Antara ucapan George Gallaway dengan Ezam si raja kotak......

Lebih baik aku dengar ucapan George Galloway ketika mengecam pembunuhan beramai-ramai oleh tentera Zionist Isreal di Gaza di London pada 10/1/2009 daripada mendengar Mohamad Ezam Mohd Nor yang kononnya mendedahkan surat bertarikh 8 September 1998, ditulis Anwar kepada Mahathir Mohamad sebagai percubaan berdamai di Terengganu malam tadi.

Nampaknya si Ezam raja kotak ini suka cari masa dan tempat untuk buat pendedahan. Kalau Ezam beriaya-iaya nak jatuhkan maruah Anwar kenapa dia tak dedah semasa dia keluar daripada PKR atau semasa memimpin GERAK dulu? Kenapa pilih semasa PRK Kuala Terengganu ini? Bukankah ini sebagai gimik publisiti murahan?

Kalau dulu budaya politik Malaysia, jika setiap kali ada pilihanraya atau pilihanraya kecil, kisah lompat melompat parti sering diwar-warkan. Malah TV tempatan akan tayang orang-orang PAS masuk UMNO secara beramai-ramai. Pelik atau benar pada PRK ini fenomena lompat melompat sudah tidak berlaku lagi. Mungkin berlaku iaitu orang-orang UMNO lompat masuk PAS atau Pakatan Rakyat dan sudah tentu tidak akan di tunjuk dalam TV atau disiar oleh media masa.
Sekarang kisah dedah mendedah pula jadi cerita.

Surat yang nak didedahkan oleh Ezam si raja kotak, sangat memalukan kredibilitinya sebagai seorang ahli politik. Aku rasa Pat Lah & Najib pun rasa malu dan menyesal ambil dia masuk UMNO. Apa kena mengena masalah surat Anwar dengan Kuala Terengganu?

Ini surat biasa saja.Tidak ada apa-apa yang menarik pun. Kalau nak persoalkan pasal hipokrasi, aku rasa Ezam patut cermin muka dia dulu......Pooooorah!!!!!!!

Baca sini sini dan sini.

cheers.

Khir Toyo's Mercedes purchased by KDEB for personal use.........

Setelah kontroversi pembelian 15 buah kereta Toyota Camry untuk keguanaan Exco Kerajaan Negeri Selangor, terbaru, timbul satu lagi pendedahan mengenai pembelian kereta mewah yang melibatkan Menteri Besar negeri itu, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

Pendedahan tersebut dibuat oleh bekas Menteri Besar Selangor, Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo. Bercakap kepada Agendadaily, Khir berkata, kereta mewah jenis Lexus model 460 itu dibeli oleh Kumpulan Darul Ehsan (KDEB) dan harganya hampir mencecah RM1 juta. Kereta itu, difahamkan dibeli untuk keguanaan Khalid. Khalid adalah Pengerusi KDEB.

source:Agenda Daily

Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo had approved the purchase of a Mercedes S350L worth almost RM1 million for his personal use with funds from Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Berhad when he was Selangor menteri besar.

This resulted in the state having to bear the extravagant purchase, said Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, the political secretary to Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

He was responding to Dr Khir's statement who said that the RM2 million purchase of 15 Toyota Camry cars showed that the Pakatan Rakyat leaders were more concerned about their needs than the welfare of Selangor people. The opposition leader also questioned why the purchase was not made through an open tender and the state government should focus on fulfilling their election manifesto.

In a statement yesterday, Nik Nazmi said the open tender was not used because the cars were bought at market price for RM130,000 each. The state government received its fleet of Camry cars on Friday. As for the state's Proton Perdana V6 cars, those below two years old would be retained and used as pool cars.

source:NST

NTV7 telah membawa penafian MB Selangor,Khalid Ibrahim tentang kereta Lexusnya. Katanya bahawa kereta Lexus itu dipakai sebelum dia menjadi MB lagi hinggalah sekarang dan tak pernah guna kereta gomen. Kadang-kadang aku nak ketawa pula, pasai kereta pun Khir Toyo nak ungkit....awat dah tak ada modai lagi kah bagi calon ketua pemuda UMNO ini.........

cheers.

Najib,"I will bring change" tapi 2 penggal UMNO mewakili KT mana ada change............

Keputusan pilihanraya kecil ini tidak akan mengubah kedudukan gomen persekutuan atau pun kerajaan negeri. Namun demikian Umno dan BN akan menanggung malu besar jika ianya kecundang di kubu yang dianggap selamat di Kuala Terengganu.

"God willing, if we are given the mandate, I promise we will make big changes in Kuala Terengganu," he said to a crowd which had gathered for breakfast at the home of Zaki Mohd Yusof, the Umno secretary for the Paloh polling district, in Sungai Kiat, Kubang Bakung, near here today. Najib said that when PAS ruled Terengganu from 1999 to 2004, not a single mosque was built but after the BN took over the state government two mosques were built in each state constituency.

Bukankah BN telah memenangi kerusi Kuala Terengganu ini selama 2 penggal berturut-turut(2004 & 2008). Selama itu apakah UMNO/BN tidak membawa kemajuan ke tempat inikah? Janganlah dok menipu pengundi-pengundi Kuala Terengganu ini Najib ooi…… sama ada menang atau kalah selepas PRK ini nanti bayang hang pun tak nampak. Sekiranya Wan Farid menang,mungkin dia juga akan hilang…….

Bila PAS menang dulu,tugas utamanya adalah untuk membersih segala taik-taik busuk yang kerajaan BN tinggalkan,termasuk untuk melangsaikan hutang piutang kerajaan Wan Mokhtar dulu. Mungkin PAS tak dapat membina surau kerana masalah kewangan,tambah-tambah lagi bila wang royalti itu disekat gomen pusat. Kalau setakat membina dua buah mesjid saja dengan kedudukan kewangan yang kukuh aku rasa malulah. Sepatutnya dengan wang royalti yang melimpa itu,kerajaan negeri BN boleh dirikan lebih daripada 2 mesjid. Bukan setakat membina mesjid,wang royalty itu juga boleh digunapakai untuk membantu rakyat-rakyat miskin,tetapi bagi kerajaan negeri BN mengadakan pesta Piala Monsun itu adalah lebih penting daripada membantu rakyat serta melengkapi infrastrukturnya……

“Pilihanraya kecil ini bukan referendum untuk saya atau PM Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi atau Menteri Besar Terengganu Datuk Ahmad Said,” demikian kata Najib semasa memberi ucapan dalam ceramah-ceramah BN. Ong Tee Keat pula berkata bahawa keputusan PRK Kuala Terengganu tidak boleh digunakan untuk mengukur popularity MCA. Kita tahu bulan Mac ini Najib akan naik jadi PM. Sekiranya Najib gagal dalam usahanya untuk mempertahankan kerusi ini untuk UMNO sudah tentu kredibilitinya sebagai pemimpin UMNO akan tercalar.

Kemunculan megejut Pat Lah di Kuala Terengganu di awal-awal kempen itu sedang berjalan rancak adalah satu pertanda bahawa hari-hari akhir regime UMNO/BN ini sudah terbayang. Para penganalisis setakat ini menunjukkan BN dan Pas mempunyai peluang yang sama walau pun tinjauan di kalangan pengundi Cina yang mewakili hampir 11% jumlah pengundinya mendapati kemungkinan mereka beralih kepada Pas.

Kemenangan calon Pas Mohd Abdul Wahid Endut,akan memberi suntikan semangat baru untuk kepimpinan Pakatan Rakyat, terutamanya dalam mengembalikan keyakinan pengundi terhadap gabungan ini. Jika UMNO/BN pula menang ia akan dicanangkan melalui media arus perdana yang dikawal gomen sebagai petanda bahawa UMNO/BN sudah kembali relevan di kalangan rakyat.

Yang terbaru UMNO mula melawan gelombang kemaraan PAS dengan melaungan slogan “Pas Kluk Klek”(flip-flop). Tapi bukankah UMNO,Najib dan Pat Lah itu sendiri sememangnya kluk-klek dari awal-awal lagi?

Bagi pengundi-pengundi Kuala Terengganu,buatlah pilihan yang bijak. Marilah kita bersama memperkukuhkan barisan pembangkang dengan menghantar Sdr. Mohd.Abdul Wahid Endut(PAS) ke Parlimen dan benam calon UMNO di Laut China Selatan..........


cheers.

Ezam - biarlah dia terjun dengan labu-labunya......

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim enggan memberi respon atau menjawab sebarang pertuduhan seperti yang dicabar oleh bekas Setiausaha Politiknya, Mohamad Ezam Mohd Nor mengenai dua perkara penting yang didedahkannya sewaktu berkempen di Kuala Terengganu kelmarin. Beliau sebaliknya mendakwa Ezam diperalatkan oleh Umno dan Barisan Nasional (BN) dalam kempen pilihan raya kecil Kuala Terengganu untuk meraih undi.

"Saya tidak pernah respons kepada Ezam, sejak bila saya respons kepada dia?

"Di Permatang Pauh mereka gunakan dia, setiap pilihan raya kecil dia akan digunakan," katanya dalam sidang media di bangunan Parlimen hari ini.

Semalam, Ezam yang juga bekas Ketua Angkatan Muda Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) mendedahkan bahawa bekas Timbalan Perdana Menteri itu pernah memintanya supaya menguruskan langkah berdamai dengan Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad tidak sampai seminggu selepas dipecat. Malah Ezam turut mendedahkan tarikh tepat beliau melihat kandungan enam kotak rahsia yang dikaitkan dengan kononnya bukti gejala rasuah pemimpin-pemimpin Umno dan Barisan Nasional (BN) semasa berada dalam kerajaan.

Ditanya sama beliau ingin menafikan atau mengakui mengenai pendedahan Ezam itu, Anwar berkata, isu merupakan isu lama yang sudah tidak relevan.

"Dia cakap mengenai isu bila, 1998? Sekarang sudah 2009, dia tunggu 11 tahun untuk fikir," katanya.

Bagaimanapun Anwar yang juga Ketua Pembangkang di Parlimen berkata isu yang dibangkitkan Ezam tiada kaitan dengan pilihan raya kecil Kuala Terengganu.

"Apa isunya? Saya tak nampak sebarang isu yang cuba beliau bangkitkan," katanya.

source: malaysiakini

Aku pun dah bosan dok dengaq si Ezam si raja sumpah ini...... di Permatang Pauh dan di Kuala Terengganu tak habis dok jaja isu yang sama, soal peribadi Anwar, cakaplah sikit pasai masalah rasuah pemimpin-pemimpin UMNO yang mana dok hot-hotkan dulu.......... Pokoknya Anwar jangan dok layan mangkuk hanjut dan ejen UMNO seekoq ini. Aku tak mau cakap lagi pasai Ezam tapi bacalah komen Wan Fauzin ini bertajuk "Dedah Atau Tidak Surat Anwar,Kami Tetap Sokong PAS" seterusnya...........

Telah banyak artikel dan ulasan dikeluarkan berkenaan dengan Raja Sesumpah Ezam. Saya tidak pernah jemu untuk turut serta mengulas isu yang sama kerana bagi saya memadai saya serta beberapa rakan lain yang hanya penyokong di balik tabir ini berdepan dengan Raja Sesumpah. Ezam bolehlah disamakan setaraf dengan kami sahaja, sebab itu amat melucukan bila Ezam mahu berdepan dengan DS Anwar. Tinggi sungguh cita-cita beliau untuk menumpang populariti DS Anwar.

Kenyataan terkini beliau setakat ini ialah untuk mendedahkan `surat perdamaian' di antara DS Anwar dengan Tun Mahathir yang dikatakan ditulis tangan oleh DS Anwar pada bulan Sept sewaktu DS Anwar mula-mula dipecat. Raja Sesumpah yang juga merangkap Raja Kotak ini seolah-olah mengugut bahawa samada DS Anwar menjawab tuduhannya atau tidak, beliau tetap akan dedahkan surat tersebut pada hari Rabu ini nanti. Kita juga hendak menjawab kepada Ezam, bahawa `Sama ada Ezam dedahkan surat tersebut atau tidak, rakyat di Kuala Terengganu tetap akan mengundi PAS' . Rakyat di Kuala Terengganu khususnya telah memahami tektik Ezam yang menyerang DS Anwar secara peribadi adalah semata-mata untuk mengalahkan PAS di Parlimen Kuala Terengganu. Secara lojiknya, medan terbaik untuk Ezam menguburkan DS Anwar adalah ketika di Permatang Pauh sebelum ini. Malangnya, ketika itu Ezam telah cuba sedaya upaya untuk `menelanjangkan' DS Anwar, yang berlaku sebaliknya Ezam yang terlondeh seluar lantas berlari ke Indonesia selepas itu.

Mengapa isu `surat perdamaian' yang dikatakan oleh Ezam tidak timbul ketika di Permatang Pauh ? Ini adalah kerana ketika itu, Ezam penuh yakin bahawa isu `sumpah laknat' Saiful Bukhari sehari sebelum penamaan calon sudah cukup untuk membuatkan DS Anwar menyorokkan mukanya di Permatang Pauh. Apakah isu surat kepada Tun Mahathir lebih berbisa jika dibandingkan dengan `sumpah laknat' Saiful ? Apa yang hendak dihairankan jika DS Anwar menulis surat kepada Tun Mahathir kerana ketika itu peluang untuk DS Anwar untuk berjuang bersama UMNO dan dikembalikan jawatan yang dipecat secara zalim itu mungkin ada ? Umpama seseorang yang telah diberhentikan kerja oleh majikannya, apa salahnya pekerja itu merayu untuk kembali bertugas apatah lagi pemberhentiannya dilakukan secara tidak adil ? Jika benar sekalipun DS Anwar cuba untuk berdiplomasi dengan Tun Mahathir ketika itu, itu adalah hak beliau.

Apakah Ezam beranggapan dengan tersebarnya surat DS Anwar tersebut akan menghilangkan keyakinan Pakatan Rakyat dan penyokong-penyokong DS Anwar? Semua penyokong terutamanya pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat telah mengetahui bahawa DS Anwar dahulunya UMNO dan terdapat beberapa tindakan DS Anwar semasa berada di dalam UMNO yang mungkin tidak menyenangkan rakyat atau parti pembangkang. Hakikatnya sekarang DS Anwar telah kembali kepada rakyat dan tunduk kepada kemahuan rakyat yang inginkan perubahan, tidak seperti Ezam yang tunduk kepada UMNO untuk hidup. Kami sedia melupakan apa jua kesalahan dan kesilapan DS Anwar ketika dahulu asalkan DS Anwar sanggup berkorban demi kesejahteraan rakyat. `Buang yang keruh, ambil yang jernih' itu adalah prinsip yang dipegang oleh kami sebagai penyokong Pakatan Rakyat. Sebaliknya, apa jua pengorbanan yang telah Ezam lakukan di masa lampau walaupun terlalu sedikit di mata kami, tetap kami akan lupakan dari ingatan kami selagi Ezam bersekongkol dengan puak yang sepanjang masa menzalimi rakyat. Oleh itu, sia-sia Ezam untuk memecah belahkan ikatan kami yang semakin kuat ini dengan menjadikan musuh peribadi beliau DS Anwar sebagai sasarannya.

Kemenangan kami, InsyaAllah, di Kuala Terengganu nanti adalah merupakan kemenangan buat perjuangan Islam dan rakyat jelata bukan kemenangan DS Anwar selaku individu. Tetapi, jika UMNO tewas di Kuala Terengganu bukan sedikit yang akan mengatakan `badi' atau `bencana' yang dibawa oleh Ezam semenjak di Permatang Pauh adalah puncanya. Saya akan mengulas lanjut perihal Raja Sesumpah ini kerana saya juga teramat ingin melihat `surat perdamaian' yang akan diedarkan oleh Mamat Posmen ini nanti. Apakah benar isi kandungan surat tersebut akan berjaya mengatasi `hit' atau `Box Office' `Drama Bangsawan Sumpah Laknat' sebelum ini. - Wan Fauzdin

Baca sini dan sini.

cheers.

Poster-poster BN yang menipu...............

Perang poster sememangnya berleluasa di Kuala Terengganu ketika pilihanraya kecil ini. PAS dan BN telah memaparkan berbagai poster dengan tujuan untuk menarik perhatian pengundi. Namun demikian antara beberapa poster BN/UMNO ini membawa 1001 tanda tanya.........



Mahathir berkata UMNO tak tahu pilih calon. Yang dipilih ialah bekas Setiausaha Politik Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Jelas pilihan calon UMNO tidak memperdulikan sentimen rakyat.Dan calon ini pula terkenal sebagai seorang yang sombong, tidak tahu beramah mesra dengan orang. Dalam Pilihanraya kecil ini pengundi Kuala Terengganu berhadapan dengan dilema.UMNO bukan pilihan yang baik.



Memang benar harga minyak telah turun. Dengan kadar harga setong minyak yang menjunam ke bawah aras USD 50.00,harga pump sebenar seliter petrol sepatutnya RM1.30 sen bukan RM 1.80 sen. Tetapi kenapakah gomen kekal dengan harga RM 1.80 sen? Jadi sapa menipu sapa? Bukankah pembangkang yang mendesak serta mendedahkah rasional kenapa harga minyak patut diturunkan? Kalau Anwar tak cabar gomen untuk berdebat pasal harga minyak ini,mungkin harga petrol masih berada lebih daripada RM 2.00 seliter. So Najib please dont take the credit as you expressed in your ceramah. As a reminder,you didnt even have the balls to face Anwar in the debate instead send a low class minister who made a fooled of himself..........



Pertandingan Piala Monsun(Monsoon Cup)untuk faedah siapa,rakyat Terengganu atau penyamun-penyamun tertentu? Sapakah yang menjadi mastermind dalam pertandingan ini? Bukankah ini ankara menantu Pat Lah,KJ,Patrick Lim dan abang Wan Farid serta kroni-kroni UMNO termasuk Idris Jusoh dan beberapa orang exco negeri? Apakah rakyat Terengganu menjadi kaya dengan adanya piala Munsun ini? Adalah lebih baik jika wang berjuta-juta ini diguna untuk membantu rakyat miskin yang menghadapi masalah.........



Semasa pemerintahan PAS,gomen BN dibawah pimpinan Mahathir menyekat pembayaran wang royalti dari Petronas. Tetapi bila berlaku pilihanraya kecil Kuala Terengganu ini gomen BN dengan tiba mengumumkan wang royalti di kembalikan. Bukankah ini satu lagi bentuk penipuan UMNO/BN.........


Jadi apakah pengundi-pengundi Kuala Terengganu harus buat...............


Pakat ramai-ramai tendang BN ke laut Cina Selatan...................

cheers.

KT by-election- The dirty tricks that BN employs........

The federal government today awarded a whopping RM15.8 million worth of small infrastructural projects today to 583 class-F contractors through a computerised ‘bidding’ system.

The contracts were awarded to Terengganu-based contractors through the Implementation Coordination Unit (ICU) at a function at the Wisma Darul Iman, Kuala Terengganu.

At the function, the contractor or a representative would be invited on stage to prompt a computer to randomly select a project for the company. The nature and value of the project would then appear on a big screen.

All the projects - worth between RM30,000 and RM200,000 - were limited to the Kuala Terengganu district.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who officiated the event, said that the event today was a ‘world record’ where every participant was able to obtain a contract.

"In this lucky draw, everyone wins. Everyone gets a contract," he said.

Najib said that the computerised system was the most transparent and proudly noted that the system was designed by a Terengganu-born.

Meanwhile, PAS deputy president Nasharuddin Mat Isa criticised Barisan Nasional for only improving the district ‘s infrastructure during a by-election campaign period.

"Why only are roads being tarred now? Why are there goodies being given to the voters only now?

"The message they are sending is that you must vote for me because I tarred your roads and gave your kids lap tops," he said.

PKR is upset that the police failed to issue the party with a permit to hold a ceramah yesterday, ostensibly because Friday and Saturday were holidays in Terengganu.

"It is strange that with 6,000 police personnel, they cannot administer the issuance of permits," PKR information chief Tian Chua told a press conference in Kuala Terengganu today.

Chua said it was inexcusable for the police to use the holiday as a reason to shirk their duties. "Can you imagine, if you lost your identity card? Will they say ‘Today is a Friday and because it is a holiday, and I’m not taking this report’. I regret that the police have this attitude," he lamented.

Chua added that under normal circumstances, for example during the Permatang Pauh by-election, party workers merely had to inform the police on the details of the ceramah and did not need to obtain a permit.

"But we still respect the police and followed procedures. But for two days, we were told that it was not a working day and the office was closed," he said.

source: Malaysiakini.

cheers.

Pakatan proving to be a viable and capable alternative......

Pakatan Rakyat is now facing its first serious electoral test since its formation. How has it performed so far? While the ride has been bumpy, I believe that any fair yardstick must give Pakatan due credit for holding together and pursuing the agenda its supporters voted for. Pakatan Rakyat remains a viable political coalition, and offers a much stronger alternative to the electorate than its individual component parties did in the general election of March 2008.

The recent general election was actually a bit of an aberration in that for the first time in living memory there was actually a discernible core in all the manifestos of the different opposition parties. All three Pakatan parties have committed themselves to battling racism, reforming our government and improving access to economic opportunities. These were the three main planks of their platforms, and are what the voters of five states and Peninsular Malaysia at the federal level voted for.

Now, it is easy to think that Pakatan might be in danger of falling apart because of personal differences their politicians may have, or even policy differences. But I think we are really holding Pakatan to an unfair standard here. Barisan Nasional does not have a coherent platform to speak of, and its component parties bicker incessantly.

One thing Pakatan has going for it is that all its parties agree on the three problems they see facing the country, and more or less how to solve them. Barisan’s platform is predicated on denying the existence of these problems, and seems to have more of a vague theme running along the lines of “don’t bother switching, you have it so good”. Since before the March elections, and even more ever since then, Barisan parties have openly bickered on important policy issues. Umno says one thing about race, MCA says another; Umno says one thing about religion, MCA says another; Umno and MCA say one thing about the Internal Security Act, Gerakan and PPP say another. Barisan now has nothing to unite itself on except antipathy towards Pakatan, and a ragtag bunch of Pakatan-haters does not a coalition make.

The most pressing issue facing Pakatan at the moment is the struggle over hudud laws. Noted liberal Pas vice-president Husam Musa recently promised Pas supporters that it will continue to press for enactment of hudud laws at the federal level; the DAP has been equally adamant in reassuring its supporters that it will oppose hudud laws. The PKR position remains an enigma, but I imagine in its traditional spirit of compromise that when the issue comes to a vote, it will let its MPs vote freely. At first glance, this lack of Pakatan unity seems troubling.

But the true test of a political coalition is not singleminded ideological coherence; the true test is whether the component parties can give and take enough to govern effectively together. Husam explicitly stated that hudud laws would only be passed if other Pakatan parties consented; this is and always has been the Pas position, since even before the March general election. He did not say that Pas would quit the potential Pakatan government, or withhold support on other key issues if the theoretical hudud Bill failed. Pas is merely saying that it supports hudud laws; it is not saying that it will upset the wishes of the electorate at large by overturning the Pakatan agenda and quitting the coalition if it cannot get its way.

True reason for concern would be Pas talking of quitting Pakatan if the other parties refuse to accept the hudud laws. But this is not the case; Pas respects the right of other Pakatan component parties to differ, and has taken pains to assure everyone that it will not force the hand of its fellow Pakatan partners.

To put this in perspective, Britain is governed by one party: Labour. Did Labour have a consensus about sending the young men and women of its armed forces to die in Iraq? Ministers quit the Labour government and numerous MPs voted against the party line in 2003 to voice their opposition. Yet did anyone muse about the possible collapse of the Labour government? No, because it was clear that in spite of their strong differences, the Labour government still had the support of its backbenchers. There is absolutely nothing wrong with individual component parties or even politicians taking different stands on important issues; that is the essence of democracy.

The real test of Pakatan’s staying power will be its viability to govern. Before March 2008, there was little way to tell how a Pakatan government would function — if it would function at all. But we have had almost a year with almost half the states in our federation under Pakatan governance, and we are nowhere near the disaster which Barisan promised us would occur if we voted in a Pakatan government.

The occasional mishap under the Pakatan government in Selangor can hardly measure up to the scandals of the previous Barisan Nasional state government; the combined government in Perak has been working surprisingly effectively and efficiently even under a Pas menteri besar; Penang keeps moving forward with little friction, the occasional Umno-provoked demonstration aside. The three most developed states in the country have been governed with remarkably little muss or fuss by Pakatan; it is true that things in the states are far from perfect, but they show no signs of collapse, and they continue to develop and grow regardless of the party in power.

Every indication so far is that Pakatan remains a viable political grouping, with mature leaders willing to work together in spite of their differences to achieve their common ends. Before March 8, not many of us could seriously say we believed the Pakatan parties could hold together and govern; it is clear now that they are capable of doing as much, if not more. If the Malaysian people still hunger for the reforms, the change, the equality of opportunity we have been promised by our politicians from both Pakatan and Barisan, we have every reason now to seriously consider Pakatan a viable and capable alternative government.- John Lee.

source:The Malaysian Insider

Its hardly a year after the GE, lets give Pakatan Rakyat a chance to prove itself as a viable alternative..........

cheers.

Zaid Ibrahim, "I believe he’ll be Prime Minister one day"........

Prior to the March 8 general election, many had considered Anwar Ibrahim to be a spent force. But the charismatic politician proved his critics wrong and is now back in the forefront albeit on the other side of the fence.

The question is beginning to surface now that the euphoria of the 8 March 2008 election has waned. Anwar Ibrahim is a personality you are familiar with and is someone I admire immensely for his courage and tenacity.

He has been the cement holding together the parties of the Pakatan Rakyat, with their diverse political philosophies and varying political agendas. I believe he’ll be Prime Minister one day. Certainly, he will continue to be the main player in Malaysian politics for many years to come.

As you no doubt know, he is once again facing a charge for sodomy. Some are of the view that he will be incarcerated again, either through the courts or by executive detention order. I am not so sure.

The public demands by some Cabinet ministers for Anwar to volunteer a DNA sample at the time he was arrested and subsequently when charged suggests that there are doubts. Without a conviction, he cannot be incarcerated.

A detention under the Internal Security Act by a new Najib government would invite serious repercussions both domestically and internationally at a time when economic and social conditions are in a mess.

I would like to think that Dato Seri Najib appreciates that he has other options to win the support of the people in the next general election. Detaining Anwar under the ISA is an unnecessary risk and may well turn the tide completely against the BN.

Nonetheless, I cannot say with certainty that Anwar will not be detained. Such is the state of play in Malaysian politics.

The Pakatan Rakyat, on its part, cannot assume that they are safely on the road to Putrajaya come 2012. The honeymoon is over for the five Pakatan Rakyat State governments of Kelantan, Perak, Kedah, Penang and Selangor. The PR must ensure that it retains these states. One would have thought that given the results in March, this would be a given. This may however prove not to be the case.

It is said that on March 8th last year, Malaysians went in search a viable alternative. The PR must show that it is that alternative. Public infighting is not the way to go about that, yet this is what the PR has come to be identified with in recent days. The coalition needs to build on its common identity and provide for a common platform on major issues. Member parties must go beyond issues like the implementation of Islamic criminal law and concentrate on delivering on their collective message of social justice and compassionate and fair governance.

In this, PAS, with its Islam-centric philosophy has to work harder to fall in line with PKR and DAP whose ideologies are more closely aligned. Whether the ulamaks of PAS are able to make this concession will be a test not just of their own maturity but also of the cohesiveness of the PR.

In short, the PR must show itself to be a real alternative to the BN way of doing things. To be able to retain the states currently ruled by them, PR must offer more effective policies and initiatives when compared to those of the BN. It will not be sufficient for them to depend on the personality of their leaders. That may have been enough the first time round, but the voters expect more and rightly so.

But I must emphasize here that Malaysians are a patient lot. They have been patient with Barisan Nasional for so many years and I am sure they will be patient with Pakatan Rakyat as well. But Pakatan should never take the people for granted. In this, it would also be enormously helpful for Anwar Ibrahim to change his grandstanding ways.

Proclaiming dates of anticipated takeovers without the ability to follow through merely distract and detract. Powerplays like that have undermined the PR in a way that has been wholly unnecessary.

Anwar should instead focus on getting PR together as an entity with one coherent vision for the country. He has after all, the support of the rank and file of all the parties in Pakatan Rakyat, although not necessarily some of its leaders.

source: (Part of Datuk Zaid Ibrahim's speech at Regional Outlook Forum, Singapore.)

Read Zaid Ibrahim's full speech here.

Zaid has a point there. As I had said before that Pakatan Rakyat had been enthrusted by the rakyat to bring about changes. The 5 Pakatan Rakyat gomen is a test to see whether they really "cakap serupa bikin". To the leaders of Pakatan Rakyat, the rakyat had faith in you when they voted you in. So proof yourself a worthy choice of the rakyat.

As for the rakyat, they have the final say as to whom will they support, UMNO/BN or the opposition Pakatan Rakyat. But if the current Pakatan Rakyat's leader behaves like their UMNO/BN conterparts then it wont be suprise, if another political tsunami strikes in 2013.

cheers.