Zaid terima kalah, salahkan ‘politik beli undi’.

Malaysia Insider

Oleh Syed Mu’az Syed Putra

HULU SELANGOR, 25 April — Calon Pakatan Rakyat, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim menerima kekalahan dengan hati terbuka tetapi pada masa sama menyalahkan strategi “membeli undi” yang dilakukan Barisan Nasional sebagai punca kekalahan beliau.

“Sudah tentu apabila kalah kita tidak akan berasa gembira.

“Tetapi bagi saya itu tidak mengapa yang penting kita telah mencuba.

“Selain itu, dalam setiap pertandingan kita mesti menjangkakan sama ada menang ataupu kalah,” katanya kepada wartawan selepas menyampaikan ucapan di Stadium Mini Kuala Kubu Baru dekat sini.

Terlebih dahulu dalam ucapannya, beliau mengatakan kekalahnya dalam pilihan raya kecil Hulu Selangor berpunca daripada stategi BN yang “membeli undi”.

“Kita kalah kerana mereka (BN) menggunakan taktik kotor dengan membeli undi daripada pengundi.

“Kita perlu atasi masalah ini kerana apa yang kita hadapi ialah satu sistem politik yang teruk dan pemimpin yang tidak hormat pada undang-undang,” katanya di hadapan kira-kira 300 penyokong PKR.

Turut hadir Menteri Besar Selangor Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim dan Penasihat DAP Lim Kit Siang

Bekas Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri itu mendakwa pilihan raya kecil kali ini adalah yang paling buruk dan penuh dengan rasuah dalam sejarah pilihan raya kecil berlangsung.

“Kita berdepan dengan mereka yang membeli dan menghalalakan undi tidak kira di waktu siang mahupun malam.

“Kita boleh lihat bagaimana Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Razak membelanjakan sehingga RM64 juta untuk membeli undi pada pilihan raya ini.

“Jadi saya harap penyokong-penyokong kita bersabar dan usah risau dengan keadaan ini kerana saya boleh menghadapi cabaran ini.

“Saya berjanji saya akan sama-sama dengan Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim dan bekerja keras dalam menghadapi pilihan raya umum ke-13 nanti,” katanya.

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Hulu Selangor: PKR dakwa 10 bas bawa pengundi hantu

Malaysiainsider

HULU SELANGOR, 25 April — Angkatan Muda Keadilan (AMK) Parti Keadilan Rakyat mendakwa mengesan kira-kira 10 bas yang menurut mereka membawa pengundi-pengundi ‘hantu’ untuk mengundi pada pilihan raya kecil kerusi Parlimen Hulu Selangor awal pagi ini.

“AMK mengesan bas disyaki membawa pengundi hantu di IKBN Ampang Pecah (dekat Kuala Kubu Baru) kira-kira 3.30 pagi tadi,” kata Ketua AMK Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin kepada The Malaysian Insider pagi ini.

Menurut Shamsul Iskandar, pihaknya menahan bas berkenaan kira-kira 3,30 pagi dan membuat laporan setengah jam kemudian.

Bagaimanapun menurut Shamsul, pihak polis yang datang kira-kira 6 pagi tadi tidak mengambil tindakan menahan bas-bas berkenaan.

Kata beliau, penumpang-penumpang bas berkenaan meninggalkan tempat selepas cuba merempuh ahli-ahli AMK yang dianggarkan sekitar 80 orang.

“Apabila mereka cuba merempuh kami, dianggarkan 500 penumpang, kesemuanya orang-orang muda, kami terpaksa mengalah kerana kami cuma sekitar 80 orang.

“Kami sebenarnya mengharapkan polis akan mengambil tindakan tetapi tidak berbuat demikian,” kata Shamsul Iskandar.

Bagaimanapun beliau mengakui wakil penumpang berkenaan, dipercayai dari Umno, memang adakan perundingan dengannya tetapi gagal apabila mereka meminta penumpang-penumpang berkenaan dibiarkan atas alasan adalah pekerja jentera BN.

Ketua Polis Selangor Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar pula berkata, polis tidak menahan sebarang bas.

“Itu tidak benar,” katanya pada sidang media di sini petang ini.

Proses pengundian membabitkan 64,500 pengundi bermula 8 pagi ini.

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Nik Aziz: ‘Undi Zaid, orang Kelantan tahu halal haram’

MalaysiaInsider

Oleh G. Manimaran

BATANG KALI, 24 April — Tinggal kurang enam jam sebelum kempen pilihan raya kecil Hulu Selangor berakhir, Mursyidul Am PAS Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat meminta pengundi kawasan ini termasuk 300 warga Kelantan mengundi calon Pakatan Rakyat Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, esok.

Kata Nik Aziz, pengundi-pengundi wajar memberikan sokongan Zaid kerana yakin terhadap kepimpinannya sebagai seorang yang berprinsip.

“Beliau seorang yang sanggup meletakkan jawatan kerana prinsip... mana ada menteri yang sanggup meletakkan jawatan,” kata Menteri Besar Kelantan ini ketika berucap di hadapan penyokong PAS di Batang Kali, petang ini.

Majlis ini diadakan untuk pengundi-pengundi dari Kelantan.

Bagaimanapun hampir 3,000 orang termasuk pengundi tempatan hadir untuk mendengar ucapan Nik Aziz — persinggahan kedua terakhir hari ini. Malam ini beliau akan berucap di stadium mini Kuala Kubu Baru bersama Ketua Umum Pakatan Rakyat Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Nik Aziz memberitahu, beliau juga yakin dengan kepimpinan Zaid kerana bekas Ahli Parlimen Kota Baru itu adalah kelahiran Kelantan yang tahu “soal halal haram.”

“Dulu dia minum arak masa dalam Umno, bila rapat dengan PAS sudah tak minum arak,” kata beliau.

Zaid menyertai PKR awal tahun lalu selepas dipecat Umno akhir 2008.

Zaid yang diturunkan Pakatan Rakyat untuk mempertahankan kerusi Parlimen Hulu Selangor berhadapan dengan serangan peribadi beliau seorang kaki sosial termasuk minum arak.

Umno-BN menggunakan isu itu sebagai bahan kempen.

Awal minggu ini Presiden PAS Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang dan Menteri Besar Selangor Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim berkata Zaid sudah berubah selepas kembali dari Mekah.

Dalam ucapannya beliau juga menyentuh soal mengapa PAS harus menjalin kerjasama bersama DAP dan PKR dalam membentuk Pakatan Rakyat.

Sebab itu kata Nik Aziz, beliau banyak kali menolak kerajaan perpaduan antara PAS-Umno termasuk ketika Muktamar PAS 2008 dan 2009.

“Dulu (1960-an) dia letih (BN dalam suasana sukar) panggil kita, tetapi selepas itu ketepikan kita.

“Sekarang dia letih balik, hilang beberapa negeri, dia (BN) panggil kita balik, mana boleh? Tidak!” katanya.

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Zaid: Judges were sacked

malaysiainsider

Zaid insisted the judges were sacked.

By Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 — Former de facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim has refuted his successor Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz's claim that the six Supreme Court judges who lost their jobs in the 1988 judicial crisis were not sacked.

"I have only this to say. The judges had been sacked and a miscarriage of justice of the gravest kind has been committed," he told The Malaysian Insider today of the judges who were removed in the fallout from an intense dispute in Umno which saw the party being deregistered.

Yesterday, Nazri, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, announced in Parliament that RM10.5 million was paid as ex-gratia to former Lord President Tun Salleh Abas and the five others, explaining that requests from MPs had forced the government to renege on a promise by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi to keep the amounts secret.

Stating that "if they were sacked, there would be no pension," Nazri claimed that the judges were not sacked as pensions were paid to and "accepted faithfully" by Salleh, Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin, Tan Sri George Edward Seah Kim Seng, Tan Sri Wan Hamzah Mohd Salleh and the families of the late Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdolcadeer and the late Tan Sri Wan Suleiman Pawanteh.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had been portrayed as the villain in the saga considered by the Bar Council to have marked the end of judicial independence, but he has consistently denied the charge by pointing out that the judges had been removed by properly set up tribunals.

Abdullah’s government had announced the decision to pay the judges the ex-gratia sum in his speech at the Bar Council dinner on April 17.

"The government would like to recognise the contributions of these six judges to the nation, their commitment towards upholding justice and to acknowledge the pain and loss they have endured," he had said.

Zaid, then the de facto Law Minister, had initiated the effort which came under criticism from Dr Mahathir and his supporters.

The Malaysian Insider understands that the Cabinet had decided to refer to the monies as "goodwill ex-gratia payments," as stated in Abdullah's April 17 speech, instead of "compensation" as the latter would imply an admission of guilt.

Since his resignation from the Cabinet and Senate, there has been a push by some ministers, including his successor Nazri, to disclose the sum in the name of accountability.

"Any responsible government would do the only right thing and that is to compensate them. That's what I had done and the Prime Minister was right in supporting the decision," Zaid told The Malaysian Insider.

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2000 sertai perarakan anti ISA

2,000 march against ISA

The Malaysian Insider pictures by Choo Choy May

By Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 — A Hindraf-led anti-ISA rally saw nearly 2,000 marching through the city centre tonight.

Police had denied entry into Dataran Merdeka where the group had planned to hold an hour-long candlelight vigil.

This resulted in the crowd, just about 500-strong then, deciding to move to Court Hill Sri Ganesar Temple off Jalan Pudu.

Eventually, what was planned to be an hour-long gathering in an already cordoned-off area turned into a moving roadblock that disrupted traffic for twice as long.

The orange-clad, flag-waving and candle holding protestors had made their way to the temple in three blocks via Jalan Tun Perak.

By the time they arrived, the total size had quadrupled to close to 2,000 with passersby and latecomers including a significant number of Chinese and Malay supporters joining up.

"This was a signal that the ISA is hated by all Malaysians from a cross-section of society," said legal advisor N. Surendran.

The event, which called for the abolishment of the Internal Security Act and the release of all detainees especially the Hindraf 5 and blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, was hailed as a success by Hindraf national coordinator R.S. Tanendran, who said that the government should stop "closing its ears" to the people's wish to abolish the act.

"The people are a better judge of the Act. Who is Syed Hamid?" he told the crowd in front of the temple, referring to Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar.

"He is just an ordinary man. One man cannot be the judge."

According to Hindraf national event coordinator R. Kannan, several groups had assembled around the city centre and were headed towards Dataran Merdeka. They had requested police to allow them one hour to gather after a request for a permit sent on Wednesday did not receive a response.

However, even this request was denied as the main group began to move from Leboh Pasar Besar at 7.15pm, forcing them to take a detour via Masjid Jamek.

By 7.30pm, they had arrived together on Jalan Tun Perak where they were ordered to remain outside the cordoned off Dataran Merdeka with about 10 police light reserve personnel in attendance.

More negotiations with Kuala Lumpur police from the Dang Wangi headquarters ensued between Teluk Intan MP M. Manogaran and police representatives.

The DAP legislator requested for the group to be allowed in to light their candles and say their prayers for 15 minutes but were told that they would only be allowed to remain outside the cordoned off area until 8pm.

By 7.50pm the group began marching towards the temple and continued to gather numbers resulting in staggered blockage of traffic along Jalan Tun Perak and only arrived at the temple at 8.30pm before dispersing 45 minutes later.

ASP Sydney Clyde Jeremiah confirmed that there were no untoward incidents in what was generally a "peaceful gathering" despite half a dozen light reserve and federal reserve vehicles each arriving at Dataran Merdeka after 8pm.

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