THREATENING MINARETS

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 

1. Switzerland has decided that Muslim mosques in that country would not be allowed to have minarets. It seems that minarets would overwhelm the Swiss.

2. I wonder what would happen in Malaysia if Hindu temples are not allowed to have statues, for example. I think there would be an explosion. The whole world will condemn us as being undemocratic, not respecting human rights, not upholding religious freedom etc.

3. But when the Swiss bans minarets (there are only four minarets in the whole of Switzerland) and the French ban headscarves, these are very democratic. Always double standards and unfortunately the discrimination is always against Muslims.

4. Mr Obama, the Nobel Laureate President of the United States of America who promised to get out of Iraq and Afghanistan and close Guantanamo Detention Camp, have not honoured even a single word of his promises.

5. In fact more soldiers have been sent by him to Afghanistan and Iraq. He is now preparing to attack Iran together with his ally, Israel.

6. There will be excuses of course. They will show evidence that Iran is making nuclear bombs and is about to launch nuclear war against the world.

7. But after the evidence that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction to justify the invasion of that country, can we believe that the attack against Iran is due to the imminent nuclear attack by that country???

AL-QURAN DAN YAYASAN RESTU

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Yayasan Restu adalah sebuah badan bukan Kerajaan yang giat dalam pengeluaran Al-Quran yang dihias dengan lukisan bunga dan tumbuh-tumbuhan gaya Al-Quran tulisan tangan di zaman dahulu.

2. Yayasan Restu telah melatih penulis khad sehingga mereka dapat menulis dengan tangan Al-Quran dengan sepenuhnya.

3. Sekarang Yayasan Restu telah berjaya mengeluarkan Al-Quran dalam bahasa Melayu dan Inggeris yang disahkan oleh Jabatan yang bertanggungjawab dalam Kerajaan.

4. Pihak Kerajaan Pusat pernah memberi bantuan kewangan kepada Yayasan Restu. Pihak Kerajaan Barisan Nasional Selangor pula telah beri secara percuma sebuah bangunan untuk usaha menulis Al-Quran, melatih penulis-penulis khad dan mempamer hasil usaha murni mereka.

5. Yayasan Restu mengguna semua pendapatan daripada penjualan Al-Quran keluaran mereka untuk membiayai kerja-kerja mereka sahaja. Ia adalah sebuah non-profit organisation.

6. Saya amat berterimakasih kepada Yayasan Restu kerana menghadiahkan kepada saya tiap-tiap keluaran baru dan memberi sebuah Al-Quran yang ditulis tangan khas bagi saya. Mereka mengambil masa hampir lima tahun untuk mushaf Al-Quran yang unik ini.

7. Saya ingin syorkan supaya pelawat ke Selangor melapangkan masa untuk melawat Kompleks Taman Seni Islam Selangor di Persiaran Damai, Seksyen 10, Shah Alam untuk melihat penulis menulis ayat-ayat Al-Quran dan pameran Al-Quran Yayasan Restu. Saya yakin pelawat akan berbangga dengan kecantikan Al-Quran mushaf Malaysia yang dipamerkan.

8. Sebagai hasil sampingan apabila Quran mushaf Malaysia dipamerkan di New Zealand dan ceramah diberi berkenaan isi kandungan Al-Quran, ada pelawat bukan Islam yang kemudian memeluk agama Islam, Alhamdulillah.

MiG-29

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Saya dengar pesawat pejuang MiG-29 Tentera Udara Di-Raja Malaysia sudah tidak dapat digunakan lagi. Jika saya tidak silap umur pesawat ini kurang daripada 20 tahun.

2. Banyak negara-negara lain, termasuk India, menggunakan pesawat ini. Apakah mereka juga tidak dapat guna MiG-29 mereka lebih daripada 20 tahun? Apakah mereka sudah kondem pesawat MiG mereka seawal ini?

3. Walaupun pesawat tentera Rusia lebih murah daripada buatan Amerika, tetapi wang yang banyak terpaksa dibelanja juga. Kalau di-kondem ratusan juta Ringgit akan hilang.

4. Jika kita beli ganti lagi ratusan juta diperlukan. Dalam keadaan ekonomi negara sekarang, mampukah kita belanja ratusan juta untuk pesawat ganti?

5. Penjualan dan pembelian pesawat oleh Kerajaan mampu memberi keuntungan besar (berjuta-juta) kepada orang tengah. Apakah ada kepentingan orang tengah yang mempengaruhi keputusan kondem MiG-29 untuk beli yang baru?

6. Saya percaya ada cara untuk baikpulih pesawat pejuang dan pesawat lain. Tak bolehkah kita baikpulih MiG-29 ini? Kalau kita tak boleh, orang Rusia mungkin boleh. Mungkin India juga boleh.

7. Jika pesawat pejuang yang berharga ratusan juta hanya tahan 20 tahun, lebih baik kita tidak ada pesawat pejuang.

8. Pesawat Amerika kononnya tahan lebih lama. Tetapi kita perlu ingat apabila duit untuk beli MiG-29 diguna untuk beli pesawat F/A-18, akhirnya kita tahu syarat ketat yang dikenakan oleh Amerika Ayarikat.

9. Mereka tidak beri “source code” yang mana ini menghadkan kegunaan F/A-18 untuk pameran sahaja.

10. Saya harap keputusan untuk kondem MiG-29 dibatal dan kita baikpulih pesawat ini.

WORKING AFTER WORKING HOURS

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Like the Bar Council I am disappointed that the Appeal Court had overturned the High Court’s decision to stop the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission from questioning suspects after working hours.

2. We must respect working hours. Criminals should not commit crimes after working hours. Of course police should not investigate crimes after working hours. Firemen should wait until office opens before putting out fires.

3. The same should apply for weekends and public holidays. No questioning, no investigations and no putting out fires during non-working days.

4. What about politics and politicians? Well no politicking outside office hours also.

5. If we have more holidays then the crime rate would go down as crimes should only be committed during working hours.

MALAYSIAN MAVERICK

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Barry Wain was formerly with the Asian Wall Street Journal and Asia Week.

2. Presently he is with the Singapore think tank, the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

3. He knows that if he writes anything against Singapore leaders he would be dragged to the courts, sued and forced to pay huge indemnity. His colleagues have all been found guilty of defamation when they wrote something that was not approved by Singapore leaders. There has never been a libel suit by Singaporean leaders which has been thrown out by the courts. It is safe for journalists to impute all kinds of misbehaviour by Malaysian leaders. There have been many cases where the courts have found in favour of the journalists.

4. In Barry Wain’s book I was accused of losing Government money over the purchase of tin being sold by speculators. When the time came for them to deliver the tin, they could not deliver as they had no physical tin. But the London Metal Exchange ruled that the speculators need not honour the contract to sell to us.

5. We lost money but not in billions of Ringgit as alleged.

6. Bank Negara traded foreign currencies.I don’t know how much but we lost money. Government stopped the trading by Bank Negara. Again the amount is not as imputed by Barry Wain.

7. The third case is with regards to the losses by Bank Bumiputra in Hong Kong.

8. Altogether I don’t think the amount lost added up to RM10 billion even. If we had lost 100 billion Ringgit the Government would be in deep trouble. But although we did have poor growth during certain years, the Government had never failed to meet all financial commitments including the servicing of loans. In fact we had enough money to prepay loans. The projects of course cost a lot of money. But the projects can be seen by the people. Penang Bridge, Twin Towers, KL Tower, KL International Airport, North Port and West Port in Klang, commuter train, LRT and monorail, numerous expressways all over the country, electrification and double tracking, Putrajaya, Cyberjaya, Langkawi development, Proton, Modenas, Silterra chip manufacturing plant, cement plants etc. etc. However, I don’t think Barry Wain was referring to these projects when he said I burnt RM100million of Government money.

9. The five years of Tun Abdullah’s regime saw unprecedented profits by Petronas due to the high price of oil. In my 22 years Petronas paid to the Government 126 billion Ringgit. Petronas paid to the Government of Tun Abdullah a total of 270 billion Ringgit in five years.

10. How was this huge sum spent? There are only empty corridors everywhere.

11. The public has a right to know how 270 billion Ringgit in five years have been spent. What projects have been financed by it. Why do we have to borrow money from China to build the second Penang Bridge?

12. I know every effort was made to find whether I had misused Government money. Failing to find anything the Abdullah Government set up a Royal Commission and accused me of being influenced by others in the choice of judges.

13. I have a right to clear my name. Tun Abdullah also has a right to clear his name.

14. The Government should cooperate and open all its books. There should be no cover-up. The Government is committed to transparency. It should demonstrate that it keeps its promises.

FORM ROYAL PROBE ON DR M’S SQUANDERING

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. I welcome Lim Kit Siang’s proposal for Najib to set up a royal commission on whether I burned RM100 billion on grandiose projects and corruption during my 22-year reign.

2. Such a commission should not be made up of Government nominees but should have as members impeccable people including foreigners and members of Transparency International.

3. The commission should not confine to one Prime Minister only but to Tun Abdullah Badawi’s regime.

4. It should include how RM270 billion of Petronas money paid during Abdullah’s five-year term was spent; what projects were financed by this huge fund and the cost of all these projects.

5. It should include how much money was lost due to the cancellation of the crooked bridge and the Johore Baru to Padang Besar railway.

6. What is the cost over-run in the construction of the Bakun Hydroelectric project.

7. The financing of the second Penang Bridge and the procedure followed when giving out this contract.

8. I also agree with Lim Kit Siang that the investigation would reflect Najib’s commitment to “combating corruption”.

9. In order that the enquiry by the commission would be successful, Government must give the undertaking to give full access to the commission of all the documents and accounts of the Government over the period 1981-2009. There should be no cover-up of any kind.

10. Barry Wain must provide documentary proof of any sum that he alleged I had burned.

11. I will co-operate fully with the commission.

12. Depending upon the result of the commission, I reserve the right to sue Barry Wain, Lim Kit Siang and Malaysiakini.com for libel for a sum to be disclosed later.

13. If the Government is witholding the book: “Malaysian Maverick: Mahathir Mohamad in Turbulent Times”, I would request that the book be released forthwith. I am not in need of Government protection.

SOUND BITES – GRAFFITI, X’MAS & DEVELOPMENT

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
GRAFFITI

1. Dirtying and defacing the walls and buildings with writings and drawings is not a Malaysian culture.

2. But Malaysians as usual like to copy everything that is done by Europeans. It is part of their inferiority complex. Defacing public property seen in Europe and Latin America is now being taken up. Kuala Lumpur which has spent a lot of public money to clean and beautify is now being defaced with ugly graffiti.

3. Unchecked this alien culture will negate all the efforts of beautifying our cities and towns. I have noticed that where this abuse is common city authorities stop trying to clean and beautify their cities. Their attitude seem to be if people like a dirty ugly city why bother to clean and beautify it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

1. Christmas is just around the corner. The shopping complexes have already decorated the malls and soon we will be hearing the familiar Christmas songs.

2. I would like to wish the Christian visitors to my blog and to all Christians in Malaysia a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

DEVELOPMENT

1. I have been visiting several countries lately. Some are developed. Some are developing.

2. It strikes me that it will be good if we send groups of young and educated people to those countries which achieved independence together with us. This is because young people were born and they grew up long after independence and cannot possibly know the Malaysia before independence or even in the early years of independence.

3. Perspectives and perceptions are what colour our thinking. Most people are reluctant to go to poor countries. If we go only to rich developed countries then our perceptions would not be correct.

PERSIDANGAN “MUSLIM UNITY”

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Minggu ini kita amat sibuk dengan persidangan. Pada hari Isnin 14 Disember, The International Muslim Academy of Science dibawah Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) telah bersidang di Shah Alam. Ramai saintis Islam dari seluruh dunia mengambil bahagian.

2. Pada 15-16 Disember satu konvensyen dianjur oleh Ramadhan Foundation United Kingdom dibantu oleh Perdana Leadership Foundation untuk membincang “Muslim Unity” (Perpaduan Islam). Ramai ulama dan imam-imam dari 20 negara Islam dan bukan Islam telah hadir.

3. Ulama-ulama ini terdiri daripada pelbagai mazhab termasuklah dari puak Sunni, Syiah, Wahabi. Terdapat juga wakil dari China dan Jepun.

4. Walaupun fahaman Islam mereka berbeza tetapi mereka menunjukkan persaudaraan Islam semasa bersidang dan di luar persidangan.

5. Dalam ucapan-ucapan mereka tekanan diberi kepada persaudaraan dan persahabatan. Perbezaan tafsir dan pendapat, tegas mereka, tidak harus memisahkan orang Islam daripada orang Islam lain.

6. Wakil Arab Saudi berkata pakaian tidak menentukan ke-Islaman. Pakaian Arab adalah kerana budaya Arab dan bukan kerana Islam. Pakaian hijab juga berbeza. Yang utama ialah anutan agama Islam.

7. Ini disokong oleh seorang imam besar Syiah yang mengetuai lebih 500,000 orang Islam di Dearborn, Michigan, Amerika Syarikat.

8. Mereka tidak berhajat untuk menukar kepercayaan dan tafsiran Islam yang berlainan antara mereka. Sebaliknya mereka ingin utamakan persamaan antara mereka sebagai orang Islam.

9. Semua mengutuk perbuatan bunuh-membunuh antara orang Islam di negara-negara tertentu kerana kelainan fahaman dan mazhab.

10. Konvensyen perpaduan yang pertama diadakan di United Kingdom dengan kehadiran ramai ulama-ulama dari negara-negara Islam dan bukan Islam yang mempunyai penduduk Islam yang ramai.

11. Ramadhan Foundation telah pilih Malaysia untuk yang kedua kerana ramai ulama dan orang Islam diseluruh dunia berpendapat Malaysia adalah contoh pembangunan agama dan negara mengikut ajaran Islam. Saya percaya ramai di Malaysia tidak dapat bersetuju. Tetapi inilah yang diperkatakan oleh mereka.

12. Sebagai tuan rumah saya diberi peluang untuk buat ucaptama di kedua-dua persidangan berkenaan tajuk-tajuk yang dibincang.

13. Kehadiran lebih 500 orang termasuk rakyat Malaysia pelbagai agama tidak bergerak. Mereka menuruti perbincangan selama dua hari itu dengan penuh khusyuk.

14. Pada malam akhir tiga buah badan perniagaan dan institusi pelajaran swasta, dua daripadanya bukan Islam telah hulur derma sebanyak RM11,500,000. kepada tabung pelajaran anjuran Ramadhan Foundation. Ahamdulillah.

15. Laporan ini saya buat kerana tidak banyak “coverage” daripada media tempatan.

16. Senarai penceramah yang hari pada persidangan Muslim Unity adalah seperti berikut;

1. Dr. Bachir Soualhi – Chairman, International Promotion & Collaboration, University Islam Antarabangsa, Malaysia

2. Shaykh Ahmad Hussain Darwish – Hadith Scholar, Egypt

3. Shaykh Dr. Abdul Munim Al-Ghumari – Senior Hadith Scholar, Tangier, Morocco

4. Dr. Robert Farook Dickson Crane – Former Adviser to President Nixon, USA

5. Shaykh Dr. Muhammad Ali – Senior Hadith Scholar, Tangier, Morocco

6. Mr. Afzal Abdul Rahim – CEO of TIME dotCom Berhad, Malaysia

7. Mr. Mohammed Khan – Director of USA Operations for 2nd IMUC 2009, USA

8. Imam Sayid Hasan Al-Qazwini -Senior Shia Scholar, Iraq/USA

9. Syakh Ahmad Nisar Baig Qadiri – Vice Chairman British Muslim Forum, UK

10. Syakh Salman Al-Oudah – Founder of Islam Today Network and Islamic Scholar, Saudi Arabia

11. Dr. Wang Yong Bao Musa Ahmed – Muslim Scholar from China

12. Shaykh Muhammad al Yazdani – Co-Founder of Abu Hanifah Institute, UK

13. Mohammed Shafiq – Chief Executive, Ramadhan Foundation

14. Shaykh Abdur Rahman Weld Al Hajj – Renowned Scholar, Mauritania

15. Muhammad Umar – Chairman, Ramadhan Foundation

16. Shaykh Muhammad Abul Huda Al-Yacoubi – Lecturer, Grand Omayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria

17. Dr. Naji Rashid Al Arabi – Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Bahrain

18. Prof. Abdul Ghafar Ismail – AmBank Group Resident Fellow for PLF, Malaysia

19. HE Dr. Abdur Rahman Al Jarrar – Senior Scholar Ministry of Islamic Affairs & Awqaf, UAE

20. Prof. Dr. Zulaiha Ismail – Trustee, KL Foundation to Criminalise War, Malaysia

21. YBhg. Prof. Dato’ Dr. Zaleha Kamaruddin – Deputy Director General, Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia

22. Dr. Mahmood Chalabi – Activist, Syria

23. HE Dr. Shaykh Abdullah bin Bayyah – Former Minister of Justice of Mauritania and Renowned Scholar.

KITA SUDAH TUKAR

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Presiden Amerika Syarikat Barack Obama berjanji akan tukar (change) dasar-dasar Amerika Syarikat.

2. Tetapi jauh daripada menukar Obama sudah tambah tentera Amerika di Iraq dan Afghanistan. Kem tahanan Guantanamo pun masih diteruskan.

3. Tetapi kita sudah tukar. Dahulu kita pertahan negara-negara yang ditindas Amerika Syarikat. Sekarang kita sokong Amerika Syarikat menindas Iran.

4. Kononnya kerana Iran hendak membuat senjata nuklear. Kononnya dunia akan diancam oleh Iran dengan perang nuklear. Setakat kita tahu yang mengancam ialah Amerika Syarikat dan Israel. Dan Iran menjadi sasaran mereka.

5. Amerika Syarikat mempunyai 10,000 nuclear warhead. Israel mempunyai beratus senjata nuklear.

6. Yang sudah guna senjata nuklear ialah Amerika Syarikat dan Israel bukan sahaja di Hiroshima tetapi di perang Teluk dan di Gaza. Mereka guna “depleted uranium” daripada bahan nuklear. Kita relakan. Secara rasmi kita tidak protes.

7. India punyai senjata nuklear. Begitu juga Pakistan.

8. Kenapa Iran tidak boleh? Gilakah Iran hendak lancar perang nuklear dengan dua biji bom nuklear? Amerika Syarikat, Rusia dan Israel sudah tentu akan balas serangan Iran dengan 25,000 bom dan roket nuklear yang dimiliki mereka. Iran akan hancur dan hilang daripada muka bumi ini.

9. Jika India, Pakistan, China, Peranchis, Britain, Amerika Syarikat dan Israel boleh memiliki senjata nuklear kenapa Iran tidak boleh?

10. Sekatan sanction sudahpun dikenakan keatas Iran. Kita tidak membantah. Tetapi kita tidak pernah sokong sanction.

11. Tetapi sekarang duta kita dipanggil balik untuk disoal kenapa tidak sokong Amerika.

12. Dasar-dasar lama memang patut dihapuskan. Tetapi inikah dasar baru kita?

LIMA ’09

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. This year’s Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition is not as big as the previous ones. This is to be expected as the countries that produce aircrafts and warplanes are going through financial and economic crisis. All international air shows are not as well represented as before. But for such a period of recession the turnout at LIMA in terms of exhibitors, airplanes and ships is still quite impressive.

2. But what is worthy of note at this LIMA is the progress of Malaysia’s own aerospace industries. This took up almost one-third of the space and the exhibits were reflective of their progress and sophistication. Malaysian companies now design and produce electronic command and control systems. They proudly exhibit their capabilities in the production and servicing of sophisticated aircraft components and mastery of aviation electronics.

3. There were quite a number exhibiting UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). These remote-control airplanes come in many sizes. They can be used for aerial photography and target location and even for aggressive attacks against the enemy.

4. The first Malaysian submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, was also on show. I had more than an hour briefing on the different functions and features of the submarine.

5. Of all the fighting crafts I have seen the submarine is easily the most complex. It has scores of monitors and TV screens to inform the operators of what is happening in every part of the craft. There were wires and tubes everywhere. All of them I am told are crucial to the operation of the vessel, on the surface, at periscope depths and underwater.

6. Because of the small space available everything is cramped and overlap each other. I wondered whether the crew can identify all these wires, tubes and equipments and locate where they head to. The commander assured me that they could. They have learnt to locate things in the dark even in case of electricity failure.

7. I noted that all the parts bear scientific names. All the manuals on operation and emergency measures were in English and French.

8. The sleeping bunks are tiny. Once in bed the crew can hardly raise their heads. It was claustrophobic and I don’t think I can survive in that environment. But the boat sailed all the way from France to Malaysia without mishap. The crew do not seem to suffer from anything serious.

9. A group of MPs including from the opposition also visited the submarine and they were as impressed as I was.

10. I remember the first navy vessels of the Royal Malaysian Navy, which I visited in 1958 when they sailed right up to Alor Star. They were wooden boats, rather small and armed with a small gun. A friend laughed when I told him about my visit. We have come a long way since then and the Royal Malaysian Navy is now as modern a force as any other country.

11. I would have liked not buying the submarine. I don’t think we would be going to war. But the neighbours have bought submarines and our navy would feel rather inadequate if they don’t have at least two of these very costly vessels.

12. Altogether I would consider the 9th LIMA a success. Apart from the displays LIMA has helped initiate and stimulate Malaysia’s aerospace industry.

POHON MAAF

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Saya ucap berbanyak terima kasih kepada ramai yang memohon untuk berjumpa saya.

2. Saya telah cuba bertemu dengan seberapa ramai yang mungkin. Saya juga telah terima jemputan untuk beri syarahan berkenaan pelbagai tajuk. Di masa yang sama saya membuat lawatan keluar negeri kerana diundang untuk bercakap berkenaan tajuk tertentu. Juga saya menulis untuk ucapan, rencana dan blog. Banyaklah lagi jemputan yang telah saya tunaikan termasuk majlis perkahwinan.

3. Sesungguhnya saya lebih sibuk sekarang daripada masa saya jadi Perdana Menteri.

4. Oleh kerana sudah tidak ada masa lagi saya pohon maaf kerana banyak permintaan yang tidak dapat saya layan.

5. Harap maaf jika saya terpaksa menolak jemputan atau temujanji.

UMNO

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Pilihanraya Umum ke-13 hanya dua tahun lagi. Saya sedang meneliti reaksi rakyat terhadap UMNO dibawah pimpinan baru. Saya terkejut. Saya terkejut kerana seorang bekas pemimpin UMNO yang kanan telah meluahkan perasaannya dengan berkata “UMNO is rotten to the core” (UMNO busuk hingga ke ususnya).

2. Beliau telah berkata yang beliau sedang memikir untuk menyokong PAS. Beliau juga berkata beliau telah bertemu ramai pemimpin-pemimpin UMNO yang telah bersara dan mereka speendapat dengannya. 

3. UMNO busuk daripada peringkat terendah hingga ke peringkat tertinggi katanya. Di cawangan, ketua cawangan hanya berjuang untuk mengekal dirinya sebagai ketua sahaja. Kenapa? Sebabnya majoriti ketua cawangan dapat jadi pengerusi Jawatakuasa Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung dengan elaun tertentu dan kuasa untuk mengagih peruntukan. Berpeluang juga untuk jadi kontraktor Kelas F untuk projek kecil di luar bandar. 

4. Untuk menentukan dirinya tidak dicabar ketua cawangan tidak akan benarkan sesiapa yang lebih terpelajar daripadanya masuk UMNO cawangannya. Lebih daripada itu kebanyakan peruntukan untuk jadi ahli UMNO, yang mana dia mesti melalui cawangan, tidak akan dilayan. Tujuannya ialah supaya cawangannya tidak mempunyai banyak ahli kerana mereka tetap akan menimbulkan masalah dan sukar dikawal, bahkan sukar disogok pun.

5. Sebab itu tidak ramai ahli profesional yang dapat menjadi ahli UMNO. Sebaliknya semakin ramai daripada pemimpin PAS terdiri daripada doktor, peguam, jurutera dan lain-lain profesyen.

6. Oleh kerana ketua cawangan biasanya tidak memiliki pelajaran yang tinggi dan beliau menentukan ahli lain dalam cawangannya mempunyai ilmu pengetahuan yang lebih rendah daripadanya, maka apabila ketua terpaksa berhenti kerana sebab-sebab tertentu, maka penggantinya akan terdiri daripada yang kurang berkebolehan daripadanya. Dengan itu kualiti kepimpinan akan merosot sepanjang masa. 

7. Tentu ada cawangan yang tidak seperti ini tetapi pengecualian hanya mengesahkan keadaan yang sebenar. 

8. UMNO, kata bekas pemimpin kanan ini sekarang dipimpin oleh perasuah. Mereka menjadi ahli Majlis Tertinggi kerana sogokan wang. Orang ramai tidak akan serah nasib mereka kepada perasuah. 

9. Penempatan perasuah dalam Kerajaan dan badan-badan lain juga memburukkan lagi imej UMNO. Sudah tentu perasuah akan dipilih sebagai calon UMNO dalam Pilihanraya Umum ke-13. Jika mereka diberi kemenangan maka negara akan dapat Kerajaan perasuah. Sebab itu beliau tidak akan sokong UMNO sebaliknya akan menyertai dan menyokong parti lawan. Katanya lagi hingga kini separuh daripada orang Melayu tidak merasai nikmat kerana Kerajaan-Kerajaan pimpinan UMNO menidakkan hak mereka sedangkan mereka juga orang Melayu walaupun mereka menyokong parti lawan. Mereka yang menyokong parti lawan bertambah sejak (Tun) Abdullah kerana ramai daripada ahli UMNO sendiri sudah tidak percaya kepada UMNO. 

10. Yang tinggal katanya ialah orang yang berkepentingan yang berharap mendapat sesuatu kerana menyokong UMNO. Mereka ini bukan nasionalis dan mereka tidak boleh diberi kepercayaan. 

11. Banyaklah lagi hujah-hujahnya akan sebab-sebab UMNO tidak lagi akan diberi peluang untuk memerintah negara yang disayangi olehnya. Saya tidak akan hurai lebih lanjut. Hanya yang saya ingin sebutkan ialah pendapat beliau sudah menular ke semua peringkat orang Melayu, bahkan ahli UMNO juga. 

12. Rakan-rakan dalam Barisan Nasional semuanya berpecah dan lemah. Mereka tidak mampu menjayakan Barisan Nasional. 

13. Masa semakin singkat untuk memperbaiki keadaan ini. Saya mencatat maklumat ini untuk pengetahuan umum sahaja.

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDILADHA

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
Kepada semua Muslimin dan Muslimat saya dan isteri saya ucapkan selamat menyambut Hari Raya Aidil Adha. Marilah kita berdoa agar kesemua jemaah kita dapat mengerjakan ibadah Haji dengan sempurna dan agar amal ibadat mereka diberkati Allah s.w.t. serta dapat pulang ke tanahair dengan selamat...

DEMOCRACY IN POLITICAL PARTIES

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. All praise for democracy, the best system for politics ever invented by man. But being invented by man, it is not free from imperfections. It works only if you know these imperfections and their limitations.

2. It is fine to determine everything by majority vote and not by consensus. It is fine only if the loser accepts the winner. But when the loser refuses to accept the decision of the majority and launches a campaign to undermine the party, the only result would be a split and therefore a weakening of the party.

3. With UMNO the loser took the case to court and the party was made illegal. When revived it lost a huge chunk of the members.

4. But for Liong Sik, the MCA President who headed BN, accepting UMNO Baru and not Semangat 46, life would have been difficult for me.

5. Fortunately the voters in the General Election restored UMNO Baru’s credibility and strength. Otherwise UMNO Baru would have become Peking Duck, deader than the Dodo.

6. History has many lessons for us. As George Santayana said: “those who forget the lessons of history will be punished by making the same mistakes over and over again” or words to that effect.

7. But we never like to learn from history. We think our case is different.

8. No. Actually our case is the same.

9. You can interpret this any way you like.

ANWAR AS ECONOMIC ADVISER

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. I would like to thank everyone for their comments on the above. I appreciate very much the positive comments and I accept the negative ones also. I am not perfect. I make mistakes. But some of the wrongdoings attributed to me are just not true or correct.

2. We see what we want to see. Everyone is like that. So do I. But I try my best to be factual.

3. My greatest mistake is in the choice of people. I seem to be picking the wrong people all the time. They not only did not live up to my expectations but they went all out to do all the wrong things, including abusing me.

4. I accept the blame for making wrong choices. But they were all so good before they were chosen.

5. Anwar was pious and holy almost. Before I admitted him into Umno no one told me of his peculiar inclinations.

6. The other one was known as Mr. Clean. Well he and his family certainly did a lot of cleaning.

7. Awarding privatisation at inflated prices! Well the contract to double track and electrify the railways from Johore Baru to Padang Besar was for RM14 billion (including the spur line to KL). It was cancelled by Abdullah.

8. Then it was found necessary to double track and electrify from Ipoh to Padang Besar. I understand the price is RM12 billion. Work out the new cost if we build up to Johore Baru.

9. Putrajaya and Cyberjaya – bought by the acres. Putrajaya, 10,000 acres for RM700 million or approximately RM17,500 per acre or RM0.43 per square foot.

10. Today average price of Putrajaya land per square foot is RM130.00.

11. Bailout happens when a business receives injection of capital to get over a financial crisis.

12. Selling a business at below cost is not a bailout. It is called a fire-sale. That was what my son had to do. Petronas subsequently sold ¾ of the fleet for more than what it paid for the whole fleet when the market was good.

13. Ekonomi Malaysia berkembang pada kadar 8.5% dari 1987 dan bukannya 10% dari 1991. Mula merosot pada 1997 di waktu Anwar sebagai Menteri Kewangan melaksana “ubat” IMF tanpa IMF. Memang Anwar ditangkap semasa krisis hampir berakhir. Kerana kegagalannya MTEN ditubuh untuk ambil alih tugas memulih semula kewangan dan ekonomi Negara, jauh sebelum dia ditangkap.

14. Sila semak SEJARAH dalam laporan akhbar dalam dan luar negeri.

15. Thank you for agreeing that I am a dictator. Tell me which dictator ever resign.

16. Terima kasih kerana membaca blog saya.

ANWAR SEBAGAI PENASIHAT EKONOMI

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Saya ucap taniah kepada Kerajaan Negeri Selangor kerana berjaya menganugerahkan Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim dengan jawatan penasihat ekonomi dengan bayaran hanya RM1 setahun.

2. Mungkin kepimpinan Kerajaan Selangor tidak tahu akan prestasi Dato Seri Anwar sebagai Menteri Kewangan Kerajaan Pusat diwaktu krisis kewangan melanda Malaysia.

3. Dia begitu taksub dengan Dana Kewangan Antarabangsa (IMF – International Monetary Fund) dan Bank Dunia sehingga menerima bulat-bulat nasihat Michel Camdessus (pengarah urusan IMF) dan James Wolfensohn (presiden Bank Dunia dan sahabat karibnya) supaya negara ini mengurangkan perbelanjaan Kerajaan untuk mencapai surplus, menaikkan faedah pinjaman bank dengan tinggi supaya peniaga kekeringan modal dan tidak dapat berniaga, memendekkan masa untuk membayar hutang bank daripada enam bulan kepada tiga bulan untuk menjadikan yang berhutang muflis dan bank dibeban dengan hutang tak berbayar (non-performing loans), supaya bank tidak dapat berfungsi dan memerlukan suntikan modal dan bermacam lagi tindakan yang melemahkan dan memburukkan lagi ekonomi negara ini supaya terpaksa mendapat bantuan IMF dan Bank Dunia dengan syarat ekonomi Malaysia diserahkan kepada institusi-institusi ini.

4. Jika pentadbiran ekonomi Malaysia diserahkan kepada IMF maka Dasar Ekonomi Baru akan dihapuskan.

5. Tindakan Anwar ini dikenali dalam akhbar-akhbar sebagai pengamalan dasar IMF tanpa IMF – iaitu tanpa apa-apa bantuan kewangan daripada IMF.

6. Dengan dasar yang diperkenal oleh Dato Seri Anwar maka keadaan ekonomi menjadi lebih buruk dan Ringgit Malaysia jatuh lagi nilainya.

7. Jelas sekali Anwar tidak faham sama sekali pengurusan kewangan dan ekonomi negara.

8. Kuasanya keatas kewangan dan ekonomi terpaksa dipindah kepada Majlis Tindakan Ekonomi Negara (MTEN), sebuah jawatankuasa dan think tank yang ditubuh untuk menangani masalah kesusutan nilai Ringgit dan ekonomi negara.

9. MTEN-lah yang mencipta currency control atau kawalan matawang dan menyekat CLOB (Central Limit Order Book – pasaran saham haram yang ditubuhkan di Singapura) supaya segala perniagaan Ringgit oleh penyangak matawang dan penjualan saham Malaysia dalam CLOB ditamatkan.

10. Tindakan MTEN ini berjaya memulihkan ekonomi dan kewangan negara.

11. Mungkin sikap Gabenor Bank Negara dan Timbalan Gabenor yang cuba mengagalkan currency control tidak ada kena mengena dengan Dato Seri Anwar. Tetapi hakikatnya ialah kedua-dua pegawai ini terletak dibawah bidangkuasa Menteri Kewangan.

12. Saya berdoa Kerajaan Selangor tidak akan dipermainkan oleh Penasihat Ekonominya.

Sound Bites

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
The Al-Aqsa Mosque

The Malaysian media is totally dependent on the so-called wire services (Reuters, AP, AFP, etc) for foreign news. As a result there has been no report on the Israeli desecration of the al-Aqsa mosque and the beating up of Palestinian Muslims who wanted to pray there.

I don’t think the Malaysian media is deliberately blacking out news which are not in favour of Israel but if they depend solely on the wire services they would always be unfair to the victims of Israeli brutalities.

We read very little about the blockade of Gaza and the sufferings of the people there.

What Israel is doing is illegal, but such is the control that Israel exercises on the international media that it can actually openly commit genocide and nothing would happen to it.

These are the people whom we had sympathised with because the Nazis of Germany tried to wipe out. Now they are the ones doing the very thing they, or their forebears had suffered from in the past.

Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim

The Singapore Straits Times on Tan Sri Khalid contains one error.

Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim was not the CEO of the (Malaysian) Government investment vehicle Permodalan Nasional which “pulled off an infamous dawn raid” on the London Stock Exchange by taking over Britain‘s Guthrie Corporation in 1981.

The officer involved with the raid was Dato’ Desa Pachik, the first CEO of Permodalan Nasional.

Water

blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M 
1. Pahang will soon be selling water to Selangor/KL. I don’t think Pahang would be happy to receive 3 sen per thousand gallons.

2. Melaka has been paying Johore 30 sen per thousand gallons and is still doing so and will continue to do so I suppose. Would Johore be asking for more than 30 sen in the future? God knows.

3. In 2011 the first agreement with Singapore to sell 350 million gallons of raw water daily at 3 sen per thousand gallons will end. What would we do then? I suspect despite Singapore‘s famous Newater, it would still need the 350 million gallons daily.

4. The other treaty would end by 2060 in which the price is also 3 sen per thousand gallons. But

without the 350 million gallons daily according to the first treaty, Singapore‘s rapidly increasing population of new immigrants would not have enough water.

5. So, the amount supplied according to the first treaty would be even more crucial despite Newater and desalination.

6. The Government of Tun Abdullah had very cleverly decided not to raise any of the issues outstanding with Singapore after the bridges were jettisoned. I suppose this charitable act would help cement friendship with that city-state with a per capita income of US$36,000 (Malaysia‘s per capita incidentally is US$7,000, i.e one-fifth of Singapore).

7. 2011 is not too far away. Have we thought about extending the 2011 treaty or not extending it or negotiating a new water supply agreement? Are we going to be charitable again and sell raw water at 3 sen per thousand gallons to our rich neighbour?

8. Being charitable and not raising prickly issues is a good way to make friends. But what is the

cost to the people of Malaysia.



Water for Singapore