A tale of two MB

Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim has insisted he had been given the mandate by Barisan Nasional chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to continue becoming the Perlis Mentri Besar.
Shahidan claimed the "letter of mandate" given to him by the prime minister requested the Raja of Perlis to appoint him to lead the state.

"I have the letter but if Tuanku does not want to appoint me because the Ruler has confidence in other people and there are laws allowing him to do so, well, that is his prerogative and right. I have 120 days and who ever is sworn in apart from me, he can be regarded as going against the PM's order and an opposition. We will see what to do next as it is the people who has chosen the BN to lead the state, not individual.

"BN wins in Perlis, so BN will lead the state. And if that person accepts to be sworn in, that means he does not support me and also the prime minister. He is an opposition." (The New Straits Times)

Jelebu MP Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said Raja Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail has the power to appoint Bintong state assemblyman Dr Md Isa Sabu as the new Perlis Menteri Besar.

He said it is one of the three major powers of the state rulers.

Rais Yatim further urged Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim to accept and comply with Raja's decisions. (Sin Chew Daily)

Meanwhile, The new Menteri Besar of Perak will be sworn in at Istana Iskandariah in the royal town of Kuala Kangsar tomorrow.

The private secretary to the Sultan of Perak, Datuk Abdul Rahim Mohamad Nor, said the Regent of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, had consented to the swearing-in of State PAS secretary Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin as the Menteri Besar.

Mohammad Nizar, who is also Pasir Panjang assemblyman, will take his oath of office, pledge of loyalty and secrecy before Raja Nazrin at 11.30am, he said in a statement faxed to Bernama today.


Malaysia's Opposition Reborn

By Tion Kwa
(Tion Kwa is a Fellow at the Asia Society.)

In Malaysia's recent elections, opposition parties managed their strongest showing since the country gained its independence from Britain in 1957, cutting the ruling coalition's parliamentary majority to below two-thirds. Where the country's newly invigorated democracy goes from here rests with one man, Anwar Ibrahim, the deputy prime minister sacked by former premier Mahathir Mohamad and later jailed.

Anwar can finally make the opposition a credible check on the National Front ruling coalition, but knows that he will never become prime minister this way. No one, after all, expects the opposition to win enough seats to form a government in the conceivable future. He can allow himself to be wooed back by his former party, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the National Front's leading member.

UMNO is widely believed to have held talks with Anwar before. Now, more than ever, it needs Anwar to reestablish its credibility. And, to become prime minister, Anwar needs UMNO.

Arguably, being inside UMNO and the government would allow Anwar to better institute the reforms he has so ardently advocated. But, before all that, Anwar needs to get himself elected to parliament again.

If Anwar were to marry his leadership and charisma to the opposition's newfound heft in the federal legislature - 82 MPs, compared with 20 in the last parliament - serious policy alternatives to the government's might be expected. Until now, the opposition has chiefly acted as an irritant, and voters viewed debates as entertainment, rather than as exchanges that informed policy.

For the same reason, policy platforms have never been important for the opposition in elections. Many who voted for the DAP on Saturday, for example, are unlikely to have known or cared about what the party stood for. Traditionally, people voted for the DAP or the Justice Party to show their displeasure with the National Front. Indeed, if ideas were important, a leftist party like the DAP would have found it difficult to cooperate with the PAS. But cooperate they did......read more.


And, Now See What Happens When You Play Around With The Keris? :

Thus it can perhaps be said that the election results of 2008 are an indicator of the extent to which MCA, Gerakan and MIC have been seen as the running dogs of UMNO in a BN coalition that has grown more and more unbalanced in the eyes of so many. Playing around with kerises is something you do in old movies about silat warriors, but not in the context of modern-day Malaysian politics where respect for cultural diversity and the equal pride and status of all communities should be paramount. The hot-heads in UMNO Youth may have been playing to the Malay gallery when they pulled the stunt of drawing the keris in public, but the catastrophic damage they did to the image and standing of their component BN partners was beyond calculation. In the end, however, it is not the keris, but rather the clumsy hand that wields it that is to be blamed. UMNO’s two-faced management of race-relations, which was flawed from the outset, has undone itself and the BN. To quote the popular refrain: “Padan Muka”.

Malaysian accord aims to avert split

The Malays are prepared to accept a Chinese Menteri Besar. The Malays are prepared to accept a Chinese Menteri Besar even if that Chinese is from DAP. And the Malays left it entirely to Tuanku to decide if Tuanku wants a Malay or Chinese Menteri Besar, never mind from which political party he may be from.

DAP says, this is people's power. DAP says, the people are the boss. This has been DAP's rallying call and battle-cry from one election to another. The 2008 general election was about people's power. The people demonstrated who is the boss in the 2008 general election. But DAP does not respect people's power nor regard the people as the boss in its decision to defy Tuanku by boycotting the swearing in of the Perak state government.

- Raja Petra Kamarudin

Malaysia's three-party opposition alliance signed an accord Friday to stop squabbling over the leadership of a state government, averting a split in their newfound friendship.

The three parties signed and submitted a letter to the titular ruler of Perak state just after midnight Thursday, confirming that a lawmaker from the Islamic party in the coalition will become the chief minister.

The disagreement over the leadership -- played out in public since Wednesday -- prompted predictions that the opposition alliance may not be able to stick together for long despite its spectacular victory in Saturday's general elections, which posed the first credible challenge to the ruling National Front coalition since the country's independence in 1957.

A compromise was reached when the DAP and PAS agreed that Mohammad Nizar would remain the chief minister but his 10-member executive council, or Cabinet, would have eight DAP members.

This made PKR unhappy, which said if a Malay has to be the chief minister it should be a PKR member because it won more seats than PAS. Also, it objected to getting only one Cabinet post.

An exasperated sultan canceled the swearing-in ceremony for Mohammad Nizar at the last minute on Thursday and told the parties to settle their differences and give him a written statement.

Dzulkifly said there is no dispute now over the chief ministership, and the make up of the Cabinet would be decided later.

The coalition is already showing the early signs of internal fracturing.

The DAP is suspicious of the Islamic PAS which is fighting for an introduction of Sharia law for Muslim citizens.

In Perak state, members of the Democratic action party will boycott the swearing in of the new chief minister, chosen by the local sultan from the rank and file of the PAS.

Anwar Ibrahim, the man credited with radically changing the political landscape of Malaysia, could not contest the Mar. 8 general elections that saw the ruling coalition lose five state governments and its long-held two-thirds majority in parliament.

During an interview with IPS, Ibrahim pledged to defend and promote free-market economy, foreign investment and continue the development process. But he emphasised that progress and wealth will now benefit the poor of all races, not the rich and ruling elite.

"We are confident that under our leadership and working closely with our partners (in the opposition) we will begin to implement policies to ensure a stronger and more vibrant economy in Malaysia," he said.

"We will ensure that investor confidence remains strong during the transition period and also to identify areas of concern that our new governments (state governments) will address in enhancing and improving their operations and performance in Malaysia," he said.

Religion, Islamic theocracy or parochial and racial issues did not figure in the opposition campaign this time, giving no ammunition to the government to exploit. Ibrahim’s message of change resonated with ordinary Malaysians irrespective of their race or religion.

So near, yet so far !!

Meanwhile, Mukhriz Mahathir, The son of former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad on Friday asked Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to step down from office following the ruling coalition's election debacle at the weekend.

"If you do not resign in the near future, I fear the situation will become untenable and Malay support for UMNO and the coalition will be a thing of the past,"

Mukhriz Mahathir is the first figure from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) to demand that Abdullah quit, although his father has also urged him to resign over the party's worst election setback in its 50-year rule.

Dato' Seri,

Let me take this opportunity to thank you and the party's leadership for the faith in me and the chance to contest in Jerlun as a Barisan Nasional candidate. With the blessing and hard work of the party's leadership and machinery as well as the people of Jerlun, I have won the elections and am now a new Member of Parliament.

However, sadly enough, my victory is rendered meaningless in view of the defeat that Umno and the Kedah BN suffered in the hands of the opposition. Apart form Kedah, four other states as well as the Federal Territories also received similar humiliation in defeat.

In fact your own state of Penang was wrested by the DAP from the BN. Kelantan is again under Pas rules. In other states, the BN also suffered a similar humiliation when the level of BN support by the people has tremendously reduced. This, Datuk Seri, has never happened in the history of BN rule.

The sole intention of my letter to you is meant to save UMNO and BN from being rejected further by the people and from being no longer relevant to our religion, race and nation.

Dato' Seri, the people are unhappy and the message from them is very clear, and that is they have rejected you as the nation's chief executive.

Contrary to your claim that you still have the support of Umno and other component parties, the reality is that even our own party members had reneged in their voting pattern by supporting the Opposition and inflicting the BN its defeat.

Dato' Seri, when the people held street demonstrations you openly dared them to resort to the ballot boxes to demonstrate.

They took your challenge by coming out, especially tho people in the Peninsular, and they demonstrated their feelings by voting us out at the BN at State and Parliament levels.

It is therefore clear that your leadership and your handling of the issues faced by the people and the nation are no longer accepted. Let's not deny the truth just for the sake of keeping your seat as Prime Minister.

For the love of this country and the people, I beg that you take responsibility for the defeat. We can save UMNO, the BN and the nation only if you relinquish your positions as Prime Minister and the President of UMNO.

Dato' Seri, I hope you will understand that I make this plea with the intention of salvaging a very dire situation. A move has been made to woo the BN representatives to join the Opposition. The enemy needs just 35 seats more to topple the government of your leadership.

If you do not resign in the near future, I fear that the situation will become untenable and that the Malay support for Umno and BN will be a thing of the past.

This plea I make without malice, and I am aware that your reaction and that of other UMNO members could very well be hostile.

But come what may, I am prepared, for the sake of the Malays and UMNO, to face the consequences of my action. With all humility, I leave my fate to Allah SWT.

Dato' Seri, I am sure that you will do the right thing for the sake of the people and the nation. May Allah SWT bless you for the sacrifice you make by stepping down.

Wasallam

Yours Sincerely

Mukhriz Mahathir
Jerlun Member Parlament

Mahathir, who led the ruling Umno which helms the Barisan Nasional coalition for 22 years before stepping down in 2003, lashed out after its worst performance in history.

“My view is he has destroyed Umno, destroyed the BN and he has been responsible for this,”

Abdullah was punished over rising crime and inflation in an election also tinged by rising racial tensions between majority Muslim Malays and minority ethnic Chinese and Indians.

“I think the people must have been very angry, all the races, Chinese, Malays and Indians,” Mahathir said. “The problem is we (the government) have become so arrogant. We suppress any opinion that we do not like and they begin to believe in their own reports which are not actually consistent with what is happening in the country.

Malaysia Boleh or Malaysians Boleh ?

Malaysian voters open the door for Anwar Ibrahim

by Michael Backman
The Age
March 12, 2008

MALAYSIA Boleh! (Malaysia Can!) is Malaysia's national slogan but after last Saturday's elections, the real slogan should be Malaysians Boleh! for ordinary Malaysians are to be congratulated.

The humiliation they handed their government at the federal and state elections demonstrates how politically sophisticated and mature they have become in the face of a high-handed and patronising government.

Five state governments were won by the opposition and federally, the Government had its worst showing ever. But it was the clinical precision in which voters went about their business that was most impressive.

Zainuddin Maidin, the information minister, lost his seat. A measure of how complacent the Government had become was its appointment of the inept Zainuddin to the role in the first place.

His appalling performance on Al Jazeera television late last year was a very public international humiliation for all Malaysians.

Voters did what Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi did not have the guts to do: they removed him from office.

Malaysia's media has become so discredited that local bloggers are now hugely popular.

Zainuddin had patronisingly warned Malaysians about false information spread by bloggers. They responded by voting one of the most popular bloggers — Jeff Ooi — into parliament.

The birthday of Samy Vellu, the long-serving public works minister and head of the party that represents Malaysia's Indian community, coincided with election day but it was Malaysians who got the birthday present. Samy lost his seat.

No one is more to blame than he for driving Malaysia's Indians into their pitiful state as second-class citizens.

His deputy also lost his seat, as did the head of the party's youth wing, its vice-president, and the head of its women's wing.

The party barely exists now.

Meanwhile, a lawyer who championed the rights of Indians and who has been detained without charge since December because of it, won a seat in a state parliament — a seat in which the majority of voters are actually Chinese.

It seems that ordinary Malaysians have a greater sense of fair play than their Government.

The Government lost power in the state of Penang. Lim Guan Eng, the much-respected new chief minister, was arrested and jailed in 1994 after he distributed a brochure complaining about the handling of claims that the (then)
chief minister of Malacca, Rahim Thamby Chik, had sexual relations with an under-age girl who happened to be one of Lim's constituents.

Unbelievably Thamby Chik was not charged for what amounted to statutory rape but Lim was, for having distributed the pamphlet.

How embarrassing for Abdullah that he must now deal with a chief minister that his Government so unfairly jailed.

Only the state government of Sarawak was spared voters' ire but only because it had its elections last year.

But nature will bring change there too. Its long-serving, outstandingly greedy, cancer-stricken chief minister is soon to learn that a shroud has no pockets.

More broadly, the very legitimacy of Abdullah's Government is open to question.

At the federal level, the opposition received 47.8% of the vote; a remarkable result given voting fraud, a frightened media that gives the opposition almost no positive coverage, and severely rigged electoral boundaries.

As it was, about a third of eligible voters did not vote, meaning that Abdullah's Government was returned by only four out of 10 eligible voters.

Late last year, I met with former finance minister and senior ruling party lawmaker Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah at his residence in Kuala Lumpur.

He told me how appalled he was by the direction Malaysia had taken.

He said that Malaysia needed a free media and a truly independent judiciary. He decried the corruption and nepotism that had beset the leadership of his own party. "But why don't you stand up in parliament and say these things?" I asked.

"Because the media would be instructed not to report it," he said.

If the opposition parties and their leaders can put their egos aside and think strategically, they have a chance of giving Malaysia what it sorely needs, a stable two-party system.

Opposition figure Anwar Ibrahim will become eligible for election next month with the expiry of the ban following his criminal conviction.

The nightmare scenario for Abdullah is that Anwar's wife, who was again elected on Saturday, will resign in the coming months, forcing a by-election at which Anwar will be elected.

He might then help to coalesce the opposition parties into a more unified and effective voice.

If he were to lure the Chinese-based MCA and perhaps the Sarawak-based United Traditional Bumiputera Party away from the ruling coalition, then the opposition would have precisely half the members of parliament. And if just one more government member were to walk — Tengku Razaleigh perhaps — then the Government will fall after 50 years in office.

The current 13-party ruling coalition would be replaced by a five-party coalition.

Whether or not this happens, there will be constant tension from the fact that it might.

Abdullah has emerged as probably Malaysia's most pointless prime minister. The election results are an unmitigated disaster for him and his Government.

If the opposition is sufficiently disciplined and the ruling coalition starts to crack, then his nightmare has only just begun.

Could Abdullah negotiate such a minefield?

So far his political talents don't seem to have stretched beyond using chemical-laden water cannons against his own people.

It would seem his days are numbered.

Malaysia Malaysian Boleh !!!


Meanwhile, Malaysiakini reported that Pasir Panjang state assemblyperson and Perak PAS secretary Mohamad Nizar Jamaludin was today confirmed as the new menteri besar of the state.

The decision was reached after the Regent of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah met with the three nominees for the post this evening.

The other two candidates for the post were state DAP chairperson and Sitiawan state assemblyperson Ngeh Khoo Ham and PKR’s Behrang assemblyperson Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi.

Also decided today is that Ngeh would be made the deputy menteri besar (1) while an Indian candidate would be made deputy menteri besar (2).

Abdullah Vs Anwar

The elections may be over, but the battle for hearts and minds in Malaysia is only just beginning.

A wily challenger came upon a weak and lazy incumbent and pummeled him.

That's how the shocking results of the recently concluded Malaysian elections are being caricatured in the media.

One cartoonist portrayed the worst-ever performance by the ruling coalition as the outcome of a contest between Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the mild-mannered ``never-mind'' prime minister, and Anwar Ibrahim, the tough ``mastermind'' of the opposition.

The poll, however, was not only about personalities. It was also about the people of Malaysia and their disillusionment with a deeply entrenched culture of political and judicial corruption, cronyism and the resultant concentration of economic power.

Anwar and his allies have announced that they would scrap the pro-Malay economic policies in Selangor, which surrounds the federal territory of Kuala Lumpur. Anwar has previously denounced the quotas as ``obsolete'' and an obstacle to economic growth.

Pundits are speculating about how long it will be before Abdullah surrenders the top job -- perhaps to his deputy, the 54-year-old Najib Razak -- or is forced to do so by UMNO leaders.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who assumed his second term in office on Monday,has said his government has important lessons to learn after it suffered heavy losses in general elections, slashing its parliamentary majority and reshaping the country's political landscape,he said all parties in the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition shared responsibility for its heaviest election losses since independence in 1957.

An Associated Press analysis and calculations by independent analysts showed that the coalition's share of the popular vote is barely half _ about 51 percent of the 7.9 million votes cast. Nevertheless, the ruling National

«As far as the parliamentary results are concerned, the ruling coalition should have done even more badly than what they achieved,» said Mohammad Agus Yusoff, a political science professor at the National University of Malaysia.

Take away the sparsely populated states of Sabah and Sarawak on Borneo island _ where the National Front won all but two seats _ and the coalition's popular vote dips to 49.8 percent in peninsular Malaysia, the country's political and economic mainland.

Opposition groups have long blamed gerrymandering for such discrepancies between popular vote and seats in parliament, claiming the Election Commission distorts polling districts to favor the government.

For example, the administrative capital of Putrajaya, a government stronghold, sends one lawmaker to Parliament even though its voter population is about 5,000. But Seputeh constituency in neighboring Kuala Lumpur _ with more than 76,000 voters _ gets only one seat in Parliament, which the opposition Democratic Action Party won.

Authorities, however, deny gerrymandering occurs, saying constituencies are demarcated according to size.

The ruling coalition fared worst in Kuala Lumpur, the country's financial capital, with 38 percent of the vote going to BN, the National Front.

The results underscore deep disaffection among minority ethnic Chinese and Indians, who total only about one-third of Malaysia's 27 million people but live predominantly in the states where the opposition made surprisingly strong inroads.

«There is great disfavor in the urban population that we can see in the popular vote, which is more reflective of public sentiment,» said Tricia Yeoh, director of the Center for Public Policy Studies think tank.

Initial estimates have indicated only around 35 percent of ethnic Chinese voted for the National Front, down from 65 percent in 2004, Yeoh said. About 47 percent of Indians supported the coalition, compared to 82 percent previously.

Ethnic Chinese and Indians have increasingly griped about discrimination _ particularly an affirmative action system that gives Malays preference in jobs, business and education. Urban Malaysians, including Malays, are also frustrated over rising prices and crime.

The ruling coalition's share of votes from the ethnic Malay Muslim majority seem to have dipped less severely from 63 percent in 2004 to 58 percent this time, Yeoh said.

Meanwhile, Rembau’s PKR candidate Badrul Hisham Shaharin is today considering a legal challenge against the result

According to Malaysiakini, on Saturday night, the initial count for the Rembau parliament constituency in Negri Sembilan showed that PKR had taken the seat by a razor-thin majority of 141 votes.

A recount however saw a complete reversal - Khairy Jamaluddin, son-in-law of premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, won by a staggering difference of 5,000 votes.

For opposition party PKR, this stark gap came in as a shock and consequentially became a solid basis for suspicion.

“There were (also) irregularities in the vote counting procedure. The Election Commission (EC) did not issue the ‘Form 14' to us when it was compulsory to do so,” said Badrul, a former teacher and member of PKR supreme council.

Elaborating, Badrul said that Form 14 was an extremely important procedure as the document was one of the many measures that was in place to prevent vote-rigging.

Form 14 contains the number of total voters for a particular polling station and once the vote counting has been finalised, the form will be the official indicator of the number of votes designated for each candidate.

If the form was not issued, the results could not be considered as an official one but most importantly, it gave way for manipulation as the number of votes may be added in favour of a particular candidate.

It is compulsory for the form to be issued from each polling stations to each of the candidates’ polling agents stationed there.

Voters Go Secular, Snub Ruling Coalition

Malaysia's ruling National Front coalition has suffered its biggest setback in five decades of unbroken power, losing five state governments and the two-thirds majority it enjoyed in national parliament.

The big gainer in Saturday's general elections was a three-party ‘secular’ opposition led by reformist leader Anwar Ibrahim whose appeal has risen among voters frustrated by uninspiring leadership, failure to curb rampant corruption and rising ethnic and religious tensions.

In an encouraging sign of political maturity there was no outward display of racial tension or clashes as was the case when the pro-Muslim-Malay ruling coalition suffered reverses in 1969, leading to race riots.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Malaysian prime minister, has been sworn in for a second five-year term, rejecting calls to resign after the ruling coalition's worst-ever election performance.

"I pledge to carry out my duties honestly and with all my abilities," he said, reading out the oath on Monday as he was sworn in by Malaysia's king.

"I pledge to protect and uphold the constitution."

Although he may form a new federal government with a simple majority, the defeat is personally humiliating for Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, already under pressure to quit and hand over the reins to his deputy Najib Razak.

Dr Mahathir — who led the ruling United National Malays Organisation (Umno), which helms the Barisan Nasional (BN), for 22 years before stepping down in 2003,said yesterday his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had "destroyed" the ruling coalition after disastrous weekend election results.

"I am sorry, but I apparently made the wrong choice," he said of his decision to select Mr Abdullah to succeed him then.

Renewing his calls for Abdullah to step down as Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir said: "He has destroyed Umno, destroyed the BN ... he is responsible for this."
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"He should accept 100 per cent responsibility … He needs to consider stepping down," he said.
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Mr Mahathir has previously said he never intended for Mr Abdullah to serve more than one term, and that he should have opted instead for influential Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, now the leader-in-waiting.
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On the BN's worst showing since Malaysia became independent in 1957, Dr Mahathir said: "The people must have been very angry. All the races — Chinese, Malays and Indians."
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"The problem is we (the government) have become so arrogant. We suppress any opinion that we do not like and begin to believe in our own reports, which are not actually consistent with what is happening in the country."
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Abdullah was Dr Mahathir's hand-picked successor when he stepped down. But after the new leader dumped several of his pet projects, Dr Mahathir began launching accusations of economic mismanagement, nepotism and corruption.

But Abdullah told supporters he would not quit.

"Why should I step down?" he told a cheering crowd outside his home late Sunday. "Our party has won. I do not fear anyone except Allah. I will stay on, I will not give up.

"We have to continue our struggle, our agenda is far from over. We want our country to be progressive and successful and for you, the people, to be happy," he added

Abdullah may have made his biggest political blunder by calling early elections that only exposed public anger over simmering racial tensions and his perceived missteps.

"He misread the signs. A lot of people were voting against Badawi," said Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, a human rights lawyer and political commentator. "He became the face of the mismanagement of the country. People were beginning to really, really dislike him despite his affable demeanor."

Abdullah ignored Malaysia's widening poverty gap and increasing cost of living. He made his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin one of his advisers. And when the southern state of Johor was struggling after floods in late 2006, Abdullah was in Perth to inaugurate his brother's curry restaurant.

Some even criticized him for remarrying less than two years after his first wife died of cancer and then engaging in public displays of affection.

"At a time when the country is crumbling around us we have to watch his lovey-dovey going-ons with his wife," said Malik. "People don't want to see a lovable teddy bear. They want a tough leader."

In Kota Alam Shah, this was the moment that supporters of Manoharan Malayalam had been waiting for, the older ones said, for 40 years, and they could feel the tidal wave coming.

Mr Manoharan had been forced to watch his entire campaign from an internal security cell — detained without charge since December for organising an unprecedented rally calling for an end to discrimination against ethnic Indians. Many of the supporters who brought him victory in Kota Alam Shah, where 22 per cent of the population are Indians, used to be staunch supporters of the BN.

“We are suppressed, marginalised, and barred from education — you can name any field and Indians in this country are denied it,” said V. K. Vembarasan, a campaigner for Mr Manoharan. “This election is us showing the Government that we want to end its corruption, its misspending and its mismanagement of the economy.”

Today, as the BN and the rest of Malaysia awake to a completely changed political landscape, the demands for Mr Manoharan’s release will be hard to resist. “The tsunami has spoken,” said Mr Vembarasan.

Undeniably, the 12th General Elections will be much talked about for
quite a while. Five state assemblies are under the DAP-PAS-PKR
coalition while the Federal Territory is now an ocean of DAP-PAS-PKR
with two BN areas in Setiawangsa and Putrajaya, to me this is the
sixth win for the non-BN parties. And with two-thirds majority denied
to the BN, we hope Parliament will finally function as the People's
Parliament and checks and balances will ensure

For us, we are excited because the changes brought about by the people
through their votes mean that we have an avenue to demand for

- fair and transparent decision making
- initiatives to do away with unjust laws and policies
- greater spaces for public participation
- more freedom of expression and rights to information.

After stunning electoral gains that took them completely by surprise, Malaysia's opposition now faces the daunting task of running five states and a third of the national parliament.

The trio of diverse parties, which had formed a loose alliance to confront the Barisan Nasional coalition, had never dreamed of bagging such rich prizes, including the two wealthiest states Selangor and Penang - home to high-brand foreign companies such as Sony and Intel.

Now PKR, party of opposition figurehead Anwar Ibrahim, as well as the Islamic party PAS and the Chinese-dominated DAP, must form workable coalitions to govern.

Malaysians vote in elections expected to clip govt's wings, ethnic Indians may dent outcome.

Malaysians have been choosing a new parliament in an election expected to see Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's huge majority reduced.

Inflation, rising crime and ethnic tensions have made inroads into support for his National Front coalition, analysts say.

Mr Badawi called for ethnic minorities to support him.

The National Front dominates Malaysian politics and currently controls all but one of Malaysia's 13 states and three federal territories - the northern state of Kelantan, which is held by PAS.

However, analysts say ethnic tensions and widespread concerns about price rises are likely to lead to gains for the opposition parties, including one led by the former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Rights monitors and opposition leaders have warned that the coalition, which has ruled for half a century, may manipulate the vote in tightly fought seats, but Abdullah rejected those allegations Saturday.

"Enough of that. They are just looking for excuses in the event they do not win," he said in his Kepala Batas constituency in the island state of Penang, where he arrived dressed in the blue of the Barisan Nasional.

Concerns over electoral fraud triggered a clash between supporters of the Islamic party PAS and police in northern Terengganu state, with authorities using tear gas to disperse some 300 people. Twenty-two people were arrested.

Police chief Musa Hassan said the incident occurred after PAS supporters stopped several buses and cars which they suspected were ferrying in "phantom voters" for the coalition.

When police intervened, the crowd pelted police vehicles with rocks.

"The PAS supporters threw stones at police vehicles, forcing the police to release tear gas to control the situation," he said.

Abdullah, who cast his vote this morning at his Kepala Betas parliamentary constituency in Penang state, earlier said that the government wanted to hear directly the issues raised by the minority ethnic Indians and Chinese leaders in the cabinet and state executive councils and take 'corrective steps'.

"If they are there, we can discuss issues together and take the necessary corrective steps in the interest of all races," Abdullah told a television station in an apparent last minute bid to win back the minority vote bank.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Malaysian prime minister, told voters the night before the elections that they could cause instability and chaos if they abandoned BN, implying that racial tensions could flare up.

In 1969, after Barisan suffered a major electoral setback, race riots broke out in which hundreds of people were killed and a two-year state of emergency followed.

Badawi said: "You have to vote for our future. You have to vote for our children... What will happen if there is chaos and there is instability?"

Polling today in the country's 12th general election ended at 5pm nationwide except in three Sarawak localities where it stalled owing to the capsize of a boat carrying Election Commission (EC) workers.

The 221 voters in the Uma Sekapan Piit longhouse (one locality) and Uma Balo Kasing Long Amo longhouses (two localities) will cast their ballots tomorrow after EC workers are flown there by helicopter, EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman said.

EC workers had conducted the polling at Uma Sekapan Piit, where there are 101 voters, and were travelling to the other longhouses when their boat capsized in the swollen Rajang River, causing the cast ballot papers they were transporting to be damaged.

Altogether, 10.9 million voters nationwide were eligible to go to the polls today to elect representatives in 214 of the 222 parliamentary constituencies and 501 of the 505 state constituencies.

The Election Commission said that the first result is expected to be known as early as 7pm while the attaining of a simple majority is expected to be announced around 10.30pm.....more from Malaysiakini

The moment of truth is upon us !

Public protests are frowned on by Malaysia’s mildly authoritarian government and often broken up by the riot police. So when a group of opposition party members and activists wanted to send a message to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi earlier this year they chose a softer and safer alternative — delivering a pillow to his office.

“He has a reputation for liking to sleep,” said Rahmat Haron, a poet and self-styled government critic. Mr. Rahmat helped lead the small delegation, which made it as far as the security checkpoint. “He sleeps in cabinet meetings, he sleeps in Parliament,” he added. “So we thought, why not make him more comfortable?”

In the face of the repeated criticism that he figuratively and literally sleeps on the job, the prime minister has come across as defensive.

“We are not deaf, for we hear what the people say,” Mr. Abdullah said this week, according to the state-run news agency Bernama. “We are not asleep, for we are working.”

If the governing coalition’s majority is narrowed significantly, Mr. Abdullah’s position would be weakened inside his party, and he could face pressure to step down at a party conference scheduled for later this year, analysts say.

More than 25,000 people attended the rally late on Thursday by the Chinese-dominated Democratic Action Party (DAP) in the northern state of Penang, home to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi where the DAP hoped to make its biggest electoral inroad.

The organizers put the figure at about 50,000 people or more, as the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition faces a backlash by ethnic Chinese and Indians, who complain of religious and racial inequality in the mainly Muslim nation.

Abdullah, speaking to reporters in Penang on Thursday, warned the Chinese that a vote for the opposition could limit their say in national decision-making. "I don't want to form a government that is made up of only one race," he said.

In Malaysia, the General Election began officially last Sunday. Voters go to the polls on 8 March. At just 13 days, the election campaign may seem short to us - but it is actually the longest election campaign in more than 25 years. It is being contested by more than twenty parties, with 1,588 candidates fighting for 222 seats in the national parliament. Malaysia is led by an unassuming and modest Prime Minister, Abdullah Badawi, who heads a national coalition of 14 different parties, representing the full spread of regional, ethnic and religious identities which make up modern day Malaysia.

As a moderate Muslim leader, Badawi advocates a theory of Islam known as ‘Islam Hadhari’ or ‘Civilisation Islam’ which argues for the compatibility of Islam with economic and technological development. It also sees no conflict in better relations between the Muslim world and the West.

The kind of realism that seems to have affected Western policy in the aftermath of Iraq often places security concerns in the Islamic world over the progress and freedoms of its citizens. Malaysia’s current government doesn’t require that kind of compromise. When the West has so few reliable allies in the Muslim world, it would be wise for us to support those who can provide not just security, but also moderation and democracy.

If politics makes for strange bed fellows then this opposition alliance to Mr Badawi has it all. The three party coalition is led by conservative Islamists, includes a party of left-wing Chinese activists as well as the supporters of the former deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar has assiduously courted liberal and media opinion in the USA and Europe since he was released from his imprisonment on corruption charges. He has been a regular on the international speaking circuit. He has rubbed shoulders with some of the regular party-goers on the liberal cocktail circuit of Manhattan's Upper East Side to the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Hong Kong. He increasingly likes to present himself as the Malaysian equivalent of somewhere between Ang Sung Su Kyi and Nelson Mandela but his alliance with the Muslim extremists should start to ring alarm bells in London and Washington.





Anwar’s Letter to Malaysia

Fellow Malaysians,

Assalamualaikum and warmest greetings,

The moment of truth is upon us. The 8th of March 2008 is the pivotal moment of our time - when the people of Malaysia have a choice between changing to a better, more wholesome Malaysia; or continuing to be trapped and shackled by 50 years of a chequered independence.

From day one on nomination day itself, fraud upon fraud has been the hallmark of Umno-BN, through their ever-willing puppet, the EC. The introduction of stamp duties, followed by its abrupt abolition; uneven campaigns and gangster-like threats towards opposition candidates; the EC’s admission that there are apparent 8, 666 votes above 100 years of age; un-secret postal votes; and most shockingly - the abolition of the use of indelible ink on the grounds of ‘public safety’.

These absurd frauds are clearly desperate attempts to maintain the rule of Umno-BN, even as they shiver in fear, seeing the readiness of the people to voice out their dissatisfaction across the length and breadth of the country. But what is truly sad is that it seems, from this endless series of trickery, that in the eyes of Umno-BN, the people of Malaysia are so easily manipulated and fooled with impunity.

That is what Umno-BN wants - for the people to shift their attention away from them, into a morass of deception and misplaced distrust. Dirty tactics are the order of the day, including the ‘import’ of phantom voters in certain areas, including Kelantan, Terengganu and not forgetting Pekan, Pahang. The opposition is blasted daily in the mainstream media, with barely an opportunity to respond to the allegations. I myself, supposedly ‘irrelevant’ in the arena of Malaysian politics, have been attacked mercilessly day in and day out with an array of libellous accusations. Ironically though, thousands seem to attend Opposition talks without ever needing the incentives of money or ‘entertainment’.

From North to South, I am glad to say that we have made the best out of our 13 days of opportunity. Alhamdulillah, I have been privileged enough to witness the people of Malaysia rise up across the country. Far from being a marginal struggle, this is a struggle for all our people, who have long wished to free themselves from the tyranny of UMNO-BN! The response given to our KeADILan candidates, as well as our comrades from PAS and DAP, has been nothing short of phenomenal, while Umno-BN looks increasingly desperate by the day. Even with their complete control of the mainstream media, they continue to be on the defensive - rather than engage with our manifestos, they have only managed to attack us blindly, stabbing in the dark with no real rhyme or reason.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Each and every Malaysian has the right to an opportunity for a better life. Malaysia has tremendous potential, but it has been worn down and suppressed by the vile political games of Umno-BN, who continue to poison our minds and bind our potential with narrow racial sentiments and the all-destroying ooze of corruption. The judiciary has become the marketplace of gambling kings; crime is endemic, with rape, snatch theft and murder all on the rise. The police have been taken away from their positions as guardians of public safety, and shunted instead to the useless surveillance of opposition figures. Inflation is spiralling out of control, even as wages shrink; and the people just keep on suffering. And what does BN tell us? That we should be thankful for what we have.

What you need to do on the 8th of March 2008 is to have the courage to change. KeADILan’s commitment is clear. The victory that you grant to us will translate into reduced petrol prices, a lid on inflation, a more sustained and credible effort at tackling crime, free education for all; and a government that is fair and just to all its people, regardles of race and religion.

KeADILan has given you a Manifesto titled A New Hope for Malaysia, which strikes at the heart of the basic problems that the average Malaysian faces today, and offers you solutions for tomorrow. The hope that KeADILan promises shall be realised by each and every one of our candidates, coming as they do to you from all sorts of different backgrounds, united by their shared credibility and calibre of the very highest degree.

KeADILan, PAS and DAP have played their roles in saving Malaysia from its current course of self-destruction, fanned by the greed and lust of the Umno-BN leadership and the gamblers of the nation’s future. Now, it is your time to make a choice. All our hopes and dreams for the nation are now but a step away from being realised - it is in your hands, as a citizen of Malaysia, endowed with dignity and the freedom of choice.

I firmly believe that the people of Malaysia are a mature and wise people, and I am confident that that wisdom will be translated into votes for KeADILan, PAS and DAP come this 8th of March 2008, in the name of saving our beloved Malaysia.

It is now time for Malaysia to tread the path towards a new future, armed with a New Hope, great and bright in its promise of glory. The choice is in your hands. And in God we trust.

I wish you all the very best, as you fulfil your civic duty tomorrow in bringing about a better Malaysia for all.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

Mahathir slams Khairy

The Perdana Leadership Foundation chairperson, when quizzed about the possibility of Abdullah’s son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin being appointed minister after the elections, did not mince his words in criticising the ambitious deputy Umno Youth chief.

He said Khairy should not seek protection from his father-in-law.

“He (Khairy) has said that ‘I can do these things because I get protection from my father-in-law’. Nobody should ever say that. Do the right thing - you don’t ask for protection from your father-in-law,” he asserted.

Meanwhile, Khairy Jamaluddin said , privileges for ethnic Malays in Malaysia, a divisive issue as the country votes in elections on Saturday, must be retained.

`The constitutional special rights are part and parcel of the whole social contract in this country,'' he said in an interview yesterday, referring to provisions agreed by representatives of all the country's races at independence.

``Khairy is one of the strongest UMNO leaders around, a potential future prime minister,'' said Mohamed Mustafa Ishak, international studies dean at Universiti Utara Malaysia, referring to the ruling United Malays National Organisation. ``There are a lot of people watching him,'' and he is positioning himself carefully, Mustafa said.

Oxford University-educated Khairy, 32, denied having any aspirations to succeed his father-in-law Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

``I've never even thought about it. To me you have to take one step at a time,'' he said, noting he wasn't even a member of parliament. ``We'll see what happens on Saturday,'' he said, adding that even if he wins, his first task would be serving his constituents.

In 2005 he bought a stake in Malaysian stockbroker ECM Libra Bhd. and became a director of its corporate advisory division. ECM advised on deals including the initial share sales of AirAsia Bhd. and Parkson Retail Group Ltd. He sold his stake the following year.

Khairy rejected suggestions that his political career might be helped by his family connections.

``The whole business of family members going into politics is not peculiar to Malaysia, it is not new,'' he said, noting that the U.S. is on the cusp of having a ``Bush-Clinton-Bush- Clinton dynasty.''

``A lot of people follow in their father's and mother's footsteps, be it doctors, lawyers or engineers,'' he said.

Malaysia's detailed affirmative action policy was introduced in 1971 after racial clashes that broke out when the constitutional rights were questioned by the opposition in the 1969 election.

``It's about empowering those who need help the most and merit help the most,'' he said, ``not about cronyism and giving privileges to people who have connections.''

``We still need this policy to correct certain imbalances, but let's get it right this time,'' Khairy said. ``I believe if we get it right we don't need another 30 years.''

While some elements of the policy can be ``refined'' away, he rejected a suggestion that UMNO, which governs in coalition with junior Chinese, Indian and other parties, could use its two-thirds parliamentary majority to remove Malay special rights from the constitution.


Mahathir: We need an opposition

“I believe in an opposition. I have always maintained that this country needs an opposition and they should be critical of the government without which we don’t have a mirror to look at our faces. We think that we are very beautiful but it is the opposition that keeps telling us (that may not be true).


“You know the government member (of parliament), sometimes they are ‘ahli bodek’ (apple polishers). They are always saying ‘you’re right’, and you have no means of assessing whether you are going in the right direction or not

He told Malaysiakini in an exclusive interview today that it would be a “disaster” if the country “loses its opposition” as in Singapore.


Malaysia's Election Commission (EC) has dramatically scrapped a plan to use indelible ink to prevent multiple voting and stop phantom voters, provoking a storm of protests among opposition parties, which were expecting to make major gains at the polls on Saturday.

The sudden reversal of the plan to use indelible ink has put the spotlight on the Malaysia's electoral process. It comes as political analysts expect a growing number of urban voters to switch to the opposition this time...read more

Malaysia Citizens Denied a Fair Vote !!

Bias in Electoral Process Favors Ruling Coalition in March 8 Poll

An international human rights group said Wednesday it fears Malaysians will not get a fair vote in this week’s general elections because of an uneven playing field favoring the ruling National Front coalition.

New York-based Human Rights Watch urged Malaysia to eradicate bias from the electoral process. Opposition and activist groups say the process is rife with irregularities.

Malaysian law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz denied the allegations, accusing Human Rights Watch of discrediting the elections because they know the National Front will win.

To me, Human Rights Watch is biased. They are not important at all. It’s only their opinion, he told The Associated Press.


New York, March 5, 2008 Human Rights Watch

Government restraints on expression, assembly and access to state media will deny Malaysians a fair vote in the March 8 general elections, Human Rights Watch said today.

The authorities’ manipulation of the electoral process appears aimed to ensure that the ruling coalition maintains its two-thirds parliamentary majority.

“Once again, elections in Malaysia are grossly unfair to the opposition,” said Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Malaysia’s ruling coalition is too comfortable with the status quo to allow reforms that would level the playing field.”

On March 8, Malaysians will vote for the national parliament. Since 1969, the ruling Barisan Nasional, a coalition consisting of 14 parties, has held a two-thirds majority in parliament, which enables it to amend the constitution at will. Opposition parties currently hold 9.6 percent of the seats in parliament.

Freedom of expression, association and assembly

Malaysian law and practice allow free campaigning for the ruling coalition while placing severe restraints on the opposition. For instance, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahman Badawi on March 1 was able to hold a rally of 20,000 supporters. But police have repeatedly blocked attempts by opposition parties to hold election rallies by refusing to issue the permits required for any gathering of four or more people.

In November 2007, the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih), a loose alliance of almost 70 civil society organizations and several political parties, organized an orderly march and rally by some 40,000 Malaysians. In response, police used excessive force, including tear gas and chemical-laced water on peaceful protesters.

The government has routinely used the specter of ethnic violence to deter public demonstrations and silence government critics. On February 16, three days after Abdullah dissolved parliament, police officers used tear gas and water cannons to disperse a peaceful crowd of some 200 Malaysian Indians from the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf). Hindraf has not been permitted to register as a political party, and has repeatedly been denied permits when they sought, such as on this occasion, to hold a peaceful demonstration.

“When opposition leaders and civil society groups critical of the government try to organize rallies, they are blocked at every turn,” said Pearson. “Yet the usual excuses about unruly protesters and blocked traffic are never mentioned when the ruling coalition wants to get its supporters out on the streets. ”

The government has long threatened opposition politicians with provisions of the broadly worded Sedition Act. In addition, since the draconian Printing Presses and Publications Act places the burden of proof on defendants in defamation cases, opposition parties are self-censoring for fear of being hit hard by libel suits if they critique the establishment.

Curbs on the media

Government interference in media reporting is not new to Malaysia, but has become even more contentious during election campaigning. An election observer in Malaysia told Human Rights Watch that monitoring of state television and radio had turned up no opposition candidate presence. The state media are the two most important avenues for candidates to communicate their messages to voters, particularly those in rural areas.

In late January, Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency reported that Deputy Information Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamid conceded the lack of fairness in the state media. He said that the ministry would need to study “whether allowing opposition leaders to campaign through Radio Television Malaysia in the next general election will benefit the people.”

Freedom of the media is further hampered since all private free-to-air television channels are owned by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), a founding member of the ruling coalition and Malaysia’s largest political party.

Because Malaysian law requires all publications to obtain permits to operate on a yearly basis, the state can easily shut down those that are critical of the government. The minister of internal security, who is currently also the prime minister, has discretion to grant, revoke or suspend any publication prejudicial to public order, morality or security, or that is likely to alarm public opinion. Newspapers such as the Tamil language daily, Makkai Osai, are self-censoring to avoid being shut down.

On February 15, the online Malaysiakini site reported that the Chinese-language Oriental Daily editor issued an election-related “guideline” to staff. The guideline suggested the newspaper should avoid placing opposition news prominently, mentioning the opposition’s campaign to block the Barisan Nasional’s goal of a two-thirds majority, or discussing any disputed issues in Chinese communities. The Oriental Daily has had difficulty renewing its license in recent years.

“The Malaysian government has ensured that state radio and TV only cover the ruling coalition and that newspapers report on the opposition at their own risk,” said Pearson.

Irregularities in electoral roll registration and certification of election results

Irregularities in the voter rolls and other elements of the electoral process raise concerns that the government will seek to manipulate votes in closely fought districts. While some individual problems may be simple error, they highlight the need for effective and impartial monitoring by the Election Commission and national election monitors.

Bersih, the coalition for clean and fair elections, has documented severe irregularities in the voter rolls. It found that in several areas a large number of voters were suddenly transferred en masse from one district to another. According to Bersih, some voters discovered that their electoral registration was changed without their knowledge to locales outside their home districts.

In one case, a voter found that her registration had been changed back to a residence she had not occupied for 14 years. Others have found that despite registering a change of address some time ago, they have not been reassigned to polling stations reflective of their new addresses. Still others, who had never registered, found that their names mysteriously appeared on the electoral roll. One voter in Penang went to register, only to find that she allegedly had done so when she was 17 months old. Some voters who used the mail to register to vote discovered registration procedures had not been completed in time for them to be eligible to vote in the upcoming election.

Other anomalies reported by Bersih involve multiple registrations, in one case 40 individuals are registered at a single address. In other cases, family members living together are listed at different addresses. Other registrations use nonexistent addresses. Almost 9,000 voters who were born more than 100 years ago (two were reported to be 128 years old) are still enrolled to vote, raising suspicions about phantom voting. No matter what the offense, the voter roll, once gazetted, cannot be challenged in court.

Bersih is also concerned with postal voting, limited to police and army personnel, and overseas students. More than 221,000 voters use postal votes, but the tallied votes are not necessarily counted among those from voters’ home districts. Although the Army Div 2 Base in Georgetown, Penang, houses only a security guard, some 500 voters are registered to that address. A lack of transparency raises questions about how votes are assigned, including concerns that they may be arbitrarily allocated to benefit districts where the vote is close.

“Voters in Malaysia deserve a chance for every vote to count and count equally,” said Pearson. “Given the vast array of anomalies in the electoral rolls, this looks increasingly unlikely.”

Human Rights Watch urged the Malaysian government to protect the constitutionally guaranteed rights to freedom of expression and assembly for all parties. The government should not use laws to unfairly penalize opposition politicians, and it should ensure that all political parties have equal access to state media. Human Rights Watch called on national election monitors to thoroughly investigate any claims of electoral fraud and irregularities, and to provide for greater transparency by posting vote tallies outside polling stations before votes are transferred to the Election Commission.

From Malaysiakini: Activists warn elections will be 'dirtiest ever'

The March 8 general election could be the "dirtiest ever", activists said today after authorities dumped plans to curb fraud by marking voters' fingers with indelible ink.

The Election Commission (EC) said yesterday it would not introduce indelible ink as planned because it had uncovered a plot to sabotage the polls by using smuggled ink to mark unsuspecting voters before they cast their ballot, which would cause confusion.

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,"

Meanwhile, de-facto opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim told Asia Times Online in an interview :"We will deny the BN government a two-thirds majority. Now the problem is, when you are talking about the so-called elections, you are talking about a fraudulent process. You are talking about phantom voters, you are talking about gerrymandering."

"We will do well, no question about it,"

This election arguably represents the best chance the opposition has to weaken the ruling coalition’s Barisan Nasional (BN) stranglehold on power in at least a decade. The opposition’s modest aim is to win one-third of parliament’s 222 seats, which it hasn’t done since 1969 and if achieved would put a check on the ruling government’s power to amend the constitution.

Indelible ink or Invisible Ink ?

The Election Commission Tuesday cancelled plan to use indelible ink in the upcoming general election.

-- BERNAMA

For this general election, the commission said it would need 48,000 bottles of the ink. This will cost RM2.4mil and the whole procedure will take less than RM1mil to implement. (Star)

Malaysiakini:EC under fire for backtracking ink use

Opposition parties today criticised the Election Commission for the last minute reversal of the plans to use the indelible ink in the coming general election, which they claimed could have avoided the menace of phantom voters.

In an immediate reaction, PKR’s deputy president Dr Syed Husin Ali did not mince his words when he charged that the cancellation of the use of indelible ink was a clear proof that the “EC is colluding with BN to allow cheating in the coming general elections”.

“Despite all assurances and false gestures, it is now clear the (EC chairperson) Abd Rashid (Abd Rahman) is content to conduct the 12th general election in an atmosphere completely bereft of integrity,” he said in a statement.

“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,” he added.

He added that polls reform group 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.

He also said that 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.

“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,” he said.

He however said that the PKR noted one positive outcome of this development - that the 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.

Under protest

PAS leader and a member of Bersih's steering committee Dr Dzulkifli Ahmad also similarly expressed his disgust with the EC decision.

"This means that none of our demands are getting through. We thought it would at least go through with (using indelible ink)," said the director of PAS Research Centre.

"We want to make it clear that we are entering this election under protest," he said.

"We could foresee this coming. Now, our concerns and anxieties are immensely vindicated."

Despite his outrage with the EC's move, Dzulkifli urged opposition candidates and sympathisers to remain composed and focus on the task at hand: winning the upcoming polls.

"We will not be provoked. We will remain resilient, calm and relentless. We will maintain the due process of the elections. We will not destroy our chances of victory and will not do anything untoward."

After the polls, however, Bersih would "surely" file a petition on this matter, Dzulkifli said.

Mafrel PC tomorrow

PKR vice president R Sivarasa, also the candidate for Selangor's Subang parliamentary seat, matched the indignation unleashed by Dzulkifli.

"I am completely shocked by this decision. It is tantamount to perpetuating a fraud on the elections," he said.

"From last July to just recently they told the Malaysian public that they were using indelible ink. And the reasons they give for cancelling the ink are nonsensical. How can marking someone's finger have anything to do with national security?" he asked.

Election watchdog Mafrel, when contacted, said that it would be commenting on the matter through a press conference tomorrow.

---

With elections due next Saturday, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has promised to 'seriously look into' the problems facing the ethnic Indian community.

'This is not just an empty promise but a serious promise that we will carry out. I am listening to your problems and demands. We will discuss your problems and will execute whatever we have promised in the Barisan Nasional's manifesto if we win in the coming elections,' Badawi was quoted as saying by The Star Monday.

'These include education for the Indians and problems faced by Indians in estates,'

With three more days to polling on Saturday, there is an abnormally high percentage of silent voters, estimated at between 35 and 40 per cent of the electorate, in most parts of the country in this general election.

Political analyst Assoc Prof Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff said the figure was almost double the average of about 20 per cent of silent voters in any general election. "Ground assessment showed that they have not made up their minds for reasons best known to them.

"They are still assessing the government's performance, the country's leadership, efforts to combat corruption, integrity of the judiciary apart from the bread-and-butter issues such the rising cost of living and crime index as well as the opposition's side of the story, he said.

He noted that the increase in the number of silent was obvious in all states except for the Malay belt of Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah where most of the voters have made up their minds on where to cross their the ballot papers, leaving only a small percentage of fence-sitters.

"You can see the mood on the ground. As many as 35 to 40 per cent of the voters are still indecisive on who to cast their votes for. They did not show which side they are on," he said.

Dr Mohammad Agus said that although Barisan Nasional (BN) could easily win and form the federal government after March 8 and even control a two-third majority, the silent voters were crucial in determining the number of remaining seats to be won and the overall majority.