The bells are tolling for Pak Lah …

My earlier blog was titled Pak Lah – Seize the Day and in it I outlined Pak Lah’s political challenges and what he potentially can do to go from zero to hero. In that piece I ignored to comment on his choice for cabinet as I figured that he would do only one of two things:

1. Stick to the tried and true to consolidate his power base ahead of the UMNO general assembly.

2. To make drastic revamp to his cabinet as a signal of change to the country at large.

In the end he has made the fatal choice of taking the middle ground. In a way it is so Pak Lah….

Amir Sham and Zaid Ibrahim are clearly choices that resonate well with the public as they are seen as credible and capable.

UNFORTUNATELY he has kept Nazri Aziz, Muhammad Taib and to a smaller extent Zahid Hamidi and this is really to help him keep UMNO in check. Nazri and Muhammad Taib, to me are the ICONS of what is wrong with UMNO and all Pak Lah has done is open up very old wounds.

His choice has now exposed him both ways. The more Muhammad Taib opens his mouth, the more the voters are going to feel justified in voting in “Barisan Rakyaat.” Nazri doesn’t even have to open his mouth….

The fact that the Youth Wing let Mukhriz off the hook for asking Pak Lah to resign is a huge contrast to their posture at the last General Assembly when Mukhirz was chastised for calling Pak Lah boring (here).

Ku Li has now stepped up to offer himself for the post of Party President….

Anwar Ibrahim, true to himself, smells the blood in the water and is circling.

What is worse is that unlike previous years where the party leadership would whack members into submission, this time the balance of power is in the hands of members. All it takes is for 2 or 3 MP’s to walk out and join the Opposition and Pak Lah will truly be history.

This is not an impossible scenario as the people of Sabah went through this fate in 1994. Sometimes what goes around, comes around!

PBS Sabah

In February 1994 PBS faced the general election with unprecedented pressure from the Barisan Nasional, largely because of the party’s sudden exit from the national coalition four years earlier. Despite the presence of phantom voters PBS still won the elections for the fourth successive time but with a reduced majority, i.e. 25 seats as against the Barisan Nasional’s 23 seats. Datuk Seri Panglima Pairin had to wait for more than 36 hours outside the palace (Istana) gate before he was sworn in as the Chief Minister because of manouvering by Barisan Nasional leaders who could not accept the people’s democratic verdict.

The fourth-term PBS government lasted only about two weeks before it was forced out of power through undemocratic manouverings by the Barisan Nasional. The resignation was caused by defections of a majority of PBS Assemblymen to Barisan Nasional parties. Some of the former PBS leaders also formed their own political parties.

Having lost the majority in the State Assembly, Datuk Seri Panglima Pairin resigned as Chief Minister on 17 March 1994 before a shocked Malaysian public. It was unbelievable that a case of a democratically elected government losing power within days after a general election due to party hopping by dishonourable Assemblyman was happening for the first time on Malaysian soil.

UMNO members are now going to fragment into camps and start hedging their bets, and it is hard to envision people lining up behind Pak Lah. It is going to be near impossible for Pak Lah to pull this off. Of course Rosmah Najib will now be rubbing his hands in anticipation…and even that I wouldn’t be too sure at this moment.

I think this chapter is about to come to a close. The balance of power has shifted too far to the left and unless Pak Lah’s secret middle name is Houdini, we will have to say good bye to him.

For me what is most amazing of this entire saga is that the real protagonist of this drama is a young oxford graduate called Khairi who had a vision so far and an ambition so big that he blinded his father in law from reality. As I said in an earlier post… for whatever its worth, the “Opposition” must thank Khairi for gifting to them this elections.

And finally, lets be reminded of what Azman Mokhtar said:

Khazanah

“YOU either execute or get executed,” says Azman Mokhtar, of his mission to overhaul Malaysia’s 40-odd partially state-owned firms.”

I wonder if Azman will remind the CEO of the country the same….?

Liar Liar or Dumb and Dumber?

Nazri Aziz says:

A new identity or even new look can be arranged for the person or persons who took the controversial video of a prominent lawyer allegedly brokering the appointment of judges, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz.

The person or persons who took the controversial video of a prominent lawyer allegedly brokering the appointment of judges will be protected, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said.

YEAH RIGHT! Probably have to do plastic surgery after getting beaten up….. look what happen to Anuar Ibrahim while in police custody – A nice shiny blck eye.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Anti-Corruption Agency is now assisting the panel that was set up to investigate the authenticity of the videotape showing a senior lawyer brokering the appointment of judge.

AND IN THE SAME BREATH>>>

Nazri said Malaysia made a slight improvement on Transparency International 2007 Corruption Perception Index which showed that the years of work by the agency have shown result.

He said the improved position from 42 to 43 out of 180 countries was something to be proud of.

Talk about low standards… on the one hand we have a video of a senior lawyer brokering the appointment of judge (how bad can this be) and them he says moving from 42 to 43 out of 180 countries is something to be proud of…

I really wonder how these people get voted in?

In reply to Nazri…

This is what Nazri said as carried by the Star:

The Star

The Malaysian Bar Council should not behave like the opposition by marching to the Prime Minister’s Office to hand over a memorandum calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the judiciary, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said.

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said there were other proper ways for the memorandum to be submitted to the Prime Minister.

“They can set up an appointment and send a delegation to meet the Prime Minister,” he said.

….
“Unless they want to show their hostility, why should they stoop so low by behaving like Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), DAP and PAS?” he said.

1. Nazri, since when is marching to hand over a document “behaving like the opposition?” Didn’t Khairy and UMNO youth march on the streets of KL to hand over a document to the US Ambassador / Condy Rice – ARF 27 July 2006? How come you didn’t call them to be behaving like the opposition?

2. Nazri, on proper ways for the document to be submitted, if you recall, Ezam Nor on 29th June 2007 handed a 632 page document to Pak Lah of which even after a week there was no response from Pak Lah. So I suspect the lawyers have figured that it needs a public event to ensure that a proper response is received.

3. Nazri, on why are they stooping so low? Well they are not stooping so low. It may seem low to you, after all you are a political master, but to us servants they are doing what needs to be done to get the appropriate attention to the issue. the real question is what do we servants have to “stoop so low” before our master take notice of us?

Let’s reflect on Raja Nazrin’s fourth element to nation building when he addressed the bar council recently:

Fourth, if nation building is to be successful, enforced solutions must be avoided. Nation building is effectively rendered null and void by coercion or the threat of violence. ‘Might’ cannot and must not be shown to be ‘right’. If solutions cannot be found within the political and social structures, there will be a strong temptation to resort to illegitimate ways and means.

So Nazri, if you deem that the lawyers ways are inappropriate, I think Raja Nazrin gives a good explanation of why it happens.

By the way this is NAzri’s attitude to the Video scandal:

NAZRI: Senior judge denies talking to lawyer in video clip

By BERNAMA

26 September, 2007
A senior judge said to have engaged in a telephone conversation with a lawyer allegedly discussing judicial appointments has denied that he was the one contacted by the lawyer featured in the video clip posted by Internet media, Malaysiakini, on Tuesday. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said the judge implicated in the clip contacted him to make the denial.

“The judge called me to deny that he was the one talking to the lawyer,” he told reporters after handing Amanah Raya Berhad tithe and breaking fast at Taman Kuala Kangsar mosque here last night.

The minister, however, did not mention when the judge contacted him.

Mohamed Nazri, who is in-charge of law and legal matters, said what was important in the issue now at this stage was investigations to establish the authenticity of the controversial video clip.

“(Based on the video clip) we only see one person talking…we don’t know who was on the other end. He (the judge allegedly speaking to the lawyer) has denied,” he said. (WHO CARES WHO IS ON THE OTHER END, JUST LISTEN TO WHAT HE IS SAYING!)

Police have started investigations to ascertain the authenticity of the video clip before taking further action on the matter.

Mohamed Nazri also questioned the motive of the people who exposed the clip as they have released it to the media first before handing it to the police and the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) to investigate. (WHAT IS THERE TO QUESTION? WHY NOT QUESTION WHY NURIN”S IDENTITY WAS REVEALED ON NATIONAL TV BEFORE THE PARENTS WERE INFORMED?)

“If they want to uphold justice or want to clean up the judiciary, the police and ACA can investigate. Why go to the media…the intention is questionable, for political (mileage) or for a clean judiciary,” he said. (GOING PUBLIC IS A REFLECTION OF TRUST OR MISTRUST IN POLICE AND ACA. ANWAR WAS BEATEN & LOCKED UP THEN ACQUITTED OF SODOMY CHARGES – SIX YEARS LATER)

The minister warned legal action can be taken against people resorting to actions that could erode public confidence in the judiciary. (SHOULD HAVE THOUGH ABOUT THAT BEFORE TUN SALLEH ABBAS REMOVAL)

The eight-minute video featured the lawyer discussing the appointment of the judge as the Court of Appeal president and later being elevated as the Chief Justice and the appointment of several other judges. (KEY WORD – DISCUSSING, DONT CARE WITH WHOME, BUT HE IS DISCUSSING IT)

Yesterday, the Bar Council, in an emergency meeting convened to discuss the video clip issue, called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the matter.

Council president Ambiga Sreneevasan said the commission should also investigate all problems concerning the judiciary.

On Wednesday, the Bar Council will submit a memorandum to the prime minister, calling for the cabinet to discuss the setting up of the commission.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had said on Friday that he viewed the issue seriously and had asked the police to investigate it as soon as possible.

He said the video clip bore a story that could harm the good name of the judicial system.

“We cannot take this lightly and the matter must be addressed promptly,” said Abdullah, who is also the Internal Security Minister.

Nazri’s comment is just plain stupid!

Nazri – of course the law allows for it. I don’t think anyone is debating the validity of the law. What we are all debating is why isn’t the focus 100% on the perpetrator? I for one have notice how fast the police can catch crooks when it affects a VVVVIP – like Tun Hanif most recently…. Let me quote what Tun Hanif said:

My house was burgled on Sept 5. I lost a DVD player, three speakers, some DVD discs and a bunch of keys. But I wasn’t really crestfallen because the moment I rang up the police to report, patrol cars, the investigation officer, the dog and forensic teams and several high-ranking officers swarmed my house. They were certainly on the ball. Three beautiful fingerprints were lifted, hopefully not my maid’s. Even the IGP contacted me.

DID THE IGP CONTACT NURIN”S PARENTS WHEN THEY WENT TO SEE THE POLICE AND REPORT HER MISSING?

Nazri, do you want to even try to contrast this to the way Nurin’s parents were treated by the police? Imagine watching the news and finding out the dead child is yours, instead of being the first to know and in private. Shouldn’t someone get punished for this?

Nazri – Utusan reports that there have been 319 missing children cases in the last 7 months that are UNSOLVED. Since 2004 there are 6,270 missing kids reported.

Are you planning to arrest the parents too?

Why not ask the police how come they can’t find these kids…

Why does it take Nurin’s case to get the police to form the “Bahagian Siasatan Seksual, Penderaan dan Kanak-kanak.” What have the police been doing on this since 2004?

Nazri – we are angry at the way the common man is treated. We are angry at how the high and mighty “Political Masters”, to use your term, look down on us as dirt. We are angry because you people treat us like we are stupid . We are angry because of all the unfulfilled promises , worse still the lies that are made to us.

You say:

Mohamed Nazri said the police were only abiding by the principles of the Rukun Negara which require the citizens of the country to uphold the rules of law.

Maybe we need to clarify the word citizens as I see many people who get away with “murder” simply because of connections.

By RASLAN BAHAROM

KUALA KANGSAR: The law allows for Nurin Jazlin Jazimin’s parents to be hauled up for negligence, an offence punishable under Child Act 2001, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz.

“The law is still the law … we have to act … no one can be exempted,” he said after handing over RM100,000 worth of zakat (tithe) from Amanah Raya Berhad to the needy at the breaking of fast at Taman Kuala Kangsar here on Saturday.

He was commenting on Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan’s comment after attending the Police Commission Meeting on Friday that the police would investigate whether Nurin Jazlin’s parents had been negligent.

Mohamed Nazri said the police were only abiding by the principles of the Rukun Negara which require the citizens of the country to uphold the rules of law.