Unholy Ustaz

MM Online:

Ustaz gets nine years, whipping for sexual assaulting 10-year-old boy in Shah Alam

An Arabic language teacher at a primary school was sentenced to nine years and two strokes of the cane by Special Courts for Sexual Crimes against Children after finding him guilty of sexual assault on a 10-year-old boy two years ago. — Reuters pic 

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 30 — An Arabic language teacher at a primary school was sentenced to nine years and two strokes of the cane by Special Courts for Sexual Crimes against Children after finding him guilty of sexual assault on a 10-year-old boy, two years ago.

Judge Yong Zarida Sazali meted out the sentence on Mohd Shahril Shaffie, 33, who was also called ‘Ustaz’ among his students after finding the defence failed to raise reasonable doubts against the prosecution case.

The judge also ordered the accused, who was present with his father, to serve his jail sentence beginning today and undergo rehabilitation counselling for eight years.

“The court also ordered the accused to undergo police surveillance for three years after completing his jail sentence,” he said.

“After studying all the evidence and hearing submissions by both parties, the court finds the accused guilty under Section 14 (a) of Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017,” said Yong Zarida.

The court, however, allowed a request by Mohd Shahril, represented by lawyer PG Cyril, for a stay of execution of the sentence, pending an appeal at the High Court.

In allowing the stay, Yong Zarida increased bail from RM8,000 to RM15,000 and ordered the accused to report to the nearest police station until the case concludes.

Mohd Shahril was charged with sexually assaulting the boy by holding the victim’s genitals for sexual purposes at his house in Subang Bestari, Shah Alam between 12.15 and 12.45pm on November 22, 2018, under Section 14 (a), which provides imprisonment of 20 years and whipping. — Bernama

Dogs in Saudi better off than dogs in Penang

FMT:

Man wins right to sue Penang council over death of beach dog

Butcho, a female mongrel aged 15, was tranquilised by city council officers at a Penang beach in 2018 

GEORGE TOWN: The High Court here today allowed a pet owner to sue the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) for negligence over the killing of his dog in a stray catching operation in Batu Ferringhi beach here two years ago.

Beachboy Chendeladevan Kuppusamy, 51, had tried to sue MBPP after his dog “Butcho”, aged 15, was shot with tranquillisers by MBPP dog catchers and later dragged by the neck into a council lorry.

However, the Sessions Court here had dismissed his case, filed on July 30, 2018, on technical grounds, one of which was that Butcho was an unlicensed dog.

Chendeladevan, assisted by pro-bono lawyers, had appealed to the High Court saying his dog had been licensed since 2014, claiming negligence against the city council.

Today, Judicial Commissioner Wong Hok Chong allowed the appeal and ordered the case to be tried.

“This matter ought to be decided at trial and cannot be dismissed summarily,” he said in delivering his decision today. He ordered MBPP to pay RM4,000 in costs.

Chendeladevan was represented by Marcia Lopez while Karin Lim appeared for MBPP.

According to Chendeladevan’s statement of claim, MBPP had in bad faith taken his dog away at a public beach by force and later caused its death.

He also claimed the dog catchers had lied about the whereabouts of Butcho when he went to the dog pound to reclaim it.

Chendeladevan and Butcho 

This was after an officer claimed that the dog escaped from the lorry on its way to the pound. Later, a third-party informant told Chendeladevan that Butcho had died.

He is claiming for general, aggravated and exemplary damages and other reliefs deemed fit by the court. He is also demanding for Butcho’s remains to be returned to him.

On Feb 28, 2018, MBPP’s dog catchers caught Butcho at the Batu Ferringhi public beach near the Golden Sands Resort, as part of an operation of rounding up strays following complaints of attacks by stray dogs.

However, when Butcho was taken away, the council was rebuked by tourists as the senior dog was “docile and harmless”. There was a large-scale protest at the beach when Butcho was declared “dead”.

Chendeladevan, in his court statement, claimed witnesses saw Butcho being dragged by the neck into a council lorry despite having a dog tag.

Mayor Yew Tung Seang had later said Butcho had died of old age and cardiac arrest.

He said the dog was regarded as a stray as it had no licence, and the council had every right to seize it.

Witnesses saw Butcho being dragged by the neck into a council lorry despite having a dog tag 

An application for a dog licence was only made after the dog catching operations were carried out, he was reported by Harian Metro as saying.

In a statement of defence in court, MBPP had said the dog catchers had indeed shot Butcho with a tranquilliser as allowed under the law. It said the dog had fled into the sea after it was shot, forcing dog catchers to wade into the sea to rescue it.

Later, Butcho was placed in a net and placed in a dog pound lorry, the council said, denying that it dragged the animal by its neck into the vehicle.

MBPP said it was alive and “dazed” when it was in the lorry, as per the account of dog catcher Wan Mohd Arif Hakimi Wan Deraman.

Arif had found Butcho to be “breathless” and “likely dead” in the lorry while the canine was on its way to the council dog pound in Sungai Pinang, the statement read.

The council claimed it sent Butcho’s remains to the Veterinary Services Department office in Bukit Mertajam.

It said when Chendeladevan had come to reclaim the dog, Arif told him that Butcho had escaped en route to the pound, so as to calm him down at the pound’s office.

The MBPP also denied claims that a staff at the pound had asked Chendeladevan to renew Butcho’s dog licence to reclaim the canine.

+++

Daily Mail:

First dog cafe opens in Saudi Arabia: Owners can dine alongside their pets despite the animals being banned from most public areas because Islam deems them unclean

• The Barking Lot cafe opened its doors in the Saudi city of Khobar this summer
• It has delighted animal lovers in a kingdom with few places to take pets outside
• Saudi religious police used to treat walking of pets as a ruse to approach women

By AFP

Dog owners in Saudi Arabia can now enjoy a cup of coffee alongside their beloved pets at a new cafe - a first for the ultra-conservative kingdom.

In Islam, dogs are considered unclean animals - unlike cats - and are generally banned from public places in Saudi Arabia.

But The Barking Lot, which opened its doors in June in the coastal city of Khobar, has delighted animal lovers in a country where there are few places to take pets outside the home.

A woman sits with her German Shepherd at a first-of-its-kind dog cafe in Saudi Arabia where religious police have historically taken a dim view of walking pets 

A girl holds a dog wearing sunglasses at the pet cafe in the city of Khobar, which opened this summer in a sign of changing times in the ultra-conservative kingdom 

Owners can bring their dogs to the Saudi cafe, with the pets getting pampered as their humans drink coffee

The country's once-notorious religious police used to ban the walking of pets, saying men were using it as a means to make passes at women.

But the ban was widely flouted and pets are becoming an increasingly common sight.

The adoption of strays has become more popular in the kingdom, which is trying to modernise as part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's 'Vision 2030' plan.

Animal shelters have sprung up in several cities.

The Barking Lot's Kuwaiti owner, Dalal Ahmed, said she got the idea during a previous visit to the kingdom.

'I came to Saudi Arabia for a visit with my dog, but wasn't allowed to walk on the beach with him,' she told AFP.

'I was very sad and decided to help by opening a coffee shop for people who have dogs - and even for those who do not.' 

A woman holds her dog at the new cafe which has delighted animal lovers in a country where there are few places to take pets outside the home

A woman holds her dog at the Saudi cafe. In Islam, dogs are considered unclean animals and in the past were generally banned from public places in Saudi Arabia

Young men and women gather at the cafe with dogs of all sizes.

Some pets playfully romp around, while others sit on their owners' laps, or wait patiently at the counter as their guardians order drinks.

In one section, dogs are treated to washes and blow dries as part of the grooming services offered.

'The idea of this cafe is very new,' said Johara, a Saudi citizen. 'It's a distinct place where dogs can come and meet other dogs.'

For Nawaf, also from Saudi Arabia, it was the first time visiting the cafe, which he described as 'beautiful'.

'I came here to play with the dogs, which now have a cafe for themselves for the first time in Saudi Arabia,' he said.

Umno, PAS and Bersatu taking Anwar’s claim seriously

MM Online:

Umno, PAS and Bersatu to meet over Anwar’s claim of ‘formidable’ parliamentary support

Umno, PAS and Bersatu will meet this week over Anwar's claim of having 'formidable' support among lawmakers. ― Pictue by Miera Zulyana

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 — The three main Malay parties — Umno, PAS and Bersatu — will meet this week to discuss PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s claims to have “formidable” support among lawmakers including those from the government’s side.

Sources from Umno and Bersatu confirmed the matter to Malay Mail but would not disclose details of the meeting as some party leaders were under Covid-19 quarantine while others were fatigued from the Sabah state election campaign.

“Umno and PAS will meet over the matter (Anwar’s claim). Then Umno will meet Bersatu.

“The schedule of the meeting is secret but it will be done this week on Wednesday or Thursday,” one source said.

Another source from Bersatu corroborated this but declined to comment as it would contain private and confidential matters.

“Yes, there will be a high-level meeting,” he said.

Anwar claimed sensationally days before the Sabah election to have secured a “formidable” majority with which to form a new government and declared Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) federal administration effectively collapsed.

However, Anwar did not state the number of MPs he claimed were supporting him, saying he would only do so after an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

Though initially seen as a ploy on Anwar’s part, Barisan Nasional chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi issued a cryptic statement acknowledging support for Anwar from within his coalition and party on the same day as the announcement.

This prompted Muafakat Nasional (MN) ally PAS to publicly demand that Umno and BN explain the matter.

PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said last week that if what Zahid described was true, it would violate the formal accord his party signed with the Malay nationalist party.

In the Pakatan Harapan (PH) presidential council meeting on Monday, reports emerged that DAP was unconvinced that Anwar managed to secure the support of Umno MPs as he inferred through his previous claim.

PH sources told Malay Mail that Anwar still would not disclose how many rival MPs he has won over, only that their backing did not come at a price.

“The support from Umno MPs for Anwar to take over the government is unconditional. However it is dependent on Anwar securing an audience with the King,” said a source from PKR.

Anwar has secured this audience, which Istana Negara confirmed, but it had to be postponed because Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah was admitted to the National Heart Institute before this could take place.

Separately, DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke told news portal Malaysiakini that not much detail was divulged during the meeting.

Officially, only PH component Parti Amanah Negara has confirmed its lawmakers — all 11 — supported Anwar in this.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng reiterated that his party’s 42 MPs would support Anwar’s takeover only if he has the majority to do so.

While rival parties and coalitions have denied supporting Anwar, it is noteworthy that he stressed during his announcement that he has the support of individual MPs rather than parties.

Assuming all of PH supported his bid, Anwar would have 91 seats for the 112 he needed.

Discontent in Sabah could push Umno MPs into Anwar's arms

Malaysiakini:

Discontent in Sabah could push Umno MPs into Anwar's arms

The position of Sabah chief minister slipping from Umno's hands may push some of the already disgruntled MPs over the edge.

This may work to PKR president Anwar Ibrahim's advantage in his bid to take over Putrajaya but does not guarantee success as several other factors are also at play.

Even before the Sabah election, the topmost Umno leadership had confirmed that some Umno MPs were already swaying towards Anwar.

Anwar, on Sept 23, claimed he secured a majority in the Dewan Rakyat to form the new government and within hours, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi confirmed "many" Umno MPs were supporting Anwar.

Now, that discontent is set to grow with Sabah Bersatu chief Hajiji Noor being announced as the new Sabah chief minister.

This was despite Zahid saying that it was "too costly" for Umno and BN to surrender the position to Bersatu. Umno had wanted its Sabah chief Bung Moktar Radin as the new chief minister.

Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), comprising the state BN (Umno, MCA, PBRS), PN (Bersatu, Star, SAPP) and PBS, won last Saturday's Sabah election with 38 out of 73 contested state seats.

All these parties, except SAPP, are part of the PN federal government but at the state level, PN is one of three components in GRS.

Even though the 14 state seats Umno won in the Sabah election were the most by a single party in GRS, its BN allies MCA and PBRS failed to deliver anything.

As a coalition, PN has more state seats at 17, with 11 coming from Bersatu and six from Star. SAPP won nothing while PBS won seven.

GRS today sought to present a united front, declaring that Hajiji had unanimous support from them.

Umno's Bung pressured to give up CM post

But behind the scenes, Sabah Umno was left with little choice as it didn't have the numbers.

Zahid, when contacted about the latest development, told Malaysiakini that Bung was pressured to make the concession.

"Bung was pressured to compromise based on the demands by the 14 BN assemblypersons so that they can be part of the new Sabah government.

"The compromise was to make way to Hajiji. The decision was made by Bung with input from senior Umno leaders negotiating in Kota Kinabalu," he told Malaysiakini.

Another factor working to Anwar's advantage is the fact that Warisan president Shafie Apdal has somewhat lost his shine after failing to retain Sabah.

DAP and Amanah had wanted Shafie as Pakatan Harapan and its allies' alternative prime ministerial candidate to Anwar, believing that as an East Malaysian, Shafie was in a better position to convince Sarawak MPs to join forces.

However, the landslide victory they had hoped for in Sabah, in order to boost Shafie's position, did not materialise.

Anwar, has for the longest time, struggled to muster the support of Sarawak MPs, particularly from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), and is now taken another direction by courting MPs from Umno.

DAP had expressed surprise at the direction and stressed that it cannot work with Umno if the group Anwar is wooing is led by either Zahid or former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, both of whom are facing corruption charges.

Najib was already found guilty in some of the charges against him. He was on July 28 sentenced to 12 years in jail and an RM210 million fine. He is presently out on bail pending appeal.

At present, Pakatan Harapan has 91 MPs in the Dewan Rakyat and need 21 more for a simple majority.

Anwar has not revealed who are the MPs who are purportedly backing him, insisting that he must first present them to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

The Agong is undergoing medical treatment and is not yet available.

The yet-to-be-registered Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang) which has five MPs and is led by former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, has indicated that they won't support Anwar.


Warisan's MPs could save Muhyiddin

Up until the Sabah election, Warisan and Upko which have 10 MPs have also aligned itself with Pejuang in the third bloc.

However, the dynamics have changed. Shafie could potentially support either Anwar or Muhyiddin if they could facilitate Warisan's return to power in Sabah.

For Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, faced with the threat of some Umno MPs defecting to Anwar, it would be prudent to keep the door open to Warisan and Upko, whose 10 MPs could make all the difference.

At present, Muhyiddin only has the support of 113 out of 222 MPs in the Dewan Rakyat. He could easily lose his majority if two MPs defect.

Warisan will also be observing Anwar to see if he can mount a credible challenge against Muhyiddin's PN coalition as it plans its next move.

The Pakatan Harapan top leadership met at the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya this evening, believed to be in relation to Anwar's take over attempt, but have no released details of the meeting.

Concurrently, Shafie was also organising meetings in Kota Kinabalu and has been tight-lipped about it.

Whether Anwar truly has the numbers will only be known after he secures an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

In the meantime, Warisan's positioning in Sabah could influence the shape of the federal government in the next weeks.

Warisan, with 23 seats, is the biggest party in Sabah. However, its allies were only able to deliver nine seats in the Sabah election, giving the Warian Plus alliance a total of 32 compared to GRS' 38 seats. The remaining three seats were won by independent candidates.

Earlier today, Hajiji received an invitation to attend the swearing-in ceremony.

According to Bernama, Hajiji received the letter from Sabah governor Juhar Mahiruddin personally at the Istana Negeri, Kota Kinabalu at 4pm today.

Whether Warisan springs a last-minute surprise, backs Hajiji or settles as the opposition tomorrow, all will be closely watched.

DAP's preference for Atuk-ism has led to the end of Pakatan Harapan

Malaysiakini:

The end of Pakatan Harapan

by James Chai

Guan Eng's declared (pro Mahathir) preference for Shafie has been a betrayal of Anwar

This is something everyone knows but no one wants to talk about: Pakatan Harapan is long dead. The coalition we know as Harapan today exists in name only; there are no substantive or strategic reasons to continue. After losing multiple by-elections by huge margins, and now, a state-wide election in Sabah, Harapan’s morale and support levels are at an all-time low.

Harapan’s mainstay is that they are victims of a treacherous act by a backdoor government. At the federal level and four state levels (Kedah, Melaka, Johor, Perak), the loose and informal Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition has taken power from Harapan, mainly through a series of defections.

While the moral claim and justice hymns were certainly valid from Harapan, they were not appealing to voters. The by-elections and the Sabah state election seem to indicate this. Voters seem to express a sense of regret and loss for having chosen Harapan in the past; that is why they are returning to the stable coalition of PN (a variation of the former BN coalition).

If Harapan was a car, its exterior, interior, and the road ahead seems broken. There is not much to hope for and it is running on its final few miles before it is taken to the scrapyard.


A broken exterior: The formula no longer works

This is usually what happens after Harapan suffers an electoral loss. Lose, post-mortem, business-as-usual, lose. Repeat. Even when they were in power, by-electoral losses were common but that did not create a real sense of urgency for the coalition beyond lip service.

The governance approach and campaign tactics stayed the same. They relied on this vague belief that people will somehow come to their senses and realise that Harapan was the best choice they had all along.

But this was not how voters saw it.

Harapan was built on a unifying factor of a common enemy. The good thing about not tasting power is that people have nothing to measure Harapan against. There was a freshness to its leadership lineup and many young reformists capitalised well on the contrast to Najib’s poor administration.

Harapan was so good at campaigning that in GE14 they walked away with an unprecedented victory. Many voters took the leap of faith and entrusted Harapan to run their lives. When the economy was bad, the cost of living was high, and good jobs were scarce, voters were willing to pass the baton for the first time to absolute newcomers.

But this leap of faith had a condition. Change must be made within a short timeframe. It could not be delayed or postponed; change must be seen and felt instantly.

Voters may be able to put up with 100 days, six months, or even a year. But 22 months is too long. And it is not wise to continue assuming that voters were impatient or ignorant of the upside of a new Harapan administration. No one has ever failed by overestimating the wisdom of the masses.

What used to be a conglomerate of the right talents and good timing, with similar origin stories of victimhood, quickly evolved into a marriage of convenience.

In Sabah, Harapan's opponents could be fragmented internally, fight in public, and sabotage one another – and still come up on top. This is indication enough that the Harapan formula simply does not work.

If the long-rumored snap general election is to be held by the end of this year or even in the first half of the next, most people would know that Harapan's opponents would win. The question is not whether they would win – but by how much.

Once we can accept that the current formula does not work, we would know that it is imperative for us to end Harapan and find a different formula. It is time to pivot.


A broken interior: No longer see eye to eye

Harapan's biggest fracture has always been the question of its prime minister candidate. At its inception in 2017, the issue of a Mahathir-Anwar transitional prime ministership dragged the coalition’s feet for several months.





Once they obtained power in May 2018, the internal conflict worsened. Every Harapan interview by the press would include similar questions of prime ministership. It did not help matters that the two men who were supposed to cooperate – Mahathir and Anwar – had a sour past from being archnemeses, and Mahathir changed his position on the prime ministership question regularly.

Even after Mahathir left the coalition in early 2020, Harapan has not resolved the question of prime ministership. Longtime friends PKR, DAP, and Amanah put their friendship on the line and chose other partners like Mahathir or Shafie Apdal to assume the position of prime ministership instead of Anwar.

This division gave rise to the first real fracture within Harapan. DAP adopted Warisan’s logo in the Sabah state election whereas PKR used its own. DAP had also stated their openness for Shafie to take the leading role in government, and this drove a wedge that is considered fatal to the working relationship of DAP, Amanah, and PKR.

Trust and camaraderie would forever be affected, especially between the personalities of Anwar, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, and Amanah president Mat Sabu who were once regarded as close friends in their common struggle.


A broken future: A fail-sure strategy

The only reason why Harapan partners still cling on to each other is the numbers they hold. With 42 seats from DAP, 38 seats from PKR, and 11 seats from Amanah, the collective of 91 seats is too close to power – they could not do without each other. Or so they presume.





The number of parliamentary seats is based on historical numbers – the events that happened on May 9, 2018. But things have changed substantially since then. And strategies ought to be built on forward-looking predictions rather than backward-looking former glories.

If we consider this, then it becomes even more obvious that Harapan could not be sustainable beyond this time.

A coalition that does not have winnable qualities or a believable track record does not make a good coalition. There is no point in maintaining Harapan if it does not have a good chance of winning the upcoming snap general election.

A broken formula, broken cooperation, and a broken future.

In life, most things stay the same. We are uncomfortable with changes because they uproot a lot of what we are used to and they take significant courage to admit something is much different than before. It takes a leader with an iron fist and a heart of steel to pivot.

But we don’t have leaders like that. That is why I said from the first sentence that this is something everyone knows but no one wants to talk about: The end of Pakatan Harapan.



JAMES CHAI is a legal consultant and researcher working for Invoke, among others. He also blogs at jameschai.com.my. You may reach him at jameschai.mpuk@gmail.com

Anthony Loke admits DAP still can’t parry rivals’ claim that party is against Malays - & he should know who did the damage to DAP

MM Online:

Anthony Loke admits DAP still can’t parry rivals’ claim that party is against Malays

Loke reiterated that DAP was not racist or hostile in any way towards the Malay community. — Picture by Saw Siow Feng

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 — DAP parliamentary leader Anthony Loke said his party remained vulnerable to rivals’ allegations that it was an enemy of the Malay community as it lacked the grassroots network to dispel such claims.

Loke told Utusan Malaysia in an interview that opponents continue to falsely portray DAP as being against the Malays, which he said was insidious in rural areas.

“This is very effective as we do not have grassroots members in rural areas to counter this perception.

“So, eventually, this becomes the Malay perception of DAP,” he was quoted as saying.

Loke reiterated that DAP was not racist or hostile in any way towards the Malay community, but this was how its rivals have successfully painted the party by using it as a “punching bag” for all their issues.

The former minister said it has been and remains difficult to reform his party’s image among the Malays as a result.

However, he said DAP would not stop trying to approach the Malay community.

“We will keep trying to prove that we are not a racist party, not a party that is hostile towards Malay community,” he said, adding that DAP stood for equality.

Rivals have successfully demonised DAP among significant sections of the country and the political rejection of it was also believed to be a key factor in bringing together competing parties to unseat the Pakatan Harapan government in March.

Mahathir said: "... Orang asing berasa selesa dengan negara kita dan mereka ingin tinggal di sini. Nak tak nak pun, kita terpaksa terima, kalau tidak kita tidak akan mencapai kemerdekaan" 

Above Malay speech translated: The foreigners (Chinese & Indian Malaysians) felt comfortable in this country and wanted to stay. Like it or not, we were forced to accept or we would not have achieved independence

Indians in DAP know how to jaga standards, unlike KHAT's

Malaysiakini:

Don't encourage 'frog behaviour' by hoping for Sabah defections - Rajiv

A Selangor DAP assemblyperson has spoken out against hopes that Warisan president Shafie Apdal can engineer defections in Sabah for his coalition to form the state government.

Bukit Gasing representative Rajiv Rishyakaran said "frog behaviour" should not be encouraged.

"I have to disagree with some of my colleagues hoping Shafie will be able to persuade a few assemblypersons or PBS to cross party to Warisan.

"As much as I hate to see Umno come into power anywhere, including Sabah, it's not right to encourage frog behaviour. We cannot be a party that says one thing and do another," Rajiv (photo, below) said in a Facebook post last night.

Warisan plus failed to retain the Sabah state government in Saturday's election, winning just 32 seats against the 38 won by Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).

GRS, which consists of Perikatan Nasional, BN, and PBS, also secured the support of the three independents who won in the polls.

Sabah Bersatu chief Hajiji Noor is scheduled to be sworn in as chief minister today.

However, Shafie and Warisan plus have not yet formally conceded defeat.

In the 2018 general election, BN and Warisan Plus both won 29 seats respectively, while Star won two other seats.

Then Sabah BN leader Musa Aman cut a deal with Star to form a majority, but soon after being sworn in, there were a series of defections from BN which gave the majority instead to Shafie.

There are some expectations that this will happen again in Sabah this time around.

PBS, which won seven seats, claimed to have been approached by Warisan to defect, but this was denied by Warisan.

Implications of PN becoming CM Sabah vis-a-vis the DAP

MM Online:

With Anwar circling, analysts see Perikatan winning Sabah CM’s post as vital boost for Muhyiddin

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin attends the opening ceremony of the Malaysia Urban Forum 2020 in Kuala Lumpur September 28, 2020. — Picture by Ahmad Zamzahuri

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 — Perikatan Nasional’s success in securing the Sabah chief minister’s post over Barisan Nasional indicated that Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s political influence could be strong enough to withstand an immediate challenge, analysts said

Allies PN and BN had been deadlocked over the matter until yesterday, when the latter coalition conceded the position to Sabah Bersatu chief Datuk Seri Mohd Hajiji Mohd Noor.

Muhyiddin is the president of Bersatu and chairman of PN.

The South China Morning Post cited political risk consultancy Control Risks’ Asia-Pacific associate director Harrison Cheng as saying Hajiji’s nomination was significant for Muhyiddin.

“That Muhyiddin has been able to secure the chief minister position in Sabah for Bersatu strengthens his clout, both within the federal coalition and against Anwar’s plot,” he said.

Cheng was referring to PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s claim last Thursday of having secured a “formidable” majority in Parliament to form a new federal government.

Although declining to reveal the full details, the Port Dickson MP claimed he has “close to” a two-thirds majority.

Analyst James Chin was quoted as saying Muhyiddin has clearly benefited from the results of the Sabah state election.

“Muhyiddin will benefit politically from GRS’ victory. He can take credit for GRS’ win since it was PN which funded the bulk of GRS’ campaign and operations in the Kadazandusun and Murut heartlands,” he wrote in a commentary for Channel News Asia yesterday.

The victory in Sabah has also made analysts review the likelihood of a snap election soon, as Muhyiddin appears to have a stronger edge this time. A snap election is also seen as inevitable since the prime minister has a very slim majority of two seats in the Dewan Rakyat.

Amid Anwar’s claim of having support from several MPs in Bersatu’s ally Umno, political scientist Azmil Tayeb said the vote for Budget 2021 in November will be the next key test for Muhyiddin.

“A win in the budget vote will give him and PN a shot of confidence ahead of the upcoming election,” he said.

It is even possible that an election will take place as early as next month, as political observer Oh Ei Sun said this could happen if the Budget vote is pushed to December and the month-long parliamentary debate that precedes it is compressed into a shorter time period.

“Otherwise it could be early next year, for example after the Chinese New Year when budget handouts begin to take effect.

“In any case it has to be sooner than later, not only due to pressure from Umno but an ailing economy that would make voters disgruntled,” he said.

*********

kt notes:

I won't comment on Anwar's PM-terial prospects vis-a-vis Muhyiddin in this post but will only touch on the latter's increasing power-influence as his PPBM man Mohd Hajiji Mohd Noor succeeds against UMNO Bung in becoming CM Sabah.

The power of Muhyiddin has now exceeded that of Atuk when the latter was PM of a Pakatan Harapan government when he (Atuk) ensured Azumu became MB Perak notwithstanding the eff-ing pseudo-tree-hugger of the Silver State was the ONLY ADUN out of the 15 seats Atuk's racist party contested - yes, Atuk racist party FAILED in 14 out of 15 state seats contested.

The DAP by contrast won all 18 state seats it contested in Perak yet eff-ingly kuai-kaui gave way to Lims' "beloved" Atuk on the issue of the important MB position (which should have been assigned to Dr Bari, a constitutional law expert which would probably have delighted the pro-academically qualified HRH).

My beloved Atuk ... er ... shall I ...

Hey Boy, isn't that 'beloved' borrowed from a standard line by Liow Tiong Lai? Goodness, you clowns have become what MCA used to be.

18 versus 1 yet DAP cowered, cringed and crumbled in the face of Atuk's demand for his one and only Perak ADUN to be the MB.

That eff-ing Azumu was/is definitely Atuk's model of Ketuanan "Aryan" as he (Azumu) as MB subsequently seized Chinese farmers' cultivated (for 40+ years) but unlicensed land (because of the state's refusal to grant them a more permanent lease) to just gift as per his whims and fancies to his state footballers who won against Terengganu, and some of whom have never seen nor held a changkol in their entire lives. [and yes, Pahang eventually 'borrowed' that sapu-ing idea]

At least in Sabah, Moo-Moo's man was in a far stronger competitive position than the eff-ing Ketuanan "Nazi", but then in Sabah, Moo-Moo has to be strong politically as he didn't enjoy the benefits of an Atuk regime where a cowardly 'don't spook the Malays (unless Atuk ordered otherwise)' DAP cringed in abject dhimmi-tudinal obsequious subservient mentality, or as Commander (rtd) S Thayaparan puts it, 'craven' mentality (and in every way too), despite the DAP's politically stronger position (42 vs 13 federally, and in Perak, 18 versus 1, but still mentally weaker than a lapdog).

There's no logic nor standard reason for the Lims' spineless subservient sycophantic toadying to Atuk-ism other than a lust for, and a belief in Atuk returning them to, ruling power. Podah.

The DAP has behaved hypocritically & cravenly when dealing with Malays

Malaysiakini:

DAP should give us a list of people it will not work with

by S Thayaparan


Like nothing I've ever known
But the more that I hear
Forget about long-range plans
'Cause this man's got his own

– Never say never again (James Bond soundtrack)

When Lim Guan Eng says that the DAP would not work with Umno and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin because “we can’t accept them using race and religion to divide the people”, it is the kind of craven political rhetoric that furthers toxic partisan discourse.

The DAP should just draw up a list of people they are not willing to work with. This way we can keep track of all the backtracking they will eventually do, to “Save Malaysia”.

The reality is that the DAP has never had a problem working with hegemons which use race and religion to further political agendas.

Keep in mind that Bersatu, a creation of Dr Mahathir Mohamad, said that the Malay polity needed a“Malay” only party to fight for their “rights”, and the various mandarins of DAPS supported this idea that the rural Malay heartland needed a Malay only party like Bersatu to get on the “ubah” bandwagon.

Lim Kit Siang admitted that there was no Malay leader in Harapan who could get the rural Malay vote. He said Pakatan Harapan lacks any personality capable of convincing rural Malay voters to support the pact, aside from Mahathir.

“If Mahathir cannot help create a wave of change among the rural Malay voters for the 14GE in the remaining 100 days, then no other political leader could accomplish this ‘Mission Impossible'," Kit Siang had said before that general election.





This, of course, must have been hard for Anwar Ibrahim to hear, considering that the reason why there was a viable opposition which controlled two major economic states (among others) was because of the moves he made, post-Umno.

As late as June of this year, when the fracas about succession came into play (again), the old maverick once again took advantage of the optics of the agitation among DAP, Amanah and PKR to profit politically from the question of succession – “Mereka sudah lama menjadi parti pembangkang. Mereka cuba menang pada 2008 dan 2013 sebelum saya menyertai mereka, tetapi mereka kalah dan tidak boleh menang. Jadi, pada PRU14 saya sertai mereka.

“Mereka tahu mereka perlukan undi Melayu untuk menang, dan mereka fikir saya boleh bawa undi Melayu kerana parti utama ialah parti Melayu dan yang lain parti pelbagai kaum. Melayu tidak akan sokong parti majmuk.”

In November of last year, DAP strategist and then deputy defence minister, Liew Chin Tong, said this: “Do we realise that, in reality, DAP needs Bersatu and Bersatu needs DAP to keep Pakatan Harapan together and succeed in rebuilding Malaysia? Harapan is a coalition of four parties — that is DAP, Bersatu, PKR and Amanah. Only through unity and cooperation of all component parties can we represent all layers of society.”

So, since race and religion by definition divide the people, there is absolutely no logic in Guan Eng claiming that DAP cannot work with Umno and Bersatu because of race and religion. Hence, the only reason why they cannot work with these parties is the personalities involved.





Guan Eng said the DAP can never work with "… an Umno that is under the leadership of (Umno president) Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and (Pekan MP) Najib Abdul Razak. Absolutely not.” So is the DAP head honcho saying that it would work with Umno if those personalities were not involved with Umno?

This would make the rationale of not working with Umno because it uses race and religion to divide the people, moot, right? This would also mean that working with Umno personalities that are not “tainted” would be acceptable to the DAP?

Indeed personality politics is what political operatives use to deflect from the real issue. It is not that the DAP cannot work with political hegemons who use race and religion, [it has ] but because the DAP would rather focus on personalities which it thinks would galvanise its base.

Racial and religious issues that divide the country are systemic. The same goes for corruption. It is pointless targeting individuals, although it has political advantages. The opposition, at least the non-Malay opposition, has claimed that the issues are systemic and the major part of the problem is race-based political hegemons that seek to sustain such systems.

Since the opposition has demonstrated that it really does not want to ubah the system, it makes sense to focus on personalities.

Remember Liew’s analysis of Muhyiddin in his essays "The strange case of Muhyiddin Yassin" and "DAP never failed you each time you asked for help, Muhyiddin".

Please refer to them again. In those essays, you will understand the realpolitik of race and religion and understand how the current prime minister wanted to get to know the DAP better, since the race-based political party and the multi-racial DAP would now be working together.

Read those articles and you will discover that, ultimately, the problem was not with the DAP but rather the power struggle within the Malay political establishment.





From Liew’s analysis, what we see was a dejected Malay leader who believed he was passed over by the Malay establishment after years of faithful service.

He was then co-opted by other Malay political opportunists to be the figurehead of a coup that would give him the premiership he believed was owed to him. And what does the Malay political establishment do when they need a scapegoat? They always go back to the reliable whipping boy the DAP.

The fact is that Bersatu has always had to view the DAP with a certain amount of contempt because, for years, successive Mahathir-led governments had to paint the DAP as the bogeyman of Malay politics.

How many times have I pointed out that the far-right and most voters of race-based politics have no problems with the dissonance in the narratives they are peddling and consuming? This means that the DAP can be the running dogs of Malay power structures and, at the same time, the power behind the throne.

Why? Because they know the DAP, for whatever reasons - pragmatism, power hungriness or just good old fashion masochism - will always try to link up with Malay power structures because, for decades, it did not build a Malay base of its own using Umno as means of distraction while consolidating power in the non-Malay community and demonising the MCA.

From gathering in mosques and propping up religious operatives like Mujahid Yusof Rawa, the DAP has exhausted resources and political capital by attempting to court the Malay vote in the most craven of ways.

The DAP chose the quick way of pandering, instead of coming up with a plan to tackle Malay B40 issues, which could be formed into a greater multi-racial needs-based narrative, all the while supported by a base that elevated leaders to a cult-like status. Things, of course, are slowly changing now.

The DAP still has not figured out that folks who vote for them want them to be honest brokers of middle-ground politics and, to the best of their ability, be the voice for secularism and egalitarianism in an ethnotheocracy for as long as possible.



S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. A retired barrister-at-law, he hopes young people will assume the mantle of leadership – if there is to be any hope for this country

"Mm Kam Buan" in Sabah

There is a Penang Hokkien phrase "Mm Kam Buan" which means "not satisfied" (ta'puas hati), wakakaka.

I reckon the feelings of "mm kam buan" exists in Sabah right now.

Malaysiakini:

Something is brewing at Shafie's residence ahead of Sabah CM swearing-in

Warisan Plus may have been routed in last Saturday's Sabah election, but the alliance does not appear to be letting up.

Outgoing Sabah chief minister Shafie Apdal's official residence in Kota Kinabalu has been abuzz with activities.

The Warisan president had been meeting with newly-elected assemblypersons since morning.

When he finally emerged from the seven-hour meeting, Shafie was coy about what was discussed.

He was asked about Gabungan Rakyat Sabah's (GRS) decision to nominate Sabah Bersatu chief Hajiji Mohd Noor as the new chief minister but merely smiled and waved to his supporters.

"Thank you for the support," Shafie said to his supporters who have gathered at the official residence since morning.

Asked about Warisan's next move, Shafie merely said: "We will serve".

Warisan Plus, comprising Warisan, Pakatan Harapan and Upko, won 32 seats in last Saturday's election as opposed to Gabungan Rakyat Sabah, comprising Perikatan Nasional (PN), BN and PBS, which won a total of 38 seats.

The remaining three seats were won by independent candidates.

If Shafie were to pull off a coup, any permutation would require parties or assemblypersons from GRS to defect.

Any GRS party that sides with Shafie could destabilise the federal government as they are all also part of the PN coalition leading Putrajaya.

At the federal level, PN is an umbrella for all the parties in GRS but in Sabah, PN is one of three components in the coalition of coalitions.

Harapan meets in Petaling Jaya

Concurrently, the Pakatan Harapan leadership has gathered in Petaling Jaya.

The top Harapan leadership are expected to discuss PKR president Anwar Ibrahim's attempt to take over Putrajaya.

Anwar had on Sept 23 claimed he had secured a majority in the Dewan Rakyat to replace Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's PN government in Putrajaya.

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had confirmed that those supporting Anwar's efforts include some Umno MPs.

Muhyiddin only has the support of 113 MPs in the 222-member Dewan Rakyat. The defection of two MPs is enough to cost Muhyiddin his majority.

However, there has been some scepticism as Anwar had made a similar announcement in 2008, but nothing materialised.

Developing in parallel, Hajiji was summoned by the Sabah palace where he was presented with an invitation for a swearing-in ceremony tomorrow.

Hajiji was chosen as the chief ministerial candidate after a two-day deadlock.

Umno had wanted its Sabah chief Bung Moktar Radin as chief minister.

Zahid had told Malaysiakini that Bung was "pressured" to make the concession.

The situation remains fluid for both the future of the Sabah and federal government as political leaders meet on both sides of the South China Sea.

Meanwhile, Warisan Youth chief Azis Jamman denied a report that the state assemblypersons were signing statutory declarations (SD) for Shafie to be the chief minister candidate.

"No such thing," he told media when leaving Shafie's house.

The Star quoted Sabah Cultural Board chairperson Ismail Bungsu as saying that SDs were signed by the assemblypersons gathered at Shafie's house.

Ismail, who is a Warisan leader, however, was unsure how may SDs obtained by Shafie.

When asked if Warisan conceded defeat, he declined to give a direct answer.

"Don't know lah, no, we will wait. No comment," he said.

"We will just wait who is going to swear-in (as chief minister). I myself don't know who will be swearing-in," he said.

***

Recall, someone became CM in 2018 via the "normal" Sabah way.

GRS promotes Hajiji Mohd Noor as CM Sabah - boring news lah

Malaysiakini:

GRS names Hajiji as new Sabah CM after BN make way

BORING NEWS SO HERE'S A PLATE OF CHAR-KOAY-TEOW FOR YOU, WAKAKAKA 

Sabah BN has finally agreed to make way for the state's Perikatan Nasional (PN) chief Hajiji Mohd Noor to become the new chief minister.

Following this, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) announced that it had arrived at the consensus to name Hajiji as their chief minister candidate.

This was announced by Hajiji in a joint press conference with Sabah BN chief Bung Moktar Radin at a hotel in Kota Kinabalu which was used as the command centre of PN during the state election.

"We have agreed in consensus that they name me as the chief minister of Sabah," he said.

When asked if he received calls from the state palace to take the oath before the governor, Hajiji said they were informed about a swearing-in ceremony to be held tomorrow.

"We were made known that a swearing-in ceremony will be held tomorrow," he said.

TYT Sabah - please ensure Istana's gates remain open

FMT:

Allowing Warisan to form govt would be ‘interference’ from governor, says lawyer

Sabah governor Juhar Mahiruddin has no legal basis to appoint Shafie Apdal as the chief minister, says lawyer Tengku Ahmad Fuad. (Bernama pic) 

PETALING JAYA: A lawyer has urged the Sabah governor against allowing Warisan to form a minority government, saying it would interfere with the democratic process.

Tengku Ahmad Fuad, who is Sabah PPBM’s chief legal adviser, said Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and three independent candidates had 41 seats in the 73-seat assembly.

GRS comprises Perikatan Nasional (PN) Barisan Nasional (BN), PBS, STAR and SAPP.

Supporters of Warisan, which won 29 seats, have contended the party can form the government with its president, Shafie Apdal, appointed as chief minister on the basis that they are the single party with the largest number of seats in the election.

“However, by natural logic and a sound understanding of the law, it is clear that Article 6(3) of the Sabah State Constitution requires a candidate to hold the confidence of the majority in the state assembly and not merely based on which single party has won the most seats in the election, despite not holding the majority confidence in the assembly,” Tengku Ahmad said.

He said if it was preferred that the single party with the most seats could form the government, it would render party coalitions worthless and defeat the purpose of political democracy.

He said Article 6(7), which Warisan supporters “precariously” rely on, does not apply in the present circumstances and speaks of their desire to grab power illegitimately.

Tengku Ahmad said that in former chief minister Musa Aman’s case against governor Juhar Mahiruddin and Shafie on the rightful chief minister, the High Court had ruled that for a chief minister to be appointed, one must command the confidence of a majority of the elected seats of the assembly.

“High Court judge Yew Jen Kie went on to say that the word ‘majority’ in Article 6(7) means more than half (50%). It does not mean ‘the most’.

“Unless a party has won more than 50% of the seats, Article 6(7) does not come into effect. Therefore, under the Sabah State Constitution, the governor has no legal basis to appoint Shafie Apdal as the chief minister since Warisan only garnered 29 DUN seats,” he said.

He said the governor had set a precedent in 2018 when he did not allow BN, a single registered party, to form a minority government.

The governor, he said, also set a precedent by allowing a loose coalition comprising Warisan, PKR, DAP and Upko to form the government in 2018.

“If he allows Warisan to form a minority government after this election, he would have effectively interfered with Sabah’s democratic processes and practices and have denied those who have been duly chosen by the people to form a government,” Tengku Ahmad added.

KHAT & Chye-Chye in Mahathir-Shafie camp

Malaysia Now:

Ousted in Sabah, Shafie and Anwar head for open war

Anwar's announcement was followed by leaders abandoning the Sabah campaign in droves in the hope of forming the government, says source.

The silent animosity between Anwar Ibrahim and Shafie Apdal, whose parties went to the Sabah election as allies, now threatens to become an all-out war following tonight’s results which saw the victory of Perikatan Nasional (PN)-

Insiders close to Shafie, who called for the state election to thwart a possible coup from Sabah Umno, however said the former chief minister would now have no qualms about blaming Anwar for his fall from power, a little over two years after Warisan swept to power in the 2018 polls.

Chief among the complaints is linked to Anwar’s press conference in Kuala Lumpur this week, where the PKR president declared he had secured a “formidable majority” to form the federal government.

MalaysiaNow can now confirm that following the announcement, several top PH leaders including from DAP who were campaigning in Sabah were asked to return to Kuala Lumpur to help form the government under Anwar.

On Wednesday, Anwar, accompanied by his wife and PKR leaders, convened a press conference at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, declaring that Muhyiddin’s government had “collapsed” after claiming to have secured the loyalty of MPs including from Umno.

“But among those who decided to stay back in Sabah was Lim Guan Eng, although many others returned,” the same PKR source said.

The absence of these leaders from the Sabah campaign affected Warisan Plus, the alliance which brings together Warisan, PKR, DAP, Amanah and the United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (Upko).


Rift between ‘future PMs’

The rivalry between Anwar and Shafie is well-known in political circles.

Shafie, a seasoned Sabah leader whose Cabinet positions during Najib Razak’s time gained him a foothold in federal politics, was Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s choice of prime ministerial candidate when it was assumed that PH had the numbers to return to power.

“So what we are seeing now is two persons, both thought to be the future ninth prime minister of Malaysia, in an open war,” quipped an Umno leader in Kuala Lumpur when contacted by MalaysiaNow.

Senior politicians close to leaders in Umno and PKR described to MalaysiaNow the animosity between Shafie and Anwar as “irreconcilable”.

“In many private conversations, Shafie would make it clear that Anwar is not qualified to become the prime minister and that he would not allow it to happen,” said one former prominent PKR member.

“And with this election result effectively taking away Shafie’s hard-fought prize which he won in 2018, he will now find it useless to keep secret his dislike for the PKR leader.”

But the bad blood between them is already an open secret, and was manifested again when Anwar himself travelled to Sabah to get Shafie to agree to PKR contesting 14 seats. Shafie flatly rejected the request, and PKR was only allowed to contest seven seats as part of Warisan Plus.

For now, the Sabah election has further strengthened Muhyiddin’s position, even going by Lim Kit Siang’s argument.

“Muhyiddin has turned the Sabah state general election into a national one, especially after Anwar Ibrahim’s media conference that the illegitimate Muhyiddin government has fallen as he (Anwar) had the numbers to become prime minister,” Kit Siang said this morning.Kit Siang said Muhyiddin had been shaken by Anwar’s press conference claiming the PN government’s impending fall.

For now, Anwar’s announcement that he has enough Dewan Rakyat seats to capture power will have to take a back seat.

*********

kt notes:

from MalaysiaNow Lim KHAT has been reported as:

The DAP strongman earlier said the Sabah polls were to decide not only the state’s next chief minister, but also the future prime minister.

This implies KHAT and Chye-Chye have thrown their lots in with the Mahathir-Shafie camp, abandoning their previous promise-loyalty to Anwar. Podah!