Archive for July, 2008

It is going to be Pematang Pauh of Penang to see the next by-election this time !

Datuk Seri Wan Azizah wan Ismail, the Opposition Leader, announced her resignation as the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh at an emergency press conference called by PKR at 3pm today.

She is paving the way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to return to parliament to implement his plan to form a new federal government by September 16, the historical day of the formation of Malaysiat, this year.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was, in fact, the MP for the constituency from 1982 to 1998. After his arrest and detention, his wife Datin Seri Wan Azizah stood in  for him and won three consecutive terms as MP.

In 2004, she polled 21,737 votes against BN’s Pirdaus Ismail’s  21,147, by a slim majority of only 590. In 2008, however, under the storm of a political Tsunami, she captured 30,338 votes against the same candidate’s 16,950,  by a sizable majority of 13,380.  

While Dr. Wan Azizah resigned as an MP, she maintains her role as the Parti KeADILan Rakyat president. With her letter of resignation tendered to Pandikar Amin Mulia, the Dewan Rakyat Speaker, who promised to give a reply by Monday, we expect to see a by-election within 60 days from the date of her resignation under the election laws of Malaysia.

Anwar Ibrahim actually annouced earlier that Kulim- Bandsar Baru and Bandar Tun Razak were his first two choices. Time factor seems to be the overridding priority for this apparent change of mind.

Kulim’s seat went to court as petitioned by the BN candidate on the ground that the winner faied to submit his election accounts for the 2004 general election which he participated. The court was supposed to announce its reserved judgment last week, but then adjourned it to August 19 pending no further adjourned.

Meanwhile, it was reported in Malaysian Insider that the investigatin officer had concluded their investigations and found to have a prima facie case against Anwar, and that they were awaiting the Attorney General’s Office’s decision to proceed with prosecution.

The same blog also disclosed that Idrus Harun, a new hand in managing criminal cases could well be chosen as the prosecuting officer for his seeminly uncontroversial image in the prosecuting team.

Both the CPO and the AG were subject to public scrutiny after Anwar’s report which alleged their involvement in the infamous Anwar’s black-eyes incident.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said there is no reason that if the police have truly relied on the law and facts and adhered to professional standards, hed should be charged with sodomy at all.

Speaking to reporters at the Federal Territory Religious Department Wednesday, he lashed out Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan, whom he claimed had a personal vendetta against him.

Musa has filed a defamation suit against Anwar over the latter’s police report alleging that the IGP had fabricated evidence in the “black eye” incident of 1998. Musa was the investigating officer in that case.

“Let me remind the government and authorities that this country is not a police state. The decision must be based on facts and law not based on Musa Hassan’s personal wishes and vendetta from 1998 right through 2008.

“If they follow the law, the facts, the alibi, the medical report, why do they even consider? (charging),” he asked.

Anwar has been accused by 23-year-old Saiful Bukhari Azlan, his former aide, of sodomy.

However the initial medical report from the Pusrawi Hospital showed that Saiful had not been sodomised.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said that medical report was only one piece of evidence of many pieces the police were putting together.

Anwar also said he had no fear of the Hospital KL’s medical report of Saiful and believed that it would vindicate him, as the Sun Online so reported.

As a turn of event, Hospital Pusrawi made a plain denial of the leaked medical report today.

At a ceramah in Seremban last night, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that he was expecting the authorities to clamp down on him by arresting him for a sodomy charge either tonight or tomorrow.

This was according to information from Kuala Lumpur, he said.

Yesterday, the Malaysian Insider exclusively reported on the impending arrest on Anwar, and quoted sources which confirmed the authorities’ readiness to carry out their action as planned.

The authorities were openly instructed by the Minister of Home Affairs not to drag their feet on investigation and  to close it son.

This morning, as early as 5.30am, reporters had been waiting outside Anwar’s house in Bukit Segambut as they did not want to miss the scene of Anwar’s impending arrest.

At 10.40am, Datuk Seri Anwar and hiis wife Datuk Seri Wan Azizah, went to the Selangor Religious Department for further questioning of Anwar as a follow-up of his report against Mohd Saifu for his alleged wrongly accusation of sodomy, which required four eye-witnesses to show proof under the Syariah laws of Malaysia. PKR’s publicity chief Thien Chua and Anwar’s lawyer Kamar Ainiah Kamaruzaman were in their company.

As the police after acquiring their bad experience in 1998, seemed to be determined not to amend their charge(s) against Anwar this time, people are questioning the possibility of having the police report by Mohd Saifu be amended to ensure that it is water-tight and catch-all this time? There is a  basis for such question to exist, as not even a copy of Mohd Saiful’s police report has been sighted even until today.

The Malysian Bar Council have openly requested for a thorough investigation due to the exposure of the first medical report on Mohd Saiful but to no avail so far.

  as reported  by Bernard Cheah and Opalyn Mok
 in newsdesk@thesundaily.com  July 29, 2008 :

‘Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has called on his predecessor, Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, to “be a man” and admit the land deal blunders made under his administration.

Chief minister Lim Guan Eng today holding up theSun’s assembly report on land deals that have brought losses to the state.

Lim said today it was imperative for Koh to “come clean”, especially after former deputy chief minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya had admitted on Monday to an error in a land deal that may cost the state RM40 million.

“If Hilmi can come forward and admit the mistake, Koh, who was the chief minister for 18 years, must also bear responsibility and admit the mistake,” adding that under the principle of collective leadership, Koh and other state executive councillors in the previous BN administration were responsible for making the decision to approve 4.3ha to one individual.

He applauded Hilmi’s admission of the the mistake, saying it was “the correct thing” to do.

“I don’t think you will find any Umno leader being so open and frank to admit his mistake, and being responsible for it, after the March 8 elections,” he said.

Hilmi, who was the state religion, land, planning and development programmes committee chairman from 1999 to 2004, took responsibility for the error during the State Assembly sitting on Monday when Lim revealed in his winding-up speech that the previous administration had approved the 4.3ha to an individual, apparently a quarry operator.

The individual took the case to court when the state government cancelled the land transfer.

The court ordered the state to pay RM29 million, Lim noted, adding that with interests accruing at 8% per annum since 2004, the compensation might reach RM 40 million.

Lim also highlighted several land deals which went awry because of “negligence”, causing losses totalling RM84 million.

“This RM84 million, which is currently under investigation, is very distressing to us,” Lim said.

“We say what we mean, and we mean we say; if there are land scams, there are indeed land scams,” Lim told reporters after launching the Penang Radio Frequency Cluster at the Penang Skills Development Centre (PSDC) today.

Meanwhile, Hilmi accused theSun of being unfair to him by publishing a “misleading headline”. theSun’s Page 1 report had read ‘Hilmi admits RM40, blunder‘.

At a press conference during break time at the State Legislative Assembly, he said theSun did not understand the whole issue.

“The whole case was resolved as the error was discovered and action was taken against the officer in question,” he said.

He explained that the previous state government had mistakenly approved the transfer of the land to a quarry operator but, after discovering its error, it had cancelled the transfer.

“We took action against the officer who made the mistake. Nobody gained anything from it because it was an error, not an embezzlement,” he said.

The matter was settled in court when the quarry operator took legal action against the state government and won the case’.

Since the publication of the above report, no reaction is detected from the former Chief Minister of Penang Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon thus far.

For the sake of a better understanding of the current situation, this blog publishes below a full statement of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dated 29-07-2008 :

The hospital report leaked yesterday confirms our contention that the allegations leveled against me are baseless and politically motivated and that the complainant is an outright liar working hand in glove with those in power to assassinate my character and attempt to derail the people’s aspirations for transformational change in government.This report makes a mockery of the so-called “impartial police investigations” and clearly shows the dubious but persistent attempts to incriminate me by whatever means employable.

How else can we fathom why the police during the last four weeks of their “thorough and professional investigations” have overlooked such a critical piece of evidence? I condemn in the strongest terms their negligence, dishonesty and recklessness in humiliating the nation by dragging us all through this vile and filthy charade.

Our refusal to submit a DNA sample has been vindicated. The failure of the police to disclose this medical report all but confirms their intention to frame me. Although quite apparent even before yesterday, their desperate attempt to collect a new DNA sample is now even more clearly a last ditch effort to build a case where none exists.

The statement by Bar President Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan in response to this latest development bears repeating.

“The credibility of the Malaysian justice system as a whole is therefore atstake. The integrity of professionals, be they doctors or lawyers, must never be interfered with. The public must be left in no doubt that the criminaljustice system in this country will not be misused or abused.”

Several weeks ago I filed a police report implicating Musa Hassan and Gani Patail in the conspiracy to fabricate evidence in my 1998 case. The ACA subsequently opened an inquiry into the matter. Given their current involvement as heads of the police and Attorney General’s chambers, and their earlier attempts to discredit and defame me, I have consistently asserted that a fair investigation into this matter would be impossible, notwithstanding the dubious character of the complainant and his association with the Deputy Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister’s wife and, her staff, as well as key figures in the police department.

I reiterate earlier calls to ensure the safety and security of the doctor who authored this medical report. Reports that he and his family may be in danger must not be taken lightly given earlier instances when key witnesses in high-profile cases in Malaysia have been threatened, coerced or gone missing.

My family and I have endured a great deal during the last month. Our fears of arepeat of the trauma and abuse inflicted upon us in 1998 were bearable only with the tremendous outpouring of support from our friends in Malaysia and throughout the world. We breathed a deep sigh of relief upon hearing of the report and after seeing it with our own eyes felt a great burden lifted from our shoulders. We remain eternally grateful to them for their belief in us and their commitment to the cause of freedom and justice in Malaysia.

I have willingly cooperated in the police investigations; careless and vindictive though it has turned out to be. But I have decided that nation is in a grave situation economically and socially and I can no longer be distracted by such nuisances. I am now determined to move ahead with the reform agenda, which the Malaysian people endorse in the last elections, and i do not intend to address this scurrilous accusations anymore.

At a time when the world economy is spiraling into recession and Malaysia has struggled to remain competitive with its neighbors, this scandal was raised at the worst possible moment. The problems of inflation, unemployment, and investor confidence grow more serious by the day The authorities, aided by senior Ministers in the government, appear to be willfully dragging the nation’s stature down in their last ditch efforts to retain power. The international community has expressed its disdain for what is happening and that will translate to less foreign investment, less tourism and an even weaker economy.

I call upon the government to rise above petty vindictiveness and maneuvering for power, and to be sincere, honest and hence effective in its actions. The national good that, for the moment now reposes in their hands, demands nothing less.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

KENYATAAN MEDIA EDISI BAHASA MELAYU

29hb Julai 2008

Laporan hospital yang didedahkan semalam mengesahkan hujah kami bahawa tuduhan yang dikenakan ke atas saya sememangnya tidak berasas dan bermotifkan politik serta petuduh itu seorang penipu yang bersengkongkol dengan penguasa untuk membunuh karakter saya dan juga berhasrat untuk melengahkan aspirasi rakyat yang mahukan perubahan.

Laporan ini menjadi asas kepada kita untuk curiga dengan apa yang dikatakan sebagai penyiasatan polis yang tidak berpihak dan adil serta menunjukkan usaha yang bersungguh-sungguh untuk mensabitkan saya dengan pertuduhan fitnah tersebut, dengan apa cara sekalipun, walaupun ianya tidak berasas.

Kami tidak memahami bagaimana pihak polis dalam jangka masa empat minggu terakhir ini, yang kononnya telah menjalankan penyiasatan yang teliti dan profesional boleh terlepas pandang bukti yang sebegini penting? Saya mengecam dengan sekeras-kerasnya kecuaian, ketidakjujuran dan sikap tidak bertanggungjawab mereka yang menghina negara dan mengheret kita untuk melalui penipuan yang jahat dan keji ini.

Keengganan kami untuk menyerahkan sampel DNA terbukti benar dan tepat. Kegagalan pihak polis untuk mendedahkan laporan kesihatan ini membuktikan niat mereka untuk memerangkap saya. Keterdesakan mereka untuk dapatkan sampel DNA yang baru menunjukkan usaha terakhir mereka untuk membentuk kes yang sebenarnya tidak muncul.

Kenyataan Presiden Majlis Peguam Malaysia Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan terhadap perkembangan terbaru ini bolehlah kita ambil.

“Kredibiliti sistem keadilan di Malaysia secara keseluruhannya berada di saat genting. Integriti para profesional, samada doktor ataupun peguam janganlah diganggu. Masyarakat mesti tidak mempunyai sebarang keraguan terhadap sistem keadilan di negara ini dan mereka mesti yakin bahawa ianya tidak disalah guna mahupun dicerobohi.”

Beberapa minggu lalu saya telah menfailkan satu laporan mensabitkan Musa Hassan dan Gani Patail dengan satu konspirasi untuk memalsukan pembuktian kes membabitkan saya pada tahun 1998. Badan Pencegah Rasuah sudahpun memulakan siasatan terhadap laporan tersebut. Saya secara konsisten menyatakan bahawa penyiasatan yang adil adalah mustahil kerana kedua-dua mereka masih mengetuai Pasukan Polis dan Jabatan Peguam Negara dan pernah terlibat dalam menfitnah dan memalukan saya, tambahan pula karakter petuduh yang meragukan disamping dekatnya dia dengan Timbalan Perdana Menteri, isteri beliau, kakitangannya dan individu penting di dalam pasukan polis.

Saya ulangi gesaan untuk menjamin keselamatan dan perlindungan terhadap doktor yang menulis laporan kesihatan tersebut. Adanya laporan yang mengatakan beliau dan keluarga beliau berada dalam bahaya mestilah tidak dipandang ringan kerana wujudnya insiden saksi penting dalam kes berprofail tinggi di Malaysia didapati diugut, dipaksa dan hilang entah ke mana.
Saya sekeluarga telah melalui ujian yang berat beberapa bulan kebelakangan ini. Ketakutan akan berulangnya trauma dan pencerobohan yang dikenakan ke atas kami hanya dapat ditanggung bila menyedari betapa besarnya sokongan rakan-rakan dari Malaysia dan seluruh dunia. Kami merasa beban berat seperti diangkat dari bahu kami bila melihat dan membaca laporan tersebut. Kami amat bersyukur dan berterima kasih kepada mereka yang sentiasa mempercayai kami dan komitmen mereka terhadap perjuangan kebebasan dan keadilan di Malaysia.

Saya secara sukarela bekerjasama dengan penyiasatan yang dibuat oleh pihak polis; namun ianya ternyata cuai dan berniat jahat rupanya. Saya berpandangan negara ini berada dalam kedudukan yang tenat dari aspek ekonomi dan sosial dan saya tidak mahu lagi dipesongkan oleh gangguan sebegini. Saya bertekad untuk melangkah ke hadapan bersama agenda perubahan, yang disokong oleh rakyat Malaysia pada pilihanraya yang lepas, dan saya tidak berhasrat untuk melayan tuduhan fitnah ini lagi.

Pada ketika ekonomi dunia menuju kemelesetan dan Malaysia terpaksa bergelut untuk kekal bersaing dengan jiran-jirannya, skandal ini ternyata muncul pada waktu yang sangat buruk. Masalah inflasi, pengangguran dan terhakisnya keyakinan pelabur semakin hari semakin buruk. Pihak berkuasa dibantu pula oleh menteri kanan dalam kerajaan, kelihatan sengaja mengheret nama negara ini ke bawah hanya kerana untuk kekal berkuasa. Komuniti antarabangsa telah melahirkan rasa tidak senang mereka terhadap apa yang berlaku, ini boleh mengakibatkan pengurangan pelaburan asing, pelancong dan sudah semestinya menyebabkan ekonomi yang lemah.

Saya menyeru kerajaan supaya bangkit meninggalkan segala percaturan remeh dan berniat jahat hanya kerana ingin kekal berkuasa, mereka perlu jujur, ikhlas serta efektif dalam segala tindakan. Pada saat ini kemaslahatan negara adalah tanggungjawab mereka, kita menuntut tidak kurang dari itu.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

Exclusively according to the Malaysian Insider, the police have completed their investigations into sodomy allegations against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and are going to charge the opposition icon soon for sodomising his accuser Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

Sources told The Malaysian Insider that investigators are “crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s” and will be relying on Anwar’s DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) samples from 1998 when he faced similar charges which cost him the chance to be prime minister.

“Nobody wants a repeat of 1998 when the prosecution had to amend the charges. Anwar has alleged that he had an alibi for the 24 hours on the day the offence took place. So the authorities have to check everything out,” said an official who is familiar with the investigations.

“We understand that there is an attempt to quash credibility of the case even before the matter goes to court. The police cannot say too much because then they will be accused of trial by media and ministers cannot say much because they will be accused of interference”.

The police claimed that this case was based on scientific evidence, whilst the Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said police will not cease investigations into the allegations despite a leaked medical report that states Saiful has no medical evidence of sodomy.

“This is just one aspect of the investigations. The police are piecing together evidence, let them do their job and complete their investigations,” Syed Hamid said. “As it is, they haven’t charged Anwar with anything yet,” he added.

The Malaysia Today news portal yesterday revealed a medical report dated June 28 that indicated the lack of evidence of anal intercourse, with its editor Raja Petra Kamarudin also claiming that the examining doctor, Dr Mohamed Osman Abdul Hamid, had gone into hiding because the police had attempted to have him change his medical report to implicate Anwar.

Raja Petra also claimed that he had videod on the account given by Mohd Saifu’s friend who accompanied him to have seen the top guy not on scholarship but on how to rope in Anwar. However, so far he had not yet shown to the public the video concerned.

The police have denied the allegation.

“We interviewed the doctor in the early stages of our investigations following the police report lodged by Mohd Saiful,” said Deputy Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar.

“But we did not arrest the doctor or detain him for three days as alleged by the Malaysia Today report. We don’t have any plans to do so either,” he said.

Uncle Pet, a relative of Mohd Saiful, rather carelessly confirmed the existence of the first medical report, while making his challenges to PKR today.

Anwar, on the other hand, said that this was the last time that he responded to the filthy sodomy allegation, as he has more important thing to do such as fighting to go back to the parliament.

PKR Bukit Gelugor Division pledges to give full support to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today to choose a seat to contest for a by-election. They believe that Anwar could then realise the plan of changing the federal government for the benefit of the people by lowering the fuel prices the next day as a start.

The new division chairman Raveen, the Assemblyman for Batu Uban, and the deputy chairman Lim Boo Chang, former Assemblyman for Datok Keramat, concurred that no DNA sample of Anwar should be given to the authorities under the present law as it may be abused for other mischievious purposes. 

Both of them also urged all their members and supporters to go all out in the event of a by-election.

Today, Zulkifli, the MP for Kulim, announced that even if he won the court case and that his seat was not declared vacant, he was prepared to resign to pave way for Anwar Ibrahim to contest in Kulim. He believed that only Anwar could change the present status quo which is working against the people’s interests. 

Today also saw the successful election of the first Angkatan Pemuda KeADILan (APK) and Wanita committeess of the PKR Bukit Gelugor Devision. Boo Chang’s wife Madam Diong Chong Mee was elected as the Division Wanita Chairman, with Puan Juliana as her Deputy. Whereas Ahmad Rosidi was elected as the APK Chairman, and Lim Kuo Shee,  who is also the Division’s Deputy Speaker, as his Deputy. 

The Division members were in high mood to serve the party and the people on the principle of Justice For All rergardless of race, religion and cultural background, as prescribed by the party constitution.

 At a press conference at PKR’s headquarters today, PKR’s de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim emphasised that the leaked medical report proved that the sodomy allegation against him was baseless and , in fact, politically motivated.

He said, the whole thing was done with the purpose of thwarting his plan of taking-over the federal government.

He rightfully questioned why for the last four weeks, the police could have neglected such an important evidence in their investigation?

He further questioned if the police from the very beginning already knew the existence of it, then why should they insist to strip him naked for examination, to block and arrest him before he turned up at the appointed time for police questioning, as well as to have detained him for a night?

He said he did not know the doctor concerned but after seeking the assistance of several specialists, the first medical report was authenticated as genuine.

He urged the police to protect the doctor’s whole family, as he was worried this doctor might follow the example of private investigator Bala Subramaniam to have suddenly disappeared.

On the other hand, the Gerakan Central Committee Member Datuk Dar. Toh Kin Woon asked the police to disclose the full  medical report to the public, as ‘justice delayed is justice denied,’ he added. He also urged the main stream media to highlight this first medical report.

The general public is somewhat shaken in their confidence in the ability of the already ailing system of justice in our country in handling the charge against Anwar for sodomy, if any, for which not even a copy of Mohd Saiful’s police report has been sighted so far.