Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin nak masuk UMNO?

Bekas Mufti Perlis, Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin disebut- sebut akan menyertai Umno bersama 100 ulama muda lain Jumaat ini.

Mengulas mengenai perkara berkenaan, Setiausaha Kerja Umno, Datuk Abd. Rauf Yusof ketika dihubungi mStar Online di sini hari ini berkata: "Ya, tunggulah Jumaat ini."

Sebelum itu, beliau berkata, barisan ulama berkenaan akan menyertai parti menerusi Cawangan Dataran Merdeka, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.

Sementara itu bekas mufti Perlis, Dr Mohd Asri Zainal Abidin menjelaskan bahawa beliau belum membuat apa-apa keputusan untuk menyertai mana-mana parti politik.

"Saya mengharapkan semua pihak tidak membuat andaian yang terlalu cepat terhadap kenyataan mana-mana pihak mengenai isu ini," tulis beliau dalam blognya.

source:umno online

Kalau depa nak masuk UMNO, biaqpilah. Apakah UMNO akan berubah atau mereformasikan diri dengan hadirnya 100 ulama ini?

Tengok sajalah apa ulama-ulama UMNO buat bila menghadapi masalah judi bola,pembuangan anak secara leluasa dan banyak lagi isu-isu remaja masa kini, ulama-ulama UMNO ini hanya diam membisu dan tak berani nak bersuara.....

cheers.

Penang Bridge 2 may be delayed...........

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said six main factors may cause a delay in the completion of the second Penang bridge by 2012.

Lim said due to the six factors, which include a study to ensure its strength against unforeseen accidents or natural disaster, the bridge that was scheduled to be completed in 2012, can only be completed by September 2013.

"First and foremost we need to study whether the bridge can withstand the impact, if a ship knocks into its pillars accidentally," he told reporters after inspecting works carried out at the bridge today.

The second study required is to find out if the structure would be able to sustain the impact of an earthquake while the third would be to study the earth structure of the sea where the bridge would be build.

"Three other factors are very technical issues," he said when asked of an expected delay in then completion of the second Penang bridge.

Lim said work on the new bridge was progressing well with 25 percent of the work on the 23.5km bridge completed according to schedule.

The second bridge, the longest in Southeast Asia, connecting Batu Kawan on the mainland to Batu Maung on the island, is being carried out through a joint-venture between China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Ltd and UEM Builders Bhd.

Meanwhile, Lim said he was ready to meet the BN leadership, to discuss toll rates for both the bridges in Penang.

source:malaysiakini

Kalau bumbung stadium boleh runtuh,bumbung parlimen boleh bocor, apa jaminan yang jambatan Puluau Pinang ke-2 ini kukuh....

cheers.

TG.Nik Aziz - Bukan saja Melayu UMNO sokong PAS malah Cina dan India.....

“Tiada masa saya tidak susah, cuma suka (hari gembira) saya lebih daripada susah.” Demikian rumusan Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat mengulas dua dekad kepimpinan beliau sebagai Menteri Besar Kelantan. Mengulas lanjut mengenai perjalanan kepimpinannya sejak akhir 1990, Nik Aziz berkata, “susah senang memang hidup saya.”

“Hidup seorang pejuang mesti ada senang, ada susah... tiada masa saya susah, senang campur susah, susah campur senang, saya boleh bertahan,” kata beliau dalam satu pertemuan dengan The Malaysian Insider di Kota Baru baru-baru ini.

Mursyidul Am PAS ini menambah, sebagai seorang Islam beliau yakin bahawa apa yang dibuatnya adalah betul.

“Allah akan bagi restu kepada saya, dunia akhirat, ini kelebihan Islam,” kata pemimpin berusia 79 tahun ini yang sejak dua tahun kebelakangan ini berhadapan siri kritikan termasuk berhubung isu pelantikan anak dan menantunya dalam jawatan agensi kerajaan negeri.

Mereka termasuk Nik Abduh dan menantu Ariffahmi Abdul Rahman. Mengulas lanjut peringkat awal memimpin Kelantan, Nik Aziz berkata, beliau sudah tentu berhadapan dengan kesukaran jika memimpin tanpa ada pandungan dan pengalaman pemimpin lain sebelum itu.

“Tetapi oleh kerana sebelum saya datang, sudah ada pemimpin, pemimpin yang saya maksudkan ini ialah Nabi Muhammad... Nabi Muhammad adalah pemimpin yang dilantik oleh Allah sendiri,” katanya.

“Kesusahan yang menimpa saya dalam memimpin ini, 101 (peratus sedikit) berbanding dengan Nabi Muhammad, terlalu sikit kerana segala usaha penentangan yang dibuat oleh manusia kepada Nabi, orang yang sama... oleh yang demikian, saya hanya tiru, tiru, tiru ajaran Nabi Muhammad.

“Perkara yang pertama Nabi Muhammad atasi ialah pemikiran manusia, bukannya jalan. Kalau Nabi Muhammad tak ada pun manusia akan buat jalan, saya pergi ke China tiga, empat kali, saya pergi ke London serupa sahaja.

“Sedangkan China komunis, dan Amerika ini demokrasi, orang ini berperang bukan... tapi dari segi jalan serupa sahaja, fizikal serupa, yang penting ialah pemikiran. Nabi Muhammad bawa Islam supaya manusia tumpu pada Allah,” katanya lagi.

Dalam temu bual yang turut diselitkan dengan misalan-misalan prinsip agama, Nik Aziz menambah, oleh yang demikian manusia tidak boleh pandai-pandai bertindak.

“Tak boleh pandai-pandai di atas bumi yang ditumpang ini. Macam saya, walaupun saya menteri besar, kalau saya pergi kampung saya tak boleh masuk dapur.

“Saya menteri besar pun saya menumpang rumah orang,” kata beliau. yang meluangkan setiap Jumaat untuk kuliah pagi di Dataran Ilmu, Kota Baru.

Menggambarkan lagi perjalanan kepimpinananya, Nik Aziz memberitahu, Melayu Umno menggunakan dendam dan kekerasan dalam menghadapi perjuangan PAS.

“Alhamdulillah... dulu dalam 50 tahun dulu, masa mula-mula PAS terima (ditubuhkan) dulu, Oh! bukan sahaja Umno-Melayu ini lawan saya, sampai tok guru agama pun ditangkap ISA (Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri) oleh Umno, tok guru-tok guru banyak kena ISA kerana Umno tidak boleh jawab.

“Bila kita soal orang, bila dia tidak boleh jawab, dia (akan) guna kuasa, manusia akan guna kuasa selagi dia tidak boleh jawab... macam sekatan jalan, polis buat sekatan jalan, (dan tanya) ada lesen?

“Kalau boleh jawab kita jawab, (misalnya) baru sekejab tadi lesen jatuh dari poket saya, kita boleh jawab. Tapi bila lesen tak ada, pemandu ini guna kuasa dia melarikan diri atau dia merempuh polis.

“Bila dia merempuh polis, bila kita tak boleh hujah kita menggunakan kekuasaan, manusia begitu,” katanya sambil menambah, “begitu juga dengan PAS dan Umno.”

Nik Aziz mempertahankan partinya dengan berkata, PAS berada di jalan yang sebenar sejak ditubuhkan enam dekad lalu.

“Umno tak boleh jawab, maka dia guna ISA untuk mendiamkan, mematikan pemikiran rakyat sendiri,” kata Nik Aziz yang salah seorang anak lelakinya turut ditahan di bawah ISA ketika pentadbiran Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“Ini dendam yang dibuat oleh Melayu-Umno terhadap perjuangan PAS. Anak saya kena ditangkap ISA, tak tahu apa sebab, banyak (lagi) guru-guru agama,” kata Nik Aziz lagi.

Nik Adli ditahan pada 4 Ogos 2001 kerana dipercayai mempunyai kaitan dengan pergerakan Kumpulan Militan Malaysia (KMM) dan dibebaskan lima tahun kemudian. Ketika ditanya adakah beliau sedih anaknya ditahan di bawah ISA, Nik Aziz memberitahu, “sedih itu sedihlah.”

“Tetapi saya dah tahu dari awal-awal lagi, lawan Umno ini bukan sebarangan orang, Umno ini ada kuasa,” katanya sekali lagi merujuk kepada pengalaman Nabi Muhammad yang terpaksa meninggalkan Mekah untuk ke Madinah “oleh kerana jahatnya bapa saudara.”

“Jadi saya tahu, bila saya lawan Umno saya tahu benda ini, sedih, sedih lah tapi kita ada Tuhan, kita berdoa,” katanya.

Nik Aziz seterusnya menjelaskan bahawa beliau berpegang pada prinsip semua orang akan mati satu hati nanti.

“Mu (kamu) akan mati aku (saya) akan mati, dia akan mati, mati dah banyak dah... ketua-ketua polis yang kacau itu dah mati habis dah.

“Sebab itu kata saya tadi, walaupun tugas saya berat untuk melawan Umno, tapi saya ada contoh untuk tiru sebelum saya datang iaitu Nabi Muhammad, ada senang ada susah,” kata beliau dengan menambah oleh kerana Umno dari awal-awal lagi sudah menolak Islam dengan menggunakan kebangsaan Melayu, maka tiada contoh kepimpinan untuk mereka jadikan sebagai teladan.

“Dia buat salah, tak erti dosa, sekarang alhamdulillah bukan sahaja Melayu Umno sokong PAS, malah Cina, India... dia sokong dengan adanya Kelab Penyokong PAS, bukan Kelab Penyokong Umno.

“Dia tahu PAS tidak ada apa-apa, tapi ada kebenaran, manusia boleh hidup dengan kebenaran, hati senang,” katanya lagi.

Ketika ditanya sama ada gembira dengan pencapaian sebagai Menteri Besar Kelantan, Nik Aziz menambah:

“Alhamdulillah... saya walau bagaimanapun gembira. Pertama, saya berada di landasan yang betul, ini perkara pokok.”

“Soal orang hendak sokong, orang tidak mahu sokong, itu masalah orang. Saya gembira kerana saya berada di landasan yang betul iaitu Islam.

“Islam datang daripada Allah, bukan daripada Nabi Muhammad, bukan dari PAS tidak,” katanya.

Mengenai kritikan terhadap kepimpinannya, Nik Aziz berkata, isu yang paling banyak dilontarkan oleh Umno ialah tiadanya pembangunan.

“Tetapi sekarang ini dia sendiri boleh tengok pembangunan. Berbanding dengan 10 tahun dahulu sekarang pembangunan banyak (dapat dilihat di Kelantan). Susah Umno sekarang, susah Umno apabila melihat pembangunan di Kelantan dan di Kota Baru.

“Dulu dia kritik tiada pembangunan, sekarang ada pembangunan, baru-baru (kami) menandatangani perjanjian pembangunan Bandar Baru Tunjong,” kata Nik Aziz yang merupakan Pengerusi Perbadanan Pembangunan Bandar Baru Tunjong.


Bandar yang meliputi kawasan seluas 800 hektar itu terletak kira-kira lima kilometer dari pusat bandar Kota Baru dan mula diusahakan pada Februari 2006. Beliau juga menjelaskan, isu pelantikan Ariffahmi sebagai Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Perbadanan Menteri Besar Kelantan.

“Saya melantik menantu saya di depan penasihat undang-undang dalam mesyuarat penuh, depan setiausaha kerajaan negeri, dia tak kata apa-apa, dia senyap... dia tak kata apa-apa, diam.

“Dalam Islam diam itu tanda bersetuju... tak salah saya, dia diam, tiada bantahan. Sekarang saya minta dia keluar (berhenti),” katanya lagi.- G. Manimaran

source:malaysian insider

cheers.

Ku Li - We have an impotent MACC........

The word 'corruption' comes from a Latin word meaning 'to break' or 'to destroy'. Corruption is a cancer that steals from the poor, eats away at governance and moral fibre, and destroys trust. Although corruption exists in both the private and public sector, the corruption of the public sector is a more fundamental evil. This is because the public sector is the enforcer and arbiter of the rules that hold us together, the custodians of our common resources.

It is time we recognise corruption as the single biggest threat to our nation. In our economy, corruption is the root of our inability to make the economic leap that we know we are capable of. There is no other reason why a country so blessed with natural resources, a favourable climate and such immense talent should not have done a lot better than we have.

In our political system, corruption is the real reason why our political parties refuse to reform. Some people say the party I belong to has debased a once noble nationalism and a concern with the welfare of marginalised people into a rush for the gravy train. They also said that the economic development we must bring our people is reduced to nothing more than patronage, and patronage is inflated into a right.

Everyone takes a cut

Therefore, it appears that the root cause is in our political parties. It is an open secret that tender inflation is standard operating procedure. Within the parties and among politicians, it is already an understood matter that party followers must be 'fed'. Politics is an expensive business, after all. Where else are we to get the funds? Thus, theft of public goods is normalised and socialised among an entire community, and what we had planned to attain by capability is seen by some as something to be attained through politics.

Politicians are the villains in this piece, but they themselves are also trapped. The leadership is trapped because they are beholden to political followers who demand that they are looked after. They demand patronage, and turn the party's struggle for the welfare of a community into their sense of entitlement to that patronage. So they take their slice of the project. By the time they and each person down the line all the way down to the contractor takes a lot and there is not enough left to do a decent job, bridges collapse, highways crack, stadiums collapse, hospitals run out of medicine, schoolchildren are cheated in their textbooks. Corruption may look to its perpetrators like a crime without victims, but it leaves a trail of destruction.

No domain seems safe. Some say that the humble school canteen is the domain of party branch chiefs. The golf course becomes a favoured way to pass the cash over. We can place bets for RM5,000 a hole. For some reason, one party keeps losing. And there are 18 holes. Money thus obtained is legal. It can be banked. We spend billions on the refurbishment of defence equipment; on fighter jets, frigates and submarines. When a supplier lays on an exorbitant commission to some shadowy middleman, that commission is built into the price the government pays. That money comes from the ordinary Malaysian.

Military toys

Military toys are very expensive. I remember from my time in the Finance Ministry. Even then, patrol craft cost about RM280 million each. We loved Exocet missiles. As minister, I had to sign each time the military fired an Exocet missile for testing. Every time, we test fired one of them, RM2 million literally went out with a bang. When the UK went to war against Argentina, the UK government tried to borrow them from us because outside of the UK, we had the most of them in the world. We must have been under some extraordinary military threat which I did not understand.

The list is long: procurement of food and clothing for the military, medicine for hospitals and so on. In all these things, the government has been extraordinarily generous. And paid extraordinarily high prices. Government servants have to face pressure from politicians who expect to be given these contracts because they need money for politics. This corruption is justified because the party's struggle is sacred. The civil servants can either join the game or be bypassed. For every government job big or small that goes down, someone feels entitled to a slice of the pie, not because they can do the job, not because they have some special talent or service to offer, but because it is their right.

They do not realise that what they demand is the abuse of power for the sake of personal gain, or party gain. They elect those leaders among themselves who are most capable of playing this game. So we get as our leaders people who have distinguished themselves not by their ability to serve the public but at their long proven ability to be party warlords, which is to say, distributors of patronage. And that is a euphemistic way of saying that because of corruption the old, stupid and the criminal are elevated to positions of power while young, talented and honest individuals are frozen out.

Game over

Corruption destroys national wealth, erodes institutions and undermines character. And it also destroys the process by which a community finds its leaders. The consequence of this is that the majority are marginalised. Government contracts circulate among a small group of people. Despite all attempts at control and brainwashing, the majority soon catch up to the game.

This game cannot last forever. The longer it is played the more people hate the government and the governing class. They vote against the government, not for the opposition. They resent the government of the day. In 2008, we saw how the Malaysian people feel about the abuse of power and incompetence caused by corruption. Since party funding has become the excuse and the vehicle for wholesale corruption, any measure we take to fight it must include the reform of political funding.

It is time we enact a law regulating donations to political parties. Donations must be capped. No donor is to give more than a specified limit, on pain of prosecution. This is to prevent special interests from dominating parties. Such money is source of corruption. Let us limit political donations by law. On top of that, let the government set up a fund to provide funding to registered political parties for their legitimate operational needs. This money can be distributed based on objective criteria and governed by an independent panel. This would close off the excuse that the parties need to raise political funding through government contracts.

Another idea is that we should freeze the bank accounts of people who are being investigated for corruption. Public servants and politicians are by law required to be able to demonstrate the sources of their assets. Those with suspiciously ample assets should have these assets frozen until they can come up with evidence that they have accumulated them legally. This may sound harsh, but only because we live in a country in which almost no one ever gets nabbed for corruption. In China, those found guilty are shot.

Impotent MACC

In Malaysia, we read about Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating this and that but there are no convictions. No one has been punished. We are the nation with no consequences. The MACC finds no fault. The courts do not convict. And our newspapers do not have the independence and vigour to follow up. We have an MACC with no results. It was a good idea to model our anti-corruption agency after one of the most successful in the world, Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). However we have taken just bits and pieces of that model. So really this will be no more than PR exercise unless we adopt the model wholesale.

We should repeal the Official Secrets Act (OSA) so that people can go to the MACC and the authorities with documentary information on corrupt practice. As things stand, any document which might be incriminating to corrupt public officials is stamped an official secret. A whistleblower risks seven years jail for being in possession of such documents. We need to identify rot eating through our roots as a nation. It is corruption. We cannot expect the corrupt to embrace reform. It is time for our citizens to stand up and call corruption by its name, and demand reform.

Shafee was most famously known after testifying in the High Court 10 years ago that he had found wads of cash in former Economic Planning Unit head Ali Abdul Hassan's drawer when the ACA (Anti-Corruption Agency) raided his home back in 1998.

He told the court that then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had ordered him to close the file on the ACA investigation.

(An extract of the speech by Umno veteran politician Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah at the launch of 'The Shafee Yahaya Story - Estate Boy to ACA Chief', a book written by Shafee's wife Kalsom Taib.)

source:malaysiakini

By being an UMNO loyalist and playing dumb what can you achieve Ku Li? Lets see some action from you and lets send the past and present UMNO Presidents and their band of thieves to Sungai Buloh as soon as possible........

cheers.

P115 Batu - Isnt RM2,000 a roundup of RM1,999.99.....

Amid raging debate over whether he can still remain a Member of Parliament, popular Batu lawmaker Tian Chua is unfazed and has called for calm, urging his supporters and coalition mates to be patient until further clarification from the High Court.

“In general, I am not worried. It is not about the figure. The judge specifically said the quantum should not cause any by-elections as that would be against public interest,” Tian told Malaysia Chronicle.

The 47-year old PKR leader - who shot to national prominence in the late 1990s - has won widespread appeal for his work in defending civil and environmental rights. On Thursday, he also found support from an unlikely quarter - de-facto Law Minister, Nazri Aziz, who has asked all parties to accept the latest judgment.

“As far as I am concerned, Tian Chua is still an MP because the fine of RM2,000 does not trigger any disqualification although RM2,001 would cause him to lose the seat,” Nazri said.

Monday D-day

Tian’s lawyers will meet High Court Judge Ghazali Cha along with the prosecutors on Monday. Ghazali had upheld a lower court ruling against Tian, who was convicted of biting a policeman during a fracas in front of Parliament House in 2007. However, he reduced the penalty to a fine of RM2,000 or two months’ jail compared with the magistrate's fine of RM3,000 and six months’ jail.

“I would say the magistrate went overboard in deriving to making speculations in arriving at the conviction. But I would not disturb the conviction because of the finding of fact,” Ghazali had said in his judgment on Wednesday.

“However, I note that although the sentencing is up to the magistrate, it is a first offence. Having him disqualified would result in a by-election to be called and this would involve a lot of funds. A by-election will also affect a lot of people.”

Hungry Gerakan

Nevertheless, legal practitioners are divided over whether Tian can still hold his seat despite Ghazali’s clearly-stated intention to not trigger a by-election. This is because the federal constitution states that a Member of Parliament who has been convicted of an offense by a Malaysian court must vacate his seat if he is sentenced to not less than one year’s jail or fined not less than RM2,000 and has not received a free pardon.

Already speculation is rife that Gerakan president Koh Tsu Koon is eyeing the seat, while the Election Commission wants to declare the seat vacant. Gerakan, which suffered widespread voter rejection in the 2008 election, has only two seats left in the Parliament. In 2008, Tian wrested the Batu seat from Lim Si Pin, the son of former Gerakan chief Lim Keng Yaik, by a 9,445-vote majority. He captured 29,785 votes versus Si Pin's 20,330.

source:Malaysia Chronicle

The intention of the judge was very clear that is to avoid a by-election, but, the language anomalies and ambiguities as found in article 48 and 53 of the Federal constitution allows multiple interpretation. We are practicing 'rounding-up' in paying anything,therefore RM2,000 is actually for the fine of RM1,999.99? Give Tian Chua the benefit of doubt!

I think Najib 1Malaysia will ask the Election Commission not to hold a by-election. The chances of BN winning will be very slim, even if Pak Jib come to Batu dressed as Santa Claus throwing millions to the voters.

It will not be another Hulu Selangor but will be another Sibu,probably worse. It's good for the voters of Batu to have a by-election,coz they can ask Pak Jib and BN for projects. Since Najib 1Malaysia has a high popularity rating, it good to test his popularity here,before he suprises us with the general election.......

cheers.

A new pussy for PM Najib 1Malaysia.......

Najib Abdul Razak welcomes suggestions of names for the kitten he bought yesterday.

"My family and I are in the process of picking out a name for it, but I welcome suggestions from you," he said in his blog www.1malaysia.com.my today.

The prime minister said that having had cats for pets before, he picked it up and was instantly taken by this cuddly creature.

"I am sure my daughter will be excited to meet it the next time she comes home," he said.

Najib said that at the launch of the "Buy Malaysia" campaign yesterday, he was able to make some personal purchases and among these was a spur-of-the-moment buy - an orange-and-white Persian kitten.

source:Bernama

Bukankah Najib 1Malaysia berminat mengumpul katak? Kenapa tiba2 pilih nak pelihara kucing? Mungkin nilai si kucing tak setinggi nilai si katak....

Kalu Najib 1Malaysia gunakan APCO untuk mengideakan 1Malaysia,kini dia tiru Presiden2 USA seperti Clinton,Bush dan Obama yang meminta rakyat USA menamakan anjing peliharaan mereka. Jenis minru ini tetap meniru juga.

Masalah negara bertimbun-timbun,kenapalah Pak Jib ini tak pasai-pasai nak bela kucing. Tak kan Pak Jib tak boleh bagi nama kot. Minta rakyat menamakan kucing Pak Jib adalah satu gimik murahan......

Aku cadangkan 3 nama...."1Altantuya","Bik Ros" dan "Jib-jib". Pikiaq2 pilah yang mana yang sesuai.....

cheers.

Tian Chua - is he still MP or not.............

Lawyers representing Batu MP Tian Chua are attempting to seek a meeting with High Court judge Ghazali Cha to clarify his decision yesterday on whether the parliamentarian had been disqualified. Based on justice Ghazali's judgment yesterday, many lawyers have argued that the Batu MP, whose real name is Chua Tian Chang, has to vacate his parliamentary seat.

"We are trying very hard in trying to seek a review over yesterday's decision," said Amer Hamzah Arshad, one of Tian Chua's lawyers.

The lawyers had sent a letter to the judge late yesterday evening to seek a clarification from him. The letter was to ask the judge to either to review or interpret his judgment. But it is learnt that the judge had indicated - through the deputy registrar - that his judgment on "no by-election" was clear and there was no need to amend the fine of RM2,000.

Tian Chua said that he would wait for the judge's written judgment and insisted that he is still a parliamentarian. The Election Commission said that it is studying the case.

"Our legal adviser is looking into it now. We'll not issue any statement. It should now be under Article 53 of the federal constitution," EC deputy chairperson Wan Ahmad Wan Omar told Malaysiakini.

"The EC will just wait for any notification from the (House) speaker's office then we'll decide accordingly."

The Batu MP's status remains unclear as he had already paid the RM2,000 fine and did not ask for a stay of execution of the sentence. The problem over yesterday's High Court decision revolves around the interpretation of Article 48 of the federal constitution on the disqualification of an MP. The article says if an MP has been convicted by a court of law and faces a jail term of not less than 1 year or a fine of not less than RM2,000, he or she would be automatically disqualified and a by-election called.

Veteran lawyer and Bukit Gelugor MP Karpal Singh had alerted Malaysiakini yesterday over the possibility of the opposition lawmaker losing his seat.

"If the fine is RM2,000, he may lose his seat if he pays (the fine)."

DPP says Tian is out

According to Karpal, he represented former DAP MP Fan Yew Teng in 1975 where he was fined RM2,000 or six months' jail. Fan eventually had to vacate his Menglembu parliamentary seat. Karpal said if the judge sticks to the decision, the seat will have to be declared vacant.

"RM2,000 remains the cutting-off point. It must be less than this amount to be safe."

Karpal said that one option for Tian Chua is to appeal to the judge before the order (sentence) had been "perfected" - that is signed and sealed by the registrar. Karpal added that there is provision for Tian Chua to appeal despite Article 53 of the federal constitution stating that it is automatic for an MP to lose his seat as a result of the sentence.

"They have to file a notice of appeal to obtain leave. The application must be filed within 14 days. If this is done, the matter will have to be disposed off."

Meanwhile, deputy public prosecutor Ishak Mohd Yusoff said Tian Chua will have give up his seat by virtue of being fined RM2,000.

However, Bar Council constitutional committee chairperson Edmond Bon said there were two interpretations to Article 48 of the federal constitution - one is that a fine of “RM2,000 or more”, and the other “RM2,000 or less” which will automatically lead to the disqualification of an MP.

"When in doubt as in many cases, the benefit of the doubt should be given to the accused,” he said.

"Hence, Tian Chua should not lose his seat. Furthermore, the judge had ruled that he wanted to avoid a by-election."

Everyone's in a bind

Former United Nations special rapporteur Param Cumararaswamy, citing the Fan Yew Ting case in 1975, said that once an MP is fined RM2,000, he or she would lose the seat.

"In the Pairin Kitingan case, he was fined RM1,800 and hence he escaped from being disqualified."

In 1994, former Sabah chief minister Pairin, whose PBS joined the opposition between 1985 and 1994, was found guilty of corruption by the High Court and fined RM1,800. Param argued that the Dewan Rakyat speaker can make a decision on the matter to break the impasse.

"Once the judges have stepped down the bench, their decision stands," said Param.

Another lawyer, Sankara Nair, concurred with Param that the decision - and the fact that Tian Chua had paid the fine - put everyone in a bind. He said Tian Chua can only appeal to the Court of Appeal on a point of law and not the sentencing.

"This is stated clearly in the Court of Judicature Act where cases originating from the Magistrates Court can only be brought up to Court of Appeal on case laws," he said.

Tian Chua paid the fine yesterday despite maintaining his innocence. He said that he used his bail money as payment. The first-time parliamentarian won the racially-mixed Batu seat, located in the north of Kuala Lumpur, in 2008 by beating Lim Si Pin - son of former Gerakan chief Lim Keng Yaik - with a thumping majority of 9,455 votes.

The constituency of 67,652 voters comprises 44.3% Malays, 40.8% Chinese and 14.3% Indians.

source:malaysiakini

cheers.

Bila wartawan RTM cuba lagak sombong.........

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hari ini hilang kesabarannya apabila diasak oleh seorang wartawan bagi mendedahkan bukti berhubung dakwaannya yang beberapa ahli parlimen PKR disogok RM2 juta dan juga ditawarkan kontrak supaya berpaling tadah. Walaupun berulang kali berkata beliau akan mendedahkan perkara itu apabila tiba masanya, wartawan dari RTM itu terus mendesak hingga Anwar mula tidak selesa.

Diasak wartawan radio stesen kerajaan itu yang hanya dikenali sebagai Tukimin, Anwar sebaliknya berkata, pelbagai pendedahan sebelum ini dibuat oleh Pakatan Rakyat tapi siasatan hanya separuh jalan.

"Saya hendak tanya balik, saya sudah buktikan VK Lingam. Adakah ada tindakan? Saya telah buktikan video VK Lingam dan dibuktikan sah. Mengapakah tiada tindakan?

"Saya sudah buat kenyataan, saya akan keluarkan pada ketikanya," katanya.

Suasana di lobi parlimen itu hangat seketika apabila wartawan RTM itu cuba mengasak Anwar dengan alasan masyarakat luar mahu mengetahui sejauh mana kebenaran dakwaan sogokan berkenaan.

"You tanya Menteri you, mengapa tidak ambil tindakan VK Lingam dulu. Kemudian bila dia jawab, you tanya saya pula. Bila saya hendak keluarkan kerana bila saya hendak keluarkan, you kena tanya kepada menteri you, ada atau tidak hendak ambil tindakan?

Tukimin yang masih berdegil akhirnya dicabar oleh Anwar supaya mengeluarkan kenyataan beliau berhubung beberapa skandal rasuah yang masih belum selesai.

"Ya, saya cabar RTM sekarang keluarkan kenyataan saya... ya berani atau tidak, keluarkan kenyataan saya. Ini wayang mereka...keluarkan PKFZ, apa tindakan? Keluarkan PERWAJA, apa tindakan? Keluarkan skandal Eurocopter, apa tindakan? Scorpene, apa tindakan? Laporan Audit Negara, apa tindakan?"

Anwar sebelum ini dilaporkan sebagai berkata, beliau akan memberi keterangan dan mendedahkan maklumat mengenai orang perantaraan yang menyediakan berjuta- juta ringgit kepada mereka yang melompat parti apabila tiba masanya.

source:malaysiakini.

cheers.