Birth Pang for PKR

By Patrick Lee

PETALING JAYA: Internal squabbles are no strangers to political parties, especially the “newer” ones like PKR, say analysts.
"It is normal for all parties to go through a difficult genesis," said Farish Ahmad Noor, political analyst at Nanyang Technological University.

He was commenting on the current infighting in PKR over the deputy presidency post in the party election in November.

The main top contenders for the prize are PKR supreme council member Zaid Ibrahim and vice-president Azmin Ali.

"What is happening to PKR is not new or unique," Farish Ahmad said, making comparisons to the disputes that both Umno and PAS had been involved in over the years.

PKR also seemed to lack the foundation that the other, more experienced parties seemed to have.

“PAS and DAP have gone through the same stages in their early days,” said Sivamurugan Pandian, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) political analyst.

“PKR, on the other hand, has a lot of new leaders.”

He also told FMT that this was representative of a new political landscape, where younger leaders were putting themselves into the party's ranks.

Clear leadership

Calling the situation “quite normal”, James Chin, political analyst at Monash University, said that the other opposition parties had the same problems.

“It's just that they've been able to hide their problems better,” he said.

Nevertheless, Chin sees the infighting in PKR a boon for the party.

"It's better to have an all-out fight (for the positions), because then you'll have clear results (on who should be the leaders)," he said.

“(At the moment), no one knows who is the number two in the party. If I were a PKR member, I would want to see clear leadership.”

However, PKR's leaders have also been cautioned against continuing their mudslinging.

“Many thought PKR would have been able to handle itself better than how it is handling itself now,” Sivamurugan said.

He added that it was not surprising, considering that many of PKR leaders were former Umno members.

“But once you're out of Umno, you should have got yourself a new campaign strategy,” the USM analyst said.

“PKR delegates don't want to see another Umno. They want to see a new party.”

"Rather than focusing on national issues, they seem to be looking at positions," Sivamurugan said, adding that politicians should know when to call for “ceasefire”.

When asked if the public had enough of PKR's episodes, Farish Ahmad said, "I dont know if the public is bored with PKR, but I certainly am by now."

He also told FMT that many PKR's leaders were stuck with personality politics, especially with their de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.

"Should this reign of personality politics continue, then PKR may just end up being another typical ego-based party where personalities come before substance."
FMT

More reps disclaimed supporting Azmin

Several Selangor and Negri Sembilan PKR state assemblypersons have disclaimed involvement with a group of elected representatives which voiced open support for vice-president Azmin Ali to contest for the party deputy presidency.

This morning, a press conference in Shah Alam was held by a group led by Kota Anggerik state assemblyperson Yaakob Sapari, purportedly representing nine of the party's state assemblypersons from Selangor and four from Negeri Sembilan who endorse Azmin.

This comes in the wake of a similar press conference held yesterday by a group of PKR MPs, claiming to represent 18 parliamentarians and two senators.

It was later established that not all the MPs named by the group had given permission for their names to be used to lend support to Azmin's candidacy.

Today was no different as a large number of state assemblypersons purportedly from the group expressed surprise that they were named by Yaakob.

Among them was Kajang state assemblyperson Lee Kim Sin, who said that while he did not object to the function this morning, he is 'independent' and did not belong to any faction as asserted by Yaakob.

“My opinion is, it is too early to declare any support because further nominations may yet come in. I have to wait until after the nominations and see the situation.

“Although Azmin is the Selangor state chief, we have to choose a leader based on the party's needs and abilities, not according to faction," said Lee.

What if Syed Husin contests?

Others who claimed that they were named by Yaakob without their permission were Chai Tong Chai (Chuah), Aminudin Harun (Sikamat), Gan Pei Nei (Rawang) and Rodziah Ismail (Batu Tiga).

Chai said he was against stating support for any candidate at the moment on the assumption that PKR deputy president Syed Husin Ali would not defend his post.

“It is still early to declare support for anyone. What if Syed Husin Ali (incumbent) decides to seek re-election?” he asked.

Syed Husin, though expected to step down, is well respected in the party and any attempt to challenge him would likely split the party.

Aminudin confirmed that he was asked to join the press conference this morning, but declined.

“To me this is an internal (arrangement), so there is no need to put my name if I'm not coming... In Negri Sembilan, members are focused on fulfilling their Ramadan obligations rather than the party polls,” said Aminudin.

'Wait for their manifesto first'

He added that the press conference by Yaakob's group may even prove to be of detriment to the party.

“Today this group has a press conference. Tomorrow there might be another press conference by a different group. This is not healthy for the party,” he said.

When contacted, Gan said she was surprised that she had been named as one of the 13 state assemblypersons who endorsed Azmin for the deputy presidency.

“I didn't know my name was in the list. I was informed by (Batu Caves state assemblyperson) Amirudin Shari to attend the press conference today but he didn't state the details,” she said.

Gan said that as nominations have yet to begin, it was improper to make any announcements to declare support for anyone.

“Secondly, the most important thing is, the candidates should also release their manifesto. Only then can we decide whether to support him or her," she said.

'200 percent support for Azmin'

Meanwhile, Port Dickson assemblyperson M Ravi confirmed that he consented to being on the list, adding that he supported Azmin “200 percent”.

“We shouldn't give a new guy too high a post,” said Ravi, in an apparent reference to Zaid Ibrahim, who has stated his intention contest for No 2.

Taman Medan assemblyperson Haniza Talha said that she, too, supports Azmin, but this does not necessarily translate to votes from the 400,000 members.

“The nomination is from a division member, not me. We have to be fair, and as a democratic party, we have to undergo this path. There are no shortcuts.

“Before making decisions we should discuss with the grassroots members first. What's the hurry? The nominations will only be made after Hari Raya,” she said.

Addtional reporting by Ng Ling Fong and Abd Rahim Sabri.

Malaysiakini

Meeting Over GE 13 Strategy

BN sec-gens meet today over election strategy

By G. Manimaran and Adib Zalkapli

September 08, 2010

Tengku Adnan will chair a meeting of BN secretary-generals today. — Picture by Choo Choy May

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders will meet today to discuss election preparations amid speculation that the Sarawak polls and the 13th general election would be called by the middle of next year. “We will meet tomorrow (today), I will chair the first meeting with all BN component members, all the secretary-generals to discuss voters registration, strategies — it is basically about strengthening BN,” said BN secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor in an interview with The Malaysian Insider.
“We are not only going to talk about registering new voters, but also problems faced [by] component parties ahead of the next election,” he said.
Tengku Adnan, also the Umno secretary-general, admitted that some BN component parties were facing problems but believed they could be solved ahead of the next general election.
He said that BN must address the needs of the majority of the voters as the coalition only has about six million members including 3.4 million from Umno.
Currently, there are 11,381,193 registered voters.
“We need the people’s support,” said the Putrajaya MP.
“We may have our shortcomings and weaknesses but they can addressed. We are listening to what the people are saying. This is not an authoritarian party or a communist party where only an individual is in power,” he added.
“BN consists of small and big component parties, but with equal representation in BN,” he said.
The ruling coalition now has 13 members after Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) left in late 2008.
The term for Sarawak state government expires next July while elections for parliament and other states are not due until May 2013.
BN parties are still trailing behind Pakatan Rakyat (PR) in registering new voters. Umno is ahead of all BN component parties, while DAP leads the voters registration drive in Pakatan Rakyat (PR).
According to official figures released by the Elections Commission (EC) today, DAP registered 9,106 voters in July compared to Umno’s 7,230.
Voter registration in June was two times higher, with a total of 48,655 new voters signed up.
In June, the DAP enrolled 20,862 people (42.8 per cent) while Umno only managed 10,675 (21.5 per cent.)
 Between January and June this year, MCA registered 2,917 voters, MIC (1,109), Gerakan (476), PAS (36,618), PKR (13,098), PPP (four), PBS (686), SAPP (218), Upko (241), LDP (37), PBB (649), SUPP (972), SPDP (435), PRS (191) and SNAP (six).
Speculation has the Sarawak state election being called after the Hari Raya celebration, with the general election in the second quarter of next year, depending on BN’s performance in Sarawak.
BN is also said to be considering holding both elections simultaneously next year.
However, an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) report last week dismissed such talk, saying the results of recent by-elections suggest that the electorate has become much more volatile — especially non-Malay voters.
Non-Malay voters have been turned off by calls from Malay rights groups such as Perkasa for Datuk Seri Najib Razak to keep affirmative action measures from the New Economic Policy (NEP) in his New Economic Model (NEM) which envisions an open high-income economy.
In an interview with The Malaysian Insider early last month, EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said he did not expect a general election to be called prior to 2012.
It is understood that several Umno leaders and BN component parties were also not in favour of an early election.
MI

Muslim must unite against Quraan Burning Campaign

SUMENEP (East Java): The Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) has called on all Muslims around the world to unite against the "Burn a Quran Day" campaign to commemorate the Sept 11, 2001 attacks in America, Indonesia's Antara news agency said.
About 50 activists of this conservative Islamic organisation staged a protest in Sumenep, Madura Island, East Java Province, yesterday.
"May Almighty God curse those who have initiated and planned to burn the holy Quran. This is an act of cruel and uncivilised people," a spokesman of HTI, Faisal, told the crowd of protesters.
To stop this campaign, all Muslims in the world had no choice but to unite to do their best to prevent this from happening on Sept11, Antara quoted him as saying.
"The plan itself has hurt and humiliated Muslims all over the world. Don't let this happen," he said.
A HTI-Sumenep chapter activist named Rifki said yesterday's protest was staged to remind Muslim communities all over the world of this plan to burn the Quran in the US.
"We are sure that our brothers and sisters in Islam will be encouraged to do their best to stop this act. They will, at least, recite prayers for the failure of this act," he said.
“The people who wanted to burn the Quran in the US wanted to humiliate Muslims.
"This shows that the US does want to declare war on Muslims," he said.
"The US has always cornered Muslims by saying that Muslims are part of terrorists though that country is actually a terrorist to the Muslims," he added.
This controversial campaign has not only made Muslims in Indonesia deeply concerned but also stirred uneasiness in American society.
One of the Americans who expressed her worry was Jennifer S Byron.
In her recent article published in Newsweek-Washington Post online, Byron called on American Christians to reject the "Burn a Quran Day".
She said the "Burn a Quran Day" was the way of a church in Florida to mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept 11 incident.
"So far the Christian response to this in America has been nearly dead silence."
"The National Association of Evangelicals has issued a press release opposing Burn a Quran Day. This is good, but it is basically just a statement to assure non-Evangelical Christians that Terry Jones does not represent authentic Evangelical Christianity," Byron said.
The Sept 11, 2001 attacks on American soil were launched by members of the al-Qaeda and killed several thousand people, especially in New York City's Twin Tower buildings.
- Bernama

Farewell to Musa

Seeing the back of Musa: An answer to a prayer — Tunku Abdul Aziz

September 04, 2010

SEPT 4 — I hardly ever receive presents because, I suppose, I rarely ever give any. I do not even bother to celebrate my own birthday; it comes and goes completely unnoticed. When on the odd occasion I do receive a present for delivering an anti-corruption and ethical governance speech, I treasure it even though it is just another Royal Selangor pewter plate, to clutter my already-cluttered sitting room, collecting dust, to the annoyance of my long-suffering wife.
The present I am now writing about is infinitely more precious, a bountiful God’s munificent blessings in answer to a nation’s desperate prayer. The prayer, in short, beseeches God the Almighty to give Hishammuddin Hussein, our often “not all there” Minister of Home Affairs, the courage and wisdom to put Musa Hassan out to pasture, not so much as a normal and inevitable consequence of the ravages of time, but, in this case, his unethical baggage had grown too large for the nation to ignore. That must surely weigh heavily against his fitness for continued employment.
In an ethically more demanding society, which ours, I fear, is not, he would never have been allowed to darken the portal of Bukit Aman, let alone occupy the office of the Inspector-General of Police, a position of trust. Musa should never have been appointed the nation’s top dog in the first place, especially after his remarkable stellar performance in the infamous earlier Anwar Ibrahim trial, appearing complete with his pathetic stock in trade or prop in the shape of a decidedly grubby mattress, for the entire world to see.
It was in the course of this trial that he showed the full extent of his brilliant professional approach to policing which led an irreverent friend of mine to describe both Musa and Augustine Paul, and may his soul rest in peace, as “the lowest form of human life.” I apologise on behalf of my friend to the amoebas of this world. Musa displayed the agility of someone who knew exactly which side of the bread was buttered and he served Mahathir Mohamad’s evil purpose well. Quick promotions followed as a reward.
There is a sense of blessed relief permeating the atmosphere; even the police, I am told, are celebrating the departure of the man who has brought them into disrepute. Musa became the first IGP, since the post was held by Claude Fenner, to be publicly denounced in a court of law in Sabah as an “unreliable witness.” But then he was merely reverting to type and following in the footsteps of a long line of corrupt predecessors who are now luxuriating in the lap of their ill-gotten riches.
From my years of observation of the PDRM, there have only been three IGPs who were clean and seen to be free of corruption, namely the late Claude Fenner, Abdul Rahman Hashim who died under tragic circumstances in the service of the nation, and the best of them all, Mohamed Hanif Omar who is enormously disappointed to see his years of work destroyed under a succession of disreputable men. Hanif remains the quintessential officer and gentleman, an iconic figure symbolising the golden age of the Royal Malaysia Police.
While the nation rejoices in seeing the back of Musa as he gets on his bicycle to ride into the sunset of ignominy, his shadowy successor’s opening expression of gratitude to his soon departing superior sent shivers down the spine. He said, “I have been well trained by Musa. I am honoured to succeed him.” The last thing we want after the Musa years is a Musa-cloned successor. If continuing in the Musa policing model is all Ismail Omar can bring to the table, then woe betide this nation that has so far waited in vain for a human rights-based police culture.
Let Musa’s deftly cultivated culture of impunity be replaced by one espousing honour, dignity, respect, responsibility, transparency and accountability for actions taken to protect life and property. The new IGP would do well to be his own man and exorcise the dubious and unethical practices that Musa believed to be his great gift to this nation. We deserve better.
* Tunku Abdul Aziz was a member of the 2004 Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Royal Malaysian Police.
* This article is the personal opinion of the writer or publication. The Malaysian Insider does not endorse the view unless specified.