PRESENT POINT POWER

Multimid's Passing... 7 March 2008

2008-09-22T00:28:00.001+08:00

Hi everyone,

I'm sadden to report here that my father who owns this blog has peacefully passed away on the 7th of March 2008. I am the eldest son of my father and if you knew him well, would really appreciate it if you can contact me by e-mail to tell me your relationship or knowledge of him: ebackbone@gmail.com

I'll do my best to update this place as often as possible. Thanks.

RM1 M Indelible 2008 Election Ink Scrapped; IGP: Confusion, Public Order & Security at Stake; AG: Amend Constitution 1st; Oppositions think Otherwise

2008-03-04T23:46:00.004+08:00

= == = == =Believe it or not, IGP & Rashid Genuine fears & the Reports,

With more details released it is now more clearer what are the implications if the Ink is used. Apparently sabotage plans are to be implemented BEFORE Election day to "ink" the rural folks to create the confusion.

The gist of the cancellation and the implication if the Ink is used.

Musa: “uncovered an attempt by some irresponsible people out to create a confusion during Saturday's elections by having voters dipped their fingers in indelible ink BEFORE the polling day”. Rashid is worried this attempt might sabotage the Polls on 8^th March and upset the result.; the activity occurring especially in the rural and interior areas, and the aim was to create confusion and suspicion on the status of the voters concerned.

Prevented from voting - Those with fingers marked can be regarded as having casted their votes when they go to the voting centres on polling day. There are also possibilities that those who have been cheated will not go out to vote as they are afraid of being deemed as having committed an offence, This would lead to a chaotic situation at the voting centres, which might be difficult to control as the candidates' agents and EC staff would get confused over the status of the voters= == == == =

UPDATE: March 05, 2008 00:28 AM

PM: EC'S Reversal Of Indelible Ink Decision To Prevent Voter Victimisation

KOTA BAHARU, March 5 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi says that the move by the Election Commission (EC) to call off its earlier decision to use indelible ink on the nails or fingers of voters on Saturday is to avoid registered voters from being victimised. The Prime Minister said it was felt that such a decision by the EC was necessary to prevent certain parties from thwarting the electoral process by preventing voters to exercise their democratic right to vote. "There is a possibility of certain actions by certain quarters that could give rise to chaos and there is a likelihood that those who want to vote could not do so as their fingers were already stained with ink. "As such, this sort of victimisation should not be allowed," he told reporters after meeting leaders of the Kelantan Umno Liaison Body Tuesday night.

Among those who attended were the head of the body, Datuk Seri Annuar Musa, and his deputy, Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin, as well as a number of Kelantan BN candidates for the general election. The Prime Minister said he had also read a report prepared by various authorities in connection with the possibility of some groups wanting to thwart or sabotage the general election, especially in Kelantan, by bringing in the indelible ink. Abdullah, who is also the Internal Security, said that in facing that possibility, it was therefore appropriate for the EC to protect its integrity. "What is more important is that the rights of the people who had registered to vote must be upheld. "That must be the guarantee from the EC to all citizens and voters on March 8," he said.

ABOVE & BELOW: PM Abdullah has ordered EC to meet Opposition parties to explain the situation

Abdullah denied that the EC's move was as a result of instructions from him or Barisan Nasional (BN)."This was not our (BN's) work. This was a decision by the EC," he said. Abdullah said the EC should now invite representatives from all political parties and explain to them in detail why it called off the use of indelible ink in the general election. "I have informed Datuk Radzi (BN Secretary-General Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad) to get detailed explanations from the EC," he said.

In Putrajaya today, EC Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman announced the cancellation of its earlier decision to use indelible ink on voters in the general election following advice from the legal point of view and public safety. Abdul Rashid said investigations following a report to the police had confirmed that irresponsible groups had bought the ink from abroad to persuade and bribe those who were not so sure about the use of the ink by smearing ink on their fingers even before they voted. "The EC is extremely disappointed over the decision. But we need to make a firm and final decision to ensure our obligation and responsibility towards a smooth election process as well as public safety," he said.

= == = ==Scrapped Indelible Ink

The reason is given that it is for "public security & order". And the “bogus fear” tactic reared its ugly head in the face of a possible defeat of many seats for the Government. This last minute reversal of the use of the indelible ink would ensure the hanky panky can go once again so that the Government might not collapse and "public security & order" can thus be maintained. The announcement was made in the presence of the IGP & the AG. The EC has opted for the cheaper RM 1 million option to purchase this ink instead of the more expensive RM30 million biometric system working off the MyKad. It showed great fanfare in announcing its use and stated the Elections now would be fairer.

The immediate reactions of the Opposition parties were united in their indignant over the sudden decision by the Election Commission to cancel the use of the indelible ink. It is a clear proof of EC-BN collusion.

= == = == == = == == =

March 04, 2008 23:27 PM EC Scraps Indelible Ink Plan

PUTRAJAYA, March 4 (Bernama) -- The Election Commission (EC) has scrapped the indelible ink plan for the March 8 general election following legal advice, its chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman said. He said that the decision made at a meeting today was also to ensure security and public order. "Police investigations reveal that there are irresponsible people who bought ink from foreign countries in order to persuade those not familiar with the procedure to have the ink applied (to a voter's forefinger or nail) before polling day," he told a press conference at the EC headquarters, here. "The EC is very disappointed. However, it has to make a firm and final decision to ensure a smooth polling process and for the sake of security and public order," he explained. Also present at the press conference were Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail and Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

Prior to this the EC had announced that it would use a special black ink from India to avoid cheating in the upcoming election. However, this would not apply to postal voters, who already had other declarations to determine the authenticity of their votes. The indelible ink plan, costing less than RM1 million, was to appease parties, who had pressured the EC to introduce certain procedures to prevent rigging in the voting process. Abdul Rashid said that the activity occurred especially in the rural and interior areas, and the aim was to create confusion and suspicion on the status of the voters concerned.

"They can be regarded as having casted their votes when they go to the voting centres on polling day. There are also possibilities that those who have been cheated will not go out to vote as they are afraid of being deemed as having committed an offence," he said. He said that if these voters presented themselves at the voting centres, it would result in a chaotic situation, which might be difficult to control as the candidates' agents and EC staff would get confused over the status of the voters. Abdul Rashid stressed that the voting process, security and public order could not be compromised. Abdul Rashid said that the plan was also scrapped because of the need to legislate a law allowing a voter whose nail or forefinger had been applied with the ink or one who refused, to be given the voting paper. He said that if the indelible ink was to be introduced it should not affect the rights of a voter to vote under the Federal Constitution unless he was no longer given this right under the law. Abdul Rashid said that the EC was not pressured by any political parties in making the decision and hoped that all the relevant parties would accept the decision.

"The EC wants to have this as part of the system, but it looks like circumstances do not permit, so be patient," he said. Abdul Rashid said despite allegations of cheating during a voting process, the EC has not received any evidence. "So, in order to convince these people, I have to meet their demand in a way that we are doing now, since other countries are doing, why not we," he said. Asked why the EC made the initial plan to use indelible ink, he said it was part of the commission's effort "because we were asked to do, whatever way we can in order to convince people that there is no cheating in the election." Commenting on other parties getting the ink, Abdul Rashid said: It is known to the whole world where to get this ink, even if we didn't tell them they would have known."

Meanwhile, Gani (ABOVE) when asked whether the indelible ink method could be used in future elections, said that the Federal Constitution needed to be amended first."The amendment can be made provided the government of the day agrees, and if parliament approves, and the Royal consent (is given), it will become law," he said.= == = = == = == = =

March 04, 2008 21:58 PM
Police Uncover Attempt To Create Confusion During Polls

PUTRAJAYA, March 4 (Bernama) -- Police have uncovered an attempt by some irresponsible people out to create a confusion during Saturday's elections by having voters dipped their fingers in indelible ink before the polling day. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan (ABOVE) said four individuals had lodged police reports alleging that there were people buying such ink from overseas and planning to persuade misinformed voters to use it before the polls. One report was received in Kelantan, one in Kedah and two in Perlis from Feb 16 to 21, and police had classified them as attempted cheating, he told reporters here today.

He said the allegation was found to be true but so far, no arrests had been made as the police were still identifying the people involved based on the statements recorded from by the complainants, aged between 30 and 50, who were traders and self-employed. Asked whether the complainants were from political parties, he said: "I don't know but they are locals." When asked how soon the case was expected to be solved, he said: "I am trying to get all the assistance on this. "We have interviewed the individuals. We want to know where they obtain the information." He said police were also trying to ascertain where the ink came from.

= = = == Statement from PKR
Dr Syed Husin Ali, Deputy President of Parti KeADILan Rakyat, issued this statement :

Withdrawal of use of Indelible Ink
With the decision of the Elections Commission (EC) to cancel the use of indelible ink, there is no need for further proof that the EC is colluding with Barisan Nasional (BN) to allow cheating in the coming General Elections.

ABOVE: Abdul Rasid making the U-Turn announcement in the use of Indelible

Despite all assurances and false gestures, it is now clear the Tan Sri Rashid is content to conduct the 12th General Elections in an atmosphere completely bereft of integrity. Citing 'public order' and 'security' is also nonsensical reasoning that is perfectly consistent with the language of forces around the world who seek to supress democratic freedoms.
BERSIH, which represents not just political parties but a wide swathe of civil society, has campaigned tirelessly for indelible ink to be used to battle the scourge of phantom voters. Candidates have observed irregularities in postal voting, and revealed hundreds and thousands of false addresses, dead individuals and voters over 100 years old in the electoral roll. The EC has ignored BERSIH's demands to address these problems and now the third of BERSIH's core demands has gone unfulfilled.
At a moment where the eyes of the entire world are upon us, the EC has now conclusively and irrevocably shown that any overtures towards reform that it had made previously were in bad faith, and that in decisive moments, the EC will yield to every demand of its political masters.
KeADILan notes one positive outcome of this development however. BN intelligence must clearly be showing a swing towards the Opposition, thus forcing them to resort once again to phantom voters and other forms of cheating to minimize the electoral losses they must clearly be anticipating. BN is clearly taking no chances. We are encouraged by this trend and call upon all Opposition sympathisers to strenghten their resolve and their efforts as we enter the final stretch of our campaign for a better Malaysia.

Dr. Syed Husin Ali; KeADILan Deputy President

= = == == =, STAR has a more detailed explanation
Tuesday March 4, 2008; MYT 5:55:31 PM; STAR

EC cancels use of indelible ink; By RAPHAEL WONG

PUTRAJAYA: The Election Commission has cancelled the use of indelible ink in polling this Saturday, citing public order and security reasons. Its chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman said following a meeting held Tuesday, the EC was obliged to make a firm and final decision to ensure the smooth conduct of the 12th general election. He said provisions to the law needed if the ink was to be used still could not affect the constitutional right of a voter to cast his vote, even a person whose fingernail had been marked with indelible ink or one who refuses to have his or her fingernail marked this way. "From a practical point of view, the issuance of a ballot paper to such a voter would render the EC's proposal meaningless and will not bring about a positive result, whilst having the potential to create misunderstanding as well as altercations and arguments at polling stations," he said.

The Federal Constitution gives you the right to vote, and a black mark on your fingernail should not bar you from exercising this right, he said.Abdul Rashid said there were also reports made to the police confirming that certain irresponsible quarters had purchased indelible ink from abroad with the intention of creating confusion and suspicion as to the status of voters. "The EC views these issues seriously as the election process and public order and security cannot be compromised," he said.

The use of indelible ink was first proposed last June to safeguard against multiple or phantom voting. Abdul Rashid then said that the system would be subject to amendments to the Election (Conduct of Election) Regulation 1981.He said indelible ink had been chosen over other measures, such as a biometric system working off the MyKad (chip-based identity card carried by all Malaysians above the age of 12) because such such smartcard readers would have cost about RM60,000 each, and every voting stream would have to be equipped with one. Using such a system would have cost in excess of RM30mil. The commission bought about 47,000 bottles of the indelible ink, manufactured in India, for RM2mil.

= == = == ==March 04, 2008 17:10 PM

EC Scraps Indelible Ink PlanPUTRAJAYA, March 4 (Bernama) -- The Election Commission Tuesday cancelled plan to use indelible ink in the upcoming general election.

= == = ==Watch the Video Clip - The Fear, the Confusion and the Constitution Amendment

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being compiled & edited and loading later

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MORE PICS - Police & Army “Postal Doubles” detected in issuance of postal Ballots; Postal Voting on but No secrecy; Ballot No can be traced to Voters

2008-03-04T07:17:00.009+08:00

Postal Voting For Armed Forces Personnel Begins

KUALA LUMPUR, March 5 (Bernama) -- Postal voting for members of the armed forces began Wednesday to enable the forces' 111,591 registered voters to exercise their rights. Defence Forces Chief Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Zainal was the earliest to cast his vote at Wisma Pertahanan at Jalan Padang Tembak here. Abdul Aziz and wife, Puan Sri Rositah Md Nawi, arrived at 9am and cast their votes for the Setiawangsa parliamentary constituency. Others who also cast their postal votes were Air Force chief Tan Sri Azizan Arifin, Army chief Tan Sri Muhammad Ismail Jamaluddin and Navy chief Tan Sri Ramlan Mohamed Ali. The armed forces' election coordinating officer for Setiawangsa, Lt Col Hamdan Yaccob said the two-day postal voting would also take place in camps nationwide while those stationed obroad would be voting in their respective deployments. "At the Defence Ministry alone, there are 12,647 registered voters," he said.
The ballot papers would be handed over to the Election Commission on Friday. He said a total of 24,091 spouses of armed forces personnel were also eligible to cast postal votes in this election. The number of postal voters from the armed forces had increased by 15 per cent from the last general election in 2004, he added. Meanwhile Abdul Aziz said the voting process went on smootly. He hoped that all registered voters in the forces would exercise their rights. "Even though there is no law to make it compulsory for them to cast postal votes, it's their responsibilities to do so."= == = = == = == = ==

March 04, 2008 21:58 PM
Police Uncover Attempt To Create Confusion During Polls

= == = ==Scrapped Indelible Ink

The reason is given that it is for "public security & order". And the “bogus fear” tactic reared its ugly head in the face of a possible defeat of many seats for the Government. This last minute reversal of the use of the indelible ink would ensure the hanky panky can go once again so that the Government might not collapse and "public security & order" can thus be maintained. The announcement was made in the presence of the IGP & the AG. The EC has opted for the cheaper RM 2 million option to purchase this ink instead of the more expensive RM30 million biometric system working off the MyKad. It showed great fanfare in announcing its use and stated the Elections now would be fairer.

= = = == Statement from PKR
Dr Syed Husin Ali, Deputy President of Parti KeADILan Rakyat, issued this statement :

ABOVE: Abdul Rasid making the U-Turn announcement in the use of Indelible Ink: BELOW: The Bogus fear tactic is used

Dr. Syed Husin Ali; KeADILan Deputy President

= = == == =, STAR has a more detailed explanation
Tuesday March 4, 2008; MYT 5:55:31 PM; STAR

EC cancels use of indelible ink; By RAPHAEL WONG

= == = == ==

March 04, 2008 17:10 PM
EC Scraps Indelible Ink PlanPUTRAJAYA, March 4 (Bernama) -- The Election Commission Tuesday cancelled plan to use indelible ink in the upcoming general election.

= == = = =Go H E R E New updates in new Post On

RM1 M Indelible 2008 Election Ink Scrapped; IGP: Confusion, Public Order & Security at Stake; AG: Amend Constitution First; Oppositions think Otherwise

== == = == == = = =Original post below

In Peninsula Malaysia, more than 6 postal cheats were exposed by PKR postal agents in Setiawanga, Kuala Lumpur with names & Identity numbers and over in East Malaysia, Sarawak the DAP assemblyman Wong Hon Leong, his wife and his election agents must be given credit in exposing the irregularities in the electoral roll in the Postal Voters during the issuance of the postal ballots to the army & police in Sarawak, From morning till 4pm they worked without break to detect manually 13 duplicate voters (given two sets of ballot postal papers) whereas the EC headquarters in Kuching (using Computers) can only detect 10 such voters. More are said to be found in the electoral roll in the Computers The SUPP & PKR representatives were invited but had no time and stayed for a short while and left. This expose would be embarrassing to EC chairman Abdul Rashid (BELOW) who had declared on Nov 20 2007

“I will resign; the Panel will also resign I think, they have to follow me. Cannot go onto the streets shouting slogans and so on, go to the kampong after kampong “ tipu orang” Yes you cannot prove but not outside but in Court. If the Judge said: 'Oh there is rigging here and Election Commission is responsible', I will resign”
Check details on Previous Post H E R E

Of course the EC chairman would not resign and dismissed these as small mistakes made by the data entry staff and there is no intention of cheating or rigging an election. The response from the EC Secretary is appalling in the face of concrete evidence.

"They can make all kinds of allegations. Everyone can only have one ballot paper. If they have problems, they can check with the respective returning officers."

What can the returning officer do? Just cancel the” extra ballot paper”. But there might be other daring efforts coming like parachuting down hundreds of “postal votes” during a recount of a close fight. But who will be able to pinpoint such a deliberate cheating and provide evidence of doing so during a state of confusion. Then again if there is a will, there must be a way of doing it as Postal Votes constitutes 26% of the total Electrol Roll

= = == == == = == == =an Exercise in Transparency for postal voting - which can be traced
March 03, 2008 23:07 PM
IGP Among Earliest To Cast Postal Vote Today

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan is among the earliest policemen to cast postal votes for the March 8 general election. He casts his postal vote at the voting hall of the officers' mess in the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman

ABOVE & BELOW: The IGP - Police Chief leading the pack in a great show of Postal balloting

KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 (Bernama) -- Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan was today among the earliest policemen to cast postal votes for the March 8 general election. Arriving at 10.15am, he headed straight to the verification counter before casting his postal vote at the voting hall of the officers' mess in the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman. Musa is among 83,794 officers and men of the Royal Malaysian Police who are eligible to cast postal votes for two days, beginning at 8am today. Among senior police officers who also cast postal votes were Internal Security and Public Order director Datuk Hussain Ismail and Management director Datuk Abdul Razak Bokhari. The voting hall was open at 8am, to enable 4,327 policemen to cast their postal votes. Musa said policemen stationed in the country could cast postal votes at stipulated centres like state police contingents or at district police headquarters. "Those stationed overseas as part of the United Nations peacekeeping forces like in Timor Leste, could cast their postal votes at the Malaysian high commission," he told reporters after he had cast his vote. Meanwhile, Musa said that over the past eight days of campaigning, the police began investigating 178 reports on minor fights or scuffles, and those linked to election posters.

ABOVE: Great show of Secrecy in voting (Mar 03 08) and BELOW: the Postal Sachets (which can parachute last minute into a recounting center as "delayed or lost in transit")

In KUCHING, police have given an assurance that security would be tight, especially in areas which have been identified as "hot", during the March 8 general election. Declining to name them, Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Datuk Ismail Omar said there were only two or three such areas. "We can overcome these (two or three "hot" areas)," he told reporters after attending a briefing on Sarawak police preparations for the general election at the state police contingent today. Also present at the briefing was Sarawak Police Commissioner DCP Mohmad Salleh.On allegations that gangsters were making their presence felt duringcampaigning, Ismail urged the public to lodge police reports.

ABOVE & BELOW: The handling of the Postal Ballot Papers are exclusively by the Police & Army and anything goes in case of contingency plans

= == = == == = from Sarawak , a detailed DAP personal account from

Cheating in Postal Votes

Today, at the Resident’s Office, the Election Commission (EC) officers in Sibu issued postal votes to the police and army personnel, and in the course of supervising the issuance, we caught 13 postal voters who were entitled to vote twice, for their names were registered twice on the electoral roll. They were to be given 2 ballot papers each. But the story did not end here. We asked the EC officers to verify the duplicated voters by a computer. It had none. All the ballot papers for more than 2600 postal voters in the police and army were contained in the envelopes and placed on the table. My election agent and workers had to use naked eyes to pick up the duplicity! Credit to the EC workers in Sibu, they were very patient watching us do the checking, but is that the way to run an election?

ABOVE: The 13 "doubles" were just marked "Batal" - Canceled, BELOW: Wong overseeing his hardworking wife

From the morning till about 4p.m., my workers forgot their lunches and ploughed through the piles and piles of envelopes, looking for duplicated voters. My workers were not provided with lunch by the EC. The work to check for duplicity was supposed to be done by the EC as we were not supposed to even touch those envelopes. But we were told to do it. The EC officers just watched. In the course of doing so, Robert Lau’s son and his agent also came to the Resident’s Office. The agent checked and handled the envelopes also. After about 30 minutes they left. The PKR candidate Lim Chin Chuang also came. He took a look, and left. They all knew that with DAP going through the chores, things must be in good hands. We found 13 duplicate voters. But we thought that a computer check would have been faster and better. Just when we had done all that we could with our eyes, the EC HQ in Kuching faxed a list to the Returning Officer showing that in Sibu Parliamentary constituency, there were 10 duplicate voters. Why could not the EC expunge these duplicate voters?

ABOVE & BELOW: The DAP assemblyman closed scrutiny of the Postal Ballot papers issued. More is said to be found in the Computer database

Why had the EC to wait until they were caught with their pants down? Why could our naked eyes pick 13 yet the EC’s computer could only 10? The EC had to bluff even in the last minute, despite having been caught red handed. All the 13 envelopes containing duplicate voters were rejected. Of course, they could still vote with the remaining ballot. Such is the type of democracy in our country. Some are entitled to vote twice. The EC is caught sleeping, and even at the point where they were caught red handed, they were cheating us to say that the list was only 10. During the ceramah in the evening,

ABOVE & BELOW: Details of Names & Addresses you can check with SPR

I checked the list of postal voters generated by our own computer. There were more duplicate voters than 13. As my workers worked through the piles and piles of envelopes, the police officer in charge of the postal voting became very agitated. He accused me of delaying the process. He told me that his boss had already instructed the police to vote at 1:00 p.m. till 5 p.m. I asked him whether they must vote during those hours despite the fact that we had caught irregularity in the electoral roll. He said “yes”, without blinking an eye. I would never bulge to this sort of cheating in the electoral roll. The police should not endorse, knowing fully well that we had caught the duplicate voters both in the police force and the army. Instead of helping to ensure a cleaner voting system, the police inspector was visibly upset. He accused me that it was because of what we were doing that the police could not vote today. So what? Just because you are the police? Why the rush? You guys can vote until 5p.m. on 8th March, 2008. Why do you have to rush?
ABOVE & BELOW: Details of Names & Addresses you can check with SPR

The Major from the army camp also insisted to bring home the postal votes to his camps today. But after my explanation, he agreed that it could be postponed. He was clearly a nicer man than the police officer in charge. To set the record straight, the police would vote on 4th March and the arm forces personnel would vote on 6th March, said the EC. So, why the rush? Beware! There are cheats in the electoral rolls for postal voting. Some voters registered twice under slightly different names. Registering their names using “Ak” and also “Anak”, or “B” and “Bin” makes them him entitled to 2 votes. Using the police number or Tenetra number to register, then also using their IC to register will also entitle them to 2 votes. Who has allowed this? The EC.1/3/2008
= == = == = == = == == = == ==

Names of possible phantom voters released
By Jeremy Au Yong. THE STRAITS TIMES, Mar 03 08

BERSIH, a non-governmental group pushing for electoral reforms, yesterday released a list of eight names and IC numbers of people they say could end up voting twice in Saturday's polls. The group has accused the Election Commission (EC) of unfair practices in the handling of postal votes from military and police personnel. Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) information chief Tian Chua, speaking on behalf of the coalition of opposition parties and NGOs, reiterated Bersih's demand for postal votes to be abolished. He said polling agents for PKR's candidate in Setiawangsa, Kuala Lumpur, had produced the names and IC numbers of six people who are said to have been given two postal ballots each. He said it could mean these six could each vote twice in the constituency, where postal votes already account for 26 per cent of the electorate.

The other two names on the list have come from Bersih official Faisal Mustaffa, who produced two printouts of searches from the EC website showing people with identical names and birth years, but voting in different districts with different IC numbers. One used a civilian IC, the other a military one. Bersih also noted that the ballot number of the postal vote could be traced to a form bearing the voter's name, making it easy to determine who the police or military officer voted for. Separately, opposition Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) claims it has discovered irregularities in the electorate roll involving the use of military IC numbers. While civilians have an IC number that is just a series of 12 digits, the IC numbers of soldiers start with the letter 'T'.
PAS vice-president Husam Musa told reporters yesterday that the new tactic was to register an extra voter by just dropping the letter 'T'. Postal votes and phantom voters have long been a sticking point for the opposition. The ruling Barisan Nasional coalition has said such accusations are just excuses for losing as the matter is not brought up when the opposing party wins.
= == = = = == = == == ===
Postal vote irregularities continue to bug process

Monday, 03 March 2008, theSUN
PETALING JAYA (March 2, 2008): Allegations of irregularities in the electoral process continue to haunt the 12th general election this Saturday (March 8).
Election watchdog Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) pointed out that there were alleged breach of anonymity and secrecy, open opportunities for proxy voting and multiple registration in the observation of the issuance of postal ballots in the Setiawangsa parliamentary seat where postal voters form 26% of the electorate. In a press conference today,

Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) information chief Tian Chua, who is a Bersih member, said one of the flaws found was the “Postal Voters Kit” which include Form 2 “Identity Declaration Form” which contains the name of the military or police personnel and the ballot serial number of the ballot paper. “As Form 2 will be put in the envelopes together with the ballot papers to be returned for counting, it is a real concern on the part of the military and police voters that their choices will be known and that they may face retribution if they vote opposition,” he said. Election Commission (EC) secretary Datuk Kamaruzaman Mohd Noor when contacted explained that the number on the counterfoil was the ballot number and not the serial number in the electoral list. "It's just like a cheque book which has numbers on both sides. We stopped taking down the serial number on the ballot paper since the 2006 Sarawak state election," he said.

ABOVE & BELOW: another irregularity detected: Same Identity No but belongs to a Chinese & Indian

On the allegation of multiple registration, he said: "They can make all kinds of allegations. Everyone can only have one ballot paper. If they have problems, they can check with the respective returning officers." Chua said since military and police personnel need not cast their ballots at the normal polling stations on Saturday, "this creates the possibility for a third party to mark the ballot paper on their behalf". "Party agents have also found that at least six voters in Setiawangsa have been issued with two ballot papers," he said. On Saturday, the postal balloting for the army and police personnel in the Sibu parliamentary seat had to be postponed due to the discovery of a double registration of postal voters in the electoral roll. Setiawangsa PKR candidate Ibrahim Yaacob said he would file a formal protest to the EC later today.
He lamented that the party agent who was observing the issuance of the postal votes was not given the electoral roll in order to double check the names.
In the 2004 general election, Fedaral Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique won the seat with a majority of 19,669 votes against PAS’ Abdul Rashid Hassan Basri. The constituency comprises 52.4% Malays, 36.2% Chinese and 10.1% Indians. – theSun
= == == = == =
Malaysian oppn accuse govt of postal vote fraud

Monday, 03 March 2008
Malaysia's former deputy prime minister and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim accused the government of perpetuating postal vote fraud as citizens prepare to cast their ballots on March 8. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition government, which has led the country since indepen-dence, is expected to win the poll but lose more seats amid protests and rising prices. However, reports of voting irregularities have cast doubt on whether the upcoming polls will be fair. "(We) are profoundly disappointed, though not surprised, by the latest evidence of postal voting fraud likely to be perpetuated during the upcoming elections," Mr Anwar told AFP.
"The untransparent process of postal votes will result in seats won by opposition candidates being stolen by the ruling coalition in a blatantly fraudulent manner," he added. Postal voting is presently restricted to military troops, policemen and teachers who are based far away from their constituencies. Mr Anwar's comments come as his party colleague Ibrahim Yaacob, who is a candidate for a parliamentary seat in the capital, gave reporters the names of postal voters they say were issued with two ballot sheets. "I was there when the Election Commission was packing voter kits for postal votes on Saturday and we spotted at least six people with the same identification card number having two ballots each," Mr Yaacob said. "This is voting fraud as each postal voter should have only one vote," he added. -AFP

PM Abdullah’s PAS Opponent accused of Asking Public Donation; Police report lodged by UMNO Youth; What about on-line Donations by PAS & Bloggers?

2008-03-03T14:02:00.002+08:00

Why is UMNO Youth in Kepala Batas (PM Abdullah constituency) harassing the PAS candidate for allegedly “asking for Public donation through leaflets and stating that it is an offence under the Election act”? Has it GOT nothing better to do? Too Free no need to campaign? Even the PAS party is doing it on-line and so are many bloggers. (see article from NST Below) Is there any difference asking through leaflets and asking on-line? Both are also appealing to the public. Why not make more POLICE REPORTS and waste police resources?
Opposition parties should likewise make reports and determine how BN can spend so much on this GE. How MCA got its money? Through the PKFZ slush funds maintained by the runaway Chan K C?.

In one BN rally in Prai saw some 1,000 voters feted with an eight-course dinner and entertained by a getai or stage singer. "I don't think we have the money to do such a thing. And we never have singers like that!" said DAP's Liew Chin Tong. One popular way has been to turn crooners for the night to entertain the audience. The only difference, at DAP rallies, such as the one staged by incumbent Bukit Mertajam representative Chong Eng, plastic containers were passed around as he sang to raise funds to support the party.

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ABOVE The police report made at the Kepala Patas Police Station BELOW

UMNO Youth has lodged a police report against, PAS candidate for Kepala Pas Subri Mat Arshd (ABOVE Left with Abdullah) over the distribution of leaflets asking for public donation to support his election campaign Kepala Patas Vice youth Chief Vice Datuk Reezal Merican (BELOW) said asking for donation is against the Election act and wanted the Police and Election Commission to investigate the matter.

The activities of the PAS candidate in Kepala Patas is considered no small matter. This is asking the public to stand up for them. For transparency why print out his personal account. Rizal Merican claimed the address printed on leaflet was the same as that on the PAS candidate’s nomination paper. The leaflets were distributed in Kepala Patas.

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ELECTION 2008: Allegations of appeal for donations by opposition candidate

By : Adie Suri Zulkefli
KEPALA BATAS: The Kepala Batas Umno division Youth wing yesterday lodged a police report claiming that an opposition candidate contesting in the general election had been going round asking for donation from the public.

Its vice-chairman Datuk Reezal Merican Naina Merican, 36, said they had received a copy of the appeal letter which, he claimed, were being distributed at several locations in Penaga and Bertam here. He said the letter contained the name of the candidate, address, phone number and also the individual's account number. "We received a copy of the letter which was forwarded by a local villager to us at the Umno division building here. "The villager said copies were being distributed three days ago," he told a Press conference yesterday.
He urged the Election Commission and the police to investigate the report to ascertain whether the candidate was behind the donation appeal. Seberang Prai Utara police chief Assistant Commissioner Wan Abdullah Tuanku Said confirmed a report had been lodged and an investigation was underway.
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ELECTION 2008: Opposition using Internet to raise funds

Monday, 03 March 2008
Badrul Hisham Shaharin has raised RM21,000 from supporters through his blog

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition candidates are now using the Internet to solicit funds for their election campaigns. While donation boxes are still de rigueur at fund-raising events, DAP's Tony Pua said e-donation was a new way for the party to raise funds. "Previously, we obtained funds through conventional means such as ceramah and dinners. "The Internet is now another important channel which has helped us tremendously to get more funds," said the Petaling Jaya Utara parliamentary candidate. Through their joint website, he said, DAP's Petaling Jaya candidates had collected more than RM10,000 via credit card and online transfers, while another RM20,000 was banked into their Maybank2U account.

Their target is to raise 50 per cent of the amount that election candidates are legally permitted to spend. The law stipulates that parliamentary and state candidates may spend up to RM200,000 and RM100,000 respectively. "From the look of things, we are not likely to reach our target but we are happy with the amount collected so far." He added that conventional fund-raising methods were still yielding better results. They have managed to collect some RM45,000 from over five nights of ceramah.

ABOVE & BELOW: Dadarul Hisham contesting Rembau seat against SIL

Another candidate embracing this new fund-raising method is newcomer Badrul Hisham Shaharin, a candidate from Parti Keadilan Rakyat. He said online fund-raising will enable those from outstation and overseas to show their support for him in his maiden attempt. He is taking on Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin for the Rembau parliamentary seat.

"I cannot solicit funds via ceramah as most of the Rembau constituents are not well-to-do." He has collected RM21,000 so far through his blog -- far below his expenses of RM40,000 to date. Even conservative Pas has jumped on the online fund-raising bandwagon. Pas treasurer Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli said this was the first time the party was soliciting funds online. "It is not as successful as we would have liked, but at least we are trying," he said. - NST

= == = Jeff OOi by far got the highest Donation and not reported by NST because of its ongoing suit between the two, the funds would have reached RM150,00 by now

Malaysiakini’s Rumour- Teng Chang Yeow as Chief Minister – Denied by Koh Tsu Koon who warned of bets on Batu Kawan; Penang DAP & Gerakan Slogan War

2008-03-02T04:31:00.017+08:00

UPDATE: 03 Mar 08

ABOVE: The largest DAP rocket (9m high, fabricated by supports from steel drums took 3 days to built)unveiled by DAP Sec General inMak Maiddin, Butterworth and BELOW: Guan Eng at the ceremony

Malaysiakini’s Rumour- Teng Chang Yeow as Chief Minister – Denied by Koh Tsu Koon who warned of bets on Batu Kawan; Penang DAP & Gerakan Slogan War; Keng Yaik wrooried DAP-PKR Pact in Penang

ABOVE & BELOW: Malaysiakini unreliable news

Malaysiakini relying on unreliable sources came out with the bold news (even with an update at 9.35pm) that “Outsider Teng Chang Yeow will be named as the next Penang chief minister in an announcement to be made soon” How can an alternate paper be privy to such news? So it has to depend on other sources. And the Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon dismissed it as only a rumour (see report below).

Meanwhile, Dr Koh is really worried as they seems to be heavy bets he would lose th Batu Kawan seat to Prof Ramasamy. If the bets swell he would not stand a chance. He reminded the voters not to be influnced and the Police is coming in to monitor the situation.
And the campaign is intensifying in Penang with changing Chinese slogan appearing by DAP & Gerakan. (Watch the Video Clip)

= == == = == == = == == ==UPDATE:

Opposition wants outgoing Chief Minister to explain investment scandal

Monday, 03 March 2008;
Channel News Asia with additional reporting by Jessinta Tan
OPPOSITION parties in Penang are united in questioning the economic status of the island and want the outgoing Chief Minister to explain an investment announced by a multi-national company (MNC) - just after the Feb 24 Nomina-tion Day. They claim that the contract was aimed at bolstering the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition's chances at the March 8 polls and not at helping the state's economy, which they said, is headed south. Blogger and Democratic Action Party (DAP) candidate Jeff Ooi described the deal as "scandalous".

The opposition parties claim that they had seen a letter, which Chief Minister Koh Tsu Koon had allegedly written to the Malaysian Premier last December, urging him to give his go-ahead for the contract, boosting the BN's fortunes at the hustings. They went on to suggest that Dr Koh feared that Penang would lose almost 10,000 jobs, if the contract was not awarded. Said Mr Zahrain Mohammed Hashim, the Parti Keadilan Rakyat candidate for Penang: "We have lost that competitive niche." But Dr Koh insists that the island's economy is sound.
Candidates from both the opposition and BN have been going all out to woo voters. While the opposition rallies are all about fiery speeches and anecdotes, the BN's, by contrast are far more elaborate.

One BN rally in Prai saw some 1,000 voters feted with an eight-course dinner and entertained by a getai or stage singer. "I don't think we have the money to do such a thing. And we never have singers like that!" said DAP's Liew Chin Tong. One popular way has been to turn crooners for the night to entertain the audience. The only difference, at DAP rallies, such as the one staged by incumbent Bukit Mertajam representative Chong Eng, plastic containers were passed around as he sang to raise funds to support the party.
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PENANG, NST Report; 2008/03/02
ELECTION 2008: Fight for Chinese vote at fever pitch

THE sharpest battle lines of the 2008 general election are being drawn in the Chinese-majority seats of the country’s urban regions, particularly those contested by Gerakan and MCA. Many seats once regarded as safe bets for the Barisan Nasional are now being termed as ‘hot’ as the opposition has worked up a froth of anti-government discontent.

In Penang, many of what were previously regarded as safe seats for Barisan Nasional are now being termed as "hot", particularly those contested by Gerakan and MCA. Gerakan is said to be up against a fierce DAP onslaught in at least four of the 13 state seats it is contesting while half of MCA's 10 state seats and both the seats allocated to MIC are under threat. The contest for the Chinese vote is perhaps most intense in Penang, where the Barisan Nasional components, Gerakan and MCA, are pitted against a concentrated opposition onslaught led by DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.

Concerns over rising prices and the state of the economy, which are fast shaping up into the election's pivotal issue for the urban masses, have fused with a perceived erosion of minority rights into a desire to "punish BN in the March 8 polls". Those words of Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon, whose succession has added fuel to the opposition's fire, were compounded by the observation that the Chinese in the island state had become harder to read.

"All I know is that the unhappy voters want to punish the BN," he said. Although, a BN whitewash is highly unlikely, with Umno contesting 15 of the state's 40 seats, an unusually strong opposition showing could upset the state's carefully weighted racial balance in government. Should the opposition severely undercut the combined number of MCA and Gerakan elected representatives, the state would no longer remain in Chinese hands.
= == == = == == = = =Sunday March 2, 2008

CM assessing situation before naming his successor

By K. SUTHAKAR, STAR

ABOVE: Dr Koh told newsmen he had at the same time informed two other potential candidate rto be psychologically prepared, see video clip for details

PENANG: No final decision has been made on who will succeed Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon as chief minister. “We have not made any final decision yet on this appointment. We are delaying the announcement as we want everybody’s campaign to be in line. “We are also assessing the situation and respond from the public,” he told reporters after speaking at a ceramah in Taman Sentul Jaya in Juru. Dr Koh, who is also Gerakan acting president, said the announcement could be made before or after the polls. “The media has been speculating about every possible candidates for this post. They even mentioned several possible candidates, hoping one of them to be chosen.”

When asked if Teng Chang Yeow (ABOVE, said he was reading the reports from the papers) or Dr Teng Hock Nam, who is contesting the Pulau Tikus state seat, would be picked for the CM post, Dr Koh said “Have I said anything before about the candidates?” “The media has been doing all kinds of reports and speculation based on sources and you can continue to do so,” he said. Earlier, a panellist at a forum on election analysis said Penangites had the right to know who their next chief minister would be because the successor would have very big shoes to fill.

Historian Dr Neil Khor said that “back in the heyday, Penangites supported the Government as long as the Government developed Penang but now the central issue is providing a better quality of life. “This is why they should know who the candidate is who has been chosen to lead Penang so they will know if they are supporting the right person,” he told a forum entitled Election Outlook and Analysis for Penang at the Penang International Sports Arena (Pisa) in conjunction with the Star Education Fair
= == = == == =March 02, 2008 00:57 AM

Koh Dismisses Rumour Chang Yeow New Penang Chief Minister

BUKIT MERTAJAM, March 2 (Bernama) -- Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon tonight dismissed a rumour that State Tourism Development and Environment Committee chairman Teng Chang Yeow will succeed him as the chief minister. Koh, who is Gerakan acting president, also dismissed front-page reports in several vernacular evening newspapers that he would call a news conference today to announce his support for Teng, one of three candidates said to have been shortlisted as the new Penang chief minister.

ABOVE: Datuk Teng said he was unaware of newspaper report about Teng Chang Yeow and he read them in the papers. He however confirmed, he was informed last week to be prepare. See Video clip for details

The two others are said to be Gerakan vice-president Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan and Parliamentary Secretary to the Health Ministry Datuk Lee Kah Choon. Approached after a dinner with the people in Taman Sentul Jaya in Juru here, Koh said now was the time for all party members to focus on the March 8 general election campaign to ensure that the Barisan Nasional (BN) garnered more votes instead of speculating on who the next chief minister would be. Asked when he would announce the name of his successor, Koh said "maybe before or after the general election". "Let the people assess the potential candidates (in terms of votes) on who should be the next chief minister," he said.

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March 02, 2008 02:24 AM
Don't Gamble On Election Results - Police

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 (Bernama) -- The police said Saturday that stern action would be taken against those found gambling on the upcoming election results. Bukit Aman CID director Datuk Mohd Bakri Zinin said the police would monitor the polls to ensure it would run smoothly and free of any gambling elements. "There are no reports of people betting on the election results so far. Let it remain that way," he told Bernama, adding that the police would take actions on those involved, including the masterminds. "We will certainly track the gambling syndicate mastermind," he said. He was asked to comment on a statement by Gerakan acting president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon who reminded the voters not to be influenced by those who bet on the election results as this was tantamount to disrupting the election process

= == == = == 2008/03/01, NST

Koh still tight-lipped

GEORGE TOWN: Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon continues to keep his cards close to his chest on the issue of his succession plan for Penang. “Just because the DAP is asking, do you think I should dance to their tune?” he asked. The chief minister was asked to comment on repeated requests from the DAP to end the speculation on his candidate of choice. When pressed further, Koh said: “Have the voters been asking?” but before any response could be given to him, he said: “We will let them know if it is necessary to answer them on that issue.”

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DAP Lim Guan Eng & Police Report against him

= == = == == == = == = == = Slogans War in Penang

MORE pics coming

= = == = Gerakan Adviser (Keng Yaik) - real worried DAP PKR Pact

Sunday March 2, 2008

Keng Yaik: DAP playing with fire by teaming up with PKR

TELUK INTAN: The DAP is playing with fire by teaming up with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), said Gerakan adviser Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik(ABOVE). “As far as the non-Malay community is concerned, teaming up with the PKR and (PKR adviser) Anwar is worse than teaming up with PAS,” Dr Lim said.

ABOVE: The declaration between DAP-PKR has been sealed in KL and there is no reason why it is not on in Penang to defeat a common enemy, see video Clip with this Video Declaration inserted in Slow MOtion (20% speed)

He said the DAP now wanted to work with Anwar as if he was “god-send” to save Malaysia. Dr Lim said Anwar was a “chameleon” who changed colour depending on the type of audience he was facing. Relating his experience with Anwar Dr Lim said: “I was with him for five years as a member of the Cabinet committee on Education from 1987 to 1990 when Anwar was Education Minister and he gave us hell. “One day, I even asked him if he wanted to remove Chinese schools. I told him if that is what he wanted, he should say so,” he said on efforts taken at that time by the Chinese community to remove Section 21 of the Education Act, 1961, which gave powers to the Minister to close down schools and to change national type schools to national schools. “We argued for five years but he never moved,” Dr Lim said, adding that it was Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, then Education Minister, who repealed the section. Describing the opposition pact as a pact of convenience, Dr Lim said the DAP teamed up with PAS and they were slaughtered in the 1999 general election. “Now they are teaming up with PKR. This is a real mark of opportunism.

= == = == == == = Change of Tide in Penang?
2008/03/02
ELECTION 2008: What moves Penang's inscrutable voters?; By : Lee Keng Fatt; NST

GEORGE TOWN: Penang Chinese voters have a well-deserved reputation for being hard to predict. Just ask the MCA or Gerakan. Many formerly "safe" seats are now considered "hot", owing to general discontent among voters, in particular those from the middle class. At the moment, MCA's danger areas are the Sungai Puyu, Bagan Jermal, Paya Terubong and Air Puteh state seats and the Bukit Mertajam and Bagan parliamentary seats. Gerakan, meanwhile, is having problems in the Sungai Pinang, Batu Lanchang, Air Itam and Datuk Keramat state seats and the Tanjung and Batu Kawan parliamentary seats.
A veteran Gerakan politician, who preferred to remain anonymous, said there was an all-out war for the Chinese votes between MCA and Gerakan, on the BN side, and the DAP-led opposition, who are harping on the state's economic and security-related issues. "It is very clear that whoever, be it MCA or Gerakan, manages to convince the Chinese to vote for it, will gain," he said.Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, who is contesting the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat, has admitted that there are pockets of unhappiness in a few areas in the state. He said the loss of these seats might erode non-Malay representation in the state assembly. "We do not want to see a situation where the two seats allocated to MIC are lost to the opposition. This will mean an absence of Indian representation in the state executive council and state assembly," he said. Umno is contesting 15 state seats, Gerakan 13, MCA 10 and MIC 2 in the election.

"It is important for us to have balanced representation in government. If voters help us to preserve the balance, we can function very well as all groups will be almost proportionately represented," he said. Three-term Pengkalan Kota state assemblyman Lee Hack Teik knows it is going to be a tough fight in his constituency of 19,679 voters, of which 94.9 per cent are middle-class Chinese. "The Chinese will agree to support a candidate just to give him face. "But when the candidate turns away, they will do the opposite. That's Penang Chinese for you. "I know because I have been given such treatment before," said the traditional Chinese sinseh. Another three-term MCA candidate, Datuk Lim Gim Soon, said the party's success in defending the state seats was due to strong grassroots support. "We are with them all the time and know just what they want.

But it is different now. The opposition has been saying a lot of things to cloud the minds of the Chinese, so much so that they are in two minds about giving their votes to BN. "That is why we are working extra hard to regain the confidence of Chinese voters," said Lim, who will be defending his Komtar state constituency. State MCA secretary Datuk Lye Siew Weng said the party did not believe in sloganeering like the opposition but preferred to be service-oriented. "Our public complaints bureaus are very effective and the voters normally come to us when they need help," he said
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Watch Video Clip, Extracts Interview with Dr Koh, Datuk Teng & Teng Chang Yeow On CM appointment
plus DAP Lim Guan Eng falso police report
& Slogan War
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BACKGROUND Report:; Monday February 25, 2008; STAR
Tough battle ahead for Dr Koh

GERAKAN acting president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon has predicted a “tough and tight” fight against his opponent Dr P. Ramasamy of DAP for the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat. “The constituency is the most challenging one for Gerakan out of the three parliamentary seats which the party won in Penang in the last general election. “I appeal to Barisan Nasional candidates and supporters not to take for granted that we will surely win our seats,” he told newsmen after filing his nomination papers for the constituency at SM Teknik Pulau Pinang in Bukit Mertajam yesterday. Dr Koh, 59, who is Penang chief minister, is contesting in the elections for the seventh time since 1982 compared to Dr Ramasamy, 58, who is making his election debut.

ABOVE : Barisan Nasional garlanded candidates for Batu Kawan parliamentary district (from left) Huan Cheng Guan (Bukit Tambun), L. Krishnan (Perai), Dr Koh (Batu Kawan) and Ng Siew Lai (Bukit Tengah)

“As we are former academicians, I expect the contest to be conducted in a gentlemanly manner,” he said. Dr Koh served as a lecturer and deputy dean of the School of Education at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) from 1975 to 1982 while Dr Ramasamy served as a political scientist at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia for 25 years. Barisan candidate for the Perai state seat L. Krishnan, who is state MIC secretary, is facing a three-cornered fight against Dr Ramasamy and independent R. Ulaganathan. Ng Siew Lai of Barisan will contest against Ong Chin Wen of PKR for the Bukit Tengah state seat while Huan Cheng Guan of Barisan will face Law Choo Kiang of PKR for the Bukit Tambun state seat. Dr Ramasamy said he had an equal chance of winning against Dr Koh although he was a political novice. “There is no guarantee that he is going to win,” he said, adding he had better chances of winning in Perai.

Dr Ramasamy said he too hoped for a gentleman’s fight but was worried over Barisan misusing government machinery to secure support.

[…]

Mar 08 Election - Altantuya Murder Trial Postponed 17th Mar 08; Day 94–92 Expert – Alive, Naked Body Blasted? – 388 Fragments; GM end Calls evidence

2008-03-01T03:18:00.003+08:00

Mar 08 Election - Why Altantuya Murder Trial Postponed to17th Mar 08; Day 94–92 Expert – Alive, Naked Body Blasted? – 388 Fragments; Celcom GM end Calls Evidence

The politically sensitive trial was given a long postponement on Day 94 when the Judge adjourned it until 17^th March 2008 so as not to get in the way of the General election scheduled on Mar 08 2008. From the past few months it was obvious for most people watching the trial that it has been crawling at a very slow pace with court sitting mostly 3 times in a week and at every opportunity and excuse, long breaks were taken over festive holidays
ABOVE: The doctored picture was a feeble attempt to link DPM Najib with the Killing as Abdul Razak was then the political analyst to Najib who strongly denied during the Ijok by-election that he had met Altantuya.

“They raised issues not connected here. What connection has the Mongolian woman with the people Ijok? What connection has Altantuya with the people here? There is no connection at all even with me, but it has been made into an issue. The allegations are baseless"
"I don't have to sue him, but I have the option to sue him"

See previous post Details H E RE

If it had run its normal course, the verdict would have been out by now and either way, the opposition parties would have exploited it to the hilt to gain whatever political mileage and possibly it could severely affect the election outcome. Now who ordered this extraordinary and unusual postponement?

= = == == = == = == Watch the Video Clip 2.14 mins, Najib's Denial & Kuala Lumpur Declaration

== == == == == = == == =

plus plus

= == == = == == ==
So the Judiciary has taken the cue and is reading the message very well and has now given a more than two week break, whatever the excuse might be.
Due to the election coverage, most newspapers are not wasting their resources in stationing reporters for the trial and the MSM is relying on the diluted reports (with little details, read accounts on Day 94,93,92,91) coming out from the national news agency Bernama. This was most obvious on Day 90 of the trial when political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, the 3^rd accused had an emotional outbreak and showed his tantrum in court when he was whispered some “damaging information” by his father prior to beginning of the trial on that day. If not for the NST detailed account of Day 90, we would read only the white-washed account dished out by Bernama.

Also, since the nomination day, electronic media coverage of the Trial was also aborted.

= == = == == == = == == == = == = ==DAY 94

Altantuya Probably died from Blast and fragments recovered Not enough to form a Skeleton

February 27, 2008 18:37 PM

Altantuya Shaariibuu may have been alive when explosives were used to blow her up, the High Court heard yesterday. In revealing the post-mortem report, Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) forensics head Dr Mohd Shah Mahmood testified that the Mongolian died due to probable blast-related injuries, suggesting that she may have been alive. Testifying on day 94 of the hearing, Dr Shah said the conclusion was drawn after receiving radiology and dental reports on the remains and after consultations with experts. He said the use of the word "probable" meant that it was more than possible that Altantuya died because of the blast.

"The skull was not recovered, although there were fragments of it," he told Deputy Public Prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah during examination-in-chief. "Four bone samples were tested for explosive residue and six more for DNA. When we (together with forensic anthropologist Dr Nurliza Abdullah) pieced the remains together, the bones were not enough to form a complete human skeleton. Dr Shah, the trial's 70th witness, went to the crime scene between Puncak Alam and Puncak Perdana here, twice.

"There were white spots on her bones after it was X-rayed indicating that they may be explosives residue," he said. "The bones were sent to the Chemistry Department to be analysed. The remains were that of one individual." In his testimony on Wednesday, Dr Shah had said that Altantuya may have also been naked at the time of the incident, as no traces of fibre were found at the scene
"From my observation, the deceased was probably undressed when the injuries were inflicted," he testified. All the bone fragments were handed to him by investigating officer ASP Tonny Lunggan at the mortuary of the HKL forensics department.

Dr Shah said Lunggan gave him 34 packets of exhibits for analysis. He was testifying at the trial of Chief Insp Azilah Hadri, 32, and Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 37, charged with murdering Altantuya, 28, in Bukit Raja between 10pm on Oct 19 and 11am the following day. Political analyst Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda, 48, is charged with abetting them.
Hearing before Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin continues on March 17 08.(Monday)

= == = == == == = == ==
DAY 93
February 27, 2008 18:37 PM
Altantuya Blown Up Naked, Court Told

SHAH ALAM, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu whose remains were found in some bushes in November 2006 could have been naked

ABOVE & BELOW: Bits & pieces of clothings on th tree branches more than 2 weeks after the blast

when she was blown up at the scene, the High Court here heard today. Forensic consultant Dr Mohd Shah Mahmood said he drew this conclusion because no traces of fibre were found at the site in the bushes between Puncak Alam and Puncak Perdana here. "I went to the scene on Nov 7 and 9, 2006 to carry out investigations into the remains of a person found there. From my observation, the deceased was probably undressed when the injuries were inflicted," he said. Dr Mohd Shah who is Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) Forensic Department Head said that during the investigations, he found 322 human bone fragments at the scene.

Asked by deputy prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid (ABOVE) Tun Hamzah why he went to the scene twice, he said that after his first visit, he found that the bone fragments were not enough to form a complete human skeleton.
"I later suggested to the investigating officer, ASP Tonny Lunggan, to carry out a more thorough search," he said at the trial of Chief Insp Azilah Hadri, 32, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 37, charged with murdering Altantuya, 28, in Bukit Raja between 10pm on Oct 19 and 11am the following day. Political analyst Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda, 48, is charged with abetting them. Dr Mohd Shah, who is the 70th witness, said that after carrying out the examination for the second time on Nov 9, the bone fragments still could not form a complete human skeleton. He said he carried out the examination and pieced together the bone fragments together with forensic anthropologist Dr Nurliza Abdullah. All the bone fragments were handed to him by Lunggan at the mortuary of the Forensic Department, HKL. Dr Mohd Shah said Lunggan gave him 34 packets of exhibits for analysis which were later handed over to the Chemistry Department.
The trial before justice Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin continues tomorrow
= == = == =
DAY 92
Wednesday February 27, 2008
388 bone slivers found

SHAH ALAM: The High Court here yesterday was told that 388 human bone fragments were found at the site where Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuuu was said to have been blown up two years ago. Kuala Lumpur Hospital Forensic Department Head Dr Mohd Shah Mahmood, 48, said the fragments including those of the ribs, spine and neck were found in a clearing and shrubs on a hill. He said not many tissue pieces and hair were found probably because some had decayed. “When entering the shrubs, bone fragments were found on the ground and hanging from tree branches were mostly skin pieces and hair. In the clearing, bone fragments and tissue pieces were found on the ground,” he said.

He said two days were taken to search for evidence at the scene but he did not find any human flesh or blood. He said the first inspection was carried out on Nov 7, 2006 while the second two days later at his own request on the belief that more bone fragments would be found. Dr Mohd Shah said that after returning from the scene on Nov 7, 2006 about 5pm, he conducted tests on the bone fragments and tissue pieces to look for traces of explosives. He did not conduct any test the next day because he wanted to refer to Dr Nurliza Abdullah who was a forensic anthropologist. “I had to refer to Dr Nurliza to determine the age, gender, types of injury and so on and to get help from X-ray expert Dr Zaleha Abdul Manaf,” he said.

“In my opinion, a powerful explosive caused injury to the bone and turned it into small fragments which were scattered in the area,” Dr Mohd Shah said. Tun Abdul Majid: “What about the spine. It was intact. Can you explain?”
Dr Mohd Shah: “There were two possibilities. Firstly, it was bigger and heavier. It could not go far. Secondly, the deceased was lying on its back so the spine was the closest to the ground. The power of the explosive placed on the chest pressed the bone to the ground.”

The trial continues today. – Bernama

= == = == = =DAY 91
February 25, 2008 23:51 PM
Four Months Of Testimony On Azilah's Calls Finally Ends

SHAH ALAM, Feb 25 (Bernama) -- After almost four months the Mongolian

Altantuya murder trial in the High Court here centred on telephone transactions involving the first accused, C/Insp Azilah Hadri, the prosecution today ended it after Celcom (M) Bhd's fourth witness finished testifying. Nik Kamarudin Nik Ka, the company's general manager for its core operations network who was called to testify since Feb 18, cleared whatever confusion that arose from the testimony provided by three witnesses from Celcom during the earlier proceedings. Nik Kamarudin said that although the arrangement of the detailed call records of Azilah supplied by Celcom's earlier witnesses were not perfectly done, the data was complete without any additions or subtractions.
He said that as Celcom used two systems (2G and 3G) depending on the system used by the caller (Azilah's mobile phone used the 3G system), data consolidation had to be done before accurate inferences could be made.
The records provided by the earlier witnesses traced Azilah's movements based on the calls and SMS he made using his handphone on the day them Mongolian woman was murdered, and according to the data captured by the telco's transponders and exchanges, the accused was said to have been near the murder scene. However, as there were inconsistencies in the records,

Azilah's counsel J.Kuldeep (ABOVE) Kumar disputed the facts and contended that his client was in Wangsa Maju in Kuala Lumpur, miles away from from the murder scene, at the material time.
Nik Kamarudin, who was the prosecution's 64th witness, wrapped up the testimony (on the call records) when re-examined by Deputy Public

Prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah. Azilah, 32, and Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 37, are charged with murdering Altantuya, 28, between 10pm on Oct 19, 2006 and 1am the next day at an isolated location in Bukit Raja near here. Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda, 48, a political analyst, is charged with abetment. All three face the mandatory death sentence, if convicted.

Also today, six police photographers were called in by the prosecution to authenticate photographs of bone fragments, tufts of hair and explosives residue taken at the murder scene as well as of those taken around Abdul Razak's house. The hearing before Judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin continues tomorrow.

= == = == == ==DAY 90 - Abdul Razak Blew his stop, pleading innoncence
2008/02/21
Altantuya Murder Trial: Razak Baginda stuns court with outburst

©New Straits Times; by V. Anbalagan
SHAH ALAM: Just what triggered an outburst from political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda in court yesterday? This was the question on the minds of those present at the High Court for the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial. The drama started before proceedings began in the morning when Razak’s father, Datuk Abdullah Malim Baginda, whispered something to his son who was in the dock. Razak’s demeanour changed and he stood up and walked back to the holding cell as proceedings had not yet begun. He turned, faced his father angrily and shouted: “Shall I shout it out?”

His father pointed his finger at him and indicated no. Razak did not let up: “I’m innocent! I’m innocent,” he said loudly before going into the cell. He did not look his normal, self-assured and smiling self when he returned to the dock minutes later for the start of yesterday’s proceedings. But just as those present in court thought that the side-show was over, Razak started again after trial judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin adjourned proceedings for lunch. His father went up to him and again whispered something into his ears. Razak jumped up from his seat and in an animated way shouted: “Oh no, oh no.” He then kicked the dock gate angrily as he walked out, stunning the court room into silence. It did not end there.

He then banged on the lock-up door and looked terribly upset. He was also in tears. Those present, including family members and reporters, were taken aback to see Razak’s unprecedented behaviour in court since the trial began in June. Abdullah also appeared stunned but stood silently.

A family member of co-accused, Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, then approached Razak’s mother, Datin Rohana Abdullah,(ABOVE, a ChineseConvert) urging her to pacify her son. Rohana, who was seated in the public gallery, quickly walked to the lock-up to calm Razak.

By then Razak’s counsel Wong Kian Kheong (ABOVE), who had left the court room earlier, returned upon been informed of his client’s outburst, and went straight into the lock-up. Wong refused to say what Razak’s outburst was about.Proceedings, meanwhile, were not disrupted.

Celcom Malaysia Berhad’s core network operations general manager Nik Kamarudin Nik Ka, the 64th witness, was still on the stand. He has been testifying from Monday as the prosecution wanted him to clarify the disrepancies in Azilah’s mobile phone call details record and his itemised bill. Zaki told Nik Kamarudin that his testimony would have only taken 30 minutes if the witness had been systematic in presenting the records from the two documents. “The records are not in order and the mobile phone numbers, which is in small print, has caused me a headache,” he said. Azilah, 32, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 37 , both members of the Special Action Squad, are charged with Altantuya’s murder at Mukim Bukit Raja, Selangor between 10pm on Oct 19, and 1am on Oct 20 , 2006. Razak, 48, is charged with abetting them.
Hearing was adjourned to Monday (25^th Feb 2008)
= == = == == == = == = == the water-downed account from Bernama and used also by STAR

Thursday February 21, 2008
Abdul Razak kicks and hits door at murder trial

DAY 90
Razak Loses His Cool In Court

(Bernama) -- Abdul Razak Abdullah Baginda, who is being tried for abetting two policemen in murdering Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu, lost his cool on the 90th day Wednesday. He showed a dissatisfied look before the hearing began at about 9.30am when his father Datuk Abdullah Malim Baginda whispered something to him but he kept quiet and did not do anyhing except reading and writing. After the proceedings were adjourned for lunch, however, the 48-year-old political analyst who was previously calm throughout, surprised all those present in the High Court when he suddenly kicked and banged the door with his hands. He was also seen crying before his lawyer Wong Kian Kheong and mother calmed him down.
The two policemen in the dock -- C/Insp Azilah Hadri, 32, and Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 37, -- are charged with murdering the 28-year-old Mongolian between 10pm on Oct 19, 2006 and 1am the following day in a Bukit Raja jungle. Meanwhile, Celcom main network operations general manager Nik Kamarudin Nik Ka, 43, continued his testimony as the 64th prosecution witness. He told the court that although Azilah's call transactions overlapped each other and were not arranged in an orderly manner, they were basically the same. The transaction arrangement depended on the two switch systems used by the company and as a result, differences occurred in the billing record and raw data with regard to the same transaction, he said during the examination-in-chief by Deputy Public Prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah.
The transaction record showed, among others, Razak called Azilah several times on between 12.28am and 1.34am on Oct 21, 2006 but Azilah did not pick them up. It also showed that Azilah had been at the murder scene and had contacted the two other accused before the murder. The hearing before Justice Datuk Mohd Zaki

DAY 89
Call location captured from where it is made, says Celcom expert

Maria J. Dass; the SUN
SHAH ALAM (Feb 19, 2008): A transit call happens when a caller makes a call on the move. However the location at which the call was made will be the location captured in the Call Details Record (CDR) and not the last destination of the caller, said Celcom (M) Bhd Core Network Operations General Manager Nik Kamarudin Nik Ka. Responding to a question from DPP Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah, he said if a caller made a call while he was in Kepong but completes the conversation in another location, the location which will be recorded in the CDR is Kepong.

The prosecution is aiming to establish the movement of first accused C/Insp Azilah Hadri on Oct 19 and 20, 2006, to prove he was at the crime scene on the night Mongolian interpreter Altantuya Shaariibuu was murdered. Today is the 89th day of the hearing and Nik Kamarudin is the 64th witness to testify. Azilah, 31, a police Special Action Unit personnel is jointly charged together with his colleague Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 36, with murdering Altantuya in a jungle clearing in Puncak Alam between 10pm on Oct 19 and 1am on Oct 20, 2006.
Azilah’s lawyers however say that he was not at the crime scene during that time but was with his fiancé Norazilah Baharuddin in Wangsa Maju. (rings a bell? This is the Parliamentary seat in which Wee Cho Keong, the PKR Candidate is making for a bid to Parliament). Wee is the lawyer for Lingam's brother Thirunama in the recent Royal C I )

Three witnesses from Celcom who had prepared the CDR and documents outlining phone transactions made by Azilah including his pre-paid phone bill and raw data. However, Azilah's lawyer J.Kuldeep Kumar had pointed out 117 discrepancies between the documents, including some missing data, and discrepancies between the call times and duration. Kuldeep had also raised questions on whether the documents had been manipulated. However, yesterday when questioned by Tun Abdul Majid on whether the mistakes were due to manipulation of the document, Nik Kamarudin refuted the suggestion that the data in the CDR was manipulated.
“The data is accurate,” he stressed.
He explained yesterday that the missing data was due to the failure to include data obtained from other switches. Nik Kamarudin also said Azilah's number was missing from some transactions in the CDR as information technology analyst Syed Mustaqim Syed Yusof from Celcom's IT and Billing Department who had prepared the document had used an Ericsson template format to extract raw data from an Alcatel switch.Hearing continues tomorrow.
Updated: 09:14PM Tue, 19 Feb 2008

= == = == = == = == == =
DAY 88
Another Celcom staff called to testify
Maria J. Dass; theSUN

SHAH ALAM (Feb 18, 2008): After more than two-and-a-half months and three witnesses from Celcom (M) Bhd, the prosecution called another witness from the telecommunications company. Core Operations Network general manager Nik Kamarudin Nik Ka, 43, was called to explain several discrepancies and missing information in some of the documents prepared by Celcom which were tendered in court. Nik Kamaruddin is the fourth witness from Celcom, and the 64th witness on Day 88 of the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial. Clarifying the reason why there were some transactions in the prepaid phone bill of the 019-3636153 (P344) line used by first accused C/Insp Azilah Hadri missing from the P27 (Call Details Record) tendered in court, Nik Kamarudin said: "The transactions were missing from P27 as this document was only focused on the data from the mobile switch system central 1 for 3G (MSSC1)." Explaining this, he said 3G users were also allowed to roam using the 2G system (switch), thus the nearest 2G system should be checked for records, adding that this also applies to the sms-c switch used to record SMS transactions.
Nik Kamaruddin said he managed to extract five missing transactions data in P27 from the GATB - GSM Atabara switch in Kuantan and one from the Semambu switch – also in Kuantan. He agreed with DPP Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah that the data in P27 was not missing but merely not called for or sought from other switches. Nik Kamarudin said the detailed bill for pre-paid users are only given to customers upon request, especially when there is a dispute over the call charges. Going into a very technical testimony, Nik Kamarudin said P27 was modified to include the site names as shown in P370 (data otained from the mobile switch centre or MSC).

“P370 is derived from raw data obtained from our switch in digital binary format. This is sent to the mediation system which decodes the data, as seen in P370," he said. Nik Kamarudin said P370 should reflect all transactions of a phone line except for free call services and calls made to the emergency lines while the phone bill (P344) only reflects chargeable transactions made by a prepaid customer. Hearing continues tomorrow.
Updated: 08:44PM Mon, 18 Feb 2008

= == == continue next Post H E R E On BN MCA & Gerakan losing Battles for Chinese Votes in Penang
The inability of Dr Koh to pinpoint a CM designate underlines Gerakan current shaky & fluid position Penang. He was quoted:
"All I know is that the unhappy voters want to punish the BN," he said. Although, a BN whitewash is highly unlikely, with Umno contesting 15 of the state's 40 seats, an unusually strong opposition showing could upset the state's carefully weighted racial balance in government.
Many seats previously considered “safe” and changed to “hot” has now become “lost” especially his Batu Kawan with heavy bets on Gerakan coming landslide defeat.

plus video (3.14 mins) with Koh’s explanation and responses from Teng Chang Yeow & Teng Hock Nan and DAP & BN Slogans war
plus inserted Video Clip on DAP-PKR KL collaboration-declaration (in 20% slow motion)

Video Clip – Charles Santiago 4 Klang to Parliament – The Peoples Choice; Imran Imtiaz Prognosis Mar 8 Election – 30 to 50 seats gained for Opposition

2008-02-29T09:21:00.001+08:00

Video Clip – Charles Santiago 4 Klang to Parliament – The Peoples Choice; Let’s Make it Happen; Let’s Make the Difference; he wanted to initiate Change to make Klang & Malaysia a Better Place
& Imran Imtiaz Prognosis of the Mar 8 Election – Most 50 seats conservative 30 seats gained for Opposition

= == = == === == == = == = == UPDATE Mar 02 2008
Ch'ng vs Santiago; Maria J.Dass, Terence Fernandez and Kimberly Lau; theSUN

KLANG (March 3, 3008): On the campaign trail in Klang, theSun spoke to MCA's candidate incumbent Datuk Ch'ng Toh Eng and DAP's Charles Santiago.
While Ch'ng listens to usual complaints of clogged drains and poor street-lighting - Santiago pledges to raise issues that are new and refreshing, privatisation of water and a proper and more affordable healthcare deliviry system.
Here is what they say:

Datuk Ch’ng Toh Eng, 56 (incumbent BN-MCA); Selangor MCA Chief
Former teacher turned politician

How has your campaign trail been and what are the issues raised by Klang voters?
It’s been going well. The main complaints I have received are on clogged drains, street lights and pot-holes among others. Klang voters ask a lot of questions and most want to know why some parliamentary constituencies like Pak Lah’s constituency seem to get more attention compared with Klang. Most of their complaints and grouses revolve around lack of development, infrastructure and planning for Klang.

How do you plan to address these problems?
The BN state assemblymen and I will work as a team to address this problem by bringing it up to the local authority and state levels.
As a former councillor and assemblyman I also have the knowledge of how to plan development effectively when there is a need in this constituency. I am familiar with the separation of powers between the state and Federal government. For example if there is a request for a community centre then I know the process it needs to go through, including that at state, district and local authority levels to deliver.

These are more of local issues which should be addressed by the state assemblymen, what are the national issues in Klang and the country as a whole which you plan to raise in Parliament?
The first is the issue of security, the second are issues pertaining the influx of cheap foreign labour which have left a lot of locals jobless and thirdly the issues affecting my Indian voters. Many of the Indians I have met during the campaign trail have aired their frustrations over the lack of educational, skills training and job opportunities for the community, and I plan to bring these up in Parliament.

How different is your experience in running for a Parliament seat compared with a state seat? (Ch’ng was Kuala Kubu Baru assemblyman)
In Klang people ask a lot of questions. Secondly I receive a lot of complaints on road and infrastructure, but in areas like Kuala Kubu Baru the issues that are raised are still application for land titles. In Klang people question why there are no new projects but they fail to see that there are new projects like Bukit Tinggi for example. They see this as private projects. But it is the government who approves these projects - they don't see it that way. Also they question why there are no universities or institutions being built here, but they fail to see the difficulty in obtaining a large piece of land – you need like 100 acres to build a university for instance. People don’t understand, so we need to explain these things.

How do you view your opponent and the issues he has raised including that on water?
I met him at the nomination centre. We shook hands. This is a gentlemen’s fight. He is my friend and I don’t want to comment about anything on him. When I campaign I tell people who I am and what I can offer.
= == == = == == = == == ==
Charles Santiago, 47
Occupation: Self Employed/Consultant and adviser to various organisations on trade, human rights and water issues.

You seem to be very passionate about issues on water as seen during your campaign, why do you feel this is an important issue that needs to be addressed by Parliament? (Charles has had several meetings with parliamentarians over this issue over the past two years.)
(Water, Telecommunications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Dr) Lim Keng Yaik told me in my face that it is the policy of the Barisan Nasional (BN) government to privatise water and that it was in the law (Water Industries Act).
Water is a basic human need to survive! One can live without electricity but not without water. However in Selangor, Putrajaya and Johor it has been privatised and its prices are subject to rise due to the concession agreements with the water concessionaires. The government is transferring state wealth into private hands. "This is not a profit commodity!" But in Selangor the price has already gone up by 15% and it is expected to go up even further to 37% by January 2009.

How do you know this?
It’s in the concession agreement. I’m not saying that water should be given free, but it should be affordable to all and at the same time the public must be educated on responsible usage of water and ways to reduce wastage.

What other national issues do you plan to raise as a parliamentarian?
Access to affordable health care which is also a basic need and right of every citizen. This is another example of a fundamental need being taken over by profit motivated corporations.
So I hope that people, during voting this time around say that there is no point in having the tallest building in the world if Malaysians have problems accessing basic needs like water and healthcare. The other would be education – to ensure that vernacular schools get the same privileges as national schools and the freedom of information act which I think can resolve transparency and corruption issues, and force the government to toe the line.

What is the sentiment on the ground?
That there is a need to place more representatives in Parliament to speak up for the rights of the Rakyat, and not just for certain corporations and cronies.

How do you view your competition who is a three term state assemblyman and state executive councilor?
Yes, he has his strengths but as we know when it comes to policy decisions, MCA and MIC do nothing. It is Umno and the Mentri Besar who call the shots.
His previous state constituency was given the worst rating by the state government and the residents in Kg Papan in Klang have had their land and livelihood taken away. One can be a member in the state executive council and local council, but have you represented the people and aspirations of the community? In the case of Klang, the misdeeds of the previous Port Klang assemblyman who was also a Klang municipal councilor highlights the flaws in the present system which allows this to happen.

What are your strengths which will make you an effective parliamentarian?
I’m an academician who has been working with non-governmental organisations, and local and international bodies on trade, human rights and water issues. I am adviser to a few regional and national bodies on issues pertaining to international trade, and am a consultant to the European Union in Brussels. I'm sure this vast knowledge and exposure is a plus point for me if I am elected as MP.
P110 KLANG
N46 Pelabuhan Klang
N47 Pandamaran
N48 Kota Alam Shah
Total voters: 77,816
Malays: 33.1%;Chinese 47.3%; Indians: 19%;Others: 0.7%

= == = == = == =ORIGINAL POST BELOW

In a recent press conference, Charles Santiago, a DAP candidate and social activist running for the Klang MP seat, posed a challenge to his opponent, Ch’ng Toh Eng.

Santiago gets a taste of Hokkien hospitality

ECONOMIST Charles Santiago had a first hand experience of Hokkien hospitality recently when he visited several Chinese homes in Pandamaran in Port Klang recently. Santiago, who is expected to contest under the DAP banner in Klang parliamentary constituency in the general election, was making preliminary visits around the area. Santiago: 'I visited two Chinese temples and a number of families' “I visited two Chinese temples and a number of families during the Tian Gong or what is also known as the birthday of the Jade Emperor and found the families I visited very hospitable,” he said. Even though this may be Santiago’s maiden experience of how the festival is celebrated in Klang, he is no stranger to the royal town.

“I have been coming to Klang since I was six-years-old to either the St Anne's Church in Port Klang or to visit many of my relatives who are scattered all over Klang ,” he said. Santiago is known for his activism in water related matters with the Coalition Against Water Privatisation, where he has fought hard to ensure basic rights like provision of clean water and reduced water tariffs for the people.

On his candidacy in Klang, Santiago said he took up the challenge to contest in spite of the fact that he would probably be going against a Barisan Nasional strong man. “My opponent may be a big name but I am hoping that the Klang electorate would take a chance by electing me in order to bring about change,” he said.
It is believed that Selangor MCA chief Datuk Ch’ng Toh Eng would be contesting in Klang.

= == = =Watch the Video Clip (1min 36s) - Charles Outing to Jalang Papan in Campaign Trail

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Malaysia's Elections maybe Not So Sure; Imran Imtiaz Shah Yacob Via Asiasentinel

28 February 2008

The country's voters, disgruntled over a wide range of issues, go to the polls on March 8 Malaysia's bedraggled political opposition, riding an apparent wave of

citizen discontent, may be gaining some unaccustomed momentum ahead of voting at Malaysia's general election, scheduled for March 8. The opposition, beset by a lack of access not only to the levers of power but access as well to almost any of the elements that would contribute to a level playing field, including to the press or properly apportioned districts, has a nearly unbroken record of losses except for a handful of seats in the Dewan Rakyat, or national parliament, and in local legislatures. Nonetheless, political analysts say the prospects for the loose-knit opposition coalition, made up of the multi-race Parti Keadilan Rakyat, or Justice Party, the Islamic Parti Islam se-Malaysia, and the Democratic Action Party, which is dominated by Malaysian Chinese, have perhaps the best chance in decades of denying the government its two-thirds monopoly on power. Almost nobody gives the opposition coalition much more chance than just breaking the national coalition's two-thirds majority. But a convergence of issues has improved the opposition's chances. Although the economy is rolling along at a healthy 7.3 percent clip, led by domestic demand and bolstered by rising commodity prices and investment spending, inflation is a nagging issue, as is street crime, particularly in Kuala Lumpur, a city that has always seemed preternaturally safe. The National Crime Index has spiked up by 45 percent over a single year.
In addition, there is rising apprehension among both the Indian and Chinese populations over increasingly strident assertions of racial superiority by ethnic Malays. Whatever the debate, the fact remains that the worst race riots in Malaysian history – in May 1969, 39 years ago, have haunted and shaped Malaysian politics ever since. The race card has been used by all factions in Malaysia's political scene, be it by the ruling coalition or by the opposition, largely causing the effect of maintaining the status quo. A long string of corruption charges, many of them backed with considerable proof, have been laid at the door of top UMNO officials. Those charges of corruption have been exacerbated by the fact that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi followed former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad into office with both a mandate to clean out the

stables and a promise to do it, then backed away. Thus heartened, the main opposition parties have agreed to cooperate with each other, fielding single candidacies in most constituencies to avoid splitting their votes and giving the Barisan a clear path to return to power. The Barisan in 2004 won 91 percent of the seats in the parliament and expects to lose at least some. Badawi himself has sought to dampen expectations, telling supporters and reporters to expect losses. Some analysts have suggested the opposition could take as many as 50 seats in the 222-member body. But as many as 30 would be optimistic. Part of the opposition's problem is that the electoral districts are blatantly gerrymandered. In the 2004 elections, although the Barisan won only about 64 percent of the popular vote, it ended up with 198 of the 219 seats. The MCA won 15.5 percent of the popular vote and 31 seats while the opposition DAP won about 10 percent of the vote but only 12 seats.

There are some wild cards. In a country where internet use is increasingly popular, independent websites like Malaysia Today and Malaysiakini are publicizing institutional corruption and other issues, particularly in the judiciary, which is facing its biggest scandal since the country came into existence. "This election has the power of the Internet that is greatly influencing voters' opinion. Blogs and popular websites are quick and effective disseminators of information, where readers form opinions based on the information received," Tricia Yeoh, a senior analyst for Malaysia's Center for Public Policy Studies, told Asia Sentinel.

"Secondly, the BN has had numerous issues to contend within the recent year, casting a shadow of gloom over its leadership, as opposed to the 'positive feel' it achieved in the 2004 elections.

"Such issues are - dissatisfaction over the demolition of temples and overall marginalisation of the Indians, judicial corruption brought to light, the inability to handle controversial cases on religion, the economy and rising prices, amongst others. Third, the groundswell of civil society in numerous forms: monitoring, advocacy, candidacy, voter education, again making use of the Web - is a significant factor compared to the previous elections," Yeoh said. But, Yeoh added, she expects the opposition to win no more than 15 new seats, giving it a total of 34 or so. It now holds 19. With the opposition throughout its history having failed in any real terms to present any form of shadow government or balance of power to the ruling coalition, as usual the electoral battle is within the

Barisan itself. Although Abdullah Badawi sought to consolidate his UMNO power base by attempting to put his own acolytes in place, dropping some old bulls from the battle, other attempts to drop state warlords have backfired. In the northern state of Perlis, supporters of the incumbent chief minister resigned en masse, locking up operations rooms and refusing to campaign for the party. Meanwhile, observers say that the MCA president Ong Ka Ting dropped his key rivals, including former health minister Chua Jui Meng, who challenged Ong for the presidency in 2005.

The Barisan itself is driven with a variety of different struggles. Although UMNO previously dominated the cabinet and policy decisions, the MCA, MIC and Gerakan, another Chinese-dominated party, have been unable to have much impact in the wake of adverse court decisions concerning the rights of non-Malays. Another wild card this time around is Mahathir Mohamad, 82, who for

the first time is conspicuously not campaigning for the ruling coalition. Many younger generations have never known another prime minister and the older generation still have a good deal of respect for him. Ever since his venomous attacks started in 2006, in which he lashed out that Abdullah Badawi was not his first choice as successor and that the ill-starred Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, himself under fire for corruption, was better qualified, the prime minister has lost headway.

Mahathir has charged that his successor was mismanaging the economy and railed against the influence of Abdullah's family members, in particular his son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin. The former premier's attacks appear to be cutting into the prime minister's support. Grumblings also stem from the perception especially among the Chinese business community that the Malaysian economy is stagnant despite the strong official figures. On the ground, although campaigning is in full swing, it appears that some urban voters may have already made up their minds to teach the Barisan a lesson. The general feeling extends across middle-class professionals be they Malay, Chinese or Indian, that Abdullah Badawi has failed in keeping his 2004 electoral manifesto and ideals. More so, Mahathir again dealt a heavy blow when he said it was impossible for UMNO and the Barisan Nasional to reform itself and that it was up to the electorate to do the job. Abdullah Badawi may be counting on traditional party loyalists and support from rural folk who are enjoying better wages thanks to the

boom in commodities, especially palm oil. Malaysia is a major exporter with production standing at 15.8 million tonnes for 2007. Signs in the kampungs, or rural villages, appear mixed although Barisan politicians say they are confident of success. While many villagers contend that there aren't many localized grievances, many are concerned over the apparent lack of control that Abdullah Badawi has over the levers of power. Taking their cue from Mahathir, villagers seem unconcerned with national issues such as demonstration by ethnic Indian Malaysians, large pockets of whom seem to have rallied behind the Hindu Rights Action Force. HINDRAF alleges economicdiscrimination against Malaysian Indians by majority Muslim-Malays. This scenario may be supported by the fact that more than ever before, voters are scrutinizing the resumes of candidates and their suitability.

The time where a candidate could win just by the strength of the party symbol still holds in many safe constituencies. But many others formerly thought to be safe are now demanding to see candidates' credentials. Furthermore, unlike in the 1999 elections, when Chinese and Indian voters stepped in to shore up the Barisan, non-Malay support does not seem forthcoming. S. Samy Vellu, the president of the MIC, has come under intense fire with calls for his resignation for his alleged failure to advance the Indian community. The Chinese community may also take the opportunity to vent their anger with MCA over what is the party's failure to stand up to what were deemed as racist acts when UMNO youth leaders in the widely-televised 2005 UMNO General Assembly, particularly Hishammuddin Hussein Onn, son of Malaysia's third prime minister and UMNO youth chief, waved a Malay dagger or Keris during his speech and threatened to bathe it in Chinese blood. Malaysian Chinese took offence to that act. The MCA is also weakened as it wallows in internal strife with various factions fighting for influence and positions. The combination of these factors and more have heartened the opposition. Although the Barisan Nasional will in the end continue its reign, if ever there was a threat to its power, by Malaysian standards anyway now is that time.

MCA joins MIC in Ads to Project its Useful Image to the Communities; Over RM1 Million Spent in the run up to Mar 08; Opposition too poor to Advertise

2008-02-28T19:53:00.002+08:00

The ruling coalition components especially the MC & the MIC are at the receiving ends as far as its image is concerned in the eyes of the respective communities. The government has done all it could without much asking for the Malays. What they requested are promptly attended to without question. And what the MCA & MIC asked has to wait for election time when the promises and goodies (as enunciated in the BN manifesto) are clearly spelled out over the next few years.

So to counter the negative images effectively, the MCA and MIC have to resort to the print media ads and at the same time spread the money around for the loyal MSM. The opposition parties are just too poor to afford this luxury of newspaper ads. MIC in particular is facing its greatest challenge with the Hindraf aftermath and especially the continued detention of the leaders and threats of some of those who participated in the rallies.
Meanwhile the MCA president is trying very hard to state that the MCA has not betrayed the Chinese community and appeal for them not to split the votes to the opposition.

= == == = == = =
February 28, 2008 18:59 PM
MCA, MIC Counter Attacks With Ads

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- The MCA and MIC, the two largest Barisan Naional (BN) component parties representing the Chinese and
Indians, have stepped up their defence as well as attacks on claims that

they have let down their communities. "While the opposition put on a show, MCA worked," said an MCA advertisement in an Englih daily today while MIC's stressed that voting for the opposition is equivalent to a "vote for sweet talk". Transparency International (Malaysia) (TI-Malaysia) said the media ads to woo voters had increase in the past few days, and the Barisan Nasional (BN) was estimated to have spent over RM1.049 million. MCA has taken out ads in newspapers and televisions in the run-up to the March 8 general election, emphasising its "behind-the-scene" efforts to help the Chinese community.
The party said 2,300 non-Bumiputera students obtained full Public Service Department (JPA) scholarships to study overseas between 2000 and 2007, a marked increase compared with only 100 students before 2000. "An increase of 2,200 percent in JPA scholarship funds amounting to more than RM1 billion," the party said, stressing its motto of "Working quietly, effectively for results". In the ad, MCA said it was just one of the many areas the party has been
working hard and would continue to do so for the future of all Malaysians in business, education, socio-cultural areas and women's welfare. The opposition, in the election campaigning, accused both MCA and MIC of not fighting for the rights of the non-bumiputeras. MCA's move was emulated by the MIC which has been besieged lately by supporters of the unregistered Hindraf who claimed that the party has not done much to help the Indian community. "Every Indian who has benefited directly or indirectly from MIC is a silent majority and a silent supporter who has assisted MIC to rise and evolve to where it is today. Can anyone come up and say that MIC is irrelevant or redundant," said the ad.

The ad said if the Indian community did not vote for MIC, they would deprive their children the right to preserve and uphold Tamil, Hinduism and the right to seek education.
"Vote for PAS and see where Kelantan is today. That's how your constituency will be for the next five years, If you think that you are not progressing under MIC, then you can now imagine getting disintegrated under PAS," the ad said. Besides monitoring political parties' print media ad expenditures in 18 newspapers daily, TI-Malaysia said in a statement today that it has started to monitor the television ads today. It said under the Election Offences Act 1954 parliamentary candidates were allowed to spend up to RM200,000 and state seat contenders RM100,000. BN candidates can collectively spend up to only RM94.8 million, it said. Of this, 1.11 percent had been spent on print media ads thus far, TI-Malaysia said, adding that candidates from Parti Keadilan Rakyat, DAP and PAS had not taken up any ads so far. "This is the first time that campaign expenses are being monitored. This is a new addition to election process and media monitoring that was started from previous elections and is being performed now," it said.
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February 28, 2008 15:23 PM

Ong Ka Ting Assures An Economic Boom In Kulai
KULAI, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting (ABOVE) has assured the people of Kulai that the parliamentary constituency would experience an economic boom as it came under the Iskandar Development Region (IDR). Ong, who is contesting the seat for the Barisan Nasional (BN) in the March 8 general election, said that if he was elected to be their representative, he would do all in his power to ensure Kulai prospered so that its people, especially the youths, need not go searching for jobs in Singapore.

"I will also ensure Kulai will be the choice of its youths to build their careers," he told reporters after handing over land titles to 14 residents of Kampung Baru Bukit Batu here today.Also present was his wife Datin Seri Wendy Ong and the BN's candidate for the Bukit Batu state seat, Cheong Chin Liang. Ong, who is also Housing and Local Government Minister, said that apart from spurring economic growth in Kulai, he would also pay extra attention to development of new villages in the constituency, which are mainly resided by the Chinese. Ong, who is in a straight fight against the DAP's Ng Papk Siong for the seat, began his campaign in the constituency today by visiting Kampung Baru Bukit Batu, the Kulai Kemas office and Kampung Baru Saleng. He had been the Member of Parliament for Tanjong Piai for four terms before moving to contest Kulai in this election.
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February 27, 2008 16:09 PM

Chinese Cannot Afford To Be Split In Support For BN, Says MCA
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting

said the Chinese community cannot afford to be split in their support for Barisan Nasional (BN) to ensure the survival of the community in terms of politics, economy, culture and education. He said the support was of particular importance now when the Chinese community faced declining birth rate which in turn has slowed down the population growth. "Don't buy into the lies spread by the opposition as they are only fishing for votes and can only bring damage to the Chinese community," he said in his speech at the party's 59th anniversary celebration at Wisma MCA here today. Ong said the Chinese, which made up about 25 percent of total population in the country, needed to rally their support for BN as it has proven to be the helping hand that made some of them excelled in economic field including globally.
"When we have good achievement, why must you still think that the Chinese has no future in this country," he said. Ong said the Chinese community should strengthen their foundation to ensure that they were in the main stream of politics and in key decision-making process by voting in all the BN candidates.
"The political power provides security to the Chinese in the country," he said. Ong also urged Chinese students who made the grade but did not have enough money to further their studies to get in touch with the MCA headquarters for assistance, stressing that MCA was the guardian of the community in all aspects including culture and education.

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February 27, 2008 02:14 AM

MCA Has Not Betrayed Chinese For Political Gain, Says Ka Ting

PETALING JAYA, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The MCA, a component of the Barisan Nasional (BN), has neither neglected the needs of the Chinese community nor betrayed it for securing its political position, party president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting said Tuesday night. He dismissed as baseless an allegation by the DAP that the MCA had compromised the interests of the Chinese community for the party's political interests. He also said that DAP's labelling of the MCA as a traitor of the Chinese community was intentionally done to woo the Chinese votes in the constituencies the opposition party is contesting in the March 8 general election. "That's the opposition for you. They have a track record of labelling the MCA as traitor of the community to fish for votes, manipulate facts and make wild accusations. I am convinced that the Chinese voters are wise enough to evaluate the actual situation," he told reporters after a series of ceramah (talk) in the Petaling Jaya Utara parliamentary constituency in support of the BN candidate Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun. Incumbent Chew is challenged by Tony Pua Kiam Wee of the DAP in what

political analysts assume to be a tough contest. Chew has been the elected representative there for two terms. Ong said that for example, the MCA had assisted the Chinese community in getting new Chinese schools or relocated Chinese schools in areas with a large Chinese community besides obtaining government scholarships for outstanding Chinese students to pursue further studies.
He said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, via the Prime Minister's Special Fund, had channelled allocations totalling almost RM30 million in stages since 2004. "Furthermore, recently the Public Service Department had advertised inChinese newspapers the availability of 2,300 PSD scholarships for

Chinese students," he said. This clearly showed that the MCA championed the rights of the Chinese community in the country in the context of a multiracial community with every need discussed within the government. Earlier, in his ceramah, Ong asked the Chinese voters to support BN candidates.

= == = == = == == DAP Lim Kit Siang's challenge

MCA sec-gen Ong ka Chuan challenged to open debate over the future of Kinta Valley

Lim Kit Siang (ABOVE, at Bagan): I spoke at the Chin Woo Hall on Sunday 24/2/08
The MCA plan to bring "prosperity and stopping the economic decline" in the Kinta Valley is a sham because Perak MCA chief Ong Ka Chuan (above) said the same in 2004 and after he lost he never uttered a word about the "prospering Kinta Valley" plan. Now four years latter he has taken the plan out from his cupboard, dusted it and push it to the people.
This a clear election gimmick. Why did he not make the plan work between 2004 and now. Why only wait for the election and announce a plan to hoodwink voters. Thousands of Perak people have to migrate to other states, Singapore and overseas to work because the MCA has no plans for economic prosperity.
When he contests in Batu Gajah in 2004 he said of the same plan. He lost and he forgot about the plan completely.
Now he is contesting in Tanjung Malim and the same plan have come out. If he had contested in Taiping or Teluk Intan he would have come with a similar plan to hoodwink voters.

This is the MCA at its worst, always hoodwinking the people.This hoodwinking has to stop. I challenge Ong Ka Chuan to an open debate within 48 hours on the Kinta Valley prosperity Plan to show the people how irrelevant he is and his plan.

I urged him to respect the people and accept the challenge and debate with me. Just name the place and TIME
= == = =and the REPLY

MCA secretary-general and Perak MCA chief Ong Ka Chuan, who was defeated by DAP’s Fong Po Kuan in Batu Gajah in 2004, said the pledges could not be fulfilled because he did not win.

“We lost out. How could we do (anything)? Three parliament seats (Ipoh Timor, Ipoh Barat and Batu Gajah) were lost to them,” said Ong during a press conference in Ipoh yesterday.

“The principle is that - you won the seat, (therefore) it is your responsibility to carry out your vision, not the person who lost. We don’t have the ability,” he stressed.

Mlalaysian Bloggers - Quest to be MPs & Assemblymen in Coming 12th General Election on 8th March 08; Scandals, Sex, murder & corruption in campaign

2008-02-27T11:53:00.005+08:00

UPDATE:
ABOVE: Feb 28 08- Jeff Ooi at a ceremah at Bukit Benderah and BELOW: In action, slapping himself for being so stupid. "Ten years ago, I was so stupid! I voted Barisan Nasional - so stupid!" the blogger-cum-politician exclaimed, smacking himself on the cheek

Apart from the 3 more famous Bloggers seeking election into Parliament mentioned in the Reuters report, there are also another two bloggers seeking election into the State
Assembly. If they can capture any seat they would be making history and redeem the name of "bloggers" which have been under attack for sometime now. = = = == == = == = == = == = ==
Feb 26, 2008

Bloggers test their popularity in M'sia election

KUALA LUMPUR - THE Internet is changing the face of Malaysian politics, becoming a virtual political party of its own as the country gears up for elections next month. Three high-profile bloggers, all opponents of the ruling coalition which has effectively governed for five decades, are standing for the first time as candidates on March 8, hoping that their popularity on the Net will translate into votes.

: Jeff Ooi will be standing for the P 50 Jelutong seat in Penang. Jeff will be facing Gerakan's Dr Thor Teong Gee and independent candidate Badrul Zaman. BELOW: At launch of hs Book I- witness

'Everyone of us has a stake in the country's future, but talk is cheap. We now need to walk the walk,' says Mr Jeff Ooi, a well-known blogger contesting a seat in northern Penang state for the opposition Democratic Action Party (DAP). A 52-year-old former advertising copywriter, he has made his name writing a political blog, Screenshots (http://www.jeffooi.com), one of dozens that have found an active readership outside the pro-government mainstream press.

Watch Jeff in Action Video Clip (3min) with Rebuttal from Koh Tsu Koon

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Koh Tsu Koon asking Jeff to visit the factories first

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A BLOGGER HAS GOT TO DO WHAT HE HAS TO DO’ AHIRUDIN ATTAN

BLOGGER Jeff Ooi, 52, may be contesting in his first general election, but he’s far more well-known than more seasoned politicians. MyPaper_080227.jpgIn fact, the opposition Democratic Action Party candidate and former business intelligence analyst is expected to win the Jelutong seat in Penang comfortably on March 8 and make Malaysian history as the first blogger to become an MP.

my paper spoke to Mr Ooi in Penang yesterday after the launch of his first book, i-Witness, to raise funds for his campaign.

Hi Jeff, 10 days to go to the polls. Any regrets?
No regrets. A man, I mean a blogger, has got to do what he has to do.

You quit Gerakan to join the DAP last year. What made you?
I despise Barisan Nasional’s (BN) race-based politics. Gerakan, a multiracial political party, is endorsing BN’s race-based ideology. I quit as I can’t agree with this. True enough, Gerakan is fielding no non-Chinese candidates in the election.

And the DAP has no problem with that?
No problem, The leadership courted me when I was still with Gerakan. You are a Kedah native contesting in Penang.

Should that be an issue?
Not an issue now, As Chia Kwang Chye, Lee Kah Chun and Teng Hock Nam are (also not) born in Penang. No double standards please.

What is Jelutong like – the people, the issues?
It’s an ageing constituency as only 15.7 per cent of the people are below 35 years old. Jelutong has been punished by BN while it was in opposition hands. It needs to catch up with development and better quality of life. Bread and butter issues reign high. There are strong ill feelings against inequitable distribution of national wealth. Now that the cost of living has gone up, unhappiness is fermenting.

Jelutong strongman and DAP chairman Karpal Singh paved the way for you to contest in Jelutong. What’s the party’s strategy?
Checks and balances to BN. People feel cheated for voting in BN with a 91 per cent majority in 2004.

How do you see yourself stepping into Karpal's shoes?
I am a blogger who speaks good Malay, can bring up people’s agenda in the Parliament that BN candidates can’t and dare not.

If you get into Parliament, what will you be fighting for?
Say no to race-based politics. Legislate to ban race-based political parties.

Will you promote blogging? Will you have time to blog?
I will blog live in the parliament (if elected).

What if you lose the election?
Go back to blogging, and shout outside the Parliament.

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ABOVE: Tony Pua will be contesting in P 106 Petaling Jaya Utara against Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun (BN-MCA)

Another popular blogger, also running on a DAP ticket, is 34-year-old Tony Pua, a fresh-faced Oxford graduate who started blogging three years ago after setting up a high-tech firm. 'I've had opportunities to migrate but I decided that Malaysia is my home,' Mr Pua said as he dreamt up campaign slogans at a cramped DAP office on the second floor of a shop house, above a Chinese restaurant, on the outskirts of the capital. 'So the next question is what should I do to make it better?' His blog's address is: http://tonypua.blogspot.com.

Alternative views
ABOVE: Badrul Hisham Shaharin or Gikgu Bard. He will be contesting in P131 Rembau where he will face the Son-in-Law, Khairy Jamaluddin BELOW: On Nomination day

Mr Pua, like Mr Ooi, is running from an urban constituency where Internet penetration is highest and opposition sentiment runs stronger than in the countryside. A third blogger, Mr Badrul Hisham Shaharin, said he is struggling to spread his message because of the limited Internet access in the rural Malay majority seat where he is standing. 'I admit that is is difficult because my blog is not accessible here, but I am getting a lot of help from fellow bloggers,' he said by phone from his electorate of Rembau, a sleepy farming district south of Kuala Lumpur. Mr Badrul, who is running on opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's party ticket, will take on Mr Khairy Jamaluddin, the prime minister's son-in-law and an ambitious politician. Mr Badrul's blog: chegubard.blogspot.com. Considered a thorn in the government's side due to their often critical political and social commentaries, Malaysia's blogging community offer alternative views in a country where the government keeps a tight control on mainstream media.

The government said last year it might compel bloggers to register with the authorities to curb the spread of malicious content on the Internet.Government backers doubt whether bloggers turned opposition politicians could make their presence felt.

'Beyond the major cities like Kuala Lumpur and Penang, there's not much the bloggers can really hope to accomplish,' says Mr Mohamad Norza Zakaria, a leader in Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's Umno party (www.umno-online.com) The United Malays National Organisation (Umno) dominates the 14-party Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. Only a fifth of Malaysians have access to the Internet, official data show. There are 10.9 million voters in a nation of 26 million people. Blogger Ooi spoke of the difficult challenge ahead.'Compared to the BN, we are behind on the three M's - money, machinery and media access.' -- REUTERS

= == = == = == = == =following 2 bloggers are seeking State Seats

ABOVE: Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad will stand for the SN32 Seri Setia State seat . He will face incumbent Datin Paduka Seripah Noli Syed Hussin (BN-Umno) BELOW:

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ABOVE: Elizabeth Wong will stand for N37 Bukit Lanjan State seat against incumbent Datin Yong Dai Ying of Gerakan BELOW: on Nomination Day

Feb 27, 2008

Sex, murder and corruption in M'sia's election campaign

KUALA LUMPUR - A CLOSE associate of the deputy prime minister allegedly orders the murder of a beautiful foreigner. The health minister is filmed having extramarital sex. A politically connected lawyer is accused of brokering top judicial appointments. A string of scandals features heavily in the opposition's campaign for Malaysia's parliamentary election on March 8. 'It's not that we want to capitalise unnecessarily on these issues, but it's our moral duty to bring them out in our campaign to show that the government is rotten,' said Mr Hatta Ramli, an official in the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party. The ruling National Front coalition is widely expected to win, but with a smaller majority than its landslide victory in 2004. The scandals are not the main factor, but they may be adding to voter discontent with the status quo. 'I think everything that has been made public is only the tip of the iceberg,' said Mr Voon Chin Joo, a 28-year-old information technology consultant. 'My vote will be for the opposition because I want to see all the other scandals exposed.'

But, analysts say, most voters are more focused on issues that affect their lives, such as inflation, crime and rising racial and religious tensions. 'Malaysians have a short memory,' said Ms Tricia Yeoh, a senior researcher at the Center for Public Policy Studies, a Malaysian think-tank. 'These scandals may contribute to some people's perception that Malaysia is in a mess, but they wouldn't drastically change voting patterns.' The government's first headache emerged with the slaying of Ms Altantuya Shaariibuu in late 2006. Abdul Razak Baginda, a close associate of Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, was charged with abetting the murder of the Mongolian interpreter, with whom he had had an affair. Opposition parties worked feverishly to link Mr Najib to the killing, in which two policemen allegedly used explosives to destroy Ms Shaariibuu's remains in a jungle clearing in October 2006. But the opposition failed to come up with evidence to substan-tiate its claim that Mr Najib had a hand in the killing. The government has moved quickly to deal with the unusual spate of pre-election scandals.

Last August, opposition leaders criticised the government for providing a low-interest loan to rescue Malaysia's main port authority from debts of US$1 billion (S$1.4 billion). Officials deflected the criticism by saying the loan was not a bailout, because it would be repaid. In October, authorities swiftly arrested eight junior officials on corruption charges after the auditor general revealed that ministries bought defective boats and helicopters and paid grossly inflated prices for screwdrivers and flower pots. 'There has been no attempt to hide things under the carpet, so there shouldn't be a negative impact for us in the polls,' said Mr Shahrir Samad, a ruling coalition lawmaker. 'The public is confident that all these issues have been well tackled,' he said. 'Openness, transparency and accountability have been obvious in the government. We have not been riding roughshod over anyone or trying to ignore the public's concerns.'

The nation's attention shifted in recent weeks to two video scandals. In January, Health Minister Chua Soi Lek, married with three children, resigned amid intense public pressure after DVDs - allegedly made by his political rivals - began circulating in his hometown showing him having sex with his lover in a hotel room. No sooner had that scandal faded, when newspaper front pages turned to a government inquiry into another video, which showed a well-known lawyer apparently talking on the phone to Malaysia's former top judge about using their government connections to influence judicial appointments. The inquiry heard testimony in open court from prominent figures including former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. A decision is expected next month - but not until after the election. –

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Samy’s MIC resorts to Full Page Ads for the Power of Truths After ALL Attempts failed to reach Indian Community; Heckled at Perai & Bagan Dalam Visit

2008-02-27T09:16:00.002+08:00

ABOVE: The Heading of the Full Page Ads as seen in the STAR, Feb 27 2008; BELOW: Some of the simple Truths, that the community refused to accept

These ads would cost the MIC thousands of Ringgit in the major MSM and possible in the vernacular Indian papers but they have no choice after all attempts in reaching back to the community failed to convince them the simple truths. The used of Government skewed figures has further confronted the truths and the community do not viewed them as credible and look upon them as “pulling wool over their eyes”. Majority of the community refused to listen to his "sweet talk" anymore and the use of ads seem to be a last resort. Poor old Samy is putting up a very brave face as now everywhere he goes; there are crowds to heckle him.

With the rejection of the Court in freeing the Hindrf 5 and the continuation of their the detention, the final seal has been affixed for the defeat of the MIC candidates in the coming general election as the Hindraf members have avowed to teach him and the Badawi government a lesson

WHO SAYS MIC HAS NOT DONE ENOUGH?

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MIC HAS NEVER SAID NO!

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MIC HAS ALWAYS SAID YES!

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Now here is the REAL TRUTH which M.I.C did not tell (compiled by Norman Fernandez); go H E R E
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Samy: Indians can count on MIC
By A. LETCHUMANAN; STAR

The 12th general election is the toughest ever for the MIC. Its president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu discusses the issues facing the party in an exclusive interview just after nomination day.

Q: There is talk that Indian voters are unhappy with you and the MIC, not the Government. Indians have also staged demonstrations to voice their resentment. What's your view on this?
A: Certain sections of the Indian community are angry, not because we didn't raise or ask for solutions to their plight. Their anger is due to inadequacy: when 50 people apply for a (government) job, and if only one gets the job, it is not only they that get angry. Even I get disappointed. I have fought for this many times in the Cabinet and we have achieved some degree of success. I'm not the kind of person who represents the people (in name) but ignores their problems.

Q: You have been jeered at during some gatherings. How have you handled this?
A: I cannot be afraid of these actions. We must face them and be able to counter their allegations. Although only a certain section of people who claim to represent the Indian voice are involved in such actions, we represent all Indian Malaysians. We hear them. We act on their grievances. But they must use the right channels. We are and have been open to their views. I am sad that certain elements have made use of innocent and poor Indians for their own political game. In the end, it is the community that will suffer. Those behind their downfall will blame us (the MIC) for the Indians’ failures. But at the end of the day, the Indians can always count on the MIC.

Q: Are you worried that some MIC candidates will lose in this general election?
A: The Indians know very well that they need a strong and cohesive representation in the Government. The MIC has provided just that. They also know very well that if they don’t vote for an Indian candidate from the MIC, their voice will not or never be heard. But, the people must understand that we cannot have all our problems resolved in a matter of days or weeks or even months. The Government must be seen as being fair and equitable to all races.

Q: Some are saying that the MIC leadership should be blamed for this situation. Would you agree?
A: It is easy to point fingers. We have raised many issues pertaining to the plight of the Indians through the various platforms. Some we get and some we don’t. I can say that the MIC and I have done our best, but I feel and believe that more can and should be done. Come what may, I will fight on and nobody can stop me.

Q: Tell us the actions you raised as MIC president. Have all the matters taken up been resolved?
A: As I have said, we can ask for 10 things, but we end up getting five things. I have records on what we have got. Two years ago, I brought to the attention of the Cabinet that Indians need assistance in business and the Government then gave out RM40mil loans through BSN’s micro credit scheme to 4,000 people.
At the moment, in order to assist 2,500 people to get loans, we have been conducting seminars in all the state capitals. We are geared to create 5,000 new businessmen by the end of the 9MP. When I became the president, I realised that only by transforming the community into an educated society, would we be able to compete and be on par with the other races. I set out to make Vanto Academy the educational vehicle to uplift the socio-economic position of the Indians.

The MIC has helped create 44,000 Indian para-professionals through the later established TAFE College and now, AIMST University - which cost RM490mil - has produced 18 full-fledged medical students. In my 29 years of service as a Minister, I think there was never a day I have not fought for the community.

Q: The Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) states that Indian equity will increase from 1.2% to 3%. However, we have not seen any specific mechanism for this to be achieved.
A: When the 9MP was being drawn up, the Prime Minister gave us a copy of the draft plan . We appointed about 85 experts to scrutinise the plan. We then submitted a report to the Prime Minister detailing how to achieve it in the report. We proposed a mechanism similar to the practice of giving shares to bumiputras through government-initiated bodies like the PNB.

Q: What are the realities of the Indian community and what are the MIC's goals for them?
A: The average Indian family earns RM3,456 as indicated by EPU (Economic Planning Unit) figures. In addition, the Indian community has lower income disparity figures within the community compared to other races. The MIC also recognises that there are sizeable pockets of disadvantaged and low-income Indian families who are part of the urban poor and bottom 30% of the socio-economic ladder in Malaysia. The pressing socio-economic issues relate to lack of technical skills, lack of housing facilities, lack of educational opportunities and low level of literacy, high dependency on wage-employment and employment in low-wage occupations.

The MIC is initiating an Affirmative Action Plan to foster a dynamic, self-reliant and progressive community by 2020. The MIC has been working to secure more opportunities through government agencies and through party educational and social institutions in addressing the concerns of the bottom 30%. The next 12 years are very critical.

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UPDATE: (Samy is 50 yrs behind times), from Arab Times

Angry Indian voters could dump ruling party in elections

RINCHING, Malaysia, Feb 25, (AP): With a small knife, plantation worker Ramalingam Tirumalai makes raw incisions on the rubber trees every morning to harvest the oozing gooey latex. Just like the gashes on the trees, Ramalingam says, countless wounds have been inflicted by Malaysia's government on the country's ethnic Indian minority, denying them jobs, education, freedom of religion and most of all dignity. 'We have been independent for 50 years,' the stocky 53-year-old man said of his country, Malaysia. 'But there has been no change in the lives of Indians.' Seething anger among ethnic Indians is likely to singe the government during parliamentary elections on March 8. No one doubts that the National Front coalition, which has ruled Malaysia since independence in 1957, will return to power. But it is expected to fall short of its 2004 landslide, when it won 91 percent of the seats. Anything less than a two-thirds majority would signal plunging support for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Voters are upset by rising prices and a surge in urban crime. Ethnic tensions are also at a high, largely because of the increasing influence of Islam in daily life.

'We need a new kind of leadership,' Ramalingam said in an interview near his plantation in Rinching town, about 45 kms (30 miles) from Malaysia's main city, Kuala Lumpur. The National Front is dominated by the party of the Muslim Malay majority, which make up 60 percent of the country's 27 million people. The Front also has the support of some ethnic Chinese, who are 25 percent of the population, and some Indians, who are eight percent.

Voted Indians have traditionally voted for the Malaysian Indian Congress, their party in the National Front. But now the Indians will 'definitely vote for the opposition,' said S. Nagarajan of the Education, Welfare and Research Foundation, a nonprofit group that represents impoverished ethnic Indians. 'This time there is raw anger.' Indian voters could make a difference in 62 of the 222 constituencies, said Denison Jayasooriya, a political analyst who specializes in Indian affairs. At the time of independence, most Malaysians were poor, regardless of race. An affirmative action program gives Malays preferences in university admission and government jobs, discounted homes and a mandatory 30 percent share of all publicly listed companies. The program lifted the Malay standard of living. The Chinese, already well established in business, continued to flourish. The Indians, however, remained at the bottom of the barrel.

The government denies discriminating against Indians, citing statistics that show the poverty rate among Malays is higher than for Indians. But analysts say the statistics are skewed because the Malay figure includes indigenous tribes that are extremely poor and not ethnically Malay.
Infuriated
Indians were also infuriated when municipal authorities destroyed several Indian temples last year because they were deemed to have been built illegally. The disenchantment exploded on Nov 25 when about 20,000 Indians demonstrated in Kuala Lumpur. Several smaller demonstrations have taken place since. Much of the anger is directed at Samy Vellu, head of the Malaysian Indian Congress party. He is perceived as corrupt and unable to bring about change for Indians. Campaigning last week, he was booed and pelted with eggs, shoes and sandals.

Samy (ABOVE) insists the government has done much to uplift Indians. 'It is not that the Indian community is 50 years backward,' he said. 'Maybe you minus about 40-45 years from the 50. They may be five years backward' compared to the rest of the population. About 85 percent of the ethnic Indians are descendants of indentured laborers brought by the British to work on rubber plantations in the 19th century. The work, where it remains, pays about 200 ringgit ($60; 40 euros) a month. Many plantations were turned into golf courses and luxury home communities in the 1980s and 1990s. The workers lost their jobs and the free housing and schooling that was included.

Other plantations were converted to palm oil, which does not require the skills of rubber tapping, and the Indians were replaced with Indonesian immigrants at lower wages. Most of the former Bukit Jalil rubber estate in Kuala Lumpur was cleared for stadiums and athlete housing for the 1995 Commonwealth Games.
Former workers still live on the last 16-hectare (40-acre) patch, which is slated to become a graveyard. The residents have been classified as squatters and offered two-room rental apartments in a nearby low-cost housing development. Their school and temple will be relocated inside the burial ground, a proposal that has incensed the residents. 'My age is 43 years. I have lived here for 43 years. How can I be a squatter?' said Shanti Vasupillai. 'All I am asking for is our rights.' 'Most probably the elections will be a shock for the government,' she said. 'I can promise you most Indians will vote for opposition this time.'

= == == == == No Hope for MIC in Perai & Bagan Dalam?

UPDATE:
Samy: MIC candidates must 'slog' to win Perai, Bagan Dalam

BUTTERWORTH (Feb 26, 2008): In his own words, MIC president Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu said today that MIC's Perai and Bagan Dalam candidates will have to "slog" to win the two seats. Samy who visited the two constituencies,which were won by the MIC's Datuk K.Rajapathy (Perai) and P.Subbaiyah (Bagan Dalam) in the 2004 general election said today they would have to go door to door to explain to the people. Rajapathy retained the Perai seat which has 36% Indian voters after beating DAP's Chong Eng with a slim 583 majority while Subbaiyah won the Bagan Dalam seat which has 22% Indian voters with a 1,967 majority after defeating DAP's Lim Hock Seng and Keadilan's Abdul Razak Abdul Hamid in 2004.
However ,with recent developments including the Hindraf protests, MIC's chances of retaining the seats with L. Krishnan contesting the Perai seat facing DAP's Prof Dr P.Ramasamy and Subbaiyah facing DAP's A.Tanasekharan, are threatened. Samy, who was visiting the two constituencies for the second time in two weeks announced several goodies for both constituencies, including a RM4 million allocation (RM1 million from state government and RM3 million from the Public Works Department (PWD) to repair eight lifts in six blocks of 21-storey Telok Indah flats which have malfunctioned for years. For the past few years, only four lifts have been in working order and despite numerous requests, the residents failed to get the problems resolved. Only last week, attempts were made to rectify the situation.

Samy said repair work on the lifts was already in progress and would be completed by this week. Asked about the chances of the candidates in the two constituencies, Samy said: "To win the election the candidates have to slog and MIC with other BN partners have to go house to house and discuss with them. "Even though I have contested the general election eight times, now for the ninth time, I still go house to house to see and talk to them to make them understand what needs to be done.
Subbaiyah and Krishnan can do work well, provided they see people personally.
"We have to work very hard, but I'm happy to say we have recovered from below 50% in Bagan Dalam. We are now getting higher and higher. This constituency (Bagan Dalam) is a bit different from Perai. Bagan Dalam is still quite good.
"Perai is recovering because whatever the people were complaining the other day have already been attended to, and I think now they can now look forward to see better things than before," Samy said, adding that attending to the residents grouses had nothing to do with the elections.
He said the construction of a RM4 million market for Chai Leng Park would also begin soon, once the design was completed by his ministry. Asked if these efforts would help cool down the emotions of the Indian population in the two consti-tuencies, Samy said doing these things had nothing to do with their emotions.

"This has nothing to do with understanding the emotion of Indians or anyone. If someone is emotional, he is emotional and we cannot change his emotions. The emotion of a man can only be changed by himself not by others," he added.

Asked about the five Hindraf leaders under ISA detention in Kamunting, Samy said: "I don't know what you are talking about. I only know about BN and MIC and how to win the elections," he added. Earlier, Samy Vellu was again heckled by an angry crowd of Indians upon arrival in the area, but a tight police cordon, including the presence of Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) personnel, prevented any untoward incidents. Similar incidents have happened to Samy Vellu in recent months, including one in Butterworth last week when an angry group of people refused to allow him to leave a school premises in Butterworth and police had to be called in to clear the crowd. Samy was at Subbaiyah's service centre to have his lunch when the group of about 10 men and women tried to meet him. The group, shouting abuses tried to cross the road to the service centre but were prevented by the police. On police advice, Samy and his entourage left in a huff which even further infuriated the crowd which later dispersed after police advised them to do so.

= == = == = =from NST visit to Perai & Bagan Dalam
Samy Vellu said the state government had allocated RM1 million while the federal government had come up with another RM3.5 million to repair the lifts. The government had also allocated another RM4 million to upgrade the Taman Chai Leng wet market.
Asked why the problems were only being attended to now, Samy Vellu said a decision to repair the lifts was made six months ago. However, he said the money was released by the Treasury to the local council before it was redirected to his ministry. “This was not something that could be done in a day or two. Nevertheless, the problem is resolved now,” he said. On the situation in other states, Samy said he was going all over to help MIC candidates in the campaign.

“I am spending one day in Sungai Siput and every other day elsewhere to help campaign for the other MIC candidates,” he said. “I am especially happy with the situation in Johor where the Menteri Besar had taken charge by helping out the MIC’s campaign.”

BN 08 Election Manifesto Fishes Non-Malay Votes: Promises All; Allay fears over rising food & fuel costs, street crimes, influx cheap foreign labour

2008-02-26T09:10:00.001+08:00

ABOVE: The launch of the BN Manifesto BELOW: waived in by the main stakeholders

BN Election Manifesto Fishes Non-Malay Votes: Promises All; allay fears over rising food, fuel costs, street crimes, & an influx of cheap foreign labor

Monday February 25, 7:46 PM
Malaysia PM woos non-Malays in election manifesto

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia's ruling coalition promised on Monday to soothe growing anger by minority Chinese and Indians over education and religious rights. In its election manifesto, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's coalition also pledged to create two million new jobs, encourage one million new businesses and rein in the fiscal deficit over the next five years. "We have managed the economy well, we have ensured that Malaysia is on theright track," he told some 500 supporters at his party headquarters. "We
will deliver our promise." The Barisan Nasional coalition is considered certain to be re-elected in March 8 polls, but risks a backlash by Buddhist ethnic Chinese and Hindu ethnic Indians who have complained of religious and racial inequality in the mainly Muslim nation.
The opposition, aiming to deny Barisan a two-thirds majority, the level needed to change the constitution, also hopes to draw a protest vote over rising food and fuel costs, street crimes and an influx of cheap foreign labour. In the manifesto, Barisan said it would keep Chinese and Indian schools, extend use of Mandarin and Tamil at national schools and offer university scholarships for poor students, irrespective of race. It will also form a "special mechanism" to facilitate the setting up and relocation of temples, mosques and churches, an issue that has sparked a bitter complaint especially by Hindus. The government will also step up inter-faith dialogue and ensure that developers set aside land for places of worships in their townships, it said.
More than 10,000 Indians staged their community's biggest anti-government protest in November, braving water cannon, tear gas and arrest to accuse the government of discrimination. Ethnic Chinese, too, have aired growing complaints about the government’s decades-old affirmative action policy, which gives Malays perks such as share allocations and cheap housing loans.
Politically dominant Malay Muslims form about 60 percent of Malaysia's 26 million people, while ethnic Indian, Chinese, Sikh minorities include Hindus, Buddhists and Christians.

= == == == == = =
February 25, 2008 20:10 PM
BN's Manifesto Promise Security, Peace And Prosperity

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 25 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today launched Barisan Nasional's (BN) progress report and election manifesto, themed "Security, Peace and Prosperity", which contains a clear mission and vision to bring Malaysia towards a more glorious future. Eight main topics form the thrust and pledge of the manifesto which was accompanied this time by a progress report outlining what the coalition has done from 2004 to 2007. The topics are economy, balanced development, education, law and public safety, public service, combating corruption and enhancing administration, religion and unity and foreign policy.

Under economy, the BN pledged to:
* raise the country's productivity, revenue and competitiveness;
* tackle price increases to ensure quality of life for the people;
* enhance the role of the private sector as the primary engine in generating economic growth;
* Nurture and help one million small- and medium-scale companies and entrepreneurs in five years;
* generate more than two million jobs in five years;
* reduce the country's fiscal deficit to enable more funds to be usedfor development, without raising taxes;
* implement development plans for all the five economic corridors togenerate growth, investments and job opportunities nationwide;
*The progress report for the economy, entitled "Generating Strong andSustainable Growth", for 2004 to 2007 says that:*
* The gross domestic product (GDP) grew from RM427 billion to RM504 billion;
* All sectors showed growth including new activities like modernagriculture, biotechnology, ICT and Islamic banking. Visit Malaysia Year
2007 recorded the highest number of tourist arrivals of 21 million people;
* International trade rose 26 per cent from RM881 billion to RM1.11trillion; The average monthly household income rose from RM3,249 to RM3,617;
* Price control on essential goods was maintained and RM43.4 billion wasspent in the form of subsidies (2007) to tackle price increases;

ABOVE & BELOW: The BN Manifesto targets mainly the Non-Malay votes represented by the respective Ministers in teh Cabinet

* 1.3 million jobs were created;
* Programmes to transform government linked companies (GLC) succeeded inincreasing profits and giving higher returns to unit trust shareholders and Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributors;
* Over 204,000 SMIs had been developed since 2005 involving the disbursement of RM107 billion in loans and the implementation of 402 programmes;
* Five economic corridor development plans were launched to generate and bring growth to all corners of the country;
* The Malaysian Bourse Composite Index rose to its highest level in history and there was a 161 per cent increase in capital market from RM460 billion in 2003 to RM1.2 trillion in2007;
* Foreign exchange reserves rose 130 per cent from US$44 billion toUS$101 billion;
* Malaysia's ranking in the Global WEF Competitiveness Index rose from25th in 2005 to 21st in 2007;

*Under Balanced Development, the BN pledged to:*
* eradicate hardcore poverty and reduce overall poverty to 2.8 per cent by 2010;
* increase incomes and opportunities for quality jobs in the rural areas;* improve service and facilities for low-income households in urbanareas, including for migrants from the villages to the towns;
* enhance the provision of quality houses at affordable prices;
* increase access to modern and quality health services;
* improve public transport service in the towns and reduce traffic jams;
* improve road development in rural and other less developed areas;
* Upgrade rail and air services;
* Increase coverage of electricity supply in the rural areas in Sabahfrom 81 per cent to 90 per cent by 2010;
* Increase coverage of water supply in rural areas in Sabah and Sarawakto 70 per cent by 2010;
* Continue with efforts to narrow the digital divide and enhance the penetration of broadband Internet service through the National Broadband Plan;
* Continue with the implementation of the New Villages Development Master Plan;
* Ensure balanced distribution of quality chances that can generate income, employment, business and education nationwide;
* The "New Kelantan, Progressive Kelantan" approach aims to ensure quality development and a better life for the residents of Kelantan;
*Under the same topic, the progress report from 2004-2007 underlined thetopic on Narrowing the Gaps:*
* Reduced hardcore poverty from 1.2 per cent of population to 0.7 percent and reduced overall poverty from 5.7 per cent to 3.5 per cent;
* Reduced rural-to-urban income ratio from 1:2.11 to 1:1.99, exceedingthe 2010 target;
* Increased agriculture incomes; e.g padi farmers mean monthly incomeincreased 27 per cent to RM1.549; rubber smallholders increased 34 percent to RM1,727;
* Delivered 178,000 low-cost homes;
* Opened 14 new hospitals, 22 new `Klinik Kesihatan' and 64 new `Klinik
Desa';
* Expanded electricity supply to over 74 per cent in Sabah and 83 per cent in Sarawak;
* Built 12,190km of village roads;
* Built three new airports, including a low-cost terminal, and upgraded five existing airports.

*BN's pledge in the education sector is to:*
* Raise teachers' minimum qualifications and provide more training opportunities;
* Continue to make national schools the school of choice by, among others, expanding the teaching of Mandarin and Tamil;
* Safeguard the position of national-type schools;
* Enhance national unity by fostering student interaction;
* Provide more scholarships at the undergraduate level for poor but deserving students regardless of race;
* Identify apex universities and provide more autonomy and resources forpublic institutions of higher learning to attain world-class standards;
* Raise investment in science and technology particularly in indigenous R&D.
*In the education progress report for 2004-2007, BN has enhanced access
and standards by:*
* Launching the Education Blueprint 2006-2010 and the Higher Education Strategic Plan to raise education standards;
* Expanding `Skim Pinjaman Buku Teks' to all primary and secondary school children;
* Removing school and examination fees;
* Allocating RM3 billion for scholarships and essential items to lower-income group students;
* Providing RM12 billion to improve rural schools;
* Raising special allowance for 12,000 teachers and teaching assistants serving in rural areas;
* Allocating RM174 million for fully-aided Chinese primary schools and RM65 million for fully-aidedTamil primary schools under the 9^th Malaysia Plan;
* Allocating RM100 million for partially-aided Chinese and Tamil primary schools under the 9th Malaysia Plan;
* Ensuring at least one public university or one UiTM branch in every state;
* Expanding community colleges from 34 o 53, doubling enrolment to over 115,000;
* Increasing number of JPA undergraduate scholarships at local universities from 5,000 to 10,000 annually; raising allowance for JPA students in overseas universities;
* Raising investment in science R&D, including sending the first Malaysian into space.

*BN's promise in the implementation of law and order:*
* Bring down the country's crime index;
* Tackle drug abuse and other social ills;
* Address the issue of illegal immigrants;
* Add 60,000 police personnel by 2011;
* Set up more than 150 new police stations and beat bases to increase presence in more neighbourhoods;
* Improve safety in schools, playgrounds and public areas;
* Enhance community policing via partnerships with non-governmental organisations, the private sector and local community;
* Upgrade police communications technology, armaments, vehicles, technical aids and training;
* Focus police operations and resources in crime hot-spots across the country;
* Redelineate police districts to better match police resources with community security needs.
*Efforts to make the police more dynamic and the progress attained from 2004 through 2007:*
* Established the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Police, leading to over 85 per cent of the Commission's proposals being carried out;
* Increased salaries of police and armed forces personnel by 9 to 42 per cent;
* Doubled development allocation in 9th Malaysia Plan to RM3.8 billion and allocated an additional RM5 billion in PFI funding to modernise the police;
* Increased recruitment of police personnel, brought back newly-retired police officers, set up more police stations and expanded use of CCTVs;
* Launched more intensive police surveillance and operation in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, the Kinta Valley and the Iskandar Development Region;
* Established an Independent Commission in response to public concern onpolice body search procedures;
* Raised road user awareness and enforcement, notably reducing injuriesand deaths per population from road accidents.

*BN's promise on Public Services:*
* Speed up implementation of e-government initiatives;
* Complete overhaul of all land offices and district offices;
* Speed up issuance of licences and permits;
* Establish rating system for local authorities to improve performance;
* Tie civil servants' promotions, rewards and penalties more closely to performance targets;
* Increase ethnic diversity in the public sector;
* Have a three to seven-day response time by all government agencies toall public queries and complaints;
*Progress in the public services from 2004-2007 takes on the topic
"Moving Towards World-Class Levels":*
* Automatic refunds for overpaid income taxes; refunds paid within 14 to 30 days for online tax submissions;
* Passports issued within three hours at major Immigration Department branches; MyKad issued within 24 hours at major National Registration Department branches;
* Cleared 70 per cent of backlogged land cases via "flying squads";
* Reduced time taken for payments to government contractors and suppliers to 14 days;
* One hour to register business and 15 minutes to renew business registrations;
* One-stop centres at local authorities to reduce time to approve building plans;
* Replaced Certificate of Fitness for Occupation (CFO) with industry-issued Certificate of Completion & Compliance (CCC);
* Set up PEMUDAH, a public-private task force to reduce the cost of doing business in Malaysia;
* Increased civil service salaries, reintroduced cost of living allowance and allocated more than RM6 billion for government quarters.
*BN''s promise in reducing corruption and improving governance:*
* Continue to enforce anti-corruption measures without fear or favour;
* Strengthen monitoring and enforcement by agencies such as the ACA,
Customs, Inland Revenue and local authorities; * Establish an effective Special Complaints Commissions to act on complaints of misconduct in enforcement agencies;
* Continue to foster a culture of integrity and high ethical standards through the National Integrity Plan.
*The progress report for 2004-2007 for "Creating First Class Institutions" in reducing corruption and improving governance:*
* Raised awareness on fighting corruption, leading to a 25 per cent increase in the number of reports lodged (2003-2007);
* Increased number of corruption-related arrests by 72 per cent from 318arrests (2003) to 546 (2007);
* Increased conviction rate for corruption-related cases from 50 percent (2004) to 74 per cent (2007);
* Doubled the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) operating budget to RM154 million and committed M372 million for development under the 9^th Malaysia Plan;
* Increased the number of ACA officers including specialists such as forensic auditors, and established the ACA Academy;
* Launched the National Integrity Plan and established the Malaysian Institute of Integrity;
* Established and enhanced eight Parliamentary Select and Special Select Committees to increase checks and balances;
* Enhanced transparency and accountability in the annual Auditor-General's Report;
* Established a Commission of Inquiry into the video clip of alleged interference in judicial appointments.

BELOW: The support from the 2nd liners

*BN''s pledge on religion and unity:*

* Build a better understanding of Islam among Muslims and non-Muslims through Islam Hadhari;
* Enhance appreciation for diverse cultures among Malaysia's multiethnicpeople;
* Expand the teaching of J-QAF to more schools;
* Ensure provision of reserve land for places of worship in newly-developed areas in accordance with developed guidelines;
* Facilitate construction, consolidation and relocation of all places of worship via state government mechanism, co-ordinated at federal level,that will protect the interests of all communities;
* Increase dialogue on inter-faith issues through the Department of National Unity and National Integration;
* Improve unity programmes, especially in schools and institutions of higher learning.
*The progress report on religion and unity from 2004-2007 under the topic "Building Bridges, Deepening the Faith":*
* Established 10 principles of Islam Hadhari, an approach of progressive Islamic civilisation;
* Upgraded Islamic education in schools by introducing the Jawi-Quran,Arabic and Fardu-Ain (J-QAF) Programme;
* Improved welfare of religious officers, including provision of RM450 allowance for imams;
* Maintained cost of Haj pilgrimage despite rising prices;
* Guaranteed the right to worship for all Malaysians;
* Develop guidelines that ensure the provision of reserve land for places of worship of all communities in newly-developed areas;
* Encouraged inter-faith understanding via forums such as the National Unity Advisory Panel;
* Promoted inter-ethnic unity via the School Integration Programme and National Service Training Programme.

*BN's promise on foreign policy:*
* Continue to play an active, principled and impartial role in international affairs;
* Expand trade and investment linkages;
* Advance the economic agenda of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) through capacity-building programmes in less-developed OIC countries;
* Promote strategic partnerships between the West and the Muslim world to advance the economic agenda of the Makkah Declaration 2005;
* Continue to build bridges between the Muslim world and the West through continuous dialogue;
* Contribute towards a development agenda for the world's poorest countries.
*The progress report on foreign policy from 2004-2007 under the topic:
"Demonstrated Strong Malaysian Leadership":*
* Showed steady leadership in the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and OIC;
* Hosted the historic first East Asian Summit, providing the platform for closer co-operation between ASEAN and China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand;
* Secured new markets and enhanced linkages via high-level visits. Trade with all major trading partners expanded rapidly, with fastest growth recorded for China (65 per cent increase), OIC countries (54 per cent) and ASEAN (29 per cent);
* Strengthened Malaysia's voice in the international arena by championing the developing world's economic and social interests;
* Highlighted international injustices, in particular Israeli aggressionin Palestine;
* Enhanced NAM's role, including establishing the NAM institute for the Empowerment of Women and NAM News Network;
* Put an economic face to the OIC via the Capacity Building Programme to reduce poverty and through the World Islamic Economic Forum to enhance trade and investment;
* Played a key role in promoting dialogue between the West and theMuslim World;
* Continued to promote cooperation, peace and stability in ASEAN.