Yoursay: For Harapan supporters, more disappointment than hope

YOURSAY

 | ‘Some voters will either cast protest votes to prove a point or not vote at all.’

Three reasons why Semenyih voters should choose Harapan on March 2

Clever Voter: DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang, there are also three reasons why voters may turn away from Pakatan Harapan.

One, there are just too many blunders from fake qualifications to rising costs of living, in which the new government is being perceived to be ineffective.

Second, the (former premier) Najib Abdul Razak factor is not a significant factor to be brought up in this local election (Semenyih).

Thirdly, promises of structural change and reforms are too slow, and there may be some voters who will see these as negative. They will either cast protest votes to prove a point or not vote at all.

Just Sharing: Semenyih voters only need one reason not to vote for Harapan - to teach them a lesson not to take the people for granted.

Anonymous_1543386425: Kit Siang, what is the agenda for New Malaysia?

PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad said that the Harapan manifesto is just a guide. Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman said reforms cannot be rushed or else Harapan will lose GE15.

Harapan is scared of Malay sensitivities therefore the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) is still not recognised.

Many are being charged but not one case is heard. Where are police, immigration and MACC reforms? Why appoint some senior police officer who punched (prime minister in waiting) Anwar Ibrahim (and was convicted) to act as a peace facilitator for Malaysia?

Reforms cannot be done without two-thirds majority in Parliament? Frogs still jump when so many coalition partners and opposition detest such practices.

It’s better for Bersatu to lose this Semenyih state seat so politicking can be minimised.

Palmyra: Remember that 22 of those 60 years of BN’s rule was under the present prime minister. That is 36.7 percent of the previous regime.

Let’s hope Mahathir will not revert to ways that were prevalent during those 22 years.

By the look of things, he is a somewhat changed man. Otherwise, how could he work alongside his former political foes like Kit Siang, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and the rest of the former opposition leaders. Let them now govern.

Malaysian: Sixty-eight percent of the Semenyih voters are Malays. Kit Siang, you are preaching to the converted, the non-Malays.

Now go ask any Malay why they voted for Harapan in GE14. They did not vote Harapan for a Chinese finance minister, an Indian attorney-general or a Kadazan chief justice.

Under Mahathir's Harapan, the Malays believed they would not lose anything but have other things to gain. But the Malays now feel cheated and rightly so.

Kit Siang, you have been in Malaysian politics since the bloody May 13, 1969 riots. So, of all people, you should know the Malay sentiment, the Malay heart.

1. We should have maintained the status quo and worked for policy changes rather than personnel (ministerial) changes.

2. Give something back to the Malays when asking for something for non-Malays. For example, get all the rich Chinese “towkays” to donate RM300 million to a Malay entrepreneurial/educational fund, etc.

3. Come up with a better bumiputera blueprint, rather than talking more about a Malaysian blueprint.

In the absence of a true Malay leader, Najib has tapped the Malay sentiment and provided a focal point for that feeling.

Najib has gradually worked on this and he may now turn it into a Malay tsunami that will make him the eighth PM of Malaysia. And that will be your, DAP's and arrogant Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng's fault.

Najib has his flaws, but many of the accusations against him are also false propaganda. And by nature, Najib is a good person at heart. The Malays are realising that now.

Harapan will lose Semenyih, Rantau and eventually GE15 because the Chinese leadership failed to understand the Malays and did not know how to get what they wanted by working with the Malays deeply and closely, and wait for results in the long term - not short term.

Not Convinced: @Malaysian, you do have a few good points. But you lost me when you said, “And by nature, Najib has a good heart.”

Not when, he amassed so much wealth on the back of the Malaysian people.

Chuen Tick: Former law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz spoke in public - why are you afraid to name him for the racist extremist that he is, Kit Siang?

Attorney-general Tommy Thomas has better get his act together - yes, we do want the rule of law but please, don't make mistakes that Najib's lawyer can capitalise on to delay his trial.

Don't tell us about those reforms that take more than one electoral cycle to accomplish. What about repealing the Sedition Act? Recognising the UEC? Ratifying International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd)?

I am glad I am not a registered voter in Semenyih, for despite having been one rooting for change for many a year, I cannot in all good conscience give you my vote.

That said, I wish you folks well, and that enough voters in Semenyih still trust Harapan.

Anonymous_1544694118: @Chuen Tick, if you, by your real name a Chinese, cannot give Kit Siang your vote, why should the Malay majority vote for Harapan?

Such entitlement, you want UEC, Icerd, but you cannot wait a while? Rather, you want to let Umno or PAS win? Will they recognise UEC? They don’t want a non-Malay to be AG or chief justice for even two years.

Look at the bigger picture. Which is the better of two evils? Hopefully, when Umno/PAS comes into power in GE15, you will wake up.

ChuenTick: @Anonymous_1544694118, yes, it is my name and I am a Chinese Malaysian. It is not my concern if the Malay majority does not vote for Harapan in Semenyih.

If Bersatu, despite its obvious racist slants, cannot get their votes, it can only mean they are not getting things right.

Can I not wait for the reforms? Of course, I can - for those policies that need time to be implemented.

But when Harapan does not implement the changes already promised that are within its power, can they blame us for calling them out?

No, Umno-PAS will not recognise UEC or ratify Icerd but you don’t get the point - they never did promise to do so. That is a crucial difference. - Mkini

Dr M: Futile to vote BN as it has no power to fulfil promises

SEMENYIH POLLS

 | The people in Semenyih will squander their votes if they support BN in the Semenyih by-election, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

According to him, this is because BN's manifesto will remain a mere promise, given that the coalition is no longer in power.

"The promises of the opposition parties will only remain a promise because they will not be realised as (BN is) no longer in power," he said at a ceramah attended by a 3,000-strong crowd in Semenyih last night.

Mahathir pointed to Harapan's experience, saying that the coalition and its predecessors had "not been able to do anything" while being the opposition, despite voicing out for the past 60 years. 

"(So), what is the purpose of voting for BN's candidate ?" he asked.

"This showed that it is futile if we vote for the BN candidate," he said.

"In fact, BN is dead. What is left is Umno, (which exists) in name only as the party has been destroyed with few members left. Many of (Umno's) members want to join Harapan and Bersatu," he added.

As a comparison, he said, the election manifesto of Harapan candidate Muhammad Aiman Zainali can be fulfilled as he is backed by both the federal government and Selangor state government.

"He (Aiman) is of the view that a hospital is needed in Semenyih and Berangan. After he wins, he can whisper in the ears of the minister, 'We need a hospital' and (the minister says) 'okay'," said Mahathir.

"(Finance Minister Lim) Guan Eng is here, he manages the (public) funds. If he declines to fork out money, we will knock (ketuk) him," he said.

Mahathir, however, did not pledge that Harapan would build a hospital if Aiman wins the Semenyih by-election.

Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad had expressed reservations about Aiman's proposal for the government to build a hospital in Semenyih, saying that another health clinic would be more appropriate.

In his manifesto, which was launched on Tuesday, Aiman has also pledged to upgrade existing clinics, set up mobile clinics, protect the local ecosystem, and reduce crime rates in Semenyih.

Mahathir, who arrived in Semenyih two days before polling takes place, was greeted by excited supporters of various races and ages.

Supporters used their mobile phones as flashlights (above) after Mahathir said he loved to see light.

Also present were DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu, PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin.

A total of 53,520 voters are eligible to cast their ballot on March 2, while 951 early voters had voted on Jan 28.

Aiman will be facing off against BN's Zakaria Hanafi, PSM's Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul and independent candidate Kuan Chee Heng.  - Mkini

Clinic with no doctor, bus terminal with no bus

SEMENYIH POLLS

 | Driving away from the town area of Semenyih and heading to the northern part of the hilly constituency, a small clinic can be seen along the road.

The gate was slightly open, but the door was closed and it looked like the clinic was shut, until the door opens from inside. 

Nabilah (not her real name) said she heard some movement outside and decided to check what the noise was.

“All the villagers here know that the clinic is not open today, so I thought that some bad guys were coming in when I heard noises outside,” she told the reporter after she was told about the purpose of visit.

Nabilah is the only full-time staff member in the small clinic and she has been a nurse for 15 years since she graduated. 

She began working here a few years ago as her husband was transferred to Kajang for work.

“I need to do the cleaning today, that’s why I am not wearing my nurse uniform now,” Nabilah said, adding that she works seven days a week and barely has time to clean the premises.

Therefore, she closes the door at a specific time every week to do the cleaning work. The villagers know this and do not come to the clinic during this time.

“There is no doctor here, the doctor only comes once in every month. My main daily work is to help pregnant women in the village with basic medical checkup. 

“If they are suffer from other diseases or (meet with a) car accident, they have to go to other clinics in town or hospitals (located outside Semenyih).

“If the condition is not serious, then they will go to Klinik Kesihatan Semenyih (public health clinic). For emergencies or serious conditions, they will go to the Kajang Hospital,” she added.

“But, sometime the old folks here have some physical limitations. When they have some small ailments, they will also come to me.”

In principle, a nurse cannot do the job of a doctor.

However, as the doctor is only assigned here once a month, Nabilah does her best to help the elders with illnesses such as the common cold.

At the beginning of the campaign period, PSM candidate Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul and Pakatan Harapan candidate Muhammad Aiman Zainali raised the issue of lack of healthcare services in the constituency.

Nabilah told Malaysiakini that she had been called for a meeting at the Klinik Kesihatan Semenyih on that day, where all medical workers were warned against giving any interview or allowing photos to be taken by the media.

Semenyih is located at the southeast area of Selangor, adjacent to Kajang and Bangi, and it is also near to the administrative capital Putrajaya and Negeri Sembilan's capital Seremban.

Selangor has the most concentrated resources among other states in the country but Semenyih, which is located at the edge of the state, has relatively fewer healthcare resources than other areas in Selangor.

However, it is far better than rural areas of Sabah and Sarawak.

“Kajang Hospital is only 17km away from here and there are some ambulances on stand by at the Klinik Kesihatan Semenyih for any emergency,” said Nabilah.

“Normally, if there is an emergency case here, the ambulance will arrive in about 15 minutes,” she added.

Nik Aziz has pledged to upgrade the existing public health clinic into a hospital if he wins the by-election, while Aiman has proposed building a hospital in Semenyih during his campaign.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said that upgrading the healthcare facility in the existing clinics is a more practical approach.

As a frontliner in the healthcare system, Nabilah told Malaysiakini that she sees building a new hospital as a huge project that is hard to achieve, whereas improving the facilities in the public clinic is a good and pragmatic suggestion.

Increase in population, traffic congestion

Nabilah also pointed out that improving the roads and public transport systems may help the locals have better access to healthcare services.

As a result of the spillover effect from the development of Kuala Lumpur and the Selangor city centre, Semenyih has become a new target of developers, with various housing projects having commenced in the past few years.

As property prices in Semenyih are cheaper than those in the city centre, the migration here is obvious in the increasing number in population and vehicles.

Jalan Semenyih, the main road that connects Semenyih to Kajang, used to be a one-lane road some decades ago. 

Now, some parts of the road have been widened to two or three lanes. However, the irregular number of lanes has worsened traffic congestion.

As some parts of Jalan Semenyih remain as a one-lane road, cars are unable to make way for an ambulance in the event of an emergency and this further delays the process of getting patients to the hospital.

Besides that, there is a lack of public transport services for people to visit the hospitals in Kajang, Serdang or Seremban to seek non-emergency treatment.

Newman Chin, 30, has been running his salon for ten years in Semenyih. As his mother needs to go to the Serdang Hospital for medical checkups regularly, he has to shut his business for the day to take her there.

“If the public transport can be improved, then it will be more convenient for people who do not have cars to move about, and it will also attract more people to come in and bring more customers for us,” he said.

Chin also mentioned that he has seen a rise in new customers in the recent years and he found out that most of them moved to Semenyih from Kuala Lumpur after buying a house here.

As the population in Semenyih is growing steadily, he believes that it is essential to improve the local public transport services.

Bus terminal with no service

Ironically, just a stone's throw away from Chin's salon is the Semenyih Sentral Bus Terminal.

However, there is no bus service here now, and some of the signs are broken and have fallen off. 

During the Semenyih by-election campaigning period, the Kajang Municipal Council (MPKJ) carried out road repairs and the terminal became a "car park" for the heavy vehicles involved in the roadworks.

The bus terminal was built under the BN regime over a decade ago and was revived in 2009 after it had been left idle for three years.

At that time, Bas Bakti Sdn Bhd took over the management and operation of the bus terminal from the Kajang Municipal Council, and provided bus services to various places such as Kajang, Bangi, Tarun, Broga, Beranang, Kampung Rinching Hilir, Seremban and Mantin.

A resident named Lim, who has been living in Semenyih for over 30 years, told Malaysiakini that the location of the bus terminal is unsuitable for the locals and also the bus drivers.

“Actually, it is not suitable to build it here. All the buses have to turn into this area, but it is not along the way. Also, the locals like to wait for the bus along the main road, that’s why the bus terminal was left idle for years again.”

Due to the lack of proper planning, the bus station, which was once resurrected, has once again fallen into dormancy and become a white elephant in the town.

Two days ago, Pakatan Harapan de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim attended a ceramah in this abandoned bus terminal where he urged the locals to vote for Pakatan Harapan for a better future. 

Was he curious why there were no bus services at this terminal? - Mkini

Toppling Najib not one of my mistakes - Dr M

SEMENYIH POLLS

 | Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said that he does not consider toppling his predecessor Najib Abdul Razak a mistake.

"I may be wrong sometimes, but I wasn't wrong when I toppled Najib," Mahathir said at a ceramah in Semenyih tonight.

The Bersatu chairperson had in the past said that backing Najib to become prime minister was an error in judgement.

Speaking to voters in Semenyih tonight, the prime minister also took another swipe at Najib and the supporters that call the latter 'bossku' (my boss).

He said the word "boss" is the term that was used by African slaves to refer to their Western masters.

"So when we call him 'bossku', it means you are a slave to the boss.

"We have already achieved Merdeka (independence), but you still want to be slaves?" Mahathir said to cheers from the 3,000 strong audience.

He then ridiculed Najib's "malu apa boss ku" (My boss has nothing to be ashamed of) slogan.

"Bossku is no ordinary boss. He is a thief. This is bossku, and he is very proud of it, beating his chest without shame.

"When we look at him, he is not ashamed at all. When we steal, we do it stealthily. But he is enjoying it, smiling being called bossku," he said.

Najib is currently awaiting trial on charges of money-laundering, criminal breach of trust and corruption in relation to the 1MDB scandal.  - Mkini

Dr M: We need two-thirds to limit PM's tenure

SEMENYIH POLLS 

| Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said his quest to secure two-thirds support in Parliament is so Pakatan Harapan can fulfil its promises by amending the Federal Constitution.

This includes limiting the prime minister's tenure in office to two terms.

"So when we have two-thirds, we will amend the constitution, but not to get rid of the royalty or curtail them no... I can't amend that.

"But we want to amend the age for voting... We also want to limit the prime minister's powers. We want to limt the prime minister to two terms... that needs constitutional amendments too," he said in a speech in Semenyih this evening.

Term limits can be enforced via principle or a law, but both options are easily reneged on.

Analysts have opined that the best way to place a term limit for the prime minister's post is to amend Article 45 of the Federal Constitution and place limits similar to the age cap on federal court judges.

Harapan and its ally Warisan now control 134 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, following a wave of defections from Umno. 

The ruling coalition is likely to have the support of five other MPs from Sabah - four independents and one from Upko, bringing the number to 139.

In order to reach the two-thirds (148 seats) requirement, Mahathir would then only need nine out of 18 MPs from PAS to vote along with the government bench.

PAS has made overtures to Mahathir, and created speculation that a vote of no confidence would be launched against the prime minister.

Mahathir, however, said today that two-thirds can only be achieved when support is towards a party, not an individual.

"Someone promised to support me. But I am not a party. A party supporting another party, only then can something happen," he said. - Mkini

Clare confirms Hadi paid RM1.4m confidentially to settle suit

Sarawak Report

 editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown has confirmed rumours that she received RM1.4 million as part of her out-of-court settlement with PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang last month.

She said, however, that the court made no order as to costs because Hadi had already made the payment, which was placed in escrow with Sarawak Report’s Malaysian lawyer Americk Sidhu.

"Sarawak Report agreed to Hadi’s condition that both parties keep the payment confidential.

"It is a common provision of such settlements that the out-of-court payments are kept confidential to spare the blushes of the party who paid, in return for saving both parties the further time and expense of further litigation.

"That court order withdrawing the proceedings therefore provided for ‘no order as to costs’, as Hadi’s contribution had already been paid and was in escrow," Rewcastle-Brown said in her blog today.

She shared images of several documents, including a confidential agreement, a Bank Islam cheque, and a letter to Maybank confirming that the RM1.4 million had come from Hadi.

The letter to Maybank (below), she said, was the document that PKR president Anwar Ibrahim had obtained about the payment. 

Rewcastle-Brown also shared a court document noting that there were confidential terms of settlement, and no order of costs from the UK High Court.

'Misleading' claims

Yesterday, PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan said PAS would reveal documentary evidence that no payment had been made to Rewcastle-Brown.

Rewcastle-Brown, however, said such denials from PAS were misleading, untrue, and a breach of the confidentiality agreement.

"Hadi should not have been discussing details of the settlement payment with a member of PAS at all.

"Takiyuddin’s representations on Hadi’s behalf is a flagrant and repudiatory breach of the confidentiality agreement, which is particularly egregious as it is untrue.

"Sarawak Report therefore is entitled to consider itself released from confidentiality also, in order to be able to tell the truth to the Malaysian people who are being misled.

"There are no documents ‘proving Sarawak Report was not paid’, to the contrary there is copious evidence showing we were paid by agents of Hadi to allow him to withdraw his claim," she said.

She said she was first approached with an offer for an out-of-court settlement late last year through an intermediary of Hadi's.

She said PAS had originally wanted to pay with cash, which she refused, opting for a post-dated cheque instead.

Hadi had sued Rewcastle-Brown in London over a 2016 Sarawak Report article claiming that then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak channelled RM90 million to top PAS leaders in a bid to secure support ahead of the 14th general election. - Mkini