When I am lying all alone in my bed at home and dying from the bitter cold and starvation I really don’t care two fucks about colours of envelopes or whether Muslims are leaving Islam to become Christians.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

60 Muslims arrested for gambling in Rembau

(Bernama) - REMBAU: Sixty Muslims who patronised a computerised gambling premises near Taboh Naning, here, were detained in a raid, early this morning.

Negeri Sembilan Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JHEAINS) operations unit chief Ahmad Zaki Hamzah said 41 computers and RM6,000 in cash were also seized in the raid.

He said those detained were aged between 20 and 60.

"They were taken to the Rembau district police headquarters to have their statements taken. They were then released on bail and will have to return on a specified date to help in investigation," he said after the raid, here, today.

Ahmad Zaki said they would be charged under Section 79 (a) of the Negri Sembilan Syariah Criminal Enactment 2004 which carries a RM3,000 fine or two years jail or both.

He said four caretakers of the premises were issued with letters ordering them to turn up at the JHEAINS enforcement unit on a specified date to help in investigations on the case.

Members of the Negeri Sembilan National Security Council and police from the State Police Contingent Headquarters also took part in the operation which started at midnight and ended at 5am.

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Widow goes from mosque to mosque for shelter

(The Star) - A HOMELESS woman has been staying in over 30 mosques in the Klang Valley for the past two years, reported Harian Metro.

The woman, known as Fazilah, said she had been taking shelter in mosques since her husband died in 2009, adding that it was safer than sleeping in corridors.

She said almost all the mosques in Kuala Lumpur and several government hospitals had become her “homes” at one time or another, adding that she had become used to the situation.

Fazilah, 59, said she lived like this because she had no means of getting enough money to support herself and her 34-year-old disabled son, who is being cared for by her sister.

“In my heart, Allah knows how hard it was for me to make that decision. I have been asking for alms and sheltering in mosques,” she said, adding that her four other children were also being cared for by her ex-husband.

She said she was trying to get a low-cost house from Kuala Lumpur City Hall with the RM500 aid from Baitulmal.

“Until then, I will keep wandering from mosque to mosque as being there calms my heart. However, I hope to get my own home one day because I don't want to burden anyone,” said the former civil servant, whose squatter house was demolished in 2002 by the Selayang Munincipal Council.

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Bedridden woman starves to death after hubby dies

(The Star) - A 74-YEAR-OLD bedridden woman starved to death after her husband, who had been taking care of her, collapsed and died at their home in Hong Kong, China Press reported.

The retired couple had been living alone after their son moved out. However, he would return to their home to see them once in a while.

On Tuesday, the son was shocked to find his parents dead after he came back from Taiwan.

His mother's body was on the bed while her 76-year-old husband was found on the living room floor.

Police believed that the man had initially fainted but died without proper medical care. His wife starved to death a few days later.

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Ibrahim Ali, Hasan Ali, Baba Ali, and all the sons and daughters of the Alis all over Malaysia are foaming at the mouth on what they allege are Christians trying to convert Muslims to Christianity. True or not, I really don’t know. But even if it is true, so what? If they no longer believe in Islam (or have become an atheist who no longer believes in God) that is their problem, not ours.

Actually, those who are Muslims by name only but are no longer Muslims at heart are not but a few. Many fall into that category. Of course, those who still believe in God and feel that Christianity is the correct religion would want to denounce Islam so that they can become Christians. Those who do not have the guts to do that, as they know it will attract controversy, and probably detention as well, quietly become Christians without telling even their closest family members.

How do you know how many Muslims have left Islam? By the couple of thousands who have applied to the National Registration Department to change their Muslim names to Christian names? By the ten or twenty who attend ‘Christian events’? Or by the millions who no longer live the adeen (lifestyle or ‘way’) of Islam?

If a Muslim is defined by his or her lifestyle, then there are a very few Muslims left in Malaysia. Islam has to be about akidah. And if you do not have akidah you are not a Muslim, never mind if you were born into a Muslim family and carry a Muslim name on your identity card. You can’t be born a Muslim. You can’t be a Muslim in name. You have to be a Muslim at heart.

And in that spirit there are very few Muslims left in Malaysia. And if I need to explain to you what a Muslim at heart means, send me your bank account details and I will send you enough money to buy a gun so that you can shoot your brains out.

I have been detained in police lockups. I have been to prison. And the people I meet inside those places are ‘Muslims’, the majority of them. Some, such as rapists, even wear white skullcaps and never miss their five-times a day prayers.

Why worry about ex-Muslims who no longer believe in Islam and wish to leave Islam or wish to become Christians? What about those ‘true’ Muslims who never miss their fasting or prayers but who violate every Islamic rule in the book?

Why are Muslims so preoccupied with numbers? This is not a numbers game. This is not about which religion can attract the most number of followers. It should be about the quality of the practitioners. And that is one thing that Islam lacks, Muslims of quality who live the adeen of Islam.

Cock fighting is a favourite pastime in the Malay-Muslim heartland of Terengganu and Kelantan. Cock fighting is basically gambling. AIDS is critical in Kelantan. The drug problem is critical in Terengganu. And so on and so forth. And the majority under detention and in prison are Malays-Muslims.

Okay, while we wait for the Malay-Islam-bashing to start, as it always does, read the other news reports above. Read about the 59-year-old Malay-Muslim woman who for almost three years has to move from mosque to mosque just to have a roof over her head.

What are those rich Malays-Muslims who live in places like Damansara, Bangsar and Taman Tun and who own RM20 million apartments in London doing about this? Why must things like this happen in today’s day and age?

Then read about an old Chinese couple in Hongkong dying without their children even knowing about it. Sure, it is Chinese culture NOT to give out money in white envelopes. Is it Chinese culture to let your parents die of starvation?

Anyway, don’t feel too bad about it. This also happens in the UK. It also happens in America. There are 100,000 homeless HOUSEHOLDS in the UK. In America it is 500,000.

We are now experiencing a very cold winter. Since yesterday we have been seeing ice in the UK. Tonight it is going to snow and we are expecting below zero temperatures. The government has just announced that many homeless people and old people living alone are going to die of cold. By this weekend the mortuaries are going to be full.

All this talk about Islam and Chinese culture disgusts me. Why not we talk about how to be good Muslims rather than how to prevent Muslims from leaving Islam? Why not we talk about how to help the homeless and old folks living alone who are going to die over the next 48 hours because they are being neglected rather than whether the envelope should be white, red, green or pink?

When I am lying all alone in my bed at home and dying from the bitter cold and starvation I really don’t care two fucks about colours of envelopes or whether Muslims are leaving Islam to become Christians.

Yeah, sure, they are victims, they are poor, they are ignorant, they have been used for political purposes, they have been tricked, yada, yada, yada….But what have you done for them other than rant, rave, scream, moan, and bitch, that the angpows should have been in red packets and not white packets when you yourself did not bother to give them even one red cent?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Back in the 1970s (I was only in my 20s then), I joined the Kuala Terengganu Rotary Club. A couple of years on I became the secretary. I was the secretary for more then seven years, basically because no one else wanted the job.

My ‘pet’ projects were to visit and aid the orphanages and the old folks’ home at Bukit Payung. I also ‘adopted’ the psychiatric ward in the Kuala Terengganu General Hospital.

There was not really much I could do for the inmates in the psychiatric ward other than buy them a sound system. When I went back to visit the ward later, the nurses told me that the inmates were much happier than before.

In the past, they just brooded out of boredom. Now they sing and dance to the music. They were even happier when I joined them in the merriment. I suppose that is why I have become what the Chinese would call taufung. Blame it on my work with the inmates in the psychiatric ward of the Kuala Terengganu General Hospital.

There were a number of orphanages all over the state. However, most of the orphanages I visited did not appear to require any financial assistance. When I offered to send them a few sacks of rice and other foodstuff the caretaker pleaded with me not to do so. He then showed me their food store. It was stacked with food. So the last thing they need is more food.

Invariably, all the boys and girls in the orphanage were Malays. There were no Chinese or Indian kids (which is quite understandable seeing that 97% of Terengganu’s population is Malay).  

Malays (meaning Muslims) believe that if you pat or stroke the head of an orphan you get to go to heaven. Feeding them is even better. So even poor Malays send food to the orphanage, even if they have very little to eat themselves -- but as long as your own family is not starving (then your family comes first).

Then an idea came into my head. If we can’t feed them, can we adopt them? I called for a neighbourhood meeting (in Kuala Ibai, Kuala Terennganu) and asked my neighbours who would like to participate in my adoption programme. Most agreed, some even offered to take two or three orphans.

Came Hari Raya Eve, we drove to the orphanage (after prior contacting them, of course) and brought home about 30 or so orphans to spend the week in our neighbourhood as our adopted children. They were delighted, especially since we lived in what could be considered an ‘upmarket’ housing area (for Terengganu standards, of course -- in Kuala Lumpur it would be considered a third-class neighbourhood like Kepong or Bandar Baru Sungai Buloh).

Thereafter, they came over during weekends and school holidays. Our neighbourhood became ‘adopted parents’ for these orphans and eventually they all became one of the family and could move in and out of any house at will (as if they were born in those houses).

Not all these orphans were yatim piatu (both father and mother died). Some were just anak yatim (one parent died) -- and most times it was the father who had died. And the unemployed mother was too poor to feed the child on her RM75 a month welfare handout so she had not choice but to dump her child or children in the orphanage. Even then you only got welfare if you are an Umno supporter because you need the signature of the local Umno chief to become eligible for welfare.

For the old folks’ home it was another story altogether. Almost all the inmates were Chinese (hardly any Malays and Indians save a few). And some of them were old folks of very successful or rich Chinese (as what the caretaker told me -- judging from the expensive limousines that their children drive when they visit their old folks once a year during Chinese New Year).

“Why once a year during Chinese New Year?” I asked the caretaker. Do they all live overseas or in Kuala Lumpur? Some do but not all. Some actually live in town, about 20 minutes away.

I found that very strange. Malays normally keep their old folks at home, even how senile they might have become. Why do the Chinese dump their parents in the old folks’ home? For the Malay and Indian inmates I can quite understand. They have no children. But the caretaker is telling me that not only do these Chinese inmates have children but some well off ones at that too.

But that was in the 1970s. I don’t know whether that is still so today. And I honestly don’t know whether that is also so for the old folks in that Ibrahim Ali-MCA white angpow fiasco.

I asked the Chinese members of the Rotary Club: why do these well off children dump their parents in the old folks’ home? And it is so pathetic to see them chained like animals to their beds (to prevent them from walking away and probably hurting themselves in the process since some of them are senile).

The Chinese members just shrugged their shoulders. “Maybe it is karma,” they told me. “Maybe they were cruel to their children in the past so their children have no love for them and do not want to be burdened with looking after their senile old folks.”

Now, before you fly off the handle and accuse me of Chinese-bashing, that is not at all my intention. It is just that the latest brouhaha brought back some memories of 35 years ago. And, as they say, when you start looking back to the old days that is a sign that age has caught up on you.

Maybe instead of getting hot and bothered about white angpows, you, the readers of Malaysia Today, should ask yourself what have you done for these old folks? Have you visited any old folks homes? Do you even know where they are? How much money in RED packets did you give these old folks during the recent Chinese New Year? And have you not even stopped to think about the fate of these old folks?

Yeah, sure, they are victims, they are poor, they are ignorant, they have been used for political purposes, they have been tricked, yada, yada, yada….But what have you done for them other than rant, rave, scream, moan, and bitch, that the angpows should have been in red packets and not white packets when you yourself did not bother to give them even one red cent?

Inilah Cina! If you go to a prostitute and you die after swallowing your dentures that is your problem. Stop screaming and shouting! And if you go to Perkasa’s Chinese New Year party and get insulted that is also your problem. Stop screaming and shouting!

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Man swallows dentures during sex and dies

(The Star) - A 74-year-old man died after he accidentally swallowed his dentures during sex with a 62-year-old prostitute in Taiwan, reported Nanyang Siang Pau.

The man, known as Chen, had been living with a close female friend in New Taipei City after separating from his wife many years ago.

The prostitute said she had sex with Chen for 30 minutes. She said Chen had got up from the bed, paid her and was about to put on his clothes when he suddenly collapsed.

“He fell back onto the bed. His eyes were open but he was not moving although I shook his body and tried to wake him up,” said the woman, who called the rescue team.

Chen was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Doctors later found his dentures stuck in his throat.

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What is the moral of the above story? Take your dentures off before sex? Never have sex with old prostitutes? No! The moral of the story is when you get into bed with a prostitute then be prepared to face even the risk of death.

Then we have the story about the millions of Malaysians of Chinese ethnicity who are up in arms about Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa dishing out money in white envelops.

Hello, it’s Ibrahim Ali’s money lah. Even if he wants to dish it out wrapped in an old newspaper like the traditional British fish-and-chips that is his business. No one forced you to take the money. Why take it then?

Anyway, why are others making so much noise? The people making all the noise are not those who attended the Chinese New Year open house function. They are the kay poh (nosey parkers) who masuk campur in something that does not even involve them.

Insulting the Chinese konon. Hey, I can pick out thousands of comments here in Malaysia Today where the Malays and Mamaks are also being insulted.

Do you remember one DAP Selangor Wakil Rakyat who posted in his Blog that he will boycott any palace function that requires him to wear a songkok? His excuse was that it is an Islamic thing and he will not wear a songkok under any circumstances.

Okay, that is your choice. Then don’t go to the palace. No one is forcing you at the point of a gun to go to the palace.

Actually, the songkok is not a Muslim thing at all (even Christians and Hindus in Indonesia wear songkoks). It is merely a cultural thing to the Malays, just like red packets are a Chinese tradition for Chinese New Year while white is for funerals.

But hold on! Suddenly Pakatan Rakyat won the 2008 state election in Selangor. So now all those who won a seat need to go to the palace to get sworn in. And if you don’t get sworn in then you can’t form the state government.

Okay, so do we go to the palace or not? Or shall we allow Barisan Nasional to form the new Selangor state government (even with less than 50% of the seats) since Pakatan Rakyat Wakil Rakyat refuse to go to the palace unless they are allowed to boycott the songkok?

Finally, of course, in the interest of seizing power in Selangor, these anti-songkok Pakatan Rakyat people have to set aside their ‘principles’ and follow palace protocol. As I said, you don’t have to go to the palace if you don’t want to. No one is forcing you to. In fact, you do not even have to get sworn in if you don’t want to. No one is forcing you to do that either.

In that same spirit, no one forced you to attend Perkasa’s Chinese New Year party. Why did you go? And no one forced you to take the money that Ibrahim Ali was dishing out. Why did you take it?

Inilah Cina! If you go to a prostitute and you die after swallowing your dentures that is your problem. Stop screaming and shouting! And if you go to Perkasa’s Chinese New Year party and get insulted that is also your problem. Stop screaming and shouting!

In the first place, you should not have gone, just like that 74-year-old Chinaman in Taiwan should not have gone to a prostitute, at least not to a 62-year-old one. I am sure a Lady Boy from Thailand would have been more delicious.

Sometimes you Chinese just want to find an excuse to whack the Malays. You look for any small excuse to whack, even the colour of an envelope.

Maybe Ibrahim Ali was wrong. I did not say he was right. He should have researched properly before getting involved in a Chinese thing such as ang pows. Furthermore, ang pows are what the older folks give to the younger unmarried people. The photograph I saw was more the age group of the 74-year-old Taiwanese and his 62-year-old prostitute.

Niamah! You call Ibrahim Ali a frog, a political prostitute, a racist, and whatnot. Then you go to his Chinese New Year open house. Then he gives you money in a white envelope and you take it. Then you scream and shout.

Who is the real prostitute here? Ibrahim Ali or the Chinese?

I am glad he dished out the money in a white envelope. If not because of that there would not have been a brouhaha and we would never have known that there are many Chinese prostitutes aged 60 and above in Malaysia as well.

Well done, Ibrahim Ali. This is the one time I support what you did, even though it was an ‘accident’ and due to your stupidity and ignorance of Chinese customs and taboos.

As follows are the statistics for Malaysia Today from 1st January 2011 to 31st January 2012 compared to the year before that (1st January 2010 to 31st January 2011). By the way, you may have noticed that you can now comment without needing to register or requiring logging in. This is because many have complained they can no longer log-in and we still can’t figure out why.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

What is even more irritating is that these people are pretending they do not understand what Anwar said (like they are pretending they do not understand what Karpal said). Actually they do understand (like they understand what I too said about my 2008 Statutory Declaration). This is what the Malays would call: bodoh-bodoh sepat (sepat is a fish that hides in the padi fields and pretends to be dead so that no one notices it).

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I quite pity Anwar Ibrahim who has been slammed the whole of last week regarding his alleged statements on Israel and gays. I sort of sympathise with him.

I would certainly whack him as well -- as I have been doing so for almost a year since February last year -- if he did do or say something that I consider wrong. But to slam him on what he did not do or say -- but was based on a twisted news report -- is hitting below the belt. And in this instance I am in support of Anwar.

I suppose what Anwar is being subjected to is the same thing as what Karpal Singh suffered. Karpal questioned the action of His Highness the Sultan or Perak and inferred that it may be ulta vires. It was then reported that Karpal had insulted the Sultan.

I have already written about this earlier. You can read my 21st January 2012 article called The super virus here: http://malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/46696-the-super-virus

Ultra vires merely means acting beyond your power or authority or what the law allows. That is not an insult. It is a legal opinion. And lawyers are supposed to give legal opinions. It is their job. It is the nature of the beast. It is an insult if they keep quiet when they know the law and should tell us what the law says -- instead of the other way around.

The real insult was to Karpal, not to the Sultan. Karpal was reported to have done something he did not do and now has to face trial because one Malay reporter does not understand English.

And the same is now happening to Anwar. They reported that he said something he did not say and now he is being attacked -- even by his comrade from the opposition. And they want Parliament to debate Anwar’s expression of support for Israel.

Say I was to say: it is no use being honest without also being fair in the distribution of wealth. A non-English speaking Malay reporter then reports: Raja Petra Kamarudin said ‘we need not be honest in the distribution of wealth’.

Then all the Umno-owned newspapers blow the issue up.

I remember also being subjected to this. When I reiterated what I said in my 2008 Statutory Declaration, it was reported that I had retracted what I said in my Statutory Declaration.

Reiterate means to reaffirm, restate or repeat what you said. Retract means to withdraw what you said. But it appears like even a couple of half-drunk Indian lawyers in Selangor Club could not understand this. These lawyers told my friend (another lawyer) that I retracted what I said and admitted to my friend that they never actually read what I said in my 2008 Statutory Declaration but was basing their opinion on what they heard.

And we are talking about senior lawyers mind you, although drunk ones at that.

Actually, even a first-year law student, even a Malay one, can tell you that you can’t retract what you signed in a Statutory Declaration once it has been lodged with the Commissioner of Oaths or the High Court (like what I did). At best you can sign a second Statutory Declaration, like what PI Bala did, and contradict what you said in the first Statutory Declaration. But then you can be charged for a crime and will, without a doubt, be sent to jail (since there is no way to deny what you signed in front of a Commissioner of Oaths).

By the way, the Malaysian police have come to see me to take my statement. And what I said in my statement to the police was exactly the same as what I said in my Statutory Declaration and in my TV3 interview as well. So, I reiterated what I said, yet again.

What is even more irritating is that these people are pretending they do not understand what Anwar said (like they are pretending they do not understand what Karpal said). Actually they do understand (like they understand what I too said about my 2008 Statutory Declaration). This is what the Malays would call: bodoh-bodoh sepat (sepat is a fish that hides in the padi fields and pretends to be dead so that no one notices it).

Anyway, Anwar will have to ride out this controversy, as what Karpal and I too have to do. People will always twist what you said and stubbornly pretend that they do not understand what you really said. Even drunken lawyers in Selangor Club play this bodoh-bodoh sepat game. It is a Malaysian thing, especially amongst the drunks.

At this point you may be asking what is my grudge against lawyers, Indians, drunks or Selangor Club members. Actually no grudge, unless they pretend they are a fish called sepat hiding in the padi fields.

Well, Anwar, all the best! And please tell your PKR people to also not play this same game of bodoh-bodoh sepat. You must agree that it is most irritating.

As I said earlier, the government that is going to plan Malaysia’s future beyond 2020 is not about a popularity contest between two people. It is about what do we do about Malaysia’s aging population? Would we just dump them into old folks’ homes and let the Rotary Club or Lions Club worry about them? Or are we going to come out with a good policy to support them?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Last week, I wrote an article called Are we having a popularity contest?’ Basically, my argument was that we need a good education system, a good healthcare system, and food (meaning a good agriculture policy so that Malaysia can feed its growing population without depending on imports: like it now does and has been from the very beginning).

Read the article here: http://malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/no-holds-barred/46760-are-we-having-a-popularity-contest.

Today, there is another issue I want to talk about: and that is about Malaysia’s aging population and what do we do with our old people. First, read the news report by AsiaOne (below) regarding Japan and the graphics below from the UK Parliament website.

In 50 years or so, Japan expects its population to decrease. That would be good if it was India or China. The problem with Japan, though, is that they expect less people to be born while old people will live longer. This means, in 50 years from now, almost half the population would be retired people.

This would also mean they would not be income-generating Japanese, they would need supporting (and with no younger/working people to support them they would be dependent on state support), and they would be a strain on the healthcare and welfare system.

This, to a certain degree, is already happening in the UK. Everywhere you go in the UK you will notice one very glaring thing: everyone appears so old. And I should know: I have been living here almost three years now.

In less than 50 years from now, according to the UK Parliament website, this is what we are going to see:

The UK is going to see what Japan is going to see: a growing aging population.

What has all this got to do with Malaysia? Well, in the 1980s, a mere 30 years ago, Malaysia was said to be amongst the youngest countries in the world (not in terms of nationhood but in terms of population). Around 70% of Malaysians were below voting age.

Today, according to Malaysia’s Department of Statistics, this is what it is:

Guess what it is going to be like by 2050 or 2060.

And this is what it is according to citizens/non-citizens and racial breakdown:

Can you see that two-thirds of Malaysians who will need to worry about the problem are going to be the Bumiputeras? By then, Malaysia’s ‘overseas population’ is going to increase from one million, now, to probably three million or so -- about 85% or 90% of them non-Bumiputeras. The non-Bumiputeras are not going to suffer as much as the Bumiputeras as they are more ‘mobile’ and know how to plan their future better than the Bumiputeras do.

Today, people are living longer than, say, around the time of Merdeka. Around the time of Merdeka, by the age of 55 you retired and you are not expected to live too long after that. Today, at 65 or 70 you are still active and probably healthy as well. Today, you may live to the age 75 or 80. And what is troubling is: long before that, say before the age of 65, your savings and EPF would have dried up.

How do we support our old people? They need food and a good healthcare system. In the UK, they can have that, although at great cost to the system (and the working population). But then even the lowest paid worker is taxed 20% of his/her salary at source and the VAT takes away another 20%. By the time all the taxes takes its toll, 70% of what you earn goes to the system to support the old people and ‘others’ (such as school leavers who are unemployed) who depend on the system.

As I said earlier, the government that is going to plan Malaysia’s future beyond 2020 is not about a popularity contest between two people. It is about what do we do about Malaysia’s aging population? Would we just dump them into old folks’ homes and let the Rotary Club or Lions Club worry about them? Or are we going to come out with a good policy to support them?

Many ask me whether I plan to return to Malaysia. Well, I am going to be 62 in September. What happens when I reach 65 in three years’ time? Will I be taken care of if I return to Malaysia? In England, at 65, I will be the problem of the UK government. In Malaysia, I will be my children’s problem.

No, my children have their own children to worry about. I can’t make them worry about my wife and me as well. My wife and I will have to be the government’s problem. And it will have to be the UK government because the Malaysian government will have no time to worry about me (they are engrossed in winning popularity contests).

To those Malaysians who plan to live, retire and die (hopefully after the age of 80) in Malaysia, you need to worry about this. I no longer need to worry about it. So let’s hear from those who are fishing for our votes: what are you going to do about Malaysians who will retire at 60 and will probably live for another 20 or 25 years before they go meet their Maker?

And note that by 2050 or 2060, we may be talking about 60% or 70% of Malaysia’s population (unless we want to 'balance' the ratio by ‘importing’ even more, younger Indonesians into Malaysia and give them Malaysian citizenship).

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Survey shows 'super-gray' Japan in 2060

(AsiaOne) - Japan will become a "super-gray" society in 2060, as people aged 65 or over will account for 39.9 per cent of the population that year, according to a survey conducted by a Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry institution.

The nation's total fertility rate--the average number of children each woman will have in her lifetime--will be 1.35 in 2060, up 0.09 points from the previous survey released in 2006, the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research said Monday.

However, the nation's total population will continue to drop, from 128.06 million in 2010 to 86.74 million in 2060.

The nation's population 50 years on is estimated every five years in tandem with a national census. The estimate is used as basic data for various indexes such as public pension finances and economic growth.

This time, the institute made three types of estimates based on the census conducted in 2010: moderate, optimistic and pessimistic.

In its moderate estimate, the institute revised upward the long-term outlook for the total fertility rate after it recovered to 1.39 in 2010 from the record low of 1.26 in 2005.

The institute said the recovery of the total fertility rate in recent years can be attributed to women in their mid-30s deciding to have children after previously being reluctant due to worsening economic conditions.

The total fertility rate is expected to drop again in the years ahead, but eventually move upward and reach 1.35 in 2060, the institute said. However, the population will continue to shrink, as at least 2.07 children per woman are necessary to maintain the population.

In 2048, the population is expected to fall below 100 million, two years earlier than the previous estimate.

The average longevity of Japanese men is expected to increase to 84.19 years in 2060 from 79.64 in 2010, and women's lifespans will also rise, to 90.93 from 86.39. The number of people aged 65 or older will peak in 2042 with 38.78 million, and then drop to 34.64 million in 2060.

The number of juveniles aged under 15 was 16.84 million, or 13.1 per cent of the total population, in 2010. The figure will drop to 7.91 million, or 9.1 per cent, in 2060, according to the institute.

The working-age population--those aged from 15 to 64--will drop from 81.73 million, or 63.8 per cent of the total population, in 2010 to 44.18 million, or 50.9 per cent, in 2060.

So, no, do not say if you are not with us then you are against us. That is a line borrowed from President Bush. Look at the bigger picture. It is not just about kicking out Umno the political party. It is about convincing the uncommitted Malays that we are not their enemy. Hence our arguments as to why we must vote ABU must not give an impression that ABU (anything but Umno) is actually ABM (anything but Malays).

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

This was the message I received from a friend who used to read Malaysia Today regularly but now no longer bothers to visit Malaysia Today:

Brother, tell RPK either he is ABU and join us to throw the BN out or he is with them. I tell you this story you can send to him.

My brother who studied in India made the observation that the Indians daily beat their cows and make them do back-breaking work. Then, on a religious day, they deck them with beautiful flowers, kiss them and worship them. Only on that day.

When UMNO talks nice things about the Chinese and Indians and recalls how they help build the country, you know it is election time. After winning the elections, they go back to beating their cows again. They are called pendatangs and all sorts of unsavoury names.
 
The important point is that when lower level UMNO members insult the non-Malays, the top leaders stand by quietly and say nothing about the abuses.
 
In other words, they acquiesce to what was stated. They all agree on insulting the non-Malays.
 
If the top leaders do not give a sense of fairness to all the citizens, then it is only right that we throw them out in the elections.
 
We need to do this because it will bring about leaders who are fair to all the citizens, not racists.
 
Malaysia has never had a statesman for a leader, with the possible exception of Tunku Abdul Rahman. So now it is reform and Malaysia 1.
 
It is the same cow story again. Why do we need to elect them based upon promises that have never been kept for 50 years.
 
Why did they not show us the reforms earlier? Only now, when they are in trouble? And we are stupid enough to re-elect them.‪

Allow me to respond to this most interesting message. First of all: on the fact that the sender of this message no longer visits or reads Malaysia Today.

Please look at the statistics below. During the March 2008 election period and in the few months of the aftermath of the election, Malaysia Today’s readership increased. Then, in September 2008, when I got detained under the Internal Security Act, the readership declined, or rather it went back to the normal pre-election figures. It has more or less remained constant until today.

When I was under detention, most readers lost interest in Malaysia Today. Since I was behind bars, they no longer saw the need to read or ‘support’ Malaysia Today. Hence, the drop in readership was because I had been detained and not for any other reason I can figure out.

It is, therefore, not an issue with me that this person says he no longer visits or reads Malaysia Today. Most readers had already abandoned Malaysia Today as soon as I got sent to the Kamunting detention centre. Malaysia Today was no longer relevant to most of these people the day I lost my freedom.

Of course, many scream about how Malaysia Today has ‘betrayed’ them. Maybe they did not stop to ponder whether I also felt betrayed. The government too realised that Malaysia Today’s readership declined once they detained me. This convinced the government that the move to detain me was the correct decision. And this made the government even more determined to keep me in Kamunting, so that Malaysia Today could be neutralised. And when the high court ruled my detention illegal and ordered my release, the government fought tooth and nail to try to get me back into Kamunting, resulting in me having to leave the country to avoid a third detention under the ISA.

My wife’s contention is that if the readership had been maintained or had even increased, then the government would have come to a conclusion that detaining me was futile and they might as well just let me go. Instead, the success in pushing down Malaysia Today’s readership by detaining me meant that my fate had been sealed. There was no way the government would allow me to remain free.

And the fact that the readership never went back up even after I had been released proved that the government’s strategy of detaining me was correct. They wanted to silence me and this objective had been met. With less people reading Malaysia Today they had, in a way, silenced me.

On the next point in that message: “Brother, tell RPK either he is ABU and join us to throw the BN out or he is with them.”

This reminds me of President Bush’s “either you are with us or you are against us” statement. That was how President Bush coerced the other nations into supporting America’s invasion of Iraq on the excuse that Iraq had WMDs. Later, of course, this was proven to be a lie. They just raised the issue of the WMDs as an excuse to attack Iraq. And they are now talking about attacking Iran on the same excuse, also with the “either you are with us or you are against us” slogan.

This brings me to the Muslim fundamentalists’, or extremists’ if you wish, doctrine that if you are not Muslim then you are kafir (infidel). And if you are kafir then you are automatically an enemy of Islam and no Muslim must take a kafir as a friend or companion.

This is, again, an “either you are with us or you are against us” doctrine. And to be with us you must become a Muslim or convert to Islam. To ‘reject’ Islam means you are an enemy of Islam and war can be declared on you to bring you to the right path.

The more liberal Muslims would reject this doctrine. Even if you are not a Muslim does not mean you are an enemy of Islam. You do not need to be a Muslim, Jew, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist or whatever. This is, after all, mere labelling. What is important is nilai-nilai Islam or Islamic values. The cloak of Islam means nothing without the spirit of Islam.

And the spirit of Islam is justice, fair play, equality, transparency, corruption-free, persecution-free, tolerance, moderation, etc. These are the values you are supposed to defend and uphold, not the labelling of someone as being Muslim or kafir -- and that if you are kafir then you are the declared enemy of Islam.

The days when “if you are not of my race or faith then you must be killed” are long gone. That was what they did many hundreds of years ago. And that is why we oppose regimes that still practice policies such as “if you are not Malay then you are an enemy of the Malays” and “if you are not Muslim then you are an enemy of Islam who wishes to mislead Muslims to become Christians” and “if you are not Malay then you are pendatang (immigrant) who must be treated as a second-class citizen” and so on.

Now, let us talk about ABU (anything but Umno). Yes, we support ABU. But let us not be confused about the real meaning of ABU. We are not talking about ABU merely in the context of Umno the political party. We are talking about ABU in the context of an institutionalised Umno culture.

Forget about Umno the political party. That is merely a registered organisation or political party. All you need to do is to deregister Umno (like they did in 1987/1988) and Umno will immediately no longer exist.

But will Umno, the institutionalised culture, die as well if Umno ‘dies’? When they deregistered Umno the Umno culture did not die. It continued and merely got superimposed onto the new Umno (Umno Baru). It was like a parasite that merely leaped onto a new animal once its host died. The parasite does not die.

We are not out to merely defeat Umno the political party in an election. We want to eradicate the institutionalised Umno culture. The Umno culture is in the civil service, the military, the police force, the judiciary, the Elections Commission (SPR), and everywhere. It is in MCA, MIC, Gerakan, PPP and all the other component members of Barisan Nasional. They think and do things like Umno. They are all extensions of Umno.

Until today, even after 22 years (since 1990), the Umno culture is still very strong in Kelantan. The civil service is Umno. The people in the kampongs are Umno. PAS may have been ruling Kelantan for 22 years, but they have failed to get rid of the Umno culture from all levels of the civil service and society.

PAS kicked out Umno from Kelantan 22 years ago. But Menteri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat will tell you they can’t seem to scrape away the Umno karat (the Umno rust).

Sure, as long as Nik Aziz remains the Menteri Besar, then PAS can continue ruling Kelantan. Even some Umno karat support Nik Aziz. But that support is personal to holder. They support Nik Aziz, not PAS. And once Nik Aziz dies, as we all will one day, there is no guarantee that PAS can retain Kelantan. In fact, even now Kelantanese are not sure whether Nik Aziz will still be alive by the 14th general election -- so they are contemplating whether in the next general election (the 13th general election) they should give the state back to Umno.

So, yes, I am ABU. But I am not just ABU the political party called Umno. I am ABU the institutionalised UMNO culture. Umno can die. But if Umno the institutionalised culture remains, then it matters not whether we do or do not have Umno as the government.

Look at Perak. Granted it was because the Pakatan Rakyat state assemblypersons changed sides that the state fell back to Barisan Nasional. But that alone was not enough. If was because the state secretary was Umno (hence he locked up Nizar Jamaluddin’s office and called in the police) and the Sultan was Umno (hence he swore in the new government even if the constitution may not have allowed that) and so on. It was an entire machinery of Umno that included the police, state civil service, palace, judiciary, SPR, etc., that allowed Perak to fall.

See what happened in Selangor with regards to the key positions in the state administration. It was all done against the wishes of Pakatan Rakyat and it was, again, all Umno. So we have a Pakatan Rakyat state government with an Umno administration. If in 22 years they could not eradicate Umno from Kelantan, how long do you think this will go on in Selangor? I would say forever.

So stop being narrow minded. We need to look at ABU from a much wider perspective. Sure, I am ABU. But I am a different form of ABU. I am not ABU the political party called Umno. I am ABU the entire institutionalised Umno culture. But maybe this is too complicating for simple-minded people to understand.

Now, regarding the rest of the points in the message. The writer has listed down all the reasons of his grievances with the present government. I can sum up everything he said in just one sentence: racism and the unfair treatment of non-Malays. Hence, he argues, that is why we need to vote ABU.

However, what was highlighted is not the cause of the disease but the symptoms of the disease. You can’t cure the symptoms of the disease. You need to treat the cause of the disease.

Will kicking out Umno cure the disease? It will not. Kicking out Umno is a temporary solution. Umno was kicked out from Kelantan 22 years ago. But the Umno culture still remains. And at anytime Umno can re-emerge in Kelantan and this time with a vengeance.

It is like a cancer that is not fully cured. It only gives an impression it is cured. But at any time it can come back and, when it does, this time it will be very vicious and unforgiving and very rapidly it will do its worse. Most people worry about the cancer coming back after being cured the first time around. It is when it comes back that the patient normally dies.

The Umno cancer in Kelantan is still there, even after 22 years. It has not been fully cured. This is because the Umno cancer is not just in Umno the political party. It is everywhere, in particular in the civil service, police, military, judiciary, villages, SPR, etc., all bent on making sure that Umno the political party returns to take power in Kelantan.

Ask Nizar why Perak fell. Was it because the three Pakatan wakil rakyats jumped ship or because the civil service and palace all worked against the opposition? Ask Khalid Ibrahim why he faces serious obstacles in Selangor. Is it not because the head and the body move in opposite directions? Ask Nik Aziz whether PAS really has control of Kelantan or is the Umno karat still very strong in the state civil service.

No, kicking out Umno the political party is not enough. Without a doubt the support of the Malay Diaspora is very crucial. Unless Pakatan and people such as the writer of the message above can convince the Malays that ABU is not an anti-Malay movement, ABU is not going to get wide Malay support.

The writer of the message has listed down all his grievances with Umno. And it is all about racism. The points are very valid, of course. I am not saying they are not. But try looking at things from the kacamata (eyes) of the Malays. Don’t you think that by arguing such you are creating an impression that ABU is about removing the political power of the Malays? And is this the impression we want to create? And will this get the support of the Malays in the kampongs, civil service, police, military, judiciary, SPR and so on?

So, no, do not say if you are not with us then you are against us. That is a line borrowed from President Bush. Look at the bigger picture. It is not just about kicking out Umno the political party. It is about convincing the uncommitted Malays that we are not their enemy. Hence our arguments as to why we must vote ABU must not give an impression that ABU (anything but Umno) is actually ABM (anything but Malays).

No, I am not a racist. I am not a Malay supremacist. How can I be with a Welsh mother and a Chinese/Siamese wife? I am a realist. And the reality is: political power is in the hands of the Malays and the Malay majority seats far outnumber the ‘mixed’ seats and, without Malay support, Pakatan Rakyat is not going to form the next federal government.


 

Translated into Chinese at: http://ccliew.blogspot.com/2012/01/blog-post_8129.html

Like I said, it is not the 6 million Unique Visitors that I am monitoring but the NEW visitors. We need to reach new readers -- the not yet committed or still undecided. And if Malaysia Today is merely a platform to let off steam and to curse Umno, Barisan Nasional, the Malays, Islam, the Indians, Hindraf, and whatnot, then the only people who are going to visit Malaysia Today would be the hard-core opposition supporters, the 30%, and not the uncommitted or undecided 40%.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Some have asked why I no longer bash Umno and Barisan Nasional? Actually I do. It is just that I do not curse and swear like in the past. Of course, the traditional readers of Malaysia Today find that not interesting enough. They love to read the cursing and swearing. It is entertaining to them.

But is this what we want to do: to entertain the readers with cursing and swearing? I know it’s nice to read the articles that curse and swear at Umno and Barisan Nasional. More importantly, though, will it result in more votes for Pakatan Rakyat?

That is the end game: to help Pakatan Rakyat get more votes. And the game plan has to be: how to get the 40% atas pagar or fence sitter voters to vote for Pakatan Rakyat?

Those who read Malaysia Today are already committed Pakatan Rakyat supporters. They will vote for Pakatan Rakyat even if I close Malaysia Today down and no longer write anything. They are in the category of the 30% that I wrote about earlier.

Hence, if I curse and swear at Umno and Barisan Nasional, is this going to change anything? Would this make those who have already decided to vote for Pakatan Rakyat vote for Pakatan Rakyat? They would still vote for Pakatan Rakyat even if I curse and swear at Pakatan Rakyat and praise Umno and Barisan Nasional.

We have to be careful to not play to the gallery and end up preaching to the converted. We need to reach the 40% undecided or uncommitted voters. And these people refuse to come to Malaysia Today because they are put off by the cursing and swearing. In fact, they detest the use of four-letter words and many times I receive e-mails from people who tell me they would read what I write if only I did not use four-letter words.

Over the last 12 months, Malaysia Today received 5.9 million Unique Visitors. Out of that, almost 20% or more than one million were NEW visitors. That is an increase compared to 6 million Unique Visitors and only 16% NEW visitors in 2010. The 2009 figures were about the same as for 2010.

Like I said, it is not the 6 million Unique Visitors that I am monitoring but the NEW visitors. We need to reach new readers -- the not yet committed or still undecided. And if Malaysia Today is merely a platform to let off steam and to curse Umno, Barisan Nasional, the Malays, Islam, the Indians, Hindraf, and whatnot, then the only people who are going to visit Malaysia Today would be the hard-core opposition supporters, the 30%, and not the uncommitted or undecided 40%.

The comments are another issue. Many who used to visit Malaysia Today but no longer do so is because they are put off by the racist and bigotry comments by readers. Also, they find the comments totally out of context and not at all referring to what the news report or article is saying.

Opinions are one thing. Letting off steam is another. And when we let off steam at the expense of losing the middle ground then that would be doing more harm than good.

We need to change tactics even at the risk of our traditional readers leaving us. Anyway, the traditional readers are committed to Pakatan Rakyat so we should not be too concerned about them. What we need to do is to attract the middle ground, people who want to read sensible and intellectual opinions so that they can evaluate whether what we are saying is credible or not.

I know we have lost some of our traditional readers. The figures do not lie. But am I concerned about that? I would be concerned if we get 10 million Unique Visitors and zero New Visitors. That would mean we have failed to attract the middle ground, the non-Pakatan and non-BN readers who are non-partisan and only want to read what is happening so that they can decide whom to vote for come the next GE.

And do we need to continue to talk about the bad that Umno and BN is doing? Many other people are already doing that. Many new Blogs and news portals have mushroomed over the last three years or so. We are not short of Umno- and BN-bashing websites.

We must focus on what the others are not doing. And this middle ground is not interested in hearing the bad about the government. They already know that. They want to know how things can improve if Pakatan Rakyat instead of Barisan Nasional runs the country.

That is going to be our focus in the run-up to the next election. And we shall have to expose the wrongdoings by both sides of the political divide to prove to the middle ground that we are not hard-core opposition diehards but are, in fact, in the middle and take no sides. Only then will the 40% listen to what we are saying. Or else, whatever we say will be interpreted as opposition propaganda.

Anyway, see but some of the comments below to give you an idea how many who comment do so without understanding what they are reading.

THE NEWS REPORT: The Kedah Barisan Nasional (BN) will reach out to over 967,000 new voters in the state through the "1Million Voters" programme starting next month, its chairman Datuk Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah said.

THE COMMENT: Wait a minute.....wasnt it declared recently that UMNO has 3M members to support their cause????? Then why the need to register more 'new' UMNO voters. From kedah. Are there even any more Malaysian malays left in kedah who are not UMNO, PAS or orang asli? or are these new 'voters' from Thailand? (by Harry).

THE NEWS REPORT: It is better to slow down development than to scrap race-based policies and risk ethnic clashes in the country, Tun Dr Mahathir has said.

THE COMMENT: How come until today the future of the rakyat has been destroy by this man and he still talking......just don't understand the people still supporting them, don't they paid toll, electricity, petrol etc etc. (by kolmankoh).

THE NEWS REPORT: Pekida, however, is more militant. Pekida is the IRA of Umno, not Perkasa. But you do not see them or hear them. There are many members of Pekida in the government, in Umno, in the military, in the police force, etc. This is the real paramilitary force of Umno. In fact, Abdullah Badawi is the leader of Pekida in Penang and Dr Mahathir the leader of Pekida in Kedah. And we have Pekida in Selangor and all over Malaysia, all headed by key Umno leaders.

THE COMMENT: So we should all be afraid of Perkida. In other words, we shouldn't be afraid of homosexuals right? Or anyone who is being portrayed as one, correct? Unless of course, he happens to be a homosexual Perkida, ya? (by Taikohtai).

THE COMMENT (2): It seems to me Malaysia Today is no longer the source of independent news. You write about perkasa or pekida but what about DJZ and all sorts of Chinese association that are racially motivated to protect chinese rights. I think DJZ etc and you included have been trumpeting about Malay racism, perkasa, pekida and what not. (by The real Hazil).

THE NEWS REPORT: The Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has withdrawn its support for the “Anything But Umno” (ABU) movement and has advised members against attending ABU events.

THE COMMENT: Hindraf still around? Wow, it seems you are making noise so people will notice that you still are. Listen, if you keep making even silent contribution towards the progress of kicking out UMNO, everyone will appreciate your existence. But if not, then too bad...(by PainInTheS).

THE COMMENT (2): Hindraf is another Perkasa it seems. With Indians in the minority and splits into various parties, it will one day be only a redundant group. (by tajmahal).

THE COMMENT (3): So funny seeing the Chinese attacking the Kelings for not being loyal. Guess someone forgot to tell them that the majority Chinese still secretly support BN. Rice bowl protection. As evidenced by their top business leaders nauseating pandering to najib umno. (by Oz Chinese).

MANY MORE COMMENTS HERE: http://www.malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/newscommentaries/46787-hindraf-withdraws-support-for-abu
 

We want to know more than just who is winning the popularity contest. We want to know from both Najib and Anwar what are their strategies to make Malaysia self-sufficient in food production and how long is this going to take? We also want to know what are the back-up plans and contingencies in the event there is crop failure in our neighbouring countries and they refuse to continue selling food to Malaysia?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Chua Soi Lek said that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is ahead of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim in the popularity contest. I did not realise that we were running a popularity contest.

This is what I was trying to say in my latest articles in ‘The Corridors of Power’. This is not a popularity contest. This is not about ‘do you love Najib?’ -- and if you do not then vote Pakatan Rakyat because if Pakatan Rakyat wins then you will get Anwar as the new Prime Minister to replace Najib.

Malaysia is not the US. It is not about two people contesting to become the country’s leader. It is about which government can better serve the country’s interest.

Malaysia’s Westminster system of government is modelled after the UK. In the UK, they vote for the party that can best serve the British voters. They talk about Labour or Conservative (care a damn who the leader is) although now LibDem is also on their lips. Most voters are not concerned about the party leader although I admit some do vote based on who is leading the party.

Okay, let’s say we want Anwar rather than Najib as the next Prime Minister. I have no problems with that. But why do we want Anwar rather than Najib? Is it because we hate Rosmah Mansor? (That’s a good reason). Is it because we believe that Najib is somehow involved in Altantuya Shaariibuu’s murder? (That’s another good reason). Is it because of the rampant and blatant corruption? (That’s a damn good reason).

So, yes, we have our reasons as to why we don’t want Najib. But that is not enough. We can’t say we want Anwar because we don’t want Najib. We must say we want Anwar because we want Anwar.

So why do we want Anwar (other than because we don’t want Najib)? Let’s be clear in our minds about this. Even more important than that, let’s make sure Anwar too knows why we want him and not Najib (and not that we want him just because we don’t want Najib).

There are three things that are more important than Rosmah and Altantuya (and probably at par with our detest for corruption). And these are health, education and food.

When we are young (like my five grandchildren) we need a good education system (and good meaning comparable to global standards, not just Malaysian standards). I want to know that my grandchildren can survive, not only in Malaysia, but anywhere in the world -- and that they can compete with the more than seven billion world population. And, to do that, they will have to be damn smart and backed with a damn good education.

When you are old, like me, you need a good health care system. And at my age, 61, I am beginning to require all sorts of health care. I now fall down when I walk and bump into things and whatnot. I realise that I am getting old and unless I get good health care I will not last too long in this world. (And that is why I am taking all these courses in Oxford. I realise that my body is failing but I want to make sure that my mind remains sharp till the day I take my last breath).

And, to make sure that we all live to a ripe old age, we need food, good and nourishing food. And this is something that all Malaysians should be worried about because the country is not self-sufficient yet. Most of what you see in the market is imported. There is nothing that Malaysia produces that is enough, let alone surplus that can be exported.

Of course, we also need jobs, a house, transportation, some entertainment, a holiday now and then, some spare shopping money to go buy a Birkin handbag, and whatnot. But we will not die if we can’t do all that. We will if our health is not taken care of and we have no food to eat. And, without a good education, how do we support ourselves after we leave school -- unless we want to go to Indonesia to work as maids and construction workers (which one day might just happen, so don’t laugh too fast)?

Anwar was both Education and Agriculture minister at one time. What did he do when he headed these Ministries? Today, we complain about the state of affairs of our agriculture industry and our education system. Are not all these ‘inherited’ problems (they did not just happen recently)? These were problems prevailing since the time Anwar was the Minister. Nothing has changed.

I don’t want to know who is winning the popularity contest. Sukarno was also popular, more popular than Najib and Anwar combined. But was Indonesia heaven on earth when Sukarno was its President? He messed up the country good and proper.

So did his successor, Suharto, another very popular leader. Only now can Indonesia be said to be moving forward. In the very near future, Malaysia is going to be the poor cousin of Indonesia, just like East Germany was to West Germany.

We want to know more than just who is winning the popularity contest. We want to know from both Najib and Anwar what are their strategies to make Malaysia self-sufficient in food production and how long is this going to take? We also want to know what are the back-up plans and contingencies in the event there is crop failure in our neighbouring countries and they refuse to continue selling food to Malaysia?

We also want to know how the health and education systems are going to be reformed and when we can expect not just quality health care and education but also they being available FREE to all Malaysians.

Can we start with these three very crucial areas? Then, in that same breath, we can also talk about how to eliminate or reduce corruption. A popular leader is of no use to Malaysia if he does not have vision. So what is the vision and mission of both Najib and Anwar who are offering themselves as ‘the most popular leader of Malaysia’?

Najib always ahead of Anwar in popularity contest, says Soi Lek

(The Malaysian Insider) - Datuk Seri Najib Razak has always been the preferred leader for Malaysians, says Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, rather than Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who has lost support after “crying wolf” too many times.

The MCA president also believed that Anwar’s sodomy acquittal had vindicated the prime minister and not the opposition leader, as it proved the judiciary’s independence — a line that the Najib administration has used after the verdict was handed down on January 9.

As such, Dr Chua (picture) disagreed that the acquittal had placed both rivals on a level playing field and was unlikely to have a great impact on the results of the coming general election.

“To begin with, it has never been a level playing field and all the studies have shown that Najib, on his own, is more popular than Anwar.

“Their (the opposition’s) own studies also show that. So it never started with the same level playing field,” the MCA chief told The Malaysian Insider in an exclusive interview here.

Following Anwar’s highly-publicised sodomy acquittal, analysts said both political rivals Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) were now neck and neck in the contest for Malaysia’s middle ground.

They added that with the end of the sodomy trial, both sides could now focus their attention on the economy and reforms needed to ensure Malaysia remains competitive.

“The positive outcome of the case evens out the playing field,” Ibrahim Suffian from the Merdeka Center had told The Malaysian Insider.

But Dr Chua said Anwar’s initial popularity when he re-entered the political scene had lost steam over the years.

“I think he has been calling bluff too many times. First, they said they would take over. I still remember receiving the SMS that the Agong was going to swear in Anwar as the new PM.

“So when you cry wolf or fire too many times, there will be a day when you actually catch fire and nobody pays attention to it,” he said.

Dr Chua was referring to Anwar’s controversial September 16 takeover attempt, when the PR de facto leader had boasted mass defections from BN would help the fledgling opposition pact claim Putrajaya.

The failed attempt haunted Anwar for years, with BN leaders trumpeting to the public that the incident showed the opposition leader’s penchant for lying to the public.

“Next, people can also see that what we call the ‘PM-elect’ (Anwar), apart from his rhetoric, what has he done?

“As RPK (blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin) correctly pointed out — in three years, he (Anwar) has gone overseas 60 or 100 times. Can you imagine? Hopping around the world, giving lectures... people can see whether you are just spinning, playing politics,” Dr Chua said.

In contrast, the former health minister said Najib has been concentrating on running his administration and transforming the economy.

“Whether you like Najib or not, he has paid a lot of attention to the economic transformation of the country and all the indicators show that in terms of foreign direct investment, we have done up,” he said.

Dr Chua said the business community are “practical people” who believe in delivery more than political rhetoric and in that respect, Najib has far surpassed Anwar in the popularity contest.

Buoyed by the feel-good factor following Anwar’s acquittal and cash handouts from Budget 2012, it is widely expected that Najib will call elections within months, ahead of the BN mandate expiring in May 2013.

Najib is due to celebrate the Chinese New Year later today in Penang, where the sizeable Chinese community voted in PR in Election 2008, paving the way for Lim Guan Eng to be chief minister.
 

I have written about the Menteri Besar of Kedah way before the March 2008 general election and before the MB became the MB. The story I wrote was about how he told a closed-door meeting of PAS members that Anwar Ibrahim is not really innocent of the charges against him. In other words, Anwar is guilty of sodomy as charged.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) supports ABU or the ‘Anything But Umno’ (Asalkan Bukan Umno) movement. According to the SAMM website (see here http://www.anakmudamalaysia.com/), che’GuBard is the Pengasas (founder) of SAMM.

Then we have the Malaysiakini news report below, which appears to be the reverse of ABU.

What do you make of this U-turn? Is SAMM a Trojan horse? Is it secretly working for Umno and Barisan Nasional? Is it trying to sabotage the efforts of Pakatan Rakyat in ousting Barisan Nasional? Have they been bought over? Even if you are not happy with the opposition, why speak out now? Why raise issues so close to the next general election?

“Azizan must insaf (repent) and realise that the suspended students are brave enough to state the truth, unlike others who apple polish and are willing to pawn their principles,” said Adam Adli Abdul Halim.

Adam Adli is the Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) student who was suspended for three semesters for lowering a flag depicting Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak at the PWTC.

Is Adam Adli calling those who support the opposition without question ‘apple polishers’? How dare he!

The opposition must begin to accept that there are those who oppose Barisan Nasional and Umno based on principles. And because of these same principles they will also oppose the opposition whenever the opposition errs.

These people are intelligent and educated and can think for themselves. They will not oppose the government for the sake of opposing or support the opposition blindly. Right can never be wrong and wrong be right just because you oppose one side and support the other.

This is the mark of a thinking society.

I have written about the Menteri Besar of Kedah way before the March 2008 general election and before the MB became the MB. The story I wrote was about how he told a closed-door meeting of PAS members that Anwar Ibrahim is not really innocent of the charges against him. In other words, Anwar is guilty of sodomy as charged.

Yet, in spite of his perceived anti-Anwar stance, he was still appointed the MB of Kedah.

If I had a devious mind I would say that this latest ‘outburst’ (the word they use to describe my actions) is a conspiracy by Anwar to bring down the MB. And are not Adam Adli and che’GuBard PKR supporters? Adam Adli had been photographed with Anwar while che’GuBard is a PKR leader. My theory, therefore, would be plausible.

But no, there is no devious plot involved here. We can’t label every criticism by opposition supporters against the opposition as a mala fide devious plot to do harm to the opposition.

In the Galas by-election in Gua Musang in 2010, I wrote that PAS was going to lose. And I gave my reasons as to why they were going to lose that by-election. I did not whack the opposition. I just wrote my analysis. And PAS did lose.

Sometimes we can’t be too diplomatic. Sometimes we need to whack. When we whack it upsets people, no doubt. But it also wakes them up from their slumber. We can be kind by being diplomatic. Or we can also be cruel to be kind. Different situations require different courses of action.

The Galas by-election was a clear derelict of duty by the state government. The writings were on the wall. PAS was going to lose. But they could have won had they taken corrective action. DAP knew this. PAS knew this. PKR knew this. Umno knew this. But no one did anything and PAS got whacked.

Is it not better that we whack PAS than the voters do? At least if we whack PAS and they wake up and the voters do not whack them, some good would come out of it. But if we are scared of being called a traitor, turncoat, Trojan horse, and whatnot, and we keep quiet, and then the voters whack them good and proper, we would be doing a great disservice to the cause.

I do not believe that we should keep quiet and not rock the boat until after the next general election. I do not believe that we must first allow Pakatan Rakyat to form the next government before we scream and shout about what we are not happy about. It is okay if they do win the election. But what if what happened in Galas happens all over the country? Would lamenting be of any good then?

(Malaysiakini) - Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) has demanded that Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak reverse the suspension of five students at the state-owned institution of higher learning or risk being booted out in the next general election.

 “The students are those without political motives (who) championing for truth and freedom... if Azizan stays egoistic in not solving the problem prudently, don’t be surprised if the students with all their power will bring down this leader in the 13th general election,” said the group.

Azizan has backed Kolej Universiti Insaniah (Kuin) in Alor Setar in suspending five of its students under the much-contested University and University Colleges Act (UUCA) in May last year.

The PAS menteri besar’s support is also contradictory to Pakatan Rakyat’s promises under their Buku Jingga (Orange Book), where the opposition’s pact has vowed to repeal the contentious legislation.

“Azizan should be prepared to face the results of his every action in ignoring the voice of the students,” said the student coalition in a statement yesterday.

In condemning the state leadership’s support for the institution’s decision in using the “draconian” law to restrict students’ freedom of expression, the groups said:

“As the menteri besar, he should know his actions will defeat the purpose of the Orange Book and will be seen as rhetorics to students.

“Despite the resistance from Pakatan leadership and student movements, Azizan is still on the offensive.”

In another statement, Aksi Kami Progresif (AKP), made up of three student groups including Legasi Mahasiswa Progresif, its coordinator Adam Adli Abdul Halim also rebuked Azizan for “disrespecting” the rights of the students.

“Azizan must insaf and realise that the suspended students are brave enough to state the truth, unlike others who apple polish and are willing to pawn their principles,” he added.

The movement urged the menteri besar to lift the suspension and fulfil Pakatan’s promise to safeguard students’ rights to freedom of expression.
 

Translated into Chinese at: http://ccliew.blogspot.com/2012/01/blog-post_29.html