Ph Lost Ge16 On 31st Jan 2024

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The following has been seriously truncated and adapted. The writer Dominic Damian's comment has been published by Murray Hunter, whose website is blocked so I wont bother giving the link.

Readers’ Comments: Immorality, betrayal and the pardon
The Rubicon has been crossed
Feb 4
 
This essay by Dominic Damian fully encapsulates what many Malaysians are feeling today.

By Dominic Damian

The next elections were lost on the 31st Jan 2024. 
No amount of backpedaling or cosmetics to smother and assuage the anger would work. 
There are many losers in this immoral idiocrasy. 
Those who pulled this stunt believing in their invincibility and impregnability of reformasi will discover soon enough the wrath of the common citizenry. 
This pardon may be considered illegitimate when one considers what the former Attorney General Tommy Thomas explained, quote’ the criteria for a pardon arises when a prisoner has served one third of his sentence and does not have other pending criminal cases’ unquote. Going by what the ex-AG expressed

·      Can the pardon be revisited and revoked on what appears to be a flaw?

·      Can the persons involved be dismissed for negligence and dereliction of duties?

Insinuations, innuendos and connotations abound that this is well in excess of a conspiracy.

This sickeningly appears to be meticulously planned, orchestrated and executed with frivolous trivialities. 
What benefit or advantage is there in such ludicrous, ridiculous and preposterous pardon 
The uproar of curses surely cannot outweigh the gains beyond a stretch of imagination

For some political parties and politicians- the Rubicon has been crossed. They have crushed themselves to an insignificant point of no return. They are doomed and damned and nothing they say or do will save them.

The undeserved leniency will display the nation’s dishonesty and disrespect in a most disgraceful way. There is no serious intent to wipe out corruption. The damning severity of undermining and underestimating the citizens’ faith in governance and institutions will be diminished.  The reputation of the nation is undeniably shattered, fragmented and broken in a million pieces. The glue of justice has the viscosity of water.
 
All matter being equal the so called highest, prominent and powerful of elites embedded in echelons of societies with the entrustment to advance societies are the ones who repeatedly fail us. Yet some among us worship the ground these ‘failed’ walk upon and inevitably trample upon us.  
We who strive with integrity and struggle with industry, paying our taxes that suffer the ignominious consequences of who we vote in.   We reap what we sow with our votes.

Dominic Damian is a music educator, a coach on creative expressive English, composer, conductor, poet, recording artist and social activist. He also contributes to the wellbeing of society by being a representative voice for voiceless citizens.
My Comments :   Now is the perfect time for the appearance of a completely new agenda in the country's political scene. The people are tired and angry. Dominic Damian is seething. He is not alone.
There is no better time or opportune moment for those who have better sense to step up now and offer a completely new agenda for Malaysia. People First.
The People First Agenda.

1. Abolish the Sedition Act, abolish sections of the MCMC Act, drastically reform the defamation acts (libel, slander) and relook all other archaic and outdated laws of the country. For Muslims there should be absolutely no criminalisation of religious thinking, writing or expression.

2. Abolish all government licensed monopolies and oligopolies. Allow market forces greater play in the economy. Deregulate and liberalise all sectors of the economy especially the banking and financial system. Abolish the GLCs or open them up to real market competition.

3. Maintain all the special rights and privileges of the Malays and Bumiputras but remove all negative discrimination against non-bumiputras. Affirmative Action is to assist the Malays and bumiputras move forward. At the same time it should not be used as a political obstacle or hindrance against the non-Malays and non-bumiputras. 
4. There have to be serious reforms in education. From primary school to tertiary level the education system should be evidence based and focusing on STEM subjects whose medium of instruction should be in English. This will give our younger generation a better chance at surviving in the real world.

5. The FDIs are not coming. There is not enough job creation especially value added, high paying jobs. We must focus on developing our own domestic industries and businesses. Whatever incentives we are prepared to give foreign investors should be doubled and extended to domestic investors.  Special incentives should be given to domestic investors for high technology, high value added and job creating investments. We cannot rely on foreign investments anymore.

6. The government should not make policy over and politicise time wasting issues like language, religion and culture. These are best left to find their own levels within society. The use of legislation, coercion and police powers over such matters will never find any use or solution in the country other than creating tension and hostility. If at all it is better to use persuasion, encouragement and incentives (worst case) to achieve a desired objective. 
7. The tenure of the prime minister and menteri besars / chief ministers plus MPs and members of State Assemblies should be limited to two terms. The date of the General Elections should be fixed under the Federal Constitution and should not be subject to arbitrary decision by the government of the day. 
8.  Important government officials like the IGP, Chief of Armed Forces, Attorney General, Governor of Bank Negara, Chief Commissioner of the MACC, Chairman of the Elections Commission, Director General of Customs, Director General of Immigration, Datuk Bandar of Kuala Lumpur and any other Civil Servant as summoned, should present semi-annual Report Cards to non-partisan Parliamentary Select Committees. Their legal immunity should remain and they cannot be held legally liable for the performance of their jobs but a semi-annual Report Card in Parliament will contribute significantly to transparency and better government.
I strongly believe that if any political party can adopt such a People First Agenda and start pushing this agenda as their own they will stand a much better chance at winning votes. 
The people are really tired of the incompetence and the non performance.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.
By Syed Akbar Ali 

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