Dr Hasan Ali a Kemo Sabe?

In late April this year, I posted Is Dr Mahathir a racist?, where an extract from it read:

….., ‘Malay unity’ was touted when the March 2008 tsunami hit Malaysia and dramatically changed the political landscape. UMNO obviously wanted & was desperate to split the Pakatan camp into Malays and non-Malays. PAS was immensely attracted to the clarion call for Malays from both sides of politics to unite to ensure the continuation of Malay supremacy in federal and state government.

In Selangor the sweetener for PAS was the MB’s post. Recall also the UMNO-PAS meeting at the Terengganu palace, though Nik Aziz stated that he was ambushed by UMNO. Indeed it was only Pak Haji Niz Aziz who put a stop to Pak Haji Hadi Awang and his deputy president Nasharuddin’s keenness to take up UMNO’s appeal for ethnic unity, before the Pakatan ship wrecked itself on hidden rocks by the lure of the siren song.

It’s not an unusual UMNO tactic when they are in political retreat, that of instigating fear among the Malays of the Chinese taking political control of Persekutuan Tanah Melayu, and hatred of same yellow skin peril by reminding the Malays of (true or otherwise) Chinese aggressive economic prowess, avarice, arrogance, rudeness and disrespect to the Malay rulers, etc. There's nothing like instilling a siege mentality a la Fort Apache. Dr Mahathir had taken this path several times.

What made me bring out the above again has been yesterday’s double-talk confession of Dr Hasan Ali who preened and pompously accepted the titillating bait of (UMNO-owned) Utusan Malaysia in conferring upon him the title of the 'saviour' of the Malay-Muslims – see Malaysiakini’s 'Saviour' Hasan to pursue PAS-Umno unity.

But why did I mention ‘double-talk’?

Dr Hasan declared "The very reason for my existence is to unite humans in the worship of Allah."

If so, why not say Muslim Unity or Human Unity?

Also, why did he assert that he would only cooperate with people who promote the interests of Malays, Muslims and the Malay royalty?

Islam is one of the greatest religions of the world, in fact a religion with a socialist bent, though many orthodox/conservative Muslims would baulk at the association of Islam with socialism.

But consider zakat, one of the 5 pillars of Islam.

Muslims consider zakat as an act of piety where they could show charitable concerns for the well-being of less fortunate fellow Muslims. The aim is of course to promote and preserve social harmony between the wealthy and the poor, an equitable redistribution of wealth, and a sense of solidarity amongst members of the Ummah.

Marvellously, zakat is not confined to only Muslims because the Quran indicates 8 categories of people (asnaf) who are qualified to receive zakat funds, namely:

(1) Those living in absolute poverty (Al-Fuqarā')
(2) Those who cannot meet their basic needs (Al-Masākīn)
(3) The zakat collectors themselves (Al-Āmilīna 'Alaihā)
(4) People who are non-Muslims, to show them the real spirit of Islam (Al-Mu'allafatu Qulūbuhum)
(5) People whom one is attempting to free from slavery or bondage. Also includes paying ransom or blood money (Diyah). (Fir-Riqāb)
(6) Those who have incurred overwhelming debts while attempting to satisfy their basic needs (Al-Ghārimīn)
(7) Those working for an Islamic cause (Fī Sabīlillāh)
(8) Travelers in need (Ibnus-Sabīl)

I wonder whether Category no 4 is ever practised in Malaysia, or for that matter, in any Muslim country.

But why ask about No 4 when we know from the recent accusations against alleged Christian missionary work in Malaysia, that prominent Malaysian Muslim leaders have condemned the zakat authority for neglecting the Muslim poor to an extent that the latter have become willing recipients of Christian charity and thus, by implication, insinuation and insidiousness, potential apostates because of Christian proselytizing.

Leaving that aside, let us turn to India, an ancient land, alas, cursed by the evil of its discriminatory caste system (all purely because of the accidental consequence of birth).

When Islam arrived in India, many Hindus swiftly embraced the great religion (remember: one with a fantastic socialist doctrine) to become Muslims in order to wonderfully rid themselves of their unfortunate unfair and undesired status as lower caste Indians (and that, only because of the accident in birth to certain families). They went from being pariahs to being members of the Ummah.

There is no doubt that Allah swt, being who He is, wants Islam to be a supranational religion, one above race, ethnicity, caste and skin colour.

But then comes along Dr Hasan Ali who promotes not just Muslim unity or Human Unity or Malaysian Unity, but specifically Malay-Muslim Unity, and the position of the Malay royalty, or even more specifically ...

... UMNO-PAS Unity!

I have written on the following observation several times before but I guess there’s no harm reiterating it, that ....

.... the Weltanschauung or worldview of many (though not all) PAS members is more about Malay interests rather than Islam’s per se, and PAS is a Malay (rather than Islamic) political party. Thus we shouldn't be surprised by people like Dr Hasan Ali.

Even a certain remarkable Mufti (who cowardly put the blame for his seditious act on a woman when push came to shove) argued that “the Malays are special because they are related to Islam, unlike the Arabs even though Prophet Muhammad was descended among them” and “We must defend our [Malay] race” (rather than Islam). So much for a Mufti!

Now, can anyone blame me for concluding from Dr Hasan’s political confession that he doesn’t care what the official PAS political ideology is, nor give a sh*t to the repetitive exhortations of Pak Haji Nik Aziz, PAS’ Mursyidul Am, to consider UMNO as PAS’ political enemy?

Of course I'm giving him the max benefit of the doubts, that he is truly devoted to UMNO-PAS unity and not because of the potential of becoming the future MB of an UMNO-PAS ruled Selangor.

Yes, he is basically saying he’s the Kemo Sabe (Lone Ranger) of UMNO-PAS Unity, and to f*s with PAS.

Does such a person deserve to belong to a political party like PAS which, like all political parties, has an official political ideology?

Only PAS can provide the answer.

And finally in closing, are you guys still holding on to ABU, especially those living in Gombak Setia, Selangor? Wakakaka.

PKR's Pariah-ish Preemptive Power-grab for NS?

The Malaysian Insider's Pakatan aims for Negri, eyes PKR MP as MB reported:

Pakatan Rakyat (PR) is ramping up efforts to wrest Negri Sembilan from Barisan Nasional (BN) in the next general election, with its leaders saying the pact has identified Teluk Kemang MP Datuk Kamarul Baharin Abbas as frontrunner for the mentri besar post.

Even though TMI quoted its source as a “senior PR spokesperson” you can bet your bottom ringgit the conveniently anonymous spokesperson has been from PKR rather than PR.

It’s the usual and very regrettable PKR tactic of using the media to (so they wish) force a fait accompli on its DAP and PAS partners(?). It’s so bloody typical of their avaricious UMNO-like Taikoh wannabe mentality a la Sarawak and Perak all over again.

If we examine the current PR standing in the Negri Sembilan DUN, where the BN forms the ruling majority with 21 ADUNs, PR has 15 ADUNs in opposition, comprising 10 from DAP, 1 from PAS and only 4 from PKR.

Assuming both DAP and PAS retain the same winning seats (i.e. DAP = 10, PAS = 1) and PKR alone reaps the winning minimum swing of all 4 extra seats, the status will see DAP at 10, PAS 1, and PKR with 8. So why should the MB be from PKR? And mind, we are providing the maximum benefit of the doubt to PKR, by assuming DAP and PAS won't make any advance at all in the next NS state elections.

OK, perhaps PR may agree to a PKR person being the future NS MB of the state government as it did in Selangor, but why can’t PKR allow this to evolve from sincere, mature and confidential intra-PR discussions and negotiations? Why must PKR conduct selfish grubby preemptive strikes via the media on its partners?

And if PKR's argument is based on the requirement for the MB to be a Muslim, then we must wait to see whether there will be Muslim DAP ADUNs after the next election? Or, why can’t we nominate a PAS person as MB in the likes of my fave Nizar Jamaluddin?

Quite frankly, I am bloody sick of PKR's old ketuanan, kiasu and khianat-ish habit of bypassing intra-PR negotiations through use of the media to preemptively stake its claim on high powered political positions or committees. It's not a sincere but rather selfish and greedy member of PR and there'll come, must come a stage when DAP and PAS have to get rid of this untrustworthy partner ..... unless of course the sincere democractic elements in PKR make efforts to shed the party of its UMNO stripes (or leopard spots)*.

* I had written before, and very often too, that change in UMNO must come from within, thus similarly (wakakaka), change in PKR must likewise come from within. As an example, PKR members should pause and consider why Gobala, this once die-hard supporter of Anwar Ibrahim, almost of kamikaze-like dedication for the so-called Great Reformer wakakaka, has been attacking his once-idol with such ferocity that he was recently ejected from Parliament for doing so, rather than continue to deceive themselves blind by idiotically dismissing Gobala (and others) as a BN mole or Trojan Horse planted to destroy PKR from within. It’s up to the righteous elements in PKR to deal with this evil corroding poison within their party, that is, if they have the guts, sincerity and righteous belief in true democratic reforms.

Incidentally, in DAP's drive to recruit more Malay members, I urge the party to reconsider and change its policy of not admittedly anyone from a PR party, because I would like to see the DAP wooing and admitting Badrul Hisham Shaharin (Chegubard)) into its ranks, provided Chegubard is no longer a member of PKR.

Once a PKR supreme council member, Chegubard is not in the PKR upper echelon anymore. He’s certainly not in Anwar Ibrahim’s favour nor accepted with professional grace by Anwar’s inner coterie. Chegubard has been highly critical of Anwar and party’s kitchen cabinet, more so during and after the last PKR party polls where he (Chegubard) revealed many alleged untoward happenings during the polls.

Outraged by the alleged dodgy PKR party polling process, well-known writer Art Harun asked in an earlier post of his what does the 'K' in PKR actually stands for?

Art wrote: … When records show about 80 people in attendance and yet about 800 people voting, surely PKR could expect dissent and resentment from the candidates vying for posts. That is only to be expected.

To top it up, when party outsiders such as Haris Ibrahim could produce ballot papers issued for the party elections, one wonders whether Roy Hodgson is in charge of the ballot papers in PKR. […]

I don't know about how they feel and think. But frankly, in my perception, PKR is so full of crap than it would even dare to admit. And if the farce that PKR calls and labels as party elections is to be a yardstick of its ability to govern this country, I would rather vote for the Siberian Husky in front of my house. And by that, I don't mean to insult the dog.

Post-polling, there was an attempt to ‘mollify’ Chegubard with the post of deputy party sec-gen but he flicked that shallow and insincere appeasement off (there's another nastier word for "shallow and insincere appeasement" wakakaka).

In unequivocal rejection of that offer, Chegubard stated he would not back down from his vows to reform the party “despite attempts by certain quarters (wakakaka) to get rid of him and his supporters. The former PKR supreme council member admitted that he was feeling the pressure from PKR leaders who were unhappy with his vocal approach to rejuvenate democracy and transparency in the party".

Obviously, Chegubard has been and no doubt is still facing regular backstabbing from within his party.

If he is not on the PKR list for the next State and federal election, and he elects to resign from that party, DAP must take the initiative to recruit him. This man with his great values will be a tremendous asset to DAP.

Read also:
(1) PKR party election - the horror stories continue
(2) The Poison Within PKR
(3) The Poison Within PKR – Part II
(4) The Poison Within PKR – Part III

UMNO's unity lies with crooked bridge

Remember my previous post Lost Opportunity?

Well, according to The Malaysian Insider, Johor Umno has called for the ‘Crooked Bridge’ to be revived.

I wonder whether Najib will seize on AAB’s ‘lost opportunity’ to re-engage with Anwar Ibrahim.

Mind, the political landscape has changed somewhat since April 2006 when I posted A Bridge Too Far - Anwar Ibrahim where I wrote of Anwar’s eagerness to offer his assistance to the AAB government, stating he (Anwar) could draw from his experience in the government, including as finance minister between 1993 and 1998, to resolve the crooked bridge affair with the Sing government.

Anwar had then stated: “I would not discount any possible meeting with Abdullah if he were to ask my views on the issues ... like the negotiations with Singapore on the bridge and even information on the negotiations with Indonesia on border issues.”

Anwar is now de facto leader of Pakatan with the potential to seize majority rule from UMNO in the next GE, though I personally have some qualms about its realization even if Pakatan indeed were to win the majority of federal parliamentary seats in the 13th GE.

I worry principally about the continuing cohesion of the loose alliance because of the greater potential for PAS to renege on its Pakatan partners in the name of Muslim Unity (with UMNO) and the prospect (quid pro quo) for implementation of hudud laws in Malaysia's legal system.

Back to Anwar - on his debit sheet, he is personally under imminent threat from the Sodomy II charge.

How will he see the account balance in his political favour should Najib indeed approach him to help solve the resurrected crooked bridge problem with the Sing people?

But in politics as in business (and Malaysian politics is also business), nothing is impossible. The Malays are true masters in the art of court intrigues with their unsurpassed centuries-horned negotiating skills, more so when there will be the attractive sheen of religious teflon coating. And with Ku Li's support, even royal blessings shouldn't be discounted.

I wonder how Najib, Anwar, Dr M (wakakaka) and Ku Li would each see the potential for ‘UMNO Unity’ (including ex UMNO men) in the opportunity presented by the resurrection of the crooked bridge issue?

Lost Opportunity

Today my post is on lost opportunity. Obviously I’m talking about lost political opportunity. Another term for ‘lost opportunity’ would be ‘what if …?’

Probably the most known ‘lost opportunity’ would be that of Ku Li ‘losing’ by 43 delegate votes to Dr M in the 1987 UMNO party election. The accusations were rife about 78 branch delegates, unregistered with the Registrar of Societies and thus illegible to vote, allegedly voting and swinging the outcome in Dr M’s favour. Prior to the election, Ku Li was touted to emerge as victor.

Many have been the wistful philosophizing on ‘what if’ Ku Li had won and became PM of Malaysia 23 years ago?

I suppose his ‘victory’ would have screwed up the UMNO's Da Vinci Code(s) kau kau, because then the RA-H-M-A-N prophecy wouldn’t have been fulfilled wakakaka.

Yup, the UMNO’s Da Vinci Code would have gone R-A-H-R-M-A-N, with Ku Li as the 4th PM, and after him perhaps (we are now deep in Speculation Universe) Musa Hitam, Anwar Ibrahim and of course Najib (or even The Blue-Eyed Boy wakakaka).

Tantalizing thought, isn’t it?

But today’s post is about another, more recent, ‘lost opportunity’, for none other than AAB.

Imagine, he could still be PM today, having kept Pakatan at bay without the 2008 tsunamic disaster for BN.

And it had to do with the crooked bridge wakakaka.

If you recall, in my post Anwar Ibrahim - AAB: Encounter of the thirsty kind about a ‘chance’ (wakakaka) encounter between AI and AAB, the text went:

I’ve always believed that Anwar wants to return to UMNO – I still do!

In my post A Bridge Too Far - Anwar Ibrahim 3 years ago, Anwar eagerly offered (unsolicited) assistance to AAB on the crooked bridge business. I wrote:

Anwar has offered assistance to the government, saying he could draw from his experience in the government, including as finance minister between 1993 and 1998. That’s a fantastic CV, man.

Anwar continued: “I would not discount any possible meeting with Abdullah if he were to ask my views on the issues ... like the negotiations with Singapore on the bridge and even information on the negotiations with Indonesia on border issues.”

[…]

Mind you, Anwar assured us his offer does not imply a wish to rejoin UMNO - of course not! Everyone knows the UMNO-led government always gets ‘outsiders’ to negotiate with foreign governments on its behalf.

Alas for him, AAB snubbed him. To many UMNO insiders, Anwar was far too dangerous to allow too close, even for them. Mind you, they have had experience of the way he operated when he was their No 2.

But he’s still trying – his last chance, prior to his Nemesis (Najib) taking over the organization he wants to return to.

I wonder whether I ought to feel a lil' sorry for him, with him seeing the UMNO gates gradually drawing shut to him forever more?

Just imagine, if AAB had not snubbed Anwar, and cleverly invited the latter to handle the negotiations with Singapore and also allowed him to re-join UMNO, the following outcome could (I dare not claim ‘would’) have happened:

1) Dr M would have had an attack of apoplexy, especially when Anwar pinpointed him (Dr M) as the culprit for losing the negotiations to Singapore wakakaka.

Anwar said Dr M had only himself to blame for his pet project being scrapped. Anwar claimed he had been privy to information in the early stages of the project, and declared that Dr M made his first blunder when he sent former finance minister Daim Zainudin to negotiate with former Singapore PM LKY over the terms of the project.

He advised: “I would grant the criticism of many that negotiations with Singapore are not always easy. The solution therefore is to send competent people to negotiate. If you send semi-literates to negotiate, we will lose out in the negotiations” …

… wakakaka, because we have to conclude from such a statement that The Great Asian Renaissance Man must have considered Daim a semi-literate.

Whatever, AAB missed/lost the opportunity to use Anwar on the crooked bridge re-negotiations with Singapore to rub that painfully into Dr M’s face. I imagine Dr M would have gone bersek. Perhaps then with AAB at an one-upsmanship advantage, he might possibly have been able to confidently parry away the relentless persecutions by Dr M stemming from the latter's dissatisfaction with the crooked bridge affair.

2) Had AAB invited Anwar to re-join UMNO (a process which I had consistently asserted Anwar was very keen on, at least until Najib took over as party president), perhaps Pakatan might not have done that well in the 2008 GE. There’s no denying that without Anwar, Pakatan in its earliest days would not have remained reasonably cohesive as a formidable alternative to the BN.

3) By getting Anwar to re-join UMNO, there was of course a danger that Anwar might have taken over the party, but the reality was there was already too much of a time gap between the time of Anwar’s expulsion from UMNO and that hypothetical re-joining of UMNO when in His Magnificence's absence, many new powerful UMNO warlords have established party positions and would definitely not permit The Great One to regain his previous party status, as No 2 going on to No 1 wakakaka – such is the nature of the political beast (of any political party, not just UMNO).

Thus by engaging Anwar and allowing him to re-join UMNO, AAB would have made Anwar lose all his political credibility outside UMNO without any visible gain in UMNO, effectively neutering him as a credible political figure in Malaysia.

So, my speculative conclusion is that, had AAB had not lost the opportunity presented by Anwar’s keenness to ‘help’ (wakakaka) with the crooked bridge issue, he could have neutralised both Dr M and Anwar and thus possibly be still PM, without suffering the disastrous 2008 tsunami.

Perhaps his 4th Floor boys (s-i-l and son) should be blamed for his 'lost opportunity'.

Alas, I believe it was a monumental ‘lost opportunity’ in Malaysian politics on a scale as dramatic as that for Ku Li in the 1987 UMNO party crisis.

The Last Communalist?

Scene: Aircon VVIP room, nasi kandar shop, Jalan Kerbau

Participants: Shop owner Maidin & VVIP Low Brow (LB)

*********************************************
Act 1

Maidin: Tan Sri, how about our kari sapi? The beef is of premium quality and very fresh, direct from NFC. And perhaps a glass of teh-tarik, made with fresh susu, also from NFC

LB: The susu bloody well be fresh; it's the least I expect from tits covered at 26,000 ringgit.

Maidin: Er … 26,000 ringg ….

LB: Never mind, get on with my order!

Act 2

Maidin returning to VVIP room with the ‘fresh’ sapi & fresh susu dish and drinks

Maidin: Er … Tan Sri, I hope you don’t mind if I boldly say that my members have been terribly disappointed that we haven’t had a senator appointed in the last exercise, more so when that non-Muslim Nallakarupan has been appointed as one.

LB: Well, give me some justification then to appoint you.

Maidin (smiling): Tan Sri, I know the DAP will be our main threat in GE13 …

LB (in bad mood): SO!

Maidin: We need a strategy to instill fear of the DAP in the heartland.

LB: What the f* kerbau @r$e do you think we’ve been doing at the assembly?

Maidin: Tan Sri, please permit me to say what we have done thus far is not enough - there's not enough hate-fear factor. We need to spread word that Ong Boon Hua has joined the DAP. That’ll surely …..

LB (cutting in rudely): Who the f* lembu tetek is Ong Boon Hua? [at same time, rolls eyes and thinks: f* unbelievable, 26,000 ringgit!]

Maidin: Tan Sri, he's Chin Peng – he has already been made into an object of hate for the heartland; his joining DAP should turn the heartland thoroughly against that party.

LB: Hmmm, I think you may have something there, Maidin my boy, but how the f* sapi sh*t can we get him to do that?

Maidin: Well, we can either publish the usual lies ... er ... I mean, propaganda, or … we can horse trade with Boon Hua.

LB (perplex): How … I mean the latter of course?

Maidin: Tan Sri, we offer him entry into Malaysia; he wants to go back to Teluk Anson … er … I mean Intan to die in his birth place.

Naturally, all this has to be done subtly, as if the DAP, drunk with arrogant expectation that Pakatan will form the next government, is sponsoring him with a condition that he joins the party – we can send our south Thailand experts to do the job, you know, the sex-video Trio.

We'll provide Boon Hua with an application form to join the DAP in Teluk Intan. Once we have the form filled up and signed by him, we'll publish it in UM. Then Karpal Singh and Lim Kit Siang can protest for all we care. And best of all, we needn't honour our pledge to Boon Hua, for the second time.

LB: Maidin my boy … er … I mean, Senator-in waiting Maidin, you have a winner there.

Maidin (warming up): And this is the clincher, Tan Sri. We'll also spread news that Brother Boon Hua has 'become' a Christian, having joined one of those evangelistic churches that two Chinese bloggers have been raving and condemning some DAP leaders for helping spread their proselytizing Christian faith.

All we'll need to do is just spread the word of Boon Hua’s conversion and those two bloggers, ironically with anti-DAP fervor as evangelistic as the Christian churches they've accused some DAP leaders of belonging to, will eagerly do the rest.

LB (smiling now): Good work, almost-Senator Maidin. Now, all we need is a catchy title or label to highlight the new campaign about that dreaded Communist Christian Chinese.

Maidin: How about “The Last Communist”, implying he was a communist, the last of his kind, because he has turned into an equally dreaded Christian, perhaps even with a solar-powered Malay language Bible?

LB: Absolutely NOT! I don’t want that loose cannon traitor Amir Muhammad coming back to kacau us.

Maidin: Okay okay Tan Sri, how about “The Last Communalist”, sending the message that though he’s Chinese, he, like the other DAP people, doesn’t want to recognize we are not the nonsensical Bangsa Malaysia but really ethnic-proud Malays, Indian, Chinese, etc like Kadir Jasin, Ridhuan Tee and you, Tan Sri?

LB (teasing): You left out ‘mamak’? He he he!

Maidin (thought of retorting sharply but thought better of that) smiles obsequiously.

Indonesians, Invidiousness & Idiots

My matey Dean Johns reminded me of Indonesians’ dislike (or even hatred) of Malaysians in his Malaysiakini’s column which features Idiocy still rules, ok when he wrote:

Deputy Sports Minister Razali Ibrahim in his statement last week that the hostile reception given by Indonesian fans to Malaysian teams at the SEA Games in Jakarta was because “opposition leaders have been making a beeline for Indonesia to bad mouth our country”.

Of course, Razali Ibrahim's statement would be believable to only, in line with Dean’s theme for this week, his 'idiot' supporters.

Anyway, leaving the home ‘idiots’ aside, Indonesians’ (rather than Indonesia’s) dislike of and for Malaysians has been a long standing state of envy, with that feeling boiling at times over into sheer hatred. But in the final analysis it’s just plain envy of Malaysians’ more fortunate circumstances and affluent lifestyle, sometimes deteriorating into the more emotional ‘jealousy’ against anyone who’s Malaysian.

To put it in the pithy words of Pak Pandai ;-) it’s "Taikoh with a wee weenie being green-eyed about Adik with the humongous ‘adik’" wakakaka.

By population size, Indonesia is the world’s 5th biggest country after China, India, USA and Russia. It’s natural resources - oil, timber, minerals, agricultural land, fishery, its land and sea mass - and its human resource would make even the richest nation in the world easily envious of Indonesia, ...

... but – and as a salutary lesson to Malaysia – Indonesia has been buggered by corrupt leaders for 60 over years, since 1945, to such an extent that today its most notable (and probably, like the Philippines, biggest) export to the Gulf countries and, malulah, Adik Malaysia has been its women, to serve as maids to foreigners.

Malaysia is just a dozen years behind Indonesia in being her own master of affairs, though thanks to leaders like Tunku and the earlier PMs, may be said to be racked by corruption for a far shorter period than that suffered by our neighbour (even with the difference of 12 years taken into account).

Very much to Indonesians’ chagrin, Adik Malaysia, apart from emerging even stronger from the trials, tribulations and trauma of Konfrontasi, has been doing very much better. Thus, when Malaysia’s relative superiority in economy, affluence and lifestyle is realized by Indonesians, the fact becomes unbelievable, unbearable, unacceptable and, in moments of stress and national hurt (like when losing islands and badminton & soccer matches), would easily provoke them into hatred for those (in their troubled minds) adiks, the lil’ buggers living just north of equally puny lil’ Tionghua Singapore.

Years ago, when I was working in Java, Indonesia, I went to a ramshackle gymnasium for a workout, but wakakaka, mainly to ogle at the nona sweeties (nyonya in Indonesia means a married lady whilst nona is a maiden, thus fair game for blokes like kaytee, unless boyfriend is a silat harimau expert wakakaka).

An Indonesia colleague who had never been north of Java’s shoreline, asked me whether Malaysia possessed facilities like the ramshackle gym, in a condescending tone that left me in no doubt as to his believed superiority I came from a truly ulu (backward) country called Malaysia. The other Indon colleagues who had been to Malaysia were so embarrassed that they walked away immediately, but subsequently apologized to me for their mate’s ‘katak dibawah tempurung’ (frog beneath a coconut shell) mentality.

Just imagine how that tempurung-ed Indon would have felt if the facts about Malaysian-Indonesian relative lifestyle and affluence were made known to him? First, he would probably have rejected them in disbelief, then he would be enviously horrified, and finally he would be a green-eyed monster, perhaps even hating those bloody adik Malaysians.

Our Deputy Sports Minister Razali Ibrahim was thus not only peddling unscrupulous opportunistic political lies to his ‘idiot’ supporters but has been a far more ignorant idiot himself, not unlike that tempurung-ed Indon of my Java experience wakakaka.

Perhaps now would be a timely reminder of where we are going, by recalling that at a time when the only petroleum Malayans (and subsequently Malaysians) knew about was from the gas nozzles of Shell and Mobil petrol stations, Indonesia already had its monopolistic powerful Pertamina, headed by Army General Ibnu Sutowo.

Read this Wikipedia statement about Pertamina’s early history:

For President Suharto and other members of the ruling elite, revenue from Pertamina was "an ongoing source of funding" without accountability: "they ran this cash-cow into the ground, using it for both military and personal ends."

Historian Adrian Vickers describes the endemic corruption at Pertamina: At each stage of the transaction chain somebody was getting a percentage ...

In 1973, the government's ability to borrow money from overseas was constrained, and Pertamina was no longer providing revenues to the state. Instead, the massive enterprise turned out not to be making money, but compiling exponentially large losses. In February 1975, Pertamina could no longer pay its American and Canadian creditors.

Sounds familiar? … unless of course you want to be like what Dean Johns described so succinctly, an 'idiot'.

Politics - play safe, play the race

Much as I may wish, I personally doubt Pakatan will form the next government, EVEN if it wins the majority of the seats in the next general election.

Huh? You may exclaim at kaytee’s strange assertion above.

For a start, I am troubled by many factors – UMNO’s advantage of incumbency, our remarkable EC and other state apparatus (which performance had been amply demonstrated in Perak, Selangor and during the earlier days of the Pakatan-governed Penang), increasingly royal political activitism, the judiciary, etc.

But the most worrying factor has been the centrifugal policies and behaviour of Pakatan itself.

We witnessed a sampling of this in the period of campaigning leading to the last Sarawak state election and its sour-grapes aftermath, PAS increasing reversion to its intrinsic hudud-inclined stripes, as well as in recent remarks by PKR leaders.

The new PKR ethnic hero is Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, its Youth Chief, who has borrowed (or inherited) a leaf from his mother organization, UMNO Youth, by selling his and his party’s appeal on a Malaysian sure-fire best-selling platform, definitely one to warm the cockles of the heartland, namely, Ketuanan Melayu or Malay-supremacy.

While UMNO Youth under KJ has quietened down a wee bit (perhaps because KJ wants to present himself as a less crude and more cosmopolitan politician, or because UMNO Youth has already farmed out its brown-shirts and steel jackboots to Perkasa), PKR Youth has instead eagerly adopted its ethno-centric tactics.

The acorn sure as hell doesn't fall far from the oak tree.

According to Malaysiakini Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin called for a constitutional amendment to state that only a Malay can be appointed prime minister.

Jettisoning his party’s mantra of (wakakaka) reformasi, he justified his ethnocentric persuasion, stating: "The lack of such a constitutional provision allows irresponsible quarters to manipulate Malay anxieties about their future (should a non-Malay be appointed PM). This is because of the suspicions they have of those from other ethnic backgrounds. Such manipulation can cause them to feel unsafe and create tensions. This way, the Malays will always pin their hopes on these so-called Malay champions, who turn out to be the real enemies."

And he comes even complemented with a very supportive BN-type lapdog in the person of his deputy Chan Ming Kai, who stoutly defended his Taikoh’s siren call to the heartland.

The term ‘political prostitute’ was recently aired to pinpoint someone who was usually referred to by the 'whore’ synonym, but I wonder whether we can use this term, ‘prostitute’, as a verb (instead of a noun) to describe Shamsul’s racist proposal, .....

..... that in calling for a policy which is 180-degrees in direction to his party’s claimed ideology, he has 'prostituted' PKR’s credentials for rewards, to shore up his personal popularity (pre-election) as an ethnic warrior and his hope for heartland votes.

We also recall all too well The Great One’s support of Pak Haji Nik Aziz’s proposal to implement hudud in Kelantan. 'The Renaissance Man' became unashamedly 'The Reneging Man', all just for attention because at that time he was racked by anxiety over what he perceived as his diminishing relevancy as Pakatan’s de facto (wakakaka) leader and that of his party in the loose coalition.

Bigotry as a 'whatever it takes' justification to win seems to be a prevalent mentality in PKR, because I recall that in the immediate aftermath of the 2008 elections in Perak, its 'Lost Socialist' demanded, in most unexpected, unbecoming and unbelievable behaviour for a so-called ‘socialist’, that the State exco must be made up of an ethnic composition that was representative of the Perak population by ethnic percentage, meaning the PKR-PAS bloc (effectively PKR) ADUNs should get the lion’s share of the exco position.

So, with such an ethno-centric proclivity in PKR and an equally dismal religio-ethno-centric mentality in PAS, I doubt Pakatan will remain cohesive as an alliance to form a new government even if the component parties manage to resolve the pre-election division of parliamentary seats and win majority rule.

Dr Hasan (PAS Selangor) and the Mufti of 'Malay Unity' may yet realize their dreams.

Do not be surprised by the butterfly metamorphosing into a slug (caterpillar).

Dirgahayu Bangsa, Pordah anak Malaysia.

Dr Syed Husin, the Socialist who lost his way

Tell me why I’m not at all surprised by the relevation of Ezam Mohd Noor that former PKR Deputy Chairman Dr Syed Husin had condemned Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin Ali in a private conversation with Ezam (when the latter was still in PKR).

Malaysiakini reported in its Syed Husin: Ezam's throwing up a smokescreen that (BN-appointed) Senator Ezam Mohd Noor, once the right hand man of Anwar Ibrahim (Azmin Ali being the left hand man wakakaka) claimed that … Dr Syed Husin had in frequent chats with him (Ezam) at a favourite restaurant in Petaling Jaya criticized Anwar and Azmin for what he (Syed) perceived as their lavish lifestyles.

Dr Syed defended his snide comments about The Great One and Blue-eyed Boy to MKIN as: “In general, I criticize any and everybody who offends against the unspoken rule against ostentation in their lifestyles. We are fighting for the have-nots in Malaysian society; it requires we be modest in our lifestyles.”

Dr Syed Husin explained that Ezam’s tattling was an attempt to distract from the motive behind Ezam’s departure from PKR, namely good old fashion ‘money’, by positing that he (Ezam) did so because of his dim view of the leadership of Anwar Ibrahim.

MKINI stated that Syed Husin expanded: “I know this is coming down to a ‘I said, he said’ sort of thing but if you look at page 157 of my book, you will find that Hishamuddin Rais says in a letter that he wouldn’t be surprised if Ezam leaves PKR. That letter was written in 2002.”

Whether Hishamuddin Rais was proven to be prophetic is besides the point, because it’s interesting to note Dr Syed hasn’t denied that he had criticized Anwar and Azmin for their lavish lifestyles.

Indeed, Dr Syed has been wise not to as it’s an open secret about the lifestyles of Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin Ali. As they say, “Once UMNO, always UMNO”.

In fact I would say Dr Syed rather than Ezam in attacking the latter for deserting PKR for money would be the one attempting to distract from the fact he held (maybe still does) a very dim view of the lifestyle and leadership of Anwar Ibrahim and his darling boy. Mind, this is not to say Ezam is an angel, but he is no better or worse than Azmin Ali, both being at one time or still, political praetorian guards of The Great One.

Dr Syed Husin was the leader of PRM, once a wonderful socialist like Dr Jeya of PSM until he (Dr Syed) wandered into a wrong camp, a camp with people used to opulent lifestyles totally in contrast to his socialist ways.

I used to respect Dr Syed, even after he led the PRM foolishly into PKR (when fellow socialist DAP would have been the natural choice). Maybe he was like Zaid Ibrahim, believing he could ‘save’ PKR? Who knows?

I admired Dr Syed even more when he graciously declined to accept the PKR’s candidature for the Kota Bahru parliamentary seat, following strong objections from PAS in the person of Pak Haji Nik Aziz. Probably Pak Haji objected to what he saw as a syaitan-ish pinko standing as Pakatan candidate in KB.

But alas, I shed a tear and lost my respect for Dr Syed immediately after his racially-oriented remarks/demands about the composition of the Perak exco following the Pakatan victory in March 2008.

That’s what mixing with the wrong crowd could do to a former socialist.

The 'K' factor

Kerbau, korupsi, kronisme, keluarga, kondo, korek (Bukit Bintang, Jalan Sultan), kapal (ta’selam), kollapsing (stadium), krack-ed (MRR2, roof of Parliament building), kepala-sakit (for Auditor General), konstitutional (blasphemies), kurang konscionable (fabriKations), kowtim-ness (Indonesian ‘bisa diatur’) … etc etc etc.

The Malaysian K factor.

No doubt every country in the world suffers from corruption, but the difference lies in its degree. Today, Malaysia has reached the level of Zimbabwe, Myanmar, Pakistan and the Philippines of Marcos’ days and India of yonder years, etc.

How did we allow this to happen, when did it begin, but more importantly how can we stop it?

Hudud?

Just look at the corruption in Pakistan and other Middle-Eastern country where hudud is part of their legal system. No man, hudud won't the solution.

Look at that pimple on China’s backside, Hong Kong. Many don’t realize HK’s much vaunted ICAC was patented after Malaysia’s original ACA.

But today the Malaysian ACA or its new named MACC is an obscenity.

We were once the envy of many Asian nations but now, we have become the new laughing stock. Yes, we still have some fat to continue in our merry ways but these are running out soon, which may explain why we see an unrepentant horrendous frenzied scramble for the last dip of the snout in the public trough.

We badly need a modern-day Hang Jebat, one who is pure in his heart, brave and honest.

A tale of two sweeties

... with apologies to Charles Dickens for misappropriating and paraphrasing the title of his Classic wakakaka.

Today I’m talking about the daughters of local politicians, not sons like Mukhriz, Lim GE, Lim Si Pin or Chua Tee Yong, or son-in-law like KJ wakakaka.

But for this post, I’ll limit myself to just two daughters of the two principal political antagonists Dr Mahathir and Anwar Ibrahim, respectively Marina Mahathir and Nuruh Izzah.

First of all, let me be truthful and declare my personal position, that I know Marina through blogging, but alas sob sob sob, not the latter sweetie.

I have also followed Marina’s activities in, firstly, her former role as the Head of Malaysia’s AIDS Foundation, socio-activist in women affairs, a socio-political blogger at her website Rantings byMM, and at her column in The Star, while I cannot but help hearing constantly from the avalanche of adulation, acclaim and accolades for Nurul by her devoted supporters wakakaka.

Marina is of course not a politician, unlike Nurul.

When I think of these two sweeties, I am reminded immediately of the biblical saying that the sins of the father will be visited upon their children for several generations …

Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me – Deuteronomy 5:9

And also from Isaiah:

I will even repay into their bosom, both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together – Isaiah 65:6-7

… which I opine is utter nonsense on the basis of logic, commonsense and secular justice.

Many of those I know dislike or at best, are suspicious of Marina because of their immense dislike, if not hatred, of Dr Mahathir – hence the biblical quote of 'sins of father visited upon the children' would be most appropriate in Marina’s case.

Okay, I’m sure by now, you would have got it that the “many of those I know” are Pakatan people wakakaka.

By contrast, to these same people, Nurul is virtually the equivalent of Virgin Mary, Jeanne d’Arc and Rosa Parks all rolled into one. They have even proposed (preposterously, if I may add) that should her dad be jailed for Sodomy II, she be selected as the Prime Minister of the new (hoped for) Pakatan government.

Now, I'm willing to accept Dr Wan Azizah as a substitute PM, but young Nurul ...? Puhleeeze lah, but then, such is fanaticism.

As if that was not enough, Nurul has also been conferred the title ‘Princess Reformasi’. That either implies her dad is the Sultan Reformasi wakakaka or worse (what I suspect), she is the PKR’s version of Nyai Loro Kidal, the anwaristas' Goddess of Reformasi, though quite frankly, there is nothing to substantiate or justify the bestowment of that title on her - please explain how she is Princess Reformasi? In fact, I believe Fuziah Salleh, the MP for Kuantan, has done far more as a PKR politician than Nurul.

Mind, I have nothing against Nurul. My criticisms above is directed not at innocent her but rather those mindless muddle-headed Myrmidons of PKR whose adoration, adulation and acclamation for her (because she so happens to be the daughter of The Great One) have been as amaurotic as the Graeae deprived of their sole eye.

There’s no doubt Nurul Izzah has a bright future as a politician. But I cannot bring myself to see her as (the preposterously titled) Princess Reformasi or, gawd, gasp, omigosh, the ‘PM anointed’ in the event her father is not available to head a Pakatan government.

Sorry, I don’t share such a moronic view which would be that exclusively of the anwarista cultists.

OTOH, whatever good Marina Mahathir might have done, they (as well as some UMNO-BN people too) would impute some ignoble motive on her part.

Sometime back, I read an article (somewhere) where the author aired his distrust of Marina’s motive in walking with Bersih 2.0, suggesting she possessed a secret agenda to infiltrate Bersih a la the Trojan Horse to destroy it from within. Well …

Then there were others who questioned her ’enjoyment of the privileges’ of being a PM’s daughter as if she could only be free of guilt if she had chosen someone else to be her parents. Such has been the stupidity of those mindless comments.

And incidentally did Nurul not enjoy the same privileges when Anwar was the powerful rightwing DPM from UMNO? Anwaristas' double standard?

Once when I voiced to an erstwhile (dear) friend wakakaka my admiration for Marina as an advocate for AIDS awareness through her sterling role as President of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation, I received from her a stupid sleazy sickening retort, a non sequitur and puerile revelation that Marina once wore mini-skirts.

Huh and f* cheh, as if that was her sin? Hey, I used to walk around naked, yes, naked … when I was three years old wakakaka.

The vicious malicious tattler backed off when I showed my disgust at such a gross grubby gossipy item. To be frank, I was outraged for two reasons, firstly, WTF has that got to do with her fantabulous role as an activist for AIDS awareness, and secondly (I have to admit) I was personally annoyed in missing seeing her in the mini skirt wakakaka. So I was suffering from mixed feelings, of both anger :( and frustration ;-).

It’s so typically the attitude of those who have been/are very anti Lee Lam Thye, where some PKR people hate this wonderful man who had done more for the common people of KL than they and their loud mouths could ever dream of achieving.

Lee LT is reviled by PKR people because of his post & non-political activities with some government agencies or projects. But the same fuckers remained like mutes when Anwar Ibrahim offered his (unsolicited) services wakakaka to AAB during the crooked bridge controversy – see my post A Bridge Too Far - Anwar Ibrahim.

What f* double-standard hypocrites, those anwaristas.

Today, Marina Mahathir has again shown her bravery, fairness and invincible justice for the underdogs when she stood up for the organizers of Seksualiti Merdeka, who have been mischievously libelled by the mainstream media with the usual msm lies, in their description of Seksualiti Merdeka as a ‘free sex festival’.

I was wondering how long before Marina’s public stand would shame a pro-hudud person to finally come out to declare his stand on Sexsualiti Merdeka, naturally all complete with ‘qualifications’ wakakaka.

[Footnote: when Eli Wong was under tsunamic attack (by the f* usual suspects) for the sins of sneaky shifty sleazy slug who took photos of her while she was innocently asleep, I learnt that a certain ‘someone’ in PKR had then wanted her out as she was seen as an ‘embarrassment’ to him – that f* spineless unconscionable coward]

UMNO's venom is spinach for 'Popeye' Lim GE

When I hear such words and phrases:

• ‘Unity’ [as in Malay, Muslim unity],
• The Chinese or Martians will take over the country [though with nary a mention of millions of illegal Indonesians, Filipinos and Bangladeshis already allowed into our country],
• There will be a Christian PM,
• They will make Christianity the official religion of Malaysia,
• The communists are lurking behind every melati tree in Penang
• 2,500,000,000,000,000 Malay Muslims have been converted to Christianity,
• A Chinese CM is biadap towards the sultans
• Etc etc on such like threats to Malays and Muslims and their raja, agama & adat

I then know UMNO is in deep deep deep political trouble, and more so when Dr Mahathir, its greatest icon since (ironically*) Hang Tuah, has also joined in the scare-mongering, presumably with the ulterior aim of frightening the hell out of the Malays and nurturing an ethno-siege mentality in their psyche, to stampede them towards their only ‘hope’, namely UMNO.

* ironically because I believe Dr Mahathir like Dr Kassim Ahmad despises a palace sycophant like Tuah

As Samuel Johnson told us more than 200 years ago, patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.

Why has UMNO, in its current battle manoeuvres against Lim GE and DAP Penang, its threat in vogue, considered it has to resort to the ‘last refuge’, an unethical ethnocentric scare-mongering?

In the past, prior to 2009, UMNO had only considered DAP as a kutu Chinese-based party, a MCA problem and certainly not that of UMNO.

Indeed why has UMNO lately become more and more dreadful of a mere kutu Chinese-based party?

Hmmm …

Even a future hope like KJ has sadly succumbed to such shameless guttersnipe slandering. Actually, KJ’s action has shocked me more than any other UMNO sins. Sayang saja!

The latest incident against Lim GE has been by the Mat Rempits. Ayoyo ama, I wonder who in UMNO used to promote them?

Alas for UMNO, it seems Allah swt has not been kind on its actions against Lim Guan Eng.

The more UMNO attacks Lim Guan Eng, directly or indirectly (by persecuting Lim’s 16-year old school boy), by itself or through its agents, Malay and Chinese wakakaka, the more popular Lim becomes, much to the chagrin and anxiety of Penang’s Gerakan and MCA.

It is as if UMNO’s vile, vicious & vitriolic venom is some form of sweet succulent spicy spinach to ‘Popeye’ Lim, turning him super sexy and strong.

But the real answer is of course Penangites have been revolted and repulsed by the incredulous, indecorous, indecent, inexcusable, iniquitous lies propagated by pro UMNO bloggers and the head of UMNO Gelugor Division. Their outrage has been further fuelled by the obvious inaction of the MCMC and Police.

So, is it any wonder that members of Penang’s Gerakan and MCA have been banging their heads on the walls at UMNO’s continuing stupidity in making Lim more and more popular by attacking him with foul flagitious fabrications?

They have been made to vicariously bear the full brunt of Penangites’ contempt and anger for UMNO’s beastly barbarous bullsh*t.

And it’s not as if UMNO fails to understand Penangites aren’t like the good folks of the heartland, where non-heartland Penangites (whether of DAP, MCA, Gerakan or PKR affiliations) already dislike UMNO.

Mind, UMNO doesn’t care two f* about the Chinese and Indian Penangites leaning more and more towards Lim – these voters are known to be lost cause for BN. UMNO is petrified that Malay Penangites will continue swinging over to Lim’s DAP.

Thus UMNO attacks Lim with whatever it can ‘manufacture’ to ensure the heartland does not swing any further towards Lim and the DAP. In the process it knows it is destroying whatever faint hope Gerakan and MCA might have entertained.

Tough, just collateral damage for Gerakan and MCA. When the ship is sinking, it’s every rat for itself …

… which has been why I have often posted that the DAP is not the Gerakan or MCA’s greatest foe. UMNO, their so-called ally, is! wakakaka.

Unconstitutional royal intrusions

I have dined with kings, I've been offered wings. And I've never been too impressed - Bob Dylan


I am more embarrassed than someone who claims he might be embarrassed.

It’s one thing for BN to accuse Pakatan politicians or pro-Pakatan supporters of lese majeste or being rude or unsavoury to royalty, but it’s another for constitutional monarchies to do that.

Has anyone ever heard or read of Queen Elizabeth chiding her PM, any politician or members of the public?

Wait, we needn’t go that far to a white man’s country. Let’s look at our neighbour Thailand. Her King (not the Crown Prince) is very much loved and revered monarch. Thais are the most ardent monarchists in the world.

And you may ask why?

Only once has the Thai King ever publicly taken side, even then in a subtle but effective manner, and for the good of the public.

Wikipedia has this to say:

In 1992, Bhumibol played a key role in Thailand's transition to a democratic system. A coup on 23 February 1991 returned Thailand back under military dictatorship. After a general election in 1992, the majority parties invited General Suchinda Kraprayoon, a leader of the coup group, to be the Prime Minister. This caused much dissent, which escalated into demonstrations that led to a large number of deaths when the military was brought in to control the protesters. The situation became increasingly critical as police and military forces clashed with the protesters. Violence and riot spread out in many areas of the capital with rumour on the rift among armed forces.

Amidst the fear of civil war, Bhumibol intervened. He summoned Suchinda and the leader of the pro-democracy movement, retired Major General Chamlong Srimuang, to a televised audience, urged them to find a peaceful resolution. At the height of the crisis, the sight of both men appearing together on their knees (in accordance with royal protocol) made a strong impression on the nation, and led to Suchinda's resignation soon afterwards.

It was one of the few occasions in which Bhumibol directly and publicly intervened in a political conflict. A general election was held shortly afterward, leading to a civilian government

Mind, when royalty embarrassed BN in Perlis and Terengganu in 2008, Pakatan supporters were being stupidly and prematurely silly in rejoicing at the unconstitutional intrusions (I blogged against those royal interference against the BN's choice of MBs - see below), but when the tables were turned in Perak, and lately in Selangor and Johor (admittedly suspected as at the instigation of BN), the laughs were on the other side.

Regardless of whether the unconstitutional royal intrusions were at the expense of BN or Pakatan, I have never rejoiced but would only lament.

And which has been why I have always reminded people that whatever we might think of Dr Mahathir, he did one really damn good thing during his premiership - he de-fanged the royalty. Bravo!

Related:
(1) Dangerous euphoria over 'political' royalty
(2) Rulers no 'Silver Bullet'
(3) Lim Kit Siang opened Royal Pandora Box?
(4) Royalty threatens constitutional crisis?
(5) The dangers of royal political activism
(6) Supremacy of the people's voice in democracy
(7) Bismarck: The king reigns but does not govern
(8) Dr Wan Azizah, rethink your promise of legal immunity for royalty!
(9) Tainted silver ain't no silver bullet

Putrajaya's 'dunno!'

Q: Why is Professor Aziz Bari being investigated for lèse majesté for stating the Sultan of Selangor had intervened in an ‘unusual and inconsistent’ manner over the Jais intrusive raid of DUMC, when by humongous contrast, an UMNO person had sneeringly insulted Malaysian royalty contemptuously with the following words:

"How can we continue to uphold rulers who are known to be robbers, adulterers, drunkards and kaki pukul (thugs)?" [...]

"They (the rulers) must be made to realize that they do not own this country. They are not Superman but placed on their thrones by the people. "The real power did not lie with them, but with us - the representatives of the people."

M: I dunno anything about this, I mean the second case! But what I do know is I can charge you for sedition.

Q: Then, if there is no evidence to charge DUMC for allegedly proselytizing Muslims, how can JAIS barging into DUMC’s function be considered as justified?

M: I dunno anything about this! But let me say this again, I know I can charge you for sedition.

Q: Minister, explain the report that 240 foreigners were taken in buses to a resort near Putrajaya and given Malaysian citizenships.

HM (stroking his keris): I dunno anything about this!

Q: OK then, explain how a Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Office unit website has claimed that its citizens working in Malaysia have been asked to vote for the ruling Barisan Nasional government?

HM (about to draw his keris): I dunno anything about this!

Q: Why haven’t legal actions being taken against the 3 MACC officers whom the RCI reported as having driven Teoh Beng Hock to suicide?

M (representing someone): He dunno anything about this! He was in Mecca during the imbroglio.

Q: Minister, explain the huge discrepancy between the price of RM1.7 billion paid by DRB-Hicom for the APC and the RM7.65 biliion paid subsuently by Min Def for the same goods?

DM (from inside a APC): I dunno anything about this! But I want to remind everyone I’m the most patriotic Malaysian.

Q: Why wasn’t action taken against 10 errant contractors, who were awarded contracts by the Defence Ministry worth RM76 million, for their work delays despite being notified by the Auditor-General’s Office, and why were their contracts instead extended for an additional 6 months?

DM (now in another APC): I dunno anything about this! But I wish I’m in my submarine right now.

Q: Minister, are you denying that one of your family has been involved in the contract for the biometric system for voters?

[Grunts … then after long silence as if he was overworking his poor mind for an answer ... to deny ...]: I dunno anything about this!

Q: The World Bank has suspended financing of a RM9 billion Padma bridge in Bangladesh because of corruption in the bidding process; please explain why Malaysia has offered to finance the project?

Ex-M (firming down on his topi): Dei, I dunno anything about this!

Q: What is your opinion on the effect on Form 4 English-medium students when the government abolishes the PPSMI next year.

M (toothpick in mouth after a bah-kut-teh meal, mumbles): I dunno anything about this! But DPM promises there will be a ‘soft landing’.

Q: Why was a trading company paid RM9,805 for Tupperwares worth only RM4,221, and the PM Department accepted the trading company’s claim of that extra RM5,584 as transportation cost? RM5,584 as transportation cost for RM4,221 worth of Tupperware? Were the Tupperwares as big and heavy as Ayah Pin’s kettle?

M (drinking tea from a Noritake Bone China cup): I dunno anything about this!

The Muhyiddin Doctrine

The Malaysian Insider - Muhyiddin: Guan Eng’s denial of sexual harassment by son ‘not enough’.

Muhyiddin Yassin has introduced a new legislative doctrine, of course only for DAP people, namely:

“THE ACCUSED IS GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT”

... while the irresponsible accusers get away scot free, with Rais Yatim's department pathetically acting dunno.

In Malaysiakini Muhyiddin was reported saying:

“Don’t blame anybody. However, it is the tendency of the opposition and Pakatan. When their have their own problems, they start to blame Umno.”

“However, if there is a fault, we have to find out what is the main cause.”

This man is either a moron or deliberately acting dunno that it had been UMNO bloggers like Papagomo and UMNO Gelugor’s Division Chairperson, Dr Novandri Hasan Basri, who fabricated the irresponsible shameful lies about Lim Guan Eng’s son. And don't forget too, our dear Oxford-graduate Khairy Jamaluddin had joined in with his pathetic tweet.

If we don't blame UMNO people, who then do we blame?

As for calling on Lim GE to report, who to report to, knowing full well that the police and Rais Yatim's department will act dunno too, though they were pretty f* fast in taking action against non-BN people like Prof Abdul Aziz Bari.

Such is sheer evidence of UMNO's insistent incessant incredulous attack on the DAP, reflected by Muhyiddin's shameful sickening statement, knowing that the police and media regulator will keep mum and take no action.

Mind you, a couple of Chinese bloggers also (independently) believe in the Muhyiddin Doctrine whenever DAP people, especially their principal target Lim Guan Eng, are involved.

Village memories (1)

In my previous post 'How abolishment of PPSMI will affect you, by masterwordsmith', one Anon commented:

"... Those teachers who tried to explain their maths and Science lessons using English more often than not would find their rural students blinking away like stars. It is a case of 'chicken and duck talk'.”

Coincidentally, I have just Village memories (1) - ducks over at my other blog KTemoc Kongsamkok.

It’s all about 'chicken and duck talk' wakakaka.

Have a look as there'll be more birds than just chooks and ducks, yup, the species of birds that kaytee loves wakakaka.

How abolishment of PPSMI will affect you, by masterwordsmith

From the blog of masterwordsmith.

********************************

Dear Students, Parents and Malaysians,

MALAYSIANS APPEAL TO THE GOVERNMENT FOR THE OPTION TO LEARN SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS IN ENGLISH (RETAIN PPSMI AS AN OPTION).

You would have heard by now that the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics in English (better known as PPSMI) will be abolished in January 2012. The Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE) has been in the forefront to champion the cause to maintain the policy for those who wish their children to learn these two (2) subjects in its lingua franca that is English.

Here is how the abolishment of this policy is going to affect you.

*******************************

For more of this important message ... read his post at masterwordsmith - unplugged.

UiTM going for Nobel Prize

Yesterday I posted a depressing (for us Malaysians) Supremacists nowhere in top 400, where I lamented the most embarrassing fact that no Malaysian university had been ranked among the world’s top 400 universities, considering our UM was once one of the most lustrous pearls in Asian academic circle.

By contrast, that puny perspicacious pimple on China’s bottom, Hong Kong, has 2 among the Top 100 and a further 2 in the next 100 Best.

Hong Kong 4 – Malaysia 0.

Malu lah!

But wait wait – Oh Holy Kerbau, today I read the best news ever, c'est vraiment magnifique, ho liao loh, bloody bagus one, absolutely Boleh!

Bernama reports (and picked up by The Star) that:

Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) is aiming to produce the first Malay to win the Nobel Prize, through guidance and advice from renowned Pakistani scientist Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rahman.

Vice-chancellor Datuk Prof Dr Sahol Hamid Abu Bakar said with Dr Atta-ur-Rahman's expertise, the university would be able to achieve the target through scientific research and development.

Obviously it’s heartening news by Bernama, though I cannot help but wonder whether it has been prompted by my lamentations in yesterday’s post? Wakakaka.

But nonetheless, well aspired, Datuk Prof Dr Sahol Hamid Abu Bakar. Your vision certainly justifies your appointment as UiTM’s VC in 2010. Unlike your UM colleague, Prof Ghauth Jasmon who only aims to have UM within the top 100 universities in the world by 2015 and reaching the top 50 by the year 2020, you have boldly go where no Malaysian has gone before, by declaring a quark-ish quartile quantum leap into excellence and world fame for UiTM.

F* those university rankings. Now that’s real thinking out of the box. It’s worthy of Edward de Bono.

That’s the sort of Boleh attitude former PM Dr Mahathir spent billions and billions of ringgit on, as well as set up the Biro TataNegara (BTN), to nurture, nourish and (sometimes or most times) nurse his most favourite people into developing and possessing.

You would have undoubtedly made him proud today with your no-nonsense, no bloody f* around with mere sap sap suoi (trifling) bull like getting into the World’s Top 400 Ranked Universities, as your more conservative colleague at UM is doing – yea man, you sure go straight for the jugular of the ultimate excellence.

An analogy to your amazing aerodonetical aspiration for UiTM would be akin to abandoning the silly study of possible FTL (faster than light speed) technology and instead, jumping into (excuse the science fiction pun) the study of spacetime travel through Schwarzschild wormholes, yup man, to travel beyond ‘Known Space’, perhaps to the Andromeda Galaxy, a staggering 2.5 million light years away, but with worm-hole spacetime travelling technology, a mere teh-tarik (or roti canai) hyperspace jump away, as Malaysia's first cosmonaut would describe it.

But in the meantime, I wonder if we can persuade UiTM to do anything to help our brilliant FTL-thinking UMNO bloggers like papagomo and Dr Novandri Hasan Basri, the UMNO Gelugor Division Chief, who were caught in a collapsing Schwarzschild wormhole of their own making wakakaka.

Hmmm, I wonder which Malaysian university Dr Novandri Hasan Basri graduated from? UiTM?

Supremacists nowhere in top 400

The Malaysian Insider - Falling UM standards sign of NEP failure, says Anwar.

Leaving Anwar Ibrahim aside wakakaka, personally I have nothing against educational affirmative actions for bumiputeras. In fact I support its true objectives and genuinely deserved recipients. But it should be affirmative actions that do not lower schools or universities’ standards.

Good affirmative actions should be, for example, providing to genuinely deserving recipients the best possible teachers/lecturers money can employ, extra tuition, top class facilities, perhaps longer terms in the students’ educational courses, good nutritional food, medical care, health support etc.

Instead, our Education authorities don’t believe in doing the hard yards, namely to raise bumiputera standards to world standards, but want results el pronto, even if the results won’t be substantive and only pseudo-achievements, basically handy ‘statistics’ to push around, like for example, University A has graduated 1,001 bumi medical doctors while University B has graduated 2,999 Malay PhDs ... but to what standards(?) and where any questioning of the program would be shouted at as anti-Malay!

How do they go about achieving such pseudo self-cheating results?

By lowering the standards, of course.

Meanwhile, over at the Centre for Policy Initiatives website, Pak Sako wrote about Freeing the Malays and Muslims from religious mind control, where he informed us that the current Malay-Muslim leaders sells the importance of racial and religious supremacy to the Malays-Muslims.

He explained: A set of underlying reasons drive these mentalities. Political motives aside, there is a historical fear of disenfranchisement; a concept of entitlement as an exclusive birthright; envy; low self-esteem; a craving for a source of self-pride; a fear of the new or alien; meekness; and narrow-mindedness.

And he mention the irony that: Supremacism is sold as the cure-all. But it only adds to the problem.

Indeed!

He then showed that far important issues like: Closing the gap with South Korea or Singapore at the top of quality-of-life indicators such as the UN Human Development Index is a minor national concern.

And sarcastically mentioned that those Malay-Muslim leaders leaders (presumably from UMNO): … are prouder to have been ranked by the Pew Forum’s Government Restriction Index alongside Saudi Arabia and Iran as world champions in constricting religious freedoms and other civil rights.

Thus, has it been any wonder that with such self-cheating, no Malaysian university was placed among the top 400 universities listed by The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2011 -2012?

Alas, according to above TMI article, Higher Education Ministry deputy secretary general Rohani Abdullah in response to the dismal rankings of our tertiary institutions said the things I don’t want to hear, that today Malaysia’s universities are not as highly ranked as other countries as the nation’s priorities do not match that of ranking agencies. She said that Malaysia was still struggling with providing access to higher education which made it a higher priority.

Pathetic excuse!

In fact Pak Sako stated: There is no commensurate effort to unleash the Malay mind and encourage the Malay person to seize the day, excel, question, take charge, propose or dissent. Political leaders and the religious bureaucracy do not favour this; an empowered people puts at stake their political influence and economic privilege.

The outcome is a large class of Malays that is averse to thinking, recoils from taking responsibility and content with following instructions. Ennui, the deep weariness and dissatisfaction stemming from mindless satiety and boredom, is a common affliction.

It is to this oppressive vacuity that the non-Malays are portrayed as ‘threats’.

Now, let’s leave aside universities of mighty Japan, emerging giant China, and technologically advanced South Korea, and look at the small red dot south of us otherwise known as Singapore (population 5 million?) and that pimple on China’s bottom, Hong Kong, yes, an island we used to look down upon (population 7 million, where 0.3 of which are Filipino maids wakakaka).

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2011 -2012 indicates that among the top 100 in the World:

• No 34 is University of Hong Kong
• No 40 is Singapore National University
• No 62 is Hong Kong University of Science & Technology

while at its next 100 top universities (ranking No 101 to 200):

• No 151 is Chinese University of Hong Kong
• No 169 is Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University
• No 193 is City University of Hong Kong

Oh boy, that Chinese ‘pimple’ has 4 universities in the top 200, 2 among the top 100 and another 2 in the next 100, while Singapore has 2, one in each succeeding 100 best. Mana universiti-universiti Malaysia?

Next, there is the QS World University Rankings 2011/2012.

QS had previously published the rankings together with The Times as a joint effort from 2004 to 2009, before they ended their collaboration in 2010. QS retained the original ranking methodology while The Times went on to develop a new one.

The following is the QS ranking for 2011/2012:

• No 22 is the University of Hong Kong
• No 28 is University of Singapore
• No 37 is Chinese University of Hong Kong
• No 40 is Hong Kong University of Science & Technology
• No 58 is Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University
• No 110 is City University of Hong Kong
• No 177 is Hong Hong’s Polytechnic University

This time Hong Kong has 5 among the top 200, with 3 among the 100 Best, while that red dot has 2 in the top 100. Mana universiti-universiti Malaysia?

Food for thought – now, who’s supreme?

In the end, Pak Sako proposed a blueprint to: motivate the Malays to take control of the wheels of their destiny. The immediate implications are for the Malays to free themselves from religious programming and assert their authority from the grassroots upward.

The prospect may be scary. But the old way of being led by the nose is destructive. The Malays should no longer remain as feudalistic subjects of the political and religious elite. The elite owe the Malays that dignity.

Severe Sever the ethnic & religion umbilical cords

Mariam Mohktar wrote a piece in Malaysiakini titled Hindraf-Pakatan marriage of convenience? where she asked:

Should we wait another 54 years before we are given another golden opportunity to show unity and vote for change?

As we approach the final lap in the race towards Putrajaya, Pakatan Rakyat and Hindraf are having a lover’s tiff. Hindraf appears to be doing all the wooing whilst Pakatan is playing hard to get.

Mariam seems to have forgotten that Hindraf in the person of the Great Uthayakumar went around badmouthing and threatening Pakatan, demanding 15 federal seats and a larger batch of State seats from the coalition.

Mariam seems to have forgotten that Hindraf demanded these seats from Pakatan instead of BN, telling us Hindraf has been anti Pakatan rather than anti BN.

So, it’s nonsense to say Hindraf has been doing all the wooing, though it’s correct to say that Pakatan has had enough of the Hindraf threats to now justifiably ignore the Great Uthayakumar.

I don’t support political parties based on ethnicity or religion (sorry PAS), because such organizations marginalize (deliberately or unwittingly) the ‘nons’, whether the ‘nons’ are Malays, Chinese, Indians, etc or religion-wise, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus etc.

A recent classic example has been seen in PAS non-Muslim supporters now threatening to leave PAS because of Pak Haji Nik Aziz's arrogant intention to implement hudud in Kelantan regardless of the consequences to the adhesiveness of Pakatan.

Quite frankly, the worst in this regard have been PAS and UMNO, both of which, whenever the situations suit their political interests, would swing from being religious parties to being ethnic nationalists. The former couldn't make up its mind, allowing their true colours to emerge from time to time, while the latter has unscrupulously exploited the theme of the day.

Once upon a time, during the struggle for independence from colonial Britain, perhaps such ethnic-based organizations had their roles in bringing various ethnic groups together for a common cause, and subsequently to fuse their followers into a Malayan society. But their use-by dates are definitely over.

There shouldn’t be any more Hindraf, MIC, MCA, UMNO, PAS anymore. Much as I have been disappointed with Gerakan at least it has the option of being the multi-ethnic organization it used to be. Likewise with PKR, DAP, PPP, PSM, PRM and wakakaka PCM.

To ABU or not to ABU?

There have been lots of promotion on the political mantra ABU (Anyone But UMNO). I believe this is dangerous not only for proper democratic process (thinking) but also limiting our carefully considered choices of good parliamentary candidates.

Just don't f* expect me to act like mindless Myrmidons!

Okay, there’s no denying UMNO is generally detested as an organization for its overtly racist propaganda, polemics and policies and its sheer sleazy sickening levels of corruption. But that does not mean everyone in UMNO is to be detested, like, for example, Ku Li.

In the next Selangor State Election, if I am a voter in the Gombak Setia constituency, I will in fact be thinking twice, nay, more times than just that, before I would even consider voting for Dr Hasan Mohamed Ali, the pro PAS-UMNO unity bloke who has, for non Muslims, a very intrusive islamic-inclined intent. Likewise with those PAS-PKR pollies obsessed with shafting hudud down our secular throats.

It doesn’t mean I will go ABH (Anyone But Hasan) but certainly I'd be regarding him as last on my list of preferred candidates. I’ll be looking very carefully and with great interests at the credentials of his opponents.

What about Mansur Othman then, the PKR bloke who is Deputy Chief Minister I of Penang, and who shamefully played on Malay fears (just like UMNO) by urging the state Malays to vote for PKR to ensure they have a significant representative voice in the Penang government …

… and in that process, declared very directly and effectively that PKR is a Malay party (not unlike its UMNO daddy), and thus not the multi-ethnic organization it claims to be, just in the same way as reformasi (political reforms) has never been its true ideology …

… and shame on those mute PKR non-Malay pollies like Tian Chua, Eli Wong & Sivarasa Rasiah, and their non-Malay PKR supporters for acting dunno about such a publicly voiced radical (nay, diametrically opposite) PKR policy. What's then the difference between them and those MCA/Gerakan/MIC sycophants like Liow ('my beloved PM') Tiong LIE, Koh TK and those must-I-come gang?

However, I’m prepared, just this once, to give the benefit of the doubt to Mansur, that he was pathetically posturing politically to pre-empt DAP’s spread into the heartland, but let me say, he was cutting it too f* thinly for our patience and acceptance.

But Dr Hasan Mohamed Ali? No way Jose, unless UMNO’s candidate is the absolute pits, more unacceptable that Hasan is.

So, f* ABU because in some cases, the BAU (stench) in Pakatan may be far too much to bear (to ABU), unless Pakatan takes precautions to UBA-h candidates like Hasan Ali and a few others.

I presume we have minds of our own, don't we? I certainly hope so.

Not a shadow of the shadow cabinet

A year ago, on 04 Oct 2010, I posted Shadow Cabinet where I wrote:

Pakatan Rakyat presents itself to the Malaysian voters as the alternative government in waiting, yet it has been decidedly evasive about its alternative leadership in government, namely the shadow cabinet, giving mealy-mouthed excuses why it hasn’t ... or more correctly, won’t, can't, dare not!

The real answer why it hasn’t done so is the coalition fears the component parties won’t be able to agree to a distribution of ministerial portfolios.

My question to them is, if you can’t now, how would you be able to when you win the next general election?

And if you fear an inability to negotiate and compromise, then aren’t you just delaying the inevitable, the disintegration of the coalition on its very moment of victory?

… which could bring about what I dread and posted in Sex and a potential future for Malaysia.

I continued in that (last year’s) post:

Shouldn’t it be far safer to sort this unavoidable issue NOW rather than delay its inevitability? Quite frankly, I don’t consider you fit to take over the business of the government of the day if you cannot even resolve this power sharing now!

Then today RPK posted The point we are making where he also lamented on the missing Pakatan shadow cabinet.

Coincidentally, today as well, my matey Dean Johns, articulate columnist at Malaysiakini, explains why he has steadfastly hammered UMNO-BN regularly but not Pakatan, but grudgingly admits there’s one point about PR that has bemused him. He wrote:

But as I've written in my admittedly rare columns criticising Pakatan Rakyat, the fact that it still refuses, or at least fails to specify a shadow cabinet or concrete set of policies, leaves us lamentably short of reliable insight into both its intentions and its ability to achieve them.

In its continuing and obdurate refusal to establish a shadow cabinet, kaytee believes that PR is behaving like the proverbial ostrich, burying its head in the sand to pretend there is no obvious void in their credentials to take over Putrajaya.

But then, with PAS suddenly going feral in abandoning its so-called ‘welfare state’ policy and reverting to its previous desire to establish an Islamic State, a volte-face in fact catalyzed by Anwar Ibrahim’s support for PAS' proposal to implement hudud in Kelantan.

Anwar was of course worried he might not be PM in a PR victory because of a new and growing synergy between PAS and DAP which renders him and PKR more and more irrelevant, thus I believe he dropped the bombshell to deliberately split PAS and DAP, a schism he believes will restore his bridging role between the other two component parties and hopefully his primus inter pares status in PR.

Thus I wonder, in the midst of such coalition turbulence, just how PR would ever see the formation of such a shadow cabinet, let alone assume rule in Putrajaya.

Sex and a potential future for Malaysia

Picture this scenario:

Assume the total Malaysian parliamentary seats remain at 222.

BN wins 100 seats in the election while PR reels in a majority of 122.

BN seats comprise UMNO’s 66 (including those in Sabah), MIC’s 1, PBB’s 25 and PBS’ 8.

PR seats comprise PAS’ 45, DAP’s 45 (including those in Sarawak and Sabah) and PKR’s 32 wakakaka.

PR forms the government.

Immediately PAS demands that Malaysia implements hudud fully.

DAP baulks, with Karpal saying “Over my dead body”.

PKR prevaricates as its 32 plus PAS’ 45 only amount to 77, well short of the majority of 113 (including an extra for the speaker). Someone tears his hair in frustration at the deadlock when all he wanted is to become PM with all the powers and trappings.

Why did I say 'PKR’s 32 seats' when there should be some of its non-Muslim MPs objecting to hudud, just like the DAP members? Hey man, this is a no-brainer as a mere 10 days ago I posted Anwar's Myrmidons mute and meekly spineless? wakakaka.

Anyway, do you think it’s possible that “Muslim Unity” (sincere or otherwise) will then prevail, with UMNO’s 66, PAS 45 and PKR’s 32 combining up to give the new coalition called the Malaysian Muslim Merger (MMM) a total of 143 and consequently, majority rule?

The Mullahs take over, with the concept of people’s representatives giving way to Allah’s representatives. The Council of Clerics abolishes western-style democracy as un-Islamic and against Malay culture and traditions.

Those nons in PKR immediately undertake circumcisions to further enhance their (already ball-less) reduced weight.

Anwar cries as he realizes again that there's many a slip 'twixt cup and lip in his wish to be PM when he is made Ambassador to Turkey and sent into de facto (wakakaka) exile, while Najib is made Ambassador to France but without diplomatic immunity, where the law there is waiting for him.

The DAP becomes a banned organization under the new theocratic state and its members are sent to work camps in Sarawak and Sabah.

RPK’s assurance that we can always vote out PAS if it implements hudud was met by thousands of whispered squeeky-voiced (ball-less) “I told you so!".

But where's the 'sex' promised in the post's title?

There's none but then, how else could I have attracted your attention! wakakaka.