Fox One, Fox Two, Fox Three!

RECIPROCATING UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

2011-03-22T16:12:00.000+08:00

Let me ask you this. And please answer truthfully, for your own sake. When was the last time you actually picked up the phone (or nowadays your handheld devices whatever that may be) just to say hi to your mom or dad? “Have you eaten dad?” or “How’s the new medication working mom?” or even a simple “Missed you.”

Yeah, you hesitated. It’s been quite a while right? Here you are, working at some swanky office tower in the capital’s central business district which is probably only a mere 20 or 30 minute drive from your folks residence, and you don’t even remember the last time you checked on them, unless you had some favour to ask of them, which is usually the case for a lot of urban Gen Xs and Gen Ys at this day and age.

No offence. What I just said is just a general observation and not directed to you point blank because for all we know, you are one of those rare breeds who still see their parents a few times a week, if not daily, ensuring that the bond is stronger than oak, as the Americans would put it. Which is good. Good because at a time when people are more occupied with the latest apps they could download for their iPads, it is alarmingly obvious that their expensive communication devices are rendered useless for failure to hit the eight digits which connects them to the two people who brought them into existence to this world.

I have learnt a long time ago to appreciate what my parents have done for me. Yes, all of us at one time wanted to run away from home when we couldn’t take their naggings due to our stupid rebellious teenage stands and beliefs. But when we reflect back, it seems that we were pretty stupid indeed back then, thinking we knew what was best for us, when the fact is, they knew better for us. As the saying goes – mom knows best. And dad too.

As I turn 38 this year, with two fast growing kids aged 10 and 7, I have painfully realized the pain-staking ordeal my parents had to go through to raise me when I was my kids’ age. That realization alone is enough to make me constantly aware of the necessity to reciprocate their love. Their unconditional love which we all seem to take for granted.

Our parents won’t be around for too long now. We need to savior every spare moment we can with them. If you find it difficult to do so, then you might regret it for the rest of your life because you didn’t have a chance to say thanks dad or thanks mom for:

1. Still buying you that ridiculously expensive Stefan Edberg Adidas tennis shirt in 1989 when you knew dad was a bit short that month.
2. Agreeing to buy a steeper priced Sony Walkman because the cheaper Hitachi Personal Stereo dad initially bought wasn’t cool enough for you in 1990.
3. For putting some sense in your head after your nonsense “I Love Her!” remark when you were only 17 and didn’t even know what the hell you just yelled at mom and dad who knew that the gal was trouble.
4. For paying through the nose for your education and to ensure you get that scroll which hopefully paves way for a good job.
5. For giving you the benefit of the doubt when you say this is the girl you want to marry.
6. For paying for the wedding reception. And the honeymoon too.
7. For willingly assisting to care for your kids because you wanted peace of mind which day care centres or nurseries couldn’t offer. When supposedly, they should already be free to gallivant wherever they please, be it at Bukit Bintang or Oxford Street.
8. For bailing you out more than once when you were in financial quagmire, despite you already earning your own wages.
9. For accommodating your junk of yesteryears collecting dust in dad’s basement storage room.
10. For believing in you, no matter how shallow your behavior is.

And I assure you, it doesn’t stop at 10. The list is non-exhaustive.

So there, ample testimony that you can’t quantify unconditional love showered by our parents to us. In the parent-child relationship, it is always lopsided, in favour of the child. Once we hit our teenage years, we no longer love our parents unconditionally. We are not being fair to them because rain or shine, mom and dad will still love us unconditionally, unless under some extra-ordinary circumstances, they renounce or disown you – which means you must be a real jerk. Which is highly unlikely because I’ve seen parents who still accept their son with open arms after spending a few in years in jail for committing a capital crime.

Why not change that. Why not we love them unconditionally too, and not just when dad help to settle your maxed out credit card or advance your down-payment for that turbo hatchback you craved for.

I am speaking from experience (of myself and others I know). So it is not me simply making judgements on others. We can make that change, and don’t expect our parents to change to suit us. They’ve done too much already and it is too much to ask them to do more.

It’s our turn now.

Take them out for teh tarik or something tonight. Or if they live in another city, town or village, make plans to look them up this weekend.

Just do it. Before you drown in your own pool of regret tears, by their final resting place. Before you start playing the torturing What If game.

Say hi to your folks for me, will you….

Rediscovering Penang, The Island of My Maternal Grandparents

2010-12-26T11:28:00.008+08:00

Penang is naturally close to my heart for the simple reason that my maternal grandparents called it home after my grandfather retired in the early 80s. On top of that, my mom's younger siblings all married Penangites, so the blood ties with the island once called Prince of Wales Island is strong in our family.

The demise of my late grandfather last year meant that the only family ties left on the island are my uncles and aunts whom also chose Penang as their home. I am determined not to dilute those ties by attempting to swing by as regularly as I can. Furthermore, my grandparent's final resting place are just next to each other at Masjid Jamek Sg. Gelugor not far from their residence in Minden Heights (next to the Universiti Sains Malaysia campus).

However, have to admit that my work schedule and own family commitments in KL sort of prevented me from going up north as often as I would have liked.

I think the last time I came was in March 2009, when my grandfather passed away. Yeah, that was the last time I really visited Penang. Subsequent visits to the island from that point onwards was merely for transfer from the Bayan Lepas International Airport to the mainland of Seberang Prai Utara or further up to Sg. Petani, Kedah; strictly work-related.

Hence I was determined to give the island of my maternal grandparents what's due - a full-fledged visit. And it couldn't be even more fitting that to bring my wife and kids for our year-end family vacation to Penang, before school re-opens in a week's time.

It was kind of spontaneous, and I thanked my wife for making all the arrangements. We reserved a beautiful junior suite at the swanky and contemporary Hydro Hotel perched on a hilltop overlooking Miami Beach, one of the sub-beaches sandwiched between Shamrock Beach and Golden Sands Beach, collectively known as, yeah you guessed it - Batu Ferringhi.

My daughters Farisya and Azureen were of course excited. Any place with a swimming pool excites them.

We travelled to Penang on Christmas Eve, on Friday evening. I would have love to leave earlier but my wife who is now a senior government educator had some work to do (she is an SPM paper examiner this time around), so we only managed to hit the road at around 4.00 pm. The entire journey took 6 hours, with a one-hour pit stop at the Sg. Perak R&R area for refuelling and early dinner.

We finally checked-in at Hydro Hotel, Penang at 10.00 pm, as I was what the Americans say "Doggone Tired." I slept like a log that night.

Our hotel - Hydro Hotel, Miami Beach, Batu Ferringhi, Penang

The following day, on Christmas, our first official day at Penang, we decided to play real tourists by rediscovering the island I once frequented as a boy, teen and young adult. But being me, I refused to succumb to the usual garden-variety tourist spots, because I am not a tourist, I am a traveller.

Even before leaving KL, I already knew one place which I wanted to visit - the newly restored Suffolk House at Jalan Air Itam, which was once the former residence of the Governor-General of Penang (then known as Prince of Wales Island) during the reign of our British colonial masters.

So, we paid a visit to Suffolk House which is now managed by an NGO known as Badan Warisan. The sight that met us was breathtaking. It is indeed a magnificient mansion, with a well-manicured lawn surrounding it, and the Air Itam river flowing dramatically besides it. Well, the river looks more like a polluted stream nowadays. I am sure it was crystal blue 250 years ago.

Suffolk House, which was once doomed after decades of neglect, has been restored to its full grandeur through an intensive fund raising campaign by the Penang Heritage Trust. I regretted not taking a better picture of the house with its lovely manicured lawn as the foreground.

Anyway, there is some dispute regarding the actual history of the house. The most consistent version is that it was built by who else than Captain Francis Light, the British East India Company officer who founded Penang in 1786. It is highly likely as Light hailed from Dallinghoo of Suffolk County, East Anglia, hence he aptly named the mansion Suffolk House to remind him of his home country back in England.

The house back then was built within Captain Light's pepper plantation and the naval captain resided there for about eight years before he died of malaria. The British Empire then took full control of the house, making it the official residence of its Governor General for Penang, and even at one time, for the Governor General of the Straits Settlement.

In the years that followed, Suffolk House continued to be the grand old lady of Penang, playing host to numerous social and official events of the British Empire until the 1920s when the Crown decided to sell off the property to a local Penangite, Lim Cheng Teik, presumably a tycoon of the island at that time. That marked the start of the house' downfall as it was then in turn sold off by Lim in 1928 to the Methodist Church of Malaya for the purpose of constructing a Methodist missionary school. In fact, the church petitioned to demolish the house to make way for the school complex but fortunately, the Penang Municipal Councillors at that time rejected the motion. Instead, the church built the school adjacent to the house which still stands until today.

World War 2 then followed where the house was used by the Japanese military administration and after that, the era of neglect began. For some cruel reason, the house was left to rot and declared unsafe for occupation in 1975 as deteriorating conditions hit the peak, on the verge of collapsing.

Fast forward to the year 2000 where restoration efforts officially kicked-off by a group known as the Penang Heritage Trust, with full support of the Penang State Government and I believe also with the blessings of the Federal Government.

View at the top floor of the house, with its magnificient pillars and wide verandahs, typical of colonial mansions built at the height of the British Empire

Fund raising was a monumental challenge as the State government only granted sufficient funds for structural reinforcement. The rest was up to generous contributions by various quarters which trickled in slowly but surely. Just when all hope was lost in completing the restoration, HSBC Bank came to rescue by injecting a cool RM2.5 million which assured the rejuvenation and reincarnation of Suffolk House. It opened its doors to the public early last year and charges RM10 as admission fee. Fair enough as they would need all the money to maintain this grand and stately home.

(To be continued...)

My New Year's Resolution(s)

2010-12-22T00:11:00.003+08:00

Since it's been almost a month since I posted anything in this pathetic blog of mine, I thought best if I shared my New Year's resolution considering that 2011 is just around the corner.

Just to recap, I think 2010 was a great year for me, careerwise, as I completed my first year at my current position (since my promotion in October 2009) and personal wise too in terms of my travelling as I clocked a new personal best of three overseas trips in January (Phuket; Thailand), July (Bali; Indonesia) and earlier this month (Krabi; Thailand).

However, it was quite a challenging year in terms of me managing my deterioting relationship with my wife of 11 years, though of late, I am pleased to report that things are slowly but surely getting better.

Anyway, here's my 2011 resolution which I pledge to attempt to do :

1. Worry less about the wellbeing of someone whom I really care about at the office as she already has a husband to do that job.
2. Focus more on patching things up with my wife by really cracking my head to come up with ideas to re-ignite the fire of romance which for some cruel reason has been lost after more than a decade of marriage.
3. Increase my savings for rainy days ahead.
4. Give more attention to my kids who will be in Year 4 and Year 1 of primary school especially in helping them with their homework.
5. Be a better leader and manager of my department by upskilling / equipping myself with all the necessary leadership elements / parameters / qualities set by my employer.
6. To spend less on expensive lunches and after work drinks.
7. To catch up on my reading - less fiction and more self-help books.
8. To lose a significant amount of weight by committing to a workout regime which includes a diet regime in tandem.
9. To focus, cherish and savour the company of true friends who really care about you rather than harbour hope to be inducted into the circle of friends of individuals who don't really care about you and just obliged to be nice to you because you are their superior or colleagues.
10. To rely less on my most capable subordinate so that I won't be so miserable in her long absence sometime next year.
11. To take my wife and kids to Gold Coast, Australia.

There it is, 11 resolutions for 2011.

May the force be with me...

Saying Thanks, When It Matters Most

2010-11-25T22:26:00.008+08:00

Is it so difficult to say thanks?

Do you say thanks to the toll booth operator each time you pay the highway concessionaire for passage to wherever it is you're going?

Do you says thanks to the cashier at the window of the fast food drive-thru for reuniting you with your favourite burger, fries and soft drink?

Do you say thanks to the gentlemen that held open the door for you to pass through?

Do you says thanks to the pump attendant who just filled your tank so that you get to continue your journey?

Do you says thanks to the flight attendants who provided that award-winning service which made your long-haul bearable?

Do you says thanks to your husband for taking out the thrash religiously every night eventhough his favourite tv series has started?

Do you say thanks to your wife for frying the rice for you at 6.00 am so that you can share it with your office mates at the pantry at 8.30 am?

Do you say thanks to your boss for allowing you to leave the office a little earlier so that you can get ready for the concert you're watching that night?

Do you say thanks to your secretary for preparing your mileage claim so that you get some extra cash while waiting for your next pay cheque?

Do you say thanks to your kids for still loving you unconditionally even if you came home late from work and forgot to buy the doughnuts they wanted?

Do you say thanks to your friend who is still willing to give you the benefit of the doubt under the most bizzare of circumstances?

Do you say thanks to someone who is willing to go the extra mile for you and ask next to nothing in return?

Do you?

The Power Of Facebook and A Great Love Story

2010-11-24T23:10:00.004+08:00

I bumped into my senior from varsity days this morning while having breakfast. Apparently, he has just been relocated by his company to the identical sister tower of where I work.

It was really good to see him again after 15 years. Actually, I have been communicating with him via text messages and Facebook prior to this, but we never had the time to actually meet up. Now that he's based here where I work, I guess we'll be seeing each other more often.

Anyway, he confided to me that he married his campus sweetheart earlier this year (second wife) after being apart for 15 years too! And amazingly, they were reunited via, yes you guessed it - Facebook!

My senior, Mr Z is really a lucky son of a gun. According to him, his first wife agreed to him marrying his old flame without much fuss (hmm, I find this hard to believe). Well, maybe a pot or pan flew across the kitchen before she finally agreed to sign the consent form. But nonetheless, he is now a member of the coveted "Double Barrel Club". Haha.

Anyway, what I want to share is how romantic and dramatic Mr Z got to be reunited with his old flame via FB. Apparently, after his old flame got divorced (after only 4 or 5 years of marriage if my calculations are correct), she frantically searched for Mr Z for the past 10 years but to no avail.

And then as well all know, Harvard dropout Mark Zuckerberg created FB (why do all these geniuses drop out from Ivy League universities??) So, with FB, Mr Z's old flame finally managed to locate him.

It was a sad love story for Mr Z in 1996, during his final year at varsity. His girlfriend (the old flame) dumped him without explanation and it almost killed him. He lost a lot of weight and the pinacle of his sorrows was when he met with a road accident which broke his collar bone.

The old flame married someone else which as we all know by now, ended with divorce.

Mr Z on the other hand moved on and met his first wife. And who would have figured after close to 15 years, Mr Z would be in touch again with his old flame via FB. The old flame left her phone number in FB and it took two days for Mr Z to make that magic phone call.

Mr Z told me that when they finally met, the first two hours was filled with cursing by Mr Z, demanding the old flame to explain why she dumped him 15 years ago without any valid reasons. I guess she owed Mr Z that much after all these years. Because if memory serves me right, Mr Z met with the accident as a result of driving under depression because of his broken heart. Or was it driving under influence, hehehehe.

They were married one month later. Amazing, right?

Both Mr Z and his second wife must be forever grateful to Mark Zuckerberg for creating FB.

And Mark Zuckerberg had better not announced his travel plans to Malaysia in the future, because probably a frying pan would greet his forehead at KLIA....

I Still Love You, More Than You Can Possibly Imagine

2010-11-24T12:47:00.002+08:00

This is for someone of whom I have been sharing my life for more than 11 years.

Maybe I didn't treat you
Quite as good as I should have
Maybe I didn't love you
Quite as often as I could have
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind

Maybe I didn't hold you
All those lonely, lonely times
And I guess I never told you I'm so happy that you're mine

If I made you feel second best
Girl I'm so sorry I was blind
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind

Tell me, tell me that your sweet love hasn't died
Give me, give me one more chance to keep you satisfied, satisfied

Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind

Omnibus Snippets : Three Posts In One Go

2010-11-23T00:34:00.004+08:00

1. VW Golf GTI : Hot Hatch Which Makes Any Guy or Gal Drool

Congratulations Suri Nordin, my colleague and friend on her latest asset acquisition - a brand new Volkswagen Golf GTI (perghh meleleh siot). She was officially the proud owner of the hot hatch from Germany at about 7.30 pm yesterday, where the car was handed over to her at the VW dealer in Jalan Ampang. She was accompanied by her busy body boss MFR yang melebih-lebih pulak nak drive the car. Hahaha, jangan marah my brother. :-P

Just a friendly reminder to Suri. That car has a lot of torque. It was built for speed. You get a beefy 2.0 litre engine with 210 horsepower at 5300 rpm and an adrenalin pumping 280 N-m of torque between 1700 and 5200 rpm. That's a lot of power babe, so go easy on the accelerator. Just a gentle tap on the pedal would be more than enough to make other cars on the highway eat the CO2 emitted from your exhaust and a firmer tap would not even allow them to see your tail lights.

You have made an excellent choice. A top notch German marque. Enjoy responsibly!

2. Sexy Safura Quote of The Day

I was having a drink with MFR, Suri and Safura after work yesterday. Safura is MFR's new executive replacing MS who is now enjoying his new stint at our employer's Australian venture in Brisbane.

She's cool but I tak berani nak puji dia lebih-lebih sebab her boss MFR will surely puke, not because of her but because menyampah dengan saya yang terror mengayat ni.

Anyway, Safura said something which is definitely the quote of the day. And it is one sexy quote I tell you.

"I hate trouble but trouble loves me."

Wow, I like! Because it seems to fit in my characteristics at the moment - playing with fire, hehehehe!

Yeah, yeah, MFR has cautioned me about playing with fire. I am well aware of the consequences. And I thank you bro for your reminder. It means you care.

Anyway, if anything goes wrong Mr. MFR, you have every right to tell me upfront as loud as you want : "Aku dah cakap!"

3. The Brotherhood Code

After the departure of MS to Australia, the two ace boon coons left as my partners in crime are MFR and MOS. They were already close buddies for quite some time before I decided to join the posse a few months back, despite me being in the same outfit for more than a year now.

Being like brothers, naturally we had a gentlemen's agreement which is basically a set of ground rules to ensure we do not step on each other's toes and overstep the boundaries. All in the name of materialising a bond between us which is stronger than oak, as what some redneck Texan would say.

We refer to the agreement as the Brotherhood Code or simply, the Bro Code. It was MFR who coined the word. The Bro Code. Come on, say it again with me. The Bro Code. It sounds manly, macho, credible, decisive and authoritative.

So, what are the ground rules stipulated under the Bro Code? Honestly, no rules have been cast in stone but it should be among these lines :

1. No flirting or having affairs with each other's spouses, especially behind each other's back.

Itu aje...

Running To The Beat Of My Own Drum

2010-11-22T15:56:00.003+08:00

For the past two weeks, I have started to hit the gym again, after almost two months being absent from my own workout regime.

Excuse - I was buried with work. Yeah, yeah, the oldest excuse in the world.

Twin Towers Fitness Centre (TTFC) must really love members like me who religiously pay the monthly fee of RM120 but rarely uses their facilities.

I decided something finally had to be done to ensure TTFC does not profit blindly. So I started going again. At first, I anticipated that it would be difficult for me to get back into my workout regime after a hiatus of two months. But surprisingly, I was able to do it quite effortlessly, both cardio and also toning workouts.

I am thankful God decided to maintain my fitness where I left off two months ago. I can still run at a speed of 9.0 on the treadmill for 30 minutes straight without stuttering or what we Malays call "pancit".

Running makes me feel good actually. You tend to relax mentally despite your body working overtime to meet the requirements of your running.

And I don't limit my running within the comfort of the air-conditioned gym. I take it further - at the KLCC Park and also Taman TAR Ampang Jaya. I am really running like nobody's business nowadays, clocking an average of 4 to 5, sometime 6 km per run!

Even friends and family find it hard to believe that I am able to run like this despite my rather large physique. I always told them - the key is fitness. If you are fit, a fat guy can actually outrun those half his size. Believe me, I've seen cases like this before at the park where I run.

Anyway, here's a tip for those who feel like taking up running. Don't try to do outdo yourself, let alone others. Let the other show offs pass you by. Just run at your own pace. If you feel you must stop to walk, do it. No one has to impress anyone. As the name suggests - jogging, meaning you jog, not sprint like Asafa Powell. I've seen so many dimwits who sprint at the beginning only to pant for air and stop just after 100 or less metres. And I am still running, slowly but surely.

Running is also a good way to vent out your frustration or manage your stress. Because when you run, your rapid movement will clinically prevent you from thinking too much, providing your mind with a temporary sanctuary which blocks out undesired thoughts. That's why a lot of people who has problems take up running. Because it is good for your health and because it helps you to block out disturbing thoughts, even if it was temporary.

There was a nice Malay movie entitled "Sepi" which was actually a set of love stories intertwined. In one of those stories, a shoe manufacturer / entrepreneur played by Tony Eusoff lost his wife in a road accident. So to block out memories of his demised wife, he took up running as a new passion.

I was kind of inspired by that. Because at the moment, my life is also kind of messed up.

Running seems to solve that momentarily, until I find a more permanent solution to all my current woes....

The Unsuspecting Beneficiary of Unconditional Love

2010-11-21T01:57:00.004+08:00

I wish to discuss about unconditional love today.

It's something which we all get, at least from our parents.

In my case, I'd like to believe that I am enjoying unconditional love from my parents, my wife (although of late she rarely shows it), my two bubbly and adorable daughters, and also my siblings. In theory, at least.

Most of us, especially the less observant, would simply dismiss that the parameters of unconditional love are confined to family alone, or at the very most, dear and close friends.

But I beg to differ.

Because I am now giving unconditional love to someone despite her not knowing it. And I intend to keep it that way (unless she reads this pathetic blog of mine).

Yes, she is my friend and colleague, but I only knew her a few years back and only got real close to her recently (well, more than a year now) due to work requirements.

I don't know why I am feeling this way towards her. But she once said jokingly that a lot of people "sayang" her.

I didn't really see it as a joke. Because I do "sayang" her. Sangat. Unconditionally. How about that?

I guess she fits my idea of the ideal woman. Very down to earth; sweet; smart; efficient; committed to what she does; occasionally and appropriately funny; jovial; caring; loving; and highly responsible. Of course I can go on and on, but I doubt my fingers would have the strength and perseverence to endure typing more justifications as to why she is ideal. Trust me, the list would be non-exhaustive.

But rest assured, I will always have the strength and perseverance to endure showering her with unconditional love. I'm pretty sure about that.

Like in the song Forever by 90s British R&B group Damage, even if she took my heart and tore it apart, I will love her still forever, and in this case unconditionally.

If you happen to read this, yes YOU, the beneficiary of my unconditional love, don't freak out okay? I see myself as your alternate protector, as a surrogate brother who self willingly pledged to see you through thick and thin. Everyday I pray that you will be happy, I pray for you to be happy with your husband, who's a great and lucky guy. I pray for your constant health. I pray you will be blessed with great kids. I pray you will be protected from harms way. I pray you will be deflected from any wrong doings.I pray whatever bad past you had will be buried forever and cease to haunt you again. I pray for your wellbeing in totality - spiritually, emotionally, physically, financially and professionally. I pray for you, unconditionally.

The next time you catch me gazing me at you, it's just me counting my blessings for having you around in my life at the moment. I became a better person because of you. I am motivated to do what I do now because of you. Don't take that away from me. I am guilty as charged for loving you that much but I beg for a deferment of sentencing, at least until I die.

Thank you for rejuvenating my rather prematurely dilapidated life. You may not believe it, but you make loving you so easy for me.

Unconditionally....

Hanging On For Nothing

2010-10-23T07:31:00.004+08:00

As I write this, I'm listening to Brian McKnight's One Last Cry for the thirteenth time. It's one of my favourite R&B ballads, released in the singer's 1992 debut album. It's a good song, really good song. Perfect to nurse a broken heart and shattered dreams.

I just discovered that a beautiful dream or wishful thinking which I've been hanging on to for the past 5 years was actually for nothing. A waste of time, energy and emotion. I could have done better things, like improve my writing. Or hitting the gym more often. Or simply be closer to God.

Anyway, God works in mysterious ways to liberate you from something which could've destroyed you in the long run. And I thank God for that. Who would have figured that it would be two dear friends, or brothers in crime for that matter, that would actually break the news to me. F & M - thanks so much for finally knocking some sense into my head. Now I realise that you are truly are my blood brothers despite us only recently being ace boon coons.

Yes, it was hard to swallow at first. It was a blow straight to the pit of my stomach. But I am rebounding well. I'll be fine. But give me some time, for drowning of sorrows cannot be done overnight. This will be long, that much I'm sure.

I am liberated from this dream permanently now. My mind is freer now. Free to do better things that should make me a better person.

As for the wasted dream, my only regret is for the people of whom this dream has hurt. So many people have made sacrificies for this dream, all of them unconditional I'm sure. But in return, the dream has committed an unspeakable act, probably more than once, that betrayed the love and trust given. For that, I feel so sorry. Not for you, dream. But for the people whom you have hurt and lied. Worse, they don't even know. I pray they will have the strength to endure it if they ever found out because it will be ugly. Even I was adversely affected and the bitter irony of it, I'm not even relevant.

Lesson learnt - next time you see shiny and juicy apples at the supermarket, check again. It may be rotten inside....

TALENT CORPORATION : WITH ALL DUE RESPECT BUT...

2010-10-07T15:26:00.000+08:00

...will it really meet its noble objective of luring back the best brains of Malaysia to their home country? I still have reservations about this.

Yes, our PM's intention is good but for as long as I can remember, I never thought highly of Malaysians who choose to work and reside abroad. Because majority of these people, while having succeeded in making a living in Sydney, London or New York, usually also ridicule their home country - my country mind you, as being the reason why they left in the first place for the so-called greener pastures.

Okay fair enough. You claim that Malaysia is not able to offer you employment or the salary band you so desire. But for the sake of argument, why can your other fellow Malaysians still make a decent living here in good old Jalur Gemilang land? This issue is so subjective, no party - whether the Malaysians abroad or the Malaysians here, would want to take a step back and re-evaluate their stand. But I for one, as someone who is a product of the national education system - from primary to tertiary and now working for a respectable Malaysian company, would insist that serving your nation is allegiance of the highest order. Period.

The worst kind of Malaysians are the ones who studied abroad on Malaysian government scholarship, be it JPA, MARA or PETRONAS, to name a few. Once they graduated, they secure employment in the country where they studied and cancel out the scholarship bond by repaying their sponsors. There is even a greater number of Malaysian students who simply dissapear and that's when you see the long list of defaulters advertised by their sponsors on the back pages of Sunday papers. The ones biting the dust would of course be their guarantors who were suckered to sign on the dotted lines prior to these ungrateful lots' departure overseas several years back.

And then of course there's the other kind who slog it out from scratch, saving every penny or dime to achieve their dreams of the promised land. The kind depicted in immigration-theme movies like Crossing Over and Bordertown. As a result of this, Malaysians travelling to Britain in the future, for example, may be slapped with a visa ruling, something which we have enjoyed being exempted from by our colonial masters, due to Malaysians of these kinds overstaying on social visit pass in various parts of the kingdom.

What else? Aah, yes. Malaysians with dual citizenship when our laws clearly prohibits that. Malaysians who give birth to their child abroad but still come back to KL to register their birth certificate and then return back to Toronto where their child's Canadian birth certificate also awaits. Malaysians who prolong their stay in, oh I don't know, Philadelphia, years after they graduated until they are forced to come home when their mom is dying in Temerloh and on and on and on.

My point is - kalau dah memang tak nak balik tu, tak de nya dia orang nak balik. Sebab hati dah terpaut pada flat di Notting Hill, London atau townhouse di San Francisco atau apartment di Lower East Side Manhattan, New York.

I wish the Malaysian Government all the best with this newly-established Talent Corporation.
But again, with all due respect, lebih baik lah naik kan gaji kami yang memang setia berkhidmat di tanahair ni...

RAYA OPEN HOUSES - WHERE ARE WE HEADED ACTUALLY?

2010-10-04T22:59:00.000+08:00

There were two really good write-ups in Mingguan Malaysia last Sunday on Rumah Terbuka Hari Raya or Raya Open Houses, one by Awang Selamat and the other by Noraini Abdul Razak. Both articles were eye openers actually (for those who concur with the writers' views) on a trend which I also feel is becoming unhealthier year in year out, at least for the past 5 or 6 years in the running.

The thing with Raya open houses nowadays is that it has become a status symbol for urbanites, especially in major cities, led of course by KL and its surrounding suburbia within the Klang Valley. Everyone is racing to do theirs, to a point that they have to cross check and even negotiate with friends to ensure their "event" do not clash on the same day of the weekend. To that extent.

And don't even get me started on the amount of excess food prepared for these open houses, especially the ones on a larger scale, which usually involves full-fledged catering. A friend actually shared her experience attending an open house of her hubby's pal which ended up with her hubby only managing a "hi, how are you?" and that was that. Her hubby's friend - the host, was so busy entertaining the sea of guests, that he couldn't even spend 5 minutes to have a decent and quality conversation for my friend's hubby who endured two hours of hell stuck on the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR 2) to get to the open house.

It was so different about a decade or two ago when we could still go to any of our friends or relatives home during the month of Syawal without too much of a hassle. No need to lock dates in your Outlook Calendar or handheld devices. And the host themselves merely served whatever was available in the kitchen. It didn't matter how many people came in a succession of how many days. Whoever came, whether in small or large numbers, were entertained with much affection which is the core culture of any Malay family. Even if it was just kuih raya or simple nasi himpit with kuah kacang, what mattered most was the quality time spent together, talking and laughing till our hearts content.

But the reality today is looking at the MRR 2 near my house for two weekends back to back filled with thousands of vehicles stuck in a massive jam. Why? Because of all them were racing to attend their fourth or fifth or sixth open house, zig zagging across the city from Gombak to Puchong, or from Kota Damansara to Bukit Antarabangsa, or from Cheras to Rawang. Last Saturday was the worst I think. It was a standstill on MRR 2 from 11 am till 11pm. That is pure madness.

I guess I am also guilty for joining the bandwagon of open house hosts when I did mine last Saturday. But mind you, mine can't really be defined as open house as I only invited certain people. Because I believe smaller scale get togethers ensures quality time spent among friends, relatives and colleagues.

You may have your own views on this. And I have shared mine.

Till next Syawal...

PEMANDUAN TIDAK BERTAMADUN KENDERAAN JOHOR, SINGAPURA DAN PULAU PINANG

2010-09-20T01:41:00.001+08:00

Alhamdulillah, saya telah selamat pulang ke ibu negara selepas hampir seminggu bercuti sempena Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Pagi raya pertama, seperti biasa bersama ibu dan bapa saya di Hulu Kelang sebelum berlepas ke Johor Bahru selepas solat Jumaat untuk beraya pula bersama ibu mertua.

Perjalanan melalui Lebuhraya Utara Selatan agak selesa dan lancar, kecuali kesesakan sementara di laluan Nilai-Seremban yang dianggap biasa memandangkan Seremban mempunyai tiga persimpangan yang agak rapat – Seremban, Port Dickson dan Senawang. Memang menjengkelkan namun masih dibawah kawalan. Habis kuat hati ini berdetik – macam bagus je Seremban ni.

Selepas Senawang, lebuhraya lancar selancar-lancarnya, ibarat landasan utama Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa KL. Kelajuan ditingkatkan sedikit untuk menggantikan masa yang sedikit terbuang ketika mengesot di Seremban tadi.

Sebagai individu yang telah berkahwin dengan orang Johor selama 11 tahun, saya sudah masak sangat dengan setiap bahagian lebuhraya tersebut dari Tol Sg. Besi sehinggalah Tol Skudai, setiap selekoh, bukit bukau dan gaung. Every nook and corner. Dan apabila kenderaan merentasi sahaja sempadan Negeri Johor Darul Takzim, pemanduan ditingkatkan ke tahap yang lebih berhati-hati. Sebabnya? Mudah sahaja. Kerana pemandu-pemandu negeri tersebut, terutamanya dari JB sendiri, pantang melihat kenderaan plet luar, khususnya plet Wilayah Persekutuan seperti saya. Pada mereka, kenderaan plet luar adalah daging segar (fresh meat). Boleh diratah. Boleh dibuli. Kerana mereka raja di negeri tersebut dan orang dari KL seperti saya bangang di negeri tersebut kerana dipercayai tidak tahu selok belok jalan di situ. Begitulah agaknya tanggapan pemandu-pemandu kenderaan plet J.

Seperti dijangka, selepas persimpangan Pagoh menuju persimpangan Yong Peng, sudah ada kenderaan plet J yang membuat perangai. Sebuah Proton Waja mengekori rapat di belakang kenderaan saya sambil memberikan ‘high beam’ sebagai arahan untuk saya kembali ke lorong kiri. Untuk mengelak sebarang konfrontasi emosi dan lebih buruk, kemalangan, maka saya pun ketepi lah. Maklumlah, sudah pasti Proton Waja 1.6 lebih laju dan hebat dari Honda Civic 2.0 iVTEC dengan kuasa kuasa 155bhp kan?

Semakin menghampiri Johor Bahru, semakin banyak kenderaan plet J yang menunjukkan belang. ‘High beam’ menjadi mainan utama bahlul-bahlul ini. Lorong kecemasan turut dijadikan lorong tambahan bagi memecut kerana mungkin ramai pemandu-pemandu J nak terkucil agaknya sebab makan banyak sangat soto dan lontong. Saya percaya kebanyakkan mereka ini gangster-gangster dan Ah Long Ah Long dari Taman Sentosa dan Johor Jaya di JB agaknya. Tengok warna rambut pun dah tahu. Itu belum lagi mamat-mamat Kg. Melayu Majidee atau Taman Perling yang mungkin merupakan versi empat roda rakan-rakan sekampung atau setaman yang bergelar mat rempit. Dari Mercedes ke Toyota Camry ke Proton Waja ke Perodua Kancil, semuanya sama sahaja. Kurang ajar di jalan raya dan langsung tidak menghormati tetamu-tetamu dari luar. Bukannya orang lain pun. Aku berkahwin dengan orang negeri kau jugak, bahlul.

Mungkin kerana sikap pemanduan tidak senonoh ini lah yang menjadikan pemandu-pemandu dari negara jiran yang bermula dengan huruf S turut mengikut perangai suku-sakat mereka dari negeri J. Orang-orang S kalau masuk ke Malaysia, ibarat beruk baru keluar sangkar. Segala kekangan oleh pemerintah republik itu ibarat dendam kesumat yang dibalas dengan memandu secara tidak senonoh di Malaysia. Mereka berlagak kerana kenderaan mereka dikatakan lebih hebat dan kekuatan matawang dolar mereka membolehkan mereka mengambil risiko disaman oleh polis trafik kita kerana menurut mereka “berbaloi dengan kepuasan memecut dengan kelajuan patah tengkok.”

Salahnya sebab ada cikgu yang mengajar mereka begitu. Eh nanti. Mungkin saya tersilap. Siapa cikgu sebenarnya. Mungkin juga pemandu-pemandu dari S yang menjadikan pemandu-pemandu J menjadi tidak senonoh. Hmm, sekarang saya pula keliru. Apa pun, it works both ways. Pemandu-pemandu J dan pemandu-pemandu S. Hah, memang kena lah tu, penyamun berlawan dengan penyangak.

Saya pohon maaf kepada biras-biras saya Abang Is dan juga Che Eddie. Harap tidak terasa dan terguris dengan kata-kata saya ini. Saya percaya korang berdua tidak seperti itu. Namun, ini adalah hakikat yang harus ditelan walau pahit macam mana sekalipun.

Orang luar dok bercakap mengenai perangai pemandu-pemandu negeri J. Malu tau.

Tolong lah ubah perangai pemanduan kepada yang lebih selamat dan berhemah. Tak kan lah nak jadi macam pemandu-pemandu negeri PP nun jauh di utara. Yang itu memang dah tak ada harapan lagi untuk diperbetulkan. Semua pemandu-pemandu PP adalah gila. Patutlah kabel TNB meletup dan terbakar di Jambatan PP, sebab dah tak tahan dengan perangai gila pemandu-pemandu PP.

Wilayah Persekutuan drivers rock!

England To Win The 2010 World Cup? Dream On You Blokes

2010-06-05T01:46:00.000+08:00

I'm taking a huge risk writing this because if England does win the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, I'll never hear the end of it from the legions of England fans here in Malaysia. I don't get it. Why are footie fans in Malaysia so into England, huh? Take me for instance, I'm a die-hard fan of Arsenal and I enjoy following the Barclays Premier League (BPL), but not to the extent of rooting for the English national team.

Why? Because for far too long, England has been overrated and over publicised. Hyped up to the seventh heaven. I think the media here in Malaysia is to be blamed. They have sugarcoated the likes of Rooney, Gerrard, Terry, Ferdinand and Lampard as if these players are Gods. It's the same story during each World Cup. "Oh, this is the best England squad assembled." "Sure shot of lifting the World Cup." "It's now or never for England." "We will not come back empty-handed." And on and on. Hollow, half-baked psychological warfare from a line of failed England managers and now Capello looks set to fall into this trap like his predecessors.

Even Carlsberg have produced car stickers splashed with "We support Team England for World Cup 2010" or something like that. You can get those for free at 7-Eleven outlets.

Maybe because Malaysians are too exposed to BPL. And the punters and commentators on ESPN and Star Sports for instance are also not helping because they too get excited when there is a live broadcast of international matches involving England. "All familiar names here, set to take on their opponents..." You see what I mean?

Yeah, they might be familiar names, but do they have the qualities to see England through to the finals of the 2010 World Cup? I doubt it. Sorry.

We tend to forget or perhaps overlook that La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, LPF and Eredivisie are also equally competitive, if not better than BPL. How else do you explain why Spain, Italy, Germany, France and Holland have far more superior national teams compared to their European neighbour across the English Channel?

It's all about chemistry. I think England is really lacking in this department. Too big of names blended into a concoction of mismatches - from defence, midfield to forward. The English system of play sucks. They should learn from their German and Dutch counterparts on strategy.

Remember how Germany under Franz Benckenbauer aka The Kaiser lifted the Cup in 1990? Precision play captained by the prolific Lothar Matthaus, you can actually draw imaginary straight lines on all the passes of each players. Critics said it was a boring system but Germany won their third World Cup because of it. Brazil with all the fancy schmancy moves, and it got them nowhere that year. Germany under Jurgen Klinsmann, almost similar system of play, came close to clinching their fourth World Cup in 2002 in South Korea but were denied by a slightly better Brazilian side. Whatever it is, still much better than England who were booted out as usual in the initial stages of the tournament.

Okay, to be fair, it will be interesting to see how the 2010 England squad will fare in South Africa, starting from next week. I can already imagine the English commentators - Martin Tyler, Andy Gray, Steve Bower, Alan Hansen etc. screaming "Rooney!! Oh, that was so close!" or "Here comes a Steven Gerrard freekick, the German defence are preparing for the inevitable." And the next thing you know, England is eliminated, again, either by the mighty Germans or the talented Dutch or the fancy Italians. Take your pick. My favourite is when England is booted out by the ever-dramatic penalty shoot-out of which the Germans have an awesome record.

I can't wait to read the headlines "England - Rubbish As Usual"

Congratulations Datuk Shamsul Azhar Abbas, Happy Retirement Tan Sri Hassan

2010-02-04T10:05:00.008+08:00

It's out now, officially.

The news that we have been waiting for, especially amongst Petronas staff and oil & gas industry analysts.

Datuk Shamsul Azhar Abbas (image, top), 57, the former Managing Director & CEO of MISC Berhad, has been appointed the new President & CEO of Petronas as well as Acting Chairman of the national oil corporation, succeeding incumbent Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican (image, down) whose contract expires on 9 February 2010.

Datuk Shamsul's appointment will take effect on 10 February 2010.

Alhamdulillah, it looks like Tan Sri Hassan is leaving the company in good hands. Datuk Shamsul is a Petronas man and has served the national oil corporation since 1974, in various capacities and key positions including that of Vice President of Oil Business, Vice President Petrochemicals, Vice President Exploration (Upstream) and Vice President Maritime and Logistics. He then went on to become the Managing Director & CEO of MISC Berhad which is also a subsidiary of Petronas, from 2004 to 2009.

I know a lot of Petronas staff will be sad to see Tan Sri Hassan leave. Me included. But I am happy for Tan Sri. He can now retire in glory after doing the country a great service for 21 years since he first joined the company in 1989.

Like what Petronas advisor and former PM Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said "No matter how good you are, there will be a time when you need to leave." That statement was made by the old man a couple of weeks ago, when he was asked about speculation on Tan Sri Hassan's future in view of his contract expiring. Perhaps the old man already knew what was coming.

Bottomline, we have to learn to let go.

It would be too long for me to list down Tan Sri Hassan's achievements as the numero uno of Petronas. It does not have to be justified - everyone knows he did an excellent job. He continued the legacy of the late Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin whom he suceeded and transformed Petronas into what it is today - the only Malaysian company in the Fortune 500 list and one of the strongest and most respectable national oil companies in the world, at par with the supermajors the likes of ExxonMobil, Shell and BP. Petronas indeed under Tan Sri Hassan's stewardship, has been inducted into the big boys league of the oil & gas supermajors.

It is something that we should be proud of despite Petronas being the subject of public bashing and finding itself dangerously close to be thrown into political quagmire of late.

To Datuk Shamsul, welcome aboard sir. May you continue the legacies of the late Tan Sri Azizan and of Tan Sri Hassan.

May the force be with you....

The Months That Was.....

2009-12-30T14:18:00.003+08:00

Okay, okay, it has been ridiculously long since I last updated this very, very dusty blog.

In fact, why do I even bother. Who reads my blog anyway?

But then again, that's the actual purpose of a blog. Blog originated from the word weblog, your personal online diary in cyberspace, which is only meant for your eyes only or for people you wish to share with by giving them the URL.

Whatever it is, the break from writing was a cross between intentional and unintentional.

Honestly, (here I go again), I was buried with work. Hahahahaha! The overstatement of the year, which coincidently, is coming to an end in less than 48 hours.

My God, we are ushering in 2010! How time flies (again, an overused expression.)

Where were we? Ah yes, work. You see, I was promoted and transferred to a subsidiary of my company on 1 October 2009, so its been close to 3 months now. As the Head of Department, my responsibility is heavier and job scope is broader by leaps and bounds. Expectation from management is also high. Don't even ask about how I am managing the stress level ever since taking up this new appointment.

But hey, I'm not complaining. I call it progress. I got a promotion which means I get a handsome salary increment (as soon as I pass the higher job grade assessment in April). I got a bigger cubicle now (which is one step away from a proper room if I get one more level of promotion in the next few years) and I have cool colleagues in the department. Well, subordinates actually but I prefer to see them as colleagues (because I am the new generation managers - cool, dynamic and think out of the box, chewah).

The first month (October) was hell. I had to travel a lot and I hardly saw my wife and kids. My new position required me to constantly travel to Kertih, Terengganu and Segamat, Johor as the subsidiary's core operations were located there. October is the worst month to transfer in my company because it is halfway through the fiscal year. That is the time when everyone is busy finalising their departmental and divisional budgets for the next fiscal year and also busy with the dreaded mid-year performance review. On top of that, my department was at the tail-end of a major audit exercise and although the audit period and scope covered a duration well before my time, I was pretty much involved, by virtue of me being the new Head. Let's just say I was unfortunate enough to "inherit" some problems left by my predecessors and them tight-fisted auditors just didn't care or symphatised with me. On top of that, my immediate superior was also new and eager to be up to speed with the current operations of my department which was parked under the division of which he is the head. So, it was a whirlwind first month for me and I tell you, the learning curve was so steep, I felt like crying at times.

If October was hell, November was hell deluxe! Just as I was about to settle down and thought that my travelling schedule has finally stabilised, I was slapped with a major and urgent assignment. It was like my cheek being pushed to the side of an express train! I was instructed by management to handle a ground-breaking ceremony in Sabah for a major project undertaken by the subsidiary which was a joint-venture with a state government-owned entity. And we had less than 3 weeks to pull the whole thing off! Hence I was zig-zagging to and fro Kota Kinabalu as if I had a second wife over there for most of November until the event itself which was on the 26th of November, one day before Hari Raya Haji! It was a miracle me and my team managed to get a flight back to KL on the night itself to enable us to be home in time for Hari Raya Haji. The event went well and I was thankful it was done and over with. For that, I thank my team for a job well done (you know who you are, I don't mention names in my blog).

And finally, December, ah yes, good old December, I would say was the best month since I joined my new outfit. I attended a forum for managers of the company in Kertih (at my favourite hotel Awana Kijal of course which was really a well-deserved retreat) and also presented two major papers to members of the subsidiary's management committee at their monthly meeting held in Kuantan (that was a two-hour ordeal which I thought would never end). I also spent one week alone in KL as my wife and kids went back to Johor Bahru to spend time with my mom-in-law. I really bonded with my house, hehehehe. Accomplished lots of things when I was alone - installed a new ceiling fan in the master bedroom (the old one had its sensor stuck as the slowest speed), cleaned the bathrooms, mopped the floor, vacuumed the carpets, serviced both my car and my wife's car and watched lots and lots of tv. Oh, I also made arrangements for a short vacation to Phuket, Thailand which I'm taking in mid-January 2010. Yeahoo!!!! (This is a solo vacation and my wife is cool about it.) I'm so excited about this trip that I've read two travel books on the exotic island and have mapped out my itinerary for the four days I'm there.

So, there, that's what happened in the past 3 months during which I abstained from writing. I'm going to start writing again, in this blog, in Facebook and also in NST where I'm a regular contributor to the Letters To The Editors section. I have a lot to say actually on current affairs but like I said, I just didn't have the time. I'm certainly going to try and the fact that I wrote this post is already, yes you said it - progress.

So here's to 2009 which has been a great year (for me and my family at least) and let's usher in 2010 with hopes and prayers that it will be better - financially and emotionally.....

p. s. Arsenal is doing so well in the English Premier League! I'm so happy!!

1Malaysia F1 Team - Another Minardi In The Pipeline??

2009-09-16T08:19:00.003+08:00

We like to throw away money to satisfy our "Malaysia Boleh" ambitions, money that we don't have actually.

Last time it was the astronaut programme and what do we get? Nothing.

And yesterday, the powers that be has announced that we are competing in F1 next season with a full Malaysian team known as 1Malaysia F1 Team.

Okay, okay, before we get too excited, let's do some homework first before you offer your two cents worth at your local mamak joint.

This is actually the former Lotus F1 team, which once upon a time did compete in F1, between 1957 to 1994. By virtue of the British outfit being owned by Proton, our national car manufacturer, it becomes Malaysia's F1 team by default. That is quite normal for us Malaysians - piggybacking is the name of the game.

Anyway, Lotus F1 was a great team. During that era, Lotus cars were driven to no fewer than six drivers’ world titles by drivers like Jim Clark, Emerson Fittipaldi, Graham Hill, Jochen Rindt, and Mario Andretti. The cars included the type 25, the first monocoque F1 machine; the type 49, which used the engine as a stressed member of the chassis for the first time; and the beautiful, ground effects type 79.

After Andretti’s 1978 title, the team slowly faded away, despite employing the likes of three-time champion Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna, although that was before he won his three world titles. Financial problems began to plague the great British car manufacturer and this has hampered anymore hopes of its motorsports division from progressing any further.

Enter the 90s and to everyone's surprise, Malaysia's national car maker Proton decided to make a bold move by bailing out the ailing Lotus. The move was spearheaded by the late Tan Sri Yahya Ahmad, the CEO of Proton then where the national car maker acquired a controlling 63.75% stake in Lotus.

I actually had the privilige of visiting Lotus' facilities in Hethel, Norwich, 300 km north east of London when I was a journalist way back in 2000. It was a trip organised by Proton, in conjunction with the then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's visit there.

Now, back to the present - the 1Malaysia F1 Team.

The new organization is backed by a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs and of course the Malaysian government.

The car will use a Cosworth control engine—which will also power the cars of several other new teams, among them the USF1 outfit—and will be headed by Mike Gascoyne, the mercurial engineer who has worked for the likes of Benetton, Toyota, and most recently, Force India. Gascoyne is a star designer, but is notoriously difficult to get along with, so it will be interesting to see how he copes with other Alpha males in the consortium, primarily Tony Fernandes, the head of Air Asia.

Let's get real here. Honestly, we are being too ambitious. The powers that be when making the announcing yesterday said that the team will be based in hot and humid Sepang where the cars will be designed, manufactured and tested there. "Made in Malaysia and by Malaysians". Even the 200-member technical and pit-stop crew will be an all Malaysian outfit managed by Gascoyne. Wow!

I’d be surprised if the new 1Malaysia F1 Team can scale the heights that Colin Chapman’s outfit managed. For one, Chapman was a maverick who pioneered technologies in racing. The new F1 seems to be hell bent on becoming a spec formula, with the emphasis on parity rather than innovation. Second, while Cosworth will no doubt produce a decent engine, the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari will spend inordinate amounts of cash to gain a few horsepower over their opposition. And finally, while Gascoyne is a brilliant talent, he hasn’t exactly stayed in any one place for long enough to suggest that he’s in it for the long run.

Having said that, remember the Australian Paul Stoddart who owned the now defunct Minardi F1 Team? He conned the Malaysian government big time in the early 2000s to back his financially troubled team. As a result of direct endorsement by the powers that be at that time, he managed to rope in several Malaysian companies such as Magnum 4D, PC Suria and Asiatech to come in as sponsors, renaming the team Go-KL Minardi F1 Team featuring Australian driver Mark Webber and our very own Alex Yoong. I don't think I have to mention what happened to the team after that. Didn't even complete one season.

And at the same time, Petronas was faring much better with the Sauber-Petronas F1 team. Now that's the thing with Petronas. The national oil company had a fool-proof plan when it entered the F1 foray in the mid 90s. It was mainly for fast-track branding, transfer of technology and also a platform to test its lubricants. Petronas did the job well and they progressed from Sauber-Petronas to the BMW-Sauber F1 Team as premium partners. Very, very focused and they knew well enough to let the specialists do the job. "We pump in money, you do what you do best." Something like that. It's a pity that BMW is pulling out from F1 next season. But I guess it is a beautiful ending because if I'm not mistaken, Petronas' partnership with BMW-Saubers ends this season. Just nice.

But I foresee the 1Malaysia F1 Team as being a PR stunt by the usual suspects. Perhaps they feel it's their turn now to bask in glory, to enjoy what Petronas has enjoyed for the past 15 years or so.

As a Malaysian, I wish the team all the best. But I have this nagging feeling that a repeat of Minardi is bound to happen.

But still, I am willing to give this one the benefit of the doubt, furthermore Proton was kind enough to give me the opportunity to travel to England to see first hand how Lotus develops and manufacture cars.

If the team fails, I will be among the first to say this : "Told you so....."

Moving On

2009-09-09T08:03:00.003+08:00

As I signed in for work today, I realised that I'm down to my last 20 days at my current department in my company.

If all goes well, kalau tiada aral melintang, I will take up my new position at a subsidiary of my company on 1 October 2009.

I look forward to it of course because it's going to be a whole new adventure for me. But I am well aware that being promoted means greater responsibilities, broader job scopes and a significant escalation of key performance indicators (KPIs). Furthermore, the subsidiary where I'm going is public-listed, on the main board of the stock exchange, and as the new head of public affairs there, I know there are bound to be headaches in managing the company's shareholders and stakeholders. Nonetheless, I welcome the challenge. And I know I have a capable team over there.

Anyway, I will miss my current department. I've been there for more than 4 years now, since day one of me joining the company. I have cool colleagues and cool bosses - there is one Senior Manager and two Managers in my current department. I report directly to one of the Managers and of course to the SM as well.

Honestly, I would have prefered to be promoted within the department because I think I'm pretty good at what I do there. But you can't have it all. There are no more managerial positions in the department. That is why I have to leave in order for me to be promoted to Manager. If I could be promoted where I am now, it would have been perfect. It is like a couple being madly in love with each other for years and they finally decide to tie the knot because they know they are perfect for each other. Something like that.

But like I said, you can't have it all. Hence, I will have to move out, for the sake of career progression opportunity. It is normal, people go through it all the time. My father was a government officer for 32 years and he moved around a lot as he climbed the ranks until his retirement in 2001. So, yeah, in my case, it is a small price to pay. Furthermore, it's not like I'm being transferred out of KL to some far flung corner of the country. I'll just be moving 17 floors down from where I am now.

I am thankful to Allah s.w.t. for this promotion. Ini rezeki anak-anak. My prayers have been answered. Last year, when I missed the round of promotions within my division, I was quite down. Not that I expected to be promoted but more of frustration because I think I worked hard, I think I possessed leadership qualities and I think I delivered my KPIs. But then again, everyone else would claim they deserve promotion. It is very subjective and it is not surprising that every now and then, it could create unhappiness especially among those who missed the boat.

That is why it's best that I leave if that is the price I have to pay to go one notch higher in the corporate ladder. I am thankful because at 36 and as an average joe, I think I have accomplished quite an achievement. I know there are a lot of people here in my company who would only get managerial position way into their 40s, sometimes even close to retirement.

Of course there are the super elite bunch known as the High Potential Staff (HPS). These are the creme de la creme of the company - brilliant, articulate, dynamic and exceeds all requirements. These people can become Senior Managers, General Managers or even Senior General Managers as early as 33! I can't compete with these people. I'm way out of their league.

So there. I am going.

To my bosses and colleagues at my current department - thank you so much for bearing with me for the past few years. I am sorry for any shortcomings, for any acts which could be deemed as incompetent, for offending any of you in any way. I am only human and God knows, I gave my best to the department.

See you around.

French Spiderman : Unfair To Just Blame Petronas Security Personnel

2009-09-08T13:12:00.002+08:00

As someone who works at the Petronas Twin Towers for some years now, I beg to differ on the media's and public's blatant accusation that security at the headquarters of the national oil company is loose.

First and foremost, I noticed many newspapers refered the security personnel at the towers as security guards. They are not your normal “pak guards”, okay? The Petronas Twin Towers are guarded by the highly-trained Petronas Auxiliary Police and I can vouch in any court of law that these fine men and women are highly competent. After all, they were all trained by the Royal Malaysian Police.

Those who have been to the towers would appreciate this. To enter the towers, either Tower 1 or Tower 2, a visitor would have to go through stringent security screening, from the reception counter to obtain their visitors’ pass, through the metal detectors and further subjected to body search if necessary. Visitors are only allowed up to a certain level only for meetings and if the visitor needs to go to the higher levels, he or she must be escorted. The same security procedures applies to tourists for the Skybridge Visit. Tourists are only allowed up to Level 41 of the Skybridge.

Alain Roberts aka the French Spiderman did not enter the towers. He scaled the towers from the exterior, at 6.00 am when it was still dark. And this was his third attempt. Doesn’t his first two failed attempts in 1997 and 2007 count? Who managed to foil his first two attempts, was it not the Petronas Auxiliary Police?

We are being the typical ill-informed finger-pointing Malaysian. It is so easy to accuse without doing your homework. What about the Immigration Department? Why didn’t the media question their incompetence in detecting Roberts when he entered the country? Are we not going to question the French Embassy as well, who were well aware of Roberts’ presence in Kuala Lumpur days before he conquered the Petronas Twin Towers? And what about the irresponsible foreign media who knew all along what he was up to?

We should also bear in mind that this man has also successfully eluded security at other high-profile highly sensitive buildings including the Empire State Building in New York, Sears Towers in Chicago, Jinmao Tower in Shanghai, Sydney Tower and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. He managed to bypass security but was always apprehended in the process. He was apprehended twice by the Petronas Auxiliary Police before this, so please cut Petronas’ finest some slack here.

It has happened and I’m sure Petronas is not amused. However, many Malaysians are amused, in fact excited about it. Yes, it is free publicity yet again for the Petronas Twin Towers but the damage has been done.

Perhaps Petronas should cease operations of the Skybridge Visit for tourists too. Shut out the towers totally from outsiders. Perhaps that would satisfy these critics. I’m pretty sure the Petronas Auxiliary Police can turn the towers into a fortress like Fort Knox in Kentucky if they want to.

But is that what we really want?

At 36...

2009-09-07T08:09:00.004+08:00

Today I am 36 years old.

Not getting any younger and definitely one day closer to death.

Let's see now, what have I achieved so far.

I graduated with an honours degree from a reputable institution of higher learning 12 years ago.

I got married 10 years ago and still married to the same woman.

I got two bright and lovely daughters aged 8 and 5.

I am driving my dream car (the one which I've always wanted since varsity days), in fact its brand tagline is The Power of Dreams.

I am living in my own double-storey terrace house in a nice residential area, 15 minutes away from where I work and 5 minutes away from my parent's.

I have a small apartment which I rent out, making me a lord, a landlord to be exact, for the past 8 years.

I am working in my dream company and this is where I will end my career at 55, InsyaAllah.

I am pro-establishment and I am thankful for the hands that fed me, thankful to a system which has worked well for me and a lot of Malaysians for the past 52 years although many young punks and not-so-young punks nowadays doesn't think so, despite them benefiting from it whether they realise it or not.

I am a consistent fan of Arsenal, since I was 12 years old, and proud of it.

I am a consistent hater of Manchester United, since the beginning of time, and proud of it.

I am a consistent fan of the German national football team, since I was 13 years old, and proud of it.

I am a consistent hater of the over-rated and over-hyped English national football team, since the beginning of time, and proud of it.

I have performed the Umrah twice and Insya-Allah, my next trip to the Holy Land would be for the Haj.

I love my country and will not tolerate any attempts to destroy it. I will do what I have to do, to defend it from any threats, foreign or domestic.

I am proud to be a Malaysian and will not abandon my homeland for the so-called greener pastures in the "usual suspects" nations - America, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia or New Zealand. Grass is always greener on the side but at the end of the day, a lot end up doing the dishes in some restaurant in Midtown Manhattan. And for what? Just so you can send a postcard to mom from New York?

I am very prudent in my spending. I spend on my wife and kids and whatever is left goes to savings. I don't really go anywhere, buy anything. I can count with my fingers the number of times I went to Starbucks in the past 4 years.

I regularly workout at the gym nowadays, not really to lose weight but to stay fit and healthy. I even go during Ramadhan, no sweat. So to those who like to take potshots at me, joking at my expense - "tak kurus pun" "makan tu kena control jugak" - cut me some slack okay? At least I am doing something about it. Can you do 5 laps non-stop at the KLCC Park totalling 6km in 30 minutes? I can. And I have seen men half my size panting for air and it's only their second lap.

I am up for a promotion in a few weeks time, InsyaAllah. I guess my prayers especially the ones I uttered in front of the Holy Kaabah in Mecca has been answered.

Itulah rezeki anak-anak sebenarnya. They are my life and I love them to death.

So, for a 36-year old, I think I'm doing okay. Okay sangat.

Syukur Alhamdulillah. Syukur. That's what a lot of us need to do. Bukannya asyik complaining and whining.

Selamat Meneruskan Ibadah Puasa.

Demo ISA : Orang-Orang Bodoh & Bangang Yang Menyusahkan Orang Lain

2009-08-02T15:51:00.007+08:00

It happened yesterday, causing total chaos in the city of Kuala Lumpur. Walaupun dah diberi amaran, tetapi kerana rasa besar kepala dan kurang ajar, mereka meneruskan juga niat mereka sehingga menganggu ketenteraman awam.

Because of a bunch (or two bunches) of self-centred, ignorant, stupid and ill-informed bastards, the federal capital was paralysed from as early as 11 am yesterday until almost 8 pm due to illegal street demos by two opposing groups, namely Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI) which is calling for the abolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA); and Majlis Gabungan Badan Bukan Kerajaan Pembela Negara (Magaran) which wants ISA to be maintained.

Both groups had the same intention - to march from Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman all the way to Istana Negara (the national palace) to hand over memorandums to the King. Of course the march would pass by key and favourite landmarks such as Dataran Merdeka, Masjid Jamek, Central Market and Masjid Negara. These are typical assembly areas for these illegal street demos since the days of Reformasi back in the late 90s.

The organisers of the demo have made known their intentions for quite some time, at least two weeks in advance. The police have warned them not to do it. No permits have been issued by the police, meaning it was deemed illegal. But they think they are above the law. And because of that, close to 600 protesters were arrested. I personally think that the police should have arrested more, wipe them all out. Perhaps Prime Minister Dato' Sri Najib Tun Razak should have even deployed the army to handle this, using tanks and armoured vehicles. Crush 'em all.

The bastards knew pretty well the chances for them to reach the gates of Istana Negara were slimmer than an anorexic. Don't they know by now that our police are one of the best in the world? Our Federal Reserve Unit (FRU), the riot control division of the Royal Malaysian Police has an awesome reputation among its counterparts in other parts of the world. A friend of mine who is an Assistant Superintendent of Police attached to the FRU told me that when he attended a regional police conference in Bangkok, his counterparts from other countries only had praises for our FRU.

Dah tau FRU kita memang terror, lagi mau buat sreet demo. Memang kena tear gas and chemical-blended powerful water sprays le jawabnya.

Police were forced to close down a number of major roads in the city, causing a horrible traffic jam which is beyond describing. Businesses along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, including Sogo departmental store were forced to shut down. Street traders suffered huge amount of losses due to damages inflicted by the protesters and also by stray tear gas canisters fired by the FRU. A lot of business goods were soaked with water sprayed by the FRU's powerful hydro cannons. They cursed the protesters for their losses. Cab drivers also cursed. Bus drivers cursed. Motorists cursed. By-standers cursed. People who were late for wedding receptions cursed. People who missed funerals cursed. People who missed visiting hours at government hospitals cursed. We all cursed.

I chose not to go out in the morning and afternoon. But I had no choice in the evening because I had to head to Muzium Kesenian Islam Malaysia (opposite Masjid Negara) at around 6 pm for the rehearsal of a friend's wedding reception as I was the emcee. I was lucky because I wasn't stuck in a jam. I took the Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE) which rocketed my car straight to Jalan Duta (near the Indian High Comm) and connected me to the Lake Gardens road that took me to the museum in no time. I was lucky because the traffic police just removed the barrier cones to enable traffic, including me, to enter the Lake Gardens road. On the way there, I got a first hand look at the horrible traffic jam on the opposite side of the Mahameru Highway. I can bet if it was a scene from a comic book, all the dialogue balloons would say all sorts of profanities.

Mereka yang membabitkan diri di dalam demo haram semalam memang tidak memikirkan perihal orang lain. It's always about you and what you think you are entitled to. No one else matters. Those whom are not with you are deemed as cowards. Deemed as not cool.

Hello, it is not cool when you cause the city an estimated RM200 million of losses. It is not cool when your 10-year old daughter accidently gets hit in the forehead by a stray rock. It is not cool when your wife and teenage son is also dragged into the police lock-up because they happened to be with you while you are protesting.

It is not cool when an innocent asthmatic child of a by-stander or shopper suffers an attack after inhaling tear gas fired by the FRU. What do you expect, that the FRU will aim carefully before firing during a riot?

Pernah terfikir tak semua consequences ni? Of course le tak kan? Yang penting, hati puas sebab dah protes. Orang lain boleh pergi mampus. Elok sangat le perangai macam tu.

The foreign media loves reporting incidents such as these. Visuals of riot police firing tear gas and hydro cannons depicts a nation in distress lah konon-kononnya. And that's what the protesters want pun. They want drama. Bila kena tangkap, kena pukul dengan belantan FRU, hah tuduh le police brutality lah, draconian law lah, democracy is dead lah.

What about those who suffered losses on Saturday because of these protestors? Where is justice for them? And don't even think of pinning this on the police. Kuala Lumpur's finest were just doing their job to ensure public order.

It is the protesters' fault. Hook, line and sinker...

The Dreaded CP38 Clause By LHDN

2009-07-28T09:37:00.004+08:00

My joy of annual salary increment has been shortlived.

I kinda' expected it already.

Last night when I reached home and upon checking the mailbox, I already saw a white and sleek envelope with the official franking "Urusan Seri Paduka Baginda" ("On His Majesty's Service").

I knew it even before I opened it. This was surely the dreaded love letter from Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri (Inland Revenue Board - IRB).

It was the compulsory CP38 deduction schedule required of me to settle the balance of my income tax for the last assessment year, amounting to RM1,684.44. The deduction imposed by IRB from my monthly salary will begin in September this year and ends in March next year. IRB will deduct RM240.00 every month and RM244.44 as the final instalment in March 2010.

It's my fault actually and I bet that I'm not the only one. Once you file your tax returns in late April, you are required to quickly pay the "Cukai Kena Dibayar" or "Tax Payable" to IRB. If you can't afford to make full payment, then you are required to liaise with IRB to work out a reasonable payment plan. For those who fail to do either one of the two mentioned, then IRB will do the job for you, via clause CP38 which is forced deduction, on top of your existing Potongan Cukai Berjadual (PCB) or Scheduled Tax Deduction. Serve me right actually. Had I worked out a payment plan with IRB earlier, I could have reduced the CP38 deduction, though it would take me longer to pay it off.

My income tax is definitely more than RM1,684.44 actually. Thank God for PCB. If not for PCB, I think I'd still be paying the Government from my grave. That is the beauty of PCB - the Government forces you to deduct a reasonable amount from your monthly salary (based on a certain formula) which goes to your IRB account. When it's time to file your taxes, you already have a significant amount to cover your taxes. If you're lucky, you will even get a rebate from the Government in an event that your deductions are in excess of the required tax payable (cukai terlebih bayar).

But that is not the case for me. I haven't enjoyed a rebate for quite some years now. It is now always "cukai tak cukup bayar" which means even my PCB cannot cover the taxes. Hence for the last assessment year, I still owed the Government RM1,684.44 and it will take me 7 months to clear this one. So be it. At least I pay taxes unlike some big time tax evaders. I have an option actually which is to instruct my employer to increase the PCB deduction. But do I really want to do that? Even the current PCB deduction is killing me.

Thank God that I'm married and have kids which enables me to enjoy huge tax exemptions or discounts. Imagine those who earn the same amount of salary like me but are single. They pay higher taxes. So hey, I can't really complain.

Anyway, I guess prudent spending is the way to go these days. If it's unnecessary, don't spend. Refrain from splurging. Strecth your finances.

This is reality. And it bites...

Another Year, Another Familiar Friend, Or Figure To Be Exact

2009-07-24T08:29:00.003+08:00

Syukur Alhamdulillah.

The results of the annual individual performance appraisal are out and I survived yet another gruelling financial year.

My results, or rating to be exact, is nothing much to shout about, but at least for the record, I have met all my requirements as stipulated in my KPIs.

And for that, I thank my bosses (you know who you are) for giving me a rating which has enabled me to enjoy a "more than I can bargain for" annual salary increment and the possibility of other incentives.

Terima kasih Encik A dan Cik J kerana masih percaya dengan saya, akan kemampuan saya untuk melaksanakan tugas-tugas yang diamanahkan, walaupun saya tahu benchmark yang ditetapkan oleh Encik A dan Cik J sangat tinggi.

Thank you for pushing me to the max, to encourage me, sometimes force me to go beyond the limits in order to produce a quality of work that would raise our unit's image among the rest of the division.

I am proud to be a part of your team. It is the best team in this division, although others would beg to differ. We have been known as a unit which walk the talk - always delivering what we pledge. "Hangat-hangat tahi ayam" hardly exists in our vocabulary. When others have seen whatever initiatives they introduced fall apart or simply evaporated into thin air due to lack of willpower to sustain, we have proven many times over that whatever we do is consistent and this observation was made by planners from other units and departments within our division. So there, we are doing something right.

It's okay that I did not get a higher rating (although God knows I can use the monumental increment which comes with it). I am just thankful I am not among those who get the dreaded mediocre rating which will result in them not getting any increment at all and worse, to be subjected to a 6-months review period for them rectify whatever weaknesses they have in their course of work. That I could not handle.

To my wife and daughters, whatever I do, I do it for you all. Not for me.

Daddy hardly buys himself anything. Daddy thinks 10 times before buying a book for himself at Kinokuniya. But Daddy would not even blink to think if kakak or adik wants books from Kinokuniya because Daddy knows both of you loves to read, colour and do activities. It's for your own good and Daddy doesn't mind spending if it means Daddy's girls would shine at whatever they do, especially at school.

Z, please save, save and save for our girls. I am increasing the monthly amount that I give to you so that we can save more for kakak's and adik's education.

You have every reason to save more than me because I pay everything for us. Your salary is completely yours so I hope a significant amount goes to the girl's funds.

You know me Z. I don't buy anything, don't really go anywhere. I'm either at home or at work. Or at the gym - also for you and the girls. Too many friends of my same age are either sick or dead because they did not bother to take care of their health. I need my health so that I can take care of you three.

Kalau ada rezeki, mungkin abang akan dapat rating yang lebih baik tahun depan. Untuk kemungkinan itu berlaku, abang kena kerja lebih kuat. I need you and the girls behind me to do this.

I'll see you at home later. Tell the girls to wait up for me. I won't be that late today....

Conduct Unbecoming

2009-07-23T09:51:00.004+08:00

Today I want to discuss about conduct unbecoming.

It is a phrase used to refer to behaviour considered dishonourable. Its origins are military, though it is also widely used in other fields to describe ungallant behaviour.

I'm pretty sure my employers also do not tolerate conduct unbecoming. Which is a good thing. Once you decide to join an establishment - be it government, military, corporate or academic, you must be prepared to condition yourself to adapt to the ways of the entity which you are now part of.

Which is why I do not condone to what a friend of mine will do soon. Either today, tomorrow or God knows when. One thing's for sure, my friend is bent on doing this despite me begging for this person not to do so, because the consequences will be to this person's disadvantage.

I can understand the grounds which has led my friend wanting to commit this act. The predicament faced by this person is the worst nightmare which any employee can possibly imagine.

But that is life. Life is not fair. You win some, you lose some. I'm okay with losing, because I have always been on the losing side for most parts of my life.

But my friend is not that used to losing. The analogy is like this. Imagine Sir Alex Ferguson whom is so used to winning silverware every English Premier League season with his beloved Manchester United, only to see his fancy team crash and relegated to Division One League another season.

Something like that.

I would not elaborate on what my friend is planning to do in retaliation to what has happened to him/her.

But I do know this. What my friend is planning to do qualifies as conduct unbecoming. And perhaps it was conduct unbecoming in the first place that caused this person to be accorded such treatment.

To my friend, I have done everything to stop you from doing this. It's out of my hands now.

You must do this alone...

Susah Ke Nak Menulis Dalam Bahasa Kebangsaan??

2009-07-22T09:02:00.007+08:00

Kepada orang-orang Melayu tertentu di tempat saya bekerja.

Cuba-cuba lah belajar menulis surat atau dokumen rasmi yang ingin dihantar kepada pihak kerajaan dalam Bahasa Melayu.

Janganlah asyik menulis deraf dalam bahasa Inggeris, kemudian minta pertolongan kakitangan yang mahir dalam Bahasa Melayu untuk membuat terjemahan.

Bukannya kami tak sudi tolong sebab memang itu sebahagian dari tugas kami pun.

Tapi kalau selalu-selalu sangat naik menyampah juga. Kalau nama awak Brad Pitt atau Trisha Yearwood tak pe. Ini tidak. Nama Ali Bin Mamat atau Khamsiah Binti Selamat. Orang Melayu! Orang Melayu yang tak reti menulis dalam Bahasa Melayu patut dihadiahkan penampar je.

Jangan ingat sebab kita bekerja di syarikat bertaraf multinasional, kita tidak perlu menguasai Bahasa Melayu. Ia adalah bahasa ibunda kita, bahasa kebangsaan.

Ada kakitangan kita yang bernama Ah Chong atau Muthusamy pulak yang mahir menulis dalam Bahasa Melayu!

Tak malu ke?

Working Out

2009-07-21T09:00:00.002+08:00

There are many school of thoughts on working out at the gym.

Most people do it to stay fit and healthy. And of course, there's also a large number who do it to lose weight.

I think I fall somewhere in between. I go to the gym so that I can stay fit and healthy and at the same time, attempt to lose a significant amount of weight.

I'm not that fat actually but I guess my figure could be categorised as large - XXL. Big and tough, that's how I prefer to see it. Although my family and friends beg to differ.

I joined the gym - Twin Towers Fitness Centre to be exact, in December last year. Meaning its been almost 8 months now.

So, the million dollar question is - have I actually lost weight?

Not really.

But that's not the point. The point is, I feel good. I may have yet to lose the desired amount of weight, but I did gain a considerable amount of muscle. Biceps, triceps, latissimus dorsi, deltoids and trapezius (on the shoulders). Which is really cool when I stand in front of the mirror after the refreshing shower in the locker room.

The only thing which is preventing me to look like Rambo is of course my tummy. I really need to work on my abs in order to get that much desired six-pack. Yeah, yeah, dream on dream away, with all the carbo I'm consuming on a daily basis.

Anyway, toning my body is only one part of my workout regime. The other one is cardio. I usually start with cardio first - either on the treadmill, elliptical trainer, bicycle or lateral thigh trainer (commonly known as the stepper). I normally spend 45 minutes to an hour just on cardio workouts. And then only I move on to the weights for toning.

I think I have progressed well in the cardio department. I can run further now and faster too. I can easily clock 5 km in 30 minutes with a speed of 9.0 and burn close to 500 calories on the treadmill. Even better on the elliptical, where I can burn 700 to 800 calories, moving at Level 13. Not bad for a big guy eh?

I usually feel rewarded when I jog at the KLCC Park, alone or with friends. The KLCC Park has a dedicated synthetic jogging track, 1200 metres for one lap. Nowadays, I can run 5 laps (6km) non-stop and leave others who are half my size panting for air. How about that? Not to brag but just to share with you how rewarding it is to actually make an effort to be fit.

So which do you prefer - being slim but not fit or being big but fit?

Go figure.

An Open Letter To A Busy Friend

2009-07-19T20:55:00.003+08:00

Dear XXXX,

How are you? I hope life is treating you well.

I think it's been more than month since we last saw each other although we are working in the same building, for the same company.

Don't worry, I perfectly understand.

You are a very important person in this company. You have lots of meetings and discussions to attend.

And after work, you also have to attend gatherings in other parts of the city to catch up with your other more important friends.

So don't worry, I'm not angry that you hardly pick up my calls nowadays, let alone reply my text messages.

After all, a text message replied almost 72 hours later is still better than none, right?

Perhaps you are also busy in the love department. If that's the case, I'm so happy for you and wish you only the best.

Honestly XXXX, I only wish you the best.

And one thing's for sure, I'll always be here for you, through thick and thin.

You know where to reach me. I'm not going anywhere...

Your friend and ace boon coon,

The Naval Aviator Wannabe

Sleepless In Shah Alam...

2009-07-17T07:42:00.006+08:00

...At least that was the case for the late Teoh Beng Hock, until 3.45 am yesterday.

The 30-year old political secretary to Selangor state executive councillor Ean-Yong Hian Wah, was found dead on the balcony of a shipping company on the 5th floor of Plaza Masalam, Section 9, Shah Alam at 1.30 pm yesterday.

At press time, police has classified this as sudden death. He was believed to have fallen from the 14th floor of the office block, where the Selangor headquarters of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is located.

Teoh was at the MACC office from 5 pm on Wednesday, 15 July right up to 3.45 am on Thursday, 16 July for an intensive interrogation session by the commission's officers. He is a material witness to an MACC probe on alleged misappropriation of funds involving seven Selangor state assemblyman from Pakatan Rakyat.

After the interrogation, Teoh was allowed to go home on condition he returned with vital documents related to the probe. But he opted to rest at the MACC office as he was already too tired.

Poor MACC. This is the last thing they want, to have a senior aide of an Exco plunge to his death from their own offices, right after they grilled him for about 10 hours.

Surely now this will turn political. A scuffle was already said to have taken place between MACC officers and Ean who came to the scene much later in the day, accompanied by another Exco colleague Ronnie Liu. Ean was reported to have demanded the whereabouts of Teoh and why he was not informed of his political secretary's death earlier.

Here's my take on this. There are several possibilities :

1. I think Teoh committed suicide because he couldn't take it anymore. The 10-hour interrogation was not the end of it. MACC wanted him to return with several documents related to the probe. Either Teoh was scared that the documents would indict him as well or he was scared that he would not be able to produce the documents - either way he'd be in deep shit.

2. I think he was murdered by an "underworld" hitman. The Selangor State government is already in hot soup after Wangsa Maju MP, Wee Choo Keong alleged in his blog on July 11 that a Selangor Exco member has ties with underworld figures to an extent that the Exco even allowed his office in the State Secrerariat Building in Shah Alam be used by these gangsters to conduct their activities. Police has launched an investigation on Wee's claim. I think Teoh was murdered to cover up this whole thing which is starting to stink to the heavens. Perhaps the documents required by MACC from Teoh could have led to the arrest of all the culprits, including the Exco in question.

3. Maybe Teoh was rude and arrogant to MACC officers during the interrogation and because of that, he was thrown off the 14th floor. Nah, highly unlikely...

Anyway, I sincerely hope the Pakatan Rakyat-led State government would keep cool and not make blatant accusations. Let the police handle this.

Do not make MACC a scapegoat.

Berani kerana benar, takut kerana salah.

Oh and one more thing, and this is directed to all Selangor voters. Hah, lain kali pangkah lagi orang-orang macam ni to administer the state. For all you know, we have elected gangsters to run one of the richest states in Malaysia.

Elok benor le tu...

The Sum Of All Fears, For PAS and Pakatan Rakyat

2009-07-16T08:39:00.005+08:00

After 7 by-elections in 16 months, where Pakatan Rakyat (PR) humiliated Barisan Nasional (BN) by winning 6 of them including Manek Urai yesterday, it would be fair to conclude for now that PR is finally running on fumes. Running on fumes because PR, through its component PAS, only managed to edge BN with a majority of 65 votes when the result of the Manek Urai by-election was announced on Tuesday night.

We are not talking about any State constituency here. Manek Urai can be likened as Fort Knox for PAS in Kelantan. It has held the seat for five consecutive terms, that's almost 25 years, until the incumbent State Assemblyman, the late Ismail Yaacob passed away a few weeks ago, forcing a by-election which looked set to be another avenue for PR to further sink its teeth into the jugular vein of a watered down BN. At least that's what people thought, since PR was on a roll after it captured five states in the 12th General Election held in March last year, and also won another five out of six by-elections that followed within the next 14 months.

But surprise, surprise. Not because BN won. But because PAS won, but with a mediocre majority. PAS won by 65 votes, compared to 1,352 votes which they commanded just 16 months ago during the GE.

BN has humiliated PAS, and where it hurts most - in Kelantan.

Where did PAS go wrong? A number of things. One, because of the development pledges made by BN. Two, perhaps because the Kelantan Malays are sick and tired of being left behind and deprived of what Malaysians in other states are enjoying. Three, the prospect of being granted oil royalty payment by the BN-led Federal Government. And four, which I think is the most logical one, is that the Kelantan Malays are angry with the internal rift plaguing PAS. They are upset that both the President, Hadi Awang and Deputy President, Nasharuddin Mat Isa are not seeing eye to eye with the Spiritual Leader, Nik Aziz. Not only that, even several Vice Presidents and PAS' Central Committee members are not seeing eye to eye with the number one and number two, all because of the unity government proposal by UMNO which Nasharuddin openly supported, with full blessings from Hadi.

Perhaps this is a slap on the wrist for PAS. What we Malays call pukul manja. Minor punishment. If that is the case, then it's a bit too early for UMNO and BN to "pop the champagne". But if this is an indication that Kelantan folks want change, then UMNO and BN must continue to keep the pressure on PAS until they crack.

The game plan for UMNO and BN now is to slowly but surely regain confidence and trust from the rakyat. It's a long process, but sometimes in politics, patience will prevail. UMNO could be likened as what people in America refer to as the GOP or Grand Ole Party (when they talk about the Republicans). Yes, the Republicans have had their fair share of humiliation from their arch rivals the Democrats, but they are still pretty much alive and kicking until today, 155 years after they first came into power in the US.

For 52 years, UMNO has spearheaded this country and turned it into what it is today - dynamic, prosperous, well known, forward looking, exemplary, peaceful and harmonious.

We can't simply throw that away just for the sake of change. We already gave PR a chance and look at how they have messed things up in the five states and also stirred trouble at the Federal level.

It's time for Malaysia's Grand Ole Party to rise again. And when they do rise, like a Pacific Northwest grizzly bear standing to full height, I promise you, that will be the sum of all fears for Pakatan Rakyat...

Manek Urai Marks 7th By-Election In 16 Months : A New World Record?

2009-07-15T11:21:00.003+08:00

I hate to say this because I think it is overused.

Malaysia Boleh.

The just concluded Manek Urai by-election (State seat N.41) of the state of Kelantan marks the 7th by-election in 16 months since the 12th General Election on March 8, 2008.

Surely this is a record of sorts. If so, jangan le setakat masuk the stupid Malaysia Book of Records. Do we dare submit this to the Guiness Book of Records for a possibly entry?

I don't know.

Anyway, it's very difficult to find the full list of the seven by-elections mentioned. So, me being the pro-active dude decided to compile this for you. Just the basic info and stats.

The rest you can find on Wikipedia. Believe me, there are Wikipedia entries for all seven by-elections.

Orang Malaysia benda-benda macam ni memang rajin meng"upload" ke internet.

Okay, here’s the full list of by-elections since 8 March 2008 up to yesterday for your record :

1) Permatang Pauh (P.44) Parliament (Pulau Pinang) : 26 August 2008
Winner : Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PKR-Pakatan Rakyat) 31,195 votes, majority 15,671

2) Kuala Terengganu (P.36) Parliament (Terengganu) : 17 January 2009
Winner : Abdul Wahid Endut (PAS-Pakatan Rakyat) 32,883 votes, majority 2,631

3) Bukit Gantang (P.59) Parliament (Perak) : 7 April 2009
Winner : Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin (PAS-Pakatan Rakyat) 21,860 votes, majority 2,789

4) Bukit Selambau (N.26) State (Kedah) : 7 April 2009
Winner : S. Manikumar (PKR-Pakatan Rakyat) 12,632 votes, majority 2,403

5) Batang Ai (N.23) State (Sarawak) : 7 April 2009
Winner : Malcom Mussem Lamoh (PRS-Barisan Nasional) 3,907 votes, majority 1,854

6) Penanti (N.12) State (Pulau Pinang) : 31 May 2009
Winner : Dr. Mansor Othman (PKR-Pakatan Rakyat) 6,052 votes, majority 5,558

7) Manek Urai (N.41) State (Kelantan) : 14 July 2009
Winner : Mohd Fauzi Abdullah (PAS-Pakatan Rakyat) 5,348 votes, majority 65

As you can see, Barisan Nasional (BN) only managed to win one, in Batang Ai, Sarawak.

Personally, the Batang Ai victory is nothing for BN. They should be proud that they managed to butcher PAS' majority in Manek Urai from 1,352 which they enjoyed in 2008 to a mere 65 vote majority yesterday.

Bravo BN and UMNO. It's a long process and patience will prevail.

Tidak semudah itu untuk orang melupakan jasa UMNO and BN. Masih ramai yang sayang pada anda, termasuk saya...

Close Call For PAS In Manek Urai

2009-07-15T09:08:00.006+08:00

Hmm, even I was surprised upon knowing the results of the Manek Urai by-election in Kelantan.

Of course, everyone expected all along that PAS would retain the state seat but not on a razor thin majority.

PAS edged Barisan Nasional (BN) with a mere 65 votes, a far cry from its landslide 1,352 majority during the 12th General Election in March 2008.

Here's the final tally announced last night by the Election Commission :

Mohd Fauzi Abdullah (PAS) - 5,348
Tuan Aziz Tuan Mat (BN) - 5,283
Majority - 65

The Manek Urai state seat has 12,293 registered voters, including 25 postal voters. Voter turn out was quite good - 87% or 10,631.

So, what can we gauge from this? Well, common sense would tell you that BN is back on track in regaining the trust and confidence of the Malays in Kelantan, especially the fence-sitters. Which means that Dato' Seri Najib must be doing something right.

BN's commander-in-chief for the Manek Urai by-election machinery, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said BN need not be disheartened with the defeat as it is an indication that more and more people are supporting BN again. Muhyiddin who is also the Deputy Prime Minister believed the people are aware of the values of the PM's leadership and the changes that the country has already undergone.

So far so good, BN has accepted defeat in a gentlemen manner. Which is the expected thing to do. I just hope there won't be any gung ho UMNO members who would suggest or demand for a recount, just because PAS won on a razor thin majority. BN can afford to be patient. After a string of defeats in seven by-elections in the past 16 months, BN can finally see some positive results. Believe me, this is positive for BN, being able to deny PAS a landslide victory in the heart of the latter's stronghold - Kelantan.

And it is also hoped that Najib would start to take care of the Malays from now on. In the past 100 days, most of his announcements were in favour of the non-Malays. Sedikit sebanyak, hati orang-orang Melayu terguris jugak.

Cukup-cukup lah tu. We are all for your 1Malaysia concept. But at the same time, jagalah hati orang Melayu.

Again I quote Allahyarham Tun Abdul Razak, our second PM.

"Sekiranya orang-orang Melayu gembira, maka orang-orang lain juga akan gembira di negara ini."

I believe this quote still applies, in fact it applies forever. Because this is the Malay motherland. The Chinese have China as their motherland. The Indians have India as their motherland. But we Malays, this is our motherland. And by virtue of that, cut us Malays some slack, okay? We have been accomodating enough. Don't push it...

Baca Sendiri Lah!

2009-07-14T10:49:00.002+08:00

I sure hope my bosses won't be reading this.

The fact is, I'm sick and tired of monitoring blogs on a daily basis just so that the bosses at my division can be on top of things.

It all started when Barisan Nasional got whacked by the opposition in the March 8th General Election last year. Ini classic case of knee-jerk reaction lah ni.

On grounds that the company must be more pro-active in keeping tabs with what's going on in blogosphere or the new media or whatever the hell you want to call it, I suddenly found myself having to do this on a daily basis for the past 16 months. Nasib baik le ada a few more colleagues helping out.

Basically, what we have to do is monitor a number of high-traffic, high profile blogs and give our comments or analysis on what the bloggers posted. It does not necessarily have to do with our company or the industry we are in, but it could be about politics or current issues.

Hari-hari kena buat, and I tell you, it is time consuming. I'm struggling to do other stuff to meet my KPIs stipulated in my Individual Performance Contract.

I don't mind doing blog monitoring. Because it also keeps me on top of things. Tapi I rasa tak payah le hari-hari. Kalau ada benda-benda yang relevan untuk update or share, okay lah. Ini tak, hari-hari kena buat. Samada dia orang baca atau tidak blog monitoring report, itu belakang kira. Janji everyday at around 5pm, mesti submit.

Yang sedihnya, out of the 10 or so recipients of the blog monitoring report in the mailing list, half of them did not even bother to read. I know because I get the "NOT READ" return receipt. Kita separuh mampus perah otak buat analysis, dia main delete aje. Meaning memang tak minat pun, but just for the sake of being the priviliged few in the mailing list and so that they can be on top of things whenever they feel like it.

This is the only avenue where I can bitch about this. Because this is my personal blog. Even if one of the bosses at my division terbaca pun, so be it lah.

Please understand my predicament. How do you feel if you have to look at blogs upon blogs for hours in a day, and most of the postings are crap. It can be an emotional hazard. I mean, for all you know, the blogger probably wrote the crap wearing boxer shorts and picking his ear with cotton buds, and here I am in my cubicle wearing neck tie and leather shoes analysing what the bugger wrote, so that certain people can be on top of things.

Bukannya susah pun nak baca blog. Just surf the Net. Even my dad yang dah retire pun Net savvy. Takkan le bosses at this multinational company tak reti nak baca blog?

Baca sendiri la!!!

Petronas Still The Sole Flag Bearer of Malaysia In Fortune Global 500 : Ranked 80th In The World, Much Better Than Last Year!

2009-07-13T18:06:00.005+08:00

It's that time of the year again when CEOs and top management of the world's largest companies anxiously wait for the most coveted list in the world of free enterprise - the Fortune Global 500 list by Fortune Magazine, the premier global business publication.

This year, the Fortune Global 500 list was released by the magazine on 9 July 2009.

Alhamdulillah, Petronas remained a resident in the list, making it the sole representative of Malaysia, something that we should continue to be proud of despite some skeptics and cynics who feels it is no longer a big deal given the fact that the national oil company has already been in the big leagues for many years now.

Still, during these challenging times and volatile business environment, we should take comfort that Petronas still managed to be ranked in a very, very comfortable spot among the 500 companies listed in the Fortune list.

Petronas leaped 15 spots up from 95 to 80 in the overall category (based on revenue). This is an incredible achievement despite the company registering lower profit margins for the financial year ended 31st March 2009.

However, the lower profit margins has definitely taken its toll on Petronas, resulting in slightly poorer ranking in other categories - but still something for us Malaysians to be proud of.

Petronas emerged as the 13th most profitable company in the world and 7th most profitable in the world in the petroleum refining category, just trailing the supermajors - ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, Petrobras and Total. Petronas can be forgiven for losing out to these big boys. Hell, it even beat ENI of Italy, Rosneft of Russia and China National Petroleum. It also the second most profitable company in Asia.

This is the kind of recognition which is pertinent for Petronas to continue to maintain trust and confidence from its business partners and stakeholders. Most of Petronas' business partners are the oil and gas supermajors - these boys don't simply do business with anyone. And bear in mind that for the last decade or so, Petronas' revenue were mainly derived from its international operations of which Petronas has presence in more than 30 countries.

It has always been referred to by many in the oil & gas fraternity as "an entity of which we are very comfortable to deal with". Now, doesn't that tell you something? Surely Petronas is doing something right to be accorded with such accolades.

That is why Petronas staff must hold their head up high and not be disheartened by people who has tendencies to downplay or ridicule their contribution to the country. You guys have done a great job and a great service to the people of Malaysia.

It is hoped that the Government of Malaysia in turn, would do its part to defend Petronas from any attempts to destroy what the latter has achieved for the past 35 years.

It is not just about pleasing people in one state with oil royalty payments or pleasing one politician who thinks Petronas should give special payments to all families in the country to ease their financial burden. It is more than that. It is more than meets the eye. And if we fail to see beyond quick tangible gains, I promise you, we will live to regret it....

JPA Scholarships : Non-Malays Will Never Be Grateful

2009-06-18T07:20:00.004+08:00

I'm not a racist. Demi Allah I'm not a racist.

But sometimes, I can't help but to debate on race related matters and I'm sure many Malays like me are on the same page. The fact is, it is the non-Malays who usually stir up the hornet's nest - provoking us Malays to engage in racial polemics.

The current issue which is clear cut race-based driven, is the awarding of Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam (JPA) scholarships. It is highly and intensively debated in Parliament and of course, the blogosphere. The culprit who started this is of course DAP's Parliamentary Leader, Lim Kit Siang. He questioned JPA's method and criterias when awarding the much sought after scholarships which he claims were given to undeserving candidates.

To cut a long story short, Kit Siang is accusing JPA of favouring the Malays rather than the non-Malays, or to be more specific, the Chinese. He claims for example, that a Malay student who scored 6As in the SPM exams can get a full JPA scholarship to study in the US or UK, while a Chinese student who scored 10As or 12As or 20As was sidelined, left to rot in the boondocks.

I pity the JPA actually. Although I wasn't a JPA scholar, I know that JPA is very, very meticulous in selecting its scholars. My friends who were awarded JPA scholarships back in the early 90s had to go through intense and rigourous interview sessions, grilled and baked by the panel of interviewers before they finally earned their stripes as JPA scholars. And surprise, surprise, my friends were not all Malays - it was a good mix of Malays, Chinese and Indians. At that time, they had to sign a bond with JPA - they were required to serve 10 years with the government.

And guess what? All my Malay friends are still with the government today, long after their bond expired. But my non-Malay friends - they did not even complete the bonds. They decided to buy out their bonds when they were offered better jobs with foreign companies. One of them ditched the government to join Ericsson and the Swedish company actually bought out his contract with the government.

You see? Where is the loyalty among non-Malays? Not a flicker of gratitude for the hand that fed them. Of course a sane person would leave for greener pastures but to me, when debating on this issue, that is not the point. The point is when they applied for the JPA scholarship, they pledged to serve the bond in full, they pledged to be loyal to the establishment that gave them this chance, they pledged everything, even the sun and the moon. But at the end of it, it's just sweet talk and as usual, JPA ends up as the fool. Worse, a large number (Malays included) even defaulted on the bond and poor JPA has to hunt them down for years and years, wasting more money to advertise the names of the defaulters in the newspapers and usually to no avail.

It is not just JPA's predicament but also a predicament faced by other major scholarship issuers such as MARA, Petronas, TM and TNB.

So, here's the million dollar question to Kit Siang and all those out there who are complaining and crying foul for being sidelined in their JPA scholarship applications.

ARE YOU WILLING TO SERVE THE FULL BOND WITH THE GOVERNMENT, BE IT 5 YEARS OR 10 YEARS??

CAN YOU PROMISE NOT TO DITCH THE GOVERNMENT WHEN A LUCRATIVE OFFER COMES FROM SHELL, EXXONMOBIL OR SOME SINGAPORE COMPANY??

If you can fulfill these pledges or promises, then you deserve the scholarship. If not, you can always try to apply for scholarships issued by nations friendlier to non-Malays. Singapore perhaps?

I'm So Happy...

2009-05-28T10:52:00.003+08:00

Hahahaha, I'm so happy.

I'm so happy that my rise from bed at 2.45 am this morning to watch the UEFA Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United was worth every minute until the game ended at around 4.40 am.

I'm so happy to witness two beautiful goals by Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi in the 10th and 70th minute respectively.

I'm so happy that Christiano Ronaldo was locked tight by Barcelona's defence.

I'm so happy that Wayne Rooney looked more like a typical English bloke emerging from a bar on Friday night (which will be the case for him tomorrow when he swims in Jack Daniels to drown his sorrows).

I'm so happy that Sir Alex Ferguson was denied the most coveted silverware in club football.

I'm so happy for Barcelona for creating the treble this season.

I'm so happy that MU fans especially in Malaysia, will not have the bragging rights this time around.

I'm so happy that tomorrow will be my 10th wedding anniversary and Barcelona has already given me one gift - they roasted MU in Rome.

I'm so happy and I'll bet Arsene Wenger, Guus Hiddink and Rafa Benitez are also happy.....

PETRONAS MESTI DIBENARKAN BEROPERASI SEBEBAS MUNGKIN

2009-05-25T11:49:00.003+08:00

Saya jarang-jarang menulis blog dalam bahasa ibunda saya iaitu Bahasa Melayu.

Namun, sesekali, apabila jiwa ini tersentuh, terutamanya apabila yang menyentuh jiwa saya ini adalah isu yang membabitkan masa depan saya, anak isteri dan negara, maka saya akan memberontak dalam bahasa ibunda.

Tiada yang lebih memuaskan hati saya ketika ini selain berkhidmat dengan syarikat minyak dan gas kebanggaan negara iaitu Petronas, dengan rasa syukur dan tenang kerana tahu bahawa syarikat yang amat saya sayangi ini dalam keadaan yang amat kukuh dan diterajui oleh individu-individu yang telus, penuh integriti dan profesional yang mahir dalam selok-belok menjalankan perniagaan dan pengendalian operasi minyak dan gas yang kian mencabar.

Generasi kakitangan baru seperti saya amat bertuah kerana generasi kakitangan sebelum saya yang berkembang bersama-sama Petronas dari awal 80-an sehinggalah kini telah memastikan syarikat kebanggaan negara tersebut melonjak dari kecemerlangan persada domestik ke pentas global yang lebih kompetitif, dalam usaha Petronas untuk mencari rizab-rizab minyak dan gas yang baru demi kestabilan dan kemakmuran ekonomi negara.

Semua sedia maklum bahawa Petronas merupakan satu-satunya syarikat negara yang menghuni senarai elit Fortune 500 sejak tahun 1992 lagi, semuanya berkat, kesabaran dan iltizam pengurusannya yang ikhlas dan serius dalam memastikan Petronas ditadbir urus dengan cekap dan berada di landasan amalan-amalan terbaik korporat (best corporate practices) yang membolehkan ia mendapat kepercayaan tinggi bukan sahaja dari kalangan rakan-rakan niaga globalnya seperti ExxonMobil dan Shell, malah juga daripada kerajaan-kerajaan tuan rumah (host governments) di mana Petronas beroperasi seperti Sudan, Mesir, Turkmenistan, Vietnam, Myanmar dan Indonesia.

Dalam senarai Fortune 500 bagi tahun 2008, Petronas melonjak dari kedudukan global keseluruhan ke-121 (tahun sebelumnya) ke kedudukan ke-95, dengan keuntungan bersih RM61 bilion (US$18.1 bilion). Bagi kategori syarikat paling untung pula, Petronas mencatat rekod tersendiri apabila dinobatkan sebagai syarikat ke-8 paling untung di dunia, menewaskan gergasi-gergasi multinasional yang lain seperti Toyota dan Honda. Di kalangan syarikat-syarikat minyak dan gas pula, Petronas selesa di kedudukan ke-16 manakala dari segi keuntungan pula, ia menduduki tangga ke-6 dunia.

Keuntungan bersih yang dicatat Petronas ini sudahpun ditolak dengan pembayaran royalti, dividen dan cukai kepada kerajaan. Bagi tahun kewangan berakhir 31 Mac 2008, Petronas membayar RM67.6 bilion kepada kerajaan termasuk RM6 bilion dividen khas. Sejak ditubuhkan 34 tahun yang lalu, Petronas sudah menyumbang RM403 bilion kepada kerajaan yang dibelanjakan untuk pelbagai projek, infrastruktur dan kemudahan untuk manfaat rakyat. Untuk dimudahkan cerita, kira-kira 40% daripada pendapatan kerajaan disumbang oleh Petronas. Setiap satu ringgit yang diperolehi kerajaan, 30 sen adalah daripada Petronas. Begitulah pentingnya syarikat minyak dan gas negara itu kepada kita semua.

Saya yakin prestasi kewangan Petronas yang kukuh selama ini ialah kerana ia diterajui oleh individu-individu yang berbakat dan berkebolehan, yang merupakan legasi Allahyarham Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin, bekas Pengerusi dan Presiden Petronas yang akan sentiasa dikenang sebagai orang yang bertanggungjawab menjadikan Petronas apa yang kita lihat pada hari ini. Kesinambungan kecemerlangan Azizan diteruskan pula oleh Tan Sri Hassan Marican dengan disokong barisan pengurusan yang begitu mantap serta diawasi dan dinasihati oleh Lembaga Pengarah yang turut dianggotai wakil-wakil kanan kerajaan termasuk dari Kementerian Kewangan dan Unit Perancang Ekonomi (EPU).

Presiden / Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Petronas pula melapor terus kepada Perdana Menteri, satu sistem yang telah digunapakai sejak penubuhannya pada tahun 1974, untuk memastikan campurtangan politik yang minima. Begitulah kebijaksanaan kepimpinan negara yang terdahulu ketika merangka dasar tersebut.

Hakikatnya, sudah terlalu banyak syarikat-syarikat berkaitan kerajaan yang tenat atau hampir gulung tikar kerana campurtangan politik yang melampau. Kini, saya rasa tidak sedap hati kerana berdasarkan cakap-cakap dan bisik-bisik di sana sini, Petronas mungkin berhadapan dengan nasib yang sama.

Semuanya gara-gara khabar angin di ruang siber, melalui penulisan beberapa bloggers yang mendakwa individu tertentu akan dilantik menganggotai Lembaga Pengarah Petronas. Individu ini dikatakan mempunyai kaitan yang rapat dengan orang-orang penting kepimpinan terkini. Secara peribadi, saya merasakan ini satu langkah yang berbahaya kerana individu yang dimaksudkan turut memiliki syarikat perniagaannya sendiri yang boleh mencetuskan "conflict of interest". Lagipun, semua sedia maklum bahawa anggota-anggota Lembaga Pengarah Petronas terdiri daripada Presiden Petronas sendiri, beberapa orang Naib Presiden Petronas dan wakil-wakil kerajaan Persekutuan yang merupakan pegawai-pegawai kanan Perkhidmatan Awam iaitu Ketua Setiausaha Perbendaharaan dan Ketua Pengarah EPU. Ketua Penasihat Undang-Undang Kumpulan Petronas pula bertindak sebagai Setiausaha Syarikat. Semuanya cukup berkaliber dan memiliki kredibiliti yang tinggi.

Saya amat bimbang sekiranya benar individu yang disebut-sebut ini dibenarkan "menyusup" ke dalam Petronas. Walaupun anggota Lembaga Pengarah tiada kuasa-kuasa eksekutif, apa juga kemungkinan boleh berlaku. Segala maklumat yang dikategorikan sebagai "sulit dan persendirian" akan diketahui oleh beliau dan entah siapa lagi kerana ia lazimnya dibawa ke Lembaga Pengarah untuk perbincangan dan keputusan. Selama ini, Petronas sudah membuktikan ia mampu membuat keputusan-keputusan perniagaan yang bijak dan menguntungkan tanpa gangguan atau campurtangan politik. Cukup sekadar melapor terus ke Perdana Menteri dan kementerian-kementerian yang berkaitan.

Saya amat berharap YAB Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak dapat memastikan Petronas terus dibenarkan beroperasi seperti biasa kerana syarikat tersebut telahpun membuktikan berkali-kali saban tahun bahawa ia adalah berwibawa dan dinamik. Hasilnya dinikmati oleh seluruh warga Malaysia, samada kita sedar atau tidak. Saya percaya YAB Datuk Seri Najib mampu membuat keputusan yang baik perihal perlantikan jawatan-jawatan penting dalam Petronas kerana beliau sendiri merupakan bekas pegawai Petronas dan pasti sayang kepada syarikat yang pernah beliau berkhidmat, syarikat yang ditubuhkan ketika pentadbiran bapanya Allahyarham Tun Abdul Razak, Perdana Menteri ke-2.

Orang Amerika ada satu pepatah berbunyi "If it ain't broken, don't fix it." (Kalau benda itu tidak rosak, tidak perlu ia dibaiki). Saya rasa pepatah ini amat sesuai sekali untuk Petronas yang tidak pernah menghampakan apabila setiap tahun, ia melaporkan keuntungan yang besar, yang membolehkan ia memberikan pulangan yang besar juga kepada kerajaan dan rakyat.

Kalau kita sayang Petronas, kita mesti percaya dengan pengurusan yang ada untuk terus memajukan syarikat kebanggaan negara ini. Memanglah orang-orang seperti Tan Sri Hassan tidak boleh menerajui Petronas buat selama-lamanya, namun sekurang-kurangnya, biarlah generasi pelapis yang telah dididik oleh beliau meneruskan legasi syarikat tersebut untuk kemakmuran jangka panjang negara.

EUROCOPTER PURCHASE : CLASSIC CASE OF SOURGRAPE

2008-10-16T12:08:00.002+08:00

A retired Armed Forces Captain, Datuk Zahar Hashim claims there were discrepancies in the tender process which led to French-German aviation firm, Eurocopter, winning the bid to supply the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) with 12 Cougar EC725 long-range tactical transport helicopters to replace the aging Nuri helicopters. The new Cougar choppers will cost the government an estimated RM2.3 billion.

As a military aviation enthusiast, I have been following the progress of the government's intention to replace the aging Nuri choppers with great interest, hoping that the folks at the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) would make a good choice for RMAF's long term use. I was quite happy when the government announced it has made a decision to purchase the Cougars, outbidding 3 other short-listed contenders - the American-made Sikorsky S92; the EH-101 (AW-101) Merlin of British-Italian firm Agusta Westland; and Russia's Mil Mi-17 Hip manufactured by Kazan Helicopters (under license from Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant which is the original manufacturer). I had always anticipated that it was either going to be the Cougar, Sikorsky or the Merlin, based on RMAF's requirement for a long-range versatile chopper with high capability for troop transportation and Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR). The Mil Mi-17 on the other hand, is more popular among Eastern bloc nations, with slightly older technology and less options / compatibility to be fitted with current state-of-the-art avionics and eletronic warfare systems.

To me, Zahar's two letters dated Oct 7 and 9, addressed to Deputy Prime Minister and former Defence Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak (also copied to the Prime Minister's Office, the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA), the Public Accounts Committee and the Public Complaints Bureau) is a classic case of being a sourgrape. Obviously angry because his company Mentari Services Sdn Bhd who represented Kelowna Flightcraft of Canada (for Kazan Helicopters) lost the bid, he is now out to get Najib and those at Mindef, hoping to get full support from the Prime Minister, the ACA and the Member of Parliaments in the PAC.

I feel sad because a sore loser is attempting to screw up the purchase of a helicopter with a proven track record, both during peace and war times. Of course good things come at a price. Here's a simple analogy. Why do people spend a bomb to buy Mercedes Benz or BMW when they can get a Japanese, Korean or even Malaysian marque for a quarter of the price they originally paid for the mentioned German marques? Well, obviously the Benz or the Beemer offers something beyond what Malaysian-made vehicles has - be it performance, ride, handling, safety and other creature comforts, not to the mention state-of-the art features and other options.

Okay, let's look at another analogy which favours Malaysian-made cars, just to be fair. Let's talk about Russian-made cars. Would you rather be seen in a box-like Lada or the sleek Proton Gen-2? Common sense would tell you, of course the latter which is definitely sexier and ages apart in terms of technology from every aspect. The fact remains until today that Russian made cars such as Lada, Gaz, Moskyith and Iz are poorly designed and highly questionable in terms of reliability. But one thing is for sure, they are bloody cheap.

Which brings us to the Russian-made Mil Mi-17 Hip chopper, rejected by Mindef in favour of the Cougar. First and foremost, Zahar's company Mentari Services is obviously several layers down from the chopper's original parent company back in Russia. It is quite baffling when Zahar claimed his company is representing Kelowna Flightcraft of Canada, which is in fact merely an aviation Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) company in British Columbia which I suspect is the marketing agent for Kazan helicopters in Canada. Even if Mindef decided to choose the Mil Mi-17 choppers, it would be much cheaper for the government to deal direct with Kazan Helicopters or better still, Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant in Russia. Why even the need to deal with Mentari Services which obviously would charge hefty commissions and other hidden / discreet charges anyway? The Malayian government already have a good relationship with the Russian government, having purchased the MIG-29N and Sukhoi MKM-30 air superiority fighters under direct negotiations with the sole Russian government defence-related exporting arm, Rosoboronexport. In fact, the purchase of Mil Mi-17 would have had to be made through Rosobornexport which handles all sales of Russian arms to the international market.

Zahar also claims that the government could have save RM1.5 billion by opting for the Mil Mi-17 instead of the Cougar. He said that the government could have bought 30 units of the Mil Mi-17 for the amount paid to Eurocopter for the 12 Cougars. This is a clear cut case of quantity versus quality. We have lost too many airmen already each time a Nuri crashes. Will Zahar will be responsible for more lives if the Mil Mi-17 malfunctions mid-air?

Although I welcome the ACA and PAC's move to probe the Eurocopter deal, I hope the investigations would be done professionally and objectively with inputs and feedbacks from those who are experts in military aviation - the RMAF especially must play a pivotal role in defending their selection for the Cougars during the inquiry. When it comes to selecting the Nuri replacements, there should be no compromise for quality and safety. The MPs in the PAC especially, should not use this issue for political mileage. The business of defending our country's sovereignty via land, sea or air is no joke. It comes with a price. Just look at the defence budget for our southern neighbour and we'll know why. The last thing we want is Malaysia once again being the laughing stock for poor selection of defence equipments and arms. For this matter, the Opposition or potential opportunitist itching to capitalise on this issue for their own mileage should just shut up and leave it to our capable people at Mindef to handle this because it is their business to ensure the country is safe, with the aid of good defence capabilities. And don't even think of using the "waste of taxpayers' money" card for this one. As a taxpayer myself, I want my money to be spent on good defence equipment. I don't want my money to be associated with mediocre defence technology...

BOLLYWOOD STAR DATUKSHIP : ON WHAT GROUNDS?

2008-10-14T11:09:00.003+08:00

The decision by the Malacca State government to confer the Darjah Mulia Seri Melaka (DMSM) which carries the title "Datuk" to Bollywood hearthrob, Shah Rukh Khan makes me more convinced that the Malacca Datukship is one of the "cheapest" in terms of prestige and credibility, compared to other states. In fact, a harsher Malay word for it would be "koman."

I regard the conferment to Shah Rukh Khan as the "pinnacle of mediocracy" by the State government which has a tendency to award Datukships to any Tom, Dick and Harry.

Having served a former senior federal-level politician some years back (who also had the honour of being bestowed with a Malacca Datukship at that time), I noticed that the list of recipients for that particular year was not even close to being credible, authoritative and having done great services to the State, let alone the country. My conclusion at that time was, if you were a politician or government officer having served in Malacca for a couple of years and was in the good books of the Chief Minister or Yang Dipertua Negeri (Governor), then you're set to at least get the entry-level DMSM. Oh, and let's not forget the typical "mengampu" businessmen and lobbyists too.

Yesterday, the Artistes Association of Malaysia (Seniman) also filed an official protest over Malacca's move to make Shah Rukh Khan a Datuk at a press conference by its president Datuk Mustapha Maarof who said the Datukship for Shah Rukh belittles the credibility and creativity of local talent. And so did Film Directors Association of Malaysia president Ahmad Ibrahim (Mat London) who was convinced that Shah Rukh doesn't even know what being a Datuk meant. And I totally agree with him, which explains why Shah Rukh didn't even bother to attend the investiture ceremony in conjunction with the Governor's birthday last Saturday. He was probably sipping cocktail in his mansion in Mumbai and said "Yeah, whatever" when his assistant conveyed him the happy news that he was now a Datuk.

I think I know the real reason behind the Datukship conferment. It's plain simple. Shah Rukh comes to Malacca for a special investiture ceremony next month, haves lunch or hi-tea with the Governor, Chief Minister and other State VIPs and then attends a meet-the-fans session in town to press some flesh, if he even bothers. And then he might shoot a scene from his latest movie somewhere in Banda Hilir and returns to India. And in a few months time, local die-hard fans of Shah Rukh will eagerly storm cinemas nationwide to catch a glimpse of Malacca again, just like they did in "One Two Ka Four" where one of the song scenes of the movie was shot in A Famosa Resort, Alor Gajah. This is how pathetic we have become, endlessly attempting to piggy-back on almost any opportunity which comes our way, all in the name of promoting our country for tourism purposes.

I'm going end this post with my two-cents worth of advice to the Malacca State government regarding conferment of Datukships to the undeserving, in my mother tongue - "Sudah sudah lah tu."

My Conscience Is Still Clear - ISA Must Be Maintained

2008-09-15T09:42:00.001+08:00

Those of you opposing the Internal Security Act (ISA) or Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri better think again. In the first place, what makes you think that the silent majority wants this so-called draconian law to be abolished in the first place? Mana you all tau yang orang lain nak ISA dimansuhkan? For all you know, the ones supporting ISA outnumber you in figures more than you can possibly imagine.

Here's my point - NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW. The arrest of Sin Chew Daily's Tan Hoon Cheng was necessary to dilute the thickness of the current racial sensitivity issue. Lagipun, she was only detained for 18 hours and the Home Minister already said that it was for her own personal safety jugak. If I was Tan, I'd feel honoured because I got the red carpet treatment from the police who is concerned about my safety.

Sometimes I wonder, our tendency to criticise the police lately, does this mean we could do a better job if we were them? Kalau pandai sangat bab-bab policing ni, why the hell didn't you all signed up to join the force upon graduation or after leaving school dulu? The Royal Malaysian Police's business is ensuring public order and national internal security. Faham tak? They know best how to handle the situation. Cut them some slack okay?

As for Teresa Kok and Raja Petra, it was high time they were detained under ISA. Teresa should have known better than to meddle with sensitive religious matters where in this case, she said that the Azan (call for prayers) should not be allowed to be amplified on loudspeakers at the mosques. What does she expect? That the Malay Muslims would say "Duly noted, YB Teresa, the Azan is gone with immediate effect?"

Many of you will hate what I'm going to say next but what the hell. I'm going to say it anyway. For far too long, the Malays have been too accomodating and because of that, finally, after 51 years, the non-Malays are showing their true colours and making their move like a lion waiting to pounce on the zebra. Teresa Kok wants to complain about the Azan. But have we Malays ever complained in public about the noise that the Chinese make during Chinese New Year - the deafening lion dances, the fire crackers, the stuffed pig right in front of our homes etc.? Pernah tak? Tak pernah! And the same goes for Thaipusam - have we ever complained about the massive traffic jams and road closures we have to endure to enable the Hindu Gods to have a clear passage from Petaling Street to Batu Caves? Pernah tak? Tak pernah!

Why? Because we Malays respect other people's right to practice their own beliefs and religions. But when someone like Teresa Kok starts making statements like these, of course hati orang Melayu akan terguris. And I expect all Malays reading this to concur. Because if you don't, then you lots are the ones who are going to make the Malays end up at the very bottom of the social hierarchy in this country in no time - just like the Malays in Singapore.We Malays are not racists. It is the non-Malays whom are testing our patience. Don't push it!

I am ending this note with a quote by Allahyarham Tun Abdul Razak, our second Prime Minister."SEKIRANYA ORANG-ORANG MELAYU GEMBIRA, MAKA ORANG-ORANG LAIN JUGA AKAN GEMBIRA DI NEGARA INI"

Think about it and re-think your thoughts on ISA. Tolong bersyukur, be grateful for what we have enjoyed and benefited so far. It is because laws such as ISA that we can sleep tight at night.

Semoga Allah s.w.t. merahmati tanahairku Malaysia....

When Our Numero Uno Soldier Speaks

2008-09-10T11:12:00.002+08:00

Some may dismiss it as just another government official making a statement in response to the current political situation. But when the Panglima Angkatan Tentera or Armed Forces Chief talks, even if it was a mere whisper, you listen. And listen carefully.

Yesterday, our number one military officer, General Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Zainal called on the government to take stern action on anyone who raises racial issues as it is a serious matter which can threaten the security of the nation.

"Racial issues should not be raised as they are a threat to national security," he said, in light of the many polemics recently in relation to racial issues.

It wasn't just a call. It was a warning. And it applies to all, regardless of your political alignment. Whether you are UMNO, MCA, MIC, Gerakan, PPP, PKR, PAS or DAP. It doesn't matter whether you are Malay, Chinese, Indians, Punjabi or Chindian.

Just because many Malaysians believe that the country is drastically changing after the March 8 General Election does not mean that our security forces - both the police and armed forces are taking the situation lying down. No way. Just because some bloggers think they are God now because people read the rubbish they write in cyberspace does not mean that the country's administrative and security protocols which have been in place for the past few decades have been jeorpadised or weakened. Dream on.

Those of you who are fond of criticising our men in uniform lately better think again. The Royal Malaysian Police and the Malaysian Armed Forces already have in place their standard operating procedures to ensure public order and national security remain intact. Don't even think for a minute that they have become lackadaisical. They are pretty much alert. I know because I have close friends in the police, Army, Navy, Air Force and even the newly formed MMEA.

Just because the HINDRAF demonstrators got away relatively scot-free is not an indication that our security forces have gone soft. The Army could have deployed their tanks and armoured cars to crush the demonstrators if they wanted to. Let's recap history which took place not so long ago, in 1989 to be exact. Remember the Tiananmen Square protests? The Chinese government simply deployed hundreds of People's Liberation Army tanks and armoured personnel carrier to suppress and crush the protestors. The two-month long series of protests by intellectuals, activists and students which began in mid April was ended in less than a day using the might of the military. And guess what, the same Chinese government is still in power, the same people who organised the recently concluded 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. How about that?

Morale of the story - DO NOT underestimate the capabilities of the Malaysian Armed Forces. Our soldiers have an awesome reputation globally and this is recognised even by their counterparts in the United States and United Kingdom.

These boys have sacrificed a lot to ensure that we continue to enjoy a peaceful life in Malaysia. While they are patrolling our borders in the middle of the night, most of us are tucked comfortably in bed, snoring like nobody's business. And why can we snore like nobody's business? Because a soldier on duty that night said "Sleep tight my fellow countrymen. The only possible threat to you tonight are mosquitos. Leave the rest to me. Nothing else will bother you. Not on my watch...."

NATION IN DISTRESS? I DON'T THINK SO.

2008-08-07T09:54:00.002+08:00

For the past few days, several prominent bloggers such as Rocky, Sheih Azidi (Kickdefella), Haris Ibrahim (People's Parliament) and Eric Woon (I Am A Malaysian) has been dramatically urging Malaysians to fly the Jalur Gemilang flag upside down as a sign of protest for the current state of affairs in the country, which they claim and coined as "a nation in distress."

Dia orang ni drama lah. They accuse the BN Federal Government of causing grief and unhappiness to the rakyat, to the extent that since the March 8 general election, they claimed that Malaysia has lost its economic competitiveness, causing foreign investors to shy away and opt for other more investor-friendly nations such as Vietnam, China, India and of course Singapore (dia orang ni semua kalau bab memuji Singapore nombor satu - tapi tak nak le pulak pergi duduk terus kat situ). But these are also the same people who spread tales such as these in their blogs, indoctrinating the minds of Malaysia's younger generations - making their readers believe that Malaysia is really in state of distress and the "rakyat is left to rot" as so eloquently said by Eric Woon in his I Am A Malaysia blog.

Apa yang nation in distress-nya? Someone please stand up and give me a convincing answer. For starters, these bloggers - while preaching to the whole country that Malaysia is in a mess, are not exactly hardcore poor, living in dilapidated huts somewhere in some remote kampung in Jerantut, Pahang without water and electricity, not to mention internet connection for them to spread more "blown out of proportion" tales in their blogs. Most bloggers are actually professionals - lawyers, doctors, engineers, businessmen, accountants, public relations executive etc. etc. whom are quite well off - driving fancy cars, gulping RM20 ringgit frapuccinos or whatever cinos from Starbucks and lives in swanky condos somewhere in Bukit Antarabangsa or Bangsar. And they claim Malaysia is in distress. These buggers should be sent to Sudan or Mauritania for a month - there they offer you first class "nation in distress" package. Nak sangat ke jadi nation in distress? I just don't get these anti-establishment lots.

Pokok pangkalnya, kita kena sentiasa bersyukur dengan apa yang dah kita nikmati selama ni. Just be thankful. Ini tak. Forever complaining and whining - itu tak betul, ini tak betul. To me, if the PM, DPM and Cabinet Ministers are filthy rich (memang dah kaya pun), so be it. I don't see any problem. Biarlah dia orang nak kaya. Yang kita nak dengki sangat kenapa? If you wanna experience wealth, then work for it. Don't simply accuse rich people and rich politicians of acquiring their wealth due to cronyism or nepotism or connections. Who are we to tell or judge that these people got rich through illegitimate ways? For all you know, they worked hard for it. My parents are quite well off - living in a nice big bungalow with 3 fancy cars. You got a problem with that? Does that make us bad people? Think again. I am thankful and proud because my parents are the humblest people that I know - helping the needy sedaya mungkin, driving up north to Perak frequently to visit the orphanages which they helped build and develop, organising weekly religious classes and ceramahs at their home and why? Because they are thankful for what Allah swt. have given them. Ini tak - asyik complain, complain, complain - entah-entah sembahyang pun tak cukup lima waktu. Yang dia orang besarkan gathering of bloggers to further condemn and criticise the establishment. Daripada buat benda-benda macam tu, lebih baik ke masjid ke, church ke or their respective temples.

I'll give you a simple scenario why I believe our country is still okay. Do we see daily riots and people looting the streets, robbing convenience shops and creating chaos, disrupting public order? Tak ada kan? Remember when Indonesians ransacked (I think destroyed is a better word) the American hypermarket Wal-Mart in suburban Jakarta almost a decade ago because the economy in that country was so bad? Do you see that happening in Malaysia. So far tak ada kan? To me, that is my definition of nation in distress.

We still have enough money to eat, pay our bills, car instalments, home loan etc. Siap ada disposable income lagi - kalau tak tak kan le shopping sakan macam beruk almost every week, sale or no sale.

Bloggers yang macam gini bukannya apa, yang sebenarnya exicted sangat sebab Pakatan Rakyat managed to topple BN in four states and denied them the 2/3 majority in Parliament. Konon-kononya moving forward for change lah tu. Some even had the cheek to say that for 51 years, Malaysia did not really achieve anything pun. I quote Eric Woon "51 years of no-sense". Kepala hotak dia orang.

My message to people like these senang aje - if you don't like the current arrangements, please feel free to pack up and leave. If you are a true Malaysian, then you must respect the Federal Constitution, especially Article 152 and Article 153 which also includes the social contract. I'm not going to waste my time elaborating on what the social contract is. You know and I know what it is. Again, if you don't like it - I'm sure the United States of America, Canada or Australia would be more than willing to accomodate people like you so that their Chinatowns of San Francisco, New York, Toronto or Sydney would be merrier.

Nation in distress, konon. Tak reti nak bersyukur langsung.

SNIPPETS

2008-08-04T12:54:00.003+08:00

READER POSTED RELIGIOUS-SENSITIVE COMMENT ON LIM KIT SIANG'S BLOG

This is too much already. I cannot believe my eyes when I read a comment posted in Lim Kit Siang's blog last week (July 22nd). (http://www.blog.limkitsiang.com/)

The comment was posted by a reader known as KCB (obviously non-Muslim), regarding Kit Siang's blog post entitled "UMNO-PAS Malay Unity Talks".

In that post, Kit Siang criticised Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for holding talks with PAS in a move which he sees as steering away from the "Malaysian Malaysia" concept of which he and DAP are championing.

I don't really care about what Kit Siang said in his post because everybody knows his stand on the matter.

And as usual, readers supported Kit Siang in the comments thread by further shelling Abdullah, claiming that the UMNO-PAS talks was a move to uphold Malay supremacy and will lead to severe racial polarization in the country. That is fine with me because knowing Kit Siang, he would only publish comments supporting his views of the day.

But I cannot accept the comment posted by KCB in the comment thread. It was totally irrelevant and worse, it ridiculed Muslims. This is the comment :

kcb Says: Yesterday at 14: 38.52
Now I know why some people have to pray 5 times a day!!!

That comment was totally disrespectful and most insensitive. For KCB's information, it is compulsory for all Muslims to perform prayers 5 times a day - Subuh, Zuhur, Asar, Maghrib and Isyak because Allah swt says so. No one can dispute that.

How on earth did Kit Siang or his blog administrator allow such comments to be posted?
I demand Kit Siang and KCB (if he dares come out in the open) to issue a formal apology to all Muslims not just in Malaysia but worldwide.

This is my message to all blog readers - please be tactful and considerate when posting comments.

Think with your heads, not with your knees!

HFMD IN TAMAN MELAWATI : PARENTS BLEW IT OUT OF PROPORTION

I'm really angry with parents of SK Taman Melawati 2 pupils who took it among themselves to contact the New Straits Times, expressing their concern over the school's allegedly lackadaisical approach to contain the hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) of which 5 cases were reported but only two were confirmed (NST, pg. 22, 1 August 2008).

My daughter is also a Year One pupil at the school and I felt a knot in my stomach when I read the news report at first glance. But upon reading it carefully, I then realised that everything was under control and this was further confirmed when I personally called the school and also a friend at the Health Department.

This is exactly the problem with overzealous and whining parents which I can personally vouch are aplenty at the school. During the school's Parent Teacher Association (PIBG) Annual General Meeting earlier this year (if those parents even bothered to attend), the headmistress humbly requested that all parents communicate directly with the school's management if there were any issues, complaints or dissatisfaction regarding the wellbeing of their children. The last thing she wanted are gung-ho parents using the media to air their grouses because the media will not necessarily be able to solve the problem at hand (trust me, I was a journalist for almost a decade, so I know the deal).

I actually went to the school the same evening to fetch my daughter (whom normally takes a school van), just to have a first hand look at the situation. Majority of parents whom I spoke to said they were aware of the HFMD case (from NST) but not worried at all because if there was actually an outbreak, the school would have been closed already. In fact, several of the parents whom I met that evening were doctors and they said there was absolutely nothing to worry about. True to their words, the moment our children were released from school at 6.30 pm that evening, all I can see were hundreds of bubly and rosy cheeked 7 - 9 year olds running happily to their waiting mommys and daddys.

To the parents whom contacted the media over this issue, I hope you know the consequences of your selfish action. SK Taman Melawati 2 is the best primary school in the Gombak district and a lot of parents would do anything, including pull strings, to get their children enrolled there. I have high confidence and faith in the capabilities of the school's headmistress and teachers in taking care of our children. Don't put this school in the limelight for all the wrong reasons. After all, this is where our children get their education, unless you want to transfer them to another government school or better still, fork out a bomb to enroll them into a private school just 5 minutes away. Perhaps there they will communicate with you for even the most trivial matters such as the colour of socks your child should wear for the monhtly or quarterly school plays or concerts.

If not, let's all agree that for now, SK Taman Melawati 2 is a good deal, so count your blessings instead.

ANWAR AND PERMATANG PAUH

I find it amusing that all these while, we've been hearing that almost every key leader in Pakatan Rakyat (the opposition alliance comprising Parti Keadilan Rakyat, DAP and PAS) offering to vacate their Parliamentary seats for their de-facto leader, Datuk Seri Anwar "Al-Posterior" Ibrahim. At long last, it is his wife Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah who decided to resign as Permatang Pauh MP to make way for hubby dearest to contest in what must be "the mother of safest seats" for the former DPM.

What happened to the likes of Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, Menteri Besar of Selangor who said he'd willingly sacrifice his Bandar Tun Razak parliamentary seat for Anwar? Even Tian Chua who said he had no qualms to give his Batu seat or Azmin Ali who'd relinquish his Gombak seat, all for the love of Anwar?

Podah! Cakap aje berdegor-degor (Perak slang for not walking the talk). Last-last, bini jugak yang berkorban....

ISETAN SALE, PC FAIR AND TRAFFIC JAM

Over the weekend, Suria KLCC was jam-packed with people seeking "retail therapy" due to a double-whammy - the Isetan Megasale and the Pikom PC Fair.

Ini lah orang Malaysia - pantang dengar sale, semua rushing like mad. But then again, I was one of the guilty ones because I did bought a Casio G-Shock watch at Isetan, hehe. It was just too good to pass - 20% discount for Isetan card members. The watch which originally cost RM339 was reduced to RM271, thanks to the discount. I am big fan of Casio G-Shock watches - this is my third one. This is one thing which the Swiss can never match the Japanese - the latter makes high-quality watches at really, really affordable prices. Anyway, I do have a Tissot T-Touch timepiece which cost me more than RM2K - at least kena la ada jugak one Swiss timepiece in a lifetime, betul tak?

Back to the Isetan megasale and PC Fair - I have never seen so many people converge in one place - macam sardin, siap boleh berlaga buntut lagi. And yet people complain times are tough lah, fuel price is too much to bear lah, nak ubah lifestyle lah. Again, tak ada maknanya! When the government decided to raise the price of petrol from RM1.92 to RM2.70, majority of Malaysian cursed - hentam government and worse, even hentam PETRONAS yang tak ada kena-mengena pun sebenarnya. And I can bet, 90% of those who cursed the government when fuel prices went up are the same people who thronged KLCC for the Isetan sale and PC Fair. Eh, pelik kan? At first complaining because their budget is now tighter than a corsette, and here they are splurging like mad. I actually saw a guy emerging from the PC Fair (held at KL Convention Centre) with a trolley filled with printers, printer cartridges, a notebook computer and several other PC peripherals. Kiasu betul!

I actually sent my wife to KLCC on Saturday because she too wanted to buy some stuff at Isetan. I've already decided that I didn't want to accompany her because my eldest daughter was at school (replacement for upcoming Aidilfitri break) and my youngest daughter would surely throw a tantrum in a place filled with crazy shoppers. But what I thought would be a simple drop-off turned out to be a nightmare because it took me almost 30 minutes to enter KLCC via the KL-Ampang Elevated Highway entrance - the queue of automobiles was that long. Again, ada pun duit nak bayar duit minyak kereta kan?

TWO-WHEELERS ON THE KL-AMPANG ELEVATED HIGHWAY

I wish to register my disgust with the authorities who see fit to allow motorcycles on the KL-Ampang Elevated Highway. This 7-km expressway, which enables cars to zoom into KL from Ampang and Hulu Kelang in under 10 minutes, has now been invaded by motorcycles whom I must say, are behaving like apes because they have finally been allowed to taste the forbidden fruit.

The elevated highway was not designed for bikes. It has no provision for motorcycle lanes, and motorcyclists pose a danger to all motorists (paying users) as they zig zag, in and out of fast moving automobiles.

Prolintas (the PNB subsidiary which is the highway's operator and concession-holder) admitted that it was the authorities whom had allowed motorcycles to use the highway, in early July, although the signs at all entrances prohibit motorcycles!

Dah la tak kena bayar, mencilok bagai nak rak. Menyampah!

Ini mesti kerja Pak Lah jugak ni - sejak kena belasah teruk in the March 8 general election, bagi segala benda to various parties and quarters of the rakyat, sebab nak cuba puaskan hati semua orang, kan? Entah lah - tak kuasa nak fikir benda-benda macam ni....
Doesn't the Transport Ministry undertake any study before implementing such things?

Understanding Petronas

2008-06-18T12:17:00.013+08:00

A lot of people do not understand the role and function of Petronas, which is essentially a company, a business entity, which operates on a commercial manner, to mainly generate income and value for its shareholder. In this case, PETRONAS' shareholder is the Government.

In 1974, when Petronas was set up, the Government gave Petronas RM10 million (peanuts, right?) as seed capital. From 1974 to 2007, PETRONAS made RM570 billion in accumulated profits, and returned to the Government a total of RM335.7 billion. That is about 65% of the profits. That means for every RM1 that Petronas makes, 65 sen goes back to the Government.

Last year, Petronas made a pre-tax profit of RM86.8 billion. The amount given back to the Government (in royalty, dividends, corporate income tax, petroleum products income tax and export duty) was RM52.3 billion. The rest of the profit was used to pay off minority interests and taxes in foreign countries (about RM7.8 billion - Petronas now operates in more than 30 countries), and the remaining RM26.7 billion was reinvested. The amount reinvested seems a lot, but the oil and gas industry is technology- and capital-intensive. Costs have gone up exponentially in the last couple of years. Previously, to drill a well, it cost about US$3 million; now it costs US$7 million. The use of rigs was US$200,000 a day a couple of years ago; now it costs US$600,000 a day.

A lot of people also do not realise that the amount returned by Petronas to the Government makes up 35% of the Government's total annual income, to be used by the Government for expenditures, development, operations, and yes, for the various subsidies. That means for every RM1 the Government makes, 35 sen is contributed by Petronas. So, instead of asking what happens to Petronas' money or profits, people should be questioning how the money paid by Petronas' to the Government is allocated.

A lot of people also ask, why Malaysia exports its crude oil. Shouldn't we just stop exporting and sell at cheaper prices to local refiners? If Malaysia is an oil exporting country, why can't we sell petrol or diesel at cheaper prices like other oil producing countries in the Middle East?

I guess I don't have to answer the first couple of questions. It's simple economics, and crude oil is a global commodity.

Why can't we sell petrol and diesel at lower prices like in the Middle East? Well, comparing Saudi Arabia and other big producers to Malaysia is like comparing kurma to durian, because tese Middle Eastern countries have much, much, much bigger oil and gas reserves.

Malaysia has only 5.4 billion barrels of oil reserves, and about 89 trillion cubic feet of gas. Compare that to Saudi Arabia's 260 billion barrels of oil and 240 trillion cubic feet of gas. Malaysia only produces 600,000 barrels per day of oil. Saudi Arabia produces 9 million barrels per day. At this rate, Saudi Arabia's crude oil sales revenue could amount to US$1.2 billion per day! At this rate, it can practically afford almost everything -- free education, healthcare, etc, and subsidies -- for its people.
But if we look at these countries closely, they have in the past few years started to come up with policies and strategies designed to prolong their reserves and diversify their income bases. In this sense, Malaysia (and Petronas) has had a good head start, as we have been doing this a long time.

Fuel prices in Malaysia is controlled by the Government based on a formula under the Automatic Pricing Mechanism introduced more than a couple of decades ago. It is under this mechanism that the complex calculation of prices is made, based on the actual cost of petrol or diesel, the operating costs, margin for dealers, margin for retail oil companies (including Petronas Dagangan Bhd) and the balancing number of duty or subsidy. No retail oil companies or dealers actually make money from the hike of the fuel prices. Oil companies pay for the products at market prices, but have to sell low, so the Government reimburses the difference -- thus subsidy.

Subsidy as a concept is OK as long as it benefits the really deserving segment of the population. But there has to be a limit to how much and how long the Government should bear and sustain subsidy. An environment where prices are kept artificially low indefinitely will not do anyone any good. That's why countries like Indonesia are more pro-active in removing subsidies. Even Vietnam (which is a socialist country, by the way) is selling fuel at market prices.

I feel I also need to say something on the allegation that Petronas is not transparent in terms of its accounts, business transactions etc.

Petronas is first and foremost a company, operating under the rules and regulations of the authorities including the Registrar of Companies, and the Securities Commission and Bursa Malaysia for its listed four subsidiaries (Petronas Dagangan Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd, MISC Bhd and KLCC Property Holdings Bhd.

Petronas the holding company produces annual reports which are made to whomever wants them, and are distributed to many parties and places; including to the library at the Parliament House for perusal and reading pleasure of all Yang Berhormat MPs (if they care to read). Petronas also makes the annual report available on its website, for those who bother to look. The accounts are duly audited.

The website also contains a lot of useful information, if people really care to find out. Although Petronas is not listed on Bursa Malaysia, for all intents and purposes, it could be considered a listed entity as its bonds and financial papers are traded overseas. This requires scrutiny from investors, and from rating agencies such as Standard & Poor and Moody's.

There are also calls by the Malaysian public especially through blogs, alternative news portal, Facebook, Friendster, MySpace, Multiply and various social interface networks on the internet to boycott Petronas. Well, the last time I checked, this is still a democratic country, where people are free to spend their money wherever they like.

For those who like to see more of the money that they spend go back to the local economy and benefiting their fellow Malaysians, perhaps they should consider sticking to local products or companies.

For those who like to see that the money they spend go back to foreign shareholders of the foreign companies overseas, they should continue buying foreign products.

I'm sorry if this is rather long, but I just have to convey it. I hope this would help some of you out there understand something. The oil and gas industry, apart from being very capital intensive, is also very complex and volatile.

Don't simply attack Petronas. Check your facts first.

Dr. Faiz Khaled - Don't Push Your Luck!

2008-04-23T13:40:00.004+08:00

Tak Ada Maknanya!!

The more I read about our now uncertain astronaut programme, the more I'm convinced that our second astronaut candidate, Major Dr. Faiz Khaled is getting more and more desperate to get his ass to outer space.

I can understand the army dentist's predicament. His colleague - Dr. Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor is already on cloud nine with all the glamour and glory after being the first Malaysian to go to space and spend a few days at the International Space Station, hence earning the UKM physician cum model the undisputable title of "Angkasawan Pertama Negara" or something like that.

But the thing is my dear Dr. Faiz Khaled, more and more Malaysians are now convinced that it is a total waste of money to send you for another excursion to space. Money that we don't have. Faham tak?

Please don't patronise us with your now so boring standard quotes like "the aerospace industry is an investment by Malaysia in education, science and technology" or "the angkasawan programme would inspire more young Malaysians to excel in science and technology" and a million other gobbledygook. Tolonglah!

Newly appointed Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili already said that the ministry, which is in charge of the Malaysian space programme, does not have sufficient funds in its coffers to finance Dr Faiz's taxi ride to space because this time around, the government would have to foot the bill in full, about RM100 million or perhaps even more, compared to Dr. Sheikh's taxi ride which was under a contra-deal made with the Russians when we bought the Sukhoi MKM-30 air superiority fighter jets for the RMAF. Itupun the Malaysian government still had to fork out quite a sum to finance both Dr Sheikh's and Dr. Faiz's zig zagging between Malaysia and Russia for training and all. So there you have it - kita dah memang tak ada duit nak hantar awak pergi angkasa lepas, reti?

This is exactly the problem with Dr Faiz Khaled and even Dr Sheikh for that matter. Dua-dua perasan bagus. They think they are so cool already just because they are the country's astronauts (well, almost for Dr Faiz). They should be ashamed if they compared themselves with the US astronauts, Russians cosmonauts and Chinese taikonauts. You know why? I'll tell you why. Let's take US astronauts for example. Most of them are either US Air Force, US Army, US Navy or US Marine Corp pilots who have logged more than 6,000 flying hours (both combat and peace time) which is one of the pre-requisites to even be considered for entry into the coveted US Astronaut Corp under NASA. And that's not all. Being merely military pilots does not qualify them automatically. They must also possess degrees or double degrees in core science disciplines related to aerospace or space science such as nano-physics, nuclear-physics, astro-physics, advanced biology, advanced chemistry etc. etc. etc. This would enable them to either become mission commanders (meaning flying the space shuttle using their military aviation background) or mission specialists (meaning they can conduct high tech and meaningful science & technology experiments in space using their academic background). In short, US astronauts are required to be all rounders.

That's just the paper qualifications. And then comes the training. US astronauts train for a minimum of 7 to 8 years prior to lift off to space. Itu pun belum tentu dapat pergi, tau tak? There is no guarantee by NASA that you will get a seat in the space shuttle even if you have trained for that many years. Because it's so competitive and standards are very, very high. You'd be lucky if you are in the first back-up team or second back-up team.

Having said all that, it is also the same for the Russian cosmonauts and Chinese taikonauts. Most of them are military aviators with superior academic background. Bukannya macam our angkasawan yang undergo abridged training for 18 months. Dr Sheikh and Dr Faiz attended "short-cut" training because the cash-strapped Russians already promised the Malaysian government that by hook or by crook, one of the boys would be in space within the agreed timeframe.

And when Dr Sheikh returned to earth and back to Malaysia, what did we get?? Did we benefit at all? Well, perhaps school kids are inspired and excited to see the angkasawan when he conducts motivational talks at their school but that's as good as it gets. Where on earth are all the end results of the experiments he conducted for the good of mankind? Are we ever going to be at least informed of the end results no matter how long it takes? Hmm, memang tak ada le tu rasanya. As usual, Malaysia end up with dirt again, being suckered big time by Russia.

So, here's an advice to Dr. Faiz - stop whining and if you don't get to go, deal with it. No need to justify with all sorts of comments in the media. Kalau dapat pergi, bagus, Alhamdulillah. Kalau tak dapat, duduk aje diam-diam.

We Cannot Simply Compare Based On Forex

2008-04-16T10:18:00.004+08:00

Malaysia's ERL - better than London's Heathrow Express?? Wow!

I'm so sick and tired of both the government and private sector who has the tendency to compare loosely based on foreign exchange when justifying their claims that prices in Malaysia (for whatever products or services) are cheaper than other countries.

The latest was Dr. Aminuddin Adnan, CEO of Express Rail Link (ERL) Sdn Bhd who said that the ERL (Malaysia's high speed train from Kuala Lumpur to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport) is better than the ones in Europe, particularly the Heathrow Express. The story was published in the New Straits Times yesterday. The statement was made by the CEO to refute claims by Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad Workers Union president Abdul Razak Md Hassan that the service was not practical and cost-effective in a report in Mingguan Malaysia on Sunday when rejecting a proposal by YTL Corporation (ERL's parent company) to start a bullet train service from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore.

Come on, ERL better than Heathrow Express? Oh please. I've been on the latter during my visits to London - you cannot compare with ERL. Period.

Anyway, what Dr Aminuddin meant by saying ERL is better than the ones in Europe was in terms of cost and also ticket price. The CEO claims that overall expenditure on the project was RM2 billion, which remained the lowest cost per kilometre, or RM35 million, (20 per cent of the cost of Heathrow Express in London).

Aminuddin added that the ERL service was 99.7 per cent reliable, which was much better than similar services in Europe or local train services. He also said the RM35 fee per trip was significantly cheaper than in London which charged STG17 (RM107) for half the distance.

Now, this is what I want to refute - it costs RM107 for a ride on the Heathrow Express from Heathrow International Airport to London's Paddington Station. Of course it would cost that much for a Malaysian but for a British, it is a straight forward 17 bloody pounds! And to the Brits, 17 bloody pounds is the same as RM17, get it?! If Dr Aminuddin really wants to claim that ERL is cheap, why not reduce the price from RM35 to say RM20? I'd say that's a fair price, don't you think?

This is exactly our problem. We like to compare loosely based on foreign exchange. I'll give you a simple example. Say you travel to London for a vacation and you walk into a McDonald's for your favourite Double Cheeseburger. Here in Malaysia, the burger would cost about RM4.75 or let's just round it up to RM5. In London, the same burger would cost about STG3.50 or let's just round it up to STG4. Okay, and now comes the foreign exchange calculation - STG4 x 7.5 = RM30. Would you say that the Double Cheeseburger in London is bloody expensive because its RM30?? Or would you just take it at face value, and pay the bloody STG4 like any other Brit for the burger? If we are so obsessed with calculating forex, don't even bother to holiday in Europe, US, Australia or any country of which the forex is to our disadvantage. Because the fact is, our Ringgit is what it is at the moment, not as strong as the USD, STG, Euro or the AUD.

And I won't even bother to discuss about our government's tendency to compare, again loosely on forex, when claiming that our fuel prices are the cheapest in South East Asia (except for Brunei). Meaning Brunei is still the cheapest, right? And what about fuel prices in the United States? Over there in the great land of Uncle Sam, they charge fuel by the gallons. Miles per gallon. That's why Americans can afford to drive fuel guzzlers with mammoth engine capacity - V8s, V10s, V12s. We're talking 5.0 or 6.0 litres family sedans and SUVs here.

Stop this nonsense comparison please!

Goodbye EPL Title, Try Again Next Season Gunners

2008-04-14T09:00:00.002+08:00

It's all cast in stone now. Arsenal will not lift the EPL title this season after losing 1-2 to MU at Old Trafford early this morning (Malaysian time).

This also means no silverware at all for the Gunners this season after failing to advance to the semis of the Champions League (no thanks to Liverfool) and also the FA Cup (again, no thanks to MU). It's a pity really because Arsenal performed exceptionally well at the start of the season on to mid-season but unfortunately, kind of lost its magic towards the end.

Arsenal has two options now. Either win all remaining four games and hope MU loses at least three (yeah, right!) or just take it easy and really focus for next season. I'd say go for option one - win all four games and at least end the season with some dignity. Who knows, Gunners can even secure second spot and knock Chelsea down to third.

Whatever it is, Arsenal played a splendid game against MU yesterday. They fought till the end. Lady luck just weren't on their side. They deserved to win. I hate MU. Period.

Oh, here's a message to Owen Hargreaves who scored MU's winning goal - you're only great in England, you won't even be playing in Euro 2008 because England won't be there. Sucker!

Anyway, to Arsenal, I will always love you guys and support you forever. I've been supporting you guys since I was 8 years old.

Go Gunners!

Keputusan PRU 12 : Melayu Mesti Sedar Bahaya Yang Dihadapi

2008-03-12T19:37:00.002+08:00

Keputusan Pilihanraya Umum Ke-12 (PRU 12) telahpun diketahui dan rakyat Malaysia telahpun membuat pilihan.

Saya hanya mampu menggelengkan kepala apabila keputusan diumumkan di kaca televisyen pada malam 8 Mac dan juga awal pagi 9 Mac. Saya bersengkang mata hingga ke subuh untuk mendapat kepastian dan merasa begitu terkilan apabila mengetahui rakyat Malaysia memilih untuk menumbangkan kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN) di empat negeri pantai barat iaitu Kedah, Pulau Pinang, Perak dan Selangor. Malah, BN telah dinafikan majoriti dua pertiga di Parlimen. Syukur Alhamdulillah kerana BN masih mampu menubuhkan Kerajaan Persekutuan dengan majoriti mudah.

Berdasarkan keputusan PRU 12 tersebut, saya berharap rakyat Malaysia, khususnya orang-orang Melayu yang ”anti-establishment” telah berpuas hati dengan apa yang mereka lakukan. Atas alasan undi protes dan juga emosi jangka pendek, mereka sanggup menggadaikan masa hadapan kaum mereka sendiri hingga menyebabkan Pulau Pinang kini diterajui oleh seorang Ketua Menteri dari parti DAP yang jelas lebih mengutamakan satu kaum sahaja walaupun mendakwa mereka parti pelbagai kaum. Perak juga diambang pemerintahan seorang Menteri Besar dari parti yang sama. Selangor pula mendapat Menteri Besar dari Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) yang bertanggungjawab melumpuhkan kewangan sebuah syarikat besar negara ketika beliau menerajui syarikat tersebut sehingga memaksa ”mega merger” untuk menyelamatkan ia daripada melingkup. Kedah pula bakal mengalami keadaan caca marba seperti Terengganu pada tahun 1999 di bawah kepimpinan PAS. Silap haribulan, destinasi pelancongan tersohor negara iaitu Langkawi bakal menjadi ”sleepy hollow” akibat dasar-dasar PAS yang sudah hampir pasti akan dilaksanakan di Negeri Jelapang Padi itu.

Bagus dan tahniah kepada orang-orang Melayu yang ”anti-establishment” yang memainkan peranan besar menumbangkan BN di negeri-negeri tersebut. Teruskan perbuatan anda di PRU 13 lima tahun dari sekarang. Sudah alang-alang, tumbangkan terus BN di peringkat persekutuan. Ketika itu nanti, barulah tahu langit itu tinggi atau rendah. Lihatlah sahaja Pulau Pinang, baru sehari dua memerintah, DAP sudah tunjuk belang. Tidak perlu saya cerita lebih panjang kerana bimbang akan mewujudkan elemen berbau perkauman.

Kalau orang Melayu tidak sedar lagi bahaya yang sedang dihadapi, bermakna masa hadapan anak cucu kita sudahpun di pahat secara kekal di tembok perjalanan politik, sosial dan ekonomi negara yang amat saya sayangi dan cintai ini.

Pengundi-pengundi kaum bukan Melayu telahpun menunjukkan belang mereka ketika PRU 12 yang baru berlangsung dengan memilih parti yang boleh memastikan kepentingan mereka terus dipelihara malah mungkin juga ditingkatkan ke tahap yang mampu menghakis atau melenyapkan terus ketuanan Melayu di negara ini. Pulau Pinang, Perak dan kerusi-kerusi Parlimen di Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur adalah bukti nyata akan langkah nekad kaum bukan Melayu untuk menjadi komponen rakyat yang lebih agresif, yang mampu menepis dan menangkis pengaruh UMNO sebagai parti politik utama yang mewakili kepentingan orang Melayu.

Namun, pengundi-pengundi Melayu sendiri yang telah mencabul penat lelah perjuangan UMNO untuk mereka dengan memilih pembangkang di PRU 12. Merekalah pengkhianat bangsa yang tidak pernah tahu bersyukur atas segala kenikmatan, keistimewaan dan kesejahteraan hidup yang diperolehi dari saat mereka lahir hinggalah sekarang yang semuanya kerana dasar-dasar dan sistem yang dicetuskan oleh kepimpinan negara sejak sekian lama iaitu BN yang diterajui UMNO.

Inilah masalahnya kalau sudah terlebih pandai atau lebih tepat lagi, pandai tidak bertempat. Untuk rekod, saya seorang profesional Melayu dan saya berterima kasih kepada BN dan UMNO kerana mewujudkan sistem yang membolehkan saya berada di kedudukan saya sekarang.

Tiada faedahnya menjadi ”anti-establishment” hanya semata-mata kerana ingin dilihat sebagai golongan yang celik dan cerdik dari segi kesedaran hak untuk memilih pemerintah negara. Macamlah negara kita ini terlalu teruk keadaannya seperti beberapa negara di Afrika, Asia Selatan malah sebuah negara jiran di Asia Tenggara yang mana rakyat memberontak kerana keadaan hidup yang sudah terlalu mendesak dan serba kekurangan. Yang lebih lucu, kebanyakkan orang-orang Melayu yang ”anti-establishment” ini adalah golongan yang berada sebenarnya. Di kawasan DUN Hulu Kelang dan DUN Bukit Antarabangsa di mana saya tinggal contohnya, kebanyakkan penyokong-penyokong PKR malah PAS memandu kenderaan pacuan empat roda mewah dan juga kenderaan mewah Eropah yang kita semua sedia maklum. Itulah ”anti-establisment” mengada-ngada namanya.

Mengada-ngada sehingga menyebabkan ketuanan Melayu kini ibarat telur di hujung tanduk. Fikirkanlah.

2008 - A New Hope

2008-01-31T17:50:00.000+08:00

My valued readers,

Happy New Year 2008! I know it's a little bit too late to wish that but what the heck, it's the last day of January, which technically still qualifies my new year wish being uttered in the first month of the year. Whatever.

I know I haven't blogged for a zillion years, well close to 6 months I think, but it was all for a good reason. I was buried with work (the oldest excuse in the world) and more important, I needed to take a back seat in the bloggers' bus to find new inspiration. I guess it finally came today and it felt wonderful. As usual, someone triggered my comeback into the world of blogging. A friend actually. I just got into an argument with her and of course, I ended up on the losing end because she's the type who always have the win the verbal battle.

So, I guess my first entry of 2008 is more to blow off steam rather than to write something more meaningful to kick off the new year (which has 11 more remaining months).

Oh, I also found a new fun thing to do on the internet - Facebook. I love it! Have to admit, I've been more occupied with that rather than updating this blog. You see, FB is fun because it's not really a blog but a visual / pictorial interface where you can just upload your photos for your friends to see. It's more like an online individual directory. Definitely better than Friendster (that's for teens and small kids) and more versatile than MySpace. I found a lot of old friends through FB.

Anyway, watch this space and you won't be dissapointed. That much I can promise you....

Time For Bumiputeras To Compete On Level Playing Field

2007-09-07T07:56:00.000+08:00

Suria KLCC - which proudly carries the tagline "Always Something New" That's why tenants are required to remodel their premises every 2 to 3 years to give the swanky mall a fresh look. Do we want Suria to turn into an Arked MARA if bumiputera tenants had their way?

I’m a Malay. A bumiputera. Naturally, I would like to see my people succeed in whatever they do, to be at par with other races especially when it comes to business and getting a bigger slice of the country’s economic pie.

But I’m really sad. I’m sad because after 50 years of independence, my fellow Bumiputera Malaysians still require the virtual crutches provided by the powers that be, to survive in a world which is becoming more and more globalised.

Take the recent outcry by Juhaidi Abdullah, the owner of Kelantan Delights Restaurant whom formerly traded at Suria KLCC, the nation’s premier world class shopping establishment, as an example.

He claims that Suria KLCC’s management enforced Draconian policies which “squeezed” and “intimidated” bumiputera tenants at the mall. He claims that he was forced out of business from Suria KLCC because he refused to agree to the ridiculous rental rates increase imposed by the mall and also for not agreeing to renovate his premises as required in the new tenancy agreement. He claimed Suria KLCC did not give room at all for negotiations. And the list goes on and on.

First, his predicament was highlighted and championed by a major Malay daily which created the issue as follow-up to a previous similar case also involving another bumiputera tenant who claimed they were “victimized” by Suria KLCC (the frachise holders of Levi’s / Dockers). And then the issue cooled down after 3 or 4 stories were published by the newspaper.

Apparently, Juhaidi was not satisfied and decided to seek the sympathy of another media organization – this time around, a major private television station. The first story was aired on 31st August 2007, the day we celebrated our 50th year of independence. And true enough, the station decided to angle the story of Kelantan Delights’ plight in the direction of bumiputera entrepreneurs whom were still being “colonized” by a foreigner running the shopping mall.

The story was so lame, if you ask me. If I was the producer of the news bulletin, I would have angled the story like this – “After 50 years of independence, why do bumiputera entrepreneurs still require special treatment? Can’t they now survive on a level playing field? Don’t they think it’s time to put away the crutches for good?” Something like that. But no, they just had to angle the story in a manner which would make other races in this country look down on bumiputeras, on the Malays.

What does Juhaidi expect Suria KLCC to do? To give him a discount on rental rates and exempt him from doing renovations on his restaurant? What would the other tenants say? Juhaidi should bear in mind that Suria KLCC is not Arked MARA or Kompleks UDA or some such premises established with the sole purpose of helping out bumiputera entrepreneurs. Suria KLCC is a world class shopping mall and it must be managed in a manner which befits its status as an international shopping establishment at the bottom of the world’s tallest twin towers housing one of the seven most influential oil and gas companies in the world.

To me, the success of Suria KLCC mirrors the success of its parent holding company which I need not mention here. Doesn’t it occur to us that this particular company in question has achieved what it has achieved today, being the only Malaysian company in the Fortune 500 list, because of excellent management and best business practices, without fear or favour? And let’s not forget, the people at the helm of the company are bumiputeras. The success of that company is also the nation’s success and we as Malaysians actually get the benefit through billion ringgit repayments back to the government which in turn distributes the wealth back to us. Only we don’t realize it.

So, to Juhaidi and his supporters, please think again. If you’re not up to it, then you don’t actually have what it takes to be a global champion. Not yet.

Let Everyone Read Or Don't Blog At All

2007-09-06T16:42:00.000+08:00

Folks, I'm back after a "I lost track of how long" hiatus. Hehehe. First and foremost, I must apologise to my regular readers - Sab of Australia, Cheekysmile of Kajang and Raffie of Ampang for the rather prolonged absence from my blog. Bukannya tak nak post new stuff, I just didn't have the time with all the events which I was involved in, one way or another, organised by my Fortune 500 company in conjunction with Malaysia's 50th Merdeka celebrations.

Ini pun there is one last event before the fasting month which is gonna happen next week, on 12th September 2007. The official prize giving ceremony of a major contest organised by my company in conjunction with what else, Merdeka.

Anyway, since I'm back in the saddle, I thought I'd discuss about what I'm doing right now - blogging. It seems more and more people, I mean, people that I know (friends, colleagues relatives, acquaintances, enemies) have started their own blogs or I discovered that they do actually have blogs. Which is a good thing actually.

But here's the thing. Kalau nak blog tu, let everyone read. If not, don't waste your time. Bloggers who actualy "block" certain people from reading their blogs are cowards. That's why I hate bloggers who use Multiply as their blog interface. Multiply enables bloggers to determine who can or cannot read their stuff. Most of the time, for bloggers like them, they require you to be in their network. And to be in the network, you are at their mercy. Meaning, if he or she allows you to be in the network, then you can read their blog. If not, you can carry your sorry ass to other more accomodating blogs.

To me there's no such thing as "eyes only" or "for private viewing only" in cyberspace. The fact that you chose to blog means that you should be prepared to let other eyeballs read your musings. The impression people get if you block them from reading your posts is that you are high and mighty. Poorah, ingapoo!

Okaylah, maybe I'm a bit prejudice on one or two individuals. Heck, make that one individual. Some of you may say - "So, what, it's his/her blog, he/she can do whatever he/she wants to do." Yeah, I guess there is a certain spark of truth to it. Like the 60s song by Lesley Gore "It's My Party". You know, the song that goes like this : "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to, cry if I want to."

Yeah, yeah, point taken.

But still, I firmly believe, bloggers should make their writings public property. Have the balls like Ahiruddin Atan (Rocky's Bru) or Raja Petra Kamaruddin (Malaysia Today). Kalau tidak, setakat syok sendiri aje buat apa, betul tak? Tak ada maknanya!!!

Park Properly, Please!

2007-07-29T18:40:00.000+08:00

I went to Suria KLCC with my wife and kids today, just to spend some quality time with them before another tough week at work begins. I bought a pair of new shoes (50% off), and my wife got some stuff as well, namely Adidas, Converse, Seed and Cultivate from Isetan. (Sigh..) Surprisingly, my daughters didn't demand anything. My eldest daughter just bought some Barbie stickers and my youngest daughter was happy enough exhausting all my coins for the Barney, Bananas In Pajamas and Thomas & Friends rides.

Anyway, after spending close to 4 hours there, I was just relieved to go home and spend my remaining Sunday hours lazing around (zzz zzz to be more precise). But when we reached our car at Level P2 of KLCC's basement car park, we were suprised to see a metallic silver BMW 3 series parked next to my Honda Civic in a very, very uncivilised manner / position. The Beemer took up a quarter of my parking bay and it was about an inch apart from the port-side (left side) of my car. It was almost impossible for my wife and kids to get in from that side. In the end, we had to put the kids in the car first from the starboard-side (right side) of my car before my wife entered, and that too after I moved my Honda out of our bay (even that took an effort and extra careful maneouvering to ensure my car didn't brushed with the Beemer). Anyway, once my wife was safely in the car and the kids buckled up safe and sound in the rear seats, I disembarked to put in my youngest daughter's Graco stroller in the boot. The stroller was still in my parking bay. I folded the stroller neatly and expertly, something which I've done for the past 6 years. And at the last possible moment, before I put it away in the boot, I swung the rather bulky stroller towards the Beemer's left side mirror, shattering it to pieces. The Beemer's alarm immediately came to life and the whole of Level P2 car park was given a free car alarm recital, compliments of me. Even my wife was suprised. "Was that necessary?!," she exclaimed. I said "Yes. Dah parking macam celaka, itu aje ubatnya." ("Yes. Since it's parked like shit, that's the only remedy.") I drove off without even a pinch of guilt. I see it as leverage. You see, for far too long, me and my wife have become victims of such ignorant and irresponsible drivers. Twice my wife's car was dented as a result of a hit and run - once at our very own housing area and the other at Mid Valley Megamall. My Honda Civic's right side mirror was nearly damaged because a speeding motorbike (kapcai) which was in the midst of zig-zagging (ciloking) its way through KL's afternoon traffic. Enough was enough. No more Mr. Nice Guy.

You see, this is exactly the problem with Malaysian drivers. I'm not saying that I'm a saint or a vicar when it comes to driving, but at least I try to be a good, considerate and responsible driver. Let's take parking for example where Malaysian drivers are famous for being notorious. I'll give you a classic example of how kiasu they can be. Ever noticed the forever jam-packed Jalan Ampang near Menara Citibank because of errant drivers double-parking (sometimes even triple-parked) their cars while they run off to pay their Citibank credit card? I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I simply don't understand why they must contribute more congestion to the already traffic-choked Jalan Ampang by illegally parking at the bank's kerb when they is AMPLE, I REPEAT AMPLE parking space at the basement of the building???? And it would only cost them RM1, again I repeat, RM1. And these people are actually driving Mercedes Benz, Beemers, Toyota Camry and even Porsche!!! Cheapskate and kiasu - hook, line and sinker. And they are actually suckers for not parking at the basement because if you park less than 5 minutes, it's free of charge. I know because each time I go to Menara Citibank to pay my credit card, I don't have to pay because I spend less than 5 minutes at the banking hall - Citibank makes available so many cash deposit machines, you hardly have to queue. By parking your car illegally at the kerb outside, you risk your car being towed away by City Hall's towing contractors. Now that will cost you RM300 to reclaim your car and you have to go all the way to City Hall's Car Pound in Jinjang. My friend who drives a Beemer painfully learned his lesson. Padan muka!

Another kiasu car parking scene is at Giant Supermarket Bukit Antarabangsa which is attached to a PETRONAS service station. To me, PETRONAS has built a well-planned and well-designed service station complete with basement parking to serve its customers, mainly because of Giant. But suprise, suprise, everyone wants to park at the roadside and even triple park in the service station area (most of the time near the petrol pump islands) just because they want faster and easier access to the main entrance of Giant! Now, how stupid can that be when all you have to do is cruise down to the huge basement parking, park nicely and just take the bloody elevator one floor up to Giant? Kenapa lah dia orang ni semua bangang sangat, hah??

Sometime I just wish my Honda Civic came factory-fitted with a GAU-17 Gatling machine gun and Side-Winder missiles so that I can blow these "inconsiderate parkers" to kingdom come. Such idiots. If they had their way, they might even want to park their cars inside the supermarket. My fingers are itching to pull the trigger already....

Price War Always Good For Consumers

2007-07-24T08:36:00.000+08:00

The Much Anticipated, Much Awaited 7th and Final Instalment of the Harry Porter Saga

I simply don’t understand why the four major bookstore chains in Malaysia – MPH, Times, Popular and Harris are crying foul over Tesco’s and Carrefour’s move to sell the much-awaited “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows” novel at RM69.90, a discount of RM40 from the recommended retail price of RM109.90.

This is actually a major triumph for Malaysian consumers whom were forced to content with over-priced imported books by such bookstore chains for far too long. This is a lesson to the bookstore chains. A tight slap to their face. Even the Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, Datuk Mohd Shafie Apdal lauded the move by the British and French hypermarkets respectively. Enough said.

And to those who say they were disappointed and upset at the hypermarkets’ move to sell at RM69.90 which they claimed devalued the book – get a brain scan. Something is really wrong with your heads. Who in their right frame of mind would want to pay more when they know they could get the same stuff at RM40 cheaper?

To the bookstore chains, welcome to the free market. Let us hope this trend of price war would continue for the benefit of all consumers. May the best retailer win. Bravo Tesco and Carrefour!

Friendship Fallouts - Dealing With It

2007-06-20T13:53:00.000+08:00

For those of you who have been following this blog from day one, you may have noted in my very first post that I promised this blog (which replaced "Oh For Crying Out Loud") would not have any lovey dovey, kissey smoochy, sappy soapy tales.

But just for today, I want to discuss something which most of us may have experienced before - friendship fallout.

Nothing prepares you for the day you realize a close friendship is over. Whether it's been suddenly destroyed by an act of betrayal or dies slowly of benign neglect, few life changes are as unforgettable and regrettable as learning that your main girl buddy whom you just knew you could count on, no longer regards you as one of her top ten companions in her list. In fact, you're out of the list. For good. There is no list anymore.

Often the hardest part is accepting it and moving on. There's no shortage of smart advice on how to recover when a love affair ends. But how do you process the pain when a best girlfriend breaks your heart? Who do you turn to for advice when your ace boon and number one confidante--who always had solutions for you--has now become the problem?

"Developmental issues are the main reason for friendship fallout," explains Marlene F. Watson, Ph.D., Director of Couples and Family Therapy at Drexel University in Philadelphia. "What you used to have in common changes. Maybe your friend gets married, or she becomes a mother, so the two of you no longer socialize because she doesn't have time for that sort of thing anymore."

Funny and ironic that I stumbled across Dr. Watson's views on this issue while Googling in the Internet. What she said was what I actually experienced. Only difference was that my girl buddy was already married with a kid and she started giving me the cold shoulder when she was pregnant with her second kid. Eventually, the friendship fell apart. Well, what to do. You win some, you lose some. I'm done weeping and mourning over this. I'm over it now. I think. I hope.

Anyway, I still bump into her occassionally because we work in the same company. Most of the time, she just looks away and avoid my stare at all cost. I must have done something really bad to her to be accorded such treatment. If she happens to read this - I still think you're wonderful.

Well, que sera sera, whatever will be will be. In the meantime, here's Rossa's Terlalu Cinta for all of us who had to face friendship fallouts.

Terlalu Cinta - Rossa Music and Lyrics

Terlalu Cinta - Rossa
Jangan dekat atau jangan datang kepadaku lagi
Aku semakin tersiksa karena tak memilikimu
Kucoba jalani hari dengan pengganti dirimu
Tapi hatiku selalu berpihak lagi padamu

Mengapa semua ini terjadi kepadaku

Tuhan maafkan diri ini
Yang tak pernah bisa menjauh dari angan tentangnya
Namun apalah daya ini
Bila ternyata sesungguhnya aku terlalu cinta dia…

Tapi hatiku selalu berpihak lagi padamu

Mengapa semua ini terjadi kepadaku

Tuhan maafkan diri ini
Yang tak pernah bisa menjauh dari angan tentangnya
Namun apalah daya ini
Bila ternyata sesungguhnya aku terlalu cinta dia

Mengapa semua ini terjadi kepadaku

Tuhan maafkan diri ini
Yang tak pernah bisa menjauh dari angan tentangnya
Namun apalah daya ini
Bila ternyata sesungguhnya aku terlalu cinta dia…

Aku terlalu cinta dia…
Get other lyrics, and HTML code like this. Click here.

I'm Back! And With A Cool Gadget Too!!

2007-06-19T18:08:00.000+08:00

My sleek and sexy O2 Xda Zinc, hoo, hoo!!!

Goodness gracious me! It's been almost a month since I last posted anything in this blog. I guessed the tag by Cheekysmile gave me a wake-up call, hehehe. Kinda cute actually her tag - "Achoo! This blog is dusty."

Well, to be honest, I became discouraged to blog for the past month or so mainly due to my internet connection at the office which was very slow, even after office hours (I blog after work, okay...). I finally got the problem fixed today and it was actually a teeny, weeny problem which was easily rectified by the IT guy. It seemed that all I had to do was change the proxy setting at Internet Options and walla, I get light speed internet connection again. Apparently, the company purposely set the default proxy setting to a snails pace which prevented us from downloading mainly foreign websites. No wonder it took me forever to load pages from Wikipedia, Blogger etc. Only local websites loaded on a normal pace. Anyway, thanks and kudos to the IT guy for fixing the problem. He was kind enough to give the superspeed proxy setting which ensures bullet train internet speed, hehehe.

Anyway, a lot happened to me in the past 3 weeks. I was practically buried with work. My major project was producing a handbook for distribution to the company's top and senior management, and also to the press. The handbook actually outlined our company's plans and activities for Malaysia's 50th Independence celebration. Our company, as a major player in a very lucrative industry and major contributor to the nation's economic wellbeing, was of course expected by the country's leadership to play a huge role in this year's Golden Jubilee independence celebration. Whatever. I have to admit, it was the toughest assignment so far eversince I joined this company 2 years ago. I lost count how many times I had to face my Senior GM during the content reviewing process. Rewrites upon rewrites upon rewrites. Most of the time, I ended up working until midnight and at one time, even until 2 am to meet the printing deadline. I hardly saw my kids during that time and I missed them terribly. Most of the time, when I reached home, they were already asleep. Anyway, last weekend was the best weekend ever. I think I spent sufficient quality time with them, and of course, with my wife too. ;-)

Oh, I finally gotten around to buying myself a new cellphone, after 4 long years of using my ageing ever faithful Nokia I-Don't-Even-Remember-The-Model-Number. My youngest brother, who's a gadget crazy dude, managed to drag me to Low Yat Plaza in Bukit Bintang last two weekends in my quest to hunt for a new phone. I ended up indulging myself by spending close to RM3,000 for a cool, sleek and state-of-the-art Pocket PC instead. The O2 Xda Zinc. I can't believe I actually did that. But it was worth it. The apek who sold me the thing also threw in a Toshiba 2GB Mini SD storage card and screen protecter. I love my new Pocket PC. It is a PDA, computer, phone, camera, camcorder, organizer and audio/video player all in one. It runs on Windows Mobile 5.0, complete with Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) and whole load of other cool softwares. The apek at Low Yat even installed a supplementary software called SPB which is commonly used by PDA users. SPB has nice 3D icons for your programme shortcuts, hehehe. I chose the Xda Zinc because it's the only O2 PDA with a QWERTY keyboard. Other O2 Xdas such as Atom, Atom Life and Flame does not come with one.

Whatever it is, I'm finally mobile, I mean truly mobile. I can check my office e-mails via GPRS, surf the internet, listen to my favourite songs, take pictures of my bubbly kids and lovely wife and a million more tasks which I've yet to explore with my new baby - the O2 Xda Zinc. I like!

Well, I think that's enough blogging for one day. Catch up with you guys in another post tomorrow, I hope. Now, back to my O2 Xda Zinc.....

ASTRO Fee Hike : Unsubscribe Or Just Pay Up and Shut Up

2007-05-23T13:39:00.001+08:00

Wow, I think this is the longest time I didn't post anything new in my blog. 13 days to be exact. Two reasons actually :

1. I was buried with work, hehehe (still am)

2. Internet connection (or server?) at my office was really slow for the past two weeks or so, preventing me to even log in to blogger.com to update my blog

Anyway, now that the Internet connection is up and running again as it should be, I thought I had better take advantage of the situation (before the server becomes slow again - it always happens here in this great multinational because the ICT company engaged to maintain all computer related matters are doing a lousy job) and post something new in my blog.

And thanks to all of you who still find time to visit despite nothing new being posted. Appreciate it.

Anyway, today, yet another letter from another disgruntled Astro subscriber published in the New Straits Times. This time, it's Mr. Azmi Atan of Petaling Jaya. He feels that it was time for the government to issue more satellite TV licences to other companies, in light of recent unilateral moves by Astro to expand its revenue. (For international readers, Astro is the sole satellite television service provider who has enjoyed a monopoloy in Malaysia for more than 10 years now. It had a potential rival in the form of MiTV a couple of years ago but easily whacked the pathetic upstart which is now as good as dead eventhough it's still around). Back to the issue, Astro created another controversy a few weeks ago by announcing that it would increase its monthly subscription rate between RM5 to RM15, depending on the existing packages subscribed by its more than one million customers. Of course, being typical Malaysians, majority of Astro subscribed sweared and curse the satellite tv provider and hurled all sorts of accusation, claiming Astro to be the mother of all bloodsuckers and short-changing them by adding new channels which they don't even need.

Yeah, yeah, we have every right to complain and fight for our consumer rights. But then again, what choice do we have? What possible good would giving out more licences to operate a satellite tv service do to Malaysian viewers? The government already gave that opportunity to MiTV which may I remind you, is back by another strong tycoon - Mr. Vincent Tan and his Berjaya group. (Astro is owned by Malaysia's richest man - T. Ananda Krishan). But look what happened to MiTV. It's already dead but they decided to keep the body to rott until a proper funeral could be arranged, so to speak. In a nuthshell, MiTV got whacked big time by Astro due to poor marketing strategies and poor choice of channels being offered. So, come to think of it again, Astro must be doing something right, kan? Why didn't people like Azmi Atan shifted allegiance to MiTV back then? No one forced us to subscribe to Astro. It's all in our hands.

So far, I have no problems with Astro. I pay my Astro bill on time so that I can be assured of uninterrupted service. In fact, I have two Astro decoders - one for my viewing pleasure with my wife, and one for my kids to watch their Disney Channel. No complaints at all because as of now, Astro is the only source of multiple entertainment which the existing 9 terrestrial tv stations could not offer or match. I want my HBO, my Star Movies, my AXN and my ESPN. My wife wants her Astro Ria, E! and StarWorld. My kids want their Disney Channel and Playhouse Disney. And for 6 years, Astro has delivered to our expectations, since we first subscribed in January 2001. I can still remember because the Astro subscription was part of a package offered by EON when I bought my first car - the Proton Wira.

To Azmi Atan and all other whining Astro subscribers - just de-subscribe if you don't want to pay the additional RM5 to RM15. Otherwise, just pay up and shut up. The choice is yours....

Just Live With It, Malaysian MU Fans

2007-05-10T18:18:00.000+08:00

Kecoh la peminat-peminat Manchester United (MU) kat Malaysia ni. I don't understand why MU fans are so angry and dissapointed that their beloved English Premier League (EPL) club is not coming to Malaysia for their Asian Summer Tour. Sampaikan Khairy Jamaluddin pun sibuk nak bercakap jugak.

For the benefit of those clueless about this, MU fans in Malaysia voiced anger and dissapointment yesterday after a tour match featuring the newly crowned EPL champions was cancelled. All because the Football Association of Malaysian (FAM) has to to kow tow to the wishes of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for MU to either cancel or delay their Malaysian visit to ensure that prominence would be given to the less glamourous Asian Cup which would also be held during the time MU is scheduled to play a Malaysian selection side on 27 July. AFC's reason was they feared that less people would watch the Asian Cup and opt for the star-studded MU match. Hahaha. Personally, I don't give a shit. Number one because I'm not an Asian football fan. Number two, I'm an Arsenal fan. Hah!

So, to MU fans out there including Khairy Jamaluddin, tough luck. Just live with it. You guys should be worried about the 07/08 EPL season because The Gunners will be much stronger than before. Go Arsenal and go all London clubs - Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspurs, Westham United and Fulham. Touche'!

The Price Of Overdoing It

2007-05-09T10:20:00.000+08:00

The lovely Miss Zara Salim Davidson, soon to be Raja Puan Besar Perak. This picture was officially released by the palace. Have to tell you, this is definitely a much, much better picture than the one published by Utusan and Kosmo yesterday.

Why am I not suprised? I guess everyone especially those in the media fraternity saw it coming. I bet even Utusan Malaysia and Kosmo! newspaper saw it coming, them being the culprit of this mess. Aku dah agak dah. I'm talking about Utusan Malaysia's and Kosmo!'s bold move to jump the gun and reveal the identity of Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah's bride-to-be, Miss Zara Salim Davidson, complete with an undated photo on the front pages of both paper's edition yesterday. This, despite the request from the Sultan of Perak's office for all media to wait for official statements from the palace which would be released in stages. And of course, the palace is very upset now with Utusan and Kosmo. Isk, isk, shame on you Utusan and Kosmo for sidelining protocol.

I know the real intention of Utusan and Kosmo actually. It's all because of circulation and readership. In their quest to beat their rivals - Berita Harian and Harian Metro respectively, they over did it. All newspapers, including the English ones - New Straits Times, The Star and The Sun, respected the palace's request by not mentioning Zara's name and not publishing any picture. In the first place, I wonder where on earth Utusan and Kosmo obtained Zara's picture which was obviously taken in the 1980s or early 1990s. You can tell by the Julia Rais hairstyle and make-up.

Anyway, I doubt it if Utusan and Kosmo would be penalised for this. They usually get away with it. Besides, the palace knows that they need Utusan's and Kosmo's support for future publicity of the Perak royal family. In a way, I guess Utusan's and Kosmo's gamble will pay off. To the editors there, to get a shelling from the palace is such a small price to pay for the highest circulation and readership yesterday. Obviously, Utusan and Kosmo were selling like hotcakes at the newstands nationwide yesterday because of Zara's front page picture. I totally understand the move made by the papers' editors because I was also a former journalist. Sensationalization of news definitely sells. Now that is something palace officials will never, never understand.

Oh by the way, I have some minor corrections to make regarding Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah's and Zara Davidson's profile. Raja Nazrin was actually born in Penang. Thanks to my friend Realnews for pointing that out. And Zara is not a lawyer, she's a chemical engineer. Hehe. Ampuan tuanku beribu-ribu ampun, sembah patik harap diampun. And I guess I was also wrong when I said that both of them knew each other during their PETRONAS days. That is highly unlikely because Raja Nazrin was in PETRONAS during the early 80s while Zara only joined the national oil company in 1995. Again, apologies to Tuanku and Miss Zara.

Whatever it is, Zara also has an impressive CV. Top of her class at Nottingham University, former Perak state swimmer and top-notch executive at PETRONAS who was part of the team responsible for setting up the national oil company's Kertih and Kuantan integrated petrochemical complexes. She left PETRONAS in 2001 to join Formis before seting up her own oil and gas exploration consultancy company.

To my friends at Utusan Malaysia and Kosmo, please be more careful and tactful in your subsequent stories about Raja Nazrin's and Zara's wedding. The Perak royal family deserves some form of respect from all of us, okay? No point in trying to scoop one another. There's plenty of meat to chew for everyone in the Malaysian media fraternity.

Daulat Tuanku!

Selamat Pengatin Baru, Tuanku!

2007-05-08T11:49:00.001+08:00

Finally, one of the country's most eligible bachelors will call it a day for his single life. The Raja Muda of Perak (Crown Prince of the state of Perak), Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah, will tie the knot with the lady of his choice - Miss Zara Davidson of English-Malay parentage.

Alhamdulillah. It seems the prayers of the people of Perak and many Malaysians too (I suspect) has been answered. You see, Raja Nazrin is not getting any younger. He's already 50 years old. I'm not suprised if some of his peers are already playing with several grandchildren. But I have to admit, he's good looking with that sought after boyish disposition (like me, chewah, hahahah). But seriously, Raja Nazrin is a handsome man. He's got the package - handsome, articulate, debonair, gentlemen, highly educated and affluent, of course. And to be honest, I am proud of him because I come from the state of Perak. Well, my parents to be exact. I was born and bred in Kuala Lumpur. Well what d'ya know? Raja Nazrin was also born in Kuala Lumpur. And we also went to the same school for our early education, at St. John's Institution, Bukit Nanas. Hehehe.

I've always liked the Perak royal family. From the father, Sultan Azlan Shah (the current Sultan of Perak), to the mother, Tuanku Bainun, (the current Raja Permaisuri of Perak) and his siblings - the beautiful Raja Azureen (I named my youngest daughter after her), Raja Ashman Shah, Raja Eleena (another babe) and Raja Yong Sofia. All of them are like their father - highly educated and all of them qualified lawyers except for Raja Nazrin who is a qualified economist. Their mother, Tuanku Bainun, is a graduate educator who was part of the first batch of Malaysians sent to the prestigious Kirkby College for Teachers in England way back in the 1950s. Like I said, a really, really articulate and highly educated bunch. Oh, I forgot to mention, their father, Sultan Azlan Shah, was Malaysia's Lord President (now called Chief Justice) before he relinquished the post to become the Raja Muda of Perak in 1984 and on to become the Sultan of Perak a few months later when his predecessor, Sultan Idris Shah passed away suddenly. Sultan Azlan Shah still holds the record (in the Guiness Book of Records) as the world's highest educated monarch. Cool, kan?

Anyway, back to Raja Nazrin's wedding, I'm sure it's going to be a gala event. It doesn't matter if he's already 50 years old. I'm hoping that his wedding would even top the so-called Wedding Of The Decade of the country's pop sensation, Siti Nurhaliza with Datuk K. In fact, it should be. Raja Nazrin deserves a grand wedding because he's not only first in line to the Perak throne but also because he's sort of a celebrity too. He is the most quoted royalty by the Malaysian media mainly because he's able to give out intelligent comments on many current issues.

As for his bride, Miss Zara Davidson, all I know is that she is half English and half Malay (her mother is a member of the Kedah royal family). She's also a practising lawyer and a former PETRONAS executive. Rumour has it that Raja Nazrin and Zara has known each other during their PETRONAS days. (Raja Nazrin was also a PETRONAS executive in the early 80s).

Well, whatever it is, Selamat Pengantin Baru to Raja Nazrin and Miss Zara. Daulat Tuanku!

When Spidey Turned To The Dark Side....

2007-05-03T14:02:00.000+08:00

Spiderman Contemplating His Future In The Dark Suit : Your Friendly Neighbourhood Or Your Evil Neighbourhood?

I must say I'm proud to be among the first 300 or so Malaysians to catch the premiere of the highly anticipated Spiderman 3 when it opened on Labour Day (1 May). In fact, Malaysians got to watch "Your Friendly Neighbourhoodliness" 4 days before it actually opened in the United States. Wow, Malaysia Boleh!

Anyway, I was lucky to get tickets - on the first show actually, 10.45 am!! I bought the ticket on Sunday, 29th April after jogging at KLCC Park. On the off-chance of getting a ticket, I made my way to TGV Cinema at Level 3 of Suria KLCC and was delighted to see that the cineplex opened a dedicated counter for Spiderman 3 advanced bookings. And even more delighted to discover there were only two more tickets left for the 10.45 am matinee on May 1. But since both seats were worlds apart, I decided to just buy one, seat H23 which was a really good seat - 8 rows from the screen, right at the very end of the left side of Cineplex 5. Besides, my wife already told me that she didn't mind me watching it alone because nowadays, she preferred to stay home with the girls on a public holiday. Hehehe.

Anyway, I must say, it's one of the best movies I've seen in a long, long time. Well worth the wait. And I thought the first two was good. This one is even better. Best! Two thumbs up!

Here's how the story goes (sourced from Wikipedia, various other Spidey websites and of course, through my own knowledge and observation) :

After finally being able to find a balance between being Spider-Man, and spending time with Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) begins to feel secure in his life. However, he is soon attacked by a vengeful Harry Osborn (James Franco), who has powered himself up with his late father's creation, Oscorp's "Human-Performance Enhancer" gas and becomes the New Goblin with hi-tech weaponry and a powerful surfboard-like glider known as Sky-Stick for the purpose of destroying Peter. A clash in the heart of Manhanttan, New York City between the two former friends leaves Harry with short-term amnesia, and he no longer feels anger towards Peter.

One night, a tiny meteor crash-lands in a park (I think Central Park, where else) where Peter and Mary Jane are on a date. Unknown to Peter, the meteor contains a black, alien symbiote, which hitches a ride home with Peter on his motorcycle, and eventually bonds with his Spider-Man costume at night, when he is asleep. After the bonding, Peter finds his costume has changed; it is now black in colour, and has augmented and enhanced his previous spider-powers.

Meanwhile, Captain George Stacy (James Cromwell) of the New York Police Department (NYPD) informs Peter and Aunt May (Rosemary Harris) that the man who was apprehended on the night of the shooting of Ben Parker (Cliff Robertson) was not his real killer; instead, an investigation revealed that he was merely an accomplice of Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church), an escaped convict from Riker's Island prison. The NYPD pursue Marko, and Marko accidentally falls into a physics particle accelerator filled with sand, which molecularly bonds to his body and turns him into the Sandman.

Meanwhile, the black suit starts bringing out Spider-Man's more violent and vengeful side, and he seemingly kills Marko after a battle in a disused New York subway tunnel by turning Marko into mud (by flooding him with water) and allowing him to wash into the sewer system. The darker side of the suit begins to transform Peter's personality as well, causing him to expose a new photographer at the Daily Bugle, Eddie Brock, Jr. (Topher Grace, of That 70's Show fame), as a fraud, while stealing his girlfriend, Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), who happens to be Captain Stacy's daughter. His behavior causes him to push Mary Jane away, and she finds solace in Harry Osborn. However, Harry soon recovers from his amnesia and lures Peter into his mansion to kill him. Peter defeats Harry and throws a pumpkin bomb back at him; the explosion scars Harry badly on one side of his face.

Peter tries to humiliate Mary Jane by openly dating Gwen Stacy in front of her. However, Peter accidentally assaults Mary Jane during a brief struggle at a jazz club. Completely ashamed of his recent actions, Peter goes to a church tower and rips the black suit off; as the symbiote is sensitive to noise, the ringing of the church bell agitates it and causes it to weaken. Coincidentally, a humiliated Brock goes to the same church and prays for God to smite Peter Parker, before overhearing the churchbell ringing. Entering the belltower to investigate, Eddie sees an unmasked Spider-Man, whom he's shocked to realize is Peter Parker. Some of the symbiote falls from the tower and lands on Brock, and upon sensing his hatred of Parker, it envelopes him wholly, forming

Venom, another villain of Spiderman. Venom approaches the Sandman and claims that the two are united by a common desire to destroy Spider-Man and the latter agrees to help him.

Venom and Sandman kidnap Mary Jane and dangle her 80 stories above the New York streets at a construction site. Peter approaches Harry for help, saying he cannot fight both villains at once, but Harry refuses. Spider-Man arrives on the scene and is brutally beaten by the Sandman until Harry, who has just learned that his father did indeed die by his own hands, flies to Peter and Mary Jane's aid as the New Goblin. Peter rescues Mary Jane, and he and Harry battle Venom and the Sandman together. As the fight progresses, Venom grabs hold of Harry's glider and throws it at Peter; Harry jumps in front of Peter and the glider impales him instead.

Peter attempts to free Eddie of the black symbiote, clanging pipes together to weaken it. However, Eddie has grown too attached to the power the symbiote provides, and attempts to save the symbiote just as Peter throws a pumpkin bomb at it; Eddie dies in the explosion. However the symbiote does not die this way, instead it begins growing rapidly from the remains of Eddie's body. Here it begins forming around the construction site untill the hostless Venom creature attempts to re bond itself to Peter. Here Spider-Man kills it once and for all. Sandman tells Peter that he had no intention of killing Ben Parker that fateful night, but that it was an accident caused by fear and desperation. Peter forgives Flint, and the Sandman disappears. Harry does not survive his wounds and dies with Mary Jane and Peter by his side. Peter and Mary Jane revive their relationship, after attending their friend's funeral.

Begitulah ceritanya. It's quite sad actually because Harry had to die just when he was about to be friends again with Peter. Anyway, the special effects in Spidey 3 is so cool, I guess it's a natural progression from the first two instalments. And Spidey actually has to take on 3 villains this time around - New Goblin, Sandman and Venom. A lot of people actually confuses Venom as the bad Spiderman, mainly because he looks a lot like Spiderman. Only difference is that he has a more menacing look in the form of a really big mouth lined with sharp fangs. But don't be confused - Venom is totally another person and not Spiderman's dark side.

As for Sandman, he is actually an old villain of Spidey. He has been around in the Marvel comicbook universe, especially in the Amazing Spiderman comics since September 1963. Venom is a much newer villain, only introduced by Stan Lee in 1988. And as for the new Goblin, he's actually a progression from his late father, Norman Osborn aka the Green Goblin, Spidey's sworn arch-villain.

As for Peter Parker and Mary Jane's relationship, one can only guess the direction. I wonder whether they'll actually get married or not. The thing is, Spidey's creator, Stan Lee and director, Sam Raimi themselves are not even sure if they want to do Spiderman 4 and Lee has made it clear that if there was to be a fourth instalment, he would still want Tobey and Kirsten to be in it. Well, I guess that goes without saying lah, kan? Tak kan le Harun Salim Bachik pulak nak jadi Spiderman, kan? We'll see.....

Ipoh A Space Tourism Hub?? Oh Please!

2007-04-30T14:53:00.000+08:00

An artist concept drawing of the suborbital space plane, Ascender. Can't bring myself to imagine that this sleek and sexy thing would zoom out from Ipoh, Perak Darul Ridzuan. Boleh ke yeop?

If you need a good laugh, check out page 6 of The Sun newspaper today. The title of the news story is "Ipoh Proposed As Space Tourism Airport." My first reaction - kah! kah! kah! kah!

Either something is really wrong with the brain of the space tourism consultant, Dr. Patrick Collins when making that proposal or the already desperate and pathetic Perak state government bribed him to the max to make such statements.

I actually sympathize with the Perak state government. For the benefit of foreign readers out there, Ipoh is the state capital of Perak, located about 200 km up north of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. Perak was once famous for being the world's largest tin producer through its tin mines sprawled all over the Kinta Valley in the heart of the state. Now unfortunately, the state of Perak has nothing great to offer, except for one or two tourist atractions which to me personally, are nothing much to shout about in this day and time.

That's why I can understand the desperation of the Perak Menteri Besar (State Chief Minister), Datuk Seri Tajol Rosli Ghazali in securing some sort of deal with Space Future Consulting, the so-called space tourism consultants, to turn the underutilized Sultan Azlan Shah (LTSAS) airport into a "space-bound" airport. How pathethic.

For your info, Space Future Consulting (SFC) is an international UK-based consultancy group that provides advice and analysis to the space, tourism, and media industries. As part of their operations, they maintain the informational web site www.spacefuture.com, the foremost source of information on space tourism, power, and vehicles on the Internet. SFC was the first in the world to carry out market research into the field of space tourism, and its work has been endorsed extensively by others, including NASA in its recently published report, "General Public Space Transport and Tourism". SFC's head, Dr Patrick Collins, is the leading researcher in this field and has published papers on the subject for over 15 years.

Here's why Dr. Collins feel that the LTSAS is good for the project. He says that the Ipoh airport is strategically located at the centre of West Malaysia and supported by good transportation network. More importantly, the airport has low airline traffic unlike the KL International Airport (KLIA). Hmmm. What do you think?

My personal view is that this should be a national effort, not just the Perak state government's effort. It seems now that SFC is dealing direct with Perak rather than with the federal government. To me, the day Malaysia Airlines cancelled its flights from Kuala Lumpur to Ipoh due to low load factor, was the day Ipoh aiport was laid to rest. The airport is now dead and not worth saving at all. We might as well make KLIA the space tourism hub, don't you think? At least, it'll place KLIA prominently once again on the world's airports map, and help it's current struggle to attract the world's major airlines to land there.

Anyway, back to this space tourism thingy, Collins said the initial cost was estimated at RM100 million and it includes plans to conduct 100 test flights using the Ascender suborbital spaceplane which can carry space tourists, astronauts and facilitate scientific experiments.

Some background on the Ascender : It will be manufactured by UK-based Bristol Spaceplanes Limited and takes off like a normal passenger jetliner from a normal runaway. It does not require a full-fledged launch pad like the space shuttle or rockets launched by NASA or the Russian Space Agency. The Ascender is still in concept development phase and God knows when it will actually be produced.

Dear Datuk Seri Tajol Rosli, I suggest you use the RM100 to eradicate poverty among Perak's hardcore poor. How does that sound? We've already wasted so much money sending two poster boys who think they're so good looking to go to space performing kiddy experiments while their Russian cosmonauts counterparts perform the serious experiments for the good of mankind. Sudah-sudah lah tu. Tak ada maknanya!!!

Was MMEA Necessary In The First Place?

2007-04-27T16:13:00.001+08:00

The New Straits Times carried a story today about the predicament faced by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN). The story quoted RMN Chief, Admiral Ramlan Mohamed Ali as saying that the RMN was facing a serious shortage of men and ships following the handing over of 1,300 commissioned officers and enlisted men, and 17 vessels to the newly-formed Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) last year.

Hmm, what has happened? A year ago, everyone was so excited when Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak launched the MMEA which was regarded as Malaysia's very own Coast Guard.

Ini le masalahnya dengan kita ni. Orang ada Coast Guard, kita pun nak ada Coast Guard. Itu lah mengada-ngada namanya. This is the problem with us. Just because other people have Coast Guards, we must also have Coast Guards. And now the number one sailor in the country is complaining that he's facing a serious shortage of naval personnel in the Navy which is supposed to be our first line of defence should enemies attack from the sea.

I think we should give Admiral Ramlan's statement a serious thought. Which is more important? The Navy or the Coast Guard? I say the former. You see, Malaysia is not as big as the United States. The US requires a full-fledged Coast Guard because their coastline is so vast and long, the US Navy can't possibly be entrusted with the responsibility to safeguard the US territorial waters full time. But here in Malaysia, did we really need the MMEA in the first place? What good would it do if the creation of the agency would result in the Navy's personnel and assets being shrinked to expand the personnel and assets of MMEA?

This is further proof of really, really lousy planning by the government. The MMEA's fleet and personnel expansion should have been done at it's own expenses, not the Navy's. And of course, to further add to all this gobbledygook, it make no sense at all that MMEA personnel are considered civil servants rather than military. Now what crap is that? For your information, the MMEA is placed under direct jurisdiction of the Prime Minister's Department. It would only be placed under the Malaysian Armed Forces command during war or emergency/crisis times. Well, I guess this is further proof that MMEA is a copy cat of the US Coast Guard. The USCG is placed under the Department of Homeland Security during peace time and under the US Navy during war time. But please bear in mind that the USCG is actually a mirror-image of the US Navy where the rank structure is exactly the same as the Navy. That's why they are still regarded as a military outfit. But our MMEA is actually a concoction (rojak in Malay) of seconded personnel from the RMN, Marine Police, Customs, Fisheries Department, Administrative and Diplomatic Service, Judicial and Legal Service and a whole load of other government services under the Public Services Commission. Now that kind of mixture I tell ya, is a recipe for disaster.

I personally feel that MMEA is redundant to the roles and function of the Navy. I say let our sailors do the job of defending Malaysia's territorial waters. Unless of course, the government is willing to spend huge sums of money to ensure that both entities expand side by side, and not at the expense of either one. To our sailors, hold your head up high and do us proud. Let's hear it for the Royal Malaysian Navy....

Income Tax Woes

2007-04-25T16:39:00.000+08:00

It's that time of the year again dreaded by everyone in the working world. Yep, it's income tax time. For Malaysians, we have another 5 days left to submit our Income Tax BE Form (declaration of income for the tax assessment year of 2006) before the April 30th deadline. We have to submit the form to the Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri or Inland Revenue Board (IRB) which the equivalent of the IRS in the States.

To be honest, I'm still struggling to do mine, hehehe. Not that it's difficult but because I kept delaying and delaying until the last possible moment. Well, I'm like that - last minute kind of guy. And when I say it's not difficult, I'm not kidding. You don't need to know rocket science to calculate your taxes here in Malaysia because the process has been simplified by the IRB. Unlike in the States where you have to keep all your receipts for expenses incurred during the previous assessment year and also requiring a tax agent or consultant to actually do it for you. Here in Malaysia, individuals who "makan gaji" or earn their salaries through employment, do their taxes on their own. Only businessmen engage the services of a tax agent.

I'm proud to say that I've always submitted my tax returns on time and paid all the required amount. It also helps that I have "Potongan Cukai Berjadual" or "Scheduled Tax Deduction" from my monthly salary which is automatically credited to the IRB by my employer. The good thing about this is that you don't really feel the pinch of paying your annual income tax because most of the time, the amount which has been deducted during the previous year would already cover the required tax amount. You only need to pay the difference.

But for the past two years, I've been feeling the pinch actually, eversince joining my current employer. Eventhough I earn more here, I have to pay more in taxes. That's the bitter irony of it all. The higher your pay, the higher your taxes. Now is that cruel of what?

I finally got down to doing my taxes today. And I felt sick to my stomach when I found out how much I have to pay this time around. Damn. Even the scheduled tax deduction couldn't cover the amount. Hmm, maybe some creative accounting will do the trick....

Another Campaign At The Expense Of Taxpayers

2007-04-25T08:34:00.000+08:00

A typical polluted river in Malaysia. This one is Sungai Juru

or Juru River up north in the state of Penang (the PM's state)

I shook my head in disbelief when I saw the news on tv last night. The story was about Malaysia's Natural Resources and Environment Minister, Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid aka Mr. Normala Samsudin. In his press conference after a function in Johor, he openly admitted that the 14-year old "Cintai Sungai Kita" or "Love Our Rivers" campaign was a failure and will be replaced with a more comprehensive one in June. In fact, the government was going to spend an additional RM7 million to rebrand the campaign. And of course, dear old Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will relaunch it. Isk, isk, so typical Malaysian way of doing it. I mean, what the hell?!! What is wrong with our leaders, anyway? Doesn't the minister know that even if you spent a billion ringgit in campaigns, it won't change anything as long as the typical Malaysian mentality remains the same.

Well, he's right about one thing though. The campaign is a failure. Just look at the rivers in Malaysia - filled with all sorts of unimaginable elements, objects, things which I don't even want to discuss. Azmi said that of the 186 riverine systems, 17 were so badly polluted they could not sustain any form of life.

Here's a little background dugged from Bernama : The "Love Our Rivers" campaign was launched by the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) way back in 1993 to educate the public on the importance of rivers, while highlighting the critical state of pollution faced by Malaysia's rivers. The country has about 150 major river basins, of which 100 are in the peninsula. The campaign, mainly involves marshalling individuals, communities, schools, corporate bodies and the public sector to carry out projects like river cleaning, river beautification, pollution rehabilitation, river adoption and education programmes.

You see what the problem is here? We in Malaysia are so good at making things look good on paper. Here in Malaysia, everything looks good on paper, to a point that sometimes it's almost flawless. But then comes the question of implementation. This is where we suck. We really, really suck when it comes to doing it.

I think the government should just channel the RM7 million to rehabilitate the most polluted rivers in the country in a sort of panic-mode like manner. Treat the usage of that RM7 million as emergency funds to save rivers. At least we'll know for sure whether the rivers could be still be saved or not. Once we manage to rehabilitate a few rivers, then we'll already have the required momentum and all that is left to do is continue to duplicate what has been done earlier to those few experimental rivers to other rivers nationwide. Makes more sense, right?

Sudah-sudah lah tu with all this rebranding and relaunching crap. Enough is enough with all this rebranding shit which is just a waste of money. Money that we don't have actually. And if the government is really serious in saving our rivers from being further polluted, why don't we rope in the armies of "mat rempits" to help out do the cleaning and rehabilitating. If they can successfully parachute from a plane onto the bleak and frigid North Pole at ultra sub-zero temperatures, I'm sure they can also successfully clean our rivers under a heavenly equatorial climate. What say you Putera Umno? Are you game for it? Nah, I thought so....

A New Beginning...

2007-04-24T12:17:00.001+08:00

Dear Friends and Readers,

Don't be alarmed. Yes, yes, my previous blog "Oh For Crying Out Loud" has been deleted. Well, to be more exact, accidently deleted. Errm, well, intentionally deleted. Hehehe.

You see, what happened was, I wanted to enhance the blog with some photos (if you noticed, my previous blog was purely text). So, I asked a friend to help me out because she's supposed to be the blog expert. But to my dismay, in her attempt to assist me, she accidently caused my chatbox to be deleted which was a result of changing to a new template in blogger.com. Something like that.

Anyway, I kinda lost my mood and interest and decided to delete the blog, which was almost celebrating its first anniversary in a few more months.

No worries. I'm not angry with my friend because I love her to death. But she's gonna help me build this new blog until it's happening again.

So bear with me, I'm working on it. It'll still be the same concept - current affairs and views on a range of issues. No lovey dovey kissy smoochey crap.

I hope to get my chatbox back in this blog later today.

In the meantime, welcome to Fox One, Fox Two, Fox Three.

I promise, you won't regret reading it. Watch this space!