KT P036 first election under Abdul Aziz as new EC chairman

Tuesday November 11, 2008 | star archive

KUALA LUMPUR: Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof, 58, has been appointed chairman of the Election Commission (EC) effective Dec 31.

Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan said in a statement Tuesday that the Yang diPertuan Agong had consented to Abdul Aziz’s appointment under Clause (1) Article 114 of the Federal Constitution.

His appointment is until he reaches the age of 66 as provided for under Clause (3) Article 114 of the Constitution.

Abdul Aziz, who was born in Sabak Bernam, Selangor on Jan 24, 1950, retired as Home Ministry secretary-general on Jan 24, 2006 but was reappointed to the post on a contract basis.

He will be replacing current EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman whose service will end as he will be 66 on Dec 30.

On behalf of the Government, Mohd Sidek thanked Abdul Rashid for his excellent service as EC chairman for the past eight years. - Bernama

Maimun opts to stay out

Tuesday December 30, 2008 | Staronline

KUALA TERENGGANU: Maimun Yusof, fondly known as Tok Mun, has decided not to contest in the Kuala Terengganu by-election.

“Ku mboh, guane ini, pitih takdok, tokleh tanding doh (I don’t want, how, no money to contest),” she said yesterday.

Maimun, 89, who stood as an independent candidate in the March 8 general election, said she would however try to contest in the next general election, also as an independent.

Meanwhile, it was learnt that the state PAS was waiting for the final nod from the Majlis Syura (consultative council of religious scholar) before announcing the name of its candidate tomorrow for the Jan 17 by-election.

A party insider said yesterday that although the party’s central committee preferred a contender from the youth wing, the grassroots showed enthusiasm for Batu Burok assemblyman Dr Syed Azman Syed Ahmad Nawawi, a former lecturer of the International Islamic University, as the appropriate candidate for the parliamentary constituency.

The insider also said 90 enumerators assigned on an opinion poll by the party in three state constituencies – Batu Buruk, Wakaf Mempelam and Ladang - reported back that Dr Syed Azman was the favourite. On Sunday, PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said he would leave the matter of finalising the candidate to Terengganu PAS.

State PAS election machinery director Datuk Wan Muttalib Wan Embong said there was no truth to claims that PKR also wanted to decide on the candidate.

In George Town, MIC secretary-general Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam said the party was confident the 570 votes from the Indian community in the constituency would go to Barisan Nasional.

Senarai semak daftar pemilih sangat tidak bersih - Perantau

Sun | Dec 28, 08 | Harakah

KUALA TERENGGANU, 28 Dis (Hrkh) - Seramai 75 orang berumur lebih 100 tahun didapati termasuk dalam senarai semak daftar pemilih yang akan digunakan pada pilihan raya kecil P.36 Parlimen Kuala Terengganu 17 Januari ini.

Setiausaha Persatuan Anak-anak Terengganu di Perantauan (Perantau), Mohd Suhaimi Embong berkata, daripada 80,229 orang yang didaftarkan sebagai pemilih terdapat kira-kira 75 nama pengundi yang berusia lebih 100 tahun.

"Perantau mendapati sebanyak 75 nama pengundi yang berusia lebih 100 tahun, termasuk mereka yang berumur 116 tahun," katanya kepada Harakahdaily.

Beliau turut mendakwa sebanyak 302 orang yang berumur lebih 90 tahun, manakala 1,308 orang pula di kalangan mereka yang berumur lebih 80 tahun.

"Kebanyakan mereka itu telah meninggal dunia tetapi masih tidak dikeluarkan daripada data senarai pemilih yang terkini atau dengan kata lain data Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya sangat tidak bersih.

"Malah banyak kesalahan yang disengajakan untuk membenarkan 'hantu' berkumpul," katanya lagi.

Oleh itu, pihaknya menggesa SPR mengambil tindakan untuk segera mengemaskinikan senarai semak daftar pemilih terbabit.

"Perantau mendesak SPR agar segera membersihkan daftar pemilih sebelum disahkan untuk kegunaan pada pilihan raya kecil ini," ujarnya

Pada masa sama, kebimbangan beliau ini akan disertai dengan tindakan pemantauan di kalangan jentera pilihan raya semua peringkat bagi memastikan tiada ralat yang disengajakan berlaku untuk memenangkan pihak tertentu pada 17 Januari ini. 

HUDUD - A realistic law for a genuine Welfare State?

RPK in his recent work seems to suggest so .....[extract below]

A critical analysis of Hudud could lay the matter to rest. Those opposed could become converted if the real issue is explained. But then this will end the confusion. And the objective is not to end the confusion. The game plan is exploitation and deception. That is how ‘good’ politics is played. And there is only one type of politics, the type that wins.

Thieves must not be automatically punished under Hudud. The circumstances need to first be explored. Under common law thieves must not escape punishment. The circumstances do not matter. If a thief is a thief because of circumstances then the thief is not a thief and society must instead be punished, as far as Hudud is concerned. Society will be ordered to adopt the thief. The thief will become the ward of the state. And the thief can now leave his life and crime and enter into a life of adoption.

Such is the beauty of Hudud. A thief is not a thief. A thief becomes our adopted child. And if, again, he needs to steal because we have failed him, then we receive punishment instead. The thief loses no limb. But do people understand this? They do not because they are meant to not understand. . . .

No, Hudud is not evil. Hudud is better than what we have now. But it can be worse if we want to make it so. And chances are the evil in man will make it worse. That is what makes the matter dicey. [read more]

Survey : Calon Pilihan untuk bertanding .

website resmi PRK036 PAS

Calon PAS Pilihanraya Kecil Parlimen KT Pilihan Anda ?

Bekas Calon Lepas (Tuan Hj Mohammad Sabu)
578 54.1%

Salah seorang ADUN PAS dalam Parlimen KT ( Dato’ Tengku Hasan Tengku Omar, Hj Mohd Abdul Wahid Endut, Y.B. Dr Syed Azman Syed Ahmad)
223 20.9%

Calon Muka Baru - Rahsia ??? (Professional/ Akademik)
189 17.7%

Calon Pemuda PAS Terengganu ( Azman Shapawi Abdul Rani, Arifin Deraman, Wan Sukhairi Wan Abdullah)
43 4%

Pimpinan Veteran / Wakil Rakyat ( Dato' Haji Mustafa Ali, Dato' Wan Mutalib Embong)
30 2.8%

Jumlah Pengundi : 1068
Undian Pertama : MONDAY, 09 OCTOBER 2006 21:01
Undian Terakhir : SUNDAY, 28 DECEMBER 2008 17:08

[ Keputusan survey sehari sebelum penamaan calun akan cuba di pamerkan ]

Malaysia : Enter Najib, with baggage

Nov 6th 2008 | BANGKOK | From The Economist print edition

A new leader mired in accusations

ONE could certainly say that Najib Razak was born to be Malaysian prime minister. He is the son of Abdul Razak, the second man to hold that job following independence from Britain, and the nephew of his successor, Hussein Onn. Elected to parliament aged 23, on his father’s death, he rose to become deputy to the present prime minister, Abdullah Badawi. However, Mr Najib, expected within months to become the country’s sixth post-independence leader, will enter under a cloud of allegations, including ones linking him to a murder case, all of which he categorically denies. But some Malaysians will be wondering if he is a fit person to lead them.

Facing a revitalised opposition, in an election earlier this year the governing coalition, led by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), lost the two-thirds majority it needs to change the constitution. Since then, the knives have been out for Mr Badawi. Despite his efforts to cling on he is being forced to quit next March. The contest to succeed him as party president, and thus prime minister, at first promised to be lively. But party officials, fearful of the challenge from the opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim (a former UMNO deputy leader), chose to hang together rather than hang separately. By November 2nd Mr Najib had won enough nominations to block his only rival, Razaleigh Hamzah, a former finance minister, from getting on the ballot-paper.

The quizzical Mr Najib

Like Mr Badawi before him, Mr Najib comes to the job promising reforms, including of the system of preference for members of the ethnic-Malay majority for state contracts and jobs. Mr Badawi achieved little, though he allowed a bit more freedom of expression than had his predecessor, Mahathir Mohamad. Expectations for Mr Najib are lower still. It is possible, notes Edmund Gomez, a political scientist, that he will use the worsening economic outlook as a pretext for reverting to Mahathir-style repression.

Mr Anwar has failed to carry out his threat to topple the government through a mass defection of parliamentarians. Even so, there is a palpable fin de régime air around UMNO. Mr Badawi, Mr Mahathir and other leaders are publicly lamenting how corruption and cronyism are rife in the party. But his opponents say Mr Najib is hardly the man to restore confidence. In the latest scandal to which they are linking him, the defence ministry (which he oversaw until recently) has deferred a big order for helicopters following questions about their high price. A parliamentary committee this week cleared the government of wrongdoing, but admitted not investigating whether “commissions” were paid.

In an earlier case, a company the opposition claimed was linked to Razak Baginda, an adviser to Mr Najib, was paid juicy fees for services provided over a contract for the purchase of French submarines. A Mongolian woman, said to have worked as a translator in the negotiations, was shot dead and her corpse destroyed with explosives in 2006. Mr Razak was put on trial over her killing, along with two policemen. The case has dragged on for months and seen various odd goings-on, including changes of judge, prosecutors and defence lawyers at the start of the trial. A private detective signed a statutory declaration implicating Mr Najib, retracted it the next day, saying it had been made under duress. Calls by the victim’s family for Mr Najib to testify were rejected. On October 31st the judge ruled that the prosecution had failed to make a prima facie case against Mr Razak.

The policemen’s trial will continue. A blogger who linked Mr Najib's wife to the case is on trial for criminal libel. None of this, however, seems likely to interfere with Mr Najib’s accession to the prime minister’s job. A bigger threat may yet emerge from the resurgent opposition and Mr Anwar, who nurtures a long-thwarted ambition to take the job himself.

Hudud: PAS punyai cita-cita, Umno bagaimana?

Di dalam wacana politik di antara Husam dan Khairi Jamaluddin, Naib Ketua Pemuda Umno yang telah diadakan di Kelantan baru-baru ini memperjelaskan kepada kita semua siapakah yang sebenarnya tidak mahu kepada hudud.

Bukan masalah DAP, MCA atau MIC, bahkan juga bukan masalah Non-Muslim yang tidak menyokong hudud ini, masalahnya Parti Umno yang kononnya memperjuangkan Melayu dan Islam turut menolak hukum Allah ini.

Media perdana menjadikan isu hudud ini sebagai senjata untuk menyerang PAS terutamanya. Dalil yang diambil oleh UMNO bagi menghalang cita-cita PAS bagi melaksanakan hukum hudud ini adalah dipetik dari kenyataan pemimpin dari DAP.

Mengapa tidak diambil dalil untuk menolak hudud ini dari Ulama-ulama Kerajaan, Mufti-mufti atau sesiapa sahaja yang mengetahui tentang perundangan Islam ? Mengapa mesti pemimpin DAP, MCA atau MIC ?

Begitulah juga apa yang diperkatakan oleh Husam. PAS tetap mempunyai niat atau cita-cita untuk melaksanakan hudud, cuma jika Pakatan Rakyat berkuasa perlaksanaannya tidak secara serta merta. Nawaitu yang ada pada PAS itu amat terpuji berbeza dengan Umno. Kerajaan BN yang ditunjangi oleh Umno sejak berpuluh tahun, usahkan hendak melaksanakan hukum hudud bahkan Umno sedikit pun tiada cita-cita atau komitmen ke arah itu.

Benarkah PAS menggadaikan prinsip kepada DAP seperti yang dihangat diperkatakan oleh media dan pemimpin Umno ? Apa prinsip PAS yang telah digadaikan ? Bukankah PAS masih komited untuk melaksanakan hukum hudud dan sepanjang masa PAS berusaha ke arah itu ? Sepanjang PAS berdakwah dan berpolitik untuk menegakkan Islam di negara ini, musuh yang terang dan nyata menentang usaha PAS ini bukan DAP, MCA atau MIC tetapi sebaliknya Umno.[baca seterusnya]

IJN has RM3m to treat poor

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26 — | — Bernama

The National Heart Institute (IJN) Foundation has collected RM3 million this year from charitable organisations, private companies and the society to help fund heart treatment for the poor.

IJN Foundation manager Alawiyah Yussof said six private companies had been making regular contributions annually while organisations and individuals contributed from time to time.

Contributors to the IJN foundation include Pfizer Malaysia, AirAsia and the Tenaga Nasional Foundation.

“The contributions were not only in monetary form but also as partners in our programmes,” Alawiyah told Bernama news agency recently.

Formed in 1995, the IJN Foundation collects funds to treat poor heart patients and to fund IJN’s research programmes.

She said the foundation was never short on funds when called upon to help and last year funded 85 patients costing over RM2 million.

“Sometimes, we also help to buy additional equipments for patients.”

IJN treats three categories of patients namely government staff or retirees, patients who could afford to pay, and those who could not afford.

She the foundation did not receive any complaints on lack of equipments or poor service from patients or their family members.

On the deferred plan to privatise IJN, Alawiyah said the privatisation of IJN would drive away donors.

“This is because the society regards private companies as profit-driven and wholly dependent on capital expenditure,” she added.

Sime Darby Bhd was recently reported as planning to buy a 51 per cent stake in IJN Holdings Sdn Bhd, the operator of IJN.

IJN, the leading medical heart centre in the region is 99.99 per cent owned by the Ministry of Finance.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said on Dec 19 the privatisation of IJN had been postponed pending an indepth review by the relevant ministries.

 

Makan umpan jangan makan mata kail.

Saturday, 27 December 2008 | bulletinonline

Kuala Terengganu - Pengundi Cina Kuala Terengganu diingatkan supaya makan ‘umpan’  tetapi jangan makan ’mata kail’, berikutan agihan ’angpau’ dana khas kerajaan Persekutuan yang kini mula diagihkan oleh pemimpin kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN) bermula kelmarin.

BN Tidak Gentar Dengan PAS”, Tapi Beli Rakyat Dengan Pembangunan !

Kuala Terengganu - Pengerusi Barisan Nasional (BN) Terengganu, Dato’ Ahmad Said berkata BN tidak gentar dengan sesiapa sahaja calon PAS, namun telah membelanjakan RM6.1 juta wang rakyat untuk memancing undi, semalam.

Justeru, UMNO dan Barisan Nasional (BN) terus mengamalkan ‘politik kuno’ dengan melakukan beberapa perlanggaran dan penyelewengan sejak Suruhanjaya Pilihanraya (SPR) mengisytiharkan pilihanraya kecil Parlimen Kuala Terengganu, 6 Disember lalu.

Dengan tidak mempedulikan arahan SPR yang melarang pengibaran bendera sebelum penamaan calon 6 Januari depan, UMNO/BN telah menaikkan beratus-ratus bendera di beberapa lokasi dalam kawsan pilihanraya.

Selain itu, parti tersebut terus menggunakan premis-premis kerajaan untuk agenda kempen parti dan terus mencampuradukkan antara program kerajaan dan program parti tanpa batasan.

Ahmad Said, yang menggunakan platform ”Program Mesra Rakyat Program Mesra Rakyat Bersama Komuniti Cina Kuala Terengganu” di Dewan Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) Chung Hwa Wei Sin’ dekat sini, mendakwa BN sudah bersedia dan yakin dengan kemampuan calonnya.

“BN sudah bersedia dan yakin dengan kemampuan calon kita. Itulah sebabnya kita isytiharkan nama calon lebih awal dan Umno Terengganu sendiri tak ada masalah kerana nama calon kita memang dicadangkan sendiri Umno Bahagian Kuala Terengganu," katanya.

Namun begitu keyakinan Ahmad itu adalah bergantung dengan ‘duit rakyat dari hasil cukai dan peruntukan kerajaan’, bukannya dengan program, kewangan dan kekuatan dari UMNO/BN.

Ahmad telah mengisytiharkan pembinaan Dewan Komuniti Cina Kuala Terengganu di Bukit Kecil dengan kos RM3.3 juta, dan peruntukan tambahan RM2.8 juta untuk menaik taraf kemudahan dewan Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Chung Hwa Wei Sin, dalam usaha ‘membeli undi rakyat dengan janji pembangunan’. 

Sementara itu, Buletinonline dimaklumkan Wan Farid dijemput merasmikan sambutan ulang tahun ke-27 Pergerakan Pemuda Malaysia cawangan Kuala Terengganu di sini malam kelmarin setelah memberikan sumbangan RM5000 sempena makan malam pergerakan tersebut.

Satu sumber yang hadir dalam majlis tersebut berkata, ramai yang hadir ke majlis tersebut untuk makan malam kerana telah membayar ‘duit meja’, bukan kerana memberi sambutan kepada Wan Farid.

“Sewaktu Wan Farid tiba, ramai yang tidak menyedari kehadiran Wan Farid kerana kebanyakan golongan muda yang hadir tidak kenal kepadanya,”kata sumber tersebut.

Opposition makes inroads but Umno is digging in

Malaysianinsider— Business Times Singapore

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 24 — The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition faces a crucial electoral test next month in Terengganu where the dominant United Malays National Organisation (Umno), will square off against the opposition Parti Islam SeMalaysia (Pas).

The by-election is a result of the death of Kuala Terengganu’s lawmaker, a deputy minister from Umno. In the March 8 General Election, he’d narrowly fended off his Pas opponent by a slim majority of over 600 votes. Thus, the outcome is crucial to the BN’s credibility and its claims to be undisputed master of Malaysia’s destiny.

The claim, almost taken for granted following the BN’s continued hegemony since independence in 1957, became doubtful after the March 8 general elections and the BN’s worst ever electoral outing in the nation’s history.

The ruling coalition lost five state governments to a unified opposition coalition as well as its two-thirds majority in Parliament.

The results have had calamitous consequences for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who is also Umno president. Faced with incessant demands from critics - most notably former premier Mahathir Mohamad — that he take responsibility for the election results and step aside, Abdullah, 68, caved in to the pressure and announced that he would not seek re-election in Umno polls slated for early next year.

He will be succeeded by his deputy, Najib Razak, who will take over as Malaysia’s sixth premier in March.

No one, however, thinks that Najib, 55, will have an easy time of it, electorally speaking. The public disquiet that almost undid Abdullah has not gone away and, for the first time in years, the Opposition is headed by a charismatic leader in the form of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Indeed, Anwar, 63, was crucial to the Opposition’s performance last March.

He wielded a disparate — and some would suggest, still unworkable — coalition of opposition parties with his National Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat, PKR) mediating between the religiously conservative Pas on one side and the left-leaning Democratic Action Party (DAP) on the other. But Anwar’s force of will prevailed and the coalition still survives.

Still, Najib is under no immediate threat. Anwar had promised to engineer enough defections from BN to form the next government but that possibility is now remote. Reason: so long as the unpopular Abdullah was prime minister, the possibility of defections was real but with a new prime minister waiting in the wings, the threat of mass crossovers has all but evaporated.

And Najib has some things going for him. One of the main grouses against Abdullah’s administration was the rising cost of living catalysed primarily by soaring oil prices. But that's come off now and could have taken some of the edge off public anger.

Even so, other problems remain.

Malaysian Indians, who form eight per cent of the country’s 27 million people, remain largely disgruntled with the government over accusations that the vast majority of the community is economically marginalised.

Indeed, political analysts agree that the discontent is manifest among the Indian masses, 85 per cent of whom are largely disenfranchised Tamils and who, paradoxically, form the core constituency of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a BN component party. The Indians do not form the majority in any parliamentary constituency but, as they showed in the last election, an emphatic swing either way could make a difference.

The Chinese, who form 26 per cent of the population, aren’t happy either. They weren’t happy by Umno demands in 2007 that affirmative action policies favouring ethnic Malays be reinforced.

More recently, the community was angered by a statement by Mukhriz Mahathir, the youngest son of Dr Mahathir and an aspirant for the post of Umno Youth head, that ‘perhaps’ vernacular schools should have been merged with the national schools to ensure one system.

Najib’s best bet is the possibility that he could get the Malays, who form 64 per cent of the population, to unite behind Umno. In the last election, they were split evenly between the various parties. Given Najib’s lineage — he is the son of Malaysia’s second, and highly respected, premier Razak Hussein, there are those who suggest he could pull it off.

Indeed, political scientists agree that ethnic Malays could swing behind Umno and BN precisely because of non-Malay anger against the government coupled with Anwar’s frequent statements that Malay dominance is a thing of the past.

Historically, anything that can threaten Malay political dominance of the country has been resisted by the Malays and it isn’t at all clear if Anwar’s exhortation resonate among the Malay masses.

The Kuala Terengganu by-election could be the first litmus test for Anwar’s multi-racial appeal.

Looking ahead, the main interest in Umno’s March elections revolves around the deputy presidency, a position that carries with it the post of deputy prime minister. Although it is a three cornered fight, the battle is likely to coalesce into a fight between International Trade Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and Melaka Chief Minister Ali Rustam.

Right now, some pundits are favouring Ali but it’s a long way till March. 

A satisfying victory for the averaga Malaysian.

By Cheong Suk-Wai — Straits Times

DEC 27 — The average Malaysian is not given to dramatics, being content with three meals a day and living peaceably with others.

On March 8 this year, however, during Malaysia's 12th general election, he put an opposition coalition crammed with greenhorn candidates 31 seats away from forming the government. He also gave it five of Malaysia's 13 states, including main cash cows Selangor, Penang and Perak.

In 1999, most Malays swung away from the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition after it arrested deputy premier Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for corruption and sodomy. This year, BN lost the support of most Chinese and Indians who were fed up with its patronage politics and abuses of power.

BN lost 46 per cent of the popular vote, with 51 per cent of voters in Peninsular Malaysia backing the opposition coalition made up of the very-Muslim Pas, the very-Chinese DAP and the multi-racial Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

In sum, BN got 63 per cent of the ballot, its worst showing since Malaysia gained independence in 1957. The result was even worse than the one BN managed during a strife-torn period in May 1969, when it got at least 66 per cent.

So, March 8 turned assumptions about Malaysians on the head.

Those who were sure Malays would not support the DAP and PKR saw the very-Malay strongholds of Bakri in Johor, Segambut in Kuala Lumpur and Teluk Intan in Perak fall easily to the two parties.

Those who were sure non-Malays would not support Pas heard them chant: “We want to eat Panadol!” Panadol refers to the white moon on Pas' party flag. Non-Malays now see no-nonsense Pas as preferable to a government whose policemen were sorely stretched by a spike in killings, whose Islamic zealots persecuted even non-Muslims and whose education minister kept waving a keris at the Chinese.

But was March 8 a political deluge for the better?

Not quite. At best, it was a warning to BN to serve the people pronto, although little will change unless patronage-bloated Umno changes. At worst, it was just an “anything goes” knee-jerk.

Meanwhile, the opposition coalition may soon fall apart over Pas' insisting that hudud (Islamic criminal law, which includes hand-severing penalties) be enforced should the opposition seize power.

March 8 was a small, but satisfying win, for the average Malaysian, who showed himself to be more mature than his political masters. 

There is flaw in Umno ethics code, says Rithauddeen

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26 — A weakness in the Umno code of ethics enables a member to escape disciplinary action for demanding a bribe for himself in return for supporting any candidate in the party elections, according to party disciplinary board chairman Tengku Tan Sri Ahmad Rithauddeen Tengku Ismail.

Suggesting an amendment to the code, which was just amended in March, he said there was no provision to penalise a member who sought bribes in cash or kind in return for his vote or support.

“If possible, we should amend (the code) and include this matter so that those who ask for money are also guilty. Now there is no such provision,” he told Bernama news agency.

Article 5 of the code specifies an offence related to a bribe under three categories:

* Misuse of authority directly or indirectly by oneself or through another to induce or force someone to vote or not vote for anyone in the party elections, either for oneself or for another;

* Give, loan, ask or agree to give, loan, ask or offer or promise to obtain money or favour for any party member or another person with the intention to induce that individual to vote or not to vote in any party election for oneself or another; and

* Give or receive or permit family members or any person to give or receive for oneself directly or indirectly to or, from any Umno member gifts, items or benefits to induce any party member to vote or not to vote in any party elections for oneself or another.

Several senior Umno officials confirmed that those implied as committing these offences were candidates and agents for candidates or delegates, and not members who sought bribes for themselves.

Political observers feel that the proposed amendment is relevant because many grassroots members claimed that the incidence of members seeking bribes for themselves was widespread during the recent Umno branch and divisional meetings.

Umno legal adviser Datuk Mohd Hafarizam Harun, in an interview with Bernama last month, acknowledged having heard of allegations of many members having approached candidates for bribes in return for their votes.

This development, he said, had placed several of the candidates in an awkward situation in their quest to garner sufficient nominations to qualify to contest party positions.

Nevertheless, several Umno leaders, while welcoming the proposal for the amendment, feel that it is unnecessary to have specific provisions for the disciplinary board to act against members who violate party discipline because it can act at its discretion as it has done in several cases of indiscipline in the past.

Johor Umno Youth chief Datuk Razali Ibrahim cited the suspension of Datuk Ahmad Ismail which was carried out at the discretion of the board after the Bukit Bendera Umno Division chief was found guilty of having made a statement of a racially sensitive nature not long ago.

“There is no provision in the code of ethics for the offence (committed by Ahmad). However, action was taken because an offence is an offence.

“So, don’t tell us that owing to an absence of provision in the code, action cannot be taken because, in the issue of political bribery, the giver and the receiver are at fault,” he said.

Razali, who is the Member of Parliament for Muar, said that in the case of Umno members seeking bribes for themselves, they could be penalised under the provision of abuse of authority — delegates abusing authority as voters.

“The proposal (for the amendment) is good but, if you ask me, the amendment is not important because of more importance is penalising the offenders,” he said.

He also said that the proposal could raise adverse consequences for the disciplinary board and Umno.

“I fear that there are too many statements on wanting to do so many things but when people do not see action, they will begin to ridicule. Besides, the statement by the disciplinary board also brings about a perception that political bribery is widespread in Umno,” he said.

Cheras Umno Division chief Datuk Syed Ali Alhabshee, who agreed with Razali’s view, said the disciplinary board should focus on resolving the complaints of indiscipline with greater speed and transparency.

“I do not see any problem with the proposal so long as it brings good to Umno but let not the party be despised and ruined because such a statement (on the amendment) implies that the party is overly corrupt,” he said.

He feels that the problem of political bribery in Umno is not as bad as it is perceived to be by the people because the menace only involves a small number of members.

Syed Ali did not rule out the possibility of a culture involving delegates seeking bribes.

“As for me, it is up to the candidate. He (or she) knows that political bribery is wrong and he should report the delegate seeking bribes from him. End of story,” he said.

The Umno elections for posts in the supreme council are scheduled for March 24 to 28 next year. The post of president has been won unopposed by deputy president Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had declined to seek re-election as president. — Bernama

Rasuah Politik di Terengganu

Fri | Dec 26, 08 | 12:55:58 pm MYT | Khairul Azlam Mohamad

KUALA TERENGGANU, 26 Dis (Hrkh)- Pengundi Cina diingatkan agar tidak termakan 'umpan' dana khas kerajaan Persekutuan yang kini mula diagihkan sebagai 'Ang Pau' oleh pemimpin kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN) Terengganu.

Pengerusi DAP cawangan Kuala Terengganu, Ng Chai Hing berkata pembahagian duit 'Ang Pau' yang digunakan dari peruntukkan dana khas sedang giat diagih-agihkan kepada penduduk di Bandar Kuala Terengganu.

Katanya, pemberian tersebut berselindung atas nama sempena Tahun Baru Cina diagih-agihkan kepada penduduk berketurunan tionghua.

"Saya harap rakyat terutama pengundi kaum tionghua yang akan terlibat dengan Pilihan Raya Kecil P.36 Kuala Terengganu ini tidak termakan "umpan" dana khas RM300 seorang itu.

"Duit 'Ang Pau' dana khas itu boleh ambil sebab bukan duit peribadi pemimpin MCA-BN tetapi itu memang duit rakyat yang diambil dari royalty.

"Saya harap rakyat boleh ambil duit sahaja tetapi undi dalam Pilihan Raya Kecil pada 17 Januari 2009 depan kita (pengundi) tidak gadai hanya kerana 'habuan' RM300 sahaja," jelasnya kepada Harakahdaily, hari ini.

Beliau yakin para pengundi dan rakyat di Terengganu ini terutama kaum tionghua sudah matang berpolitik serta dapat mengikut arus perubahan tsunami politik seluruh negara.

Kata Ng, pemberian dana khas (Ang pau) itu sememangnya patut diberikan kepada semua rakyat yang layak dan bukan di kalangan pengikut serta penyokong MCA dan kerajaan BN sahaja.

"Orang (BN) bagi duit ambil, orang bagi kain pakai, orang bagi gula kacau, tetapi tiba masa mengundi kita (rakyat) tolak BN undi PAS," ujarnya mengambil kata-kata Mursyidul Am PAS, Tuan Guru Dato' Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

Menurutnya, masyarakat Cina di Kuala Terengganu ini tidak mendapat pembelaan yang baik meski pun mempunyai seorang wakil rakyat dari kalangan parti MCA.

Katanya, pelbagai masalah gagal diselesaikan oleh kerajaan BN termasuk kesesakan jalan di Bandar, kekurangan parkir kereta, longkang tersumbat, banjir kilat dan pembangunan tidak seimbang.

Hudud: DAP hormati PAS,bukan Islam tidak terjejas

Thu | Dec 25, 08 | Harakah |

KUALA LUMPUR - Masyarakat bukan Islam di negara ini tidak akan terjejas dengan pelaksanaan hukum hudud.

Menurut Naib Pengerusi DAP, M Kulasegaran, beliau menghormati pendirian PAS dalam pelaksanaan hukum hudud dan yakin bukan Islam di negara ini tidak akan terjejas kehidupan mereka jika ia dilaksanakan.

Mengulas situasi dan suasana pilihan raya kecil Kuala Terengganu, Kulasegaran menambah bahawa,para pengundi Cina tidak akan terpengaruh dengan isu hudud menjelang pilihan raya kecil di sana.

Menurutnya, mereka matang dan mampu melihat dengan lebih jelas permainan yang cuba dibawa oleh Barisan Nasional (BN).

"Perkara ini telah didebat banyak kali.Tiada yang baru,"katanya kepada wartawan selepas perasmian pusat khidmat masyarakat Adun Jelapang (DAP),Hee Yit Foong.

Tambahnya, dia menghormati pendirian PAS untuk melaksanakan hudud dan ia merupakan inspirasi parti tersebut.

"Ia masih memerlukan perubahan perlembagaan persekutuan,"jelasnya sambil menegaskan PAS akan sukar mendapat majoriti untuk melakukannya.

Pengundi-pengundi Cina dilaporkan membentuk 11 peratus dalam daftar pemilihan untuk pilihan raya kecil di Kuala Terengganu dan ia penting buat BN.

Kulasegaran yang juga merupakan Ahli Parlimen Ipoh Barat menegaskan,seandainya hukum hudud dilaksanakan gaya hidup masyarakat bukan Islam tidak akan mendapat kesan.

"Ia adalah pendirian PAS. Saya hormati pendirian mereka.Itu merupakan urusan mereka,"tegasnya.

'Kami tuntut hak kami'- penduduk Asli

Fri | Dec 26, 08 | Harakah | Hashim Abdullah

KUALA KRAU, Pemimpin Umno dan Barisan Nasional dibidas kerana gagal meningkatkan taraf sosio ekonomi kaum asli berbanding kaum lain walaupun Negara telah 50 tahun merdeka.

Perkara ini dibangkitkan kaum asli di perkampungan gugusan Jenderak dalam dialog bersama wartawan & semasa mereka mengadakan demonstrasi membantah pengambil tanah tradisi yang telah mereka dakwa usahakan sejak nenek moyang hampir 100 tahun dahulu.

Harakah difahamkan seramai 4,000 penduduk asli keturunan Jahut di 12 perkampungan dalam gugusan Jenderak mengalami delima terhadap status tanah dan kediaman mereka kerana ketiadaan dokumentasi yang jelas dari pihak berkuasa.

Dialog yang diadakandi balai raya Kampung Pian turut dihadiri ratusan penduduk dari beberapa perkampungan berhampiran turut mengeluarkan berbagai slogan mengecam kerajaan atas isu terbabit.

Antara slogan yang ditulis berbunyi: "Kami tuntut hak kami, hormati hak kami, berani kerana benar, tanah kami nyawa kami semua jagalah akta 134, harapan untuk temurun, bebaskan hak kami, akta 134 dan banyak lagi.

Paling gelisah dengan situasi pengambilan tanah untuk agensi kerajaan ialah bersabit isu kediaman kekal yang tidak mereka perolehi selama ini dan isu mata pencarian pada masa depan.

Generasi muda, On Bin Batin Long, 37 memberitahu penduduk orang asli gugusan jenderak semakin terhimpit kerana tidak mempunyai pekerjaan yang diamalkan secara tradisi dan pertanian.

"Masalah besar ialah kami tak ada tanah kekal, sedangkan tanah yang diusahakan turun temurun sejak datuk, nenek moyang kami dahulu seberang kampong ini telah dijadikan kawasan Perlindungan Hidupan Liar Dan Taman Negara (PERHILITAN).

"Kami harap kerajaan, menteri-menteri jangan pecamkan mata. Tolonglah selesaikan masalah orang kami. Kami bukan nak lebih-lebih tapi kami nak hak kami yang sedikit ini,"katanya.

Mustafa a/l Sik mahukan kerajaan negeri menyelesaikan isu tanah-tanah adab dan perkampungan orang asli yang tidak diiktiraf oleh kerajaan secara hitam putih menyebabkan kebanyakan orang asli dalam keadaan delima.

"Tanah-tanah adab dan perkampungan kami tidak diiktiraf oleh kerajaan sebagai milik kami secara hitam putih. Malah sehingga saat ini kebanyakan masyarakat orang asli tidak tahu status tanah yang sedang kami duduki," katanya.

On Hudud & Qisas

In an unprecedented move, Federal Territory MCA Youth stepped into the PAS headquarters in Kuala Lumpur to submit a memorandum protesting a plan to bring in hudud law. [watch video]

"Kerajaan PAS Terengganu telah membawa Enakmen Kesalahan Jenayah Hudud dan Qisas Terengganu 2002 kedalam Dewan Undangan Negeri dan diluluskan sebulat suara. Enakmen tersebut juga telah mendapat perkenan Sultan Terengganu, Tuanku Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin pada 2 September 2002 dan kemudiannya diwartakan pada 25 September 2002.

"Walaupun masih belum berkuatkuasa namun kerajaan Umno-BN yang merampas kembali pemerintahan dari PAS pada tahun 2004 tidak menolak dan meminda Enakmen tersebut, di mana dalam kerajaan Umno-Barisan Nasional itu termasuk seorang wakil bukan Islam iaitu dari MCA,"jelas Fariz.

Katanya wakil MCA tersebut sehingga hari ini tidak pernah menyuarakan apa-apa ketidakpuasan hati terhadap enakmen itu yang telah menjadi sebahagian daripada undang-undang bagi negeri Terengganu. [read more]

Abdullah’s farewell gesture

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 25 — Business Times Singapore

— By the mid-1990s, it was apparent that Malaysia had two problems that concerned investors. One was official corruption and the other, a judiciary whose integrity was suspect. Both problems were well known although the issue of judicial integrity, or its lack thereof, was always ignored or denied outright.

But the findings of last year’s Royal Commission of Inquiry showed that what was always suspected and whispered about was irrefutably true. In the twilight of his political life, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi now wants to put things right. It could be his greatest farewell gesture to the country.

Last week, the Malaysian Parliament passed two bills — an Act enabling the formation of a Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and another authorising a Judicial Appointments Commission.

The MACC is modelled on Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption and designed to replace Malaysia's present corruption fighter which has justifiably been dismissed as toothless. The new board will be overseen by an advisory board of eminent people and a committee of seven lawmakers that will present an annual report to Parliament.

Like its HK counterpart, the MACC has wide ranging powers including those of arrest, investigation and the interception of communications. It has also the power to protect whistle blowers and to investigate people living beyond their means.

The Judicial Appointments Committee will have a nine-man panel to nominate judicial candidates to the Prime Minister. The committee will comprise five senior judges and four eminent persons and will be selected after consultation with institutions such as the Bar Council.

As ever, there are critics. There are those who argue that the MACC has too much power. This is a patently ridiculous notion when juxtaposed against what will soon be the former Anti-Corruption Agency — a weak agency precisely because it lacked such powers. The other contention is that the MACC isn’t wholly independent and that the Attorney-General would still call the shots in deciding to prosecute.

Sadly, all the fuss over the Attorney-General’s power boils down to the individual. In Malaysia's first 25 years, no one ever questioned the Attorney-General’s motives. Unfortunately, the current office holder’s motives are now being questioned; it is this reality that should be considered by the government.

The criticism of the judicial commission lies mainly in the fact that the Prime Minister still wields considerable power; he can ask for two more choices if he does not like those nominated, and that he alone can appoint and remove panel members who will nominate the judges.

Against this, the law now says that the premier must consult institutions such as the Bar Council before appointing or removing anyone and that is to be a check on his power. The critics should understand in all jurisdictions modelled on the Wesminister system, even developed ones, have executive involvement in judicial appointments.

Altantuya case not over yet for Razak Baginda

Thursday, 25 December 2008 | By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider

Karpal Singh has dragged Abdul Razak Baginda back into the Altantuya Shariibuu murder trial after filing a judicial review of the attorney-general’s decision not to appeal against his acquittal.

The DAP chairman filed the application at the Shah Alam High Court on behalf of the applicant, Shariibuu Setev, who is the father of the deceased, on the grounds that it is in the public interest and the family of the deceased.

“The applicant has lost a daughter and is responsible for the upbringing of her two young children, one of whom is physically challenged. The applicant’s legitimate expectation for justice should be given the highest premium and fulfilment,” the application reads.

Abdul Razak, whose ties to Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had turned this into a high-profile case, was acquitted of abetting in the murder of his Mongolian mistress on Oct 31 and the AG had 14 days to file an appeal.

The move will come as a huge blow to both Abdul Razak and Najib.

The former has told the press that he is seeking to move on with his life and complete a doctorate in Oxford.

Najib, who will become prime minister after the Umno party polls in March, will want to put to rest any links to the murder trial as he seeks to rebuild and strengthen his Barisan Nasional coalition.

The review seeks to quash the decision by the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail not to appeal against Justice Datuk Mohd Zaki Yassin's acquittal of Abdul Razak without calling for the his defence.

It further asks the court to rule that an order of mandamus be issued to compel Abdul Gani to apply for an extension of time to appeal the decision and thereafter, to apply to the Court of Appeal for a warrant that Abdul Razak be remanded or admitted to bail pending the disposal of the appeal.

The application in fact, will ask if the courts has the jurisdiction to rule on the AG's discretion in the matter as stated in the Federal Constitution.

“The AG’s discretion cannot be absolute. He must act fairly and reasonably and not arbitrarily. If the King and rulers are subject to law, then I cannot see how the AG is exempted to act as he pleases without question,” Karpal said.

Krisis baru MIC, bendahari dipecat

Dec24 | Malaysiakini

Orang kuat MIC Tan Sri M Mahalingam digugurkan daripada jawatan bendahari agung parti itu berkuat kuasa serta-merta atas arahan presidennya Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu.

Bendahari agung sejak tiga penggal lalu, yang juga orang kepercayaan Samy Vellu (kanan), turut diminta meletakkan semua jawatan dalam MIC termasuk dalam syarikat pelaburan parti itu.

Mahalingam, ketika dihubungi Malaysiakini hari ini mengesahkan beliau menerima surat daripada Samy Vellu petang semalam mengenai keputusan menggugurkan jawatan itu.

Mahalingam juga pengerusi MIED Capital Sdn Bhd, syarikat yang menguruskan pelaburan pendidikan MIC.

Surveys show Syed Azman is Pas best hope for KT vote

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 25

— Two independent surveys commissioned by Pas have revealed that Dr Syed Azman Syed Ahmad Nawawi is the party’s best hope to capture the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary constituency from the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition in the Jan 17 by-election.

The Islamist party called for the surveys in its search for the most popular candidate after dismal outings for the seat in the past two general elections.

In both surveys, the Batu Burok state assemblyman came out tops over Pas commissioner Datuk Mustafa Ali and deputy state commissioner Datuk Wan Mutalib Embong to represent the party.

Both veterans have been ruled out as Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang has indicated a younger candidate would be fielded, narrowing the choice between Syed Azman, who was Kuala Terengganu MP between 1999 and 2004, and businessman Professor Khazani Abdullah.

Hadi will announce the party candidate on Jan 1 ahead of the Jan 6 nomination day.

“Both surveys show Syed Azman and BN’s Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh as the top choices to take the seat. So Pas is likely to field Syed Azman,” a national Pas official familiar with the surveys told The Malaysian Insider.

Wan Ahmad Farid, who leads the Kuala Terengganu Umno division, has been named as BN’s candidate in the by-election called after its MP Datulk Razali Ismail died in late November. The deputy education minister was a two-term MP who won by a slim 628 majority against Pas’s Mohamed Sabu and grandmother Maimun Yusof.

Maimun has signalled she is ready to seek a mandate from the 80,229 voters in the seat which has attracted the interest of another independent and Pas splinter party Angkatan Keadilan Insan Malaysia (Akim).

It is understood that Wan Ahmad Farid, who will quit both his appointments as deputy home minister and as senator, made the cut due to his influence in the area and control of party machinery. His hopes had dimmed when he was re-appointed for a second term as senator early this month but Umno still named him over the state Umno’s choice of state education senior official Mohd Zuber Embong.

Both Umno and Pas have had to grapple with various options for the seat which is crucial to both their fortunes after the March 8 General Elections which saw BN losing its customary two third parliamentary majority and four more states to the opposition. Pas had won 23 parliamentary seats but came behind its Pakatan Rakyat (PR) allies and is seen as a junior partner in the electoral pact.

Party spiritual leader Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, who is also Kelantan Menteri Besar, had endorsed Mohamed Sabu to contest again but the Penang leader is seen as an outsider in the constituency which both Umno and its rivals have traded since the 1980s. Razali was also the first MP in recent times to keep the seat again.

For BN, it must win the by-election to prove it has regained its strength after also losing the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who took back his political stronghold from his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, the president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR).

The by-election is also crucial to BN election director Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak, the Umno president-elect who is slated to succeed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi next March. Incidentally, Wan Ahmad Farid was political secretary to Abdullah and his candidacy is seen as proof of Abdullah's continued influence in Umno.

BN is set to exploit Pas’s recent reaffirmation it will implement Islamic criminal hudud laws if Pakatan Rakyat comes to power. Vice-president Datuk Husam Musa, who made the statement in a debate with Umno Youth chief hopeful Khairy Jamaluddin in a debate last week, has hastily clarified his statements after Pakatan Rakyat ally Democratic Action Party (DAP) objected to it.

Both parties fell out over the same issue after the 1999 general elections where the opposition gained more seats due to Anwar’s sacking as deputy prime minister and finance minister by then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Wakil rakyat PKR dihalang masuk S'wak

Ahli parlimen PKR bagi Padang Serai, N Gobalakrishnan mendakwa beliau dihalang masuk ke Sarawak oleh kerajaan negeri sewaktu tiba di lapangan terbang antarabangsa Kuching petang ini.

Dalam insiden kira-kira jam 5.30 petang tadi, tambahnya, beliau diberikan sekeping notis larangan oleh pihak imigresen.

"Sebaik tiba di lapangan terbang, pegawai imigresen memberitahu saya yang saya tidak dibenarkan masuk atas arahan kerajaan negeri. [read more]

Eurocopter whistleblower joins PAS & will be campaigning in KT by-election.

Muda Mohd Noor | Dec 24, 08 | Malaysiakini

Bekas ketua bahagian Umno Petaling Jaya Selatan, Datuk Zahar Hashim - yang mendedahkan isu pembelian helikopterEurocopter - secara rasmi menyertai PAS hari ini.

Beliau telah menyerahkan borang keahliannya kepada Timbalan Presiden PAS, Nasharuddin Mat Isa di satu majlis yang diadakan di sebuah hotel di Ampang pagi ini.

Turut hadir pesuruhjaya PAS Selangor, Datuk Dr Hasan Ali.

Zahar (foto) digantung jawatan ketua Umno bahagian awal bulan ini keranamengkritik pemimpinutama Umno, termasuk mendakwa Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dan timbalannya Datuk Seri Najib Razak menyalahgunakan kuasa dalam satu pertemuan dengan ketua-ketua bahagian di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC).

Dr Hasan juga berkata, Zahar akan turun ke Kuala Terengganu pada 5 Disember sehingga selepas pilihanraya kecil tersebut. [read more]

Wan Farid perjudi jawatan timbalan menteri

Dec 23, 08 | Malaysiakini

Calon Barisan Nasional (BN) Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, perlu bekerja keras untuk memastikan kemenangannya dalam pilihanraya kecil parlimen Kuala Terengganu, 17 Januari depan.

Jika tewas, beliau tidak boleh dilantik semula sebagai senator untuk mengekalkan jawatannya sebagai timbalan menteri dalam negeri yang disandangnya sejak Mac lepas.

Wan Ahmad Farid mengangkat sumpah sebagai senator bagi penggal kedua hari ini.

Yang Dipertua Dewan Negara, Tan Sri Dr Abdul Hamid Pawanteh dipetik media sebagai berkata, jika Wan Ahmad Farid tewas dalam pilihanraya kecil tersebut, beliau tidak boleh dilantik semula sebagai senator. [read more]

What Others think of PUTRAJAYA

timesbusiness : December 12, 2008 | The 10 most outrageous vanity projects

Many real-world egos have poured vast wealth into doomed projects. Here Times Money lists 10 of the most pectacular:

8. Babylon (reconstruction), Iraq

The extensive ruins of Babylon, one of the great cities of the ancient world, were not spectacular enough for the tastes of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who commissioned a gaudy "reconstruction" of the site in 1985. This was built over priceless archaeology, using slapdash architectural guesswork and inferior workmanship. Features included bricks stamped with "Built by Saddam Hussein, son of Nebuchadnezzar, to glorify Iraq", and a mural of the Ba'athist despot alongside his supposed predecessor

9. Putrajaya, Malaysia

The then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad founded a new administrative capital for Malaysia in 1995. The Putrajaya megaproject, widely branded a white elephant, is estimated to have cost upwards of $5 billion, with $50 million-plus going on the premier's domed mansion. Upkeep of the latter 16-hectare complex costs a further $2.5 million a year. Critics have slammed the city's Islamic architecture, which, they say, does not acknowledge the country's Indian and Chinese minorities.

10. Hamilton Palace, near Brighton, England

Britain's most notorious landlord Nicholas van Hoogstraten - a man convicted in 1968 of ordering a hand-grenade attack on a rabbi's home - lavished an estimated £32 million on his new-built neo-classical residence near Uckfield, East Sussex, before putting work on hold in 2001 following spats with builders. The centrepiece of the project is its owner's mausoleum, with walls three feet thick to preserve his bones for 5,000 years. He once said: "The whole purpose of having money is to put yourself on a pedestal"

extract from timesonline.

Abu Zahar diura-ura sertai PAS

Muda Mohd Noor | Dec 23, 08 | Malaysiakini

dikemaskini Bekas ketua bahagian Umno Petaling Jaya Selatan, Datuk Abu Zahar Hashim - yang digantung tiga tahun susulan mendedahkan isu pembelian helikopter Eurocopter - dijangka menyertai PAS esok.

Ketua Pemuda Umno bahagian itu, Nor Azman Mohd Nor berkata, berita kemasukan Abu Zahar tersebut sudah tersebar dalam kalangan ahli-ahli Umno bahagian.

"Beliau keluar Umno kerana kecewa setelah digantung jawatan ketua bahagian selama tiga tahun oleh Majlis Tertinggi (MT) baru-baru ini," katanya ketika diminta mengulas desas-desus tersebut.

Abu Zahar digantung jawatan tersebut awal bulan ini kerana mengkritik pemimpin utama Umno, termasuk mendakwa Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dan timbalannya Datuk Seri Najib Razak menyalahgunakan kuasa dalam satu pertemuan dengan ketua-ketua bahagian di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC).

Difahamkan bekas kapten itu akan menyerahkan borang menyertai PAS dalam satu majlis di di sebuah hotel di Ampang, pagi esok [read more]

Mat Sabu tidak kecewa gagal dipilih calon PAS

Dec 23, 08 8:16pm | Courtesy : Abridged from Malaysia

Naib Presiden PAS Mohamad Sabu tidak kecewa jika tidak terpilih sekali lagi sebagai calon parti itu dalam pilihanraya kecil parlimen Kuala Terengganu.

Saya tak kisah kerana yang penting calon adalah dari PAS dan kita sokong siapa sahaja dari PAS", katanya kepada Bernama.

"Nama calon belum umum lagi dan presiden (PAS) dah maklum calon PAS akan diumum pada 1 Januari ini dan kita tunggu la, tapi jika saya tak terpilih pun tak apa".

Apa yang lebih penting, calon yang bertanding pada pilihanraya itu - yang diadakan antara 6 hingga 17 Januari ini - kelak adalah dari PAS, tambahnya.

Akim pilih peniaga

Sementara itu, Angkatan Keadilan Insan Malaysia (Akim) memilih naib presidennya Harun @ Ab Rahman Mohamad untuk turut bersaing dengan calon dua parti besar itu. [baca kesemua]

Mahfuz menang lawan Utusan

Harakahdaily | Foto Nasir Sudin | Tue | Dec 23, 08 | 2:43:26 pm MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, (Hrkh) - Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Lumpur hari ini memerintahkan Utusan Melayu Bhd dan bekas ketua pengarangnya membayar RM120,000 kepada ahli parlimen Pokok Sena, Mahfuz Omar dalam kes saman fitnah yang difailkan oleh pemimpin PAS tersebut.

Mahfuz, selaku plaintif, menfailkan saman itu pada 2001 dengan menamakan ketua pengarang kumpulan akhbar berpengaruh Utusan Malaysia (ketika itu) dan penerbitnya sebagai defendan-defendan.

Beliau mendakwa defendan pertama telah dengan sengaja dan niat jahat membenarkan penerbitan dan percetakan kata-kata yang mengandungi unsur fitnah yang disiarkan dalam akhbar Mingguan Malaysia pada 3 Mac 2001.

Mahfuz mendakwa penerbitan perkataan-perkataan itu menyebabkan dia menanggung malu dan menjejaskan kredibiliti di kalangan masyarakat.

Beliau yang bertindak sebagai Plaintif menuntut ganti rugi am, ganti rugi teladan, ganti rugi melampau dan mengarahkan defendan meminta maaf serta menarik balik tuduhan fitnah terhadapnya.

Defendan-defendan dalam pernyataan pembelaannya yang difailkan pada Mac 2002 pula menyatakan artikel "Demonstrasi Mahfuz isytihar bersama Keadilan" yang disiarkan itu adalah benar dari segi kandungan dan fakta dan menafikan bahawa ia bersifat fitnah.-azm

PAS turns hudud tables on Umno, KeADILan and DAP ready for action, Selangor MB Khalid to lead thrust

Selasa, 23 Disember 2008 • suaraKeAdilan By Wong Choon Mei

It’s all systems go for the Pakatan Rakyat at the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election.

With less than two weeks till nomination day on Jan 6, operations offices have already been set up by all three partners - KeADILan, PAS and DAP. The trio will collectively go all out to wrest the seat from the Umno-led Barisan Nasional and try their best to put in place their candidate from the Islamic-based PAS.

According to Pakatan people, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim himself will kick-start campaigning and is due to deliver the first official ceramah of the evening on nomination day.

Leading the charge for KeADILan will be Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim. Khalid will lead a team from Selangor, who together with KT locals, will focus on winning the hearts and minds of the urban KT dwellers.

Party bigwigs from neighbouring Kelantan, Pahang and other states will tasked to present the coalition’s case to the village folk living in the outlying areas of this peaceful coastal town, Pakatan members added.

“We are ready, it’s all set-up,” said KeADILan information chief Tian Chua. “The work has been planned and farmed out to all the different zonal chiefs. It is massive teamwork, a huge collective effort at both party and coalition level to win back KT for the people. We are very motivated.”

Who will represent Pakatan?

Balloting is on Jan 17, leaving both the Pakatan and the BN with 11 days to get their message across to the people of this breezy, royal capital town where rain-bearing monsoons dictate the pace of life for large parts of the year.

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang is due to announce the name of the candidate on Jan 1. Hadi, along with other Pakatan leaders, has chosen to keep mum on who will represent the coalition.

“We already have a candidate. It is in my pocket, Insya-Allah…wait for Jan 1 for the announcement,” was all Hadi would say despite intense badgering from the press.

Nevertheless, speculation is rife that the PAS candidate will be either Batu Burok assemblyman Syed Azman Syed Ahmad Nawawi or party veteran Wan Mutalib Embong.

A doctorate in political education, Syed Azman was also Kuala Terengganu MP in 1999 before he lost the seat to Umno in 2004. Party stalwart Wan Mutalib has been tasked with running the Terengganu PAS election machinery.

KT - a crucial test of Malay leadership

In the other corner is Deputy Home Minister Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, the official choice of the Umno-led Barisan.

The KT seat is a crucial test for both Pakatan and the Barisan. Both coalitions need the victory to show that they have indeed advanced in terms of voter acceptance and popularity since the March 2008 general election.

In particular, because KT has an 88-percent Malay population, the seat is regarded as a key litmus test for Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, as he is also the incoming Umno president.

“The results will show who has leadership over the Malay community. Is it still Umno, can Umno still say they are the lords of the Malay race? Or have the Malays themselves already shifted allegiance to PAS and the PKR by now,” said a political watcher.

Umno has been declining in prominence, losing thousands of Malay intellectuals to KeADILan and PAS. Hit by internal strife and massive corruption, the bitterly divided Umno has pinned its last hopes on Najib, the eldest son of Malaysia’s second Prime Minister Abdul Razak.

Altantuya-corruption allegations unabated

But Najib is himself dogged by serious allegations.

Not only has he come under attack for having had a sexual relationship with a brutally murdered Mongolian translator, Altantuya Shaariibuu, his involvement in various high-cost arms deals during his time as Defence Minister has come under scrutiny. Najib has repeatedly denied the accusations.

The fear now is that the 55-year old will revert to the policies pursued by his mentor and ex-premier Mahathir Mohamad. These include unpopular large-scale sales or privatisation of national assets, mega-projects and cronyism to raise funds to prime the economy. Malaysia is on the brink of a full-blown recession that experts believe is inevitable from next year onwards.

Najib, who is due to take over from Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in March 2009, again tasted fire when he recently tried to privatise the National Heart Institute to conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd. The deal sparked a huge wave of protest as the people feared it signified another step towards higher public healthcare costs.

Another deal that was very quietly put through was a RM1.7 billion budget air terminal granted to Sime and Air Asia - which was criticised by analysts as wasteful expenditure given the lean economic times when projects with a greater multiplier effect should be prioritized.

Now you see, now you don’t

The latest controversy over the implementation of hudud law has also caught both the Umno and Najib on the hop.

While Umno has shied away from taking a firm stand on hudud law, fearing a backlash from Muslim voters if it is seen to promote too a liberal view, rival PAS knows exactly where it stands.

Grilled by non-Malay groups including Pakatan partner DAP for his statement that PAS would implement hudud if it came into power, Husam nevertheless managed to turn the tables on Najib.

Explaining that PAS would only implement hudud if partners KeADILan and DAP agreed, Husam said reporters: “However, PAS will continue with its struggle to implement hudud law, which is God’s law, by explaining to all quarters, including the Pakatan Rakyat component parties, until they are ready to accept the law.

“The hudud law is still hypothetical. There are other issues that have to take precedence. What’s wrong with waiting longer? Umno has not done it after more than 50 years in power.”

There are 80,229 registered voters in KT, of which nearly 11 percent are Chinese.

Some pundits believe this minority group will be the deciding factor in the fight for KT. Yet others believe there has been a shift in Malay sentiment towards PAS and KeADILan, making the Malay vote just as critical.

“I and other top Pakatan leaders from PKR and DAP will enter the field to campaign for PAS victory,” said a resurgent Anwar.