NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Seremban Umno makes history
The Seremban Umno division yesterday made history as the only division in the party to hold three meetings after the first two attempts failed. The first meeting on Nov 9 was postponed after a fight broke out. The second meeting on Dec 27 was postponed.
Yesterday, Seremban Umno division chief Datuk Ishak Ismail retained his position, which he had held since 1988, when his opponent, Mohd Nor Awang, did not qualify to contest after facing bribery allegations. -- The New Straits Times, 1 February 2009
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Live by the sword, die by the sword
Meanwhile, as they try their best to get back Perak through foul means, in other places they run the risk of losing power. In Negeri Sembilan, all Pakatan Rakyat needs are three state seats to oust Barisan Nasional from the state. Umno is watching that state closely lest three Barisan Nasional State Assemblymen cross over to Pakatan Rakyat to help them form the new Negeri Sembilan state government. And Negeri Sembilan is Khairy Jamaluddin’s state, the state he hopes he will one day become Menteri Besar of before he journeys to Putrajaya to take the seat as Prime Minister of Malaysia some time after 2020.
But Khairy no longer has time to worry about Negeri Sembilan. Negeri Sembilan is something in the future. Negeri Sembilan can wait. Khairy has more immediate problems to worry about. -- The Corridors of Power (https://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/17434/84/)
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Umno’s disciplinary problems
What makes it so difficult for the tribunal (the Umno Disciplinary Board) to effectively carry out its functions is the selective prosecution it must practice in the discharge of its duties. Actions can only be taken if required or useful to certain top leaders. The tribunal lacks clear mandate from the party management in dealing with money politics, Umno's euphemism for corrupt practice. -- Datuk Zaid Ibrahim
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Either you are with me or you are against me, said President Bush Junior. Either you are with me or you die, says Umno. Hey, what the fork, can’t we agree to disagree? (Ha! I bet you thought I was going to use the ‘other’ four-letter ‘F’ word. Gotcha!).
The objective of the Umno exercise is very simple, so simple that many within Umno do not see it. That’s because they try to look for the ‘udang sebalik batu’ (the prawn behind the stone; meaning, the hidden agenda).
There is no udang sebalik batu or hidden agenda. The agenda is very clear and ‘transparent’. Bring down Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s key people so that, come March 2009, the Prime Minister will be all alone and isolated, and would therefore have to step down and hand over to Najib Tun Razak as planned.
Negeri Sembilan is Khairy Jamaluddin’s, the Prime Minister’s son-in-law’s home base. And that is where he is building his political fortunes so that in the next election (say in 2012-2013) he can contest a state seat and become the next Menteri Besar of Negeri Sembilan. Then, say around 2017-2018 or so, he will contest a parliament seat and will be on the way to become the Prime Minister by the age of 40 as he aspires.
Make no bones about it. Khairy can make it and I will place my money on that happening (unless Pakatan Rakyat kicks out Barisan Nasional and takes over the federal government first). But he can make it only if Najib does not take over as Prime Minister in March 2009 and if Pak Lah continues as Prime Minister until the next general election.
Khairy knows this. Najib knows this. And probably nearly every Malaysian, Pak Lah included, knows this as well. So, do you think Najib is going to allow this to happen? There is room for only one at the top. And Najib wants this to be him, not Khairy.
Even the CEO of Air Asia knows that Khairy’s days are numbered, or so he thinks, and he is quickly distancing himself from Khairy as his Malaysiakini interview has revealed. “The biggest mistake of my life, and to be fair to this guy, is (when) Khairy Jamaluddin’s team came to propose sponsoring the MyTeam (football project). Honestly, it was the biggest mistake of my life,” said Tony Fernandez.
When the rats begin to desert the ship then you certainly know that the ship is about to sink. And there is another rat that has deserted what he believes to be the sinking ship. And this rat is the Honorary Consul of Mongolia to Malaysia, Syed Rahman Alhabshi.
When I first met Syed Rahman it was during a meeting I was having with Zahid Md Arip and Datuk Kamal Amir at The Dome in the Bangsar Shopping Centre. I had known Zahid, the grandson of Tun Ghafar Baba, since 1998. I know his uncle, Tamrin, even longer, probably since the 1980s. But that was the first time I met Datuk Kamal.
As we were talking, Syed Rahman passed by and Datuk Kamal invited him to join us, which he did. It was then that I realised who he was. Okay, he is not a dashing-looking sort of fellow and it is not quite like his face stands out in the crowd. So I did not recognise him at first until I was told who he is.
What Syed Rahman told us was no different from what Bala said is his Statutory Declaration. The long and short of it all, what Syed Rahman revealed was that Najib and Rosmah are involved in Altantuya’s murder and that Najib was in fact having an affair with the now dead Mongolian beauty.
I met Syed Rahman once or twice after that at the Mahbol Mamak restaurant in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, this time with a larger crowd that included Jadawi Datuk Ghazali and his wife, Salleh Yassin, a military intelligence chap called Major Salleh, Aspan Alias (an Umno stalwart), Naqib, and about a dozen or so others. It was one huge party of people.
Syed Rahman has the habit of shooting his mouth off. He would tell all and sundry and every man and his dog the story of Najib and Altantuya, if they cared to give him their ears. He was Malaysia’s one and only tukang karut (storyteller). In fact, he even gave press conferences and related in great detail and with much gusto his disgust with how the Malaysian police and the judiciary are handling the Altantuya murder investigation and trial. It appeared like he was going to single-handedly bring down Najib.
Altantuya’s father, Dr Steve Shariibuu, was so impressed with Syed Rahman’s performance that he gave him an entire dossier that would be able to implicate Najib in Altantuya’s murder, or at least implicate him in an affair with her. “I trusted him so much,” explained Dr Shariibuu, “and did not suspect he would betray me.”
According to Syed Rahman, who never denied that Dr Shariibuu had given him this thick dossier, he had handed it to the police to help them in their investigation. He said he never thought of making any copies. And this is the same thing Dr Shariibuu said when asked if he had made any copies of the dossier.
How convenient. Only one copy of the very damaging dossier exists and it has been handed to the police. Neither Syed Rahman nor Dr Shariibuu made any copies. Guess what has now happened to that only one copy of damaging evidence? No, no prize for the right guess.
Syed Rahman said the IGP spoke to him and advised him to ‘leave the country’ if Najib ever becomes Prime Minister. Would the IGP do such a thing? Was Syed Rahman telling the truth or was he preparing the ground to eventually jump ship and he needed the ‘justification’ to do so?
Whatever it may be, Syed Rahman did jump to the other side, whether under threat or inducement. And in late August 2008, a few days before the Permatang Pauh by-election, he went before national television to deny all the ‘lies’ and to endorse Najib and to proclaim Najib's innocence in the Altantuya murder.
Why this about-turn? Was he threatened like private investigator Bala and the two missing PKR State Assemblymen -- who are all still missing even as you read this? Or was he offered a large amount of money, too large to say no to? Remember, when they tried to convince the Umno State Assemblyman who had crossed over to PKR earlier this week to return to Umno, they reminded him about what happened to Altantuya and Bala. In short, if he refused to return to Umno then expect the same fate.
Yes, in Malaysia, you do not work against those who walk in the corridors of power. If you oppose the powers-that-be you end up dead, disappeared, or in jail. That is if they can’t buy you. Those in Umno face sacking from the party as many have discovered. You just do not oppose those who imagine themselves as God.
Take the money or die. Take the money or get sacked. Take the money or go to jail. That is the Umno way of doing things. And many have fallen victim to this ‘gentle persuasion’. And those who do not heed this ‘advice’ will suffer. And if you have a low tolerance for pain you succumb to the cohesion. And if you are stubborn you face the consequences.
It may already be a foregone conclusion that the two PKR State Assemblymen from Perak would rather not go to jail. Never mind if they face fabricated charges and were set up. You still go to jail. Would you rather go to jail or accept power and plenty of money? Many would rather choose power and money over jail, unfortunately.
Anyway, in case anyone would like to know, Barisan Nasional still needs one more Perak State Assemblyman or woman to form the state government even if the two PKR State Assemblymen cross over to Umno. And the going price for the last State Assemblyman or woman they need to complete the takeover of Perak is RM15 million. Yes, that’s right, the price has gone up from RM10 million to RM15 million. And they need just one more State Assemblyman or woman. Any takers?
And while you mull on that, also mull on the following. Was Kugan killed while in police custody because he was a car thief or because he was a witness to the car-stealing ring that involved senior police officers? This is what the family is asking. And the first autopsy showed he died because of water in the lungs. Hmm, in some countries you die of water in the lungs while under police custody because they submerge your head in the toilet bowl and flush the toilet. Most interesting indeed would you not agree?
Okay, back to Syed Rahman. What was Syed Rahman’s motivation for the U-turn? Did they threaten him or was he paid a lot of money? Maybe this photograph of him with Najib can shed some light on the matter. Does he look frightened? Does it appear like he is an unwilling participant? Or is this a photo of a very happy man who has just made millions by endorsing Najib and proclaiming to the world that Najib is innocent and is not involved in the Altantuya murder?
You be the judge.
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