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Is this what they call reform in Umno? How can the committee bar a candidate who has got enough nominations? As usual, it is all going to backfire on Umno.
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On Ali Rustam barred from contesting
Maran:
If Ali Rustam and Khairy were really found guilty, why the need to bar or warn them? The Umno disciplinary committee should have suspended or sacked them outright from Umno.Is this what they call reform in Umno? How can the committee bar a candidate who has got enough nominations?
It looks like the prime minister-in-waiting is trying to ‘clean up' Umno of Pak Lah's men.
As usual, it is all going to backfire on Umno. Ali Rustam and all Pak Lah's men should join Pakatan to teach Najib & Co a lesson.
Timmy: Suffering from a very bad public perception will certainly halt whatever reforms BN is trying to do.
For instance, we see some big names being hauled up for money politics in Umno, although I seriously doubt they have finally become sincere about reforming.
Because Umno is suffering from a very bad public perception, the public will only see:
1. This is a gimmick before the Umno assembly
2. The funny timing of these events
3. Najib having a hand in picking the candidate he wants
4. That nothing is going to happen, a mere suspension at the most and maybe not even that
5. That the MACC wasn't informed
You see, when you suffer from a bad public perception, no matter what you try to do, it will be viewed with doubt and under a cloud of agendas. There's no way BN can reform until they restore confidence in their leadership.
If today, Najib is suddenly replaced by Tengku Razaleigh, public perception will suddenly turn positive and the action of punishing people for money politics will have more effect.
Events will then be more believable in the public's eye. Understanding the root cause of not being able to reform is the first step to reforming.
And that root cause is that your leadership is suffering from a very bad public perception. Remove him, and replace him with someone more credible in the public eye (like Ku Li) and this will automatically enable BN to reform again.
Don't believe it? Go down to the ground and ask the public.
Frank Xroy: Ali Rustam has fallen prey to the politics he practiced - Umno politics.
It is quite clear that Ali Rustam was targeted as he was the favourite to turn the tables on the anointed successor, Muhyiddin who was anointed by none other than the high
priest of Umno, Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
It will be nice of the committee if they could come out and tell us what exactly Ali Rustam did, and also enlighten us on all other disciplinary cases including that of Syed Hamid's.
I remember Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen talking about Umno's Wanita and Puteri wings and he must have had strong reasons for calling for the closing down of these two wings.
I have no doubt that Umno has a strong case against Ali Rustam, but is he the only one who is really guilty and are we to believe that?
This is selective disqualification and that my dear friends as we all know is typically Umno.
Ali Rustam, take what you deserve. ‘If you live by the sword, you die by the sword'.
Political Observer: As a political observer, I predicted this to happen.
It will not be a surprise that in order to show who is in power, Najib will also carry out something similar or even more worse than the Operation Lalang in 1987.
However, a younger generation of Malaysians will not look too kindly on another Operation Lalang, as can be seen from the outcome of the March 8 general election last year.
The generation which grew up during the Operation Lalang has become very critical of the government.
Najib and Umno have to be reminded that five states previously under BN have fallen into the hands of Pakatan Rakyat.
No effort to seize power or destabilise these states will be viewed in positive light by the rakyat.
It is easy to silence a vocal few, but it is the silent majority that Najib has to watch out for.
On Gobind suspended for a year
Peter Ooi: How unfortunate that Gobind is suspended for a year. I believe Gobind never had any ill intention when he questioned Najib's link to Altantuya's murder.
We must know that Gobind's family has been directly involved in the Altantuya murder case. His father, Karpal is holding watching brief for the deceased's family.
Being in thick of action, Gobind must be really frustrated for not being able to get a satisfactory explanation from Najib. Hence, at the first chance he had, he did not hesitate to use it. And it happened to be in Parliament.
Nazri, as usual, is trying to be a wise old man. But his explanation showed otherwise. Gobind is accusing Najib right in his face, which, to me, is a gentleman's action.
It is rather incomprehensible that accusing Najib amounts to kurang ajar . Is Najib so special that he is beyond question? Is he so good that his credibility cannot be doubted by any party?
In case Nazri is still so naive, it is the rakyat who put Najib in his post. He is therefore subjected to close scrutiny by the public. Any doubt of his credibility must be fully explained.
This is exactly what Gobind is trying to get at. For trying to get to the bottom of the truth, Gobind has paid a heavy price.
John Johnson: I feel so miserable and alone in this country where our political situation is getting from bad to worse.
We have dictators who throw down their own laws and have no regard for the natural course of justice.
Gobind has been suspended for 12 months; this is a black day for all of us. Thousands of people now do not have their MP to represent them. He has not been able to defend himself and the judgement was immediate and fast.
What has happened to our government? They are clinging on to power with whatever means that they can muster.
So let us all rise to the occasion as one and give them a shocking defeat that they will remember for the rest of their lives. I am talking about the coming three by-elections.
This can be the best reward and gratitude for our righteous MP Gobind. He has the guts and integrity to stand up and ask something important.
In this era of turmoil and anxiety, we have just about witnessed the arrogance and dictatorial mindset of the Barisan Nasional government. A sad day indeed.
Brad: Is PKR listening to the bells of justice ringing? Is Gobind aware of his new surroundings? After being elected to Parliament, he still behaves like a gangster?
Hello Sivakumar, speaker of the Perak assembly, we have now learned what you taught us - just suspend those against us. You did it in Perak so now BN is doing it in Parliament.
You all did that in Perak, and then had the gall to assemble under a tree and call the tree Democracy Tree or the Tree of Democracy, and erect a plaque to signify it and call it a tourist attraction.
You PKR guys are truly basket cases and if not checked, you all will be your worst enemy. Mark my words, the next PKR MP will get 18 months. Beware!
To me there is only one hardworking assemblyperson and that is Hannah Yeoh. I congratulate her for she is a thousand times better than any MP or assemblyperson I have met in my 56 years of life.
When the elections were over, she at once started to serve. God bless you Hannah, I really wish you were in BN, then maybe we can infect them with your honesty and sincerity.
P Ramakrishnan: The suspension of the Puchong MP for one year demonstrates the logic that procedure is not important as long as one has the numbers.
Apparently in the numbers game, justice is not important and fairness is not relevant. The arrogance of the majority, it appears, will decide the day, and they will prevail no matter what.
No sufficient notice was given for this motion which has serious consequences for our parliamentary democracy; no adequate debate was allowed and Gobind was refused permission to defend himself.
There wasn't even the pretence of being fair - it was just blatant and brutal the way the motion was allowed to be carried.
The BN with its majority rode roughshod over everyone oblivious to the protest and the need to be just and fair.
Malaysians seem to think that Gobind should have been referred to the Rights and Privileges Committee in all fairness.
It would have been better if he had been found guilty after he had defended himself. That would have satisfied our notion of natural justice.
BN should take note that Malaysians by an overwhelming majority of 96 percent voted that Gobind should have been referred to the committee in a live television survey conducted by NTV7 day before yesterday.
Before anybody dismisses this survey result as not reflecting the true sentiments of Malaysians at large, let's wait for the outcome of the three forthcoming by-elections on April 7, 2009.
Those results will remove all doubts once and for all ( The writer is president, Aliran ).
Frank Xroy: We, the rakyat , are concerned as to why Najib has not taken to court those who have made the allegations against him.
If it had been Lee Kuan Yew or any other Singapore minister, they would have sued those making lesser allegations for millions of dollars,.
So why is Najib reluctant to do so and the choice of the public prosecutor to sue the like of Raja Petra one wonders.
I agree with Nazri that privileges should not be abused and that one can't say, 'your mother is a prostitute'. That is going overboard.
But here is a case which the DPM refused to answer even though he was cited in the French press for irregularities.
Leaving all that aside, Nazri himself once stood up in Parliament and shouted, ‘Shut up you bloody racist' to a fellow parliamentarian.
Was that not an abuse of parliamentary privileges so why was he not suspended? And why was a voice vote taken against Gobind? A count would have been more appropriate.
On Karpal charged with sedition
Maniam Sankar: I am confused. Karpal actually represented clients in cases against more than one sultan and he did not get charged.
He only said he wants to sue the Perak Sultan and that is seditious? After all, he did not proceed because his party would not and he, therefore, had no leg to stand on to pursue the case.
Is this charge therefore to:
1. Make him sue, or worse still;
2. Shut up a citizen from speaking his mind?
It appears that anyone speaking up against any action that was engineered by Najib is being censured. Not a great start for an incoming PM is it?
For what is it possibly worth to a man to build his ‘reputation' by silencing others?
On Six in court for insulting sultan, one fined RM10,000
Richard Teo: Why would honest, law-abiding citizens suddenly revert to insulting a monarch who was once upon a time revered as a model for the royal institution?
Instead of charging ordinary citizens for venting their anger, the government should look into the cause for this sudden act of impropriety against the royals.
Perhaps it would also be appropriate for the sultan, in light of this event, to examine his role as to why his decision had elicited such a response from his erstwhile loyal subjects.
To charge and punish citizens for venting their anger at the source of the ire is merely to suppress their right to express their frustration and anger.
As citizens of the country, are we to remain mute even though a wrong has been committed by a sultan?
Is there no avenue for citizens to ventilate their opinions and anger knowing fully well that the sultan had not acted in conformity with the wish expressed by the people?
