Only Captive Minds hang on to the NEP, says UMNO's Ku Li

by Shannon Teoh@www.themalaysianinsider.com

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah resumed his attack on the New Economic Policy (NEP) today, stating that “captive minds” continue to support it despite Malaysia moving further from its objective of redistributing wealth through pro-Bumiputera policies.

The UMNO veteran said there has been “no intellectual inquiry” into why “despite many years of implementing the NEP, inequitable distribution of income continues to plague the people” as “we have become incapable of devising an analytical method independent of current stereotypes about Malays, Chinese, Indians and others.”

“If the doctor keeps on prescribing the same medicine which produces opposite results, then something must be wrong with the doctor, and something more serious must be wrong with the patient who keeps on trusting the same doctor.

“Our thinking is based completely on a racial world view when it comes to matters of politics, education, economics, planning, and so forth. Needless to say, we promote a racial world view that thrives on the policy of divide and rule,” the Kelantan prince said at a book launch in Ipoh this morning.

Tengku Razaleigh, popularly known as Ku Li, had in February said “as a former Finance Minister, let me emphasise that it was never the intention of the NEP to create an incubated class of Malay capitalists.”

His statement further fueled scrutiny of former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s policies after the Najib administration decided to settle out of court the RM589 million debt owed by former Malaysia Airline System Bhd (MAS) chief Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli.

The settlement sum was undisclosed, prompting intense public criticism and attacks from the opposition over the right of taxpayers to know the amount of public funds recovered.

Tajuddin, 65, had served as the airline’s executive chairman from 1994 to 2001 and was a poster boy of former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin’s now-discredited policy of nurturing a class of Malay corporate captains on government largesse during the Mahathir administration.

Ku Li, one of the greatest critics of the NEP and Dr Mahathir’s handling of the policy, had challenged the long-serving prime minister for leadership of UMNO in 1987, which he subsequently lost by a narrow margin.

He said in his speech today that the country’s education system does “not encourage the moral and intellectual reform of the mind” resulting in a lack of debate on major issues such as good governance, corruption and rule of law.

“To this very day, the electorate has not understood the implications of the NEP which has produced results that are diametrically opposed to the original intention of bridging the gap between the haves and the have-nots. The longer we try the policy, the further we are from the original goal.

“The discrepancy between vision and reality has taken an alarming turn. It has gone far beyond economics into the realm of ethics and morality. In numerous instances it has taken the form of corruption and decadence which has pushed the economy further down the drain,” he said.

He said “wanton corruption and wasteful spending” had resulted in spiraling national debt that now amounts to RM456 billion or 53 per cent of the GDP, which “if we are not careful, it won’t take us long before we become another Greece.”

GE-13 Outcome Difficult to Predict, says Dr. UMNO

by Melissa Lee, Malaysia Chronicle

Former Prime Minister (Tun) Mahathir Mohamad admitted that it would be difficult to predict the results of the 13th General Election due to the "confusing" signals received from the ground.

"What is certain, it won't be easy for BN to get two-thirds majority this time. The Opposition now is not like that of the past, and the current situation is rather confusing," Bernama reported Mahathir as saying.

Such an acknowledgement must have been hard for Mahathir to make, given that the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition is led by Anwar Ibrahim, who he has tried hard to chop down to size and even oust from the political arena completely.

In 1998, fearing Anwar's popularity and growing clout with the Malays, Mahathir threw trumped-up sodomy and corruption charges at his his former Deputy and succeeded in jailing Anwar for 6 years. It was only after Mahathir retired that the Federal Court could summon enough courage to overturn the charges and acquit Anwar.

Now 64, Anwar is poised to lead the Pakatan into its second General Election as a coalition. Although denied formal registration by the Registrar of Societies, the Pakatan parties of PKR, PAS and DAP have signed a Common Policy Framework and agreed on a joint manifesto - the Buku Jingga - for GE-13 which is expected to be held before the end of this year.

Gaining strength

Since the 12th General Election in 2008, the Pakatan has been gaining from strength to strength, with two of the four states it governs - Selangor and Penang - praised by the Auditor-General as being the best managed. Both Penang and Selangor have also drawn most FDIs, trouncing the BN-ruled states.

A resurgent Anwar and Pakatan are now rated as having an even chance on improving on their 2008 electoral performance, with many pundits predicting they might even wrest the Federal Government from Prime Minister Najib Razak. Mahathir apparently shares this view, saying that the various assumptions made about the support for BN were fluid, with some people saying it was increasing and others saying otherwise. Mahathir did not point the finger at anyone, but a day ago, he called on Najib to allow 'outsiders' to contest for seats under the UMNO ticket.

Mahathir lamented the shortage of 'smart' Malays in UMNO, for which perhaps he is most to blame due to his refusal to soften his hardline stance during his 22-year rule from 1981 to 2003. Indeed, during his tenure, Malaysia experienced huge 'brain drain'' including from the Malay community, but Mahathir had always dismissed the issue as minor and with a 'let them leave if they wish' stance.

"None of Mahathir policies contributed to building a succession line in UMNO, so what is there to say now. And the damage was not only to UMNO but extended to the overall economy, where Malaysia lost talent beyond what it could afford. The effects on the economy are being played out now and if not reversed soon by fresh policies and reforms, we can expect further all-encompassing deterioration," Ramon Navaratnam, the Chairman of the Centre for Public Policy Studies, told Malaysia Chronicle.

Najib failed to deliver

In recent weeks, former Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin had predicted BN would easily win in only three states - Johor, Melaka and Pahang. A large portion of the blame has been directed at Najib for failing to lead UMNO-BN out of its quagmire.

UMNO appointed Najib as its President in 2009 after forcing his predecessor Abdullah Badawi into early retirement for losing 5 states out of 13 to the Pakatan as well as the BN's long-held two-thirds majority in Parliament. Mahathir and other UMNO leaders had hoped that Najib would reverse the slide and regain the crucial two-thirds majority, which would allow them to amend key laws to stay in power for perhaps a few more decades. But Najib's clumsy political maneuvers were soon rejected by the people, who now see him as a fraud.

In his comments, it was telling of Daim to point out that if Najib failed to improve on Badawi's results, he would have to step down in favor of either his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin or a 'new challenger'. So far, no dark horse has emerged but bets are on that it could be Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, who has lambasted Najib for his haphazard policies and weak leadership.

During Najib's tenure which began in April 2009, Malaysia suffered its worst bouts of racial and religious intolerance. Extremist groups such as PERKASA and JATI were sponsored and allowed to flourish. At the same time, Najib preached policies of moderation to the West. But it looks like even they have found him out, with the influential Washington Post slamming him as a "champion of double-talk".

Nonetheless, even with his mandate to rule expiring in March 2013, Najib has continued with the same strategies of gutter politicking against Anwar, using racism and religious bigotry to scare the Malays into voting for UMNO so that it can 'protect' them from the non-Malays.

Economy soft and Corruption rampant

Meanwhile, the economy remains neglected and soft due to Najib's frequent overseas trips which have been criticized for burning a hole in taxpayers' pockets. Corruption remains at a record high, with Malaysia slipping 4 spots to 60 in the 2011 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. Malaysia scored 4.3 compared to New Zealand, the least corrupt at 9.5, and Somalia and North Korea who each scored 1.0, making them the two most corrupt nations in the survey. In ASEAN, Singapore scored 9.3 and Brunei 6.3.

Malaysia Chronicle

Mr PM, let me tell you why we are worried: Cow-gate, Cop-gate, AG-gate and now Anak-gate

Written by Robert Phang

Prime Minister Najib Razak must lead the way, show true reforms and avoid cover-ups. The government’s objective of making crime reduction one of the National Key Result Areas (NKRA) is now showing results. According to the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2011 Report, Malaysia was ranked the safest country in the Asia Pacific Region.

All these are marked improvements of the image of the PDRM than when it was under the previous IGP, Musa Hassan. During Musa Hassan’s time, the PDRM was despised, the Along money-lending syndicate became a national menace and the crime rate was high especially street crimes. In short, Malaysians feel unsafe then. Some may say that was all in the past. But the past shapes the present and the future.

Police need to buck or fall behind

In that regard I feel compelled to remind the PDRM that the positive image now can slide back to what it was before. I feel compelled to remind PDRM that it must not be a law enforcement agency that is involved in cover-ups in protecting only the rich and powerful. As such, current CCID Director, Dato’ Syed Ismail Syed Azizan, must be commended for announcing that the police had recommended for prosecution action in the NFC “Cowgate” scandal. This had forced AG Gani Patail to finally charge Shahrizat Jalil’s husband, the Chairman of the NFC, for CBT. That unconventional announcement was a very brave and smart move by Syed Ismail so that there cannot be a cover-up for which the police will be made to take the blame. That really helped improve the image of the PDRM in the eyes of the Rakyat.

As a Friend of the Police, I call on the Rakyat not to misconstrue the statement made by the Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein about the revelations made by former CCID Director Dato Ramli Yusuff of the cover-ups, fixing-ups, fabrications and abuses of power by Musa Hassan and AG Gani Patail in what is now known as the “CopGate Affair”. What Minister Hishammuddin had really said was “Prove it, and we will take action. No one is above the law”. Thus, we must take that positively.

Police duty to investigate and not kow-tow to AG

Since Hishammuddin has asked for proof, YDH IGP Ismail Omar must now take the Minister seriously and direct investigations by his officers. The police powers to investigate crimes are prescribed by the Police Act. If I may, IGP Ismail Omar can show his seriousness, objectivity and professionalism to uncover the truth and obtain evidence by taking the following steps:

> exclude CID Director, Bakri Zinin, from this investigation. This is to protect Bakri Zinin from any allegations of being connected to AG Gani Patail as Bakri is also from Sabah;

> direct independent minded investigators like CCID Director Syed Ismail who is not easily intimidated by AG Gani Patail as has been shown in “Cowgate”;

> not to allow circumvention of police work by any politician, no matter how high that politician may be, from carrying out police duties as that is the oath of duty of a professional police force;

> leave no stones unturned of all the reports made by Dato’ Ramli Yusuff against AG Gani Patail and Musa Hassan that have now been in the public domain for some time, namely investigate:

a) the truths of the SD by Musa Hassan’s ADC of his complicity with the underworld;

b) the truths of 10 other SDs by the other policemen;

c) the truths of the SDs by the other informants about the turning over of their informant’s evidence;

d) the cover- ups for Goh Cheng Poh in the Along syndicate investigations and the circumvention of police work in that case;

e) the unlawful access of Cicero confidential files;

f) abdication of AG’s duties under Art 145 Federal Constitution by refusing to act for and prepare affidavits for CCID;

g) fixing-up of Dato’ Ramli and his six officers by using the fabricated statement of Moo Sai Chin who was then under EO Detention;

h) fixing-up of Dato’ Ramli’s lawyer;

i) AG’s complicity in the matters concerning Tajudin Ramli/MAS and whether there was suppression of evidence;

j) AG’s refusal to prosecute Tajudin Ramli despite the recommendation of the CCID;

k) relationship between AG Gani Patail with Tajudin’s proxy, Shahidan Shafie. It is noted that Shahidan was previously charged for corruption while he was OC Secret Societies of Johor;

l) whether it is proper conduct for an Attorney-General to fraternize with a person of ill- repute (Shahidan Shafie) especially when that person is connected to an on-going investigations by the Police and the MACC. Their consorting together is evident as exposed in the Haj scandal with photographs and other supporting Tabung Haji documents;

m) AG’s complicity in the Ho Hup corporate tussle as evidenced by photographs of the A-G at Ho Hup’s office and the prosecution of the other side.

Not for Nazri to decide

The Rakyat is disappointed that the Speaker of Parliament had rejected the urgent motion by Subang MP R Sivarasa for this matter to be debated in Parliament last Wednesday. The integrity of AG Gani Patail impacts on the whole system of justice in this country. The Rakyat sees this refusal to allow parliamentary debate on a matter of such importance as a cover-up.

To dispel this negative perception, I ask IGP Ismail Omar to discharge his constitutional duties to investigate without fear or favor. I ask Ismail Omar to disregard the misconceived statements of Nazri Aziz that the government will not investigate this further. It is not for the Minister to state whether the complicity of AG Gani Patail should be investigated just as it is not for that Minister to direct GLCs to settle their cases with Tajudin Ramli.

Anak-gate : Where did the lawless son get so much money?

Nazri may be the Law Minister, but he has no legal nor moral authority to tell the police how to carry out the law if he cannot control his lawless son and his bodyguards in connection with the recent assault of a security guard. According to the police reports made available to me, Nazri’s son had even used his father’s Minister’s name card to introduce his entourage. Is that not abuse of power? The Rakyat is not amused that the case has been classified as Affray under s. 160 Penal Code. Affray is fighting in a public place. His son’s body guards trespassed onto private property and assaulted a security guard. How could that be an affray?

Beyond that, the Rakyat ponders how did Nazri’s son afford such luxurious cars - a Porsche driven by him and a Toyota Vellfire by his bodyguards? Why did he need bodyguards? What business is he in? Are we seeing further examples of “Cowgate” amongst the families and sons of Ministers who live in absolute opulence whereas the Rakyat are told to be thrifty and constantly reminded of rising inflation and high cost of living.The MACC should look into whether this Minister’s family is living beyond their means or having unusual wealth. After all, that is what all civil servants are subjected to under the MACC Act. So, it is better that Nazri controls his “anak jantan” and his entourage to behave in accordance with the law than for him to meddle in the affairs of the police.

The IGP must direct PDRM to act independently. That is how checks and balances in government institutions are maintained so that the Rakyat can feel safe and secure. Politicians come and go but the institution of the police cannot be made to succumb to their whims and fancies.

Too much evidence against Gani Patail to ignore

The evidence already in the public domain against AG Gani Patail are just too numerous for the government to ignore. As such, on behalf of the Rakyat I beg PM Najib to hear the Rakyat’s voice. The PM should know that the Rakyat is unhappy that he has said that it is not necessary to constitute a tribunal to look into this. The Rakyat wonders why the government must defend this AG until it affects the credibility of PM Najib’s government. This may only fuel suspicion that AG Gani Patail and Musa Hassan have a hold on the PM and other government leaders. PM Najib must dispel this by taking firm action.

PM Najib must not lose the plot. PM Najib has already shown that he will walk the talk when it comes to the Rakyat. I am sure PM Najib is sensitive to the Rakyat’s feelings. He is already popular with the reforms undertaken so far. So, let it not be dampened by the allegations surrounding AG Gani Patail. The Rakyat will support PM Najib in all his reform plans especially when the Rakyat trust there is no cover-ups.

Tan Sri Datuk Robert Phang Miow Sin is a prominent civil society leader, a Justice of Peace and a former member of the MACC advisory panel

NFC could be a decisive factor in GE-13 if poorly managed, says Daim

by www.malaysiakini.com

UMNO Veteran and former Finance Minister (Tun)Daim Zainuddin warned that if the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) scandal is not managed properly, it will affect the BN's fate in the next general election.

"Generally, people tend to forget an issue after 14 days but 'Cowgate' is different, regardless of ethnicity, whether Malay, Chinese or Indian, they all know what a cow is about, the rural folk also know the value of a cow.

"You have to be careful, 'Cowgate' can affect many votes," he told Sin Chew Daily in an exclusive interview published today.

The NFC scandal has a far greater impact compared with the Lynas rare earths plant issue, said Daim (left), because taxpayers' money is used in the cattle breeding project.

The rare earth plant at Gebeng, Pahang, will not impact much on other states, he opined.

On the possible political landscape after the next polls, Daim said it will be most unfortunate if UMNO manages to maintain its support but with both MCA and Gerakan wiped out by voters.

It will show that the electorate is voting along racial lines instead of as Malaysians, and the country will continue to be divided by racial differences, he elaborated.

As a close colleague of former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Daim was UMNO treasurer from 1984 to 2001.

He served as finance minister from 1984 to 1991 and as minister with special functions at the Prime Minister's Department in 1998, before being re-appointed as finance minister in 1999. He retired in 2001.

A year before the 2008 general election, Daim warned that BN will lose Penang, Selangor and Kedah and the 'Daim prophecy' proved true when the coalition was hit by the 'political tsunami' on March 8 that year.

What will People say

by Dr. M.Bakri Musa
Morgan-Hill, California

When the late Tun Razak moved his family to Sri Taman, the Prime Minister’s official residence at that time, his children pleaded with him to have a swimming pool installed. The Tun, acutely aware of the costs to the public, would have none of it.“What will people say?” he told his children.

Not that the Tun did not want to indulge his children or that he was being unduly stingy, rather he was conscious of the need to differentiate the personal from the official. Unlike many especially from the Third World, then as well as now, Tun Razak was the rare leader who did not consider the public treasury to be his. Even when there were grey areas, as with the swimming pool, he would err on the side of not burdening the public with the cost.

It could be argued that since Sri Taman was government property, expenditures on improving it as with building the pool should be borne by the public. However, as the pool would benefit essentially only the prime minister’s family and invited guests, he acted with an abundance of prudence and probity in refusing to have the pool installed.

There was another less obvious but more important reason for his not acceding to his children’s wishes. Malaysia of the 1960s was devoid of gleaming skyscrapers and towering condominiums. There were no modern suburbs with luxurious mansions sporting swimming pools in their backyards. Most Malays were still stuck in their kampongs leading subsistence living and sleeping under thatch roofs.

Tun Razak was sensitive to that social environment; he after all had served as Minister for Rural Development. To kampong folks, a backyard pool would have been opulence on an especially grand scale. This more than the cost was probably what prompted the late Tun not to have the pool for his children.

“What will people say?” As Muslims we are reminded to have taqwa at all times, an awareness of the presence of Allah. “Closer than your jugular vein,” as the Koran put it. If you have taqwa, aware that Allah is watching you all the time, that does tend to restrain you.

“What will people say?” could be viewed as a secular version of taqwa, an internal compass to keep us along the straight path, away from temptations and ill deeds. For a leader, that would be a path that would meet the approval if not praise from his followers. The expression reflects the power of peer pressure, the universal human need for social approval. Yes, leaders need this too.

There is a cautionary note however, especially for leaders. Pay too much attention to what people say and you reduce your leadership to a wet-finger-in-the-air mode. That is not a recipe for success, much less greatness. For others, as well as leaders, you risk being reduced to a pathetic fool, as per the fable of the old man, the boy, and the donkey.

Leaders who pay too much heed to what their followers say risk pandering to their lowest common denominator, appealing to their baser and uglier instincts. That is the leadership of the Perkasa types, obsessed with “them” taking over “our” Tanah Melayu, and of chauvinistic leaders forever paranoid over losing their culture and language. In America this is demonstrated by the ugly spectacles of the current candidates in the Republican Party primaries.

Backyard Pool, Luxury Condos, Half-Million Ringgit Engagement Party

Our leaders today are a far cry from the caliber, competence, and integrity so publicly and unambiguously displayed by the late Tun Razak. We are being painfully reminded daily of these deficiencies, including and especially with his son, Najib Razak, the current Prime Minister.

It did not escape citizens’ notice that when Tun Razak died, his estate, while not exactly destitute, was definitely not brimming with assets. The same could be said of his immediate predecessor, Tunku Abdul Rahman, and successor, Hussein Onn. Today, our ex-Prime Ministers live in mega mansions and travel the world in private luxury jets. I do not know who foot their bills. At least American ex-presidents make a show of earning their wealth through their exorbitant speaking fees.

This brings me to Rafizi Ramli’s latest revelation: Najib’s recent half-a-million ringgit engagement party for his daughter allegedly paid for by the Prime Minister’s Office, meaning the public. Rafizi, who is Keadilan’s chief strategist, had earlier brought us the National Feedlot Corporation’s (NFC) “cow-gate” scandal.

Thus far Najib had issued only a general denial to Rafizi’s serious allegation. Significantly, Najib did it not through a formal press conference but through his Twitter site. He has yet to address the specifics. Perhaps Najib is waiting to consult his high-priced public relations consultants on how best to spin this.

I agree with Rafizi that Najib has to level up with the Malaysian people. A general denial would not do it; it insults our intelligence. As Rafizi has clearly stated, Najib has to address the eight points raised by the allegation. Even if the lavish engagement party were to be paid for personally, I shudder to think what the actual wedding would cost. Malaysia’s self-styled “first couple” is competing with the Saudi royals with respect to gaudy extravagance and obscene opulence. The audacity and hypocrisy for Najib to then lecture the rakyats on the need to save and be financially prudent!

As Rafizi rightly asserted, Najib has to show incontrovertible proof (as with copies of cancelled checks) that the funds came out of his personal accounts. That alone would not be enough; he would have to explain how he accumulated such wealth to be able to afford such extravagance. As alluded to earlier, he certainly did not inherit much wealth from his father, and Najib has been getting government paychecks all his adult life except for his brief tenure at Petronas. That too could be considered as a government paycheck.

As for Rosmah, her father, like mine, was a Malay school teacher. And I knew exactly what my father’s wealth was when he died, and he was a man not given to extravagance. Rosmah has to show that she had been a particularly successful entrepreneur to acquire such wealth. Anything less and the rakyats would have a right to assume that those riches had been illicitly acquired.

The sad part is that this obscene extravagance is but the latest show of unbridled rapacious greed in our leaders. Earlier there was that dentist and former Selangor’s Chief Minister with his million-dollar mansion that he bragged to have bought at half price through his “shrewd” bargaining. Then there was the sleepy head, Najib’s immediate predecessor, with his equally opulent mansion in Perth, Western Australia, and another one given to him locally.

Diligent citizens like Rafizi Ramli could not have exposed these shenanigans without the help of honest fellow citizens, especially those on the “inside.” The rash of such recent exposés signals a significant development. Malaysians are now no longer afraid of their leader or the state. When that happens, many wonderful things follow. Look at Egypt, Libya and Tunisia.

With such sordid examples at the very top, no wonder lowly ministers and others too are in on the act. At least Women’s Minister Shahrizat had the decency to resign her cabinet post even though as she said, “I really have nothing to do with NFC except that I’m married to the chairman of NFC. But as a responsible member of the government, I feel the right thing for me to do is to step down.” Yes, she did indeed do the right and honorable thing in resigning.

Will Najib do the same? As for the engagement party, it certainly cost much more than the proposed pool at Sri Taman. We will know what people say come the next elections. More important however, is what would Tun Razak say if he were alive today?

UMNO will oust Najib unless BN's electoral performance in GE-13 improves, says (Tun) Daim Zainuddin

www.malaysiakini.com

UMNO will kick Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak out if he fails to improve BN's electoral result in the next general election, says former finance minister and long-time UMNO Treasurer Daim Zainuddin.

"Reclaiming two-thirds majority is a good vision but (Najib) should be more practical... if, unfortunately, he loses more seats, UMNO will oust him. This is politics," said the UMNO veteran.

In an exclusive interview with Chinese newspaper Sin Chew Daily, Daim explained that removing a political leader who fails to win an election is a global trend, and not just confined to UMNO.

If the country's economic performance is strong, and UMNO is united as a team, Najib will have the upper hand in fighting the next general election, he said. "But this does not mean Najib can win for sure. Just like a tennis game, you still need to play hard to win. Even if you have the upper hand, you cannot afford to make a mistake. Any mistake will cost you the game."

Should Najib step down from the UMNO Presidency, Daim said, the successor would probably be determined by UMNO through a party election.

Although conventionally the Deputy President will be the next president, there could be other leaders in the challenge for the post this time, since everyone aspires to be Prime Minister, he said.

However, Daim gave Najib the thumbs up as a better Prime Minister compared with his predecessors because he listened to the people, which was evident in his commitment to abolish the Internal Security Act and fight corruption.

As a close colleague of former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Daim was UMNO treasurer from 1984 to 2001.He served as Finance Minister from 1984 to 1991 and as Minister with Special Functions at the Prime Minister's Department and National Economic Action Council (NEAC) Executive Director in 1998, before being re-appointed Finance Minister in 1999. He retired in 2001.

'The Daim Prophecy'

A year before the 2008 general election, Daim warned that BN would lose Penang, Selangor and Kedah and the 'Daim's prophecy' came true when BN was hit by the 'political tsunami' on March 8, 2008. For the coming election, Daim expects Penang and Kelantan to remain Pakatan Rakyat's strongholds.

He said the BN still has chances in Kedah and Selangor, on the condition that UMNO stays united and is able to find formidable candidates to take over as Menteri Besar. It will be an uphill battle for BN to defend Perak, said Daim, because the anti-establishment sentiment among the voters after its controversial re-taking of the state was still strong.

For Kelantan, as long as PAS spritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat is still the Menteri Besar, Daim is of the view that the BN can say goodbye to the state.

Recipe for success

He also shared his 'recipe' with Najib for winning the next general election. "If I were the Prime Minister, I will focus on Sabah and Sarawak to maintain the status quo there, together with the incumbent seats here (the Peninsula). I will also pay more attention to marginal seats lost in the last election.

"After all, if you travel everywhere, you are also not sure where can get your votes, so you will be just wasting your time."

Timing is also an essential factor that can significantly boost Najib's chances of producing a better electoral result."Election is like a chess game, it is a competition. If I were the Prime Minister, I will know how to play this election game. I think Mahathir also knows," Daim added.

Similar Scandals, Different Treatment

by Dr. M. Bakri Musa
Morgan-Hill, California

To assert that the Malaysian mass media is nothing more than propaganda arm of the ruling Barisan coalition is no revelation. The personnel in the mainstream dailies, the national news agency BERNAMA, and the government broadcasting channel RTM are less journalists and editors, more political hacks and spinmeisters. They are, to borrow National Laureate Samad Ismail’s word, the carma (contraction for cari makan, seeking a livelihood) variety.

Less appreciated is the fact that they are hired hands not of the Barisan government but of whatever faction in it that is currently dominant, or trying to be so. Thus one can surmise the tensions and the dynamics of the current swing of the political pendulum within Barisan, specifically UMNO, from perusing the headlines. Perusing is exactly the right word, for there is nothing much worth reading in those dailies.

Consider the contrasting treatment in the mainstream media of the two currently unfolding financial scandals. The first is the National Feedlot Corporation mess (“cow-gate”) that is now ensnaring the husband and family of Women’s Minister Shahrizat Jalil; it had also led to her resignation from her cabinet post. The other is the nearly half-a-million ringgit engagement party for Prime Minister Najib Razak’s daughter and an equally expensive birthday bash for himself that he allegedly tried to on to Treasury, and thus the taxpayers.

Both scandals were first exposed in the Internet through the diligent investigations of Rafizi Ramli, the chief strategist for Pakatan Rakyat. With the first scandal, the mainstream media were quick to pick up on and embellish the story; on the second, there was no mention at all. One can safely conclude that the respective primary players in both scandals, Shahrizat with the first and Najib for the second, are from different factions within UMNO. No marks for guessing which side is on the ascendance.

Rafizi is no rabble rouser throwing off wild accusations here and there. His first exposé of the “cow-gate” was initially dismissed by no less than the Deputy Chief of Police; today the principal player, Shahrizat’s husband, is charged with criminal breach of trust and she was caught in the ensuing wake.

With Rafizi’s track record, you would think that those investigative journalists in the mainstream media would be eager to pursue his leads. At the very least their curiosity should have been piqued. Thus for them to completely ignore the story of the alleged publicly-paid engagement and birthday parties meant that they are journalists only in name, and that they are told what to do.

In terms of monetary value, Najib’s birthday bash and his daughter’s engagement party, both totaling at about “just” half a million ringgit, are but a small change compared to the cow-gate’s RM250 million price tag; cow-gate in turn pales in comparison to the multi billion ringgit Port Kang Free Zone Development debacle or the “commission” paid on acquiring the second-hand French submarines that would not submerge.

While the price tag may vary, the underlying mindset of contempt for taxpayers’ money remains. To these leaders the concept of integrity or the diligent exercise of fiduciary responsibility is foreign. At best they are but slogans uttered during election campaigns and then conveniently ignored.

To be sure, this is not a weakness unique only unto Malaysian politicians. In some countries these wayward politicians are caught and brought to justice; in others, well, they continue on business as well, their greed feeding on itself. There is no limit to their avarice. Their “success” would then be celebrated, and they would then become the new role models. Unfortunately that is where Malaysia is today.

What struck me most about this latest scandal, the one involving Najib’s birthday party in particular, was the utter lack of class. Najib has made more than a few UMNOPutras rich through his giving away many lucrative contracts. Surely at least one of them would be generous or grateful enough to host the party for him.

Alas that is the problem with greed; there is literally no boundary to it. Najib’s many rich friends are still expecting to sponge off him! Likewise with Shahrizat’s husband; if he had spread the bounty around just a wee bit as, for example, to include the head of Utusan Malaysia, BERNAMA or The New Straits Times to be on the board of directors of his Feedlot Corporation, Rafizi’s accusation would never have gone beyond cyberspace.

Greedy and unscrupulous politicians alone would and could not do in Malaysia. It would take more. There would have to be a general failure of our institutions to allow such abuses and corruption to go on and be tolerated. Toleration soon degenerates into encouragement, and a new cultural norm is established.

This is what happens when the institutions of our society have been let to deteriorate. They are no longer able to function as effective defenders of citizens’ interests. We expect members of the fourth estate to be aware of their awesome responsibility to keep citizens informed. We expect these journalists to be on the vanguard of this sacred task. Alas they too have been taken in; they have prostituted themselves to those in power.

There is an honorable place in this world for cheerleaders, spinmeisters, or even court jesters and others who see themselves doing the bidding of those who hired them, but reporters and journalists they are not. If those in the mainstream media feel that they have to cari makan, then I suggest that they join the advertising and pubic relations industry. If they are talented enough in that endeavor there will get plenty of rewards. They do not need to soil and degrade the hallowed traditions and functions of the fourth estate.

This degradation of our mainstream media is of course not a recent phenomenon, nor is it a subtle. RTM has only a few hundred followers on its Twitter. As for The New Straits Times, if not for its highly subsidized distributions and subscriptions, its circulation would down in the dumps. And if not for the government-paid announcements and advertisements and paid press releases of government-linked corporations, so too would be the paper’s revenue.

Just as the shifts in fortune among the politically powerful are reflected in the coverage of the mainstream media, so too is the dysfunctional leadership among them. We saw this played out during the early days of barely-under-the-surface rivalry between Mahathir and his then deputy, Anwar Ibrahim. Their supporters take their cue from how their patrons were covered in the mainstream media. The New Straits Times rivaled Pravda in this regard. This was repeated when Abdullah Badawi took over; then it was Mahathir’s turn to be at the receiving end.

There is no honor among UMNO leaders. Theirs is a world of hyenas; a world of winner takes all, right to last bit of morsel of their prey. Mahathir did it to Tengku Razaleigh when the latter lost a closely contested leadership contest back in the 1980s. Mahathir did it again later, this time at a more vicious level, with Anwar Ibrahim. Then Abdullah Badawi tried to do it to Mahathir, and learned to regret it.

You would expect the women of UMNO to show some gentleness. Yet there was Shahrizat and Rafidah still at it with their cat fight, now more openly and much uglier.

There is plenty of blame to go around for the present pathetic state in Malaysia. Our callous acceptance of wrong doing among our leaders did not develop overnight. We have been taught, and taught well, to accept these misdeeds as anything but that, aided by those cheerleaders and spinmeisters in the mainstream media.