Tag: Politics

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1MDB:The RM42b Is There

Media statement by Arul Kanda, 1MDB President and Group Executive Director

Issued on 3 June 2015
For immediate publication

RM42 Billion All Accounted For.
“In recent weeks, there has been much speculation about the use of RM 42 billion of debt raised by 1MDB, and more specifically that RM 27 billion of debt proceeds are alleged to be “lost” or “missing”. We provide a summary of what the RM42 billion debt has been used for, information that is fully disclosed in 1MDB’s audited and publicly available accounts from 31 March 2010 to 31 March 2014. We trust this clarification will help to clear any confusion on this matter.”

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Companies And Debts

I’m again sharing this with you:

1MDB:
Jumlah Hutang: RM42 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM50 Billion

CIMB:
Jumlah Hutang: RM398 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM438 Billion

Tenaga Nasional Berhad:
Jumlah Hutang: RM66 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM113 Billion

Sime Darby:
Jumlah Hutang: RM29 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM59 Billion

Gamuda:
Jumlah Hutang: RM5 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM11 Billion

Malakoff:
Jumlah Hutang: RM25 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM29 Billion

IJM:
Jumlah Hutang: RM9 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM19 Billion

About RM8b of the RM42b debt by 1MDB was inherited when 1MDB took over all those IPPs.

These RM8b are also project financing for the IPP and covered by the IPPs cash flow.

I guess many have forgotten the facts above.

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1MDB, IPP et al

I find this a must-share:

Eol Zari
1MDB : A PERSONAL VIEW

E. Zari 18 May 2015.

In the past, I have not said much about the controversial issue surrounding 1MDB. Why 1MDB? What are the roles of 1MDB and its contributions to our national economy? I have been keeping this information to myself for sometimes as I feel it may not be the right time to share with my esteemed readers. However, today I was taken by the information transmitted to me by my close friend. This piece of information is similar to the one which I have been keeping all this while.

I am convinced that this is a non-biased piece of information. Being a LNG Consultant and in the course of my works, I have the opportunity to interact with PETRONAS, TNB, TNB Fuel, PEMANDU, Energy Commission and other known organizations for nearly 3 years from 2011. I help to educate the personnel from PEMANDU, TNB, Energy Commission on the new source of energy – Liquefied Natural Gas as a feed for the power plants and city gas.

My area of specialization is energy. I was once a principal specialist in LNG shipping operations in PETRONAS. I have spent 35 years of my career in this field. Energy is the life blood for infrastructures development and this is a major ingredient for our country in achieving economic progress to become a developed nation.

I leave it to my esteemed readers to interpret on what I have outlined. After all we are human and I expect each and every one of us to have their own views.

Back in 1990s, Malaysia introduced the concept of Independent Power Plant (IPP) for electricity generation. This initiative was under our former Prime Minister, Tun Mahathir. The main players who owned the IPPs were Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar, YTL group, Genting and Anand Krishnan. Sime Darby was also one of them but being a Government linked company not much attention was given. These players got the most attractive deal and it was a one sided. The former chairman of TNB, the late Tan Sri Ani Arope, a man of integrity refused to sign the agreements and he voluntarily resigned in protest.

The opposition parties took the Government to task for granting a one sided deal. They argued that it was a “crony’s agreement” and questioned the needs for the Government to grant substantial subsidy to the IPPs. Even in May 2011, one of the opposition members regarded these IPPs as “a major drug factory” that required substantial subsidy from the Government of estimated RM19 billion a year.

In the mid-2011, I was taken as a LNG Consultant to look into the possibility of importing LNG through the Malacca Regas Terminal at Sungei Udang. This terminal is an open gate similar to the one I used to do in United Kingdom – the Dragon LNG Regas Terminal located at Milford Haven in Wales. The Sungei Udang’s LNG Regas Terminal is owned by PETRONAS and the imported LNG is vaporized as gas to flow into the PGU pipelines. This is in view of the insufficient domestic gas from the East Coast of about 950 mmscfd. TNB requires about 1350 mmscfd. The capacity of Sungei Udang is about 500mmscfd or equivalent to about 40 cargoes of imported LNG via the Q Flex LNG ship of capacity 210,000 m3 each.

Actually, I am humble to note that the concept of the floating LNG storage using two of our old LNG ships with an island jetty, the first in the world was mooted by me to the CEO of PETRONAS Gas the ownership of this project. This idea came by while discussing with him in the car on the way to Narita Airport from Tokyo. With this idea, PETRONAS saved for not doing the dredging and a greenfield shore LNG storage which costs would be very substantial.

As a result of the marked disparity between imported LNG and domestic gas price, TNB who earned a thin margin from the IPPs was not able to absorb this disparity in prices and therefore was not able to buy the gas from the imported LNG directly. Ultimately, PETRONAS has to be the importer and therefore a subsidizer.

Under PM Najib, a company, My Power was formed by the Government to initiate renegotiation with the IPPs for a balanced deal. Thereafter, 1MDB purchased the IPP from Ananda in March 2012 and followed by the purchase of Genting in August 2012. Subsequently, in October 2012, Energy Commission announced the decision on the concessionaries agreement with the IPPs. As outlined in this agreement, there is no further extension of concession for the IPP owned by Ananda and also new concessions for the other three IPPs. Only new concessions are to be given to 1MDB and TNB. This new arrangement will ensure that private companies will not earn excessively at the expense of Government’s subsidy.

As a result of the mistake done since 1990s, for the past 20 years an approximate of about RM100 billion was lost by PETRONAS and TNB because of this inferior deal. Actually, credit should be given to PM Najib, Energy Commission and 1MDB for saving our country from this excessive subsidy granted to these favored companies from the earlier regime. To me credit should be given to whom it is due.

Actually, the rates of tariff for consumers for Peninsular Malaysia should be increased by July 2014 and January 2015 under the Fuel Cost Pass Through (FCPT). But it was never increase because the new revised agreement was improved and was more attractive and balanced to TNB, the final purchaser. Instead, the electricity tariff was reduced from March 2015 due to the reduction of coal prices and the reduction of tariff of these IPPs.

Under this new arrangement, TNB started to register substantial profit from 2013, 2014 and the first quarter of 2015. It records a profit of RM2.3 billion in the first 3 months of 2015. Therefore, with this revised arrangement the benefactors are:

1. TNB registers higher profit,

2. The Malaysian consumers benefit from lower tariff partly due to the reduction of oil prices.

3. PETRONAS will not have to incur higher subsidy which in the past benefit only these private companies, and

4. Consumers of electricity are the ultimate winner.

The losers are the original owners of the IPPs. And this may be the reasons why they are not happy with 1MDB and PM Najib even from the senior members of UMNO.

The issue of Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) and the purchase of land by Tabung Haji is insignificant compared with the amount saved by the revision of the agreement initiated by the present Government.

On the other side of the coin, there are allegations by the oppositions for the misused of fund by 1MDB, the role played by Jholow, the disappearance of proceeds from the Petro Saudi investment and latest the controversial sale of a piece of land of about 1.5 acres for RM188 million to Tabung Haji’s subsidiary. These issues started late last year when 1MDB was not able to raise enough fund to pay their loan installment.

The issue is now further twisted and makes it looked as though 1MDB is losing RM44 billion which is not the case. Actually, 1MDB does not lost RM44 billion. What it lost will be the substantial amount of loan repayments which they have to dig from somewhere because of the reversed operating leverage. Temporarily, their current income is not able to cover the loans and other expenses. However, given time they will be able to reverse this situation. Additionally, because of this bad publicity it is feared that Deutsche Bank may request for early settlement as 1MDB is not able to secure additional collateral. We should refrain from speculating further pending the outcome of the Auditor General’s findings which will be available the latest by end June 2015.

Other personalities including the prominent lawyer and former minister, Zaid Ibrahim commented that as the Chairman of 1MDB, Najib should stand up and face this by responding to the allegations. The Chairman of CIMB, who is Najib’s younger brother, during the luncheon meeting also asserted that the Chairman of the Board and its members of 1MDB to do the same.
Continue reading “1MDB, IPP et al”

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Marital Rape: Congrats To Allah’s Soldiers

Much have been said about sex in Islam lately, from both Muslims and non-Muslims alike.  This came about when Yeo Bee Yin, the state assemblywoman  for Damansara Utama championed a campaign on rape awareness with the tagline, “Without her consent, it is rape. No excuse.”  This is seen by some as an attack on Islam where there is no such thing as marital rape. No, there is no such thing as a marital rape in Islam, but there are guidelines on the sexual relationship between husbands and wives.  The Quran has more than 20 verses outlining the dos and don’ts between husbands and wives.  While the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has been quoted as saying that a wife has to submit to a husband’s sexual needs even while they are riding the back of a camel as mentioned by the Mufti of Perak, Islam recognizes the women’s need for love, affection and foreplay.  Imam Ibn al-Qayyim reported in his famous “Tibbun Nabawi” that the Prophet (pbuh) forbade in engaging in sexual intercourse before foreplay (al-Tibb an-Nabawi 183, from Jabir ibn Abdullah).

The issue above has caught the attention of many up to the point that non-Muslims are ridiculing Muslims and Islamic practices on the social media.  What drove Yeo Bee Yin, a Christian with known affiliation to the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship, to come up with such a campaign tagline is beyond me.  A simpler “Protect Women From Rape“, or “Say No To Rape“, or “Women Expect Men To Protect Them From Rape” would have been more acceptable, instead of creating the perception that Muslims are barbarians whose main reason of existence is to be able to cum as many times as they can in a day.  Perhaps, in her subtle way, Bee Yin was trying to undermine the sanctity of Islam as the Religion of the Federation as stipulated in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia.  I will let you decide that on your own.  Maybe Bee Yin et al should also highlight what else God had said about sexual intercourse and how barbaric a religion can be:

1.  For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. (Remember women, you are your husband’s property)

2. Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love.

3. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. (So, wives should not say no to sexual advances by the husbands).

4. The sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine (if you follow this, no semen would have penetrated by 4cm).

5. If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. (Death to gay men).

6. Now therefore, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man by lying with him. But all the young girls who have not known man by lying with him keep alive for yourselves. (Young girls? Is this Islamic? Oh, but Muhammad married a child!)

Now from which verses of the Quran did I pick those up?

1. 1 Corinthians 7:4

2. Proverbs 5:18-19

3. 1 Corinthians 7:5

4. 1 Timothy 1:10

5. Leviticus 20:13

6. Numbers 31:17-18

Perhaps the Christian Evangelists want to have a look at their own backside backyard first before commenting on others’? Once that is done then Bee Yin can again congratulate Allah’s soldiers.

STOP USING RELIGION TO MASK YOUR POLITICAL AMBITIONS, YEO BEE YIN!

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The Bittersweet Alliance – Part 1

The philosopher Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás or George Santayana once said that those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.  The recurrence of history is part of life’s cycle, but always in different forms.  Those who do not remember how certain historical lows were handled are bound to make even bigger mistakes.

 

Recently, there was a furor following the statement made by UMNO’s Ismail Sabri , the Agriculture and Agro-Based Industries Minister, asking consumers to boycott greedy Chinese businesses.  While it is normal to hear the communal-party-disguised-as-a-non-communal-party DAP lashing out at Ismail Sabri, the call by MCA’s Youth Chief, Chong Sin Woon, for the sacking of Ismail Sabri did not go down well with UMNO and 92 Divisions of the latter rallied behind Ismail asking for Sin Woon to be sacked instead.

 

While I refuse to indulge in a debate over what was said by Ismail Sabri, there is a need for consumers to boycott profiteering businesses who whine about high cost of fuel and pressured the government to allow them to increase the price of their services, but refused to lower prices when the price of fuel has gone down by half.  What I am more interested in is the bittersweet alliance between UMNO and MCA, and how history is repeating itself.

 

While the movement for the independence of Malaya had started decades before, there was no cohesion between races. In 1946 when the Malayan Union was formed, the republican-in-nature Partai Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya (PKMM) and the non-Malay Malayan Democratic Union (MDU) were quick to support the formation.  The PKMM, a spin-off from the Batavia-leaning KMM of Ibrahim Yaacob, was all for a Malaya not ruled by the Malay Rulers, while the MDU liked the idea of automatic citizenship (read more in Seademon’s The Road To Merdeka: Persekutuan Tanah China ) for the immigrants. On 1st March 1946, more than 40 Malay organisations met up and 41 decided to form the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) to champion the Malay rights.  The Malays were then a minority in his own land, poor, sidelined from economic development, health care and formal education.  With the help and encouragement of the then-British High Commissioner, Sir Henry Gurney, the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) was formed on the 27th February, 1949. Gurney aimed at winning the allegiance of the Chinese community away from the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) (Colonial Office Record 537/773(1) Memorandum by Henry Gurney, 28th January, 1949).

 

There was apprehension and distrust between the Malays and Chinese.  The alienation of the Malays by Chinese mining tycoons and rubber estate owners, followed by the preference of the Japanese of the Malays over the immigrant Chinese, and this in turn followed by retribution against the Malays by Chinese sympathizers of the CPM after the Japanese surrender have had contributed enormously to this animosity between the two.

 

It was since 1950 that Henry Gurney had wanted to introduce some form of democracy to Malaya through elections to satisfy the public’s hunger for democracy versus the communist’s way of winning self-government.  Alas, he was only a High Commissioner and still had to go through the true rulers of the Federation of Malaya – The Malay Rulers.  So, during the 10th Malay Rulers Meeting on the 22nd and 23rd February, 1950, Gurney presented his recommendation, only to be met with reluctance of the Malay Rulers.  In the minutes of meeting, the Sultan of Kedah stated his reservation:

 

“The most important prerequisite for democracy is education. Without enlightened public opinion a democratic system of Government will be liable to unsteadiness or even confusion and chaos. One danger is that it may be transformed into a single party government through a few skilled electioneers working among the apathetic population and this will work towards dictatorship.” (Colonial Office Records 537/6025(1))

 

The Malays, as mentioned above, were left behind educationally and may not know what is best for them.  For the same reason the PKMM and MDU were in full support of the Malayan Union four years prior to this event.  And whatever the outcome, the Malays would have ended up the biggest losers if no one champions their rights. Noted William L Holland in “Nationalism in Malaya” (WL Holland, 1953):

 

“There was already Malay discontent in the pre-war period over the poor economic position vis-a-vis the Chinese and Indians. Malay peasants and fishermen, noted S.H Silcock and Ungku Aziz, were dependent on Chinese middlemen while Malays worked as messengers in offices where Chinese and Indians were clerks.”

 

The phrases made bold above by me, still holds true today and became the basis of Ismail Sabri’s main grouse against profiteering businessmen.

 

Gurney had to bring about some form of democratic self-rule that would benefit all races.  Separately he discussed on numerous occasions with both MCA and Dato’ Onn and impressed upon them that self-rule would only happen if there is a closer relations between the communities (The Making of the Malayan Constitution, Joseph M Fernando, 2002, Page 15).  Gurney was all for the promotion of Sino-Malay talks to tackle long-term problems.  Gurney minuted the following:

 

“The outstanding issues at that stage were citizenship and the economic backwardness of the Malays.  The Chinese leaders sought a more liberalised citizenship than those contained in the 1948 Federation of Malaya Agreement.  Onn meanwhile , had approached the Colonial Office to secure financial assistance for the Malays.” (Colonial Office Records 537/773(1))

 

Onn Jaafar, however, was more open towards a better relationship between the Malays and other races if UMNO was to achieve the long-term ambition of self-governing the nation.  In the UMNO annual general meeting in Arau, Perlis, on the 28th May 1949, he said in his speech:

 

It is absolutely important for the Malays to obtain closer ties with the other people in this country.  It is time for us to take the view wider than the kampung view.  I ask of you, which will you choose, peace or chaos, friendship or enmity?” (Straits Times, 29th May, 1949)

 

It was at this meeting that UMNO had agreed to accept non-Malays as associate members.  Two years later, in June 1951, Onn went a step further by proposing that UMNO should open its doors to the non-Malays, and that UMNO be renamed the “United Malayan National Organisation.”  While the top echelon of the party was supportive of this idea, the grassroot felt it was too radical.  The bitterness resulting from the years of resentment and occasional interracial violence were too new for them to accept the non-Malays into their political fold.  As a result, Onn left UMNO to form a new party called the Independence of Malaya Party (IMP) despite Gurney’s insistence that the former should remain in UMNO.  Onn gambled that UMNO would fall apart and would rally behind him.  Instead, UMNO rallied behind its new leader, Tunku Abdul Rahman, who sought to retain and strengthen UMNO’s communal organisational structure.  The Tunku also threatened to expel from UMNO any member that joins or had joined the IMP (Straits Times, 18th September, 1951).

 

The MCA meanwhile remained a loose association of both “neutral” Chinese and the hardcore sympathizers of the CPM.  Gurney had felt that the MCA had not gained much support from the Chinese community and the CPM sympathizers especially to help bring about a speedy end of the First Emergency.  The Perak MCA Chairman, Leong Yew Koh, wrote to Cheng Lock on 1st June, 1950:

 

“Although the Perak MCA membership is 40,000 strong, the branch is a mere basin of loose sand.” (Tan Cheng Lock Papers, ISEAS Singapore, Folio IX)

 

Cheng Lock was quick to suggest that the MCA should become more political in order to better represent the Chinese:

 

“The MCA should not exist only for the limited, though vital, purpose of the meeting the emergency.  It is a living institution which should consolidate itself on a strong and broad democratic foundation, in order that it may be ready to play a part in Malaya of the future as well as the present.” (Colonial Office Records 1022/176)

 

Thus, the stage is set for two political giants to go against each other for political power, after which we will see whether it was the Tunku or not who played the pivotal role in making the alliance between UMNO and MCA come true.

 

Stay tuned.

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Reduced To Ranks

An Indian man displays the indelible ink mark on his finger after casting his vote in Mumbai India - source www.dailymail.co.uk
An Indian man displays the indelible ink mark on his finger after casting his vote in Mumbai India – source http://www.dailymail.co.uk

Another Air Force personnel has been punished after being found guilty of more or less the same case as former Major Zaidi Ahmad. Quoting an unnamed source, the Malaysian Insider reported that Flight Sergeant Jamal Ibrahim “…was not brought to court but was still punished for the alleged offence,” something that I find outrageously absurd.  However, coming from the Malaysian Insider, I am not at all surprised.

The source said Jamal was given an option whether to fight his case in the martial court or be tried by the commanding officer and he chose the latter.
Before this gets blown by idiots who do not understand the system, first of all, whiners should not join the Armed Forces.  If you have problems following orders, get a pound for yourself at the SPCA or at a similar organisation.  Secondly, people are already starting to say that Zaidi’s dismissal from the service versus Jamal’s reduction of rank reeks of political arm twisting.
Zaidi was an officer. Jamal is not.  An officer holds the King’s Commission, an enlisted man does not.  An enlisted man’s rank is given by the service chief. An officer up to the rank of Captain gets his promotion from the Armed Forces Council, while Major and above get it from the King himself, as recommended by the Armed Forces Council.  Which is why you no longer have promotions exams once you have attained the rank of a Major.
So why was Zaidi tried by a court-martial and not given the option to be tried by his Commanding Officer like Jamal?  Why the harsh treatment?
Section 96 (1) of the Armed Forces Act, 1972 clearly states the following:
After investigating a charge against a commissioned officer below the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel or its equivalent, or against a Warrant Officer may, if an Authority has powers under the following provisions of this Part to deal with it summarily, be so dealt with by that Authority in accordance with those provisions
So, why didn’t that authority deal with Zaidi summarily?  Firstly, Zaidi did not have a Commanding Officer. He WAS the Commanding Officer. Furthermore, Section 89 (7) of the Act also mentions that “where an officer is sentenced to imprisonment, he is also sentenced to be dismissed with disgrace from His Majesty’s service.”  As only His Majesty has the power to dismiss an officer, only a Court-Martial could try him.
Jamal on the other hand is a serviceman. A non-commissioned officer. Not even an Appointed Officer or a Warrant Officer, let along a Commissioned Officer.  His Commanding Officer has the choice of giving him lesser punishments as prescribed by the Act including detention of not more than 90 days, or anything lesser.  He was also, at the beginning of his summary trial by the Commanding Officer, be given the choice of either being tried by a court-martial, or by his Commanding Officer.  We know he chose the latter. The normal proceeding would follow, in accordance to the law, with the unit’s Adjutant advising.  On arraignment, he will be read the charge according to the charge sheet and asked for his plea.  I would expect Jamal to plead guilty, given that that would give him a lesser punishment.  With his service taken into consideration, the Commanding Officer gave him the lesser punishment of reduction of rank (demotion, for those not well read) when it could have been any number of days in a gazetted detention center.
So, there you go.  No one was given a harsher treatment.  Everyone was given due process according to the law.  Now, please stop politicising the Armed Forces. That kind of thing is only done by anarchists bent on sowing the seeds of a civil war, unless you are one.
And for those in the Armed Forces, if you think you cannot serve the country apolitically, get out at the earliest opportunity you can get and once you get your NRIC, go ahead and peddle your political agenda.
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Do You Choose A Person Who Is A Populist, Or One Who Can Actually Work?

It is interesting how time and time again we, our ASEAN neighbours included, vote in or root for people who are popular rather than people who can actually do the job. The Philippines had Cory Aquino, Eric Estrada; Indonesia had Gus Dur (Abdurrahman Wahid). In Malaysia, we have people rooting for Anwar Ibrahim despite the comical and absurd nature of his “struggle” to become a Prime Minister come what may. What is more absurd and even funnier was the populist campaign designed by Najib Razak’s consultants to paint a popular image of the incumbent.

And that failed badly.

So, what do we Malaysian people actually want? Someone who wins on a big popularity ticket, or someone who can actually work, proven to have truly serviced his/her constituency and not just offer lip service?

Indonesia now has Joko Widodo. See one person’s observations of him before and after the elections and see how the same reflects many politicians here in Malaysia.

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The Drama King

The Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) which is a component party of the ruling Barisan Nasional is at loggerheads with the Registrar of Societies as the latter had detected irregularities in the MIC party elections. As such, the RoS had instructed the MIC to hold another party elections or something to that effect. The party’s President, G Palanivel has thus far disobeyed the RoS instruction.

Enter the party’s Secretary-General, Kumaar Aamaan, who some say is the illegal Sec-Gen given that the RoS did not recognise the party elections thus rendering all appointees illegal. He went to the RoS office and went on a hunger strike:

2015/01/img_1318.jpg

He also declared that he would fast until his last breath:

2015/01/img_1324.png

Then he said because of his hunger strike, he received a death threat:

2015/01/img_1323.png

Now, why would anyone bent on dying for his cause feel threatened by a death threat? It does sound funny, doesn’t it?

I really think he was feeling very hungry at that point:

2015/01/img_1326.jpg

And just as I thought he would sit there through the weekend in front of the RoS office, all skin and bones, came the shocking news:

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SAY WHAT???? You said you were going to fast until your last breath! Are you hungry?

2015/01/img_1334.jpg

That is the Drama King who has turned the much-respected MIC into another lawless DAP. If you think that that’s funny, wait until the next bomb I am about to drop:

WHERE ARE THOSE BN PEOPLE WHO MADE SO MUCH NOISE ABOUT THE DAP DISOBEYING THE INSTRUCTION FROM THE ROS LAST YEAR? WHY HAVE THEY ALL GONE SILENT?

Now you may laugh and wonder.

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The Final Curtain?

Another former Minister has spoken out at Najib Razak’s apparent use of Anwar Ibrahim to attack his opponents. Former Minister, Sanusi Junid, has hinted that if Najib does not step down now, UMNO and BN will suffer.

Anwar, who has been in TV3’s bad books, and who also issued a general ban on broadcast journalists from that station to cover any of his or PKR’s events, has been given full attention by the station to lambast Najib’s opponents within UMNO.

Najib, who took over the helm of both UMNO and BN from a weak predecessor, is seen by the public as a weaker Prime Minister. That the BN fared as bad as or worse than GE12 in the last general elections says a lot about his leadership. While he does try to have a hands-on approach on many things which is good, his policies and decisions made seem to lack any prior thoughts, begging the public to ask if it is really Najib’s consultants who do the thinking while Najib just read the scripts and smile or frown as directed.

I, for one, don’t give much thought on the political squabbles. I am more concerned with those who incessantly try to run down the country; but this latest tiff between Najib and his critiques started off with the 1MDB fiasco, and it seems that someone has unearthed the leadership’s Pandora Box.

Who after Najib is none of my concern. Whoever commands majority support of UMNO with the blessing of the component parties in BN should be able to lead. However, the UMNO tradition (budaya) of never to shine before your leader does ought to be done away with. I was told that during the recent floods, although the Deputy Prime Minister was in town while many including the Prime Minister were away shopping or golfing abroad, the former did not act swiftly until instructed to do so. How true this is, I don’t know but if so, it truly is damaging that you cannot decide as a Deputy Prime Minister on behalf of the Prime Minister who was away golfing. “Mana boleh! Ini budaya UMNO!” said the person to my father when asked why did the Deputy Prime Minister not act since the Prime Minister was on holiday abroad.

Najib could easily have called for an impromptu press conference to announce that the DPM was to head the disaster management team while he had to golf with Obama to discuss pressing matters. There was a whole army of foreign press there that he could have used to convey the message to worried Malaysians, but he did not. Was he waiting for his consultants to come up with a script and a set of more acceptable wardrobe?

It was equally bad that (I’m very sure it was his consultants who prepared this line) Najib made only the home and business insurance issue as THE reason for not declaring an emergency in the flood-stricken states. There was a bunch of other stronger reasons that could have been used, but maybe his consultants thought it was best to use the insurance issue as that was more personal for flood victims. Well, it backfired. Miserably! Adding insult to injury, the disaster-relief operation was like a dumbstruck Medusa. Every agency was doing its own thing with no clear command and control until much later. Given that the head of the National Security Council is an administrator rather than a field man, and has had no experience managing disasters, with the Prime Minister being abroad, things did not move as they should have.

Anyway, I have digressed from the issue of Najib’s quarrel with his detractors. But I think Najib’s continuous display of dishing out half-baked policies and display of desperately holding on to the Premiership simply means that he is no Tun Razak, who was brilliant in character and leadership that even political dinosaurs like Lim Kit Siang misses him, and Dyana Samad remembers Tun Razak’s superb leadership although she was still swimming inside her father’s balls when the Tun died.

UMNO needs to evolve and revamp itself in order to stay relevant in the next general elections. But first, it needs a serious change in leadership.