6/06/2010

NEW ECONOMIC POLICY AND ISRAEL


Israeli forces boarded the Rachel Corrie yesterday after it ignored orders not to head for Gaza, but there was no repetition of the bloody violence that erupted when commandos stormed an aid boat earlier in the week.
The Israeli navy, whose actions on Monday triggered an international outcry, took control of the Rachel Corrie and sailed it to this port where it docked yesterday evening, the Israeli military said.
The military said in a statement: “19 people were on board the boat including eight crew, all of whom will be transferred to the appropriate authorities in the Interior Ministry.”


Contrast the 2 scenarios.
1. A Prime Minister who did what he had to do - to uphold his country understanding of security even when he faces tremendous pressure from the international community.

2. A Prime Minister who spoke with so much conviction and clarity when he first proposed the New Economic Model(based on recommendations by economic experts to make Malaysia more competitive internationally) but now crashes when he has to face-on with pressure groups from his own race.

Would you put your faith in a leader who "cracks-up" when the push becomes a shove?

Would you put your faith in that leader when the very future of his country and the well being of your family is at stake?

Pakatan Rakyat leaders have castigated Datuk Seri Najib Razak for not defending the New Economic Model (NEM) against its Malay critics, who claim it erodes their rights.
The prime minister had described the NEM as a “trial balloon”, saying the policy had yet to be finalised in his speech at the closing ceremony of the first Malay Consultative Council (MPM) congress held yesterday at the PWTC. The NEM will be tabled within the 10th Malaysia Plan this June 10.
Datuk Zaid Ibrahim ... said he did not know why people continued to expect so much of Najib.
“What has he done different from before? He hasn’t done anything,” he told The Malaysian Insider.
Zaid said he was not surprised at this development, citing the prime minister’s alleged failure at tackling subsidy reform and plugging leakages in government spending.
Zaid said he was unsurprised by the apparent capitulation.
“He’s not a strong leader. I don’t think he has the political strength [and] this is just one of those manifestations.