YOURSAY 'It is all about money and power. Resigning and honour are not in their vocabulary.'

Be honourable Muslims and resign, TH execs

FellowMalaysian: Hafiz Yatim, I lift my hat to you for your no-holds-barred honesty in opening your soul and mind, condemning the atrocities of Tabung Haji's four senior executives including its chairman, Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim.

You have also rightly aimed your searing-hot arrows at the hearts of many Muslims who are quiescent in lending their ears and voice when the matter involves Tabung Haji’s unfettered abuse of power and authority.

Instead, it was non-Muslims like DAP’s Lim Kit Siang and Gobind Singh Deo who took the first initiatives to chastise Tabung Haji’s deplorable action.

Anything short of getting the famous four to tender their resignations will be doing a grave injustice to the many hundreds of thousands of the pilgrim fund's depositors, who have toiled hard to save enough in order to fulfill their lifetime pledges of performing the Haj.

Armchair Newspaper: These three and others in Tabung Haji were merely followed the orders from above. They were appointed for their loyalty, compliance and servility.

Their integrity, professionalism and independence are subservient to their political master. This sycophantic culture is deeply rooted in Malaysia political, social and corporate culture. We shouldn't expect any change until the underlying cultures are uprooted and changed.

Pputeh: The money should be returned to Tabung Haji and the land to 1MDB. Why should it be sold to someone else to rescue 1MDB?

There will be others who want to purchase the land but with a motive. Sweeteners to be given later. Why are the Umno ministers as quiet? Heads must roll in Tabung Haji and this has to start at the top.

Basically: Resign? How many Umno people in the past 50 years had resigned honourably over any controversy? It is not the Umno way, or BN way.

No one has ever resigned, even when people have died, such as in the MH370 incident (the MAS chief and army chief should have resigned), MH17 (ditto), Cameron Highlands floods, Genting bus crashes, Highland Towers collapse of 1993, etc.

They simply cannot give up their god-given posts which are rightfully theirs as lords of this land. Only the ordinary folk and opposition pay for the smallest of mistakes.

Umno leaders on the other hand, enjoy an infinite margin of error that can easily be waved away by a portfolio of simple excuses and flip flops. This Tabung Haji fiasco is a classic case study of Umno governance. Islamic or not? Well...

Carlim: It is all about money and power. Resigning and honour are not in their vocabulary.

Aries46: The very fact that peoples' land can be given away at Umno/BN's whims and fancies cheaply to 1MDB at RM64 psf while the hallowed Muslims' pilgrimage fund is made to fork out 50 times more psf is mind boggling. The prime minister of the day has to answer as to what is going on in his government.

In fact it must be the other way around – Tabung Haji as the custodian of hard earned savings of mostly poor Muslims that strive to perform their Haj, must be given preference in its investment portfolio, instead of entities such as 1MDB that are nothing more than pure business concerns that can resell cheaply given land at exorbitant prices.

It is evident that the 1MDB/Tabung Haji land deal is against the fund's best interests and to sully matters further, the decision makers have conflicts of interest that render them complicit in this caper.

Chairperson Abdul Azeez's announcement that the land will be sold and the money recovered is no consolation. Neither does it absolve him or the board from having betrayed the peoples' trust.

Senior: What? Resign? And lose all the perks? You have got to be kidding.

Anonymous_3f4b: Let the auditors audit the books of Tabung Haji and make the report public in the interest of transparency and to show the skeptical public that everything is above board and done according to procedures.

OH YA? : The ruling elite have plundered directly into the public coffers, the KWAP and the EPF for the last 58 years yet it did not cause as much outcry compared to this time around. And why only call for the resignation of the administrators who are obviously acting under instruction?

Granted that is not a good excuse but why no one, be it Mahathir, the opposition or civil society, demand the resignation of the entire ruling elite, which should be the most appropriate punishment under the circumstances?

Appum: Well written Hafiz. But such blokes cannot understand your words and the point you are driving at. That is why they can rule for 58 years straight. That is why the Malaysian people are now sick and tired of them.

Malaysians who can see and understand (luckily 57 percent) your perceptions, have been showing up and reacting sufficiently in recent polls.

If only GE14 is next week, then we can see the reaction of the people. But never mind, there will be more time for more scandal after scandal to be exposed in these three years before GE14. Because the "pirates" will rape and plunder everything they can find before they sail away. They have no shame.

Onyourtoes: I dislike the headline of this piece. Why 'be honourable Muslims' and resign? Why not 'be honourable leaders' and human beings? Why, is it that only Muslims are honourable?

Why call for resignations only now when Tabung Haji’s money is involved? Don't get me wrong. I am all for protecting the money in Tabung Haji.

But Tabung Haji’s involvement was only half of a percent of 1MBD's debts (RM188.5 million of RM42 billion) Tabung Haji is only the tail-end of the problem.

The mother of all problems is 1MDB itself. Without 1MDB, there would be no prime lands farmed out for a song, no massive borrowings at exorbitant interest rates and fees, no incomprehensible investments worldwide, and no bailout needed.

Don't be easily distracted.

Abasir: "Be honourable Muslims and resign". Hafiz, has there ever been a case in the history of this country where a Muslim, honourable or otherwise, resigned, following wrongdoing?

I do recall one who headed the MRT construction team who did so, following mishaps which killed a couple of workers. That’s one in over 60 years. Do you believe that is likely to happen again?

Mob1900: They shouldn't resign - they should be hauled to court - syariah or criminal courts it's up to the people. The harsher the punishment, the better.

Tailek: No way these fellows will resign, they are probably receiving million ringgit salaries with countless perks. They must be forced out by public opinion or sacked by the PM himself.

Fbnumno: In this country, the whistleblower is always charged but the criminal gets away. What a bloody shame. The whistleblower should be congratulated for exposing wrongdoing.

Rupert16: Well said indeed, Hafiz. Now, not only are there four witnesses to attest to the wrongdoings but millions of people are now realising the 1MDB piracy.

Under hudud law, these guys would not only lose an arm but "all arms and legs", so to speak. The same applies to the Twitter-happy ‘barua’ (lackeys) who is trying to protect the pirates instead of going after them.

In bolehland, resigning for acts of stupidity, corruption and wrongdoing is not in the culture. One needs to find a scapegoat and blame the offence on a third party or claim he was a victim of "fitnah".

Saphire: There are honourable Muslims, but they are few and far between among Umno Muslims. Many among them know that what Tabung Haji and 1MDB are doing is not right, but would not speak up for fear of losing favour with the powers that be.

But, among the Muslims who are not Umno members, their voices are too insignificant. If ever they voice out, like Rafizi, who I consider a hero, they will be hounded and hunted by the authorities.

So, Siti Nurhaliza’s timely statement is heaven-sent. A lady, so busy with her singing schedules, can see the wrongs in Tabung Haji deal, and it is a wonder those BN leaders are still so blind to the issue.

Yes, Siti Nurhaliza rightly made this statement: “Sangat memalukan dengan apa yang terjadi dengan kes Tabung Haji… Ya Allah Lindungi kami".

Does this statement ring loud and clear in our leaders' ears? Search your conscience. Tabung Haji’s money mostly comes from toil and sweat of poor folks.

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