Thesun 2009-02-24 Page14 Of Politics And Public Service

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theSun

| TUESDAY FEBRUARY 24 2009

speak up! letters

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Innocent until proven guilty THE statement by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief commissioner (MACC) on the probe involving the Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim is surprising. The commissioner even went further to say that the commission has evidence to prosecute the mentri besar. What happened to the principle of “presumption of innocence”? Normally, any investigation of graft and misuse of power by any civil servant or politician is kept confidential and on completion, the case is passed on to the public prosecutor. The pace of investigation by the MACC in this case seems to be on a fast track mode. The commissioner even said that the commission has the power to prosecute the mentri besar. I beg to differ. Only the attorney general has the power to prosecute. Under Article 145 (3) of the Federal Constitution, only the attorney general can exercise at his discretion, to institute, conduct or discontinue any proceedings for an offence, other than a proceeding before a Syariah Court, native court or military court. Vijay Shanmugam Taiping

RM5,000 incentive? Think again THE International Trade and Industry’s proposal to the Treasury to introduce a RM5,000 incentive for car owners to dispose of their old vehicles is likely to impoverish many people especially pensioners and low-income earners. A RM5,000 incentive in the form of excise duties, sales tax or even cash, does not mean anything because where are the beneficiaries going to find another RM20,000 for a good used car, let alone buy a new car. Many people are already in the car-loan trap especially those who paid little or no down payment but are now burdened with high monthly payments, plus the low resale value for their cars. With the uncertainty of employment, owners of old cars can do without all these incentives simply to help the car industry. Most owners of old cars are older people who make short trips and already know the idiosyncrasies of their old bangers, whereas owning a new used car is a new ball game altogether. Such incentives are similar to gimmicks. Saad Hashim Ampang

Of politics and public service FIRST, it was memos Datuk Seri Anwar from state education Ibrahim. His only departments in Pakaofficial capacity is tan Rakyat (PR) conthat of parliamentary trolled states barring Opposition Leader, school management so the motives for the from inviting PR repinvite to Anwar are resentatives to school suspect. Moreover, events. Then Subang the Education MinisJaya assemblywomtry had also pledged an Hannah Yeoh was RM120,000 for the even prevented from school’s expansion Down2Earth attending her own plans. by Terence Fernandez secondary school The ministry alumni dinner. apparently retaliLater, Penang ated by barring the Deputy Chief Minister P. Raschool’s headmaster and teachmasamy also claimed he was ers from attending the ceremony, unwelcome at several Tamil while it is said that the pledge is schools in the state. also in the balance. Now SJK(C) Sin Ming is Deputy Education Minister under the radar of the education Datuk Wee Ka Siong yesterday department for inviting Selanrefuted this, saying that no such gor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul instructions were issued to the Khalid Ibrahim to officiate the school staff and that the funding school’s new four-storey buildhas yet to be approved. While ing on Sunday. one has no reason to doubt Wee’s While there should be no words, can anyone explain why issue with Abdul Khalid’s inthe entire teaching staff was vite as he is after all the chief absent then? executive of the state, one can So, from the perspective of understand why some on the the people, here is yet another other side of the divide are hot display of political power play under the collar as the guest of between the victors of the last honour was PR de facto leader general election (in Selangor at

least) and the vanquished who still hold the purse strings and run the machinery. While they can continue with their childish games, let it be known that ultimately, it is the children who suffer. Both groups of politicians should be mature enough to put aside their differences to do what’s right for the people – in this case schoolchildren who are always reminded to stay out of politics, leaving such affairs to the “grown-ups”. But if this is how grown-ups behave, then I say woe to the children. And to the civil servants who have pledged allegiance to one party or another, please be reminded that your designation is “public servant”. Meaning, you serve the public and not political masters. There are some government servants including heads of department who have put on the caps of their political parties when discharging their duties, hence blurring the lines between their responsibilities to the rakyat and affiliation to their party or political masters. Suffice to say political maturity is a rare commodity in Malaysia’s political landscape. But who among our leaders and politicians will be brave enough to admit to this and take the courageous first steps to tell their colleagues and counterparts in opposing factions that the people should not be a pawn in their differences of ideologies? ---------------------------------As I finish writing this piece ASP Tonny Lunggan walked in to theSun office to view CCTV recordings as part of Kuala

Lumpur police’s investigations into the circulation of private photographs of Bukit Lanjan Assemblywoman Elizabeth Wong. We handed over to Lunggan an envelope containing two pictures purportedly showing Wong, which had previously landed on our desks. We have always gone out of our way to assist our enforcement authorities to discharge their duties. Just ask the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC) who are on a first-name basis with us due to the number of cases which we had handed over to it. Citizen Nades had yesterday refreshed the MACC’s memory on our co-operation with the agency – not one of which had resulted in any further action. Anyhow, the authorities can continue to bank on our support and assistance in righting wrongs and helping to bring to book wrong-doers, as well as enlightening the public on the roles of these agencies. However, if we are to be used as unsuspecting actors in a sandiwara to convey to the public that all’s well and above board with our enforcement agencies – when in fact they are not – then, I’d like to echo the words of CIA agent Jack Ryan in the Tom Clancy book Clear and Present Danger: “Sorry Mr President, I don’t dance.” Terence is ever ready to perform his civic duties but expects government officers to also honour their oath of office. He is deputy editor (special reports & investigations) at theSun. He can be reached at [email protected].

Obama prepares for his Waterloo by Eric S. Margolis

WASHINGTON: On Feb 15, 1989, Gen Boris Gromov led his 40th Soviet Army out of Afghanistan, marking the end of Moscow’s bloody and disastrous occupation. In the process, some 1.5 million Afghans died at the hands of the Red Army and Afghan communists. The new Soviet chairman, Mikhail Gorbachev, determined the Afghan war, begun by his dim predecessor, Leonid Brezhnev, and a cabal of party and KGB hardliners, could not be won. Fortunately for the world, Gorbachev, proved a leader of profound humanity, decency, and intellect. Gorbachev, courageously accepted defeat and brought his soldiers home.

Soon after, the Soviet Union, a bankrupt empire held together by fear and repression, began to crumble. To his eternal credit, Gorbachev refused to employ force to hold the Soviet Empire together. The new president of the bankrupt American imperium should heed Gorbachev’s wisdom. Barack Obama’s inauguration offered a perfect opportunity to pause the US-led Afghan War, and open talks with Afghan groups resisting foreign occupation (both the Soviets and US branded them “terrorists”). Instead, Obama vowed to intensify the eightyear war which has so far cost the United States US$62 billion (RM223 billion). Obama declared he will send 17,000 more US troops to Afghanistan on top of the 6,000 troops dispatched by George Bush. Another 13,000 will follow in the spring. These reinforcements are supposed to come from the US Iraq garrison. But Pentagon hardliners and their Republican allies are trying to delay or thwart the troop drawdown from Iraq. So, it’s welcome to Obama’s War. Obama just defined his goals in Afghanistan as: “preventing it from being used as a launching pad for attacks on North America”; and “defeating al-Qaeda”. He also allowed that some sort of negotiations to split Taliban might be attempted. Both stated goals are patently false. 9/11 was organised in Germany and Spain, allegedly by Saudis and Pakistanis. Attacks on New York, Washington, London, Madrid and Mumbai were plotted in apartments and houses, not the mountains of Afghanistan. Al-Qaeda never had more than 300 men and is today reduced to a handful of fugitives hiding in Pakistan’s tribal territories and Baluchistan. The movement’s primary function, as my new book explains, was as a guest house and data base for foreign mujahidin fighting the Soviets and Afghan communists. It was not and is not a “worldwide terrorist organisation”. By expanding the Afghan war, Obama fuels the growing threat of a major explosion in Pakistan. Today, US warplanes and CIA killer drones operate from three secret Pakistani air bases. Washington has rented

120,000 Pakistani troops for US$100 million (RM359.8 million) monthly (plus equally large, secret CIA payments) to support the US occupation of Afghanistan. In an unprecedented act, Pakistan’s government is being paid by Washington to attack its own people, and to allow US forces to do the same. Pakistan is bankrupt. The previous USbacked Musharraf regime made off with whatever money there was. Yet at some point, Pakistan’s rent-an-army of modernday sepoys may rebel and turn against the government that orders it to kill fellow Muslims. Meanwhile, high expectations for Obama are fading. To the anguish of America’s antiwar movement, his administration seems set on continuing many of the illegal, repressive policies of the disgraced Bush White House that it had vowed to end: torture, kidnapping, wiretapping, assassinations, Constitutional infringements, denial of due process. What happened to the Obama who was supposed to bring change? Leftover hardliners from the Bush days appear to be driving Obama’s foreign policy in the Middle East and Afghanistan. The Pentagon warns that a defeat of Nato in Afghanistan will destroy the alliance – the foundation of US hegemony over Europe. After Iraq, another defeat cannot be tolerated. Soviet veterans of Afghanistan warn the US and its allies face defeat there. The Obama White House cannot even articulate a coherent political strategy for Afghanistan. Its latest big idea is to kick out the hapless Hamid Karzai and install a new “asset”. Washington hopes US troop reinforcements will finally bludgeon the Afghan national resistance into accepting American domination. Then the long-planned pipeline from the Caspian Basin across Afghanistan to Pakistan can finally be built. Don’t count on it anytime soon. Margolis is a contributing editor to the Toronto Sun chain of newspapers, writing mainly about the Middle East and South Asia. Comments: [email protected]