Umno brazenly clinging to old political ways

Asia Times Online :: Southeast Asia news and business from Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam

..Yet since its stinging electoral setback, where the party lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority but still won the most votes, UMNO has brazenly clung to its old political ways, banning activist groups, jailing dissenters, stoking ethno-nationalism, and failing to tackle corruption within its ranks. Critical websites and opposition politicians contend that UMNO is a senescent party, crumbling under the weight of its own arrogance and myopia.

But UMNO’s reform credentials are not the best indication of whether the long-ruling party can sustain its grip on power. In recent months UMNO has in fact been met with less resistance than one might expect from a nation that is supposedly going through a socio-political paradigm shift towards more democracy and government accountability.

Online media have become a resonant sounding board for the disgruntled and may sway voters at the next general election, as Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi publicly admitted it had to UMNO’s detriment this past March. But in reality calls to resistance have not moved much beyond the Internet, although at least one prominent and critical blogger, Jeff Ooi, was elected to office under an opposition banner.

More broadly, online dissent has not generated a formidable people movement like those seen in neighboring Indonesia and Thailand, which ultimately brought the seemingly indestructible Suharto and Thaksin Shinawatra governments to their knees. There is a growing sense that the typically apolitical public here has become self-satisfied after having voted against the ruling government in March – as if reform is a one-off affair.

This would put the job of reform primarily in the hands of Malaysia’s tiny pre-existing activist community and the loose coalition of opposition parties known as Pakatan Rakyat (PR). Activist groups in Malaysia have had only limited success in checking official abuse over the years. And to date the PR has yet to put forth clear and comprehensive reform proposals to match its calls for greater plurality, democracy and competitiveness.

Even if it did, the opposition coalition still has a limited capacity to counter the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which through its parliamentary simple majority maintains the power to pass and preserve legislation. That sense of weakness was seen in Anwar’s so far failed ambition to entice 30 parliamentarians to defect from the BN, which would have allowed him to form a new government. He had earlier vowed to deliver that takeover by September 16 and has since said he is “not in a terrible hurry” to topple the government.

Status quo defender
His takeover dreams may prove even harder to execute now that the embattled Abdullah has agreed to cede power to his deputy Najib Razak by March 2009. Najib recently earned the UMNO presidency uncontested, showing signs that he may have what it takes to unify the fractured party.

UMNO stalwarts may have also felt the need to unify due to fears that an opposition takeover would open the books on the party’s legacy of corruption. Despite low public support due to suspicions that he is a Machiavellian protector of the status quo and his alleged involvement in a number of scandals, most Malaysians have thus far grudgingly accepted Najib’s de facto appointment to the premiership.

Many Malaysians are under the impression that Najib couldn’t possibly govern worse than Abdullah and that he might spur a new surge of economic development that would woo lost voters back into the BN fold. There is also a sense among the majority Malays that he is a staunch defender of the race, which could move them to look past some of the controversies that surround his character, including questions about his alleged association with the brutal murder of a Mongolian interpreter in 2006.

Others argue that race-based politics that favor ethnic Malays over minority Chinese and Indians have lost their past cachet, as it becomes clearer to a growing number of Malaysians the practice has stunted economic and social development. UMNO under Najib is likely to test that theory and the veteran politician would be wise to do so. Beneath Malaysians’ calls for a more multiracial approach, racial resentments still run deep.

That is, UMNO’s race-based approach may not be as moribund as some have supposed. And UMNO has historically played the race card effectively through its firm control of the media, judiciary and finances. To be sure, greater oppositional representation in parliament means that grip is being tested. But as the recent arrests under the Internal Security Act of an opposition politician, journalist and prominent oppositional blogger attest, UMNO-led Malaysia is still under repressive rule.

And it’s a nation still very much split along racial lines – more so in fact than any time in recent memory, with ethnic Malays fearing how the multicultural approach now championed by Anwar’s People’s Justice Party will impact their livelihoods and the other races more loudly objecting to entrenched inequality.

The government’s ban on the Hindu Rights Action Force in October was met with very little backlash from the opposition, even though the hardline activist group played a pivotal role in the opposition’s success among ethnic Indian voters in March. An UMNO representative, by contrast, walked away with a mere slap on the wrist after being quoted in the press calling Malaysia’s ethnic-Chinese community power hungry “squatters”. See Sinophobia smolders in Malaysia
[Oct 1].

UMNO’s hunger to maintain power has led the party in recent months to other desperate measures, including, among other things, accusing Anwar of sodomizing one of his former aides. Such antics could cost the party, as many have predicted, or rather demonstrate that UMNO still has the power to get away with such heavy-handedness. Much will depend on whether the opposition and its supporters move past merely proclaiming and through actions demonstrate that the March elections signified an imminent socio-political power shift.

Read:

Umno politicians polarizing society to score political mileage

Zaid urges Malays to be wary of leaders who use the name of Malays for political mileage

Dr. Mahathir disgusted that Umno cannot control racism, says Ahmad Ismail should face disciplinary committee

Barisan Nasional government has done poorly in fulfilling Malaysia’s Independence proclamation

Umno – money politics reach worrying levels

Umno conservatives stalling reforms

Umno hegemony is under threat, Malays are not under threat

Umno is a nest of conspirators

Umno lacks intellectual capability, courage, energy to lead

Umno on the way down

Umno rife with corruption

Umno’s formula – turn everything racial

Umno’s day is over until it learns to respect Malaysian people with more dignity

Umno bastardised the Malaysian spirit

Razak Baginda just knows that Najib and wife have never met Altantuya

Altantuya never met Najib

‘I implore all of you and the public to stop spreading lies about the DPM and his wife. I know that Datuk Seri Najib and his wife had never met the deceased, Altantuya,’ said Mr Abdul Razak yesterday.

…
Asked how he knew that Mr Najib had never met Ms Altantuya, he simply smiled and said: ‘I know…I just know.’

…
Immediate online reactions yesterday were sceptical, with one reader on Raja Petra’s website saying: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, you’ve just read the joke of the day. Next joke, please.’

Umno politicians urged not to spew partisan statements that polarizes society to score political mileage

Sun2Surf

Mohd Ali is alleged to have said that “Umno must take control of the government to ensure Umno policies, especially the New Economic Policy (NEP), are being implemented effectively at all levels across the nation”.

Lee said: “Ali must bear in mind that Umno is not the sole party in the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition government. All other BN component parties also contributed to BN’s success in forming the federal government after each of the 12 general elections.

“It is irresponsible and myopic of Ali to deny the efforts of all other BN component parties in successively forming the Cabinet since 1957.”

Lee added that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had on various occasions said many discussions and considerations of views of all BN parties had taken place in cabinet meetings.

“Ali has painted a misrepresentation of the NEP’s objectives. It should always be remembered that the NEP was formulated to eradicate poverty irrespective of race, and to remove the economic identity with race. The NEP was never intended to be misused as a zero-sum game where in order for one race to move forward, it may only be done so at the expense of another,” said Lee.

He also voiced his disappointment that a few politicians had resorted to political posturing in the run-up to the March Umno elections.

“Politicians and public figures should refrain from spewing partisan statements with racial connotations that polarises society to score political mileage. They should recognise that we are all Malaysian citizens and channel their energies in jointly developing the nation, instead of uttering remarks that smack of superiority and dominance over others,” he added.

Read:

Zaid urges Malays to be wary of leaders who use the name of Malays for political mileage

Dr. Mahathir disgusted that Umno cannot control racism, says Ahmad Ismail should face disciplinary committee

Barisan Nasional government has done poorly in fulfilling Malaysia’s Independence proclamation

Umno – money politics reach worrying levels

Umno conservatives stalling reforms

Umno hegemony is under threat, Malays are not under threat

Umno is a nest of conspirators

Umno lacks intellectual capability, courage, energy to lead

Umno on the way down

Umno rife with corruption

Umno’s formula – turn everything racial

Umno’s day is over until it learns to respect Malaysian people with more dignity

Umno bastardised the Malaysian spirit

APs given to companies linked to Rafidah

Sun2Surf

Azmin Ali (PKR-Gombak) named two companies allegedly connected to former International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz (BN-Kuala Kangsar) which had been issued with Approved Permits (AP) but did not even have a showroom.

He said one of the companies Autostadt Sdn Bhd belonged to the husband of Rafidah’s niece was also issued with franchise APs after the government decided to stop its issuance in 2005.

“After 2005, the then MITI secretary-general Tan Sri Sidek Hassan had approved the issue of franchise APs to Autostadt for the import of Volkswagen cars. He did it without the knowledge of the committee formed specifically for the purpose of issuing APs.

“What is more disturbing is that Autostadt to this day has no showroom or sales and service centre which is a condition for the issuance of such franchise AP,” he said when seeking clarification from Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan who was winding-up his ministry debate at the committee stage of Budget 2009 in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Azmin alleged that another company connected to Rafidah’s relative, Amira Venture Sdn Bhd, had been issued open APs (to bring in any type of car) over two years.

Without giving the names of the company directors or saying how they were related to Rafidah, he said Amira Venture received 150 APs last year and 225 this year.

“How were they issued with APs? The issuance of APs must be done transparently and fairly. But companies related to ministers are making billions of money out of it,” he said, adding the AP has become a “centre of cronyism” for those in power.

He said the APs were issued to a few people while the others have to buy it at about RM50,000 each.

He gave an example whereby 77 companies had been issued with 45,686 permits from 2004 to 2007 but they were not fairly distributed.

“On the average, all 77 should each receive 600 APs. If each AP was at RM50,000, each company would gain cash returns of RM30 million without having to take any risks. But that is not the case too.

“Some like Naza Konsortium Sdn Bhd were given 8,431 permits from 2004 to 2006. So, it would stand to make RM424 million without even having to bring in a single vehicle,” Azmin added.

Raja Nazrin emphasizes community building

Sun2Surf

Mankind is failing badly at creating a sense of community and is instead allowing race, culture and religion to dominate discourse, Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah said today. 

“When we think of social fragmentation as good rather than bad, something is awfully wrong. Our moral gyroscopes have gone completely awry. If we continue on the present path, great dangers lie ahead,” he said in his speech at the Diversity Matters Forum on Diasporas in the Commonwealth held at Monash University, Sunway Campus here.

Raja Nazrin cautioned against falling into a “new and destructive form of modern day tribalism”.
“Cultures can co-operate as much as clash. We need to reclaim religion from those who would distort its truths. We must reject radicalism and extremism of all types. If there is someone in my society who is hungry, or unemployed or sick and cannot afford treatment, then it diminishes me even if he is of a different race or religion,” he said.

Read:

Zaid urges Malays to be wary of leaders who use the name of Malays for political mileage

Dr. Mahathir disgusted that Umno cannot control racism, says Ahmad Ismail should face disciplinary committee

Barisan Nasional government has done poorly in fulfilling Malaysia’s Independence proclamation

Umno Politicians Urged Not To Spew Partisan Statements That Polarizes Society To Score Political Mileage

Umno – money politics reach worrying levels

Umno conservatives stalling reforms

Umno hegemony is under threat, Malays are not under threat

Umno is a nest of conspirators

Umno lacks intellectual capability, courage, energy to lead

Umno on the way down

Umno rife with corruption

Umno’s formula – turn everything racial

Umno’s day is over until it learns to respect Malaysian people with more dignity

Umno bastardised the Malaysian spirit

 

Pempena chairman Chew Mei Fun non-committal on punishing Pempena culprits

Sun2Surf

Pempena Sdn Bhd executive chairman Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun vowed that action will be taken for the millions in losses in the Tourism Ministry subsidiary but was non-committal when asked if those responsible will be held accountable.

She also refused to give a direct answer when asked if the law will catch up with the perpetrators of fraud which cost the company RM50 million in bad investments and suspect decisions.

“I don’t have to answer you now as to the status of our investigations, but I assure you we are taking action to rectify whatever had happened before (our time),” she told a press conference at the company’s office in Menara Dato Onn today.

She said her team, which was poring over the audit report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), which among others revealed that as of June, Pempena had invested RM54.4 million in 24 companies, with only four profitable.

“We are also looking at the internal audit and will do the needful,” she said, adding that this included lodging police reports.

The internal audit report outlines how certain company officials had altered the minutes of board meetings; advanced monies without contracts and dodgy investments.

On a report lodged by member of parliament Lim Kit Siang at the Dang Wangi police station today, Chew said Pempena was open to cooperating with the police.

Questioned on some of these investments and decisions not to recoup losses, she retorted: “We won’t answer for what happened before us.“

…
Addressing Lim’s allegations, she said Pempena’s staffing of 57 workers had followed procedures.

Asked how those who had applied for research officers in the minister’s office had instead been appointed as directors and general managers, Chew replied: “It is up to the company to give them a job that we feel fits them. Is there anything wrong?“

Syed Hamid, an Umno ‘division leader’ (members say they have very strong reasons to reject him)

Revolt against the outsider

THE commotion that marred the Kota Tinggi Umno division meeting last month was certainly no storm in a teacup. 

It could be an indication of worse things to come for its division leader of 18 years, Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar.

Although the Home Minister was returned unopposed amid protests and walkouts, he is now facing a revolt within its ranks.

There is now an open attempt to undermine and boycott his leadership in the division and the revolt is being led by none other than his deputy Rasman Ithnain.

…

The Youth and Puteri chiefs are behind Syed Hamid but as things stand, he is nothing more than a general without lieutenants.

When met recently, Syed Hamid said: “They should learn to respect their leader.

“I have never had any problems with them before and I do not understand why they are treating me this way.

“Their complaints against me are all a matter of perception. As a leader, I have never tried to impose my decision on them.

“Everything is decided collectively and everyone knows that I am always cooperative.”

The tension between Syed Hamid and Rasman’s group is not new but it reached breaking point when several of those aligned with the group were suspended for money politics a month before the division polls.

One of those suspended was a powerful local figure Daeng Malik A. Rahman who had received more nominations from the 46 branches than Syed Hamid to contest the division leadership.

Daeng Malik is said to be the real force behind the rebels.

Syed Hamid’s main problem is that besides being regarded as an “outsider” — he is from the Bukit Bintang division — is his age. He is 64.

Those opposed to him tried to finish him off in 2004 by fielding Rosleli Jahari against him but he survived by a small margin.

To pacify the force against him, he won over Rosleli by making him his press secretary and division secretary and announced that he would not seek re-election in the coming term.

When reminded of his promise, he had said, “that was just political talk.” Rasman’s group also claimed that the last straw was the Johor floods two years ago.

They claimed Syed Hamid was nowhere in sight the first week of the catastrophe and only showed up the day the Prime Minister visited the area.

According to Rasman, who is Sedili assemblyman, many families in his area were still surviving on basics.

“Yet our division chief of so many years is a senior minister,” he said.

He said he hoped people would not see them as trouble-makers.

“We are not stupid to reject a leader who is a Cabinet member unless we have very strong reasons to do so,” he said.

…
Syed Hamid said: “If they still want to go ahead with their plan and are not willing to work with me, what can I say? Just do it then.

“But I want to remind them that we have constitution, do not resort to the law of the jungle.”

Syed Hamid said he was disappointed but insisted that “it is nothing serious.” Still, no general can fight without his lieutenants alongside him.

And, with his eye on the vice-president post in March, even the frivolous can become serious.

Being dismissive may cost him some votes.

He may have to find some middle ground with the rebel group before things really get out of hand.

Read:
Umno Conservatives Stalling Reforms

Khir Toyo must be held accountable for Zakaria scandal

Sun2Surf

Now that Mohamad Khir has issued the challenge, here are a few questions for him:

»
How and why did he as the head of the government, alienate a piece of land (meant for low-cost housing) to Zakaria’s wife at such a low premium? If that piece of land was to be alienated, shouldn’t every citizen be entitled to land at such discounted prices? Was she one of those hard-core poor who are entitled to land or was it a case of “whom you know and whom you ask”?

»
Why was the full force of the law not used against Zakaria for failing to submit plans before construction began? There have been instances when others were charged in court. He got away with only a compound fine. (Does this mean he did not break the law?)

»
Why was no action taken against Zakaria by sealing and auctioning his property for failing to pay assessments for 12 years? He just paid a penalty on top of the outstanding balance. In many cases, failing to pay for a year sends enforcement officers scurrying with their paraphernalia to seal the premises. (If no law was broken, why pay a penalty?)

»
Why was no action taken against him first for building an illegal restaurant on state land, and secondly, getting the council to demolish the stall belonging to his competitor?

»
Why was no action taken against the president and officials of the Klang Municipal Council for dereliction of duty for not taking action against all the offences committed by Zakaria?

These days Mohamad Khir can sit in his air-conditioned office and throw stones, but when you live in a glass house, it is dangerous. The backlash can be disastrous. The simple answer to your challenge is: All these happened under your watch. You practised double standards to protect your political cronies; you refused to allow the law to take its course and to put it bluntly, you tutup dua mata to all the rape, plunder and pillage that was going on, while at the same time having the gall to say that “semuanya OK!”

Does Umno have the political will to correct the education system they ruined ?

Umno men can change system

Our Prime Minister-in-waiting Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak studied at St Johns and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah studied at Tunku Kushiah College.

Both benefited from English schools and understand the commercial and intellectual values of a solid English education.

In this country, the real power resides in Umno delegates.

Only Umno delegates can give political will to the Education Minister to make drastic changes in the education system.

All they have to do is to pass a resolution calling on the Government to reintroduce English medium schools.

With consensus, the resolution will then be tabled at the Umno Supreme Council which will endorse it for recommendation to the Government.

And who is the Government? It is the same people in Umno who hold government posts.

It will be debated in Parliament where getting it through will not be a problem except for objection by a few opportunists.

The majority of us want the Government to reintroduce English medium schools while retaining vernacular schools.

It is the duty of any government to give the option to the majority and not the minority.

If the the minority want their children to study in vernacular schools, then they should not deny others from studying in English medium schools.

Chun Wai mention 60,000 unemployed graduates because “…many are unable to express themselves, because of poor communications skills (in English) thus limiting their job options…”.

I agree. Look at those Indian-subcontinent graduates who have no problem getting jobs at the United Nations or any UN agencies or in other English speaking countries because they come from an English medium education system.

…
Let’s face reality. Bahasa Malaysia cannot help our students to be competitive in the job market either locally or otherwise.

The fact that they are handicapped in English contribute to their low self-esteem and misery.

And when they work they have a tough time polishing their English so as not to look like fools in the eyes of their bosses, colleagues and foreign executives.

…
The syllabus of an International School covers world history, geography and English literature.

Their approach is one of acquiring knowledge and creativity whereas our Sekolah Kebangsaan is one of spoon-feeding, rote learning and getting a string of A’s but not knowledge.

…
It is a pity. Once upon a time the poor could study at government English schools.

Today only the rich can send their children to International Schools.

HASSAN TALIB,

Gombak, Selangor.

Khir Toyo pronounces PKNS RM100,000 payout to him ‘halal’

Khir: PKNS payout ‘halal’

Former Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo has confirmed receiving RM100,000 from the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS), describing the payment as halal (legitimate) income.