Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen 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 soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt 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."
Anwar believes MACC chief brave but spooked by retired CJ By Commander S THAYAPARAN (Retired) Royal Malaysian Navy
Monday, July 14, 2025
Malaysiakini : Take this issue with the judiciary for instance. Anwar blames
the judiciary for the recent spate of discharge not amounting to
acquittal (DNAA) claiming to be independent of the judicial process and
damning critics as hypocrites.
This, of course, is not factual, but is the Madani narrative when it comes to propping up corrupt political personalities.
He
and his acolytes answer to the major criticism that with his impending
showdown with Yusoff Rawther in the court system compromises his
position to select judges, is that the criticism means that we have an
independent judiciary.
This is ridiculous. Criticism does not mean
that we have an independent judiciary, because criticism means nothing
without institutional safeguards.
The premierās actions when it
comes to not extending the tenure of the retired chief justice and the
public comments of the Attorney-Generalās Chambers (AGC), reek of
political malfeasance and collusion.
Keep in mind that besides the MACC, the AGC
is viewed by most rational Malaysians as a compromised public
institution because of what they say and do and not because of any
propaganda by the opposition.
You have to wonder why the prime
minister would view the MACC chief as ācourageousā and keep his silence
when it comes to Tengku Maimun and the non-extension of her tenure.
Former chief justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat
I
know the kind of political operatives, social activists, members of the
legal fraternity, and concerned public voices who are championing the
cause of Tengku Maimun and judicial independence. What I would like to
know is, who was championing the cause of the MACC chief commissioner?
All about catch and release
The
prime minister doesn't care what the perception of the MACC is. All
these so-called high-profile cases where titled folks are targeted mean
very little.
Without an independent AGC, judiciary, and MACC, all
these takedowns are merely pantomimes of justice and who knows what kind
of horse trading is going on in the corridors of power?
Remember, for Madani, it is all about catch and release. The narrative is that the MACC catches and the judiciary releases.
We
know that the prime minister thinks that the MACC chief commissioner is
brave, but he has remained silent on the retired chief justice. Why?
If
there is a movement of citizens, social and legal activists that
questions her lack of reappointment, isnāt the prime minister obligated
to answer the question of why a highly respected civil servantās tenure
was not extended?
Former law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz believes
that the reason her tenure was not granted was because of remarks she
made at a conference in Malta.
While Nazri may claim that this is
just his opinion, I have no doubt, coming from an insider like him, that
there is more truth to it than the horse manure that seeps out of the
Madani press machine.
The purported JAC minutes leak paints a
picture of political malfeasances of the worst kind. Not only has it
given rational Malaysians a sobering view of how justice plays out in
this country, but it is also an indictment of Madani and a sitting prime
minister.
I could make the argument that it is worse than the VK
Lingam case, and the fact that the AGC does not think so says a lot
about the kind of individuals hand-picked to lead that institution.
Weaponising reform
The
prime minister has weaponised reform against the public clamouring for
it. When he wants to exercise his power and influence that his office
grants, he does so.
However, he hides behind constitutional
procedure, legalese, the royal institution, false equivalencies and
twists the rhetoric of reform when attacking reform-minded citizens,
painting them as the problem and not the solution.
The prime
minister accuses his critics of wanting him to become a dictator, when
the Madani regime is defined by laws curtailing free speech and
weaponising public institutions to go after his critics (or so the
opposition claims).
His Goebbelian Communications Minister Fahmi
Fadzil is ever ready to offer conflicting statements on behalf of the
prime minister.
Fahmiās response
to this leak is predictable. Hiding behind the Official Secrets Act
(OSA) and, of course, veiled warnings to the press to keep their mouths
shut: "If it is authentic and classified as secret, especially for my
media friends, I urge you to be careful - do not disseminate it. If a
document is classified, the OSA applies."
Remember when the prime
minister, who says that he does not want to interfere with public
institutions, ordered the state security apparatus to investigate Baling
MP Hassan Saad for calling the prime minister an Israeli agent?
āIt
was Fahmi who made the public statement on Nov 28 that Anwar ordered
police to investigate those who slander him or call him an Israeli
agent.
āFahmiās statement was never rebutted or denied by the Prime Ministerās Office or Anwar himself,ā it said.
On Jakim
Remember
when Anwar expanded the budget and role of the Islamic Development
Department (Jakim) because he wanted to introduce a more āmoderateā form
of Islam in the Malaysian body politic?
Dissenters who were
appalled by this move were dismissed by the prime minister, who
reportedly said: āI want Jakim not only to talk about religion and
Islamic law. Jakim is to expand its duties, talk about economic issues,
look at digital programmes, and look at the education curriculum.
āThe
responsibility is broader, so that the values of Islam can be applied,
and this is opposed by those who do not understand, a small group of
non-Muslims who write that āAnwar is now displaying his strong Islamist
attitude, which he has tried to hide all this time by ordering Jakim to
control all the systemsā.ā
This
is what the prime minister does. He weaponises reforms against the very
voices that elevated him to power. Mind you, these by far are not the
strongest voting bloc in this country, but it is the bloc that ensures
that Madani sustains.
All DAP can muster is being a fait accompli to more courageous voices or playing lapdog to the ruinous powers of this country.
What
Tengku Maimun said at that conference in Malta is ironically what Anwar
is doing. By making this political play, he has ensured that anyone who
is appointed by Madani is suspect and the whole judiciary is tainted.
The purported JAC minutes leak is Exhibit A of this.
