Malaysian top news headlines

Perak Mufti Harussani Zakaria had once advised Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak that it is the government’s “weaknesses” and “corrupt” practices that have divided the Malay community, he revealed today.

What people says about this issue?

Malaysian Born Well this chap likes the sound of his voice and is one of the most crass political opportunists in the country. He enjoys coming out with controversial statements using non-muslims as his favorite boogeymen. For him to openly turn on the prime minister is an indication that he has now collected his fee of 30 pieces of silver and is now doing his masters bidding. Looks like an internal struggle in UMNO. For him to say that he advised prime ministers is a joke, he is a class clown who knows how to manipulate racial and religious sensitivities, he represents the lowest form of political tool and these days spends his time stirring discontent and fear among the lower income group and rural muslims. What a shame that a low life like this is given such prominence and face when vermin like him should be shown the door.

David Dass The problem was and is not Islam. The problem is one Mufti Harrussani Zakariah. This is not the first time that he has tried to stir up trouble between Muslims and non Muslims. He was the one who sent out a text message – saying that thousands of Muslims had been converted into Christianity and that a Catholic Church in Ipoh was baptizing Muslims. That caused a crowd of Muslims to gather around the Church during a service scaring the congregation. Whose interest does it serve to allow someone like this to spew so much garbage without penalty or sanction ? How does Islam or the nation benefit from tension between the races or from polarization or from people emigrating because they cannot take this constant attempt by some to stoke the fires of racial and religious hatred ? There are contrary voices but in the nature of things discordant and raucous voices are the loudest. There is no spiritual law that says people of different faiths cannot live together peacefully and harmoniously.

Wong Yoke Leong I hope the Perak Mufti was wrongly quoted when he said that non muslims are cruel according to the Quran. I have many non muslim friends and I can sincerely say that they are definitely not cruel. Statements like this causes religious tensions. Sigh!

4thForce Many people who commented here didn’t attend the forum and look how they lambasted not only the mufti but also Islam based on what is reported by Malaysiakini. Qur’an gives warning and reminders to all humanity but I don’t recall Qur’an states non-muslims being cruel simply because they are non-Muslims. Reporting on interpretation of Qur’an verses by people who are not knowledgable would result in this gross misunderstanding. I would advise Malaysiakini to be careful in this area and not simply report without clarifying. You could be held responsible for irresponsible journalism.

ANONIMOUS Z How sad it is for Malaysia these days! Why does he keep talking of Malays split? Isn’t it should be Malaysians split? Also he is only interested in Malay Muslims to come together. He does not even want the Mamak-Muslims or other non-Malay Muslims to come together. What a real extreme racist under the pretext of religious supremacy. So, to all our Mamak-Muslims and non-Malay Muslims or non-pure blood Malay Muslims, all of you are considered 2nd class Muslims in Malaysia. It is just like in Middle East, the Gulf region, all non-Arab Muslims including the pure Malay-Muslims are 2nd class Muslims.

Simon Lee 3ed5 And what this Islamic “hero” is now trying to only preach is half of the Malays supports corruption?! And which half are you standing on Mr Mufti? If you are trully a man of Allah who practise & live by the tenets of Islam, you should call for all Muslims to vote for PR, while it may not be perfect, but at least the party is incorrupt & sincere, unlike Umno,a party of corrupt & filthy $$billionaires! As you had confirmed & declared the govt is corrupt, for Allah’s sake, why didn’t you demand the $24 million diamond ring, the $100K handbags & the $200billions of the nation’s wealth that were plundered be returned to the rakyat & the corrupt charged? Where were you, Man of Allah, all these 54 years, when the nation’s bleed & every institution of our nation is corrupt & collapsed, countless killed in custody & the many sins & criminal acts perpetuated against the rakyat & Islam by Umno? A leader who supports a corrupt party & condones corruption & every evil betrays Allah!

wfworker All leaders whatever their belief must look at the mirror FIRST before running down people with different belief; do note the time span that separate the gap between civilizations. If there are civilizations that had lasted longer than your own; surely it provides you an indicator. Being over sensitive about oneself while ‘jabbing’ in the air does not reflect any depth of thinking. Anyway, one can claim anything in this world or the next world; the majority of the population in this world can only smile and judge as such conclusion from such a LEARNERED man! anyway that is your claim!

Facts on Anwar, Israel and the King is written By Shanon Shah
shanonshah@thenutgraph.com

OPPOSITION Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim must have a lot on his mind: his ongoing sodomy trial, the upcoming Hulu Selangor by-election, and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)’s loss of four parliamentarians earlier in 2010. But one other thing is surely preoccupying his thoughts: Israel. In fact, he is clearly bothered by two things Israeli:

How Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia campaign employed a public relations firm, Apco Worldwide, that is also connected to the One Israel campaign; and
The alleged existence of Israeli spies who have subverted the Malaysian police force.

Anwar says he is driven by a concern for national security, not anti-Semitism. At the same time, he says, “If we love our country, and we are supposedly Malay [Malaysians], then why should we sell our pride to the Israelis?” In fact, Anwar is so bugged by this assumed loss of pride that he has asked no less than the King to direct Najib’s government to cease dealing with Apco Worldwide.

The Malaysian government hires an international public relations firm to bolster its credentials to the public.
That firm has also been consulted by another government, Israel. For this, Anwar wants the monarchy to interfere with the executive? Does he even know the implications of this demand? How will it implicate the Malaysian constitutional monarchy, democratic checks and balances, and government transparency and accountability?

Constitutional monarchy 101

Just to recap, here are some facts about Malaysia’s constitutional monarchy:

Shad Faruqi

According to constitutional expert Prof Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi, ours is largely fashioned after the British model, but with “local adaptations”.

The current British constitutional monarchy evolved from a far less democratic absolute monarchy. The British monarch is now “bound by law and convention to remain above political parties and to refrain from intervening directly in government administration” (emphasis added).
Although containing many “local adaptations”, including guarding the privileges of Malay Malaysians and East Malaysian natives, and heading Islam in eight regions, the Malaysian system still ensures that the monarch’s powers are non-discretionary. The monarch is the de jure head of state, and it is the prime minister who is the de facto head of government.

Therefore, in calling for the King to intervene in the Apco matter, Anwar is not upholding democratic checks and balances. He is, in fact, subverting the principles of a constitutional monarchy, which is part of the basis for our democracy.

Historical facts

Perchance Anwar feels that the Malay rulers’ historical track record will help uphold public interest and democracy. But if he feels this way, he would once again be wrong.

It was the Malay rulers who acquiesced to the formation of the Malayan Union in 1946. As a British colonial construct, the Malayan Union was vehemently opposed by diverse sectors of society, especially Malay groups that would eventually form Umno.

Datuk Onn Jaafar and Tunku
Abdul Rahman (Public domain)

The motives of the various rulers who agreed to the Malayan Union is up for debate. Were they threatened by the British, or protecting their own vested interests? What is clear is that even Umno’s own founder, Datuk Onn Jaafar, was dead against the rulers’ decision. That is the context in which Onn’s “Hidup Melayu!” cry became meaningful to the public — he said “Hidup Melayu!”, not “Hidup raja-raja Melayu!”

It was Onn’s successor in Umno, Tunku Abdul Rahman, who took a slightly different stance and said, “[At] all costs I want to avoid having a split with the rulers.” In fact, Tunku, of royal lineage himself, organised processions in July 1954 to display loyalty to the rulers to encourage them to support the Alliance’s policies.
Not surprisingly, they in turn preferred Tunku to Onn.

So, if Anwar thinks he is appealing to a disinterested institution to overturn a perceived abuse by the executive, he is mistaken. Even before Merdeka, the monarchy demonstrated that it was only human, and had its own interests to consider. This is not to say that the monarchy has no constitutional role to play in contemporary Malaysian democracy; it’s just that interfering in the executive should not be one of them.

Hence, one has to ask this question of our opposition leader, a self-professed democrat: By appealing to the monarch over the Apco issue, isn’t Anwar actually saying he wants royalty to interfere in the running of this country? What kind of democrat would do that? One who is unclear on the concept of modern-day democracy? Or one who is merely pretending to be a democrat?

No matter, asking royalty to interfere in the running of the country smacks of feudalism. And feudalism, as we know, has no place in a vibrant democracy.

Burden of proof

What is especially frustrating is that Anwar is doing nothing to advance debate and deliberation on something that he claims undermines national security. Here are some things to consider:

Governments hire public relations firms all the time. Whether or not the Malaysian government hires a public relations firm that the Israeli government also hires is actually a red herring.
What is relevant to the public is whether the firm is living up to its brand promise, since tax money is being used to pay Apco. Apco says it wants to “meet and extend industry best practice in all areas of ethics, integrity and social responsibility”. So, if Anwar has a problem with its involvement in the 1Malaysia campaign, he has to tell Malaysians exactly what is unethical and irresponsible about the firm.

Has Apco helped the Malaysian government to lie or cover up abuses? If so, which ones, specifically? How, when and where did these happen? Does Apco have a track record of improving the image of democratically suspect governments around the world? Which governments? Using Apco’s relationship with Israel as the clincher in his argument is, sadly, Israel/Jew-baiting.

If Anwar insists on pointing out “similarities” between 1Malaysia and One Israel, he has to tell us also exactly how One Israel was a failure to the Zionist state, and how this failure is directly attributable to Apco. And then he is going to have to predict that 1Malaysia is going to fail us because of its connection with Apco, to make his claims hold water.

The only similarity between 1Malaysia and One Israel that should matter is if both campaigns have similar intentions and outcomes, not that they have similar ideas.

Holding accountable

It’s not like governments have not been held accountable before for embarking on dubious public relations strategies. After the 11 Sept 2001 terrorist attacks, Saudi Arabia engaged in a massive campaign to bolster its image, especially in the US. This campaign has been analysed in depth, and has proven to be a failure.

The Star of David, the symbol of Jewish
identity, is also associated with Israel
and Zionism (Public domain)

But Anwar seems to be doing something else with the Apco issue. He’s not trying to hold the 1Malaysia campaign under Najib’s administration accountable. He’s casting aspersions by using the emotive buttons of Israel and Zionism. Hence, this is likely Anwar’s attempt to regain or bolster his credibility with the Malay Malaysian Muslim constituency.

Really, apart from telling us that a public relations campaign will not help an undemocratic government smell like roses, Anwar must provide substantiated proof about Apco’s and Malaysia’s “abuses” before crying wolf to the public and the King.

If he doesn’t, then his “I’m not anti-Semitic” position should be little comfort to the rest of us. After all, intellectual dishonesty can’t be a trait we want in our leaders, especially those who aspire to take over government.

courtesy of Nut Graph

Tabung Haji will strive to maintain the cost of the pilgrimage binding lease agreement and lease the building to
longer-term by building owner in the city of Mecca.

Minister in the Prime Minister Brig Jen (Rtd) Datuk Jamil Khir Baharom said at present is only way that can be done by Tabung Haji to continue to maintain the cost of pilgrimage.

“Given the pilgrims Malaysia is around 26,000 people, meaning that Tabung Haji had to find and hire the hotel’s various buildings for rent for the period between 10 to 15 years.

“This will definitely involve a large expenditure,” he told media officials after visiting the Tabung Haji office operations in the Tabung Haji building Janadriah in Mecca today.

He asked about the cost of rental buildings in Mecca, which increased from year to year and plans to continue to maintain the Fund’s Hajj pilgrimage which now cost about RM10, 000 each as they are influenced by many factors lease buildings and transportation.

Tabung Haji asked why not have its own building, Jamil Khir said it was government policy to Saudi Arabia for not allowing foreign citizens have the buildings and property in the country mainly in Mecca and Medina and foreigners should be renting the building from local people.

For the pilgrimage season this year Tabung Haji lease 10 buildings around the city of Mecca pilgrims made accommodation or College Tabung Haji.

In the meantime, Jamil Khir said the Malaysian government appreciates the government’s commitment to continue to defend Saudi Arabia pilgrimage costs at least amount possible.

The Government of Malaysia also, he said, appreciates the measures taken by the government of Saudi Arabia to give comfort to the pilgrims, including expansion of the Grand Mosque, pebbles and building a monorail connecting Mecca, Arafat and Mina.

Handling operations pilgrims, Jamil Khir said the Tabung Haji has run its responsibilities well, especially in the welfare of pilgrims and establishing two hospitals in the holy land to enable the pilgrims who get sick with proper health treatment. BERNAMA