Musa Hitam baru bangun tidur ke?

Yes, that was 36 years ago when I was 35 years old. I am now 71. Sudah letih cakap. And now Musa Hitam talks about resetting or rebooting the country. Sigh…dulu bila kita cakap tak mahu dengar. Bila kita cakap awak hentam kita. Sekarang Umno sudah satu kaki dalam kubur baru nak cakap.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

“Non-partisan group needed to reset Malaysia, says Musa,” reported Free Malaysia Today (READ BELOW).

Yeah, right. And when we launched the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) in 2010, all political parties on both sides of the fence boycotted it. Even PAS, PKR and DAP refused to support the MCLM.

Talk is cheap, and as long as there is no political will to bring about changes, then it will remain just that — cheap talk.

Musa Hitam was the Deputy Prime Minister to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad back in 1985 when we told him that Umno was ruining not only the country but the Malays as well.

Muhyiddin Yassin was the Deputy Trade Minister when I met him in his office (together with a mutual friend who was a director of Johan Holdings Berhad) to talk about the same matter — which is Umno was ruining not only the country but the Malays as well.

That was before Muhyiddin became the Menteri Besar of Johor.

Musa Hitam (and Muhyiddin Yassin as well, in fact) is 36 years too late. You did not listen 36 years ago in 1985 when we told you Umno was ruining not only the country but also the Malays. And, today, you talk about Malaysia needs to be reset, Umno needs to be reinvented, society needs to be rebooted, etc.

In 2010, when we launched the MCLM, we knew if we do not reset or reboot Malaysia, the country is doomed.

Remember the word we invented in 1985 — Umnoputera? When we first coined that word in 1985, Umno was very angry. One MP from Terengganu stood up and said what’s wrong with Umnoputera? After all, Umno people are Malays as well, just like Bumiputeras.

The MP did not seem to understand we were not disputing that Umno are Malays. We were saying Umno people should not abuse their power because then it would be corruption — even if Umno people are Malays.

The ADUN from Kuala Terengganu then told the conference (in front of 500 people) that he is not corrupt because he never demands money for contracts. If it is offered, he will take it, but he never demands commission.

This MP and this ADUN from Terengganu did not seem to understand the meaning of abuse of power and corruption. Since you are Bumiputera (or rather Umnoputera) and since it was offered and not demanded, then kickbacks are not corruption.

Yes, that was 36 years ago when I was 35 years old. I am now 71 (last week). Sudah letih cakap. And now Musa Hitam talks about resetting or rebooting the country. Sigh…dulu bila kita cakap tak mahu dengar. Bila kita cakap awak hentam kita. Sekarang Umno sudah satu kaki dalam kubur baru nak cakap.

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Non-partisan group needed to reset Malaysia, says Musa

(FMT) – A non-partisan group needs to be set up to handle rules on asset declarations, political financing, the conduct of elections, faulty bureaucracy and corruption in the country, says former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam.

“To me, the only single way to tackle all these issues would be in one go.

“If all of us can get organised to group ourselves, in a non-partisan way and with full dedication, it can be done,” he said during a talk held by Bersih 2.0 on political party finance reform titled Political Finance Reform.

Political financing, he said, would only work if legislative shortcomings, weak oversight and weak bookkeeping were looked into.

He said with the ongoing political uncertainties and realignment of political players, “there is no better time than this for all non-partisan citizens to get together.”

Musa, who was deputy prime minister from 1981 to 1986, said the group could be set up for two years.

“During the two years, it should be free from government interference. That needs the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong,” he said, adding that a special Act could be passed in Parliament to form the group.

At the end of the two years, the result of the group’s work could be presented to Malaysians. “If found to be acceptable, Malaysia would have to reset herself,” he added.

He said the idea was based on Malaysia’s own experience when the National Operations Council or Mageran was set up after May 13.

Musa’s experience with political funding

The 87-year-old also shared his experience in politics. He started as a political secretary to the then transport minister Sardon Jubir in 1964.

He said money was not an issue as the spirit of sacrifice and enthusiasm was high especially after independence.

After the introduction of the New Economic Policy, he said, there was a realisation that money was a way to achieve political power.

During his tenure as Segamat Utara MP in Johor, Musa said he realised he needed money to donate at events in his constituency. He said he did so within his means.

“I never stopped reminding my constituents that if more money was needed, then I would have to get funds from other sources, even illegal contributions.

He said the party funded costs at divisional and constituency level.

“With BN winning and maintaining power, money was not a problem. But as it is said, power corrupts and inevitably an implosion happens and the damage is beyond repair,” he added.

Thus, he added, political financing and asset declaration needed a good system of auditing and enforcement.