Saturday, September 27, 2008
MalaysiaKini SMS 27/09/08 (2)
Molotov Cocktail Attacks - Don't Take To The Streets!
Lim Kit Siang � Blog Archive � Abdullah’s premiership de facto ended yesterday (26.9.08)
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s premiership de facto ended yesterday, September 26, 2008 – 54 months after scoring the most stunning landslide electoral victory for any Prime Minister in the nation’s 51-year history.
How far and how fast Abdullah has fallen!
All the Umno heavyweights are now engaged in a marionette play – how to plunge the dagger into Abdullah’s back without blood being seen to be drawn or better still even camouflaging from the Malaysian public the act of dagger-stabbing altogether.
Although Abdullah claimed that it would be his decision, “whether to contest or not” the post of Umno President, there could be no doubt that if Abdullah departs from the script and fails to announce by before October 9 that he would not be offering himself as a candidate as Umno President, the marionette play would be abandoned and the dagger-stabbing would be a very public and bloody one.
Even the sweet-sounding praises by Umno leaders yesterday over the scuttling of Abdullah’s original mid-2010 power-transition plan and the postponement of the Umno general assembly from December to March next year sounded rather ominous if Abdullah ignores the unmistakable signal that he should not dilly-dally any more in making his exit.
For instance, when asked whether he was satisfied with the outcome of the Umno Supreme Council emergency meeting yesterday although there was no clearcut indication of an exist date, the most hawkish of the Umno leaders against Abdullah, Tan Sri Muhyidddin Yassin, commented: “I think it is good enough. You need to have trust. There must be a certain element of trust in whatever decision the leadership Is making today.”
Abdullah must be aware that he would be regarded as lacking “a certain element of trust” if he failed to announce that he would not be offering his candidacy for Umno President by the Oct. 9 deadline.
In the circumstances, Abdullah has three options before him:
• Announce before the October 9 deadline his intention to contest for the post of Umno President, retaining the initiative in his hands as to his own timeline to effect the power transition;
• Announce that he would not be contesting for the Umno President in the Umno party election in March, which also mark the end of his premiership; and
• Announce his retirement as Prime Minister by Oct. 9.
In the first option, Abdullah would be fighting for his political life as he would have to prove first that he is capable of winning 58 or one-third of the Umno division nominations for the post of Umno President.
This may be a very tall order and he must be prepared to suffer the ignominy of an incumbent Prime Minister and Umno President who could not secure adequate nominations to contest for the post of Umno President.
In the second option, Abdullah would be a lame-duck Prime Minister for six months.
Apart from the third option of immediate retirement as Prime Minister, is there a fourth option open to Abdullah?
Molotov cocktails: Kok's house attacked
However no one was hurt in the incident.
Kok, a Selangor state exco member, will be holding a press conference this afternoon on the matter.
In recent days, Kok has come under fire from several quarters for her remarks on the low quality of food given to her while she was under a week-long Internal Security Act detention last week.
Kok was arrested under the ISA on Sept 12 for raising Islamic issues. She was released on Sept 19.
MalaysiaKini SMS 27/09/08
Pensiangan By-Election
No wrong candidate, Pensiangan voter warns
KENINGAU: The Barisan Nasional (BN) could lose the Pensiangan by-election if it does not field the right candidate, according to a local voter.
“The people in this area still want a true leader who is committed to enhancing the well-being of the people, who are still backward and poor,” Musuh Ambong @ Osu from Kampung Pagalungan, Pensiangan told The Borneo Post here yesterday.
According to Musuh, Pensiangan, the second poorest district in the state, needed a leader who is committed to working for the people, especially in preventing their land from getting into the hands of outsiders.
“If possible, the leader should be from this community and understands the people’s culture, aspirations and problems,” he said.
According to Musuh, the people here did not want the present leader as the BN candidate but instead someone who can contribute to the development of the area.
He said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman should send their representatives to the area to find out from the grassroots who the people want as their candidate.
The people, he said, did not care which candidate BN fields — PBRS president Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, former Pensiangan member of parliament Datuk Bernard S Maraat or Pensiangan Umno chief Datuk Abdul Gani Yassin — as long as he can fulfill the people’s aspirations.
Musuh said just as Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) preferred a local from this community as their candidate, so too the BN supporters who also wanted a Murut as their candidate.
Daily Express, Sabah, Malaysia -- News Headlines
| Sabahan Bumi ends up as a Permanent Resident!
Within months, Yong Lee Hua @ Piang Lin has seen her status as full-fledged Malaysian being reduced to that of a Permanent Resident by the National Registration Department (NRD), and with the latter showing no remorse or urgency in reverting to her original status. Yong's misfortune began the day her wallet went missing from her handbag at a supermarket at Penampang Baru when on Feb. 12 last year. Inside the wallet were her Identity Card, driving licence, bankbooks, a gold necklace, RM500, a gold-plated pearl locket, two golden crosses and a set of car keys. On the same day, she lodged a police report and on Feb. 26, she applied for a replacement IC at the NRD office in Donggongon. After several months, Yong was told to collect her replacement IC at the NRD office - but the colour was red. "I asked the officer why it was red and she replied that for senior citizens who lost their IC, the department would normally replace them with red ICs," she said. Only when she returned home did she learn from one of her sons, Frankie, 55, that red ICs are issued to people with Permanent Resident status. Her children told Yong to return to the NRD office to replace the red IC with the MyKad issued to Malaysian citizens. However, the NRD officer this time told her to "apply for Malaysian citizenship" instead. The NRD officer admitted it could have committed an error somewhere and Yong duly submitted the application form to the office on July 2, last year. But that was not the end of her problem. Soon after, her bank accounts were frozen and she could not withdraw money for her daily expenses. Frankie said his mother also had difficulty travelling outside the country since she could not renew her expired passport. "She could not even apply for a temporary passport even though we asked the Immigration Department for a case-by-case basis consideration," he said. Because of this, she had to miss many church events abroad, including a trip to Jakarta at the end of this month. Yong's other son, Jonathan, 48, said the situation was really tragic because the NRD officer also told her that she is not even allowed to travel to West Malaysia - thus preventing her from visiting her youngest son who is working in a bank in the nation's capital. Yong's husband passed away three months ago, thus compounding her many problems. Fluent in Kadazan and Chinese, she is embarrassed at the fate that has befallen her. "Wherever I go, I use my driving licence as proof of identity," she said. Strangely, she was allowed to cast her vote using her driving licence as identity document during the elections on March 8 since her record in the polling list was still intact. But when she tried to renew her Malaysian passport, her previous identification records had completely "disappeared". Her greatest fear now is what effect her "new status" would have on her seven sons and one daughter. Resource Development and Information Technology Assistant Minister, Donald Peter Mojuntin shared her fears saying her children's citizenship could also be withdrawn. "There has never been a case like this before when genuine Malaysians had their citizenship cancelled. If this can happen to her, it can happen to anybody (Malaysians)," he said. The NRD officer, he said, should have more compassion for Yong instead of treating her case like the others. The Moyog Assemblyman, who is also Upko's Bureau Chief for Citizenship and Security, said there was no reasonable explanation from the NRD as to why Yong's citizenship was changed to that of a permanent resident. "If they (NRD) say the policy has changed, I want to ask when they changed it. You must tell the people about the changes," he said. He said he has no doubt about Yong's citizenship because even the Native Court had verified her status as that of a Sino-Kadazan through a Sijil Anak Negeri (SAN or native certificate) on Dec 5, 1963. The people, he said have been complaining about illegal immigrants who could easily acquire permanent resident status and the MyKad. But with a stroke of the pen, Yong Lee Hua is now a "foreigner" in her native land. Mojuntin said Yong had planned to sue the NRD for causing embarrassment through their negligence but hoped a meeting with the Sabah NRD Director would prevent that. I also hope to meet Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar to pursue this case, he said. "For the NRD to admit their mistake and then tell her to reapply for citizenship is simply illogical. "The department's officers should be more compassionate as their actions can have a serious impact on people's lives," he said. |
Penampang: Little did a 78-year-old Sino-Kadazan holding a Bumiputra Native Certificate realise the nightmare that would unfold for losing her Identity Card last year.New poll shows Anwar will be better PM than Najib
In the same survey, Malaysians also appear more divided than ever over their support for the country's political leadership.
There are also sharp differences in preferences between the different races, with a majority of non-Malays supporting Anwar, while more Malays preferred Najib.
Between Sept 11 and 22, Merdeka Centre carried out a leadership performance perception on a cross section of 1,002 people of voting age from the three main ethnic communities in the country.
Among the questions asked was: "Between Najib Razak and Anwar Ibrahim, who do you think makes a better prime minister?"
Najib garnered a 33.8 per cent average total support among the three major races. Anwar edged him by a margin of less than six per cent — he garnered an average total of 39.3 per cent.
The difference is more conspicuous when the show of support is broken down according to the ethnicity of those polled.
The split was apparent among racial lines, with Najib drawing as much as 47.3 per cent support from the Malay community. Anwar trailed with just 32.5 per cent.
The opposition leader gained greater support among non-Malays, receiving the support of 37.4 per cent of Chinese voters and a whopping 85 per cent from the Indians.
In comparison, Najib only won the approval of 18.4 per cent of Chinese voters and just five per cent of Indians thought he would make a better prime minister.
Of note was the high percentage of voters who remained non-commital. More than 40 per cent of Chinese voters polled expressed no preference.
Based on the poll results, Malay support for Najib is significantly stronger than that for Anwar.
Political analyst Tricia Yeoh says the party factor is a very strong featuring factor with the non-Malay communities.
"It is possible they view Najib as continuing to perpetuate the same kind of politics that has plagued
"Anwar will need to fight for Malay support most prominently since Najib may continue to be seen as the final bastion of support for the Malay position," she added.
Another political analyst, Khoo Kay Peng, sees it differently.
"No doubt Najib commands higher support among the Malay community because of the status of Umno as a Malay party. It has been representing the Malays for a long time. But at 47.3 per cent, the support is not really very high for Najib. It's not much off Abdullah's support," he said.
Based on the same Merdeka Centre report, Abdullah still enjoys 50.7 per cent support from the Malays.
"The key is that Najib does not get much support from the Chinese and Indians. Najib is still seen as a Malay leader.
"If you want to be the prime minister, you must have support from across the board," he said.
"Anwar stands a much better chance because he gets support from over 30 per cent of the Chinese and the Indians, predominantly from the Indians, which is consistent with past reports," he pointed out.
In a toss up between who will become the next prime minister, he felt it would definitely be Anwar.
But for Khalid Samad, the Pas MP for Shah Alam and an ally of Anwar, the results are frightening for the Pakatan Rakyat alliance.
He said the results of the survey showed government media propaganda still held sway, especially among the rural Malays.
He is concerned that much of the Malay media has portrayed a negative impression of Anwar as being an "immoral guy" and being a stooge of the
"Basically, Umno-Barisan Nasional has been quite successful in conning Malays into believing that Anwar is selling out the Malays and that is the reason for the low percentage of support for Anwar," said Khalid.
"These are not very encouraging results if it is representative of the entire population. It means there is a problem. Anwar will have to work harder.
"It's important he should have at least a 50-50 situation among Malays. That would suffice," he stressed.
But he does not think that the sample poll is a true reflection of the voting populace.
"I don't think that Anwar in the actual situation is that far behind Najib. I would expect 47 per cent for Najib and 45 per cent for Anwar.
"The difference, almost 15 per cent difference in support from Malays, gives the impression that if Pakatan Rakyat comes to power, the position of the Malays will be jeopardised.
"But no one race will lose out under Pakatan leadership," he said.
Anwar: Najib more unpopular than his boss
HONG KONG, Sept 27 — Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said yesterday his campaign to topple the government would only be strengthened if Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi stepped down earlier than expected and Abdullah's deputy took the reins.
As Umno huddled in Kuala Lumpur to discuss whether the country's unpopular prime minister should step down earlier than planned, Anwar said both leaders had lost the mandate of the people to rule, but that Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had even less credibility.
"From a survey [it] showed that however unpopular Abdullah is now, Najib is more unpopular. He has a major problem of credibility. Many unexplained cases which does insinuate his involvement in [an] earlier murder case he has to explain, I'm not suggesting anything beyond that," Anwar said in Hong Kong, while in Hong Kong for an Asia investment conference.
"It's not a matter of going to the mosque and swearing that you are not involved. Then you make a mockery of Islam, the Quran and the law.
"If you go to the prison and say to these convicted murderers and rapists, 'if you swear on the Quran you go scot free', then 99.9 per cent would go free."
Discussions on whether Abdullah would step down early would not derail the opposition's plans, Anwar said, denying that he had lost credibility after failing to meet the Sept 16 deadline by which he had said he would have enough support in government to become prime minister.
While he had the names of the MPs who supported him, he said he could not disclose them because of the climate of fear in Malaysia.
"The climate of fear is real. Why do we need to expose them" and make them take such a risk, he asked.
Another risk for Anwar supporters was that Najib would be more willing to implement the Internal Security Act, a draconian law that allows people to be detained without trial for up to two years.
Anwar feared that the powers of ISA would only be strengthened and used more if Najib took power next year. Najib "has not said that he won't use the Internal Security Act — not only against me", he said.
Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, an ally of Anwar, has been detained for reporting on Najib in connection with a murder case on the Malaysia Today political website. — South China Morning Post
Biden out, Hillary in - as Obama's running mate?
NEW YORK, Sept 26 - The internet is buzzing today with the rumour that Barack Obama's gaffe-prone running mate Joe Biden will drop out of the race for health reasons - to be replaced by Hillary Clinton.
John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate has created so much interest in the Republicans that Obama will have to make a radical move to regain momentum, the argument goes.
Clinton could be just the key. Biden, who had surgery in 1998 to repair two brain aneurysms, would drop out after the vice presidential debates due to be held on Oct 2, according to the claims - leaving the way open for the former First Lady.
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