For the love of your children, do not let Najib become PM!

By Haris Ibrahim,

On the morning that Abdul Razak Baginda was arrested in connection with the Altantuya murder, he received the following sms from Najib :

“I am seeing IGP at 11am today. matter will be solved. be cool.”

The fact of this sms was disclosed by private investigator Balasubramaniam in his first statutory declaration in July last year and has never been denied by either Razak Baginda or Najib.

Meanwhile, though, PI Bala has disappeared.

How did Najib intend to solve the matter?

Najib has never said anything until now.

On the morning of 16th November, 2006, when Razak Baginda was due to be charged in connection with the murder of Altantuya, Najib sent the following sms to lawyer Mohd Shafee Abdullah :

“Pls do not say anything to the press today. i will explain later. RB will have to face a tentative charge but all is not lost”

On 31st October, 2008, Razak Baginda, without being called to enter his defence, was acquitted of the charge, referred to by Dato Seri Najib as “tentative”, of abetting in the murder of Altantuya. At the time, lead prosecutor DPP Tun Majid Tun Hamzah intimated that the acquittal might be appealed, saying, “We will consider appealing the decision. The battle is not over yet”.

14 days later, the same DPP confirmed that the acquittal would not be appealed.

Is this what Najib meant by ‘tentative charge’? By ‘all is not lost’?

Najib has not said anything until now.

On 29th June, 2007, in the course of the Altantuya murder trial, Mongolian national, Burmaa Oyunchimeg, a prosecution witness, testified that she had seen a photograph of the victim, Razak Baginda and a government official. Newspaper reports give the impression that both the prosecution and some of the defence counsels went to great lengths to try and not allow this witness to continue with this line of testimony. However, when she was examined by Mr. Karpal Singh, who finally managed to get leave to ask the witness who the government official was, she replied, “Najib Razak. I remember the name Najib Razak because the name Razak is the same. I thought maybe they were brothers.”

Subsequently, when Najib was asked to comment on this evidence, he declined to do so, on the grounds that it would be inappropriate for him to comment further as any statement he made might be deemed to be on a matter sub-judice, given that the trial was still ongoing.

To this date, Najib has never categorically denied this piece of evidence and no effort has been made by the relevant authorities to investigate this piece of information.

This man now hopes to run our country from as early as 1st April, 2009.

If indeed he does ascend to the office of PM, and proceeds to run our country with an iron fist such like we’ve never seen before, continues to divide the people so that he and his cronies can continue to plunder the nation’s wealth and silence legitimate dissent by despatching the voices of the people to Kamunting, and your children should some day ask you if there was nothing you could do to prevent all this, how will you reply?

I know I will look mine in the eyes and, with a clear conscience, say, ‘I tried’.

Can you do the same?

Well and good if Pak Lah refuses to step down and make way for Najib.

What, though, if Pak Lah does step down once Najib is confirmed as the president of UMNO Baru?

People expect that Najib will make a bee line to the King’s palace on 1st April, 2009 or soonest possible after Pak Lah has stepped down as PM, with a view to inform His Majesty that he commands the confidence of the majority of the members of the Dewan Rakyat and, consequently, he be made PM.

If like me, you do not wish to see Najib as PM of this country, you’ve got under a month to come up with something to stop him.

If you can’t think of anything, why not sign this PETITION.

It beats doing nothing.

SPEAKER V. SIVAKUMAR'S' LAWYERS GOING TO IPOH HIGH COURT AGAIN

It had been revealed that the lawyers representing the Perak State Speaker, V. Sivakumar, Chan Kok Keong, Augustine Anthony, Tommy Thomas, and Phillip Koh Tong Ngee will attempt another bid to gain representation from the Ipoh High Court Judicial Commissioner Ridwan Ibrahim when he ruled yesterday that only the State Legal Adviser could represent the Speaker.

It had come to their knowledge that the Judicial Commissioner had erred in law and misinterpreted Article 132 (3) of the Federal Constitution, which clearly expresses that the Speaker is not part of the public services, and therefore he should be allowed to engage private lawyers.

Its time for Judicial Commissioner Ridwan Ibrahim to amend his errors and to follow the rule of law for those who seek fair justice, although it may be late.

picture courtesy of anilnetto.com

MACC proving it is just UMNO catspaw when it clears Umno of money politics

Far from wanting to prove that it is another ICAC (Hong Kong’s intrepid and world-famous Independent Commission Against Corruption) as promised in Parliament in December, the newly-formed Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) seemed determined to establish that it is nothing but the catspaw of UMNO.

The latest evidence has again come from the MACC Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Ahmad Said Hamdan who said in Malacca that the MACC had completed its investigation on claims of money politics in Umno and found no cases so far.

Congratulations to the MACC Chief Commissioner for clearing UMNO of all allegations of the corruption of money politics – which must have even caught UMNO leaders, delegates and members by surprise that UMNO is so clean, pristine and pure!

Except that this is the biggest indictment on the MACC as a meaningful, effective and an intrepid anti-corruption body!

Ahmad Said outdid himself in his two months’ of outrageous utterances and actions when he defended the MACC’s harassment of the Perak Speaker, V. Sivakumar and one of his counsel, Augustine Anthony allegedly for misuse of power in calling for an emergency sitting of the Assembly.

Ahmad Said claimed that the Perak Speaker does not have absolute immunity from investigations from the MACC and that Sivakumar could be investigated as he was deemed an officer of the civil service under the MACC Act 2009 for abuse of power.

Who will investigate Ahmad Said as MACC Chief Commissioner for abuse of power not only for harassing the Perak Speaker and his counsel, but also on trampling on the doctrine of separation of powers in barring any external interference, whether executive or judicial, in the internal proceedings of the legislature?

Furthermore, will Ahmad Said order the MACC to investigate Judicial Commissioner Ridwan Ibrahim for abuse of powers under the MACC Act for issuing an injunction against the Perak Speaker and the Perak State Assembly which disregarded the Federal and State Constitutions and laws that the validity of the proceedings in the legislative assembly cannot be questioned in any court?

The MACC is clearly among the biggest casualties in the illegal, unethical, immoral and unconstitutional power grab in Perak orchestrated by the Prime Minister-in-waiting, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Chitrakala wants to meet Najib

NST 05 March 2009


Maju Institute of Educational Development CEO P. Chitrakala Vasu was seen chatting with N. Gobala-krishnan and R. Sivarasa (right) at Parliament House yesterday.

EMBATTLED Maju Institute of Educational Development chief executive officer P. Chitrakala Vasu turned up again at Parliament House yesterday, two days after holding a press conference there.

She created a ripple when she appeared with a bodyguard in tow at the lobby and members' lounge.

Her visit on Monday was confined to a canteen in another building at the rear of Parliament House.

At the lounge, Chitrakala was seen chatting with three PKR leaders: N. Gobalakrishnan (PKR-Padang Serai), R. Sivarasa (PKR-Subang) and Tian Chua (PKR-Batu).

She was wearing a parliament visitor's tag.
She told reporters she was there to keep an appointment with Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's parliamentary officer Datuk Lat Shariman.

She said she wanted to speak to Najib about her spat with MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu involving MIED.

"I am here to see Datuk Shariman so that I could have an appointment with the deputy prime minister to brief him about my problem.

"I am not expecting any help from him. I just want to tell him everything.

"I have made it clear to Datuk Shariman that if the deputy prime minister can't see me, I'll go and see Anwar Ibrahim because he was the former finance minister and he knew about MIED matters."

She said she would wait for a "reasonable time" for Najib's office to get back to her as "my loyalty is still to the government", before she sought out Anwar.

"The PKR wanted to help me, but I will follow proper procedures and I told them to let me resolve my problems my way first."

Asked about the bodyguard, Chitrakala said he was loaned to her by a friend who was concerned over her safety.

She also had some choice words for Samy Vellu, warning him to stop his intimidation tactics.

"If he doesn't, he is going to lose everything he has.

"I don't s**t where I eat. My fight is not with MIED or Barisan Nasional but with Samy Vellu, because I don't want MIED to suffer a fate similar to Maika Holdings."

Perbicaraan Anwar: Hakim Putuskan Kes ke Mahkamah Tinggi

Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Lumpur pagi ini membenarkan permohonan rayuan dari pihak pendakwaraya untuk memindahkan kes perbicaraan Anwar Ibrahim ke Mahkamah Tinggi.

Hakim Mohamad Zabidin Md Diah berkata, arahan yang ditandatangani oleh Peguam Negara Abdul Gani Patail adalah sah sekaligus menolak permohonan bantahan dari pihak peguambela Anwar.

Hakim Mohamad Zabidin turut menolak keputusan oleh Hakim Mahkamah Sesyen, SM Komathy yang sebelum ini mengekalkan kes tersebut untuk dibicarakan di Mahkamah Sesyen.

Perkara ini akan didengar di Mahkamah Sesyen pada hari Selasa minggu hadapan dan penetapan tarikh akan diadakan untuk pemindahan kes ke Mahkamah Tinggi.

Barisan peguam Anwar akan mengemukakan rayuan atas keputusan ini pada hari esok.

Peguam beliau, Sankara Nair berkata, beliau kecewa sebaik dimaklumkan akan keputusan hakim tersebut.

Pada 7 November lalu, Hakim Komathy menolak permohonan untuk memindahkan kes tersebut, sambil berkata “kes ini menimbulkan situasi yang unik di mana sebarang pembabitan Abdul Gani Patail dalam kes ini akan menjejaskan keyakinan rakyat terhadap kehakiman kes jenayah”.

Komathy juga dilapor berkata, terdapat persefahaman bahawa Abdul Gani Patail tidak akan terbabit dalam kes ini. Jaminan itu diberikan oleh Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad selepas ditemui Presiden PKR, Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

Abdul Gani masih disiasat oleh Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) yang dulunya dikenali sebagai Badan Pencegah Rasuah (BPR), ekoran laporan polis yang dibuat oleh Anwar yang mendakwa berlaku pengubahan bahan bukti dalam kes ‘mata lebam’ pada 1988.

PEJABAT DATUK SERI ANWAR IBRAHIM

FINANCIAL CRISIS AND BAILOUTS

1. I was in England recently and the newspapers were full of dismal reports on bank and business failures, the closure of well-known businesses like Woolworths and Baratt, the increases of unemployment rate with some 700,000 professionals among the 2 million laid off or unable to get jobs. And there were lots more bad news.

2. The British Government is busy bailing out banks and companies with hundreds of billions of pounds but the economy seemed to have gone into recession despite all these efforts. There is no sign that the crisis is on the mend.

3. Malaysia can feel vindicated because all the things we did in the 1997 - 98, crisis, which were condemned by the economists of Europe and America, are now being done by them blatantly and on a massive scale. They talk about trillions of dollars and hundreds of billions of pounds in bailouts. Where the money is coming from is not revealed. Have they been keeping these huge sums for such an emergency?

4. I am not a financier or even an economist. But somehow I think the bailouts are not going to work although they worked in our case.

5. This is because the banks and businesses we bailed out did not get into trouble because they abused the systems or indulged in fraud. They were forced into that situation because the currency was devalued by currency traders and they found themselves unable to meet their commitments. Once they gained access to funds through bailouts they were able to do business again and to repay the money they had received.

6. They were able to do this because, although Malaysia was in recession, the rest of the world was not. There was much less constraint in doing business.

7. The situation today is very different.

8. The collapse of the economies of the rich countries is due to extensive abuses of the financial and monetary systems so much so that the systems broke down completely. I doubt (not being an expert I can only doubt) that the trillions of dollars to bail out the failed banks and financial institutions will enable them or their economies to recover.

9. This is because their huge losses were due to fraud and they cannot recover the billions they had lost through ordinary business, i.e. through the financing of the production of goods and services. Only through doing the same things that had brought them down, i.e. through sub-prime loans, through investments in derivatives and hedge funds, through massive loans to currency traders etc. can they make the billions to return the money they had received through bailouts. Obviously they cannot be allowed to indulge in their old abuses. Through ordinary business it would take years and years to recover the money they had lost. In the meantime all these banks, financial institutions and businesses will belong to the bailor, the Government, i.e. they have effectively been nationalised. And that will spell the end of capitalism and the free market.

10. It should be noted that the East Asian countries have not yet recovered from the 1997 - 98 crisis. Their currencies have not regained their strength to the pre-crisis levels. They have all become poorer, or at least not as rich as they could be had there been no financial crisis.

11. It will be the same with the rich countries. Their GDP and per capita pre-crisis will not be restored despite the trillions they are spending on their bailouts. They are poorer now and will remain relatively poor even after they have put their houses in order.

12. I may be wrong of course. Maybe by more trillions of dollars of bailouts the rich would achieve recovery. But I have my doubts.

13. Unfortunately the poor countries will also become poorer.

Rakaman Video Sidang Pohon Demokrasi

Part 1


Part 2

Kugan's mom submits post-mortem report to AG

By Shingyee Koh ( Malaysiakini)

The independent post-mortem report on deceased police detainee Kugan Ananthan was submitted to the Attorney-General's Chambers in Putrajaya today by his mother M Indra.

MCPX

According to the family's lawyer N Surendran, the report was handed to deputy public prosecutor Tun Majid Tun Hamzah, who was urged to take stern and immediate action on the matter.

He said Tun Majid promised to look into the report immediately and keep the family updated on the next course of action.

Also present were Teluk Intan DAP parliamentarian M Manogaran, Kapar MP S Manickavasagam and Police Watch and Human Rights committee member S Jayathas.

The independent post mortem report conducted by a Universiti Malaya Medical Centre pathologist revealed that the 22-year-old car theft suspect endured severe beatings and was also starved during his incarceration.

The post-mortem found that Kugan had died of kidney failure due to the assault. The beatings had caused a breakdown in his muscle cells which then congested the blood flow and resulted in kidney failure.

The post-mortem was commissioned by Kugan's family after they were dissatisfied with the first report tendered by the Serdang Hospital which stated that he had died due to fluid accumulation in his lungs.

Kugan, 22, died at the Taipan police station in Subang Jaya on Jan 20, five days after he was arrested.

Following the emergence of a video clip which revealed severe lacerations on the body and immense public pressure, Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail reclassified the case as murder.

Subsequently, 11 police personnel were reassigned to desk duty pending investigations.

'We do not trust the police'

Asked about police investigation into the case, Surendran told Malaysiakini that he has not received any information from them and does not know about the progress of the investigation.

"They kept us in the dark, there is no point in handing the post-mortem report to them. That is why we want the AG to be fully in charge of the case. We want nothing to do with the police," he said.

On the same note, Surendran reiterated that the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) must be established to ensure a fair and thorough probe.

"We have no confidence in the police, we can never be sure if the police can conduct a thorough investigation," he said.

The lawyer listed four reasons as to why the family does not have any confidence in the police to investigate this matter:

1. When death occurred, the police gave us lies and tried to cover up by telling us that he died while he was drinking water. And when the (first) post-mortem report came out, they said he died of water in his lungs.

2. The police came out with weak excuses and what I call a diversion tactic by saying that we barged into the (Serdang Hospital) mortuary. This was an act to divert the public's focus from the murder.

3. They tried their very best to prevent us from getting a second post-mortem report. The IGP (Inspector-General of Police Musa Hassan) today in the news said that he can't wait to read the report, but they used all the obstacles to prevents us from getting a second post-mortem.

4. Up to this day, no one was arrested or remanded for the murder.

Surendran expressed hope that those involved in this "ruthless" act will be charged with murder and nothing less.

The lawyer also said the family will also file a civil suit against the government and the police.

As for the tissue samples sent to Australia, Surendran said the report is delayed due to the bush fires in the country.

"We will get the report no later than end of March," he added.

Restraining order served on speaker

By Andrew Ong (Malaysiakini)
Perak legislative assembly speaker V Sivakumar was today served with a court order restraining him from holding any unlawful assembly meetings.

However the order could not be served on Sivakumar personally as he was not in his office at the state secretariat.

As such lawyers for Menteri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir and his six exco members served the order on state legal advisor Ahmad Kamal Shahid at 3.15pm.

"We tried to serve documents today but as you can see the office is closed. We'll try again soon," said Lawyer Faizul Hilmy Ahmad Zamri.

Faizul then returned to the state secretariat at 4.15pm again to serve the notice personally on Sivakumar.

However, once again the speaker was not at his office and as such the notice was served on his staff who received the order.

Can court order be retrospective?

When asked if the court order can be applied retrospectively, Faizul (right in photo) said, "The judge did not say this. This is your own assumption".

The order, which was obtained yesterday afternoon following an application by Zambry and his exco members, barred Sivakumar from convening any unlawful meetings purporting to be state assemblies.

However, it is unclear if the order has any effect on yesterday's meeting which was held outside the assembly building at a car park.

The order was issued by Ipoh High Court judicial commissioner Ridwan Ibrahim.

The order in full reads:

"It is hereby ordered that the 1st defendant, YB Encik V Sivakumar is restraint from convening any unlawful meetings purporting it to be a meeting of the Perak state legislative assembly." [Click here to see the order]

The judge had also ruled yesterday that Sivakumar could not be represented by any private lawyers and can only be represented by the state legal advisor as the "speaker was part of the government".

Lawyer: 'Under tree' assembly not affected

However, Sivakumar's lawyer Chan Kok Keong has described the restraining order as “harmless”.

“Mr Speaker has not convened any unlawful meeting nor will he do so,” said Chan when met at his office today, soon after he received the order.

Chan (far left in photo) added that the order was “vague” and does not appear to have achieved any purpose.

"It does not seem to achieve anything. It said that speaker should not convene any unlawful assembly. As far as speaker is concerned, everything he does is in accordance with the law," he added.

As such, Chan said that Sivakumar’s legal team has no plans to set aside the court order at this point.

On the emergency assembly sitting held yesterday, Chan said that the court order has no bearing on the sitting.

“There was absolutely no pronouncement by the court affecting the morning proceedings,” he said.

Speaker not properly represented at hearing

Meanwhile, Chan said that the court order indicated that Sivakumar was not properly represented when the order was issued.

According to the court order, judicial commissioner Ridwan heard submissions from senior federal counsel Zulqarnain “on behalf of the state legal advisor”.

“Having excluded us, it does not appear from the face of the order that he acted for the speaker, contrary to the impression given to us that he would act for Mr Speaker.

“There is no such thing as Zulqarnain Hassan appearing on behalf of the state legal advisor, because the state legal advisor is not a party to the proceedings,” he said.

However, according to the court order, Chan said that it was explicitly stated that Sivakumar, in his capacity as state speaker and the legislative assembly, was a party to the court order.

Chan and his team of lawyers were forced to withdraw as Sivakumar’s lawyers during proceedings in chambers yesterday because the judge had ruled that only the state legal advisor could represent the speaker.

In respond, Chan had argued that the decision was erroneous based on Article 132 (3)(b) of the Federal Constitution which states that the speaker of the Parliament or a state assembly are not civil servants.

Although it was previously learnt that Sivakumar will be appealing against the order stopping private lawyers from appearing from him tomorrow, it is since been confirmed that such an appeal will not be lodged in Putrajaya tomorrow.

Umno told to put off party assembly

Police want inquest for Kulim 6, and will videotape future interrogations

KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 — Police will apply to the court for an inquest to be conducted into the incident where six men where shot dead by police in Kampung Kemunting, Kulim, last month.

Federal CID chief Datuk Seri Mohd Bakri Mohd Zinin said his department would be moving for the inquest to be conducted soon.

“The probe into the case is 90 per cent completed and we will submit the results to the court to resolve it,” he told reporters after officiating a course for police officers at the Police College here today.

On Feb 17, police shot dead the wanted men, aged between 20m and 50, during a raid at their hideout in Kampung Kemunting.

They were high on the police wanted list for armed robberies committed in Perak, Penang, Kedah and Selangor.

The deaths drew flak with questions raised on police procedures in apprehending suspected criminals.

Mohd Bakri also said police would begin videotaping interrogation of crime suspects in rooms specially fitted with the necessary equipment.

“The Inspector-General of Police has ordered this to be done. The allocation to do this is being sourced and it will be implemented in stages with the bigger police districts given first priority,” he said, adding that police contingent headquarters and Bukit Aman (the federal police headquarters) already had the facility.

The move comes in the wake of the death of a youth, A Kugan, 22, a suspected car thief, who died while in custody of the Subang Taipan police station on Jan 20.

On another matter, Mohd Bakri said police planned to upgrade its Forensics Division to a full-fledged department for more effective policing. — Bernama

USM archaeologists unearth ancient Kedah buildings

SUNGAI PETANI, March 4 — A group of archaeologists has unearthed two prehistoric buildings from the third century AD in the Bujang Valley recently.

The group, from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)’s Centre for Global Archaeological Research, found a building and a smelting factory, following an excavation project in Sungai Batu, Semeling.

Discovered in two areas near an oil palm plantation in Jalan Lencongan Merbok recently, the buildings proved that an ancient civilisation had existed in the Bujang Valley.

USM Vice-Chancellor Prof Tan Sri Dzulkifli Abdul Razak disclosed today that the discoveries were important historical findings.

He said the date depicted the early beginnings of commercial smelting activities in the Bujang Valley.

The excavation — conducted with the cooperation of the National Heritage Department with an approved grant of RM2.3 million by the unity, culture, arts and heritage ministry -- began on Feb 1, with a total of 70 participants, including USM students.

“This finding is solid proof that the prehistoric civilisation depended on basic knowledge, trade and large-scale industrial production,” he told reporters after a working visit to the site.

The excavation project was headed by USM Centre for Global Archaeological Research director Prof Madya Dr Mokhtar Saidin, and it resulted in two weeks of digging before the buildings were unearthed.

Dzulkifli said the project was part of a plan to develop the National Heritage Department Bujang Valley Heritage Park.

“The finding at Sungai Batu is different from artifacts found in other sites in the Bujang Valley. Previously, archaeologists only found buildings that had the characteristics of ancient temples.

“This latest finding at Sungai Batu I were of bricks believed to be from a house or office, and another at Sungai Batu II which functioned as a smelting factory,” he said.

According to Dzulkifli, both findings were important as it could unravel questions regarding the real date when civilisation started in the Bujang Valley.

Dr Mokhtar said coal samples found at the foundry were sent for Radiocarbon Dating tests at the Beta Analytic Inc, Florida, US, which confirmed that it dated back to the third or fourth century AD.

He added that the Sungai Batu area would be gazetted as the Bujang Valley Heritage Park next year, after research was completed.

The Bujang Valley area consists of almost 300 sq km of land from Gunung Jerai to Sungai Muda, Seberang Perai.

Captain James Low identified the Bujang Valley civilisation after discovering more than 20 temples in Kampung Bujang in 1840.

Research and excavation activities carried out found that the Bujang Valley was a main port in South-East Asia from the fifth century AD to 13 century AD. — Bernama

Bar Council condemns MACC for questioning Sivakumar's lawyer

By Debra Chong and Lee Wei Lian- The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 - The Malaysian Bar Council hit out strongly against the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for questioning one of the lawyers on the legal team representing Perak Assembly Speaker V Sivakumar this afternoon.

Ipoh-based lawyer Augustine Anthony claimed MACC officers asked him about his dealings with Sivakumar, whom they are investigating for allegations of misconduct.

“We are very concerned with these actions because we view these actions as acts of intimidation of a lawyer who was exercising his professional duty to his client,” Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan told The Malaysian Insider.

“Recently, there appears to be a trend by the authorities to question lawyers who are acting for certain clients in relation to the discharge of their duties,” she added, naming prominent lawyers R. Sivarasa, N. Surendran, M. Puravalen and Americk Sidhu who had represented private eye P. Balasubramaniam, a key witness in the murder trial of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu, before he went missing.

Ambiga noted such interrogations had spiked since the 12th General Elections last March, which resulted in an upset to the Barisan Nasional's tight grip on power in several key states.

“This cannot be tolerated. The lawyer-client privilege is sacrosanct,” she observed.

In a press conference in Ipoh, Augustine said that the unscheduled questioning a day before he was to represent his client in an important court case was tantamount to harrassment and had impeded his work.

He told reporters that he informed MACC of his willingness to assist in the investigations but requested that due notice be given. He said that the surprise visit prevented him from having his counsel, Bar Council Human Rights Committee chairman, Edmund Bon, be present at the time of questioning.

“It was an embarrassment for me because clients were in my office, and they had to be told to wait by my clerk because I was being questioned by the MACC,” he said. “How will that reflect on me because my clients do not know why I was being questioned.”

He added that the questioning lasted about half an hour.

Augustine is due to represent Sivakumar in a hearing tomorrow where the latter is being sued by Jamaluddin Radzi, Osman Jailu and Hee Yit Foong, who are seeking a declaration that they are still representatives of their constituencies.

Appeal by Pushpa, M. Manoharan's Wife

By Pushpa

Dear Fellow Malaysians,

It is not easy for me to write this appeal but I am compelled to as a result of what is happening to me and my family.

One of the reasons for the Government to put people away under the ISA is to break the spirit of the detained and at the same time create trepidation amongst family members thus disrupting the harmony therein.

Manoharan is a good son, son in-law, husband and a good father to our lovely three kids ranging from 9-11 years. My husband has aged parents and his mother is wheel-chair bound. They are both dependant on him for monthly expenses as well.

One year and two months have passed since my husband's detention. His recent appeal was rejected by the court, and we are told that he shall be in detention for two years.

Our three children are deprived of their social activities, love, guidance and they have lost confidence and constantly living in fear. They are also having nightmares so they are not themselves anymore. I am worried for them as I feel that they are scarred for life with this stigma that their father is a ‘prisoner’ what the future holds for them.

As you are aware my husband M. Manoharan was a legal adviser to the banned Hindraf and is currently under detention under ISA, without trial. He is a graduate in Economics from UM and also a law graduate from UK. He was having a reasonably successful legal practice in Suite B-4-1, Tower B.Plaza Pantai, Off Jalan Pantai Baru, Kuala Lumpur, under the name M. Manoharan & Co. He started his practice in 2001 with very little funds. I stopped work as a teacher and helped out in my husband’s legal firm. There have been many occasions when his firm has performed legal work free of charge for poor and destitute people.

I am a homemaker and now at a loss as to how to manage his law practice as there are no funds or new cases coming in. I tried to downsize his legal firm from ten staff to six staff from 1st Jan 2007 and have used up all our savings to maintain the office. I have also been issued a summons to settle the arrears in rental amounting to RM120K plus interest. Thus, I am in urgent need of financial assistance to help save his firm which is on the verge of closing down. His allowance as Member of Parliament puts food on the table but is far short of the monthly minimum required to pay bills.

I need to keep the firm afloat as this is important to keep my husband sane and give him a reason to push on. It will definitely break his heart and he will be devastated if the firm is closed down. I have exhausted and stretched my resources to the maximum to keep the firm running but cannot cope with the mounting pressure any more.

My husband has laid down his life, his career and his personal life to fight for the basic rights of right - thinking Malaysians and I am now appealing to the generosity of the same kind-hearted people to help us tide over this difficult period of settling our debts, which have chalked up due to my husband’s unfair detention without trial. I shall be grateful to receive whatever assistance to sustain the legal firm as well as to start paying up our outstanding debts.

Sincerely Yours

Pushpa

Kugan’s death: what the Pathologist discovered

Dr Prashant N. Samberkar, the pathologist from the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre, declared that, based on the post-mortem, Kugan was beaten so badly his tissues broke down and his kidneys failed.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra kamarudin

The second post-mortem performed on A. Kugan shows he died from being repeatedly beaten. The post-mortem, which was conducted by Dr Prashant N. Samberkar, a pathologist attached to the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), also shows that Kugan had multiple burn marks. These V-shaped burn marks are believed to have been caused by a hot iron.

The post-mortem also found 42 other marks, burns and contusions from the sole of his feet right up to his head. Dr Prashant declared that, based on the post-mortem, Kugan was beaten so badly his tissues broke down and his kidneys failed.

Dr Prashant also found that Kugan had suffered haemorrhaging in his trachea, chest, spleen, stomach, the back of his neck and spine, and there were also signs of haemorrhaging in his heart. The soles of his feet had many bruises caused by beatings and he also suffered blunt trauma to his skull.

The 12-page medical report is as below:

Kugan's Autopsy

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Heart-Breakdown, Momentarily

By Kickdefella

Don’t take your heart to heaven UMNO members need it here!

I signed the organ donor’s form in 2001 soon after my father was informed of his lung cancer without knowing that so many UMNO’s leaders and members would need it few years down the road. But sorry UMNO Goons, my heart would not be available for donation anymore!

Not more than ten days ago, I told my wife that early next year I am going to take a break and perform my umrah and start a new leaf. Life begins at forty yah! Yes, when I reach forty I want to quit smoking and live a much healthier life. But merely few days later, and still eleven months to go before I reach forty, I found myself drowned in cold sweat, locked in numbness and pinned to my office desk in semi consciousness.

I took a stick of the faithful Marlboro and foolishly said to myself, this will bring immediate relieved only to find that within five minutes later I am lying gasping for oxygen in the hospital emergency unit with the cable attached all over my chest, arm and my ankle too.

The ECG performed shows certain irregularities.

Than enters the blogger friendly, university mate and life saviour Cardiologist, smiled and told me, “I will have to move you to my ward for more test and thorough observations…”.

The obliging me was pushed out of the normal ward only to find that I am entering the Intensive Care Unit!

Oops! The first thing came to my mind was to bargain on a more friendlier and less brutal methods of cabling my body. “No catheter to drain my urine please!”, I pleaded to the ever smiling university mate.

He agreed for the sake of the suspicious condition of my heart.

So there I was, lying on the bed in Intensive Care Unit, wired and monitored, flushed with all known blood thinning and cholesterol reduction agents and faced the marathon of visitors. But during the darkest moment, I found the light when I read a notice declaring the hospital is equipped with free Wi-Fi services!

I am a fool not to know what 30 sticks of cigarette a day can do to me. But again, so did the members of Perak State Civil Service for trying to block the democratic elected representatives of the rakyat from entering the august house just for the sake of being the political donkeys.

The august house is above each and every one of them and us. That is the lifeline of democracy. No Kings and Rajas are above it!

I am glad to survive my heart-breakdown moment but I am sad to see the death of democracy in Perak.

While I am now out after some glorifying moments having my photo flashed on Sinar Harian’s front page wired to my lifeline, high on cocktails of drugs and after coughing out some seven thousand Ringgit what I get was amongst others is a medical certificate notifying me not to go to work for a whooping 16 days and many new friends.

What I did to deserve this is only a minute error of judgement in my Marlboro saga, but what does the Perakian did to deserve such a monumental error of judgement by the power crazed Najib and a momentarily senile monarch.

My post Marlboro heart is with the democratic elected government of Perak and those majority who had installed the ‘uninstalled by Palace government’. If not for my heart, I should have been there with you today.

Long live democracy. Hell to those who try to kill it.

Siapa bunuh UMNO? - By Haris Ibrahim

The title of this post is similar to the caption of a poster that adorned the wall in the reception area of the law firm that I chambered at in 1990 and later worked as a legal assistant for a number of years, and was later made a partner.

Below that caption was a picture of Bapa Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman.

Regrettably, I cannot recall the full text that appeared in the poster, as a quote from Tunku.

Tunku was of course referring to the events that followed the disgraceful fiasco that the UMNO elections of 1987 was, when Dr M pipped Ku Li to the presidency by a majority of 43 votes, in an election that the losing party alleged was rigged.

The losing team went to court to have the elections declared null and void and, as it turned out, the High Court declared UMNO to be an illegal entity given the existence then, of unregistered branches.

The order of the High Court effectively severed the jugular vein of UMNO.

UMNO was rendered dead!

Dr M’s solution?

He registered UMNO Baru, which is the present day entity everyone calls UMNO, minus the ‘Baru’.

The decision of the High Court was appealed to the Supreme Court.

If the appeal succeeded, it would mean that the original UMNO would be resurrected.

This would then mean the end for Dr M as, by the terms of the constitution of the original UMNO, Dr M having already joined a new party, to wit, UMNO Baru, his membership in the original UMNO would ipso facto terminate.

Dr M could not allow this to happen.

In the Supreme Court, Tun Salleh, it seems, was minded to fix the UMNO appeal to be heard by a full bench of the Supreme Court.

This was bad news for Dr M.

The more judges sitting to hear the appeal, the more difficult to fix the outcome of the same.

That was why Tun Salleh had to go.

So that UMNO would remain dead and buried.

Tunku was clear in his mind that Dr M, for his own selfish reasons, had dealt the fatal blow on the UMNO that was formed in 1946.

I thought you might want to be appraised of this perspective given the take by Rocky that it was Ku Li who caused the big UMNO split two decades ago.

UMNO was split when the party when to the polls in 1987.

There was a already a Team A and a Team B.

UMNO was already split by then.

The narrow margin of Dr M’s victory is a reflection of the extent of the divide that already existed within the membership of UMNO.

Should Ku Li be blamed for this?

Or was there a revolt within the party against the leadership of Dr M? And should this, then, be rightly seen as the cause of the divide?

If you want a lit bit more background to this, have a read from wikipedia HERE .

Dear Pak Lah - By Haris Ibrahim

March 4, 2009

Dear Pak Lah,

Re : No Najib as PM, please

____________________________________________________________

God’s peace be with you.

You will not remember me.

I moderate a blog called The People’s Parliament.

I am also one of those who gate crashed your Hari Raya bash last year at the PWTC to deliver a ‘Free all ISA detainees’ message to you.

We also spoke briefly at the MCCBCHST annual dinner last year where you promised to get a member of your staff to get in touch with me to see how I might assist you in resolving certain issues of mutual concern. As no-one got in touch with me thereafter, I assumed that you did not need my assistance. Yet, those issues still persist.

And as you might already know, I have, since I first launched my blog in April, 2007, been highly critical of you and your administration of our country and had, in the run-up to the 12^th general election, urged readers to work hard to boot you and your coalition partners out of office.

You may therefore find it amusing now to know that, for the moment at least, I would like you to stay on as PM and to not carry through your transition plan that, as envisaged by many, will see Najib become PM in April this year.

I am not alone in hoping that you will stay on as PM and not make way for Najib.

From 28^th January, 2009 until 4^th February, 2009, I ran a poll in my blog. The question to readers : Should Pak Lah stay on as PM or make way for Najib?

In that short period, the poll elicited a whopping 10,918 responses.

Of those, 10,299 or 94% voted for you to stay on as PM.

You may view the poll results yourself at http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/2009/01/28/5986/

Please do not misunderstand this massive support for you to stay on as a sudden surge of confidence in your leadership.

The truth is that many still feel that you were weak and not forceful enough in pushing forth the many reforms you spoke of in your early days.

We do not, however, think that you are evil.

Najib is.

This, you also know.

See how his drive to displace a legitimate state government has left Perak in a state of shambles.

Many fear today that this man has no conscience and will stop at nothing to achieve his insatiable desire for power and wealth.

How, many ask, will this impact on our nation, should this man ascend to the office of PM?

Sir, you have failed us in not putting into place the many reforms you promised us. I say this, not to deride, but to state plainly what you yourself, in your most private moments, I’m sure, must admit to be so.

Yet, the people of this nation will see it as an act of complete redemption of your past failings if you will now rise to the occasion and stand in the way of a monster seizing the governance of our nation.

It is rumoured that you are in fact contemplating moves to block Najib’s ascension to power.

If this is indeed so, know that many good people are with you.

I had, some time back, launched a petition to get people to register their opposition to Najib becoming PM. That petition can be viewed at http://www.petitiononline.com/pmbersih/petition.html

Many have not signed the petition because they fear possible reprisals, given that personal particulars are required to be furnished when one signs.

Who do they fear?

One who is seen by many to have blood on his hands!

Is then such a man to run this country?

Could you make way for such a man and thereafter still take to your prayer mat five times a day with your conscience untroubled?

You have time and again said that you are a PM for all Malaysians.

Now, more than ever before, is the time to show it.

I thank you for taking time out from your busy schedule to read this letter.

I am, as always, anak Bangsa Malaysia,

Haris Ibrahim

Election Commission biased - if more proof is needed

Opposition slams 3-in-1 by-elections
Malaysiakini

The decision to hold three separate by-elections on the same day showed the Election Commission was biased in favour of the government, charged veteran opposition leader Lim Kit Siang.

“If more proof is needed about the lack of independence on the part of the election body, this is one. There is no earthly reason for coinciding three by-elections,” Lim told AFP.

Lim said the opposition, which lacks funds and other resources, would be overstretched if it had to campaign for a constituency in Sarawak along with polls in Perak and Kedah - all slated to be held on April 7.

“Three by-elections on the same day makes it difficult for the opposition to campaign effectively. But it is convenient for the ruling Barisan Nasional which has the money, media and government machinery,” he said.

By-election a referendum for Perak

Two of the elections were called after the death of the incumbents. The third seat became available after the resignation of an assemblyman who was accused of bigamy.

Analysts say the polls are seen as a referendum on the ruling BN coalition, which wrested control of Perak in February after the opposition alliance was hit by four defections.

The BN suffered two morale-sapping parliamentary by-election defeats following last year’s general elections, where the opposition seized control of five of Malaysia’s 13 states and a third of parliamentary seats.

The elections are also a chance for the opposition alliance to re-assert itself after the loss of Perak, which triggered calls for opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s replacement.

(2) April 7 For Batang Ai State By-election
March 04, 2009
Bernama

KUCHING, March 4 (Bernama) — Polling for the Batang Ai state by-election here will be held on April 7, simultaneously with the polls for the Bukit Gantang parliamentary seat in Perak and Bukit Selambau state seat in Kedah.

Election Commission chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said today nomination was fixed for March 29, like for the other two seats. Notice of the writ would be issued on Friday.

The seat fell vacant following the death of incumbent Datuk Dublin Unting Ingkot, the Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) vice-president, on Feb 24.

Abdul Aziz said that after considering several factors, the EC felt that the Sarawak EC officer was ready for the by-election and it was timely to hold the by-elections simultaneously to avoid a long campaigning period.

An allocation of RM400,000 had been approved for the by-election, he told reporters after chairing a two-hour meeting to set the polling date.

A total of 24 polling centres would be opened at schools, longhouses, kindergartens and government premises while 201 workers would be deployed, he said adding that Batang Ai had 8,006 registered voters comprising 7,963 ordinary and 43 postal voters.

Abdul Aziz said the EC had also agreed to set up an election campaign enforcement team led by an enforcement officer and comprising a police officer, a local authority representative representatives of the candidates to monitor the campaigning besides allowing Malaysia For Free and Fair Election (Mafrel) to act as observers in the by-election.

Dublin won the Iban-majority seat in the state election in May 2006, beating Nicholas Bawin Anggat of Sarawak National Party (Snap) by 806 votes, and was appointed state Assistant Sports and Agriculture Minister.

Chitrakala's Business partner questioned

NST

KUALA LUMPUR: Police questioned MIED chief executive officer P. Chitrakala's business partner on Monday about missing MIED funds.

The partner, who is also a politician, said yesterday he had spent an hour at the Dang Wangi police station answering questions about his business dealings with her.

The man, who did not want to be named, said Chitrakala had given him RM3.5 million to be invested in a business venture last year.

On Monday, police asked him whether he knew the money had been taken from the MIED account. He denied any knowledge of it.

"She had told me it was money collected from her family members. I only knew the money might be connected to the MIED when police began this investigation," he told the New Straits Times when contacted.
A source close to MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said about RM3.5 million was taken out from the MIED account "some time in the third quarter of last year" for a "personal business purpose".

Asked about this on Monday, Chitrakala said: "It's up to Samy Velu to prove it." Last month, Samy Vellu told her to go on leave pending investigations into the case.

The source revealed that forensic accounting was carried out as the MIED top personnel had allegedly destroyed certain files.

Meanwhile, Samy Vellu's son Vell Paari denied that he had been eyeing Chitrakala's post and that he had wanted to take over them.

"I don't know what gave her the idea but what she said is not true. Besides, I have my hands full in Maika Holdings," he said.

Chitrakala had claimed that the allegation against her was politically motivated as Vell Paari was interested in her job and that his father wanted to get rid of her to put his son there.

makkal osai 040309

Wife detained over contractor's murder

By : Alang Bendahara and Lee Shi-Ian (NST)

S. Sivanathan (left) and R. Kavita.

KUALA LUMPUR: The wife of murdered contractor S. Sivanathan and one of his workers have been detained by police for questioning. Selangor Criminal Investigation Department chief Senior Assistant Commissioner II Hasnan Hassan, when contacted, confirmed that R. Kavita, 31, and another man had been picked up.

Police believe the duo can assist in investigations into the brutal slaying of Sivanathan, 31, in his bedroom in Bandar Bukit Tinggi 2, Klang, on Feb 22.

Hasnan, however, declined to give details.

It is learnt that police are looking for two other men in connection with the killing.
Sivanathan was asleep when three men walked into his house and slashed him on the neck, legs and hands at 9.15am.

Kavita had earlier said she had opened the front gate to drive to the market when her 3-year-old daughter started crying and insisted on following her.

As she alighted from the car and went into the house to get her daughter, three men brandishing parang walked into the house.

The men herded mother and child into one of the rooms downstairs and told them to be silent.

She had said she waited for several minutes and when there were no more movements in the house, she opened the room door and dashed out of the house to scream for help.

Several neighbours climbed on the roof of the porch and broke one of the windows of the master bedroom.

Sivanathan was found in a pool of blood on the bed, barely moving.

He was rushed to hospital where he died in the intensive care unit due to blood loss.

A-G To Decide On 11 Police Personnel Implicated In Kugan's Death

KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 (Bernama) -- Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Ismail Omar said any action against 11 police personnel implicated in the death of A.Kugan will be based on a directive from the Attorney-General (A-G).

He said Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail would have to study the investigation papers including the second autopsy report before making a decision.

41 injuries all over body - makkal osai 040309

"Appropriate action will be taken after the Attorney-General has made a decision based on the second autopsy report," he told reporters after opening a seminar for police Muslim converts here today.

Kugan, 22, a car theft suspect died at Kajang Hospital four days after he was remanded to assist police investigation on Jan 15.

The first autopsy report said Kugan died from accumulation of fluid in the lungs, much to the dissastisfaction of family members as there were injuries on his body.

Following a request by Kugan's mother Indra Nallathamby , a second autopsy was conducted on Jan 25 by Dr Prashant N.Samberkar, a specialist forensic pathologist at Universiti Malaya's Medical Centre (UUMC).

Ismail said the autopsy report to be sent to Abdul Gani was based on facts and a statement from the specialist forensic pathologist.

"We will record the doctor's statement on the autopsy and the report will be included in the investigation papers to be sent," he said.

Kugan's family lawyer N. Surendran said recently, the second autopsy report conducted by the UUMC specialist pathologist said that he died from failure of organs due to repeated beatings with a blunt object.

Makkal Osai 030409

Brutal report shocks cops

By Frankie D'Cruz and Nevash Nair March 04, 2009 Malay Mail

THE torture of 22-year-old A. Kugan in police custody that included hot-branding him like an animal, unheard of in local crime history, will open fresh investigations into his death.

Pathologist Prof Dr Abdul Karim Tajuddin of Serdang Hospital, who conducted the first post-mortem, and the 11 policemen who interrogated Kugan are now at the centre of a new police probe.

Police sources last night told Malay Mail that the revelations of the second autopsy are “horrific
and unprecedented”.

“Much as we would like it to be an isolated case, such torture of a detainee is unthinkable,” said a source.

Questions are being asked if there was a “cover-up” and certain quarters have demanded for Selangor police chief DCP Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar's resignation.

Kapar MP S. Manicakavasagam has branded Khalid a “liar”.

Dr Abdul Karim has not only to answer to the police but the Malaysian Medical Council as well “due to the huge discrepancies in both the reports”, say sources.

The sources said Dr Abdul Karim, who did the first post-mortem on Jan 21, has to be interviewed by police again “as his and the independent report don’t make sense”.

“Further, there is also a possibility that the deceased's family might level charges against him for making a false or incomplete post-mortem report,” a source said.

Another inexplicable point, said Kugan’s family lawyer, N. Surendran, is that the second post-mortem report indicated that no examination below the heart area of the deceased’s body was conducted during the first post-mortem.

Surendran said this was confusing as it was compulsory for any pathologist to conduct a complete check.

Questions have been raised over how Dr Abdul Karim could have missed:

● A 5.5cm x 4.5cm area of contusion over the entire back of Kugan with multiple, repeated application of heat with an instrument or object with a triangular surface.

● This caused multiple “V” shaped burn wounds on Kugan’s back.

● These wounds were healing, as was evident from the formation of black crust and a few were infected and covered with purulent exudates or, in layman’s terms, pus.

The police would have to record fresh statements from all concerned “given the shocking nature of the report”, said police sources of the explosive independent second autopsy report released by Kugan’s family lawyers yesterday.

It had been reported that police had been mulling charging the 11 policemen allegedly involved with voluntarily causing hurt to extort a confession under Section 330 of the Penal Code.

All 11 are currently on desk duty at Selangor police headquarters in Shah Alam and the sources said suspensions were now unavoidable “as the (second) post-mortem report is a damning indictment of the police”.

The second post-mortem at University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) was commissioned
by Kugan’s family after they were dissatisfied with the first report tendered by Serdang Hospital.

On whether Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail will accept an independent autopsy report, lawyers said he was duty-bound to do so.

Pakatan Rakyat MPs will hand the report to Gani at his office in Putrajaya today. Gani yesterday declined comment.

Surendran said he received the autopsy report, with photographs, from UMMC pathologist Dr Prashant N. Samberkar at 5.30pm on Monday in the presence of the UMMC legal officer.

Surendran alleged that the report showed that the assailants could foresee that Kugan would have died.

Kugan died at the Subang Taipan police station on Jan 20, six days after he had been arrested in connection with car thefts.

What he suffered

Lawyer N. Surendran, who listed the abuse A. Kugan endured, summed it up thus: "It appears that Kugan was severely tortured over a period of days and the kind of pain he suffered is unimaginable."

The abuse discovered in the second autopsy, according to Surendran:

Being burnt 17 times with an extremely hot iron instrument:

Kugan was branded, just like how cattle are marked, by the "repeated application of heat with an instrument with a triangular surface". There were multiple "V"-shaped burn wounds imprinted on his back. Some wounds were healing while others were infected;

Almost the entire back was covered with contusions, marks and bruises;
Starved during his detention;
Suffered massive internal bleeding due to repeated beatings:

There was haemorrhaging in many of his internal organs, including his heart, left lung, spleen and kidneys, the back of his neck, spine area and the soles of his feet, which showed that he took consistent beatings;

Suffered internal bleeding in the scalp area following repeated beatings with a blunt object;
Died of acute kidney failure due to the assault:

The beatings had caused a breakdown in Kugan's muscle cells which then congested the blood flow and resulted in kidney failure.

Speaker’s lawyers making another bid - Anilnetto

The Speaker’s lawyers (from left): Chan Kok Keong, Augustine Anthony, Tommy Thomas, and Phillip Koh Tong Ngee Photo by KK

V Sivakumar’s lawyers are going back to court again in another attempt to represent the Speaker, says my source in Ipoh after a press conference held by the lawyers.

Yesterday, the court ruled that only the state legal adviser could represent the Speaker.

This time the lawyers will argue that under Article 132 (3) of the Federal Constitution, the Speaker is not part of the public services, and therefore he should be allowed to engage private lawyers.

Article 132 (3) states:

The public service shall not be taken to comprise -
(a) the office of any member of the administration in the Federation or a State; or
(b) the office of President, Speaker, Deputy President, Deputy Speaker or member of either House of Parliament or of the Legislative Assembly of a State; or
(c) the office of judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court; or
(d) the office of member of any Commission or Council established by this Constitution or any corresponding Commission or Council established by the Constitution of a State; or
(e) such diplomatic posts as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong may by order prescribe, being post which but for the order would be posts in the general public service of the Federation.

Tetapkan Pendirian, Teruskan Istiqamah!

Pastinya tidak ramai di antara kita yang masih mengingati ucapan pengebumian oleh Pericles, untuk mangsa-mangsa Perang Peloponnesian. Ucapan tersebut menggugah perasaan dan menyuntik semangat penduduk Athens, kerana ianya bukan sahaja eulogi untuk yang telah mati, malah juga satu bentuk testamen politik; pembedaan di antara Athens dengan negara-negara lainnya, juga di antara negara yang diperintah menurut asas-asas demokrasi dengan yang memerintah memaksakan ketakutan serta kezaliman ke atas rakyatnya.

Maka wajar diingat tanggal 3 Mac 2009, sejarah terukir di Ipoh, Perak Darul Ridzuan. Peristiwa tersebut dari kebesarannya, menyamai kesan ucapan Pericles di Athens. Dinaungi sebatang pohon, sidang tergempar Dewan Undangan Negeri Perak pun berlangsung, mengesahkan kedudukan Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Nizar dan keabsahan Kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat Perak.

Media tunggangan UMNO-BN cuba mengolah pandangan dengan memperlekeh sidang bersejarah tersebut. Saya tegaskan jangan sesekali cuba memperbodoh rakyat! Sidang tersebut berlangsung dengan penuh kemuliaan, kerana kemuliaan sistem demokrasi dan Raja Berperlembagaan tidak sama sekali bergantung kepada dewan yang berhawa dingin dan besar megah! Kemuliaan Dewan kerana ianya menyuarakan hasrat dan cita-cita rakyat.

Ingatlah ketika Rasulullah S.A.W mempersetujui Perjanjian Hudaibiyah di bawah naungan sebatang pohon yang beberapa tahun kemudiannya disusuli dengan kejayaan pembukaan kota Mekah. Saya nukilkan di sini firman Allah S.W.T dalam Surah Al Fath, ayat 18:

Demi sesungguhnya! Allah reda akan orang-orang yang beriman, ketika mereka memberikan pengakuan taat setia kepadamu (wahai Muhammad) di bawah naungan pohon (yang termaklum di Hudaibiyah); maka (dengan itu) ternyata apa yang sedia diketahuiNya tentang (kebenaran iman dan taat setia) yang ada dalam hati mereka, lalu Ia menurunkan semangat tenang tenteram kepada mereka, dan membalas mereka dengan kemenangan yang dekat masa datangnya;

Kepada pendokong Pakatan Rakyat, tetapkan pendirian dan terus istiqamah memperjuangkan keadilan, inshaallah Allah S.W.T akan memberikan kita dengan kemenangan yang dekat masa datangnya.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

97% Agreed with under tree assembly

Press Release: Investigate possible conspiracy to conceal death

The results of the second autopsy on A. Kugan raise several serious questions, not least of which relates to the integrity of the police force and the independence of the pathologist who conducted the initial autopsy.

The fact that the results of the second autopsy differ so extensively from that of the first smacks of an apparent attempt to cover up and protect members of the police force who were in charge of A. Kugan during the period of his detention.

We question the conduct of the CPO of Selangor, DCP Dato Khalid Abu Bakar, particularly the intimidatory tactics adopted by him and the exposé based on unconfirmed and potentially malicious information of Kugan’s alleged wrongdoings, which are wholly irrelevant to the cause of death. This information, which was released to the public, only serves to cloud and divert public attention away from the brutal manner of Kugan’s death in the hands of police officers who are supposed to uphold the rule of law.

The alleged cover-up by DCP Dato Khalid and all those acting in concert would not have been exposed if not for the forceful and dogged determination of Kugan’s family and the activists involved. This merely cements, in the mind of the public, the perception that people must push the boundaries of the law and take matters into their own hands in order to obtain justice.

We call upon the Malaysian Medical Council to launch an immediate and thorough investigation into the professional misconduct of Dr. Abdul Karim who had carried out the flawed first autopsy.

We also call upon the authorities to immediately investigate thoroughly the manner of and the circumstances surrounding Kugan’s death. Any further delay will undermine the public’s confidence in our law enforcement agencies in general, and the police in particular.

We reiterate therefore the need for an external oversight mechanism that is independent of the police force itself, namely the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) envisaged by the Royal Commission on the Police, to restore public confidence in the police force.

Although Kugan had been arrested on suspicion of having committed a crime, he was nonetheless entitled to the full protection of the police force pending a proper investigation and any consequential court proceedings. The police force must protect the rights of suspects, and not use the fact that they are apparently guilty as an excuse for any mistreatment.

Those responsible for Kugan’s death must be identified and brought to justice as soon as possible. Justice delayed is justice denied.


Ragunath Kesavan
Vice-President
Malaysian Bar

4 March 2009

Go back to the people... and now Chin Peng

By Jeffooi(Screenshots.com)

If law experts' contradictory views are taken as a bellwether, even the legal fraternity has no clues as to how the constitutional crisis in Perak should play out.

[ Read here (Tommy Thomas), here (Dr Shad Salem Faruqi) and here (Dr Mohammad Agus et.al.) ]

In the opinion space, The Nut Graph carried an article from the Centre for Independent Journalism that laments on the suppression of debate on the conduct of the royal families, notably the one in Perak. The same article was re-posted in the official website of the Malaysian Bar Council.

Meanwhile, Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan wrote in council's official website that the events unfolding in Perak are unprecedented and involve complex legal issues. "It is impossible to provide a conclusive opinion on them. Some matters may, however, be addressed generally as a matter of principle," she said.

Meanwhile, lawyers at Loyar Burok offered their views on the same issue of matter of principle, particularly on the powers of the Speaker of the Perak State Asembly.

Pointing to yesterday's "Democracy Under A Rain Tree" incident, where 27 Perak State Assemblymen were prevented by the OCPD from entering the State Secretariat building, apparently upon “instructions” from the State Assembly Secretary, Ambiga said further recounting those errors of errors:

The role of the State Assembly Secretary now comes under scrutiny. He is an official appointed from the public services and is only responsible for the administrative management of the State. He therefore has no authority to decide or pronounce whether a legislative assembly sitting is valid or not. The police have therefore acted improperly on his advice in defiance of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. These errors are further compounded by events that transpired in the High Court.

Ambiga pointed to the principle of law and questioned the legal sanction of the State Legal Advisor. She also raised issues on the legal standing of holding a State Assembly session in an open space well within the sanctity of the official geo-space. She said: "No doubt there will be contrary views but it must be understood that this situation is unprecedented and the Standing Orders may not adequately cover these eventualities, thus leaving the Speaker with the powers to act according to the circumstances of the case." More quote:

We will no doubt see another case filed in Court. And the public has to further suffer the consequences of uncertainty.

The situation is untenable and cries out for the one thing that will resolve it conclusively – fresh elections. There is now a window of opportunity for this to happen. Let the people decide.

Let the people decide! Well said. But the people must know that Sultan Azlan Shah can invoke His royal authority and decide otherwise, can't he?

BY THE WAY... There is a lot of wisdom to pierce through the evil mantra of Three Rs -- Race, Religion and Royalty -- that a certain race-based political party has advocated.

And never mind that the ghost of Chin Peng has been brought in by a blogger or two at this critical point in time.

Aye Mr. Speaker

Pakatan ADUN stopped

High drama in Ipoh

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Hindraf bears witness to Umno's insatiable greed

When two of my young Indian female office staff went to at the Hindraf rally in 2007, I felt ashamed that I did not join them. Never mind that i am a Chinese professional male or that I had clients already booked in that day. I tried to rationalise it away by claiming pragmatism or self-interest or loss of earnings or whatever but it was something I still think I should have done. The problem with Hindraf is that it is the very anti-thesis of Umno which highlights Umno's staggering hypocrisy and deceit. The people who support Hindraf do not make money from Hindraf nor do they expect to make money from Hindraf. The people who support Hindraf are genuinely poor, and live in an institutionalised, racist system that bluntly discriminates against the non-Malay poor. The Malays who support Umno are told by Umno's leaders that they need a system that discriminates against non-Malays. The people who support Hindraf believe in human rights, in equal rights and in social justice regardless of skin pigmentation. The people who lead Umno campaigns on electoral platforms promote special rights, Malay rights, unequal rights and special privileges regardless of individual need or poverty or merit. The fact is many people who support Umno have made millions and billions from supporting Umno leadership. The people who lead and support Hindraf, however, are some of the most oppressed and under-privileged people in Malaysia. The people who lead Umno are some of the richest and obscenely privileged people anywhere in the world, never mind just in Boleh-land. The people who lead Hindraf have been detained without trial, and have had basic medical treatment denied them, and have had their basic human rights trampled upon. Umno leaders who are grossly over-privileged and obscenely rich and control the judiciary and police apparatus still see fit to jail Hindraf supporters instead of meeting their arguments and claims in an open court. The problem for Umno is that Hindraf leaders cannot be bought unlike countless other Umno-BN apparatchik. The problem for Umno is that it cannot accuse Hindraf’s leaders or supporters of controlling any segment of Malaysian business, economy, politics, government bureaucracy, parliament, military, police, judiciary or cabinet. It is Umno that owns the entire racist, corrupt feudal Third World Malaysian cotton-picking plantation. When Umno leaders look at Hindraf leaders, the whole world knows who is the plantation owner and who is the slave. It is only a matter of time before even the kampung Malays will acknowledge who is the oppressor and who is the oppressed. It is the Umno elites that crush everyone - Malay, Indian, Chinese and lain-lain - who stand in the way of Umno’s big, dirty profits. It is the NEP vision that used to win Malaysian general elections but I would suggest to Umno that it needs to change it's vision thing. Hindraf's very existence points a damning finger at Umno's systematic oppression of the poor and oppressed. It is Hindraf that bears witness to Umno's insatiable demonic greed. Hindraf's suffering and persecution make a mockery of Umno's supposed ‘struggle’ to assist the Malay poor or protect Malay dignity or achieve ‘social justice’ in Malaysia. I sincerely believe that no decent Malay is going to agree to Umno oppressing the poor and oppressed in the name of special rights or special privileges or Malay supremacy.The only way Hindraf will lose this battle is if they break the law to allow Umno to demonise them effectively in the eyes of Malay voters. I may not be Indian but I am Malaysian and I can tell the difference between right and wrong and I will take my stand at the polling booth at the next general election.- By Citizen Albert