RED Rally, August 13th in Sarawak

63 Responses to “RED Rally, August 13th in Sarawak”

1. Banting on July 15th, 2011 7:09 am

   Article 10(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution gives all citizens have the right to assemble peaceably and without arms. However, the right of freedom of speech and expression and to assemble peaceably is not absolute and is subject to restrictions imposed by other laws by virtue of Article 10(2)(b) of the Federal Constitution in the interest of security and public order.

   All public assemblies, meetings, rallies and processions in public places require licences under section 27(2) of the police act 1967. However, the police may refuse refuse the application to hold the assembly, meeting, rally or procession if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that such assembly, meeting, rally or procession is likely to be prejudicial to national security and public peace or to excite a disturbance of the peace.

2. nosoob on July 15th, 2011 7:38 am

   this is because of the Semenanjung Tanah Melayu wants to show off that they still have the power to colonized and manipulate the two Borneo partners.

3. ciribut on July 15th, 2011 8:29 am

   Under the act of parliament,the country constitutions are handed to the people in various shapes and colours but does not mean that they are more just.Some laws seem to be ‘twisted’ and only the legal mind can understand.

   All the laws are wisely provided and handed to the people and yet the laws contains this and that provisions,it is like we have wise enough to shut and lock the door so an unwanted person can’t enter the premise butwe at the same time have been foolish enough to give him in possession of the key.

   Rights of assemblies must have licences,however they can refuse the application on grounds of national security.With pressure from the top politicians in power,all assemblies will be a threat to national security.What a lot of rubbish!

4. Babai on July 15th, 2011 8:53 am

   Ceribut,
   Agree with you. This is what Bersih want to clean. It is one of those rubbish “Rights of assemblies must have licences,however they can refuse the application on grounds of national security”
   I don’t understand why many slimeballs as seen in their posting in this blogs totally oppose the Bersih and red rally….I believe their mind is full of rubbish….so how to be bersih….

5. Dayak Mudah Lupa on July 15th, 2011 10:16 am

   Let’s not forget that apart from emergency dentist visit to Switzerland, Akik Taib can only escape from Sarawak in hurry whenever thick haze comes. The Red, Bersih protest rally would not scared Akik Taib at all:
   ___________________________

   Chief minister of Malaysian haze-stricken state under fire
   By M. Jegathesan, AFP News, 26 September 1997

   KUCHING, Malaysia, Sep. 26 – The chief minister of Malaysia’s Sarawak state came under attack from the opposition Friday for staying overseas when the state was facing its worst crisis due to air pollution from neighbouring Indonesia’s forest fires. Deputy Sarawak chief minister George Chan told AFP Friday that his boss, Taib Mahmud, was “on official business overseas” but declined to give details.

   Malaysian opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said in Kuala Lumpur that the Sarawak government should account to the people why the chief minister left at the height of the haze emergency. Citing news reports that diplomats from the United States and Canada were leaving Malaysia to escape the choking smog, Lim asked whether Taib “is setting the example to evacuate.”

   An emergency is in place in Sarawak because of thick smog that has paralysed air and sea traffic, forced the closure of schools and scaled down office work. Lim, secretary-general of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), said the people of Sarawak had not been able to get “clear-cut answers” from the government why Taib was not in the state.

   He described the haze in Sarawak as “the worst crisis in the state’s history.” Taib is believed to have left the state after the emergency was declared last Friday when the air pollution index level in the state’s capital Kuching breached a hazardous level of 500 points. Kuching is the worst affected in Malaysia by the haze which has also hit Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines and Thailand.

   Deputy Chief Minister Chan said Friday he was in touch with Taib “every few hours” and asked the DAP not to “politicise everything.” “I am getting very fed up with them. We need more energy now to make sure this thing (haze) is off our chest as soon as possible and keep our people as healthy as possible,” Chan said.

   The Air Pollutant Index in Kuching eased to 342 points early Friday from about 500 a day earlier but residents remained concerned even as the Kuching airport was re-opened Thursday after being shut for several days. “I’m worried about the haze problem which seems unending. I spend most of the time in the house and everytime I go out, I have to wear a mask. What I am worried about is the long term effect,” Julaihai Sujang, a 63-year-old retired worker said.

   The health effects of the haze could include chronic bronchitis, emphysema, diseases of blood vessels in the head, and lung and cardio-vascular disease, medical experts said. Some 10,500 Sarawak residents have sought medical treatment for haze-related illnesses, the government said.

   Residents have also been asked to keep away from the rain, which fell here for the last two days because it was believed to be acidic. Local doctor Gabriel Teoh said the long term effects of breathing the smoke had to be studied. “The effects on the long term are there but we do not know whether it will lead to an increase in the risk to lung cancer many, many years from now.”

   A spokesman for Malaysia Airports Bhd., the operator of the nation’s airports, said about 30 flights were scheduled to leave Kuching Friday as about 500 people milled around the airport to get their flights confirmed.

   Several airports in Peninsular Malaysia which were closed on Thursday due to the thick haze also re-opened Friday. But the haze level in Kuala Lumpur worsened Friday as winds blew smoke from Indonesia’s forest fires to the Malaysian capital and the federal government moved ahead with measures to contain the problem. The pollutant index in Kuala Lumpur rose to 259 points from 223 a day earlier, a government spokesman said. A level from 201 to 300 is “very unhealthy” and from 301 to 500 “hazardous.”

   The index in Kuala Lumpur hit a record high of 294 on September 19 and the situation had been subsiding until the wind change, officials said. Information Minister Mohamed Rahmat was reported saying in Kuala Lumpur that the cabinet had endorsed a plan to spray water using sprinklers mounted on top of buildings above seven storeys to reduce dust in the air.

   Mohamed said the sprinkling exercise would be undertaken at random. “We have not been successful with cloud seeding and we have to resort to dampening the ground to reduce dust particles in the air. That is all we can do until the forest fires in Indonesia are stopped.”
   ___________________

   All Sarawak State Ministers should show themselves on television to convince the public that they are still in the state

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (24/9/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Wednesday): Yesterday, Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr George Chan denied rumours that most of the State Cabinet Ministers have left for overseas to escape the haze.

   He said some of the ministers were still stranded in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore because most of the air services by the Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Royal Brunei Airlines and other foreign airlines have been badly affected by the haze.

   In the public interest, especially to ensure public confidence, the Sarawak State Government should make public a full list of the ministers and assistant ministers “stranded” outside the Sarawak state, explaining when and why they left Sarawak.

   The Sarawak State Government should explain why the Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud is not in the state.

   Last Friday, Taib Mahmud was in Kuching when the state of emergency arising from the haze was declared, and in a press conference the same morning, the Chief Minister said all construction and quarry activities would have to stop until the emergency order had been lifted – a statement which was never observed during the last six days of the emergency in the state.

   Sarawakians are entitled to know when Taib Mahmud left the state, when most of the times the airports in the state were closed, and the why, how and with whom he left the state, and when he would return to provide leadership and guidance to the people of Sarawak who are facing their worst crisis in history. Also, why his departure from Sarawak had been kept a secret.

   If Taib Mahmud could make use of a ‘window’ during the worsening haze crisis to leave Sarawak, why were the Sarawak state and assistant ministers “stranded” outside Sarawak unable to make use of such a ‘window’ to rush back to Sarawak to be with the people?

   All Sarawak State Ministers and assistant ministers who are in Sarawak should appear on television to convince the people of their presence in the state.
   __________________

   Taib Mahmud should come clean and give full details about his mysterious trip overseas when Sarawakians were facing their worst crisis in history during the 10-day haze emergency

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (6/10/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Monday): In the New Straits Times today, Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud, who had mysteriously disappeared when Sarawakians were facing their worst crisis as a result of the haze disaster last month with the Air Pollutant Index (API) reaching the all-time disastrous high of 839 in the history of the entire country, suddenly re-surfaced and launched a bitter attack on me.

   The New Straits Times report said:

   “Kuching, Sun – Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud said today he left Sarawak for the United States during the state of environmental emergency caused by the haze, to look for assistance from health and haze experts.

   “He hit out at DAP secretary-general Lim Kit Siang for accusing him of running away from Sarawak during the emergency. Taib said Lim should not be hasty in hurling accusations.

   “”Lim was ignorant on what was being done in Sarawak because he did not trust his own men in the State.’ Taib had left the State with his family.

   “He said while he was overseas the job of tackling the haze problem was left in the hands of his capable deputy Datuk Dr. George Chan.

   “’Dr. Chan with the help of a team of capable civil servants, has done a very good job. I am very happy with the way they handled the situation during the state of emergency,’ he added.

   “Taib said that as a result of his overseas trip, Sarawak would come up with a comprehensive plan to overcome problems relating to haze. “He said the plan, to be ready in three months, would be formulated with the help of experts he had talked to. The plan will cover a three to seven-year period’.

   “Taib said health experts would come to Sarawak soon to help assess the impact of the haze on the people.”

   Taib Mahmud should come clean and give full details about his mysterious trip overseas when Sarawakians were facing their worst crisis in history during the 10-day emergency caused by the national haze disaster and not to treat Sarawakians and Malaysians as very gullible people who would believe any tall tale dished out to them.

   During the national haze disaster, many government leaders have made the most incredulous of statements, which immediately became the butt of national jokes, but Taib Mahmud is now beating them all.

   I am sure if an opinion poll is conducted in Sarawak or Malaysia, it would be found that the credibility index of Taib Mahmud’s statement yesterday is virtually nil!

   I would like to know whether all the Sarawak State Ministers and Sarawak Barisan Nasional component parties are prepared to publicly give 100 per cent endorsement to the reasons given by Taib Mahmud about his mysterious trip overseas during the height of the Sarawak haze emergency?

   If Taib Mahmud had gone overseas to seek for international help from health and haze experts, why was he and the government so secretive about it, as if he was up to something very shameful and dishonourable? In fact, the fullest publicity and announcements should have been made about the important SOS mission which Taib Mahmud has embarked upon, both before and during every stage of the journey.

   If this was an emergency mission, why was it not announced beforehand and why was it entrusted only to him and his family, rather than to a team of State leaders and experts? Was the international SOS mission which Taib Mahmud embarked on confined solely to him and his family, and what is the strength of his family delegation? Are the expenses of his international SOS trip and that of his family borne by the Sarawak state government, and if so, what are the details of these expenses?

   Taib Mahmud should give full details as to when he left Sarawak, who left with him, the full itinerary of the countries he visited, the international haze and health experts that he had met and what is the three-year to seven-year anti-haze plan to resolve all haze problem in Sarawak once and for all.

   Did Taib Mahmud get the clearance of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed or the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to leave the Sarawak state at the height of the haze emergency?

   If Taib Mahmud had left Sarawak for the highly proper and honourable reason to seek international help of health and haze experts, why was his office so shy about revealing whether he was inside Sarawak or out of the country when I phoned up on 23rd September to specifically ask about the whereabouts of the Sarawak Chief Minister?

   In the era of information technology where there could be instant communications from any part of the globe, why had Taib Mahmud taken more than two weeks to reveal himself and explain his absence from Sarawak?

   Taib Mahmud owes the people of Sarawak and Malaysia a fulsome and satisfactory explanation as to why he left the state when he should be in Sarawak to provide leadership and guidance at a time when Sarawakians were faced with the worst crisis in their life, which has caused RM1 billion losses in the 10-day emergency, or RM100 million losses a day.

   Parliament is debating a special motion on haze today in six hours time which would be tabled by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. Taib Mahmud should be present in Parliament to satisfy Sarawakians and Malaysians that he had in fact not abandoned Sarawakians so that he and his family can enjoy clean fresh air in other countries, but had in fact been embarking on a secret SOS mission to save Sarawakians from haze.

   I am faxing this statement now ( 10 a.m) to Taib Mahmud at the Sarawak Chief Minister’s Office to give him enough notice to be in Parliament for the haze debate.
   _______________

   Taib Mahmud should be more specific and state whether he is referring to me when he threatened to take legal action against those who questioned his motives of going overseas during the haze emergency

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (7/10/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Tuesday): Sarawak Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud has said that he might take legal action against those who questioned his motives of going overseas during the haze emergency.

   Taib Mahmud should be more specific and state whether he is referring to me when he threatened to take legal action against those who questioned his absence from Sarawak during the height of the haze emergency.

   Instead of going around issuing threats, Taib Mahmud should give a full and satisfactory explanation why he had secretly left Sarawak during the height of the haze emergency, and whether he is aware that his explanation on Sunday that he had left Sarawak with his family to seek the international help of haze and health experts in the United States had been met with derision from the people both in Sarawak and Malaysia.

   Rightly, Sarawakians and Malaysians regard Taib Mahmud’s explanation as adding “salt to the wound” of his abandonment of his duties and responsibitilies as Sarawak Chief Minister, who should be with the people to provide leadership and guidance when the state was faced with the worst environmental disaster in history.

   Yesterday, during my speech on the haze motion moved by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, I had criticised the government for not giving full, accurate and timely information and data about the dangers of the haze to the people.

   As an example, I faulted the government for not providing proper information about the adverse health effects to the people when the Air Pollutant Index (API) reached the hazardous level of above 301. Information which the government released with regard to effect on health when the API level is between 301-500 is as follows: “Severe aggravation of symptoms and endangers health.” This is so general that it is virtually meaningless.

   In contrast, the information released by the Environmental Protection Agency under the United States Clean Air Act about the adverse health effects when the air pollution reaches the “hazardous” level is more specific and illuminating. Although the United States uses somewhat different standards, and its index is known as “Pollution Standards Index (PSI)”, its hazardous level is also from 301-500, although it is sub-divided into two categories.

   For the “hazardous” index of 301-400, it warns of “Premature onset of certain diseases in addition to significant aggravation of symptoms and decreased exercise tolerance in healthy persons” while for the “hazardous” index of 401-500, it warns of “Premature death of ill and elderly. Healthy people will experience adverse symptoms that affect their normal activity.”

   This is why American, Canadian, Australian and European embassies and firms allow their employees to leave the country when the API exceeds unhealthy levels, for they are more aware about the adverse health effects, particularly when they reach hazardous levels when they are likely to cause “premature onset of certain diseases” and even “premature death of ill and elderly”.

   One MP stood up to seek clarification and asked whether this could be the reason why Taib Mahmud left Sarawak – a question which only Taib Mahmud himself could answer.

   This is why Taib Mahmud should be in Parliament this evening during the continued debate on the haze motion to give a full and satisfactory account of his disappearance from Sarawak with his family during the height of the haze emergency.

   Last Sunday, Taib said that as a result of his trip to the United States, the Sarawak State Government, with the help from the American experts, will draft a masterplan to tackle the haze problem in the future. He added that the masterplan will include effective measures to reduce the health effects of the haze. “I had discussed this with the experts while in America. They will visit Sarawak soon to have a first hand look on the haze situation in the State,” he said.

   Is Taib Mahmud suggesting that the Federal Government and Malaysia at present do not have the expertise to draw up a masterplan to deal with the haze problem, and that Sarawak would have an anti-haze plan which would be superior to the national anti-haze plan?
   _________________

   Taib Mahmud should explain which family members went with him on his mysterious trip overseas when Sarawakians were faced with their worst crisis during the haze emergency last month

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (8/10/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Wednesday): It is most regrettable that despite repeated reminders, Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud dare not turn up in Parliament to give a full and satisfactory explanation of his mysterious trip overseas during the haze emergency in Sarawak and rebut all allegations that he had abandoned the people of Sarawak when they were faced with their worst crisis during the haze emergency last month.

   It is even more regrettable that he had delegated his defence in Parliament to the Sarawak Barisan Nasional MP for Batang Lupar, Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, who had not only failed to clear the name and reputation of the Sarawak Chief Minister but have only raised even more questions and doubts.

   For instance, according to the New Straits Times today, Wan Junaidi in his speech in Parliament yesterday denied that the Chief Minister had gone overseas during the haze emergency with his family. The NST reported:

   “Wan Junaidi described the accusation that the Chief Minister was accompanied by his family as ‘a pack of lies’, adding that he met Taib’s wife and son here when the Chief Minister was seeking help from haze experts in the United States.”

   What Wan Junaidi did not realise is that I had never made a statement, but only raised the question, as to whether Taib had left Sarawak with his family when the people of Sarawak were going through their worst environmental disaster in history.

   The confirmation that Taib had left Sarawak with his family during the haze emergency had clearly been confirmed by the Chief Minister himself, as this was reported in Monday’s New Straits Times in an exclusive report where Taib specifically “hit out at DAP secretary-general Lim Kit Siang for accusing him of running away from Sarawak during the emergency.”

   Monday’s NST report said:

   “Taib said Lim should not be hasty in hurling accusations.

   “’Lim was ignorant on what was being done in Sarawak because he did not trust his own men in the State.’ Taib had left the State with his family.

   “He said while he was overseas the job of tackling the haze problem was left in the hands of his capable deputy Datuk Dr. George Chan.”

   In view of this New Straits Times report on Monday that “Taib had left the State with his family”, the question arises as to whether Wan Junaidi actually met Taib’s wife and son when the Sarawak Chief Minister was overseas during the haze emergency.

   Or is the Sarawak Chief Minister now claiming, through Wan Junaidi, that the New Straits Times had made a false news when it reported in its exclusive interview with Taib Mahmud on Monday that “Taib had left the State with his family”.

   If so, then the New Straits Times had committed an offence of ‘malicious publishing false news” under the Printing Presses and Publications Act, an offence for which DAP Deputy Secretary-General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Guan Eng and Tenaganita director, Irene Fernandez had been charged.

   Is the Sarawak Chief Minister going to lodge a police report against New Straits Times for publishing false news when it reported that he and his family had left Sarawak during the haze emergency?

   In the Information Technology era, where the Malaysian and Sarawak governments are urging the people to make the leapfrog into information society, government leaders should set the example of transparency and accountability.

   Why should the Sarawak Chief Minister’s trip overseas during the haze emergency in the state be shrouded with layer after layer of secrecy and mystery, not only as to why he mysteriously disappeared from Sarawak, but who left with him. The time has come for Taib Mahmud to explain which family members went with him on his mysterious trip overseas when Sarawakians were faced with their worst crisis during the haze emergency last month, as well as the full details of the expenses and itinerary overseas as Wan Junaidi’s clumsy defence of the Sarawak Chief Minister’s absence had only whetted public appetites about the truth of Taib Mahmud’s disappearance from Sarawak.

   In his speech in Parliament yesterday, Wan Junaidi made wild allegations and accusations, for instance that I was responsible for “surat layang” in Sarawak and was responsible for creating panic among Sarawakians.

   These are very contemptible falsehoods which do not deserve attention.

   It is now a season of “surat layang” in Sarawak but the DAP has absolutely nothing to do with them.

   DAP is a responsible political party and will never be involved in the practice of “surat layang”. DAP leaders are prepared to be fully responsible for the statements and speeches they make and have never hid behind “surat layang”.
   ___________________

   Latest explanation about Taib Mahmud’s mysterious trip overseas during the Sarawak haze emergency most pathetic and has only served to further undermine the credibility of Sarawak Chief Minister

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (9/10/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Thursday): The latest explanation about Taib Mahmud’s mysterious trip overseas during the Sarawak haze emergency is most pathetic and has only served to further undermine the credibility of the Sarawak Chief Minister.

   The Star today reported that the Sarawak Barisan Nasional political secretaries, through their spokesman Dr. Abang Abdul Rauf Abang Zen said in a statement that Taib Mahmud met four scientists to discuss ways to fight the haze and to put out forest fires during his recent official trip overseas.

   This was in response to my statement asking Taib to give full details of his mysterious trip overseas during the Sarawak haze emergency.

   Dr. Rauf, who is Taib’s chief political secretary, said Taib left the country only after he had organised the emergency machinery and appointed his deputy Datuk Dr. George Chan Hong Nam as the director of operations assisted by another deputy Tan Sri Alfred Jabu.

   I do not know how many Barisan Nasional political secretaries Dr. Rauf is representing, but he should realise that the credibility of a statement does not depend on the number of people endorsing it.

   If Taib Mahmud had in fact left Sarawak during the haze emergency on a SOS mission to seek international help from haze and health experts, why didn’t he as Taib’s chief political secretary, make such a statement when this was the hottest question among Sarawkians last month?

   Although Rauf purports to respond to my demand that Taib should give full details of Taib Mahmud’s mysterious trip overseas during the Sarawak haze emergency, he had failed to do so, as he had not furnished the full details which the people of Sarawak and Malaysia are waiting for.

   For three days, MPs were waiting for Taib Mahmud to turn up in Parliament to give full and satisfactory explanation of his mysterious trip overseas during the debate on the haze motion but the Sarawak Chief Minister had disappointed everyone by his absence – showing that his so-called “SOS” mission overseas to save Sarawak from haze is just a myth.

   Rauf should know that if he wants to give “full details” of Taib Mahmud’s mysterious trip overseas, he must give details as to who went with Taib, his full intinerary, the countries he visited, who are the four scientists he had met and the date and venue of such meetings.

   Is Taib’s meeting with four scientists in the United States all he could boast as far as his SOS mission to save Sarawakians from haze is concerned?

   Sarawakians and Malaysians want to know an answer to a specific question: Whether it is not true that as a result of state and nation-wide outrage at the Sarawak Chief Minister running away from the state when the people were faced with their worst environmental disaster, Taib Mahmud had to meet four scientists in the United States so that he could come back to claim that he had gone overseas to seek international help from haze and health experts?
   __________________

   I will ask Sarawak DAP not to raise the isssue of the Chief Minister’s mysterious absence from the state during the haze emergency in the Kidurong by-election if Taib Mahmud can give full and satisfactory explanation.

   Media Statement
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (10/10/1997)

   (Petaling Jaya, Friday): I have just read Sarawak Tribune yesterday under the heading “Kit Siang’s insinuations distasteful : Dr Rauf” which reported:

   KUCHING – Political Secretary to the Chief Minister Dr Abang Abdul Rauf Abang Zen described Democratic Action Party (DAP) leader Encik Lim Kit Siang’s insinuations against Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud at the recent Parliamentary sitting as distasteful and unwarranted.

   The opposition leader had demanded that the Chief Minister give full details on his trip overseas during the haze emergency.

   Dr Abang Rauf said Encik Lim’s allegations had strong political undertones in view of the coming Kidurong by-election.

   Defending the action of the Chief Minister, Dr Rauf said Datuk Patinggi Taib left the State on official duty and did so only after he had fully organised the emergency machinery and appointed Deputy Chief Minister and Finance and Public Utilities Minister Datuk Dr George Chan as director of operation.

   Datuk Dr Chan was assisted by Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Alfred Jabu, who is also Agriculture and Community Development Minister.

   Dr Abang Rauf explained that since the haze emergency, which was declared on September 19, was the first of its kind ever to happen in the State, few knew exactly how best to deal with the phenomenon.

   In view of the urgency of the situation, the Chief Minister, he said, took the trouble to meet and hold discussions on the haze and how to put out the forest fires with at least four scientists abroad.

   The Chief Minister was constantly kept informed of the situation back home by Datuk Dr Chan, Dr Abang Rauf added.

   He pointed out that Encik Lim had lied by saying the Chief Minister left the State to escape the haze…

   Dr Abang Rauf also questioned Encik Lim’s concern for Sarawak. “Everyone knows Encik Lim is stirring up the people’s feelings against Datuk Patinggi Taib to fish for votes in the Kidurong by-election. But Encik Lim has harped on the wrong issue at the wrong time.”

   It is clear that the worry uppermost in the minds of Taib Mahmud and his political secretary is the Kidurong by-election in Sarawak on Oct. 25 and 26.

   Dr. George Chan, for instance, was also quoted in the Sarawak Tribune as saying that the DAP would have nothing but only “imaginary issues” to talk about in the upcoming Kidurong by-election, and I assume that one of these “imaginary issues” is the mysterious trip overseas of the Sarawak Chief Minister during the haze emergency.

   Let me assure Taib Mahmud that when I telephoned his office in Kuching on Sept. 23 after I had received calls from very angry Sarawakians that the Chief Minister had left the state when Sarawakians were faced with their worst environmental disaster in history, I did not have the Kidurong by-election in mind at all.

   I took up the issue as a matter of public interest and I thank Sarawakians who have expressed appreciation for what I have done.

   Let me also assure Taib Mahmud that I would advise Sarawak DAP not to raise the issue of his mysterious trip overseas during the haze emergency if he could give full and satisfactory explanation of his sudden and unexplained absence in the state at the height of the haze disaster.

   Unfortunately, all the explanations which Taib Mahmud and his battery of political secretaries could give about the Chief Minister’s mysterious trip overseas have only succeeded in raising more questions. In fact, the Sarawak Chief Minister is committing a second outrage. The first outrage is his irresponsible disappearance from Sarawak during the haze emergency, and the second outrage is his contempt for public opinion in Sarawak and Malaysia in thinking that any ridiculous explanation about his mysterious trip overseas is adequate for him on his return to the state.

   Let me also tell Taib Mahmud that if he could give a full and satisfactory explanation which could convince me that he had embarked on a “SOS” mission to seek international help from haze and health experts during the haze emergency in Sarawak, I am prepared to be his most vocal defender both in Sarawak and Malaysia.

   But he should not expect me to keep quiet when he cannot give basic facts like when and how he left Sarawak, the members of the family who went with him, the countries he visited with a full itinerary, the haze and health experts he met in the United States giving dates and names, and the outcome of his meeting with these haze and health experts.

   Taib Mahmud has very good reasons for staying away from Parliament during the three days of the debate on the haze disaster, which would have been the ideal venue for him to give a full and satisfactory explanation of his mysterious trip overseas during the Sarawak haze emergency, as he knows that the majority of Barisan Nasional MPs are also very disappointed with him because his absence from Sarawak state was completely inexcusable.

   Many Barisan Nasional MPs as well as members of the administration have privately conveyed to me their agreement that Taib Mahmud should account for his mysterious absence overseas as he had failed to provide the leadership at the most critical time at the height of the worst environmental disaster in Sarawak history.

   _______________

   Invitation to Taib Mahmud to a public debate on his double absences – from Sarawak during the height of the haze emergency and from the three-day Parliamentary motion on the national haze disaster

   Media Conference Statement
   - Kidurong by-election
   by Lim Kit Siang
   (23/10/1997)

   (Bintulu, Thursday): It is most regrettable that up to now, the Sarawak Chief Minister, Tan Sri Taib Mahmud had not been able to give a full and satisfactory explanation of his absence from the state during the height of the haze emergency – mysteriously disappearing overseas at a time when Sarawakians were facing their worst environmental disaster.

   An experienced political leader like Taib Mahmud cannot be unaware that at a time when the people were going through their worst environmental crisis, with the Air Pollution Index (API) reaching the unthinkable height of 839, the top political leader should be with them to provide leadership and guidance. Instead, he preferred to become a “fugitive” from the haze emergency, going overseas to enjoy clean and healthy air while leaving the people of Sarawak to fend for themselves when the state was choked with the worst air pollution in history.

   The explanation Taib Mahmud gave when he returned from overseas after the haze emergency was over was an insult to the intelligence of the people of Sarawak and Malaysia, as he expected the people to believe that he had gone overseas for a “SOS” mission to save Sarawakians from the haze disaster.

   What is worse, when Parliament debated for three days the national haze disaster, he also failed in his duties as Chief Minister of Sarawak – the state which suffered the worst damage in the haze disaster with the 10-day haze emergency causing losses of RM100 million a day or RM1 billion for the period – as well as a Member of Parliament in not attending the Parliamentary meeting both to explain his mysterious absence from the state as well as to impress on the national authorities the grave damage the haze had done to the economy, environment and health of the people of Sarawak.

   Despite my repeated public reminders to Taib Mahmud to be in Parliament for the debate on the motion on the national haze disaster, the Sarawak Chief Minister chose to be a “fugitive” a second time, on this occasion from Parliament on the debate on the national haze disaster.

   I have said publicly that Taib Mahmud had acted most irresponsibly in running away from Sarawak when he should be with the people during the haze emergency.

   Taib Mahmud had again acted most irresponsibly in running away from Parliament during the three-day debate on the motion on the national haze disaster moved by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

   Taib Mahmud cannot continue to be “on the run” from accounting to the people why he had acted so irresponsibly on both these occasions.

   I invite him to a public debate on his double absences – from Sarawak during the height of the haze emergency and from the three-day Parliamentary motion on the national haze disaster. The public debate could be held anywhere in Sarawak, even in the chambers of the Sarawak state legislative assembly.

   By refusing to give full and satisfactory explanation for his two absences, Taib Mahmud has shown his contempt for the people. This is why the voters of Kidurong should use the by-election to speak up on behalf of all Sarawakians that they want Taib Mahmud to properly account for his two absences on the national haze disaster.

   DAP candidate for the Kidurong by-election, Wong Sing Ai, stands very little chance of winning in the by-election. But if he could confound political observers and scrape through the by-election with a victory, his victory in the by-election would be even more significant than his surprise 22-vote win in the Kidurong constituency during the 1996 Sarawak state general elections.

   The DAP’s historic breakthrough in the Sarawak state general elections in September last year shook up the SUPP, but it did not shake up the Sarawak Barisan Nasional or the Chief Minister, as they continued to be very arrogant with their overwhelming control of the State Assembly, i.e. 59 out of 62 seats.

   This was why Taib Mahmud could act so haughtily and irresponsibly in disappearing from Sarawak during the haze emergency and to be absent from the Parliamentary motion on the haze disaster, without feeling any need to give any full and satisfactory accounting for his actions.

   However, if Wong Sing Ai could miraculously win in the Kidurong by-election, despite the hectic campaigning by Taib Mahmud and the entire State Cabinet, it would shake up the Sarawak Barisan Nasional leadership as it would serve as a warning that the people are thoroughly fed up with the arrogance of power of the Sarawak Chief Minister and state Barisan Nasional leadership and that they want changes where the Sarawak State Government is more responsive to the needs and demands of the people.

   ___________________

   Many expats flee Malaysia as smog persists
   By Christina Toh-Pantin, Reuters News, 26 September 1997

   KUALA LUMPUR, Sep. 26 – Many expatriates have left or are planning to leave Malaysia as dense smog threatens a major health crisis, western diplomats and residents said on Friday.

   Malaysia last week declared an emergency in its Borneo state of Sarawak after smoke pollution from forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia soared beyond hazardous levels.

   Indonesia, where two deaths have been directly attributed to the smog, on Thursday declared a national disaster. Environmentalists believe up to 600,000 hectares (1.5 million acres) of forest are burning or have already been destroyed and some 9,500 fire-fighters, including 1,000 Malaysians, are battling the blazes.

   Two Canadians, on their way to a briefing on the smog by the U.S. Embassy, said they were anxious to get more information on the health implications. “My biggest fear is the lead content,” said Debbie Shaver, who has lived in Malaysia’s capital for a year. “I can name more than a dozen (Canadians) who’ve left or are booked to leave.”

   Diplomats from western missions also said many expatriates had left or were planning to leave the city where desperate firemen have resorted to spraying water from cranes in a bid to clear the air. Foreigners interviewed said they were uneasy about the extent of information being provided by Malaysian authorities.

   The U.S. embassy earlier this week said it had authorised diplomats’ families and staff to leave Malaysia if they so chose. Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, asked on Friday about the departure of foreigners, said: “Well, they have to make a decision. We respect their decision. As far as the government is concerned, it’s still safe, there is no evidence to the contrary. What we suggest is don’t take risks being outside.”

   The U.S. State Department has also cautioned U.S. citizens travelling to Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia that air pollution has reached unhealthy levels. Australia’s Foreign Affairs Department warned Australians travelling to affected areas that the smog could cause health problems. The Canadian High Commission is rotating its staff to Australia for fresh air.

   A British High Commission spokesman said there were no plans for a general evacuation of its staff or dependants in Kuala Lumpur. “People who are concerned about the health implications of haze should consult their local doctors who know their individual health history,” he added.

   Newspaper reports in Malaysia quoted Health Department director Shukor Mohamed Noor as saying on Tuesday that some 15,000 Malaysians, most of them children and elderly, had been treated for smog-related illnesses. Environmental organisations said there was carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, ozone and lead in the Air Pollutant Index (API) structure used by Malaysia to measure the smog.

   Over-exposure to these could lead to heart disease, lung disease and eye infection, they said. At 11 a.m. (0300 GMT), the API was registering “unhealthy” or “very unhealthy” levels around the country, with Kuching, Sarawak’s state capital, notching the highest figure of 340, which is “hazardous”. The Sarawak emergency was declared after the index shot past 500 and later peaked at 851.

   A British citizen who works for a financial services firm in Kuala Lumpur said he sent his wife and infant son back to England on Wednesday. “The smell of smoke and exhaust in a 10-month-old baby’s bedroom didn’t seem good,” he said. “Many have left, and those who are staying are increasingly nervous.” The smog has triggered health alarms in Singapore and Brunei. It has also spread to the Philippines and parts of Thailand.

6. engkerawai on July 15th, 2011 10:17 am

   I’m enthusiastic and optimistic of the event. Sedadu engkerawai will be among the crowd on that auspicious rally.

   Its awesome and I really salute the main organiser for the courageous deeds

   Stand at attention!
   I salute!

   Mijar Ekrowai

7. Dayak Mudah Lupa on July 15th, 2011 10:19 am

   Let’s not forget that BN Dayak leaders are No.1 Hypocrites of all and must be rejected and protested en masse by all Dayaks!

   Remember how PBDS, PRS, SPDP, SNAP et. all claimed to be Dayak party this, that but also a multi-racial party only to serve Akik Taib divide-and-rule the Dayak until now.

   Then this Animist Religion practised by Fake Christians such as Akik Jabu and Akik Jemot Masing which poles apart from Christian teachings not to seek advice from Antu Jungle Spirits except our Lord Jesus God above.

   Anyway, they all follow their hypocrite big boss Pope Akik Taib also practice Religion of Bomoh-ism and their Church of Animist, worship Antu Jungle Spirits as their patron saint.

   Therefore this BN Church Of Animist Bomoh religion holy prayer is this:
   “DO AS I SAY, NOT DO AS I DO!” and “RASUAH IS BN HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN!”
   ________________________

   Reminder To All Christians Dayaks About False Hypocrite Prophets:

   2.Jeremiah 14:14
   Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.

   Jeremiah 14:13-15 (in Context) Jeremiah 14 (Whole Chapter)
   3.Lamentations 2:14
   Thy prophets have seen vain and foolish things for thee: and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to turn away thy captivity; but have seen for thee false burdens and causes of banishment.

   Lamentations 2:13-15 (in Context) Lamentations 2 (Whole Chapter)
   4.Matthew 7:15
   Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
   Matthew 7:14-16 (in Context) Matthew 7 (Whole Chapter)

   10.1 John 4:1
   Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
   1 John 4:1-3 (in Context) 1 John 4 (Whole Chapter)

   5.Matthew 24:11
   And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
   Matthew 24:10-12 (in Context) Matthew 24 (Whole Chapter)
   ________________________

   Ubah versus Kenyalang
   Malaysia Kini, 6 Apr 2011

   Local flavour and creativity were very much in evidence during the nominations process in the 10th Sarawak election.

   Compared to shouting matches and frequent scuffles among rival supporters in the peninsula, those accompanying candidates to nomination centres around Sarawak were orderly and offered a lighter take on politics.

   The DAP turned the state emblem – the Rhinoceros Hornbill – into a loveable mascot named Ubah (‘change’). It has its own website, Facebook and Twitter account, in a bid to engage younger urban voters.

   Almost all the DAP candidates were accompanied by Ubah, in the form of soft toy. Candidates and supporters happily posed with the mascot for photographs.

   A majestic bird also featured in the BN’s campaign.

   Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu, dubbed the ‘Iban warrior’ by his supporters, brought along a kenyalang (hornbill) sculpture to the nomination centre. This has been his practice in every election he has contested.

   The sculpture and an antler, were carried by two elders who led the 300-strong BN entourage to the Betong district office, the nomination centre for state seat Layar, this morning.

   On reaching the main buidling, Jabu – who is seeking his eighth consecutive term in the Layar seat, carried the items and placed them respectfully on either side of an antique cannon at the building entrance.

   Photo: Jabu The Animist?
   http://media1-cdn.malaysiakini.com/348/6395516af4b1da1ef43eda067d7a43d4.jpg
   http://media1-cdn.malaysiakini.com/348/378c0be4c23ca9be3dc2a8017f951f29.jpg

   He then squatted down and stroked the cannon while murmuring a few words in the Iban language. He asked Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein to similarly stroke the cannon and the two posed for photographs.

   After the returning officer announced the successful candidates, Jabu again stroked the cannon and murmured to it.

   He told Hishammuddin that the cannon has brought victory to BN and again asked the latter to pose with him for photographs.

   According to Jabu’s wife, Empiang, the kenyalang and antler are part of an Iban tradition in seeking blessings.

   “During every election, he will do the ritual,” she told Malaysiakini.

   According to the Sarawak Handicraft and Souvenir Association, the Iban regard the kenyalang as the God of War. It is the community’s most sacred carving and is used to honour and commemorate its warriors and leaders.

   Traditionally, only a proven warrior is allowed to fell the tree to be used for carving the statue. The wood for the hornbill crest can only be cut by a warrior who has killed numerous enemies in a single expedition.

   Stella ‘spooks’ Independent

   At the Balingian nomination centre, all eyes were on an Australian bomoh allegedly close to Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud, who was filing his nomination form.

   A minor fracas broke out when Independent candidate Salleh Jafaruddin raised his voice at Stella Kharleen Tashman, a striking blonde who sported a leopard-print headscarf.

   “You want to put a spell on me, you want to put a spell on Malaysia,” Salleh said, raising his voice.

   Photo: Akik Taib’s Bomoh – Stella.
   http://media1-cdn.malaysiakini.com/348/9c2df1203ac82a0bd2c3c71737c0ad8c.jpg

   However, Stella (right), who was wearing heavy make-up, just laughed and walked away, while Salleh had to be restrained by his supporters.

   According to whistleblower website Sarawak Report, Stella was introduced to Taib by his sister Raziah.

   It further claimed that Taib is strongly influenced by Stella, who is said to conduct a ritual each morning before he leaves his residence.
   _________________________

   Muja Menua… appeasing the angry gods
   By Peter Sibon, The Borneo Post, Sunday 5 December 2010

   IN 1924 a Muja Menua miring ceremony was held to mark the end of hostilities between the Kayans and Kenyahs and the Ibans in the upper reaches of the Rajang.

   The hostilities was a result of the tribes literally colliding into each other as the Kayans and Kenyahs move downstream from the headwaters of the Rejang and Baleh towards Kapit while the Ibans spread upstream from Kapit.

   The peace treaty was brokered by one of the more colourful officers of the Brooke reign, Gerald MacBryan and cleverly enforced by the holding of the Muja Menua miring in November that year.

   In the Iban tradition the Muja Menua is the highest level of miring, the ceremonial prayers and rituals to appease the spirits and gods for sins committed against humanity and nature.

   Such is the level of Muja Menua that it was never held again until this year and coincidentally also in the month of November and in the upper reaches of the same river — the Rajang.

   However, the Muja Menua held on Nov 17 this year was not to cement a peace treaty but to seek forgiveness and appease the gods for the ravages wreaked on the environment by the people through logging and other activities.

   Apparently the devastation of the environment in the headwaters areas of the Baleh which is a tributary of the Rajang had so angered the spirits of the forests and mountains that they brought on massive landslides that caused logs, branches and other debris tumbling into the river resulting in the most massive logjam ever seen in Sarawak.

   On Oct 17 the people living along the Baleh and Rejang were flabbergasted by the sight the mighty rivers choked a solid mass of logs, trees and branches floating down stream like Nabau the Iban mythical serpent — some estimated the logjam to be 250 kilometres long.

   Although the cost of the physical damages caused by the floating logs was small, the environmental damage was massive and unlikely to be fully gauged. Fish, prawns and other aquatic life in the rivers were suffocated by the silt and mud churned up by the logs.

   Although the river folk had a field day picking up dying fish and prawns in the river, their hearts were filled with misgivings and fear for the future.

   The Ibans in Baleh have expressed their fear and believed that the reason behind the massive debris along the Baleh/Rejang Rivers was the wrath of the gods who were angry with the loggers as the tractors and bulldozers have damaged their abode at Ulu Sg Melatai.

   For some, they believed that the indiscriminate pollution at the domains of the spirits of the rivers, jungles and mountains at Ulu Sg Melatai have caused the gods to move out from their domains and caused the massive movement that resulted in the massive debris being washed down the rivers.

   During a meeting with 12 Iban village chiefs held at Rumah Tujai, Ng Sebiro, Entawau, Baleh on Oct12, they have told Dato Sri Dr James Masing, the Minister of Land Development that a grand miring ceremony must be held to appease the spirits as soon as possible.

   Masing had said then that he would have to discuss the matter with the Majlis Adat Istiadat the kind of miring ceremony that would be most appropriate to appease the deities, and more so, the wrath of the local people.

   “The ceremony will hopefully appease the gods as well as the local people. At this stage, they only blamed the loggers but we must stopped their anger otherwise they vent it out at the government.

   “My top priority now is not only to appease the people but also the gods whose wraths could worsen the already tense situation,” Masing told thesundaypost after meeting.

   For the Ibans in Baleh their wrath was justified as their livelihood had been devastated by the logjam causing a complete lost of fish and animals from their jungles which they claimed as their ‘supermarket’.

   “But we are very angry with the loggers because the ‘Baleh Tsunami’ or logjam is caused by them. They have made the abode of the gods too noisy with their tractors and other heavy machineries which made the gods to get angry and shake the forest and resulted in the devastation,” said Tuai Rumah Sebaung, Ng Melamah, Baleh.

   They said the disrespectful ways of the loggers to nature have created an enmity between them and the local people.

   Masing, himself a Christian, who earned his PhD in anthropology through his research on Iban studies stressed that the miring ceremony was not against the Christian teachings as it is part and parcel of the Iban’s culture and tradition.

   “Miring is part of the socio-religious fabric of the Iban community. So there is no reason to think that the miring ceremony is diminishing among the community,” stressed Masing.

   It was determined the landslides occurred at Ulu Sg. Malatai, which is a tributary of the Baleh.
   _______________________

   Preserve our eastern values: Taib to churches
   Borneo Post, Thursday, April 26, 2001

   KUCHING – Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud today called for the preservation of the eastern values alongside the moral teachings of the various faiths to promote religious tolerance in the plural Malaysian society.

   This was imperative to ensure continued economic advancement and closer spiritual fellowship among the people of different religions, he pointed out. The Chief Minister was addressing a luncheon reception for leaders of the Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) who are attending their 10th Triennial General Assembly (TGA) held for the first time in Kuching. For instance, Abdul Taib said the tendency of avoiding getting too-near relatives for fear of being accused of nepotism or the ‘mother-in-law phobia’ and so forth should be done away with. The people must continue to establish relationship with members of their bigger extended family even though they may be distant in the physical form, he said.

   He said: “It is a major challenge to preserve the feeling of love in the family especially with globalisation.

   “The faster pace of changes taking place in the homes has surrendered the role in religious upbringing to the religious leaders in the church, mosque or temple.”

   Abdul Taib suggested that one way to do it ‘is to have the school get the children of different races and religions to mix with one another, even though it may only be doing some small charitable works.’ He believed this would help promote a sense of caring for one another regardless of their religious backgrounds.

   “It is important to ingrain tolerance among the people in the context of encouraging more understanding in interacting with one another,” he said.

   He said another challenge that came with the advancement of materialism was generation gap and how to mould the spiritual wellbeing of the youths of today.

   “Parents are now more busy with material pursuits with more women joining the workforce, resulting in less and less mothers looking after their children. With the economic changes taking place so rapidly, family cohesion is suffering and the generation gap is getting wider,” he pointed out.

   There was therefore the need to spend more time and resources to develop social activities to encourage healthy interaction among the people of various races and religions, Taib said. One hundred delegates, fraternal guests and accredited observers from 16 member churches and eight associations of national Christian organisations are attending the TGA from April 23 to 26 to review past programmes and provide new directions for work in the next three years.
   _______________

   Taib advises Muslims to follow the middle path
   The Star, Thursday, September 13, 2001

   KUCHING: A sombre Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud yesterday advised Muslims in Sarawak to be moderate in their outlook towards life and to avoid extremist actions.

   “Islam teaches us to be moderate in all aspects of our living and also to be thankful for what we have been given,” he said.

   Taib, who was launching the RM28.3mil Islamic Development Department (Jakim) at Matang in the Malay-majority Pantai Damai constituency of 12,424 voters, said they should not only be thankful to God but also to fellow human beings.

   The Pantai Damai seat is tipped to be one of the hottest seats where Parti Keadilan Nasional is expected to put up a strong fight against PBB, the backbone of State Barisan Nasional coalition.

   PBB is expected to field new comer Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi who is taking over from incumbent Datin Paduka Sharifah Mordiah Tuanku Fauzi who has moved to Samariang seat.

   Sixty-five-year-old Taib, had been travelling extensively in the south and central parts of Sarawak since the dissolution of the State Assembly on Sept 8.

   Taib said the Quran taught Muslims to take care of their elderly parents during old age and this clearly indicated that Allah wants human beings to be thankful to those who had helped them.

   “We must avoid teachings by certain Islamic groups in the Peninsula which says there is no need to be thankful to any human being but only to Allah,” said Taib.

   Short of saying that the people of Matang should know how to be thankful to the Barisan Government for giving them good roads, electricity and water supplies and schools, Taib said Malays must not allow outside influence to disunite them.

   He added that they should maintain close ties with each other to ensure Sarawak continued to prosper.

   On Tuesday in Samarahan, Taib, who was in a fiery mood, took the opposition to task for accusing him of being zalim (cruel).

   He said: “If I am cruel, how can Sarawak be what it is today. This shows that the opposition does not know what they are saying.”

   He said voters should not be swayed and duped by opposition sweet talk.
   _____________

   Mixing politics with religion very dangerous — Taib
   Borneo Post, 10 April 2011

   MUKAH: Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud yesterday warned the people of the great dangers involved in mixing politics with religion.

   “Never mix religion with politics. There is nothing more volatile, nothing more provocative than mixing the two.

   “Inevitably, we will quarrel if we try to politicise religion…also racial issues as well,” he said when opening the RM10 million St Peter/St Paul church here yesterday.

   Touching on the issue of some 30,000 copies of Malay language bibles left uncollected at Kuching Port, Taib said it was he himself and not the opposition who had rectified the situation.

   “I talked to the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak (on the matter),” he said.

   Taib said the opposition only knew how to make people angry and that there were much “at stake for us all if we have anger and suspicions against each other… Christians, Muslims, Hindus or Buddhist.”

   “We must not allow religious extremists a free hand to divide and destroy society and the country,” he said.

   Taking a swipe at the opposition coalition’s slogan which called on the people to vote for change in the coming election, Taib said the people should think very carefully.

   “I have made the change in this state since 50 years ago. People are now better off. They have better standard of living, better lifestyle now. We have good roads, amenities, schools, there are many graduates too,” he said.

   He said they should ask themselves if this change was for the better or for the worse, whether there would be stability or instability, certainty or uncertainty.

   Taib said the people would face a very uncertain future if they were led by leaders like Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

   “We must maintain what we already have…a united, harmonious, stable, prosperous, progressive and respectable society where we have the freedom to aspire for what we believe is good.

   “That is why when I step down I want to hand over the state to new people, qualified people so that there will be no change for the worse,” he said. — Bernama
   _____________

   Taib dismisses allegations on personal benefits
   Bernama News, Sunday, April 08, 2001

   Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud denied yesterday that the development projects implemented in the state had benefited him personally as alleged by some quarters.

   Stressing that the projects were for the people’s benefit, he urged them to think rationally all allegations of nepotism and cronyism which were levelled at him before making any conclusion.

   Speaking at the Kuching-level celebrations of the 40th anniversary of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), he cited as an example the low-cost housing project in Rampangi, Semariang of which he was accused of benefiting personally.

   Taib, who is PBB president, said the project did not bring much profit to the developer Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd due to the peat soil condition.

   Not many companies wanted to invest in the project because of the high cost involved to prepare the site for the project, he said.

   But in the interest of the people, the project had to be carried out to provide housing to the low income group, he said.

   “We do not want them to remain without houses and live far away from the city. That’s why we continued with the project,” he said.

   On the issue of Bank Utama, Taib said many Sarawak bumiputra businessmen had benefited from loans given out to improve their businesses.

   He said that if in the past, they had problems getting loans, now no more given the strong position of Bank Utama.
   _________________

   RM32 mil kickbacks for Sarawak timber
   Malaysia Kini, Apr 6, 2007

   Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud has been implicated in a scandal allegedly involving RM32 million in kickbacks paid by Japanese shipping companies for timber from the resource-rich state.

   According to Japan Times, the multi-million ringgit ‘bribe’ – made over a period of seven years – was paid to a Hong Kong company said to be linked to Taib and his family.

   The money came from a Japanese cartel consisting of nine companies which buy timber from Sarawak.

   They pay a Hong Kong-based company, Regent Star, 1.1 billion yen (RM32 million) for services rendered in this transaction. This was disguised as business expenses, and was therefore not taxed.

   However, the Japanese tax authorities have discovered that the payments were “illegitimate expenses” as the Hong Kong agency – believed to be a paper company – did very little “substantive work” to justify the payments.

   The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau has instead classified the payment as a “rebate”, which is taxable.

   The newspaper reported that the shipping firms were likely to be slapped with well over 400 million yen (RM11.6 million) in back taxes along with heavy penalties for “hiding” the funds from the tax authorities.

   The companies are suspected of having made payments to the Hong Kong agent for 26 years, and thus the total income concealed could be several times the figure cited by sources.

   Money used as ‘lubricant’

   According to Japan Times in its report last Thursday, the shipping companies were believed to have used the money as a “lubricant to facilitate their lumber trade”.

   The shipping firms, which have rejected the tax authorities’ claim and argued that the transactions with Regent Star were legitimate, have denied any wrongdoing.

   Sarawak’s lumber export is controlled by the state government through Dewaniaga Sarawak – a state-affiliated organ in charge of timber export control which is headed by the Sarawak chief minister’s younger brother.

   The Japanese cartel was established in 1962 to avoid stiff competition among the shipping companies in the import of lumber from Southeast Asia, including Sarawak.

   Among the companies implicated in the alleged tax evasion scandal are top shippers Mitsui OSK. Kinkai Ltd and NYK-Hinode Line.

   The cartel signed an agreement in 1981 with Dewaniaga Sarawak for the export of timber to Japan.

   ‘Mediating charges’

   The shipping companies have to pay ‘mediating charges’, whose sums were tied to the amounts of lumber exported, to Regent Star as instructed by Dewaniaga.

   The shipping firms posted the payments to Regent Star as expenses for transport operations.

   The Japanese tax authorities, however, have concluded that the Hong Kong firm performed little work that deserved to be paid for and that the payments by the Japanese companies were kickbacks that went via Regent Star to senior Sarawak officials, according to the sources.

   Taib, who is the country’s longest-serving chief minister, is believed to be one of Malaysia’s richest politicians.

   His family has wide-ranging business interests in Sarawak since Taib took office 25 years ago.

   This is mainly through public-listed conglomerate Cahaya Mata Sarawak – with interests in banking, financial services and construction – and many of its subsidiaries, which Taib’s wife, Laila, has a substantial stake.

   It has been estimated that Taib’s family is worth at least RM2 billion, though this is not officially confirmed.

   Pak Lah, explain in Parliament

   In an immediate response, Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang said that he had sent a letter today to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi regarding the matter.

   “In my letter, I reminded Abdullah of his pledge when he became prime minister … to make anti-corruption his top agenda, (and) his proclamation of ‘zero tolerance for corruption’.”

   Lim urged Abdullah to come personally to Parliament next Monday to respond to the many serious allegations of high-profile corruption in his government.

   Malaysiakini has last week reported that another chief minister, Sabah’s Musa Aman, had also been allegedly mired by a litany of accusations involving graft and abuse of power.

   These recent scandals came in the wake of explosive allegations of corruption involving Anti-Corruption Agency chief Zulkipli Mat Noor, who has since step down, and Abdullah’s deputy in the Internal Security Minister, Mohd Johari Baharum.

   Both individuals, who have denied the allegations, are currently under investigations.
   ________________

   Taib: I have no secret Swiss bank account
   Malaysia Kini, Wednesday, 22 June 2011

   He makes the denial in a personal statement in the state legislative assembly this morning.

   Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud has categorically denied allegations by the Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) that he has a bank account in Switzerland.

   The long-serving chief minister made the denial in a personal statement in the state legislative assembly after Question Time this morning.

   “Let me state categorically that I have no secret Swiss bank account, nor assets or investments of any description. None whatsoever.

   “Indeed, I have so stated in unequivocal terms in a letter addressed last month to the president of the Swiss Federation.

   “In my letter, I have specifically asked the president to confirm that she has allegedly ordered any investigation into the allegations by the BMF to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) or to furnish me with a copy of the application so that I can exercise my right to seek and obtain legal redress.

   “I also pledge to render my fullest cooperation to the Swiss Federation to swiftly bring the truth to light so as to nail down all malicious falsehoods.

   “Let me reiterate here that the allegations by BMF are false, evidently politically motivated,” Taib (right) said.

   He said the BMF has a track record of making scurrilous and scandalous allegations against the Sarawak government for many years.

   These include claims about “the cutting down of 90 percent of our rainforests, although local and international forestry experts have certified that 70 percent of our forests are still being sustainably managed”.

   “Therefore, BMF’s false allegations that I have assets in Switzerland is a continuation of its malicious efforts to smear the state government, the state and the leaders,” he said.

   A disreputable website

   Taib said his attention has recently been drawn to allegations online in a “disreputable website” that claims the Swiss authority may investigate him and the nature and sources of assets belonging to him located in Switzerland.

   “The allegations by BMF have since been used by local politicians to advance their own political agenda against me and the state government that I lead, once again with a strong mandate from the people during the last state election.

   “As head of the state government and a member of the legislature, in keeping with the parliamentary practice and tradition, I am accountable to this august House.

   “Therefore, it is only proper and right for me to make a personal statement to this August house in accordance of Standing Order 22 on the allegations by BMF, a foreign NGO not at all accountable to the people of Sarawak,” he added.
   _____________

   Taib: I am too old to get new wife
   by Peter Sibon, New Straits Times, 30 May 2010

   KUCHING: At 74, Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud has no plans to remarry after his wife, Puan Sri Laila Taib, 68, passed away on April 29 last year due to lung cancer.

   He jovially replied Semariang assemblywoman Sharifah Hashidah Syed Aman Ghazali’s pantun urging him to get married again.

   “I am already 74. It’s too old for me to get a new partner now,” Taib said in jest when launching the Kejiranan Mesra (Friendly Neighbourhood) programme at Kampung Malaysia Jaya in Petra Jaya here yesterday.

   He said he still missed his wife and described her as his “accountant” because she would carry some money whenever she went with him for functions.

   “Now, if I need money, I have to ask my bodyguards,” he said jokingly.

   Taib said he would leave the running of his household to his children – Jamilah Hamidah, Datuk Seri Mahmud Abu Bekir, Datuk Seri Sulaiman Abdul Rahman and Datin Hanifah Hajar Taib.

   On another note, he encouraged urban dwellers to get to know their neighbours well as this would encourage a friendlier atmosphere in their housing estate.

   Citing various mega cities around the world where he had been, he said the vast majority of residents there were scared to venture out at night as the streets were controlled by thugs.

   “We have to be different and maintain our tradition for loving peace and harmony. I can only advise.

   “I cannot enforce this programme if the people are not receptive to it,” he said.

   The programme, a brainchild of Taib, was first launched on Nov 3 2001.

   Currently, 20 neighbourhoods under the Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) have adopted the programme.

   The main objectives were to promote a friendly neighbourhood, to encourage sharing of ideas and preservation of culture and tradition.

   Later, when asked to comment on Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala’s statement that the Federal Government should gradually cut subsidies, Taib said it was premature to comment as it has not reached the cabinet level.
   ________________

   A truly glittering wedding reception
   by Geryl Ogilvy Ruekeith, The Borneo Post, Sunday 16 January 2011

   KUCHING: Amidst slight drizzle and an army of security personnel, the mood inside the new State Legislative Assembly complex last night was thoroughly festive with lavish decorations as Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud and wife Puan Sri Ragad Waleed Alkurdi held their wedding reception.

   It was indeed a ceremony full of pomp and pageantry as some 500 dignified VVIPs, along with an impressive list of ‘who’s who’ in Sarawak, rub shoulders with the nation’s key public and corporate figures in attendance at the reception which was held at the DUN’s Dewan Santapan.

   The guest list included Head of State Tun Datuk Patinggi Abang Muhamad Salahuddin, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and federal and state Ministers.

   Arriving at 8.15pm, Taib was handsomely clad in a black tuxedo while his bride Ragad looked radiant in a stunning white wedding gown. The newly-wed couple was welcomed by deputy chief ministers Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan and Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang, along with Taib’s daughters Jamilah Hamidah and Datin Hanifah Hajar.

   Najib and his wife Datuk Seri Rosmah Mansor were the next to arrive at 9pm, followed by Salahuddin and his wife Toh Puan Datuk Patinggi Norkiah about 10 minutes later.

   Although not on the same scale as the fairy tale wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer back in 1981, the Chief Minister’s wedding was certainly a class on its own.

   Taib’s eldest son Dato Sri Mahmud Abu Bekir, in his appreciation speech, started off by wishing Ragad a ‘Happy Birthday’ as yesterday also marked Puan Sri’s 29th birthday.

   “This unification would not have happened if not for Datuk Raziah Mahmud (Taib’s sister) and husband Datuk Robert Geneid. It was Robert’s cousin Iqbal who introduced Puan Sri to my father.

   “About five months ago, Puan Sri dreamt that she married King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and he took her away in a Rolls Royce. Coincidentally, a year ago Robert’s niece Rasya also dreamt to have met King Abdullah.

   “In her dream, Puan Sri had asked Robert to help Rasya. He gave her (Ragad) a piece of paper and a pen to write her wishes down. Then Puan Sri saw her late father smiling at her,” said Mahmud, adding that now Ragad had moved to Kuching to be with the family and the people of Sarawak.

   Among the highlights of the night, apart from the cake cutting ceremony by the couple, were cultural performances by the Ministry of Social Development and Urbanisation troupe.

   Entertainment for the evening included orchestral music led by Safie Obe Haruni, while Sarawak Imam Besar Jorji Suhaili led the prayers for the couple.

   Held only the second week into the new year, the ‘Wedding of the Year’ was auspiciously marked as the first of many grand events anticipated in 2011. Taib and Ragad’s `akad nikah’ (marriage solemnisation) was held last Dec 18.

   Born in Damascus, Ragad is the youngest of four children to Waleed and Khayami Alkurdi. Along with her brothers Samer and Mohamad, and sister Samar, the family moved to Riyadh when Ragad was still young. Sadly, their father passed away in 2003.

   Tracing her roots, Ragad’s great great grandfather was a ‘Wari’ from Orfa, Turkey. His name was Khalil Orfali but only to change it to Alkurdi upon moving to Syria.

   Having a background in interior design, Ragad loves singing, dancing, fishing and driving.
   _____________________

   Moggie: PBDS is still a Dayak-based party
   by Tony Thien, Malaysia Kini, 16 Mar 2003

   In what is seen in some quarters as trying to hint indirectly his thinking on the leadership struggle issue in the party, Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) president Leo Moggie has said that PBDS should remain Dayak-based.

   “In Malaysia, it is acceptable for all the ethnic groups to have their own parties to foster unity in diversity via the Barisan Nasional,” he was quoted by the Sunday Tribune, a local English daily, as saying on Friday when declaring open three PBDS branches -Telang Usan, Tutoh and Apok in Ulu Baram.

   Acceptable trend

   He added: “In Peninsular Malaysia, we have Umno for the Malays, MIC for the Indians and MCA for the Chinese while in Sarawak it is accepted that SUPP represents the Chinese and PBDS the Dayaks.”

   “Even though we are opening our doors to our non-Dayak friends, PBDS is still a Dayak-based party.”

   The statement would seem to indicate that Moggie, who is also Minister of Energy, Communications and Multimedia, is at variance with the view of his information chief Dr James Masing, who has declared himself as candidate for the president’s post once Moggie steps down.

   Masing, the state minister of social development and urbanisation and leader of his own faction within the party that had declared they are going for broke at the party’s next triennial delegates conference (TDC).

   Masing, who announced party vice president Sng Chee Hua as his running mate for the deputy president’s post, has gone on record as saying that the top leadership of the party could still consist of non-Dayaks “as long as they are capable.”

   Memory lane

   At a PBDS dinner on Saturday in Marudi, where the party held its supreme council meeting earlier in the afternoon, Moggie, according to the Sarawak Tribune, “urged party members to go down memory lane on why PBDS was formed and why it joined the Barisan Nasional.”

   PBDS was a breakaway group from the now-defunct Sarawak National Party (Snap) in the early 1980s after Moggie and his group refused to accept James Wong Kim Min as the new president of Snap in a bitter contest.

   In an interview with The Sunday Tribune, Moggie said the Dayaks were still far behind other communities and that a lot still needed to be done by themselves.

   Moggie together with Bernard Dompok, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and Sabah’s Upko leader, were the main force behind getting a Federal Government-endorsed seminar in Kuala Lumpur in April last year focusing on the present economic status of the Dayak and Kadazdusun communities.

   As an off-shoot of that seminar, well attended by intellectuals, academicians and politicians from both communities, a Sarawak Dayak Chamber of Commerce has been formed with Leonard Linggi Jugah, one of Malaysia’s most successful Iban businessmen and enterpreneurs, as its first president.

   The seminar, organised by the Sarawak Dayak Graduates Association, was declared open by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who promised more support on behalf of the Federal Government to improve the economic status of the bumiputra minority groups.
   ________________________

   Tajem says PBDS must stay Dayak-based
   by Tony Thien, Malaysia Kini, 2 Mar 2003

   Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) deputy president Daniel Tajem has made it clear that the party must continue to be led and controlled by Dayaks.

   In an interview published today in the Sunday Tribune, he said he would not compromise o­n the status of PBDS.

   “PBDS was formed by a group of Dayaks to articulate the Dayak cause and was so named – Parti Bansa Dayak
   Sarawak. It is a Dayak-based party and I hold the view that it should be such,” he said.

   Tajem, a former Sarawak deputy chief minister and former Malaysian envoy to New Zealand, proclaimed: “On that, I don’t compromise. We can play a secondary or minor role but the party must be led and controlled by Dayaks.”

   Would he not be concerned about being labelled a racist?, Tajem was asked.

   His reply: “Well, if that’s the case, then I treat it as a compliment. At least, they know that Dayaks exist.”

   Racial-based parties

   “In any case, can you tell me the number of political parties in Malaysia named after the communities they represent? Umno, MCA and MIC. If these people are racists, then yes, I am a racist along with them. Some may say it is a politically-incorrect statement.”

   “In anything you do, there are detractors and o­ne shouldn’t be afraid of detractors as long as o­ne’s
   goal is genuine and honest. You have to be true to yourself. What I don’t like is when you say o­ne thing but do another.What can’t you just call a spade a spade?”

   Tajem also said that he had never agreed to or endorsed party information chief Dr James Jemut Masing as his running mate for the party No 2 post at the forthcoming triennial delegates conference (TDC) tentatively scheduled in September this year.

   He also made it clear that he would not go for the No 1 post as long as the party president Leo Moggie wants to continue to lead the Dayak-based party.

   Miri declaration

   Tajem was responding to a series of questions concerning the Miri declaration (made by some 160
   branches in April last year during which the delegates declared their support for him to succeed Moggie as president and Masing, the state minister of social development and urbanisation, as deputy president) and Masing’s call for discarding what he described as ethnic chauvinism and his personal relationship with Moggie.

   Tajem also declined to comment when asked whether party vice president Sng Chee Hua should run for the deputy president in the forthcoming TDC as part of the Masing-Sng alliance that is being offered as an alternative, should the proposed Tajem-Masing alliance that the delegates in Miri called for fizzle out.

   “I don’t want to comment on that,” he said.

   Asked whether Moggie should go for another term as president, Tajem said he was the first to talk to him (Moggie) about changing his retirement plans.

   “On January 5, 2001 when Moggie first expressed his intention to retire, I and another close friend persuaded him for three long hours to stay o­n. At that meeting, he also voiced his frustrations with certain people,” he added.

   According to Tajem, they failed to dissuade him “but I did tell him not to break the news in public because there would be a lot of political and social ramifications if he were to do that.” He did not elaborate, however.

   Tajem said nobody should doubt his personal relationship with Moggie. “We grew up together. He knows my weaknesses and strengths and I know his. We can curse o­ne another but that will not make us lesser friends.”

   Tajem said that should Moggie stick to his word and not contest, he would put his (Tajem’s ) name forward as candidate for the top post. “I would leave it to the delegates to decide who they want to be the No 2. I would not want to have cliques and camps.”

   Moggie still needed

   Meanwhile, in an interview with the same paper, deputy presidential aspirant Joseph Sallang, who is also party treasurer-general, said he would o­nly see himself moving up the party hierarchy “if that is what the party leadership and delegates want and not otherwise.”

   And if he is elected, Sallang said his most important priority would be to get the party members to be more
   involved and to understand the reasons for the party’s existence and why they chose to become members of the party.

   “That part is not much understood generally by the rural people,” Sallang, who acknowledges Moggie as
   “the boss” and holds similar views as party secretary-general Stanley Ajang felt that it is still not the time for Moggie to relinquish his post as party president.

   “I think it is right to try and dissuade him from retiring because he still has a lot of useful years in leading the party. He has contributed so much to the party and his services are still needed,” Salang added.
   _________________________

   Masing-Sng pact an ‘unholy alliance’, says rival leader
   by Tony Thien, Malaysia Kini, 15 Mar 2003

   In what is seen as the first shot taken by a rival faction against their opponents, the Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) state assemblyperson for Ngemah Gabriel Adit Demong has described the pact forged between party information chief Dr James Jemut Masing and vice president Sng Chee Hua as “an unholy alliance.”

   He was quoted in today’s Borneo Post, an English daily, as questioning the need and the motive behind the announcement by the duo to contest for the two top party posts two days ahead of the party’s supreme council meeting in Marudi.

   He added that he could not understand why they made the announcement when the party had not even announced the date for the forthcoming triennial delegates conference (TDC).

   The Borneo Post report said that “Adit agreed that the fact the announcement was timed so that the printed press would carry it in their pages on the eve of the supreme council meeting on Saturday (today) was just plain suspicious.”

   “They may be trying to pressure Leo Moggie (PBDS president) into retiring when all the grassroots actually want him to stay on,” Adit , a nephew of Moggie, was quoted as saying.

   “What they are doing will have a bad impact on the party. You don’t pressure your president like that. I tell you, Masing and Sng are an unholy alliance”, he said.

   At Thursday’s press conference, after saying, in response to questions, that this was an internal party matter and that the Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud would not interfere into PBDS’ internal affairs, Masing also said he hoped that there would be no “external inflence” trying to get Moggie not to step down.

   To Masing, Adit said:” I hope they (Masing and his group) are not the o­nes who are being influenced by others.”

   According to the Borneo Post, Adit reiterated that the party’s two top posts should be held by Dayak leaders, but this, he added, did not mean that PBDS is not a multi-racial party.

   “I am no being chauvinistic, but I think everybody should know where their roles are in the party and they should not overstep their roles,” Adit was also quoted as saying, referring to similarities with the Sarawak United People’s Party (Supp).

   He said Supp is a multi-racial party but everyone knows their place in the party and no one questioned why top posts in the party are held by Chinese.

   Meanwhile, newspaper reports today said Moggie, who is also Minister of Energy, Communications and Multimedia, was non-commital when asked about the possibility of the TDC being postponed.

   He was quoted as saying that so far none of the branches had asked for any postponement.
   ________________________

   The bitter Parti Rakyat Sarawak row
   by Stephen Tiong, Malaysia Kini, 26 Jan 2011

   COMMENT Those who do not know about the sour relationship between Sarawak land development minister Dr James Masing and assistant minister in the chief minister’s department Larry Sng would just brush it aside as an insignificant matter.

   Masing (centre), president of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), has been insisting that he doesn’t want Larry to defend his Pelagus seat in the coming Sarawak state election.

   Larry won the state seat on a Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) ticket in 2001, defeating the BN, and successfully retaining it in 2006, this time as a PRS candidate.

   The two are no strangers to each other, for both are from Kapit and their families know one another, though they are not “close”.

   Masing was one of the PBDS leaders responsible in the late 1980s for admitting Larry’s father, Sng Chee Hua (right in picture above), into PBDS. PBDS even amended its constitution to become a multi-racial party, just to accommodate the senior Sng and other non-Dayak people.

   Many PBDS members strongly objected to the admission of the non-Dayak, especially Chinese, into their party. Their argument was that the Chinese were politically and financially strong, and could overwhelm the less financially and politically mature Dayak members.

   Nevertheless, the amendments to the PBDS constitution were adopted at a triennial delegates conference (TDC), with party leaders promising that the financially strong Chinese would help the poor and less educated Dayak members.

   Money politics comes into play

   However, this did not turn out as promised. Money politics, for the first time in the state, came into play after PBDS opened its door to the non-Dayak. Its objectives and struggles became second fiddle to money politics.

   Money politics also divided the party into camps.

   Many left the PBDS, seeing it as no longer championing its objectives and principles. The others joined camps that took care of them, or joined one that they were comfortable with.

   Serious cracks in PBDS surfaced in 2000, when Masing challenged Daniel Tajem for the post of deputy president.

   Tajem and his supporters, including Sng, swept all the posts contested.

   Leo Moggie, then federal works minister, won unopposed as party president.

   Masing’s camp suspected that Sng’s money enabled Tajem to win victory. Deeply hurt by the defeat, Masing was reported to be very angry with Sng.

   Had it not been for Sng’s money, Masing believed, he would have beaten Tajem.

   Soon after the 2000 PBDS delegates conference, Chee Hua dumped Tajem to join Masing’s camp, hoping to seek a political fortune.

   As a reward for the cross-over, Masing in 2002 recommended Larry (right), who was only 24 years old then, to be an assistant minister, by-passing state assemblymen like Mong Dagang (Bukit Begunan), John Sikie (Kakus), Gabriel Adit (Ngemah) and Stanley Ajang (Belaga).

   Much later, commenting on his recommendation that Larry be appointed an assistant minister, Masing said: “I have been very kind to him because I put him up as an elected representative in the first place, and then as an assistant minister. I have been kind to this young man…”

   Masing said Larry was chosen in recognition of his father’s contributions to the party and the Dayak community.

   The secret formation of PRS

   And when PBDS was hit by an from internal crisis, Masing and Sng secretly formed PRS.

   Mong, who is also PRS Youth chief, said both Masing and Sng hatched the formation of PRS when they knew that PBDS was about to be deregistered.

   Exactly on the day PBDS was deregistered, on Oct 21, 2004, the Registrar of Societies registered PRS as a political party, after which Masing took charge as its president, with Sng as his deputy.

   Forming PRS was as far as the two could work together.

   Soon after, they did not see eye to eye on many issues affecting the party. Masing, in one of his press conferences, complained that PRS secretary-general Sidi Munan listened more to Sng than to him.

   When quarrel between the two became serious, Masing sacked six principal office-bearers, including Larry, Sidi, information chief Wilfred Nissom, treasurer Clement Eddy, deputy treasurer Sng Chee Beng and deputy information chief Ernest Chua.

   Masing then appointed Nissom as the new secretary-general, with Larry as information chief. However, Larry did not accept the post.

   In an immediate response, Sng and his supporters, including son Larry, censured Masing for “acting against the interests of the party”. Sng was then declared acting president, causing the PRS to have two supreme councils.

   Masing had his own supreme council, with Sng presiding over the other. When Sng stepped down as the leader of his own supreme council, Larry took over.

   Like his father, Larry refused to recognise Masing as party president. He even called his own delegates conference which “elected” him as party president.

   The leadership crisis in PRS ended only when ROS recognised Masing as its legitimate president. The ROS also ruled that Masing was legally correct in sacking the six principal office-bearers.

   It was because of the sacking that ROS issued a show-cause letter to PRS, asking it to explain why it should not be deregistered for contravening its own constitution.

   “Grassroots strongly objected to Larry’

   Despite the recognition by ROS, the bad blood between Masing and Larry continues till today.

   The highlight of the quarrel was the sacking of Larry from the party in 2008, after Masing said he had obtained “strong feedback” from the grassroots.

   The grassroots had strongly objected to Larry’s presence in the party and they wanted him kicked out.

   Masing wrote to Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud, officially informing him that Larry was no longer with PRS, and had, thus, was partyless.

   Based on a series of events leading to the sacking of Larry from PRS, the sour relationship between Masing and him is seen as a continuation of the quarrel between Masing and Sng.

   Larry is a third generation politician from his family. His grandfather Sng Chin Joo was a councillor with the Kapit District Council, as well as a nominated MP for Kapit after the formation of Malaysia.

   Following Chin Joo’s footsteps was his son, Chee Hua, who used the PBDS platform to contest the Pelagus seat and served for two terms, from 1993 to 2001. He was replaced by Larry from 2001 onwards.

   When reporters asked Masing about Larry, he said: “He can contest any where he wants to on BN ticket, but not in Pelagus. The seat belongs to PRS, not to Larry.”

   Pressed as to what he would do if Taib insisted that Larry be picked to contest in Pelagus, Masing replied: “I consider that as an attempt to destablise me.”

   Will Larry contest as a pro-BN independent candidate in Pelagus? Or will Masing eat his words and allow Larry to contest again?

   Only time will tell.
   ____________________

   Masing: CM has right to help resolve PBDS crisis
   by Tony Thien, Malaysia Kini, 6 Jul 2003

   Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak’s (PBDS) former information chief Dr James Masing said today that Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud has the right to step in to help resolve the current leadership crisis in PBDS if the situation warrants it.

   A Bernama report quoted Masing as saying that “Taib Mahmud as the Sarawak Barisan Nasional (BN) chairperson can can take action to defend the interests of the state BN if the situation worsens.”

   He told reporters this in Kuching after launching the state-level National Sports Month Programme 2003.

   Masing, who is social development and urbanisation minister, was asked to comment on Taib’s statement in Kapit yesterday that at this stage he would not want to intervene in the internal affairs of PBDS.

   Working well in BN

   Masing said the stability and smooth functioning of the state BN would be affected if what was happening in PBDS, one of its component parties, could not be resolved.

   “PBDS, which rejoined the state BN in 1994, has been cooperating very well with the coalition until recently…so something has to be done to maintain the good relationship,” he said.

   In Kapit yesterday, Masing and PBDS vice-president Datuk S’ng Chee Hua jointly presented to Taib a letter which was jointly signed by nine assemblymen, 11 supreme council members and chairmen of 172 branches of PBDS pledging their loyalty to him.

   However, Masing denied that the gesture was meant to indirectly drag the chief minister into the crisis and to get the Sarawak BN chief’s support for his faction.
   _____________________

   PBDS debacle: It’s Masing’s fault, says Moggie
   by Tony Thien, Malaysia Kini, 6 Sep 2003

   Former Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) president Leo Moggie today put the blame squarely on the party’s former information chief Dr James Masing for the turmoil in PBDS today.

   “Masing is paranoid about becoming president and suffers from a sense of insecurity to achieve that,” he told a party gathering of branch leaders, members and supporters at his longhouse at Nanga Bejait, about 45km from Sibu.

   “He will go to any length (to become president of the party) and I think he is not prepared to compromise unless he becomes president,” Moggie said in reference to Masing, who is state social development and urbanisation minister.

   Masing was elected president by his own faction at their own triennial delegates conference (TDC) in Bintulu on July 24, along with Sng Chee Hua as deputy president.

   Daniel Tajem, who succeeded Moggie as president when the latter suddenly resigned on June 25, was returned unopposed as party chief in July when nomination for party posts closed. His running mate, Joseph Salang, was also returned unopposed as deputy president.

   Biggest longhouse gathering

   Today’s PBDS gathering, attended by Moggie, Tajem, Salang and key party leaders, was described by journalists covering the event as possibly the largest political gathering in a longhouse.

   The number was estimated at between 4000 and 6000.

   According to Moggie, several more buses carrying party members from several places in Sarawak were still waiting in queue at the nearby ferry point when the meet-the-people was already in progress this morning.

   “Many also couldn’t find their direction to the longhouse,” he added.

   At a press conference later, Moggie who is also Minister of Energy, Communications and Multimedia, said some newspaper reports had suggested that the PBDS’ troubles started after he resigned as president on June 25.

   “The problems within the party started long before that,” he said, reiterating that his decision to step down was for the sense of betrayal he felt after so many meetings during which Masing had made commitments and promises but failing to keep them afterwards.

   Moggie said he had after the bitter party contests at the 2000 TDC tried to bring the two factions together by proposing a new top leadership line-up after he had stepped down as president.

   Unfortunately, according to him, as he later found out, it was very clear to him that Masing had always wanted to be president right from the start.

   Plan to oust Moggie

   Tajem told the crowd that he had never reneged on any undertaking or promise as claimed by the Masing group arising from a meeting held in April in Miri last year.

   He revealed that he refused to go along with a plan hatched by the Masing group at the time to oust Moggie as president and put him (Tajem) as president and Masing as deputy president.

   “Moggie and I have known each other for a long time and we have struggled together for the last 20 years through PBDS,” he added.

   PBDS permanent chairman Edmund Langgu traced the history of the party, linking it with the original aims of the Sarawak National Party (Snap) in providing the platform to articulate Dayak aims and aspirations.

   He told the crowd that when Moggie and his supporters lost in the Snap elections in 1981 and James Wong Kim Min became president, succeeding Dunstan Endawie, they had to form a new Dayak-based party PBDS to fight for the principles they believed in. PBDS was born as a result.

   “Masing is not fighting for principles and it is certainly not for the community but for personal glory and interests,” he charged.

   Salang told party members that “there is only one party and there is only one president in PBDS.”

   He urged them to be patient and stand united behind the leadership of Tajem.

8. Dictator on July 15th, 2011 11:06 am

   Taib/bn is worst than communist. Under disguise of democracy, they are dictator. in the name of peace and harmony, they rape our resouces bluntly!

9. Julaw on July 15th, 2011 11:10 am

   Kaban DBs.

   Bah…Aram meh sampar bebala MAIOH ngulu pengerami ‘Red Warrior’ or ‘Red Ant’ ngelantang ke diri ba kuching dia ujong minggu tu kaban… Padah tesau ngagai bala kaban belayan, aram meh bala kitai datai sampar NIRI ke bangsa ngetan ke menoa…

   Tang bala kaban, nama main nyau mayoh macham chat warna dah..?? Lapa enda tak lalu NGENA NGUNA chat Kuning..kaban…??? Ok bala kaban, ulih nyedia ke baju merah dulu tu….,ngiga belah pasar Aching.

   Anang enda ingat akih ‘enda surut’ BAJU MERAH’ nuan, mar ga nuan ke ‘colour blind’, simpan dalam beg tumu tumu, lalu pia mega barang bukai ke diguna…, pia mega enti bisi TERABAI tau bai unggal engka bala pulis bisi nimbak ke asap…

   Mupok kaban. Idup Iban Idup Dayak. OOOhhaa…..

10. Julaw on July 15th, 2011 1:57 pm

    Kaban DBs.

    Ohh…sorry bala kaban, ba bulan 8 nyin ila bala Red People, kumbai aku minggu tu. Tang siti ga bala kaban, enda fasting bala kaban Iban dayak kitai ke selam nah, kasih bala tudah ke enda ulih makai ngirup mayanya…

    Mupok.

11. Bujang Baru on July 15th, 2011 2:05 pm

    Awg Tengah, Jabu, Mawan, Masing, Abdul Karim, Idris Buang and so on…….you don’t have to worry about The Red Rally cos you know very well that Taib got the mandate from the people as you have always bragged about. You don’t have to make any comment or show your worries over this matter. Just let the Rally go on and on top of that, you all should advice the Home Minister to instruct the police to give permit to the organizers to hold the rally. Only then, we all will know whether Taib has got enough support or more people prefer him to go. Holding a rally is the peoples’ democratic right. So don’t stop it.

    After this rally, probably after Raya, you all should call for one rally to show your support for Taib. Only then, we can conclude as to whether the people of Sarawak still want Taib as their cm or not. Please allow healthy democracy to grow in Sarawak. Don’t practice dictatorship. You should encourage people to go so that you will be alble to know what the people want. Be sensible, don’t be good at ball polishing only.

12. eric on July 15th, 2011 4:32 pm

    DML..
    Stop copy and paste those news.. it is annoying. Possibly please come up with your own Blog and make it like ARKIB website despite pasting it here.

    Sorry..peace.

13. Akiq Hawong on July 15th, 2011 6:18 pm

    Ti rayat enda dikemendarkan berally peacefully, kira ke nuju agai perintah tyrant, perintah kemenis meh nenua kitai tu uchu.

14. Panjai Runding Panjai Ruai on July 15th, 2011 7:25 pm

    Kaban,

    DML has shown his ways of reminding Dayaks yang Mudah Lupa with his lengthy comments.A good way may be but eric does not agree.

    When one is in power he often does not consider all legalities,and enforces the law according to his whims and fancies.That may lead to abuses and it give rise to what many people rgard as ABUSE OF POWER.

    When the rakyat go against the order they will be considered as TAKING THE LAW INTO THEIR OWN HANDS.
    Now what is right in this world nowadays????

15. Akiq Hawong on July 15th, 2011 7:57 pm

    Ti pemerintah nya ka ngenakutka rayat, ka nyumbat rayat agai alam jil, lokup ti rayat berally, nya nunjukka sida pemerintah nya ka merintah secara tyrant tauka ka nunda setail perintah kemenis, uchu.

16. ciribut on July 15th, 2011 8:32 pm

    Akai dai,nama kebuah kitai ti agi saru bekena ka leka jako baka Communist di kait enggau leka jako tyrant.Enggai ka majak saru,deka nguji nerang enggau ngelansa sekeda leka jako ka agi empai terang ba kitai.

    A TYRANT is a person who has complete power in a country and uses it in a cruel and unfair way.Or your Boss in your office could be a tyrant also.

    A DICTATOR is a ruler who has complete power over a country especially one who has gained it using military force.And a dictator is also a person who behaves as if he have complete power over other people,and tells them what to do.

    A COMMUNIST is a person who believes in or supports COMMUNISM.

    A COMMUNIST PARTY is a political party that supports COMMUNISM or rules in a COMMUNIST country.

    COMMUNISM is a political movement that believes in an ECONOMIC SYSTEM in which the states controls the means of producing everything on behalf of the people.It aims to create a society in which everyone is treated equally.

    CAPITALISDM is an ECONOMIC SYSTEM in which a country’s business and industry are controlled and run for profit by private owners rather than by the government.

    SOCIALISM is a set of political and economic theories based on the belief that everyone has an equal right to a share of the country’s wealth and that the government(Good government) should own and control the main industries.

    COMMUNISM,SOCIALISM or CAPITAILISM,WHICH IS DESIRED OR FIT TO THE DAYAK PEOPLE?

17. Akiq Hawong on July 15th, 2011 8:42 pm

    Uchu ciribut, uji dek ngenang sida Mositung suba…barang sapa ngelaban berally sigi dijamah, disumbat alam jil sida iya. Baka nya ga aya dek Sadam, Gadapi. Barang sapa ngelaban, sigi diketakutka iya ngau deka ditimbak, dijil, dihachun etc. Baka nya menua Rasia menya. Barang sapa ngelaban sigi dijamah, disumbat tauka ditengkelap nadai temu penunga agi ba dunya tu.

    Ba Mlaysia tu, maybe, we are doing it in a psycholgical manner baka ke ka ngernakutka anak mit ka kena rotan hehehehe

18. ciribut on July 15th, 2011 10:24 pm

    Akiq Hawong,sigi baka gaya revolution nya Akiq.Laban revolution tu enda sebaka kitai mai orang makai,mai orang dinner,poco-poco,bekaraoke;semua enda ulih enggau cara ka alus,manis,begadai enggau lubah.Revolution to cara kena muai kuasa orang sapiak ka jai,ka korrupt,salah guna kuasa,makai duit perintah duit rayat;orang ka bansa tu tau disumbat,nginjau leka nuan akiQ,tau ditengkelap awak ka nadai temu tunga.Enti orang nya manah nadai kebuah nyumbat tauka nengkelap ka iya.Towkay ka kaya tau ka politician ka korrupt lalu ngasoh sida kaya semua tau di sumbat di tengkelap ka,kapa deh beguna sida tu ka be-empu ka semua pengaya lalu tebal agi rayat menoa Sarawak merinsa;begaji ba sawit baru berapa tang rega minyak sawit udah belipat ganda niki tang gaji kuli masih di tekan ka orang kaya,Nya alai patut rayat ka sama miskin begempong nyumbat nengkelap ka semua orang kaya ka kaya ari makai suap serta salah guna kuasa.

19. ciribut on July 15th, 2011 10:35 pm

    RED RALLY AUGUST 13-WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT.

    TO RIGHT A WRONG,IT IS NECESSARY TO EXCEED THE PROPER LIMITS;THE WRONG CANNOT BE RIGHTED WITHOUT DOING SO.

20. Semut Api on July 15th, 2011 11:28 pm

    Nti mpai kala ensepi tepuk asap anang lupa mai gas mask ila kaban,goggles & gloves. Hand gloves kena megai bom asap ngambi olih nikau ke bom asap nuju polis.Pedis amat mata & idong sepi aku mpai lama di KL central.Nti bisi rain tau meh dibai tang mesti warna merah kena nyaga meriam ai.

21. Iban Abroad on July 15th, 2011 11:36 pm

    Aki Hawong,

    Ciribut is right. Ukai Communism system ke nyamah ngereda orang enda tentu sebarang tang orang ke bejalaika adat communist baka Mao Tzi Tsung.

    Bisi nuan ninga cherita Mao Tzi Tsung bisi 300 iko bini udah iya megai kuasa. Cherita tu selalu disebut orang maioh ba bandaraya Peking.

    Kati Marcos, Suharto, Gadafi, Sadam semoa orang nya orang ari democratic country, lapa enda nyebut pengawa ke nyamah orang nya baka pengawa democracy deh?

    DB,

    When Yellow Rally in KL, I was there and got traffic jam for one hour to go in. My driver gave $50RM to police to open the block road. Than we go.

    In the radio before that, one taxi driver screaming in taxi radio told us he go thro the police with $50RM.

    Aku jangka sekeda police gaga enti kitai ngaga rally. Sekurang-kurang bisi sekeda police boleh kantau.

    My friend said the road block in KL is over act.
    Red Rally in Sarawak is implication of Taksin Red Rally in Thailand and Ibu Mega in Indonesia a decade ago.

    Yellow Rally in KL is reflected of Laban-laban Yellow Shirt in Filipin against Marcos.

    Dayak need Rusuhan Kaum for justice and it will be happened by itself without Dayak notice. That what the foreign expert say about Dayak live in Malaysia.

    So Red Rally is just the beginning. Be prepared if we believe the expert.

    Nothing makes surprise. It is the process to learn more about democracy.

22. gkm2020 on July 16th, 2011 1:09 am

    Ka meda sapa menang “rally” tu ila…hehehehe…

    LETS THROW THESE QUESTIONS TO ALL DBs?

    1. Why do we overlook the words, “Constitution” and “Federation” (of Malaysia) in discussions about the current spread of “Democracy”?

    2. What are the ideologies of our “Constitution”?

    3. What are the concepts of our “Democracy” and “Human Right”?

    4. Is “Democracy” the form of government that works for the common good and for common goal?

    5. In reference to our “Constitution” why do our “Democratic System” grant concentration of powers to the Federal Government and grant limited authority, responsibility and powers being reserved to the States or to the people?

    6. Does “Democracy” promote supreme powers to the people or limited public powers?

    7. Within the “context” of Democracy, does “Election” generate enough input of the public to modify government policies?

    8. In “Democracy” why do Rakyat allows their leaders and/or representatives to manipulate the public opinion to defend and legitimize particular predetermined (including elected political parties) policies?

    9. What justification do we as Malaysians have for our belief that “Democracy” is the end of the evolutionary cycle of government?

    10. Does “Democracy” give powers to the people or liable to the political parties?

    11. What are the roles of “Election” and “Democracy”?

    12. What is the different between “Representative Democracy” and “Direct Democracy”?

    Notes: Democracy is democratic – Revolution is reformation!

    Thank you.

23. Akiq Hawong on July 16th, 2011 6:57 am

    Goood morning Ngal Iban Abroad,

    Ke terubah iya, sida Marcos, Pak Suharto, Gadado, Sadam nya enda kepala ke manah. Tang leboh sida udah genggam kuasa 100% absolute, sida pen mula mantai ke kuasa alu enda ingatka Tuhan. Sitan ke betelai ba pending sida nya meh kumbai sida iya Tuhan, uchu. Nya meh sida Mositung ka bebini begundik mayuh. Baka nya ga King David seduai anak hintik iya nya Solomon. Solomon nya kaya amat tang iya anchor laban nyau keujung iya merintah iya ngumbai telai ba pending iya nya Tuhan ke ngasoh iya begundik mayuh.

    Even Pope pen tau nyadi sitan. You know, endang bisi kala siku ari Pope menya kala beperangai baka sitan laban iya saru ngumbai telai ba pending iya nya Tuhan ke betelai ngasoh iya ngaga pengawa ke gereja tang nemu nya sitan ke nyahu dihi nyadi Tuhan.

    Nya alai, dipeda aku, baka ketuai gereja ke munoh aliq Galileo nya enda siku Pope ke ninga telah sitan ke kumbai iya Tuhan ngasoh munoh akiq nya. Tuhan Jesus adai si kala ngajar munoh mensia tang Jesus ngasoh mensia pengikut iya rindu ke mensia – LOVE THY NEIGHBOR – enda milih munsoh ngau ke ukai hehehehe…. Akuulih meh rinduka munsoh aku amat meh iya bisi kuasa ka munoh aku. Tang ti utai nya bisi nyadi, kitai anang ka benci munsoh kita tang jauhi la dihi ari munsoh ngai ke kitai kena bunoh tang anang ga kitai ka nunda pengawa munsuh ke ka minoh kitai, uchu.

24. Akiq Hawong on July 16th, 2011 7:01 am

    Demokasi tu reti nya peneka ati rayat meh alu peneka ati perintah meh.

    Nya alai peneka ati rayat meh ka rally alu peneka ati perintah meh deka nangkap, nagang rayat ke rally nya. So, sama sama meh rayat rally. Perintah pen rayat baka rayat ga.

    Rayat rally mandangka enda puas agai perintah alu perintah (ngasoh polsi, FRU, RELA etc) rally ngagai rayat ke rally nya ga hehehehehehe

    SAMA SAMA MEH NYA RALLY. THE SAME HEHEHEHEHE

25. Cikgu Iban on July 16th, 2011 7:50 am

    I do have gloves, goggles and several pieces of red T-shirt in my wardrobe.

    With or without any rally, it is quite often for me to have it on Sundays.

    Wearing a helmet and a pair of safety shoes would be good I suppose, just things might get a bit rowdy.

    Wonder how and what the police might do to stop this.

    Roadblocks in major towns in Sarawak?

    One thing is for sure, I will be wearing my favourite T-shirt on that day.

    Cheers…

26. Akiq Hawong on July 16th, 2011 8:55 am

    Correction:

    Ke terubah iya, sida Marcos, Pak Suharto, Gadapi, Sadam nya endaNG kepala ke manah. Tang leboh sida udah genggam kuasa 100% absolute, sida pen mula mantai ke kuasa alu enda ingatka Tuhan. Sitan ke betelai ba pending sida nya meh…..

    Additional penemu:

    Sida kepala nya baka penyapu baru – NEW BROOM SEEPS WELL – sida chukup manah perangai ulah alu enda nampak kanji. Tang leboh udah bekuasa amat amat, ati nyau ransing, sida pen ngumbai dihi aja ke pandai alu nadai urang layak nganti iya nyadi ketuai. Nya alai iya pen becita cita ka nyadi ketuai datai ke iya pahai. Sigi pedis amat mensia ke baka nya deka turun kuasa uchu!!

27. Akiq Hawong on July 16th, 2011 8:56 am

    …. NEW BROOM SWEEPS WELL …..

28. engkerawai on July 16th, 2011 10:11 am

    Deebees colony,,,,

    Through voting will cannot Change the corrupt, wicked gov’t of the day then its wise to go for Revolution. That is what happened in Middle -East, Thailand etc…

    So WHAT next? MoCS should kickstart the Rally, and even the score with Taik who has been in the power circle for more than 3 decades. Dont hope for any Dayaks politicians to act…..bunch of COWARDS. I WOULD SUMMED UP IN THIS MANNER…..”AGI IDUP NADAI ULIH NGELABAN’

    Time to retire…
    It’s Damned true.

29. ciribut on July 16th, 2011 10:22 am

    Engkerawai-let the engkerawai colony start the revolution.In your engkerawai colony there are soldiers and workers and the Queen.I like to imagine your colony as a human colony-’you disturb us we attack you,and we attack all out’.

    If Dayak don’t have Male leaders,we should look for Female Dayak leaders.To any potential Female Dayak Leader,please don’t ever follow the Male Dayak Leader ways.Just a hope.

30. engkerawai on July 16th, 2011 10:43 am

    C..but,
    Why not, it is possible to trigger a big rally, I’ve started a long time ago eversince this blog started. And I’m still playing a covert role to help the opposition politician to campaign like Baru Bian, Ali Biju and Ibi Uding….so what?

    Dont ever question my role….the engkerawai colony will not rest until August 13…all those brave and loyal supporters, we are good people that want CHANGE to happen.

    For the future of our anakbiaks…Thats all

    Damned true!!!

31. ciribut on July 16th, 2011 11:35 am

    Bala kaban kaban DBs and engkerawai colony.

    In China history,the country is governed or ruled,through the Mandate Of Heaven-conditional on the just behavior of the Ruler.The Rulers put checks on their own behaviour and are encouraged to invest in the well-being of their subjects.

    In China,the right of rebellion against an unjust Ruler has been part of a political philosophy ever since the Zhou Dynasty,and a successful rebellion was interpreted by the Chinese as evidence of that Divine approval,and has passsed on to the successive dynasty and up to modern time,the unification of China by communist led by Mao Zedong in 1949.Now China,60 years ago was a poor and disunited country has become the world second largest economy has proof that the revolution has the Mandate Of Heaven.

    The Mandate Of Heaven,which give the right of rebellion against an unjust Ruler,is a more ideal than the European concepts of Divine Right Of Kings which granted unconditional legitimacy.

    Revolution is never legitimate under the divine right of king,BUT the philosophy of the Mandate Of Heaven APPROVED THE OVERTHROW OF UNJUST POLITICIAN IN POWER WHO BECOME UNJUST RULERS.

    LETS US ADOPT THE CHINESE MANDATE OF HEAVEN,IN ORDER TO HAVE A CHECK ON UNJUST POLITICIAN RULERS!

32. Semut Api on July 16th, 2011 7:26 pm

    Kitai ti deka BERUBAH mesti berani BERUBAH UKAI bejako pasal beruba aja.
    Aku nyukong RED Rally tu ila tang sekali tu ngena baju puti BEBAS kena berubah.

33. Lintong on July 16th, 2011 7:28 pm

    Kaban DBs,

    Anang kelalu bejai ka COMMUNIST system.Menua China amat dipegai perintah komunis tang menua sida iya jauh lebih mansang ari menua Malaysia.

    Aku udah bisi bejalai,lalu udah bisi merati ka pemansang di menua China.Terubah aku nemuai ngagai menua nya taun 2000 suba,kedua taun 2006,ketiga taun 2007 iya ti penudi aku bisi bejalai baru dalam 2009.Laban menua nya besai enda ulih ga digagai magang.

    Semina ba Kunming di Yunan bisi aku meda orang pengemis ari gologan Ethnic Minority.Di negeri Shanghai,Hangzhou,Suchou,Wushi,Beijing,Nangking Shenzhen,Zuhai,Teochew,Swatou,Xiamen,Kuilin,enggaumaioh agi tempat ti udah digagai jalai manah magang,4-8 lane highway,hotel taraf 4 tauka taraf
    5 bintang.Pemeresi kurang lebih baka di menua Kuching tauka di KL.

    Barang kitai selamat laban nadai kala ninga orang kena pick-pocket laban ukum ngereja penyalah terit.

    Anang meri komen kelalu bejai ka komunis system laban kitai lama udah merdeka,menua China baru muka ‘open market’ policy lebuh Deng Shiau Peng megai tampuk perintah dalam 1986 amat meh komunis merintah ari 1949.

    Orang ti ditemu makai suap,ngerogol semua nerima ukum timbak.Nya alai corruption is much much less.

34. engkerawai on July 16th, 2011 8:48 pm

    Free Malaysia Today;

    Inspired by the success of Bersih 2.0?s “Walk For Democracy” on July 9 and the fact that some 100 Sarawakians had taken part, Siah on Wednesday announced that MoCS would hold its own rally.

    He said the movement’s leaders decided to organise the peaceful walk instead of an anti-Taib Mahmud rally (their original idea) which had also been planned for Aug 13.

    Siah said the rally would be a citizens’ initiative with no political affiliation or involvement and urged Sarawakians to join the walk or hold their own activity wherever they were.

    He also said that the rally would be a compromised version of the original street protest planned by MoCs to force Taib to step down.

    Following the state election, rife with allegations of money politics having aided BN’s victory, MoCS called for Taib to step down by Aug 13, failing which the movement would mobilise a mass protest.

    On Wednesday, Siah was reported to have said: “For too long, the state has been trapped in a quagmire of widespread corruption and the politics of fear and intimidation.

    “We wish to educate all Sarawakians that politicians whom they elect to public office should be there to serve them and not vice-versa. The people are the masters, not those who govern.”

35. engkerawai on July 16th, 2011 8:52 pm

    Sarawak Report; London, UK.

    The flash crowd that turned up to boo Najib’s event at Mansion House (the official residence of the City of London’s Mayor) was larger than yesterday’s outside Downing Street. They had been joined by Amnesty International, who have spoken out about the treatment of the Bersih demonstrators at the weekend. Amnesty commands considerable respect in the UK.

    The Malaysian PM had come to court the City’s investors and it was embarrassing. Investors do not like countries with uncertain human rights records and an unhappy middle class.

    Few non-Malaysians turned up in the end, but some of the investors who did went and chatted first to the crowd of protesters outside. One, who described himself as ‘working for a global investment company’, said that he was well aware of the human rights issues in Malaysia and confirmed that his company monitors the matter and that such issues are of concern.

36. Nu-DB on July 17th, 2011 11:01 am

    I am not a lawyer, so I hope DBs who are lawyers can enlighten us on this matter.

    I believe the Constitution is the supreme law. The lesser laws and Acts that prohibits or restrict a rally can be challenged, if it is deemed to contravene the constitution.

    Is that correct?

37. Iban Militant on July 17th, 2011 1:17 pm

    Ngena kuning…..and now red, MOCS rally to demand for Uban step down?

    Nama enda ngena sirat?

    Ok..whatever colour & attire, tesau semua iban ba rumah panjai…janji bisi baju free & nasi sebungkus the organizer will get the support, I think so. Ni ke megai tambai ke BN bepanas sari2 maia nomination ka meh rayat danji bisi beri baju & ari sebungkus…but did they know their purpose there?

38. RED Rally, August 13th in Sarawak | MoCS on July 17th, 2011 11:19 pm

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39. Sri Belalang on July 18th, 2011 6:51 am

    Nu-DB,

    One of the Acts is Police Act 1967 which has been in force since 29th August 1967 (44 years). Since then, there had been thousands of arrest against the protesters in “illegally rallies” and some had been convicted, but why this Police Act has never been challenged until today? What about Article 4 of the Federal Constitution?

40. Iban Militant on July 18th, 2011 9:24 am

    “If you want to have a demonstration, do it when there is no other means of getting your views across,”- quote taken from one of Tun Mahathir’ s comments on Bersih rally.

    Based on the criteria set by Tun Mahathir, there is no reason why Sarawakians cannot demo in Sarawak. Truly there is no other means of getting the view across under taib leadership.
    1. Non BN politicians are not allowed to give talk in any longhouse
    2. When the non BN elected reps brought the matters in dewan rakyat, BN ministers didnt want to listen, instead walked from the house.
    3. No permit given to non BN for media
    4. No tv channel given to non BN.
    5. No community hall is allowed to be used by non BN
    6. No complaint about BN cheating in election investigated by MACC & EC
    7. No BN candidate abusing the power during election investigated by MACC & EC.

    Therefore the only mean is demo, Tun Mahathir should support august 13 rally in Sarawak.

41. Iban Militant on July 18th, 2011 9:43 am

    Continue fr the above list.
    8. No budget allocation given to opposition state assemblymen
    9. No NCR land court case won by the rakyat against BN robbers not being appealed by BN govt using public money.
    10. No opposition rep is allowed to escort the ballot boxes
    11. No postal votes of each constituency ever won by opposition
    12. BN always use the special branch to spy those who give views about BN corruption practices, nepotism & cronyism.

42. engkerawai on July 18th, 2011 10:22 am

    Kaban menyadi…Deebees
    Let us be peaceful and abiding citizens, the rights under democratic constitution to hold Rally through peaceful means is not wrong.

    To those ailing politicians….I quote; “Siapa yang makan cili akan terasa pedasnya”

    In God we Trust!
    Good Day.

43. Nu-DB on July 18th, 2011 11:10 am

    Sri Belalang,

    Thank you for your response. I guess we have more questions than answers! As we say in aviation, if everything else fails we go back to basics. In our case now, a peaceful rally is a basic form of seeking attention.

    Iban Militant,

    Ngena sirat..? Akai dai……maioh kitai enda nemu nanchang sirat nya unggal. Enti sirat nya labuh……..apu !! Hahaha
    Akiq Hawong, kua nemu nanchang sihat nya?

44. enda surut on July 18th, 2011 3:24 pm

    Just marked my words…..The Iban likes to claim that they are the majority in the land, but I want to believe they are the least to attand the MoCS organise rally. Mulut nyebut patung enda engkebut..he.hee.nya iya bulih baru…

45. Akiq Hawong on July 18th, 2011 7:46 pm

    Uchu NU-DB,

    Aku tu akiq moden tang agi ingat bakani ka nanchang sihat nya laban aku kala nguji ngena sihat niang akiq menya.

    Amat ku nuan uchu Iban Militant. Uji behi sihat kuning fehi agai iban ke ngau rally nya, uchu…nya baru royal amat dipeda sida kehabat D Haja.

46. Akiq Hawong on July 18th, 2011 9:19 pm

    Ku uchu Lintong “Semina ba Kunming di Yunan bisi aku meda orang pengemis ari gologan Ethnic Minority.Di negeri Shanghai,Hangzhou,Suchou,Wushi,Beijing,Nangking Shenzhen,Zuhai,Teochew,Swatou,Xiamen,Kuilin…..”

    Peda aku kira empai bulih status kemenis tulin meh menua China nya laban agi bisi pengemis. Ti nitihka polisi kemenis, semua rayat diberi bela. Bah! Kati kua siku nya nyau mengemis deh? Bisi bechiping ga perintah Kemenis din neh?

47. IbanLama on July 18th, 2011 9:40 pm

    Ti menua kemenis agi bechiping, huh!…kapa ka nyebut ba menua ke ukai kemenis deh akiq hehehehehe…

48. IbanLama on July 18th, 2011 9:55 pm

    Ngal Enda Suhut, amat amai ku nuan. Sigi amat mayuh tai badak kitai iban nya. Kapa sida ka ngau sida MoCs nya. Bisi tauka nadai, sigi enda berubah meh pendiau iban…agi mengkang baka ke bedau merdeka menya. I am very happy ti enda mayuh iban ngau sida ngena baju kuning nya laban nya meh nunjuk ke kitai iban nya bansa ke VERY VERY VERY PEACE LOVING ethnic ba menua Sarawak tu amat meh sida akiq kitai rindu ka mumpung pala kelia begagaika bansa bukai ke dengah ba sebelah babas hehehehehe.

49. Semut Api on July 18th, 2011 9:57 pm

    Kemenis dalam kampong aja nda beciping sama bela tindok dalam babas.

50. Akiq Hawong on July 18th, 2011 9:59 pm

    Ukai mayuh tai badak nya uchu IL……Banyak tai badak, bejumboh tai nyumboh kah kah kah kah kah.

51. Akiq Hawong on July 18th, 2011 10:02 pm

    Ku aku, bisi sida nya diketup semut tanggal pala, semada, sengat engkerawai enda sebaka pemayuh ga…angka nyau bechiping ga indu utai ke nyengat sida nya ba babas din uchu.

52. engkerawai on July 19th, 2011 12:54 am

    Amatnya Akiq kawong,
    ….tu meh maya kitai nunjuk ka sengat, nunjuk ka taring kitai. Anang nyengat sengapa enti urang enda ngacau kitai. Enti raban colony udah ringat dikacau bala munsoh, sigi ‘crazy’ meh bala sedadu ba colony sida. Habitate udah abis diperimba bala lanun ke udu ka ngerumpak nadai belas kasihan.

    Uji peda kitai ila keleput bala kitai Iban belalai ba baruh katil,….enda baka bansa bukai ti nyalak baka udok enti sida ia enda puas ati.

    Dini endor pemerani peturun sida HENTAP deh Akiq?
    Agi Idup NADAI ulih ngelaban?

    Sayau pemadu sayau, ati beraie ketegal janji??

53. RED Rally, August 13th in Sarawak | Extreme Sports Clothing on July 19th, 2011 8:59 am

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54. Julaw on July 19th, 2011 10:23 am

    Kaban DBs.

    Unggal ‘enda surut’, just a simple example for you to Think Hard, that is ‘Giat Mara Julau’. Please come over to Julau unggal & have your very own eyes NEMUAI to GM & MEDA who is GAWA there..?? But do remember unggal, Julau is 100% Iban, even that simple GM, Julau people is NOT in the LIST. Why unggal ‘enda surut’..??

    Where ‘enda surut’ as for now, there no other option beside RED/yellow MUST ON THE ROAD, just get ready with your RED TS enda surut & also don’t forget your yellow Saturday.

    Mupok unggal. Idup Iban Idup Dayak. OOhhaa….

55. Iban Militant on July 19th, 2011 11:01 am

    Tiap rally tukar corak manah agi ngambi BN politicians baka najib, middle awang ask hold, uban, krismudin takut bebaju. Sekali da ngena burak, dah nya hijau, biru, chelum.

    Best agi ngena biru tuai baka corak nipom polis, ngambi polis konfius enda nemu ni ke bagi sida sekaban.

    Akiq Hawong & Nu-DB,

    T- shirt enda tau kena….ka pan enda ngena sirat bewarna warni meh ngeso ke pantang. Haha..tusah diau ba menua mensia takut ke corak. Engka teleba meda utai transparent meh sida perintah ajib nya.

56. Akiq Hawong on July 19th, 2011 1:19 pm

    Ti baju kuning enda tau dikena, sida tau ngena sirat kuning, kasut PCK (Phua Chu Kang) sereta mai penyapu, uchu, awak ke bersih gik disapu.

57. IbanLama on July 19th, 2011 6:26 pm

    Udah nya sida nepan kereta mini Mr Bean ke kuning nya ga akiq keh keh keh keh keh!

58. Asun on July 19th, 2011 10:49 pm

    http://roketkini.com/2011/07/19/masa-untuk-rakyat-di-sarawak-dan-sabah-menuntut-hak/

59. engkerawai on July 20th, 2011 11:59 am

    Unggal ASUN,
    Time to look back into what Taib’s Govt had done to the ethnic races in Sarawak. We cant be made ‘SOUP’ marginalized in many aspects. Sad to see and hear the ‘PAKAI ABIS’ mentaliti, at the end of the day,we go BANKRUPT… become RED INDIANS in AMERIKA & CANADA??? DAMNED TRUE!!!

    SO WHAT??….time to RETHINK of our political moves, we mean BUSINESS?

    SO WHAT……show our TARING!

    SO WHAT?…..Show our SENGAT!

    SO WHAT……Dont get PALAU???

    Think of our future generation!!!
    DO or DIE.

60. ciribut on July 20th, 2011 12:14 pm

    DON’T THINK OF OUR FUTURE GENERATION-ACT NOW FOR OUR FUTURE GENERATION!

    UNITY OR DIE

61. engkerawai on July 20th, 2011 1:04 pm

    Yooo,,,
    Its Now or Never…….
    You hold me tight?

    If NOW WHO???…is going to trigger, electrified the Dayak struggle????

    ASK THE ROCK aka DWAYNE JOHNSON, WWE????

62. papung Engkilu on July 20th, 2011 4:53 pm

    Good move MOCS-malaysians must make a stand and there can be no neutrality/atas pagar during this time of moral,racial and national crisis.The choice is clear and every Mysian must make a stand. We must fight what is right, fight today for better tomorrow
    and the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who stay neutral/atas pagar…

63. Dayak Mudah Lupa on July 22nd, 2011 9:50 am

    Let’s not forget that by mixing Capitalism and Communism hybrid together, China so far:
    - producing nearly a million Millionaires
    - producing over 4,000 Billionaires
    - did a great job in capital punishment – Death Penalty for Rasuah Criminals there!

    So it is hypocritical for Akik Dr Mamak, UMNO to take a piss at Communism only to praised the good lord of it later:
    ____________________

    China is closing in on having 1 million millionaires
    China Daily, 13 Apr 2011

    SHANGHAI, CHINA – According to an annual wealth report released on Tuesday, the mainland has 960,000 millionaires with personal wealth of 10 million yuan ($1.5 million) or more.

    That is up 9.7 percent year-on-year, said the GroupM Knowledge – Hurun Wealth Report 2011.

    Rising property prices and a fast-growing GDP have been the key drivers for the rising number of Chinese millionaires, according to the report.

    The event, started by a group of four French private investors, takes place at Sanya’s Visun Marina near the town’s center. Almost 150 exhibitors are displaying their yachts, private jets and other luxury toys. Sponsors include Martell Cognac, BMW and Chopard. The show is open to anybody who will pay a 180 yuan fee ($27), but many of the visitors have been invited by the exhibiting brands — some of the elite guests, known as “jet VIPs,” were flown to the resort by private charter plane.

    It found that 55 percent of Chinese millionaires derived their wealth from private businesses, and 20 percent are property speculators who have ridden the fast hike in home prices. About 15 percent are stock gurus, while the remaining 10 percent are high-earning salaried executive.

    This is the third year of the report, written by publishing and events institute Hurun Report in cooperation with think tank GroupM Knowledge.

    In 2009 there were 825,000 such millionaires while last year the number had grown to 875,000.

    Housing prices rose across the country by 13.7 percent in 2010 according to government statistics, with luxury property prices rising even faster.

    High-end property prices in China’s leading financial metropolis Shanghai, for instance, grew 21 percent last year, according to figures from UK-based Knight Frank, one of the world’s largest commercial and residential estate agents.

    Despite the Chinese government’s efforts to curb property speculation and control rampant housing prices, “the overall confidence of China’s millionaires in the property sector and China’s overall economy remains very high,” said Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of Hurun Report.

    “The impact (of the tightening measures) may be on excessive new wealth creation, but I don’t think it is going to affect very much the (rich’s) appetite for luxury products,” said Hoogewerf, known in China by his Chinese name Hu Run.

    “For most luxury brands, the Chinese luxury consumers are now No 1: either representing the biggest market share or the fastest-growing,” he added.

    Of the 960,000 millionaires, 60,000 have been identified as China’s super rich with 100 million yuan or more in wealth, up 9 percent year-on-year.

    Beijing led the way with 10,000 residents boasting 100 million yuan or more, followed by Guangdong province with 9,000 and Shanghai with 7,800.

    The three places also led in the number of millionaires with wealth of 10 million yuan or more.

    According to the report, Chinese millionaires average 39 years old, a full 15 years younger than their Western counterparts. Thirty percent of the millionaires are female, the same as last year.

    The report also put the number of China’s billionaires at 4,000, but only a third were on the Hurun China Rich List 2010.

    “(It suggests) there is still a great deal of hidden wealth in the Chinese economy,” said Hoogewerf.
    ____________________

    China executes corrupt Hangzhou and Suzhou officials
    BBC News, 19 July 2011

    China has executed two officials from eastern cities after convicting them of corruption.

    Xu Maiyong, a former vice-mayor of Hangzhou, and Jiang Renjie, who was vice-mayor of Suzhou, were put to death after their appeals were rejected.

    Officials said Xu and Jiang took almost 300m yuan ($46m; £29m) by embezzling and taking bribes.

    Corruption is one of the main causes of public discontent in China. Hundreds of officials are convicted every year.

    But only a handful are executed, and it is extremely rare for two officials to be put to death on the same day.

    Xu was said to be well known for his extravagant lifestyle – reports said investigators found gold bullion and expensive jewellery at his home.

    State-run Xinhua news agency reported that he used his power to interfere with project contracts and to help companies and people obtain land, promotions and tax breaks.

    The 52-year-old was sentenced to death in May for taking almost 200m yuan in bribes and embezzled funds.

    Jiang, 62, was given the death penalty in 2008 for taking more than 100m yuan in bribes.

    The two cases are not linked, but both men were earlier reported to be members of the Communist Party.

    Earlier this year, President Hu Jintao focused on corruption during his main speech to celebrate 90 years since the party was founded.

    He warned that corruption could cost the party the support of the people.

    Several high-profile officials have been executed in recent years – including Shanghai’s former party boss, and a former head of the country’s main nuclear firm.
    ____________________

    Dr M promotes China model as alternative to democracy
    By Yow Hong Chieh, The Malaysian Insider, 26 April 2011

    KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 — Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today called democracy a “failed” ideology and held up China’s model of authoritarianism as an alternative “worth studying”.

    He said China’s political model — which he termed the “Beijing Consensus” — showed that a nation could develop well even in the absence of freedom, liberty and equality — ideals fundamental to the rival “Washington Consensus”.

    “The Beijing Consensus shows that having a non-democratic country can also give a good life for the people,” Dr Mahathir told delegates at the “Creation of the Global Citizen: Media Liberalisation and the New Political Realities” forum organised by Umno here.

    “If you find good people to run a country, even dictators can make a country develop and develop very well.”

    He pointed out that China’s “correct” application of the Beijing Consensus had allowed the nation of 1.3 billion “very poor” people to become the second richest country in the world.

    The former premier also criticised the very premise of democracy, arguing that no issue could achieve total consensus, leading to an electoral split that will promote poor governance.

    “Democracy… has failed in many countries,” he said.

    “It is not the perfect thing it is touted to be. You find that some of these democracies really cannot work. People cannot make up their minds.

    Dr Mahathir cited hung parliaments in Britain and Australia as proof that countries cannot progress when a majority of its voters cannot make up their minds, saying frequent changes in leadership were not good for a nation.

    “We see a lot of democracies where leaders change every two years and the country cannot make any progress at all,” he said.

    “Even the countries that have made progress find sometimes that democracies hinder the development of the country, make the country unstable and difficult to develop.”

    He added that smaller parties roped into ad hoc coalitions to break hung parliaments in democracies will hold the majority hostage to minority demands that were not good for the country as a whole.
    _____________________

    Full welfare state will bankrupt Malaysia, says Dr M
    By Debra Chong, The Malaysian Insider, 18 June 2011

    Dr Mahathir previously equated a welfare state to communism.

    PUTRAJAYA— Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad conceded today that Malaysia was a partial welfare state, but remained steadfast that it should not be allowed to become a full-fledged one as it will bankrupt the nation.

    The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition lynchpin, Umno, and its political foe, PAS, have been fighting to claim ownership over the welfare state philosophy as the public grows more restive over the soaring prices of daily goods and services following subsidy cuts ahead of a general election expected by next year.

    Both Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, have said that PAS’s welfare state was not new and that BN has already been practising it in government.

    “To a certain extent it is true. A lot of things are made cheap for the people, the government used money in order to reduce the cost of living in this country. The cost of living in this country is very low,” Dr Mahathir told reporters when asked if he agreed with the Najib administration’s stand.

    The country’s fourth prime minister, from 1981 to 2003, explained the amount of things a shopper could buy in Malaysia was nearly on par with his counterpart in the US, despite the American dollar’s higher currency value.

    “If compared, RM1 in this country will buy practically US$1 (RM3.04) in America because the cost of living here is almost one-third the cost in America.

    “This due to the government giving subsidies, having built up facilities, all kinds of things the government has done for the people, not for the government,” said Dr Mahathir, who had pegged the ringgit to the US dollar in an attempt to keep the national economy afloat during the Asian economic crisis in the late 1990s.

    Asked if that move qualified Malaysia to be called a welfare state, the 85-year-old who once controlled the country’s purse strings clarified he did not claim it was a “full welfare state”.

    “I believe that if we have a full welfare state, we’ll go bankrupt,” he said and pointed to Greece, which had announced bankruptcy due to overwhelming debt last year.

    Dr Mahathir said the Mediterranean nation became broke because “they spent money giving their people, they don’t have to work, you go and retire at 40 years old, you get pension, you do that, you go bankrupt.”

    He said the government should continue its welfare programmes to a limited extent.

    “To be a welfare state, people must make money and pay tax to government. If people are not making money then the government will not have money,” he said.

    The former finance minister highlighted that the biggest problem with having a welfare state was that the funds depended on the number of people who had jobs.

    “But at the same time, because the number of people employed is less, the number of people requiring aid or pension is more.

    “So when you have less money, that’s when you have to pay more money, that’s the problem of a welfare state,” he explained.

    In his New Year’s message on January 1, 1994, Dr Mahathir argued against the idea.

    He said people could not hope for the government to provide all the facilities as promised by a welfare state.

    He also equated a welfare state with communism while railing against a minimum wage, which he argued was inefficient.
    _______________________

    Umno, China Communists to swap youth leaders
    Bernama News, August 05, 2010

    KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 — Umno and the Communist Party of China (CPC) yesterday agreed to have youth leadership exchanges so that the youth leaders of both countries can have a better understanding of the economic and social development taking place in Malaysia and China.

    Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, who signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on behalf of Umno on co-operation between Umno and the CPC in Beijing yesterday, said this was all the more timely as China was now a major economic power.

    Wang Jiarui, Head of the International Liaison Department of the CPC Central Committee, represented the CPC.

    “On their part, they are amazed with our achievements and racial harmony and would like to learn from us how we were able to attain this harmony without any bloodshed,” Tengku Adnan said in a statement to Bernama.

    He said as a follow-up to the MOU, both countries agreed to set up a permanent mechanism to enable the exchanges to take place beginning this year. — Bernama
    _____________________________

    Police: PSM ‘communists’ waging war on Agong
    Malaysia Kini, Monday 27 June 2011

    20 years after the Emergency, the spectre of communism still haunts Penang police.

    Penang deputy police chief Abdul Rahim Jaafar today said the 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) activists arrested yesterday while aboard a bus at the Sungai Dua toll plaza have been investigated under Section 122 of the Penal Code for the charge of waging war against the King.

    The activists were participating in the northern leg of the party’s ‘Udah La Tu Bersaralah’ roadshow campaign that kicked off on June 24.

    Those arrested included Sungai Siput parliamentarian Dr D Jeyakumar. One was subsequently released as he was under-aged.

    According to a Bernama report today, Abdul Rahim told reporters that the 30 were being investigated for “waging war against the King” based on police findings that the group is allegedly trying to resurrect communism in the country.

    “Based on paraphernalia seized by police from the activists, it can be seen that they have connections with the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) ideology.

    “These include leaflets and T-shirts printed with the names Chin Peng, Rashid Maidin and Suriani Abdullah, all of whom are linked to the CPM,” said Abdul Rahim.

    Abdul Rahim said he believes that the PSM activists were trying to revive the communist ideology by distributing the paraphernalia to the people in the state.

    This, he added, prompted authorities to arrest those involved because their seditious activities threatened to turn the people against the government.

    ‘Ridiculous and far-fetched’

    In an immediate response, PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan (below) described the police’ actions as “ridiculous and far-fetched” and accused them of trying to paint the political party as a bogeyman to scare the public.

    “It’s ridiculous and farfetched. They are trying to create a tense situation with these imaginary threats,” Arutchelvan told Malaysiakini when contacted today.

    Rubbishing the charge, the secretary-general pointed out that there has been a peace accord between Malaysia and CPM.

    The country also maintains democratic relations with communist countries whose leaders have had audiences with Agong Mizan Zainal Abidin and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

    Arutchelvan also confirmed that the 30 party members arrested in Kepala Batas, Penang, were transferred to the Butterworth district courthouse, the premises of which have been ringed by police with road blocks set-up and the public prohibited from approaching.

    “PSM will issue a formal statement about this issue soon. We are holding an emergency meeting about it now,” he added.

    Initially 31 party members – 14 females and 17 males – were sent to the Seberang Perai Utara district police headquarters after their arrest, to have their statements taken.

    While the minor was released, the rest were remanded for seven days until July 2, to assist police investigations.

    Seksyen 1 judge Amernudin Ahmad of the Butterworth magistrate issued their remand order earlier today.

    PSM’s lawyers are however unhappy with the police’s subsequent decision to separate the seven (who include Jeyakumar) at Penang district police headquarters lockup where they have been sent.

    According to them, no such order or court application was made to the court for this.

    Nationwide crackdown continues

    The arrests are part of a nationwide police crackdown on any activity that the authorities feel is related to the upcoming Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9, to the extent of banning political events.

    In addition to those arrested in Penang, 28 people were yesterday arrested in Tangkak, Johor, in the southern leg of the campaign. Arutchelven was among those detained.

    At 4am, all 28 were released on police bail. It is believed that they were investigated under the Sedition Act and the Printing Presses and Publications Act.

    Last night, a Bersih roadshow in Shah Alam, Selangor, was interrupted by the police, who arrested one person.

    They were detained for distributing leaflets on the gathering which aims to promote a free and fair election, and organisers plan to submit an eight-point memorandum to the King.

    In Ampang today, eight men were detained after they were found wearing yellow t-shirts with ‘Bersih 2.0′ written in the Malay Jawi script at Taman Kosas.

    Ampang Jaya Police Chief ACP Amiruddin Jamaluddin said all eight were detained as their t-shirts reflected their support for the illegal July 9 rally.

    “They were also found to have disrupted public order while riding on their motorcycles in the area. It was the reason for their arrest,” he told Bernama.

    Amiruddin said they were being detained at the Ampang police station and police would release them after recording statements from them.

    Arrests unabated

    Meanwhile, late into the night the arrests have not seen an end, as a Bersih Twitter message at 10.55pm reported a youth in Gombak Baru, Kuala Lumpur being arrested for wearing a Berish T-shirt.

    Bersih 2.0 executive director Maria Chin Abdullah later added, “(There are) more arrests in Ampang and Gombak, and Bersih 2.0 is arranging for legal advice for them.

    “We have many brave lawyers volunteering themselves to take up cases in the event of arrests,” she said, adding, ”The walk for democracy still goes on.”

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