vox populi small thumbnail 'Let citizens all over the world unite and tell our governments that dictators must be held accountable for their actions.'

London protesters want Taib's assets frozen

HNL: Let citizens all over the world unite and tell our governments that dictators must be held accountable for all their actions.

If they've robbed their country and stashed away their stolen wealth in other countries, then citizens of the host country where the stolen wealth are kept must make sure their government freezes that wealth and return that wealth to the country of origin.

In this way, the world would become a better place free from greed, corruption and abuse of power by anyone who holds power in any country. Every citizens would also share and enjoy the wealth of our respective countries equally.

Louis: If the British and US government can freeze Muammar Gadaffi's assets on suspicion of corruption, I cannot see how Abdul Taib Mahmud's asset could not be done with the same way for the same reasons. I hope the British government does not practise double standards.

Michael Ng: I would have thought lots of Sarawakians would have turned up in this London protest. I would also presume lots of Sarawakians are living or studying in the London area.

But I would now have to presume these are mostly the rich kids of Taib's crony families, because which poor Sarawakians could afford to be in London in the first place?

Ponto: To demonstrators organisd by BMF (Bruno Manser Fund) in Ottawa and London, we applaud you for your action. We hear your voice and we are marching alongside you with the fervent hope to put an end to the corrupt practices and years of abuse of power by Taib and members of his family.

Regrettably, his 30 years as Sarawak chief minister has provided him the opportunities to milk the country and its resources and had impoverished its peoples for his own and family benefits.

His grip on power in the Land of the Hornbills was undeniably staunch and unyielding and at great expense of the inhabitants of Sarawak who were diligently exploited to the hilt due to their lack of exposures to the outside world.

It's no secret that as Sarawak chief minister, he is embraced as a faraway darling by the federal government due to his authority and the vast powers which he wields in the state and nurtured through decades of exploitation and abuses.

Accordingly, he has amassed phenomenal wealth through shrewd investments both locally and overseas. Taib has through the years become more avaricious and emboldened by the fact that despite the many reports and news in the media alleging his corruption and abuse of power, there had never been even a whisper of disapproval of his wrongdoings from the federal government.

It's indicative that the powers-that-be had been instrumental in creating an arrogant and ruthless autocrat in Sarawak.

Truly we are one, but we are many, and together we have the capacity and capability to bring about a new dawn and brighter future for all Sarawakians. And together, we will help wipe away their tears of long despair and unshackle the weighty burden that wear them down caused by the many years of their hardships.

Ghkok: Bring him to trial for human rights violations, atrocities against his own people and carnage wreaked on the environment. There is enough evidence and there are enough people willing to testify.

Petronas found wanting in global transparency study

Pakman: Until and unless Dr Mahathir Mohamad vacates his role as Petronas advisor and allows Parliament to be ultimately responsible fully for Petronas affairs, there is no hope for the national oil company to move to a better and higher rating from Transparency International (TI) and Revenue Watch Institute (RWI).

Fido Dido: Congratulation to TI and RWI for a job well done. Too many bad rankings are the result of corruption and mismanagement. An external audit must be immediately be carried out on Petronas' accounts.

Secondly, Petronas is only a custodian of the rakyat's petroleum resources. Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) must check yearly, because Petronas only reports to the prime minister. The money is also dispense by the PM and nobody knows how.

Petronas must by right report to Parliament for its performance.

Anonymous_5fb: Any surprise that Petronas has scored below average in terms of both revenue transparency and public disclosure with Dr M as its adviser? Petronas doesn't even honour its commitment to pay oil royalty to Kelantan. Such is the attitude many of Umno people who have follow 'Kepimpinan Melalui Teladan' (leadership by example).

Cala: No surprise, exactly as expected. The poor score of Petronas in "the 2011 report on promoting revenue transparency in oil and gas companies" is consistent with the social fact that points to a nation which is edging towards a failed state.

Such nations are usually characterised in Third World countries as being close to tyrannical rule, heavy reliance on public relations, opaque governance practices (for example, the no-bid direct negotiated contracts), suppression of dissidents (ISA, OSA, Sodomy I and II, TBH's sudden death), little freedom of the press, huge bureaucrats, docile judiciary, brutal police, small- base social capital, and fussy national goals.

Ben_403f: Congratulations to Malaysia for having achieved so many infamous titles in so many fields: lack of transparency, corruption, human rights violations, police violence, death in police/enforcement agencies' custody, lopsided judiciary, racism, criminal intimidation, election briberies...

Anonymous_3f96: India is widely perceived to be rife with corruption. But its petroleum company, Oil & Natural Gas Corporation, did far better than Petronas. This is a forward-looking indicator and tells us where we are heading - a slippery downward slope towards a failed state.

3f96: Many of the local suppliers to Petronas have become multi-millionaires several times over. Is the process via open tender or a closed opaque system? What are the profit margins of the local companies that supply Petronas? Are supplies obtained directly from overseas manufacturers or via local middlemen? Are the local middlemen politically well-connected bumiputeras?

Many of the well-connected local bumiputeras/non-bumiputera partners in the oil/gas industry are the same people that real estate developers/agents often talk about - the guys who purchase 10 million dollar bungalows locally, not only for themselves, but for each of their children, with spare cash for more properties in London and Melbourne.

This is why our Gini co-efficient is steadily rising in Malaysia.

 

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paid subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now .