- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
There Are Many Subtleties And Hidden Meanings, Patterns Leading to Surprising Outcomes, For Us To Consider As We Ponderously Venture With Hope Still Towards A Better Malaysia
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Najib's Transformation Of Malaysia Into An American Satellite
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Are We Over-Celebrating Obama?
The above may well be a little unjust to Obama's image, but his image remains untested in the muddy waters of a global economic crisis. Previous economic crises have ended in wars as a form of resolution. We hope Obama lives up to his image and steers away from that. But for him to do so, the focus may well be for him to focus on getting the American economic ship back in order. So lets temper our euphoria a little for what Obama will do for us in the rest of the world...
Thursday, July 17, 2008
USFTA Penghalang Naiknya Muhyiddin Ke Mercu Kuasa?
Monday, March 17, 2008
Initial Feedback On The New Cabinet... Updated
Rocky asked some pertinent questions on why some people are on and are off the cabinet here rocky's bru: The new Cabinet.
Why was Rafidah droped? I update this with a thought that I picked up off a commentor. Could it be that Rafidah was dropped to make it easier for the US to conclude an FTA with us? We know that Muhyiddin, whilst an UMNO stalwart, doesn't really have the background and nous to as effectively lead Malaysia in the negotiations. Muhyiddin also demonstrated his willingness to compromise in the past with the land deal he agreed with Singapore when he was Johor MB. So, is the hidden reason to allow the USFTA to be ratified? Muhyiddin will need help here!
On the political side, Rafidah being dropped allows Azalina to more easily challenge her . As Azalina is increasingly seen as a Pak Lah and Khairy ally, what with her sacrificing her familial right to be the MP of Rembau to Khairy and her minions' activities on the web. Rafidah needs to make amends with Tun Dr M properly to stand a chance. Alternatively, Rafidah can choose to back another Wanita heavyweight, like say Noraesah (who is generally acceptable to all factions), to block Azalina. Azalina of course was Khairy's co-anchor on TV once.
A tangential view of why Rafidah was dropped would be that it is to appease Tun Dr M, who probably is still a little upset with Rafidah for her role in the AP scandal and the attack on Proton. Enough about Rafidah.
Why was JJ dropped? Because Pak Lah cannot risk 2 Najib allies in the Cabinet who are political warlords that can also deliver at their ministries. Zahid Hamidi, whilst tentatively also an Anwarista and publicly behind Pak Lah, was brought into the mainstream by Najib and was returned to public leadership following his conversion to Tun Dr M pre-1999 elections. Zahid is still the best candidate to grab MAYC from the clutches of Syed Hamid, currently a firm, though weak, Lah-ist ally.
Why Muhammad Taib? 2 reasons probably. Khairy in his snot-nosed political infancy is probably still enamoured by Muhammad Taib's skill at leading by-elections. This despite 'Mike Tyson's' clear weakness as UMNO Information Chief on the big stage of PRU-12. Pak Lah also needs a guaranteed ally (one he has revived from the political graveyard) to balance the cabinet that he has risked...
The cabinet is still potentially hostile. Shabery Cheek was raised by KuLi so may well be another enemy within, but he cannot be ignored what with the others Pak Lah have dropped. Liow Tiong Lai dan Ong Tee Keat's entry mark the pre-emminence of the Lim Ah Lek faction in MCA, a group that is more traditional and less amenable to shananigans vs Ong Ka Ting's faction, now represented by that less popular brother of his, Ong Ka Chuan.
Curious to see Wan Ahmad Farid as Deputy Home Affairs and Internal Security Minister. This is Khairy's close chum right? The one who used to be in Terengganu? Or have I got the wrong guy. He'll probably be puppet-mastering Syed Hamid Albar in the ministry... weak... weak!
I have a quick observation also to make about the MIC members of cabinet. So, Samy has put up his man S Subramaniam for Minister. Has to be Samy's man as he's Sec-Gen of MIC. This sets up the battle for the MIC Presidency nicely then against the young turk Devamany who has a Deputy Minister post! This assumes of course that Samy is no longer interested? Palanievel? The other Subra?
So, does this cabinet line-up change my opinion that Pak Lah has to go for the sake of the party and the nation? No. Does the cabinet line-up re-assure me that Khairy is no longer a hidden hand influencing Malaysian government policy? No. So, I guess you know where my vote will go during UMNO branch elections... if they'll let us have a proper contest that is!
Sunday, March 25, 2007
I had a gathering with a few friends on New Year's Day to discuss the potential crunch areas facing the nation this year, 2007. It was partly in reaction to the on-going number of issues, many unresolved till today, and many more arising continuously, almost swamping us to the point where many have stopped caring. We thought it was important to focus on the key issues that may place the nation in danger, in the eve of our 50th Merdeka celebrations.
By far the most critical item was agreed as being the impending USFTA. The group believed this was the biggest issue, though surprisingly the issue the rakyat were least aware of, as:
- If miss-handled, it had the potential of being the most damaging agreement the country has ever agreed upon since independence, to the risk of even sacrificing out sovereign rights to the US, a power that has shown itself to be selfish and unsympathetic to other, closer, past partners.
- The recent JapanFTA with Malaysia has indicated a degree of incompetence of the current government in concluding such agreements, resulting in an agreement clearly NOT in Malaysia's favour, when a better agreement would have been easy as Japan is a country that has a long-standing, cooperative and benign relationship with us.
- Worryingly, there has recently been anecdotal evidence from the behaviour of MITI, especially the long serving minister, that the Japan FTA was not signed with the ministry's full endorsement, but an agreement was forced by 'other forces', much as being seen recently for the USFTA.
Compared to the USFTA, the other 2 'crunch' events seen then are more benign, but are themselves major events were it not for the presence of the USFTA. The second highest ranked issue for my part was Proton, or rather what the government was going to do about it.
The Proton issue is a long-standing one, but is critical in demonstrating the seriousness of this administration in establishing good corporate governance and the building of a progressive Malaysia. Continued misshandling of Proton, by rewarding its ownership to the wrong parties, or denying its success by turning it into a second-rate subsidiary of a foreign rival, would be seen as confirming that corporate corruption and the culture of mediocrity is alive an well in Malaysia.
As mentioned on occassion by this blogger, my book of writings on Proton is coming along nicely, with materiel from former leaders and internal sources from bidding companies, hopefully, shedding more light to the whole mess so far, though we hope (naively?) nevertheless leading to a good outcome.
Finally, the issue we thought would be of interest moving later into the year was Synergy Drive and the amalgamation, and re-allocation (as there must be), of the assets of the major Plantation GLCs in the country. Synergy Drive is seen as a larger and potentially bigger test case of the extent of corporate corruption and mismanagement has progressed than Proton.
Of particular additional interest also is the way the merger will change the power-structure in Malaysia's corporate landscape, with the plantation companies wielding so much power even whilst apart, second only to Petronas in the GLC ranks. Will our plantations continue to be steered by Nationalists like those in PNB, with Nation-Building agendas, or new-age Economic Hit-men like many in Khazanah, with KPI's and 'loose change' on their minds... and little else?
We are coming into the end of Q1 2007, and I believe the above to still be pertinent, so many may ask, where is the 9MP and Singapore's Johor Economic Rape (SJER), now better known as the IDR (Iskandar Duped Repeatedly). Well, I believe the 9MP to be nothing more than a poor man's PR trick (I mean really, do you remember the 8th, 7th, 6th... MPs?). And the IDP, the biggest real-estate auction in history, deserves a separate category altogether...
As for the coming elections... well, I think the handling of USFTA, Proton and Synergy Drive should probably be guiding lights for Young Professional voters in Malaysia on how they cast their votes in any case. On these issues we can decide if the government is guiding us and our country where we think we deserve to be driven, in a decent Proton running along in 'synergy' with our nature and desires, and without some obnoxious American as a backseat driver!
Thursday, March 15, 2007
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
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
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.