Anwar Ibrahim |
- MACC’s Outrageous Spending: RM90k For Vanezis, RM150k For Shafee
- Rule Of The Gun
- We’ll Go Bankrupt If BN Wins, Not The Other Way Round: Jui Meng Tells DPM
| MACC’s Outrageous Spending: RM90k For Vanezis, RM150k For Shafee Posted: 16 Oct 2011 10:30 AM PDT Malaysia has had several high profile corruption cases in recent months brought to the public’s eye. Ironically, in cases like the Scorpenes scandal and the Ananda Krishnan India investigations, these corruption cases are being investigated by foreign agencies. It is embarrassing to think that the Malaysian counterpart to these foreign corruption-busting agencies is slow and inattentive to act on its own homeground. Although outfitted with a new mandate in 2008, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has little fruit to show although its annual allocation from the national budget has been steadily increased over the years. With an increasing budget, why is it that the MACC has such poor showing when it comes to solving corruption cases and bringing the perpetrators to justice? Outrageous spending The Teoh Beng Hock case highlights the rather illogical use of public funds to help protect and justify the role of MACC in investigating corruption cases. Since 2008, MACC has had two deaths within its compound and involving individuals under its watch. Teoh Beng Hock was one such person who met his death after a bout of questionable interrogation in the MACC offices. The other was senior Customs director Ahmad Sarbaini. The subsequent Royal Commission of Inquiry into Beng Hock's death saw the MACC defending itself and washing its hands off the case, refusing to take an ounce of responsibility for its misconduct. Compare this against Thai forensic expert Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand. She came to Malaysia 4 times to testify in the coroner's court and the RCI. She also participated in the 2nd autopsy on Teoh Beng Hock’s remains. For all her efforts, she did not charge a single cent for her professional services because she is driven by her conscience. Both Karpal Singh and Gobind Singh have been fighting on behalf of the Teoh family in court since 2009, from the coroner's court to the current ongoing appeal and judicial review – a period of three long, painstaking years. The father-and-son team is also fighting for justice for the Teoh family on a completely pro-bono basis. Contrast this with the amount of money the MACC used on bringing in experts like the famous forensic expert from England, Peter Vanezis, and Muhamad Shafee Abdullah, a prominent Umno lawyer, to represent the agency. According to a written reply from the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Aziz to Teo Nie Ching, MP for Serdang, the total expenditure incurred by MACC for Peter Vanezis, including air fare, accommodation, food and beverage, transportation and professional fees, amounted to RM90,680; whereas the professional fees paid to Muhamad Shafee Abdullah was RM150,000. Is this not outrageous? Biggest joke is that it is the worst performer in the region For 2012, MACC's federal allocation has been increased to RM211 million, so spending the above amount of money on experts may not be a big deal. Yet, why did the MACC spend so much when the Dr Pornthip came four times for free and Karpal Singh could work pro-bono? The best joke of all is that despite having such huge resources to fund its way, MACC's success rate pales in comparison with its various counterparts in other ASEAN countries. MACC’s conviction rate is 73%, compared to Indonesia’s 100%, Singapore’s 85% and Hong Kong’s 95%. It is clear that with such high expenses, MACC returns a pretty poor yield on investment by the government and people of Malaysia. Despite getting increased allocations to fund costly experts flying in to represent them and installing the latest equipment at their offices, MACC has little to show in terms of increased efficiency and results. It looks like MACC is all talk, a big spender but poor performer unable to justify the amounts allocated to it. Pumping more money into a venture with little return makes poor business sense. And this can be said about the MACC. The Malaysian public should demand that the agency be made accountable to the nation for abusing public funds. It would be the biggest irony if the very agency set up to rid Malaysia of corruption is itself corrupted by the overly generous budget set aside for it. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 16 Oct 2011 10:12 AM PDT From The Nation When Yasser Arafat addressed the UN General Assembly at Manhattan on November 13, 1974, he sounded a dire warning by stating: "I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom fighter's gun. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand." Well, in March 1975, the architect of the Islamic Conference, King Faisal, was slain and gun play again resumed, with greater ferocity. The same year, on December 21, 1975, at Vienna, the OPEC meeting of oil ministers was attacked by Carlos ("the Jackal") along with some Germans and other radicals. The OPEC oil cartel was seen as collaborationist. There was a wave then of idealism fused with radicalism. But now, radicalism has morphed into nihilism. A gripping French TV drama series, "Carlos", details the revolutionary trajectory of a Venezuelan born to Marxist parents and fully immersed in the Palestinian issue. Then, the Palestinian cause attracted radical youth across the world including, but not limited to, Latinos, Japanese and Germans, in striking contrast to the bright youth of today, whose ambitions are fixed on finance. Carlos is in a gaol in France, having converted to Islam. Western elements, too, have proven equally lawless. According to Steven Shapiro, national legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union: "The response to 9/11 included torture, extraordinary rendition, prolonged detention without charges or trial and secret imprisonment." To counter so-called extremism with extremism means that the blood feud never ends. Self-evident are the long-term consequences of Mossadeq's ouster by the Anglo-American combine in Iran (1953) and the execution in Egypt of Sayyid Qutb by Nasser in 1966. Now, there is a permanent breach. Chronic challenges persist without a long-term vision to meet them. Instead, there is a misguided notion that slick salesmanship can surmount problematic policies. But, in reality, they cannot be separated from each other. During the Muslim World's moment of greatest need, erudite leaders with a strategic vision, like Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia, are incarcerated on trumped-up charges, while scavengers are coronated. Anwar's statement from the dock is a wake-up call for those inclined to bow before the chair. Instructive, too, was the plight of Algeria's first President, Ahmed Ben Bella, now 92, who was ousted in June 1965, just before he was scheduled to convene a major Afro-Asian Summit Conference in Algiers. The spearhead of Algeria's freedom struggle against France was imprisoned by post-independence Algeria for 15 years. Those who promise political transformation do not always turn out to be the glittering catalysts of change as many hoped they would be. In substance, they are no different. Privileged classes do not voluntarily divest themselves of their privileges. They do so when they have no choice. Electoral manoeuvring – the cardinal feature of so-called democracy – is inherently corruptive, brutal, and prone to unholy alliances. It fosters cynicism and is a mirror reflection of broader society, with its jealous intrigue, cold-blooded backstabbing, and use-and-discard approach. The just-released movie, The Ides of March, by George Clooney, depicts how political pragmatism erodes idealism. There is no substitute for a vibrant and vigilant civil society. |
| We’ll Go Bankrupt If BN Wins, Not The Other Way Round: Jui Meng Tells DPM Posted: 15 Oct 2011 10:42 PM PDT Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has warned Malaysia will be bankrupt if the opposition wins the general election, but was immediately shot down by Pakatan Rakyat leaders, who pointed the 2019 bankruptcy came from with his own boss’s department. “It is the silliest accusation. The cat is chasing its own tail,” PKR vice president Chua Jui Meng told Malaysia Chronicle. Indeed, it was in May 2010 that Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Idris Jala first shocked the nation with a warning that Malaysia may fold up if it fails to slash subsidies and reduce debt. “We do not want to end up like Greece with a total debt of EUR300 billion. Our deficit rose to record high of RM47 billion last year. If the government continues at the rate of 12 per cent per annum, Malaysia could go bankrupt in 2019 with total debts amounting to RM1,158 billion,” Star reported Idris as saying on May 27 last year. Flexible memory bank? But it looks like the 64-year-old DPM has a shorter memory than most. Muhyiddin said the opposition was only good at making empty promises. He pointed out that when Prime Minister Najib Razak tabled the 2012 Budget, he had promised to retain the country’s deficit at 4.7 per cent of Gross Domestic Product. Yet Pakatan de-facto chief Anwar Ibrahim made a mockery of it. “The shadow budget by the opposition shows its expenditure, purportedly for the people, but it does not take into account the deficit. If the deficit goes up to 10 per cent, it means the country is not managed well,” Bernama reported Muhyiddin as saying a day ago. Jui Meng rebuked Muhyiddin, accusing the Pagoh MP of talking through his hat. “It is very clearly stated in the Pakatan’s Prosperity for All shadow budget that we do not want a deficit than of more than 4.4% of the country's Gross Domestic Product,” said Jui Meng. “But obviously, it must have missed Muhyiddin. Also, Najib’s Budget 2012 is already under heavy fire for overly high growth projections with no real ideas or details of where the money will come from. The only possibility is to introduce GST straight after GE-13. But before such a drastic measure, why not trim the fat within BN itself first, starting with Umno.” Trim the fat The Pakatan’s shadow Budget was unveiled on Tuesday, three days before Najib’s grandiose and record-size RM232 billion spending plan that was overly studded with “one-off” cash incentives. The shadow Budget for 2012 is sized at RM220bil, and plans to cut the expenditure of the Prime Minister's Department by RM10bil and re-distribute the allocation to the other ministries as part of its trimming plan for the bureaucracy. Money would be spent on the people, with emphasis on the needy groups, the Pakatan had promised. This would include a RM1,000 bonus for senior citizens with annual incomes of less than RM18,000 each as well as for qualified housewives. Pakatan also proposed that the minimum wage be set at RM1,100, an annual allowance of RM1,000 to be given to mothers to encourage them to enter the workforce and re-imposing various taxes on luxury items like handbags and branded clothes. It also promised to give "top-up payment" to hardcore poor households to ensure that their monthly income would reach RM550, increase welfare aid from RM300 presently to RM550 and reduce the use of consultancy services by the Government. "We aim to reduce the deficit to a reasonable level so that public services are not disrupted," Anwar had told reporters after the Budget launch on October 4. |
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