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Tag: UMNO

  • Dr Mahathir: Sad At Demise Of Lee Kuan Yew, Marks End Of Era of Independence Leaders

    Dr Mahathir: Sad At Demise Of Lee Kuan Yew, Marks End Of Era of Independence Leaders

    No matter how friendly or unfriendly we are, the passing away of a man you know well saddens you.

    I cannot say I was a close friend of Kuan Yew. But still I feel sad at his demise.

    Kuan Yew became well known at a young age. I was a student in Singapore when I read about his defence of labour unions.

    I first met Kuan Yew when I was a member of Parliament in 1964 after Singapore joined Malaysia in 1963. We crossed swords many time during the debates. But there was no enmity, only differences in our views of what was good for the newborn nation. He included me among the ultra Malays who was responsible for the racial riots in Singapore. Actually I never went to Singapore to stir up trouble. Somebody else whom I would not name did.

    The Tunku attended the inaugural meeting of the PAP and was quite friendly with Kuan Yew. He believed Kuan Yew was a bastion against Communism. But when the PAP contested in the Malaysian elections in 1964 with Malaysian Malaysia as its slogan, Tunku felt that the PAP’s presence in Malaysia was going to be disruptive for the country.

    When I became PM in 1981, I paid a courtesy call on Kuan Yew. It was a friendly call and he immediately agreed to my proposal that the Malaysia and Singapore times which had always been the same should be advanced by half an hour. I explained that it would be easier adjusting our time when travelling as we would fall within the time zones fixed for the whole world at one hour intervals.

    I am afraid on most other issues we could not agree.

    When I had a heart attack in 1989 and required open heart surgery, he cared enough to ring up my wife to ask her to delay the operation as he had arranged for the best heart surgeon, a Singaporean living in Australia, to do the operation. But by then, I had been given pre-med and was asleep prior to the operation the next day.

    My wife thanked him but apologised. She promised to ring him up after the operation. She did the next evening.

    When he was ill, I requested to see him. He agreed but the night before the visit, the Singapore High Commissioner received a message that he was very sick and could not see me.

    Still when he attended the Nihon Keizai Shimbun annual conference on the Future of Asia in Tokyo, which I never failed to attend, I went up to him at dinner to ask how he was. We sat down together to chat and the Japanese photographers took our pictures promising not to put it in the press. I wouldn’t mind even if they did. But I suppose people will make all kinds of stories about it.

    Now Kuan Yew is no more. His passage marks the end of the period when those who fought for independence lead their countries and knew the value of independence.

    Asean lost a strong leadership after President Suharto and Lee Kuan Yew.

    * Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is former prime minister of Malaysia. This article was originally posted on his personal blog at chedet.cc

     

    Source: www.themalaymailonline.com

  • Najib Razak Defends Use Of Sedition Act To Prevent Acts Of Terrorism

    Najib Razak Defends Use Of Sedition Act To Prevent Acts Of Terrorism

    The police are justified in making arrests under the colonial-era Sedition Act 1948 to prevent acts of terrorism in the country, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.

    The prime minister said use of the Act was a preventive measure and if not used, more people could become victims to acts of terror.

    The controversial law, criticised by many here and abroad for quelling legitimate dissent, was useful in preserving ethnic relations, he added.

    “We also place importance on ethnic and religious relations and that is why we are strengthening the Sedition Act. All this is meant to forestall something bad from happening to our country.

    “As the saying goes in English, ‘prevention is better than cure’. I believe that it is better for us to have preventive detention laws than having someone commit an act of terror.

    “If terrorism were to happen, many lives may be sacrificed,” Najib said in a speech to the police force at the 208th Police Day anniversary in Kuala Lumpur today.

    Najib said there was no reason for the government to apologise for using the Sedition Act, despite international criticism against the colonial-era law.‎

    “We should not be apologetic. Some may say this is not democratic, this ‎(violates) rights to freedom, and more.

    “But I want to say that there is no absolute freedom. There is no place for absolute freedom without responsibility in this country,” said Najib.

    He also gave his assurance that the Prevention of Terrorism Act, which will be tabled in Parliament soon, would not be used for political purposes.

    Najib added that the executive arm of the government would have no say in whether to detain an individual under the new act.

    “The government has no intention of using the new act for political purposes. That is why the power to detain is not placed under members of the administration.

    “We will place it under a credible body so that only those truly involved in terrorism can be detained under the new act. That way, we can guarantee Malaysia will continue to be safe,” said Najib.

    He also reminded Malaysians not to belittle the efforts of the police force in ensuring public safety.‎

    “We should not disrespect the police and look down on them by using words and insults that are unsuitable, as if the police act ‎freely as they like.

    “The groups that insult the police’s honour are completely irresponsible,” said Najib.

    The police have come under heavy criticism after nearly 90 anti-goods and services tax (GST) protesters were arrested on Monday as they were demonstrating at the Customs Department headquarters in Kelana Jaya.

    Opposition politicians have also accused Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim of taking selective action and targeting opponents of Barisan Nasional (BN).

     

    Source: www.themalaysianinsider.com

  • Malaysian Leaders Express Condolences On Death Of Lee Kuan Yew

    Malaysian Leaders Express Condolences On Death Of Lee Kuan Yew

    Malaysian leaders today expressed their condolences on the death of former Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.

    “I am saddened to hear about the passing of Lee Kuan Yew, founding prime minister of Singapore,” Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said in a statement today.

    “My thoughts and prayers are with‎ Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and family‎.”

    Kuan Yew, who became Singapore’s first prime minister in 1959, died at 3.18am today at Singapore General Hospital, where he had been admitted on February 5 suffering from pneumonia.

    A British-educated lawyer, Kuan Yew is widely credited with building Singapore into one of the world’s wealthiest nations on a per capita basis.

    In his statement, Najib paid tribute to Kuan Yew’s determination in developing Singapore into a modern city.

    “His achievements were great, and his legacy is assured,” Najib said.

    “Malaysia is committed to the future of our relationship with Singapore; to peace, stability and shared prosperity between our nations, and within Asean as a whole.”

    Meanwhile, PKR hailed Kuan Yew as “a nation-builder like the late Tunku Abdul Rahman”, saying that Singapore had “lost an important figure who has done much for his country”.

    “We must take stock of his efforts in administering Singapore, which focused the welfare of the people regardless of race or religion,” party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said in a statement today.

    “As the founder and first prime minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew initiated developmental policies that were transparent and efficient, and was successful at attracting foreign investors to the point that his country was dubbed the ‘Swiss of Asia’.

    “We hope that the close and warm ties between Southeast Asian neighbours initiated during the time of Lee Kuan Yew and other past leaders can only be strengthened from hereon,” she said.

    Singapore declared a period of national mourning from today until March 29. State flags on all government buildings will be flown at half-mast from today until Sunday.

    A private family wake will be held today and tomorrow at Sri Temasek.

    Kuan Yew’s body will lie in state at Parliament House from Wednesday until Saturday for the public to pay their respects.

    The state funeral will be held at 2pm on March 29 at the University Cultural Centre, National University of Singapore. He will be cremated at Mandai Crematorium. – March 23, 2015.

     

    Source: www.themalaysianinsider.com

  • Things Are Not Looking Good For Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak

    Things Are Not Looking Good For Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak

    Criticism against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak appears to be gaining steam outside of the country, with The Myanmar Times now jumping onto the bandwagon.

    In its opinion page dated February 23, the writer Roger Mitton, presented a bleak picture on the issue, describing it as a “gluey black sea of venality the likes of which has not been seen in this region since the days of President Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines.”

    He said things are so bad that Umno-owned newspaper, Utusan Malaysia, had to carry an editorial to try to exonerate Najib and shift the blame elsewhere.

    “It failed, of course,” he said, adding it was because the newspaper was arguing against facts that indicate “Najib is steadily sinking into the treacly pit of corruption and maladministration.”

    Mitton said the controversy surrounding debt-ridden 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and Najib’s stepson, Riza Aziz, as reported by the New York Times, recently also were not helping in lifting his image for the better.

    “It is hard to truly comprehend the full magnitude of this gigantic, nepotistic malfeasance, and even the illustrious New York Times took three pages to try to do it,” he wrote.

    The Myanmar Times’ article also alleged that Riza, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s son, was responsible for most of the woes brought about by the 1MDB debacle, due to his association with Penang businessmen Jho Low.

    “Why and how? There is no clear answer, except to recall that Najib is under the sway of Rosmah, a shopaholic wrecking ball, who shrugs off ridicule and ignores how her actions thwart her husband’s premiership,” he wrote.

    Mitton went on to say that the personal damage to Najib “is piffling compared to the disastrous effect the huge 1MDB losses are having on the already fragile Malaysian economy.”

    Adding on, the article said that political support for the ruling party in Malaysia was also diminishing, taking note the results in the last general elections that saw the voting pattern swaying towards opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

    He said that since the failure to reverse the drop in votes experienced by his predecessor, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Najib has clung onto the Umno leadership by appeasing his key support base, the Malays, “and marginalising the Chinese and Indian communities.”

    Followed by the move to keep the Sedition Act and Anwar’s jailing, Mittton said “these actions signal a premier running scared.”

    He said that in any case, Najib’s survival may depend more on Umno elders the likes of former PM Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and former finance ministers Tun Daim Zainuddin and Tunku Razaleigh Hamzah.

    “Since they have all turned against him, though, the omens are not good.” he said.

     

    Source: www.themalaysianinsider.com

  • Datin Rosmah Mansor: GST Will Protect Housewives Like Me

    Datin Rosmah Mansor: GST Will Protect Housewives Like Me

    KUALA LUMPUR: The next time your tailor or hairdresser plans to charge exorbitant rates while making a house call, tell them the prime minister’s wife has already stated their days of overcharging are over.

    Speaking to members of Bakti, the Welfare Association of the Wives of Ministers and Deputy Ministers, Rosmah Mansor showed she could relate to others like her when she spoke of the trials and tribulations faced by women who were the wives of “civil servants” with no income of their own, a Malaysiakini report said.

    “We housewives always become victims. Before we could tailor a baju kurung for RM500, and even then it is considered expensive, but now to make a nice one…well, we have no choice because we need to wear proper clothes to functions…

    “They (tailors) are profiteering, but they try to evade this by claiming it is service tax,” she painstakingly explained, saying that with the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), tailors could no longer take advantage of women like her and hide behind the “sales tax” issue as a convenient argument to raise prices.

    She said the same applied to hairdressers and added, “For people like us, even a RM200 hike will hurt.”

    Relating how preposterous the charges were for washing and dyeing her hair at home, she said, “Now when I want to dye my hair at home, the hairdresser charges me RM1,200. Wow, that is expensive but they say the price is different in the store. It’s pricey because it is home service…

    “They can charge three, four or five times the price citing ‘home service’”, she pointed out saying it had become too expensive and almost a luxury to get her hair done.

    Feeling strongly about being taken advantage of, Rosmah reiterated, “I am speaking on behalf of housewives. Bakti believes that home services must be subject to (pricing) guidelines.”

    Preferring to suffer in silence and place her hopes on GST to make prices fairer again for women like her, Rosmah said, “I can’t ask Najib, he wouldn’t answer.”

    So for now, Rosmah has to simply bite her lip and pay up, safe in the knowledge that her financial woes when it comes to tailoring and hairdressing will be a thing of the past come April 1 when GST is finally implemented.

     

    Source: www.freemalaysiatoday.com