Following are excerpts from articles on Malaysiakini:-
"Ex-Supreme Court judge Azmi Kamaruddin claimed that Mahathir had wanted to amend Article 121 of the Federal Constitution - a provision on the separation of power between the legislature, judiciary and the executive.
"I felt that he wanted to rule like a dictator. He (Mahathir) was already the head of legislature (and) he wanted the judiciary to be under his control as well. That was his intention," said Azmi."
"If we can do this, it means that the principle that Azmi and Salleh were trying to uphold in 1988 would achieve its objectives. We don't want a dictator running the country alone where he alone can arrange everything, we want the judiciary to uphold democracy" said Zaid.
The second thing to learn from today, added Zaid, was the necessity to have brave and chivalrous judges whose integrity cannot be questioned.
The prime minister has also announced that the government will establish a judicial appointments commission to identify and recommend suitable candidates for the judiciary to him as part of the judiciary reform.
Azmi's remarks on Mahathir today follow a similar revelation made by a senior High Court judge earlier this month.
Then justice Ian Chin had accused Mahathir of threatening judges in 1997, a claim which was denied by the former premier.
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MIC deputy president G Palanivel today slammed former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad for accusing party chief S Samy Vellu of being a racist and warned such statements could fan deeper racial sentiments.
"He (Mahathir) is wrong when he said Hindraf leaders only represent Tamil racists," said Palanivel in defence to Samy Vellu who has recently joined in the bandwagon in advocating for the release of five Hindraf leaders detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
Palanivel delivered a stinging rebuke to the former premier by advising Mahathir "to remember his own roots" before making such statements.
While Palanivel did not elaborate on this, he is likely to be referring to Mahathir's forefathers, who are from South India.
It is widely believed that Mahathir's father, a school teacher, had migrated to Malaysia from the southern Indian state of Kerala and subsequently married a Malay woman.
In a blog post yesterday, Mahathir chided Samy Vellu for campaigning alongside DAP chairperson Karpal Singh and former UN special rapporteur Param Cumaraswamy in calling him (Dr Mahathir) a racist.
Mahathir criticised Samy Vellu for coveting the government to release Hindraf leaders from ISA despite the fact that Hindraf represented Tamil racists whose motives were akin to Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka.
"In sympathising with Hindraf, Samy exposes his deep racist sentiments," said Mahathir
"They must know that Hindraf represents Tamil racists who still look to their old masters, the British, to protect them. They don't believe in Malaysian institutions," he added.
"They speak not just of Indians but of Tamils as a separate race. They and their apologists are racist to the core," he stressed in his blog post.
Mahathir also said that back when he was the prime minister, Samy Vellu insisted that he was the only leader of the Indians.
"He refused to allow other Indian political parties to join the Barisan Nasional. His arrogance was unbearable. The defeat of the Malaysian Indian Congress is entirely because of him," he said.
Mahathir promises more to come
Mahathir promised to affix extracts from Samy Vellu in his future entries so that readers can then "judge what kind of Indian the Indians have as their leader".
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Me Says:-
Bring it on mate - Let's partay!!!
and the can-o'-worms can only get better, considering the depths to which "that old Judas Goat" took took the nation (that lived on fantasies & dreams) to .....
In a statement released today, Palanivel (photo, right) also said that the former prime minister's comments on Hindraf were inaccurate and insensitive to the sentiment of Indians in the country.
i think many has forget what is the 1st real reason of hindraf formed. they just want 1million from England for each indian in Malaysia, claiming that it was the british govt fault that they are stranded here in this harmony land, and accusing that they are "marginalised" by the Malaysia govt. what they think is just money, man. and now they are saying that they fight for human rights??? just my thoughts.
ReplyDeleteDear anonymous,
ReplyDeleteHindraf ideas were definitely racist - however, it was to highlight the failure of a racist system in the so-called "social contract" in BN.
They had legitimate reasons, although their methods may not have been "ethical".
It was the only platform that political amateurs like them knew, so as to awaken and unite the community that had been sleeping for 50yrs, while their "thalaivar" was "doing his job".
The suit in UK was a magnificent publicity stunt to grab attention - nothing more. And it was a stroke of "genius" that "captured the imagination of the ignorant" despite drawing much ridicule.
Do you honestly believe that they thought they could win the class action suit?
FYI, none that I know did!!!
You must be naive, should you believe that!
The "harmony" you speak of, was definitely felt by those who turned up in numbers that exceeded expectations of even the organisers, bro!
And to believe that they aren't "marginalized" is hypocrisy - the evidence to the truth in their charge is self evident, and has been acknowledged by all parties - including TDM himself, when he said "judge what kind of Indian the Indians have as their leader"!
Mind you - MIC was and is, part of the Govt!
And for for a man of TDM's standing to use "an unregistered body and political nobodies" as a yardstick & justification for his rhetoric, is I believe, shameful!
That's all.