Tag: malaysians

Najib Razak: Singaporeans Should Not Judge Malaysia Based On Social Media Postings And Politically Motivated Statements

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said that amidst the time of opportunity between Malaysia and Singapore now, it was hoped that Singaporeans would not judge Malaysia by what they read on social media, or by politically motivated statements from certain quarters running down the country.

In a posting on his blog Najibrazak.com titled “Moving Forward In A Spirit Of Mutual Benefit”, the prime minister said both countries were enjoying the results of closer relations as seen in projects such as the High Speed Rail that will benefit the peoples of both countries.

“I am pleased with the results of our closer relations, and look forward to achieving more. The construction of the High Speed Rail linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore will certainly transform the way Malaysians and Singaporeans interact with each other, facilitating travel between both capital cities, enhancing business linkages and improving people-to-people ties.

“At this time of opportunity between our nations, I urge Singaporeans not to judge Malaysia by what you may read on social media, or by politically motivated statements from certain quarters running down our country,” said Najib in a posting written in conjunction with Singapore’s 50th national day yesterday and 50th year of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and Singapore.

Najib said the changed approach between the two countries has been emphasised soon after he became Prime Minister in 2009, and it had led to breakthroughs in ties between the two neighbouring countries.

“The win-win solution of the Points of Agreement in 2010 – after a 20 year deadlock – was an example of how we chose to move forward in a spirit of mutual benefit, and put a longstanding stumbling block behind us.”

Najib said that he and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong had agreed that both countries should not be encumbered by any issues associated with the past.

“The days when some considered agreement to be a form of weakness are gone. Our future is as partners. Indeed, recently there have even been suggestions that our two countries should formulate an Olympic bid together.”

While admitting there had been differences before this, Najib said both countries managed to achieve the most when they worked pragmatically together.

“In 1967, we were among the five founders of Asean, an organisation that has kept peace in the most ethnically and religiously diverse region on earth.

“We came together in the Five Power Defence Arrangement in 1971; we cooperated closely at the United Nations in the 1980s to ensure a settled future in Indochina; and today we are linked in so many ways,” he said.

Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com

August 12, 2015
MH370 Search: Reunion Islander Picks Up Water Bottle From Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 — A local lawyer on the French island of Reunion found two mineral water bottles from Malaysia among debris from the Indian Ocean washed ashore amid an ongoing search for the clues to the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 that went missing over a year ago.

In an interview with Australian daily Herald Sun, Philippe Creissen said he found three mineral water bottles while walking along the Bois Rouge beach; two of them bore made in Malaysia labels while the third was from Taiwan.

“I walk along this beach all the time and 99 per cent of the debris that is here comes from Reunion,” Creissen was quoted as saying in the Melbourne-based publication.

The foreign-made mineral water bottles caught his eye, more so following the discovery of an airline wing part that has been confirmed to be from a Boeing 777, the same model plane as MH370.

The plane carrying 239 people on board from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared off the radar on March 8, 2013, believed somewhere over the Indian Ocean; over 130 of the passengers were China nationals.

Creissen said he handed the bottles to the police, and was later told they had been passed to a Malaysian investigation team on the island.

The islander had snapped pictures of the bottles which he posted on Twitter account on Sunday which showed two common Malaysian bottled water brands — “Cactus Mineral Water” and “Life Pure Distilled Drinking Water”.

Questions have been raised over whether those debris found came from MH370 that went missing March 8, last year following the discovery of a wing piece of a plane on the French island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean last week.

Despite MH370 being the only Boeing 777 to be lost in the Indian Ocean, authorities have not confirmed the debris’ link to the missing aircraft.

Source: www.themalaymailonline.com

August 5, 2015
Singapore Watching Developments In Malaysia Closely

The Republic is watching political developments in Malaysia closely, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who expressed his hope that the country remains stable.

“When something happens which could cause either a political upset or social or security worries, I think we have to watch very carefully,” said Mr Lee today (July 31). He was interviewed by Ambassador-at-large Chan Heng Chee for A Conversation with the PM: Our Future, Our People, which is airing on Channel NewsAsia and Channel 5 on Sunday (Aug 2).

Professor Chan, who is also chairman of Lee Kuan Yew Centre For Innovative Cities at the Singapore University of Technology and Design, had asked Mr Lee whether the political developments in Malaysia would affect Singapore, and how.

Mr Lee noted that Malaysia is Singapore’s closest neighbour, not just geographically, but also linked by “very big trading ties and investments”.

“We have a lot of people who live and work in Malaysia, a lot of Malaysians work in Singapore…and so when something happens in Malaysia, we watch very carefully and are very concerned how it affects us,” he said.

Malaysia has been in a state of political turmoil of late, with Prime Minister Najib Razak under fire over some US$700 million allegedly funnelled from companies linked to state-owned firm 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) into his personal bank accounts. Earlier this week, he sacked his deputy Muhyiddin Yassi — who had called on Mr Najib to explain the scandal engulfing 1MDB — as well as four other ministers, and replaced the Attorney-General.

Mr Lee reiterated that Singapore has very good relations with Malaysia. “I personally have very good relations with Prime Minister Najib, so we hope that Malaysia will remain stable, that we will be able to have a Government there which we can do business with and cooperate with, as we have been doing the last few years,” he said.

Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam, who was separately responding to media queries on Malaysia’s recent developments, said when any two countries are as close as Malaysia and Singapore, they will want stability in each other.

“Malaysia and Singapore are linked by an umbilical cord…The total trade between Singapore and Malaysia is S$111 billion and we are amongst each other’s top trading partners and top investors,” said Mr Shanmugam, who reiterated that Singapore is following developments very closely.

He said: “Any instability in Malaysia will also deeply affect Singapore, both economically and in other ways. We depend on Malaysia for water everyday, protected by a treaty. You really don’t want any instability. We hope that there will be stability that is good for Malaysia and good for us.”

Source: www.todayonline.com

August 1, 2015
US Academic: Blame Dr Mahathir For Malaysia’s Mess

History should judge former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as being himself the author of a long national decline that has culminated in this latest crisis, wrote University of Chicago political science associate professor Dan Slater.

In a piece published in the EastAsiaForum today, Slater wrote that Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is right about one thing. “The current mess in Malaysian politics is the making of his greatest nemesis, Dr Mahathir, who led the Southeast Asian nation with an iron fist from 1981–2003.”

Slater wrote that Mahathir has not produced this mess by criticising (Najib’s) leadership, but by paving Najib’s path to power in the fashion he did during his decades in office.

“Dr Mahathir may believe that he can end the crisis by bringing Najib down… But this road toward ruin commenced with Dr Mahathir, not Najib.”

In outlining the events that led to the current crisis, Slater wrote: “Dr Mahathir was holding a winning hand when he became prime minister in 1981.

“Then came the debt. Obsessed with following in the footsteps of Asia’s technological leaders, Mahathir began borrowing heavily to fund his ‘Look East’, state-led heavy-industrialisation programme.

“Privatisation was part of his growth package, but the beneficiaries were businessmen of loyalty more than talent.

“When the global economy went into recession in the mid-1980s, patronage started drying up. Umno split, largely in reaction to Dr Mahathir’s strong-armed style of rule.

“Dr Mahathir’s two most talented rivals, Tengku Razaleigh (Hamzah) and Tun Musa Hitam, bolted from Umno despite their deep personal ties to the party, mostly to get away from Dr Mahathir himself.

“Dr Mahathir responded by launching a police operation under the pretext of racial tensions, imprisoning and intimidating political rivals, and cementing his autocratic control.

“Hence by the late 1980s, all of the defining features of Malaysia’s current crisis under Najib’s leadership were already evident under Dr Mahathir.

“Ethnic tensions had been reopened to political manipulation. The economy was worrisomely indebted. Umno was shedding some of its most capable leaders. This was the beginning of Malaysia’s sad national decline, under Dr Mahathir’s watch and at his own hand.”

These seeds were to play out towards the current crisis because of what Dr Mahathir did next, wrote Slater.

“Fast-forward a decade and all of these syndromes would recur in even nastier forms. The Asian financial crisis of 1997–98 punished Malaysia for the unsustainable dollar-denominated debts it had accumulated under Dr Mahathir’s single-minded push for breakneck growth.

“Dr Mahathir blamed everybody but himself for the crash. Dr Mahathir didn’t pull Malaysia out of its crisis with economic reform or adjustment, but with more and more borrowing and spending.

“Hence even before the turn of the millennium, Malaysia was hurtling down the very trajectory of decline we are witnessing in the current crisis.”

Slater also noted that Najib has taken a page out of Dr Mahathir’s playbook, when the latter was publicly criticised by then Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“In consummate Dr Mahathir style, Najib has now even sacked his deputy Tan Sri Muyhiddin Yassin for questioning Najib’s repression of the media in response to the 1MDB scandal.

“In sum, Dr Mahathir has nobody to blame more than himself.”

Source: www.therakyatpost.com

July 30, 2015
Leaked Video! Muhyiddin Claimed Najib Admitted RM2.6 Billion In His Account

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak admitted that US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) was transferred into his accounts, former deputy prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said in a video (see below) that has leaked on the Internet.

In the video, Muhyiddin appeared to be informing his guests at his home last night that he had confronted Najib on The Wall Street Journal’s report that US$700 million (RM2.67 billion) of funds from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)-linked firms were deposited into Najib’s personal accounts.

“I asked him (Najib) from whom? He did not mention the name, from somewhere in the Middle East. How much?… Hard to count, he said ‘a lot, a lot’.

“Then I asked why was it transferred to your accounts?… Why did it enter Najib Razak’s accounts? How much money? US$700 million.

“If you multiply that by three point something…2.6 billion goes into his personal account. He said this, he admitted,” Muhyiddin said in the leaked video.

The video ends abruptly after Muhyiddin says, “so I said why did you put into your personal account”.

In the video, Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir could be seen seated beside Muhyiddin.

Mukhriz’s visit to the former deputy prime minister’s house took place yesterday, the same day Najib reshuffled the Cabinet, dropping Muhyiddin as his deputy.

Muhyiddin was sacked two days after he told an Umno Cheras division meeting that The Wall Street Journal’s report was a serious matter that needs explaining.

Najib had said members of the Cabinet should not air their differences in an open forum that can affect public opinion against Malaysia and the government.

Meanwhile, Malaysiakini reports former Umno supreme council member Tan Sri Abdul Kadir Sheikh confirming that the conversation in the video took place.

“I don’t want to comment on it. It was a private conversation. It wasn’t supposed to be recorded. Mukhriz had asked people not to record it,” Kadir was quoted as saying by the news portal.

The Malaysian Insider has asked one of Muhyiddin’s officers to verify the video but the query has not been answered.

Meanwhile, in a statement posted on Mukhriz’s website earlier today, the Kedah menteri besar said he accepted the prime minister’s decision to reshuffle the Cabinet as it was his prerogative to do so.

He thanked Muhyiddin, who had also been education minister, for helping in the development of schools in Kedah.

Mukhriz added that he and Muhyiddin had not discussed anything else of importance.

Earlier this month, WSJ and whistleblower website Sarawak Report reported that up to US$700 million (RM2.67 billion) was allegedly transferred from state-owned funds to two bank accounts under Najib’s name with AmBank in March 2013.

The prime minister, however, has denied ever taking any funds from 1MDB for “personal gain” but has not commented directly on the fund transfers. His accounts that allegedly received the funds have since been closed.

Najib has also blamed former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Mukhriz’s father, whom he accused of working with foreign agents against his administration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8lxLVTaLaM#action=share

Source: www.malaysianinsider.com

July 30, 2015