'This demonstration was more peaceful than the 'Allah' demonstration outside the mosques. Is this because the ‘A' word demonstration got the approval and endorsement of the country's top leaders?'
Nine students nabbed over campus polls protest
Call Me Jibby: This demonstration was more peaceful than the ‘Allah' demonstration outside the mosques. From the pictures of the gathering today, no offensive banners and no loudspeakers were used. Is this because the ‘A' word demonstration got the approval and endorsement of the country's top leaders?
Concerned citizen: I happened to be there, and I believe there were no more than 70 students there trying their best to create noise and so on. The nine were nabbed because they refused to follow instructions by the police. Why is it that the rest of the students who attended could follows instructions, but these nine disrespected the law?
I agree that these lawbreakers should be detained, but not only for questioning and let off with a warning. They should be charged. These lawbreakers know what they were doing and wanted to be detained. As reported, campus elections are coming up. Why do it at Sogo, which is far away from any universities?
I guess it was a publicity stunt for these guys. Trying to gain sympathy? A new way of campaigning? Pathetic! If this is the quality of our university students who aspire to become leaders, then the future of the country is in trouble.
Tan Kian Khim: As usual, the PDRM (Royal Malaysian Police) put on their Chuck Norris tough guy show and demonstrated how efficient they are at their core proficiency: dragging away unarmed university students and breaking up peaceful candlelight vigils.
Just don't ask them to do the difficult stuff like fighting actual crime.
Rajm: This is a peaceful gathering by students unlike the 'Allah' and cow-head seditious protests which were highly provocative, and the police gave these Umnoputras all the time, and even the PM (prime minister) and HM (home minister) gave their consent.
CTTEO: No double standards ? No preferential treatment ? Just see how fast these student activists are arrested.
Bozuka: Maybe they did not get the blessing of the cow-head minister and his cousin, the PM.
Sultan Iskandar's one mission left unaccomplished
Ahmad Kamal: Singapore was ceded to East India Company by the elder son of the then-sultan of Johor. This son was not made sultan and was banished to Riau. The second son became sultan. The East India Company fetched the elder son to sign the cession of Singapore to the company.
In due course, the family of the Temenggong was recognised by the British administration as the rulers in Johor. The sultan's family was sequestered by the Brits in Singapore in Istana Kampung Glam with the Sultan Hussein Ordinance. Most of archives on this is in Istana Johor, not at the Malaysian Archives. Curious, isn't it?
Pelaut: I really support the formation of an NGO to legally study on how to get back the island (Pedra Branca). I remembered that in mid-70s our National Mapping Department submitted 'Peta Baru' to claim our sea territory based on our interpretation of UN Convention on Law of the Sea. I think, together with other pieces of historical documentation, this NGO can attempt to restudy on how to reverse the ICJ's (International Court of Justice) decision.
Johnny Tan: Pedra Branca was lost due to the incompetence of (then foreign minister) Rais ‘Cakap Orang Puteh' Yatim and the totally blur Home Minister (Syed Hamid Albar). You know, the one who detains journalists under the Internal Security Act for their own protection .
Mohd Idris Hassan: Rais was the man who gave Pulau Batu Puteh (Pedra Branca) to the Singaporeans. It was not Tuanku Iskandar's fault.
Petrol pricing: Repeating a mistake is a crime
Lahore San: Since when has the government thought about any policy in terms of the long run? Our education is in shambles, our health service is deteriorating, our public transport is a no-starter, and the privatisation projects under former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad would have been better off if they had not been attempted.
They all ended up consuming even more of taxpayers' money. When they run short of cash, they decide not to stop the monkey business of negotiated and inflated contracts but remove a host of subsidies, affecting the rakyat who do not have minimum wage legislation to protect them from rising prices.
There is even a plan to impose the good and services tax (GST) to boost government coffers. The removal of subsidies is a given, while wastage and leakages of government funds through crony capitalism continues unabated. Soon we will be facing a toll hike, even when it is patently clear motorists have paid for highway concessionaire Plus many times over.
This will not end until BN is out of office.
Lonestar: It is all going to be ‘hangat hangat tahi ayam' (hot air). The cronies will make off with the contracts for getting the MyKad microchips made, bringing in petrol pumps with added mechanisms, fitting cars with ration gauges, and so on. Then the whole scheme will be scraped somewhere down the line.
Non-Malay: We all know that the government will read this letter to the editor. We just pray that the article's logical and humane appeal for them to consider creative and innovative ways to help the poor and incorporating the views of the public - especially those struggling at bottom rungs of the society - will open their hearts to commit to doing things that will help the poor and the working class.
Thanenthiran vs G14 - the sand box war continues
Yuvan: Malaysian Makkal Sakti Party (MMSP) was never a political party because RS Thanenthiran was never a leader. He never demonstrated any quality or maturity to be a good and strong leader. In fact, neither he nor any of his party officials raised or spoke about the countless number of issues and problems faced by the Indian Malaysian community. They just did not care.
The entire MMSP leadership is nothing but a gang of plain shameless opportunists, waiting to ‘squeeze and suck out' the little bit of remaining values and honour left in the Indian Malaysian community. MMSP is worse than MIC, IPF and PPP put together, and should be kicked out of the Malaysian political scene without any mercy.
Imhindraf: After the Hindraf rally of Nov 25, everybody supported the movement and were united as one community to create a momentum and send a strong message to the government that we Indians urgently need affirmative actions to save poor Indians who have been alienated from government's development plans for the past 50 years.
Now I am very sad to see them fractured into pieces. Please, Indian leaders, organise a roundtable and discuss plans to foster greater unity. Think of forming one party for Indians that can really salvage the community and give hopes to their struggles.
Ramesan: I am sure PM Najib Razak must now be having second thoughts about you (Thanenthiran). You are now a liability to Barisan Nasional. The MMSP constitution may have given you awesome powers. But the government sanctioning your party is not for the purposes of showing off.
They expected you to make up for MIC's weaknesses in attending to Indian woes. Instead you have only went on a parade of the powers that you enjoy. You won't last long. As fast as you came up, you'll disappear into oblivion.
