MalaysiaWatch

A concerned Malaysian writes about Malaysian affairs. "You are the Change you Seek" Barack Obama

Thursday, September 18, 2008

malaysiakini Should Give this FRIENDLY ADVICE to the POLICE CHIEF


We know it must be a tough job enforcing the law, especially when the political tension is so high according to this malaysiakini article Don't speculate on gov't takeover, warn police.

However, it is a hopeless task as I guess the bookies are already taking bets on the number of defectors, when the takeover will happen, whether the police will arrest Anwar to protect him under ISA and so on.

As the law enforcement agency, the police must be seen to be fair and firm to all parties. In fact they can even advise the PM that the situation should be decided soon by calling for that Emergency debate in Parliament. That is the proper venue where someone will be put in his proper place.

It is not fair to expect the police to chase speculation shadows when real tragedies/crime have not abated.
Speculation is merely part of the political instability that has been caused by the impasse between the two groups.

malaysiakini Reports that the PM BLINKED?

It looks as if the PM is afraid of meeting Anwar's challenge of the "NO CONFIDENCE" motion in Parlaiment as reported in this malaysiakini article PM rejects 'no confidence' session as he says -
"I don't see the need as the Parliament will sit after Ramadhan," Abdullah told reporters after chairing an Umno supreme council meeting at Putra World Trade Centre today.
The Parliament is set to resume its sittings on Oct 13.


Anwar wanted to meet the PM to discuss national issues like the political uncertainty and now this Parliament debate should be the crunch session whereby Anwar has to show that he has support of the majority of the MPs.

That is what Malaysia is urgently waiting for as it is now like a ship without a rudder. Why has the PM blinked?

malaysiakini and the SHOWDOWN at PARLIAMENT?


I believe that this is the solution that 90% of all Malaysians want to see as it will prove that after 51 years of independence, our politicians are prepared to relinquish power via a peaceful process.

This malaysiakini article Anwar seeks emergency House session is a fair request as the PM had declined a suggestion to meet with the Opposition leaders.

Malaysia no doubt can be considered a successful nation but we need new leadership that can help us progress faster. Just like a champion athlete cannot win all the races all the time, there is no written law that says Malaysia must have a BN government or none at all.

I am sure that a peaceful handover will ensure that we will finally emerge with a successful 2-party system and I am also very confident that if the (new) government does not perform to the high expectations, they may not be returned in the next General Elections.

The declaration of Emergency is not justified and will definitely jettison our international stature maybe just above Zimbabwee.

Saturday, September 6, 2008

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malaysiakini a Harbinger of GREAT NEWS Too

Lately most of the articles have been rather serious, especially with the political instabilty after the March elections.
But the news in malaysiakini that the USM picked as Apex university shows that is government is still able to make some good decisions without political overtones.

OK I don't know if there were any political factors but Penang is an opposition state and it is good that the Higher Education Ministry was able to make this decision. I think USM started off as a teacher's training college the MTC as some of my school-mates were trained there as teachers.

Perhaps being far away from the political center has enabled the USM to develop more as an academic centre compared to UM that has more political activities.

This should be a good lesson for UM and perhaps UiTM to improve. The former is taking up the challenge as UM not deterred, to strive for global status .

The NST article mentions that
"One of the initiatives taken in this direction was the setting up of a RM30 million fund to send local UM students on foreign exchange programmes, she added.

"Our aim is to send 1,000 students a year supported by the fund." "


I always thought that to upgrade a university one needs quality lecturers and good teaching methods to attract better students. I think the money would be better spent to send some good lecturers overseas to improve their skills and then bond them for say two years for each year of study and a defined career growth path.

Friday, September 5, 2008

malaysiakini indicates Not only BN but UMNO Appears to be BREAKING UP

Following the March elections and the Permatang Pauh by-elections, the BN coalition has been buffeted by winds akin to a major hurricane that wreaks havoc and great damage.

Perhaps the loss was too traumatic as only 4 years earlier, the BN was returned with the greatest majority and the opposition was almost wiped out.

This article in malaysiakini shows how fragile is the cement that is keeping UMNO together when Penang UMNO backs Ahmad, Snubs Pak Lah . A year ago such an incident would be unheard of.

I wonder if Ahmad Ismail has adopted such a hard line as he wants to antagonise the Chinese or just to increase the pressure on the PM to resign.
It is quite possible that the top leadership of UMNO has lost the confidence of UMNO members at the grass roots level.
There have been calls for AAB to quit from many quarters, even UMNO members. The party has various mechanisms in place to reduce contests for the top leadership and in a party crisis, members will break away more readily and voice their discontent.

Of course this is the worst time for the party as morale is weak and any wrong moves could result in a major UMNO schism. If democratic principles had been religiously followed and money politics eradicated, UMNO would not be in this predicament now.

malaysiakini Promotes CHANGE


If you have been following the USA Presidential Campaigns, you will notice that both the Republicans and Democrats are promoting change.
In Malaysia malaysiakini has been an important change agent since it was launched and you can see the difference in the people's response to it.

In the early days there were not many letters and very few wanted their names published. Today if you look at the feedback, there is a variety of issues discussed and people have become more open. There is hope for this nation as most of the views are well-articulated and with good reasoning.

That is how a nation advances, by making use of all its talents and not side-lining large portions of its population.
This freedom of expression has spread to the Perlis mufti according to this malaysiakini article Perlis mufti keeps 'em guessing over poem .

The funny thing about change is that some wise person said, "The more things change, the more they remain the same".

Thanks to You Tube for the famous protest song of the 60s "Time's they are a'Changing" by Peter, Paul and Mary". I attended a concert by them in the UK when I was a student in the late 60s.