Why gomen refuses to abolish toll collections...

The Hidden Reasons Government 

Refuses To Abolish Toll Collections...

Under tremendous pressure from the people, especially after the humiliating defeat in the Cameron Highlands by-election, and the coming Semenyih by-election which does not look too promising, the Mahathir administration has finally agreed to re-look into one of the dozens of promises made during last May general election – abolishment of highway tolls.

Yesterday (Feb 25), Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad announced that his government is taking the initiative to fulfil its election promise to abolish toll collection – in stages – with the introduction of the “congestion charge”, to encourage people to use highways during non-peak hours. Of course, people have gotten angry because the government has insulted their intelligence.

People wanted tolls, existed for as long as one can remember, to be abolished or cancelled entirely, not to be replaced with another gimmick tax regime called “congestion charge”. Apparently, the new Pakatan Harapan government has begun talks with Gamuda Bhd to negotiate the acquisition of four highway concessions – LDP, SPRINT, KESAS and SMART Tunnel.

Upon successful takeover of the expressways – Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong (LDP), Sistem Penyuraian Trafik KL Barat (SPRINT), Lebuhraya Shah Alam (KESAS) and SMART Tunnel – Mahathir said the existing toll would be abolished, but commuters will pay a “congestion charge” equivalent to the existing toll for six hours of “peak” period a day.

At “normal” or non-peak hours, commuters will enjoy 30% discounted rates as compared to existing toll rates, while it will be “free” for all during the “off-peak” period between 11pm and 5am. Naturally, the opposition, especially ex-PM Najib Razak, happily grabbed the golden opportunity and mocked that the only ones that would benefit from the off-peak charges are ghosts, drunkards, and sex workers.

However, Mahathir argued against the criticism of the odd-hour charges – “To cancel all the rates becomes too expensive. We need to buy the tolled road. When you buy, you need to raise money and service the loans that we raise. So we try to reduce the money we have to pay for acquiring highways that will go stage by stage and step by step.”

To be fair, Mahathir was not the first person who promised free tolls for all and sundry. The 93-year-old man had consistently said it’s not possible to have highways without the collection of toll, even after he was made the country’s 7th Prime Minister. In fact, he was against the toll-free highways pledge in the Pakatan Harapan election manifesto, but played along thinking the coalition could not win.

Anwar Ibrahim, previously de-facto opposition leader and currently PM-in-waiting, was the guy who screamed at the top of his lungs about free highways for everyone during past election campaigns. But to be fair to him, highways without toll collections can actually be done – if the national coffers have RM383.3 billion of loose change to spare.

Yes, according to a 2010 study, the overall costs to take over all highways in the country are RM383.3 billion. In other words, had the crooked Najib Razak not burden the country with excessive borrowings, not to mention constant stealing and plundering, so much so that the external debts hit RM1 trillion mark, the people could indeed enjoy toll-free expressways today.

Last December, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng disclosed that the government would have to pay RM972.75 million in compensation to 21 highway concessionaires for them not to raise toll this year (2019). In other words, due to lopsided business deals, corruption, cronyism and policies, taxpayers’ money are being sucked to pay the highways’ tycoons and elites.

That was why Mahathir warned yesterday that even if commuters are not charged tolls, the government will still have to pay for it using taxpayers’ money. Concessionaires have loans to service and other bills to settle, they would argue. This means the concessionaires and the banks need to make profits first. Like it or not, the ordinary people, even if they don’t use the highways, are the losers.

Certain ethnicity may not like the truth, but the root cause of the toll-abolishing issue is “ketuanan Melayu”, the ideology of Malay supremacy espoused by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the party that had dominated the country’s politics for more than six decades, before they stunningly lost power on May 9th, 2018.

The New Economic Policy (NEP), giving ethnic Malays and Bumiputera (son of the soil) preferential treatment in all spheres of public life, such as 30% controlling stake of all corporate equity, reserved senior positions in the civil service, special quota in universities, 5% to 15% discount for Malay home buyers, and whatnot appears to have come back haunting Mahathir administration.

The NEP, designed to uplift the Malays, but soon became a means for UMNO to cement political support and an enrichment program for a selected few, is also responsible for the issue of abolishing highways toll today. Certain cronies and elites, even members of the royal house, were awarded contracts – without tender – to build expressways and given the privilege to milk the people in the form of toll collections.

Take for example the RM2.2 billion 50-km Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) project, which was awarded to Emrail Sdn Bhd and Zabima Engineering Sdn Bhd – both without any highway construction experience. It was a gift from the Najib regime to then-Chief Justice Zaki Azmi and UMNO lawyer Hafarizam Harun for their roles in snatching back the Perak state using illegal and despicable methods.

Another example – Haris Onn Hussein, the brother of former Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, possesses a 20.16% stake in Ekovest, a company awarded the contract to build the Setiawangsa-Pantai Expressway (SPE) at a cost of RM3.738 billion with a concession period with the Government for 53½ years. That’s a cash cow the Hussein family can milk for half a century.

Heck, even Gamuda, the concessionaire whose four highway concessions – LDP, SPRINT, KESAS and SMART Tunnel – being taken over by Mahathir government is partly belonged to the Sultanate of Perak. Raja Eleena Raja Azlan Shah, the daughter of the late Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak, is the single largest shareholder of Gamuda – via her 7.5% stake in Generasi Setia (M) Sdn Berhad.

Clearly, RM383.3 billion to buy all the highways is a daylight robbery to enrich only a dozen of Malay elites. The problem with these bloodsucking concessionaires was the frequent revisions of the agreement and terms by the government to continue milking people’s hard-earned money. There’s a reason why Mahathir, as did his predecessor Najib, wanted the status quo to remain.

Whoever controls the government essentially controls the cash cows. Not only the lucrative highway business is a cash cow, it is the ultimate goose that lays the golden eggs. EPF, ASB, KWAP and Amanahraya trustees are some of major shareholders of LITRAK, the highway concessionaire which operates LDP and SPRINT and owned by Gamuda Group.

The second largest toll highway company, PROLINTAS Bhd, is owned by PNB (Perbadanan Nasional Berhad) via various funds such as Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) and Amanah Saham Wawasan (ASW). Even PLUS, the country’s largest highway concessionaire is now 51% owned by the government and 49% by EPF (Employees Provident Fund).

Another extremely lopsided project was the Maju Expressway (MEX), a 26km highway linking the city centre in Jalan Tun Razak to Putrajaya. The total project cost of MEX was RM1.32 billion, of which RM976.7 million was funded via government grants. Yet, despite Maju Holdings funding only 26% of the construction cost, crony Abu Sahid Mohamed was allowed to collect tolls for a period of 33 years ending Dec 6, 2037.

That’s right, government-linked companies, or G.L.C.s, tasked with representing and promoting bumiputera interests, are the primary shareholders of the so-called throat-cutting highway concessionaires, which happens to be the goose that lays the golden eggs. As of 2017, the GLCs  controlled over 68,000 companies – directly and indirectly – and about 42% of local stock market capitalisation.

If the new government is sincere and serious about helping the ordinary commuters, they can bring down the concessionaires to their knees with a snap of a finger. Mahathir can give the green light to review unfair and lopsided deals, demanding existing terms be reviewed. If the greedy, arrogant and stubborn concessionaires refuse, the government can always introduce special taxes.

Hey, if the government can punish gamblers, smokers and drinkers by imposing insanely high taxes on gaming, cigarettes and liquor companies, surely they don’t need a rocket scientist to teach highway concessionaires a lesson. But why should the government punish itself by taxing its own left pocket? In essence, GLCs which own highways, is one massive cartel controlling everything in the country. - FT

Lebai2 PAS jangan bodohkan walaun2...

Pemimpin PAS kata dah terbukti mereka difitnah.. Sebab duit RM 90 juta tak masuk akaun PAS.., nak tanya Pemimpin dan Walaun PAS, Sarawak Report tak ada sebut pun RM 90 juta masuk Akaun PAS? 

Jadi Pemimpin PAS tak payah Bodohkan Ahli depa lah.. Kalau yang dituduh dalam Sarawak Report tu PAS, yang saman Sarawak Report tu adalah PAS bukan Haji Hadi.. artikel SR tu tuduh Najib..tapi Hj Hadi pergi saman SR, nampak tak mudahnya Haji Hadi dikhadamkan Najib..

Kenapa Haji Hadi yg saman bukan PAS ? Sebab PAS menafsirkan " Top Echelons" dalam artikel SR dimaksudkan Haji Hadi, Dalam pembelaan SR pulak kata "Top Echelons" semua pemimpin Utama ada kaitan dengan PAS.. Tu sebab Haji Hadi Tarik balik Saman..Memang Haji Hadi dah Comfirm Kalah..

Bila Sarawak Report dalam Pembelaan dia,dia sebut yang dimaksudkan "Top Echelons" kesemua Kepimpinan Utama PAS.. tu yang Pemimpin PAS pakat takut.. Semua pemimpin depa , akaun pemimpin depa akan diheret ke Mahkamah London... Tembelang akan Pecah kat sana...

Apa yang SR tulis.. ? RM90 million is widely reckoned to have flowed into the top echelons of PAS in recent months (BN veterans would tell them they came cheap.) ".. nampak tak ada dia sebut akaun PAS ? RM 90 Juta masuk akaun mana mana ? yang jadikan kes ini dengan tajuk RM 90 juta sebagai isu bukan Pembangkang..sebenarnya PAS sendiri..

Tadak masa nak bagi undi pada BN semata mata hanya untuk melihat Semah di bawa ke Semenyih.Tak undi BN pon rakyat bleh lihat Najib dan Semah di bawa ke Sg Buloh nanti.. 

😂😂😂😂😂

Tapi kita faham lah..IQ Pemimpin PAS, apa lagi walaun PAS bukan cerdik mana.. inilah Kelompok Ruwaibidhah.. Jangan kata hal Undang2..Hal agama pun depa jahil..Dulu depa kata depa dah menang Saman Sarawak Report.. last2 Haji Hadi sendiri tarik balik Saman..

Sama macam kes 1MDB.. Bila dituduh kerugian RM 40 billion skandal 1MDB.. bukan makna RM 40 Billion masuk akaun Najib dari 1MDB, akhirnya yang sampai tak sampai 2 Billion pada akaun Najib..yang Najib terima pun bukan dari 1MDB..tapi SRC.. itu lah cara depa alirkan duit.. Cuci Duit, sama macam kes Peguam UMNO yang dapatRM 15 juta..tu sebab dalam Artikel Sarawak Report Sebut Najib alirkan RM 90 juta kepada Pemimpin Utama PAS untuk pecahkan Pembangkang.. dia tak kata masuk Akaun..

Depa ni jangan kata lah, Bab Undang2 Jahil..Bebas dengan jaminan Polis pun depa kata Suspek dah dibebaskan.. Macam depa percaya Najib tak bersalah sebab Najib masih bebas.. tak sangka begitu teruk cara orang agama, Bani Melayu berfikir.. agaknya tu sebab,paling ramai jadi mangsa Syarikat Scam adalah Bani Melayu.. tak heran lah air kencing Serangga pun depa tadah minum..jadi air suci.. buakn takat air anai anai 30 Juzuk..

Sudah sudah lah PAS..tak payah Bodoh kah ahli..kalau rasa saman Sarawak Report Kos tinggi..Saman jer Husam, Mahfuz.. Malah Exco Kedah dengan beraninya tunjuk resit transaksi RM 2.5 juta Duit UMNO masuk ke akaun PAS.. Jadi saman jer lah.. ni yg tuduh ni taraf Pemimpin Utama,EXCO..

Sebenarnya Memang wujud Kerjasama Sulit PAS dan UMNO sebelum PRU 14 pecahkan pembangkang.. sepertimana ditulis Sarawak Report.. Mengaku jer lah PAS memang terima Duit UMNO.. Makan Duit UMNO.. berapa pun jumlah yang sampai pada PAS tak penting..Yang penting telah dibuktikan sebelum PRU 14, Haji Hadi.. PAS makan duit UMNO.. Buat kerja untuk UMNO..Jadi Khadam Najib untuk pertahankan BN di Putrajaya.. Duit Deposit calon pun UMNO tolong Support.. - Ipoh Mali

Hadi bayaq 1.4 juta kat Clare Brown...

Anwar Ibrahim semasa berkempen di Terminal Bas Semenyih Sentral, Semenyih, Selangor mendedahkan Editor Sarawak Report, Clare Rewcastle Brown menerima RM1.4 juta daripada Abdul Hadi Awang sebagai terma penyelesaian kes skandal RM90 juta di Mahkamah London...

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim revealed little tonight about his claim that PAS had to pay Sarawak Editor Clare Rewcastle Brown a large sum of money to settle its defamation suit, except to say that the figure was RM1.4 million.

Keeping the purported evidence close to his chest, Anwar prodded PAS to challenge his claim.

"My name is Anwar Ibrahim, I won't fight if I don't have evidence. This is a fact and I have evidence.

"PAS, specifically its president Abdul Hadi Awang, had to pay RM1.4 million to Rewcastle Brown.

"If PAS wishes to challenge me – anytime. I have the evidence," he told a ceramah in Semenyih.

Anwar said he deliberately goaded PAS for an answer yesterday when he alleged that a payment was made to Sarawak Report.

"Yesterday, I wanted to test them, I asked if they paid Rewcastle Brown, they said 'no'," he said. 

Anwar maintained that he was telling the truth, however. Yesterday, PAS denied that Hadi paid the sum as part of a Feb 1 out-of-court settlement.

Hadi had sued Rewcastle Brown in London over a 2016 Sarawak Report article claiming that then-prime minister Najib Abdul Razak channelled RM90 million to top PAS leaders in a bid for support ahead of the 14th general election.

On Feb 13, the PAS president said both Sarawak Report and him agreed to settle the suit and keep the conditions confidential.

“If she (Rewcastle Brown) wants to reveal (the confidential conditions), it is up to her. I have not done so,” he added.

When contacted by Malaysiakini, Rewcastle Brown declined to comment on the claim that Hadi had paid her the sum. - mk

cheers.

Weaker political parties in Semenyih by-election...

The French statesman Charles de Gaulle once said: ‘Politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians.’

This could also be said of the Semenyih by-election – where 54,000 largely urban voters face the serious decision of whether to endorse Pakatan Harapan, return BN to the seat it has never lost before GE14 or choose another path, including not to vote at all.

Despite growing cynicism about politicians in Malaysia (and sadly there is a good reason for some of this cynicism), the choice of the Semenyih voters will matter.

This by-election will not affect the balance of power in Selangor state. However, the campaign and outcome will serve to further consolidate new Malaysia’s political battle lines and potentially constrain the prospects for reform.

A Harapan loss in Semenyih will have a derailing effect on the governing coalition, already weakened by its loss in Cameron Highlands, and embolden the BN coalition that is in desperate search of an afterlife. 

Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) and the independent candidate will have an uphill battle breaking the mould of the competition between the two larger coalitions, but they will serve to raise important social welfare issues and mobilise anger against Harapan, which goes into this contest in weakness rather than strength.

Drawing from polling station analysis of GE14, this article addresses some of the issues facing the political parties in this by-election and argues that there is a growing disconnect with the electorate.

Testing Umno myths

Now, six by-elections since May 2018, the post-GE14 political terrain has increasingly featured practices of the past. Stoking Malay chauvinism has topped the list, with BN capitalising on insecurity and fear. Voters are being called to ‘protect your race and religion’.

This call rests on the myth that Umno was indeed their ‘protector.’ Given the shambles that Umno left the country’s finances in, the damage to Malaysia’s reputation and the hardships and inequalities experienced by many Malays across the country, this message hopes to build on the adage that ‘Malays forget easily’ - the predatory behaviour of the Najib (Abdul Razak) government.

It also ignores that conditions within Umno are dire; Strained by lack of access to funds, with its leaders facing multiple criminal charges and its legal future in the balance, Umno, as a party, is not in a position to deliver to its base. Its current focus is on saving its leaders. The use of “Bossku” as a campaign message is illustrative, as winning the by-election is about Najib’s search for protection, rather than the Malay community at large.

The other myth that is being projected is that Malays are united; they are one group. Semenyih in GE14 showcased what seems to be have been forgotten, that the Malay vote is sharply divided. My analysis of Semenyih’s polling station results found that the estimated support along Malay votes was split three ways, with Umno and Bersatu essentially capturing the same share, 41 percent and 37 percent respectively.

Bersatu’s share of the Malay voters in Semenyih was 15 percent more than the national average for Harapan, in keeping with patterns in urban areas, where more Malays from educated and middle-class backgrounds reside. 

To push Malays into one group, to characterise their differences, is not only wrong, but it disregards the political diversity of the community as a whole – a lesson that Umno ignored to its own peril.

PAS' political polygamy

This racialised prioritisation of the Malay vote has contributed to the wheeling and dealing for the estimated 22 percent of Malay support that PAS won in Semenyih. Bersatu and Umno both want this support. Few recognise that much of this vote was never for PAS in the first place, as it represented ‘protest’ against Umno, rather than a vote for the Islamist party.

This hasn’t stopped the deal-making. Bersatu is especially focused on winning ‘Malay votes’ with the aim to address the ‘deficit’ of support for it from the Malay community. PAS, on its part, is claiming that is will work with all Malay political parties, apparently willing to engage in political polygamy irrespective of the party involved for the marriage of its interests. This accounts for the improved relations and ratcheting down of criticism between Bersatu/Mahathir and PAS.

PAS is trying to have its cake and eat it too – namely to work with Umno when expedient (as was the case in Cameron Highlands) and to work with Bersatu/Mahathir (to curry favour for national support as appears to be the case in Semenyih). PAS is playing a political game, working to make itself relevant in the national landscape.

PAS’ polygamous engagement is compromising the party, as it is becoming more like Umno. Not only is PAS collaborating with Umno, but it is also increasingly adopting many of its practices as well – money politics, denial, racialised rhetoric, and of late, the active promotion of division within Harapan through deflective storytelling. 

They justify these actions with the mantra that the ends (Syariah law) justify the means. Yet, this outcome is that PAS is being damaged along the way and a broader cynicism with political parties as a whole, is setting in. Political deals are eroding trust between the party leadership and the grassroots.

This is exacerbating other trends of weakening political parties. The machinery of the member-based parties of Umno and PAS are not functioning as well as the past – not least of which is the product of being out of power and lacking resources. 

Rather than address the underlying problems the parties face, race-based rhetoric and deals have become the easy options. These options do little to win long-term party loyalty from 
voters.

Pakatan’s own conflicted national engagement

Harapan political parties are also facing their own tensions. Bersatu’s obsession with the Malay vote reinforces the sense that Harapan is focused on race rather than Malaysia as a whole.

This can have political consequences in Semenyih. Given the multi-ethnic configuration of the state seat and political divisions within the Malay community, the by-election will be shaped as much about Malays as is it about other communities. A decisive third of the electorate is non-Malay. 

Semenyih is perhaps the biggest test to date on whether Harapan can maintain non-Malay support in the urban areas, which was critical for putting the new government into office. It tests whether Harapan can project itself across the racial communities, rather than pandering to individual groups. An indication of this will be whether voters go to the polls at all. It will be difficult to maintain the high levels of turnout, which were pivotal for Harapan’s 2018 general election victory.

Semenyih also brings to the fore, assumptions about how parties should function in ‘new Malaysia’. Many in Harapan assume that voters will support the party in power for patronage advantage. This is especially true of Bersatu. This ‘contract’- supporting party is caught in a difficult bind. It does not have the patronage machinery on par with that of Umno.

Bersatu has not fully recognised that it (and its coalition partners) will never have the same scope of patronage infrastructure. Further, it does not fully appreciate that this tactic tied to distributing goodies and use of state power for political aims is what got Umno into trouble in the first place. The tie between politics and greed runs deep. The reality is that patronage has long eroded in urbanised Selangor, especially among younger voters. Umno lost Semenyih in GE14 because it failed to appreciate the realities of non-patronage based urban politics.

Urban voters care predominantly about good governance. Corruption is of concern, but not as important as having a decent paid job, quality service provision and maintaining a good standard of living for families. Among urban voters, Najib lost power for rising inflation and contractions in opportunities in the face of the ostentatious spending tied to the 1MDB scandal.

Harapan has the challenge of convincing voters that it can offer a better government. Key in this regard will be its record in Selangor since 2008 and what the advantages of having national power are for improving governance at the state level. Harapan has been so focused on building a new federal patronage machine that it has forgotten it already has a record at the state level to strengthen.

A particularly important group in the Semenyih electorate concerned with governance is youth. The youth were Harapan’s support base in Semenyih. Bersatu captured the votes of 57 percent of those under 30, and the majority of voters under 50. Umno did not even win a third of the younger voters. 

These voters want results, especially on the economy, as bread and butter issues are much more important to these voters than religion. The more impatient young voters want to see what Harapan will do for their future. Nearly half of the registered electorate, 43 percent, is under 40.

Since BN won the Cameron Highlands by-election, Harapan has been attempting to somewhat change its public engagement. There are differences in the coalition itself on what to emphasise – patronage or policies. Nevertheless, the Semenyih campaign has seen more substantive engagement with policy issues than those in earlier by-elections.

There has been a flurry of announcements of new programmes, health insurance, for example, and a new framework for highway tolls. It is not clear whether these measures are tied to the election or part of a broader set of programmes. The new Harapan measures are controversial, untested and have yet to be properly implemented. 

However, Harapan’s initiatives are buried under the political noise of political infighting and its mixed performance record to date. It remains to be seen whether the steps toward improving governance will get a fair hearing.

The fact is that all of the political parties are facing an erosion of political trust. Much of this weakening is of their own making. Semenyih voters will ultimately have to decide which of these weaker political parties offer the strongest alternative, in spite of their weaknesses. -  Bridget Welsh

Pelaku yang meletakkan patung berhala di dalam surau ditahan polis 

Siakap senohong...

Pertama kali saya dengar istilah “bohong sunat” ialah masa menonton filem komedi P Ramlee - Madu Tiga.

Jamil (lakonon P Ramlee) membohongi isterinya (lakonan Zaharah Agus) bahwa dia terbabit dalam kemalangan. Dilanggar lori katanya. Ketika isterinya ke dapur untuk buat kopi, bapa mertua Jamil (lakonan Ahmad Nisfu) bertanya bagaimana dia boleh dilanggar lori.

Jawab Jamil: “Langgar bohong pak. Bohong sunat.”

Anda tahu cerita itu seterusnya. Lucu dan kelakar .

Bohong sunat pun kerap dikaitkan dengan lucu dan kelakar. Tapi kesimpulan lazimnya bohong sunat dilafaz untuk menyelamatkan diri. Nak hidup.

Tidaklah saya tahu sama ada kata kata Nik Abduh Nik Aziz pada rakaman audio yang heboh diperkatakan baru baru ini boleh diklasifikasikan sebagai bohong sunat.

Yang saya tahu berikutan hujah Nik Abduh dan pemimpin PAS mempertahankan tindakannya. PAS dituduh membuat pembohongan sesuatu yang mematuhi syariah. Dalam bahasa Inggeris shariah compliance.

Namun ini bukan mengenai Nik Abduh mahu pun pasal bohong pematuhan syariah, istilah baru itu.

Berbalik kepada bohong sunat. Istilah lama yang kerap dan masih digunakan dan kerap ditanya kepada para agamawan.

Saya Google dan mendapati informasi ini. Menurut beberapa ustaz, tidak ada (istilah) bohong sunat dalam Islam. Bagaimana pun menurut mereka memang ada pengecualian berdusta atau berbohong.

Tetapi kata para ustaz ini bukan bermakna ia sunat dilakukan sehingga dapat pahala atau ganjaran. Yang dibolehkan atau pengecualian diberi berbohong mengenai perkara tertentu dan dalam keadaan tertentu.

Cukup setakat itu sebelum saya dituduh cuba berkhutbah tanpa tauliah agama.

Untuk tahu secara terperinci sila Google “bohong sunat.” Atau buat carian di Youtube. Ada nama nama besar antaranya Ustaz Azhar Idrus yang memberi penjelasan.

Bercakap mengenai berbohong, memang susah untuk memastikan atau mengesan bila seseorang berbohong. Apatah lagi jika orang itu selamba dan “cool” ketika berbohong. Orang yang cukup meyakinkan.

Alat kesan bohong

Namun ada alat pengesan pembohongan, lie detector atau polygraph test. Biasanya digunakan oleh pihak berkuasa dalam menyiasat jenayah .

Ujian poligraf mengesan pembohongan menerusi tindak balas, gerak geri dan perasaan orang yang diuji. Ujian dijalankan dengan mengaju beberapa soalan.

Secara am seseorang yang berbohong dikatakan akan gelabah, gugup dan gementar bila disoal. Lantas degupan jantungnya pantas. Semua ini dicatat dan dirakam.

Tetapi jika orang yang diuji tenang dan mengawal perasaan dengan baik walaupun dia menipu dan berbohong catatan tidak akan menunjukkan panik, gugup dan gementar. Kemungkinan besar dia akan lulus ujian mengesan pembohongan.

Dalam erti kata lain ujian poligraf boleh diatasi. Pembohong yang cekap boleh mengalahkannya. Beat the system, kata Inggeris.

Hakikatnya tidak ada ujian atau prosidur yang mencatat kejayaan 100 peratus dalam mengesan si pembohong.

Melainkan si pembohong itu seperti Pinocchio, “budak” yang hidungnya akan bertambah panjang setiap kali dia berbohong. Tapi itu cerita dongeng. - Mohsin Abdullah,mk

'Macam2 bohong parti politik tapi yang paling melampau adalah ..' - Dr Maza

cheers.

Hadi’s pain, Mahathir’s gain...

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang is a desperate man. Revelations that PAS secretly accepted millions of ringgit from Umno in the run-up to the last election and then lied to cover it up has left his reputation in tatters.

From what we now know, PAS took the money to fund the unprecedented number of candidates it fielded in the last election, part of a deal to help Umno by splitting the Malay votes. Unsurprisingly, some of that money appears to have also found its way into fancy cars, superbikes and high-end properties. The MACC is now investigating the whole affair.

Whichever way you look at it, PAS now stands exposed as being cut from the same cloth as Umno, corrupt and conniving, willing to go to any lengths to cling to power.

They pretend to be defenders of the faith but they think nothing of defrauding the faithful. They talk about Malay rights but are more concerned with their own power and ambition.

They have also shown themselves to be utterly unprincipled by insisting that it is morally acceptable to lie for the party, going so far as to even call it “shariah-compliant.” How can anyone trust a so-called religious party that makes a virtue out of lying?

Hadi’s schemes

In order to distract attention from his own misdeeds, Hadi is now trying to pit Pakatan Harapan parties against each other by insisting that a plot is afoot to engineer Mahathir’s removal from office via a no-confidence vote in parliament. And, very conveniently, he has let it be known that in the interests of defending the faith and protecting Malay rights (what else?), he is willing to put aside his own differences with Mahathir and support him.

It’s a devilishly cunning plan to distract attention by hinting that the DAP is plotting with Anwar to oust Mahathir. It also provides him with the justification to suddenly shift his support to Mahathir in the hope of saving himself from the anti-corruption agency and his party from extinction. That it also sows further distrust and suspicion within the PH coalition is an added bonus.

Of course, it’s all rubbish, just another scheme from the fetid imagination of a racist politician but it seems to be working; everyone is now fixated on the imaginary no-confidence vote instead of Hadi’s misdeeds. In Malaysian politics, nothing distracts attention better than suggestions that the Chinese, or Christians or Jews are plotting to undermine Malay power.

We will have to see if kissing Mahathir’s hand will save Hadi from prosecution. It may be recalled that Zahid Hamidi tried that, too, but to no avail; hope springs eternal for desperate politicians, I suppose.

Anwar’s concerns

Anwar, for his part, appears to be extremely cautious. He tried to overthrow Mahathir once before and paid dearly for it. He is unlikely to act hastily again. At this point of time, he simply doesn’t have the votes in parliament for a no-confidence motion. The public is also unlikely to take kindly to any move to oust Mahathir though the ground is slowly shifting. Furthermore, as concerned as he might be about his future, the situation vis-à-vis Mahathir has not yet come to the point where he might feel compelled to act. In any case, even if he is planning to move against Mahathir, mischievously putting up banners across town calling for Mahathir’s resignation is hardly the way he would go about it.

Hadi’s insinuation that the DAP might be conspiring with Anwar against Mahathir is also pure hogwash. As worried as they may be about the shifting balance of power within the coalition (as a result of Umno MPs migrating to Bersatu), the DAP leadership is highly unlikely to take sides in what is essentially a Malay power struggle. The risks are simply too great especially given the deep-seated anti-DAP suspicions that have been ingrained into large swathes of the Malay population.

Mahathir’s games

Interestingly, while senior coalition leaders (including from Mahathir’s own party) rushed to deny rumours of a coup, Mahathir himself cryptically remarked that, “If there is a vote of no confidence then I will see if PAS will support me or not.” He could have dismissed the rumours and put an end to Hadi’s scheming but he appears to have chosen to keep the ball in play for reasons of his own.

Mahathir being Mahathir, he probably couldn’t pass up an opportunity to add to Anwar’s discomfort as well as keep everyone guessing. Whatever it is, it must be satisfying to hear everyone, including Hadi, now professing their support for him.

Mahathir may be getting on in years but he hasn’t lost his ability to adroitly exploit every situation to his advantage. With Umno floundering under the weight of corruption charges, PAS grovelling before him and Anwar and other coalition leaders dutifully pledging their loyalty to him, Mahathir remains the unchallenged master of the realm. - Dennis Ignatius,fmt

Saya tak perlukan sokongan PAS...

Pesan Dr.M kepada Hadi...

SPRM perlu ambil masa siasat dakwaan pemimpin PAS terima wang RM90 juta

Sengaja SPRM bagi peluang walaun bodoh seronok seketika dengan pengumuman terbaharu. Pengubahan wang haram memang tak masuk ke akaun PAS Pusat, sebab itu PAS tak mampu bayar hutang printing Harakah...f/bk

😂😂😂😂😂😂

Setakat berselfie jahlah...

Bosskurrr Najib turun ke Semenyih setakat bergambar dan berselfie sahajalah. Nak bagi duit atau umum projek, duit dah tak ada. Nak umum projek berbillion kuasa juga dah tak ada. Duit yang dirampas oleh polis di kediamannya, bukan duit dia, duit Umno kalau tidak dapat juga halur samah serial.

Nantilah bila jadi PM kali kedua, Najib tidak akan lupa rakyat bawahan. Dan pemimpin biasanya teringat rakyat apabila sudah tidak berkuasa. Macam orang sakit dengan ubatlah, bila sakit baru teringat ubat.  - mso

Jenis macam ni pun UMNO boleh ambil sebagai calon di Semenyih...

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

cheers.

SPRM tak jumpa RM90 juta dalam akaun bank PAS....

Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) mengesahkan pihaknya setakat ini tidak mengesan sebarang transaksi dana RM90 juta daripada 1MDB disalurkan ke akaun bank rasmi PAS.

Perkara itu disahkan sendiri oleh Ketua Pesuruhjaya SPRM, Mohd Shukri Abdull pada sidang media di Terengganu, hari ini.

"Siasatan SPRM setakat ini memang tak ada dana RM90 juta yang dikatakan duit 1MDB dimasukkan ke dalam akaun (bank) PAS," katanya ringkas ketika menjawab soalan mengenai isu tersebut.

Terdahulu, Mohd Shukri ke Majlis Ikrar Bebas Rasuah Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) Terengganu di Wisma Darul Iman, Kuala Terengganu.

Penemuan itu dibuat selepas penyiasat SPRM meneliti akaun bank PAS dalam siasatan ke atas dakwaan yang mengatakan pemimpin parti itu menerima RM90 juta daripada Umno.

"Tiada kemasukan wang RM90 juta dari 1MDB ke akaun (rasmi) PAS," kata pegawai yang rapat dengan siasatan kes berkenaan.

Sumber juga mengesahkan bahawa akaun yang diteliti adalah akaun yang didaftar di bawah nama parti dan bukannya akaun peribadi pemimpin PAS. - mk

SPRM wajib siasat akaun peribadi orang PAS dan ahli keluarga mereka. Jangan sekadar siasat akaun-akaun bank yang diserahkan kepada SPRM. Takkanlah PAS begitu bodoh untuk memyerahkan akaun yang tidak bersih kepada SPRM.- Mat Yet

SR kata sejumlah  rm90 juta duit masuk dalam akaun top PAS leaders. Siapa Pemimpin2 atasan Pas? Bukannya akaun rasmi parti Pas. Atau seorang penerima tunggal. Husam kata duit masuk dalam Affin Bank, akaun parti PAS guna Bank Islam. Untuk dana pilihan raya pula ada Maybank dan CIMB. Kita tunggu jawapan SPRM untuk akaun persendirian atau syarikat pula. Jangan tiru perangai Hadi, belum menang saman dah isytihar menang. Dan lagi satu, sewaktu Pas bertanding 160 kerusi, kos belanja sehingga 34 juta. Setakat ni Pas mengaku terima 2.5 juta. Lagi 31 juta Pas kutip dari tin milo kah? - Divit Hansh

Sabarlah...jgn cepat melatah...duit haram tetap haram...90 juta dibahagi sama rata pemimpin2 peringkat pusat dan ahli majlis tertinggi...dah jadi sikit...so akaun personal dan anak bini belum kena check...ahli keluarga...saudara mara...sabarlah tuan puan..- Mohd Firdaus Abdullah

MACC, please finish your work before rushing to make a statement of partly completed investigation. No one is pressuring you to make a statement today. 1MDB / SRC funds did not exactly flow into UMNO's coffers either. Rather it was through a person of interest before he dole out to the rest of the macais like a boss. Therefore, half baked statement you have made today make it seem like they're off the hook when they are not. Be more professional. - Shovelnose

We are fully aware that no UMNO fool will transfer money directly to PAS held bank accounts. It has already been reported that money was deposited into various bank accounts of PAS individuals, their companies or businesses and they could not help themselves by flashing new and expensive vehicles, properties and lavish lifestyles. MACC, show some investigative brilliance and think outside the box to nail these felons rather than concluding no further action due to lack of evidence. - Slumdog

Lebai is not that stupid to take fund directly tt to their account . They are more smarter than Najib ! But as usual there is AMLA act ....... and this act make the beneficiaries Lebai can’t sleep well . Possibility Layering accounts are being used and it’s time consuming factor. Let’s give macc doing their job - Never too late

Nazri, You’ve Just Insulted Islam, 

Malays and Monarchies...

Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, or simply Gangster Nazri, has taken racism to a new level. He was supposed to help his party, UMNO Malay nationalist party, in the Semenyih by-election. However, his speech at a “ceramah (campaign gathering)” has raised more than just a few dozen eyebrows in otherwise a boring campaigning, thanks to excessive and exhaustive politicking.

Under the Mahathir’s first premiership (from 1981 to 2003), Mr. Nazri was the Entrepreneur Development Minister, a portfolio that comes with mouth watering perks especially the monopoly in the issuance of taxi permits. Today, he is nowhere here or there. His former boss – Najib Razak – had been toppled by the people in the May General Election last year.

Taking a page from the UMNO racist playbook, the extremely corrupted Nazri has accused the new Pakatan Harapan government of being weak because Mahathir administration, who was returned to power for the second time by voters, was compelled to surrender the rights of the Malays to other races. To prove his point, he has quoted three examples.

Like a broken record, he raised again the issue of appointment of non-Malays as Chief Justice (Richard Malanjum, a Catholic Kadazandusun), Attorney General (Tommy Thomas, an ethnic Indian Christian) and Finance Minister (Lim Guan Eng, an ethnic Chinese) by the 93-year-old Mahathir last year. Under the previous regime, all the three positions were held by ethnic Malays.

Nazri told an audience of about 80 people in his racist speech – “It is the duty of every prime minister and the government to defend the (Malay) privilege. However, the government is weak. Many things that never happened before are happening now – (look at the appointment of the) attorney-general, chief justice and finance minister.”

Using the death of firefighter Muhamad Adib as an example, Nazri has suggested that Attorney General tried covering up the matter – “Take for example the attorney-general. Everyone said Adib was sacrificed. We ask why no charges were brought against the people who were arrested for allegedly assaulting Adib back then. None has been charged.”

“People can see that the attorney-general and the suspects have the same skin colour, so don’t blame the Malay because they thought the attorney-general is not fair. I was made to understand (the prosecution) was withdrawn and (they) just kept quiet. This has led to dissatisfaction among the Malays because (they) do not trust a non-Malay to hold that position can be fair.” – said Nazri.

Of course, the racist Nazri conveniently and deliberately omitted the juiciest part of the death of the Malay firefighter. Armed with iron bars and machetes, it was a group of 50-200 Malay thugs who had entered the Hindu temple at Seafield and began slaughtering worshippers, which subsequently resulted in the death of Adib, whose real reason of death is being determined in “an ongoing inquest”.

In the latest inquest development into the fireman’s death, doctors who treated the Muhammad Adib reveals that the injuries sustained by the fireman were most likely not caused by assault. This suggests that the rioters, whom Nazri wanted to be prosecuted speedily because they were of Indian ethnicity, may not be the real culprits who had killed the innocent firefighter.

But using a dead fireman as bait to desperately stir up racial and religion sentiments among the Malays was not the most despicable thing Nazri has done in his political campaign. He also claimed that Malay distrust stemmed from the fact that the three new office bearers – Chief Justice, Attorney General and Finance Minister – could not hold the Quran when they were sworn-in.

As flabbergasted as it may sound, the notorious Mr. Nazri said – “An individual swear before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) must use Quran because the King is a Muslim. If ones do not use the Quran, then he or she is not bound to the oath taken. I can just hold a dictionary and I swear anything because I know this is just a normal book.”

Nazri, named as secretary-general of Barisan Nasional, the coalition, which lost its power for the first time in 61 years since the country’s independence in 1957, has announced last October that the coalition was likely to change its name and rebrand itself in order to create a new political dynamic. Perhaps he should learn how not to shoot his own foot first.

Without him realising it, Nazri’s insistence that non-Muslim must be prohibited from holding the top posts of Chief Justice, the Attorney General and Finance Minister do not only scream racism at the highest order, but also appears to be the greatest insult to Islam, Malays and the Malay Rulers. Did he just suggest that the Agong (King) was a bloody fool for accepting the swearing in of the three individuals?

Did Nazri also accuse the King had failed his job in defending the Malays, Islam and the Constitution for blindly accepting the oath of non-Muslim Chief Justice, Attorney General and Finance Minister? Yes, it seems the former Law Minister thought he was smarter than all the nine Malay Rulers combined, after he suggested that the Royal Institution has been scammed.

Based on Nazri’s argument, perhaps the Malay Rulers – all nine of them – should be kicked out since they were weak, so much so the monarchies have become the puppet of Mahathir Mohamad. But insulting the Malays’ intelligence and Malay Rulers’ wisdom was just the beginning. The well-known thuggish Nazri also brilliantly mocked and insulted Islam.

According to his logic, the Chief Justice, the Attorney General and Finance Minister must be Muslims so that they can use the Quran to take their oath before the Agong so that the swearing-in can become valid and legitimate. In other words, the use of the Quran will guarantee a God-fearing, honest, sincere, corrupt-free Chief Justice, Attorney General and Finance Minister.

Who was the Chief Justice, Attorney General and Finance Minister – all Malay Muslims – under the previous Barisan Nasional regime sworn in before the Agong? They were former Chief Justice Md Raus Sharif, former Attorney General Apandi Ali and former Finance Minister Najib Razak (who also happened to be the powerful former prime minister).

Despite him being a Muslim, the appointment of Md Raus Sharif as Chief Justice under Najib regime was flagrantly unconstitutional, not to mention controversial, to begin with. He was brought back as “additional judges” despite having reached their mandatory retirement age. And the reason for Najib to appoint Mr. Raus as Chief Justice was to rape the judiciary system.

Former Chief Justice Md Raus Sharif was the same guy who chaired a three-man bench and affirmed the decisions of the Court of Appeal and High Court – ruling that then-Prime Minister Najib Razak was not a public officer, and therefore, was immune from a suit brought by Mahathir Mohamad over alleged misfeasance in public office.

In short, the disgraced Md Raus Sharif, despite him having sworn-in using the Quran, had declared Najib was invincible, even more powerful than all the nine Malay Rulers combined. At least the Malay Rulers can be charged in a “Special Court”. Najib Razak, on the other hand, cannot be charged in any court simply because he enjoyed absolute immunity since he was not a public officer from the beginning.

Apandi Ali’s appointment as the Attorney General came in the wake of his predecessor Abdul Gani Patail’s removal, just as Mr. Gani was about to file 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Berhad) charges against Najib. His appointment was engineered to do only one thing – to clear Najib of all wrongdoings concerning 1MDB, so that no charges against the crook could see the light of the day.

Former Finance Minister Najib Razak had stolen, plundered and laundered tens of billions of Ringgit belonging to 32-million Malaysians, of which 62% of the population comprises ethnic Malay and Bumiputera (son of the soil). From Felda, EPF, PNB, LTAT, KWAP, Tabung Haji and whatnot, the ex-premier had been raping and sodomising all of them, one way or another, leaving his fingerprints all over the places.

And thanks to Najib, Tabung Haji (pilgrims fund) was reduced to RM10.2 billion in losses of its domestic and international equities (as of October last year) and its liabilities outstripped assets by RM9 billion. After the new government took over, it was revealed that Muslims’ hard-earned money was used to engage in get-rich-quick scheme.

It was absolutely an insult to Islam that a Muslim like Najib Razak, despite sworn-in using the Quran, had associated a Ponzi scheme with the religion. All the previous Chief Justice, Attorney General and Finance Minister – despite all of them being Muslims – had obviously brought shame to Quran after they engaged in thievery, abuse of power, money laundering and whatnot

Nazri Aziz is clearly mocking and insulting the Quran and Islam for linking Muslims with the three powerful positions, despite knowing even the three despicable Muslims did not give a damn about the oath taken before the Agong (King). Md Raus Sharif, Apandi Ali and Najib Razak are living proof that even some Muslims have very little respect for the Quran, otherwise how do you explain what they had done? - FT

cheers.

Hadi saja yang dok meroyan pasai usul tak percaya...

Presiden PKR Anwar Ibrahim menafikan dakwaan terdapat usaha untuk membuat usul tidak percaya terhadap Perdana Menteri Dr Mahathir Mohamad di parlimen.

Ditanya sama ada beliau akan menyokong Mahathir sekiranya usul berkenaan, Anwar berkata, usul seumpamanya hanya akan datang daripada Presiden PAS Abdul Hadi Awang.

"Apa isunya? Kenapa anda bangkitkan apa yang Abdul Hadi mahu?

"Itu usul Abdul Hadi. Biar dia yang buat usul tu," kata Anwar kepada pemberita di Petaling Jaya hari ini. 

Anwar juga berkata bahawa spekulasi untuk menjatuhkan Mahathir hanya percubaan PAS untuk memecahbelahkan Pakatan Harapan (PH).

"Sebab mereka gagal teruk (dalam pilihan raya) dan mereka menyokong rasuah atas nama Islam, satu-satunya pilihan adalah untuk memecahbelahkan," katanya.

PAS sebelum ini mendakwa wujud usaha untuk meminggirkan Mahathir. Dakwaan itu hadir selepas perjumpaan pemimpin PAS termasuk Abdul Hadi dengan perdana menteri. - f/bk

Anwar on the 1MDB scandal and Malaysia's future'

Mahathir Has Begun Making 

Moves To Neutralize PAS...

Between Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar Ibrahim, who will have the tendency to work with PAS, the Islamist party currently running like a headless chicken after the revelation that its top leaders had taken dirty money to the tune of RM90 million from UMNO, the party that is half-dead now after being slaughtered in the last May General Election? The answer is obvious.

Anwar was once an Islamic extremist, being co-founder of the Muslim Youth Movement (ABIM). Expectedly, his supporters were super-duper shocked when he joined UMNO in 1982, after being lured by then PM Mahathir Mohamad, a strategy to keep his enemies closer to him. He couldn’t resist the temptation of power and money waving at him at the other side.

As the clock ticks down for Najib to call for the 14th General Election, PKR supremo Anwar was still hopeful of PKR-PAS cooperation. He admitted endorsing and pushing his most trusted lieutenant, Azmin Ali, to hold talks with the Islamist party, despite writing on the wall that PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang had been bought and bribed by UMNO President Najib Razak.

Yes, Mr. Anwar actually had absolutely no confidence the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition could defeat the evil Barisan Nasional (BN), of which UMNO was the backbone of the coalition. He argued that the decision to cooperate with PAS was to consolidate all forces to defeat BN in the general election. Hence, PKR was reduced to begging the arrogant Hadi.

Mahathir, on the other hand, expressed his confidence as early as Jan 2017, more than a year before the May 2018 nationwide election, that PH can win the 14th election – without PAS. A day earlier, Hadi Awang, who is today the same person praising and boot-licking Mahathir, declared that PAS would not cooperate with PPBM, Mahathir’s party he described as “directionless”.

Mr. Mahathir then lectured and mocked PAS as a confused party – “On one hand, they don’t want to work with anybody, while on the other they want to work with somebody.” The grand old man, obviously didn’t want to waste time on PAS, then said the opposition coalition, Pakatan Harapan (PPBM, PKR, DAP and Amanah), had to accept the fact that three-cornered fights were not avoidable.

So, while Mahathir decisively told PAS to fly kites for playing hard to get, Anwar kept stroking Hadi’s balls despite the fake holy man telling him to fly kite. There’s nothing wrong possessing soft skill like perseverance, but it goes to show Anwar is an indecisive leader when compared to Mahathir. And everyone can tell you that an indecisive boss is also a bad manager of a company.

But Mahathir has so far proven to be untrustworthy, considering he has broken dozens of promises and been driving a garbage truck around gardens collecting rubbish in the form of ex-UMNO MPs. People who despise the premier are caught in a tough situation. Are they willing to bet their last penny that Anwar is better than the world’s oldest prime minister?

The point is, given half the chance, Anwar will have no problem working with PAS but the same cannot be said about Mahathir. Therefore, it’s laughable to say that Mahathir trusts PAS more than DAP, or Hadi Awang loves Mahathir Mohamad more than Anwar Ibrahim, as what pro-opposition cybertroopers, propagandists and bloggers would like the people to believe.

Hypothetically speaking, the chance of a PAS-PKR-UMNO Malay-Muslim grand coalition is absolutely higher than a PAS-PPBM-UMNO. If not for the RM90 million scandal plaguing PAS, do you really think the “munafiq (hypocrite)” Abdul Hadi Awang would have had led his corrupted minions to PM Mahathir’s office, pledging their undying support?

Hey, it was PPBM President Muhyiddin Yassin, who labelled PAS as “munafiq” yesterday, even after days of songs of praise from the leaders of the Islamist party. But why did Muhyiddin wasn’t impressed with Hadi Awang and his boys’ sucking up to his boss? Well, if even a not-so-clever Muhyiddin could smell PAS’ untrustworthiness and desperation miles away, do you think Mahathir would fall for the trap?

Muhyiddin said – “In religious terms, people will label them munafiq because what they do is different from what they preach. We know their true position and we in Pakatan will not fall for their words, even as they claimed so because PAS is not new in Semenyih.” But is Mahathir on the same page with Muhyiddin, that PAS leaders are the “biggest munafiq” on planet Earth?

Mahathir, unlike PM-in-waiting Anwar, cannot work with PAS because he knew it has been the Islamist party that divides Malay Muslims all along. The old man once grumbled that it was PAS who called non-Muslims and non-PAS-members infidels, so much so that marriages, even “kenduri (feast)”, between PAS-Muslims and UMNO-Muslims members were banned.

It was also Mahathir who said – “PAS members are willing to make enemies of fellow Muslims, thanks to the teachings of their leaders. And that is why the Malay Muslims in Malaysia are divided until now. Until today, there are still Malays who pray separately in the same mosque. Islam did not divide them, but the politics of PAS brought to the division of the Malays. What PAS has done is unforgivable.”

That’s right, as weird as it may sound, Mahathir actually trusts Lim Kit Siang and DAP more than Abdul Hadi Awang and PAS. After the master strategist skinned two UMNO fat cats – Najib Razak and Zahid Hamidi – and broke the most corrupted party into pieces, it appears the old fox has begun his chess moves to slaughter and neutralise the devilish PAS Islamist party.

Demoralised, disillusioned and demotivated, UMNO Malay nationalist party is as good as half-dead. With its accounts frozen and Member of Parliaments continues switching sides to Mahathir’s own party, it’s hard to see how UMNO could rise from ashes in the foreseeable future. PAS, on the other hand, is actually more dangerous than UMNO, and Mahathir knew it.

The U.S. knew they were fighting a losing battle against “Radical Islamic Terrorism”, the three magic words used by President Trump previously. And there’s a reason why Indonesia faces what is known as “third generation terrorism” today. You can bomb the hell out of the terrorists, but you certainly cannot kill the ideology, or ISIS ideology to be specific.

Sarawak Report was responsible in exposing the RM90 million bribes taken by PAS from UMNO. Surprisingly, even after Hadi openly sucked up to Mahathir, the naughty editor Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown has continued to expose the Islamist party’s past dirty secrets. The latest revelation was evidence of PAS receiving election money from UMNO.

Whistleblower Sarawak Report apparently showed a screenshot of a bank transfer from Shamsul Zairil Kamaruddin, an aide of a former minister (UMNO Treasurer Salleh Keruak) for RM2.5 million into PAS’ account at a Bank Islam branch on March 21, about three weeks before its leader Hadi Awang testified in a London court that his party was not working with UMNO.

Why did Sarawak Report expose Hadi’s contradiction statement, directly proving that PAS had colluded with UMNO? More importantly, from where did the British journalist gets her source of information? The answer is obvious – Mahathir administration. The best part is, even Hadi Awang and his boys were clueless that Mahathir was playing them.

As a result of the money gifted by UMNO to PAS, the Islamist party contested 158 parliamentary seats and 393 state assembly seats last May, a significant increase from 78 parliamentary seats and 236 state assembly seats from the previous 13th general election in 2013. That’s a whopping 102% (parliamentary) and 66% (state) increase in election spending by PAS.

Why is this exposure important? Essentially, all of PAS’ 18 MPs and 90 state assemblypersons could be charged under Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA), if they cannot prove that the money they used did not come from UMNO. More importantly, PAS bank accounts can be frozen the same way UMNO’s accounts were frozen.

Like it or not, Mahathir has to clip the wings of PAS largely because the politics of the “munafiq” Islamist party is way more dangerous than the politics of corruption practised by UMNO. People like Hadi Awang could easily radicalise its 2-million followers. If Mahathir didn’t need PAS to win the election last year, he definitely doesn’t need PAS to stay in power today.- FT

cheers.