Sarwak MP's ready to take a shift

Sarawak BN reps urged to cross over
Tony Thien May 10, 08 12:06pm
PKR’s sole elected representative in the Sarawak legislative assembly has asked Barisan Nasional state assemblypersons and MPs to join the ranks of Pakatan Rakyat “to fulfill the phenomenal expectations of the people after the March 8 general election”.Dominique Ng Kim Ho (PKR-Padungan), who is also Sarawak PKR chairperson said the defining moment had come to realise what he called "the dimensions and meaning of Merdeka in Malaysia after decades of hardship and unjust subservience".
"You can help raise Sarawak to the centre stage in our nation, to a respected position in the Asean region and even beyond,” he told the ruling state BN’s 61 representatives, including ministers and assistant ministers.In his debate on the motion of thanks to the head of state, Ng said Pakatan has the numbers to take control of the federal government and that in due course there is a strong possibility Malaysia will have her first woman prime minister.According to Ng, Pakatan is confident of support from at least 10 MPs from Sabah and some from Sarawak.He said under a Pakatan government, apart from the oil/gas royalties being raised, the land policy of the BN government will also be changed and land will be returned to the people.’
Land a contentious issue Ng was referring to both urban and suburban lands under the mixed zone land category which have been placed under Section 47 (notice to compulsorily acquire the land). Land affected are public purchases which are expiring in their leases and may not be renewed as well as native customary rights (NCR) lands affected by commercial development, especially oil palm plantation activities. Land has been a contentious issue and is central to the election campaign theme of the opposition in the recent elections in the state. PKR has promised that land lease will be extended to 99 years or in perpetuity should Pakatan form the state government after the next state elections due in 2011.
Ng said the post Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud era is coming soon with the expected new dawn in the Land of Kenyalang (Sarawak) with the blossoming of the Malaysian spring that came on March 8 in a display of the Malaysian people’s power and the recent legal return to politics of former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim, PKR de facto leader and prime minister-in-waiting.When Ng stood down, he received applause from the six DAP state assemblypersons, led by their leader Wong Ho Leng, the member for Bukit Assek.

source from www.malaysiakini.com

Ibrahim refuse to apologize to Karpal

Ibrahim’s refusal to apologise to Karpal causes commotion
A COMMOTION broke out in the Parliament lobby during a meeting between Datuk Ibrahim Ali (Independent – Pasir Mas) and a group of disabled people who demanded that he apologise to Karpal Singh.
The group, known as Malaysians Against the Discrimination of the Disabled (MADD), urged Ibrahim to retract his recent statement in Parliament requesting that Karpal Singh (DAP – Bukit Gelugor) stand up while speaking in the Dewan Rakyat.
Ibrahim had apologised to the group initially for hurting their feelings over the remarks he made in the Dewan.
However, when he refused to apologise to Karpal Singh, who is wheelchair-bound, several from the group became agitated and this led to a shouting match.
Shouting match: Ibrahim arguing with the disabled yesterday. On his left is Gobind Singh.
“My problem was with Karpal Singh and never with all of you. I have never offended you and I love disabled people from the bottom of my heart.
“But if you all have misinterpreted my meaning, I extend my sincerest apologies.
“I hope you don’t misunderstand this because there are groups trying to take advantage of you,” he said, referring to several Pakatan Rakyat leaders – Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Lim Lip Eng, Loh Gwo Burne, Gobind Singh Deo and others – who had escorted the group into Parliament.
Ibrahim even said that he would propose that the Government allocate a RM500 monthly allowance to the disabled, which was greeted by cheers.
However, a huge spat ensued when Lim Lip Eng (DAP – Segambut) questioned Ibrahim if he would offer an apology to Karpal Singh.
To this, Ibrahim shouted “No! No! No!”.
“I will not apologise to Karpal. You cannot force me. I will not apologise for the benefit of the opposition party,” he retorted, and stormed off from the meeting.
In response, the group shouted back at him: “What if you are disabled one day?”
A representative from MADD later handed over a memorandum to Opposition Leader Dr Wan Azizah.

source from www.star.com.my

Karpal queries DAP, Pakatan leaders' silence
Fauwaz Abdul Aziz May 10, 08 10:15am
Amidst the uproar from Barisan Nasional leaders over Karpal Singh’s remarks regarding Perak Sultan Azlan Shah’s order for a senior civil servant to be reinstated, the DAP chairperson has expressed surprise about the noticeable silence from his own party members.“My own party leaders have not condemned me for saying what I said. On the other hand, they have not come out openly to support me, which is unfortunate,” he told a press conference at his office in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.“When it comes to the crunch, the party must, should stand by its chairman as long as the chairman is telling the truth,” he added.Karpal’s comments come on the heels of several police reports and statements by BN and Malay leaders - including Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his deputy Najib Razak - against his statements on the Perak Sultan.Azlan Shah had ordered for the reinstatement of the state’s Islamic Department director Jamry Sury after the latter was transferred to another department following what was alleged to be his refusal to cooperate with the new Pakatan Rakyat state government.In response to the sultan’s orders, Karpal said early this month that Azlan Shah had acted beyond his powers as under the country's law, the Pakatan-led state government had every right to transfer Jamry as he is a government servant.Commenting on this Thursday, Abdullah claimed that what Karpal said was seditious, insulting to the Sultan and tantamount to questioning his prerogative and knowledge of his scope of duties as the state’s head of religion.Najib, on the other hand, described Karpal’s statement as incorrect as the federal and state constitutions legally allow the sultan to act as he did.
Perak MB also quietSeveral police reports were also made by Barisan Nasional MPs and a Malay NGOs coalition, who accused Karpal of being seditious, rude and having insulted the institution of Malay rulers.Following this, Karpal said yesterday that the police were scheduled to see him tomorrow morning at his office in Penang. While Karpal said he will not back down from his stand on the issue despite the police reports against him and what he described as moves to ‘intimidate’ him, he was also wondering why his own party members and other leaders from the Pakatan coalition were muted on the issue. “Publicly, I have not seen any statements (by DAP leaders), at least in print,” said Karpal.Asked why there were no such statements supporting him, Karpal said: “I don’t know. They should back me, right?”Meanwhile, in the Star, Perak Menteri Besar Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin was reported to have kept mum on Karpal’s comment that Nizar had ‘wilted and buckled’ under royal pressure.Asked about Karpal’s statement that he had bowed down by apologising to Azlan Shah over Jamry’s reinstatement, Nizar was quoted as having said: “ “No. No. No. No statement from me,” said the report yesterday.

source from http://www.malaysiakini.com/

BMC residents doused and gassed
Andrew Ong May 9, 08 10:51am
The tranquil suburb of Bandar Mahkota Cheras (BMC) descended into chaos last night when police doused some 500 residents with water cannons and fired dozens of tear gas canisters into the crowd.During the melee, Segambut member of parliament Lim Lip Eng and BMC Open Road Committee chairperson Tan Boon Hwa were allegedly assaulted by plainclothes police officers.The incident occurred shortly after Lim arrived at the scene at about 10pm to lend support to the residents who had gathered at the Bandar Tun Hussien Onn intersection of the Kajang-Cheras Highway.The highway concessionaire Grand Saga Sdn Bhd was in the midst of erecting a concrete barrier - for the third time - aimed at thwarting the BMC residents from entering the intersection and thus bypassing a toll booth on the highway.This resulted in commuters having to travel an additional six kilometres and pay Grand Saga 90 sen toll for every trip [see Google map below].At the time when Lim came to the area, the police were keeping a close watch on the residents who were gathering around Grand Saga employees working on the concrete barricade.Lim had approached Grand Saga workers and the police to find out who was in charge of the construction work. After failing to get answers, he decided to remove the wires from the machines used by construction workers to weld the steel rods to reinforce the concrete barrier (left).'I was maced, beaten'Without the welding machines, Grand Saga workers withdrew, prompting residents to surge past riot police cordons and destroying the partly-completed barrier with their bare hands in a matter of minutes.The jubilant crowd later tossed Lim into the air several times but the mood soured seconds later when the riot police issued warnings for the crowd to disperse.Suddenly some 50 riot police took up attacking positions and there was a brief stand-off with the residents with only what remains of the barrier separating the authorities and the residents.What followed was utter chaos when Lim tried to stop a water cannon truck from advancing by standing in front of the truck.According to Lim, several plainclothes officers forcibly removed him and a melee ensued."They dragged me aside and sprayed mace on my face. I couldn't see. Then they punched me and kicked me," he told reporters about two hours after the incident.His shirt was torn during the scuffle.Selangor state executive councilor Ean Yong Hian Wah who was also at the scene told reporters that the Lim's beating only stopped when the police were told he was a parliamentarian.Beaten in front of reportersLim, a trained lawyer, is a well-known figure among the residents as he has been serving as the legal advisor for the BMC Open Road Committee.Meanwhile, committee chairperson Tan was among the crowd at the time of the fracas. Upon seeing Lim being assaulted, he rushed forward to aid him.For his efforts, Tan too was allegedly assaulted and later arrested. Eyewitnesses claimed that he was punched at least once by a plainclothes officer in full view of a group of reporters and photographers.Tan was bundled away in a police patrol car while a resident drove Lim and Ean Yong to a nearby clinic for medical treatment.By this time, the police had already fired the water cannon once, but when it failed to break up the crowd, three rounds of tear gas were fired. The crowd eventually dispersed.When approached by reporters last night, Kajang district deputy police chief Supt Toha Abdullah claimed that he was unaware of the police beatings.He also said that the police had to disperse the crowd because they were "menggangu tugas keselamatan pihak polis” (interfering with police security duties).In all, three residents and Tan were arrested.When Kajang district police chief Shakaruddin Che Mood was contacted shortly after midnight, he said that the police had yet to decide what charges would be slapped on the detainees.Tan was bailed out early this morning.Watch 12-min video of the shuffle on Malaysiakini.tvSPECIAL REPORT: The Grand Saga in Cheras

source by http://www.malaysiakini.com/

RPK bailed out tomorrow

breaking news Malaysia Today news portal webmaster Raja Petra Kamarudin has agreed to post bail after meeting his wife Marina Lee Abdullah at the Sungai Buloh prison this morning.
Following this, just after the lunch-hour break, Marina, with the help of Raja Petra's lawyer J Chandra posted bail at the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court.Chandra however said that although the bail money has been paid to the court, it would be only tomorrow before Raja Petra was allowed to leave the Sungai Buloh prison."Bail release takes 24 hours. Judge Nurmala Salim won't make any exception in our case," he told reporters after meeting the judge in chambers.He added that Raja Petra could be released anytime after 9am tomorrow.Meanwhile Marina also said that she spoke to Raja Petra this morning."He said he has broken his hunger strike and I believe him," she said.

Order to produce Earlier, Chandra explained on the procedure that would have to be followed for Raja Petra to be released following the bail posting.
He said that after showing proof that Marina had paid the RM5,000 bail through a bank to the court, the judge will then issue the 'order to produce' (OTP) to allow the Sungai Buloh prison department to release Raja Petra.
"The OTP will be sent by hand by the police," said Chandra."Normally this process takes one day, but we are trying to expedite (the release). We are confident that our client will be released today," he had said this morning

Candlelight vigilMeanwhile, some 150 people held a nearly two-hour long candlelight vigil outside the Sungai Buloh prison last night, calling for the charge against Raja Petra be dropped and that he be immediately released.The crowd which began gathering from 9pm, comprised of individuals and several notable bloggers who chanted slogans calling for Raja Petra's release and carried three large banners which read "Justice for ALL... tantuya".

Source from www.malaysiakini.com

PM stopped Najib from seeing Dr.M

watch this video

http://www.malaysiakini.tv/

Clinton wins in Indiana

Sen. Hillary Clinton takes a narrow lead in Indiana to win U.S. Democratic primary
Sen. Barack Obama wins North Carolina primary, boosting his lead in the delegate race
Poll workers reported heavy voter turnout in both states

for more info click this link http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/05/06/primaries.change/index.html

Bill Gates Talks Tech in South Korea

"We're approaching the second decade of (the) digital age," Gates told Lee at the start of their meeting at the presidential Blue House, according to a media pool report.
South Korean automakers Hyundai Motor Inc. and affiliate Kia Motors Corp. announced with Microsoft Tuesday that they will use Microsoft's in-car software for controlling personal music players and telephones with voice commands.

"We're doing some very interesting work on automobile software," Gates said after dining with Lee. "That's a really wide open area."
The three companies also plan to set up an automobile innovation center. Hyundai and Kia form the world's sixth-largest automotive group.
Separately, Microsoft also said Tuesday that it will invest $280 million in a new research and development center in Beijing and will double its full-time research staff in China to 3,000 people in three to five years.
Lee, a conservative former construction CEO, swept into office in February with a vow to boost economic growth through deregulation and increased foreign investment.

hello fellows danger nearing us

hi kaigal..we have no rights to throw our opinion even in blogs itself..what a discrimination world is this?
We are seated here in solidarity for fellow writers and bloggers to make our stand on similar action that may be taken against other writers and journalists in future," said Interim Council National Alliance of Bloggers president Ahirudin Attan.

blogger raja petra has been charged for using seditious in his malaysia today blog recently..
The charge sheet also highlighted nine paragraphs of the article which was titled 'Let's send the Altantuya murderers to hell' as seditious [See chart below.

Raja Petras wife commented,
"She also said that she was disappointed with the manner Raja Petra was treated by the police in the run-up to being charged today."I'm not angry but I'm very disappointed with the way things are done in a hurry. They send us to this court (Jalan Duta) and then push us to the other court (Petaling Jaya)."They send us to this police station and say come tomorrow and then they come to the house to take the computer. And this has happened even today when they want to charge him."We went there at 8.30am and waited till 11am and they say it's not there and tell us to come to PJ Sessions (Court). It's a circus. It doesn't look as though they are serious. It's trumped up charges. As though as everything is done in a hurry," she said.

News update

analysis With the Parliament being telecast live, the public is bound to wonder if Pakatan Rakyat can form a shadow cabinet. This concept is well-established in the United Kingdom where the opposition’s senior MPs take on shadow cabinet portfolios.Lim Kit Siang, as opposition leader in the 2004-2008 period, tried to form a shadow cabinet of sorts amongst DAP MPs but this attempt failed to achieve any momentum. There are a couple of reasons for this.Firstly, Lim, by virtue of his personality and his working style, inadvertently prevented other DAP MPs from enunciating their own policy positions on their portfolios. Many of them still looked up to Lim, a workhorse and an autodidact, for policy direction.Secondly, many of them probably felt that this was a waste of time given that they had little domain knowledge in the portfolios assigned to them and there was little chance that they could actually become actual ministers which such portfolios anyway.The equation has obviously changed after the recent general election. There are many more opposition MPs who can take on shadow cabinet portfolios and quite a few who can speak authoritatively on various issues, including finance, education and ICT, just to name a few. More importantly, the incentive for taking up these portfolios is much higher compared to before since there is a distinct possibility of Pakatan taking over government.The formation of a shadow cabinet will not be easy though. With various opposition leaders busy running five state governments, and with their head honcho, Anwar Ibrahim, pre-occupied with negotiating with potential crossovers from Barisan Nasional, it's entirely possible that they have not had time to properly sit down and discuss the creation of a shadow cabinet.We cannot discount the possibility we will not see the formation of a shadow cabinet anytime soon. This, we argue, would be a mistake for Pakatan. They should create one sooner rather than later, if they want to be taken seriously as a 'government-in-waiting'.We all saw the protracted negotiations involved in determining executive council positions in both Selangor and Perak which, together with royal intervention, held up the formation of the state governments in these two states. To avoid a repeat performance, it makes sense for Pakatan to make known, internally and externally, the possible allocation of cabinet portfolios if and when they come to power.Now, let's look at the possible options for forming a shadow cabinet. One obvious approach would be based on the UK model where there is one shadow finance minister, one shadow education minister, one shadow home minister and so on. This way, every minister on the government bench will have a counterpart on the opposition bench.There is some natural appeal to this approach as the public would like to know what a Pakatan cabinet would look like. In particular, people would want to compare and contrast it to the BN cabinet.Such a move would be fascinating and would no doubt generate plenty of discussion and debate amongst political analysts and journalists and in the coffee shops and online forums. But it would also unnecessarily hamper Pakatan as it would entail inevitably contentious negotiations for portfolios amongst the three parties.If one thought that the seat allocation process amongst the Pakatan parties were difficult and testy, imagine what shadow cabinet negotiations would be like, especially if you throw in potential crossover parties from Sabah and Sarawak into the mix.Contentious horse tradingA much better option would be for Pakatan to allocate shadow portfolios in a more liberal fashion whereby specific portfolios can be allocated to all three parties, which would then each identify its own MP to assume those portfolios.For example, there could be an MP each from PKR, DAP and PAS, responsible for higher education. Each could be given the flexibility of speaking out on different aspects of policy to do with public universities and private colleges. This model could be replicated for other portfolios.The downside of this approach, of course, is that sometimes, MPs from the different parties might disagree on different policy aspects within their respective portfolios. For example, DAP might be in favour of having a more meritocratic policy of admissions into public universities which takes into account of the fact that STPM exam is much harder than the matriculation exam while PKR or PAS might be in favour of maintaining the current system of admissions.However, the advantage of this approach, as opposed to a UK-style shadow cabinet, is that it allows Pakatan to avoid being bogged down with contentious horse-trading that would naturally entail in the formation of a one-to-one shadow cabinet. Instead of arguing over who gets what, in taking a more liberal approach, Pakatan can show that it indeed has ample expertise to form the next government.Whatever approach is taken, Pakatan has to form a shadow cabinet sooner rather than later, especially since it has gone on record as saying it would form the government by Sept 16 this year. The public would naturally want to know - and has a right to know - whether Pakatan MPs are capable of meeting the challenges at hand. There is no better way to let them know than by having a shadow cabinet.

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