KUALA LUMPUR(BebasBersuara): Apakah taraf Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) di Malaysia? Akhbar arus perdana menyatakan bahawa SRK akan datang ke Melaka untuk menerima darjah kebesaran yang dianugerahi kepadanya tempoh hari.
Apabila datangnya SRK ke Melaka untuk menerima anugerah yang membawa gelaran Datuk ter sebut, sudah pasti akan menyebabkan perbelanjaan yang tinggi. Persoalannya siapakah yang mehu mengeluarkan perbelanjaan tersebut? Dari mana datangnya sumber kewangan untuk membiayai kedatangan SRK dan rombongannya?
BebasBersuara difahamkan bahawa sebulum persetujuaan ini berlaku(sebelum isu menjadi panas dan buah mulut rakyat), ejen atau wakil pihak SRK menetapkan bahawa kedatangan SRK hendaklah ditanggung oleh pihak kerajaan Melaka. Segala perbelanjaan harus dibayar termasuklah dari kalangan ahli rombongan yag turut serta.
Sepatutnya kerajaan Melaka sudah mengerti bahawa SRK bukanlah seorang yang menghormati rakyat dan sensitiviti masyarakat Malaysia dengan tidak menghormati kerajaan Melaka, mengapa hendak diberikan juga anugerah sebegini? Walaupun dia tidak diberi gelaran Datuk, dia sudah kaya, mempunyai harta yang melimpah ruah. Gelaran ini tidak memberi apa-apa makna pun pada nya. Bukankah lebih baik jika dianugerahkan kepada artis atau karyawan dari golongan rakyat Malaysia?
Kini BebasBersuara memohon pihak kerajaan Melaka agar memberikan sedikit sebanyak info berkaitan kedatangan dan persetujuan antara kedua pihak. Kos yang ditanggung juga gembar gemburkan kepada rakyat. Semoga desas-desus yang mengatakan bahawa kerajaan Melaka menanggung segala perbelanjaan SRK dan ahli rombongannya tidak benar.
Agence France-Presse - 8/10/2008 2:01 AM GMT
Exactly a decade ago, Malaysia was in the economic doldrums, former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim faced sodomy charges, and disbelieving citizens suspected a government conspiracy.
[click here for more]
Fast forward to 2008 -- Anwar has reinvented himself as the figurehead of a thriving opposition, and the country has a serious case of deja vu.
The economy is in a rut, Anwar faces another lurid court case on the same charge, and a majority of Malaysians are convinced the ruling coalition concocted the allegations to once again sabotage his political ambitions.
"People have come to the conclusion that the closer he is to wanting to obtain power, the more difficult others will make it for him to achieve that," said Tricia Yeoh from the Centre for Public Policy Studies.
"A lot of people are very tired, after living through the first sodomy trial... which had a chilling effect on the country, even until today. People thought it was blatant political manoeuvering," she said.
The first time around, Anwar's downfall came after he challenged veteran ruler Mahathir Mohamad. The second time, he was struck down after landmark elections that he said put him within striking distance of seizing power.
The United States and rights group Amnesty International have raised concern over the new charges against Anwar, who was originally convicted in a trial that saw him brought to court with a black eye after a vicious beating from the police chief.
He spent six years in jail until 2004 when the nation's highest court overturned the conviction, allowing him to begin campaigning for his Keadilan party which now leads a three-member opposition alliance.
In March it pulled off an extraordinary feat in general elections, seizing one third of parliamentary seats and five states in the most serious challenge ever faced by the coalition which has ruled for half a century.
Shortly after, Anwar shocked the political elite by saying he would soon form a new administration with the help of defecting government lawmakers -- he needs 30 to switch sides.
The timing of the new charges, days after the charismatic 61-year-old announced he would contest a by-election to return to parliament, has fuelled suspicions of a conspiracy.
A recent survey found just 11 percent of Malaysians believe the accusations that he sodomised a 23-year-old man who was a volunteer at his office.
A full 66 percent believe it is a "politically motivated action to disrupt Anwar Ibrahim's political career", according to the Merdeka Centre poll of 1,030 people last month.
And in sentiments that mirror those of a decade ago, only 33 percent said they had confidence in the judiciary and police who will determine Anwar's fate.
Malaysians interviewed at a Kuala Lumpur petrol station, where they filled up after a recent 41 percent price hike, had strikingly similar views, accusing the government of staging a sideshow to deflect attention from economic woes.
"The new sodomy charges against Anwar Ibrahim are all a political game because he is now a real threat to the prime minister," said Abdul Halim, a 28-year-old designer.
Businessman Mohamad Fazli Farid said the government should focus instead on the plight of ordinary workers who are unable to cope with high fuel and food prices on chronically low wages.
"Anwar was cleared of all the sodomy charges before so what are they trying to prove now? We have all grown up in the last 10 years and people are not so stupid to just accept all these things blindly," he said.
Sodomy is a serious offence which carries a penalty of 20 years imprisonment in Malaysia, a conservative and predominantly Muslim country. But the graphic charges do not appear to have dented his popularity.
In the electorate of Permatang Pauh in Anwar's home state, which is expected to return him to office on August 26, voters said they were even more determined to support him.
"It looks like the government is out to fix him again. Everyone knows that the charge against him is nothing but a lie," said 46-year-old Suhaimi Samsuddin.
"The only thing we can do now is to vote for Anwar and make sure he gets to parliament and eventually form the government. Only then can we right all that is wrong in this country."
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was handpicked to succeed Malaysia's ruler of two decades, Mahathir Mohamad, when he stepped down in October 2003.
The new prime minister had a reputation as a clean administrator and a tough negotiator, but many wondered if he could emerge from the shadow of his commanding predecessor.
Six months after taking office, Mr Abdullah won a landslide victory in snap general elections, and used that mandate to embark upon a programme of reform.
But his popularity ebbed as he failed to make good on elections promises, particularly on a pledge to tackle corruption.
Amid rising ethnic tensions and economic worries, his coalition won the March 2008 election, but it did so with its worst result in five decades.
Power transfer
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was born into a prominent family in the northern state of Penang in November 1939.
His father was a founding member of Umno, which sealed Malaysia's independence from colonial power Britain and remains the country's ruling party.
After a degree in Islamic studies and a period working in the civil service, Mr Abdullah entered politics upon his father's death.
He was elected to parliament in 1978 as member for the Kepala Batas constituency in Penang, and rose quickly to prominence.
He served as both minister of education and defence, before being appointed foreign minister in 1991.
type="text/javascript">
In 1999 he became deputy prime minister after his predecessor, Anwar Ibrahim, was jailed on corruption and sodomy charges which many saw as politically motivated.
The fourth person to hold the deputy's post under Dr Mahathir, Mr Abdullah took care to limit his profile and measure his words.
When Dr Mahathir made a shock resignation announcement in June 2002, he was one of the first people to rush to his side and try to change his mind.
Just over a year later, it was to Mr Abdullah that the man who had led Malaysia for 22 years transferred power.
Ethnic tensions
The two later fell out as the new prime minister chose not to pursue some of the mega-projects favoured by his predecessor.
In 2006 Mr Abdullah's decision to cancel a controversial bridge project with Singapore triggered an angry reaction.
Dr Mahathir accused him of corruption and in July that year publicly announced that he regretted his choice of successor.
Malaysia's former leader is not the only problem Dr Mahathir has had to contend with.
In August 2007, as Malaysia marked 50 years since independence, he made a speech touching on the rising ethnic tensions and urging people to unite as a nation.
"We must ensure that no region or community is left behind," he said. "We will hold true to the concept of justice and fairness for all citizens."
But three months later, 10,000 Malaysian Indians turned out in Kuala Lumpur to protest against policies favouring ethnic Malay Muslims.
The protests are still rumbling on, and crime is reportedly on the rise. Prices of basic foodstuffs are also increasing, hitting ordinary Malaysians hard.
Mr Abdullah has now been sworn in for another five-year term in office, but he faces many tough challenges ahead.
The outcome of Malaysia's general election on Saturday was expected to be the usual landslide for the country's ruling political bloc. After all, for as long as the Southeast Asian nation has been independent, the National Front alliance has been in power. Even opposition leaders admitted they wouldn't win control of the federal government. Instead, most viewed the voting as a referendum on the leadership of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, whose popularity has been hurt by higher living costs and rising racial tensions in this multiethnic nation.
==>> Click here for more news
Voters did send Abdullah a message—a strongly worded one. While the National Front maintained a simple majority in parliament, it lost the crucial two-thirds control Abdullah had promised in pre-election campaigning that his coalition would maintain. Even more stunning: the ruling alliance lost power in four of Malaysia's 13 states. Before the polls, only one state, Kelantan, was controlled by the opposition. By the time the dust settled on Saturday, three heartland states—Kedah, Perak and Kelantan—along with manufacturing-based states Selangor and Penang were all in the hands of the opposition. All of these states will now be ruled not by the National Front but, in most cases, by coalitions between the Islamist PAS party, the Chinese-based Democratic Action Party (DAP) and the multiethnic People's Justice Party.
The outcome was so devastating for the National Front that Abdullah's future as Prime Minister is now in doubt. "This is a new dawn for Malaysia," said Anwar Ibrahim, a former Deputy Prime Minister, who is the spiritual head of the People's Justice Party and the opposition's most charismatic figure. "The people have voted decisively for a new era."
type="text/javascript">
What a difference four years makes. In 2004, Abdullah's party won a record mandate, capturing 64% of the popular vote and 91% of seats in parliament. The overwhelming victory was due, in part, to the attraction of a fresh face—after 22 years in power, former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad handed over the reigns to Abdullah in 2003. Abdullah also scored points by positioning himself as a progressive reformer; he promised to clean up widespread graft and strengthen civil liberties.
But his popularity clearly hasn't lasted. Many of the country's ethnic Chinese and Indians are angry about the continuation of a national affirmative-action plan that favors Malays, the country's largest ethnic group, in everything from education to government contracts. Saturday's results showed ethnic minorities made good on their vows to defect from the National Front, with many switching to the DAP camp. "People can only put up with so much," says DAP Secretary-General Lim Guan Eng, who is set to become Penang's new Chief Minister. "Dissatisfaction has reached a boiling point."
But it wasn't just ethnic minorities who abandoned Abdullah's coalition. The P.M. heads the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), a Malay-based party that dominates the 14-party National Front. In a clear sign that UMNO can no longer automatically count on Malay votes, two of Abdullah's former cabinet members lost their parliamentary seats. One beneficiary was PAS, some of whose leaders have previously advocated instituting Islamic Shari'a law nationwide. With crime rates rising, PAS candidates struck a chord by preaching that their spiritual values would be more successful in managing society than UMNO's policies.
Unusually for a country that places a premium on stability, clashes between police and voters marred the polling. In the northern state of Terengganu, which the National Front held, police sprayed tear gas on hundreds of PAS demonstrators who had gathered to protest what they believed was electoral fraud committed by the National Front.
Vote-rigging claims are hardly uncommon, although the National Front flatly rejects them. On March 5, Human Rights Watch, the New York-based NGO, issued a report criticizing the way in which it believes the National Front has maintained its grip on power. In a public statement, Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Elaine Pearson said: "Once again, elections in Malaysia are grossly unfair to the opposition. Malaysia�s ruling coalition is too comfortable with the status quo to allow reforms that would level the playing field." Among the watchdog's claims were accusations that the ruling coalition received a disproportionate amount of media coverage; that repeated attempts by opposition parties to organize rallies had been stymied; and that voting irregularities were rampant. In the state of Selangor, for instance, opposition party PAS says it found two 128-year-old citizens registered to vote.
Nevertheless, the opposition's unprecedented showing on Saturday proved that their voices had been heard. In a brief statement on Saturday evening, Abdullah said that the poll results proved that democracy did work in Malaysia—and that defeat was part of the democratic process. But he quickly rejected any calls for his resignation. On Monday, he will meet with Malaysia's king to ask for permission to form a new federal government. But whether he will survive as party leader at UMNO�s convention later this year is still up in the air. He could even be ousted as Prime Minister by the National Front. Unlike many aspects of Malaysian democracy, that script is still unwritten.
Mar 6th 2008
From the Economist Intelligence Unit ViewsWire
Malaysia's ruling coalition is likely to stay in power
Malaysians are likely to turn out in record numbers to vote in the general election on March 8th. Increased political awareness, coupled with a seemingly competent opposition, has energised the electorate and led to frenzied campaigning across the country. Given the dissatisfaction with the current government over a range of issues, the opposition should win more of the vote than it did the last time. Nevertheless, the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN, the National Front) coalition should still be too strong for the opposition and should keep its two-thirds majority in parliament. The incumbent prime minister Abdullah Badawi, will also remain in power. In that sense, the election should usher in much-needed stability, following months of political uncertainty marked by street protests and a slew of scandals involving the government.
Why now?
Even though elections had not been due until April 2009, with economic clouds gathering in the US and the domestic political scene likely to become less favourable for the government, Mr Abdullah had an incentive to call an early election. By holding the polls now, Mr Abdullah has prevented Anwar Ibrahim, a former deputy prime minister and the de facto leader of the opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR, People's Justice Party), from taking part. Mr Anwar is barred from running for public office until April 2008 owing to an earlier conviction for corruption. He could, however, still seek entry to parliament by contesting a by-election after that. In fact, several opposition politicians, including Mr Anwar's wife, Wan Azizah, have promised that if they are elected they will duly step down in April to allow Mr Anwar to contest their seat.
The strongest rationale for the government to call an early election is to secure another five-year term before economic conditions deteriorate. Exports account for around 110% of GDP, so the prospect of a sharp slowdown in the US—Malaysia's most important overseas market—means that the economy is likely to face more challenging conditions in 2008. In addition, civil-service and police pay rises are still fresh in the minds of more than 1m people, who received pay increases ranging from 7.5% to 35% last July. The government stuck to its pledge of not trimming the subsidy on fuel prices in 2007, but it will find this policy difficult to maintain with international oil prices remaining high. All of this means that voters would probably have had greater reason to be unhappy about their financial well-being the longer Mr Abdullah had waited to go to the polls.
Why the opposition is in a strong position…
Over the past few months, protests organised by Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force) and Bersih (a coalition of human rights groups and opposition political parties pushing for electoral reform) have altered the political climate, revealing a level of dissent not seen since the Reformasi movement in 1998. There certainly seems to be a groundswell of discontent amongst the ethnic minority communities. The Hindraf protests have brought to the fore long-standing grievances about the country's institutionalised affirmative-action policies that give preference to the Muslim Malay majority—the so-called bumiputeras (sons of the soil). What's more, many segments of Malaysian society appear dissatisfied with the ruling coalition after years of perceived corruption and mismanagement. There is a feeling that while the bumiputera policies have enriched government officials and cronies, the programme has not helped ordinary Malays—in particular the lower-income group, the main purported beneficiaries—as much as it should have. The ruling coalition has also been hit by a series of scandals over the past few months.
type="text/javascript">
While the BN has been beset by problems, the opposition parties appear to be more united this time around than at the last election. This is mostly due to the efforts of Mr Anwar, who has formed strategic alliances between unlikely bedfellows. The three main opposition parties are the PKR, the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and the Parti Islam sa-Malaysia (PAS), an Islamic party that had, until quite recently, pushed for the setting up of an Islamic state in Malaysia. Given their ideological differences, the three parties have not formed an official alliance, which their respective supporters would not have been comfortable with. However, with a few exceptions, they have agreed not to contest the same seats, paving the way for more two-way fights with the BN.
The increased penetration of technology has also added a new dimension to these elections, as it has allowed the opposition to communicate with Malaysians in spite of the government's stranglehold on major media channels. The political blogosphere has exploded over the past few years. The opposition also successfully disseminates news of upcoming ceramahs (public speeches) via the Internet and SMS.
…but why the ruling coalition is still too strong
With all this unhappiness in the air, will Malaysians vote in a new government? That is unlikely. The majority of voters will continue to vote along ethnic and religious lines, and in those constituencies where Malays make up more than 80% of the voters they will vote the BN back in. While the recent protests may have increased political awareness among Chinese and Indian voters, they have probably strengthened the resolve of many Malays to vote for the BN so that the affirmative-action policy can continue.
The Chinese in the country—about 24% of the voters—have traditionally split their votes between the ruling coalition and the opposition, and are likely to do so again. While there is a growing uneasiness about their place in society, many Chinese have prospered financially in Malaysia, and they like the political and economic stability that has come with BN rule.
The big change will come in the Indian vote, in particular the 80% of Indians who are lower-income Tamils. Indians have traditionally supported the ruling coalition en masse. That is set to change. In the eyes of many, the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), the Indian party in the ruling BN coalition, and its leader, Samy Vellu, have not done enough for the community. According to the Merdeka Centre, an NGO in Malaysia, Indian support for Mr Abdullah dropped from 79% in October last year to just 38% by the middle of December.
However, Indians only make up about 8% of the population; and in some constituencies the percentage of Indian voters is less than 5%. They are unlikely to make much of an electoral impact. According to Denison Jayasooriya, a political analyst who specialises in Indian affairs, Indian voters could make a difference in 62 of the 222 parliamentary seats being contested. However, even if the opposition won all of those, it could not deny the BN its two-thirds majority.
What is likely to happen
The Economist Intelligence Unit expects the ruling coalition to win, and to maintain a two-thirds or better majority in parliament. In 2004 the BN won 63.9% of the popular vote, and 90.4% of the seats (198 of 219) up for grabs. This time, we expect the opposition to win at most 50 seats, which would still leave the ruling coalition with 77% of the seats (172 of 222). The BN's share of the popular vote could fall to as low as 55%, which would be a clear indication of voter dissatisfaction. However, to put things in perspective, that would still be more than in the 1990 elections, when it won just 53.4% of the vote. Even with the reduced mandate, the then prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, was able to carry on with his economic agenda. Therefore, a drop in the BN's share of the vote in this election is unlikely to disrupt the present administration's social and economic programmes. However, the vote would be a signal to the BN's leaders that they have to pay closer attention to the concerns of Malaysians.
What if?
In the unlikely event that the BN fails to secure a two-thirds majority in parliament, or that the parliamentary make-up is not settled after the elections—say, if Mr Anwar appears to be plotting a return once his ban expires—then lingering political uncertainty could have an adverse effect on domestic demand and foreign-investor sentiment. Of particular worry is the fact that many of the opposition's candidates are greenhorns—young starlets with impressive resumes but precious little political experience (in part because the BN's dominance has kept them out of power). If too many of them assume office, Malaysia's government could be hampered by fractious political skirmishing. Still, voters who have long felt uneasy about the BN's political dominance would at least have something new to complain about.
A threat to the prime minister
GLANCE at the front pages of Malaysia’s newspapers the day after the general election on Saturday March 8th and you would assume that the opposition had won. “Political tsunami” is how the Sunday Star summed things up. Even the prime minister, Abdullah Badawi, seemed to accept the analysis. “We’ve lost; we’ve lost” was all he could muster when confronted by baying pressmen at 4am.
In fact, the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition he heads had done nothing of the sort. It won 140 of the 222 seats in the federal parliament—in most places, that would be a thumping majority. In the concurrent elections for assemblies in 13 states, it had won majorities in eight. Yet so big was the upset that the stockmarket fell by 10% on Monday as investors worried about the danger of unrest and instability.
The fears seem overblown. But this was a remarkable rebuke for Mr Badawi. At the last elections, in 2004, he profited from his amiable manner and apparent promise of a less acerbic style than that of his long-serving predecessor, Mahathir Mohamad. The BN won 64% of the votes, 90% of the parliamentary seats and all but one of the other assembly elections.
In this election, it won just 51% of the votes; and 63% of parliamentary seats. This was its worst performance ever in Malaysia’s 50 years of independence, and crucially, for the first time since 1969, the BN lost the two-thirds majority in parliament it needs to amend the constitution.
type="text/javascript">
Nor was this a truly free and fair election. The government enjoyed many entrenched advantages: huge resources; a docile, even sycophantic, press; permission more readily granted for big rallies; a ban on the candidacy of Anwar Ibrahim, a former deputy prime minister who is now the opposition’s best-known figure.
The government has denied Mr Anwar’s allegations of vote-rigging in close-fought constituencies. But sceptical opposition supporters were made even more suspicious last week when the Election Commission went back on its decision to use indelible ink to identify those who had voted. (It said it had uncovered a plot in which some of the ink had been smuggled into the country, apparently in an opposition attempt to dupe potential voters into disqualifying themselves through premature inking.)
One reason for Mr Badawi’s debacle is that, for once, the opposition did not cut its own throat. Its three main parties—Mr Anwar’s, now led by his wife; an Islamist party and the Democratic Action Party, which appeals mainly to the Chinese minority—on the whole did not compete with each other.
There are also worries about a slowing economy and rising prices; and a feeling that after 50 years of impressive economic growth, too many of the benefits have accrued to a small elite, and the Mr Badawi has not done enough to tackle corruption.
There is also anger among the minorities. Many Chinese, who make up about a quarter of the population, feel that policies of affirmative action in favour of the Malay majority are no longer necessary—if they ever were. And the Indian minority, only about 8% of the population, feel discriminated against and have turned against the BN’s main ethnic-Indian component, the Malaysian Indian Congress.
Whatever the reasons for it, the result places Mr Badawi’s future in doubt. Dr Mahathir has said he is “100% responsible” for the defeat and should resign. Unusually, Dr Mahathir admitted to a mistake of his own—having selected Mr Badawi as his successor.
Mr Badawi’s spokesman has said he has no intention of resigning. If he does not, he may come under pressure when his party, the United Malays National Organisation, holds its next congress. Since UMNO’s chief always becomes prime minister, that gathering has always been far more important than the general election in choosing Malaysia’s leaders. One of the many startling possibilities opened up by the latest election result is that this arrangement may not be immutable.
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has been sworn in, two days after his coalition suffered its worst election result in five decades.
Mr Abdullah took the oath of office at the national palace in Kuala Lumpur.
The prime minister has faced calls for his resignation in the wake of Saturday's polls.
The ruling National Front won more than half of all seats in parliament, but it still suffered unprecedented losses and lost its two-thirds majority.
The government had expected a drop in support amid growing concern over ethnic tensions in multi-cultural Malaysia and unease over rising food prices.
But the result was worse than anticipated, with the opposition making sizeable gains. Many voters from Indian and Chinese minorities - who make up more than a third of the population - failed to turn out for the coalition.
On Monday, Malaysian shares fell to a seven-month low amid concern over the political uncertainty.
Race relations
Mr Abdullah was sworn in for a second five-year term in by Malaysia's king in a televised ceremony.
"I pledge to carry out my duties honestly and with all my abilities," he said.
On Sunday, former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad called on the man he handpicked to succeed him to step down.
"I think he should accept responsibility for this. He should accept 100% responsibility," he said.
But Mr Abdullah appeared to rule out resignation.
"I will not step down from any post because I feel no pressure," he told journalists on Sunday.
His coalition controls 139 of the 222 seats in parliament. But the opposition won more than 80 seats, up from 19 in the previous parliament.
The opposition also increased its control of states from one to five, with wins in Selangor, Perak, Kedah and Penang, as well as in Kelantan.
Analysts have partly attributed the result to fears over worsening relations between Malaysia's different ethnic groups.
Late last year, 10,000 Malaysian Indians turned out in Kuala Lumpur to protest against policies favouring ethnic Malay Muslims.
Abdullah Badawi, the Malaysian prime minister, vowed yesterday not to resign, in spite of seeing the longruling National Front government suffer its biggest election setback since independence in 1957.
He rejected a call by Mahathir Mohamad, his predecessor, to step down. "Mahathir's demand is the start of a bloody leadership fight," said Bridget Welsh, a Malaysian political analyst at Johns Hopkins University, near Washington.
Even if Mr Abdullah is appointed today by the king to form a new government, he faces a challenge this year when the United Malays National Organisation, the dominant government party, is scheduled to hold party elections. He could face a revolt unless he resigns before then.
In the weekend election, the government lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority for the first time since 1969, gaining 138 seats in the expanded 222-member parliament, with some results still to be declared. The opposition had won 82 seats, far better than predicted.
A coalition of the three main opposition parties took an unprecedented five state governments, including Penang, Selangor, Perak and Kedah, and Kuala Lumpur, the capital, while keeping control of Kelantan.
The change in the political landscape could unsettle the Kuala Lumpur stock market.
The ethnic Malay-dominated government fell victim to a simultaneous assault from the two main centres of opposition: the Chinese-based Democratic Action party and conservative Muslim Malays represented by the Pas party. The two parties had agreed to join an alliance engineered by Anwar Ibrahim of the People's Justice party.
KOTA BHARU, 9 Mac (Hrkh) - Kegagalan besar Barisan Nasional (BN) dalam pilihan raya kali ini seperti satu revolusi, kata Naib Presiden PAS, Datuk Haji Husam Musa.
==>> Lagi berita klik disini
"Ini adalah revolusi rakyat. Rakyat bangkit dan bersatu. Mesej yang jelas kepada kerajaan ialah ‘Enough is enough’ (cukuplah!)”, beliau memberitahu pemberita.
Reuters pula memetik sumber yang rapat dengan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi berkata: "Apa yang berlaku ialah rasa tidak puas di mana-mana - India, Cina dan Melayu. Ribut ini datang serentak dan akan berlaku perubahan yang besar".
Awal-awal lagi sumber itu menjangkakan Barisan Nasional (BN) akan mengalami kemerosotan terbesar sejak 1969 dan hanya akan mendapat majoriti mudah.
Pada tahun 1969, Perikatan (yang kemudiannya betukar nama kepada BN) tidak pula kehilangan sehingga lima negeri.
Reuters juga menyifatkan pilihan raya kali ini adalah satu referendum atau pungutan suara rakyat terhadap pemerintahan Abdullah.
Perdana Menteri bagaimanapun enggan melihat kebangkitan rakyat itu sebagai undi tidak percaya kepadanya.
"Saya tidak melihat itu (undi tidak percaya). Ini hanya pendirian rakyat yang mahu saya meningkatkan lagi kekuatan," kata beliau.
Mengenai wujud tekanan pihak dalam parti supaya beliau meletakkan jawatan, Abdullah berkata: "Tak tahu siapa yang tekan saya."
Abdullah tidak menolak kemungkinan keputusan pilihan raya ini memberi isyarat bahawa rakyat tidak berpuas hati dengan beberapa isu, termasuk kenaikan harga barang.
“Ini memberi mesej yang penting dan saya akan lihat isu berkenaan,” katanya.
Dengan tamparan sebegitu hebat, Perdana Menteri enggan bercaikap banyak dan beliau dipercayai akan membaca kenyataan yang disediakan oleh pembantu-pembantunya.
“Apa-apa pandangan mengenai keseluruhan keputusan pilihan raya ini, saya akan buat hanya selepas selesai keputusan semua kerusi,” katanya.
Menantu Abdullah, Khairy Jamaluddin yang dilihat antara punca terbesar kekalahan BN dipetik oleh Bernama sebagai berkata: "Kami akan melawan semula".
Presiden MIC, Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu dan Pemangku Presiden Gerakan, Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon adalah antara pemimpin kanan BN yang kecundang. selepas keputusan Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12 diumumkan setakat jam 3 pagi ini.
Selain Samy Vellu yang juga Menteri Kerja Raya, turut mengalami kekalahan ialah Menteri Pembangunan Luar Bandar dan Wilayah, Datuk Seri Abdul Aziz Shamsuddin; Menteri Penerangan, Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin; dan Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil.
Turut kecundang ialah 10 timbalan menteri termasuk Timbalan Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Datuk M Kayveas; Timbalan Menteri Hal Ehwal Dalam Negeri, Datuk Tan Chai Ho dan Timbalan Menteri Pertanian dan Industri Asas Tani, Datuk Mah Siew Keong, Timbalan Menteri Pembangunan Luar Bandar dan Wilayah, Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman, Timbalan Menteri Kewangan, Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin, Timbalan Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat, Datuk G Palanivel yang juga Timbalan Presiden MIC, Timbalan Menteri Keselamatan Dalam Negeri, Datuk Fu Ah Kiow, Timbalan Menteri Penerangan, Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye, Timbalan Menteri Sumber Asli dan Alam Sekitar, Datuk S Sothinathan dan Timbalan Menteri Pertahanan, Datuk Zainal Abidin Zin.
March 9 (Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's hold on power in Malaysia is in doubt after the best performance in 50 years by an opposition that wants to scrap legalized preferences for the ethnic Malay majority, help the poor and battle corruption.
While the National Front ruling coalition kept control of Southeast Asia's third-largest economy after yesterday's election, it lost the two-thirds majority it has held in parliament for 34 years -- a free hand that has helped it to consolidate power. Opposition parties led by a new multiracial party promising to fight poverty and graft won support from ethnic Indians and Chinese, as well as Malays.
``You can't lead a coalition that loses this badly and stay in power,'' said Ooi Kee Beng, an analyst at Singapore's Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. ``He should resign. The coalition is in crisis because it can no longer claim it represents all the races.''
Abdullah's United Malays National Organisation, which leads the ruling coalition of race-based parties, lost power in five of 12 states at stake, including Malay-majority Kelantan and Kedah, and the premier's home state of Penang.
The prime minister said today he won't resign because he has the support of UMNO leaders and isn't under any pressure to quit, according to the state-owned Bernama news agency.
Mahathir Mohamad
Abdullah, 68, should resign, former Premier Mahathir Mohamad told reporters today. Mahathir, 82, handpicked the prime minister as his successor in 2003.
``I made the wrong choice,'' he said.
Abdullah will be sworn in as premier tomorrow by the king, Bernama said. Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and Trade Minister Rafidah Aziz were among UMNO leaders who gathered at Abdullah's official residence to pledge support, it said.
The Chinese-based Democratic Action Party took every state and parliamentary seat it contested in Penang. The National Front coalition won the seven other states.
The National Front won 140 of 222 parliamentary seats, with the opposition at 82, according to the Election Commission. The opposition's 37 percent of parliament exceeds 1969's 34 percent.
Former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim, 60, a well-known moderate Islamist who was imprisoned during the last election, coordinated the opposition campaign and his multiethnic People's Justice Party won 31 seats, up from one in 2004.
Multiracial Malaysia
``This is the start of our mission to implement our reform agenda for a multiracial Malaysia,'' Anwar said in an interview yesterday. ``It's a new dawn.''
Anwar had been sacked in 1998 and later found guilty of having homosexual relations and of trying to cover up that alleged crime -- allegations he denied. The sex charge was overturned in 2004.
Abdullah said earlier that coalition leaders who lost their seats should accept defeat. He declined to answer questions about how the government might change its policies after the election.
``At the moment, there's no one pressuring me'' to step down, he told reporters before going home from UMNO's Kuala Lumpur headquarters at about 3 a.m.
The last time the opposition won a third of parliament, in 1969, opposition party victory parades prompted a bloody backlash and the prime minister later resigned. Malaysia's police chief, Musa Hassan, yesterday banned any election celebrations.
Schools, Homes, Jobs
Voting went smoothly yesterday, with just one incident in the eastern state of Terengganu where supporters of the Pan- Malaysian Islamic Party, also known as PAS, tried to block two buses they suspected contained unregistered voters.
Malaysia's Indians and Chinese together are a third of the country's 27 million population. UMNO governs with junior Chinese and Indian partners, who have been criticized for accepting an affirmative-action policy that gives Malays educational, housing and job preferences.
Works Minister Samy Vellu, the top ethnic Indian leader in Malaysia's ruling coalition, lost his seat, as did Koh Tsu Koon, the head of one of the coalition's main Chinese-based parties.
``This is the biggest defeat for our party since our founding 40 years ago,'' Koh said late last night. His party Gerakan had been in the opposition when it first won control of Penang in 1969.
`Wake-up Call'
``The people have shown their lack of confidence in the coalition in its present form and shape,'' said Tricia Yeoh, director of the Centre for Public Policy Studies, an independent research institute in Kuala Lumpur. ``It's a slap on their faces and a wake-up call.''
Anwar's multiethnic People's Justice Party co-operated with the DAP and PAS against the government, and has pledged to scrap the race-based policy as unjust and a drag on economic growth.
PAS, after suffering a setback in the 2004 election, dropped its goal of turning Malaysia into an Islamic state from this year's manifesto, promising free education, health services, low-cost housing, cheaper fuel and a minimum wage instead.
Anwar played a key role in moderating the pro-Islamic stance of PAS nationwide and rallying the opposition, said analysts including Ibrahim Suffian, director of the Merdeka Center, an independent Malaysian research group.
``The opposition parties have really gotten their act together in terms of strategizing and they have their icon of a leader in Anwar,'' said Maznah Mohamad, a senior fellow at the National University of Singapore.
The three parties will scrap pro-Malay rules in central Selangor state after winning control of the country's most populous region, the Justice Party said today.
``We are being put together by God,'' Hasan Mohd Ali of PAS told reporters today at a joint press conference by the allies. ``This is the time to show to the world that we can work together very well.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Angus Whitley in Kuala Lumpur at awhitley1@bloomberg.netStephanie Phang in Kuala Lumpur at sphang@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: March 9, 2008 09:01 EDT
Mar 9, 2008 15:59 ==>> Click Here For More News
In case you’ve not heard, a tsunami seems to be overtaking Malaysia, in the state of Penang where our counterpart from Malaysia Jeff Ooi has apparently been elected into the Malaysia Parliament!
A desperate search for information through the internet brought me only to Wikipedia for the most updated results of the elections updated on an almost live basis.
What happened to mainstream media? Are they on an embargo as the National Front tries to rig
Posts
