SO, WAS JEBAT OR TUAH THE HERO?

So you see, the Hang Tuah versus Hang Jebat story is not really as simple as it sounds. That story is what shapes the Malay psyche today. Some Malays align themselves to Hang Tuah and some to Hang Jebat. And that is why many Malays place obedience and loyalty above other values such as good governance and so on.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Today, Shahril Ahmad wrote an interesting piece in Free Malaysia Today titled Kassim Ahmad, the unwitting Jebat. In that piece Shahril said:

Malay scholar Kassim Ahmad may have unwittingly cast himself into the role of Hang Jebat by his latest blog post.

In his 1964 dissertation, Perwatakan dalam Hikayat Hang Tuah, Kassim had dared to challenge traditional Malay thinking by contending that Hang Jebat, not Hang Tuah, was the true Malay hero for his earnestness in defending honour and principles, even if it meant turning against the Sultan.

Fast forward 51 years to last weekend, and we find Kassim challenging Malay thinking once again.(READ MORE HERE)

I have written about this subject a couple of times in the past but it mainly attracted comments about whether Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat (plus the other three comrades) really existed or whether this story is just a myth.

Some even argued that the five ‘brothers’ might have actually been Chinese — the bodyguards of the Chinese princes, Hang Li Poh. The fact that all six were ‘Hang’ sort of gives this impression. And the fact that their silat was most unusual probably meant they were Kung Fu masters (that was why Malays at that time had never seen this form of silat before).

Anyway, the study of Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat is not about whether they really existed or were mere myths, or whether, if they did exist, they were actually Chinese rather than Malays. The focus should be on the moral of the story and the values that the story teaches us.

This event, if it did happen, is not about the rakyat versus the Sultan. At that time the Sultans represented the authority. And Hang Tuah and gang represented the inner circle of the Sultan’s court or what we would call the courtiers. So this story is about a crisis between the monarch and members of his royal court, the courtiers.

Basically, the rakyat was not involved. In fact, some of the rakyat became victims who lost their lives in this clash between the two titans. Hence it was not a class struggle as much as it was a power struggle between the elites.

So, to say that the Tuah-Jebat story is about the rakyat turning on or rejecting a zalim (evil) ruler is not correct. The rakyat had nothing to do with this. And this is how the story has been distorted as if it represented an uprising of the people against the ruler.

According to the story, Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat were like brothers. Then someone accused Hang Tuah of a crime and the Sultan passed a death sentence on him. But the Minister who was supposed to execute Hang Tuah did not want to do so. So he hid Hang Tuah and reported to the Sultan that Hang Tuah had been executed.

Hang Jebat then went on a rampage and the Sultan did not know what to do. No one was as skilled insilat to be able to kill Hang Jebat. Only Hang Tuah was powerful enough to do that.

When the Sultan expressed regret at having ordered Hang Tuah’s execution the Minister confessed that he had actually not executed him but had hidden him. The Sultan then ordered Hang Tuah back to deal with Hang Jebat, which he did — and Hang Jebat was killed.

Hang Tuah was innocent of the crime he had been alleged to have committed. But he still obeyed the Sultan who ordered his execution and did not resist. Hang Jebat was angry at this injustice and went against the Sultan. Hang Tuah represented obedience (to authority) while Hang Jebat represented loyalty (to his comrade).

Even when Hang Tuah knew that Hang Jebat was loyal to him and his disobedience to the Sultan was because of this loyalty, Hang Tuah still obeyed the Sultan and killed Hang Jebat. Hence obedience to authority overrode friendship and loyalty even if that authority was evil or wrong.

To me this is a story of contradictions, which only confuses the Malays.

So who, then, was the hero? Was it Hang Tuah or was it Hang Jebat? And did the Minister not disobey the Sultan by not executing Hang Tuah? Is disobedience to authority when that authority is wrong good or bad? Does that not make the Minister a Jebat rather than a Tuah? The Minister knew that the Sultan was wrong (which is why he did not execute Hang Tuah but hid him) and yet he brought Hang Tuah back to kill Hang Jebat. Was that not obedience?

That conclusion is left to the Malays to figure out. It all depends on your value system.

And this Hang Tuah-Hang Jebat story is a story that makes the Malays into what they are today, unfortunately. They cannot decide whether loyalty or obedience is more important. Do you obey someone even when that person is wrong or do you oppose that person? Do you place loyalty above everything else even if that person you are loyal to is wrong?

Now, let us equate that to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. The Jebat type Malays who feel that Najib is wrong will oppose him. The Tuah type Malays who feel that obedience is paramount will support him.

What about right and wrong? Should you not support only right and oppose what is wrong? Right and wrong are subjective to many Malays, again, unfortunately.

Was it right for Hang Tuah to kill Hang Jebat who only opposed the Sultan out of loyalty? Or was Hang Jebat wrong to have opposed the Sultan? What if everyone was allowed to oppose the Sultan? If there was no obedience and unity would not Melaka face the danger of falling to its enemies or to a foreign power?

And when Melaka did fall in 1511 was that because there were too many Hang Jebats and not enough Hang Tuahs around? So, was Hang Tuah right in punishing Hang Jebat for the sake of the country, as 1511 showed when there was disunity in Melaka?

So you see, the Hang Tuah versus Hang Jebat story is not really as simple as it sounds. That story is what shapes the Malay psyche today. Some Malays align themselves to Hang Tuah and some to Hang Jebat. And that is why many Malays place obedience and loyalty above other values such as good governance and so on.

Malays are complicated animals, are they not?

Bestinet to gain from influx of Bangladeshi workers, says PKR Youth

The 1.5 million foreign workers from Bangladesh will help IT firm Bestinet Sdn Bhd is set to make a huge profit through the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, July 1, 2015.

IT firm Bestinet Sdn Bhd is set to make a huge profit  through the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS) which has been outsourced to it when 1.5 million foreign workers from Bangladesh are brought into the country, says PKR Youth said today.

Its information chief, Lee Chean Chung, said this money would be collected through FWCMS which required every foreign worker to pay RM100 to undergo a medical check-up at their country of origin.

"The company in charge of the FWCMS system, Bestinet Sdn Bhd, is expected to pocket a huge sum of profit from this RM100 fee charged to every 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers.

"They are expected to earn about RM150 million," he said.

Lee questioned the awarding of the contract directly to Bestinet without going through an open tender process.

He said Bestinet was a RM2 company until 2013, adding that checks with Companies Commission of Malaysia revealed that Bestinet did not submit any audit report for four years since 2010.

Lee said it gave rise to concerns that the importing of foreign workers was encouraged by companies like Bestinet, which is controlled by Umno leaders.

It was reported in February that former home minister Tan Sri Azmi Khalid was the executive chairman of Bestinet.

Lee added that this did not  include the profit made from importing foreign workers from other countries such as Indonesia, Philippines, Myanmar and Nepal as well as those  already working here.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced last week that 1.5 million workers from Bangladesh would be brought to Malaysia in stages over three years to meet the demands of employers from various sectors.

But Lee said that the influx of foreign workers would take away job opportunities for the locals.

"If cheaper foreign work resources are imported and used to fill up local job opportunities, how can we plan to uplift the country’s economy and the income of our citizens?" he said.

Lee urged Zahid to come up with a concrete explanation to the concerns raised to prove he was a responsible minister.

The FWCMS and biometric health checks, which were outsourced to Bestinet, had been criticised by foreign employment agencies who threatened to stop sending workers to Malaysia.

They cited added costs and security concerns over workers’ information.

Indonesian employment agencies also said that the exorbitant fees were a huge burden to their countrymen who were looking to either work or study in Malaysia and also threatened to stop sending workers to Malaysia.

- TMI

Irregularities still in Sabah electoral roll after RCI advice, says Bersih

Electoral reforms group Bersih 2.0 says that irregularities are still found in the Sabah electoral roll, despite the government setting up a committee to tackle issues that were highlighted by the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on immigrants in Sabah. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Najjua Zulkefli, July 1, 2015.

Electoral reforms group Bersih 2.0 today said that irregularities are still found in the Sabah electoral roll, despite the government setting up a committee to tackle issues that were highlighted by the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on immigrants in Sabah.

Despite RCI's findings that hundreds of thousands of foreigners were issued identification cards in Sabah without following due procedure, Bersih said that not much has been done, and questioned the actions taken by the committee which was supposed to tackle the issues highlighted in the RCI.

"We want to stress that investigation and action based on the report must be conducted immediately," a statement issued by the watchdog's steering committee said today.

It cited, as an example, the case of a woman who was registered twice in the electoral roll in Sandakan, with the same address, but with different tail end IC numbers.

Bersih is currently conducting a nationwide electoral roll study with the Malaysian Electoral Roll Analysis Project (Merap).

"Bersih questions what are the conclusions from setting up the committee that was supposedly formed to take action based on the report," it said.

The RCI report was completed in 2013 and released to the public last year.

- TMI

SAVED BY GST BUT NOT FOR LONG: 'Spending-spree' Najib dodges Fitch cut but at expense of the Rakyat - Wong Chen

KEADILAN is relieved that Fitch has maintained its rating of the Malaysian government at A-. A downgrade would have been severe and could have caused the Ringgit to fall further and push up the borrowing costs of the government.

Fitch, like every other rating agency assesses the ability of a borrower to pay and settle its borrowings. Its assessment is not an indicator of good governance of the economy and is therefore not an endorsement of good governance by the Najib administration. Fitch notes that Malaysia’s fiscal position continues to remain weak.

Its assessment yesterday, far from a “pat on the back” for UMNO-BN, merely maintains a status quo view of Malaysia with continued worries. The costs of borrowings remain the same at A-, with a minor improvement on outlook from negative to stable. In other words, the UMNO-BN government has effectively dodged a debt bullet, but it is still far from a recovery.

On closer study, two of the main reasons for the Fitch A- status quo assessment are (a) the roll out of GST and (b) the ending of the fuel subsidy.

Temporary reprieve as corruption & wastage getting worse

Both measures are credited for maintaining the A- rating.The end of the fuel subsidy however is not a government action per se, but a result of fall in the price of crude oil.

As for the GST, the government finally admitted in its 11th Malaysia Plan document, that it will collect some RM15 billion of additional tax annually from GST.

It is therefore the GST that has essentially saved the UMNO-BN government from the threat of downgrade but at the full expense of the rakyat. The rakyat is made to cough up RM15 billion extra to pay the mountain of debts that the UMNO-BN government created.

KEADILAN believes that unless and until the government seriously combats corruption and wastage, the ratings position of the country will not improve.

As such we will continue to monitor and combat corruption and wastage. Cases such as the recent MARA Australia property and the 1MDB international financial misadventures, remain the bane of the economy and overall governance of the nation.

Wong Chen, MP for Kelana Jaya

Chairman of the KEADILAN Investment & Trade Bureau

TERRORISM IN THE FAMILY: Father & son wanted to bring Islamic State terrorism to M'sia from Middle East

KUALA LUMPUR - It was a case of terrorism that ran in the family. But it did not pay.

The father was sentenced to 18 years in jail while the son got 12 years.

As the wives, children and other relatives cried out loud in the High Court and hugged Murad Halimmuddin Hassan, 49, and Abu Daud Murad Halimmuddin, 25, the story emerged of a plan to bring terror from the Middle East to Malaysia.

The father, former ISA detainee Murad Halimmuddin, had joined the Islamic State terror movement in Syria and returned as a “spiritual leader” to encourage others to perform terror activities here.

Abu Daud Murad helped to coordinate and plan these activities locally.

The two were among six individuals detained on April 5 for allegedly promoting terrorism in Malaysia.

They claimed trial on April 30 to a charge of promoting an act of violence in Malaysia, a crime under Section 130G(a) and Section 120(b)(1) of the Penal Code.

Murad Halimmuddin and Abu Daud later changed their plea, but the other four maintained their innocence. They stand accused of committing the offence between Jan 30 and April 5 in Pendang, Kedah.

Murad Halimmuddin was also charged under Section 130J(1)(b) with knowingly supporting a terrorist movement.

He was jailed for 18 years for each charge, but both sentences were to run concurrently.

DPP Shukor Abu Bakar said it was becoming a dangerous trend for Malaysians wanting to perform jihad in Malaysia.

“In other words, the trend is now to commit terrorism in Malaysia, and this is even more dangerous than committing the act in other countries,” he said.

He said Murad Halimmuddin, who had fought with firearms during his time with IS in Syria, returned to Malaysia to act as a spiritual leader to others who wanted to perform jihad.

“He became a role model and an example for them.

“Far from regretting his actions of being part of a terrorist group, he suggested that these new followers commit jihad here in Malaysia through kidnapping and robbery.

“His son became the medium to channel these messages to the rest of the group, plan their movements and identify their targets,” DPP Shukor said, in asking for a deterrent sentence.

He added that if not dealt with severely, others like Murad Halimmuddin who returned from Syria bringing IS ideologies with them could influence others.

According to court documents, during a meeting on Jan 30 in Pendang, the group had pledged to recruit at least 20 people to launch jihad in Malaysia.

During the meeting, Abu Daud had also suggested that they kidnap a few of the country’s leaders and use the hostages in exchange for the freedom of those detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act.

They also discussed attacking Malaysian military camps to get hold of firearms.

Murad Halimmuddin asked for a light sentence, saying he had six dependants who were still studying and that he also suffered from kidney and heart problems.

His son also pleaded for less jail time, saying he had three young children, including a three-month- old baby.

High Court judge Justice Kamardin Hashim, in meting out the sentences, said the offences committed by the pair had threatened the safety of Malaysians.

The case against the four other accused will be heard on Aug 28. - ANN

NO WONDER HASAN MALEK KEPT QUIET! Puzzle over RON95 price hike when global oil fell

Many pundits are puzzled as to why RON95 petrol price was raised 10 sen per litre as of today when prevailing global crude oil prices are down slightly compared to a month earlier.

As an indication as to just how much global oil prices have trended downwards, Reuters reported today that the official selling price of a basket of Malaysian crude oil for June-loading has been calculated at US$66.89 (RM251.90) a barrel, down US$2.48 from the previous month.

The government has yet to disclose exactly how the monthly market price float formula applied for to fuel pump pricing is calculated, but previous reports indicate that it is partly derived from pricing set by Petronas on a monthly basis.

Petronas introduced the new benchmark starting January 2014, based on the spot differentials to dated Brent for three grades – Labuan, Miri and Kikeh.

Why 20 sen?

Domestic Trade Minister Hasan Malek raised eyebrows when he announced yesterday his ministry would stop the practice of giving advance notice of hike on last day of the month. Related Story: WHY SO ARROGANT: No more prior notice on fuel price - Hasan Malek

As a result of the change, Tapis Blend was dropped as the key pricing reference to dated Brent due to low liquidity and falling output. Kimanis, a new grade that started production in the fourth quarter of 2014, could be included in the price reference basket in late-2015 or 2016.

It is also puzzling as to why RON97 pricing was raised 20 sen per litre, though some attribute it to upward rounding related to the Goods and Sales Tax.

Diesel price being maintained is also seen as temporary ahead of the Hari Raya Puasa period to ensure foodstuff delivery and bus ticket prices don’t get raised this month – and is likely to go up in August to be level with RON95 petrol once more then. - The Rakyat Post