Happy New Year 1430H: Generate Glorious Ummah By Crossing The Border

I read on Malaysiakini's Top Blogs, the theme for this year, 1430H, national-level Maal Hijrah is "Generating Glorious Ummah" -- The celebration will be held @PICC today.

hijrah: cross the border! there's no other choice.

God willing, with unwavering efforts, I think, we will obtain success and blessings from Allah SWT in this world and hereafter.

I am confident that with the Quran as a guide and the Prophet Muhammad’s sunnah (traditions) as a model, all Muslims in Malaysia will be able to explore science and technology further. Hence, the Muslim ummah will be able to gain in strength and influence among the world community.

The Muslim ummah should emulate the Prophet Muhammad’s distinctive personality and his hijrah in carrying out Allah’s will for the creation of a community that can become a new world order.

This is the real model of Hijrah that the Muslim ummah should look for. There’s no other choice.

وَالسَّابِقُونَ الأَوَّلُونَ مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَالأَنصَارِ وَالَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُم بِإِحْسَانٍ رَّضِيَ اللّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُواْ عَنْهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي تَحْتَهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا ذَلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ

"The vanguard - the first of those who forsook (their homes) and of those who gave them aid, and (also) those who follow them in (all) good deeds, - well-pleased is Allah with them, as are they with Him: for them hath He prepared Gardens under which Rivers flow, to dwell therein for ever: that is the supreme felicity." [9: at-tawbah,the repentance:100]

And we, the Muslim ummah, must have hope that Allah SWT will help His believers to remove the tyrannical Rulers that are the descendants of Fir’aun and return the rule of Islam again, through the Caliphate office, to the lands of all the anbiya, rasol, and awliya that walked the earth.

May Allah SWT force us to be the forces of this change! Together we can make a difference -- Salam Ma'al Hijrah!

Anwar eyes East Malaysia despite pact’s troubles

While his allies argue over hudud (Islamic penal code –ed.) laws and fret over the wobbling economy in their five states, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has taken over as liaison chairman for both Sabah and Sarawak in Parti Keadilan Rakyat's (PKR) efforts widen its base and capture the Borneo states.

Anwar is the new liaison chairman for both Sabah and Sarawak in Parti Keadilan. — Pic by Choo Choy May

The opposition leader, who made a triumphant parliamentary comeback in August, is initially eyeing Sarawak in the next state elections due by 2011 as chief minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud faces increased opposition to his 27 years in power.

Sabah is a different proposition as the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition is dominant with 57 of the 60 seats in the state assembly.

But consumed with garnering more support from both states, Anwar has been conspicuously silent about the controversy over implementing Islamic criminal Hudud laws that flared up again this week between Pas and DAP, and Pakatan Rakyat state governments’ efforts to mitigate the fallout from a growing global recession.

“Some things are out of his hand. Anwar will quietly handle Pas and DAP behind the scenes but the economy will take some work,” a Pakatan Rakyat source told The Malaysian Insider, adding the electoral pact had made suggestions in the budget debate.

The PKR supreme council met late Monday night but party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who is Anwar’s wife, only announcement was that Anwar has taken over as liaison chairman for Sabah and Sarawak, citing the appointment as proof of the party's focus to struggle for the people from Perlis to Sarawak.

“The agenda to bring change in Sabah and Sarawak needs the support from all levels of society. Sarawak will have its state elections soon and Datuk Seri Anwar’s appointment as state liaison chairman for both states justify our concern for problems there and is significant in Pakatan Rakyat’s power transition to Putrajaya,” she said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

The Pakatan Rakyat electoral pact, which groups PKR, Pas and DAP, has 81 out of the 222 seats in the federal parliament. BN has 137 seats while the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), which pulled out of BN in September, has two seats and one to Independent Datuk Ibrahim Ali. The Kuala Terengganu seat is vacant with the by-election on Jan 17.

PKR’s focus for the Borneo states has been apparent when Anwar predicted he could form capture Putrajaya by Malaysia Day with help from 30 federal lawmakers after Pakatan Rakyat made a historic upset in the March 8 General Elections where BN lost its customary two-thirds parliamentary majority and four more states to the opposition.

Since then, only SAPP has pulled out of the 14-member BN coalition but has chosen to remain independent in Parliament although its president Datuk Yong Teck Lee is close to the sacked deputy prime minister, who has yet to fulfil his prediction to unseat BN from power.

Anwar, in a posting at his weblog today, called the changes routine and said the state leadership in the party are merely coordinators in an effort to dispel notions of consolidating power for himself as “experienced leaders will be act as advisors at the national level while the new leadership will get exposure apart from introducing new approaches to attract new members”.

“Personally, I am not inclined to coordinate activities in Sabah and Sarawak. In fact, even Wilayah Persekutuan asked me to help but I feel that Tan Sri Khalid as Selangor Menteri Besar, is better there,” Anwar said, adding the appointments will be reviewed regularly.

He also said his offer to help both PKR state liaison committees has been announced before and he hoped to get support from all quarters in both states.

Apart from Anwar heading both Sabah and Sarawak, and Khalid leading Selangor and Wilayah Persekutuan, the other state leaders are Datuk Fauzi Abdul Rahman (Pahang), Datuk Zahrain Mohamed Hashim (Penang), Datuk Kamarul Baharin Abbas (Negri Sembilan), Ahmad Kassim (Kedah), Abdul Aziz Abdul Kadir (Kelantan), Johari Shafie (Perlis), Khalid Jaafar (Malacca), Dr Zaliha Mustaffa (Johor), Osman Abdul Rahman (Perak) and Wan Rahim Wan Hamzah (Terengganu). – The Malaysian Insider, KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 25, 2008

'KLIA East @ Labu’ gets government go-ahead: Airport part of 'massive city'

The cabinet has given the green light for a new low-cost carrier terminal on a 2,800-hectare site in Labu, Negri Sembilan, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat said.

Ong said the new LCCT would be built under a private finance initiative by conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd and budget airline AirAsia.

The airport will anchor Sime Darby's "massive integrated city" development in Labu, which includes five townships with services in education, health, sports, high technology, recreation and entertainment.

The RM1.6 billion terminal will be funded by Sime Darby and joint-venture partners which could include AirAsia and Malaysia Airports Bhd.

Ong said the new terminal was needed as the current facility in Sepang would not be able to cope with the increased passenger volume.

Under its final expansion phase, after which there will be no more room for growth, the Sepang LCCT will have its capacity increased to 15 million passengers a year, a figure industry sources say is likely to be exceeded by 2011.

Including its Thai and Indonesian affiliates, AirAsia flew some 18 million people this year. The new terminal will be built to accommodate 25 million passengers a year, and last on present forecasts until 2030.

Ong said he could not give a timeline on when work would start on the new LCCT.

"It is up to them as to when they want to start work. For our part we will make sure there is connectivity between the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the new LCCT.

"We want to ensure passengers will be able to move from both places speedily, smoothly and efficiently."

To be called "KLIA East@Labu", the new terminal is slightly closer to central Kuala Lumpur than the present LCCT and will boast connectivity by both road and rail.

A 7km branch road will link it with the North-South Expressway and a 3km spur line will be built from the railway station in Labu -- a stop on the KL-Seremban KTM Komuter route.

Welcoming the project's approval, Negri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan said the KLIA would be connected to the new terminal by a 7km Express Rail Link (ERL).

Industry sources said a ground-breaking ceremony was being slated for late next month with construction planned for completion in two years.

When the new facility is commissioned, the Sepang LCCT, which has more than recovered its cost from the explosive increase in passenger numbers over the last two years, will serve other budget carriers, such as Singapore's Tiger Airways.

Mohamad said the siting of the new terminal near Kampung Gadong Jaya in Labu would boost economic growth in the state.

"The location is not far from the existing terminal. It will be an extension of the KLIA.

"When the airport is built, the state can expect economic development, such as housing estates and business centres, in the surrounding areas," he said. -- By : V. Vasudevan , NST

On November 13, 2008 we blogged: “New LCC Airport in Negri Songo”

Rais praises Bush shoe thrower

Malaysia's foreign minister on Friday praised an Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush earlier this week, calling it retaliation for the invasion of Iraq.

"The best show of retaliation so far is the shoe throwing act by that remarkable reporter who gave President Bush his final farewell last week," Foreign Minister Rais Yatim said at an event to commemorate the 63rd anniversary of the United Nations.

"That shoe throwing episode, in my view is truly the best Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) to the leader who coined the phrase 'axis of evil' to denote Iran, Iraq and North Korea," Rais said, according to the advance text of his speech.

Copies of the speech, entitled "The Importance of Peace and Harmony in multiracial Malaysia" were distributed to the media by his office.

TV reporter Muntazer al-Zaidi shot to fame when he called Bush a "dog" in Arabic at a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad last Sunday and threw both his shoes at Bush -- a grave insult in the Arab world.

The incident, replayed again and again on television and the Internet around the world, has been widely condemned in diplomatic circles but the source of great mirth among many ordinary people in the Middle East and beyond.

Zaidi has even been hailed a hero by some commentators, with offers of employment and even proposals of marriage, but he faces criminal charges in Iraq for the attempted assault.

Zaidi was brought before an investigating judge on Tuesday and admitted "aggression against a president", a crime that could incur a 15-year sentence, judicial officials said. He could face trial soon.

On Thursday, the Iraqi prime minister's office said Zaidi had apologised for the incident.

"Zaidi said in his letter that his big ugly act cannot be excused," Maliki's media advisor said.

Mostly Muslim Malaysia, a Southeast Asian country of 27 million people, opposed the Iraq war but is an ally of the U.S. and won favour from Washington after it cracked down on Islamic militants after the 9/11 attacks.

Rais has twice been the country's foreign minister and usually is known for more measured tones. - By David Chance, Fri Dec 19, 2008 5:39pm IST © Thomson Reuters 2008 All rights reserved

Petrol prices cut: RM1.80 per litre wef Tuesday

Malaysia on Monday cut petrol prices by 5.26 percent, bringing pump prices down to 1.80 ringgit (0.51 dollars) per litre amid weak global crude prices.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the 10 sen cut would be effective Tuesday with diesel also reduced by 10 sen to 1.70 ringgit per litre.

"The reduction in the retail price of petrol and diesel by 10 sen a litre is in line with fall in crude oil prices," he said in a statement.

It is the seventh fuel price cut the government has announced since June's 41 percent hike on the back of soaring crude costs, which sparked angry street protests and calls for the premier to resign.

The last cut, also by 10 sen, was on December 2.

June's hike saw inflation soar, with the August price index reaching a 26-year high of 8.5 percent, also driven by the escalating cost of food and transportation.

Inflation has since eased to 7.6 percent in October as fuel prices dropped. -- Agence France-Presse - 12/15/2008 10:12 AM GMT

Ah, cheetah’s potentially unwanted political animals!

Potentially unwanted political animals @Bukit Antarabangsa have been detected by cheetah el-fared.
They have been detected as a component of the potentially unwanted political animals of both divides – the ruling and opposition camps.

“I know you all, Malaysiakini readers, take an interest in matters of political animals’ behaviors. I thought you all might want to know and share your thought about the following sad case, and remarks by BARA spokesperson, Khan,” cheetah wrote Saturday on his blog.

Malaysiakini news portal reported Friday that BARA spokesperson, Khan, on Friday slammed politicians from both the ruling and opposition parties for trying to gain cheap publicity from the tragedy instead of sincerely taking part in rescue and relief efforts, adding that “some are even fighting to occupy a relief centre set up by residents.”

“If they are not going to actively help during this period of crisis, then they should just keep quiet and stand aside,” Khan warned.

“When the disaster struck, we had expected the parties to come together and help us, not to compete and promote their so-called involvement,’ he added.

In his latest post, el-fared asked: “Is there any way that this so-called democratic animal incidents and its animality problem could be rectified?”

We recommend you all mutalaah their BIG CATS behaviors as well for this type of potentially unwanted political animals, and eventually relook at your acts of supporting them. The roots leading to their Big Cats are clear. You all just have to follow the links.

[Take the hint: if the allocations are known before hand, we use arrays; otherwise linked list. if the APF-authorized link list is managed by LLA, enter a F,LLA REFRESH command to refresh the Lookaside Directions -- as you see it.]

Jihadist calls for 'Facebook invasion': SITE

A member of an Islamic jihadist forum who urged supporters last week to wage a "YouTube invasion" by uploading propaganda videos has called for a similar attack on popular social network Facebook.

The SITE Intelligence Group, a US-based monitoring service, reported on Wednesday that the appeal for a "Facebook invasion" was made on Tuesday on al-Faloja, a password-protected jihadist forum.

After praising the "great success" of the "YouTube invasion," the forum member using the name Omar Abdul Hakim called on other members to start using Facebook, describing it as "a podium to reach millions of people."

"We will use Facebook as a new and exclusive media tool to fight the media offensive on jihadist media, its forums, and its websites and in order to reveal the Crusaders," Hakim wrote according to SITE.

The forum member posted instructions on how to register on and use Facebook and outlined "goals of the invasion" as "reaching the vast base of Muslims who subscribe to Facebook" and "participating and interacting with them."

"Let us start to post publications, articles, Islamic and jihadist pictures," Hakim wrote.

Facebook's terms of service prohibit "organizations or groups that promote or glorify hatred, violence, intolerance, Islamic militant groups have used the Internet for some time as a propaganda window and for communications. A draft US Army intelligence report warned recently of the dangers of the micro-blogging service Twitter as a potential terrorist tool.

SITE said that in August of this year, a member of an al-Qaeda-affiliated forum, al-Ekhlaas, had also called on supporters to use Facebook and set up a Facebook group for supporters of al-Qaeda. -- Agence France-Presse - 12/11/2008 12:57 AM GMT [el-fared]

Pilgrims flood Mecca for annual hajj

Saudi Arabia has mobilised a force of 100,000 men to protect an estimated two million Muslim pilgrims starting the annual hajj on Saturday [heading to a tent camp outside the holy city of Mecca in an itinerary retracing the route Prophet Mohammad (saw) took 14 centuries ago –ed.] amid fears of attack or deadly stampedes.

The interior ministry said that in addition to many thousands of Saudis, an estimated 1.7 million of the faithful have descended on the kingdom from abroad to perform the annual rites.

Local press reports spoke of a throng that could reach three million, and the official SPA news agency reported on Saturday that everything was proceeding smoothly.

The hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam which the Qur'an says all Muslims must carry out at least once in their lives, if they are able to do so.

It began early on Saturday as pilgrims arrived on foot or by bus in Mina, a dusty valley 10 kilometres (six miles) from the holy city of Mecca.

Dozens of first aid stations lined the route, SPA reported.

Devotees are spending the day in prayer and contemplation in the valley, transformed into a city of fireproof tents.

At dawn on Sunday, they will head for the top of nearby Mount Arafat. Their time at the summit symbolises the wait for the last judgment and is the high point of the hajj.

Next, the pilgrims return to Mina to sacrifice an animal, usually a sheep, to commemorate the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son on God's orders. This marks the start of the Eid al-Adha, the feast of the sacrifice.

They will spend another two days in Mina for the final rite -- the stoning of Satan. Each pilgrim throws 21 pebbles at each of three pillars symbolising the devil.

It is the most hazardous of the rituals. The pillars were enlarged a few years ago into 25-metre (80-foot) high concrete blocks. Bridges have been built at three levels at the site to help prevent a recurrence of fatal stampedes.

The vast tide of humanity massing in relatively small spaces has been the source of the bloodiest disasters, with stampedes causing the deaths of 364 people in 2006, 251 in 2004 and 1,426 in 1990.

After the stoning ceremony, the pilgrims go to Mecca's Great Mosque for a "farewell visit" to the Kaabah, a cube-shaped structure into which is set the Black Stone, Islam's most sacred relic.

US-made Sikorsky S-92 helicopters fitted with sophisticated technology such as night vision equipment are being used for the first time amid the spectre of the attacks which have haunted Saudi Arabia in recent years.

"(Saudi forces) are ready to cope with their responsibilities," Interior Minister Prince Nayef Bin Abdel Aziz said after inspecting the security forces supervising the hajj.

"Terrorism is not finished. It is still going," Prince Nayef told journalists ahead of the pilgrimage. -- Agence France-Presse - 12/6/2008 12:11 PM GMT