mana-mana

CAN NAZRI SUCCEED WITH THE TAXIS?

2009-12-27T23:34:00.003+08:00

ONE thing that doesn't leave my mind is the highly uncomplimentary remarks by minister Nazri Aziz about our taxis. He likened the service, and I assume he must be talking about the attitude of the drivers, to the equally filthy public toilets we have up and down the country.

Not surprisingly the drivers and the associations that represent them are furious and have threatened all kinds of reactive moves. And we hear the usual "only a small number of drivers give the industry a bad name...". How small is small only the associations can tell us, which I'm sure they can't because it's about putting a number to it.

In this case I agree with my friend Nazri although I cannot determine which is the filthier of the two.

Few or a lot we can argue till the next day and we will never come to an agreement but my own experiences with taxis convince me that many just don't give a hoot about using their meters, which means their drivers don't have the slightest hesitation about trying to cheat passengers.

It's not difficult to determine the trends, in case the department or ministry concerned still can't figure it out after seeing countless number of CVLB chairmen and ministers holding the portfolios. One is that the cheating takes place later in the evening, especially after midnight although by then the 50% additional surcharge applies. Four out of five taxis you stop will ask if you would be willing "to pay a bit more". Or they just tell you their own fixed rates.

The press reports I read tell me that the second way of doing it is to try and make extra (illegal) money from a passenger who looks like a foreigner. This happens both day and night.

The other sure bet of being told a fixed rate before you even step into a taxi is when you approach the ones parked on the road outside hotels, bars and restaurants. Where this is concerned I dare say that all the drivers adopt the same practice. It does appear that those who may not want to cheat have a choice. Those who don't play the game is ostracised and will have to buzz off from there. One night recently a bloke even punched a taxi driver of a so-called limo whose presence was not expected in the territory of the former!

Remember what the associations and taxi drivers tell you whenever they are asked why cheating takes place? "The fares are low and many of us find it tough to decently feed our family." The fares have been increased since about two months ago and you know what? The cheating goes on as per usual.........

I hope Nazri succeeds to crack the whip and clean up the sector where so many others before him had failed. As I had written here before, the problem is so elementary really. So is the solution.

WHICH WAY OUT THEN MCA?

2009-12-24T22:43:00.003+08:00

A COUPLE of weeks ago it appeared that there was hope after all for a quick fix to the MCA leadership crisis but as of now it looks like it's going to be more of the same.

Press reports indicate that not even deputy president Chua Soi Lek has agreed to resign as a central committee member, as he said he would, to allow for fresh party elections. With just hours to the Christmas Day deadline, it looks like only those aligned to vice-president Liow Tiong Lai have put in their resignation letters and that means only 13 out of the minimum of 21 required.

Anyone who had studied carefully the statements and views made by the Barisan Nasional leadership, i.e. the PM and his deputy, would realise that they too felt that fresh elections would be the first step towards ending this nonsense once and for all. Clearly party president Ong Tee Keat and his people think otherwise and a hint on this could be read from the remarks made by his most outspoken ally Ti Lian Ker when he said that "as they were responsible for the party, the CC members could not simply bow to external pressure."

I'm sure patience is running thin on the part of the Barisan leadership and having to deal with people who do not seem to be ready for a compromise is not going to bring the temperature down.

FAMILY OR PARTY?
LATELY we have been hearing more and more from Nik Amalina, the daughter of Kelantan MB Nik Aziz who's married to Abdul Ariffahmi, the head of state company Kelantan Mentri Besar Incorporated who a lot of people feel should resign immediately instead of waiting three months as allowed under his terms of appointment.

Because of the personalities involved and also because it's a company under a state administered by Pas, everything is intertwined -- between family and party. Ariffahmi is also a party man.

It is to be expected that a wife should be seen to be behind her husband every inch of the way especially since the Internet allows the opportunity for everyone to write without having to worry about censorship or having to deal with a gatekeeper but I think it would be better if Nik Amalina stays out of an already murky situation.

THE GOODS OF YOUR....
SEEN at the door to an Internet cafe: "Please remember to take all the goods of your before leaving. Otherwise we will not be taking any responsibility on the losing goods." And also "No food allow."

Goodness me.

WOMEN'S BADMINTON DESERVES MORE, NOT FOOTBALL

2009-12-19T22:56:00.003+08:00

I THINK we've got it wrong again, this obsession with even the most insignificant of an achievement by our Under-23 football team. Yes, it's not even the national team and some of the teams that played in the recently concluded Laos Sea Games were not their first national XVs either.

So rare was success associated with Malaysian football that many of us looked forward to that final against Vietnam as if we were in the Fifa World Cup final! Live telecast by two TV channels, a deputy minister asking employers to give time off to allow their staff to watch the telecasts, the press giving so much coverage like it was an Olympic gold we had won. No doubt we had to wait 20 years but for a Sea Games gold medal? The Sea Games is the smallest of all the multi-sports programmes we participate in, if you don't realise it already.

An achievement is an achievement but I would rather that we look at everything in the proper perspective. There was in fact a much more deserved win in Vientiane but football somehow obscured everything.

Because the coverage of this victory was so-so not many realised that we had to wait 34 years for a women's badminton team gold, followed by another in the women's doubles. Malaysian women's badminton has progressed multiple times in the last 30 years. I remember vividly the embarrassing matches our women were involved in, whether it was at the Malaysian Open at Stadium Negara or at other venues for other competitions. Either they couldn't get past the qualifying rounds or survived only the first game in the main draw. Playing in the All-England or the final rounds of the Uber Cup was unheard of. Now we beat Indonesia for the team gold and Indonesia have had their world and All-England champions.

Football? The last 25 years have been nothing but downhill. So much money has been spent by Fam, the government and sponsors and yet there is nothing big to show. Now there is a possibility of more money being spent. A few hours ago I heard a Fam official saying the team that was victorious in Vientiane will be rewarded.

Let's be realistic. When we compare women's badminton and football which one has the better prospects at the international or world level, both short- and long-term? What if you look at the London Olympics in three years time? It has to be women's badminton that may win us something while football may need another 20 years before it can hope to get near the top in Asia. Yes only Asia, forget the world. Honestly with the way we do things here I don't see football ever going even midway to be amongst Asia's best.

AISAY LIOW, IF THERE'S NOTHING THERE'S NOTHING

2009-12-16T21:46:00.004+08:00

MCA vice-president Liow Tiong Lai has joined a long list of many public figures (and others too) who cry foul each time a damning allegation comes their way. In the case of Liow it's the allegation that says his wife Lee Sun Loo was the beneficiary of a semi-luxury vehicle courtesy of a company that has been awarded some projects by the Health Ministry, where Liow is the minister.

Following the allegation which surfaced a couple of months ago Lee was earlier today met by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission for her statement to be recorded. We of course will know the outcome later, whether there is a case against her or that the allegation is another one of those baseless ones aimed at tarnishing a person's image. In this case, by extension Liow's political career.

Later in the day Liow lamented not for the first time that the allegation was aimed at ruining him. He asked why his family had been dragged into this if he was the one targetted. Soon after the allegation was made Liow had told the press his side of the story -- about how much the wheels actually cost and how he paid for it.

Liow, if there's nothing wrong then there's nothing wrong. If there is no way you or your family can be implicated and that you indeed took a bank loan to pay for the car I'm sure no one can smear
your good name and that of your family. Just leave it to the MACC to later tell us what exactly is the true situation.

IT'S THIS ADMIN'S CHOICE MAHATHIR
FORMER PM Mahathir Mohamad has written at his blog to criticise the policy of the government under Najib Razak for being too friendly towards the United States to the point of favouring an international resolution in line with the Americans thinking.

For me personally there are things I both agree with and disagree where the US is concerned. I am also not excited about a government that appears to bend backwards to appease a major foreign power, that appears to lick their boots, no matter how strong that country is. At the same time I also understand that each administration must be given space to do what it sees fit. If it makes a wrong move the people will know what to do come the next general elections.

Mahathir of course is entitled to his opinion but Najib's administration is also entitled to do what it thinks is right under its call.

UTUSAN NEXT TO GET IT FROM NAZRI, BUT WHY UTUSAN ONLY?
ON the one hand there is a newspaper where some of my friends work and on the other there is minister Nazri Aziz who was a year my junior in boarding school.

I agree that Utusan Malaysia at times goes overboard in promoting issues concerning the Malays and this country but we can say the same about many other newspapers here, especially the Chinese-owned ones. I'm just wondering why Nazri chose to pick on Utusan in his interview with Malaysian Insider. If he had talked about all newspapers that tend to take a chauvinistic position then I would be more supportive of Nazri's take.

I wait eagerly to read Utusan's reaction.

FOOTBALL MAKES SOME EXCITED.....

2009-12-15T00:02:00.005+08:00

WHEN I last wrote here it was after Malaysia's shameful performances in the Sea Games women's football competition and the kungfu soccer shown by the men. Soon after the boys beat Thailand to qualify for the semis, in which they beat hosts Laos earlier tonight. A diplomat friend based overseas sent an email to say "they beat Thailand did they...??"

I guess reaching the final after two decades means the world to the team, Fam and many Malaysians. Congratulations but I still don't see much of a future for Malaysian football. To me it's not about winning the lowest rung of an international sports meet. Rather it has everything to do with winning the bigger games and beating higher ranked teams more often. It's also about the quality of the football we see at home, the competition structure and the leadership of the national association. We are a long way from being anywhere near the best there is, not at the world level mind you but if only the regional level.

YES, TIME TO DELIVER
SELANGOR MB Khalid Ibrahim has pledged to heed the advice of the Sultan about walking the talk. The ruler's message at the investiture ceremony in conjunction with his birthday was simple -- it's time to end the blame game and fault-finding and do more, including delivering on the promises made during the election campaign last year. How appropriate and timely.

Scrutinise the election manifestos of Pakatan Rakyat and PKR and you will realise the many promises that have not been fulfilled and most likely will never be fulfilled come the end of the term of this state government three plus years from now. One that I remember clearly is the promise to provide free education in Selangor (or to Selangorians in the state possibly) from pre-school to university. That is going to cost the government a bomb and no number of economic advisers will be able to help the state find the money simply because the economy does not permit it.

Someone should replicate the message in Penang where the blame game happens most often. At least I have not heard much of it in Kedah since Azizan Razak of Pas became the MB. There has been little of it too in Perak since Umno took over the stewardship of the government from the mainly Dap state leadership but led by Mohammed Nizar Jamaluddin of Pas. Kelantan? They are in a world of their own, led by an old man who's quite a maverick in his own (unique) ways.

ENGLISH, ENGLISH, ENGLISH
DAP's Karpal Singh has proposed that we make English our second official language. I think the Philippines did the same sometime in the 90s. For once I'm with the lawyer on this -- and all the way, always and forever.

Since about 25 years ago our Bahasa Malaysia/Melayu/Kebangsaan has become quite unrecognisable in many ways, turning more and more into a combination of words from the English vocabulary that have modified to look and sound Malay, and some borrowed from Bahasa Indonesia while throwing out on into the sewerage system to be swallowed into oblivion for good. Why this is so no one has been able to explain and no one amongst the so-called custodians of our BM seems to care.

The depressing thing is that our English has also become worse, with mistakes rarely seen 30 years ago surfacing on billboard, notices, circulars from management, in annual reports, press advertorials and everything else.

Seen at a restaurant in Kangar: "We food you" and "We herb you". Gees, what is the owner trying to tell his patrons? You tell me.

By the roadside in KL's Taman Desa: "Pipe work AT progress". I will give you more as we go along, that's for sure.

By the way, is there a Jalan Utan anywhere in KL? That's what I saw on a road-sign for some road works under the KL City Hall on Jalan Ampang. I'm sure they meant to say Jalan U Thant. That's how can't be bothered we have become. In case you haven't noticed, City Hall has also coined its own name for the Bukit Nenas forest reserve. You see this on the road signs in the city. To City Hall that part of town is called the "City Forest". Phew.......

TOUGHEN UP OR FORGET SPORTS

2009-12-08T23:57:00.002+08:00

LET'S ignore politics, at least for today, and move to another area that can be just as hilarious -- and embarrassing.

The women got whacked by two of the region's powerhouses in football while the men put up their own version of Kung-fu Fighter, with help from a few bottles meant for the team to quench their thirst.

First it was 14-0 down to Thailand and then 8-0 to Vietnam. The other joke was that team manager Alina Cheong described the heavy defeat to the Thais as "an improvement" because they had lost by 17-0 in a pre-Sea Games tournament. Alina, if you are happy I guess we cannot begrudge you.

Since women's soccer was played in the 1997 Sea Games it's been either Thailand, Vietnam or Myanmar topping the standings.

I first saw the Thai women in action at the 1985 Sea Games in Bangkok. I think it was an exhibition game but I cannot remember now who they played against. My Thai friends told me most of the players were with the Royal Thai Air Force and included a few national sprinters. It appears that these same fast and fit women were also in the RTAF team that ripped everyone else apart at the Haadyai rugby Sevens some months later.

The reality is simple. Almost all of these women are from the impoverished rural areas of Thailand where life can be tough. It hardens you. Joining the air force or any other uniformed service only makes them tougher. I think that women's rugby team I saw would make tough opponents against many of our men's teams playing at the same tournament in terms of speed, pace and fitness. I think the women from Myanmar and Vietnam originate from the same rural environment. Ours who make up the national football or rugby team? All urban -- and urban life doesn't make you hard physically.

WHEN YOU THINK THE REF IS WRONG, FIGHT, GO AFTER HIM
WHICH was precisely what our Under-23 boys did after going down 3-1 against Vietnam in a group match. One player was sent off and he became one of the aggressors. The photos I saw in the newspapers showed that most of the officials seen with the team did not appear to be doing much to intervene and help prevent a punch-up or a kickabout kung-fu style. That was also the observation of National Sports Council director-general Zolkples Embong.

He was right there watching the game so he should know. But Fam deputy president Khairy Jamaluddin wasn't there as far as I'm aware and yet made a statement which also blamed Korean referee Kim Jong Hyeok.

We should not waste any more time, effort and money. That would also spare the country and its people much shame. Let's just stop playing football and instead enjoy whatever there is to be seen on Astro from England and next year, the World Cup in South Africa. Stop dreaming that our football is going to get any better, not with the present set-up within Fam, and no matter who the coach is.

MAYBE NIK AZIZ TOO SHOULD GO

2009-12-07T23:20:00.003+08:00

MAYBE it was a sabbatical that was much needed, unconsciously perhaps, but driving up north on the North-South Highway the day before Hari Raya Haji was an experience I would not wish to repeat.

First time I had driven back to my hometown twice in a month but the niece missed her grandma so much. More on the bad and wasteful habits of Malaysian drivers later.

The R&R provided a lot of fun for me while watching the antics of some of our politicians from a distance. There was Kelantan MB Nik Aziz Nik Mat finally asking his son-in-law to quit as CEO of a state agency, an appointment Nik Aziz said the state legal adviser did not tell him was improper or unlawful. Maybe it truly wasn't but what about the moral and political perspective? Imagine the flak if the prime minister or a Barisan Nasional MB had done the same to favour a brother?

After so much bad press on allegations of improprieties at the agency Nik Aziz finally had to be coaxed by senior Pas men to ask his daughter's husband to quit. Nik Aziz has since made one remark about wishing evil for Umno and the prime minister which I think did not go down well with those who don't believe in him. This the man former Umno minister Zaid Ibrahim thinks is the ideal person to head Pakatan Rakyat?

Apparently Nik Aziz didn't think the appointment was nepotism. My Webster says this about nepotism: "Favouritism shown to relatives, usually in the form of patronage, and based upon the relationship rather than merit."

IN THIS CASE IT'S EASY TO SAY SORRY LATER
THE situation in Perak relating to the mentality and behaviour of some Dap politicians remains very much un-Malaysian, still. They have apologised for having the faces of former Pakatan Rakyat representatives on a doormat but in their circle they have former MB Mohamed Nizar Jamaluddin, a man of religion as I understand it. Didn't they discuss this idea with him?

Hard to accept that Nizar was not in the know because previously he was everywhere with them -- under the tree, in a coffee-shop and disrupting a State Assembly session. The apology of course came after they were hit left, right and centre in the press. We don't know if it was sincere but the damage had been done.

Since being ousted earlier this year this mainly Dap group has never failed to surprise us with many firsts. Soon the country's highest court will decide if Nizar is or isn't the rightful MB. Don't be shocked if they come up with yet another special in Ipoh, inside or outside of the State Assembly, if the decision goes against Nizar.

LIM, ADMIT IT WHEN YOU ARE WRONG

2009-11-23T00:44:00.002+08:00

SOME say Lim Guan Eng has done a good job since becoming Penang chief minister after the general elections in March last year. Others of course disagree. I have noticed a trend in Lim, one which will call his bluff if he goes overboard and lets his guard down.

Some months ago he went on quite a bit about the big foreign investments that were heading Penang's way but Lim has since quietened down on this. What many do not realise is that many of the investments that were supposed to come in had been due to the missions undertaken by the Barisan Nasional government before that. It was as if Lim was claiming credit for something which had nothing to do with him.

Lim's other favourite move is to apportion blame to the preceding government whenever something goes wrong under his watch. The Kampung Buah Pala issue was one and the conversion of the status of prime seafront land on Lebuh Farquhar the most recent and currently an issue taken up by people in Umno in the state.

The records show that Lim had told the State Assembly that there was no approval for such a conversion up to last June but in fact the state exco had approved it on June 3. Because of this Lim should do the decent thing, admit his mistake, apologise for it and move on. But no, he has now blamed Barisan for agreeing in principle in January 2007 to allow for the conversion.

If Lim had explained that his administration was legally bound to honour what was agreed upon earlier by the BN administration no one can dispute his exco's decision. He hasn't said so. If there is no legal implication Lim's administration is thus not morally and legally obliged to continue where the BN left off. The same applies to Kampung Buah Pala, especially in view of the promises made by the Dap and its Pakatan Rakyat allies during campaigning for the elections.

But you can't go on blaming others forever for the faults and limitations under you. One day something worse may show up and Lim will have no where to hide.

2009-11-20T23:02:00.002+08:00

SHAMEFUL MCA
THE inevitable has finally happened. After watching enough from the sidelines and convinced that the situation was only getting worse and worse, Barisan Nasional chairman Najib Razak has decided to step in to see a quick solution to the MCA leadership circus.

Those involved should have seen it coming when a few weeks ago Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib's No.2 in the government and the coalition, said that any solution must be both politically and morally correct. A few days ago, when the crisis reached a new crescendo, Muhyiddin asked if indeed there was any unity involved in the plan being talked about by party president Ong Tee Keat.

While it is easy for some to think that Umno is happy to see the crisis prolonged, there is nothing to back up this perception. The problem rightly must be seen from the perspective of the Barisan and not Umno. No doubt a weakened MCA should make Umno more powerful but look again at the representations from both the MCA and the MIC in the Cabinet and you will see that nothing has changed despite both being trounced at the last general elections. By right and using common-sense the representations by Umno should be bigger and the ones for the other two reduced.but that hasn't happened.

If I were in the MCA I don't think I would know where to hide my face because in the last 25 years this is the third time Umno leaders have had to intervene to solve the party's leadership crises. Not the way to go for the country's second largest party.

OH ZAID, NIK AZIZ?
OF course it was within his right but because it was Zaid Ibrahim talking you expected something much better. By suggesting that Kelantan MB Nik Aziz Nik Mat is the right person to lead Pakatan Rakyat once it is officially registered as a coalition Zaid has only caused more questions to be asked.

Where do you put opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim then? What would Anwar be thinking now of Zaid? I mean Nik Aziz? The guy is not even head of his party Pas. He may be good at delivering talks on Islam but no one mentions his name as being up there amongst the best of our political leaders. We have all seen and heard him talk on TV and he doesn't sound like one who would be able to command attention from fellow opposition politicians like Karpal Singh, Lim Kit Siang and even his own Pas people although they do show respect for him as an elderly leader, not for his substance as a politician.

Can we have a few more names please?

MORE SHORT SHOTS.....

2009-11-18T23:09:00.003+08:00

IF THE OFFER HAD BEEN FOR AN UMNO MAN, IMAGINE.....
AFTER reading some of the comments about the contractor's offer to Kelantan MB Nik Aziz Nik Mat to go for his haji I am more convinced that many of us who hammer away at Umno and the Barisan Nasional are not in it with the hope that what will emerge is better governance, transparency, accountability and less corruption. They only want the country's dominant and oldest party to go, pure and simple.

It should not be difficult for the more sober amongst us to imagine what the attack would be like if the offer had been made to someone like Khir Toyo, Mahathir Mohamed, Najib Razak or anyone worth mentioning from Umno. Worse would be the language reserved for any of these politicians and leaders if he had maintained the same position as Nik Aziz relating to the offer, which is there is nothing wrong about it.

There are also those who equate the offer to sedekah, which translates into giving by the more able, the well-to-do to the poor. Gosh, what has our world come to?

IT'S GETTING WORSE
YES you are right. I'm talking MCA and its so-called greater unity plan which I thought would be more appropriate if called the disunity plan.

It was only on Tuesday night that two Chinese friends of a mate from my apartment block were talking about this. One I think was a party man but both agreed that the party is shambolic and an embarrassment to Chinese community. There was another who said something like "it could be Umno's doing..." but never mind that.

I think eventually PM Najib Razak will have to intervene in his capacity as chairman of the Barisan Nasional.

My reading is that the GUP which party president and his deputy Chua Soi Lek kept very much to themselves until much later is no more than a self-serving plan which takes care only of their own political interests. Ong had the gall to play with words, describing today's decision to drop several critics from the presidential council as a reshuffle rather than a removal or sacking. You don't act against the heads of your Wanita and Youth movements and expect not to pay a price later.

MISUNDERSTANDING PRESS FREEDOM
THE new political environment means that the calls for more press freedom have been getting louder. Free flow of information or an uncensored press is always good for the people.

The problem is many do not seem to understand what press freedom actually means. Or to them a press that works against their own political beliefs is not a free press and must be curtailed. Confusing.

I have said this before: With absolute press freedom there are no ifs or buts. It's all or nothing, no matter how much you disagree with a newspaper's point of view. It means the freedom to misreport, to choose what to highlight and what not to publish, the freedom even to concoct a story. Of course you may be made to pay the price by an aggrieved party but press freedom is press freedom. Imagine screaming for press freedom but in the same breath insisting that the Election Commission should be telling the press to give better coverage to the opposition parties come election time?

AND THEY SAY IT'S BAD ONLY WHEN UMNO IS IMPLICATED

2009-11-16T00:00:00.002+08:00

IT does appear that something was not quite right in Kelantan, especially when the mentri besar himself is subsequently implicated. And for now it's good that Nik Aziz Nik Mat has decided not to go for his haji.

Although we don't have enough details yet certain things have not been denied or disputed by the tok guru. In fact he was quoted as saying that accepting an offer worth RM65,000 from a contractor for him and family to go to the holy land is not a corrupt act. Hmm......

Apparently the contractor is nor ordinary businessman, your regular Joe with no interest in what the state has to offer. He is one who is linked via an indirect route to an agency under the Kelantan government.

This is not to say though that Nik Aziz is guilty of any indiscretion which makes him unfit to continue to be MB but the stories so far indicate that something is wrong somewhere. The fact that Nik Aziz has decided not to go after all seems to prove that indeed the entire arrangement was questionable.

My problem is not confined to Nik Aziz. I also have reasons to take issue with the many people who scream that they want corruption wiped out from this land of ours, that transparency and good governance are another two top priorities and show contempt for anything similar that implicates someone from Umno or the Barisan Nasional but also do not think that there is any problem with Nik Aziz going to Saudi Arabia sponsored by a contractor. And it was only weeks ago they went on the offensive to tear apart former Negri Sembilan MB Isa Samad although he was only found guilty of an offence within Umno's rules and not a court of law.

People say Malaysian politicians have yet to reach a level of maturity and civility seen in countries like Britain or Australia but surely you can't expect miracles from them when the people themselves cannot draw the line between good and bad. To these hardliners it's all about politics -- and politics only.

SHORT POT-SHOTS.....

2009-11-13T04:24:00.002+08:00

BEST TO GO TO COURT
WE are talking the MCA here. Considering the claims and counter-claims, allegations and counter-allegations and a mixed bag of opinions, maybe ending up in court is what the party needs.

Given the many versions and interpretations of what's right and wrong no one watching the fun with some disgust can tell exactly who is telling the truth and who's not. Most likely all the main characters have a bit of both.

That party president Ong Tee Keat and his deputy Chua Soi Lek should be speaking out strongly against those who oppose the greater unity plan is understandable because that plan ensures that they remain in their seats despite the votes against them at the EGM earlier last month. That former vice-president Liow Tiong Lai is peeved because he is going to be downgraded from deputy to his former position all due to the plan is also understandable.

Legally it does appear that the voting at the EGM cannot be effected but as we all know politics is also about the moral question. From the perspective of the latter Ong and Chua should by now simply be ordinary party members. See you in court chaps.

ANOTHER LEADERSHIP ISSUE FOR PKR
THEY appear to have buried the hatchet the usual political way. A lot of hot air but eventually issuing statements to say "it was something normal in politics and we have put the past behind us....." Until maybe the next round.

For me it's not so much who between PKR Kulim Bandar Baru MP Zulkifli Nordin and PKR Subang MP/party vice-president R. Sivarasa was right. Study the spat again in relation to a statement by the party's de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim to caution leaders and members to keep their problems and differences private and you get a picture of utter defiance. Undeniably that translates into a leadership issue and also a lack of respect, a "who cares" kind of attitude. Anwar has lost some lustre.

But just like the Pakatan Rakyat coalition, PKR is devoid of any firm and clear long-term ideology. Many amongst its leaders and staunch believers are "fruscos" -- people who have an axe or two to grind against the Barisan Nasional, a coalition under which many in PKR were once with.

DID JUDGE SAY IT?
HEARD on TV about Sessions Court judge Rozina Ayob describing the police's failure to serve a warrant of arrest on fugitive blogger Raja Petra as embarrassing. One newspaper report I read however did not attribute her as saying so.

The failure to serve the warrant resulted in Petra being given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal. Later his wife Marina Abdullah may also lose the RM5,000 she put up as bail for him relating to the sedition charge. I guess if you decide to go on the run a bail that amount means nothing.

If the judge said what was reported on TV I have to disagree with her because how could any police force serve anything on a fugitive whose whereabouts is unknown, even after Interpol was asked to assist?

I am hoping that one day the police will be able to locate Petra and succeed in bringing him home so that we can all decide if he has any proof on all the damning allegations he had written on so many people. That's what fairness and justice is all about.

TROUBLE SELDOM FAR AWAY WHEN KELANTAN IS AROUND

2009-11-10T23:21:00.004+08:00

LET'S forget politics for a while and talk about something just as gloomy -- Malaysian football. It has been down in the dumps for for almost 25 years now and no tweaking by the Football Association of Malaysia seems to have worked while others we used to beat until the early 80s have played in the World Cup a few times since.

But there's still some excitement left, especially when teams which used to watch in awe as the likes of Selangor, Singapore and KL played each other countless times in the Malaysia Cup finals have themselves done well to be left standing to play at Bukit Jalil, just like Negri Sembilan and Kelantan did a few nights ago.

Somehow the frenzy goes up a few notches whenever Kelantan is involved, not just in football but in everything else including fights on our university campuses. There were problems at the Kelantan stadium last year which resulted in a ban for home matches and there were problems in the first leg of the semis against Perlis recently, just as there were in the return leg in Kangar.

I used to watch many of the Malaysia Cup matches at the Merdeka Stadium and also the Merdeka tournament when Malaysia would beat South Korea, Japan, China and Kuwait but have never been to one at the bigger and newer Shah Alam stadium or the National Stadium at Bukit Jalil. That's how long I have abandoned local football as a sport.

There were signs during last weekend's final to drive home the point about what is wrong with the sport here. When someone switched on the TV again after half-time I saw that the score was 3-0 I think in Negri's favour. By then many of the seats previously occupied by Kelantan's red-shirted supporters were empty. The team was abandoned and this is something you don't see in the west, South Korea or Japan although you do see some supporters of the losing team walking out with less than 10 minutes left if that was the score against them. But at 3-0 down there were still about 30 minutes left to play, which means that Kelantan could have still forced their way back into the game. But not supporters of Malaysian teams. To them such a scoreline means no hope. An attitude problem.....

That was not the only way for them to show their frustration and disappointment. The Kelantan supporters also damaged the stadium seats, washrooms and god knows what else. Many, many years ago a Kelantanese used to tell us -- with a bit of pride we felt -- about how some supporters one night stopped their cars by the roadside on the way back home to tear down a house that was being built after Kelantan had lost to Terengganu!!

Most likely Kelantan will be made to pay a penalty but beyond that don't expect the FAM or anyone else to do much more. Teams and players have been banned before but the duration of the penalty is always reduced on appeal. For this you can go back to the days when the late Mokhtar Dahari and former skipper Soh Chin Aun were playing to see that we are all a bunch of soft or kind-hearted souls.......

TRY STAY DETACHED, ASRI

2009-11-08T22:31:00.005+08:00

FORMER Perlis mufti Mohd. Asri Zainal Abidin has been very much in the news since several days ago. It started when he was arrested by the Selangor Islamic Religious Affairs Department for not being an accredited speaker on Islam in the state.

I don't want to argue about that, if that's what the law says but some remarks made by Jais didn't help clear an already cloudy situation. And a most disturbing one at that, especially amongst the predictable list of social activists and the liberal minded.

One said the department had been receiving complaints "from local residents" over the years. About Asri? Why, did he speak here and there before in Selangor without a permit? If so why wasn't action taken earlier?

There was also the issue linking Asri and Wahabbism, the Islamic way of the Saudis mainly. Is this banned in Malaysia? I haven't heard about it but I do know that many in Perlis believe in it and practise it. Whether that is a result of Asri's influence when he was in the state I can't tell. If it's banned than everyone practising it should be hauled up but otherwise don't ever talk about it as if it is a problem.

I don't know Asri but I think he may be affected and influenced by the publicity and the following that he now has. I wish he could stay away from the usual suspects -- the activists and opposition politicians -- and remain his own man. Otherwise he will end up being a man politicised and that is not good for someone who is a man of religion who's preaching religion.

A WAY OUT OF THE FLOODS

2009-11-08T22:22:00.002+08:00

THERE is a danger of the floods in my home state of Perlis getting worse as I write this. It's never been nowhere near what we see in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang or Johor but it still means that some people have to be evacuated.

I'm here to visit my mother who was in hospital recently. She's out and better now. I hope I can find a way out of town Monday as I head back to KL.

Perlis is ok for some, especially people with families and those who prefer to stay home but I'm a single man who has lived outside the state since 1966 -- that's 43 longs years -- 38 of them in PJ and KL. And mate, I love the nightlife,which Perlis doesn't have at all.

I'm happy that my mother is getting better and also happy that I can now go back to the city with a peace of mind.

A BLOG IS NOT A PRIVATE DOMAIN

2009-11-08T22:05:00.002+08:00

THERE are many things we have all discovered with the advent of the new (free) media.

For one the world is suddenly full of writers and commentators saying anything they wish on the mistaken understanding that you can get away with murder even if they post something malicious and slanderous online and injuring the reputation of others with impunity and often without proof of wrongdoing.

The Internet is now home to people who think they can write or people who now have an avenue to vent their frustrations and seek revenge on bitter enemies. Some write very personal and private matters, wrongly thinking that their blogs are a private domain, which they aren't.

While it has provided us with so many things that were previously unthinkable, the online medium has many downsides. One of those is that it is a channel also to be used by the more irresponsible amongst us.

I decided to touch on this tonight because just recently someone wrote at his blog what was an issue within his family . When pointed by a relative that something like that should remain private and within the family, the writer responded to say that he never intended it to be forwarded to an open e-group. That was his biggest mistake -- to think that whatever he puts up at this blog was a private matter.

This should be a lesson to everyone who is writing online, either on his own or as part of a set-up, and who is going to venture online. Your blog is not a private domain, never.

The other downside is the absence of any formal control or checks on writers who were not taught about responsibility to an audience and about the need for balance and fair play. In this respect most of those with the mainstream media can be proud of the fact that they remain apart from the untrained others who write online. You may not shake the earth but at least you know that you haven't wronged anyone intentionally and with malice despite the fact that no one is there to sensor your writings.

POOR SHOW BY SELANGOR ON BADRUL

2009-11-05T22:34:00.003+08:00

SINCE early this year I have tried not to miss on news reports on now independent Port Klang assemblyman Badrul Hisham Abdullah.

There have been many negative reports on the man who was with PKR until he quit the party last week to declare himself as someone Barisan Nasional friendly. There were stories and allegations about a motor accident, about his state of mind, a failure to serve, about being absent from events and also about how from about eight months ago the Selangor government decided to appoint another assemblyman to oversee the constituency, complete with powers to decide on how the money is to be spent.

Which means that while he continued to be paid his allowances, Badrul was effectively sidelined because the money allotted to each elected representative was not for him to decide how to spend. In response to the allegations Badrul expectedly denied everything negative about him. There was also a similar statement from his wife.

This ding-dong of a political game created a blurry picture of the actual situation -- one side saying how hopeless he was and Badrul denying everything. Those not in favour could have convinced the non-partisans if only they had been more specific about the (purported) accident and medical condition. If only they had provided dates and times and be specific about the medical history, if indeed there is any.

The campaign to get Badrul out of the way has not abated, mainly because of the declaration of his sympathies for Barisan. They are now saying that he spent big bucks but no one knows where the money went to, which in fact translates into misappropriation. A very serious allegation. Klang MP Charles Santiago claims that Badrul spent RM370,000 last year "but nothing had been carried out" while this year the amount came to RM200,000 of the entitlement of RM500,000.

If Badrul had played foul my question is why hasn't action been taken against him? What is the procedure like for an assemblyman or MP? When do you release the money to a representative and what must he do before the money is disbursed?

These are questions the Selangor government must satisfy if it is to convince the people that it does have every reason to be peeved with Badrul. But if you look at the situation closely the state government can't claim to be entirely blameless.

HELLO AGAIN MCA...... WITH ITS DISUNITY PLAN

2009-11-04T23:51:00.003+08:00

IF you think the MCA has put its leadership crisis behind it following Tuesday's central committee meeting it's best that you think again.

As it is a former vice-president who was elevated to deputy president and is now back as vice-president has said that he will challenge the decision of the Registrar of Societies to rule that Chua Soi Lek is the rightful number two, whatever the central delegates decided on October 10 at the EGM. Liow Tiong Lai is one very unhappy man and understandably so.

We must also look at the supposedly greater unity plan which seemed more like a disunity plan. It was precisely that plan that was due for a discussion on Tuesday afternoon but just hours earlier party president Ong Tee Keat removed four CC appointees not supportive of him. So what unity they asked?

Liow's issue over his position may not be the only point of contention.

The four CC members concerned were in the group of 16 who submitted a requisition for another EGM, just enough numbers to qualify to make that call. Now, when they submitted it last Thursday the four were in all intent and purposes lawfully appointed CC members. The party HQ was already making preparations to call for the EGM. With the removal they can no longer call themselves CC members but Thursday came before Tuesday.

Frankly I don't know what to make out of this country's senior political party which in many ways is next to Umno in significance from a historical and racial perspective. I don't what to say about its present leadership or more specifically its president. I said earlier that the MCA's problems were far from over. I am saying the same again. Maybe they should just dissolve it.....

NOT THE ONLY FACTOR BUT A SIGNIFICANT ONE

2009-11-02T22:57:00.003+08:00

I DON'T think many people will disagree with the prime minister's view that the country can have a single stream school system if the people are ready for it. The reaction by the deputy prime minister that while he agreed with the proposal which must first consider inputs from everyone also makes sense.

Thanks to historian Khoo Kay Kim, who proposed that the education system be restructured, and also a few MPs who agreed with this, our education system is back on the radar.

But one point PM Najib Razak did not touch on and the reporters present at the function he attended didn't ask was how are we going to gauge the people's views on the proposal. Najib was reported to have said that "I think the people have not made a final decision yet....some are in favour of a single stream while others want to retain their right to choose".

One man who has no hesitation in opposing such a restructuring is MIC president S. Samy Vellu who is of the opinion that vernacular schools will not hamper national unity. I'll get to this later.

I'm all for a single system and have said it before many times here and elsewhere. I also agree that it should be introduced only if the people agree although I also support the position that a government that feels strongly enough that this can only be good for the country will try and convince the people of its benefits and then do it.

Assuming that we want the people to decide, how is the government going to determine this? A referendum would be the best option but Najib didn't mention this. If we have a referendum the other questions that need to be sorted out are who can participate and what percentage in favour will mean that the proposal goes through?

Samy Vellu not in favour? He's not the only one. I find it odd that people who have been shouting their throats hoarse on wanting a Malaysian Malaysia, a Malaysian race and everything else are silent when it comes to this issue about a unified and single education system. Most of the letters in the press have asked how can possibly think like Malaysians when we go to different schools, wear different uniforms and speak different languages?

Granted that this system will not guarantee unity and that there are other factors involved but it is one that will go a long, long way towards unifying better the different races in the country. Those amongst us who are honest and sincere enough can only support such a transformation.

MESSY DAYS FOR MALAYSIAN POLITICS

2009-10-30T21:38:00.003+08:00

WHEN it was reported that warring MCA leaders Ong Tee Keat and Chua Soi Lek had agreed to put aside their differences for the sake of unity in the party, I honestly thought that the mess resulting from the very open spat between the would be cleaned up in no time.

That whatever was briefed was endorsed by the PM-cum-Barisan Nasional chairman Najib Razak made it sound all the more assuring. So I thought but heck, Ong seems to have different ways of doing things.

To the MCA president who a majority of the party's delegates a few weeks ago didn't have confidence in thinks that any solution to the long-running battle with Chua need not be told to anyone else amongst the MCA top brass, specifically the central committee. But surely this is a leadership issue that must be read together with the votes at the EGM on October 10 and the subsequent CC meeting that elevated Liow Tiong Lai to deputy president to take over from Chua?

Understandably some CC members are pissed off for being ignored by Ong, who keeps on singing the same tune about not needing anyone else in the party to endorse the plan hatched by him and Chua. Sixteen -- just over one-third -- have now signed a petition seeking another EGM.

It's really messy. To me part of the blame goes to Ong who seems to take a hardline, stubborn approach and keeps on reminding everyone that the plan has Najib's endorsement. While that may be true that endorsement does not have any locus standi when read against the provisions of the party constitution. Ong should instead also consider the statement by DPM Muhyiddin Yassin that any unity plan must be transparent. How can it be when no one else knows about the ins and outs of it?

OH PKR -- AND PAS
NO one was surprised that Port Klang assemblyman Badrul Hisham Abdullah decided to quit PKR. Although the party says it's the right thing to do and the best for the party, the resignation means more problems to deal with by the PKR national leadership. A new chairman has been appointed for Sabah but that hasn't stopped the bickering.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The issue is one of leadership. Officially Wan Azizah Wan Ismail is the president but everyone knows that the guy effectively heading the party and making the major decisions is her husband Anwar Ibrahim.

There are many excellent talkers (or orators if it sounds better for you) in PKR but my position on good talkers has never changed -- they usually are non-performers.

Pas too has many excellent speakers whose world is the public stage but the problem occurs when you mix politics with religion. They may have decided to have a special convention to discuss problems in the party but this does not have that same power as an EGM. The party also agreed to take a look at Selangor Pas. For now these two decisions made on Wednesday night are enough to satisfy the party's spiritual adviser Nik Aziz Nik Mat. But let's see if anything happens to Selangor commissioner Hasan Ali.

A SOLUTION TOMORROW NIGHT, MAYBE

2009-10-27T22:22:00.003+08:00

IN a dispute it's best to remember that there are two sides to the story but in a political dispute you could be staring at three or four different versions. This is exactly what is happening to the Pas problem which they hope to thrash out at a meeting Wednesday night.

For now we don't know who's been telling the truth and of course, who's been lying. For an Islamic party that's not a good example but someone amongst the actors is not telling it like it is.

First spiritual adviser and Kelantan party commissioner, the political tok guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat, wrote at his blog that an EGM was in order to sort out some problematic leaders within the party, chief of whom was no less than Abdul Hadi Awang, the president itself.

After meeting the old man Salahuddin Ayub, a vice-president stated that the tok guru simply wanted a meeting, not an EGM, but I'm sure I saw Nik Aziz insisting on TV that he still thought an EGM was in order although he qualified by saying that it was alright if others disagreed.

In came Harun Taib, head of the party's ulama council, who said he thought a ghost writer had posted the article at the Kelantan MB's blog, which means Nik Aziz had nothing to do with it. Cannot agree with Harun even if he got it right because Nik Aziz has never denied that it was his mind talking, ghost-writer or no. If he had nothing to do with it Nik Aziz would surely have distanced himself from the article and confirmed that someone who was trying to unsettle his party was behind it.

I also found Harun's thinking quite a read. There he was saying that some external elements were out to create shit in Pas because it was the least problematic of the three Pakatan Rakyat parties. Bollocks! This problem of whether or not to talk or to support the proposal to have unity talks with Umno has sent Pas going in many separate ways for a few months now.

Harun, there's so much a foreign element can do to rock your boat. The rest is all your doing.

And Hadi? He has asked former PM Mahathir Mohamad to shut up and "not interfere" in the party's affairs after Mahathir said that it was time for Nik Aziz to go. Interference? How can a simple remark by anyone who doesn't have any power to influence which direction your party goes be an interference? Hadi, Mahathir or anyone else for that matter is free to give his five cents worth about anything.

SOLUTION MAY BE QUITE A DISTANCE AWAY

2009-10-24T22:46:00.003+08:00

STATEMENTS in the last couple of days pointed towards a settlement of the leadership problems in the MCA but it now appears that many senior party people are themselves doubtful if a solution is indeed in sight.

Former deputy president Chua Soi Lek said he agreed to a truce with president Ong Tee Keat without any pre-conditions but his statement today (Saturday) and that by Ong appear to raise some doubts.

Ong maintains that the agreement means that he remains in his chair despite the vote of no-confidence against him on October 10. That was when the EGM also decided that Chua should not be reinstated as the No. 2. At a meeting subsequent to the EGM Liow Tiong Lai was elevated from vice-president to take over from Chua, who is still awaiting a decision from the Registrar of Society regarding his request for reinstatement.

If the ROS rules against him then Chua will be left out in the cold while Ong would have not lost anything. One can understand if Chua feels aggrieved and played out. You think he will be happy to remain as a normal member while his place has been taken over by someone and his arch-rival Ong remains as president?

At the moment we will have to agree that the settlement is fair from being agreed upon. Following the EGM and the central committee meeting on the Thursday after that, the problem in the party is not confined to Ong, Chua and Liow. There's also the issue of the loyalty of the committee members and what actually transpired at the meeting.

I don't know Ong but his body language seems to tell me that he is one politician who is not always prepared to give way, no matter how little, to his opponents. I am one of those who think that the problem is far from being resolved.

AND NOW PAS TOO HEADS INTO A STORM
INTERESTING days ahead for those who are into observing the political goings-on. Finally Kelantan MB and Pas spiritual adviser Nik Aziz Nik Mat has revealed to us his actual position and thinking on his party and some senior leaders.

Strange really for him to write about it now because the issue was supposed to have been resolved a few months ago. Nik Aziz now wants some leaders, notably party president Abdul Hadi Awang, to be replaced for taking positions which gave the impression that Pas was out of tandem with the Dap and PKR in Pakatan Rakyat.

Whether or not Nik Aziz will get the support is still too early to tell but be prepared for some stormy weather.

MCA -- CLEARLY IN DISARRAY

2009-10-21T21:52:00.004+08:00

WHENEVER a political party faces a crisis it usually tries to close ranks. It's important to at least give the impression that you are not in disarray.

Thus I find it difficult trying to understand what the MCA is trying to do, or especially the motives behind the decisions by its embattled president Ong Tee Keat. He sounds like a politician who says he respects the decision of his party delegates but at the same time acts like someone who cannot accept the truth.

The fact that there have been conflicting claims on what happened at last week's powerful central committee meeting have not helped to calm down the situation. At the rate these claims and counter-claims are being traded a court of law may be the best place to determine who's telling the truth.

Ong has now decided to sack the party's legal adviser Leong Tang Chong, which he announced at his blog yesterday. A very today way of announcing something to the world but ideally not the way you would expect from an established political party that has been part of the country's federal administration since independence.

I don't know how Leong was appointed but he was in that capacity for two decades and may have had a hand in drafting the resolutions which were tabled at the EGM two weeks ago, on one of which the delegates voted against Ong. The party constitution is silent on this appointment. The powers on appointments for the posts of secretary-general, treasurer and national organising secretary and other lesser officers however are clear. Is Ong empowered to terminate the services of the legal adviser and possibly of the national organising secretary, which he is speculated to be considering?

The MCA constitution also gives the president the power to call for an EGM which Ong has done twice in about two months but press reports indicate that a majority of the central committee members disagree on his instruction last week to call for the second. It is also silent as to how many EGMs can be called by the president.

In the midst of the confusion came a statement from central committee member Ti Lian Ker who said that a majority of the committee members had wanted Ong to resign, thereby creating a mutiny, and who appeared to agree with Ong that the committee members should all resign as a collective responsibility for whatever decisions against Ong's arch rival and former deputy president Chua Soi Lek. The best part was that Ti stopped short of saying that at least he would resign as a matter of principle. Hmm, politics.

CHANGE WELL INTENDED; LET UMNO MOVE ON

2009-10-20T00:03:00.004+08:00

IT'S still fresh in the air and not surprisingly remains very much a topic of discussion and even scorn at various e-groups and blogs.

The fact is Umno has decided that it must change for the better if it wants to remain relevant and wants to attract more support, especially amongst the young. Last week the party decided on several changes but the most significant and the one that would have the most telling effect and impact has to be the one that opens the voting for party members to a previously unthinkable 146,500 members compared with a miserable 2,500 before this. Miserable considering that Umno says it has 3.4 million members.

Also significant is that this change automatically also abolishes the much criticised quota system that was introduced in 1996 to replace the equally objectionable bonus system that followed the bitter struggle between teams A and B in 1987.

The reservation is that even this breakthrough of an amendment will not eradicate money politics in Umno. Of course it won't but who is going to dare try and bribe his way through 146,500 members? There will be the more foolish amongst aspirants who will try and grease their way through some levels of the party's membership but foolhardy would be the guy who thinks this will help him win a senior party post.

We can compare this amendment with the law that provides for a death sentence for murder or drug trafficking. It is never going to stop people from murdering people or from trafficking in a few kilos of ganja or heroin because so long as people have emotions and are greedy there will always be an offender. What the law hopes to do however is to act as a deterrent.

Umno is only a political party; it's too small compared to a duly elected government but even the government with all its laws against corruption cannot stop people from giving and taking bribes. Again it boils down to greed, stupidity and whatever there is you can think of in the most negative way.

Former Umno president and PM Mahathir Mohamad is one person who thinks that the party's latest attempt will not eradicate money politics and he's not alone. But most people I know, including friends at a recent Hari Raya open house, say that Mahathir created an environment that encouraged people "to think money" at any cost. I don't think Mahathir was tolerant of corruption but somehow he seemed to have done very little when he was in power to show that he was dead against it.

It's best to let Umno move on. Whether or not this well intended amendment to its constitution will reap in the positives we will only know at the next party election in three years time. Give it a chance.

THE PRESS HAS BETTER THINGS TO DO

2009-10-19T03:49:00.003+08:00

IT'S the usual stuff, finding a scapegoat in the form of the press. PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim thinks the press has exaggerated the problems in his party, particularly what's been happening in Sabah.

But the press can only do so much. They can't invent an issue. If it's there it's there because in all intent and purposes the press simply reports what's there. Study the statements from PKR leaders in Sabah reported on Sunday and you do get the impression that there are issues there that are affecting the party.

Anwar also says he has no problem with Zaid Ibrahim going to Sabah but Zaid had earlier told the press that he was advised by Anwar against going. Obviously Anwar has no choice but to downplay this disobedience but it must have been a blow to his ego to have someone so new in the party like Zaid going against his wishes. Everything else in the statement from Anwar is also intended to downplay the problems the party is facing. Nothing surprising there.

Also not a surprise is the fact that Azmin Ali's name has cropped up again. He was the man Anwar appointed to head PKR Sabah in May after Anwar himself had assumed control three months earlier. That Azmin is Anwar's most trusted lieutenant everyone knows. He is said to have more political influence over Anwar than the latter's wife Wan Azizah.

Talk to former PKR members of some influence and inevitably Azmin's name will be mentioned as the man who had triggered a problem and eventually their departure.

Some are saying Zaid may not return to active politics after his leave of six months. Others think he will quit PKR after that but not many expect him to rejoin Umno. I doubt if Umno wants him even if he wants to come back. He may not even leave PKR in the near future but for one reason or another Zaid can expect more frustrating times.

He may be acceptable to Anwar and a few others in the higher echelon on PKR but it's never going to be easy for others to embrace him, especially someone who joins a party after grabbing the headlines. People are going to be suspicious of your motives and will not easily make way for you, whether or not they believe you when you declare that you don't have any aspirations to hold a leadership position in the party.