By Adib Zalkapli
Tengku Razaleigh says he would continue to support Abdullah.
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 — Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi does not need to step down as the Prime Minister after Datuk Seri Najib Razak takes over as party president in March.
“That is his prerogative, he has received the mandate for five years,” said Razaleigh in response to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s contention that Abdullah was still interested to remain in power after the party polls.
He also admitted that he would continue to support Abdullah’s leadership in the government in his capacity as an MP.
“He commands the confidence of the majority of the MPs. And the Prime Minister is appointed by the King and not by the Umno General Assembly,” he told The Malaysian Insider.
The Kelantanese prince however was quick to add that he has no intention of quarreling with the former Prime Minister, who he challenged for the party’s top post in 1987 but lost by 43 votes.
He added that with a weakening Umno, there is no relation now between the party presidency and the premiership.
“Umno today is not as strong as it used to be, we are only in control of 30 per cent of the seats,” said Razaleigh.
Hindu shrine demolished in Malaysia despite ban order
A 15-year-old Hindu shrine has been demolished by the city authorities in Kuala Lumpur even after an order by the Territories ministry banning the destruction of any temple without allocating alternate site.The latest demolition of a shrine in Taman Desa, Seputeh, on Tuesday has raged anger among the Hindu community, who are now asking questions to explain the demolition act, media reports said here on Wednesday.
The Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) authorities had apparently issued a notice about the action to be taken in October and pasted the message on the temple's wall, reports added.The notice was not handed over to the shrine authorities.Leading ethnic Indian leader and President of the Malaysian Indian Congress, Samy Vellu, has asked the city authorities to explain their action and has warned of personally taking up the matter to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
Deputy Federal Territories Minister M Saravanan said he was upset over the demolition and would meet Federal Territories minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique on Wednesday."I have an understanding with the Federal Territories Minister that no existing temples would be demolished unless an alternative site has been given. If there was any development on the land, then the temple would be relocated," he said.
Multi-religious and multi-ethnic Malaysia has a eight per cent ethnic Indian population a majority of whom are Tamil Hindus.Saravanan has asked Hindus to give the ministry a day or two before the issue could be resolve amicably
Sungai Siput is a PKR seat
PETALING JAYA, 3 Dec 2008: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) is staking its claim on the Sungai Siput parliamentary seat in Perak and the Kota Damansara state seat in Selangor although the elected representatives are from Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM).
Dr Syed Husin AliPKR deputy president Dr Syed Husin Ali said this even though PSM has been a registered political party since 19 Aug 2008.
Additionally, Parliament has identified the Sungai Siput Member of Parliament (MP) as being from PSM, including in the name plates that are placed where the MPs sit in the Dewan. At the same time, when Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj stands up to speak, PSM is the party name that is displayed on TV monitors.
However, Syed Husin said this did not mean Sungai Siput was no longer a PKR seat. "He went into Parliament as PKR candidate, so it is still PKR's seat," he said.
PKR's official position is that it remains the largest opposition party with 31 parliamentary seats, including Sungai Siput. "What is the issue here? What is the confusion? These are originally PKR seats," Syed Husin said in a phone interview.
He explained that the opposition parties of PKR, PAS and DAP had agreed before the 8 March elections that the Sungai Siput, Kota Damansara and Semenyih seats would be allocated to PKR.
Hence, these seats were "originally" PKR's. "But we allowed PSM candidates to contest there out of good will after they wrote to us and discussions were held. Other parties were unwilling to concede any seats to PSM," he said.
PKR's logoBoth Jeyakumar and Dr Mohd Nasir Hashim, who is the state assemblyperson for Kota Damansara, won the 8 March elections under the PKR logo and banner because PSM was not yet registered then.
(Corrected) PKR also allowed PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan to contest in the Semenyih state seat in Selangor under the PKR banner but he lost.
To another question, Syed Husin said: "It is not true that we gave the seats because we were desperate for good and eligible candidates. We had our own candidates but, like I said, we did it out of good will."
Asked if this meant PSM had no state or parliamentary seats, he said: "Strictly speaking, the three constituencies belong to PKR. The PSM does not have a constituency of its own. The seats it won were also given to PSM to indicate PKR's support for the party's efforts to gain registration then."
Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj"No big deal"
When contacted, Jeyakumar said the matter was "no big deal" as long as he was recognised as a PSM representative in Parliament.
He confirmed that he had to stand for elections under the PKR ticket because PSM was not registered then, adding that PSM was grateful for PKR's support.
"Many of us (opposition candidates) won not because of our party alone but the support of other parties, too.
"When I campaigned for the seat, (PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri) Anwar (Ibrahim) came and spoke at my ceramah for me," Jeyakumar said.
PSM's logo
Jeyakumar said PSM believed that PKR was playing a positive role in Malaysian politics by focusing on socio-economic issues such as repealing the Internal Security Act and other unjust laws.
PSM, however, has said they would not join the Pakatan Rakyat coalition as there were some areas of disagreement.
(Corrected) In the 1999 general election, Jeyakumar contested unsuccessfully under the DAP banner against incumbent MIC candidate Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu in a three-cornered fight that included Malaysian Democratic Party candidate Mohamad Asri Othman.
In the 2004 elections, Jeyakumar again contested unsuccessfully against Samy Vellu but under the PKR banner. Also contesting the seat then in a three-cornered fight was DAP candidate Sanmugam Ponmugam Ponnan
Anwar: No Post For Ariff Shah
KUALALUMPUR, Dec 2 (Bernama) — Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today denied that the party would make Barisan Nasional’s Seberang Jaya state assemblyman Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah the Penang deputy chief minister I if he joined PKR.While welcoming Arif Shah to join PKR, Anwar said the post of deputy chief minister I had been filled.“I feel we have to be fair to Arif Shah. He has not demanded anything that we consider to be unreasonable. He has not mentioned the post of deputy chief minister and we did not discuss that. That is mere talk.“We are prepared to accept him as a politician and state assemblyman for Seberang Jaya.
There has not been any official decision, only discussions with party representatives. I was told there has been no final decision,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby, here.Arif Shah had been quoted by newspapers as saying that he was disappointed with Permatang Pauh Umno chief Datuk Abdul Jalil Abdul Majid and the Permatang Pauh division for ignoring him and that he had been invited by PKR to join the party.
Asked about the alleged under-performance of Penang Deputy Chief Minister I Mohamad Fairuz Khairuddin, Anwar said the work performance of all PKR leaders was evaluated.
“At PKR, we always evaluate the performance of our leaders. I have been admonished. Tian Chua (PKR Information Chief) has been admonished and Fairuz has been admonished.
“Reprimands have been issued, evaluations have been made. It is not right to say that the evaluations were just on Fairuz because they were for everyone and we seek to have all weaknesses rectified,” he said.
(Anwaribrahim.blog)
There has not been any official decision, only discussions with party representatives. I was told there has been no final decision,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby, here.Arif Shah had been quoted by newspapers as saying that he was disappointed with Permatang Pauh Umno chief Datuk Abdul Jalil Abdul Majid and the Permatang Pauh division for ignoring him and that he had been invited by PKR to join the party.
Asked about the alleged under-performance of Penang Deputy Chief Minister I Mohamad Fairuz Khairuddin, Anwar said the work performance of all PKR leaders was evaluated.
“At PKR, we always evaluate the performance of our leaders. I have been admonished. Tian Chua (PKR Information Chief) has been admonished and Fairuz has been admonished.
“Reprimands have been issued, evaluations have been made. It is not right to say that the evaluations were just on Fairuz because they were for everyone and we seek to have all weaknesses rectified,” he said.
(Anwaribrahim.blog)
I DON'T THINK THAT PAKATAN RAKYAT POLITICAL AGENDA IS TRYING TO INVITE SOMEONE TO JOIN IN AS A PARTY MEMBER AND THEN GIVE A POLITICAL STAGE.FOR ARIFF IF YOU WANT TO JOIN IN JUST DO IT WITHOUT ANY CLAIMING ISSUE AND USING ANWAR'S NAME AND THUS MANIPULATE THE RUBBISH ISSUE TO ATTRACT UMNO LEADERS.
Anwar denies Arif offer
No posts were offered to Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah to entice him to join the Pakatan Rakyat-led Penang state government.
KUALA LUMPUR (Malaysia): No posts were offered to Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah to entice him to cross over to the Pakatan Rakyat-led Penang state government.
Neither had the Seberang Jaya assemblyman demanded any posts, said Parti Keadilan Rakyat de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
In confirming that Arif Shah had been wooed by PKR leaders, Anwar said the question of posts did not arise.
"He did not talk about any posts, neither did we discuss it. We did not make any offer as all posts have been filled.
"It is just a rumour," he said at the Parliament lobby yesterday, referring to talk that Arif Shah had been offered a deputy chief minister's post in light of his ongoing feud with the Umno Permatang Pauh division leadership.
v
No minimum wage yet? Stop giving the same excuses!- ALIRAN
Malaysia is not yet ready for a minimum wage. This is the consistent statement of the Human Resource Ministers of Malaysia. The newly appointed Minister and his deputy are no different, complains Jerit.
On Wednesday, Deputy Human Resource Minister Noraini Othman parroted the same excuses as the previous Human Resource Minister, Dr Fong Chan On, as to why minimum wage cannot be implemented here in Malaysia. Answering questions during the Parliament sessions, Noraini told the Dewan Rakyat that the minimum wage policy is still not a feasible idea for the country and the government has set up the wage committees as an alternative.
What the Deputy Minister forgot to mention is that the wage committees were set up to guide respective industries on their salary schemes. Such councils can only propose a minimum wage for workers of that particular sector but cannot enforce it. Furthermore not all sectors are covered by these wage committees such as the janitors, factor workers, plantation workers and the lowly paid jobs.So it looks like the Deputy Minister is trying hard to mislead the parliamentarians.
However simple rationale thinking would easily bring anyone to the conclusion that the minimum wage would benefit the majority of Malaysian working class.The point is that, under current circumstances, with the increasing cost of living, the workers in Malaysia need a minimum wage scale to lead a decent life instead of being pushed into poverty.
This means the minimum wage would provide sufficient purchasing power to enable a worker to attain a basic standard of living. But the next argument will be, the world is facing an economic crisis; so it is not possible to implement a Minimum Wage Act just now- another opportunistic argument to deny the rights of the workers. But when the economy is booming and the workers demand a Minimum Wage Act, the same government will say, the economy is booming and investors are investing; so if we introduce a Minimum Wage Act, investors will leave the country and invest in countries such as Vietnam and China - another convenient excuse.
What the government and employers fail to understand is, a justified minimum wage will motivate workers, enhance productivity, reduce dependency on welfare and enable the workers to enjoy the benefits of economic growth.Thailand, Indonesia, China, Japan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, India, Venezuela and first world countries have enacted a Minimum Wage Act to protect the lower income groups and ensure that the majority of workers earn a living wage, After all, a Minimum Wage Act should be enacted to provide a living wage because the current wage is not enough to live on.
Thus, Jerit demands that the Malaysian government stop giving excuses and deceiving the people. Enact the Minimum Wage Act immediately to safeguard the interests of the working class, who are the foundation of Malaysia's progress and economic growth.
Parameswari .SCoordinator Coalition of Factory Workers and Trade Union Jerit
Zaid sacked from Umno
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 – Former de facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim was sacked from Umno late last night for breaking the party's code of ethics.
Umno president Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi who chaired the party supreme council meeting that lasted more than three hours said Zaid's attendance at opposition events was inappropriate.
"It is against the party's code of ethics," said Abdullah when asked to elaborate on Zaid's sacking.
The former Kota Bahru MP had attended a DAP victory dinner in Penang and PKR’s annual national congress last weekend.
When asked whether Zaid wanted to be sacked from the party by attending the events, Abdullah said it was just a perception.
"Let it be interpreted that way, but most importantly Umno has to be consistent. We cannot have double standards," said Abdullah adding that the decision cannot be appealed.
When met at the PKR congress, Zaid had told reporters that he did not expect to be sacked from the party.
Zaid had resigned from Abdullah’s Cabinet in protest against the use of the Internal Security Act (ISA) recently.
He had been appointed minister earlier this year and was tasked with bringing about reforms to the judiciary.
Since his resignation Pakatan Rakyat partides have been actively courting him to join them.
NOW IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYBODY WANTS TO JOIN OPPOSITION.ZAID IS ONE OF
THE RICHEST LAWYER IN MALAYSIA.I DON'T THINK HE NEEDS THE POSITION IN
UMNO TO " GOBBLE" THE MONEY.
Anwar nafi PKR tawar Arif Shah jawatan Kabinet negeri
Soal mengalu-alukan kehadiran Arif Shah memang ada tetapi ia tidak melibatkan perubahan kepimpinan di Pulau Pinang,Kita hormati keputusan beliau (Arif Shah) dan kita juga harus berlaku adil kepada beliau. Beliau tidak menuntut sesuatu yang tidak munasabah - DSAI
KUALA LUMPUR: Penasihat Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hari ini menafikan dakwaan bahawa parti itu menawarkan jawatan Timbalan Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang 1 kepada Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN) Seberang Jaya, Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah jika ahli Umno itu bersetuju untuk menyertai PKR.
Anwar berkata, soal menawarkan jawatan yang kini disandang oleh ADUN bagi kerusi PKR di Penanti, Mohamad Fairus Khairuddin tidak timbul kerana ia hanyalah ura-ura yang berbangkit tambahan pula jawatan itu kini sudah diisi.
“Saya sudah bincang dengan Ketua Menteri, Lim Guan Eng dan PKR negeri…perkara ini tidak berbangkit.
“Soal mengalu-alukan kehadiran Arif Shah memang ada tetapi ia tidak melibatkan perubahan kepimpinan di Pulau Pinang,” katanya kepada media di lobi Parlimen di sini, hari ini.
Anwar berkata, beliau masih belum menemui Arif Shah berhubung kemungkinan wakil rakyat BN di bahagian Permatang Pauh itu akan menyertai PKR tetapi ada wakil parti yang telah berbincang dengan beliau mengenai perkara itu.
“Kita hormati keputusan beliau (Arif Shah) dan kita juga harus berlaku adil kepada beliau. Beliau tidak menuntut sesuatu yang tidak munasabah.
“Beliau tidak menuntut jawatan Timbalan Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang dan kita juga tidak berbincang.
“Kita sedia menerima beliau (menyertai PKR) sebagai ahli politik dan ADUN Seberang Jaya serta atas dasar perjuangan. Kita akan bantu supaya khidmat beliau di di kawasannya akan lebih berkesan,” katanya.
Ditanya mengenai prestasi Mohd Fairus yang mendapat kritikan pelbagai pihak di Pulau Pinang, Anwar berkata, setakat ini teguran dan penilaian telah pun dilakukan.
“Namun ia bukan untuk beliau seorang tapi untuk semua ADUN dan ahli Parlimen PKR supaya kelemahan yang disebut itu boleh diperbaiki,” katanya.
TAPI ADA PELUANG LAGI KEPADA SESIAPA YANG MAHU JAWATAN INI.YB FAIRUZ HARUS MENGUBAH SIKAP DAN BEKERJA LEBIH KUAT.SEMUA ORANG ADA KELEMAHAN ,NAMUN APABILA KELEMAHAN ITU BERULANGKALI, IANYA HARUS DI PERBAIKI.YB YUSMADI PUN KENA KRITIK,TAN TE BENG PUN KENA TIBAI.JADI MASALAHNYA IALAH HARUS ADA KRITIKAN BAGI MEMBANTU DIMANA YANG SILAP.
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