UMNO party president Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak would make way for Mahathir and his mafia gang

 Promises unfulfilled – Malaysians, do we put up with more of the same? The Lingam RCI, the Teoh BH RCI all came to nothing. Now the Sabah RCI has been promised. But like the rest of the RCIs no action will be taken by this BN gomen. All these promised reforms by the BN gomen are just empty promises, but yet many will be again deceived into giving their votes to BN in the coming GE13. Vote BN out and give Pakatan a chance to make things right. Pakatan can’t be any worse than the present BN gomen if not better

But political analysts and watchers interviewed by The Malaysian Insider say the BN government runs the danger of projecting an image of having no grand ideas of its own.

Wan Saiful Wan : UMNO party president Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak would make way for Mahathir and his mafia gang the moment he was asked to do so

 The atrocities of the EC and BN in this democratic nation is very mind boggling. We have no other alternative but to vote for PR in GE13. 

 

… it’s unfortunate that we have a government that is copying what the opposition proposes.  the very 1st amendment to the constitution was to place an independent EC under parliament (read BN)..this allows jerry meandering ,etc etc….but it’s a double edged sword? What if BN is no longer the parlliament? — Wan Saiful Wan Jan, chief executive of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs

 

 Please ask the Prime Minister ” bilakah JANJI AKAN DITEPATI ?”.You can’t expect the EC to do what is right when it is not independent of the executive and those in its top echelons are untrustworthy.

Weakness is contagious. It tends to debilitate even those limbs of the body politic that are functioning normally. UMNO ministers have always known that they owe their jobs to  image would be an asset on judgment day when the voter headed for the ballot box. This enormous strength has withered because no one expects Najib Razak   to lead the party in the next general elections ironically, to project an image of control. Instead, he passed the baton when he said, in his typically honest manner, that he would make way for Mahathir and his mafia gang the moment he was asked to do so. Power is never stagnant. It either consolidates around the leader, or ebbs. Those with longer plans for the future than the Prime Minister are establishing individual markers at the cost of collective cohesion.This is useful if you want to buy time, but not effective if you want to run a government.is burdened by a further paradox. He is presiding over not one but two coalitions. Congress itself is the second coalition, a storehouse of multiple interests that requires dexterous management even during times of serenity. Personal feuds are only a part of the alternative story; there are genuine and strongly held differences over policy. This is healthy, up to a point; when that point comes, the leader must demand obedience to a government decision.

 

The Prime Minister has imprisoned himself in the rather dubious proverb, that silence is golden. Silence is too aloof an option for democracy.A helpless Prime Minister induces a hapless government. Drift, as the term indicates, is never in a hurry. A government can float a long way before someone realizes that it has lost direction. Drift does not threaten a government’s survival, but it saps the people’s patience.The third paradox may seem puzzling but is easily comprehensible. It is always much more difficult to run a weak government than a strong one. The latter has a command structure, purpose and enough discipline to induce confidence in the ever-watchful voter. 

 

A weak government is great news for a newspaper, and even better fodder for television; but that is where its limited entertainment utility ceases. During his first five years, Najib Razak    was an anchor that was powerful enough to keep the ship steady through heavy turbulence in the final 8 months of its journey. Victory in 2004 could have made him master of a cruise liner. If, however, he continues to do nothing, he could become captain of a paper boat.some enormous challenges facing the nation and how ‘s government is all at sea in tackling these issues; indeed the government resembles a rudderless boat. 

 

One more challenge that is worth mentioning and which is of paramount importance to the populace is the galloping inflation and its crippling effects on the aam admi. For a few years now, the monstrous inflation is administering a “shock and awe” treatment to the middle and lower classes. The netas have nothing to offer in terms of solutions except prosaic platitudes of erudite prognostications. Yesterday the PM was made to tackle the food inflation problem when he offered the solution that with a normal monsoon, which is the expectation at present, the rate of inflation in food prices will abate in the second half of the year – well, a candid surrender to the rain gods is better than faked up competence. Nothing has so openly laid bare the impotency of the political class as inflation. EC is testing the patience of all by delaying and ignoring the call on electoral reform.They are just buying time until the general election is at our doorstep.They have read well the Malaysian psyche-we forget and give up easily. After a big Bersih3 rally we are back to zero.It also seems that Bersih steering committee under Ambiga and Pak Samad have resigned to their fate of not achieving what they had set up to.Only one reform,the use of indelible ink,was mentioned but the method and the types of ink were all shrouded in secrecy.We call upon the Bersih committee to wake up from the slumber (with apologies if I am wrong).It is time to play hardball with the EC and the BN govt who are seen to gave tacit support to the commission.Bersih,have you run out of ideas on how to deal with the recalcitrant EC? If so,please state your position clearly for all. Don’t keep quiet; lest we thought everything is fine.At least you put EC to shame and we shall take it from there on the polling day.Electoral reforms will come when the EC is kicked out when PR takes over Putrajaya; and not before. EC is another arm of BN; and will only jump when 1 Malaysia boss says ” jump!” Otherwise, there will not be any jump! That is one ” promise fulfilled!” MP Loke may shout until his voice is hoarse but the EC has no ears and no eyes! But, when Bapa ” 1 Malaysia ” calls, EC will jump and rush calling ” Tuan, tuan, did you call me ? ” So, MP Loke, forget about electoral reforms! Even the Perak Speaker’s call for by-eelctions of two renegades fell on deaf ears! Where in a democratic nation the EC ignores the order by the Speaker for by-election?Let the voters kick out BN and the EC chairman’s post will be given to another person.

What’s the use of having RCI after RCI when very little or hardly any action is taken. I wonder whether BN is serious about the recommendations as lots of time and money are/were spent on each and every RCI done. Perhaps it would be better to show Review Crime Index (rci) for the nation to be happy with what PDRM are doing. We can see lots of actions done and goodies given to make voters please, but wise voters can see a bigger picture on the ills happening in our country especially CORRUPTIONs, selective tenders given cronies, actual actions done by enforcement agencies and to please the ruling party, justices supposed to be clear but became distorted, wealth of nation depleted witl ill-thought strategies, etc. EC takes instructions from UMNO. Dragging their feet in the implementation of the PSC recommendation is to the advantage of the corrupt BN. They know that the only way they can win in the poll this time is by cheating. Why would they do something to prevent that from happening. 

How come, our religious LEADERS of different religions, just keep quiet about the whole thing.ARE THESE SO CALL RELIGIOUS LEADERS ‘BLIND’? COME ON, DO AND SAY SOMETHING FOR THE GOOD OF OUR NATION EVEN YOU ALL NEED TO STEP ON SOME ONE FOOT!DON’T BE COWARD.Keep on dreaming about poll reform because it’s not going to happen. Even at present situation without reform BN/Umno is not confident to win GE13. With reform, for sure they will be vote out of Power.

By agreeing to successive demands — from investigating Sabah’s illegal immigrants problem to repealing security laws and considering a review of oil royalties and even allowing public rallies — the Barisan Nasional (BN) government is hoping to blunt Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) momentum on issues the opposition has championed, but political analysts say it also risks being seen as being a weak government ahead of elections expected soon.

 

BN politicians have argued that the government’s position is not one of capitulation but is a sign that the ruling coalition is now listening to the public and making the right moves towards political reforms.

Ahead of the 13th general election, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has carried out various reforms in what is seen as a bid to hijack PR’s aggressive campaign to take power in Putrajaya.

 

Najib’s administration has abolished the Internal Security Act (ISA) and plans to repeal the controversial Sedition Act.

 

It has also enacted a new law that allows public rallies although any benefit from that was severely eroded after the authorities forcibly broke up the latest Bersih protest on April 28.

 

PR and Sabah opposition politicians were also using the problem of illegal immigrants in Sabah to score points among disgruntled voters in the state, but Najib stepped in recently to set up a royal commission of inquiry after the recent defections of senior Sabah BN lawmakers.

 

Wan Saiful Wan Jan, chief executive of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS), told The Malaysian Insider that “it’s unfortunate that we have a government that is copying what the opposition proposes.”

 

“They should be the ones leading. Copying is not really leadership,” he said, adding that “they need to start coming up with policies of their own.”

 

However, he notes that “it shows that it’s good for a country to have a strong opposition” as there would be “real competition” between politicians on “what is good policy for the public.”

 

Asked about the effect of BN’s measures on voters, he said “it’s risky for the government to continue this strategy of copying PR.”“People may start questioning who is the real leader,” he said, warning that it will “harm” BN in the long term as it may “lose leadership status and become a follower.”

 

Prof Dr Jayum A. Jawan, a professor of politics and government with Universiti Putra Malaysia, agreed with Wan Saiful, saying that “they (BN) are doing the right thing but they are stealing somebody’s idea.”

He points to the federal government’s “weak think-tank” for its failure to come up with its own “grand ideas”.

 

He said BN appears to be “responding because of pressure from PR”, saying it needs to have a “comprehensive review” instead of “responding to one or two issues.”

“Is BN going to respond every time PR comes up with an issue?” he asked, saying that the opposition will never give up asking.

 

He said the BN’s reforms will enable the opposition pact to claim credit by saying that its campaign worked.

Professor Datuk Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, a political analyst with UKM, disagreed with the view that by fulfilling the public’s demands the Najib administration would be seen as weak.

But he told The Malaysian Insider that it is an “illusion” that BN can change voters’ minds with such reforms, saying it is only a “feel-good” factor.

 

Shamsul said the people would not be easily satisfied, adding that they are more interested in changing the federal government. tends to have a cool, or even antagonistic, relationship with real life.

 

He said the real impact on elections will be from “issues that directly affect voters’ daily lives”, especially the economy and “people’s fears about crime”.The relationship between MP and voter can, thereby, be officially abandoned. This should make party bosses delirious.  The irony is that such flaws can be easily corrected, with some time and thought. Both have been absent from the process. The pro-reservation lobbies have employed hustle topped off by self-congratulation; those opposed think that explosions constitute an argument. The desire to be politically correct has overtaken the imperative to be politically sensible. Method and order, the favourite weapons of Hercule Poirot, might be usefully employed in analysis.Power is the glue of politics. That is why a government is expected to be in array and opposition generally in disarray. Ideology is a fickle custodian of unity in an age of convenience. Its absence has eliminated the difference between single-party rule and coalition government. Both are held together by individual or sectarian self-interest, which is why they last. Ideology is a differentiator; it makes a partnership untenable even if the partners consider it sustainable. Sentiment is irrelevant to any political marriage. This is true of all democracies where coalitions become necessary. 

 

Politicians live for power; why would they invite a premature death?The basis on which a candidate is chosen, by any party, can be described in a single, if ungainly, word: winnability. The life-blood of our democracy is a covenant, a pact between elector and elected that the quid pro quo for the vote is service to the constituency. The quality of that service is an important (but not the only) factor in an MP’s re-election. This is the one big check that keeps a MP on some sort of practical leash. therefore, will have no political incentive to serve its constituents. This, given prevailing levels of public morality, is a license to satisfy personal interests for the length of the term to MP and minister. 

 

The cynical response is that this hardly matters since MPs have become irrelevant to national development or even to their constituency’s welfare. If that is the level of degeneration, then we should abandon first-past-the-post parliamentary democracy and find another definition of democracy. Perhaps we can adopt a dual system in which two-thirds of MPs are elected on the basis of lists prepared by the party leaders, enabling them to send their chosen favourites to the House in direct proportion to the percentage of votes they have receivedThe former worked through cheerleaders in the media; the latter played to galleries beyond the media, and did so effectively. umno began to waver when the message from the second horizon began to permeate back to Putra Jaya. The government was indifferent to the threat from political parties, but it could not remain immune to a threat from the voter.R