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‘Seeing the light’ on the eve of polling…

Anil Netto
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18

Another by-election, another ‘bombshell’ (well, not quite as we already saw it coming). This time in the form of another PKR MP ‘seeing the light’ on the eve of polling for the Tenang by-election.

N Gobalakrishnan, a former MIC Youth secretary general (1993-1999) who joined Keadilan in April 1999, is the sixth PKR MP to quit the party since the 2008 general election. How times have changed. He was detained under the ISA for his role in the reformasi movement. See Aliran – ‘Why has Appa been arrested?’ And in this interview with Aliran after his release, Gobala insisted “Reformasi will never die”:

Reformasi can never die. A person can die, but reformasi will never die because reformation will be talked and talked about every day. Every individual will want to bring about reformation. If there’s a person who says that he doesn’t want to bring about reformation, that means the man is brain-dead… They can put down the organisation, they can put down the gathering of the reformists, but reformation (itself) can never die, and the government can never kill reformation.

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Look at the Big Picture

Anil Netto
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9

We tend to be obsessed with FDI and economic growth rates. Many of us overlook the bits we don’t see – like the depletion of natural resources, the toxic chemicals used, and the waste the corporations and consumers discard.

We fail to see the hidden costs in the overall economy and how corporate interests have overwhelmed the interests of ordinary people.

And often, we also do not see the alienation of the human being – from our own selves, from our fellow human beings, from nature – leading to an overall spiritual alienation or disconnect.

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“Slim” chance for Pas in Tenang

Anil Netto
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53

I spoke to a couple of people on Tenang to find out what they thought of the way the by-election campaign was going.

Before that, a little poll:

[poll id=”61″]

The first, a political scientist now visiting Tenang, told me that it’s not looking great for Pas there. Another political analyst accompanying him, however, chipped in, “But it’s not all that bad either for Pas.”

The BN looks solid especially in the Felda areas where a sizeable bloc of voters reside and have profited in recent times, said the political scientist.

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So how did Kugan die?

Anil Netto
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The only cop charged with causing ‘grievous hurt’ in the case of Kugan’s death in police custody has been freed.

Which raises the question, how did Kugan die? A post-mortem report showed that Kugan had suffered severe beatings and was starved during his detention.

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Cycle-friendly George Town?

Anil Netto
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32

Pedal power could be making a comeback in George Town.

According to George Town World Heritage Inc general manager Maimunah Mohd Sharif, greening in Penang will not be limited to trees. “We want to do something with George Town’s back lanes so cyclists can use them,” she told The Edge. “Cycling is coming back to the city. The back lanes will definitely be of use to them, so this is greening George Town in another way to reduce carbon emissions.”

Well said and worthy of support! I hope such plans will be extended throughout the state, not just George Town.

As for the planting of trees, the GTWHI is also looking at Jalan Kampung Kolam, Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling (Pitt Street), Jalan Padang Kota Lama and open spaces like that at the end of Armenian Street.

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This New Year, say a prayer for Yong

Anil Netto
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7

While we celebrate the New Year, spare a thought for Yong Vui Kong, a young Malaysian convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to death in Singapore.

Pray for a miracle, that he be given a second chance.

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Heart-stopping price of new hospital

Anil Netto
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11

Heard of the delayed RM400 million (or is that RM660 million?) ‘Heart Hospital’ at Kota Samarahan in Sarawak, which is billed as the most expensive in terms of cost per head?

Bernama reports that the hospital has 60 beds.

If that’s not enough to give you heart palpitations, consider this: the (outdated?) heart hospital equipment is allegedly linked to matters of the heart…

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sPICE exhibition ‘disappointing’

Anil Netto
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69

A few concerned Penangites who visited the sPICE exhibtion at Pisa aimed at eliciting public feedback came away disappointed.

One of them said, “(To say) I am disappointed with the display is an understatement. In fact, it is pathetic and shameful for whoever puts up the display to call it a public display and request public feedback.”

A second said it was “rubbish”, adding there was nothing really answered in the exhibition.

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GM mosquitoes WERE released

Anil Netto
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24

You know what? They have already released 6,000 of those GM mosquitoes even though a reports had quoted a Biosafety Deparment senior official as saying no date had been fixed and the plan had been delayed.

While folks were celebrating the delay, now the IMR tells us the mosquitoes had in fact been released in a forest near Bentong, Pahang on 21 December 2010. This after the FMT reported on 20 December 2011 that the Biosafety Department research director had dismissed as untrue an allegation that the IMR released the GM male mosquitoes the previous week. He said the IMR had not yet fixed a date. Yeah, right.

Najib and the Environment Minister must explain how this happened. Look at what was stated here in an AFP report published on Yahoo! dated 4 January 2011:

A senior official from the Biosafety Department told AFP that the trial, which was to be carried out in two Malaysian states, has been postponed pending further discussion with residents in the trial areas.

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Amazing what election season can do

Anil Netto
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22

It’s amazing what a series of upcoming elections can do.

Already the government, perhaps with one eye on the Tenang by-election, has back-tracked. Now, the Royal Commission of Inquiry will look into the cause of Teoh Beng Hock’s death.

Now Hishammuddin also says the government is not yet ready to amend the Printing Presses and Publications Act to suppress Internet freedom. That’s a day after Home Ministry secretary-general Mahmood Adam reportedly said the government plans to table amendments to the PPPA to include online news sites when Parliament convenes in March.

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