Why is RPK acting so out of character?
YL Chong, Malaysia Chronicle
Prominent blogger now in exile in the United Kingdom Raja Petra Kamarudin (RPK) caught this writer by surprise with an overly critical reaction to Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah’s failure to obtain at least two nominations to contest the party’s deputy presidency. My commentary here is not to go into the “technicalities” involved in the nominations process, but to focus on RPK’s uncharacteristic reactions for someone sympathetic to the only viable alternative coalition led by PKR to replace the BN government.
RPK titled his latest “No Holds Barred” column yesterday (Oct 13, 2010) “Umno is beginning to look better than PKR” and his scornful look at the current PKR party elections in progress seems totally out of character with the writer that I know. (Digressing a bit but I feel perinent in my claim that I know this writer at close range, Raja Petra was the key speaker for the first two annual outings called Bloggers Universe Malaysia (BUM) which I was proud to serve as organising chair.)
And knowing that Nurul herself has never stated she would want to contest the second highest post in PKR, why would an Opposition fighter, swing so ballistically into putting long nemesis UMNO in such good light, as compared with 12-year-old Parti Keadilan Rakyat?
And the real rat is …
Reacting to a FMT report stating that Nurul did not qualify to contest the deputy president’s post after getting only “one nomination” at the close of nominations on Sunday, RPK wrote, and I quote at length:
“And when did they decide that Sunday is the closing date for nominations? Was this decided the following day, on Monday, after two more nominations for Nurul Izzah came in? In other words did they decide on the Sunday closing date on Monday when they realised that Nurul had received an additional two nominations and that this would therefore qualify her to contest the party deputy presidency?
“I smell a rat here, a dead rat. And the smell stinks to high heaven. It appears like PKR is even dirtier than Umno. Now, even Umno is looking better than PKR,” he added.
But sad to say, the smell may be emanating from RPK himself. If he did his checks before making such serious allegations, a quick look at any of numerous articles on the PKR direct elections by Malaysiakini would invariably have shown this chart, which I first noticed in an article dated Sept 5.
October 10 was very clearly defined as the date for which nominations for Supreme Council would be closed. If there are any doubts about the authenticity of chart, do check with Steven of Mkini.
Now, I believe RPK is not a member of PKR although he built his reputation as an Anwarista leader, following Anwar’s sacking by then premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad as Deputy Prime Minister and UMNO deputy president in late 1999. RPK spent much time and resources heading the “Free Anwar Campaign” during Anwar’s incarceration in prison for six years plus.
So the question that arises is: WHY IS RPK ACTING SO OUT OF CHARACTER?
My theory — I emphasise here it’s solely my take as a newshound! — is that RPK has fallen victim to the politics of beholdenism, involving some key players, namely Zaid Ibrahim and Jeffrey Kitinggan, and associated with them moving “behind the scene” is business tycoon John Soh Chee Wen. And my recall is that such similar “acts of beholdenism” also could have featured in some past dalliance in teaming up with Dr Mahathir and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah in their UMNO factional politics, but I digress.
The Malaysia Chronicle has run several articles about the trio — Zaid, Jeffrey, and John Soh, all recent entrants into PKR and were former leaders of BN component parties, UMNO, PBS and MCA, respectively. The relevant point here is Zaid’s out-of-the-blue appeal to Nurul to enter the race for deputy president — which Nurul did not respond to positively — and that he would then think of stepping aside should Nurul accept the challenge; Zaid even said in that eventuality he would consider contesting the president’s post against incumbent Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
Of mob-ney politics and would-be kingmakers
My conclusion is that RPK is caught in the web of ambition and moves wrought by Zaid and Kitinggan in trying to gain control of the Opposition party they had joined not long ago. I won’t detail these events especially over the past few months as they have been well reported by Malaysia Chronicle. RPK must have become indebted to the financiers who took control of his web portal Malaysia Today, and I know for a fact one such financier is John Soh, and the financial consideration would have been substantial to enable RPK to exit Malaysia and continue his “exile” in London.
