Horse Trading for the Prime Ministership?

Well the undesirable but inevitable happened, Najib became our 6th PM. Many people had hoped that somehow Badawi could pull off an upset by deciding to stay on or the Agong could have rejected Najib as PM. Wishful thinking I would say.

From the various blogs sympathetic to Pakatan, you could read comments blaming the Agong, some blaming Badawi and of course fingers pointed at Najib. Nobody knows of course except the players involved. However I am inclined to believe that the Agong had no choice in the matter because Najib and Badawi conspired, yes conspired and agreed to the switch.

You would be wondering why Badawi would do that, considering Najib had brought in Mahathir during the UMNO general assembly who stole the thunder from Badawi's swan song, and to rub salt into the wounds, forced them to hold hands, or fingertips. Or how Mahathir had attacked Khairy's candidacy and ultimate win as Youth head.

So what could possibly have happened? Simple, I believe that horse trading took place in order for Badawi to step down. Badawi probably was promised or he demanded the following:
1. Khairy to be given a full ministership and to be insulated from further vicious attacks by Mahathir
2. UMNO Youth to show their full backing for Khairy
3. Badawi to receive a plum position as chairman of one of the GLCs
4. Cash as a retirement gift

We will see what transpires in the next few weeks. In the meantime, don't get too carried away by the steps taken by Najib in freeing the 13 ISA detainees and removing the ban on Pakatan's two publications. This has been carefully designed to provide publicity and mileage for the by-elections. If Najib had been sincere, he should have released all 5 Hindraf leaders, if not all of the ISA detainees. Don't be surprised then to see the two freed Hindraf leaders campaign earnestly for BN in the by-elections.

Simple take-away message from Najib, we will treat you nice if you are on our side. If not, be ready to feel the full force of the law, be it civil, criminal or ISA, against you. May God help us.

Farewell Soba!

To my dearest Soba,

You were starting to be a part of my life but cruelly, your life was cut short today. I will dearly miss you. May you rest in peace.

March 8 - One step forward, two steps back?

Tomorrow will mark the 1st anniversary of the tsunami that swept the country, where BN lost its 2/3 majority in parliament and Pakatan Rakyat won 5 states. Are we in a better shape today than a year ago?

Let's analyze what has or hasn't changed (at least perception-wise):
Federal govt - no
Monarchy - no
Judiciary - no
Police - no
Civil service - no/maybe a little
Media - no/maybe a little

What we had hoped would have changed did not. Some could even say that the institutions that govern, control or influence our lives have gotten worse. Look at our economy, the ringgit, crime... Enough said, so where do we go from here? What hope do we have there things will change for the better? Was March 8 one step forward, two steps backwards? Are we on a slippery path of no return?

What can we do as Rakyat to influence things? Do we just sit and wait for the next general elections? It would seem obvious now that unless there is a change in the federal government, as there is where almost all the power lies to effect change, Pakatan Rakyat and her bloggers can shout, criticize and demonstrate all they want but nothing will change unless they control Parliament. The government of the day controls the Police, judiciary, MACC, armed forces, civil servants, public hospitals, schools and basically all that have the ability to change our lives for better or worse. Recent examples - Kugan, Perak, Karpal in Parliament, Question is, do we have the luxury of time to wait until the next general elections? Sigh.....wish I have the answers.......

RPK, Please don't leave us this way

As many people must now be aware of, RPK wrote the heart-wrenching article “Probably my last message to Malaysians” and many readers contributed comments in what must be a record-breaking 300-comment No Hold Barred article. I humbly submitted my comments too imploring RPK to reconsider his tough stance if he were to be sent back to Kamunting.

I had asked him to respect his family wishes although I probably don’t have the right to ask that as it is for his family to decide. I had also asked him who he is doing it for, pointing to the low number of people who participate in vigils, petitions organized by MT or other bloggers. The comments that poured out from mostly caring and concerned readers who asked him to reconsider his decision to die in Kamunting, if he were to be sen t back. You would think that based on the outpouring of emotions, the same people would flock to attend his ISA hearing at the Federal Court in Putrajayaon Tuesday. Sad to say, I could only count less than 100 who showed up, and that’s counting the lawyers.

I take no pleasure in being vindicated as I had commented “Look at the countless petitions, vigils etc. Most are too selfish or coward to participate. Would your death jolt them to their senses and make them continue the fight? I think not, brother. They will make comments safely behind their computers and some will come out and fight, but most are just too chicken or selfish to do anything to help change the country.”

So my appeal to you RPK as to why you are still needed in the struggle:

1. The people in Malaysia are not ready for a martyr, my dear RPK. If you believe that the struggle must go on, we need you to continue to hammer away at the apathetic citizens in your compelling style as it has been proven to be effective.
2. We don’t see anybody ready to step into your big shoes to get rid of the UMNO gang, the kangaroo court judges, the policemen in cahoots with the underworld, the shady businessmen who buys politicians, the low-life lawyers who cheat their unsuspecting clients, the religious bigots who are hypocrites, the party-hopping politicians who do it solely for money, and the list goes on.
3. People trust you and can share with you in confidence because you are your own master. You epitomizes “amar maaruf, nahi mungkar”
4. Lastly people want change but not many are ready to leave their cocoons to fight for their rights. You have started and led the fight. There will be 2 to 3 million new voters coming aboard. We need you around to educate, inspire and lead them to safeguard our nation for their generation and future generations.

Please don't leave us this way...............

Who is in control - Najib or Badawi?

I was reading the Mkini report on RPK’s sedition trial titled “Najib crops up in alleged letter and photograph” and then I saw Malaysian Insider’s Pak Lah era ends on March 31 as Najib steps in as sixth PM . If it is a certainty that Najib has consolidated his power and will automatically assume the throne as the Malaysian insider would suggest, then why all the negative publicity about Najib in the ongoing RPK’s trial?

If Najib is really in control, why did he not instruct the police to drop the charges in the sedition trial and also get his lawyer to drop the charges in the defamation trial, as they both centre around the Altantuya murder case and implicitly involves him and his wife? If he really wants to nail RPK, there is still the ISA appeal by the govt. that they can use to punish RPK.

I spoke to people who have been attending the sedition trial proceedings whereby the star witness, ASP Gan was being grilled by RPK’s lawyer, Gobind Singh Deo. All of them say that Gan seems to be hiding something, not telling the complete truth and making a fool out of himself. Mind you, he is a superintendant and linked with Interpol with 30 years of experience in the police force. So instead of being convincing, authoritative and assertive given his rank and experience, he comes across as the opposite, like the Inspector Clouseau. It is such a weak case, not helped by Gan's performance, and furthermore, Najib’s name is being dragged into the spotlight again, in an unfavorable light. Just when he thinks the Altantunya ghost is buried with the release of his good friend Razak Baginda, here comes RPK and Gobind resurrecting the spirit of Altantunya and using the media, mainstream included, to haunt Najib.

My question is this: who is really running the country and dictating things? Is it Badawi or Najib? Going by the press reports in the last few days, I don’t believe Najib is in full control. Otherwise there would have been direction to tone down the reporting on RPK's sedition trial. This thus makes the Malaysian Insider’s report of him taking over on March 31, as wishful thinking, to say the least.

Federal Court Judge: "Your appeal is dimissed, with costs....."

Managed to pop in to the Federal Court earlier today to hear Karpal Singh argue the case for the Hindraf 5's appeal to review the habeas corpus suit. The outcome was not unexpected, looking at the line-up of the federal judges in the 3-man panel, Augustine Paul, Nik Hashim, and Zulkefli Ahmad Makinuddin.

After a lengthy and compelling submission by Karpal, the 3-man panel took a 10-minute break and came back to announce their decision. Judge Nik Hashim said that the judges unanimously voted to "dismiss the appeal WITH COSTS". Wait a minute, this is not a civil suit where you may have to bear the costs of the lawyers and fees from both sides if you lose the case. Luckily Karpal corrected the judge that this was not a civil case but a criminal one. "Oh ya-ke?" and proceeded to correct himself that the "appeal is dismissed." to the amusement of the audience. How embarrassing to hear a learned judge make such a mistake. And of all places, it happened in the highest court of the land, in the ostentatious Palace of Justice in Bolehland. The sadder part is that the detainees now have to languish in Kamunting at the pleasure of the Home Minister, indefinitely.

RPK should lead an independent party to keep BN & PR in check

I was reading Farouk Peru's suggestion to RPK: "you can lead the Malays to form their own democratic party or to join with the DAP" since Farouk believes that PAS and DAP cannot form a stable coalition since they have irreconcilable differences. I agree with the suggestion but for different reasons.

RPK as everyone knows, commands great respect from all and sundry, except of course those in power who feel threatened by him. The Man has great charisma, credibility, intelligence and humility. With these type of credentials, who wouldn't want to sign up and join a party led by him? I have never been a member of any political party but I would join RPK's party if ever he forms one.

I bet if RPK's party fields candidates in the next GE, they will win. Sure it will lead to 3-cornered fights but remember, there are quite a number of state and Parliament seats which have questionable candidates from the PR side so they do not deserve to keep such seats. Hence if PR does not get its act together and continue to field such weak or questionable candidates, then RPK's party should offer a better alternative. Remember Lunas and Kapar, to name a few, and of course the 3 traitors from Perak. You may notice I don't mention BN candidates as I feel BN is beyond salvation.

The way I see it, RPK is fighting from the outside of both BN and PR. And as he has rightly put it " Politicians do not think much of you if you do not hold any party positions. They only respect those who hold positions in political parties and government, not those outside mainstream politics", what better way to put them in their place by having political representation in the state assemblies and Parliament through your party. Then you can be the kingmakers, without any political affiliation or obligation to either BN or PR. Your representatives will do the right thing and vote with their conscience.

Through his vast networking, RPK has come into contact will people from all walks of life, and I am sure he can come up with a list of credible and promising candidates. Even existing elected candidates from BN or PR may also jump even if they have to go through a by-election. I am sure RPK will see to it that every single one of his candidates will be screened and pass very high standards set by the Man himself.

To kick it off, a fund-raising campaign from the public, ala Obama's, will certainly bring it contributions from everyone who is fed up with the current state of politics or fed up with either BN or PR, and who will now have a third alternative. People will volunteer to help the party set up, and campaign and of course vote for RPK's party. It will be a breath of fresh air. This can be the mental revolution that RPK has talked about in the past.

So what say you, RPK?