Your Weekend Entertainment is Back

May 31, 2013

After a long intermission, your weekend entertainment is back, thanks to Mr. Bean who e-mailed from New York. What better occasion to re-launch this programme than on the eve of His Majesty Yang Di-Pertuan Agong’s Official Birthday which falls on June 1, 2013.

Dr Kamsiah and I join all Malaysians, wherever they may be, to warmly wish His Majesty Almu’tasimu Billahi Muhibbuddin Tuanku Alhaj Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Badlishah and Her Majesty Tuanku  Hajah Haminah binti Hamidun  all good health, happiness and peace. May His Majesty guide our nation into an era of prosperity amidst difficult times, given the state of our politics following a rather divisive GE-13.

To mark the Occasion, Dr. Kamsiah and I propose to take you down memory lane with songs by crooners of yesteryears. Pleasant listening, friends.–Dr. Kamsiah and Din Merican

Bing Crosby

Perry Como

Nat King Cole

Frank Sinatra

Dean Martin

Earl Grant

Bobby Helms

Paul Anka with Sammy Davies Jr

GE-13: Shifting Balance of Power requires Cooperation in Governance

May 31, 2013

by CT Ali@http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com

After half a century of greed, will UMNO now lead or will the need for greed overcome all other considerations? UMNO feeds the greed of its political elites for wealth and political power, and it’s political dominance allows little accountability for the things they do.

What UMNO takes for themselves from the wealth and resources of our country, how they lie and manipulate our people to believe that what they do is in the interest of our common good when it is certainly not, and how they “manage” the opposition and any “national threat” are nothing out of the ordinary for UMNO.

Corruption, money politics, unlawful detention – all the evils of a repressive regime that does not allow social justice and basic human and civil rights upon its own people.

A tainted Judiciary, a Police force that does its bidding, submissive civil servants and, amongst others, a compliant Election Commission are some of the evil tools of trade that UMNO uses to keep its hold on political power. This “banality of evil” permeates UMNO at all levels.

Banality of evil is a phrase used by Hannah Arendt in the title of her 1963 work “Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil”. Her thesis was that the great evils in history generally, and the Holocaust in particular, were not executed by fanatics or sociopaths, but by ordinary people who accepted the premises of their state and therefore participated with the view that their actions were normal.

Thank God for us that all this has started to change after the 12th and 13th general elections.The balance of power in Malaysia has shifted. What was once UMNO’s unchallenged political dominance in Malaysian politics is now no more.

There is now a potentially formidable, effective and hopefully robust Opposition in parliament. Also the rakyat’s ability to question the commission and omission of any act or deeds perpetrated by those in high public office is in its ascendancy.

Our political elite can no longer pillage and plunder our nation’s resources with impunity. Whatever they do now can be effectively challenged in Parliament, by the social media, street demonstrations and tentatively through the Judiciary.

These politicians have been served notice that when conferred with the privilege of high public office and the power that goes with it, they should concern themselves with the responsibilities that come with the office rather than the spoils that political power makes possible.

And so for UMNO, it will no longer be “business as usual”. The responsibility of the Opposition now is to ensure that political change will keep pace with changing realities.

Compromise on all sides

How will we define the modalities of the Malaysia that we all aspire to? What are the certainties that we must have? The protection of human rights, social justice and quality of life? How shall the Malays and non- Malays now base their political and social relationship?

What do we replace Ketuanan Melayu with if the majority of Malays are to be placated? How will the traditional role of the Chinese in commerce be handled so that a more equitable distribution of wealth is made possible? How will the underprivileged, the poor and the aged be treated? How do we protect the interest of the minorities?

These are but just a few of the tasks that await the leaders that will take us into the post 13th general election era that is already upon us. For now our country is in a flux.

Pakatan won all the battle that was to be won in this 13th general election but it lost the war.That notwithstanding Pakatan must continue to be the party for reform and change.Malaysians are angry and more so now with the manner in which the 13th general election has been conducted.

What Pakatan must not do is to talk about change and reform and avoid doing anything about it. Pakatan must become responsible, open and accountable in the states that they govern while taking upon itself the responsibility of being an effective Opposition in parliament.

UMNO must realise that Pakatan – and the people of Malaysia – is a side they cannot defeat nor unilaterally impose its will upon. They must understand that the sharing of power with Pakatan through some consensual process is preferable to the flux that our country is now in after this 13th general election.

Invariably it would require a compromise on all sides but the outlines of a settlement is already apparent. UMNO must share political power with an Opposition that holds the popular mandate from the electorates while Pakatan must accept that UMNO still holds a majority in Parliament.

This is the constrain imposed by the electorates upon them. It would take the wisdom of Solomon, the patience of Job and the sincerity of our beloved Tunku to make Malaysia the nation all good Malaysian aspire to!

And so I ask that we pause to think what we should do to support BN and Pakatan as they start the process of reconciliation as reconcile they must for we are now, to all intents and purposes, a two party nation.

We do not want BN trying to govern Malaysia without the consensus of over half its electorates who have put their trust in Pakatan.Nor do we want Pakatan to talk of being a responsible political coalition while it goes about inciting hundreds and thousands of Malaysians to take government from a duly elected government of Malaysia.

CT Ali is a reformist who believes in Pakatan Rakyat’s ideologies. He is a FMT columnist.

Regressive Polls Reaction

May 31, 2013

by P. Gunasegaram, Founder Editor, KiniBiz

http://www.malaysiakini.com

“UMNO needs to free itself from those who will destroy it to protect their own narrow interests by race baiting.” –Gunasegaram

QUESTION TIME: The reactions to the elections by Barisan Nasional and UMNO in particular and related organisations is nothing short of shocking. It reflects an alarming and regressive move towards hardline stances which are blatantly racist and with complete disregard to what the election results themselves indicate the electorate wants.

Considering that the majority of voters were against BN and by implication UMNO, the stance towards needless toughness and the callous appeal to base racial hatred will only alienate the BN from the public who have clearly indicated they want change for the better and which have by and large rejected race itself as an issue.

It reflects a belligerent, biased, boorish and childish response to election results by influential quarters, including ministers, a former prominent judge, Utusan Malaysia editors and others who have successfully drowned out a few reasonable voices within UMNO and hijacked the so-called reconciliation process post-elections.

Persisting with these actions has not only put paid to the reconciliation process but unnecessarily raised tensions among all people. This may have been the intention of those who raised these issues in such a manner in the hope of keeping themselves and their ilk in power by perpetuating fear.

But in the end, those who play with fire are likely to burn themselves. Malaysians are already aware that the race card is repeatedly played to trump all manner of ills facing Malaysia, and especially UMNO and BN patronage, corruption and cronyism which lead to a plethora of social ills.

If UMNO goes on along this line and if the government machinery, including the police, continue to selectively prosecute only those opposed to them, they can expect a severe backlash from the electorate five or less years down the line.

If anyone was taken in by the promises of moderation, change, and concern for the electorate that were a constant refrain of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s pre-election campaigning, they would now think more than twice before voting BN.

Ironically it was Najib himself who set the ball rolling on election night, or rather early morning the next day, when he blamed the Chinese tsunami for the downturn in BN’s fortunes.

While more Chinese may have voted Opposition, it was more than abundantly clear that all urban voters turned away from Barisan, while voters in significant rural Malay areas such as Terengganu and Pahang as well as the Malay heartland areas in Selangor turned towards Pakatan Rakyat.

Even DAP’s Lim Kit Siang could not have won in Gelang Patah against former Johor Chief Minister Abdul Ghani Othman with such a large majority without Malay support.

That BN’s fortunes turned down only because of the Chinese swing is a blatant lie which has been perpetrated over and and over again by the usual string of suspects. There was a broad swing against BN and UMNO in many areas. Najib never retracted or clarified his position over the Chinese tsunami statement.

Closet and not-so-closeted radicals come out

Encouraged by this, the closet and not-so-closeted radicals came out, and unfortunately included a former top judge. Malaysikini reported that former Court of Appeal Judge Mohd Noor Abdullah (left) warned that the Chinese Malaysians must be prepared for a backlash from the Malay community for their “betrayal” in the recently concluded 13th general election.

“The Chinese betrayal towards the Malay’s hand of friendship – that is true. Because they plotted to seize political power even though they already have economic power,” he said to raucous applause at a forum in Kuala Lumpur.

How can voting for one party or the other be termed “betrayal”? In this case the Chinese voted for PAS and PKR which are also Malay-based parties. Must the Chinese always vote for BN-based Malay parties; UMNO in other words? And how could a community which forms just 28 percent of the electorate seize power without Malay participation and concurrence?

That a former Court of Appeal judge should make such racist comments and propagate lies in the process, aimed at inciting and inflaming the emotions of the majority community, is unbelievable. Most Malays, however, are not likely to buy such arguments.

And that newspaper, Utusan Malaysia, which publicly proclaims itself as the defender of Malay rights, published an incendiary, provocative article titled ‘Apa lagi Cina mahu?’ as if the Chinese were solely responsible for BN’s poorer fortunes in the election. Even if they were – and they were not the only reason – so what? Is it not up to BN to ask itself why it alienated the Chinese community so much?

Didn’t the Indian community, a previous strong supporter, reject BN in 2008 because it felt that the government did not do enough for the Indian community and could not even prevent the very violent deaths of Indians in police detention?

In fact days after the election, yet another Indian was violently killed in a police lock-up. The suspects – Policemen – have merely been transferred to desk duties, instead of being subjected to intensive questioning after being detained which is the normal procedure for murder.

Utusan Malaysia went on to write an incredibly racist series of articles on the election. When AirAsia X’s CEO Azran Osman Rani twittered his private objections, the newspaper launched a tirade against him and the airline.

The authorities remained silent. The new Inspector-General of Police, Khalid Abu Bakar, cautioned all parties not to make seditious statements in the wake of the general election, but ignored Utusan Malaysia’s reports.

Somewhere along the way, the new Home Minister, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, callously called on those who were unhappy with election procedures to migrate and when police arrested speakers who had spoken earlier at a forum on May 13 against racism, disavowed any responsibility.

If these don’t represent a firm return to the bad old days, accompanied with total silence on these issues by Najib, what else is? But if UMNO thinks that this is what will save them, they are sadly, badly mistaken.

If they carry on this way they will find out for themselves that they will lose the next election – phantom voters or no phantom voters. UMNO needs to free itself from those who will destroy it to protect their own narrow interests by race baiting.

Politik semasa selepas 50513 oleh Pak Kadiaq

May 31, 2013

Politik semasa oleh Pak Kadiaq

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com (05-30-13)

“…kalau rakyat jelata khasnya para pengundi mahu apa yang mereka lakukan pada 5 Mei lalu memberi kesan positif kepada diri mereka dan negara, mereka harulah terus memerhati, memberi tunjuk ajar dan mengkritik wakil-wakil yang mereka pilih tidak kira daripada parti mana.”–Pak Kadiaq

Masa Depan Karier Politik PM Najib?

Pepatah Melayu ada berkata, sekali air bah sekali pasir berubah. Alhamdulillah, selepas Pilihan Raya Umum 5 Mei lalu telah nampak banyak perkembangan positif di kalangan semua pihak yang terbabit. Saya perhatikan hal-hal berikut telah berlaku:-

Rakyat jelata nampaknya tidak lagi mahu kerajaan yang membolot (monopolistic). Mereka sudah berasa kebaikan checks and balances (sekatan dan imbangan) yang kuat di Parlimen dan dalam Dewan Undangan Negeri.

Pembahagian semula kuasa sedang berlaku. Keengganan majistret merestui permohonan polis untuk menahan reman tiga ahli dan aktivis politik pembangkang, iaitu Chua Tian Chang aka Tian Chua, Tamrin Abdul Ghafar dan Haris Ibrahim adalah contoh pembahagian semula kuasa itu.

Lagipun, dengan semakin banyaknya kes kematian ketika reman, Ketua Polis Negara baru, Khalid Abu Bakar dan Menteri Dalam Negeri yang baru, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi wajiblah lebih berhati-hati menggunakan kuasa reman.

Hadkanlah penggunaannya kepada kes-kes berat di mana orang yang disyaki mungkin lari dan tidak dapat dikesan. Kes bukan jenayah berat dan membabitkan orang ternama yang susah hendak lari, tidak perlulah minta tahanan reman.

Polis kerjalah kuat sikit. Soal siasat mereka sampai tengah malam atau awal pagi. Tidak perlulah tahan mereka di dalam lokap dan polis balik rumah tidur. Kalau tahan mereka dan terjadi sesuatu yang tidak diingini di dalam lokap, polis juga yang susah.

Dalam arena parti, kedudukan Mohd Najib Abdul Razak akan terus dipertikaikan. Cuma mungkin tidak lantang seperti berlaku kepada Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi selepas PRU 2008 kerana Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad lebih mesra dengan Mohd Najib dan banyak daripada blogger yang dulu anti-Abdullah kini pro-Mohd Najib.

Mereka mungkin tidak akan menyokong sebarang gerakan negatif terhadap Mohd Najib malah mungkin “mendajalkan” (demonise) sesiapa yang cuba menjatuhkan Mohd Najib.

Kita sudah tengok komen-komen keras membelasah Tun Daim Zainuddin apabila beliau mengkritik Mohd Najib dan penasihatnya dalam temu ramah dengan akhbar China Press yang disiarkan sepenuhnya dalam blog ini (dan dipetik oleh banyak pihak).

Dr Mahathir, Daim dan beberapa blogger bebas akan menjadi penentu sama ada masa depan Mohd Najib sebagai Presiden UMNO dan Perdana Menteri akan diperdebatkan secara terbuka.

Dengan adanya beberapa orang tokoh kanan UMNO yang kalah PRU 5 Mei lalu seperti Mohd Ali Rustam dan Abdul Ghani Othman, kemungkinan UMNO kembali ke era yang lebih demokratik dan terbuka ketika mana Presiden dicabar atas landasan hak dan demokrasi, mungkin berulang kembali. Orang lama tentu masih ingat bagaimana Sulaiman Palestin mencabar Tun Hussein Onn dan Tengku Razaleigh mencabar Dr Mahathir.

Apa-apa pun, Abdullah kini boleh mengangkat tinggi kepala kerana tuduhan bahawa prestasi beliau dalam PRU 2008 hambar tidak lagi tepat sebab pencapaian Mohd Najib lebih teruk walaupun disokong oleh Dr Mahathir dan Daim. Melihat kepada pencapaian Mohd Najib, saya sendiri berasa terlebih mengkritik Abdullah selepas PRU 2008.

Suka atau tidak Mohd Najib dan para petugas yang mengendalikan “Bilik Perang” (War Room) BN harus secara ikhlas, terbuka dan telus mengakui bahawa cakap besar mereka telah memakan diri dan mereka kalah kepada Abdullah dan Budak-Budak Tingkat Empatnya.

Alhamdulillah sudah ada anggota Kabinet yang berakal yang nampak apa yang berada di hadapan dan mengambil langkah jangkaan (pre-empt) seperti dibuat oleh Menteri Pelancongan Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz mengarahkan supaya wakil Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) menduduki jawatankuasa tender kementeriannya.

Daim dalam temu ramah dengan China Press, antara lain berkata keutamaan rakyat jelata bukan ETP atau GTP, tetapi adalah 1) rasuah 2) urus tadbir yang baik 3) keselamatan 4) pendidikan 5) inflasi 6) masalah kemiskinan bandar dan 7) pengangguran siswazah muda. (Tidak beberapa hari selepas itu tersiar berita beberapa orang kenamaan, termasuk anak perempuan seorang menteri dirompak.)

Daim telah menemui Dr Mahathir di Putrajaya beberapa hari selepas PRU 5 Mei di mana mereka dikatakan telah membuat “review” keputusannya serta tindakan jangka pendek dan sederhana yang akan mereka lakukan.

Sudah nampak tanda-tanda awal yang sebahagian kecil media arus perdana dan pengamal mereka telah menyedari bahawa cara laporan mereka ketika PRU lalu bukan sahaja tidak berkesan malah merugikan BN. Akhbar The Star misalnya, telah mula berundur dalam beberapa aspek laporannya. Ini tidak memeranjatkan kerana tsunami Cina yang Mohd Najib ungkapkan itu menyentuh langsung peranan The Star sebagai akhbar milik MCA dan suara masyarakat Cina dalam BN.

Kesimpulannya, kalau rakyat jelata khasnya para pengundi mahu apa yang mereka lakukan pada 5 Mei lalu memberi kesan positif kepada diri mereka dan negara, mereka harulah terus memerhati, memberi tunjuk ajar dan mengkritik wakil-wakil yang mereka pilih tidak kira daripada parti mana.

Insya-Allah kita akan mendapat lebih banyak kebaikan daripada amalan demokrasi kita. — kadirjasin.blogspot.com

Najib is feeling the heat from Certain UMNO Factions

May 30, 2013

http://www.malaysiakini.com (05-29-13)

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is getting heat from certain factions in UMNO, with the latest public flogging coming from former Information Minister Zainuddin Maidin.

In his blog ‘Zamkata’, he said Najib’s attempts to show that he is a popular   leader have only exposed him as an “imitator”, rather than a statesman. He also said the mooting of a single multi-racial BN party shows that UMNO leaders are “panicking”.

“Serious proposals should be mooted in calm situations, not (when there is a) storm … Now is not the time to test the ground,” said Zam, as he is widely known.

He was scathing of the ‘I Love PM’ banners distributed during the 13th general election campaign, likely the brainchild of Najib’s advisers. Zam said these had only served to “hypnotise” Najib into thinking he had support especially from the Chinese Malaysian community.

Attempts to portray Najib as one of the rakyat, by placing him at hawker stalls and roadside cafes, appeared “odd” to the people as the “elitist aristocratic” PM had never been spotted at these places before, he said.

“It was even more odd because he was flanked by bodyguards and personal assistants. It looks fake. Former Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin (right) said he acted like a clown, but I say Najib is an imitator. His advisers have their heads in the clouds and should be sacked.”

The septuagenarian said that he has also received text-messages from friends saying the ‘I Love PM’ banners are “disgusting” and that the PM should stop acting like a student leader.

Also on the attack is UMNO supreme council member and Kampung Gajah assemblyperson Dr Wan Norashikin Wan Noordin who has sent out several tweets that the BN needs to remove those who failed to deliver in the last polls.

“BN needs courage to zero-in on those among us who promise wins or big wins but results say otherwise and remove them before people remove us,” she said on Twitter.

She said that and honest review will show that the 13th general election did not bear good results for the BN, with a wider defeat in Selangor as well as narrowly won states.

“States that were won with a narrow majority are inherently weak and in constant danger of collapse. BN needs to examine closely what happened,” she said.

Halal then, haram now?

Zam also said Najib should realise that the country is still not out of the political woods, with challenges from “the head jester and Chinese chauvinist” whom he did not name.

“Our security is threatened by communist surrogates, every day Chinese people in black smear a legitimate election, all sorts of false police reports are lodged; blackouts and indelible ink removed,” he said.

The former Utusan Malaysia editor-in-chief, who was named Tokoh Wartawan in 2006, further took a swipe at the standard of reporting by the mainstream media and questioned the seizure of opposition organs.

“The Star dramatis(ed) news that the lights went out during the Black 505 rally in Tapah for 10 minutes, as if it had truly happened, despite getting confirmation only from the opposition. Journalism, by Star,” he mused.

“A blackout at a school in Sedim, Kedah on the same day also lasted 10 minutes. The more reports are made, the more people will believe. This is their strategy.”

He said that the seizure of Opposition mouthpieces by the Home Ministry is “funny, odd and magical”.

It seems that something could be “halal” under ex-Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein but “haram” under new Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, he noted.

“Could there be those who were pro-opposition who closed their eyes (on the selling of these newspapers to non-party members) or was it really that difficult to control?

“Such actions convince the people that there are flaws in our democracy, as they have for so long been free to buy something which is banned.”

Pak Kadiaq: Dr. Mahathir and Daim will decide on Najib’s Future

May 30, 2013

Tun Mahathir and Tun Daim will decide on Najib’s Future, says Pak Kadiaq

by Ida Lim@www.themalaysianinsider.com

Any open debate on Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s future as UMMO President and Prime Minister will be driven by the country’s longest-serving Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tun Daim Zainuddin, veteran journalist Datuk Abdul Kadir Jasin said today.

Following the May 5 polls where Najib led his Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition to victory, observers have said that he is now seeking to secure his position as the party leader in the UMNO elections that are expected to take place this year.

“Dr Mahathir, Daim and several independent bloggers will determine whether Mohd Najib’s future as UMNO President and Prime Minister will be openly debated,” Abdul Kadir wrote in a blog post titled “Kesan Positif Sekatan dan Imbangan Selepas PRU13” (The positive effects of checks and balance after GE13), referring to former UMNO Minister Daim.

Abdul Kadir said that the two veteran UMNO leaders had even met and drawn up an action plan following the 13th general election where BN managed to hold on to power with a smaller haul of 133 federal seats, fewer than its 140-seat win in 2008.

“Daim met Dr Mahathir in Putrajaya few days after the May 5 general election where they were said to have made a ‘review’ of the results and the short-term and medium-term measures that they will take,” Abdul Kadir said.

Abdul Kadir also said that BN’s war room should acknowledge that it had lost out to Najib’s predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his advisers, referring to the former BN chief who had retained power in 2008 despite his coalition losing its customary two-thirds parliamentary majority for the first time in history.

“Whatever it is, Abdullah can now hold his head up high because the accusation that his performance in PRU 2008 was hambar is no longer accurate because Mohd Najib’s achievement was even worse despite support by Dr Mahathir and Daim. Looking at Mohd Najib’s achievement, I myself feel that (I had) over-criticised Abdullah after GE 2008.

“Like it or not, Mohd Najib and his staff that run the ‘Bilik Perang’ (War Room) BN should sincerely, openly and transparently admit that their boasts had memakan diri (failed) and they lost to Abdullah and his Fourth Floor Boys.”

The Malaysian Insider previously reported that sources within BN had questioned the strategies used by the BN war room, but BN secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor reportedly denied on May 15 that the war room had failed to achieve its targets, pointing out that BN had won the mandate to form the federal government.

On Monday, Abdul Kadir’s blog carried a transcript of Daim’s interview with local daily China Press, where the former Finance Minister blamed Najib’s advisers for BN’s failure to regain a two-thirds parliamentary majority, claiming that they had used the wrong strategy to drive BN’s election campaign.

In the same blog post today, Abdul Kadir noted that Najib still has backing from the influential Dr Mahathir and may experience less opposition from those trying to take him down.

“In the political arena, Mohd Najib Abdul Razak’s position will continue to be disputed. Just maybe not as outspoken as what happened to Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after PRU 2008 because Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is lebih mesra (more friendly) with Mohd Najib and many of the bloggers that used to be anti-Abdullah are now pro-Mohd Najib. They may not support any negative moves towards Mohd Najib, and may even demonise anyone that tries to bring down Mohd Najib.”

He said many harsh comments have been directed at Daim since his interview criticising Najib and his men was published.Dr Mahathir has said BN has no choice but to throw its weight behind Najib, who will likely survive his second term as prime minister due to a lack of an alternative, international business newswire Bloomberg reported on May 25.

“I think the party will support him because of a lack of an alternative,” 87-year-old Dr Mahathir was quoted as saying in Tokyo in a speech at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan.

Observers have said BN’s performance will likely affect 59-year-old Najib’s bid to stay on as UMNO president, with Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, 66, seen as a possible contender for the post.

Despite the BN’s poorer overall electoral results, Najib’s leadership had ensured UMNO succeeded in netting a significant nine more seats in Election 2013, giving the Malay party a total of 88 in the Dewan Rakyat compared to 79 in Election 2008.