Happy Birthday, Khairy

KJ on UMNO Youth platform

Today is MP for Rembau YB Tuan Haji Khairy Jamaluddin’s thirty fifth birthday.  One time Special Officer to then Minister of Home Affairs, he became Special Officer to the Deputy Prime Minister before marrying his Boss’s only daughter. Then soon after the 11th General Elections where BN had a thumping landslide, Khairy was alleviated as the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister.

Then the notorious ‘Level Four Boys’ was formed, structured and effectively, was the highest decision making forum in the country.

SIL and FIL: The two most instrumental to bring Malaysia to the dark ages of 2004-2009

It was so popular that Fourth Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad spoke about it in his first open critic against the PM ‘Flip-Flop’ Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s regime at a public talk organised by new media practitioners at Kelab Century Paradise, Taman Melawati, Hulu Kelang on 22 June 2006.

At the dedication of TENC, Pavillion

The ‘reign of terror’ of the ‘Level Four Boys’ did not end when Khairy left the Prime Minister’s Private Office in third quarter of 2005. It made things much slicker for him to move as an ‘entrepreneur’, cutting deals. He then conveniently joined stock broking firm ECM Libra, in the midst of obtaining a universal stock broking license.

Some describe him as a 'Thinking Man'

End of the year, the controversy of smaller-firm ECM Libra trying to ‘take over’ a much larger firm Avenue Capital, which was controlled by MOF Inc where his father-in-law is the Chairman of Federal Government investment arm. When asked about the takeover bid, his coy but infamous response was “I don’t know, I’m not involved”.

The Seri Perdana Soiree: A party for the very selected few to mark the nation's 50th birthday on Government's tab

It was the same time Khairy arrogantly made statements like “I want to be the Prime Minister by the age of forty” and drew parallel with the ‘aggressiveness’ of  Tun Dr. Mahathir as “Being the more ‘political son’ as compared to his own son”. The year before The Edge dubbed him as “The most powerful 28 year old in the country”. Events like Monsoon Cup and the infamous Seri Perdana soiree.

2006-9 UMNO Youth Vice Chief 'Samseng'

The two years pre-12 GE were the years KJ, as he fondly known as, gained notoriety fame in the eyes of majority of Malaysians. His statement “If there were no monkeys, then the tree would not be shaken” earned him the metaphor that he is so famous for, where it is reflected in Google. The ‘barraging-the-barricade’ at KLCC Convention Centre during the official visit of US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice in July 2006 and the Ijok by-elections April 2007 allowed the Oppositions to portray then the UMNO Youth  Vice Chief as a ‘thug’ (samseng).

An MP and a father, all in the same year

On 8 March 2008 12th General Elections, he was elected Yang Berhormat representing Rembau constituency in the Dewan Rakyat. So many even within UMNO blamed him for BN’s poor performance in  5 + 1 states,  where  it was common knowledge he was one of PM ‘Flip-Flop’ Abdullah’s lousy advisers and so many BN supporters and sympathisers wanted to ‘teach’ the Leadership a lesson. It was also said that Khairy was the person who vehemently recommended that ultra liberal Malays Dato’ Zaid Ibrahim and Dato’ Amirsham A Aziz be brought into the Cabinet.

KJ won Pemuda UMNO Head position

On 25 March 2009, Khairy was elected UMNO Youth Chief with 304 votes casted from nearing 800 UMNO Youth delegates despite polling last from the Divisional nominations. Although he managed to secure the Vice-President stature post amidst his across-the-board unpopularity within UMNO and now a de facto BN Youth Leader, his politically career did not progress much. Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak did not make him a Minister or Deputy Minister in the 9 April 2009 Cabinet reshuffle. Neither did Khairy get any GLC board-of-director or any Commission’s membership.

We, like so many others are unequivocally clear and determined that some if not all answers needed from the man.

Bazaar magazine front cover

That did not a bit damper his spirit to be a celebrity-politician. He is one of the shareholders of The Emperor New Clothes boutique, opened in the upmarket Pavilion. He even appeared on stage in a batik catwalk with his dotting wife recently.

Khairy and Nori doing the catwalk

Khairy did not just lay back and do nothing. With the consulting-flavoured way of how the Federal Government of doing things, he launched his BN Youth Laboratories in early 2010. It had the to “Help the government formulate policies”. They came out a series of consultations and eventually recommendations that even PM Dato’ Seri Najib paid attention and agreed to invest RM 20 million from the 2011 Budget into these labs. He enrolled into the ATM’s reservist program (Wataniah Regiment) as a recruit despite that his stature, which he could opt to be trained as an officer. The Jelajah One Malaysia (JOM) also is said to be a huge success by UMNO Youth, guised under BN Youth, visited homes of multiracial Malaysians across the nation and homes of poor people being fixed.

PM Najib giving the 'thumbs up' in the JOM Bus

Then suddenly the ‘merajuk‘. On the last Sunday in the first decade of the third millennium, one of the most aggressive and ambitious politician post-Anwar “Mat King Leather” Ibrahim’s UMNO tenure ‘prematurely’ announced that he would not be standing in at the net general elections. Not exactly a ‘warrior’s’ material now, are we?

Pte Khairy Jamaluddin, at his passing out parade as a member of the Wataniah Regiment. A very good example for Malaysian youths to emulate

Never the less, today is his day. We shall not be too harsh on him, at least for the day. However, some people already gave him a really unorthodox gift.