From: Teh, Ian
Sent: Thursday, 14 February 2008 10:55 AM
To:
Subject: Parliament has been dissolved on 13.02.2008
(Sorry to go on but this is an area which often grabs me…)
I sincerely believe DAP can become a viable alternative in its own right. Kit Siang has demonstrated consistently high standards of integrity and altruism which stands out like a beacon in the heap of mess that is Malaysian politics. Guan Eng may be his son and this tends to attract accusations of nepotism but Guan Eng’s track record is as good as if not better than most of the other candidates as a future leader of DAP. His status as Kit Siang’s son would not have mattered much in the selection criteria. I was initially attracted to DAP because of Guan Eng’s actions in defending the Malay girl who was abused by the Malacca MB. If you remember that incident, that girl was 15 years old and Guan Eng spoke out in her defence, defying a court order not to and went to jail for that. He served over a year in jail, I think, and was disqualified as a practising accountant as a result. When he was imprisoned, I attended my first rally/protest by participating in a vigil outside the then High Court complex (opposite Merdeka square).
Unfortunately, DAP in the past has been associated with the working/trading class of the Chinese community and the candidates it offered are often hard workers but inarticulate and could not formulate alternative plans and policies. This has changed. It is now a party with many respected professionals and large business owners from all races. Recent high profiled recruits posing as very good potential candidates include Jeff Ooi (a bit narcissistic at times but otherwise smart and hardworking and a good communicator), Ishwar Atthapan (lawyer and investment banker, built up very successful corporate advisory outfit and son of ex MIC leader), and someone (I forget his name) who built up a prominent listed IT consultancy before selling up to be full time politician. The problem is to counter the monopoly the BN has over the media and the lies BN perpetuates through this monopoly. DAP has a mountain to climb to overcome this handicap and communicate its credentials to the electorate.
I don’t trust PKR and Anwar. I think the legacy issues it has with UMNO means many are there simply to get back to power on the coat tails of Anwar instead of a genuine desire to build a better and more equitable society. The legacy of bigotry (racial and religious) and corruption remains with the current generation of PKR candidates and would not take much to creep back in if they are given half a chance.
PAS’s raison d’être remains unacceptable.
Ian Teh
——————————————————————————–
From:
Sent: Thursday, 14 February 2008 9:44 AM
To: Teh, Ian
Subject: Re: RE: FW: Parliament has been dissolved on 13.02.2008
I agree. I think like Barack Obama in the US, Anwar could well gain momentum and regain some lost loyalties and acceptability. I think the opposition knows well that they need someone charismatic like Anwar to unite them where they could work under. Anwar is afterall quite acceptable to the Islam fundamentalist and whilst suspicious could be an acceptable compromise to DAP and some segments of the Chinese population…yeah so exciting this and next election, wow ! Need to pray for our love ones still there…
> Teh, Ian <Ian.Teh@aig.com> wrote:
>
> I suspect there will be large protest vote against Abdullah. He will
> lose most Indian votes, Christian votes (although insignificant) and
> large chunks of Chinese votes. Whether he retains the 2/3 majority
> depends on how much of the Chinese votes he loses and whether there
> are enough Malays who are more frustrated by the incompetence and
> corruption than their desire to protect their own interests.
>
>
> Anwar remains charismatic but has lost a lot of his earlier
> acceptability as an alternative leader. The only thing going for him,
> apart from his charisma, is that he is the only smart one (or appears
> to be) in that generation of leaders.
>
>
> But yes, definitely an interesting election to watch.
>
>
>
> Ian Teh
>
>
> _____
>
> From:
> Sent: Thursday, 14 February 2008 8:59 AM
> To: Teh, Ian
> Subject: Re: FW: Parliament has been dissolved on 13.02.2008
>
>
>
> Thanks Ian ! I think this will be interesting in that it will really
> show the guts of the Malaysian public…btw, I read that Anwar’s wife
> has indicated that she will vacate her seat (if elected) for Anwar
> after the election when he is allowed back into the political arena,
> so a by election and who knows what’s going to happen next…
>
> Cheerio
>
>
>
> > _____
> >
> > From:
>
> > Sent: Wednesday, 13 February 2008 6:22 PM
> > To: Teh, Ian;
> > Subject: Parliament has been dissolved on 13.02.2008
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Subject: Parliament has been dissolved on 13.02.2008
> >
> > KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Financial) – Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah
> > Ahmad Badawi dissolved parliament Wednesday to pave the way for snap
> > elections which are expected to see the ruling coalition’s majority
> > eroded.
> >
> > Abdullah’s popularity has plummeted as the nation is beset by
> > mounting racial tensions, unprecedented street protests, anger over
> > rising fuel and food prices, and high crime rates.
> >
> > Announcing that the king had consented to dissolve parliament,
> > Abdullah indicated he did not expect a repeat of the 2004 landslide
> > when the Barisan Nasional coalition seized some 90 percent of
> > parliamentary seats.
> >
> > “2004 was a special election and it was extraordinary. I pray that
> > BN will get at least two-thirds of the votes in the upcoming election,”
> > he told a press conference.
> >
> > “I hope voters will understand the issues affecting our country
> > objectively,” he said, adding that the Election Commission would
> > decide on the polling date.
> >
> > Voting must be held 60 days after parliament is dissolved, but the
> > government traditionally allows just a two-week campaign period,
> > which would mean the ballot in early March.
> >
> > Abdullah appealed for calm during the campaign, in an apparent
> > reference to a string of public rallies over the past few months
> > which police have broken up with tear gas and water cannon.
> >
> > “My hope is that during the voting, nothing untoward will happen —
> > there will be no disturbances or trouble that will affect the voting
> > process,”
> > he
> > said.
> >
> > Abdullah heads the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) which
> > leads the Barisan Nasional (Nasional Front) multi-racial coalition
> > that holds 200 of the 219 seats in parliament.
> >
> > The Chinese-based Democratic Action Party holds 12, the
> > fundamentalist Islamic party PAS has six and Keadilan which is led
> > by the wife of dissident former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim has one seat.
> >
> > The government’s term expires only in May 2009 and some commentators
> > say it is going to the polls early to ensure Anwar cannot contest.
> > He was sacked and jailed in 1998 and is barred from politics until
> > April this year.
> >
> > In the next elections, there will be 222 seats contested due to the
> > creation of new constituencies. The assemblies in the 12 states and
> > territories will also be contested.
> >
> > DAP parliamentary opposition leader Lim Kit Siang condemned the
> > election announcement which falls during celebrations for Chinese
> > New
> Year.
> >
> > “I think it shows a disregard and insensitivity of the diverse
> > cultures and religions in the country,” he told Agence France-Presse.
> >
> > UMNO was also criticised for holding its annual talks during the
> > Deepavali festival which is celebrated by Malaysia’s minority ethnic
> > Indian community
> > — an incident Lim condemned as a “debacle.”
> >
> > On Tuesday, Abdullah had tried to quell the rumours that he would
> > dissolve parliament on the 13th — his favourite number — telling
> > reporters “No, it won’t be tomorrow”.
> >
> > Lim slammed the premier for the about-face.
> >
> > “I think it’s most disgraceful and shocking after the assurance
> > yesterday evening that there would not be a dissolution today,” he
> > said.
> >
Ante 