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

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

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

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...

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

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

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

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....