Zainul Ariffin, please take a hike...

I put it in simple statement - "Shocked and disgusted". That's what this scribe feels when a few friends pointed out that one Zainul Ariffin, NSTP group managing editor, has written something uncalled for in covering the unnecessary death of Teoh Beng Hock.

After years of re-building the trust and inter-racial harmony, Zainul has damage it with a single stroke of his pen in penning his article in Berita Harian titled " Kematian Teoh timbulkan pelbagai spekulasi politik" datelined 19th July 2009. That shows his denial-syndrome to Najib's pet-project - that of 1Malaysia.

In part, he wrote

Namun keraguan timbul, terutama di kalangan bukan Melayu bahawa SPRM, yang semestinya seperti agensi kerajaan lain banyak pekerja Melayu, secara selektif memilih bukan Melayu untuk disiasat. "

What has Malay staffs got to do with it? They are just carrying out their duties and in doing so, they shall be race blind. The question is why is MACC top brass adopting "selective investigation"? If you have cases to attend to, don't you go by numbers or priorities? Isn't it suppose, first in, first out approach? There are reps of all races in Selangor, why did MACC choose to "investigate" these particular batch first? What are the reasons? What are the justifications?

Zainul failed to address the real issue at hand. It is not a matter of a Malaysian institution is under the magnifying glass. Zainul should be smart enough to understand and to differentiate between the staffs and Malaysian institution. Unless, Zainul, like his UMNO political masters, failed to see the difference between Malaysians and Malaysian institutions.

In different part, he wrote

"Sedarlah jika setiap kali institusi kita dicerca dan dihina, lama-kelamaan akan ada yang terlekat. Makin lama semakin tipis kepercayaan kita. "

It is not a matter of looking down at the institutions. It's a matter of how much the institution potrays their transperacy? In this particular case, the questions racing in the rakyats' minds are :-

1. Why was the witness interviewed for 10 hours?
2. Why wasn't the witness provided with a place to stay, if the interview goes past normal working hours?
3. Why was the witness kept in MACC's premises after the interview? Why didn't the investigating officers encourage him to go home and catch his sleep?
4. What happen during the last few hours before his body was discovered?
5. Why was his handphone in the possession of MACC? Was he allowed to make personal calls from MACC's office?
6. Why was his body not removed for more than 5 hours?
7. Why didn't MACC informed his boss immediately of his demise, upon discovering the body?
   

If the government institution can satisfactorily provide the answers, then the people will gladly accept it. However, when a minister jump the gun and claimed that the witness took his own life whilst another dismiss the setting up of Royal Commission, then something does not seems right.

In this case, Pakatan Rakyat demand justice and want to know what happened. This is not about a Malay, Chinese or Indian. This is about a Malaysian! And the call for justice and the setting up of Royal commission is getting louder with MCA and Gerakan putting weight to the commission. MIC has also joined in the call.

Zainul is writing dangerously. It is he who needs to be careful with his choice of words. Maybe, Zainul has been living too long within UMNO's comfort zone that he is now confuse when he see the combined Pakatan Rakyat, transends race and religion. Is Zainul getting scared of his own shadow? Or is Zainul too comfortable in his position that he failed to realise the changes? Is Zainul feel threatened by the combined Pakatan Rakyat?

In a way, Zainul slips when he wrote

"Pepatah Inggeris berkata: 'You reap what you sow' � jika ada pihak yang mahu popular dengan menabur syak wasangka kepada orang lain, lama kelamaan dia juga akan menerima kesannya. "

Zainul is admitting that BN is reaping what they have been sowing since 1970's. That shadow casted before is haunting BN and BN has no place to hide. BN has been planting the seeds of doubts amongst the opposition parties and now since the opposition has set aside their differences, BN is forced to a corner. A cornered cat is not a friendly cat...

From thereon, Zainul tries to cloud the issue between government institution and a specific race when he questions MB Selangor

"Kenapa Menteri Besar Selangor, seorang Melayu, meragui kebolehan orang sebangsanya bertindak dengan tulus dan adil? "

What has the post got to do with the case? An MB take care of his state, regardless of race and religion. Why tie up an institution with a specific race? The more I read, the more I conclude that Zainul is detached with the real world. He has been too long under UMNO's armpit, that he has lost his sense of smell as he has lost his sense of justice.

First and formost, nobody knows yet who is the leading investigation officer. He can be anybody. He can be Ahmad, Lee or Muthu - since the investigator's identity has not been revealed. So, why lump the probability to just one race? Maybe it's a combination of all the races?

The rakyat questions the institutions which is seen to be an extended arm of BN. Talk about judiciary, we have judges who can withold written judgement till the last minute, as in the case involving MB Nizar. We have police investigation papers that are still open as in the case of A Kugan. What happen to the police personnel involved with Kugan's untimely death? Now we have the case of MACC and the unnecessary death of Teoh. Look at it objectively and you will notice that the victims are Malays, Indians and Chinese. This is not a matter of a single race persecution but the problems transcends race boundaries. It is challenging the integrity of the institutions itself.

This is a matter of high possibility of government institutions being used for the benefit of a selected political party. In this case, it is the party that is running the federal government of the day.

Zainul is a mercenary of sorts. He is working to satisfy the pleasure of UMNO. And since the emperor is out of town, he place his bets on UMNO warlord Nazri...and Zainul bombs, this time. Gerakan has joined the chorus for the formation of Royal Commission. So does MCA and MIC. With the rate it's going, the government has no choice but to officially propose a Royal Commission. It is just a matter of timing although Rais is trying hard to slow down the inevitable formation of the Royal Commission.

Art Harun sees the whole episode as McBeth II. I sees it as Zainul losing his definition of 1Malaysia. And for those of you who have your personal views to share, please direct them to Zainul Ariffin Mohammad Isa. He can be reached at zainul@nstp.com.my and he is the NSTP group managing director.

Let's see how he dance when Najib returns to Malaysia today...For the time being, Zainul, take a hike because Malaysia do not need your kind of journalism to disrupt what we have been building for the past 50 odd years. Better still, do spare Najib the pains of booting you for being such an incompetent staff. Maybe, Zainul needs to take time off in Kamunting to think on what he had done.

This scribe feels Najib won't mind to put Zainul in an all-expenses paid, 2 year vacation in Kamunting.

Till then...G'nite M'sia...wherever u are...