GUTSHOT PODCAST EP 83 - POLITICIANS TALKING CRAP

 

PERMADU MALAYSIA: TAK PERNAH MENANG PILIHANRAYA

Slightly edited from Permadu Malaysia here

Tidak pernah menang pilihan raya setakat ini

Tengku Zafrul, siapakah awak untuk memberi syarahan kepada Rafizi tentang pengalaman "20-30 tahun"?

Anda dilahirkan dengan sudu perak di mulut anda dan permaidani merah terbentang di bawah kaki anda. Segala-galanya telah diserahkan kepada anda di atas pinggan platinum. 

Rafizi Ramli bukan macam awak. Dia tidak mempunyai hubungan politik dengan sesiapa, tidak ada orang atasan yang berkuasa menjadikannya proksi, tidak ada naungan politik. Dia terpaksa mencakar jalannya dari bawah, selangkah demi selangkah merentasi pelbagai rintangan, duri dan api.

Sebelum anda tahu apa yang PKR berpendirian, Rafizi telah pun memberikan 28 tahun hidupnya kepada parti itu. Dia berada di sana semasa hari yang paling gelap dan tidak ada harapan — ketika itu, menjadi ahli PKR bermakna berhadapan risiko yang tinggi.

Dia menghadapi lebih 22 kes mahkamah. Dia mengorbankan seluruh masa mudanya dan mencurahkan jiwanya untuk membina parti dari tahap tiada apa-apa. 

Awak? Awak perasan awak penyelamat bidan terjun, sebaliknya awaklah yang mencari kawasan yang sudah selamat, selesa dan boleh menang untuk bertanding atas penat jerih dan usaha orang lain.

Kini awak mempunyai keberanian tanpa segan silu untuk mengintai kerusi Pandan — kerusi selamat Tahap 1 yang Rafizi membangunkannya seorang diri daripada kubu terkutuk dan tidak dapat ditembusi menjadi salah satu kubu terkuat PKR selepas lebih 40 tahun penuh kegagalan. 

Anda mahu menuai dan merompak hasil daripada orang yang membaja tanah? 

Perasaan tidak tahu malunya amat memukau. Hentikan penjilatan menyedihkan anda. Semua orang tahu rekod prestasi anda. 

Semasa anda berkhidmat di bawah Muhyiddin Yassin, anda memanggilnya Perdana Menteri yang terbaik.

Di bawah Ismail Sabri, tiba-tiba dia yang terbaik. 

Hari ini di bawah pemimpin ter---at yang pernah dilihat Malaysia. 

Anda umpama menyanyikan bodekan profesional — pakar ramalan cuaca politik yang berputar ke arah sesiapa sahaja yang memegang kuasa.

Anda pernah menjadi ahli UMNO. Anda hampir melompat ke Bersatu sehingga anda terhidu bau keruntuhannya, kemudian lari di bawah UMNO dan masih kalah teruk. 

Kesetiaan anda bukan kepada mana-mana prinsip — tetapi kepada kuasa. Jika esok Hadi Awang menjadi Perdana Menteri, kami tidak akan terkejut jika anda tiba-tiba menemui "nilai Islam" dan merayu untuk menyertai PAS.

Rafizi telah mengorbankan kedudukan dan kuasa demi prinsip. Anda menukar kesetiaan apabila ia memberi manfaat kepada kerjaya anda.

Sebagai Menteri Kewangan, anda meluluskan pengeluaran RM145 bilion daripada KWSP melalui empat skim khas — salah satu kerakusan paling melulu ke atas simpanan persaraan pekerja Malaysia dalam sejarah.

Sebagai Menteri MITI, dasar regresif dan perlindungan anda — terutamanya paras harga EV minimum — melakukan lebih banyak untuk melindungi kroni tempatan daripada melindungi pengguna.

Anda menandatangani perjanjian ART dengan Amerika Syarikat yang berpotensi menyebabkan Malaysia menanggung kos RM1 trilion — dengan nyata menjual sebahagian daripada kedaulatan kita untuk kepentingan politik jangka pendek.

Malah dalam bidang sukan, kegagalan anda jelas terbukti. Sebagai Pengerusi BAM, Malaysia dimalukan pada Piala Thomas 2026, tersingkir di suku akhir. Kemudian menjadi tuan rumah dalam acara Malaysia Masters 2026, tiada seorang pun pemain BAM mara ke final. Keruntuhan sepenuhnya.

Anda bukan pemimpin. Anda seorang pengambil kesempatan untuk kerjaya dengan gelaran mewah dan nama keluarga yang berprestij.

Jangan cuba bersyarah kepada mereka yang benar-benar berjuang sedangkan anda masih bercongak parti mana yang lebih menguntungkan dan berfaedah untuk disertai atas kepentingan diri sendiri.

Orang ramai sudah muak melihat pemimpin elit bersudu perak dan pembodek yang tidak berkesudahan.

Pandan berhak mempunyai wakil rakyat yang bertungkus lumus membangunkannya — bukan kepada si pengambil kesempatan menaiki payung terjun yang mencari pendaratan selesa mereka seterusnya.

MY COMMENTS: There are two persons who have never won any seats in the general elections. This is from ChatGpt:

• A--raf W--di D---ki has never won a parliamentary or state election.
• He contested:  the Gerik parliamentary seat in GE14 (2018) — lost
• the Gerik parliamentary seat again in GE15 (2022) — lost
• Despite that, he has held appointed positions, including Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and later became UMNO Secretary-General.

Tengku Zafrul Aziz has also not won an elected seat so far.
He contested:  the Kuala Selangor parliamentary seat in GE15 (2022) under Barisan Nasional — lost by 1,002 votes to Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Most of Tengku Zafrul’s ministerial roles came through appointment as a Senator, not as an elected MP. Multiple recent reports explicitly note that he “did not win” the election. He is now a member of PKR.

ITS NOT CHEAP LABOUR. ITS THE FIVE KILOMETER RULE

 

PRABOWO SCREWS UP INDONESIA AGAIN

 My Comments below.

Indonesia’s Return to State Power
Prabowo’s nationalist gambit
May 29

• plans to centralize exports of strategic commodities
• expand state-owned enterprises (GLCs)
• state will command development
• President Prabowo's economic nationalism 
• state capitalism, patronage, opacity, rent-seeking 
• about power, economic nationalism 
• economic power centralized, wealth begins concentrating among elites

OSTB: Sounds familiar? Exactly the same as in Benua Asia Tenggalam

• state acts as regulator, financier, trader, industrial planner, welfare provider and guardian of national sovereignty. 
• State-owned enterprises (GLCs) instruments of geopolitics  
• Cooperatives become tools for "restructuring" economy 
• Economists in Jakarta describe Prabowo’s “state capitalism” 
• government dominant player in strategic sectors
• monopolies without transparency produce new centers of rent extraction
• The Return of Commodity Nationalism
• Prabowo to centralize exports of strategic commodities through GLC
• exports of palm oil, coal, ferro-alloys through “single-gate” system 
• “single gate” recalls controversial monopolies of Soeharto era
• the Clove Support and Trading Board, or BPPC.
• BPPC defining symbol of centralized rent-seeking 
• Farmers forced to sell cloves to BPPC
• Cigarette manufacturers (kretek) forced to buy from BPPC
• Cloves purchased cheaply from farmers 
• resold at higher prices downstream
• Profits accumulated at BPPC
• Indonesian farmers absorbed the losses
• monopolies become mechanisms for elite enrichment 
• BPPC closely associated with Soeharto’s son Tommy
• political favoritism masquerading as economic management.

• That historical memory now shadows Prabowo’s proposal.
• The Problem of Trust
• single entity gains authority over strategic exports
• immense influence over margins, contracts, market access and pricing 
• centralized control creates new leakages 
• Indonesia’s stock index fell sharply on May 19
• intervention risks undermining growth 
• Questionable Pattern
• Several Prabowo flagship programs faced scrutiny 
• Free Meals procurement oversight and budget management
• Merah Putih Village Cooperatives expensive procurement 
• People’s School suspicions regarding inflated budgets.
• Indonesia state enterprises corrupt, political interference, inefficiency. 
• procurement scandals, elite capture
• Controversy surround Danantara
• transparency and oversight
• Danantara yet to publish comprehensive public report 
• Indon state enterprises long been corrupt, elite capture
• too much darkness exists between intentions and implementation. 
• rent-seeking flourishes most easily in the dark.

My Comments:

These are old school, Soeharto era dinosaurs roaming around Indonesia again. Bisa diatur. There is too much wealth in Indonesia. Almost 300 million people and a GDP about US$1.6 Trillion. That is a huge economy.

But per capita GDP is around US$5500 (nominal). Global rank per capita GDP is around 120 out of 193 countries.

Meaning the vast majority of Indonesians are dirt poor. The very, very few elites are very, very rich. These are the Social Welfare Millionaires. Or Jutawan Dana Awam. They get rich by siphoning out taxpayers funds, siphoning out public wealth through monopolies, oligopolies, licenses, permits etc.

Does this sound familiar? Have you heard of Benua Asia Tenggalam?

PKR MASS MIGRATION TO RAFIZI'S BERSAMA?

Here is a not too surprising rumour. Rumour because Rafizi says it is a rumour. Maybe this rumour is Not So True but but it has been 'reported' by the New Straits Times. If a rumour is reported by the legacy media does it mean it is still a rumour? Something to ponder on a Friday. 

The rumour says that Nurul Izzah is going to join Rafizi's Bersama. Here is the NST.

Here is a screen grab from the above video:

Alamak! It looks like not everyone likes Nurul Izzah. The sister says if Nurul joins then she is out. Note that Rafizi replies with 'He wont join..' I have blogged before that Malay folks sometimes mix up the pronouns he, she, him and her.  

Most certainly other disgruntled PKR members have also joined / will be joining Rafizi's Bersama Party. Rumours like this can open the floodgates. It might trigger a mass migration of PKR members to join Parti Bersama. 

As the stomach churns.

PAS wary of being dragged down by Bersatu's troubles

• Hadi warned that his party’s patience was wearing thin
• He accused Bersatu of “playing out” PAS 
• he aimed at Bersatu declining to strengthen PN coalition 
• PAS to review its partnership with Bersatu, Hadi said.
• “We have our patience but our patience has its limits. 
• we have to do what is necessary,” he said.
• Bersatu rejected allegations the party did not support new members to PN
• open to forming electoral pacts first before membership 
• PAS VP Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar as chairman of PN, replaced Muhyiddin
• PN chairman does not make him coalition’s prime ministerial pick: Muhyiddin
• increasingly public spat between PAS and Bersatu pushing to the brink
• PAS wary of being dragged down by Bersatu's troubles 
• general election by February 2028
• snap polls possible amid shifting political winds
• PAS’ new partner Hamzah Zainudin 
• cracks are getting bigger 
• PAS seriously thinking of working with others
• “At this rate, it leads to a break-up.”
• internal troubles within PKR, Pakatan Harapan 
• complications include UMNO-PKR seat tensions, Bersama, PKR defections
• UMNO declared it will contest all seats in Johor state election 
• THE HAMZAH FACTOR
• Hamzah launched what he called a “Reset” movement 
• more than 200,000 Bersatu members are backing Hamzah’s Reset movement.
• PAS wants to get rid of Bersatu because Bersatu blocking Hamzah 
• PAS wants Bersatu to leave PN voluntarily
• PAS values Hamzah more than Bersatu.
• “For PAS, Hamzah will be useful 
• help PAS project itself as broader Malay opposition front
• rather than defined solely by Islamist politics
• PAS wants a tie-up with Hamzah-led Reset faction
• not with the Muhyiddin-led faction
• Muhyiddin is regarded as a spent force
• WHAT'S NEXT FOR PAS AND BERSATU?
• Dec eight Perlis assemblymen, five from Bersatu, withdrew support for PAS MB
• move widely seen as orchestrated by figures aligned with Muhyiddin.
• deepened mistrust between PAS and Bersatu 
• preceded Muhyiddin’s resignation as PN chairman.
• PAS and Bersatu cannot continue working together