Haven't the non-Malays contributed to the development of the nation?Can the nation be what it is today if not for the non-Malays?Ku Li has some soul searching to do.He must sincerely search his conscience to obtain genuine answers to these questions.
It is sad that a man of his age, experience and stature lacks the wisdom as a senior statesman.Why does he need to resort to a racist platform at the age of 70,when he should be playing the role of an elderly statesman,unifying the races?
Umno and the BN lost not because the Opposition are angels but the the former have become arrogant,racist and have lost the feeling for the poor and downtrodden citizens of all
races, including the Malays.
Ku Li , as we read your statements,our hearts ached and tears swell in our eyes.It causes so much pain to hear such words from a veteran leader like you,whom we had so much respect. All our sacrifices and contributions to the nation means nothing to you and your Umno.
Pak Lah may be weak but a real gem of a man when compared to many.Despite heavy losses,which he accepted gracefully,saying "winning and losing is what democracy is all about", he has not reacted with anger against anyone.
He may be under tremendous pressure these days, but he has not used the racial card which used to be the easiest weapon for Umno.He still says he is the Prime Minister for all races and would ensure that no one community is left behind.We salute him and pray that God will deliver him from the predicament he is in now.
Dr.Chris Anthony
Ku Li wants Umno to call EGM
Malaysiakini,Mar 16, 08 4:10pm
Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has written a letter to all 193 Umno division leaders urging them to call an extraordinary general meeting on May 11 in the wake of the party's unprecedented electoral setback.
In a two-page letter dated March 12, Razaleigh asked the Umno leaders to invoke the party constitution to demand an EGM to discuss the results of the March 8 election, which saw the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition losing five key states.Razaleigh said his suggestion for May 11 for the special party meeting was because it was the day Umno was founded in 1946.
The 70-year-old former finance minister who made a failed challenge against Prime Minister Abdullah Abdullah Badawi for Umno president in 2004, painted a dire picture for the ruling party.
"In the first general election in 1955, Umno controlled two-thirds of the seats in Parliament. Today, we are a minority voice in Parliament. At the federal level, Umno is no longer a strong political power. I nearly shed tears thinking about this scenario.
Razaleigh, who is the head of Umno Gua Musang division in Kelantan, said that in 2004, the party had 107 out of 219 parliament seats. Now however, the party controls 78 out of 222 seats.
'Umno will not rule again'
"Worse still, at the 12th general election, BN lost four states - Penang, the home state of our own party president (which has fallen into the hands of Chinese-based DAP), Kedah (which has fallen to PAS), Perak (which has fallen to DAP despite that the mentri besar is from PAS), and Selangor (which will be dominated by non-Malay DAP and non-Malays from PKR despite that the mentri besar is a Malay," he wrote appealing to fears of Umno leaders losing political control to the country's non-Malay minorities.
Razaleigh added that the party rank-and-file should not "point fingers at anyone" and absolve themselves for the debacle. According to him, the party should have not allowed the top leadership to make such a mistake.
"This is our collective responsibility, the responsibility of all Umno members and leaders from the branch and division levels to the Umno supreme council, this is not just the responsibility of a few top leaders only."
The EGM, he said, should examine the disastrous electoral performance of BN.
"We must find out why Chinese and Indian voters rejected MCA and MIC candidates. Why were incumbent Umno candidates defeated by PKR and PAS candidates? Otherwise at the next election, if we don't change our policies, culture and morale in BN and Umno - and change radically - BN and Umno will not rule again," he wrote in the letter.
"PKR-DAP-PAS will form the federal government, the PM may be from PKR and the DPM may be from the DAP. And should BN still remain intact, it would become an opposition party which is weak and disunited. Umno will not be able to represent the voice of Malays again."
21 comments:
Dr, No need to be that ultra sensitive. Ku Li is rallying his UMNO members who is in dire need of a leader.He is addressing them not the nation.He did raise the all important question of finding out why the Indians and Chinese rejected BN. It is all a ploy. He knows that UMNO has been dealt a mortal blow and will probably not survive. If ABB doesnt step down, he will just accelerate its demise. If Najib takes over, UMNO will fall over the malfeasance when it all surfaces. It is clear that a race based Party will not survive and the race-based coalition like BN is also a dead duck.
The UNMO keris are all drwan. This time it won't be spilling Chines blood but their own. I'm sure KuLi wants to clear the decks and clean house if he wants to take over. He might just as easy form another Party.This way he doesn't inherit the crap.
bexe
Ku Li is a prehistory dinosaur, his time is long gone.
In a way, we should thank our Good Lord, Jesus Christ, for Ku Li never had a chance to rule Malaysia.
Dear fellow bloggers,
If you want to have a better future for our children in Malaysia, do your part by signing the on-line petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/RCER2008/petition.html
This is one way to bring our message to the Government.
Don’t just sit there, stand up and be counted! We want a fair and transparent election.
WHY DO WE NEED TO REFORM THE ELECTION COMMISSION?
1) Gerrymandering. The discrepancy between number of voters in voting areas is too great. The smallest parliamentary seat (Federal Territory, Putrajaya) has only 6,608 voters while the parliamentary seat for Kapar in Selangor has 112,224 voters. What this means is that one vote in the Putrajaya parliamentary constituency is equivalent to 17 votes in the Kapar constituency.
2) Phantom voters. A common tactic is to ‘buy’ the identity card of the voters. Party members from the ruling parties will then vote on the voters’ behalf. Random checking of a person’s identity must be conducted using those finger print checking device (like the bank use). Any voting done on another person’s identity must be made a serious offence under the election law.
3) Postal votes. The rules on postal voting must be reviewed, tightened and amended. The current rule favours the ruling party as the armed forces personnel and policemen who vote by ‘postal voting’ would obviously not jeopardize their career or promotion prospect by voting for the opposition. Voting under postal voting is not secret as it is under the watchful eyes of the senior officers. Christina Liew of DAP (Api-Api) lost due to postal votes. The ruling party has control of 250,000 postal votes!
4) Spoiled votes. How do we define spoiled votes. It is very easy to turn good votes into spoiled votes (by adding one more x to the ballot paper). Are spoiled votes being verified and watched over by the party representatives? In marginal areas in which the winning margin is razor thin, the so-called spoiled votes need to be scrutinized.
Dear Doctor, as far as I understand, Ku LI's statement is meant for the consumption of UMNO people. You don't talk about morality when you preach to UMNO members.
I think we should be mature enough to handle this. In any case, Ku Li is probably the only person in UMNO who doesn't flaunt his wealth and play with money politics (that's why he doesn't have much grassroot support!). You cannot kick away UMNO , and the BN all of a sudden. You have already seen the bickering between the opposition coalition in grabbing seats and all that, haven't you? If Ku Li can reform UMNO and tone down its pugilistic manner then the nation benefits as a whole too.
Dear Doctor, as far as I understand, Ku LI's statement is meant for the consumption of UMNO people. You don't talk about morality when you preach to UMNO members.
I think we should be mature enough to handle this. In any case, Ku Li is probably the only person in UMNO who doesn't flaunt his wealth and play with money politics (that's why he doesn't have much grassroot support!). You cannot kick away UMNO , and the BN all of a sudden. You have already seen the bickering between the opposition coalition in grabbing seats and all that, haven't you? If Ku Li can reform UMNO and tone down its pugilistic manner then the nation benefits as a whole too.
Doktor
Ini cerita sesama UMNO lah.
Kalau itu Dolah masih Perdana Menteri , dia tidak akan tukar perangai.
DIa akan kata rakyat memberi sokongan 90% kerana dia lupa itu tahun 2004.
Ku Li will be a capable option. He has fought Dr Mahathir and was in opposition.
He ha slearnt many lesson from his past. Much wiser and smarter. he is capable of doing something for teh economy. Isn;t that what is it all about also.
Dear Dr - I'm Chinese and not too worked up over this call for EGM by Tg R. He's just doing their UMNO thingy - not particularly tasteful but let's just not get so very sensitive on it. Ku Li's wife is also Chinese u know.
Biar UMNO go down the drain la...we don't need to join the 'racial' havoc. We Malaysians only.
funny, i just lost all my respect for ku li.
Dr Anthony,
i appreciate your sincerity in posting this, but I would appreciate your being clearer about what exactly you find objectionable in Ku Li's statement. I don't see it.
Is it the call to discuss the root causes of UMNO's reversal and failure rationally and collectively? Is it the call to understand why BN has been largely rejected by Chinese and Indian voters? As a minority, in this country, this is precisely what I hope UMNO will do: learn from this Election, listen to its results. In my view this is more genuine than making pious and vague statements then going on to say that all the people are angry about are "implementation issues".. "apportioning of projects."
Ku Li appears to be trying to break the shell of denial that UMNO is still hiding behind. That denial is dangerous. As a non-Malay, I think this would be a very good thing.
So please, if you would kindly elaborate for us all. There are all kinds of people with weak minds jumping on the bandwagon of your blog entry to throw abuse.
Doc, why this hypersensitivity? This is a private letter for the consumption of members of a political party. You are not a member of that party; why are you "slighted" by the content of the letter?
OK, lets talk about race politics.
Political parties exist for specific agendas. Perhaps sadly, in Malaysia, THE agenda has predominantly centered on RACE. Many may preach justice, equality, fairness, merit, level-playing-field, ..... BUT when the dust settles, it still boils down to RACE. Guan Eng and Kit Siang were playing to the Chinese gallery with their NEP and Perak MB swearing-in goofs this past week. Anwar/PKR was playing to the Malay audience when they invite UMNO to a dialogue on the NEP. UMNO was also playing to the Malay crowd when suddenly they are the practitioners of "demonstrasi jalanan" in Penang.
Listen, DAP thrives on "Chinese Rights." MIC and PPP (+ Pandithan's spin-off and Nalla's offshoot) tumble over one another to fight for "Indian Rights." PAS has been steadfast with their philosophy on Islamic governance and justice. A myriad of parties in the Borneo states represent Iban, Melanau, Murut, Penan, Kelabit, Kadasandusun, Bajau, ... ad nauseam ... rights.
There are Malay, Chinese and Indian interests (not often correlating) within PKR. Gerakan is a Chinese party in a multiracial clothing. DAP is an unapologetic Chinese party garnished with a sprinkling of anti-Malay Indians. What else is new?
Each of these parties will obviously stress issues and strategies impinging on the fate and welfare of their specific ethnic group OR to push for agendas to curtail the perceived preeminence of another ethnic group. Thats the purpose of their existence in the first place. Whether you agree to their internal communications is immaterial since you are not a party member. Would an UMNO chap accept many of the rhetoric regurgitated by the MIC honchos? No. Would a PKR Malay member agree to the inevitable Chinese chauvinist stance of DAP cadres? Obviously not. Have you read/deciphered some of the Chinese-centric literature (in Chinese for Chinese consumption of course) churned by the DAP? It would dwarf Ku Li's letter in its racist slant. Would an Indian or Chinese in PKR be too comfortable on some pronouncements by PAS (if they actually take the effort to decipher the message uttered in Kelantanese or Kedahan Malay)? Was Kayveas happy with Gerakan's not-so-subtle anti-Indian antics in Taiping? Ask him.
Listen. UMNO was badly mauled in PRU12 (... and its little comrades, the MIC, is dead while the MCA and Gerakan are on life support). As a party stalwart who has "been there and done that," Ku Li is doing what he deems is necessary for the survival of his political party. What he wrote is nothing new. That's the basis of UMNO's existence -- for better or for worst for the minority races.
Why do you, Dr., think you have a stake in what transpires within UMNO? Does Ku Li has a stake (or actually cares) on what goes on inside the DAP, MIC, PKR or even PAS? No.
Misplaced sensitivities -- like reactions to this Ku Li UMNO letter -- are the biggest impediments to Malaysian democracy.
Dr,
I think you are splitting hairs.It's absolutely right for Ku Li to call for an EGM of the party to find out where they went wrong.
At the moment UMNO top leaders have serious credibility problems and I think Ku Li is most suitable as a transitional leader to lead UMNO into the next general elections.
I don't think UMNO is a spent force yet, it will, with the right leaders bounce back to its former glory.
Pak Lah may have to step down soon if UMNO is to be saved from becoming history.
Dear Anonymous
"Worse still, at the 12th general election, BN lost four states - Penang, the home state of our own party president (which has fallen into the hands of Chinese-based DAP), Kedah (which has fallen to PAS), Perak (which has fallen to DAP despite that the mentri besar is from PAS), and Selangor (which will be dominated by non-Malay DAP and non-Malays from PKR despite that the mentri besar is a Malay," he wrote appealing to fears of Umno leaders losing political control to the country's non-Malay minorities.
I think the last line of the paragraph easily misintepreted as a racial statement?
WAN
do u believe this old man really loves UMNO? he left before...... that's why he won't rise again
Too bad, UMNO still looking for an answer for their dismal performance. The UMNO leaders must be a bunch of nuts. Just read the bloggers site everyday. Don't just read Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian and NST.
As long UMNO being the dominant party, do not stop bullying their partners in BN and do not respect their contribution, they are going to be in a bewilderment state.
1. Ask ever sleeping PM.
2. Ask the C4 bombing DPM.
3. Ask the the stupid Kerismmudin.
4. Ask the 4th floor blue eye boy.
5. Ask the big talk Ali Rustam.
6. Ask the arrogant & dumb Nazri.
7. Ask the the fumbling & mumbling Zam.
8. Ask the Cash rich Taib Mohammad.
All the above jokers are the reason for the current status of BN/UMNO/MCA/MIC and Gerakan.
UMNO can have 100 meetings, but nothing is going to change. They do not have anyone who have courage to take decision.
Let them waste time finding the reasons for the next 4 years. It will be easy to wipe them off once for all in the next general election.
Now we know why God didnt allow kuli to be a P.M. he is a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Dear Anonymous
"Worse still, at the 12th general election, BN lost four states - Penang, the home state of our own party president (which has fallen into the hands of Chinese-based DAP), Kedah (which has fallen to PAS), Perak (which has fallen to DAP despite that the mentri besar is from PAS), and Selangor (which will be dominated by non-Malay DAP and non-Malays from PKR despite that the mentri besar is a Malay," he wrote appealing to fears of Umno leaders losing political control to the country's non-Malay minorities.
I think the last line of the paragraph easily misintepreted as a racial statement?......
OF COURSE MALAY DONT WANT A CHINESE DPM...EMM..SAME LAA..PENANG CHINESE DONT WANT MALAY CM...PELIK LA WEI..WHY ONLY MALAY BEING LABEL AS RACIST?
Just leave this old man alone. Seems that suddenly everybody in UMNO want to be 'hero' !
Why should we get angry and rant so much about the whole issue of defending racial parties in BN? Be it AAB, TR / UMNO goons still play to the racial tunes, so do OKT / Chinese chauvinists in MCA and Samy / Indians stupid fools in MIC. Let them go on deceiving their own selves and still ignorantly be in the denial sickness syndrome of the root cause for their defeat in GE12. This will definitely weaken BN further so the work of trouncing BN will be made very much easier in the next GE13. Don't you think so?
Well said, Kepongman and Anonymous.... i too do not understand why Dr. Antony is making such a fuss about Ku Li's PRIVATE LETTER to UMNO members and making a racial issue out of this .... KU Li is merely asking UMNO members to exercise their right and voice out thier true feelings via an EGM in view of the heavy-handedness of the current UMNO leadership where members are coerced into silence and democracy within the party has been eroded, especially in the last few party elections
Hey Doc,
I think you cant read Bahasa well to understand what Ku Li is saying. Please learn to understand Bahasa Malaysia. You are a Malaysian, right?
Doc, I find Ku Li to be a moderate person, not like a foam-around-the-mouth keris-wielding racist present minister. A leader like Ku Li could lead to a more harmonious Malaysia and help to moderate the offensive words used by many of the UMNO puteras, some of whom were "elected" on "postal votes".
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