lokety

In

1. Prime Minister – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
2. Deputy Prime Minister – Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak
3. Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister – Mustapa Mohamed
4. Defence Minister – Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak
5. Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister – Shahrir Samad
6. Education Minister – Hishammuddin Hussein
7. Energy, Water and Communications Minister – Shaziman Abu Mansor
8. Entrepreneurial and Cooperative Development Minister – Noh Omar
9. Federal Territories Minister – Zulhasnan Rafique
10. Finance Minister – Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
11. Finance Minister (2nd) – Nor Mohamed Yakcop
12. Finance Minister (Deputy) – Husni Hanadzlah (formerly International Trade and Industry Deputy Minister) and Kong Cho Ha (Science, Technology and Innovation Deputy Minister)
13. Foreign Affairs Minister – Dr Rais Yatim (formerly Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister)
14. Health Minister – Liow Tiong Lai
15. Higher Education Minister – Khaled Nordin
16. Housing and Local Government Minister – Ong Ka Chuan
17. Human Resources Minister – Dr S Subramaniam
18. Information Minister – Ahmad Shabery Cheek
19. Internal Security and Home Affairs Minister – Syed Hamid Albar
20. International Trade and Industry Minister – Muhyiddin Yassin
21. International Trade and Industry Minister (Deputy) – Liew Vui Keong and Jacob Dungau
22. National Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister – Shafie Apdal
23. Natural Resources and Environment Minister – Douglas Unggah Embas
24. Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister – Peter Chin Fah Kui
25. Rural and Regional Development Minister – Muhammad Muhammad Taib
26. Science, Technology and Innovation Minister – Dr Maximus Ongkili
27. Tourism Minister – Azalina Othman
28. Transport Minister – Ong Tee Keat (formerly Deputy Higher Education Minister)
29. Women, Family and Community Development Minister – Dr Ng Yen Yen
30. Works Minister – Mohd Zin Mohamad
31. Youth and Sports Minister – Ismail Sabri Yaacob

Out

Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz (formerly International Trade and Industry Minister)
Datuk Seri Radzi Sheik Ahmad (formerly Home Affairs Minister)
Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid (formerly Natural Resources and Innovation Minister)
Datuk Seri Jamaluddin Jarjis (formerly Science, Technology and Innovation Minister)
Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor (formerly Tourism Minister)
Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting (formerly Housing and Local Government Minister)
Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn (formerly Human Resources Minister)

Total number of Ministers: 27 (from 32)

Technorati Tags: malaysia, government, cabinet, politics, minister, lineup

Bernama reported on a 27 September 2007 interview conducted by Tom Plate of the UCLA Media Center and Jeffrey Cole of the USC Annenberg School Center for the Digital Future on Singapore’s Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, previously the Senior Minister and Prime Minister of the Singapore Government.

Kuan Yew Says Happy to Rejoin Malaysia If…
http://web7.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news.php?id=289602

Some 10 years after remarking that Singapore might rejoin Malaysia if the island state’s economy faltered and if Malaysia pursued meritocracy, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has again spoken on the subject.

“They have got all the resources. If they would just educate the Chinese and Indians, use them and treat them as their citizens, they can equal us and even do better than us and we would be happy to rejoin them,” Lee said.

The transcript of the interview is available online on the UCLA Asia Institute website.

In June 1996, Lee spoke about the possibility of Singapore rejoining Malaysia, raising a storm on both sides of the Causeway with then Malaysian prime minister Datuk Seri (now Tun) Dr Mahathir Mohamad saying that he did not think that the time had come for that yet.

Dr Mahathir had also described the remark as just a means “to jolt Singaporeans” into their senses.

The latest remarks by the Singapore founding father came after he was asked about Singapore’s “sense of endangerment” and why the island state was worried about survivability in the long run.

Lee replied: “Where are we? Are we in the Caribbean? Are we next to America like the Bahamas? Are we in the Mediterranean, like Malta, next to Italy? Are we like Hong Kong, next to China and therefore, will become part of China?

“We are in Southeast Asia, in the midst of a turbulent, volatile, unsettled region. Singapore is a superstructure built on what? On 700 square kilometres and a lot of smart ideas that have worked so far — but the whole thing could come undone very quickly”.

To a question on who would come after Singapore, Lee replied: “When (Malaysia) kicked us out (in 1965), the expectation was that we would fail and we will go back on their terms, not on the terms we agreed with them under the British.

“Our problems are not just between states, this is a problem between races and religions and civilizations.

“We are a standing indictment of all the things that they can be doing differently. They have got all the resources. If they would just educate the Chinese and Indians, use them and treat them as their citizens, they can equal us and even do better than us and we would be happy to rejoin them,” he said.

Analysts here do not see any possibility of a Malaysia-Singapore merger.

“The chances of a re-merger in 1996 and in 2007 are the same — zero,” said Dr Ooi Kee Beng, coordinator of the Malaysia study programme at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and best-selling author of “The Reluctant Politician: Tun Dr Ismail and His Time”.

“The very idea of a re-merger on Singapore’s terms is appalling to most Malays (in Malaysia) and any move in that direction would be political suicide for a Malaysian politician to take,” Dr Ooi told Today newspaper.

Veteran writer, Lim Kit Siang, is imploring the Malaysian Parliament to debate on the recent behaviour of several UMNO party members involving waving the Malay keris and “incendiary speeches”.

The UMNO Youth leader Datuk Seri Hishammuddin waved the keris in the UMNO assembly this year just like he did last year, seemingly to reinforce the Malay race supremacy. One assembly delegate said that “UMNO was willing to risk lives and bathe in blood” while another warned that Malays could run “amok”, if the country’s Malay rights are challenged further. One commentator to Lim’s website quoted an interesting definition of the term “amok”.

According to the New Straits Times, Ledang Youth chief Mohamed Zan Abu said “we should defend it (Malay rights) to the last drop of out blood“. Youth information chief Datuk Azimi Daim warned “when tension rises, the blood of Malay warriors will run in our veins“.

Consider such statements that were made in the congregation of the nation’s leaders while Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Datuk Seri Najib Razak warned during the opening night of discussions that irresponsible parties should halt inciting racial sentiments. Many Malaysians must be wondering if the UMNO Youth members were having tea break when the DPM spoke.

The National Economic Policy (NEP), formed many years ago, was designed to protect the interests of the Malays, and has been the focus of many recent debates within and outside of the Government. Malaysiakini, an online authority on national issues of Malaysia, has a good article interviewing Anwar Ibrahim, member of the opposition party, and his views of the NEP which is so fiercely defended by the current ruling party.

Lim warns that this recent “irresponsible, provocative and seditious” speeches at the assembly pose a dangerous setback to national unity and nation-building, scaring foreign investment away and generally damage the confidence of the general Malaysian public.

Thirty years of nurturing a growing and progressive economy are in a threat of losing its efforts if such behaviour of the country’s leaders remain unchecked.

Why worry so much if you think are supreme and mighty?

Related posts:

Social Segregation, Democracy and The Constitution in Malaysia
<URL:http://glob.lokety.com/2006/10/social-segregation-democracy-and.html>

Three Viewpoints on Racial Discrimination in Malaysia
<URL:http://glob.lokety.com/2006/09/three-viewpoints-on-racial.html>

Links:

Malaysiakini
<URL:http://www.malaysiakini.com/>

Wikipedia – United Malays National Organisation
<URL:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umno>

Technorati Tags: umno, umno youth, assembly, general assembly, malaysia, malaysian parliament, malay keris, incendiary speech, nep, new economic policy, malay race, malay rights, zan abu, azimi daim, najib razak, anwar ibrahim, lim kit siang, malaysiakini, run amok