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Sidenotes

Feb

Inevitable Defeat The Reason Why Najib Fears GE-13 And Keeps Delaying it

By Anwar Ibrahim 2 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Sidenotes and Umno

Malaysia Chronicle

The next General Election, the 13th, is widely expected to be called on paper between May this year and April/May next year when the five-year term of the present Parliament ends. The five-year term of Parliament is calculated from the first day of the first sitting of the first Parliament for the term/tenure.

Once Parliament is dissolved, elections would have to be held within two months.

However, if Parliament is not dissolved within its five-year term, it stands automatically dissolved at the end of that term. In that case, elections would have to be called within six months. This factor might be playing on Malaysian Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak’s mind, desperate as he is to stretch out his term in office.

GE-13 can even be in second-half of 2013!

Najib seems to have come to the conclusion, albeit grudgingly, that there are no guarantees that he will be Prime Minister after GE 13. That may be the sole reason why his wife, Rosmah Majid, is forever off somewhere on shopping sprees if not hunting for a spot in exile at the expense of the people.

Whether Najib will be Opposition Leader and/or allowed to do so by his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin – rooting for a Mahathir dynasty — and Mahathir Mohamad himself is a RM 1.5 billion question.

Najib does not have a mandate of his own.

He continues to shamelessly ride on that obtained by his sacked predecessor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in 2008. Mahathir was able to get rid of Badawi because the Umno Supreme Council members, corrupt beyond redemption, are in his pocket.

Najib should have obtained his own mandate by now but he fears, as he has never feared before in his cushy life so far, the prospect of testing the electoral waters on his own.

No Prime Minister has been that fearful in the history of the country. Najib just doesn’t have the guts to ignore Mahathir and his (Mahathir’s) Umno Supreme Council and call for the 13th GE and accept like a man whatever is in store for him. Neither has he the foresight to make a deal with the opposition alliance to accept his faction at least into their government-in-the-making and save the political dynasty built by his late father.

Too risky for BN to call GE-13 now

There are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies in politics, only permanent interests. That doesn’t mean the opposition alliance will accept Mahathir as well unless he agrees to flee the country for good and leave his ill-gotten gains behind.

There’s too much at stake to go for the GE 13 now and even go for it at all, not just for Najib who is not that big a factor, but Umno, the establishment and the entire system which stands at risks of being dismantled and many of its members incarcerated for very long stretches, if not for good.

This is one reason why the Prime Minister declared not so long ago that he can always do what his father, 2nd Prime Minister Abdul Razak, did in the wake of the searing race riots between the non-Malay communities and the Malay-speaking communities in Peninsular Malaysia in 1969. However, Najib was quick to add that he “would not do so”. But why mention it if he has no plans to do so? Was that a veiled threat to vote him back into power or else?

Najib was referring to the declaration of a state of emergency, the shutting down of Parliament, suspension of democracy, the shutting out of the political parties, and the setting up of the National Operations Council under Abdul Razak as Direction of Operations.

Abdul Razak also set up the National Consultative Council, with its members drawn from various walks of life but not the political parties, in lieu of the disbanded Parliament. He chaired the NCC.

Abdul Razak went on to form the Barisan Nasional, a concept which circumscribed the democratic process and denied the majority meaningful participation by endorsing elite power-sharing. The BN which was formed included the opposition parties which had made spectacular gains during the 1969 polls.

Emergency rule and forcing DAP to join BN

It will be a sheer miracle if Najib does not do what his father did in 1969/1970 considering his sudden morbid fear of going to the polls and especially with Mahathir breathing down his neck to achieve the impossible: get back the ruling Barisan Nasional’s (BN) coveted two-thirds majority in Parliament.

There are attempts being made to force the Dap to join the BN.

At the same time, Umno does not seem to reckon with the fact that its legislators will abandon Mahathir for good – notwithstanding his Big Black Book of Everyone’s Sins — and flee in droves to the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) after the 13th GE “in order to buy political protection and avoid a stint behind bars, if not bankruptcy and/or the prospect of being reduced suddenly to abject poverty”. Continue reading ‘Inevitable Defeat The Reason Why Najib Fears GE-13 And Keeps Delaying it’

Feb

Dana KWSP Diguna Ibarat Wang Saku BN

By Anwar Ibrahim 1 Comment

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Nurul Izzah, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Sidenotes and Umno

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). Continue reading ‘Dana KWSP Diguna Ibarat Wang Saku BN’

Jan

Debat Dituntut Dalam Islam Tapi Najib Elak Untuk Sorok ‘Sesuatu’

By Anwar Ibrahim 3 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Islam, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Program, Sidenotes and Umno

Keadilan Daily

Budaya debat antara pemimpin selaras dengan tuntutan al-Quran dan menjadi tradisi kepimpinan silam tamadun dunia, kata Ketua Penerangan KEADILAN, Dr Muhammad Nur Manuty.

Sambil memetik Surah An-Nahl: 125, beliau berkata budaya itu lumrah ilmuan dan kepimpinan silam kerana kebenaran akan lebih terserlah dan pandangan baru dapat dicerna demi kepentingan negara dan rakyat.

“Lebih penting, rakyat diberi peluang menilai secara empirikal dan adil akan ketrampilan dan keikhlasan kepimpinan yang diberi amanah mengurus negara pada masa depan.

“Inilah demokrasi sebenar yang dituntut oleh rakyat,” katanya pada kenyataan media, hari ini.

Dr Muhammad Nur kesal dengan keengganan Datuk Seri Najib Razak menyahut seruan Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim untuk berdebat secara terbuka mengenai isu politik, ekonomi dan kebajikan rakyat yang sedang hangat diperkata. Continue reading ‘Debat Dituntut Dalam Islam Tapi Najib Elak Untuk Sorok ‘Sesuatu’’

Jan

Dia Cakap 40 minit, Saya 20 Minit Sudah

By Anwar Ibrahim 8 Comments

Categories: Agenda Baru, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Program, Sidenotes and Umno

Harakah

“Dia boleh cakap 20 minit, saya 10 minit. Dia balas 20 minit dan saya jawab 10 minit.”

Itulah cadangan yang dikemukakan Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim kepada Perdana Menteri, Datuk Sri Najib Razak dalam cadangan debat antara mereka.

Namun sehingga kini Najib tidak memberikan sebarang kesanggupan untuk debat ini.

Ketua Penerangan Umno, Datuk Ahmad Maslan pula berkata, ia tidak perlu diadakan kerana ia budaya barat yang belum boleh diterima masyarakat negara ini.
Sebelum ini, badan penyelidikan, Merdeka Centre mencadangkan agar kedua-dua mereka berdebat.

Anwar Ibrahim mengalu-alukan idea berdebat dengan Najib sebagaimana disarankan oleh Merdeka Center berdasarkan penemuannya baru-baru ini.

Sehubungan itu kata Anwar, debat yang disyorkan wajar bagi menjawab persoalan-persoalan yang ditimbulkan terhadap Barisan Nasional (BN) dan Pakatan Rakyat (PR). Continue reading ‘Dia Cakap 40 minit, Saya 20 Minit Sudah’

Jan

The Dragon Favours The Bold, PKR’s William Leong Tells Sabahans

By Anwar Ibrahim 1 Comment

Categories: Agenda Baru, Anwar, Demokrasi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen and Sidenotes

Malaysia Chronicle

My fellow Malaysians in the Land Below the Wind, A Happy New Year and Kong Hee Fa Cai.

This Chinese New Year will usher in the Water Dragon. The Dragon is a creature of myth and legend. In ancient China, the dragon represents the emperor and power. Today, it is the ultimate auspicious symbol signifying success and happiness. According to a Feng Shui master, the year of the dragon is traditionally associated with new beginnings and good fortune.

This year is the year of the Water Dragon. Water symbolizes the ocean. This is an element of power, force and strong energy. The Water Dragon could be the destructive force of nature such as tsunami or earthquake. It could also be the driving force for social, political and economic changes. The water dragon is also a symbol of intelligence, courage, generosity and charity. It is predicted for countries that will hold their presidential or general elections that there will be changes. This is a sign of the bold progress and reforms that the powerful water dragon will bring this lunar year. The Dragon favours the bold. So this year he who is bold and he who dares will win. This is the year for the bold to step forward and bring change.

Putrajaya is UMNO not Malaysians

Firstly, decisions made by the Federal Government more popularly referred to as “decisions of Kuala Lumpur” and now “Putrajaya” have been taken by the people of Sabah as being synonymous as that of people of Peninsula Malaysia. I want to say that this is not correct. The decisions of the Federal Government are not synonymous with the people of Peninsula Malaysia. They are in truth and in fact decisions of UMNO.

The Federal Government’s interest in pursuing the NEP and the promotion of elitist’s interest is not the aspirations of the people of Peninsula, at least not since March 8, 2008. In the 12th General Elections the majority of the people of Peninsula Malaysia rejected racial politics. They rejected the NEP. In the 12th General Elections, 52% of the people in the Peninsula voted for the multi-racial politics of Pakatan Rakyat. They voted for PR’s New Economic Agenda, they rejected the NEP. They wanted affirmative action based on needs not race.

The people in the Peninsular rejected UMNO and BN. Unfortunately and ironically, it was the people of Sabah and Sarawak that kept UMNO and BN in Putrajaya. The brave people of Sabah who changed their state government three times, who we in West Malaysia would be the ones who will lead the change voted for BN. What happen to the people in Sabah?

Looking Back at Sabah’s History

To answer the question, to see what will be Sabah’s future, I look back at Sabah’s past. Sabah’s history is marked by the people’s courage to vote for change. It is the only state that changed its state government three times. We, in Peninsula Malaysia have always admired the courage of the Sabah people in throwing out despots and corrupt governments. However, it is sad to note that despite the people’s valiant efforts, Sabah had fallen from being the second richest state after Selangor in the 1970’s to become the second poorest. With each change the forces that the Sabah people rejected rebounded and took a stronger hold on the government. I note three features that have constantly recurred:-

1) That the Sabah people is strong when they unite under a multi-racial party;

2) That the Sabah people is weak when the multi-racial party is broken up and political parties base on race take over;

3) That the Sabah people’s aspirations are thwarted by the Federal Government who used the Federal government’s power and machinery to remove state Government whose policies are not in accord with UMNO’s.

The Early Years

I wish to refer to some historical facts to illustrate my point on the Sabah people’s need for unity and how critical it is for Sabahans to reject racial politics.

Prior to the formation of these racial based political parties, Sabah had always been racially, culturally and religiously diverse. However, the people of Sabah had never seen themselves as racially or religiously divided. In Sabah many families have relatives who are Chinese, KDM, Malay, Muslims and Christians. Ethnicity was not a feature of Sabah politics. However, this changed in the early 1960’s. Prior to the formation of the Federation of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur promoted the formation of an inter-ethnic alliance in Sabah. The Sabah Alliance was formed just before the first elections in April 1963. The Sabah Alliance consisted of UNKO, USNO and the Chinese parties later to become the Sabah Chinese Association (“SCA”) and later UPMO and SIC. Continue reading ‘The Dragon Favours The Bold, PKR’s William Leong Tells Sabahans’

Jan

Apabila Hak Rakyat Malaysia Telah Diaibkan

By Anwar Ibrahim 3 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Program, Sidenotes and Umno

Detik Daily
Oleh Selena Tay

WALAUPUN dakwat kekal akan digunakan pada pilihan raya umum ke-13 (PRU13) ini, penipuan masih juga boleh berlaku. Berikut adalah kemungkinan bagaimana BN menang melalui penipuan.

1. Nama kita tidak berada dalam senarai daftar pengundi. Jika nama kita langsung tidak berada dalam senarai pada hari mengundi, maka kita langsung tidak boleh buat apa-apa.

2. Nama kita telah dipindahkan ke kawasan yang jauh:
Sebagai contoh jika kita tinggal di Shah Alam, alamat kad pengenalan kita di Shah Alam dan pada pilihan raya yang lepas kita mengundi di Shah Alam, dengan tiba-tiba kali ini nama kita telah dipindahkan ke Perlis tanpa pengetahuan kita pada hari kita pergi mengundi nanti. Adakah kita akan pergi ke Perlis untuk mengundi pada hari tersebut?

3. Percaturan secara strategik:

a. Pengundi Cina di Shah Alam dipindahkan ke Klang.

Apabila ini berlaku, Umno akan dapat kembali kerusi Parlimen Shah Alam daripada PAS (ahli parlimen kini Khalid Samad).

Kerusi Parlimen Klang biar dimenangi oleh DAP tak apalah asalkan Umno dapat kembali kerusi Parlimen Shah Alam. Pada masa ini kerusi Parlimen Klang dipegang oleh Charles Santiago daripada DAP.

b. Pengundi Cina di kerusi Parlimen Titiwangsa (dulu dimenangi Allahyarham Dr Lo’ Lo’ Ghazali) yang dipegang oleh PAS akan dipindahkah ke kerusi Parlimen Cheras yang dimiliki oleh DAP (Tan Kok Wai). Ini akan membolehkan Umno untuk dapat kembali kerusi Parlimen Titiwangsa.

Pemindahan pengundi Cina ke kawasan yang dimiliki oleh DAP sejak zaman Tok Kadok lagi tidak memberi apa-apa manfaat kepada DAP tetapi hanya memberikan DAP kemenangan dengan jurang yang amat besar sahaja, contohnya Teresa Kok daripada DAP menang di kerusi Parlimen Seputeh dengan jumlah lebihan undi sebanyak 36,000 – angka yang amat besar, malah jumlah lebihan undi yang banyak sekali di Malaysia pada pilihan raya yang lalu.

c. Kerusi Parlimen Batu yang merupakan sebuah kerusi Wilayah Persekutuan KL telah bertindih dengan kerusi Parlimen Selayang di Selangor untuk membolehkan pengundi Melayu mengundi di Batu. Pada masa kini, penyandang kerusi Parlimen Batu ialah Tian Chua daripada KeADILan.

4. Pertambahan pengundi secara mendadak:

a. Kerusi Dun (Dewan Undangan Negeri) Pelabuhan Klang, di mana penyandangnya ialah Badrul Hisham Abdullah (dulu KeADILan, sekarang Umno).

Di kerusi Dun ini terdapat pertambahan jumlah pengundi sebanyak 5,510 pada tahun lalu walaupun tiada kawasan perumahan baru di situ sejak pilihan raya yang lalu. Anggota Parlimen daripada DAP, Charles Santiago telah berhasrat untuk membuat bantahan mengenai perkara ini sebab kerusi Dun ini terletak dalam kawasan Parlimennya. Continue reading ‘Apabila Hak Rakyat Malaysia Telah Diaibkan’

Jan

Malay Professionals Want Najib-Anwar Debate, Says Merdeka Center

By Anwar Ibrahim 6 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik, Sidenotes and Umno

The Malaysian Insider

Many Malay professionals would like to see Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak debate Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on policy issues, the Merdeka Center said today.

The independent pollster told Sinar Harian its focus group discussions with Malay professionals showed they were keen on a debate where both leaders talked about larger issues affecting the country, not personal ones.

“There appears to be a change in what the people want. They want a new culture of debate rather than smear campaigns,” Merdeka Center director Ibrahim Suffian (picture) told the Malay-language daily.

The centre’s findings come just 10 days after Anwar challenged Najib to a public debate over national policies during his winding-up speech at the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) convention in Alor Star.

The PKR de facto leader had said that an open debate would let voters decide for themselves if the opposition pact’s plans for Malaysia had merit.

The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition has criticised PR’s alternative policies as populist and irresponsible.

It was the third such challenge issued by Anwar to Najib, who has so far declined to go toe-to-toe with the former deputy prime minister. Continue reading ‘Malay Professionals Want Najib-Anwar Debate, Says Merdeka Center’

Jan

Naungan Politik BN Jadi Fokus Selepas Skandal Didedah

By Anwar Ibrahim 0 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik and Sidenotes

The Malaysian Insider
Oleh Shannon Teoh

Pendedahan-pendedahan skandal kewangan yang melibatkan pemimpin tertinggi Umno kebelakangan ini menyaksikan naungan politik BN menjadi fokus pada tahun yang dijangka akan diadakan pilihan raya umum, demikian menurut pemerhati politik.

Sementara tuduhan terhadap penyalahgunaan dana RM250 juta Pusat Fidlot Nasional-yang dijalankan oleh keluarga Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil telah mendominasi tajuk utama sejak November, dan skandal-skandal lain dikaitkan dengan menteri Barisan Nasional (BN) turut menjadi perhatian umum.

Pemerhati politik memberitahu The Malaysian Insider bahawa terdapatnya hubungan antara politik dan perniagaan yang berkembang dengan penelitian masyarakat bahawa “skandal ini akan berkekalan.”

“Masyarakat akan bertanya sama ada kerajaan akan berkhidmat untuk kepentingan ahli politik atau kepada majoriti rakyat Malaysia yang bukannya ahli politik,” jelas Pengerusi Pusat Penyelidikan Polisi Awam, Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam kepada The Malaysian Insider.

Presiden Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) Datuk Paul Low berkata, pemerhati melihat masyarakat mula berminat dalam isu rasuah kebelakangan ini, dengan kajian baru-baru ini menunjukkan 90 peratus rakyat Malaysia akan menggunakan peluang untuk melawan rasuah.

“Jelas menunjukkan masyarakat sekarang tidak akan melepaskan perkara itu dengan mudah. Skandal ini akan berkekalan,” katanya.

PKR telah berulangkali mengeluarkan tuduhan terhadap Ketua Wanita Umno dan keluarganya kerana didakwa telah menyalahgunakan dana projek penternakan lembu, termasuk hartanah dan tanah bernilai RM 27 juta yang tidak berkaitan dengan projek berkenaan.

Mereka turut mendesak Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom dikenakan tindakan terhadap dakwaan penyalahgunaan wang zakat untuk bayaran guaman bernilai RM63,650.

Blogger yang hanya dikenali nama samaran, TheWhistleblower711, turut menuduh bekas Menteri Pelancongan, Datuk Seri Azalina Othman dan Timbalan Menteri Kewangan Datuk Awang Adek Hussin masing-masing menerima RM300,000 RM100,000 daripada Pengarah Urusan Gerbang Perdana, Yahya Abd Jalil.

Namun begitu, kedua-dua menteri Umno terbabit menafikan dakwaan berkenaan; Azalina menyatakan bayaran tersebut merupakan untuk pembayaran jualan kereta klasik dan Adek Awang menjelaskan bayaran itu dibuat terhadap pelaksanaan program sosial di Bachok, yang mana beliau merupakan ketua cawangan. Continue reading ‘Naungan Politik BN Jadi Fokus Selepas Skandal Didedah’

Jan

Kerajaan Selangor Bantu Penduduk Kampung Baru

By Anwar Ibrahim 0 Comments

Categories: Agenda Baru, Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Program and Sidenotes

Harakah

Kerajaan Negeri Selangor akan terus membantu penduduk Kampung Baru dengan menyediakan pelan pembangunan alternatif tanpa menjejaskan hak milik tanah yang diwarisi penduduk daripada nenek moyang mereka.

Menteri Besar Selangor, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim (gambar) berkata, kerajaan negeri melalui Jawatankuasa Bertindak Pembangunan Kampung Baru (JKBPKG) memulakan langkah menyalurkan maklumat kepada pemilik dan pewaris tanah Kampung Bharu mengenai hak mereka ke atas tanah tersebut meskipun kawasan tersebut dibangunkan.

Ianya sebagai usaha mengelakkan penduduk Kampung Baru menjadi mangsa Rang Undang-undang Perbadanan Pembangunan Kampung Bharu 2011 yang telah diluluskan Dewan Negara Disember lalu.

“Kerajaan negeri sentiasa di belakang usaha untuk menentukan pembangunan Kampung Baru ini dapat diterima dan dihayati oleh seluruh pemilik dan pewaris tanah.

“Walaubagaimana pun kita mesti melakukan usaha ini dengan penuh tertib dan berhemah supaya akhirnya apa yang kita lakukan memberikan kebaikan kepada masyarakat di Kampung Bharu,” kata beliau pada sidang media selepas Majlis Ramah Mesra Pemilik Tanah Kampung Baru bersama Menteri Besar anjuran JKBPKG dan Yayasan Selangor di Jalan Raja Ali, dekat sini malam tadi.

Dalam majlis yang dihadiri kira-kira 300 penduduk Kampung Baru itu, pengurus pembangunan perniagaan Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS), Fathurahman Abu membentangkan secara ringkas pelan pembangunan Kampung Baru sebagai alternatif kepada pelan Pembangunan Perbadanan Kampung Baru di bawah Kementerian Wilayah Persekutuan dan Kesejahteraan Bandar.

Selain itu, penduduk juga berpeluang mengemukakan soalan dan pandangan dalam sesi dialog yang diadakan.

Pada sidang media sama, Khalid berkata, JKBPKG memerlukan sokongan daripada badan-badan korporat yang lain dalam usaha membangunkan Kampung Bharu seperti yang dikehendaki penduduk.

“Jawatankuasa bertindak yang diketuai Dr Idris Ahmad dan dianggotai rakan-rakan kita yang profesional seperti peguam, arkitek, pemaju dan kerajaan negeri menggalakkan syarikat-syarikat seperti PKNS, Yayasan Selangor dan Permodalan Negeri Selangor Berhad untuk menyertai jawatankuasa ini supaya memberi input yang sesuai kepada penduduk,” katanya.

Sehubungan itu katanya, satu pusat khidmat ditubuhkan dan dijangka siap dalam masa dua minggu lagi sebagai tempat rujukan penduduk mengenai hal berkaitan pemilikan tanah dan lain-lain. Continue reading ‘Kerajaan Selangor Bantu Penduduk Kampung Baru’

Jan

Interview With ex-US Envoy John Malott: BN No Longer Relevant, Only Umno Matters

By Anwar Ibrahim 3 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Antarabangsa, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik and Sidenotes

Malaysia Chronicle

Chronicle: 1. Firstly, the hottest Question in town still remains, why did Najib pull back from a conviction? Most Malaysians believe in a conspiracy but not an independent judiciary as BN has claimed. The story around town is that the judge had already written a conviction judgment and had to make do with a verbal acquittal that lasted all of 60 seconds. Do you see internal UMNO power play in this, was Najib fearful for his own legacy and how he will be remembered if he were to adopt a ‘hardline’ approach on this issue?

Malott: I don’t have a clue why the judge ruled the way he did. It really was surprising. There are so many well-documented reports of political interference and misuse of the judicial system. For example, not just Anwar but also the case of Ramli Yusoff and the failure to seriously investigate and prosecute the deaths that occurred at MACC. Earlier in the trial, this judge reversed his own decision on whether the DNA taken from the comb and towel that Anwar used in jail was admissible, and it seems clear there was pressure on him to do so. Otherwise, why would he reverse himself? But now he ruled in Anwar’s favor. It was a shock. As I said in my op-ed, the government might have decided that Anwar was a bigger threat to them in jail because he would be a rallying point for the opposition. We can all speculate, but only the judge knows why he did what he did.

Chronicle: 2. Perhaps the answer to (1) will have a bearing on this second Question. Do you think that the Najib administration will push for an appeal? If it does, what will it do to Najib’s and the Malaysian government’s reputation, the country’s image to investors? Will the repercussions be deep and long-lasting given global corporate captains such as Richard Branson have already expressed exasperation and obvious disgust over the Anwar prosecution?

Malott: I think there will be a lot of pressure on Najib to appeal, coming from the hardliners in UMNO, who are afraid of what will happen if the opposition comes to power. Gani Patail and the prosecutors also have lost face, so they might be inclined to want to appeal. Some people might think that they can find a more compliant judge the next time. But the reaction not just from inside Malaysia but also from overseas will be strong if the government appeals and puts Anwar and his family through this again.

Chronicle: 3. Given your familiarity with the Malaysian political scene and its players, after decades of monitoring the situation, what do you personally think Najib will do? Will he push for an appeal and why?

Malott: Personally, I think that Najib does not want to appeal. But Najib has always been a very weak leader. He talks a good game, but as the saying goes, he doesn’t walk the talk. He is under a lot of pressure. So he might just remain silent and let it happen, saying that the decision is up to the prosecution. There have been other times like this, like when he said “it is up to the police” whether a demonstration can go forward. Are you in charge of your own government or not? Continue reading ‘Interview With ex-US Envoy John Malott: BN No Longer Relevant, Only Umno Matters’

Jan

Former Minister: BN ‘Bombed’ Voters With Cash

By Anwar Ibrahim 1 Comment

Categories: Anwar, Demokrasi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Pilihanraya, Politik and Sidenotes

Malaysia Chronicle

Former Cabinet Minister Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir says that cash was given to voters in previous elections and added the strategy was known as “bomb”.

Kadir, who is from Umno also added that he had himself seen how cash handouts that ranged from RM200 to RM1,000 was used in Barisan Nasional’s election campaigns to bribe voters in return for their support at the polls.

The former Minister of Culture, Arts and Tourism, said that the word used for the strategy was known as “bomb”.

Speaking at a forum, he said “I have been the head of delegation of many campaigns and I have been given lump sums of money to distribute,” said the former Information Minister at the Malaysia Strategic Outlook Conference 2012 here. “It was a blatant use of money to buy votes.”

But he was quick to add that he personally didn’t use the money.

James Chin, who heads the School of Social Sciences at Monash University at Sunway, and who spoke at the forum after Abdul Kadir said that “bombing” was a very effective tool in Sabah and Sarawak Continue reading ‘Former Minister: BN ‘Bombed’ Voters With Cash’

Jan

The Economist – Of Believing Much And Knowing Little

By Anwar Ibrahim 0 Comments

Categories: Analisis, Anwar, Demokrasi, Ekonomi, Isu Semasa, KeADILan, Kewangan, Malaysia, Media, Pakatan Rakyat, Parlimen, Penerbitan, Pilihanraya, Politik and Sidenotes

Malaysiakini
By Terence Netto

Foreign correspondents and the publications they work for often face a dilemma: How to suggest omniscience in their reports about a country of which they know not much on the basis of a few conversations with the locals and a jigsaw of media headlines?

The omniscient pose is difficult to bring off, especially by weekly news magazines that revel in a format that condenses the news and melds it with comment.

While these first drafts of history – as one founder of the genre (Henry Luce) grandly suggested this journalism was – may have width in terms of its coverage of the world, that strength may be vitiated by a lack of depth.

The international news weeklyThe Economist takes its style from Walter Bagehot, its mid-19th century editor-in-chief, but there are times when the strains of its imitation of Bagehot’s arresting blend of aphoristic statement with enlivening fact do starkly show.

Its coverage of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim’s acquittal earlier this week from what would have been a career-stifling charge of sodomy is an example of too many conclusions floating around unsupported by a substratum of fact.

Most glaringly, The Economistsaid that Anwar, despite the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s acquittal of him after a trial of two years that was lurid in its details, has hadhis reputation tarnished.

PKR still a fledgling party

The ad hominem conclusions in The Economist’s Anwar coverage were rendered the more trivial by a remark that at the age of 64, Anwar “seems a distant and untrustworthy figure to many younger Malaysians.”

The irony here is mordant because Anwar’s supporters contend the reason his eventual accuser so easily inveigled himself into the cohort around Anwar was that young Malaysians, particular Malays, are attracted to the man’s struggles for political change and are drawn by his charisma.

Anwar is a magnet, especially to the more idealistic among the younger Malaysian set, which is why his party is poised – Anwar had recently confirmed this – to field a high proportion of youthful candidates in the impending general election. Continue reading ‘The Economist – Of Believing Much And Knowing Little’