Sunday, August 30, 2009

Merdeka 09



Selamat Menyambut Hari KeMerdekaan Yang ke-52.
Last I checked with the editors, just before buka time today, 52 police reports had been lodged against the "cow-head" protesters. Sad, but I can hope that the Hindu temple crisis in Section 23 Shah Alam is not representative of race relations in other parts of the country.
Our forefathers sacrificed the earth and the sky to enable us to live in harmony as we have been doing for decades. Don't let political thuggery destroy the peace.
General August 30, 2009 21:35 PM
Tear Down Divisive Walls, Says Najib


KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30 (Bernama) -- Likening unity to bridges that connect the people and disunity to walls that divide them, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak tonight urged the people to repair their bridges and tear down the divisive walls that existed among the races.

Addressing the nation in his first National Day message as the prime minister, Najib said the passing of time saw the bridges, which were painstakingly built by the nation's founding fathers, becoming shaky due to attempts by certain quarters whom he described as opportunistic groups out to exploit frictions among the people.

Najib said these groups were exploiting the slip lines that existed among the society, be they are political, religious or social, to satisfy their narrow agenda.

In any case, Najib said, the people should continue to manage the success and build upon what had been achieved thus far by continuously nurturing unity.

"Bear in mind that what we have now will not necessarily becomes better. On the contrary, we can lose it all if we are not careful.

"There are ample evidence throughout history that successes which are not managed properly ended up as failures," he said in the message in conjunction with Malaysia's 52nd National Day aired over national television tonight.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Holy cow, is this the Selangor we knew?


Updates, close to midnight:
Latest posting by A Voice, here, a MUST READ.
Excerpts: "... Pengerusi kumpulan penduduk ini adalah Mahyuddin Manap, kini ahli PKR Wangsa Maju. Naib Pengerusi, Ibrahim Sabri adalah penyokong Anwar Ibrahim ...


"Orang yang membaca doa di masa perarakan pun adalah ahli PAS yang dipercayai dipanggil orang sebagai Amin."
Bru says: There are pictures everywhere, so the cops have their work cut out nicely for them.

Original posting:



From the underworld and beer issues to non-Muslims-only consert to cow-head/Hindu temple protest. Reading the comment by Old Fart [ "so much hate, so much anger"] under my previous posting, I was struck by the odd significance of the Hindu temple vis-a-vis the state of politics in Selangor before and after Pakatan Rakyat came into power.

You'd probably remember, too, how Khir Toyo's pop ratings plunged over the issue temple demolition as the general election drew near last year. When KT's Barisan Nasional lost Selangor to Khalid Ibrahim's PR, we thought better times were ahead.
But no. The Hindu temple has returned to haunt the state government. This time it's not about the destruction of a temple but the construction of one!

The cow-head incident in Shah Alam yesterday happened during a protest staged by Muslim-Malay residents of Section 23. They were not happy with the Selangor exco's decision to relocate a temple to their area. The picture above tells the story [and read here about the significance of the cow in Hinduism].

The standard script: PR supporters blame BN/Umno or/and PM Najib Razak. I wonder there's going to be a "mysterious letter", with JAIS insignia, to say that the cow-head was the work of some pro-government religious officials. [Eg. Hindu Temple Protest by Racist Malays in Shah Alam]


p.s. Khalid has issued a statement to condemn the cow-head provocation, but that's not going to solve anything. As he was part of Xavier's committee to discuss and approve the relocation of the temple, Khalid had a lot of time to convince the residents of S23 of why the temple should be relocated to their area and why they should not be so "religious intolerant" in the first place.

Why didn't/couldn't he?

Friday, August 28, 2009

Idris Jala, a Minister reporting to a Minister

There is nothing wrong with Najib's move to appoint Idris Jala as a Minister. Although, Idris probably is not the best CEO Malaysia Airlines ever had, he did fairly well. Despite his rather unexciting HR background, he made waves as a corporate leader. The likes of Tony Fernandes created tsunamis, but Idris Jala just needed to be impactful enough for the PM to stand up and take notice.
What people don't understand is why the Government needs another Minister to look at this thing called KPI. And why is this Minister answerable to another Minister, whose performance thus far has been far from impressive.

"The public is confused here," one of my regular correspondents from abroad pointed out. Najib needs to appoint more professionals to his Cabinet to help him realise the nation's Vision, but as the correspondence has it, "The execution of this strategy could have been better."


Thursday, August 27, 2009

Mufors

18 lives are lost on our roads daily and this new, personalized campaign aims at reducing that death rate. The aim of Mufors, or the Malaysians United For Road Safety campaign, is to get 250,000 people to raise their hands online and pledge to do their bit for road safety. Launched on July 15, the campaign has so far drawn about 15,000 "pledges". Long way to go.

So if you'd help support this campaign, please go to www.090909.org.my.

My own pledge, signed and delievered yesterday, is to make sure I belt up, without having to be reminded by my 6-year old.

Updates: 27/8 IGP: Ops Sikap will start a week before Hari Raya on Sept 20 to help reduce road accidents during the festive season/STAR

Monday, August 24, 2009

How much is OTK's reputation worth?

RM500 million? Ong Tee Keat isn't the first to file a defamation suit but half a billion ringgit, I think, is a record of sorts as far as politicians are concerned. Anwar Ibrahim has probably filed the most number of multi-million ringgit suits - against NST, Dr Mahathir and most recently Utusan Malaysia - but his cap is RM100 million.

Defamation/libel suits have become part and parcel of Malaysian life. In 2003, the Federal Court confirmed the decision to stop awarding mega damages for defamation suits, a moved welcomed by Lim Kit Siang, even though he was suing Utusan Malaysia for RM250 million for calling him "tidak patriotik" [read here].

Around the time, The Malay Mail was facing a suit for RM1.8 billion for defamation from a perbadanan called Nascom.

p.s. Hindraf's self-exiled leader Waythamoorthy is also suing DAP for defamation, here.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Ah, Yusri, both sides now?

Just a few days after speaking at a Pakatan Rakyat platform, Yusri Isahak, the ex-partner of the BN's candidate for Permatang Pasir Rohaizat Osman, today claimed during a press conference that he was being used to discredit his friend and regrets it.

He said he wasn't paid to say this.

Read it at A Voice, here.

Adun Lunas Bebas


Nothing to do with Umno, says Najib. PKR's Radzhi Salleh has announced quitting the party to become an Independent assemblyman. He said Anwar Ibrahim's party has strayed from its original goals.
"Jika dulu saya masuk Keadilan Nasional kerana percaya dengan perjuangan mereka tetapi kini saya keluar kerana PKR sudah lari daripada matlamat asas penubuhannya untuk membela nasib bangsa Melayu."

Read Tiger's posting here.

Asked later, the PM said Radzhi's move shows seeds of discord within PKR, nothing to do with Umno. It also doesn't change the big picture in Kedah, see table below showing the results of the PRU12 (so now there'll be 2 Bebas and 3 PKR). Source, YB Radzhi's blog, here.

There are places I remember ...


Journalist Firdaus Abdullah joins the blogging world with
SIGNBOARD
an attempt to capture unique names of places, things and people in Malaysia. If you wish to highlight a place (like the Opis Rumah Panjang, below) that you have come across, do alert him.Nd the world.


Saturday, August 22, 2009

Will this throw Gobind's letter out of the window?

Jebat Must Die's detective work. The blogger's latest posting, Letter from good MACC officers accusing the bad MACC officer, may just grab Gobind's "mysterious" letter by the belt and halfway out of the window, if you follow my drift.
Excerpt 1:

Well, the letter said that this officer, Hishamuddin left the building at 6.10 in the morning. The letter specifically said that he left the building at 6.10am but without punching out his punch card (MACC office still using punch card? How retro is that?)

This is what the letter said:

“Kami mengesyaki berdasarkan maklumat yang diperolehi bahawa TP tidak mengetuk kad perakam waktunya (punch-card) semasa beliau hendak balik daripada pejabat pada 16hb Julai 2009, jam 6.10 pagi. Ini penting kerana ia boleh membuktikan bahawa TP adalah orang yang terakhir melihat Teoh. Persoalannya, kenapa beliau tidak mengetuk kad perakamnya sedangkan beliau adalah seorang yang selalu mengetuk kadnya. Untuk rekod, beliau adalah seorang yang teliti dengan kad perakamnya.”

Anyway, the writers of the letter knew that Hishamuddin had gone back from the office that morning. They actually saw him going back home although he did not do the obligatory punch-out. It is quite peculiar for them to say that. Because, this immediately absolves Hishamuddin from ever been at the point of TBH’s death because according to experts, TBH time of death is from 8am to 9.30am.

Hmmm.. as we all know, one of the last person to see Teoh Beng Hock was Tan Boon Hwa and this was admitted by the latter who made the declaration that around 6am to 6.30am, he saw Teoh Beng Hock looking ‘tired and quiet’ in the pantry.


Excerpt 2:

However, there is also one big point of contention in the letter when it had seriously accused Hishamuddin of tampering with the crime scene i.e. the window on the 14th floor of Plaza Masalam.

It stated:

“Kami mendapat maklumat bahawa TP telah mengarahkan pegawai bawahannya untuk mengelap/mengesat kesan cap c(j)ari pada tingkap tingkap yang dipercayai tempat Teoh jatuh. Ini terbukti apabila pihak polis tidak menjumpai apa0apa kesan cap jari baru atau lama pada tingkap tersebut. Persoalannya, kenapa TP mengarahkan untuk bertindak sedemikian?

Now, I find this piece of information quite odd because in the Inquest, we were told that there were fingerprints near the window. The investigators at the crime scene were grilled by Gobind himself at that time and it was revealed that there were as many as 8 fingerprints near the window sill.

Now if Hishamuddin had asked his subordinates to wipe clean the window, how come there are still fingerprints? Okay, lets give the benefit of the doubt that the subordinates had wiped the window halfheartedly (because these probably were the subordinates with conscience and good heart we mentioned earlier).

But how come the window, as testified by the investigators in the inquest as dirty and dusty? The reason why they cannot figure out the fingerprints was because of the dusty and dirty window sill.

Now what do you thin? In any case, I agree with blogger Jebat, that we need to follow the trail of the surat layang. Find out who gave Gobind the letter and we'd be able to get the truth.

p.s. In the spirit of Ramadhan, I'd like to plead for abstinence from obsceneties when making comments. Bro Warrior 231, show 'em the way please ....

Friday, August 21, 2009

Ramadan


Selamat Berpuasa. More than a billion Muslims around the world observe this holy month which, for Malaysian Muslims, starts tomorrow.
May our ibadah be accepted throughout.
For the MACC graft-fighters, both Muslims and non-Muslims, may Ramadhan bring you renewed strength to discharge your duties, without fear or favour, for a blessed Malaysia.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Mystery Letter at Teoh Beng Hock's inquest

Or Surat Layang?. The TBH inquest has taken yet another twist, with the mysterious letter Gobing Singh claimed was passed to him. The letter had the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's insignia but was unsigned. Letter made some fantastic allegations that remind me of some of Raja Petra Kamaruddin's blog posts (my favourite being the one where he claims that the Prime Minister's wife was there at the scene of Altantuya's murder) and recent Statutory Declarations (Private investigator Balasubramaniam's claim that Altantuya was "susceptible to anal sex", as told to him by Razak Baginda, comes to mind).

Still, the Inquest must do a thorough job and investigate the mystery letter. It used to be called surat layang in those days. If you are OK with surat layang, you should be OK with the postings in t4tbh ...

Excerpts from the Malaysiakini story:

"The mystery letter which emerged at the Teoh Beng Hock inquest yesterday is believed to contain claims connecting a top ranking MACC officer to the interrogation of the political aide, which could have led to his death.

Believed to be written by a Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission insider, the letter alleged how the top officer and an influential politician had worked together to start investigations into alleged corrupt practises by Selangor's Pakatan Rakyat leaders.

And it was on this understanding that Teoh was called up for questioning.

The unsigned letter, which carried the MACC official letterhead and written in Bahasa Malaysia, also stated the top officer's modus of interrogation - which involves pulling the suspects by the belt ...."

PAS candidate and missing funds in Permatang Pasir

RM60,000. Talk about the BN candidate's disbarred status over a cheating case has hardly died down but there's now talk about his opponent from PAS and a missing RM600,000 in election funds. The post Calon Pas N11 gelapkan RM60,000? belongs to pro-Umno blogger Zakhir Mohamad but the accusations against Mohd Salleh Man were made by his seniors in PAS, or so we're made to believe. Check it out here.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Of disbarred, dishonest and other lawyers at Permatang Pasir

More updates: Shamsul Yunus has a posting in response to the Bar Council's:
Hot News: Bernama confirms my version
Pisau.net has documents which it said are proof that Rohaizat tidak bersalah
updated: More heat on BN candidate in Permatang Pasir. The statement by the Bar Council secretary, which appeared here, has certainly put Muhyiddin and company in a bit of a spot.

Press Release: Clarification regarding Rohaizat Othman PDF Print E-mail
Contributed by George Varughese
Tuesday, 18 August 2009 01:34pm
ImageIn response to inquiries from the media, we wish to clarify Rohaizat Othman's status as an advocate and solicitor.

The Advocates and Solicitors Disciplinary Board struck Rohaizat Othman off the Roll of Advocates and Solicitors on 7 March 2008 after he was found guilty of misconduct. The Disciplinary Board's decision arose from an investigation into the complaint lodged against Rohaizat Othman by the purchaser of a piece of real property. According to the complaint, Rohaizat Othman failed to refund almost RM 161,000 to the complainant after the transaction was aborted.

Rohaizat Othman appealed against the decision of the Disciplinary Board to the High Court, and the appeal was dismissed on 12 August 2009. He is therefore legally disqualified from practising as an advocate and solicitor.

The finding of misconduct is personal to Rohaizat Othman, as the Disciplinary Board would not hold a lawyer liable for the actions of his/her law partner(s).


George Varughese
Secretary
Malaysian Bar

Original Post:
Straits Times of Singapore has the story of BN candidate for Permatang Pasir being disbarred by the Bar Council last year. Such a story, of course, is hot hot hot.

Shamsul Yunus the My Anger blogger has put up a quick posting here to point out that the complaints against Rohaizat Othman, he 38-year old BN man, were WITHDRAWN in March 2008. Shamsul also slams lawyer Haris Ibrahim for what he alleges to be the lawyer's "half-truth" campaign lawyer Rohaizat.

Shamsul, who will be contributing articles daily from Permatang Pasir for The Malay Mail, was trained to be a lawyer, by the way.


Monday, August 17, 2009

Selangor "circular" vs MACC unlawful

updated: The Malay Mail's front page today, 18/8/2009, go to www.mmail.com.my

Original post:
17/8 AG chambers to file court papers to declare null Selangor govt circular setting time, place where state officials can be questioned by MACC/STAR
The politicians, they all claim that they are not corrupt. And they tell us that if we elect them they will fight corruption. But when it comes to the crunch, cakap tak serupa bikin. From the BMF scandal to PKFZ, some of the biggest culprits have been politicians. Some of them got caught (a Selangor Menteri Besar went to jail for graft), many of them got away.

But what Khalid Ibrahim's Selangor has done in response to the relentless probe by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has no precedence. Who gives the Menteri Besar's office the right to decide when the anti-graft officials can or cannot interview them? What gives Khalid Ibrahim the idea that politicians from Pakatan Rakyat must be treated differently when it comes to corruption?

The Malay Mail learnt about the "circular" from the MB's office from YB Ronnie Liu's political aide Wong Chuan How, who had eluded the MACC for over a week in probe involving misuse of state funds in Selangor. Read our report on Aug 12, here. Excerpts:
“I was not hiding or running away. After the Teoh Boon Hock incident, the Menteri Besar’s office issued a circular stating that no Selangor State government employees should talk to MACC officers after office hours or when away from their office. We are also required to have a lawyer present during the meeting with MACC officers,” (Wong) added.
There can't be two sets of laws - one for the ordinary rakyat and one for Khalid Ibrahim's men. I'm behind the AG on this.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Will the Media be freer after Najib?

Based on Najib's 100 Days, I told the audience at the Chinese Assembly Hall in KL last week that I think the media would be worse off if Pakatan Rakyat comes to power. I told them to look at how the media are being treated in DAP's Penang, where the State government has barred certain newspapers from covering its official events. Anwar Ibrahim recently filed a RM100 million suit against Utusan Malaysia.

And today, Lim Guan Eng said DAP wants to sue media over Islamic issue.

The persecution against selected media will continue, you mark my words. Read my take on the launch of Oon Yeoh's book, here.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

UM's Safe

update:
"I believe the project has been shot down by non other then our visionary and proactive Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak!" - Pasquale of Barking Magpie
I must thank Observer for pointing out yet another link, Hellelujah! The gate community project at Universiti Malaya cancelled!

Original article:

"For future generations". The Malay Mail's front page yesterday, UM Condo Plan Scrapped, is one of the best news to have come out since April.

I'm not sure if this means that other ill-conceived projects under Pak Lah's tenure as Prime Minister are also being reviewed, but the UM project is certainly one of those that deserve to be shot down. Annuar Zaini, credited by some as the mastermind behind this project, may not agree with me on this, though.

My previous posts on this issue:
Universiti Malaya in Sepang - 13 June 2007
Universiti Malaya Land Sold Already? - 10 Feb 2008

The blogger Big Dog also had a story on 10 Feb 2008 entitled Kroni PM Flip-Flop gadai 27 ekar tanah UM and has a link here [UM Land Scandal Resolved) to the Malay Mail's big scoop yesterday.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Ah, YB Jeff!

12/8 Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi and DAP Youth chief Loke Siew Fook to be called up to give statements soon on allegations of insulting Islam: IGP Musa/STAR
Anti-Islam? Jeff Ooi may be some other things to some people but he is not a person who'd insult Islam or, for that matter, any belief (or disbelief) that you might have. Sure, he's been a pain in many a butt during the last five years or so that he's been blogging and since becoming the first blogger in the world to be elected a Member of Parliament in March last year. But if anyone accuses Jeff of insulting Islam then I'd say he's wasting everyone's time.

The YB has withdrawn his statement here and said he's never insulted Islam. Which part of his statement is not clear?

testing

Testestestes

Monday, August 10, 2009

Loke Siew Fook, did you write that about our Sultan?


update: "No, I did not," says Loke.
The YB has left a strong denial in my comment box, which I am reproducing here:-

Dear Mr Rocky,

I strongly deny the allegation that I have written the article to insult the Sultan of Perak and Raja Nazrin. I have no prior knowledge whatsoever on that particular blog http://sjsandteam.wordpress.com/

My ONE and ONLY blog is lokesiewfook.blogspot.com

I have NEVER written anything that insult the Royalty, Malays or Islam in my life. There is an effort to slander DAP Youth and myself and spread lies that we are anti-Islam and anti-Royalty.

I do not know who is behind that blog and I have nothing to do with it.

As a responsible blogger, I hope you can first verify the facts before making any assumptions. I will be lodging a police report today to deny the article and I hope you can publish my explanation to clear the air later. Thank you.

12:08 PM

Original article:
This is the second time in less than 5 hours that I'm naming on my blog the DAP Socialist Youth's national leader, Loke Siew Fook (pic).

This time, it is about allegations made over the weekend by some blogs that Loke, who is also MP for Rasah, had called the Sultan of Perak and son Raja Nazrin by some unsavoury names in a posting dated Aug 6 on the blog The Might of the Pen.

The blog has since been deleted. But not before My Anger ["This is Downright Sedition"] and Melayu Bersatu ["DAP hina Sultan Perak and Raja Nazrin pulak"] had saved the "evidence" in pdf file.

Click here to read what Loke was supposed to have written about the Sultan Perak and Raja Nazrin on the blog. I hope Loke will come out and clear his name soonest.

Sunday, August 09, 2009

Whose racist and ultra kiasu?


Probably nobody has riled the DAP Socialist Youth and editors of Sin Chew and Nanyang Siang Pau more in recent weeks than Dr Mohd Ridhuan Tee Abdullah, a Chinese-Muslim senior lecturer from a local university.

His articles in Utusan/Mingguan Malaysia, the paper they've labelled "racist" because of its Malay-centric views, have been condemned as "insensitive", "zealous" and "hypocritical".

Tee has been also accused of being a racist here by the leader of the DAP's Socialist Youth movement, Mr Loke Siew Foon.

Tee's latest piece today, headlined Bahaya matlamat menghalalkan cara is going to draw fire from Dapsy and the editors:
"Alhamdulillah, dengan peristiwa dan artikel ini, saya lebih mengenali sifat ultra kiasu bangsa saya sendiri yang selama ini saya kaji. Saya baru sedar betapa hipokritnya segelintir bangsa saya. Mereka tidak pernah bersyukur tetapi teramat takut kalah dan mahu sentiasa menang (kiasu) Fakta dan kebenaran dikelirukan bagi menagih simpati dan agenda politik tersembunyi.

"Ini budaya yang telah melingkungi pemikiran mereka walaupun kita sudah merdeka 52 tahun. Pemikiran mereka masih tidak merdeka, masih dikongkong oleh ketaksuban terhadap bangsa. Mereka menuduh UMNO rasis, mereka apa kurangnya. Mengata dulang paku serpih, mengata orang dia yang lebih."
I wish Ridhuan Tee all the best and hope that he has the stamina to engage the Dapsy and the editors of those powerful Chinese-language newspapers in a discussion that is more constructive tham what it is now.

Friday, August 07, 2009

Censoring the Internet in Malaysia


Updates:
7/8 Najib: The Govt will not censor the Internet as such a move will be ineffective in a borderless world and lead to dissatisfaction among people/STAR

MCMC Clarifies filter study, click here

Original Post:
Rais Damn! Our Information Minister may or may not have been inspired by the Green Damn project of China [Malaysia plans internet filter, tougher controls by Reuters] but what he's doing is, in effect, the same as what the Chinese were tryign to do: censor the Internet.

We all know Rais' intentions are good. We are all against child porno. And yes, we shiver at the thought of our kids getting access to porno on the Net.

But is this "filter" thing the best way to do it?

I really don't think so. In fact, I think there will be a serious backlash on Rais and the Government. Najib's good record as far as media relations is concerned will be blemished big time. This Government will be accused of going back on its word to the world that it would not censor the Internet.

Rais should consider a more challenging role for his ministry and the government, and that is:

Firstly, CREATE AWARENESS among the Netizens about the ills of child pornography. A "Malaysian Parents Against Pornography" campaign would put to good use some of the budget under his Ministry and produce desirable results.

Secondly, the Ministry will EDUCATE the Netizens that they have the power on their fingertips to beat porno on the Net. Make available software and programmes to help parents create firewall against porno-net at home. Employers should be encouraged to also create similar firewalls at workplaces. The point is, let the Net users themselves implement their own "DAM" to stem the negative flow of porno on the Net.

And, thirdly, the Goverment can improve enforcement against porno on the Net and go after offenders. Porno is a crime in this country, and the penalties are spelt out in the law. The government just need to execute them.

In addition, Malaysia should work together with China or Souith Korea and the other countries which are also studying means to fight Internet porno. Inter-governmental approach is better so that Malaysia is not seen as trying to censor the Internet. The least Rais can do is learn from China, which tried to do it on its own .. and failed!

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Nut Graph in a Jam

Note: The guys at Nut Graph DID NOT ask me to do this posting. I'm not even sure if it's going to help.


Trying to stay afloat. When you are running an online portal, you realise that you need money as much as you need passion. And money doesn't grow on trees.
The people behind Nut Graph, the 11-month socio-political news site, may have to close shop if they can't find enough money to keep the business going. Yes, it is a business: you have to pay salaries of writers, contributers and columnists, there's rent and utilities to pay, and machines and servers to maintain.
When I wanted to start my own portal early this year, one vendor quoted a fee of a little over RM80,000. They brought it down to RM30,000 after finding out that I didn't have the money and later agreed to settle for a partnership where they'd do the portal for me, F.O.C., and we'll split the profits from online ads, if any.
So, I understand Nut Graph's predicament.

If you'd like to help them, go here.

Monday, August 03, 2009

Economist describes Anwar as a Chameleon

Name-calling. A fellow blogger and I were just talking about the latest antics of Ibrahim Ali, the "Independent" MP in Kelantan who won the last general election with the help of PAS but who's now the Islamic Party's biggest pain in the ass. In Malaysian politics, Ibrahim is affectionately known as the Frog Prince because of his propensity to jump from one party to another in the past.

Now there's a chameleon in Malaysia's politics, according to the Economist:

"This points to a trap waiting to catch the silver-tongued Mr Anwar, who deftly tells different audiences—religious or secular—what they like to hear. The same blogosphere that helped his meteoric rise may one day pay more attention to his chameleon qualities. Malaysians would then come to ask more closely: who and what exactly does Anwar stand for?" - The Economist, Malaysia's Chameleon

Read the full article here or here.

p.s. We were immediately thrown back to the early 80s, when Boy George's Karma Chameleon was a huge hit:

I'm a man without conviction
I'm a man who doesn't know
How to sell a contradiction
You come and go
you come and got

Sunday, August 02, 2009

So who's liable for the RM100 million?

A question for Lawyers. Before anyone attempts to answer the Q, know the background: Raja Nong Chik told a press conference yesterday that the City could have lost RM100 m - RM200 m as a result of Saturday's anti-ISA demo.

The FT Minister's estimate is bound to raise eyebrows and draw scoffs. But what if it's true? [Read here].

Can anyone then be held responsible/accountable for the losses and damages?

In this age of transparency and good governance, shouldn't someone claim responsibility?

A lawyer friend of a friend of a friend said the Gerak Mansuh ISA, as the organiser of the demo, is liable. Meaning, I was told, that those who claim to have suffered losses and damages (which may include Sogo and Semua House, which had to close for business on that day; traders and hawkers; the LRT and bus operators; restaurants, etc) could actually sue the NGO.

Really?

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Police arrest ISA demonstrators

Watch ISA Update on mmail.com.my: Video from the Ground by Shamsul Yunus
and Updates on Public Nuisance by Syed Akbar Ali


Pic of PAS' Unit Amal
by T. Jit K.

Updates:
No pics from Jinggo. Jurugambar dan blogger jinggo diragut kameranya brnilai rm19 ribu oleh penunggang motosikal ketika kami sama sama sdg jlnkan tugas di jln kinabalu.
Teargas near the Press Club. BH 01/08: FRU terpaksa lepas gas pemedih mata ke arah 6,000 penyokong GMI yang enggan bersurai bagi bantah ISA di depan Bank Rakyat, 2.40 petang tadi.
Updates on blog tv. Shamsul Yunus has video of march, here.
Live from KL. Eyewitness Parpu, here.


Original posting
Miles away from the ISA marches, I wondered if Laila of Gerak Mansuh ISA, or GMI, was alright. She sms-ed back, from the back of a police truck! She'd been kept there with 7 others for the last two hours.

Meanwhile, Azam, the pro-ISA organiser, is still a free man. "Saya belum kena cekup," he text. They have called off the pro-ISA march but Azam and a group of friends from his Alliance of Malay Grads are walking as planned.

By 2pm, about 80 people - both anti-ISA and pro-ISA - had been picked up by the police, according to The Star. Laila told me she was picked up near the Pertama Complex, together with his 15-year old son, Shuhaib.

Laila's husband has been detained under ISA for over 6 years.

Bernama vs Bernama: Annuar Zaini must GO!

General August 01, 2009 14:07 PM
BERNAMA Temporarily Suspends Involvement In 24-hour TV News


KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 (Bernama) -- Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency, will temporarily suspend its involvement in Bernama TV Synergy Sdn Bhd, a joint venture which provides a 24-hour news channel on Astro TV, with effect from today, a Bernama spokesman said.

"The decision is to minimise the exposure of Bernama to losses incurred by Bernama TV Synergy, which is a joint venture between Bernama Bhd (33 per cent), Silver Ridge (Multimedia) Bhd (27 per cent), Standard Code Sdn Bhd (20 per cent) and Hallmark Entertainment Sdn Bhd (20 per cent)," he said.

The spokesman said the decision would not in any way affect the quality and delivery of its services as the national news agency.

"Bernama will review its options on its involvement in Bernama TV Synergy as soon as the financial issue affecting the parties in the joint venture is resolved," he added.

Meanwhile, Bernama chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Annuar Zaini said in a statement that it was with much regret that he had to announce the temporary suspension of the national news agency's involvement in Bernama TV Synergy.

"We have decided on this course of action after a thorough evaluation of the current financial situation affecting Bernama TV Synergy.

"As chairman, I would like to assure that the delivery and quality of Bernama's existing services in its operation as the national news agency will continue to be maintained at the highest level," he said.

-- BERNAMA


Bernama sues Bernama. The writing had been on the wall almost from the start. On his blog, YB Wee Choo Keong in March questioned here the legitimacy of using the name (and resources) of Bernama for a tv op run by politically-connected individuals with little track record.

Wee brought the matter up in Parliament, as well, after it was clear that Bernama TV was draining the resources of Bernama. Losses amounted to millions; in April by the time I wrote the posting Annuar Zaini's Baby, it had reached RM14 million.

Wee's latest posting Bernama sues Bernama TV marks an end that is near. The journalists I spoke to at the national news agency said it's time Annuar Zaini does the right thing: RESIGN!