Conversion row: Mother gets custody

Conversion case goes to Federal Court

By Melissa Loovi

PUTRAJAYA, April 28 — In an attempt to resolve yet another high-profile conversion case, the Court of Appeal here decided to refer five Constitutional questions to the Federal Court.

In November 2002, Dr M. Jeyaganesh embraced Islam. A few days later, he converted his two sons Saktiswaran and Theisviswaran without their mother’s knowledge.

Shamala, a Hindu woman, had taken Dr Jeyaganesh to the High Court for custody of their children in December that same year.

Meanwhile, Dr Jeyaganesh who is now known as Muhammad Ridzwan Mogarajah had also filed for custody but in the Syariah Court. He was granted custody a month later.

After multiple lawsuits and counter-suits, both parties finally agreed to put their case before the Court of Appeal.

Today, the three-man bench led by Datuk Zulkifli Ahmad Makinuddin made the decision under Article 128(2) of the Federal Constitution.

The five questions, drafted by the two counsels for Shamala and Dr Muhammad Ridzwan, together with input from the bench, are as follows:

1.Whether Section 95(b) of the Administration of Islamic Law (Federal Territories) Act 1993 (Act 505) is ultra vires Article 12 (4) and Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, read in their proper context?

2. Whether Section 95(b) of the Administration of Islamic Law (Federal Territories) Act 1993 (Act 505), as State law, is by reason of Article 75 of the Federal Constitution, inconsistent with a Federal law, namely, Section 5(1) of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1961 (as amended) and is therefore invalid?

3. In the context of Article 121(1A) of the Federal Constitution, where a custody order is made by the Syariah Court or the High Court, on the basis that it has jurisdiction to do so, whether there is jurisdiction for the other court to make a conflicting order ?

4. Where there has been a conversion of the children of a civil marriage into Islam by one parent without the consent of the other parent, whether the rights of remedy under Part II of the Federal Constitution of the non-Muslim parent is vested in the High Court?

5. Whether in the context of Articles 8, 11, 12(4) and 121(1A) of the Federal Constitution, the Syariah Court has exclusive jurisdiction to determine the validity of conversion of a minor into Islam once the minor has been registered by the Registrar of Muallafs (Majlis Agama Islam)?

Shamala was not present in court today and is believed to have left Malaysia with the two children in tow.

Dr Muhammad Ridzwan, an anaesthesiologist at a hospital in Kedah, was present in court. He appeared calm throughout the hearing.

“I have had zero contact with them for five years,” he told reporters later, adding that he missed his children terribly.

“Despite my best efforts to contact my family, it has led nowhere as all I know is, they are somewhere in Australia. The Australian High Commission will not co-operate with my lawyer’s appeal for information because there are privacy laws involved.

“I have no problems with joint-custody because I just want to be able to see my children,” he said.

“The affidavits clearly show that she is the one who left me and took the kids, not the other way around. I don’t even know if they are healthy, let alone what religion they are practicising but for me, I want us to find a compromise whereby I respect her faith and she respects mine and that is how we can raise the children,” he elaborated.

The 41 year-old went on to say that the children, who are now aged eight and nine, are old enough to decide for themselves whether they want to be Muslim or not even though legally they can only decide at 18 years of age.

“But there are many cases in Malaysia where a child is raised as both Buddhist and Christian because the parents are of different faiths and then the child eventually decides which religion is preferred,” he argued.

He said he agreed with the recent Cabinet policy directing children of Muslim converts to remain in their original religion until they can decide for themselves.

But he qualified that the decision must be fine-tuned so that it is “not just a blanket statement that doesn’t really resolve anything as it is not specific enough now.”

He admitted his practice had suffered as a result of this case, which has dragged on for more than seven years.

“This is a very difficult thing for me. What father can be happy without seeing his children for such a long time?” he asked.

Malaysia: Truly Asia?

http://tyglobalist.org/index.php/20090404189/Features/Malaysia-Truly-Asi...

A group fighting for Hindu rights in Malaysia has united some and alienated others.

Saturday, 04 April 2009 | Monish Shah

On November 25, 2007, an estimated 20,000 ethnically Indian Hindus gathered in the streets of Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, to protest against government discrimination. The backdrop of the state-owned Petronas Twin Towers, Malaysia’s foremost symbol of modernity and progress, served as a damning indictment of the faults that now divide Malaysian society.

When Malaysia (then Malaya), along with many other Southeast Asian countries, became independent in the 1950s, many political experts thought its tremendous racial and religious diversity made it a tinderbox, a potential “Balkans of the East.” Seeming to prove them wrong, Malaysia’s steady economic growth helped bring about prosperity that ensured at least a peaceful coexistence among the different ethnic groups. Malaysia’s story of prosperity and harmony, a model of similar trends across Asia, prompted an international tourism ad campaign with the tagline: “Malaysia: Truly Asia.”

Yet beneath that veneer, frustrations among the country’s Indian minority had been bubbling under the surface for decades before they were finally aired at the protest in November 2007. The unexpected intensity and broad support for the protests within the Hindu minority came as a rude shock to the Malay community and the ethnic Malay establishment that dominates the state and its institutions.

A group known as Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF) emerged as a major player behind the protests. Frustrated by the Malaysian government’s positive discrimination towards indigenous Malays, Waytha Moorthy, a lawyer by profession, founded HINDRAF soon after seeking counsel on the issue from Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin, the Malaysian king, in January 2006—but to no avail. The Malaysian government reacted to the protests, which were the culmination of HINDRAF’s efforts, by jailing Moorthy’s brother along with four other HINDRAF leaders, under a dated pre-independence law, the Internal Security Act.

Speaking to the Globalist, Waytha Moorthy, in exile in London, asserted that the jailings were illegal. “This act was illegally invoked under the guise of national security to silence the legitimate voice of democracy in Malaysia,” he said. Initially in self-imposed exile, Moorthy has now had his Malaysian passport revoked, making him, in his words, “de facto stateless.” He added that the five protest leaders are still being detained “without having been charged in open court, with no opportunity to defend themselves.” This is, according to Moorthy, an indictment of the independence and fairness of the Malaysian judiciary. But the Indian Hindus’ woes go back much further.

An Old “New” Policy

Since independence, Malaysia has had a partisan, race-based political system. The ruling coalition consists of the main Malay-Muslim party, United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), and parties representing the ethnic Chinese and Indian communities. The Malays, or Bumiputeras (sons of the soil), who were historically disadvantaged under colonialism, were accorded special entitlements under the benignly titled New Economic Policy, which gave them privileges in employment, education, and business. The policy was started in 1971 as a response to race riots on May 13, 1969, between the Malay and Chinese communities, a result of the Malays’ grievances regarding their poor economic conditions. The Chinese community has long held significant economic and financial power, mitigating the domination of political power by the Malays. But that arrangement left the Indian community feeling powerless and deeply frustrated.

In recent years, many Indians, who are mostly Hindu, have been aggrieved by a new perceived abuse: the destruction of Hindu temples. The Associated Press reported that eight temples were destroyed over three months from February to May 2006, ostensibly for occupying land illegally. HINDRAF claimed in a November 2007 letter to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown that a Hindu temple is destroyed every three weeks in Malaysia. The lack of accurate and unbiased news coverage in Malaysia makes the exact number of destroyed temples difficult to verify, but none deny that the pattern is real.

Moorthy joined forces with human rights organizations such as the Minority Rights Group International and Amnesty International to protest this situation. Aside from the ignominy and agony of seeing local temples destroyed, the Hindu community witnessed a Malaysian Hindu soldier, Maniam Moorthy (no relation to Waytha Moorthy), a national hero as a member of Malaysia’s first-ever expedition to Mount Everest, buried by the government as a Muslim. According to Waytha Moorthy, this highly controversial incident served as a catalyst to spark the formation of HINDRAF.

Though it has united Indians around its cause, HINDRAF may have further polarized Malaysian society by emboldening its opposition at the same time. Some Malays have taken umbrage at HINDRAF’s emergence, seeing it as an affront to the proper status quo as currently enshrined in Article 153 of the Federal Constitution: “It shall be the responsibility of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong [the King of Malaysia] to safeguard the special position of the Malays.”

In response to the rise of HINDRAF, Johan Saravanamuttu, a visiting fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore and an expert on Malaysian politics, said, “These incidents have put a greater emphasis on ethnicity in politics.” Also, he argued, greater racial emphasis accentuates the partisan climate in Malaysian politics: “These extravagant demands probably damaged the cause in the minds of many Malaysians by making HINDRAF look more extreme.”

But he stressed that most Malays empathized with the Indians’ demands, seeing them not so much as challenges to Malay hegemony but as expressions of frustration with Indian marginalization. Adriana Nordin Manan, a Malay researcher in politics and social sciences, said, “People across the ethnic spectrum are beginning to see the New Economic Policy as a policy that was good in the beginning but needs to be reviewed in order to benefit the poor from all the ethnic groups, the majority of whom are Malay to begin with.” She added, “I hope that Malaysia becomes a nation of people who regard themselves as citizens, where not everything is seen as a zero sum game between the ethnic groups.”

A Shift in Mindset

Indeed, HINDRAF may have sparked a national soul-searching exercise that has led many to rethink the structure of Malaysian society. Moorthy said of the socioeconomic policies in the country, “There has been a shift in mindset among all Malaysians.”

While Malaysia’s Indians remain a politically weak constituency unlikely to bring about broad political change in Malaysia’s partisan race-based political system, the election last March, which saw the incumbent political party lose votes in all communities, supported Moorthy’s idea. Saravanamuttu said, “The issues HINDRAF raised have resonated deeply across the board and made a palpable, real impact on the election results.” He cited analysts’ estimates that the greatest swing of votes from the incumbent Barisan National coalition to opposition parties was seen among Indian voters, with a change of about 35-40 percent.

This shift was further given credence by a poll in June and July 2008 by the independent Merdeka Center that showed that a majority across all races felt that Barisan Nasional’s “race-based affirmative action policy is obsolete and must be replaced with a merit-based policy” for a truly fair redistribution of wealth.

In response to calls for change, the Federal Government has introduced the “Race Relations Act,” which aims to build stronger interracial ties. Saravanamuttu is skeptical of the move. “This act [will] prove to be of limited effectiveness, for it proscribes rather than liberates race relations in the country,” he said. Other more positive harbingers for Malaysia were a declaration last March by the newly elected Penang state minister that his state will not follow the New Economic Policy and a statement by deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak in October urging his party to end the New Economic Policy, something that, if realized, would go a long way toward alleviating Indian anger. Yet the same month also saw the home minister declaring HINDRAF to be an illegal organization.

Meanwhile, Moorthy ruefully told the Globalist, a generation has grown up knowing tension, not tolerance. “When I was growing up, my father’s friends, of various races, used to come visit and celebrate together diwali with open house festivities, inviting friends and neighbors,” he said. “In recent years, my nephews and nieces do not get their friends visiting them anymore.” In November 2008, HINDRAF urged Malaysian Indians not to hold diwali open houses at all to protest deeply entrenched government discrimination. That the lights went out on diwali, the festival of lights and the holiest day in the year for Hindus, was at once a bitter irony and a symptom of the ills plaguing all of Malaysian society.

Monish Shah is a freshman in Morse College.

The Islam of Your Children

In our country, Islam is something you register for. Instead of God being the custodian of the faithful, we have the Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara who will faithfully record all those who are classed as Muslims. Muslims are under the jurisdiction of the Sharia courts and thus afforded special treatment. For us, faith isn’t something one is allowed to consider. One is born a Muslim will die a Muslim. Don’t worry if you can’t live as a Muslim though. The thieving, raping, terrorising and pimping Mat Rempits are all Muslims and so are the corrupt and parasitic politicians. Islam in Malaysia is not about ethics but about the census.

Lets take the case of Indra Ghandhi and her estranged husband K.Pathmanaban or Mohd. Rizuan Abdullah. Pathmaban only had to convert to Islam and begin proceedings to change the religion of his children to Islam in order to gain custody. Although we don’t know exactly what went on behind the scenes of Pathmanaban and Indra’s marriage, it would not be exactly outlandish to assume that Pathmanaban could have used our superficial treatment of Islam to try to gain custody of his kids.

Lets however, assume that he didn’t. Lets assume that he is acting in good faith to make his kids Muslim since he now believes that that would be the right thing to do for them. Islamically, how would one judge his act? The Quran uses the phrase ‘qawlan ma’roofan’ (a recognised saying; the Malay word ‘takrif’ comes from this) as what the determines the condition of marriages (2/235). Pathmaban when he married Indra, was recognised as a Hindu. When he had his kids, he was a Hindu. If he wasn’t a Hindu or if Indra had suspected that he was about to become a Muslim, she would have not had kids with him. Therefore, by trying to convert his kids to Islam without Indra’s approval, he is reneging on their prior agreement. He should be informed that believers according to Quran fulfil their covenants (23/8). The term ‘mumin’/believer in Quran refers to both faith and trustworthiness.

The decision of the Cabinet, although I would question and question deeply their motives, must be applauded. Maybe Najib saw this issue as one of the things he could afford to let go, we can’t know for sure. What we do know is, it is a good decision. It is a fair decision because at the time of the marriage, both parents knew the others religion and were ok with it. At the time of the marriage, both parents were non-Muslims and so the Sharia courts were not involved. That would make it a level playing field.

One good thing which has come from this incident is that we are once again able to see the true face of PAS. While Nik Aziz, Abdul Hadi and the rest of the big boys have been silent (kudos to their political sensibilities – it would not do to denigrate this decision while simultaneously claiming we’re all the children of Adam, would it Nik?), we have Mahfuz Omar claiming that the decision would be harsh against the people by confiscating their rights as parents. It is very pertinent here for us to notice that he highlights the newly-converted parent’s rights but not the right of the parent who married in good faith. This is the real face of PAS. Take note people, especially fellow members of the Pakatan Rakyat.

It is a real shame that Islam is reduced to this in Malaysian political discourse. When the Cabinet actually makes a decision in line with the law and common ethics, it is criticised by Muslim NGOs and of course the Perak Mufti whose idea of Islam is an indoctrination camp where our only role is to make up numbers, something the Quran doesn’t care about at all. These people call themselves ‘pembela’/defenders of Islam but what they actually do is to reduce Islam into a shadow of its real self. What I suggest to Pathmaban, be compliant to the law, be fair to your former spouse. Speak to your children fairly about Islam if you wish and lead by a good example. Forcibly converting them like this is not the right way even by your new faith.

Farouk A. Peru

www.farouk.name

Najib dare not even mention the word “meritocracy” – quintessence of reform - , what meaningful civil service revamp could he achieve?

The PR worked overtime. News headlines like “Modenisasi sector awam” (Utusan Malaysia), “Civil Service Revamp” (Star), “Civil service to recruit ‘best brains’” (New Straits Times), “PM proposes civil service reforms” (The Sun) dazzled Malaysians

But whoever takes the trouble to read the contents of the first address of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to the civil service yesterday will find the quintessence of meaningful civil service reform missing.

When Najib dare not even mention the word “meritocracy”, what meaningful civil service revamp could he achieve?

There is one critical difference between Malaysia and other countries which value the importance of the civil service – in those countries, the best and the most talented of each generation join the civil service while in Malaysia the best and the most talented avoid the civil service!

Najib talked about hiring “the best of the best in talent and expertise for the sake of the people” to revamp the civil service. Why should the “best of the best in talent and expertise” be attracted into the civil service when “meritocracy” continues to be a dirty word?

Even with the opening up of key positions in the administrative and diplomatic service to outsiders, they will be smothered, stunted and stultified by mediocrity if there is no political will to introduce a new culture of meritocracy in the public service!

This was why previous attempts to hunt and attract talented Malaysians who had emigrated overseas to return to Malaysia to serve the country had been such a dismal failure.

In his speech, Najib said that under his 1Malaysia concept, there should not be any quarters in this country that consider themselves second-class citizens nor feel sidelined or left behind in the process of progress.

This is an admission of the great flaw and failure of past government nation-building efforts – alienating more and more Malaysians, regardless of race or religion, making them feel that they are second or third class, even underclass, in Malaysia, whether the Chinese, the Indians as seen in the Makkal Sakti phenomenon, the mass of ordinary Malays who are marginalized by the Umnoputra (disguised as NEP) policy, the Orang Asli, and in Sabah and Sarawak, Kadazan-Dusun-Murut and Ibans communities who increasingly feel that they are strangers in their own country.

In declaring that under his 1Malaysia concept, no one will be marginalized and no quarter would regard themselves as second-class citizens, Najib has made an important admission that this had been the result or effect of past nation-building policies.

Yet, in the next breath, Najib said that his “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now” slogan is “a continuity to the slogans” of former prime ministers Tun Mahathir and Tun Abdullah.

If Najib’s slogans are no different from the “Amanah, Berseh, Cekap” slogan of Mahathir and “Cemerlang, Gemilang, Terbilang “ of Abdullah, which have left a nation with its people marginalised and divided, how then is Najib’s “1Malaysia” slogan going to be any different from those of the two previous Prime Ministers?

“We’re sorry Pakatan has to deal with BN’s mess, but…”

By Anil Netto,

Tanjung Bunga Residents Association chairman George Aeria reflects after handing in a residents’ memo calling for a ban on property development on steep hill-slopes in Penang:

With the submission of the memorandum to our state government (via YB Phee), the TBRA and the Chee Seng Gardens Action Committee have decided to give our new and better state government (from the last one-lah) a two-month period to see concrete action. In fact, in my discussion with YB Phee on the day of submission, he did indicate that he might come back to us earlier. We are pleased with his statement and his care for the environment of Penang.

To put on record, the TBRA and Chee Seng Garden Action Committee is VERY aware that this whole mess is caused by the past government under the unresponsive Gerakan-Koh Tsu Koon and Umno government with all their irresponsible approvals. He lost badly and even had to get out of Tanjung Bunga to contest on the mainland because he knew the groundswell against him and he would have lost.

We are also sorry to see DAP and PKR having to shoulder the s… dished out by the old administration. However, our point of view is that no one said it is easy running a state government, especially when they have to right a clear wrong. So since they want to govern, we want our new state government to walk their talk and to ban all current dangerous hill-slope development and all similar future projects.

We are pleased that in the discussion with YB PHee, he said that there is already a ban on Class III and Class IV hill slopes, just like Selangor. Well, good - BUT please come out publicly and announce it and make it a clear state policy just like the Pakatan government did in Selangor. Thereafter, review our memo and should the perceived irresponsible acts in the Bolton project be true, please ban that too and all other projects that are done not in accordance with requirements.

The sin against nature in Tanjung Bunga and Batu Ferringhi with all this dangerous hill slope development MUST STOP.

Open up unsold ASM shares to all

By Deborah Loh
thenutgraph.com

PETALING JAYA, 27 April 2009: The remaining Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) shares allocated for bumiputera and Indian Malaysians which have not yet been bought should be opened up to all Malaysians, suggests Kedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang.

He said the ASM units for bumiputera may not be attractive because of other products that were being offered exclusively by Permodalan Nasional Berhad for the community, such as Amanah Saham Bumiputera.

Tan suggested that after six months from launching the sale, unsold ASM units should be made available to all Malaysians. He said this six-month period should apply to similar products such as Amanah Saham Wawasan in the future, whereby all Malaysians would be eligible to buy unsold units upon the expiry date.

He said it would not prevent bumiputera from still purchasing the units.

"The opening up of the unsold portion after the expiry of six months from the launch of sale would still permit bumiputera to purchase the said units," he said in a press statement.

However, Tan said he agreed that the investment limit of up to 20,000 units per person should be maintained, even for those who wanted to buy more units after his proposed expiry period.

Tan was commenting on news reports that all 999 million units of ASM allocated for Chinese Malaysians had been snapped up within three days after launching on 20 April.

Today, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin urged bumiputera and Indian Malaysian investors to buy up the remaining ASM shares allocated for them.

Anwar prepares PKR for long battle with Najib’s Umno

By Baradan Kuppusamy - The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, April 28 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has made sweeping changes to PKR as Pakatan Rakyat (PR) prepares to face off with the resurgent Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) of Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

PKR insiders say there is an urgent need to hunker down for a long, tough battle with a Umno united under Najib and Anwar’s old nemesis Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Najib has been working simultaneously on several fronts — economic, financial and political — to consolidate his power base, mow down his political enemies and recoup the losses suffered by BN in the 2008 general elections.

“PKR is the main target as PKR is the glue that holds the Pakatan Rakyat together and it is we who will take the full brunt,” a PKR insider said of Najib’s strategy.

Anwar’s decision to give a bigger role as party spokesperson to Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Ismail is significant because it was she, as the aggrieved wife and symbol of resistance, who had held the PKR together during the six-long years when Anwar was in prison.

Dr Azizah stepped back after Anwar’s 2004 release but remained as nominal party president.

She gave up her Permatang Pauh seat for Anwar in July 2008 at a time of great stress for Anwar and the PKR, with her husband again accused of committing sodomy with his former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

Anwar’s sterling victory in the Permatang Pauh by-election and his subsequent appointment as opposition leader in parliament helped considerably to overshadow the public fallout from the sodomy allegations.

The allegations however are set to reappear again and dominate the headlines with the opening of the sodomy trial soon and naturally the PKR is concerned about the political fallout of another trial.

It is felt that neither deputy president Dr Syed Husin Ali nor the senior vice-presidents of PKR are able to handle a major crisis as well as Dr Wan Azizah who is experienced and enjoys a unique public appeal of her own unlike other PKR leaders.

Besides, she is also well known to and has developed a network of sympathetic editors and senior writers among the international media during the years in the political wilderness.

Such a network can be a powerful positive factor in times of crisis.

Considering the circumstances Dr Azizah is expected to play a prominent public role again as PKR leader even as Anwar battles his political enemies in court and in parliament — a role that only she can carry as the symbol of resistance.

Other changes involve the ever resolute vice-president Azmin Ali who has been taken-off as election campaign director and is expected to be given a major role in the PKR in a second round of changes the PKR is expected to undertake soon.

Azmin is expected to head a key state where PKR presence is dominant.

Another key PKR leader and Anwar-ally — the information chief Tian Chua has been made strategic director and his post given to human rights lawyer Latheefa Koya.

PKR sources said she is more “level headed” then Tian Chua who had several time angered top PKR leaders with his “theatrics” and “rash” media statements.

Like Tian Chua and troubled PKR lawmaker Elizabeth Wong, Latheefa is a well known human rights activist and a fixture in numerous demonstrations for justice.

Azmin is replaced as election director by Saiffudin Nasution, a former Umno youth leader who has shown his skills and organisational abilities in recent by-election battles.

“Saifuddin’s star is shining in the PKR…he is also close to PAS and well liked by the DAP,” PKR sources said

Postpone Perak assembly — Nizar

By Debra Chong - The Malaysian Insider

PUTRAJAYA, April 28 — Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin wants the May 7 Perak State Legislative Assembly to be postponed, pending the outcome of his lawsuit at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

Nizar noted his political rival faction, the Barisan Nasional (BN), may feel pressured to hold an assembly before May 13 because they consider it the deadline to prevent the State legislature from being automatically dissolved.

“For Pakatan Rakyat, we have already had a legal assembly below the tree on March 3, so for us Pakatan Rakyat, we can have one before September.

“But Barisan Nasional is quite worried because they feel pressured to have one before May 13,” he told reporters at the Palace of Justice here after the Federal Court unanimously ruled today to reject his political rival Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir’s bid to fast-track the resolution of their dispute on who is the lawful mentri besar of Perak.

The five-man bench decided the High Court had to clear up the various disputed issues raised by Nizar first before it could make a decision on the case.

“Today’s decision showed the May 7 assembly should be delayed,” Nizar pointed out.

“When we talk about today’s decision by the Federal Court, it shines a light at the end... that the final remedy should be the dissolution of the assembly,” he added.

The 52-year-old newly-elected MP for Bukit Gantang looked very tense before the court hearing this morning, smiling tightly and speaking in curt tones to reporters who approached him.

But he was all smiles when the court ruled in his favour. Leaping from his seat in the public gallery, he rushed to hug Sulaiman Abdullah, a senior lawyer and one-time Bar Council president who had argued his case in court.

Nizar is suing Zambry for usurping the office of the mentri besar, which he claims is unlawful as he has not quit the post officially.

He has consistently resisted efforts to drag in the Perak Sultan into a legal battle, despite attempts by certain political quarters to do so.

Asked if he regretted having to file his affidavit revealing the details of his meeting with the Sultan of Perak in early February, Nizar said he had been reluctant originally but indicated he had been forced to “respond because those facts are what I’m going to say.”

He noted “the public will know what transpired between myself and Tuanku so they will make the judgment.

“At the end of the day, we don’t want the court to decide for the people. The government of the day must be decided by the rakyat. The court is just a way for us to seek a solution,” Nizar said.

His lawyer Sulaiman highlighted that they wanted to avoid “a hasty solution” which may lead to more complicated problems later on.

“Our view has always been go through the proper route: Go through the High Court, go through the Court of Appeal and finally come to the Federal Court with all the issues settled,” said Sulaiman, who welcomed the Federal Court’s stand that the High Court should settle all disputes before letting the apex court make the ultimate decision.

“It is not an immediate issue of who runs Perak that matters. These are fundamental issues that will arise for the country for many, many years to come and unless we get it right at the beginning, we are going to face a lot of problems in future,” he said.

PAS seeks Royal Commission probe on Najib-Altantuya

By Wong Choon Mei, Suara Keadilan

Islamic-based PAS has asked the Malay Rulers’ Council to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry to probe if Prime Minister Najib Razak was indeed involved in the murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibuu.

“Reports alleging the existence of a relationship between Najib and Altantuya through the purchase of a fleet of submarines have been reported in India, Australia, Korea, Thailand, etc,” PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar wrote in the official party letter to the Council.

“This shows that Najib’s credibility as a prime minister has been openly questioned at the international level.”

PAS also urged the Rulers to grant the request as soon as possible as it was the only way to let the international community know that Malaysia was prepared to answer all allegations.

“These reports have been featured by no less than 19 international media organisations, and all of them depict the prime minister as a person who is corrupt and involved in abuse of power, sex scandals as well as the murder of the Mongolian model,” PAS said.

Otherwise, the negative publicity surrounding Najib and his lack of credibility could tarnish the country’s reputation and that of the Rulers’ themselves.

Foreign investors would also lose confidence in Malaysia’s legal system as Altantuya’s family has threatened to take the case to the International Court of Justice, PAS pointed out.

“We are also worried that if Altantuya father, Setev Shaariibuu, is unsatisfied with the Malaysian High Court, he may bring the case to the International Court of Justice.”

Not so easy for Najib and Dr M to gag the foreign media

The 28-year old Altantuya, who was pregnant when she was killed in 2006 by two elite policemen from Najib’s security detail, has haunted the newly-appointed prime minister but did not prevent him from taking over the country’s top job earlier this month.

Najib has denied all allegations including that she was his mistress at one time before she became the lover of his close associate, Razak Baginda. But with too many questions and coincidences surrounding her gory killing, the speculation has refused to die down.

The 55-year old Najib has now resorted to suppressing the media to prevent the stories from spreading. Soon after he took over as PM, the government ordered four local TV stations to stop mentioning Razak Baginda’s name, his name and his wife Rosmah Mansor’s name in their coverage of the murder case.

However, the Malaysian prime minister was not able to silence the international media.

While Najib’s mentor, ex-premier Mahathir Mohamad, has accused the foreign press of a plot to demonise and topple him, the 83-year old has quietly omitted that perhaps part of the reason for the heightened international attention is that French shipbuilder Armaris is also involved.

To reward Malaysia’s order of three high-cost submarines, including two Scorpenes, Armaris paid a 114 million euros (about RM530 million) as commission to Najib through his intermediaries Razak Baginda and Altantuya, according to French newspaper Liberation.

The order was placed during Najib’s tenure as defence minister. Critics in Europe have asked if it was proper for Armaris to have paid out such money.

In Malaysia, there is also a growing movement to demand why the government has not carried out detailed investigation as the commission is huge and could have been used to reduce the acquisition price, saving tax payers some RM500 million.

Reporters Without Borders goes on hunger strike in solidarity with Roxana Saberi

Reporters Without Borders members began a hunger strike today in support of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi, who has been sentenced to eight years in prison in Iran on a charge of spying for the United States.

Saberi has herself been on hunger strike since 21 April and, according to her father, Reza Saberi, who visited her in Tehran’s Evin prison yesterday, she is “determined and ready to go all the way.” He said she appeared “much weaker” as a result of going without food for a week.

“Roxana has been significantly weakened by these seven days of hunger strike and we are very concerned for her health,” Reporters Without Borders said. “We are therefore symbolically taking over the hunger strike in a gesture of solidarity, so that she no longer has to go on. Reporters Without Borders activists began their hunger strike at 11 a.m. today in Paris.”

Members of Reporters Without Borders have been stationed outside the Iran Air office at 63, Avenue des Champs Elysées in Paris since 11 a.m. today.

Roxana Saberi needs to know she is not alone, and that she can now take a rest. We will not abandon her.”

Seven journalists and two bloggers are currently imprisoned in Iran, which was ranked 166th out of 173 countries in the 2008 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.

Timeline of Saberi case
31 January: Roxana Saberi is arrested.
1 March: The US public radio network NPR breaks the news of her arrest (after being alerted by her father on 10 February).
2 March: Foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Ghashghavi says Saberi was working “illegally” in Iran.
3 March: Judiciary spokesman Alireza Jamshidi says she has been “arrested on the order of the Tehran revolutionary court and is being held in Evin prison.”
9 April: Saberi is charged with spying by deputy prosecutor Hassan Zare Dehnavi. This charge is often used by the Iranian authorities to arrest journalists and tighten the muzzle on freedom of expression.
13 April: Saberi is tried in a closed-door hearing on a charge of spying for the United States.
18 April: Saberi is sentenced to eight years in prison.
20 April: Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi announces that she will join the Saberi defence team.
21 April: Saberi begins her hunger strike.
25 April: Her lawyer file an appeal against her conviction.

The cat and mouse game with the Royal Malaysian Police

The Special Branch wanted to know how much of these tactics were being used to enable Anwar to communicate with the outside world and thereby organise his Reformasi Movement and other political activities from behind the high walls of the Sungai Buloh Prison.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

When I was about 11 or 12 years old, I was made to sit for an IQ test. I just enjoyed these tests because I had already done many before that. You see, my parents subscribed me to the Junior Readers Digest and every month, whenever I received my copies, I would relish reading them from cover to cover. One of my favourite chapters was the one on IQ tests.

Some questions were in text format and others in graphics form. Invariably, you are asked to solve puzzles and problems and how to get over sticky situations. My favourite question was the one about the bridge closing at 7.00pm and a guard being placed in the middle of the bridge to prevent anyone from crossing it. Those on the left bank would not be allowed to cross over to the right bank and vice versa.

The question was: you arrived at the bridge at 11.00pm and found the guard asleep in the middle of the bridge. If you crossed the bridge the guard would wake up and catch you trying to cross and will force you to go back the way you came. So how are you going to cross the bridge to get home?

Hmm….this was one tricky question. I pondered for a while and my reply was I would quietly creep across the bridge and just before I reached the guard I would turn around and walk back the way I came. I would then make a lot of noise, which would wake the guard up. The guard, seeing that I was trying to sneak across the bridge, would chase me and catch me and force me to return to the opposite direction. And the opposite direction is where I actually wanted to go in the first place.

So that would be how I would get to cross the bridge and go home. But this would mean the guard would have to be not too bright and can be easily fooled. He sees you heading back from where you came and he would think that you came from the other direction. So he would force you back to the opposite direction, thinking this is where you came from rather than this is where you actually wanted to go in the first place.

Confusing? Not really. All you need to do is to create the impression that you are coming from one direction whereas you are actually coming from the opposite direction. And when they force you to return to the direction they thought you were coming from, you end up, with their help, heading for the direction you really wanted to go.

And this is the cat and mouse game that one has to play with the officers in blue from the Royal Malaysian Police.

The officers in the Malaysian police force rejoice when they think they have got you covered and have figured out your every move. They monitor your movements, your phone calls, those of your friends, and whatnot. If they don’t get what they want they will dig deeper. And maybe, in the end, they will find what they want to know. So you need to give them something to work on. Let them think they have got you, whereas it is you who have got them.

For example, on 10 April 2001, the police picked up four people under the Internal Security Act -- Tian Chua, Saari Sungib, Hishamuddin Rais and Ezam Mohd Nor. The police had been following me for three days and I knew I was also about to be picked up.

I got into my car and with my wife driving we went to our daughter’s apartment. My wife noticed we were being followed.

That evening, my wife went out to buy some ice cream and she saw a bunch of police officers loitering at the entrance. She knew they were waiting for me.

The next morning, we left the apartment, and about one kilometre down the road, they stopped our car and took me in. I could have sneaked out the back and would have been able to give them the slip, but it was crucial that we find out what their game plan was.

To cut a long 54-day story short, Anwar was facing nine criminal charges and was already convicted for the first and was facing trial for the second. He was eventually found guilty for both and his jail sentences were made to run consecutive rather than concurrent. The first conviction attracted a six-year jail sentence and the second nine years. Together with the seven months remand period during the trial, Anwar was given a 15 years and seven months jail sentence. And he still had seven more trials to go through.

Anwar was probably going to be in jail for at least 100 years, which meant he was going to die in jail.

My interrogation took 54 days and my signed ‘confession’ was more than 200 pages. There was a lot they asked me and a lot I told them. The most crucial piece of information they wanted was how did Anwar manage to run the Reformasi Movement from behind the high walls of the Sungai Buloh Prison? They knew the Reformasi Movement was being guided and run by Anwar. They just did not know how it was being done.

I was posed this question and I spilled the beans. I could not hold anything back. The information just flowed.

We meet Anwar in court during his many trials and that is when he dishes out his instructions. In fact, not only the Reformasi Movement, but also the party itself is run in this manner. We look forward to his trial dates because that is when we are able to meet Anwar and receive instructions from him.

Three days later, the Special Branch officers came to see me, bringing a copy of a newspaper. “Read this,” they told me.

It was the newspaper headline about the government dropping the balance seven charges against Anwar.

“So, now there are no more trials. Anwar will no longer be going to court. So how are you people going to meet him now?”

“Aiyah,” I said, with a very disappointed and dejected look on my face. “Now the link to Anwar has been severed. There would be no way we can continue meeting him to get further instructions from him.”

I sat back and looked my Special Branch officers in the face. They had this very pleased look, as it they had pulled off the coup of the century. These are five very happy Special Branch officers. They even offered me a cigarette and ordered some Kentucky Fried Chicken for my lunch. They had broken the link of communication between Anwar and the outside world. That is the end of Anwar’s communication network.

The Special Branch officers were probably made to sit for a course where they studied how Chin Peng communicated with his guerrillas in the Pahang, Perak and Kelantan jungles, plus those along the Malaysian-Thai border. I, in fact, discussed this with them and knew of the ‘dead letter boxes’ and all such primitive communication methods of 50 years or so ago.

The Special Branch knew that I knew. And I knew that the Special Branch knew that I knew. So they wanted to know how much of these tactics were being used to enable Anwar to communicate with the outside world and thereby organise his Reformasi Movement and other political activities.

Well, I could not hold anything back. I spilled my guts out and told them everything. And the result of that was they dropped the balance seven charges against Anwar so that he can be cut off from the outside world and can no longer direct things from behind the high walls of the Sungai Buloh Prison.

But that was not really how it was done. And of course I can’t tell you how it was done in case we need to do it again. But what matters is that they believed this was how it was done and they dropped the seven charges against Anwar to ‘plug the holes’.

They were one happy bunch of Special Branch officers the day they broke the news to me that they had dropped the balance seven charges against Anwar. And I had to pretend I was so disappointed and unhappy that they had outsmarted us.

Yes, I bet those Special Branch officers did not have to sit for IQ tests when they were 11 or 12 years old. If not they would have had to figure out how to cross the bridge after 7.00pm when the guard is sitting right in the middle of the bridge to stop anyone from crossing. And then they would have figured out you need to fool the guard by pretending that you are crossing from one direction whereas you are actually crossing from the opposite direction. Then they would have known that, if you can successfully fool the guard, he would actually assist you to cross to the side, where you actually wanted to go.

Yes, there is more I want to reveal. But let this suffice for today. In the next article we shall talk more about how to play cat and mouse games with the Malaysian police. No, nothing that has happened thus far is anything we did not want to happen. They think they have us on the run. They think they have sent us underground. Is that so? Lt Col George Armstrong Custer also thought he had the Indians on the run. By the time he realised it was the other way around, it was too late. Little Bighorn was Custer’s last stand and where the Seventh Calvary met its doom.

More later, and stay safe till then.

PAS Will Return To BN in June

By Sheih Kickdefella,

PAS will join Barisan Nasional in June 2009. After it’s pact with other opposition parties had created history, PAS is ready to undress its opposition uniform once again.

Scary? Maybe. Betrayed? Yes.

I received an sms from a buddy in Singapore that later lead me to double-check his query with another buddy in KL.

I was told “everything is on track bro”.

But why June? Perhaps PAS members know better.

Meanwhile I found this piece from Malaysia Kini,

Presiden PAS, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang berkata perbincangan dengan pemimpin Umno berhubung cadangan penubuhan kerajaan perpaduan terpaksa ditunda kerana beliau perlu menilai terlebih dahulu kepimpinan baru Umno dan BN di bawah Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Menurutnya, hasrat untuk membincangkan cadangan tersebut adalah dengan kepimpinan dahulu iaitu sewaktu pentadbiran bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Sehubungan itu, beliau menolak dakwaan kononnya beliau menarik balik cadangan itu bagi menjaga kepentingannya dalam mempertahan jawatan Presiden parti yang mungkin dicabar dalam muktamar agung parti Jun depan.

“Cadangan ini (kerajaan perpaduan) semasa Abdullah, tetapi sekarang (Umno) di bawah pimpinan baru (Datuk Seri Najib).

“Pada masa itu, pada dasarnya saya setuju, tapi sekarang lainlah ceritanya apabila Umno di bawah kepimpinan baru,” katanya kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan mesyuarat agung tahunan ke-52 PAS kawasan Bachok, hari ini, lapor Bernama.

And I counter check with Harakahdaily and found this interview with Haji Hadi by Khairul Azlam Mohamad,

Question: Tapi Dato’ Seri, masih ramai orang yang tidak faham termasuk ahli-ahli PAS sendiri?

Answer: Inilah masalahnya. Ramai yang tidak faham dengan konsep ini. Rakyat ada kebebasan. Ini ‘unity’ biar kita kena faham. Apa yang saya rasa lucu, ada orang Umno yang membangkang dan ada orang Umno yang bersetuju. Tetapi, orang PAS juga bangkang dia (PAS) tidak tahu. Ini menandakan, dia (orang PAS) tidak tahu apa ‘Unity Government’. Barangkali kalau dia tahu bentuknya saya rasa orang boleh terima. Oleh kerana, ramai orang tidak faham, maka, saya tarik balik cadangan saya itu. Saya tarik balik sehingga orang kita faham betul-betul.

Will PAS members understand it by June?

Nevertheless, it will certainly be in June.

Perak speaker may ask for postponement

By Deborah Loh
thenutgraph.com

PETALING JAYA, 28 April 2009: Perak speaker V Sivakumar may write to the Sultan of Perak requesting a postponement of the state legislative assembly sitting on 7 May following the Federal Court's ruling today to let the High Court decide on the rightful Perak menteri besar.

Perak DAP chairperson and Sitiawan assemblyperson Datuk Ngeh Khoo Ham said Sivakumar will likely decide on the matter and might write to the Sultan of Perak requesting a postponement.

"We might seek Tuanku's permission to postpone the sitting, because we don't see how it will proceed due to all the uncertainty.

Ngeh "If the assembly sits, the speaker might find it impossible to proceed because the court has not decided who is right government of the day; so the speaker can adjourn the sitting. But out of respect, maybe we would request Tuanku to postpone it," Ngeh told The Nut Graph when contacted.

The Pakatan Rakyat (PR)'s embattled Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin hinted as much to reporters after the Federal Court ruling.

He said he hoped the assembly sitting scheduled for 7 May would be postponed and would seek legal advice on the matter.

Nizar said the sitting ought to be delayed as the court would not finish deciding on the issues he and Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir have both raised as to who is the legitimate Perak MB.

The High Court is to hear on 4 May disputed facts between an affidavit filed by Nizar, and another by the Perak legal adviser. The point of contention is whether Nizar had lost the confidence of the majority of the legislature when he sought the Perak Sultan's consent for a dissolution of the assembly. Nizar has said he requested a dissolution because of a hung assembly and not because of a loss of confidence in him.

The High Court is also supposed to hear on 5 and 6 May Nizar's request for a judicial review on who is the legitimate menteri besar.

Royal embarrassment?

If the court is unable make a decision in time before the 7 May sitting, events could turn out to be highly embarrassing especially in the presence of royalty at the assembly's opening.

Either Sultan Azlan Shah or the Raja Muda of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah is expected to open the assembly sitting, as it is a new session.

There are several scenarios that could play out: Barisan Nasional and PR could end up either scrambling for seating arrangements in the House; Sivakumar shoots down a motion to remove him as speaker; or the speaker decides to adjourn the sitting as soon as it opens.

Sivakumar Zambry has warned PR assemblypersons to "behave" on 7 May, but has so far kept mum on whether the BN will try to eject Sivakumar.

The House last met in November 2008 and according to the Perak constitution, must meet within a period of six months, which expires on 13 May.

However, Ngeh claimed that contrary to the perception that the House would dissolve if it did not meet within that period, the assembly actually had up to September to hold its next sitting.

He said this is because the assembly had already met under the tree on 3 March. However, the Federal Court did not make any ruling on the validity of this emergency assembly when it lifted the suspensions of Zambry and six BN executive councillors.

Ngeh said that as far as PR was concerned, the tree sitting was still valid. "We already met then, so technically the House has six more months till September to meet," he said.

He reiterated calls for a snap poll in Perak, or else to postpone the 7 May sitting to let the court decide the legitimate menteri besar.

No ‘kejutan besar’… Mansor Othman it is

By Anil Netto

Photo credit: Romerz (More pictures here)

2213: The worst kept secret is officially revealed: Mansor Othman has been chosen as the PKR candidate for the Penanti by-election on 31 May.

2207: The candidate is expected to be announced anytime now.

2148: Anwar is now addressing the crowd. The other speakers are Wan Azizah, Guan Eng, Zahrain, Fairus, and Balik Pulau MP Yusmadi.

2144: Manikumar, the victorious PKR candidate in the Bukit Selambau by-election, has just walked in.

2136: Former Penang Deputy Chief Minister Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin has made a surprise appearance with Anwar at a ceramah in Penanti that is now in progress, says my contact at the scene.

He says he has been through hell and back and now knows who his friends are. He pledges his allegiance to Pakatan before the 1,000-strong crowd at the Yayasan Aman and vows to make a comeback.

PKR’s Zahrain says there are no major differences in the Penang Pakatan.

It is an open secret that Mansor Othman is going to be the Pakatan candidate for Penanti. He is looking dapper in a smart maroon-and-grey batik shirt.

Press Release: Bar Council urges Government to move swiftly

The Bar Council welcomes the Cabinet directive that children should not be converted from their original religion without the joint consent of both parents.

The Bar Council has consistently maintained that a converting spouse must resolve and continue to fulfil all his/her obligations to the family, including his/her children, spouse and parents, under the civil law, as that is the law under which the marriage was contracted. This must be done with the least disruption possible to the lives of children, whose welfare must be paramount.

The Bar Council however cautions that Cabinet directives are but policy statements that require amendments to the law for their full realisation. The relevant legislation must be immediately amended in order to fully implement this directive without further delay. We are optimistic that the resolution of this thorny issue will be a precursor to the resolution of other complex issues that arise when a family member converts, ranging from guardianship and custody, maintenance of spouse and children, inheritance by children, spouse and parents of a deceased convert’s estate and burial rites to nominations and assignments of insurance policies.

We are confident that the implementation of this policy will not diminish nor affect Islam, and its position under the Federal Constitution, in any way. The directive will go a long way towards reducing part of the acrimony within families and communities over hurried and hushed conversions of children by one parent, which often occurs following the breakdown of a marriage. As such, this initiative will clarify an area of law that is currently contested, and will promote greater harmony and respect among our multi-ethic and multi-religious society.

The Government’s commitment to protect the integrity of the family and well-being of individual family members, particularly children, deserves the support of all Malaysians. The Bar Council reiterates its support and readiness to assist the Government in realising this commitment. The Government must exhibit the necessary political will to implement this Cabinet directive swiftly.

Ragunath Kesavan

President

Malaysian Bar

28 April 2009

Sdr Mansor Othman Sebagai Calon PKR di Penanti

– KENYATAAN MEDIA UNTUK EDARAN SEGERA –
28 April 2009

(Permatang Pauh, Pulau Pinang) Sesudahnya tsunami politik Mac 2008, rakyat Malaysia kembali ke peti undi sebanyak lima kali. Empat darinya kita menyaksikan rakyat Malaysia memilih Pakatan Rakyat, yang kelimanya walaupun dicemari politik wang dan penipuan, menunjukkan betapa rakyat begitu mengidamkan perubahan dan politik baru di negara ini.

Mesejnya jelas. Rakyat Malaysia mahukan perubahan dan menidakkan pemerintahan BN yang dikuasai Umno. Mereka mendakap perjuangan Pakatan Rakyat yang mahukan rakyat bersatu padu dan berusaha membasmi rasuah serta memastikan tidak ada lagi kaum yang dipinggirkan, baik Melayu mahupun kaum bumiputera Sarawak dan Sabah.

Oleh itu saya dengan sukacitanya ingin mengumumkan calon KEADILAN bagi kawasan Penanti pada pilihanraya 31 Mei ini ialah En. Mansor bin Othman. Beliau merupakan Ketua Bahagian KEADILAN Balik Pulau dan Timbalan Pengerusi Perhubungan Negeri KEADILAN Pulau Pinang. Beliau juga telah berkhidmat selama 10 tahun sebagai Ahli Majlis Pimpinan Tertinggi Parti Keadilan Rakyat dan Timbalan Pengarah Pilihanraya Pusat KEADILAN. En. Mansor Othman juga telah berkhidmat dengan saya yang pada ketika itu merupakan Timbalan Perdana Menteri sebagai Setiausaha Politik dari tahun 1996-1998.

Beliau telah mencurahkan tenaga demi membawa pembangunan ke Pulau Pinang dan saya yakin beliau bersedia untuk berkhidmat untuk penduduk Penanti sepenuh jiwa dan raga.

En. Mansor merupakan pemegang ijazah sarjana dari Universiti Sains Malaysia dan sarjana falsafah serta sarjana sastera dari Universiti Yale. Beliau merupakan Profesor Madya di USM dan Pengarah Pusat Kajian Dasar. Beliau secara aktif berusaha meningkatkan taraf pendidikan dan program belia di Pulau Pinang dengan penglibatan sebagai ahli Jawatankuasa Pendidikan Masyarakat dan Jawatankuasa Program Pembangunan Belia. Sebagai exco PEMADAM, beliau bekerja keras meningkatkan kesedaran awam berhubung penyalahgunaan serta langkah-langkah pencegahan dari terlibat dengan dadah.

Melalui program TEKUN di mana beliau sebagai Pengurus Besar, En. Mansor Othman terlibat secara aktif dalam pembangunan usahawan bumiputera, bertujuan meningkatkan kemahiran usahawan kecil dan sederhana serta membiayai usaha mereka dengan pemberian kredit mikro.

Saya merakamkan ucapan penghargaan kepada YAB Ketua Menteri Lim Guan Eng kerana sudi bersama kita malam ini dan membuktikan kepada semua keteguhan kerjasama Pakatan Rakyat. Parti Keadilan Rakyat yakin DAP dan PAS pasti bersama-sama di dalam pihanraya kecil ini bagi memastikan kemenangan Pakatan Rakyat.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

Continue reading ‘Sdr Mansor Othman Sebagai Calon PKR di Penanti’

Jangan tertipu dan ditipu SPR lagi.

By Chegu Bard
SPR telah menetapkan hari pengundian dan penamaan calon. Kepada semua jentera parti (KEADILAN atau PAKATAN) dan penyokong di ingatkan jangan tertipu dengan perkembangan semasa yang di orkestrakan untuk kepentingan regim.

Pasti akan ada pertandingan

Harap jentera dipersiapkan tanpa mempedulikan sentimen Bn mungkin tidak bertanding. Ini kerana sejak bila pula Bn atau pemimpinnya bercakap benar dalam isu pilihanraya ini. Lupakah kita Abdullah yang mengatakan pasti tidak ada pilihanraya dalam masa terdekat dan kemudian membubarkan Parlimen esok tengahari ? Atau lupakah kita dengan manifesto Bn yang disampaikan Najib bahawa minyak pasti tidak naik tahun ini 2008 tetapi minyak tetap naik selepas pilihanraya ?

Memang Najib tidak mahu bertanding kerana pertandingan akan digunakan sebagai medan membogelkan beliau yang banyak skandal jenayahnya. Tetapi ketahuilah Umno kita masih gagal dikawal sepenuhnya oleh Najib. Kumpulan yang hendakkan Umno bertanding lebih kuat dan ramai dari suara Najib. Najib yang mula dikenali sebagai penakut untuk membuat keputusan pasti akur dengan kehendak yang lebih ramai, walaupun akhirnya merugikan dia sendiri.

SPR kata jangan datang ramai - ramai dan tidak ada pondok panas.

SPR cuba menipu mereka akan hadkan penyokong PAKATAN dan biarkan penyokong Bn maka nanti dalam media mereka akan mainkan betapa Bn ramai penyokong. Bukan tak biasa SPR menipu. Tahun 2004 SPR memperkenalkan larangan bina pondok panas pihak BA (pada ketika itu) akur dan tidak membina sebaliknya Bn membina pondok panas macam biasa. Bila aduan dibuat SPR kata luar bidang kuasanya.

Apa yang SPR harus lakukan kalau berani ?

Pastikan tiada jentera kerajaan digunakan untuk berkempen sama ada kerajaan pusat atau negeri. Halang menteri - menteri datang sebagai menteri dengan di iring polis dan menggunakan peruntukan kerajaan sebagai bahan kempen. Kalau tak berani maka minta pengerusi SPR diminta berhenti menyiarkan kenyataan lawak jenaka.

SPR tidak telus, secara peribadi soalan cheGuBard pun masih SPR tidak jawab... bagaimana jumlah kertas undi yang dikeluarkan di peringkat Parlimen Rembau dalam PRU 12 , 2008 berlebih dari jumlah kertas undi dikeluarkan bagi 4 buah DUN dibawah kawasan tersebut ? Adakah ada yang datang cuma diberi kertas undi parlimen atau nombor jumlah undi bertukar sebelum pengumuman keputusan untuk memenangkan calon Bn...?

SPR alat untuk memperlihatkan Malaysia negara demokrasi dan sebaliknya hanya memastikan Bn menang.... Orang akan tanya habis tu macam mana bila ada tempat Bn kalah juga...jawapanya ialah SPR dah tak larat nak tipu lagi itu sebab Bn tetap kalah walaupun dah tipu....