July 5, 2012
Misrule worse than no rule
by Azmi Sharom (06-28-12) @www.thestar.com.my
Azmi Sharom asks: Can someone be charged for an offence when at the material time there was no offence?
Din Merican replies: Only those goons in JAWI can because they have conferred upon themselves special powers; the Najib Government allows them to do as they please. It is all politics.
NIK Raina Nik Abdul Aziz is accused of committing a crime, the “crime” being the distribution of a book which the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (JAWI) does not like. If the sentence above sounds a bit odd, that is because it is.
Nik Raina is a manager in a bookstore. She is not an owner of a bookstore, she is an employee.Therefore, she does not have any say with regard to what book is being sold. She just manages the shop, as her job title entails.
Now she is being charged in the Syariah Court for distributing a banned book. But it is a book, it must be said here, that at the time of the supposed offence was not actually banned.Therefore, it was not illegal to sell the book at the time.
Jawi raided the shop she was working in on May 23. Copies of the book were confiscated during the raid. The book was effectively deemed illegal on June 14.
So, on what grounds was Jawi confiscating the books? It is not based on the law, that is for sure, because no law was passed banning it until 22 days after the raid.
The only reason that can exist is that JAWI disapproved of this book and took
it upon itself to take action even though there was no legal ground upon which it could do so. In other words, they didn’t like the book so they decided to raid a shop and take the book.
Does this sound odd to you? Does it sound like the action of a despotic state? It does to me. How can a person be charged for an offence when at the time of the so-called wrongful act, there was no offence? You can’t possibly do that to a person.
There are constitutional provisions against such things. It is known as protection from retrospective legislation.
In other words, if you decide to make it illegal to wear yellow today, you can’t charge someone for wearing yellow yesterday. To do so would lead to an incredible injustice and the complete breakdown of the rule of law.
Now, because JAWI is an Islamic body, there are some who believe they are above criticism. I beg to differ; it is because they are a religious entity that they must be open to criticism, especially if they behave in a way that is unjust.
This is because as a religious agency they have an even greater responsibility to not tarnish their actions with acts of cruelty, meanness and vindictiveness. For by doing so they demean the very faith that they are supposed to be upholding.
But that is by the by. Any agency, be it religious or secular, has no right to treat people in this way. They have no right to seize private property on their whim, and they have no right to charge someone for a crime that does not exist.
That is the bottom line. If we allow anyone to do so, we are simply throwing away our democracy and the protection that the rule of law provides us.
But such things occur when the country’s leadership is weak. I do not like Mahathir for what he did to the judicicary, the police, and other state agencies… but during his time not a single agency would dare do what they are using now – gross abuse and not adhering to the rules. It was only when sleepy head Pak Lah and Pinky Lips became PM that some of these agencies act beyond their power!
Question is this: What can or should Malaysians do about this??
As it stands, NOTHING!!!… because the born-losers Malaysian voters are going to vote back UMNO-BN into power again in the next GE.
How is that??
Well, Najib and his henchmen are carrying brown paper bags of money into the rural areas to buy the hearts and minds of the pakcik and makcik while Pakatan leaders are busy trying to convert the converted in the towns and urban areas.
And the hopeless Sarawakians and Sabahans are continuing their proud tradition as the fix-deposits of UMNO-BN and will make sure UMNO-BN gets the majority to retain Putrajaya.
So, Azmi Sharom can whinge and whine all he can on the internet and in the ENGLISH newspapers, that goes likewise to the commenters on Dato Din’s blog, it does not make an iota of difference to the rural pakciks and makciks who read Awang Selamat columns studiously and who read all the praises of UMNO-BN in Utusan Malaysia, and listen to how UMNO-BN save the country and Malay race from the pendatangs and fromthe kafirs in TV3, RTM with follow-up brainwashing by the Ketua JKKK in all the kampungs.
Eat your heart out, Azmi Sharom and all the whining and whingeing Malaysians on the internet. Born Losers!!!
Meanwhile I will be raising a glass with Mr Bean, to say THREE CHEERS to celebrate the 4th of July independence of one of the oldest democracies in the world, even though I never like on bit of its foreign policy adventures in the Middle East.
“They have no right to seize private property on their whim, and they have no right to charge someone for a crime that does not exist.” — Azmi Sharom
A motorist is ticketed for driving over the speed limit of 25mph on June 30 along a stretch of the freeway with a speed limit of 30mph on June 30 based on a law passed on July 1. There is something wrong here.
Parliament cannot pass laws to have retrospective effect. That is a no-brainer.
Usually such issues crop up over sentencing for crimes committed e.g. from death to life in prison. It can be made to have retrospective effect.
“Nik Raina is a manager in a bookstore. She is not an owner of a bookstore, she is an employee.Therefore, she does not have any say with regard to what book is being sold. She just manages the shop, as her job title entails.” — Azmi Sharom
That goes to defense. Assuming it was over a banned publication at the time they raided, they had probable cause to arrest whoever was in control and has constructive possession. But did they have a search warrant? Is a search warrent required for search and seizure? What does the search warrant say? Who signed it?
But, but, but the PM Najib promises the best democracy. I guess Najibs version of democracy is I can do anything, the rakyat can’t say anything. Thou shall hand over thou life and how thou shall leave thy life to me. I am the all knowing, and thou can do nothing. I will plan your daily life, who you can talk to, where you can walk (except Dataran Merdeka when I say so) what you can read, what you can eat, and what air you can breath (haze and all) in return for your undying loyalty and vote. Lu tolong waa, waa tolong lu. I will give you handouts and thou shall be grateful and not be a haram jadah.
“Now she is being charged in the Syariah Court for distributing a banned book.” — Azmi Sharom
It is a civil matter and syariah courts have NO jurisdiction.
But the lines have been blurred by a High Court judge some years ago when he fell victim to the classic ‘kecut teloq’ syndrome (sorry ladies for such a graphic use of terminology but it only affects male judges) and refused to take up a case over a matter involving the issue of whether the deceased – on his death bed and unconscious – had converted to Islam. The issue in that case was how could an unconscious man managed to put his thumb print on a piece of paper. That is a civil matter and not religious. Since then balls have been rolling out the civil court door to syariah court.
Another case reached the Supreme Court, the country’s highest court, and the federal justices on the bench being men made of sterner stuff could not be seen to chicken out but refused to take the bull by the horn. The result? The result is the same. The balls kept rolling out the door to the syariah court.
I am glad that she is charged in the syariah court. The issue of jurisdiction is now set to go back to the country’s highest court.
Meanwhile I will be raising a glass with Mr Bean, to say THREE CHEERS to celebrate the 4th of July independence of one of the oldest democracies in the world, even though I never like on bit of its foreign policy adventures in the Middle East.
Frank – July 5, 2012 at 10:13 pm
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‘Kampai’ to that, Frank! Celebrations were subdued this time round. Towns and cities are going bankrupt one by one. No fireworks. Different kinds of fireworks raging in the west.
It will no doubt be a BN victory. So why is Najib hesitating? I think there is some kind of horse trading going on with incumbents and contenders and Najib. Najib in turn is consulting Rosmah on the best candidates.
Expect a massive fraud followed by a BN victory. We would be lucky to go Mexico way which is going through a recount right now.
Greenbug, you forgot about the Malay girls that were arrested for taking part in the beauty contest. They only got arrested after the JAKIM or JAWI or whatever Ja Ja department officers had watched or rather ogled the girls. Why not stop the girls before they paraded on stage. That happened during Apanama’s time. Ini Melayu tak mudah lupa.
. So why is Najib hesitating? I think there is some kind of horse trading going on with incumbents and contenders and Najib.- Mr Bean
Word on the ground among the UMNO crowd is that Najib is more concern about the anti-Najib forces ie pro-Muhyiddin/Mahathir forces, not the Pakatan.
Najib is worried that even if he leads UMNO-BN to win, and if he wins with the same majority or less, or with only a small increase, he will be let out to dry by his “I am Malay first Malaysian second” deputy. Like the way Mahathir DESTABILISE Badawi and finally got rid of him.
The probability is that Najib, if he wins, will win SMALL and may even lose the majority won by Badawi in 2008. Tails he lose, Heads, he still lose, unless the coin is either only heads or tails.
Najib’s hesitation has NOTHING to do with Pakatan, it has all to do with Mahathir/Mukhriz/Muhyiddin.. The 3M.
Mahathir is out and out want Najib out of the way so that his son, Mukhriz can rise up the UMNO hierarchy and be deputy President of UMNO with Muhyiddin as President ie as PM.
Mahathir is hedging his bets. He is trying to position Mukhriz for the Kedah state seat to be MB, knowing that Mukhriz is dislike by other veteran UMNO as an upstart if he comes on board on a Federal ticket. Kedah UMNO is also unhappy Mahathir trying to get his son to jump the queue
That is why he is trying to shut down his daughter, Marina, from writing and spealing about supporting issues favourable to Pakatan. We still do not know whether Marina is a person who actually have principles or she is just nothing more than a father’s daughter.
So, when Najib will call the election is how he views his chances of continuing to lead UMNO AFTER the next election.
If he wins with a smaller majority, he is a gonna. If UMNO-BN loses, then watch the capital flight of crony-capital out of the country and mass emigration of UMNO leaders.
If PR wins, some of the judges will talking to the Bar Council for jobs as lawyers outside of the judiciary and some senior civil servants will be unemployed and, and as for the police,
orang malaya, that memory is still linggering and fresh in our mind, yes bitter about the incident. One of them, after the humiliating ‘arrest’, pleaded that she had to desperately take the stage in that half-clad posture, b’coz her mother was ill & she was jobless ( apparently father had died ), so needed money urgently, for which she had to daringly take on stage….
Those idiots who think themselves like the talibans in their concept of absolute ” purity ” in the remote mountains in isolation, please consider this. i remember even some working at the bar, b’coz husbands had left them with few hungry mouths to feed, were constantly harassed.
Well, my suggestion if they think women should’nt do these ” dirty ” jobs, then why not like most Malaysian-chinese do, to have their little factories & shops which provide plenty of neglected Malay girls with a typewriter & tables, that could earn them a ” decent ” living…..
It would be interesting to see what the PAS people would officially say about this case if asked. They are supposed to be well versed with the Islamic laws. We have so far heard opinions mainly from non-Islamic lawyers and lay-commentators..
Shut JAWI down. They re a disgrace ton the memory of our beloved Prophet Muhammad ( pbuh) who came and laid down laws for the emanciipation of women from oppression of egoisitic men . It is the 21st century and it is not improved much. For example , the latest now, There are articles published at Al Azhar Uni that ‘hijab’ is not an Islamic duty. I have always known that. Culture infused to become religion and used for oppression of the women. The Islamic practices are changing. Beware JAKIM. For you are a dinosaur waiting to extinct. Better watch the changes happening aorund the world. Misleading the ummah with extrme literal translation. Even if you dont answer in this life for your injustices, for your ocnduct unbecoming toweards another, just wait in the most fairest of Courts of our Lord.” Fight not about what differences you have, for He will reveal to you the truth of what you differ on” Koran.
Frank, I have serious doubts about Kutty’s daughter, Marina. This could all be a charade to pull a wool over our eyes. She is taking pot shots at the government for all the ills doesn’t jive, as far as I am concerned. So in Kutty’s family there’s the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Very interesting indeed. Is all this preplanned?
I agree with Tok Cik. I have always had my doubts too.
“If he (Najib) wins with a smaller majority, he is a gonna. If UMNO-BN loses, then watch the capital flight of crony-capital out of the country and mass emigration of UMNO leaders.” — Frank
An unlikely scenario.
But agreed. As is the tradition, a PM facing a fresh mandate will look to see how he could replace Abdullah’s men who have gone along with his deputy Muhyddin with his own loyal supporters. Let’s not forget it is a patronage system. Loyatly must be rewarded. This could be the reason why he is seen to be dithering.