Some people are probably having sleepless nights. In our cover story, Abang Benet zeroes in on the situation in Sarawak. The political outlook there does not look rosy for Taib Mahmud and the other BN component party leaders who are so dependent on his patronage.
The same writer then discusses the 1Malaysia hypocrisy in Sarawak and the plan to reduce or remove subsidies floated by cabinet minister Idris Jala.
Also touching on Sarawak, Anil Netto discusses the likelihood of an early general election. But for deep-rooted change to take place, he says a society’s value system has to be transformed and its institutions revamped.
Expect more defections when polls draw closer. Hishamuddin Yahaya likens such political defectors to tukul besi or hammers. These surface only when there is a hatchet job to be done but are then discarded or tucked away in a tool box.
Elections are also expected in Myanmar, but these will not be positive for democracy in the country, writes John Smith Tang. The military regime there clearly aims to maintain its grip on power and shows no interest in building a genuine democracy.
In a real democracy, elected reps are accountable to the people. It is the same with town councillors. Penang Island Municipal Councillor Lim Kah Cheng, who is the NGO representative in the council, asserts that her real boss is the Rakyat and not the state government.
As elections approach, scandals and controversies invariable surface or resurface. We carry a couple of articles by P Ramakrishnan, who looks back and reflects on the Maika debacle.
The raging sports betting controversy, meanwhile, draws the attention of Francis Loh and Toh Kin Woon, who contribute to the debate.
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