BEYOND RACIAL POLITICS

This is easy said than done. For example in the recent elections we observed supposedly multiracial parties DAP and PKR played the racial card in their campaigns. Even Gerakan also a multi racial party have only Chinese as their candidates even though they have substantial number of Indian members.

By: (Fri, 07 Mar 2008) - The Sun Online

While Malaysian political parties have managed to negotiate communal issues with remarkable dexterity over the past five decades, it is clear that the race-based formula that defines our political landscape must be re-modelled in due course. This is necessary because a long-entrenched habit of organising society into separate racial groups is patently unhealthy and ultimately counterproductive.

The task should begin, naturally, with the envisioning of a society that emphasises a unifying, cross-cultural experience instead of striving to maintain social and institutional differences based on race and religion. This would require investing time and energy in reforming all important public institutions and processes to become inclusive, universal and egalitarian so that communal differences are de-emphasised and common values embraced as core principles.

This is obviously a massive undertaking that will require decades if not generations to accomplish. Nevertheless, it must begin with a sense of conviction among all communities that such a society is not only achievable, but most desirable.

Further, as the goal involves a radical transformation in thinking, it must be approached in a systematic manner that would foster a gradual acceptance of the idea. The process should move from discussion of the idea among cultural experts, political leaders, public figures, community groups and civil society organisations, to confidence-building initiatives, experimental programmes and onward to more institutional efforts.

A first step could be the establishment of a race relations commission that reports to Parliament. Such an entity should be tasked with driving the agenda of racial harmony by drawing on the strength of opinion leaders and leading lights in the various communities. Thereafter a blueprint for promoting racial unity should be developed, including a revamp of institutions such as the Department of National Unity to make its role in promoting racial harmony more effective.

Such a blueprint should encompass the reform of major national institutions including educational institutions, the civil service, parliament, the justice system and others to reflect a race-blind public policy. This would ensure that over time, all public institutions would be guided by the principles of egalitarianism and universal values.

In this process, a move towards reforming legislation to make them consonant with the values of a race-blind society would be a logical progression.

Admittedly, from our current position, all this looks like a distant dream. However, the challenge of taking up the discussion is open to all who wish to forge a great future for Malaysia. Let the work begin.

TEPUK DADA TANYA SELERA

Agendadaily-Rosli Ismail


Kata-kata diatas memang sesuai digunapakai untuk serba serbi yang melibatkan ‘ satu keputusan ’.Ini juga termasuk kerja nak memangkah siapa pilihan hati Sabtu ini.

Tanggongjawab itu mudah tetapi kalau silap pangkah besar padahnya.Semasa tempoh kempen selama 13 hari kebelakangan ini ada sepanduk slogan yang berbunyi ‘ dah lama sangat…cuba ubah sekali ’.

Pokok pangkalnya yang baru itu sentiasa memikat.Namun tak semestinya ia tidak membawa bencana.

Yang lama pula mungkin pada tempoh hayatnya tetapi mungkin ia masih ‘ barang baik’.

Melihat balik lebih 50 tahun sejak capai kemerdekaan hingga ke hari ini ,Malaysia masih terus bergerak dilandasan yang betul.

Pemimpin datang dan pergi.Kekurangan serba sikit dan naik turun adalah lumrah yang dilalui oleh mana-mana kerajaan.

Selagi ada azam dan tekad untuk maju ke depan selagi itu ada sinar harapan.

Siapa saja boleh dakwa nak buat itu ini sepanjang tempoh berkempen yang sengit ini.

Realitinya apakah semua itu realistik?

Siapa saja boleh tuduh itu ini.Soalnya bagaimana pula kredibiliti orang yang menuduh itu sendiri?

Fikir dan renungkanlah sebelum mengaris di kertas undi.Kalau dah rasa ‘selamat,aman tepukdan makmur’dengan yang lama apa perlunya berjudi nasib dengan yang baru. - 7/3/2008

PAK LAH, NAJIB YAKIN KEKAL MAJORITI

Oleh Fazli Abdullah, Wan Jailani Razak dan Sariha Mohd Ali-Berita Harian Online


KUALA LUMPUR: Barisan Nasional (BN) yakin dapat mengekalkan kemenangan dengan majoriti dua pertiga di Parlimen serta merampas kembali Kelantan pada Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12, esok.


Keyakinan itu disuarakan Perdana Menteri yang juga Pengerusi BN, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dan Timbalannya, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, berdasarkan maklum balas rakyat dan pelbagai pihak selepas 12 hari berkempen.


Abdullah pada sidang medianya selepas melancarkan projek Rancangan Malaysia Kesembilan (RMK-9) dan menaik taraf serta pembinaan Pusat Jantung dan Pembedahan Hospital Pulau Pinang (HPP) di Georgetown, berkata BN akan menang kerana rakyat mahukan kerajaan sedia ada meneruskan pentadbiran negara.


"Boleh menang, boleh menang...insya-Allah, boleh menang," katanya mengulas mengenai peluang BN selepas 12 hari berkempen.


Perdana Menteri berkata, BN juga boleh merampas semula Kelantan daripada Pas dan terus berkuasa di Pulau Pinang yang kini 'diserang' hebat oleh parti pembangkang.


"Kita boleh menang di Kelantan dan Pulau Pinang. (Ini kerana) apa yang rakyat mahu ialah BN," katanya.


Di SHAH ALAM, Najib berkata, BN tidak akan menghadapi masalah untuk memperoleh majoriti dua pertiga kerusi Parlimen berdasarkan sambutan ke atas kempen dan program yang dianjurkannya, selain maklum balas calon serta maklumat yang diberikan pelbagai pihak.


"Berdasarkan maklum balas ini, nampak gaya kita boleh capai majoriti dua pertiga kerusi Parlimen. Saya yakin kerana itu saya berada di sini," katanya selepas majlis Timbalan Perdana Menteri bersama Pekebun Kecil dan Pekerja Ladang Sawit di Stadium Melawati.


Najib bagaimanapun berkata, BN akan terus berusaha sehingga saat akhir supaya rakyat dan pengundi tidak melihat kemenangan diperoleh dengan begitu mudah.


"Kita mesti bekerja selagi ada masa dan turun padang untuk berjumpa rakyat serta pengundi supaya mereka terus memberi keyakinan kepada BN," katanya.


Ketika bercakap kepada pemberita di Kuantan pula, Najib berkata, lawatannya ke beberapa negeri, menunjukkan sasaran mendapat majoriti lebih dua pertiga boleh dicapai.


"Sekarang sudah ada tanda menunjukkan sesetengah kawasan kelabu sudah bertukar putih, manakala usaha lebih gigih dibuat di kawasan hitam. Kita yakin menang di Kelantan sebab sudah buat yang terbaik dan tunjuk keikhlasan kita. Perdana Menteri dan saya juga sudah pergi ke sana.


"Kita sudah bentangkan gagasan untuk Kelantan, malah terbitkan manifesto khas untuk Kelantan yang menggariskan apa yang kita mahu lakukan untuk rakyat negeri itu. Segala-galanya kini bergantung kepada rakyat Kelantan untuk membuat keputusan," katanya.


Najib berkata, pilihan raya memberi pilihan kepada pengundi membuat pilihan sama ada mahukan kerajaan yang terbukti kemampuannya membela rakyat atau parti pembangkang yang hanya tahu berjanji tetapi tidak tahu cara melaksanakannya.


�Jika rakyat memberi mandat sekali lagi kepada BN, kita akan tingkatkan usaha memacu pembangunan, kejayaan dan pembelaan rakyat," katanya.

Stopping the rot

Mar 6th 2008
From The Economist print edition

Peter Löscher of Siemens attempts one of the biggest corporate clean-ups in history

Reuters

HE WORKED as a ski instructor to pay his way through university—and today Peter Löscher is once again expected to provide guidance in a fast-moving and potentially dangerous situation. The tall, loose-limbed Austrian, brought in as chief executive of Siemens last July, could hardly be more squeaky clean. Even the decor in his office above Wittelsbacherplatz in Munich is spartan, which seems fitting for the man leading one of the biggest corporate clean-ups in history. Most recently, on March 1st, he appointed legal officers to each of the sprawling engineering group's divisions. He wanted to emphasise that obeying the law is a vital aspect of every operational decision.

His hope, and that of 400,000 employees at Siemens, is that the steady flow of allegations about bribery and corruption will soon dry up—and with them the damaging investigations. Since November 2006, when police raided the group's offices across Germany, hardly a week has gone by without new allegations of wrongdoing by company officials in places from Botswana to Beijing. Siemensianers, as employees were once proud to call themselves, are fed up with being the butt of jokes about slush funds and secret accounts in Liechtenstein. Mr Löscher's job is to purge the company from top to bottom, so that Siemens can put the scandal behind it and enjoy its position as one of the world's leading companies, and one of globalisation's great winner.

Last month a Munich court rejected Siemens's claim that the practice of bribing the clients of its medical division with airline tickets, which they could exchange for cash, was not “systemic”. That is just one example of how €1.3 billion ($2.5 billion) is reckoned to have been illegally spent around the world in the past few years to beat the competition. Investigators allege that there was a culture at Siemens, endorsed by senior managers, to use bribes and slush funds to win contracts, especially in its communications and power-generation divisions. Last year Klaus Kleinfeld, then chief executive, and Heinrich von Pierer, his chairman and predecessor, resigned under pressure from shareholders. (Both have denied knowledge of any corruption.) One former board member is being investigated, and others are expected to share his fate. And because of its New York listing, Siemens is being investigated by the much-feared Securities & Exchange Commission, which can impose much heavier sanctions than the €660m in penalties Siemens has paid in Europe so far.

Appointing Mr Löscher, an untainted outsider, was an effort to draw a line under the scandal. He had previously headed divisions at GE, Siemens's great rival, and Merck, a pharmaceuticals giant. He spent his first few months at Siemens travelling and learning the ropes. Despite its problems, the group impressed him with its global culture. In many countries, such as his native Austria, it is regarded as a local firm. (Mr Löscher has absorbed plenty of different cultures himself: he studied at the Chinese University in Hong Kong and Harvard Business School, and his wife is Spanish.) Over Christmas he then dropped a bombshell, warning top managers in a letter that ignorance and loyalty were no excuse for having broken the law. Managers were offered an amnesty until January 31st—later extended by a month—to encourage them to spill the beans. And they have been doing so: 110 came forward, giving investigators dozens of new leads.

That prompted an unusual decision, just before Siemens's annual general meeting on January 24th, to postpone a shareholders' vote of confidence in the managing board (the spotless Mr Löscher excluded, of course). A law firm hired by Siemens to investigate corruption said it had new information pertaining to the conduct and knowledge of people who “have served on the managing board during the past several years”. This is an awkward situation. There must be a presumption that Mr Löscher's fellow board members are blameless, but it is like climbing with a string of mountaineers, one of whom may conceivably have doctored the rope. “I have no information to suggest I should not have 100% confidence in my colleagues,” says Mr Löscher.

Meanwhile, there is a company to run

None of this seems to have dented Siemens's ability to make money and win new contracts—so far, at least. Most of its units met their target operating margins in the most recent quarter, and order books are fuller than they were a year ago. “It proves you can grow with compliant business,” says Mr Löscher. He has left in place his predecessor's strategy of exploiting two “megatrends”: demographic change (in particular, ageing in rich countries, which boosts demand for health-care technology) and urbanisation (which creates demand for power, water and transport infrastructure). Whatever the near-term effects of the credit crunch and an economic slowdown, these trends seem likely to continue for years to come. It is a good story, spun around a wide collection of businesses which analysts had long penalised with a conglomerate discount. Mr Löscher claims most analysts no longer apply this to Siemens.

He has performed a cosmetic restructuring, however, streamlining the organisation into three main divisions: industry, energy and health care. Having shed its mobile-phone and car-navigation divisions, Siemens is still trying to unload its networking arm: on February 26th it said 6,800 jobs would have to go to make the unit more palatable to potential buyers. Its bulbmaking and computer-services divisions may be next.

Siemens shareholders are generally pragmatic: they have been more concerned about streamlining the business than the corruption scandal. The share price has responded favourably to news of a share buy-back programme, and the announcement in January that Mr Löscher had spent €4m of his own money buying Siemens shares. His fellow board members promptly bought €1.5m-worth of shares themselves, suggesting that they too are confident in his ability to stop the rot.

REKOD BN TERBUKTI -- BERI SEMULA MANDAT DEMI MASA DEPAN KELUARGA -- ABDULLAH

Oleh Habibah Omar dan Rokiah Abdullah- Utusan Online

PULAU PINANG 6 Mac – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi meminta rakyat membuat penilaian bijak dan tepat bagi memastikan Barisan Nasional (BN) yang telah terbukti rekod perkhidmatannya, diberikan semula mandat pada Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12, Sabtu ini.

Perdana Menteri menegaskan, adalah penting rakyat berfikir secara mendalam sebelum mengundi kerana pilihan raya merupakan sesuatu yang amat penting dalam menjamin masa depan diri dan keluarga.

‘‘Jadi saya berharap rakyat Malaysia fikir habis-habis (mendalam), ia adalah penting untuk masa depan negara,” katanya pada sidang akhbar selepas Majlis Pelancaran Projek Rancangan Malaysia Kesembilan (RMK-9), Menaik Taraf dan Pembinaan Pusat Jantung dan Pembedahan Hospital Pulau Pinang di sini hari ini.

Hadir sama pada majlis itu ialah isterinya, Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah, Setiausaha Parlimen Kementerian Kesihatan, Datuk Lee Kah Choon dan Ketua Menteri, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon.

Pusat jantung yang berharga kira-kira RM110 juta itu dijangka siap dalam tempoh 12 bulan.

Menurut Abdullah, rakyat pelbagai kaum perlu memastikan wakil mereka memenangi pilihan raya kali ini supaya semua kaum mempunyai suara dalam Kabinet kerajaan BN.

Beliau tidak mahu kerajaan yang diwujudkan kelak terdiri daripada satu kaum sahaja. Katanya, wakil semua kaum termasuk orang Melayu, Cina, India, Kadazan, Dusun dan lain-lain perlu berada dalam jemaah menteri.

“Ini yang kita mahu dan barulah kerajaan menjadi kerajaan yang benar-benar mewakili rakyat. Suara rakyat daripada semua kaum dapat didengar dan disampaikan oleh mereka yang ada dalam Kabinet.

“Apa akan berlaku jika masyarakat Cina menarik undi mereka daripada BN, nanti tiada suara Cina yang mewakili mereka.

“Kehadiran mereka (dalam Kabinet) pun tidak ada. Itu yang akan berlaku. Macam mana hendak dilantik menjadi menteri kalau semua sudah kalah,” katanya.

Abdullah turut menceritakan pengalaman tidak ada wakil MCA dan MIC memenangi pilihan raya di Pulau Pinang pada Pilihan Raya Umum 1990 dan ketika itu baru penyokong MCA dan MIC daripada kaum Cina dan India merasai bahawa mereka tidak mempunyai wakil di Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN).

Pada pilihan raya itu, parti komponen BN iaitu UMNO memenangi 12 kerusi DUN, Gerakan tujuh, MCA dan MIC masing-masing tidak memenangi sebarang kerusi manakala DAP memperoleh 14 kerusi.

Bagi Abdullah, ketiadaan wakil parti komponen tertentu dalam Kabinet akan menimbulkan kepincangan terhadap gabungan parti pelbagai kaum tersebut.

“Bagi BN, kalau tidak ada wakil daripada parti komponen lain, tentulah ada satu kekurangan yang saya fikir tidak baik. Itu yang boleh saya katakan.

“Jadi saya harap rakyat akan fikir habis-habis tentang perkara ini. Ia sangat penting untuk masa depan rakyat Malaysia yang pelbagai kaum. Anda mahu lebih banyak suara di Parlimen atau anda mahu suara dalam Kabinet yang lebih berkesan dalam mewakili pandangan semua kaum,” katanya.

Ditanya bagaimana beliau melihat prestasi BN setelah 12 hari berkempen, Perdana Menteri yakin BN akan memenangi pilihan raya 8 Mac ini termasuk di dua negeri yang dianggap menghadapi persaingan sengit iaitu Kelantan dan Pulau Pinang.

Abdullah berkata, berdasarkan suara rakyat yang mahukan BN terus memerintah, beliau percaya BN akan diberikan mandat baru untuk menerajui negara.

“Boleh menang, boleh menang, insya-Allah boleh menang. Kita juga akan menang di Kelantan dan Pulau Pinang,” katanya.

Mengenai harga minyak selepas pilihan raya, beliau menjelaskan kerajaan akan sentiasa memantau perkembangan itu bagi memastikan rakyat tidak dibebankan dengan kenaikan lain yang tidak munasabah.

“Apa yang kita mahu ialah supaya rakyat tidak dibebankan dengan bayaran lain, itu kehendak kita namun dalam menghadapi kenaikan minyak, kita juga akan terus beri perhatian kepada usaha lain supaya rakyat tidak terbeban.

“Kalau kita tidak kawal, keadaan lagi teruk. Jadi apa yang dilakukan oleh kerajaan ialah memainkan peranan untuk membantu rakyat dengan memperkuatkan ekonomi serta meningkatkan bidang-bidang lain termasuk perniagaan dan latihan kemahiran,'' kata Abdullah.

DR M: NO REGRETS OVER ANWAR'S JAILING

Friday March 7, 2008-The Star Online ALOR STAR: Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad reiterated yesterday that he felt no guilt whatsoever over what happened to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. He said the video clip containing his remarks about the former deputy prime minister that had been distorted by the opposition to say he regretted the jailing of Anwar, was taken at a ceramah (political talk) he (Dr Mahathir) gave two years ago. “I was making some sarcastic remarks because there were still people who believed I was responsible for his jailing when the fact is, it was the court that found him guilty,” he said at his home in Kampung Titi Gajah here . He said that the Parti Keadilan Rakyat adviser was an opportunist and would use whatever means available to get what he wants. “Initially he wanted to join PAS. But when he saw he would get nowhere in that party, he asked to join Umno ... not that we invited him in ... I did not bring him into Umno. “Two days after joining he wanted to be the Youth leader, a year later vice-president and a year after that deputy president. I only got a chance to be an elected representative after 18 years in the party and a minister after 28 years. “I was willing to be patient but he wanted to become prime minister straight away and even got his boys to take swipes at me and accuse me of practising nepotism and cronyism when in fact, he was the one doing it,” he said. He said that now even his close friend Dr Chandra Muzaffar was criticising him when then, Chandra had taken Dr Mahathir to task for purportedly oppressing Anwar. Asked about his son Mukhriz’s chances in the Jerlun parliamentary seat in the election on Saturday, Dr Mahathir said Mukhriz’s chances were bright so long as he had the full support of Umno members. Mukhriz is up against PAS’ Idris Ahmad for the seat. – Bernama

HOW FAR THEY HAVE TRAVELLED

Mar 6th 2008 | BISHKEK AND ISTANBUL
From The Economist print edition

A Turkish-based movement, which sounds more reasonable than most of its rivals, is vying to be recognised as the world's leading Muslim network

Amberin Zaman

IT IS a long way from the Anatolian plains to a campus in the heart of London, where eminent scholars of religion deliver learned papers. And the highlands that used to form the Soviet border with China, an area where bright kids long for an education, seem far removed from a three-storey house in Pennsylvania, where a revered, reclusive teacher of Islam lives.

What links these places is one of the most powerful and best-connected of the networks that are competing to influence Muslims round the globe—especially in places far from Islam's heartland. The Pennsylvania-based sage, Fethullah Gulen, who stands at the centre of this network, has become one of the world's most important Muslim figures—not only in his native Turkey, but also in a quieter way in many other places: Central Asia, Indochina, Indonesia and Africa.

With his stated belief in science, inter-faith dialogue and multi-party democracy, Mr Gulen has
also won praise from many non-Muslim quarters. He is an intensely emotional preacher, whose tearful sermons seem to strike a deep chord in his listeners; but the movement he heads is remarkably pragmatic and businesslike.

As a global force, the Gulenists are especially active in education. They claim to have founded more than 500 places of learning in 90 countries. A conference they staged in London last October was co-hosted by four British universities, plus the House of Lords. Its organisers produced a slick 750-page volume that included all the conference papers.

In its homeland, the Gulen movement is seen as a counterweight to ultra-nationalism. But in places far from home, the movement has rather a Turkish nationalist flavour. In the former Soviet south, it fights the “Turkish” corner in areas where the cultures of Russia, China and Iran co-exist uneasily. “If you meet a polite Central Asian lad who speaks good English and Turkish, you know he went to a Gulen school,” says a Turkish observer. In Kyrgyzstan, for example, the movement runs a university and a dozen high schools, which excel in international contests. Even in Pakistan, pupils at Gulen schools learn Turkish songs, as well as benefiting from gleaming science labs.

Amazingly enough, the Gulen movement has built up a significant presence in northern Iraq, through schools, a hospital and (soon) a university. Although this arena of Turkish-Kurdish conflict is not the easiest environment for a Turkish-based institution, the movement has deftly built up relationships with all the region's ethnic and religious groups.

The influence that the Gulen movement has quietly accumulated would be a surprise to some veteran observers of Islam. Asked to name the world's most active Islamic network, many a pundit would think first of the Muslim Brotherhood, whose reach has extended a long way from Egypt, where it began in the 1920s as a movement of resistance to the twin evils of secularism and colonialism. And it remains true that in every Western country (including the United States) where Muslims are politically active, the influence of the brotherhood—or at least of movements that grew out it—is palpable.

Among the brotherhood's ideological affiliates is the biggest Muslim group in France; a federation that aims to co-ordinate Muslim activities all over Europe; and a “fatwa council” that offers moral guidance to European Muslims. In Britain, the pro-brotherhood camp has split between a pietist wing and a more political one, known as the British Muslim Initiative, which is now busy organising protests against Israeli actions in Gaza. On the face of things, the Gulen movement seems more benign—from a Western point of view—than either the brotherhood or any of the other networks that compete for a similar role. Although the brotherhood tells people to take full advantage of secular democracy, it also insists that the ideal form of administration is an Islamic one. The Gulenists say their embrace of democracy is wholehearted, not tactical. If there is one group of people who doubt this, it is secular Turks; many view the Gulenists as “chameleons” who only show their true, conservative face in deepest Anatolia.

Still, if the Gulen message is well received in the West, that is partly because the message from other Muslim networks (leaving aside the ones that openly espouse terror) is often so dark. Take, for example, Hizb ut-Tahrir (Party of Liberation), which is active in at least 40 countries, including Britain and Australia. Its line is that Muslims should eschew electoral democracy altogether, on the ground that the only regime worth supporting is a global caliphate. Its maximalist stance, and the solidarity it proclaims with embattled Muslims across the world, can appeal to impressionable students. Yet another competitor is an Islamic revivalist movement, Tablighi Jamaat, rooted in south Asia but active in Africa and Europe, especially Britain. Compared with all these groups, the Gulen movement offers a message to young Muslims that sounds more positive: it tells them to embrace the Western world's opportunities, while still insisting on Islam's fundamentals.

This measured tone has won the Gulenists many admirers. But that does not mean that all Western governments automatically accept the movement's claims of moderation. “We know we are under surveillance from Western security services,” laments a Gulenist insider. That is quite true, but so far those services have not detected any hidden ties with extremism.

ANWAR SAMAN DR CHANDRA RM10 JUTA

Adalah di laporkan dalam The Sun Online 7 Marc 2008 bahawa Penasihat PKR Anwar Ibrahim telah menyaman malu bekas Timbalan Presiden Parti Keadilan Nasional (PKN) Dr Chandra Muzzafar sebanyak RM10 juta bila Dr Chandra enggan memohon maaf atau menarik balik kenyataan-kenyataannya terhadap Anwar.

Chandra menurut The Sun adalah seorang dari lima orang ahli panel forum umum mengenai Pilihan Raya Umum 12 telah berkata pada hari Isnin lalu bahawa "adalah satu bencana besar kepada Malaysia sekiranya Anwar menjadi Perdana Menteri".

"Apa yang saya katakan itu adalah berlandaskan fakta-fakta dan maklumat yang ada pada saya" kata Dr Chandra dalam satu kenyataan akhbarnya semalam selepas Anwar mengugut akan menyamanya.

Lanjutan dari saman tersebut blogger ini ingin bertanya siapa lagi yang akan di saman oleh Anwar kerana mengeluarkan kenyataan terhadap dirinya? Mungkinkah giliran sahabat baik tenisnya Dato Nalla Karuppan pula akan disaman? Nalla juga baru-baru ini ada membuat kenyataan mengenai diri dan perlakuan Anwar.

AWAS POLITIK PERKAUMAN DAP

Oleh ZULKIFLI JALIL dan HABIBAH OMAR-Utusan Online

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi diiringi Musa Aman (kiri) bersalaman dengan ribuan warga Keningau yang ingin berjumpa dengan pemimpin tertinggi negara itu semasa menghadiri majlis penutupan Pameran Bergerak Program Yayasan Sabah Bersama Rakyat dan Roadshow Koridor Pembangunan Sabah (SDC) di Dewan Masyarakat Keningau Sabah, semalam.

PULAU PINANG 5 Mac – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi mengingatkan masyarakat Cina tentang bahaya politik perkauman yang dimainkan oleh DAP kerana ia boleh memecahbelahkan perpaduan rakyat negara ini.

Perdana Menteri berkata, beliau menyedari sepanjang kempen Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12, parti pembangkang itu gemar menghasut satu kaum supaya membenci kaum lain serta cuba mempengaruhi kaum India dan Cina supaya jangan menyokong UMNO.

‘‘Dalam beberapa waktu ini, parti pembangkang mula main politik perkauman, nak ‘cucuk’, nak bagi pecah (negara).

‘‘Jadi, saya mahu ingatkan bahawa bukan orang Melayu bagi Cina susah, bukan India, tapi DAP main politik perkauman Cina. Saya tidak boleh terima politik macam ini,” katanya.

Abdullah berkata demikian ketika berucap di hadapan 5,000 penduduk Cina pada Majlis Malam Satu Hati Bersama Rakyat di Jalan Padang Tembak, Air Itam di sini malam ini.

Hadir sama ialah isteri beliau, Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah; Presiden MCA, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting; Pemangku Presiden Gerakan, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon dan Penasihat Gerakan, Datuk Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik.

Sentimen perkauman yang dimainkan oleh DAP sepanjang kempen pilihan raya kali ini begitu ketara dengan parti itu mempengaruhi pengundi kononnya mereka bukan mahu menafikan majoriti MCA dan Gerakan di Pulau Pinang tetapi mahu melemahkan kekuatan UMNO.

Abdullah menegaskan, berbanding DAP, BN mahu memastikan konsep perkongsian kuasa dinikmati rakyat pelbagai kaum bagi menentukan negara terus aman, makmur dan stabil.

Beliau menarik perhatian bagaimana UMNO terus mempertahankan konsep perkongsian kuasa itu ketika parti Gerakan yang menerajui kepimpinan Pulau Pinang tewas teruk pada Pilihan Raya Umum 1990.

‘‘Pada 1990, kekuatan Gerakan hanya tinggal tujuh kerusi Dewan Undangan Negeri, MCA dan MIC kosong (tidak memenangi sebarang kerusi), manakala UMNO meraih 12 kerusi.

‘‘(Ada yang cakap) bahawa inilah masanya untuk UMNO mengambil jawatan Ketua Menteri.

‘‘Tapi saya cakap tidak, sebab muafakat kita dulu ialah jawatan Ketua Menteri ini mesti daripada kalangan orang Cina sebab mereka penduduk majoriti di Pulau Pinang dan ia harus datang daripada parti Gerakan.

‘‘Dan ketika itu Ketua Menteri yang dipilih ialah Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon,” jelas beliau.

Soal Perdana Menteri: ‘‘Siapa kata UMNO tamak, UMNO jahat dan UMNO dominan? Kita tidak pernah macam itu. UMNO hidup sebab ia adil kepada semua (kaum).”

Sebab itulah, kata Abdullah, beliau cukup hairan apabila Setiausaha Agung DAP, Lim Guan Eng secara tiba-tiba mahu bertanding di Pulau Pinang pada pilihan raya umum kali ini.

‘‘Guan Eng dari mana... Melaka, dia tinggalkan negeri itu dan datang ke sini. Nak minta sokongan rakyat Pulau Pinang... bolehkah saudara-saudari?” soalnya sambil disambut oleh hadirin: ‘‘Tidak boleh, tidak boleh.’’

Perdana Menteri berkata, penduduk Pulau Pinang pasti tidak mahu diperbodoh-bodohkan oleh Guan Eng yang sebenarnya cuba mengambil kesempatan seolah- olah dia memperjuangkan nasib dan masa depan penduduk negeri ini.

ANWAR TIDAK BERTANGGUNGJAWAB - ABDULLAH

Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi bersama isteri, Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah dengan wajah ceria melambai tangan bersama-sama pemimpin-pemimpin Gerakan (dari kiri) Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye, Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon dan Datuk Dr. Teng Hock Nan (kanan) semasa Malam Satu Hati Bersama Rakyat di Padang Tembak, Pulau Pinang semalam. – Gambar SAZALI CHE DIN.

PULAU PINANG 5 Mac-Utusan Online – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi berkata, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim bukan pemimpin tulen kerana tindak-tanduknya menunjukkan beliau seorang yang tidak bertanggungjawab.

Perdana Menteri berkata, Penasihat Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) itu telah ditolak oleh UMNO yang menunjangi Barisan Nasional (BN).

‘‘Dia tidak penting kepada saya, tidak penting kepada UMNO. Dia tidak ada kawan dalam UMNO sebab itu dia lawan UMNO.

‘‘Dia nak cuba balik (sertai) dalam UMNO... no way. Kita mempunyai pemimpin yang cukup untuk mengetuai UMNO. Tidak payah tunggu dia balik, biar dia cari kawan daripada kalangan pembangkang.

‘‘Dengan UMNO cakap lain, dengan orang lain cakap lain, semua dia nak untung,’’ kata Abdullah ketika berucap di hadapan 5,000 penduduk Cina pada Majlis Malam Satu Hati Bersama Rakyat di Jalan Padang Tembak, Air Itam di sini malam ini.

Menurut Abdullah, Anwar sebenarnya gemar menabur janji kosong dan bukanlah pemimpin yang boleh dipercayai oleh rakyat negara ini.

‘‘Kalau kita (BN) berjanji, kita akan tunaikan. Itulah BN yang merupakan barisan tulen dan mendukung prinsip satu hati, satu tujuan, satu negara,’’ katanya.

Sementara itu, dalam ucapannya ketika berkempen di Keningau, Sabah, Abdullah tidak menolak kemungkinan perancangan yang dibuatnya semasa menjadi Menteri Pelajaran dahulu tidak diteruskan oleh Anwar yang menggantikannya.

Beliau berkata, pemimpin pembangkang itu mungkin tidak mahu warga pendidikan mengingati jasa dan pembaharuan yang cuba dilakukannya.

‘‘Semasa saya Menteri Pelajaran dahulu didapati banyak sangat skim guru yang menyebabkan satu-satu skim itu mencapai tahap gaji maksimum terlalu awal dan selepas itu gaji tidak boleh naik lagi.

‘‘Oleh itu saya merangka skim yang lebih baik, tetapi selepas dilantik sebagai Menteri Pertahanan dan diganti oleh Anwar, dia lupakan. Akibatnya yang rugi adalah guru-guru kerana kita bertujuan membaiki nasib guru,” katanya.