Irregardless of the smear campaign by the BN to tarnish PKR Anwar Ibrahim’s reputation in the coming Permatang Pauh by-election, the man who is dubbed as the conscience of Gerakan party Toh Kin Woon spoke in approval of Anwar’s bid for the seat.

"I am not speaking for my party, I am speaking for myself as an individual - I do support Anwar Ibrahim in this by-election. I am not actually supporting him too much as an individual but more on the movement that he leads." […]

"I feel if Anwar (is elected to) Parliament, the voices of the opposition will be stronger and the chances of strengthening the democracy and widening the democratic space will be better. For these reason, I support him," […]

 "He is leading the movement for transformation, greater democracy, equality and more openness in the society."I think he has been very consistent and courageous, (and) I support the movement that he leads,"

I’d like to congratulate Kin Woon for his courageous move knowing that his visit to the operation room is going to capture the media attention, especially when he was recently warned against showing support for the PKR by Gerakan secretary-general Chia Kwang Chye.

Undoubtedly, Kin Won is one among the very few BN’s principled politician left and  truly a man of honor, impeccably the right person in the wrong party, proven based on his previous track record while he chose to retire after having served three terms as the executive council member of the Penang state government.

When being asked whether he feared of disciplinary action would be taken against him for openly pledging support to the rival candidate, he said he is prepared for it and didn’t exclude any possibility of joining PKR in the future.

"When we decide to take individual action, we have to be prepared. Whatever that comes, we will face it," he said.

It’s not unusual for a respected figure like Kin Woon to speak and does what he thinks right and now, it’s interesting to observer if any discipline action would be taken against him.

I doubt Gerakan will punish him for the defiant act fearing a backlash internally as Gerakan is at its lowest point since the heavy defeat suffered in the recent GE. Instead of taking action against Kin Woon, the right thing to do is for the party to seek advice from him on how to revamp the ailing party as I believe Kin Woon is more than qualified enough to offer invaluable insight for the party’s consideration.

Otherwise, anything less than that is going to be a lose for the Gerakan and a win for the Pakatan Rakyat.

Many of us are watching closely.

Our nation best hope ever for the first Olympic Gold medal Lee Chong Wei will be playing against the world number one Lin Dan in the Men’s Single Final.

Let’s catch them live in action at 830pm on 17 August at Astro Channel 821 and throw our undivided support behind Chong Wei.

Chong Wei boleh, Malaysia boleh!

After the usual dramas unfolded, it’s now a confirmed three cornered fight between PKR’s Anwar Ibrahim, Barisan Nasional’s Arif Shah Omar Shah and another third independent candidate Hanafi Hamat.

Hanafi is the president of Angkatan Keadilan Insan Malaysia (AKIM).

Earlier, former Penang PKR leader Mansor Othman had also submitted his nomination but later withdrew, losing his RM15,000 deposit in the process. He was expected to take up the challenge on behalf of PKR in case of Anwar’s being disqualified as a candidate, as a result of expected objections with regards to Permatang Pauh nomination.

Both Anwar and Arif Shah were accompanied by the heavyweights in their respective coalition, with supporters from both sides chanting shouts of liwat and reformasi, as reported by Malaysiakini.

Undoubtedly, this is going to be a closely watched battle royale for both PKR and BN.

To many of us, the do-or-die or Anwar in this by-election looks to carry much needed weight and hope to shape the future of this country, or in another word, to salvage this ailing nation from the brink of collapse.

As for BN, it’s going to be the first electoral test of the BN-led federal government under the leadership of PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in which the BN suffered the worst defeat ever in the recent General Election with his recent plummeting approval view as shown in a poll survey recently published by the opinion research firm Merdeka Center. Aspiring presidential candidate for Umno Tengku Razaleigh and the rest of unhappy faction in Umno are watching closely, for the result of this by-election is going to determine the early retirement of Pak Lah, who is expected to handover the premiership to his deputy Najib Tun Razak in 2010.

Many of us had done our bit in the recent GE, now it’s time for our anak bangsa Malaysia in Permatang Pauh’s constituency to put a good ending.

Let’s have faith in them that they’re going to vote with their utmost conscience in giving the rest of us and this country a dire need of revival opportunity, subsequently with the returning of Anwar to the parliament and for him to carry out the rest of reform with us - the rakyat.

While Umno is still undecided over its candidate to be put against PKR de-facto leader Anwar Ibrahim in the coming Permatang Pauh by-election, the party itself (Umno) already plagued by rampant corruption allegation in the coming polls in December and a rare court ruling which is unfavorable to the party.

As a start, Umno VP Muhyiddin Yassin who recently decided not to move up the chain from contesting the top 2 posts and defending his current post alleged that money politics in Umno has reached the branches level.

"We used to be concerned at the division or national levels. Now, it has even reached the branches. If it goes unchecked, Umno may suffer dire consequences and may disintegrate," he said.

Immediately, Umno was seen to embroil in a fresh court case when the Kuala Lumpur High Court had last month ordered Umno to pay a whopping RM218 million claimed by Elegant Advisory for providing campaign paraphernalia worth hundreds of millions ringgit including posters, badges, banners and caps in the March 2004 General Election.

The amount is the highest-ever sum of money that the ruling party has been ordered to pay by a court of law and the Umno president Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Umno will definitely appeal to set aside the judgment.

What a double blow for Umno in its bid to stop the former DPM to return to the Parliament as the Opposition Leader!

I’m extremely upset with the remark from the Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in which the PM advised against holding any forum that touches on sensitive matters like religion and race in the future.

"I hope such an incident won’t be repeated. Last Saturday’s forum is proof that issues relating to religion and race are sensitive in the country. Thus, it’s important for us to control and restrain ourselves from discussing such matters, which can lead to the situation which occurred last Saturday." […]

"It’s better not to hold such forums in the future."

What’s wrong with holding a forum and what’s more when the forum was held as a closed-door session?

Why can’t Malaysians think forward even after 50 years of independence?

What’s wrong if certain group of Malaysians are able to hold the forum and discuss the issues in a fair and rational manner whereas the top civilian in the name of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is against the idea?

Why can’t we’ve more liberal thinking when comes to sensitive issues?

What’s wrong with this country, really?

New Malaysians with old mentality?

Almost immediately after PKR advisor Anwar Ibrahim was released on personal bond, the controversial doctor from the Pusrawi Hospital Mohamed Osman Abdul Hamid who examined Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan just hours before he lodged a police report, dropped another bombshell today when Malaysiakini unveiled a statutory declaration made by him on August 1.

"For the record, however, I would like to confirm that I strongly stand firm on my findings," said Mohd Osman.

In his statutory declaration, he revealed how he was continuously questioned (or rather harassed) by the police before he decided to go on leave and left Malaysia with his family for fear of their safety.

"The seemingly constant and unending police investigation and being aware of the high profile nature of the case has disturbed me tremendously and I become worried for my safety and that of my family. […]

"Approximately one week after the third visit by the police, I decided to apply for leave and left Malaysia with my family,"

At the same time, Anwar lambasted the entire affair is a political persecution when he is the only one brought to the court while he was charged under Penal Code, section 377B which stated "Whoever voluntarily commits carnal intercourse shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to twenty years, and shall also be liable to whipping".

The plot thickens while Malaysians continue to indulge in their own conspiracy theories on how the Government assassinate Anwar as a person politically, irregardless of the involvement in this matter.

In the end of the day, the Government is not stupid enough not to realize that public perception indeed matters in this trial  and time will tell if it’s a triumph of realism over ideology which certain authority might want us to believe in.

The Star’s SMS alert at 10:40am.

Anwar Ibrahim released on personal bond of RM20,000 without surety, case set for mention on September 10, pending transfer to High Court.

Earlier, Anwar pleads not guilty in the Sessions Court to a charge of sodomising him former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan on 26 June 2008.

"This is a malicious slander and I’m not guilty," he told Sessions judge SM Komathy.

Penang CM and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and other PR leaders like PKR leaders Azmin Ali and Tian Chua, DAP leaders Lim Kit Siang and Gobind Singh Deo and PAS leader Husam Musa were present to show their solidarity support.

Anwar is represented by a sevennine-member legal team headed by Sulaiman Abdullah. The other defence lawyers are R Sivarasa, Leela J Jesuthasan, Sankara Nair, Edmund Bon, Saiful Izham Ramli, Amer Hamzah Arshad, Latheefa Koya and Mohd Radzlan Jalaludin.

There are also other lawyers who are holding watching brief for Bar Council and Washington-based Human Rights Watch, Paris-based International for Human Rights and Bangkok-based Forum Asia.

Question #1: Why can’t the PM speak like a PM?

Question #2: Why can’t the PM articulate his message well?

Question #3: Why can’t the PM understand the people have had enough of him?

Question #4: Why can’t the PM just, gooooo?

Enough of crap please, Malaysians certainly deserve a lot better than this.

As soon as the nomination and by-election date for Permatang Pauh by-election was announced by the Election Commission (EC), the country plunges into yet another shocking atmosphere when PKR’s advisor Anwar Ibrahim was instructed by the police to appear at sessions court at 10am tomorrow.

He is expected to be charged either under Section 377A or Section 377C of the Penal Code, which is punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.

Later at a press conference held by PKR, Anwar reiterated his innocence and put the blame on the PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for the imminent sodomy charge as a tactic to deflect media attention from his poor performance as the PM, nevertheless, Anwar vows to campaign for the by-election from behind the bar as it’s afraid that sodomy charge is a non-billable offense even though under Section 388 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the court has the discretion to grant bail.

It’s worth noting that the case will be a key test on the already tarnished integrity of the judiciary and the police as people will be interested to see what evidence police have on Anwar as he was acquitted of the previous sodomy allegation in 2002.

Meanwhile, the latest check on Google News found no less than 200 international news update reporting about the impending trial, which means, once again, Malaysia is on the international limelight yet for another wrong reason. Former US vice-president Al Gore labeled the charge as a "character assassination" to destroy Anwar’s political career and condemned the Government for damaging its own credibility at home and abroad.

On the domestic front, DAP leader Lim Kit Siang described the charge as a sad and black day for Malaysia when the news of the charge spreads all over the world while PAS vice-president Husam Musa said it’s a political decision undertaken by the Government and urged the Permatang Pauh constituents to vote Anwar into the parliament with stronger majority.

Nevertheless, it’s crucial for the entire nation to stay peace and calm when the case is going to be heard in Jalan Duta’s session court tomorrow. Never allow the police and the authority any slight excuse to clamp down on the nation for fear of security concern, instead we should focus on the Permatang Pauh by-election and ensure the PM-in-waiting to be thrusted into the parliament and subsequently the new PR’s government, never mind the fact Anwar might need to spend some behind the bars (Yes, once again!).

Together, let’s have faith amidst the tainted judiciary system in this country, otherwise anything less than divine intervention is going to be insufficient to revive this ailing nation.

Ever since the announcement by PKR advisor Anwar Ibrahim to contest in Permatang Pauh, there is so much hype to the extent it’s fair to say that the imminent battle royale against the BN is going to be every Malaysian’s concern.

The logic is simple since the rise or fall of Anwar in this pivotal by-election, as well as his capability to form a new government subject to the sodomy trial, may determine the do or die of this country too, and undoubtedly, if the performance of the current government to be used as a yardstick, I’m sure a lot of Malaysians, no matter how much they distrust or dislike Anwar, are ready to give him the benefit of doubt and one (and the only one) chance to carry out his promised reforms and subsequently reviving the ailing nation which is continuously ruined by racial politics, deteriorating economical situation, rapidly raising living cost and more importantly, the weak leadership of no other than the PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who is infamous of being neither here nor there.

Last night, the atmosphere of the impending by-election in Permatang Pauh intensified when the Penang CM Lim Guan Eng asking the Permatang Pauh constituents to award Anwar with not merely a win, but a resounding win with bigger majority to enable Pakatan Rakyat to topple the Barisan Nasional and capture the federal administration in a convincing way.

Anwar, on the other hand, in his maiden speech in his former stronghold since the announcement to contest, emphasized the importance of the impending by-election in order to ensure that Pakatan Rakyat under his leadership is able to initiate crucial changes to save the country from the crisis.

Earlier, he stressed that irregardless of the outcome for the sodomy accusation, he vows to stand in the by-election even if he is to be held behind the bars.

Meanwhile, as for the Barisan Nasional camp, despite numerous calls from Umno leaders like Kelantan Umno liaison committee chairperson Annuar Musa and Deputy Health Minister Abdul Latiff Ahmad to boycott the by-election, their suggestions were rubbished off by the DPM Najib Tun Razak.

"It’s not about only winning or losing but BN must present a choice to the Permatang Pauh voters," said Najib

In another word, BN is ready to go on full gear (impeccably with loads of money too, of course!) and put in their entire machinery in an almost impossible mission to stop Anwar from winning the seat, with the name of the scapegoat is yet to be made known and will only be decided by the BN supreme council tomorrow.

Nevertheless, like it or not, the battle is on. As a matter of fact, we’re indeed are being put through another turbulence period, hence it’s time for us to be prepared and embrace it, especially when a renewed tumultuous political situation tantamount to 1998 Reformasi seems inevitable should Anwar be formally charged for the sodomy accusation, which is obviously going to be put under intense public scrutiny.

The eerie thought of a Prime Minister in waiting behind the bars, together with the ever unpredictable "rules of law" is being practiced repetitively on numerous occasions lately, is anything less than the act of seeking divine intervention to save the nation is insufficient?

Pray do tell that in the end of the day, the full realization of a impartial rule of law will prevail in Malaysia, the best we can hope for as of now.