God bless Malaysia

Negaraku, tanah tumpahnya darahku,
Rakyat hidup, bersatu dan maju,
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.

Malaysia, my beloved land. It is indeed a joy and honour to live in this country which I am proud of. It is indeed great to see the achievement of every individual to see the Malaysia flag to fly high and the national anthem play in anything and everything we do. It is a joy to see Nichol David became world champion in Squash. It is a joy to see of Badminton pairs of Koo Kien Kiat and Tan Boon Heong win championships. It is a joy to see Moorthy and another conquered the Everest. It is a joy to see our Malaysia U23 wins the finals in football recently. It is all the more joy to see the exchange of hugs and love between people acknowledging one another's achievement.

It is indeed my hope for this Merdeka, that Malaysia will continue not only enjoying the crops of our harvest and the prosperity of our economy but to see this country be united as one Malaysia Race called Malaysian not divided by language, colour and belief. They will see Malaysia first and enjoy being Malaysian not Malay, Chinese, Indian or the other racial group. It is indeed nice to hear the leaders in this country to declare in unison on a Malaysian identity and not harping on racial or religious lines.

It is indeed my hope that this country will see a more fairer proportion of our economy. That there would be new policies introduced that all will benefit both bumiputera and non-bumiputra. For this is our mother land that we love and cherish.

It is indeed my hope that the Constitution and Parliamentary laws and it's regulations are respected and followed by it's citizen. That nobody is above the law and all are subjected to the laws of this land. For this government will rule under the laws founded in our Constitution and convention.

It is indeed my hope that those in government will governed this country with wisdom and knowledge to see Malaysia through in difficult time. Corruption and abuse of powers must not show it's ugly head and it must be rooted out in our systems and thought. It is my hope too that the Judiciary will be independent and will judged and interpret according to the tenets of our law.

It is indeed my hope to see the country is protected from any form of extremism and terrorism whether it is political or racial or religion. That all parties will see the welfare of all Malaysians and not just their own people. It will be my greatest hope that all will see a Malaysia first and will fight for the Malaysia race and not just shouting Merdeka seven times in Parliament house.

Malaysia cannot be seen as 'Bolehland' where everything 'Boleh'. BUT Malaysia must be smart to divide the goat and the sheep, the black and the white, good and evil. This is my country which I will hope for till the day I die.

God bless Malaysia

Blessed Malaysia

Blessed 50th Birthday Malaysia, I shall pray to my Lord Jesus that country Malaysia be blessed. It will be honoured and be adored by all regardless of race and religion. I pray that the country will excel and be a force to be reckon with. I shall also pray that justice, integrity and righteousness will prevail against all evil doing and extremism and that the country be free from corruption and abuse of power. Let Malaysia be free.

Kit's motion on Port Klang Free Trade rejected

Open Letter From Malik Imtiaz to Speaker

We read and hear a lot about the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat refusing to allow debate on motions moved by the Opposition. The rejection of the urgent motion by the Opposition to debate the Port Klang Free Trade issue was the latest casualty of a perhaps overly enthusiastic exercise of control by the Speaker. This time the reason advanced (as reported by Malaysiakini) was that as the matter was being looked into by the Government, there was no need for a debate on the subject in the Dewan.

I believe that most, if not all, the motions moved by the Opposition in recent times have been on important matters, for the principle involved or otherwise. From sexist slurs to questioning the use or abuse of national funds, the matters raised could not be seen to be other than relevant to the national interest. I say this not because I support the Opposition but because of the significance of these issues, especially in a system like ours. The lack of transparency and the continued expectation on the part of Government that Malaysians accept the validity of its actions simply for it being the Government makes it all that much more important that the truth emerges.

The Dewan Rakyat represents the essence of government of the Federation. It is not just a legislative chamber. It is from its members that Cabinet evolves. It is in the Dewan that the deliberation and discussion by elected representatives so essential to the balanced governance of this nation is intended to happen. For this reason, parliamentarians are accorded immunity and privilege from criminal and civil sanction. Through frank and open debates, and the truth that emerges from these debates, it is intended that a certain measure of control be brought over Executive function, a control balanced by the vigilance of an independent judiciary. It is through the Dewan that control over public finance is intended to be exercised.

Were it otherwise, there would be arbitrary exercises of power.

Regrettably, when viewed in this context, the trend of rejections of Opposition motions by the Speaker is alarming. Bearing in mind that it is only the Opposition that appears to be interested in more than just propaganda and non-speak (how else can one characterize the performances of members of the Government) as is easily seen from the nature of the motions moved, the continued rejection by the Speaker is undermining the very institution he is charged with safeguarding.

The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat enjoys great prestige, position and authority. He has extensive powers to regulate its proceedings under its rules of procedures with a view to maintaining orderly conduct of parliamentary proceedings and discipline and order. No debate is allowed on his rulings except on formal resolution. In all of this, the Speaker is much more than merely a presiding officer of the Dewan. He is the representative and spokesman of Parliament in its collective capacity and is the chief custodian of its powers and privileges (M P Jain).

Respectfully, the Speaker appears to have overlooked the beneficiaries of his trusteeship. He is the steward of the Dewan Rakyat for all Malaysians. The smooth, efficient and efficacious operation of the Dewan is a birthright of all Malaysians and a vital aspect of the governance of this country. Any interference with this process is an injury to the nation and to Malaysians. The continued rejection of motions vital to a clear understanding of the state of this nation is a process that can only lead us to ruination.

Let there be open and fair debate in the Dewan Rakyat, Mr Speaker, Sir.

MIS

Congratulations to the Appointment

Congratulations to the appointment of Datuk Abdul Hamid bin Haji Mohamad (far left) and Datuk Alauddin bin Dato' Mohd Sheriff (left) for their appointment as President of the Court of Appeal and Chief Judge of Malaya respectively.

The appointments are apt after a long wait as to who will be appointed to fill in the vacant left by the late Tan Sri Abdul Malek Ahmad who pass away on May 31st and Tan Sri Siti Norma Yaakob who retired on January 5th. The long awaited appointment created a disagreement within the legal fraternity, parliament and the government.

As such the appointments for the two important posts is seen important to so as to increase public confidence towards the Judiciary. Both men are good judges and have given good and sound decision especially recently when Datuk Abdul Hamid's decision recently on the need for Parliamentary intervention to legislate issues relating to the jurisdictional problems between Syariah and the civil jurisdiction.

I hope the two good men will spearhead the judiciary to higher heights and greater independence so as to guard the constitution.

Congratulations.

Syariah -vs- British Common Law

Our legal system follows very much that of the English Legal as we were part of the Commonwealth as were formerly a British Colony since the 18^th century. Just to digress a little as the United Kingdom do not have a written constitution, a lot of reliance on Acts of Parliament and Judge make law which also calls judicial precedent whereby the lower courts are bound to follow the decision of the higher courts (this principle is known as stare decisis in Latin). This body of precedent is called what we understand as the “Common Law” and if this law is declared in the House of Lords for example, the lower courts below it must follow that declared law which we call it the ratio of the case.

Having said that, it means “Common Laws” are laws judicially made to fill in the gaps and actually life to the relevant Act of Parliament so as to give life to the interpretation and application of the laws so as to give intention to what Parliament intended. If, however, the court finds that the current dispute is fundamentally distinct from all previous cases or that the particularity of facts are not usual, the courts will try to give meaning to what is Just, Fair and Equitable. This is so because some areas of life may not be covered by any Act of Parliament a good example would be area on copyleft such as open source or open office which does not have any cover in the area of copyright laws as such an adoption of it through the relevant case laws in other jurisdiction would be excellent to fill in that gap.

If situation such as this arise, the Courts as the bulwark of Civil Liberties and Justice would have to give meaning to what is Just, Fair and Equitable in which the Courts will resolve the matter itself, with reference to general legal guidelines such as reading of the Hansard (Parliamentary report), Legal Text book writer, customs, conventions, or adopting other precedents in different jurisdiction (meaning other country). Thereafter, the new decision becomes precedent, and will bind future courts under the principle of stare decisis.

Malaysia as we all know adopted the English Common Law as a foundation of our laws as we are a very young country. So logically, our laws are shaped according to well established environment, principle and understanding of the complex areas of laws which sometimes our judges may not be able to understand the difficult technicalities of the various area of the law. So to make things simpler, our Malaysia Parliament, enacted the Civil Law Act 1956 particularly section 3 and 5 which permits judges with wide discretion to import English common law, equity and statutes into our legal system to fill gaps in Malaysian laws should there exist difficulty in the interpretation and the application of the various laws in our country.

As we are comfortable with the interpretation of British Common Law as part of our laws due to its adoption of fairness, just and equitable principles is seen to be a better source of law as compared to the Syariah laws which arises a number of uncertainties between itself due to different interpretation. So, to do away with establish principles of application and interpretation to that of Syariah may cause confusion as to its application. Syariah laws are a matter of ONLY private matters for example, marriage, inheritance, and apostasy. AND applies only to Muslim.

So what are Syariah Laws (Islamic law) then. Theoretically in my understanding, there are two areas of Syariah.

(i) Islamic law. Meaning the “the way” which of course a system of devising laws, based on the Qur'an, ijma (consensus of the Ummah), qiyas (Islamic jurisprudence) and the centuries of debate, interpretation and Arabic precedent.

(ii) Fiqh is Islamic jurisprudence that expand Syariah complemented by Arabic rulings such as the Malaysia Fatwa Council which consists of Islamic Jurist to direct the lives of Muslim such as what is required (wajib), forbidden (haram), recommended (mandūb), disapproved (makruh) or merely permitted (mubah)".

In short Syariah deals with many aspects of day-to-day life, including economics, banking and loan, business law, contract law, family, sexuality, hygiene, and social issues.

So the question all of us intend to understand is IF Syariah is to take precedence against Common Law, would there be fairness and justice IF issues of non Muslim are involved. Secondly should we, the non Musims subject ourselves to Islamic principles stated in the Syariah laws?

Gloomy 50th Merdeka

I’m so sad. What a gloomy 50^th Merdeka. Looks like this country is doing away with the Merdeka social contract which clearly states in our constitution which our founding fathers wanted it to be. Looks like this current administration is slowly trying to do away with what our founding fathers wants.

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PM: Yes, we ARE an Islamic state

Monday, 27 August 2007, 07:36pm

©Malaysiakini (Used by permission)
by Yoges Palaniappan

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has today for the first time said that Malaysia was an Islamic state and not a secular state.

Abdullah, in a parliamentary written reply, said that Malaysia was an Islamic state ruled by Islamic principles, and at the same time, was also a country that believed in Federal Constitution.

"Malaysia is an Islamic state, ruled based on Islam Hadhari which I have introduced," he stressed.

This is a clear departure from his stand made earlier this month that Malaysia was neither 'a secular nor a theocratic state' without saying the country was an Islamic state.

Abdullah said this in response to Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang who asked if the cabinet would reaffirm the Merdeka social contract and Malaysia Agreement that Malaysia was a secular state with Islam as the official religion.

"Islamic principles that I mean can be seen from Islam Hadhari that I have introduced. Under Islam Hadhari, the government stresses development based on knowledge and physical building, as well as the building of human capital," said the prime minister.

"Islam Hadhari is a guideline for the government to be fair and equitable to all communities in the country," he said, adding that however Islam Hadhari does not imply that Malaysia was a theocratic state.

Abdullah, who explained that the uniqueness of Islam Hadhari formula has been proven in its success, said: "I would like to refute allegations that my way of ruling the country is against the social contract signed before the Independence."

The prime minister also stressed that the government allowed voices of all communities to be heard. However, he said the government would not hesitate to take action against those who abuse the freedom.

"We have to take into account the country’s stability and ethnic diversity. Any statement that could threaten the stability will be punished."

Contradictory remarks

Abdullah also said that the debate on whether or not Malaysia was an Islamic state has been dragged for a long period by opposition parties for their own political interest.

"As the country’s 50th Independence celebration is just around the corner, we can see the opposition party questioning the status of our country and Merdeka social contract."

This latest remark by the premier is clearly contradictory to his previous stand that Malaysia was neither a secular nor a theocratic state.

His response then had come just after his deputy Najib Abdul Razak had upset minorities here by describing the country as Islamic.

Abdullah had said then that the country can be best described as a multiracial nation that practices parliamentary democracy with freedom of religion for all.

“We are not a secular state. We are also not a theocratic state like Iran and Pakistan ... but we are a government that is based on parliamentary democracy,” he was quoted as saying in Penang on Aug 5.

At that time, he did not specifically said that Malaysia was an Islamic state.

A financial scandal?

I can't help myself but to blog this.... I see a financial scandal soon. Yes I'm blogging about the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) RM4.6 billion 'bailout'. Interestingly the government had approved a loan to the Port Klang Authority and that the details of the loans are being ironed out. I wonder in this situation is this a soft loan or a bailout utilising the rakyat money.

The loan to the Port Klang Authority in my opinion tantamount to a bailout of the highest scandal after BMF. I now doubt our PM pledge during his 2004 general election manifesto to curb corruption and to boost transparency and battle financial mismanagement in mega-projects. Looks like Malaysians all over are fooled by the pious character of Mr Clean.

Enough is enough, please stop your ways.

I told you so ..... part 2

Written by a friend....
He must be publicly sanctioned for such a public display of disloyalty to the Country and its Constitution as he is calling for nothing short of the overthrow the secular Constitutional Monarchy that Malaysia is today. He swore an oath before God, King and Country that he was to uphold the Constitution without fear, favour or political interference. Today he is calling for a step by step and eventual overthrow of the very Constitution that he swore to protect and not only he but those in powers.

It is a secular Constitutional Monarchy that has for its supreme law the Constitution of Malaysia being the centre piece of the legal construct of the Federation. The terms of the Constitution are the very terms of agreement between individuals and individuals and between individuals and the State since Independence. This is the social contract of the people. Here, I must make mention that our friends in East Malaysia should call for at least a referendum as we all know in history through the Cobbold Commission that people in East Malaysia wants a secular state before being admitted as part of Malaysia. This must be protected without any cost.

Parliament and NOT Islamic theologians, Ulamas or Mufti's are the makers of laws for each and every individual regardless of race, religion, gender and marital status within the Federation of Malaysia. Parliament derive its LEGITIMACY from the people through the mechanism of election by the people of Malaysia. Hence, Parliament owes its allegiance and responsibility to the people and not to a particular holy book. Parliament and its members are legitimate in the eyes of the people.

Malaysian Federal Courts deriving its powers and LEGITIMACY from the Constitution, apply (and should apply) civil and criminal law and NOT Islamic Syariah Laws in questions of rights and liabilities of individuals and individuals and as between individuals and the state. Islamic Law is applied only and should only be applied to private and personal law.

By the way, Tun Salleh Abbas was dismissed as Lord President in 1988 as a result of a trump up charge (the fourth charged) for attempting to introduce Islamic laws into the secular Constitutional Monarchy. The government mocked Salleh Abbas and said "doesn't he know that Malaysia is a secular State?". Tun Salleh was found guilty on all charges and dismissed for misconduct.

Now who is talking about it? Today, the he attempts to legitimize the unlawful statement of the Deputy Prime Minister that "Malaysia has always been an Islamic State". This illegal and unlawful pronouncement has now been parroted by Datuk Dr. Abdullah Zin. If the Chief Justice's statement that Malaysia should follow its own laws - ie including the laws of dismissing Tun Salleh, then I propose that the present Chief Justice together with Datuk Dr. Abdullah Zin and the Deputy Prime Minister be dismissed for misconduct with the same statement "Do they not know that Malaysia is a Secular State?".

UMNO is LAW

Reading the article below confirm my speculation that those in UMNO are above the law. I am really shocked. What has Malaysia becoming?

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All charges dropped against Zakaria, partners

By WANI MUTHIAH

KLANG: All 37 charges against controversial Port Klang assemblyman Datuk Zakaria Md Deros and five of his business partners instituted by the Companies Commission (CC) have been withdrawn.

The CC had taken Zakaria and the five to court by virtue of their position as directors of Harvest Court Industries Bhd and Titi Steel Sdn Bhd, which had contravened the Companies Act 1965.

Each charge could be punished with a fine of up to RM30,000 and five years jail.

They were charged for failing to notify of change of address, failing to hold annual general meetings, failing to submit financial statements and failing to submit profit-and-loss accounts.

Mozni Sham Ahmad and Joseph R. Samuel who appeared for Zakaria, his partners and the two companies said the charges were withdrawn because the "outstanding problems had been settled".

Companies Commission's prosecutor Azmil Haron told magistrate Fadzilatul Isma Ahmad Refngah that he had been instructed to withdraw the charges against the two companies and its directors.

What is next?

After Malaysia adopt the Syariah Laws as part of of our laws, maybe our Minister or CJ (that is if he is still a CJ as he will due retiring in October) would then propose that we do away with the Commonwealth.

I told you so.....

I opened up my e-mail this morning and found a very disturbing news from the PM's department where the Minister in the PM Department Datuk Dr. Abdullah Zin is reported to have agreed to the replacement of the English common law to the Syariah. This is a damn bad news I've ever heard since the 1988 Judicial Crisis (of course May 13 was a black history, but then I was not born yet to understand).

The Malaysia contract, all of us accept and agree is the fact that Malaysia is not an Islamic state and that we are a secular democratic nation where Islam is the religion of the federation. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land and that we abide by the laws of this land enacted by Parliament.

As such hearing news from the PM department regarding the propose change to Syariah laws will definitely going against the ideals put forward by our founding fathers. I am sad to note that the oath the PM and his cabinets, the legislature in Parliament and the Judiciary took for office have failed to defend the constitution. I am sad that the PM's department is entertaining the thought on switching to Syariah, that in my opinion is a step backwards towards an Islamic State, not only an Islamic country but also a theocratic state.

What is so wrong with the common law that the Chief Justice wants it to do away with? The common law has been proven to be the foundation of laws that can be applicable and adopted into Malaysia through Sections 3 and 5 of the Civil Law Act which permits judges wide discretion to import English common law, equity and statutes into the legal system to fill gaps in Malaysian laws and it is a fact that lawyers whilst preparing their cases relying on these common laws should the difficulty arise in the interpretation and the application of the various laws.

As for the Syariah laws, where right now, in terms of jurisdiction alone, there have been much confusion in the interpretation and application of the Syariah. That alone, each states have different interpretation and codes which regards Syariah. As such do I have the faith on Syariah?

My question to you Mr CJ, are you not suppose to defend the constitution? Which hat are you wearing, the Hat as a CJ of Malaysia or a politician?

More Crap

From heaven to hell, figuratively, of course. I attended my church convention for three days starting on 20^th August in Port Dickson. It was definitely a good break, free from current news and the internet and at the same time put my phone on silence mode. The theme, “Thy Will Be Done” was an apt theme as we celebrate the 50^th birthday of our country, Malaysia. Let God’s will be done on earth. And so we prayed for our country.

After all the prayers showered to my country, I came back instead of being charged I became all the more sad seeing the country run by amateurs who think they are professionals. Take the Chief Justice for example, talking crap here and there, prominently defending his notorious judges who because of them, justice was not only delayed but was not seen to be done especially for those in death row. For nine years sitting in jail without knowing what hit them. Now what happen, if they are innocent? This is something we all must think about it.

After the Chief Justice, you have the former AG who now sits as Chairman of Suhakam (our kononlah Human Right Commission toothless tiger) talks more crap. It was blab la bla bla bla and says “I have no regrets”. After all the shit he has done and yet he can have the cheek to say without any remorse, “I have no regrets”. Maybe he should just confess and tell all Malaysians what he has done as AG in the 1988 judicial crisis and the sex scandal implicating a former MIC VP. Now as head of Suhakam, his action is tainted with loads of controversies and scandals. How can I trust Suhakam for protecting my rights.

Then you have the ‘Negarakuku’ saga between the weak idiots of MCA versus the mighty political master of UMNO. First the MCA came in as a hero trying to be a saviour to ‘Namewee’ and then ‘Namewee’ apologises publicly. For a short period it seems like everybody was happy with the apology and you have pak turut Mr Zam saying since he apologise lets ‘kiss and make up’. That was short lifted when the Cabinets says, “We accept his apology but he will be dealt with by the law.” And of course the law of seditions seems to be a looming after the 50^th Merdeka celebration. No Forgiveness and Mercy. What about 50th Merdeka that talks about a year of Jubilee? A year of freedom and forgiveness.

Talk KOK

Hmmmm... another talking rubbish. And I thought they have always said that the chinese here are second class citizen. Mr Ong, tell that to your UMNO friends lah

Ong: Chinese not second-class citizens

KUALA LUMPUR: The Chinese community should not see themselves as “second class citizens” just because of extremist views by certain quarters, said MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting.

“These statements are not from the Government’s decision-makers. Our rights are enshrined in the Federal Constitution, and we are Rakyat Malaysia,” he said in his winding-up speech.

Ong also hit out at the DAP, saying the opposition party was only out to seek publicity with no intention of obtaining a solution.

He said the MCA could not behave like the DAP because the community or those involved would suffer because the problem was not solved.

“If we only need to talk with no delivery like the DAP, every one on the stage here can talk or debate much better than the opposition party.

“Opposition parties only know how to talk and criticise but have done nothing to resolve matters for the benefit of the people. In comparison, the MCA has greatly contributed to the country and its people since it was formed 58 years ago,” he said.

By involving MCA representatives at all levels of government, Ong said the party had been able to contribute effectively in the development of the country to improve the people’s standard of living and economic prosperity.

“The achievements of the MCA should not be measured by how many statements it has made but should be assessed by how many problems it has resolved from within, how effective it has been in its contribution towards the implementation of projects that have benefited the people and the role it has played within the Government to ensure that administrative policies are just to all communities,” he said.

He said the MCA leaders and members should not feel discouraged or demoralised when the Chinese community criticised the party.

“The only reason they criticise the party is because they care and love the MCA,” he added.

Talk Only .... just a show by MCA

No Action Talk Only. A summary from me to the present MCA. Bark now, Hide later without resolving anything but adhere only to their political master, UMNO. It was reported during the MCA Youth Assembly held in Malacca it's Movement chief Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said the spirit of the Constitution must be preserved for a long time for the sake of the future generation and the document must be the reference point. He went on to further said that, “Whenever there is a conflict of opinions about a situation we are not comfortable about, we should refer back to the Constitution.” Maybe I should also state a point that the whole gathering was in Mandarin (so it would be alien to KJ).

A copied and paste words from Raja Nazrin Shah who spoke recently and now our dear friends in MCA suddenly have the limited guts exercise only when the general election is around the corner. In short MCA have nothing except for loud gongs distorting and hiding real facts. Their Ministers (non UMNO) unlike Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, UPKO President, backed out like dogs with their tails in between their legs. That in short described the present MCA.

Will they defend the constitution? I doubt their sincerity. For they will only bow down to their political masters and rice bowls. So what if they wave the constitution (unlike UMNO they wave keris and wanting to use them), will they use it to protect the rakyat regardless of race and religion. Will the MCA able to bring UMNO for a social and open minded discussion that creates healthy environment or rather to toe the line what UMNO says.

Royal Address by the Sultan of Perak

I must say I always admire His highness, Sultan Azlan Shah, the Sultan of Perak. Former Lord President of the Supreme Court of Malaysia. His highness is known for his intelligence and brilliance. This time His highness spoke loud and clear to not only to the people but I believe to the government.

The Sultan of Perak says that the nation can lose its independence if the people's spirit to serve the country fades away. Leaders serve the rakyat regardless of race, religion and culture. He is to serve all Malaysians as he the leader to all Malaysians and not just a single race. His Highness also says that without noble leadership principles, the spirit to serve the nation will become thin and when it happens, the country's independence will crumble.

He also urged that attention should be given to students' personality development rather than academic achievement. As such if you are an Oxford graduate, that doesn't mean that you are the top of the world instead, there must be maturity in handling matters. KeJu for example behave like an ultra gangster riding motorcycle without a helmet and organising a mob without proper permit and yet stood above the law. This I don't understand.

His Highness also states that producing high academic achievers gives no meaning for the country and nation if they are untrustworthy, irresponsible, dishonest and unfair. A situation like this will lead to tyranny and injustice out of greed, he added. I would say these are strong words to be understood by leaders above us. Our government should be ashamed as public trust are placed on the government to do good and not evil.

Again, Daulat Tuanku.

Muhammad Taib again.... a disgrace for Malaysia

Reading what Information Chief of UMNO, Muhammad x2 Taib talking is liken as a cry baby crying for milk. Calling bloggers coward? I don't think so. The cowards are none other then members of the ruling party especially UMNO who uses the law and play above it. Very unkind and unfair but it is always true. AND when you challenge them, they cry 'Ketuanan Melayu' and 'Penumpang'. That happened to me not once but many times. I'm a citizen but that is how I'm treated.

My opinion whosoever cling in UMNO are more coward then anybody else. People in UMNO can do everything, behave like gangsters and still above the law. I remember seeing in the net KJ not wearing a helmet riding a motorcycle definitely breaching rules pertaining to the Road Transport Act. Hisham and gang during UMNO general assembly calling for the keris to be used, is clearly seditious that is wrong in law. The blogs by UMNO calling Christian worshipping false God is definitely going against the Printing Presses & Publication Act. AND same goes a comment made in the Prime Minister's website calling the the unity of the Chinese race in Malaysia to challenge the Malays. That is more wrong than blogs written by members of Blog United. What happen? Have they all being prosecuted? Have they being investigated by police even though police reports were lodged? MY ANSWERS : NEGATIVE.

I call upon the Prime Minister who is the Home Affair Minister to do likewise to reflect JUSTICE, INTEGRITY, and RIGHTEOUSNESS. This is Malaysia and we are 50th years old free from tyranny and free from foreign powers. Malaysia must be free from corruption and that the long arms of the law must be dealt for those that breach the law.

Samy crap talk

I find it difficult to believe reading the Star today with the titled "MIC welcomes Abdullah's rebuttal to allegations". I almost choked with disbelief and laughing out loud when it was reported that that the BN government has helped the Indian community and that the party thanked the PM for giving the true picture that Barisan Nasional had always assisted the Indian community to advance economically and socially.

Samy also went on record and said any fair-minded person could acknowledge the many achievements of the Indian community in economics, religion, education and social aspects. Hmmm I beg to differ with his so-called views. Maybe he should go down to the roots to look at the community whether what he say is correct.

Well it's true on the one hand that thousands of temple were constructed or rebulit and on the other hand there are many other temples that have been demolished. There was a case recently I was involved where the local council acting like Little Napoleon charging through with their bull dozer without considering the religious sentiment of the devotees. The demolition was immediate without taking into account the priest's plea for time to take the deities away. What a shame. Samy is damn wrong on saying what he said in the report.

Samy, please look at your own community in the estates and tell me whether is there anything done in improving their economic stature. I have been going in and out of the estates for the past ten years and found nothing was done to help them. Simply said the richer gets richer and the poorer gets poorer. Look at crimes among the Indian community and look at the Simpang Rengam detention centre, completely out of proportion with the population ratio in the country. AND he says he and the government helped the community

The Indian community is not a big community among the three major races in the country and yet the poverty rate among them is high. I must remind Samy during the Ijok By election in response to Anwar who said “They live in fear of thugs and their overlord minister. The Indians are treated as third class, not by us but by you." And Samy gladly reply, “I have copies of letters I sent to him seeking assistance (for estate workers when Anwar was deputy prime minister), but he did not lift a finger to help.” Hmmm that means after nine years Anwar was sacked, the community is still marginalised.

Put it this way, the government (whether during Anwar's time or not) have failed to lift up the economic and social expectation of the Indian community. Don't point the fingers to others but please Samy. please check your heart to see whether what I say is true.

Proton Debacle

Proton must explain the difference between the one Euro received for selling MV Agusta in 2006 and the 93 million Euros (RM 446 million) BMW paid to secure Husqvarna or one third of MV Agusta
_______________

Press Statementby Lim Guan Eng

(Petaling Jaya, Thursday): Proton can no longer run away from explaining to all Malaysians the difference between the one euro received for selling the Italian luxury motorcycle maker MV Agusta in 2006 and the 93 million euros or RM 446 million BMW paid to secure Huqvarna or one third of MV Agusta. Husqvarna is one of three top Augusta’s superbike brand - the other two are Brutale and F4. I had exposed this scandal 2 weeks ago without stating the price BMW paid to purchase only one third of MV Agusta.

This shocking facts of the difference of RM 446 million for only one third of MV Agusta were exposed by Proton former chief executive Tengku Mahaleel Ariff in justifying that he had made the right choice in paying 70 million euros (RM330 million) for a 57.75 percent stake in MV Augusta in 2004. Following a change in Proton leadership, the entire stake was sold for a token sum of one euro (RM4.70) to a little known company Italian company Gevi SpA.

Mahaleel is justified to demand that the management responsible for selling the entire stake in Augusta for one euro to fully account for this vast difference. BMW as one of the most successful automakers in the world would not have bought one third of MV Agusta at such a high price without good reason.

Public interest therefore requires a full accounting from Proton on how it went so terribly until BMW can pay 93 million euros for one third of MV Augusta whilst Proton sold off the entire MV Agustaa for only one euro at a loss of more than RM 500 million. Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Azlan Hashim admitted that Proton lost about RM500 million at the time of acquisition of MV Agusta comprising of the purchase amount of RM367.6 million and the additional provisions relating to MV Agusta in the accounts of the Proton group for the financial year 2005/06 of RM136.2 million.

Something is very wrong that Proton can lose money where others can find profits. Such unchecked bleeding can be seen in Proton’s failure to meet its key performance indicators (KPIs) for the fiscal year ended March 31 (FY07) as revenue dropped 37% to RM4.9 billion from RM7.8 billion in FY06. Proton incurred a net loss of RM591.4mil against a profit of RM 46.7 million previously. Its cash on hand fell 34 % to RM 461 million.

What is more worrying is that sales fell 40% from 183,824 units to 110,358 units last year, a drop in market share to 32 per cent from more than 60 per cent in 2000. How can Proton expect to survive with such poor sales when its overseas market is a loss-making operation? Such a steep loss in market share is almost irretrievable.

Unless these questions are answered, there is no point in Proton introducing new models such as the 1.6litre sedan Persona costing between RM44,999 and RM55,800, to restore its position as the No. 1 car company in the country. The public have paid much in tens of billions of ringgit for giving protection to Proton in terms of huge investment outlay by the government. Malaysians individually have also paid a high price for more efficient, economical and better engineered foreign cars through high excise and import duties and even had to cough up higher prices for Proton here than those Proton cars sold overseas.

As Khazanah Malaysia, the Malaysian government's investment arm, holds about 42.74 %t of Proton, public interest to uphold accountability and transparency requires an answer from Proton in the interests of good corporate governance and social responsibility.

Blessed Birtday Daddy Part 2

Today is my dad’s birthday. If he is still around, we will be celebrating his 68^th birthday at his favourite nasi Indian shop, banana curry rice at Jalan Bendahara, Malacca or some nasi kandar at the alley somewhere in Malacca. If you ask me who taught me to eat Indian food, it must be my dad. I was very young when he first brought me to Indian Shop and we eat and eat until our belly went round. But it was satisfying.

Just a little about my dad. He is a gentle and sweet person. Everybody loves him because of his nature. He rarely scolds or raises his temper to his children and I bet readers here that he will be the first to spoilt my son J. Simply put HE IS NICE.

I had the opportunity to work with him in a particular legal firm. He was handling the office account of the firm and I was doing my chambering. We sat on a tank every day to work. My dad loves continental cars. So this tank was a MP6226 Opel Gemini. It was an old tank. We work together four for months before he went to the Lord.

His all time favourite verse in the book of Matthew, “In my Father’s house there are many mansion”. That was the hope he had for heaven in believing in Jesus. He is always a believer of the faith and who trust God on everything. I know at times when we were in dire strait of money, he will just put his trust in the GREAT I AM. He may not have the gift of healing and miracles or a preacher but he has the great gift of faith in his Maker. He is one who loves God and have taught me everything I need to know about the reverent fear of God and respecting the Word of God such as, when you sleep, your leg should not face the Bible or that the Bible should not be on the floor. It has to be treated with a lot of respect, says dad. He may have nothing to give but he left a legacy in me to love and fear my God.

Well that is my dad, a man of few words, and again Blessed Birthday

Happy Birthday Daddy

Dad, if you are watching this, blessed 68th birthday. Oh dear, I miss you so much, so very much. Like you I'm now a daddy. Like you I love my son, your grand son. Thank you for loving me and having faith in me. I love you. dad.

Sorry... no cure..

"Sorry... no cure..." this is what we say to our fellow friends during our younger days after a quarrel. This time it is uttered loud and clear by the highest executive rung of this country called the cabinet to our dear friend Wee Meng Chee. Blogees reading this post would know by now Wee Meng Chee aka Namewee created the 'Negarakuku'. Now my opinion.

Before the apology came, there were many calls for him to retract the video clip, apologise, strip his citizenship and of course one particular cuckoo went to an extent to call for the ISA to be used against him. Very uncall for statement by a minister who was a lawyer. I call it cheap publicity. Whatever it is to put the record straight Namewee has apologised. Since he has done so, can we all just call it off and not dwell in the past? But Nay, the cabinet choose to play the game in being so called more patriotic. I think I'm more patriotic than those idiots sitting in high places.

Though some claim Namewee's rap is seditious, I must say that our Education Minister waving the keris and shouts by the floor during the UMNO Assembly are more seditious compare to Namewee's rap. The clear difference between Namewee and our UMNO friends are that Namewee apologised and retracted his YouTube videoclip whereas our UMNO friends to this date have yet to apologise or retract and worst still, said that he will used again, brandishing his keris. That in my opinion is more seditious than Namewee's rap. This in my opinion is seditious and ought to be booked and prosecuted. But will that happened, with such bias police and prosecution, the most evil will be set free. What a Merdeka celebration...

I must say that though it is seditiously in nature, I find some truth in what he rapped about. And matters that he rapped, the Malaysian public can justify it especially regarding corruption in the police force. You can wear batch saying "Saya Anti Rasuah" but then again, these mata-mata will ask in broad daylight for what they usually call "Cari Makan". I must say not only the blardeeee police but the civil service as well. Every damn thing can be bought with a price as nothing is free. What a blardeeee crap...

Datuk Seri Nazri says that he has created an offence against the nation, that for me is a mere political statement by a minister as I believe Malaysians in general will not take it as something very offensive. Hmmmm I dunno what our friend, Zam will say now. Maybe he himself is confuse as his cabinet is not forgiving Namewee

Beside the above of course there are others which I'm not going to post it or I will be charged under our laws.

Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Manchester United versus Inter Milan, not at Old Trafford or Stadio Giuseppe Meazza but at none other than Stadium Hang Jebat, Malacca. Yes it was true they were playing in our turf. Just amazing watching the likes of Rooney and Ronaldo versus Figo and Julio Cruz. Unfortunately it was dreammmmmmm, dream dream dream (2x). Acah aje… it was the Youth Championship Title held in Malaysia. Unfortunately the red-devils lost to Nerazzurri 1-2. The Red Devils were leading 1-0 during half time but lost in what we call a match which normal players like you and I can actually play. They played like our senior National Team. But whatever it is I believe they will outbeat them.

Coming back to our Malaysian Team. We are known as Jagoh Kampong (Kampong Champions). No more standing in the likes of Mokhtar Dahari, Soh Chin Aun or Santokh Singh. We play like pondan running around chasing balls but we don’t kick them, we just ‘remmmmmmbat’. Matches played by our National squad is always a disgrace. Meaning not that we draw but lose badly. Average score is like 3-0. That is in a nutshell the Malaysian team.

I can’t help it but to bring in the article in the Star today where our Prime Minister gave an illustration of our footballers falling from grace. He mentioned also that we used to beat the Japanese and the Koreans but now we got whacked ourselves by our neighbours Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore. Applying this to our country we are almost the same. Services and Products are getting bad to worst. And that includes our Prosecutions as well. Hearing such embarrassment from members of the judiciary of such unprepared our POs and DPPs. This is so unfortunate.

Not only just that but we hear of corruptions at everywhere and anywhere. The power of the money and the power of gifts, wasting unnecessary public funds you and I give through our taxes. Moneys spend by our local councillors for travels purported to be educational but then probably learning the wrong things. Like going to China learning how the Beijing runs the Olympics in 2008. I just can’t rationale what is this got to do with local councilors obligation and recently trips going to somewhere out there learning to plant hibiscus. What a crap?

Then you have the controversy or rather scandal of the RM4.6b Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) where it was reported in the Sun, that Jafza (Jebel Ali Free Zone) pulled out of the PKFZ deal because of political interference, bureaucracy and breaches of the management agreement signed between Jafza and the Port Klang Authority (PKA). My guess is, not only the Minister of Transport will have to be queried. BUT every damn big shot at every damn level will have to be accountable and take responsibilities. If they are wrong, they got to be booked. No favouritsm. The Prime Minister will be answerable to the Rakyat. Too much big scandal in small Malaysia.

Instead of becoming world beaters we became lame ducks always on target for others to shoot us. We have become a joke of the land. The greatest joke...MALAYSIA BOLEH

People Power (Part 2)

Just yesterday I post about the importance of getting the Rakyat to be involved in decision making as we are stakeholders of this nation. We have seen many laws passed which resulted in unfairness at great length. Our Constitution has been amended 42 times within the space of 49 years. Sad but its true. Our Constitution has been diluted and raped in such a way to a certain extent without the consent by the people. Our Wakil Rakyat to a certain extent betray our trust as guardians of the constitution.

As such why not a proposal that let the powers be given back to the people. There is a need to see the people getting involved with policy and decision making in this country that affect us all. Now is the time let the people decide and then only the PM can say that he is the First Civil Servant.

I'm glad to hear the brilliant words of Raja Nazrin recently on good governance as the citizens are more educated and equipped. The government cannot lie to us any more and treating us like kids. I quote what His highness remarked, "They demand a progressive and representative form of government. They want to be part of decision-making that affects their lives and livelihood." He also noted that society today was more interested in achieving results than merely obeying the rules.

Having said that, I'm of the opinion that the people wants a governments that is approachable and consultative, some sort of an open government whereby the views of the people are noted. The Rakyat do not wish to be told all the time what they can do or can't do. The Rakyat wants a progressive government that will take into account the voice of the people. This is in fact a true democracy. All voice MUST be heard and that includes the voice from the Opposition and the Non Governmental Organisation.

I must also make mention a special remarked he made is this, I quote, "While public officials should be accorded sufficient power to deliver good governance, there must be effective restraints on the arbitrary exercise of that power so that the general interest and not special interests are served." I must applaud for his openness and frankness and this must be make known to our current government.

People Power

This is still fresh in my mind since the 2004 general election. Malaysian heard from our BN election candidates saying "We are your servants and the Voters are Masters" and we also hear the PM saying "I am the No. 1 Civil Servant". Well I'm not denying that those words are true. I must say AMEN as to that. Immediately after that the BN won a landslide victory wiping out PAS in Terengganu regaining the state and almost took over Kelantan by a sit or so in the Assembly. In toto the BN won almost 94% of the seats in Parliament. That was Malaysia Books of Record achievement.

Over the years after many bills were passed affecting us greatly but then again what ta' hack they (BN) are currently the majority. So I now pause and think for awhile, what happen if there is a change on our constitution declaring that Malaysia is an Islamic State? Amending the constitution only needs the minimum of two-thirds. Wait a minute. Surely that is possible. However, amendments pertaining to the powers of sultans and their respective states, the status of Islam in the Federation, the status and rights of Bumiputra, the status of the Malay language as the official language, to name a few examples, shall require the assent of the Conference of Rulers.

Amending the Constitution in our country is liken to buying a new piece of chinese new year clothes as it had been amended 42 times over the 49 years since independence. Prof Shad Faruqi, a constitutional expert did say that "there is no doubt" that "the spirit of the original document has been diluted". This sentiment has been echoed by other legal scholars, who argue that important parts of the original Constitution, such as jus soli (right of birth) citizenship, a limitation on the variation of the number of electors in constituencies, and Parliamentary control of emergency powers have been so modified or altered by amendments that "the present Federal Constitution bears only a superficial resemblance to its original model".It has been estimated that between 1957 and 2003, "almost thirty articles have been added and repealed" as a consequence of the frequent amendments.

Having said that, now compare that with the United States Constitution which only had 27 amendments since 1787. Now maybe is time to allow the Rakyat to decide as to what is what is not in our Constitution like a Referendum, typically refers to a popular vote to overturn a piece of legislation or the constitution at the federal levels. Like the United States or the European Union it allows the public having a say in their respective laws and proposals. Why not?

This allowed the people to decide what is best for them. This is important because the Rakyat are stakeholders of this country and that the future of this country is depended upon the people.

Will the goverment be fair?

Maybe I should say enough is enough. Will the government be fair? Will the PM be a PM to all regardless of political ideology, racial, religion and cultural differences? I must say I doubt the words and honesty of the PM. I believe Malaysians all walks have heard this again and again. His Deputy said it a couple of weeks ago and that was echoed by the UMNO youth wing very loud and clear. So will PM back away from the statements by his fellow members who vote him as the President of the ruling UMNO? I doubt.

The PM even when as far as to say that any decision on the issue would be guided by the Constitution, the principles of the Rukun Negara and other policies. As I said I have been hearing all these promises for quite a long time. We don't want a 'talk only PM' but we want a walk the talk PM. A PM that would be able to lead this country in a multi racial and religious environment. Unfortunately Malaysians all over saw how racial and ultra his party is.

The non Muslims, as far as I'm concern, holds the view that Malaysia is not an Islamic State and that the only avenue for remedies available for non Muslims is the Civil Courts. Non Muslims will not submit to the jurisdiction of the syariah courts and that the civil courts must hear every application made by non Muslim affected party.

Case like Subashini would be clear example of such a conflict as she was told that by virtue of Article 121 (1A) she has no recourse to the civil High Court against her husband as he had converted to Islam. That suggest she has to make an application before the syariah court which she herself do not believe in. If she submits to the jurisdiction of the syariah court and if the court assume jurisdiction notwithstanding the express ouster of jurisdiction over non Muslim, she will have subjected herself to syariah family law pertaining to custody of children. This would seem in my opinion a violation to her fundamental rights guaranteed under the constitution.

As such if the PM is sincere about this, there are no two ways about it. Either confess that Malaysia is an Islamic State or a secular state (not meaning anti-religion) as stated by our founding fathers.

Rulers vs PM

Unbelievable or rather believable, as it can only happen to Bolehland, Malaysia. I was pretty upset to read in the NST today under the heading “PM makes decisions on key judicial posts, says top judge”. Reading it literally makes a mockery to the Rulers as the Constitution do stipulate that the Rulers must be consulted in appointments of key judicial posts such as the Chief Judge of Malaya which is currently vacant. The Chief Judge had also being reported, which I hope that the report is not true that, and I quote from the report, "Consultation means you consult. It is not binding on you. The prime minister consults me and it is not binding on him. I cannot force the prime minister to accept what I want. It is not binding, the prime minister still decides."

Now who is the Chief Judge to compare with the Rulers and the Yang DiPertuan Agong (the Supreme Leader). Though the role of the Yang DiPertuan Agong is largely ceremonial in Malaysia's constitutional monarchy, the PM in my opinion should treat the advise as important and not a mere rubber stamp. Though legally under Article 40(1) of the Federal Constitution, the Yang DiPertuan Agong was bound by the Prime Minister's advice, yet at the same time His Highness must show respect to the views of the Conference of Rulers as the Rulers have the right to express their opinions and concerns.

I would prefer the views taken by Prof Shad Faruqi, Professor of Law at UITM who pointed out that even though there was no provision in the Federal Constitution to by-pass the King in making the appointment, the letter of appointment must come from the King. So legally, that would mean that the Rulers were a party to the appointment process of key government posts and as such must be consulted.

It is true that our conduct is stated in the constitution, there are many grey areas that aren’t stipulated and as such convention and customs play a pivotal role in seeing the harmony between procedures and laws. More so, why is it the framers of our Constitution stipulates the importance of consultation by the Rulers in the first place? Now having said that, there is a great possibility that the roles by the Rulers are deemed to be important so as to give some check and balance on the conducts of the Executive. As such the Rulers views must be consulted at all times.

Goblok statement of the year

UMNO Not Racist? Joke of the century. The general election is definitely near. Please UMNO don’t fool us Malaysians. First, UMNO want to have NEP purported to raise their economic stature, then UMNO threaten to use the keris on us, Malaysians. Not once, now twice but many times in the last 30 years. We have been treated like trash and rubbish bin even though we called this country “Tanah Tumpahnya DarahKu”. Reading blogs by UMNOputras are just like reading ‘pro malay anti other race’ statements and comments. AND our dear school-boy otak belum matang new kid on the block can say that UMNO is not racist. He must be kidding. I call it a joke of the century. AND many times we heard from our stupid UMNO idiots calling the non Malays as PENUMPANG even though we have valid MyKad written ‘Kad Pengenalan Malaysia’. It is definitely a party that is full of lies and deceit.

Power sharing? I see it as power tussle between mighty UMNO (don't you touch my area) vs MCA-MIC-Gerakan-PPP-and other political parties (don't kacau our political master) except for clever PBB (stay out UMNO to Sarawak). Important Minister positions are never given to MCA-MIC and the other parties. I’m reminded by history where key important Minister positions are given to all race. Such as the position of Finance Minister to Tun Tan Siew Sin (for 15 years) and the first Governor of Malacca was Tun Leong Yew Koh. This is what I mean when one by power-sharing in Tunku Abdul Rahman's UMNO at that time. That was the UMNO that was not racist. Just because Ijok was given to a MIC candidate, Khairy says power sharing. That is stupidity of the highest grade. Please don’t fool us. We are Malaysians

----- Taken from the Star

Umno is not racist, says Khairy

KLANG: Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaludin has refuted allegations by the Opposition that the movement practises racism.

“I don’t understand how the accusation come about – calling us racist. In fact, Umno always emphasises on the power-sharing concept and history has proven it.

“Ijok is a good example, where an Indian candidate was nominated despite a Malay majority in the constituency. This had been repeated in many other constituencies.

“How can we be racist, when we are defending equality?” he asked after opening the Kapar Umno division youth delegates meeting here yesterday.

Khairy also said that Selangor did not need a comprehensive development blueprint from the Federal Government as it was already a well-developed state.

He said such development plans should be channelled to the less developed states such Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang.

Daulat Tuanku

Thank God for the Rulers. I must say at the end of the day, justice will always prevail no matter how long and how much it takes because God is in control not the government of the day. There are laws to follow and as such follow the law laid down by the Constitution and Parliament. The government of the day cannot at anytime do in their wimps and fancy, dictating terms as though they are the royals.

I must admire the boldness of the Rulers in flexing their Highnesses muscles to protect the constitutional foundation of our country thus providing proper check and balance on the administration and that includes the Judiciary. At times when there is a gloomy day, there is always a ray of hope that will take precedence over it. And this time it came from the Conference of Rulers.

----- News taken from The Straits Times, Singapore

KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA'S sultans have refused to endorse the government's candidate for a key judicial post, setting the stage for a possible impasse between the rulers and the administration.

The Conference of Rulers last month asked Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi to reconsider the candidate named for the post of Chief Judge of Malaya (CJM), the third highest-ranking official in the judiciary.

The Constitution requires the Prime Minister to 'consult' the Conference of Rulers, comprising the nine hereditary rulers, and their highly unusual move to withhold approval has created a stir in the legal fraternity.

The position of CJM has been vacant for seven months since Tan Sri Siti Norma Yaakob retired in January. There are currently eight judges in the Federal Court who qualify for the appointment.

'There were concerns as to why the candidate was picked over three other more senior judges,' said a source, alluding to a possible reason for the lack of royal approval.

When asked by reporters about the matter, Chief Justice Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim declined comment, saying judicial appointments were a confidential matter classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

Under the Malaysian Constitution, the rulers are to be consulted on certain key government appointments such as judges or members of the Election Commission.

In the case of judicial appointments, the Prime Minister makes the recommendations after discussing with the Chief Justice.

However, while they rarely reject recommendations, the Conference of Rulers has always been active in debating the appointments.

One of its most senior members, Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak was head of the Malaysian judiciary in the 1970s. PM Abdullah is believed to have met the Perak Sultan over this matter.

Legal opinion is divided on whether the rulers' refusal to accept the candidate will stymie the appointment.

The Constitution is silent on this point, while in the case of Bills passed by Parliament, it states that they automatically become law after 60 days if the rulers withhold assent.

A similar case arose in 1999 when sacked deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim tried to disqualify judge Mokhtar Sidin from hearing his case.

He argued that the judge might be biased against him as he had represented the administration at a Conference of Rulers' meeting which declined to accept Datuk Mokhtar's appointment to the Court of Appeal.

Datuk Mokhtar was nevertheless subsequently appointed to the bench.

The court ruled then that 'to consult does not mean to consent', and the rulers' views are not binding on the prime minister.

However, in his 2004 book 'Constitutional Monarchy, Rule of Law and Good Governance', Sultan Azlan Shah noted that this goes against the grain and spirit of the Constitution.

The consultation process is meant as a mechanism of checks and balances, he argued.

Yesterday, Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz, who has been acting as CJM for almost seven months, would only reveal that the No 3 post would be filled before the end of the year.

But to add to the complexity, the post of the President of the Court of Appeal - the No 2 post - is currently also vacant following the death of Tan Sri Malek Ahmad in June.

Tun Ahmad Fairuz himself is also due for retirement in October.

Talk on Intellectual Property

The Need for Intellectual Property Protection for Inventors (a Seminar on Building Industry Solution’s To Sustainable Development held on 7th August 2007 in Putra World Trade Centre organized by CIDB Malaysia)

Tan Sri, Datuk, Ladies and Gentlemen, I must take this time to thank the organizers for allowing me to deliver this piece. This topic is of great importance but unfortunately there is a lack of awareness of its importance.

Introduction
We protect our tangible properties in our daily life. We install alarms in cars and houses to deter ‘breakins’. We lodge caveats in the land office when we purchase property to avoid unauthorized dealings with our property. We know the boundaries and limitations in protecting our tangible properties because we are able to see, touch and feel them.

So what is intellectual property then?
Almost everyone in society is a user and potential creator of intellectual property. Its protection, through a system of national and international rules called intellectual property rights, is necessary to provide incentives and financing for innovation and creation, which in turn leads to economic, cultural and social progress. Protection for intellectual property also encourages the production and dissemination of knowledge and a wide range of quality goods and services. As such Intellectual property rights add value for consumers and can provide a guarantee of where it comes from and its quality.

Intellectual property protection contributes to economic growth in both developed and developing countries by stimulating innovation, cultural diversity and technical development as part of a larger policy framework such as the establishment of the recent Northern Corridor Economic Region and the Iskandar Regional Development in Southern Johore. Thus, intellectual property rights can also be key tools for the alleviation of poverty through trade and business.

Intellectual property protection in Malaysia comprises that of patents, trademarks, industrial designs, copyrights, geographical indications and layout designs of integrated circuits. In a nutshell, IP is a useful information or knowledge that is the property of the inventor/creator. Strong intellectual property protection is essential to the success and in some cases to the survival of thousands of owners of licenses around the world.

Why the need for IP protection?
Society provides legal rights over intellectual property to encourage the production of inventions and creative works that benefit society and to help innovators and creators make a living from their work through commercialisation. Without such protection Commercialisation becomes worthless and meaningless as it will be exploited by others. These rights, which can belong to individuals or organizations, are recognized by governments and the courts.

The system is designed to benefit society as a whole, in both developed and developing countries, striking a delicate balance to ensure that the needs of both the creator and the user are satisfied. This balance is maintained through checks within the intellectual property system itself and in the larger regulatory framework, to ensure that the system is sustainable and beneficial to all stakeholders.

Areas of Intellectual Property in a summary

Patents
The Patents Act 1983 and the Patents Regulations 1996 govern patent protection in Malaysia. Similar to legislations in other countries, an invention is patentable if it is new, involves an inventive step and is industrially applicable. In accordance with TRIPS, the Patent Act stipulates a protection period of 20 years from the date of filing of an application.

The owner of a patent has the right to exploit the patented invention, to assign or transmit the patent, and to conclude a licensed contract. In the event of infringement where any party that manufactures, uses, sells, or offers for sale patented technology, during the term of the patent and within the country that issued the patent, the patent holder may take a civil action under section 58 Patents Act 1983 for infringement which allows a remedy of an injunction and award of damages. Section 61(4) Patents Act 1983 provides other forms of remedy and as such the remedies above is non exhaustive.

Trade Marks
Trade mark protection is governed by the Trade Marks Act 1976 and the Trade Marks Regulations 1997. The Act provides protection for registered trade marks and service marks in Malaysia. Once registered, no person or enterprise other than its proprietor or authorised users may use them.

Infringement is a violation of the exclusive rights attaching to a trademark without the authorization of the trademark owner or any licensees. It may occur when the "infringer", uses a trademark which is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark owned by another party. An owner of a trademark may commence legal proceedings against a party which infringes its registration. The period of protection is ten years, renewable for a period of every ten years thereafter. The proprietor of the trade mark or service mark has the right to deal or assign as well as to license its use.

There can be a Criminal Prosecution under the Trade Description Act 1972 as well as a civil action under the Trade Marks Act 1976 and under the common law tort of passing off. The remedy allowed would be an application for an Injunction, Damages or in lieu of damages, an account for profits, order for delivery up of offending matter or obliteration of the offending trade mark or sign or a declaration that the Defendant has infringed.

Industrial Design
Industrial design protection in Malaysia is governed by the Industrial Designs Act 1996 and Industrial Designs Regulations 1999. The Act provides the rights of registered industrial designs as that of a personal property capable of assignment and transmission by operation of the law. To be eligible for registration, industrial designs must be new and do not include a method of construction or design that is dictated solely by function. In addition, the design of the article must not be dependent upon the appearance of another article of which it forms an integral part.

Registered industrial designs are protected for an initial period of five years which may be extended for another two 5-year terms, providing a total protection period of 15 years.

Copyright
The Copyright Act 1987 provides comprehensive protection for copyrightable works. The Act outlines the nature of works eligible for copyright (which includes computer software), the scope of protection, and the manner in which the protection is accorded. There is no registration of copyright works.

Copyright protection in literary, musical or artistic works is for the duration of the life of the author and 50 years after his death. In sound recordings, broadcasts and films, copyright protection is for 50 years after the works are first published or made. The Act also provides protection for the performer's rights in a live performance which shall continue to subsist for fifty years from the beginning of the calendar year following the year in which the live performance was given. A unique feature of the Act is the inclusion of provisions for its enforcement. A special team of officers is appointed to enforce the Act and empowered to enter premises suspected of having infringing copies and to search and seize infringing copies and contrivances.

International Laws and Treaties

Let’s look at some international memorandums, laws and treaties where Malaysia is a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and a signatory to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, signed in Paris, on March 20, 1883, is an important and one of the first intellectual property treaties where Malaysia accede to the convention in January 1st,1989 and Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, is an international agreement about copyright, which was first adopted in Berne, Switzerland in 1886 where Malaysia accede to it in 1st October 1990.

In addition, Malaysia is also a signatory to the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) signed under the auspices of the World Trade Organization (WTO). TRIPS also specifies enforcement procedures, remedies, and dispute resolution procedures. Therefore, Malaysia's intellectual property laws are in conformance with international standards and provide adequate protection to both local and foreign investors.

Recently Malaysia acceded to the Patent Cooperation Treaty in August 16th 2006. This Treaty provides a unified procedure for filing patent applications to protect inventions in each of its Contracting States (137 countries as at 25th July 2007). A patent application filed under the PCT is called an international application or PCT application. It is a single filing of an international application is made with a Receiving Office (RO). It then results in a search performed by an International Searching Authority (ISA), accompanied with a written opinion regarding the patentability of the invention. It is optionally followed by a preliminary examination, performed by an International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA). Finally, the examination (if provided by national law) and grant procedures are handled by the relevant national or regional authorities. The PCT does not lead to the grant of an "international patent", which does not exist.

Other Memorandum, Treaties and Laws not signed by Malaysia are the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs, Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure, Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks and some others not mentioned here

Conclusion
Technologies and creations that have touched and changed millions of lives would probably not exist today without the incentives provided by intellectual property rights. As such Intellectual Property protection has spurred the development of key technologies of the future.

UMNO above the LAW

This was taken from RPK's Malaysia-Today in the article "Something is wrong with Sedition Law". Now my question, IS UMNO above the law? I believe police report has been lodged moons ago. Are the police investigating and charge anybody that uttered seditious statements? Something is REALLY wrong with Sedition laws.

This is what is written on the Kelab Penyokong Maya Umno website:

The following damning statements are excerpts from the UMNO General Assembly 2006 that was broadcasted LIVE on national TV & ASTRO:

"Please, don't test the Malays; in another word that they know 'amok'. We don't want to reach that level!"

"Umno is willing to risk lives and bathe in blood to defend the race and religion. Don't play with fire. If they messed with our rights, we will mess with theirs!"

"Datuk Hisham has unsheathed his keris, waved his keris, kissed his keris. We want to ask Datuk Hisham, when is he going to use it?"

I CHALLENGE YOU BOTH TO ADMIT THAT THE ABOVE STATEMENTS ARE NOT SEDITIOUS BY NATURE!

His say

His Highnesses spoke again. This time he cautioned the use of religion and race for political gain by some quarters. He felt that leaders who are earnest in maintaining unity, must NEVER resort to religious or ethnic posturing so as to advance their political career at the expense of peace and security. Leaders of multi racial and multi religion must be held accountable and answerable before the law and as such he further outline three requisites for nation building.

(i) Good governance and a thriving civil society in which the institutions of governance must demonstrate and generate norms and behaviours that are fundamentally efficient, productive and just. He further state that, “Only those who are capable, responsible and scrupulously honest should be allowed to serve in positions of leadership. Those who are inefficient, incompetent and most importantly, corrupt, should be held in absolute contempt”.

(ii) Rule of law and the inviolability of the constitution in which the Constitution is the nation's supreme law that guarantees fundamental liberties to every citizen where it provides "checks and balances" against abuses through the separation of powers between the executive, legislature and the judiciary. He also felt that over the years there rise misunderstanding which must be avoided.

(iii) Economic and social justice for all, where he felt that all groups in society regardless of their ethnicities, religion and gender MUST participate in decision-making that affect their lives and livelihood. This is indeed true where all Malaysians must play an active role in nation building. There must be voice in all sectors. We are stakeholders of this country and as such the responsibility is on us to play that role.

His Highnesses also warned that if Malaysia is not watchful and in the absence of a strong national identity, the country will be led into polarisation and competition along ethno-religious lines.

Interesting Opinion

I have a done a CUT-PASTE from Elizabeth Wong's blog at http://elizabethwong.wordpress.com with an interesting piece taken from Malaysiakini. A good research on election trend by race.

Posted by elizabethwong in Race Relations, Note2Self, Democracy, Readings, Politics, Current Affairs. trackback

For those without access to Malaysiakini - an interesting poll which some of us looked at yesterday… and groaned.

So, before you break out the champagne or light fireworks, please analyse the voting demographics of each constituency, esp. those who harbour Parliamentarian dreams. Also bear in mind, there are always BN-block votes in each constituency.

Too much emphasis had been put on an earlier poll, which also also indicated the so-called ‘Chinese-swing” votes. This is exactly why the “Chinese”-component parties of BN have been asking for a later date for General Elections, but Umno has decided that setting aside their concerns will still give them the majority of seats in Parliament.

Those with 70% or more of Chinese voters will do well, but not the rest. This also means that Opposition parties who hold these coveted seats will allocate them to their Chosen Ones. The rest will have to fight it out as hard as, if not harder, like during 2004.

Opposition MPs-wanna-be’s have to do so much more work.

Chinese least impressed with Pak Lah
Bede Hong, Malaysiakini.com, 04 August 2007

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi still enjoys popular support despite public disgruntlement over the country’s sluggish economy, according to a survey conducted by the Merdeka Center.

However, although the premier receives a pat on the back from the general population, the Chinese are less than impressed with his performance.

Abdullah’s approval rating remains high, with 86 percent of Malay Malaysians, 71 percent of Indian Malaysians while only 54 percent the Chinese Malaysians supporting the administration.

In the survey carried out through phone interviews involving 1,022 respondents throughout Peninsular Malaysia, Abdullah on average enjoys 71 percent support. Only 21 percent of respondents disapproved.

The poll which include a random selection of respondents aged 21 and above from all states was done over one week between June 14-20.

According to Merdeka Centre director Ibrahim Suffian, the public’s approval of Abdullah is expected to hover at approximately 70 percent, with Malays and Indians largely supportive of his administration. The Chinese however perceive the prime minister as “sub-par”, he said.

“And the announcement of salary increment for civil servants and the prime minister’s marriage (to Jeanne Abdullah) did not bring about a higher approval rating as claimed by the media,” said Ibrahim at a talk organised by University of Malaya faculty of economics and administration and Transparency International Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur last night.

The survey was to gauge voter sentiments on a variety of national issues.

He said the Chinese “once again showed higher expectations” for political leaders as compared to the Malays and Indians.

Election promises not kept

Overall, the Chinese have a lower approval for Abdullah’s performance as prime minister, he said.

“The majority of the Chinese think Abdullah did not keep most of his election promises. They’re less confident with the government’s ability in fulfilling the people’s aspirations,” he said.

“More Chinese also think that the problem of the sluggish Malaysian economy can be addressed by having more opposition leaders in Parliament,” he added.

Abdullah’s approval rating has dropped from 91 percent in November 2004 to 73 percent in June this year, according to the survey.

Abdullah’s two major plummets in his approval were in March 2006 (68 percent) when the oil price hike was announced and in September 2006 (63 percent) and when former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad stepped up his criticisms of the prime minister.

His approval rating climbed to 70 the following month and 72 percent in November when Umno held its annual general assembly. It was also during this time when Mahathir was hospitalised from a heart attack.

“The assembly won a lot of support from the grassroots. It also consolidated Umno and Abdullah’s leadership,” said Ibrahim.

Although the premier’s approval rating is high, only 8 percent of the Chinese felt Abdullah kept his 2004 election pledges to fight corruption and to improve the public service’s delivery system, compared to the Malays (57 percent) and Indians (37 percent).

On a question regarding the country’s situation, 58 percent felt that status quo should remain, while 33 percent said the country needs more opposition leaders.

Seventy-three percent of Malays felt “Malaysia is lagging behind other countries in economic terms but the programmes and current efforts by the government will help the country catch up” Thirty-eight percent of the Chinese and 47 percent of Indians felt the same.

In comparison, 45 percent of Indians, 44 percent of the Chinese and 24 percent of Malays felt that “the problems of the sluggish Malaysian economy can be addressed if there are more leaders from the opposition”

Asked if they were satisfied with the ability of the government to meet the aspirations of the people, 33 percent of Chinese said they were, compared to the Malays (76 percent) and Indians (63 percent).

Asked if the country needs a stronger opposition, 82 percent of the Chinese agreed, compared to the Malays (62 percent) and Indians (74 percent).

“The Chinese are more in favour of having a stronger opposition and their desire increases steadily. However, such desires do not translate necessarily translate into votes for a particular party,” said Ibrahim.

According to the survey, PAS remains accepted by the Malays but retains minimal Chinese support. Increase in Chinese acceptance is more a sign of dissatisfaction with the ruling government.

DAP gets most Chinese support

On voter's likelihood to vote for PAS, only 30 percent of Malays said they are willing to vote for the party. Twenty-three percent of the Chinese and 27 percent of the Indians felt the same.

PKR seemed more acceptable by the Chinese and Indians despite being labelled a Malay party, while DAP remains popular among the Chinese but has hardly made any inroads into the Malay communities, said Ibrahim.

Forty-two percent of the Chinese said they are willing to vote for PKR, compared to the Malays (25 percent) and Indians (26 percent).

For DAP, 62 percent of the Chinese said they are willing to vote for the party, while only 8 percent of Malays felt the same. Thirty-three percent of Indians said they are willing to vote DAP.

Meanwhile, a separate survey on Kelantanese respondents revealed that 90 percent are concerned with social issues affecting youths. The national average is 61 percent.

On the support of Kelantanese to the PAS-led state government, Ibrahim said: “The perceptions of the economy is actually positive, much more positive than in Terengganu. One serious problem there is the lack of jobs. There aren’t enough jobs to go around. But in terms of perceptions of the state government, it has actually improved,” he said.

He said the state government-run insurance programmes and schemes for the lower income group have influenced support for the opposition party.