Towards A Competitive Malaysia
(Personal note: The next two Sunday postings will be excerpts from my forthcoming book, Towards A Competitive Malaysia: Development Challenges for the Twenty-First Century. It is due to be released this October 2006. This excerpt is the last chapter, essentially a summary of the book. MBM)
An Open Letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi
Dear YAB Perdana Menteri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi:
When Prime Minister Mahathir selected you back in early 1999 to be his Deputy, and thus his successor, you described the event as a promotion.
That reflected your humble and understated style. I hope that in your heart you did not consider the exercise to be just another step up the civil service rung, rather a rare and privileged opportunity to lead Malaysia to greater heights. Malaysians certainly thought so, for they subsequently gave you an overwhelming mandate.
In the few years as Deputy Prime Minister, you remained the dutiful number two, respectfully keeping yourself in the background. I do not know whether that was an expression of your personality or that you were shrewdly mindful of the sorry fate of your three predecessors. Besides, it would have been tough to shine in the shadow of such a towering personality (if I can borrow your phrase) as Dr. Mahathir.
As leader, you intimated early the direction you wish to take the nation. You spoke bravely of the “New Malay Dilemma,” of weaning our people off the special privilege crutches. You exhorted us to be competitive. With your Islam Hadhari, you aspired that our great faith should emancipate, not entrap us. Malaysians also bought into your “Excellence, Glory and Distinction” election rally. You pleaded with them to “Work with me, not for me.”
When you in quick succession set up the Royal Commission on the Police, scrapped the exorbitantly expensive double track railroad project, and arrested a cabinet minister and a prominent corporate figure on charges of corruption, the nation cheered. Malaysians, yearning for a change, saw in your early moves the promise of even greater changes to come.
Yet barely a couple of years later, the citizens were becoming restless. You asked them to be patient, and sought Allah’s forgiveness for your mistakes. You also saw fit to warn your critics not to question your niat ikhlas (noble intentions).
With leadership, good intentions alone are not enough. The one critic you cannot ignore or wish away – the man who appointed you, Dr. Mahathir –is also your toughest and most persistent. Despite attempts by those sympathetic to you in the mainstream media to ignore him, he is getting an increasingly receptive audience.
I am on record expressing my lack of enthusiasm over Mahathir’s choice of a successor, but I take no pleasure in pointing that out. Like other Malaysians, I want you and the nation to succeed. I would love to be proven wrong.
Increasingly, you are demonstrating that those early moves were not only your best shots but also your only ones. Despite your early commitment to reform the Police Force, you have now backtracked in the face of opposition from senior police officers. You took that in stride; to me, it was clearly gross insubordination, which in turn reflects the level of discipline. Your “New Malay Dilemma” turned out to be your own personal dilemma; you are unable to rein in the keris-brandishing elements in UMNO who are as dependent as ever on their NEP crutches. As for corruption and transparency, your promise of open tenders and competitive biddings proved to be nothing more than the typical politician’s promise before an election.
You professed not to be concerned with your critics. You should. Those closest to you would tell you only what you want to hear. To them, you would always be donning samping sutra (silk cummerbund) even if you were wrapped in sarong pelakat (cotton sarong), or even a bark loincloth. That is an easy trap for unwary leaders to fall into. In the end, it is you who would be embarrassed. They would go on to praise the next sultan’s new cloth.
You would have noticed that those who are most critical of Mahathir now were once his unabashed supporters when he was in power. Do not be taken in by these professional cheerleaders (kaki bodek). That is nothing more than expressions of our angguk and gelek (head shaking and nodding) culture. Your predecessor’s domineering personality has done much to encourage that, and old habits die hard. The cabinet and UMNO Supreme Council have degenerated into an echo chamber for whomsoever is leader. Do not be taken in by the echoing chorus of support.
The Jittery Joget Girl
You are trying to achieve too much: to be the nation’s imam, lead the Muslim world, undo the excesses of your predecessor, dispense with the special privileges crutch, and be a “nice guy” to all. It cannot be done.
Concentrate on a few important areas. Success creates its own momentum and would get transferred onto other areas, creating a critical mass effect. Jumping from one problem to another without solving any, risks making you like a jittery joget (dance) girl, flipping from one partner to another whenever the song changes, leaving only her scent. You will leave no impression; there will be no legacy.
I respectfully suggest that you focus on making Malaysia and Malaysians, in particular Malays, competitive. To this end, four areas need emphasizing: establishing effective leadership; enhancing the quality of human capital; strengthening our culture and institutions; and harnessing our geographic attributes. These are the four cardinal points of my “Diamond of Development.”
Effective leadership begins but does not end with you. You have to lead the way and set the pace, but you cannot do it alone; you need a team. You have essentially the same tired and tainted crew you inherited from Mahathir. If your intent is to dismantle the excesses of Mahathir, your present team is the wrong choice. They enthusiastically supported him to build the half bridge over the causeway; now they profusely praised you for canceling it! Such are their true characters and commitment!
You have also kept your campaign team as advisors. Managing a country requires completely different sets of skills and talent from those needed to run an election campaign. Your political advisors will see everything from the political angle, which may not necessarily be in the best interest of the nation.
One difficulty you have is that politics no longer attracts the best and brightest Malaysians. Your long tenure in government insulated you from this reality. You had intimations of this however, for in searching for new leaders for GLCs, one of your stated requirements was that they should have substantial experience in multinational corporations.
You repeat your predecessor’s mistake in not casting your net wide and deep in search of talent; you still pan in the same polluted puddle of UMNO.
You should emulate Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf. He broke tradition and went outside of politics, and indeed the country, by recruiting Shaukat Aziz, then a Citibank senior executive, to be Finance Minister and later, Prime Minister. In his short tenure, Shaukat transformed Pakistan’s economy.
You have kept the deadwood you inherited; your excuse is that you prefer the soft approach. Others view that as timidity; you are unsure of yourself and fear that they might revolt. You recognize this, hence your warning Malaysians not to misinterpret your lembik (limpness).
You should liberate the Anti Corruption Agency to do its job; that should occupy those tired and tainted ministers should they bother you when you let them go. It would also serve as a timely reminder to your new ministers should they too feel tempted to stray. You missed a splendid opportunity to demonstrate your abhorrence for corruption by not demanding the immediate resignation of your ministers Kasitah Gaddam and Isa Samad. By letting them resign voluntarily and on their own sweet time, you appeared to condone their actions.
Next: Enhancing Competitiveness
July 3rd, 2006 at 12:22 am
Someone mentioned in another blog about the many K-rocodiles, currently lurking around him while he’s swimming in the K-rocodiles infested “lubuk”. Pity him.
July 3rd, 2006 at 2:06 am
I am glad that Dr. Bakri at last have got the pulse of Malaysian politics, particularly the unfolding drama for which no conclusion has been written as yet.
Long before Khairy or any others became “advisers” to Pak Lah, the Ustaz had already stamped his mark in politics. The fact that where three others before him with the so-called credentials failed to take the mantle, he did make it. This is despite the fact that he was pushed to wilderness after the Semangat saga where the leader became a casualty and others did not rise to the level Pak Lah did.
Except for Ghaffar, the other two were literally forced out of office when Tun felt his position threatened. During his tenure as DPM, Pak Lah was the ever obedient and respectful DPM to the Tun, or put it another way, the Tun may have believed he had finally got a person who just nods up and down and not left and right. So who is the smartest of them all? Do we need a magic mirror?
Perhaps the contention may be that he is a good and faithful follower but a lousy leader. What we have before us is a testament to the wily character tha is Pak Lah, as the Tun had belatedly found out but past the round he can throw the killer punch. I had written a few month ago that the Tun’s legacy ( if there is one) would come down crashing as these were his personal dreams with little or no consideration to the dreams of the entire nation and his battle screams now seem to prove that. The Tun is more used to fighting and disposing off enemies who grind their teeth and come in full battle gear but here is a person who had not spoken a word publicly but has asked his ministers to do that job for him. Now, who is the smartest of them all, politically?
(Sorry, I will continue this later as something cropped up suddenly. Have to visit the hospital)
July 3rd, 2006 at 2:25 am
first time here. it feels like a ranch, an intellectual ranch. enjoyed your open letter to the pm, doc. and your subtle way of reminding the pm about what the last pm has done for him.
am glad i dropped by desiderata, where i found your letter.
will spend some time in your archives, if you don’t mind.
by the way, what’[s that with the crocodiles? i don’t get the joke or message.
cheerio, california!
July 3rd, 2006 at 6:53 am
As I said earlier Pak Lah speak softly but carry a very sharp knife. You don’t hear it or feel it but the appendage is removed clean. Pak Lah prescribed to the see more (2 eyes) hear more (2 ears) but talk less (1 mouth). His silence is deafening but detractors beware. Silence doesn’t mean he is not listening. He is non confrontational unlike the previous PM who likes to demonize the West and saying that everything is bad in the West and America. Yet Putrajaya (his brainchild) is fashioned after Washington DC with wide mall, surrounded by government offices and anchored by the PM’s office and Residence, just like the White House.
Every PM has his style and Pak Lah should not be compared to the previous PM’s. He is his own person and renegading on an agreement in the interest of the people is acceptable. Previous PM’s have also renegade on agreements especially the Look East and Buy British Last.
Remember Malaysia is a democratic country. If the PM fails to lead then at the next GE vote him out. But is there another person who can lead the nation, who have no excess baggage, who is scandal free, who is respected by most Malaysians? Look at the present Cabinet line up and the UMNO MT, pick one, anyone and tell me that he or she is fit to be the PM. Under close scrutiny most will fail.
July 3rd, 2006 at 7:51 am
I am sorry for leaving abruptly earlier:
When Tun was in power, most of us were able to predict his moves almost instantaneously simply because his moves are what he was (or is). It is recognised that the landlside mandate that Pak Lah got during the last election was what people believed in him, or rather what he had wanted people to believe in him. No, the Tun is a pale shadow to the mastery of the craftsmanship that PL is. There is a coffee shop talk that PL orchestrated the police commission to clip their wings just enough for him to manage them. It is a well known fact that under the Tun’s regime the police force had acquired almost immortal status.
There can be discussion and debates on how PL should be accountable to the people as he is the PM of the day and although the space that has been allowed is nothing to shout about, at least there is consensus that even the small drop sizes up as something huge compared to the times during the Tun. He had his time over 22 years and he had literally dismantled or, worse still, had created a culture of fear and was a man feared rather than loved.
Not that I like PL. Far from it but let the people decide on PL’s slate. Like the religious ulamas passing edicts with no sense of accountability because they are nominated and not elected by the people. The Tun, too, has to understand this. Interestingly, the Tun chided the very cabinet ministers who had served under him, short of calling them stooges. Is then Tun that smart as he claims to be not to even understand those around him who kissed his hands or he is living in the past of not realising who they are supposed to be answerable. That is the YES MAN robotic culture that we have been fed with. Remember the Jasin MP’s matter in the august house. The rakyat like us are in between two evils but if these are the only two choices for me now, then I would ceratinly go for the lesser evil. I have no doubts that PL has gone back on his promises umpteen times and people are losing faith by the day. Perhaps the Tun doesn’t realise that he had made it possible for the people like Tun Ani Arope to say their piece on the Tun’s mismanagement and he is made to taste his own medicine by the orders to the newspapers to doom anything on Tun that may adversely afect PL and in the process make the rakyat feel that PL is now giving more space to the rakyat and is revealing more skeletons from the closet.
People are talking about an open confrontation between the two in the days or weeks to come, even as the signs of one are already there. So, is it about the crooked bridge, or the Augusta sale, etc that the Tun is so passionately riling up on arms against PL? There could be some heartache brought about by all these but like Patch Adams’ four fingers story, I believe his sights are farther than these.
Recently, the two had gone on holidays and, of course, to different destinations, one down under and the other to the west. It is rumoured that former deputy PM, DSAI had also gone for a holiday to down under. An interesting development took place recently: Sukma, the adopted brother of DSAI succeeded in getting a retrial on the sodomy case and it is a matter of time that DSAI’s defamation suit is heard in the courts. If DSAI has his day in court, then that would be very disastrous to Tun, and if he loses the case, he loses everything. The loss of face we are talking about on the crooked bridge, etc is a pale shadow compared to the damage that this case might do and wreak havoc on his very so-called legacy.
Perhaps, and only perhaps, could the Tun have fired his salvo to force the govt to listen to him on this case - and that is the bargaining chip for him to let go off of the other matters which look more like just “wayang kulit”. I read that in the first round the Tun won and PL lost. I think it is the other way round. If the Tun wins, he is all smiles, when he loses he goes beserk. That has been the history. Is he smiling now? As I mentioned earlier, he is cut and dry and even blunt and it is almost easy to read his steps, although we may not like those steps, unlike those of PL: Instead of hand-shake, if the two decide to slug it out in round two, I will give it to PL, because he will be not there and the Tun will be boxing away at PL’s shadow. My vote for chsooing the smartest politician (between the two) is to PL.
July 3rd, 2006 at 10:07 am
Dear Dr.Musa,
Only wish your Open letter could be publish by the mainstream print media as the points and questions raised are so sharp and coherent that the PM has to answer to defend his actions or inactions and accountable to the Malaysians.
The recent open quarrel between the present and previous PMs is obviously far and beyond politics. as the previous PM does not love or care for Malaysia by the way he ruled and ran the country, almost to ruin, for the past 22 years.
It is obviously a fight for regain of business territories and contracts that the former PM and his cronies lost to the present winners who align themselvs with the present PM.
What is a man who cannot keep a simple unconditional promise not to interfere in running the government but only for 3 years? He made the promise thinking his hand pircked successor will continue to toe his line after taking over from him. Tun is such a brilliant and intelligent person but with simplistic mind and view, not knowing and aware that Nothing in life is guranteed as Everything Changes, be it Nature or human behaviour or nature. None of us can gurantee that our spouse will be our spouse forever and yet Tun had the hope that PL will continue to be his yes men forever. He is getting a tast of his medicine as what gets around goes around. Tun should have learnt from neighbour Lee Kuan Yew who retires but remain in the cabinet to ensure his influence and presence are felt and continue his legacy through others. Tun probably did not go to business school to learn MBO.
Regards
Arthur.
July 3rd, 2006 at 10:32 am
I say Bakri, why you disturbed me! I’m enjoying my stay in Perth, Australia – enjoying the cool weather in Perth, sailing along the Swan River - and yes, the many watering holes around this God forsaken place they call the Outback. Yes, I drink. Does that surprise you? Since Mahathir took me to task in the media for having reneged on my promises to him and the sudden demise of my lovely wife, I have taken to drinking to stay sober.
You must understand Mahathir’s character. All his life he wanted to be a lawyer. Little did Tunku realize that he had made an enemy out of him since the time Tunku told him to go study medicine in Singapore instead of studying law in England. Right now Mahathir is displaying his gift of the garb – calling for transparency and accountability and good governance when he himself worked hard to dismantle and destroy the last vestiges of democracy, contradicting himself as usual. All these are just labels to him. All his life he worked to solve the Malay dilemma as he sees it – so he tells me. He even wrote a book on it – when he himself is a mamak tongkang, his father having landed on our shores from Kerala, India in the early 1900s. Mine oso came from somewhere else lah – but that’s another matter.
Look at him now. Recently he said with great cynicism which so characterized his personality, that he is now “selling roti benggali for a living.” That is a racial slur there on the Benggalis who helped him sell their roti for his pocket money when he was growing up. This is the same person who told the Chinese just before the elections that they should vote for him, that the Malays were never going to change – that only he could change them.
As for the cancellation of the crooked half-bridge which I have had to cancel because the Singaporeans were making fun of us, what do you expect? Mahathir appointed crooks during his tenure as PM – and crooks do what they do best. They build crooked buildings, crooked roads and of course crooked bridges. Even his nose is crooked – and his legacy? The legacy he left behind is just as crooked as his nose.
I say Bakri. You very lucky lah – sitting down in good ‘ol California, riding horses and all and asking me all these questions from afar. You don’t have to face this Mahathir who is having his usual bout of schizophrenia, throwing tantrums, pulling his hair out and all – and then leaving for such faraway places as Turkey. At least I only cabut to the Outback, only four flying hours away. This Mahathir has looked at so many domes over in Turkey when Prime Minister. He still wants to look at more domes, still trying to understand Anwar’s book on the Islamic Renaissance – sheeeesh!
OK lah! I have to stop here for now. I’ll be a good guy like everybody says I am – but I’ll be back to answer your questions.
July 3rd, 2006 at 3:10 pm
Hello Dolah ! Hang betul betul tak kenal budi. Aku bagi hang chan nak jadi Perdana Mentri tapi sekarang hang seperti kacang lupakan kulit.
Hello Dol! Kurang ajar kau. I brought you back from the political wilderness where you got yourself into by supporting that loser Musa Hitam and his sidekick Ku Li in 1987 – remember?? Is this how you repay me - by going back on your promises to me? You’re supposed to be looking after my interests and those of my sons’. Instead you chickened out under pressure. You’re really one spineless SOB. “Nice guy” konon! “Nice guy” kepala otak kau!
And Dr. Bakri…aku pun doctor juga – tapi GP only lah! Saya hanya buka kedai di Pekan Melayu, Alor Setar dulu. Bukan lah di Amerika seperti Dr. Bakri. Sekarang dah tutup lah. Somebody else took over – tapi nama sama juga lah, MAHA kelinik.
You see these people are ungrateful after all I did for them. I gave this Dollah a chance to be PM. Look at what he has done to me. Ungrateful. He never even bothered to answer any of my questions. I should have appointed Najib to succeed me. But this Najib ni susah juga. Dia ni kena queen control. Rosmah tu mesti di control kalau tidak susah. But the real reason why I went for Dolah is because I hate to be predictable. They all expected me to appoint Najib. But you see I’ve always believed in divide and rule – something I learned from orang puteh kita dulu lah.
Hello Dolah! Aku ni tak boleh cakap banyak sangat. Dia orang dah warning aku. Nak guna ISA kalau saya tak berhenti cakap. Selepas aku pikiaq pi mai pi mai, baik aku belah ka Turki. They say when the going gets tough, the tough go into hiding – you in Australia dan aku di Turki.
Reliaaaq lah! Kita ni dah kaya. Tak akan habis tujuh keturunan. Mahu apa lagi!
Aku pikiaq hang baik cari lah isteri baru – orang puteh Australia pun OK lah. Boleh sekali sekali pi tengok. Tapi tak baik tahu … kalau setiap kali kau celup kau tambah dosa kau. Sekali sekali boleh lah… tapi takkan setiap kali.
July 3rd, 2006 at 6:59 pm
wow, this is hilarious!
July 3rd, 2006 at 7:40 pm
Dear Dr Musa,
It was with great excitement that I read the exchanges between Dr Mahathir and Abdullah Badawi until it occurred to me that the whole thing might be a fabrication. I spent the whole of last night thinking whether it was really Abdullah Badawi and Dr Mahathir who actually wrote the letters. This morning I consulted a friend who is some kind of handwriting expert but he could not be certain if the letters are genuine because all fonts look alike.
I am now working for my PPE dissertation entitled:”Aggresive Matastasis of Michavellian influence in the Malay political body:diagnosis, chemotherapic remedies and other possible solutions”.
My dillemma now is whether I can make references to the letters, which can only be done if they are genuine.I would be grateful if you forward to me a photocopy each of the letters duly certified as genuine by a notary public. Thanking you in anticipation, I remain etc etc
July 3rd, 2006 at 10:11 pm
Your friend’s father was a smoker, spending so much of his family money for it. One day, he caught your friend puffing away his favorite brand. He questioned your friend for smoking, and off course for stealing his treasured pack! He demanded answers!
Now, as a friend to his son, would you say to the father: “SHUT UP? YOU WERE A SMOKER TOO! DON’T QUESTION NOW!”?
July 4th, 2006 at 12:28 am
Never realise that the great Bush is so naive believing the comments made by Abdullah Badawi and Mahathir to be from the guys themselves.
Anyway, the good doctor is ever willing to give you a certified copy of their letters for your much awaited thesis.
The exchanges have brightened up my day. Keep it up, guys.
July 4th, 2006 at 6:25 am
wow! what was that all about, hantu??
July 4th, 2006 at 8:48 am
I’m thinking of putting into evidence these two letters. It is not hearsay evidence - it falls under the common law exceptions. It is a clear admission of wrong doing by these two Abdullah and Mahathir.
However, I will need to call you Dr. Bakri as witness to authenticate them as blog owner. Are these coming from foreign ISPs - in Australia and Turkey?
July 4th, 2006 at 9:38 pm
YTL proposes RM8 billion high-speed train link from KL to Singapore! Now, compare to the RM1.3 billion crooked bridge, which one will benefit the average Malaysian more? I’m clueless!
July 5th, 2006 at 12:25 am
Dear Hantu Gigi Jarang,
What has the Clueless in Seattle got anything to do with YTL. I think you are referring to The Omen, aren’t you?
July 5th, 2006 at 1:37 am
Dr Bakri,
You must be a good joget dancer with a good nose!
July 5th, 2006 at 9:30 am
Who called for me??
When I was in my sweet sixteen, when the late Sultan Pahang – no, not the present one but his father – was crazy about us “perempuan joget”, I made good money.
You see, you guys just don’t get it. We “perempuan joget” are not street walkers. We do a great service to society by giving an avenue to those who are in need of “time-out” from their controlling wives and mistresses. In fact without their wives and mistresses who are control freaks, we would not be able to support ourselves and our families. Yes, we have families too to support. It should not surprise you!
We save their marriages! Yes. Save. Without us these so-called wayward husbands would have gone crazy, abuse their wives etc. Their homes are like “pressure cookers” not some place they would like to go back home to.
We “perempuan joget” a term that is regarded derogatory, should be awarded bintang from the Sultan like “wanita gagah berani” – after all the good deeds we do to sultan and country. We are no less gagah than those in uniforms who made the supreme sacrifice. We should be given the equivalent of the “purple heart” for putting our bodies on the line – for sultan and negeri.
What say you, Mister Bakri? You were one of our favorite customers, remember??
July 5th, 2006 at 9:33 am
P.S.
I am now in retirement - however, if abang Bakri wants me I can take that flight to California.
July 5th, 2006 at 9:35 am
..but there is a slight hitch. I can’t seem to find my dentures.
July 5th, 2006 at 10:13 am
… don’t think it makes any difference dentures or no dentures afterall aren’t you all covered up these days?!
July 5th, 2006 at 10:37 am
Hi doc (sdr) Bakri:
Greetings from Malaysia; thanks always for bringing up topical discussions to share with fellow Malaysians. I ran your Essay for 2 days and I’ve just forwarded the Package of responses to you. Hope all is well on your end.
Reetings to your Esteemed Readers too — but just an observation if this host and the relevant “commenter” would bear with me( Thinking Allowed just in case the Host himself may be too polite to raise this point)~~
the 2 comments by socalled “Abdullah Ahmad Badawi” and “Dr Mahathir Mohamad” are obviously by the same person. Don’t you think these “masqueardes” are not proper and in good taste in a forum discussing some serious natinal issues. “MInta maaf” lah should some one take offence - it’s my sincere Thinking Aloud…~~Desi
July 5th, 2006 at 1:34 pm
wow, someone is obviously taking a moral high ground.
but hey, blogger wouldn’t want to censor anything not obnoxious. in the US where i’m posting from, hate speech is still freedom of speech - this hardly qualifies as hate speech. it is entertainment.
it is intended to be appreciated for the comic relief it offers. of course, they are the same persons. no thanks to you.
yichong, you’re free to give your opinion but do not take away the freedom of another poster to post whatever he sees fit, on whatever issues he sees fit - including “masquerading” as president bush or prime minister abdullah badawi.
malaysians like yours truly need to re-learn the meaning of freedom after having lost it for almost 50 years. taking the moral high ground is easy. but learning to live with freedom is not.
wow …! keep thinkiing aloud because it is your freedom to do so.
July 5th, 2006 at 1:40 pm
Doctor,
It was a great pleasure to have come across your blogsite.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your anecdotes and your suggestions/proposals on our education system.
Thus far(3 days), I’ve only ’scratched the surface’ on what is available here in your blog and please rest assured I will continue to come back for more in-depth readings.
Meanwhile, as evidently clear to you, some Malaysians have the tendency for mischief without offering any positive thoughts. Quite pitiful, I might add, to see good narrative skills being poured down the proverbial drain.
Ces’t la vie.
July 5th, 2006 at 3:05 pm
Transients like “ylchong” who comes around here once a while merely to leave his footprint so others could follow… (to his blog, of course)
may be excused but please do not act like you are the guardian of cyberspace.
I find your blog boring to say the least. You write in such bad English that I could not bear spending a second longer - unlike this blog, too serious it may appear to be to some but at times we have contributors here who see the need for humour.
“Wow” is right. Oh what the heck! Why am I talking to myself??
July 6th, 2006 at 2:46 am
wow and commentator refer:
I know I’ll face the possible arrival of the ilk of Wow and commentator hiding behind “psseudonyms” to flame me on grounds of “freedom of speech” and accusing me “of high moral ground”…etc. I’m no moralist but submite THERE IS A TIME FOR EVRYTHING. The wrioter/s had used names of my fomrer PM and a current PM, and as a citizen on Malaysia, I don’t buy “carp” from the likes of you — wthether Msians aboard or Am,ericans — that this sort of “rivolous enteryaionment” using Dr Mahathri and Abdullah is in good taste.
Well, I hope the likes oif you don’t mind revealing your “names/father’s name” so that other bloggers can use these names for cracking jokes? What’s good for the goose in good for the gander, and Commenator– like to debate with me in a forum using English — we can ask the good doctor here to be chairman?
July 6th, 2006 at 4:23 am
Well, we can think for ourselves - and read and of course see for ourselves who can write and cannot spell.
July 6th, 2006 at 4:35 am
Oh yes. One more thing.
Perhaps this “ylchong” whoever he is, would like to reveal enough of himself like his real name, address so that the rest of us uncouth and uneducated in the rules of civil society unfit to share the same room, breath the same air and walk the ground he walks, could write to him about how he made it to Mr. Personality of the Blogosphere.
July 6th, 2006 at 4:55 am
Wow…I’ve never heard anybody referring to Mahathir Mohamad and Abdullah Badawi as “my” former Prime Minister and current Prime Minister – such false sense of pride and loyalty. We may be residents of a foreign country but loyalty to King and Country is not the privilege of any one Malaysian. – especially someone who visits this blog and pollute it with his remarks about freedom, when he has no real understanding of the concept.
So he says “…. flame me on grounds of “freedom of speech” and accusing me “of high moral ground”…etc. I’m no moralist but submite THERE IS A TIME FOR EVRYTHING. The wrioter/s had used names of my fomrer PM and a current PM, and as a citizen on Malaysia…”
It is the likes of you who write to “educate” others on what freedom must mean - to others though not to himself - who have kept the country away from understanding and experiencing the true meaning of freedom.
I was a student of Malaysian constitutional law studying under the likes of Prof. Ahmad Ibrahim. So don’t you come here and shout yourself hoarse and telling others that “there is a time and place for everything”. When it comes to freedom of speech, any time is the right time.
Wow…!
July 6th, 2006 at 5:55 pm
Jong writes:
Germal,
That’s exactly what those Islamist Extremists want, their answer is YOU. I see you are so full of hatred and have even gone to their level, in other words you are no different from them, are you?
You are ready to vilify an entire religion which you think you know so much about.
Note: I accidentally delete this post whileon my mass editing mode. I am reosting it. MBM
December 11th, 2007 at 8:17 am
dear sir,
there is no absolute power with the m.p. as one another is always showing the other a crook among themselves and straightening out with handshakes and bribes thus turning deaf ears to the public and democracy in general. as most of them in civil service are also politicians indirectly messing with public funds and are been fence sitters to the tune of powerful politicians.please try to understand that all this years respect for malaysia was high at ststus because we respect others right and understand the law of democracy. and now the whole world is watching how we flair in others newspaper. as school boy m.p in our own country.
December 11th, 2007 at 8:42 am
remember the the silence pain we had during the japanese occupation of malaysia and how we teamed together to fight their rule. pl. try to learn and become committed to be self sustainable in food, medicine. education. and some neccessacity of countrys economic performance. and learn to show some brotherhood to others then only we learn and earn good neighbours and friends, god will show us true love in all and stop looking at colours but the colour in our body and tissues that is coloured red.