Malaysian police arrested dozens of protesters on Thursday, including three opposition MPs, in a standoff in the northwestern city of Ipoh over who rules peninsular Malaysia’s second largest state.

Witnesses saw police, backed by water cannon, surround the state legislature with barbed wire and prevent opposition MPs from gaining access to the legislature, which was holding its first session since the state government was ousted.

They completely cleared a 500 metre exclusion zone around the state building, snatching anyone wearing black, the colour chosen by the opposition to protest against the takeover.

Perak has become the focal point of tensions between the opposition and the National Front government that has ruled Malaysia for 51 years following the takeover of the state government in a move orchestrated by Najib Razak, the country’s new prime minister.
Read Perak Assembly Chaos

Popularity: 3% [?]

Technorati Tags: barisan nasional, dewan undangan negeri, menteri besar, pakatan rakyat, speaker

Malaysia’s leader has said the ruling coalition may sit out an upcoming by-election sparked by the resignation of an opposition lawmaker, decrying it as a political ploy and a waste of public funds.

Prime Minister Najib Razak was quoted by the Sunday Star as saying that he would meet leaders of his National Front coalition at the end of the month to decide whether to contest the by-election in northern Penang state.

A lawmaker from former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim’s opposition alliance quit his state assembly seat recently following unsubstantiated allegations of corruption. A date for the ballot to fill the seat will be decided soon.
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Popularity: 3% [?]

Technorati Tags: anwar, barisan nasional, by-elections, election, najib, pakatan rakyat

Malaysia’s opposition won two of three by-elections held Tuesday, dealing a blow to Prime Minister Najib Razak who took power last week with pledges to carry out wide-ranging government and social reforms.

The results do not change the balance of power at federal or state level but serve as an unofficial referendum on Najib’s popularity. The ruling National Front coalition downplayed the loss, saying Najib was yet to make his mark.

“The feel-good factor from the power transition is still too new and has not sunk in,” Najib’s right-hand man, Muhyiddin Yasin, told reporters while conceding defeat.
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Popularity: 4% [?]

Technorati Tags: batang ai, bn, bukit gantang, bukit selambau, by-election, pakatan rakyat, pas, pkr

By Leslie Lau
Consultant Editor

IPOH, March 2 – Perak stands on the verge of an administrative breakdown tonight as the state’s executive and legislature appeared locked in battle for control of the state.

Datuk Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir, the mentri besar of the de facto Barisan Nasional (BN) government, has declared an attempt to hold an emergency sitting of the state assembly a “threat to national security.”

“If anyone is involved in tomorrow’s assembly, the government will not compromise with anyone who threatens national security,” he said.

Perak Speaker V Sivakumar has called for an emergency sitting of the state assembly tomorrow where a vote is likely to declare support for the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government of Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin and call for the state legislature to be dissolved.
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Popularity: 6% [?]

Technorati Tags: barisan nasional, bn, menteri besar, pakatan rakyat, perak, state assembly

If the Barisan Nasional and the Perak royal household had any lingering doubts about negative public sentiment towards the change of the state government, here is a message: doubt no more.

A survey of registered voters in Perak on Feb 8 showed that:

• 76 per cent of respondents felt that “the people through elections” should decide who forms the government in Perak. The breakdown by race was 60 per cent Malays, 88 per cent Chinese and 98 per cent Indians.
• 74 per cent of the respondents feel that the state assembly should have been dissolved after the defection of the three Pakatan Rakyat lawmakers. The breakdown by race was 59 per cent Malays, 85 per cent Chinese and 88 per cent Indians.
• 68 per cent of respondents said that the preferred option of settling the political crisis is either to hold three by-elections or statewide polls. The breakdown by race was 46 per cent Malays, 88 per cent Chinese and 80 per cent Indians.

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Popularity: 7% [?]

Technorati Tags: dissolve, merdeka centre, pakatan rakyat, perak, poll, state assembly, sultan, umno

Today Pakatan Rakyat leaders have submitted a letter to the Prime Minister requesting him to call an emergency session of Parliament to deliberate a motion of censure against the leadership of YAB Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi no later than Tuesday 23 September 2008.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Technorati Tags: anwar ibrahim, barisan nasional, emergency session, pakatan rakyat, parliament, statement, vote

Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim wants Parliament to convene by Sept 23 for him to table a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

He said that a letter signed by him, the DAP’s Lim Kit Siang and Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, representing the Pakatan Rakyat alliance, had been sent to the PM to request him to convene Parliament by next Tuesday.

“We have told him we have the numbers. If he wants the details and doesn’t believe me, then convene the emergency sitting,” he told reporters at PKR headquarters here today.

He insisted it was critical for the PM to respond as “it is important to think of the nation and not themselves. They are a minority government, the majority is with us.
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Popularity: 4% [?]

Technorati Tags: anwar ibrahim, barisan nasional, house session, pakatan rakyat, parliament

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s fate was hanging in the balance after opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim claimed last night he had secured the necessary backing to topple the prime minister by his self-imposed deadline of today.

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Popularity: 4% [?]

Technorati Tags: anwar ibrahim, defect, government, malaysia day, pakatan rakyat, parliament

Mesyuarat pertama penggal pertama Parlimen ke-12 telah bermula pada 28 April selepas Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-12 diadakan pada 8 Mac lalu. Mesyuarat kedua pula dijadualkan pada 23 Jun hingga 15 Julai selama 14 hari dan ketiga mulai 18 Ogos hingga 11 Disember melibatkan 41 hari. Setiap minggu mesyuarat akan berlangsung mulai hari Isnin hingga Khamis iaitu bermula pukul 10 pagi hingga 1 petang dan disambung semula mulai pukul 2.30 hingga 5.30 petang.
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Popularity: 11% [?]

Technorati Tags: Ahli Parlimen, Dewan Rakyat, pakatan rakyat, RTM, sidang parlimen, wakil rakyat