Monday, June 30, 2008

Anwar Was Never Invited To Turkish Ambassador's Home, No Political Asylum Request

PUTRAJAYA, June 30 (Bernama) -- De facto Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is accused of sodomising an aide and is currently holed-up at the Turkish ambassador's residence in Kuala Lumpur, was never invited to the diplomat's home nor had he sought political asylum from the Turkish government.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Rais Yatim, after a meeting Turkish ambassador to Malaysia Barlas Ozener at Wisma Putra Monday, told reporters that the diplomat had clarified that Anwar was never invited to his house and that the opposition leader had gone there on his own accord.
"The Malaysian government accepts this explanation. Anwar is not at the ambassador's house as an asylum seeker but as a guest. It has just been less than 24 hours. If he stays there for a longer period then we might have to take a different stance. The question of political asylum too does not arise," he said.
Last Saturday Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, a 23-year-old special assistant of Anwar, lodged a police report alleging that he was sodomised by Anwar on Thursday at an apartment in Damansara Heights.
Early yesterday morning, Anwar took refuge at the residence of the Turkish ambassador, claiming that he had gone there because he feared for his personal safety after receiving death threats earlier in the week.

tunku : chicken, that's all i want to say to anwar.

Saiful in hiding, uncle has faith

The man who lodged a police report against Anwar Ibrahim - his special aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan - is already undergoing a character trial on the Internet. Further, the most talked about 23-year-old in Malaysia is nowhere to be found.
Saiful now stands accused of being part of a conspiracy plot orchestrated by politicians from the Barisan Nasional government to defame or have Anwar jailed once again.
He alleged that the PKR de facto leader sodomised him at a luxury condominium in Damansara.
And at a PKR press conference yesterday - and now all over blogs and the Internet - pictures of Saiful and various BN politicians were distributed.
Besides posing with ministers like Shahrir Abdul Samad, Azalina Othman Said and Mustapa Mohamed, Saiful has also taken pictures with Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's special officer Khairil Anas Yusof. Najib today denied any involvement with Saiful.
A visit to Saiful's home in Bandar Utama in Petaling Jaya this afternoon showed no signs of people.
However, after several minutes of buzzing the house bell, a man who said he was Saiful's uncle answered the door.
A good kid
According to the uncle, who did not want to give his name, his nephew had gone into hiding and he had not contacted him since news of the report broke out on Saturday.
"But I believe in Saiful," said the twenty-something-year-old at the double-storey house. "He is a good kid and all that he has done, he has done with honesty.
"I just got back from Perak and we've not been in touch but I know why he lodged the report," he added.
Teary-eyed, the uncle said that his nephew reported the matter as he wanted to expose the PKR leader for what he was.
When asked about Saiful's alleged links to Umno politicians, the uncle brushed them off.
"We've got no help or connections with Umno. All he wanted to do is to expose the heinous crime."

Besides his safety, Saiful also stands to lose big if his allegations do not hold water. At midday today, Anwar's lawyers have filed a defamation suit against the former Uniten dropout.
In the suit which was filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court registry in Jalan Duta, Anwar also claimed that the police report lodged by Saiful was an abuse of the process of law.
Anwar is also in hiding
Meanwhile, Anwar is also in hiding - albeit in a more public and protected enclave - at the Turkish Embassy.
Citing unidentified sources who want to harm him, the former deputy prime minister moved into the embassy at 6am yesterday.
This was after Saturday's press conference where Anwar revealed that he had evidence implicating police chief Musa Hassan and attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail of alleged misconduct during his trials in 1998-1999.
PKR officials have postponed their plans to lodge a police report against the duo, a decision probably caused by the present developments.

Family shoots down conspiracy theory

PETALING JAYA: Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan’s family stands by him and stresses that no one put them up to accuse Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of sodomy.
An uncle of Mohd Saiful, who did not want to be named, said the family was on its own in this matter.
“We are not getting any backing from the Government. We are on our own but as a family we fully support Saiful.
“We had asked for the Government’s help but they have chosen to back off and not dirty their hands,” he said when met at his house here yesterday.
The uncle added that they had repeatedly called the Inspector-General of Police but were told to stop calling his number.
He said his nephew had initially approached the Bukit Aman police station to lodge his report against Anwar but they turned him away upon learning who he was accusing.
Mohd Saiful eventually found a police station in Kuala Lumpur which was willing to accept his report, his uncle added.
“Saiful is no longer in the hospital but is under police protection and even our family does not know his whereabouts,” he said.
The uncle said the family would eventually hold a press conference to allow Saiful to “explain from A to Z” his accusations against Anwar.
“Our family is a small family and we do not benefit in any way from Saiful’s revelation.
“We are not getting any money and in fact our family is being cut off by other people.
“Saiful is sacrificing himself for the country even though he knows that society will scorn him and the family for his accusation,” the uncle said.
He said Mohd Saiful had also contemplated suicide as he felt that he had committed a sin.
The uncle said he had been a strong supporter of Anwar but was disillusioned now.
On why Mohd Saiful had pictures with of him posing with Cabinet Ministers and a Prime Minister’s Department aide, his uncle said it was normal for a student leader to take pictures with government officials.


tunku : i guess those unidentified sources who want to harm anwar is sukma and friends, maybe they were jealous. well this is just a perception as i can't see anyone else want to harm the moron. anyway judging by saiful's uncle statement, looks like they know who is anwar ibrahim and want to expose to the public.i have photo taken with anwar in 1996, does that means i'm his man or got something to do with him? i have taken photos with many politician too.

Najib denies involvement in conspiracy against Anwar

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today strongly dismissed claims that he was involved in a conspiracy to ruin PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim's political career.
He said that he was not involved in the police report lodged by Anwar's aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan in which he claimed to be sodomised by Anwar.
"I'm not involved in this case," the deputy prime minister told reporters in Parliament.
When questioned on the existence of a photo of his special officer with Saiful, Najib said it was taken when the 23-year-old came to his office to seek a government scholarship to pursue his studies.
The photo (above) shows Saiful (in blue shirt) with Najib's special officer Khairil Anas Yusof. According to Najib, the photo was taken three months ago.
He repeatedly stressed at the press conference that he was not involved in any political conspiracy.
The deputy prime minister said that it was now up to the police to investigate the report lodged by Saiful to see if the alleged sodomy did take place.
Saiful dropped a bombshell on Saturday by lodging a police report stating that he was sodomised by Anwar.
Anwar said that this was a fabricated charge and left to seek protection at the Turkish embassy after claiming that his life was in danger.
He also filed a defamation suit against Saiful this morning to clear his name.
Government's assures safety
Najib today said that Anwar was never harassed, even when he was busy campaigning against the government as an opposition leader. "This is not a political persecution. Let the police investigate the matter," he added.
Najib also said that the government can assure Anwar of his personal safety.
Meanwhile, three other Umno ministers also denied that they were part of any conspiracy.
PKR has released a number of other photo showing the alleged victim with Agriculture and Agro-based Minister Mustapa Mohamed, Tourism Minister Azalina Othman and Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Abdul Samad , fuelling speculations of Saiful's involvement with Umno figures to topple Anwar.
The three ministers, when approached by journalists, said that they did not know Saiful personally.
Commenting on this, Najib said that Saiful, being a student leader, could have taken photographs with many politicians.


tunku : so saiful was a student leader before.that's why he had photographs taken with politicians. i'm sure anwar aware of this earlier. don't tell us saiful has deal up with all the ministers. anwar and pkr......what to say.i wonder why take a 23 year old boy as your PA when you are a very prominent/famous politician???

Anwar demands gov't guarantee his safety

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who took refuge at the Turkish embassy amid threats and sodomy accusations, said today he will not leave until the government guarantees his safety.
"I need categorical assurance on my safety. You know I have previously been assaulted to near death," Anwar said, referring to a beating he received after being sacked as deputy premier and hit with sex and corruption charges in 1998.
"Sure, if they give me an assurance for my safety today I will leave the embassy today," he told AFP in a phone interview from the mission in Kuala Lumpur.
Anwar fled there on Sunday at the invitation of the ambassador, saying he had been threatened and feared a government assassination plot after facing "fabricated" accusations that he sodomised a male aide.
"There's two reasons why I decided to come to the embassy. It's not just for my personal safety, it's also for the stability of the nation," he said, referring to expectations of major protests if he is arrested.
"I urge my supporters to be calm but firm. Enough is enough, we will fight it out."
Anwar said the allegations were aimed at derailing his spectacular political comeback as the figurehead of the opposition which made unprecedented gains in March elections, and came just as he was about to re-enter parliament.
"This is their intention. You know we will announce a by-election this week. I will contest in the by-election, the police knew that," he said.
After his sacking, a watershed event in Malaysian politics, Anwar was convicted on sodomy and corruption charges which landed him in jail for six years.
He was released in 2004 when the sex charge was overturned but the corruption conviction still stands, and prevented him from holding public office until mid-April.
He is now eligible to run for parliament and one of the lawmakers in his PKR is expected to stand aside for him

tunku : all the "BULLSHIT" by anwar the moron. if you are so scared ask for police protection. the police and government will be the last people who will bring harm to you as the world is watching you moron. what nation stability you are talking here.every single day you come out with statements that are destabilizing the nation. you stay put in your house and don't get out till things settle. the police can put all their best commandos to safeguard you. but you choose to hide in the embassy because of your act???? come on moron, the by-election is a state seat(sanglang,perlis), not parliamentary seat and everyone knows that is a Pas seat.

Azmin: He accepted volunteer in good faith

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had welcomed the man who is now accusing him of sexual misconduct to work as a volunteer in good faith, said PKR vice-president Azmin Ali.
Azmin said Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan “just found his way into the office” during the busy general election time in March.
“At that time, Anwar’s three assistants were contesting. We never shut out staff and suddenly he came and said he was willing to help in whatever capacity during the campaign period. Datuk Seri welcomed him in good faith.
“The series of pictures (of the man posing with various ministers, and a picture of the aide with an assistant the Deputy Prime Minister) is proof he was planted by certain personalities for the purpose of this vicious attack,” said Azmin, who is Gombak MP.
Asked if PKR has proof to defend Anwar, he said information would be released when it is appropriate.
Mohd Saiful, 23, had lodged a police report alleging that Anwar sodomised him at a condominium in Damansara on Thursday.
Azmin said the party would be more careful now in allowing volunteers to work for PKR leaders.
He said he was not surprised over the allegation because it was a political ploy to “to arrest not only the top leadership of PKR but the movement as well.”
He said the allegation was meant to send out a strong signal to others not to support PKR or pay the price.
“This allegation will not break our spirit. Instead, it strengthens our resolve to carry on the reformation process.
“We have discussed the matter with DAP and PAS. They are strongly with us,” said Azmin.

tunku : azmin the wonder kid of anwar said that saiful is planted by certain personalities for the purpose of this vicious attack but the main issue is he claimed that he was sodomized by anwar. ok let say we accept what azmin is saying but what about the allegation of sodomy? the boy can stay on and become the spy of the personalities who planted him.why he want to use 'sodomy' again as we know it lots of people did not believe it last time(especially pkr members).pas and dap knows anwar very well, they are supporting him because of their interest. it was mat sabu of pas and karpal singh of dap who brought up about anwar sodomy activities first before he was charged with that.ater anwar was arrested, they truned 360 degree and supported him.

Anwar files suit against former aide

KUALA LUMPUR: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has filed a suit against his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan for allegedly lodging a false, malicious and libellous police report against him.
The suit was filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court civil registry by Anwar’s lawyers R. Sivarasa, Ranjit Singh and William Leong at about 10.30am on Monday.
Saiful had on Saturday lodged a police report alleging that he had been sodomised by Anwar, a former deputy prime minister.
Anwar is residing at the Turkish Embassy here, saying that he fears for his life after receiving death threats.

tunku : how come anwar is residing at the turkish embassy???? HE IS HIDING. he should come out and defend himself if he is innocent.

PKR fears Anwar an assassination target

PKR today said party de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has received threats to his life and is currently holed up at the Turkish embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
According to PKR deputy president Dr Syed Husin Ali, the latest move to implicate Anwar in a sodomy charge lodged by an aide signaled a more serious effort by certain quarters to silence him for good.
He said that Anwar has been targeted not just for political assassination but has also received credible threats to his life.
"We (in PKR), and I myself, have received information that this is part of an attempt not only to assassinate him politically, but if possible, to kill him physically," Syed Husin told a packed press conference at the Quality Hotel in Shah Alam.
Among those present at the press conference is Anwar's wife, PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
At one point, Wan Azizah brandished her mobile phone to show a photo of the alleged victim with Najib Razak's aide in front of the deputy prime minister's office .
And at a later press conference, party vice-president Azmin Ali revealed that Anwar was presently holed up in the Turkish embassy for the sake of his safety, which was why the PKR leader was not at today's press conferences.
"He has been there since 6am. No one can visit him except for his wife and children," said Azmin.
He said that Anwar would be at the embassy indefinitely.
Anwar's promise to change government
Meanwhile, Syed Husin said that the party has taken all necessary steps to ensure that Anwar is safe.
He said that the assassination attempt on Anwar could also be as a result of the possible change of government as alluded by Anwar in recent months.

tunku : this is the biggest "bullshit" by anwar's camp.this is what the can comeout with.if someone want to finish him off, they will not warn him first.


The shocking announcement comes on the heels of a police report lodged yesterday against Anwar by an aide, 23-year old Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, for sodomy that was allegedly committed at a luxury condomonium in Damansara.
Responding to this yesterday, Anwar said the accusation against him was the result of "interested parties" to attack him in retaliation for his possession of evidence that allegedly implicates two top government officers.
He said he had evidence that inspector-general of police Musa Hassan and attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail were involved in misconduct, including fabrication of evidence in the cases launched against him after his sacking from the government in 1998.
Syed Husin added today that Anwar possessed the evidence against Musa and Gani for about two weeks now.
Anwar only disclosed this recently, said Syed Husin, "in view of the so many things that have been happening and he didn't want to water down the effects of these things."
Several party leaders are expected to lodge a police report against Musa and Abdul Gani tomorrow.

tunku : only now he possessed the evidence.where were the evidence all these while.Another "BULLSHIT" by anwar's camp.

Syed Husin also said that the motivation behind the death threats perhaps lie in the "fear" of certain quarters in the changes that could occur should Anwar succeed in toppling the BN-led government.
"There is great fear that there will be a change of administration and government in this country. There is so much at stake for them, and they have to stop, at all costs, this change.
"This is what they want to do. There are big interests at stake, especially those governing, that this change does not happen," he said.

tunku : sometimes it's the IGP and sometimes it's the BN. well don't shoot to many places.concentrate on one, so which one is the real one?

Commenting on Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's denial that the government was behind the latest sodomy allegations, Syed Husin asked: "If he's not behind it, who is?"
"Is he saying the AG and IGP (are behind the police report)?" he added.
A real threat
When asked further about the assassination plot, Syed Husin declined to reveal any more regarding "the nature and source of the (death) threat", but assured reporters that "it is a real threat" and efforts are being made to ensure his safety and protection.
"There is fear for his safety. We want him to be in a safe place," he said.
Upon his disclosure that the death threat had been known to party leaders over past week - and queried in turn as to why the assassination plot was coming to light only now - Syed Husin said they had kept mum over it so as not to create fear among PKR followers and the public at large.
"That in itself would create fear among our followers, (and) even among those people who want to come over to us. We have to weigh the positive and negative aspects, and we didn't want to create... a sort of instability within the society and country," he said.
It is now being revealed following the government's latest move against Anwar, which Syed Husin said "is enough to create instability".
To another question, Syed Husin said he was not aware of any report to be lodged over the death threat claim.

tunku : if he had been receieving threat earlier, why no police report lodge? why only telling now? another "BULLSHIT".

There is the concern, however, that the police may use or abuse their powers to arrest Anwar, said Syed Husin..

tunku : if the accuser is not anwar ibrahim, that guy will have been behind bars right now. just because it is anwar, police is doing the best possible way to deal with it, so don't "BULLSHIT''.

Supporters told to keep calm
Asked why a police report was being lodged against the IGP and AG despite PKR's mistrust of the police and judicial institutions, Syed Husin said it was to show that PKR followed the laws and procedures.
"Despite our mistrust, we want the police to do its duties," he said.
According to Syed Husin, the party hoped that its supporters do not go beyond the laws despite the latest developments as it would give a pretext for the government to crackdown on the opposition and dissent generally.
"We don't want it to cause any instability, certainly, because we want peace and order to be maintained because the government would want to see certain instabilities, certain troubles, so that they can crack down upon the opposition, especially upon PKR, and to probably proclaim all kinds of acts or laws which can (curb) the freedoms of this country."
tunku : if this guy has done nothing wrong, why hiding? don't make stupid allegations which anwar is trying hard to think since yesterday trying to safe his skin/face which has no value. come out and fight if you had done nothing wrong. it's your PESRSONAL ASSISTANT who lodge the report not other's PA. by the way his PA is quite young 23years old???? about his PA photo at JPM, anyone can go and take photo there and again let the police investigates thoroughly.we hope anwar's camp won't be telling all the "BULLSHITS" to the public. after all just few weeks ago wan azizah praises pak lah and the judiciary at present which she said had been reformed and can be trusted but at the press conference she turned 360 degree.to them if anwar is guilty then something wrong with the police and judiciary.

Alleged sodomy was 'in a Damansara condo'

The sodomy allegedly committed by de facto PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim took place "in a condo in the Damansara area", according to the police report filed by his 23-year-old aide yesterday.
Criminal Investigation Department chief Bakri Zinin also confirmed that a medical check-up of the alleged victim was being done.
"Our duty is to send (the complainant) to the hospital for checks," he told a press conference in the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters today.
Bakri revealed that the victim lodged the report at 5.45pm yesterday at the ‘pondok polis' at Hospital Kuala Lumpur, where the Jalan Travers police station has jurisdiction.
However, he refused to divulge details of the alleged sodomy.
"I assure you that we will do a detailed and fair investigation," he stressed.
When asked whether Anwar would be arrested, Bakri said the police would need to "study the allegation first".
Bakri also refused to divulge what section of the Penal Code would be used for the purpose of investigations, despite being repeatedly asked on the matter by journalists.
Section 377 of the Penal Code states that acts of heterosexual and homosexual sodomy is a punishable offence of up to 20 years.
Bakri: Rumour mongers will be punished
Anwar has rejected the fresh accusations against him - the second time in 10 year - and described it as a "complete fabrication". PKR also said that Saiful was arrested and forced by the police to lodge such a report against Anwar.
However, the police denied that Saiful (left) was arrested and forced to fabricate evidence as claimed by PKR.
"Don't listen to rumours. Listen to me. I'm the CID chief," said Bakri when asked whether Saiful was arrested before making his police report.
He stressed that the alleged victim wrote the police report himself.
Bakri also warned that action would be taken against rumour mongers who send out SMSes that can jeopardise public security.

tunku : last time bangsar(tivoli) condo now damansara condo...... future ??? anyway let the police investigates fairly and fast as this is very high profile case. if it was not anwar ibrahim as the accuser, the accuser already in jail right now. police is taking easy on him but his group are accusing police with all sort of things.

MIC Youth chief quits party

MIC Youth chief SA Vigneswaran today announced his decision to quit the party with immediate effect.
"I have never been a quitter. To leave office before my term is completed is abhorrent to every instinct in my body. But the president of MIC thinks otherwise," he told a press conference at the Hokkien Association Hall, Klang.
"But with a forced move to remove me from my office in MIC, I hereby declare that I shall effective 3pm today quit as the member of MIC, a membership that I have been proudly holding for 25 years."
And Vigneswaran also issued a challenge to party president S Samy Vellu to similarly relinquish the presidency which he had held for the past 30 years.
"My advice to the MIC president is to leave and prove that you can survive without MIC or be prepared to bury the party," he added.
The former parliamentary secretary to the Youth and Sports Ministry said the fateful defeat of the party in the last general election was due to ‘an individual' who has failed to address the crying needs of the community. "Yet the president announces that he shall seek re election for another term," said Vigneswaran. He lauded the MCA leadership of Ong Ka Ting and Chan Kong Choy for deciding to step down from their posts at the end of their term for the benefit of the party. "But we cannot expect such noble declarations coming from the immortal MIC president," he said.
Who is ungrateful?
Vigneswaran, elected to lead the party's youth wing in 2002, added he was aware that it has become evident he no longer had a strong enough political base in MIC.
"With the disappearance of that base, I now believe that an unconstitutional decision to remove me as the youth leader has been sealed."
He said that if he had continued to fight the move to oust him as youth leader, that would just be time consuming and of no benefit the party.
"I would be called ungrateful as that is the norm of the president. "Who is ungrateful? Are people who are in position for four years, one term, two terms ungrateful or the person and family who have been surviving for 30 years on the MIC ticket?" he asked, again making reference to Samy Vellu's long tenure as president.
Vigneswaran had fallen out of favour with Samy after failing to retain his Kota Raja parliamentary seat in the last general election. Vigneswaran was the biggest loser of all MIC candidates, being defeated by more than 20,000 votes.

Once seen as a blue-eyed boy of the president, his fortunes continued to tumble when Samy announced wide ranging reforms in the party, a move that could sideline Vigneswaran further.
The final straw came when Samy announced that Vigneswaran should step down from being the youth chief as he had exceeded the party constitutional age limit of 40.
Vigneswaran, who is 42, refused to do so, on the grounds that he was elected and he would finish his term which would expire next year.
Continue work for the community
After that the party's top leadership has been making silent moves to silence Vikneswaran, finally culminating in his quitting not just his post but the party as well.
"I shall leave this office with regret at not completing my term, but with gratitude for the privilege of serving as MIC Youth leader for the past six years. These years have been a momentous time for the youth community and me," he said.
As for his future, Vigneswaran said that he would mobilise the Malaysian Indian Youth Development Foundation (MIYDF) to uplift the Indian community.
"With MIYDF, I will once again, outside of politics, serve the common good and move toward the ideals and solutions which I believe can build a future of hope and opportunity for us and for our community," he said.
"And to those who have not been able to give me your support, let me say I leave with no bitterness towards you, because all of us, in MIC in the final analysis, have been more loyal and fearful of the president of MIC than the good of the community," he added.

tunku : like vigneswaran said MIC did not had problems with Subra,Pandithan,Maika indian community etc. It was the president (samy) versus others not mic. samy is the mafia in mic. you fight him you're dead politically. that is samy.no democracy in mic. i guess vigneswaran did the right thing and more leaders should quit the party until the president quit his post. samy is a BIG thorn in mic but he denies it like what pak lah is doing. they should follow the example of ong ka ting.ong ka ting knows his days are numbered and before things get worst he quits.

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Anwar's brother quits job after Ezam barb

SHAH ALAM: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s younger brother Rusli has resigned as special advisor to Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Bhd president Datuk Abdul Karim Munisar.
Rusli said he resigned on June 25 due to “baseless allegations” made by former PKR stalwart Ezam Mohd Nor which was reported in a Malay daily recently.
According to the news report, Ezam allaged that Rusli, 59, was appointed as KDEB adviser because of his blood ties with Anwar.
The daily also reported Ezam as saying:
“Anwar had always said there shouldn’t be any nepotism in politics but now he himself has practiced it by appointing his brother to the position.”
Ezam had also demanded an explanation on the appointment from KDEB, the Selangor government’s special-purpose agency to undertake investments.
An irate Rusli lambasted Ezam for making baseless allegations and said he was not appointed KDEB’s advisor as alleged by Ezam.
“I was appointed as special advisor to Datuk Karim based on my corporate experience and not because I am Anwar’s brother,” said Rusli.
Rusli said he was a former director of several companies including Sapura Group of companies.
He added that Abdul Karim, who was an old friend, had called him and offered him the non-executive position that he assumed in April this year.
“Both Anwar and Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim were not aware of the appointment,” said Rusli.
Rusli added that he had consulted Anwar on the matter several days ago and decided the best move would be for him to resign from the position to protect his brother’s reputation.

tunku : go and tell small kids that anwar and khalid not aware of your appointment. this is just selangor, if they had ruled malaysia , anwar had even put paul wolfowitz as our country adviser.

I've Not Decided To Vie For Umno Youth Chief Post, Says Khairy

IPOH, June 28 (Bernama) -- Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin says it is still too early for him to make a decision on whether to vie for the Umno Youth chief post or otherwise in the party polls in December.
"Though i've received strong support from grassroots leaders to contest for the post but the response was difficult to gauge.
"I've not made a decision as I've not finished meeting all the grassroots leaders and members. I intend to meet as many of them as possible to get feedback," he told reporters after meeting grassroots leaders and members of six Umno divisions youth wings.
"I am realistic. Many things have happened and I've to seek the views of the grassroots. Whoever wants to contest should meet the grassroots," said Khairy who is also Rembau member of parliament.
Khairy said he might have a better scenario of the political climate in Umno Youth when he ends his nationwide tour of meeting party grassroots on July 17.
He said his decision to go for the Umno Youth top post would depend on the "grassroots voice" as party elections are not merely to jostle for posts but to strengthen the party as an institution.
Contestants and the grassroots must share the same vision to uphold dignity, integrity and consolidate the party, he said.
Khairy said this year's party polls was crucial to empower Umno in preparation for the next general election and to wrest the states now under opposition rule.
The Umno Youth chief's post must be filled following the announcement by the incumbent Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein not to defend the position.
Present was Perak Umno youth head Zainol Padzi Paharudin.

tunku : so kj have not decided yet whether to contest or not but he's going around lobbying for the post.there has been lots of stories from the branches and divisions of what kj has been offering them.only some leaders which has been receiving 'something' strongly supports you but the ordinary members hates you even in your own branch and division.

Aide alleges sodomy: Report lodged

A police report has been lodged against PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim for allegedly sodomosing one of his aides - the second time that such an accusation had been made in over 10 years.
The report was lodged by the 23-year-old victim at the Jalan Travers police station at 6pm.
KL police chief DCP Muhammad Sabtu Osman has confirmed that the report had been made.
It is learnt that Anwar met with a number of party leaders at an emergency meeting late tonight.
At 11.15pm, PKR sent out an SMS message stating that the police had detained Anwar's special aide Saiful Bahari this afternoon and forced him to lodge a police report about being sodomised by his boss.
It added that the police are expected to arrest Anwar soon.
Meanwhile, Anwar is expected to comment on this latest crisis at a pre-arranged press conference tomorrow.
The press conference is scheduled to be held after a meeting between Anwar and all PKR members of parliament and state assembly persons.
Accused of sodomy in 1997
Anwar, a former deputy prime minister and finance minister of Malaysia, was sacked from the government in 1997 for allegedly being involved in sodomy and abuse of power.
In 1999, he was sentenced in a highly controversial trial to six years in prison for corruption, and in 2000, to another nine years for alleged homosexual acts.
However in 2004, the Federal Court - the country's highest court - reversed the second conviction and he was released.
Anwar has always maintained that the charges were a government hatched political conspiracy against him, a move denied by the government.

tunku : ahaa.there you go. now anwar will say another conspiracy against him.. well a devil will never be a saint.i have nothing more to say.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Four quit Kedah MIC Youth posts

KULIM: Kedah MIC Youth chief R. Nanthakumar and three of his office-bearers have resigned from their posts with Nanthakumar also calling for party president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu to step down.
The others who quit yesterday were Kedah MIC Youth secretary T.M. Ganesan, treasurer M. Selvan and information chief S. Somasunther.
The four said their decision was in protest against the MIC central working committee’s decision to ask party Youth chief Datuk S.A. Vigneswaran to step down because he had passed the age limit of 40.
Nanthakumar, 39, said the party’s decision in asking Vigneswaran, 41, to step down was uncalled for.
“The norm is to allow the Youth chief to continue his term which expires in 2009, ” he said.
Nanthakumar was the Kulim-Bandar Baru division MIC Youth chief, Ganesan the Merbok division Youth chief, Selvan the Padang Serai division Youth chief and Somasunther the Jerai division Youth chief.

tunku : better ask something else than to ask samy to quit as he won't quit. that guy has no shame and dignity. event though lost his seat still want to be the president. anyway brave action from Kedah MIC youth.may be palanivel will come out to defend his boss again now.

Ahmad Shabery and Anwar for ‘fuel duel’ on July 15

KUALA LUMPUR: A “fuel duel” has been set up.

Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek and PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will face off over the recent fuel price increase.
And it may be shown live on television.
Debate organiser Agenda Daily has received confirmation from both men that they will participate in the debate at 9pm at the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka on July 15. The topic is “Hari Ini Membentuk Kerajaan, Esok Turun Harga Minyak.” (Form a Government today and reduce the price of oil tomorrow).
Ahmad Shabery said that he agreed to the debate as he felt that it was his responsibility to explain government policies to the people.
“This is an opportunity to inform the people of the many misleading and irresponsible statements being made against government decisions. I am ready for the debate,” he said.
Asked if RTM would telecast the debate, Ahmad Shabery said he would not abuse his power to direct the station to do so.
“However, I do not mind if other channels want to take up the offer,” he said.
Agenda Daily editor Hanafiah Man said negotiations were going on with a number of TV stations to air the debate live.
“We have received confirmation from the minister two days ago while Anwar’s side has given a positive verbal reply.
“This is an opportunity for each side to explain and defend their arguments – one side to justify the Government’s decision to raise fuel prices and the other claiming the prices will go down if the Opposition gets into power,” Hanafiah said yesterday.
Anwar had recently said that if the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition took over the government, it would reduce fuel prices the very next day, adding that PR would announce the mechanism at the appropriate time and that he would resign if he failed to do so.
Using the US presidential elections debate format, Hanafiah said that a moderator would be appointed soon while Ahmad Shabery and Anwar would each select a journalist to join in the panel to ask questions.
“Only 200 people will be invited while our two debaters will be allowed to bring along 50 guests each,” he added.

tunku : this will be a very good and interesting thing to see.can't wait for 15th july, hope it will materialize and shown live. let see if shabery can knock off the moron or the other way round or is this another 'fiction movie' by them??

Raja Petra Might Face Action - Police

KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 (Bernama) -- Action may be taken against blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin if the Attorney-General finds that there are elements of slander against the government in a statutory declaration made by him on June 18.
Federal CID director Datuk Bakri Zinin said the allegations made by the editor of the Malaysia-Today website in the declaration were very serious.
"Investigations are ongoing and we have recorded several statements except from one person. We waiting to take further action," he told reporters at his office here Friday.
He declined to reveal who that person was.
So far, among those whose statements have been taken are Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor who is the wife of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Umno Youth deputy chief and Rembau Member of Parliament, Khairy Jamaluddin.
In the declaration filed at the High Court here, Raja Petra named three individuals, including Rosmah, as being present at the scene where Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu was murdered in 2006.
He (Raja Petra) further claimed that Khairy had in his possession a military intelligence report about the presence of Rosmah, bomb expert Col Aziz Buyong and his wife Norhayati, who is an aide to Rosmah, at the place where Altantuya's body was blown up with explosives in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam in Oct 2006.

tunku : this rpk is living in different world, the world of illusionist.most people says that he got guts but for me this man is crazy and seeking more attention.he writes more fiction stories than facts.if he has any evidence on najib, why don't he made a police report on najib/rosmah?

Feud between Nazri and BBC worsens

KUALA LUMPUR: KUALA LUMPUR: The feud between Datuk Seri Nazri Abd Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Departments and Barisan Nasional Backbechners Club (BBC) chairman Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing has worsened.
“I am expecting the BBC to recommend to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to sack me as a minister. “If they dare not do that on Monday, then shut up and don’t talk anymore,’’ said Nazri.
He said this after Tiong said the club was upset with Nazri, who is in charge of Parliament matters. He said Nazri had accused the BBC members of being childish and gangster-like in removing the red tape placed as barricade at Parliament lobby on Tuesday.
The barricade was put up to bar reporters from the lobby.
Tiong said the backbenchers felt insulted by Nazri’s remarks, adding that the BBC had checked with both Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia and Nazri and both were not aware of the barricade.
Tiong had also said the BBC would hold a meeting on Monday to discuss the issue and decide on the next course of action to be taken, as they felt Nazri had gone overboard.


tunku : only during flip flop regime with its mostly HP6 ministers this thing happens.things have been dragging for few days without the leaders trying to solve it.the pm has lost control of his own team.tiong should know who nazri is. he's very arrogant person.i hope the backbencher demand an open apology from the 'kurang ajar' minister.

Mukhriz On UMNO Ethics Code

Friday, June 27, 2008

Najib Going For Presidency Post ?

Najib Yet To Decide Whether To Contest Umno President's Post

KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said Thursday he has yet to decide whether to contest the Umno presidency in the party elections in December.
Asked by reporters whether he would contest if he were to receive enough nominations from the Umno divisions, Najib, who is also Umno deputy president, said it was not the time yet for him to make the announcement.
"I will make the decision when the time comes, there is still time," he told reporters after attending the Barisan Nasional (BN) Supreme Council meeting, here Thursday night.
Under the Umno regulations, the candidate for the presidency must obtain nominations from at least 30 per cent of the total Umno divisions in the country.

tunku : that is the biggest hint najib has given umno members so far.if he will not fight for the presidency post he would have said that he will not fight for it and will defend his deputy post. for najib to say it openly now is like to commit suicide. he has been hit by many bullets even now(before announcing to fight the presidency post) from within umno and outside umno. his enemy are from the same group. his boss's army and anwar's army. his boss is trying to get anwar to come in(umno) so that he'll be safe in the future together with his family(secret deal).
the branches are going to have their meeting soon. the grassroot members should come out now to support the tag team of najib(president) and muhyiddin(deputy president) team. all these while muhyiddin was outspoken because of najib (reliable source). umno future is in the hand of its members now. be brave enough not to nominate pak lah again and nominates najib and muhyiddin team in.

SAPP to Umno's Anifah: Go independent and lead us

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) is calling on Umno Kimanis MP Datuk Anifah Aman to lead an independent group of MPs from Sabah and Sarawak.
MPs representing different parties from the two states can move the process of political change forward, SAPP president Datuk Yong Teck Lee said in a statement.
Yong said that several MPs from Sabah, Sarawak and peninsular Malaysia have deliberated on the current political scenario in recent days.
“This is the window of opportunity that SAPP has relentlessly reminded our leaders and people to not let slip by,” he said.
Yong said that Anifah, who is Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman's brother, was brave and farsighted to have stepped forward to identify himself with Sabah and its people the issues raised by SAPP.
Anifah has come forward at a time when some other Sabah Barisan parties have turned their guns to attack SAPP in the name of the “Barisan Spirit”, instead of fighting for the people and their state.
Yong claimed that Anifah has refused to subscribe to divide-and-rule tactics and has come up with a fresh angle to the current struggle of Sabah to regain the autonomy of the State of Sabah (and Sarawak) by re-examining Article 161E(4) of the Constitution concerning immigration to the State.
Article 161 touches on the “Safeguards for the constitutional position of States of Sabah and Sarawak”, including matters of citizenship, the jurisdiction of the High Court in Borneo, religion, language and native rights arising from the “Twenty Points” leading to the Malaysia Agreement of 1963.
Anifah on Wednesday said that the Chief Minister of Sabah should head a high level task force to tackle the illegal immigrant problem, as under Article 161, matters of immigration came under the chief minister's jurisdiction.
Over the last four decades, this special position and autonomy have been gradually eroded, whereby power is increasingly concentrated in the central government and its leadership, he added.

tunku : yes go independent but do not join pakatan rakyat which is lead by the devil anwar ibrahim, you will get the necessary support.may be ibrahim ali will join in too.make pak lah resign and and make new terms with the new leader of bn.

Police Report Against Justice Datuk Ian Chin

courtesy of Future FastForward, Thursday, 26 June 2008

PRESS STATEMENT

POLICE REPORT AGAINST JUSTICE DATUK IAN CHIN


On 9th and 24th June 2008, Justice Datuk Ian Chin made two statements in Open Court using language unbecoming of a Judge and highly defamatory allegations against the former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. His statements have been contradicted by two judges, one a former Court of Appeal Judge and another serving judge.
I am of the view that the said Judge has committed contempt of court in that his behaviour has scandalized the court and brought the entire judiciary into disrepute.
What is most startling is that since 9th June 2008, the Chief Justice, the President of the Court of Appeal, the Chief Judge of Malaya and the Chief Judge for Sarawak and Sabah have remained silent regarding the conduct of the said Justice Datuk Ian Chin.
I believe that the aforesaid judges, other than the President of the Court of Appeal were present at the Judges’ Conference in 1997. They could confirm or deny the allegations made by Justice Datuk Ian Chin.
If Justice Datuk Ian Chin’s statements have no basis whatsoever, surely he has misconducted himself as a judge. In the circumstances, the public need to know whether the Chief Justice intends to take any action against Justice Datuk Ian Chin, and why he has failed to comment on this matter.
I am most disappointed with the conduct of the Chief Justice and I hope that in due course, a statement will be forthcoming from his office.

Matthias Chang
26th June 2008

photo courtesy of jinggo

tunku : it was a good act by matthias chang. we hope the police will investigate thoroughly without fear and favour.

Dr M vs judge: Tit-for-tat continues

The verbal jousting between Dr Mahathir Mohamad and High Court Judge Ian Chin continued today with even more bizarre allegations of a conspiracy between the judge and the government.
At a hastily arranged press conference at his Petronas Twin Towers office today where he is the oil giant's adviser, Mahathir alluded Justice Chin made several damning allegations against him to divert attention and avoid being put on a tribunal for alleged breach of judges' code of ethics.
“I think he is trying to save his skin. He thinks that by running me down, demonising me, he would be favoured by the government and no tribunal would be set up to dismiss him,” he told reporters.
The breaches in ethics were allegedly made during the course of the case Sabah Foundation & 2 Others vs Datuk Syed Kechik Syed Mohamed & Anor, involving two related cases heard simultaneously, which Chin had ruled in favour of the plaintiff in Sept 1999.
He alluded that Chin's history with Syed Kechik developed since the 1970's when now-defunct political parties Berjaya and then-ruling United Sabah National Organisation (Usno) were clashing over control of Sabah.
The former premier said Berjaya's objective as stated in their manifesto was to expel Syed Kechik from Sabah. He said that Chin had lost twice at the polls as a Berjaya candidate and would be familiar with "Berjaya's hatred for Syed Kechik".
Mahathir’s contention is that Chin did not disclose during the hearing that his father and brother were arrested by Chief Minister Mustapha Harun’s government, where Syed Kechik served as advisor to the chief minister.
“Chin also said in his judgment that Syed Kechik wielded too much power for anyone to believe that any bureaucrat would oppose him’. He (Chin) concluded with dismissing with cost the application to strike out the injunction.
“It became obvious that Chin was biased against Syed Kechik. Yet he did not reveal his father’s and brother’s arrest during the time of Mustapha’s government and his belief that Syed Kechik...was responsible for this arrest when hearing the case concerned,” said Mahathir in a prepared text.
Based on police report, judgment
Mahathir’s assertions were based on a police report lodged by second defendent in the case Zara Sdn Bhd’s director Benjamin Hwa Yong in 2005.
Only the first page of the report proper was appended to the press statement that was distributed to the press today, thus Mahathir’s assertions of the report’s contents could not be verified.
To support his argument, Mahathir refered to the March 25, 2008 Federal Court judgment on the same case and quotes the following:
“Without evidence or justification, the learned judge (Chin) wrongly held that Syed Kechik made these decisions. We find that the learned judge’s findings were based on unjustified inferences, speculation, his own preconceived impressions and prejudice”, and: “We find the learned judge’s attack on the credibility of Syed Salem Al Bukhary (Syed Kechik’s younger brother) as unwaranted and does not stand up to examination having regard to the extremely prejudiced view he held about Syed Salem’s conduct as apparent in his judgment”.
While not mentioned by Mahathir, in 2003 the three-member panel at the Court of Appeal led by then Court of Appeal Judge Siti Norma Yaakob unanimously upheld Chin’s decision.
Similarly, in 2008, the three member panel at the Federal Court led by Federal Court Judge Zulkefli Makinudin dismissed the defendants’s applications.
Compared with Lingam inquiry
Mahathir said it would be “interesting to see” if the government would set up a tribunal to examine “the charges” against Chin based on the police report and the Federal Court judgment. “I suspect that it (the government) will not. And so this judge who obviously breached the judges' code of ethics by ‘being a judge in his own cause’ will simply get away with his unethical behaviour while presiding over a case. “The public should question how a person such as Chin should have been recommended to become a judge. I cannot remember recommending him. “He is a disgrace to the judiciary and to the legal profession,” said Mahathir, reading from his prepared text.
Ian Chin was appointed judicial commissioner on Feb 26, 1992 and since then has served in the High Court in Sabah and Sarawak. He is, at present, a resident judge at the High Court in Kota Kinabalu.
When quizzed by reporters, Mahathir said that those behind the allegations against Chin had submitted documents to other judges, the chief justice, prime minister and the Malaysian Human Rights Commission. He said that the allegations against Chin were a “clear cut abuse of his position”, but thus far the matter had been ignored by the authorities.
“In the case of Anwar’s accusation against Lingam. Immediately they set up a royal commission, which works on the basis of possibilities. If it is possible that you are wrong, then you must be wrong. That is the new standard of justice,” he said.
Mahathir had also took the government to task for “rushing to accept” Chin’s story. “But other judges had refused to endorse his statements about threats by the prime minister, casting doubt on its veracity,” he added.

photo courtesy of jinggo

tunku : the truth prevails.let see what chin has to say this time. hopefully he won't use the court ( at court hearing) to answer.

Tun Mahathir: I'm glad to have a blog


Former premier turned active blogger Dr Mahathir Mohamad today revealed that he was glad to have turned to cyberspace to air his views.
"Now I'm glad I have my blog. At least I can say something," Mahathir told reporters during a press conference at his office in the Petronas Twin Towers today.
Mahathir said this when he repeated his now familiar complaint about how the present government and Umno leadership was silencing dissent.
He said that this practice was in contrast to his time as prime minister and Umno president, which he claimed allowed open criticism and allowed open contest within the party.
Earlier, Mahathir made another passing mention about his blog when speaking about popularity in politics and how there was bribery in elections.
"The fact that I won (elections), it doesn't mean that I have power. I think I was popular. I think even now, after you retire you can still walk around, people come up and thank you and things like that. Of course I don't like to talk about that because it means I'm trying to promote myself.
"But I don't seem to be unpopular when I meet people. If you care to read my blog, so many people make comments. Some were adverse comments, but majority are quite supportive of what I said," he said.
On May 1, Mahathir started his own blog chedet.com which refers to his old pen-name in his 1970s column in Utusan Malaysia.
Since its inception, chedet.com is arguably fastest growing blog in Malaysia with more than two million hits in the short span of two months.
Sackings
On the dismal amount of people leaving following his footsteps and leaving Umno, Mahathir reiterated that most people supportive of the idea were crippled with fear.
"They were frightened. If you follow me, you lose a lot of things and come under pressure. People have had their positions (taken away) like Sanusi Junid, who was removed as International Islamic University president," he said.
To another question, Mahathir said he was not disappointed that his youngest son Mukhriz did not leave Umno.
"He has his own strategy. I don't use force, even in my family," he added.
Mahathir said that he is unlikely to face the same predicament as Sanusi, a staunch Mahathir-loyalist, because he was more high-profile.
"I think it is because a lot of people talk about my jobs, so the government has not taken any action. If they could do it quietly, I think they would.
"But I have such a high profile. It may not look good for the government," said Mahathir, who had previously said that he doesn't care if he is sacked from his posts.
Currently, Mahathir is an advisor to oil and gas giant Petronas, national carmaker Proton, the Langkawi Development Authority and the Tioman Island Development Authority.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Highlights of the mid-term review of the Ninth Malaysia Plan

KUALA LUMPUR: The policy and strategy framework for the mid-term review of the 9MP, outlined by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Thursday, focuses on these five thrusts:
1. Move economy up the value chain by focusing on enhancing productivity and competitiveness of the nation, generate new sources of growth and expand into new markets.
2. Raise the capacity for knowledge and innovation and nurture first class mentality. The key initiatives are to improve the quality of and accessibility to education; making national schools the preferred choice; providing tertiary education of international repute; nurturing R&D and innovation capability; and fostering a society with exemplary values.
3. Address persistent socio-economic inequalities by further reducing the incidence of poverty, improving distribution of income, reducing regional disparities, restructuring employment and wealth ownership, and developing bumiputra Commercial and Industrial Community (BCIC).
4. Improve the standard and sustainability of quality of life, accessibility to and quality of healthcare and other social amenities will be enhanced and environmental management improved.
5. Strengthen the institutional and implementation capacity.

Priority during the remaining 9MP would be on people-centred projects that bring tangible benefits and improve the quality of life of the people.

The main initiatives topping the agenda are:

·eradicating poverty;
·providing affordable housing to the low and middle income;
·providing access to water and electricity;
·enhancing health care;
·improving the standard of living of marginalised groups;
·narrowing intra and inter ethnic income and wealth gaps;
·strengthening human capital;
·upgrading public safety;
·improving environmental management and conservation;
·and developing regional corridors and accelerating development of Sabah and Sarawak.

The Development expenditure ceiling has been raised to RM230bil from RM200bil approved under 9MP, to finance priority projects including the food security programme, construction of rural roads and provision of low cost housing.

Macroeconomic performance and prospects

·GDP to grow 6.0% per annum in 2008-2010, driven by domestic demand, particularly private sector expenditure
·On supply side, services, manufacturing and agriculture sectors will remain as main sources of growth
·Private investment to grow 10.6% per annum. In nominal terms, private investment to reach RM121.0bil or 56.4% to total investment in 2010
·Public investment to grow at 6.3% per annum
·Private consumption to grow at 7.6% per annum with its share to GDP increasing to 52.9% in 2010

Sectoral Output:

·Services sector to sustain growth momentum at 7.9% per annum, led by financial and business services subsector growing at9.8% per annum
·Manufacturing sector to grow at slower pace of 3.5% per annum, due to sluggish global demand of electrical and electronics products
·Agriculture sector to grow at 4.4% per annum
.Mining sector to grow at 3.4% per annum, with oil and gas subsector accounting for 98.7% to sector
·Construction sector is grow 5.8% per annum, boosted by civil engineering activities, residential and commercial property subsector

Fiscal Deficit: Federal government expected to be sustained at 3.2% of GDP in 2010

Moving economy up value chain:

·Increasing value added of the services sector by 7.9% to RM948bil
·Increasing share of services sector to GDP to 55.7%
·Targeting 24.6 million tourist arrivals with receipts of RM59.4bil
·Increasing tourist per capita expenditure to RM2,417
·Increasing value added of the manufacturing sector by 3.5% to RM168.9bil.

Targeted value added of major subsectors - E&E (RM32.9bil); M&E (RM19.2bil);

Petrochemical (RM20.5bil);

Transport equipment (RM16.2bil)

·Average annual investment level of RM27.5bil - E&E RM14.0bil; M&E RM1.7bil, Petrochemical RM1.7bil; Transport equipment RM2.1bil; Medical devices RM800mil;
·Increasing food production and self sufficiency level (SSL).
.Production of rice to increase by 27.4% to 2.9 million tonnes (86% of SSL);

Fisheries production to increase by 33.4% to 1.8 million tones (103% of SSL); Beef by 31.2% to 45,000 tonnes (28% of SSL); Poultry by 18.2% to 1.3 million tones (122%of SSL).

·Increasing ICT value added to RM30bil; Increasing ICT-related jobs to 500,000

Highway projects:

·Construction of East Coast Expressway Phase II from Kuantan - Kuala Terengganu.
·Senai-Desaru and Kemuning-Shah Alam highways; Construction of roads to link resettlement areas with rural industrial areas and estates, particularly in Sabah and Sarawak. Upgrading of Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Terengganu and Labuan airports
·Construction of Seremban-Gemas and Ipoh-Padang Besar electrified double tracking rail projects. To be completed in 2012 and 2013, respectively
Mid-Term Review of Ninth Malaysia Plan prepared by Economic Planning Unit

What’s out:

* No allocation given for RM1.6bil Penang Monorail project under 9MP
* No allocation for Penang Outer Ring Road project under 9MP
* Proposed administrative centres in several states put on hold

Projects were deferred as they were not people-centric as yet and would not have an immediate impact.

What’s in:

Additional RM30bil for development expenditure under 9MP used for: * RM10bil for the various Corridor initiatives
* Additional RM2bil for Sabah, Sarawak development
* Food security (RM3bil)
* Strategic investment fund (RM3bil)
* Double tracking rail project (RM2bil)
* Additional rural infrastructure (RM2bil)
* Public transportation (RM1.6bil)
* Low and medium cost housing projects (RM1bil)
* High impact education fund (RM500mil)

When the 9MP was prepared, the cost of light crude oil was then at US$55 per barrel. When the Mid-Term Review was carried out, oil was at RM100 per barrel in February.

Poverty eradication

To address persistent socio-economic inequalities, the government’s target is to eradicate hardcore poverty and reduce overall poverty to 2.8% by 2010. In Peninsular Malaysia, the percentage of hardcore poverty has been reduced from 0.7% in 2004 to 0.3% in 2007; while for Sabah it was reduced from 6.5% to 3.7% while for Sarawak it was reduced from 1.1% to 0.7%. The country’s urban hardcore poverty rate was reduced from 0.4% to 0.3% and for rural, from 2.9% to 1.4%.

Overall poverty in Peninsular Malaysia was reduced from 3.6% to 2.3% while for Sabah, it was reduced from 23% to 16% and Sarawak from 7.5% to 4.2%. For the country’s urban poverty rate, it was reduced from 2.5% to 2% and for rural from 11.9% to 7.1%

Income distribution

Income distribution to reduce income gaps among ethnic groups as well as between rural and urban areas has seen Bumiputera’s mean income increased by 5.2% to RM3,156 in 2007 from RM2,711 in 204. During the period, the Chinese’s income rose 3.0% to RM4,853 from RM4,437, Indians’ income rose 3.2% to RM3,799 from RM3.456 and for others, a 15.5% increase to RM3,651 from RM2,312.

In urban areas, income rose 3.3% to RM4,356 from RM3,956 and for the rural area, there was a 6.8% increase to RM2,283 from RM1,875

Ownership restructuring

The government’s target under the 9MP is to attain bumiputera equity ownership between 20% and 25% by 2010, which excludes government companies like Petroliam Nasional Bhd and Khazanah Nasional Bhd. The equity ownership is based on the par value of the shares and not on market capitalization.

Bumiputera ownership has increased from 18.9% in share capital in 2004 to 19.4% in 2006. During the period, individual ownership increased from 15.0% to 15.1% while for institutions, including Permodalan Nasional Bhd, it increased from 2.2% to 2.6%.

For non-bumiputeras, it increased from 40.6% in 2004 to 43.9% in 2006. Chinese ownership group saw an increase from 39.6% to 42.4%, while for Indians it showed a slight decline from 1.2% to 1.1%.

However, there was a decline in foreign ownership from 32.5% to 30.1% while for nominees, it fell from 8.0% to 6.6%.



tunku : talk, talk, talk and keep talking pak lah. we still can't see anything after 5 years under you. the only thing we can see is ecm libra , scomi etc becoming richer and richer.now airasia , especially after kalimullah has share in it.

Mohamed Nazri Is Miffed, Ticks Off BNBBC Members

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- The unprecedented move by some Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club (BNBBC) members to remove a cordon which restricted media coverage at the Parliament lobby on Tuesday, has left the minister in the prime minister's department miffed.
Describing their move as a bad example to the people (public) and rude to the Speaker, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said the matter would be discussed at the next BNBBC meeting before action was initiated against errant BNBBC members.
"Who are they to do that? I do not condone it. This is childish. They have no power to do that and the power in the house (Parliament) is the Speaker who has the right to make a decision.
"You (BNBBC members) think you can do what you want? Is this a gangster club?
"They better know their place in the House. Do not do it again, as it embarrasses me.
"Before this, I am always criticising the Opposition. Now, I am doing the same thing to BNBBC," he told reporters at Parliament lobby here.
Nazri, who is also minister-in-charge of Parliament, said the matter would be referred to Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak soon.
The directive to make the lobby a restricted zone on security grounds had triggered outrage among more than 100 media personnel assigned to cover the Parliamentary sitting.
As a result, they staged a boycott on news conferences held at the lobby, including those by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his deputy, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
Nazri also denied allegations that he was involved in the directive to restrict the movement of media personnel in the lobby.

tunku : we must be proud of the action of the bnbbc group as they are not coward and they did the right thing.who nazri think he is, the lord of the parliament?you are only in charge of parliament, you don't own it. it is your stupid idea i guess for all the chaos in the parliament yesterday.

Dr M: Raja Petra accusation a political ploy

There is little agreement between Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on most issues, but they were at least reading from the same script in the alleged participation of Najib Abdul Razak and his wife in the controversial Altantuya killing. They are both on Najib's side.
Attending the book launch by his wife Dr Siti Hasmah Ali at the Perdana Leadership Foundation today, Mahathir said the recent accusations of Najib were nothing more than political ploys.
"They (Lim Kit Siang and Raja Petra Kamarudin) are not really interested in crime or achieving justice. They have a political agenda.
"As far as they are concerned, this is the time to run somebody in government down. So, they just seize the opportunity.
"You can't just write to the court and say, 'I learnt from reliable sources'. Hearsay is not evidence. I'm flanked by two lawyers but that is my understanding that you need to prove things beyond reasonable doubt," said Mahathir.
Last Wednesday, popular blogger Raja Petra filed a statutory declaration at the Kuala Lumpur High Court, alleging that Najib's wife Rosmah Mansor was at the murder scene of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu.
This was rejected by Najib today. Abdullah also defended Najib and Rosmah yesterday.
Kain pelikat inducements
After that, Mahathir nevertheless returned to his criticism of Abdullah and his government.
When asked on the issue of gatherings for Umno branch leaders and the issuance of a pamphlet entitled Umno Election Ethics, Mahathir burst into his normal sarcasm, calling it "entirely democratic".
"They (Umno branch leaders) are not supposed to ask questions when they attend briefings under the present government. "They are not allowed to campaign or make speeches either. In fact, I understand the prime minister is calling all the branches to come here and listen to him. "Here, they are well entertained and I hear that they are given one kain pelikat and RM200. These are rumours. But apparently the president can campaign but 90 percent of others cannot campaign."
"This is Umno democracy for you and he (Abdullah) will continue to remind people of his good deeds."
Money to buy support
On the question of support for the prime minister after his motion on fuel price hikes was passed in Parliament on Monday, Mahathir said it was because people behaved like robots. "They can get people to behave like robots but the public knows this and they will not support the party. "Abdullah may say he is popular but at the Formula One races, he was booed by the crowd. I suppose that is a sign of his popularity," said Mahathir.
On Abdullah's 100 days in office, Mahathir called it a disaster because the government is in "total denial". "This government is total denial, refusing to listen to what people are telling them. As far as the country is concerned, this government is a total failure. "Beyond responding to complaints, they keep distributing money. If you complain the will give you money. Sabah complains, they give RM1 billion. Sarawak complaints, they give another billion. "Government funds are now used to bribe these people," he added.

photo courtesy of jinggo

tunku : so the story pak lah was booed by the crowd at the F1 race is true. before this i thought it was only rumours. this pm has no shame. come what may he still want to be the pm.it's true what tun dr mahathir said other leaders are not allowed to campaign but pak lah can call all the branch leaders come to kl , stays in 5 star hotels ,give them some pocket money and listen to his lies. as for rpk, there's nothing more to say, tun had said it all.

Dr M: I want my day in court

PUTRAJAYA: Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will not seek a judicial review on the findings of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the V.K. Lingam video clip, saying he wanted to appear in court.
Joking that he was already guilty because the Commission had based its findings on "possibilities," Dr Mahathir said there was no need for him to appeal.
"On the basis of the Royal Commission, if something is possible then it must have happened.
"If it is possible for me to have been influenced by lingam, therefore I must have been influenced," he told reporters here on Wednesday, adding that he had to submit to the "new standards" that were being followed in the country especially when the Commission was headed by experienced judges.
He was responding to media questions following lawyer V.K. Lingam, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan filing applications for leave seeking a judicial review on the findings of the Commission.
Among others, the Commission had recommended that Dr Mahathir, Lingam, Tengku Adnan, Tan and former chief justices Tun Eusoff Chin and Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim be investigated.
Dr Mahathir had earlier witnessed his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali launching Prof Salleh Buang's book Smart Growth at the Perdana Leadership Foundation here.
On retired Federal Court judge Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin's allegations that he (Dr Mahathir) wanted to amend Article 121 of the Federal Constitution because he wanted the judiciary to be under his control, Dr Mahathir said he would prefer other judges with contrary opinions give statements on what had really transpired.
"There is no need for me to talk. Just like (High Court judge Datuk Ian) Chin who earlier said I had threatened to sack judges but today says that I dropped hints or words here and there, if there is anything more vague than that I don't know.
He said sacking a judge was not as easy as sacking a football player as a tribunal had to be set up for the purpose.
Dr Mahathir also said that he did not know Chin or any of the other judges and had to depend on others to recommend them for appointment.

photo courtesy of jinggo

tunku : way to go Tun.Bravo.

Controversial Boo Chang joins PKR

GEORGE TOWN: Controversial politician Lim Boo Chang has officially joined Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), together with 350 of his supporters.
Lim, who crossed over from Gerakan to the MCA eight years ago, said their applications had been accepted by party de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, he said: “The decision to join PKR was made after careful evaluation of Malaysia’s present political scenario and a deeper understanding of PKR’s objectives.” Lim, 53, who was Kampung Lembah Ria MCA branch chairman and Bukit Gelugor division committee member, faxed his resignation letter to MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting on April 4.
Right after the 1999 polls, Lim and Gerakan assemblyman Lim Chien Aun created an uproar when they crossed over to the MCA, depriving Gerakan of two state seats.
Lim was not fielded in the recent general election. He last contested in 2004 in Bukit Gelugor, but lost.

tunku : after this may be he'll join DAP then all the parties in malaysia.later we can honour him with an award for the leaping politician.