TRAITORS AMONG US

While the former MCA Youth leader and current Vice President is dangerously fondling with the idea of scrapping the 30 % Bumiputera Equity, the current UMNO Youth Chief and Vice President wannabe is keeping his tongue tied while allowing the party elders, namely an 84 year old former President and a 62 year old Deputy Presidential Candidate to do his job of coming to the fore to defend the Malay rights currently enshrined in the Constitution.

Other political parties and NGOs with Malay participation are coming out one by one to denounce MCA’s statement while the supposedly UMNO's pressure group remains mute. There is little wonder why the Malays are quickly turning to PAS to continue their struggle. They say there is little Chinese money if not none at all in their leadership.

It seems after the cowardly act of apologizing to the non-Malays for not being able to defend and uphold the Malay heritage, the UMNO Youth Chief has resigned himself to not interfering with issues concerning the Chinese, even when they become antagonistic toward the Malays. Today, he prefers to labour over the petty topic of whether a debate should be held between candidates aspiring to be his successor. Hmm...Very important indeed. Perhaps he thinks the debate might spell the downfall of the Malay Supremacy while what is said by Gerakan and MCA in recent days would enhance our position instead. I'M BEGGINNING TO WONDER WHO'S SIDE HE IS PITCHING FOR!

Is this the kind of leadership material we want to lead the Party that best represents the Malays in this country? Do we want traitors to lead us? Have we not had enough?

He is not the only one. There is a whole catalogue of Vice Presidential candidates just like him who preach about defending “Agama, Bangsa dan Negara” but remain in their cool offices in their Armani/ Hugo Boss suits when our struggle is being attacked by friends and foes.

Come March 2009, UMNO delegates should send these fake leaders to the “guillotine”, metaphorically speaking.

MAY ALLAH'S CURSE BE UPON THESE PRETENDERS.

SNIPPETS

A WEAK UMNO TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF.

I remember vividly a warning statement a couple of years back made by Mr Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar on the possibility that non-Malays would take advantage of a weak UMNO.

Now we are discovering some truth in his foresight although a large part of UMNO being weak is attributed to his father-in-law, the Prime Minister himself.

Last week the Gerakan Wanita chief questioned the status of the Malays as bumiputeras. Two days ago the MCA Youth demanded for a second Deputy Chairman's seat in the National Front presumably to be occupied by MCA. Perhaps when they get there, they’ll demand for a Second Deputy Premiership. Then according to The Malaysian Insider, the outgoing MCA president asked for an “end to the Bumi equity rule” and without ambiguity accused UMNO of being a bully in the coalition in the very presence of the PM and his Deputy who are the top two leaders in UMNO.

This shameless pressure coming from one party that failed miserably after leading a State for more than four terms and another party that pathetically lost 25 of the possible 40 seats in Parliament seems justified when instead of heeding the advice for the Malays to be united from the conclusion of the Rulers Conference, UMNO leaders take potshots at each other for personal reasons. In yesterday’s New Straits Times, Dato’ Shahrir Samad unnecessarily took a swipe at Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for voicing out the obvious concerns about the length of the campaign period which I too have mentioned in my article entitled “ Long Season to be Jolly for UMNO Delegates” before Hari Raya.

UMNO leaders are better politicians than they are public servants. There IS a distinct difference. Tan Sri Muhyiddin understands this. Dato' Shahrir understands it too but prefers to give the benefit of the doubt to his peers. Enough said.


CHUA SOI LEK- YOU’RE THE MAN!!!

A politician’s dream come true is if one is caught with his pants down ( literally ), makes a graceful exit and then a SPECTACULAR comeback on a higher plain. This is the Deputy President of a party that is asking for a second Deputy Chairmanship in the National Front.

And I thought UMNO had big problems.

GROUND ZERO - AN ANALYSIS OF UMNO'S NOMINATION WEEK 1

PREDICTABLE, UNBELEIVABLE AND OUTRAGEOUS! ALL IN ONE WEEKEND!

I’ve been asked to give my views on UMNO’s first nomination week by a highly respected gentleman of journalism.

Though I may not represent the majority on ground zero, here’s my take on it.

PREDICTABLE:

1. Yes when one person is preferred by the outgoing chief and that person is also the current Deputy President of UMNO, it’s a given that people will line up and slobber all over his hand and pledge loyalty. So it’s no surprise that Dato’ Sri Najib wiped the floor last weekend with the nominations.

2. Yes when a strong, experienced and senior political candidate for Deputy President was hauled up by the Presumptive Nominee for President and within 48 hours withdrew his candidacy, it is a given that the latter wants an easy path for a more deserving candidate whose tireless and risky effort has accelerated the impending departure of the incumbent President and will complement him with his support. True enough, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin later pledged his full support for Dato’ Sri Najib as President leaving Tengku Razaleigh out in the cold without really discounting him completely. No surprises with the majority of the nominations going to Muhyiddin.

UNBELEIVABLE:

1. When Dato’ Mukhriz Mahathir who was almost reduced to being a cry-baby for not being able to reach and meet members of the Youth-wing around the country suddenly had an explosion of nominations from the same, it raised eyebrows as the ones flying high prior to nomination week were Mr Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar and Dato Seri Mohd Khir Toyo. Could it be true that Mukhriz is indeed as popular as even he didn’t realize or is this a political illusion?

Note: I wonder if Mukhriz will be as vocal under Najib, now that they are in the same team. I wonder if Mukhriz was vocal before more because of his allegiance to the Nation or his loyalty and love for his father. I wonder if Khairy would play the reversed role of Mukhriz if he wins and doesn’t have his father-in-law as his guardian but the backing of the Youth to propel him. A usually concurring Youth leader serves no purpose. It is proven in the last ten years.

OUTRAGEOUS:

1. When Dato’ Sri Hishammuddin Hussein, perceived to be a non-starter due to his infamous ordeal with the Keris that should have stabbed him instead of the Party, obtained nominations in almost all of the divisions completed leaving more worthy politicians behind by double-digits, it looked obvious that he had a helping hand from a “concerned” relative. Either those who nominated him were (a) high on some mind altering substance, (b) easily forgetful or “mudah lupa” as Tun Dr Mahathir used to say or as predicted, (c) a hidden hand is in play.

Note: In the 90’s, I distinctly remember my Menteri Besar, Dato Abdul Ghani Othman and Dato Seri Panglima Osu Sukam garnering the second and third highest nominations respectively. They ended up in the bottom four ultimately. In Hisham’s case, they may be seen as obedient in nominating him if indeed there is a hidden hand or voice, but in the end, could common sense prevail?

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib, Dato Seri Ali Rustam, and Datuk Nur Jazlan Tan Sri Mohamed.

1. Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah is facing an uphill battle due to the current scenario. Had the Prime Minister decided to contest with Najib maintaining his current position then my bet would be on TRH hands down because the PM has been deemed, with due respect, as damaged commodity. The culture manifested in UMNO today is of patronage. One dare not go against the person perceived to be next in line in fear of not being able to beg for future favours when he is anointed to his position. Trust me, if by the stroke of Allah, Tengku Razaleigh were to be made Prime Minister, in this case by technicality for instance, they’d have to close the road leading to his mansion due to the beeline taking their turn to kiss his hand. Such is the ways of UMNO leaders. Nominations will fall for him like snowflakes on a Christmas morning.

Note: Tengku Razaleigh is the man who should have been and could still be, but his campaign machinery leaves much to be desired. He is a bona-fide leader, but not many leaders of today’s UMNO know of his accomplishments. They only know his name unlike the leaders of the previous generation. He alone has sacrificed and given more for the party than all the members of the Supreme Council stacked together. IT IS NOT TRUE THAT MR BADAWI IS THE LAST FROM TUN RAZAK’S GENERATION OF LEADERS. HE FORGETS THAT TENGKU RAZALEIGH IS THE LONGEST SERVING PARLIAMENTARIAN AND WAS CLOSER TO TUN THAN ANYONE ELSE PERHAPS EVEN NAJIB, POLITICALLY SPEAKING.

2. Tan Sri Muhammad is in the twilight of his career. He has nothing to lose but everything to gain. I can’t see him as getting enough nominations but he will certainly give a good show if the opportunity arises. It needs to be remembered that he only lost to Tan Sri Muhyiddin by a mere 45 odd votes for Vice President in the last round despite the fact that the latter was supposed to be a clear winner having missed the cut to be Deputy Prime Minister despite being the preferred choice of the PM at the time.

Note: His time is up as he is not well liked for doggedly protecting his boss instead of advising him on the truth from the ground.

2. Dato Seri Ali Rustam on ground zero was initially tipped to be “the One” to give Muhyiddin a run for his money for the Deputy Presidency despite being not deserving to hold the position. The behavior of the UMNO members of today is not one to support those who excel in their duties but to embrace those with human-relation skills. I’m told that a good number of divisions in Johor were ready to nominate him (which is not unusual due to the “cold war” between the MB and Muhyiddin) until a mysterious wind blew over Johor very recently. Now they’ve shifted and will be nominating Muhyiddin as should be. We shall see the outcome these coming weeks. If Ali Rustam gets the numbers to qualify, Muhyiddin had better be propelling at full steam ahead.

Note: Ali Rustam could throw a spanner in the works when the going gets tough if he announces that if he wins, he won’t accept the Deputy Prime Minister’s post but would like to concentrate on fortifying the Party. I’m sure the Vice Presidential candidates will pull all their support for Ali as they would be the next in line to be picked from to fill the seat if Ali wins instead of Muhyiddin. This is against convention, however all else but the word of God can be amended.

3. Datuk Nur Jazlan, well what can I say? He is after all my Division Chief. At first instance I thought he did well to steal the thunder from Datuk Zahid Hamidi and Dato Seri Ali Rustam. The media went after him ever since and left the latter two in the cold. At least for now he looks more matured than Zahid for holding to his guns instead of looking like a child who didn’t think thoroughly before acting. After all, he merely expressed his interest and willingness to be nominated. If he succeeds well and good but if he doesn’t, at least he gave us an alternative. Who are we to say who should and shouldn’t offer themselves as candidates? This is democracy at its best. Do we not trust the delegates enough to nominate and vote with a right frame of mind? Do they need to be nursed into nominating and voting who we think they should nominate or vote? Haven’t we learnt from the mistakes of the great Tun Dr Mahathir of force feeding the leaders of his choice on us only to see us all suffer and be ridiculed henceforth politically? It is time the leaders stopped playing God in UMNO and let the grassroots pick their choice without duress, without undue influence.

Note: Nur Jazlan may not qualify to contest the Deputy Presidency but from the ground, I have found that the affluent young Malays and of course others find him a breath of fresh air, even if it is but for a brief moment. It will be difficult to penetrate through since 75 percent of the delegates usually are of the same people and mentality.

Next weekend should be interesting. Let’s see if all the divisions who nominate Najib will nominate his cousin as well. Let’s also see if the majority of these divisions nominate Najib, Muhyiddin, Hishammuddin and Mukhriz as a package.


If so, and if it prevails come March, then we bid welcome to the Kennedys and Rockefellers of UMNO.

HE WILL GO.

Thank you & goodbye.

The Prime Minister will be leaving his office earlier than expected. No it doesn't mean that he'll be signing off at 3pm everyday while Najib clocks out at the normal hour of 5 pm.

The gentleman politician will be retiring in March 2009 and will not be standing for election for President of UMNO. He picked the first option from my last posting.

Scenario # 1 WINS!

Recap: The PM’s back is against the wall. He tried his best to make the necessary and promised changes but they were slow in coming and didn’t quite meet the target by the last election date. At the same time, national unity nosed dived under his watch that open animosity between races began to rear its ugly head and the position of the Malays and Islam were threatened for the first time in many years. He lost his own State of Penang along with 5 other states and got whipped in the recent by-election in his homestate by his nemesis reflecting people’s rejection for his leadership.He sees the facts point blank and decides to resign gracefully and save UMNO from further embarrassment. He does so by announcing his retirement in March of 2009 and not offering himself to contest as President of the Party in March of the same.

The Presidential race will be between Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Dato’ Sri Najib Razak. I have said that Najib might have the edge in nominations but we shall see the outcome. I may be wrong again.

Have a pleasant holiday Sir. Thank you for your selfless decision in favour of the Party and thank you for your services to the Country.

WILL HE? WILL HE NOT?

Will he hand it over?

Will he or will he not?

That is the question the whole nation is waiting to be answered.

In the next 48 hours, we will find out whether Datuk Seri Abdullah Hj Ahmad Badawi will declare either to contest or to stand down in the next UMNO elections due to be held in March of 2009.

Let’s play with the different possibilities available.

SCENARIO # 1.

The PM’s back is against the wall. He tried his best to make the necessary and promised changes but they were slow in coming and didn’t quite meet the target by the last election date. At the same time, national unity nosed-dived under his watch that open animosity between races began to rear its ugly head and the position of the Malays and Islam were threatened for the first time in many years. He lost his own State of Penang along with 5 others and got whipped in the recent by-election in his homestate by his nemesis reflecting people’s rejection for his leadership.

He sees the facts point blank and decides to resign gracefully and save UMNO from further embarrassment. He does so by announcing his retirement in March of 2009 and not offering himself to contest as President of the Party in March of the same.

The Presidential race will be between Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Dato’ Sri Najib Razak. In this scenario, Najib will have the edge as many have declared their willingness to nominate him for President if Mr Badawi decides to leave.

SCENARIO # 2

The PM’s mind is poisoned by influential UMNO leaders into thinking that he is stuck in a corner, and there is no way out except the honorable one which is to withdraw from office. He gets the Supreme Council to agree to postpone the Convention to March 2008 and has 2 weeks to gauge the truth on the wavering support for him before he declares his position.

He realizes that even if he withdraws now, people will not be grateful to him for his sacrifice and will always see him as a failed Prime Minister. He later discovers that he will have the minimum required number of nominations to defend his position with more than 3 months to consolidate his stand using all the necessary resources available to him as Prime Minister of Malaysia, even if it means having to remove Najib from his current position.

He thinks for instance if he gets 60 nominations while Najib gets more and refuses to withdraw, he will have the power to retire Najib as Deputy Prime Minister and replace him with another candidate, possibly Zahid Hamidi and with one stroke catapult the latter as the strongest contender for the Deputy President’s post. At the same time he reshuffles the whole Cabinet and also retires Muhyiddin to cut off his authority and bring him down to size. With most of the UMNO leaders save Muhyiddin out to save their own necks and backsides, they will very quickly cuddle back up to the PM and seek his forgiveness and slurp all over his hand.

It is a known fact in UMNO that the majority of the delegates’ loyalty lies with those in office. For example, Musa Hitam got whipped by a less polished politician in Ghafar Baba who was the Deputy Prime Minister while Musa was the incumbent Deputy President defending his position in the party but was out of the Cabinet.

In addition, the PM’s counselors will also advise him that if he wins without Najib’s withdrawal from the race, naturally the transition plan will become null and void and he will be stronger than he ever was in UMNO.

The PM decides to contest.

The Presidential race will be between Pak Lah, Najib and Tengku Razaleigh. The winner will be one of the first two.

SCENARIO # 3

PM decides to run but hands over the power to Najib in March. Najib believes him and decides to remain Deputy till then because he’d like to be able to choose his deputy as opposed to having it force fed if he goes for broke and Muhyiddin wins the number two spot.

In the meantime, Muhyiddin too gets enough nominations for Deputy President and doesn’t quit. Najib will be frozen because his supporters who are angry with him for not contesting for President will support Muhyiddin out of spite.

The Presidential race will be between Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and the PM.

Tengku Razaleigh will win hands down with Muhyiddin possibly as his number two.


I THINK SCENARIO # 2 WILL PREVAIL. ABDULLAH AHMAD BADAWI WILL EITHER GO DOWN FIGHTING OR RISE LIKE THE PHEONIX FROM THE ASHES OF DEFEAT.

What do you think?