Bridges Linking Malaysia, S'pore Possible, Says Abdullah

KUALA LUMPUR, May 11 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today hinted at the possibility of a new bridge linking Malaysia and Singapore in the future.
The prime minister went a step further, saying he believed that several bridges could be built to connect the two neighbouring countries.
"I believe that one day there may be several bridges linking Singapore and Malaysia, just like in places like New York, Manhattan and Korea, although these places are not in different countries," he told reporters after addressing a gathering of Umno members in conjunction with the party's 61st anniversary celebration at the Putra World Trade Centre here.
"Rivers and straits are not a hindrance to having bridges to ensure smooth traffic. It's something that's going to happen," he added.
Abdullah, who is Umno president, was queried whether he viewed the option of building a bridge to replace the Johor Causeway was still on the table or otherwise.
Several groups have called for the issue to be revisited in talks between Abdullah and his Singaporean counterpart, Lee Shien Loong, in Langkawi on Monday and Tuesday.
When pressed whether the matter would be brought up at the meeting, the prime minister said: "We'll go to Langkawi with an open mind...to look at the latest development."
The government decided to abort the bridge in April last year, citing legal complications.
Abdullah said then that the project had been scrapped as Malaysia could not accept Singapore's request for sand and the use of airspace in exchange for cooperation on the project.
Consequently, the government stopped all negotiations on the bridge issue with Singapore

tunku : we don't need bridges, we just need one bridge.have a gut and build it pak lah.just because can't sell sand to singapore doesn't mean that we can build it,BUILD THE WAY IT WAS PLAN, we don't need singapore's consent.keep spinning pak lah.

Don't Make It A Culture To Ask For Allowance - PM

KUALA LUMPUR, May 11(Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi does not want Umno members to make it a culture to solicit an allowance everytime they are asked to do something.
Though admitting that such practice exists in Umno, the prime minister said that allowances were only given in cases that were really pressing.
"There are some members who come from other states to attend courses or meetings. Not all of them can afford it and the party, on its own volition and not at their behest, realises that they need help.
"But they cannot ask for money all the time. Even to do little things like helping to up posters, they want money. This cannot be tolerated," said the Umno president after delivering his keynote address at the party's 61st anniversary celebration here.
He said Umno members should not be so calculating when doing work for the party because it was for the interest of the party struggle and the race.
On what he expects from the members for the next 50 years, he said he wanted them to nurture a willingness to make sacrifices for the party.
He said the Umno generation now should continue with the spirit of camaraderie and consensus practised since long ago by the party veterans.
Asked about the poor turnout for this year's celebration which was attended by 3,000-odd people, he said this was because the celebration was held on a working day.
"Today is a working day. We wanted to have it on the weekend but it would be past the date. We also had a celebration yesterday and those who could not come today came yesterday," he said.

tunku : it's always easy to ask others to do things, but the leaders are the one who should set example.money politics has seen the worst under pak lah leadership.your son in law won uncontested because everyone is so afraid to stand against him because you are the prime minister.i guess the poor turn out this year celebration has said enough.there's no point in shedding crocodile tears just to gain sympathy.

Q&A: I'm not a Muslim Hadhari. I'm a Muslim, period

In this final part of his interview with malaysiakini, former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad also talks about logging scandal involving a Chief Minister and about the house belonging to Mugabe in Malaysia.

Sarawak chief minister (Abdul) Taib Mahmud has been linked to some logging (corruption) issues. You’ve known him for some time. What do you think is happening with Taib?

I think the Chinese community (in Sarawak) seems disillusioned. That’s why in the last (state) election, they did not vote for SUPP (Chinese-based component party in Sarawak BN). But the Malays seem to be quite contented.

Is it time for Umno to go into Sarawak?

I don’t think it should go into Sarawak and ‘kacau’ (stir) the pot there. We went into Sabah because of an emergency. During an election (1990 general elections), Pairin (Kitingan) pulled out, so I had to go to Sabah. But in Sarawak, I think it is up to the prime minister whether he wants to go to Sarawak or not.

Would it be a good idea to go into Sarawak?

I wouldn’t know.

There is talk of Umno setting up pro-tem committees in Sarawak.

(Former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and Defense Minister) Abang Abu Bakar wanted Umno to go there before. I didn’t want to disturb the situation in Sarawak. At that time, Japan Times didn’t report anything. Malaysiakini also was not around.

Taib Mahmud has been around a long time. You think he should step down now?

Well, that’s for him to decide. I always believe one should not overstay one’s welcome. If you overstay, people might dislike you.

Another long-time leader is Robert Mugabe (president of Zimbabwe). Do you still consider him a friend?

He is my friend. But he has his own politics. He has his own situation. I’m not the best person to assess the problems that he faces. But from what I see in Africa, you may change leaders but you don’t change anything. You see changes in leadership in many of the African countries.

There was a rumour that when he resigns, he may seek asylum here in Malaysia, and that he has a house already in Langkawi. Is there any truth to that?

No house in Langkawi but if he wants to seek asylum, why not? He’s a friend. We have no quarrel.

Have you met him lately?

Not lately.

But the government does not recognise political asylum.

Some people come here. We don’t legally give them political asylum, but a lot of Acehnese people come here, a lot of people from southern Thailand come here. We are quite flexible. It’s not a special protection for asylum seekers or anything like that.

Talking about southern Thailand, we’re seeing more violence there.

It’s difficult in southern Thailand. If there’s just one group struggling, then it’s easy. You can just deal with that one group. But these are dispersed within many, many small groups. Some are acting on their own. Then, there is a mix of some people who take advantage in order to rob, threaten people and all that. The situation is very big. Of course, there is this accusation that the military has been abducting people. Maybe it’s true, maybe it’s not.

There have been allegations that some of these rebels have been trained in Malaysia.

They are not being trained in Malaysia. That I know for sure during my time, I think even now. I can’t see this government doing any training for any rebels anywhere.

There have also been accusations that they are linked to PAS.

Before, they used to cross over the border to vote for PAS. That is because these people are related to the people in Kelantan. They have relatives. Sometimes they have both (Malaysian and Thai) identification cards. During elections, PAS goes there. The Thai government allows PAS to campaign, because they talk about religion. We will have to talk about politics so we couldn’t campaign there. As a whole, they seem to incline towards PAS because PAS seems sympathetic to them.

You’re talking about foreigners voting for PAS. In Sabah, there are claims that ICs are given to foreigners to vote for Umno.

There could be because in Sabah it was at one time called the Wild East of Malaysia. People do funny things. Initially when they had democracy in Sabah, BN used to win 100 percent because anybody who wants to stand against the Alliance (precursor to BN) could not reach the registration officers. Before they reach (them), some things (always) happened.

You have created a situation in Sabah where there are more foreigners than locals.

Sabah is a border area like Kelantan. Traditionally, the Bajaus for example, used to come and go as they like because they never recognised the boundary between the Philippines and Malaysia or between British North Borneo and Indonesia. These people come and go, and some of them have been staying there for 30 years. The children cannot go to school because we do not recognise them as citizens. This is very unfortunate.
We have been having this kind of problems all the time, and it’s going to get worse - in every country - because borders today are very porous. No way you can stop a few million Indians migrating to Europe, a few million Arabs migrating into France. You cannot stop it today.

But they accused Umno of giving all these ICs to foreigners in order to...

Not Umno as such. There may have been a few fellows who did it, but it was not Umno.

The government?

The government, no. Certainly not. Some people with an interest in doing so may have, maybe for money.

There were claims that there was a special meeting involving former deputy home minister Megat Junid Megat Ayob, involving the police, and where these things were discussed. There were very specific allegations where things were orchestrated for political ends. Do you have any knowledge of this so-called Project M?

No. Not me.

So Project M is not Project Mahathir?

It’s nice to have ‘M’. At one time, there was even an MM government.

People are complaining about the switch from teaching Maths and Science in Bahasa Malaysia to English. In hindsight, do you think it was a good decision?

I still hold to the belief that if we want to make progress, if the Malays want to make progress, they must master English and they must learn science and mathematics in English. I would like to see a person who is totally illiterate in English, or any other language except Malay, make progress in science and study science. We can learn the elementary sciences - that this is oxygen, this is hydrogen - but once you want to move into higher sciences, you want to be a Nobel laureate...
But we don’t have many students going into science. Most of our students seem to be branching into arts. What’s the idea of actually forcing this on them. People have been saying our pass rates over the past four years are not indicating that we are doing well on this. Something must be wrong, either with the implementation of the policy or the policy itself.
If you want to do something, you can do it. Teaching science in English is not difficult, especially now with software, with all kinds of aids that we have. To learn English today is very easy. The teacher may not be able to speak English, but he can use software and he can learn just as the student learns.
I’ve tried to learn French. I can’t speak French very well, but they have software today which can teach you very, very quickly. Within two to three months, you should be able to speak French. Children learn very fast, and they can learn English very quickly.
The Arabs learned Greek language to learn Greek science, Greek philosophy, Greek mathematics, translated that into Arabic and for 700 years they were the ones who mastered these subjects.
The Europeans in those days were living in the Dark Ages. When they wanted to copy the Muslims, there was no way for them to do so unless they understood Arabic. They learned Arabic and they went to Cordoba, they went to Baghdad, looked at the libraries, looked at all the Arabic books, and later on translated (these materials) into their language, into Latin, and from Latin into English and French and German.

That’s fine but you’ve still got schools with broken computers and the government is unwilling, or unable, to even replace them.

That is administration. It’s not government policy. The government decides that if your computer breaks down, there are ways of replacing it, if you want to replace it. If you don’t want to replace it, then of course, there is no money.
Like the (half-)bridge, you say you have no money. So now, you have a CIQ (Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex), which is wasted money - RM1.4 billion doing nothing. That is not a waste.

A few years ago (In September 2001) you declared Malaysia an Islamic state. Given that there has been increased religious tensions lately, what do you think of that declaration in hindsight?

It has to nothing to do with the Islamic state, this increase in tensions. It’s just because you don’t explain things properly to the other side. During my time, I opposed hudud laws because they are not hudud laws not because I oppose religious laws. I’m opposed to their interpretation of hudud laws because they are not based on the teachings of Islam.

We’ve got a situation where mothers are being separated from kids and wives separated from their husbands. What’s your solution to that?

Go back to the teachings of Islam. These things become a problem because of interpretations. Go back and find out what is it that Islam wants you to do in such cases. Go back to the Quran. It’s there.

Do you agree with what the religious authorities did? That R Subashini should be separated from her children?

Is that what the Quran suggests? I don’t think so.

You don’t think so?

I don’t think so. The problem is that it is difficult for non-Muslims to even talk or question this. We are living in such a climate of fear, that it’s not easy to be up front in this debate...

Are you admitting that we are living in a climate of fear? Before, we didn’t have this problem. Now, it’s getting more and more (problematic), it’s getting worse and worse. It started with your Islamic nation declaration.

No, Islamic nation is just an Islamic nation.

Much of these problems started after you declared Malaysia as...

There are many Islamic nations. What is the definition of an Islamic nation?

According to you, it’s a country ruled by the majority and where Muslims are the majority. As such, being secular, we are still an Islamic nation. That is your definition. But down on the ground, we are looking at since...

It’s up to the government to counter such things.

We’ve got Islam Hadhari to counter it...

I don’t know what is Islam Hadhari. I’m not a Muslim Hadhari. I’m a Muslim, period.

Someone said a nation of sheep begets a government of wolves. Malaysians are sheep, and I think you recognise this after your 22 years.

No, no. I had a tough time. I very nearly lost an election in 1999. I didn’t do very well during some of the elections. I did well in some elections. It’s not always a straight line like that or that, or goes up like that (indicating with his hand). If you care to study, I went through five elections. It was not easy.

You have to go around and explain to people. This is wrong. This black eye (episode where Anwar appeared with a black eye after being assaulted in detention) is black eye, but what the government is doing is good. But people say, ‘Well, the black eye is very important.’ So they voted black eye. You see? I can’t do anything. But now, (it’s) ‘be careful. If you don’t vote me in, you’ll be punished...’

Do you still think you’re relevant to Malaysian politics?

I’m not relevant anymore. I’m a retired man.

So you’re happy to just being retired.

I’m retired, but I’ll open my mouth once in a while... to talk to Malaysiakini.com.

One last question - on the Internet. You decided not to censor the Internet, which was a good thing, but it was very unlike of you.

I was forced to say ‘I will not censor the Internet’.

You were forced to say that?

Yes. The (Multimedia Super Corridor) International Advisory Panel (IAP) told me that you must not censor the Internet. Even at that time, I wanted to censor the Internet because I think the Internet is undermining moral values.
They put on the Internet all those pornographic, dirty pictures and things like that. If a young boy, a teenager, sees all those things, he goes crazy and he rapes little children and rapes even his grandmother. These things should be taken out, and I did suggest that we raise this matter in the UN. Make it an international crime. If anybody puts dirty things on the Internet, he should be prosecuted.

So why did you decide not to censor the Internet?

Because I had to satisfy these people who would (otherwise) say Malaysia is not a free country. At that time, it wasn’t so bad. Now, it’s really, really bad.

In hindsight, was that the right decision?

I think even at that time, I had to force myself. Sometimes you are under pressure from foreign (investors). We want their cooperation, we want to develop the Multimedia Super Corridor, and these are very influential people. They said, ‘Don’t censor the Internet,’and I said, ‘Okay, if you say so.’
But I was never convinced. Even now I’m not convinced. I don’t mean censor contrary views. Contrary views is okay, but censor those filthy and dirty things.

Have you ever thought of doing your own blog?

Somebody suggested to me (to blog), but I don’t have the time. I have to depend on you.

Would you like to do a column for Malaysiakini?

A column, no. Occasional interviews, yes.

Dr M: 'I know nothing about Project M'

Dr Mahathir Mohamad revealed that “some people” were involved in issuing identity cards to foreigners in Sabah but denied the ruling Umno was involved in the secret plan allegedly to pad up the electoral rolls with illegal immigrants.
When pressed on whether he had any knowledge of the plan to give ICs to foreigners to vote for Umno, the former premier said: “No. Not me.”
The wily octogenarian similarly dodged further attempts to get a definitive answer to the many questions surrounding the 'Project M' allegedly bearing his initial.
"It's nice to have 'M'. At one time, there was even an MM government," he said with his trademark sarcasm in reference to the period when he and former deputy premier Musa Hitam led the government.
It has been claimed that as a result of the secret project - sometimes referred to as 'Project Mahathir' or 'Project IC' - there are about 1.75 million foreigners in Sabah today as compared to 1.5 million locals.
According to the claims, a secret meeting was held in Kuala Lumpur to discuss the project attended by, among others, the then deputy home minister Megat Junid Megat Ayub and chief secretary to the government, Ahmad Sarji.
Ahmad was said to have opposed the plan, but told that Mahathir had already given his approval.
Speaking to malaysiakini editors at a recent interview in his Perdana Leadership Foundation office in Putrajaya, 81-year-old Mahathir disclosed that some individuals in Sabah may have been involved in the issuance of ICs to foreigners to secure votes for Umno.
The ex-premier who had been in power for 22 years however dismissed suggestions that any such project was sponsored by Umno or the government.
"Certainly not. Some people with an interest in doing so may have, maybe for money."
I want to censor the Net but...
On another matter, Mahathir said his pledge not to censor the Internet was a move that was - and remains - against his better judgement.
He said he was "forced" to do so by the Multimedia Super Corridor’s International Advisory Panel - comprising top information technology experts - to secure foreign investors’ help in developing the ambitious Silicon Valley-type project.
"Even at that time, I wanted to censor the Internet because I think the Internet is undermining moral values," he added, referring to the proliferation of smut.
"At that time, it wasn't so bad. Now, it's really, really bad," he said. But he was quick to add that his ideas of censoring the Internet did not apply to "contrary views".
"I don't mean censor contrary views. Contrary views is okay, but censor those filthy and dirty things," he said.
Islamic state declaration
Mahathir also denied widely-held claims that the recent heightening of religious tensions had anything to do with his declaration that Malaysia was an Islamic state in September 2001.
On the contrary, he said, the frayed ties between Muslims and non-Muslims were because of religious authorities' misinterpretation of the religion as well as their failure to adhere the true teachings of Islam.
"It has to nothing to do with the Islamic state - this increase in tensions. It's just because you don't explain things properly to the other side," said Mahathir.
"These things become a problem because of interpretations. Go back and find out what is it that Islam wants you to do in such cases. Go back to the Quran. It's there.”
Mahathir does not believe that the forced separation of spouses and between parents and children on grounds of religion - such as the case of R Subashini - is sanctioned by the Quran.

Let off despite ‘sexist’ remarks

TWO Government backbenchers were let off the hook despite making sexist remarks following Fong Po Kuan's (DAP – Batu Gajah) observations of leaks in the Parliament building.
And an angry Fong proposed to refer Datuk Mohd Said Yusof (BN – Jasin) and Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin (BN – Kinabatangan) to the Rights and Privileges Committee, saying that their remarks insulted and were derogatory to women.
On Wednesday, Bung Mokhtar was reported saying: “Mana ada bocor, Batu Gajah pun tiap-tiap bulan bocor juga (Where is the leak? Batu Gajah leaks every month too).”
Speaker Tan Sri Ramli Ngah Talib rejected Fong's motion on grounds that she should have filed it when the remarks were made based on Standing Order 26(1)(p).
“The motion was only proposed a day later and, therefore, I have to reject it.
“My advice is that MPs should be careful with their words next time,” he said amidst cheers and the thumping of tables by the backbenchers.
At the Parliament lobby later, Fong said she was disappointed that the motion was rejected as the remarks referred to all women.
Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said it was a day of shame for Parliament that such a disgraceful episode had been allowed to take place.
The general consensus among MPs was that it was all right to say “women leak every month.”
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz said Fong should have taken the matter in her stride.
“It is normal to play with words,” he said, adding that it would be wrong if the statement had been made with malicious intent.
Mohd Said said the statement was made in the heat of the argument.
“I don’t see what the fuss is about,” he said.
Fadillah Yusof (BN – Petra Jaya) said the backbenchers were provoked at that time.
“However, everyone should be careful when making statements,” he said.
Meanwhile, Public Works Department staff showed up early yesterday to survey the damage to the leaky ceiling near the media centre.

tunku : i think people like bung mokhtar,said yusuf od jasin should enter the Raja Lawak Astro programme.they have the quality of comedians not politician.

Perlis Mufti: Muslims can use cutlery in non-Muslim homes

PETALING JAYA: There is no need for Muslims to be overly concerned with the cutlery used at the homes of their non-Muslim friends, says Perlis Mufti Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin.
He said that as long as the food served was halal, there should be no worries about consuming it, adding that some Muslims were known to have reservations using cups, plates and other utensils in non-Muslim homes.
Dr Asri said these Muslims feared these everyday utensils could be “tainted” with non-halal substances but he said such concerns were unfounded.
“It is not necessary or obligatory for Muslims to be unreasonably cautious of these ‘unseen possibilities’.
“What’s the use of paying a visit to the homes of our non-Muslims friends if we feel we can’t eat or drink there?” he said, in response to a question posed by a reader in the mufti’s weekly column on mStar Online, the Malay news portal of The Star.
Dr Asri expressed his disappointment with the prevalence of the misconception, which he described as “rubbish”.
“I am disappointed with such interpretations of Islam. The religion urges us to think; it heightens our intelligence. But these opinions only make a person less than intelligent .”
He also said Islam viewed acts that promoted good-neighbourliness and the strengthening of social bonds with non-Muslims as a positive thing.
“For Muslims, there is religious merit in doing good to both other Muslims and non-Muslims.
“This is a humanitarian issue and concerns the values of a civilised religion,” he said.
Dr Asri’s column, which kicked off last week, has generated considerable feedback in the form of comments and questions from Malaysians in the country and abroad.
Non-Muslim readers have written in to express their thanks for his comments last week, in which he said that Muslims should not be offended if non-Muslims used the salam to greet them.
Several readers said they had been reprimanded by some Muslims for doing so.

tunku : i think dr asri is right, we can use the cutleries if it is washed properly.those days there were no soaps and whatsoever, thus we need to "samak", nowadays we have soaps that can clean it.as long as we are not eating haram food it's ok to eat at non muslim's house.Islam is a very beautiful religion but some make it look like very extreme but it's not.

Q&A: Najib 'scared' he wouldn't be picked as DPM

The former premier also answered charges that his sons had bigger government contracts than Pak Lah’s son, Kamaluddin in this first of a three-part interview.

We’ll kick this off with your recent comments on Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. You said that you expected him to be a one-term prime minister. Why did you say that?

Well, I thought that the better candidate was Datuk Najib (Abdul Razak, present deputy premier), because he had the highest vote (in the 2000 Umno party elections) and he has the ability. But I also thought that he was, maybe, a little bit young so he should give an older person a chance. That was why I decided on Abdullah.

You have made insinuations that Abdullah may not be qualified, that he may be a little incompetent, that he seems to sleep during meetings. Were you aware of his capabilities then?

If it is a comparison between him and Najib, I would say that he was less qualified. But I did not know about this desire (of Abdullah) to bring in his family in total disregard for the example that I tried to set - that the family has no role in the government.
(I also did not know he had) this idea that in order to prove yourself you have to disprove or demonise other people. I didn’t expect that. I expected that the things we have agreed upon would be carried out. There may be changes in approaches, or even in policies, but the general policies of the party has to be carried out. What he has done is to go completely in the opposite direction. That was not something I expected.

When you say ‘things that we agreed upon’, was there an agreement in terms of (Abdullah) being a one-term prime minister? Or carrying on for a second term? Or was there a gentleman’s agreement that...

No, I didn’t say anything about being a one-term prime minister. But I did expect him to pick on Najib as his deputy. Of course, he took a long time to make that decision, and at one time, I thought that he was not going to. But there was no specific agreement or understanding as such. I had assumed that it would be so.

The so-called peace talks with Abdullah was about six months ago. You did set out a list of things that you had wanted him to do. How do you evaluate what had happened since?

Nothing that I had stressed was implemented or accepted. Instead, he practically went in the opposite direction.

One of your criticisms was that the government was not spending enough money. That was the first two or three years of Abdullah’s administration. But you can see that in the Ninth Malaysia Plan, they are spending money.

Well, we don’t see the money being spent. When you stop something, to restart is very difficult. When we have this first, second, third, fourth (Malaysia Plans), they all merged into each other. The Eighth Plan would go into the Ninth Plan, because it takes time for the Ninth Plan to take off.
For example, if you want to develop a certain area, there will be a question of state government, there will be a question of acquisition of land, there will be a lot of protests, and all that. All those things take years, maybe three or four years. When you allocate money, it’s not going to be spent until three or four years down the line.
We don’t see the money being spent. What do you see? Even in the Iskandar Development Region (IDR in Johor), do you see anything happening? Do you see anything happening about building the (Johor-Singapore half-) bridge? Do you see anything happening about the (Penang) monorail?
We don’t see it. They’re all approved. They’re all supposed to be done, including the (Ipoh-Padang Besar) double-tracking (project). Because you stopped it. Had you continued, you would be spending the money that you say you have now

Going back to the peace plan, Abdullah said that your sons had bigger contracts than Scomi (an oil-and-gas company controlled by Abdullah’s son Kamaluddin). He was alluding as well that under your leadership these sorts of things were happening and that your family also received government projects.

No. Certainly not during my time, I never gave my children any special boosts or anything like that, but they did business on their own, largely, not with the government agencies. I think he was making reference to Mokhzani’s business.
(Mokhzani owns oil-and-gas engineering firm Kencana Petroleum. Half of Kencana’s RM437 million earnings in 2006 came from Petronas and Petronas-linked firms. Mahathir is currently advisor to Petronas.)
I can swear to you that I have never said one word in his favour. And if he requires that I go into a mosque and hold the Quran and swear that I never advised Petronas to give anything to Mokhzani, I’m prepared to do so.

Could it be that Petronas had acted on its own because he is your son and you were then the prime minister?

No, I don’t think so, I don’t think so. I think Petronas (acts) against (my advice) - if Petronas thought that it was in my favour, the likelihood is that Petronas would act against it. I find that although I am advisor to Petronas, I have never been able to influence Petronas in any way. In fact, I know very little about Petronas.

What about when you were the prime minister at the time of the Asian financial crisis and were accused of effecting the Malaysian International Shipping Corp’s 1997 bailout of Mirzan’s Konsortium Perkapalan Bhd (PKB)? (MISC financed the arrangements by issuing shares to Petronas).

Mirzan has explained very extensively over this. He went to see (Petronas chief executive officer) Hassan Merican, hoping that he could have some working relations with MISC. It was Hassan Merican who proposed to buy up his company. In a way, it would solve his (Mirzan’s) financial problems and he agreed. They had two people to evaluate and Petronas paid below the lowest evaluation.
He (Mirzan) sold it but he is still saddled with a lot of debts which he couldn’t settle. Petronas made a good deal because they bought at the lowest price possible at a time when the seller was in trouble. Then they made money operating it, and they sold it for more than twice the price. So Petronas had a good deal.

Wouldn’t you agree that this didn’t look good - the fact that you were the prime minister and your son benefitted from the state-owned petroleum company?

There was nobody (else to buy) and he wanted to sell to foreigners - I think that was not a good idea. Genting Group wanted to buy only the tankers (of KPB), and that would not solve his (Mirzan’s) problem. During that time, there was nobody who could buy. The only solution was Petronas, because Petronas had the money.

At no time you were consulted over this?

I was not involved in any way. That was his (Mirzan) negotiations with (Petronas). Of course, Anwar (Ibrahim, former deputy premier) says (in 1999) I took RM2 billion of government (money). There was no government money involved.

How about the talk that your son Mukhriz’s company, Opcom, received (during your premiership) a RM200 million contract from Telekom Malaysia to supply fibre optics materials?

Who would buy fibre optics except Telecom? Where (else) are you going to sell? He produced these things, and the price was good. Of course, immediately after I stepped down, the contract was cancelled and it was given to somebody else who was not even a bumiputera.
It looks like the other way is true, that if you are not related to the prime minister, you don’t get it. You must be related to the prime minister.

So you expect that Pak Lah would continue a few more terms?

Well, people are voting and every election they are winning. In Ijok (state by-election), of course, they will win. If they lose it, it is because of (Selangor Menteri Besar Dr Mohd) Khir Toyo, if they win, it is because of the prime minister.

Assuming you had appointed Najib as prime minister and he stood for elections in 2004. Would the result be the same?

I think it would be the same. There was a kind of euphoria at that time when I stepped down, people were very sentimental and thought greatly of what has been done to the country, and I think that also had some influence, not just as (former information minister) Khalil Yaacob said, 99 percent (of the victory) was due to the prime minister. I think that if I left this country in shambles, you put the prime minister there, he’s not going to win.

Do you still think that Najib is the better candidate? Or have you changed your mind on that?

I think if Najib is not so afraid of losing his position if he displeases the prime minister, he would make a good prime minister.
At the moment, he is being attacked from all sides.
Everybody now is trying to secure his own position.

Given the fact that Najib is embroiled in the Altantuya (murder) case as well as the defense contracts involving the submarines and fighter jets...

It’s up him to defend himself. He says he can defend himself so...

Apart from Najib, is there anybody else?

It could have been Muhyiddin (Yassin, agriculture minister), it could have been anybody. The main thing is, you must dedicate yourself to developing the country, not to developing yourself, not to make money for yourself or your family, or things like that. Of course, you can’t prevent entirely your family from doing things for themselves. But it becomes too obvious when all members of your family has got a share in this or that. I think that is not good.

I suppose that advice goes to Najib as well.

Yes, it does. It goes to everyone, not just Najib.

What about the talk that Najib has been trying to meet you?

Najib can meet me any time, but there has been no requests whatsoever. In London, I did not meet him. He did ring me up just to say ‘how do you do?’

Have you met Najib since you stepped down?

In the mosque, yes. I met him before he was appointed (deputy prime minister). He used to come and see me.

Was he worried about that before he was appointed?

He believed that if I don’t push too hard, he would get it because he thought I might annoy Pak Lah (Abdullah).

There was talk at the time that Pak Lah had wanted Muhyiddin instead.

Yes. I think he (Najib) was scared of that.

Did you pressure Pak Lah to appoint Najib?

When I was prime minister, yes, I wrote to him. He said that he could not decide until he becomes the prime minister. Even after he became prime minister, I think he was aware that I was pushing for Najib.

What about after you stepped down?

After I stepped down, not much (pressure). I didn’t do anything.

Why do you think Najib would be a better prime minister? You think he would carry out the government policies that you have set in place?

I have watched the performance of my ministers. I know which one can do what, which one cannot do. I can decide which one is better than which one.

Is it because you owe something to Najib’s father (Tun Abdul Razak Hussain, the second prime minister who brought Mahathir back from the wilderness and suggested that he be appointed deputy premier when Hussein Onn took over)?

Oh, yes. That also. I think it would be normal to be grateful. Tun Razak has done me a good turn. Provided, of course, that Najib has the qualities. If he doesn’t have the qualities, I’m not going to select him either. But he has the right qualities. In addition to that, I became prime minister at least indirectly due to Tun Razak.

Najib has a bit different worldview than yours. He’s not as critical of the Western world as you are. Maybe his government policies would also be a bit different.

I think our worldviews will be slightly different, but by and large, they are more or less the same. I wouldn’t say, for example, that Najib would drop the (half-)bridge. He was talking about building the bridge to the very last moment.

What do you think about the allegations of the defence kickbacks in the purchase of the French submarines and Russian fighter jets? Were you aware of this when there was a buying spree towards the tail-end of your tenure? Were there talks then that outside parties were being brought in to act as go-betweens, and funds were being channeled out?

I don’t know. The problem is, we bought some things from Russia, and the Russians have appointed local agents so we have to work through local agents. There were several who claimed to be local agents. That, I wouldn’t be bothered about. That is for the Ministry (of Defence) to decide.
But the thing is, we go through a local agent, and of course, we should have gone direct and not go through local agents, but then, you will have your officers doing it, and when you have your officers doing it, then there will be the accusations that your officers are also corrupt.

Could we say this is a common procedure then - it goes on everywhere? Are we agreeing that there could be kickbacks, given all the way up to the minister himself?

It could happen, but it is a case of watching the minister.

As a prime minister, you should have done that, right?

I did. During my time, I did not hear these kinds of things.

Maybe people were afraid to bring it up during your time.

Well, that is the people’s fault if they don’t bring it out. There was no Malaysiakini.com at that time to bring up nasty things, and you know what I think about malaysiakini.

What do you think about malaysiakini?

It’s a useful medium. I never entertain hatred for people forever. There are people who tried to pull me down, I have appointed them into the cabinet and they have become prime ministers. These are the people who tried to stab me in the back. You see, I don’t harbour these things forever - (that) when I quarrel with a person, I will never talk again.
I can make up with Tengku Razaleigh (Hamzah, former finance minister) who had tried to pull me down. I have appointed Musa (Hitam, former deputy premier) to various posts. Of course, Rais Yatim (culture and heritage minister), Abdullah Badawi, all of them were re-admitted into the cabinet and who were promoted.
So malaysiakini is good when it is good. When it is bad - I will tell you when you’re bad. I don’t mince my words.

tunku : i really love this man, can't help it, day by day he's earning more respects/gratitudes/loves.Long live Tun Mahathir.

Q&A: Rafidah should be 'removed'

In this second of a three-part series, Mahathir also expressed shock that he was ‘cut off dead’ by his friends. ‘We were together for 20 years. Why am I cut off like that?’

Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s Khalid Ibrahim is running in Ijok. What do you think of him? (The interview took place before the by-election)

He was heading (state-owned investment agency) PNB (Permodalan Nasional Bhd) before and he left because he thought he could do good business with Guthrie Group and all that. There were times when he couldn’t settle his debts. I gave him time - against the wishes of PNB, I gave him time. After that I stepped down. What happened after I stepped down, I don’t know.

Both Anwar and Khalid are talking about changing the pro-bumiputera New Economic Policy. In some sectors in Johor, the bumiputera quotas were recently withdrawn. What do you think of this?

If you want to do away with the NEP, it must be done gradually - on a case-by-case basis. I had myself decided that the (public university) quotas for bumiputeras should be done away with and we go on the basis of merit because I thought the time had come and the bumiputeras were not using it. So we might as well withdraw it. But there are other things which I think you still need some special considerations. Wholesale withdrawal of the NEP, I think, is not a good idea at all.

Do you agree with the argument that if we continue with the NEP it would be detrimental to the bumiputeras - that it would be better for the bumiputeras to scrap it?

If you look all around you, all the bumiputeras that you see - whether professionals or in business, anywhere they are working - they are all there because of the NEP. We gave them more opportunities to get education, to get training, to get opportunities. Yet, there are some of them who sell APs (approved permits to import cars) and things like that.
But there are others who made it. You look at the papers today. There are a lot of bumiputera names (in the news). Where do they come from? They were not the sons of millionaires. Some of them were from the kampungs. Because we gave them the opportunity, they have made good. I go everywhere and bumiputeras come up to me and say, ‘Thank you because I’m the product of the NEP.’ And they are successful. Without the NEP, I don’t think they would have made it.

Do you think we should continue the NEP as is? Or revamp it? Or slowly and gradually phase it out?

I think we should restudy it because there are certain weaknesses that have to be corrected. There are still certain areas where you have to preserve this affirmative action and certain areas where we should discard (it). If you start selling APs, take away the APs. Why are you giving away APs, and not protecting bumiputeras who are very prone to selling off their land?

There is also the argument that the bumiputeras are finding it harder to compete. The NEP somehow provides them the cushion, and some argue that it is time to throw away the crutches.

I’ve talked about it often enough but I also tell the bumiputeras that you have to prepare yourselves. When you get APs but you make no effort to learn how to trade in motorcars, then you should take away the APs. But if you are prepared to learn, we are prepared to teach you how to make use of the APs in order to develop competitiveness. That is where we should focus now. Get them to be trained because a lot of them have been trained and have been successful.
But a lot of others, not only were they not trained but they were encouraged to do the wrong things by the ministry. When the ministry gives thousands of APs to one person, knowing full well that person is selling the APs, that is aiding and abetting abuse of the NEP.


How can you stop such abuses of the NEP?

Very simple. Remove the minister (International Trade and Industry Rafidah Aziz).


How come it has not be done already?

I don’t know. That is a mystery.

On the same topic, what do you think of the cabinet today. Are they as vibrant as they were under you?

Most of them were appointed by me. Now, it is ‘safety first.’ You have to save yourself. ‘Never mind what happens to the country, never mind what happens to the Malays, never mind what happens to anybody, I must remain a minister. I must remain deputy minister. I must be the ‘ketua bahagian’ (party division chief). I must be the ‘calon’ (candidate) for the next election. What happens to others doesn’t matter. What happens to the country doesn’t matter.’
They argue, ‘If I am not elected, I will not be able to contribute.’ What are you contributing? You are not contributing anything.

Wouldn’t that be the same during your time?

No. During my time, if they don’t contribute, they don’t get it (the position). They know me, and they contribute.
If the prime minister wants you to contribute, you will contribute. But if the prime minister doesn’t care, and each one is for himself, and if each one doesn’t please me I’m going to get rid of (him), not because he is not contributing but because he doesn’t please me, then you are going to spend time trying to protect your pants.

Going back to the AP issue, this minister, Rafidah, was also embroiled in corruption allegations during your time. You could have taken action at that time.

Action was taken.

No.

Action was taken. They - the Attorney-General’s Chambers - dropped the charges on her.
If the AG dropped charges, that is the AG’s decision. But the fact is that I never stopped any investigation. She was complaining like mad that the ACA (Anti-Corruption Agency) people used to go into her office and demanded this, demanded that, and that they were rough on her. I didn’t say anything.

There were accusations that you actually sat on the investigation papers.

No. I didn’t. How can I sit on them? The investigation papers do not come to me. It’s the decision of the head of the ACA. The (former) head of the ACA (Shafie Yahya) was actually against me. After I stepped down, he went to court to run me down. They don’t like me. (Shafie had testified in the Anwar trial that Mahathir had ordered him to to close his investigation against ex-Economic Planning Unit director-general Ali Abul Hassan)

Legally, perhaps, you’re correct. But morally, don’t you think you had the responsibility to remove (Rafidah) simply because she has been stained (by such accusations)?

It’s not fair - to find that there is no case against (her) and (yet) to take action against that person. I have removed some people based on general complaints.

Why didn’t you do the same for her?

It depends on the case.

It’s not just Rafidah, I suppose, that you’re talking about. It’s various other senior ministers.

I have removed MBs (menteri besars), I have...

We still have people like (works minister and MIC president) S Samy Vellu there. We know of the complaints against him.

You ask MIC what they would do if I removed Samy Vellu. MIC is scared stiff of Samy Vellu.

So it’s political repercussion factor then? It’s got nothing to do with...

When it comes to the head of a component (Barisan Nasional) party, I don’t have that much liberty to pick who the head should be or to remove the head from being in the cabinet. You can see that all the heads of all the component parties are in the cabinet, not because I chose them, but because they were chosen by their party.

What you’re saying is that you have to appoint them (the leaders of BN component parties) to the cabinet. There’s very little choice. So what does that reflect about our political system today?

There is a saying - a country gets the government that it deserves. If you are a member of a party and you are unwilling to say that your leader is wrong, to choose a better leader, then you deserve a bad leader. Whether it is fear of the bad leader, or whatever...
Even if it is a dictator, if they (people in other countries) really want to remove their dictator, they are prepared to stick their necks out. Here, it is not even a case of sticking your neck out. You won’t even stick your little finger out. Everybody is playing safe. If I go against the chief, he’s going to hammer me. Then I won’t get contracts, I won’t be ‘ketua bahagian’ (party division chief).

Why do you think this culture has evolved?

We know that now, in particular, people have been removed, have been threatened, have received phone calls, have been told not to say this (or that). There have been instances that you have been called out, and told off, and told that if you feel that you cannot agree, you better get out.

So there is a climate of fear...

It is happening - there is a climate of fear.

Wasn’t there a climate of fear during your time also?

If there was a climate of fear, how come Tengku Razaleigh goes against me, Musa goes against me, Anwar goes against me? Anwar tried to bring me down when he was still in the cabinet. If there was a climate of fear, he would not have been accusing me of cronyism and things like that.

Some people look at Umno today and say that there was a generation of leadership, including yourself, Anwar, Musa, who were very strong leaders. They look now at Abdullah and Najib, and they look (at those) after Najib, and they see people who are playing it safe. It looks like the country will have a tough time in the next 20 years. What do we have to do to move beyond this?

It’s our choice. This is a democratic country. At least there is that much to admit. If people want to vote, they can vote for the best candidate. But if they vote (thinking that) ‘This is my party, I don’t care who they put there, even if it’s a piece of log, I’m going to vote for the party because this is my party, and the other candidate is from another party’, then of course, you are supporting things which you shouldn’t be supporting.

You think there will come a stage where things are so bad in Umno or BN that it’s okay for people to vote for opposition parties PAS or PKR or DAP, just to create a little bit more openness in the system?

If they do that, they will have to accept that they deserve PAS, they deserve DAP. But maybe before they reach that stage, we (Umno) can take corrective action within the party.

So you’re saying there’s still room for corrective action and reforms within Umno.

That is why there is no election of leaders until after the election. I was leader of this party many times after the elections, and at that time you are very powerful, because you will be appointed the prime minister. You are going to determine who is going to be your deputy, who is going to be the ministers, who are going to be the chief ministers. At that time, you can do what you like. You can so structure it at party elections.
So if there’s going to be change at all, it (election of party leaders) has to be done before the general elections. It should be done before the general election.

So you still believe Umno members are open to such ideas? Removing the president?

They have tried to remove me before. I got only 42 votes majority - you remember that. You keep saying that I was like that (being authoritarian). But was I like that before? When they were campaigning against me, did I stop them from going around? Now I am stopped. I cannot go anywhere. People who invited me get phone calls telling them to destroy the invitations. Today, Umno members are scared stiff.
You know that I was head of my division (Umno’s Kubang Pasu division in Kedah) for umpteen years. Yet, for RM200 I was dumped. And the people who complained, up til now, was there any hearing about this corruption, which includes, of course, the leader itself?

This cannot have happened because of one, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. The cabinet comprises most of the people you appointed.

During my time, they wouldn’t do this thing because I wouldn’t allow them. But when you allow them, it is the top man who makes the decision.

You had a hand in creating that structure where the top man has the power to make all the decisions.

If I created that structure, there wouldn’t have been any contest against me. I keep on repeating this - during my time, there were people in my cabinet who were dead against me. They’re still there. They wouldn’t be there if I was vindictive.
You went against me, so now I’ll throw you out. But they came back. They were appointed ministers. I thought that they were contributing to the party. Whether they contributed to me is irrelevant. If you contribute to the work of the party and the government, you’re eligible. I cannot have my own personal feelings going in between this good decision.

Are you disappointed by the fact that the people you have appointed in cabinet have betrayed you and are now not supporting you?

Well, of course, I have to be disappointed. When I stepped down, I thought I was going to have a good time being at social meetings with these people. Maybe they might even ask me my opinion. But the moment I stepped down, I was cut off dead. They don’t see me at all. From the first day, I was shocked. I thought these were my friends. We were together for 20 years. Why am I cut off like that?
Then I realised that I was not allowed to speak. I spoke at some places but after that, I tested them to see what would happen if I tried to become a representative from my division. You see what they did? Have you ever seen this being done ever before in my time? That I didn’t want so and so, that I paid money to block certain people - I didn’t do that. A lot of people who came to the Umno general meeting, some of them hated me like anything, and they were still there.

Crooked bridge: Ex bow tie minister stokes fiery issue

A former minister today raised the contentious bridge issue between Malaysia and Singapore which led to former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad locking horns with his successor.
Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir said the Malaysian government should push for a straight bridge instead of a crooked one.
The former information minister told this reporters at the Parliament lobby. At the outset of the press conference, he said the time has come for him to talk. “I have been keeping quiet for a long time.”
According to him, the proposal to construct a crooked bridge did not make sense.
He said the government had negotiated for a crooked bridged because it thought Singapore would not agree to a straight one.
Last year, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had decided to scrap the crooked bridge project, which was mooted by Mahathir.
This led Mahathir to lambast his handpicked successor and accuse him of pandering to the wishes of Singapore.
Appoint respectable person
Meanwhile, Abdul Kadir said: “If they (Malaysia) can convince the Singapore government for a straight bridge, there will be no need for a crooked bridge.”
The Kulim parliamentarian also made several suggestions which he felt would be useful for the negotiations between Malaysia and Singapore.
Among this, was to appoint a person respected in Malaysia and Singapore to head the negotiation team.
Abdul Kadir, who was also the former culture, arts and tourism minister, said the candidate must be respected in Johor as well, which borders the republic.
“He must be respected by the people of Johor because most of the issues being discussed are related to the state,” he added.
Abdul Kadir told reporters that he had someone in mind but preferred to let the government make the decision.
He also felt that the negotiation would be more effective if it was spearheaded by the Prime Minister’s Department as opposed to the Foreign Ministry.
“The Foreign Ministry takes such a long time to resolve the issues involved, they have no sense of urgency and they have no power to amend certain things along the negotiation,” he said.
On the other hand, he said, the prime minister could react to such issues more swiftly and effectively.
“The prime minister has the power to move things quickly, he can easily resolve an issue by just making a phone call,” he added.
All outstanding issues
He also said the negotiation must cover all outstanding issues, namely the construction of a bridge, water supply to Singapore, Central Provident Fund (CPF), the using of Malaysian air space and also KTM land in Singapore.
“Negotiations with Singapore were first initiated to resolve all issues. From my point of view, finding solutions for all issues in a package is simpler than resolving one issue at a time.
“We can expect more tolerance from both parties. For instance, if we give Singapore concession for the bridge, we might get concession for water from them instead,” he said.
“Otherwise, when one issue is resolved, we will face problems with the others,” he added.
Abdul Kadir also urged the Malaysian government to work with Singapore on economic integration.
“Malaysia’s economy is going through a boom time. The foundations are being strengthened so that the boom time will last longer. Singapore too is being prepared for a long time boom,” he said, adding that it will not make sense if both countries do not take advantage of the favourable situation.
“From the statements made by Singapore leaders lately, there seems to be more readiness to understand, to accept and accommodate the sensitivities of neighbouring countries,” he noted.

tunku : what a come back kadir.so you think that singapore seems to be accepting and accommodating the sensitiveness of neighbouring countries, you must be sleeping all this while kadir.who are you suggesting to be the middle man,musang hitam oops musa hitam? common kadir, i thought you had a brain but you don't. you have always been a person who talks more than work.the team B (1987/8)man has spoken.

Tun Dr Mahathir : Najib more qualified than Pak Lah

Between Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Najib Abdul Razak, former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Najib can do a better job as prime minister.
However, Tun Mahathir opted to pick Abdullah for the job because of his seniority over Najib.
“If it is a comparison between him and Najib, I would say that he (Abdullah) was less qualified,” said Mahathir.
He underscored the fact that Najib, now Prime Minister Abdullah’s deputy, had won the highest number of votes in the 2000 Umno party elections for the three vice-president posts.
“But I also thought that he (Najib) was, maybe, a little bit young so he should give an older person a chance. That was why I decided on Abdullah,” he said in a recent interview with malaysiakini at his Perdana Leadership Foundation office in Putrajaya.
Reiterating that he had expected Abdullah, 67, to make way for Najib, 53, after serving one-term as premier, Tun Mahathir also disclosed that he had written to his handpicked successor before stepping down three years ago to ensure Najib was picked as the new deputy.
“Of course, he took a long time to make that decision, and at one time, I thought that he was not going to,” he said.
While this was partly due to his debt of gratitude to Najib’s father - second premier Tun Abdul Razak Hussain - Tun Mahathir, 81, also said he believed Najib would have stayed the course on the policies he had laid out during his two decades in power.
“I wouldn’t say, for example, that Najib would drop the bridge. He was talking about building the bridge to the very last moment,” he said of the abandoned half-bridge to Singapore, a project conceived during his own tenure.
"Abdullah, on the other hand, has gone “completely in the opposite direction”, he added bitterly.
According to Tun Mahathir, Najib’s only fault is his insecurity over his position.
“I think if Najib is not so afraid of losing his position if he displeases the prime minister, he would make a good prime minister.”
Tun Mahathir’s scathing remarks are the latest in a year-long running battle with Abdullah over allegations of corruption and his running of the country.
From the sluggish state of the economy to charges that Abdullah’s family members were cashing in on his position, Tun Mahathir exploited every opportunity to take jabs at Abdullah.
Willing to swear on the Quran
He denied, however, that the charges of corruption and nepotism that he has leveled against Abdullah was a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
“Certainly not during my time, I never gave my children any special boosts or anything like that, but they did business on their own, largely, not with the government agencies,” he said.
Tun Mahathir, who is advisor to Petronas, said he was willing to publicly swear that he had never uttered even “one word” in favour of his son Mokhazni in his business dealings with the state oil company.
“And if he (Abdullah) requires that I go into a mosque and hold the Quran and swear that I never advised Petronas to give anything to Mokhzani, I’m prepared to do so,” he said.
Mokhzani owns oil-and-gas engineering firm Kencana Petroleum Bhd (KPB). Half of Kencana’s RM437 million earnings in 2006 is reported to have come from business with Petronas and Petronas-linked firms.
“I find that although I am advisor to Petronas, I have never been able to influence Petronas in any way. In fact, I know very little about Petronas,” he said.
In the one-hour interview - his third with malaysiakini - Tun Mahathir answered some of the key allegations made against him during his 22 years at the country’s helm.
Unlike the previous two interviews, this is the first time that Mahathir accepted to meet with malaysiakini without any pre-conditions.
Malaysiakini is publishing the three-part interview in full beginning today. The other two parts will follow on Thursday and Friday.

New CIQ complex to open in October

JOHOR BARU: The new Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complex in Bukit Chagar will open its doors to the public in October after 18 government agencies move in.
Works Minister Datuk Seri Samy Vellu said the complex would be handed over to the Government in July.
“The agencies will then have another four months to move into the complex from the old CIQ at the Causeway.
“This will be about the same time when a temporary access from the CIQ to the Causeway is completed,” he said after a visit to the CIQ project here Thursday.
Samy Vellu said the RM1.26bil project was completed on time but additional funds were used for the building of an eight-lane permanent link between the CIQ and the causeway.
The link is expected to take 18 months to complete.
“The only delay involved the bridge project which has since been cancelled and the Government has paid the compensation to the company concern,” he said.

tunku : how nice it will be if this new CIQ open together with a new bridge. HP6 cabinet minister,please wake up and build the bridge asap.

Dr M: I couldn't sack Samy Vellu

MIC president S Samy Vellu - or any other scandal-tainted leader of Barisan Nasional’s component parties - could not be removed without the ruling coalition suffering a serious internal backlash, said former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
“You ask MIC what they would do if I removed Samy Vellu,” said Mahathir when queried why he did not sack his long-time works minister, who was beset by numerous allegations of corruption and abuse of power.
“MIC is scared stiff of Samy Vellu,” added Mahathir, who as leader of the dominant Umno party led the BN coalition in his 22-year tenure as prime minister.
“When it comes to the head of a component party, I don’t have that much liberty to pick who the head should be or to remove the head from being in the cabinet,” he told malaysiakini in an exclusive interview.
“You can see that all the heads of all the component parties are in the cabinet, not because I chose them, but because they were chosen by their party.”
Mahathir’s admission came after he was repeatedly pressed by malaysiakini editors on his seriousness to battle corruption during the one-hour interview at his Perdana Leadership Foundation office in Putrajaya.
The former premier also claimed that he had done everything in his powers to act against another top leader, International Trade and Industry Minister Rafidah Aziz, who was also embroiled in corruption allegations during his time.
“Action was taken. They - the Attorney-General’s Chambers - dropped the charges on her. If the AG dropped charges, that is the AG’s decision,” Mahathir insisted. “But the fact is that I never stopped any investigation.”
Mahathir displayed dexterity in deflecting criticisms against his own administration by re-directing them against his handpicked successor, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
When asked why Abdullah had not sacked Rafidah, he said: “It’s a mystery.”
Mahathir claimed that under Rafidah’s ministry, “thousands” of approval permits to import cars had been issued to persons whom he alleged to have sold off the permits for a quick buck.
“Remove the minister,” he said when asked how such abuses of policies meant to develop bumiputera entrepreneurs can be stopped.
Let varsities be based on merit
Mahathir’s scathing remarks are the latest in a year-long battle with Abdullah over the policies of the new government, and allegations of corruption and nepotism.
He lamented the “climate of fear” pervading current politics and the lackluster calibre of government figures as compared to “his time”.
“During my time, if they don’t contribute, they don’t get it (government post),” said Mahathir.
On the question of the affirmative-action New Economic Policy (NEP), Mahathir said it should be done away with gradually, but only “on a case-by-case basis”, such as places reserved for bumiputeras in public universities.
“I had myself decided that the (university) quotas for bumiputeras should be done away with and we go on the basis of merit because I thought the time had come and the bumiputeras were not using it,” said Mahathir.
“But there are other things which I think you still need some special considerations. Wholesale withdrawal of the NEP, I think, is not a good idea at all,” he added.

Malaysia's Mahathir: Successor doesn't deserve to lead based on qualifications

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad ended an unspoken truce and launched a new attack on his successor, saying he is not the most qualified person to lead the country.
Mahathir, whose enmity with Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi surfaced last year, said in an interview published Wednesday that Abdullah's deputy, Najib Razak, was "the better candidate."
Mahathir told independent news Web site Malaysiakini.com that before he retired in 2003 after 22 years in power, he had considered handing the office to Najib instead of Abdullah.
"If it is a comparison between (Abdullah) and Najib, I would say that (Abdullah) was less qualified," he said. "But I also thought that he (Najib) was, maybe, a little bit young, so he should give an older person a chance. That was why I decided on Abdullah."
Asked whether he believed Najib, 53, is still the best person to lead Malaysia, Mahathir said, "I think if Najib is not so afraid of losing his (current) position if he displeases the prime minister, he would make a good prime minister."
Mahathir's comments appeared to be aimed at driving a wedge between the 67-year-old Abdullah and Najib, both of whom have repeatedly voiced confidence in each other and denied speculation of any friction. Malaysia's Cabinet and ruling party leaders have also said they support Abdullah completely.
Mahathir's main aide did not immediately answer calls on his mobile phone. Abdullah's aides could not be reached for comment.
Mahathir began attacking Abdullah for alleged nepotism and weak governance in mid-2006, but the 71-year-old elder statesman has largely steered clear of open criticism following a mild heart attack in November.
Mahathir has not presented proof to back up his allegations, and Abdullah has refrained from retaliating against Mahathir while vehemently denying the accusations.
In his interview with Malaysiakini, Mahathir said he believed Najib, who has also served in recent years as defense minister, would not have aborted Mahathir's vision of building a new bridge to neighboring Singapore.
"I think our world views will be slightly different, but by and large, they are more or less the same," Mahathir said. "I wouldn't say, for example, that Najib would drop the bridge. He was talking about building the bridge to the very last moment."
Najib was on a visit to the United States, and his aides could not be reached for comment.
Abdullah announced the scrapping of the bridge project last year, saying Malaysians were unhappy with Singapore's preconditions for the plan. Mahathir has accused Abdullah of compromising national interests and being too afraid to negotiate properly with Singapore.

Syed Hamid still keen on bridge project

THE bridge project to replace the Causeway was scrapped more than a year ago but it is by no means forgotten.
There are senior Malaysian leaders who still want to see it built, and Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar is one of them.
He told The Straits Times yesterday that, as a Johorean, he would like to see the bridge built.
'I think the Causeway is out of date, not in tune with times. We need the bridge. It is not as a gesture of goodwill (from Singapore), but it is good for both countries,' he said.
Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi announced last year that the project had been scrapped as Malaysia could not accept Singapore's requests for sand and the use of airspace in exchange for cooperation on the project.
The bridge - one of the outstanding bilateral issues between Singapore and Malaysia - is not on the agenda for next week's meeting between the two countries' prime ministers.
Nevertheless, there is speculation that it could be revived in the not-too-distant future.
This was sparked by comments from MP for Johor Baru Shahrir Samad several weeks ago.
He said he would not be surprised if Singapore initiated the revival of the project because of its benefits. These were his personal views.
The speculation was bolstered by a private- sector proposal for a high-speed train between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
'Definitely if you want to have a fast train, you need a bridge unless it goes underground. It is a private-sector initiative, I do not know (the details),' Datuk Seri Syed Hamid said.
'Whatever it is, we want the bridge.'

tunku : it took you so long to come up with this statement syed hamid. it's not you who still keen on the bridge project but majority of the malaysian are keen on it and can't waith when it will be build.well you can still build the bridge right now without singapore's consent as per the plan it's only on our side.don't just make statement, build it asap.

Cuti Cuti Malaysia

KUCHING, May 9 (Bernama) -- In a move to turn Santubong in the outskirts of this city into a premier tourist attraction, a RM50 million cable car project will be undertaken to ferry visitors in comfort on a scenic ride amid lush greenery up the legendary Mount Santubong there.
State Urban Development and Tourism Minister, Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh said the project, which would start in August and scheduled to be completed in two years, would be another significant new attraction for the Damai and Santubong areas and Sarawak as a whole.
"The primary appeal is its ability to offer tourists a spectacular view of the surrounding area including the forested slopes of the mountain. It is this rainforest setting that is the main selling point of the cable car system.
"I hope the establishment of the cable car system will become another milestone in the development of the area not only as a new tourism product for Sarawak but also to provide job opportunities for the people living in Santubong, Buntal and Bako," he told reporters, here Wednesday.
Later, Wong represented the state government in signing the concession agreement for the project with Santubong Cable Car Sdn Bhd (SCC), which was represented by its Executive Chairman, Abang Nawawi Abang Drahman.
Wong said the state government had granted the Sarawak-based Bumiputera company exclusive rights to design, build, complete, commission, operate and manage the cable car system for a period of 60 years.
Meanwhile, Abang Nawawi said the detachable mono-cable system would have 8-seater gondolas that could climb to a height of 769 metres and that its inclined length would be 2,535 metres.
He said the gondolas could travel up to a maximum speed of five metres per second from the base station, located at the foothill of the 810-metre mountain near the Sarawak Cultural Village.

tunku : i wonder who got this direct nego project??

Rela does the job well

Malaysian immigration officials today defended a volunteer corps used to round up illegal migrants after a US rights group labelled it "abusive" and called for it to be immediately disbanded.
The US-based Human Rights Watch alleged Rela, a 500,000-strong volunteer citizen task force that assists officials, was using violence and extortion against foreigners and is responsible for numerous cases of illegal detentions.
But the immigration department's enforcement chief, Ishak Mohamed, downplayed the alleged abuses and defended the corps, saying Rela "played a huge and important role" in ridding Malaysia of illegals.
"Illegal migrants are Malaysia's public enemy... and Rela has helped us tremendously in our efforts to reduce the influx of illegal migrants here," Ishak told AFP.
"Whatever techniques they employ are the same as our immigration officers. All I can say is Rela does the job well and is a great help to us," he said.
In a statement released on its website, Human Rights Watch said Rela volunteers, whose primary task is to detain undocumented migrant workers, were using "unnecessary force and illegal policing practices."
It accused Rela of breaking into migrants' lodgings in the middle of the night without warrants, brutalising inhabitants, extorting money, and confiscating valuables before detaining them as "illegal immigrants."
Rela members are now subjected to body checks before and after raids to ensure they do not steal or plant evidence.
Volunteers are also not allowed to carry cell phones or weapons.
Rela was set up in 1972 under the Home Affairs Ministry to help maintain public order. - AFP

Disband RELA?

Group Tells Malaysia to Disband Corps

A human rights group has urged the Malaysian government to disband a feared volunteer security force, saying its members are responsible for violence and numerous cases of illegal detentions, mainly against migrant workers.
The Ikatan Relawan Rakyat, known by its Malay acronym RELA, has almost half a million uniformed and armed volunteers working for it. It was set up in 1972 to maintain public order, but in recent years has primarily been used to round up illegal migrant workers in the country.
"Fully uniformed, armed, and unaccompanied by police or immigration officers, they break into migrant lodgings in the middle of the night without warrants," New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement Wednesday.
By law, RELA volunteers are allowed to make arrests, use firearms, and enter and search any premises without a warrant. They also have effective legal immunity from prosecution.
Human Rights Watch said RELA members "brutalize inhabitants, extort money, and confiscate cell phones, clothing, jewelry, and household goods, before handcuffing migrants and transporting them to detention camps for 'illegal immigrants.'"
"The government has set up what's little more than a vigilante force to target foreigners," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Given RELA's repeated abuses, it should be disbanded right away."
The government did not immediately respond to the accusations, and RELA officials were not available for comment before office hours Wednesday.
Following a public outcry over reported abuses by RELA, authorities demanded last month that a RELA team leader search members to make sure they do not steal or plant evidence. They are also not allowed to carry cell phones anymore.

tunku : this is a problem when few people's job tarnished the whole group image.RELA is a supporting group to our law enforcement team, their duty is very much needed but these few lots making the entire RELA in a mess.I guess the government should screen thoroughly the person who is joining RELA.They should do something drastic in order to gain back public confidence in them.

EPF Contribution Reduction To Encourage Hiring Of Workers Above 55 Years

KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 (Bernama) -- The proposed halving of Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions for workers aged 55 years and above and is to encourage employers hire more people in the above 55 age group.
Finance Ministry Parliamentary Secretary Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said, however, employers would be given the option of contributing a minimum of six per cent (of the workers monthly salary ) or make the maximum contribution (12 per cent) and be eligible for tax exemptions.
"Presently, after 55 years workers are not required to contribute to the EPF but once the EPF (Amendment) Bill 2007 is approved, we will make it compulsory for the contribution rate for this age group (employees above 55 years) to be 5.5 per cent (employee) and six per cent (employer) respectively," he said when winding up debate on the Bill in the Dewan Rakyat, Wednesday.
"This is a win-win situation for both parties," said Hilmi.
Earlier, M. Kulasegaran (DAP-Ipoh Barat) had asked for an explanation on the rationale for the reduction in the contribution rate for workers in this age group from the EPF's normal rate of 12 per cent (employer) and 11 per cent (employee).
Kulasegaran had said that it was a regressive step as such workers would need more savings for their retirement.
Explaining further, Hilmi said that usually at age 55, a worker would have reached his maximum salary range, which meant that the contribution on the employer's part would be rather high.
Because of this, he said, employers preferred to hire younger workers as the EPF contribution would not be so high.
"We do not want to unnecessarily burden employers but at the same time also want them to hire people who have exceeded the age of 55," he said.
On suggestions for the EPF to introduce group health inusrance schemes and have provisions for death benefits, Hilmi said that so far there were no such plans.
"It will be difficult for the EPF to buy such insurance schemes for contributors as the contribution rates vary. If EPF were to use money from its pool or profits for this, it will cause dividend payments to contributors to be diluted. The same would apply in the case of death benefits," he said. For now, the EPF allocated RM2,500 to the next-of-kin in cases of deaths of contributors, which can be claimed within a period of six months, he said.
On unclaimed contributions, Hilmi said that as of last December, RM119 million had not be taken out by 46,235 eligible contributors.
When met by reporters later, he said that of the 11 million EPF contributors, around 200 had savings of more than RM1 million each.
Once the amendment is approved by Parliament, contributors will be allowed to make withdrawals for investments without having to repay the EPF the amount taken even if they are below 55 years.
"Under the existing law, those making withdrawals for investment but have not reached the age of 55 must pay the amount taken back to the EPF. With the amendment, this will no longer apply," said Hilmi.
In his windup, Hilmi had also said that EPF's biggest investments were in the bonds and loans sector, with bonds in excess of RM5 billion, followed by securities at RM4.9 billion and equities (RM2.3 billion).
"Overall, 80 per cent of the investments are in secure government instruments but with the returns much lower," he said.
In terms of loans, Hilmi said that as of December, EPF's biggest lending was for government housing schemes totalling RM21.5 billion, following by to the National Higher Education Fund (RM12.5 bilion) and Khazanah Nasional Berhad (RM8.66 billion).
The Bill was later passed by the Dewan Rakyat.

tunku : there is a negative side og this new ruling, the employer will stop hiring the younger one to save the employer's contribution for the EPF.It's quite difficult for normal workers to save money,EPF is the only way to save money for future as we have no choice but to contribute, so it would be to increase the contribution percentage.As for employee age above 55 I believe most of them are in contract terms.So the basic salary can be lower in order to make less EPF contribution.