I believe that was exactly what a former air force pilot, ex Major (TUDM) Zaidi Ahmad said, to wit, he only answered to Allah swt.
And that was quite astonishing, considering the many reporting links in the TUDM's chain of command, especially with Major Zaidi as only a mere major.
Last year MM Online reported that Zaidi rose to prominence as the whistleblower who publicised the weaknesses in the indelible ink meant to prevent vote fraud during Election 2013.
Well, let me just correct that technical incorrectness. He was NOT a whistle blower but a member of the voting public. A whistleblower is one who work in the organization he or she whistleblows on. Did ex Major Zaidi Ahmad work in the Election Commission (EC)?
He was sacked from the RMAF earlier this year for breaching its rules in the manner he went public with the revelation.
That's correct though a few clarifications here may be necessary as there are still people who obdurately claim he was sacked for reporting to the police on the very delible so-called indelible ink used by the EC.
No, he was not, because reporting to the police was his constitutional right as a Malaysian citizen. His wife, also an air force personnel made the same police reporting but was not court martialled at all. Only he and an air force flight sergeant were, because of what they did, far more than merely reporting on the delible EC ink to the police.
He was sacked for violating Armed Forces Council Instructions (AFCI) on not to make unauthorized press statements (of any kind, not just about delible indelible ink) - yes, he was sacked for, in simple terms, performing a pompous song & dance to the press when he was NOT authorized to do so.
But he had been acclaimed a 'hero' by Maria Chin Abdullah, the Bersih Chair, for what he did, an ill undisciplined action for a soldier (or airman) as to make unauthorized press statement to the media against the AFCI.
So PM Najib should be more careful with his pompous statement above as he may face the same fate as Major (TUDM) Zaidi Ahmad, the latter now having rolled ...
... from TUDM to PAS, and ...
... from PAS to AMANAH and ...
... from AMANAH to DAP.
You know what people say about a 'rolling stone'?
Major Zaidi is a hero for what he did.
ReplyDeleteIt took guts to put his career and freedom on the line, to highlight the issue to the public.
As he foresaw very well, ultimately fuck-all action came out of the police reports that were made.
With the highly politicised police force Malaysia has, from the IGP downwards, which considers itself a flunkey to UMNO, the police reports all become NFA - No Fucking Action.
It needed going to the press, especially the Independent Press, to publicise the fact that the Indelible ink was useless for its intended function.
Since Major Zaidi did not touch on any military matters, his so-called breach of discipline was a superficial matter.
If a progressive , non-BN government ever comes to power in Putrajaya, one of its early actions should be to recommend a Royal Pardon for Major Zaidi, as well as an award for courage and civic duty.
an ill disciplined officer who misused his position to make political statements, he was unfit to continue in the military. The court martial correctly dismissed such a maverick, and it turns out he has been a rolling stone maverick
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