Today is the Day!

Sekretariat Melayu Muda akan menganjurkan Forum: "Malaysia Baru: Senario Politik Masakini." pada hari ini, rabu 30 april 2008 @ 8pm di wisma sejarah, jln tun razak (di hadapan institut jantung negara).

panel forum:

1. YB Datuk Mukhriz Tun Mahathir
Ahli Parlimen Jerlun, EXCO Pemuda UMNO Malaysia, Penyelaras AMAN Malaysia

2. Sdr Akhramsyah M.U. Sanusi
Pengerusi Pro-tem Alumni Melayu Uk & Eire(AMUKE) , Ahli Promuda, Blogger

datang. dengar. bersuara.

azrain adnan
pengerusi
sekretariat melayu muda

Ooi Chuan Aun.

The Star today carried an interview with Jeff Ooi, under its My MP column. i have been following this column since it started right after the GE. i have to congratulate The Star on this initiative. a good way to 'humanise' our YBs. otherwise we only know our YBs as people who 'reside' in a house on Jalan Parlimen.

so who doesnt know Jeff Ooi. from blogger to politician. he is now an MP, representing DAP. and also the Chief of Staff to the Chief Minister of Penang. he should be credited for promoting blogging in malaysia. i would say, his blog, together with malaysiakini and malaysia today are the top three sites in the country. these are the sites where people would turn to to get 'inside info', or latest news. he has built such a credibility that people would quote his writings. even my friends would say - but Jeff Ooi said that..or Jeff Ooi said this. so it is not a suprise that in 2005, Paris-based Reporters Without Boundaries (RSF) voted his blog the 'Freedom Blog Asia', out of 60 blogs worldwide.

i read through the interview. questions ranged from type of music to what car he drives. interesting to know that Jeff Ooi plays the guitar. his fav song is Hotel California. he loves Indiana Jones series. and he hates golf.

and to the last question, he answered: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. He is 70% a good man. he has fired the imagination of malaysians to excel.

what was the question?! "Name an idol (dead or alive) whom you look up to and why."

imagine that. coming from a DAP MP, i was shocked. pleasantly shocked of course. at a time when UMNO leaders (some of them anyway) are running down Tun M. and here is a man from a party that fought Tun M for more than 20 years, admitting publicly that he idolises Tun M. cool.

My Dear BALKIS..

no la. i am not talking about a woman. but a group of women. BALKIS is Badan Amal dan Kebajikan Isteri-Isteri Wakil Rakyat Selangor (translation: Wives of Selangor Assemblymen and MPs Welfare and Charity Organisation). i have been following the BALKIS issue for the past week. a quick summary. three days after the recent GE, BALKIS members decided to dissolve BALKIS and had transferred RM 9.9 million from its coffer to BAKTI (Association of Wives of Ministers and Deputy Ministers).

i wont touch on its legality. if they say they acted within the constitution of BALKIS, then i would take their word for it. but i do have a couple of nagging questions to ask:

ONE, in Sunday Star, Datin Seri Zahrah Kechik, the head of BALKIS (wife of Dr Khir Toyo, ex Selangor MB), said that they did it to prevent the funds from falling into the hands of the new government. and Dr Khir was quoted as saying that they are worried the money, which was raised for the welfare of children, would not be used for the correct purpose.

it is heartening that you are concerned about the children. but on what basis made you worry the new government would use the money for other purposes and stop assisting the children?! if they were to do that, then the rakyat would know - we would make sure of that. and they would be 'punished' in the next GE.

TWO, in The Star today, Dr Khir said that the membership of BALKIS is not exclusive. wives of all reps and MPs could join, but membership was not automatic. it is subject to the approval of BALKIS's committee at the AGM.

If that is so, what is there to be afraid off. it means that the current committee can still have control of BALKIS by not admitting new members ie wives of Pakatan Rakyat's reps and MPs. let's not argue on morality - whether it is right to do so. i am talking purely on strategy. the current committee of BALKIS can still be in power and continue with their social work.

The dissolution of BALKIS and transfer of the money have left a bad taste in my mouth. it should not have happened in the first place. if you say it is an NGO, then leave politics out of it. you should have welcome the wives of other reps and MPs into BALKIS. and work together. as i said in one of my posts, social work is an area where both sides should and could work together. who would benefit here? the children. our children.

Glass Eye.

Kaca Mata (translation: Glass Eye) is a column in Berita Minggu. the writer is none other than Hishamuddin Aun. the Big Boss himself - Group Chief Editor of the NSTP Group. in today's article, he wrote about BBC's HardTalk program with Tun Mahathir, that was aired earlier this week.

I am appalled. and disgusted. from the very beginning, this article is out to run down Tun Mahathir. he did little to present the interview in a wholesome manner. just taking portions of it to discredit Tun Mahathir. this is definitely not journalism. i know that NSTP is supposedly 'controlled' by the government. but this is very low indeed. truly unprofessional. this is a classic case of finding fault. if you are out to run down someone, you would find anything to use against him/her. you could well find a needle in the haystack. i have to ask this question. by writing this article, what do you get? what does the government get? more support? think again.

i have a confession. i am big fan of Tun Mahathir. i believe he is a great statesman. an outstanding leader. a thinker. a visionary. do i agree with all his policies/actions? mostly yes. but not all. (i can think off one right now. guess. clue: no. 6). is he perfect? no. (was taught that only our Prophet was perfect and beyond reproach). and that is exactly my point. he is human. and human makes mistakes. but with this 'imperfection', he did his best. and he achieved a lot. for the malays. for malaysians. for malaysia. for third world countries. etc etc etc. we had been very fortunate to have him as our PM. and we would be very lucky to have another leader with similar charisma in our lifetime. look at all civilisations. great leaders do not come often.

I watched the interview on You Tube recently. at one point, the host said:"is that why you were not a democrat..why you were in the end behaved like a dictator." it would be futile to argue if that is the perception. and already imprinted in their mind. so be it. i called it "necessary dictatorship".

mystory - 26 april 2008

news one.
'The Star: Hisham regrets wielding keris."

DS Hishammuddin Hussein, UMNO Youth Chief, has admitted that his raising of the keris was among the causes of the BN's poor performance in the GE.

He said: " if it affected anyone, i cannot run away from the reality of it. i apologise to the non-malays and the malays. to the non-malays because of the fear to a symbol which was not my intention. and to the malays for not being able to uphold their symbol of heritage."

my comments:

thank you sir. it takes a man to apologise. and it takes a great man to accept responsibility. altho some would say it is too late - 'nasi sudah menjadi bubur'. but for me, it is never too late. hopefully everybody would accept this sincere apology. so that we can move on.

malays are not dangerous. in fact, malays are in danger. we are our own poison. just look at the statistics. drug addicts, HIV cases, etc. who top the lists? the malays. what about other social problems - mat rempits for example. who top the lists? the malays.

mystory - 24 April 2008

news one.
"The Star: PM - work as a team."

PM Abdullah Badawi said he wanted political secretaries to work as a team and be people-friendly especially with the scrapping of the parliamentary secretary post.

He said this at the swearing in of 27 political secretaries to ministers.

my comments:

one notable name missing from this list is Datuk Norza Zakaria. looks like he is no longer the political secretary to TS Nor, the Second Finance Minister.

Datuk Norza is a member of UMNO supreme council. he is also the UMNO Youth Chief for Federal Territory. so he holds some powerful positions in UMNO. plus he is closely associated with Khairy Jamaluddin.

so wonder what is the real story here. did he ask to leave? or was he dropped? if yes, then why? the one that i heard is that. official story - he asked to leave to concentrate on something else. but the 'real' story is that he was dropped. either way, he would still be in the news. his name has been mentioned a number of times as a possible candidate for the position of UMNO Youth Chief. so is he making his move? we should know soon enough.

Kah Choon: Revisited

Latest news. Datuk Lee Kah Choon had decided to quit Gerakan with immediate effect. this should be the end of this saga. at least for Gerakan and BN. Lim Guan Eng may still face some criticisms from his own party members. even Karpal Singh chided him for making the offer in the first place.

Gerakan and BN should surf the webs and blogs. then only they could gauge what the people think about this. by far, from what i could gather, people have given their support and approval. and they want to see more cooperation from both side of the aisle. because at the end of the day, who would benefit? our people. our country.

mystory - 22 april 2008

news one.
"The Star: Bad move, Kah Choon told."

DS Najib said, members of BN component parties should not take up appointments in Pakatan Rakyat-led state governments.

(Former Gerakan deputy Sec-Gen, Datuk Lee Kah Choon decided to accept the appointments as director of InvestPenang and Penang Development Corporation. Datuk Lee said that he accepted the posts to serve Penang and its people. He also considered politics as history for him.)

DS Najib added: "Since it is a party matter, i want to know Gerakan's stand on this. as a matter of principle, Barisan doesn't encourage or allow any of its members to be working for the opposition."

Meanwhile, Gerakan adviser, DS Dr Lim Keng Yaik said it would be difficult for Lee as both Gerakan and DAP would be suspicious of him - "Gerakan will be wary of him as he will be promoting the agenda of the Pakatan Rakyat state government, while DAP would be guarded as he is still a Gerakan member."

Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of Penang - who made the offer, said the state government was charting a new course with Lee's appointment and he was ready to face any criticism as the move was part of the reform process. he added: "let us take the bitterness and unnecessary anger out of politics."

my comments:

Lim Guan Eng is either very brave and very smart, or very stupid. since i know little of him, i must assume he is brave and smart. (was taught to see the good in people unless seen or heard otherwise). he has made a shrewd move. a calculated gamble. as i see it, with this one stroke, he gained tremendous goodwill and approval from the public - the rakyats. for many many years, the rakyats have seen partisan politics whereby the ruling party and the opposition 'quarrel' on every issue - agree on nothing, disagree with everything. let alone working together. i believe many of the rakyats, especially Penangnites, regardless of political affiliation, would back Lim Guan Eng on this. am not too sure however what his party members would say. if they look at the big picture, they must support him coz what he did is for the best interest of Penang, so he claimed. isnt it the objective of any political party to serve the people with their utmost ability?

so the ball is in Gerakan's court now. also BN's. what action to take against Datuk Lee? if they do not take any action, then it is as good as saying it is ok for their members to work for the opposition. and therefore breaking/bending their own golden rule of not 'sleeping with the enemy'. if they reprimand him, some would say it is too light. if they expel him, that may further alienate the support of the rakyats - which something they do not want to happen. so what to do? very tricky indeed. Datuk Lee should know better and resign as a Gerakan member. make life easier for everybody.

my gut feeling is that, Gerakan would not take any action against Datuk Lee. Gerakan performed badly in the recent GE. and they lost Penang - their crown jewel. (it would take a long time for them to win back Penang. akin to what UMNO faces in Kelantan.) they need to win back the support of the rakyats - fast! they need to show that they are willing to work with the present state government for the benefit of the people - people first, politics second. plus, they may argue that those appointments are professional in nature and not political. as such, do not clash with BN's ideology. so Gerakan in their meeting this sunday may decide to do just that and let it be. if that is so, what is BN going to do? would they then 'reprimand' Gerakan?

(remember what happened to Datuk Sothinathan? In 2005, Datuk S. Sothinathan, the then Deputy Minister of Natural Resources & Environment, was suspended for 3 months as a deputy minister, for breaking ranks with the government. apparently he criticised the government in Parliament on an issue pertaining to the de-recognition of Crimea State Medical University.)

anyway, hypothetically, if we were to look at 3 key areas seperately- politics, economics and sosial, there may be room where both sides can work together. obviously politics is out of the question. but the other two areas should and could be explored. for example, if a PAS member is a recognised and respected scholar in islamic law and economics, why not appoint him/her as a director of Tabung Haji? or Bank Islam? or appoint a DAP member as a member of Social Institute of Malaysia, if he/she has the expertise and experience? if everybody can embrace the big picture and be professional, it may work. who knows. but someone must start the ball rolling. or has it?

Letter to NST Editor - 21 April 2008

JUSTICE FOR JUDGES:
It’s not Abdullah who should apologise
Abdul Rahman Suleiman, Kajang

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Monday/Letters/2219285/Article/index_html

As someone who lived through the 1988 judicial crisis, I am happy that the prime minister has brought closure to this matter. His acknowledgement of the contributions, pain and suffering endured by the sacked and suspended judges was a sincere gesture of healing a wound that has never been treated or even looked at for the last 20 years.Some would have preferred an outright apology and others would have wanted the entire episode to be reviewed thoroughly. But, as the prime minister said, it is time for us to move on.I am sure that for many, the government's recognition of what the judges have gone through is a sufficient gesture to bring this matter to a close.While the prime minister was right to say that the goodwill ex gratia payments made to the judges cannot be equated to the humiliation they endured, it is nonetheless an offer made in good faith.

This is especially befitting since these judges lost out on their incomes, their full pensions and any post-retirement appointments in the corporate sector because many of them were ostracised by the government. I only hope the ex gratia payments reflect these losses the judges endured. I also think the question of an apology is best put to those who were actually involved in the judicial crisis. As far as I remember, the present prime minister was sacked from the cabinet before the judicial crisis for being part of the so-called Umno "Team B" that challenged Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed in the party election.In fact, the roots of the judicial crisis go back to that Umno dispute which resulted in the "old" Umno being deregistered by the courts and increasing Dr Mahathir's anger towards the judiciary.

So, the question of the prime minister apologising for something that he never had a hand in does not arise.If anyone needs to apologise to Tun Salleh Abas and his contemporaries, and arguably to the nation, for destroying the judiciary, it is Dr Mahathir. But we know that such an apology will not be tendered. Dr Mahathir has said that the dismissal of the judges was legal and constitutional, and will continue to hide behind this excuse, even though any informed Malaysian with a memory of the crisis remembers that it was a political move to crush the judiciary.But it must not just be Dr Mahathir who apologises.

We very quickly forget that one of Dr Mahathir's strongest cheerleaders during the judicial crisis is still very much on the political stage today.For those who remember, we will not easily forget that Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim -- the self-styled champion of justice today -- was one of the most outspoken politicians defending the sacking of the judges in 1988.It is ironic and sad that his wife, Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, could share a table with Salleh at the Bar Council dinner without even acknowledging that her husband, too, had a role to play in the destruction of our judiciary.

In his blog, Anwar has the temerity to criticise the government for not tendering a simple apology. He must think Malaysians had forgotten his role in this. If Anwar is truly the "leader-in-waiting" that he claims to be, he must apologise for being a part of the attack on the judiciary.

my comments:

spot on. there is a saying " jika kita menunding jari kepada orang, 3 jari menunding ke arah kita". (translation: if you point a finger at someone, three fingers would point at you"). try it.

mystory - 21 April 2008

news one.
"Berita Harian: Muhyiddin jawab kritikan 'tak cerdik'."
http://www.bharian.com.my/Current_News/BH/Monday/Nasional/20080421104824/Article/index_html


KUALA LUMPUR: Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin semalam menjawab kritikan Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz yang membidas segelintir pemimpin Umno, termasuk menggelar mereka menteri yang 'tidak cerdik' kerana terus meminta Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi berundur sebagai Perdana Menteri. Naib Presiden Umno itu berkata walaupun Mohamed Nazri tidak menyatakan nama menteri yang dimaksudkannya, ia mungkin merujuk kepada dirinya kerana beliau antara menteri yang banyak memberikan pandangan mengenai perubahan kepimpinan dalam parti. “Kalau yang dimaksudkan itu adalah saya... saya sedar saya tidak secerdik beliau. Kelulusan saya pun tak setinggi Mohamed Nazri dan pandangan saya agak sempit dan kekampungan,” katanya yang juga Menteri Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri.

Beliau mengulas kenyataan Mohamed Nazri kelmarin yang membidas segelintir pemimpin Umno termasuk yang bergelar menteri kerana tidak putus-putus menyarankan Abdullah berundur sebagai Perdana Menteri. Muhyiddin berkata, agak aneh apabila ramai tokoh politik dan bukan politik dalam serta luar Umno bersetuju serta memberi sokongan kuat kepada kenyataan yang beliau buat mengenai kepemimpinan Umno dan masa depan orang Melayu. “Kalau tak cerdik saya, maka tak cerdiklah mereka. Lagi pun saya tak pernah menyebut di mana-mana sama ada dalam wawancara atau kenyataan kepada media bahawa saya sudah meminta Perdana Menteri meletak jawatan walaupun saya ada menyatakan perlunya perubahan dalam Umno termasuk dari segi kepemimpinan dan yang lain.

“Sebenarnya yang menyarankan agar diadakan pelan peralihan kuasa secara berhemah oleh Umno Johor datang dari saya. Dia kata Perdana Menteri dipilih oleh rakyat tetapi mengikut pandangan saya yang tak cerdik ini tak tepat. Abdullah sebenarnya dipilih oleh ahli Umno yang memilih beliau sebagai Presiden dan mengikut konvensyennya sebagai Pengerusi BN dipilih sebagai Perdana Menteri,” katanya. Ahli Majlis Tertinggi (MT) Umno yang juga Pengerusi Gagasan Badan Ekonomi Melayu (Gabem), Tan Sri Rahim Thamby Chik, pula berkata ahli Umno bebas memberi pandangan mengenai apa saja isu atau hal ehwal berkaitan situasi Umno serta masa depan orang Melayu. Sementara itu, Ketua Penerangan Puteri Umno, Datuk Shahaniza Shamsuddin, berkata adalah lebih baik semua ahli Umno berhenti bercakap dan jangan memberi tekanan kepada Perdana Menteri.

my comments:

enough said.

mystory - 21 April 2008

news one.
"The Star: Dont waste money on needless luxuries, agencies told"

The Finance Ministry has instructed all government agencies to reduce frills when organising official funcions to cut cost and prevent wastage.

Second Finance Minister, TS Nor Mohamed Yakcop said a circular has been sent out earlier, but he was 'renewing' the directive as a reminder to all department heads.

"Government agencies should not hold events at five-star hotels, which is quite unnecessary and very costly".

my comments:

great call Tan Sri. hopefully it does not stop there. shouldnt it involve GLCs as well? for a start, why not make them use Proton as official company cars. if Proton is good enough for our Prime Minister, it should be good enough for any CEOs. except for certain companies like Sime Darby. why? coz sime darby is in the motor industry selling brands like BMW, Ford and Hyundai. so these car brands are used as company cars. others have no reason not to use Proton.

UMNO should follow as well. imagine this. UMNO has three wings - Wanita, Pemuda and Puteri. each has its own set of programs/events every year. more often than not, each event/program organised by either one of the wings, would involve a set of cap and t-shirt with logos and what not. if say Pemuda organises 10 programs every year, most likely there would be 10 sets of caps and t-shirts. that is only at the national level. not counting the programs at divisional and branch levels. so at year end, one would have a collection of caps and t-shirts, that most likely would not be worn anymore except maybe for sleeping or gardening.

some would argue that these items are essential to commemorate and promote the events. the question is - whether we can get the desired results without them? the impact of the program. if we can save money without the 'non-essentials' then we can organise more programs for the benefit of the members and rakyats. and we can reach out more. form vs. substance.

news two.
"The Star: Dr M - Najib should not be PM"

Tun Dr M said he had second thoughts about DS Najib becoming Prime Minister as Najib has failed to speak up about the real reasons behind BN's losses in the GE.

He said that Najib was not 'brave enough' to directly say anything that was not liked by his boss.

"Najib will face competition from others such as Muhyiddin, Rais Yatim, you never know". However, Tun M said if PM abdullah adawi were to step down now, it would pave the way for a smooth transition as Najib would succeed him in accordance with UMNO tradition.

my comments:

this is the second time Tun M has expressed his 'dissatisfaction' with Najib. earlier this month, at a forum organised by mykmu.net, he said: “For now, I can’t say who (should replace Abdullah). Although I have said before it should be Najib, I don’t know why for ‘some reason’ I have now changed my mind." as i wrote in my earlier post, i dont think Tun M is actually withdrawing his support to DS Najib. i dont see that happening.

i believe Tun M is frustrated that DS Najib is playing it safe - too safe. not willing to take the risk and speak out against the boss. of course, that is one of the 'pitfalls' being the no 2. DS Najib has to be very careful of his actions and words. he is expected to obey the boss - through thick and thin. in sickness and in health. one wrong move may be the beginning of the end of his long political career.

Tun M is still influential. whatever he says still carry a lot of weight. if he is frustrated, then UMNO members will get frustrated together with him. therefore, DS Najib must act now.

mystory - 20 april 2008

news one.
"Mingguan Malaysia: Tak berhak minta PM letak jawatan."

UMNO tidak berhak meminta PM, DS Abdullah Ahmad Badawi meletakkan jawatan sebagai Presiden UMNO dan Perdana Menteri. Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, DS Mohamad Nazri Aziz berkata, ini kerana pemilihan Abdullah sebagai Perdana Menteri dibuat oleh rakyat, justeru UMNO tidak boleh menafikan hak rakyat.

"Kenapa UMNO menafikan hak rakyat yang pilih Pak Lah sebagai Perdana Menteri dengan memintanya meletak jawatan. UMNO tidak ada hak menafikan kemahuan majoriti pegundi yang mengundi Barisan Nasional, yang tahu Pak Lah adalah Perdana Menteri" katanya.

Menurutnya, adalah tidak sesuai bagi parti meminta Perdana Menteri meletak jawatan kerana semasa pilihan raya yang lalu, rakyat telah memilih BN yang menjadi parti majoriti di Parlimen.

my comments:

with all due respect DS Nazri, in this country the rakyats do not choose the Prime Minister. in an election, the rakyats would choose the party that they think would be best to govern the country. this is not America whereby the voters directly elect the President.

BN has 14 component parties. As a coalition, it works on consensus. in theory, the leaders of BN would deliberate and choose among themselves who would lead BN and become the Prime Minister. by tradition, the President of UMNO would also be the Prime Minister. simply because UMNO is the biggest party in the coalition - it has the most number of members and most number of elected representatives. as such, the President of UMNO is deemed to have the mojority of the support.

and who elects the President of UMNO? its members. every 3 years, UMNO election would take place to elect its top leaders. and that 'power to elect' rests with some 2500 delegates. they elect the President of UMNO. and indirectly elect the Prime Minister as well. that is why UMNO election is closely watched by everybody.

therefore, the members have every right to ask PM Abdullah Badawi to step down as the President of UMNO. by stepping down he would have to resign as the Prime Minister as well - it's a package deal. 2 in 1 kind of thing. well, theoretically he can continue as Prime Minister without being President of UMNO if he can get the BN MPs to support him. but that is highly unlikely. in this country, tradition goes a long way.

mystory - 18 april 2008

news one.
"The Star: Delivering justice, Renewing trust"

PM Abdullah Badawi addressed the Malaysian Bar council dinner last nite, and delivered a speech titled - Delivering justice, Renewing trust. among the things he touched on:

ONE, PM Abdullah Badawi called for everybody to work towards a new chapter in Malaysian judiciary.

TWO, a Judicial Appointments Commission would be set up to make the process of nominating, appointing and promoting judges more transparent.

THREE, a review of the judiciary's terms of service and remuneration to ensure that the Bench can attract and retain the best talent.

FOUR, he also spoke on the 1988 judicial crisis. "For me, personally, i feel it was a time of crisis from which the nation never fully recovered".

my comments:

Judiciary is one of the pillars of government. the other two being - the executive and the legislature. judiciary plays a very important role in any government system. a strong and respected judiciary would be good for the country. it provides stability. it provides a just recourse for all.

I fully support any judicial reforms that would create a strong, efficient and respected judiciary. Thank you PM Abdullah Badawi.

However, as i wrote in one of my earlier posts, i still have reservations about the appointment of TS Zaki Azmi to the bench and his rapid promotion. PM Abdullah Badawi mentioned in his speech last nite that "...a judiciary that delivers justice and is seen to deliver justice".

as such perception is important. perception is important in politics. what more the judiciary. i was told, a perception of biased can be a ground for appeal in a court case (correct me if i am wrong. i am not a lawyer). in no way i am questioning TS Zaki's integrity and professionalism. he may be fully qualified to be elevated and promoted. it's only a question of perception.

mystory - 17 april 2008

news one.
"The Star: Leadership change before elections, says Shahrir"

Datuk Shahrir Smad said the change in the UMNO leadership can take place any time as long as DS Najib Tun Razak has sufficient time to prepare for the next general election.

meanwhile, Johor Wanita UMNO chief said that the transition process must start now, and not after the party elections. It must be done now so that a new management would be ready after the party elections in December.

Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir echoed a similar sentiment and said that the leadership should not wait until after the polls.

news two.
"The Star: Najib - Abdullah didnt say when he will step down"

DS Najib had a meeting with leaders of UMNO Selangor to gather feedback on the party's performance in the recent GE. outside the meeting place, banners were put up urging Pak Lah to set down sooner than later: "We love Pak Lah but we love UMNO more. speed up the transition of power to Najib and Muhyiddin".

According to DS Najib, PM Abdullah Badawi has not expressed his intention to hand over power in 2010. PM Abdullah Badawi has not given any indication of timing as yet.

my comments:
some still believe PM Abdullah Badawi should stay and continue to lead. but they are in the minority. most have accepted that the change in leadership is inevitable. this transfer of power is a very important piece in the healing and rejuvenation process of UMNO. any delay would definitely not be in the best interest of the party.

while we are engrossed with this leadership issue, who is actually monitoring and checking on the opposition? they are quietly working and strategising. they are solidfying their cooperation - moving forward together. they are gaining momentum without much fight - inch by inch. or maybe metre by metre now. and we cannot fight back 100% unless this leadership issue is settled quickly. then only we can fight, we can attack to win back the support of the malays. and the rakyats.

(by the way, there is not a single news covering PM Abdullah Badawi in The Star today - none. did he not have any official functions yesterday? is he on leave?)

mystory - 16 April 2008

news one. (The Sun)

DS Rafidah Aziz, Wanita UMNO Chief, had a meeting with wanita UMNO leaders yesterday. here are some of her remarks:

ONE, "remember, we are not just changing the UMNO president, we are changing the prime minister. other parties can change their president tomorrow, they can tell their president to go today; not UMNO. we are talking about the prime minister and this country has never had a prime minister who has been pushed out in our history; always remember that".

TWO, "no one should say 'i'm free of blame', there should be no such nonsense as everyone at all levels - be it president, deputy, exco, supreme council and grassroot level - should not absolve themselves of blame. only the proportion of the blame is different, but it is not fair to point fingers".

my comment:

i agree on point one. yes it is unprecedented. but we are also in unchartered waters. new political senario altogether. BN lost its 2/3 majority - never before. the opposition won so many parliamentary seats, plus 5 states - never before. as they say - there is always a first for everything. so under these new circumstances, should we stick to our so-called tradition of doing things? we are in a crisis. and crisis demands immediate and drastic measures.

i am 100% with you Datuk Seri on point two. everybody must shoulder the blame. but more importantly, be accountable. be responsible. if you just shoulder the blame but do nothing, what is the point. and it is not a case of pointing fingers, it is about accountability. politicians always talk about accountability. but somehow, it is only talk. it seems that everybody else must be accountable except politicians. when GLCs do not perform well, you install new CEOs. you make the CEOs accountable. well and good. but when you lose a state, what do u do? nothing. you continue to be the state liaison chairman. is there no honour in politics anymore?

one more thing Datuk Seri. i propose you to be the new sec-gen of UMNO. your combative style may be what UMNO needs in this new political landscape.

mystory 16 April 2008 - malaysia in history

news one.

last week i wrote that MUBARAK (Majlis Bekas Wakil Rakyat) would be meeting PM Abdullah Badawi. yesterday they did. conclusions from the meeting:

one, MUBARAK President denied that the association gave its support to PM Abdullah Badawi and wanted him to stay on.

two, the association supports the transition from PM Abdullah Badawi to DS Najib in a systematic and gentlemanly manner.

three, the transition is to restore the confidence of the public and UMNO members.

my comment:
this is another call for PM Abdullah Badawi to step down. although they no longer hold any high ranking UMNO or government positions, members of MUBARAK are prominent figures - that includes former ministers, MBs, supreme council members etc. many of them are peers of PM Abdullah Badawi when they were active in politics. so what they say still carry some weight.

news two.

Dato Seri Azalina Othman Said, the Tourism Minister said a couple of things today:

one, she only plans to contest for an UMNO Supreme Council post. she denied talk that she would challenge DS Rafidah Aziz for the post of Wanita UMNO Chief.

two, she also said that it was inappropriate for party members to ask PM Abdullah Badawi to step down as UMNO president. we should not disrecpect our leaders by telling them they are no longer wanted. It is not Malay culture for leaders to be told to step down.

my comment:
let me ask this. is disparaging our past leaders part of our culture? dont think so. Tell that to your cabinet colleagues Dato Seri.

we cant pick and choose which part of our culture to suit our intention. for example: when a muslim man wants to marry more than one, he would say to his wife - "Darling, in islam i am allowed to have up to 4 wives". yea now you talk about the religion. what about other tenets of islam - do you uphold them? maybe not. so you use part of the religion to suit a particular intention. get the drift? same case with our culture. bashing past leaders seem to acceptable, as many leaders are doing it. but to criticise the current leadership is not part of our culture - un-malay?! where is the logic. what about being accountable - is that un-malay also?

Ketuanan Melayu

Yesterday, i sent out invitations to the forum "Malaysia Baru: Senario Politik Masakini", to a number of friends and acquaintances. One of them replied: "The last election, the concept of Bangsa or Ketuanan Melayu has been rejected. Especially if you're young. Does anyone in UMNO "get" that??" (translation: ketuanan melayu=malay supremacy). i was shocked, to say the least. one, coz it came from a fellow malay. two, coz it was very blunt. all the way home, i kept thinking about it.

so i have to ask this question - is it really so? that the concept of Ketuanan Melayu has been rejected, by the malays? if yes, then why the malays, especially the young ones, are rejecting it? and what can UMNO do to correct it, if it can at all?

before we answer that, what is actually Ketuanan Melayu? for me, ketuanan melayu simply means that political powers reside with the malays. ketuanan melayu does not mean malays are superior than other races. ketuanan melayu does not mean malays get all, keep all. ketuanan melayu does not mean malays can do whatever they like, whenever they like. in fact, ketuanan melayu is meant to remind malays to stay united and stay focus. it is meant to instill pride so that malays can stand tall with other races of the world. it is to remind the malays of their roots, culture and history. so ketuanan melayu is not meant to scare or belittle other races. far from it. we lost our political and economic powers for more than 400 years. why? because of our own internal squablings and jealousy. we know what happened before. history must not and can not repeat itself. once bitten, twice shy!

this is my own understanding of ketuanan melayu. others may have their own interpretations. and their actions are based on their own interpretations of ketuanan melayu. so you have malays spread across the board - from one extreme to the other. but i believe the majority of the malays are in the middle - recognising the fact that we live in a multi racial country. as such subscribing to the principles of sharing, tolerance and understanding. working together. and co-exist. should malays be apologetic when they speak out about rights and privilleges? no. should other races question these rights and privilleges? no. why? coz nobody is going to win if we go down that road. these rights and privilleges have been provided for and agreed by our forefathers. so let's move on.

so if some malays do reject ketuanan melayu, what are they actually rejecting? the concept itself? or the implementation of the concept? or both? whatever reasons given, we come back to these two - the concept and the implementation. personally i could not find fault with the concept. it is a mechanism to keep us on our toes - a reality check. so that we stay true to our objective - to uplift the maruah (dignity) of the malays. and i believe malays, young and old, still support the concept of ketuanan melayu. it is noble. to an extent sacred. how can they reject it?! if that is the case, then it must be becoz of the implementation. that is Sherlock Holmes' logic - if we eliminate all the impossibles, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

the implementation has been less than desirable. issues of cronisym and transparency have been raised many times. the actions of some malays, including some politicians, did not help either. some may have gone overboard with their actions and words. but to be fair, most of the times, they were pushed to the corner by certain quarters. so they reacted accordingly. for example - certain quarters kept harping on whether malaysia is an islamic state. why, why, why?! it is enschrined in the constitution that islam is the official religion. so drop it. leave it at that.

so if implementation is the factor, then it is fixable. new ways of doing things could be put in place. the way we re-act to issues could be done in a more acceptable manner. so my friend, to answer your question - does people in UMNO 'get' that?. i can only say, i sure hope so. for the sake of the malays.

Dream Team.

Peralihan kuasa (translation: transfer of power) is the hottest topic in town now. from coffee shop to coffee house. from perlis to sabah. some are excited. some are anxious. some are elated. whatever it is, most agreed that this transition of power would be the start of the rejuvenation process of UMNO. only a start. UMNO has five years to win the hearts and minds (and aslo souls) of the malays. and the rakyat.

Would this be the dream team?

President: DS Najib Tun Razak

Deputy President: TS Muhyiddin Yaasin

Vice Presidents:
DS Hishammuddin Tun Hussein
Datuk Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Dato Abdul Ghani Othman

Youth Chief: Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir
Deputy Youth Chief: Razali Ibrahim

Wanita Chief: DS Shahrizat Jalil

Puteri Chief: Nolee Mohd Radzi

Sec-Gen: DS Rafidah Aziz

Treasurer: Datuk Dr Awang Adek

Info Chief: Datuk Md Alwi Che Ahmad

Malaysia Baru: Senario Politik Masakini

As'kum.

Salam Sejahtera.

Sekretariat Melayu Muda, satu gagasan yang dipelopori oleh profesional Melayu muda, akan menganjurkan satu perbincangan bertajuk: "Malaysia Baru: Senario Politik Masakini"

Ianya akan diadakan pada tarikh dan tempat seperti berikut:

Tarikh: Rabu, 30 April 2008

Masa: 7.30 pm

Tempat: KL/PJ (akan ditentukan kemudian)

Tetamu jemputan adalah:

1. YB Datuk Mukhriz Tun Mahathir
Ahli Parlimen Jerlun, EXCO Pemuda UMNO Malaysia

2. Sdr Akhramsyah M. U. Sanusi
Pengerusi Alumni Melayu UK & Eire (AMUKE), Blogger

Senario politik negara sudah berubah. samada kita suka ataupun tidak, samada kita sedar ataupun tidak, ianya akan mempengaruhi kehidupan kita. Bersamalah kita menentukan halatuju bangsa Melayu. Datang. Dengar. Bersuara.

hebahkan kepada rakan-rakan. tempat adalah terhad. sekiranya berminat, sila email kepada: sekretariat.melayu.muda@gmail.com

Terima kasih. Semoga berjumpa pada 30 April 2008.

Sekretariat Melayu Muda

April 14 2008

Today is an important day. at least in the political world. Today is the last day of the ban on Anwar Ibrahim from contesting in an election. come tomorrow, he is a free man - truly free. the last shackle is finally coming off. and tonite keadilan is organising a big bash to celebrate.

in 1999, he went down fighting. the support for him was strong. no doubt about it. the BN took a beating in the ensuing election, especially UMNO. he went to jail for about 6 years and was released in 2004. (interesting fact: KJ himself went to Anwar's house to deliver his passport for him to go overseas to seek treatment for his back problem). he is now 60 years old. whether we like him or not, he is making a comeback. in a big way. So with this ban gone, what is his next move?

he has few options. ONE, he continues to be the de-facto leader of Pakatan Rakyat, without being in Parliament. very unlikely. he needs to be in parliament to legitimise his role as the leader of the opposition - prime minister in waiting. if he wants to be the prime minister, he has to be in parliament. no two ways about it. plus he wants to be visible and vocal. and parliament is the best place - it is the best speakers' corner in the country. so he has to be elected to parliament soon. he cant afford to wait till the next GE, as the political climate might change then. he has to capitalise on the current sentiment and attack, attack, attack!

so option TWO, get elected to parliament. for that to happen, there must be a by-election for a particular parliamentary seat. but where? there are three areas that have been bandied around - permatang pauh, lembah pantai and bandar tun razak. the MP for permatang pauh is his wife. whereas, the MP for lembah pantai is his daughter. and the MP for bandar tun razak is TS Khalid Ibrahim, the Selangor MB. permatang pauh is his stronghold. he was its MP for a long time when he was still with UMNO. his wife was called a reluctant politician when she took over the seat from him in 1999. but over the years, she somewhat became a symbol for women in politics. so she is an asset to keadilan. and Anwar may not want to sacrifice her. his daughter, nurul izzah represents the young generation. anwar also may not want to sacrifice her. therefore, the likely sacrifice is TS Khalid. TS Khalid is the MB of Selangor. it is a 'hot' position - with constant media and public scrutiny. he needs to focus on that job, without being distracted with other responsibilities. and last week he resigned as sec-gen of keadilan. is this the cue that he may also resigned as an MP? we will know soon.

then there is option THREE. force a by election in an area not represented by the opposition. how? get the incumbent to resign and jump ship. or wait for election cases to be decided by the court. the court may decide in their favour. why? simple. they would get an extra seat in Parliament. but this scenario is unlikely coz it is risky.

whatever he decides, one thing is for sure. our political scene would never be the same. ever. we pray for the best, prepare for the worst.

change - the buzz word.

Yesterday morning, i got an sms from my friend Dr Siva:"buy mingguan. interesting interview with muhyiddin." so instead of buying one, i went to the internet and read the interview. Interesting indeed. even the title is "Masa untuk perubahan" (translation: Time for Change). Read on.

Mingguan Malaysia: Interview with TS Muhyiddin Yaasin.

Masa untuk perubahan

MINGGUAN: Bagaimana Tan Sri melihat pencapaian UMNO dan BN dalam pilihan raya kali ini?

MUHYIDDIN: Kita mencapai keputusan yang kurang baik kerana di peringkat Parlimen, Barisan Nasional (BN) hanya menguasai 140 kerusi. Di negeri-negeri pula, banyak kawasan yang dimenangi dengan majoriti agak rendah atau terus kalah. BN kalah teruk di Pulau Pinang, Kedah, Perak, Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan.

Di Kelantan prestasi BN bertambah buruk. Di beberapa negeri seperti Negeri Sembilan, BN menguasai 20 kerusi negeri, pembangkang 15. Di Johor walaupun ia dikenali sebagai kubu kuat UMNO, buat pertama kali dalam sejarah ia ditembusi pembangkang. Walaupun kita bersyukur kerana masih berkuasa di peringkat Parlimen, tetapi dalam keadaan tidak mempunyai majoriti dua pertiga, ia adalah kemerosotan paling besar dalam sejarah BN. Ini kerana dua pertiga adalah bagi menunjukkan kekuatan. Biarpun Perdana Menteri menyatakan kita masih menang dengan simple majority, tetapi ia meletakkan kita dalam keadaan tidak kukuh (openly disagreeing with PM Abdullah Badawi). Semua ini musibah yang amat membimbangkan dan cukup bahaya. Ia isyarat bahawa rakyat tidak puas hati dengan BN dan menunjukkan kemarahan melalui peti-peti undi.

Apa langkah yang perlu diambil bagi membaiki keadaan?

MUHYIDDIN: Kita akan mengadakan post-mortem dan berharap ia akan dibuat secara bebas supaya tidak ada pihak yang mengubah suainya untuk kepentingan sesiapa. Kita hendak tahu, apakah sebenarnya yang menyebabkan kita kalah teruk walaupun di peringkat awal orang sudah membuat andaian-andaian. Pertama, mereka sebut soal kepimpinan, mereka menyalahkan Perdana Menteri yang juga Presiden parti dan Pengerusi BN. Mereka juga mengaitkan dengan apa yang sering disebut 'fakta KJ'. Mungkin ia tidak betul atau persepsi tetapi dalam pilihan raya dan politik, persepsi itu penting.

Kita boleh kata kita sudah bangunkan negara selama 50 tahun, bawa banyak pembangunan dan nikmat. Tetapi kenapa rakyat tolak kita? Itulah yang harus difikirkan. Apakah mungkin kita memahami ada beberapa perubahan besar dari segi pemikiran rakyat iaitu generasi selepas merdeka dan generasi baru yang umumnya dikatakan tidak menyokong BN?

Ada rakyat yang mengatakan kepimpinan BN tidak menyerlah, lemah dan tidak berupaya menangani keadaan semasa. Ada yang sebut soal-soal berkaitan ketelusan, hak kebebasan dan nilai-nilai baru yang mungkin kita tidak sedari mulai menyerap dalam pemikiran generasi baru. Kita masih berfikiran lama. Orang sudah berubah, kita tidak berubah.

Oleh itu, mereka lebih kritikal terhadap apa yang kita lakukan. Bagi sesetengah pengundi, mereka tidak lihat pembangunan sebagai keutamaan. Mereka lihat aspek-aspek lain seperti harga barang, sistem kehakiman, kebebasan bersuara, soal mengongkong yang dilakukan oleh kepimpinan kerajaan dan macam-macam lagi.

Maknanya, kalau BN hendak menarik perhatian pengundi, parti itu perlu melakukan perubahan?

MUHYIDDIN: Ketika ini orang bercakap soal kepimpinan sama ada kepimpinan Perdana Menteri mahupun komponen BN sehingga memungkinkan mereka menolak UMNO, MCA, MIC dan Gerakan di beberapa peringkat. Apakah perlu satu perubahan? Di banyak negara bila ada pilihan raya tema paling popular ialah change dan dalam pilihan raya lalu pihak pembangkang menggunakan tema perubahan.

Di peringkat kita sekarang, harus menilai apakah perlu ada perubahan. Itu persoalan yang cukup kritikal yang perlu ditimbang semasak-masaknya. Ada orang kata kita perlu merombak semula parti untuk menyesuaikan dengan situasi pemikiran dan keadaan semasa. Ini memerlukan satu rombakan dari segi pemikiran dan minda bagi membolehkan UMNO terus relevan.

Contohnya, orang kata parti-parti komponen bersama BN kalah kerana mereka terlalu didominasikan oleh UMNO. UMNO menjadi teras kerajaan dan banyak polisi hanya melibatkan kepentingan orang UMNO dan Melayu sahaja. Jadi saya fikir kita perlu teliti balik kenyataan seumpama ini dan perbaiki.

Kalau kita mahu membantu parti komponen BN kita harus lihat bagaimana hendak membantu mereka. UMNO tidak boleh bersendirian dalam situasi yang sudah berubah ini. Kita memerlukan sokongan masyarakat bukan Melayu. Jadi ini memerlukan rombakan dari segi pengurusan dalam BN. Saya sudah syorkan dalam mesyuarat pengurusan parti supaya kita membentuk pelan tindakan memperkukuhkan semula UMNO dan BN.

Ia bukanlah sesuatu yang dibincangkan secara ad hoc sebaliknya satu pasukan diwujudkan bagi menggubal pembentukan semula pendekatan kita sama ada dalam parti mahupun kerajaan.

Apakah pembentukan semula ini turut menuntut supaya kepimpinan parti juga perlu berubah seperti mana didesak oleh banyak pihak?

MUHYIDDIN: Saya lihat dengan jelas perasaan tidak senang hati terhadap kepimpinan parti. Saya sebut ini bukan saya cakap tetapi berdasarkan kepada maklumat yang dikumpul. Dalam percakapan mereka yang dilakukan secara terbuka dan ikhlas tanpa 'digagahi' oleh mana-mana pihak, satu perkara pokok yang disebut ialah soal kepimpinan. Di luar parti pun ada yang bercakap perkara yang sama, dikaitkan dengan masalah keluarga dan sistem yang diamalkan.

Justeru saya bimbang jika tidak ada satu perubahan berlaku seperti mana yang bukan sahaja dituntut oleh UMNO tetapi orang luar UMNO, rakyat akan terus tolak BN dan UMNO. Oleh itu, ahli parti harus fikir secara matang, Perdana Menteri sudah buat kenyataan. Pertama, beliau akan pergi bila sampai waktunya. Kedua, beliau menyebut Datuk Seri Najib bakal penggantinya. Ketiga, beliau kata, ''beri saya sedikit masa untuk perbetulkan parti sebelum saya menyerahkan parti kepada pengganti saya.''

Ramai berkata, itu bagus dan jelas dari segi pelan peralihan kuasa tetapi mereka juga bertanya, bila?

Saya fikir ada satu perasaan membuak-buak di peringkat bawah iaitu perasaan tidak puas hati yang ketara. Oleh itu saya berpendapat, kalau tidak berlaku perubahan dalam UMNO maka banyak perkara tidak baik akan terjadi. Justeru saya takut jika saya tidak bercakap dengan benar, ia akhirnya boleh membawa bencana kepada orang Melayu dan UMNO.

Sebab itu saya perlu bersuara walaupun tidak lantang tetapi tegas dan jelas kerana apabila saya bercakap ini, saya tidak melihat (membayangkan) muka sesiapa, sama ada muka Pak Lah, Najib, Muhyiddin atau Mat Taib atau mana-mana pemimpin UMNO. Apa yang saya bimbang ialah UMNO dan orang Melayu akan kalah. Saya benar-benar takut kalau saya tidak mengatakan yang hak (benar) walaupun yang hak itu adalah pahit maka UMNO boleh terjerumus ke dalam keadaan lebih teruk.

Bukan setakat terjerumus tetapi disebabkan UMNO tidak lagi unggul maka UMNO akan hilang kuasa. Saya bertemu ramai tokoh, mereka berkata kalau tidak berlaku apa-apa perubahan, kita akan kalah lebih teruk.

Sebab itu saya rasa bertanggungjawab untuk bersuara walaupun mungkin ada pihak yang membaca kenyataan saya ini, ia satu yang mungkin agak luar biasa tetapi akhirnya saya harus menyatakan perkara yang benar. Tetapi saya menyerahkan kepada kebijaksanaan kepimpinan untuk memikirkan bagaimana caranya (peralihan dilakukan).

Mungkin sesetengah menganggap kenapa perlu UMNO melakukan perubahan kerana turun naik adalah adat dalam pilihan raya.

MUHYIDDIN: Jangan anggap situasi sekarang adalah biasa, mungkin kita dibuai oleh lagu-lagu lama seperti dondang sayang dan rentak-rentak Mawi, maka kita lupa sedangkan situasi sekarang agak berbeza. Apa yang terjadi sekarang adalah luar biasa, kita tidak boleh memperkecilkan gerakan parti pembangkang. Mereka mendapat semangat baru, mereka boleh tumbangkan kerajaan BN, sudah ada Pakatan Rakyat diwujudkan.

Saya pernah sebut PKR hanya ada nafas ikan, saya salah. Banyak pihak kepimpinan kita pun membuat tafsiran salah. Mereka bukan sahaja ada nafas baru malahan kekuatan baru. Jadi kita harus fikir secara drastik untuk mencari formula terbaik untuk selesaikan masalah ini. Dalam soal ini kita ambil pendekatan berhemah. Kalau tarik rambut dalam tepung, rambut jangan putus, tepung jangan berselerak, itu peribahasa yang cukup tepat dalam situasi sekarang.

Persoalannya, modus operandi dan caranya bagaimana? Ia lebih terletak di atas bahu Presiden parti. Kami dalam barisan kepimpinan yang lain bersedia memikul amanah besar, bukan untuk diri saya atau Datuk Seri Najib atau sesiapa tetapi untuk orang Melayu. Dalam situasi ini semua orang harus berfikir mengenai kepentingan parti, bukannya nasib mana-mana individu.

Sekarang adalah waktu kita bersemuka dengan fakta sebenar dan menyatakan kebenaran, kalau tidak bencana lebih besar boleh menimpa kita.

Sejauh manakah ahli UMNO akan menerima apa yang Tan Sri cakapkan ini dan adakah peralihan kepimpinan boleh menyelesaikan masalah?

MUHYIDDIN: Saya meninjau di banyak tempat dan mendapat banyak maklum balas serta ditemui banyak pihak. Selain Khidmat Pesanan Ringkas (SMS) dan panggilan telefon, mereka yang saya temui berpandangan begitu. Mereka kata Tan Sri mesti cepat buat sesuatu, cakap terus terang, berkata yang benar.

Saya sudah buat apa yang sepatutnya saya buat, saya fikir saya tidak keseorangan dalam hal ini. Cuma dalam UMNO sudah ada satu adat dan cara kita yang masih boleh kita gunakan dengan terhormat. Apa yang penting perlu ada ruang kepada kepimpinan baru untuk memulihkan parti sebelum pilihan raya akan datang.

Jadi saya serah kepada kebijaksanaan Presiden parti, beliau yang cakap (untuk serah kepada pengganti), saya rasa dalam hati Perdana Menteri dan Presiden parti beliau akan bersedia dan sedang memikirkan soal ini. Saya berdoa kepada Allah membuka pintu hati Pak Lah untuk berfikir dengan semasak-masaknya. (very polite way of saying - think again PM Abdullah Badawi. think carefully what you need to do next.)

Adakah peralihan itu harus dilakukan pada Disember iaitu ketika pemilihan parti berlangsung sedangkan ia dilihat satu tempoh yang masih lama?

MUHYIDDIN: Itu (pemilihan parti) tidak mengapa, tempoh itu sudah ditetapkan begitu kerana ada sebab-sebab dari segi teknikal. Tetapi proses perubahan dan peralihan boleh dilakukan bila-bila masa. (in other words, it has to be now?!)

Apa yang harus diingat pelbagai perkara lain yang tidak kita ramalkan boleh terjadi. Sama ada jawatan Presiden ditandingi ataupun tidak, Timbalan Presiden akan ditandingi atau tidak, peralihan akan dibuat secara licin ataupun tidak, inilah masanya. Saya berfikir secara mendalam dan jelas kerana sebagai seorang pemimpin dalam UMNO saya harus tahu arah tuju saya, bukan politik saya, tetapi UMNO.

Saya kena tahu di mana saya boleh berperanan. Kenyataan saya tidak bermaksud apa-apa tetapi untuk menyelamatkan UMNO, Melayu dan Islam dalam negara kita, sebab itu saya bersedia untuk bercakap walaupun bagi sesetengah pihak, saya menanggung risiko.

Jadi Tan Sri bersedia menghadapi apa juga risiko dengan memberi pandangan ini?

MUHYIDDIN: Saya sanggup tanggung risiko, itu tidak mengapa, setidak-tidaknya saya sudah menyatakan apa yang hak (benar) kerana ini adalah sesuatu yang perlu dilakukan. Ini bukan soal main-main, tidak pernah berlaku dalam sejarah UMNO dan negara kita berhadapan dengan situasi begini. Bagaimana kalau kuasa politik yang tinggal sedikit dalam tangan kita ini, terlepas daripada genggaman kita, macam mana kita hendak mendapatkannya balik? Seratus tahun belum tentu lagi.

Bolehkah peralihan berlaku sebelum mesyuarat bahagian?

MUHYIDDIN: Saya memetik kenyataan Presiden yang meminta beliau diberi masa untuk memulihkan parti bagi diserahkan kepada Najib. Saya kira kalaupun beliau hendak buat begitu, beliau tidak boleh buat berseorangan. Biarlah kita lakukan. Sekarang adalah waktu kita pula untuk menyumbang dan bekerja keras. Saya bersedia untuk bekerja keras. Semua pemimpin UMNO harus menumpukan perhatian lebih banyak kepada parti daripada kerajaan. Tetapi jangan tinggalkan langsung urusan kerajaan.

Tan Sri dilihat salah seorang yang layak untuk ditonjolkan di peringkat lebih tinggi.

MUHYIDDIN: Saya tidak fikir soal itu, itu terserah kepada ahli-ahli parti. Kalau mereka fikir saya boleh berperanan, saya akan jalankan tanggungjawab itu untuk menyumbang kepada parti di mana juga peringkat tetapi saya tidak minta. Sekarang ini kedudukan saya adalah Naib Presiden, saya bersuara lebih daripada pihak-pihak yang lain, saya tidak kisah. Kadang-kadang ada orang kata saya lebih banyak bersuara daripada Najib, bercakap lebih daripada Pak Lah, tetapi kalau mereka tidak bercakap saya bercakap.

Saya tidak boleh tutup mulut, justeru soal hendak pegang jawatan bukanlah terlalu penting. Namun kalau ditakdirkan oleh Allah saya diberi amanah untuk memegang jawatan lebih tinggi, saya sanggup apa sahaja. Ini bukanlah beban yang selesa. Dalam kedudukan saya, saya tahu apa yang boleh saya buat iaitu bersuara. Kalau dalam agama ini adalah iman yang paling lemah. Agama kata, bertindak itu dan ini tetapi kalau kamu tidak boleh berbuat apa-apa, kamu bersuaralah. Itu yang saya lakukan, terserahlah kepada ahli-ahli memikirkannya.

Ada atau tidak desakan di kalangan ahli UMNO yang mahu Tan Sri bukan sekadar bersuara tetapi lebih daripada itu - bertanding jawatan tinggi?

MUHYIDDIN: Tidak ada desakan tetapi pandangan ada. Kalau mereka melihat saya berani bersuara dan berkata sesuatu yang hak, boleh berperanan penting dan ada gaya kepimpinan itu terserah kepada mereka. Pada waktu ini saya tidak mahu menilai diri saya.

Saya tidak berfikir langsung inilah peluang terbaik untuk masuk bertanding di mana-mana peringkat bagi melawan sesiapa. Namun kalau ahli fikir, Muhyiddin boleh berperanan membantu parti dalam kedudukan mana sekali pun, saya terima. Tetapi penentuan ini bukan saya tetapi mereka dan Allah menentukan, saya hanya bersedia untuk berkorban demi parti. Bagaimanapun apabila tiba masanya, saya hendak membuat keputusan sama ada untuk pertahankan jawatan atau bertanding peringkat lebih tinggi, saya akan umumkan.

Apa nasihat Tan Sri kepada ahli-ahli menjelang pemilihan parti bagi memastikan mereka memilih pemimpin yang benar-benar berwibawa?

MUHYIDDIN: Ini satu proses demokrasi yang harus digunakan sebaik-baiknya untuk meremajakan UMNO, menyuntik semangat baru, membariskan kepimpinan bertenaga dan berwibawa yang boleh memberi kekuatan baru kepada parti agar UMNO terus relevan.

Interesting isnt it? without a doubt, he is making his move. he is positioning himself as the conscience of UMNO - objective and rational. is he really taking a risk? dont think so. nobody is going to censure him. he is the vice president of UMNO. in fact, he is becoming the voice of UMNO members. I remember meeting TS Muhyiddin in the UK more than ten years ago. He attended a talk organised by Kelab UMNO Coventry & Warwick. after the talk, the committee had a close door meeting with him. i remember him being polished and articulate. looks like he still is.

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" - Muhammad Ali

x-factor.

I was in Kajang yesterday with my friend Nazrein. we were there not for satay kajang. but to attend a forum titled: "Krisis Kepimpinan - Mana Silapnya" (translation: Leadership Crisis - What is wrong). It was organised by UMNO Bahagian Hulu Langat. The speakers were Tun Dr Mahathir and Tan Sri Sanusi Junid. so it was no surprise that the hall for the forum was filled to the brim. in fact many had to stand. when Tun M entered the hall, it was pandemonium. shouts of 'Hidup Tun' (translation: Long Live Tun) vibrated throughout the hall. and people rushed forward to shake his hands. it was as if he is still the Prime Minister. This doctor still has the x-factor.

Tan Sri Sanusi spoke first. He said his job that afternoon was to 'warm-up' the audience. Basically he said, here is a man well respected all over the world, and yet condemned in his own country. he related a number of incidences:

one, when he met Prince Saud of Saudi Arabia, he saw that the Prince had many books on Tun M on his bookshelf. The Prince told him that he has very high regards for Tun M.

two, when he was introduced to President Musharaf of Pakistan, the President said to him: " I know you are close to Mahathir. Please advice him not to resign."

three, the Prime Minister of China wanted to appoint him as an advisor to the Chinese Government. Why? so that he would be the bridge between the Chinese Govt and Tun M.

Tan Sri Sanusi went on to talk about what Tun M had done for the country - to instill patriotism, to develop the country etc. and to end his speech, TS Sanusi sang the song 'Warisan' - but with new lyrics. i know this song. when i was in MRSM, we sang 'Warisan' everyday - right after Negaraku. it is a song to remind us of our history. and to remind us about our maruah (dignity) and unity. i have not heard this song for quite sometime. and to hear it again in a forum about the crisis in Malay leadership - very moving. i reproduce here the song for us to contemplate its meaning.

Anak kecil main api,
Terbakar hatinya yang sepi,
Air mata darah bercampur keringat,
Bumi dipijak milik orang

Nenek moyang kaya raya,
Tergadai seluruh harta benda,
Akibat sengketa sesamalah kita,
Cinta lenyap di arus zaman.

Indahnya bumi kita ini,
Warisan berkurun lamanya,
Hasil mengalir ke tangan yang lain,
Peribumi merintih sendiri.

Masa depan sungguh kelam,
Kan lenyap peristiwa semalam,
Tertutuplah hati terkunci mati,
Maruah peribadi dah hilang.

Kini kita cuma tinggal kuasa,
Yang akan menentukan bangsa,
Bersatulah hati, bersama berbakti,
Pulih kembali harga diri.

Kita sudah tiada masa,
Bangunlah dengan gagah perkasa,
Janganlah terlalai teruskan usaha,
Melayu kan gagah di nusantara

By the time for Tun M to speak, the audience was highly charged. Tun M spoke at length on the current state of Malay leadership and unity. He touched on the result of the recent GE with his usual dry humour.

eg: "Not only Kedah is under the opposition, when i want to go back to Alor Star, i have to go thro all opposition states - selangor, perak and pulau pinang."

he reminded UMNO members that if they want to see change, they have to act. and not depend on others to help them. they cannot expect others to act first. they have to act now!

Hate him. or love him. he speaks his mind. and when he speaks, people listen. i did.

Terengganu again.

On Wednesday, the new Terengganu state cabinet was formed. Ten assemblymen were sworn in as state executive councillors (EXCO) and given specific portfolios. Congratulations to all. I sincerely hope they can work well as a team. All we, the rakyat of Terengganu, are asking from you - be honest and committed. nothing more, nothing less.

The State of Terengganu, through its agencies, owns a number of public listed companies. namely - TDM Berhad, EPIC Berhad and Golden Pharos. all of them are listed on the main board of Bursa Malaysia. Overall, these companies are doing pretty well. in fact, TDM announced today that they are acquiring another 30,000 hectares of land in West Kalimantan for oil palm plantation development. am actually proud. indirectly, i feel that i own these companies, maybe 0.0000000000001%.

The chairman of TDM Berhad is Dato Wan Hisham. the chairman of EPIC Berhad is Dato Mohamed Awang Tera. both were appointed in april 2004, right after BN won back the state from PAS. at that time, Dato Wan Hisham was the state EXCO in charge of Infra Development, Public Utilities and Communications. whereas, Dato Mohamed Awang Tera was the state EXCO in charge of Industrial Development and Tourism.

This is where i have a problem. i totally disagree that state EXCOs, who are part of the executive branch, be appointed as chairmen of public listed companies. i have nothing personal against them. and i am not questioning their integrities. but this is an issue of governance. Their chairmenship of these companies are akin to a minister being a chairman of a GLC. can you imagine say, TS Nor Mohamed Yakcop - the 2nd Finance Minister, being chairman of Sime Darby? or Dato Shabery Cheek - Minister of Information, being chairman of Media Prima Bhd.

Dato Wan Hisham lost in the recent GE. So he is ok to continue as chairman of TDM Berhad. Dato Mohamed Awang Tera has been appointed as a state EXCO for another term.

I hope MB Mad Said would not re appoint Dato Awang Tera as chairman of EPIC Berhad. appoint someone who is not part of the executive branch. why not appoint someone from the industry. let state EXCOs concentrate on their main job - serving the people.

Karpal to the Rescue!

"DAP minta Dr M henti kritikan" (translation: DAP wants Dr M to stop criticising). That is the title of an article in Berita Harian today. That title caught my eyes and compelled me to read.

Karpal Singh said:

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad tidak sepatutnya mengambil alih tugas pembangkang dengan mengkritik penggantinya, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, secara berterusan kerana beliau sendiri banyak melakukan kesilapan ketika menjadi Perdana Menteri. Pengerusi DAP, Karpal Singh mendakwa, penyalahgunaan kuasa oleh Dr Mahathir diakui pemimpin Umno sendiri termasuk Abdullah yang secara terang mendedahkan bekas Perdana Menteri itu ialah orang bertanggungjawab terhadap Operasi Lalang. "Salah guna kuasa itu antara lain termasuk mengenakan sekatan terhadap kebebasan media, penangkapan dan penahanan 106 ahli politik, pemimpin kesatuan sekerja serta pekerja gereja dalam Operasi Lalang, Oktober 1987.

"Cukuplah perbuatan beliau memperalatkan badan kehakiman termasuk bagi memecat Timbalannya ketika itu, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. Dr Mahathir sepatutnya menghabiskan masanya sekarang bermain dengan cucu. "Biarlah pembangkang yang kini mempunyai 82 kerusi Parlimen memantau dan mengawasi kerajaan pimpinan Abdullah. Sokongan Dr Mahathir tidak diperlukan pembangkang untuk memastikan Barisan Nasional (BN) tidak menyalahgunakan kuasa," katanya dalam kenyataan di sini, semalam. Beliau berkata, pembangkang tidak memerlukan orang seperti Dr Mahathir yang sanggup membubarkan Umno pada 1988 dan bertindak seperti diktator, selain menyerang pemimpin kerajaan lain sehingga menjejaskan imej negara dan keyakinan pelabur asing. "Dr Mahathir sepatutnya mengambil sikap berhenti menyerang. Sudah tiba masanya beliau berdamai dan membiarkan pembangkang memantau kerajaan pimpinan Pak Lah," katanya.

Dear Mr Karpal, please correct me if i am wrong. If i remember my history, it was the court (presiding judge: the late Justice Harun Hashim) that ruled UMNO was an illegal party. This came about after a group of UMNO members (the UMNO 11) who were dissatisfied with the 1987 UMNO election result, filed a court case. The rest is history. Because of the ruling, Tun M had to re-established UMNO. and had to start from ground zero. His membership no. is 001, Tun Siti is 002. and TS Sanusi Junid's is 007 (licensed to kill?!). So Tun M did not disband UMNO. It was not even his fault that UMNO was declared illegal. For you, or anyone, to put the blame on him is beyond me. If we really want to blame someone, shouldnt it be the disgruntled UMNO 11?

Let's think. why does Karpal Singh, or the whole opposition for that matter, want Tun M to stop criticising PM Abdullah Badawi? Logically, they should be cheering on Tun M. Pour more fuel to the fire. Any attacks on PM Abdullah Badawi could weaken the government. and the opposition would definitely benefit. law of equilibrium - if one side is weak, the other side would be strong. It seems that Karpal Singh/DAP is 'rescuing' PM Abdullah Badawi. surely that cant be true. unless i woke up in a different country today.

Or with Abdullah Badawi as the PM, they fancy their chances to actually win the next GE? so they need him to continue be the PM. it would be in their best interest. is that why he is jumping to rescue Abdullah Badawi? Karpal to the rescue..you think?


"To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he has already achieved, but at what he aspires to". - Khalil Gibran

sacro what?

On page 48 of The Star today, i read a letter to the Editor with the title " The New Malay Dilemma". The writer is one Halimah Mohd Said from Kuala Lumpur. Having read her letter, one came to a conclusion - she is well educated and very perspective.

The thing that really made me think is when she wrote: UMNO is not sacrosanct. Sacrosanct means very sacred or holy. So Puan Halimah is saying UMNO is not sacred. UMNO is not holy. I respect her for saying that.

The way i read her statement is:

ONE. UMNO is not perfect. UMNO is not beyond reproach. UMNO can make mistakes. and if UMNO can make mistakes, leaders of UMNO can also make mistakes. law of logic. as such, UMNO and its leaders must listen and accept criticisms. If UMNO and its leaders think that they can do no wrong, then they are living in fantasy land. definitely not in Malaysia Boleh Land. Coz today in Malaysia Boleh Land, respect for UMNO is no longer there, waning at best. Am i being too dramatic? i hope so. otherwise, that respect may never be re-claimed without a major overhaul. UMNO members talk about leadership change. yes there should be leadership change for the rejuvenation of UMNO to start. but that is only superficial. and the rakyats would know. they can smell it a mile away.

It is no longer a question of should or would. The survival and relevancy of UMNO is at stake. There must be room for debates. There must be room to accommodate multiple views and opinions. Of course some would argue that UMNO does provide that. If you want to express yourself, you can always speak up during UMNO meetings - either at branch, divisional or even national meeting. Really? Plus, all the time, leaders of UMNO would say - if you want to voice your opinions, use the proper channel. What channel?! please tell me. is UMNO annual meeting a channel?

ok let's digress a little bit. as long as you are a member of a branch, you can attend branch annual meeting. (branch is the lowest in UMNO hierarchy.) But you need to be a delegate to attend divisional annual meeting (at branch meeting, they would choose a specified number of people to attend the divisional meeting). Same goes for the national AGM. you need to be a delegate, chosen at divisional level. there would be a proper election (not just a show of hands) to choose the delegates. even Tun Mahathir, after he resigned as party president, he had to contest to be a delegate. unfortunately he lost. mind you, it is a big deal to be a delegate to attend the national AGM. Competition to be delegates could be intense - especially in the UMNO-election year, like this year. so you see. not just anybody can speak in these meetings. only the chosen few. the voice of the grassroot might not be heard at all at the national AGM.

TWO. UMNO is not so sacred that Malays will forever support it. unless it braces change, it will be part of history rather than the maker of history. The relevancy of UMNO has been questioned many times. for me, there are two ways for UMNO to be irrelevant - one, it has achieved all it set out to achieve eg education for the Malays etc etc. therefore, nothing to 'fight' for anymore. Perjuangan sudah selesai. two, when UMNO is no longer in-sync with the Malays. what the Malays want and what UMNO fights for are not in tandem. therefore, UMNO could no longer claim to be representing the Malays. as such, irrelevant. scenario one is unlikely as UMNO's agendas change with time (at least theoretically). so it would always be relevant on this note. scenario two is the most likely to happen and sentence UMNO to its grave. in fact, it is happening now. the younger generation is said to be critical and cynical of UMNO. if it is true, then UMNO must be ready to change and accept new idealism. new ways of doing things. I still believe all Malays want the best for the Malays. just a matter of how to achieve that. For a start, tonite UMNO Youth is having a discussion with a group of young Malays - to get their views and opinions. a little too late? hope not. better late than never.

All this while, maybe UMNO has taken for granted the support of the Malays. That is why some UMNO leaders behave like they are god's gift to the Malays. They forgot who is the master and who is the servant. The Malays have spoken - you ek, we act (ek=eksyen=sombong=show off).

Saboteurs, saboteurs - where are you?

The headline on page 6 of The Star today screamed: "Barisan was sabotaged. PM blames loss of Kedah and Perak on UMNO members." PM Abdullah Badawi said acts of sabotage had taken place in 14 parliamentary and 22 state constituencies in these 2 states during the recent GE. If not for it, BN would not have lost the two-thirds majority and the two state governments.

For me, it is both not surprising and not so important. It is not really rocket science. In many constituencies, if all BN members (members of all 14 BN component parties) were to vote for BN, there is no way BN could lose in those areas. No way! You add up all BN members in a particular area, they would make up the bulk of the voters, thus ensuring BN's grip in that area. These areas are labelled 'white areas' - safe seats, whereby BN would and should win comfortably. Therefore, if BN loses in a white area, you can automatically conclude one thing - BN members did not vote for BN. Straightforward conclusion. So this admission of sabotage is of no significance. What is important is why. You know the disease. and you must also know what causes it. if not, how are you going to fix it.

(Digest this. In 2006, UMNO's Secretary General disclosed that UMNO has 3.2 million members. UMNO has 191 divisions all over the country, except Sarawak. One division represents one parliamentary seat. As such, on average, UMNO has approximately 16,000 members per division. It has been estimated that 15% of the members are non-voters for various reasons eg below the age of 21 etc. Therefore, you have about 13,000 UMNO-member voters per division. of course these are simple calculations. add other members of BN component parties to the figure, and you get the idea.)

PM Abdullah Badawi however declined to elaborate what he meant by sabotage. I am sure he has the necessary evidence. Since he didnt elaborate, we have to assume some types of sabotage occured during the recent GE. Sabotage can take many forms. I have heard many stories - leaders telling their supporters not to help campaign, the Bilik Gerakan (so-called War Room) not properly set-up or manned, posters and other election materials were not distributed etc. If any UMNO members indeed sabotaged the party, i say hang them! figuratively of course. No matter how angry you are towards UMNO (for whatever reason), as a party member, you should not in any way let UMNO be in a disadvantage position during the GE. You should not resort to any dirty tactics to weaken UMNO. You must work for UMNO, and never against it. That is your duty. You as a voter can show your anger at the ballot box. That is your right. If you cant get yourself to vote for the opposition, then either spoil your vote. or dont go to vote at all. Not that i approve. all i am saying, you have options rather than sabotage UMNO with dirty tactics. Not acceptable. Duty vs. right.

According to my Collins Paperback English dictionary, sabotage means deliberate obstruction of or damage to a cause or effort. as such, can the act of voting for a party other than BN be considered as a sabotage, if you are a member of a BN component party, eg UMNO? Based on the definition, it is debatable. If the answer is yes, then, polling stations should only have three rooms/lines - one for BN supporters, one for the opposition parties and one for others.

Actually this question is also applicable in our legislative halls. For example: can a BN MP vote against a certain bill proposed by the government? In current practice, he/she cant. Why? Simple. You were chosen to represent BN. as such, you must at all times, uphold the aspirations of BN. so you are expected to vote for the government. this has led to MPs being labelled as rubber-stamping whatever the government wants to do. To be fair, some BN MPs have been critical on certain issues that compelled the government to revise certain policies. But most of the time, they vote along party lines. The Chief Whip would ensure that. if anybody dares to be different, he/she would be 'whipped'. Literally!

Eid Mubarak so soon?

Eid Mubarak literally means "Blessed Festival". It is a phrase of greetings used by muslims to congratulate each other on holidays eg eid al-fitr (Hari Raya AidilFitri). But Ramadhan is 6 months away.

The Mubarak i am talking about is MUBARAK (Majlis Bekas Wakil Rakyat) - council of ex people's representatives ie MPs and ADUNs. Basically, it is an organisation of retired politicians. Although they are no longer active in politics, they still give support and views to the government. Why am i talking about them?

Heard that they have requested for an appointment to meet PM Abdullah Badawi soon. Tengku Ahmad Rithaudeen, former Foreign Minister, is said to be leading this delegation. The agenda - resignation of PM Abdullah Badawi. Really?

We will know soon enough. Maybe the festival is early this year.

The whole truth, nothing but the truth!

In Bernama news website, TS Muhyiddin called on UMNO members to be brave in stating the truth and not tell lies to make the leader feels good. He added if a weakness existed in the party, they should accept it with an open heart and be prepared to overcome it, instead of just listening without doing anything. It is a lie to say everything is good when we know a weakness exists.

Well said Tan Sri. UMNO should always aspire to achieve that. But the problem is nobody is listening and willing to listen. And worst, if you dare to speak up, your are condemned and threathened. Case in point: Dato Ahmad Tajuddin, Secretary of Pahang UMNO. On Friday, he called for all UMNO Supreme Council members to resign. He disclosed that the Pahang MB told him that he would be sacked for making that statement. Do i agree with Dato Tajuddin? I dont. But he stated his stand. exercised his right to speak. In no way he should be sacked! I have a copy of UMNO's constitution. I cant find any provision saying that a member can be sacked just for speaking up. If i am wrong, God saves us.

Dato Sri Najib can surely relate to what TS Muhyiddin said. In 1999, his political career almost came to an abrupt end when he only won his Pekan parliamentary seat with a 241-vote majority. A case of everybody telling him "all ok chief", whereby the real situation was far from it. Wonder what would have happened, had he lost. Muhyiddin as DPM? Well that is academic. The real question now is whether he would go against Dato Sri Najib for the no. 2 post? In fact, Tun Mahathir mentioned his name as a potential for the presidency recently. He must be elated.

Nazrein in action!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU6NMwQu8II


This is my friend Nazrein in action. i mentioned him in one of my earlier posts. He attended the forum organised by mykmu.net recently and posed a question to Dr Khir Toyo. If you had read the report in The Star, Dr Khir Toyo admitted that there were some outside influences in determining the candidates for the GE. (http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/2/nation/20820704&sec=nation)

You can always count on Nazrein to ask questions - especially the difficult ones. Bravo Sir.

Gentlemen, start your engine!

The race is on. Dato' Seri Hishammuddin, UMNO Youth Chief announced yesterday that he would not be defending his post in the coming UMNO election. He is paving the way for a new leader to take over. Thank you Dato Seri for making your intention clear. UMNO Youth members can now start deliberating on who should be the next chief. With this prompt announcement, UMNO Youth members would have more time to consider various options and various candidates to strenghten the movement after the disastrous GE.

Dato Seri Hishammuddin took a risk by making this announcement so quickly and so early, as now everybody can guess his next move. It is out in the open. Although he did not say which post he would be contesting, he would most probably vie for one of the VP posts. It is the most logical choice. The position of UMNO Youth Chief is the same level as VPs anyway. so it would be the natural progression. (there are actually six VP level positions in UMNO - the 3 VPs, Wanita Chief, Youth Chief and Puteri Chief - in that order.) It is very unlikely that he would contest the deputy president's post, as long as Dato Sri Najib is there. They are cousins. and blood ties do count. They would never fight each other. Not in a million years. He would only go for the no. 2 position if Dato Sri Najib fights for the top post. Also an unlikely scenario at this point of time. although that might change actually. Recently, Tun Mahathir was quoted as saying that he is withdrawing his support for Dato Sri Najib. I dont think so. He is in fact pushing Najib to centrestage and 'telling' him to challenge PM Abdullah Badawi. Tun Mahathir wont say " Najib please contest the President's post". That is not his style.

Back to UMNO Youth. as we know, two leaders have indicated that they would consider contesting - Dr Khir Toyo and Dato Mukhriz Mahathir. Since now Dato Hishammuddin has stated his intention, it is only proper for them to state their intentions. To contest or not to contest. That goes for others as well - those who aspires for the top position but have kept their cards very closely. No more guessing game. State your intention. Dont be too calculative.

I remember this chorus but cant remember the song nor the singer. "Jangan tunggu lama-lama, nanti lama-lama...dia diambil orang".

"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly" - Robert F. Kennedy

A Funeral. No wedding.

I just got back from a funeral. On the way to work this morning, i received a call from my sister - Dato Abu Mansor passed away yesterday evening. I quickly went home, changed to something more comfortable, put on my songkok and off to Selayang, to Dato Mansor's house. I got there at about 845am, and there were already many people, outside and inside the house.

I went in and saw his covered body in the middle of the living room, with few people reciting the Yasin near him. I purposely did not want to lift the cloth covering his face, although many who came later did. Not that i was afraid. I told myself, i dont want his lifeless image to be imprinted in my mind. I want to picture him as he was - full of life and ever smiling.

Dato Mansor is a very good friend of my father. They go way back to their student days, studying law in London together. They had taken different career paths. He sticked to his legal career, whereas my father ventured into politics at one point, before going back to the legal service. As fate has it, they both became judges. and had offices next to each other. So over the years, they kept each other company as being judges can be lonely. It was no surprise when my father asked him to speak at my wedding on his behalf.

I still remember the Friday routine when i was younger. I would follow them for prayers at the Bangsar mosque. and later would go for nasi daun pisang, at a shop opposite Maybank Bangsar. I wonder whether it is still there. one of these days, i should go for old time sake.

And i still remember the day my father passed away. I saw him cry. He had lost a dear friend. At that point, i saw true friendship. A bond so strong that only death would set them apart. My father was indeed fortunate to have him as a friend.

So Uncle Mansor, i bid you farewell. May Allah bless your soul.

To Auntie Faridah and family, my condolences. Time does not heal. It just let us cope better.

Al-fatihah.

Keep it up!

Yesterday, mykmu.net organised a forum entitled "UMNO Post 12th General Election: An Assessment". Congratulations to the organiser. Keep up the good work. Mykmu.net has been in existence for a number of years (http://www.beritakmu.net/). They have lively discussions on UMNO, malay agenda, islam etc. If you have an open mind and want to get more insights on UMNO, do visit. Otherwise give it a pass. Nobody would hold it against you. Your right, your choice.

Few of my friends attended the forum. I was told that the response for the forum was overwhelming. many had to follow the proceedings from outside the hall (Utusan Malaysia estimated the numbers to be more than 2,000). Not surprising as they had an impressive line-up of speakers - Tun Dr Mahathir, Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir, Dato Seri Dr Khir Toyo and Dr Puad Zakarshi. Combined you have a past president, an UMNO Supreme Council member, an UMNO Youth Exco member, two divisional leaders, 2 MPs, 1 ADUN, an ex-Prime Minister and an ex-Menteri Besar. I am sure everybody is familiar with the first three names - they need no further introduction. FYI, Dr Puad won the Batu Pahat parliamentary seat in the recent GE. He is the Head of Batu Pahat UMNO Division. He is also the Information Chief of UMNO Johor. In the last Parliament, he served as a Senator. And prior to that he served as the Political Secretary to Dato Ghani Othman, MB of Johor. (Political Secretary is equivalent to Chief of Staff. remember West Wing?)

Apparently emotions ran high throughout the forum. A little incident also occurred when someone actually suggested/asked whether Anwar Ibrahim should be brought back into UMNO - he was heckled and had to be taken out of the hall. Pity him. No one should be castigated for expressing his/her opinion. Whether we agree or not with that opinion is secondary. One should be allowed to express oneself. The right to speak openly is crucial for UMNO to move forward. We must always uphold the principle of 'agree to disagree'. At least, he had the courage to broach a sensitive issue openly, which a lot of UMNO members discuss quietly anyway.

So what can we conclude from this forum?

One, pressure is mounting for PM Abdullah Badawi to resign. even Dr Puad was quoted in The Star asking PM Abdullah Badawi to resign. Considering he is from Johor, the birthplace and stronghold of UMNO, his call is an eye-opener. Think about it. If someone from Johor is asking for PM Abdullah Badawi to resign, imagine the sentiment within UMNO. Should PM Abdullah Badawi be worried? 20% of his cabinet ministers are from UMNO Johor (6 ministers). Or that actually ensures his grip on the state.

Two, emotions are still high. Since the disastrous performance in the GE, top leadership of UMNO has yet to engage the members - to discuss the result, to have a heart-to-heart talk. TS Muhyiddin even admitted this today in The Star. (he said "..top party leaders had not even gone down to the ground to address members' concerns and revive their spirits...") The longer you wait, the worse it becomes. not better. MCA, MIC and Gerakan have had special briefings for their members. When is UMNO's?

Three, the big turnout suggests that people are looking for an outlet to express themselves. they have so many questions to ask. so many things to say. and so many emotions suppressed inside. They need directions. They want leadership. Now.


"We are not creatures of circumstance; we are creators of circumstance" - Benjamin Disraeli

Doctor who?

Well. At last the cat is out of the bag. Yesterday, Dato Seri Dr Khir Toyo admitted that he would consider contesting for the post of UMNO Youth Chief in the coming UMNO election. He is currently seeking the inputs/views from the grassroot before he makes the final decision. That is standard politician talk. In simple layman terms, this is the translation - I want to contest, please nominate me. Sometimes we just wish they say what they want, direct to the point. Or is this another example of practising 'adat budaya melayu' (malay culture) - be humble, do not be a show-off (menunjuk-nunjuk). anyway, politically it would look better if you were nominated, rather than you offer yourself as a candidate.

http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2008&dt=0401&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Politik&pg=po_02.htm

This open admission by Dr Khir is not surprising. UMNO members and political observers have been talking about this possibility for quite sometime. It all started when Dato Seri Hishamuddin, the current UMNO Youth Chief, hinted sometime last year, that this would be his last term as the chief - having been in charge since year 2000.

This admission is also a 'siren' to his loyalists/supporters. They would start to mobilise, campaign and 'sell' his name to the grassroot. This of course would be done quietly and slowly. Meetings and discussions would be done in small groups over a period of time. Why? Few reasons. One, they do not want to be seen as too aggressive, as that would put off some UMNO members. Two, they can better gauge the sentiment/support for their boss. Three, the election is in December. So they have to pace themselves as not to 'peak' too early, for some other candidates to slip in and snatch the support of the grassroot from under their feet. (case in point: Hillary vs Obama)

Who doesnt know Dr Khir Toyo. He is both famous and infamous. He rose meteorically in UMNO. Luck played a big role in his political life. A classic case of being at the right place, at the right time. In August 2000, Dato Abu Hassan resigned as the MB of Selangor. At that point, Dr Khir was serving his first term as an ADUN, having won a state seat in the 10th GE that was held earlier in Nov 1999. After that GE, he contested and won as an UMNO Youth Exco member. To the surprised of many, he was picked as the new MB, against a field of more senior and experienced candidates. He was only 35 years old. I was surprised, sceptical and happy, all at the same time. Surprised coz a greenhorn, barely a year into his first term as a wakil rakyat, was chosen. Sceptical whether he would be able to perform without enough experience as a politician and a leader. Happy as i saw the appointment as a vote-of-confidence to the younger generation. In fact, he attended two events organised by my friends and I, thro our group Sekretariat Melayu Muda. Many who attended find him to be approachable and soft spoken. He has this natural unassuming common touch. And you can tell it is real, not made-up. Another person who has this similar trait is TS Muhammad Muhd Taib. Regardless what we have heard about them, we cant take away that from them.

Over the years, Dr Khir had his ups and downs. But at the same time, he got himself really close to UMNO members. In the 2004 UMNO election, Dr Khir Toyo contested and won a seat on UMNO's Supreme Council - with the highest vote! Remarkable by any standard - considering it was achieved within a span of four years. Clearly he had a strong support base within UMNO. And although Selangor fell to the opposition in the recent GE, he still commands sizeable number of supporters - so i've been told. If that is the case, i believe he fancies his chances and go for broke. What has he got to lose? He already lost a state.