what is book reading? it is a term used by the monthly little penang street market (LPSM), which is one of their activity. the explanation goes:

Provides an opportunity for the Penang public to meet Penang and Malaysian authors, to listen to their work and discuss it together. Again, making the written word more directly accessible to Penang audiences is what drives this activity. It also gives an opportunity for newer writers to showcase their work and for their talents to be nurtured. 

thank you to the great people of permating pauh for giving anwar an over-whelming majority! i knew anwar would win but i thought maybe only 1000 or so majority. boy, was i glad when i found out it was over 15,000 majority! my reaction was the exact opposite of my reaction when i heard that the arrogant son-in-law won in rembau on 8 march!! now, i hope, with anwar in parliament, he will go bury khairy!! (say, it rhyme. all together now - bury khairy! bury khairy! bury khairy!).

latest update from malaysiakini:

9.50pm: Final official EC tally - Anwar got 31,195 votes, Arif Shah, 15,524, Hanafi, 92. Anwar won with a majority of 15,671.

Anwar’s wife, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, won the seat with a 13,388 majority at the March 8 general elections.

The turnout is 80 percent, or 46,811 voters, which is much higher than what the EC has stated earlier.

Meanwhile, outside Tuanku Bainun Teaching Institute, thousands of jubilant PKR supporters have gathered to embrace their leader’s return to Parliament.

PKR vice-president Azmin Ali is already there to address the crowd numbering some 6,000. Other party leaders like R Sivarasa and Tian Chua are also there.

Anwar is expected to address this ecstatic group of supporters later as well. Tian said that the overwhelming victory showed that "the prime minister’s racial politics is bankrupt".

8pm: Unofficial results: Anwar Ibrahim win with a majority of 16,210 votes. He garnered 26,646 votes while Arif Shah Omar Shah got 10,436.

Anwar’s wife, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, won the seat with a 13,400 majority at the March 8 general elections.

However, PKR unofficial results - Anwar wins with a majority of 17,652, obtaining 31,949 votes. BN’s Arif Shah garnered 14,297 while Akim’s Hanafi Hamat got 74. Hanafi to lose his RM15,000 deposit. But this figure would mean 46,320 voters cast their ballots instead of the EC’s 38,144.

O God, we understand You today as Lord
not only of individuals but also of nations and governments,

We thank You for the graces you have given us
to exercise our political charity in Malaysia.

We also thank you for the opportunity of free choice offered to the people
of the constituency of Permatang Pauh for electing a leader.

Lord God, give them the courage to exercise their solemn duty
as citizens of Malaysia to vote on behalf of the whole nation.

Guide those voters with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit
so that they may choose a suitable and trustworthy candidate
in becoming the next Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh

We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(first appeared in this post. this is not my own composition but from the herald catholic paper)’

NOTE: for live coverage of the polls today, apart from malaysiakini (which seems hard to get in but there is a malaysiakini mirror site), visit anil netto’s blog. (good update there!)
also, don’t forget to check out mafrel’s blog for updates too, particularly on complaints received.

… that he was forced by his ‘orang atasan’ to oversee the swearing of saiful and to accept the swearing.

i was at the press conference with susan loone, after we attended the PKR ceramah for the permatang pauh by-election. (before the PC, he did talked about this in the ceramah attended by about 6000 people). here is a picture of the iman (holding the mic) which i took at the press conference. many medias were present especially the online media like malaysiakini, merdeka review, the nut graph.

he said some other things of course and the journalists there were eager to throw questions at him, including susan. you will sure read about it in susan’s blog then in the alternative media. it’s late now so i can’t write more (just came back home after 2.00am!). just want to announce this headline first before i go to bed. will write more tomorrow (but you’ll read about it at other places already. never mind. it’ll be my personal account. also lots to tell about yesterday’s eventful evening where i went to mafrel office, got interviewed together with 4 others, then hunting around for PKR ceramah venue and running into famous bloggers like haris of people’s parliament,, zorro and also RPK of malaysia today!).

UPDATED: read the views from these bloggers who were there:
susan loone - iman was ordered to witness saiful’s oath (video)
haris - breaking news from permatang pauh: iman ramlang porigi - saya diarahkan
zorro - the package arrived at padang ibu - safe!
anil netto - live from penanti: iman’s reveleation about saiful’s oath

malaysiakini

… because he was involved in the UMNO protest in penang a week after 8 march!! well… that is only ONE of the reason.
watch this video and found out more. thanks to wits0 for pointing out this video to me.

UPDATED: click on comments to read another interesting statutory declaration.

the arrogant son in law stated "we are here to bury anwar"… so went the headline in malaysiakini. judging from the reaction of malaysiakini readers and in the blogosphere (like here and here), it looks like many were pissed off with his statement here. under ‘your say‘ of malaysiakini, one person said that it is BN that will be buried! well i hope so. i hope the voters of permatang pauh will be wise to bury BN forever and ever!!

… particularly umno of course.

listen to what the traitor boy ezam had to say in malaysiakini:

Ezam also claimed that Anwar handed out projects worth RM1 billion each to 15 bumiputera companies when he was deputy prime minister and finance minister, before ex-premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad sacked him from the BN-led government in 1998.

"These projects were given out under direct negotiations under the finance minister’s (Anwar) instruction. Now he talks about open tenders, but when he was in the Finance Ministry, he gave (these projects) to cronies," claimed Ezam, who was also Anwar’s former political secretary.

… as the education ministry generously announced a RM1 million allocation to 5 chinese schools in permatang pauh, so went the report from malaysiakini.

oh wow! why there’s no by-election in my area ah? few  schools here, chinese, indian, malays are run-down and need renovations. the road here ah very bumpy with many potholes. if there is a by-election, guarantee all these will be solved by BN!! not fair lah!

listen to what arif shah had the cheek to say here (all quoted text taken from malaysiakini):

from anil netto’s blog:

The Herald, a Catholic weekly published in Malaysia, is under further pressure from the Home Ministry, which will be scrutinising its forthcoming editorial on the Permatang Pauh by-election. The edition will reach the churches in the peninsula this weekend.

“The editorial is only asking people to pray for a just and fair by-election. Can’t we Christians ask fellow Christians to pray? Is that against the law?” Herald editor Fr Lawrence Andrew, SJ was quoted as saying.