1Melayu

On the 30th August 1986, a man by the name of Abdullah Ahmad, an Barisan Nasional MP from Kok Lanas then, delivered a speech on the “Issues in Malaysian Politics” at Singapore’s Institute of International Affairs. This was what he said :

“The Malays must be politically dominant in Malaysia as the Chinese are politically dominant in Singapore…”

“I know there are many Malays who have been telling me they would rather share poverty with Indonesia than see their political position eroded.”

He continued, saying :

“Without UMNO, as presently constituted, the future of the non-Malays would be bleak indeed”.

Students Scholarship Opportunities

Please pass around for our children, friends’ children, nephews / nieces, students, etc…

Students Scholarship Opportunities

MARA Scholarship Programs
http://www.mara. gov.my/english/ division/ BPP/default. htm

Yayasan Proton Scholarship
http://www.malaysia -scholarship. com/yproton. html

PTPTN Education Loan
http://ptptn. gov.my/

The Star Education Fund
http://thestar. com.my/edufund

Astro Scholarship Award
http://www.astro. com.my/v5/ astrolife/ scholarship/

PETRONAS Education Scholarship Programs
http://esu-spmtrial .petronas. com.my/

MNRB Scholarship Fund
http://www.mnrb. com.my/

OCBC Bank Scholarship
http://www.ocbc. com.my/global/ aboutOCBC/ Gco_Abt_Communit y.shtm

Bank Negara Scholarship
http://www.bnm. gov.my/

ABM 50th Merdeka Scholarship
http://www.abm. org.my/

Curtin Sarawak Scholarship
http://www.curtin. edu.my/

HELP University College
http://www.help. edu.my/scholarsh ips/index. php

Adelaide Achiever Scholarships International (AASI)
http://www.internat ional.adelaide. edu.au/future/ scholarships/ ug/

Curtin University of Technology Scholarship
http://www.emaac. org/

Charles Darwin University Scholarship
http://www.malaysia -scholarship. com/www.cdu. edu.au/engineeri ng/scholarshi

Kolej Disted-Stamford Degree Scholarships
http://www.disted. edu..my/

Leeds University Scholarships
http://scholarships ..leeds.ac.uk/

Loughborough University Human Science Scholarships
http://www.lboro. ac.uk/

MAAC Scholarship – La Trobe University
http://www.latrobe. edu.au/internati onal/courses/ug.html

NUS / Asean Undergraduate Scholarship
http://www.nus. edu.sg/admission s/undergrad/ scholarship/ nus_asean. htm

UCL Pathfinder Scholarships
http://www.ucl. ac.uk/

University of Sheffield Scholarship
http://www.shef. ac.uk/malaysia/ entry.html

UTAR Scholarships
http://www.utar. edu.my/

Nanyang Technological University Scholarship
http://www.ntu. edu.sg/oad/ scholarships/ nanyang.htm

Tasmanian International Scholarships
http://www.internat ional.utas. edu.au/documents /internationalAp plication. p

University of Malaya Fellowship Scheme
http://ips.um. edu.my/

Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Scholarship
http://www.unimas. my/

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology ( KAUST Discovery Scholarship)
http://apply. embark.com/ kaust/discovery/

Universiti Malaysia Sabah Scholarship
http://www.ums. edu.my/pasca

The miracle of survival

This article is from The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my)
URL: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/8/9/lifefocus/18382192&sec=lifefocus

Despite her condition, Shery Lim is on a mission to help other cancer patients.
By ALLAN KOAY

CANCER is not terminal; life is.” That’s what cancer survivor Shery Lim believes, and that’s the rule by which she now lives. She was diagnosed with fourth-stage cancer last year, but she looks so full of life that you’d never guess she has a large tumour in her chest until she tells you so.

Instead of wallowing in despair, and despite her pain, she has decided to live life to the fullest and help others to live with cancer. Lim has written a faith-based book about her experiences. There is Hope is also a kind of guide for patients and those around them on how to live with the condition. She said she has finally found her purpose in life, ironically because of the disease that threatens to take her life.
Shery Lim: ‘It’s time for me to comfort other cancer survivors and support them in whatever way I can.’

Lim, 51, first discovered that she had third-stage breast cancer back in 1994. She had a mastectomy and 11 affected lymph nodes in her armpit were removed. Before that, she had a successful career in advertising, and was raising a 10-year-old son. But the disease stopped her in her tracks, career-wise.

Before learning about her cancer, Lim had renewed her Christian faith and found that it helped her through her ordeal, and to go on with life and not give up.

“Most people with cancer just don’t know what to do when they are faced with death,” Lim explained. “But I just pushed on and on. After treatment I went back to work as client service director with Ogilvy & Mather. But I felt that my health could not cope with the work. Thank God another job was created for me in the same company, as human resource director, which was less demanding.”

In 1998, Lim quit and started her own advertising training company, under which she trained six international ad agencies for two years. After that she went back to her advertising career and joined Naga DDB as head of brand planning. She became corporate director later on.

Little did she realise that the worst was just around the corner. In December 2005, Lim was in Melbourne visiting her son, who was studying there. “When I lifted this huge luggage and suddenly felt pain in my chest, I dropped the luggage.”

“I thought I had overexerted myself, but the pain got worse. I flew home in February last year. I did the scans and check-ups, and found that the cancer had recurred and affected the internal mammary node and spread to the sternum. It was fourth-stage.”

Lim felt devastated and couldn’t stop crying. She even asked why it was happening to her again after such a long time, and she knew it would be tough this time.

“People usually say that with fourth stage cancer, there is no hope,” said Lim. “So fear started to creep in.”

Treatment lasted till August last year, but the CT scan showed that the tumour had not decreased in size. It is sandwiched between her heart and left lung, and is near the aorta. So it could not be removed by surgery. Lim couldn’t even lift a glass of water or sit properly. She described the pain as like a knife that kept cutting. She couldn’t sleep at night and at times would just cry in pain all by herself. She was on six painkillers a day.

Her first treatment 12 years ago made her vomit five times a day, and she lost a lot of weight as a result. This time around, although she vomited only once, she developed nine ulcers in her mouth and the pain caused by the tumour was excruciating.

“I told God that I didn’t want to die, for two reasons,” said Lim. “First, I have a wonderful husband and a very understanding son. I didn’t want to leave them. But more importantly, if I were to die, would I be prepared to meet God? In my life, what had I done?

“I believe for every human being, when you know death is around the corner, you would ask yourself what you have achieved in life that is meaningful to God and others? I felt that I had been quite selfish, living for myself. I was also passionate about my work and would put it before anything else.”

Her pastor, Dr Chew Weng Chee, and his wife who is also a pastor, visited her in May last year, and suggested that she help others by writing a book about her experience.

She wasn’t keen on the idea at first, as she was still undergoing treatment. But a week later, she woke up at 4am and started typing on the computer, working out the structure and content of the book.

“I didn’t know why I did it, but I believe my faith had to do with it. I showed my pastor what I had written. I had made up my mind that if he didn’t think much of it, I would not continue. But he thought it was good! So, I thought, oh no, now I have to continue!” she recalled with a laugh.

By November last year, she was feeling better and started to write the book proper. She completed it in two months. Before writing, she went to several cancer support groups and organisations to talk to other patients and learn about their feelings and frustrations, and what they wanted. Through this, she developed more ideas for the book.

“My heart really cries out to the cancer survivors because I know the suffering, the torment and the fears that they have to live with,” she said.

There is Hope is divided into three sections. The first deals with Lim’s personal journey, and also provides information on what cancer is, a patient’s fears and concerns, and the proper ways to help a patient. The second section deals with spiritual healing while the third consists of cancer survivors’ testimonies.

The book was launched by Dr Chew at the Sidang Injil Borneo church in Kuala Lumpur on June 3, and since then, Lim has been on a road show of sorts, giving talks at churches.

“It’s time for me to comfort other cancer survivors and support them in whatever way I can,” she said.

Nowadays, Lim and a group of friends who are cancer survivors gather every fortnight to share stories and offer each other comfort and hope, so that they don’t feel alone. They meet at a bungalow in Petaling Jaya. The profit from the sale of her book will go to help this group in some ways.

“I always tell those I meet, ‘Don’t call yourself a cancer patient,’” she said. “The word ‘patient’ immediately locks you in a negative box. It means you’re unwell, and cannot do a lot of things. It’s all in the mind. So I tell myself, I’m a ‘cancer survivor’. And I’m still surviving.

“To me, the miracle is hope. Don’t care too much about whether the medical report says you’re healed or not. As I focus on God, surviving is already a miracle, when the odds were stacked against me all of last year.”

She also revealed a little secret.

“I might seem very strong and very positive,” she said. “But sometimes, when I’m by myself, I still struggle with the disease. So when faith runs dry and fear starts to creep in, I go back to my own book and religion. That’s why I always have this book at my bedside.”

Asked how she views the future now, Lim said she tries not to think too much about it.

“I live one day at a time. So every day is a blessed future for me.”

Lirik Lagu Tema & Patriotik : Jalur Gemilang

Lirik Lagu Tema & Patriotik : Jalur Gemilang

Merahmu bara semangat waja
Putihmu bersih budi pekerti
Kuning berdaulat payung negara
Biru perpaduan kami semua

Puncak dunia telah kau tawan
Lautan luas telah kau redah
Membawa semangat jiwa merdeka
Semarak jaya kami warganya

Empat belas melintang jalurnya
Semua negeri dalam Malaysia
Satu suara satu semangat
Itu sumpah warga berdaulat

Jalur gemilang… di bawah naunganmu
Jalur gemilang… kami semua bersatu
Perpaduan ketaatan
Amalan murni rakyat Malaysia
Jalur gemilang… megah kami terasa
Jalur gemilang… kibarkanlah wawasan
Merah putih biru kuning
Jalur semangat kami semua

Berkibarlah
Berkibarlah
Berkibarlah

Jalur gemilang

Perception and Royal Reality in Malaysia

Perception and Royal Reality in Malaysia

Written by Our Correspondent
Monday, 25 January 2010
The King is Dead. Long Live the King, so to speak

Malaysia has gone into mourning for the Sultan of Johor, Mahmud Iskandar Almarhum Sultan Ismail, who died Friday at 77. He was buried in an elaborate ceremony on Saturday. In Malaysia’s oddball rotating kingship, which allows each of the country’s nine sultans to wear the king’s hat for five years, Iskandar became Malaysia’s Yang Di-Pertuan Agong, or king, in 1984, relinquishing the title in 1989.

Najib Tun Razak, the prime minister, cut short a visit to India to extend his condolences and issue a statement: “On behalf of the government and people. I express sadness and extend condolences to Her Royal Highness Sultanah Zanariah and her children as well as the royal household on the demise of His Royal Highness the Sultan of Johor.”

The massive Iskandar development project in Johor across from Singapore was named for him.

Muhyiddin Yassin, the deputy prime minister, said that Iskandar’s death “is a big loss to the people of Johor, and also of Malaysia, because of his priceless contributions during his lifetime.”

But it is difficult to see just what those priceless contributions were. Despite the encomiums, the Johor sultan embodied just about everything that was ill-starred about Malaysia’s system of royalty.

Both The Star, owned by the Malaysian Chinese Association, and the New Straits Times, owned by the United Malays National Organisation, issued respectful obituaries. To most Malaysians, the New Straits Times said, “the Sultan will be remembered for his mercurial ways, as well as his inadvertent role in the constitutional crisis of 1993 which dramatically ended the legal immunity of the country’s nine hereditary monarchs.”

Iskandar’s role in the constitutional crisis was hardly inadvertent but it was certainly mercurial. In fact it was integral to it and it stemmed from his brutal beating, along with members of his staff, of a field hockey coach. And although the end of legal immunity was pushed through 17 years ago, today Malaysian royalty pretty much act any way they want without facing arrest. Several have left huge gambling debts in London casinos to be picked up by Malaysian state governments. Recently there have been incidents reported of fistfights between rival royals in Malaysian night clubs.

In recent months, in fact, UMNO, the country’s leading political party, has led a charge to report to the police anyone who dares criticize the royalty. Several critics have been charged with sedition.

Iskandar was one of the worst of Malaysia’s sultans, a violent, often brutal and impulsive man who seemingly knew no bounds to his behavior. He was lucky to be a sultan at all. He was ignominiously dismissed as the Tunku Makhota, or prince regent of Johor, by his father, Sultan Ismail Ibrahim, in 1961 after he reportedly chained two policemen into a dog kennel for a day after they displeased him. He was later reported to have attacked a young couple with Mace after they allegedly offended him. In 1972, he was charged for Macing two men because their car had had overtaken his on the highway.

He regularly patrolled Johor roads with a red light and siren on the top of his Rolls Royce and a shotgun strapped to the dashboard, pulling over speeders and ordering them to perform enjut ketampi, the Malay term for squat jumps, until they fell over. Any driver who inadvertently passed the sultan’s car on Johor’s roads or obstructed him was subject to exorbitant fines. His staff was petrified by him. Once, at a diplomatic reception for example, he was seen to simply hold out his glass when it was empty and drop it as a terrified servant raced across the room to catch it before it shattered on the marble floor.

In 1971, he got into real trouble by shooting and killing a trespasser whom he took to be a smuggler walking near his private helicopter. He was charged with manslaughter but his father intervened, as the sultan did repeatedly at other times, and granted him a pardon despite his disapproval of his actions. Iskandar’s family wasn’t much better. His eldest son, Tunku Ibrahim Ismail, shot a man dead in a nightclub but was also pardoned.

There was considerable speculation in Kuala Lumpur that despite the fact that the kingship rotated on a set basis, his fellow sultans would block him because of his behavior. But they elected him Agong in 1983. Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad promptly fomented a constitutional crisis by ramrodding through a series of actions in the Dewan Rakyat, or Parliament, that removed the power of the royalty to veto legislation, along with closing other loopholes within the Malaysian constitution.

That didn’t slow down the sultan much. In 1987, after he became the Agong, he allegedly clubbed a caddy to death at the Cameron Highlands golf club for laughing when the sultan missed a putt. He also was said to have maimed the caddy’s brother, who suffered a mental breakdown from seeing the incident and had to be restrained in a mental hospital.

Although the killing was given wide currency among Kuala Lumpur’s political and social circles, Iskandar was never arrested. It remained out of the government-controlled press. It so distressed the retired Tunku Abdul Rahman, the country’s first leader after independence, that he publicly condemned the assault without naming Iskandar. The Tunku, however, also pointed out that as a sultan, Iskandar was immune from prosecution.

In 1992, following Iskandar’s departure from the kingship, his son, Tunku Abdul Majid Idris, assaulted the goalkeeper of the Perak hockey team after Perak won a match with a penalty stroke. The goalkeeper lodged a police report against the son, who ultimately was convicted and sentenced to a year in prison. The charges were dropped on grounds of immunity. Later the sultan himself was involved in the other field hockey controversy that finally made Malaysia say enough. He called a local coach to his palace over a minor dispute. He and his bodyguards assaulted the coach, who had to seek medical attention for injuries to his face and body. The coach also filed charges. This time, the press reported on both incidents.

Despite the fact that the sultan had won Mahathir’s approval by firing Mahathir’s nemesis, Tun Salleh Abbas, the highly respected lord president of Malaysia’s highest court, which brought an end to the independence of the country’s judiciary, the assaults were enough for the prime minister. He led a campaign in the parliament to remove legal immunity from prosecution for the royalty that passed resoundingly.

Iskandar reportedly finally calmed down in later years, and lived a life largely out of the public prints. None of his misdeeds made the Malaysian press after his death. One blog cheerily said he would “always be remembered as Malaysia’s unconventional King. He preferred to drive his own car or pilot his own helicopter. He also loved sports, especially golf and was not afraid to lose in a game.”

Or a caddy. He was called “a King with the common touch.”

http://asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2262&Itemid=199

P. Ramlee – Madu Tiga

P. Ramlee – Madu Tiga (Three Wives)

http://americabikini.com/watch-video/_3qBG0wSmJg/TheTyraBanksShow/P.+Ramlee+-+Madu+Tiga+(Three+Wives).html

WMK 3944 (fake police van)

To my family and friends,

This happened to me today. Please take care.

I was visiting a specialist at Sg. Besi, located at a shophouse near South City Plaza, Sg. Besi today with my 8 year old daughter. If, like me, you are unfamiliar with this part of KL, its is adjacent to The Mines, off the Besraya Highway. This was at 1 pm, broad daylight, with lots of people about.

After the consultation, my daughter and I got into my car, a Toyota Estima. I started the engine and was about to back out of the streetside parking space when a bunch of men (in this case, of Indian ethnic background) who were fussing around another car parked two lots away turned around and started to gesture to me to stop. They flashed police IDs and indicated that I should stop. I assumed that something untoward had happened to the car, or its occupants (a white MPV) which had its bonnet up and doors opened, and around 10 guys buzzing around it. I felt uneasy right away and (whilst with the windows up & door locked) gestured to them that I would speak to them a liitle further down the road. (away from so many guys).

A white van marked with the familiar blue “Polis DiRaja Malaysia” insignia on the doors and bonnet drove up alongside and the two men disembarked and showed me their IDs once again. They said that my car road tax serial number was different from that registered to my vehicle licence plate and that I should allow them to check the chassis number of the vehicle by lifting the bonnet. I immediate countered that by asking them ” Eh, what exactly are you guys doing huh?” They replied, ” We are the police, cannot read ah? We are doing our jobs.” whilst gesturing towards their IDs. They also showed me their mobile hand-held “checking unit” which looked all “official-website-form” on it and showed me a number and pointed out that this was different from that shown on my road tax sticker.

Since the sticker faces outwards I had no way of checking. I just contered that with ” Eh, if the number is different, its your problem, not mine. Whats wrong with your computer system huh?” They got very irritated. In the meantime, while this exchange was happening, I was trying to call my husband on his moblie to verify the road tax renewal (cos, y’know, us wimmin don’t like to get our hands dirty with this kinda thing)…. Rang, couldn’t get through immediately, so to buy a little more time, I told the plainclothes cops that I didnt’t think that they were cops (altho I wasn’t sure) and that I wanted the check to be done in the police station. They said, sure, to follow them to the station nearby.

They started to drive their police van and indicated for me to follow them. By this time I got through to my husband and he just said – ” car jackers, don’t follow them, this is bulllshit” I was already panicking because there was like quite a few of the guys by the car, and I wasn’t sure if there were’t any of the group tailing me…whether I was a car sandwich or no.

So I gave my husband the van’s licence plate and drove around looking for the nearest access to the highway (tol plaza) The police van followed me and I just kept smiling at them and gesturing for them to follow me. (gila huh?) Then I stopped at the tol lane (The Sg. Besi Tol) realised there is no tol office just the drivethrough counter. (almost went to the smart tag lane out of habit… just see how bodoh we can be) I just stopped there and told the girl at the counter my dilemma…for about 10 minutes. The van went through the toll and drove off. I waited to be sure no other vehicle was waiting around, gave the girl the licence plate and asked her to call the cops, although I had doubts about follow-through. Even at that time, I wasn’t 100% sure if they were genuine thugs or cops… because, sadly, as we alll know… even the real thing looks pretty iffy in this part of the world huh?

Anyway, my husband had called back to say that they had checked the plate with Bukit Aman and they boys in blue do not have a vehicle with that registration. I just kept drivin’ and drivin’ and drivin’ cos really, I had no idea where I was… until I reached Sunway Pyramid. For the life of me I really don’t know how I got there (Since South KL is terra incognita), and mainly because I was so busy checking my rear view mirror to see if any car was tailing me. My 8 year old daughter was getting a little nervous in the back there.

When we got out of the car as I had decided to have lunch at Sunway Pyramid (I had to calm down right?) she turned to me and said… ” I think they wanted the car AND me” Oh dear god… I hadn’t even thought about THAT.

So please, do watch out. The van plate (which is probably fake…) was WMK 3944. Doesn’t matter, who and how and when, the ploys, I’m sure, keep evolving, just be your most SCEPTICAL self at all times when “OUT THERE”.

Take care y’all.

From,
Karen Lim Siebel

PKFZ scandal: Big fish hooked?

PKFZ scandal: Big fish hooked?Thu, Dec 17, 2009

SHAH ALAM: A “big fish” is likely to be charged in the Klang Sessions Court today in connection with the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal.

The suspect is either a former cabinet minister or a prominent politician serving as a member of parliament.

However, no one in authority is confirming the widespread speculation.

Some sources say there is a high possibility that another person will be charged along with the VIP.

If one of them is charged today, he or she will be the fifth person brought to court in connection with what opposition politicians have called the “mother of scandals.”

The highest ranking among the four already charged is former Port Klang Authority general manager Datin Paduka Phang Oi Choo @ Phang Ai Tu, 63, better known as O.C. Phang. She is accused of committing criminal breach of trust in payments worth RM254.85 million to the project’s developer.

The others are architect Bernard Tan Seng Swee, 48; Steven Abok, 51, the chief operating officer of Kuala Dimensi, the company appointed to develop the PKFZ project; and Kuala Dimensi engineer Law Jenn Dong, 51.

Tan and Abok face charges of making false claims involving RM5.417 million and Law is accused of cheating PKA of RM116.85 million.

Law and Tan were also jointly charged with with numerous counts of making false claims.

All four have claimed trial and are out on bail. Their cases will be mentioned again in January and February.

In announcing last week that investigations were far from over, Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail had told newsmen that more would be charged irrespective of whether they were “big or small fish” and that his office was looking at various offences ranging from money laundering to conspiracy and abetment.

EPF Rules that u might NOT know..

EPF Rules that u might NOT know..
If ONE (1) of your Nominees in the EPF Nominees list dies, automatically the whole arrangement (EPF Nominees list) is VOID .. Meaning if, you only put in One (1) name & unfortunately he/she dies before you – automatically EPF will channel your EPF money to trustee of AMANAH RAYA upon your death. ( Eg : one of your parents, touch wood)

Even though if you have few names in the EPF Nominees list, – the whole arrangement is VOID & none of the individual names left in the EPF Nominees list will get their portion & automatically EPF will channel your EPF money to trustee of AMANAH RAYA upon your death.

Piece of advice – if any of the your Nominees in the EPF Nominees list dies, please do immediately approach the nearest EPF counter & present the Death Certificate of the individual & register your NEW / LATEST Nominee in the EPF Nominees list + NEW / LATEST percentage .

If, you & the other party (maybe spouse) involved in the same misfortune (accident / illness) that caused death to both yourself / spouse please, please, please alert your siblings / relatives / parents to immediately approach the nearest EPF counter & share the information within 3 days to AVOID all EPF money to be surrendered to trustee of AMANAH RAYA .

Upon surrender to trustee of AMANAH RAYA, your children will have to battle the money thru 3 channels;

Majlis Agama

Pejabat Tanah

Mahkamah

The normal period via above 3 channels usually takes 2-3 years (except if you have inside/tip top connection) at Amanah Raya.

Lawyer: Najib ‘linked’ to Bala’s disappearance

Lawyer: Najib ‘linked’ to Bala’s disappearance

Nov 25, 09 3:05pm
Any reasonable person would draw the conclusion that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is somehow linked to the disappearance of P Balasubramaniam, according to the private investigator’s lawyer.
“The facts seem to point to the possibility that they wanted him out of the way and delegated this job to others close to them to execute,” said Americk Singh Sidhu (left) in an interview with Malaysiakini.
“As matters stand, I am concerned about the involvement of Nazim (Razak), Najib’s younger brother. The question is why would he have an interest in Bala’s disappearance if it were not to protect his brother?” asked Americk.

Balasubramaniam recently emerged from hiding to reveal that he had met Nazim, an architect, the night before he made a dramatic reversal and recanted his first statutory declaration in which he alleged that Najib had close ties with murdered Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Balasubramaniam also claimed that he was offered RM5 million by one Deepak, a businessman close to Najib’s wife, Rosmah Mansor, to retract his first statutory declaration.
Najib had repeatedly denied speculations that he was behind Balasubramaniam’s retraction.
In the interview, Americk recounted how he was introduced to Balasubramaniam, on his reaction to the retraction of Balasubramaniam’s first statutory declaration and his subsequent meeting with the former police officer after he emerged from hiding a year later.

The lawyer also revealed that the video recording of his interview with Balasubramaniam three months ago was secretly taken as an “insurance in the event he was apprehended by the parties involved in his departure from this country over a year ago”.

“He did not know he was being filmed at that time but we did inform him of this later and he understood why we did it,” said Americk.

According to him, while Balasubramaniam may have committed an offence under the Statutory Declarations Act 1960 for giving conflicting statutory declarations, he could nevertheless defend himself against the charge as it “would appear he was coerced, intimidated and/or forced to sign the second statutory declaration under duress”.

But those who allegedly instigated the swearing of the false second statutory declaration – Deepak, one ASP Suresh and lawyer M Arunampalam – are also liable to criminal charges for abetment and conspiracy, added Americk.

“In so far as Nazim is concerned, he was involved in criminal intimidation of Bala besides a possibility of being roped into the abetment/conspiracy charges arising from the creation of the second false statutory declaration.”

The following is the first of a two-part interview:

Malaysiakini: When did you first meet Bala?

Americk: I first met Bala sometime in April or May 2008. I was having some early evening drinks with several lawyer friends of mine at ‘Fogles’, which is a delicatessen/bar at Plaza Damas. We were later joined by ASP Suresh and Bala.

One of the lawyers I was with, M Puravalen, introduced me to them. I had no idea who they were before that. I had not been following the Altantuya case very closely so I had not realised that Abdul Razak Baginda had a private investigator assisting him and this was Bala.
I then started enquiring about this whole saga out of curiosity.
Puravalen had been involved in the Altantuya case as he was the first counsel Abdul Razak Baginda had engaged before he was discharged and a new counsel engaged, and so he enlightened me as regards the more salient facts.

I am not sure how ASP Suresh featured in all this but he appeared to be a good friend of Bala’s and appeared to have his interests at heart.

Eventually some of the other lawyers left and the restaurant started closing so we decided to move on to ‘The Backyard’ pub in Sri Hartamas, which is only a short distance away from Plaza Damas. There were four of us … Bala, myself, ASP Suresh and Valen.

We were drinking and still discussing the whole Altantuya murder case as I found it fascinating. Sometime later (Subang MP and lawyer) Sivarasa Rasiah walked in. I know Siva as he is also a friend, but we are not very close. We asked him to join us. He also listened to what Bala had to say and after that suggested Bala get someone to record everything.

Somehow I was chosen to do this as everyone felt I was the one lawyer who did not have an agenda in this matter as I was someone neutral. I agreed and that was when I made an appointment for Bala to come to my office so that I could record all he had to say.

The recordings occurred about two or three times over a period of about two months and lasted a few hours each time.

How did you feel when Bala came out with the second statutory declaration? Did you attempt to contact him?

I received a call from a member of the press at about 9.30am on July 4, 2008 asking me why my client, Bala, had called a press conference for 11am that morning at the Prince hotel.

I was a little surprised as I had no idea what this was about so I proceeded to call Bala, who did not answer his phone. I then proceeded to make further enquiries only to find out that Bala had purportedly been represented by another lawyer, one Arunampalam who had spoken to the press at that press conference on behalf of Bala and had said that Bala was retracting the contents of his first SD as he had been forced to sign it under duress.

When I came to know of this press conference and what transpired thereat, I was absolutely flabbergasted. Bala and I had spent two months and many hours over the first SD to ensure it was absolutely correct and for him to deny the contents in the space of 24 hours did seem incredible to me.
Bala had anticipated that he would be arrested by the police after releasing the first statutory declaration and he told me so. This is why he had handed over his mobile phone to me for safe keeping before he left my office the evening before as he did not want the police to download information from it.

We were therefore preparing for his arrest and then to go to the police station he was being held at to represent him. I never expected him to have been ‘hijacked’ by the personalities involved, and I am sure, neither did he.

It is also worth mentioning here that this lawyer, Arunampalam, was not engaged by Bala to represent him at the press conference at the Prince hotel despite the fact that Arunampalam has said Bala called him and asked him to do so. This is a blatant lie.

Bala does not know this man and had never met him prior to that press conference. In fact, it is well-known that Arunampalam does legal work for Deepak and this can be substantiated quite easily.

There is no doubt in my mind that Bala was forced, coerced, threatened and intimidated into signing the second statutory declaration.
Bala subsequently disappeared for one year. When did you meet him next?

Bala called me around July 19, 2009. I was at that time in a little village called Llanwarne on the Welsh border staying with some friends of mine. My wife was also with me. I was surprised to hear his voice as I hadn’t heard from him since he left my office with ASP Suresh in the early evening of July 3, 2008.

He started off the conversation by apologising to me for any trouble he had caused. He said he was returning to Malaysia on July 28 and wanted to see me. I informed him I was only returning to Kuala Lumpur on Aug 2 and landing in the early hours of the morning. He gave me a contact number to call and I said I would call him after I landed to arrange a meeting.

At approximately 9am on Aug 2, 2009, I called the number Bala had given me and we arranged to meet in about two days’ time. We left the exact time and place to be decided later.

On Aug 4, we finally arranged to meet at my apartment in Ampang Hilir at about 1pm the next day. As Bala wanted to tell me everything that had happened to him since I saw him last, I thought it would be best to have some witnesses present and so I called my counsel, Manjeet Singh Dhillon and another lawyer, Amarjit Singh Sidhu. They both turned up at about 12pm and we waited for Bala to arrive.

Bala eventually turned up a little later than expected as he was having difficulty locating my apartment. He arrived with two other Indian gentlemen who were introduced to us but I cannot recall their names.
He then spent about three hours telling us exactly what had happened to him. During this time he was constantly questioned by myself, Manjeet and Amarjit.

We had arranged for a concealed audio visual device to record this conversation as we felt Bala may have needed some insurance in the event he was apprehended by the parties involved in his departure from this country over a year ago. He did not know he was being filmed at that time but we did inform him of this later and he understood why we did it.

Were you convinced by Bala’s story? What documentary evidence did you have?

After approximately three hours of conversation, we were more than convinced that what he was telling us was the truth. It took quite a long time to unravel the details as Bala was recalling events which had taken place over a year ago coupled with the fact that there were so many details.

At that stage, Bala did not reveal any documentary evidence as he was still very apprehensive of the entire situation but he did tell us details of all the evidence he had from bank account statements, passports, flight tickets and photocopied cheques paid to him.

We therefore asked him to produce this evidence and he assured us he would.

What was your advice to Bala at the meeting? Was there a follow-up meeting after that?

After digesting everything we were told, we felt it was necessary to record the events which had taken place in a suitable, chronological and coherent format as we were concerned the matter was rather serious.

We advised Bala to hand over all documents to us to enable us to further verify his story. He promised us he would but said he would have to go to his wife’s bank (EON) to get her statements for the past year and that other documents were still in India. He did however have copies of his family’s passports and copies of the cheques Deepak had signed. He eventually produced these documents to me by hand, by post and by fax.

We advised Bala to behave normally with Deepak and ASP Suresh and not to let them know he had seen us. He told us he would be returning to India shortly and would contact us again. From then on, all contact with Bala was by phone and email.

As a lawyer, do you think Bala has committed any offences?

Technically, he may have committed an offence under the Statutory Declarations Act 1960 by swearing a false declaration. By this I mean the second SD, not the first SD. However under the circumstances, he would have a good defence to a charge of that nature as it would appear he was coerced, intimidated and/or forced to sign the second SD under duress.

Making a false second SD technically exposes Bala to criminal prosecution. It would equally make the ones who instigated the swearing of the false second SD [Deepak/ Arunampalam/Suresh], liable to criminal charges for abetment and conspiracy.

If we refer to section 3 of the SD Act 1960, this states that SDs made under the Act are such declarations as are referred to in sections 199 and 200 of the Penal Code, and where false would be punishable under that Act.

Section 199 of the Penal Code reads:

“Whoever, in any declaration made or subscribed by him, which declaration any court, or any public servant or other person, is bound or authorised by law to receive as evidence of any fact, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, touching any point material to the object for which the declaration is made or used, shall be punished in the same manner as if he gave false evidence.”

This provision is then followed by Section 200 of the Penal Code which states that whoever corruptly uses or attempts to use as true any such declaration knowing the same to be false in any material point, shall be punished in the same manner as if he gave false evidence.

Even if we limit ourselves to these provisions alone, offences are clearly shown to have been committed by Deepak, Suresh and Arunampalam. Bala may well have a defense of duress but that would be a matter of evidence.

In so far as Nazim (Razak) is concerned, he was involved in criminal intimidation of Bala besides a possibility of being roped into the abetment/conspiracy charges arising from the creation of the second false SD.

Note also that under section 10[b] of the ACA 1997, it is an offence to corruptly give to any person an inducement in such circumstances as those in which Bala was induced to make the false second SD. Deepak, Suresh and Nazim could well be prosecuted under these provisions.
With the evidence that you and the other lawyers have seen from Bala and based on Bala’s own explanation, do you think the PM (Najib Abdul Razak) and his wife (Rosmah) are personally involved in this (matter)? Or was it done on their behalf by someone?

If you mean Bala’s disappearance, then the facts seem to point to the possibility that they wanted him out of the way and delegated this job to others close to them to execute.

As matters stand, I am concerned about the involvement of Nazim, Najib’s younger brother. The question is why would he have an interest in Bala’s disappearance if it were not to protect his brother?