LONE

Friday, November 28, 2003

The NKVE Rocks & Rolls & Spins

The NKVE rockfall occurred at 716am on Wednesday 27th Nov, the Star reports. A 60m rocky slope adjacent to the northbound side of the expressway at the 21st kilometre collapsed, causing as much as 20,000 tonnes of boulders and soil to cover all 8 lanes of the expressway between the Kota Damansara and Bukit Lanjan interchange.
The chain of events prior to this 20,000 tonnes rocks and rolls probably satrted 3 moonths ago with the heavy rainfalls, on Sunday 23rd Nov, small loose rockfalls were noted, what was called "proactive" round-the-clock monitoring was started. But thhe NKVE was kept open. Concrete barriers were put up on the emergency lane to catch any falling rocks. At around 7am on Wednesday 27th Nov, a public holiday, the monitors saw rocks falling from the slope and lanscaping plants on the move. Only then was the NKVE closed, this was just minutes before the slope came down.
Speculations regarding the causes of the NKVE rockfall include ::

“We feel that excessive water on the upper portion of the hill had somehow washed away the earth beneath the boulders, causing the boulders to give way”--Samy, the MINIster.
"It's the result of trees making way for houses"--- Residents of housing estates near the rockfall.
"Failure to make maintenance and safety" and “We cannot simply blame it on nature”---National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.
"Internal erosion of soil may have caused the rockfall at the New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE), said a soil erosion consultant.
"Act of God"--No one, so far

What surprises one is that with early warning signs of the small rockfalls noted since Sunday, the expected heay traffic, considering that there are 500K to 600K daily users and the Hari Raya rush; the only proactive measure taken was 24 hours monitoring! This and stopping the traffic, virtually minutes, before the rockfall can be said to be shockingly inadequate measures.
Questions which need to be posed to the authorities ::

Could steps have been taken to prevent the fall in view of the early warning signs?
Should safety first have been the order of the day and that portion of the NKVE closed off earlier, especially knowing that it is heavily used? The reasons given for not closing off earler appear unacceptable and fail scrutiny.
Instead of the present resultant chaotic state of traffic diversion, could earlier closure of the NKVE and earlier planning of traffic diversion be more helpful?

The only "Act of God" one can see is the timing of the rockfall, which occurred when there were no vehicle passing through the site. For that we have to be thankful. The other thing that needs remembering is that when we tamper with nature, it won't be long before the results of our disturbing nature return to pay us a visit.
In the meanwhile the opposition parties are calling for Samy's blood and holding him responsible for the latest rockfall. Samy is already thinking ahead to his next mega project :: "The tunnel project will be costly but who will be responsible for paying the cost?” Samy thundered. But will he be around after the 11th election?
Let's give thanks that no lives have been reported lost and pray that the authorities will truly take proactive steps to prevent further such disasters.
For those who need to use the NKVE, click here for the map for alternative routes

Updates ::

1.Suaramalaysia joins in to call for Samy's resignation

2.Looks like Samy's escape clause has appeared. Yesterday I did mentioned as one of the causes :: "Act of God"--No one, so far. This has appeared today, see here :: Natural Forces to Blame, says consultant.

| ¶ 11/28/2003 01:15:00 PM

Wednesday, November 26, 2003

Screwed up Hols

The recent 'announcement' that the 1st Saturday off-day has been switched from 6th Dec to 29th Nov has really screwed up vacation plans for me and my significant other. In order not to be involved with the Hari Raya rush, we had planned a vacation on the 6th/7th Dec weekend. This was done some many weeks ago. Appointments were not given for that particular weekend. Things were synchronised, hotel room booked and travel plans made. The neighbours were informed to keep an eye on the house. Everything was planned down to the last detail. Now all things have got screwed up, just because someone has decided that it would be good to have a switch.
Surely, we cannot be the only ones with screwed up plans. Just imagined cancelled and postponed weddings, dinners, sport meets, barbecues, etc etc.
Oh surely, there are others who are plenty happy with the switch. It means a longer vacation for these happy ones. For many it would mean that taking annual leave on the 26th and 27th of Nov would result in a much longer holiday. Emergency leave applications would be thrown in when the normal requests for extra annual leave are turned down. For those who have no more annual leave, as year end is approaching, medical leave will do.
The 6th of Dec, will mostly be a 'holiday' even if it is now going to be a working day as it would be quite impossible to reschedule appointments at such short notice. As a result productivity will go down.
In addition, the traffic on the 29th/30th weekend will be spectacularly heavy and with that the number of accidents will jump accordingly. Let's hope the polis and emergency services are prepared.
With all the abovementioned happening, all because of the switch; can someone, especially the one who decided on the switch kindly explain the rationale for the switch. Here's hoping that there will not be further tinkering and that the Christmas and Chinese New Year periods will not again see such a switch and plans going awry.

| ¶ 11/26/2003 10:05:00 PM

Tuesday, November 25, 2003

Can we celebrate Spontan

It is the time of the year for festive celebrations, what with Deepavali just gone by and now being in the midst of Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Xmas and Chinese New Year around the corner. There is definitely little need for that man in bow tie to tell us what to do and not. But here he comes again poking his fingers in places where he is not needed. See this Bernama report :: Kadir Disappointed With Lack Of Festive Display.
The CAT MINIster, Datuk Paduka Abdul Kadir, expressed disappointment that many shopping complexes, hotels and restaurants have not decorated their premises for the festive season. These ungrateful establishment operators and owners were not serious about creating an atmosphere of celebration or carnival despite the Government (read CAT MINIstry & CAT MINIster) having work so hard and spent millions of taxpayers' (for once he has hit it on the head) to promote Malaysia as a shopping and tourist haven. Instead of all being grateful and thankful, only some owners of such establishments had gone and done the right stuff.
And if the words and encouragement of the CAT MINIster is not followed to the letter, there are more ways to skin a CAT. The CAT MINIster proposes to hold discussions with the DTCA MINIster and HLG MINIster with a view to getting these ungrateful and thankless operators to decorate their premises by force, ie making laws to ensure these decorations. My dear CAT MINIster, isn't this taking things a wee bit too far. Your rantings and threats certainly won't add to the festivities.
Hasn't it been said before, to you Sir, "Coerced Patriotism is not True Patriotism"; similarly "Coerced Festivities are Not in the True Spirits of Festivities". So please do not say you will be using force lah, Mr Datuk Paduka CAT MINIster, Sir; let's be spontan lah. Remember after all, it is Hari Raya Aidilfitri season, Maaf Zahir & Batin.

| ¶ 11/25/2003 04:45:00 PM

Monday, November 24, 2003

The TUN Knows

In an interview with Mingguan Malaysia, the recently retired PM said that he felt like he was on a honeymoon for now. But he is aware that "brickbats" are coming his way. "Soon, there will be criticisms hurled at me about my mistakes when I was in office. " “This has already been done by people who have petitioned Abdullah (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) on the need to reform the mistakes that I have made".
In his usual manner of speaking, he added "I do not care. I do not take to heart what other people say. If not, I cannot live.” So there you have it folks, you can point out his mistakes and excesses and others, our Tun just won't care, for if he does then 'I cannot live".
The Tun would like to have his voice heard but he would give his personal opinion and won't disturb or embarrass the Government of the day when speaking on international issues. As for anything he found disturbing in the Government of the day, he would not voice anything as it was not his place to do so. Well folks, we just have to wait to see if it is so. Is there any further news regarding his possible appointment as Petronas advisor?
As to Pak Lah's performance so far :: Abdullah has been able to gain attention and support besides being very active and he was confident that Abdullah would lead the country capably.
The above is from the Star, here

| ¶ 11/24/2003 10:36:00 AM

Selamat Hari Raya

View card

| ¶ 11/24/2003 08:34:00 AM

Sunday, November 23, 2003

It's OK to Pak Lah, informally

Finally the issue has been laid to rest. Officially, from the horse's mouth (I mean Pak Lah's), it is okay to Pak Lah when done informally.
Pak Lah quips :: "After all, referring to me as Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi needs almost 14 syllables, while calling me Pak Lah needs only 2." (There are actually 12 only :: Da-tuk Se-ri Ab-dul-lah Ah-mad Ba-da-wi) There you have heard it from the man, himself.
When talking about another Dollah's problem ie the sacking of Dollah KL, Pak Lah was asked if he took offence to being referred as "Pak Lah". His answer :: "It is difficult to talk anout myself...if an official function, maybe not, but if it is informal, I suppose "Pak Lah" is okay." This was quoted in an NST report.
The same report also said that Pak Lah said the decision to sack Dollah KL was taken by the NSTP management following protests received by Wisma Putra from the Arab Saudi Government over Dollah KL's article "Freeing the Prophet's Land". According to the PM, "The decision is nothing personal. If it was , we would have acted against Abdullah Ahmad long ago."
So here, you have it, Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz, or would you now like it to be informally "Mak Cik Pida".

| ¶ 11/23/2003 10:40:00 PM

Saturday, November 22, 2003

Let's Have the Truth

These days ever since the new PM told us to tell the truth, the order of the day is to do so. So let's have the truth, this time with regard to the sacking of Dollah Kok Lanas, the group editor-in-chief of government-linked New Straits Times.

What do we know now is that he was sacked at 4pm, yesterday.This was apparently a decision by the Umno management committee which met last night and which was chaired by Pak Lah, often 'Mr Nice Guy and Mr Clean'. The reason(s) as to why Dollah KL was sack has not yet been officially revealed. Is Dollah KL an UMNO employee or NSTP employee? If the latter, why is he being sacked by the UMNO management committee? Why in such haste and under such unusual circumstances, ie when he is not even in the country?

When speaking to AFP, Dollah KL said that it is apparently because of his article "Freeing the Prophet's Land", in which he had questioned the failure by Saudi Arabia to keep away Islamic militants.
Malaysiakini said that NST chief could have been removed because he was deemed "too independent" and that some people were unhappy with his editorials and opinion pieces.

Speculations are also abound that his removal was politically motivated. The sack decision could have been as a result of his recent articles which openly promoted Najib Razak as the new deputy premier. This could have resulted in his articles being construed as trying to teach the acting UMNO topgun what to do.
Or could the simple reason be that he was put in place by the just retired PM and the new PM would for obvious reasons want his own guy in this rather important position of group editor-in-chief of the NST.

As truth telling is the order of the day, let's hear it from the man who obviously must have been the main player in this sacking. What he has to say will put the above many questions to rest.

| ¶ 11/22/2003 12:33:00 AM

Friday, November 21, 2003

Letter in Star

There is this letter in the Star by one, DATUK DR S. VIJAYARATNAM, of Seremban :: PAS’ Islamic state concept not feasible. In his letter, the DATUK, among other things said, he states that ::

1. "Unless I am very much mistaken, there is no nation on Earth that professes two different legal systems."

2. "PAS must be reminded that in the years leading up to independence it was with the concurrence of representatives of all the major races that the Constitution was formulated and independence granted.
To alter this agreement and the respected book with such major changes is a great breach of promise.
All Malaysians, of whatever creed or ethnicity, would certainly not stand for that."

Unless I am mistaken, Seremban is in Malaysia.
Unless I am mistaken, apart from the regular courts, we have the syariah courts.
Unless I am mistaken, our Constituition has seen many major amendments since 1957, many were in the last 22 years.
Unless I am mistaken, many promises have been breached.
Unless i am mistaken, there are many who will stand for THAT.

Are you still with me, DATUK?

| ¶ 11/21/2003 12:15:00 PM

Thursday, November 20, 2003

Happy Birthday M'kini
You are 4 today
May we all look 4ward
To many more years
Of truthful reporting
>And more of the news that matter<

Malaysiakini, Only the News that Matter
Needs YOU
Subscribe Now

| ¶ 11/20/2003 04:14:00 PM

Tuesday, November 18, 2003

The Great Islamic Nation Document Debate

It is almost a week since PAS Dokumen Negara Islam has been unveiled. The great debate that was expected has yet to materialise. Apart from the little the DAP, PKR, PBDS, MCA and Gerakan has to question about this Dokumen, the BN and its President has been rather quiet with regard to this Dokumen. The MIC of course is presently too busy with the IPF and its Maika problems to worry over the dangers the said Dokumen poses to the community it is looking after.
Our new PM has only the following to say :: it is for vote fishing, whatever it proposes to do, BN has done them, been there before, there is no need for a reply document from BN.
If the PAS Dokumen as claimed by MCA "would spawn extremism" then the backbone of the government of the day, the BN and its lynchpin, UMNO, must have a lot to say about it. Why the silence? Has MCA or rather its Vice-President Fong been given the mandate by BN to reply to the Dokumen? PAS secretary-general Nasharuddin Mat Isa challenged Fong to a debate following what MCA has to say of the Dokumen, he said debate would be in the "spirit of choice, information and knowledge". But we are now told that MCA Fong, according to M'kini, has turned down the challenge from PAS to participate in a public debate, saying :: "No need for a public debate because MCA is stating all the facts. Anyway we can continue with our arguments in the press, what PAS raises in the media, MCA will respond." It would be nice certainly for the people to have a chance to hear both sides of the issue, especially how it .
Now that PAS has come out with its versi of Negara Islam, isn't it time for UMNO to let the people know its versi too, especially after its former president had unilaterally declared that we are an Islamic Nation already? So why are we waiting or will it be like a lot of things done by the BN, the lesser the people know, the better for all. But then the lesser the people know, how then do the people decide whether it is good or bad or even better? Or is it unnecessary for the people to know what's good or bad, if it is BN done it must be good? But still we need to know the truth. Isn't that what the new PM said the other day, all must tell the truth? The whole thing is so difficult for one with a foggy mind to follow and understand.

| ¶ 11/18/2003 11:01:00 PM

Grouses of !7 and 19 year olds

When I came across the first letter by Patriotic School Leaver in M'kini, the contents amazed me. But what amazed even more was that here was a 17 year old in the midst of the most important exam in his school life having the time to write such a well articulated letter expressing his grouses over our messed up education system. A system which some one newly retired had 22 years to work on and improved but did otherwise.
Here was an account written by someone who is still going through the system and not by some old foggie who had gone through the old system and could not see any good in the various transformations that the old system had undergone over the past 22 years. Despite the system, here was someone, who was able to educate him/herself. Patriotic School Leaver is not finished with the system, he/she will have to wallow and fight the good fight the next few years if he continues with his/her education in one of our public instituitions of higher learning. But then again he/she may be one of those fortunate ones with the means to further his/her education in a foreign land. But whatever happens, he/she has voiced the need and desire for change for the better.
Subsequent to this letter, along came one from Muhammad Abdullah, the very next day to pour some cold water on it.. Here we have a "Doubting Lah", who cannnot imagine that Patriotic School Leaver is really only a 17 year old student, for he found that letter too well written. To quote :: "Having read the letter to the end, I am convinced that the writer cannot be 17 as it is way too good a write up". "Doubting Lah" even concludes that if it truly was a 17 year letter writer then "the education is not bad". Hey, Patriotic School Leaver never complained about his education but rather the system he has to undergo. Don't you remember the adage :: "Where there is a will, there is a way". So despite the system, if one is willing, there are ways and means of going round the mess. This our Patriotic School Leaver reveals in his 2nd letter--"Yes, I'm 17 years old". He complements his messy education system with tuition, extra books, the Internet and foreign publications! Are you reading this "Mr Doubting Lah"? Are you wondering whether Lone is 17, 19 going on 100?
Next along came this letter from--"And I'm 19 year old". Another reply to our Mr Muhammad Abdullah. Another disgruntled student of our education system, one who is fully aware of our government of the day tolerance of "alternate views" and the penalty for having "dissident voices".
Liberation is here my 17 and 19 and ...year friends, if I may be allowed to call you that, our new PM encourages you to tell him the truth so that he might adequately prime minister to your grouses and ills. There is also the Internet and Blogosphere for you to tell the truth, let your opinions be known and be liberated, at least for now. If the two of you have blogs for us to visit, let us know; if you haven't and want to know more or whatever, just remember, we bloggers are just an e-mail away.

| ¶ 11/18/2003 10:09:00 PM

Sunday, November 16, 2003

PAS Islamic State Strategy

PAS has finally unveiled its Dokumen Negara Islam(Islamic State Document) and at the same time assured all that are listening that it would not established a theocratic state. Quickly the BN component parties, PAS former comrade, DAP and even its present BA partners have critisised the document which envisaged a state where Syariah law will be supreme over the Federal Constitution.
What led PAS to formulate and release this document, the underlying reason is the strategy used by UMNO and PAS to win the hearts and minds of the the voters in the muslim heartland of this country. Both these parties have chosen to use Islamisation as the means of winning over the voters. This is something the government of the day has been doing regularly over the years. Some two years ago, our just retired PM, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, had challenged PAS to put its Islamic state objective in writing. The then PAS president Datuk Fadzil Mohd Noor rose to the challenge. The Tun further put pressure on PAS by his subsequent unilateral declaration that Malaysia is already an Islamic Country/Nation/State.
The document is obviously PAS answer to these pressures and is also PAS strategy to win more votes in the 11th election. After the 10th election, the handsome gains made by PAS, showed that in the competition for the malay votes it was ahead compared to UMNO. Its hopes obviously is that in the 11th election, this trend will continue and result in more seats from malay majority constituencies and even winning and controlling a couple more malay majority states. As both it and UMNO had decided on the strategy to be used and the fact that the new PM has an Islamic pedigree, would there be a better platform to have the fight over the votes.
In this light, whether the document is acceptable to the non-malay voters is of minor importance. This PAS Islamic State Strategy(PAS ISS) has little to do with winning over the non-malay voters and the BN components like MCA and Gerakan have really very little to worry about. This PAS ISS is consistent with PAS two manifestos policy. If anything, this PAS ISS might only drive more fence sitters into the arms of BN, this is what has got parties like DAP and PKR worried. Will they now have to distance themselves far far away from PAS. DAP has been working very hard at this ever since it left the BA, will PKR have to and it do so?
It appears then, that importance of this document and the related PAS ISS lies in whether it will help garner more votes in the states of Pahang, Kedah, Perlis and Selangor for PAS, these are the states which PAS has targetted for hopeful takeover after the 11th election. This is what is probably worrying its rival UMNO and its new non-elected president. To lose even another state to PAS will spell trouble for him when the next UMNO election comes. We await the 11th election and its results which will have far reaching after effects.

| ¶ 11/16/2003 09:26:00 PM

Saturday, November 15, 2003

Think Ure Clever?

Below are 4 questions. Answer them as fast as you can. You can't take your time answering.

Answer them immediately. No pencil or paper! OK?

Let's find out just how smart and clever you really are. Ready? ... GO!!!

1st QUESTION: You are participating in a race. You have just overtaken the second person. What position are you in now?

To answer the second question, don't take as much time as you took for the first question.
(You know you took too much time.)

2nd QUESTION: If you overtake the last person in the race, then you are...?

3rd QUESTION: Very tricky math! Note: This must be done in your head only. Do NOT use paper and pencil or a calculator. Try it.

Take 1000 and add 40 to it.
Now add another 1000. Now add 30.
Add another 1000. Now add 20.
Now add another 1000. Now add 10.
What is the total?

4th QUESTION: Nary's father has five daughters; four of his children are named Nana, Nene, Nini, Nono.
What is the name of the fifth daughter?

This was seen here (Blip's Blog) and has had minor changes made, for answers go here.

| ¶ 11/15/2003 09:15:00 PM

Friday, November 14, 2003

Truth Hurts

Spotted this e SinChew editorial regarding the new PM and his priority list ::

tackle the rampant corruption issue
to cut down unnecessary red tapes
to tell the truth in order for the PM to gather the right info and subsequently deal with problems.

According to the editorial, the issues mentioned by the Prime Minister are exactly what Malaysians are most concerned about, in particular the increasingly widespread corruption issue. Meanwhile, government officials of various levels continue to tell lies to swindle the nation.

The editorial stressed that to eradicate corruption, it is not enough just to instruct ministers to set up task forces in their respective ministries to expedite application procedures and cut down bureaucracy.

The editorial suggested that the authorities should also make everyone potential ACA informants and reward those who report corruption cases to the authorities. As long as everyone does his job, it is a matter of time that this malady will be wiped out completely some day. Meanwhile, the government must also amend the laws to give the media a freer hand in reporting corruption cases. At this moment, the laws prevent the reporting of such incidents. Even if members of the public report such cases to the ACA, their names must be withheld by the newspapers. (Now this comes as a surprise, the fact that there are laws to keep the media silent. Can anyone elaborate further on this)

The editorial further go on to say that to speak the truth, first and foremost, the media must be allowed to tell the truth. If the media is unable to tell the truth, the Prime Minister and other senior government officials will not be able to hear the truth. The media want to speak the truth, but they are often prevented from doing so by all kinds of laws and estrictions. It is common for newspapers to receive lawyer letters which want them to shut up on the truth
While newspapers have the ability to offer the truest stories on politics, economy and social developments, such as disclosing the weaknesses in our economy, they have often met with lots of hindrances. (It appears that repressive laws like the Printing Press and Publishing Act and others will have to go first before the truth can be told and corruption effectively tackled)

The editorial concludes :: The government must provide a conducive environment as well as objective conditions for the people to speak the truth. It must also be well prepared psychologically, as truth always hurts and also ask this question :: Are we quite ready to face the truth?

For those who want to help eradicate corruption or have zero corruption, you can now contact the new PM in the following manner ::

e-mail him at ::

reduceredtape@pmo.gov.my
kurangkanredtape@pmo.gov.my

OR fax PMO at 03-88883424
OR go to PMO website

TOGETHER LET'S REDUCED RED TAPE & HAVE ZERO CORRUPTION(sounds good & easy)

| ¶ 11/14/2003 03:20:00 PM

Wednesday, November 12, 2003

Terrorism and Acts of Terror

At the Globalisation Forum 2003, themed Democracy and Security in the Globalised Era, Tun Dr Mahathir, newly retired, had this to say ::

"The world is getting paranoid and security measures taken have themselves caused more damage than the actual terrorist attacks."
The former Prime Minister noted that security measures taken by certain countries had caused severe losses to the tourism industry, bankruptcies of airlines, reduction in business travel, foreign investments and generally worldwide economic recession or the inability to recover economically.
“The world is getting paranoid and the most powerful countries are the most paranoid of all.”
“Will this co-operation and security measures succeed in blunting the attacks of the terrorists and will they actually succeed in stopping terrorism?”
“The world has certainly not been secured by the attacks against and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq.”
“We have to know the causes (of terrorism), and we have to remove the causes, even as we upgrade our security measures.”
“The Arabs are also Semitic people. They cannot possibly be against the Jews because of anti-Semitism,” he said. Malays, he added, were also less likely to be anti-Semitic, “but we reserve the right to condemn anyone who is oppressive whether they have been the victims of oppression or not.”

Now take a look at what is happening in the home front, the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant group has been crippled here, and 106 of its members are behind bars, this is according to the Federal Special Branch director Comm Datuk Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahaman. Together with these JI members there must a total of more than a hundred under ISA detention. Now 13 more new ones have been added, these are the returning students from Pakistan. The government appears to have made the first 60 days of detention under the ISA as an "arrest period" and says that those "arrested" are not ISA detainees; they are under arrest to facilitate investigations or what some would call "a fishing trip".

Unfortunately, this "fishing trip" is not one filled with joy and fun which one associates with such trips. According to those who have been on it, this trip is probably the worse period of their detention. During this "fishing trip" which can last up to 60 days, a person detained under the ISA is held incommunicado, with no access to the outside world. Furthermore, lawyers and family members are not allowed access to the detainee during this initial period.of detention. According to detainees who have been released, it is during this period that they suffer the most, be it physically, mentally or spiritually. Is our new PM willing to give these detainees a hearing so that they can tell him the truth of this "fishing trip". Will it make him think twice regarding these latest 13, who have been arrested under the ISA and whose detention he has defended?

It is well and good for our new TUN to have said what he had to say at the world forum and hsi statement :: "The world is getting paranoid and security measures taken have themselves caused more damage than the actual terrorist attacks" is patently true even for Malaysia. This can be seen in those detained in Kamunting. What our TUN has failed to mention is the human cost of this paranoia, the shattered lives of these detainees and tgheir family members. The latter are left to fend for themselves and to carry on their lives with the ISA stigmata. Rather then looking after the whole world and things materials, the focus should be on things and humans local. Charge them if they have done wrong, release them if not and let them get on with life.

| ¶ 11/12/2003 12:52:00 PM

Tuesday, November 11, 2003

The "Truth" is for Everyone

Elaborating on his call for BN leaders to tell the truth, (which incidentally has given rise to kopitiam talk that these leaders must have been 'telling lies' or 'talking cock' in the past for Pak Lah to do so now upon taking over), our new shiny PM says that the "TRUTH Advice" is for Everyone and not just BN leaders as earlier reported. By this our PM must be attempting to counter those kopitiam talk and that 'telling lies' and 'talking cock' was not the perogative of BN leaders alone.
This advice given by the new PM seems to have produced instant results, for the MMail today reported that one IPF member, incidentally he being the Presidente at that, has owned up that he was not altogether truthful in what he wrote in a datukship recommendation letter which he had sent to our now retired PM recently. When was it last that we had such a confession, my failing memory cells fail to recall. In this letter, the one recommended was said to be a deputy president of the IPF when in fact he was not and at was not even an IPF member! It must have taken a brave man to have written that and an even braver one to admit now that he had written that. And the reason for writing that :: "I hope to persuade him (the one recommended) to join IPF officially, once the party is accepted into BN.
With this confession, we await to see what happens to BN leaders who fail to tell the truth, now that the new PM has said only the TRUTH will do. We await to see what the new PM will do. Will he fall back and say that this was a past happening?
For more on things related to this confession and what the one who was recommended has to say, see this Star report :: Editor: I’m not an MIC member anymore

| ¶ 11/11/2003 01:26:00 PM

Monday, November 10, 2003

Tell Me the Truth or "No More Lies Lah"

The new PM has told BN leaders to tell him the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. He said this when opening the MIC National General Election Convention here. "Tell me the truth. At times people do not give truthful information... afraid that I may cry or cannot sleep over it but as the leader we have to hear the truth. If unwilling to hear the truth then there is no need to be a leader," he said. So what has all these BN leaders been doing, telling lies and half truths all these while.
It was a few days ago when our now retired helmsman told us that Bush did not rebuke him and so virtually calling Bush a liar. Take a look at this and decide for yourself, who the liar is.

Also a few days ago, in the Malaysian Parliament, a motion of thanks was passed with resounding 'ayes' all round and the highest of tributes paid by many of our MPs. Were these representative of the truth, our new PM wants to hear. Take a look at all these articles in the Star of recent days ::

Were they all the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

We were told prior to 1st November, everything was fine and rosy with the country, after our previous helmsman had 22 years making it greater than before; over the past few days things are no longer looking so rosy. Corruption has suddenly become rife and there is a need to take measures to reduce it, even to zero, which of course is not possible. See what Wong CW of the Star has to say about fighting corruption here in his column Take Two. Knowing how toothless the ACA is, one of the obvious first step, Pak Lah has to take is to provide the ACA with more bite to go after the sharks and not the ikan bilis. But here comes our de facto law minister who says there is no need as :: "The Anti-Corruption Act, Criminal laws, Criminal Procedure Code...all of these are complete," Rais told reporters here. Now what does our zero corruption crusader has to say to this?

Another area that has been messed up in the last 22 years, is that of education. It has only been in the last 1 to 2 years that our previous helmsman realised what a mess it really has been reduced to. A system which produces graduates who are not in sync with the market place and demands. A system producing engineers and doctors and other professionals who think they will be better off doing something else. The new PM needs to set this right and soon enough. Is he ready for the truth?

It is easy for the new PM to ask that he be fed the whole truth. But can he really expect that to happen, just because he said so. The BN leaders after having served the recently retired helmsman of 22 years, the one who believes in the PM knows Best policy and the one who was fed with only what he wanted to hear or none at all; will these same leaders, overnight know what is true and feed the new PM with only the truth. Also the truth may not only just cause the new PM weepy days and sleepless nights, it may cause him so much despair that he may decide to pack his bags and opt for early retirement.

But if he truly wants the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, it will be better for him to put his own ears to the ground and listen rather then to expect BN leaders to feed the truth to him. As Wong CW said, when referring to fighting corruption :: "Surely the leadership is capable of gathering information from its own source in party and government on the reputation of these political figures" (politicians apparently living beyond their means). This applies equally to getting at the truth and subsequently a acting on it. Here's wishing the new PM the best of luck, "the truth will come to one who really and truly seeks it".

| ¶ 11/10/2003 12:14:00 AM

Friday, November 07, 2003

Ban on Ghostly Books

Now we are told that only books which fall into these 2 categoories ::
1. Those which cause nightmares
2. Those which cause goose bumps and not these GOOSEBUMPS

The MINIstry would not have any guidelines but those who were working on such works could drop by at its Publication Department for guidance, Chor said yesterday, according to the Star. Without guidelines how will the publishers and importers know which of the books will be banned? Will the MINIstry be making arrangements for books to be screened? Or will this be the responsiblity of the publishers and importers.

Who will these screeners of horror books be? Obviously, they have to be representative of the average Malaysian, they will have to have nightmares and goose bumps on reading those books which need to be banned in order to spot them. Surely the MINIstry must have talentspotted and recruited these screeners. After some secret training they are ready to go into action, now that the MINIstry is proposing this ban. The MINIstry must work in mysterious way, for we have not heard about such screeners

“It is those local superstition stories – like the man cycling home and meets a beautiful ghost from the graveyard – which have no educational value,” the deputy Home MINIster said, now is this the real reason for the proposed ban? Fearing that it may not be palatable, the whole thing has been diferently bundled in this present time of Western phobia?

On the one hand the new PM says that red tape and that we should be a better book reading society; here we have more red tape being introduced to make the publishing and import of books more difficult and obviously uncertain. The Home MINIstry, which records more complaints on graft than any other ministry, will bring together all its agencies to discuss how best to cut back on red tape and increase the efficiency of its services. Are we on the right track, are we in sync? As many of us are aware, more red tape leads to more ways of corrupt practices, again is this the way for zero corruption?

| ¶ 11/07/2003 12:52:00 PM

Thursday, November 06, 2003

Ban on Ghostly Books etc etc etc

A "benign" Book
With a new helmsman, new things are bound to happen, what one find difficult in believing is the latest ban on things--namely books dealing with the following themes ::

ghostly tales
supernatural tales
mystery
mysticism
fantasy
occultism
superstition
sex
violence

Just cannot believe my eyes reading this M'kini article, gave meself a pinch but the article remained the same. Our deputy Home Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung must have been wrongly quoted. But a check with the Star online showed the same, see this. Chor said titles such as Harry Potter would not be affected as they were deemed to be“benign”. Now can the deputy Home Minister please enlightened us as to what would be considered or is defined BENIGN by his MINIstry.

I happen to be a great fan of books of those genre which his MINIstry are gonna ban but fortunate for us there are online sites where you can go to for more of the same. So Mr deputy Home MINIster, never fear the NET is here. Have you, Mr Deputy MINIster Sir, consider the possible consequences of the ban? For starters, a source of entertainment and knowledge will be removed from many and idle minds are the devil's workshops. I urge you Mr deputy MINIster to reconsider your ban.

Books with elements of fantasy and ?violence::Benign or Malignant?

| ¶ 11/06/2003 05:01:00 PM

Wednesday, November 05, 2003

Young, Cool & Fun NSP

The uniforms, logo and song for the National Service Programme. trainees have been unveiled by the Chairman. According to this report, the programme is adopting a “young, cool and fun” image.
See for yourselves whether this is true ::

Young, Cool, Fun Uniforms or Off to the Pyjamas Party Outfits

The three sets of uniforms comprising a set each for physical training, classroom activity and outdoor community service are designed by Limkokwing University College of Creative Technology. They have been described as "cool" by the Chairman. "The choice of colour and design for the uniforms are deemed as "cool", a popular theme among teens and the younger generation,” he said.
The logo, the winning entry of a competition, is dominated by three red flames symbolising the burning enthusiasm of patriotism and a Malaysian national flag crest representing inter-racial unity. Its creator is 27-year-old graphic designer Mohd Faizal Ahmad.
The anthem, which departs from military marching tunes and sounds radio-friendly, is the winning creation of Datuk Wah Idris. Islahuddin Ibrahim from Malacca wrote the lyrics. Datuk Wah previously composed the Commonwealth Games theme song “Standing in the Eyes of the World” and re-arranged the NegaraKu recently.

More info regarding the NSP has been revealed ::

the first batch will consists of 28,000 youths and willl starrt on 10th Feb 2004. Those selected will be notified by December 2003.

next will be a double batch of 56,000 youths who will know by March 2004 if selected.

the 3 month training programme will consists of one month each of military trainiing, motivational courses and community service work.

presently, just 3 months away from the start of the NSP, not all the 5,000 instructors have been recruited as the response to this recruitment hass not exactly been "hot". These instructors, themselves have to undergo 2 weeks of training. These instructors are expected to have skills in physical activities, community services, character-building, academics and the like. They will be paid an allowance. Now where is the stumbling block in finding them, will the Chairman be able to do so? Will these 5,000 be trained in time for the start of the programme? Questions, questions, questions?

| ¶ 11/05/2003 09:29:00 AM

Monday, November 03, 2003

"Work With Me"

The New PM

Since taking over on Friday afternoon, our new PM has been busy, busy. Soon after sending off his former boss, on a well earned holiday, Pak Lah went to Penang to seek the blessings of his mum and to share his happiness with the grassroots in Penang and to give thanks.
He has fired the first shot regarding the coming election and despite no slogan like "Bersih, Cekap dan Amanah", he has urged the people to "Work With Me' and not for me. What is even more important his that we should all be working for the people and the nation and for that we must work together. So the top down approach of governance must go, the idea that only the PM can have superior thoughts must go, the PM must instead be prepared to listen to the grassroots to know what they want and govern the nation accordngly, basically less of 'the PM knows best' policy.
To have more first world infrastructures like the underutilised Petronas Towers, KLIA, Putrajaya etc is not important, rhe new PM would have to go to basics and repaiir and make right the various instituitions of the nation which has been damaged by the excesses and abuses these instituitions have been subjected to in the past, namely Parliament, the judiciary, the police, the ACA, the EC to name the major ones. The new PM will have to work with the people to ensure that there is more good governance, transparency and accountability for all parts and limbs of the government. The task ahead for him is not going to be easy and it is not as simple as just managing success and build on it; the nation and the people have a right to expect more and to be a good PM he has to deliver.
So it is not a question of just not working for him but with him, but more one of the PM and people working together for the ultimate good of the NATION.

| ¶ 11/03/2003 08:43:00 AM

All d'News Menu

Alternative News & NGOs

BrainTeasers & Educational

Games Simplex