Hawkeye

Enter the Black Dragon - Warning: Solar Storm! (Update)

2012-01-24T17:11:00.000+08:00

On the First day of the Black Dragon into the year 2012 brings a warning to the World as the Sun erupts with a massive solar explosion on it's surface that unleashed a storm of charged particles towards planet Earth.

The solar storm is expected to hit us at about 9PM (Hour of the Black Dog from 7PM to 9PM - Arch enemy of the Black Dragon) Malaysia time today. The solar eruption on the 23 Jan 2012 at about 0359 GMT the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Black Dragon.

NASA has issued a warning that the expected arrival of the highly charged geomagnetic particles expecting to hit earth and disruptions are expected to Satellites, Power Grids, Air Travel and Communication equipments could be expected.

NASA do not expect any immediate danger to human life as reported.

Read More from Reuters HERE and Space.com HERE

Latest Update HERE and HERE and Daily Telegraph Story HERE

Read BLACK DRAGON 2012 HERE

The Black Dragon in Malaysia 2012

2012-01-22T16:57:00.001+08:00

THE BLACK DRAGON of 2012

Welcome to the Year of 2012, the Year of the Black Dragon as the colour black is representation of the celestial force of the Water element and so you have the Black Dragon ruling over the lunar year of 2012.

The year 2012 has seen much deliberation way before it approaches from the end of the world supposition of the Mayan calendar that is reproduced in TV documentaries and even a movie is made of the same title “2012”.

The Dragon is the only animal in the Chinese astrological chart that rules the skies of the 12 animals and is a representation of the imperial family and in the dynastic history the dragon symbol can only be used by the emperor.

The magnificent dragon has an enchanting quality all throughout the history of China that is significant of high energy, heroics and a revelation of the fate and destiny.

The Water element bears the quality of Intelligence and Wisdom, the Yang principle of the Water element signifies high energy, volatility and constant unstoppable movement. Water also represents the masses, the people.

And thus in this combination of Water and the Dragon brings us the Black Dragon of 2012.

Significance to Malaysia

In order for us to relate Malaysia to the Black Dragon we first need to know the astrological make up of the nation.

The Federation of Malaya obtain its independence on the 31 August 1957 which is a Fire Rooster year, however on 16 September 1963 a new nation Malaysia was established in a Water Rabbit year.

It is interesting to note that here that the establishment of Malaysia is not in harmony in accordance to the astrological charts and in fact we have a head on collision with the Fire Rooster and the Water Rabbit. Fire clashes with Water and the Rooster and the Rabbit are in opposing palaces in the astrological chart which indicate incompatibility.

This can be simply translated that the founding of Malaysia is not in harmony with the earlier independence of the federation of Malaya, and the new nation is destined for problem and conflict from the day it started bringing sufferings and calamity to its people.

The Federation consist of 9 Sultanate States and the 2 British Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca which gains its independence from the British on 31 August 1957. In 1963 Malaysia was formed together with the States of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore.

Later on the 9 August 1965 Singapore broke away and became an Independent nation and how lucky can that be for this little island which has today progressed by leaps and bounce to be listed as an advance nation and a high income economy leaving Malaysia far behind a backward Nation of high corruption and a low income economy.

The last time Malaysia had a General Election in a dragon year was the first election of the newly formed nation of Malaysia on the 25 April 1964, the year of the Wood Dragon, which was won by the then Alliance Party. It was also the first time the (PAP) The People’s Action Party of Singapore participated in the election and won only one seat and that is the Parliament seat of Bangsar constituency which was represented by Mr Devan Nair who later became the 3rd President of Singapore.

Will this Dragon year see a new beginning for the Nation like the new beginning of 1964, the first general election for the new nation of Malaysia?

Coincidentally the Black Dragon rules the sector or direction of South – East, exactly the location of Malaysia. The signs points to high activity in this sector where the Dragon rules and has a possibility of seeing a real Tsunami as compared to the one in 2008 which will be miniscule in proportion. The election of 2008 was in the year of the Earth Rat who is a buddy of the Dragon and is just helping out the Dragon in passing.

Again, coincidentally the new umno was founded in the Dragon year of 1988, the Dragon is a majestic symbol and when two dragons meet there is a conflict. (For those born in the year of the dragon, do not be unnecessary alarmed as the charts are to be read in totality and an individual charts consist of 4 pillars denoting 4 animals and 4 elements and the controlling animal and element is indicated).

We will expend a bit more here in an attempt to relate the charts of the nation with the Black Dragon, the chart for Malaysia using 16 September 1963 shows Malaysia has the controlling element of the Water Dog in a year of the Water Rabbit, the Water Dog year for Malaysia is again in direct opposition with this Black Dragon and this Dog is in fact the arch enemy of the Dragon, indicating real conflict denoting imminent change.

There is just too much water and the water element is just overwhelming it’s like an overflowing dam about to breakout. Remember water is also symbolic of the masses in this case the water represent the Rakyat which is strong and overwhelming,

However I would like to add a word of caution here that this writing should not be taken as a definite happening as in all events the fate lies in your hands not in any astrological charts which we use only as an indicator of possibilities for guidance and in strategic approach.

The Fate of the Nation lies in the Hands of the Rakyat and only the Rakyat can determine the future for their children and theirs to come, only you can make things happen for the better, the future of all our children depends on us all in unity like the great force of the Water of the Black Dragon.

MAY YOU TAKE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR HOME COUNTRY IN 2012!

GONG XI FA CAI!

"UMNO is the Cancer of this Nation"

2012-01-18T20:21:00.000+08:00

Why are Car Prices So High in Malaysia?

2012-01-12T14:17:00.002+08:00

Car buyers had before the National Automotive Policy (NAP) accepted the fact that car prices in Malaysia are one of the few things that always go up and never come down.

Over the past few years, many had hoped that with the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) being implemented, car prices would drop. They went up instead, dashing the hopes of many.

It is therefore fair to say that prior to the announcement of the NAP last month, many Malaysians would have been quite happy for car prices to remain stable. To see the NAP driving the prices of mainly national cars and locally assembled cars down by up to 10% was an unexpected and pleasant surprise.

Days after the NAP was announced on March 22, Proton Holdings Bhd slashed the prices of its cars by up to 7%. The highest discount in terms of percentage is for the Gen.2 1.6 AT H-Line model with RM4,450 in savings. Perodua also reduced its car prices by 4%.

Locally assembled foreign cars also had their prices trimmed. Volvo Car Malaysia Sdn Bhd dropped its car prices by up to 7%, which translated into savings of about RM10,000 to RM20,000.

So, has the recent reduction significantly closed the car price gap between Malaysia and other countries? Is it just a one-off occurrence or could prices come down further?

The answer for the first question is "no". As for the second one, even industry players with years of experience refuse to predict the trend of car prices.

"The car industry is policy driven, it is hard to predict if car prices will fall further," says Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) president Datuk Aishah Ahmad.

Nevertheless, she says the fact that the government reduced the duties on national cars and locally assembled foreign cars is a step in the right direction to make cars more affordable to the masses.

"Car prices in Malaysia are not the cheapest," concedes Aishah. "But it [the price reduction] is a good start." Nevertheless, one out six Malaysians can still own a car due to the easy availability of long-term loans, she adds.

However, long-term car loans, some with repayment periods of nine years, could make cars artificially affordable in Malaysia. Any financially prudent individual would tell you that it is not wise to borrow too much money to buy a car, as its resale value always depreciates. Low monthly repayments on car loans could be easily structured by stretching the repayment period.

A better way to assess the affordability of vehicles is by looking at the earning power of the buyers.

According to the World Bank, the gross national income (GNI) per capita of Malaysia in 2005 was US$4,650. This means that an entry-level car, such as the Proton Savvy, costs more than twice the country's per capita GNI. A Perodua Myvi costs nearly three times the average annual income of a Malaysian.

Car prices in countries where the car market is relatively liberalised are generally more affordable. For example, an Australian's five-month income is enough to purchase a Proton Savvy.

Read More HERE

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012

2011-12-31T19:21:00.002+08:00

UMNO, A BOMB WAITING GO OFF..

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2011-12-23T18:25:00.002+08:00

Haris Ibrahim Speech at the Launch of ABU

2011-12-18T03:12:00.000+08:00

Majlis Pelancaran ABU, Taman Melewar 1 Dec 2011

Rakyat to Unite Against Corruption and Injustice

2011-12-13T17:10:00.001+08:00

The Rakyat to Unite Against Corruption and Injustice.

Thursday, 15 December 2011
Time: 8 PM
Venue: Markas Tarbiyah PAS Taman Melewar
Lorong Haji Hassan, Taman Melewar,
68100, Batu Caves Selangor

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LAST WORDS FROM 'BAPA MALAYSIA'

2011-12-11T15:01:00.001+08:00

Last Words to the Rakyat from Tunku Abdul Rahman

Peaceful Assembly Bill is an Injustice under International Law!

2011-12-08T14:59:00.001+08:00

(Extract from Malaysiakini)

A group of UN human rights experts has warned that the Peaceful Assembly Bill not only restricts the right to peaceful assembly, including street protests, but also conditional access for media to public gatherings.

UN Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai voiced “deep regret” that the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) or civil society was not meaningfully consulted in the drafting of the bill.

In a statement released by the group, Maina (right) said the bill contains a vague definition of assembly and also places broad restrictions and conditions on gatherings, which he described as giving “excessive authority” and power to law enforcement officials and the home minister.

“Many of these restrictions are not justifiable under international law. It also gives discretion to the police to make any form of recording of assemblies,” said Maina who is the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.

The bill was tabled for its first reading by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department on Nov 21 and it was passed hastily with some amendments less than a fortnight ago, on Nov 29.

The bill was passed amidst awalkout by the opposition MPsafter debating the bill, and also a protest by more than 1,000 lawyerson the same day.

The bill also includes a prohibition on non-citizens and citizens under the age of 21 to assemble peacefully.

Malaysia is a member of the UN Human Rights Council until 2013.

Alarmed by restrictions

Another Special Rapporteur, Margaret Sekaggya (left), said she is alarmed by the provision prohibiting citizens below 21 years of age to assemble.

“Political and social participation through peaceful protests are not only an educational experience for children, youth and students but also an investment for society as a whole,” she exclaimed.

Frank La Rue, another Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of expression, has urged the Malaysian government to seriously reconsider the adoption of the bill.

“The ability of all individuals to express themselves freely, including in the form of peaceful assemblies, is a litmus test for the level of democracy in any country.”

Fracois Crepeau (left), a Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants called for an urgent review of the bill.

“Everyone has the right to freedom of assembly and association, without distinction of any kind, including nationality,” said Crepeau.

All the cited experts report to the UN Human Rights Council, Geneva, in an independent and unpaid capacity.

Last July, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights voiced concern over the apparent use of excessive force against protesters on the July 9 Bersih 2.0 rally.

CALLING THE RAKYAT! YOUR FREEDOM IS AT STAKE!

2011-11-25T16:36:00.001+08:00

Walk For Freedom 2011: Peaceful Assembly Bill Cannot And Must Not Become Law!

Tuesday, 29 Nov 2011 at 11:30 am, From Royal Lake Club to Parliament

Read more HERE

Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 is a HOAX!

2011-11-25T11:36:00.001+08:00

MEDIA STATEMENT ONTHE “PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY BILL 2011”

At a time when more Malaysians are pressing for democraticrights, the new Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 tabled in the Dewan Rakyatyesterday proves beyond doubt that Najib is a congenital liar.

Most convincingly, this new Bill bulldozes to the groundwhatever empty promises Najib made on Sept 15 when he announced that he wantedto give Malaysians more freedom via a progressive package of social andpolitical reforms including a review of Section 27 of the Police Act and theabolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the Restricted Residence Act.

MCLM opposes this proposed law which we deem as a repressivetool to restrict civil freedom because it accords the police even more power toarrest individuals.

While the new Bill does away with the need for a permit togather in public, alongside is a raft of new restrictions including barringprotesters from taking to the street - a form of assembly in motion, orprocession which is already legally recognised in section 27 of the Police Act1967.

The Bill is a public comedy of contradictions. On one hand,the Bill requires people to provide 30 days' advance notice for assemblies,except for those in designated areas as defined by the home minister but on theother hand, it prohibits “street protest” - a move inconsistent with section10(e) (viii) of the Bill itself.

Just last year, the government withdrew its reservations toArticles 1, 13 and 15 of the CRC on 6 June 2010, thus allowing children “thefreedom to have their say, and the right to form associations and assemblepeacefully”. With this new Bill, children under 15 are not allowed to take partin assemblies, except in cultural or religious events such as funeral cortegesor events approved by the home minister. Those under 21 years of age are not allowedto organise assemblies.

Why bother with tabling another Bill to amend the PoliceAct, which will take away the need to obtain a police permit prior toorganising an assembly and then impose MORE restrictions with this new Bill?

The new Bill goes against the genuine spirit of human rightsas specified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the FederalConstitution and the promise of the Prime Minister to institute democraticreform.

MCLM is appalled that in a tweet, Najib said: "We (are)transforming our laws to protect constitutional rights of our citizens toassemble while protecting public order (and) security of Malaysia."

Instead of protecting our constitutional rights, he isrobbing us of those very rights under a hypocritical mask called transformationof laws!

MCLM views with grave concern that all the pre-conditions,prior approvals not forgetting the restrictive legal provisions and greaterempowerment of the police will severely discourage and dissuade the freedom ofpeaceful assembly, which is a basic human right.

MCLM calls upon every right-minded MP to oppose this billwhen it is debated in Parliament tomorrow for the second reading and for civilsociety to rise and reclaim their rights by publicly opposing this unconstitutionalBill which must NOT be passed at all.

If this Bill is passed, it will prove beyond doubt that thecurrent BN government will NEVER keep whatever shallow and empty promises madein a feeble whitewashing tactic to gain brownie points.

Haris Ibrahim
President

FIRST LIVE INTERVIEW OF AUNTY BERSIH

2011-11-24T16:26:00.001+08:00

SIGN AUNTY BERSIH PETITION FOR ELECTORAL REFORM HERE

AUNTY BERSIH AND KAK ROSNI LAUNCH PETITION CALLING FOR ELECTORAL REFORMS!

2011-11-16T18:44:00.001+08:00

Annie Ooi Siew Lan and Rosni Malan have pleaded with the king not to dissolve Parliament until electoral reforms have taken place.

Rosni’s husband, Baharuddin Ahmad, died from heart complications during the rally. Ooi, nicknamed “Aunty Bersih” was seen being sprayed with chemical-laced water cannons and tear gas during the rally.

They are asking the king, Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, to use his discretion to not consent to Parliament’s dissolution anytime soon.

Speaking on their behalf, their lawyer M Visvanathan said: “What we’re trying to achieve is to put enough pressure on the powers-that-be, especially the Yang Dipertuan-Agong, to invoke his discretion. He does have the discretion, it should be exercised in this case.”

“It is not a demand…(We ask) that the Agong use his discretion not to dissolve Parliament.”

DON'T LET HER WALK ALONE

2011-11-15T21:05:00.001+08:00

SHE WAS THERE FOR OUR HOMELAND, WERE YOU?

SUPPORT AUNTY BERSIH, BE THERE FOR HER PETITION LAUNCH.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, 16 NOVEMBER 2011
TIME: 2.00 PM
VENUE: GROUND FLOOR, KUALA LUMPUR & SELANGOR CHINESE ASSEMBLY HALL (KLSCAH)

READ MORE HERE

Overseas Malaysian Filed Lawsuit against Election Commission

2011-11-13T21:06:00.001+08:00

Overseas Malaysians file suit against Election Commission

A group of Malaysian citizens overseas has filed a lawsuit against the Election Commission (EC) asking the High Court to compel the EC to register them as absent voters. The group of six Malaysians, who all work in the UK, applied to be registered as absent voters in order to be able to vote in the coming general election, but were instead registered by the EC as ordinary voters, who must return to Malaysia to vote in person.

At present, the EC only allows government servants, members of any armed forces and full-time students to register as absent voters, so as to be entitled to vote by post at the next election. The bulk of Malaysian citizens living overseas, who are working in the private sector, and those who are retired or unemployed, are required to return to Malaysia to vote in person.

In addition, although the existing regulations allow all Malaysian students over the age of 21 to register as absent voters, Malaysian students overseas who have attempted to register have had to overcome many obstacles put in their way, with some embassies and consulates refusing to register students who were not sponsored by the government, and others refusing to register students who had previously registered as ordinary voters at home. Although the EC has clarified that all students are eligible to register as absent voters, as recently as this month, the Malaysian consulate in New York was still telling students that only government scholars could register as absent voters.

You ARe Lying to the Rakyat! Have You No Shame?

2011-11-08T22:44:00.001+08:00

Overpaid RM270 Million

2011-11-02T22:07:00.000+08:00

The Auditor General Report for 2010 has shown that the Tourism Ministry overpaid close to RM 270 million for advertisements.

The reports expressed that the Tourism Ministry had direct awards without any tender being called for it's advertisements. The Auditor General had further noted that if the Ministry had held an open tender the advertisements would have cost RM75.38 million instead of more than RM345 million expended.

The Auditor General had noted that the Tourism Ministry had breached the Treasury regulations as extended in a circular in 2007.

More Irregularities under the Tourism Ministry as Reported HERE and HERE

UMNO insist RM 73.64 million Cattle Project a Success!

2011-11-01T01:45:00.003+08:00

Stealing your Votes!

2011-10-30T17:34:00.001+08:00

These are serious evidence on attempts to dilute the votes of Malaysian and this is High Treason, a criminal act to dilute and steal the Votes of the Rakyat!

As reported by Malaysiakini:

Activists claims that a party out to investigate an alleged scam in Sepang, Selangor to register foreigners as citizens and voters, was “attacked” in their car in the process.

The party (right), consisting members of Jingga 13 and PKR Youth along with reporters fromSelangor TV, went to a resort in Sepang yesterday evening on a tipoff that four busloads of foreigners were being brought there allegedly to be given Malaysian ICs in order to be registered as voters.

“At that time, our cars were attacked, hit and kicked by several men, who demanded we come out,” said one of the activists on Jingga 13's blog Milo Suam.

“In the panic that ensued, we managed to take a photograph of one of the attackers."

According to a relatedTV Selangor report, the attack took place at 6.20pm, and that while the cars sustained some light damage nobody was hurt in the incident.

According to Milo Suam, the activists said they had earlier found three of the buses mentioned parked along the road leading to the resort, close to a cafe.

Another had already left for the resort.

The activists spoke to the three drivers (above), who reportedly confirmed that they were ferrying foreigners, mainly Indonesians.

Yet another entrepreneurial course

Following this, several PKR Youth members and a Jingga 13 member went to the resort under the pretext of seeking accommodation, but were turned away as the resort staff claimed they were closed.

Camping out at the café nearby, the group sent another two cars to the resort half an hour later.

“It was drizzling at that time. We saw roughly 50 people gathered on the left part of the resort, who looked like foreigners.”

The activist said people identifying themselves as organisers of an “entrepreneurial course” that was in progress, approached them asking them to leave the premises.

“The minute we tried to come out from our cars, suddenly several big sized, bald men in white came towards the gate. It seems they were trying to close the gate to stop us from leaving.”

As the cars started to slowly move out they were attacked.

The men allegedly kicked and hit the cars and pounded the windscreens, shouting at them to come out from their cars.

After fleeing their attackers, the party drove directly to the TV Selangor office in Batu Tiga Shah Alam where upon checking, they found the reporter’s car had sustained slight dents as a result of the attack.

Unfortunately, they said, the TV Selangor reporter did not manage to film the incident.

According to the blog, the group lodged a police report on the incident last night.

Two weeks ago, Malaysiakini reported a similar group of foreigners at a resort in Putrajaya. Interestingly, the six buses which were ferrying the foreigners were escorted by the police.

However, the National Registration Department (NRD) has denied allegations that that it was involved in a programme to grant citizenship to foreigners.

According to the police, the foreigners were also taking an"entrepreneurship course".

More reports HERE

Stupid Cow

2011-10-23T00:54:00.001+08:00

The stupidest comment of 'em all
by Thomas Lee Seng Hock

I am simply amazed and stunned that a person of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s status can come out with such a stupid comment on the case of Lim Guan Eng’s son.

The Deputy Prime Minister cum Education Minister (sic) has remarked that Guan Eng’s denial of the sexual harassment claims against his son was “inadequate”.

Muhyiddin told the media on Saturday 22 October 2011 that if the Penang chief minister “thinks it is important to correct the information, then he has to come up with a strong statement; mere denial is not enough.”

Either Muhyiddin cannot read or he is not so intelligent to understand what the media have been reporting during the last few days. Not only has the principal of the school where the alleged incident was said to have committed come out to refute the lies by the Umno bloggers, but the so-called victim whose photograph was used by the unethical and uncouth Umno people has also issued a strong statement refuting their wicked lies.

What “strong statement” does the deputy prime minister and Umno deputy president expect Guan Eng to out with to counter the evil personal assault against his son? Any simple person with just simple common sense will know that the whole mischievous fiasco was fabricated with the deceitful intent of sabotaging the political achievements of Guan Eng, especially so after the strong denial by the school principal and the firm refutation by the young lady named in the false accusation.

The most crude and crummy statement by the deputy prime minister is surely a very sad reflection of the quality of our federal leaders, whose intelligence is generally found wanting. How can we achieve the status of a developed nation and high-performance citizenry when our deputy prime minister, who is also the education minister, is a person of such irrational and irresponsible character?

Muhyiddin’s performance as education minister has been the subject of contemptuous ridicule and derision among the educated class and intelligentsia of the nation, especially his inconsistent and fickle policy on the use of the English language in the teaching of science and mathematics. His constant changing merry-go-round manaeuvre of the schooling system is confusing not only the students, but the teachers and parents, too.

Rakyat Reform Agenda - Coming to Penang, Ipoh and Johor Bahru!

2011-10-22T14:41:00.003+08:00

More Details HERE

SABM - Dinner Lecture Oct 22, 2011

2011-10-22T14:38:00.001+08:00

Full Details HERE

Save Malaysia - See you in Kuantan on 9th October 2011

2011-10-04T19:26:00.000+08:00

A coalition of environmental activists, including electoral reform group Bersih, have banded together to advocate for sustainable development and are organising a rally in Kuantan, set for Saturday.

Perhimpunan Hijau 109 or the Green Assembly, is led by a local activist group protesting against the Lynas rare earth refinery in Gebeng, not far from Kuantan.

The national steering committee of the event, which is made up of 10 NGOs, expects some 10,000 people to turn up, what with the promised attendance of popular Bersih chief Ambiga Sreenevasan (left).

Speaking to reporters in the Parliament lobby today, the committee's representative, Bang Seet Ping, said the event aims to encourage the people to take responsibility for their future.

"I am just an ordinary person. I want to protect my home, my community and my children. There are many others who share my sentiments and aspirations, who want a better future for their children," said Bang, a mother of two.

"Many of our lawmakers are not environmentally literate. I hope they hear us loud and clear. Environmental issues must be a key issue that voters take into consideration in the next general election," Bang said.

The event will kick off with the rising of the sun at Pantai Balok. An endorsement of the Earth Charter - a declaration of fundamental ethical principles for sustainable development - will be made.

The objective of the event, said Bang, is to propel "a change in our way of life, change in how society works, how decisions are made, and how businesses are conducted".

Also lending their support to the Green Assembly, are the residents of Kampung Bukit Koman in Raub, who are fighting to stop a nearby gold mining operation that is said to be linked tocyanide poisoning.

A Comedic Routine on the World Economy

2011-09-29T00:39:00.002+08:00

Your Rights and the Power of the Police - Short Video and Forum

2011-09-28T22:24:00.002+08:00

STOP LYNAS COALITION

2011-09-28T00:55:00.000+08:00

A coalition has been formed following a Strategic Planning Workshop held in Kuantan, Pahang on the 24 September 2011. The coalition comprising various groups of NGOs, NGIs, Political Parties, Malaysia Medical Association, the Pahang Bar Council, Malaysia Civil Liberty Movement and various interest group had resolved to get together forming the "STOP LYNAS COALITION".

The group is determined to stop the operation of the Australian Mining company, Lynas Corporation which is to operate the Lynas Advanced Material Plant (LAMP) a toxic rare earth refinery in the location of Gebeng, Kuantan in the state of Pahang, Malaysia.

The RM700 million Lynas plant is expected to be operational by end of the year will produce 20,000 tons of radioactive waste a year.

The Stop Lynas Coalition fears that this would be a monumental environmental disaster and a toxic health hazard for the local community and the country at large as the waste would pollute the earth and waters in the surrounding location.

The Stop Lynas Coalition comprises of the following groups:

1. Kuantan Concern Citizen (KCC)
2. Badan Bertindak Anti Rare Earth Refinery (BADAR)
3. Save Malaysia Stop Lynas (SMSL)
4. Gelombang Hijau
5. Malaysia Medical Association (MMA)
6. Pahang Bar Council
7. The People's Green Coalition
8. Consumer Association Penang (CAP)
9. Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM)
10. Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM)
11. Penang Residents' Welfare and Education Association (PRWEA)
12. Kean Tao Baptist Church Kuantan
13. Pastor English Team Kuantan
14. Kuantan Environmental Watch Group
15. Cyber Research Team of Kuantan MP YB Fuziah Salleh
16. PKR Kuantan
17. PKR Indera Mahkota
18. PAS Indera Mahkota

Watch the Video of the Stop Lynas Coalition Press Conference:

For the Rakyat of Sabah and Sarawak

2011-09-27T16:43:00.002+08:00

Sell Down of GLCs in Bursa

2011-09-20T20:17:00.003+08:00

There is a Persistent Sell down of Government Link Companies in the local exchange of Bursa.

Foreign funds vote with their shares. Recent corporate governance issues have been very unpalatable. Some even say that certain parties are trying to push through certain deals prior to the elections, at all costs. Besides the Sime Darby-E&O deal, the AirAsia-MAS deal was a sour note ... not many mainstream media or analysts dared to mention that CIMB was advising both parties??!! What kind of crap is that? Its like a court case where the prosecutor and defending lawyer are from the same firm. Please show me ONE other case in global corporate M&A transactions whereby one investment bank advises both sides.

Read More HERE

Undilah! This is Your Country!

2011-09-20T01:17:00.002+08:00

www.undilah.com

Curry Neh! Brilliant Work from Namewee

2011-09-20T00:52:00.000+08:00

Rasa Sayang 2.0 by Namewee

2011-09-19T23:55:00.000+08:00

Never Believe a Corrupt Government

2011-09-18T01:19:00.002+08:00

There is an old Chinese saying that says that you should never trust a corrupt government, if there is corruption in that nation than it is the failure of the government, a government that allows for corruption is the most heinous of crime in heaven, a crime that is worse than murder.

This corrupt government will go all out to deceive and will be most pretentious with the objective to stay in power, is incapable of serving the people and will inevitably cause great poverty of the mind and deprive the people of economic wealth.

Old Chinese Proverb: " Never Trust a Politician that is all out to stay in Power and if you were to believe the words of such a Politician than you should believe that the Sow (Female Pig) can climb Trees."

Related Story Here

OPEN GOVERNMENT

2011-08-25T03:33:00.000+08:00

When Brazil’s government buys anything from fighter jets to a fancy villa, details are available online within 24 hours. Such disclosures are a powerful way to combat corruption, and are a model for official openness that could inspire other nations.

Brazil’s online portal started in 2004. Among its contents: information about Brazilian outlays in advance of hosting the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. The site includes an online channel for whistleblower complaints.

Because corruption is a major problem in Brazil, timely release of spending data, including daily information about the use of government credit cards, is designed to help the media and opposition politicians in Brazil reveal crooked behavior. If a minister buys a truckload of wine with her government card, or pays off a cousin, someone will notice.

Enthusiasm for open government is taking hold not just in Brazil, but in countries such asKenya, India and the U.K. Kenya last month became the first sub-Saharan African country to launch a government-data portal. India is a beehive of activity; it has initiated ambitious plans for providing public services with the help of mobile phones in rural areas and for electronic citizen engagement in government generally.

Last month, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron instructed public agencies to release a flood ofcomparative public data: student achievement in schools by subject; health outcomes by doctors’ practices; complaints about National Health Service hospitals; quality of medical education; and procurement spending for all transactions of more than 500 pounds ($826).

Rare Consensus

At a time of antagonism and austerity in the U.K., the importance of government transparency is the rare subject on which there is substantial consensus.

Tim Kelsey, the U.K. government’s senior adviser on transparency, believes open data can improve quality and save money in public services. He points out that the release of comparative heart-surgery data by the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery has led to a 50 percent improvement since 2001 in the overall risk-adjusted death rate for related procedures.

Open government is often misunderstood. Broadly, it includes transparency, accountability, citizen engagement in governance, innovation in the delivery of public services, and use of technology, among other things. It’s fair to say that many flavors of open government are unfamiliar to many politicians.

Having the world watch what you do can be uncomfortable. Despots loathe openness; their commandeering ways depend on camouflage. Even in well-run democracies, career civil servants often heave sighs of despair over openness, seeing little benefit and knowing how difficult it can be to put in place.

But there is nothing better than accessible comparative data about public services to spur improvements and increased professionalism. More generally, openness supports richer connections between citizens and the state. Next month, President Barack Obama will address a UN General Assembly meeting to praise open government and announce an Open Government Partnership led by Brazil and the U.S. This atypical initiative isn’t focused on ranking countries against set criteria, but instead broadly encourages a huge range of innovative practices. A handful of other countries -- South Africa, Norway, Mexico, the Philippines, and the U.K. -- are joining now. Dozens more will follow.

Hanging Fire

As the Sept. 20 meeting gets closer, the press and public will be watching. Co-chair Brazil hasn’t yet passed a Freedom of Information law that has been hanging fire for two years. Critics of the U.S.’s track record on opening up government information are feeling cynical. Transparency advocates wonder whether the U.S. is focusing on an international process so as to divert attention from its domestic failings.

This is a fragile moment for open government around the world. Though it seems as if age-old challenges of corruption and public distrust should be addressed with the help of 21st-century tools, isolated reformers are battling bureaucracies that have an interest in keeping public information secret.

Entrenched governments grow fearful, wanting to avoid rocking the boat and hoping to survive re-election challenges. Even the muscular transparency of the relatively new U.K. government may run into obstacles.

Building support for open government is crucial. A competition to find the world’s most open governments could provide needed nudges, including for the U.S. Countries around the globe are racing ahead with open government; the U.S. should feel fresh urgency to keep moving forward, too.

(Susan Crawford is a Bloomberg View columnist and a professor of law at Cardozo School of Law. The opinions expressed are her own.)

To contact the writer of this article: Susan Crawford at susancrawford@gmail.com, or @SCrawford on Twitter

Does UMNO controls the Judiciary?

2011-08-22T13:48:00.001+08:00

Extract from Malaysiakini:

Faced with three options as to whether he will testify under oath from the witness stand, giving a statement from the dock as the accused, and keeping quiet, Anwar Ibrahim has chosen the second option.

In his testimony to the court, which is carried below in full, the opposition leader explains his decision to speak from the dock, saying he believes the circumstances surrounding the trial obviate any chances being treated fairly if he testified from the witness stand.

"Yang Arif has created a position under which I cannot give evidence under oath.

"I say, with all the force at my command, that I would have been prepared and willing to give evidence under oath but for the handicaps foisted on me, in the manner YA has conducted the trial and in the manner in which the Court of Appeal judgment dated 6th July, 2011 would have come to the notice of YA with regard to what I have stated herein before."

Statement from the dock

My name is Anwar bin Ibrahim. I am the leader of the Opposition in Parliament. In the 1990s, I was the Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister until September 1998 when then Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad sacked me after I had refused to resign. He had told me to resign or face dire consequences including criminal prosecution for alleged sexual and corruption offences. I refused and all hell broke loose.

My unceremonious and grossly unjust dismissal simultaneously orchestrated with a trial by media under Mahathir's complete control triggered mass and widespread demonstrations throughout the country and launched the movement for change and reform known in our history as the Reformasi era.

After a series of show trials during which every rule in the book on evidence and criminal procedure was violated with impunity at the hands of the prosecution and the courts, I was convicted and sentenced to a total of 15 years.

The charge against me
First and foremost, I categorically deny the charge against me. I want to state in no uncertain terms that I have never had any sexual relations with the complainant Mohamed Saiful. His allegation is a blatant and vicious lie and will be proved to be so.

This is a vile and despicable attempt at character assassination. In this regard, let me reiterate that they can do all they want to assassinate my character and sully my reputation and threaten me with another 20 years of imprisonment but mark my words, they won't be able to cow me into submission. On the contrary, it only serves to fortify my conviction that the truth will eventually prevail. Come what come may, I shall never surrender.

With apologies to Jean Racine in Phaedra:

“You know how well your tyranny favours my temperament and strengthens me to guard the honour of my reputation.”

Yes indeed, I will guard it with my life if I have to. And if I may bring the message closer to home, let me quote the words of Nelson Mandela in his speech made from the dock in the famous Rivonia show trial of 1963 under the Apartheid regime:

“I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

Back in 1998, blindfolded and handcuffed, I was beaten senseless by the Inspector General of Police and left to die in the lock up at the Federal Police headquarters.

However, it was by the grace of God that a few of the rank and file of the police took pity on me and nursed me to recover from the near lethal blows. There was then a cover up by Gani Patail (now the Attorney-General) and Musa Hassan (the IGP at the time that I was charged in this new episode) with the full knowledge and connivance of Dato' Yusuf, the current chief prosecutor in this trial.

All these personalities were linked in one way or the other with the 1998 show trial and more insidiously with the suppression of evidence in respect of the black eye scandal and attempts to pervert the course of justice.

These are the same personalities who are now actively involved in the current prosecution against me. Res ipsa loquitur, as they say, but in this regard I'm not talking about negligence but rather proof of criminality in this heinous plot betraying indeed “the deep damnation” of the conspiracy.

The circumstances are compelling that I elect to make a statement from the dock. And in this statement I shall attempt my utmost to place the truth ahead of the web of lies and deceit that has been spun thus far. To quote Shakespeare:

“And let us once again assail your ears,
That are so fortified against our story…”

Which has set me from the outset of the trial to have been deprived of a level playing field and subjected to inequality of arms vis-a-vis the prosecution.

The prosecution's failure to discharge its duties professionally
1) Even though these matters are done as a matter of routine in criminal proceedings, the prosecution has consistently refused to disclose material critical to my defence, including:

(a) prosecution witness list;

(b) primary hospital examination notes written by the medical examiners of the complainant at HBKL;

(c) witness statements (including that of complainant); and

(d) forensic samples and exhibits for independent examination and verification. All this has caused considerable prejudice to my defence and occasioned grave injustice. The only conclusion that one can reasonably draw from the prosecution's persistence in this act of perversity is that unseen hands are at work and it is certainly not the hand of God.

2) Your failure to respond during the course of the trial to several attempts by persons hostile to me to discredit me by commenting on aspects of the trial. These included whether I should provide samples of his DNA; blaming the defence for the delay of the proceedings; and reporting on matters that were the subject of a suppression order.

These public comments were made either in defiance of your orders that they not be made. They were made by Umno officials and politicians, including Dato' Seri Najib orchestrated through the controlled electronic and print media, such as Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian, the New Straits Times and TV3.

The constant comments by the Prime Minister and Umno officials in the media and adverse comments on the progress of the trial were clearly calculated to influence you and illustrates the political motive behind the charge.

3) The latest act of blatant disregard occurred just last Tuesday and Wednesday over TV3 which broadcasted a pre-recorded interview with the complainant saying things which are clearly in contempt of the proceedings in respect of the trial. In particular, the audacious portrayal of himself as the victim who is a pious and God fearing Muslim who has sworn on the Quran that he is a witness of truth.

4) But the truth is that even as the trial was in progress, the complainant who was engaged to someone else was shamelessly having an affair with a member of the prosecution team. Quite apart from the consequences of such an affair on the conduct of the prosecution, the complainant's facade of moral rectitude is shattered by this scandalous affair with the lady prosecutor who herself was also engaged with another man.

5) In spite of all this, the complainant, assisted by the full force of the Umno propaganda machine, via their media, has gone to town to vilify me. The point is that all comments were calculated to discredit me, adversely influence the course of the proceedings and to intimidate the witnesses at the trial. In spite of all these blatant transgressions, you have persistently refused to respond to any of these acts of contemptuous behaviour.

The solemn duty of a judge is not to sit mute when the law provides for a court of its own motion to issue show-cause notices against those who interfere in the administration of justice. I am reminded of the maxim Judex habere debet duos sales, salem sapicutiae, ne sit insipidus, et salem conscientiea, ne sit diabolous, the English translation of which is,

'A judge should have two salts, the salt of wisdom, lest he be insipid; and the salt of conscience, lest he be devilish'.

The office of a judge is one of the most honourable in the country; he is the voice of the legislator and the organ for dispensing justice; he holds the balance between the executive and the subject.

Even more significantly, in the discharge of his duties, the judge should be mindful of Allah's command:

“…and let not hatred of others
Swerve you into error
And depart from justice.
Be just, that is nearer to piety
Fear Allah, For Allah is
well acquainted with all that you do”
(Surah al-maidah: 8)

In the middle of the Second World War in 1942, Lord Atkin, in Liversidge v Anderson, had occasion to say in the House of Lords,

'It has long been one of the pillars of freedom…that the judges are no respecters of persons and stand between the subject and any attempted encroachment on his liberty by the executive, alert to see that any coercive action is justified by law'

In my case, Y.A., presiding in an adversarial trial, had the residual power and the jurisdiction to have invoked Y.A.'s powers relating to contempt of court.

Y.A. chose not to do so for reasons best known to Y.A.. What has happened is not in the best traditions of the judiciary. In the ongoing Banting murder trial, the learned trial judge in that case, Y.A. Datuk Akhtar Tahir, took it upon himself to summon a local television producer over a clip it aired during its prime news slot relating to the defence in the murder trial of Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and three others.

A newspaper clipping of that report is annexed herewith. Y.A. Datuk Akhtar Tahir has courageously demonstrated judicial activism in the name of human rights and the essential requirement of a fair trial.

To compound the position to incredulity, the open scandal relating to DPP Farah Azlina Latiff having an affair with PW1 did not concern Y.A. This invidious relationship should have alerted Y.A. in that I was been denied a fair trial for the simple reason that Farah Azlina Latiff would have had access to the investigation papers being a member of the prosecution's team and, therefore, PW1 would, through this relationship, would have had knowledge of the statements given by witnesses, including my alibi witnesses in the course of the investigation.

Y.A. did not even chastise Farah Azlina Latiff for the illicit affair with SP1. All that was done was that Farah Azlina Latiff was taken off the prosecution team at the behest of the prosecution which was an open confirmation of the existence of that illicit affair. Farah Azlina Latiff did not deny the allegations against her. Neither was PW1 recalled by the prosecution to deny the existence of this unsavoury affair.

The Attorney-General had publicly stated the reasons would be given later to account for the sordid affair. That has yet to eventuate.

Yet, in the face of this, Y.A., at the close of the prosecution case, made a finding that PW1 was a truthful witness from this passage in the judgment as follows,

'Nothing came out from the lengthy cross-examination of PW1 or from the evidence of other prosecution's witnesses that could suggest what PW1 had told in his evidence was something which was not probable.

'I find PW1's evidence remains intact. He had truthfully and without embellishment or exaggeration in his evidence narrated in minute detail how he was sodomised by the accused on the date and at the place stated in the charge. I find him to be truthful witness and his evidence is reliable and if accepted would establish all the facts required to prove the charge against the accused.'

My lawyers had clearly made the submission that Y.A. had made a prejudgment when Y.A. ought to have only made findings as to who was telling the truth at the conclusion of the defence, in which event, I would have given evidence under oath.

My lawyers did not, at any time, advert to the passage above in isolation. They zeroed in on the obvious, namely, whether a witness was truthful or not had to be decided at the close of the defence case. The provisions of section 182A(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code provided the judge with that guidance but to no avail. That section bears repeating. It states:

'At the conclusion of the trial, the court shall consider all the evidence adduced before it and shall decide whether the prosecution has proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.'

Pursuant to what I have stated above, I have been denied the benefit of putting up my defence under oath. That amounts to deprivation of a fair trial and the existence of a level playing field.

The Court of Appeal going out of line
My appeal to the Court of Appeal over the recusal of Y.A. on account of prejudgment, following which would have resulted in biasness was heard on 6th July, 2011.

A copy of the order is annexed herewith. No written judgment was handed down by the Court of Appeal on 6th July. The appeal was dismissed summarily on the preliminary objection taken by the prosecution that the order appealed against was not a final order. Those were the reasons given in open court. Nothing more, nothing less. The Court of Appeal took no more than five minutes to dispose of the appeal.

Unbeknownst to me or my lawyers, there was at the same time a 40-page judgment under the hand of Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak also dated 6th July, 2011. A copy of that judgment is annexed herewith.

Why did the Court of Appeal not read out the 91 paragraphed grounds of judgment dated 6th July on 6th July itself?

Obviously, this judgment was at hand on 6th July but had surreptitiously been concealed from my knowledge and the knowledge of the public. The letter dated 11th August, 2011 supplying a copy of this judgment to my lawyers is annexed herewith.

As is usual, Y.A. must have had the benefit of reading this judgment which will further exacerbate your bias against me. The judgment is an open and flagrant attack on me to which I will advert in due course. Suffice to say at this juncture that here is a judgment of the Court of Appeal written after 6th July, 2011 which contains harsh criticism against me without my being given the opportunity to reply.
But that begs the question: the appeal had been dismissed in limine on the ground that the order appealed against was not a final order. That should have been the end of the matter because it followed that the court had no jurisdiction to entertain the appeal. [Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak sat mute during the course of submissions on the preliminary objection]. The matter did not go beyond into the merits. That is what the Court of Appeal announced on 6th July without going an inch further.

The preliminary objection is adverted to, not as the main part of the judgment. The major part of the judgment goes beyond. It is a frolic of his own used for the purpose of hitting out at me.

If that was so, why did Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak embark upon a relentless attack on me in the rest of the judgment? In fact, he had no jurisdiction to do so. This is a blatant abuse of judicial power, perhaps in a surreptitious attempt to curry favours of the political masters? Otherwise, how else can one explain as to why he embarked upon such a scurrilous attack on me by stating in the following paragraphs as numbered:

'[5] This case will fall in history. It will be chronicled as the only known case in our country or for that matter within the Commonwealth enclave where the appellant as an accused person persistently and consistently filed one application after another in an attempt to recuse the learned trial judge from hearing and continuing to hear the sodomy trial which is ongoing.

[6] It seems that the appellant here is trying his level best to scuttle his sodomy trial for reasons best known to him, much to the chagrin of the prosecution and the exasperation of the members of the public at large.

[15] It was certainly an uncalled for criticism [against the learned judge] bent to deceive and confuse the uninitiated. It is easy to criticise but it is always difficult to justify it.

[18] It is also difficult for us to accept that the Notice of Motion was filed out of a genuine belief that the learned trial judge had been biased against the appellant.

[49] The charge graphically described what the appellant did to Mohd Saiful Bukhari Bin Azlan [PW1.] [It is elementary that it is the evidence, not the charge, which proves an offence].

[50] The trial was unduly prolonged. It received wide media coverage.

[56] After such a fine display of judicial impropriety, Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak now has audacity to patronize us about a sound judicial system by stating, in what sounds like a broken symbol, as follows:

'The perquisites of a sound judicial system are independence and impartiality. For an effective and a strong judicial system, the impartiality of its judges are of paramount importance. But it cannot be denied that the public's confidence in the judicial system is shaped and moulded more by appearances.

Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak rather ungraciously, and without jurisdiction, took a swipe at the judgment of his brother judges of the Court of Appeal including Richard Malanjum, now Chief Judge (Sabah and Sarawak), with the obvious purpose of humiliating them when stating:

'[72] Rowstead did not consider the “real danger of bias” test in determining whether the learned JC should have recused himself notwithstanding the Federal Court had earlier on applied the said test in:

(a) Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang v Syarikat Bekerjasama-sama Serbaguna Sungai Gelugor dengan Tanggungan [1999] 3 MLJ 1, FC; and

(b) Mohamed Ezam bin Mohd Nor & Ors v Ketua Polis Negara [2002] 1 MLJ 321, FC

[73] Consequently, Rowstead's suggestion that the request for recusal to be heard
by another judge is quite radical. We categorically say that the recusal request, like the present matter, was rightly heard at the first instance by the learned trial judge and followed by this court.

[74] Rowstead did not consider nor ventilate on section 3 of the CJA read with section 50(1)(a) of the CJA and the Explanatory Statement thereto.

[75] The recusal application housed in the Notice of Motion concerned a long protracted trial that saw the legal manoeuvrings activated by the appellant at every nook and corner in an attempt to scuttle the criminal trial of the appellant for an offence of sodomising PW1. It is the mother of all trials in Malaysia.'

[I had every right to exhaust all legal remedies open to me. No attempt has been made by anyone, or any quarter, to prevent me from doing so by seeking an order to declare me a vexatious litigant].

As alluded to earlier in this statement, Y.A. would have had the advantage of reading this judgment after it was distributed by letter dated 11th August, 2011. This, in effect, amounts to placing, by Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak, alleged bad character evidence on my behalf.

In view of this, how can I get a fair trial or even the semblance of one before the trial judge now who has been further put in a position to compound biasness against me?

How can I possibly give evidence under oath when the DPP has, in his possession, the same judgment which could be used against me in cross-examination?

Y.A. cannot be disabused of what has been fed to Y.A. by Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak when delivering a judgment dated 6th July, 2011 which obviously, having regard to the length thereof, must have been prepared well before 6th July, 2011.

This is scandalous.

Then again, why wasn't the judgment which, even if written after midnight on 5th July, 2011 read out in open court so that I could counter and demolish all the allegations made against me by Y.A. Datuk Haji Abdul Malik Bin Haji Ishak?

It is elementary no one should be condemned, unheard. This is axiomatic. As far back as 12th August, 1999 the Federal Court, the highest court in the land, in Insas Bhd and Anor v Ayer Molek Rubber Company Bhd and others had occasion, after adverting to the authorities on the position to rule,

'The offensive remarks made by the Court of Appeal against the High Court, the applicants and their counsel ought to be expunged from the judgment of the Court of Appeal, as it had a tendency to bring the whole administration of law and order into disrepute.

Judicial pronouncements should be judicial in nature and should not depart from sobriety, moderation, and reserve. It also should not display emotion and intemperance, as displayed in the judgment of the Court of Appeal.'

Adverting to an Indian Supreme Court case of State of Uttar Pradesh v Mohd Naim, the Federal Court had occasion to adopt what was said there as follows;

'If there is one principle of cardinal importance in the administration of justice, it is this: the proper freedom and independence of judges and magistrates must be maintained and they must be allowed to perform their functions freely and fearlessly and without undue interference by anybody, even by this court.

At the same time it is equally necessary that in expressing their opinions, judges and magistrates must be guided by considerations of justice, fair play and restraint. It is not infrequent that sweeping generalizations defeat the very purpose for which they are made.

It has been judicially recognized that in the matter of making disparaging remarks against persons or authorities whose conduct comes into consideration before courts of law in cases to be decided by them, it is relevant to consider: (a) whether the party whose conduct is in question is before the court or has an opportunity of explaining or defending himself; (b) whether there is evidence on record bearing on that conduct justifying the remarks; and (c) whether it is necessary for the decision of the case, as an integral part thereof, to animadvert on conduct. It has also been recognized that judicial pronouncements must be judicial in nature, and should not normally depart from sobriety, moderation and reserve.'

In Insas, the Federal Court adopted what was said in AM Mathur v Pramod Kumar Gupta & Ors when dismissing an apparently unsustainable review petition which had certain derogatory remarks against Mr AM Mathur, a senior advocate and also the ex-Advocate General of the State. The Court had occasion to hold,

'Judicial restraint and discipline are as necessary to the orderly administration of justice as they are to the effectiveness of the army. The duty of restraint, this humility of function should be a constant theme of our judges. This quality in decision-making is as much necessary for judges to command respect as to protect the independence of the judiciary.

Judicial restraint in this regard might be better called judicial respect, that is, respect by the judiciary. Respect to those who come before the court as well as to other co-ordinate branches of the State, the executive and the legislature. There must be mutual respect. When these qualities fail or when litigants and public believe that the judge has failed in these qualities, it will be neither good for the judge nor for the judicial process. The Judge's Bench is a seat of power.

Not only do judges have power to make binding decisions, their decisions legitimate the use of power by other officials. The judges have the absolute and unchallengeable control of the court domain.

But they cannot misuse their authority by intemperate comments, undignified banter of scathing criticism of counsel, parties or witnesses. We concede that the court had the inherent power to act freely upon its own conviction on any matter coming before it for adjudication, but it is a general principle of the highest importance to the proper administration of justice that derogatory remarks ought not to be made against persons or authorities whose conduct comes into consideration unless it is absolutely necessary for the decision of the case to animadvert on their conduct.'

Chief Justice of India, Bhagwati, in State of Madya Pradesh & Ors v Nandlal & Ors, in expressing his strong disapproval of the strictures made by the judge, stated:

'We may observe in conclusion that judges should not use strong and carping language while criticizing the conduct of parties or their witnesses. They must act with sobriety, moderation and restraint. They must have the humility to recognize that they are not infallible and any harsh and disparaging strictures passed by them against any party may be mistaken and unjustified and if so, they may do considerable harm and mischief and result in injustice.

Here, in the present case, the observations made and strictures passed by BM Lal J were totally unjustified and unwarranted and they ought not to have been made.'

How could I under these circumstances give evidence under oath?

Y.A., when making the order for the witnesses offered to the defence for interview in court, gave a lifeline to the witnesses in stating in open court that they could refuse to be interviewed. Y.A. did not in doing so evenly handle the scales of justice. Y.A. created and perpetuated an imbalance unbecoming anyone holding the mantle of justice.

In fact, the Prime Minister, Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak, and his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah binti Mansor, former Inspector General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan, and SAC Dato' Rodhwan bin Ismail who featured prominently in the evidence of PW1 came to the interview room echoing similar protests namely, “We are not prepared to be interviewed” with the Prime Minister saying Y.A. suggested this could be done.

These were material witnesses compelling the defence now to resort to causing subpoenas to be issued for their presence.

Y.A. has created a position under which I cannot give evidence under oath. I say, with all the force at my command, that I would have been prepared and willing to give evidence under oath but for the handicaps foisted on me, in the manner Y.A. has conducted the trial and in the manner in which the Court of Appeal judgment dated 6th July, 2011 would have come to the notice of Y.A. with regard to what I have stated herein before.

My trial is an adversarial one and Y.A. ought not to have descended into the arena by suggesting witnesses offered to the defence could deny to be interviewed. It did not come within the province of Y.A. to do so.

My alibi witnesses made known to the prosecution were in fact included in the prosecution list of witnesses which was not supplied to my lawyers. They were defence alibi witnesses. I am informed this is the first time this has been done.

In fact, the owner of the unit 11-5-2, Haji Hasanuddin bin Abd Hamid, had been harassed by the police for a total of thirty hours in the recording of his statements which were all video recorded. This was obvious when he was interviewed by the defence lawyers in my presence. The police investigation has scuttled my defence.

To make a mockery of the situation, the prosecution offered at the close of their case an alibi witness named, Fitria binti Dipan, who by their own admission cannot be traced.

The complainant's allegations are pure fabrication

As I have said at the outset, I categorically deny the allegations made against me by the complainant.

The complainant stated in evidence on 26th June, 2008 he arrived at Kondominium Desa Damansara at 2.45 p.m. to discuss work matters and hand-over documents given to him by one Ibrahim Yaakob [my Chief of Staff] to myself.

He says he stopped his van at the security post and mentioned the code name 'Mokhtar' to the guards at the condominium before being allowed in. He parked his vehicle and took the lift to Unit 11-5-1 where I was allegedly seated at a dining table in the living room. He says he sat down at the same table and started the discussion. He told the court of the crude manner in which I had allegedly asked for sex.

The following appears in his evidence thereafter.

When questioned, he answered that he was angry and scared and that he was not prepared to do it but purportedly because I had appeared angry, he eventually obliged. It has to be observed at this stage the complainant could have, on his own admission in examination-in-chief, left the room as there is no evidence of any attempt by me to latch the door from inside.

He had further alleged that he was ordered into the bedroom and that he did enter out of fear. Even at this stage, the complainant had the opportunity to leave the living room. He did not do so. The rest of the evidence in this regard clearly showed that the complainant had every opportunity on every occasion to flee but he did not do so. His reason was that he was petrified by fear. But such a reason flies against the facts.

Here is a man in his early twenties, a six-footer, physically fit and robust and with powerful connections in the top police brass as well as the political elite with access to the very inner sanctum of power. Additionally, he has also been a key Umno student operative, having undergone the rigorous training conducted by the Biro Tats Negara of the Prime Minister's Department.

And here I was a 60-year-old man with a history of back injury who had undergone a major back surgery holding no position of power. If indeed I could have exercised any kind of undue influence or mental pressure on him, this could have been easily neutralized by a quick phone call to his connections. As regards the fear of physical harm, it would take a great stretch of the imagination to suggest that I could pose any physical harm to him.

Under cross-examination, the following significant evidence was elicited from the complainant. He admitted that he had brought along lubricant and had himself voluntarily and without hesitation applied it. He claimed that carnal intercourse took place and that it was painful and coarse.

However, this was clearly not borne out in the medical evidence in the prosecution case suggesting fissures or tears. After the alleged act, he testified that he had a drink and engaged in a friendly conversation with me. Startlingly, no attempt was made by the complainant to seek immediate medical attention.

Instead, he attended a PKR function the following day. In the evening, he joined a meeting of the Anwar Ibrahim Club at my house without showing any sign of either emotional or physical discomfort let alone trauma.

On the contrary, he was going about matters in a calm and confident manner. His conduct therefore is totally inconsistent with having been violated. In any event, he neither made a police report nor sought medical attention, notwithstanding that two days prior to the alleged act, he had met with Najib and Rosmah as well having talked on the phone with Musa Hassan and met with Rodhwan at a hotel.

It is obvious, from the evidence above, that the complainant was lying through his teeth although Y.A., despite the compelling evidence to the contrary, found him a truthful witness at the close of the prosecution case. This defies logic, let alone the law.

Then again, the expert evidence with regard to DNA led in the course of prosecution case through PW4, Dr. Seah Lay Hong and PW5, Nor Aidora bt Saedon was highly questionable in that crucial information pertaining to the DNA analysis of both the said witnesses which they were obliged to furnish to the court was suspiciously withheld despite them confirming the existence of such information.

The real possibility that the samples analyzed were contaminated and even planted were completely disregarded despite such possibilities coming clearly within guidelines set by the international forensic community which were completely ignored, if not, blatantly disregarded by PW4 and PW5 to fit the prosecution's case.

It is obvious had the said possibilities been explored, the conclusions reached would have been very different in that the complainant's own semen was found in his own anus, there was ample evidence of contributors other than Male Y around the complainant's perianal, lower and higher rectal region and there was clear evidence of the samples having been tampered with before they were sent for analysis.

In such circumstances, the integrity of the said samples was surely compromised.

Furthermore, the impartiality of PW4 was highly questionable having regard to the way in which she completely dismissed the very high possibility that the samples sent to her would have degraded to a certain degree by the time they reached her which such degradation was completely absent from all samples in this case.

This clearly points to the obvious reality that the samples sent for analysis could not have been what were extracted from the complainant's person.

Trial within a Trial

The Gestapo-like manner in which I was arrested and the subsequent detention and interrogation by the police all betrayed the hands of the political masters at work. What was the need to send in balaclava clad commandos to effect the arrest if not to attempt to flex political muscle and to display pure vindictiveness? These startling facts were completely ignored by Y.A.

Y.A. had made an earlier ruling to exclude the recovery of certain items including water bottle, Good Morning towel, tooth paste from the lock-up at IPK, Kuala Lumpur where I had been detained overnight from 16.7.08 to 17.7.08. However, you reversed this ruling subsequently which is something most shocking and unprecedented.

Although in the Trial Within a Trial, I had adverted to the role of Taufik and Supt. Jude Pereira, the prosecution elected only to call Taufik in rebuttal in the Trial Within a Trial. Taufik attempted to produce a photostat copy of the warrant of arrest which was only marked as an ID and, therefore, could not be considered as evidence in the Trial Within a Trial. A photostat copy of a document is not admissible as evidence in a court of law. It was in the Trial Within a Trial that primary evidence of the document ought to have been given if the original record had been lost or destroyed.

The prosecution could not, by producing the original warrant of arrest in the main trial, cure the infirmity. It is in evidence that 3 copies of the warrant of arrest were in the possession of Supt. Jude Pereira. The evidence of the warrant of arrest was available during the Trial Within a Trial.

Even Supt Jude Periera, whose role was adverted to by me during the Trial Within a Trial, chose not to take the stand despite having had the opportunity to have produced the original copy of the warrant of arrest in the Trial Within a Trial.

It was during the Trial Within a Trial that Supt Jude Periera should have testified. It was clearly unlawful for the court to accept Supt. Jude Periera's evidence in the general trial for the purpose of rebutting my evidence in the Trial Within a Trial that the DNA profiling from the Good Morning towel, toothbrush and mineral water bottle had been obtained by unfair methods and unfair means and my arrest, therefore, had been procured unlawfully.

In fact, Supt. Jude Periera's evidence in the general trial confirms that there had been non-compliance with Rule 20 of the Lock-up Rules, 1953 in that I, after my arrest on 16.7.08, had not been placed in the lock-up from 6pm to 6am the following day. The provisions of Rule 20 are mandatory.

If this was the position in our case, which it was, then, clearly, my being taken to the HKL in breach of Rule 20 reflected unfair means and unfair methods being employed by the police to obtain the DNA profiling from the items set out hereinbefore.

The position is further compounded by the evidence of Supt Jude Periera in the general trial that he did not direct police personnel in charge of the lock-up not to touch the said items despite the police personnel in the general trial before the Trial Within a Trial, clearly, saying that Supt. Jude Periera had done so.

So the position comes to this, Supt Jude Periera, in his evidence on oath in the main trial, supports the defence case that unfair methods and unfair means had been used by the police to obtain DNA profiling from the items set out hereinbefore.

From the ruling made by the court to exclude the items, it is clear it was based on unfair means and unfair methods employed by the police meaning it was by trick and deception that the police attempted to introduce the DNA evidence.

In any event, from the evidence of DSP Taufik given in the Trial Within a Trial and the general trial, the grounds of arrest could not have been given by him to me in Segambut as this is, clearly, contradicted by the evidence of SN Nair and myself.

The question of challenging evidence given in the main trial by DSP Taufik and Supt Jude Periera does not arise. It was the assertions made under oath by me that my arrest was unlawful and unfair methods and unfair means had been used to obtain his DNA profiling in the Trial Within a Trial stood unchallenged by the prosecution by leading lawful evidence in rebuttal of those assertions. In fact, Y.A. should have drawn an adverse inference against the prosecution for not having done so.

Forensic evidence

The prosecution case rests on the evidence of the DNA and so called “findings of seminal fluid” or “sperm” as they claim. As a matter of fact, this is the only forensic evidence upon which the foundation of the prosecution's so-called proof rests.

Yet, this foundation is erected on shaky grounds though this has not prevented them working in hand in glove with the powers that be to mount an insidious and relentless campaign to vilify me.

The fact is that there is not an iota of evidence, DNA or otherwise, that has ever been found in the premises of the alleged act, not in the wash room, bed room, carpets or anywhere else where such evidence ought to have been found.

Supt Pereira, despite being instructed to keep the HKL samples (marked B1 to B10) in a freezer, deliberately defied the instruction of Dr Siew Sheue Fong (HKL Forensic Doctor) and also admitted that he was in serious breach of the IGSO, (he even stated he took full and personal responsibility for breaking of the IGSO), when he deliberately kept the HKL samples in his office cabinet for about 43 hrs before delivering them to the Chemist.

One must not forget that the alleged act was supposed to have occurred two days prior to the said samples having been extracted. Coupled with this 43-hour delay in delivery to the Chemist, it would mean that the samples were already at least 90 hours old by the time they were examined by the Chemist. Undoubtedly, the samples would have totally degraded.

Yet evidence by the prosecution claimed that no degradation of any consequence had occurred.

In any event, even the 43-hour delay alone would have seriously compromised the integrity of the samples in terms of its deterioration due to bacterial action.

Also, by not storing the samples in the police exhibit store (which will accord access only to him), his deliberate omission of such strict rules of the IGSO has by his very act, presented an opportunity and possibility of tampering of the samples as access to others was made easier. This was disregarded.

There are also no cogent or compelling reasons both in law and practice for Supt Jude Pereira to cut open P27 (the big tamperproof bag containing all the HKL samples which was sealed and handed over to him), ostensibly to remark them (B1 to B10). It is clear that this act was just a convenient excuse to get access to the individual samples which by themselves were clearly not tamperproof as they were deliberately “sealed” with ordinary and easily removable tapes and easily removable HKL paper seals.

Dr Siew Sheue Fong , as evident in court, was most reluctant to refer to his medical notes during cross examination despite being unable to remember details. During the break he was caught surreptitiously taking a sneak peek of his notes.

This dishonest act of a professional doctor who ought to have conducted himself in a fair and independent manner was blatantly ignored. Many a time Dr. Siew and Dr Mohd Razali Ibrahim deliberately chose not to answer pertinent questions put to them by my counsel. Instead Dr Siew and Dr Razali's evidence was accepted without reservation.

Dr Seah Lay Hong (the Chemist) gave evidence that when she received the 12 HKL samples there were 2 samples that were marked as taken on very different dates, she testified she did nothing to seek clarification from Dr Siew . She further testified that she “gave the benefit of doubt” to Dr Siew.

My lawyers submitted strenuously that such acts and/or omissions amount to a serious breach of the cardinal rules of international lab protocols and those of the Jabatan Kimia Malaysia. Despite such blatant exposures and abject failures of non observance of strict rules, Dr Seah's evidence was well received and in totality when it ought to have been jettisoned in totality for reasons of incompetence and gross negligence.

The defence evidence will show that the prosecution claim to have proof of the presence of “seminal fluid” or “sperm” is completely unfounded.

In fact, this purported proof is nothing but pure fabrication, a fact which is not that unusual considering the past history of the prosecution in this regard. If they had had any such forensic evidence, they would have guarded it for dear life rather than let it being handled in such a sloppy manner.

Summation

Your Lordship has failed to ensure a fair trial as demonstrated, inter alia, by the following instances:

1. Your refusal during the course of the trial to order disclosure of material critical to my defence, most of which you thought was sufficiently relevant and which fairness required that you should order it to be disclosed before the trial. Your failure to fairly and properly exercise his judicial discretion to order disclosure was not only contrary to Malaysian laws but violated the international standards expected of a modern state which purports to practice the rule of law.

2. Your refusal to act accordingly either to take cognizance or to hold to account those responsible for the flagrant acts of leaking and publishing in the media of prosecution submissions before the matter was heard in court; your utter indifference to my protestations about these transgressions has wittingly or unwittingly facilitated the conspiracy to vilify me in the court of public opinion even as the trial is in progress.

3. Your failure to order that witnesses critical to my defence attend the trial to testify, in circumstances where their involvement was patently material to the issues at trial and recorded under oath in the complainant's testimony and admitted by statements made by these witnesses to the media. These witnesses relate to the circumstances in which the complainant came to make his early complaints against me. Nothing could be more material to the credit of the complainant.

4. Your finding the complainant to be “a truthful witness” at the close of the prosecution case clearly amounted to prejudgment demonstrating in the process a clear bias against me. Consequently, you have deprived me of my constitutionally guaranteed right to a fair hearing the effect of which is to entitle me to an unconditional release with the charges leveled against me falling to the ground. Notwithstanding this, you have not only failed to order my release but have adamantly refused to recuse yourself from further presiding at the trial.

5. Your arriving at the conclusion that the complainant was a witness of truth without first hearing the evidence of the defence would render the continuation of this trial an exercise in futility. What use would there be for me to adduce evidence to show that the complainant is in fact a liar if you have already found “him to be a truthful witness” and that his evidence is reliable and conclusive and by virtue of that irrefutable? It is untenable and the law does not allow you to do what you have done.

6. Your finding that the complainant has corroborated himself by complaining to the medical doctors of sexual assault was a glaring error of law apart from it being in gross disregard of a finding of fact, that is, that the clinical finding had indicated no evidence of penetration. Additionally, your failure to question why the prosecution has for no apparent reason refused to call in the first medical officer who had examined the complainant to testify. Did it not cross your mind that this failure was prompted by the need to suppress evidence that might be unfavourable to the prosecution?

7. Your accepting without hesitation the forensic evidence as corroborative of the complainant's account in circumstances where there were obvious concerns about how those samples were obtained, labelled, stored and analyzed.

Conclusion

This entire process is nothing but a conspiracy by Prime Minister Dato' Seri Najib Razak to send me into political oblivion by attempting once again to put me behind bars. I therefore declare that I have no faith whatsoever that justice will prevail in these proceedings notwithstanding the valiant efforts made by my defence team. As I have said at the outset, this is not a criminal trial. It is a charade staged by the powers that be to put me out of action in order that they remain in power.

In 1998, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad did just that and by his Machiavellian use of all the organs of power of the State, succeeded in getting me convicted for fifteen years for offences that I had never committed. Such was the tyranny and injustice done to me then. And such is the tyranny and injustice being perpetuated today.

Najib Razak is doing the same thing as his mentor did, which is to employ all means within his power through the media, the police, the Attorney General and the judiciary in order to subvert the course of justice and to take me out of the political equation.

This relentless conviction to send me back to prison became all the more imperative because of the major victories gained by the opposition Pakatan Rakyat in the March 2008 elections. Their worst fears were confirmed when it became clear that once my legal disqualification was over I would be contesting for a parliamentary seat and if I won, would be elected leader of the opposition.

It was therefore no coincidence that this new conspiracy surfaced three months after the March 2008 victories and the formal charge against me was made just one month prior to my contesting the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat.

The sequence of events that unfolded prior to the formal charge appeared to be lifted from the plot of 1998 minus, in this latest episode, the black eye affair and the purported victims being led into court as partners in crime.

In this second episode, the conspirators have tweaked the plot to make the complainant take on the role of a helpless victim, having realized that the 1998 method of employing Stalin-like confessions and the portrayal of the alleged victims as remorseful and repentant sexual deviants were just too much for the public to believe.

Hence, during the entire examination of the complainant, the prosecution left no stone unturned in their attempt at painting the picture of a helpless, naive and innocent young man who is a witness of truth and whose testimony should be believed regardless of any evidence to the contrary.

The fact is that in the entire scheme of things, the complainant, who was just a university drop out working part time helping out my chief of staff, is essentially a pawn being employed by the shady plotters to achieve their devious ends in the conspiracy. And yet it was the decision of the court after the close of the prosecution case that he indeed is a truthful witness.

The preparation entailed in this conspiracy was most elaborate and went all the way to the Prime Minister himself and his wife Rosmah Mansor both of whom by the complainant's own admission had met him in their residence where he purportedly complained of being sexually assaulted.

The initial statement by Najib that he had met with the complainant merely to discuss about a scholarship was a blatant lie only to be retracted later after various exposes were made via the social media and the internet blogs.

It was obvious that neither Najib nor Rosmah would not want to be seen to be part of the conspiracy being themselves embroiled in a series of other scandals the details of which have been raised in Parliament which to date have never been categorically refuted.

But the stakes in this conspiracy are so high that nothing can be left to pure chance for indeed the prospect of the Umno led Barisan Nasional losing power to Pakatan Rakyat is becoming more real by the day.

The main thrust of the conspiracy was to fabricate this sodomy charge in order to inflict maximum damage to my character in the run-up campaign to the by-elections.

Towards this end, an intense and virulent media blitz was launched concurrently with the staging of rallies and ceramahs where the focus of the debate was not on any social, economic or even political issues but purely on my person and my morality.

The plotters for reasons known only to themselves became privy to information which would be used subsequently by the prosecution and went to town in an orgy of character assassination calculated no doubt to ensure a humiliating defeat for me in the polls.

But Allah is Great and instead of losing, I won the Permatang Pauh seat with a thumping majority of 15,000 votes.

But the zeal to consign me to political oblivion continues unabated. Najib seems to think that by destroying my political future, it would also destroy the prospects of Pakatan Rakyat ever coming to power.

Hence, nothing is spared to ensure that I will be convicted in order that the Umno led Barisan government continues to rule.

Having regard to all the above, I now wish to state that this trial is for all intents and purposes a show trial. I say this not to mock your Lordship nor with animosity towards anyone personally but I sit before you in the dock only to speak what I know and what I believe with conviction to be the truth. And this conviction is borne by having been in public service for more than forty years a quarter of which was spent within the walls of incarceration in Kamunting and in Sungai Buloh.

The fact remains that I was condemned to imprisonment not because of any crime that I had committed but for my political beliefs and convictions and more significantly because back in 1998 I had posed a clear and present threat to the more than two decades of autocratic rule of Mahathir.

I say it because as I've stated earlier, the court's integrity has been completely compromised and bears all the classic symptoms of a show trial where the script has been effectively written and the outcome a foregone conclusion. I say it because as a presiding judge you have demonstrated beyond the shadow of a doubt your complete lack of impartiality.

I say it because you have consistently refused to recuse yourself even in the face of mounting evidence of your bias against me. I say it too because you have persistently turned a blind eye to the gross violations of protocol and procedure committed by the prosecution while at the same remaining impervious to my protestations about these blatant irregularities that would have without more alerted any impartial judge as to the malice and bad faith of the prosecution.

In the matter of the duty of a judge, the Holy Qur'an commands:
“And when you judge between mankind
Then you judge justly”
(Surah An-Nisaa:58)

Quantitative Easing - Masturbating the Economy

2011-08-11T00:45:00.003+08:00

Some of the guys down at the bar ask me what does QE2 means, well i told them that QE2 is not Queen Elizabeth the 2nd but means "Quantitative Easing" and the 2 means "again" the second time. And this friend of mine who is an Engineer added "wtf is that" and the economy?

You see most people have heard this term from the financial papers or over the news especially with the recent Market Crash or more appropriately, It's a damn shit Meltdown! That means more of it to come on a much more prolonged period. A crash could be just a temporary reaction to an event but a Meltdown is a over a much more longer period due to some protracted long overdue inherent critical problem in the economy that remains unresolved.

My answer in short to them down at the Bar was it means you are Screwed! The economy is F@#$! Quantitative Easing is Masturbating the Economy! Your goods are not selling enough and your workers are under worked and overpaid. QE is never the solution but a lazy temporary patch up job and you know what after a while you find that it is a lousy patch up job and its leaking again and you call in the same old repairman again and he comes in to do another patch up job and so there comes your QE2 and the next day it leaks again and you call in the same old guy which gives you another lousy patch up job and so now we have QE3!

This finance guy from the Insurance company added that the US Federal Reserve (US Central bank) has just announced that they will keep the interest rate low for the next two years and that should help the economy in terms of lower cost of funds. Well we could easily translate what the Fed is actually saying is that they are expecting the economy to be real bad for the next two years and if the value of your money as measured by the interest rate is at 0%? And at this rate of 0% interest you probably need to pay the bank for keeping your money. What does it tell you when the value of your money goes to zero percent interest?

Anyway maybe a more profound explanation about QE could be found in this video from CNBC.

Quantitative Easing

Global Financial Market Meltdown

2011-08-05T05:48:00.001+08:00

The Financial Market Plunges to new lows for the year today with the US market losing more than 10% from the high in April this year. this is the worst performance since the 2008 global financial crisis.

Everything except for the US dollar is falling off the cliff, this is a Crash of the global financial markets. The US markets plunge more than 512.76 points or down 4.31%, Oil is down 6%, Gold fell by about 1%, Silver plunge by over 7%. The european markets all closed with heavy sell off by more than 3.00%.

Expect greater Turmoil when the Asian Markets open later.

Will this trigger a Global Financial Meltdown?

USA - Unable to Spend Anymore..

2011-08-03T01:38:00.000+08:00

Forget the Ceiling the GDP is underground
John Crudele
The New York Post

It is certainly good news that Congress and the White House seem to have an agreement that'll allow the US to pay its bills beyond today. USA shouldn't stand for Unable to Spend Anymore.

I'm assuming, of course, that the budget deal struck over the weekend that is short on cutbacks and long on "we'll take care of it laters" will pass the Senate today.

But lost in all the chatter about how much federal spending needs to be reduced is the fact that the US economy is getting weaker by the month.

I've often mentioned that economic growth would look like it was weakening in the summer because the spring's statistics were overly optimistic. Now that's happening.

The economy isn't going to hell, as we like to say. Not yet. But it certainly is somewhere in the vicinity of purgatory.

Yesterday we learned that manufacturers in this country weren't doing nearly as well as the experts thought -- and the experts weren't very optimistic to begin with.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/forget_the_ceiling_the_gdp_is_underground_Gcn3R7W14Oxoqa1on2fHHM#ixzz1TtRy0ILY

Bye Bye..

2011-07-27T00:59:00.000+08:00

We first heard of a Muhyiddin - Hishamuddin pact some time late last year, there was apparently a secret meeting towards this understanding of the terms of the pact where they will take over the leadership of the country in the in-eventual departure of the husband and wife team or should it be wife and husband team.

And later sometime in March this year there were some buzz in within the inner circle of a 3M Team of which were made clear today with the recent article in the Malaysian Chronicle HERE and in Malaysia Today HERE.

But this insight provided by the Finance Twitter website clarify and sum up all the information we heard from the grapevine, truly an illuminating article as follows:

Resign or Snap Election for Najib, Here're the Reasons
By Finance Twitter

As much as I would like to stop writing about PM Najib administration, the plot just got interesting and I think he may just hit the bull’s eye as far as my prediction that his downfall may be faster than his predecessor, Abdullah Badawi, is concerned. Compared with Najib, Badawi now seems like a cute adorable little kitten, who merely likes to sleep (on the job). Malaysians tend to be more forgiving on lazy prime minister but not a prime minister wholies, cheats, brutal, dirty (allegation on Mongolian Altantuya’s murder),hypocrite but above all stupid yet arrogant.

One cannot help but fell off the chair laughing after read that Najib said he cancels a family vacation because he wants to spend more time with Malaysians. This was perhaps the best joke ever by premier Najib since he took over from Abdullah Badawi. This joke actually worth a thousand “Like” on his facebook page. Forget about Bersih 2.0 because this guy may quit under pressure – not from opposition parties or Bersih 2.0 but from his internal UMNO party. Boy, if it was true that the US$24 million controversial diamond ring indeed belongs to his wife Rosmah Mansor, that ring is cursed.

Anyone notice the deadly silence from Mahathir after the Bersih 2.0 rally that instantly flush Najib’s popularity into the toilet bowl? I’ve wrote earlier that Najib administration’s extreme stupidity in tackling the simple issue of Bersih 2.0 made the whole episode smells rat. Najib can’t be that foolish (or was he?) and even if he was indeed stupid, his wife would have save the day, unless of course the plan to unseat him has been brought forward by his own circles.Mahathir doesn’t like Najib for two main reasons - his wife and his close connection with Singapore Government.

It seems Najib may have to quit soon, probably before his term expires in 2013. And if Najib plans to stay until next year to enjoy more free overseas holidays using taxpayers money under his capacity as the prime minister, his dream is now short-lived based on his emergency return to take control of Putrajaya. How on earth could everything turns upside-down before his “shopping” trip to United Kingdom and Italy ends? It appears he has no other option but to call an early election, possibly before 11-11-2011 in order to neutralize his enemy from within UMNO, if he’s able to do that.

Read the Full Article HERE

Kleptocracy

2011-07-20T17:20:00.000+08:00

I like this article which was published in Malaysia Today.

The Role and Function of a Police Force in a Kleptocracy
By Tuan Abu Bakar bin Tuan Abu Khalid

Kleptocracy is a government of thieves, by thieves and for thieves. The ruling elite in a kleptocracy governs only to extend its personal wealth and political power by stealing from the state’s coffer.

The major characteristics of a kleptocracy are rampant corruption, rent-seeking activities, money-laundering and abuses of human rights.

Since a kleptocracy benefits only a small section of the population at the expense of the wider population, the modus operandi of the kleptocracy to stay in power is to divide the population along tribal, racial or religious lines.

Contemporary kleptocracies often maintain a facade of democracy to camouflage their kleptocratic tendencies. A kleptocracy may have a state constitution, though it is regularly abused to suit the whims and fancies of the ruling elite. Regular elections are also held to enforce the notion of a democratic state. The elections are rigged and manipulated to provide legitimacy to the kleptocracy.

Government agencies such as the judicial system, the civil service, the legislative body, the security forces and even the church act as apparatchik of the kleptocracy. The officials holding key positions are rewarded by having a share of the loot.

Read the Rest of the Article HERE

CANDLE LIGHT VIGIL FOR THE "PSM 6" - UMNO'S LAW OF INJUSTICE

2011-07-19T21:36:00.000+08:00

DATE: 20 JULY 2011 (WEDNESDAY)
TIME: 7.45 PM
VENUE: BAR COUNCIL BUILDING
@ JALAN LEBOH PASAR KUALA LUMPUR

followed by a FORUM at the BAR COUNCIL AUDITORIUM

organised by: SUARAM, GERAKAN MANSUHKAN ISA (GMI) and the BAR COUNCIL

contact: Naini - 019 3758912 or Stephanie - 016 3435202

Another Great Bersih 2.0 Video

2011-07-19T21:07:00.003+08:00

Hear the outright denials from the BN government and the Police in this video:

More than 200,000 at Bersih 2.0

2011-07-13T03:07:00.005+08:00

More than 200,000 at Bersih 2.0

jJust received an email from Ruth aka Crankshaft asking about the methodology on crowd estimating and my thoughts on the turnout and so let’s elaborate a bit here on, first of all you need to be observant and an "estimating" consciousness during the rally and after that inspecting the videos and photos of other areas that you could not access or did not visit on that day.

When the crowd is in the stadium than estimation become easy but because there is no fix location and as the government has declared the Bersih 2.0 rally illegal then estimation becomes a bit more difficult as you will have to study other locations that you were not at.

During that day we started from Sentral Station than walk down through the Brickfields area towards Petaling Street to Pudu Raya (Maubank) and to the Merdeka Stadium and return to Brickfields through Pasar Seni.

These were some of my observation:

There was continuous movement of people on the streets and they seem to congregate and amass in to a big crowd at certain point usually when the FRU movrs in to block them and the first big mass of people were at the Pudu Raya Maybank location at about 1.30 PM. Crowd estimate in that area alone was close to 100,000 which is including those at the fringes of the area who dare not venture further to join the main mass of demonstrators, can’t blame them as many were with their families or were first timers.

All these while there were still people strolling in to the city as were stated earlier that there was a continuous stream of people walking in to the area coming in from the Sentral Station as well as Jalan Pudu from Bukit Bintang area and people everywhere in the KLCC area. Unending loose groups of people streaming in even late in to the afternoon people were still coming in. Even when we were walking back we saw many still coming in to the Pasar Seni area.

This is quite clear due to major police blockade preventing traffic from coming in to the City and many were jam up for hours, I have heard complaint of people being caught in the traffic for more than 4 hours and they still made it to the rally although they were late and this explained the many people walking in late even as we were going back around 4.30 PM. The demonstrators were also calling up their friends or twitting calling people to come participate and giving out instruction on how to commute to the area.

The Bersih Rally started quite early although the official time was to be at 2 PM, as an example our group started waiting as early as 10 AM at the kopitiam and the first group of our bigger group  started out at 11 AM to the Sentral Station taking the KTM Commuter and by 12PM most were already walking in to the Petaling Street or Pasar Seni area. So the actual Bersih event was a whole day event and right up to 5.30 PM the FRU were still lobbing tear gas.

There were people everywhere many did not join the main body but were at the fringes as you can see from the photos here, they were on pedestrian bridge and all around and some just taking a breather at the corners of stair case and etc.

And so with all these consideration and using the methodology as stated in one of my earlier posting in the Anti ISA rally here. The conservative estimates are that the total number of people who were at the Rally at just about more than 200,000.

Defenders of the Rakyat or Goons employed by UMNO?

2011-07-12T02:21:00.000+08:00

Story of Abdul Haleem in Bersih 2.0 - Truly a Malaysian

2011-07-12T00:00:00.001+08:00

I met Abdul Haleem for the first time when i was in Singapore some time early last year where we got together with "Professor Indiana Jones". the Professor who wants to remain anonymous due to his job but nevertheless he has been a constant contributor towards the change in Malaysia.

I was not aware that Abdul Haleem was back in KL just to participate in the Bersih 2.0, Haleem is a true blue Anak Bangsa Malaysia, He is a young professional who works in the prosperous little neighbor down south of Singapore where his young family stay with him. Haleem would be one of the example of a great loss of talents for this nation. Haleem is a an expert in a specialized profession and definitely a rare talent that the government don't know what they have lost but the truth is i don't think this umno led government gives a damn.

Abdul Haleem is all Malaysian at heart and cares deeply for his country and plans to one day return with his young family to his true home, Haleem just had his second child a month ago and chose to return to voice his protest and dissatisfaction as a Malaysian, sadly he would be shocked to find his government not only disengaging but downright cruel and evil to treat a talent who can and would be most willing to contribute towards his nation.

His government rejected him and treated him like a pariah, sprayed him with chemicals and tear gas while in the hospital compound of Tung Shin Hospital, arrested and hand cuffed him for exercising his basic right,and most cruel of all Ridiculed and laughs at him for his disability. Haleem has a slight disability and walks with a limp.

This is a rude awakening for Haleem and his young family, please read the account of his written story as published by the Malaysian Insider. GO HERE.

THE MOTHER OF ALL VIDEO - BERSIH 2.0

2011-07-11T22:28:00.000+08:00

There are now uncountable articles and videos on the Bersih 2.0 it is just mind boggling.

This is the Mother of all Bersih 2.0 Video, you just to have to Watch This.
Note: Make sure you pump up the volume.

BERSIH 2.0 - TRULY MALAYSIA 9711

2011-07-11T19:28:00.000+08:00

Bersih 2.0 Video - 9711

2011-07-11T17:10:00.000+08:00

A Noob Demonstrator Bersih 2.0 Experience

2011-07-11T16:45:00.001+08:00

By David Eu Cheng Teik

Extract:

"I hear curses of 'Sial UMNO, Sial ni punya orang' and all manner of expletives. A defiant protester started gesticulating and shouting 'Ni Hospital la! Tembak buat apa?!' There seemed to be literally nowhere to run at this stage."

"I have met too many Malaysians over in Australia; and I am sure there are many similar types in the UK, US, NZ and around the globe who simply cannot be bothered about the country they were born in, but know how to complain. Well, people, talk is cheap. When you have not even registered, you automatically give up your rights to complain. You may think that it does not involve you, but you have friends, you have family back home in Malaysia. Not everyone is as lucky as you and me who have OZ, UK, US, NZ, SG etc. permanent residencies. It is easy to run off to another country and earn your big bucks there, but ultimately, you are still a foreigner in a foreign land. Is it that difficult to have some love for the country of your birth? Just give up your damned Malaysian citizenship if you cannot be stuffed to even bother about your homeland. In a nutshell, how difficult is it to go to a post office and register? Are you an amputee? Did you lose a leg clearing landmines in Cambodia? Can you not drive your fat ass there?"

Read the Full Article HERE

Bersih Taxi

2011-07-10T19:11:00.002+08:00

Met up with Pury and Shan at the Central Market during the Bersih Walk just when the FRU (Federal Reserve Unit of the Malaysian Police) was lobbing Tear Gas for fun into the peaceful Bersih demonstrators.

There were definitely no provocation from the peaceful marchers as we can bear witness to that fact of being there behind the police FRU unit.

After a while of watching the FRU lobbing dozens of tear gas canister into the crowd, we got news that the demonstrators are calling to an end of the protest and we too decided to make our way home. It was then about 4.15 PM.

Shan has purposely flew back from Singapore where he works and stay just to participate in this Bersih Walk calling for free and fair election. Shan has traveled and work abroad most of his career and his major frustrations are that he is deprived of his right to vote if he is overseas when the election comes around.

We walk towards the Sentral Station terminal through the Brickfields area and as we approach the YMCA vicinity we saw traffic being diverted into the side roads as the roads were all closed off to traffic flow to and from the city.

We saw some Taxis and the thought of catching a cab is most comforting after the very long walk with aching muscles of the limb to contend with. After a long while, Shan manage to flag down a Taxi and as i approach he was already in heavy negotiation with the Taxi driver over the fare to be charge and honestly at this time i will pay almost any price for the drive.

Well Shan being the expert negotiator that he is soon got us a fare of RM20 for the transport to one of the Commuter station where we had earlier park our cars. We happily jump in to the Taxi and this turns out to be one of the most comforting drive of your life time.

The drive to our destination is at most 15 minutes and there were some conversation in the Taxi with the driver where he apologised for not being able to follow the metered fare due to all the disruptions caused by the police blockade and as he discovered that we had participated in the Bersih walk he than started throwing compliments our way.

He stressed that it is the governments' responsibility to ensure that there is justice and freedom and that the people should be cared for and not to be bulling, threatening and worst of all to purposely cause harm to the people.The driver says that the government had intentionally lock down the city as to cause suffering to the livelihood of the people and than put the blame on the Bersih protesters. He too had suffered because of this devious intention of the government these past weeks leading up to the protest despite the rising cost of living brought about by the recent withdrawal of subsidy.

And as we reach the Commuter station the Taxi driver refused our payment of the taxi fare and expressed his gratitude for our participation in the walk and that we had done what he did not or could not do. He further expressed that we are contributing and is helping to bring about a better future for his young children.

"You are fighting for me and my young children to have a better future and for that i cannot accept your fare and please take this offer as my personal contribution." siad the Taxi Driver.

There was much haggling over this payment as we insisted on paying him as it was his vocation and we finally settled for half payment of RM10 instead of the agreed RM20.

This was very encouraging to our spirits and most comforting for our aching body and we decided to quench our thirst and headed to the nearest saloon where old Ben later joined us as many of us were earlier separated during the march and Pury enthusiastically related our Bersih Taxi encounter to Ben.

Bersih

2011-07-09T15:28:00.005+08:00

Thousands marching towards Stadium amidst Cheers in a carnival mood.

Malaysians marching together. All races and religions truly Anak Bangsa Malaysia.

Bersih Photos

2011-07-09T15:28:00.003+08:00

Walking toward Pudu Bus Terminal withs cheers of 'Bersih Bersih'.

Bersih walk

2011-07-09T15:28:00.001+08:00

Dr Nedu says these Boots are made for Walking!

Bersih

2011-07-09T13:10:00.001+08:00

Huge crowd converging towards Jln Petaling.

Walkability with Bersih 2.0

2011-07-03T12:42:00.000+08:00

Bersih 2.0 Website HERE

The REFERENDUM on LYNAS RARE EARTH PLANT

2011-05-31T13:24:00.001+08:00

NO TOXIC WASTE!

The REFERENDUM On The Setting Up And Operation Of
Lynas Advance Material Plant (LAMP) In Gebeng Kuantan

By The Concern Citizens of Kuantan.
30th May 2011

On behalf of approximately 700,000 citizens that reside within the 30 km radius of Gebeng;

We begin by quoting the following exert from an article titled The Issue of Residual Thorium & Uranium from Rare-Earth Ore Processing Posted By Jack Lifton on March 11, 2011 @ 12:25 pm in News Analysis, Rare Earths

“In the rare-earths sector a very important and under-reported story is coming to the surface. A senior executive at a rare-earth junior said to me at PDAC in Toronto earlier this week that the 800-pound gorilla in every rare-earth venture’s room, was the radioactive thorium and/ or uranium-bearing waste that will be generated by the extraction, separation, and refining operations that are the supply chain steps immediately following mining and mechanical concentration.

It is my understanding that Lynas’ first business plan for the Mt Weld operation put out in 2005 called for only raw ore to be produced in Australia. Every further step in the supply chain was, in that plan, to be done in China, and, at the conclusion the idea was that China would either ship finished rare-earth metals to Lynas’ customers or buy the rare-earth metals at that point or earlier in the supply chain from Lynas. This original Lynas plan faltered on the failure of the Chinese to give guarantees that the ore would remain the property of Lynas, after Chinese work product was added to it. Chinese law on the ownership of natural resources by the State was not specific on when such ownership vested if the goods were imported, and this made institutional investors gun-shy of the project.

One of the major advantages of Lynas’ original plan was that any radioactive residue would have been a Chinese disposal problem, and in those days the Chinese were more flexible about that than they have now become.”

OBJECTIVE
We are aware that the IAEA expert panel is here in Malaysia to investigate the health and safety aspects of LAMP, specifically to review the radiation safety aspects of the facility in relation to relevant international radiation safety standards and good practice.

We are also very aware of the fact that the panel will not engage in policy type of discussions.

However the arguments that we are putting forth in our representation today, will be to put across a strong message to the panel that whatever technical solutions and recommendations being proposed to the government of Malaysia by the panel of international experts at the end of this fact finding mission with not function as a working model here in Malaysia.

Recommendations on LAMP’s safety does not rest on technical recommendations and inputs but rather must be made on a holistic approach on the moral ground by putting people’s safety, health and lives above others.

1) HEALTH CONCERNS.
The information contained in the above article is not of a new discovery. We, the Kuantan Concern Citizens are very much aware of the hazard that lies in the rare earth processing industry which has cause a bad mark in the history of Malaysia. During the 1980’s a similar industry, where a company by the name of Asian Rare Earth (owned by a Japanese company, Mitsubitshi Corporation) had cause a disastrous and irreversible impact to humanity and surrounding ecology. Many children and adults succumbed to illness caused by cancer which includes leukemia and the like. There is also living proof of children who were born deformed or mentally handicap. Cases of fetus which died during pregnancy were also recorded. The village was somehow deserted and not livable. The clean up of the radioactive waste had just been taken recently by the government and the owner of the company and cost the owner over RM 300 million.

Lynas, which do not have any track record in processing rare earth prior to this, to this date had not been able to show any concrete measure in the handling of the radioactive waste generated from the separation process in Gebeng, Kuantan. Although Lynas and the Malaysian government tried to downplay the amount of thorium generated by claiming that the ore from Mount Weld contains less thorium in comparison with the ore used by Asian Rare Earth, the volume that LAMP proposed to process here in Gebeng are many times more than of Asian Rare Earth.

We have no doubt whatsoever that the total accumulated thorium will be very much higher than what was produced in Bukit Merah. Lynas’s claims on having the best engineering practice and safer processing technology were never proven as there is no existing LAMP anywhere prior to this nor is there any existing refinery facility outside China which can be benchmarked to. Until today, Lynas has failed to produce a concrete long term radioactive waste management plan

Considering the overall harm and damages that can be caused by thorium and many other element produced such as uranium waste, radon & thoron gas, and many other hazardous chemicals used in the process, we strongly believe that this facility is not safe. The magnitude of damage to mankind and the environment will be enormous. It will cause an irreversible impact to the community. We definitely will not allow ourselves and our future generation to be the GUINEA PIGS or LAB RATS to the massive experiment which Lynas plan to conduct on humanity. It is morally wrong and a violation of human rights to living a healthy live, to begin an operation on a process which is not proven to be safe especially so when it is near to residential areas in a densely populated area within it’s 30 km radius.

History has shown that industry owner will easily get away from their liability and responsibility because it is not easy to prove that any health impact in future is directly link to their waste generation due to the lack of enforcement in our country. We certainly refuse to shoulder the risk of the harm that this plant poses to our health and the environmental threats to our future generation. We do not want our homeland to be the dumping ground of an irresponsible business entity. Economic gain shall NOT and NEVER take priority over safety and health of human being.

2) ECONOMIC CONCERNS
Kuantan is a tourist destination with beautiful beaches and scenic sights. Many of the local residents immediately next to the LAMP site thrives on the tourism industry by being proprieters of budget hotels and homestays as well as managing the seafood industry to cater for the needs of locals and tourists alike. At the same time Kuantan also harbours one of the largest fishing port in Malaysia which registers more than 390 deep sea trawlers at it’s docks. The stigma that this industry brings will certainly bring a heavy blow to the local residents and Kuantan will not be an attractive destination for tourist anymore. Even right now as we sit here in this meeting, the prices of property in Kuantan have spiraled down. Not to mention the cost of health insurance that will be burdensome to the Kuantan tax payers. The Kuantan Local Council has signed an undertaking to adopt the Local Agenda 21 in support of sustainable development way back in the year 2001. Thus, approving LAMP without prior consultation with the public and the stakeholders in Kuantan is a totally unacceptable act and contravenes the principles of sustainable development adopted in Local Agenda 21.

3) LAX ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS
Specifically with regards to this industry, Malaysia does not have stringent environmental laws to protect our Environment. Even the regulator for LAMP project will be the AELB (Atomic Energy Licensing Board) as compared to the EPA in Australia or the US.

4) ENFORCEMENT ISSUES
There are always issues regarding slack enforcement as well as corruption in this country (the Corruption Perception Index for Malaysia being at 56 out of 178 countries is testimony to this fact). Even if Malaysia imposes fines on Lynas (a 100% Australian owned company) for non compliance, whatever the amount will be peanuts compared to the total export value of RM8 billion a year that Lynas will be enjoying.

5) LYNAS’S CREDIBILITY AND INTEGRITY
Lynas’s credibility is greatly questionable

(i) Even in Australia, Lynas has a record of non compliance to the Safety Standards set in the original works approval for (Environmental Assessment Report – Amendments to works approval W4440/2008/1 regards tailings storage facility of their Concentration Plant in Mt Weld)
(ii) Lynas has been misleading the public by providing the Malaysian public as well as the Malaysian authorities with incomplete or skewed information.
(iii) Lynas is using Chinese standards in Malaysia as opposed to what they claim that they adhere to strict IAEA standards. By using Chinese standards (GB9133-88), they get away with their claim that the waste is NON RADIOACTIVE since the specific radioactivity level of their waste is at 61 Bq/g ( the limit in Chinese Standards is 74Bq/g while the limit in Australia and by IAEA standards is 1 Bq/g) The RIA report dated June 2010 confirms the specific radioactivity level of the waste.

6) SIGNED PETITION From the Kuantan Folks
Copies of 51,000 plus petition collected from Kuantan alone (from 15th March – 30th May 2011) suffice to impress upon the panel the grievance of the Kuantan public. This forms an integral part of the referendum.

EXPECTED OUTCOME
The Citizens of Kuantan are not opposed to development. However, we would like to assert strongly that the development we desire is in the form of SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

Therefore, we demand the government of Malaysia to stop Lynas from operating its rare earth processing plant in Kuantan or anywhere in Malaysia. We do not have faith that whatever recommendations given by the panel can be and will be complied to. We do not want to face a radioactive problem in our backyard when Gebeng is turned into an onsite radioactive waste dumping ground for LAMP forever. We certainly do not want to subject ourselves or our family members to severe health threats while Lynas make their way to the bank, laughing..

Our expected outcome from your mission here in Malaysia will be that we expect you to advise the government of Malaysia as well as the state government of Pahang that they have made a mistake in giving approval for LAMP to be constructed in Gebeng. Never the less it is not too late for the Malaysian authorities to make the right moral decision for the Concerned Citizens, all 700,000 living within 30 km radius of LAMP which is NOT to ISSUE an Operating License due in September.

I also trust that the panel will make it’s decision based on conscience, putting lives and environment first before profits, as the lives of the citizens are of paramount importance, priceless and totally not negotiable.

Representation From the Kuantan Concern Citizens

Represented by:

Fuziah Salleh
Member of Parliament,
Kuantan.
30th May 2011

7 REASONS NOT TO VOTE BN!

2011-05-25T03:32:00.003+08:00

Click here to Watch Video

Top 7 Reasons NOT To Vote BN Come GE13
by Damien Murphy Denis
May 24, 2011

Reading the latest happenings about our country is a pain for many of us. Seeing the kind of filth BN politicians churning day in and day out makes you think that Malaysia is in a state of anarchy.

Would anyone disagree? Politically, economically and socially our nation is sinking lower and it seems we are reaching the point of no return.

We were considered to be a model country at one time but today we are on the way to become the “Next Sick Man of Asia” or the next Somalia.

Can we re-claim our country from these corrupt and good for nothing BN politicians? I say we have too. And we need too.

And we need to do it this coming GE13. Personally, I have 7 good reasons to kick BN out of Putrajaya come GE13:-

1) When BN is voted out you vote out people like Ibrahim Ali, Dr M, Perkasa and the likes. When you vote these people out you too vote out extremism, racism and bigotry from our nation. This is something we need to do as the current regime under Najib has failed to reprimand these racist politicians. In fact, Najib and his crony has been giving tacit support and approval by giving some of the most ridiculous statements in our nations history. Let us remember that “Perkasa adalah Perkakas UMNO” (Perkasa is UMNO’s tool).

2) When you vote BN out you vote against corruption. This is a curse our nation has to endure since money politics has become so entrenched in our system. Every contract and business awarded has to be accompanied by a certain cut or percentage for those who walk in the corridors of power. Heard of the 10% men and his allegedly Maika shares? Of course, you have the BMF scandal, Perwaja and the latest PKFZ issue which is the hottest topic today but the current BN government seems to be dragging its feet to take those responsible to court. Why??? We can never expect BN to provide us with good governance as this is such an alien word to this bunch of crooks.

3) When you vote BN out you vote against all that stands for freedom and justice. What justice can a man on the street find for himself whenever his NCR land is taken over by BN cronies? What good is freedom if tomorrow he gets up to find his son has been gun down by the police in the wee hours of the morning? We not only need a dedicated and corrupt free cops/courts but also cops/courts who are able to perform their duty without fear or favor!

4) Vote BN out and you vote out an education system that supports mediocrity and second or third best. Look at our education system which is tainted with racism in the form of Biro Tata Negara (BTN) & quota system for university entry etc. If you look at our schools these days we will not fail to see how the standard has dropped from, let’s say 15-20 years ago to today. Our teachers are not equipped to teach English well and this is causing our future graduates to suffer in the employment market. Yet, BN leaders especially the Education Minister has been giving us excuses after excuses till today and the young ones are the most affected. So, why keep these incompetent BN ministers in power? Get rid of them to redeem our education system NOW!

5) When you vote BN out you vote against the likes of Utusan, The Star, TV3 and many other mainstream media which has been controlled, manipulated and shackled by the powers that be. These newspapers especially Utusan has been spewing lies after lies and are still doing so as their political masters are the ones dictating to them what should be the menu of the week. Responsible journalism is such a foreign word to this big time corporate liars. Their recent report on the Christian state and PM is a case in point! They must be stop at all cost and we are the ones who will do it by bringing down BN in the next GE13.

6) Under BN rule Malaysia is facing a serious brain drain in the last few years. The major factors are the lethargic country’s economy, educational opportunities, lack of religious freedom, social inequality and BN’s affirmative policy in the form of NEP. These factors has made many young Malaysians fed-up with the current state of affairs and this has brought about the a wave of brain drain which is already affecting our economy today. The best brains in our country feels they are not being appreciated and welcomed as most of them are not of the Bumiputera group. Between 2008 & 2009 a total of 300,000 Malaysians has emigrated overseas just after the 2008 tsunami election. We need to put a stop to this brain drain and the starting point is to get rid of BN and vote in a government which is more inclusive and fair in its administration.

7) When we vote BN out, we vote for a better livelihood for all. And I mean for all and not just for the selected few cronies or the elites. Since the Asian Financial Crisis and Anwar’s sacking in the late 1990′s our ecomony has never really prospered well. The BN government is planning for another round of petrol price hike come this June 2011. And Najib has the gall to say that subsidy has become an opium to the masses. Little did he realise that corruption and money politics in his own party UMNO is the real opium and the root of all evil!

And the list goes on. I’m very sure sure you have your own reason/s not to vote BN this time around. Do add in and see how long the list goes.

I’m convinced that for our country to move forward we need to put BN in its right place which is OUT of Putrajaya. As of now, I can only imagine Pakatan Rakyat as the only viable party to take over this government.

I have made my decision. How about you?

SAVE MALAYSIA! STOP LYNAS!

2011-05-16T19:47:00.001+08:00

Solidarity Walk

May 20, 2011

Friday 2.00pm

Meet at KLCC

Walk to the Australian Embassy

```````````````````````````````````

The Save Malaysia Stop Lynas Group

will hand in a memorandum

to stop Lynas from exporting hazardous materials to Malaysia

Please come to support the people of Pahang to safeguard their health from pollution and radioactive waste!

Visit their Facebook Page HERE

Sign Their Petition HERE

SAVE MALAYSIA!

2011-05-16T19:32:00.000+08:00

ALJAZEERA

AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION (ABC)

Malaysian Main Stream Media is the Worst Public Enemy

2011-04-15T21:28:00.000+08:00

Poverty Reduction? Easy, Just Lower the Benchmark!

2011-03-29T21:57:00.000+08:00

WOW! Only 108 left?

By Jayanath Appudurai

ACCORDING to the Government Transformation Programme [GTP] Annual Report released on 27 March 2011, there are only “108 extreme poor households” left. The GTP within a span of 12 months transformed the lives of 44,535 extreme poor households. {See Chart}

To say the least, this is a stupendous achievement! An intractable problem that the nation has been grappling with for more than 40 years has ostensibly been solved in 1 year!
Should not the Government be lauded for this?

Guess, it all depends on how ‘extreme poor’ is defined?

Read More from Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia HERE

How to Cast Your Vote!

2011-03-28T01:18:00.001+08:00

The People Stood their Ground and Repelled the Oppressor!

2011-03-27T12:05:00.000+08:00

MUST WATCH!
This is only the beginning...
Umno, you better be very scared, Your Time has come, Your End is near..

Agent of Change

2011-03-27T00:54:00.000+08:00

UMNO's Control of the Malay Mind

2011-03-23T15:47:00.001+08:00

"The ministers give the Malay populace a low quality education but they send their own children overseas."

An excellent article by Mariam Mokhtar published in Malaysiakini on 21 March 2011. This is a MUST READ article for all Malaysian.

1 Malaysia but 2 Malays - Mariam Mokhtar

It is impossible to know what the hundreds of thousands of Malays truly want in the way of political reform. Most are reticent about presenting their real views. Others cannot articulate what they want without being emotional or illogical.

After being brainwashed by the likes of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad (right) and other extremists, most Malays have no clue what constitutes a real democracy.

All they know is that they do not want to lose their exalted position.

Malays do not have the luxury of their own Tahrir Square and all that the Egyptian revolution represents.

When Mahathir warned the Malays that they would "lose their power" if Pakatan Rakyat were to come to power, he also labeled Pakatan leaders a bunch of self-serving, racist politicians.

The Malays were the target of Umno brainwashing. For the past 53 years, Umno frightened these Malays and then demoralised them.

They told the Malays that to vote Pakatan meant Malaysia would be "sold to the highest bidder". In the opinion of the Ketuanan Melayu brigade, Malaysia would be sold to the Chinese.

Mahathir told the Malays that the nation should be rightfully called Tanah Melayu, that the Malay is "tuan" and that the constitution accords Malays "special rights and privileges".

It is all about power. By exercising control over the Malay mind, the power is Umno's.

It doesn't matter if the message is from Mahathir, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin, the Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein or Ibrahim Ali (left) of Perkasa.

Blinkered minds

Malays are kept in a hopeless and continually pessimistic state. The ministers give the Malay populace a low quality education but they send their own children overseas to be educated.

The policy of placing the Malay language at the forefront of education in the 1970s was ostensibly designed to unite the peoples of Malaysia, but also to control the access to thought and information of the Malay.

By placing limits to learning another language well, the government effectively blinkered the mind of the Malay so that it would become insular and regressive. How many Malay books or publications challenge the intellect or expand the mind?

Local Malays are told about the evils of Western democracy. They are not taught to be critical or think creatively. They are kept in the Felda settlements or rural areas as vote banks. Government and blue-collar jobs are easily theirs.

The only reason Umno wants to perpetuate the NEP is to benefit themselves. Najib (left) may claim there is 1Malaysia, but in reality, there are 2Malays - the Umnoputra Malay and the ordinary Malay who make up the rakyat.

How convenient then to attack the non-Malay as the root cause of the poverty and problems inflicting the majority of Malays.

Children of the Umno warlords may have access to superb education, but many of these children turned feral because this is what easy money from their parents corrupt lifestyle, does to them. Malay kids grow up to treat mat rempits as heroes or bully non-Malay children. This is the mindset moulded by Mahathir

The Umnoputra adult goes drinking either in the KL clubs or abroad. He plays poker in his home with members of the judiciary or the police. He frequents casinos, for all night gambling sessions, when he is overseas.

At home, in Malaysia, he is the typical, hypocritical sanctimonious Malay/Muslim.

He toys around with women without getting into trouble whilst his lowly cousin, the ordinary Malay, is an easy target for the moral police. The ordinary Malay risks his life hiding from the khalwat squads by clinging onto ledges on high-rise buildings. If he is caught, he is fined, jailed and flogged.

In addition, can the ordinary Malay obtain licenses for big business? Can he buy expensive homes with big discounts? Will he have money to buy the shares that are allocated to Malays?

The answer to all the above is probably "no".

No real chance

How realistic is it for the ordinary Malay member of the rakyat to attempt to secure big projects worth several million ringgits?

Most of the small tenders (RM 500K-1 million or below) are transparent enough. However, there is no point in even trying for the "big ones", without political clout.

Last week, the advertising agency behind the award-winning "Malaysia, Truly Asia" tourism campaign charged that it withdrew a bid to renew its contract with the Tourism Ministry after being asked for bribes in exchange for the deal.

That is a serious allegation and sadly it is a true reflection of what happens in government tenders.

Malay friends of mine have found so many abuses in the tender system that they too, shun government contracts. Bribes are openly sought especially for the tenders worth millions of ringgits.

There is no point trying for tenders up to RM1 million as the people who will get them have already been selected. The ministry goes through the pretence of calling a meeting to 'discuss' tender requirements. It is all just a sham.

For tenders worth under RM10,000, a donation of a few thousand ringgits, to the ministry's "sports" body is often a requirement.

Recently, a friend who successfully won a bid to supply goods (worth up to RM80,000) to a ministry, was asked to discuss the finer details over lunch and was instructed to meet at a restaurant in KL. My colleague and his assistant ordered the set lunch at RM20 each.

The three people from the ministry ordered the most expensive items on the menu which cost RM250 each. The bill for a "supposed" work-lunch was RM800. And there was no discussion.

Perhaps this is where the junior officials cut their corrupt teeth before they progress to the bigger contracts where they fleece unsuspecting companies for bigger and more expensive items, and not just a lobster thermidor lunch.

Is this what Najib and Mahathir are proud of - a corruption of the Malay race where there are no morals, no pride and even less self-respect?

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a non-conformist traditionalist from Perak, a bucket chemist and an armchair eco-warrior. In 'real-speak', this translates into that she comes from Ipoh, values change but respects culture, is a petroleum chemist and also an environmental pollution-control scientist.

Malaysia Gambling with Toxic Industry!

2011-03-09T02:32:00.005+08:00

Cheah Kok Leong was born with severe mental disabilities that is believed
to be due to the radioactive exposure from Asian Rare Earth of Bukit Merah

Under Construction in the industrial port of Kuantan is going to be the World's Biggest Toxic Rare Earth Refinery!

An unwanted industry by the developed world of which the Malaysian government has invited this toxic refinery to be built, exposing the environment and the people's health to the danger of radioactive contamination.

The problem of the previous rare earth refinery at Bukit Merah, by Asian Rare Earth, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Chemical was ask to stop and closed it's operation in 1992 after years of sometimes violent protest by local community and is now one of Asia’s largest radioactive waste cleanup sites that is still in progress after almost 20 years.

In the previous Bukit Merah case, the residents blamed the refinery for birth defects and leukemia had sued the refinery and had reached an out of court settlement.

This new world's biggest rare earth refinery is rushing to complete the plant by late this year despite an unresolved problem as to the long term storage of the refinery's highly hazardious radioactive thorium waste.

The Best Part here is that the Malaysian government was so desperate for this Toxic Investment that they even offered the operators Lynas, an Austral;ian mining company an incentive by extending a 12 years tax free benefit!

Report by New York Times "Malaysia Makes a Big Bet on Crucial Metals" HERE

Bukit Merah - Largest Radiation Cleanup. "A Quiet US100 Million Cleanup" HERE

Malaysia - A Legacy of Budget Deficits

2011-03-04T02:27:00.002+08:00

RISING DEFICITS

Extract of a Report from Bloomberg:

A number of World Bank experts and veteran Malaysia watchers, such as Professor Hal Hill from the Australian National University, are becoming increasingly worried about the country's long-term future. Even the current Prime Minister, Najib Razak, admits that reform in the sensitive but critical area of affirmative action appears to have stalled.

The primary problem is one of numbers. In a global policy environment rightly wary of ballooning budget deficits, the fact that the Malaysian government has been in DEFICIT EVERY YEAR since the introduction of the NEP in 1971 (except for a period from 1993 to 1998) is troubling. This is particularly the case since Kuala Lumpur spends much less on social services than do Western governments. The economic numbers look even more troubling when one considers that around 40 percent of the government's revenue comes from the state-owned oil and gas giant Petronas.

Petronas is forced to pay a massive 60 percent to 70 percent of its profit in dividends each year—74 percent in 2010—just to sustain the government's spending programs. And second, the company's Malaysian-based reserves (which constitute the majority of Petronas' known reserves) are due to expire in around 15 years.
The U.N.'s World Foreign Investment Report 2010 revealed that Malaysia's net FDI trailed such neighbors as Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Indeed, in an embarrassing comedown for the former rising star, Cambodia, Myanmar, Brunei, Laos, and East Timor are the only countries in the region attracting less FDI than Malaysia. Worryingly, even domestic entrepreneurs are voting with their capital, as public investment exceeds private investment in the economy.
More than 250,000 people left Malaysia from March 2008 to August 2009 (not including students studying abroad). There are no figures on the racial mix of those leaving, but overwhelming anecdotal evidence suggests that a high proportion of ethnic Chinese and Indians are in this group. Once again, not all exits can be blamed on affirmative action policies, but even Najib has admitted it is a priority to make the country more attractive so as to encourage thousands of the skilled (non-Malay) diaspora to return.
Formidable obstacles block Najib. Most significant is the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) reliance on such an affirmative action political and social contract between the party and Malay elites to remain in power. Among countries that hold elections, UMNO has been in government longer than any other party in the world. It is not surprising that Najib has few supporters in his own cabinet to revise and wind back existing policies significantl.

Read the Full Report HERE

Freeze All Illicit Assets of Corrupt Politicians!

2011-03-01T00:54:00.001+08:00

Make a mistake on your tax return form, you get a warning. Divert public funds for private gain, you might just be offered a foreign bank account. That seems to be the modus operandi of corrupt leaders who have often used the opacity in the global financial system to divert public funds for their own personal gain.

That is why Transparency International (TI) is urgently pressuring both leaders of G20 countries and global financial institutions immediately to freeze and thoroughly investigate all suspect assets. TI sent an urgent request to the G20 heads of states and the Emir of Dubai to investigate any assets thought to be owned by former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

The longer it takes, the greater the chance that they will be moved beyond the reach of investigators and the smaller the chance that public funds will be recovered.

According to some estimates Egypt lost more than US$6 billion per year to illicit financial activities and official government corruption. The repatriation of assets illicitly transferred from Egypt could provide much needed funds for development in a country where 40 per cent of the population lives on less than US$2 a day.
Egypt has already asked other governments to freeze the foreign assets of Mubarak and his closest family members. Switzerland has been the first to respond freezing funds based on new legislation that allows them to confiscate assets for up to 10 years. This gives the country from where the assets have allegedly been stolen time to initiate restitution requests.

Countries that accept assets from politically exposed people, the official definition of a potentially risky high-profile client, should act more quickly to identify illicit flows. This is a requirement of the UN Convention against Corruption which has been ratified by 148 countries. That is why TI lobbies for stronger and better international cooperation to prevent illicit flows and recover stolen assets.

World leaders need to support people who risked their lives on the streets to put an end to corruption and autocracy. As geopolitical events move quickly, financial authorities should be ready to prevent deposed leaders from moving ill-gotten wealth to offshore bank accounts. TI issued the Bangkok Declaration in November 2010 calling on governments in countries that might be home to stolen assets to take action to both stop illicit money from entering their countries and to take steps to freeze, investigate and repatriate funds that are already there.

As part of the UNCAC Coalition, a group of more than 240 civil society organisations in more than 100 countries, TI expressed concern about public wealth being illicitly transferred out of Egypt.
In France, a preliminary enquiry into the assets of former Tunisian leader Ben Ali is ongoing, thanks to the efforts of Transparency International France and other NGOs.

In November 2010, following a long legal battle fought by TI France, a ruling in France paved the way for a full investigation into three African leaders after a preliminary investigations uncovered more than 50 properties and 100 bank accounts linked to them.

Governments must be ready to cast the net far and wide when there is a risk of asset flight.
The international community needs to start preparing new rules that curb banks’ ability to accept corrupt funds and frameworks that allow better international cooperation, especially between developing countries and authorities in large financial centres. G20 governments should create a fund to assist developing countries in their asset recovery efforts. It would be financially beneficial: illicit financial flows far exceed overseas development assistance.

On 15 February 2011 Transparency International (TI) and Global Witness, together with 76 other organisations from around the world called on the G20 to put their anti-corruption commitments into practice.
In Seoul last November, the Group of 20 world leading economies announced its G20 Anti-Corruption Action Plan, targeting a sound, well regulated, accountable, financial system.

It committed its member to using the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) framework to fight corruption, including the return of stolen assets.
The return of stolen assets is a fundamental principle of the UNCAC, which includes comprehensive guidelines for countries to work together to that end.

The Great Islamic Awakening where Good Triumphs over Evil

2011-02-25T02:23:00.000+08:00

Part 1

Part2

Part 3

A Familiar Story, Corruption! Police Brutality! Death in Custody! Oppression!

2011-02-15T00:00:00.000+08:00

ALL CORRUPT AND EVIL REGIME RELY ON FEAR, CONQUER THAT FEAR AND YOU CAN CONQUER EVIL!

Gong Xi Fa Cai 2011

2011-02-03T00:25:00.000+08:00

The People's Rally in Selangor - Be There!

2011-01-23T01:39:00.000+08:00

MCLM Video Introduction

2011-01-22T19:59:00.001+08:00

Video Created by Hawkeye

Song by Beatles "Revolution".

Say NO to Governmental Sabotage!

2011-01-19T00:11:00.002+08:00

Civil Society groups and Selangorians have come together to form a Rakyat initiated effort called Hormati Suara Rakyat Selangor (HSRS) to show their disappointment and anger over the appointment of Datuk Mohd Khusrin Munawi as the new Selangor state secretary.

The group, formed on January 11, 2011, will hold a public rally soon to pressure the the Chief Secretary to the Barisan Nasional federal government, Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Haji Hassan, to declare Khusrin’s appointment null and void. At least 10,000 people to participate in this public rally.

The Hormati Suara Rakyat Selangor Public Rally details are as follows:

Date: January 23, 2011 (Sunday)

Time: 4pm to 7pm

Venue: Kelana Jaya Stadium

Khusrin’s appointment is a culmination of the relentless attempts by the BN federal government to frustrate the Selangor Administration in carrying out their policies and programmes.

The fact is Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim did not receive the recommended list from the Public Services Department. Since this have been revealed, it is only imperative Sidek declare the appointment of Khusrin as null and void, as due process and convention was not followed.

The Rakyat in Selangor deserves the right to expect their elected Pakatan Selangor State Government to provide the best services. By denying the MB the choice of the Top Civil Servant, the Rakyat in Selangor are also denied their rights.

HSRS’s maiden effort in organising this rally is to get the Rakyat to come together to voice their dissatisfaction on the current state of affairs and to show the many instances where the Pakatan Selangor Government policy implementation has been sabotaged by civil servants still loyal to their previous political masters.

At the rally, we will highlight the many instances where local issues for residents could not be resolved due the non-cooperation of the BN federal agencies such as Public Works Department (JKR), police, SYABAS, Social Welfare Department (Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarat) and the Housing and Local Government Ministry.

Further Details HERE

Bruce Lee seek Justice for Beng Hock

2011-01-17T13:40:00.001+08:00

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Go to Nasi Lemak 2020 on facebook HERE

2011 Index of Economic Freedom - Malaysia

2011-01-12T19:06:00.006+08:00

"Corruption and a judicial system that remains vulnerable to political influence pose significant challenges to the economic freedom of Malaysia." ~ The Heritage Foundation ~

For over a decade, The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation, Washington's preeminent think tank, have tracked the march of economic freedom around the world with the influential Index of Economic Freedom.

What is economic freedom?

Economic freedom is the fundamental right of every human to control his or her own labor and property. In an economically free society, individuals are free to work, produce, consume, and invest in any way they please, with that freedom both protected by the state and unconstrained by the state. In economically free societies, governments allow labor, capital and goods to move freely, and refrain from coercion or constraint of liberty beyond the extent necessary to protect and maintain liberty itself.

The World Top Ten Ranking for 2011 Index of Economic Freedom are:

(1) Hong Kong (2) Singapore (3) Australia (4) New Zealand (5) Switzerland

(6) Canada (7) Ireland (8) Denmark (9) United States (10) Bahrain

Click To Enlarge

Malaysia No. 53
The averarage total score for Malaysia has increased by 1.5 points to 66.3 out of 100 points ranking 53 out of 179 countries rated for year 2011.

However the biggest drop in points for Malaysia are the score for "Freedom from Corruption" dropping 6 points from 51 in 2010 to 45 for the 2011 Index.

"Corruption is perceived as present. Malaysia ranks 56th out of 180 countries in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2009, a drop from 2008. The law provides criminal penalties for official corruption, but it has not been implemented effectively, and officials engage in corrupt practices with impunity. The media have reported numerous cases of alleged official corruption."

The next biggest points loss are for the rating on "Property Rights" dropping 5 points from 55 in 2010 to 50 in 2011 citing weakness in the judiciary that is subject to political influence.

"Private property is protected, but the judiciary is subject to political influence. Corporate lawsuits take over a year to file, and many contracts include a mandatory arbitration clause. Despite plans to ratify the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, complaints about lax enforcement of intellectual property rights persist, and the manufacture and sale of counterfeit products have led to serious losses for producers of consumer products and pharmaceuticals."

For Full Report of the 2011 World Index of Economic Freedom go HERE
Report on Malaysia Economic Freedom HERE

UMNO could no longer count on the strong support of the majority of Malays

2011-01-06T17:17:00.001+08:00

Extract of CIA's Outlook on Malaysia 2011 - 2015

Political stability in Malaysia will come under moderate threat during the next five years as the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which is tightly controlled by its largest component party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), faces greater challenges to its grip on power. The March 2008 general election revealed that UMNO could no longer count on the strong support of the majority of Malays. However, the main opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance will not be able to offer a sufficiently credible, stable alternative to the BN. Political intrigues within UMNO itself therefore constitute the biggest threat to political stability in Malaysia.

Since March 2008 the ability to make or break the BN has been in the hands of political parties from Sabah and Sarawak. BN legislators from the two states, which are located on the island of Borneo, number 52, thus making up over one-third of the BN’s total of 137 members of parliament (MPs). The BN’s Borneo power base is likely to be severely tested at the Sarawak state elections, which must be held by July 2011. Unresolved issues, such as illegal foreign immigration to Sabah, may cause the BN parties based in Borneo, or individual MPs from the island, to defect to the opposition or use the threat to do so to secure greater influence within the coalition in the run-up to the next general election. Moreover, the Borneo-based parties will become even more influential if MPs from the island retain their seats at the next election and a substantial number of BN legislators based in peninsular Malaysia lose theirs.

Although voters in the rural heartland of peninsular Malaysia continue to support UMNO, a significant number of better-educated, liberal middle-class Malays have deserted the ruling party in favour of the opposition. This shift in support away from UMNO could be further encouraged by the greater availability of uncensored information on Internet news sites and blogs. Given the Malaysian government’s heavy censorship of the print media and broadcast services, the Internet will continue to be the main arena for the exposure of alleged government corruption and the political intrigues of individual MPs. Some conservative Malays have also voiced concerns over the government’s plan to reform policies that favour bumiputera (ethnic Malays and other indigenous peoples), believing that the special rights accorded to them in the constitution may be rescinded.

UMNO’s internal leadership elections, which have been postponed until 2012, could be a source of instability, particularly if the party fails to secure a resounding victory in the snap general election that may well be called in 2011. Under such circumstances there would be even greater resistance to economic reforms, undermining the credibility of the prime minister, Najib Razak, and potentially placing his position as president of UMNO—and hence his role as head of government—at risk. The most likely contender to become UMNO’s next leader is the deputy prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin.

The leader of the PR, Anwar Ibrahim, a former deputy prime minister, is likely to be convicted on a charge of sodomy in the coming months. Mr Anwar claims that the case against him is politically motivated. Without him, the ties that unite the disparate parties making up the PR—the reformist, multicultural Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), the conservative, Islamist Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) and the left-of-centre, predominantly ethnic-Chinese Democratic Action Party (DAP)—are likely to fray, while the process of choosing a new PR spokesman could deepen divisions within Mr Anwar’s PKR party and also between the opposition coalition’s members. Yet the likely sentencing of Mr Anwar to a prison term could also facilitate a realignment of the opposition and elements of the BN, thus offering an alternative to the current political groupings.

Outlook for 2011-15: Election watch

A general election has to be held every five years, and the next one must take place before April 2013. However, the Economist Intelligence Unit believes that a poll will be held sooner. Traditionally, the BN has preferred to call elections about a year before the end of its term of office, and this makes early 2012 a possible date for the next election. However, developments in recent months, such as the postponement of internal UMNO elections, suggest that BN may consider holding a snap poll in 2011. We still believe that Mr Najib will set a general election date after the Sarawak state election, which must be held by July 2011 and is the main event on the political calendar before the next national poll. The results of the Sarawak election will provide a good indication of the level of public support for the government and its reform plans. Recent by-elections suggest that the electorate—and especially non-Malay voters—have become much more volatile. The results of two by-elections in November 2010 point to a slight shift in non-Malay sentiment in favour of the BN, suggesting that the government’s plans to reform policies favouring bumiputera has increased its appeal among ethnic minorities.

UMNO in Desperation - Anwar Ibrahim

2011-01-06T17:07:00.001+08:00

In a comment to the correspondent of wfol.tv who wrote in a local blog that the PAS should join the Barisan National (BN) instead of having one foot in opposition and the heart in the government, Anwar Ibrahim the Malaysian Opposition leader said the Umno was under pressure to have PAS on its side. Harakahdaily.net reported the Twitter comment by Anwar Ibrahim to our correspondent in an article today on their web portal in English.

Harakahdaily said the opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim (right) said UMNO was now being forced to seek cooperation with PAS due to desperation.

He was responding to an online comment suggesting that PAS should join the Barisan Nasional coalition, following PAS Murshidul Am Tuan Guru Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat’s confirmation of reports that he had been instructed to be present at a palace dinner hosted by the Yang DiPertuan Agong on December 24 together with UMNO president Najib Razak, wrote Harakah.

“When UMNO finds itself stuck, they ask PAS for cooperation. Stop corruption, oppression and tyranny first,” said Anwar in a Twitter posting to Peacemission66 on Twitter. Peacemission66 is the twitter ID used by correspondent in Riau, Indonesia.

Malaysian Papers are Propaganda Tools of the BN Government

2011-01-03T22:12:00.002+08:00

The President of Malaysian National Union of Journalists Hata Wahari has issued a public call to Malaysian papers to stop being ‘propaganda tools’ of the Malaysian government.

In a press release, Mr Hata said:

“The union also asks editors of mainstream media especially Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times, Berita Harian and the The Star to play the role of disseminating information to the public and not as propaganda machinery of the government, political parties, or any individual.”

Mr Hata is responding to latest figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) showing decline in circulation in most Malaysian papers such as Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times, The Star and Beritan Harian.

He also criticized ‘racist’ editors from Utusan Malaysia for flaming racial tensions and sentiments in Malaysia, leading to a 5.9 percent drop in its readership.

The Utusan group was founded in Singapore in 1939 by Singapore’s first President Yusok Ishak and a group of Malay intellectuals. Utusan Malaysia’s daily circulation has declined by nearly half from 350,000 ten years ago to only 170,000 now.

The proliferation of alternative news sites in Malaysia is fast eroding the readership and profitability of the Malaysian media which has often been decried as ‘propaganda mouthpieces’ of the Malaysian government.

Since 2008, the Malaysian new media has seen a dozen new players entering the scene such as The Malaysian Insider, The Malaysian Chronicle and Free Malaysia Today.

Singapore also has an association of journalists which is a toothless organization with little power or authority to take action against errant ‘journalists’, most of whom are under the payroll of Singapore Press Holdings, headed by a former PAP deputy prime minister.

Read the interesting comments from the New Temasek Review HERE

HAPPY NEW YEAR of 2011

2010-12-31T20:22:00.003+08:00

This video is Specially Dedicated to all my fellow Malaysians and May this New Year of 2011 Brings on Renewed Vigor and Courage to Continue the Dream that we have Dreamt of a New Malaysia!

THERE IS ANOTHER VERY POWERFUL AND BEAUTIFUL VERSION OF THIS MUST WATCH VIDEO, PLEASE GO HERE

What a Bum!

2010-12-30T02:32:00.001+08:00

What a Bum!

Ego has always been the problem of mankind and somewhere it was written that EGO means to Edge God Out. What amaze me are those that call themselves man of god or visit the sacred places of worship on a ritualistic manner are sometimes the ones with the biggest Ego and recently this super Ego Malaysian has shown all his devilish traits in public either looking for attention or he thinks he is second only to God as in this Christmas greetings he wrote himself, this is what he wrote: “If thou be at peace, then God is wit thee, If there is some worry, WORRY NOT, Desi is wit Thee”.

Isn’t he putting himself second to God or even greater than God as shown in his trying to be poetic Christmas greetings which is full of super inflated Ego, he is telling you if you have worries don’t worry he is here to be your saviour! My God! He is just second to God as if God can’t help you Desi will and can! You can read the rest of his super Ego Christmas greeting which is an insult to this holy and sacred occasion HERE.

Who uses a name meaning to be of “Desire” sounding like the title for some porno movie and gets his angry, out of topic messages that promote hatred and flawed principles of righteousness that is regularly featured in an online internet news site thus degrading the site which otherwise in my opinion has quite an efficient reporting of the local political news.

He promotes flawed righteousness by questioning the right of those who does not agree to his views, he preaches democracy yet vile slander those that differ from his flimsy stand and narrow views. He questions the right to questions as in his writing published by the Malaysian Chronic “Who Art Thou” when some of us supported Nurul Izzah for the PKR election contest.

"Desire" asks “are these bloggers even card carrying members of the party?” And this clearly shows his narrow views of politics where others who are not members are not to question his party which is PKR as he declared that he is a card carrying member since 2005 and thus others who are not members have no right to question, Damn! Even umno dare not make such infantile statements like this, Look Mr.Desire, let me educate you for free and if you are a political party than you belong to the people of which you expound to serve and the people need not show you their membership card in order to question you idiotic whimsical politician who has shown not any elementary wisdom of being in politics.

How dare you question us the people of our principles in your distorted writings, how dare you who think yourself a politician goes about with your vile slander which only reflect the way you think as there is an old Chinese proverb that says “you view others as in how you would view yourself”.

Vile slanders of others in his recent writing title "Mercenaries Wanted - Reward a Huge Prize" and the article as carried by the Malaysian Chronic is lowest you can get from someone who claims to be a politician as in a card carrying member of PKR. With a member like this, PKR needs no enemies and you will always notice that PKR seems to have knack for getting such good quality members, Well Done! PKR for having another fine exemplary member in YL Chong and running such a inveterate media site.

His views are narrow as he thinks that others who express political views must only join his party than they are right and have the right to be political. His vile slanders of others are a cheap shot for fame and fortune, and we have heard enough of his bragging about being the Chairman of BUM of which he can continue to sit as chair fittingly for life because nobody wants it and that most of us don’t even attend any of his BUM events. Rightly and fittingly Desire is the chairman of BUM. What a Bum!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2010-12-23T19:38:00.001+08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
MAY YOUR HOLIDAYS BE FILLED WITH HAPPINESS AND LAUGHTER!

Malaysia - Highest Rate of Road Fatalities in SEA

2010-12-21T02:25:00.002+08:00

Tour Bus Crash Kills 28

Malaysia has the highest rate of road traffic fatalities in Southeast Asia, with 23.6 deaths per 100 thousand people.

Higher traffic accident deaths than Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Phillipines and etc.

Malaysian Roads are a Killer! Please Drive Carefully!
Read AlJazeera HERE

Haris Ibrahim - The Rakyat is the Third Force

2010-12-20T23:44:00.002+08:00

Rakyat is the Third Force

Empowering the Rakyat

Haris Ibrahim on MCLM Part II & Part III

2010-12-19T22:18:00.000+08:00

PART II

PART III

PART I HERE

MCLM a Radical Revolution

2010-12-18T00:32:00.007+08:00

MCLM a Radical Revolution

MCLM is generating a lot of hype from both sides of the political divide, the movement was launched by RPK recently and funded by overseas Malaysians from London, draws similarity to the time of Sun Yat Sen the Chinese Revolutionary Leader and the founding father of the Republic of China and also known as the Father of Modern China who succeeded in overthrowing the all-powerful evil Imperial rule of the Ching dynasty in 1911.

Sun Yat Sen like RPK was in self-exile for fear of being incarcerated by the Imperial army, Sun made the Island of Penang in Malaya one of his base and raised millions from Overseas Chinese all over the world, Sun travelled as far as to the Hawaii and to San Francisco and even up north to Canada rallying support and funds. Sun Yat Sen survived an assassination attempt and was rescued through the British Foreign Office, becoming a Hero whilst in London.

Sun's foresight in tapping the help and resources of the overseas Chinese population was to bear fruit on his subsequent revolutionary efforts. In one particular instance, his personal plea for financial aid at the Penang Conference held on 13 November 1910 in Malaya, helped launch a major drive for donations across the Malay Peninsula, an effort which helped finance the Second Guangzhou Uprising in 1911.

The role that overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia played during the 1911 Revolution was so significant that Sun recognized "Overseas Chinese as the Mother of the Revolution".

In Penang, Malaysia, the Penang Philomatic Union which was founded by Sun, their premise at 65 Macalister Road has been preserved as the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Museum.

Sun Yat Sen was all over the world and travelled even to India,the old Chinatown in Calcutta, India has a prominent street by the name of Sun Yat Sen Street.

Mind you that Sun Yat Sen travelled the world in the early 19th Century where the mode of transport was by Sea and any trip overseas was slow, lengthy taking much time and effort. Sun was driven by sheer determination to see reform and greater freedom for the distressed and oppressed people of China under the evil Ching rule.

Sun Yat Sen was driven by the political philosophy known as the Three Principles of the People which is Nationalism, Democracy and People’s Economic Livelihood. Sun was a true Reformist who sought to transform China and fought against autocracy and oppression of the powerful Ching empire.

Sun Yat Sen formed his initial reform movement in Honolulu and later joined forces with "Huang Xing" (like Haris Ibrahim) a rebel leader based in Guangzhou to formed the "Revolutionary Alliance" in Tokyo in the year of 1905 which brought together several smaller groups under this umbrella that staged the Guangzhou uprising against the Imperial Army.

Sun is credited for the funding of the revolutions and for keeping the spirit of revolution alive, even after a series of failed uprisings. He successfully merged minor revolutionary groups to a single larger movement, providing a better base for all those who shared the same ideals.

So RPK, “Carpe Deim”, Seize the Day! There is no better place to be than in London, one of the greater capitals of the free world and from where you can reach out rallying support to your cause of Reform and a greater Democracy. Through the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement, the radical platform is established to champion the struggle against the shackles of dirty politics and corrupt practices impoverishing your people and country.

So Rise O’ Prince of the Central Plains, be resolute and ponder no more as your destiny awaits while your people calls out in the silence of bitter darkness that has shrouded your land causing much hardship and sufferings. For as you make your determined stand the tide shall rise to cleanse your land and the people shall rejoice in a new found freedom and prosperity will once again be upon the fertile soil.

MCLM Website HERE

Haris Ibrahim on the MCLM

2010-12-16T22:21:00.000+08:00

Check the MCLM Website HERE

Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement - Public Forum

2010-12-14T02:22:00.001+08:00

MCLM First KL Public Forum

Date : 21st December, 2010 (Tuesday)

Time : 7.30pm

Venue : First Floor, KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall.

Speakers :

1. Haris Ibrahim

2. Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

3. Andrew Yong (Malaysian Overseas Votes)

4. The second independent candidate

MCLM Website HERE

Malaysia Practiced Widespread Torture

2010-12-08T01:33:00.011+08:00

"The Malaysian government does not punish officers for their actions. Instead, it trains officers how to conduct caning and pays them a bonus for each stroke. Many double their income through their caning work. Others take bribes to intentionally miss, sparing their victims"
- Amnesty International -

Video Warning: Viewer Discretion Required

Malaysia: Torture practiced systematically in widespread caning

The Malaysian government must immediately end the practice of judicial caning, which subjects thousands of people each year to systematic torture and ill-treatment, leaving them with permanent physical and psychological scars, Amnesty International said today in a new report.

A Blow to Humanity provides an in-depth look at Malaysian caning, which leaves victims, including many foreigners seeking asylum, with little recourse, support or hope. Many have no understanding of the charges or fate that awaits them.

“Caning in Malaysia has hit epidemic proportions,” said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director. “In every case that we examined, the punishment amounted to torture, which is absolutely prohibited under any circumstances.”

In recent years, Malaysia has increased the number of penal offenses subject to caning to more than 60. Since 2002, when Parliament made immigration violations such as illegal entry subject to caning, tens of thousands of refugees and migrant workers have been caned.

In Malaysian prisons specially trained caning officers tear into victims’ bodies with a metre-long cane swung with both hands at high speed. The cane rips into the victim’s naked skin, pulps the fatty tissue below, and leaves scars that extend to muscle fibre. The pain is so severe that victims often lose consciousness.

The Malaysian government does not punish officers for their actions. Instead, it trains officers how to conduct caning and pays them a bonus for each stroke. Many double their income through their caning work. Others take bribes to intentionally miss, sparing their victims.

State-employed doctors also play an integral role in caning. They examine victims and certify their fitness to be caned. When victims lose consciousness during caning, they revive them so the punishment can continue. After caning, some victims suffer long-term physical disabilities.

“The role that Malaysian doctors play in facilitating deliberate pain and injury through caning is absolutely contrary to international medical ethics,” said Sam Zarifi. “Instead of treating the victims, doctors are assisting in their torture and ill-treatment.”

Malaysian officials and state employees who are complicit in torture are liable to prosecution worldwide under universal jurisdiction for grave human rights crimes such as these, Amnesty International said.

Judicial caning was originally imposed under British colonial rule in the 19th century. Under international law, all judicial corporal punishment constitutes torture or other ill-treatment, which is prohibited in all circumstances.

Refugees who fled torture and forced labour in Myanmar told Amnesty International how Malaysia (which does not recognize refugees) caned them for immigration violations, sometimes repeatedly. In Indonesia, Amnesty International met migrant workers deported by boat from Malaysia; 63 of the men had been caned.

“Neighbouring countries significantly contribute to Malaysia’s economy by sending tens of thousands of migrant workers,” said Sam Zarifi. “Indonesia and other migrant-sending countries should insist that Malaysia stop caning their citizens.”

Amnesty International called on the Malaysian government to:
• Enact immediately a moratorium on caning punishment in all cases, with a view to its abolition;
• Ratify the UN Convention Against Torture and its Optional Protocol, as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
• Amend legislation to treat immigration violations as administrative offences rather than crimes punishable by prison or corporal punishment.

Read the Amnesty International Full Report "A Blow To Humanity" HERE

Donald Duck the Debt - Malaysian National Debt

2010-12-06T20:43:00.006+08:00

Click to Expand

The amusing argument in Parliament from the Deputy Finance Minister, Donald ~~Duck~~ Lim who had given inconsistent figures when replying to questions from Fong Kui Lun, the MP for Bukit Bintang over the National Debt.

The national debt, also known as federal government debt or central government debt is the sum total of debt owed by the government that includes domestic or foreign borrowing either in the local denominated or foreign denominated currency in totality.

The government borrows through the issuing of securities and bonds or known as (MGS) Malaysian Government Securities or Malaysian Government Bonds or Malaysia Treasury Bills either in local Ringgit or in foreign currency.

The Bank Negara report released on 30th November 2010 as in pic above shows a central government debt of RM 397,846 Billion as at the Third Quarter of 2010. The GDP as at the third quarter is a t RM 560,988 billion. If we were to equate the debt as per third quarter GDP it will work out to approximately 71% of debt to the GDP.

The nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices is at RM 679,687 Billion for year 2009 and projected at approximately RM 725,000 billion for year 2010. The debt is estimated to be over RM 420,000 billion by end of 2010 equating to about 58% or more of debt over GDP for year 2010.

For purpose of general comparison for year 2009 estimates the country of Ireland has a debt of 57.7 % of GDP, Spain has a debt of 53.2 % of GDP, Portugal at 76.9 % of GDP, Greece was at 126.8 % of GDP, Italy at 115.2 % of GDP and Iceland was at 107.6 %.

Malaysia has been consistently generating a fiscal deficit and the deficit for year 2009 is at 7.4 % and at 5.6 % of GDP for this year of 2010. The primary reason for this huge fiscal deficit is that spending has exceeded revenue. Although federal government revenues have increased since 1957 by approximately 3 per cent per annum, this spectacular rise in revenue has been exceeded by an even more spectacular rise in expenditure, which reached a colossal RM220 billion in 2009.

Report from Malaysia Chronicle HERE.

Unity Dance - The First Lady

2010-12-06T17:17:00.001+08:00

Unity Dance

Dancing should be viewed as an art which can unite and promote unity and teamwork among people, said the first lady Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor.

According to her, dances were often performed in groups and this required coordination between team members.

"Dancing also keeps people fit as it is a form of exercise that involves the movement of limbs," said Rosmah in her speech at the opening of Tarian Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia Tourism Carnival at Dataran Merdeka yesterday.

Rosmah added that dancing was also an important product of tourism as it helped to promote Malaysia's diverse tradition and culture.

The Tarian Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia Tourism Carnival showcased dances, accompanied by the Malaysia Truly Asia tune, from six ethnic groups -- Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan, Iban and Orang Asli, who performed the Sewang dance.

Organised by the Tourism Ministry, the Tarian Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia Tourism Carnival also succeeded in entering the Malaysia Book of Records for the second consecutive year.

The event successfully gathered 15,333 participants to perform in different dances. Last year, the carnival managed to attract 12,000 participants.

Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen was present at the event.

Rosmah: Dance to the tune of unity as reported by: http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/08dace/Article/#ixzz17JyA0u00

Selangor Water Protest Videos

2010-12-05T17:53:00.003+08:00

Part I

Part II

Malaysiakini Video

Watch ChanelNewsAsia video HERE

Watch Chanel News Asia Live Streaming Report at 7pm HERE

UN Report Grim Outlook For Global Economy in 2011

2010-12-02T20:17:00.002+08:00

Click Chart For China Bubble Report from Bloomberg

UN Report Grim Outlook For Global Economy in 2011

The recovery from the global economic crisis has been faced with setbacks since the middle of 2010 and the outlook for growth in 2011 remains grim, stated a new UN report pre-released Wednesday.

The annual UN report titled the "World Economic Situation and Prospects 2011 (WESP)" pointed to high unemployment rates, fiscal tightening and the risk of global currency wars as the primary threats to global economic recovery. The full report will be released in 2011.

According to UN expectations, the world economy will expand by 3.1 percent in 2011 and 3.5 percent in 2012 -- well below the figures needed to recover the jobs lost during the economic crisis.

Rob Vos, director of the development policy and analysis division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) , told reporters here that "we are not out of the woods yet and greater risks are looming."

DOWNSIDE RISKS

Recent tensions over currency and trade, a weakening dollar, and exchange rate volatility have all contributed to an uncertain forecast for 2011 and 2012. "We foresee many downside risks in the next two years," said Vos.

Countries have already begun to enact defensive monetary measures to keep capital flowing into their economies. "There is still much more finger pointing," than concrete policies, said Vos.

As the major economies of Europe, Japan and the United States continue to pursue uncoordinated monetary policies, turbulence and uncertainty in global financial markets will persist.

"Failure to arrive at more coordinated policy responses aimed at a more benign global rebalancing will put the process of economic recovery and the stability of financial markets at further risk," notes the report.

Meanwhile, the WESP report highlights high unemployment worldwide as "the Achilles heel for the recovery."

The global economy will need to generate around 22 million new jobs in order to get to pre-crisis employment levels, said Vos.

POLICY CHALLENGES

In order to avoid further stagnation in the global economic recovery and a "double dip recession," world leaders will need to confront major policy challenges, said Vos.

The report outlines five major challenges facing policy makers, including: providing additional fiscal stimulus, redesigning policies geared towards job growth, finding greater synergy between fiscal and monetary stimulus, ensuring the availability of development finance, and coordinating policies among major economies.

Such challenges are monumental, particularly in an atmosphere where fears of additional stimulus run high as it would add to the deficits of major countries.

However, "what we are most worried about," said Vos, "is that without further stimulus the recovery will further slow down."