Hindraf report to Washington: Institutional Racism in Malaysia

CPI introduction

Below is the executive summary made by P. Waytha Moorthy, the founder of Hindraf and leader of the Human Rights Foundation Malaysia.

Also uploaded is the paper presented before the US House Committee on foreign affairs and the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.

According to its brief, Hindraf is “Human Rights Foundation Malaysia is an organisation dedicated to the protection and promotion of Human Rights for the marginalised in Malaysia. We document and report all forms of violations, give voice to the oppressed and hold the Government accountable for its Human Rights violations. We lobby International support for the marginalised community and submit Independent reports and evidence to International bodies.”

*************************

Institutional Racism and Religious freedom in Malaysia

Executive summary

• Institutional racism is the process by which people from ethnic minorities are systematically discriminated against by a range of public and private bodies. If the result or outcome of established laws, customs or practices is racially discriminatory, then institutional racism can be said to have occurred.

Dr.Benjamin Bowling

(Professor of Criminology & Criminal Justice and Director of Criminological studies in the School of Law, King's College London.)

• Malaysia has all the hallmark of a racist and religious extreme state on the following foundation;

a) The Federal Constitution entrenched with a racist provision vide Article 153 ( Malaysian brand of apartheid)

b) The State sanctions racist and religious extreme laws and policies

c) State control of Government Administration by 1 race/religious group

d) State channel of most funds for economic/education/development programs and licenses, permits ect to 1 race

e) State control of Religious freedom to disadvantage of non-Muslims, imposition of Muslim religious laws and compelling jurisdiction of Syaria Courts on non-Muslims.

f) State sponsored violence/threat of violence both directly and outsource to other groups on objections by citizens

g) State sanction of draconian, punitive laws and the blank cheque given to Police to make arbitrary arrests on dissent.

h) State declaration that the Malays are the masters (Malay Supremacy) and sons of soil.

• Ethnic groups in Malaysia : Malay 53.3%, Chinese 26.0%, indigenous 11.8%, Indian 7.7%, others 1.2%.

• Religions: Islam (60.4%), Buddhism (19.2%), Christianity (9.1%), Hinduism (6.3%), other/none (5.0%). - US Department of State 2011

• Malaysia is a country based on a subtle, pervasive and increasingly aggressive form of racism. The conflict that lies just below this artificial calm state, is so well concealed, that to someone with just a cursory knowledge Malaysia would find it hard to believe and this is part of the problem.

• Malay supremacy or Malay dominance is the claim that the Malay Muslims are the tuan (masters) of Malaysia. The Chinese and Indians, who form a significant minority in Malaysia, are considered beholden to the Malays for granting them citizenship in return for special privileges as set out in Article 153 of the Malaysian Constitution.

• Article 153 is a deep-rooted racist provision in the Constitution which sanctions implementation of all racist policies in Malaysia to the disadvantage of the minority non-Malay/Muslim population. Questioning any matter, rights, status, privilege ect of Article 153 is considered a challenge to the Malay Supremacy, insulting the Royal Institution and Islam. It is also deemed a threat to National Security, an offence under the Internal Security Act which gives powers of arrest for unlimited period without trial and under the Sedition Act which provides for imprisonment between 3-5 years.

• Since the Democratic uprising of Hindraf in 2007 and the subsequent loss of its 2/3 Parliamentary mandate in the March 2008 elections, Government has outsourced its overt racist agenda to NGO’s in particular PERKASA. This is an NGO led by a Pro Government Parliamentarian who promotes the Malay Muslim supremacy agenda and has the explicit support of top Government leadership including the former Prime Ministers, ex Army officials and ex Inspector General of Police.

• PERKASA works intimately with a more militant group known as Pekida and another underworld Para- military group known as 3 LINE. Together they perpetuate racial hatred and cause fear among the non-Malays.

• Government budgetary allocations.

1. All Government projects are primarily given to Malay Muslim Bumiputra individuals and organizations.

2. All Government contractors have to be licensed by the Finance Ministry before being given any Government projects.

3. Malays have been promoted in the Civil service to assure that the highest policy-making positions will be filled by Malays regardless of objective performance standards.

• As of June 2005, more than 85% of the Civil Servants were Malay Muslims. This was an increase of close to 25% from 1971.

• The FELDA Scheme – Federal Land development Authority

• There is a systematic and wholesale exclusion of Non-Malays from this program. Indian plantation workers who were being actively displaced at the time of the growth of this FELDA scheme in the 1970s and 1980s were not considered part of the target group, because they were not categorized as being from the rural community. This was convenient way to exclude. An estimated 800,000 Indian plantation workers have been displaced from plantations without any alternative programs/compensation.

• FELDA, FELCRA, PERDA, KEDA, KETENGAH, KESEDAR, KEJORA and a host of other development agencies use procedural techniques of one form or another such as this to entirely exclude the deserving non-Malays.

• FELDA show a total turnover of RM 11.8 Billion. The profits before tax alone are RM804 million5.

• A RM 120 million residential school for FELDA children - a Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) in Trolak, Perak. Compare this with the recent promise of an allocation of RM100 million by the Prime Minister for 523 Tamil schools in the country, for which there is no evidence of disbursement anyway. There are 42 MRSM schools like the one above in the country.

• In 1980, the World Bank raised concerns over the ethnic bias in FELDA settler selection by pointing out that if the government was serious “about increasing the non-Malay share in agriculture, some increase in the non-Malay share of settlers was warranted

• The Tekun Nasional scheme is a scheme to provide micro credit and to develop majority Malay Muslim entrepreneurs.

• For the year 2008 alone TEKUN Nasional has provided RM 182 million as loans to 19,000 entrepreneurs.

• That is close to RM1 Billion -not to mention almost all those loans went to Malay Muslim entrepreneurs. Participation in the Tekun program of Indians is miniscule - a total of 93 Indian entrepreneurs received loans amounting to RM761,000 on July 24, 2009 in a ceremony.8 That is less than 0.1% of that disbursed to the Malay Muslim entrepreneurs.

• The collusion of the various arms of the Government to keep dissent in check

Some of the key ones are :

1. Government Linked Companies

2. Government Investment Companies

3. Economic Planning Unit

4. The Federal Cabinet of Ministers

5. The various Ministries

6. The Royal Malaysian Police

7. The Attorney general’s Office

8. The Judiciary

9. The Government Administrative Services

10. The Government owned Banks

11. The Government controlled media

• The Government has used suppressive laws like the Internal Security Act, the Official Secrets Act, Printing Presses and Publications Act, the Seditions Act during this period to implement these terribly racially lopsided development plans while allowing the racist system to grow

• Given the need to maintain a racist regime, the Police have become a primary instrument of control for the majority Malay Muslim party in Government –UMNO. Police violence, abuse of power and human rights abuses occur very regularly. Cases of death in custody, partial handling of criminal disturbances, violent dispersal of peaceful protestors and other form of human rights violation continue. This has created a climate of impunity and normalization of violence, abuse of power and violation of human rights in Malaysia.

• More than 77% of the Government administration members are of Malay Muslim ethnicity. About 20% the Indian members and about 60% of the Chinese members of the Government administration are teachers in the Government Vernacular schools. If they are excluded from the numbers employed by the Government administration, the picture that emerges is about an overall participation of 85% Malays in the administration

• The Malay Muslim employees of the administration go through special programs of training called National Civics Bureau where they are all educated on how to keep “the wealth of the family within the family” in short how to operationalize the racist policies of the Government. This is a much criticized activity, but the Government continues with impunity as it is a key approach in recreating that racist bureaucracy.

• The Mainstream media blocks out, demonizes and distorts information of any organization that speaks out against this racist system in a coordinated fashion. The Government uses the Printing Presses and Publications Act and limiting ownership to known allies to control the Media to do this.

• There are an estimated 150,000 – 200,000 Indian children who are stateless due to the States’ reluctance to recognize them as Malaysians. This is operationalized by the racist state bureaucracy. As result they are not admitted in Schools, enjoy health care and other benefits a child enjoys.

• The racial bias in the educational system is the area where racism is most blatant – all the way from pre-school and primary education up to Tertiary levels.

• There are 42 fully residential elite Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) (Mara junior Science College) (NST 5/4/08) with 12,440 places also in the fully residential schools (BH 21/11/09 at page 7). These schools have been almost exclusively for Malay Muslim students

• Non-Malays are also almost 100% excluded in other elite schools like the Royal Military College, Aminuddin Baki Institution, Matriculation courses and the Malay College Kuala Kangsar.

• There are two streams for entry into the Public Universities. One is through the Matriculation 12 month program specifically tailored for the Malay Muslim students and the other is through the 18 month and much more stringent STPM program

• Admissions into public Universities is more than 80% reserved for the Malays Muslims. One university with a student population of 170,000 in 2011(UiTM) is for Malay Muslims only. The other 19 public Universities with about 170,000 enrolments in all have a 60% Malay Muslim students making it 80% for Malay Muslims in all Public Universities. This does not even talk about the composition in the various courses offered.

• There are 62,000 diploma places and 60,000 degree places for 2010 at 27 Polytechnics in Malaysia. These are exclusively for the Malay Muslim students.

There are 163,779 students studying at the 19 other Public Universities nationwide at an annual expenditure cost of RM 2.6 Billion15. Our estimate is a mere 5 % of this expenditure will accrue to non-Malay students.

• RM 2.8 Billion is allocated for the 2010 National Budget for student’s assistance scholarships. Most of the funds go for scholarships to Malay Muslim Students.

• 1,266,671 students (estimated 90% Malay Muslims) have benefited from the government PTPTN (Government Higher Education Loan Fund) study loans till 2009. 147,441 such loans were approved at RM 17.0 Billion (UM 25/3/08 at page 31).

• The constitution provides for freedom of religion; however, the constitution and the government placed restrictions on this right. The constitution defines all ethnic Malays as Muslims at birth and stipulates that Islam is the "religion of the Federation."

• Civil courts continued to concede jurisdiction to Sharia courts on cases concerning conversion from Islam and certain areas of family law involving disputes between Muslims and non-Muslims.

• Forced religious conversions and religious intolerance are evidence of creeping Islamization in Malaysia. Whenever there is a conflict between Muslim and non-Muslims, the tendency is for Muslim Laws to prevail over the non-Muslim issues regardless of the merits of the case.

• The decision of the Court of Appeal on 21st August 2010 in the case of Maniam Moorthy is a disturbing trend in the role of the Judiciary which has abdicated its powers to the inferior Sharia Courts which was meant to serve the Muslims only on matters (personal) pertaining to marriage, divorce, property distribution ect.

• Lina Joy, 42, who was born to a Malay Muslim couple, became a Christian when she was 26.

• She lost her final round of appeal when the Federal Court dismissed her appeal on 30th May 2007 against a ruling that the National Registration Department was right not to allow her to remove the word "Islam" from her identity card.

• In August 2010 The newspaper of the Catholic Church in Malaysia, The Herald, filed a legal suit at following warnings that its permit could be revoked if it did not cease use of the word "Allah" in the Malay language section of its newspaper.

• Several Malaysian churches have been attacked and fire bombed, leaving at least one badly damaged, in an escalating dispute over the use of the word "Allah" by Christians.

• A religious edict (fatwa) by a Muslim cleric in the state of Sabah caused the Sabah state government to cancel the construction of a 108 feet Goddess of Sea Mazu statue by the Taoist in 2008.

• In August 2011 The Selangor Religious Department raided a Church dinner function organised by an NGO on allegation of Christian proselytizing campaign.

• According to the government, it allocated 428 million ringgit (approximately $125.9 million) to build Islamic places of worship and 8.1 million ringgit ($2.4 million) to build Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, and other minority religions' places of worship between 2005 and the end of 2008. (in answer to a Parliamentary question)

• Throughout the years since Malaysian independence in 1957, the government has been disregardful of the systematic destruction of Hindu places of worship, which previously stood on estates and state owned estates and land. An estimate of about 10,000 Hindu places of worship have been demolished.

• The government justifies the demolition of the places of worship on the grounds that they were illegally constructed or were occupying government land. Planning and building laws never existed at the time of the construction of these places of worships.

Conclusion

Promoting freedom and democracy and protecting human rights around the world is central to U.S. foreign policy and consistent with the values upon which the United States was founded. The Malaysian minorities long to live with dignity and freedom but are denied dignity and freedom by a racist regime that has developed over the last 50 years in the name of affirmative action for the majority. The endless extensions of the affirmative action policies have now led to serious Human Rights violations of the minorities in the country. This is inconsistent with developments around the world and with the aspirations of the minorities of Malaysia. It is time for the international community to hold the Malaysian government accountable for this performance. The world has to wake up to these developments in Malaysia, for the future of this trajectory is being told many times over, in what is happening around the world today.

Perkasa turns yellow: no balls to wear red

PERKASA, the controversial Malay NGO, who normally wear RED have now changed to YELLOW.

Why isn't the POLICE arresting these PERKASA protesters and their LEADERS!!!!!

picture courtesy of Sun(source : uppercaise)

RM5mil bombshell: NFC money used to buy Mercedes, land, holidays, cash transfers

As promised, PKR leaders have dropped another bombshell bound so send Umno Women's chief Shahrizat Jalil scrambling for new cover.

Not only did her family authorize the purchase of two super-luxury condos in Bangsar, they allegedly also used RM5 million of public funds to buy a top-range Mercedes-Benz, land in a residential part of Putrajaya as well as remit half a million to their personal companies.

PKR strategy director Rafizi Ramli revealed that the company's financial documents had showed that NFC transferred RM3,363,507 to its sister company National Meat and Livestock Corporation (NMLC) to purchase two plots of land in Putrajaya, PT1886 and PT1887.

"It is highly unlikely that the land bought in Putrajaya are intended for raring cows," Rafizi told a press conference on Thursday.

The purchase was effected through NMLC, and follows the same modus operandi adopted in the purchase of the Bangsar condos at RM6.9 million each, according to Rafizi.

He further revealed that through the same means, NMLC had purchased the Mercedes Benz CLS 350 CGI at RM534,622. Not only that, NFC is allegedly also paying a monthly RM20,000 maintenance cost for the Merc.

A sum of RM588,585 was also transferred to Meatworks (Singapore). Both NMLC and Meatworks are wholly-owned by Shahrizat’s family and “have nothing to do with NFC’s business plan,” stressed Rafizi.

15 cheques were also issued by NFC to tour agency Impian Global Network Services, and PKR has demanded that the Wanita Umno chief “tell us who went on these holidays.”

“Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has said NFC has no business in Singapore. Then why was such a huge sum transferred there?” he told a press conference in Parliament today

Shahrizat and her family have been at the centre of the RM250 million NFC financial debacle. NFC is a national livestock project aimed to ensure Malaysians get a cheap supply of beef. The project was awarded to Shahrizat's husband and children in 2006.

Amid calls from both sides of the political divide to resign, Shahriza has insisted that NFC had "nothing to do with me" but few believe that her family could have secured the tender without her being the Wanita Umno deputy president.

Just this morning, she defended herself, insisting that if she were to step down, then so too must PKR president Wan Azizah. She was immediately flayed by PKR leaders for not being able to differentiate between graft and sodomy.

"Yes, Umno is setting such a bad example to the people especially the youth. Imagine, they have reached the stage where they defend corruption! It is really out of control," PKR Women's chief and Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin told Malaysia Chronicle.

Malaysia Chronicle

NFC scandal: PKR reveals more dirt

Tarani Palani | November 30, 2011

PKR wants Shahrizat Abdul Jalil to explain the RM534,000 Mercedes Benz and RM3 million land parcels in Putrajaya.

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition PKR affronted by Umno women’s wing chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s lashings against its party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has comeback with more muck on the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal.

This time PKR has questioned the ownership and expenses involving Shahrizat’s RM534,000 Mercedes Benz and two lots of land in Putrajaya worth RM3 million.

PKR strategic director, Rafizi Ramli who disclosed these details to reporters in parliament today said he was also seeking for Shahrizat to clarify monthly payments to a travel agency which ranged from RM1,000 to RM120,000.

“We were anticipating her response and hoped that she would be more humble but since that was not the case, we decided to add more misappropriations”, said Rafizi alluding to to Shahrizat’s tit-for-tat response to allegations of misappropriations of public funds by her family involving NFC.

This morning Shahrizat told Umno Wanita delegates that if she had to resign because of her husband, Wan Azizah should resign for Anwar’s misdeeds.

Shahrizat has maintained that her husband is innocent of any misdeeds unlike Anwar who was found guilty of sodomy charges.

Shahrizat, also the women, family, community development minister, was commenting on PKR women wing’s chief Zuraida Kamaruddin’s call, last week, for her to resign.

Shahrizat’s husband Dr Mohamad Salleh Ismail is the NFC chairman. Shahrizat’s family has been accused of misusing a RM250 million government soft loan given for the NFC project.

The NFC was first highlighted as a failure by the Auditor General’s Report late last month.

PKR subsequently revealed that the centre had purchased two luxury condominium units in Bangsar and that the executive director and a fellow director had performed umrah using the company’s finances. The directors are Shahrizat’s husband and son. Shahrizat maintained her husband’s innocence in the controversy.

Money from subsidiary company

Rafizi in a press conference today said that the luxury car and the two plots of land were purchased from money transferred to the National Meat Livestocks Corporation Sdn Bhd (NMLC)’s account. NMLC is a subsidiary company which is owned by Shahrizat’s family.

Rafizi said that on Dec 9, 2009, Shahrizat’s family had purchased a Mercedes Benz CLS 350 CGI worth almost RM534,000. He claimed that the money came directly from the RM250 million soft loan allocated for the NFC program.

He also claimed that the maintenance for the car came up to almost RM20,000, which was also allegedly taken directly from the NFC bank account.

When asked if Rafizi was sure that Shahrizat’s family actually owned the said luxury vehicle, Rafizi answered in the affirmative. He added: “I am sure the cattle farmers in Gemas will not drive such a luxurious car. I am sure that the directors use the car and the directors are her family members”.

Rafizi also said that the two plots of land were purchased in Precinct 10 in Putrajaya at the price of RM3,363,507.

“I am sure the land was not bought to bred cattle… I don’t know how you can bred them in Putrajaya,” he said.

Rafizi also sought clarification over monthly transfers of funds worth RM455,423 over a span of seven months to a travel agency.

He said that 15 cheques issued from NFC’s CIMB Islamic Bank Berhad account showed that the money was transferred to Impian Global Network Services (IGNS) which offered holiday packages to Phuket, Kuching, Bandung and others.

“We have previously revealed that RM800,000 was allocated as entertainment allowances for the directors (which also includes overseas trips). But they said that the trips may be related to cattle business.

“But why is there a need for a cattle business to have such monthly expenditure to a travel agency? Who is (doing the) traveling,” asked Rafizi.

Questions over the tender process

He also raised doubts over the half million ringgit transferred to Meatworks (Singapore) Pte Ltd in July 2010. Meatworks is a company owned by one of Shahrizat’s children.

“As (Umno Youth chief) Khairy Jamaluddin had said earlier (in defending Shahrizat) that one cannot export raw meat to Singapore as it is not allowed by the country’s law, then why was RM588,585 transferred to Meatworks account,” he asked.

He added: “I have just highlighted one such transaction. I am too tired to highlight the many more transactions to Meatworks”.

He said that Shahrizat must now explain each and every of the allegations made against her to the public, or at least to the Umno delegates.

“If she is really responsible, then she wouldn’t drag Umno and its women’s wing into the fray which is essentially a private scandal,” he said.

Meanwhile PKR secretary general Saifuddin Nasution said that the tender process to award the NFC process was not truly open.

He said that the NFC was the brainchild of an undisclosed bumiputera entrepreneur way back in 2003.

“The company had approached Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry, Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi) and Negeri Sembilan state government,

“The initial plans did not require any funds from the government but only required loans from the government. The company merely requested the state government to lease a land in the Gemas farm,” he said.

However he said that company was overlooked – and was not even invited to put in a tender, – and the project was given to Shahrizat’s family.

Perkasa, Mamak group bring traffic to a standstill

Athi Shankar | November 30, 2011

Protesters accuse CM's political secretary Ng Wei Aik of humiliating Bangladeshi married to a local and call for his sacking.

GEORGE TOWN: About 300 protesters from Perkasa and Suara Anak Anak Mamak Pulau Pinang caused a massive congestion when they marched against the flow of traffic at noon today.

Their target: Komtar assemblyman and Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s political secretary Ng Wei Aik who has been accused of humiliating a Bangladeshi married to a local woman.

The protesters demanded that Ng quit immediately as Komtar assemblyman and also called on Lim to sack Ng as his political secretary.

Police detained 11 people including the protest leader, Perkasa’s north-east district chief Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin, for the commotion.

All were released after having their statements recorded at the city police headquarters.
Anak-Anak Mamak leader Mohamed Ghani Abdul Jiman, who was his usual boisterous uncouth self, however, was not detained.

The protesters gathered outside Continental Hotel in upper Penang Road at 12 noon before marching against the flow of traffic in the direction of Komtar, a kilometer away.

Once they reached the Komtar in Lebuh Teck Soon, the protesters, with some sitting on the road, chanted anti-Pakatan Rakyat, anti-Ng and anti-Lim slogans for over an hour.

Ng denies allegation

About 100 police personnel, including two Light Strike Force (LSF) units, were at the scene. The demonstration caused massive traffic congestion all over the city at peak lunch hour.

Sarimah Packeer Mohamed, 43, lodged a police report last week alleging Ng humiliated her husband, a Bangladeshi national, in public during Ng’s visit to a fire site in Jalan Gurdwara.

The fire razed three shophouses on Nov 22. Ng allegedly accused Sarimah and her husband of masterminding the fire which originated from a nearby unit owned by a senior citizen.

Ng denied Sarimah’s allegations, claiming that he only demanded Sarimah and her husband to close their illegal goods recycling business.

Police recorded a statement from Ng to assist in the case investigated under Section 500 of the Penal Code. This was not the first time Ng had been a target.

Earlier this year, Ng was accused of telling off a Nasi Kandar restaurant operator to “go back to India.”
After the protest today, Rizuad, accompanied by colleagues, handed over a memorandum to Chief Minister’s official representative Zuliana Aziz.

‘Pakatan did not fight enough’

Patrick Lee | November 30, 2011

However Pakatan MPs say that they had no choice but to stage a walkout and that their presence in the Dewan would not have made any difference.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat MPs ‘did not put up up a good fight’ and their walkout during the Peaceful Assembly Act 2011 Parliamentary debate was nothing short of disappointing, some citizens claimed.

During an open discussion over a candlelight vigil outside parliament last night, Melissa Loovi said that it was wrong of Pakatan MPs to bail out on voting over the bill.

“Our MPs, and all of them (Pakatan) just walked out when they were supposed to vote on this. They’re supposed to fight (in the Dewan), not give press conferences.

“The bill could have been passed anyway, but did our MPs actually fight for it?

“How did they try and reject this bill?” she told other vigillers during the discussion.

Another participant, Nalini Nair did not think that the MPs tried hard enough.

“I don’t think they put up a good fight. There should have been something more they could have done,” she said angrily.

Pakatan MPs walked out of the Dewan Rakyat yesterday during the debate on the Peaceful Assembly Act.

They claimed that the government was trying to rush the bill without considering the public’s or the opposition’s criticisms.

At mercy of police

This led to Pakatan MPs abstaining from the vote, which led to Barisan Nasional MPs voting for the bill to be passed.

The bill currently puts public rally-goers at the mercy of the police.

The bill would also outlaw street protests with certain public places such as hospitals and schools being given a 50-metre no-go zone through this law.

The move prompted members of the Bar Council to march to parliament in opposition of the bill at 12:15pm yesterday.

Later at 7:30pm last night, a candlelight vigil was held in front of parliament. Attended by less than 20 people, it also had the open discussion of the day’s events.

Calling the event as Occupy Parliament, the vigil was organised by an independent group known as the KL People’s Assembly.

Pakatan MPs: We had no choice

However when contacted for comments, Pakatan MPs had a different view on their walkout yesterday.

PAS’ Bukit Gantang MP Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin said that if the opposition MPs had not staged their walkout, they would have been “humiliated”.

This, he said, was because the government was pushing for the bill to be passed despite both Pakatan and the Bar Council’s stand against it.

“If we had waited and then we were ousted, we would have been much humiliated. The speaker (Pandikar Amin Mulia) did not exhibit any posture of trying to evaluate (the situation), and the only thing to do at the time was to leave the Dewan,” he said.

PKR’s Balik Pulau MP Yusmadi Yusoff said that their arguments were not considered on merit in the Dewan. He however admitted that the views of the Occupy Parliament participants were “a fair reaction”.

“Not many people know how parliament has worked for the last 50 years, which is the tyranny of the majority. What I want to tell the public is that arguments based on merits were not considered,” he said.

He said the parliament had passed other bills in the last three years because there were simply more BN MPs than there were Pakatan ones.

Tony Pua, the DAP PJ Utara MP, said that there would have been no difference even if Pakatan MPs had stayed to vote.

He reiterated Yusmadi’s statement that parliament in the end, was all about numbers.

“People have to know that the vote is counted by voice. If there is an indication that there is more of a voice (on our side) than theirs, only then would a physical vote be made,” he said

“There were more BN than Pakatan MPs inside,” he added.

PSC report: Onus on EC to implement indelible ink

Tarani Palani | November 30, 2011

The PSC report on electoral reforms has taken into consideration the immediate concerns over the country's electoral process.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on electoral reforms has highlighted the fact that no changes are needed to be made to the Federal Constitution to implement the use of indelible ink in the up-coming general election.

The PSC’s preliminary report also put the onus of introducing indelible ink on the Election Commission.

Sources said the report, due to be tabled later today and debated tomorrow, stated that it is the Election Commission which must hasten the process to make changes to the regulations to bring the indelible ink into effect.

Prepared by the bipartisan committee, the source added that PSC had clearly recommended that indelible ink be used in the 13th general election.

The PSC recommendations were based on wide-ranging concerns raised by many quarters over the irregularities of the electoral process.

The committee in its report also made nine other recommendations to clean-up the electoral roll.

One recommendation was for Mimos Berhad, strategic agency under purview of the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry (Mosti), to oversee verifications on hotly contested issues such as two voters with same identification cards, many voters registered under the same address and deceased voters who are still on the electoral roll, among others.

The other recommendations included the expansion of oversea absentee voters and even an establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to look into alleged illegal immigrants who are offered citizenship and are subsequently turned into voters.

Based on many of the grievances voiced during the PSC’s public hearing in Kota Kinabalu last Friday, the committee suggested that an RCI be established as a long term solution to look into allegations that illegal immigrants were turned to voters.

It also suggests that the EC specially verify Sabah’s electoral list.

Other recommendations inked by the PSC are:

• Early voting for all armed forces personnel, policemen and their spouses. Officers and spouses who are unable to do so may be allowed to vote via post.

• The EC should extend its absentee overseas voters category to include eligible Malaysians living abroad.

• Out-of-area voters such as East Malaysian residing in Peninsular Malaysia or vice-versa should be allowed to vote on election day wherever they are without having to return to their original registered voting locations. The EC should create a designated space for these out-of-area voters.

• EC must make sure that any change of registration area (change of voting stations) is accompanied by a Statuary Declaration (SD) by the applicant.

• Display of additional voters list be extended from seven to 14 days, to remove the RM10 charge for objections raised and to abolish the maximum number of objection which can be raised.

• EC should also amend regulations to enable objections to be made against the main electoral roll.

• Serial number on ballot paper be abolished and only to appear on the counterfoil to protect identification of voters.

• Any Malaysian above 21-years-old be able to assist the blind or physically challenged to mark their votes in the ballot paper. Currently only family members of the disabled may be able to assist.

• Current practice of candidates being unable to withdraw their nominations and objection process on nomination day to be abolished.

• To strengthen the EC by giving it more manpower and more allocation to act independently.

DAP welcomes report

In an immediate response, DAP secretary general Lim Guan Eng said his party supported the PSC’s recommendations.

“More things can be done to make it better but as an interim report, we give our interim support,” said Lim who is also the Penang Chief Minister.

“The 10 recommendations took into consideration Bersih and many civil societies’ demands for a fair and clean electoral process,” he told reporters in parliament today.

He urged proposed recommendations to be implemented in time for the next general election.

DAP’s representative in the PSC, Anthony Loke said that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak must respect the proposals made by the parliamentary committee.

“The onus is now on the EC to implement the changes, there should be no more excuses such as logistics,” said the Rasah MP.

Salahuddin: Muhyiddin buktikan Umno memang tak jujur, PAS di landasan betul

Oleh G Manimaran

November 30, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, 30 Nov — Serangan terbuka tidak berasas Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin terhadap PAS malam tadi membuktikan parti Islam itu berada di landasan betul apabila selama ini menolak idea kerajaan perpaduan dan kerjasama politik, kata Salahuddin Ayub.

Naib Presiden PAS ini menegaskan, kenyataan orang nombor dua Umno dan Barisan Nasional (BN) itu dengan sendirinya menggambarkan mereka tidak jujur dalam pelawaan dan ajakan berkali-kali selama ini, kecuali mahu menghancurkan Pakatan Rakyat.

“Ya, ya. Kita berada dalam landasan yang betul untuk tidak bersama dengan mereka (Umno), menolak ajakan mereka. Pendirian kami memang betul, apa yang kami sangkakan selama ini betul,” kata beliau kepada The Malaysian Insider hari ini.

Salahuddin (gambar) yang juga Ahli Parlimen Kubang Kerian berkata PAS memang dari “hari pertama penubuhan, lebih 50 tahun lalu tidak percaya pada Umno.”

“PAS tidak akan tertipu dan terpedaya dengan tindakan-tindakan Umno,” katanya dengan merujuk kepada keputusan PAS sejak tiga tahun secara konsisten menolak pelawaan membentuk kerajaan perpaduan bersama Umno.

Sebaliknya PAS mahu kekal bersama Pakatan Rakyat.

Idea kerajaan perpaduan muncul selepas Umno-BN kehilangan majoriti dua pertiga di Parlimen dan kerajaan lima negeri jatuh ke tangan parti komponen Pakatan Rakyat.

Dalam ucapan perasmian Persidangan Agung Tahunan Pemuda, Puteri dan Wanita malam tadi, Muhyiddin selaku Timbalan Presiden parti dan Timbalan Perdana Menteri berkata, PAS tidak boleh menggantikan Umno dalam memperjuangkan hak orang Melayu atas alasan “Umno tiada galang-ganti.”

Sebelum ini Umno berulang kali mengajak PAS agar membentuk kerjasama politik dan kerajaan perpaduan termasuk menyertai Barisan Nasional (BN).

“Nampaknya, apa yang berlaku hari ini bukan PAS ganti Umno seperti yang dicanang oleh mereka. PAS takkan boleh menggantikan Umno kerana Umno tiada galang-ganti.

“Yang sebenarnya berlaku ialah DAP ganti PAS. DAP bercakap mengenai Islam, PAS mengiyakan sahaja,” kata Muhyiddin.

Muhyiddin mendakwa “DAPlah yang menjadi penentu arah aliran Islam yang dibawa oleh Pakatan Pembangkang. Bukankah ini maknanya DAP menggantikan PAS?”

Sehubungan itu kata Muhyiddin, untuk menutup kegagalan mereka mempertahankan kesucian Islam, PAS mengemukakan agenda Negara Berkebajikan.

“Kini, mereka mengatakan konsep Negara Islam tidak disebut dalam al-Quran, yang ada hanyalah Negara Berkebajikan. Malang bagi PAS kerana setelah puluhan tahun memperjuangkan negara Islam, tetapi akhirnya mengatakan konsep negara Islam tiada dalam al-Quran. Maknanya, selama ini PAS membohongi umat Islam dengan perjuangan palsu mereka,” kata beliau.

Ekoran hujah dan ucapan menyerang tanpa asas itu, Salahuddin seterusnya menegaskan, beliau kini sudah hilang hormat ke atas Muhyiddin selaku orang nombor dua kerajaan pusat pimpinan Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“Apabila saya mendengar ucapan berpeluh Muhyddin ini (malam tadi), saya sudah hilang hormat ke atas beliau sebagai seorang pemimpin, timbalan perdana menteri dan dikatakan bakal perdana menteri. Beliau tidak layak. Sepatutnya sebagai seorang pemimpin nombor dua parti, beliau seharusnya menyampaikan gagasan yang lebih besar, bukan menggunakan poin-poin yang digunakan semalam,” katanya lagi.

Muhyiddin is a racist bastard

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 29 — Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin exploited the race card tonight when he urged Umno to defend the Malay race, culture and institutions from the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

Hitting out at the DAP in particular, he accused the PR party of being an anti-Islam and anti-Malay force.

Muhyiddin also dismissed PKR as a spent force interested only in championing the cause of one man, and PAS as a party that had shed its Islamic ideology to please the DAP.

“(The DAP) do not respect royal institutions, insult government officers who are mostly Malay, slander our armed forces with insults, dispute our enforcement institutes, dismiss the credibility of our justice system and make a fool out of the Malays to gain power for themselves,” he said when opening Umno’s Wanita, Youth and Puteri wings’ annual general assemblies here.

“DAP’s agenda to form a republic by dismissing values, history and identity of Malaysia as a nation based on sovereignty and Islam as the official religion is evident,” he added.

“If not, do they dare suggest the prime minister’s position be selected based solely on elections and without being chosen by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong? What is the meaning of this?”

Speaking to about 4,000 delegates from the Wanita, Youth and Puteri wings, Muhyiddin called PKR an ultraliberal party lacking moral values for electing a leader with a credibility crisis to head the party.

“They preach values that are against our culture in the name of freedom,” he said.

“Although one facet in PKR preaches religion and another preaches ultraliberalism, they have only one goal — to defend their leader.”

He pointed out that PAS has lost its way by placing both PKR and the DAP’s agendas before its own.

“It is clear the political tsunami during the last general election has drowned out the Islamic state ideology from PAS’s political lexicon,” he said, prompting laughter.

Assuring the crowd that Umno has risen from the political tsunami of 2008, Muhyiddin urged delegates to unite and strive to defend religion, race and country.

“Umno has shown its commitment by uniting people of all races... We shall not stir hatred with other races. We shall not insult other races. We shall not be prejudiced towards other cultures. We are not racist like DAP’,” he said.

Umno Youth calls PAS, PKR ‘bapok’, ‘pondan’ and DAP ‘enemy of Islam’

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal

November 30, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) bashing served as a focal point in today’s Umno Youth assembly, with delegates resorting to the use of foul language and insults to get their points across.

Umno state youth chiefs took turns attacking PR parties with a specific focus on DAP, accusing the party of systematically eroding the rights of Malays in states like Penang and Kedah.

Umno youth leader Shaik Hussein Mydin alleged that under Lim Guan Eng’s administration, Malay food stalls in Penang had been demolished and Malay businesses affected. — file pic

One leader, Shaik Hussein Mydin, claimed that Malays and Islam were at risk in Penang, and said that PKR and PAS had “no power” to stop the repression of the Malay community there.

“PKR and PAS are ‘bapok’ (transvestites) and ‘pondan’ (effeminate) as these days they have no power to challenge DAP.

“A vote for DAP is a vote for the destruction of Islam,” said the Penang Umno Youth chief to loud applause and shouts of “PKR, PAS tak ada telur!”

Honing in on the island’s PAS state chief Datuk Salleh Man and state executive councillor in charge of religious affairs Abdul Malik Kassim (PKR), Shaik Hussin repeatedly called them “pondan” and “bapok.”

He accused DAP of being an “enemy of Islam” and Malays in general, alleging that under Lim Guan Eng’s administration, Malay food stalls had been demolished and Malay businesses affected.

He also said Penang’s previous plan of wanting to introduce mosque elections was “kurang ajar” (rude).

“Under DAP, Malays have become their ‘baruas’. I won’t mince my words, because I mean what I say.

“Anyone who supports DAP is a ‘bangsat’ (bastard),” said Shaik Hussin.

He also brought up allegations that DAP were agents of “Christianisation,” saying that DAP Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi had never addressed claims that a function was held in Jelutong to discuss plans to install a Christian prime minister.

“This is the sad reality of Penang. Umno has to redouble its efforts here!” said Shaik Hussein.

Perak Umno state youth chief Khairul Azwan Datuk Harun continued the anti-DAP salvo, highlighting a state DAP leader’s alleged “racist” remark.

“DAP is racist. Racist!

“If they say the Perak Mentri Besar is a ‘black metallic haramjadah’, then DAP is the mother and father of all ‘haramjadah’,” Khairul said to loud cheers from the Umno crowd.

Perak DAP leader Nga Kor Ming today apologised to Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir for referring to the latter as “metallic black”, after his remarks caused an uproar in the Indian community.

But the Taiping MP and former state executive councillor continued to insist his words had been taken out context, claiming the phrase “metallic black” was in reference to Zambry and Barisan Nasional’s (BN) allegedly unconstitutional takeover of the Perak government.

UMNO's Rough politics in 1 Malaysia

NOV 30 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak wants a high-income and united nation under his 1 Malaysia concept, which is a continuation of the Vision 2020 idea and going back as far as 1971, the Rukun Negara or National Principles.

The Rukun Negara has five principles, namely 1) Belief in God 2) Loyalty to King and Country 3) Upholding the Constitution 4) Sovereignty of the Law and 5) Good Behaviour and Morality.

Number 5 is the basis of what is expected of all Malaysians, more so politicians.

But not today.

Today, Umno state youth chiefs took turns attacking Pakatan Rakyat (PR) parties with a specific focus on DAP, using foul language to accuse the party of systematically eroding the rights of Malays in states like Penang and Kedah.

One leader, Shaik Hussein Mydin, claimed that Malays and Islam were at risk in Penang, and said that PKR and PAS had “no power” to stop the repression of the Malay community there.

“PKR and PAS are ‘bapok’ (transvestites) and ‘pondan’ (effeminate) as these days they have no power to challenge DAP. A vote for DAP is a vote for the destruction of Islam,” said the Penang Umno Youth chief to loud applause and shouts of “PKR, PAS tak ada telur!”

Really? Name calling in politics has reached such a low. And these are the youth that Umno will depend on to perpetuate its dominance and its party president’s 1 Malaysia campaign.

The youth leader also tore at DAP, saying “Under DAP, Malays have become their ‘baruas’. I won’t mince my words, because I mean what I say.

“Anyone who supports DAP is a ‘bangsat’ (bastard),” said Shaik Hussin.

What does using such words say about Umno Youth? Can anyone condone such uncouth behaviour? Is this the way to widen Umno’s appeal to first-time voters? That it is fine to curse and swear in politics and to say that those who don’t support you are bastards?

How 1 Malaysia is this? Fact is, how stupid are those who believe such methods will win them votes?

Najib has gone to great lengths to befriend the youth, to watch football with them, attend concerts, even cycle in Penang, to impart a better image for his party. But it is people like this youth leader who will undermine such efforts.

Of course, Umno’s political foes are no better. But Umno must set the standard. Have any of its previous presidents or leaders of distinction use such uncouth language in the past? Is this the party that wants to continue providing leadership in the most rude of ways?

Umno needs a better crop of future leaders who think before they spew out anything. Otherwise, they are no better than street thugs who should only earn our contempt.

PKR’s Zuraida says Shahrizat is ‘cow minister of the year’

By Shannon Teoh

November 30, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 — Wanita PKR said today it was shameful for Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil to equate Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy trial with allegations of the abuse of over RM250 million in public funds in the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal.

Shahrizat had said this morning that PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail should also resign after the opposition party had called for the Wanita Umno chief to quit politics as the national cattle farming project was awarded to her husband.

Shahrizat has been under pressure from both opposition and BN MPs to quit the Cabinet in recent weeks. — file pic

“It is shameful and reflects the typical Wanita Umno mentality. This is the wrong analogy — sodomy and the abuse of public funds.

“She really deserves the title of cow minister of the year,” women’s wing chief Zuraida Kamaruddin told a press conference today.

The Ampang MP has repeatedly called for women, family and community development minister Shahrizat to resign as the NFC is being investigated for cheating and criminal breach of trust over its purchase of two luxury condominium units here with government funds.

NFC executive chairman Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Salleh Ismail is Shahrizat’s husband.

But Shahrizat said today, “I have nothing to do with it (the fiasco), why ask me to resign?”

“Today, I challenge all (PKR Wanita members) to call for Wan Azizah’s resignation because of her husband (PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim), who has been punished and charged for offences that cannot even leave my lips,” she said.

The Cabinet minister has been under pressure from both opposition and Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs to quit the Cabinet after a host of allegations emerged in recent weeks about improprieties involving the NFC, a national cattle project managed by her family.

Among the issues that have been raised by PKR are the use of public funds to acquire luxury condominiums worth RM13.8 million and the possible use of company money as personal expenditure by the minister’s family.

Zuraida also added today that although Wanita Umno delegates had defended their leader, “the real judge is the public who will vote soon.”

“Now they will judge not just the Wanita Umno chief but all parties in Barisan Nasional,” she said.

HRP wants temple demolishers heads to roll

B Nantha Kumar | November 30, 2011

The Indian councillors in MBSA also want the menteri besar to act against the enforcement officers.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Human Rights Party (HRP) has urged the Selangor state government to sack the enforcement officers involved in the demolition of a Hindu temple in Glenmarie, Shah Alam, if they are found to have abused their powers.

According to a witness, some 30 policemen and 10 enforcement officers from the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) smashed the shrine, including the statues of six Hindu deities last Thursday without issuing any prior notice.

However, state exco Dr Xavier Jayakumar defended MBSA, saying that several notices had been sent to the temple management.

He blamed the temple management for not checking the status of the land as the temple was sited on a road reserve area.

Councillors see red as well

Speaking to FMT, HRP central council member S Thiagarajan criticised the exco and the state government for not keeping their promise.

According to Thiagarajan, after Pakatan Rakyat took over the state in 2008, Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim sent a circular to all local councils barring them from demolishing any temple without the exco’s knowledge.

“What happened to the letter? Is that letter invalid or did Jayakumar himself give permission to MBSA to carry out the demolition?” he asked.

He pointed out that this was the fifth temple demolished by the Pakatan state government since coming into power.

He said the state government always blamed the local councils for not informing them about the demolishment.

As for the latest incident, Thiagarajan said if the MBSA officers had abused their powers then they must be sacked.

“We will see what action will be taken against the enforcement officers who brutally smashed the statues into pieces,” he added.

Meanwhile, he said HRP would also send a letter to the attorney-general regarding this matter.

“According to the Penal Code, defiling a place of worship with the intent to insult the religion of any class shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or fine or both,” he added.

Terming it as a “serious case”, Thiagarajan said HRP would urge the AG to take stern action against MBSA.

Contaced later, MBSA councillor V Vembarasan said that all five Indian councillors in the city council would also urge the menteri besar to take action against the enforcement officers.

“We held a meeting this morning and reached an agreement on this,” he added.

Putrajaya’s ‘dirty’ hand in Pakatan villages

Patrick Lee | November 30, 2011

More than RM137.8 million spent by government to maintain over 3,000 separate federal-run village committees in Pakatan Rakyat-run states.

KUALA LUMPUR: More than RM137.8 million has been spent to maintain over 3,000 separate federal-run village committees in Pakatan Rakyat-run states.

After Pakatan won five states in 2008, the federal government formed 3,231 Federal Development and Security Village Committees (JKKKP) in Kedah, Perak, Penang and Selangor.

The Ministry of Rural and Regional Development revealed this in a written reply to Serdang DAP MP Teo Nie Ching, who asked about the number of JKKKPs and the expenses involved.

According to the ministry, the Perak JKKKPs (815 in total) were dissolved following the takeover of the state by Barisan Nasional.

“Expenses were incurred for the Perak JKKKPs until June 2009. From July 1, 2009, the JKKKPs were dissolved after the state government shifted from Pakatan Rakyat to BN rule,” it said.

The ministry also said that 765 JKKKPs were set up in Kelantan in 2010. However, this did not result in lowered expenditure.

It also revealed that the JKKKP expenditure for four Pakatan states (excluding Kelantan) in 2008 and 2009 were RM24.1 million and RM28.1 million respectively.

‘Dirty tactics to take back power in Perak’

JKKKP expenditure for the remaining Pakatan states in 2010 and 2011 were RM26.2 million and RM59.2 million respectively.

The ministry also claimed that the two-fold increase from 2010 to 2011 was due to increased allowances for individual JKKKP chairmen, and meeting attendance allowances.

Teo said that the JKKKP was nothing more than another way for BN to win back the rural community in Pakatan-run states.

“After they used dirty tactics to take back power in Perak, the JKKKPs ceased to exist.

“This shows that this JKKKP is only a political gimmick to continue to appoint their Umno, MCA and MIC people into the provision of the JKKKP,” she said.

She added that there was no use for JKKKPs, when state governments were already appointing and funding their own village committees (JKKK).

“They have no respect for the power of the state government or the people, so you have two organisations in Pakatan states, who are basically doing the same work,” Teo said.

Dakwaan ejen Kristian, PKR, PAS kecam Ahmad Maslan

Muda Mohd. Noor | November 30, 2011

PKR mahu ketua penerangan Umno minta maaf kepada DAP.

PETALING JAYA: Dua parti politik gabungan Pakatan Rakyat – PAS dan PKR – marah dan kecewa dengan tuduhan Ketua Penerangan Umno, Datuk Ahmad Maslan yang mendakwa DAP ejen Kristian.

Dengan lantang PKR meminta Ahmad yang juga timbalan menteri di jabatan perdana menteri meminta maaf kepada DAP atas tuduhan yang tidak benar itu.

“Ahmad menghina Islam dan membuat kenyataan yang salah, perbuatan mencaci dan menghina bukan kelakuan orang Islam.

“Bertentangan dengan konsep wasatiyah atau kesederhanaan yang disebutkan oleh Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin sebagai pegangan orang Islam,” kata ketua penerangan AMK, Rozan Azen Mat Ripin hari ini.

Semalam Ahmad dilapurkan sebagai berkata, senario paling buruk berkenaan masa depan orang Melayu negara ini ialah apabila wujud “Parlimen tergantung” seperti di Australia, di mana Barisan Nasional tidak mampu melaksanakan agenda polisi-polisi ekoran hanya majoriti mudah.

‘Apa beza MCA dalam BN’

“Jika wujud Parlimen tergantung macam di Australia, katakan 112 kerusi bagi kerajaan berbanding 110 bagi pembangkang, keadaan paling buruk akan berlaku.

“Bahasa Melayu akan hilang (kedudukan), kata selamat tinggal kepada Kesultanan Melayu, malah pembangkang DAP tidak akan hormati institusi diraja… mereka tidak pernah terima gelaran diraja meskipun mereka ditawarkan.

“Kata selamat tinggal kepada Islam sebab mereka (DAP) adalah ejen Kristian… dalam bercakap mengenai agenda Melayu, kita tidak boleh lari daripada ini,” kata Ahmad semalam pada satu forum Umno sempena perhimpunan agung tahunan 2011.

Sementara itu, Ketua Pemuda PAS, Nasrudin Hassan berkata, kenyataan Ahmad itu menunjukkan kejahilan dan kedangkalan memahami politik negara.

Katanya, pemimpin Umno kena tunjuk bukti yang mengatakan DAP ejen Kristian.

Beliau menegaskan negara ini mempunyai perlembagaan yang mengawal negara.

“Apa masalahnya dengan orang Kristian? Apa bezanya MCA dalam BN,? tanya beliau.

Muhyiddin’s ‘mother of all lies’ irks DAP

G Vinod | November 30, 2011

Party veteran Lim Kit Siang lashes out at the Umno number two for accusing DAP of being anti-Malay and wanting to turn Malaysia into a republic.

PETALING JAYA: Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin’s speech at the party’s annual general assembly yesterday was outright irresponsible and despicable, said DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang.

In a statement today, he also described the speech as the “mother of all lies, filled with falsehoods and racism.”

Muhyiddin, who is also deputy prime minister, had accused DAP of being anti-Malay and anti-Islam, adding that the Chinese-based party wanted to turn Malaysia into a republic.

“DAP does not respect our royal institution, insults civil servants who are predominantly Malays and makes a fool out of our community for the sake of power.

“If not, would they dare suggest that the prime minister be selected solely based on elections without being chosen by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong? What is the meaning of this?” he had said.

Lim, who is also the Ipoh Timur MP, challenged Muhyiddin to substantiate his claims that DAP intented to turn Malaysia into a republic.

“For the record, we never proposed the prime minister’s position be selected based on elections alone and without the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. DAP always supports our constitutional monarchy and we have not questioned the sovereignty of our rulers,” he said.

Being a multiracial party, Lim said DAP is committed to the betterment of all Malaysians irrespective of race and religion.

“By making such racist and baseless allegations, Muhyiddin is going against Umno president, Najib Tun Razak’s 1Malaysia concept,” he added.

‘Tiada faedah bagi orang Melayu’

Muda Mohd. Noor | November 30, 2011

Ketua Penerangan AMK, Rozan Azen Mat Ripin menganggap Perhimpunan Agung Umno tidak lebih dari, untuk mempertahankan kuasa yang semakin hilang itu.

PETALING JAYA: PKR hari ini mendakwa Perhimpunan Agung Umno yang sedang berlangsung sekarang tidak memberi sebarang manfaat kepada orang Melayu.

Ketua Penerangan AMK, Rozan Azen Mat Ripin menganggap ianya tidak lebih dari, untuk mempertahankan kuasa yang semakin hilang itu.

“Pekikan kononnya untuk memperkasa orang Melayu hanya omong kosong menyebabkan apa sahaja yang dibuat tidak diterima orang.
Berbeza dengan yang dibuat oleh PKR dan Pakatan Rakyat semuanya untuk rakyat,” katanya.

Perhimpunan Agung Umno di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC), Kuala Lumpur bermula malam tadi dengan berlangsungnya majlis perasmian Pemuda, Wanita dan Puteri oleh Timbalan Presiden Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Manakala pagi esok, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak akan merasmikan perhimpunan induk kira-kira jam 10 pagi dan diikuti dengan perbahasan usul hingga Ahad.

Dalam ucapannya, Muhyiddin yang juga timbalan perdana menteri menyelar parti Pakatan Rakyat satu persatu termasuk PKR yang dikemudi mantan Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim sebagai ketua umum.

“PKR ini ketandusan agenda untuk orang Melayu dan Islam. PKR sebuah parti ultraliberal yang tiada asas moral dalam perjuangannya.

Jika tidak, masakan orang yang sedang dibelenggu krisis kredibiliti yang serius terus diangkat memimpin parti itu secara tidak demokratik.

“Mana mungkin kedudukan agama, bangsa dan negara boleh dijaga oleh PKR jika yang diangkat menjadi pemimpin pun bergelumang dengan masalah kredibiliti.

“Ringkasnya, PKR sebuah parti yang amat tenat…,” kata Muhyiddin di depan kira-kira 2,800 perwakilan ketiga-tiga sayap Wanita, Pemuda dan Puteri.

Mengulas perkara ini, Rozan berkata, PKR merupakan parti paling berjaya kerana dalam tempoh 10 tahun sudah mempunyai 31 ahli parlimen.

Katanya, dalam usia semuda ini PKR semakin mara ke depan dan diyakini rakyat.

Plot to isolate Ku Li in Umno?

Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz | November 30, 2011

Rahim Thamby Chik's warning to Umno that the opposition is eying Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah as premier should they come into power is mischievous.

Why should the opposition parties invite Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah to become the prime minister if they could win the elections on their own merit? Doesn’t PAS has Hadi Awang, DAP has Lim Guan Eng and PKR has Anwar Ibrahim?

This assessment by former Umno vice-president Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik pre-supposes that between the three, neither one accepts the leader of each party as a future PM.

It also assumes further, that Razaleigh, known as Ku Li, commands a number of elected MPs to give him a standing in future negotiations.

Where will he get the MPs?

Well, Rahim seems to believe that Ku Li has 20-30 people lined up to stand as MPs. And these ‘candidates’ are all aligned to him.

My question is where are these people? Are they in Umno or are they in the opposition camp?

Rahim’s nervous prognosis that the there are attempts by the opposition parties to invite Ku Li hinges on the theory that the 13th general election will deliver upon us a hung-parliament.

Rahim claims such a situation is ‘untenable’ because it will create political instability.

He says Umno must work hard to get a two thirds majority.

I am not going to respond to Rahim’s nervous prognosis of the 13th general election but I must admit to being bemused by his attempt to involve Ku Li in such a scenario.

To qualify as a participant in any future negotiations should a hung parliament comes into being, Ku Li must be head of a political party.

Right now, Ku Li is in Umno and doesn’t head a party. Neither is he a leader of any faction within Umno.

Mischievous Rahim

Could Rahim’s advice be another attempt to isolate Ku Li from Umno?

Ku Li is far too principled to agree to being appointed as leader of government on a personal-to-holder-basis. He will be a figurehead.

Umno people’s response to this would be because ‘Ku Li has never disowned the ambitions to become PM’.

So my answer is – why should he not have that ambition?

He was cheated of becoming one before. He has all the credentials to become one, and Umno folk know this.

But here’s an interesting piece of inside information.

When certain Umno people wanted to kick out (former premier) Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, they approached Ku Li for a solution.

Their agenda was only one – because of (current Umno president) Najib Tun Razak’s hesitation, they went to see Ku Li asking him to stand as Umno president and Muhyiddin (Yassin) as deputy president.

This group was made up of powerful people, united at that time, by their intense disapproval and loathing of Abdullah.

My point here is this – at that time, they didn’t think it was inappropriate for Ku Li to become Umno president and if he had won, go on to become PM of Malaysia.

At that point in time Ku Li’s ambition wasn’t an issue. His age wasn’t an issue. The fundamental objective then was to remove Pak Lah.

In which case what mischief is Rahim scheming now?.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman and a FMT columnist. This is an excerpt from his blog sakmongkolak47.

Dasar ‘tiada toleransi kepada korupsi’ menguntungkan rakyat S’gor

November 30, 2011

Saya merasa begitu gembira dengan kenyataan Menteri Besar Selangor sewaktu menghadiri Seminar Pelaburan Malaysia anjuran Malaysia-Japan Commerce Association (MAJECA) di Tokyo pada Nov 22, 2011.

Beliau dengan jelas mengatakan pelabur-pelabur tidak perlu membayar apa-apa komisyen untuk melabur di negeri Selangor.

Lebih-lebih lagi kenyataan tersebut dibuat dihadapan pelabur-pelabur dari negeri Jepun yang pada masa ini telahpun melabur sebanyak RM1.8 billion di negeri Selangor.

Pelaburan-pelaburan seperti ini akan membanyakkan lagi peluang-peluang pekerjaan di negeri Selangor ini.

Lebih-lebih lagi suasana pelaburan di negeri Jepun tidak berapa menarik memandangkan kadar faedah (interest rate) di Jepun mendatar untuk 5-10 tahun kebelakangan ini.

Peluang ini perlu direbut oleh negeri Selangor bagi meramaikan lagi pelabur-pelabur Jepun ke negeri Selangor memandangkan begitu trend di Jepun adalah melabur di luar negara sekarang ini.

Polisi dan praktis kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat yang tiada toleransi dengan korupsi bakal menarik perhatian ribuan pelabur-pelabur Jepun ke negeri Selangor memandangkan korupsi hanya akan mengurangkan keuntungan kepada para pelabur.

Dengan kata lain, apabila tiada korupsi, kadar keuntungan kepada para pelabur akan semakin tinggi. Ini akan mampu menarik lebih ramai pelabur ke negeri Selangor.

Lebih ramai pelabur masuk ke Selangor, bererti peluang pekerjaan akan bertambah. Ini juga bermakna ekonomi rakyat Selangor juga akan meningkat.

Jelas, ini suatu bukti bahawa dengan kurangnya korupsi, rakyat umum mendapat keuntungan yang berganda-ganda. Syabas Menteri Besar Selangor. Syabas Kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat Selangor