkara ini.
DATO’ SAIFUDDIN NASUTION ISMAIL
SETIAUSAHA AGONG KEADILAN
MOHD RAFIZI RAMLI
PENGARAH STRATEGI KEADILAN
Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will go into upcoming polls fighting a class war on behalf of the lower classes whom Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said were being held at the mercy of Barisan Nasional (BN) cronies.
The opposition leader told a crowd of more than 2,000 at a ceramah in Ampang, a former Umno stronghold, that PR was facing attacks in BN-controlled media because cronies of the ruling coalition feared cuts into their “obscene profits” if there was a change in government.
“This battle, this election is about the masses, the workers, the low-income earners against the rich cronies of Umno,” he said.
“Every day I am attacked. Who is fighting me? Not Najib or Muhyiddin. It is the tycoons who fear their profits will be cut,” the former deputy prime minister said, referring to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Although he accused several Malaysian billionaires such as those who controlled the Genting and YTL groups, he zeroed in on tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary’s monopoly of the sugar and rice market.
“Am I glad Malays control certain facets of the economy? Yes, but not to burden others,” the PKR de facto leader said.
“Under Syed Mokhtar, sugar prices are four times higher. You who support Umno, your family members in the paddy fields are being squeezed by your leaders.”
Anwar’s plea to voters comes after a survey conducted last month by independent pollsters Merdeka Center found that Najib’s popularity had surged by 10 percentage points to 69 per cent largely on the back of 78 per cent support from households earning under RM1,500 a month.
The centre credited this largely to Putrajaya’s RM500 cash handout to households with a monthly income of under RM3,000 under the Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia programme.
Najib’s predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s approval rating was 71 per cent before the 2008 polls but BN lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority and four state governments.
Anwar also pointed out to the crowd last night that it was PR that fought for minimum wage and the abolition of the Higher Education Fund (PTPTN), which he said “burdened poor Malays and made them beggars”.
“These young Malays earning less than RM800 a month who are supporting Umno… it is not Umno that is fighting for minimum wage, it is us. We want to cancel PTPTN, not Umno.
“We want to reduce fuel, electricity prices. But Umno says giving free water like Selangor will make the government bankrupt,” Anwar added, referring to the PKR-led administration’s subsidy of the 20 cubic metres of water to each household in the Klang Valley.
Najib has indicated that elections are near although his government’s mandate expires only next year.
Cubalah kita bayangkan jika anda adalah seorang pemilik sebuah syarikat perniagaan dan apakah yang akan anda lakukakan jika sekiranya ada seorang “pekerja” anda yang tidak pernah mempamerkan prestasi yang memuaskan sepanjang tempoh penggajiannya dengan syarikat anda? Kenapa? “Pekerja” yang prestasinya yang tidak baik selama ini sudah tentunya akan menerima tindakan yang sewajarnya, sama ada penggantungan kerja ataupun penamatan perkhidmatan. Dan ini adalah merupakan suatu keadaan yang hampir sama sekali apabila tibanya pilihanraya umum ke-13 (PRU13) tidak lama lagi.
Kita semua selaku rakyat dan pengundi umum adalah merupakan “majikan” kepada kerajaan yang dipilih dan oleh itu, kita akan menilai semula prestasi kerajaan apabila PRU menjelang pada setiap lima tahun. Di dalam PRU 2008 yang lalu, rakyat telahpun memberikan satu peringatan dan amaran keras kepada kerajaan persekutuan BN agar berubah atau menghadapi penyingkiran di dalam PRU yang akan datang.
Namum demikian, nampaknya rakyat jelata dilihat akan memberikan BN satu lagi peluang apabila kerajaan BN tanpa segan silu merasuah kita semua, selaku “majikan” dengan pemberian RM500 seorang, permohonan maaf yang tidak begitu ikhlas dan pelbagai-bagai janji-janji manis kononnya mereka akan berubah menjadi lebih baik.
Jika sekiranya amalan ini berlaku di sesebuah syarikat swasta di mana seorang pekerja yang cuba merasuah majikan untuk terus bekerja di situ, sudah tentu pekerja tersebut akan disingkirkan serta-merta kerana cubaan merasuah majikan. Perkara yang sama inilah yang kini cuba dilakukan oleh kerajaan BN terhadap rakyat jelata.
Apakah jenis “pekerja” ini? Dari masa ke semasa, kerajaan BN sering merayu rakyat agar mereka diberikan peluang dan kita senantiasa memberi laluan yang begitu mudah untuk kerajaan BN untuk kembali berkuasa pada setiap PRU. Akan tetapi, BN sering memungkiri janji-janjinya dengan tanggapan rakyat akan mudah lupa. Ini sememangnya sikap para pemimpin BN, seringkali menabur pelbagai janji dan akhirnya memungkirinya apabila PRU berlalu.
Jika anda adalah “majikan” di dalam keadaan di atas, sudah tnetu “pekerja” sebegini akan disingkirkan dan digantikan denhan pekerja baru yang lebih berkebolehan. Inilah yang kita perlu tunjukkan kepada kerajaan BN siapakah yang sebenarnya Bos di negara ini.
Dan dengan kad laporan prestasi BN inilah akan dijadikan sebagai satu daya pengukur di dalam persidangan parlimen yang telahpun berlangsung dari 12 Mac hingga 12 April dan berdasarkan keadaan yang terkini, sidang parlimen ini mungkin menjadi seesi yang terakhir buat BN.
Isu-isu hangat
Antara isu-isu yang dijangka “akan cuba dibangkitkan” oleh ahli-ahli parlimen gabungan pembangkang, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) adalah seperti yang berikut:
1) Skandal kondo-lembu NFC,
2) Penetapan kadar gaji minimum,
3) Skim kesihatan 1Care,
4) Pembinaan kilang penapisan sisa toksik Lynas,
5) Kos Lebuhraya Ekspres Kinrara-Damansara (KIDEX) yang semakin meningkat,
6) Janji BN untuk membina enam buah sekolah jenis kebangsaan (Tamil) yang masih tinggal janji,
7) Pembiakan nyamuk yang diubahsuai secara genetik,
8) Penyenaraian saham Felda.
Perkataan “akan cuba dibangkitkan” digunakan pada perenggan yang lalu kerana di kebanyakan seesi persidangan parlimen yang lalu, ahli-ahli parlimen PR tidak diberikan masa yang mencukupi untuk mengemukakan soalan ataupun membahaskan sesuatu perkara demi kepentingan rakyat dan negara.
Pertama, siasatan terhadap skandal kondo-lembu NFC itu telah mengambil masa yang begitu lama sekali di dalam menentukan sama ada para pengarah syarikat berkenaan harus didakwa atau sebaliknya. Malah pihak polis dan pejabat peguam negara saling tolak menolak hasil kertas siasatan sebelum ini. Adakah ia merupakan suatu taktik kerajaan BN untuk melengahkan masa dan keadaan agar rakyat akan mudah melupakan kes tersebut? Akan tetapi, para pemimpin PR terus berusaha memberikan tekanan yang menyeluruh terhadap kes tersebut yang akhirnya berjaya dikemukakan ke mahkamah untuk didakwa para pesalahnya.
Kita tengoklah apa yang telah berlaku pada kes skandal Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) yang menyebabkan kerugian berjuta-juta Ringgit. Walaupun bekas presiden MCA dan bekas menteri pengangkutan Dr Ling Liong Sik yang kini sedang didakwa berkaitan kes berkenaan, namum, satu demi satu bukti-bukti skandal dilesap atau dihilangkan dengan begitu sahaja agar kerajaan BN tidak akan menerima tamparan akibat daripada siri perbicaraan tersebut.
Sementara isu yang kedua pula adalah mengenai penetapan kadar gaji minima yang kini hangat diperkatakan ramai. Apabila PR mengemukakan cadangan gaji minimanya pada kadar RM1100 sebulan melalui pembentangan Bajet Alternatif 2012 ppada 4 Oktober 2011 yang lalu, para pemimpin BN dengan lantas mentertawakan cadangan tersebut bagaikan jenaka.
Kini tiba giliran BN pula yang akan mengemukakan cadangan gaji minimanya pada kadar di antara RM880 hingga RM900 sebulan yang dianggap rakyat jelata terlalu rendah berbanding dengan kenaikan kadar inflasi yang begitu mendadak. Seperti biasa golongan pekerja akan terus menjadi mangsa. Suatu perseimbangan kadar di antara majikan dan pekerja perlu diwujudkan bagi menangani masalah inflasi yang kini semakin meningkat agar suatu kadar gaji yang adil dapat dilaksanakan dan tidak membebankan kedua-dua belah pihak.
Isu yang ketiga melibatkan skim insurans kesihatan 1Care yang penuh dengan misteri. Adalah difahamkan bahawa 10 peratus daripada gaji pekerja swasta akan dipotong pada setiap bulan untuk disalurkan kepada 1Care. Menurut BN, insurans sedemikian adalah untuk membantu mereka yang memerlukan rawatan bagi penyakit-penyakit yang serius. Tetapi, apakah yang akan berlaku jka sekiranya wang di dalam 1Care itu tidak digunakan oleh mereka-mereka yang sentiasa sihat dan tidak mempunyai sebarang penyakit? Ahli-ahli parlimen PR kini sedang memberikan tekanan yang menyeluruh terhadap timbalan presiden MCA dan menteri kesihatan Liow Tiong Lai agar mengemukakan maklumat yang lebih terperinci, namum sehingga hari ini Liow masih membisu dan enggan menggulas lanjut.
Kontroversi yang seterusnya adalah pembinaan kilang pemprosesan sisa toksik Lynas di Gebeng, Pahang. Sebelum projek pembinaan itu dilaksanakan kerajaan BN telah merahsiakan tujuan pembinaan kilang itu daripada rakyat. Namun, akhirnya rakyat tetap juga mengetahuinya dan keluar beramai-ramai untuk membantah projek Lynas tersebut. Apakah yang telah berlaku pada slogan “Rakyat Didahulukan” uang sering dilaung-laungkan oleh perdana menteri dan presiden Umno Najib Razak sebelum ini?
Kalaulah Lynas itu merupakan satu projek yang selamat dan berfaedah seperti yang didakwa oleh Najib, kenapa pula merahsiakannya daripada rakyat sebelum ini? Dan kenapa pula kilang tersebut tidak dibina di atas tanah Australia itu sendiri oleh kerana syarikat itu milik pelabur Australia?
Walau macam manapun, ahli-ahli parlimen PR akan tetap meneruskan tekanan mereka di dalam parlimen agar kilang tersebut segera ditutup demi memastikan keselamatan dan kesihatan rakyat jelata tidak tidak tergadai begitu sahaja demi keuntungan sesetengah pihak yang didokong oleh BN.
Bagi projek Lebihraya Ekspres Kinrara-Damansara (KIDEX), kita juga dapati bahawa kos projek pembinaan tersebut telah meningkat secara mendadak sehingga mencecah RM2 bilion dan persoalannya adalah kenapa projek pembinaan tersebut tidak ditawarkan melalui proses tender terbuka seperti yang diwajibkan mengikut undang-undang?
Selain daripada itu, kerajaan BN sebelum ini telah berjanji kepada masyarakat India bahawa 6 buah Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil (SRJKT) akan dibina tidak lama lagi, namum sehingga pada hari ini, janji tersebut hanya tinggal janji dan kerajaan BN masih tetap menjanjikannya tetapi tidak memberikan sebarang tarikh perlaksanaan tersebut. Persoalannya adalah bila? Adakah ianya hanya merupakan suatu tipu muslihat agar masyarakat India kembali menyokong BN pada PRU yang akan datang?
Isu yang ketujuh pula adalah berkenaan projek pembiakan sejenis nyamuk yang dibuat secara genetik bagi memerangi ancaman nyamuk aedes, namum tidak ada maklumat terperinci yang dapat dikemukakan oleh kementerian kesihatan bagi memastikan pembiakan baka baru nyamuk tersebut tidak mengamcam orang ramai khususnya kanak-kanak. Apa yang pihak kementerian berikan sehingga pada hari ini adalah hanya maklumat-maklumat yang masih kabur dan tidak jelas.
Cadangan penyenaraian Felda di dalam Bursa Saham oleh kerajaan BN turut menerima bantahan yang begitu hebat daripada para pemimpin PR dan sebilangan besar peneroka Felda itu sendiri yang telah melihat penyenaraian tersebut bakal mengancam kedudukan dan kebajikan mereka sebagai peneroka di masa yang akan datang. Walaupun kerajaan BN sebelum ini telah menjanjikan pulangan yang paling lumayan daripada penyenaraian Felda, namun para peneroka Felda masih tidak berpuashati mengenai maklumat-maklumat urusan tersebut yang dikatakan tidak telus dan kurang jelas serta tidak mudah difahami.
Oleh yang demikian, kajian semua terhadap penyenaraian itu adalah perlu bagi memastikan kebajikan para peneroka Felda ini tidak tergadai dengan begitu sahaja pada masa yang akan datang.
Ketidakseimbangan dalam parlimen
Masalah yang utama sekarang adalah di kebanyakan seesi persidangan parlimen, ahli-ahli parlimen PR selalunya tidak diberikan peluang yang mencukupi bagi membahas dan mengemukakan soalan-soalan yang berkaitan. Selain daripada itu, ramai di antara menteri-menteri kerajaan BN juga gagal atau tidak dapat memberikan jawapan yang sempurna apabila disoal mengenai beberapa perlaksanaan dan projek di bawah kelolaan kementerian masing-masing.
Maklumat mengenai persidangan parlimen yang diperolehi daripada rekod Hansard sering menunjukkan ahli-ahli parlimen BN dan menteri-menteri khususnya daripada Umno suka menunjukkan tingkahlaku yang tidak profesional apabila sedang bersemuka dengan ahli-ahli parlimen PR yang lebih giat menumpukan perhatian mereka terhadap tanggungjawab mereka sebagai ahli parlimen.
Sementara speaker dan timbalan speaker parlimen yang kedua-duanya ahli BN juga asyik menghalang seesi perbahasan yang efektif daripada berjalan dengan lancar khususnya di pihak PR dengan alasan “masa tidak mencukupi” dan pada masa yang sama akan memberikan masa yang lebih panjang kepada ahli-ahli parlimen BN untuk berbahas dan mengemukakan sokongan mereka.
Keadaan tersebut juga telah menyebabkan ketidakseimbangan kuasa di dalam parlimen dan mengakibatkan keseluruhan persidangan tersebut menjadi kurang berkesan dan tidak adil sama sekali pada akhirnya.
Tibalah masa untuk rakyat untuk menunjukkan kepada BN siapakah “majikan” sebenarnya daripada terus dibuli sedemikian. Lebih baik BN ini digantikan dengan seberapa segera yang boleh, agar negara ini dapat kembali ke pangkal jalan demi kepentingan rakyat jelata.
TVRI stesen rasmi Republik Indonesia akan menyiarkan rakaman wawancara khas bersama Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim jam 10:30 malam ini. Program yang bertajuk ‘fokus Internasoinal‘ ini memberi penekanan kepada buku yang pernah ditulis oleh beliau pada tahun 1996 berjudul “Gelombang Kebangkitan Asia”.
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