More Statistics, Anyone?

Source of info: Kwang Wah Yit Poh Polling Result, 29th Sept 2006

An online polling was conducted by Kwang Wah Yit Poh on LKY's remark, whether they feel that Chinese community in Malaysia was being marginalised or not. Out of 244 votes till date, 243 felt that marginalisation has taken place. By looking at the distribution of voters, the group with highest vote count is "male", "university graduates" at "age group of 21-30". I believe this group is basically the workhorse for the next 20 to 30 years and seriously, it does not look good when they have lose faith in the current situation.

By the way, I hope the DPM, Najib is paying attention to the poll result since he intiated the effort to "get people's opinion". More statistics anyone?

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

"Necessity" vs. "Will"

Shortage of funds affects all districts - Baling's poor and destitute are not the only ones who have not been paid their allowances in the past four months, Kedah Social Welfare Department director Hadisah Hamid said. She added that the shortage was caused by Federal funds meant for them being used to help flood victims. “This has caused an imbalance in the payout to poor single mothers, the aged and the disabled in all districts in Kedah,'' she said yesterday. (The Star, 29th Sept 2006)

It makes me wonder whether is our country so tight on money. I am seriously against building of the sports complex in London. "HIGH PERFORMANCE TRAINING CENTRE"? We don't even have enough money to help the poor so why should we spend it on something that is not necessary. It is a "necessity" vs. "will" situation but I guess "will" is having an upper hand now.

No Salary Revision For Poor Civil Servant

PM: No salary revision for cops and civil servants - The government has shot down the request by Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) and the police force for a salary revision. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad said the government is not ready to pay higher salaries now as available funds need to be channelled for development. (The Sun, 28th Sept 2006)

Halting the super duper sports complex in London should save us a few billion's bucks for our poor civil servant. Alternatively for a quick solution, we can consider looking into sacking the slacking ambulance service providers and immigration officers, and put the money into good use. Well, maybe showing the "Malaysia Boleh" spirit to other countries is more important than feeding your people. What can I say, "Malaysia Tak Boleh" again?

Link: Privatisation of ambulance service, Getting passport stamped, did I not try to?, A simple comparison tells the story

Bumiputera Equity at 45%

Asli welcomes discourse on bumiputra equity ownership - The Sun, 29th Sept 2006

• The Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute's Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) would welcome the opportunity to discuss its findings on Bumiputra equity ownership with other non-partisan bodies and individuals.
• The "Corporate Equity Distribution" report, which was based on primary and secondary research, found that Bumiputra corporate share may be as high as 45%, rather than the official 2004 estimate of 18.9%.
• Several individuals have disputed the validity of the report's findings, including Malay Chamber of Commerce Malaysia treasurer general Zainol Abidin Abdul Hamid and Universiti Putra Malaysia economics lecturer Judhiana Abdul Ghani.
• Zainol said the CPPS report was inaccurate because it contradicted official statistics, while Judhiana said even if the target of 30% Bumiputra equity has already been achieved by the New Economic Policy, ownership is concentrated in the hands of a small group.
• Lim said the study was undertaken by a multi-racial group of scholars and consultants as part of work in connection with the Ninth Malaysia Plan.

ASLI has agreed for a discussion with non-partisan bodies and individuals, so government, are you going to initiate similar effort to debate your computation? I would totally ignore Zainol's comment since that is not even a debating statement, but only pledges of loyalty to the government. Yeah right, government cannot go wrong! As for Judhiana's claim that 30% equity has been achieved but in the hands of a small group, are we having a new definition of 30% equity possession again? Anyway, I would like to thank Judhiana for her supporting statement, to prove that there is basis for ASLI's number.

While someone has commented that the computation was done by a single race (which obviously is wrong as "the study was undertaken by a multi-racial group of scholars and consultants"), did anyone noticed that those refused to accept the stats are also from a single race only? Laughing stock again?

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

Privatisation Of Ambulance Service

Govt gives up on hopeless ambulance service - The Sun, 26th Sept 2006

• The government has given up on trying to correct the attitude of civil servants to provide satisfactory ambulance service at government hospitals.
• "The attitude of drivers and lack of trained personnel have given us no choice but to to privatise the service," said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek.
• He said a proposal on this was submitted to the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) last June (2006) and the ministry was awaiting approval.
• "Because of this, we feel it is better to rent the ambulances or pay to use the private ones available," he told reporters after launching a "Special Discounted Indemnity Insurance Scheme for Young Medical Doctors" here today.
• "It's akin to being at a restaurant. The presence of many waiters does not mean that your food will arrive fast," he added.

I second the move to privatise ambulance service, since they are really helpless. Before that let's make sure we sack all the problematic civil servants that has serious attitude problems. We do not want to pay them the same salary while doing nothing. We have enough "white elephants" in the zoo.

A True Malaysian

His heart still beats for Malaysia - The Star, 28th Sept 2006

• Billionaire Robert Kuok owns newspapers and a television station but his evasion of the media cloaks him in mystery. Known as the master of networking, he has one of the best links with the leadership of China, one of the fastest-growing economies, but the Johor-born businessman is still very much a Malaysian at heart.
• “Build up the country through education,” he advised, saying that education must not be compromised.
• Kuok stressed that he cared a lot for the country, and he called on Malaysians to do business the honest and hard way.
• “Business is always hard work. Many people think they can make money with the Government’s help.
• “You have to do business the proper way. Never bribe anyone. Money can be made slowly,” he said.

I couldn't agree more with the headlines that Robert Kuok's heart still beats for Malaysia. He knows what is happening back in the hometown, "education must not be compromised" and "you have to do business the proper way". True Malaysians are those that speak with conscience and stand-up to defend the truth, not those that try to stay in the same boat, waiting for a chance to make it to the top.

43 More To Go

Education Minister has very good and long-term plans, says Ka Ting - The Star, 28th Sept 2006

• MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting has welcomed the Education Ministry’s approval to build two Chinese primary schools under the Ninth Malaysia Plan.
• “I know Datuk Seri Hishammuddin has very good and long-term plans for our Malaysian education system. He is taking care of our multi-ethnic society,” Ong said.

Not too bad, 2 Chinese primary schools against 180 schools to be build under 9MP. That's not even 1%, considering the fact that "he is taking care of our multi-ethnic society". 43 more to go before reaching the number of Chinese primary school in year 1957.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

A Marginalisation?

Source of info from Kwong Wah Yit Poh, 26th Sept 2006

Source of info from International Times, 27th Sept 2006

I would like to share some information that I read recently from Kwang Wah Yit Poh and International Times, and am compiling the important points in English for the benefit of all readers.

• From overall 9MP fund allocation for primary school, only a tiny 3.6% that goes to Chinese primary school and none of the 180 primary schools to be build is Chinese and Tamil school.
• In year 1957, there are 310,000 Chinese student in 1333 Chinese schools and the number of Chinese student has increased to 636,000 in year 2006.
• However, Chinese school was reduced significantly to 1288 Chinese schools, 45 less than the figure in 1957.
  

Malaysia ethnics ratio is Malay 50.4%, Chinese 23.7%, Indigenous 11%, Indian 7.1%, others 7.8% (2004 est. - source). 3.6% of fund allocation and 0/180 schools for 23.7% of Chinese population, while the number of Chinese schools is shrinking with increased Chinese students, can we consider this extend, a "marginalisation" or Chinese education's crisis?

You don't have to crack your brain and think hard to get an answer. Maybe someone is waiting for LKY to announce the stats or else, we should just shut-up and try to work out a solution for this very tough mathematical equation.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

4 Main Factors For Success Of Nation

Four main factors for success of nation - TAMIL Nesan, in its editorial, said the tremendous success achieved by the Government in 49 years of independence was due to national stability, racial unity, continued growth and security, factors that Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak recently said were important for all Malaysians to continue to maintain. (27th Sept 2006)

How are we doing on the 4 main factors for the sucess of nation?

1. National stability, with high graft allegations and internal political disputes?
2. Racial Unity, with KJ's racist poision?
3. Continued growth, with our WEF ranking dropping one rung?
4. Security, with high crime rate and loose border control?

I bet we are not very successful at this point of time, by definition. We are losing it fast.... don't you think so?

How Well Are We Performing "Fact"ually

Malaysia among top 10 in Asia - New Straits Times, 27th Sept 2006

• Malaysia is the second most competitive country in Asean after Singapore, and remains highly competitive among Asian nations this year. It is ranked the sixth most competitive after Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea in the region.
• Asia’s two emerging economic giants — China and India — are lower down the ladder. China falls from 48th to 54th position, while India ranks 43rd. While Malaysia’s overall competitiveness ranking has dropped one rung to 26th — it was 25th last year — among 125 countries worldwide, in terms of "market efficiency" it is ranked ninth, with Hong Kong taking the pole position followed by the United States and the United Kingdom in second and third positions respectively.
• The Geneva-based World Economic Forum, which develops the Index, says: "Malaysia exhibits one of the most efficient economies in the region, with flexible labour markets, relatively undistorted goods markets and public institutions that in many areas (example rule of law, the legal system) are already operating at the level of the top performing European Union members that joined in 2004".
• "There is no question that the country has come a long way and has excellent prospects," said Augusto Lopez-Carlos, Chief Economist and Head of the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Network.
• But there are concerns too. According to him, Malaysia’s overall competitiveness score would be improved "if the government was more successful in reducing the public sector deficit. Improving the health of the workforce and access to education would also do much to enhance the country’s competitiveness".

Summary table for comparison between the ASEAN neighbours (source of info from www.weforum.org). Simple stats, we have gotten worse and dropped one rung from previous ranking, 25th to 26th. Please cut the crap about how others are doing to make yourself feel good, and stop painting nice pictures on the ranking. This is how I look at it "Malaysia’s overall competitiveness ranking has dropped one rung to 26th — it was 25th last year" That all, "fact"ually.

Migration Issue

Source of info from Kwong Wah Yit Poh, 25th September 2006

Anyone can advise the number of Non-Bumis migrated to Singapore as compare to number of Malay that have migrated to Malaysia? Tried to google for a good comparison but failed to get any stats on this, drop me an email if you do, I would really like to know.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

Getting Passport Stamped, Did I Not Try To?

Get passports stamped, Malaysian commuters told - The Star, 26th Sept 2006

• Malaysians crossing the border to southern Thailand should follow immigration rules and get their passports or border passes stamped rather than just wave them at checkpoints.
• Waving documents or even just nodding heads at immigration officers is commonly done by the inhabitants of both sides of the Malaysian-Thai border in Kelantan as they cross the border daily for work and trade.
• The army’s Eighth Brigade commander Brig-Jen Shaharuddin Abu Bakar said this practice should be stopped.

Looks like it is not only happening in JB, but a norm at Malaysia-Thai border too, which the authority has chosen to "close one eye" all the while. Did anyone tell Brig-Jen Shaharuddin that I tried to get my passport stamped at JB checkpoint but the officer choose to ignore me?

Link: A simple comparison tells the story

Contradictions: Let The Voice Of People Be Heard

Get people's opinion before making decisions, Najib tells local councils - The Star, 26th Sept 2006

• All local authorities must seek the opinion of the public before making decisions affecting them.
• Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said local councillors had such a duty to the people after chairing the 55th National Council for Local Government here yesterday.
• The council also made three other decisions:
• Local authorities to set up one-stop centres for quick approvals for developers using the build-and-sell concept;
• All public buildings must have disabled-friendly facilities; and
• All multi-storey car parks must install closed-circuit television

This is what we call, "the right direction". Let the voices of your people be heard, and most importantly, please include "non-bumis" if you want the true opinions of the "public". By the way, Najib is heartened easily from BN's component parties comment as below:

Najib heartened MCA and Gerakan rebutted Lee’s claims - The Star, 26th Sept 2006

• Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is “heartened” that MCA and Gerakan have explained the actual situation of the Chinese in Malaysia.
• “I am heartened by the fact that our partners in Barisan, like the MCA and Gerakan presidents, have issued statements to debunk whatever Lee had said to clarify the actual position in Malaysia,” said Najib.
• Meanwhile, deputy MCA Youth chief Datuk Ling Hee Leong said Lee should not interfere in Malaysia’s policies.
• It was up to the Government if it wanted Lee to apologise for his comments, he said.

Heartened? So what is the actual situation of the Chinese in Malaysia?

From Kim Quek's perspective:

• Why have there been, year after year, top Chinese Malaysian students barred from universities, only to be admitted later (for some) upon begging by Chinese Cabinet ministers?
• Why has there been a massive and unrelenting brain drain since then, resulting in many Chinese Malaysians excelling in many fields in foreign lands?
• Why has there been a virtual monopoly by one race in the whole spectrum of the public sector, from the army and civil service to the judiciary and universities?

From Shen Muyu's perspective:

• Mr Shen said the response of the Chinese leaders within Malaysia's ruling coalition to Mr Lee's remarks did not "come from the heart".
• The presence of a quota system with respect to a number of government policies, as well as the policy of not allowing the creation of new Chinese-language primary schools, are evidence that the Chinese were being marginalised

Are the voice of your people being heard? It's up to individual to judge but at least mine was not heard, not from those in the same "boat". Ar...contradictions.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Customer is always right, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

Customer Is Always Right

Najib: We can’t cancel Singapore investments - New Straits Times - 26 Sept 2006

• Malaysia cannot cancel all Singapore investments as it could send wrong signals to investors, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
• Najib was asked to comment on Johor Umno’s call for the government to cancel all projects that would benefit Singapore more than it would benefit Malaysia, especially the proposed Kuala Lumpur-Singapore Bullet Train project.
• Johor Umno also asked that Malaysia stop taking into consideration Singapore’s interests when implementing projects under the RM15 billion Johor South Corridor development and that it review its overall relations with the city state.

Najib is right, you need investors for a country to survive, and you don't drive away your "customers" whenever you like. If we are not happy, we talk to each other nicely. This is what we call customer service. Don't take our neighbour as a fool, would they want to continue a project if it only benefits you but not them? This is so laughable, once again, we put ourself on the stage with amusing comments for people to laugh at.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Something to think about, Misleading? By who?

Something To Think About

Better to call a spade, a spade - KIM QUEK (Todayonline, 25th Sept 2006)

IN the chorus of protests against Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's recent remark that Chinese Malaysians have been marginalised, one simple question remains unanswered.

If there has been no racial marginalisation, why has the word meritocracy been a taboo in Malaysian politics ever since the racial riots of May 13,1969?

A few more simple questions: Why has there been a massive and unrelenting brain drain since then, resulting in many Chinese Malaysians excelling in many fields in foreign lands? Why has there been a virtual monopoly by one race in the whole spectrum of the public sector, from the army and civil service to the judiciary and universities?

Why have there been, year after year, top Chinese Malaysian students barred from universities, only to be admitted later (for some) upon begging by Chinese Cabinet ministers?

No doubt Mr Lee may be faulted for lacking diplomatic niceties in his remarks, but he has spoken the truth. And I think every Malaysian knows that, at least in the deepest part of his heart.

Yes, we have been practising racial discrimination, and that is a zero sum game. When race A is barred so that race B can get in, it is one side's loss and another side's gain.

It is sheer dishonesty and hypocrisy to deny that no race has suffered a disadvantage as a result of this policy.

But the real question is: Is such policy justified? To answer that, we have to go back to where such policy started — the New Economic Policy (NEP), formulated after the racial riots in 1969.

In its original concept, the NEP's prime objective was to achieve national unity and the strategy was two-pronged: To eradicate poverty irrespective of race, and to restructure society so as to eliminate the identification of race with economic function.

There is nothing wrong with such an affirmative action policy, but the tragedy is that over the years, through racial hegemony, it has been transformed into a policy synonymous with racial privileges.

There is no question that in spite of the misapplication, the NEP has achieved its limited objective of elevating the status of Malays to a respectable level, compared to that of other races.

But such anachronistic and regressive policy has no place in the globalising world or in any civilised society. As it is, the pressure to dismantle such policy does not come from within — as the deprived races seem powerless to redress this wrong — but from the whole world who are our trading partners.

Our trade negotiators should be able to testify how tough the going is when it comes to negotiating free trade agreements — whether it is regional marketing pacts or bilateral agreements — due to the presence of Malaysia's race-based protectionist policies.

These NEP-inspired policies stand as stumbling blocks to the opening of a wider window for two-way trades and investments.

Even worse is the loss of Malaysia's economic competitiveness in the face of rising competition from abroad.

Our prime minister has correctly diagnosed this malaise as the prevalence of our third-world mentality, but he has not done enough to correct our uncompetitive culture or to stamp out our worsening racial and religious divide.

Mr Lee's comments have understandably riled many Malaysian leaders, but it should also have struck resonance among many who have silently put up with these unjust policies all these years.

The great silent majority should now ponder what would serve their interests best: To save face by angrily rebutting Mr Lee, or to stare at the ugly truth and institute changes that will put the nation on the right path?

We have reached a stage in our history critical enough to warrant caution in putting too much trust in incumbent leaders. The fact that we have scraped through as a nation despite such policies does not guarantee we will be similarly lucky in the future.

Internal and external circumstances have so altered that we can no longer commit such major errors without putting our future in peril. From this perspective, Mr Lee's bitter medicine may yet work to our advantage, if we are humble and brave enough to do some serious introspection that may lead to our common good.

The writer is a political commentator and author of the Malaysian best-seller, Where to, Malaysia?

MM's comments reflect reality in M'sia - Todayonline, 25th Sept 2006

Comments made by Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew at a forum last week reflected the reality in Malaysia — but it was an issue the Chinese parties in the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition did not dare bring up, said Malaysia's doyen of Chinese-language education Shen Muyu.

Mr Shen said the country's ethnic Chinese should thank Mr Lee for his comments that the "Chinese are being marginalised" in Malaysia, Singapore's Chinese- language Zaobao reported yesterday citing an interview with the Chinese-language China Press.

Answering a question at a forum in Singapore last week, Mr Lee had reportedly said it was vital for the Republic to stand up to Malaysia and Indonesia.

He said the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards Singapore had been shaped by the way the countries treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities.

Mr Shen said there were a number of policies that were disadvantageous to non-bumiputras but this was something the Chinese were afraid to talk about and silently acquiesced to.

What Mr Lee said reflected the feelings of Malaysia's Chinese, he added.
Mr Shen said the response of the Chinese leaders within Malaysia's ruling coalition to Mr Lee's remarks did not "come from the heart".

Mr Shen urged the Malaysian government to treat all races alike, saying that both bumiputras and non-bumiputras pay taxes and contribute to the well-being of the country.

The presence of a quota system with respect to a number of government policies, as well as the policy of not allowing the creation of new Chinese-language primary schools, are evidence that the Chinese were being marginalised, he added.

Speaking to the Chinese-language Nanyang Siang Pau, Mr Shen said Malaysia's Chinese should take up on what MM Lee had said and make their views heard through proper channels, Zaobao reported.

In a poll on blogsite MonsterBlog, hosted by Malaysia's New Straits Times, 42 per cent of respondents agreed with Mr Lee that Chinese in Malaysia were marginalised, 18 per cent disagreed, while the rest had other opinions, according to a report by Nanyang.com.

Malaysian government leaders have criticised Mr Lee's comments; Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said on Saturday that his words were "very dangerous" and could amount to "instigation".

"I will write to him and seek clarification why he had said it," media reports quoted Mr Abdullah as saying.

"This act is not fair at all, made by a leader of our neighbouring country. Mr Lee Kuan Yew should have understood that our relations with Singapore must always be nurtured with care.

"He would want stability on our side because if we are not stable, Singapore will face problems because of its many interests here."

Something to think about, is or isn't there a marginalisation of non-Bumis? I believe for fellow Malaysians, we do understand "those we do not speak of" (quotes from movie, "The Village").

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Customer is always right, Misleading? By who?

Say No To Corruption

Thai corruption inquiry begins - A special commission is beginning work in Thailand to investigate allegations of widespread corruption under ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Nine investigators appointed by the new military government will examine the tax records of Mr Thaksin's ministers. Government corruption was one of the main reasons given by the military for launching last week's coup. "Any cases that cause serious damage to the country, we will have to investigate urgently," said Parnthep Klanarongran, the new chief of the National Counter-Corruption Commission. "If anyone commits wrongdoing, they will have to be prosecuted in the courts," he said on Saturday in an interview with Thai television. (BBC, 25th Sept 2006)

A lot of people is still in state of denial for Thailand's millitraty coup. I would not comment on the good or bad but definitely a thumbsup for the speedy establishment of special commision for graft. It seems that while government stays blind about corruption issue, the people will not.

"Say no to corruption", let's make it a clean country for all.

Link: RM40,000 for RM7,000's project, What is RM29,000?

Please Take Us For A Ride, Mr Taxi

The one thing I hated the most when travelling to Kuala Lumpur is the inflated taxi fare that was quoted for a short ride. I was always being treated as "foreigner", especially when I don't speak Cantonese with Chinese driver.

I remember once I wanted to visit the renowned KLCC and was shocked when the driver told me "RM30" to get there from Starhill area. I am not new to KL city and know well the the reasonable fare to get from point A to point B. I instantly turned down the offer and decided to use the cheapest mean, my legs to get there. It is a long and sweaty 30mins walking journey but I am glad that I don't have to part with my RM30 for such a short ride. We should not penalize all taxi drivers for one's deed because once in a while, I still managed to get in a taxi without much needed to bargain as the meter is on. However, situation almost get out of hand during festive season when I was quoted by every single taxi driver that I have approached for "RM20" for a nearby destination.

Today, I learned from newspaper that the drivers are able to inflate the fares even when using the meter by modifying the meter system and with simple trigger, the magic is on. How dishearting is this piece of news.. Please take us for a ride, mr taxi.

For those that are interested to see some stats on the tourist review, do visit www.virtualtourist.com, search for Kuala Lumpur, click on the tourist trap for taxi scam and enjoy the ride. Oh, by the way, the modification on the meter is nothing new, someone mentioned about that in the review and it was.......year 2004!

RM40,000 For RM7,000's Project

Source of info from GuangMing Daily - 24th Sept 2006

RM40,000 being approved but 2nd tier contractor only received RM7,000 to complete the project. What do you say Sami? Let' see how many holes are there....I am interested to know.

Link: Say no to corruption, What is RM29,000?

Warning From The Ministry

Don’t break the law, bloggers warned - Dr Lim refuted suggestions that his ministry was preparing a Cabinet paper to block Internet bloggers. He, however, warned bloggers not to break the law. “Be careful, you can be traced. You are subject to the laws of the country,” he said. (The Star, 22nd Sept 2006)

Link: Finally, I'm blogging, About blogging, You can run, but you can't hide, Let's be fair

Misleading? By who?

Kuan Yew’s comments misleading, says Najib - New Straits Time, 22nd Sept 2006

• Malaysia yesterday ticked off Singapore’s Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew for saying that Malaysian Chinese were being marginalised systemically.
• Indonesia and Malaysia "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese — compliant", Lee said.
• Najib said the government had no intention to sideline or marginalise non-Bumipute- ras.
• The government, he added, had never adopted a policy which aimed at hindering the progress of the non-Bumiputeras as all it wanted was nothing but fairness and equal distribution of wealth for all races.

MM Lee, you are the man. The world is watching, and not everyone is blind and deaf. "Nothing but fairness and equal distribution of wealth for all races", I am so touched! Misleading? By who?

I want to get an explanation from Lee, says Abdullah - (The Star, 24th Sept 2006)

• During a press conference in London on Friday, Abdullah said no community in Malaysia was being marginalised.
• Stressing that this was a fact, he said the progress achieved by the country’s multi-racial community showed that no one had been sidelined.
• In New York, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said: “I’m at a loss as to what his (Lee's) intention was.”
• In Tangkak, Johor, Umno vice-president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin called on Lee to apologise for making the “provocative remarks.”
• In Taiping, the Backbenchers Club (BBC) called for a retraction and apology from Lee.

Something amiss? Are we digging hole again? Let's go deeper.

Link: Backing down, finally, Lagging or not lagging, Malaysians should not question, A chess game, LKY is sorry, what about UMNO?, More statistics, anyone?, Bumiputera Equity at 45%, 43 more to go, A marginalisation?, Migration issue, Contradiction: Let the voice of people be heard, Consumer is always right, Something to think about

What is RM29000?

Probe on repair of school - The Star, 21st Sept 2006

• Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said: “We have been informed by Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu and Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting that the approved funds for the school amounted to a little more than RM29,000 but the value of the work was only about RM3,000.
• “We want this matter investigated thoroughly to find out how it happened and who is responsible, and the Cabinet wants to study this report. It is a matter of urgency,” he said.
• “We take this matter seriously, and we do not want to cover up any weaknesses or fraud which happened.
• “In this case, we will investigate and if anyone can be charged over carelessness or abuse of power, appropriate action will be taken.”

From all the doubts raised by the leaders and Malaysians, no clear explanation and actions were being taken to addressed the issue. We are still waiting for the "transparency" where millions and billions of the money goes and suddenly, our DPM is so focused on RM29000 that was being spent to do a RM3000's job. What is RM29000 as compare to all the hottest issues raised recently?

Let's see if this is a good start for futher investigations on other bigger items...

Link: Say no to corruption, RM40,000 for RM7,000's project

Snatch Robbers, That's Your Electric Chair

Snatch thieves slash woman - A 26-year-old foreign housewife was slashed on her wrists by two motorcyclists before they snatched her waist-pouch at Taman Bunga Blossom here. (The Stars, 21st Sept 2006)

If you ask me for my opinion on recent snatch cases, I would definitely ask for the maximum sentence to be reviewed and culprits to be punished severely. The potential harm for the victims is just unimaginable and these snatch "robbers" are ruthless. There is a huge difference between being not knowing the consequences of snatching and knowing it, but still choose to do it and at the same time, causing misery to the victims and families.

For me, I would not think twice to put those b*st*rds in jail for years and with no mercy, put them on the electric chair, if they have caused death to the victims.

Consumer Rules

Warning on unsafe bread - “A 2002 Australian study found that calcium propionate was capable of causing aberrant behaviour in children." It is shocking that millions of Malaysians are consuming breads with such high levels of preservatives. They should refrain from eating bread until it is proven safe by the Health Ministry. “The results of our findings will be submitted to the ministry over the next few days. The ministry should test all the breads in the market and ensure that those with excessive amounts of preservatives are withdrawn,” he said. When contacted, Health Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Lee Kah Choon said he would instruct his officers to conduct tests on breads following CAP’s recent findings. (The Star, 21st Sept 2006)

It was Suhakham in the newspaper yesterday and Case for today. Now even our Health Ministry is slacking. Where on earth do you need consumer to run the test for "Healthy" Ministry and tell them that the food is not fit to be consumed. Wake up "bla""dder"! You are sending your own friends and families to grave.

Acid in 16 brands of bread within safe level - Safe. This is the result of tests carried out by the Health Ministry on 16 popular brands of bread. The tests showed that the preservatives used in the bread were within the permissible level and safe for consumption. Health Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Lee Kah Choon said the ministry carried out random sampling and found the content of propionic acid within the permissible range. Said Lee: “We will check with CAP on their research and sampling methods,” he said, adding that he had also instructed health officers to carry out further checks. (The Star, 25th Sept 2006)

Let's watch out for the verification process. Consumers need to be alerted on the status and doubt must be clarified. Stay tune.

Link: Perfect recruitment centre: Simpang Renggam

Electronic Voting System

Thumbs down to electronic voting - Rashid said the survey indicated that the voters were suspicious of the electronic voting system. "We will have problems with political parties, especially the Opposition, as they will think the system could be pre-programmed." Rashid, however, did not dismiss the possibility that the system may be used in the future as voter population increases. (New Straits Times, 21st Sept 2006)

One from me, electronic voting system? No way. I wonder when will the number of voters becoming unmanageable when the population growth rate is like, 1.78%? (source: https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/my.html#People)

U-Turn

Malaysia U-turn on Pope statement - Malaysia has accepted the Pope's statement of regret about his remarks linking Islam with violence after initially describing it as inadequate. (BBC, 19th Sept 2006)

The tolerance margin for religion is getting tighter and tighter these days, a slight finger-pointing will lead to endless blood shedding across the world. I appreciate Pope's courage for expressing his regret upon realising the impact of his previous remarks. We are not barbarians, and if someone has made a mistake and apologized, let's move on. This is precisely the best moment to show the world on how forgiving is one particular person/religion.

We should have accepted the Pope's regret as early as possible to minimize the outrage, for the benefit of global community especially when our prime minister is the chairman of OIC, which signified a great influence in the community. Having to make an emergency "u-turn" immediately after meeting up President Bush is just something so interesting. It shows our forgiveness is somehow subjective, depending on the circumstances.

Perfect Recruitment Centre - Simpang Renggam

Top gangs formed in detention centre - New Straits Times, 20th Sept 2006

• They made holes in the wall of their cells, crawled through and socialised with each other freely. This startling discovery was made during a recent visit by Human Rights of Malaysia (Suhakam) commissioners to the centre.
• Datuk N. Siva Subramaniam and Datin Paduka Zaitoon Othman led a team conducting an inquiry into the death of teenager Ramjit Singh. A detainee at the Simpang Renggam detention centre, he was electrocuted on Aug 3, leading his family members to allege that foul play was the cause of his death.
• Over the past few years, some of the country’s top gangs have been formed behind the walls of the detention centre. Police investigations also suggest that some robberies have been planned while gang members were serving time for a slew of serious offences.
• Police also believe that the leaders of the M-16 gang — which terrorised goldsmith shops in Johor and the Klang Valley — formed an alliance while serving time in Simpang Renggam.
• More recently, members of the Mamak gang were said to have been planning behind bars the hijacking of containers.
• At present, some 4,000 hardcore criminals are being held under preventive detention laws there. Among them are heads of secret societies, and ringleaders of vice and drug syndicates.

This is very convincing, you need Suhakam to find out the root cause of someone that died in the prison?! Way to go, Suhakam, you guys can do a better job than our beloved police force and also the prison officers. Simpang Renggam sounds like a good place to "recruit" potential business partners since we have already witnessed a few successful examples, namely "Deva", "M-16" and "Mamak". Hole in the wall and nobody knew it all these while? It's just unbelievable.

‘Inmate was electrocuted’ - Suhakam later clarified that there were no holes in the wall and Datuk Siva Subramaniam told the NST that inmates communicated with each other by moving through the fire hose chamber."There was a gap and this has been sealed following the incident," Fu said. (New Straits Times, 22nd Sept 2006)

You can drive a car and knock down someone, or you can drive a lorry and run someone over. What is the difference? If there is a gap that allows tem to move around freely, then whose fault is this? Doesn't the guard receive salary from the government, from our tax money? Doesn't the ministry going to conduct a thorough disciplinary investigation on all the personnels involved? What is the root cause? Security slackness or the particular inmate deserve to be electrocuted, since he has digging his own grave? We are always spinning around with the different version of stories, but nobody is willing to address the actual root cause.

Let me tell you this, if there has been periodical check on the cells, and the guards have been paying attention to all these details, this will not happen. I know that someone will be arguing that there is insufficient manpower, then the blame is being pushed further away, and away and diminished...our way

Link: Consumer Rules

Our Way

Man poses as cop to rescue accomplice - A man posing as a policeman managed to “rescue” his accomplice who was earlier arrested for trying to rob a cashier of about RM40,000 outside a bank in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah here. (The Star, 20th Sept 2006)

What a laughter! It shows that how our kind-hearted Malaysians can be deceived easily with words of mouth. The robbers are learning fast! They know that they can "twist the fact" since even when the statement is proven to be un-true, they can still "get away with it.......our way". Sounds famliar, doesn't it?

"Policey" Issue

Reward for cop who helped blind man - Sjn Ramli Abdullah was directing traffic on a hot sunny day when he noticed a blind man attempting to cross a busy Petaling Street.
The city traffic policeman rode towards the blind man, identified himself before bringing traffic to a halt and leading the man to the other side of the road. (The Star, 20th Sept 2006)

Applause to the cop, who went an extra mile to help the needy. Finally, a refreshing headline from the usual corruption and violence issue that tarnished the image of the police force. This is the image that we are expecting from the cops, someone that is kind hearted, willing to help and most importantly honest and not corrupted.

I started symphatising the police force when I learned of the tiny amount of salary that they are getting through recent news. I like to analogize management of a government department with how a company works because it is realistic. In the corporate world, if you can't manage your company well, be prepared to wrap up the business in no time.

You need to define a very good human resource policy to attract the right person. This include justification of their pay with regards to their respective education level, performance and on top of that, market rate/value. Without such policy in place, what you get is only left-over from the pool of available resources since you can't offer anything that attracts the best of the crops. Bad pay, bad prospect, what do you expect? Yes, bad service!

A Simple Comparison Tells the Story

I always recommend my fellow Malaysian friends to make a journey to Johor from Singapore, through public transport. The experience gained through this short journey hopefully will help them understand better on problems Malaysia is facing right now.

Perhaps I will give some short introduction on "how to get to JB", to benefit the readers. The journey starts with a ride in MRT system to Kranji station, the gateway to JB. Passengers are then required to transit using bus system for a short 5 mins ride to reach Singapore's Woodlands Checkpoint. At this point, you are required to queue according to your nationality for immigration clearance. Upon clearance, you will board the bus again and proceed to Malaysia's JB Checkpoint. The interesting stories follow when I have reached JB's Checkpoint:

• First impression that crossed my mind, especially after you have experienced the clean and comfortable environment at Singapore Checkpoint is "where is the maintenance?". I can understand if a place is old and you don't like the old fashioned design, but I can't agree with dirty floor, leaking roof, stained glass, rubbish and aircon-less environment when this is simply a maintenance issue. I know they are aircons in the building but if it is not working then what is the point of having one? Is this the way we should treat our fellow visitors and tourists? This is simply "encouraging".
• OK, forget about the dirty old place, let's move on for the immigration clearance. The second question that struck me is "why nobody is checking the passport?". I understand the "traffic" is pretty heavy but just imagine all the Malaysians just need to flash their passport to the officer while passing through the checkpoint. Sometimes you are not required to do so since the officers don't even bother to look at you. There is no check conducted to match the photo, not even a simple check on whether is it a valid Malaysian passport, unless these officers are so smart to stereotype all small red covered booklet as a "valid", "genuine", "Malaysia" Passport that belongs to the "flasher".
• I queued for autogate clearance since I was using an International Passport. It is such a nice system where you slot in the passport and with sophisticated thumbprint verification, I guess there will be no foul play. There is an officer is actually sitting beyond the glass window, monitoring the autogate station but only then I realised that he is having a good nap inside the cool air-con room, while all the tourists are queueing sweatily in a extremely hot afternoon. My instant reaction is "what the ....?". I can offer simple solution to this, sack the guy, and put those money into good use, especially when I learnt that our poor police officer is earning RM650 per month! I believe a thumprint verification is sufficient and a sleeping officer is not required. Talking about redundancy.
• Anyway, I waited for a while when I realised that the system is not working, so I decided to do it the manual way. I proceeded to the desk but the officer has decided to shorten my pain, by asking me to proceed without having to show and stamp my passport. I think if I have gone missing in Malaysia, I must have been lost somewhere at the causeway, since I was not even present in Malaysia as per the record.
• Finally, with all the grudges I managed to "clear" the custom. On my way out, I can hear a lot of people shouting for "taxi, taxi". I can still remember an incident happened few years backed, when my wife mistook this "taxi" as the official "taxi" and boarded a minivan with hefty "taxi fares" that she ended up paying for a trip to Senai Airport. I didn't know touting is legal in Malaysia, and anyone can drive a"taxi" if they want to, unless the rules have changed so fast that I was unable to keep up to.
• I think I forgot to mention about the numerous beggars that you can see when you are walking along the underpass. Our dear government, please do something to help them. If they are genuinely in need of money, please refer them to the relevant department for assistance. If they are just trying to extort some money from the kind hearted visitors, then please help us and put them in jail.

Can someone please:

• Maintain our lovely checkpoint
• Check every single passport
• Sack the sleeping beauty
• Fix the autogate
• Arrest the tout
• Help the beggars

I am just wondering, if you are a tourist, be it man or woman, young or old, what would you think of Malaysia when you witness all these through a short 30mins journey from Singapore to Malaysia Checkpoint. You don't even have to go deep into Malaysia jungle to understand our culture since a simple comparison tells the story! What a huge disappointment!

Link: Getting passport stamped, did I not try to?

Don't Victimize The Poor Passenger

MAS gets guidelines on fare increases - The Star, 19th Sept 2006

• Suhaili had pointed out that the fares between Labuan and several destinations like Kota Kinabalu and Kuala Lumpur had gone up by 100%.
• AirAsia had decided to stop the route without informing the ministry in advance, he said, adding that it was allowed to do so because it was a private company. However, he said it should not forget its social obligations especially in rural and interior areas.

The air traffic system is a mess! With Air Asia comes into play, more regulations are needed, especially on pricing and coverage aspect. I do not see a conflict when multiple budget airlines are servicing similar routes from Singapore, so why are we in such a mess with only MAS and Air Asia. Is it because MAS is too comfortable with the monopoly? Or Air Asia that is too competitive for MAS?

Don't victimize the poor passenger. Can someone please regulate this?!

Entry Requirement

Entry criteria not workable - The Star, 8th Sept 2006

• IF THE Advanced Technology Training Centres (Adtec) strictly used the academic criteria for its student intake, many would fail to qualify.
• The Auditor-General’s report said, generally, the Adtec programmes were carried out well, but there was a critical shortage of lecturers.
• The Auditor-General’s report also noted that the seminar room at the Shah Alam Adtec was often used for other activities such as the staff monthly meeting, which caused a number of lectures to be postponed as a result.
• Between 2003 and 2005, forth-eight lectures had to be postponed, which caused problems to the lecturers and trainees.

In a nutshell, efficiency is still a concern in the institution, more effort need to put in and make sure resource is not wasted.

Entry requirement? We strived hard to get into the school, college and university that we want, and no one is to assume that even if you failed, someone will come to your rescue. So, what is the big fuss about many would fail to qualify for Adtec? We cannot afford to lower the entry requirement and pass/fail standard just to make sure more persons will gain entry and more will graduate from the school. What would the potential employer and investors feel about the skill level of these graduates? A lot of instances, quality were being compromised, just to make sure there are more graduates, but did anyone think of how this has actually impact the whole ecosystem? It is simply a pyramid system, some would be at the bottom of pyramid, and less would be on the top. You can't espect everyone is on the top of pyramid as the structure just don't hold.

Some claims that unemployment rate is caused by those who are too choosy during job selection. Just think about it, would a university graduate want to take on a technician job? Since there are more candidates, would the employees choose the one with highest calibre? You can create more graduates, but the knowledge gap will still be there for potential employer to assess. It's time to stop spoon feeding. Based on Darwin's evolution theory, only the strongest survived! and this theory has been proven by mother nature, no further stats is needed.

Link: MSC, Malay Superior Corner?

Let's Be Fair

I was living contentedly for all the years since I was borned. Racism was not an issue since all of us knows how to treasure each other, irregardless of ethnic, religion and language barrier, and I believe this is the spirit of "Malaysian".

However, for the past few months, I have been hearing and reading news on how some people are trying to bring up racial issue and the first thought that crosses my mind is "I thought there is something that we call ISA (Internal Security Act) to refrain bad eggs from bringing up racist issue?".

The last thing I want to hear about ISA, is how a blogger/journalist/writer being caught and held accountable for their honest statement when those people who try to stir-up racial problem for their own benefit got away from it. Let's be fair ok?

Seriously I feel that we are wasting too much time to deal with this issue (which should not be brought up in the first place). Hopefully someone will shut these people up while we concentrate more to develop our beloved country.

Link: Finally, I'm blogging, You can run, but you can't hide, About blogging, Warning from the ministry

Simple Solutions

Customs tardiness blamed for losses - The report said the Customs Department did not have enough personnel for all major entry points. This could result in merchandise being brought in and out of the free trade zones without being checked. Tax arrears amounting to RM15.03mil was not collected as a result of the department’s delay in assessing imported merchandise (The Star, 7th Sept 2006)

Sometimes things don't look as difficult as they are.

4 simple root causes:

1. Corruption - Where is the anti-corruption-agency?
2. Lack of manpower - Was this being communicated? if this was not being done, then it is simply another lame excuse when shit happens
3. Lack of efficiency - Are the workers being slack?
4. Lack of verification - Who is auditing the department from time to time? What is the frequency?

4 simple solutions:

1. ACA got to work harder
2. Hire more civil servants, since there are still a lot of jobless graduates
3. What will a company do when you are inefficient? Fire them and hires a new one
4. Periodical audit on the performance

This sounds like how a company operates and what I normally do. Lesson learnt, please do a better job next time and stop complaining how much money you lose. The simple preventive action is..... is anyone going to look at other departments instead of stepping on the wounds of our "poor" Customs?

Lesson 1: What is a closed-loop-corrective action?

1. Contain the problem
2. Address the rootcause
3. Define the corrective action
4. Draft the preventive action
5. Verify the effectiveness

Hotline = LRT?

New JB police hotline for Singaporeans - TODAYonline, 7th Sept 2006

1. AS PART of its crime-fighting efforts, Johor police have established a hotline, manned round the clock, that Singaporeans can call to report an incident or to seek help. They can call 07-2212999 and speak in either English or Malay. Or, they can send an SMS by typing in POLISJOH, followed by the message, and sending it to 32728. Messages can be in English, Malay or Mandarin
2. Malaysian High Commissioner N Parameswaran and High Commission staff met yesterday in Johor with Police Chief Hussin Ismail, his deputy and police heads of the Johor districts. They discussed the widespread perception among Singaporeans that it was not safe to travel to Johor because of a rise in crime rate in recent months.

The excerpt covers important points from a piece of news I read this morning to benefit the readers. Well, finally something is being done to protect the "investors" of our tourism industry and to show them that we mean "friendship".

I can still recall how disappointed I was when I took KL's LRT at 2 different time frame, during start-up and years after that. During the first ride, I was so proud of the LRT system which is automated from ticket purchase to entry/exit gate control, that has provided me with similar experience as taking a MRT in Singapore. However, years after that, huge disappointment came in when I have to queue up to purchase ticket from counter and hand the ticket to the gate keeper when exiting. I believe the same questions will arise in the mind of LRT users, "why do we still need someone to sell tickets and handle the gates when everything has been computerised?". This could be a typical example of creating a new system without sufficient effort putting in to upgrade and maintain the efficiency. When the monorail has started its operation, my doubt is "why interchanging of LRT/Monorail was not planned at a centralised building, just like how various MRT lines in Singapore operate?". When you are asking people to fully utilize public transport system, maybe you should start looking at the integration of the whole transport systems, and learn from the neighbour, who has been so successful in the implementation.

Let's hope that the Police Hotline will not be another "white elephant" and there is sufficient (1) support (2) fund (3) maintenance and (4) determination to make sure this is a successful project which could bring in more tourist and income to our country.

Finally, I believe that it is not only a "perception" that it is not safe to travel in Johor, when the authority itself has mentioned that there is a "rise in the crime rate in recent months". Let's bite our tongue, work together and make our country a better place to live in.

"Talk" To Each Other

We have powers to cut fines, say police - We can reduce them when or how we want to. We do not have to consult the Transport Ministry. (The Star, 6th Sept 2006)

Chan: Surprised over move to reduce traffic fines - The Transport Ministry, tasked with reducing road accidents and improving road safety, was not consulted over the reduction of traffic fines. (The Star, 6th Sept 2006)

Communication problem? The common issue that we always faced in our working environment. Well, solution is simple, set-up a proper communication channel. If you are able to recall the tragecy of Tsunami, then perhaps you can appreciate the importance of a well established communication channel. The reason for inventing an additional column, "cc" (carbon copy) in your email, is simply for you to inform the related parties. It is not a must, but I bet you should do that out of courtesy, especially when your doing will indirectly affects other parties. "We have powers to" and "we do not have to consult" do sound a bit not too courteous for me if my friend or colleague talk to me in that manner.

Key word is to "talk". Just talk to each other and we can have 1 less headline in tomorrow's news. As for the pros and cons of reducing fines, it is something very individual and let's wait for the statistics to tell you the result.

Fines stay at old rates for now - Comm Mustafa said the police would accept the Cabinet’s decision as it was the highest authority in the country. “What choice do we have? We will wait until they have made their final decision,” he said . He said the original traffic fines prior to Monday’s reduction would be reinstated until the Cabinet came up with a final ruling. Comm Mustafa said the disagreement with the ministry was just a case of “miscommunication”. “We have no problems with the ministry. We can sit down and discuss the matter,” he said. (The Star, 7th Sept 2006)

1-0 to the government, so finally the Police "force" knows who is in charge and only now they have decided to "sit down and discuss". I still have faith in the government and I believe for a crucial decision to be made, it needs to go through lengthy consultation between the people, departments and various leaders, and no one is allowed to take things in their own hand.

You Need A Boat To Make A Point

Zam: Dr M should have emulated Kuan Yew - Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad would have fared better if he had remained in the Cabinet as a mentor minister like Singapore’s former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew. Information Minister Datuk Zainuddin Maidin said it was too late now as “he has missed the boat.” (The Star, 6th Sept 2006)

Missed the boat? I believe everyone should have their fair share to comment on the issues, especially when it concerns our country, livelihood and future generations. You don't have to be in the boat to give your comments, and of cos if you are in the boat, it will be easier to do so, since everyone in the boat would like to keep it afloat.

A second thought that crosses my mind, even if Dr. Mahathir has chosen to be mentor minister, does it mean that he is in the boat? or probably still out of the boat, depending on who he is siding with? "Boat" is surely a bad term to use in this case, since it's interpretation is so subjective. Anyway, I believe there are a lot of people is willing to jump into the "boat", since the prospects do look good in a way.

Make sure you don't board the wrong sampan, you need a boat to make a point.

About Blogging

I always heard from people around me, who do not dare to blog their honest feeling, because they were afraid that "someone" is watching, and that "someone" might get to them during one fine day.

In the ancient days, during the dictators' era, innocent people were arrested and prosecuted, without proper proceeding and trial. We have learnt all these mistreatments from history books, and how un-humane it is that end up with millions of sad stories. In this modern day, we thank god that there are rules and regulations governing a country. We are all being "protected" under the constitution law and you would not get prosecuted for something that you have done correctly, provided there is no foul play in the legal system.

I believe that when you blog about some incidents, basically it shows how much you care about it. You wouldn't want to blog about how many times have you eaten in a day, as it is simply meaningless to talk about. Similarly, if someone visits your blog, it shows that they are listening to your opinion, for me, I feel that it is a great thing to share.

So there is nothing wrong with blogging, we are not defaming a honest person, and we are just being critical on the decision, hoping to refine it so that it just gets better each time. It might be an insignificant contribution at this stage, but the re-iteration of the idea might propagates far into the following generations and benefits the society as a whole.

So, what about blogging?

Link: Finally, I'm blogging, You can run, but you can't hide, Let's be fair, Warning from the ministry

You Can Run, But You Can't hide

More MPs take to blogging - In a move to connect with their technology-savvy consti- tuents, Members of Parliament are increasingly plugging into the Internet and taking to "blogging" (NST, 5 Sept 2006).

It's good that people are starting to realise that internet is the source of knowledge and information without boundary. It is how I manage to achieve further in my study and career, by garnering the information database that is available and ever expanding, then put it into good use with one condition - provided verification has been done and information is valid, rather than adopting it blindly.

Let's hope more truth will be surfaced and not just another channel for politicians to promote their own propaganda. We need facts to get the country moving, it's never too late to start.

Like the old saying, "you can run, but you can't hide"

Link: Finally, I'm blogging, About blogging, Let's be fair, Warning from the ministry

Finally, I'm Blogging

Finally, I'm Blogging.

I have gone through numerous blogs for the past weeks, to name a few, www.jeffooi.com and www.aisehman.org would top the list of my favourite blog for alternative viewpoints on the hottest issue surrounding concerned Malaysians.

I grown-up as a typical Malaysian and I love my country, not less than the love I showered for my family. Being a non-bumi and not a richman's son in Malaysia, meaning I have to work extremely hard to get what I want. There is not a single complaint, since we ("non-bumi) have accepted the facts that all the "priviledges" have been pre-defined even before I was borned and all these obstacles actully helped us achieving what we are today, a stronger and a better person.

So, what has prompted me to start composing a blog?... Something that appears in yesterday's newspaper, "marginalisation" is the word. "MARGINALISATION"??!!??! I believe this word is non-stranger to us, from the day we know what is politics. Applause to Koh-Tsu-Koon, "show us the stats and figure", I would be interested to know what is it like! "Take it for granted" would be the best phrase to use when people stop loving each other and stop appreciating what they have.

By the way, the other term that catches my eye is "Singapore Malays". How does "Singapore Malays" relates to "marginalisation" of "Penang Malays" in this case. I have lots of Singaporean Malay friends and none of them has actually complaint to me about "marginalisation" and whoever made this comment might want to listen to what "non-bumi" has to say about "marginalisation" in Malaysia. Will there be another stats and figure on Singapore Malays? Let's see.

What has happened in this world, O2 deprivation is in the air, there is no room to breathe...

Link: About blogging, You can run, but you can't hide, Let's be fair, Warning from the ministry