Salam Aidil Fitri. Maaf zahir dan batin.
Praise be to Allah for His blessing and kindness which enables us to celebrate the conclusion of Ramadhan. May Allah accept our deeds during the holy month of Ramadhan and may we be blessed again to celebrate the next coming Ramadhan, God willing.
Praise be to Allah for the successful release of the hostages on board of MISC's Melati 2 and Melati 5. Kudos to the MISC team of negotiators, with the strong support from our very own Malaysian Royal Navy.
My condolence to the family of Raja Petra Kamaruddin for being set apart and not able to celebrate Syawal together as a family. Although I don't like Petra's writings (and being barred from writing commentaries in MalaysiaToday.net), I think being set apart from one's love ones on this joyous day is indeed painful and heartbreaking. Petra must be cursing Anwar like hell for failing to take over the Federal Government on Anwar's own self-imposed deadline of 16 September 2008. Before his detention, Petra did mention that he hoped to be set free when Anwar become Prime Minister on 916. Of course, apart from Petra, so many other people out there believed in Anwar's own greed and fantasy.
I hope that we Malaysians will continue to celebrate Hari Raya in unity. But I think Anwar and his greed gang will use this occasion to continue their attacks against the weak government of Pak Lah, particularly in the wake of the impending transition of power. Our period of political uncertainty and disunity will continue. And no thanks to the global financial turmoil, things will definitely not be getting better anytime soon.
We can only pray to Allah to provide us with strong guidance and strength to go through this troubling time.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
The food we consumed during Ramadhan
As I said before, what we do during the month of Ramadhan truly reflect our own desires, without the negative urges from Satan. However, habitual sinners will continue to commit sins. That is why I believe that people who commit serious crimes during the month of Ramadhan should be brought to justice and be severely punished as they would commit more harmful crimes and act more aggressively in the other months.
Our deed of fasting will not be rewarded by Allah if we continuously commit sins whilst fasting. Our act of fasting will only be physically strenuous and left us feeling hungry and thirsty if we failed to perform other religious obligations during this holy month.
It is appalling to know that (based on Harian Metro report today), some people broke fast (Iftar) by drinking beer, which is clearly forbidden (Haram) in Islam. In actual fact, this holy month of Ramadhan would be the best period to be steadfast and refrain from consuming forbidden food or performing undesirable habits (such as drinking beer or smoking). Some people might say that at least these people (who drank beer for Iftar) were good enough people because they actually observe the act of fasting. On the contrary, I believe that they did not have the spirit of fasting, lest they only physically abstain from drinking and eating during the day time. Their deed of fasting will only come to nought and will not be rewarded by Allah All Mighty.
Forbidden food is not only confined to the nature of the food or drink that is being consumed (e.g. pork, beer, wine and other intoxicated beverages, animal not slaughtered based on Muslim rites etc). A food is forbidden from being consumed by Muslims if they are purchased from forbidden sources, such as through stolen money or corruption. That is why some of the more pious among the Muslims would also refrain from consuming food presented to them by corrupt people.
Not many among us ordinary Muslims really adhere to the concept of Halal food i.e. food which can be consumed. Halal food should also be purchased from Halal sources of income. For instance, normal bread will become Haram and forbidden from being consumed if it is purchased from lottery winnings.
When the pirates from Somalia hijacked MISC tankers (Bunga Melati 2 and 5) in the Gulf of Aden, we were told that the Muslim hijackers prefer to hijack Malaysian vessels because the MISC vessels have plenty of Halal food rations. Didn’t the hijackers realise that even the Halal food rations would become Haram to them? Isn’t it actually as good as them consuming beef from any other non-Muslim vessels? And why did they continue their act of hijacking during Ramadhan? Aren’t they not real sinners? How can they claim to support a Muslim state in Somalia if they source their wealth through such illegal means?
I pray for the save release of our fellow Malaysians on board of Melati 2, and their save journey back (together with the released crew members of Melati 5) in time for Aidil Fitri.
Our deed of fasting will not be rewarded by Allah if we continuously commit sins whilst fasting. Our act of fasting will only be physically strenuous and left us feeling hungry and thirsty if we failed to perform other religious obligations during this holy month.
It is appalling to know that (based on Harian Metro report today), some people broke fast (Iftar) by drinking beer, which is clearly forbidden (Haram) in Islam. In actual fact, this holy month of Ramadhan would be the best period to be steadfast and refrain from consuming forbidden food or performing undesirable habits (such as drinking beer or smoking). Some people might say that at least these people (who drank beer for Iftar) were good enough people because they actually observe the act of fasting. On the contrary, I believe that they did not have the spirit of fasting, lest they only physically abstain from drinking and eating during the day time. Their deed of fasting will only come to nought and will not be rewarded by Allah All Mighty.
Forbidden food is not only confined to the nature of the food or drink that is being consumed (e.g. pork, beer, wine and other intoxicated beverages, animal not slaughtered based on Muslim rites etc). A food is forbidden from being consumed by Muslims if they are purchased from forbidden sources, such as through stolen money or corruption. That is why some of the more pious among the Muslims would also refrain from consuming food presented to them by corrupt people.
Not many among us ordinary Muslims really adhere to the concept of Halal food i.e. food which can be consumed. Halal food should also be purchased from Halal sources of income. For instance, normal bread will become Haram and forbidden from being consumed if it is purchased from lottery winnings.
When the pirates from Somalia hijacked MISC tankers (Bunga Melati 2 and 5) in the Gulf of Aden, we were told that the Muslim hijackers prefer to hijack Malaysian vessels because the MISC vessels have plenty of Halal food rations. Didn’t the hijackers realise that even the Halal food rations would become Haram to them? Isn’t it actually as good as them consuming beef from any other non-Muslim vessels? And why did they continue their act of hijacking during Ramadhan? Aren’t they not real sinners? How can they claim to support a Muslim state in Somalia if they source their wealth through such illegal means?
I pray for the save release of our fellow Malaysians on board of Melati 2, and their save journey back (together with the released crew members of Melati 5) in time for Aidil Fitri.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Crafting a Dignified Exit for Pak lah
Flashback Mahathir: Mahathir cried when he made a shock announcement of his intention to retire from all government and political posts. He was eventually persuaded to stay on as UMNO President and Prime Minister until the conclusion of the OIC summit. The infamous cry-at-the-rostrum event marked the commencement of Mahathir long farewell party.
Fast forward Pak Lah: People are still waiting when to cry because Pak Lah has yet to make clear of his intention to quit. He has been persuaded to consider relinquishing both his posts as UMNO President and Prime Minister as soon as possible. But in reality, Pak Lah wanted a long farewell party for him too, just like Mahathir’s.
Really, Pak Lah wanted to quit with dignity. He thinks that he deserved a dignified exit. He loves UMNO, even when times were bad. He never quit UMNO (i.e. unlike Mahathir/Ku Li). He never joined Semangat 46 (i.e. unlike Ku Li). He never joined any other party, and never spoke at the same platform as the opposition to speak against UMNO (i.e. unlike Mahathir). He has no record of going against the party at any point of time.
However, being a loyal UMNO member is not a good enough criterion to be a good leader of UMNO. You need to be able to command respect, and unite the members. You need to also command respect from the other members of the component parties, and unite them. You need to command respect from the people, and unite all Malaysians.
Unfortunately, under Pak Lah, UMNO has become disunited, the component parties have become disunited, and Malaysians has become disunited. Pak Lah tried, but is still unable to command respect from people at all levels: in UMNO, in Barisan, and other Malaysians.
Pak Lah’s latest move to persuade UMNO Supreme Council to agree on the postponement of UMNO elections will add further discontent among the UMNO grassroots.
If Pak Lah decides not to contest the UMNO Presidency post, then why should there be further delay until March to decide on the successor? What further wonders can Pak Lah do during the short transition period, other than going from a farewell party to another?
On the other hand, what good can Pak Lah do if he decides to contest the UMNO Presidency post? If another contender managed to secure enough nominations to go against him, it is already a sign of gross protests from the ground. It will be even more humiliating if Pak Lah is unable or barely secure enough nominations for the UMNO President post. This will of course be an undignified exit for Pak Lah.
So, Jurublog reckons that Pak Lah will use the Hari Raya festivities to greet people and make him feel good and dignified. The papers will portray Pak Lah as a much loved PM, and people want him to continue serving as PM and undertake the necessary reforms. But despite the “overwhelming” show of support, Pak Lah will then make a tearful announcement not to contest in the UMNO elections to enable UMNO move on and select his successor through the party democratic process. Again, Pak Lah will be praise for his courage and dignity.
Even Khairy has been crafting a possible exit. Khairy has complained that he was being sabotaged and barred from meeting some of his supporters, the same allegations that Mukhriz has earlier made. Khairy has also lambasted the UMNO Supreme Council decision to delay the party elections as complicating matters. In any case, should Khairy eventually lost the UMNO Youth Chief contest, he already has a few reasons to explain for the lost. Of course, Khairy can still win the post, as he should be contestant with the deepest pocket of them all.
Let us wait for Pak Lah’s announcement during the Hari Raya festivities on his future undertakings.
But beware, there is Brother Anwar Bin Ibrahim, who always wants to be in the limelight and steal the show. I am sure that Anwar will announce the submission of notice to the Speaker for a vote of no confidence against the PM on the very day Pak Lah makes his announcement.
Fast forward Pak Lah: People are still waiting when to cry because Pak Lah has yet to make clear of his intention to quit. He has been persuaded to consider relinquishing both his posts as UMNO President and Prime Minister as soon as possible. But in reality, Pak Lah wanted a long farewell party for him too, just like Mahathir’s.
Really, Pak Lah wanted to quit with dignity. He thinks that he deserved a dignified exit. He loves UMNO, even when times were bad. He never quit UMNO (i.e. unlike Mahathir/Ku Li). He never joined Semangat 46 (i.e. unlike Ku Li). He never joined any other party, and never spoke at the same platform as the opposition to speak against UMNO (i.e. unlike Mahathir). He has no record of going against the party at any point of time.
However, being a loyal UMNO member is not a good enough criterion to be a good leader of UMNO. You need to be able to command respect, and unite the members. You need to also command respect from the other members of the component parties, and unite them. You need to command respect from the people, and unite all Malaysians.
Unfortunately, under Pak Lah, UMNO has become disunited, the component parties have become disunited, and Malaysians has become disunited. Pak Lah tried, but is still unable to command respect from people at all levels: in UMNO, in Barisan, and other Malaysians.
Pak Lah’s latest move to persuade UMNO Supreme Council to agree on the postponement of UMNO elections will add further discontent among the UMNO grassroots.
If Pak Lah decides not to contest the UMNO Presidency post, then why should there be further delay until March to decide on the successor? What further wonders can Pak Lah do during the short transition period, other than going from a farewell party to another?
On the other hand, what good can Pak Lah do if he decides to contest the UMNO Presidency post? If another contender managed to secure enough nominations to go against him, it is already a sign of gross protests from the ground. It will be even more humiliating if Pak Lah is unable or barely secure enough nominations for the UMNO President post. This will of course be an undignified exit for Pak Lah.
So, Jurublog reckons that Pak Lah will use the Hari Raya festivities to greet people and make him feel good and dignified. The papers will portray Pak Lah as a much loved PM, and people want him to continue serving as PM and undertake the necessary reforms. But despite the “overwhelming” show of support, Pak Lah will then make a tearful announcement not to contest in the UMNO elections to enable UMNO move on and select his successor through the party democratic process. Again, Pak Lah will be praise for his courage and dignity.
Even Khairy has been crafting a possible exit. Khairy has complained that he was being sabotaged and barred from meeting some of his supporters, the same allegations that Mukhriz has earlier made. Khairy has also lambasted the UMNO Supreme Council decision to delay the party elections as complicating matters. In any case, should Khairy eventually lost the UMNO Youth Chief contest, he already has a few reasons to explain for the lost. Of course, Khairy can still win the post, as he should be contestant with the deepest pocket of them all.
Let us wait for Pak Lah’s announcement during the Hari Raya festivities on his future undertakings.
But beware, there is Brother Anwar Bin Ibrahim, who always wants to be in the limelight and steal the show. I am sure that Anwar will announce the submission of notice to the Speaker for a vote of no confidence against the PM on the very day Pak Lah makes his announcement.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Subprime Crisis and Malaysia's Supreme Crisis
Subprime [pronounced as suhb-prahym] means being less than top quality. It should not be mistaken with Supreme [pronounced as suh-preem], which means the highest rank or the greatest.
The current world economic crisis essentially started with the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States. During the period of property boom in the US, there was a tendency to give (subprime) loans to borrowers with poor credit ratings (i.e. due to low income, no credit history, employment status etc), with the hope that the loans will eventually worked out as the loans were backed by appreciating value of the properties. Well, it did not eventually worked out as the US property market went bust and house sales continued to decline. Borrowers who are not well off (some unemployed) cannot repay their loans and eventually defaulted.
That was only part of the story. Concurrent with having given out the subprime mortgages, the financial experts performed their magic by bundling (i.e. putting together) these low quality mortgages with some other higher grade investment papers to create various forms of asset backed securities of investment grade, with insurance backing. Hence, when the subprime mortgages became bad due to high level defaults, these investments in the so-called investment grade asset backed securities became near worthless. So, the institutional investors who invested in the financial instruments linked to the subprime mortgages suffered severe losses.
Bear Sterns hedge funds were among the initial casualties, back in June 2007. The extend of losses resulting from the subprime crisis were somehow suppressed by the Americans until the second major wave of failures surfaced last week. Lehman Brothers collapsed and Merill Lynch has to be sold to Bank of America. We may be going into a long and deep economic turmoil.
Talking about the subprime crisis, I wish to relate a story told by a friend of mine sometime after March 2008 General Election. Pak Lah (as the then Finance Minister), at an international conference on investment in Malaysia, spoke about the subprime [suhb-prahym] crisis. True to Pak Lah’s ingenuity, he pronounced the crisis as supreme [suh-preem] crisis (and that too, in front of so many international institutional investors).
I guess Pak Lah had the foresight then that the subprime crisis will eventually turn out to be a supreme crisis.
However the joke was that Pak Lah must have been mistaken the word subprime with supreme and vice versa. It continued that UMNO Supreme Council was actually functioning as a Subprime Council, endorsing whatever was being dictated by the present UMNO leadership. In addition, we still have Pak Lah as the SubPrime Minister.
The current world economic crisis essentially started with the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States. During the period of property boom in the US, there was a tendency to give (subprime) loans to borrowers with poor credit ratings (i.e. due to low income, no credit history, employment status etc), with the hope that the loans will eventually worked out as the loans were backed by appreciating value of the properties. Well, it did not eventually worked out as the US property market went bust and house sales continued to decline. Borrowers who are not well off (some unemployed) cannot repay their loans and eventually defaulted.
That was only part of the story. Concurrent with having given out the subprime mortgages, the financial experts performed their magic by bundling (i.e. putting together) these low quality mortgages with some other higher grade investment papers to create various forms of asset backed securities of investment grade, with insurance backing. Hence, when the subprime mortgages became bad due to high level defaults, these investments in the so-called investment grade asset backed securities became near worthless. So, the institutional investors who invested in the financial instruments linked to the subprime mortgages suffered severe losses.
Bear Sterns hedge funds were among the initial casualties, back in June 2007. The extend of losses resulting from the subprime crisis were somehow suppressed by the Americans until the second major wave of failures surfaced last week. Lehman Brothers collapsed and Merill Lynch has to be sold to Bank of America. We may be going into a long and deep economic turmoil.
Talking about the subprime crisis, I wish to relate a story told by a friend of mine sometime after March 2008 General Election. Pak Lah (as the then Finance Minister), at an international conference on investment in Malaysia, spoke about the subprime [suhb-prahym] crisis. True to Pak Lah’s ingenuity, he pronounced the crisis as supreme [suh-preem] crisis (and that too, in front of so many international institutional investors).
I guess Pak Lah had the foresight then that the subprime crisis will eventually turn out to be a supreme crisis.
However the joke was that Pak Lah must have been mistaken the word subprime with supreme and vice versa. It continued that UMNO Supreme Council was actually functioning as a Subprime Council, endorsing whatever was being dictated by the present UMNO leadership. In addition, we still have Pak Lah as the SubPrime Minister.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Of the General and his Major
If I recall correctly, a few years ago, Najib had a lavish wedding reception for one of his children (whom he had from his first marriage). True to Rosmah’s reputation, she (and not the boy’s actual mother) was at the helm of the organising committee for the reception. Without doubt, Rosmah was quite a good organiser.
During the reception speech, Najib delivered quite an amusing anecdote about an army General and his Major. As the Defence Minister then, Najib liken himself as the General in his household. On the other hand, Rosmah is the Major. Of course, by seniority, General ranked much higher than the Major. Najib continued to say that as a General, he will make the general decisions, and likewise, Rosmah will be the one who make the major decisions. The crowd burst into spontaneous laughter upon hearing the joke.
The joke actually continued beyond the wedding reception. Rosmah was alleged to be the real “power” behind the Ministry of Defence. At one instance, she was alleged to have chaired a procurement meeting at the MOD, with Najib being in attendance! There are many other stories circulating regarding her lavish spending spree everytime she’s overseas together with Najib who’s on official trip.
With the recent swap in portfolio, Pak Lah is now the Minister of Defence. Rumour has it that the new General (Pak Lah) has quite a few people with the rank of Major in his “Kitchen Cabinet” (as opposed to the formal Malaysian Cabinet). And this rank and file has always existed since Pak Lah became the Prime Minister. So, as the story unfolds, Pak Lah will continue to make general decisions regarding the well being of us Malaysians, and his other household henchmen will be the ones who will continue to dictate the major decision making exercises.
During the reception speech, Najib delivered quite an amusing anecdote about an army General and his Major. As the Defence Minister then, Najib liken himself as the General in his household. On the other hand, Rosmah is the Major. Of course, by seniority, General ranked much higher than the Major. Najib continued to say that as a General, he will make the general decisions, and likewise, Rosmah will be the one who make the major decisions. The crowd burst into spontaneous laughter upon hearing the joke.
The joke actually continued beyond the wedding reception. Rosmah was alleged to be the real “power” behind the Ministry of Defence. At one instance, she was alleged to have chaired a procurement meeting at the MOD, with Najib being in attendance! There are many other stories circulating regarding her lavish spending spree everytime she’s overseas together with Najib who’s on official trip.
With the recent swap in portfolio, Pak Lah is now the Minister of Defence. Rumour has it that the new General (Pak Lah) has quite a few people with the rank of Major in his “Kitchen Cabinet” (as opposed to the formal Malaysian Cabinet). And this rank and file has always existed since Pak Lah became the Prime Minister. So, as the story unfolds, Pak Lah will continue to make general decisions regarding the well being of us Malaysians, and his other household henchmen will be the ones who will continue to dictate the major decision making exercises.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
916 came and went - But Anwar's still at it
My Ustadz told me that in the holy month of Ramadhan, the Satans are curtailed and would not have as much influence in the activities of mankind. Pious people will be at ease in performing religious rituals. That is one of the reasons why it is relatively easier to fast and perform good deeds during the month of Ramadhan as compared to other months of the year.
However, it does not mean that everything will be all good for everybody. Habitual sinners will continue to commit sin. Compulsive liars will continue to lie. Politicians will remain politicians.
I am not at all surprised when Anwar kept to his script of taking over the federal government yesterday, 16 September 2008. When I posted a comment on anwaribrahimblog.com, I was promptly scoffed by other commentators that 916 is “just” a vision/target, and not the actual date of Pakatan taking over the federal government. Now, they are saying that it is not a matter of IF but rather a matter of WHEN.
Anwar likes to be in the limelight. In any event that he went to, he will ensure that there was a sizeable crowd before he made his entrance. On 15 September night, he publicised that apart from Lim Kit Siang (DAP), Hadi Awang (PAS) will also be present at the Malaysia Day celebration, just to attract more crowd (especially the PAS supporters). Hadi Awang was not present. Anwar was also supposed to line up the BN defectors and proudly announce his elevation to Prime-Ministership on that very night. That too did not happen.
Yesterday, Anwar had the cheek to ask Pak Lah for a smooth transition of power to Pakatan. We were lucky that Pak Lah (at least yesterday) had been properly briefed by his troop of advisers on how to react to such nonsense.
What will Anwar do now, assuming he actually has the number? What good can he do if he starts marching to Istana Negara? Can the Agong accept his assertion of parliamentary majority based merely on letters signed by the alleged defectors? Even statutory declarations are of no value now, thanks to Petra and other Pakatan goons.
I admire HRH Sultan of Selangor for his wisdom to initially reject the appointment of Khalid Ibrahim as Selangor Menteri Besar when Khalid came to seek audience alone. The esteemed Sultan actually wanted all heads of the respective coalition parties in Pakatan to have an audience with him together, in order to ensure proper majority support is present before Royal consent is given. I trust the Agong has been properly briefed on the same subject matter.
Anwar honourable option would be to get Parliament to convene and face all the MPs heads on. But initially, he would have to file a motion of no confidence against Pak Lah. Should that succeed, I am sure that Barisan will appoint Najib as a nominee PM. What then? Another few rounds of no confidence vote, until Anwar is elected?
But one thing for sure is that Anwar has managed to ensure that Malaysia remains under great political uncertainty. And the political uncertainty has adversely affected the Malaysian economy and the FDIs. The blame for worsening economic conditions should not only be shouldered by the present federal government. Worse than usual relationships between the Pakatan-led state governments and the federal government is a negative factor, affecting business activities. Anwar’s continuing politic of deceptions will remain a major factor leading to economic uncertainty in Malaysia.
Remember, compulsive liars will continue to lie. And politicians will remain acting like typical politicians.
If Anwar really have the number, why did SAPP opted to be independent, and not joining Pakatan right away?
However, it does not mean that everything will be all good for everybody. Habitual sinners will continue to commit sin. Compulsive liars will continue to lie. Politicians will remain politicians.
I am not at all surprised when Anwar kept to his script of taking over the federal government yesterday, 16 September 2008. When I posted a comment on anwaribrahimblog.com, I was promptly scoffed by other commentators that 916 is “just” a vision/target, and not the actual date of Pakatan taking over the federal government. Now, they are saying that it is not a matter of IF but rather a matter of WHEN.
Anwar likes to be in the limelight. In any event that he went to, he will ensure that there was a sizeable crowd before he made his entrance. On 15 September night, he publicised that apart from Lim Kit Siang (DAP), Hadi Awang (PAS) will also be present at the Malaysia Day celebration, just to attract more crowd (especially the PAS supporters). Hadi Awang was not present. Anwar was also supposed to line up the BN defectors and proudly announce his elevation to Prime-Ministership on that very night. That too did not happen.
Yesterday, Anwar had the cheek to ask Pak Lah for a smooth transition of power to Pakatan. We were lucky that Pak Lah (at least yesterday) had been properly briefed by his troop of advisers on how to react to such nonsense.
What will Anwar do now, assuming he actually has the number? What good can he do if he starts marching to Istana Negara? Can the Agong accept his assertion of parliamentary majority based merely on letters signed by the alleged defectors? Even statutory declarations are of no value now, thanks to Petra and other Pakatan goons.
I admire HRH Sultan of Selangor for his wisdom to initially reject the appointment of Khalid Ibrahim as Selangor Menteri Besar when Khalid came to seek audience alone. The esteemed Sultan actually wanted all heads of the respective coalition parties in Pakatan to have an audience with him together, in order to ensure proper majority support is present before Royal consent is given. I trust the Agong has been properly briefed on the same subject matter.
Anwar honourable option would be to get Parliament to convene and face all the MPs heads on. But initially, he would have to file a motion of no confidence against Pak Lah. Should that succeed, I am sure that Barisan will appoint Najib as a nominee PM. What then? Another few rounds of no confidence vote, until Anwar is elected?
But one thing for sure is that Anwar has managed to ensure that Malaysia remains under great political uncertainty. And the political uncertainty has adversely affected the Malaysian economy and the FDIs. The blame for worsening economic conditions should not only be shouldered by the present federal government. Worse than usual relationships between the Pakatan-led state governments and the federal government is a negative factor, affecting business activities. Anwar’s continuing politic of deceptions will remain a major factor leading to economic uncertainty in Malaysia.
Remember, compulsive liars will continue to lie. And politicians will remain acting like typical politicians.
If Anwar really have the number, why did SAPP opted to be independent, and not joining Pakatan right away?
Sunday, September 14, 2008
A face-saving exit maneuvre by Zaid Ibrahim?
Zaid Ibrahim was once found guilty by UMNO disciplinary council and suspended from UMNO due to alleged money politics (read “corruption”) in his quest to become Kota Bharu UMNO division chief. Pak Lah saved him and selected him to contest the Kota Bharu seat in 2004 general election.
Zaid Ibrahim was not selected to defend the Kota Bharu Parliamentary seat in 8 March 2008 general election. He would surely have lost, should he be selected to defend the seat. Again, Pak Lah (probably upon advice by Khairy) saved Zaid, and appointed him as Senator and the de facto Law Minister. As I said before, one of Pak Lah’s mistakes was to appoint people who stayed at home during the battle (or rather, in the case of Zaid, he was allegedly abroad during the general election), and left the battling soldiers without meaningful portfolios in the cabinet.
As payback, Zaid has been defending Pak Lah at every opportunity, and he has also been vocal in attacking Pak Lah’s detractors. He suggested to Pak Lah to openly apologise for the government’s handling of 1988 Judicial Crisis; aimed at faulting Mahathir.
Zaid was also quick in asking for disciplinary actions to be taken against other UMNO politicians who attacked Pah Lah’s leadership. When Mukhriz rebuked Zaid in Parliament a few months ago, Zaid promptly asked for disciplinary action to be taken against Mukhriz. Nothing happened. When Muhyiddin called for a quicker transition plan, Zaid was even quicker in asking for Muhyiddin to quit or be sacked from the cabinet.
Zaid has gone relatively quite since the Bar Council’s forum on conversion to Islam. May be he is one of the “liberal” Muslims who supported the forum. Never mind that the forum served to undermine the position of Islam and Muslims, and the words uttered during the forum really tested the patience of the Muslims.
Zaid’s position in the government largely depended on Pak Lah’s support. His own UMNO division in Kota Bharu look set to snub him from the division chief post. Sadly, he cannot even secure the post without resorting to money politics.
On the other hand, Pak Lah's position as PM also looks untenable. He is facing growing calls from senior ranking party officials for him to quit earlier. Now, a few ministers have been questioning various government's decisions. Pak Lah is unable to control his own party. He is also not able to control his own cabinet members. He cannot stop his cabinet members from criticising each other's decisions, because Pak Lah himself is not able to articulate and defend the decisions.
Knowing that his position is rather perilous, I think Zaid will start to engineer his own exit. Today, he openly criticised the goverment's decision to invoke ISA on Raja Petra, Teresa Kok and Tan Hoon Cheng.
Will Pak Lah take Zaid out of his cabinet (together with Muhyiddin)? Or will Zaid quit cabinet on his own accord?
But I do not think that Zaid would want to follow the footsteps of Tunku Aziz, by defecting to DAP. Perhaps he can go up the DAP rank much faster, and still remains a minister should Pakatan rule Malaysia.
[Post-script 17 September 2008: Zaid has quit cabinet citing disagreement on the usage of ISA, and by doing so, left smelling like roses. Next step: Wait for Anwar to woo him. After all, Anwar needs the number, and Zaid is still a Senator]
Zaid Ibrahim was not selected to defend the Kota Bharu Parliamentary seat in 8 March 2008 general election. He would surely have lost, should he be selected to defend the seat. Again, Pak Lah (probably upon advice by Khairy) saved Zaid, and appointed him as Senator and the de facto Law Minister. As I said before, one of Pak Lah’s mistakes was to appoint people who stayed at home during the battle (or rather, in the case of Zaid, he was allegedly abroad during the general election), and left the battling soldiers without meaningful portfolios in the cabinet.
As payback, Zaid has been defending Pak Lah at every opportunity, and he has also been vocal in attacking Pak Lah’s detractors. He suggested to Pak Lah to openly apologise for the government’s handling of 1988 Judicial Crisis; aimed at faulting Mahathir.
Zaid was also quick in asking for disciplinary actions to be taken against other UMNO politicians who attacked Pah Lah’s leadership. When Mukhriz rebuked Zaid in Parliament a few months ago, Zaid promptly asked for disciplinary action to be taken against Mukhriz. Nothing happened. When Muhyiddin called for a quicker transition plan, Zaid was even quicker in asking for Muhyiddin to quit or be sacked from the cabinet.
Zaid has gone relatively quite since the Bar Council’s forum on conversion to Islam. May be he is one of the “liberal” Muslims who supported the forum. Never mind that the forum served to undermine the position of Islam and Muslims, and the words uttered during the forum really tested the patience of the Muslims.
Zaid’s position in the government largely depended on Pak Lah’s support. His own UMNO division in Kota Bharu look set to snub him from the division chief post. Sadly, he cannot even secure the post without resorting to money politics.
On the other hand, Pak Lah's position as PM also looks untenable. He is facing growing calls from senior ranking party officials for him to quit earlier. Now, a few ministers have been questioning various government's decisions. Pak Lah is unable to control his own party. He is also not able to control his own cabinet members. He cannot stop his cabinet members from criticising each other's decisions, because Pak Lah himself is not able to articulate and defend the decisions.
Knowing that his position is rather perilous, I think Zaid will start to engineer his own exit. Today, he openly criticised the goverment's decision to invoke ISA on Raja Petra, Teresa Kok and Tan Hoon Cheng.
Will Pak Lah take Zaid out of his cabinet (together with Muhyiddin)? Or will Zaid quit cabinet on his own accord?
But I do not think that Zaid would want to follow the footsteps of Tunku Aziz, by defecting to DAP. Perhaps he can go up the DAP rank much faster, and still remains a minister should Pakatan rule Malaysia.
[Post-script 17 September 2008: Zaid has quit cabinet citing disagreement on the usage of ISA, and by doing so, left smelling like roses. Next step: Wait for Anwar to woo him. After all, Anwar needs the number, and Zaid is still a Senator]
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