Last week I met up with two strong PKR stalwarts. They asked me whether I am going to write about the elections that are going on in PKR. I said no because I don't know about your party. In any case, there are so many luminaries in PKR who can write about the party. I am only interested in UMNO, my party.
But then Azmin Ali, the candidate for number two, has spoken ill of Dr Mahathir. Now, Dr Mahathir is a former UMNO president and PM. I have criticized him openly at times but I hope have not crossed the boundaries of civility. I think it's fair for a person to criticize another because of his ideas, views and policies.
Dr Mahathir himself, I understand is quite tolerant of criticisms especially if they are done in a one to one encounter.
Azmin Ali on the other hand said something malicious against the person of DR Mahathir. For that he deserves the strongest of condemnations and rebuke. Because he has said that, whatever UMNO people throw at him in retaliation will be seen as justified. He has made the bed, he must now lie on it.
Which leads me to abandon my reluctance to write about the PKR leadership which I said in my above paragraphs. Here is a man who is offering himself to become the number two in PKR. This is the best opportunity for the PKR members to evaluate the character of this leader.
Of all leadership qualities, this thing called character is the most difficult to fully understand. It is the elusive quality that either breaks or makes a person. It's the quality which allow the person to remain collected and cool under pressure.
All the PKR people need to ask now is, does Azmin have character as a leader?
Dr Mahathir.
There are many things we can say bad bout Dr Mahathir. There are also many more good things about Dr Mahathir. I want to share something nice.
I want to tell of a story involving Dr Mahathir in the life of one Dr. Chan Pek looi. She is now a doctor in the government hospital in Termerloh.
When she passed her SPM with all As( 9 As) at that time, she applied for a JPA scholarship to study medicine. She went for interview with JPA and regrettably she failed in the interview. As someone who has also gone through JPA interview myself, I can say that sometimes the interviewers asked some of the stupidest questions. I don't think this Dr Chan failed the interview for want of intelligence. She got 9 As.
The MP for Kuantan at that time was Dato Fauzi Rahman. He was also parliamentary secretary for the Ministry of Information I think. The parents of this Dr Chan saw Dato fauzi on several occasions telling him of their daughter's plight. She will not do anything else other than medicine.
Dato fauzi went to see Dr Mahathir. He recounted the story of Chan Pek Looi. Dr Mahathir asked why she failed the interview and other things. Will she take up any other course? Dato Fauzi said no. DR Mahathir remarked to Dato fauzi, if this girl doesn't get a scholarship, Fauzi will lose support from the Chinese community in Kuantan.
That aside said Fauzi, this is an issue of fairness. This girl was the best student during her year, and we must do something in the name of fairness. Dr Mahathir didn't say anything but asked Fauzi to leave the documents his desk.
A few days later an officer from JPA called Dato Fauzi informing that they are awarding Chan Pek Looi a scholarship to study medicine in Bangalore. They received a note from Dr Mahathir- tolong uruskan pemberian biasiswa untuk pelajar ini mengambil perubatan.
The JPA wrote to Chan Pek Looi, after reconsideration, they will now offer her a scholarship to study medicine in Bangalore. Chan Pek Looi went on to become the top student at Bangalore year after year.
I am telling this story to share with readers some of the unseen aspects of the Mahathir character.
We wish him a speedy recovery.
Dear Sakmongkol
ReplyDeleteWhen I read this story you told of Dr Chan Pek Looi, a different thought came to me. I don’t wish to take anything away from Dr Mahathir. He did some good for ONE person – and as subsequently proven, a very deserving person, who now is at the service of the nation.
Chan Pek Looi was a victim of a very unfair system, which clearly Dr Mahathir himself would have recognized. Such a system – and it persists to this very day – has denied many other Chan Pek Loois the chance to fulfill their potential, and serving Malaysia. Instead this system has bred bitterness against the government.
Dr Mahathir by your story can be regarded as a kind man. There are many kind men in our society. But there was only ONE man powerful enough to change the system to be fairer and thus help more deserving students so that this country would have been that much better off. Dr Mahathir did not do it. We must judge him by what he failed to do, which in this case was far more important that what he did.
So why can't DPM Muhyiddin wrote to PSD " Tolong ambil tindakan keras kat
ReplyDeletegurubesar ni
Yes that's Dr M all right. He's got a good heart.
ReplyDeleteBut people are quick to judge by what he talks.
I wish Din Merican and all his fans will read this.
That blog commentators and Din himself are always condemning Tun M. calling him all sorts of names.
As though his services of 22 years for the progress of our country count for nothing.
Hey Azmin who gives you the licence to spew such evil words on our belover former PM.
What if he is your father or any of your loved ones??
There is such a thing called decency and good manners especially among Malays.
Kaulah tersungkur dulu woi Azmin.
Kau sungkur sama boss kamu boleh?
From the news I read and saw on TV, your party are full of hooligans.
People get bashed up. One even gave a press conference in hospital while being hospitalised for having several stitches.
Today, the sodomy king's ex political secretary was stopped from holdng a press conference. There was a one-hour brawl there.
Tsk tsk Hooligans. And the Crown Prince Azmin is number one hooligan.
And PKRs show of party election irregularities and fights following them are always on the nightly news.
Still you all want PKR to lead this country?
Nauzubillah.
from your story it appears that Dr M's motives were to get Fauzi the support of the chinese...
ReplyDeletenot because he was inherently good...
he is an evil man who has destroyed all that was good among the malays!
Well Azmin does what he does best and a bit melancholic post on Dr Mahathir this time Dato'. It never cease to amaze me though that some people could twist your story about Dr Mahathir's many kindness and turn it in to something totally negative and has the temerity to even blame the good Doctor because of something bad he perceived in the system. So pathetic isn't it.
ReplyDeleteanon 2134.
ReplyDeletewhats wrong if you give it to get a vote? Is he evil then? Then... what will u say if you make promises nonsense in GE to get a vote, then broke that promises? Like what Khalid Brahim did right now?
I beg to differ. While Dr. M may have helped this lady, the way he goes about it tells a lot about the BN system of governance.
ReplyDeleteFirst, JPA flunk this girl. Next, they reconsider their decision just because Dr. M wrote "tolong uruskan ...." Mind you, Dr. M's notation is an INSTRUCTION to JPA to do something and he didn't even give a reason to JPA why the instruction should be followed.
This shows that by the stroke of a pen, what Dr. M wants, Dr. M gets. No questions asked! Now, is this still a good story? Sounds like an abuse of power by Dr. M albeit for a good reason!
Salam Dato Sak,
ReplyDeleteI'm compelled to give a bit of latest update on this story.
This girl Chan Pek Lui is a Dato already and currently running her own specialist GP in Mentakab serving the community.
Quiet Despair,
ReplyDeleteWhat would you rate TDM if you were son of late Ibrahim Libya or Al maunah members?
Salam Dato',
ReplyDeleteAnon 21:34,
What you say of Tun Dr.Mahathir is reflection of your defective and rotten character.Your soul,if you have any,must be possessed by the devil and turns you into such an evil man who is completely void of any sense of humanity,and blind to any good deeds.You seem to think and see nothing other than evil thoughts.
Please be kind to yourself so that other people will not judge you wrongly and unfairly.
Askar Tua
TDM did it for one individual with one thought in his mind... he can lose a lot of votes if nothing is done.
ReplyDeleteThat tells you a lot about what he really is.
More important is the kind of Little Napoleans brain washed by his BTN now rejecting thousands who were/are/will be now working overseas on foreign scholarships.
This country will never change. Now even thought of attracting these same guys from overseas to return. LOL.
Really no brains. Cant even look at the source of the problem as highlighted here.
Azmin Ali ni memang kurang belajar. Sebab boss dia kurang mengajar kat dia adat resam manusia yang baik. Bezakan hal politik dan peribadi.
ReplyDeleteKalau bercakap dengan orang tua, kita kena hormat, tak kira lah dia siapa.
Cuba kalau orang lain buat arwah pak dia macam tu dulu. Mesti azmin cakap orang tu kurang ajar.
Dear Sir,
ReplyDeleteNot knowing Dr.M personally, I am no position to comment on his character or lack thereof. However there is a the larger problem in this story that you ignore focusing instead on Dr.M's perceived goodwill in assisting this non-malay student's scholarship application.
1) Why did this clearly very bright girl need a scholarship to study medicine overseas? Isn't this itself a failure of the education system controlled by Dr.M (1975-1981 as Education Minister and 1981-2003 as PM)
If he instead pursued policies of making local tertiary education more equitable by making university education free and providing financial support for all students from poor/rural backgrounds, this situation would never have cropped up.
If instead he pursued a policy of colour-blind hiring in the university administration and allowed universities and student bodies autonomy to operate in a manner that fostered a culture of excellence and freedom, our universities wouldn't be in such dire straits that every student regardless of race wants an overseas education because attending a local university is seen by the market as a worthless piece of paper qualifying one for only a civil service job, this would never have happened.
2) Why did this student and her parents need to grovel (as my parents did unsuccessfully before, much to my humiliation) to a MP before "orders came from the top" to the civil service to give this girl a scholarship? Doesn't this entire process reek of abuse of power? In this case power was abused to a good end, but as I personally can see from the all the millionaire Melayu-baru kids studying overseas on PSD scholarships, it is often abused to terrible end.
If Dr.M ensured the civil service was run professionally and in a colour-blind manner by dedicated staff with integrity and competency like the MCS that the British left us in 1957-1963, would this situation have ever happened?
If Dr.M did not subvert the civil service into his personal tool via Operasi Isi Penuh instead of a non-partisan and competent body, would such a silly interviewer ever have made it that far in the JPA hierarchy? Once again, would this situation have ever happened?
A lot of people look at Dr.M as a hero for modernising Malaysia through his reign. I suffer no such delusions. Malaysia would have developed with or without him given the circumstances of the 1970s and 1980s. In fact I would not hesitate to say that Malaysia developed despite him. I look at people like Tun Dr. Ismail (a person who deserves the title Tun) and Tengku Razaleigh and ask my self, if either of these men became Prime Minister where would Malaysia be today? We would be a peaceful, developed, fair and wealthy country indeed. Instead here we are today, our graduate unemployable, our hospitals untenable, our companies uncompetitive, our people poor and powerless, our judiciary in tatters and our country on a downward spiral.
I leave it to you to make a judgement sir.
cont.
ReplyDelete2) Why did this student and her parents need to grovel (as my parents did unsuccessfully before, much to my humiliation) to a MP before "orders came from the top" to the civil service to give this girl a scholarship? Doesn't this entire process reek of abuse of power? In this case power was abused to a good end, but as I personally can see from the all the millionaire Melayu-baru kids studying overseas on PSD scholarships, it is often abused to terrible end.
If Dr.M ensured the civil service was run professionally and in a colour-blind manner by dedicated staff with integrity and competency like the MCS that the British left us in 1957-1963, would this situation have ever happened?
If Dr.M did not subvert the civil service into his personal tool via Operasi Isi Penuh instead of a non-partisan and competent body, would such a silly interviewer ever have made it that far in the JPA hierarchy? Once again, would this situation have ever happened?
A lot of people look at Dr.M as a hero for modernising Malaysia through his reign. I suffer no such delusions. Malaysia would have developed with or without him given the circumstances of the 1970s and 1980s. In fact I would not hesitate to say that Malaysia developed despite him. I look at people like Tun Dr. Ismail (a person who deserves the title Tun) and Tengku Razaleigh and ask my self, if either of these men became Prime Minister where would Malaysia be today? We would be a peaceful, developed, fair and wealthy country indeed. Instead here we are today, our graduate unemployable, our hospitals untenable, our companies uncompetitive, our people poor and powerless, our judiciary in tatters and our country on a downward spiral.
I leave it to you to make a judgement sir.
Your article says it all.
ReplyDelete1. JPA does not recognise meritocracy amongst Malaysians. It functions according to the dictates of UMNO which stipulates scholarships must be given to Malays (not Bumis) maximum.
2. UMNO leaders 'dish' out 'crumbs' to non-Malays, if they sense that they (UMNO leaders) will lose power to continue 'robbing' the country. To them, this 'crumb' is a small investment to 'coax', coerce', 'threaten', 'bribe' the non-Malays to vote for UMNO for this focus on remaining in power.
Dr M is just yet another example of such behaviour.
But its not to do with the party as an organisation.
Its the people who misuse UMNO.
The rakyat therfOre have the choice:
a. Rid UMNO of such leaders.. OR
b. Leave UMNO alone and go for another entity that showcases itself as one that is different from the leaders who misue UMNO.
You are in UMNO Dato. And looking at the way you are coming out with your thoughts, you seem to hope that many will join you in getting rid of such 'leaders' in present day UMNO so that the party will appeal again to all Malaysians.
But many Malaysians have been looking for and deciding on alternatives already.
Good luck in your endeavours.
PARAMESWRA
Dear Sakmongkol,
ReplyDeleteI am an avid reader of yours. but i am thoroughly disappointed by this article. while you have portrayed yourself as a progressive element in your party, you have revealed, unwittingly, that you still have the UMNO lording over the rest kind of mentality - that the rakyat needs to 'minta sedekah' from UMNO.
We want a SYSTEM that is consistency and fair!!
Anon 00.14
ReplyDeleteIt was Musa Hitam who was acting PM who ordered the kiling of Ibrahim Libya.
Tun M was overseas then.If it was Tun M, that never would have happened.
Tun M was said to have remarked to his aides: "Macam tu dia buat orang saya.:
That was also the start of the crisis between Musa and Tun M.
Some people even like to see Musa's downfall as the curse of Al-Maunah on him.
Dato,
ReplyDeleteFor an anthropological comparison, there were similar anecdotes lying around Hitlers' autobiography.
Apparently this Jew exterminator had done some good along the way for Jews in some occasions!
So Hitler is a compassionate leader, who was mis-understood.
Heil Mamak #*&%!
Sak,
ReplyDeleteAzmin is right as TDM is out of mainstream government!Look at him how he manupilate his words recently and being patron to PERKASA is the last straw he is clutching.!
Your story relates something like our Najib in bi -elections .You help me and i help you rethoric!Nothing great.
Vikram is so right!Had we had Tun Ismail and TRH who knows we would have been better off! Even you Sak when you write we can feel that raw honest feelings you have for the betterment of this country.Not TDM cause he does'nt have it.It was patronising politics he cultivated.
His bad deeds outpaced any good he did for the country.Today we pay this price for his plundering!
Just look at those monumental structures like KLCC, KLIA and that Putrajaya waste not forgetting Proton.To protect an auto industry which is not comparable to our neighbour up north. Do we really need them.It was a way to plunder the country real good for him and cronies!Today he still thinks the country owe him a living.He should let go!
@Quiet Despair 08:49
ReplyDeleteIf I am son of Ibrahim Libya, I knew that the plans to baiting and killing Ibrahim Libya were made long before Mahathir "had left for overseas".
Musa Hitam was Acting PM when the plan was implemented. The TRUTH would be as would a Royal Commission would have had determined. I if am the son would not have accepted any less if ever such TRUTH and JUSTICE had been established and were the respective benchmarks of the day. But up to today what is the TRUTH?
And why have there ever no need for TRUTH when it comes to whatever/whenever Mahathir?
Dato'
ReplyDeleteThe story of Dr Chan Pek Looi just confirmed Tun Mahathir's machiavelli legacy.
I believed he was more worried with Datuk Fauzi losing Chinese supports than helping Dr Chan.
If he was genuine in helping deserving students, we would not be having scholarship distribution problem year after year.
"DR Mahathir remarked to Dato fauzi, if this girl doesn't get a scholarship, Fauzi will lose support from the Chinese community in Kuantan.
ReplyDeleteThat aside said Fauzi, this is an issue of fairness. This girl was the best student during her year, and we must do something in the name of fairness."
Of the 2 men I would certainly respect the latter. At least he spoke with a conscience. The other, a political move perhaps. If we only change our mindset regarding our own citizens, we will realise that whoever do well will benefit the country. Responsible leaders will do all they can to tap into our own human resources like building more universities, more medical places and so forth.
Kesian Dr M.
ReplyDeleteBuat baik pun kena cerca.
Padahal, family Dr Chan Pek Looi berterima kasih teramat sangat pada Dr M sampai ke hari ini.
Yang tak berterima kasih ialah oran yang ada motif jahat di sebalik cercaan mereka.
Jangan marah jika ada orang yang kamu tolong tidak berterima kasih kepada kamu nanti.
Bro Sak, onece upon a time I supported Dr M. When my Singaporean friends critised him over his handling of DSAI case, I actually told them, Dr M was a good PM. Sadly, now, I have lost all respect for Dr M, however I will refrain fr humiliating him because he is an elder like my father. I wish him all the best in health, but I asked he lives, (whatever that is remaining) his life wisely. It would be tragic that in Malaysian History, Malaysians are torn apart because of it's PM.
ReplyDeleteGo and ask chan pek lui whether she appreciates what dr m has done for her....and her family...and to her kids. You are all hypocrites. Even if dr m kneel down and hand u the goodies, u wd still have bad things to say...as far as I am concern, dr m is a statesman and we are lucky to have him as our prime minister.
ReplyDeleteRoss
Dear Dato',
ReplyDeleteSorry I cannot agree with your Chan Pek Looi story as evidence of the goodness of Mahathir. Mahathir acted on Chan's case for a simple reason of not wanting to lose chinese support in Kuantan. So what good has Mahathir done in this case?
Dr Mahathir showed a promising start but somehow lost the plot along the way.He has without doubt done the most to destroy the country. He polarised the people on racial grounds, destroyed the integrity of the judiciary, lowered the standard of education and corrupted the police force. When the main pillars of a civilised society is not advanced and safeguarded, one can only expect the nation to move backwards. There is similarity between him and President Mugabe in their outlook. They are both short sighted and cannot see beyond their nose. Instead of creating a harmonious society of different races and encouraging integration of different races in business, education and civil administration, he isolates them and run courses to teach Malay superiority. No race is superior in all ways but some country are certainly more advanced than others because they create harmonious and competitive societies that do not waste time and energy squabbling over race and religion. Looking at the performance of Malaysia over the last thirty years, 2020 will mean another 10 years of backslide, unless there is a change of Government to undo Dr. Mahathir's legacy. The economic progress of the late 80s' would have happened even if Dr Mahathir was not helming the country. There would have been greater growth if the money was not spent on grandiose and corrupt projects that still continue to bleed the country. All this talk about creating high income from high tech while lowering the standard of education is laughable.
ReplyDeleteWhat keeps the present Government in power today are the locally educated Malays who are not exposed to Western progressive ideas and get their politics from the local TV stations and newspapers that propagate Government bias news. What is going to cause the Government to fall are the well and Western educated Malays who are exposed to liberal societies that judge you on your ability and not on the colour of your skin and religion. The Malays who go overseas on Government scholarship are going to be the biggest asset to the Opposition in bringing change to the country. Dr Mahathir has lost his opportunity to create a great nation and will not go down well in history, unless it is from UMNO's perspective.
I'm a reader who drops in now and then. So far, I agree with your point of view, Dato Sak.
ReplyDeleteBut not this time. Chan Pek Looi was the best student in her year. The system should have given her a scholarship without intervention from the PM. It was the failure of our system of which Mahathir is in charged of. Do we all get the urge to pat the plane crew on their backs and thank them for a good job when after an hour delay they fixed their technical difficulties and finally take off?
Moreover, it would seem he was more concerned about the votes than fixing the scholarship award system. So he managed to fix it for Chan Oek Looi. What about the others?
This reminds me of his reason for wanting to include non-malays in the Kampung Baru renewal. He wanted to use them as "bait" to lure visitors. It wasn't because he wanted us all to be together as fellow coutrymen. It was because he wanted us as bait. http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/kg-baru-renewal-must-include-non-malays-says-dr-m/
That's all we are to him. just some worm dangling off a hook.
It will take a lot more stories in which he did good without any motive (tiada udang sebalik batu) to make me see him differently.
I just came across this exclusive video interview with Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad by Meet The Boss TV and wanted to share it with you guys!
ReplyDeleteWatch the HD Video Interview at - http://bit.ly/dxlrg1
Begitulah sistem pemilihan JPA pelajar yg sepatutnya layak jd gagal dan memerlukan seorang PM utk menyelesaikannya. Usaha yg baik itu tentunya d puji dan jika penulis sempat mengingatkan insiden itu kpd azmin ali tentu TDM di puji utk itu. Sebenarnya untuk lebih berterima kasih ialah kpd Dato Fauzi yg sanggup membawa perkara itu kepda bossnya. Not easy you know for Dato fauzi. As for Azmin Ali penulis juga cuba memburukkan Azmin tanpa berlaku adil. Penulis TDM melakukan sesuatu yg amat buruk bukan hanya kpd Anwar Ibrahim, Azmin Ali dan rakan2nya yg lain tapi juga pd Negara dgn fitnah yg memalukan Negara. Drp, pengundi atas pagar.
ReplyDeletemahathir just know how to increase internal and external debts so that our chidlren and grandchildren got to pay it. malaysia is losing competitiveness compared to korea such as between proton and kia and hyundai. he deserve more severe condemnation.he had wasted our resources and. we will take 3 generations to repair the damage done by him. that is when petroleum and gas already dry up.
ReplyDelete