Ari Lesmana, writing for the West Sumatra-based news portal has written quite a thorough review of an academic paper I presented two years ago in Padang. I must say, the first paragraph is quite a hook, perhaps even better than the paper itself. Ha ha. " Bayangkan jika setiap tweet yang Anda baca di Twitter bisa menceritakan kisah lebih besar tentang perubahan politik sebuah bangsa. Inilah yang terjadi di Malaysia pasca-Pemilihan Umum ke-14 (GE14) pada tahun 2018. Sebuah penelitian komprehensif yang menganalisis lebih dari 4.000 tweet mengungkap fenomena menarik: platform media sosial telah menjadi arena baru bagi kebangkitan nasionalisme Melayu yang berbeda dari masa lalu. Penelitian yang dilakukan oleh Shahnon Mohamed Salleh dan Ismail Sualman dari Universiti Teknologi MARA ini bukan sekadar analisis data digital biasa. Mereka berhasil menangkap momen bersejarah ketika frustrasi politik masyarakat Melayu bertransformasi menjadi gerakan digital yang terorganisir dan berpengaruh...

Here's an excerpt from my upcoming book chapter on Media and GE14 (14th General Election). The gist of the chapter is basically in the final paragraph. -- GE14 was reportedly to have scored a series of records in the history of Malaysian election, such as the first ever electoral win by the opposition, the oldest Prime Minister elected – and re-elected – into office, the first woman Deputy Prime Minister and the youngest cabinet minister. Apart from that, the other record was the rise of opinion polling and political forecasting “industry”. Unlike the United States, where one can easily find dozens of opinion polling results and forecasts by the media and research institutions, the trend of conducting opinion polls during election picked up rather late in Malaysia or that some of the polling conducted were only meant for internal consumption, such as those prepared by government agencies and political parties. According to Malaysia’s leading scholar in public opin...

Malaysia is probably the most politicised nation state in South East Asia today. I dare say that we are even more politicised that our fiery neighbour, Indonesia. They probably beat us only in having more street rallies, bombings of religious sites and (Malaysian) flag burning demonstrations. And by virtue of that statement, Malaysians are probably the most politicised people in South East Asia. In other words, we are becoming more Machiavellian than we ever thought! If you don't believe me, just read through the political tweets in TwitterJaya or Facebook postings by the Barisan or Pakatan activist/cyber troopers. By saying that, I am not accusing people who hold a Machiavellian political view are all bad and wrong. The issue here is that sometimes people tend to accuse their political opponents as practicing Machiavellian politics without them realising that they too are "guilty" of adopting the same Machiavellian tactics. For example, we have become more partisan than ...

At a time where it appears as though Najib is caught between a rock and a hard place to openly state his views on Perkasa, he has instead shown that there is more to the issue than just being forced by some parties to choose between 'endorsing' or 'opposing' the vocal Malay rights group. In a somewhat carefully delivered response, Najib made clear that extremists would not be tolerated, but fell short of naming any particular NGO or individual. To quote off TheMalaysianInsider ; “No, we do not want to be in conflict with any NGO,” he firmly said. Najib went further to play down Perkasa’s significance as a pressure group, pointing out that as far as Umno was concerned, Perkasa was just like any other NGO. “It is just like any other NGO. We have so many NGOs. There are times we can agree, and there are times we cannot agree,” he said. No doubt it's a political statement. But I think Najib has learnt something from Obama, or it could well just be a coincidence. Remembe...

The essences of democracy comprises of freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press. These attributes are essentially important elements for a democratic society to flourish. From the era of Napoleon Bonaparte, who famously stated, “Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets” (1804-14) in 19th century to the modern 21st century, the media have well been recognized as a strong political power, because of its strength and ability to influence the beliefs and perceptions of the populations. The capability for expression increases the participatory nature of democracy in cyberspace while significantly breaking old traditional media hierarchies. In the world of blogosphere today, many of the bloggers are their own writers, editors, publishers and bosses. They set their own rules and agenda on what to write, what to publish, what to censor and so on. The power of this new communication tool between citizens can result in the creatio...

theSun: Fairus resigns as Penanti assemblyman; Another by-election imminent Opalyn Mok GEORGE TOWN (April 16, 2009) : Former Penang deputy chief minister Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin yesterday resigned as Penanti state assemblyman, confirming weeks of speculation that a by-election for the Penanti state seat was likely. In a press statement, Mohammad Fairus, 33, said he took this step to resign as a state representative to protect the interest of his party, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR). Bernama: PKR Wants To Find Deputy CM In Penanti KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 (Bernama) -- Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin said the Penanti state by-election in Penang is just an avenue for the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) to find a candidate for the post of Penang Deputy Chief Minister I. I think it's no longer a secret that Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) is filled with bunch of underqualified and low quality wakil rakyats. That a by-election is needed just for the sake of getting a new D...

Today, I found out that one of my blog traffic came from The Edge . Curiously enough, I clicked on the link, and saw a commentary of the so-called post mortem of the recent tri-election, containing blog posts from around the local blogosphere. So, thanks to The Edge journalist, Lam Jian Wyn for quoting and mentioning this humble blog in your article; ' Tri-election post-mortem '. Written by Lam Jian Wyn Wednesday, 08 April 2009 15:30 The tri-election fever is gone, sort of. In the wake of the results – 2 to Pakatan, 1 to Barisan – are a slew of blogposts. While some bloggers were wasted from the election frenzy, the blogosphere’s pundits wasted no time in dissecting the results. BN’s defeat in the peninsula was clearly met by some with disbelief. A Voice was disappointed with the component parties of BN. “Much to my chagrin, the Chinese vote did not sway for BN. Did MCA or Gerakan failed to deliver for BN? Does it indicate MCA and Gerakan as being no more relevant to the Ch...

Utusan Malaysia: BN 1, PAS 1, PKR 1 According to the news headline above, it seems that BN didn't lose after all! :P Let's be fair to Utusan. Being a pro-establishment paper, definitely some kind of a political spin were to be expected, but who would've thought such a thing? I must commend those people in Utusan for putting up such a creative headline. No, seriously I mean it. Hehe.

And so the results were out. Pakatan Rakyat won 2-1 (4-1, if you count in Permatang Pauh and Kuala Terengganu). To me, the win in Batang Ai has no significance to UMNO, simply because UMNO, as the backbone of Barisan Nasional does not exist in Sarawak. The real battle that UMNO lost was Bukit Gantang. The results of Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau have also reaffirmed that the political landscape in peninsular Malaysia remains much the same since March 8 last year. And perhaps, to some extent it is a strong signal to Najib's premiership or the approval of Nizar Jamaluddin as the rightful Menteri Besar of Perak; whichever way one prefers to see it. One thing is for certain, the impact of the great political Tsunami of March 8 is still around. Kuala Terengganu, Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau remain a strong testament of the rejection of UMNO and Barisan Nasional as a whole. A quick analyze on the tri-election results of the infamous two Bukits and one Batang would show a deep sent...

If the popularity trend in blogs has any bearing on the tri-election results in Bukit Gantang, Bukit Selambau and Batang Ai, then I believe Pakatan Rakyat stands to win all three convincingly. But unfortunately, I doubt that is the case here, particularly in Batang Ai where the Internet penetration there is perhaps only around 1% or less. At the very least, the results below could provide some indication where the blogging community is heading. In the new free media of the Internet, should Barisan Nasional and its component party leaders/members fail to recognize the growing and powerful impact of blogs, then it is likely to spell doom for the party. Setting up a blog is one thing, but more importantly is to have a good quality blog content. No point in having a blog if it's not frequently updated or merely posting news reports as blog posts. Anyway, if the three by-elections in Perak, Kedah and Sarawak were to be judged by "popularity in blogs", this is the results. Isma...

As someone who belongs to the "Generation M" group - youths who grew up and spent their lives knowing only one Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad - this is what I wrote in this blog roughly six years ago; Sebak rasanya apabila sekali lagi menonton klip video pengumuman mengejut tentang persaraan semua jawatan dalam kerajaan dan parti, termasuklah jawatan Perdana Menteri oleh Dr. Mahathir ketika Perhimpunan Agung UMNO, Jun tahun lalu melalui sebuah rancangan 30 minit di Channel 9 . Dalam sedar tak sedar, masanya telah tiba. Masih semacam samar-samar lagi, masih semacam sukar hendak menerima kenyataan, atau mungkin memakan sedikit masa lagi untuk menerima kenyataan bahawa Dr. Mahathir bukan lagi Perdana Menteri Malaysia. Apa pun syabas kerana peralihan kuasa di negara kita berlangsung dengan penuh lancar, tiada kekecohan timbul. Back then, a website, ThanksMahathir.com was specially created to dedicate our respect and love to the Father of Modern Malaysia. I wonder whether ...

My favorite magazine, Off the Edge, featured an interview with Muar MP and newly elected UMNO Youth deputy, Razali Ibrahim in their latest issue. I agree with the heading on the mag. Dato' Razali, is indeed one of the few good men in Pemuda, or UMNO in general. I also believe he is one of the future leaders to watch. I hope that Najib will include him in his new cabinet. It doesn't matter if previosly no Naib Ketua Pemuda was appointed to cabinet. What is more important is getting clean and capable leaders. Najib should break away from old traditions if he's really interested in reforms. Old leaders of the Syed Hamid Albar generation should be left out. It's just sad to know that Shahrir Samad has resigned. I believe in the eyes of the public, Shahrir is no doubt one of the best minister in Pak Lah's cabinet. UMNO, at this point of time, is in dire need of clean, intelligent, capable, moderate and incorruptible leaders. Corrupt leaders like Khir Toyo, though he has...

Elizabeth Wong Blogpulse.com Graph above shows the popularity of three Pakatan Rakyat leaders in the blogosphere; Anwar Ibrahim, former Perak MB, Nizar Jamaluddin and former Selangor exco member and Bukit Lanjan Assemblyperson, Elizabeth Wong. While Nizar Jamaluddin's fame has slowed down this week, Eli's popularity among bloggers continues to skyrocket exceeding even her boss, Anwar Ibrahim - all due to her recent nude pictures scandal allegedly being exposed by her ex-boyfriend. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mukhriz Mahathir, Khir Toyo and Khairy Jamaluddin Secondly, judging by the popularity in blogs, former Selangor MB, Dr. Khir Toyo seems to be the leading contender for the Ketua Pemuda UMNO post. Unfortunately, this sentiment is also shared by many UMNO insiders and other political commentators like Joceline Tan of The Star and Raja Petra of Malaysia-Today. His latest fame in the blogs was his criticism on Eli Wong's...

Two by-elections: One MP dies, one rep quits PETALING JAYA: The country will face two by-elections within the next 60 days after a Member of Parliament (MP) in Perak died, while a Kedah assemblyman quit -- both on Monday. Bukit Gantang MP Roslan Shaharum of PAS died of a heart attack on Monday morning, while Bukit Selambau assemblyman V. Arumugam of PKR quit his seat and his position on the Kedah executive council in the afternoon. This is something which is not necessary yet unavoidable. Malaysian politics is getting hotter and more exciting, depending on which side you are with. Personally, I seriously think that the current political situation is just too much. And it's definitely not good for the country. Expect to watch more political fightings, lies & deceptions and dirty politics being played out by both parties. This is also causing me problems for my on going MA research as I find it quite hard to set the time frame for my research. And secondly, while analyzing the bl...

UPDATE: Utusan Malaysia - Mesyuarat Exco Nizar tidak sah, macam budak-budak - SUK Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri (SUK) Perak, Datuk Dr. Abdul Rahman Hashim ketika dihubungi Mingguan Malaysia semalam turut terkejut dengan tindakan Mohammad Nizar sampaikan boleh mempengerusikan 'mesyuarat Exco' berkenaan. "Katakan kepadanya dia hanya main wayang, mesyuarat itu tidak sah, macam mesyuarat budak-budak," katanya. Ketika Mingguan Malaysia membacakan empat keputusan 'mesyuarat' yang 'diluluskan' oleh Mohammad Nizar, Abdul Rahman terdiam seketika. "Cakap pada dia, terima kasih sahajalah," katanya. Hahah. Man, this is so funny. I just can't wait to see how long this ex-MB would last without the support from the Sultan AND the government agencies! Dear Nizar, it would be much better for you to do what Idris Jusoh did in Terengganu last year and accept the Sultan's decision. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------...

Another round of quotable quotes by Bar Council Chairwoman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, constitutional law expert, Prof. Dr. Shad Saleem Faruqi and Kelantan MB, Tuan Guru Nik Aziz. PERAK IN CRISIS - Nizar has no choice but to resign: Bar Council KUALA LUMPUR, Thurs:Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin has no choice but to resign, the Bar Council head said. Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said that Perak ruler Sultan Azlan Shah had acted within the provisions of the state constitution in not agreeing to the dissolution of the state assembly and asking Nizar to quit. “The constitution says that if the MB does not command majority in the state assembly and his request to dissolve the state assembly is not granted by the Sultan, then will have to tender the resignation of the exco, including himself,” she said. “These provisions are similar to those in the Federal Constitution and in this case, the Ruler seemed to be satisfied that he (Nizar) does not command the majority.” [ N...

The circus clown party in Perak is just getting more exciting that I can't afford not to blog about it and be part of history. A simple search on "Perak" on the blogosphere have so far resulted in an impressive 12728 results (via Blogpulse). Below are two quotable quotes from 1) The Group Chief Editor of The Star, Wong Chun Wai and 2) a letter to The Star by Ahmad Hussein. A Game that Anwar Ibrahim lost "It was a high stakes game that Anwar Ibrahim started and he has ended up losing the Perak state government. The PKR tried luring BN representatives to join the party and even set a Sept 16 deadline of forming the next federal government. It failed but many people believed it would take place. In the end, it was just a sham. Then the Pakatan Rakyat tried to woo BN men in Penang, Negri and last week, the Bota state assemblymen. The floodgates, so to speak, were opened. A dangerous political game was played out and in the end, when the BN decided to come in, they walke...

Kuala Terengganu Crystal mosque. (source: The Star ) So, BN has lost yet another parliamentary seat in less than a year, plus the other two seats previously held by the Sabah based party, SAPP. BN and UMNO leaders should come to their senses and realize that after the 8 March political Tsunami, Permatang Pauh and now Kuala Terengganu, the widely perceived perception is that the people rejected them. After all, perception is more important than the real truth in politics. Personally, I do not think that Najib has the credibility or strong political will to carry out the necessary reforms for BN and UMNO. Even as Deputy PM, he has yet to prove that he is really up for the number one job. Politically, the best thing that I can foresee Najib can do is perhaps to be able to reunite the many factions within UMNO, especially those from the anti-Pak Lah group. UMNO is seriously in a total mess. There is also this huge generation gap between the old leaders and the younger generation and it...

..Dialogue session with Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad at the Putrajaya Leadership Foundation. Seated from left were former UMNO Secretaries General, Tan Sri Sanusi Junid and Tan Sri Sabaruddin Chik A quick check shows that TheStar , NST and MalaysianInsider have already carried out the news. NST: Dr Mahathir to submit reports on money politics to disciplinary committee TheStar: Dr M to name UMNO members involved in money politics TheMalaysianInsider: Dr M predicts rampant bribery will bring down Umno at next polls On top of money politics in UMNO which made the headlines, Tun actually talked for about an hour discussing other issues too, e.g. the recent media debate on 'social contract', Malay language and Malay special rights, on Pak Lah's leadership and the March 2009 transition, Pak Lah's judiciary and ACA reform, on the many faces of Anwar Ibrahim, BN's worst performance ever in the 12th general election, on American President-elect Barack Hussein Obama and so on so ...

The Star - No Vote Against PM KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat will not be tabling a vote of no-confidence against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at the moment. Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Pakatan Rakyat Members of Parliament (MPs) instead wanted to focus their attention on the Budget, which he claimed was now outdated in view of the current global economic turmoil. Malaysiakini - PKR: Tiada usul tidak percaya pada PM Ketua Pembangkang tidak berminat meneruskan rancangannya menukar kerajaan persekutuan melalui usul undi tidak percaya terhadap Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi di Dewan Rakyat yang sedang bersidang. Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim berkata beliau sekarang menumpukan fokus pada isu-isu ekonomi, termasuk Bajet 2009. "Buat masa ini fokus kita ialah terhadap bajet," katanya. After the failure of September 16 fed government takeover plan, Anwar put the blame on Pak Lah for not allowing an emergency parliament sesson for the no...