Mohamad Ezam Mohd Nor, former Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Youth leader and one-time confidant of PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, has rejoined Umno. [Bernama]
Ezam was one of the iconic faces during the reformasi era a decade ago… but he has become pretty much irrelevant for the past year or two. His decision to quit PKR in June 2007 has left little impact to the party, and the anti-corruption NGO he formed is moving no way.
People are asking why he is joining back Umno… but where else could he go? Going back to PKR is obviously not an answer. If he is still interested in expanding his political influence, he would have to choose between PAS and Umno… not many choices actually.
Some people are claiming that Ezam is going back to Umno to help reforming the party, but frankly… this fella is way overrated by some folks. Besides his fame, he doesn’t seem to have much to offer… in fact, he might find himself having a hard time with his political struggle in Umno.
Badawi might like him though; they shared a similar thread of flip-flopping after all.
Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced Monday at 12.35pm that he is quitting Umno, citing a lack of confidence in the current leadership.
Dr Mahathir urged other party members to quit too, as a way of pressuring Abdullah into vacating his post. However, he advised those who do quit not to join any opposition party, adding they can all rejoin the party once there is a change in leadership. [Thestar & Malaysiakini]
The impact of Mahathir’s resignation is still unclear, but I doubt it could lead to a mass exodus of Umno members.
This reminds me of another story though… a recent TV interview featuring Perak football coach Steve Darby. He said that Malaysians have an odd mentality of supporting their team only when they are winning but not otherwise.
Mr Darby was quite right obviously. If Umno and BN had won handsomely at the March election… all these crossover and exodus saga would not have surfaced. At this time of crisis, it’s the moment when all Umno members should join their hands together and rebuild their reputation.
Umno members should stop listening to oppositions’ propaganda to bring down Badawi but to use their own logical sense instead.
Would Umno be any better if they change the leadership at the moment? Do they have suitable candidates to replace Badawi? The only obvious winner if Umno got into turmoil is Pakatan Rakyat… Mahathir should know that, and all Umno supporters should know that too.
Backstabbing and holding your top leadership at ransom is not something politicians should do, it’s the act of gangsterism… and it’s kinda disappointing to see that some politicians are acting like gangsters in our political arena.
Abdullah Badawi announced yesterday (April 21) that the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) will be made a full-fledged commission by year-end. [Bernama]
The reformation plans are mostly focusing on improving the effectiveness and transparency of ACA, but there are a few big questions that remain unanswered. The biggest question is probably on how authoritative the ACA could be after the overhaul.
It’s reported that the final say on prosecution still lies on the Attorney General. Now, what would happen if the AG has ordered to stop an investigation prematurely?
The current AG Abdul Gani Patail has done it before, and who are going to stop AG from doing it again? And what freedom is ACA actually having if this situation is allowed to happen in future?
The reformation has to go hand in hand with other authorities, and there are lots of complications that need to be cleared to ensure a really independent ACA that could operate without any interference. Getting the right people to lead the ACA is another debatable issue too.
It’s a long way to go obviously, but it’s better than doing nothing. We’ll see how things are improve as time goes by.
Besides, reforming ACA is one thing… I think we need to overhaul our law and constitution regarding corruption as well. I believe there are many loopholes in our current system that could be exploited without breaking the law. ACA would be helpless in these situations regardless of how independent they are.
Datuk Ahmad Said has sworn in as the new Menteri Besar of Terengganu on Sunday (Mar 30) with the support of all 23 state assemblymen, thus putting an end to the mini-crisis over the appointment.
For those who are cheering that the Palace has won the tug-of-war between the Umno central leadership… please think twice of the complications involved.
There are flaws when it comes to appointment of a new MB… it’s a regret that the people would have no final saying of who should be the MB.
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I thought it was a joke when my friend passed me the news that Zakaria Md Deros has passed away this morning, as the timing is rather bizarre just after BN’s disastrous election campaign. It’s not a joke though… Malaysiakini and Bernama have confirmed the news.
I was just about to write some stories about Zakaria (before knowing the news) about his influence in causing the BN downfall in the election… guess I will have to cut it short now.
Most of you would have known about the infamous Istana he built in 2006, and all those dubious property deals that he was involved… some quarters actually dubbed him the King of Klang for his arrogance, and for the fact that nobody could touch him even though he had been misusing his power as (ex) Klang municipal councillor for personal gain.
Although Zakaria didn’t participate much in the election, his infamous saga has played a landmark role in influencing the public thoughts, which showed that the top BN leadership was doing nothing much (or incapable) to stop corruption, and that the culprits could easily get away with some easy punishment.
People have begun to realise that Badawi and his BN co. are not going to fulfill their promise made in 2004 of making corruption-fighting their prime priority. Along with a few other cases like Rafidah’s AP issue, the people’s confidence was shaken, which in the end played a crucial role in the 12th General Election.
I don’t want to be too critical to a dead man though; the fact that thousands of people have paid their last respects to Zakaria since early morning shows that this man must had done something good in his life… rest in peace.
Anwar Ibrahim released another section of the Lingam video (Part III - video below) which he obtained on last Friday (Jan 25). [Part I & Part II on Youtube]
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Malaysia crime rates are rising in an alarming rate… there was a dramatic 13.4% increase in violent crimes last year, of which rape cases were up by about 30% and gang robbery by a whopping 160%. [Malaysiakini]
We need to act fast to cope with this problem; it is a matter that concerned every Malaysian citizens, and quite often it’s a matter of life and death.
I don’t quite understand how the crime rates could be soaring sky high in the past few years. Set the crime fighting and prevention efforts aside… I couldn’t figure out how on earth did we managed to produce so many criminals in Malaysia.
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MIC parliamentarian K. Devamany is in trouble for ‘breaking the rank’ after saying that “the government was not doing enough for the (Indian) community” in response to the recent Hindraf rally.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz was fast to ask Devamany to resign from MIC if he had disputed his own party… and Devamany is scheduled to explain to Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak about his words.
I couldn’t bother much about BN’s rank or whatever policy. I am just wondering how people like you and me could get our voices to be heard by our government…
The UMNO led government has responded to the recent demonstrations saying that street rallies are unnecessary, and that they are willing to listen from the people through proper channels.
Thing is… if opposition leaders raised their concerns, they will be raped with all the insults possible. If a BN representative raised his opinions, like Devamany did… well, he is accused of breaking the ranks.
In the end… no one can say anything that the UMNO leaders do not want to listen. Badawi doesn’t care… and he has the most ferocious guarding dog at his Prime Minister Department that will bite on EVERYONE who voiced their dissatisfaction at the current government.
Government ready to listen to the citizens? Forget about it… that’s bullsh!t.