| Written by Our Correspondent | ||
| Friday, 16 July 2010 | ||
 A Washington, DC NGO bares some awkward questions for Malaysia's opposition leaderA 42-page report by a Washington, DC-based whistle-blower organization is proving a major embarrassment for Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim by alleging that the Foundation for the Future, which Anwar headed for a time in the middle of the last decade, was actually established and funded by the US Department of State at the behest of Elizabeth Cheney, the daughter of then-Vice President Dick Cheney, and the Bush administration's neoconservatives. The Government Accountability Project report, titled The Foundation for the Future: What FOIA Documents Reveal, and released July 8, is based on hundreds of documents delivered to the organization under the US Freedom of Information Act. It says the Foundation for the Future was established and operated in a "highly irregular manner" by Bush administration officials and employees including Shaha Riza, the girlfriend of Paul Wolfowitz, who was forced to leave the World Bank after it became known that he had promoted Riza to triple the World Bank's salary guidelines. The full report can be found here.  Whacker Wolfowitz and his whack Riza Ostensibly, matching money to fund the Foundation for the Future was supposed to come from 11 countries led by Qatar at US$10 million, and Bahrain, with another US$2 million. Jordan was to put up another US$1 million, Turkey US$500,000 and the rest was to be scattered among several European Union countries including Denmark, Greece, Spain, the Netherlands and the European Union itself. But neither Qatar nor Bahrain ever came through. Of the US$22.26 million pledged, only about US$6.4 million ever materialized. The rest apparently was made up from US State Department funds.  Anwar has previously disavowed any US funding of the organization, established in 2005 as "an essential front on the global war on terror" and part of President George Bush's "freedom agenda" to promote democracy and reform in the Middle East and Africa. Anwar served as chairman and acting president of the organization's board in the period when he was out of politics following his incarceration on corruption and sexual perversion charges.
The Government Accountability Project report lends considerable ammunition to Anwar's opponents in the United Malays National Organization, who have long charged that Anwar was connected to the US Central Intelligence Agency, although neither the CIA nor the US government as a whole has ever exhibited any particular desire to bring down the Malaysian government, and in fact considers Malaysia, as a moderate Muslim democracy, to be one of its staunchest allies in the region.  In particular, UMNO Youth Chief Kairy Jamaluddin called attention to Anwar's statements disavowing US funding of the foundation and demanded that Anwar explain himself. He accused Anwar of misleading the US government in a memorandum of understanding saying the foundation had agreed to get other countries to commit funds to match those the US government was providing. "For me, it is a serious matter that the opposition leader has tried to mislead the US government to get grants for a foundation that he was chairman of," Khairy told the Malaysian newspaper The Star. An Anwar associate said the opposition leader would decline to comment, adding that there was little to be gained by saying anything about the matter. Nonetheless, he characterized Anwar's role as blameless. "There is nothing wrong going on," he said. "This is part of the campaign to get Wolfowitz out of the World Bank and to do so they threw Anwar under the bus." The report characterizes the Foundation for the Future as part of a vast and tragic misconception among the Bush administration neoconservatives, particularly Wolfowitz, that a slight push – the elimination of Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein from power – would result in a dramatic change in the Middle East. That of course has resulted in the deaths of more than 4,000 US soldiers and hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians and a realignment in the Middle East that nobody in the west wanted – the growing power of Iran in the region and particularly in Iran's influence over the Iraqi government itself. But the Foundation from the start appears to have been a mess, according to the report. It apparently was the brainchild of Shaha Riza, who was seconded from the World Bank by Wolfowitz to run it. As has been widely reported, Riza's salary increases during external service far exceeded those allowed under World Bank regulations, Wolfowitz allegedly instructed the Department of Human Resources to pay her three times the allowable increase for her grade and circumstances, so that she ended up making more money that Condoleezza Rice, her nominal superior, by about US$7,000, according to the report. Continue reading. | ||
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Anwar Ibrahim and the Bush Neocons
Friday, July 16, 2010
Teoh's Family Unfortunate Victim Of Muck Racking Politics
Hantu Laut
This is the standard of Malaysians politicians and even worse the standard of journalism in this country, falling prey to muck racking politics.
I do not approve of the way MACC conduct its business nor do I subscribe to the idea that they be given the power to prosecute but one must be able to draw a line between what's right and what's wrong.
First, Kit Siang complaining why the press release by MACC was only in Mandarin is pathetic and scrapping the bottom of the barrel.MACC has the right to decide in whatever language it wishes to convey the message.Obviously, it wanted to cover the wider Chinese community where the main grievances are and naturally Mandarin would be the language of choice.
As a matter of curiosity, since when has Kit Siang been championing the Malay language?
It is obvious that Teoh's death has been much politicised and is still fodder for the opposition's propaganda machine.
"While she has been inducted into the Teoh family in a traditional Chinese ceremony last year — which accords her the same rights as if she was officially wedded to Beng Hock — finances remain a concern with their working class background." reported the Malaysian Insider.
Finances have always been the problem of million of working class Malaysians.Would the DAP starts trust funds for all of them?
What about those families where the bread winner died out of illness, accident or murdered and the families have no more source of income.Would the DAP set up trust funds for them?
I challenge Kit Siang and the DAP to do so for each and every deserving case from now on, to raise donations for trust funds for families with no means of livelihood.
Malaysians are easily duped and hoodwinked by politicians in furtherance of their own selfish political agenda.
This is the standard of Malaysians politicians and even worse the standard of journalism in this country, falling prey to muck racking politics.
I do not approve of the way MACC conduct its business nor do I subscribe to the idea that they be given the power to prosecute but one must be able to draw a line between what's right and what's wrong.
First, Kit Siang complaining why the press release by MACC was only in Mandarin is pathetic and scrapping the bottom of the barrel.MACC has the right to decide in whatever language it wishes to convey the message.Obviously, it wanted to cover the wider Chinese community where the main grievances are and naturally Mandarin would be the language of choice.
As a matter of curiosity, since when has Kit Siang been championing the Malay language?
Lee Lan continues to struggle for justice for Beng Hock. — Picture by Choo Choy May
It is obvious that Teoh's death has been much politicised and is still fodder for the opposition's propaganda machine.
Beng Hock’s mother (second right) is still unable to accept her son’s death. — file pic
Finances have always been the problem of million of working class Malaysians.Would the DAP starts trust funds for all of them?
What about those families where the bread winner died out of illness, accident or murdered and the families have no more source of income.Would the DAP set up trust funds for them?
I challenge Kit Siang and the DAP to do so for each and every deserving case from now on, to raise donations for trust funds for families with no means of livelihood.
Malaysians are easily duped and hoodwinked by politicians in furtherance of their own selfish political agenda.
Removing Subsidies, Doing The Right Thing
Hantu Laut
I hope this would be the beginning of the end of spoiling Malaysians with all those subsidies and the beginning of taking the nation to higher level. The Prime Minister is doing the right thing to do away with the subsidies in phases so as not to burden the people.
Removing the subsidies must be replaced by increase in income for the people.Malaysia must move out of the low-cost mindset and into higher productivity and higher per capita earning.
Malaysians still have low productivity compared to places like Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea. These are the countries we should be using as our yardstick to higher productivity and better growth.
The "omong-omong kosong" culture during working hours are some of the reasons for low productivity. Malaysians have the tendency to while away instead of while-you-wait in performing their tasks and the biggest culprits are public servants.
Increase wages but make sure they give back in return better output.The PM should also assure Malaysians that the saving would not be wasted on cronism and corruptions.
I hope this would be the beginning of the end of spoiling Malaysians with all those subsidies and the beginning of taking the nation to higher level. The Prime Minister is doing the right thing to do away with the subsidies in phases so as not to burden the people.
Removing the subsidies must be replaced by increase in income for the people.Malaysia must move out of the low-cost mindset and into higher productivity and higher per capita earning.
Malaysians still have low productivity compared to places like Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea. These are the countries we should be using as our yardstick to higher productivity and better growth.
The "omong-omong kosong" culture during working hours are some of the reasons for low productivity. Malaysians have the tendency to while away instead of while-you-wait in performing their tasks and the biggest culprits are public servants.
Increase wages but make sure they give back in return better output.The PM should also assure Malaysians that the saving would not be wasted on cronism and corruptions.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Keuntungan Felda Dan Sime Darby Memalukan Bumiputra
Hantu Laut
You don't need to be an accountant or an economist to know there is something very wrong in Felda if what was published here are factual information that can be relied on.A businessman with some good experience can tell by looking at the figures that there is something very wrong not only with Felda but the juggernaut Sime Darby is equally suffering from blossom blight.
In spite of its claim of social obligations it surely can't be that bad. Performing far below the industry's standard should have raised alarm bells.Obviously, it did not.
Sime Darby's performance is even more embarrassing.For a company that will be 100 years old come this October and claimed to be the biggest plantation company in the world, its profit is, let me use a Malay word, memalukan.
Obviously, those in government responsible for keeping tap of government investments are happy with the paltry sum Felda and Sime Darby make compared to those made by the public-listed companies run by China men, which is the industry standard.
How the hell can Felda and Sime Darby having three times bigger acreage giving almost same yield as the two private companies with much less acreage produced such miserable profits.
Felda claimed social obligations can Sime claim the same? Felda's excuse for the low return is also not acceptable.There must be other factors that have eroded the profit so badly.An investigative audit of the accounts is imperative if the government sincerely wants to know what, why and where it has gone wrong.
No matter how you juggle the figures and tried to make sense of the low earnings it just wouldn't make sense.Felda and Sime's profits should have been far far greater than the two public-listed companies unless 50 percent of their plantations are non-yielding.
The question now is why Mohd Bakke Salleh who was Felda's CEO and with the kind of dismal performance in Felda was transferred to helm Sime Darby?
IOI is a public-listed company headed by the Executive Chairman Dato Lee Shin Cheng and Wilmar International is another public limited company headed by its Chairman/CEO Kuok Khoon Hong.These Chinaman's (not being racist here) managed companies have less acreage but many times more profit.
That tells you volume about bumiputra management.
The Prime Minister should get down to business and demand an explanation from the CEOs of both companies why the "keuntungan yang memalukan."
These are events before he became prime minister, he could demand an explanation.
More in depth analysis to come.
The analysis and conclusion are based on the following assumptions:
1.All above figures given are correct
2.Profits for all 4 companies were purely from oil palm business.
3.Profits based on same year and full year basis.
You don't need to be an accountant or an economist to know there is something very wrong in Felda if what was published here are factual information that can be relied on.A businessman with some good experience can tell by looking at the figures that there is something very wrong not only with Felda but the juggernaut Sime Darby is equally suffering from blossom blight.
In spite of its claim of social obligations it surely can't be that bad. Performing far below the industry's standard should have raised alarm bells.Obviously, it did not.
Sime Darby's performance is even more embarrassing.For a company that will be 100 years old come this October and claimed to be the biggest plantation company in the world, its profit is, let me use a Malay word, memalukan.
Obviously, those in government responsible for keeping tap of government investments are happy with the paltry sum Felda and Sime Darby make compared to those made by the public-listed companies run by China men, which is the industry standard.
How the hell can Felda and Sime Darby having three times bigger acreage giving almost same yield as the two private companies with much less acreage produced such miserable profits.
Felda claimed social obligations can Sime claim the same? Felda's excuse for the low return is also not acceptable.There must be other factors that have eroded the profit so badly.An investigative audit of the accounts is imperative if the government sincerely wants to know what, why and where it has gone wrong.
No matter how you juggle the figures and tried to make sense of the low earnings it just wouldn't make sense.Felda and Sime's profits should have been far far greater than the two public-listed companies unless 50 percent of their plantations are non-yielding.
The question now is why Mohd Bakke Salleh who was Felda's CEO and with the kind of dismal performance in Felda was transferred to helm Sime Darby?
IOI is a public-listed company headed by the Executive Chairman Dato Lee Shin Cheng and Wilmar International is another public limited company headed by its Chairman/CEO Kuok Khoon Hong.These Chinaman's (not being racist here) managed companies have less acreage but many times more profit.
That tells you volume about bumiputra management.
The Prime Minister should get down to business and demand an explanation from the CEOs of both companies why the "keuntungan yang memalukan."
These are events before he became prime minister, he could demand an explanation.
More in depth analysis to come.
The analysis and conclusion are based on the following assumptions:
1.All above figures given are correct
2.Profits for all 4 companies were purely from oil palm business.
3.Profits based on same year and full year basis.
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