Anti-Malaysia?

Teachers

2009-05-20T16:12:00.000-07:00

Who are our teachers? Do we know them very well beyond the school compound or they’re just our teachers? How much respect do we accord to our teachers?
Teachers are human too. A God’s being who were brought up in this world to teach. They come in many form and disguise.
Some are regulars teachers serving primary and secondary schools. Some serves in the university and some teach in dilapidated wooden house in ‘sekolah pondok’. There are many who also teaches in university.
Things are not easy clamed some teachers. They’re the educator and they’re also the disciplinarian. They carry more roles than our parents and spend more time with us but yet they’re also first to be blame for their student’s failure.
Are they well paid to handle all this stressful situation? As far as I can remember we students have never been good to them. Stealing, skipping school, extortion, vandalism etc. You name it, we’ve done that. So back to the question, “Are they well paid?”
Are they well respected? My late grandfather always said that teachers are always prim and proper and they usually attract a lot of attention from ‘future parents in law’, pretty young ladies, and also children who would like to be like them. Those days teachers are well respected individuals. Every mom and dad wanted their children to be teachers and many wanted to marry off their daughters to teachers.
Kampung folks seek their opinion on almost anything. Children would carry their bag at school. Whenever there’s confrontation, they’ll be the first to be call upon to settle it.
But how is the situation today? Teacher is considered a last resort career. Many will only choose teacher-ship when they don’t have much choice. When all attempts have been exhausted, then they’ll turn to teaching profession.
We do get some bad apples among teachers too. But fortunately this numbers are kept low. Like any other profession, you do get trouble makers who’ll tarnish the image of this teaching profession.
Other than parents, teachers are our point of reference whenever we need some answers. What the government needs to do is to further enhance the benefits and remuneration package for teachers.
I hope the teachers today will take this profession seriously. They might not been paid as highly as their counterparts abroad but they do know for a fact that whenever they see a successful story, they know that other than parents, teachers contribute a lot to that success story.

Chin Peng: The Last Attempt!

2009-05-20T16:11:00.000-07:00

I heard that there is an effort by “somebody”, asking Chin Peng, the former Communist party of Malaya’s leader to be “forgiven” and allowed to come back to Malaysia. Chin Peng was exiled by our government since Communist party of Malaya (CPA) had been banned due causing some dangerous activities which lead to insecurity of Malaysia.
Communist Party of Malaya was founded by 1930s. The party turned to Malayan People Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA) and it turns back to Communist Party of Malaya after the Japanese surrendered in World War II. They basically fought the Japanese at first as guerrilla “modus operandi”. Chin Peng leads the CPA, since he was the most senior leader after Lai Tek’s betrayal of being “double agent” for British and Japanese.
Chin Peng claimed to be responsible for killing civilians and some colonialist. Three plantation managers were killed by the Communist party of Malaysia. He denied the accusation, but I think he should responsible due his lead to the party. MPAJA also was claimed responsible for killing the Malays and Chinese ethnic in Malaysia. This unmerciful acts lead to Malayan colonial administration to declare a State of Emergency, and CPA was banned.
The civil war between the government of Malaya and CPA started on 1960 and it took a few years to end. Many of our soldiers, civilians and even Chinese were killed by the CPA during this period. The Royal Army of Malaysia successfully urged Chin Peng and his comrade guerillas to back off from Malaysia and they were totally exiled from Malaysia due to their sins! Chin Peng has live in exile since then.
There are some attempts that had been made by several “people” who denies the “sensitivity” of the victims of the attacks made by the Communist Party of Malaya. Thank God, the attempts were rejected by the High Court of Malaysia due to the sensitivity of Malaysian within that time.
But now, the attempt of bringing back Chin Peng is “voice” by somebody. He states that the reason is based on “humanitarian” grounds. “Humanitarian grounds”? What about the “humanitarian” of the victims of the CPA attacks? Are they are not “human” too? How about the sensitivity of their families? What if the “person” who calls the “forgiveness of Chin Peng” have a relatives which killed by Chin Peng’s comrades? Does he “count” on this?
He also claims that the Communism all around the world is no longer practice, and the communist was transformed to “economic-based struggles”. I could be agreed with this point. But, does he think about the “sins” of Chin Peng which leads to the death of many of our civilians? Do the families of the Royal armies who killed in the civil war will forgive Chin Peng? Will they easily “forgive and forget” the person who caused them grows without fathers, brothers or sons? Oh! Come on! Put yourself in their shoes.
I know that Chin Peng is no longer a threat to Malaysian security. He is 85 years old now and could no longer carry a rifle and shoot the people around. He is too old for that. But he is still a threat for my judgement. His mind is still a threat. By this age, he can say anything that he wanted. He could say lies about many things which could change the truth of Malaysia history. He could manipulate his so called “jungle experience” and try to portray to Malaysian as he is the “real” Malaysia independent leader! The story will be just the same as the tale of Raja Petra, “the real make up story teller”.
He will not loose anything by this age. Returning to Malaysia or just stay where he is will make no different to him or to the “person” who tries to bring him back now. But if he comes back to Malaysia, it will “hurt” and bring high “disturbance” on the sensitivity of victims of the attacks of the bloody Communist party of Malaya once upon a time ago. My advice is just stay where you are. Don’t come back or you will bring back another of problem to the government of Malaysia. Our government is quite busy at this time to think about Chin Peng’s. His bloody hands are still “covered with blood”!
I don’t have any idea about the reason of this “person” to bring Chin Peng back to Malaysia by this time. Is he tries to get media attentions? Or he is trying to get another “cheap publicity” to the public and to make sure that the public notice about his existence among the political leaders in this country. What a shame on him to make this call!

EASY LIFE WITH LESS THAN 1 RINGGIT.

2009-05-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

How much is the value of our money today? What can we buy with 10 sen? And how far can we get with 50 sen? What can we eat with 1 ringgit? All in all that’s the value of our parent’s hard work then.
40 sen was my pocket money to school 25 years ago. With that money I can buy my self a plate of ‘mee goreng’ for 30 sen and a glass of ‘sirap’ for 10 sen during recess.
Back then with less than 100 ringgit you can get 3 sets of clothes and a pair of shoes for Baju Raya. And today a pair of ‘kasut raya’ will cost you more or maybe close to 100 ringgit.
I remember 18 years ago my mom used to sell cookies for Raya. Back then it was 10 ringgit for 100 pieces of cookies. Today I think it’ll cost you more than 25 ringgit for a few hundred grams of cookies.
I remember those days my father used to pay the petrol station 20 ringgit to fill up the tank. With that we managed to travel ‘balik kampung’ from Penang to Alor Setar. Today with 20 ringgit worth of petrol, it’ll probably take me as far as across Penang Bridge.
I remember then ‘ais krim Malaysia’ only cost me between 5-10 sen a piece. It’s still cheap today, somewhere between 20-50 sen a piece but it’s a bit smaller or should I say shorter in size.
Back then in Penang, the city council was the only local authority that operates public bus system. It was simply known as ‘Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang’ or in short M.P.P.P. (some call it ‘Monyet Panjat Pokok Pisang’). To travel from Air Itam to Komtar it’ll only cost us children 25 sen and 50 sen for adults.
One of the best ‘roti canai’ served in Penang only cost me 30 sen and ‘teh tarik’ was 40 sen in the 80s. And today ‘roti canai’ is hitting 1 ringgit mark and ‘teh tarik’ is hitting 1.50 ringgit.
I remember back then while walking home after a game of football at the ‘padang’, we would treat ourselves with a piece of ‘sengkuang’ (turnip) as big as our palm which cost us 10 sen. With 10 sen today, you probably get a piece of ‘sengkuang’ as big as your 10 sen coin.
Football boots back then was expensive. A branded pair will cost our parents between 50-80 ringgit. So we make do with 10 ringgit ‘but kicap’. And today I heard parents bought 200 ringgit football boots for their teenage son who can’t even kick properly.
I used to have 2 white shirts, a pair of olive green trouser and a pair of white canvas shoes for school. These must last me at least a whole year. Today, school going kids have a set for each weekdays and I don’t think school uniforms were more expensive back then.
That’s life in the 80s. It was cheap and full of fun. We create our own games. And due to this, we’re much more physically active. Everything cost less than 1 ringgit and we’re not exposed to fast food then. Mat Sentul was our idol with his brand of junk food advertisement like Kum Kum, Ding Dang, Tora, Nini and many others.
As kids we don’t have to worry much. We leave the worrying to our parents. They have to work hard to make our life better and more meaningful.
And now when it’s our turn to be parents, we leave the worrying to the government! They have to work hard to make our life better and more meaningful.
Isn’t it wonderful when you don’t have to worry about anything?

Penanti: A Political Gamble Permissable By Democratic System

2009-05-18T13:51:00.000-07:00

So, BN has decided not to run for upcoming by- election. So far 4 parties have bought the forms to contest in the by- election. Are we going to see a contest or a walk over?
Contest or no contest, the show has to go on. Someone has to fill in the seat. But the question can only be answered on the 31st May 2009.
According to sources, this wasn’t the first time BN decided not to contest in the by-election. And one of the contests that they didn’t partake was also of the same circumstances as what we see today.
I see this by-election as just another political play by Anwar Ibrahim. There is no necessity to actually have a by-election.
The previous representative was made to step down due to numerous complaints against him. However ‘to further studies’ was use as an excuse for his stepping down.
Come on, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that ‘studies’ wasn’t the reason. If he has any intention to further his studies, he shouldn’t have contested in the general election.
He should have known that being a politician is not laughing matter. There are a lot of sacrifices that need to be made.
Back to the by-election, what sort of changes that the constituents expect from this by-election? Are they expecting significant changes like what been promised in the previous general election?
So far I don’t see any significant changes. So what? Are they expecting things and infrastructure to change significantly after this election?
I don’t see much change in Penanti except they’re getting a new representative soon. PKR has not been doing anything to change people’s perception on them.
Today many see PKR as a nuisance. They instigated fear and disharmony among Malaysians. I don’t expect from the independent candidates. They don’t have the financial will to pursue development agenda.
So what can the independent candidates promise for the Penanti-ans? Are they really serious about serving the rakyat? Or they’re just another group of who are trying to make big bucks from the flaws in our constitution?
I don’t agree with this by-election. I see this as a waste of time and human resources. In this trying time, we Malaysian should sit together and try to overcome the problems that we’re facing right now.
I hope we will learn from the by-election in Penanti. The government has to do something to prevent this form of abuse.
Before I forget, I think these phantom voters are from Penang.ad a dream last night. My dream hinted that BN is not going to contest in Penanti, but at the same time I still see a lot of buses from outstation. I hope these busesses are not carrying phantom voters.

The Malay Dilemma Ian Buruma's Version: A Rubbish!

2009-05-18T13:09:00.000-07:00

Ian Buruma no doubt is a famous writer. But he is maybe famous just within PKR supporters. He is not Malay and not a Malaysian either. He was born in the The Hague, Netherlands. He is not majoring about Malaysia even South East Asia in his study and suddenly giving his comment about “Malays dilemma”? But he he comes, the beloved writer of Anwar Ibrahim, might be just because he write in favor of PKR and Anwar interest!
I just read a “rubbish” article by Ian Buruma. The title is “The Malays Dilemma”. Maybe he likes to take credit and “cheap publicity” by copying Tun Dr. Mahathir’s book “The Malay Dilemma”. You want to read the content? Just visit http://anwaribrahimblog.com/2009/05/15/the-malay-dilemma. It’s very long article to be write up here. But I did quote some of it to be published.
Ian said:
Anwar — who had rebounded from six years in prison on corruption and sodomy charges to become the best hope for a more democratic, less corrupt Malaysia — speaks softly. He is still under constant surveillance, he said.
I say:
How could Anwar be the “hope” of more democratic, less corrupt Malaysia? He is the ex-prisoner which convicted in corruption cases. Even court had made the decision conviting him legally. He is proven in court as a guilty person. Is Ian trying to insult the courts or legal systems? Even his ex-UMNO buddies talking how corrupt Anwar is. Some of them might call him as “the father of corruption”! Just ask Tan Sri Sanusi Junid how Anwar “bought” votes from Sabah in order to get the late Tun Ghafar Baba leave the Deputy President of UMNO seat. How could be Ian dares to claim Anwar to get “less” corruption? Anwar is not a fighter, he is a loser.
Ian wrote:
This was the same Anwar Ibrahim, one struggled to remember, who was once at the heart of the Malaysian establishment: the Minister of Culture in 1983, the Minister of Education in 1986, the Minister of Finance in 1991 and a Deputy Prime Minister in 1993. He was poised to succeed Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammed. And then he got overconfident. Starting in the summer of 1997, when the Malaysian currency and stock market lost more than half of their value in the Asian financial meltdown, Anwar did something that Dr Mahathir found unforgivable.
I say:
Is Anwar crazy to “sell” Malaysia to IMF? That is one of the reasons that made Tun M angry with him. If Ian wrote about the “unforgivable”, then he should ask the SB’s and Intelligent. They “know” well the “unforgivable” acts by Anwar. Even worlds are giving credits to Mohammad Nor Yaakob and Tun M to practiced capital control. The whole world says that it is a brave and brilliant way to “teach” the “rouge speculator”, but some PKR are “proudly claiming that “it was Anwar’s ideas”! Don’t they know that they are Mohammad Nor Yaakob and Tun M who struggled to safe Malaysia from Soros “The Culprit”, a good friend of Anwar himself. Then Anwar wanted to “mortgage” Malaysia to IMF? Is that the level of IQ that Anwar have to solve Malaysia economic problem? He could not even “reach” Tun’s mind!
Ian said:
Even as the prime minister was imposing capital controls and blaming “rogue speculators,” such as George Soros, for the crisis, Anwar launched an attack on “nepotism” and “cronyism” in his own party, UMNO, which had been in power since independence. The “cronies” included members of Dr Mahathir’s family. While Dr Mahathir tried to bail out banks and corporations run by his allies, Anwar talked about transparency and accepting some of the International Monetary Fund’s recommendations for liberalising the economy.
I say:
The nepotism and cronyism terms was promoted by Anwar to make Tun M looks bad among Malaysian. The question is, why does Anwar did not used the same terms on Pak Lah when he is the Prime Minister? There were KJ, the level 4 boys, Pak Lah cronies within media, Kamaludin and Patrick Badawi. Oh! Pak Lah acted on Anwar’s favor? Pak Lah released him and “satu kampung”? In facts, Tun M forbids his families to join “serious” political involvement. Many times that Tun was suggested by the UMNO’s veterans to make his sons as UMNO leaders, but he refused. No place for Mokhzani, Mirzan and Mukhriz when he is the Prime Minister. Does Ian know how Anwar “spread” the pink form within his cronies to secure his place as Deputy President of UMNO? Ian better as Ezam, he knows. Ian wrote:
Nobody was likely to miss the implication; Dr Mahathir has clearly stated his conviction that “Jews rule this world by proxy.” At the Hilton, Anwar, who started his career as the president of the Malaysian Muslim Students Union, and is a devout Muslim, shrugged. “They say I’m a Jewish agent, because of my friendship with Paul,” he said. “They also accuse me of being a lackey of the Chinese.” His eyebrows twitched in a gesture of disbelief, and he emitted a dry, barking laugh.
I say:
Does this PKR Imam does not recite Al-Quran? "Wa lan tardhau antumul yahudu wa lan nasara hatta tattabi'a millatahum". Which means "the Jews and Christians will not EVER be on your side unless you follow their way”. The PAS spiritual leader also said that “be careful when your enemies agreed with you”. We can see that almost every election or by-election, PKR will “meet” their “master”. The latest was the Bukit Selambau when Saifudin Nasution met “somebody” at Cinta Sayang Club. “They” help PKR a lot. Is there nothing in “return”? Yeah right!
Ian wrote:
To make sense of Anwar’s rise, fall, and rise, it helps to know something about the role of race and religion in Malaysia. The country’s population is more than half Malay, defined by ethnicity and the Muslim faith, but large numbers of Chinese (now about a quarter of the population) and Indians (seven per cent) arrived in the 19th century, when the British imported coolies from China and plantation workers from India. Tensions arising from this mélange — and, in particular, the fear held by Malays that they will always be bested by these minorities — have gripped Malaysian politics since the country achieved independence from the British, in 1957. In recent years, the situation has been further complicated by a surge in Islamic fervour among many Malays.
I say:
Is that how the way Ian Buruma judged the "role of race and religion in Malaysia"? Just the way how Anwar rise, fall and rise again and will be fall again? Why he took Anwar as his “model”? What is so “special” about Anwar? Why Ian did not take Tun M, Nik Aziz, Hadi Awang or Lim Kit Siang as his model? It’s not a fair judgement. He is so “bias” Is that what Ian and Anwar call “justice”?
Ian wrote:
Lim was one of several people I spoke to in Malaysia who used the word “apartheid” in describing his country. “The ethnic situation has become much worse,” he said, especially since Malay nationalism took a strong Islamic turn in the late 1980s, when UMNO was challenged by PAS. The Islamists got a boost from the Iranian Revolution, and actually took power in Kelantan in 1990. To preëmpt the Islamists, UMNO, ostensibly a secular party, wedded its ethnic nationalism (which was decidedly not a feature of PAS) to religion: Muslims were no longer supposed to drink alcohol; women were encouraged to wear head scarves (tudung); easygoing Malay Islam took on the harsher tone of Wahhabi purism.
I say:
Apartheid? The Islamic awareness is no doubt was aroused on late 1980s. It was the time when Tun M begins to be Malaysia’s Prime Minister. It was the era when the army cocktail party will no more serve alcoholic drinks. No PT short among armies and replace a long pants to maintain “aurat”. Wearing “tudung” is a must in Islam as to cover “aurat”. It’s not Wahabi who urges the act. Even Imam Shafie in his “mazhab” asked us to cover the “aurat” by wearing clothes. Why should he bother us to practice our religion by accusing us to be “apartheid”? What a bad call!
Ian wrote:
Meanwhile, in Lim’s view, educated Malays have been too timid to resist, whatever they might do or say in private. “I’ve seen it happening with my progressive university friends,” Lim said. “Wives take to wearing the tudung, the daughters cover up. Their passivity, their silence, is very bad for the community, because it allows the ultras to set the agenda. Islam has become more and more conservative. Muslims can no longer go to non-Malay restaurants or visit the houses of non-Malay friends. Tensions have grown. We’re reverting to the colonial situation, where the different races only meet in the marketplace.”
I say:
Oh God! These statements are insulting Islam and its practices! Passivity and silence becomes a threat to them? How could practicing “tudung” to cover “aurat” become a threat to community? Allows to the ultras to set agenda? What kind of agenda? What a bad call and bad thoughts by them again. We just obey our religion and practice the way it should be! "lakum dinukum wa liya din"! it is not conservative, it is Islamic fundamental! Who says the Malays can not go to non-Malays restaurants? Not all McDonalds are belong to Muslim? And who says Malays can not visit their non-Malays friends? Every Chinese New Year, Deepavali and Christmas, the Malays are actively visiting each others. Who is the one trying to be “apartheid”? It might be them who tried to grow the “apartheid” attitude within Malaysian!
Ian menulis lagi:
Kelantan has hardly any huge buildings. Everything in the state capital, Kota Bharu, near the border with Thailand, is built on a modest scale. I met the PAS vice-president, Husam Musa, at the party headquarters. Husam, an economist by training, is not an imam but one of the new breed of professionals in Islamist politics. He was polite, if a little defensive. On the question of an Islamic state, he said this goal was often misunderstood: “We don’t mean a state ruled by clerics but one guided by the holy books. Without the books, we’d be like UMNO and just grab the money. The difference between us and them is that we believe we will be judged in the afterlife.”
Saya kata:
Husam! You better be careful with your words! What did you meant by these statements? The Husam’s statements show that the UMNOs do not believe in the “judgement day”. It means that Husam tries to portray that we are not Muslim like he is. We believe in Pillar of Iman, including believe in judgement day. We are brothers in Islam, but we are not “Islam PAS” members! This is a statement of PAS Deputy President candidate?
Ian tulis lagi:
He said that Islam was “pro-progress,” and that American democracy was a good model. (“Unfriendly people will accuse me of being pro-American for making this statement.”) He also said that discriminating against ethnic minorities was “un-Islamic,” as was government corruption. “People should be treated the same, and that includes the freedom of religion,” he said.
Saya kata:
This is an example of "endorgan" nominees in PAS? He is might be one of the “fellow father’s assistants” whom Nik Abduh meant in his article. I can see some of them nodded! An American PAS...
This is just some of my answer of some paragraphs of so called “professor” who give his lectures to Oxford, Princeton and Harvard University. There are some paragraphs that I do not need to comment though I think it’s not relevant and out of facts. I had been informed that the article was published in The New Yorker magazine instead of “De Facto’s” blog. It is an article with full of rubbish which is better to be “garbaged”, but still published in it? J

Beware My Beloved Muslim Brother Of Pas

2009-05-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

Hadi is the man. Hadi is the president. Hadi was reported today to maintain as the President of PAS. He won the title. He is the “captain” again. He won 136 vote against 1 vote for Nik Aziz by the Bukit Bintang PAS division. And Nik Aziz can not claim himself as the “captain” anymore! It can’t be two “captain” for a ship and the “captain” is not Nik Aziz. He can forget his “dream” becoming the “captain” as he used to “hint” before.
There are 5 contestants for Deputy President of PAS. Nasharuddin as the current Deputy President of PAS is going to hold the post against 4 other candidates. They are Husam the “endorgan”, Mat Sabu the “inventor of Al-Juburi term”, Azizan Razak the “MB of Kedah” and Ust. Harun Din the “businessman who own Darul Shifa”. There they go for the seat in the same method of UMNO election last Mac. The lust for the Deputy President seat is so high! It was predicted to be a very hard core fight. It was predicted to be a “cold war” in this “lustful” seat competition among the “lebais”!
Nasharuddin was the favorite? He is believed to get 60% vote to contest the “hot” seat. The rumors said that he is in the “ulama” coalition. But could he succeed defending his “power”? They say that he is “weak”, some of them claimed that he is not doing his work. Some of them said that he is “lembik” defending PAS interest in Pakatan Rakyat coalition. He is so “quite” and not the true fighter of PAS. Is that true? I heard the rumors from the northern PAS members. But of course they don’t want me to disclose their identity.
Will Husam succeed in his attempt? I think he will have a good support from the “wind of endorgan” in PAS. The endorgan who tries so hard to give PKR virus injection since years. Since the Kamaruddin Jaafar, buddy of Anwar enter the “gate” of PAS “markaz”. Then the idealism of “endorgan” pours within PAS “wind of change”. There is no more Islamic state. There is no more “hudud”. There are major revolutions in determining the PAS manifesto. The manifesto changed year by year. And the mastermind is so called the “magical black magic hand” of Anwar Ibrahim.
There comes Mat Sabu. The term of “Al-Juburi” is believed was “invented” by him. He knows Anwar since they studied. He used to see Tun Dr. Mahathir, and Tun asked him whether he is the one who responsible by him. He just nodded to confirm and the story was told by one of “Tun’s today most popular son”. By record, I would like to remind you that Mat Sabu is the person who was caught “khalwat” with one of his “friend’s wife” and found “not guilty” by the court. But the rumors said that he married the woman after that incident! What a co-incident marriage if so!
Azizan Razak is the new MB for Kedah State. He is believe to be one of the PAS veteran who still alive to carry out the main hard core PAS nowadays. But he did no new thing in Kedah. He just carries to do what the last Kedah BN’s state government used to do. He does just the same job without any new “wow” factor project. It was only once, when he confirmed to run a mega hi-tech pig sanctuary at Bukit Selambau. But the project was cancelled due to get so much pressure especially from UMNO! Phew! What an almost a disaster for Bukit Selambau residents!
And the last candidate for Deputy President of PAS is Dato’ Dr. Harun Din. He is the businessman, who runs Darul Shifa, an alternative medication method in Islam. Just like a medical specialist centre to cure people for “jinn”, “satans”, “ghost” and unsolved deceases.
The “Darul Shifa” is believed as one of the place to solve the unidentified medical cases. They do it in the Islamic way accordingly. They make good money, good profit and no doubt about it. He is the currently the Deputy “Mursyidul Am” PAS, the deputy of Nik Aziz. He was chosen as one of the favorite candidate last PAS election, but he refused to contest. He refused to contest if there is other competitor in the quest of the post. He wanted to be the one and only candidate. He insisted to be the only chosen one by the member of party. “Muttafaqun ‘alaihi”. This arab’s term seems fit him. Will this man get the seat without any candidate to compete him this time? Are the others are willing to back of? Will they? Or Harun Din will be another “flip flop” celebrities?
The Vice President of PAS will be contested by 16 persons. What a large number! The number is larger then UMNO candidates for UMNO Vice President on last Mac. They are Salahuddin Ayob, Tuan Ibrahim, Dr. Hassan Ali, Mahfuz, Nizar the “puppet”, Taib Azamuddin, Mohd. Amar, Mujahid the son of Yusuf Rawa, Kamaruddin Jaafar the “hands of Anwar”, Harun Taib, Ahmad Awang and Idris Ahmad. Some of them are veterans. Some of them are “endorgan”. Some of them are “opportunist”. Only a few of them are coming from so called “ulama” PAS. And the other 4 candidates consisting the candidate of Deputy President of PAS. What a lust of power! The Malays call it “gila kuasa”!
Let them go through their party election in “democratic” way. It’s their right. This article is just to remind them that the “virus” that Anwar Ibrahim used to “planted” in UMNO is now being “implemented to their party. The “virus” of political corruption is now being introduced by De Facto of PKR just like he bought the vote for his power in UMNO last decade. Just the way he “kicked out” our beloved late nationalist Tun Ghafar Baba. Just like the way he spread out the “pink form” among UMNO members. Just like the “Iblis” asked Adam A.S and Hawa to eat “khuldi” fruits from heaven!
So beware of that. It is not me who say that. You can see it by yourself. You can hear the call of Muhammad Daud Al-Iraqi, the head of PAS ulama’ hall a few days ago. You can hear what did Nik Aziz said that “you are now are being friend with satan”, instead to destroy your Muslim brothers! Beware of him. The “black heart” is trying to torn PAS apart. Even Nik Abduh had seen that and he did remind you earlier. Beware my beloved Muslim brother of PAS. “The devil” is trying to destroy you!

Abolish ISA and Allow Mas Selamat To Walk Freely In Our Neighborhood

2009-05-12T17:36:00.000-07:00

Last week the Police and Minister of Home Affairs announced the capture of Singapore’s most wanted fugitive, Mas Selamat Kastari.
On 27th February 2008 he escaped from Singapore’s detention center and the escape triggered massive movement of security personnel to apprehend him.
On 1st of April 2009, Mas Selamat was caught at a kampong in, Johor and last week, about a month later the police made official statement regarding Mas Selamat detention.
Due to ongoing investigation, it the police waited for almost 1 month to make official announcement. He is currently detained under ISA in Malaysia to assist in investigation.
The question now, why there wasn’t anyone making ‘noise’ regarding Mas Selamat detention under ISA?
Those within Pakatan Rakyat who are making much effort to abolish ISA have not come forward to fight against Mas Selamat ‘illegal’ detention.
I remember not too long ago, they will take to the street the moment anyone from Pakatan Rakyat or someone with political interest was detained under ISA.
But today no one take to the street when it is known that Mas Selamat is currently detained under ISA? Is Mas Selamat least human? Or is it because Mas Selamat has no political value for him to be defended?
Where is Pakatan Rakyat? Where is the compassion in Pakatan Rakyat that was shown on numerous occasions before? Where are the NGO’s fighting for those under detention? Where is Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA?
Why is the double standard? Why hiding behind “abolishment of ISA” when in the first place they want their political allies to be freed.
The struggle to abolish ISA is a political ploy. They don’t care much about others who are under detention except for political prisoners.
So tell me something. Do you think Mas Selamat should be freed? Should we let him loose and roam free to create fear in us? Should we let him walk freely together with us to KLCC fully knowing what he’s capable of doing?
Fortunately the answers to these questions are not in your hand.

E-Book: Key To Better Education?

2009-05-08T06:46:00.001-07:00

Terengganu government decided to distribute 23,000 e-book to year five students in the state. The distribution will start end of this month.
According to the spokesperson, the e-book project was part of the state government’s aim at providing quality education and to reduce the burden of heavy school bag.
What I’m wondering is that whether this will actually work and achieve its noble target.
Contribution from oil and gas made this state one of the richest in Malaysia and due to this, it can afford to supply primary school children with e-book.
I don’t think it’s fair when it comes to this. The government aim to provide equal and the best education possible to all Malaysian. It started from primary and later progressed to university.
The question is why students from Terengganu have the privilege to basically get an e-book each? What about other primary school children outside Terengganu?
Does the education minister feel that this is a fair advantage to school children from Terengganu?
I personally don’t think handing out e-book is the best or better effort from the state government to provide better education. I think someone is making a lot of money out of this.
If the state government wanted to improve the state of education in Terengganu, they should consider equipping better and more computers to the school.
The e-book has limited capability. Though its internet enabled, how many students have internet connectivity at home?
What about maintenance? Who will maintain them? Can the parents afford to maintain and repair faulty e-book?
The state government should consider upgrading facilities in school. This will somehow encourage the students to spend more time in school. By spending more time in school, they can get involved in sports, information technology etc. And the teachers can better supervise their students.
At home we don’t know how long the students spend time with their e-book. We want the e-book to be fully utilized.
Terengganu is where majority of the students are kampong boy. They are the active type where they spend more time outdoor. The idea of making them spend more time in front of the e-book seems to be a farfetched idea.
It’s best to use the money to make the students spend more time in school rather than letting them spend more time outdoor doing nothing or getting involved with negative activities.

Community Service And Henry Gurney For Mat Rempit

2009-05-08T06:43:00.002-07:00

Yesterday the Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye from Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation suggested a few measures to curb the notorious Mat Rempit.
He suggested that Mat Rempits should be asked to do community service. Instead of giving them fines, the government should consider educating and in a way ‘embarrassing’ them through community service.
These suggestions I think are much more ‘workable’, viable and make more sense than sending them to jail.
Putting them behind bars will in a way enable them to hide their identity. We need to put faces to these names. The key word is ‘embarrass’ them in public.
Indirectly it will also help to reduce congestion in prison. I don’t think putting them in jail for a short while would have any impact. In fact it might boost their ego, “Been there. Done that.”
Ego made them turn into Mat Rempit. And we should use their ‘Ego’ against them.
Make them sweep the road, collect garbage and cleaning the public toilet should be considered. Make sure their identities are easily identified by the general public. Give them bright uniforms and apparels written “I’m Mat Rempit”.
Making them do all these laborious job might help the local authorities to save some cost.
Another suggestion mooted was to send the underage Mat Rempit to Henry Gurney School.
There’s no harm trying this. Some of these Mat Rempits are not hard core criminals. They’re just some youth who wanna release steam. The threat of sending them to Henry Gurney to be with other juvenile criminals can be a deterrent factor.
This will also indirectly make the parents to take more pro-active role. Like it or not, the parents have to control their children unless they want their children to end up in Henry Gurney School.
Whatever action taken, the authority need to give it more prominence in the media. The public and Mat Rempit need to know that action are being taken. And they need to take this matter seriously.
They take law lightly realizing that the judge can only impose light sentence and it won’t hurt their ego. Before this they hide behind the helmet. Now is the time for the media to put their face in the news more prominently and make sure the public knows who these nuisances in the community are.
This suggestion is not to glamourise the Mat Rempit but to put face on this anonymous public enemy. For as long as they remain anonymous, they will forever terrorise the general public.

Between Che Mat, Che Puan And Che Guevera

2009-05-08T06:43:00.001-07:00

Ask any young Malaysian whether they know anyone mentioned above. The answer would definitely be Che Guevara.
Ask the same group of young Malaysian about Sambathan, Cheng Lok, Boestamam and Che Guevara. I guarantee they’d be able to give Che’s home address but they don’t know where Sambathan, Cheng Lok and Boestamam were buried.
So what’s wrong with this scenario? Is this something that we should worry? Do you blame these young Malaysians, teachers or parents?
Did the family institution or education system fail us? Did the parents or teachers failed to instill patriotism sentiment into young Malaysians? If not parents and teachers, so who’s responsible to do this?
I remember Cool Hand Luke’s “What we got here is failure to communicate…” very clearly. In this case, “…failure to communicate…” is akin to failure to communicate with young Malaysians.
We failed to share with them about our forefathers. Hence we can’t blame them if they knew more about Che Guevara than our own freedom fighters.
What should we do to correct this? Should we go back to basics? Or leave as it is? Can you imagine Che Guevara getting famous and worshipped by children who’ve never heard the word ‘revolution’ or experience anything like it?
I’m not surprised in 100 years time; Che Guevara is bigger than Tun Dr.Mahathir. How often do you see someone wearing t-shirts with Mahathir’s face on it? And compare this scenario with thousands of Che Guevara’s ‘merchandise’ available locally. So, who is more iconic among young Malaysians?
Are we likely to see our future youth turning into ignorant Malaysians? A strong nation is a nation which is deeply rooted to the ground. A well grounded Malaysians will always remember its forefathers and will always remember their sacrifices.
The education system needs to be amended. Today we need to move away from exam oriented education system. What we see today are students who absorb what they’re learned like sponge and later squeeze it out during examination. In the end what’s left is just feather weight sponge with nothing inside.
The children and students alike need to participate in education. They should be taught to use all their senses while in learning environment. Hands, feet, mouth, ears, nose and eyes need to work together with the brain. They shouldn’t be mere listeners and jot down what the teacher have said.
Same goes with our forefathers. Let young Malaysians go out and find about these forefathers. And later let them explain their findings. The times where teachers giving out facts are over.
So in a nutshell, our outlook on education needs a makeover. We need to get the parents to participate too, not leave it to the teachers. Hopefully with these small changes, might be able to make young Malaysians remember more of Che Mat and Che Puan than Che Guevara.

What A Pity Of Bukit Lanjan Residents

2009-05-08T06:42:00.000-07:00

After coming back from her two month “peace of mind” vacation, she announced that she is also kind of “flip-flop” assemblyman and political leader. She put a side of her embarrassing “half naked” controversial pictures. She leads the Bukit Lanjan again as Bukit Lanjan assemblyman and Selangor State Exco. That’s for sure.
The controversial picture has now coming back to her life. Worse come to worse, what a pity of her. She can run, but she can not hide! The fact is, the photos are coming back on the website. A website called “gutteruncensored” is now dares to publish the dirty pictures of Eli Wong! Oh! What a pity of her again!
The question is, does the website is trying to urge Eli Wong to declare the resignation from her post again? And of course, the Menteri Besar Selangor, Khalid Ibrahim has to back her up again? Oh God, what is the website trying to push now? Does the website notice that the photos are should not be publish to public? It’s a private collection now.
It was still shocking us that this issue is still on the run. Still keep in track. The website is still tracking down the pity Eli Wong to his seclusion area. Will Eli Wong take a legal action on the website? Will Eli Wong take another “peace of mind” trip again until the “disturbance” photos are taken out ever from the website? Will it ends the action against her private life?
The fact is, the issue is still on the “game”. It is not a game over yet. Most politicians, even from Barisan Nasional have their sympathy on her “incident”. Who is to blame? We cannot blame the ruling government about this shameful manner. How about her so called “ex-boyfriend”? Any news from that guy yet? The rumors spread so high that he is the one who is responsible for this “unmannerly” manners. Had he been caught yet? Is there any further investigations had been planned?
The character assassination through the “unmannerly” manners is can not be accepted. Most people have their sympathy of her. The Bukit Lanjan residents brought up posters “begging” for Eli Wong not to resign. They love her. They totally “forgive” her for the sleeping unconsciously half naked. They forgive her for allowing her “Malay” ex-boyfriend to sneaking in her house, taking her “forgiven” sleeping manners!
What about the PR politician leaders? Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim will for sure forgiving her on the “incident”. How about the “so called” PAS spiritual leader Dato’ Nik Aziz Nik Mat? He seems “liberal” and “forgive and forget” about this matter. He said that “the incident” should not been happened”. I can hardly heard anything coming from Karpal Singh accept of his “famous quote” of “Anwar Ibrahim harus bertaubat!”.
I wonder if something like this incident is happening to one of the Barisan Nasional female politician leader. How if this kind of incident involving Dato’ Seri Azalina or Rosnah Shirlin? Will they been forgiven? How if something of this happen to Ng Yen Yen? Will they been forgiven just the way of Eli Wong being forgiven right now? Or there will be just another political statement by the opposition leaders of Pakatan Rakyat against the them? Who knows? Politics is always unpredictable!
What should we do now? I do not have any access to shut down the “unconscious half naked” pictures of Eli Wong from the “website”. I still have a pity of her as a human being. She is the victim of some bloody character assassin out there. I think “somebody” have to do something to end this. That somebody is has to be either “the character assassin” or Eli Wong herself! The character assassin is hard to trace and there will be thousands of copies been spread out through the world!
Well, it seems to be Eli Wong herself to end this up? Will she again face the humiliation she is not meant to be? Should she resign to end up all this matter? Should the Bukit Lanjan assemblyman takes another “two month with paid” vacation? Or she will just repeat her statement “I will resign!”? Will she firm with the statement or she just make another “flip-flop” self interest political movement. Yet, is there another by-election await us at Bukit Lanjan of Selangor?
What a hell of disaster created by another Pakatan Rakyat leaders! After the resignation of Fairus of Penang with his “so called” arranged set up conspiration against him, yet comes the shadow of new by-election in Selangor. The by-election of course will cause Malaysia government millions of Ringgit. What a waste! Who made the Ringgit Malaysia wasted so easy? Looks like Pakatan Rakyat leaders. Is there any of Pakatan Rakyat” die hard fan realized about this fact? What a bitter to take!
Yet, the pictures issue had to be covered up first. Eli Wong will be demanded to answer the call. We just wait for her answer. Hope she will end this all last and forever. Please YB, you have to end this up. We have the pity of you, but…what a shame!

New Funicular Train, Is It Necessary?

2009-05-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

Do we need new funicular trains up Penang Hill? Is it necessary to have new trains, especially in this trying time?
I agree with Penang Heritage Trust for condemning the plan by the state government to spend RM40 million to replace the funicular trains.
In a time where we ought to be prudent with our expenditures, Penang State Government have the audacity to proceed with something Penangites don’t actually need right now.
There are far better ways for the state government to spend RM40 million. Even though the budget was allocated by the federal government, I believe the state government can refuse and request the fund to be channeled out to more important and deserving projects considering the state government often chest thumping that they’re the people’s government.
The money can be used to improve roads, sewerage and other development programs. If they really want to spend on tourism product, they should consider putting the money in good use such as maintenance of heritage buildings or maybe introducing new tourism products.
The new funicular purportedly can reduce travelling time from 30 to 20 minutes. Yes, it can save our time travelling up there but for visitors, time is irrelevant. They want to enjoy the journey. They don’t want to see the beautiful flora and fauna whizz pass them at ‘warp speed’.
Penang Hill is a place where time is not an essence of necessity. Tourists want to waste time there. And travelling up there is part of this ‘time wasting’ sojourn. If you want to hurry things up, why go for holiday in the first place?
Numerous breakdowns were cited as a reason for this idea to get new funicular trains. Last year the trains stopped operation for almost 6 months due to technical problem.
With proper care and maintenance, the funicular train can still serve for many more years. I strongly believe this is not the right time to have new funicular train.
Mentioned earlier, the money should be put to good use that benefits the general public in Penang than a small group of hill dwellers and tourist who’re in a hurry. I actually don’t mind if the Ministry of Education hand out these e-book to all primary students. It’ll be much fairer as every student will have equal opportunity in getting better education.

TOWARDS A TRANSPARENT, OPEN AND DEMOCRATIC ELECTION

2009-04-28T14:56:00.000-07:00

Its about time. They should have decided on this many years ago but somehow it fell on deaf ears.
Najib announced during his first UMNO Supreme Council meeting as President that UMNO will be having a special General Assembly at the end of the year.
The special General Assembly will bring forward the idea of amending party constitution pertaining party’s election process. This idea bring hope for a transparent, more open and democratic UMNO election.
A special committee had been selected to look into this matter. This committee will look into suggestion and propose a solution and mechanism for a better election process.
The current system is being criticized as it open up more opportunities for money politics. The recent UMNO election have tainted with numerous allegations on money politics.
Many cried foul that current system sidelined able and honest leaders from seeking election as money has been playing prominent role in the nomination and election process. This is an open secret where none in the UMNO circle can deny its existence.
This move however will bring hope and much needed boost that honest and committed are able to seek a fair election.
For a start the committee should think of a mechanism on how to make more members involved in the election process. If possible every member should be given the rights to elect their leaders, not limiting it to a few privilege members.
At this moment the ‘perwakilan’ are those who are casting their votes. They are supposed to represent the sentiment and desire of the grassroots. Unfortunately they failed to do so. They betrayed the grassroots by selecting their preference. This absolutely didn’t reflect the sentiments during the nomination process.
It’s no easy task considering there are millions of UMNO members all over the country. The committee should consider looking at how other political parties abroad conducts their election.
They should consider studying the election process in the largest democratic country in the world, India. The Congress Party might be able to help the committee on this matter.
But whatever it is, first and foremost is to find ways to conduct fair and clean election. The future of the party and the nation can’t be left in the hands of selected few. Let the majority decides who they want to lead the party and the decision to look into party’s election process is a good start on his first day chairing the UMNO Supreme Council meeting as President.

UMNO TO ENGAGE THE 'YOUNGLINGS'

2009-04-28T14:54:00.000-07:00

Ahmad Maslan the Member of Parliament from Pontian was elected as UMNO Information Chief. It came as a surprise to many as he’s unknown to outsiders and even among UMNO grassroots outside Johor.
However I don’t think this is a big problem to begin with. What I would like to know is ‘What are his plans for UMNO?’
I don’t think an Information Chief only function as someone who send word to the grassroots vice versa.
Information Chief has bigger role to play in making sure the sentiments from the leadership are passed down to the grassroots and the desire from the grassroots reached the top echelon of the party leadership.
There shouldn’t be any communication breakdown. Information Chief should be the person to advice the party leadership of any problem besetting the party.
Ahmad Maslan mentioned that he would like to bridge the generation gap. This is nothing new as almost everyone in UMNO promised to listen and talk to the youth but somehow I don’t see any significant changes in support from the youth. What I can say is that he has a lot of work to do.
The younglings today are very well informed group of people. They are well versed with information technology. In this case, Ahmad Maslan should consider embracing information technology.
He should consider shedding any ‘holier than thou’ and patronizing attitude. They are quite wary whenever politicians try to get close to them. They have a notion that all politicians have hidden agenda whenever they politicians try to get ‘intimate’ with them.
I can’t blame them. Many patronizing politicians tried to impose strict regime on them. These are the age group where ‘restriction’ and ‘rules’ are equivalent to death penalty. He needs to thread this carefully, find out ways on how to give what they want and at the same time getting the message across to them younglings.
The government and UMNO should engage the youngsters in debate. Talk to them and find out more about their opinions. Currently there are none representing them. Their opinions are not heard. What the Youth Wings in BN representing are voices and needs of the not-that-young-anymore-youth.
What about the needs of the skate boarders, Mat Rempits, underground musicians, school drop outs, unemployed grads etc? Who are their representatives? We can’t ignore their presence.
Ahmad Maslan should suggest to Najib to relax some ruling in AUKU. This Act has affected the youth more than any other age group. They felt that their voices have been silenced by this Act. Give some room for them to voice out their idealism through political activities.
Relaxing AUKU may give birth to nuisance. But then again, if the government gives its best to serve the country, there’s nothing for young firebrands to complaint.
Whatever it is, Ahmad Maslan should walk the talk. If he intend to engage the younglings and talk to them, go ahead but for a start please don’t talk politics with them.

LOOK MOM. IT’S THE PRIME MINISTER!

2009-04-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

Not bad, not bad. Twice within a month he went out and sees for himself life in Kuala Lumpur. He surprised many with his visit.
Earlier this month he visited 3 predominantly Malay, Chinese and Indian areas namely Pantai Dalam, Petaling Street and Brickfields.
And yesterday he visited 2 areas important to the middle and lower income, Jln Masjid India and Puduraya respectively. Those 2 areas are special to me when I first step into KL.
For many, Puduraya is the first place they step foot in KL. It is the first iconic building that greets them when they disembarked from their bus. It’s the same with me. And the funny thing, the place hasn’t changed much since I first set foot here in KL 10 years ago.
It’s about time someone like the Prime Minister serve a reminder to the relevant party to expedite the completion of Plaza Rakyat. Imagine the feeling being greeted by a gigantic eyesore, Plaza Rakyat. It’s like being treated like a 3rd class citizen. Can’t they at least greet us with something of beauty?
You don’t see tourist being greeted by ‘half complete’ KLIA or KL Sentral? At these places, any sign of possible eyesore will be dealt immediately.
And here we have Plaza Rakyat, an eyesore of mega proportion welcoming us. The building itself is a metaphor of how life is going to be in KL. It’s big but doesn’t mean it’s always beautiful.
So the question now, is he going to continue with this ‘spot check’? If he plan to make this his monthly rendezvous, he should consider visiting the outskirts and other states.
I’m suggesting places like Pasar Borong Selayang,Seri Kembangan & Balakong, Tmn Connaught, Rawang, Kajang, Klang etc. Like I mentioned earlier, do visit some pekan or kampong unannounced whenever he is at any states.
He should also consider making this a real deal. Forget about informing the relevant Ministers or Chief Minister. Take a car together with his bodyguard and drive around like stealth unknown to the general public. Please, surprise us citizens. It might win some votes and I don’t driving him around as long as he’s paying for the toll and petrol.
Leave his outriders and try taking the LRT from Bukit Jalil to PWTC. Or maybe travel along the Federal Highway during peak hour. To be a ‘pemimpin berjiwa rakyat’, he should feel our agonizing pain.
This unassuming act reminds me of Sultan Alauddin Ri’ayat Shah who was famous for going undercover at night checking the well being of his rakyat.
I also hope other Ministers and Chief Ministers would follow suit. They should visit places that are relevant to their ministry. In this case I think the Tourism Minister has an enviable job.

LIBERALISING THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY

2009-04-28T14:51:00.000-07:00

Earlier he announced liberalizing 27 subsector in the service industry. He made a lot of people happy with the announcement.
Tomorrow he’ll be announcing similar liberalizing plan for the finance industry. I’m not sure what the plan going to be but many hopes it’ll be on foreign equity in the finance sector.
Many known that the finance sector in Malaysia is somewhat protected and almost close. Only recently we see a sudden surge in foreign finance houses coming into Malaysia. We’ve seen Citibank, Standard & Charted and HSBC increasing their presence in this country. So what’s next in store for us?
Last night during the news bulletin, NTV7 did a poll asking whether the government should consider abolishing Approved Permit or AP. The result came out with 98% respondents’ supports the suggestion to abolish AP.
AP is a thorn in the flesh for the government. When it was first introduced the purpose is to encourage Bumiputra participation in business. Unfortunately many had misused this opportunity. These basically irked the non-Bumis and many felt the exorbitant price we have to pay for automobile was caused by this approved permits.
Many parties had called for the abolishment of approved permits but somehow the government is reluctant to let it go.
The recent hive of activities in liberalizing a few sectors brought back the idea about abolishing the approved permits. Many believe now is the time to open up our automotive sector.
Our National Automotive Policy needed to be re-look into. We’re the only country in South East Asia with its own national automotive industry. Unfortunately we’re less appealing to other automotive brands.
We have well trained automotive expert who are at least by-lingual but somehow these are not attractive enough compare to Thailand with better policies and incentives for foreign manufacturer to set up base there.
They also have cheap labor and they foreign manufacturers felt language is not a problem for as long they just follow instruction.
Our local automotive industry can afford to run on its own without any protection. The recent launch of Exora showed that Proton can stand on its own merit. In a few years time they can compete globally. Getting rid and let them compete on equal ground will push them to work harder and improve their products in order to survive,
After the finance sector, I hope the Prime Minister will consider liberalizing the automotive sector. Let’s open up our automotive industry to make our product more competitive. Proton and Perodua need to live in real world where products are judged by their quality and service.
Like what Najib and his ministers are doing, Proton and Perodua need to talk to the rakyat too.

WHERE IS THE DEPUTY CHIEF MINISTER?

2009-04-23T17:30:00.000-07:00

I don’t understand why it takes them so long to name a Deputy Chief Minister. Till today there’s no sign the post will be filled soon.

Is the position least important that they can afford to delay naming a candidate? Is the position more of symbolic nature than a practical and functioning position?

Guan Eng and Anwar have a lot of answering to do. They can point fingers but doing such thing won’t settle the problem.

What they need to do now is to put the interest of the Malays in Penang at the fore front. The
Deputy Chief Minister is to represent the Malays in making any executive decision.

Who is doing that right now? How long the Penang Malays going to be leader-less? Who is taking care of their interest?

Delaying appointing someone to fill the vacant position shows PKR is lacking of reliable candidate. From the pool of Malay ADUNs in Penang, I’m quite surprised that they can’t find someone that’s able to undertake that responsibility.

Can’t Guan Eng ask Anwar to expedite the appointment? Not doing so further proof that Guan Eng is tooth less Chief Minister. He has to ‘kow tow’ to Anwar.

Can someone please tell me; is that the spirit in Pakatan Rakyat? From what I can see, it seems there’s only one leader leading the whole bunch. Everyone including leaders from other parties within the coalition have to listen or wait for Anwar’s respond on whatever issue.

Where do we go from here? Is Anwar going to wait until PR wins Penanti by-election before he announce the candidate?

In this predicament, the losing party is not DAP or PKR. It is the rekyat who are bound to suffer.

The ‘adhesive’ that binds together all PR members is not strong as it was used to be.

This situation further proves that this coalition is a marriage of convenient. They one have common ‘enemy’ in BN. But unfortunately they can’t fight together under 1 voice. We can see that in Penang.

Now the ball is in their court. The Malays in Penang have to decide what s best for them. They have to demand a Deputy Chief Minister to be appointed as soon as possible. They can choose to ignore or decide using the ballot box.

BN shouldn’t rest on their laurel. They have to start work now and think of ways to wrest control Penang from PR. Fail to do so at the coming General Election, will mean that it’s going to be difficult task to win the hearts of Penangite.

“WHO IS DOLLAH KOK LANAS?”

2009-04-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

How much do you know about our nation’s history? How well versed are you when it comes to the history of your kampong? How did they come up with ‘Batang Berjuntai’? What ‘Batang’ and whose ‘Batang’ were they talking about?

You’ll be surprised how irrelevant history has become. No one really care about history and yet these are the same people who’re shouting about ‘Kedaulatan Raja’. The situation is that they’re fighting blindly for something they don’t understand really well.

Its not a problem to fight or struggle for a cause. But it is a problem when you’re fighting for something you’re not clear about. How are you going to justify your cause when you know nothing about it?

That’s the problem with our youth today. They don’t know history and yet they’re fighting for ‘hak-hak orang Melayu’. I think these bunch of idiots have never read the constitution.

It’ll be good if they know what they’re fighting for instead of answering “Ntah lah? Depa suruh aku pegang sepanduk, aku pegang lah. Janji masyuk!” when asked why are they doing what they’re doing now?

The days of gathering and paying students to line up by the roadside to greet the Prime Minister is over. It’s not about volume or numbers of people showing support, it’s about the quality of those giving support. I’d rather have 1 smart assistant than 10 nodding donkeys!

Yesterday a friend of mine called for a drink. I declined the offer as I’ll be interviewing Dollah Kok Lanas on the same day. He asked “Siapa Dollah Kok Lanas?” which I don’t find it amusing.

He got a very long tongue lashing from me. You see, I don’t mind if he’s dumb, stupid or plain ignorant about our history. But for someone who ran for ‘Exco Pemuda UMNO’, this is no excuse. And luckily he lost that race as I can’t see Pemuda UMNO being led by such person of low knowledge.

So now it goes back to what kind of leaders are we expect to lead us in the future. I think it’s high time for UMNO to take a look at their future leaders. Train them. Groom them and feed them with knowledge. You don’t want these young leaders becoming the whipping boys simply because of their lack of knowledge.

Remember, knowledge is power and without knowledge you’re simply powerless and hopeless.

And of course we don’t want someone of low knowledge to be in power. So start now before you’re left with nincompoops as your choice to lead the country.

HOW MUCH IS THAT HIGHWAY?

2009-04-22T05:58:00.000-07:00

What a relief hearing that the government is looking into toll concession seriously. I hope this will not turn into another ‘Janji Manismu’

The government sometimes sweetened our thoughts with promises to look into some matters. Hoping that in a few months, these issues will be long forgotten.

And sometimes when they really meant it, the result from “we will look into this matter” is less than satisfying.

The government must sincerely ask themselves whether they’re serious in tackling this thorny issue. Toll is no laughing matter. Malaysians livelihood are inter-related to how cheap these toll charges are. If they government promise to look into it, they better do it.

The Economic Planning Unit mentioned that they need 3 months to do their research and find the best solution to this nationwide woe.

Whatever it is, in 3 months time I expect and answer. I would like to know the solutions they’ve come up with after 3 months of hibernating with the files. What I would like to know whether the final solution is the best solution or the most logical answer to our problems.

I hope after 3 months the government will come up with conclusive answers, and not asking for extension. The rakyat are getting impatient. If possible, they would like the toll rates to be reduced by tomorrow.

If the government decided to take over PLUS Highway, I hope they’ll come clean about the evaluation.

There were a few cases where the compensation given was overvalued. I hope the EPU is not trying to make somebody rich in split seconds. They’ll jack up the price and value of the shares.

It ended when something worth a few hundred million Ringgit was evaluated more than what they’re worth, and that evaluation goes into billion Ringgit figure.

I hope the government would offer a fair amount to the share holders. Too expensive and it’ll make some dent on our national reserves. Too cheap and the shareholders aren’t going to be happy.

If the government can’t buy over all highways, I hope they would consider PLUS Highway and LDP as priorities. These 2 highways are like arteries running through our body. Anything less than a ‘buyout’ means the government is not serious enough in settling the problem at the toll booth. And please don’t try to turn anyone into instant millionaire.

RIGHT BRAIN INDUSTRY

2009-04-22T05:55:00.000-07:00

This is the time to look for or identify true friends. In this trying time true friends are hard to come by. But sometimes this comes from someone unexpected.

The economic uncertainties brought along uncertainties into our life. Many continuously wondering about their future and wonders when would these uncertainties will stop?

What can we do about it? This is something beyond our control. Borrowing from Billy Joel, “we didn’t start the fire.”

What can we do to ease our sufferings? What about those retrenched? The government thru its Human resources Ministry is planning numerous schemes to retrain and repackage our work force. Is this enough?

What about those areas of expertise that are seldom talked about. Let’s take creative industry for example. Have anyone thought about the livelihood of those in the creative industry?

Creative industry usually will be the first affected by any economic uncertainties. In this internet age, creative industry contributes significantly to the economy but unfortunately it’s also the least represented industry nationwide.

There’s no national trade union representing those in the creative industry. There are numerous organizations or associations within the entertainment industry but only serve their interest and most of them are redundant. You can see more than 3 associations representing the same group of people.

In- cohesiveness caused many in the creative industry to suffer and also caused many not to take this industry seriously. Subjective is the core of creativity. There’s no mathematical formula in finding creative solutions. This also caused many not to make creative as their lifetime career.

What the industry needs to do to be taken seriously is to have a proper working frame and regulation to regulate the industry. Singapore is doing that and is now ahead of us by light years.

They saw the future in creative industry and they worked for it. Today they’ve managed to entice among the best creative minds in this region and also bringing creative industry players from the western hemisphere to Singapore.

What are we doing? We have gargantuan plans to make this country into a creative hub but a plan will always be a plan if we don’t take any action.

One of the first things we need to do if we’re really serious in developing the creative industry is to have one ministry to monitor and develop the creative and media industry. Right now there are so many ministries overlooking this industry. It’s slowing us down when our neighbors are moving at warp speed and leaving us behind.

I hope the government will look into this matter seriously and recognize the importance of this industry to the economy. The current economy downturn is affecting those in this industry.

Many are without jobs and nowhere else to go. They’re not engineers where they can be employed in other industries because they only work with their right brain.

NO VICTORY FOR ANYONE

2009-04-22T05:54:00.000-07:00

We’re back to square one. All parties maintained their seats in respective by-elections. Nothing changed. But there are some bruised egos.

BN brought along its Ayam Tambatan, Tun Dr.Mahathir but it remained unchanged. What’s the outlook now? Are these by-elections reflects on the rakyat’s supports towards Najib? Or it’s too early to be used as a barometer?

Yes, some might point fingers at BN and say “You lost.” But the truth is, no one lost. There wasn’t much difference in the majority won. Everything remains unchanged. But the question is, will things remain the same once all the election machineries pack their bags?

PR will claim victory despite them not gaining any extra seats. But what about BN? Are they gonna claim victory too? I don’t think so, infact from this point onwards they should plan ahead for PRU13. BN has lost a lot of grounds and they need to make head start now for the next election.

There’s no need to do post mortem. No point in doing that. BN have known the problems since losing 4 states but unfortunately they’ve never done anything to rectify it.

The rakyat has lost trust in BN and UMNO. They thought the recent UMNO election will be the catharsis to refresh the spirit but unfortunately it didn’t change much. A proven corrupt is leading the wing. What kind of image is UMNO trying to show?

UMNO can’t handle corruptions within the party and they plan to lead a constituency? Yeah, keep on dreaming my friends!

OK enough of ‘hentam-ing’. Lets look at the bright side. The result from these by-elections gives a clearer picture of how things are today. It shows that nothing has changed since PRU12, which is better than losing more seats.

This gives Najib a starting point to plot his changes. From here, everyone knows where to start.

But how and what to start with is another question need to be answered.

The cabinet will be a good start. It’ll reflect on the sort of government Najib is leading. Nail this or forever he will lose the rakyat’s trust.

Leaders from all UMNO wings shouldn’t be given any post. They should concentrate and concert their effort in winning back the heart and soul of the rakyat.

Power should be given to entity such as Badan Perhubungan BN Negeri, if there is one. Over time we always hear about Badan Pehubungan UMNO Negeri taking doing most of the action and each component parties have their respective task force.

Since Najib is talking about One Malaysia, why not we establish or give more prominence to Badan Perhubungan BN Negeri. And this should be lead by capable local leaders from any ethnics. This would give clearer signal that BN is about power sharing not monopolized by one party.

TAXI DRIVER: “ARE YOU TALKING TO ME?”

2009-04-22T05:52:00.000-07:00

Lately we’ve a lot of complaints lodge against taxi drivers in Kalng Valley. These complaints vary from refuse to pick up passenger, refuse to use meter, overcharging and other offences.

These complaints also come from tourist and foreigners. Most common grouse is overcharging.

This somehow put us in the same league as other 3rd world countries.

Problems with taxi drivers are long standing issues that haven’t been resolved since ice age. The country has changed Prime Ministers and a few other ministers that were supposed to handle the problem, but unfortunately it is still there unresolved.

For the past few weeks we’ve heard about JPJ and LPKP or Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board conducting spot checks using undercovers to apprehend taxi flouting the licensing rules.

So what’s the result? Is there a sudden change in their (taxi driver) attitude? Do you see more taxi driver using meter and not overcharging? The answer is a simple ‘No’.

The relevant bodies are at lost in handling the taxi drivers. Numerous methods were used to address these problems. Countless compounds were given but it came to no end. So what else can the authority do?

The answer is simple. “Talk to them”. Fortunately the authorities have spoken to them ‘decades’ ago and the problem still exist. Not much has been done.

They taxi driver have requested the government to raise the fares. This fare has been in existence for the past 12 years. Since then, everything has gone up except taxi fares.

The rise in cost of living eats up into their daily take home income. The government authorities know how much a taxi driver can earn a day and how much is their daily cost to operate a taxi.

The government can’t simply raise the fares to offset what the taxi driver lost daily due to high operating cost. Just to please 25,000 taxi drivers, the rest of the rakyat have to put up with higher taxi fare.

So what else can the government do? For a start the government should consider giving individual permits to all taxi drivers. Abolish monopolistic system in taxi operation. Give taxi drivers choice whether they want to operate under a company or individually.

On average a taxi driver have to pay the taxi company RM1,500 a month to rent a taxi. After 4 years the taxi will be theirs. If you do the maths, a taxi driver spent RM72,000 for a Proton Iswara taxi that cost less than RM35,000.

In a nutshell, the taxi drivers are subsidizing more than 100% profits earned by the company.

What do the taxi driver got after 4 years? Nothing, except a 4 year old Proton Iswara taxi. And they don’t even have a permit under their name.

All this one sided terms made them turn into rogue taxi drivers. They have to overcharge for a living. This is nothing new and the government has done nothing to address this long existing problem. Stop this monopolistic business. Let them taxi driver earn their living. The taxi companies have been leeching taxi drivers hard work for God knows how many years.

If Najib want to talk about service to the people, this is his chance. By stopping taxi monopoly, the government can defer raising taxi fares as the take home income will be much better for the taxi drivers. They might not resort to overcharging or flouting meter ruling. As a result, he’ll make millions of passengers happy. That’s 25,000 votes from taxi drivers plus a few million votes from happy passengers.

MIC THREATENING THE PRIME MINISTER? BE MY GUEST!

2009-04-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Please go ahead and do it. We’re not affected by it. Who are these people to claim that they deserve more?

MIC threatened to leave the cabinet for not having major representation in the cabinet. The question they should ask themselves is whether they merit bigger role in the cabinet?

Sorry to say this, if I was given the choice to select my own cabinet, MIC won’t be getting a single seat. They don’t deserve to be in the cabinet.

They claim to represents the Indians but the reality is the Indians are turning to PKR for help.

MIC have been representing the Indians since its inception but till today there weren’t significant changes on the Indian community in economy and social structure.

When PKR together Hindraf offered to take that role the Indians reluctantly accepted it.

Reluctant because they don’t see helping the Indian community outside the government can do much. But they accepted because MIC representing them in the government didn’t do much either.

Today the Indians are taking chances with PKR. I don’t know how are they doing, but lets wait till next election and ask again whether they’re well taken care by the opposition. If the opposition is doing a good job, I guess it’ll be another futile attempt like Bukit Selambau.

Everybody knows how much the majority Indians hates Samy Vellu. But from what I can see today, it seems the MIC president is deaf or immune to criticism. He’s not listening to what the majority Indian wants which is for him to step down.

He staying put shows how much power crazy he is. Till today he didn’t any clear succession plan as if he wants to stay for as long as possible. The grassroots in MIC have rise up. They have to tell him to his face that they don’t want him. He’s a liability to MIC and BN as a whole. Bukit
Selambau proves how much the Indians don’t want him and BN have to be the victim.

So back to the issue about threatening Najib, please go ahead and threaten the Prime Minister. MIC quitting the cabinet will give the chance for Najib to honor those who performed better than Samy Vellu. Why I mentioned ‘Samy Vellu’ not MIC? Because he is the root of all problems in MIC. MIC and BN are just victims of his irresponsible and power hungry attitude.

RED SHIRT PROTESTERS IN MALAYSIA?

2009-04-22T05:46:00.000-07:00

The Thais have their red shirts protesters, yellow and blue too. I’m not sure about other colours but I’m not surprised if they have protesters in rainbow colors.

Yesterday show proof how the people’s power can influence government decision. It’s not far, what happened is just across the border up north.

Can we see that happening in Malaysia? Why not? I think it can happen in Malaysia. ‘Bersih’ rally showed how far we have gone and how far are we willing to submit ourselves to the cause.

The government have to take heed the current situation in Thailand. We have seen how the people’s power in Indonesia and their reform movement had influence Malaysian to go out to the street to express their anger.

We don’t want this to happen again. But we know what we’re capable to do. I hope the new government would not push us to the corner and make us release our demons.

Pak Lah made us do that. Despite being free from the colonial power, our freedom has been retarded by various methods. ISA has been used rather frequently and once has been used for someone’s safety. How ridiculous can that be?

The government doesn’t have to do much to keep the peace we’re enjoying today. What the government and the cabinet need to do is to make sure our rights are taken care, equality in every aspect of life (this is debatable), no abuse of power etc.

In a nutshell, take care the country like it should be. There shouldn’t be any flip-flopping decision, mismanagement, corruption and wastage of government’s money and resources.

If the new cabinet performs, there’s nothing to worry about. The rakyat will be extremely happy if the cabinet performs and the only party that would be unhappy is Pakatan Rakyat.

Najib have to make sure that his cabinet performs. And he mustn’t succumb to reasoning from Ministers that failed to do so.

Najib must not fail to take action against those who didn’t perform. Failure to do so will force the rakyat to take action. And once this happen, it’s not good for the nation.

I hope Najib will continue to listen to the rakyat. If he fails, he’ll be another Pak Lah. Visiting Petaling Street, Brickfields and Pantai Dalam is a good start. I remember when Pak Lah visited the Immigration Department in Damansara. Unfortunately it was his first and last spot check.

I hope Najib can do this regularly. The rakyat would be happy to see their Prime Minister face to face outside the idiot box. It’s a good PR too because nothing beats interpersonal communication.

Dua Bukit Satu Batang

2009-04-22T05:42:00.000-07:00

Like any other Prime Minister, our soon to be Prime Minister would definitely want to set his own style of managing this country. He has his own vision and wants to step away from the shadows of Pak Lah and Tun Dr. Mahathir.

There are many things he can do differently. For a start he can undo some of the mistakes from the past. First he can start with PLUS Highway. I’m not saying it’s a mistake. I think PLUS is one of the most significant legacies from Tun Dr.Mahathir but unfortunately it also come at a cost.

Tun Dr.Mahathir might argue that we must pay for development and nothing comes free of charge. Yes, I agree but the question is, at what cost?

PLUS is no more of a ‘kemudahan’ but more of a ‘kesusahan’. The cost of travelling on a PLUS highway is ridiculously high. The poor and lower middle class have to live outside KL because of expensive property and rental within the city. Most have to travel between Nilai, Seremban and Rawang. But unfortunately the cost to travel to KL is a bane for them.

As a start I would like to suggest the government to buy out PLUS Highway. By controlling the highway, the government has the rights to lower the toll charges to ease our burden. This move will also help to reduce cost of transportation which indirectly will help to lower the price of Malaysian products.

I’m no economist but I believe PLUS Highway can also be the government’ cash cow. Even after lowering the toll rates, the government will still be able to generate profits from it. And they’ll be able to recoup the money spent for the buy -out way before 2020.

If he ever decides to buy over PLUS Highway, maybe he should consider LDP too. At the rate traffic driving thru the highway today, the operator is milking this cash cow to the max. Once they bought the LDP, the government can also milk the cash cow. But they (government) can do better by giving the milk away for the rakyat to share.

I don’t see buying over these 2 highways as a burden to the government. I see it as a strategic investment. You can’t go wrong with PLUS and LDP.

Next, should be the crooked bridge. He should re-start this project (if there is such possibility).

He’s undoing Pak Lah ‘stop work order’. It may look like adding some fine points to Tun Dr.Mahathir’s legacy but I think It’s making things right, doing something for the people.

With these, Najib can start with a mind of its own. He’s making decision for the betterment of the country. Something his predecessor failed to handle.

Najib need to start with a ‘bang’, not with “kerja bersama saya, bukan untuk saya” rhetoric. By taking action it’ll show that Najib mean business. And no other action as big as buying over PLUS Highway and re-start (if possible) crooked bridge.

The rakyat is waiting anxiously. We’re wondering what will be Najib’s first action as a Prime Minister. I sincerely hope Najib won’t cancel the 2nd Penang Bridge like what his predecessor did with the crooked bridge.

Whatever it is, the ball is in Najib’s court. He can choose to sit quietly in the office or immediately start working and making decision for the people. If done correctly and swiftly, the rakyat may show gratitude by giving him ‘2 bukit & 1 batang’.

NEW KITCHEN CABINET OR JUST NEW COAT OF PAINT?

2009-04-22T05:40:00.000-07:00

The battle for supremacy is over. Now is the time for him to elect his new cabinet.

MCA has proposed a few names. I’m not sure about MIC but I don’t think they have any bargaining power. Beggars can’t be chooser.

I’m not surprised if there is a lot of lobbying going around in Putrajaya. It’s part of human nature. When we human decide to go for power, we’ll go all out for it. We’ll send flowers, chocolates, greet him at the airport and even wait for him outside the toilet and I’m not surprised either if they’ll go after his mom. Anything goes.

I understand his predicaments. No one like to be in a position where they have to choose.

Whether it’s good or bad, someone has to be left behind and in this case, a few are going to be left behind.

I hope he’ll make good judgement to leave behind all the bad apples. It may limit his choice but at least those chosen are clean.

There are a few difficult choice. Shahrizat may push for a position despite losing the general election. She’ll use her win at the recent UMNO election to seek for a position in the cabinet. So does KJ and Rosnah. I hope they stay put at their respective wing and concentrate at winning back the hearts of Malaysian youngsters. They have a lot of work to do there and I don’t they need another responsibility in the form of Minister-ship.

Another group of people watching at the sideline are the Sabahan. They’ll request more active role in federal government. No one can deny the fact that Sabah currently holds the key to BN’s survival in Parliament. And same goes with UMNNO.

Najib can’t take lightly their contribution at the recent General Election and they want to be rewarded for their loyalty. At least 2 position at Minister level will be courted by them. And I think they deserve it. Denying them their share of the cake is akin to denying their contribution to UMNO. You don’t want to upset the Sabahan.

What about the Menteri Besar club? How many will be retained? Will we see the departure of Ali

Rustam or give him full reign of power to make a return come next UMNO election? Right now

Najib is in an awkward positon. Kicking him out from Melaka is like burning the bridge between the UMNO eleits and the grassroots. No one can deny Ali’s influence at the grassroots. But no one can also deny the hatred towards him outside and to some extent within UMNO. He’s both loved and hated. That’s Ali for you.

But what about other Menteri Besar? I think the safest is Ghani Osman. He seems to be managing the state quite well except for some displeasure with Iskandar Region. They think they gave away Iskandar Region easily to Pak Lah and his superfriends. We’ll wait and see whether Iskandar Region will work out as planned.

Whatever it is, I hope he’ll make wise decision. This is about the country. They’re his generals not Pak Mat, Ah Chong or Muthu in local JKKK or Ruku Tetangga. His decision will determine the direction this country will take. It’s a do-or-die mission. The future of UMNO is in his hands.

We can’t afford to have kitchen cabinet corrupts and laggards to govern this country. Get the best for the country and please no 4th floor clowns gate keeping his office. The rakyat need better access to him after all the rakyat owns him!

SHUT UP AND DANCE!

2009-04-22T05:38:00.000-07:00

Shut up and dance to the tune that I suggested. That’s what going on in Pas. The former Perak Menteri Besar was told by PAS to avoid speaking to the media.

It seems he has very tight schedule and don’t have time to speak to the media. Is that true?

How pity. They must be using him to the max. I hope to see him doing that at his current state constituent.

You don’t need a genius to figure behind this ruling was to avoid anything from being misquoted.

It’s a well known fact that the opposition parties have problems with the mainstream media (MSM) and so does the government too. They have the alternative media giving them a handful.
The opposition always argues that the MSM have the tendency to misquote or give wrongly interpret their statement.

But I don’t see this as a reason for you to stop anyone from talking to the media. Tun Dr.Mahathir was often misquoted by the foreign media and he didn’t see this as a problem. He confronted them and used their own weapon against them and in then end the foreign media has to eat their words.

What you need is someone articulate and knowledgeable. With these characteristics in you, it will arm you against any negative perceptions or verbal abuse.

These characteristics served Tun Dr.Mahathir well when he faces foreign media. He’s well prepared and those who decide to go head on against him must be well prepared too or he will verbally strip them in public.

I don’t think Nizar is as articulate and knowledgeable as Tun Dr.Mahathir.He fumbled many a times when he was questioned by the media. In order not to repeat this, Pas decided to bar him from speaking to the media and use his busy schedule as an excuse.

Both sides have been using media extensively to sweeten whatever they’re doing. In this by-election season, the media is going at full steam. No one can accuse any media being bias. Come to think of it, all media are bias, which is nothing bad. It’s up to us to think and decide which is best to believe.

Whenever any media misquote or wrongly interpret anything, the onus is on us. We are well armed with a fully functional brain, so we decide whether to accept or rubbish it.

So don’t blame the media. Blame the source for not being well armed to face the media and blame the public too for believing without any question.

The media has its own set of problem too. They have ‘hearing’ problem hence often misquoting and they also have manipulators editing the stories hence the interpretation problems. But everyone knows about these and yet they still complain about media being bias. It is akin to addiction, any form of addiction. You know it’s not good yet you still want it.

15 Candidates For Bukit Selambau, Can They Really Represent The Rakyat?

2009-03-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

15 candidates vying for 1 spot! That’s a first for Malaysia. Nothing we’ve ever seen before. Election Commision gave some hint that there will be many candidates for Bukit Selambau.
Many came for the forms before the nomination earlier this morning.

The numbers of candidates gave us hope that democracy is alive and kicking in Malaysia. Not that I lose hope to see a fair election but it opens up another window of opportunity for those who think they can serve the country outside the 2 coalition parties.

In the history of this middle aged nation, we’ve never seen as many as 15 candidates offering their service at any state or parliamentary election. I don’t have any problem with this. I don’t care if the whole kampong offering themselves as candidates. It doesn’t matter.

But what matters most is their ability to service to the rakyat. How serious are they? Can they really offer their service effectively without aligning themselves to either Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat?

History has proven that they need a huge machinery to manage their constituents. Yes they can balk the trend but how far can they go and how long can they last?

The single female candidate mentioned the reason for her contesting this by election because there are 60% female voters in this constituency. I have nothing against woman but I think her reason behind it is a bit suspect. Saying that is akin to ignoring the male voters.

Has she done any research on voter’s trend? Did Teresa Kok win because there are more female voters at her constituency? She’s supposed to represent the rakyat not a specific gender. And can she carry the gender torch alone outside 2 coalition parties in fighting for gender equality. I hope she’s not being gender specific in her campaign.

I hope all the candidates won’t use the ‘independence’ ticket as a bargaining tool. We don’t want to see any indie candidates jumps to either PR or BN. Once they decided to fight as an independence, they should always be independent and not align to any camp.

The rakyat in Bukit Selambau should ask the candidates to clarify their stand and pledge loyalty to their indie cause. If the reason for their contest as independent was because they were dropped from their respective parties, the rakyat should reject them. You don’t need a YB who has no sense of loyalty.

Being a YB is not an easy task what more when they’re an independent. They don’t have financial prowess to go against PR and BN. Once they won, another headache waiting for them.

Being an YB need a lot of sacrifice, not only money but also time and family. You need to have your family support behind you. You also need to have a good accountant behind you.

To manage a constituency needs a substantial amount of money. A YB gets an annual expenses for them to spend on their constituency. Mind you, this money amounting between 200k to 500k can disappear within minutes. Almost everyday the YB wiil encounter request for sponsorship. There are also request for new roads, some money for their children’s wedding or request for a new grass cutter. Allthis need money and the allocation given is not enough.

This is unknown territory. Many first time YBs didn’t expect this and they were overwhelmed by it. This cause headache and stress unto them. Many wished they didn’t sign the nomination forms. Many wished they should quit before things gone out of hand.

To the magnificent 13 (minus candidates from BN & PR), have you had a deep thought before you nominate yourself? You are considered a traitor if you take sides. You should be neutral and independent. That was what the rakyat voted for, an independent!

Youth Without Youth

2009-03-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

I just saw the latest film from Francis Ford Coppola titled ‘Youth without Youth’. How did I find the story? Well it’s neither like ‘The Godfather’ nor ‘Apocalypse Now’. Infact I didn’t get what he was trying to say. I don’t blame him. I think my mental and physical self wasn’t in the mood to watch something heavy.

I was at the PWTC on Thursday. I think the mental and physical state of some of the Perwakilan needs some flushing with ‘Clorox’. They don’t reflect their age, and I think some of them are worst than Benjamin Button in his teen.

Najib spoke about bringing changes into UMNO and also BN. But look at the current youth, can they bring changes? Some of them are brash, arrogant and rude to the core. I was hoping to see a more civilize contest for the youth position. But unfortunately the supporters never heard the word ‘civilize’.

I don’t agree with the election result for the Youth Chief, but I have to accept it. None from UMNO can complaint about it as they’re part of the system that condones the democratic system in the party. Like Najib said, it’s high time for revamp in election mechanism.

We can’t let the decision to elect party leadership being left in the hands of selected few. They are prone to being bribe and tend to decide for themselves, and not for what the divisions have decided earlier.

Look at the nomination stage. Mukhriz was leading and yet he got the lowest vote. How can that happen? Nominations are signals from the majority members but we unwillingly give opportunity for the Perwakilan to change the grassroots’ choice based on their qualms and fancies. I short, the Perwakilan betrayed what the grassroots’ have decided before hand.

The youth are giving the wrong signal to the general public. They accepted a leader proven guilty for corruption. It looks as if they condone corruption.

Besides than the Perwakilan, I blame the Lembaga Disiplin for this embarrassing result. KJ was found guilty and they let him off the hook with a warning. If you’re guilty then you’re guilty.

There’s no 2 way about it.

I made myself clear on my sentiment on the Youth election. It’s a victory reluctantly accepted by the Youth majority. But life has to go on. And it’s KJ’s responsibility to prove his worth.

Everyone is watching him.

What I would love to see is that the Youth division plays a more active role as a watchdog rather than being a government lap dog. They shouldn’t hold back any criticism towards the government and the leaders in government should accept it positively.

In fact they are the one who should be the first to react to any wrong doings. By being the first to criticize the government, they are not giving room to the opposition to condemn and sensationalize the issue.

A Youth division without its youth spirit is more to a cat than a tiger. I sincerely hope the Youth division won’t turn into a coward feline that forgets how to roars. But please eat more brain food than Nasi Lemak. There are too many ‘fats’ in the brain. The speeches and debates are mere rhetoric and lack of substance.

New Election and New Leader

2009-03-26T14:48:00.000-07:00

It’s all over. And now it’s back to work. Oops! Not actually. A new kitchen cabinet lineup is in the pipeline. We shall see one in the next few weeks. But first I would like to congratulate those who were elected. To the losers, don’t lose sleep.

Back to the kitchen cabinet, I hope the new lineup will spear head the reforms not only in UMNO but BN as a whole. Despite the current cabinet is only about a year old, it doesn’t mean that it should be left as it is.

In the past year since the last general election we’ve seen many changes within the component parties where the young guns replaced the old guards. But the question now, “Are they prepared for the responsibilities?”

Many will argue that these young guns or new generation of leaders should be given chance to prove their worth and I agree with that. But at the same time, those who propose bringing in new blood should also realize that this is neither the time nor the place for trial and error or experiment. We’re talking about is managing the country not a stable with ‘kuda padi’.

The cabinet ministers should be those who’re experienced enough to handle it. You’re talking about managing people, wealth, resources, foreign relations, and most importantly the country.

You can’t have a first time parliamentarian to lead a ministry.

We shouldn’t create a culture where someone can be fast tracked to a full minister. This is dangerous as we have so many young leaders who always dream big. Many ridiculously dreamt of being the Prime Minister on their first attempt at parliament position.

The current cabinet shows the lack of option for the soon-to-be-former-Prime Minister. I don’t know whether he really have no choice with many casualties at the last general election, or he simply over looked several potentials ministers or he was guided by someone with malicious intention.

But whatever it is, the soon-to-be Prime Minister has an open opportunity to undo the damage.

This is something repair-able. Get the right person in place and it’ll be a good start to reform the government and take this country out of economic catastrophe.

Despite that, there are some ministries that I think should be left in its current form. Let the minister continues with whatever they’re doing. Some of them are conducting reforms within their ministry.

I think the Information Minister and Education Minister should be left alone. I would love to see Norraesah given bigger responsibility. She has the capability to spearhead MITI. And don’t forget that Murugiah guy. He seems to be everywhere and always in immaculate attire under scorching sun. Maybe the soon-to-be Prime Minister should consider rewarding him with more responsibilities.

Last but not least, I would also like to see Ibrahim Ali in the kitchen cabinet too. He’s not a BN MP, but it doesn’t mean he can’t serve the country as a minister. We shall wait n see about this.

Marching Forward After March

2009-03-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

by Cikgu Pencen

March is the important to Najib. Coincidentally, his father, the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussien was born in Pulau Keladi, Pekan on 11 March 1922.

If Tun Razak is still alive, he will be 87 years old in March 2009.

As the eldest son of the second Prime Minister that is very much respected by the Malays and non-Malays alike, it is an advantage for him in politics.

When the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announcing that he will be retired from UMNO leadership, BN and the government in March, Najib is signalled as the one who is going to replace him.

Before eligible to become a Prime Minister, Najib has to undergo a democracy process first and has to be nominated as the President of UMNO.

The road that is paved for him is wide enough. If God permits, he will write a history to be in the place where his father was earlier.

The process power shifting that witnessing Abdullah not contesting for the post of President in the next UMNO election will open a door for Najib to head the part and the government, also showing the uniqueness of Malays political culture.

In Malay politics, leaders would never, ever be overthrown by any coup de’tat. The leaders leave post respectfully. That what had happened earlier, without fail.

The top leader of UMNO leaving with a grand exit and celebrated honourably.
Abdullah knows that after bad performance of BN after the 12th General Election, he will not be long in his post as UMNO president. He leads on the “borrowed time”.

His ability to bring his government to lead until 2009 after this total chaos is also can be considered as astonishing.

The reason is, UMNO and BN never experienced before, the lost of majority of two-third in the Parliament. UMNO and BN also never ever ‘taste’ the intrigue of politics as crazy as the last seven months, with every week, the opposition playing with their propaganda, to form their own government, and to topple UMNO and BN hegemony.

Those experiences are haunting them; but, it is a forte to any politicians in other countries, that they are facing it everyday. Full of surprises and twists.
UMNO and BN believe whole-heartedly in the magnitude of political stability.

They just don’t have the might to face all these new challenges. These affecting us badly as the nation of multiracial like Malaysia.
Under Abdullah, UMNO and BN tasted both: the best winnings of 2004 and the worst lost in 2008.

Among the first questions asked by reporters during a press conference at PWTC, Kuala Lumpur after BN formed the government at night of 8 March; Will Abdullah resign as to be responsible of the bad results of the election?

That question is haunting him for months to come, becoming a public debate everywhere, spurring more gossips and sparkling the evil of segregation within UMNO and BN.

However, Abdullah finally put the party priority more than anything. He sped up the process of power transition, that was originally in June 2010 to March 2009.

The process that he has been through from March 2008 to March 2009 shows the quality of UMNO’s politics – it has a sheer tolerance and patience in decelerating the conflicts and problems in UMNO. The leaders are willing to sacrifice for the sake of country and party!

With Najib very close as the successor, UMNO will become one again.

The groups that are separating will be united again for the future of party and focussing on how to strengthened the government.

In months to come, UMNO has to win the hearts of Malays in no time, especially the young ones that are divided into either supporting the long life political tradition or the pressure of high cost living.

New, fresh faces should be introduced in the next UMNO division election. It will be the catalyst to produce a brand new and dynamic line of leaders.

The new generation of UMNO leaders are emerging in the political scenario, with Najib celebrating his 55th birthday, last July. Of course we are in dire needs to have the new leaders that are competent and capable, trustworthy, loyal and can get along with the voters.

If the grassroots at UMNO division exercise their rights well, they will give Najib a team of UMNO leaders that can propel UMNO and BN to a esteemed new level.

Based on the trend of voters in the last general election, UMNO with non-malay parties in BN have to work out for strategy to attract the non-malay voters to support BN.
Najib seems doesn’t has any problems to gain the trust of Chinese community. His father’s legacy helps him a lot.

The Chinese community in in this country could never forget Tun Razak’s valiant act of fostering a diplomatic tie with China in 1974, when there was still a negative notion of communism.

The courage of Tun Razak, that enabled the severe relationship, of Malaysian Chinese with the Chinese of mainland to be rekindled again, always be the talking point, of those old timers when they meet Najib.

Reformation in government is also need to be highlighted by UMNO that will get a new leadership. But, always set a limit to it.

The experience of falling of Soviet Union after the glasnost reform and perestroika in 1980s maybe can be used as guidance.

Not all reformation or change is good for the country, and it might be an adverse effect that we have to be careful of.

Abdullah might has his own judgment about transformation, so did Tun Dr. Mahathir. But, whatever they believe in, there should be a working mechanism to unite all the different thoughts and opinion in UMNO, and in the Malays community at large.

Najib has to be the icon or the symbol of the unison.

Measures to neutralize the opposition should be put into action. The Opposition Leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has already looked startled with Abdullah’s decision of not contesting for UMNO’s election, and to retire early.

Anwar knows that part of the opposition strength is related with the uncertainties in UMNO and BN, especially in this transition period.

UMNO, a 62 years old party that is holding a torch of independence and changing the destiny of the country, now is in the process of changing its leadership, at the time, ehrn the world economy is at its low and into the recession.

To a few, this time is inappropriate to have a drastic political transition. But, to many of the countrymen, whether they are UMNO members or not, this is the time to change for the betterment.

In the meantime, pray hard to God so that Malaysia can sail through this political turmoil and economic hurricane to the ‘beach of wellbeing and tranquillity…’

To Do Or Not To Do

2009-03-26T07:21:00.001-07:00

by Cikgu Pencen

It is almost impossible and very complicated if Malaysia has a non-Malay prime minister. Even for non-Malay to become the Deputy Prime minister is also impossible because, Malaysia is actually is a sultanate and the Prime Minister supposed to be Malays.

Furthermore, who is among non-Malays that we know now has the ability to administer an Islamic country like Malaysia? In the situation where most of non-Malays are studying in national type school in primary, how can they know more of Islam and Malays’s culture, to enable them to become the prime minister.

Prime Minister in Malaysia cannot be equivalent with the Prime Minister or President in the other country, that has no task of safeguarding its people and its religion. That is why, Barrack Obama was elected as the president by people of its country, because he has no other mission, only to administer and manage his country.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister has exclusive tasks and he is also an important icon for the Malays in

Malaysia and Islamic countries. This exclusiveness is not possessed by the Prime ministers in the neighbouring countries. That is why, a Chinese can be selected as Prime Minister in Thailand and as the President in Phillipines.

There are other factors that prohibiting the different to happen here. It will be put in the cold storage of fairy tales. But sadly, the changes that give a good time and benefits for the Malays are never touched.

It is like having malays to get a bigger share in the economy, about 80% Malays as the stakeholder and having 20% of the non-Malays as the balance.

Yes, it is not impossible the Malay is holding 80% equity in their own country. It can be done if Malay becomes angry and use their anger wisely to strengthen their economic position, joining hands together, watch each other’s back, just as what the Chinese always do to their counterparts. That is how they managed to do it – by helping each other.

The Malays already has its specialization in many fields. But, the one that we don’t have is the spirit to unite. We have to help our own business. We have to open shops that selling things that we need, so that we can encourage the economic growth in a big scale.

Malays should have their own city centers or towns. Where all the business is managed and owned by Malays, so that we can be independent and do not have to rely on other people.

Why we have to support their business when they already asking for impossibles? When their economic is already strong? We have towns where malays are monopolizing like Kota Bharu, Kuala Terengganu, Shah Alam and others that need to be developed and expanded. It should be used as a benchmark.

This can happen, because Malays nowadays are mostly has gotten the new spirit from Obama’s winning recently. And if Obama continues to give the strength to the Malays, of course we can do it, to be independent. And most Malays are now becoming aware of their problems and weaknesses. They are slumbering for a long, wasted time, until the power that they possess is losing from their grips.

Most Malays are encouraged by the winnings of Obama, and they know how to use the power of voters in the upcoming general election

That is why I believe, in the next general election, the states that are under the temporary government of opposition will be seized back.

There is a major possibility, the Malay political power will thrust forward, and all those areas that are forfeited by the non-Malay hands will go back to its original owner. Malays areawakened by Obama’s victory. Is not impossible Malays will become the largest economic power and not only having the 30% as what has been dreaming by our leaders.

Malays are going to do it, wisely and proudly. Malays are going with a new and high-spirited, and a big change will happen on our own soil.

The fact that we have to accept is, the Malays segregation only benefits the non-Malays, when the Malays voters are divided into three: the UMNO, PAS and PKR.

If the separation only involving two parties, the position of parliament and Malay will be firm like previous general election of 2004.

But, when Malays are divided into three like what had happened in 2008, the Malays suffer deeply and deadly…

Time ticks, and waits for no man…

POLi + TICS = MANY TACTICS

2009-03-26T07:19:00.000-07:00

by Cikgu Pencen

The economic recession that is occurring in our country nowadays will be getting worse with the political pandemonium. The effects of this such as the increasing of unemployment rate seems does not bring any influence to the political scenario of Malaysia.

Supposedly, the current economic turmoil should create panic among politicians, that they should do something about it, to ensure the economy of this country to become better, so that their political influence will become stronger.

The political disorder happens when politicians are no longer fighting for the masses. They just try to be in charge, to be in domination of power so that they can blow their own horn. They can never care if their goals will make the public suffer and becoming intolerance of each other.

The trusts that were given to these politicians are used for rhetorical reasons, to condemn their political enemy. Finally, the situation becomes worse and inviting segregation into the community.

This political pandemonium should be handled by leaders with power. Those leaders were given the mandate in the last general election to govern and determine the form of administration they want to have to manage the state and federal government.

Our leaders had done enough to give different ideas and thoughts to ensure the peace and stability of this country. The approach of governing our country that once used by the previous leaders was taken as the benchmark to bring Malaysia, to what it is today.

However, there are still opportunists, either from the right wing party or the opposition, who try to gain something, for their advantage, in this chaotic moment. This kind of leader is always with the people, trying to gain their influence, by pretending to be caring, so that public will be on his side.

This kind of opportunist leader is not fit in to be given a mandate. We want a diplomatic and transparent leader. It is because, our country is built on the ground of collaboration and group effort, not through demonstrations or street riots.

Politics is married to power. They are inseparable. Power can be said as the lubricants of political engine. Hence, many of the politicians know that whatever power they possessed, it should me used wisely.

One of the strategy is to rule out the enemy, to take advantage of their weaknesses or portraying their weak sides to the public. These actions, if going out of control, can give a bad name to politics and its stability in a country. It can become worse if there are leaders that are manipulating the emotions or sentiments of the public to gain influence.

The people should be able to be the judge and have their own yardstick before they jump into the bandwagon, believing whatever claims that are made, by this type of leaders.

Any political leaders that are playing with sentiment and emotion of their supporters should be out of job in this country. Their words have created tension among the people, and should not happen in this country in a first place. Most of their supporters time are wasted for demonstrations after demonstrations.

The masses are actually matured enough with these political games. Besides protest rally, the know what is the best thing to do, in facing the political issues.

The people or rakyat should realize, with this economic downbeat, the times that they have, is to be put into a wise and better use, before the heat of economic recession, burning them like a blazing fire of misery…

We Need More Specialist, Not Doctors/ The Predicamen

2009-03-26T07:12:00.000-07:00

by Cikgu Pencen

I have never have an ill intention or becoming prejudice to any parties or organization that want to spread their ideas. But, in the language of ‘fiqh awlawiyyat’ or the understanding of priority, there are many other things that are much better should be the priority in Malaysia.

Supposedly, they have to be taught of Islam clearly, not on the rigid support of certain sect of ideas or rigidly support the sect or ‘mazhab’ of rules and regulations (hukum)

One problem of the religious teacher that graduated from overseas is, they didn’t thoroughly understand the culture of the Malay world. Most of them just copy everything, and translating anything from their guru that came from Lebanon, Syria, Egypt or Riyadh, Qum or Iran.

In the early 70s, ideas of islah or reformation of Islamic movement form outside also were brought here.

That is why we have the teachings and ideas of Hassan al- Banna, Syed Qutub, al-Maududi, Said Hawa, etc. It was a good idea, if it can be filtered from its approach and to be adapted to the climate and environment of Malaysia.

But, those who were trapped with those ideas took the approach of denouncing other people from Islam, after they read the tafsir (translation) Fi Dzilal al-Quran and Ma’alim fi al-Tariq.

I always ask myself, it is denouncing (kafir) hukum or politically denounced from Islam?

Going back to the question above, I call to all the Muslims to go back to the original. The sayings, going back to al-Qur’an and al-Sunnah’ cannot just be understood on its surface only. If we only to take the meaning as it is, why we troubled ourselves to have different sects in religion?

A university student once asked me. I answered, as an analogy, what is the used of pipeline to your home if we have the clean water in the reserved up the hill already?

Sects is still important to comprehend the methods of deriving hukum and understanding from al-Quran and al-Sunnah.

Those who call to al-Qur’an and al-Sunnah, without having a sect (mazhab), is like refusing to go to school or university, but have the intention to obtain a degree. Can everybody do the same?

Ordinarily, everyone needs a school and teachers to be a learned scholar.

What troubles me is, the Muslims in Malaysia is having a leadership crisis, not only in politics, but in the field of intellectuals and knowledge.

It is becoming appalling, if whatever they are learning is halfway all the time, without concordance to its original source of different sects and beliefs.

Those people only learnt from a perspective, and giving the result of groundless ideas and opinion.

There are some that are master in al-hadith (prophet sayings), but lack in understanding of hukum fiqh, there are some who masters in fiqh, but there are ignorant in al-hadith.

There are few who aware of modern ideas, but knows nothing of Arabic. There are also very well versed in all the rules and regulations, but totally lost in technology .

Be them like three blind mice… They only take the understanding base on their own perspective and perception only.

Here, the ulama community and the religious group roles are very important. They should meet more often to discuss these predicaments. The publics need to be told and informed of any solution.

How can we believe the doctor if he himself is getting sick?

Wake Up Call For Malays

2009-03-26T07:07:00.001-07:00

by Cikgu Pencen

The result of 12 General Election has thousands of meaning that need to be pondered deeply by Malays.

We have lost Singapore 43 years ago and within that time, the Malays have been oppressed indirectly without us realising it.

There is no more full quota of Malay ministers, azan (call for prayers) cannot be announce to the public, Malay language became the third language, and Malays are not allowed to hold any higher post in army and police force, they even claim for Pulau Batu Putih as their territory and many other Malay related issues are disappearing from the island of Singapore.

When all is gone, there is no hope for us to take it back.

I believe, in the next time to come, if Malays still unaware that they have lost the political power, the same things will also happen in the states that are under the opposition namely Penang, Perak, Selangor and Kedah.

If Malays are not cautious and conscious, I believe that Penang would be the second Singapore.

The Chief Minister of Pulau Pinang has already mentioned it as PENANG right after his victory in the 12th General Election.

If we look into this deeply, actually, the similar thing will happen to the Penang Malays in no time.

Had we learnt enough from Palestine when, in 1947, Israelis only occupying less than 10 percent of the land of Palestinians.

But, in 2000, 80 percent of Palestinians lands had already fall into Israelis’ hands.

The barbed wire fence were erected around Gaza, that prevented the rights and freedom prevented. Electricity was restricted to certain times. Going for Friday prayer means facing the tip of the rifle, food also was rationed, let alone new clothes.

Those are the reasons why Malays should be alert and awake, cautious and conscious, with their mistakes of giving their votes to the opposition, especially DAP.

Maybe there are some parties will say that this statement is racist but, we did not realize that the banner of DAP carried the message: “Voting MCA means Voting UMNO/Malays”, or, in Chinese newspapers, they wrote, “Vote for the Chinese candidates only”

We Malays are too compromising and too soft-hearted. With all the above campaigns, with strong sentiment of racism, no action is taken!

When we Malays giving the same notion, we are accused of being racist. But sadly, it is their way of degrading us the Malays.

When we harp on the issue of Malays sovereignty and Muslims, have they ever think of our feelings as Muslims?

Do they ever care what is OSA, ISA or Sedition Act?

That is why their newspapers are very bold and daring!

The PKR is definitely confusing and abusing Bukit Selambau

2009-03-26T07:03:00.000-07:00

by C.C Too

After being “water cannoned” by the police last night, 23th March 2009, the PKR was reported to repeat the same illegal action to gather their “makkal sakhti”, “hindraf” and other PKR supporters around Bukit Selambau area. They might be water cannoned again tonight.

It is a shame to make that kind of illegal gathering by the PKR De Facto Leader Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim. It shows that PKR have no legal bound in this country. It seems that PKR is “above the laws” in Malaysia.

It gives bad reputation for Malaysia. It denies the law created to protect the harmony of this country. Is that what we expected from Anwar if he will become a prime minister soon?

What is Anwar succeed to become the prime minister of Malaysia and the opposition parties decide the behave the way they are now.

Show no respect for the law and constitution of Malaysia, “attack” the supremacy of the royal highness DYMM Sultans of Malaysia or at least performing a riot, just the way they did and still doing right now?

Will the oppositions be water cannoned too? And who is to blame?

It seems they are out of their mind. 18 names had been submitted to be the candidate of PKR. Most of them are Indians? And most of them play an important roles for “makkal sakhti”, an illegal organisation.

Is it fair for Bukit Selambau residents to have an DUN assemblyman from an illegal organisation?

It is believe that is the main reason of “Money”kumar was ellected by the first place.

The “hindraf” also wanted to take their part in the Bukit Selambau by-election. Most of the name presented to be interviewed by the PKR are “hindraf” big supporters.

They are very “vocal” about releasing their “leaders” who had been detained under ISA. They being rough and mind abusive. They had give bad influences to the Bukit Selambau Indian residents and give them no choice but to accept the “hindraf” ideology. Communisme and Hindrafisme are just the same.

Racist and try to go beyond the law of Malaysia. No wonder why were they being water cannoned last night!

There comes the “Money”kumar. Who is he? No one knows him before and they are still asking the same question “who he is?”. Even the “makkal sakhti” leaders of Bukit Selambau do not know him.

The “hindraf” also have the same idea. He is definitely an outsiders which been elected by the De Facto of PKR, Anwar Ibrahim. How could Anwar elected an outsiders? Any business “behind the scene”?

Or Anwar purposely wants the PKR to loose this election? Only the result will answer that. But me myself is still asking, who is “Money”kumar? No one knows him!

Weird

2009-03-26T06:58:00.000-07:00

by Invisiblewriter001

Weird itself is a weird word, nothing weirder than a weirdo uttering “weird” to a weird looking man. But what we’re experiencing is nothing weird except it comes every 3 years.

Soon there will be a change in UMNO that will give me a weird feeling. Weird in a way that it’ll present itself in a new manner and form like never before. There’ll be change of guard. New leaders representing a new generation will be taking over. The old retired guards from Mahathir’s era will be joined by the-not-so-old-guards from Pak Lah’s short lived era. It’ll be interesting to see how they compliment each other. But for the sake of Malay unity there won’t be any shoving for seats.

It’ll be a weird feeling. I’m getting a new Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. It’ll be much weirder if Ali Rustam were to win the Deputy President-ship. I can’t see myself having him as the Deputy Prime Minister.

We have a few candidates vying for the post of Laksamana Do Re Mi. They’ll be the Laksamana fighting alongside the ‘sultan’ and the ‘bendahara’. Actually I would love to see Ahmad Ismail the infamous Pendatang vie for this post. During division meeting, Bukit Bendera division sees fit to accord him pahlawan status. They should elevate him to Laksamana status. This is the time to show his ‘kepahlawanan’.

It’s weird that I have 3 candidates contesting the Youth Chief position. Actually the only weird thing is that how a candidate proven guilty for money politics was given a warning and allowed to contest.

In my opinion if someone is guilty, then he’s guilty. There’s no two way about it. But the weird thing, there were 3 different punishments for the same offence.

Anyway it’s their party. They have every right to manage in whatever way they see fit. But they have to remember, whatever decision they make will have dire consequences not only to the party but also to the Malays and the nation as a whole. Everyone is watching them.

Soon we might see a new Wanita chief. We’re so used to Rafidah and suddenly someone might take over from her. And we already got our self a new Deputy Wanita Chief. If the choice is with me, I would’ve chosen Rafidah. At this moment no one come close to her where Wanita is concern. She’s one from Mahathir’s era that I believe can serve for another 10 years. If Najib were t o bring her into the cabinet, please return her to MITI. In this trying time, old hands like her will come in handy.

As for the girls in pink, I don’t know any of them except for Ida Rahayu. She’s the total opposite from any of the candidates. I’ve never seen her in pink. And she’s someone with the most labuh of a tudung (I thought she’s a PAS who entered the wrong hall). And she doesn’t want any minister or deputy minister post. Her only concern is to serve the pink brigade. How can you fought tooth and nail against other candidates, and later refuse a cabinet post. Pretty weird huh?

What about other post like Deputy Youth Chief and Deputy Pink Brigade Chief and Supreme Council? Nope, I’m not interested. They’re the pawns in the higher echelon. They’re important but least significant. I might remember their name but forget who they’re after a few rounds of teh tarik.

Come to think of it. I think I can handle this upcoming weird feeling, as long as it doesn’t come with any nauseating feeling.

MIC WILL DRAG BN TO THE OCEAN FLOOR IF THERE’S NO CHANGE IN THEIR LEADERSHIP

2009-03-23T03:31:00.000-07:00

Disgust, that’s what I felt right now. I think it’s unfair for the Indians and also to other Barisan Nasional’s component party. What I saw yesterday is someone trying to overstay his expiry date, or probably someone who didn’t realize that he has expiry date too.

Samy Vellu was unofficially elected for the 1th term as no one will be challenging him for the presidency post come next party election.

I’m quite surprised by this. I found the Indians were very vocal at the last general election.

Their dissatisfaction was expressed through the ballot box. Though their numbers are small, no one can dismiss how important their votes were.

During the last general election they protested by voting against BN. This caused many MIC candidates lost their battle against Pakatan Rakyat. In some constituency where their small number can make or break a candidate, their votes were used to the full advantage.

Many Indians believe that MIC is an elitist Indian party. They ignored the Indians predicaments. They couldn’t care less about the problems faced by the Indians.

If MIC claimed to have given their very best to represent the Indians, I guess their very best is not good enough. The ballot box has proven that the Indians are not satisfied with their leaders.

One of the victims of their own undoing is their very own President, Samy Vellu who lost at his strong hold in Sg Siput. Tell me. Are they signaling that they like him? I don’t think so. Is he dumb enough to think that the Indians still love him?

At this point of time, I guess MIC is the only BN’s component party who has learnt from the recent general election is MIC. This is an opportunity for them to rebrand their party. They need to bring back the Indian votes that they’ve lost.

The old guards in MIC have to vacate their post and this includes Samy Vellu. They need to introduce new leaders as soon as possible. They can’t wait till the next general election. Re-branding and re-thinking their direction should take place now, not tomorrow.

Samy Vellu overstaying his welcome will eventually drag down BN to the bottom of the ocean.

Whats the point UMNO, MCA and GERAKAN electing new leaders when another major component party refuse to change. Like I said earlier, this selfish act will eventually bring them down.

What I’m seeing today is like another cliché Tamil movies where the local warlords refuse to give in to the demand of the local peasants. Later a young hero was introduced to save these peasants and over throw the savage warlords.

What the Indians in MIC need is a Rajinikanth to get rid of Samy Vellu and other selfish and power hungry warlords.

If nothing being done soon, MIC will play an important role in turning BN into a MICkey Mouse Club. I hope Najib will persuade Samy Vellu to step down. He won’t improve the situation. He leaving the party post is not for BN, only but for Indians as a whole. They need younger and more down to earth leaders, not another local samseng disguising themselves as politicians.

Pak Lah Was Wide Awake And Signed The Papers, But Still Got It All Wrong.

2009-03-20T00:14:00.000-07:00

I thought he’ll be wide awake since his exit is drawing closer. How wrong I was. It seems the sleeping beauty continues sleeping and will only wake up a few nano-seconds before he leaves.

What happened in Brunei a few days ago was a case of too much sleep. Pak Lah was in Brunei for a Letter of Exchange (LoE) ceremony on the demarcation of land boundaries. At the end of the ceremony he gave a press conference where he stated that Brunei has dropped claims over Limbang.

Finally this long standing territorial claim has been resolved. Everybody in Malaysia was very happy with the outcome and this includes the Chief Minister of Sarawak. With this LoE, everyone thought we’ve settled this issue with Brunei and we can go to sleep with the notion that we don’t have to be dragged to The Hague and stand to lose another territory. Unfortunately that wasn’t to be.

Like a lame Jack Ryan movie, there’s another twist to the plot. Brunei's Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Datuk Seri Lim Jock Seng stated that Limbang was never discussed during the meeting between Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Pak Lah.

Wait a minute! Which is which? Did the press misquote Pak Lah? Maybe Pak Lah conveniently falls asleep during the discussion or he went off to have a round of golf and sent a body double for the meeting?

This claim is false and misleading. What happened here? I don’t know what was in his mind. Did he really paid attention on the discussion or his mind was on his Son In Law? This is embarrassing. Please bear in mind that this claim came from the Prime Minister and not from some half past six Foreign Ministry officer.

Someone from the Foreign Ministry should have corrected it during the press conference but embarrassingly we were conveniently correct by someone from Brunei. It seems the Bruneians knew what they were doing.

I can’t comprehend the notion that my Prime Minister was ‘asleep’ during the discussion. And I can’t further comprehend that we didn’t realized about the mistake until the next day.

I think the Foreign Ministry should check the papers again. Make sure he signed the correct papers and signed on the agreed terms. Who knows he might be half asleep while signing the papers and gave the country away when he put pen to paper!

Lucky he’s leaving soon. If not, we’ll be having sleepless nights with this sleepy beauty roaming around signing papers. What we’ve learnt today is that someone needs to stand next to Pak Lah with a stun gun. Just to make sure he’s awake and in the thick of things.

The Last King Of Malacca

2009-03-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

Who was then the last King of Melaka? ‘None’ is the exact answer. Melaka never had a King.

It was Sultan then. Sultan Mahmud Shah was the last Sultan. So who is the last King of Melaka when they don’t even have one?

Actually Melaka do have one. Call him King Ali! He’s a true sport of a politician. None can match his PR skill. He’s there whenever you need him and he’s there when you don’t need him too. At this point of time Malaysia don’t need him.

Up till yesterday Malaysia has the envious opportunity that no other country wants, to position our self as a circus nation. How on earth you put someone who honored Shah Rukh Khan with Datuk-ship(I have nothing against SRK) to be a Deputy Prime Minister.

I’m sorry. I can’t see myself having King Ali as my DPM. I’m not surprised that one day he might honor Bozo the Clown with a Datuk-ship for amusing all the children at A Formosa Resort.

At the rate he’s climbing to the top, he surely has a turbocharger at his feet. This turbocharger was powered with an additive called Vitamin M.

This sudden rise to the top is not healthy to a party with a plan to re-invent (or has plan to re-invent). It undermines all efforts to clean up the party.

I have a problem with UMNO’s election process. There’s nothing bad about it actually but unfortunately it opens up possibilities for opportunist to seize power. Yes, most of them are elected Member of Parliament or ADUNS. But those who lost in election can manipulate the system and return to political limelight. And the G7 who voted doesn’t represent the voices of the grass roots.

Imagine someone who lost at the General Election was given a ‘talian hayat’ and was nominated to vie for the position of Deputy President. To us the rakyats, he lost the election because we don’t want him to represent us in Parliament or DUN. Unfortunately for us he has another plan, using UMNO’s election as a vehicle to get back into politics and turn his dream into reality.

To make sure that ‘the banana doesn’t berbuah 2 kali’ he starts using money to canvass for votes during UMNO’s election? He contested the Deputy President position and won. Despite not being an MP or ADUN, he has the right to claim his position as a Deputy Prime Minister but unfortunately the rakyats don’t believe in him. Just because a group of perwakilans adores and voted for him, the rest of the rakyats have to suffer.

The fate of the rakyats is in the hand of the G7 group. Like what we see today, the G7 can be bought. The system has its flaws. Don’t put the fate of the nation into the hands of G7. At least let the majority of UMNO members vote for their leaders which in turn will make them lead this nation.

Rumour has it that King Ali was leading in terms of popularity, to win the Deputy President post.

You know that money politics is involved. By hook or by crook, this has to stop. We’re considered lucky that the disciplinary board managed to prove him guilty. But what about tomorrow? They definitely will try to improve their invisibility in money politics come next UMNO election. When this day comes, I’m not surprised if Pak Mail the Ambulance driver won the position of Deputy President. With money you can buy any position.

King Ali’s supporters may cry foul for the decision to ban him from contesting. I salute the Disciplinary board for taking such action. But I was hoping more severe action taken against King Ali. Let him be an example for everyone in UMNO. Unfortunately I don’t see his punishment will be a deterrent for UMNO hopefuls in the future. It’s too light.

I don’t understand how the ‘punishment’ mechanism works in UMNO. It seems there are 3 sets of punishment when it comes to money politics. You’ll either be given a warning, didn’t allow to contest or banned for a few years. I don’t think the first two punishments will curb money politics. It will ‘encourage’ the future money politicians to find a way to circumnavigate the ruling to avoid being caught for money politics.

For me there should either be guilty or not guilty. And there should only be 1 punishment for this offence, sack them! You don’t need them in the party. They’re the one who’re destroying the Bumiputeras. This is what I call Leadership by Example!

Believe it or not, the future of this nation is in UMNO’s hand. Vote wisely and Insyallah we’ll be OK. But if UMNOs are being blinded by money, I hope we the Rakyats can see in the dark as the roads ahead are not as bright as it used to be.

Subtext In Pak Lah's Speech

2009-03-16T15:28:00.000-07:00

INVISIBLEWRITER001

Pak Lah yesterday spoke about how many GLC changed their policies the moment there were changes in the engine room. What he was trying to imply, new management shouldn’t change policies and direction that have been set or agreed by the previous management.

What he was also suggesting is that changes in the engine room mustn’t necessary translate into changes in GLCs policies. Smart eh?

Was he hinting something? Was he suggesting that Najib shouldn’t change any policies that already been agreed or signed by him? Or to continue leading the country towards the course that already been set by him?

If that what he was trying to imply, I believe he’s having Amnesia. Remember Tun Dr.Mahathir’s crooked bridge? Among the first thing he did was to cancel the crooked bridge. Talk about “cakap tak serupa bikin!”

Is he trying to protect the GLCs and their policies from their overzealous new management? Or he’s actually trying to protect his cronies from changes of policies and direction when new leadership takes over early April?

Lately I see subtext and underlying messages in Pak Lah’s speeches. It shows that he’s maturing and leaving his boring and monotonous speech behind. He got smarter and add cynical remarks and sarcasm tone in his speech. But unfortunately the sudden bombardments of subtext and semiotics in his speech are a bit too late. His leaving in leststhan a month.

What he must remember, the changes in company’s or the nation’s policies and direction is not for ‘us’ former Prime Minister to decide. It’s the new Prime Minister to decide. Honestly he can do whatever he wants. Of course there must be a reason behind any action, but in this case it’s Najib’s prerogative to decide on the new course of action.

I hope the GLCs and Najib won’t “termakan umpan” Pak Lah’s. Najib should consider what’s best for the country. If he needs to discard Pak Lah’s policies, by all means please do so. If the new CEO suddenly decides to get a new Camry and discard old Perdana, let him do it. He has every right to do it. If you don’t agree with his decision, suggest the board vote to him out.

For as long as the changes are good for the country and GLCs, feel free to make changes. Think what’s best for the country and the GLCs. Right now it seems Pak Lah’s backroom staffs are being ‘assigned’ to various government agencies and GLC’s. What are they doing there? Spying? ‘Sabo’? Or to function as Pak Lah’s invisible hands there?

Be wise, be smart and be alert. The spies are out there to find mistakes by the new regime. And one day, new evidence will surface and everybody will be caught unprepared.

A WORLD WITHOUT HEROES

2009-03-16T15:19:00.000-07:00

InvisibleWriter001

Who are our heroes? Do we have Superman, Batman or Spiderman watching out for us? Who do we call for when trouble lurking behind us?

We used to have heroes. They come undisguised as ‘leaders’. These are the people that we look out for their wisdom. These are the people we look for guidance. They come in many ranks.

They are the Prime Ministers, Teachers, Ministers, Penghulus, Imams, Religious Teachers and Trade Union Leaders etc.

But these are leaders of yester years, except for the PM or Ministers who are still very much the heart of the nation, are on the brink of extinction. Whenever problems arise, we look for new hero. These breed of heroes have been around for ages but recently they’ve got new power
BOOST in the form of Vitamin M.

They’ve using Vitamin M to garner support and trust from the common public. Unfortunately new problem popped-out. Sudden increase in consumption of Vitamin M caused over-dose to our beloved new breed of heroes.

The situation today seems bleak for them. Many have succumbed to temptation. Vitamin M caused them to lose touch with reality. They’ve lost the plot. The powers generated from Vitamin M were used to generate more Vitamin M. But unfortunately this Vitamin M was for personal use, not to serve the general public.

With the demise of these so called boosted up heroes, what the future holds for us mere mortals?

Is the future promise uncertainty for us? This is the time for us mortals to rise and shape our own future. We don’t need any regular heroes. What we need is a total re-branding. We don’t need mere heroes. What we need is a bunch of SUPER-HEROES.

We need to shape them and tell what we expect of them. Don’t make the same mistake as the previous heroes. We should be blamed too for their wrong doings. Our silence has caused evil to rein control.

What we need now is a total re-branding. The new super heroes need to garner support from the fence sitter. They’re the younglings of this nation. The future leaders who will one day take the throne from current super-heroes.

The new super-heroes should be a role model for the younglings should one day they too become a super-hero. It’s up to the current super-heroes to undo all the wrong doings, to get rid of all cancerous mindset. Show to everyone that it’s not easy to be a super-hero, but if taken seriously and with full responsibility, no problem can’t be solved.

I just saw The Watchman. It’s not a typical super hero movie. Read between the lines and the subtext. This is one of the most both politically correct and incorrect super hero movie ever made, depends on which side you’re watching from.

We need heroes. We need someone we can count on. Someone that will come to the rescue, not someone we have to beg to bring us to safety. A world without heroes is like a world without sun.

You can’t look up to anything or anyone because there’s nothing to look up to.

MONEY POLITICS, IT CAN PUSH YOU UP BUT WILL BRING YOU DOWN BEFORE REACHING THE TOP.

2009-03-14T06:28:00.001-07:00

I’ve never seen anything like this before. Are they flushing out slime using the most potent chemical ever to grace the face of this earth? Something is brewing out there. Something hot and ‘kow’ than Hai Peng coffee in Kemaman. Specifically in one of the suffocating air conditioned rooms in Menara Dato’ Onn where UMNO Diciplinary Board resides. It’s hot in there and they’re brewing hot coffee.

UMNO Disciplinary Board is brewing the hottest and kow-est coffee mixed with the most potent cleansing chemical to be distributed among a few privileged UMNO’s higher echelons. This seldom served special coffee will come together with a letter.

I love coffee. But I never like coffee that comes with an accompanying letter, let alone one from disciplinary board. In the not-very-far- but-very-soon-future, UMNO Disciplinary Board will recommend to suspend the membership of Ali Rustam, Khir Toyo and Khairy Jamaludin.

This suspension will take effect before the coming UMNO election, which means all three gentlemen will be prohibited from taking part in the coming UMNO election.
The suspension of these three fine gentlemen was due to money politics, something many of you would have guessed correctly.

This news came as a shock but at the same time I’m not surprised considering the rate money have been thrown around lately before the UMNO election.

This action is something that we should applaud when many have been questioning the integrity of UMNO Disciplinary Board. I see this action as not only an active decision to stop the rot within UMNO but also serve as a warning to other aspirants today and in the future that UMNO Disciplinary Board members are not tooth-less benchwarmers. They mean business and they see the future of UMNO and its integrity something that need solid protection. This is what I meant by ‘old guard’. Veteran Tengku Ahmad Rithaudeen might be, tooth-less he aint one. This I salute you!

Before I forget, there’s a twist to this story. Khairy Jamaludin is working hard lobbying his father in law to save him from this debacle. I’m not sure how much of help can Pak Lah do as the Disciplinary Board has threatened to quit en-bloc if no action taken against this 3 stooges!

What say you Pak Lah? Save your son in law and sacrifice UMNO’s integrity? The choice is his. He can be a Hero or Zero before he bows out. For the last time he can show the world that he is fair and impartial before he bows out. He surely don’t want to be seen as his son in law’s lap dog, as it further proves that he is Khairy’s puppet.

There’s another twist to this story. This is more twisting than M.Night Shyamalan’s films. Apparently Ali Rustam or famously known as Datuk Shah Rukh Khan biggest fan (yes, the ‘kipas’ type), has threatened to quit from UMNO if action taken against him.

I don’t see this as a big threat. He and his supporters can leave the party. UMNO don’t need someone like him. If the Opposition accepts him, it shows how stupid and desperate they’re to welcome a corrupt leader. Isa Samad has tasted suspension before. Why not a colleague from a neighboring state gets the taste of his own money? See how much can MONEY can do to you. It can push you up but will bring you down before reaching the top. A very ‘sweet’ victory indeed.

I haven’t heard anything about Khir Toyo making any threat. But I’m not surprised if he threatens to send more cows or stop distribution of tempe nationwide. We’ll wait for his reaction.

This story is definitely hotter than tonight’s match between MU and Liverpool. Whatever the outcome from this match, in my eyes it’ll be UMNO Disciplinary Board’s victory against Money Politics, 3-0 and the 3 stooges scored a goal each into their own net.

The onus is on Pak Lah now. He has to decide and can’t leave the burden into Najib’s hands as he is still the President of UMNO. If action were to be taken against these 3 stooges, it’s a job well done. I will consider this as his single best contribution to this country while he’s in power.

Despite this best contribution comes a bit late, its better late than never.

But if he decides otherwise, someone and I hope Najib will expose this wrong doing. This shouldn’t be swept under the carpet. These 3 stooges are leaders of the Malay community. We can’t have these corrupt leaders to lead the Malays into the future. The rots have to stop now.

Pak Lah has to take action or risk being boo-ed out of the office if these indiscipline acts exposed.
And one more thing, this is a true story indeed. Not fictionalized storytelling of the RPK kind!

Tak percaya? You guys wait and see.

3rd APRIL 2009. THE DAY FLIP-FLOPPING STOPS.

2009-03-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

I like flip-flops. I like flip-flops over sandals. They’re much more comfortable. I’ll put it on my feet when I’m at the beach. I’ll wear it to the ‘jamban’ too. If possible, I’ll wear it to parliament. I’m quite flabbergasted as to why I can’t wear it to parliament when I can wear my worst pair of flip-flop to surau?

I remember when I was a kid; I threw a flip-flop at Ah Seng’s dog that was chasing me. The reason being, I was holding a bunch of rambutan taken illegally (I’m not stealing) from Ah Seng’s compound.

Flip-flop is one helluva versatile device. You can use it anywhere and everywhere. Salih Yaacob once tried to make ‘sup selipar’. The best flip-flop is the one that elevates you an inch above ground; try Tat Seng for that matter. And the worst flip-flop is the one that can’t decide whether to stay or move on?

Come 3rd April 2009, it’ll be the end of service of one of the biggest flip-flop ever to grace this nation. I was duly informed that on the 3rd of April 2009, Pak Lah will hand over the Prime Minister-ship to Najib. But one question kept flip-flopping in mind, “will this hand-over come to reality or merely fantasy?”

At the rate things are going, I ‘m not surprised many Malaysians have doubt whether Pak Lah will step down. I don’t blame them. The signals are there showing that Pak Lah is not stepping down. Yes, he has said on numerous occasions that he’ll step down but at the rate he’s flip-flopping, I’m not surprised if he decides otherwise.

The last few months we’ve seen sudden surge of suitors trying to get Pak Lah’s signature for projects and endorsement. These are people with interest. If possible they, including the 4th floor boys don’t want Pak Lah to step down. They have many plans with Pak Lah in power. They’re one of the most visionary Malaysian, with plans right up till ‘Rancangan Malaysia ke 50’, even more visionary than Mahathir.

They can’t afford to have their cash cow to hand over power to someone else. What will happen to their luxury cars, bungalows and 4 wives?

Like I said earlier, this is a time where files, A4 papers and ink jet printers are one of the best selling items. Organizations and business entities are churning out proposal for Pak Lah’s signature as if they’re proposing paper work to take over Israel. Most of them are related to the 4th floor boys.

We’ve seen how Sime Darby proposed 2 bids in matter of 2 months. We’ve seen Eurocopter being shot down. We’ve seen Pak Lah suggesting a bridge over to Labuan when he earlier flip-flopped on crooked bridge and ‘nowhere to be seen’ 2nd Penang Bridge. I’m not surprised to see some individuals trying to get his endorsement to build a flip-flop factory. Come to think of it, his flip-flop decisions can fill a warehouse the size of Stadium Negara.

I hope Pak Lah will proceed with his plan to hand over the Prime Minister-ship to Najib. I hope he won’t fall into traps laid out by smooth talking 4th floor boys and other lobbyist. This is not the time to back track from his earlier decision to step down. Any change of mind will further solidify his place on the flip-flop throne.

Come hell or high water, he has to step down. The country will turn upside down if he decides to stay. The opposition might state their preference for him to stay. But Pak Lah have to realize, their preference was not because he is a capable leader but more of him being the weakest leader ever to lead Malaysia. With Pak Lah staying, it’ll further improve their chances to wrest control this country come next election. With Pak Lah staying, it’ll set the demise of UMNO and Barisan Nasional.

If Pak Lah decide to stay, 3rd of April 2009 will mark the day Malaysia stood still. We stood still in awe at a shameless selfish act from someone who overstayed his welcome. If this ever to happen, many Malaysians might consider leaving!

Five Ministries One Industry

2009-03-11T09:49:00.000-07:00

by InvisibleWriter001

How many ministry one has to go to in order to get things done? These things can be as simple as setting up a nuclear reactor or as difficult as getting a permit to import piranhas.
It is about red tape or whatever color you might want to call it. And mind you this red tape scenario not only exists in Malaysia but everywhere else, but for this discussion let’s confines ourselves to Malaysia.

I bet everyone have experienced this. It’s frustrating when we were given the run around. This usually happens whenever we tried to get things done at the government agencies.
We understand the predicaments, sometimes it’s not the fault of government servants but policy makers and those who came up with the procedures.

We’re dumbfounded with some procedures. We can’t grasp the rationale behind some irrational regulations. It’ll be good if the relevant government agencies could at least brief their staffs the motives behind any procedures, rules or regulations. At least it’ll save their staff from cliché ignorant answers such as “Saya tak tahu lah Encik” or “Maaf Encik, saya tak boleh buat apa sebab prosedur dah macam tu.”

Sometimes we need to know the reason in order for us to understand the situation better and not to repeat the same mistake.

Another ancient problem that has not been resolved till today is overlapping of jurisdiction between several ministries. Any misinterpretation of rules, regulations or procedures will cause confusion. Let’s take media as an example. This lively industry falls under the jurisdiction of a few ministries. The publishing media has to report to Ministry of Home Affairs, FINAS is under Ministry of Arts Culture and Heritage etc. All in all we have 5 ministries monitoring the media industry.

I agree with Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim’s suggestion to group everything under media and broadcasting under one single ministry. It’ll cause less headache and better efficiency.

And this suggestion might soon pave the way for the establishment of a new ministry.

Numerous difficulties encountered whenever one has to produce a tv commercial. The producer has to get approval from 3 different ministries before a finished product goes on air and add in 2 more ministries if you need to utilize foreign talents or manpower. Now you’ll understand the hassle a producer has to go through.

Media industry is growing very fast. Technology in this industry grows at a rate that will cause breathing difficulty if we try to catch up. But unfortunately our red tape is slowing down our progress. We have local talents that can cater the worldwide market. We have up to date technology. But why aren’t foreign media practitioners coming here? Why are they going to Singapore and Thailand? One of the main reasons is what I’ve written here today. There are too many overlapping jurisdiction between different ministries. These have caused red tape that made us drooling over lost of potential investment.

The government has to act now before more potential investment and income opportunity by pass us or red tapes ‘induced’ some individuals to undergo heart bypass. These are unnecessary time consuming, energy sapping, patient killing and money wasting procedures.

Overlapping equals inefficiency and it reflects badly on us.

" Pak Lah, Working Cohorts With Anwar Wont Bring You Glory!"

2009-03-10T15:43:00.000-07:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

Today I can clearly put Pak Lah on the same level as M Night Shyamalan. Shyamalan is famous for his twisted storyline especially the ending. And like Shyamalan too, Pak Lah have something absurdly twisted political storyline for us. Something before he bows out later this month.

What’s funny, this twisted storyline is getting more confusing and absurd that makes us wonder “what the hell is Pak Lah trying to say? Is he leaving or not?”

If you’re at a lost, let me highlight something, the soon to be former Prime Minister was reported having lunch with Anwar Ibrahim in Hulu Langat. The lunch and short meeting was held at Madrasah Nurul Iman.

Some might question, “So what? It’s just a lunch?” I don’t see this lunch as any regular lunch attended by leaders from opposing end. In fact I can’t recall any reported lunch attended by both of them outside parliament or festive celebrations.

The question is what was the lunch all about? Why now? Is there a plan to stop Najib succession to the Prime Minister-ship?

This meeting opens the door of opportunity and disunity, opportunity for saboteur to sabotage smooth leadership transfer and also create disunity within UMNO. It will create uncertainty within UMNO whether they should stick their support for Pak Lah or look for new political patron within UMNO for them to support.

Pak Lah might give reason such as he was invited and didn’t know Anwar was there or it’s an invitation from someone he can’t decline. But whatever reason it may be, he should have consider it wisely. If he were to decline the invitation, the host will accept it as he already knew current political scenario.

Any move to bring Anwar closer to Pak Lah, vice versa will be seen as an attempt to deny Najib his prime minister-ship. If Pak Lah does not intend to step down, he should tell UMNO from the very beginning and faces their wrath. Doing this right now (not stepping down and working with opposition party) is an act of cowardice and akin to back stabbing. Any move to ditch that intention will further solidify his flip-flop persona.

What we will further see is collapse of democratic process. UMNO members decided to have change in leadership. But what we’re seeing now is Pak Lah last ditch attempt to overstay his welcome. He seems to be desperate to stay. Or is this another sinister plan from the 4th floor boys?

Whatever it is, only time will tell whether Pak Lah will sincerely step down. Many damages have been done unto UMNO and this nation. It’s time for someone else to lead UMNO and this country. If he fails too, let UMNO and the rakyat decide on his fate. But first, let him prove his worth.

As for Pak Lah, please move on. Working in cohorts with Anwar won’t bring you glory. This will put you in much worst position than Tun Dr. Mahathir. At least he never secretly had lunch with his political enemy while in power. He quits when he disagreed and Pak Lah should do so if he thinks he was forced to leave. And if Pak Lah has sinister plan with Anwar, he should re-consider his loyalty and membership with UMNO.

Whatever it is, only both of them knew what happened there. He can claim what we’re saying here is mere speculation but he has to remember, his action opens to lots of speculation. And I believe he’s matured enough to know that any move he makes will expose him to speculation.

You don’t need a rocket scientist to figure out that a move like this was meant by the perpetrator to shake up local political scene.

And like Shyamalan too, people are bored with his twisted storyline anymore. It’s getting predictable and no more a joy to watch. Shyamalan’s latest offering, ‘The Happening’ is not ‘happening’. Same like Pak Lah, his motto “Work with me. Not for me” is no more a ‘happening’ battle cry but more of a ‘pening’ statement from a sleeping leader.

The Bukit Selambau : PART 2

2009-03-10T15:39:00.000-07:00

by C.C Too

The Bukit Selambau by-election continuously in the rhythm. The drums, trumpets and clarinets are playing the chaos melody. The political melody, which makes the Bukit Selambau residents in “dilemma”.

“Who’s the hell he or she is?”, “I never see him or her before” and “he/she is an opportunist!”.

These kinds of phrases seem familiar now among Bukit Selambau residents.

KIMMA had announced to contest the by-election. The announcement had been made in a press conference. Could they win? There could be a chance for them to get the majority? Who is their candidate? Again? I can hardly hear that name!

I heard that Dato’ Tajul was disappointed after knowing that his name was not listed among the candidate to contest the Bukit Selambau by-election. I was told that he uses “bad words” and “amok” all his followers saying that they were “not enough” doing their job to make sure that he is selected. The “AJKs” are the victims! However, some of the listed UMNO candidates were called to be interviewed.

Can you believe that more than 30 opportunist candidates from PKR are working hard to get selected representing Pakatan Rakyat? I was reported that more than 30 candidates had made their efforts to see PKR divisional leader. Lobbying their opportunity to be the next “YB” of Bukit Selambau. The most shocking is they are all Indians!

That makes the Malays from PKR start to choose a candidate among them. The rumors said that another Dr. Zamry was one of the favorites. I was told that he is the surprising candidate selected by Dato’ Seri Anwar. Dr. Zamry is well known among Bukit Selambau residents and has a good reputation. I heard that he was selected by Pak Lah to be a senator, is that true? How could it be?

The chaos has colored competition among PKR candidates to win as PR candidate. Will PAS just wait and see the fiesta? I don’t think so. I was told that Kedah’s PAS worried about the “switching” party among the PKR assemblyman.

The rumors winding so strong that make PAS worried that several PKR and DAP assemblyman lost their trust on the state government or Ustaz Azizan. I was told that PAS also have their “back up” plan for Bukit Selambau. A “bebas” candidate of course!

How about the residents’ of Bukit Selambau views? I’ve been there. Have my journey from small town to another. The Malays demand local Malay to represent their DUN. They are complaining about Indian who represented the DUN for four years while they are the majority, and their last Indian assemblyman was “caught” by low moral values!

The Indians still holding their position. They still want the “post” to be filled by their representatives. This is where the “opportunists” rise among them. The Indian sentiment is so strong among them. They have to be wise or they will break their chances. They have their advantage as Bukit Selambau was compromised to be given to Indian quota.

How about the Chinese? They just keep in silent! Watching the fiesta though. No comment.

Holding their tongue tightly. Never say ‘no” or “yes”. Maybe not yet. They are studying. That is what I thought. Their more likely to mind their own business and make the “final call” at the end of the game. The rumors said that they are waiting “the call” from their “leaders” to cast their vote! Who are their leaders? That what we have to find out!

A Brigde Too Far

2009-03-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

The Prime Minister mentioned today that the government is considering building a bridge from Kota Kinabalu to Labuan. This bridge hopefully would help to spur the economy in Labuan.
Unfortunately a few days ago, the same government did say that they don’t have enough allocation to build new hospital in Kota Kinabalu.

Many Sabahan would have known how congested Queen Elizabeth Hospital is right now. The situation was made worsen when the main block was discovered to be structurally unsafe.

I think the government should look into this matter again. Hospital is one of the basic necessities that should be provided by the ruling government, and so does bridge. In this case, the ruling government has a difficult task to decide which is best for the rakyat, which I don’t think it is such a difficult decision to make.

I think the government should build a new hospital to deal with congestion at the QE Hospital.

The rakyats well being should be foremost in the government’s mind. Well, you cannot deny the fact that the state’s economy is also important.

At this point of time, I don’t think Labuan deserves a bridge. The island doesn’t have the volume, capacity or robust industry to merit a bridge. How many cars you think would cross over to the island everyday?

Labuan is nothing like Penang where the island itself is an economy on its own. Penang should be another bridge (3rd) to choke the traffic on the island. But that’s another story to tell.

What needed to be done is to boost the economy on Labuan. Once the growth on the island surpasses certain mark, then a bridge should be considered.

At the parliament last week, one of the MPs from Sabah was asking about the promised royalty from Oil & Gas business for the people of Sabah. He was wondering whether all these promises are merely gula-gula to sweeten the mind of Sabahan? Sabahan don’t need gula-gula. What they need is the real deal. I think a new hospital would be able to show to the Sabahan that the Federal Government is really serious about their well being.

I’m not sure about the halal hub in Labuan. I’m not trying to be skeptical but I have reservation about the workability of the said halal hub. I’m trying to figure out the rational to locate it in Labuan. Its mind boggling.

The government should consider establishing it in Kota Kinabalu. There are more demands there and if they decided to turn it into a regional halal hub, there are more international flights there. They won’t have problem with manpower if it is in Kota Kinabalu. Whatever it is, I hope it won’t turn into another useless ‘wheel hub’.

A hospital could well win the hearts of Sabahan. A bridge to Labuan may not be something that they really need right now. Come to think of it, only the federal government can turn this into reality. Even with enough money, I don’t think the state government can pull this off. They’re to disunite. There’re too many parties ruling the state.

I strongly believe the Sabahan deserves a new hospital. The time is now, while the ruling government still has support from Sabah. And remember, Sabah holds the key to BNs future in parliament. They Sabahan might play their trump card well this time around. There are some dissident voices among Sabahan MPs in the ruling party. It’s high time for us to listen to their predicaments, more than before.

Malaysian Healthcare

2009-03-10T15:24:00.000-07:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

How far have we progressed?

Do you think we have progressed enough to be in the same league as other progressed nation?I’m actually 2 hearted in this issue. In a way we can consider ourselves as being progressed but there are other aspects that further need development.

The world can’t deny what we’ve achieved. But I realized there are a few things that we can do better.We know what need to be done and we know how to do it. But how serious are we in doing that? Many might wonder what

I’m talking about? Well…I’m talking about our healthcare. Where are we when it comes to healthcare?A millionaire once told me. If one day I were to jumped into the business realm, do consider some fool proof business provided I manage it well of course.

Healthcare is one of the businesses mentioned, for the reason people will get sick at least once in their lifestyle. In healthcare, the whole world is your market.I find a bit odd and ‘zalim’ to capitalize on someone else misery.

I don’t have the heart to ask for payment from someone who’s sick or just lost a family member.

But then again that’s the nature of healthcare business.But isn’t it healthcare supposed to be part of national agenda to provide the best healthcare at affordable price? ‘Yes’ to “provide the best healthcare” and ‘No’ to “at affordable price”. The government can provide the best healthcare at affordable price.

But unfortunately they can’t do this everywhere. The government has it owns limitation. One is financial resources. They have to priorities in other things for the rakyat. If they still need to provide this, we have to pay more on taxes.What we see today is the rakyat have to pay big sum of money for healthcare.

The arguments being, you have to pay for best service. I agree, but my argument being “at what price?” It’s pretty subjective whenever this matter comes into argument. It’ll be a never ending story. In order to settle this dispute rather amicably, the solution is to get you a health policy.But even today, health policy isn’t paying for everything.

Those days, you pay an X amount of money to get X amount of health benefits including treatment, medication and surgery. But today, with the same X amount of money you’re getting less and it’ll get lesser tomorrow.

So, at the end of the day or in the near future, X amount of money may only cover your cough drops. It’ll worth nothing and you still have to fork out a lot of money for your healthcare.So, what choice do we have?

What can the rakyat do to get the best healthcare at affordable price without putting too much burden on the government’s shoulder?

The answer is simple, take care of your health. Eat right and exercise regularly. That’s easier said for some.

But what about someone who’re not eating right and don’t exercise? Unfortunately they don’t have much choice. But one of the limited choices that we still have is to get the government to re-look into the National Health Policy, if we really do have one.

The government need to make Health Policy a compulsory. We’ll have a standard policy for everyone. In a way the healthy once are paying for the sick. But what about hospitals? This policy will have the private hospital as the main ‘benefactors’.

Since the private hospitals can’t charge a lot, the government should look into giving subsidies to them private hospitals to maintain their profit margins.There should only be one body providing this policy and it’s being monitored by an independent body.

In this situation we don’t need competition as this might lead to cartel and price increase like we see today.

There are lotsa things when we talk about healthcare. At this moment there are lotsa things that need improvement. But we can’t put everything on to government’s shoulder. The very least we can do is eat right and exercise regularly.

Coffeeshop Assembly

2009-03-03T21:51:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

Today we see numerous Kopitiam being established. From the famous Kluang Station right up to Benta. I’m not surprised in a few years time every town in this country will have their very own Kopitiam franchise mushrooming nationwide. As u can see, coffee has been part of our culture since I can’t remember when. Like cigarettes, coffee basically puts aside ranks and beliefs.

Everyone basically enjoys the same black aromatic beverage called coffee like they enjoy a puff of smoke.In Malaysia we have our very own side walk cafes. Like those in France, they also serve coffee but instead of pastries or cakes, they serve traditional Malay and Nyonya kuihs.

Unlike Paris where you can probably see couples showing their affection towards each other publicly, here in Malaysia, what you’ll probably see are rakyats showing their affection for political party.

Like any couple hotly in love, things can get very hot in our local cafes or commonly known as ‘warung’.Warung is a hotbed for budding politicians. This is where they sharpen their oratory skill and PR. And here is where rumor mongers and small town lobbyist roam. And also a place where rakyats exchange and discuss latest gossips.Not to be outdone, the Chinese also has something similar where you have your daily dose of coffee and gossips.

Kopitiams are mushrooming throughout the country. Soon you’ll have Kopitiams from every town in the country. I’m not surprised if one fine day you’ll see Kopitiam Gua Musang, Kopitiam Sungai Siput, Kopitiam Cherok Tok Kun, Kopitiam Parit Sontor and even Kopitiam Batang Berjuntai!

Soon coffee shop, warung or kopitiam will have additional service on their ‘menu’. In not very distant future, all local coffee establishments will provide venue for the exco or State Assembly to conduct their meetings. This package will include free flow coffees served in ‘Cawan Retak Seribu’, assortments of kuih and Roti Kaya.

The former Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Nizar can have his emergency meeting at any warung including, Warung Mak Limah.It seems he don’t mind any warung or coffeshop for the state assembly sitting since the state authority don’t allow them assemblymen to enter state secretariat building.

The political scenario in Perak is in shamble. The Speaker is wielding his power on every single matter. I think he’s the most powerful person in the state, more powerful than the Sultan. He should consider sacking the Sultan too.

But he must remember, he’s elected by the rakyats and rakyats never forgets. Rakyats in Perak are getting sick with these squabbles. The state is progressing nowhere. Things are getting bad economically and here we are looking at adults getting at each other’s nerves. These are supposed to be our leader.I suggest that everyone and anyone to let the Menteri Besar get on with his work in peace.

Let us rakyat be the judge. If he didn’t perform, the solution is simple, change the government come next election. If he performs and gets the support from the rakyats, it shows Perakians are sick and disgusted with the opposition’s childish act. And they should consider opening a Warung or Kopitiam to further improve their political survival.

REDUCE LOAN REPAYMENT, INCREASE TOLL CHARGES

2009-02-25T21:48:00.000-08:00

This is something unexpected. In this trying time I was expecting everyone include both government and private sectors to contribute something to ease the rakyats burden. But I heard this morning was the opposite.

5 highways will be increasing their toll rates on the 1st of March 2009. These highways are PLUS, SPRINT, Ampang – KL Highway, NPE & BESRAYA.

The banks are doing something to the repayment period. This move will give more disposable income to the customers.

But unfortunately the highway operators are doing the opposite. There won’t be mush decrease in volumes on highways that will affect their revenues. I was hoping the highway operators to be much more charitable this time around. I thought they might consider waiving this year’s increase. Unfortunately, I’m wrong. Capitalist will forever be a capitalist.

Some highway operator might argue that they don’t have enough volumes to justify keeping old toll rates. I understand where their coming from. What about PLUS Highway? Don’t tell me PLUS doesn’t have enough volume to consider no toll increase? Come on, rakyats are not blind to gauge that PLUS is in fact making tones of money.

Recently the government sugar coated our wallet with the sudden closer of 2 toll plazas on NPE and BESRAYA Highways. I’m not sure about NPE, but the for sure BESRAYA is not getting cash compensation. But there’s something fishy behind all these closures. Like I said earlier, being a capitalist, toll operators are not going to give up a money making device like toll plazas without a fight. And later I was proven right.

BESRAYA was given the task to extend their highway and this will include a toll plaza. You see…

You demolish one and they’ll set up another later on. Their argument is to justify constructing the extension for BESRAYA Highway. That’s not the end of it. And today they got them a toll increase.

Why must we put up with all these nonsense? Why can’t the government buy over the highways? Maybe 2 or 3 highways if not all.

When times were good then or maybe later, the government should consider buying over PLUS, Penang Bridge, SPRINT and LITRAK. I’m not suggesting buying them all of them together.

Maybe they can start with PLUS. Once bought, the government should charge at a very minimum to cover cost and a little bit of profit or keep at existing amount. This will add another cash cow to the government’s coffer.

This action shows the government isn’t being sympathetic towards the rakyats. They’re more concern about the well being of the conglomerate. Yea… they can say that this is to ensure highway operators can stay afloat in this trying time. Come on, they can stay afloat now; it means they can stay afloat for a very long time.

The Opposition parties will use the issue of toll increase to the max come next by-election. This gives much reason for the rakyat to hate the government more.

When banks are doing something to help increase the rakyat’s disposable income, the toll operators are taking that away! At the end of the day, we’re back to square one.

EMPTY WAREHOUSE = BAD ECONOMY = OPPORTUNITY TO ENHANCE FUTSAL SKILL

2009-02-25T04:28:00.001-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

I was talking with a friend who works with the custom department handling export items at Port Klang. He looked quite worried. For a former student leader, he being worry is something that you should worry about. He’s someone who would speak his mind.

The situation at the port contradicts whatever being said about our economy. Go to Port Klang and look at the container terminal. It’s empty. Not like it used to be.

Warehouses are also empty. You can play a game of Futsal there. Trucks are rare sights there.

You don’t the usual traffic of trucks carrying goods around Port Klang. We discussed further on other indicators for bad economy.

Many trading companies are suffering. Imports are suffering because there are not many demands locally and the manufacturer abroad are also facing credit crunch to supply more if there is such demand.

Export is also on a decline. Many factories are shutting down production line to reduce output.

This affected not only employees (when they can’t do overtime) but also vendors that supply components and raw materials.

How do we overcome this situation? Many suggest that we increase expenditure. I suggest we make more babies! That’s for long term solution. Tun Dr.Mahathir once suggested 70 million populations.

It’s a good idea actually. With that kind of population we can actually be self reliant. Our local demand can support local production. When economics turbulence attacking other nations, we can rely on local demands to spur the economy.

Pak Lah made a good start in trying to revive the agricultural sector. But the implementation is something of the opposite. Holland and Taiwan are good example for us to emulate. Both countries are almost self reliant where agriculture sector is concern.

I don’t have any land to toil. But I have a dream of having my own pineapple plantation. My plan was to plant pineapples under all high voltage cables running across the country. Those lands under it are basically underutilized. Some argued it generates ‘generous’ amount of harmful electromagnetic wave. I guess, that’s for me to find out. Whatever it is, we have plenty of resources to spur our economy. We need to be innovative in finding unorthodox solution during this economic downturn.

No point having stimulus package if we don’t know how to use it. We can throw a lot of money into the economy. The money is gone but we don’t see anything out of it.

Penang is one of the state worst affected. The state government is busy stabilizing the social structure but I don’t see much solution on the economy. They still need help from the federal government. The manufacturing sector hasn’t fully recovered from 1997-98 and now they’re experiencing another downturn and the tourism sector will never go back to its former glory.

Whoever plans to be in power come next general election need to come up with an extremely long term solution. The state no longer produces cheap goods. They’re not producing extremely high tech products and no longer a beautiful resort island. And the only reason why Malaysian throngs this island on weekly basis is to fulfill their hunger for delicious food! I don’t see any other solution for this except total re-branding!

To embrace whatever re-branding exercise, Penangites need also change their mindset, and this includes politicians too. And let me tell you something, despite claiming to be a developed state, penangites have among the most least developed mindset in this country. Tak percaya kah?

Pink Tudung and Mat Rempit

2009-02-25T04:24:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

Who are these SYT in pink tudungs? Do they serve any purpose or merely a more dignified escort? Tan Sri Tengku Ahmad Rithaudden recently suggested to abolish UMNO’s wings is one of the freshest ideas ever heard in UMNO for the last errr… years.

You have Wanita, Pemuda, Puteri and Putera UMNO. What’s missing is ‘Kanak-Kanak UMNO’ wing. Come on lah. Why so many wings? They don’t serve any purpose. And some of them are redundant. How do you differentiate between Wanita and Puteri? Oh yes, we differentiate from the tudungs, red for moms and pink for daughters. What about grandmas and granddaughters?

Should they wear red and pink stripped tudungs?

All these wings serve only one purpose, which is to give legitimate positions in the party to the so called potential leaders. UMNO long realized the potential of some women and young individuals, but unfortunately doesn’t have enough room for them in the higher echelon. The solution….create wings for them to lead. And recently we have 2 more wings, puteri and the ‘unofficial’ putera.

OK, I have to admit. Wanita and Pemuda are needed to nurture future leaders. What about Puteri and Putera? Are they merely Servants and Mat Rempits? Can someone please tell me, what can Puteri and Putera does that couldn’t be achieved by both Wanita and Pemuda? I bet no one can justify this.

All these years Wanita and Pemuda have performed their job very well. And a few years back, new wings cropped within the existing wings.

At this point of time what UMNO need is concerted effort from everyone. There shouldn’t divisions where each wings have their own set of plans. UMNO need only 1 set of plan to strengthen the party and everyone should follow through it. Everyone in UMNO will claim that they’re one at heart despite serving under ‘different’ wings. But can’t they see the word “different” there? Twins will always be twins; they can never be ‘one’. Every twin has their own mindset and desire.

Putera currently being led a not so Putera aged leader. I find some of the ideas proposed by the Head of Putera UMNO bordering pathetic. One of them was to rehabilitate Mat Rempits? And look at what we have today? They’re much more daring than they used to be. Probably because “I’m a Putera UMNO!” Everyone knows that you can’t easily make Mat Rempits disappear.

Police have been trying that for God knows how many years. And one smart Putera thought of using reverse psychology to win them. Come on, look at the bikes. Do they have reverse gear?

You can’t reverse psycho a hard core Rempit. They’ll make you go psycho.

This ‘noble’ act sometimes creates disgust among the rakyat. Here we try to sleep in peace and over there someone organizing a huge gathering of Mat Rempits. Mat Rempits are ordinary folks like us only with fire raging hormones that crave attention. They’re not Mat Rempits all the time. They only rempit when they’re together, or when delivering pizza to my house. The more attention you give to them, the cockier they’ll get.

I don’t see Puteri playing effective or significant role in UMNO. Like Putera, they’re of age where they need to be nurtured by seniors in Wanita. A makcik should lead her daughter. That should be the way. You can’t make a junior lead another junior. This is not ‘Kelab Pembimbing Rakan Sebaya’.

From what I can see they are just ornaments at UMNO’s functions, manning booth, ushering guest and carrying trays. Infact they’re liabilities. Giving responsibility to juniors is like creating trouble unto you. They tend to screw things.

I’ve spoken to many Puteris and asked them “Why you join Puteri UMNO?” They can’t give me convincing answer except “Dah kawan-kawan ajak…” Do you think majority (both guys and girls) 20+ y/o understand true meaning of ‘perjuangan’ and ‘hak orang Melayu’? I don’t think so. These are Akademi Fantasia Generation. They only understand ‘entertainment’ and ‘sms’.

My solution is simple. Get rid of Puteri and Putera. Concentrate with Wanita and Pemuda. In this trying time for UMNO, they can’t afford to be segregated. Fewer wings are better. You’ll be more focus, more concerted and easier to monitor. Honestly, I’m a bit divided about abolishing Puteri UMNO, as I find girls in pink tudungs are much cuter than makciks in red.

Politicians Killing Our Sports

2009-02-24T00:44:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

Politics and sports are what P.Ramlee described as ‘lagu dan irama’, song and melody. They can’t be separated. And this is what you see here in Malaysia.

Majorities of sports associations in Malaysia are led by politicians. If they’re not leading, you’ll either see them sitting in the exco or AJKs. Cast a stone at any sports association and you’ll definitely hit a politician. If you’re lucky you’ll hit them in the head and bring them back to reality that ‘politicians are not needed in sports administrations.’

I don’t see politicians as being anything special besides than their oratory, kiss ass and perhaps leadership skill. Some take their leadership skill a bit overboard. They have the notion that a leader can lead almost anything be it the rakyat, the nation or sports association. They think that they’re God’s gift to the rakyat, to lead them out of obscurity, and same goes with sports associations. They are to lead them out of oblivion. Yeah, right. Look at how far Malaysians have progressed in sports?

I don’t see them as bringing much benefits to the sports and the nation in general. Their politicking act is slowly killing the sports. Some politicians have too much on their plate that I find it hard to fathom how can they manage all these responsibilities?

First they’re ADUNS or Member of Parliament. Secondly, some of them are Ministers or Chief Ministers. Next, they’re also ‘Ketua Bahagian’ and also sit in the party supreme council. Lastly, they’re President of PENGULUM (Persatuan Guli Ulung Malaysia). And not forgetting their responsibility towards their wife and children, and their other wives too.

How can they give equal attention to all these responsibilities? Their argument is that they have assistants to help with all the responsibilities (I hope they didn’t ask the assistants to help with the wife). They need to be reminded that they were the one who was elected to the post, not their assistants. Might as well vote the assistants instead to lead, rite?

Lack of serious attention by the leadership caused many sports associations to suffer. Development programs weren’t implemented according what’ve agreed upon. Management in total chaos. Squabbles within the rank. Athletes being neglected. These are syndromes that are currently inflicted most of our sports associations. And this lead to our downfall. We can claim to be the 2nd best nation at SEA Games. But please, for how long SEA Games gonna be our benchmark? We should at least aim to be among the best in Asia.

There’s also another syndrome that being inflicted by politicians. Whenever a sports association led by passionate individuals managed to produce successful athletes, in short notice you’ll see politicians homing in on them (sports association). They’ll start throwing money or flexing their influence trying to convince members of the said association that they can do better once elected into the board or presidency. Sometimes these leaders are also shameless parasites. They failed at fulfilling their promises but try to hang on to their position for as long as possible despite many in the association opposing them. This is a prime example of shameless act of selfishness.

I heard Shahidan Kassim is offering his service to lead Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM). He’s leading Malaysian Amateur Athletic Association (MAAU), Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM), Kabaddi Association of Malaysia (KAM), Perlis Football Association and now he plan to add OCM into his collection of presidencies. I suggest he should also try the presidency for Persatuan Guli Ulung Malaysia (PENGULUM). He got better chances there.

We were once number one in athletics in South East Asia. Where are we now? Have our swimmers progressed beyond SEA Games? I’m not sure about Kabbadi, but firstly he should at least make effort to popularize it before anything else. So, what plan he has for OCM?

I think he and other politicians should stop this at once. Let passionate individuals or former athletes handle their respective associations. They should know what’s best for the sports.

As for Shahidan Kassim, he should do something else to occupy his time. Maybe he should take up knitting or flower arrangement to kill time. He’s not bringing any good to any of these sports associations; there are others who can do much better. For the betterment of our sports, other politicians should also consider this frank advice. Leave sports associations alone. Concentrate on your constituents. The rakyats are the ones who need your tender loving care.

A Note To Tan Sri Jins Samsudin

2009-02-22T20:38:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

In this trying time our film and broadcasting industry need a total makeover. It has been more than 10 years since 1997-98 economic crisis. Before then, the industry was at its most lucrative stage. Lucrative for everyone including the artist, producers and tv station.

If you ask any production crew then, they can afford to own a car. Free flowing job offers where they have to decline some. Everyone was enjoying as if good times gonna last forever. When 1997-98 hit, many was hard hit.

There were surplus of finished products. At the same time advertisers stopped spending on advertisement. When it happened no one was prepared for it. Many have to ‘cari makan’ elsewhere. There were some who defaulted on their loans, including automobile and property.

Many opted to take pay cut with whatever small production jobs that was offered just to stay afloat. Since then the scenario in film and broadcasting changed.

The thing is, when the industry has somewhat recovered from the economic crisis, things haven’t change in film and tv land. I’m not sure people in this industry are as slow as a slacking sloth or they simply couldn’t be bothered with the changes?

If you ask me has the salary and remuneration for those in this line have changed since then?

My answer would be “Not much”. What’s funny they use the word ‘gawat’ religiously to justify their lack of budget. I don’t agree with ‘gawat’ as a reasoning or lack of budget. The budget hasn’t changed much but the cost has risen with time. That’s the reason, not ‘gawat’ or ‘bajet ciput’.

The tv stations haven’t changed much when it comes to budget given to the production houses to produce dramas or tv programs. Because of stiff competition today, the stations haggle on pricing. You have to agree with their price or you stand to get nothing if they decided to give it to someone else.

This is also another problem for those in tv and film production, there’s no sense of solidarity between them. One will back stab another friend just to get a RM10k job. And today technologies are getting cheaper.

You can produce a tv program with RM7k DV camera. Gone were the days where Betacam was the industry standard. I can’t remember when was the last time I worked with Betacam? You can edit a tv program on your laptop or MAC/PC at home. No need for RM100k+ editing machine. A film graduate can set up a basic production house with RM10k! So, I guess you don’t need an increase in budgeting for your tv program? Not really, there are still other things that have increased like ‘artis jual mahal’.

Now we’re facing another economic crisis. Will this be another 1997-98? I’m not sure. The only thing got affected is the tv commercial productions. Not many tv commercials have been produced lately. You can see this during recent festive season. Not many new tv commercials for Hari Raya and Chinese New Year. I can only recall Petronas producing tv commercials consistently. It’s because they can afford it.

Besides than budget constraint in the part of advertisers, another element that contributed to the lack of tv commercials is Made In Malaysia (MIM) certificate. MIM is a protective mechanism employed to protect local tv production, especially tv commercial productions.

Under this ruling, any production to be aired locally must be made by Malaysian, in Malaysia with Malaysian talents. TV commercials made abroad with foreign talents are not allowed. There were a few cases where foreign talents and directors were used. But they somehow managed to get the necessary permits to go ahead with it. It helps to spur the economy specifically our local film and tv productions. Our creative industry was kept alive by this ruling.

In recent years this MIM ruling has somehow relaxed to the extend foreign tv commercials can easily be aired on our tv channels. The advertisers find no reason to produce tv commercials for Malaysian market.

Change the tagline and voice over, they can make do with 1 standard tv commercial for worldwide release. This is what killing the industry. Some might argue that protectionism will kill any industry when we don’t have competition from abroad. For this industry, the competition is within this country. We compete to increase our share of the sales pie. Our imagination is our limit. For as long we understand the products, the targeted consumers and others are doing abroad, we can compete ‘internally’.

Only RTM religiously ask for MIM. If RTM stop practicing it, the tv commercial production industry can collapse. What is the government doing about this?

What has Jins Shamsudin done about this?

FINAS was under him. Don’t tell me he doesn’t know about this? I don’t think he has done enough for the industry to merit National Arts Award. He was someone representing the industry in the senate. Looking at the predicaments facing the industry today, he has done nothing or probably not much!

WHINING BABY! IS THIS OUR FUTURE LEADER?

2009-02-22T20:31:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

It seems this particular ‘future youth chief’ got nothing better to do. He is typical ‘Makcik Joyah’. Someone of a busy body kind.

I think what he’s doing is for show only. He had a few terms as Menteri Besar to show what he’s capable of doing. I guess he failed as the people of Selangor rejected him.

He’s doing this to show that he really cares for the rakyat and a responsible politician. And not forgetting, the show is for the upcoming UMNO Youth Election.

His favourite word today is ‘quit’! He wanted everyone to quit. I think he should stalk every single ADUNs, go to their house and ask them to quit. He doesn’t need any reason for doing that.

He’s giving negative impression to the rakyat that BN are sour grapes. As if BN can’t accept. What he’s doing is not being a good opposition. The rakyats are disgusted with this immature act.

Let the state government do their job. This is the chosen government. If the current government fail to perform, let the rakyat decide whether they wanna have a new government.

He got no right to talk about morality or sensitivity or whatever ‘ty’. So don’t ask anyone to quit. If he thinks he’s voicing what the rakyat wants, I guess he’s wrong.

If he can recall, ‘Semuanya OK!’ wasn’t something that comes from the rakyat. The land clearing act that was OK-ed by him is part of his downfall. Him being powerless to curb the act shows that he’s basically a puppet or someone who care-less about the rakyat’s sentiment.

So, why now the sudden change turning into a rakyat’s champion? What we need is a leader who works for the rakyat consistently, not seasonally. Him making all these noises shows he got nothing to do. Same when he was in power, he did nothing!

I think those in power right now regardless UMNO or BN should consider their strategy. They should advice someone like Khir Toyo to just shut up. What he’s doing is damaging. Nicely put, the rakyats are disgusted with his childish.

This patronizing and whining style of politicking is from the ancient civilization. The rakyats are not stupid. They don’t accept things easily. And you’re talking about people from Selangor, the most advanced state in Malaysia. Penang, Perak, Kelantan and this state of Selangor have the most difficult voters.

It’s not easy to please these voters. If you work for the rakyat, you’ll be rewarded come next election. If you’re whining 6 y/old, continue whining and you’ll be rewarded with a pacifier (putting).

What we can conclude, people like Khir Toyo are simply sour grapes. They can’t accept lost like a gentleman. What they should do now is reflect on their lost and make amend. When you’re no more in power, there’s no better time than now for them to forge closer ties with the rakyat.

Take this lost as an opportunity to reflect on their mistakes and do the necessary things to rectify it.

Is this whining baby our future youth leader who one day might lead this country? If the answer is positive, may God help this nation. With him in leadership, everything may not necessary be OK because he’ll close his eyes and says “Semuanya OK.” To all my fellow Malaysian, I rest my case!

THANK GOD I SURVIVED MALAYSIAN POLITICS!

2009-02-21T02:34:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

1. I you wanna jump into politics? Malaysian politics to be precise? You need to master a few ‘kemahiran’

2. The ability to jump like a frog. “The higher you jump, the harder you fall” does not fit into

3. Malaysian Politics equilibrium. Jumping will take you to higher ground.

4. Learn to speak without thinking.

5. Never remember what you’ve spoken yesterday. It’ll forever haunt you.

6. Learn how to ‘derhaka’

7. Do not mind your own business

8. Eat lotsa ‘Tempe’ if you aim to be pleasing in the eye of your constituents

9. Do not maintain your car. The state government will take care of it.

10. Get a blog but get someone to write for you.

11. Befriend ‘bomohs’ and ‘pawangs’.

12. Always carry an electronic device to check for bugs and hidden cameras.

13. Have a PhD. Anything from USA or England worth quite a lot in terms of career prospect. Worst case scenario, anything from Sudan is good enough.

14. Knows how to sing. Memories a song or two. “My Way” never failed to impress.

15. Go after local celebrities. Make them 2nd or 3rd wife.

16. Have colorful arrays of ‘Baju Melayu’ but only black colored songkoks. Do not try to emulate the late Sudirman’s Baju Melayu.

17. Don’t learn to speak English

18. Have selective amnesia

19. Fight for presidency of any sports association. Kabbadi and Silambam are good enough. If there ain’t enough for all politicians, create new ones. Persatuan Guli Unggul Malaysia (PENGULUM), Kesatuan Lompat Katak Kebangsaan (KELOPAK) or Kersatuan Congkak Kebangsaan (KOKAK).

20. Play badminton

21. Support Manchester United

22. Do not question your leader

23. Make sure your sons are AP holder. Not 1 AP but a few APs.

24. Learn to say “It wasn’t me” or “Let the court decide”

25. Must not have any food allergies. Due to lotsa functions and meetings you have to attend, be
prepared to have a gamut of food!

26. Always remember that the rakyats are no smarter than you. That’s why they got you to represent them.

27. Develop good sense of humor. Preferably jokes where you the only one who understands it.

28. Practice your plastic smile and master beauty queen wave.

29. Have a stunt double, in case you infuriate some kampong folks.

30. Always give whatever the constituents wants.

Above are some of the qualities needed to be a politician in Malaysia regardless race or political parties you support. This list might expand over time. But remember, whatever quality you might have, cash money does make wonders. I have RM10 in my bank account and I wanna be a politician.

Bukit Selambau Part 1

2009-02-19T11:52:00.000-08:00

by C.C Toh

The Fact. N25 BUKIT SELAMBAU

Total Voters: 34,977 Race Percentage: M:50.20% C:19.25% I:29.53% L:1.02% 1.

V. Arumugam (Bebas) (13,225) 2. S. Krishnan (BN) (10,863) Majority: 2,362

Total vote: 26,450 Voters percentage: 75.62% Damage vote: 2,362 Former

Assemblyman: Datuk V. Saravanan (BN)(Majoriti: 7,695 undi)

Every Malaysian will once again will focus their attention to Bukit Selambau. After 11 months being Bukit Selambau Assemblyman, V. Arumugam had resigned immediately, causing shock to the whole nation.

He tendered his resignation as Kedah Exco a few days after several complaints made by the 500 residents of Sungai Petani. Hence, by-election will be held at N25 Bukit Selambau.

The Election Commission of Malaysia had announced that the Bukit Selambau nomination date is on March 29 and the by-election will be conducted on 7th of April 2009.

Bukit Selambau was famous once after the winning of PAS in 12th National Election on 8th of March, last year.

The N25 was famous after a controversial decision on November last year, announced by Kedah’s PAS State Government to endorse a HIGH-TECH PIG FARM PROJECT at Bukit Selambau.

The project had been cancelled by PAS state government due to environmental factors and series of demonstrations.

The candidates. Traditionally, Bukit Selambau seat was contested by MIC, but UMNO Merbok had a press statement demanding the seat.

The seat was won by "bebas" candidate V.Arumugam on the last national election over S.Krishnan of MIC.

Arumugam then joined PKR and become one of the Kedah State Exco. PAS had also in deed wants the seat and ex-PPP woman chief also offer to contest as "bebas".

MIC demands of the Bukit Selambau seat due it was traditionally contested. MIC got a good track record on winning the seat for 3 consecutive national elections.

It was a great win by Datuk V.Saravanan with 7695 majority!

Will Najib answer the Samy Vellu’s call? The rumors said that ex Lunas assemblyman, Dato’ Ganesan had started the game by meeting with local UMNO leaders to gain support.

UMNO Merbok’s Division, Datuk Tajul Urus, demands contestant for N25 Bukit Selambau assembly seat will be chosen from UMNO.

The reason is due to the majority of 50.2% of Malays in the DUN and that seat was one of the UMNO seat before it was compromised to MIC.

Will Najib make the right path for Tajul’s demand?

While PAS is also in conflict with PKR demanding the seat from Pakatan Rakyat, PAS notice that the Malays are the majority in DUN Bukit Selambau and of course they are worried to lose the DUN’s seat if Malay voters go for UMNO’s candidate!

Will PKR just simply allowing the seat to be given to PAS easily? Will PKR’ de facto leader compromised the seat and hurts his Indian buddies? Let us wait and see.

There must be a good "drama" to be watched. The rumors spread that 6 candidates are now lobbying to contest the seat!

Four buses are seen to enter Bukit Selambau area campaigning for the candidates.

Some of them are eager to meet Merbok’s Parliament Member to gain support from him.

What a chaos for PKR! In the meanwhile, the Malays PKR also setting up their own candidate. It seems to be a fiesta among them.

How about the Ex-PPP G. Sarala? Suddenly she claimed that she will gain good support due to her locality. She looked so confident to win the people of Bukit Selambau votes! So optimistic! While ex MIC "Puteri" also rumored to contest the by-election on "bebas" ticket.

Two "bebas" females’ candidates for Bukit Selambau?

DAP also had been said to take part in this game. The rumors saying that two candidates are now lobbying their position in contesting the Bukit Selambau’ DUN.

Will they "cut" out PKR and PAS to represent Pakatan Rakyat?

If the candidate presented by BN or PR are Indians form MIC or PKR, and G. Sarala be a "bebas" candidate, I was assured by a good friend of mine that he will definitely contesting the N25 Bukit Selambau DUN’s seat.

He is Malay. He is very well known among the Bukit Selambau residents of Malays, Chinese, Indians and Siamese.

Well wide experience in politic though he was ex-UMNO leader in UMNO Merbok Division.

He quit UMNO at the same day as Tun Dr. Mahathir. But he will contest in one condition, "the BN candidate must be an Indian" than he will join the battle of the "hill"!

It can be a fiesta of democracy in Bukit Selambau or it can be turn to be a disaster for Bukit Selambau residents?

The people will judge. The people will use their power to choose the best candidate.

They will get a lot of choice and make sure that they will choose someone who is with "moral values".

Pening In Penang

2009-02-18T19:07:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

I’m from Penang. A true blue Penangite. Whenever I have my long break, the only place I could think of is Penang. I don’t wanna go anywhere else. Everything is there. We have good food, nice chicks, good sets of hills, used-to -be-nice beaches, historical buildings and confusing roads (that’s what people told me). So there’s no reason for me to go anywhere else.

Penangites are a unique bunch of people. Like someplace else, they swears at their long lost friends before even greet them. Whenever they give direction to vacationers, they’ll tell them

“Look for Komtar and you won’t get lost”. Penangites worships food. And they’re quite thrifty too. They won’t pay for any food that cost more than RM 5.00.

I once went to a school where the teachers don’t allow us to speak any language except English. If not for that visionary thought, I won’t be writing here. Some of the students there can also speak or understand more than 3 languages. I know some non Chinese who speaks Hokkien. Even I can understand smattering Hokkien. My favourite mamak mee goreng speaks 5 languages. I swear that Penang is a country on its own.

Take politics for example. Once, a future Prime Minister was from Penang. Current Prime Minister is from Penang. The late first Prime Minister spent his retirement in Penang and the 4th Prime Minister called this island ‘Darul Sampah’! Where else on earth can you find an island being glorified as being rubbish?

Penang has a unique political scenario. Whatever it is, a Malay can never the Chief Minister. I have no problem with this. In fact I take it as a blessing in disguise. From this silent agreement, the best Malay politicians don’t have to waste his time on this island state. They can focus their time to serve directly at national level! Only the poor, least visionary politicians stay to be ‘jaguh kampung’.

A few years back I laughed at the idea mooted by UMNO asking the post of Chief Minister to be given to Malay. For once, every single UMNO unanimously have consensus on something. Before this, they were never together at anything!
This current time you’ll see top Malay leaders in Penang basically leading a division. In recent years there were not real challenges in Division election. A young upstart can never topple down a division leader. The leaders are like warlords who rule their kingdom. You’re either with them or you’re out. From this you’ll see how the warlord claws their kingdom.

If you’re a true blue Penangite, ask yourself this question….”Where are the best Penang Malays?” Are they in Penang or somewhere else? Let me answer it for you. The only time you can see all the best and successful Malays is Hari Raya Puasa. So what’s left in Penang? Go there and find out yourself.

Is UMNO doing something to address the under supply of Malay professionals in Penang? Did they try to lure these Malays to return and serve in the state? The answer is no. Why should they get someone smarter to return home? They someday might plot something against you!

That’s the fear among the warlord.

Malays on Penang Island are the poorest. They’re proud to have the Prime Minister from this state but can they proudly claim to own the land on this used-to-be-very-beautiful island? Go figure how many Malays owns big chunk of land on the island. “Tanah tumpah darah” is just rhetoric for Penang Malays. They don’t have any more ‘tanah’ for their ‘darah’ to ‘tumpah’ on.

There’s a long lasting issue on squatters in Tanjung Tokong. The issue came to a standstill for god knows how many years. Where is UMNO? What have they done to these people? Go down and speak to them and find out first hand their predicaments. Their problems have been swept under the carpet for more than 20 years.

Those days, their windows open up to beautiful scenery of the beach. But today, the beach has been reclaimed and price of the properties there are beyond their reach. The scenario there is akin to ‘Antara Dua Darjat’. After 20 years, has the local UMNO leaders done anything? And the funny thing is, their predicament pit them against a GLC, UDA. The warlord claim to be championing rakyat’s issue, and they can’t even take it against another GLC. They want the Chief Minister’s post but they can’t even settle this 20 years issue.

There are many things to talk about Penang. If they’re serious about taking over the state, try to settle the small issues first. They can begin with Tanjong Tokong. Once settled then we can ‘DREAM’ about taking back the island. And please stop tearing up pictures. It’s damn childish and immature act. You think the youngsters wanna be in the same party with immature? In your dream!

MALAYSIAN FOOTBALL TEAM: THE FINAL SOLUTION

2009-02-17T23:46:00.000-08:00

by Invisiblewriter001

This is one association that need to be revamped totally. The leadership up there refused to step down despite calls for them to do show. I believe everyone would agree that they’ve overstayed their welcome.

Football is the number one sports anywhere in the world, except maybe the US. And where are we now? Number 160+ I guess. Look at the scenario. Our national football team is a joke that betting against them is a sure bet you gonna make money. You can never lose betting against Malaysia.

One wondered what is the problem with Malaysian Football? Countless discussions have been organized to stop the downfall. Miles of paperwork have been presented to address this decline.

So, what’s the problem?

I don’t the exact problem. But one thing for sure, after years of attempts to stop the rot and nothings has ever worked, I think it’s high time for those at the leadership level to quit. Maybe the rots started from there.

FAM had tried many ideas but nothing worked and the last place to work on is the leadership itself. Have a total revamp of the top hierarchy. There are too many politicians up there. Look at our politicians. They’re clowns! My concern is whether they’ve inflicted their disease onto FAM’s leadership. And I believe they’ve done so.

The situation in FAM is beyond repair. It need total overhaul. Bringing super coaches or managers won’t help address the situation. We’ve had good coaches who failed to do anything here but succeeded elsewhere. Assess that!

Since we’re on a downward spiral, there’s no shame if continue to go down. Take this as an opportunity to experiment. If climb up the rank, consider it a bonus. If we maintained the position, it’s a success. IF we go down the rank, there’s nothing to be ashamed of since we’re going for broke!

What I’m suggesting is that we get some crazy bunch from Tanjung Rambutan to fill the leadership post. No one will take them seriously hence the team manager and coaches will have a free hand handling the team.

The coaches! Get a National Hero, someone like Kanang anak Langkau to be the goalkeeper coach. The mantra is “Guard your post at all cost!”

Get a former rugby player to coach the defenders. Employ a former dispatch rider or Mat Rempit to coach the strikers, as they can coach them to whizz thru any roadblocks or defenders.

As for midfield coach you need someone with vision, someone who can see the big picture, in total darkness or when they’re clueless. This role goes to the people behind crop circles. They’re someone who can help the midfielders to imagine as if they’re up there like a bird looking down when in reality they’re on the field looking forward, and sometimes running backwards! Their visionary, observant and meticulous skills are good assets.

The best manager for Malaysian football team should be a former ‘warden penjara’. If he can manage Sg. Buloh Prison, Malaysian football team is peanuts!

3 STOOGES, THE FUTURE UMNO YOUTH LEADER

2009-02-17T15:47:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

One is busy minding other political party’s business.

The other has the charisma but is too cunning for the party’s own good.

The last choice seems to be diplomatic and too nice for a youth leader.

I’m talking about 3 candidates for UMNO Youth Chief. Gone were the days where firebrands roam within UMNO. This was prevalent in UMNO then. They were the one who will fight for the rakyat.

Unfortunately the voices are muted; they’ve turned docile like a domesticated Panthera tigris malayensis.

What happens when cats turned into kittens? The rakyat will look somewhere else for security.

They need someone else to fight for them. In 2008, the rakyat have shown what they can do. So, listen to what they gotta say. And this is what UMNO Youth used to do. Listen and speak out on behalf of the rakyat.

This is the problem when the youth who used to voice out for the rakyat, today is part of the government mechanism. How can the youth expose the wrong doings of the government or bring forward the problems faced by the rakyat when they themselves are part of the system?

The challenge for the next youth leader is to bridge that gap. Forget about cabinet position. Go down to the grassroot and be the voice of the rakyat. Let the Prime Minister lead the nation and the Youth leader lead the rakyat. But unfortunately today, there seems to be lack of potential leader among the youth rank.

There are 3 of them vying for the position. Khir Toyo is busy being a micro analyst. Trying to analyse every single move made by the Selangor State government and questioning every single decision made. Maybe he should question the amount of money the state government spent on toilet papers.

We the rakyat don’t need a leader who is so busy ‘jaga tepi kain orang’. Let them do their job. If we’re not happy with their performance, we’ll chase them out come next election, like what we did to him. We want him to look into our problems. In fact these problems have deep rooted during his leadership.

Khairy Jamaluddin is too cunning for his own good. He has the charisma. He’s articulate and to some extent considered quite brave too. At some point especially today, UMNO need a brash Youth leader.

To some, KJ is like Anwar when the latter was in the youth leadership. And they also thought he’s like Anwar today, someone who can’t be trusted. A snake with devious plans. Harshly put, someone who would sell his soul to the devil.

What about Mukhriz? Well…I have doubt. He got a lot of nominations because behind closed doors, majority hates KJ. And with Pak Lah leaving, they gave their nominations to Mukhriz.
I don’t think he’s brash. I don’t think he’s that articulate. He doesn’t like confrontation and he don’t believe in provocation.

He’s more of the diplomatic type. UMNO Youth don’t need it, let the Prime Minister be diplomatic. UMNO Youth need someone that will take the bull by its horn, someone who is willing to go heads on against his nemesis. And as far as Mukhriz has proven, he didn’t have that.

What UMNO Youth need is a nice ‘bad boy’. Someone who is articulate, smart, has deep sense of responsibility for the rakyat, who don’t mind confrontation and provocation and not forgetting, someone who’s easily accessible without too many gatekeepers.

In a nutshell, a bad boy who works for the rakyat, not the government!

Malaysian Politics As I See It

2009-02-16T03:32:00.001-08:00

by ABANG KOJAK

Evolution of Politics And Its Reasons for Existence

The evolution of politics is inevitable due to changes in the life and times of people. In tandem with these changes, domestic politics evolve due to pressures within the international sphere.

For example, increase of oil prices and economic crises force goverments all over the world, rich and poor, to grapple with loss of confidence from its peoples.

This is evident in the case of Gordon Brown’s Labour Party leadership in Britain, as Britons are forced to deal with higher cost of living.

Nicolas Sarkozy’s government in France is also not spared from the people’s demand to have
their basic rights protected from the effects of an economy in crisis.

The same scenario in Italy, as Italians are losing jobs to weakened economy. Much anger is felt across countries in Southeast Asia as price of goods rise as a direct effect of the oil price hike.

Philosophy tells us the importance of politics to protect the lives of the people.

Politics takes form of a mandate given based on social contract of the majority to leaders in their quest to protect the rights of the people, to drive prosperity in their countries so that living conditions continue to improve from time to time and that the people can live in contentment and peace.

In reading Nizam Al-Mulk’s The Book of Goverment or Rules for Kings, one is increasingly aware of the importance of having accountable leadership for the very reason that politics must exist.

One needs to remember that if politics is used for only personal gains to obtain wealth will not benefit in the long run as it could backfire on such leaders as the people would rise against them.

It should, therefore, Nizam’s book be made a reference to all leaders and those interested to immerse themselves in politics.

In that, for as long as politics and the business of doing politics continue to evolve, its main aim cannot be cast aside – politics exist to serve and protect the people!

Perception of Politics vs. Trust?

Crisis of perception often occur due to events involving political actors. This is exemplified by the 6-year imprisonment of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for sodomy, which was said to a by-product of Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad’s political conspiracy.

However, it is imperative that political perception must be corrected by channelling the correct information to the people. What happens if the information fails to correct the people’s perception?

Then this is no longer the crisis of perception, instead, it has become an issue of trust.

The crisis of the peoples’ trust is the crux of the problem, when even given much explanation about the issue does not dissuade them from continuing to believe that there is a political conspiracy afoot.

Hence, how does one manage political perception in this day and era? Media is the available forum to correct the people’s perception.

In order to play an effective role, the media must maintain its avenue as the source of correct information.

The question lies with the current mainstream media – is it a viable source of information?

Today’s emergence of blogs provide an immediate challenge to the ability of conservative media channels to provide information to the people regarding many issues.

Come March, as the new leadership takes over, this aspect must be given utmost priority. Media practioners can no longer adopt the World War II mental paradigm.

Those chosen must lead the nation’s top media organisations towards an efficient way to “deal” with the people’s trust.

Another question arises – are the current practices of journalism adequate and suitable to deal with the explosion of the technology of communication and information?

Political Alliances in Malaysia

Racial diversity in Malaysia is a great influence on the politics of the nation. There is no party which successfully gained 50% of Parliamentary seats without considering this major factor, making it compulsory for alliance formation in Malaysian politics.

After Independence, the Malaysian government cannot be formed by any political party in isolation.

This issue becomes the forefront of the political upheaval in Perak which witnesses the fall of Pakatan Rakyat’s rule after the ‘hopping party’ incident.

As far as political alliance formation practices go in Malaysia, without a doubt, Barisan Nasional (BN) has stronger foundations as compared to the opposition’s set up.

The success of this alliance lies within its voluntary policy. Even though none of the component parties obtains absolute gains, partial gains make up for losses while at the same time, such alliances becomes a mechanism for conflict avoidance.

Jeremy Boissevain’s study in Friends of Friends: Network, Manipulators and Coalition, 1974, observes: All of us have problems which we at least attempt to resolve via friends and friends-of-friends with whom we may even form temporary alliances.

Boissevain makes another interesting observation: Everywhere people compete with each other and search for allies to help them achieve their goals. People everywhere thus engaged in politics, for they compete directly, via friends and friends-of-friends for valued scarce resources, for prizes which form the important goals of their lives.

The observation explains why the ties within the Pakatan Rakyat is so brittle. The example of Perak has illustrated that the Pakatan Rakyat leadership paid a heavy price for playing the ‘blame game’ after its political representatives hopped parties.

This also points to the fact that between DAP, PAS, and PKR, the differences of their political agenda is miles apart.

Persona Non Grata

2009-02-15T03:31:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

This is a low blow. C’mon! It’s not fair. I know you have every right to do so but using this law showed desperation on the part of the state government.

I’m talking about the 2nd MP from PKR being denied entry into Sarawak. The reason given was that he’s not from Sarawak, so he’s not entitled to enter the state without permit or pass.

I don’t understand?? We’re talking about another state within Malaysia. I do understand Sarawak has special arrangement in regards to Immigration law. What I’m trying to understand is why the sudden interest in pursuing this section of the immigration law? Why now?

This is a Member of Parliament. MP R. Sivarasa is not a hardcore criminal. He’s not there to plan a robbery. If he’s someone of dubious background, ban him from moving an inch in this country. Tie him to the flag pole at Dataran Merdeka.

What’s funny, he was in Sarawak last July for World Rainforest Music Festival. Within 7 months MP Sivarasa has turned from a politician into a persona non grata.

What’s next? Who’s next? It’s like the Wild Wild West. You can shoot anyone without justification. In this case, you can ban anyone from entering your state without any reason.

These are the kind of action that will make the ‘rakyat’ hate the government. Leaders who acted like a recalcitrant is a sure bet to be given the boot by the ‘rakyat’ come next election.

Just imagine in the next general election, how many members from the Opposition parties will be denied entry into Sarawak? I’m not surprised Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang, Hadi Awang and even Dr.Lo’Lo Mohd. Ghazalie will be the next victim.

I think it’s high time the state and federal government look into this ancient Immigration Law.

The world is getting smaller. Travelling between Peninsular and East Malaysia is getting cheaper and faster. Simply put it, everything have changed except the Immigration Law. And I don’t think such law is relevant anymore

When the government is trying to bridge the gap between people in Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia, this ancient law is pushing them apart.

I’ve never foresee that one day I will face problem travelling to Sarawak. Unfortunately after reading this piece of news, it can happen to anybody. And the sad part is, the person behind it will abuse this law as they see fit. If this continues, the state government is signing their own death warrant. An advice to BN, forget about campaigning in Sarawak. No point in doing so because the state government has charted their own demise. Why waste the money, might as well spend it on the poor in Sabah.

Giving low blows to your opposing fighter won’t help you garner support. It might backfire, where the ‘rakyat’ sympathize with the opposing fighter.

MILLI VANILLI OF THE APE NATION!

2009-02-14T09:53:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

“Blame it on the rain”. That was what Milli Vanilli said. And what happened to them? One dead and the other is struggling. In our political scenario, no one is dead and all the ‘rakyat’ are struggling. That’s our politics Milli Vanilli style! Where all the dancing and clowning around come from one person, Anwar!

Guan Eng blamed Tun Dr.M for this undoing. Trying desperately to turn things around, Tun Dr.M’s constitutional Amendment in 1993 was blamed for this entire ‘derhaka’ act. There’s nothing new.

Come one, that was 16 years ago. Why now? Why they didn’t anything back then? Or wait another 50 years to blame Tun Dr.M? The same act that they supported is the same act they blame for the circus act we see today.

So, what are they suggesting now? Should we go back to court and re-instate whatever power the Royal Houses had prior to 1993? Does PR have the balls to suggest that?

For the Rakyat’s sake, please stop this entire circus act and let’s get on with our lives. Stop the marching and venting out anger. Might as well concert this energy into finding solution to stop this economic crisis. The country gotta move on. Unfortunately we never move. We will always find reasons to instigate each other.

Last check, there were 80+ police reports against Karpal Singh. I don’t know what’s the point having so many reports against him. You point finger at them for being ‘derhaka’ and they returned the pleasure saying you started first.

It’s a ‘pleasure’ watching well learned and educated adults exchanging jabs and low blow. And mind you this free for all show have no parental guidance rating. Anyone can watch it and that including kids. What sort of image are they trying to show them? This is not leadership by example.

What we’ve got here is akin to law of the apes. Everyone ape each other. And soon we will see the younglings aping the old-ings. In the end we will turn into an Ape Nation.

Sometimes I think too much freedom of speech make people turn into ape. Try the zoo and you’ll hear the noisiest of them all are the apes. Despite being caged, they still have freedom of speech. Looking at this, I tend to agree with Darwin that “we’re one happy family!”

Maybe we should be like our neighbour, where everyone is mute. They concentrate at their work. Forget about their neighbour and strive for excellence. At the end of the day, results that matters.

What we’re having right now leads to nowhere. People lose confidence at both factions. If both parties listen to the ‘rakyat’ they’ll realize everyone is fed-up.

They’re fed-up with their elected leaders taking pot shot at each other when other pressing issues need their (leaders) tender loving care. When I give a thought about this, it’s part of Malaysia’s politics. If you don’t see this, it’s not our brand of politics.

Who wants to be a parliamentarian?

2009-02-14T09:39:00.000-08:00

by InvisibleWriter001

Let’s have a reality show. Let’s have a show where the audiences will get to choose their parliamentarian via sms and internet voting. Let’s have Paula, Simon, Randy and the beautiful Kara as the judges.

I see this as competition as the best solution in getting new MPs. We will get better MPs, at least better than our regular not-so-funny circus clowns. What we currently have here are clowns who can’t communicate or articulate. What they’re capable of doing best is defecate on our head.

And these despicable acts have to end. And mind you, the feces stink to high heaven!
Let’s go back to this reality show. How are we going to conduct or organize this show? Do we need a beautiful or handsome host? I believe in equality. So, let’s have a transgender host. If we can’t find one here, we can always import from Thailand.

Once we have the host and the judges in place, we need to agree on the selection criteria. Who can we allow to participate in this reality show. Should we follow the American Idol path where only those below 30 can participate or follow the AF sell-out path where almost anyone can take part?

Ok, we are neither gonna follow American Idol nor AF. We’re gonna make our own rules. First and foremost the candidates must be able to sing. This is will come in handy whenever they were invited to contribute a song during charity concert.

Next criteria, they must be able to act. This is important whenever they need to relay or convey messages or speeches with negative connotation, with poker face. No emotions or whatsoever on their faces.

The following criteria is the ability to duck without warning. Over the last few months we’ve already seen 2 cases of flying shoes. And producers believe the trend will arrive on our shore very soon.

So, it’s important to have the ability to duck. No protective headgear will be provided or allowed in this show.

Next is the ability to tell lies in a saintly manner. Saints don’t lie and politicians lie to the bone. So how do you turn politicians into an angel. Easy, put an orphaned baby on their lap and call them ‘Srikandi Gaza’.

The ability to run is equally important as the rest. The candidates or contestants must be able to dash 100 meters in less than 9.5 seconds. This skill is useful to escape from problems, angry voters, Ah Long and also the 1st wife. Please remember, the ability to carry your leader’s balls is considered a plus point.

One must also be able to empathize and sympathize on cue. The ability to shed tears on cue is highly commendable. For this act alone, you’ll be awarded with Anugerah Pelakon Harapan from Festival Filem Malaysia.

What about criteria that are not needed? There are various reasons that will disqualify a contestant. First, is the look. Only the good looking ones are taken. The ugly ones will be taken to Pulau Jerejak.

Those with voices equivalent to an ants will also be rejected. We need someone with a vocal cord as powerful as someone who have just swallowed a microphone. The said person must be loud enough that he’ll be able to wake up a sleeping bear with a single call.

The contestants must also have the ability to move in slow motion. This talent will benefits them whenever they need to act in slowly and in difficult situation. It’ll come in handy whenever they need to give out land deeds.

Last but not least, the said person must be able to ‘kiss ass’ without feeling guilty. The contestants will be required to do this kissing act live on National TV.

Whoever the winner is has a huge burden to carry on their shoulder. This is a position where everyone would like to be in but don’t want to take the responsibility. Unfortunately it comes as a package. Take both or leave it.

(http://www.anti-malaysian.blogspot.com/)

WHEN THE LION ROARS, IT SOUNDED LIKE A PUSSY WHINING

2009-02-08T09:11:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER001

Sometimes I wonder whether this guy is lonely. He accused of being alone in his fight against Hudud Law.

None of his compatriot in the party is up in arms with him. Not even Kit Siang or Guan Eng.

But then again, he said he has support from the grassroots.

This statement about support from the grassroots is it true or mere rhetoric?

If he has the support than the leaders who are not with him in his fights against Hudud Law should leave the party.

And if he’s truly alone in this fight, then I suggest he should take his ‘war’ somewhere else because party members are not with him.

Political party is about group effort. You can’t fight alone.

Support from everyone including party members and the rakyat is crucially important.

They must believe in what you’re doing.

If you’re a lone ranger fighting a lone war it meant no one is listening to you. And it’s bad enough

when you’re the President of the party.

And today he roared again, or should I say whined again. This time he blamed Anwar Ibrahim for the current situation in Perak.

If Anwar hasn’t been too enthusiastic with his party hopping idea all this would never have happened.

I guess it’s a bit too late to start blaming others. Yes, I agree all this is Anwar Ibrahim’s fault.

Like in football, the attacking team lost on the counter attack by its opponent.

The Lion of Jelutong was against party hopping since the beginning.

But being in the same ‘team’ puts him in cohorts with Anwar Ibrahim, a reluctant one.

I thought he is a man of principle. Someone like that should quit the party if he thinks the party no longer listens to him. Or maybe he’s a sulking old man, expecting someone to ‘pujuk’ him?

I think he’s a bit over reacting. He should’ve reacted and voiced out he concern more vocally earlier.

Whatever his concern was, at least he was honest in saying all this is Anwar’s undoing.

However, all this whining and letting steam go sounded worst than the man he once criticized, Tun Dr Mahathir.

Whatever it is, no point crying over spilled milk.

Just get down on the floor and lick it!

Politician Needed?

2009-02-03T04:52:00.001-08:00

Anyone--doctors, carpenters, professional wrestlers--can enter politics.

Once they do, however, they're no longer operating as doctors, carpenters, or professional wrestlers.

They're politicians--which, as they say in football, is a skill position in itself.

Politicians are politicians

Let's face it: The people who want you to vote for them because they're not politicians are, in fact, politicians.

If you elect them, you'd better hope they're good politicians, not good carpenters, surgeons, or businessmen.

Call a surgeon if your leg needs amputating, but for political work, get a politician.

Not just any politician though.

There are discriminations to be made.

Criticize particular politicians? Good idea. They're not all competent or honest.

Is every single politician incompetent and dishonest? I doubt it, but if so, let's blast each and every one.

That's still different from lambasting politicians as a species.

If every single doctor were incompetent, we wouldn't say, "Let's do away with doctoring."

We'd say, "Let's see why doctors are no good and fix things so we have better ones."

Can we fix things so we have better politicians?

If politicians are like the weather, it's pointless to ask.

You can only grumble about nature, not change it.

If we cast off the fatalism, however, we can start to ask, for example, how campaigning has overtaken the actual work of politicians, how money has overtaken actual campaigning, how the complexity of our society has driven up the expense of gaining office, how such costs have affected what politicians do in office, how the media's growing reliance on entertainment as a central product has affected political coverage, how public tolerance of unhealthy campaign practices has exacerbated all of the above--and the list goes on.

It's all worth asking if we start with the premise that there is a job in society for which politicians are the right tool.

And if there is, then we can look for ways to improve that tool so it will do the job better.

Why Politics Suck

2009-02-03T04:44:00.000-08:00

By Mumia Abu-Jamal

When I think of politics, I think of a politician -- an odd one, I'll admit -- and not even an American.

I think of Charles De Gaulle -- the tall, big-nosed French general who became the first president of France's Fifth Republic.

Why him? Well, in truth, he barely nudges out the great political scientist, Machiavelli; but both gave us deep insights into the world of politics.

De Gaulle though, gave what seems like the best definition of a politician when he said: "In order to become the master, the politician poses as a servant." (He also wrote in a letter, the great line: "Politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians").

In those two, brief lines, De Gaulle provides both the problem and the solution; the problems are the politicians; the solution -- not the politicians.

I think, for millions of folks, there's the very deep feeling, maybe even the knowledge, that politicians will say virtually anything to get elected, and, once in, proceed to betray those who voted for them.

I'm convinced that it is precisely that inner knowledge -- that gut knowledge -- that keeps millions -- perhaps 50+ million Americans -- from voting at all. They know better.

They know that politicians are the tools of the wealthy -- and that they spit on the poor and impoverished.

Remember those so-called 'debates?' (OK -- I use the term loosely). But wasn't it interesting that the poor, or working people, were never mentioned?

How their concerns didn't even merit a mere moment during a 2-hour debate?

That's because they are invisible to the rich guys who run, or are run in, the political system. It really doesn't matter if we discuss Republicans or Democrats. It's the same.

Do you know how many folks contribute to election campaigns?

Just 4%. 4%! Most political dough comes from corporate coffers. So, who do you think they serve? That's where the $4 billion bucks came from to pay for the U.S. presidential campaign in 2004.

So -- the political system sucks. But, guess what? It was designed to suck (at least for people like us).

The rich men who wrote the Constitution hated and feared the common people, whom they called 'the Mob'; and, not surprisingly, the common folks hated them back.

Politics sucks today because it is, for most folks, a burden -- and a lie.

It promises, every few years, to change things for the better, yet the only 'change' one gets, if from bad to worse. Thus, millions of people no longer play the game.

It sucks because people learn, even when they participate, that it's not a fair game.

Votes are 'lost'; votes are stolen; voters are intimidated, and the politicians are bought and sold like stocks on Wall Street.

It sucks because people feel trapped, and want to be free.

How About Najib's 4th Floor?

2009-02-01T05:30:00.000-08:00

I feel rather weird about the control or power that is said to be possessed by the officers on the 4th Floor - the office that is said to be really close to the Prime Minister's workspace.

But, when we think again, there's no smoke without fire, and with all the happenings recently, there should be a truth behind all the sensational things people talked about.

Enough said, I believe everyone in Malaysia knew already who are the people of the 4th Floor, and how great they are planning and landscaping our Malaysia's politics.

Just like what Tun Dr. Mahathir had always harping and worrying on the above matter, our feelings are mutual!

Will it be the same when Datuk Seri Najib take over the prime minister's reign soon? The public knows that those who work directly for the PM of course, a one of a kind, an ivy league members.

Certainly because, they act as an advisor, a think tank for their boss. There's no way a 2nd grader in SPM, with P7 in maths can be THAT near to this group. To be a photocopy assisstant maybe...(that is somehow related to any of those officers :P)

But, history has proven that not all those creme de la creme at the PM's office are really what they are, especially when they have the personal agenda to roll everything into their pocket, as long as they have the opportunity to do so.

We just can't imagine what will happen to our beloved country if this thing remains on and on...

Actually, I've "worked my charm" into the Deputy PM's office,busybodying around, whether is there any similar virusses have spreading into DPM's office or not.

Of course, I have to be extra "charming" and discreet to know the answers, or else, I will be in deep trouble too.

Fortunately, so far, at the DPM's office, the scenario is different.

Most officers are the young ones, high-spirited lads,working and feeling secure as what they are right now..

I am crossing my fingers for those young lads to remain the same and stick to their honour coz, Che Det always said: Malay forgets easily...

So, I really hope for this phenomenon of the 4th floor will not repeating itself when Datuk Seri Najib took over as the Prime Minister.

If this is still happening, I've no doubt, those at the 4th Floor sooner or later, will not be at the GROUND FLOOR, but, at the BASEMENT...he...he...

Signs That Pak Lah Never Wants To Leave His Office...

2009-02-01T05:18:00.000-08:00

1)Pak Lah has yet to visit ASEAN countries as what had been done by his predecessors before they leave the PM's office.

2)Pak Lah supposedly had already done the friendly and farewell visit to China, India,Britain and US.

3)His office has not informed or set any official date for Istana Negara, for Najib to sworn in as the new PM.

4)Pak Lah has not set any date for the final Cabinet Meeting.(This is essential to ensure that all ministers are not away visiting foreign countries, or have any event. So, they will be available to attend)

5)Pak Lah has not visited any Sultan in any state for paying homage and as a sign of saying thank you

6)At the Ministry of Defence, i has been informed that Pak Lah still hasn't confirmed any farewell date.

Generally, records in Putrajaya show that Pak Lah has not done anything that any retiring Prime Minister should do.For Fact #6, it's a custom for a Minister of Defence to undergone a farewell ceremony according to the military and civil tradition.

Also, before the abovesaid ceremony, it's a norm for the Minister of Defense to visit at least a Royal Air Force Base and a Royal Navy Base, usually in Lumut.After visiting all those places, then the official farewell ceremony will be held, at the Ministry of Defence.

When Najib was transferred to Ministry of Defence, he did not have the chance to visit all those bases because the transfer was so sudden. Still, Najib did grace the official farewell ceremony at the Ministry of Defence.

Record also shows that Pak Lah has not set or confirmed any dates for above significant agenda.

With only 2 months before the so called power transition after the UMNO General Assembly this March, the failure of Pak Lah and his associates to set any dates for any events above is a clear sign of his intention of NOT letting go his sought after seat.

Pak Lah surely will not have all the times on this earth to do all those things if he still did not budge an inch.

Pak Lah's (ill?) intention of not realizing his promise to Najib is seen as worrying, as once mentioned by the former prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed.

The clock is still ticking...

Sex and Politician

2009-01-30T16:30:00.000-08:00

by Mat Nor Timberlake

Now everyone complains about politicians.

Regardless of your political views, most likely you wish and hope that our country could elect candidates who would do better jobs at governing.

Running for national office subjects a person to intense media scrutiny.

If sexual misconduct will disqualify you, then anyone who has had an affair will think twice about running.

We probably lose quite a few potential candidates, including some who would be wise, honest officeholders, before the process even starts.

Politics is a high-risk, high-payoff career, and as such it attracts men with high-testosterone personalities: ambitious, competitive, adventurous, willing to take chances.

And yes, sexually motivated. High testosterone does not promote sexual fidelity.

It makes men want to have more different partners.

On top of the self-selection of adultery-prone men into politics, the opportunities probably increase for a successful politician.

Indeed, part of the attraction of a political career, at least for some men, may be the promise of more women to bed.

Throughout history, kings and other great men have usually had many lovers.

Women are biologically attracted to men of power and authority.

And men of power and authority have a hard time resisting the temptations of large numbers of beautiful women wanting to have sex.

Whatever it is, i personally thinks that politicians are responsible for making and upholding laws

And so if they break laws, perhaps they should be punished!

Sabah, Federal Government and Local Politicians

2009-01-30T15:09:00.000-08:00

The federal government has not been doing enough for Sabah?

That’s probably true… but what have all the Sabahan politicians done all these years?

Are the indegenious Sabahan politicians any better off than the peninsula’s politicians? I wonder.

The poor and chaotic situations in Sabah are collective ‘efforts’ for both the federal and state governments for more than three decades.

The illegal immigration issue in Sabah is widespread, it’s a shame that the government are not doing much to coup with this… but is it fair for Badawi and Umno to shoulder all the blames?

What were the likes of Yong Teck Lee doing all these years (including his Chief Minister terms) to deal with this issue?

Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang, Nik Aziz, and all the Kadazan-Dusun chieftains… what have they done for the past decade or two for the Sabahans?

Nik Aziz never care, LKS only knows how to complain, and Anwar only started to care because he can become a PM.

All these people (including some Sabahan leaders) are just as idiotic as everyone else when it comes to issues in Sabah, none of them are any better than Badawi when it comes to social welfare for Sabahans.

If the federal government is not doing well enough to help the state, by all means kick their ass… the only question is, why wait until now? The ass should have been kicked long time ago.

So, if the BN government had won big again this term, SAPP and YTL would still remain silent and enjoy their honeymoon isn’t it?

Don’t just blame it on the federal leaders my fellow Malaysians, have a look at your local politicians as well.

And if you think Badawi is idiot, think what Mahathir, Anwar and the local leaders had done for you.

(excerpt from http://yeinjee.com)

To Become A Wakil Rakyat

2009-01-30T14:12:00.000-08:00

by Mat Nor Timberlake

What makes a good politician? In order to answer this question, one must first define the word politician.

A politician is defined as one who is actively involved in politics or one who holds or seeks a political office.

Consequently, the definition of a good politician must be someone who does a good job at these things.

For me, a good image is very important for a political candidate to get elected.

We usually make judgments about a person according to the way that he or she dresses, behaves, and expresses his or her opinions.

But to make a good image in politics, a person must work hard, listen to what people need and do that not just promoting own interests, be inclusive, accept good ideas whether they are right wing or left wing.

One that has the fortitude to tackle the hard situations with fervence and integrity, despite the whinging antics of any opposition when it is obvious it is in the best interests of the people they represent.

A politician with good image has the ability to compromise.

Because a politician deals with people with different opinions, the ability to develop cordial and compromising proposals is a huge advantage.

In other words, a politician serves the people using the best ideas and plans from all sources, regardless of political views.

He/She approaches for common ground in every situation.

Because the common good politics is the politics of empowerment; it is the politics that espouses cooperation not competition, the hand up and not just the hand out.

Idea of the common good offers a clear, optimistic and above all progressive vision for the future.
A good politician is one who actually supports the people they represent.

He/She lies when it will benefit the people.

A good politician will work to accomplish everything they promised they would, and has a very good explanation when they fail, and not a lie.

So still want to be a wakil rakyat anybody?

Story about politician, heaven n hell !

2009-01-30T06:50:00.000-08:00

A politician had an accident and dies.

His soul reaches the Paradise and found St. Peter at the entrance.

-- "Welcome to Paradise! Before you could get in, there is a little problem... We rarely seen politicians here, you know… So we do not know what to do with you..."

-- "I see, no problem just let me enter." says the politician.

-- "I though I would like to let you in but I have higher orders as it´s known… We will do the following: You pass one day in Hell and one day in Heaven. You can then choose where to spend eternity."

-- "It is not necessary, I have already decided. I want to stay in Heaven." says the politician.

-- "Sorry, but we have our rules."

So, St. Peter takes him to the elevator and he comes down, down to Hell. The door opens up and he sees himself in the middle of a beautiful golf course.

In essence, the club where were all his friends and other politicians with whom he had worked. All very happy.

He was greeted, embraced and then they started to talk about the good times when they got rich at the expense of the people.

They played golf, relaxed and then ate lobster and caviar.

Who was also present was the devil, a very friendly guy who spent all the time dancing and telling jokes. They enjoyed themselves so much that before they realize it was time to go.

After a lot of redundant hugs and words of farewell he enter into the elevator.

He rises, rises and the door opens up again. St. Peter was expecting him.

-- Now it´s the time to visit the Paradise.

He spends 24 hours in paradise among a group of happy souls who go from cloud to cloud playing harps and singing. All went very well and before he noticed the day comes to an end and St. Peter returns.

-- "Now what? You spent one day in Hell and one day in Heaven. Now choose your eternal home."

He thought for a minute and answered:

-- "Look, I never thought to make this decision… The Paradise is very good but I think I'll be much better in Hell."

Then St. Peter takes him back to the elevator and he comes down, down to hell.

The door opens up and he saw himself in the midst of a massive ground full of garbage and a horrible smell. He saw all his friends with the clothes torn and very dirty searching the rubble and putting it in black bags. He also saw some of his friends in dispute to take pieces of rotten food.

The devil put the arm by the politician´s shoulder.

-- "I do not understand?" Mumble the politician. -- "Yesterday I was here and it even had a beautiful golf course, a club, lobster, caviar and we danced and had fun all the time. Now I see that it´s only full of very smelly garbage and my friends are totally tear down!"

The devil looks at him… Ironically smiles and says:

-- "Yesterday we were in campaign season before election. Now we have your vote... I´m sorry, this is the reality!"

Malaysian Politics 101 with Woody Allen

2009-01-30T05:10:00.000-08:00

by INVISIBLEWRITER101

All politicians should worship Woody Allen. Watch his films and it’ll give you basic ideas on “How To Be A Politician!”

I believe some might be wondering who the hell is Woody Allen? And, why him? In my opinion he’s one of the greatest film directors alive.

His films might not be as big and explosive as Michael Bay’s ‘Transformers’ but it can put Optimus Prime to shame with his wit. He has won the Academy Award for Best Director once for his work in ‘Annie Hall’ back in 1977. And he’s quite prolific too.

On average he directs 1 film a year. It shows he has a lot to say about anything and everything.
Take this quote for example:

“Eighty percent of success is showing up” Woody Allen

The quote above proves that he is a genius and can see the future. Some parties cited poor voters turnout as the reason for BN’s loss in Kuala Terengganu.

For me the reason why BN loss in Kuala Terengganu was because no one took Woody Allen seriously.

I don’t think no one in BN ever thought of learning politics from Woody Allen’s films. Take his films seriously and you’ll be a successful politician.

Take ‘Match Point’ for example. The sexy scene on ‘Match Point’ will secure you the winning point or should I say the winning vote. But how? Easy, sleep with your voters!

What about ‘Vicky Christina Barcelona’? Well, it clearly advocates you to flirt. Flirt with strangers. Flirt with your voters if you’re a politician.

“How far will you go to make your dreams come true?” is the tagline from ‘Cassandra’s Dream’.

Watch this film and it’ll educate you on how to make your dream to be a politician come true.
‘Small Time Crook’ will inspire everyone to think big.

In Malaysia, a small time crook can possibly be a big time politician. Watch this and you may be one of them.

‘Anything Else’ is a romantic comedy about an alder guy giving advice to his young protégé on how to tackle girls.

In Malaysia, it’s about a former Prime Minister giving advice to his not-so-young protégé! Listen to that oldman, he has twice as much more sensible things to say than all our current leaders put together.

But there’s one thing you shouldn’t do.

Don’t marry your adopted daughter like he did!

Politics, Politics, Politics

2009-01-30T04:42:00.000-08:00

by MAT NOR TIMBERLAKE

Political power is gained with care, cunning...and political power.

Good politicians invest now to get more power later.

When people band together into coalitions they become more powerful.

'Together we stand, divided we fall', as they say.

The trick with coalitions is to build a core idea around which people cluster.

This may be negative, for example stopping a hated change, or may be positive, such as pushing through a change.

Political power often is build on a system of exchange, where people in a power relationship support one another as needed and perhaps in different ways (possibly even by breaking the rules).

Politics can indeed have a shadow side to it, and such negative means may be gained to garner power.

A surprising number of people have skeletons and more in their closet.

Digging out the dirt is a popular political ploy.

What you do with it next depends on your style.

A political animal will hide the information.

A politically naive person will squander the power it could give, either by not talking about it or by turning it into office gossip.

So What?

Understand the power you have as well as the power of other people.

Use your own power carefully.

Perhaps the greatest power you can have is to get others to use their power on your behalf.

Beware of sleeping dragons: many people will only use their power when aroused.

The most effective power is that used so subtly that people do not realize it is being used.

Power does not have to be used directly: threats are often effective, especially when accompanied by displays of power.

Like gorillas thumping their chests, we seldom need to fight!