Kenyataan Media: Pemuda PAS perlu bicara usaha perkukuh tahaluf siyasi, bukan soal bila mahu keluar Pakatan

PEMUDA PAS PERLU BICARA USAHA PERKUKUH TAHALUF SIYASI, BUKAN SOAL BILA MAHU KELUAR PAKATAN

Saya rujuk kenyataan yang dibuat Naib Ketua Pemuda PAS, Ir Khairil Nizam Khiruddin yang berkata, “Biasalah bergabung ini ada orang degil dan tidak. Sejauh mana kesabaran kita dan saya yakin dan percaya, telah tiba masanya untuk kami keluar dari PR, kami akan keluar.”

Setelah Pakatan Rakyat mengharungi krisis penggantian Menteri Besar Selangor yang baru selesai minggu ini, anggota parti komponen khususnya di kalangan Pemuda Pakatan seharusnya bermuhasabah serta istiqamah dalam mencari jalan mengukuhkan tahaluf siyasi dan persefahaman demi menghadapi musuh politik kita: UMNO-Barisan Nasional. Sebagai Naib Ketua Pemuda PAS, sahabat saya wajar mencadangkan usaha-usaha yang menjurus ke arah ini dan tidak meletakkan fokus kepada perkara yang tidak mendatangkan kebaikan seperti soal bila mahu keluar Pakatan Rakyat.

Oleh itu, saya menggesa pimpinan Pemuda Pakatan untuk mengatur lebih banyak program dan platform bersama demi memperkukuh persahabatan dan ukhuwah, serta mengelak salah faham yang mungkin diguna UMNO-Barisan Nasional untuk mengadu domba.

Kita perlu ingat, 52% pengundi Malaysia telah menaruh harapan terhadap Pakatan Rakyat bukan untuk menjadi pengganti kepada UMNO-Barisan Nasional dari segi pemegang tampuk pimpinan, tetapi sebagai pencetus budaya politik baru demi Malaysia yang lebih baik.

Fahmi Fadzil
Naib Ketua AMK

25 September 2014

Of Men & Menses

THERE were two firestorms that raged through social media this week. The first was in response to the hysterically irate, steering lock-wielding lady (now known as ‘Kiki’ from Kuantan), which I find has elicited the same magnitude of vitriol and venom as the infamous operators of pet hotel Pet Knode some years ago. The second was in response to the ridiculous statement from Umno lawyer Hafarizam Harun, saying that a woman cannot become Selangor Mentri Besar because their menstrual cycle would get in the way of certain official duties.

I would like to focus on the latter, as it has greater implications and significance to contemporary Malaysian society.

The year is 2014. Technological, political and social change has swept the world over – from the triumphant rise of social media, to the democratisation of Tunisia, to the election of Barack Obama as the United States’ first African American president, to the continuation of Angela Merkel as Germany’s nearly decade-long Chancellor, to the election (and subsequent coup d’etat) of Egypt’s first post-Mubarak president, to the appointment (and subsequent removal) of Thailand’s first female prime minister, to the rise of Pakatan Rakyat to deny Barisan Nasional’s two-thirds majority in two consecutive general elections.

In short, things are changing. The world is changing. Yet there are some people and quarters who are adamant about keeping things – especially in the public sphere – the way they are, mostly for their own benefit.

I’m of course not talking about physical development, in which case I would argue for the total opposite: that we are completely bereft of a sense of architectural history. There is very little “adaptive reuse” in our developmental lexicon, and where possible all traces of the (colonial) past must be removed and replaced with gaudy, Frankenstein-ian eyesores.

I am talking more about fundamental power structures and relations. It seems that in essence, the ruling coalition is unable to grasp the idea of a woman being in a leadership position, constantly relegating and isolating them in their own “Wanita” category … or dare I say “class”?

Think about it. There can never be a woman Umno president, if the majority of Umno members believe and extend the argument of their prime lawyer. Even the minister in charge of women’s affairs at one point was a man!

Pakatan Rakyat, on the other hand, has seen women in key leadership positions, many of which are historic and groundbreaking: two Yang DiPertua of Penang city councils, the Petaling Jaya City Council mayor, and Selangor state assembly speaker no less!

In PKR, as we already know, there are no gender barriers for women to contest the top central leadership positions.

Yet what is really stopping us from believing that one day soon we may have not only a female Mentri Besar, but even a female Prime Minister?

There needs to be debate and critical discourse on this subject. The old parochial, patriarchal order of things needs to be shaken up. A rethinking and reimagining of leadership, just like a rethinking and reimagining of the direction this country needs to take, must happen. The vanguards of sexism must be checked and the “mengkuang ceiling” must be torn through.

We must have room to imagine and dream of vast possibilities not only for the country or for its leaders, but most importantly for the people. Only by being allowed and encouraged to have these imaginations and dreams will we be able to truly be more innovative, unlock greater potential, and embrace our true capacity as Malaysians.

The time is come. Wanita, bangkit!

(This article first appeared in The Star on 17th July 2014.)

Anwar continues to strike fear in Daim, Kadir Jasin

It is interesting to read Kadir Jasin’s article today, wherein he makes several observations and remarks with regards KEADILAN’s party polls; chief of these is that Anwar Ibrahim is contesting the position of party President as a form of self-preservation in light of the 5-year prison sentence meted out expeditiously on 7th March and that he “fears to be forgotten“.

His remarks are totally in character; the moment Anwar Ibrahim mentions “Tun Daim” and “corruption” in the same breath, Kadir Jasin will run to Daim’s defence with pen in hand. To borrow the “Game of Thrones” reference employed by The Scribe, Kadir Jasin is to Daim Zainuddin what The Hound is to Joffrey Baratheon.

As such, his remarks should be taken with a cup of salt.

KEADILAN is the first major political party in Malaysia to employ direct elections, where ordinary party members directly and democratically elect every single party leader, from the party President to Cabang committee member. To date, in no other mainstream political party – especially not Daim’s UMNO – are Malaysians able to experience this level of democracy.

Unlike members in the decrepit and ossified political machine that is UMNO, any active KEADILAN party member who has been in the party for at least 12 months can vie for any position in the party polls, hence the “festiveness” in terms of the personalities contesting central party leadership posts:
– 2 candidates for President
– 6 candidates for Deputy President
– 16 candidates for Vice President
– 78 candidates for Central Leadership Council (Majlis Pimpinan Pusat, MPP), among others.

Anwar has quite early on stated his intentions to run for the party presidency, while the question of why Wan Azizah is contesting has already been clearly answered. Anwar’s move to contest the Presidency is democratic and constitutional. This is not about his self-preservation, but rather, as long as Anwar remains on the political scene, he is a very real threat to UMNO’s self-preservation, hegemony, and political power. It is not that Anwar fears he will be forgotten, but that with each passing day he continues to make more and more Malaysians want to forget about choosing UMNO.

As such, no answer will ever satisfy the likes of Kadir Jasin as the principal issue – that Anwar Ibrahim is free and active in politics – has not been resolved to Daim’s “satisfaction”. Only when democracy such as that witnessed in KEADILAN and Pakatan Rakyat is crippled and its leaders locked away can the “Joffreys” in UMNO be satisfied.

KEADILAN will never waiver against the pens and prison sentences of Kadir Jasin, Daim, and their ilk, and will continue to fight for the cause of democracy and a better Malaysia for all.

Reformasi!

Kenyataan Ku Nan tentang kenapa harga barang naik tidak bertanggungjawab

KENYATAAN MEDIA
19 Januari 2014

KENYATAAN KU NAN TENTANG KENAPA HARGA BARANG NAIK TIDAK BERTANGGUNGJAWAB

Kenyataan yang dibuat DS Tengku Adnan semalam yang menyelar ‘orang tengah’ yang kononnya cuba menimbulkan kebencian terhadap kerajaan BN adalah kenyataan yang tidak bertanggungjawab, tidak berasas dan amat dikesali, lebih-lebih lagi apabila Menteri membuat andaian bahawa pihak yang menaikkan harga adalah terdiri daripada penyokong Pakatan Rakyat.

Kenyataan Menteri ini adalah cubaan untuk mengalih pandangan umum daripada isu sebenar, bahawa kenaikan harga barang timbul daripada kegagalan dasar pentadbiran DS Najib Razak untuk menangani kenaikan inflasi yang mendadak. Ketua Pembangkang DS Anwar Ibrahim telah mengingatkan rakyat dalam kenyataan beliau tempoh hari bahawa kadar inflasi di Malaysia telah meningkat dari 1.2% pada Disember 2012 ke 2.9% pada November 2013, iaitu peningkatan 2.4 kali ganda.

Ku Nan dan kerajaan UMNO-BN perlu menghentikan retorik yang tidak berasas seperti ini dan sebaliknya berusaha untuk mengetengahkan idea-idea dan dasar-dasar yang dapat menangani isu inflasi dengan efektif. Harga petrol patut diturunkan, monopoli gula yang dipegang Syed Mokhtar perlu dipecahkan, dan pelbagai kenaikan yang dicadangkan seperti kadar tol, tarif elektrik, dan cukai GST wajib ditarikbalik. Sekurang-kurangnya kerajaan UMNO-BN wajib menangani ketirisan dan rasuah yang mengakibatkan berbilion ringgit wang Rakyat lesap begitu sahaja, seperti yang dilaporkan saban tahun dalam Laporan Ketua Audit Negara.

Fahmi Fadzil
Pengarah Komunikasi KEADILAN

—

PRESS STATEMENT
19 January 2014

STATEMENT BY KU NAN ON REASON FOR PRICE INCREASE IS IRRESPONSIBLE

The statement made by DS Tengku Adnan yesterday that claimed ‘middlemen’ were inciting hatred towards the Barisan Nasional government is irresponsible, unfounded and regrettable, especially when the minister assumes that those raising prices were Pakatan Rakyat supporters.

The minister’s statement is a blatant attempt to shift the public’s attention away from the crux of the matter, which is that prices have shot up due to the failure of the Najib administration’s failure to implement policies that can effectively keep inflation in check. As highlighted by the Leader of the Opposition, DS Anwar Ibrahim several days ago, inflation in Malaysia has increased 2.4 times between December 2012 (1.2%) and November 2013 (2.9%).

Instead of employing baseless rhetoric like this, Ku Nan and the UMNO-BN government should instead seriously endeavor to put forward ideas and policies that can effectively attend to the issue of rising inflation. Petrol prices should be dropped, the sugar monopoly held by Syed Mokhtar should be broken, and the various proposals to increase toll rates, electricity tariffs, and the GST should be withdrawn. At the very least, UMNO-BN should focus all its energy on combating leakages and corruption that has cost the Rakyat billions each year, as reported in the Auditor-General’s Report.

Fahmi Fadzil
KEADILAN Communications Director

Kenyataan Ahmad Zahid bagai usaha menggagalkan rekonsiliasi

KENYATAAN MEDIA
7 Disember 2013

KENYATAAN AHMAD ZAHID BAGAI USAHA MENGGAGALKAN REKONSILIASI

Tatkala Perdana Menteri dan Presiden UMNO DS Najib Razak cuba menghulurkan tangan terbuka kepada parti-parti Pakatan Rakyat untuk mengadakan dialog nasional untuk rekonsiliasi, Menteri Dalam Negeri dan Naib Presiden UMNO DS Ahmad Zahid Hamidi pula bagai menghulurkan penumbuk kepada PAS khususnya dan Pakatan Rakyat amnya.

Kenyataan Ahmad Zahid di Perhimpunan Agung UMNO 2013 hari ini yang mengarahkan DS Jamil Khir dan JAKIM mengambil tindakan ke atas Timbalan Presiden PAS, Mohd Sabu, yang dituduh mengamal ajaran Syiah bagai menjatuhkan hukuman tanpa perbicaraan bebas dan adil dahulu. Kenyataan Ahmad Zahid amat tidak produktif, berbahaya, dan bagai cuba menggagalkan rekonsiliasi yang diusahakan DS Najib.

Ahmad Zahid perlu menarik balik kenyataan beliau ini.

Fahmi Fadzil
Pengarah Komunikasi KEADILAN

“Bebanan Rakyat 1Malaysia”

Sebenarnya amat menarik membaca tentang usaha DS Najib Razak, Presiden UMNO dan Perdana Menteri Kerajaan Persekutuan, untuk memburukkan imej lawannya, iaitu DS Anwar Ibrahim, Ketua Umum KEADILAN dan Ketua Pembangkang Parlimen Malaysia.

Walaupun sewaktu Pemilihan UMNO sedang berjalan, serangan politik antara dua individu paling berkuasa di persada politik tanah air seakan berhenti seketika, namun kini DS Najib sendiri yang memimpin serangan. Skrip serangan diulangi pahlawan-pahlawan “lapok” seperti MCA dan Gerakan, yang masing-masing cuba untuk menyalahkan DS Anwar atas kekalahan parti mereka sewaktu PRU13 yang lalu – walhal umum sedia maklum krisis imej dan isu dalaman parti-parti tersebut yang tidak diselesaikan mungkin punca sebenar kekalahan. Isu dasar yang dialami parti-parti tersebut, dan juga parti DS Najib sendiri, ialah keengganan melaksanakan reformasi tulen.

DS Najib perlu ingat, pentadbiran beliau berdiri di atas undi popular 47% berbanding Pakatan Rakyat yang meraih 52%. Jangan terlalu bongkak dan angkuh, kerana rakyat tahu dan sedar serangan-serangan DS Najib mutakhir ini sebenarnya cuba untuk mengalih pandangan rakyat dari isu urustadbir dan ekonomi iaitu harga barang naik. Sejak menerima mandat, pentadbiran DS Najib telah:

• menaikkan harga petrol
• menaikkan harga gula yang jauh lebih mahal berbanding harga gula dunia
• bakal menaikkan harga minyak masak
• bercadang menaikkan harga elektrik
• bercadang menaikkan harga ASTRO
• bercadang menyahsenaraikan (de-listing) BERNAS yang kini hampir 85% dimiliki TS Syed Mokhtar
• bercadang menaikkan kadar cukai pintu sehingga 200% untuk warga Kuala Lumpur – yang boleh dianggap “hadiah” beliau kepada warga KL yang menambah undi dan sokongan terhadap Pakatan Rakyat
• bercadang memperkenal GST, yang rata-rata akan membebankan hidup rakyat khususnya golongan miskin dan kelas menengah

Pada masa yang sama, masalah urustadbir yang cuba dikaburkan pentadbiran DS Najib termasuklah:

• penggunaan jet kerajaan oleh DS Rosmah untuk terbang ke Qatar
• isu bil elektrik yang sangat tinggi di kediaman rasmi DS Najib, hingga mencecah RM250 sejam
• isu ketirisan hampir RM6.5 bilion seperti yang dilaporkan Laporan Ketua Audit Negara 2012
• isu penipuan-penipuan pilihanraya seperti yang dirakam di Tribunal Rakyat anjuran Bersih2.0
• isu dakwaan yang dibuat bekas pegawai kanan PDRM, Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim tentang kehadiran dua anggota CIA di Pejabat Peguam Negara
• isu dakwaan oleh Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim tentang kehilangan Pulau Batu Puteh dan kaitannya dengan TS Abd Gani Patail, Peguam Negara

Sebenarnya perkara-perkara yang telah saya senaraikan lahir dari kecuaian, ketirisan dan keengganan pentadbiran DS Najib untuk melaksana reformasi atau islah; ia boleh dianggap satu program terbaru pentadbiran DS Najib, iaitu program “Bebanan Rakyat 1Malaysia“.

DS Najib harus berfikir secara matang dan henti memainkan skrip dengan pelakon-pelakon “lapok” ini. Sebaliknya beliau perlu duduk semeja dengan pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat untuk melaksana reformasi ikhlas dan tulen untuk menyelesaikan masalah-masalah negara yang terlalu membebankan rakyat.

Avoid Three-cornered Fights, Demi Rakyat

It is good to have reached an understanding, a compromise, a meeting point.

Yang paling penting, perjuangan untuk menegakkan keadilan diteruskan!

—–

17 April 2013
MEDIA STATEMENT: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PSM Decision: Hopeful Prelude to Opposition Avoiding Three Corner Fights

We, civil society leaders and activists, applaud the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) decision to use the symbols of other Pakatan Rakyat parties instead of its clenched fist logo in next month’s general election.

We fully understand that this is a difficult compromise made by a Party that has struggled to get registration for the past 11 years. However it clearly demonstrates PSM’s willingness to listen to, and bow to the aspirations of the Rakyat to avoid three corner fights. It is an act of compromise which reflects a deep political maturity.

We hope that this is a prelude to a general agreement between all opposition parties not to engage in three corner fights in the coming election.

Such a general agreement will clearly reflect the aspirations of the Rakyat and the sentiments of voters at the grassroots who want a regime change and are concerned that three corner fights involving PR parties and other anti BN parties will result in victory for the BN candidate at the expense of the opposition in their constituency.

We are of the opinion that three or more corner fights will only undermine the opposition’s prospects of capturing power at national level. We hope that the PSM decision can serve as a basis for electoral agreements within the opposition to ensure that there will be only two party contests against the BN at the state or federal level.

We note from media reports that PR component parties may land up contesting each other come nomination day. To avoid this unnecessary conflict that goes against the aspirations of the Rakyat we are prepared to establish a Committee of civil society members to act as mediators.

We urge the PR and other opposition parties – as well as all voters – to be especially vigilant of BN tactics in putting up independent candidates – with or without party affiliation. Such a strategy will be employed with the intention of splitting the opposition vote. This election ploy has been used by the BN during previous elections and is likely to feature strongly in the coming elections especially in East Malaysia.

Finally, we feel strongly that the voters in the country want a clear choice between the BN and PR in the coming elections. Therefore in the spirit of “Ketuanan Rakyat” espoused by the PR, we intend to use our collective influence and clout – publicly as well as behind the scenes – to ensure that the opposition parties avoid three corner contests at all cost.

Issued by Group of Concerned Citizens:-
Ahmad Syukri Ab Razab
Al-Jafree Md. Yusop
Anne Ooi
Arthur Toh
Bernard Khoo
Dr.Azmi Sharom
Dr. Lim Teck Ghee
Dr.Kua Kia Soong
Dr.Toh Kin Woon
Dave Low
Fuad Rahmat
Haris Ibrahim
Ho Yock Lin
Janice Ti
Jayanath Appudurai
Kee Thuan Chye
Liau Kok Fah
Nalini Elumalai
Patrick Teoh
Raja Rohaisham Raja Muheiddin
Ronasina
Steven Ng

17 April 2013
KENYATAAN MEDIA: UNTUK SEBARAN SEGERA

Keputusan PSM – Kemungkinan mengelak daripada pertandingan tiga penjuru

Kami, para aktivis dan ketua masyarakat sivil, menyanjung keputusan Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) untuk menggunakan simbol parti parti Pakatan Rakyat dan bukan logo parti sendiri di dalam Pilihan Raya Umum bulan depan.

Kami faham betapa sukarnya kompromi ini bagi sebuah parti yang telah bertungkus lumus selama 11 tahun untuk didaftarkan. Bagaimanapun, ini menunjukkan dengan jelas keupayaan PSM untuk mendengar dan menunduk kepada aspirasi rakyat untuk mengelakkan pertandingan tiga penjuru. Ia merupakan satu tindakan kompromi yang mencerminkan kematangan politik yang mendalam.

Kami berharap ini merupakan satu permulaan kepada persetujuan di antara semua parti politik pembangkang agar tidak melibatkan diri didalam pertandingan tiga penjuru di pilihanraya akan datang.

Persetujuan umum sebegini semestinya akan mencerminkan aspirasi Rakyat dan sentimen pengundi di peringkat akar umbi yang mahukan penukaran rejim dan khuatir bahawa pertandingan tiga penjuru akan hanya menguntungkan BN di kawasan mengundi mereka.

Kami berpendapat bahawa pertandingan tiga atau lebih penjuru akan menjejaskan prospek pembangkang untuk menawan kuasa di peringkat kebangsaan. Kami berharap keputusan PSM boleh berfungsi sebagai asas untuk perjanjian pilihanraya pembangkang untuk memastikan pertandingan dua penjuru dengan BN di peringkat DUN atau Parlimen.

Daripada laporan media, kami difahamkan bahawa datangnya hari pencalonan, parti komponen PR mungkin bertanding antara satu sama lain. Untuk mengelakkan konflik yang bertentangan dengan aspirasi rakyat ini, kami bersedia menubuhkan sebuah Jawatankuasa Masyarakat Sivil untuk belaku sebagai pengantara.

Kami menggesa PR, parti parti pembangkang yang lain dan juga pengundi untuk berwaspada dengan strategi BN menggunakan calon bebas dengan atau tanpa mengira parti politik. Strategi sebegini akan digunakan untuk membelah undi pembangkang. Helah ini telah banyak kali digunakan BN pada pilihanraya sebelum ini, dan dijangka akan digunakan di pilihanraya alan datang ini, terutamanya di Sabah dan Sarawak.

Kami percaya sesungguhnya bahawa pengundi di Malaysia inginkan pilihan yang jelas diantara BN dan PR di Pilihan Raya ini. Justeru itu, atas semangat “Ketuanan Rakyat” yang dilaungkan oleh PR, kami ingin menggunakan pengaruh dan kekuatan kolektif, secara terbuka awam dan juga di belakang tabir, untuk memastikan bahawa parti parti pembangkang elak daripada bertanding tiga penjuru.

Dikeluarkan oleh Gabungan Rakyat Prihatin:-
Ahmad Syukri Ab Razab
Al-Jafree Md. Yusop
Anne Ooi
Arthur Toh
Bernard Khoo
Dr.Azmi Sharom
Dr. Lim Teck Ghee
Dr.Kua Kia Soong
Dr.Toh Kin Woon
Dave Low
Fuad Rahmat
Haris Ibrahim
Ho Yock Lin
Janice Ti
Jayanath Appudurai
Kee Thuan Chye
Liau Kok Fah
Nalini Elumalai
Patrick Teoh
Raja Rohaisham Raja Muheiddin
Ronasina
Steven Ng

An MP tirelessly serving Lembah Pantai and the nation

I refer to the article ‘Nurul Izzah losing her grip?’ by Azril Annuar on 27th August 2012, which attempts to contextualize and frame the pre-13th General Election scenario in Lembah Pantai for Malay Mail readers.

Firstly, we must congratulate the Malay Mail for its courage in attempting to highlight the work of a Pakatan Rakyat Member of Parliament (MP) in particular the first-term MP for Lembah Pantai, YB Nurul Izzah Anwar.

As many Malaysians are only too aware, mainstream media – newspapers, radio stations and TV – take great risks in order to strengthen the culture of debate and discourse in this country, particularly when the draconian (albeit slightly-amended) Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 hangs evermore like the Sword of Damocles.

From this perspective, newspapers such as the Malay Mail must be encouraged to continue to carry the voices of all, irrespective of political affiliations.

Secondly, I wish to draw the attention of readers to a particularly interesting choice of words, where the phrase “the BN senator has been … using his position as Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister to address (residents’) problems…” was employed.

This is particularly apt as the BN senator, Dato’ Raja Nong Chik, is very obviously using – or as some may posit, abusing – his position as a Senator and Minister to further his own private political ambitions, arguably tantamount to the dereliction of his duty as minister for all  parliamentary constituencies in the Federal Territories. One estimate puts his presence in Lembah Pantai last Ramadhan at a disproportionate 75% of the time; one can only guess at the amount of ministerial resources outlayed for such personal adventures.

As remarked by YB Nurul Izzah, a lot of the problems faced by residents in Lembah Pantai are directly related to the level of service provided by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), which like the KL Mayor is ultimately answerable to the FT Minister. In this case, the public must ask the FT Minister why have problems including housing, constant traffic jams, poor drainage, lack of maintenance of public facilities such as lifts and children’s playgrounds been allowed to fester?

Furthermore, the fact remains that even though PR MPs were democratically elected in 10 out of 11 parliamentary constituencies in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, not only do they have no annual federal allocation (~RM1-2 million), but they also have very little say in what goes on in DBKL. FT residents are therefore experiencing ‘taxation without representation’, as even the Mayor is not democratically elected but is a political appointee of the FT Minister.

As rightly pointed out by the Honorable Minister, one particularly acute problem in Lembah Pantai is that of housing. His ‘solution’ to this problem, unfortunately, is a cause of much consternation among residents not only in Lembah Pantai but also beyond: using some RM300 million of Malaysians’ hard-earned savings in the EPF to finance the purchasing of PPR-PA public housing units at a 6.5% interest rate that will definitely burden borrowers compared to the much more benign ‘Rent-to-Own’ scheme.

YB Nurul Izzah had openly requested in Parliament that the FT Minister consider the latter option, considering the disquiet that accompanied the 1% (~RM3 million) his FT Foundation would stand to make from this scheme. The Malay Mail could in this instance intervene by organizing a debate so that all sides may clarify their policy statements for the benefit of the wider public.

Despite PR MPs having no annual budget allocation, no direct say in the goings-on of DBKL, and no access to DBKL-run halls, YB Nurul Izzah still manages to pull donations and volunteers to serve the people of Lembah Pantai – from monthly free clinics with qualified doctors and basic medication, to free tuition classes for over 100 students in Pantai Dalam, to quarterly Jom Shopping programs with elderly folk, to running a full service centre, to organizing dialogues between residents and PDRM on crime and security concerns.

In Parliament, YB Nurul Izzah has made very significant contributions to our nation’s legislative progress, including proposing the revocation of the Emergencies, proposing to amend the Petroleum Development Act so that Petronas is made accountable to Parliament, as well as debating in numerous bills that last often long into the night.

In short, YB Nurul Izzah has accomplished much as a first-term MP despite these obstacles, and we look forward to working with the good people at the Malay Mail and other mainstream media to help readers understand the challenges faced and the successes attained by our democratically elected representatives, towards building a better Malaysia.

Fahmi Fadzil
Political Secretary to the MP for Lembah Pantai

(This letter was first published in The Malay Mail on 29 August 2012)

The day after…

In my last article, I wrote about the need to imagine the hours, days, weeks, and months following the 13th General Election (a most enigmatic event, whose precise date is and will forever be a mystery… until it is called!).

This time round, I would like to invite us all to consider, imagine, and think about the first 24 hours after Malaysia goes to the polls.

There are numerous scenarios of what may take place when the Election Commission makes that all-important call after all the ballot papers have been tallied at all the counting centers: a declaration that 1) Barisan Nasional has won two-thirds majority to form government; 2) that BN has won a simple majority and forms government; 3) that Pakatan Rakyat has won a simple majority to form government; 4) that PR has won two-thirds majority and forms government; and 5) a hung parliament, where neither side has the clear advantage.

While this article does not attempt to elaborate on the ramifications of each scenario – there isn’t enough space – what I would like to do is ask us to consider what it is that we can do, in our own little ways.

First and foremost: be calm. No matter what happens, ensure the safety of your immediate family members and your property.

In other words, after polling ends it is best to head home and to stay home, just like what we did after GE12.

Secondly: stay connected. Most online portals that night will be flooded with visitors (or DDOS attacks), so be mindful that some might be down or slow with information.

In fact, keep on hand a list of key phone numbers – close friends, party activists, journalists. And in case the Internet and phone lines get congested, just enjoy the evening. And watch some TV, maybe.

Next: double check your source before sharing that email, SMS, FB update, or tweet. Don’t spread unverified accounts of whatever you think is happening somewhere where you’re not. Check, double check, and in fact triple check – it is better to err on the side of caution than to be the boy that cried wolf.

Four: no matter what happens, stay safe. Don’t take unnecessary risks like driving out around town waving flags and such (it is an election offence to campaign after midnight into polling day).

On a more party political level, at least three key things we have to bear in mind:

One: Ensuring the safety of candidates who have been declared winners, to avoid them from being “bought” by or “convinced” to join the “other side” (whichever side that may be);

Two: Securing the sites of government, both on a state and federal level. This means putting in place safeguards promptly, to ensure that key documents are not ferried out nor destroyed by the outgoing parties.

To this end, official security services – namely Polis Di Raja Malaysia – must maintain a neutral stance and assist in the peaceful and democratic transition of government.

Three: Formation of government, which involves meeting the heads of state as well as the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong and convincing them that the parties forming government do indeed have “the numbers” to do so.

Obviously this is not a comprehensive nor exhaustive study of the first 24 hours after GE13. But what I would like readers to walk away with is a sense that as Malaysians, we need to begin imagining these crucial and critical hours of our nation’s history, to be comfortable with the thought of what may take place, and most importantly: to be prepared, come what may.

(First appeared on SelangorTimes on 10th August 2012)