Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Malaysiakini : Some - not all - evade paying tax, which is illegal. For others, money laundering is also involved.
More importantly, the Pandora Papers are about cheating the government.
Tax evasionaffects everyone
Many
Malaysians may not appreciate the Pandora Papers leak because they
think that it has nothing to do with them. On the contrary, it has
everything to do with them.
When rich individuals, including and especially corrupt
politicians, and corporations avoid paying taxes, think of the lost tax
revenue which may run to billions of ringgits.
Taxes
keep things running in the country. Governments need this money to pay
for vital public services, such as better public health provisions, more
schools, improved infrastructure, a low-carbon economy, and the
protection of the environment.
Instead, the wealthy hide their riches and go on spending sprees, buying up property, yachts, private planes, and gems.
A
corrupt politician may have told his constituency that there are
insufficient funds to help the people. Just imagine the rakyat’s anger
if their name is later listed in the Pandora Papers. The lies and the
hypocrisy!
A corrupt politician who has stolen
taxpayers’ money, or who accepted bribes in exchange for government
contracts, will approach a service provider to help sort out his wealth
and stash the illegal money in offshore accounts. A shell company with
fake directors' names and a named bank account will be opened.
No
one is able to connect this company or bank account with the corrupt
individual or the rich person. What we see is that the purchase was made
by an anonymous shell company.
Thepoor subsidising the rich
Last week, a number of individuals were invited
to the MACC office to have their statements recorded in relation to the
Pandora Papers exposé. Finally! Malaysians have waited a long time for
this.
Although the Pandora Papers revealed the
tactics of the super-rich to avoid scrutiny of their affairs, at the
same time, it has given us an insight into Azhar’s refusal to allow the
debate in October 2021. Was he not curious to know more?
On
a basic level, the leak showed that the country has two separate
systems. You and I may store our money under the mattress or in the
bank. The super-rich stores their money in offshore accounts. What’s
wrong with the local bank?
The
leak also showed that there are two separate tax systems. Our taxes may
have increased but as law-abiding citizens, we pay whatever taxes are
due. It’s different for the rich and the well-connected. They avoid
paying taxes with these offshore accounts.
Why should the poor and the law-abiding Malaysian subsidise the rich? Why should we be denied essential public services?
The leak also showed the hypocrisy of many politicians and many professionals.
The
politicians, bankers, accountants, and lawyers, who could make it
harder for tax avoidance or the hiding of assets, are themselves
benefiting. So, why should they end it? We couldn’t even get past the
debate stage for the Pandora Papers leak.
If it is not safe
to invest money locally, as claimed by one MP who was named in the
leak, then why did he not convince his peers that the money market
should be properly regulated to make investing safer?
Why do MPs only think of themselves and not for the greater good of the people?
The enabler
As soon as the leak was exposed on Oct 3, 2021, governments around the world started their own internal investigations. In Malaysia, it was business as normal and even debates about the Pandora Papers were disallowed.
The then Perikatan Nasional (PN) government also accepted
the explanations of the politicians who were named in the Pandora
Papers. They denied wrongdoing, but - of course - they are not going to
admit it if they were indeed handling illegal money, laundering funds,
or avoiding taxes.
Ever since he was nominated to
become speaker by the former back-door prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin,
Azhar has been an utter disappointment. His actions as speaker have
been both baffling and controversial.
Instead of exercising fairness, he often sided with the then PN government.
Instead of making the super-rich and powerful politicians accountable for their actions, he did his best to appease them.
Instead of making a big difference in Malaysian politics and helping our lawmakers plug loopholes in Malaysia’s offshore banking and tax evasion schemes, Azhar became part of the problem. He was obstinate and unwieldy.
Azhar has only himself to blame if his reputation lies in tatters.
