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Tuesday 11 February 2014

'What if I offered RM1,500 to slap Zahid?'

10-year-old girl granted divorce by court

An Iraqi court decided to divorce a 10-year-old local girl after she was forced by her father to marry a much older man, becoming the youngest divorcee in the Arab nation, an Iraqi news network reported on Monday.

The girl reported her father to court in the southern Iraqi town of Nasiriyyah after he forced her to marry without considering her small age.
“The girl complained to court about her father and the scholar who performed the marriage contract.

“The court decided to divorce the couple after they married outside court,” Nasiriyya news network said.

It did not mention whether the father and the scholar would be prosecuted but noted that persons performing marriage outside court could be jailed for at least six months.

Man rapes sister herding sheep

A Moroccan man waited for his sister to go out for herding her sheep in a desolate place and raped her before fleeing, triggering a massive police manhunt.

The woman, who is married with several children, has just left her house in the western town of Azemmur when she was attacked by her 25-year-old brother.

She told police that he raped her in a “violent and obscene” way before fleeing the area, according to newspapers.

Pakistan Taliban Preps 500 Female Suicide Bombers, Aziz Says (1)

 
TTP Press Conference
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) committee member Maulana Abdul Aziz, center, speaks duirng a press conference in Islamabad on February 7, 2014. Photographer: Aamir Qureshi/AFP via Getty Images

The Pakistani Taliban has as many as 500 female suicide bombers ready to act, a representative of the group involved in peace negotiations said, underscoring the risk of further violence if talks fail.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan -- known as the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP -- sees no urgency to reach an agreement with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government, Maulana Abdul Aziz, one of three negotiators representing the TTP, said in a Feb. 7 interview at his Islamabad seminary. The two sides started talks last week.

“You should know that at the moment they have at least 400 to 500 female suicide bombers in Waziristan and other tribal areas,” said Aziz, former head cleric of Islamabad’s Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, referring to the TTP. “The government should realize the situation and their demands.”

Sharif revived peace talks with the group as pressure grows for a military strike after attacks last month killed more than two dozen soldiers, part of violence that caused the deaths of 40,000 Pakistanis since 2001. Failure to reach a deal would threaten Sharif’s efforts to bolster the $225 billion economy as the U.S. reduces troops in neighboring Afghanistan.

Imran Khan, whose party runs a province bordering Afghanistan, predicted in an interview last week that terrorist attacks would prompt the talks to fail, and a military operation would start soon afterward. Khan turned down an offer from the TTP to sit on the same committee as Aziz.
‘Exaggerated Figure’

Aziz said the Taliban is most interested in implementing Sharia law in Pakistan. The U.S. military presence in Afghanistan is “a very small factor” in the fight, he said, disputing statements by Khan and others.


“They are fighting for the implementation of Sharia,” Aziz said at the seminary, where some 1,300 female students are studying. “It’s the law of nature that when people don’t get their rights, they pick up arms.”

The Pakistani Taliban has demanded the withdrawal of troops from tribal areas and the release of prisoners, Dawn newspaper reported today, citing officials it did not identify. The demands stemmed from a meeting of TTP clerics over the weekend, the report said.

The number of female suicide bombers mentioned by Aziz “is a very exaggerated figure,” said Muhammad Amir Rana, director of the Islamabad-based Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies. “The Taliban are way ahead in the propaganda war, and they have given a tough time to the state,” he said. “Female suicide bombers have been used, but not too many.”

Aziz’s brother died in 2007 along with at least 100 others when former President Pervez Musharraf ordered troops to storm the Red Mosque to end a challenge by pro-Taliban clerics seeking to impose Islamic law in the capital. The move sparked demonstrations and reprisal attacks.

Aziz, who was jailed for two years after the Red Mosque raid, last week temporarily withdrew himself from the talks because the government insisted the negotiations be held under the constitution and avoid including the imposition of Islamic Sharia law, a key TTP demand. He will remain on the TTP’s committee, he said.

“The Taliban are in no hurry,” Aziz said, when asked whether the group wanted a deal soon to avoid a military strike. “They say they are not worried about it. They have been in a state of war for the past 10 years.”

Sharif won an election last year after pledging negotiations with the TTP, a loose group of militants operating along the Afghan border. While Sharif received the backing of all political parties in September to begin talks, the two sides had postponed meeting amid a series of suicide bombings and a U.S. drone strike that killed the TTP’s leader.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who leads the opposition Pakistan Peoples Party, has called on Sharif to take a tougher line against the militants. He said in a Jan. 28 Twitter post that Sharif was following a “policy of appeasement.”

In 2009, Taliban militants took control of Swat district in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and imposed their strict interpretation of Islamic law, which forbade girls to attend schools. They beheaded local officials and burned schools in a two-year fight that uprooted 2 million people from their homes before a 10-week army offensive ended their rule.

Suicide bombers have been used frequently in the conflict, including two that killed more than 80 people at a Christian church in Peshawar in September. Aziz justified the use of suicide bombers, saying that they believed in the cause and were willing to sacrifice.

“If the military has weapons and air power, they have suicide bombers,” Aziz said of the Taliban. “You cannot match them. Suicide bombers even destroyed the power of America in Afghanistan.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Augustine Anthony in Islamabad at aanthony9@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Ten Kate at dtenkate@bloomberg.net

'Waytha's quitting no impact on Indians' - Malaysiakini

Persatuan Hindraf Malaysia (PHM) leader P Waythamoorthy continues to receive flak from Indian leaders following reports that he has quit his deputy minister’s post, which he has for some seven months.

Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy said he was not surprised by Waythamoorthy's decision, condemning the latter for taking the Indian community on a ride when he joined the Prime Minister' Department after the May 5 general election last year.

Ramasamy said with this latest development, PHM and Waythamoorthy would be marooned in the twilight zone, becoming irrelevant to the community they are supposed to represent, in which the community has placed trust in the struggle for equal opportunities for Indians.

Waythamoorthy's resignation stunt has no impact on the Indian community, he said, as he had betrayed their trust when he gave PHM’s support to BN, Umno and Prime Minister Najib Razak.

'Joining BN has all come to naught'

"It is sad that this has happened to the Indian poor, a very marginalised community. After the high drama of joining Najib and asking the community to support him in the general election, it has all come to naught, to zero," Ramasamy said.

"Is he planning to join Pakatan Rakyat now?" asked Ramasamy, saying it would not be possible to accept someone who has lost the trust of the Indian community.

Two days ago, PHM issued a statement announcing that Waythamoorthy would resign from his posts as deputy minister and senator, effective today, because the BN has failed to fulfil its promises in a memorandum of understanding it signed with PHM in April last year.

During the May 5 general election, PHM called on the Indian community to support BN, after it signed an 18-point MoU with the BN to uplift the status of the Indian community.

Ramasamy said the Indian community was not surprised by Waythamoorthy's decision to quit his posts.

"Are we supposed to be surprised that Waythamoorthy is resigning from his posts because he found out that BN and Umno cannot do anything for the Indian community? " the DAP’s Prai assemblyperson asked.

"I would have told him so before he decided to throw his support for the BN and Najib, at the same time taking the Indian community for a ride."

Ramasamy said PHM and the likes of Waythamoorthy have deviated from the organisation's original path of making BN and Umno accountable for the Indian community's plight.

He recalled that the original Hindraf had organised a large scale people's rally in Kuala Lumpur in November 2007 to highlight the community's demands and to make BN and Umno accountable for marginalising the community since Merdeka in 1957.

"Hindraf started well then but now PHM has destroyed the people's trust by colluding with the powers that are responsible for the community's woes," Ramasamy added.

"Waythamoorthy made all kinds of promises, like being able to solve the community's problems in five years... but we learnt that Najib did not even consult him or PHM and provided no allocation for their programmes."

Zahid tak patut keluar kenyataan macam penaung Perkasa

Saya minta Zahid bercakap sebagai Menteri Dalam Negeri
UPDATED

PETALING JAYA: PAS bertegas bahawa Menteri Dalam Negeri Datuk Ahmad Zahid Hamidi tidak sewajarnya menganggap tawaran wang berjumlah RM1,200 untuk menampar Ahli Parlimen DAP Teresa Kok sebagai bukan satu ancaman.

Memerli kenyataan Zahid tersebut, Ketua Penerangan PAS Datuk Mahfuz berkata Zahid tidak sepatutnya mengeluarkan kenyataan seperti penaung kepada Perubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa).

“Saya minta Zahid, rakan baik saya ni sepatutnya bercakap sebagai Menteri Dalam Negeri, bukan sebagai Penaung Perkasa, ataupun penaung kepada NGO-NGO yang agak ekstrim dan rasis ini.

“Dia mesti bercakap sebagai Menteri Dalam Negeri yang dibawahnya ialah institusi keselamatan iaitu polis yang sepatutnya memberikan jaminan keselamatan kepada semua orang tanpa mengira kaum sama ada perkara yang dilakukan seseorang itu betul atau tidak,” kata Mahfuz dalam satu sidang media di Ibu Pejabat PAS disini hari ini.

Menurutnya lagi, jika Teresa didapati melakukan kesalahan, tindakan undang-undang harus diambil, bukan dengan membiarkan orang menampar Teresa.

“Tindakan mesti diambil melalui saluran undang-undang yang ada. Tetapi hingga hari ini tiada tindakan yang dibuat pihak polis sedangkan bagi saya soal nak mengecam orang itu mudah.

“Sedangkan, dalam (himpunan) Bersih dulu boleh pamerkan gambar-gambar orang yang dikehendaki pihak polis untuk menyerah diri. Jadi saya minta Datuk Zahid bercakap seperti menteri, bukan seperti penaung NGO-NGO yang keluarkan provokasi yang boleh timbulkan ketegangan antara kaum,” katanya lagi.

Beliau turut mengingatkan Ketua Polis Negara (KPN) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar untuk berbuat perkara yang sama.

“Takkan nak tunggu orang pergi tampar Teresa baru nak ambil tindakan?,” katanya.

Menurutnya, beliau bimbang Menteri Dalam Negeri dan KPN sendiri dituduh sebagai dalang kepada perkara ini.

“Saya bimbang persepsi masyarakat nanti seolah-olahnya dalang kepada kumpulan NGO yang buat ugutan dan sembelih ayam ini ialah Menteri Dalam Negeri dan KPN. Jadi saya harap mereka dapat melakukan tindakan yang segera,” katanya lagi.

Baru-baru ini, sebuah badan yang menggelar sebagai “Majlis NGO Islam” menyembelih dua ekor ayam dan menawarkan RM1,200 kepada sesiapa yang dapat menampar Teresa sebagai simbol kemarahan terhadap pemimpin pembangkang yang didakwa menghina kepimpinan Melayu dan Islam.

Mereka juga mencalit darah ayam yang disembelih ke atas kertas rentang yang terdapat gambar Kok, Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang Lim Guan Eng, penasihat DAP, Lim Kit Siang dan Dewan Undangan PKR Machang Bubuk, Lee Khai Loon.

Dalam pada itu, Mahfuz berkata pertengkaran antara Menteri Besar Selangor Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim dan Timbalan Presiden PKR Azmin Ali hanyalah isu yang dihangatkan oleh media arus perdana.

“Saya pasti Khalid dan Azmin akan ‘all out’ pastikan kemenangan PKR di Kajang nanti,” katanya.

Ibrahim marah

Sementara itu, Presiden Perkasa, Datuk Ibrahim Ali menyifatkan kenyataan Mahfuz bahawa Zahid sebagai ejen Perkasa adalah ”kenyataan orang tidak sekolah”.

Katanya, tak hairan Mahfuz berfikiran cetek dan cakap ikut sedap.

“Sememanglah itulah kerja budak jaga trafik kapal terbang dan memang patutlah beliau kalah bertanding jawatan Naib Preaiden PAS,” katanya kepada FMT.

Beliau yang juga bekas ahli parlimen Pasir Mas menambah perwakilan PAS memang bijak menolak pemimpin yang riak dan tidak layak dijadikan pemimpin.

“Apa kena mengena Perkasa dengan Zahid Hamidi atas kenyataannya mengenai Teresa Kok? Orang macam ini, elok saya jawab macam ini,” katanya.

Ibrahim menasihati Mahfuz supaya lain kali beliau bercakap sebagai seorang Islam yang istiqamah, cerdik dan tidak emosi tanpa bersebab.

MIC polls: More irregularities surface - FMT

Fresh evidence point towards alleged irregularities in MIC's party polls last year.

PETALING JAYA: MIC president G Palanivel is once again dragged into controversy as fresh evidence emerged pointing towards alleged irregularities in MIC’s party polls held last year.

In the latest twist of events, a new set of documents has surfaced indicating that the election results could be declared null and void as the requirements of the party’s constitution were not met.

This is despite Palanivel confirming that the party’s central working committee (CWC) had accepted the results and that requests for a re-election would not be entertained.

It has been brought to FMT’s knowledge that during the CWC meeting last week, the election committee was shocked when the vice president M Saravanan alleged that the total number of delegates eligible to vote during the polls exceeded 1,500.

Saravanan had then produced a set of documents in the meeting to support his claims.

A CWC member forwarded the documents to FMT which showed that the total number of delegates during the election was 1,523, which is more than that allowed under the party’s constitution.

Articles 74.1 and 74.2 of the party constitution state that the total number of delegates entitled to attend the General Assembly shall not exceed 1,500 at any one time.

A party insider, who declined to be named, said that the party’s constitution allowed only 1,500 delegates to vote in order to elect their leadership.

“The breakdown of delegates for the election was as follows: 127 from national body which is, one party president, one deputy president, two vice presidents (as Dr S Subramaniam had been promoted to deputy president), 31 CWC members including nine appointed CWC members, 38 delegates each from Youth and Women wings and 16 delegates representing Puteri MIC,” he said, adding that the rest were ordinary delegates.

“Taking the election committee’s official number into account, the total number of ordinary delegates was 1,361. This does not include 35 delegates from Tanjung Malim and Kuala Selangor divisions who were not allowed to vote in the election after their division were suspended,” he added.

“By adding it, the number will increase to 1,398 and adding another 127 from national body, then the number would be 1,523, which clearly violates article 74.1 and 74.2 of the constitution,” he said.

He stressed that although the Puteri wing was not allowed to vote this time, the party must take the wings’ delegate numbers into account as it was a gazetted body in MIC.

“The party members are really shocked with the CWC’s decision to uphold the election results without investigating this allegation,” he said.

“However, we plan to bring this matter to the Registrar of Societies (ROS) for further investigations,” he added.

Another letter to ROS

Meanwhile, former MIC Puteri chief Usha Nandhini is the latest party leader to lodge a complaint against MIC to the ROS as her wing was stopped from running their election and electing 15 delegates to the MIC’s General Assembly that was held in Malacca on Nov 30 and Dec 1last year.

The complaint was lodged on Feb 4, alleging that the party’s leaders had violated the rights of Puteri MIC members.

This was the fourth report lodged with the ROS by MIC’s disgruntled party leaders.

Previously, MIC’s former treasurer-general Jaspal Singh and former Youth chiefs SA Vignesvaran and T Mohan had also lodged reports to the ROS, urging it to investigate the election irregularities.

Anwar to EC: Watch TV3 and read Utusan - FMT

The candidate for Kajang rejects accusations that his ceramahs are unlawful.

PETALING JAYA: Anwar Ibrahim today accused the Election Commission (EC) of being one-sided in its insinuation that he was breaking the law in delivering speeches in Kajang before the start of the campaign period for the March 23 by-election.

“Don’t they watch TV3 or RTM and read Utusan?” he said in response to a Berita Harian report quoting the EC chairman as saying that early campaigners could be charged under the Peaceful Assembly Act.

Speaking at a press conference here, Anwar asked whether the EC was speaking for Umno or itself.

TV3, RTM and Utusan Malaysia have been carrying reports and interviews that are critical of Anwar since it became known that he was contesting in the Kajang by-election.

Anwar had his first ceramah session last Wednesday in Taman Kajang Baru, Sungai Jelok.

Asked to comment on a statement by Perkasa information chief Ruslan Kasim that the EC should act against him for his “early campaign”, Anwar said his detractor should instead “ask TV3 whether they have not launched any vicious campaign.”

He also said “new leaders” were emerging “every day” to speak against him and accused them of receiving “high payments”.

SULTAN SELANGOR MACAM ANJING SIAL BODOH, KATA JOSEPHINE MARY DARI GEREJA HOLY FAMILY, KAJANG!!!

Berdasarkan kepada kenyataan-kenyataan yang dikeluarkan betina ini sebenarnya baru sahaja memeluk agama Kristian dan perasan dia sudah jadi orang putih dan statusnya telah tinggi berbanding masyarakat India yang sebangsa dengannya.

Dan berdasarkan kepada kenyataan-kenyataannya juga, betina ini merupakan antara barisan muda DAP yang sedang mendapatkan perhatian daripada masyarakat Kajang khususnya. Tidak mustahil sekiranya, paderi yang dimaksudkan, yang terdapat dalam senarai 'friend'nya merupakan antara sumber penggalak untuk dia merangsang kemarahan masyarakat Melayu-Islam.

Betina ini barangkali tidak tahu bahawa akaun Facebooknya boleh diakses dengan sepenuhnya. Berdasarkan kepada tahap Bahasa Inggerisnya yang sangat lintang pukang, selain Bahasa Melayunya dengan kosa kata terhad kepada anjing, babi, sial, lembu dan tahi, Josephine Mary besar kemungkinan merupakan salah seorang pelajar Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil yang terletak di kawasan yang sama.

Antara kata-katanya ialah:



"Selagi Islam Melayu Malaysia ini ada negara ini tidak akan maju... melayu bodoh nak hancurkan agama kristian... menteri, sultan semua bodoh makan tahi anjing sial."

"Saya Josephine Mary dari Kajang Tamah Megah, saya pergi ke Gereja Holy Family Kajang. Paderi kami, George Harrison ajar kami dalam Melayu Allah, kenapa Melayu Islam isukan hal kalimah Allah ini... saya tak puas hati la, memang Melayu Islam Malaysia bodoh makan tahi... sultan menteri semua bodoh melayu sial."

"Sultan Selangor pun macam anjing sial bodoh dengar cakap orang... allah milik orang kristian, islam melayu malaysia nak rampas konon, melayu anjing sial."

Barangkali, dengan mendekatnya PRK DUN Kajang, Josephine Mary mungkin akan selamat memandangkan kawasan tersebut akan dipenuhi pelbagai jenis pemimpin Pakatan Rakyat. Namun selepas PRK DUN Kajang, Josephine Mary barangkali tidak mungkin dapat bertahan lama di Taman Megah, Kajang!!!

Namun berdasarkan kepada tarikh 'pertembungan' peristiwa yang memburukkan diri sendiri pada 27 Januari, tidak mustahil juga sekiranya akaun ini telah diakses oleh penggodam dan digunakan untuk memburuk-burukkannya!

 http://theflyingkick.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/sultan-selangor-macam-anjing-sial-bodoh.html

Kajang polls are key in Pakatan’s plans for GE14


Malaysiakini

Pakatan Rakyat’s decision to field Anwar Ibrahim in Kajang ignited a firestorm and drew many dissenting views.

But for Pakatan to break out from the stalemate since the May 2013 election, this is a brave and strategic move.

Kajang could be the fiercest battle in Anwar’s decades of political career, as well as his riskiest bet – it certainly appears that the daggers are out for him. But these are necessary birth pangs as we search for a post GE13 breakthrough.

My political scientist friend Wong Chin Huat reminded me that in 2005 I had mooted the idea of Anwar contesting a state seat in Selangor.

The logic was to gun for Putrajaya by first controlling Shah Alam. However, at that time Anwar was barred from contesting until after April 2008.

There were two reasons for the Putrajaya via Shah Alam route.

Firstly, although the menteri besar holds limited powers, as far as the Malaysian public is concerned, the MB position befits a high profile almost on par with the prime minister.

An internal GE13 post mortem by the Pakatan secretariat found that among Malay voters, there was no nationwide voting trend.

In Terengganu and Perlis, due to Umno infighting over the respective MB’s post, Pakatan’s popular votes increased. In Kedah dissatisfaction against the late MB Azizan Abdul Razak (right) cost Pakatan precious votes.

In other states, Pakatan’s Malay support increased as well as decreased without a unified voting pattern. In several states Pakatan’s lack of a clear MB candidate also proved to be a chink in its armour.

The point is that state politics is very important in the minds of the Malay voters.

Huge difference

Secondly, the ground often shifts faster than we think. There is a huge difference between the political scenario in 1998 and that of 2005, the stark contrast between Reformasi and the post-Mahathir era.

In former prime minister Abdullah Badawi’s (right) heyday, BN controlled 91 percent of seats and 64 percent of the popular vote – it was a bleak season for the opposition post-GE 2004. Hence I mooted the idea for Anwar to go for Shah Alam.

By the time the embers of 2008 smouldered, ten years had passed since Anwar was the deputy prime minister, something the younger generation of voters are too young to remember. Hence the need for Anwar to reinvent his political legacy.

The GE14 must be held before or by 2018. By then, a child who was one year old when Anwar was sacked in 1998, would have reached the voting age. It would have been 20 years since the ‘98 Reformasi era.

In 2008, there were 10 million (10,740,227) registered voters with 76 percent turnout on election day. In 2013, the total number of registered voters was 13 million (13,268,002) while another three million or so had reached 21 years, but had yet to register as voters.

Each year there are about 500,000 Malaysians turning 21. All in, total number of voters could potentially reach 18 million in 2018, almost double that of in 2008.

To reach this generation of new voters, we need to translate the idealism and spirit of 1998 into practical policies and results.

In the current soul-searching period since GE13, both BN and Pakatan are seeking for a point of breakthrough.

Public anger

Prime Minister Najib Razak struggled and failed to find a way out and he has nothing new to offer to the discourse.

As Najib’s (right) handling of economic matters has aroused public anger, his approval ratings have taken a nosedive and left him vulnerable to attacks from the usually racially charged pro-Mahathir camp.

After GE13, Anwar too seemed to be stuck politically. At the same time it would not be prudent for the Pakatan-rule Selangor leaders to continue its public spats. Something serious must be done now.

In politics, standing still is as good as losing ground. Although in GE13 Pakatan managed 51 percent of the popular vote, it was not good enough to win federal power.

Pakatan needs to demonstrate a breakthrough in terms of discourse and results as to maintain that margin, and gain more fence-sitters’ votes.

People actually ask, is the timing right? To me, if we need to start over, it is better to do so now than wait for another two years. If we wait further to make this move, then it would really be too late.

For those who question whether Kajang is a ‘demotion’ for Anwar, I will say this: Anwar is Pakatan’s candidate for prime minister, and the move to raise his profile as a state leader before aiming for national leadership is a strategic move for this season, in line with our overall strategy.

Cat out of the bag – MCA clearly behind the plot to mislead UMNO Ministers to spearhead the vicious demonization campagn against Teresa Kok falsely accusing her video as being anti-Malay and anti-Islam

By Lim Kit Siang,

Now the cat is out of the bag.

MCA is clearly behind the plot to mislead UMNO Ministers to spearhead the vicious demonization campaign against DAP National Vice Chairman and MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok falsely accusing her video, “Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014” as being anti-Malay and anti-Islam, and therefore deserving not only downright condemnation by all right-thinking Malaysians but also the fullest punishment whether under the laws of the land or the law of the jungle.

I have come to this conclusion after reading the Bernama report of the statement by the MCA deputy president, Datuk Dr. Wee Ka Siong, at the Sabah MCA CNY dinner in Kota Kinabalu last night, where he advised Teresa to apologise for her video clip “for the good of Malaysians”.

Present at the Sabah MCA CNY dinner in Kota Kinabalu were the Sabah Yang diPertua Negeri, Tun Juhar Mahiruddin, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman and Urban and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

What interested me was the presence of Apdal, the first UMNO/BN leader to open up the attack on Teresa on the video on the completely baseless grounds that the video “Onederful Malaysia” lampooned the Malaysian security forces and the Lahad Datu incursion tragedy.

When it was pointed out that the video contained no reference whatsoever to the security forces or the Lahad Datu tragedy, then one UMNO Minister after another joined the fray and accused Teresa’s video of being anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

Who misled Apdal into opening the attack on Teresa’s video, when clearly Apdal could not have understood the Mandarin or Cantonese dialogue in the video, and who were responsible for misleading other UMNO Ministers and leaders, as well as Muslim NGOs into believing that Teresa’s video was anti-Malay and anti-Islam – like the six NGOs which styled themselves the “Council for Islamic NGOs” which conducted the disgraceful blood-splattered “chicken slaughtering” demonstration last Thursday, committing a slew of offences such as sedition, criminal intimidation, incitement of another May 13 riots as well as incitement of violence against a woman MP when RM1,200 was publicly offered to anyone who slapped Teresa Kok?

I have right from the beginning suspected that there were “unseen hands” manipulating UMNO Ministers, leaders and so-called Islamic NGOs, to launch a vicious demonization campaign against Teresa on the ground that her video was anti-Malay and anti-Islam, for two reasons: (i) the allegations that Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam were completely baseless; and (ii) the many UMNO Ministers, leaders and “Islamic NGOs” taking umbrage raises questions as the language in the dialogue in the video was in Cantonese and Mandarin.

I made a standing invitation more than a week ago to be “educated” as to how Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, and this invitation remains open and valid – for I really want to know how Teresa’s video could be described as anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

Teresa would be going against DAP principle and policy if she produces a video which is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, as the DAP had always stood for a Malaysia for all Malaysians, regardless of race or religion.

In fact, when the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin repudiated Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s signature 1Malaysia policy in early 2010 and declared that he was “Malay first, Malaysian second”, I proudly declared in Parliament that I was “Malaysian first, Chinese second”.

This basic principle remains unchanged and unshakeable – and as I have said many a time, DAP leaders, whether Members of Parliament or State Assembly members, must always regard themselves as “Malaysian first and race and religion second” – as we are first and foremost Malaysian patriots and not race champions!

In pursuit of this long-standing DAP principle and objective of being a party for all Malaysians, I have no doubt that Teresa Kok would have no hesitation in withdrawing and apologising for the “Onederful Malaysia” video if there are portions which are anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

But Teresa and DAP leaders have been waiting for someone to come out into the open to point out and substantiate the allegation that Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, but no one has been able to do so in the past two weeks.

If Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, why is it so difficult for someone to point this out publicly?

This is in fact the best proof that while one can disagree with Teresa’s video – with some particularly in MCA and Gerakan claiming that it is in bad taste to produce such a CNY video with stinging criticisms of the Barisan Nasional government in failing to resolve the people’s hardships and grievances arising from price hikes, fall in educational standards, high crime rates and rampant corruption in the country – it could not be faulted for being anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

I have always suspected that UMNO Ministers and leaders have been led by the nose and “poisoned” by Chinese leaders in MCA and Gerakan as the Teresa video issue as they do not understand the dialogue which is in Mandarin and Cantonese, and misinformed into believing that Teresa’s video was a most ferocious and aggressive attack on the Malays and Islam.

Wee’s statement at the Sabah MCA CNY dinner appears to be “the smoking gun” that it is the MCA who are the “unseen hands” misleading UMNO Ministers to spearhead the vicious demonization campaign against Teresa’s video on the completely false allegation that it is anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

Wee and the top MCA leadership should cease and desist, and not be so unprincipled and unscrupulous as to stoop so low to “poison” and mislead UMNO Ministers and leaders into believing that Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam when there is nothing anti-Malay or anti-Islam in the video.

If Wee believes that Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, then let him declare how Teresa’s video is anti-Malay and anti-Islam.

Otherwise, has Wee and the new MCA leaders including the MCA President Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai got the courage, ethics and principle to declare publicly that there is nothing anti-Malay or anti-Islam in Teresa’s video and that UMNO Ministers and leaders have been completely misled.

It is public knowledge that Wee and the top MCA leaders are only pre-occupied with one issue – how to get back to Cabinet and government after being out in the wilderness for nine months.

They should be more concerned about political principles and honour.

They should ask the Prime Minister and Cabinet to repudiate and reprimand the Home Minister, Datuk Ser Zahid Hamidi for condoning and absolving the self-styled “Council for Islamic NGOs” in their slew of crimes, including criminal intimidation, sedition, incitement of violence against woman, incitement of violence against a Member of Parliament, incitement of another May 13 riots, and declare that unless the Prime Minister and Cabinet repudiate and reprimand Zahid for his irresponsible stand that there was nothing for the police to investigate against “Council for Islamic NGOs” despite police reports lodged by DAP and Pakatan Rakyat MPs and State Assembly members , there is no purpose of MCA returning to be Ministers and members of such a disreputable and dishonourable Government.

(Media Statement in Kuala Lumpur on Monday, 10th February 2014)

Let the law take its course, Zahid told

The Star 
by NEVILLE SPYKERMAN AND CHRISTINA TAN

PETALING JAYA: Various groups have called on police to continue the probe against the group offering a reward to slap Seputeh MP Teresa Kok over her video.

MCA Youth Legal Bureau chairman Eric Choo Wei Sern said both police and the Attorney-General should be free to act against the group.

Expressing its disappointment over Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s statement in dismissing the threat, bureau chairman Eric Choo Wei Sern said the Home Minister must let the law and procedure take its course.

“Should the A-G decide to prosecute, the finding of whether there was a crime committed should thus be made by the courts of law,” he said, adding that the statement was issued despite police having started investigating the group for inciting others to commit an offence and criminal intimidation.

On Saturday, Dr Ahmad Zahid had said that offering the reward was not a threat and there was no need for an investigation.

Bar Council Human Rights Committee co-chairman Andrew Khoo said the minister’s statement was akin to interfering in police investigations.

“It’s clearly wrong and tantamount to abuse of power,” he said.

By doing nothing, Khoo said, the authorities were condoning the group’s action, adding that this was contrary to the Government’s call for moderation and reconciliation.

RIGHTS Foundation chairman Yusmadi Yusoff said the Home Minister was supposed to be the guardian of public security and should know his role.

“In cases like this, the Government should intervene and send a strong message before the situation deteriorates,” said the former Balik Pulau MP with PKR.

Jihad for Justice chairman Datuk Thasleem Mohamed Ibrahim described the statement as “unbecoming”, adding that not taking action would only encourage others to carry out similar acts.

“This is not good for racial harmony and unity,” he said.

Malaysia Should Be Proud Of Its Healthcare System, Third Best In The World - Najib


KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 10 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today said Malaysia should be proud as its healthcare system has been listed as third best in the world.

The prime minister on his Twitter page tonight said: "Malaysia scores third best out of 24 countries in International Living's Annual Global Retirement Index 2014. We should be proud!"

A study by the American publication, International Living, rates Malaysia's healthcare system as the third best out of 24 countries in its 2014 Global Retirement Index, beating Spain, Italy, Ireland and New Zealand, among other countries.

Malaysia was listed as third place after it scored 95 out of a possible 100 points. The top two countries, France and Uruguay, scored 97 and 96 points respectively.

The index, which was recently released by the Baltimore-based magazine, praised Malaysia's healthcare as the medical expertise of Malaysian healthcare practitioners is "equal to or better than what it is in most Western countries".

Meanwhile, Najib in another tweet urged parents to spend time with their children in surfing the 1BestariNet website.

He said through this website, parents could benefit from the online learning system from wherever they were.

1BestariNet is a project initiated by the Education Ministry in collaboration with YTL Communications, of equipping 10,000 schools nationwide with high-speed Internet access.

It is also a cyber learning platform aimed at narrowing the digital gap between rural and urban students.

This government initiative will also make Malaysia the first country in the world which is equipped with 4G mobile Internet access and Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) at all its schools.