Author: Dr Navin C Naidu

Control freaks

The apotheosis of the controlling mind is monstrous and terrifying. – Stewart Stafford, American author Control freaks traditionally tend to have a psychological need to be in charge of things and people — even circumstances that cannot be controlled. The need for control, in extreme cases, stems from deeper psychological

Stealth, secrets and surprises

Secrecy, once accepted, becomes an addiction.– Edward Teller, theoretical physicist There was a flurry of reports and allegations recently concerning foreign bank accounts belonging to Malaysian public officials. Facts supposedly reveal proof and evidence. Its axiomatic that people have the same right as facts to change their minds and perspectives.

The consent of the governed

The absence of the consent of the governed in government is the very definition of slavery. — Jonathan Swift, Irish satirist One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws, explained Martin Luther King, Jr., for which there should be no retribution. Howard Zinn explained that protest beyond the law

The culture of lawlessness

Lawless are they that make their wills their law. – William Shakespeare (The Two Gentlemen of Verona) The culture of lawlessness is the bane of elected government actors in the role of ‘robbinghoods’ engaging in unstoppable, uncontrollable and unspeakable illegal activities under colour of law. The voters are in a

Cracking chicanery codes

The criminal law is no use to decent people. – George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright   A code is universally known as “a system of words, letters, figures, or symbols used to represent others, especially for the purposes of secrecy”. Going by this definition, the United States Code, Malaysia’s Criminal Procedure

Triune trialogue

A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves.  – Edward R. Murrow, American broadcaster American lawyer Alexander Bickel postulated, a few decades ago, that courts and legislatures must interact on a regular basis because they serve the public interest (commune bonum) – individually and collectively. So, if public

Money-free elections

Once in a while, an innocent man is sent to the legislature. – Mark Twain, American writer Mark Twain’s paradox would postulate that, in a perfect world, the whole idea of running for public office is to serve the public selflessly. Hidden agendas, unseen hands, ulterior motives, undue influence, deception,

Where the buck must stop

You can delegate authority, but you cannot delegate responsibility. – Byron L. Dorgan, former US Senator President Harry S. Truman had a sign on his desk that read “the buck stops here.” Those four words spell mental agility, accountability, responsibility and response-ability. Read: Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the sacking of

The language of governance

Language is very powerful. It does not just describe reality, it creates the reality it describes. – Desmond Tutu, South African Bishop When government cannot be cured but endured; tolerated instead of being outlawed; or redesigned as an unpopular formula, the inevitable political suicide is akin to rearranging the deck

Secrets’ societies

Sunshine is the greatest disinfectant.– Associate Justice Louis Brandeis, US Supreme Court (1916-1939) Politicians gloat about the need for transparency, responsibility, accountability as they wield power to classify, or declassify, certain documents deemed surreptitiously secret. The media frenzy over this issue in the USA is on overdrive while most Americans