Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Dr M "apologises" to Pak Lah and Kali

.. or "How to get prime-time tv coverage when you are out of favour - Lessons from a Pro".
Dr Mahathir "apologised" twice earlier today during the day-long discourse on "Media's Role in National Development" at the Perdana Leadership Foundation in Putrajaya.
His first "apology" came during the Q and A session after delivering his keynote address. He was asked about the famous incident when he referred to a top editor appointed by the Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, as "a hindu god and muslim priest".
"Oh, I must apologise. I heard his daughter in Australia cried [here]... when I called him a hindu god and muslim priest."
At a press conference later, the former PM was asked by a media blogger if he realised that he was wrong in saying, during a speech in Kulai recently, that Abdullah had a RM60 million mansion in Perth, Australia. Raja Petra Kamarudin, who runs the Malaysia Today, a major supporter of Dr M and a huge critic of the PM, told the press conference that Khairy Jamaluddin, Abdullah's son-in-law, said the mansion belonged to Kamaluddin, who is Abdullah's son. RPK added that Malaysia Today's "independent investigation" showed that both Dr M and Khairy were wrong as the house belonged to a lady partner of tycoon Patrick "Badawi" Lim, who is known to be very close to the PM's family and a beneficiary of some lucrative projects since Abdullah became PM.
Responding to RPK's "carrot", Dr M said:
"Oh, I am sorry I stated something wrong. I stood to be corrected. It is not the PM's house. It is not his son's. It is someone else's".
The apology earned Dr M and the Perdana discourse extended coverage during prime-time news on a government television channel. Just when we all thought that he has been blacked out and blackballed!

Notes:
Experienced journalists will tell rookies that they will need to learn when not to take a response or a comment at face value. This is a classic case of a journalist not being able to tell when his ex-PM was being cynical.
Or was it the work of some Spin Doctors?
Perhaps the standard of editing (not journalism) in this country has really dropped so low since the "hindu god and muslim priest" taken over?


61 comments:

  1. Mahathir will put out sparks of fire..then proven wrong will blow it ot like a thick skinned dirty politcian. Moreso sad...when he is 82 years old and never change.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous11:41 pm

    What can you expect? TV3 is part of Media Prima, under "direct" control of the evil clutches of Lord Kalimullah, the Spinmaestro!

    Of course the story was spunned!

    I was there when the former PM apologized. He apologized in general, because his facts were wrong and stand corrected. He NEVER apologized to Pak Lah or the PM, this morning!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous11:48 pm

    Monsterball I think you are an idiot, can't you read between the lines. Dr Mahathir has the balls to apologise yes but can't you see that by apologising he showed that KJ also wrongly claimed that the infamous house belongs to his brother in law but has so far not apologised and are you blind also, now we all know that the MALAYSIAN PM goes on holiday in Australia during the flood and stayed at SOMEONE's house....

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous12:13 am

    yo bigdog!
    the tun was not apologising at all! he was being cynical. he knew in kulai what he was talking about. he threw a bait and everyone bit!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous1:06 am

    Hmmm...TDM was factually wrong about the Perth thingy. And he apologised.

    Hey, wait a minute....So was KJ. And he's as close as you can get to AAB, therefore, KA, his own BIL. Will KJ apologise too?

    We know for a fact that two wrongs do not make a right.

    I wonder who's the bigger liar or rather, real liar.

    Is there a difference between spin doctoring and horse trading?

    Wonder more, I will.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous1:18 am

    Shar 101,

    I agree with you. Tun Dr Mahathir is not family. Of cours ehe wouldn't know. But KJ, made a mistake? Or he lied?

    Shouldn't he apologize too?

    That's what I said in my latest article, "Tun Dr Mahathir apologized?".

    Read it at www.bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com

    Lets get this KJ bugger! I have had enough of his spinmaestroes thingy!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous1:42 am

    This just shows that the mainstream medias have very low quality editors and this is what happened when you want to be god and a priest at the same time.

    The last time was when LKY made a statement and the editor spinned it as as apology, this time they spinned again TDM statement as an apology, that's twice tight slapped on the face.

    Some people just never change.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous1:55 am

    Apology or no, the struggle against lies, treachery, plagiarism, deceit, hypocrisy, racism, bigotry continues. The battle against Barisan will go on and on until final victory is achieved and a Malaysian Malaysia becomes a reality. Adolf Hitler once said his Third Reich would last a thousand years. I say our struggle will last two thousand years. But have no fear because we will be cheering from our graves by then. Lead the revolution, Rocky.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous2:06 am

    Monsterball
    You are not that smart after all.TDM is 82 yes.. and you are? 60 probably.This time you really showed it man. You're much much slower.
    Nowander TDM is ex PM you're just an ex English teacher.
    I stand corrected.Facts, language, grammar and all.

    Peace Man!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I say monsterball is probably under 20. Anyhow, nice to see the Grand Old Man hasn't bought it yet.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous6:49 am

    Ha! This is classic Tun! With his classic cynical. That is why I love him so dearly! He is soooo bloody interesting!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous7:15 am

    Member, betui ka dengax kata Master Kali dok sakit?

    Ada orang kata dia dok berubat di Singapore.

    Betui ka?

    Tak kira lah nama sapa, yang penting Pak Lah buleh tumpang sekaki.

    Bila kita ada power, semua orang nak kongsi rumah, kapai terbang, kapai laut dengan kita.

    Pak Lah tak nafi. Dia dok elegent silence macam dulu juga.

    Bulan posa dah nak mai pula. Tapi soalan Mahathir bulan posa lalu dia tak jawab lagi.

    Khairy pun temberang juga. Dia kata rumah di Perth tu rumah Kamal. La ni rumah bini Patrick Lim pula. Yang mana satu? Cakap belit-belit macam orang mabok todi.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous7:32 am

    "Neither Abdullah nor his son, Kamaluddin, owned the mansion, estimated to cost RM60 million, located near the Swan River in Perth, as alleged by Dr Mahathir. It belongs to a Malaysian businessman, Datuk Patrick Lim."
    --from bernama..

    what shit is this. KJ said it was his bro-in-law's place... F^@$^%$# liar

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous9:13 am

    I was a bit disappointed when he apologised as the statement that he made in Kluang was a qualified statement. He said that "he heard" but did not in any definite manner confirmed that the house belonged to Pak Lah.

    I am not disappointed for the apology but disappointed that Tun will be perceived as a liar when he makes other allegations in the future.

    However on second thought I think that Tun is going on the offensive. Since Khairy had also said that the house belonged to Kamaluddin, then Khairy is also wrong.

    Will Khairy apologise for this "mistake"?

    After all, they are all in the family and he had surely been to the house. It is unbelievable if he says that he does not know who the owner is.

    To my mind, Tun is going on the offensive.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous10:13 am

    rocky,

    Dr mahahir was being so dr mahathir. so cynical. yep, he "apologised" and the amateurs took the bait.

    ReplyDelete
  16. The document which suggested that the house belong to the wife of Patrick Lim was in the company annual report 2004.

    This is year 2007.

    Perhaps the house now belongs indeed to either Kamaluddin or AAB himself.

    You can check if the latest company (Equine Capital) report states the presence of the house under Patrick Lim still.

    Perhaps Mahathir knew more than any of us.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous11:10 am

    I attended PLF on yesterday!thanks for giving me a business card Mr.RockyAtan!I stand behind u!!
    -PendekarTunMahathir

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous11:36 am

    Dr M's statement can be taken as:

    1) he apologises for getting his facts wrong, thus his following statement that "I stand corrected"

    2) He was being snide...(more popular interpretation among those who know him well)

    But whichever way we interprate his statement, he definately DIDN'T APOLOGISE TO THE PM. Only a dumbo or a half past six reporter will interprate it as such!!!

    TV3 is a liar...

    Oh BTW, dat monsterball...he sounds stupid all the time, I wonder why he bothers to comment at all.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous12:05 pm

    It shows that KJ and his gang are not that smart as usual, eventough being in the inner circle.

    Must be some communication breakdown is happening in the family.

    By the way, what happen to Nori lately. Doesn't she suppose to accompany the father to functions.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous12:20 pm

    mstman: A large number of bloggers (but a minority of voters) wants a regime change, but up to now no one has suggested who the new regime should be.

    A lot of people hated George Bush as well, but in the end, 50% of US voters still voted for him.

    This is a likely scenario in Malaysia, as BN uses taxpayer's money as election carrots, and the Opposition is not credible as leaders at all.

    I propose this.

    Don't aim for a change in government yet. Let's all aim for a stronger Opposition first as the immediate step. If BN's majority is slashed, then there will be more check-and-balance going on, even if they're still in power.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Mahathir, Anwar ,Kit and other opposition leaders will be given front page or page lead treatment if the story can put them in negative light.
    If I want to appear and speak on TV all I have to do is declare that I am crossing from PKR to a BN party with another 50 supporters.
    Of course I will have to criticise my 'former'party like hell and extol BN and its leaders.
    Malaysian news editors are actually mercenaries.
    They have contributed immensely to the devaluation and degeneration of this country.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous1:34 pm

    You say Whaat ?


    Dr M. IS the maestro. And the simplistic journalist from the media fell for it. Remenber when so much controversies were started by our reporters/journalist when the S'pore press referred to Dr Mahathir as an "underdog" .
    Our local press were screaming 'they called our pm 'anjing'. I dont know whether it was funny or sad.

    Call it by any name--nuances, inferences or between the line---our journalists should be trained to recognize such statements - or are they ?

    ...And I bet there wasnt even a smile of amusement on their faces when Dr M said those words---especially about the crying daughter in Australia....

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous2:18 pm

    The news was all over the blogs and newpapers. My only surprise is how so many people took it as an apology. I guess they never heard of sarcasm...

    For TDM, I have to salute him. That's genius. He made badawi and company look like idiots. They got hit, everyone's laughing and still, they did not get it. What a pity. A pm. My pm...sigh...

    ReplyDelete
  24. Dont expect KJ and Kali to apologise. It is not in them. It needs a MAN to own up. Wasn't it Thomas A'Kempis who said that Hunmility is Truth? these two are busy, plotting, scheming, spinning and all things chicanery-wise.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous3:13 pm

    Bru

    Psst

    PM has started a rumour....

    See NST Pg1 today.

    He said there are rumours that he would be stepping down in July.

    Now, I think I am pretty clued with things, but I have not heard words as such from the grapevine.

    Adalah orang kata, did nak kahwin in July lepas Nori beranak. but never have I heard talks of him stepping down in July.

    About him being a one-term PM, now that banyak kali dengar, and it seems it is also many people's fervent wish.

    Perhaps, he was trying to start a rumour.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Di dada media kita jadi spin doctor. kawal media sana-sini. arahkan editor di luar akhbar untuk menurut kata. tulisan seolah-olah dari sami dan mullah. coretan sebagai pakar dalam segala bidang. bagi nasihat dan panduan. bagi idea. tapi watan sendiri hampir rebah. di rumah isteri kawal dia. arahan isteri wajib diikuti. sudahlah.... jika orang tak kenal dia, dia dikatakan hebat. tapi yang kenal dia, tahulah dia siapa...

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous4:44 pm

    anonymous (1:42am) said...

    Some people never change.

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

    Some people never change & will remain stupid.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous5:35 pm

    ...if I had a brother-in-law like that....i'd kick-de-fella....

    ReplyDelete
  29. Say anything and everything you like about me. I stand by my statement. Apologising does not make Mahathir a man....when his side kick RPK talked about the house for a month.
    He will twist and turn to suit his agenda to divide UMNO malays.To me ...that's evil minded.
    Grammer mistakes...always there lah. anything else?

    ReplyDelete
  30. So you all know more than me. So you can read twist and turn and am proud of Mahathir's type of speeches that are sacastic and with double meanings.
    So you all smart asses love to copy and hero worship this type of leader in MALAYSIA.
    But I guess so so so..as without your idiotic remarks about me..this site will be dull.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous7:21 pm

    That "butcher of the English language" a.k.a. Monsterball is an ex English teacher? Oh dear me!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous9:00 pm

    Pembohong ada di mana-mana. Lihat di sini untuk mengetahuinya: http://www.ijokselangor.blogspot.com These people are jokers!

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous10:25 pm

    JUST THREE WORDS !

    GROW UP MONSTERBALL !!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous10:53 pm

    i am surprised to note that so many people here are willing to forgive the person who assasinated one of the cleanest if not the cleanest and most honorable judges of all times...

    damned... you mamak... you are the greatest...

    its like a rape victim thanking the rapist for what he has done...

    ReplyDelete
  35. My simple analysis on the scenario:
    TDM is making sure that the Perth house will never become Badawi's residence. Badawi will never again want to link himself with the real owner of the mansion. The property will just be there rotten... Very intelligent move, only by few statements communicated to the world..

    ReplyDelete
  36. TDM is a true strategist...no one in Malaysia is above him in this field....

    ReplyDelete
  37. anon 10.25 pm...I have eaten more salt than you eat rice.
    I have seen and done enough for two lives....what have you achieved?
    Growing up? You better pray you can grow as old and healthy as I am...JUST TWO WORDS...YOUNG FUT!!
    And if you are an old person like me...then JUST FOUR WORDS.....DON'T BE AN IDIOT!!

    ReplyDelete
  38. roy's....Mahathir is the dirtiest politician ever produced in Malaysia....no one in Malaysia can beat him ...playing dirty politics...not now...or future...that's for sure....because he is also the smartest of them all ...when come another? NEVER!!
    BUT WE ORDINARY FOLKS ARE MUCH MORE SMARTER THAN HIM....THANK GOD!!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Not related to this post but pics of the near riot at Ijok:

    http://flickr.com/photos/obwique/sets/72157600092386187/?page=5

    see who's the dalang. I had a great laugh and hope you will too!

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous12:07 am

    roy's: ...only by few statements

    ditto roy's! :)

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous12:10 am

    monsterball: Grammer mistakes... always there lah. anything else?

    Yes, YOU!

    ReplyDelete
  42. Anonymous1:27 am

    1.Where is Kamal's house in Perth that KJ claims belongs to Kamal?

    2.Where does Pak Lah stay when he goes to Perth? Is the taxpayer paying for his stay?

    3.How much are we footing for Pak Lah and his family's holiday? Are we paying for the nasi kandar meals.

    4.Does KJ pay for his stay at Sri perdana? Are we suppose to pay for extended family?

    5. Who else uses the jet when Pak Lah goes to Perth? Are they suppose to foot the bill for their journey or is it on the house?

    6.If Pak Lah stays ate someones house, is it morally wrong? will there be a conflict of interest.

    7.Is it mere coincidence that Patrick Lim's wife has a house in Perth?

    ReplyDelete
  43. ME..mekyam?...THE MOST DECORATED COMMENTER ? ARE YOU NUTS??

    ReplyDelete
  44. Anonymous2:14 am

    oh great, that old turd's here. and at his best too, whoring around telling people
    he's the smartest. even smarter than TUN, and that everyone else are idiots.
    yay, ok...errm..woohoo.

    monsterball; BUT WE ORDINARY FOLKS ARE MUCH MORE SMARTER THAN HIM....THANK GOD!!

    get off that rocking chair and quit day dreaming.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Anonymous2:31 am

    Rocky

    Why asked those questions? Why we all addressed Patrick Lim as Patrick Lim Badawi? That is the answer.

    You should ask:

    Did Patrick Lim Badawi took over the Penang Race Course for a song??

    Thumb up for Tun. He spoke up for the nation. Without Tun we will not know so many scandal of Badawi family and his good friend the "Muslim God and Hindu Priest", who was a poor journalist and became a multi-millionaire within 2 year of Badawi in power. Not to forget that the Hindu Priest was able to start ECm Libra, which Sharir pretend to question without getting any answer.

    Tun keep it up the Rakyat is with you. You are doing the job for hte Oppositon Leader (lim kit siang), who is also sleeping when issues concerning Badawi and family and his friend, the Hindu Priest.

    ReplyDelete
  46. kerp[lunk]...read carefully!!
    I said FOLKS...plural..not me.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Anonymous8:27 am

    monsterball 11.07

    Thank you for proving my point. You have just assumed that every writer here is a 'young fut'. My friend , our physical age is
    probably about the same.

    Wise up my friend.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Anonymous8:29 am

    monsterball 11.07

    Oh my friend -- dont forget the bottle of gtn , yah .
    Patience is a virtue.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Anonymous8:33 am

    to kerp(lunk)
    2.14am


    Hear! hear! Well said !

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous8:39 am

    Tun said the house belong to ABB...KJ said NO...it is belong to BIL Kamaluddin...but, Raja Petra said it's belong to "SOMEONE"...a wife of KJ close business associate...so, who's lying?

    ReplyDelete
  51. Anonymous9:19 am

    Monsterball..

    It's down right true when you say that WE ORDINARY FOLKS ARE MUCH MORE SMARTER because we can see how EXTRAORDINARY STUPID you are!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Anonymous10:55 am

    hey all,

    lemme enlighten ya'll,

    the 60 million mansion issue surfaced in late march. never once was it mentioned in the mainstream media. what do you do to get some real attention?
    Bring it up at a major Press conference (but???). This is a onehella strategist we are talking about. Should tun have approached the mansion issue any other way, i bet it would not see the light of day. Only wen its in the context of an apology, was it played up in the media. So wats in d end? those who'd have never heard about it, now know. Its up to them to weigh.
    bravo tun!

    ReplyDelete
  53. In defense of Anon. FM Miri agst Monsterball

    Perhaps the salt Monsterball tasted has turn sweet instead of salty. It takes long number of years to appreciate the finer aspect of salt.

    But MOnsterball shd rememeber that the salt he has taken is Sodium Chloride, NaCl.

    We are taking Potassium Iodide salt, KI this days. It may not have the same effect as with your NaCl.

    ReplyDelete
  54. hi Rocky....father monsterball...son SSgoh...and their shadow are not three...but one lah.
    But if father Monsterball looks like santa clause..and son ssgoh looks like a handsome actor.....and their shadow is infact...a ghost like casper...then the three will always remain three.....not one.
    It is time you acknowledge this and be a fair minded President.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Anonymous1:22 pm

    ok..err..sure, ur right. monsterball's the smartest here and whatever poop. hooray.

    u said "we". which should include urself, being smarter than TUN. not gonna
    bother u then..go ahead...dream on.

    ReplyDelete
  56. Monsterball,

    Get a life! People are tired of you anywhere you go. Really!

    ReplyDelete
  57. Aishah,

    Monsterball doesn't have any real life, "off-line", of course.

    That's why he's trying to create one "on-line" to have some form of existence.

    That's why he's trying to get 'validation' everywhere he goes on Malaysian blogs.

    Perhaps, the only reason he's allowed into the comments section by blog owners is because he's so painfully pathetic that everyone else will feel or look smart compared to the 'blithering ignoramus'.

    He has put Pasquale's definition of 'moron' into a much lower level all it's own. Welcome to SS Goh's reality nightmare show.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Good ! Get tired and go to sleep..hahahaha
    Life? Have you experience one full life yet?
    I am going on my second...hahahaha

    ReplyDelete
  59. Anonymous2:40 pm

    after reading so many comments..monsterball seem like he is living in his own world...

    Folks out there..just ignore him/her. He gets agitated easily as soon as your comments don't agree with him.

    Leave him be

    ReplyDelete
  60. Tun the smart politician. He was just shaking the tree and all the monkeys started shouting. KJ opening his big gap & now we find out that it was his proxy's house. He crafted the apology and now everyone knows about it. No more projects anytime soon for Patrick Lim i guess..

    ReplyDelete
  61. Thank you art chan...Try to pretend you get the remarks for yourself and see what will be your reactions.
    have a nice tommorrow.

    ReplyDelete