Apparently Stevie Wonder is also related to Najib!

A very small world indeed ...

Sigh. Looks like this blog is going to degenerate into some sort of Jho gossip rag :P First some pics you might’ve seen already, and then some you probably have not re: more Rosmah debauchary.

(ps- is all this just jealousy? You bet. You’ll probably catch me doing worse some day. Just. Hopefully. Not on the rakyat’s dime).

So, just after we read this:

Malaysian millionaire Taek Jho Low has been asked by his father to lie low after news of him and American party girl Paris Hilton exploded on the media worldwide.

His father, a businessman, told Sin Chew Daily he had told his son to be cautious with his words and actions

We get wind of this:

Ah, see that last one? One day I will be part of the entourage – probably the hamsuplo on the bottom right. Flers fingers like mine, mebbe more ways than one :P

These pictures were reportedly taken at Byblos Nightclub in Saint Tropez. Don’t ask me where that is – not rich or famous enough to know :) This gossip site (with quite the picture) has the amount spent that night at 1.8 million POUNDS (RM 8.8 million today, if you’re counting. In. A. Single. Night.). Erk.

Eh, but you all don’t hate on Jho so much k? Mebbe it’s true love:

Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

CAPTION CONTEST TIME! haha :)

The other thing I came across over the weekend were photos taken during a “Faces of 1Malaysia” dinner was held at the Mandarin Oriental in Washington DC on April 13th, 2010.

These pictures feature, of all people, Stevie Wonder!

Haha, no that video was not from the event. But these pics apparently were:

Do I have any way of proving this wasn’t just some other dinner? Nope, can’t say I do, but if anyone wants to deny it, please feel free.

As I said before, there’s generally no harm in indulging in all sorts of debauchary – I’m no moralist in that regard. That said though:

1. This is the PM and his wife we’re talking about.

2. How much is all this costing WHO exactly?

I think the latter question is the one and only thing that justifies our continued attention.

This obssession with celebrities must also give us pause as to the nature of the second couple – what their priorities are in life, what they want to spend money on, and how they go about spending that money.

More thoughts on these to come soon I hope.

Oh! And I almost forgot. A great little bird from the UK sent me a press statement from the Bruno Manser Fund today:

The Oxford University’s Saïd Business School has come under fire over an invitation extended to Taib Mahmud, the controversial Chief Minister of the Malaysian state of Sarawak. Taib Mahmud will present an opening address at the “Oxford Global Islamic Branding and Marketing Forum” to be held on 26-27 July 2010. British civil society groups have announced a protest rally for tomorrow morning, 26 July 2010, in front of the Saïd Business School.

According to a joint NGO statement, which will be released tomorrow, Taib is “one of Asia’s greatest kleptocrats” who has “systematically plundered the rich Borneo jungles for timber”. “Most of the state of Sarawak has been illegally absorbed into the possession of his cronies and family members through ‘privatisations’ and the handing out of palm oil and timber concessions, via arbitrary state acquisitions of native lands.” This has resulted in “environmental destruction, serious human rights violations and poverty.”

By inviting Taib Mahmud as a keynote speaker, the Saïd Business School is not only offending Sarawak’s native communities and Malaysia’s civil rights movement but is also betraying the Oxford University’s integrity and academic tradition.

Right on the money.

And oh, how did Taib get this invitation in the first place?

I don’t suppose it has anything to do with oh, I don’t know, Washington based lobbying firms perhaps? Ones with secretaries named Jo maybe?

As the cliche has it, the plot thickens.

ps- Must highlight a follow-up from Wendy Brandes, who was quoted as an eyewitness source from last post. Thanks Wendy!

I’m glad you find my telling of the story amusing! I can assure you every word of it is true and even understated. As you say, I’m a complete outsider and have no agenda. I did try to stay polite, since I was an invited guest, and not speculate on how all those celebrities came to be there. It was one of the most peculiar events I had ever been to and I’m not surprised that it’s become part of a larger issue.

pps- Neverending supply of pics. More here