Selamat Menyambut Hari Kebangsaan 2008.
I am so proud of Malaysia, my birthplace. Jalur Gemilang features prominently on my car, and in front of my house. I think I am one of the few car owners doing that this year.
I saw Khairy's car (plate number KJ 10Q) without the flag. UMNO Building did not feature Jalur Gemilang prominently this year. Such is the state of our ruling party. Little sense of patriotism, even at the leadership level.
On the other hand, the opposition is using the occasion to attack the ruling government, and still hoping to wrest control within a fortnight.
This was part of Anwar's statement on Merdeka Day:
"Namun genap 51 tahun merdeka kita sekali lagi berada di persimpangan. Kita melihat perlembagaan diperlekehkan, demokrasi diinjak dan institusi kenegaraan dijadikan alat penguasa."
My response (as posted in anwaribrahimblog.com):
"Anwar Ibrahim lah yang memperlekehkan segalanya, cuba memporak perandakan demokrasi dan memperalatkan penyokongnya untuk tidak memperdulikan institusi negara.
Anwar Ibrahim akan menjahanamkan kemerdekaan negara dan akan menjadikan Malaysia sebagai negara talibarut barat.
Semuanya kerana Anwar Ibrahim ingin menjadi Perdana Menteri."
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
Mobile Number Portability and WiMax
At long last, Mobile Number Portability (MNP) is now available on a limited basis commencing today, 29 August 2008, as announced here.
Until mid-September 2008, pre-paid mobile phone users in Klang Valley may change their mobile phone service providers, if they wish, and still keep their mobile phone numbers. Later, post-paid users will also enjoy the service.
Nationwide roll-out is expected in October 2008.
MNP will surely increase the competition between the telcos i.e. Maxis, Celcom, Digi and U-Mobile. Consumers may end up as winners as these mobile phone service providers will have to reduce their pricing and make their packages really attractive.
I have been using my number since Maxis launched its services in mid-1990s. I thought that their level of services has somehow deteriorated after the company was privatised (i.e. no longer listed on the stock exchange), and with the resignation of Datuk Jamal.
I am thinking of changing to Celcom. If they can get their act together and market their Celcom 3G mobile broadband together with Streamyx and Telekom fixed line, they will be my choice.
But, as usual, I would rather wait until the dusts settle. Changing the service provider while maintaining your existing phone number seems to be a good proposition. But somehow or rather, I think there will be hiccups. That’s why only 100 requests will be entertained per day during the initial period.
The other thing that I am actually eagerly waiting for is the WiMax services. I think WiMax would be a more credible mobile broadband platform in terms of mobility, stability in services and rate of data transfers. However, since WiMax licensees in Malaysia are relative smaller telco players, I think they will be taken over by the bigger boys in years to come. Malaysia had given 2.5GHz spectrum licenses much earlier but the government had decided to abort the roll-out. If not for Lim Keng Yeak, the then-Minister in charge of telco, WiMax would have been thriving in Malaysia, via 2.5GHz spectrum.
In the USA, 2.5GHz WiMax is currently the biggest segment assigned. And they are still struggling to get consensus on the 2.3GHz protocol standard. Selection of protocol standard will have an effect on Malaysia’s WiMax operators as US would be the biggest market for WiMax equipment, and thus eventually affect the cost of WiMax in Malaysia.
Technology keeps changing at an incredibly fast pace. May be in the near future, with WiMax or other technology platform, voice transfers will be free of charge. With the availability of mobile broadband, consumers will be charged based on data transfers. Skype-liked devices will be used for telephone conversation as well as email and text messaging.
Until mid-September 2008, pre-paid mobile phone users in Klang Valley may change their mobile phone service providers, if they wish, and still keep their mobile phone numbers. Later, post-paid users will also enjoy the service.
Nationwide roll-out is expected in October 2008.
MNP will surely increase the competition between the telcos i.e. Maxis, Celcom, Digi and U-Mobile. Consumers may end up as winners as these mobile phone service providers will have to reduce their pricing and make their packages really attractive.
I have been using my number since Maxis launched its services in mid-1990s. I thought that their level of services has somehow deteriorated after the company was privatised (i.e. no longer listed on the stock exchange), and with the resignation of Datuk Jamal.
I am thinking of changing to Celcom. If they can get their act together and market their Celcom 3G mobile broadband together with Streamyx and Telekom fixed line, they will be my choice.
But, as usual, I would rather wait until the dusts settle. Changing the service provider while maintaining your existing phone number seems to be a good proposition. But somehow or rather, I think there will be hiccups. That’s why only 100 requests will be entertained per day during the initial period.
The other thing that I am actually eagerly waiting for is the WiMax services. I think WiMax would be a more credible mobile broadband platform in terms of mobility, stability in services and rate of data transfers. However, since WiMax licensees in Malaysia are relative smaller telco players, I think they will be taken over by the bigger boys in years to come. Malaysia had given 2.5GHz spectrum licenses much earlier but the government had decided to abort the roll-out. If not for Lim Keng Yeak, the then-Minister in charge of telco, WiMax would have been thriving in Malaysia, via 2.5GHz spectrum.
In the USA, 2.5GHz WiMax is currently the biggest segment assigned. And they are still struggling to get consensus on the 2.3GHz protocol standard. Selection of protocol standard will have an effect on Malaysia’s WiMax operators as US would be the biggest market for WiMax equipment, and thus eventually affect the cost of WiMax in Malaysia.
Technology keeps changing at an incredibly fast pace. May be in the near future, with WiMax or other technology platform, voice transfers will be free of charge. With the availability of mobile broadband, consumers will be charged based on data transfers. Skype-liked devices will be used for telephone conversation as well as email and text messaging.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Anwar and the Budget Speech
When Wan Azizah relinquished her parliamentary seat on 31 July 2008, I was quitely convinced that Anwar will be seated directly opposite the Prime Minister during the Budget tabling on 29 August 2008.
And I thought that Anwar will have to fight at his home turf and safe haven of Permatang Pauh. Not Kulim Bandar Baharu nor Bandar Tun Razak. With the whole government machinery concentrating to deny him victory in the by-election, other alternative venues would be almost suicidal.
In Permatang Pauh, Barisan Nasional cannot afford NOT to give victory to Anwar. Anything other than Anwar’s win will be condemned by the opposition and swiftly echoed by US and the international media as dirty politics and vote rigging. BN cannot even afford to allow low voters turnout, lest it will be termed as an attempt to deny bigger majority by Anwar. Hence the 81% voters turnout proved to be a blessing for BN.
A lot of money seemed to be spent to support PKR’s campaign in Permatang Pauh. Banners everywhere, The Masks (the ones with Anwar’s face on it), rally stages, sound systems, ample food, plenty of workers etc. Yet Anwar loudly claimed that he did not have enough funds to finance his campaign. What bull! (Thus making me wonder whether the rumours of outside financiers were indeed true).
Of course, BN spent a lot of money too, to their own peril.
But I truly respect Anwar’s careful timing of his return to Parliament. He wanted to make sure that he will be there inside the house to listen to the PM tabling the Budget. He will want the whole of Malaysia to see him live on TV during the Budget telecast as the opposition leader. I am sure that RTM will do their best to ensure minimal frontal view of the opposition leader during the Budget tabling. (But I cannot be so sure, as a lot of RTM employees are Anwar’s supporters too).
I think PM should drink a lot of water in the morning and take sufficient amount of lozenges. His frequent coughing during the Budget speech may be interpreted as a sign of nervousness, sitting in front of Anwar.
Most importantly, as the Opposition Leader, Anwar is entitled to post the maiden statement on the Budget IMMEDIATELY after the Budget speech. As the Parliament session will be adjourned throughout September during Ramadhan, Anwar will surely use this opportunity to attack the government’s economic failures, make clarion call for defection to Pakatan Rakyat, by invoking the spirit of Merdeka and Malaysia Day.
Then we wait for 16 September.
And I thought that Anwar will have to fight at his home turf and safe haven of Permatang Pauh. Not Kulim Bandar Baharu nor Bandar Tun Razak. With the whole government machinery concentrating to deny him victory in the by-election, other alternative venues would be almost suicidal.
In Permatang Pauh, Barisan Nasional cannot afford NOT to give victory to Anwar. Anything other than Anwar’s win will be condemned by the opposition and swiftly echoed by US and the international media as dirty politics and vote rigging. BN cannot even afford to allow low voters turnout, lest it will be termed as an attempt to deny bigger majority by Anwar. Hence the 81% voters turnout proved to be a blessing for BN.
A lot of money seemed to be spent to support PKR’s campaign in Permatang Pauh. Banners everywhere, The Masks (the ones with Anwar’s face on it), rally stages, sound systems, ample food, plenty of workers etc. Yet Anwar loudly claimed that he did not have enough funds to finance his campaign. What bull! (Thus making me wonder whether the rumours of outside financiers were indeed true).
Of course, BN spent a lot of money too, to their own peril.
But I truly respect Anwar’s careful timing of his return to Parliament. He wanted to make sure that he will be there inside the house to listen to the PM tabling the Budget. He will want the whole of Malaysia to see him live on TV during the Budget telecast as the opposition leader. I am sure that RTM will do their best to ensure minimal frontal view of the opposition leader during the Budget tabling. (But I cannot be so sure, as a lot of RTM employees are Anwar’s supporters too).
I think PM should drink a lot of water in the morning and take sufficient amount of lozenges. His frequent coughing during the Budget speech may be interpreted as a sign of nervousness, sitting in front of Anwar.
Most importantly, as the Opposition Leader, Anwar is entitled to post the maiden statement on the Budget IMMEDIATELY after the Budget speech. As the Parliament session will be adjourned throughout September during Ramadhan, Anwar will surely use this opportunity to attack the government’s economic failures, make clarion call for defection to Pakatan Rakyat, by invoking the spirit of Merdeka and Malaysia Day.
Then we wait for 16 September.
Monday, August 25, 2008
My own Anwarphobia
I have to reiterate that I am just an ordinary Malay guy who is not affiliated to any party, whether UMNO, PAS or PKR. I am no government stooge.
I am also patriotic. I am among the few Malaysians who actually made a point to fly the Malaysian flags on my car and outside my house during the Merdeka month, every year.
But I am afraid that UMNO has not regained its strength to ensure BN’s victory in Permatang Pauh tomorrow, 26 August 2008. I think Anwar will win the by-election. A result other than a win for Anwar will be loudly condemned by the opposition and swiftly echoed by US and other Anwar’s allies overseas.
Although there’s a lot of imported PKR supporters brought in Permatang Pauh during the campaign period as a show of strength, and to ensure that Anwar’s speeches are well attended, the actual local voters themselves are mostly hardcore Anwar’s supporters.
I am afraid of Anwar’s win in the Permatang Pauh by-election. I do not trust Anwar. He is a habitual liar, and will speak ambiguously just to hide the truth.
He dared to ask his opponents to reveal the names of his cronies, as if he has no cronies. His naïve supporters will view that as Anwar’s sincere confirmation that he has none of those. They will never check the list of Anwar’s cronies appearing in the blogs.
As I predicted in my earlier writing, Anwar and his supporters have downplayed Saiful’s swearing. Saiful was attacked from all corners: that the swearing did not conform to the true Islamic teachings, that it is a political conspiracy, that Saiful was handsomely paid to swear, that the witnesses were instructed by the power-that-be to be present at the swearing ceremony etc. The significance and major implications of the swear on Quran were never discussed by Anwar’s supporters.
I do not expect Anwar to do a Saiful (i.e. to swear on Quran, that is). Anwar will definitely not swear on Quran to state that he did not commit anal intercourse on Saiful or that he had never committed anal intercourse. My simple posting to anwaribrahimblog.com was censored, even though I just tried to post a simple statement saying my opinion that he will never dare to swear on such statement.
I have scanned Anwar’s statements in respect of the sodomy allegations from 28 June 2008 until today. He was being evasive all the time, saying that the allegation is another conspiracy, that the allegation will never stick, that Saiful was just a coffee boy etc. He never directly said aloud that he did not commit the act. I just want to hear Anwar saying this statement: "That I, Anwar Ibrahim, did not commit anal intercourse on Saiful and I have never committed anal intercourse on anyone". No need to swear in the name of God. Just make that simple, clear statement to deny Saiful’s allegation.
By not making a clear statement of denial, I have doubts in Anwar’s sincerity. DAP will use Anwar to gain control of the federal government. Karpal will use his knowledge of Anwar’s earlier misadventures to ensure that Anwar’s policies will be in line with DAP’s ideology of Malaysian Malaysia. (Remember that Karpal was one of the first persons who pressured Pm Mahathir to act action against his then deputy). Anwar’s allies and financial supporters from overseas will use the same loophole (no pun intended) to ensure that no prominent PAS figures will be given important posts in Anwar’s cabinet. Should Anwar run foul of US’ policies, the international media will swiftly remind the whole world of Anwar’s black history.
In effect, Malaysia under Anwar will be a stooge of foreign powers. Malaysia under Anwar will be an effective tool to implement Malaysian Malaysia, undermine the privileges given to Bumiputeras, and hasten the route to Republic of Malaysia.
That's my Predictive Scenario. My own Anwarphobia.
I am also patriotic. I am among the few Malaysians who actually made a point to fly the Malaysian flags on my car and outside my house during the Merdeka month, every year.
But I am afraid that UMNO has not regained its strength to ensure BN’s victory in Permatang Pauh tomorrow, 26 August 2008. I think Anwar will win the by-election. A result other than a win for Anwar will be loudly condemned by the opposition and swiftly echoed by US and other Anwar’s allies overseas.
Although there’s a lot of imported PKR supporters brought in Permatang Pauh during the campaign period as a show of strength, and to ensure that Anwar’s speeches are well attended, the actual local voters themselves are mostly hardcore Anwar’s supporters.
I am afraid of Anwar’s win in the Permatang Pauh by-election. I do not trust Anwar. He is a habitual liar, and will speak ambiguously just to hide the truth.
He dared to ask his opponents to reveal the names of his cronies, as if he has no cronies. His naïve supporters will view that as Anwar’s sincere confirmation that he has none of those. They will never check the list of Anwar’s cronies appearing in the blogs.
As I predicted in my earlier writing, Anwar and his supporters have downplayed Saiful’s swearing. Saiful was attacked from all corners: that the swearing did not conform to the true Islamic teachings, that it is a political conspiracy, that Saiful was handsomely paid to swear, that the witnesses were instructed by the power-that-be to be present at the swearing ceremony etc. The significance and major implications of the swear on Quran were never discussed by Anwar’s supporters.
I do not expect Anwar to do a Saiful (i.e. to swear on Quran, that is). Anwar will definitely not swear on Quran to state that he did not commit anal intercourse on Saiful or that he had never committed anal intercourse. My simple posting to anwaribrahimblog.com was censored, even though I just tried to post a simple statement saying my opinion that he will never dare to swear on such statement.
I have scanned Anwar’s statements in respect of the sodomy allegations from 28 June 2008 until today. He was being evasive all the time, saying that the allegation is another conspiracy, that the allegation will never stick, that Saiful was just a coffee boy etc. He never directly said aloud that he did not commit the act. I just want to hear Anwar saying this statement: "That I, Anwar Ibrahim, did not commit anal intercourse on Saiful and I have never committed anal intercourse on anyone". No need to swear in the name of God. Just make that simple, clear statement to deny Saiful’s allegation.
By not making a clear statement of denial, I have doubts in Anwar’s sincerity. DAP will use Anwar to gain control of the federal government. Karpal will use his knowledge of Anwar’s earlier misadventures to ensure that Anwar’s policies will be in line with DAP’s ideology of Malaysian Malaysia. (Remember that Karpal was one of the first persons who pressured Pm Mahathir to act action against his then deputy). Anwar’s allies and financial supporters from overseas will use the same loophole (no pun intended) to ensure that no prominent PAS figures will be given important posts in Anwar’s cabinet. Should Anwar run foul of US’ policies, the international media will swiftly remind the whole world of Anwar’s black history.
In effect, Malaysia under Anwar will be a stooge of foreign powers. Malaysia under Anwar will be an effective tool to implement Malaysian Malaysia, undermine the privileges given to Bumiputeras, and hasten the route to Republic of Malaysia.
That's my Predictive Scenario. My own Anwarphobia.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
ABU - Anything Besides UMNO aka Asal Bukan UMNO
ABU seems to be the party of choice at the current moment.
There are so much negative vibes on UMNO that anything that is being done to positively support the main Malay-based party will be ignored or attacked. On the other hand, anything that is being done by the opposition will be accepted as truthful.
The non-Malays had virtually abandoned UMNO during the 8 March General Election. And UMNO has yet to regain support from the non-Malays well after the General Election. Even some UMNO party members are still distancing themselves from the party.
People (especially the non-Malays) still believes that Anwar is no sodomite, despite the swearing on Quran by Saiful. People still believes that Najib was involved in Altantuya’s murder, despite Najib’s recent swear in the Mosque.
Anwar’s reasoning for not swearing on the sodomy case is well accepted as very logical by the non-Malays, and supported by PAS. They believe that Anwar has no cronies, despite the known fact that he had nurtured many of them during his tenure in the government, and that they will be re-activated once he is back in power. They also believe that Anwar has no money, despite Permatang Pauh flourishing with PKR banners and other election goodies at PKR’s booths.
Statutory declarations issued by the opposition will simply be accepted as gospel truth. Never mind whether they border around criminal defamation. Najib and/or Rosmah were believed to be involved in the murder because there is statutory declaration to that effect. Now they are being accused of practising non-Islamic rituals. Anwar is not guilty because the Pusrawi doctor issued a statutory declaration. Anything else to point on Anwar's guilt will be part of government's conspiracy.
I blame the ABU syndrome on Pak Lah. He should realise that he is the main reason for the current fall of UMNO - he is a very weak leader.
There are so much negative vibes on UMNO that anything that is being done to positively support the main Malay-based party will be ignored or attacked. On the other hand, anything that is being done by the opposition will be accepted as truthful.
The non-Malays had virtually abandoned UMNO during the 8 March General Election. And UMNO has yet to regain support from the non-Malays well after the General Election. Even some UMNO party members are still distancing themselves from the party.
People (especially the non-Malays) still believes that Anwar is no sodomite, despite the swearing on Quran by Saiful. People still believes that Najib was involved in Altantuya’s murder, despite Najib’s recent swear in the Mosque.
Anwar’s reasoning for not swearing on the sodomy case is well accepted as very logical by the non-Malays, and supported by PAS. They believe that Anwar has no cronies, despite the known fact that he had nurtured many of them during his tenure in the government, and that they will be re-activated once he is back in power. They also believe that Anwar has no money, despite Permatang Pauh flourishing with PKR banners and other election goodies at PKR’s booths.
Statutory declarations issued by the opposition will simply be accepted as gospel truth. Never mind whether they border around criminal defamation. Najib and/or Rosmah were believed to be involved in the murder because there is statutory declaration to that effect. Now they are being accused of practising non-Islamic rituals. Anwar is not guilty because the Pusrawi doctor issued a statutory declaration. Anything else to point on Anwar's guilt will be part of government's conspiracy.
I blame the ABU syndrome on Pak Lah. He should realise that he is the main reason for the current fall of UMNO - he is a very weak leader.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Obama-Biden vs Osama bin Laden
Senator Barack Obama has picked Senator Joseph Biden as his running mate.
Will Obama-Biden ticket be United States' formidable answer to Osama bin Laden?
I wonder.
Will Obama-Biden ticket be United States' formidable answer to Osama bin Laden?
I wonder.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Pak Lah's perceived communication problem
I went for my Friday prayers at Masjid Putrajaya today. I saw Pak Lah entering the mosque during the second part of the sermon. Late as usual, even for Friday prayers.
But then, if he were to come earlier, he would have slept during the sermon. That would also be not right.
Pak Lah really has a perceived communication problem. When I went to Kongres Ekonomi Bumiputera at PWTC last month, I fell asleep during his speech because it was so boring and not inspirational at all. And I was not the only person who fell asleep during the speech. Almost all of my friends dozed off, and at least one went back home in the middle of Pak Lah’s speech because it was so torturing to him. At times during the speech, Pak Lah raised his voice a bit, to stress certain points. A saw certain members of the audience waking up from their slumber and started to clap. And Pak Lah would have thought that the audience were indeed fascinated with his speech.
When I asked a journalist who was seated next to me on the gist of the speech, the reporter himself politely said to me that it was usual for journalists to listen to Pak Lah’s blabber. They will reconvene among themselves later to decide what story to write on Pak Lah.
Such is our current the state of affairs. When people talk, Pak Lah sleeps. And when Pak Lah talks, people will fell asleep. When people talk, Pak Lah seldom listens. He only listen to the selected few around him. Likewise, when Pak Lah speaks, the people would rather not listen. That's because of the flip floping of decisions. Such is the communication problem between the government and the people at large.
So when Pak Lah made a sincere effort to experience first hand the problems with the current public transportation system, even BigDog suggested that it has to do with more money for Scomi. See http://bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/more-money-for-scomi/
That is all because it is rare to see Pak Lah being on the ground. Just to share my own experience, on more than several occasions during Mahathir’s time, I would bump into Mahathir during weekends, making unofficial visits to certain spots in KL city (Central Market, Dataran Merdeka, etc) to look at its cleanliness and other stuffs. And Mahathir would write notes onto his little pocket notebook on matters of interest to him. Perhaps those were action notes to be given to the relevant authorities then. And Mahathir did those spot checks without the fanfare of journalists and TV crews.
But then, if he were to come earlier, he would have slept during the sermon. That would also be not right.
Pak Lah really has a perceived communication problem. When I went to Kongres Ekonomi Bumiputera at PWTC last month, I fell asleep during his speech because it was so boring and not inspirational at all. And I was not the only person who fell asleep during the speech. Almost all of my friends dozed off, and at least one went back home in the middle of Pak Lah’s speech because it was so torturing to him. At times during the speech, Pak Lah raised his voice a bit, to stress certain points. A saw certain members of the audience waking up from their slumber and started to clap. And Pak Lah would have thought that the audience were indeed fascinated with his speech.
When I asked a journalist who was seated next to me on the gist of the speech, the reporter himself politely said to me that it was usual for journalists to listen to Pak Lah’s blabber. They will reconvene among themselves later to decide what story to write on Pak Lah.
Such is our current the state of affairs. When people talk, Pak Lah sleeps. And when Pak Lah talks, people will fell asleep. When people talk, Pak Lah seldom listens. He only listen to the selected few around him. Likewise, when Pak Lah speaks, the people would rather not listen. That's because of the flip floping of decisions. Such is the communication problem between the government and the people at large.
So when Pak Lah made a sincere effort to experience first hand the problems with the current public transportation system, even BigDog suggested that it has to do with more money for Scomi. See http://bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/more-money-for-scomi/
That is all because it is rare to see Pak Lah being on the ground. Just to share my own experience, on more than several occasions during Mahathir’s time, I would bump into Mahathir during weekends, making unofficial visits to certain spots in KL city (Central Market, Dataran Merdeka, etc) to look at its cleanliness and other stuffs. And Mahathir would write notes onto his little pocket notebook on matters of interest to him. Perhaps those were action notes to be given to the relevant authorities then. And Mahathir did those spot checks without the fanfare of journalists and TV crews.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Censorship ala Malaysia Today
I will not get a chance to post commentaries to Malaysia Today. They rejected my application as member, which would have enabled me to post commentaries.
I guess that they only want selected readers to give commentaries. And they will select only their supporters. That’s why you will see only high praises to Petra every time he posted his articles.
I would like to remain anonymous and not give my proper name to them. And based on that “technicality”, they rejected my application. May be they thought that I am a government stooge that will do them great damage.
I am not a government stooge. I am still a newbie in the blogsphere. I am just a minnow and not affiliated to any political party nor any NGO.
Appended below is my email thread to Malaysia Today for all to see:
From labisman
To Juru Blog
Date Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 10:21 PM
Subject Re: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
mailed-by yahoo.com
signed-by yahoo.com
hide details 10:21 PM (34 minutes ago) Reply
Coward? hahhaa.. Dont even dare too use your proper name..
You are calling others coward. Excellent.
Let us be coward.. We know what you guys are capable of..
Oh!! yeah.. this is not Petra... Petra got better things to do.
Even i have quality things to do, other than debating with people like you .
So, this is my last reply..You can email what ever you want again & again. Wont Reply/read.
Cheers,
MT Admin - http://mtadmin.livejournal.com/
-----------------------------------------------------------
Malaysia Today - Your Source Of Independent News
-----------------------------------------------------------
----- Original Message ----
From: Juru Blog
- Hide quoted text -
To: labisman
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2008 2:03:17 PM
Subject: Re: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
Petra,
I do not want to bother giving my proper name to people like you.
Is this how you screen your membership: only to those who would support your articles? Why are you so afraid to allow non-supporters like me?
Forever, you will be disillusioned with the level of support from the netizens who reads your articles.
Don't remain as a coward.
On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 1:49 AM, labisman wrote:
After reading your beautifull blog and comments regarding Malaysia Today in your Blog
here: http://jurublog.blogspot.com/2008/08/shafees-dare-riles-petras-supporters.html
I was wondering, why you want to be a member of malaysia today. try your experiments else where.
I liked your last sentence of your this article.. Keep It Up..
Since when is your proper name "jurublog"? Any problem in reading/understanding English?
Cheers,
MT Admin - http://mtadmin.livejournal.com/
-----------------------------------------------------------
Malaysia Today - Your Source Of Independent News
-----------------------------------------------------------
----- Original Message ----
From: Juru Blog
To: labisman@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 4:53:30 PM
Subject: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
Name: jurublog
Desired username: jurublog
Password: labisman
Email address: jurublog@gmail.com
Introduction: I am actually a newbie in the blogsphere. My blog is jurublog.blogspot.com. I neither like the current leadership nor I like the opposition. I like to browse the internet and read the news and views in the blogs, including Malaysia Today. I seldom participate in commentaries. But Malaysia Today seems to be the most difficult blog to obtain permission to post commentaries. I do not want to reveal my details because I prefer to remain anonymous. Believe me, I am neither UMNO nor PKR member.
I guess that they only want selected readers to give commentaries. And they will select only their supporters. That’s why you will see only high praises to Petra every time he posted his articles.
I would like to remain anonymous and not give my proper name to them. And based on that “technicality”, they rejected my application. May be they thought that I am a government stooge that will do them great damage.
I am not a government stooge. I am still a newbie in the blogsphere. I am just a minnow and not affiliated to any political party nor any NGO.
Appended below is my email thread to Malaysia Today for all to see:
From labisman
To Juru Blog
Date Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 10:21 PM
Subject Re: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
mailed-by yahoo.com
signed-by yahoo.com
hide details 10:21 PM (34 minutes ago) Reply
Coward? hahhaa.. Dont even dare too use your proper name..
You are calling others coward. Excellent.
Let us be coward.. We know what you guys are capable of..
Oh!! yeah.. this is not Petra... Petra got better things to do.
Even i have quality things to do, other than debating with people like you .
So, this is my last reply..You can email what ever you want again & again. Wont Reply/read.
Cheers,
MT Admin - http://mtadmin.livejournal.com/
-----------------------------------------------------------
Malaysia Today - Your Source Of Independent News
-----------------------------------------------------------
----- Original Message ----
From: Juru Blog
- Hide quoted text -
To: labisman
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2008 2:03:17 PM
Subject: Re: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
Petra,
I do not want to bother giving my proper name to people like you.
Is this how you screen your membership: only to those who would support your articles? Why are you so afraid to allow non-supporters like me?
Forever, you will be disillusioned with the level of support from the netizens who reads your articles.
Don't remain as a coward.
On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 1:49 AM, labisman
After reading your beautifull blog and comments regarding Malaysia Today in your Blog
here: http://jurublog.blogspot.com/2008/08/shafees-dare-riles-petras-supporters.html
I was wondering, why you want to be a member of malaysia today. try your experiments else where.
I liked your last sentence of your this article.. Keep It Up..
Since when is your proper name "jurublog"? Any problem in reading/understanding English?
Cheers,
MT Admin - http://mtadmin.livejournal.com/
-----------------------------------------------------------
Malaysia Today - Your Source Of Independent News
-----------------------------------------------------------
----- Original Message ----
From: Juru Blog
To: labisman@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 4:53:30 PM
Subject: Malaysia Today - Membership Registration
Name: jurublog
Desired username: jurublog
Password: labisman
Email address: jurublog@gmail.com
Introduction: I am actually a newbie in the blogsphere. My blog is jurublog.blogspot.com. I neither like the current leadership nor I like the opposition. I like to browse the internet and read the news and views in the blogs, including Malaysia Today. I seldom participate in commentaries. But Malaysia Today seems to be the most difficult blog to obtain permission to post commentaries. I do not want to reveal my details because I prefer to remain anonymous. Believe me, I am neither UMNO nor PKR member.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
When two non-Malay leaders debate
Yang Amat Berhormat Tuan Lim Guan Eng did very well at the debate tonight. He was very clear from the onset with his sound arguments in respect of the land scandals in Penang. I think he spoke better Bahasa than Anwar.
And as did Anwar during the previous debate, Lim took full advantage of the live national television telecast to drive home the Pakatan Rakyat’s agenda.
His opponent, Koh Tsu Khoon, also spoke very good Bahasa. But he spoke way too slowly and did not manage to put forth his arguments clearly within the stipulated time.
Lim was clearly the winner of the debate.
However, it was good to hear two non-Malay leaders debating issue of interest in Bahasa on live television. It augurs well for Malaysia.
And as did Anwar during the previous debate, Lim took full advantage of the live national television telecast to drive home the Pakatan Rakyat’s agenda.
His opponent, Koh Tsu Khoon, also spoke very good Bahasa. But he spoke way too slowly and did not manage to put forth his arguments clearly within the stipulated time.
Lim was clearly the winner of the debate.
However, it was good to hear two non-Malay leaders debating issue of interest in Bahasa on live television. It augurs well for Malaysia.
Lightning Bolt Struck Twice
This is more like a true champion. Usain Bolt ran like hell throughout the 200 metres at the Bird Nest Stadium in Beijing, China to win his second Olympic gold medal with a world record time of 19.30 seconds. And he did it by running against a headwind of 0.9 m/s.
As I said in my earlier posting, I was disappointed that he did not run the full 100 metres last week and started celebrating 10 metres before the finishing line. Tonight, he did not do that. And it was very thrilling to watch the world’s fastest man in action.
Usain Bolt became the first man ever to win the 100 metres and 200 metres Olympic sprint gold medals at world record times.
At the local scene, congratulations to Datuk Lee Chong Wei, our Badminton Olympic silver medalist.
As I said in my earlier posting, I was disappointed that he did not run the full 100 metres last week and started celebrating 10 metres before the finishing line. Tonight, he did not do that. And it was very thrilling to watch the world’s fastest man in action.
Usain Bolt became the first man ever to win the 100 metres and 200 metres Olympic sprint gold medals at world record times.
At the local scene, congratulations to Datuk Lee Chong Wei, our Badminton Olympic silver medalist.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Censorship ala Pakatan Rakyat
I do not fancy reading Anwar’s blog simply because I do not write his writing style.
Sample words:
enteng, kerencatan, meluncurkan, nusa, persekongkolan, wacana
Sample phrases:
muslihat kalangan tertentu, sensiviti mauduk,
Sample sentences:
Saya menyinggung isu ini beberapa hari sebelum majlis berlansung.
Propaganda dan plot yang direncana oleh elit pemerintah terutamanya di kalangan yang dekat dengan Perdana Menteri sememangnya tidak bertanggungjawab.
Kerakusan serta ketamakan mereka kepada kuasa, membuatkan mereka sanggup untuk menodai institusi-institusi kenegaraan dan demokrasi di negara ini.
Dunia sedang menyaksikan komedi gelap bagaimana aparat-aparat rakus kuasa sanggup memalsukan bukti demi memastikan segelintir terus memerintah.
My Bahasa Malaysia teacher (or Bahasa Melayu as introduced by Anwar when he was the Education Minister) would surely fail him. If those were part of his speech, an average Malay maybe impressed, but not understand whatever he is trying to say.
As a newbie in the blogsphere, I tried to post commentaries in some of the blogs that I visited. Most of the time, I succeeded. Except for two blogs.
I am still waiting approval from labisman to get myself included as a member of Malaysia Today, to enable me to participate in the commentaries.
On the other hand, I had twice tried to post commentaries at Anwar Ibrahim’s blog.
My posting was: Saya percaya bahawa DSAI tidak akan berani bersumpah.
The result: nothing got posted.
Is this the sign of things to come should Pakatan Rakyat form the government?
Sample words:
enteng, kerencatan, meluncurkan, nusa, persekongkolan, wacana
Sample phrases:
muslihat kalangan tertentu, sensiviti mauduk,
Sample sentences:
Saya menyinggung isu ini beberapa hari sebelum majlis berlansung.
Propaganda dan plot yang direncana oleh elit pemerintah terutamanya di kalangan yang dekat dengan Perdana Menteri sememangnya tidak bertanggungjawab.
Kerakusan serta ketamakan mereka kepada kuasa, membuatkan mereka sanggup untuk menodai institusi-institusi kenegaraan dan demokrasi di negara ini.
Dunia sedang menyaksikan komedi gelap bagaimana aparat-aparat rakus kuasa sanggup memalsukan bukti demi memastikan segelintir terus memerintah.
My Bahasa Malaysia teacher (or Bahasa Melayu as introduced by Anwar when he was the Education Minister) would surely fail him. If those were part of his speech, an average Malay maybe impressed, but not understand whatever he is trying to say.
As a newbie in the blogsphere, I tried to post commentaries in some of the blogs that I visited. Most of the time, I succeeded. Except for two blogs.
I am still waiting approval from labisman to get myself included as a member of Malaysia Today, to enable me to participate in the commentaries.
On the other hand, I had twice tried to post commentaries at Anwar Ibrahim’s blog.
My posting was: Saya percaya bahawa DSAI tidak akan berani bersumpah.
The result: nothing got posted.
Is this the sign of things to come should Pakatan Rakyat form the government?
Monday, August 18, 2008
Shafee's dare riles Petra's supporters
I used to frequent Malaysia Today website to read the antics written by Raja Petra Kamaruddin. He is indeed a good storyteller, combining known and unknown facts with half-truths.
After the March 2008 Malaysian General Election, Malaysia Today has somehow becoming almost a mere postal website i.e. they just cut and paste news and articles from various sources, often without permission from the owner of the articles. And Petra’s own writing has been scarce.
I somehow lost respect towards Petra when he signed the Statutory Declaration alleging Rosmah’s involvement in Altantuya’s murder, purely based on heresay evidence. How can someone alleged something so serious against someone else based something that somebody said to him?
I pity BigDog for being duped into posting the statutory declaration. In fact, Malaysia Today linked their source of the statutory declaration to bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com/, even though it originated from Malaysia Today’s blog owner himself!
Petra’s latest “victim” is lawyer Shafee Abdullah. And Shafee would not take the insults lying down. In fact, Shafee looked so furious during the press conference, and purposely called Petra with various names.
His aim: to get Petra so sue him in court so that both of them can have their sparring time in court.
When Malaysia Today posted Shafee’s press release, it was angrily commented by more than 100 of Petra’s ardent fans. But Petra himself has not personally responded to Shafee’s dare.
I am still waiting for Petra’s response to Shafee’s insults. I am also interested to see what sort of responses I will get from Malaysia Today’s readers should I make any comments in support of Shafee.
After the March 2008 Malaysian General Election, Malaysia Today has somehow becoming almost a mere postal website i.e. they just cut and paste news and articles from various sources, often without permission from the owner of the articles. And Petra’s own writing has been scarce.
I somehow lost respect towards Petra when he signed the Statutory Declaration alleging Rosmah’s involvement in Altantuya’s murder, purely based on heresay evidence. How can someone alleged something so serious against someone else based something that somebody said to him?
I pity BigDog for being duped into posting the statutory declaration. In fact, Malaysia Today linked their source of the statutory declaration to bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com/, even though it originated from Malaysia Today’s blog owner himself!
Petra’s latest “victim” is lawyer Shafee Abdullah. And Shafee would not take the insults lying down. In fact, Shafee looked so furious during the press conference, and purposely called Petra with various names.
His aim: to get Petra so sue him in court so that both of them can have their sparring time in court.
When Malaysia Today posted Shafee’s press release, it was angrily commented by more than 100 of Petra’s ardent fans. But Petra himself has not personally responded to Shafee’s dare.
I am still waiting for Petra’s response to Shafee’s insults. I am also interested to see what sort of responses I will get from Malaysia Today’s readers should I make any comments in support of Shafee.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The Greatest Olympian Ever
I watched Usain Bolt making history by clocking 9.69 seconds over 100 metres. That was a very fast time indeed.
He could have gone faster. He was practically cruising to celebrate over the last 10 metres of the race. I was actually so annoyed at his attitude. He could have beaten Tyson Gay’s 9.68 seconds recorded under wind-assisted condition.
But then, his main aim is to be the Olympic champion. Beating world record may only be his secondary aim.
I admire Michael Phelps’ attitude. He wanted to be the best by winning a record 8 gold medals in the 08.08.08 Olympic. And he did it in style, delivering 7 world records and 8 Olympic games records during the course of his unprecedented 8 gold medal haul. He is the winningest athlete in the history of the Olympics with 14 gold medals. He is now the greatest ever Olympian of all time.
On the other hand, our quest for the Olympic gold remained elusive with the lost of Lee Chong Wei. He would have done it in style by winning against Lin Dan, at the world champion’s home soil. Chong Wei should nevertheless be proud that he is the only Malaysian capable of bringing back a medal in this year’s Olympic.
We would have achieved our Olympic gold medal more easily should Squash be part of the Olympic games. Nicol Ann David could have been our first Olympic champion.
He could have gone faster. He was practically cruising to celebrate over the last 10 metres of the race. I was actually so annoyed at his attitude. He could have beaten Tyson Gay’s 9.68 seconds recorded under wind-assisted condition.
But then, his main aim is to be the Olympic champion. Beating world record may only be his secondary aim.
I admire Michael Phelps’ attitude. He wanted to be the best by winning a record 8 gold medals in the 08.08.08 Olympic. And he did it in style, delivering 7 world records and 8 Olympic games records during the course of his unprecedented 8 gold medal haul. He is the winningest athlete in the history of the Olympics with 14 gold medals. He is now the greatest ever Olympian of all time.
On the other hand, our quest for the Olympic gold remained elusive with the lost of Lee Chong Wei. He would have done it in style by winning against Lin Dan, at the world champion’s home soil. Chong Wei should nevertheless be proud that he is the only Malaysian capable of bringing back a medal in this year’s Olympic.
We would have achieved our Olympic gold medal more easily should Squash be part of the Olympic games. Nicol Ann David could have been our first Olympic champion.
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Sodomy Gambit
Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan made good his promise to swear on the Quran that he was sodomised by Brother Anwar Bin Ibrahim.
I would not venture (yet) on the truthfulness of the sodomy allegation.
But by Saiful admitting that the alleged incident was not consensual, the charge against Anwar under s377B of the Penal Code seemed defective. Anwar may end up winning the case based on technicality alone and can then twist and declare (especially) to the international media that the sodomy allegation was in fact a trump up charge.
Anwar will surely use Saiful’s press interview to his advantage. The timing of the swearing and the press conference will be politicised. The inconsistency between his charge sheet and Saiful’s admission of non-consensual sex will be played up. Anwar’s sympathisers in the alternative media will surely downplay Saiful’s swearing but emphasise on the inconsistency.
On the other hand, we would also expect the mainstream media to highlight the swearing, and pressure Anwar to follow suit.
I am sure Anwar will not swear on the Quran on such matter. He will leave it to the masses to judge him. He will continue to use his media savviness to push his message through. He will be more willing to go through the court process on the sodomy allegation, now that he is seeing a gaping hole in the prosecution’s charge sheet.
I would not venture (yet) on the truthfulness of the sodomy allegation.
But by Saiful admitting that the alleged incident was not consensual, the charge against Anwar under s377B of the Penal Code seemed defective. Anwar may end up winning the case based on technicality alone and can then twist and declare (especially) to the international media that the sodomy allegation was in fact a trump up charge.
Anwar will surely use Saiful’s press interview to his advantage. The timing of the swearing and the press conference will be politicised. The inconsistency between his charge sheet and Saiful’s admission of non-consensual sex will be played up. Anwar’s sympathisers in the alternative media will surely downplay Saiful’s swearing but emphasise on the inconsistency.
On the other hand, we would also expect the mainstream media to highlight the swearing, and pressure Anwar to follow suit.
I am sure Anwar will not swear on the Quran on such matter. He will leave it to the masses to judge him. He will continue to use his media savviness to push his message through. He will be more willing to go through the court process on the sodomy allegation, now that he is seeing a gaping hole in the prosecution’s charge sheet.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Reciprocate - then it will be more palatable
When Khalid Ibrahim proposed to open up 10% quota in UiTM for non-Malay students, we saw obvious reactions from several parties. His reasoning was that by opening up, UiTM academic standard would be increased.
Several Malay organisations capitalised on the report and chastised the idea, accusing Pakatan Rakyat of trying to diminish the number of future generation of Malay graduates. However, again, did you notice that alternative media such as Malaysian Insider spin the story and viewed the idea favourably, viewing it as a preview of Malaysian Malaysia agenda for Pakatan Rakyat?
I would rather propose to make it mandatory for Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) to open up 10% to 30% of its intake to Bumiputera undergraduates in return for the opening up of UiTM to non-Malay students. (Anyway, what is the current population ratio of Chinese students vs others in UTAR?)
The Malays should also start to pressure the Chinese institutions to open up to Malays. It is a known fact that you almost would not see a single Malay professional heading a Chinese-owned corporation in Malaysia. It is not because of the lack of capable Malay professionals.
There are not many big Malay-owned corporations to start with. Thus, the government-linked corporations would be the best places for the government to use its political clout to appoint Malay professionals as CEOs. If not, even the most talented Malay professional would not be able to proof his capabilities.
Several Malay organisations capitalised on the report and chastised the idea, accusing Pakatan Rakyat of trying to diminish the number of future generation of Malay graduates. However, again, did you notice that alternative media such as Malaysian Insider spin the story and viewed the idea favourably, viewing it as a preview of Malaysian Malaysia agenda for Pakatan Rakyat?
I would rather propose to make it mandatory for Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) to open up 10% to 30% of its intake to Bumiputera undergraduates in return for the opening up of UiTM to non-Malay students. (Anyway, what is the current population ratio of Chinese students vs others in UTAR?)
The Malays should also start to pressure the Chinese institutions to open up to Malays. It is a known fact that you almost would not see a single Malay professional heading a Chinese-owned corporation in Malaysia. It is not because of the lack of capable Malay professionals.
There are not many big Malay-owned corporations to start with. Thus, the government-linked corporations would be the best places for the government to use its political clout to appoint Malay professionals as CEOs. If not, even the most talented Malay professional would not be able to proof his capabilities.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The Indian Connection
You would have noticed lately that even the mainstream media have been vocal about the Malays and Islam: Star, Sun, FinancialDaily and the weekend business magazine, TheEdge included. Their alternative media counterparts such as theedgedaily.com, Malaysiakini and Malaysian Insider tend to behave similarly.
Some of their articles seem to imply that most Malaysian agreed that the Bar Council was right and should continue to voice out and organise more events such as the open forum on conversion to Islam. The articles also seem to imply the most Malaysian deplored the protest organised by “mostly UMNO sympathisers” who violently disrupted the open forum that the organisers were forced to end it prematurely. It didn’t matter that the presence of Zulkifli Nordin (PKR) and Salahuddin Ayub (PAS) actually indicated a large presence of non-UMNO members in the protest.
They would run negative views on any attempt of unity talk between the Malay dominated parties. They will support any proposal that to reduce Malay quota on anything. They will highlight that affirmative actions undertaken to improve Malay wellbeing were things of the past. In essence, the theme should be Malaysian Malaysia.
What I noticed was that almost all of the writers of such articles were Indians. There are a lot of Indian journalists out there, and they seemed to take advantage of their numbers in the media to carry out their own agenda. They used their positions to articulate their views and form opinions on behalf of the minority. Slowly, they are also trying to legitimise the Hindraf agenda. Words uttered by Karpal will be given prominence.
The Bar Council is also headed by one of them, and use the position to the best of their advantage. A lot of them are also active members of the Bar Council. One of the prominent senior judges is a relative of the Bar Council president. They can, and they may try to control or greatly influence the judiciary in Malaysia.
Let’s not forget the Malays and Muslims formed the majority of the Malaysian population. Be aware that most MPs are Malay, and likewise the majority number of state assemblymen.
The Malays cannot afford to let these Indian minority opinion makers to take advantage of our currently weak leadership to run down the Malays, as well as Muslims.
Some of their articles seem to imply that most Malaysian agreed that the Bar Council was right and should continue to voice out and organise more events such as the open forum on conversion to Islam. The articles also seem to imply the most Malaysian deplored the protest organised by “mostly UMNO sympathisers” who violently disrupted the open forum that the organisers were forced to end it prematurely. It didn’t matter that the presence of Zulkifli Nordin (PKR) and Salahuddin Ayub (PAS) actually indicated a large presence of non-UMNO members in the protest.
They would run negative views on any attempt of unity talk between the Malay dominated parties. They will support any proposal that to reduce Malay quota on anything. They will highlight that affirmative actions undertaken to improve Malay wellbeing were things of the past. In essence, the theme should be Malaysian Malaysia.
What I noticed was that almost all of the writers of such articles were Indians. There are a lot of Indian journalists out there, and they seemed to take advantage of their numbers in the media to carry out their own agenda. They used their positions to articulate their views and form opinions on behalf of the minority. Slowly, they are also trying to legitimise the Hindraf agenda. Words uttered by Karpal will be given prominence.
The Bar Council is also headed by one of them, and use the position to the best of their advantage. A lot of them are also active members of the Bar Council. One of the prominent senior judges is a relative of the Bar Council president. They can, and they may try to control or greatly influence the judiciary in Malaysia.
Let’s not forget the Malays and Muslims formed the majority of the Malaysian population. Be aware that most MPs are Malay, and likewise the majority number of state assemblymen.
The Malays cannot afford to let these Indian minority opinion makers to take advantage of our currently weak leadership to run down the Malays, as well as Muslims.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Populist approach
The Prime Minister spoke today. He effectively blamed Anwar Ibrahim for spooking the Malaysian economy.
And I realised that it was Monday. The Prime Minister seldom worked during the weekends. You will not see him making headlines in Sunday or Monday newspapers because he almost refrained from working during the weekends. He thought that he was always too busy during the working days that he would require a good rest and recharge for the week ahead.
Back to the Prime Minister’s remarks on Anwar. The PM should realise that Anwar dared to act as such because he knew that the government leadership is weak. And we cannot afford a weak government in a multi-racial Malaysia.
With Anwar, a Malay, acting as such and being very vocal against a Malay-dominated government, the non-Malays have increased their attacks on almost everything Malay.
You will not be able to speak on Malay rights as you will be instantly bombarded as being racist. You cannot speak on the need to maintain Malay unity as you will be stamped as racist. You cannot voice against the open forum on conversion to Islam as you are curbing freedom of speech.
If you post a comment on Malaysia Today to defend the Malay rights you will be instantly bombarded with nasty remarks from the other readers. Other alternative media such as Malaysian Insider and Malaysiakini, dominated by non-Malay journalists, have also been attacking government affirmative actions, whilst defending attacks on Malays.
Such were the effect of Anwar’s populist approach. I think that it is a dangerous approach, and may lead to dangerous consequences.
And I realised that it was Monday. The Prime Minister seldom worked during the weekends. You will not see him making headlines in Sunday or Monday newspapers because he almost refrained from working during the weekends. He thought that he was always too busy during the working days that he would require a good rest and recharge for the week ahead.
Back to the Prime Minister’s remarks on Anwar. The PM should realise that Anwar dared to act as such because he knew that the government leadership is weak. And we cannot afford a weak government in a multi-racial Malaysia.
With Anwar, a Malay, acting as such and being very vocal against a Malay-dominated government, the non-Malays have increased their attacks on almost everything Malay.
You will not be able to speak on Malay rights as you will be instantly bombarded as being racist. You cannot speak on the need to maintain Malay unity as you will be stamped as racist. You cannot voice against the open forum on conversion to Islam as you are curbing freedom of speech.
If you post a comment on Malaysia Today to defend the Malay rights you will be instantly bombarded with nasty remarks from the other readers. Other alternative media such as Malaysian Insider and Malaysiakini, dominated by non-Malay journalists, have also been attacking government affirmative actions, whilst defending attacks on Malays.
Such were the effect of Anwar’s populist approach. I think that it is a dangerous approach, and may lead to dangerous consequences.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Directionless leadership
I find the Prime Minister’s silence as very deafening.
He didn’t utter a single meaningful comment with regard to the Malaysian Bar Council decision to go ahead with the open forum on conversion to Islam. Najib said something, Syed Hamid said something, Zahid Hamidi said something. May be the PM has been advised by the de facto Law Minister not to say anything, as the de facto Law Minister has also been quite on the matter.
May be the PM wanted to stick to being “PM for all Malaysian”. And thus he thought that the open forum was good example of a very tolerant administration. It did not matter even though the forum touched the very nerve of the Malaysian religious majority.
The PM has also been quite and not making any follow up comments on the continuous US uncalled for remarks with regard to Anwar Ibrahim’s alleged sodomy case. Rais has been very vocal, and I kind of like his very eloquent arguments.
The PM has been quite in a lot of things. He left most of the things to be said by the DPM and other ministers.
During the previous administration, Mahathir will make sure that he was in the forefront of any important issue. And Mahathir knew which issue was important for him to tackle. Mahathir not only gave a sense of direction to fellow Malaysians, but he also became an icon and voice for the developing countries, and was admired even in the Americas.
We badly need clear direction and leadership from the PM. Otherwise, we will have to look for a faster change in leadership. 2010 will be too long of a wait.
He didn’t utter a single meaningful comment with regard to the Malaysian Bar Council decision to go ahead with the open forum on conversion to Islam. Najib said something, Syed Hamid said something, Zahid Hamidi said something. May be the PM has been advised by the de facto Law Minister not to say anything, as the de facto Law Minister has also been quite on the matter.
May be the PM wanted to stick to being “PM for all Malaysian”. And thus he thought that the open forum was good example of a very tolerant administration. It did not matter even though the forum touched the very nerve of the Malaysian religious majority.
The PM has also been quite and not making any follow up comments on the continuous US uncalled for remarks with regard to Anwar Ibrahim’s alleged sodomy case. Rais has been very vocal, and I kind of like his very eloquent arguments.
The PM has been quite in a lot of things. He left most of the things to be said by the DPM and other ministers.
During the previous administration, Mahathir will make sure that he was in the forefront of any important issue. And Mahathir knew which issue was important for him to tackle. Mahathir not only gave a sense of direction to fellow Malaysians, but he also became an icon and voice for the developing countries, and was admired even in the Americas.
We badly need clear direction and leadership from the PM. Otherwise, we will have to look for a faster change in leadership. 2010 will be too long of a wait.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
When the Malays are not well positioned
It is regrettable that the Malaysian Bar Council decided to go ahead with the public forum on conversion to Islam.
Unfortunately, the Bar Council is currently headed by a non-Muslim. In the name of free speech, the Bar Council decided to set aside the protest warnings given by various parties (including their Muslim peers) and went ahead with such open forum to discuss a very sensitive issue. Their choice of panellists ensured that the issue was discussed from the point of view of non-Muslims as being the aggrieved party.
The Malay lawyers should be more active in the Bar Council. They should lead the Bar Council. Currently, the Malay lawyers are too busy minding their own political careers (our de facto Law Minister included).
(By the way, did you hear any views from the Minister in respect of the forum? I did not.)
In my opinion, by going ahead with today’s event, the Bar Council should be excluded from being represented in the Judicial Commission (if it is ever set up). They have shown their biasness towards Islam, and they will eventually support appointment of Judges based on that premise. We may end up having all non-Muslim Judges presiding a case involving Islam.
Unfortunately, the Bar Council is currently headed by a non-Muslim. In the name of free speech, the Bar Council decided to set aside the protest warnings given by various parties (including their Muslim peers) and went ahead with such open forum to discuss a very sensitive issue. Their choice of panellists ensured that the issue was discussed from the point of view of non-Muslims as being the aggrieved party.
The Malay lawyers should be more active in the Bar Council. They should lead the Bar Council. Currently, the Malay lawyers are too busy minding their own political careers (our de facto Law Minister included).
(By the way, did you hear any views from the Minister in respect of the forum? I did not.)
In my opinion, by going ahead with today’s event, the Bar Council should be excluded from being represented in the Judicial Commission (if it is ever set up). They have shown their biasness towards Islam, and they will eventually support appointment of Judges based on that premise. We may end up having all non-Muslim Judges presiding a case involving Islam.
I still miss Mahathir
I just came back from a dinner organised by Perdana Leadership Foundation. The keynote speaker was none other than Malaysian Fourth Prime Minister and the architect of Vision 2020, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
His speech was full of wisdom. I can't wait to read the text of the speech. He kept me captivated with his predictions of major trends affecting our country towards 2020. I sacrificed the opening ceremony of the Olympics just to hear him in person.
He talked about the need to improve our transport infrastructure (interstate rail lines), need to increase wages (to attract talents and increase productivity), need to improve agriculture production (via technology e.g. hydroponics) etc etc.
Pity that the present adminstration opted to set him aside and not tapping on his wisdom. When I talked to foreigners (especially from middle east and the developing countries like the Americas), they were always envious to the fact that we have Mahathir who is so visonary and who guided us towards industrialisation. At the same breath, the lamented to the fact that we never continue to use him while he still around, alive and kicking, and still very full of ideas.
It is okay for the people in power to take a step back, lower the ego, and get Tun to advise on certain matters. Even the Pas government in Kedah saw the wisdom in Tun.
His speech was full of wisdom. I can't wait to read the text of the speech. He kept me captivated with his predictions of major trends affecting our country towards 2020. I sacrificed the opening ceremony of the Olympics just to hear him in person.
He talked about the need to improve our transport infrastructure (interstate rail lines), need to increase wages (to attract talents and increase productivity), need to improve agriculture production (via technology e.g. hydroponics) etc etc.
Pity that the present adminstration opted to set him aside and not tapping on his wisdom. When I talked to foreigners (especially from middle east and the developing countries like the Americas), they were always envious to the fact that we have Mahathir who is so visonary and who guided us towards industrialisation. At the same breath, the lamented to the fact that we never continue to use him while he still around, alive and kicking, and still very full of ideas.
It is okay for the people in power to take a step back, lower the ego, and get Tun to advise on certain matters. Even the Pas government in Kedah saw the wisdom in Tun.
And the Olympics begins ...
Congratulations to the people of China on the start of the Olympics on this very auspicious day - 08.08.08.
Malaysian sportsmen and sportwomen will surely do their best to win something for Malaysia. I think the best bet will still be medals for our badminton players.
But we now hardly hear the "Malaysia Boleh" battle cry.
May be because the slogan was introduced by our previous Prime Minister and that the present adminstration does not like to be associated with it.
But I think that Malaysia Boleh, and we can win our first gold medal this time around!
Malaysian sportsmen and sportwomen will surely do their best to win something for Malaysia. I think the best bet will still be medals for our badminton players.
But we now hardly hear the "Malaysia Boleh" battle cry.
May be because the slogan was introduced by our previous Prime Minister and that the present adminstration does not like to be associated with it.
But I think that Malaysia Boleh, and we can win our first gold medal this time around!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Happy 08.08.08
I wanted to start a weblog to express some of my views in writing.
And I thought that 08.08.08 would be a good day to start blogging.
Welcome to my weblog!
And I thought that 08.08.08 would be a good day to start blogging.
Welcome to my weblog!
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