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The woman who masterminded Samy’s defeat

Anil Netto

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19 Mar 2008

Kumar and Rani in Penang fresh after their triumph in Sg Siput

While everyone knows Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj as the guy who finally toppled Samy Vellu in his Sg Siput bastion, few are aware that his victory owes a lot to his wife and campaign manager, Rani Rasiah, a PSM central committee member, who played an instrumental role in the campaign. Of course, they couldn’t have done it without the help of a multi-ethnic team of dedicated volunteers from all around the country. A tale of sheer grit and perseverance.

It was an amazing campaign. Rani revealed that none of the volunteers who helped out in their campaign – many of them from grassroots communities – was paid a sen. It was entirely a people’s effort. In fact, their regular ceramah in Sg Siput did not feature any big names. Rather, it was the ordinary people – farmers, urban pioneers, estate workers – who took to the stage to share their experience and urge the crowds to vote for change!

The campaign was also boosted by a strong DAP candidate standing in one of the state seats and by Pas workers who did their bit by putting up posters and flags in kampongs.

Kumar told me he discovered that his new position as MP for Sungai Siput carries with it certain powers and influence over local authorities, which he hopes to use to uplift some of the diverse communities in the area.

Zaid Ibrahim, Shahrir IN; Rafidah, Tengku Adnan OUT

Anil Netto

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18 Mar 2008

21

PM Abdullah Badawi has just announced his new cabinet which includes critic Zaid Ibrahim as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department serving as de facto law minister. Zaid is likely to be made a senator first before he can take up his new appointment.

The independent-minded Shahrir Samad makes a surprise entry as Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister.

The “world’s longest-serving trade minister”, Rafidah, has been dropped in a major shock. The “AP Queen” is replaced by Muhyiddin.

Other big names dropped are Radzi Sheikh Ahmad, Jamaluddin Jarjis, Tengku Adnan and Azmi Khalid.

It is likely that the major setbacks suffered by the BN in the 8 March general election played a key role in their being dropped. But the new appointments are unlikely to placate Malaysians demanding real and far-reaching change.

With Zam, Rafidah and Samy Vellu all out, we are now left with Nazri to “entertain” us. I wonder what Ahmad Shabery Cheek will be like as Information Minister. Zam will surely be a hard act to follow. 🙂

Ultra nationalists Najib and Hishamuddin retain Defence and Education respectively.

No place for Khairy, though, who probably remains in “the fourth floor”. The suave and adaptable Rais takes over Wisma Putra from Hamid Albar, who moves to Internal Security. Imagine, Muhammad Taib makes a comeback in Rural Development while there’s even a place for Taib Mahmud’s son as Deputy Tourism Minister.

Umno ministers take over from MIC and Gerakan at the Works Ministry and the Energy, Water and Communications Ministry, both of which are responsible for overseeing the award of huge $$$$ infrastructure contracts. Abdullah, meanwhile, clings on to the coveted Finance portfolio.

Correction: Earlier title should not have read “Nazri out”…. Misread Radzi as Nazri. (Silly me – just wishful thinking on my part, perhaps!) Apologies for the slip-up.

So, what do you think of this Cabinet ?

This from Bernama:

PUTRAJAYA, March 18 (Bernama) — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi remains as Minister of Finance while Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop will continue to be Second Finance Minister.

Tan Sri Hj Muhyiddin Yassin has been appointed Minister Of International Trade And Industry replacing Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz, who has been dropped from the Cabinet.

Rafidah is believed to be the world’s longest-serving trade minister, who has been dropped from the Cabinet.

The deputy finance ministers are Datuk Husni Hanadzlah and Datuk Kong Cho Ha.

As for MITI, the deputy ministers are Liew Vui Keong and Jacob Dungau Sagan.

Maybank chief executive officer and President Datuk Amirsham A. Aziz will be appointed senator.

— BERNAMA

The full list:

Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

Deputy Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak

Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department
Tan Sri Bernard Dompok
Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz
Datuk Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim
Datuk Amirsham Abdul Aziz

Deputy Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department
Datuk Johari Baharom
Datuk Dr Mashitah Ibrahim
Datuk K. Devamany
Datuk Hassan Malik
Finance
Minister – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Second Finance Minister – Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop
Deputies – Datuk Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah, Datuk Kong Cho Ha

Defence
Minister – Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak
Deputy – Datuk Wira Abu Seman Yusop

Internal Security and Home Affairs
Minister – Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar
Deputies – Datuk Chor Chee Heong, Senator Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh

Housing and Local Government
Minister -Datuk Ong Ka Chuan
Deputies – Datuk Robert Lau , Datuk Hamzah Zainuddin

Works Minister
Minister – Datuk Mohd Zin Mohamad
Deputy- Datuk Yong Khoon Seng

Energy, Water and Communications
Minister – Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor
Deputy- Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum

Agriculture and Agro-based Industry
Minister – Datuk Mustapa Mohamed
Deputy – Datin Paduka Rohani Abdul Karim

International Trade and Industry
Minister -Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin
Deputies- Loh Wei Keong, Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan

Foreign Affairs
Minister -Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim
Deputy- Tunku Azlan Abu Bakar

Education
Minister -Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein
Deputies -Datuk Wee Ka Siong, Datuk Razali Ismail

Higher Education
Minister – Datuk Khaled Nordin
Deputies – Khoo Kok Choong, Datuk Idris Harun

Transport
Datuk Ong Tee Keat
Deputy – Anifah Aman

Human Resources
Datuk S. Subramaniam
Deputy- Datuk Noraini Ahmad

Women, Family and Community Development
Minister-Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen
Deputy- Noriah Kasnon

National Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage
Minister- Datuk Shafie Apdal
Deputy-Datuk Teng Boon Soon

Science, Technology and Innovation
Minister- Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili
Deputy- Fadilah Yusof

Entrepreneurial and Cooperative Development
Minister – Datuk Noh Omar
Deputy- Datuk Saiffuddin Abdullah

Natural Resources and Environment
Minister – Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas
Deputy – Datuk Abu Ghapur Salleh

Rural and Regional Development
Minister – Tan Sri Muhammad Muhd Taib
Deputy- Tan Sri Joseph Kurup

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs
Minister – Datuk Shahrir Samad
Deputy – Jelaing Mersat

Plantation Industries and Commodities
Minister – Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui
Deputy- Senator A. Kohilan

Youth and Sports
Minister – Datuk Ismail Sabri Yaacob
Deputy – Wee Jack Seng

Health
Minister – Datuk Liow Tiong Lai
Deputy- Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad

Information
Minister – Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek
Deputy- Datuk Tan Lian Hoe

Tourism
Minister – Datuk Azalina Othman
Deputy – Datuk Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Abu Taib

FT
Minister – Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique
Deputy- M. Saravanan

New Perak MB impresses Chinese crowd

Anil Netto

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17 Mar 2008

17

Looks like the new Pas MB in Perak has an impressive command of languages. This should stand him in good stead.

This report from Sin Chew (click on link to see pictures):

Perak MB-designate wows Chinese crowd

IPOH, MALAYSIA: Perak Menteri Besar-designate Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin of PAS turned up at the ”What’s Coming Next” political forum held in Ipoh Sunday (16 Mar) and immediately stunned the Chinese crowd by speaking in Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese, Tamil, then in English and Malay.

The audience was speechless then gave the PAS leader a rousing applause. The forum was organized by Guang Ming Daily, Sin Chew Daily, Eye Asia and Sin Chew-i an dheld at Dewan Dou Mu in Ipoh at 2pm and attracted 3000 people. Speakers included PKR national vice-president Dr Lee Boon Chye, Perak DAP chief Ngeh Koo Ham, Wangsa Maju Member of Parliament Wee Choo Keong and Sin Chew’s Deputy Chief Editor Tay Tian Yan.

Mohammad Nizar, an accomplished enginneer, was not a speaker but was invited to the forum by Ngeh. (Sin Chew Daily)

Meanwhile, over in Selangor, a couple of populist measures from the new MB, as the NST reports:

In his first Press conference as Selangor Mentri Besar today, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim made two key announcements: the first 20 cubic metres of water is free to all Selangor households from April, and the eve of polling day water treatment plant deal between Puncak Niaga Holdings Bhd and Selangor Government is lopsided to the concessionaire’s advantage.

It should not stop there. All contracts not in the public interest must be reviewed for possible corruption or bad faith dealings.

Talking about bad faith dealings, it appears that the previous Kedah administration has gone paper-less! I don’t think this was what they had in mind when they were talking about e-government…

The Star has this report:

Kedah official papers missing

By SIRA HABIBU

sira@thestar.com.my

ALOR STAR: All documents from the offices of the Mentri Besar and executive councillors in Kedah have gone missing.

The PAS-led government which took office after 12th general election on March 8 will lodge a police report based on the findings of an internal investigation.

Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak has appointed state executive councillor Phahrolrazi Zawawi to investigate the case of the missing documents.

It all sounds very fishy to me – and no doubt to you as well.

Up north in Perlis, Dr Md Isa Sabu was sworn in before the Raja of Perlis this evening as the new Perlis mentri besar. The NST reports there was relief all round as the ceremony proceeded without incident. Shahidan did not show up but 14 other assembly members, including the five aligned to him, attended.

Mainstream media trying to stir discord among opposition parties

Anil Netto

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17 Mar 2008

16

They are at it again, playing the same old game. This time they are trying to fracture the opposition parties’ unity of purpose and the stability of the new state governments they control.

The NST, for instance, carried this report on the frontpage of its website:

Pas’ proposal for Islamic govt irks DAP veteran

17 March, 2008
GEORGE TOWN: The DAP has expressed shock and anger over Pas’ proposal to form an Islamic federal government. DAP life adviser Dr Chen Man Hin said the party would not agree or co-operate with Pas should they insist on forming an Islamic government at the federal level.

“This is not part of our understanding. It will be no-go for the DAP if they do that. We will surely not accept it.

“Their proposal has left a big question mark over our future co-operation,” a visibly upset Dr Chen said while angrily pushing aside a newspaper article on the Pas proposal.

Dr Chen, who was at the day-long DAP national leadership convention, said the party decided to co-operate with Pas because of its intention to convert Malaysia into a welfare state.

“But look at what they are saying now,” he said when asked to comment on Pas vice-president Datuk Husam Musa’s statement that Pas was confident it could soon set up an Islamic form of government at the federal level.

Husam had said there was growing support among the Chinese and Indians for the party’s political struggle.

But The Star Online carried the following report, presumably as correction of an earlier report on Sunday, which began by saying that “PAS is now confident that it can soon set up an Islamic form of government at the federal level, which it claims is gaining more acceptance, especially with non-Muslims, following the good showing of the Opposition coalition in last weekend’s elections.” But then it had to backtrack:

Sunday March 16, 2008
MYT 8:50:23 PM

Husam clarifies ‘take-over’ statement

By IAN McINTYRE

KOTA BARU: PAS vice-president Datuk Husam Musa has clarified that his statement on the party taking over the Government at the federal level was taken out of context.

“I mentioned that we are hopeful of taking 30 more parliamentary seats to win power and not about forming an Islamic Government,” he said.

Husam urged the mass media to be careful in its reporting to avoid antagonising anyone unnecessarily.

We have already seen how Bernama had to apologise to Guan Eng for distorting his remarks on the NEP. Expect more mischief from the mainstream media in coming weeks.

In sharp contrast, Harakah Daily has actually carried a glowing report on the DAP leadership as part of its Berita Utama. The report describes how Guan Eng is reluctant to spend RM100,000 on repairs and renovations to the Penang chief minister’s residence and has instead opted to live in a house belonging to his father. The report even compares Guan Eng’s decision as being in the same vein as the example set by Nik Aziz and Hadi, who both opted for simpler life-styles. Not surprisingly, this has not appeared in the mainstream media.

Isnin 17 Mac 2008 | 9 Rabi’ul Awal 1429 Hijrah
Guan Eng enggan keluar RM100 ribu
Abdul Halim Mohd Rashid
Mon | Mar 17, 08 | 5:59:13 am MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, 17 Mac (Hrkh) – Kerana enggan membelanjakan RM100 ribu, Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang, Lim Guan Eng lebih rela tinggal di sebuah rumah berusia milik bapanya.

Naib Presiden PAS, Haji Mohamad Sabu menceritakan perkara itu selepas bertemu dengan Setiausaha Agung DAP itu di Pulau Pinang baru-baru ini.

Beliau ke pulau itu baru-baru ini kerana hendak bertemu Lim untuk berbincang beberapa perkara mengenai kepentingan bersama kedua-dua pihak.

“Oleh kerana beliau sibuk, beliau meminta saya menemuinya kira-kira pukul 10.00 malam hari itu.

“Tahu di mana Guan Eng nak jumpa saya? Di restoran McDonald,” kata Mohamad Sabu yang mula mengenali Lim dengan lebih dekat ketika sama-sama di tahan dalam Operasi Lallang 1987 lalu.

Naib Presiden PAS itu juga lebih selesa bertemu di tempat terbuka kerana “tidak ada apa yang hendak dirahsiakan”.

Bagaimanapun, katanya, Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang itu kemudiannya memberitahu pertemuan itu tidak dapat diadakan di tempat terbuka itu atas nasihat pihak keselamatan.

Memahami perkara tersebut, beliau terus menuju ke rumah di mana Lim tinggal.

“Di rumah, dia biasa sahaja dengan “seluaq katok” (seluar pendek). Bila saya tengok keadaan rumah yang berusia tempat dia tinggal, saya tanya dia, kenapa tak pindah ke rumah rasmi Ketua Menteri?

“Dia (Lim) jawab: ‘Susahlah, kalau nak pindah kena perbaiki. Terpaksa belanja sampai RM100 ribu. Takkan saya nak belanja duit rakyat sampai RM100 ribu untuk kepentingan saya’

“Saya rasa sangat terharu mempunyai kawan seperti itu,” kata Mohamad Sabu.

Walaupun perkara itu bukanlah perkara baru baginya, memandangkan Mursyidul Am, Tuan Guru Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat yang menjadi Menteri Besar Kelantan sejak 1990 memilih kehidupan yang sederhana, begitu juga Presiden PAS Tuan Guru Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang ketika menjadi Menteri Besar Terengganu dahulu, Naib Presiden PAS itu tetap merasa bangga dengan sikap sederhana dan rendah diri Lim itu.

“Saya bangga kerana dia takut nak belanja wang rakyat RM100 ribu sedangkan Perdana Menteri gasak sehingga RM15.81 juta untuk ubahsuai kediaman rasminya Seri Perdana di Putrajaya.

“Saya yakin, Menteri-Menteri Besar kita yang lain (dari PAS dan KeADILan) juag akan memilih jalan kehidupan yang sederhana yang sama seperti dua Tok Guru kita, jauh lagilah menyalahgunakan harta kerajaan,” katanya.

Opposition politicians should therefore be wary of media attempts to create suspicion and disunity.

Malaysiakini surges past The Star Online

Media

Anil Netto

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16 Mar 2008

10

Well, at least according to this Internet traffic ranking comparison chart from Alexa.

Obviously, compared to the last time I checked, The Star has either slipped up or Malaysiakini has caught up, thanks perhaps to its decision to provide its service free in the run-up and immediate aftermath of the general election. There have also been calls to boycott The Star and other mainstream media – although it is difficult to gauge what impact this might have had.

Utusan is not far behind while Malaysia Today is neck and neck with Harakah Daily.

That said, Alexa provides just an indication; it is not a conclusive ranking.

New Perlis MB chosen: It’s the Sultan’s choice

Anil Netto

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16 Mar 2008

3

The NST reports that Shahidan Kassim has failed in his last-ditch attempt today to secure the Perlis Mentri Besar post.

It is learnt that Abdullah had already met the Raja of Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Putra Jamalullail where they reached a consensus that Datuk Dr Md Isa Sabu, who is the Ruler’s choice, would be maintained as Mentri Besar. Dr Isa is expected to be sworn in as the new Mentri Besar of Perlis tomorrow.

What does this say about the PM’s position?

Let’s see what happens in Terengganu now.

There’s a new opposition newspaper in town

Anil Netto

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15 Mar 2008

17

Soon after it became clear that opposition parties had swept to power in five states, a senior staff member of The Star told me, with a laugh, “Do you know, I am now working for an opposition newspaper – in five states.” Which is true, because The Star is owned by the MCA, now in the Opposition in these states.

Hmm, I wonder if The Star will now be subject to the same restrictions as other opposition papers such as The Rocket and Harakah (actually, these two are now, in a sense, state government newspapers!)… These “opposition” newpapers are only allowed to be published once a fortnight and they can only be sold to party members.

No, I am not advocating that The Star should be subjected to the same restrictions. Just pointing out how ridiculous and discriminatory our media laws are. It’s time to remove the restrictions on The Rocket and Harakah.

Newspapers like The Star will have to get used to this new situation – and already there are signs that they are going to be critical of the new state governments.

The mainstream media clearly performed horribly and dismally during the general election campaign. They actually may have contributed to the BN’s huge electoral setback by painting too rosy a picture of the situation on the ground. This may have lulled the BN politicians into a false sense of security and prevented them from taking remedial action to tackle the deep-seated grievances of the people.

The propaganda onslaught, especially during the last week of the campaign, when the media vilified the opposition parties and targeted Anwar for special bashing – without giving them the right of reply – backfired spectacularly. In fact, I doubt many Malays and other Malaysians who have some sense of fairplay were impressed. The overkill in the vilification could have had the opposite effect of swaying fence-sitters into voting for the Opposition this time.

Now red-faced editors in the various mainstream newspapers seem to be trying to “reinvent” themselves and provide more coverage of the other sides’ views. They realise that many Malaysians simply ignored or boycotted their coverage and turned to alternative sources of information. They now appear to be trying to revamp their journalistic orientation.

Still, we would do well to remind ourselves that their main source of revenue is from corporate advertisers. Thus, even if they now provide more coverage of PKR, DAP and Pas, their overall content is still likely to be dominated by corporate propaganda – not the views of marginalised communities and long-suffering workers struggling to make ends meet. Such propaganda will very likely continue to promote consumerism, materialism and unsustainable corporate-driven development.

Already, there are calls to boycott the mainstream newpapers flying around. These calls are disseminated via emails, text messages and blogs.

This is a piece I wrote for Catholic Asian News magazine before the election.

The Propaganda Machine

There is no level playing field in elections media coverage, writes Anil Netto

FLIP through the newspapers and you will see page after page of propaganda in support of the ruling coalition thinly disguised as “news”. “News” reports of handouts, development grants, opening ceremonies of clinics and promises and pledges. Turn on the television and it’s the same – more election propaganda! Full article

1,000 join pro-NEP protest in Penang

Anil Netto

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14 Mar 2008

69

A friend of mine provides an eye-witness account and pictures of the pro-NEP demonstration around Komtar, Penang, this afternoon. (The Komtar tower houses the offices of the Penang state government offices and the Chief Minister.) The crowd, which included several Umno leaders and reps in the state, were protesting against Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s declaration that the new DAP-led state government would discontinue New Economic Policy (NEP) policies.

Here is the eye-witness account:

At about 2.55pm, I was walking through Komtar and out from the third floor at the Maybank entrance. At first, I saw people lining the balcony railing looking down to three FRU trucks being loaded up with personnel. There was a strong police presence (though not intimidating), vehicles and personnel and a curious but not ruffled crowd.

When I asked, I was told the new chief minister was coming. A bit of a heavy welcome, I thought. So I followed the crowd and walked to Jalan Ria where I could both see and hear a large banner-waving crowd.

As I could not hear what they were chanting and could not decipher their banners, I can only describe what I saw and felt. Firstly, there was, at that time, no sense of tension either from the crowd or the marchers. The marchers at the front were young mainly male and evidently Muslim. Further back, the marchers were a mix of ages and sexes as well as ethnicities, though I would say they were probably all Muslim – Indian and Malay.

All seemed to be peaceful when I left the scene. Although there was a helicopter overhead, there didn’t seem to be any tear gas or water cannon truck lurking in the background, just FRU directing the march and guiding the traffic.

One thing though – there was a slight awkwardness in the marchers… and unfamiliarity… as if they were not from Penang, at least not from the island. They looked a little out of their familiar territory – just an observation.

———-

Well, thankfully everything ended peacefully. Indeed, the FRU should be commended for acting with restraint in sharp contrast to the way their counterparts in KL handled the Hindraf protests.

Earlier, theSun quoted Chief Minister Guan Eng as saying:

“We believe in the freedom of speech and assembly as long as it is peaceful. Anybody who wants to protest, we have no qualms about it but please do it based on facts and not based on certain interests or to try and test the state government,” he said.

Speaking in a press conference after a meeting with 21 Muslim non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in his office in Komtar, Lim said the state government is a united front that should not be tested on their commitment to represent all Penangites.

“Don’t test us on our commitment towards establishing integrity and accountability and don’t test us on our commitment to listen to all the voices of Penangites,” he said.

“If they want to come and give their views, we are willing to listen but if they want to demonstrate, that is their right. I hope they won’t provoke sentiments that are not true,” he added.

He was commenting on a plan by certain groups to stage a protest in Komtar against the state government’s stand in not using the New Economic Policy (NEP) but an open tender system instead.

“We will not back down on the open tender system because the NEP is associated with corruption, cronyism and inefficiency,” Lim reiterated.

“We want an open tender system but they raised so much hue and cry. If they want to test us, they can go ahead and test us. We have the full exco support on this and we won’t back down on that,” he said.

Earlier, on his meeting with the 21 Muslim organisations, Lim again reiterated that the state government has no intention of sidelining any group or races.

“We are a state government for all and we listen to the voices of the people and we want to represent everyone in Penang,” he said.

He reassured Muslims that the state government emphasised on integrity and the status of Islam in the state will never be disputed.

“Please do not listen to any rumours about the state government wanting to tone down Azan (the call for prayers) or anything like that. In fact, this is the first time I’ve heard about such things,” he said.

Meanwhile, Malaysiakini quotes Zaid Ibrahim, the former Umno MP for Kota Bharu as saying that Guan Eng should not have been too hasty:

“I find it very shocking to see today that DAP is being very arrogant too. First day in office – Lim Guan Eng (Penang chief minister) made this statement about NEP,” he said.

“This is not the time to stir everyone’s feelings. Our race relations are still fragile and those elected should just stop talking and get on with the job.”…

“A good leader should be able to say the good part of NEP, which is to help the marginalised group, should be continued. The NEP which helps selected individuals to enrich themselves will be stopped. That’s all he should have said, not provocative statements,” said Zaid.

“This is something which Guan Eng should be mindful of. TV3, the newspapers and the radio stations must also stop pitting the Malays against the non-Malays. It is so dangerous.

Interestingly enough, Penang Umno leaders have proposed to the federal government to withdraw funding for all mega-projects in Penang. Guan Eng has described the call as akin to cutting their nose to spite their face – and an act of revenge.

Actually, Umno’s call to end the Penang mega projects such as the Penang Outer Ring Road could be a blessing in disguise. Everyone knows that Penang is already terribly congested. A delay in the mega projects would give civil society groups and the new state government in Penang more time to look into more sustainable alternatives to improve public transport, preserve the environment, reduce traffic and create more green spaces and parks. Guan Eng should explore these alternatives rather than rely on mega projects that earn huge profits for a few privileged corporations.The state government must also implement development projects that truly empower and uplift the lives of marginalised communities – in other words, people-centred, holistic development – rather than put much hope on mega projects.

Here is an article I wrote for Aliran Monthly:

Is the BN’s economic model sustainable?

Is our current model of economic development sustainable in the long-run, wonders Anil Netto. What will happen when our oil wells dry up? What has been the environmental cost? These are issues that our political parties – both the BN and the Opposition – must address. Full article

“Business-friendly” or people-friendly state govts?

Anil Netto

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13 Mar 2008

6

There’s been a lot of reaction over the selection of the Perak Mentri Besar, which has gone to a Pas candidate. Kit Siang should not have asked his DAP state assembly members to boycott the swearing in. After all, there was an agreement among the DAP, PKR and Pas at the state level that they would respect the Perak Sultan’s choice.

And if party leaders believe in democracy, then they should understand their roles in the party. Lim, is just an adviser to the party, though he played a significant role in contributing to the Opposition’s good showing. It should be borne in mind that many Malaysians voted across ethnic and religious lines. By asking DAP assembly members to stay away, how different is that from the BN assembly members staying from Guan Eng’s swearing in ceremony in Penang? Really, Kit Siang should respect the wishes of a large number of Malaysians for these parties to work together.

In any case, the Perak DAP, one would think, would have a better feel of the local situation, along with its realities, and the need to cooperate with PKR and Pas.

In all the excitement about the ethnic composition (I thought we were going beyond racial politics – or are we still trapped in that old mentality) of the state governments, not enough people have inquired deeply into why the stock market plunged on Monday after the election results.

Some say it was the economic uncertainties in the United State, where a major financial meltdown could be on the cards. Then there are those who say that it was the political uncertainty in the aftermath of the shock opposition inroads in Malaysia. But another factor that has not been adequately discussed in the local media is the uncertaintly about the economic policies of the five new state governments.

I am sure the huge corporations in Malaysia would have been jittery with the prospect of an opposition victory in the industrial heartland of Malaysia. For one thing, controversial mega contracts might be reviewed. There might be added calls for a minimum wage in Malaysia. Cronyism involving top tycoons might be revealed. The policy of suppressing local wages by importing cheap migrant labour might be reviewed. The new state governments might impose stiff new environmental and planning regulations that would not go down well. There might be calls for a strengthening of the trade union movement and greater respect for labour rights. All this would have been a nightmare for Big Business.

A bouquet from the PGCC developer: “Business friendly” or “people friendly”?

So what did the opposition leaders do when they walked into the corridors of power in the states? Among the first things they did was to reassure the business community that they would be “business-friendly”. We have heard calls from both the BN and opposition leaders in Malaysia that they would uphold a “free market economy” (whatever that means) and “business-friendly” policies. There were pledges that all contracts signed would be respected (but what if they were signed in dubious circumstances, in bad faith and are against the public interest?).

No wonder the Malaysian stock exchange perked up after that. But did those assurances amount to a betrayal of the people’s aspirations for more people-friendly economic policies?

In a way, it reminded me of the general election outcome in India in 2004, when the BJP suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Congress. The Stock Exchange plunged too.

Listen to Arundhati Roy:

In its election campaign, the Congress party indicated that it was prepared to rethink some of its earlier economic policies. Millions of India’s poorest people came out in strength to vote in the elections. The spectacle of the great Indian democracy was telecast live – the poor farmers, the old and infirm, the veiled women with their beautiful silver jewellery, making quaint journeys to election booths on elephants and camels and bullock carts. Contrary to the predictions of all India’s experts and pollsters, the Congress won more votes than any other party. India’s Communist parties won the largest share of the vote in their history. India’s poor had clearly voted against neoliberalism’s economic “reforms” and growing fascism. As soon as the votes were counted, the corporate media dispatched them like badly paid extras on a film set. Television channels featured split screens. Half the screen showed the chaos outside the home of Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the Congress party, as the coalition government was cobbled together. The other half showed frenzied stockbrokers outside the Bombay Stock Exchange, panicking at the thought that the Congress party might actually honour its promises and implement its electoral mandate. We saw the Sensex stock index move up and down and sideways. The media, whose own publicly listed stocks were plummeting, reported the stock market crash as though Pakistan had launched ICBMs on New Delhi.

Even before the new government was formally sworn in, senior Congress politicians made public statements reassuring investors and the media that privatisation of public utilities would continue. Meanwhile the BJP, now in Opposition, has cynically, and comically, begun to oppose foreign direct investment and the further opening of Indian markets.

This is the spurious, evolving dialectic of electoral democracy.

As for the Indian poor, once they’ve provided the votes, they are expected to bugger off home. Policy will be decided despite them.

Similarly, did the millions of low-income Malaysians vote for business-friendly policies or people-friendly policies? Did they vote for a free-market economy with lots of tax incentives for the big corporations or did they vote for greater subsidies and more assistance for the poor and those struggling to make ends meet?

Remember the election promises? To lower the price of oil (more subsidies presumably – though this would be unsustainable in the long run). To provide free education from primary to university level (more social spending). To do something about higher food prices – presumably caused by “free-market” economic policies that promote cash crops and biofuel ahead of food security. To tackle the growing gap between the rich and the poor – also the result of neo-liberal “free-market” policies and massive corporate projects tied in with cronyism. To protect the environment from the ravages of a rampant corporatocracy. To protect the rights of the working class. At least those were the promises I heard at the ceramah. Of course, there was much talk about Malaysia losing out in terms of “competitiveness” and “foreign investment” due to corruption etc, but for the most part, the promises were about more subsidies and policies to protect the people’s interest.

Neo-liberal “free-market” policies are hardly the solution. In fact, they are the cause of much of our misery. The “trickle down” approach has not worked either; instead, it has widened the chasm between the rich and the poor so that today Malaysia has among the largest income disparities in the region.

In a sense, the BN’s loss amounts to the people’s rejection of “business-friendly” neoliberal economic policies that have added to the people’s burden: think of the spiralling costs for the rakyat following the privatisation or corporatisation of utilities, education, water, and health care.

The opposition leaders should do well to remember that the people voted for people- and worker-friendly policies and not “business-friendly” policies. They should think twice and three times before they capitulate to powerful business interests

From the perspective of Catholic Social Teaching, the economy should serve the people and not people serve the economy and workers should take precedence over capital and not vice versa.

For a start, the Penang state government must call for wide-ranging public consultation on all these mega projects. A thorough cost-benefit analysis – which would take into account traffic and environmental impact – must be carried out.

Source: The Edge Daily

If they are not feasible or if they are environmentally damaging, they must be scrapped in favour of more cost-efficient, sustainable, people-friendly alternatives.

For example, would a cheaper tram service be more cost-efficient than a monorail system? Would it enhance the heritage value of George Town?

How about improving the bus service and poor ferry service for a start? That won’t cost a bomb.

Scrap the PGCC project and turn the land into a People’s Park.

And look into the sale of the huge plot of land on Penang Hill formerly used by the La Salle Brothers’ bungalow to a tycoon or his son. The state government must look into zoning and bulding plans as this plot lies in an eco-sensitive area. We don’t want to have another Disneyland or huge high-rise buildings on the side of the hill. The new state government must exercise greater control over Penang Hill compared to the previous administration.

And while we on the subject of “development” projects, look again at the “Gurney Paragon” project on the 10-acre St Joseph’s Novitiate (former Uplands School) site. As a friend of mine observed, this should be a prime candidate for a thorough review of land conversion/alienation deals. People want to know how it was possible for a property provided for educational/religious purposes to be converted to mixed/commercial development.

Do remember who voted for you: the people, including millions of workers. And they want people-friendly, worker-friendly policies – ahead of business-friendly policies.

BN’s popular vote dips below 50% in Peninsula

Anil Netto

-

11 Mar 2008

13

Greetings from Ground Zero, three days after the political hurricane that struck a wide swathe all the way from Kedah to Selangor.

This morning, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng was sworn in as Penang Chief Minister even as Zakaria Md Deros passed away. (Oh, what good is storing worldly treasures in earthly palaces when you can’t take it with you when you go? I think there is a message from above in there, especially in the timing.) It is a historic day for it is the first time the Opposition is taking over the reins of the Penang state government in nearly 40 years.

Koh Tsu Koon, still gracious in defeat, was present, but BN state assembly members reportedly stayed away. In fact, Koh deserves to be commended for the calm, collected way he has handled this devastating defeat and for facilitating a smooth transition.

Chief Minister Lim pledged to introduce a Freedom of Information Act, ensure open tenders for public projects, work towards the revival of local council elections and get public servants to declare their assets. Penang’s influential civil society groups are expected to make even more recommendations in the weeks ahead.

It remains to be seen whether the BN-controlled federal government will attempt to trim or delay its financial allocations to the state in the months and years ahead. If that happens, the Penang government will have to be even more creative and imaginative in raising funds through, for instance, a review of land reclamation projects.

Let’s wait and see what happens in Perak and Selangor.

Many of us are still struggling to come to terms with the scale of the Opposition’s inroads.

According to my researcher friend, the BN’s share of the popular vote in the peninsula actually dipped below the 50 per cent mark. The BN received just 49.8 per cent of the popular votes cast. For the whole country, the BN bagged 51.5 per cent of votes cast as more than 60 per cent of the residents of Sabah and Sarawak opted for its component parties. On the other hand, more than than 60 per cent of voters in KL and Penang voted for the Opposition’s parliamentary candidates.

He also pointed out some other fascinating statistics:

More than half of the Malaysian population (52 per cent) live in areas where the Opposition triumphed – the five states under Opposition rule plus the Federal Territory of KL, which the Opposition swept as well. These areas accounted for 63 per cent of the total ballots issued.

These areas also account for 47 per cent of the bumiputera population. If only the ethnic Malays are considered, then 57 per cent of the Malay population now live in these Opposition areas. In addition, almost three quarters of Indian Malaysians reside in these areas.

In terms of economic wealth, these states account for 56 per cent of the country’s GDP. (Calculations based on figures obtained from the Mid-term Review of the Eigth Malaysia Plan.)

The Opposition-held areas include three of the wealthiest regions (in terms of per capita income) – KL, Selangor and Penang (though it must be noted that income disparities are wide) – and the two poorest states, Kelantan and Kedah.

Weird result for Mukhriz on SPR website

There is something weird about the Election Commission figures for the Jerlun parliamentary seat, which was won by Mukhriz Mahathir (who is now giving Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi a hard time).

If the Election Commission’s figures are to be believed, the voter turnout was an incredible 99.85 per cent! The ballots issued were 37,242 compared to the electorate size of 37,297.

In contrast, the state seats within the Jerlun area saw a turnout of 81-82 per cent.

Assuming there are still a number of dead voters on the rolls, it is virtually impossible to record 99.85 per cent. The Commission must clarify how this is possible.

These figures are from the Election Commission’s website:

P.5 – JERLUN
		37,297	37,242	99.85%

P.5 – JERLUN
	N.3 – KOTA SIPUTEH	19,771	16,126	81.56%	278	495	BN
	N.4 – AYER HITAM	25,742	21,171	82.24%	352	506	PAS

Update: Thanks, Frank and Sean, for pointing out that the total electorate for Jerlun should be 45,513 and not 37,297 as stated on the SPR website. This would then give a turnout of 81.8 per cent, which is about right, and not 99.85 per cent.

Just for the record, during the 1969 general election, the Alliance (the predecessor to the BN) lost Penang, Perak and Kelantan while Selangor was dead even at 14-14. If I am not mistaken, the Alliance could only secure 49 per cent of the popular vote.

Here is an article I wrote for Asia Times Online:

Political shift in the industrial heart

By Anil Netto

PENANG – A torrential downpour drenched the northern state of Penang during the late afternoon of Malaysia’s March 8 general election day. Many political analysts had earlier anticipated some waves of democratic change for the area, the country’s only state with an ethnic Chinese majority; few anticipated the political tsunami which actually ensued.

Penang, like many other areas of the country fed up with corruption, discriminatory policies towards minorities, general disillusionment with public institutions and a rising cost of living, was ripe for political change. The combined opposition secured 29 of Penang’s 40-seat assembly, with the Democratic Action Party (DAP) clinching 19 of those parliamentary spots. Full article