A Kadir Jasin When judges prostitute the judciary

When judges prostitute the judciary

Who to blame if Anwar goes to jail?

 PKR's Kajang Move vs Mahathir's Penjara Kajang,with some  help from PAS Abdul Hadi Abdul Hadi Awang

Why and what happened  when the appeal against DSAI's sodomy case was heard and the decision that brought about much frustration. only a natural course to nominate Anwar’s wife to complete the charted course of action. Do we still link this to nepotism?

what  about  Cries of nepotism, cronyism and corruption reverberated in Mahathir The rookie Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir...

 

Truth is Mahathir no longer has his men in the important positions.

Anwar was still in prison, but Reformasi was making big waves. Young people who grew up during that period saw the cruelty of Mahathir Mohamad, and these young people are today active leaders in the new Pakatan coalition.

After Mahathir withdrew himself from national politics, it was his successor, Tun Abdullah A. Badawi who brought BN to a triumphant victory in the 2004 General Election. This, of course, led to what we saw as one of Mahathir's tirade against Pak Lah. Jealousy had apparently gripped Mahathir because his successor could win the support of most Malaysians, something which he himself had never been able to achieve.

Look in the mirror

After retiring over the past 10 years, Mahathir should remind himself that he too has flopped. The amount of public funds wasted on failed ventures is humongous. If Proton still needs the Government to inject huge funds, at a time when subsidies have been cut and GST is being introduced, it clearly shows Proton is another of his flopped projects, besides Perwaja which is hardly heard of. Even till today, Putrajaya boasts of large office buildings which consume too much electricity to maintain.

While Najib may be occasionally remembered these days for his kangkung and his RM1 per chicken (within the next two day after the missing MH370) remarks, Mahathir should not forget that the people, both in Malaysia and Singapore, are still unhappy with his "crooked" bridge. In the past, we used to hear people joke: "I wish David Copperfield (well-known illusionist) would ask Mahathir to sit in his Proton car, and make both disappear!"

The situation has changed. After being "out" of politics for the past 10 years, Mahathir should realise where he belongs to. He should be sitting amongst the many other retirees and allow others to do their job. When Mahathir last attacked Pak Lah, the entire UMNO crumbled under him. Now, he is testing the waters again, and I guess, he is no longer able to stir up a storm beyond the teacup.

Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has rejected offers of asylum abroad ahead of a final appeal in October on a sodomy conviction that could see him jailed, a political aide said Monday.

Anwar was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison in March on charges he sodomised a young former male aide, but is free pending a final appeal set for October 28-29.

Anwar, 67, has dismissed the case as fabricated by the government to ruin his political career.

The political aide, who asked not to be named, declined further comment but said that a media report Monday on the asylum offers was correct.

The Star newspaper quoted Anwar saying he had received several offers by "foreign leaders" to go overseas but would not accept them.

"I met up with a few foreign leaders who advised me to go overseas to escape a possible prison sentence. At my age, they say they cannot imagine seeing me behind bars," Anwar was quoted as saying.

The story did not specify which countries Anwar was speaking of.

Sodomy is punishable by up to 20 years' jail in the Muslim-majority nation.

The accusation surfaced shortly after Anwar led a three-party alliance to unprecedented electoral gains in 2008.

A lower court acquitted Anwar in 2012, but an appeals court controversially overturned that verdict in March.

Anwar, a former top leader in Malaysia's ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), had earlier spent six years in jail on separate sodomy and corruption charges after a power struggle in the late 1990s that saw him expelled from the party.

The charges triggered massive protests against the UMNO-led regime.

UMNO has governed since independence in 1957, but has seen its support slump over corruption, authoritarian rule and divisive racial policies.

After his release, Anwar joined the fractious opposition, leading it to unprecedented electoral gains.

The Anwar Verdict Doesn't Just Embarrass Malaysia, It Impedes It 

The news that Anwar Ibrahim, former deputy prime minister of Malaysia and now the leader of its opposition, has been sentenced to five years of imprisonment was profoundly disappointing but also sadly predictable. It does Malaysia no favors, in any possible respect.

Anwar now faces jail for a second time, having been sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment in 1999 for corruption and sodomy; he served six years either in jail or police custody awaiting trial, most of it in solitary confinement, until his release in 2004 after one of the original charges was overturned. He was arrested once again on sodomy charges in 2008, and acquitted in January 2012, but the government appealed the decision, and on Friday that acquittal was overturned. Now jail awaits this 66-year-old man once again.

There is so very much wrong with all of this that it is hard to know where to start.

Firstly, there is the fact that sodomy is illegal at all. Let’s be clear that there has never been any allegation of rape or duress; the crime at issue is homosexual sex. There are many reasons to suggest that the incident – Anwar supposedly sodomised a male aide – never happened at all; the original acquittal by the High Court in 2012 was made because DNA evidence was compromised, and there are a host of troubling connections between the accusing aide and the government. But even if it was true, it is an embarrassment to Malaysia that it is illegal at all. Incidentally, sodomy is equally illegal in a heterosexual relationship; so is oral sex.

Malaysia is not alone in having archaic laws around sexuality, and very rarely bothers to prosecute them, which begs the question why it was in a rush to prosecute Anwar. When the first charges were brought in 1999, they came at a time when Anwar had challenged his one-time mentor, Mahathir Mohamed, who was the country’s Prime Minister for more than 20 years; it was widely felt that the sodomy allegation came as a method of reducing his appeal to a conservative and largely Muslim population. By the time of the second charges in 2008, Anwar was spearheading a coalition of opposition parties that had, for the very first time in Malaysia’s history, created a credible opponent to the government itself, winning 82 out of 222 seats in parliament in the election of that year and ending the government’s two thirds supermajority for the first time since 1969; again, there was a feeling that it was enormously convenient to pick such a moment to prosecute Anwar. Quite simply, they would not have done it for anyone else.

Various prime ministers have come and gone in the meantime, and the current one, Najib Razak, has often said the case has nothing to do with him and the courts should be left to do their work. That would be a valid argument if he and his government had respected the 2012 High Court verdict that Anwar was not guilty. But he, and they, did not. It is the government that has appealed this decision, and pushed hard for a man to be convicted and jailed for his sexuality. This represents either a deeply undignified protest against individual sexual rights, or an attempt to sink a credible opposition leader. Either interpretation reflects very badly on the leadership.

And here’s the thing. Opposition has been good for Malaysia. It has been good for Najib Razak. It has made him a better leader, with better policies that more accurately reflect the interests of the country’s splintered Malay/Chinese/Indian/Christian population. Najib’s One Malaysia policy very likely would never have come about had it not been for what he learned from the 2008 election, when it became clear to him for the first time that a significant proportion of Malaysians – 36.9%, based on the seats in parliament – wanted something different to what they were getting. The next election, in 2013, when the ruling party won 60% of parliamentary seats but actually logged a minority of the popular vote, must have made the message clearer still. The message here should be to change policy rather than to waste time on trying to imprison a man who has brought proper debate to Malaysia.

This is an investment blog, so why the political sermon? Because Malaysia’s merit as an investment destination depends to a large degree on its political evolution and the consequences for Malaysian business. For too long, Malaysian enterprises were cosseted by policies that protected ethnic Malays while, consequently, impeding Chinese entrepreneurs who have built so much within Malaysia. The gradual steps to move away from that approach are vital, but have probably only come because of the voice of opposition politics in Malaysia. Malaysian enterprises, with few exceptions (like Petronas or Air Asia, or the Islamic finance industry), have not punched their weight on the world stage: Proton, the national car and a source of immense pride to the Mahathir administration, is just not what it could be. Very few Malaysian stocks are must-haves for portfolio managers covering southeast Asia.

I have interviewed Anwar several times over the years (and, lest I seem one-sided, have also interviewed Najib Razak and former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed, as well as numerous government ministers from the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition and its dominant UMNO party). I have seen Anwar give rallies on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, which is where one really gets a sense of the man’s reach. Despite his imprisonment, Anwar is not a Mandela figure: he was a senior member of a government he later rebelled against and he cannot be completely without blame for whatever transgressions occurred in that administration. It may be that, given office, he would struggle in the role of having to get things done rather than disagree with what is there already. But the point is he has brought discussion to Malaysia, often around difficult issues, and Malaysia is enhanced for it. The country has a skilled and capable workforce and is well on track to reach its national vision of being a fully developed and united country by 2020. But a vital part of that ambition will be not burying those who voice disagreement along the way, but incorporating them into the country’s evolution.

TWO, if there are unscrupulous attempts to bring the judiciary to disrepute, the attorney-general, as required of his office, should act expeditiously to protect the institution. He should immediately institute contempt proceedings against the individual or entity concerned.

THREE, the government should also demonstrate that it is sincere about respecting the independence of the judiciary. Its actions should not give rise to the slightest doubt that it is trying through subtle or stark manoeuvres to influence the judiciary.

FOUR, local and foreign corporations, and individuals who command wealth, power and influence in society should not appear to be trying to shape judicial decisions through direct and indirect means.

FIVE, opposition leaders and parties should not pressure the judiciary by mobilising the mob against the institution or threatening judges and their families. Neither should they smear the institution or its standard-bearers through vicious demonisation and vulgar attacks.

SIX, opposition leaders should not seek the help of foreign governments or other external actors to apply pressure upon the judiciary to make decisions that are favourable to them and their ilk.

SEVEN, the Malaysian Bar Council have a special responsibility to defend the independence of the judiciary. Given the prevailing situation, it should undertake to present the facts as they are to the general public to minimise the misconceptions about the judiciary. The Bar Council can do this by preparing a balance sheet of the so-called “political cases” adjudicated in the last 10 years, which will reveal the number that were won by the government and elements associated with it and the number won by the opposition and groups allied to it. It should compare this balance sheet with the record of judiciaries in Britain, Canada, India and other democracies.

EIGHT, civil society groups also have a role to play. They should adopt a balanced position on the question of the judiciary without falling into the trap of either uncritical acceptance of each and every judicial decision or slavish rejection of the judiciary’s record goaded by blind antagonism towards the government of the day.

NINE, the media, whatever its form, should regard the defence of the judiciary, especially if the judiciary is endeavouring to uphold its independence, as its sacred duty. If the proposed balance sheet on the performance of the judiciary materialises, the media should disseminate the information as widely as possible.

TEN, more than all the institutions and bodies mentioned here, it is Malaysian citizens who should cherish the independence and integrity of the judiciary in their hearts. They should be deeply conscious of how fundamental judicial independence is to their own well-being and the wellbeing of their loved ones.

Malaysians should realise that judicial independence resonates with the virtuous examples of independent-minded judges of integrity found in many of our spiritual and moral philosophies. This is why an independent judiciary is in the ultimate analysis one of those hallowed principles that unites all Malaysians.

It is shocking. It is unbelievable. It is most hurting. It goes against the very grain of democratic fundamentals. It is an insult to humanity and all of our belief systems. It certainly, now, disgraces this nation.

How could a Deputy Home Minister who is the guardian supervisor for peace and harmony, safety and security of a nation of 30 million people utter such shockingly disgraceful statements in Parliament?

It is reported in quotes that the Deputy Home Minster of Malaysia, Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar stated in Parliament that “non Malays are probably less sensitive….probably they can accept it,” in explaining why there are grossly far more Malays falling victim to statutory rape.

His statement that “Malays are sensitive to this kind of offence on teenage girls” simply means that non-Malays are guilty of condoning rape of teenage or under-aged girls.

By qualifying that non-Malays are “probably less sensitive” he is alluding to an accusation that non-Malays are less moral or worse, morally dead.

By even suggesting that non-Malays “can accept” statutory rape, is he not claiming that non-Malays who are predominantly non-Muslims are also criminal in nature and do not have any religious bearings that condemns rape?

Rubbing salt to the wound is the fact that statistics show Malays commit 80% of the child rapes in Malaysia. So who is Wan Junaidi trying to kid? What a fraud this man is!

How can Malaysians live with hope with such kind of leaders? How can we even think of a “1 Malaysia” when you have leaders labeling Malaysians using race based prejudices?

If a Chinese or an Indian leader or Member of Parliament had uttered anything to that effect by singling out the Malays as being more immoral and without principles and religious anchoring, there would be mayhem even before a quarter of the population gets around the bend to know about it.

We would have the entire UMNO bandwagon of NGOs and guardians of Islam screaming for blood.

But now that a deputy minister has boldly stated in Parliament that non-Malays are less moral and therefore less sensitive to statutory rape, what do we do?

Do we dismiss this as a stupid and brainless statement?

What says the PM? Or dumb-founded silence as usual?

Perhaps the prime minister of this nation of 30 million people who professes to be the leader of all Malaysians irrespective of race and religion should respond and talk with immediacy. This is of national importance and certainly hinges on national security and attacks the very fundamentals of democartic governance.

We have a case of a very senior government official and political leader hurting the sensitivities of non-Malays. An apology is not acceptable considering the magnitude of this prejudicial statement made in Parliament of all places.

Surely the nation of principle-centered, God fearing and respectful leaders from all faiths; the politicians who still have honor and justice in their hearts; community leaders who firmly believe in a one-nation dream; and citizens who proclaim loyalty to King and nation – all of us must stand up to this blatant offence, insult, hurt and prejudice against humanity.

Otherwise, we might as well just be comfy with our kedai kopi antics and carry on with life like an ostrich for we would in summary be saying “Yes Honorable Deputy Minister, you are right!” 

The Kedai Kopi Assembly (KKA) continues to sit at various locations and with different groups of members throughout the Christmas and New Year holidays.

The economy was a big issue. The members were unanimous that the opposition parties do not have to work very hard to garner the support of the Malays. Being poor, they suffer the most when prices of goods and services increase. The RM500 BR1M is chicken feed compared to the quantum of price rices. In the last general election, these were the people who saved the BN from defeat.

Apart from highlighting their successes in Penang and Selangor since taking over the rich states in 2008, they need only to continue to accuse the BN of corruption, abuse of power and extravagance to gain support.

He pointed out the example of a recent statement by the new Selangor DAP chairman, Gobind Singh Deo. The Puchong MP was confident that more Malays, who are opposed to corruption, will join the DAP or vote for Pakatan Rakyat, which was the subject of my most recent posting.

The KKA noted that the deafening silence of Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak on corruption is not the only the issue that is disheartening and driving away the Malays from Umno and the BN. The KKA acknowledge some talks by the new leadership of the MCA about fighting corruption.

If the Chinese and Indians are unhappy with the so-called pro-Bumiputera policies, the Malays are unhappy with the lack of seriousness in the implementation of these policies.

Judging from past programmes, the KKA members doubt that anything significant will come out of the Pemerkasaan Ekonomi Bumiputera (Bumiputera Economic Empowerment) announced by Najib on September 14, 2013. Of course in Najib’s style of doing things, there will be commissions and consultants appointed to handle it.

They noted that the government had created so many agencies in the past to help Bumiputeras. Some we have forgotten. Yet government wants to create more. This is how yearly budget for salaries goes up.

There are (or were) the SEDCs, MARA, Bank Bumiputra, Dara, Perda, Keda, Felda, Risda, Felcra, Ketengah, Kejora, PNB, Pemandu, Prima1, SPNB,  AIM, Pernas, Teraju, Equinas, PUNB, SME Bank, Agro Bank, Exim Bank, Bank Rakyat.

A KKA kaki lawak (joker) interjected: “Hopefully Umno does not think that these agencies belong to it since Najib recently said that Umno is a party for rakyat.”

The government employs 1.5 million civil servants and pay them bonuses. Another 10,000 will be recruited this year. Then it created Pemandu and spent billions of ringgit engaging consultants because civil servants are not good enough. No wonder civil servants are upset and some are secretly sabotaging the government.

New measurement for success

To many Umno leaders, the measure of the party’s success is big cars, big houses and expensive watches whose names they can’t even mention.

During the time that my late father was a delegate to the Umno general assembly in the 1960’s and 1970’s, outstation delegates stayed at friends house, cheap hotels around Batu Road or at public halls. They travelled by train and stage buses. Now they came by air and expensive cars, and stayed at 5-star hotels.

They do not bother about corruption, wastage of public funds and extravagance. They pay lips service to the suffering of the people due to high cost of living, unaffordable housing and a slew of price increases. The houses are getting smaller, the buildings are getting taller and the density higher.

Not every Umno leader is doing well. But most are. The ones who follow the straight and narrow are viewed with disdain - little wonder that the rakyat feel that Umno leaders are doing well financially and are out of touch with the reality of the rakyat’s everyday life.

Because of their extravagant lifestyle, these leaders do not question why government had to spend RM180 million on executive jets. They see nothing wrong to it. They don’t even care that that the PM was away from the country during the New Year two years in a row.

Do they know that even the Queen (of England) uses train and charters planes when travelling overseas? They should because many like the PM studied in the UK. Air transport for the British Royal Family and the government of the UK is provided, depending on circumstances and availability, by a variety of military and civilian operators. But most often they fly using scheduled commercial flights, normally the British Airways.

Here in Malaysia, people with no formal appointments and duties are known to use government on pretext of serving the country. But when opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim leased a private jet to travel to East Malaysia, the BN-controlled mainstream media condemned him as extravagant.

But the KKA noted that one or two young ministers were known to have voluntarily “downgraded” themselves from first to business class on long flights to save cost. Kudos.

We pride ourselves with being an example to the developing countries. Our development model is copied by them. But we should be truthful by also telling them that our national debt has risen by over 100% since Mohd Najib took over from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi less than 5 years ago.

The kaki lawak interjected: “But Pak Lah was sleeping and Najib is not. Pak Lah is now the advisor to MAS. It is not a big thing if he is not aware of losses MAS is making. Of course the Umno General Assembly made no mention of MAS. They were not bothered to complain about loss-making GLCs. They are only interested in profitable ones.”

President defending the wrong things

The president defended his wife in the assembly? Delegates were shocked. The journalists who had to praise Najib were even more shocked.

We are not complaining about the good things his wife does. Many wives of VIPs, including the royal families, are also doing good things.

We are complaining about the wrong things he is doing in accommodating the wishes of his wife. We are asking the government to be accountable. The PM should answer these allegations. The way he bragged about his wife in public, he was in fact saying that his wife has more influence than him with foreign leaders.

Umno's way of getting support is to give cash. The joker butted in: “Some people gave private jets to keep the wives happy.” Mohd Najib’s way of making people happy is giving money. First there was the BR1M. Now cash is given to flood victims.  Yes we can give cash but when the rakyat’s houses are inundated, they need food, water, blankets, etc. Use the money to buy things victims need and to repair their houses later.

The KKA doubts that the condemnation against the Selangor PR government for raising state assemblymen's salaries and against Lim Guan Eng for buying a new Mercedes was serious and would last long. Ministers and MPs too are longing for salary increases and new cars.

To keep the people happy, another BR1M, and an austerity drive that is too little and too late, are announced. The KKA noted that the poor small-time Bumiputera suppliers, contractors and caterers who will bear the brunt of the spending cuts.

He mentioned Mandela at the Umno Assembly, but he did not attend his funeral. Obama, Clinton, Bush and other world leaders went. Does he not know how close South Africa is to Malaysia? Fortunately he had the sense to designate Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as his personal representative.

What did the Umno assembly achieve? To the outsiders, they see the same old things – praises and standing ovations for the el presidente. But some Wanita Umno delegates noticed that the president’s future son-in-law was seated in the area meant exclusively for women and they didn’t like it.

The only thing that was out of the ordinary was the open acknowledgement that Umno could not expect help from MCA and Gerakan. Chinese voters will take the money and the goodies, but will not give the votes to the BN.

KKA’s unplanned sessions

My apologies to those who have requested to join the KKA, but have not been invited to one yet. Several had, however, joined me in unplanned sessions when they saw me at the coffee shops. All are welcome to join if my face is not buried in the computer.

One delegate noted that the rakyat might have been spared the burden of higher toll rates had Najib agreed to a private sector proposal some years ago to buy all toll highways in the country for RM50 billion and not raising rates ever again.

The proposal was submitted soon after Najib became PM in 2009, but was not entertained.
Another “bidan terjun” delegate (from Kelantan) asked me when would the Malays be united. I said maybe when the DAP rule the country. - kadirjasin.blogspot.com, January 5, 2014.\