"KLCI hit an all time high" exclaims the front page of New Straits Times,Monday 29th Oct o7Another of "Malaysia's once best selling paper's" unworthy headline. Isn't it obvious? Well if you are still puzzled by my skeptical view of Malaysia's "brilliant economic performance," it is probably because you actually believed the news reported by NST press. Of late, NST is becoming less relevant to the Malaysian public. It has replaced Utusan Malaysia as the unofficial mouthpiece of the government. Frankly, I am delighted by Utusan's current boldness, especially in the forum section of its Sundays circulation. Well done to its group of editors. I found myself choosing Utusan over NST on weekends, just to highlight my utter disgust at my once favourite newspaper! Well, enough said about the state of Malaysian press, let us now focus on the main issue-the economic state and possibilities of general elections before we say goodbye to 2007?
The KLCI could reach 5000 points beating CAC 40 and FTSE for all I care, but does it actually reflect Malaysia's economic health? The answer is both yes and no. It is an indicator of economic strength as argued by monetarists, but many agree that it is weak and less reliable. As we know, an economy is measured by its total gross domestic product (GDP) and its strength is reflected by the progress of the GDP on a yearly basis, or simply put as growth. The share market reflects a proportion of the GDP, hence it is not accurate to draw assumptions that the economy is strong, judging solely on its share market performance. Nonetheless, it is the simplest indicator and Malaysian politicians' favourite statistic to quote.
In my opinion, the only reason this issue won the right to be the cover story of the credibility damaged press is because it is an order to hype it up by the Prime Minister and his cabinet members. Why? Purely political- the general elections. Report has it that the Prime Minister, has decided on a date to dissolve parliament, and it is the 25th November. What fueled this speculation is UMNO's refusal to reschedhule its AGM, despite the meeting running over the Deepavali holiday. Furthermore, Samy Vellu who came in defence of UMNO's decision,voiced out that "it is near the end of the year", and the single most important political party in Malaysia hasn't hosted its general meeting yet. This hints that the general elections is just a whisk away because UMNO is rushing to put its house in order and its campaign machinery at full swing before year end. In no way the general elections could be called before UMNO's internal spring cleaning and image strengthening ( more of keris waving fiasco) at the AGM. Therefore, the "feel good" economic factor needs to be generated throughout November, and quoting a credible source, government servants are due to receive "special bonus" at year end, which is as good as confirming the date of the elections before 2007 runs out.
Well, why the end of the year? Why not just wait for 2008, at least it will be a solid 4 years of Abdullah's first term as elected PM. 45 months into a government is an immature time to call for yet another general elections, but if Abdullah is to continue his leadership and Khairy Jamaluddin is to realise his ambitions of being PM by 40, the nation has to take to the polls very soon. In fact, from my political observation, the end of the year is the best time to hold the elections if BN is to maintain an above 80percent control of the Dewan Rakyat. There are at least three cases which would damage BN's credibility and affect its performance if the elections are schedhuled for the end of first half of 2008 and above.
Firstly, is the Altantuya murder trial. Although this case has received less attention of late, but its outcome is much feared by UMNO's top guns. The Altantuya murder case will not only affect Najib Razak whom is said to have his hands in all the mess, but it could rip down the whole credibility of Abdullah's administration in particular. Abdullah could not claim to be Mr. Clean anymore because he decided to keep Najib in the cabinet and not seek an independent commission to investigate the claim of Najib's involvement further. Like it or not, Najib is the winner of this political game. He did not just escape the whole conflict tangibly unscathed but had made valuable political gains. Najib has tied Abdullah into this whole fiasco, and brought with him UMNO's already smeared reputation. Therefore, if the parliament is dissolved in the next opportunity which is March 2008, the case will have gotten deep enough to involve big names and ruin BN's campaign. Strangely, no opposition leader has capitalised on the fact that Razak Baginda, one of the accused is an UMNO member, although not a high ranking office bearer, is a prominent behind the scene man of the party.This gives the idea that the opossition parties in Malaysia are only interested in badmouthing big names, and not seriously finding the weak points in the government's arguments. Only when the opposition is able to take advantage of such situation will they then be fully relevant to all Malaysians- including me! I will wait for the day that the Malaysian opposition parties be a formidable force- so to give a good option to the people of this country, who will then in turn make their preference heard.
Secondly, is the issue of Anwar Ibrahim's candidacy. By April 2008, Anwar would be free to run for any public post in Malaysia and the odds are on him to return as an MP. Would Pak Lah allow this to happen? Even the grand old master of Malaysian politics, Dr M, did not tempt his fate against Anwar. Many UMNO members are underwriting the ex-DPM off as an " impotent threat" based on the by-election defeat in Ijok of PKR's candidate, Khalid Ibrahim- in which is Anwar first active campaigning since his arrest in 1998. UMNO big guns are dismissing Anwar mania. But, this is just the first round, and it was not a PKR-UMNO showdown. Had it been, the Malays in Ijok would swing their votes in favour of PKR at least by 30 percent, which would made it harder for BN to retain the seat. Therefore, Abdullah has to carefully bar Anwar's entry by defining the election parameters in his own interest. That is the Prime Minister's special power and he is most likely to take the option. Mr Clean has never been brave throughout his political carreer, "elegant silence" is better interpreted as "dignified cowardice."
The third factor is the internal BN harmony. MCA is not very stable these days. 2008 will be the year of party elections and it could see incumbent being challenged by the amitious uprising politicians. This is coming at a time when MCA is at an all time low with the Chinese voters due to the economic and security issues. MIC is hurt, by the lack of Indian allocation in the new general elections, and PPP is deeply hurt by Ali Rustam's remark. These internal problems, if stretched longer will not heal but it will lead to major cracks. UMNO has to single handedly fight in marginal constituents if say for instance the elections is in the second half of 2008. With PKR gaining momentum and PAS better prepared in Kelantan, BN might just resort to dirtier tactics in the coming elections. After all, 2004 was the dirtiest elections in history of the country, why not give the 50th celebrations of Merdeka a bigger meaning with even dirtier next general elections.
In conclusion, the end of the year is the best time for BN to hold an elections. Catching the opposition fully offguard is not fun to watch, but semi-offguard? It will be intense. Being an UMNO supporter all along, I am interested to see the lobbying for state powers, which I will write later! Till then....
Monday, 29 October 2007
Saturday, 27 October 2007
Developing a united Malaysian nation
Fifty years of independence, thirteen kings, five prime ministers, three economic recessions and still
Malaysianisation is the fundamental concept which provides a strong foundation in developing a united Malaysian nation. The target group for the policy must be divided into three. The first is the current workforce,secondly school students-the future workforce and the main target group which will be dealt by education and lastly the elders above sixty years old. One nation, one identity was initiated by *Otto Van Bismarck when he united
The second approach is revamping the national education system. Education is the easiest way to reach the masses especially the young minds, the largest target group which has the biggest potential of success. The primary step is to abolish all other form of streams and support only the national schools and national secondary schools similar to the vision school idea. National Laureate Dr. Syed Othman Syed Omar even suggested that all the streams should be integrated nationwide from primary schools to universities. The medium of communication will only be Bahasa Melayu and English, while students need to choose a compulsory third language which is either Mandarin or Tamil. If implemented successfully in a decade, young Malaysians will be multilingual with at least sound knowledge in three languages. This will not just enhance interracial understanding but boost the value of every human capital produced by
Finally, the money matters. The Malaysian economy needs a major shift if it is to allow the development of a united Malaysian nation. Hence, the number eight challenge of Vision 2020 which involves securing an economically just society must be tackled reasonably. This means a fair and equitable distribution of the nation’s wealth as well as full partnership in economic progress. An economically just society cannot emerge as long as there is a perceptible identification of economic backwardness in race. *Ungku Aziz, a renowned Malaysian academia, argues that positive discrimination must be allowed to set up a level playing field in the initial stages as outlined by the New Economic Policy (NEP) of 1970. The main problem is, with positive discrimination there is no initiative for individual improvement. Thus, the government should set a bold target, for instance having an agreed period of fifty years only for positive discrimination. All the races should be equally discriminated, for example quota of non-Bumiputera civil servants need to be increased in return for a bigger share to the bumiputera in the trade of quarry. Everyone has to sacrifice and move out of their comfort zones in creating a truly dynamic and just economy. *Once the period ends, competition needs to be encouraged as it is the key to economic prosperity. Furthermore, decentralization of the economy must take place as soon as possible and the Malaysian Incorporated policy must be championed yet again. Recently the government has reversed the policy in favour of economic power accumulation by the Government Link Companies (GLC). This is an unhealthy trend because in the wake of globalization, economic freedom, a concept advocated by *Amartya Sen must be granted to the nation. Private sectors need to spearhead the economic advancement of the nation, not the government through the GLC. This will minimize corruption and red-tape. Furthermore, the government must aid the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) to the maximum because we need to create a larger middle class, an effort which has been keenly blocked by Abdullah and his son-in law, KJ. Just take a look at Malay settlements around KL. They are worse off than when they started some 30 years ago. All thanks to Norza, the I can do it all UMNO Youth exco member. Everyone knows, the larger middle income group grows the better. It is because the higher and lower income earners will be suppressed, hence minimizing the chances of racial dissatisfaction created by large income gaps. Moreover, the level of income for Malaysians needs to be increased. This is to put an end to the brain drain problem where our competent workforce leaves the country in pursuit of greater returns in other economies. If the workforce is maintained and fully utilized, a dynamic open economy will be established which will then guarantee a larger flow of foreign direct investment. As a result a larger and richer economic pie will be created, hence sufficient to satisfy every single Malaysian and in the long run fasten the healthy development of a united Malaysian nation.
In a nutshell, the development of a united Malaysian nation is promising only if all parties are willing to lose and win some. The late *John Kenneth Galbraith, an economist was very much against the idea of a win-win situation as he believes it could never exist due to the existence of opportunity cost. Therefore, Malaysians need to be ready to make sacrifices to realize the dreams of being a united nation. If fifty years back the British were the enemies, today, we, ourselves are the enemies of the state. Our inaction will be the cause of a slow but sure destruction. *Stiglitz summarizes globalization perfectly as the epitome of
market price
oil prices touched an all-time high of $92 a barrel as the dollar slumped against other major currencies and fears grew for the health of the world economy.Crude futures hit the record level in New York, before dropping slightly to $91.10 a barrel, amid concerns about growing tension between the US and Iran, and a lack of US stockpiles.London's Brent crude rose 87 cents to $88.35, having hit an all-time peak of $89.30 in early trading.
Traders said that with the oil price having risen by $30 in the past year there was little preventing it hitting the talismanic $100 figure. "Now that oil is in the 90s, it is much easier to reach 100 dollars. Anything can happen in this market," said Astmax fund manager Tetsumari.
The commodity's increase came as the dollar dropped in value again, with markets increasingly expecting the Federal Reserve to cut US interest rates again due to the country's severe housing slump. It left the pound a quarter of a cent higher against the greenback at $2.0523 – a three-month high. Remarkably, given its increase against the dollar, the pound was weaker overall on the day, since a number of economists expect the Bank of England to follow the Fed's lead in the coming weeks and cut UK borrowing costs.
In early European trade, the euro struck 1.4375 dollars – the highest level since the single currency's creation in 1999.
Motoring organisations warned that petrol prices would soon increase. The spike in oil prices is largely due to the situation in Iran, which this week became the subject of further sanctions from the US due to fears that it is trying to develop nuclear weapons.
Traders are also concerned about Turkey's plans to launch military strikes against rebel Kurd bases in northern Iraq.
To add to the tension, the US Energy Information Administration said this week that stockpiles of crude had plunged by 5.3m barrels last week. The market had been expecting an increase.
oxbridge interviews- demoralised, better not be!
Oxbridge interviews for international students could be a nigthmare to some applicants. Here, your thoughts and ideas, are just ripped apart, swallowed rare before your eyes by larger than life, know it all interviewers. Being Asians especially, demure and well-mannered as they are, this interview session could eventually lead to watery eyes. It is a challenge. The interviewers want you to challenge their academic authority. If you are up for a game then, play along. But, you need to realise that your knowledge could not rival the interviewer, at least not yet. You need to know who you are, where you stand. In an interview room, you are a student and the interviewer is the tutor. Never pretend to be who you are not. Interviewers having accumulated years of experience in their bags, know, when the applicants are being pretencious. Rule of thumb for an Oxbridge interview is never to tempt your interviewer to go into his or her research interest, unless you are well prepared. That was what I did. But for my case, I reserved it to the end of the interview where i knew i have managed to charm her, and drop the question, in which she failed to answer.She was impressed, and yes, it was a she. Gender bias you might say.Nonetheless, just admit if you cannot answer the questions, the interviewer will guide you, step by step. However, at the end of the day, interviews are not the most important aspect of your application. It is the written examinations. As much as they love you during interviews, and the coherence of your argument and the quality of your speech presented on that day, without worked proof, you are not going to be accepted! In my case, I had to sit for the History Admissions Test (HAT) and the economics written test. Only when i reached Pembroke that i knew the importance of these tests, and from my tutors i learned that i aced both of them! bravo!! Up to then, i thought it was my charm which sealed the deal, but apparently it was my brains! Therefore, there is nothing to worry if you had failed to shine during interviews, as long as you did not make a complete utterly disgusting fool of yourself, you still more or less have a chance to be accepted. For medical students, the BMAT holds the key to Oxbridge, but for lawyers, LNAT (but Oxford law apparently does not rely on LNAT results)! Thus, if you think you have failed the first hurdle, pick yourself up, recompose and give it another try in the written exams. Remember, the interview sessions is just a tiny dosage of your tutorials. The tutorials at Oxbridge are daunting and extremely stressful! So, if you could not survive the acid test, better think twice before tempting to go further with the applications!
Friday, 26 October 2007
Oxbridge Education- the "worth every penny "system
Oxbridge interviews, the season is back. Well, for international students outside EU that is. It is the time of the year when you just have to be "kiasu"! Kiasu a word which traces its origins in an overpopulated island country south of Malaysia, is a must during interviews. Your friends are your opponents, if they are better off, then you are worse off. It has fulfilled the conditions of Pareto optimality, it is now the Darwinian's survival of the fittest. It is a chance of a life time, proving yourself worthy to be in such elite institutions. But,Why do people want an Oxbridge education? It is not even in London, the city of sinners. Oxford and Cambridge are both less vibrant cities compared to the British metropolitan(although Oxford is much better than the other side). Hello, and its wi-fi system is so back dated, that my hometown Ipoh has better facilities!Thus, it is better to attend one of the big four London unis (LSE,Kings, Imperial, UCL), as they are located in such great modern city.If you are considering brand names, these four institutions are renowned throughout the world, even cooler than Oxford or Cambridge. One might argue, that the reason to choose Oxbridge over the rest is because, the marketability of the degrees. At least that was what I thought. And surprisingly, it is true. It is not because of the brand name of these institutions but it is the value of the education. Undoubtedly, an Oxbridge degree costs a bomb, it could be up to 60 pc more than other UK uni's fees for non-UK/EU students, but it is worth every penny. As you might have already known, Oxbridge both are based on the collegiate system. Thus, each college has its own strength, character and field specialty. I am fortunate enough to be in a college where it is medium sized, closed knitted and has arguably the best economics department in Oxford. In a college like Pembroke and other Oxbridge colleges, you get value for money education. We have 8 learning weeks in a term, and there are three terms in a year. I was shocked to be told on the first day that all students are expected to put in 40 hours a day of work during the weekdays. I thought my master was joking and just being a prick on the first day of term. It turned out that, it goes without saying, and that the system works by default. The education system is well designed to make you work a solid eight hours on normal days. It is your introduction to working life. It is like sitting for a class of Career 101!The lectures are just above average ( I have crashed into a lecture at King's which i found to be more interesting), but the teaching done at college is excellent. It is simply the best. The class work makes the students think on their feet, are forever feel inferior of their abilities. Your tutor or college lecturer will grill you in an intense 90-120 minutes on what you have read for the class. They make sure that the students are consistently studying, or not risk being humiliated in front of your peers. It is like a constant peer-review being conducted. And it is on a daily basis. If that is not intensive enough, the speed of teaching is just like a bullet train from Fukuoka to Tokyo. The tutors expect the students to read at least three chapters from three different books per class, and the pace that they are teaching is incredibly fast. However, one is not expected to comprehend everything. That is impossible. Students are only assessed after a six week break- the time used to fully understand what was taught during term time. A term in Oxford, is like two terms in other UK universities. And that is why it is worth every penny. Furthermore, Oxbridge are endowed with all the reading materials in the world. These are the unis where one can undergo a three year course without buying a single book. It is fantastic, every book is in abundance! The life one has here, will definitely enable their graduates from any discipline to get jobs anywhere in the world!It is why, considering its reassuringly expensive cost, the Oxbridge education is worth every drop of juice! Therefore, applicants must go on battle, to secure a seat in such august learning institutions. It is one point in life where kiasuism is endorsed and generally accepted! Fight for it, everyone has equal chance of getting in! Give it a try. It is indeed a different experience altogether. Plus you get to wear fancy dresses all year long! Gowns!!!! Good luck to the applicants and even if you could not get a place, it is worth the try! At least you would not live for the rest of your life feeling guilty, looking back asking-why didn't I apply?
Tory leading, Labour trailing, LibDem falling
Britain has ushered in a new, young and relevant opposition leader.This is the land that is obsessed with no white hair leaders. Age politics matters the most in Britain. If you look old like Ming Campbell, your critics confine you to a wheelchair, brushing away all your ideas and labeling you UNFIT for public duty. At least, that was what happened to Ming.Britain, an ancient nation state, needs young blood to run it. This is probably because the HM, herself is old, therefore, the people are always looking for the fresh, below 50 politicians to lead the country. In the newly released YouGov poll last night, Tory has for the first time since 1992 hit the 40 point mark, the crucial support threshold and precisely it has gone pass that mark by 1. This is a massive jump by at least 15 points since the summer- the last and only time Gordon Brown actually enjoyed a good political period this year. The Cameron effect is actually starting to materialize. This was a leader, who inherited a party which have lost three general elections in a row, re-packaged it and now is selling the product well. Party politics in Britain to say the least, is politics of "emulate the winning side" politics. It is not so much based on ideology, whether you are right or left winged. New Labour shifted far right to the middle, and Cameron Tory have shifted arguably far left to the mid point between centre and mid-left. Now,the conservatives have become more left than Labour itself. But, that is the winning formula. Blair-Brown knew this in 1994. Cameron, being a very bright PPE oxon, followed this path, and now he finds himself sitting very comfortably at the poll. Cancelling an autumn elections might not be the wisest move by Brown, he hasn't made any wise move to date, but it will certainly buy him more time. After the Blackpool conference, Labour knew it would suffer had an elections be called then. Many of his ministerial colleagues would not have survived the acid test. Alaistair Darling might have lost in his constituency, now as the opposition is campaigning hard for his seat. On the other hand,Cameron's approval rating is improving by the minute, by the day, alongside his shadow cabinet members.
The shadow chancellor is looking strong after his inheritance tax speech at the conference and William Hague looks better now as Cameron's follower.Brown will hope that God will save Labour now. Although the You Gov poll had still put Labour as winner if an election is held now but this is just because the electoral system does not favour the Conservatives, that's all. Popularity wise, Brown and Labour might just switch sides with Tories in the commons. Now, since the elections have been roughly schedhuled for 2009, Brown must repair the damage. He must be saved by the LibDem. A new, young and relevant Lib Dem leader needs to appear to win back the supporters whom have fled to Tories. Lib Dem is falling at a pace more rapid than throwing a tennis ball up in the air. With 14 percent showing on the YouGov poll, Britons must be wondering, why do we need a third party anyway? It will just be a vote splitter and never will make an impact. The underlying principle is, it provides choice and that is the basis of democracy. This democratic fundamental is the one badly needed by the premier at this juncture of his career. Brown needs LibDem more than ever in the next eighteen months. He needs a new partner in battling the conservative currents which is gaining momentum. If Brown is able to work things out with the new leader of Lib Dem than he could take a deep breath of relief. From that point, he could chart his elections campaign and retain Labour on the government side of the Commons. It might as well take a natural catastrophe to hit Britain which then would allow Brown to
form a government. If that does not appear, Brown has to work much harder to stay in Number 10.
The shadow chancellor is looking strong after his inheritance tax speech at the conference and William Hague looks better now as Cameron's follower.Brown will hope that God will save Labour now. Although the You Gov poll had still put Labour as winner if an election is held now but this is just because the electoral system does not favour the Conservatives, that's all. Popularity wise, Brown and Labour might just switch sides with Tories in the commons. Now, since the elections have been roughly schedhuled for 2009, Brown must repair the damage. He must be saved by the LibDem. A new, young and relevant Lib Dem leader needs to appear to win back the supporters whom have fled to Tories. Lib Dem is falling at a pace more rapid than throwing a tennis ball up in the air. With 14 percent showing on the YouGov poll, Britons must be wondering, why do we need a third party anyway? It will just be a vote splitter and never will make an impact. The underlying principle is, it provides choice and that is the basis of democracy. This democratic fundamental is the one badly needed by the premier at this juncture of his career. Brown needs LibDem more than ever in the next eighteen months. He needs a new partner in battling the conservative currents which is gaining momentum. If Brown is able to work things out with the new leader of Lib Dem than he could take a deep breath of relief. From that point, he could chart his elections campaign and retain Labour on the government side of the Commons. It might as well take a natural catastrophe to hit Britain which then would allow Brown to
form a government. If that does not appear, Brown has to work much harder to stay in Number 10.
Thursday, 25 October 2007
Brown in Black
British PM Gordon Brown is in political darkness, a territory he has never traversed prior to his appointment as premier. He is caught in a catch 22 situation, a classic game. The European constitution reform is giving Brown a headache. Claiming to be a Euro-positive Labour MP, he contrastingly has never proven his virtue, not even once in his political career. But, it is never late to start, especially when you are a leader of one of the most powerful governments in the world- Her Majesty's government. That is why now, he is trying to prove himself worthy of European support, interestingly at the time when he has not consolidated his full authority and political power at home. Ironically, he is perhaps one of the most Euroskeptic and hostile members of the British high office since Neville Chamberlain. His economic lectures to European finance ministers during a conference in Brussels, is just one of the examples of this Scotsman's arrogance. Having said that, in last week's PMQ time, he re-iterated that this issue as minute as it is just an "amendment to the European constitution" and not a reform. Perhaps, having appointed a young and naive foreign secretary in the name of David Miliband- known for his Europhilic nature and lack of diplomatic experience, is after all a wrong move by Brown. Miliband, being a young rising star of Labour, perhaps a successor to Brown one day, is too naive to read the writings behind the wall. His career has been centred much on domestic issues and not the skills of international diplomacy.An amendment in Europe is merely a disguise for constitutional reform. The European Union is gaining strength by the day, despite a few hiccups a couple of years ago, again on constitutional issues. It's economic stability is cemented and the currency has bettered predictions made during its debut. This is the time when Brussels is not looking foolish and attempts to absorb as much power as it could from its member countries.
Thatcher famously said in her No, no,no speech in the Commons in 1987 that "we have given away much power to the community (now EU) and I think that is enough."Brown, an open admirer of the Iron Lady, has perhaps forgotten all this surrendering power to the Europe problem . Or probably, he does not know the treacherous water he is in. Denying a referendum on the EU constitutional issue is a U-turn from his maiden prime ministerial speech of I will listen to the British people. It is his first promise broken. His refusal for a referendum is primarily because he has no confidence in winning it. Had he campaigned for a yes, and loss, it would be political suicide. It shows the level of support the British are giving him. It would be another blow to know, that this is his only weakness compared to Blair. Tony Blair, to an extent has inculcated a modern form of cult of personality. Blair will go down in the history books as a first-tier prime minister-young when he took office and was well received until his Iraq blunders. Blair would have won the referendum in his first hundred days of office-Brown would and could not. Having calculated this, Brown and his team of advisers decided to pull the plug off a Euro referendum, and defied the general British appeal for a referendum. He might have lost some respect for this, but it was far less damaging from being defeated at the referendum. Politicians break promises and make new ones while campaigning. Brown is no different. Perhaps, the past should make way for the future, as said by the Opposition Leader, David Cameron. But what is the future for Britain? Tory is still too conservative for modern Britain. Like it or not, the British society is synonymous with New Labour. The tories know this and they are working hard to overcome such tragedy.There is no future with Cameron. He is an opportunist, and does not seem to offer fresh and genuine agenda. Brown on the other hand, has stayed in the cabinet for far too long. A new breed of Labour needs to emerge, just like how Blair and Brown refreshened the party in the early 1990s. But they need to scout for talents away from populist figures such as the Miliband brothers, there are other grassroot leaders that could be groomed for top office. Brown is certainly black these days, having achieved neither international supremacy nor domestic authority. After all, the public have not endorsed him as PM yet. No referendum and no Autumn elections. Both have eroded Brown's grip on the British people.Brown could go down as the unelected Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Thatcher famously said in her No, no,no speech in the Commons in 1987 that "we have given away much power to the community (now EU) and I think that is enough."Brown, an open admirer of the Iron Lady, has perhaps forgotten all this surrendering power to the Europe problem . Or probably, he does not know the treacherous water he is in. Denying a referendum on the EU constitutional issue is a U-turn from his maiden prime ministerial speech of I will listen to the British people. It is his first promise broken. His refusal for a referendum is primarily because he has no confidence in winning it. Had he campaigned for a yes, and loss, it would be political suicide. It shows the level of support the British are giving him. It would be another blow to know, that this is his only weakness compared to Blair. Tony Blair, to an extent has inculcated a modern form of cult of personality. Blair will go down in the history books as a first-tier prime minister-young when he took office and was well received until his Iraq blunders. Blair would have won the referendum in his first hundred days of office-Brown would and could not. Having calculated this, Brown and his team of advisers decided to pull the plug off a Euro referendum, and defied the general British appeal for a referendum. He might have lost some respect for this, but it was far less damaging from being defeated at the referendum. Politicians break promises and make new ones while campaigning. Brown is no different. Perhaps, the past should make way for the future, as said by the Opposition Leader, David Cameron. But what is the future for Britain? Tory is still too conservative for modern Britain. Like it or not, the British society is synonymous with New Labour. The tories know this and they are working hard to overcome such tragedy.There is no future with Cameron. He is an opportunist, and does not seem to offer fresh and genuine agenda. Brown on the other hand, has stayed in the cabinet for far too long. A new breed of Labour needs to emerge, just like how Blair and Brown refreshened the party in the early 1990s. But they need to scout for talents away from populist figures such as the Miliband brothers, there are other grassroot leaders that could be groomed for top office. Brown is certainly black these days, having achieved neither international supremacy nor domestic authority. After all, the public have not endorsed him as PM yet. No referendum and no Autumn elections. Both have eroded Brown's grip on the British people.Brown could go down as the unelected Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Rais Dilemma- September 07
Expectations met- Happy 50th Merdeka
Malaysia is known for grand parades among international tourists and the one last Friday definitely lived up to expectations. The fiftieth edition of the Merdeka Day Parade was indeed pompous, vibrant and extravagant to say the least. Well, 31st August had finally dawned upon Malaysia, marking its half a century of nationhood and guess what, lives,have to go on! Heartiest congratulations to Datuk Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim for heading the organising committee. The event was arguably his biggest contribution to the country. It was the job that had saved him from standing on the edge of UMNO's political cliffs. The PhD holder from King's College London, a supreme council member in Malaysia's biggest political party, is known to be a Mahathir supporter. Ironically, he was not one in the late 80's. Rais supported Razaleigh-Musa's Team B against Mahathir-Ghafar's Team A in the UMNO elections of 1987. This led to his expulsion from the cabinet and reclusion from centre-stage politics for twelve years. It was the boss he had betrayed, whom saved him from the political wilderness and gave him the kiss of political life. Well, Mahathir only brought Rais back into the limelight in 1999 mainly to streghten his grip on UMNO- undone after the controversial sacking of Anwar. Recently, Rais was made to pay for his support to the former premier. He was asked to bid for the Secretary General of the Commonwealth- with full backing from the cabinet. This is a clear showing of exit by his colleagues- the first casualty of Abdullah's administration. Najib Razak, the deputy premier led the chorus of praises sung for Rais and highlighted the qualities in the elderly minister which made him a good candidate for the post. However, having been a veteran politician, Rais was not to be shown the dignified exit-worse than Harun Idris's offer to be made an ambassador by Hussein Onn, he played his political cards correctly. Rais at first disguised his intention of accepting the offer-his answers when asked about it were vague. A suave politician indeed. Then he leaked it out to the media- and not to Abdullah who was very busy attending to pre-marital matters, that he declines the offer due to his tight schedhule as the Merdeka Celebrations organising committee chairman. The cabinet members were stunned, many taken offguard. Age is afterall wise, and in Malaysian politics it is indubitably true. Rais avoided his political assasination, but who is the next casualty? Abdullah (Khairy) is playing his political cards with a rush- hinting at the nearing general elections. Happy Merdeka to all Malaysians.
national disservicce
National Disservice
Naional Service in Malaysia is basically summer camp for free to all SPM leavers. It is a good three-month of fun, excitement and new experiences. Well, that sounds fair enough as the program is free of charge. Free things in life, more often than not, are not the best deals one will ever get. This is the rule of thumb for businesses. Ironically, it applies for National Service as well. Since the launch of this brainchild of Najib Razak in 2004, the number of deaths reported has reached twenty. That is averaging a bit below seven casualties per year. If the trend continues, seventy lives would be lost in this program due to several reasons which are unavoidable. Accidents, have not been reported officially, reaches to around a hundred in the past three years. The goals and objectives of the National Service program are commendable, and to a large extent it has helped in injecting a sense of reasoning in today's youngsters. However, when the implementation and execution is not sound, the whole initiative seems meaningless. Nowadays, parents are no longer looking forward to sending their kids off to the camp as they fear for the safety of these youngsters. This reflects badly on the noble program. Najib Razak should step in and shoulder the responsibility openly, rather than leaving it to Lee Lam Thye to answer to the public. It is his idea after all, the biggest contribution he has made as a cabinet member. It his Najib's legacy. Therefore he should use his larger than life political power to ensure the lives of these young citizens are not endangered.
xxl civil service- september 07
XXL CIVIL SERVICE
Civil Service in most countries need trimming. At least, that is an undisputed fact. When one is discusing about civil service, the fictional character of Sir Humphrey Appleby in Yes, Prime Minister played by distinguished actor, the late Sir Nigel Hawthorne comes to mind almost immediately. Being a proud man, Sir Humphrey refuses to downsize the service in the popular comedy series.The oversizing of the civil service is also visible in Malaysia. But our Chief Secretary, Tan Sri Sidek Hassan acknowledges the fact and is close to making public comments about it- which would have gotten Sir Humphrey annoyed! It is the duty of the government to solve unemployment by creating jobs- as believed by economist JK Galbraith, a strong defender of Keynesian economics. Thus, going by this economic stance, the Malaysian civil service at the moment boasts of 1.2 million members. This is roughly five percent of the country's population and approximately 40 percent of the job market.Recently, Tan Sri Sidek proposed that Voluntary Seperation Scheme(VSS) is to be used in dealing with incompetent civil servants. This is an indirect confession of the need to trim down the government's workforce. However, this idea was completely shot down by the PM and his jump the bandwagon cabinet members.( In Malaysia, many ministers do not like answering issues related to their ministries, they instead prefer to comment on other matters, vocal in most extent). Thus, when the smart idea came from the civil service chief, it was quashed at its infancy. Funnily enough, Tan Sri Sidek should have been a corporate leader and not in civil service. He should know that no government in the world could and would trim down the civil service. The repercussions are immeasurable. It is the fountain of everlating youth and relevance in global politics. It is the main measure to keep unemployment records down and people happy. Happy people just do not vote out the government in power. (Well, the British did when they ousted Churchill and replaced him with Atlee in 1944!) This is when civil willingness have to bow to political supremacy. Yesteday, Najib Razak announced that unpaid maternity leave could be extended to five years.This is a clear hint that vacancies are welcomed in the extra large civil service, to be filled with unemployed graduate. As the general elections loom at the corner, the government tries to project a caring image. Yes, it i true that parents who raise up their kids with full attention and affection will churn out to be better than neglected children. But, if the leaves taken are unpaid, how could these mouths be fed well? The idea is again commendable but its relevance is doubted. It is a political double edged sword. The government could come out as caring but also at the same time exposing the need to face unemployed graduate chaos and addressing oversizing of civil service. With the increase in pay by up to 25%, the government needs to find a solid way to finance the XXL service. Some would have to leave through VSS and take the highly advisable 5 year unpaid maternity leave. It is a service to the civil service.
British Out of Basra- September 07
British Out of Basra (Global Politics)
The British generals were at loggerheads with their American counterpart. That is how global politics should be played! Many are cheering at this turn of events which have resulted in President Bush himself having to make a surprise visit to Iraq. The US and UK, analogically are filing a divorce in global politics. Under the Blair-Bush coalition of the willing, the UK troops were given the mandate by the war chief Bush to occupy Basra and secure the area of any clashes. Basra is an oil rich state with 90 percent of the country's oil in its ground. The Americans having no success in colonial wars, have to rely on their once colonial rulers, the Brits to establish full control in the God given oil haven.The British took merely a fortnight to establish full control of the area. Little that they know it was to last for four long years and counting. With Brown at helm in politics, and in control of it well, British troops, the last four hundred of them are set to leave Basra. The boldness in Brown's move is timely as Bush himself is a lame duck president counting his days of leaving office. It is not a stab in Bush's back but a punch in the stomach. It is a surprise of how fast Bush can lose his support. With many cabinet members and advisors vacating the White House and Capitol Hill, the latest being Attorney-General Alberto Gonzales, Bush is an injured politician limping on his right foot, and shot at his left arm. On the other hand, Brown runs the government like it is a private firm not beauracracy. The beauty of it is that only money matters. It is an open secret that BP lost their bid for Basra's oil control, hence it is no longer in the interest of the government to be there. With UK out of Iraq, the illustrious war is coming to a close. At the end of the day it is pound and pence and not sound and sense.
Ali Rustam and PPP
Ali Rustam claims to be a Senior VP of UMNO. No one has ever claimed the seniority of this position in the history of the party (both in UNMO and UMNO baru). It is basically a popularity contest, the winner with the most votes being appointed to the top of the VP list. Yes, he gets his name published first, before the other two winners, and right below the deputy's name. But, Pak Lah and Najib, whom both have been in this position at some point of their careers, never claimed to be Senior VP. Ali Rustam just got carried away, we all do, at certain points in our life, don't we? If we are carried away- it is not a matter of national interest, but when an UMNO big gun gets a little bit over comfortable with his position, it worries the entire nation. Ali's recent outburst at the PPP general assembly is a complete disrespect to component party members as well as many senior UMNO leaders. Ali, in the first place is only a chief minister of a tiny state, Melaka. He is not even a Menteri Besar. Therefore, he is a microadmin master, more like a district officer, hence placing himself below the people he is badmouthing in public. He needs to remember, a Melaka Ketua Menteri, is only on par with a deputy minister in the federal government, party position in this case does not take precedence over job status. Furthermore, Ali did not win his position outright from the UMNO elections, it is by the virtue of Isa Samad being a corrupted money spilling politician that he is the Senior VP now. His consolidation of power, is a very bad political move as it puts him in the position of authority- something UMNO grassroots have hated since time immemorial. Thus, Ali needs to look up in the red UMNO sky, and see where he is standing at the moment. Aiming high?? He better tackles the low first, before attempting for positions in higher office. With Ali's recent outburst, the only compensation to the rest would be a demotion, back to Federal government, as a deputy minister, the best would be in PM's Department, so that Abdullah could clip his cunning wings!!
Hello World!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hye, my name is Amir Fareed Abdul Rahim, from Ipoh, Malaysia. Currently an undergraduate at Pembroke College, Oxford University, reading History and Economics. My political views are moderate(but sometimes i have rightist views), am a liberal practicing Muslim, and enjoys domestic and international politics. This blog will contain my views from current political events around the world, esp. superpowers and Malaysia. It will also include random economic and history comments. My views are to be shared with the world, and if you disagree, just leave a comment on the article. Have fun reading it.
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