'It is shameful for Umno's 60 years of existence that they are not allowing a news portal the chance to report independently.'

Malaysiakini booted from Umno AGM media room

Lurun Hazzi: Khairy Jamaluddin, don't spout rubbish when basic media freedoms can't even be ensured. Who is the one indulging in cheap politics ? The facts speaks for itself. You can - or you may - influence the 700 delegates who attended the Umno Youth meeting, but you can't influence the rest of us.

Abil: So much for the so-called inclusiveness of Umnoputras. It is shameful for Umno's 60 years of existence that they are not allowing a news portal the chance to report independently.

KJ John: This is obviously the work of little ‘idiocrats' who do not know the what, why and how of Umno trying to renew itself vide president Najib Razak's leadership. Let us give Khairy a chance to get us back in. Otherwise, so much for talk versus walk.

Rayfire: Anyway, why cover an event of little relevance to the general public? Umno AGMs are only concerned about Umno Malay rights and cronies' privileges. Anything else they say is just to hoodwink the vulnerable non-Malays into believing they are the only ones who can safeguard their future.

The problem is, some still actually fall for it. So save your resources, Malaysiakini , and cover more meaningful events!

Harrisman: Another way to persecute and prevent freedom of information. Is there anything that they cannot show to the world other than their own people?

Focus: It does not matter, Malaysiakini , for in this age of information overload, there is no short supply of it. Umno is still stuck in the paradigm of past thinking. ‘Inclusiveness', ‘media liberalisation' and such terms are meaningless when they come from deceitful hearts.

Amaso: Come on guys, it is a trick by Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor to show that Umno is democratic and open, so he promised access to Malaysiakini reporters. But the person-in-charge in the media hall is instructed to do the dirty work of barring Malaysiakini reporters. Umno actually doesn't want Malaysiakini to cover the AGM. Ini semua wayang, lah .

Whether Malaysiakini covers the AGM or not makes no difference: it's all talk, grand statements, slogans and in the end, delegates go home and things go back to normal. Umno won't change because Umno culture is so deeply rooted since 1957. Had Umno listened to the people and changed, the political tsunami of March 2008 would not have happened.

Singa Pura Pura: Courage, my Malaysiakini friends, when you come face-to-face with beasts at Monsters, Incorporated. They wanted to trample you, yet did not have the dignity equal to their obesity. This is the politics of losers.

Alan Goh: Malaysiakini reporters, you are lucky because you were shown the door and not thrown out. Did anyone shout at you to ‘balik China' or ‘balik India'? Were you called names like ‘si-mata sepet' or ‘si-botol'.

When Umno wants non-Malay votes, they talk of things pleasant to their ears, but when confronted by Perkasa, their guts disappear and suffer from a hernia.

Cala: The episode proves that most people love to hear what they believe. But Malaysiakini chooses to report the truth - instead of placating the powerful - and in the process, is shown the door.

I remember Ong Ka Ting once said: ‘When you are in power, how can you stay humble? In every event in which you are invited, you get to sit on the stage.'

Chipmunk: This is the reason why Malaysia has plunged 10 notches to 141 in the 2010 World Press Freedom Index - the lowest in nine years - putting it firmly in the bottom quarter of 178 countries.

So now you know why Umno behaves the way they did.

Lowest press freedom ranking in nine years

Monsterball: Great to note that the Indonesian press is more free than Malaysia. They got rid of the mighty Golkar party... and see where it is now.

Lim Cheng Inn: The government has made a monkey of themselves. Even if Pakatan Rakyat is voted in to run the federal government today, the mess that the new government has to clear would be a gigantic task.

Md Imraz Muhammed Ikhbal: I just called and asked my dad to make guess on out of 178 countries in the world surveyed for press freedom, where did he think Malaysia ranks this year?

He guessed and said, "150?"

I said, "Wrong! We are not that bad. Malaysia ranks at 141."

Whilst laughing, he retorted and asked, "What's the difference?"

I replied, "Nine"!

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