Showing posts with label fta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fta. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Najib's Transformation Of Malaysia Into An American Satellite

It began as a political ploy, and not a half-bad one either as Najibite ploys go. Having succeeded as BN leader without a 2/3 majority in Parliament and with many states, especially the most affluent ones, in opposing party hands, DS Najib and his team began planning for political recovery by PRU13. Unfortunately, instead of looking closely at his predecessor's miss-steps, they chose to focus on threats from the opposition instead, and homed in on the political rival DS Najib feared the most, Anwar Ibrahim.

The problem was, how does DS Najib hope to beat Anwar, the leader he had been in the shadow of since UMNO Youth, through to their UMNO 'Team Wawasan' defeat of Tun Ghafar Baba for the party's succession and even in Tun Dr M's Cabinet? DS Najib could never beat Anwar head-to-head in a debate. In fact, in terms of overall image, DS Najib had a problem when it comes to facing Anwar's well nurtured religious-firebrand turned liberal-consensus-builder image, especially with an 'immoral mythology' haunting his own!

And so a plot was hatched... no, not to return Anwar to prison... but to cripple what DS Najib and his political advisors believed was the source of this great rival's strength, his strong relationship with the United States' political and financial establishment. EH? Doesn't DS Najib fear Anwar the man? His oratory skills and charisma? His ability to organize and unite political figures as well as factions led by Hj Hadi and Lim Kit Siang, with such differing political principles? He fears Anwar the man but he chooses to attack Anwar's foreign backing?

This is where readers need to remember DS Najib's own political 'philosophy', that "Cash Is King!" We see this behavior being practiced by him in UMNO, heightened significantly since his position has been threatened by the 1MDB scandal, leading to the infamous 'derma' scandal. We see this being showcased with the continued obsession with using BR1M as a means to 'help the poor'. We see it with the incessant attempt to reassure the populace that the economy is doing great in the face of questions of integrity, sackings and the Ringgit's fall.

So, it should be no surprise that DS Najib hence identifies the undermining of Anwar's support from the US as the principle activity key to winning PRU13! And so great effort, and resources, were channeled to this effect, including:
  1. Tasking the government think tank ISIS to focus on studies and other efforts towards building a relationship with the United States. This was conveyed to this blogger by ISIS' late CEO, Dato' Dr. Mahani Zainal Abidin, some 1 year prior to her unexpected death.

  2. Tapping Ezam Mohd Noor, Anwar's former close confidant and liaison to many of his overseas links, for information on key US figures and organisations supporting PKR, the Reformasi movement and other associated NGOs. It was in return for his cooperation in this area that Ezam was later made a Senator.

  3. Appointing a number of consultants such as APCO for relationship building with an eye for developing stronger formal relations with the wider American political establishment.

  4. Most significantly, appointing the late TS Jamaluddin Jarjis (JJ) to the position of Malaysian Ambassador to the US with ministerial status as soon as DS Najib became Prime Minister in 2009. TS JJ developed strong relationships with both key Republican and Democratic power brokers, made evident by the meeting organized between DS Najib and John McCain (Republican, Baptist former US Presidential Candidate) and Joe Lieberman (Democrat, Jewish former US VP Candidate).

  5. Allowing DS Mustapa Mohamed (Tok Pa) to keep Malaysia on the negotiating table for the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), which is a key backdoor FTA critical to US trade strategy against China. This blogger does not believe the intention was for Malaysia to sign the TPPA in the beginning, as it would really cramp Malaysia's political economy. However, it was key to keep the TPPA going for DS Najib to get chummier with the US power-brokers.

By the time PRU13 arrived, DS Najib's confidence in winning with his 1Malaysia and Transformasi policies was likely reinforced by this growing relationship with the US. The problem was that in focusing so much energy and resources on undermining Anwar, including the grassroots attack on his sexual deviance, many other relationships were allowed to stray, such as the key one with significant part of the electorate, more pointedly the Chinese. Internal UMNO weaknesses also remained unaddressed and if anything, festered.

BN's performance in PRU13 was of course, worse, with the exception of their winning back Kedah and retaining slim control of Perak. However, the real measure of BN's success, or in this case failure, was always on its performance at the Federal level, at which DS Najib's performance was worst than Pak Lah in 2008. And since then, things have gotten worse for DS Najib. Key yet unpopular Economic Transformation policies such as subsidy reductions and the GST had to pursued with a weaker Parliament... and with Anwar still at large!

In the meantime, the US has been continuing its pursue its backdoor Free Trade Agreement cum economic cartel to curtail China's trade influence, the TPPA. As part of DS Najib's 'pro-US to undermine Anwar' policy, DS Mustapa Mohamed as MITI Minister had been left stringing the US along on this a little too long, to the point where Malaysia was the only nation in ASEAN other than Singapore (already a US satellite) and Vietnam (likely China's double-agent) still at the negotiating table! And it was now crunch time! Could Malaysia still withdraw?

With another of DS Najib's hobby horses, 1MDB, going to pot, this blogger believes our PM's new 'friends' in the US chose to 'encourage' the signing of the TPPA by putting the considerable media brands of the New York Times (NYT) and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) behind accusations of wrong-doing in the running of 1MDB. That the accusations were true was of little consequence to the NYT and WSJ, but what was important was to bring pressure to bear on DS Najib so as he will sign the TPPA for Malaysia.

In return for the signing of the TPPA, which would effectively anoint Malaysia as a new Trade Satellite of the US, surely DS Najib will be spared further bludgeoning by the US Media on 1MDB... unless of course it is DS Najib and Malaysia that is being played all along. Gaining Malaysia as a Satellite would be a major coup for the US, as in one fell swoop, it would gain economic and indirect political influence in a key Non-Aligned and Muslim nation, indeed a key Islamic Banking hub, whilst denying the Chinese and Russians of a ready friend.

It would also then allow the US to curtail Malaysia's past morally leading positions at odds with the US, such as our support for Palestine, our opposition to Apartheid, our support for Bosnia, our opposition to the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq... all moral positions troublesome to the US, curtailed...

And so Malaysia's enslavement to the US, beginning with the TPPA, will likely be the likely greatest legacy of DS Najib as our 6th Prime Minister... unless of course he realizes that the honourable thing to do is to save Malaysia from this fate, by his resigning from the post of Prime Minister. Perhaps there is room still for us to forgive if he does this before the TPPA is ratified and the chains our forefathers, including DS Najib's own father, have gradually freed us from, begin to bind us again, but to a new master... the US.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Mari Kita Sama-Sama Menasihati YAB Sebelum Ekonomi Malaysia Jahanam Lagi

Sejurus keluar bahan tulisan Yang Angkuh Bongkak (YAB) Khairy Jamaluddin di halaman Mingguan Malaysia tanggal 25 Feb 2007, mengetengahkan pendapat yang ekonomi kita memang semakin kencang hasil usaha kerajaan pimpinan bapa mertuanya, harga saham Bursa Malaysia turun menjunam pada minggu berikutnya.

Ini bukanlah petanda kehebatan kata-kata YAB Khairy sehingga pelabur Bursa boleh ditakutkan oleh tindak-tanduk beliau. Hanya sekadar menunjukkan yang mungkin beliau belum cukup ahli dalam hal ekonomi untuk memberi pendapat yang sah boleh diterima.

Kalaulah YAB benar-benar ahli dalam hal ekonomi, beliau pasti sedar yang sebenarnya melonjak naiknya Bursa Malaysia sebelum ini kerana pelabur jangka-masa pendek yang lari dari pasaran saham Thai telah mengalihkan wang mereka secara mendadak dari negara tersebut ke Malaysia. Pengalihan ini pun ternyata untuk jangkamasa singkat kerana saham kita sudah terlalu murah akibat kurang pelabur jangkamasa panjang baru di Malaysia dibandingkan negara-negara jiran.

Maka di manakah kesahihan pendapat YAB Khairy, apabila hujahnya yang ekonomi Malaysia kukuh berdasarkan analisa yang kurang jitu. Terlanjur pula beliau mempertahankan kenaikan harga minyak, tol dan sebagainya sebagai sah walaupun hasilnya rakyat mengalami keperitan secara mendadak.

Yang membimbangkan adalah, dalam kegagalan usaha YAB Khairy menunjukkan keahlian dalam hal ekonomi, apabila beliau sebenarnya tiada berkemampuan besar, kata-katanya membawa risiko seperti:

  1. Menimbulkan tanda-tanya tentang kesahihan pendapatnya yang betul, seperti apabila beliau menyatakan betapa perlunya kita membantah perjanjian perdagangan bebas dengan Amerika Syarikat (USTFA). Ini betul, tetapi kata-kata YAB Khairy tidak membantu sekiranya beliau dilihat pincang keahlian ekonominya.

  2. Tindak-tanduk YAB Khairy mungkin menimbulkan tanda-tanya akan kebolehan generasinya untuk mewarisi tampuk kepimpinan negara kelak, kerana walaupun beliau tidak mewakili generasi beliau, mungkin ada yang berfikiran demikian.

Oleh itu, saya menyarankan kepada hamba-hamba Allah yang sudi, nasihatkanlah beliau untuk membaca dan belajar lebih lagi tentang hal ekonomi sebelum beraksi sebagai ahli.

Sebagai seorang yang disanjung kebijaksanaannya, YAB Khairy patut sedar yang walaupun beliau seorang pemegang ijazah Politik, Falsafah dan Ekonomi (PPE) dari Oxford, ini hanya ijazah Sarjana Muda yang mengajar 1/3 sahaja dari kandungan bidang Ekonomi yang ada pada kelulusan Ekonomi lain. Ijazah Sarjana beliau pula bukanlah dalam hal ekonomi.

Malangnya, pengalaman kerja YAB Khairy sebelum ini pun kebanyakannya dalam hal kewartawanan, dan dengar kata yang beliau diambil menjadi Pegawai Khas pun kerana kebolehannya untuk mengarang ucapan, bukannya kerana keupayaan dalam bidang ekonomi. YAB patut mengakui yang tugas-tugas beliau di ECM-Avenue pun sekadar dalam hal Perhubungan Awam (PR) semata-mata, jadi manalah sangat pengalaman bidang ekonominya.

Kalaulah pemain boneka utama negara a.k.a. Uncle Kali berupaya mengajar YAB Khairy, tak apalah juga. Tetapi memandangkan dalam hal penulisan dan kewartawanan pun YAB kelihatan lebih ahli dari Uncle Kali yang ternyata bukanlah seorang wartawan yang hebat, apalah sangat yang upaya diajar oleh Uncle kepada YAB?

Dalam keinsafan YAB Khairy, kami menasihatkan beliau membaca buku-buku tersebut untuk memahami apa itu ekonomi dan apakah asas pemikiran yang harus ada dalam usaha membangunkan negara:

Mungkin selesai itu, YAB Khairy akan berupaya membaca teks yang lebih rumit, sejurus itu menjadi lebih upaya untuk memberi pandangan tetang hal ekonomi. Namun, ada baiknya mungkin sekiranya beliau menasihati teman-temannya di Khazanah dan GLC-GLC untuk membaca buku-buku tersebut dan yang dibawah, selain mengarah dan mengherdik mereka dalam pelbagai hal lain:

Sekadar inilah keupayaan saya, untuk mengajukan nasihat sahaja. Adalah diharapkan mana-mana hamba Allah yang mengajukan saranan saya kepada YAB Khairy juga mengutarakan niat ikhlas saya. Sesungguhnya, adalah untuk kebaikan sejagat warga Melayu dan Malaysia yang kemampuan YAB dalam hal ekonomi ditingkatkan lagi dari kadar yang sedia-ada.

Some Humbling Reflections

I've been busy at work, and then chose to take time to reflect and reassess, whilst resisting to respond to stupidity such as these:

http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/2/28/business/16996639&sec=business
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/3/5/nation/17047430&sec=nation
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/3/10/bizweek/17073462&sec=bizweek
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/3/13/nation/17119560&sec=nation

And hypocracies like these (however welcome any voice may be against notions like a USFTA and for notions like the GLCs' role in nation-building):

http://www.bilaterals.org/article.php3?id_article=7329
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/3/11/nation/17113577&sec=nation

And just plain naivety/ignorance, unworthy of the reputation of an Oxford PPE degree, such as this:

http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/archive.asp?y=2007&dt=0225&pub=utusan_malaysia&sec=rencana&pg=re_05.htm&arc=hive

In the period, this site still received a modest number of hits, for which I must thank
http://rockybru.blogspot.com/, http://www.mykmu.net/ and some new notoreity from this http://www.umno-reform.com/urnews1/blog_attack_pm.htm site.

In my time to reflect I remain convinced that the biggest danger facing Malaysia as a nation this year is

which you can find out more on
http://www.usftamalaysia.blogspot.com/ and that Uncle Kali

remains the country's best puppet-master with Yang Angkuh Bongkak (YAB)

as described here
http://www.pemudaumno.org.my/modules.php?name=NaibKetua being by far his most dangerous puppet.

Just a note. BursaMalaysia collapsed the week after YAB KJ opened his mouth on the soundness of our economy in the Utusan. Not saying that YAB has strong influnce on the markets, only that he probably shouldn't confess his ignorance so loudly. Its so embarassing for those in the generation he (wrongly) claims to be representing!

I'm back... with some humbling reflections...

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

USFTA Malaysia = Malayan Union Abad Ke-21?

Saya baru sahaja menyumbang kepada bahan 'pantauan' tersebut di site http://www.usftamalaysia.blogspot.com

Suatu cabaran yang diterima oleh Gabungan Rakyat Pemantau USFTA-Malaysia dari para pemimpin pelajar Malaysia di UK adalah untuk menjelaskan kenapakah USFTA atau Perjanjian Perdagangan Bebas dengan US ini dikatakan seakan-akan ancaman Malayan Union yang ditentang oleh nenek-moyang kita dahulu.

Izinkan kami menjelaskan sedikit hujah di sebalik pendapat ini. Pada zaman kemenangan sistem kapitalis Barat ini, sistem kapitalis ini sendiri menjadi senjata utama dalam usaha membelenggu negara-bangsa lain di dunia. Amalan ini mungkin tidak didukung oleh semua negara Barat, tetapi Amerika Syarikat, sebagai kuasa besar utama di dunia sekarang dari segi ketenteraan, mahupun saiz ekonominya, tetap mengamalkan penjajahan kapitalisma, atau Colonial Capitalism.

Bacalah lagi di ... http://usftamalaysia.blogspot.com/2007/01/usfta-malaysia-malayan-union-abad-ke-21.html

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Permulaan Usaha Murni

Malaysia bakal tersungkur ke juram penguasaan asing, tetapi rakyatnya masih lena. Bangunlah rakyat Malaysia!

Menjelang pertengahan tahun 2007, kerajaan Malaysia bakal memetrai Perjanjian Perdagangan Bebas (Free Trade Agreement - FTA) dengan Amerika Syarikat(US). Perjanjian ini kini dan kelak juga pasti dikatakan berpotensi merealisasikan impian Wawasan 2020 oleh mereka yang menjaguhinya.

Namun rakyat Malaysia amnya, dan orang Melayu khususnya, mungkin kurang menyedari yang menjelang Malaysia menyambut 50 tahun Merdeka, perjanjian USFTA inilah sesuatu perjanjian yang bakal mengembalikan Malaysia ke belenggu penjajahan kuasa Barat, kali ini oleh Amerika Syarikat.

Kami sekumpulan profesional bertekad menyertai gerakan menentang USFTA, dengan menumpukan usaha terhadap mencelikan mata masyarakat majoriti Melayu Malaysia yang harus digembeling daya serta pengaruhnya bagi memastikan kejayaan pembentengan ini.

Usaha kami yang tidak seberapa ini kini bertumpu kepada pengumpulan maklumat kadalam blog kami, dengan niat mengumpul sumber berbahasa melayu atau mengalih-bahasakan yang berbahasa Inggeris kelak. Oleh itu, kami ingin menjemput mana-mana kumpulan atau individu untuk memberi sumbangan yang sesuai untuk disertakan ke dalam blog kami, dalam bahasa Melayu mahupun Inggeris sekalipun.

http://usftamalaysia.blogspot.com/

Adalah niat kami untuk kemudian mengagihkan maklumat ini dengan cara yang lebih sesuai kepada golongan yang lebih berpengaruh dengan harapan kedudukan rakyat Malaysia terpelihara dari belenggu USFTA yang sudah amnya terbukti durjana apabila dijangkiti oleh negara membangun lain sebelum ini.

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