Saturday 7 February 2009

Licking the Wounds ... of a Blessing in Disguise

What happened in Perak is good. I hope it will teach Pakatan Rakyat that it has to get its act together. ......
A mere car brought the Perak government down.
If this is what brought the Perak government down, then it deserves to fall. I can only say that this serves Pakatan Rakyat right. They had it coming. When personal interests and racial issues override everything else, you deserve to fall.
And there are many low quality
wakil rakyat still in Pakatan Rakyat .............Next time, get better candidates. Some of the Pakatan Rakyat wakil rakyat are so low standard I would not even trust them to baby-sit my dog.
- RPK
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So said RPK.
PR had lost their "bearings" when they got more than they could handle in it's infancy.
Well, I actually said the same (not verbatim lah) at while "Fishing", to PatLu, Segar & Viki- I actually said, "I wouldn't feel sorry for them if they lose the Perak Govt - they have forgotten what got them there!" (But I did feel sorry ...)
Still, it was heartbreaking to see the Nizar Govt fall in such a manner - I wouldn't have felt as such, should Pakatan have been ousted through a "No Confidence" motion. To make matters worse, we had to put up with the smug look of Mr. Mongolia at the press conference .....
"Gamuda" or not - this was realpolitik at play (and IMHO, plenty of "Mahathirism" stamped all over it!). Is it any wonder that Mahathir couldn't hide his glee, and as a "statesman", writing on CheDet,
"Lompat masuk (perangkap) boleh tapi lompat keluar tak sah!! He, he, he!".
(reminds me of how some guys write comments on MT, despite the availability of emoticons)
Yes - Anwar was outwitted in his naivity, and suckered in his own game, although with a little difference in style.

Taking the Stephen Kalong Ningkan case into consideration, we all know that Nizar is still the legitimate MB of Perak, the BN style is to use extra-constitutional methods to launch a coup - always has been, and always will be. Just letters don't cut it, when one claims majority - only the assembly decides. The Constitutional Head of state simply carries out the wishes of the people as expressed by the legislature. It would therefore do well for us to disregard the Pakistani academician cum "constitutional spin doctor" - Shad Faruqi, who claims that the Sultan can Hire & Fire at his pleasure like an autocrat.
Let's hope the case will give PR at least, a moral victory - but we all know that Karpal has a recording of a judge who confessed to being advocate of corruption.
So, we shall keep out fingers crossed.

There were many things that were unsatisfactory with the Pakatan electoral pact - but it was a pretty steep learning curve for them to negotiate. The attitudes of the DAP men in the past, isn't relevant as of now, (although RPK did bring it up).
RPK has also resorted to whacking PR now, in frustration - menyampah (or maybe just a bad flu). Whatever his reason may be, he, just as anybody else, is entitled to it.

I share many of the sentiments expressed by RPK - yes, I concurred with RPK on the dissolution idea, and posted something asking Nizar to dissolve the Assembly ASAP in DISSOLVE THE PERAK STATE ASSEMBLY, NIZAR!!!
(sometimes, I too like to be perasan lah -like as if anybody significant is gonna take me seriously!).

However, I'd look at the events that transpired in Perak in a positive light - it is a baptism of fire for Pakatan, and they better learn the taste of defeat fast - and I mean REAL fast. Or else, they will very soon bite the dust elsewhere as well.
It is a price you pay, when you take power for granted - with the presence of turncoats in your midst.
Actually, I'm surprised they lasted so long and it took this long for Najib to make his move ....

Recent events will make Pakatan realize that it isn't worth fighting among themselves, and that there are bigger things to fight over. Having tasted the sweetness of office/power and the bitterness of defeat, it will also make them fight harder & with more strategy in future.
Things may swing in their favour, if they can keep the desire for reform & negative sentiments towards BN burning in the hearts of the electorate.
In short - it may be a blessing in disguise!

While they take a step back to recoup their strategies, lets hope they do not lose sight of the other states in their grasp.
Meanwhile, just get better reps in future lah - in the last elections, many seat would've been won had they even decided to field donkeys!
And a last piece of (unsolicited) advice -
don't let your egos neglect the "Barisan Rakyat's" opinions!!

For what it's worth - all the best Pakatan!
Overall, you were "passable" in my book - The people are still with you.
And to Najib, the "man of the day" - your day of reckoning is yet to come.
Legitimacy doesn't seem to be a priority to you - You seek for glory within Umno, at the expense of the electorate.
Hardball is what you play, hardball is what you'll get from them
- Cheers to you, Najib!

Here's an act of Interpretation, Shad Faruqi ....

From MalaysiaKini:

We are all Perakians now!
Josh Hong | Feb 6, 09 11:23am

In Malaysia, they first came for the Kelantanese,

MCPX
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Kelantanese.

Then they came for the Sabahans,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Sabahan.

Then they came for the Islamists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Muslim.

Then they came for the Hindus,
and I didn't speak up because I was not a Hindu.

Then they came for the Perakians,
And I didn’t speak up because I was not an anak Perak.

Then they came for me —
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
(adapted from Pastor Martin Niemöller’s anti-Nazi statement)

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It is under attack by those who feel that the ‘social contract’ must be renegotiated.
Frankly, it is also undermined by judges and civil servants who apply their own interpretations of the Constitution and allow their personal allegiances to colour the practical application of the laws that govern our country.”
- Shad Saleem Faruqi

(Bernama) -- The Sultan of Perak has the power to dismiss his Menteri Besar even though the latter refuses to tender his resignation after being decreed to do so, a constitutional law expert said.However, the power to do so is not within the provision of the Perak constitution but from the Interpretation Act which says the power to appoint also includes the power to remove, said Prof Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi.*

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Shad Faruqi, is just doing a "job" for his BN masters .... he's just a legal spin-doctor extraordinaire!

As much as I'd comply with His Majesty's decision, I cannot agree with it - and
Shad Faruqi's interpretation is as twisted as his interpretation when he said, that the Umno/BN "social contract" is in the Federal Constitution.


This is how I think it should be interpreted .....
What I say isn't meant in any way, to belittle the office of the rulers - just an interpetation of the law, from a "layman's" perspective.

We are a "Constitutional Monarchy", which is subject to the Federal Constitution, which is a "living document" - and do not live in a medieval Absolute Monarchy which practices autocracy.

The Law is Supreme - not Man!
Malaysia is a Democracy where it is the electorate that decides - the Rulers are supposed to reflect the desire of the electorate, and not vice versa. I'm sure that should be applicable where "Interpretation Act" is concerned .....
The interpretation clause cannot apply here, as the Legislature is the highest authority in deciding the MB, and not the ruler.
The Legislature decides on the candidate for appointment by His Majesty, and hence the Legislature should also decide where the "firing" is concerned!!
Should this not be the case, the YDPA then has the authority to fire the PM at his discretion as well, disregarding the parliament!

The Ruler's prerogative, I thought wasn't absolute - unlike in some nation in the middle-ages ... unless of course we've entered a time warp.
The interpretation has to take into account the Legislature, and is subject to the approval of the Legislature.

Whatever said and done, we know that the threat of an Emergency looms, should this crisis and stand-off continue - and I believe it is a very likely prospect.

What is happening today in Perak, heralds the scenario of things to come .....
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