Undur lah, Pak Lah - Step Down, Pak Lah!

Undur lah, Pak Lah - Step Down, Pak Lah!

Few images could match the pathos of a man struggling to keep his head above water as he is drowning. A more tragic scene would be seeing a Mongoloid child quietly slipping underwater, oblivious of the mortal danger he is in as he sinks down, grinning. No intimations of fear or helplessness; a few moments later he would be found lifeless at the bottom of the pond.

This is the image Prime Minister Abdullah currently projects, and it is not far from the reality. He is way above his head, and is blissfully unaware of it. He still maintains the “elegant silence” of a Pak Bisu (the lovable deaf-mute uncle), and a “What? Me Worry?” grin of Mad Magazine’s Alfred Neuman.

He is sinking fast, and he does not know it. He is also taking his party and the -nation down with him. Unfortunately, it is not within our culture for those closest to him to warn him of the impending disaster, much less to rescue the poor soul. On the contrary, they would continue to shield him from the harsh reality, all the way down to the bottom of the pond. They are more interested in protecting their own interests rather than in saving the man or the nation.

Undur lah, Pak Lah! Step down, Pak Lah! Spare your party, race and the nation you love needless grief.

It would be presumptuous of me to suggest that you might also be sparing yourself, your loved ones, and those closest to you. That is not for me to say.

Right Decision; Right Timing; Right Reason

By stepping down now, Abdullah would be making the one right decision at the right time and for all the right reasons, something that has sorely eluded him since becoming Prime Minister.

This would be an appropriate time for him to announce his resignation, to be effective following the election of a new leader at UMNO’s forthcoming annual convention in November. Doing so now would spare his party and the nation the endless distractions of a leadership tussle. With Ramadan coming up, there will be only a few weeks for the members to focus on electing their leader. The restraining influence of that holy month would curtail the more blatant “money politics” that has plagued UMNO. That would help ensure a clean election; at least I hope so.

Were Abdullah to reveal his stubborn streak and hang on however tenuously, rest assured that the party and nation would be consumed by the leadership brawl. Forget about the Ninth Malaysia Plan, economic growth, or even plain normalcy. Even if Abdullah were to survive (a very big “if”), it would be a hollow victory. He, the party, Malays, and Malaysia would have been senselessly and irreparably battered in the process.

Clinging on would only make him look even more pathetic and helpless than he is already now. Please spare us the sorry sight!

I trust the collective wisdom of UMNO members to select Abdullah’s worthy successor. They have been through the exercise many times before. When Datuk Onn left the party in a huff, sulking because the members would not do his bidding, they demonstrated great judgment in picking the hitherto unknown and colorless civil servant, Tunku Abdul Rahman. It was a prescient choice for later he would lead the nation to Merdeka. In contrast, the daring, brilliant and charismatic Datuk Onn was content to remain in the false security of the colonial cocoon.

Similarly later when the Tunku was enjoying himself too much in being the “world’s happiest Prime Minister” while the nation was fracturing, UMNO members again asserted themselves. That famous genuflecting letter to Tunku from Dr. Mahathir may be from one person, but not its sentiment.

Granted, the UMNO of today is a far cry from its earlier being; it is now corrupted to its core. The rot accelerated when Anwar Ibrahim introduced the party and its members to “modern” forms of campaigning, as with “money politics.” It was only through outright corruption and blatant bribery, condoned by the party’s senior leaders, was Anwar successful in dislodging Ghaffar Baba as Deputy President and thus, Deputy Prime Minister. However, as we Muslims would observe, Allah has His Ways; nothing happens without His Will.

Today money politics is entrenched; it seems futile to have faith in UMNO’s ability to make wise decisions, uncorrupted by money and influence peddling. Examine the last leadership convention, and that was with the two top positions not contested. Imagine the ugly tussles and ensuing gross corruptions had both positions been vacant.

There is some reason to hope that this time it would be different, if Abdullah were to resign now. With the restraining influence of Ramadan and Hari Raya, as well as the short notice, there would not be a prolonged disruptive and acrimonious campaign. There would be corresponding less time for intrigue and bribery. It takes time to form alliances and to engage in backstabbing.

This may well be the only opportunity for the party to have a relatively honest election, and for its members to express freely their collective wisdom. This may also be the only chance the party has to cleanse its leadership, and thus itself.

If Abdullah does not seize this rare opportunity and instead succumb to the flatteries of his courtiers, rest assured that the party and nation would needlessly be distracted until he is out. Not a pretty prospect, for him, the party, and the nation.

Contrary to Abdullah’s perception, Mahathir is not the problem; silencing him would not be the solution. Mahathir is getting wide hearing not because he is the former Prime Minister (although that is a factor), rather the issues he raises resonate with the citizens.

Undoing Mahathir’s Legacy

If Abdullah were intent on undoing Mahathir’s legacy, as Abdullah’s many interlocutors seemed to convey, then stepping down now would do it. He would have effectively broken UMNO’s ill-advised “tradition” of not contesting the two top positions. This presumes that Najib would contest the top slot with Abdullah’s withdrawal, and thus automatically vacate his Deputy President post. There is nothing to indicate that he would not do so.

It was just over two years ago that Abdullah received an overwhelming mandate from the people. He has not committed any egregious deeds, which would be the usual reason in calling for a resignation. On the contrary, he has done a few things right; that is to say, I agree with those decisions.

That is precisely Abdullah’s problem. Even when he did the rare right thing, as with trimming the budget deficit, canceling that silly crooked bridge, and reducing the petroleum subsidy, his timing was off and or his reasoning flawed.

It was pathetic and painful to see his ministers and other defenders going through contortions to justify canceling that bridge. As for the timing, the penalty payments may yet exceed the cost had the boondoggle been built!

As for Abdullah’s overwhelming mandate of 2004, do not read too much into it. Malaysians are by nature generous and forgiving of our leaders, at least the first time around. When Tunku took over from the towering Datuk Onn, Tunku’s Alliance Party won all but one of the 52 seats. Datuk Onn scrapped through with the only one seat.

This was not because Malaysians were mudah lupa (easily forgetting) or being ungrateful to Datuk Onn for his great service in establishing UMNO and saving the nation from becoming a dominion. Rather, Malaysians prefer giving their new leaders a rousing start and a generous chance.

Resigning the prime ministership is quite the tradition in Malaysia. Chalk one up for the nation! Tunku did it temporarily to concentrate running his campaign in1959. A decade later the Tunku missed the subtle Malay signals and was more or less forced out, albeit civilly and with decorum in 1970. Hussein did it gracefully in 1981, without prompting, when he found himself overwhelmed.

Fast-forward to today, Hussein Onn is fondly remembered despite his forgettable tenure. In contrast, during the recent celebration of Merdeka’s 49th anniversary, few recalled the Tunku’s pivotal leadership in that fateful event.

Mahathir made it clear that he now deeply regrets anointing Abdullah as his successor. That point is irrelevant. By resigning now and simultaneously opening up the nomination process by letting anyone to participate by doing away with the onerous branch nomination requirements, Abdullah would reduce the corrupting influence of money politics and help ensure getting the best candidates. Let the membership decide who are serious and who are frivolous candidates. By resigning now, Abdullah would also ensure that the next generation of leaders would truly be the choice of the membership. That is a legacy that even Mahathir could not match. That is also the one enduring legacy worth leaving.

Undur lah, Pak Lah!

( M Bakri Musa )

(Note - Malaysian-born Bakri Musa writes frequently on issues affecting his native land, Malaysia. Bakri’s day job is as a surgeon in private practice in Silicon Valley, California. He and his wife Karen live on a ranch in Morgan Hill. E-mail: bakrimusa@juno.com )

Lim Kit siang Said :

Who would have imagined that when Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should be at the height of his power and influence, having just won the biggest general election landslide victory ever achieved by any Prime Minister in March 2004, announced the RM220 billion Ninth Malaysia Plan and presented the biggest ever budget in the nation’s history on Friday totaling RM159.4 billion, there is a strong voice calling for his resignation.

Such a call has not come from his political enemies – whether inside UMNO like Tun Mahathir or outside. This is from outside UMNO and it was made only yesterday, by a Malaysian surgeon in California, M. Bakri Musa, a prolific writer on Malaysian affairs on the Internet, printed media and books.

Yesterday, he emailed me his four-page call “Undur lah, Pak Lah”. I do not agree with the harsh, unkind and cutting language Bakri used against Abdullah in several places.

Bakri urged Abdullah to step down now, which he described as “the one right decision at the right time and for all the right reasons, something that has sorely eluded him since becoming Prime Minister”.

He felt that this would be an appropriate time for Abdullah to announce his resignation to be effective following the election of a new leader at UMNO’s forthcoming annual assembly in November.

I do not intend to comment on Bakri’s call to Abdullah to step down as Prime Minister, but it must be recognized that Bakri’s underlying theme that Abdullah is not providing leadership will find considerable resonance among the people.

In fact, more and more Malaysians are asking who is the Prime Minister in Malaysia and whether there is a Prime Minister in Malaysia – in the same way that more and more are asking whether we have a Finance Minister or an Internal Security Minister in the real sense of the term, in the latter case in view of the runaway crime situation with the farce of the Royal Police Commission’s key recommendation for an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission meant to be established in May this year.

Abdullah must come to grips with the drift and malaise in his administration, assert leadership, shakeup and downsize the Cabinet, “walk the talk” and implement the election pledges for which he had won the unprecedented mandate of a 91 per cent parliamentary majority – if he is to leave behind a worthwhile legacy as the fifth Prime Minister of Malaysia.

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PM Says He Will Face All Obstacles And Challenges In His Way

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Monday said that he would face any challenge or obstacle standing in his way and would not give up his struggle to develop the country and its people.

He said that as a leader, he had no option but to face the challenges and obstacles head on.

"Failure is not an option, as such, we have to succeed in overcoming whatever challenges and obstacles come in the way... the previous leaders also had their share of challenges and obstacles and they faced them," he said when officiating the Malam Mesra Pulau Mutiara dinner organised by the Former Elected Representatives Council (Mubarak), here Monday night.

The Prime Minister said that he had been given a huge mandate by the people to lead the country and obviously, the challenges that came along with it were also massive as the people had placed their hopes on his shoulders.

He said that in making big decisions, he practiced the consensus system, which had been the approach of the government for a very long time.

Abdullah said that under his leadership, there had been no conflicts when making decisions and he had never asked anybody to raise their hands as a show of support during a meeting.

"When everyone has agreed, then only a decision is taken. If some disagree, we will not decide. We postpone the decision until all reach agreement, only this way can we achieve a strong decision," he said.

He said that his focus now was to ensure that the national mission, which was the backbone of the country's development, was achieved in the next 15 years and that was why everybody must give their full commitment to ensure the Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Malaysia Plans were successful.

At the function, Abdullah also announced a RM120,000 allocation for Mubarak to buy a building for its headquarters.

Earlier, Mubarak President Tan Sri Wira Abdul Razak Alias said the council would continue to help the people through numerous social activities.

-- BERNAMA

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Why Money Talks and Even Walks in Asia

Walking the streets of Kuala Lumpur, it's hard not to wonder why Southeast Asia isn't a paradise for investors the way it is for tourists.

Malaysia is part of the 10-country grouping known as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean. All told, it's home to roughly 560 million people, skilled labor, rich natural resources, lucrative export industries and ambitious plans to integrate economies and markets.

Southeast Asia also boasts what the West lacks: healthy growth, young and expanding populations, swelling cities, growing ranks of middle-class consumers, nascent debt markets and, arguably, undervalued equity markets.

So, what's not to like? You start to wonder when looking at investment flows to Southeast Asia, something McKinsey & Co. consultants Adam Schwarz and Roland Villinger have done in a new report. Their yearlong study of the Asean region offers a stark reminder that it ``has slipped dramatically in the wake of the Asian financial crisis'' that began in 1997....(more)
By William Pesek - (William Pesek Jr. is a columnist for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

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Steve Irwin, the quirky Australian naturalist who won worldwide acclaim as TV's khaki-clad "Crocodile Hunter," was killed by a stingray barb through the heart while filming a new documentary on Monday....(more)
-Yahoo News


Malaysia Ahmad Badawi Merdaka Malaysia Economy Mahathir Lim Kit Siang Crocodile Hunter Irwin Pak Lah