Stop all these COVER UPS and WHITEWASH!

by Din Merican

On December 30, 2010, I posted Tan Sri Robert Phang's New Year's Press Statement because I share his wishes and hopes for all Malaysians that God's Blessings be upon all of us, that we become a truly 1Malaysia natiostarted, that wish was immediately dashed yesterday when the MACC Corruption Prevention Panel Chairman, Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam, declared that the MACC Board members and Panel Advisers were satisfied with A-G Gani Patail's explanation of his recent haj pilgrimage to Mecca with Tajuddin's proxy, Shahidan Shafie.

Ramon said that the MACC Board and Panel members were satisfied with A-G Gani Patail's explanation and found that there was no need to investigate the allegations. That is indeed amusing.

Overzealous Ramon Navaratnam should resign

In short, the MACC Board and Panel members had cleared A-G Gani Patail without even investigating the allegations. Ramon's statement and clearing of A-G Gani Patail without an investigation violate the very cardinal function of the MACC as set out under section 7 (b) of the  MACC Act, which is  to detect and investigate:

i) any suspected offence under this Act;
ii) any suspected attempt to commit any offence under this  Act;
iii) any suspect ted conspiracy to commit any offence under this Act.

Save our daughters, sisters, wives from rape

Fifteen years ago when I was arrested and charged with publishing false news for a memorandum send to the government on the abuse, torture and dehumanised treatment of migrant workers in immigration detention centres, one of the charges I faced was the issue of rape of women in the detention centres.

In Indonesia, one of our partners investigated and documented five testimonies of women migrants raped at the camps. They were willing to testify.
Unfortunately and suspiciously, the office of our partner was raided and the files went missing. It was difficult to track the women and I lost my witnesses.

I did not lose hope. Together with one of my very committed lawyers, we went to Bangladesh to interview witnesses.

SNAP joins forces with Jeffrey

KUCHING: Sarawak National Party (SNAP) has thrown its support behind Jeffrey Kitingan’s United Borneo Front (UBF).

Confirming the party’s commitment to the UBF agenda, SNAP president Edwin Dundang said : “Their (UBF) demands are in line with the Malaysia Agreement.

“As far as I understand, one of the things Jeffrey wants to do is establish a conformity agreement with us to ensure that what was agreed to when Malaysia was formed must be followed.”

Admitting to having met Jeffrey, a former PKR vice-president, in Miri recently, Dundang said SNAP was “party to the Malaysia Agreement” in 1963 and it will now “be a boon for Pakatan Rakyat and the two-party system in Malaysia.”

“SNAP was a party to the Malaysia Agreement and I can say proudly that without SNAP there can never be Malaysia at that time.

“SNAP’s peaceful rise will be a boon for Pakatan and the two-party system in Malaysia,” he added.

DAP UPSET THAT UBF IS TAKING AWAY ITS SUPPORT IN BORNEO

The statement by DAP MP Dr Hiew King Cheu published last Tuesday asking Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan to stop confusing the people with his UBF agenda begs a proper response, because I feel it is regrettable that Hiew, being a Ph. D. can make such an error as calling the revelation of the truth as “confusing the people”. The question is, is Dr. Jeffrey really confusing the people?

This popular phrase, “confuse the people” has been used so many times by the Barisan Nasional that its meaning has been twisted, especially in its Malay version, i.e. “mengelirukan rakyat”. First of all, why is the BN so worried about the opposition confusing the people? Is the BN thinking that the people are entitled to only one version of the truth? Is the BN saying that only the ‘truth’ from the BN is true, and that any information and ideology from the opposition is confusing the people, and shouldn’t be accepted? Is the BN rejecting the free flow of information in this country although we have the Ministry of Information. If this ministry rejects alternative information, then it should rightly be called the Ministry of Disinformation.  The government-controlled RTM and TV3 cannot find the guts to tell the truth by showing the different sides the news. And what a loss to the people, because the huge amount of budget given to run the Information Ministry alone is actually money that belongs to the people – and they are denied the truth!

Jokes... of astronauts; indian/chinese/malay mentality

American Spaceman is called Astronaut
Russian Spaceman is called Cosmonaut
Chinese Spaceman is called Taikonaut
Malaysian Spaceman ??? - Can-or-naut
 

Dr. M (The Prime Minister) was thinking about sending somebody into space.
Three potential can-or-nauts were called for an interview.
An Indian, a Malay and a Chinese.
Dr. M interviews the Indian first: "So, Muthu, this is a dangerous mission..
How much do you think you should be paid?"
Muthu replied: "One million ringgit."
"Why so much?" asks Dr. M. 

PBS invites Jeffrey to join BN

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) has thrown open its doors to Jeffrey Kitingan and other former PKR members and leaders following their exit from PKR.

PBS secretary-general Henrynus Amin said the open invitation to the groups was aimed at strenghthening unity within the Kadazandusun Murut community.

PBS, which is a component party in the Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, is led by Jeffrey’s older sibling, Jospeh Pairin Kitingan.

Henrynus said the party was not surprised by the developments in PKR, adding that the exit of top Kadazandusun and Murut leaders who were disheartened by the way they were treated by the KL- based opposition party “speaks for itself”.

“There is no need to add more as Jeffery’s departure from PKR with most of the Kadazandusun and Murut leaders has reinforced lingering suspicions that all is not well within the opposition camp.

He added that PBS expects more PKR Kadazandusun and Murut members and leaders to quit the opposition party.

Indonesian maid denies Rais raped her

KUALA LUMPUR: The Indonesian maid who once worked for the Information, Communications and Culture Minister Rais Yatim has denied that she has ever been raped by him.

A newsportal, www.detik.com, reported that the woman, Robengah , 46, denied the allegations when met by reporters at her home in Banjarnegara, Indonesia.

She reportedly issued the denial in a statement given to four officials from the Indonesian Workers Protection and Placement Centre (BNP2TKI) in Semarang, central Java. Her husband was also present.

“I worked for eight years in datuk’s house. I was treated well all the while; there were no problems and definitely no rough or undesirable treatment towards me,” she reportedly said in the statement.

Longhouse folk ‘detain gangsters’ sent to scare them

KUCHING:  About 500 Ibans of Rumah Ranggong in Ulu Niah surrounded and “detained” 20 individuals believed to be “gangsters” allegedly sent by a renowned timber concessionaire to intimade and frighten them.

The 20 “gangsters” are allegedly part of a group of 80 infiltrators purportedly sent by an oil palm company, linked to the concessionaire, to not only to frighten the natives but to destroy a blockade mounted by them.

Tau Dali, a spokesman for community, said that on Jan 4, word of the “gangsters” reached the longhouse.

“As they (gangsters) entered the oil palm plantation after midnight on Jan 4, we waited and surprised them. There were about 500 of us.

“The ‘gangsters’ are still inside the plantation and they told us that more will be coming to disturb us. But we are not afraid of them,” said Tau.

Tau said the “gangsters” were sent to intimidate them when they refused to surrender their native customary rights (NCR) land to the company.

Tau named the company as KTS, a very well-connected Foochow company which also controlled timber concessions and newspaper companies.

Table ‘Democracy Act’ now, urges Jeffrey

Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: United Borneo Front (UBF) leader Jeffrey Kitingan said Opposition MPs should table the proposed Democracy Restoration Act (DRA) in Parliament now rather than wait until after the 13th general election.

“The Pakatan Rakyat Convention in Penang several weeks ago agreed to introduce the DRA after the general election but UBF feels it should be introduced now in Parliament.

“It will be interesting to see if MPs from Sabah and Sarawak will support it as this Act will recognise Sabah and Sarawak’s special rights,” he said at a press conference to announce the dissolution of Sabah PKR’s KDM Task Force yesterday.

Sue them, PAS leader dares Rais

Source

SEREMBAN: An opposition leader today challenged Information, Communication and Culture Minister Rais Yatim to sue all those who implicated him in a rape case.

According to Negri Sembilan PAS commission Zulkefly Mohamed Omar, a mere denial was not sufficient.

“His denial is not sufficient, he should sue WikiLeaks, the bloggers and the Jakarta-based Migrant Care (organisation) to clear his name,” he told FMT.

Zulkefly, who led a delegation of PAS leaders to file a report against Rais, was responding to the latter’s claim that the allegation was a wicked lie concocted by the opposition.

The allegation came about following a purported WikiLeaks disclosure that former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had covered up the case.