TUNKU MUKHRIZ IS NEW YANG DIPERTUAN NEGERI SEMBILAN

Tunku Besar Seri Menanti Tunku Mukhriz Tuanku Munawir was chosen as the 11th ruler of Negri Sembilan following the death of his uncle on Saturday, Yang di-Pertuan Besar Tuanku Ja'afar Tuanku Abdul Rahman, which was announced at 3.50pm at the Istana Besar Seri Menanti in Kuala Pilah today.

Tunku Mukhriz, 63, was selected by a four-member council of ruling chiefs in the state, or better known as datuk datuk undang, through a tradition that began about 250 years ago by the Minangkabau settlers who hailed from Sumatra in the 15th century.

Negri Sembilan customs on electing the ruler is different compared to the hereditary monarch practice by the other Malay states. The ruler is selected by the Council of Undangs from four of the state's biggest districts, Sungai Ujong, Jelebu, Johol and Rembau.

Tunku Mukhriz was picked among three other likely candidates, the late Negri Sembilan ruler’s son, Tunku Laxamana Tunku Naquiyuddin Tuanku Ja'afar, Tunku Muda Serting Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar and Tunku Panglima Besar Tunku Putera Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja'afar.

Klang rep calls for Teng's removal

KLANG: Be transparent about the Klang Sentral bus terminal issue or quit. This is Klang member of parliament Charles Santiago's challenge to Teng Chang Khim, chairman of the Select Committee on Competence, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) in Selangor.

He said Teng should come clean on why he was opposing the popular sentiment here, which was against moving the bus terminal from here to Meru.

"The project is plagued with controversies and the public wants answers for many questions. The people voted us in for more transparency but in this issue, the opposite is happening."

He said Teng, who is also state assembly speaker, should initiate investigations into the project and reveal details of it to the public.
"However, he is doing the opposite. If he can't perform his duty, then he should be removed," he told the New Straits Times.

It is learnt that the concession for the RM17 million bus terminal is for 30 years.

Teng, who is also the Sungai Pinang assemblyman, had branded Santiago as behaving like the opposition and having been bought over by the Barisan Nasional.

"All I wanted was for the Klang Municipal Council to initiate a public inquiry so there would be transparency. I also suggested that a committee comprising all interested parties be set up to go through the concessionaire agreement," Santiago said.

He said Teng must apologise publicly as his accusations were aimed at discrediting him and making people doubt his sincerity.

"This is not just an insult of the highest order but goes against my principles. There must be an apology. There are no two ways about it."

Santiago said the DAP's disciplinary committee should reprimand Teng.

********
2008/12/30

Traders protest move of the Klang bus terminal

NST

The old Klang bus terminal before the relocation.

KLANG: About 100 traders affected by the relocation of the bus terminal on Saturday demonstrated near Centre Point yesterday.

Holding placards and banners slamming State Assembly Speaker Teng Chang Khim and the Klang Municipal Council for being "pro-developer", the traders chanted slogans and protested for about an hour in the city centre.

Trader C. Krishnan said the move would not only affect them but also students, as many schools were located near the old terminal.

He said a group of traders, bus operators and commuters had earlier held a meeting and formed an action committee to protest against the relocation.

MPK councillor Gary Tai said it would be better if the old terminal could be maintained as this would be the best solution for everybody.
*********

The Star

Monday December 29, 2008

Santiago: I’m not against relocation

By WANI MUTHIAH

KLANG: Klang MP Charles Santiago is miffed that Selangor State Assembly Speaker Teng Chang Khim had lumped him together with those protesting against the relocation of the Klang Utara bus station.

“I never protested against the relocation,” Santiago said yesterday.

The move that has shaken the government: The new Klang Sentral bus terminal at Meru and notices about the move at the old one( below). The relocation has led to a huge quarrel.

“I wanted the Klang Municipal Council (MPK) to declassify the concessionaire agreement governing the move (to the new Klang Sentral Terminal).”

He added he had also wanted MPK to initiate a public inquiry so there would be transparency, and so the people of Klang could have the right to information.

“I had also suggested that a committee comprising all interested parties be set up to go through the concessionaire agreement,” said Santiago.

He added that he was perplexed that Teng had gone to the extent of alleging that he (Santiago) had been bought over by Barisan Nasional.

Santiago has given Teng, DAP central committee member and state assemblyman for Sungai Pinang, seven days to prove the allegation or retract his statement and offer a public apology.

Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng, of the DAP, said it was wrong of Teng to make wild allegations against Santiago.

“I agree with what Charles is doing, and I feel that Teng had hit below the belt in alleging that he had been bought over by Barisan,” he added.

However, another DAP elected representative Ng Suee Lim said the issue was a state matter, and MPs should understand the limit of their jurisdiction.

The Sekinchan state assemblyman said elected representatives in Selangor must also understand that they are now part of the state government and no longer in the opposition.

“They must also not behave like members of NGOs and activists,” he said.

Teng was not available for comment.

New political clown in town

pic: nst

Tuesday, Dec 30 2008 -- A new political clown has emerged in the Malaysian political scene after the March 8th. political earthquake that buried many other clowns especially the well known clown, PPP chief Keyveyas. The Kapar Parliamentary MP, Manikavasagam is the new clown entertaining the Malaysian public with his foolish statements to the Malaysian government controlled media. He has been threatening to quit Justice Party (PKR) for some time. Probably he wants to follow his father in law, Wilson, foot step of party hopping or follow his former mentor and traitor Ezam.

MP hurt by comments but won't quit party

Perutusan Tahun Baru 2009

Setiap kali tiba tahun baru, maka kita berkesempatan melakukan dua perkara; merenung kembali apa yang sudah kita usahakan sepanjang tahun yang bakal berlalu pergi serta menetapkan matlamat baru mahupun menjayakan apa yang belum kita capai.

Tahun 2008 merakamkan beberapa peristiwa bersejarah. Sekian lama kerajaan Barisan Nasional yang dipimpin Umno tidak pernah digugat kedudukannya, namun tahun ini rakyat membuktikan perubahan tidak pernah mustahil untuk dilaksanakan. Nuansa politik perkauman yang dipintal bersama ketakutan ditolak rakyat.

Pilihanraya Umum ke 12 menyaksikan kerusi milik pembangkang bertambah dan menafikan Barisan Nasional majoriti 2/3. Harapan rakyat begitu besar, perubahan mesti dilakukan, makanya hasil dari persetujuan dan permuafakatan ketiga-tiga parti; Pas, Dap dan Parti Keadilan Rakyat melahirkan Pakatan Rakyat. Sepanjang tahun ini tidak dapat dinafikan pelbagai cabaran yang datang untuk menggugat permuafakatan ini.

Hasrat Barisan Nasional untuk melihat kehancuran Pakatan Rakyat nampaknya menemui jalan buntu. Mereka lupa, asas kepada permuafakatan ini berpasak kuat dari cita-cita memperjuangkan agenda rakyat dan melakukan perubahan mendasar. Perubahan adalah tuntutan melewati sempadan kaum dan politik kepartian.

Negara kita berdepan dengan kedudukan ekonomi sejagat yang tidak menentu. Kesannya kepada rakyat semain terasa. Kadar Inflasi yang tinggi menyebabkan harga barang melonjak naik. Krisis keyakinan terhadap institusi keselamatan dalam negeri juga terhadap sisten kehakiman ternyata tidak membantu menarik pelaburan bagi menjana ekonomi negara. Kita tidak boleh lagi berada dalam keadaaan penafian. Kepimpinan yang menggalas beban pastinya menghakis kepercayaan rakyat. Pengurusan ekonomi memerlukan kepimpinan yang berpandangan jauh, tegas dan jujur.

Sering saya ulangi, negara ini dan rakyatnya yang berbilang kaum sudah mengharungi pelbagai rintangan bersama. Kita yakin dengan berlakunya perubahan, dan bila negara ini mula berada di haluan yang tepat, maka sekali lagi kita akan dapat melepasi cabaran ini.

Kami ingin mengambil kesempatan ini untuk mengucapkan Selamat Tahun Baru 2009 kepada semua rakyat Malaysia.

Ubah sebelum parah, ubah demi maruah.

Selamat Tahun Baru 2009

ANWAR IBRAHIM & DR WAN AZIZAH WAN ISMAIL

Top 10 Health Stories of the Year 2008

Health is wealth, so it would pay off if you keep abreast of the main news on the health front. Doctor 2008's list of Top 10 is interesting, with melamine at No 4 and making healthcare affordable and accessible to all at No 10.

On my list, the attempt to take over the Insitute Jantung Negara by Sime Darby was the biggest health story for 2008 (after melamine) and one of the worst corporate takeover proposals of all time, but I'm a layman and a socio-political blogger so it's different.

IJN's survival in its current form will be a major concern for 2009, too.

Read Doctor 2008's Top 10 health news of the year, here.

A Nation In Progress

The year draws to an end.

A kaleidoscope, 2008 defies description. In the swirl of colours and sounds, chords were struck and themes developed. I imagine an orchestra tuning up, falling silent and then suddenly and majestically playing a symphony of divine beauty.

Each of us an instrument, our voices lent themselves this year to the harmonies that described and cumulatively defined us as a society and a nation. In the silence behind each echo, we felt whom it is that we could be if we wanted to: one nation, one people.

2008 was the year that transformed us. We found our voices.

We may have voted for one candidate or the other, or even for one party in preference to another. We may have regretted our choices or felt vindicated in the time since or even suffered bitter disappointment for expectations not having been fulfilled. Whatever the case, this year we reclaimed democracy and the right to choose.

It does not matter that since March this year we have seen more political bickering than we would have liked to on either side of the divide, and within the ranks on either side. Any vision that emerges from a true democracy is necessarily the product of the synthesis of varied perspectives and opinions. There never is just one side to things and the heated exchanges about key aspects of our lives is something that we should welcome rather than fear. It is only the truths that flow from this crucible that are sufficiently strong to forge the foundations of a lasting civilisation.

Equally, it does not matter that the governments of the federation or the states made decisions that we would have preferred them not to. It does not matter that this politician or that one acted in a manner that we would have preferred him or her not to have. The reality is that for the first time in a very long time we have had these governments and those who form them behave with some regard to what it is we want; such is the power of the ballot box.

Enhanced opposition presence in parliament, the establishment of Pakatan Rakyat governments in five states and a courageous civil society have also allowed us to see all concerned as they really are, warts and all. We have come face to face with the fact that politicians are not very pretty to look at just as they have had to confront the fact that their fates do really lie in our hands.

And as each of us has come to feel more involved, our sense of belonging has heightened and with it our feeling of ownership. It is your Malaysia as much as it is my Malaysia and together, it is our Malaysia. With that awareness has come the understanding that each of us is responsible for what it is that we become. This has been accompanied by a nascent evolution of attitudes and orientation.

This is the breadth and depth of what it is we achieved this year. It has not been about reformasi but rather, transformasi.

The process is however just beginning and we must continue to be vigilant. As we offer thanks for what is that was bestowed upon us this year, let us not forget that there are those who do not want change. Race politics, with its attendant religious elements, and corruption also continue to threaten us. The latter has gravely undermined us through its insidious colonizing of the wider system and the political process. Its mark is evident in every aspect of our public system, so much so that we are now held to ransom by it.

As for race politics, despite it being self-evidently divisive it sadly continues to play out in the continued politicization of race and religion at great cost. Its destructive quality is seen most clearly in the distorting of legitimate efforts to find more effective methods of affirmative action as attempts to undermine the special status of the Malays under the Constitution.

As we move forward, we must commit to taking it upon ourselves to ridding ourselves of these difficulties. It is not sufficient for us to pay lip service to ideals; we must focus and act decisively. We must develop a more rounded understanding of the sensitivities and fears involved as it only through this that we will be able to develop the necessary language to build bridges with.

The light of the new year illuminates the recently cleared footpath that may ultimately lead us to where it is we should be getting. Though the way is treacherous, our belief that we can be all that we want to be will guide us if we let it.

I believe we want it to.

(Malay Mail; 30th December 2008)

Malik Imtiaz

Kuala Terengganu...ada yang tak kena antara PAS Kelantan - Terengganu

Benar bagai dikata, memang ada yang tidak kena dalam soal penentuan calon oleh PAS bagi bertanding pada pilihan raya kecil Parlimen Kuala Terengganu.

Suasana serba tidak kena itu diperkatakan, sebaik sahaja nama-nama calon yang difikirkan layak bertanding mula disebut-sebut dan wujudnya pula faktor Erdogan atau kumpulan pemimpin PAS yang menyokong Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yang mahukan orang tertentu menjadi calon mewakili PAS.

Selain itu, memandangkan pilihan raya kecil ini akan berlangsung di Terengganu, negeri Presiden PAS, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang sendiri, campur tangan PAS Kelantan yang diketuai oleh Mursyidul Am PAS, Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat amat tidak disenangi.

Terbaru ia terbukti apabila Nik Aziz menyifatkan kelewatan pengumuman calon PAS bagi bertanding pada pilihan raya kecil berkenaan memberikan gambaran kegagalan PAS Terengganu untuk mencapai kata sepakat berhubung dengan penentuan calon.

Malah golongan ulama PAS Terengganu juga dikatakan tidak dapat berkompromi dengan kumpulan muda dalam parti itu bagia menentukan calon yang seharusnya dipilih.

''Ini masalah orang sini dan bukan saya," kata Nik Aziz merujuk kepada PAS Terengganu apabila ditanya mengenai kelewatan PAS menamakan calon parti itu.

Barisan Nasional (BN) telah mengumumkan calonnya Datuk Wan Farid Wan Salleh 20 Disember lalu dan PAS yang dijadual mengumumkan calonnya sehari kemudian akhirnya menangguhkan pengumuman itu pada 1 Januari 2009.

Mursyidul Am Pas itu vberkata demikian , selepas merasmikan jentera Pilihan Raya Kecil Parlimen Kuala Terengganu dari Kelantan dan Wilayah Persekutuan di Kuala Terengganu.

Kenyataan terbaru Nik Aziz itu, adalah daripada beberapa siri ‘pertembungan terbuka’ beliau dengan pemimpin PAS dari Terengganu.

Dalam konteks pilihan raya kecil Kuala Terengganu, belum pun PAS Terengganu membuat sebarang kenyataan, Nik Aziz sudah mendahului dengan mencadangkan nama Naib Presiden parti itu, Mohamad Sabu.

Tindakan Nik Aziz itu dikatakan usaha kumpulan Erdogan kerana nama Mohamad Sabu telah ‘dipasang’ oleh anak didik kesayangan Nik Aziz iaitu seorang lagi Naib Presiden Husam Musa yang dikenali menjadi ‘ketua’ kumpulan penyokong Anwar dalam PAS.

Dalam erti kata lain Nik Aziz mencadangkan nama Mohamad Sabu kerana ia dipengaruhi oleh Husam untuk berbuat demikian.

Dalam isu lain pula, sebelum ini memang jelas dan secara terbuka wujudnya pertembungan dan percanggahan pendapat antra Nik Aziz dengan kepiminan PAS Terengganu.

Contohnya dalam isu pembentukan kerajaan baru 16 September yang dirancang oleh Anwar, Nik Aziz merupakan penyokong kuat rancangan Anwar itu. Ini mudah difahami kerana faktor kumpulan Erdogan yang berada di sekeliling Nik Aziz.

Namun Hadi Awang pernah membuat kenyataan rancangan tersebut masih tidak konkrit kerana beliau sendiri tidak pernah melihat senarai nama Ahli Parlimen BN yang didakwa Anwar telah sedia untuk lompat parti.

Lebih hebat ialah Timbalan Pesuruhjaya PAS, Datuk Mustafa Ali yang membuat kenyataan jelas bertentangan dengan Mursyidul Am tersebut apabila berkata, “Saya kata perubahan tidak akan berlaku. Bila tiba 16 September ini boleh tengok saya betul atau dia (Anwar) betul”.

Malah dengar-dengarnya, kenyataan terbaru Nik Aziz berhubung kelewatan pengumuman calon merupakan masalah PAS Terengganu juga telah dijawab oleh Mustafa dengan menafikan PAS negeri itu tidak ada masalah dalam menentukan calon.

Malah katanya, biasanya PAS akan mengumumkan calon sehari atau dua hari sebelum penamaan calon dan menyifatkan pengumuman 1 Januari ini adalah lebih cepat daripada biasa.

Israeli airstrikes in Gaza enter third day

GAZA CITY (CNN) -- Israeli jets pounded Hamas targets in Gaza for a third day Monday, continuing an operation that Palestinian security sources said has killed more than 270 people.

Fire burns late Sunday or early Monday in Gaza, where Israel has been bombing what it says are Hamas targets.

Hamas militants launched more rockets into Israel on Sunday. Israel has said its airstrikes are a necessary self-defense measure after repeated rocket attacks from Gaza into southern Israel.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told CNN on Sunday that the airstrikes will continue "until we have a change on the ground" and that Israel has not ruled out a ground war in Gaza.

"Israel targets only military targets and places in which we know Hamas members are," Livni said.

"Unfortunately, in this kind of attack, there are some civilian casualties. But Israel took all the necessary actions to warn the civilians before the attacks to leave the places they know that Hamas stays."

Israeli ground troops and tanks were deployed around Gaza on Sunday. There is no indication of a ground operation inside Gaza, but a senior military official said troops around Gaza will "be activated if needed." Watch an ambassador say Israel is only defending itself »

Israel will call up 7,000 reserve soldiers, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said during Sunday's Cabinet meeting. He told ministers he planned to present the measure to two Knesset committees, which must approve the action.

Early Monday, an Israeli jet bombed part of the Islamic University of Gaza, a Gaza-based journalist at the scene -- whose name was withheld for security reasons -- told CNN. There were no immediate reports of casualties from that strike.

Video footage from Palestinian TV network Ramattan showed firefighters trying to extinguish a fire at a building the network identified as part of the university.

When CNN asked Israel Defense Forces about the incident, the IDF sent a statement that said the site "housed explosives laboratories that were an inseparable part of Hamas' research and development program," and that weapons development there "took place under the auspices of senior lecturers who are activists in Hamas."

The IDF and the Israeli Air Force struck "buildings that were used as meeting places for senior leaders of Hamas," the statement said.

In Jabalya, a mosque and a family home were hit by rockets early Monday, according to Hamas security sources. Palestinian medical officials said five children died and two survived. Footage from the scene showed the two surviving girls being taken into an ambulance.

Palestinian security sources said Sunday that at least 277 people, most of them Hamas militants, have been killed and hundreds more wounded.

On Sunday, black plumes of smoke rose above Gaza City as makeshift ambulances screamed down rubble-strewn streets, taking wounded Palestinians to hospitals already crowded with hundreds of patients injured over the weekend.

Terrified people huddled in their basements for safety, with few venturing outside, said Dr. Eyad El-Sarraj, a psychiatrist who runs Gaza's mental health program.

"The children are terrified," El-Sarraj said. "Adults are unable to provide them with security or warmth. Hospitals are stretched out of the limits. We need blood and medicine and surgical equipment."

The U.N. Security Council ended a four-hour emergency meeting Sunday with a call for an immediate halt to hostilities and a re-opening of border crossings to allow humanitarian supplies to reach Gaza.

The Palestinians' U.N. envoy said if Israel does not halt attacks within 48 hours, Arab delegations will demand stronger action from the Security Council.

Israel gave in to requests from the Red Cross and others to allow 16 trucks loaded with fuel, food and medical supplies into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing Sunday morning. Egypt sent 20 ambulances to its border with Gaza, an Egyptian official said.

The Red Cross and World Food Program trucks, which carried rice, wheat and medical supplies, were the first deliveries allowed by Israel since 80 trucks moved through Friday after Israel opened three border crossings.

More than 110 Hamas rockets have been launched into Israel by Hamas militants since Saturday morning, an Israel Defense Forces spokesman said. An Israeli man died when a rocket slammed into a home Saturday, IDF said.

An Israeli police spokesman said that one rocket landed north of Ashkelon, which sits about 6 miles (10 kilometers) north of the Gaza border. The city has been a frequent target of missiles launched from Gaza.

Gaza City's main police station and jail were hit by Israeli missiles Sunday morning, according to a Gaza-based journalist.

At least two people were killed when a missile struck the Seraya compound, which houses various Hamas military organizations in central Gaza City. Another two people were killed when an airstrike hit a vehicle.

Missiles also hit near the Beit Hanoun City Hall, according to a reporter there, and Palestinian sources said Israeli bombs fell on the Palestinian side of the Rafah tunnels on the Egyptian border with southern Gaza.

An Israeli army spokesman confirmed the airstrike. He said it targeted 40 tunnels on the border, which he said Hamas uses to smuggle weapons into Gaza.

Two tunnels were hit by missiles, eyewitnesses said, and others collapsed. Two people were killed.

An Egyptian soldier was killed and two other troops were wounded by Palestinians who opened fire at the Rafah border crossing, Egypt's state-run news agency reported, citing security sources.

Palestinians began trying to cross over into Egypt through a hole in the wall after the bombing, witnesses said, but Egyptian police and Hamas gunmen began firing in an attempt to stop them.

More than 40 airstrikes were carried out Sunday, the Israeli army said. An IDF spokesman said Sunday that Israel had struck 210 Hamas targets since Saturday morning.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian envoy to the U.N., said the casualty toll forced U.N. Security Council members to confront Israel to end the attacks.

The Security Council issued a brief press statement, which fell short of the resolution that the Palestinians requested.

The statement expressed "serious concern at the escalation of the situation in Gaza," but it did not single out Israel or Hamas when it called for "an immediate halt for all violence."

Israel's ambassador to the U.N., Gabriela Shalev, responded that her country was only defending itself from Hamas rocket attacks.

"The last days were so bad that we had to say, and did say, 'Enough is enough,' " Shalev said. "The only party to blame is the Hamas."

Hamas, however, vowed to retaliate, saying Israel had violated an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire intended to stem violence in the region.

"We will stand up, we will defend our own people, we will defend our land and we will not give up," senior spokesman Osama Hamdan said. Read reactions to Israel's strike on Gaza »

The U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Zalmay Khalilzad, supported Israel's contention that it was up to Hamas to stop the violence.

"Israel has the right to self-defense and nothing in this press statement should be read as anything but that," Khalilzad said.

The United States has cautioned Israel, however, to avoid civilian casualties. Israeli leaders maintain they are attempting to do so.

Reinventing himself again

By Baradan Kuppusamy, The Star

It was an exhilarating year for opposition leader and PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who emerged from the political wilderness to come within a whisker of overthrowing his tormentor Umno and capturing state power.

As in 1998 when he was one step away from becoming Prime Minister but ended up sacked and jailed, he is again one step away as the effective power behind the Pakatan Rakyat coalition and as opposition leader controlling 82 seats in parliament.

Yet the final step eluded him despite a massive build-up to Sept 16, the date that Anwar claimed BN backbenchers would defect to his side to topple the government and finally enable him to become Prime Minister.

Becoming Prime Minister has been his goal ever since he gave up a sterling career as a neutral, firebrand Islamist leader in 1982 for a meteoric career as an Umno leader.

He was the man that then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad picked to implement “Islam in-government” and he did a massively successfully job.

By 1996 he was in a strong enough position to challenge Dr Mahathir and saw in the Asian financial crisis of 1997 the opportunity to unseat his boss. But all that is history.

Today his once-feared fundamentalist Islamist leanings don’t cause a ripple among non-Muslims; instead he heads a growing multi-racial party that is the undisputed dominant component in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

Anwar has successfully reinvented himself as a “new age” leader espousing multi-culturalism, racial equality and affirmative action for all Malaysians who need it, not just bumiputras.

The Sept 16 gambit has dented his credibility and politically set him back but if ever there is an incorrigible optimist, it must be Anwar.

His new target is to capture Sarawak and with its 31 MPs march into Putrajaya.

If that fails, he will simply come up with another scheme.

Is Ahmad Said the most suitable candidate to be the first Chief Commissioner of the MACC?

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz was reported in the New Straits Times on Saturday as announcing that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) will begin operations on Thursday on 1st January 2009 with Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) director-general Datuk Ahmad Said Hamdan as its first chief commissioner.

The first question is whether Ahmad Said is the most suitable candidate to be the Chief Commissioner of the MACC.

Parliament and the nation have been promised that with the establishment of the MACC, purportedly modeled after Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), the new anti-corruption body can no longer be accused of being the “lapdog of the government” as the ACA had been accused of being thus far.

The implication is very clear – that the ACA had corruption cases which it had not been able to prosecute because of various constraints and considerations all boiling down to “political interference”.

If so, how many such cases are there which the MACC could re-open and would Ahmad Said be the best person to re-open all such cases or would it have been better to have a completely new head for the MACC to spearhead the transformation of the MACC to become another IACC, beginning the journey to catapult Malaysia’s ranking in Transparency International Corruption Perception Index from the country’s lowest position of No. 47 to be among the world’s ten or twenty least corrupt nations like New Zealand (No. 1), Singapore (No. 4), Australia (No. 9), Hong Kong (No. 12 ) and Japan (No. 18)?

With the MACC starting operations on January 1, would Malaysians be able to see the stark difference between the new MACC and the old ACA in its first two weeks of operation?

The Mataram Kingdom & Royal Palaces

In Yogyakarta and Surakarta

The center of Mataram Kingdom were Yogyakarta, Surakarta and Central Java.

THE MATARAM KINGDOM I

It was known as Hindu Mataram Kingdom which had ruled this region from 8th to 10th century AD. This kingdom has a very fertile land so it could support the constructions of several temples, like Prambanan, Borobudur, etc.

According to a Dutch archeologist, DR. Krom, prior to the arrival of Hindus, in the earlier centuries, the Javanese had known, among other :

1. Irrigation (wet-rice cultivation) or Agriculture.
2. Fishery
3. Astronomy
4. Weaving
5. Batik
6. Gamelan
7. Wayang

This kingdom were ruled by Javanese who had adopted the Hindu faith and culture. Before the arrival of the Hindus, Javanese already had a culture and beliefs of their own.

The Hindu-Javanese culture was a result of a meeting of the two civilizations, the indigenous and the Hindu. The influence of Islam, from the 15th century, into the Javanese civilization again produced a mix culture which does exist to present date.
The Mataram kingdom I, moved from Central Java to East Java, probably due to destructive eruption of MOUNT Merapi, which had ruined and covered with ash and debris several temples such as Borobudur, Sambisari, etc. Some scientist analyzed that removal of the power center eastward was due to internal wars between the rulers. Although the power center had shifted to East Java, but the rulers were the descendants or families from Mataram Rulers.
The first kingdom was established at Brantas river valley where agriculture was also flourishing due to its fertile soil. The king was Mpu Sindok, who had left many records on stone and the king Dharmawangsa. Under his rule, the epic Bharatayudha was translated into old Javanese language (996 AD). From 1019 to 1042, Airlangga was one of the biggest king in East Java.

The KEDIRI KINGDOM existed until 1222, followed by Singhasari Kingdom (1222-1292) with its territory on present day Malang.


MAJAPAHIT EMPIRE (1294-1400)

The founder was Wijaya. This was the most powerful Indonesian Kingdom, with its capital at Trowulan (nearby Surabaya). Majapahit reached its golden peak under the king Hayam Wuruk (1350) with his brilliant prime minister Gajah Mada. At that time Majapahit kingdom embraced almost the entire territory of what is now Indonesia.

Gajah Mada was famous with his Palapa Oath. He swore that he would never consume spices (palapa) before he could unite the whole Indonesia archipelago under the Majapahit's power umbrella (The first Indonesian satellite communication devices were named ' Palapa ' in honour of Gajah Mada).

DEMAK KINGDOM (Central Java)

After the collapse of Majapahit, the power center had shifted to Demak (30 km) east of Semarang - Central Java. It marked by the beginning of the rise of Islam in Java.
After the fall of Majapahit sometimes in 1478 AD, some of the people who did not agree with Demak Kingdom, fled to Bali and around the mountain Bromo (Tengger) and kept their faith to present date.
Demak with the famous and legendary Wali Songo (the nine Islamic leaders) went forward with Islamization. The last Hindu kingdom in Kediri was conquered at 1527, at the same year, Sunda Kelapa liberated and changed its name to be JAYAKARTA - Glorious City (now Jakarta).
The first king was Raden Patah, his father was a king of Majapahit who married his Je'ampa Moslem mother. The second king was Patiunus, the third was Trenggono.

The rice of Demak and Islam in Java were attributed by the Wali Songo -the nine religious leaders among other Sunan Kalijaga, Sunan Kudus, Sunan Gunung Jati (Falatehan), etc.

Islam became the official religion of the kingdom and provided new social and moral codes, at the same time Javanese philosophy and tradition continued.


THE PAJANG KINGDOM

The son in law, of Trenggono the last king of Demak, Joko Tingkir had moved the power center to Pajang (10 km west of Solo) sometimes around 1540 AD.
Joko Tingkir (the boy from the village of Tingkir), became the ruler as Sultan Hadiwijoyo

THE MATARAM KINGDOM II

Panembahan Senopati was the first ruler (1584-1601) of Mataram. His father, Pemanahan (Ki Ageng Mataram) was a chief-warrior in Pajang, his great grand father was the last king of Majapahit Empire. Panembahan comes from the word : SEMBAH - respectful greeting - made with palms together, fingertips upward and touching the top of the nose. This is the way the Javanese respect their elders, their superiors especially in the court family. So, Panembahan is the one who highly respected, adored or even worshipped. Panembahan Senopati with his child name Sutowijoyo was a legendary king of Mataram.
The stories of Panembahan Senopati are full with tales of mystical power and occult feats. Nowadays, the places where he made meditations or gained supernatural powers, his former palace (Kotagede) 5 km Southeast of Yogyakarta and his grave attract thousand of pilgrims, and considered by many believers as holy places of Mataram Dynasty.

Kanjeng Panembahan Senopati		Hingkang Sinuwun Sultan Agung Hanyokrokusumo

Those places among other are :

1. PARANG KUSUMO
In the southern beach of Parang Tritis (20 km south of Yogyakarta), where he received a divine revelation and made an agreement with Kanjeng Ratu Kidul (the supreme goddess of the south sea) that the queen should always protect the kings of Mataram and its people from evil deeds. Some considers, that every king of Mataram dynasty is married with the queen, it is more precisely a spiritual marriage or agreement.

2. BAMBANG LIPURO
Located 10 km south of Yogyakarta, where the young Sutowijoyo received the God's revelation, known as LINTANG JOHAR.

3. DLEPIH KAHYANGAN
Located 68 km southeast of Solo it was his retreat, where he conversed the jungle of Mentaok to be a powerful kingdom, it was also attributed to his wise advisors such as his own father Pemanahan, Ki Ageng Giring (his father in law), his uncles Juru Mertani and Penjawi. He also respected highly Sunan Kalijogo, who told Sultan of Pajang - Hadiwijoyo, his adopted father to transfer immediately the Mentaok Jungle as promised to Pemanahan and Suto Wijoyo.
Sultan Hadiwijoyo was reluctant to release Mentaok after listening the prediction of Sunan Kudus that one day Mataram should become a strong and glorious power.
Sunan Giri said that establishment of Mataram is a God's will. It was true Mataram expanded its territory due to the strong military power.
In 1588, Pajang's heirlooms, the symbols of king's power were taken to Mataram, followed by the conquered of Demak (1588), Madiun (1590), Kediri, Ponorogo and other places of southern part of East Java (1591).

The second Mataram's king was Panembahan Sedo ing Krapyak (1601-1613), in which the holy city of Kudus was under Mataram.

Sultan Agung Hanyokrokusumo was the third king (1613-1646), the greatest king warrior in Java. Under his rule Mataram reached its peak, dominating all parts of Java except Banten and Batavia.
The wars against the Dutch colonialism in Batavia contained a lot of historic lessons to Indonesia. Sultan Agung concentrated his power in hinterland, he did not appreciate the traders. He moved the capital to Kerta, South of Kotegede. His grave in the hill of Imogiri visited by a lot of pilgrims, who believe in his sacred supernatural power.
The Javanese lunar calendar which is functioning now, was created by Sultan Agung by combining the Javanese and Islam calendar.
His Successors :

Susuhunan Amangkurat I (1646-1677)
Susuhunan Amangkurat II (1677-1703)
Susuhunan Amangkurat III (1703-1708)
Susuhunan Pakubuwono I (1704-1719)
Susuhunan Amangkurat IV (1719-1726)
Susuhunan Pakubuwono II (1726-1749)

Continuously involved in a series of internal wars in Java and wars against the Dutch V.O.C. (East Indian Company) had weakened significantly the power of Mataram Kingdom. The capital of Mataram had been moved several times, in 1647 by Amangkurat I to Plered (nearby Kerta), in 1680 by Amangkurat II to Kartosuro (10 km) west of Solo,in 1743 by Pakubuwono II to the bank of river Solo.

Giyanti Treaty in February 13, 1755
Recognized Prince Mangkubumi or Hamengkubuwono I as the king of Yogyakarta Kingdom.

The division of Mataram Kingdom II.

In SURAKARTA :
The king : Susuhunan Pakubuwono III (1749-1788)
Adipati (Viceroy) : Sri Mangkunagoro I (1757-1795)
Recognized since March 1757 in SALATIGA.

In YOGYAKARTA :
The king : Sultan Hamengkubuwono I (1749-1792)
Adipati (Viceroy) : Sri Pakualam I (1813-1829)
Recognized by Raffles, the then British Lieutenant Governor of Java.

These royal and court families of Surakarta and Yogyakarta do exist up to now, and they stand in forefront to preserve Javanese culture and tradition.

Interesting info

This was sent to me by an Italian!!!

Interesting info! Must read Give the Title... can u?!!!!!!

You know the Latin Catholic will not enter to Syrian catholic church,

these two will not enter to the Marthoma church, these three will not enter to

penthacost church, these four will not enter to Salvation army church,

these five will not enter to 7th day Adventist church, these six will not

enter to orthodox church, these seven will not enter to Jacobite church,

?..like this there are 146 castes in Kerala alone for Christianity, each

will never share their churches for Christians ! Wonderful One Christ, One

Bible, One Jehova?.What a unity !

Among Muslims, Shia and Sunni kill each other in all the Muslim countries.

The religious riot in Muslim countries is always between these two. The

Shia will not go to Sunni mosque, these two will not go to Ahamadiya

mosque, these three will not go to Sufi mosque, these four will not go to

Mujahiddin mosque?.like this it appears there are 13 castes in among

Muslims, Killing / bombing/conquering/ massacring/? each other ! The

American attack to the Muslim land of Iraq is fully supported by all the

Muslim countries surrounding Iraq ! One Allah, One Quran, One Nebi?.!

Great unity !

For Hindus 1280 books, 10,000 commentaries, more than one lakh sub

commentaries for these foundation books, 330 million gods, variety of

aacharas,
thousands of Rishies, hundreds of languages,?still everyone goes

to the SAME TEMPLE ? whether unity is for Hindus or in others and never

Quarreled each other for the last ten thousand years in the name of

Religion.



My choice: HINDUISM---- - The most UNIQUE & PEACEFUL religion in the world.

Pakistan plays down tensions with India

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari played down cross-border tensions with India in a speech Saturday, telling citizens democracy and dialogue will end discord and increase regional stability.

A woman lights a candle Saturday at the site where Benazir Bhutto was killed in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

"The solution to the problem of the region, the solution to the problem of Pakistan ... is politics, is dialogue ... because politics is part of the cure, not part of the problem," Zardari said, speaking at a memorial service for his late wife, former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

"We have issues? Yes, we have issues. We have non-state actors? Yes, we have non-state actors. Yes, they are posing an agenda on us. We ourselves have accepted we have a cancer. ... We will cure this cancer ourselves."

Zardari delivered the national address from Naudero, the Bhutto family home in Pakistan's Sindh province.

It comes amid escalated tensions after reports Friday that Pakistan had redeployed military resources on its eastern border with India.

Details of those troop movements, however, remained murky on Saturday. CNN National Security Analyst Peter Bergen said a Pakistani official told him that 20,000 soldiers had been moved from the Afghanistan border toward the Indian border. That amount was not significant, he said, as Pakistan has a very large army.

"It's a way of signaling the Indians, you know, a unilateral Indian strike into Pakistan is going to be unacceptable to Pakistan," Bergen said. "The reason that's serious, of course, is that Pakistan and India have fought three major wars in the last six decades."

India has accused Pakistan of harboring militant organizations after terrorist attacks last month in Mumbai, India, and has said the 10 Mumbai attackers trained at a terrorist camp in the Pakistani-controlled part of Kashmir. Militants launched a coordinated strike against luxury hotels, a Jewish center and other targets in Mumbai beginning November 26, killing 160 people.

In his remarks Saturday, Zardari said his government -- which critics claim is unstable and unproven -- will complete its five-year term and follow it with democratic elections.

Indian Army spokesman Veerendar Singh told CNN on Saturday that there was no troop mobilization on the Indian side of the border. "We are keeping a close watch over the situation," he said.

Singh said that no communication had been received from Pakistan about troop movements but added that the Indian army is always on alert.

Asked about the troop movement Friday, Husain Haqqani, Pakistani ambassador to the United States, said, "Pakistan does not seek war, but we need to be vigilant against threats of war emanating from the other side of our eastern border.

"Pakistan is also a victim of terrorism and will continue to act against terrorists," he added. "We are a country of rule of law and need evidence to prosecute anyone for the crime of terrorism."

Since the division of the subcontinent in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three wars, including two over the disputed territory of Kashmir, which is now wracked by an 18-year separatist campaign that authorities say has left at least 43,000 dead. There also was a limited border conflict in 1999 between the countries in Kashmir.

Kapar MP free to go, says Khalid

(The Star) - Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has taken a hard stand on S. Manika­vasagam’s threat to quit PKR, saying the Kapar MP was free to do so.

Khalid, who is also from PKR, also said he was not going to meet with Manikavasagam to convince him to stay.

“PKR does not encourage him to make that decision but it is his decision,” he said.

He was speaking to reporters after opening the Selangor government’s Christmas celebrations at a shopping mall here yesterday.

Khalid said he did not understand why Manikavasagam would want to quit over the Klang bus stand issue.

“He has the platform in our state meetings to voice his grievances and we also have supreme council meetings. As an MP he is invited,” he said.

On whether he would meet with Manikavasagam, Khalid said it was better for the MP to meet with the party leadership.

“If he wants to meet, that is up to him. It is up to him,” he said.

On whether PKR would ask Manikavasagam to quit as MP if he left PKR, Khalid said: “It is up to the supreme council.”

PKR information chief Tian Chua meanwhile said Manikavasagam had made the threat to show his voters that he was serious about solving problems.

“He is trying to solve the bus station issue in his own way. Whether is the right way or not is not the issue. What is important now is that we must solve the bus station problem,” he added.

Selangor state executive council member Ronnie Liu however said he would call Manikavasagam and ask him to reconsider.

“There will always be differences among party members but these can be resolved,” said Liu, who is from DAP.

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said Manikavasagam should resign as MP if he quit the PKR.

“People elected him based on the party he was representing. It is only right that he gives-up the position when he leaves PKR,” said Abdul Hadi after launching the party’s membership drive in Shah Alam.

Pas president tells Kapar MP to resign

(NST) Kapar member of Parliament S. Manikavasagam's move to quit Parti Keadilan Rakyat left some Pakatan Rakyat leaders hot and worried.

Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said yesterday that the PKR supreme council member should step down as an MP and recontest as an independent candidate in a by-election.

"He should not have quit the party and this shows that he has no principles, and is not consistent.

"He has betrayed the people who elected him under the Keadilan ticket," he said after launching Jom Sertai Pas (Let's Join Pas) campaign here.

Manikavasagam, who was expected to make an official announcement of his resignation before the New Year, cited his recent spat with Selangor assembly speaker Teng Chang Khim, infighting within the state administration and disappointment with Selangor PKR leaders as "the last straw".

Selangor DAP vice-chairman and Klang MP Charles Santiago yesterday also voiced agreement with his grouses, saying that Teng's recent criticisms of him and Manikavasagam over their involvement in the Klang Sentral Terminal issue had been uncalled for.

"It was totally arrogant of Teng and it is sending the wrong signal to the people. Instead of addressing the issue, he made it personal when he said that both of us were irresponsible and inexperienced," he said yesterday.

Teng, a DAP central committee member, said that Manikavasagam had been bought over by Barisan Nasional when he protested against the relocation of the current bus and taxi station to the new Klang Sentral Terminal.

Hadi, also at the event, said Pas would not explain its decision to implement hudud and qisas to DAP.

DAP should not worry about the implementation as it only applied to Muslims, he said, adding that non-Muslims were free to choose the law they wanted to be tried under.

The hypocrisy in man

So, while I might support Hudud in principle, I do not support it as the law of the land. And I do not support it because I can’t support what two-thirds of Parliament does not support.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Christmas is upon us, yet again. Another Christmas, another year gone, another year nearer to our graves. Tomorrow is Boxing Day, also remembered as Tsunami Day, the day when people were drowned in their sleep and swept out to sea into their watery graves.

How quickly joy turns to sorrow. One day we are elated with festivity and drowning in food and wine. The next we are sedated with reality and drowning in the Indian Ocean. I am now in Penang. I arrived yesterday with an entourage of six families, about 25 souls or so in all. I am now in the land where it all happened almost a memory ago.

The Boxing Day Tsunami, some say, is God’s punishment. It is God punishing mankind for the wrongs it has done. If that was really what God intended then God did not do a good job. Those who deserve punishment certainly did not get punished. Those who were punished were not deserving of that fate. Are we talking about my God, one of compassion and justice, or are we talking about your God, one with a sick sense of humour and misguided sense of justice?

To you your God and to me mine, the religionists say. But then are we not all God’s children and the creation of that same, one God? How can you, therefore, have your God and me, mine? Your God and mine are one and the same. To believe we have separate Gods means we believe there is more than one God. And the doctrine of most religions says there is but one God, in particular that of the Abrahamic faiths.

And are we so different? Did not Muhammad learn from the Christians and much of Islam ‘adopted’ from Christianity? Does not the Ka’bah also appear in the same name and form in the land of the Zoroastrians in the far reaches of Persia? Did not Jesus disappear from the ages of 12 to 30 when he sought tuition from Buddhists, as many now believe? Did not John the Baptist practice what was practiced by the Hindus in India of his time? But what can we really believe? Do we really know what was fact and fiction thousands of years ago? What we do know is what we have been told to believe. And what we are told to believe is what they want us to believe. And what they want us to believe is what suits the political agenda of those who walk in the corridors of power.

John roamed the land with just the clothes on his back to preach the word of God. And he brought no rations save those he accepted as alms along the way. Was John a Jew, Christian or Buddhist? We believe what we want to believe as long as it suits those who walk in the corridors of power. And to believe otherwise will not incur the wrath of God but the wrath of those who need us to believe what we are told to believe for purposes of political expediency.

Such is religion. And such is politics. And religion is not about God. It is about politics. And Cain killed Abel not for God but for politics. The good died that day, thousands of years ago. And we are descendants of the bad that lived, not the good that died.

So, can mankind be good when we are children of bad? How can the fruit of a poisonous tree be nothing but poisonous? If Cain had survived and society had convicted Abel and sentenced him to death for attempted murder, then we would probably be good because then we would be children of Cain, not Abel.

But would children of good also be good? And would children of bad also be bad? Can those whose mothers and fathers who are both nuclear scientists be equally brilliant? Or is there no possibility the son could be born mentally retarded? How many children of Umno diehards join the opposition, to be cursed and disowned by their fathers? And can there not be two brothers on opposite sides of the political fence? Shahrir and Khalid, the two sons of Samad, are testimony that there can. But which of Samad’s sons is Cain and which is Abel? It all depends on whether you walk in the corridors of power. Cain can be Abel and Abel, Cain, if he you judge walks with you and not against you.

Hudud is the current controversy, the latest Tsunami sweeping this land. But what is the issue? Is it about religion or it is merely politics? The hand is quicker than the eye. And what we see is what our brain tells us to see. We see what the hand waves in front of us. Magic is not magic. Magic is sleight of hand.

And the politicians are playing silap mata. It is a cheap show to indulge our fantasies. Is it not fantasy that Hudud will be implemented in Malaysia? How can the minority move the majority? The Federal Constitution does not provide for it. Hudud is not about religion. It is about the law of the land. Religion may be a state matter. But Hudud is not about religion. It is about the law of the land. And the states do not have authority over the laws of the land. Hudud can only become law when Parliament says so. And you need 66.666% of Parliament to say so. PAS owns only 23 seats. And 23 seats in Parliament is not 66.666% of 222. So Hudud can never be the law of the land.

The non-Muslim coalition partners of Barisan Nasional oppose Hudud. This, they have said so. Umno from Kelantan supports Hudud. This, they have said so. The non-Muslim partners of the opposition coalition oppose Hudud. This, they have said so. PAS, the propagator of Hudud, is split on the issue. This may have a bearing on the Kuala Terengganu by-election on 17 January 2009.

In the meantime the people are confused. Who supports what and who opposes? It is no longer that easy to tell. But it is meant that way. This is what politics is all about. And Hudud is about politics, not about religion. Politics is about exploitation and deception. Politics, not prostitution, is the oldest profession in the world. But, while prostitutes are not politicians, politicians are certainly prostitutes. And they will prostitute themselves if need be. And most times it needs be that they prostitute themselves.

PAS wants to secure the Malay votes in Kuala Terengganu. Umno wants to swing the Chinese votes. So, with the by-election looming over the horizon, Hudud is played to the hilt. Islam is the issue of the day. Hudud is the bad boy of Islam. And there are no sacred cows in politics. All is fair in love and war. So let us play up the Hudud issue for the benefit of winning votes.

A critical analysis of Hudud could lay the matter to rest. Those opposed could become converted if the real issue is explained. But then this will end the confusion. And the objective is not to end the confusion. The game plan is exploitation and deception. That is how ‘good’ politics is played. And there is only one type of politics, the type that wins.

I do not want to explain Hudud. I am not even a Hudud apologist. I can do that if you want me to. It is so crystal clear and extremely simple that it makes me laugh. How can Hudud be an issue? Hudud can be good and can be bad depending on application. So can the Internal Security Act if you really want to get analytical. Hudud is not about punishment. It is about looking into circumstances. Hudud explores what went wrong and how to put it right. It is not about imposing on society and causing tears to be shed.

Thieves must not be automatically punished under Hudud. The circumstances need to first be explored. Under common law thieves must not escape punishment. The circumstances do not matter. If a thief is a thief because of circumstances then the thief is not a thief and society must instead be punished, as far as Hudud is concerned. Society will be ordered to adopt the thief. The thief will become the ward of the state. And the thief can now leave his life and crime and enter into a life of adoption.

Such is the beauty of Hudud. A thief is not a thief. A thief becomes our adopted child. And if, again, he needs to steal because we have failed him, then we receive punishment instead. The thief loses no limb. But do people understand this? They do not because they are meant to not understand. This is about politics. And politicians are prostitutes. They exploit us and deceive us. And that is a mark of a good politician.

Murder is murder. Death is punished by death. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But that is common law. That is not Hudud. In Hudud the question would be: why did you kill? Circumstantial evidence is not allowed under Hudud. Under common law you hang because of the smoking gun. Never mind they can’t prove that you killed. As long as the gun is yours you will die even if you did not pull the trigger. And did not Mokhtar Hashim get sentenced to death because of the smoking gun?

Even if you confess to murder you still do not die. The victim's family would first be asked whether they want you dead. Taking your life will not bring back the deceased. So do we want a life for a life? Two lives gone serves no purpose. The deceased's family’s welfare for the rest of its natural days takes precedence over punishment. Dead men do not put food on the table. Would another life lost, notwithstanding it is the life of a murderer, solve the economic problems of the deceased's family?

So you can ‘buy’ your life by supporting the family. It may be costly but that is the price of life. But what if you are destitute yourself? How to support your victim’s family when you can’t even support yourself? Many pay tithe or zakat. Zakat must be paid, come hell or high water. You can choose how to pay as long as it assists society. And if your millions can be spent for the benefit of mankind then you have fulfilled your duty to God and society. So a philanthropist can help 'buy back' your life for the good of the deceased's family.

So there are ways. Hudud can be humane if you want it to be. But has this been explained? Are the people aware that Hudud can improve society where common law has failed? But who cares? Who cares that Hudud can be better than what we have now? Hudud is not about religion. It is about politics. And politics is about exploitation and deception. And that is because politicians are prostitutes. And Hudud has been prostituted for the benefit of politics. That is what Hudud is all about, political prostitution.

But I too do not support the implementation of Hudud. I support Hudud in that it can be better than what we have if properly implemented. But what is properly implemented nowadays? Even the Internal Security Act has been abused. The Internal Security Act was good in 1960. One generation later and it has become a tool to stifle dissent and freedom.

So, while I might support Hudud in principle, I do not support it as the law of the land. And I do not support it because I can’t support what two-thirds of Parliament does not support. This is not about religion. It is about democracy. Even if two-thirds of Parliament supports it I still will not support it. How can 148 members of Parliament decide on behalf of 26 million Malaysians? Never mind some people gave them their two-thirds majority in Parliament. It was only four million people that did. 22 million other Malaysians did not.

Run a referendum. 10 million Malaysians are minors. 16 million Malaysians are of voting age. Get the 16 million Malaysians to decide. And let that referendum of 75% tell us what they want. And if 12 million Malaysians, representing 75% of eligible voters, vote in favour of Hudud, then let this be the law of the land. If not, forever hold your tongue and let the matter be given a decent burial.

I have just about had it with political prostitutes. It has come to a point I feel like campaigning for Umno in the Kuala Terengganu by-election just to send a message to PAS that they can’t keep playing this exploitation and deception game of political prostitution. Do they think I have my brains in my ass? Just because they do does not mean I do too.

Those who both support and oppose Hudud do not know one bit what Hudud is. Many years ago I wrote a ‘thesis’ on the matter, which was published in Harakah, the official party organ of PAS. No, I am no lawyer. I am not even a religious scholar. I just have a brain; a brain God gave me. And God gave us brains so that we can use it to think. But I wonder why others do not also use their brains that God gave them to think.

No, Hudud is not evil. Hudud is better than what we have now. But it can be worse if we want to make it so. And chances are the evil in man will make it worse. That is what makes the matter dicey.

Nevertheless, the issue is not whether Hudud is better or worse. It is about whether the majority of the people want it as the law of the land. That is what matters. And we do not care what 23 PAS Members of Parliament want. We do not even care what 148 Members of Parliament want, even if they represent two-thirds of Parliament. We care what 75% of 16 million Malaysians want. If 12 million Malaysians shout, “Let’s implement Hudud”, then let that happen. If not, buzz off and get out of my face before I really lose my temper, you political prostitutes.

Oh yes, and Merry Christmas everyone. Hope you are in the same mood as I am today. I want to kick ass. Don’t know what you want to do though.

In Hudud, Pas finds a dilemma to grapple with

By Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — With Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang pointing out that hudud law has been passed in Kelantan and Terengganu but never enforced, the roiling debate on the set of punitive Islamic laws has reached a crescendo, with no clear resolution.

Common wisdom says that Pas and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) need to put a fullstop to this before the Kuala Terengganu by-election but Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is currently overseas and unable to make a clear stand on this.

But is hudud, which prescribes amputation, stoning and whipping as punishment for criminal offences, really the elephant in PR’s room?

Only Barisan Nasional (BN) now seems to believe so, with obvious political mileage to be gained from putting a wedge between the Islamist party and its more liberal-minded partners.

Pas in fact, does not seem to hold that hudud is a priority for the party even if PR comes into power at federal level.

In an exclusive interview with The Malaysian Insider, Pas research chief Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said that universal principles such as justice and good governance “are our shared objectives and visions in Pakatan Rakyat.”

“While hudud is important, right now the people are not ready. The focus is on justice and good governance first and then we will revisit this subject some years down the road,” he stated.

Even Pas’s own religious scholars chief Datuk Mohamed Daud Iraqi told Utusan Malaysia that hudud is not a priority but peace and equality were and hudud could only be implemented once all parties understand and accept it.

Does this mean that hudud is simply a ticking timebomb for PR?

Dzulkefly dismisses this with a clinical and pragmatic assessment that may not go down well with party ultras.

“The question of Pas taking the Federal Government is almost academic and hypothetical, given our demographic make-up,” he said referring to the 60:40 Muslim to non-Muslim ratio.

Instead, he said that Pas’s position as the so-called champion of Islam was a political burden.

“Pas must cease to be the champion of hudud, while similarly not be burdened to sustain the backlash, every time the emotive subject is brought to the fore by its political nemesis. It must be shouldered by all Muslims from all divides. Pas should remain focused and consistent to champion more major issues of the nation together with its coalition partners in PR,” he said.

The Kuala Selangor MP believes that Pas simply needs to be more savvy in communicating this message.

“For example, the question asked was whether PR would implement hudud when they take over the Federal Government. Husam could have answered that it is for PR’s top leadership to decide, and his opinion is immaterial to the decision,” he said of vice president Datuk Husam Musa’s initial statement which reignited the hudud debate.

Hadi's comparison of hudud to “surgery” is one such statement that shows this political savvy, likening hudud to a last resort mechanism, an emergency ordinance.

Coincidentally, Professor Abdul Aziz Bari, the Islamic law expert who was also a panellist at the forum on political transformation in Malaysia where Husam had made the statement, told The Malaysian Insider that in fact, there are other laws which are of more concern than hudud.

“By comparison, I think the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and the Firearm Increased Penalty Act 1974, which contain mandatory death sentences are much, much worse that hudud.

“Under the Internal Security Act, you may indeed be put in jail just by suspicion and association. Under this law you are guilty until otherwise is proven,” he said.

Abdul Aziz believes that the current debate on hudud could in fact turn out to be beneficial for Pas if they played their cards right.

Referring to scholars chief Mohamed Daud’s comments in Utusan Malaysia, he said that it is actually in line with Islamic principles.

“As far as I know Islam is more about justice and appropriateness and not hudud at all cost. So it looks like Pas is turning the table on Khairy Jamaluddin and Umno,” he said of the Umno Youth deputy chief who was the other speaker at the forum.

Umno has been playing the hudud card since Husam made the statement and there is clearly hope that it will weaken the opposition machinery in Kuala Terengganu.

But Dzulkefly is quick to point out that if indeed hudud is PR’s Achilles Heel, then Ketuanan Melayu or Malay Supremacy is BN’s.

Devamany new MIC treasurer-general

By Baradan Kuppusamy

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, who sacked his longtime ally Tan Sri M. Mahalingam as treasurer-general last week has picked rising star S. K. Devamany, 51, as his replacement, instantly raising the former youth exco member into the top echelon of the party.

Devamany, the MP for Cameron Highlands, also enjoys the backing of Umno, especially that of Prime Minister-designate Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

In addition, Devamany, as the deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department overseeing the Economic Planning Unit, is directly involved in discussions with the government to raise Indian corporate equity, set up a million-dollar development fund for Tamil schools and creating a unit trust for Indians to be managed by PNB along the lines of the highly successful Amanah Saham Nasional.

The discussions on these and other initiatives are nearly finalised and several announcements are expected soon, MIC sources said.

Devamany, when contacted, said: “It is a heavy responsibility and I will do my very best.”

“I will serve the party and the Malaysian Indian community with greater vigour,” he added.

“I promise to work harder and deliver beyond expectation. That’s my target.”

Devamany, a former school teacher, build a sterling reputation in the Indian community as the leading force behind the expansion of the Sri Murugan Centre, a tuition centre that now enjoys strong support from Indian parents.

Devamany received his primary and secondary education at King Edward VII in Taiping, Perak.

He graduated from the Specialist Teachers Training Institute in Cheras in 1978 and received a BA from Universiti Malaya in1982, majoring in Malay Literature.

In 1995 he co-founded the RIFA Group of Engineering College where he was the Managing Director.

In 2004 he became a Member of Parliament for Cameron Highlands.

His career in MIC was slow and mostly confined to the youth wing, probably a result of Samy Vellu blocking his rise.

Devamany, married with three daughters, is only an appointed CWC member and chairman of the MIC Training and Employment Committee.

He gained some notoriety in the aftermath of the Nov 25 Hindraf rally when he defended the government in a live telephone interview with the Al Jazeera television channel but the next day in parliament he caused a stir by criticising the government for neglecting the Indians.

Party insiders said his selection as treasurer-general would significantly boost Devamany's image and standing in the MIC.

“He is one of several young leaders who are rising fast in the party hierarchy,” party insiders said. “He has it — clean image, competent and political support from Umno.”

“The president has now added his own support, has almost endorsed him,” the insiders said. “It is for Devamany now to show how high he wants to go.”

They said others on the fast track are secretary-general Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam and Information chief Datuk M. Saravanan.

“They form the next generation leadership after Samy Vellu,” they said.

Samy Vellu calls Karpal Singh ‘toothless tiger’

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu today hit out at DAP chairman and Bukit Gelugor Member of Parliament Karpal Singh, claiming the latter had turned into a ”toothless tiger” by pledging DAP’s support for Pas in the Kuala Terengganu by-election next month.

“The tiger (Karpal Singh) appears to have surrendered to Pas,” said Samy Vellu in a statement, referring to the conflicting views between DAP and Pas on the Islamic state and implementation of the hudud laws (Islamic penal code).

Karpal Singh, known as the “Tiger of Jelutong”, has been vocal on these two issues, disagreeing with PAS’s stand on the setting up of an Islamic state and the implementation of the hudud laws.

Although DAP and Pas do not agree on the two issues, they are part of Pakatan Rakyat (PR), the opposition pact which also includes Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR).

PR will nominate its candidate for the Kuala Terengganu by-election on Jan 1 and all three opposition parties have vowed to work together to wrest the seat from the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN).

Yesterday, Samy Vellu challenged Opposition leader and PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to publicly state his stand on Pas’s intention to pursue the implementation of the hudud laws.

“Karpal Singh should be consistent with his stand (on the hudud laws) and not become a puppet of Pas.

“This (the agreement to work together to win the seat) indicates that he (Karpal Singh) and his party (DAP) will give in and abandon their principles for the sake of ensuring a victory for the opposition candidate,” the MIC president said.

He said the DAP owed an explanation to the people, especially the Chinese community, on the party’s conflicting views on the hudud laws.

“Karpal (Singh) should also not allow his credibility to be lost amongst the Indian voters who voted for him in the last general election,” he added. — Bernama

Eurocopter whistleblower joins PAS

Why some Government Officers become corrup

Letters
by R. Ganesh

I was utterly shocked when I read today’s NST dated 2008/12/27, article entitled “ACA officers feel ‘demoralised’ over new salary scale”. In the article, it was stated that Grade 29 officers would be offered a basic salary of RM1,482.85 and RM3,246.48 when they reached the top of the scale. “The maximum year between the basic salary and top of the scale is 22 years while the yearly increase is only RM80.17.”

Police officers in the same grade receive a basic salary of RM1,423.50 with a maximum of RM3,282.77. However, the maximum number of years getting to the top is only 18 years with a yearly increment of RM103.29, the article said.

My question here is this, how do you expect an individual in power to refrain from being corrupted when he merely earns RM1500? Nowadays, one can barely survive with RM1500 if one has 3 or 4 mouths to feed at home.

After paying your housing loan, car loan, study loan, EPF, income tax, medicine and supplements, Astro bill, water bill, electric bill, insurances (health, car, home etc), education cost for your children, how does the government expect one to survive with RM1500?

Can you blame an officer if he becomes corrupt?

Those days, corruption meant satisfying your wants and desires illegally. In other words, buying your luxuries with illegally obtained money. But I think these days, people become corrupt merely to survive ie to make ends meet.

It is high time the government revise the salaries of government servants in Malaysia.
Malaysia is a super rich country blessed with abundant natural resources.

We are thousand times richer than Singapore with oil, palm oil, rubber, tin, iron ore, timber, natural gas, copper, bauxite, coal and even Gold!, and yet, Singapore is far more progressed, richer and first world status. Both countries also Merdeka around the same time.

Singapore has zero natural resources, so how can they be richer than us with a higher GDP than us? Even low level government servants there earn Singapore $4000 a month and you can buy loads of food for the family of four in the supermarket for one whole week for S$100.

Here, the same items in the supermarket, cost around RM400 a week to feed a family of four.

And yet, the government expects their officers to earn RM1500?

Media Statement-Anwar Ibrahim

I wish to urge and plead to various leaders in Pakatan to stop taking their differences and conflicts through the media, especially the BN government controlled ones. This includes not only the Selangor MB and the Kapar MP, but also the Selangor Speaker and the Klang MP.

They should sit down to discuss and settle these differences and conflicts internally. There are various channels and procedures existing to do so.

In the absence of the President, Dr Wan Azizah Ismail and the Ketua Umum, Sdr Anwar Ibrahim, who are away until January 6, I shall be calling a meeting of the Political Bureau this Wednesday, to discuss the main and related issues in order to find suitable solution.

The issue on the Kapar MP threat to leave PKR has been blown out of proportion by certain BN government party controlled media. They have distorted statements by some Pakatan leaders in order to portray as if the opposition alliance is in disarray.

Obviously, their intention is to draw public attention away from the series of crises in the BN and also within major components of the government coalition, leading to the upcoming Kuala Terengganu by-election.

Continue reading ‘ISSUE ON KAPAR MP’

Brace yourselves, the storm has reached our shores…

The storm has reached our shores.

In Kedah, 1,429 workers from 17 factories have been “temporarily” laid off.

In Kuching, 1,500 workers have been retrenched as Western Digital shuts its plant in March. About 60 per cent of these workers are reportedly married with children. The job losses account for 15 per cent of the 10,000 workers in the electronics sector in Sarawak.

Another 3,250 workers around the country, mainly from the electronics sector, are expected to be retrenched by over 130 employers in the next three months. And that’s just the official estimate.

Earlier in June, 1,600 workers in Nikko Electronics on mainland Penang lost their jobs when the company said it was unable to continue operations. They received a pittance in compensation.

Can you imagine what it will be like when we feel the full impact of the storm next year? Are we really prepared? If we are, we can put in place measures to try and make our economy more sustainable and socially just. It’s also time we put in place a comprehensive safety net (a national retrenchment fund) and begin re-training workers with skills to become self-employed. Unfortunately, this would require federal initiatives or funding, and that could be too little, too late.

The economic stimulus package so far is unlikely to be enough. What we need are measures to boost consumer spending. But low-income workers are already spending all their wages to support their families, so how can their spending be increased? To stimulate the economy, the lower-income group need to have more money in their pockets and the most effective way to raise their purchasing power would be to enforce a decent minimum wage, perhaps in stages and across sectors.

Economist Charles Santiago stresses the importance of a strong social safety net:

Clearly, we have not learnt important lessons from the 1997 economic crisis. How is the government going to cope with high levels of unemployment which involves workers returning from Singapore, retrenched local and migrant workers and workers in the informal sector?

Government inertia and the absence of a social safety net threaten to turn the economic crisis in to a full blown social crisis.

It should be obvious to everyone that some drastic steps need to be taken. As an urgent priority the government should commit to a RM 3 billion retrenchment fund as an immediate initiative to mitigate the negative snowball or multiplier effect of job losses, given that we are a demand-led economy. This would create confidence in the business community, workers and people at large.

Just as importantly, the retrenchment fund would alleviate human suffering. Among other things, it could provide or expand unemployment benefits including food stamps or vouchers to neutralise the income losses of unemployed workers and vulnerable groups.

By putting money into the hands of these groups, retrenched workers would still be able to pay their mortgages and rents and keep their homes, continue buying consumer goods, boosting demand in the sector and subsequently in the capital goods sector. A workers’ retraining programme should be part of the package.

Hudud: Hadi lembut demi bukan Islam...Nik Aziz keras untuk Melayu

Menjelang pilihan raya kecil Parlimen Kuala Terengganu yang majoriti pengundinya orang Melayu dan PAS mempunyai kubu kuat di salah satu DUN dalam kawasan berkenaan iaitu Wakaf Mempelam, isu hudud kembali diperkatakan.

Jika pada pilihan raya umum Mac lalu, bukan sahaja hudud tidak diperkatakan oleh PAS malah pendirian parti itu untuk menubuhkan negara Islam juga ‘ditenggelamkan’ sebagi tanda ‘hormat’ PAS kepada PKR dan DAP.

Menyedari, banyak janji-janji kerajaan pakatan pembangkang di lima negeri yang dikuasainya khususnya dalam soal kebajikan tidak juga terlaksana, memainkan isu hudud semula dilihat sebagai usaha untuk memenangi hati umat Islam khususnya pengundi di Kuala Terengganu.

Walaupun tahu rakan-rakan pakatan mereka tidak akan setuju, PAS tetap membangkitkan perkara itu kerana janji bantuan kewangan secara bulanan kepada warga emas, ibu tunggal dan bermacam bentuk bantuan lain yang sehingga kini amsih belum terlaksana di negeri-negeri yang mereka kuasai.

Oleh yang demikian, jalan mudah dan pantas, buka balik kitab lama, dan bersyarah balik pendirian parti dengan harapan orang lupa janji pakatan pembangkang semasa pilihan raya umum lalu. Walaupun kenyataan dan pendirian mengenai hudud memperlihatkan adanya perbezaan dan percanggahan pendapat kalangan pemimpin PAS, tetapi ia seolah-olah dirancang sedemikian rupa.

Terbaru, dalam memperkatakan isu hudud, Mursyidul Am PAS, Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat tetap bertegas mahu hudud dilaksanakan dan sedia ‘berdepan’ dengan sekutu mereka PKR dan DAP bagi menjelaskan perkara itu.

Imej yang cuba ditonjolkan Nik Aziz ialah beliau tegas dan berkeras. Namun nada yang lebih lembut disuarakan oleh Presiden parti itu, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang yang bukan sahaja menjelaskan bukan Islam tidak terlibat dengan pelaksanaan hudud tetapi betapa keadaan semasa masih belum membolehkan hudud boleh dilaksanakan di negara ini.

Berdasarkan dua kenyataan tersebut, jelas satu mahu memenangi hati orang Melayu manakala seorang lagi, cuba lebih bersifat liberal untuk menyenangkan hati masyarakat bukan Islam.

Malah, kenyataan tersebut juga mudah difahami jika kepentingan kumpulan ‘Erdogan’ atau PAS palsu dalam parti itu diambil kira.

Abdul Hadi mencari jalan selamat dengan kenyataan terbarunya walaupun Naib Presiden parti itu, Datuk Husam Musa sebelum ini tegas mengambarkan, hudud tetap dilaksanakan sekiranya ketiga-tiga parti itu dapat menguasai kerajaan Pusat.

Nyata Presiden PAS itu lebih bijak bermain politik dengan kata-kata bahawa masyarakat bukan Islam tidak seharusnya bimbang jika hukum hudud dilaksanakan di negara ini kerana pelaksanaannya hanya membabitkan orang beragama Islam.

Bercakap pada sidang media selepas melancarkan kempen 'Jom Sertai PAS' di Dataran Shah Alam, hari Sabtu, Abdul Hadi berkata golongan bukan Islam sebaliknya boleh memilih undang-undang yang mereka mahu seperti yang telah tertulis dalam Undang-undang Kanun Jenayah Syariah Kelantan dan Terengganu.

“Pada kita, tidak timbul lagi soal hudud kerana ia telah diluluskan di DUN (Dewan Undangan Negeri) Kelantan sejak tahun 90-an lagi dan di Terengganu pula telah diwartakan," katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian ketika ditanya sama ada PAS akan memberi penerangan kepada pemimpin lain dalam PKR dan DAP yang jelas tidak senang dengan hasrat parti itu untuk melaksanakan hukum hudud jika pakatan pembangkang berjaya memerintah negara pada masa akan datang.

Bagaimanapun, Abdul Hadi mengakui sukar melaksanakan hukum hudud di negara ini kerana ia hanya boleh dilakukan jika rakyat negara ini berada dalam keadaan yang stabil.

Selain itu katanya, situasi ekonomi semasa dan pengangguran di kalangan rakyat negara ini menghalang hukum hudud dilaksanakan.

Ditanya sama ada PAS akan membawa usul mengenai pelaksanaan hukum hudud di Parlimen untuk dibahaskan, beliau yang juga anggota Dewan Rakyat berkata, belum tiba masanya untuk berbuat demikian.

Mahu atau tidak, Abdul Hadi terpaksa memilih jalan selamat dengan memberikan alasan itu demi mengelak rakan-rakannya dalam DAP membidas PAS kerana hukum hudud memang tidak dipersetujui oleh parti DAP sejak dulu lagi.

Apapun, perhatian banyak pihak kini tertumpu kepada penasihat PKR yang juga Ketua Pembangkang, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yang sering menjadi ‘rujukan’ PAS dan DAP untuk mendengar pendirian partinya berhubung pelaksanaan hukum hudud itu.

Apatah lagi, Presiden MIC, Datuk Seri S,Samy Vellu sudah mencabar ketua pembangkang itu menyatakan pendiriannya berhubung hasrat PAS untuk memperkenal hukum hudud di negara ini.

Katanya, Anwar tidak sepatutnya berdiam diri berhubung dengan isu itu.

Barangkali Pak Sheikh bersedia menjelaskannya ketika kempen pilihan raya kecil di Kuala Terengganu nanti.

Namun mengulas mengenai isu hudud yang dibangkit semula oleh PAS, Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ada jawapannya.

"Biarlah mereka dengan masalah yang mereka hadapi waktu ini, rakyat sendiri akan menilai dan tentulah rakyat sendiri akan menentukan. Ini adalah masalah PAS yang tidak dapat diputuskan," ujar beliau.