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Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe to poobalan.com by Email NST reports that PKR and DAP defectors, plus UMNO defector all were in Putrajaya at Deputy PM Najib’s office. It seems BOTA Adun did a double defection and returns to UMNO. With this, BN should 7-seat majority with support of independent candidates.
| Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe to poobalan.com by Email When Bota assemblyman Nasaruddin quit UMNO to join PKR last week, PM Badawi called him weak. There were stories that the ADUN was offered posts or enticed with somethings, which obviously the ADUN denied.
Now, with two PKR assemblymen causing sleepless nights for Perak state government and Anwar, it wil be interesting to see what PM Badawi will say if these guys do quit PKR and defect to UMNO. Will BN accept weak people or will they be called heroes and patriots?
Stories are abound that the two – Behrang assemblyperson Jamaluddin Mat Radzi and Changkat Jering assemblyperson Osman Jailu were seen in Pekan together with Deputy PM Najib, while PR leader admit couldn’t get into touch with them for last few days. Menteri Besar Nizar said they were going to lodge police report on missing persons since it has been 5 days.
Most interesting is this: They were charged in a Sessions Court on Aug 25 last year with allegedly receiving bribes over the application for a RM180 million housing project in Sri Iskandar in Perak Tengah. Their case comes up for hearing on Feb 10. So in addition to being weak, they are suspects in a criminal case. All this while PR leaders said it was a frame-up, while UMNO leaders bayed for blood. Now, will UMNO accept them?
Things got worse today when Perak state assembly speaker V Sivakumar said that he had received letters of resignation from the two guys at about 5.45pm at his house (via fax?). Sivakumar subsequently proclaimed the seats as vacant and will inform Election Commission to hold by-election in 60 days. The resignation was denied by one of them – Jamaluddin (who said he was on MC all this while):
“This is an undated letter that I and six other PKR assemblymen were made to sign in March last year,” he said.
He said that the letter was only a pledge of loyalty, stating that if they (the state representative) were to ever quit PKR, they would automatically vacate their seats.
He added that the letter was signed under duress and that he would be discussing the legality of it with his lawyers.
“I am still Behrang assemblyman,” Jamaluddin was quoted as saying.
“Osman and I are still PKR state representatives and have never declared our intentions to leave the party or to become independents, or to join Umno,” he said, according to a Bernama report.
But in the Star, its reported that the assemblyman is quitting PKR and will be an independent.
So, the plot thickens.
I suspect these two guys are jumping ship, since both Malaysiakini and NST quoted PM Badawi as confirming that some PKR assemblymen are defecting to UMNO, while Star said “he neither denied nor confirmed”.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today revealed that several Pakatan Rakyat state representatives from Perak could soon join the Barisan Nasional.
“God willing, it will happen,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama. He said this when asked to comment on talks that two missing Perak Pakatan state excos are defecting to BN.
… He refused to state the identity or the number of Pakatan representatives that are planning to defect.
He however added that elected representatives would want to join Umno because they had confidence in its struggle.
“(We will) accept them as it is their choice and they want to join us in the struggle… it will be a new experience for them and allow them the opportunities to serve through the BN,” said Abdullah.
“We will make the official announcement when all things are in place,” he added.
There was also question marks over deputy assembly speaker Hee Yit Fong of DAP who was missing from recent functions. Some claimed she will move to MCA. But this was denied by Hee today.
Meanwhile, on a seemingly unrelated story, Karpal Singh said that DAP will support BN’s call to create an anti-hopping law.
If those two guys quit PKR and move to UMNO (or remain independent on paper), will the court case favor them? Can the undated resignation letter be challenged?
| Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe to poobalan.com by Email Fans of mega serials would be familiar with the first two names – Chitti and Annamalai, both popular Tamil Nadu mega serials running for more that a year. The third, however, is our own real-life mega serial, made in Malaysia drama starring the MP for Kapar Manikavasagam, with a star studded cast ranging from political parties, newspapers and politicians.
Manikavasagam won the Kapar parliamentary seat handsomely, trashing the incumbent Komala Devi from MIC in the March elections. However, the problems in his constituency has not been solved due to various factors – lack of funds and lack of co0peration from others.
He was upset when temple demolition still happened in Selangor after the new government took over. He was under pressure from HINDRAF and the Indian community since the new government promised that no temples would be demolished. In fact, after the Kaliamman temple in Ampang was demolished by Ampang Jaya municipal council, the 3 man committee was supposed to release a report of their investigation. Nothing seen until today. Email also went unanswered.
Add to this the land issues in Kapar, high crime rate, and large population of Indians in the area, Manikavasagam has a lot on his hand. Kapar is also one of the largest parliamentary seat in the peninsular. The Indian voters make up 12% or so, above the average population.
He had threatened to resign from his PKR deputy liason post once before this – during the temple demolition in Ampang, but retracted his decision when the Deputy President of MPAJ was suspended.
Thus it did not come as a surprise when Mike (as he is popularly known) used the same tactic over the Klang Sentral fiasco. But this time he added that he will even resign from PKR over the Klang Sentral bus station which was built in Meru to relocate the existing bus station in the middle of Klang town. Mike said he will resign by the New Year:
He said he was “disappointed with the attitude of Selangor PKR leaders”, whom he said were neglecting the needs of the people.
“I have made up my mind and it’s final. I’m not joking and I’m very serious this time,” said the 43-year-old first-time MP, who is also party’s supreme council member.
“This decision is indeed a firm action and it will be my New Year ‘gift’ to the party,” he told the English daily.
His unhappiness is partly due to Selangor Assembly Speaker Teng Chang Kim, who branded him as “behaving like opposition” over the Klang Sentral problem. Teng had also hit out at Klang MP Charles Santiago over the same issue.
Selangor MB was implicated as well, when he was claimed to have said that the MP was “free to go”:
Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has taken a hard stand on S. Manikavasagam’s threat to quit PKR, saying the Kapar MP was free to do so.
Khalid, who is also from PKR, also said he was not going to meet with Manikavasagam to convince him to stay.
“PKR does not encourage him to make that decision but it is his decision,” he said.
However, the MB’s press secretariat later issued a statement denying the report:
We would like to state that:
1 At no time during the press conference did the menteri besar say that ‘he was not interested to meet Kapar MP S Manikavasagam or ask him to reconsider his decision to quit PKR as stated in the Page N1 article.2. When the menteri besar was asked if he was willing to meet the Kapar MP, he replied that as a parliamentarian, it would be a better avenue for MP to meet the party’s leader.
We would also like to stress that there was nothing mentioned on ‘Kapar MP is free to go’ as suggested in the of the page N6 article.
Even PAS president Hadi Awang had his say – asking Manikavasagam to resign his MP post if he quits PKR. He said Manikavasagam should stand as an independent candidate in the event a by-election is held if he resigns.
The public spat (which the mainstream media are accused for inflating and misusing) made PKR worried. The deputy president of PKR, Dr Syed Husin asked the relevant members (MB Khalid Ibrahim, Teng, Charles Santiago, and Manikavasagam) to not make public statements.
“They should sit down and discuss and settle their differences and conflicts internally. There are various existing channels and procedures to do so,” said Syed Husin.
At that time, Anwar Ibrahim is not in the country, so there’s nothing much he can do. But thes Star reported that Anwar agreed there’s a “difference of opinion” among the MPs.
MPs are expected to be flush with cash, and able to help the poor people immediately. According to one NST report:
Manikavasagam’s complaint of limited funds also made his job of servicing his voters all the more difficult since many still look to a wakil rakyat for financial aid.
A former MP who declined to be identified revealed how his poorer constituents had often approached him for help to pay for their electricity bills and to ask for grocery money.
He highlighted about lack of funds as early as in October in an interview with NST. But, recently, he said he was running up debt because had to spend so much to help the rakyat. So, is there a problem with the allocations? Some money issue? Could this be the real reason for his outbursts?
However, after all those dramas and tit-for-tat comments, Manikavasagam decides not to quit PKR, instead he resigned from his Deputy Liason position only.
Mike also scoffed at suggestions that he would jump ship:
Manikavasagam admitted that he had been approached to join BN but had not been offered any money.
“I immediately rejected it as I will live or die with Parti Keadilan Rakyat,” he told the New Straits Times after meeting about 100 party members and the public at his service centre here yesterday.
The mega serial is set to run for quite some time as the battle front changes location to Chennai. However, The three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, better known as the Indian Diaspora Conference ended on last Saturday without much news on Mike. By the way, he was supposed to meet Waythamoorthy over certain issues, so something may have transpired there.
In the meantime, MB Khalid organised a summit on the Klang Sentral problem, while Manikavasagam was away in India. Mike was unhappy and claimed it was purposed held at that time so that he couldn’t participate. This was denied by Khalid who stressed on the urgency of the problem as the reason for organising the summit ASAP, at the same time acknowledging that YB Mike has done a lot to highlight the issue. All parties, including the public were invited to the meeting. Charles Santiago went as well. The problems were discussed and its expected that by end of February all teething problems will be settled. But the terminal remains in Meru. And the public can view the Klang Sentral contract during office hours.
YB Mike should be back by now, so let’s see what he has to say. The public may not be happy that he threatens to resign since they voted him on PKR ticket. He is expected to solve problems, not create more problems for the people. I think he should stick with the party and show people he is doing the work. They will appreciate him more in that way. For example, he even helped some residents near my housing area to obtain water meters from Syabas after the housing developer neglected their project. If you do the work on the ground, then the people will know your contribution. That’s the best way to ensure your longevity in politics.
Now, Mike is expected to meet Anwar and clear the air. Since everyone is busy with the by election in Terengganu, I suspect this matter will be postponed to a much later date.
BUT, I think this mega serial will be having a long run. Just sit back and enjoy the show, as they say 🙂
| Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe to poobalan.com by Email Well well well, Anwar’s support for Hudud law for Muslims only creates a storm for DAP, especially Karpal Singh.
PKR will not reject outright PAS’ plan to implement hudud law, said its de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He also dismissed Karpal Singh’s remark that such legislation was unconstitutional, saying that the DAP chairman was making a general statement.
He said there was no need to reject the proposal as it was only applicable to Muslims.
What was needed, said Anwar, was an in depth discussion among Pakatan Rakyat partners on contentious issues which had resurfaced following a debate between PAS vice-president Datuk Husam Musa and Umno Youth deputy head Khairy Jamaluddin.
“Hudud is not something new. There is allocation for it in Islam. This is what PAS has been saying all along, that it is solely for the Muslims,” he told reporters after launching the PKR main operation room for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election yesterday.
According to Anwar, all opposition parties understood Islam and that its legislative aspects should not just be confined to Syariah family or civil law.
Describing himself as a practising Muslim, Anwar stressed there was no blanket answer on hudud and that he would not emulate what former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad did, which was to oppose and reject outright hudud law when PAS first proposed it without fully understanding the issue.
He said detailed discussions on the issue could clear the air.
He also urged all dissenting voices to study the specific proposal and its provisions closely before opening their mouths.
TV3 Nightline showed a press statement from Karpal who claimed that for Hudud to be implemented, the status of country should changed to islamic state. However, since Malaysia is secular (well actually its neither there nor here), implementing Hudud is unconstitutional. Malaysiakini extract below:
PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim’s statement that people should not worry about PAS’ intention to implement hudud laws as it would only be applicable to Muslims, was today called a fallacy by DAP stalwart Karpal Singh.
He said this was because Anwar’s statement was “diametrically opposed to PAS’ avowed aim to turn Malaysia into an Islamic state” which Karpal believes would also mean the indiscriminate implementation of hudud laws.
“This has been PAS’ stand from its inception as is clearly reflected by the statements by former and present leaders of PAS.
“In fact, (PAS spiritual leader) Nik Aziz is on record to have said on Dec 22 last year that PAS would implement hudud laws with or without the support of DAP and PKR,” said Karpal in a statement today.
Both News Straits Times and The Star on Dec 23 reported on Nik Aziz’ persistence that his party would pursue the implementation of hudud laws even without the support of its other Pakatan Rakyat coalition members.
He was also quoted as saying that he could not understand why DAP was rejecting hudud laws when he believed they were similar to western laws.
“In light of this statement, there is a fallacy in Anwar’s assertion that hudud laws would only be applicable to Muslims,” Karpal reasoned.
“The pre-requisite of implementing hudud laws is the setting up of an Islamic state and as such, it is wrong for Anwar to imply that the implementation of hudud laws would not affect everyone including the non-Muslims.
“It is important for Anwar to know exactly what PAS intends to do in calling for the setting up of an Islamic state,” Karpal added.
… Meanwhile, Karpal said PAS president Hadi Awang should clear the air as to whether hudud laws were intended to be made applicable to both Muslims and non-Muslims in the event PAS succeeded in setting up an Islamic state.
“In the public interest, he should do so,” said the veteran DAP leader.
Nevertheless, Karpal reiterated DAP’s stand that the country is not an Islamic state and that the implementation of hudud laws would be “unconstitutional”.
Looks like Pakatan had fallen into BN’s trap.
For me, even though they claim Hudud will be only for muslims, sooner or later it will start to interfere in everybody’s lives. That’s inevitable since the nature of their religion is intrusive (my opinion). As it is, we have lots of problem with syariah laws and implementation by the relevant departments.
Having hudud will mean a death trap of sorts for the rest of malaysians people. Personally, i think even the more liberal muslims will not support it. imagine those famous personalities can’t wear strapless gowns at high class dinners. Muslim college students have to cover up (i still having shock over the way some of them dress at a certain uni in cyberjaya – MAIS officers will have a good time there), mat rempits having their body parts chopped off if found guilty of robbing (ok, i’m over-reacting here!).
| Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe to poobalan.com by Email This Bernama article appeared in both Star and NST. I liked the title. Sounds like a movie title ( remember Showdown in Little Tokyo, Big Trouble in Little China, or Rumble in the Bronx?)
Rumours are abound that a new party to represent Indian may be proposed especially with HINDRAF as the backbone. Also, Manikavasagam said that there will be discussion on efforts to release the ISA detainees.
Whatever it is, we can be assured that all those going will pull out all stops to gain maximum coverage in newspapers. They will try to gain as much airtime as possible.
Malaysian Indian ‘showdown’ in Chennai
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Indian political leaders from both sides of the country’s political divide are heading to Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu in India this week to attend a conference which is likely to be an explosive affair.Malaysian Indian political leaders from the MIC, DAP and PKR are heading for the southern Indian city to attend the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, better known as the Indian Diaspora Conference, starting Wednesday at the Chennai Trade Centre.
The event will also be attended by representatives of the outlawed Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).
MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu will lead a 150-member delegation comprising top brass and divisional leaders of the Barisan Nasional component party.
“We would first attend the World Tamil Conference on Jan 6, also in Chennai. The next day would be the Pravasi. We would attend that too before flying back on Jan 10,” he told Bernama.
The DAP would send a 20-member delegation, led by Penang Deputy Chief Minister P. Ramasamy.
This is the first time in the conference’s history that Malaysian opposition parties are attending the Pravasi held in a state where the majority of Malaysian Indians originated from.
Ramasamy’s delegation, it was reported, would consist of Perak state executive councillor A. Sivanesan and Selangor state executive councillor Xavier Jayakumar.
PKR, meanwhile, would be sending a 40-member delegation.
Kapar Member of Parliament S. Manikavasagam, who recently created a controversy by threatening to quit the opposition party, said the delegation would comprise politicians and businessmen.
A check on the Pravasi website revealed that Malaysia would have four speakers: Samy Vellu, Ramasamy, Malaysian Human Rights (Suhakam) Commissioner Datuk Dr Denison Jayasooria and Human Resource Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam, who is also the MIC secretary general.
After each speaker has delivered his address, the floor would be given at least 15 minutes to seek explanations from the speaker, and this is where trouble is expected.
An opposition leader who declined to be named said the opposition delegation was expected to question MIC leaders on the state of affairs of Indians in the country since the party was from the Barisan Nasional, the ruling coalition.
“Well, we have an opportunity to question them directly. We do not have the opportunity here, so I feel they would take whatever chance they have to question the MIC leaders,” he said.
To top it all, Hindraf chief P. Wathyamoorthy, who is now living in a self-imposed exile in London, is expected to attend the event with several supporters from Malaysia. — Bernama
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