Daddy 's Leaving - Member No.1 Quits!

==============================

"Malay dignity lies in wisdom
and not in war-mongering nor in idiotic pride."
- Dr Azly Rahman (Idiotic pride displayed for all to see- MalaysiaKini)
============================

"As soon as by one's own propaganda
even a glimpse of right on the other side is admitted,
the cause for doubting one's own right is laid."
- Adolf Hitler
..........................................................

Malaysia Kini:-
Mahathir quits Umno

Former Umno president Dr Mahathir Mohamad today announced that he was quitting Umno with immediate effect and urged other members to emulate him.

He also called on all Umno ministers, deputy ministers and all levels of party leaders to join him in quitting the party.

"Wait 'till Abdullah quit as the prime minister and party president and then we can return to Umno," he said.

This is what Shahrir had to say:
"Certainly it is not helpful or constructive to the struggle of Umno right now," he said.

And Kuli:
"When and if I felt I had failed in my effort, then I would make up my mind on it (decision to quit or not)," he said.


=========================

About time I would say ....
These are interesting times indeed - and desperate situations require desperate measures.
So typical of this sensationalist opportunist!
However, this must be taken with a pinch of salt - the announcement was after being challenged by the floor. and he hasn't drafted the letter at press time!
Moreover, we all know how he quit being PM,
only to be back in the
driver's seat for another doggone year!

What took him so long, anyway?
He should also give up all the titles (especially the Tun-ship) - that would be real sweet of him .....
This time he's really scraping the bottom of the barrel, for support that makes a difference!

Look at this man - he's willing to destroy a party that has been the bulwark of the nation for a generation, just as he had no qualms about destroying the UMNO of Onn Jaafar.
He's willing to play the Race Card, bring down the govt, destabilize the nation and create problems - even abandon his "baby"- just becos he wants an uprising that he can capitalize on.
All for an agenda that does not have appeal anymore within the party leadership, or the Malay grassroots in general!

He should've done this long ago, instead of barking and sabotaging the corruption that the party had espoused and nurtured so lovingly, since the time he created it.
After repeated and desperate attempts at garnering support (including playing the race card) in a Game of High-stakes Poker, The Big Daddy of UMNO Baru - Tun Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamed, decides to Quit his No.00001 membership!
(I really wonder if it had anything to do with the Lingam Tape)

"Wait 'till Abdullah quit as the prime minister and party president and then we can return to Umno," he said.

If the Malay community were to follow suit, and weaken Umno Baru, it would be his perfect opportunity to start his rhetoric about Malays not having political power/ leadership, and thus, another 5.13 of sorts.
This is a simple message that is repeated over and over again. Just as Hitler would've recommended when he said,
"All propaganda has to be popular, and has to accommodate itself to the comprehension of the least intelligent of those whom it seeks to reach."
This racist and hate-based rhetoric appeals a great deal to the "dispossessed Malay" of the land (read UMNO Baru), which is also his creation, for without Mahathir as the "sugar-daddy", they're all goners with nothing to fall back on.
The crap about Chinese and Indians questioning Malay rights is the whole load of hogwash that he used in 1969 for 5.13 prior to his expulsion.
He believes that all Malays become powerless, should he lose power!
He thinks he IS the Malay of all time, despite being half Malayalee/ Kaka!
This guy is simply hungry for power - and his belly can never be filled enough.
He never wanted to give up power, but the cobwebs of his rule were showing, and he simply needed to get out quickly for Pak Lah to be the fall-guy.

By doing this, he would indirectly "discredit" Kuli's campaign (who may not really want to quit), to contest at the Umno Baru AGM.
That would also leave him out in the cold - and it can't happen, as far as he's concerned.
Pak Lah is smarter in that - on the surface he ignores TDM and gives the "innocent & ignorant" facade. However in the background, his machinary is working full throttle to disgredit TDM and put him on the defensive. (Remember the RCI & leaked news?)
It is his way of purging Umno Baru of all elements of CheDetism and the cronies.

How I wish that he had been pretty open about the Judges that allegedly were "unethical" in their conduct, instead of being silent all these years. Being the perfect political opportunist that he is, maybe it is his way of nurturing the rot that he used to his benefit.
His admitted silence on these matters only serves to tarnish his already battered image of a disgraced and racist "statesman", and bring him much disrepute.
Why did he not reveal the names of these Judges, or get rid of them in the first place, instead of all the drama that he created?
One might wanna go back to Lingam and Vincent Tan on this ...

He should have just , and left AAB to his devices - that way he would've at least saved some face.
One would just wonder how much fight this old goat has, left in him.
Whatever said and done - Hats off to this old goat for being such a crafty fox, even at this age.

Some people say, the devil, hatred and greed are great driving forces that often keeps a person going, even if he's just a shadow or a shell of a man.

So the fireworks begin ..... let's see how many are willing to give up their rice bowl for the meteor shower of ideals that the MadHatter stands for!
Mahathir is now "wounded & cornered" - now he isn't gonna go down without a fight ..... and he'll fight like MAD!
Sigh .... kerana mulut, badan binasa ....
------------------------------------------------

Relevant pieces:
Some Umno myths young Malaysians should know...
Razak's UMNO, Mahathir's UMNO Baru Dilemma.
Change? What Change?
The "Social Contract" - A Malaysian "Cold War"?
Understanding the "Oily Man" Syndrome.

HERE IN MY HOME

RCI Report on Lingam-gate Video

==========================
The concerned parties:-







Copies of the Royal Commission's report will be sold to the public as published and handed in to the King last Friday. However, the price has not been determined as yet.

Extracts from the report

On the authenticity of the video clip:

"In the final analysis, when all is said and done by the experts, both local and foreign, stripped off all the technical jargon that they used in their findings, when examined in the context of the direct or primary evidence of the maker of the video clip, coupled with that of the eyewitnesses, a simple question confronting the Commission can be posed in layman's terms: Is the video clip genuine, real, reliable or trustworthy and therefore authentic? We have no hesitation in answering in the affirmative." – page 45, paragraph 11.

On the identity of the person whom Datuk VK Lingam (DVKL) was speaking to over the phone:

"In our view, when the testimonies of DVKL and Tun Ahmad Fairuz, which consist essentiallyof bare denials, are examined against the direct evidence elicited from the phone conversation in the video clip as well as the evidence of two eyewitnesses and the circumstantial evidence alluded to above, an irresistable inference can reasonably be drawn, namely, that the person to whom DVKL was speaking on the other end of the phone was Tun Ahmad Fairuz. In the circumstances, having heard the submissions before us and having regard to the totality of the evidence adduced in the Enquiry, we are constrained to come to the conclusion that the identity of the other person concerned is none other than Tun Ahmad Fairuz." – page 52, paragraph 40.

On the identity of the "Chinese man" at the end of Lingam's phone conversation:

"The third part of the equation concerns the identity of the 'Chinese man' shown in the video clip conversing with DVKL. This was after DVKL had ended his phone conversation with Tun Ahmad Fairuz. On the evidence, we have no difficulty in coming to the conclusion that he is Mr Loh Mui Fah. The other personalities mentioned therein shall be identified in the course of our consideration on Term 3 of the Reference relating to the truth of the content of the conversation in the video clip." – page 52, paragraph 41.

On the parties who interfered with the appointment of judges:

"In the final analysis, having regard to the totality of the evidence and for the reasons stated, we are of the view that there was, conceivably, an insidious movement by DVKL with the covert assistance of his close friends, Tan Sri Vincent Tan and Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan, to involve themselves actively in the appointment of Judges, in particular, the appointment of Tun Ahmad Fairuz as the Chief Judge Malaya and subsequently as President Court of Appeal. In the process, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was also entangled. That possibility was ominous when examined against the factual circumstances surrounding the rejection of Tan Sri Malek Ahmad as Chief Judge Malaya. Their ultimate aim or purpose could not be ascertained with exactitude, given the limitation under the Terms of Reference. It could be related to the fixing of cases, as submitted by Counsel for the Bar and others. Certainly, it is reasonable to suggest that it could not be anything but self-serving." – page 75 and 76, paragraph 99.

"In the circumstances, we are satisfied that the content of the conversation dealt with in the course of our analysis, contains the truth in substance and in material particulars." – page 76, paragraph 100.

On the impact on the judiciary:

"This issue has been satisfactorily covered in our Appendix (Detailed Analysis of Evidence). As such, we would adopt the content therein. We do not wish to regurgitate the details. It is sufficient for us to state here that the collective and cumulative actions of the main characters concerned, had the effect of seriously undermining and eroding the independence and integrity of the Judiciary as a whole." – page 76, paragraph 102.

On the recommended legal action to be taken:

"The fifth Term of Reference relates to what appropriate action or actions to be recommended. This issue is fully covered in our Appendix (Detailed Analysis of Evidence). As such we need merely adopt the recommendations therein." – page 76, paragraph 103.

"For the moment, we would state that there is sufficient cause to invoke the Sedition Act 1948, the Prevention of Corruption Act 1961, the Legal Profession Act 1976, the Official Secrets Act 1972 and the Penal Code against some of the principal individuals involved. We do not discount the possibility of other laws being contravened. In any case, the findings have, at the very least, provided the catalyst for further investigations so that, hopefully, there would be complete transparency and full accountability. This is absolutely essential if we are to wipe out, once and for all, the stain of that remark once made by Mr. Justice N.H. Chan, in reference to the Judiciary, that 'Something is rotten in the State of Denmark'." – page 76 and 77, paragraph 104.

On reforming the judiciary:

"In the circumstances, we are of the view that there is an urgent need for the necessary judicial reforms to be effected by the relevant authorities. In this connection, the Malaysian Bar Council has urged the Commission to consider recommending to the Government the setting up of two bodies, namely (a) a Judicial Appointments Commission and (b) a Judicial Complaints Tribunal." – page 175, paragraph 3.

On the reasons for establishing a Judicial Appointments Commission:

"In the evidence before the Commission, two issues appear clouded. Firstly, the basis or criteria for the Chief Justice to nominate the candidates for appointment as Judges of the High Court including the Heads of various Courts (except the Chief Justice). Our concern here is that there is no established and discernible system or criteria in the selection process of Judges and their promotion. It therefore follows that the power to nominate the candidates to the various Courts if left entirely to the discretion of the Chief Justice. This subjective approach appears to have also operated in the minds of the Executive personages (i.e. the then Prime Minister and the Chief Secretary to the Government (KSN)) and is a manifest structural weakness in the selection process." – page 177, paragraph 11.

"Secondly, from the evidence before the Commission, the meaning attributed by the then Prime Minister and KSN to the word 'consult' is so totally at variance with the ordinary meaning that they seemed to have thought it was equivalent to the word 'notify'. This would explain the Prime Minister's resort to the word 'prerogative' as a rationale for conducting himself the way he did. ..." – page 177, paragraph 12.

"Given the perception by Tun Mohd Dzaiddin (the then Chief Justice) that the then Prime Minister had the prerogative of rejecting his recommendation on the choice of candidates for appointment as Judges without assigning any reasons, it would appear that he (Tun Mohd Dzaiddin) did not find it appropriate or necessary to question the then Prime Minister further on the matter. He merely adopted what can be described as the 'Hobson's Choice' and accepted the nomination or suggestion made by the then Prime Minister. This presented an unsatisfactory scenario which might well have been avoided with the formation of a Judicial Appointments Commission." – page 178, paragraph 13.

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Let us hope Justice is served,
without Fear or Favour.

Brain Drain and the Drained Brains.

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We will have to repent in this generation
not merely for the hateful words
and actions of the bad people,
but for the appalling silence of the good people.
-- Martin Luther King, Jr

==============================

Dr. Hsu recently published an article entitled "Racial Politics and the Brain Drain" on his blog. Being a well written article, Malaysia Today published it too.
Rightfully, it has generated plenty of comments/ discussions.
No offense intended, Hsu - but I didn't really read the whole article properly - my humble apologies. I'm pretty certain that everything you said in it was the gospel truth - at least pretty close to that. None of it can be disputed, unless you're a supporter of the BTN agenda.

Not that what you mentioned isn't an urgent problem that's killing the Nation, but becos it is a known phenomenon which everybody in Malaysia has known for decades. It has been "urgent" for the last 30 years!
Ask Biro Tata Negara - they'll tell you as it is (You tak suka - keluar!).
In fact even that old goat TDM knew it all for sure when he propagated his brand of elitist, rich-man's "affirmative action", NEP (ie NDP).

This litany about "the brain drain" has been repeated for far too long by politicians who supported that old goat - not just Umno/Baru, but all the other member stooges in the BN coalition too.
It is good that many have now chosen to quit being lackeys, after the last GE.
These stooges in the BN coalition are equally guilty of the policies that has rendered Malaysia an economic backwater in comparison with nations like Singapore, Korea and Taiwan. If one were to take Sabah and Sarawak into the equation, were very much comparable to rural India, China, Pakistan and Vietnam .... maybe even Kenya, Uganda or Zimbabwe .

To all those who have been complaining about this phenomenon of "brain drain", and yet supported the Parties that sought to "work with" the old goat - I pity you for not pulling your heads out of the night-soil that you've subjected yourselves to.
Didn't these guys see that that is what BTN, UMNO, NEP, NDP, Gerakan, MIC, MCA, ABC and XYZ was all about?
It has been quite plain that this was the plan all along, and you guys thought that these "drained brains" were serious about stemming the outflow of human capital?
All that drama/propaganda blitz about encouraging Malaysian to return are just that - media hype and publicity stunts that actually open doors for more corruption, in a system that already stinks to the high heavens.

Wasn't it that spittle spraying lackey who was the Minister of Human Resources?
He has at last (after all these years) admitted being a beggar to the elite capitalist Malay bourgeoisie of the UmnoBaru clan!
Can you imagine what the implication of such a statement is?
It simply means that members of the coalition are all beggars, and are being cheated through and through. It also means that all the "chieftains" in the coalition have been cheating the beggars in the party, and the party has been cheating the beggars who supported them all these years!

They successfully camouflaged all their activities by subscribing and using the divisive and demeaning race/religion politics of UMNO, that reduced the people to "branded cows" in different holding pens.
Within these "holding pens" of race based political parties, the people had little freedom of choice, and are thus doomed to the slaughterhouse at the whim and fancy of the masters.
They have an agenda that makes zombies or monkeys out of their "proud and patriotic" supporters, while they are fed crumbs & slop within these pens.
It basically drains the brains from all their supporters, who are reduced to docile, insecure, begging zombies!
That is why, we have a bunch of morons who suggest Sex Education in NS boot camps, manned by horny ex-army personnel! Certainly, some of our "illustrious Ministers" with "impressive track records" can help with that, too .......
(Who knows - maybe these "brainiacs" think that it was the sex that made Sufiah Yusof blossom into a mathematical genius!)

The govt doesn't give a fig if the world or the citizens think they are idiots for letting go of the brains that they can't drain.
What matters to them is that the brains that remains, are drained for their benefit!
All that matters is that the brains that remain, make the pie from which the plunder can be executed, and taxation on this pie is shared among the elite cronies/ families via dubious projects/concessions.

Who gives a fig if the precious human resource is migrating .... it only opens more doors for the plunder to be perpetuated. Ask Mr. Spittle .... they have invested heavily on a future of/for Racism and Mediocrity!

Do they care if Malaysians die or get raped at the NS boots camps?
Hell - NO!! They can be C4ed for all they care ...

Why do you think the govt gives citizenship/ MyKad to scum of the earth from neighboring countries, but not the educated / spouses of foreign origin?
It is easier to to fool/plunder/rape these guys, or even C4 them into oblivion and get away with it - it's all as simple as that. The "scum" is no threat tto the "planned plunder", whereas the educated are.
These scum don't know the value of human rights - they only know their stomachs and their vice for the day, and that they should support the plunder for "ketuanan melayu" that their masters advise! Their needs are quite simple and the govt wishes it to be kept that way. They'll make do with the peanuts that they get, being the "grateful monkeys" that they are supposed to be.
This is what you call "Asian Values" which any despot loving politician like "that old goat" would defend.

Malaysia is the only country in the world that absorbs the scum of other nations while we "donate" precious intellectuals to other economies.
The govt prefers to keep the people stupid (hence the "Ketuanan Melayu" & NEP rhetoric), so that they can bleed the nation dry.

Meanwhile they work on the Malay ego and insecurity for political mileage.
They also promote politics of hate so as to enhance the sense of insecurity and create a "siege mentality" for "docile" (to their agenda of "rape" & corruption) Malay community, that would be content with a life of mediocrity filled with empty pride.

It is the perfect setting for the nation to be "colonised" once again - but this time, by using the "sovereign govt" of the day as a stooge.
But with the Oxfart idiots subscribing to the racist rhetoric running amok like "mat rempits" in the Parliament defending "Ketuanan Melayu" with their various definitions and spins, which "anak watan" is gonna complain?

Yes siree- To them, (as Lee Kuan Yew said) it isn't brain drain .... only "trouble drain". It is what they have wanted all along, Hsu - and that's the truth.

For any change to take place, for the Malaysian race to face the onslaught of globalisation, for the culture and heritage of Malaysia to survive, we don't have much of an option - UMNO and the BN-lackey culture of "Racism and Religiosity" has to go for good.

We need a whole new world of politics in Malaysia.
==================================

"I imagine one of the reasons people cling
to their hates so stubbornly,
is because they sense, once hate is gone,
they will be forced to deal with pain."
-- James Baldwin

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Umno Baru in Denial & Confusion with more Spins?

===========================

Kuli, in an interview with The Star:-
"The Umno that was founded in 1946 by Datuk Onn Jaafar and the freedom fighters in 1946 was declared unlawful by the High Court in 1988. That gave birth to Umno Baru, which is there today and will celebrate its 20th anniversary."
(Then are all those guys celebrating 62 yrs all retards or what?)

"....... the party need not reengineer or reinvent itself, he said it was the excesses and arrogance of the leaders which caused anger and disgust .........."
"...........The Malays only know Umno and its allies. I cannot imagine how the Malays will behave or react without Umno........."
"Except, of late, you see excesses; you see abuses by Umno leaders who were also getting very arrogant."
"But I think it is a different thing here, in this country. Like most people say, here it’s the politics of race."
(Pssst ... can we start the Nazi party as well?)

"Some people said I should not have disbanded my old party Semangat 46 under Gagasan Rakyat, which I think would have done much better than PKR or whatever."
"So you see, if Umno wants to come back, I don’t think it needs to re-invent itself."
(Sorry Kuli, I don't see ... btw, wtf are you saying? I thought you said otherwise earlier! Even Tok Mat says otherwise!)

"People look at Umno as being “very racial” now, whereas it has never been racial from day one."
(Yeah Rrrright!)

"Actually, it is a fallacious way of looking at the term because the concept of ketuanan Melayu is more historical than anything else." "But I have not seen the leaders of Umno, all the prime ministers from the time of Tunku right down to (Datuk Seri) Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, trying to show that they are dominant or domineering over the rest. Have you seen it?"
(WTF - You need glasses or what Kuli?
UMNO is dead if not for pure unadulterated racism!)

Q: .... has the concept of ketuanan Melayu become outdated?
A: I think so. But in effect, it isn’t true.
(Once again Kuli, WTF are you talking about! You had some Ketum Juice or something?)

UCCA should be repealed. The OSA must be reviewed. Some features are important but not the draconian measures. The Printing Presses and Publications Act has no place. It has to go. The Police Act should also be re-looked. As for the ISA, it must be re-looked. I don’t think we can do away with that, I must say honestly, because even democratic countries like the US have laws with the same features that we have in the ISA.
(Okay lah, at least you got some sense on this - but of course you need to add a little of your double talk, huh?)

The whole lot of them have been jumping here, there and everywhere. I’m not saying that they don’t have principles or they have a stand on certain given ideals........
(Sabah - maybe he's a masochist & would like you to kick his butt ......)

Because of the racial politics here, we are closer to the party struggle than those in Sabah.
(Yes Kuli,- now you're talking .... racism is indeed close to your heart, huh)

They were brought in to help in order to help Dr Mahathir then to make sure they could thwart me and Semangat 46 in the number of seats in Parliament.
(Don't worry, Kuli - you can whack him now ....)


Behind the flag-raising, the honour guard, the prayers and the speeches at the party headquarters, Umno members are either dispirited, disconsolate, demoralised or in denial after the shocking results of Election 2008.
So Umno crises happen every 20 years or so. And ironically thus far, all have involved Dr Mahathir.
In fact, some leaders have become too powerful, assuming powers that they don't even have under the party constitution and running roughshod over the grassroots. Umno's power is from the grassroots and we have to reform to be relevant for them and the people.
- Tok Mat



Abdullah also said in the past 62 years Umno had gone through many ups and downs.
- Star Online
(Hello, WCW - UMNO died in 1988 you chameleon!)

KUALA LUMPUR, May 11 (Bernama) -- This year's Umno anniversary celebration carries more meaning because it reflects that the party remains relevant, deputy president Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.
"We believe Umno will be able to continue with its excellent struggle as a an important instrument for the future of the Malays, the other races as well as the country," he told reporters after the 62nd anniversary celebration of the party at the Putra World Trade Centre, here today.
=========================
From kpmu.net:-

Desyum....Desyum...sebiji - Tun shut up - enough is enough...
(Now that's what I call wisdom!)

Desecrators, Not Defenders of Malay Honor

======================

What strikes me on this latest Raja Petra saga is that the public officials involved were all Malays. Their behaviors besmirch the good name of my race and culture. Contrary to their conviction and assertion, they are not the defenders of Malay honor; they are the desecrators of Malay honor.

Charging Raja Petra Kamarudin as well as author Syed Akbar Ali under the Sedition Act for what they had posted on the Internet is less a crude attempt at intimidating bloggers but more a sinister shadow play (wayang kulit) with many hidden hands each trying to make its puppets move in a particular way in order to convey its threatening message. It is also a blatant abuse of the criminal justice system.

While the government may wish it to be otherwise, this crass manipulation of prosecutorial power would not make citizens refrain from using this new medium, nor will it infringe on its freedom. The Internet is now well beyond the control of any authority, least of all a corrupt and incompetent Third World government.

More significantly, this latest spectacle reflects two unsavory and destructive traits that are fast becoming the norm among our leaders and public servants.

One is their small mindedness and the other, their contemptible habit of misusing government assets for personal gains. The first attribute is closely associated with incompetence; the second, corruption. This pairing is lethal; it will destroy our society very quickly.

There is one other observation which while abundantly clear, is rarely stated openly. As the leadership and public service in Malaysia are increasingly under Malay control, these two odious traits (corruption and incompetence) are now viewed as an integral part of the Malay persona and culture. This is what makes me angry, as it should every Malaysian, Malays especially.

Small Minds At Work

First were the UMNO Youth members who lodged the police report. You can bet that they are all either on the public payroll or dependent upon government dole and contracts. If only they had a better comprehension of the English language, they would agree with millions of Raja Petra readers that there was nothing seditious in the said article.

Similarly, the police officers who raided Raja Petra’s home and grabbed his laptop never bothered to question those UMNO Youth leaders what was so seditious about the article. If the police had posed this most elementary preliminary inquiry, they would more than likely discover that those UMNO blokes had not read the piece, or if they did, they did not understand a word of it.

These police officers were not low-level sergeant types but ASPs and DSPs. They, like UMNO Youth members and many of the present generation of “educated” Malays, are English illiterate, thanks to our abominable UMNO-inspired education system.

As for the prosecutors and other lawyers in the Attorney General’s office who signed on to proceed with the case, as well as the presiding judge, well, that is what happens when you “massage” the scores of the Bar examinations.

If only the police had told those UMNO Youth members to grow up, or if the prosecutors and others in the Attorney-General’s office had exercised their independent judgment that Raja Petra was no threat to public security, the nation would have been spared this spectacle. More importantly, those police officers could then focus on solving the numerous unsolved murders, while our prosecutors could go after corrupt officials. There is no shortage of both.

As for the judge, if only she had exercised a modicum of diligence and read the allegedly seditious article, she would have thrown the case out. If she had any sense of judgment, she would have dispensed with the bail and released Raja Petra on his own recognizance. Did she really believe that he would flee?

That judge obviously did not have the courage of her colleague, High Court Judge Hishamuddin Yunus. In May 2001, this brave judge ordered the release of two ISA detainees on a writ of habeas corpus application when it was shown that the police officers were cavalier in carrying out their duties. The judge went on and fearlessly declared that Parliament should review and either scrap or amend the ISA so as to reduce its potential for abuse.

I did not expect the judge in Raja Petra’s case to lift her judicial robe and look beyond her bench, as one Judge Syed Aidid Abdullah did. Enough that she would do it like Judge Hishamudin, in the course of her deliberation and written judgment.

Syed Aidid was the judge who in 1996 wrote a letter to the Attorney-General alleging specific instances of corruption, abuse of power, and judicial misconduct among his colleagues on the bench. The Attorney-General of the time dismissed it as surat layang (poison pen letter), which reflected more on his competence and integrity. Syed Aidid was forced to resign; perhaps that was the lesson.

No wonder none of the senior public officials involved in Raja Petra’s case paused to reflect on their actions, or do anything other than what they have been instructed to do. They all dutifully carried out what was asked of them, robot-like, without thinking.

In a commentary after his release, Raja Petra wrote of his decision to let his wife post bail. He was initially determined to stay in jail until his trial to expose the rot in the system. What made him change his mind were the words of his jailors.

Of all the public servants, those jailors were the only ones who went beyond their prescribed duties and used their brains. They convinced Raja Petra that he would be more useful to our nation by being outside of prison than inside.

They were also concerned about his safety as well as that of the other prisoners. In their wisdom, the officials had detained Raja Petra in the same prison where the accused murderers of Altantuya were held. Again, wisdom and common sense elude our public officials!

It is ironic that of all our public officials, only the jailors were capable of independent judgment. One would have thought that this would be second nature for those in “higher” positions.

Abuse of Public Property

Malaysia-Today had posted many more damaging and yes, even seditious and libelous commentaries involving personalities more powerful than Najib Razak, yet the authorities had not responded in like manner.

There was the earlier “visit” by the police after Raja Petra made highly uncomplimentary comments on the Yang Di Pertuan Besar of Negri Sembilan. It was just a “visit” with the usual routine seizure of Raja Petra’s computer. Well, at least one of the police officer’s home now has a computer!

Malaysia-Today did not spare Prime Minister Abdullah either, with its series on UN’s “Iraq Oil For Food” corruption scandal. Then there was the highly damaging series on the “world’s richest unemployed” (to borrow Lim Kit Siang’s inimitable phrase), the Khairy Chronicles, and the equally damning expose on the “double Muhammad,” the former Mentri Besar of Selangor who was caught at an Australian airport with millions in cash in his back pocket. In none of these instances did the police react.

If Najib felt that he was being libeled, he should have hired his own lawyers and bear his own legal fees. Instead, the criminal justice system was being abused for this dirty job, for free at least to Najib.

Sadly, treating expensive government resources as their personal assets is fast becoming a pattern among our leaders, from using the fleet of luxurious corporate jets for their political campaigns, to “privatizing” choice government-linked companies to “sell” to their cronies and families.

There are many hidden hands and concealed causes in this latest convoluted shadow play. They would all be instantly exposed if only someone would flip the light switch on. Thus the fury provoked by Raja Petra’s initial lighting of a small candle. Rest assured that this man has his hands right on the main light switch. Keep reading!

Individuals like Raja Petra, as well as Judge Hishamuddin Yunus, Syed Aidid and Raja Petra’s jailors, rekindle my faith. We have eagles in our midst, but it is difficult for them to soar surrounded as they are by turkeys. To put it in a local metaphor, it is hard for a kucing belang to show its stripes when surrounded by kucing kurap (scruffy cats).

We have to get rid of these kucing kurap so our kucing belang could do their work in getting rid of the rats infesting our society. We cannot remain silent as that would only encourage these kucing kurap.

I join others in denouncing this brute behavior of the Abdullah administration. Raja Petra suffered with dignity while detained under the ISA. This latest clumsy act will not in the least dint this patriot’s resolve to bringing greater freedom to Malaysia.

To Raja Petra Kamarudin, Judge Hishamuddin Yunus, Syed Aidid, and all the kucing belang in our midst, I salute you! Hunt down ‘dem rats!

NOTE: The above was taken from M. Bakri Musa.
Image is that of Niamah!!! - Oops, sorry - I mean, from the blog, Niamah!!!

Freedom of Information

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Folks,

You may already be aware that the Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) and the Civil Society Initiative for Parliamentary Reform (CSI-Parliament) have prepared 4 documents supporting the Private Member’s Bill on Freedom of Information in Parliament.

These documents are available for you to read here...

There is also a petition calling for a Malaysian Freedom of Information Act that has so far attracted only 480 signatures. According to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Report for Q3 2007, Malaysia now has 1,229,000 broadband subscriptions and 3,910,000 dial-up subscriptions representing 4.5% and 14.6% penetration rates respectively. This translates into approximately 5,139,000 Internet subscribers! The response rate for the petition is sad. Go here to find out more...

Then get the word out and persuade everyone you know who has Internet access to sign the petition.

Please send this message out on blogs, websites, thru e-mail and SMA, by word of mouth... whatever. Do your part in raising civil society awareness of the need for Information Freedom.

BENAR Organising Committee

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Sign the petition Here.