Parliament dissolution: surprised though very much expected...

more shocked than surprised because our PM actually lied at press conference, again. Didn’t think it was funny – he is actually losing credibility.

At 12.46pm: I received sms from friend: 'confirmed Parliament just dissolved after 12pm. No wonder mkt dropped suddenly after 12pm.' I was actually in an oil palm estate in Selama, Kedah. As soon as I got back in the evening, just before 9pm, I logged on to find out more from the internet:

A headline in Malaysiakini:
Anwar says early election ‘shameful’
'It is unprecedented that you would call elections after three and half years with a more than two-thirds majority, says the de facto PKR leader.'

Malaysia Today: Your source of independent news
'This site is down for maintenance.Please check back again soon.'
… another attack?

Lim Kit Siang:
Time to walk the talk

'The time has come for us to walk the talk. The time is now because we are marching into battle with little resources. We need your financial assistance to help force changes to a system that continues to repulse and insult us after 50 years of independence.'

'I had intended to put up the appeal for support for DAP Election Fund together with support for a Fund for the Foundation for Justice, Freedom and Equality to promote the betterment of Malaysian society, including public litigation, publications, educational programmes as well as outreach to marginalised Malaysians, but the latter project will now have to wait until after the 12th general election.
Let us unite with single-minded objective - to turn the 12th general election into the electoral battle of the century to initiate meaningful change in Malaysia, first time in the nation’s 50-year history. For this we need your generous support for the DAP Election Fund.'

Zorro unmasked:
Mother of all flip-flops?
"The Cabinet meeting will go on, go on and go on. You are the smart aleck, you all enjoy circulating the rumours," he said with a smile.

The PM said this when asked if this ( cabinet meeting) was the last. At a little over 12.40pm Shanghai Steve sent me an sms that read:"Parliament dissolved as of now."

What brought about this FLIP-FLOP? Royal intervention? Bomoh? Peer pressure? Samy's Insistence? Khairy's Wish?

Patrick Teoh’s Niamah:
And so here we go again!
'Abdullah Badawi (I really don't want to call him Pak Lah anymore) has announced the dissolution of Parliament and the elections must be held within 60 days of that action. And once again Malaysians are given the chance to have their say in the way they want their country to be run and by whom. Call me a cynic or whatever other name you want la but I am not really holding my breath for any earth shattering results that will make life in Bolehland any different from the way it's been the last 3 decades. Why you ask? Maybe you've been living in Lalaland or somewhere as far away but if you need to ask that question you really need to stay where you are. In Denial. Why? Just take a look around. Take a look at what's been happening the last few weeks leading up to this announcement of the dissolution of Parliament.'

'We Malaysians, or at least the way the ruling YB's treat us, seem to be like a bunch of spoilt, bratty children. We whine and cry and stamp our feet. Then like bad parents the YB's throw us a few candies and we stop whining and become good, obedient children for a while. Meaning we keep our mouths shut and out of the parent's way as they go about doing whatever they want. We don't care what. Got sweet already enough la.'

'So elections are coming. So the YB's travel the country distributing their candy pacifiers and come election day they will get their two thirds majority and then they will screw things around for another 5 years and then we start whining again and then they throw us some candy and then...'

Before the announcement, I was about to write about what Patrick Teoh said, so instead of repeating something similar, I restrict myself to the following comments:

Khairy was reported to have said “DAP doesn’t have the right appeal”. Well, if you take away PM’s powers from Pak Lah, has he got the right appeal? If you take away Pak Lah as PM, has Khairy got the right appeal? If only there is a level playing field in our elections, many people would like to know how Khairy would fare in the elections.

Knowing Khairy had a hand in deciding the date of the General Elections, if Anwar is irrelevant, why deny him the chance to prove it?