Government to engage bloggers in cyberspace

By SHAHANAAZ HABIB
KUALA LUMPUR: The Government will take on bloggers in cyberspace and respond to wild and baseless allegations raised in blogs.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said remaining silent was no longer an option.
He acknowledged that the Government had overlooked the need to engage the new media, which was a new dimension in shaping public opinion, in the recent general election.
The Government had not been savvy in engaging the new media and lost out in cyberspace, he said, adding: “But we live and learn.”
Najib said this during a question and answer session at the Asia Media Summit 2008 here yesterday.- The Star- 28 May, 2008

... a comment on Rockybru ...
The government has got it wrong again. The strategy is not about taking on the bloggers but listening to them. The bloggers are ordinary rakyat who are giving their views on matters affecting their life and survival. The job of the government is to listen to the rakyat's voice and apply it if it benefits the people and the nation and not to regard bloggers as a threat to the government or the position of those in power

PEMIMPIN PEMUSNAH

..komen dalam Che Det..
Hari ini kerajaan beraja di Nepal akan terhapus. Dihapuskan atas nama demokrasi. Perlembagaan negara dipinda. Tidak mustahil ini boleh berlaku di Malaysia. Tanda-tanda sudah dilihat. Raja-raja Melayu dipersenda oleh orang Melayu dan bukan Melayu. Kerajaan pusat yang ada sudah hilang dua pertiga majoriti. Tidak dapat dibayangkan apa akan berlaku dalam pilihanraya umum ke 13?

...petikan dari CheDet...
(..Dan yang buruk sekali ialah kemungkinan Barisan Nasional kalah diperingkat Pusat. Apabila hilang kuasa diperingkat pusat, kehilangan kuasa ke atas kewangan negara, ke atas dasar-dasar negara, pentadbiran negara dan lain-lain kekuatan yang datang bersama dengan pemerintahan peringkat pusat, Barisan Nasional dan UMNO tidak mungkin lagi memperolehi kuasa di negara tercinta ini. Inilah musibah yang dijanjikan oleh pengekalan kepimpinan Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Segala keistimewaan Bumiputra dan Melayu akan terancam dan mungkin hilang terus, walau apa pun janji oleh pihak lain.

...petikan dari berita...
New Nepal assembly sworn in, set to abolish monarchy
KATHMANDU (AFP) — A newly elected and Maoist-dominated assembly that will rewrite Nepal's constitution was sworn in Tuesday, setting the stage for the imminent abolition of the Himalayan nation's monarchy.
Political leaders said the assembly will dissolve the monarchy and sack the unpopular King Gyanendra, who ascended to the throne seven years ago after a palace massacre, when it holds its first session on Wednesday…..

Defending the Lion City
.. a comment on Rockybru ..

Malaysians shouldn't worry about Singapore. They can't even catch the Jemaah Islamiah terror leader Mas Selamat Katari who escaped through a toilet window of an Internal Security Act cell. What more to attack Malaysia. Others will do it for them if they come under attack. What should be worrisomes to Malaysians are the strategic moves made by the republic at the expense of Malaysia and Malaysians to stay afloat for its survival. The Pulau Batu Puteh case is one of the very good examples. They have billion of dollars in sovereign wealth funds. They will buy into anything that strategically support its umbilical cord such as the strategic telecommunication companies in Indonesia and Thailand, and the world's top banks. What more the Iskandar project. They will be very happy if they can buy into all Malaysia's strategic positions and control it without going to war. But they are cautious because there are still nationalistic Malaysians who are watching them and will blow the whistle if they rear their ugly heads.

EXTRACT OF MAHATHIR'S COMMENT ON THE RULE OF LAW

11. But supposing a Deputy Prime Minister writes a letter of recommendation for his sister-in-law to an official or minister of another country who could be expected to take a serious view of the recommendation because the writer is a Deputy Prime Minister of a friendly country and the recommendation is for his sister-in-law, does this constitute lobbying, or corruption or abuse of power. We need to know so that such letters of recommendation would not be written again. We need to know if they were written before, can action be taken against them now since we are now taking action on things which happened in the past. By being very clear about the past, the present and the future Malaysia would become highly regarded as the epitome of righteousness and the practitioners of the rule of law.

Extract of Bernama news

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May 06, 2008 21:38 PM

Abdullah Says Not Associated With Oil-For-Food Programme Firms

KUALA LUMPUR, May 6 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Tuesday he has no association with two local companies, Tradeyear Sdn Bhd and Mastek Sdn Bhd, said to have been involved in the United Nations' Oil-for-Food programme in Iraq.

The prime minister said the two companies had been named in the report of the UN Independent Inquiry Committee but the statement that the companies "were closely associated with me is not at all correct".

Abdullah said this perception arose because of his family links with Faek Ahmad Shareef, one of the owners of Mastek, because Faek had been married to his sister-in-law Noor Asiah Mahmood, the younger sister of his late wife Datin Seri Endon Mahmood.

He made this clarification in a written reply to Wee Choo Keong (PKR-Wangsa Maju) who had asked the prime minister to state whether he intended to set up a royal commission of inquiry into the findings of the Independent Inquiry Committee into the UN Oil-for-Food programme which claimed that the two companies were closely associated with Abdullah.

The prime minister said the matter had been clarified in the third paragraph on page 161 of the full report of the independent inquiry committee.

"The report states that the involvement of Faek Ahmad Shareef is based on the perception of the Iraqi government personnel who saw him as the individual who could help overcome the economic sanctions by strengthening the relationship between the Iraqi and Malaysian governments," he said.

Besides, he said, the Iraqi government also regarded Faek as having the capability to bring more Malaysian trade delegations to Iraq.

"Note 324 on pages 161 and 162 of the full report of the UN Independent Inquiry Committee states that the committee found no evidence that I received benefits or rewards in any form from the oil transactions allocated to Mastek.

"Note 324 also clarifies that my only connection with the Iraqi government at that time was a letter to introduce a Malaysian trade delegation to the Iraqi vice-president then, Taha Yassin Ramadan," he said.

Abdullah said that with the explanation of the UN Independent Inquiry Committee, there was no reason for the government to set up a royal commission of inquiry to look into the findings.

-- BERNAMA

Does anyone dares to report it to the Anti Corruption Agency?

HILANG SUDAH SATU TANAH AIR

Pulau Batu Puteh

Hilang sudah satu pulau milik negara kepada Singapura pada 23 Mei 2008 selepas Mahkamah Keadilan Antarabangsa di The Hague, Belanda memutuskannya demikian.

Walaupun cuma pulau batu, ia amat strategik daripada segi kedudukan kepada sesiapa yang memilikinya.

Banyak yang boleh dipelajari daripada pengalaman buruk ini. Sikap tidak ambil peduli atau ambil mudah, kealpaan atau kelalaian, tidak bijak atau cekap, dan tidak mempunyai pandangan kritis dan strategis dalam apa juga tindakan atau situasi yang berlaku di sekeliling telah membawa kemudaratan kepada kemerdekaan, kedaulatan dan maruah bangsa dan negara.

Kenyataan penuh Dr Mahathir Mohamad tinggalkan UMNO ISNIN, 19 Mei 2008 HARI ini, Mei 19, 2008 saya mengumumkan keputusan saya untuk keluar daripada UMNO. Isteri saya turut bersama. Keputusan ini dibuat kerana UMNO yang ada sekarang bukan lagi UMNO yang ditubuh 62 tahun dahulu yang berjuang untuk bangsa Melayu, Agama Islam dan Negara Malaysia (Malaya); UMNO yang menggagalkan Malayan Union, memperjuangkan kemerdekaan Malaya dan Malaysia dan membangunkan Malaysia sehingga menjadi Negara yang termaju di antara Negara membangun di dunia. UMNO yang ada sekarang hanya wujud untuk menyokong Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, keluarganya dan tindakan serta dasar yang tidak secocok dengan kepentingan bangsa, agama dan negara. Kepimpinan Dato Seri Abdullah jelas membawa kekalahan dan bencana kepada Barisan Nasional, UMNO, MCA, MIC, Gerakan dan PPP. Kemenangan UMNO di Sabah dan BN di Sarawak bukan kerana kepimpinan Dato Seri Abdullah. Saya akan jelas satu persatu dasar-dasar dan tindakan Dato Seri Abdullah yang menjadikan Kerajaan pimpinannya dan parti BN dibenci oleh ahli-ahli parti komponen sendiri. Walaupun sebelum perisytiharan ini saya adalah ahli UMNO tetapi sebenarnya selepas saya letak jawatan sebagai Perdana Menteri saya tidak dilayan sebagai ahli UMNO. Saya tidak dibenarkan berjumpa ahli UMNO dan ahli UMNO tidak dibenarkan hadir apa-apa perhimpunan di mana saya dijemput sebagai jurucakap atau penyampai ucapan. Menteri-Menteri yang dahulu berada dalam Kabinet saya tidak dibenarkan atau tidak berani atau tidak mahu jumpa saya lagi. Jemputan oleh UMNO dan bukan UMNO kepada saya diarah ditarik balik oleh Mneteri Besar dan Polis. Ramai pemimpin UMNO melepaskan kata-kata kesat kepada saya dan ada yang menyuruh saya keluar daripada UMNO walaupun mereka baru sahaja masuk UMNO. Tidak ada pemimpin UMNO yang pertahankan saya secara terbuka. Wakil ke Perhimpunan Agong tidak dibenarkan menyuara pendapat mereka. Mulut semua orang ditutup. Yang didengar hanyalah media arus perdana yang memuji Dato Seri Abdullah sehingga dia percaya dia begitu popular dan akan sapu bersih parti lawan dalam pilihanraya umum ke-12. Hasilnya ialah kekalahan yang teruk bagi Barisan Nasional. Malangnya mesej yang hendak disampaikan oleh pengundi dan penyokong BN tidak dapat difahami oleh Dato Seri Abdullah. Dia masih berkata dia menang. Ini sukar diterima oleh orang Kedah, orang Pulau Pinang, orang Perak, Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan. Oleh kerana Dato Seri Abdullah buta mata dan pekak telinga dan tidak faham mesej ahli BN, oleh kerana ahli UMNO pun turut bersama, oleh kerana proses demokrasi tidak berjalan, oleh kerana UMNO yang ada sekarang bukan lagi UMNO yang ditubuhkan 62 tahun dahulu, saya berpendapat penyertaan saya sebagai ahli UMNO tidak bermakna dan tidak berguna lagi. Justeru itu saya ingin umumkan bahawa saya sudah keluar daripada UMNO. Saya ingin tegaskan bahawa saya bebas dan tidak menyokong mana-mana parti lawan. Saya akan pohon untuk masuk UMNO apabila Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi sudah berhenti daripada menjadi Presiden UMNO, Pengerusi BN dan Perdana Menteri Malaysia. Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad (bekas ahli UMNO No 1) Dr Siti Hasmah binti Mohd Ali (bekas ahli UMNO No 2)