Portrait of Dr M

by ALLAN KOAY

Mahathir gives an insight into Malaysia’s fourth prime minister.

TUN Dr Mahathir Mohamad, as you’ve never seen him before. Or, as you’ve never heard him before. That’s what The History Channel’s upcoming two-part series Mahathir promises.

The series, the first part of which kicks off this Sunday, aims to present a fair and balanced picture of the former prime minister, warts and all.

 Open biopic: The History Channel’s two-part series, Mahathir, aims to present a fair and balanced picture of the former premier, warts and all.

On the one hand, it explores the former premier’s achievements and how his vision for Malaysia modernised the country into an industrial-based economy, while on the other, it also delves into the controversies and scandals that plagued his administration, as well as his outspokenness that rubbed many on the international stage the wrong way.

But most of all, viewers will get to follow Dr Mahathir’s life, from his schooldays in Singapore to his courtship of Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali, and throughout his career as the longest-serving prime minister of Malaysia (1981-2003).

Known to be a very private person, Dr Mahathir, however, surprised the makers of the documentary with his openness and cooperation.

Leong Hon Yuen, director of the series who also produced it with Lina Tan of Red Communications, said: “A lot of information came out of him, a lot that is not widely known. And that surprised me. This is real information from the man himself, and from his wife about him.

“I had no preconceptions about him. I just went to meet him with an open mind and see what he had to say. And that’s what the biography is about.

“It’s not about one side or the other. It’s a very fair and balanced documentary. And that’s how I wanted it to be.”

When Leong asked for access to Dr Mahathir’s personal collection of photographs, she got a big surprise. His personal assistant brought five huge cartons into the meeting room.

“I went through all the photos, which totalled more than 1,000,” she said. “I spent a few months travelling between Putrajaya and KL, every day from 9am to 5pm, just to look through all the photos.

“There were wedding photos, holiday photos, political photos such as a meeting with Ronald Reagan – everything from his childhood all the way to the time when he retired.”

In the end, she managed to pick 150 photos which were used in the documentary.

“It’s not just about the politician, it’s about the man,” said Michele Schofield, director of content programming, acquisitions and production for AETN All Asia Networks. “And that’s what all our biographies are. Our litmus test for whether we want to make a biography about someone is, do they have an interesting life as much as an interesting career?”

When it came to interviewing Dr Mahathir, Leong was given some tips by a friend beforehand. She was told to be completely prepared and leave no stone unturned in her research.

“If you ask him a silly question, basically it wouldn’t be good news for you,” said Leong. “So, I made all my preparations. I was told beforehand that he is a private person, and that he doesn’t talk shop or chit-chat. So I thought I would have to figure out how to get information from him or get his emotions flowing. We didn’t just want facts from him, we wanted stories.

“But amazingly he was very open and very expressive. We interviewed him over three days, each session lasting about two-and-a-half hours. It was conducted in his 86th floor Petronas office for the political questions, and also in his home in The Mines (Seri Kembangan, Selangor) for the family side of things. So we get to see both sides of him.”

Family man

For Tan, the most important moments were the ones that showed sides of Dr Mahathir, 83, now Petronas adviser, that most people have never seen, such as when he is with his family and grandchildren.

She said such moments provide us a glimpse of the man behind the grand achievements and controversies, paring down the larger-than-life persona to just someone who loves his family and offspring.

“That was our challenge, to portray him as a person with a family life but who also had a mammoth task to carry out,” said Tan. “We have to do justice to why he is perceived as how he is. He was in power for over 20 years! In most countries, that’s unheard of.

“That was what we wanted to show, from the guy who studied in school and scribbled his name on the wall, and to this man who made Malaysia what it is. It is amazing to see how he went from here to there. Like it or not, you just have to be a bit in awe.”

Schofield stressed again that the objective of the series was not to glorify Dr Mahathir nor take an accusatory stance.

“In taking the journey chronologically, you see that there are certain signposts in his career where he made statements or decisions for which internationally he was pretty much condemned,” said Schofield. “We even show some of those clips to illustrate what people outside of Malaysia were thinking when he did all that. Our objective was to be objective. And I think we succeeded in doing that.”

In fact, some of his local opponents were also given voice in the series.

The makers even sought the views of DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang (Member of Parliament for Ipoh Timor), one of Dr Mahathir’s harshest critics who was also one of those arrested under the Internal Security Act in 1987’s Ops Lalang during Dr Mahathir’s tenure.

The series also looks at the price of the success Dr Mahathir brought to Malaysia, the power struggles and political crises – such as the sacking and imprisonment of then deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim – and how freedom of expression also became one of the casualties.

“Malaysians have all sorts of emotions when it comes to Tun Dr Mahathir,” said Tan. “You just have to say his name, and you get all sorts of reactions. But we hope that when people watch this, they would really get an insight into him, to hear things from the man himself. No political speak or anything like that but speaking completely from the heart.”

Leong added: “And he answered all our questions, whether it was something sensitive or political.”

Said Tan: “And that was the first thing that we asked him – ‘Do you want us not to ask you any question?’ And he said: ‘No. You can ask me anything.’ ”

● Mahathir, Part 1 premieres this Sunday(Nov 15) at 8pm, while Part 2 premieres on Nov 22 also at 8pm, on The History Chanel (Astro channel 555).

Era kebangkitan semula UMNO bermula?

by Utusan

Oleh Amran Mulup

KUALA LUMPUR 16 Okt. – Perhimpunan Agung UMNO 2009 disifatkan telah membangkitkan semula semangat juang tinggi di kalangan seluruh perwakilan parti sekali gus era kebangkitan semula UMNO dilihat akan bermula selepas ini.

Ketua Pergerakan Wanita, Senator Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil berkata, amanat, ucapan dasar dan penggulungan oleh Presiden, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak cukup jelas telah meniup semangat di kalangan 3.5 juta ahli untuk kembali berjuang menguatkan semula UMNO.

Justeru katanya, perhimpunan kali ini merupakan petanda bahawa UMNO akan kembali ke puncak asalnya.

More news:-

Najib tidak gentar pemansuhan kuota gugat kedudukannya

UMNO tidak takut untuk berubah

Karisma Najib ubah sikap pemimpin UMNO

 

PuTERAKL says “Hmm…Let see in the near future if this can really translates a kebangkitan Alif Mim Nun Wau!  ”

Mampukah isu ‘tangan ghaib’ pulihkan MCA?

Source

Oleh Kamal Ahmad
mohdkamal@bharian.com.my

EGM bukan jaminan penyelesaian kemelut parti

TARIKH 10 Oktober ini bakal menentukan kedudukan Presiden MCA, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat; dan bekas timbalannya, Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek. Kira-kira 2,400 ahli perwakilan pusat parti akan berkumpul dalam Dewan San Choon di Wisma MCA, seawal jam 7.30 pagi untuk membincangkan lima usul yang dikatakan mampu merungkai kemelut dalaman parti kedua terbesar Barisan Nasional (BN) itu.

Menjelang tarikh itu, desakan dan tekanan silih berganti dilakukan Dr Chua terhadap Tee Kiat serta kepemimpinannya. Terbaru, Dr Chua mendakwa ramai perwakilan Pusat, pemimpin dan ahli parti MCA akan meletak jawatan malah keluar parti jika resolusi mesyuarat agung luar biasa (EGM) nanti tidak memihak kepadanya. Ini bagai satu lagi ugutan terhadap Tee Kiat yang menjurus supaya Presiden MCA itu dipertanggungjawabkan jika parti kehilangan ramai ahli dan pemimpin selepas tarikh berkenaan.

Kenapa Dr Chua mendakwa demikian tetapi tidak tahu perkembangan sebenarnya sedangkan beliau sedar ura-ura berkenaan? Sejauh mana kesetiaan Dr Chua kepada MCA jika EGM kelak tidak memihak kepadanya? Bagaimana dengan ura-ura Dr Chua mahu menubuhkan parti baru Parti Cintai Malaysia, yang beliau anggap satu lagi propaganda Tee Keat.

Jika benar ramai ahli dan pemimpin MCA akan keluar parti maka kenyataan Dr Chua pastinya bercanggah dengan hakikat beliau konon mempunyai sokongan padu segenap peringkat parti. Kelompok itu pastinya penyokong Dr Chua. Tetapi bagaimana beliau mahu sehidup semati dengan MCA sedangkan ramai penyokongnya keluar parti? Bagaimana seorang ketua tidak mampu mengawal sikap atau pendirian penyokongnya sedangkan kelompok itu beliau anggap bukan taksub kepadanya tetapi kecewa dengan kepemimpinan MCA sekarang yang tiada wawasan, tiada tindakan positif dan tidak konsisten.

Andai ramai ahli dan pemimpin MCA keluar parti kerana kecewa, ke mana hala tuju politik mereka? Mungkin mereka akan menyertai DAP atau Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR). Bolehkah DAP menerima orang Dr Chua yang mungkin dianggap tidak cukup radikal untuk menjadi ahli DAP? Apakah mereka akan bersekutu dengan PKR kerana ada bekas Menteri Kesihatan, Datuk Chua Jui Meng?

Jui Meng tewas kepada Tee Keat dalam pertandingan merebut jawatan Presiden MCA, dalam perhimpunan parti itu Oktober tahun lalu. Namun Dr Chua berjaya menewaskan lawannya, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan. Apakah ada kemungkinan dua ‘Chua’ ini akan bergabung semula dalam PKR seperti mereka menjadi regu menentang dua ‘Ong’ dalam pemilihan MCA sebelum ini?

Pada pemilihan itu, Dr Chua mendapat 1,115 undi mengalahkan, Ka Chuan yang dilihat sebagai ‘orang’ Tee Keat yang hanya mendapat 1,001 undi. Mampukah Dr Chua mengekalkan sekurang-kurangnya undi yang sama dalam EGM kali ini?

“Saya komited kepada MCA dan mahu mati sebagai ahli MCA,” demikian kata Dr Chua menjawab soalan bahawa apa guna beliau kekal dalam parti yang tidak lagi menghargainya. Beliau juga tidak ada sebab memikirkan pelan B dan menyertai parti lain. Ramai pihak yang memerhatikan gerak laku Dr Chua dan menyaksikan kemampuan beliau mengotakan janji itu serta terus setia dengan MCA, andai tewas dalam EGM kelak.

Pendirian beliau yang ‘tidak berminat dengan jawatan menteri’ andai diterima semula sebagai Timbalan Presiden MCA juga mencetuskan tanda tanya. Namun beliau mahu melaksanakan satu tugas besar – menyatukan semula komuniti Cina, dengan syarat – pertama, parti mesti bersatu; kedua, komuniti Cina mesti menerima hakikat kepelbagaian kaum di negara ini dan tidak ada satu kaum mesti mengaut semuanya dan tidak ada satu kaum ketinggalan daripada arus perdana pembangunan negara; dan ketiga, mesti ada semangat bertolak ansur lebih luas dalam usaha pembentukan negara.

Ketika rata-rata pihak yakin EGM ini mampu meleraikan sebahagian besar kemelut dalaman MCA, kini timbul kononnya ada pihak ketiga yang sebenarnya mahu memecahbelahkan MCA. Mereka bertindak menyebarkan semula video seks Dr Chua yang dengan sengaja mahu menaikkan emosi, kemarahan dan kebencian penyokong beliau terhadap Tee Keat, menjelang EGM itu.

Pengerusi Biro Perhubungan Pertubuhan Bukan Kerajaan (NGO) MCA, Datuk Ti Lian Ker, berkata ‘Third Force’ yang wujud di kalangan parti itu mahu mengeksploitasi kemusnahan maksimum terhadap peribadi dan kewibawaan Tee Keat serta Dr Chua. Katanya, motif ‘Third Force’ sangat jelas, mahu menjatuhkan kepemimpinan Tee Keat dan merosakkan Dr Chua selama-lamanya. Kemuncak kemarahan ahli MCA akan mengakibatkan parti berpecah selama-lamanya dan sesiapa yang menerajui parti akan menjadi ‘itik tempang’.

Lian Ker mendakwa ‘Third Force’ juga mahu menguasai pemimpin MCA untuk motif dan agenda peribadi. Mereka mahu menentukan kepemimpinan MCA seperti yang lepas-lepas dan kemelut dalaman membuka peluang mereka ‘membunuh dua ekor burung dengan satu batu.’

Siapakah pemilik ‘tangan ghaib’ yang dimaksudkan oleh Lian Ker? Mungkinkah identiti kelompok itu akan disingkap dan didedahkan dalam EGM kali ini? Dan, apakah ‘isu tangan ghaib’ mampu dijadikan tali menyatukan semua Tee Keat dan Dr Chua bagi menghadapi kelompok yang mahu mengancam MCA? Ini akan menjadikan EGM nanti lebih hangat dan mengejutkan.

PuTERAKL says “Wallah’hualam”

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri 2009!

1. As per subject, wa nak wish, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri buat semua…

2. Semoga kita semua berbahagia di hari yang mulia ini… Amen.

Malaysia’s ‘McCurry’ beats McDonald’s over trademark

by AFP

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – - Malaysia’s highest court ruled Tuesday against US fast food giant McDonald’s, which has waged an eight-year battle to prevent local eatery “McCurry” from using the prefix “Mc” in its name.

“It is the end of the road for McDonald’s. McCurry can use the prefix,” said lawyer Sri Dev Nair who represented the family-owned restaurant, which serves up Malaysian favourites like tandoori chicken and fish masala.

“McCurry and McDonald’s are two different businesses which sell different types of food and they have different customers,” he said, rejecting McDonald’s claim that the use of “Mc” in its name could cause confusion.

In April, McCurry scored a David-and-Goliath victory when the appeals court overturned a 2006 high court decision that McCurry had illegally infringed on the burger chain’s trademark.

McDonald’s on Tuesday sought permission from the federal court to contest the appeals court decision, but judges denied the application and said the burger chain’s petition was “not properly framed”.

“It is unfortunate we have to dismiss the application with costs,” said Judge Arifin Zakaria, who headed the three-member panel. Costs amounted to 10,000 ringgit (2,845 dollars).

“Justice has been served. The food that we serve is very different from McDonald’s,” said McCurry owner Kanaeges Suppiah.

“We have no similarities with them at all. That’s what we have felt all this while and that’s why we could go on until this stage,” she told reporters.

McDonald’s counsel declined to comment, saying they had to brief their client first.

“We abide by the court’s decision,” lawyer Wong Sai Fong said.

The McCurry restaurant, which the owners say is short for Malaysian Chicken Curry Restaurant, was established in 1999. McDonald’s has 185 outlets in Malaysia, the first of which it opened in 1982.

PuTERAKL says “Just another case on David vs Goliath…”

All Eyes on Manchester City

by Soccer.net

New money is always noisy. Social climbing is always vulgar. So, despite Manchester City’s best efforts they are going to make plenty of enemies on their way to the top. David Moyes has taken particular exception to the “disgusting” violation of the established etiquette. Inflammatory stuff.
Hard to find the insult in offering £18 million for a 26-year-old defender with seven England caps. Joleon Lescott is a good player but Moyes has reacted as if his character had been publicly dragged through the mud.
City are not playing by the ‘old boy’ rules, Moyes has implied. There were even hints that Lescott had been illegally approached, Moyes claiming his head had been “twisted” by City.
That kind of insinuation crying tapping up is itself dishonourable. If Everton suspect that City have broken the rules, why not report them? It is not up to Everton to prove anything let the authorities investigate. Otherwise, it is just slander.
Hughes admits to being “bemused” by the strength of some of the vitriol. “We are trying to conduct our business in the right way, through the proper channels, and make it happen,” Hughes said.
“At the end of the day he is Everton’s player and they will have the final say and we respect that.
“I think I’m correct in saying that we did not publicise the fact we were interested in Joleon Lescott. I think the first news of that was published on Everton’s website.” Hughes said the situation with Lescott was still “fluid”, although with the poison in the air a deal looks highly unlikely. It has even been suggested that Moyes might resign if the player were sold against his will.
Hughes admitted that he was ready with other options. Top of his list is believed to be Matthew Upson, of West Ham. Before Lescott handed in a transfer request last week, with City thinking the deal dead, they asked West Ham about Upson’s availability but were put off when quoted £15 million for a 30 year-old who has just turned down a contract extension.
However, West Ham are having to operate on an extremely tight budget and have apparently lowered their price. Upson has made it clear that he would only make the right move for him in a season ending in the World Cup.
“It’s a difficult situation until there’s something on the table,” he said. “But West Ham’s financial predicament is quite well noted. Whether or not that means someone will have to be sold, I don’t know.”

Paris pool bans Muslim woman in ‘burqini’ swimsuit

by AFP

A Paris swimming pool has refused entry to a young Muslim woman wearing a “burqini,” a swimsuit covering most of the body, officials said Wednesday, adding to tensions over Muslim dress in France.

A Paris swimming pool has refused entry to a young Muslim woman wearing a “burqini,” a swimsuit covering most of the body, officials said Wednesday, adding to tensions over Muslim dress in France.

The incident came as French lawmakers conduct hearings on whether to ban the burqa after President Nicolas Sarkozy said the head-to-toe body covering and veil was “not welcome” in France, home to Europe’s biggest Muslim minority.

Officials in the Paris suburb of Emerainville said they let the woman swim in the pool in July wearing the “burqini,” designed for Muslim women who want to swim without revealing their bodies.

But when she returned in August, they decided to apply hygiene rules and told her she could not swim if she insisted on wearing the garment, which resembles a wetsuit with built-in hood.

Pool staff “reminded her of the rules that apply in all (public) swimming pools which forbid swimming while clothed,” said Daniel Guillaume, an official with the pool management.

Le Parisien newspaper said the woman, identified by her first name Carole, was a French convert to Islam and that she was determined to go to the courts to challenge the decision.

“Quite simply, this is segregation,” the newspaper quoted her as saying. “I will fight to try to change things. And if I see that the battle is lost, I cannot rule out leaving France.”

The newspaper ran a photo of the woman sporting her three-piece “burqini” which she said she purchased in Dubai during a recent holiday.

“I bought it thinking that I could enjoy swimming without having to uncover myself,” she said.

Local mayor Alain Kelyor said “all this has nothing to do with Islam,” adding that the “burqini” was “not an Islamic swimsuit; that type of suit does not exist in the Koran,” the Muslim holy book.

France has set up a special panel of 32 lawmakers to consider whether a law should be enacted to bar Muslim women from wearing the burqa.

In an address to parliament in June, Sarkozy said the burka was not a symbol of religious faith but a sign of women’s “subservience” and declared that it was “not welcome” in staunchly secular France.

The country has had a long-running debate on how far it is willing to go to accommodate Islam without undermining the tradition of separating church and state, enshrined in a flagship 1905 law.

In 2004, it passed a law banning headscarves or any other “conspicuous” religious symbols in state schools to defend secularism.

The burqa debate in France has drawn chilling warnings from Al-Qaeda that it was ready to “take revenge for the honour of our daughters and sisters.”

Communist MP Andre Gerin, who heads the National Assembly’s burqa commission, called the “burqini” ridiculous and said pool administrators were right.

“We can’t allow this. This is proof that there is a political agenda behind such dress,” Gerin told Le Parisien.

Anwar Ibrahim: The Malaysia’s chameleon

by The Economist 

Jul 30th 2009
From The Economist print edition

The rise, fall and rise of Anwar Ibrahim, South-East Asia’s most extraordinary politician

 

ONE evening in mid-July Anwar Ibrahim was deep in the rubber-tapping state of Kelantan in northern Malaysia, urging a crowd of rural folk to vote for a devout fishmonger. The candidate was from the conservative Islamic Party (PAS). A tiny by-election for the state assembly PAS already dominates is ordinarily small beer (or would be, if PAS allowed such a beverage, which it does not). But Mr Anwar needs PAS. For the paradox is that without the Islamists, the alliance he leads of Malay modernisers, Indians and secular Chinese has little chance of driving the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) from power. The coalition that UMNO dominates has ruled Malaysia since independence in 1957. Mr Anwar longs for UMNO’s destruction. The feeling is mutual.

That morning, Mr Anwar had been in Perth where he had met Australia’s foreign minister. What had he been doing with Stephen Smith? “Plotting,” replies Mr Anwar, with a conspiratorial wink. Mr Anwar spends a lot of time abroad with national and religious leaders whose names he drops slightly too easily into an engaging conversational style. He moves like quicksilver from one intriguing subject to the next, but you get the uncanny sense that he is speaking to what interests you.

Mr Anwar thinks he will soon need international support. Two days after stumping in Kelantan, pre-trial hearings began in a case in which Mr Anwar stands accused of sodomising a political aide “against the order of nature”. Mr Anwar vigorously denies the charges. He says he is the victim of a political stitch-up. International outrage might help him. Much is fishy about the case. Photographs of the former aide who brought the accusations show him with UMNO members, including people close to the current prime minister, Najib Razak. The charge has been changed from sexual assault to “consensual sex”, yet his accuser has not been charged. (All homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia.)

Mr Anwar has been here before. In 1998 he was charged with corruption and homosexual acts. In custody, he was beaten up by the chief of police. He spent six years in jail, mostly in solitary confinement, until his conviction was overturned. Upon release, his political career seemed over.

It is easy to forget now but for many years Mr Anwar led a charmed life. He made his name as an Islamist student leader in the 1970s and was even jailed under the draconian Internal Security Act. Then he shocked his former colleagues by joining UMNO, where his rise was spectacular. By 1993 he was deputy prime minister and heir to Mahathir Mohamad, the country’s long-serving leader. Malaysia seemed about to fall into his lap. “Ah,” says Mr Anwar, “the good old days.”

But during the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98, Mr Anwar moved too soon against his mentor, who after 16 years in power was not ready to bow out. Mr Anwar railed against the UMNO cronyism from which he had benefited. Livid, Dr Mahathir threw him out of the cabinet and launched Mr Anwar’s persecution. Mr Anwar’s reformasi movement sputtered out with his jailing.

Yet the hopes which that movement represented surged again after the general election of March 2008, and especially after August 2008 when Mr Anwar won a seat in Penang. In the election the ruling coalition lost its precious two-thirds majority which gave it power to change the constitution. It has since lost five out of six by-elections to Mr Anwar’s forces, which also control four of 13 states. In getting out its message, the opposition has been helped by an explosion of internet opinion that has undermined the influence of the UMNO-controlled mainstream media.

UMNO’s back is against the wall. Even its own officials admit to its arrogance, with corruption bound into the fabric of its power. The New Economic Policy (NEP, introduced in 1971) instituted racial preferences for majority Malays, when ethnic Chinese and Indians owned much of business. But instead of helping the poor, the NEP has enriched rent-seekers around the ruling party, while dragging down economic growth. Resentment has spread from Chinese and Indians to poor or pious Malays.

This has made possible Mr Anwar’s strange alliance. In calling for the end to the NEP, he says poor Chinese and Indians need help as much as Malays—but because there are more poor Malays than other races, they will still get the lion’s share of government help. It is a possible way out from the baneful influence of race on Malaysian politics. But the real strength of this alliance is that Mr Anwar’s charisma and political nous holds it together. Alas, that it is potential weakness, too.

Trials and tribulations

The challenges for Mr Anwar and his alliance will now multiply. For a start, Mr Najib, prime minister since April, has said the NEP must adapt, stealing some of his opponent’s thunder.

Then there is the time-consuming trial. Mr Anwar says he will win whatever the verdict. If he is acquitted, the government which brought the case will be discredited. If found guilty, tens of thousands of supporters will take to the streets. Mr Anwar hints tantalisingly at new information in a murder case that has gripped the country partly because of its links to Mr Najib. This, he suggests, gives him ammunition to fight back.

Intriguing, but it is unlikely to be enough. If Mr Anwar does go to jail, the alliance may not survive the loss of its leader. If he calls out his supporters—for something of the martyr lurks in him—he may be blamed for the ensuing chaos. And if he appeals to international opinion, his local supporters may question that.

This points to a trap waiting to catch the silver-tongued Mr Anwar, who deftly tells different audiences—religious or secular—what they like to hear. The same blogosphere that helped his meteoric rise may one day pay more attention to his chameleon qualities. Malaysians would then come to ask more closely: who and what exactly does Anwar stand for?

Umno mesti bersungguh-sungguh untuk berubah

by Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh

Amalkan proses pemilihan berintegriti bebas daripada sebarang bentuk sogokan atau penyalahgunaan kuasa

KETIKA menyampaikan ucapan penerimaan jawatan Presiden pada hari terakhir Perhimpunan Agung Umno pada 28 Mac lalu, Datuk Seri Najib Razak memberi bayangan bahawa Umno akan berubah bagi memastikan kelangsungan berterusan parti itu pada masa depan.

Presiden Umno itu yakin bahawa secara umumnya, rakyat tidak menolak Umno, tetapi ’sebenarnya mereka mahu Umno berubah.’ Antara faktor perubahan struktur di dalam Umno yang mahu dilihat oleh rakyat ialah proses pemilihan berintegriti yang bebas daripada sebarang bentuk sogokan atau penyalahgunaan kuasa.

Untuk tujuan itu Majlis Tertinggi (MT) Umno menubuhkan Jawatankuasa Induk Pindaan Perlembagaan Umno yang dipengerusikan oleh Naib Presiden, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, yang sudah mengadakan mesyuarat pertamanya baru-baru ini.

Berasaskan kepada prinsip ‘proses pemilihan yang berintegriti’ itu, perubahan yang dicadangkan oleh Najib ialah pertama, membabitkan lebih ramai perwakilan dalam proses pemilihan. Kedua, pindaan itu akan menjurus kepada memberi ruang lebih liberal kepada mereka yang ingin menawarkan diri untuk berkhidmat kepada parti tanpa ada sekatan di dalam bentuk kuota.

Dari perspektif sejarah piagam atau perlembagaan Umno yang asal, ia dirangka oleh satu jawatankuasa yang dipilih dalam Kongres Melayu Pertama di Kelab Sultan Sulaiman pada 1 Mac 1946. Ahli jawatankuasa yang dipilih ialah Datuk Onn Ja’afar sebagai pengerusi dengan yang lainnya terdiri daripada Datuk Panglima Bukit Gantang, Datuk Nik Ahmad Kamil, Datuk Hamzah Abdullah dan Zainal Abidin Ahmad atau Za’aba.

Rangka deraf perlembagaan itu diluluskan sebulat suara dengan beberapa pindaan oleh perwakilan Kongres Melayu Ketiga di Istana Besar, Johor Bahru pada 11 Mei 1946, selepas ia dibentang dan dibahas dengan panjang lebar.

Sejak itu, tidak banyak perubahan dibuat kepada perlembagaan Umno, kecuali selepas ia diisytiharkan tidak sah oleh mahkamah pada 1988 dengan diperkenalkan undi bonus dan kemudian sistem kuota untuk bertanding jawatan penting dalam parti, sama ada pada peringkat tertinggi atau bahagian.

Pada 1978, bekas Ketua Penerangan Umno, Sulaiman Palestin hanya memerlukan dua pencalonan untuk melayakkannya bertanding jawatan Presiden melawan Tun Hussein Onn. Beliau tewas walaupun mampu mendapat 250 undi, berbanding Hussein yang memperoleh 898 undi.

Pada 1987 menyaksikan pertandingan paling akhir untuk jawatan Presiden dan Timbalan Presiden Umno sebelum pindaan dibuat yang memperkenalkan sistem bonus 10 undi kepada setiap pencalonan yang diterima.

Kerana sistem bonus inilah menyebabkan Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba menarik diri daripada bertanding mempertahankan jawatan Timbalan Presiden pada 1993 apabila beliau dicabar Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Pendekatan ‘undi bonus’ ini dilihat sebagai tidak popular dan mungkin juga tidak berkesan. Perlembagaan Umno dipinda lagi, kali ini memperlihatkan sesiapa yang hendak menawarkan diri bertanding jawatan Presiden parti hendaklah mendapat sekurang-kurangnya 30 peratus pencalonan daripada jumlah bahagian di dalam parti.

Pada peringkat bahagian pula, calon yang hendak bertanding sebagai ketua perlu mendapat 20 peratus jumlah cawangan yang sah di dalam bahagian itu. Ada dua kritikan terhadap sistem pemilihan yang ada di dalam Umno sekarang.

Pertama, sistem kuota itu dilihat sebagai menyekat parti daripada memilih pemimpin yang terbaik. Seorang anak muda yang ingin berbakti di dalam parti melihat sukar untuk dia mendapat tempat kerana bukan senang untuk dinamakan oleh jumlah cawangan yang boleh melayakkan dia bertanding di dalam bahagian. Umno tidak dilihat sebagai parti yang ‘mesra kepada ahli baru’.

Kedua, rakyat secara umumnya sukar untuk menerima bahawa hanya lebih kurang 2,600 perwakilan yang menentukan siapa menjadi seorang Presiden Umno dan kemudian secara hukum adatnya, seorang Perdana Menteri.

Hakikatnya, sukar untuk menolak hujah kenapa sistem yang ada mengizinkan 2,600 orang perwakilan memilih seorang Perdana Menteri yang mewakili 28 juta penduduk negara. Oleh itu tidak menghairankan bahawa Presiden Umno di dalam ucapan penerimaan jawatannya membayangkan bahawa pindaan perlembagaan nanti akan membuka ruang lebih besar kepada akar umbi untuk memilih pemimpin tertinggi parti.

Bahkan Najib, di dalam ucapan yang sama dengan tegas mengatakan bahawa ’saya tidak mahu berselindung di sebalik kuota untuk menjadi Presiden Umno’.

Ada cadangan setakat ini yang membayangkan untuk memberi kuasa memilih jawatan tertinggi parti kepada semua perwakilan dari cawangan ke mesyuarat perwakilan bahagian. Atas andaian hitung panjang 500 perwakilan di dalam satu-satu mesyuarat perwakilan bahagian, maka kuasa memilih kepada 191 bahagian Umno seluruh negara akan membabitkan jumlah yang mencecah 95,500 perwakilan.

Dalam proses transformasi parti, jika diluluskan nanti, pindaan ini akan memberikan satu ‘empowerment’ (kuasa) kepada perwakilan cawangan, kerana mereka boleh memilih pemimpin tertinggi parti termasuk ahli MT secara langsung.

Walaupun ini masih pada peringkat cadangan, ia adalah strategi serampang dua mata. Pertama ia mengotakan kata dan janji Presiden untuk membuat satu perubahan dan transformasi parti dengan membabitkan lebih ramai ahli akar umbi memilih pemimpin. Kedua, ia mengecilkan bahkan menutup terus ruang untuk amalan politik wang yang terlalu sinonim dengan pemilihan di dalam parti.

Suka atau tidak suka, Umno menghadapi masalah persepsi yang negatif. Selagi rakyat tidak dapat melihat satu usaha bersungguh-sungguh untuk mengubah persepsi ini, sukar untuk Umno memenangi kembali hati dan jiwa rakyat. Umno perlu berubah dan perlu dilihat bersungguh-sungguh untuk berubah.

Langkah untuk meminda perlembagaan parti adalah satu langkah berani dan drastik yang memberi kredibiliti kepada janji Presiden parti untuk melihatkan ’satu proses pemilihan yang berintegriti’. Sebagai parti yang sudah lama ditubuhkan dan lebih penting lama memerintah, Umno mudah untuk terdorong kepada satu zon yang selesa. Tidak mudah untuk mendapatkan kembali kredibiliti parti yang terhakis selepas Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12.

Mesyuarat perwakilan Umno bahagian yang bermula pada 16 Julai hingga 16 Ogos ini sudah diminta mengemukakan cadangan pindaan perlembagaan Umno bagi mencapai objektif ini. Segala usul pada peringkat bahagian akan dibincangkan dalam Jawatankuasa Induk Pindaan Perlembagaan untuk diangkatkan kepada Majlis Tertinggi sebelum dibentang dalam Perhimpunan Agung Khas Umno pada Oktober ini.

Akar umbi Umno mempunyai peluang ini untuk meniupkan roh baru di dalam Umno dan ia peluang untuk mengubah persepsi negatif terhadap Umno. Gunakanlah peluang ini demi untuk memenangi hati rakyat pada Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13 nanti.

Bak kata Presiden parti, “Sayalah di antara pemimpin pertama yang mengungkapkan perkataan berubah sebelum diubah dan berubah sebelum kita rebah.”

Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh ialah Setiausaha Jawatankuasa Induk Pindaan Perlembagaan Umno.

Tevez signs for Manchester City

by AFP

Manchester City on Monday said they had signed Argentine striker Carlos Tevez, who left Manchester United at the end of the season, amid reports they also want Arsenal’s Emmanuel Adebayor.

Manchester City on Monday said they had signed Argentine striker Carlos Tevez, who left Manchester United at the end of the season, amid reports they also want Arsenal’s Emmanuel Adebayor.

Tevez, 25, has agreed terms with City and is set to sign a five-year deal, his new club said following weeks of rumours regarding his future.

No fee was mentioned but City were expected to have to shell out in the region of 25 million pounds (35 million euros) for the player they have coveted all summer.

“It is terrific news,” said City manager Mark Hughes.

“Carlos is an international player of the highest class who possesses all the attributes that will help drive this club forward,” Hughes told the club’s official website.

“He is not only outstanding technically but he is a reliable goal scorer and someone who will contribute fully to the team ethic. He gives us another exciting, attacking dimension.”

Last week City said they were giving up on plans to sign Barcelona star Samuel Etoo, but having secured Tevez’s services they are now also hoping to net Togolese forward Adebayor, even though he signed a new Arsenal contract at the Emirates Stadium, media reports indicated late Tuesday.

City said in a statement on Tevez: “Personal terms with the 25-year-old have been concluded and the deal has been ratified by the Premier League and the Football Association.”

City added that Tevez, who will wear the number 32 shirt next season, will have the mandatory medical check and then link up with the squad on their pre-season tour of South Africa.

Tevez spent two years with United, scoring 34 goals in 99 apearances after joining from West Ham, winning two English Premiership titles and the 2008 Champions League crown.

He started out with Boca Juniors before joining Brazilian side Corinthians in 2005.

Earlier Monday, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson he realised weeks ago that Tevez would not stay at Old Trafford, despite his cult status with fans.

“I half expected Carlos Tevez would be going a long time back. I think he maybe did a deal around January because I spoke to him and gave him an offer on the night we played Inter Milan and he never came back to me,” Ferguson told reporters.

“I phoned him on holiday and he never got back to me and I texted him twice and he never got back to me then either, so obviously he had made his mind up a long time ago,

“He was a good player and did well for us. But he obviously assessed the situation and wanted to go somewhere else.”