Pakatan Harapan's Victory At Malaysia #GE14 #PRU14

Public holidays on Thursday and Friday: Ali Hamsa

MAY 10, 2018 @ 3:49AM 

BY IRWAN SHAFRIZAN ISMAIL published by New Straits Times Malaysia.

PUTRAJAYA: The government has declared Thursday and Friday (10 dan 11 May) as additional public holidays in conjunction with the 14th General Election.

Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa said for states whose weekends fall on Friday and Saturday, the additional public holiday will fall on Sunday (May 13).

“The declaration of this public holiday is made under Section 8 of the Public Holidays Act 1951 for Peninsular and Federal Territory of Labuan.

“For Sabah and Sarawak, the state government shall have to declare the additional public holidays for both dates according to the respective General Public Relations Ordinance," he said in a statement here today.

Link: https://www.nst.com.my/node/367879/amp

Johor falls to opposition for first time in Malaysian history

(Updated: 10 May 2018 03:06AM)

By Justin Ong published by Channel News Asia.

Malaysia’s southernmost state and traditional ruling party stronghold Johor toppled to the opposition Pakatan Harapan alliance after general elections on Wednesday (May 9), in a historic moment for the country.

Pakatan’s component parties won 36 out of 56 state seats to take control of the state assembly, ousting the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition which had, up until now, governed Johor since Malaysia’s independence... 

And Johor's chief minister Khaled Nordin surprisingly lost his Permas state seat by 8,746 votes to Pakatan’s Che Zakaria Salleh...

And in Muar, BN’s deputy minister in the prime minister’s department Razali Ibrahim was stunned by nearly 7,000 votes courtesy of young Pakatan upstart Syed Saddiq.

Elsewhere, Muhyiddin also retained his Pagoh parliament seat by nearly 7,000 votes, while longtime opposition stalwart Lim Kit Siang held on to his Iskandar Puteri - formerly named Gelang Patah - parliamentary ward, trouncing BN challenger Jason Teoh by nearly 45,000 votes.

Read more at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/johor-falls-to-opposition-for-first-time-in-malaysian-history-10218926

Mahathir's Pakatan Harapan pulls off shock victory at Malaysia general election

Updated: 10 May 2018 09:00AM

By Sumisha Naidu published by Channel News Asia.

KUALA LUMPUR: In a stunning result that made political history, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition crossed the minimum threshold of 112 seats needed to form Malaysia's new government, according to figures from the Election Commission early Thursday (May 10) morning. 

The result brings to an end the rule of Barisan Nasional (BN), which has dominated Malaysian politics for decades.

In a press conference just before the official confirmation, PH leader and former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said PH had achieved a victory. 

"We have achieved a very substantial majority," said the 92-year-old.

PH component parties Parti Keadilan Rakyat and Democratic Action Party officially crossed the victory threshold at around 4am after a long night of results which saw power steadily ebbing away from Najib Razak and his United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party. The final official result showed that PH had won 113 seats, with BN on 79.

Dr Mahathir also said that a palace request has been made for Parti Keadilan Rakyat leader Wan Azizah Wan Ismail to be the designated deputy Prime Minister.

The 92-year-old pledged a government that would include a "young person" and said he would honour his agreement to help secure a royal pardon for jailed leader Anwar Ibrahim. 

However, he added that Anwar would have to win a by-election or be elected senator in order for him to take over as prime minister from Dr Mahathir, as per their agreement.

FIRST SIGN OF AN UPSET

The first sign that an upset was on the cards came when unofficial results started trickling in about four hours after the ballot boxes were closed.

At about 9pm, Bernama reported that caretaker Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai, the president of BN component party Malaysian Chinese Association, had lost his Bentong seat to PKR’s Wong Tack.

Caretaker Health Minister S Subramaniam, of BN component party Malaysian Indian Congress, was the next major casualty, losing his Segamat seat in Johor to PKR’s R Santhara Kumar.

At 9.30pm, there was respite for BN when word came in that incumbent prime minister Najib Razak – had successfully defended his Pekan seat in Pahang.

But the bloodbath continued for the ruling coalition. 

By 9.45pm, another four deputy ministers fell. 

At about the same time, it emerged that Mahathir would make a return to parliament after winning his Langkawi seat.

WHAT FUTURE FOR NAJIB RAZAK?

The result throws into doubt Najib Razak's position in his party.

While he had been praised for his fiscal policies, he was also unpopular for rolling out a goods and services tax in addition to being a target of unwanted international attention over allegations funds were misappropriated from a state fund he advised, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). He has denied any wrongdoing.

It was the controversy over the fund, however, that sparked Malaysia's longest serving prime minister's return to active politics after 22 years of retirement.

Mahathir had accused his former protege Najib of corruption and abuse of power before quitting UMNO to form his own party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.

At a news conference where he declared victory, Mahathir was asked if he would act against Najib now that he would assume power.

To this, Mahathir said: "We are not seeking revenge. We want to restore the rule of law."

As well as seizing control of the national government, several state legislatures across the country fell into PH hands for the first time, including the highly symbolic bastion of Johor, the birthplace of Najib's party that was the lynchpin of the ruling coalition.

As it became clear that Mahathir had won, supporters took to the streets waving flags of the Pakatan Harapan alliance.

After polls closed earlier in the day, journalists had headed to the headquarters of Najib's UMNO, but he failed to turn up to give a speech and the media were told to leave.

Huge numbers of voters earlier turned up at the polls across the country, despite Najib having called the election on a weekday in what critics said was a bid to keep turnout down.

The BN wipeout is a disaster for Najib, who had been under pressure to score an emphatic win after the government lost the popular vote for the first time at the last elections in 2013.

Read more at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/malaysia-election-pakatan-harapan-opposition-shock-victory-ge14-10219070

Perwaja Steel Closure Is Inevitable

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 12 December 2014.

The Terengganu government has assured the 1,500 workers of Perwaja Steel Sdn Bhd that their welfare will be cared for although Perwaja will cease operation by year end. Trade and Industry Committee chairman Tengku Putera Tengku Awang said the state government has urged China-based Eastern Steel Sdn Bhd to employ Perwaja workers.

“The state government has negotiated with Eastern Steel who agreed to employ skilled Perwaja workers. However, Eastern Steel did not set a quota for the workers,” he told reporters after winding up debate in the state assembly today.

Established in 1982, Perwaja changed ownership several times and was beset by financial problems, forcing operations to be closed. Eastern Steel is Malaysia’s largest steel plant with investment of RM1.8 billion on a 500-hectare site in Teluk Kalong, Kemaman.

Tengku Putera said the state government via the Workers Coordination Committee was willing to meet with the Perwaja workers involved. “The retrenchment of Perwaja workers was decided one year ago but the first phase only began in early September. The closure is inevitable, although some capital injection and a rescue plan had been implemented,” he added. The state government is also willing to provide assistance to Perwaja workers who want to venture into business.

- BERNAMA

Link: 

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2014/12/12/eastern-steel-to-absorb-perwaja-steel-workers/

Dr M has raised questions about the heavy debt & usage of funds at 1MDB

Published on 11 September 2014 by Malaysian Insider.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has raised questions about the heavy debt and usage of funds at 1MDB in his first open criticism of the controversial government-owned investment company started by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Writing in his blog yesterday, the former prime minister noted that 1MDB had spent billions of ringgit buying power plants from Genting and Ananda Krishnan and had paid above market prices for them.

He also lamented that 1MDB is heavily indebted. It has debt of around RM38 billion after just five years in operation as the country's sovereign wealth fund.

"The money for 1MDB is not from the country's surpluses. It is debt, billions of ringgit of debt that has added to the already high national debt," Dr Mahathir wrote.

The former PM, who recently wrote he was withdrawing support from Najib, said as the government was already facing a deficit budget problem, it would not have the ability to help pay the 1MDB debt.

He also noted that a large part of the money raised from the issue of debt paper by 1MDB has been sent to the Cayman Islands, a move which many has questioned.

Critics have complained about the lack of transparency in how the money is managed out of Cayman and it has been estimated that at least RM18 billion of 1MDB's money is parked there.

1MDB is Malaysia's second sovereign wealth fund after Khazanah Nasional Bhd.

Link: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/dr-m-raises-questions-about-1mdb

It’s all a political game in Allah row

By Stephen Ng. 30 June 2014.

Although the Christian community in the country has been made the scapegoat, things have to be put into perspective for the sake of unity and harmony. Both the Alkitab and the Sikh scriptures use Allah as a name referring to God, but only the Christian scripture is being targeted, ridiculed and confiscated.

Despite having only the flimsiest argument against the use of the name Allah by non-Muslims, the religious bigots calling themselves “champions of Islam” continue to victimise the Christians in this country. They say that when the name Allah is used in the Alkitab, it confuses the Muslim community.

Exactly who are these Muslims being referred to? Why is that Muslims in Malaysia can be easily confused when Muslims around the world have no problem with the name being used by other religious communities?No one, including the man behind the 1Malaysia slogan, who promised Muslim NGOs that he would defend the exclusive use of “Allah” by Muslims, has ever quoted any part of the Quran that prohibits non-Muslims from using the name Allah.

Instead, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and former Kelantan Menteri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat who, disagreeing with Umno ministers, quoted the Prophet as saying: “Our Allah and your Allah is one.”

Tracing back the Allah controversy, Mahathir, who was then Home Minister, was the first to ban the Indonesian Alkitab in 1982, barely one year after he became the fourth Prime Minister. This has helped him achieve his objectives. In his early years, Mahathir had initially faced resistance from within Umno, especially those who were Malays and pro-Tunku (Abdul Rahman). By making it illegal to possess or distribute the Alkitab, Mahathir managed to consolidate his power with the support of the Malays by championing Islam.

Different scenario

In 1986, when Mahathir was again challenged by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah from Team B, he saw another opportunity to use the same tactic to unite the Muslims to defend his position. Within the next few years, one state enactment after another was passed. The rest is history.

Today, the scenario is different. In 2007, when Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar slapped a prohibition order on the Herald, it kick-started a lengthy and painful litigation, which ended in the controversial Federal Court ruling.

Although the Catholic Herald was never intended for proselytisation of Muslims, it earned the ire of authorities because of the Bahasa Malaysia section that is supposed to cater to the Catholic congregation in East Malaysia. Most of us who are not Catholics have never even heard of the Catholic Herald until the High Court ruling in 2008.

How could the publication be used to proselytise the Muslims? It’s all an Umno game. The same observation is made by Shah Alam MP, Khalid Abdul Samad, who openly said that Umno is using the same strategy to attack the Pakatan Rakyat Selangor government.

There you go! The same reason is what motivated the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) to raid the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) and a Hindu wedding. Apart from Perkasa, Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) has been very vocal. Along with Mais, it was involved in a Christian-bashing seminar held at UiTM.

Government script

We cannot blame the BN government for everything that is happening today. Our fellow citizens in East Malaysia have voted the present regime into power. Although it was Syed Hamid who first prohibited the Catholic Herald from using the name Allah, now, the East Malaysian churches cannot blame the Federal Court decision for ruling that Allah is now a banned word as far as all non-Muslims are concerned, since its decision is binding on a lower court and the Federal Court is the supreme authority in this country.

No state, including Sabah and Sarawak, can cushion itself against the ruling of the Federal Court. The moment a group of Muslim extremists in Sabah or Sarawak complain against the church for using the name Allah, or choose to bring this matter to the court, the decision by the apex court will be binding.

As usual, after the apex court ruling, the government read out its part of the script: “Christians can still use the term ‘Allah’ in their churches and (we are still) committed to the 10-point solution.” Let it be known that no amount of balm from Putrajaya will be able to comfort the non-Muslim community, unless the Federal Court’s decision is overturned.

For our Muslim brethren, Ramadan is a good time to get close to God. Our God is a great God, who will forgive when we turn to Him. I would not risk using the name Allah here, but you know I am referring to the One and Almighty God.

Link: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/highlight/2014/06/30/its-all-a-political-game-in-allah-row/

Petronas has been bailing out GLCs financially since 1985, says Ku Li

By V. Anbalagan, Assistant News Editor. Published by The Malaysian Insider on 4 April 2014.

The founding chairman and chief executive of Petronas yesterday lamented that Putrajaya has been treating the leading oil and gas company as a cash cow, especially in bailing out government-linked outfits of financial trouble.

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, or Ku Li, said since its inception in 1974 and until 2011, Petronas paid the government RM529 billion in dividends, taxes, petroleum proceeds and export duties.

He said the reliance of Petronas to help government-linked outfits out of financial trouble had been going on since 1985.

Ku Li, a finance minister from 1976 to 1984, said that year Petronas rescued the then Bank Bumiputra with a RM2.5 billion bailout, and again in 1991 when it coughed up another RM1 billion.

In 1997, he said Petronas had to rescue the financially ailing Konsortium Perkapalan Berhad for RM2 billion.

He added that Petronas was made to underwrite the construction of the Twin Towers, located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, for RM6 billion and the building of the extravagant Putrajaya, the administrative capital of the Federal Government, for RM22 billion.

"This amount could have been used more productively to fund a national pension programme for Malaysians, as has been done by a certain Scandinavian country," he said in his speech at the launch of the book "Rich Malaysia, Poor Malaysians" at the Sultan Sulaiman Club in Kuala Lumpur last night.

The book, authored by Anas Alam Faizli, is a collection of essays reflecting his thoughts on energy, economy and education in Malaysia.

The bailout and construction of mega projects was done during the premiership of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who initiated a series of major infrastructure ventures in the 1990s.

Ku Li said the exorbitant amount of the bailout and construction of these projects that was forced onto Petronas had also deprived the company from the much needed cash build-up for reinvestment, which would ensure its business sustainability.

He said it was important for Petronas to look further afield at business investments outside the oil and gas sector, and it was critical for the corporation to have a strong cash reserve for reinvestment purposes.

"It was this need for prudence that had led Tun (Abdul) Razak, the prime minister of the day (1970-1976) to impress upon me the need to ensure that Petronas would enjoy parity with such multinational companies," he said.

He said today Petronas was on par with oil majors and was ranked as one of Fortune 500's largest and profitable oil and gas companies.

"But sadly, it is being abused and treated as the piggy bank whenever the government needed cash in a hurry," he said.

Ku Li said while subsidising of consumer goods was not the most efficient of ways in managing the high cost of living, it was fairly understandable if the government extended a helping hand to the small man.

"What is sinful and cannot be forgiven is the ease with which the powers that be had been dishing out subsidies to such entities like the national power supplier, the independent power producers and some other non-power outfits," he said.

As pointed out by Anas in his book , Ku Li said since 1997 this subsidy had amounted to RM136.5 billion.

He said the sad part was that while these power producers continued to enjoy subsidised fuel price, petroleum subsidy to the consumers – which purportedly cost the government RM14 billion in 2011 – was partly discontinued.

Link: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/petronas-has-been-bailing-out-putrajaya-financially-since-1974-says-ku-li

The Son Najib Is Unlike The Father Tun Razak At All

"Remembering my father, Tun Razak" by Nazir Razak . Published by The Malaysian Insider on 14 January 2014.

Anything spent on it would have to come from public funds, and there was no way he was going to allow the state coffers to be depleted on something as frivolous as a swimming pool.

"What will the people think?" he thundered...

As the custodian of the nation's coffers, his frugality was legendary. "You had to account for every cent, or he would be on your back," one former minister told me.Well, I knew that already. Not just from the swimming pool episode, but many anecdotes.

My elder brothers often talk about one of the rare opportunities they had to accompany him on an official trip to Switzerland. He made sure he paid their expenses himself, he was so careful with the cost of the trip to the government that he moved his whole entourage to a cheaper hotel than originally booked, and they dined over and over again at the cheapest restaurant in the vicinity of the hotel.

And then there was his final trip to Europe in October 1975 for medical treatment. He must have known that it could well be his last trip, yet he did not allow my mother to accompany him to save his own money; probably concerned about her financial situation after his passing. She only managed to join him weeks later on the insistence of the cabinet and with a specially approved government budget for her travel.

His integrity was another trait that came up often in conversations. He was guided by what now seems a somewhat quaint and old-fashioned concept of public service; that a public servant is first and foremost a servant of the people whose trust must never be betrayed...

Many were later astonished to learn he had been suffering from leukaemia, given that when in office, he was constantly on the move, attending to official duties, immersing himself in the minutiae of policy and, of course, his famous surprise visits to constituencies around the country that allowed him to hear directly from the people about what was happening on the ground.

Of course, few people forget to recount Tun Razak's dedication to rural development. He was "People First", long before the sound bite.

But above all, what they unanimously emphasised was Tun Razak's commitment to national unity – towards building a nation where every single one of its citizens could find a place under the Malaysian sun. That vision was encapsulated in the two initiatives that my father spearheaded in the wake of the May 13, 1969 tragedy – the formulation of the Rukunegara in 1970 and the New Economic Policy in 1971. The Rukunegara reconciled indigenous cultural traditions and heritage with the demands of a modern, secular state.

The NEP's goal, as outlined in the policy announcement, was the promotion of national unity to be undertaken via a massive experiment in socio-economic engineering through the twin thrusts of eradication of poverty irrespective of race and economic restructuring to eliminate identification of economic function with ethnicity.

The debate on the NEP rages on today. I myself have publicly remarked that something has gone awry in its implementation. The fixation on quotas and the seemingly easy route to unimaginable wealth for a select few have created an intra-ethnic divide in class and status, while fuelling inter-ethnic tensions. Both these developments serve to undermine, if not completely negate, the overarching goal of Tun Razak's NEP, strengthening national unity.

What went wrong? Some have argued that the fault was affirmative action itself.  For me, it was because its implementation was skewed by the focus on the tactical approach rather than the commitment to the strategic goal. The NEP has certainly helped eradicate poverty and reduced economic imbalances by spawning a Malay middle class.

However, in terms of the larger vision, the best that can be said about the NEP is that it initially helped blunt the edges of racial conflict in the aftermath of May 13. Thanks in part to the NEP, Malaysia did not follow Sri Lanka, which became embroiled in decades of strife between the immigrant Tamils and the indigenous Sinhalese.

That is no small achievement. But the NEP promise of strengthening national unity has not been realised. In fact, there are signs that inter-ethnic and intra-ethnic tensions are once again approaching worrying levels. What can be done? There is a Malay proverb: "Sesat di Hujung Jalan, Balik ke-Pangkal Jalan." Loosely translated, it means "When one has lost one's way, one should return to the beginning."

And "the beginning" here, in my view, is the values, commitment, vision and inclusiveness demonstrated and embodied by Tun Razak. I have mentioned earlier the remarks about his integrity, commitment to the concept of public service and his vision of a progressive, prosperous and united Malaysia. But let me close here by emphasising two other highlights of his legacy.

One, he was a true democrat. Two years after running the country as head of the National Operations Council, he disbanded the committee and restored democratic rule. He held virtually dictatorial power as the NOC chief, but his worldview and values rested on a foundation of democratic rule, not dictatorship. His decision-making style exemplified this as well: he brought in all who needed to be involved and engaged in a consultative discussion before any major decision was adopted. He never excluded those with contrarian views, he encouraged multiplicity of opinions in order to have the best chance of making a right final decision.

Two, while he was committed to helping improve the material quality of life for the majority Bumiputeras to avert another "May 13", he viewed this as a national prerogative rather than a racial one. That, to me, explains his determination to involve Malaysia's best and brightest in this quest, regardless of their racial or ethnic origin.

Just check out those who served him and his administration back then. They were and are, Malaysians all, united in their determination to rebuild this nation from the ashes of May 13. That was Tun Razak's legacy to Malaysia. We can best honour it by returning to "Pangkal Jalan".

Read more here:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/remembering-my-father-tun-razak

"Malaysia’s Najib Faces Party, Public Protest" 

published by The Asia Sentinel on 13 January 2014.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak enters 2014 beset by growing hostility from both the public and within his own political party, the United Malays National Organization, characterized by a deluge of New Year messages across cyberspace celebrating the “year of barang naik,” Malay language for rising prices of items.

That is a play on the initials BN, for Barisan Nasional, the national ruling coalition. It has become an opposition battle cry to the point where Najib mentioned it himself in a recent speech

Najib is making an astute move now, after national and intraparty elections have been completed, taking on the necessary but unappetizing task of dismantling decades of subsidies that have driven government debt close to the statutory limit of 55 percent of gross domestic product. In the wake of both sets of elections, he is temporarily invulnerable to both opposition and intraparty assaults.

However, electricity tariffs have risen by 15 percent, sugar subsidies have been cut. Last September, Petronas, the national energy company, cut fuel subsidies in a move that it said would save the government RMB1 billion annually. Public anger at the cutting of the subsidies is substantial and growing.

In addition, many in the party rank and file are still furious over widespread spending to keep the current leadership in place in the September intraparty elections.

That has brought the prime minister under unprecedented attack from bloggers aligned with the wing of the party controlled by former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who are delivering an extraordinary onslaught on his lifestyle and that of his wife, even going so far as an unprecedented call for attention to corruption within UMNO itself. The attacks had been expected from the time Najib blocked Mahathir’s son, Mukhriz, from becoming one of the party’s three vice presidents in the September polls.

Najib has sought to deflect criticism, saying the price hikes have been caused by factors such as the global economy and extreme weather that cut into the fish catch and drove up the price of vegetables. The government has also sought to spread the pain by cutting government ministers’ allowances by 10 percent, banning civil servants from business class flights, restricting expenses on official government functions. However, that hasn't mollified voters, who staged public protests over New Year’s.

Najib also enraged voters by leaving for most of the holidays, going to Las Vegas and other watering holes with his wife, Rosmah Mansor, whose free-spending ways have alienated large swaths of the conservative Malay Muslim community. He is being called “Mr Nowhere” because of his absences from the country.

“A putsch is in the air, definitely, as the frustration with Najib's free spending and extravagant lifestyle increases,” a Malay businessman told Asia Sentinel. “Najib is in the weakest position any prime minister in Malaysia has ever seen.”

Calls have been rising to have Mohamad come back to the government administrative center of Putra Jaya as an “adviser” to right the ship, something that appears highly unlikely. Mahathir himself made light of the idea.

In the meantime, bloggers who have been described as aligned with Mahathir have been raising their game, making broadly based attacks on Najib and even other UMNO officials, calling attention to what appears to be corruption in the award of highway contracts.

Kadir Jasin, a former New Straits Times editor and close longtime Mahathir ally, wrote recently that “To many UMNO leaders, the measure of the party’s success is big cars, big houses and expensive watches whose names they can’t even mention.”  In particular, Rosmah has been criticized repeatedly for her taste in vastly expensive watches.

Kadir also called attention to “people with no formal appointments and duties (who) are known to use government on pretext of serving the country,” an apparent reference to Rosmah’s November commandeering of an official government jet to fly to Qatar to attend an international forum.

“Do they know that even the Queen (of England) uses trains and charters planes when travelling overseas? They should because many like the PM studied in the UK. Air transport for the British Royal Family and the government of the UK is provided, depending on circumstances and availability, by a variety of military and civilian operators. But most often they fly using scheduled commercial flights, normally the British Airways.”

“We are complaining about the wrong things he is doing in accommodating the wishes of his wife,” Kadir wrote. “We are asking the government to be accountable. The PM should answer these allegations. The way he bragged about his wife in public, he was in fact saying that his wife has more influence than him with foreign leaders.”

“Outsyedthebox” suggested that Najib, who had never finished his economics degree, actually “imbibed from the “Proton school of management” (the money-losing national car) “where it is a good thing to buy something high and sell it low.  Or buy something high and then sell it even higher to people who have few options.: 

“Mahathir’s and (former Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin’s) hands are all over the place but the point is that Najib and his wife are providing all the ammo,” a source said. “Without the ammo, Mahathir would be hard pressed to rally his troops against Najib.”

Everything “down to the price of ice has increased in a manner of two weeks,” said another UMNO loyalist. “Everything in Malaysia shot up in one month without notice. The government keeps the ringgit so weak against the US dollar, the cost of living keeps bouncing, salary increases are nothing. Crime is up, corruption is up. People are getting really upset.”

During the waning days of the premiership of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, as the rank and file sought to push him out, “similar contempt was restricted to some segments of UMNO and the ruling elite,” a source told Asia Sentinel. “With Mahathir, it was disgust and contempt from intellectuals and rights groups. But with Najib – it's across the board and it extends to his wife and friends.”

Link: http://www.asiasentinel.com/politics/malaysias-najib-faces-party-public-protest/

The Baling spirit lives on

Published by Malaysiakini on 3 June 2013.

Thirty-nine years ago, a little-known incident in Baling caused a seismic shift in Malaysian politics, but very few Malaysians are aware of the incident or realise its significance and the impact it created. If the full details of this incident had been divulged in 1974, the government might have fallen... 

The Baling event referred to is not the historic meeting in 1955 of Tunku Abdul Rahman, who was the head of the Malayan government and Chin Peng, the leader of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM).

Nor was it the Memali Incident of 1985, the shameful massacre of a defenceless community by forces loyal to Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s government.

The Baling Incident (BI) which occurred in 1974 was shrouded in secrecy. It was a series of many small expressions of the bottled-up feelings of anger, betrayal, fear and resentment, of the rural poor. 

In present-day Malaysia, the rakyat participated in democracy marches and rallies against oppression, injustice and the dictatorial rule of Najib and the BN government. In 1974, it was Abdul Razak, Najib’s father, who faced similar marches against social injustices. 

The root cause of the BI was abject poverty and starvation. The rubber smallholders faced ruin when the global price of rubber plummeted. The farmers could not cope with the rising cost of living and rural families had to forage for food in the jungles.

Bizarrely, in 1974 Abdul Razak announced in Parliament that the civil servants’ allowance would be increased by 50 percent, from RM1,000 to RM1,500.

When news broke of the deaths of a few children from eating ubi gadong, a type of poisonous wild yam, to stave off hunger pangs, the social unrest reached a tipping point. At its peak, around 25,000 of the rural poor took to the streets. 

Like father, like son; both Abdul Razak and Najib unleashed the might of the FRU and the police on peaceful protesters. Najib is a politician without imagination, but he knew that brutal action had served his father well. 

A dark chapter in our history

In 2013 Najib merely employed his father’s tried and tested methods of retaliation. The consequences of 1974 opened a dark chapter in our history. 

Then, like now, information was heavily censored. Abdul Razak did not want the rakyat to know that an uprising had occurred in Kedah. Five years earlier, the country had been overwhelmed by the May 13 clashes. The Chinese were convenient scapegoats.

Abdul Razak was in a quandary. The district of Baling was mainly populated by Malays. The significance of the BI had to be suppressed. 

In the BI there was no Chinese element, or communist subversives at work. BI was social unrest - a revolt by Malay smallholders and farmers. Peaceful hunger marches throughout Baling spread outwards from Baling town, Kulim and Sik. 

News travelled fast and despite media censorship in 1974, students at Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Kolej Mara, as well as the universities’ teaching fraternity expressed their support for the uprising. They organised a series of meetings and urged the government to address the plight of the poor. 

Syed Husin Ali, then an associate professor at Universiti Malaya, said: “At first they (the students) demonstrated within their campus. The police fired tear gas but some cannisters landed on the nearby squatter settlement, injuring some children. 

“The students joined forces and gathered in the centre of KL. When the police acted against them, they took refuge in the National Mosque. Over 1,000 students were arrested and detained for a few days. Some squatters joined some students to ‘run riot’ at the highway, putting up blockades and smashing traffic lights.” 

Abdul Razak warned of tough reprisals and over 40 students and lecturers were detained under the ISA. Among them was Anwar Ibrahim, who was detained for two years. 

Syed Husin said: “I was detained for six years. I was an associate professor and considered recalcitrant for refusing to admit guilt. “I was accused of being pro-communist and the brain behind the demos. They wanted me to serve as an example to create fear among those academic staff to prevent them from following my path. I think these are the reasons why I was incarcerated up to six years.” 

The education minister then was Mahathir. He and Ungku Aziz, the vice-chancellor of UM at the time, produced the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA). 

The UUCA has effectively curbed students’ freedom and deprived universities of their autonomy. Students and lecturers are fearful of speaking out on issues which are deemed sensitive to BN. Our universities have never recovered from Mahathir’s despicable legacy. 

Abdul Razak, his peers and successors’ children were sent abroad for their education, whilst the rest of the rakyat received a stifling Malaysian schooling. 

Baling not an isolated incident

In 2013, history repeated itself and the nightmare which descended on Najib’s father is now his own. Today, Najib has warned that he would get tough with students Adam Adli Abdul Halim and Safwan Anang as well as other dissenters. The ISA has been repealed, so what has Najib up his sleeve? 

Let this column warn both Najib and Mahathir, the joint rulers of Malaysia that their efforts to subjugate the rakyat will not succeed. Baling was not an isolated incident.

Prior to BI, there were unreported acts of unrest against the BN government. In Tasik Utara, Johor Baru, poor urban Malays camped in front the residence of then MB Osman Saat to voice their disgust at being cheated of housing and land. 

In 1974 and in 2013, the Malays opposed the government, but Najib has created a red herring and claimed that in GE13, it was a Chinese tsunami. It is not! It is Malaysians fighting tyranny. 

The wounds which Abdul Razak, Mahathir and Najib opened are still festering. Our awareness of their crimes and of their despotic rule are more acute.

Their policies have cast long shadows and there will be more Baling incidents until Najib and the illegitimate BN government step down.

---

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a non-conformist traditionalist from Perak, a bucket chemist and an armchair eco-warrior. In ‘real-speak', this translates into that she comes from Ipoh, values change but respects culture, is a petroleum chemist and also an environmental pollution-control scientist.

Read more here: http://www.malaysiakini.com/columns/231865

Sedition dragnet reeks of double standard

Batu MP Chua Tian Chang, activist Haris Ibrahim and PAS’s Tamrin Ghafar were arrested for sedition today and brought to the Jinjang police station for questioning, according to reports. It is understood the trio were detained separately in an apparent police crackdown today. This is the third police investigation into sedition since the May 5 general election...

The first was student activist Adam Adli Abdul Halim who was charged with sedition in the Jalan Duta court complex this morning. The 24-year-old pleaded not guilty and was released on a RM5,000 court bail with his trial set for a mention on July 2...

According to the charges read out this morning, his words had a seditious tendency and were aimed at rallying Malaysians to change the current government through undemocratic means.

His statement, in Malay: “Take my details, lodge a police report, because today, I would like to invite all those here today to gather and take to the streets to seize back our power! Can we do that? Can we do that? Can we do that? We do not have much time left, get ready, buy shoes, buy tracksuits, buy jeans, get ready to take to the streets because in a third world country like Malaysia, elections cannot topple a government. Only the people’s power can topple a government. Remember, ladies and gentlemen, this is the only opportunity we have.”

Charged under Section 4(1)(b) of the Sedition Act 1948, the Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris undergraduate faces a jail term of not less three years, or a fine of up to RM5,000 or both, if convicted. Adam Adli, who came to court in a black T-shirt, was represented by lawyers Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, N. Surendran, Afiq M. Noor and Shamsul Iskandar Mat Akin.

Read more here: 

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/tian-chua-haris-ibrahim-held-in-sedition-crackdown/

Speaking to FMT, S Vell Paari said he was concerned to learn about the arrests of Anything But Umno (ABU) leader Haris Ibrahim, PKR vice-president Tian Chua and PAS’ Thamrin Ghaffar. The trio were held this afternoon in connection with a forum on May 13, where a call was made to topple the Barisan Nasional government via street protests. Vell Paari said the arrests would anger the public further as the authorities would be perceived to be practicing double standard when it comes to enforcing the Sedition Act.

“While the likes of [Perkasa leaders] Ibrahim Ali and Zulkifli Noordin; and academic Ridhuan Tee Abdullah are allowed to roam free despite making incendiary remarks about race and religion, these opposition figures are however swiftly hauled up. “Even the Utusan Malaysia frontpage in the aftermath of the general election, which read ‘Apa Lagi Cina Mahu? [What more do the Chinese want], screamed sedition but our leaders chose to defend the publication,” added the MIC strategy director.

Vell Paari said this development did not bode well for Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s administration. “As it is BN suffers from a severe perception crisis and these arrests would just aggravate the situation,” he warned. Vell Paari said while the police had the right to investigate those who called for street protests to topple the government, it should not resort to using draconian laws...

Talk is rife that the government’s hard stance stemmed from the appointment of Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as the new home minister, who is said to be reintroducing the facets of Mahathirism. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a BN source said that he would not be surprised if former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad was pulling the strings. “Najib was given his chance and he blew it. His electoral performance was worse than his predecessor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. “So perhaps Umno is now looking to its grand wizard to set the house in order,” he told FMT.

Read more here:
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/05/23/sedition-dragnet-reeks-of-double-standard/

Ex-Umno man defends DAP against May 13 charge

Ex-Umno strongman Mohd Tamrin Abdul Ghafar has become an unexpected ally in Pakatan Rakyat’s bid to counter the claim that DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang was behind the May 13 riots in 1969.

The former Batu Berendam MP, who is also the second son of former deputy premier Abdul Ghafar Baba, has claimed that the incident was the outcome of a “mini coup” orchestrated by Umno leaders including Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“What (then home minister Muhammad) Ghazali (Shafie, left) told (PKR de facto leader) Anwar (Ibrahim) and me, when we were in Umno Youth, was that the incident was a mini coup planned by Umno men, and that Mahathir was involved,” Tamrin said during two Pakatan ceramahs in Gelang Patah last night.

“(First prime minister) Tunku (Abdul Rahman) wrote in his column 'As I See It' in The Star two years before he passed away, that the incident was a deliberate seizure of power by Umno leaders who then blamed it on DAP and the Chinese.”

Lim Kit Siang is running in Gelang Patah, against incumbent Johor Menteri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman, in the hope of extending Pakatan’s 2008 ‘political tsunami’ to Johor.

Tamrin’s disclosure supports the argument of academician Kua Kia Soong that the racial clash in 1969 was the result of a coup d'état by then deputy premier Abdul Razak Hussein against the Tunku, and that Mahathir supported it.

Tamrin recalled that the Tunku had expelled Mahathir from Umno after the latter wrote an open letter calling for the Tunku's resignation after the riots.

“After the Tunku stepped down and Razak took over the premiership, he took Mahathir back into Umno and appointed him as education minister.

“This shows that Razak was grateful to Mahathir (for pressuring the Tunku to step down),” he explained, adding that Kit Siang was not in Kuala Lumpur during the clashes.

He said the continued reference to the incident by Umno, in order to frighten Malay voters, indicates that the BN is desperate.

With anti-establishment sentiment growing rapidly among Chinese Johoreans to Pakatan’s apparent advantage, Umno has flashed the race card to consolidate its support among the Malay electorate in Johor.

Its campaigners have been found distributing publicity material to Malay voters accusing DAP and Kit Siang of causing the May 13 riots.

To counter the charge, Pakatan has brought in several former Umno leaders including ex-law minister Zaid Ibrahim and former Selangor menteri besar Muhammad Muhammad Taib to defend DAP and Kit Siang.

Read more here: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/228497

Malaysia: Government Gross Debt 1990-2013

Are You Ready For BN?

#RCISabah: Pride comes before destruction

By Mariam Mokhtar. Published by Malaysiakini on 21 January 2013.

According to one Sabahan, there is so much crime in Sabah that squatter houses, too, have grilles on the doors and windows, and that these cost more than the houses themselves.

For four decades, ordinary Sahabans have been angered by illegal immigration and the social and economic problems associated with it, such as a shortage of housing, a lack of employment and educational opportunities, high levels of crime and massive overcrowding. 

Despite the limited terms of reference of the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) ordered by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, the RCI has revealed disturbing aspects of former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's bid to remain in power. Soon, the RCI will be overshadowed by the side-show that Mahathir may have helped arrange. 

The star-performer is the self-styled motivational guru Sharifah Zohra Jabeen Syed Shah Miskin (right). One wonders if Zohra has replaced the virgin queen, Ummi Hafilda Ali, who used to come to Mahathir's aid and helped distract the rakyat with golden showers and salacious revelations. 

There was once a time when the government would detain reporters and send them to Kamunting, ostensibly for their own safety. Zohra was denied this privilege because Najib has abolished the ISA. Last week, Zohra bowed to overwhelming pressure and heeded police advice to cancel her seminar on ‘How to Make Your First Million'. 

I can give you the gist of the RM200 seminar. It is an open secret that the first million is easy to make; join Umno, then claw your way to the top by backstabbing and badmouthing everyone who stands in your way. 

There are tell-tale signs that that you have "made it" and joined the Umno elite. In the election canvassing that takes place every five years, Umno delivers bags of rice to the masses, but the Umno elite receive Birkin bags. 

Households that qualify are given a one-off payment of RM500 (and possibly another RM500 if the situation demands it) but the elite get several million ringgit in hard cash, stuffed in suitcases. 

The poor may get a discount on their smartphones, but the elite are given the contracts to sell the phones. 

The rakyat may be given tins of powdered milk as freebies during canvassing, but elite members are given millions of ringgit to buy a few cows and many luxury condominiums. 

Zohra has not much in humility

A video of the shameful conduct of Zohra emerged a month after the incident. Despite the public opprobrium which she received, Zohra showed everyone that she is miskin by name and miskin (poor) by nature. 

She lacks the intellect to reflect on her poor behaviour. She did not have much in the way of humility. She displayed an inferior understanding of people's feelings and she was a poor communicator. 

Instead of eating the humble pie, she has become more arrogant and haughty. Instead of acknowledging that she was tactless and rude, Zohra issued a statement from her hiding place, in which she declined to apologise but "forgave" KS Bawani, the student who suffered Zohra's acid tongue. 

This incident should have been a temporary frenzy and yes, we are angry because it is obvious that Zohra's behaviour is unacceptable. Some Umno leaders and members of the BN coalition have distanced themselves from her, but it appears that Zohra is determined to prolong this crisis into a full blown affair. 

The reason must be to take our attention away from Mahathir's alleged crimes in the Sabah votes for citizenship fiasco. 

Just a few months ago, Najib outlined the terms of reference for the Sabah RCI. Many have criticised the RCI for its limited scope and because its findings will not be revealed before GE13.

If the RCI proves that Umno won elections by fraud and cheating, it brings into doubt the legitimacy of this and previous Umno/BN governments. By cheating, Umno has disenfranchised the people of Malaysia and forced us to wait until GE13 to gain our choice of ruling party. 

Proof of fraud and cheating will confirm that Umno/BN should not be the current government. Will the RCI be another whitewash or will its members seek to save their own skins, by leaving the sinking Umno ship? 

As the extent of Mahathir's Project IC is slowly being revealed, the importance of this RCI is increasing. 

Mahathir won't go without a fight

Just as Mahathir thought he had undermined Najib, his hopes were damned. So he tried to deflect some of the rakyat's abhorrence of Project IC, by tarnishing the name of Tunku Abdul Rahman, the Father of Independence. 

Will the RCI bring about the fall of Mahathir? No. He may have cut a pathetic figure recently but he will not go without a fight. Although the rakyat have a strong case against him, Mahathir has too many people in his pockets. They owe their success to him and he will call in his favours. 

The rakyat is leading the opposition fight to topple the Mahathir regime, but their wish will not be fulfilled, just yet. 

Both Najib and Mahathir are locked in a deadly battle. Najib cannot bring about Mahathir's fall, because to do so would bring the fight right to his front door. He, like Mahathir, has a dirty past. The best Najib can do is to hold out for a few more months. 

If Najib were to destroy Mahathir now, it would start a media frenzy, which would eclipse the one Zohra is facing today. 

Zohra's gaffe has caused quite a stir. She tried to put on a brave face and refused to apologise, thus avoiding an admission of guilt. Ironically, her intransigence has damaged Umno by rallying the rakyat to vote for the opposition.

Link: http://www.malaysiakini.com/columns/219518