Something is definitely not right in Malaysia. Either we are flip-floppers, courtesy of Abdullah Badawi or we are easily cowed by the "upper management"...Either way, it is not healthy for Malaysia's democracy system.
- Malaysia is far behind UK, in terms of election experience and maturity. When UK voters lined up their polling booths to determine their next government, we are still working on how voter turnout in the coming P212 Sibu by-election. Our EC prides themselves if over 80 % voter turnout make a beeline to our polling stations when UK recorded 65 % voter turnout in their recently concluded general election. Maybe, Abd Aziz can learn a thing or two from his UK's experience...
- OK, maybe UK is too "advanced" for Malaysia...Even the Philippines are already forging ahead with computerisation voting plus indelible ink system to avoid double voting (or is it phantom voters?) whilst Malaysia has not implement any of those methods yet. No wonder, Malaysian political parties is forever suspicious of our own EC...
- Fortunately, this posting is not about Malaysian EC who excludes MAFREL in P212 Sibu by-election although it is related to elections too...
- Something is definitely not right in Malaysia. Either we are flip-floppers, courtesy of Abdullah Badawi or we are easily cowed by the "upper management"...Either way, it is not healthy for Malaysia's democracy system.
- What would you feel waking up one day reading news that one of the elected MPs' has tendered his resignation and was pursuaded by Najib to retract his resignation? What more when the supposed resignation took place in March 2010, more than a month ago. The news filtered out in May 2010 and even that through new media and not through government-controlled MSMs'! What has Rocky got to say about this? Is this press freedom, Malaysia style?
- That shows how much the present-day government clamped on the news which might be unfavourable to them. Is this how Rais "I burnt the bridge" Yatim operates? In self-denial mode?
- Malaysian Insider posted the news on 11th May 2010 about Kalabakan's MP Abdul Ghapur Salleh tendering his resignation letter to House speaker Pandikar Amin in the end of March 2010. All because Ghapur felt slighted with the accussation made by Zahrain!
The report mentioned Najib pursuaded the said MP to retract his resignation and thus avoiding another possible by-election. If this is true, which in high probability is , then this is a clear case of resign and retract.
Najib managed to avert an embarassing situation. What if Ghapur decided to resign and a by-election is needed. BN has openly stated that they do not go for by-election for seats where the elected rep chose to resign as per Permatang Pasir's case. Will it be PR walkover win?
- What about Perlis Titi Tinggi assemblyman's quit letter? Yip Sun Onn first quit his post as Titi Tinggi assemblyman on 24th March 2010. Barely 24 hours later, Yip sms the state speaker informing him that he (Yip) wanted to withdraw the resignation.
This time around, the news was reported by Star which is owned by MCA, a BN party component and Yip so happen to be MCA's member and his quit decision is rumoured to be closely linked to his spat with MCA's state leader alias MCA-then women chief.
Another near miss of possible by-election!
- Then of course who can forget the "Mother of buy-government" in Perak. Tracing back how Osman and Jamaluddin did a disappearing act for "medicational trip" to Pekan, how both of them together with Hew denied that they resigned as state assemblymen, how EC disputed the-then Perak speaker letter to declare the seats vacant and thus avoiding legitimate by-election...and the finale when Perak government collapsed and a new state government was sworned in without proper "vote of no confodence" against the-then MB Nizar.
The Perak debacle can be categorise in resign - no vacancy slot.
- This is Malaysia post-2008 era. An elected rep resign but the speaker can choose to withold the letter, allowing the party leaders to pursuade the former to retract their resignation or quit action. These happened to Abdul Ghapur and Yip.
Even if there are valid resignation letters and the speaker chose to informed EC to conduct by-election, the EC and the courts can still ruled that there is no vacancy because the resignation letters is signed "under duress" as what happened to Perak.
Anything and everything is possible if UMNO wants it so. And this UMNO will be celebrating their 64th birthday on 11th May 2010.
- It become ridiculous when one party use all its resources to prod others to follow its whims and fancy. It becomes weirder when this one party who once dressed down the monarchy is claiming that they are the champions for the monarchy when the chips are down.
- To UMNO/BN, resign and retract is the norm. It is no longer about the rakyat or the moral conscious. Everything is now about the party. Party this and party that.
It is time for UMNO party members to seriously ask themselves -who really holds court in Malaysia? The party named UMNO or HRH YDP Agung? Read NY Times advertisement and it seems that UMNO helmsman Najib is subtly saying that Mrs Najib is Malaysia's first lady. If that is true, then UMNO ha struly discarded the Sultans and has taken over the courts. Let court jesters Rais Yatim and Hishamuddein Hussein clowned around to the pleasure of Najib and wife.
11th May 2010 will witness another "ampu and bodek" festival organised by UMNO to crown Najib and Mrs. To UMNO, the real king and first lady is the one who sits as UMNO's President and the first lady is UMNO's president's official wife...
- It is also time to seriously ask another question - how long can a house speaker holds to the resignation and quitting letter? Will it be applicable to both BN and PR elected reps or is this a priviledge for BN members only?
Where is the promise that a speaker must be impartial?Where is the oath that speakers must uphold their duties with highest regards? Another pure rhetoric for "sound nice" during oath taking ceremony?
- Resign - retract, Quit - retract, resign - no vacancy declaration... whichever way you look at it, UMNO/BN only looks at it their way. Any other way is not recognise.
UMNO is singing "My way" as a tribute to Mahathir. UMNO is also dictating others from the EC, judiciary, yellow household, civil services to follow their bidding. Whatever it takes to remain in power and who dares to point out that UMNO's emperor's has no clothings on!
Who will rise to right the wrongs? Will you join the cause to right the wrongs?
Till then...G'nite M'sia...wherever u are...
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