LONE

Sunday, May 30, 2004

IPTA Admission Part III---"Meritocracy ala Bolehland"

There's more on MaB. Look at these two Bernama items ::

1. Meritocracy Does Not Guarantee Choice Of Course In Public Universities
Excerpts from Bernama ::

Public university admission in Malaysia is based on merit and not on race or whether a student took the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) or the matriculation programme, Higher Education Department Director Datuk Prof Hassan Said said Saturday.
Commenting on newspaper reports that students who had qualified did not get places in public universities, he said, "That is not true. But they didn't get their first choice."
He advised students to make their eight choices in the application form wisely, "otherwise, you may not get the subjects which are heavily competitive."

Some one commented that applying for IPTA is like a lottery or playing Toto, list your options wrongly and you will not get the course of your choice and may end up being offered a course to study Technology and Industry Fibre Wood when your interest is in Medicine or Pharmacy. There appears not to be a standard way of filling up one's options. Many students have complained that they were 'ill-advised' by their teachers and school counsellors. Can we have clearer guide lines on how these application forms should be filled up, please, so that the lottery element is removed. Can the counsellors be better trained too while we are at it.

2. Do Not Turn Meritocracy Into Political Issue- Najib
As usual when there is a controversy and you have politicians talking about it and making suggestions and the people come out with complaints, the standard warnings will come forth from our leadership :: Don't turn the issue into a political one and/or racial issue. So here you have it, our DPM coming out with the warning regarding the IPTA admission issue. What else can one expect.
Excerpts from what the DPM had to say ::

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak Sunday reminded all groups not to turn the government's practice of meritocracy when giving seats to students in public universities into an issue of racial politics.
"Under the quota system practised in the past it was difficult to get places but now it was based on meritocracy and this should be a relief to non-Bumiputeras."
"Hence no one should turn the issue of university admission into a racial issue," Najib told reporters at the Saujana Golf and Country Club here.

What relief can the non-bumiputras see when the statistics show that ever since 'Meritocracy ala Bolehland' has been practised, the percentage of non-bumiputras admitted to IPTA is getting smaller, from 45% to 31.1%[2002] to 37.4%[2003] to 36.2%[2003]. Many non-bumiputras are wondering now whether it would be better to revert to the quota system of 55%:45%!
Many see the dual examination entry systems ie Matriculation and STPM which are used for IPTA admissions as the problematic issue and this is the issue they want the government to address. Does wanting this makes the issue political or racial? But then again in Bolehland what is not?

| ¶ 5/30/2004 11:02:00 PM

Saturday, May 29, 2004

18 Golden Arowanas still Alive

On 24th May, the NST reported this ::

The then Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said in February that the ACA was investigating another 18 "high-profile" cases after the arrest of former Perwaja Steel chief executive officer Tan Sri Eric Chia and former Land and Co-operative Development Minister Tan Sri Kasitah Gaddam on corruption charges. Abdullah said he had checked with the Attorney-General and was told the 18 were not individuals but corruption-prone sectors which needed to be monitored.

Now look at this report in Berita Harian ::

BINTULU: Badan Pencegah Rasuah (BPR), sudah menyerahkan hasil siasatannya ke atas 18 kes berprofil tinggi kepada Jabatan Peguam Negara.
Ketua Pengarahnya, Datuk Zulkipli Mat Noor, berkata kini terpulang kepada Jabatan Peguam Negara untuk membuat pendakwaan berdasarkan bukti yang dikumpul BPR atau sebaliknya.
“Ini kerana pendakwaan bukan bidang kuasa BPR, ia adalah kuasa Jabatan Peguam Negara,” katanya kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan pejabat cawangan BPR di sini, semalam.

Now who to believe, the PM, the ACA/BPR or the Attorney-General? Or has the AG office made its decision regarding these 18 high profile cases and is misleading the PM and the people?

| ¶ 5/29/2004 08:04:00 PM

IPTA Admission Part II---Has 'Matrikulasi become Manipulasi'

:: The director of the Higher Education Dept [HED] or Jabatan Pengajian Tinggi [JPT] has stated that most of those admitted to the IPTA for the 2004/05 session come from the matriculation system. As earlier stated, this involves a year long course with grades coming from course work, exams and lecturer based assessments. The STPM system involves a two year course and what many claim, a tougher examination at the end. When it comes to consideration for IPTA admission, these matriculation grades are converted to CGPA grades to be the same as grades obtained in the STPM examination. This is where a lot of students cry foul and claim that manipulasi occurs. They say that matriculation grades and STPM are like apples and oranges and cannot be meaningfully and easily converted and compared. Really how equitable is it when the two system are compared is something GOK for the basis used is not widely known as it appears to be kept under wraps. A more transparent approach may allay suspicion.

Many students who have failed to gain admission have wondered aloud whether it was the right thing to do when they did their Form 6 and the STPM. Since long ago, many post-SPM students have realised that matriculation is a shortcut to gaining admission to IPTA. But it has only been in the past two years that non-bumiputra students have been allowed admission to this system. Even then they only make up 10% of the matriculation student population. As to the actual number, it is again anyone's guess for the figures are under wraps. So for the many non-bumiputra students who are not accepted for matriculation, apart from doing their further eductaion in private institutes or colleges of higher learning [which involves hefty expenditures, often beyond the means of many], what is the next available option? Back to square one, Form 6 and STPM.

So what's the solution(s) to ensure that when it comes to selection of students for IPTA admission based on meritocracy and not MaB? Firstly let there be only one common system for post-SPM students to do their pre-tertiary education. Either the Form 6 goes or matriculation goes. Suspicions about the manipulasi in matrikulasi would be removed in one single stroke.
The other step the government needs to take in order to ensure that as many as possible of those who are qualified and eligible received tertiary education is to spend more on creating more and more places for them. When compared to previous year, the number of places available in the public universities have only increased by a miserable 5%. But the number of STPM candidates jumped by 20% to 56,500 and matriculation students jumped by 25% to 20,026. Obviously steps have not been taken to ensure that there are adequate places for our students! Knowing how important educating our youths is to the further progress of our nation towards developed nationhood, the government and especially the Education MINIstry have been found wanting. Now that we have not one but actually two MINIstries catering for Education, can we expect better things in the future!

more later....

| ¶ 5/29/2004 12:09:00 PM

Friday, May 28, 2004

IPTA Admission--Meritocracy ala Bolehland

:: It is the time of the year when Meritocracy ala Bolehland is on show once again and flaunted. Utusan online headline says :: Bumiputera meningkat -- Meritokrasi tidak halang lebih ramai layak ke lima fakulti kritikal and the Star headline reads :: 128 top scorers fail to get into medical school. {The critical faculties are :: medical, dentistry, electronic engineering, chemical engineering and accountancy]
The Meritocracy ala Bolehland [MaB] system was implemented first in 2002 to replace the quota system, which had set a 55:45 ratio for enrolment of bumiputera and non-bumiputera students into IPTA [Institute Pengajian Tinggi Awam/Public Institutes of Higher Learning] respectively. According to the MaB system, students admitted to IPTA come via two examinations viz STPM [Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia/Higher School Certificate Malaysia] or matriculation. The STPM involves a 2 year course with the examination at the end and the matriculation is a 1 year course with course work counting for most of the grades. Matriculation students consist of 90% bumiputras and 10% bumiputras [prior to 2002, there were minimum or no non-bumiputra students.
Having students admitted to IPTA via two different systems obviously has many non-bumiputra students decrying that there is no true meritocracy as the matriculation system is considered by many to be not only the faster system but also the easier one. There is a system of converting grades from the matriculation system into the STPM system which involves the Cumulative Grade Point Average [CGPA], the maximum obtainable is 4.0. The absence of a single examination being made use of for IPTA admission has resulted in many students feeling frustrated with and feeling cheated by the Meritocracy ala Bolehland system.

More.....

| ¶ 5/28/2004 06:36:00 PM

Thursday, May 27, 2004

Boleh kah, Tak Boleh

::Recently the Dewan Rakyat Speaker Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Dato' Seri Dr. Mohamed Zahir Bin Haji Ismail struck off the motion tabled by the Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang on the ground that it could be sub-judice as several election petitions were still pending in courts nationwide. He did this after consulting the Attorney General. Zahir also said that no motion pertaining to the general election will be entertained before the cases pending in the election courts are dealt.
The deputy president of human rights movement Hakam in an article in Malaysiakini questioned :: Is there room for sub-judice in the House?. He argued that the sub-judice rule can be taken to levels of absurdity by by its inconsistent application. If the discussion of the conduct of the Election Commission [EC] in the recent election in the Dewan Rakyat can be considered sub-judice then in the near future when all the election petition hearings are in sessions, what happens in one court would be sub-judiced as it is related to the hearing in another one, as they can effect the judgement of the latter.
In the Dewan Rakyat, DAP deputy chairperson Karpal Singh took the Speaker to task for dismissing Lim KS motion to debate the impeachment of the EC chief. Karpal asked :: "Shall a speaker consult the Attorney-General who is a government staff?
Today, the Opposition Leader had this to say ::

The Speaker’s striking out of my impeachment motion of no confidence against the Election Commission was most arbitrary and unparliamentary, undermining the principle of parliamentary supremacy and the doctrine of separation of powers between the Legislature, Executive and the Judiciary; as well as going against the rules of natural justice in failing to give me an opportunity to state my views before striking out the motion from the parliamentary order paper, after the Speaker had accepted it as fit and proper to be included in the order paper for more than a week and after there had been question-and-answer as well as debate on the 2004 general election in the first week of Parliament.

Lim has also given notice to the Dewan to move a substantive motion under Standing Order 43 to review and set aside the Speaker’s decision to strike out his impeachment motion of no confidence against the EC chief. But then again this motion might not see the light of day as government matters takes priority in Parliament.
When asked about Lim’s and Karpal’s open criticisms against his handling of the impeachment motion, the Speaker said he dealt with the issue as the speaker of the House and it was not something personal. He added, "But to criticise me is within their right. It’s alright." In the last Parliament, the same Speaker was not in such a chummy and forgiving mood when he suspended MP Fong Po Kuan for six months without allowance in 2001 after she had openly criticising the speaker for rejecting her motion to debate the scandal of the Certificate of Legal Practice. Can the Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Dato' Seri Dr. Speaker be more specific, Boleh kah, tak Boleh criticise? Now that he has said boleh, can MP Fong get her back allowances?

| ¶ 5/27/2004 10:23:00 PM

Fantastic Fantasia

::And the American Idol 2004 is :: Fantastic Fantasia Barrino. Barrino, 19, edged out rival Diana DeGarmo at the end of the hit reality TV show that saw 70,000 wannabes audition in a bid to win a recording contract and instant stardom.
Producers said a total of 65 million votes were called in by telephone or text message and the two finalists were separated by a margin of just over 1 percent.
The show this year had some controversy especially the early exit of two other powerful black singers, Jennifer Hudson and La Toya London, this prompted cries of racism. And the show host and judges had to remind voters to vote for talent and not otherwise.
The show this season also produced another 'idol', tone-deaf contestant William Hung. He went on to win the hearts and laughter of the nation in early auditions, has even released an album of his own. [if you do check out Hung's album, do scroll down and read the reviews]
Fantasia was my favourite from the early episodes and i thought the other finalist should have been La Toya London.
See the slide show of them, here.

| ¶ 5/27/2004 12:04:00 PM

Tuesday, May 25, 2004

The '18 Golden Arowanas'

The long wait for the 18 golden arowanas is over with the recent pronouncement by the PM. It was in February when the then MINIster in the PM's Dept, Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim who said that the ACA was investigating 18 "high-profile" cases after the arrest of former Perwaja Steel chief executive officer Tan Sri Eric, who was once great. This bit of news made lots of people hot and excited. The election came and went and there were no further news. But the people continued to be expectant saying that it was still early days, lets wait till after the UMNO election. The PM would be able to swing into action then.
It looks like there will be little or no need to wait for that, when replying to a question from Fong Kui Lun (DAP-Bukit Bintang) during question time in Parliament, the PM, among other things said that he had checked with the Attorney-General and was told the 18 were not individuals but corruption-prone sectors which needed monitoring. What a letdown.
So the 18 golden arowanas have been so creatively turned from 18 'high-profile' individuals into 18 corruption-prone sectors. How more creative can one get. Can we now followup and ask the Attorney-General and/or the PM to let us know the 18 sectors concerned, so that we can work with him and help monitor and weed out the corrupt ones?
The other thing the PM has made clear is that those he had nominated to stand in the recent election are all clean as far as corruption is concerned. He announced that all nominated candidates were declared clean by the polis and ACA.
Bernama reports ::

Abdullah reiterated that the Barisan Nasional(BN), in selecting its candidates to contest in the 11th general election in March, had ensured that all of them were free from corruption cases.
"Before we nominate them as candidates, we made sure none of them are involved in corrupt practices. I want to make this clear," he said.

So don't expect any changes come September after the UMNO election, if there are any still harbouring them.
Such creativity, such slyness and credibility goes down the longkang.

| ¶ 5/25/2004 05:22:00 PM

Monday, May 24, 2004

Politikus Insensitive Remark

At a legal literacy seminar for women held in Sabah, a Politikus was heard saying :: “If you cannot fight rape, better lie down and enjoy it”. And he attributed this remark to Confucius.
At a grave site, in Qufu, somewhere in China, Confucius was heard saying :: "Please don't misquote me." "For my quotations please click here, here and here."

For Politikus concerned, Confucius has this to say :: "A man who does not plan long ahead what he wants to say and does not say clearly what he wants to, will find trouble right at his door." [And please don't blame poor reporters for misquoting, misconstruing and misinterpreting.]

The report in the Star, apart from having said the above, also quoted Sabah Muslim Women Lawyers Association president Fatimah Wattie Abu Bakar as saying that the politikus concerned had also suggested rape victims should be psychologically assessed as to whether they enjoyed the incident. [4th world thinking.]
Malaysiakini reports today that the politikus concerned has apologised and made the usual claim that his remark was misconstrued and misinterpreted. At the seminar, several women staged a walkout after he had made the remark. It is also reported that certain quarters also called for his resignation as they felt his conduct was unbecoming of a leader.

Meanwhile, somewhere in China, Confucius has this to say :: "I am awaiting for his humble apology for attributing that remark to me."

| ¶ 5/24/2004 03:31:00 PM

Saturday, May 22, 2004

Hypocrites in our Midst

:: Compare these two scenarios ::

On 29th September 1998, former deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim [DSAI] appeared in court, bruised and with a black-eye, and pleaded innocent to charges of sodomy and corruption, charges which to this day, many believe were trumped up. DSAI claimed that he was assaulted the night of his arrest on 20th September 1998. He was allowed to address the court and had this to say regarding the assault that night ::

"I was boxed very hard on my lower jaw and left eye. I was also boxed on the right of my head and then hit on the left side of my neck very hard. I was then slapped very hard, left and right until blood came out from my nose and my lips cracked. I was half conscious and the police helped me clean up the nose and lips."

In court that day, DSAI told that just hours after he was brought to the Bukit Aman police headquarters, he was handcuffed and blindfolded and subsequently assaulted by an unidentified police officer until he lost consciousness. He was not allowed access to doctors until the fifth day of his detention.
How did the then PM respond to DSAI's injuries, he suggested that the might have been self-inflicted. One lady MINIster was even said to have described in great detail how the black eye could have been self-inflicted. The local media had little to say and there was no hue and cry regarding the injuries sustained by the former deputy PM or the perpetrator(s). It was left to those who supported reformasi and the NGOs and the foreign media to take up the cause.
After some two months, the police were unable to come out with any findings as to how DSAI sustained his injuries and who the perpetrator or perpetrators were. Also no one came out to claim responsibility till much later. On January 5, then Attorney-General Mohtar Abdullah finally admitted that the police were responsible for Anwar's injuries, adding that none of the police involved could be identified. Two days later, the IGP Tan Sri Rahim Nor assumed responsibility for the police actions and tendered his resignation. It took no less than a Royal Commission of Inquiry to finally get the Inspector General of Police, the highest police officer in the country then, one Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Noor, to admit and confess that he had assaulted DSAI that fateful night.
And for what he had done, the former IGP was given a sentence of 2 months subsequently when the case came to trial. But to this day there are many unanswered questions and as far as my foggy memory can recall the government has yet to apologise for the assault by it top polisman nor has the Tun or that particular lady MINIster apologise for their suggestions of self-inflicted injuries.

Contrast the above with what has been happening over the past few days with regards to the repeated assault of an Indonesian maid by the name of Nirmala Bonet (or should it be Bonat?). Ms Nirmala has bruises on her face and scald marks on her breasts, back and lower limbs and a broken nose. We have fellow Malaysians, Ministers and even the present Attorney General expressing horror, shame, revulsion, anger, frustration and moral outrage at the wounds inflicted by her employer's wife. Cries of injustice are heard from all segment of society, a good number have also been baying for an eye-for-an eye treatment of the perpetrator(s) of the assault on the poor maid. Cash contributions from our former Transport MINIster and his friends, from a fellow domestic maid are prominently featured in our papers. Cries that the assaulted maid should be given the best medical treatment money can get are made.
Three cabinet MINIsters, inclusive of the lady MINIster who happens to know how a black eye can be self-inflicted, were outraged by the maid assault and demanded for harsh sentence. This exceptionally vocal lady MINIster was quoted as saying :: "I will lash out at the media. I will also shout at the editors and raise this in Parliament. The identity of the housewife's husband should also be made public for allowing the abuse. Any media organisation which blurs the culprit's face is an accomplice." And then there was this other MINIster who said :: "It is not in the culture of Malaysians to abuse or treat others badly." The Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Noh Omar offered our apology and said: "As a representative of the Government, we apologise and wish to extend our sympathies to her and family, who had placed high hopes on her earning an income, but she was abused instead."
Even a nine year old, one Daryl Ong, is reported to have condemn the maid assault and asked the authorities to mete out the harshest punishment possible on the person responsible for the act. Doctors advised that abusive employers should be given psychotherapy to abate their anger. Was this offered to our former IGP, i wonder?
Calls have been made to screen and check on the mental health of potential employers. Are potential IGP similarly screened? Meanwhile the authorities were called upon to get the probe speedily carried out. And swift indeed it was, for the alleged perpetrator of the maid assault has been charged within days of the police report being made.
The call for the books to be thrown at the alleged perpetrator, if found guilty, was made by many fellow Malaysians and even by none other than our present Attorney General, one Tan Sri Abdul Ghani, who is pushing for the maximum sentence possible and is quoted in the papers as saying :: "I want justice to be done. We will ask for the maximum sentence, and definitely for the sentences to run consecutively."

It looks like the two above mentioned events cannot possibly have happened in one same country, judging by the vastly differing reponses which have resulted by the reporting of their occurrences. But then again, when told that they were indeed events in one and the same country, even a nine year old would have commented :: "There are hypocrites in our midst", for even a nine year old can see the differences in our reponses. Even a nine year old may be able to link the two events and even others together, and say that the way the high profile perpetrator of the 1998 assault was dealt with may have inadvertently led to the many events which have taken place subsequently and also the recent assault on Ms Nirmala. It is time for us all to say :: No More.

| ¶ 5/22/2004 04:45:00 PM

No BAIL for DSAI

The Federal Court today refused bail for Anwar pending a decision by it on his sodomy conviction appeal saying that there was no provision for it in the law.
Agreeing with the attorney-general, the Federal Court said Section 89 of the Courts of Judicature Act (Coja) does not allow it the power to grant either bail or a stay of execution.
What was ominous yesterday has come to pass.
So it looks like it is end of the line fo DSAI as far as bail application is concerned.
See account in Malaysiakini's NewsFlash, here.

| ¶ 5/22/2004 12:31:00 PM

Housewife Pleads Not Guilty to Maid Abuse

:: A 36 year old housewife, Yim Pek Ha, was charged in the Sessions Court Kuala Lumpur with four counts of voluntarily causing grievous hurt to her Indonesian maid, Nirmala Bonat [?Bonet]

Her first three charges were of voluntarily causing grievous hurt to Nirmala Bonat, 19, with dangerous weapons, namely an iron and hot water, at her condominium at 33B-25-6, Villa Putera, Jalan Tun Ismail, here, in January, March and April this year. Her fourth charge was voluntarily causing grievous hurt to the maid with a metal cup on May 17 this year.

She was denied bail and will be remanded at the Kajang Prison pending her trial on July 26-28.

The people's voice has been heard, swift investigation and record fast charges. The people await equally swift investiggations regarding husband.

To see Bernama report click here and for the Star report, click here.

| ¶ 5/22/2004 12:20:00 PM

Friday, May 21, 2004

D-Day for Anwar Again

Tonight my prayers will also go out for DSAI, that the 3 judges hearing his appeal for bail will look into their consciences and come out with the right decision regarding DSAI's appeal for bail. If they are God fearing men, let them come out and do what is right in His sight. They have it in their hearts and hands to do what is right and allow this sick man, to have his medical needs attended to by a doctor of his own choice.
i may not be legally trained and may not be well versed with the laws but i understand that sodomy is a bailable offence, that the bail appealant has yet to exhaust all legal means available and even those accused of murder have been granted bail. In his present state, DSAI presented no danger to the public and that there is no likelihood that he would abscond if granted bail.
For an account of the court proceedings today, read this. Some of the sitting judges' responses to the points of appeal made by DSAI's lawyers are rather ominous.
Those who may like to read again the 10 reasons put forward by Martrin Jalleh as to why bail should be granted, click here.
In less than 24 hours, we will know whether the prayers going out for DSAI will be answered and whether he will finally have got his fair day in court. In the meanwhile, all who are concerned can only hope and pray.

| ¶ 5/21/2004 10:37:00 PM

Much Ado About Hair Pieces

Read all about it here, the article entitled :: Bonfire of the hairpieces: the global cost of a religious ruling by Independent's Paul Vallely.
Excerpts ::

An Israeli rabbi's ruling that human hair from India is non-kosher has not only rocked Orthodox Jewry worldwide but has also thrown a multimillion-pound industry into crisis.

Rabbi Ahron Dovid Dunner watched carefully as the barbers severed the long tresses of the women and men, and saw it fall in a trough, from which it is collected to be sold to foreign buyers.

On Wednesday last week, Rabbi Sholom Elyashiv [he is one of the most respected authorities in the ultra-Orthodox Jewry world] issued a ruling that all wigs from India were non-kosher.

Among highly Orthodox Jews, a code of modesty forbids women from displaying their hair in public once they are married. Rabbinical tradition has it that a woman's hair is her "crowning glory" and must be covered outside the home.

Across the world uproar has ensued. Men came home from synagogue to ask their wives: "Where is your wig from?" A panic flashed around the world from Israel to New York, India, Toronto and London. The international wig industry was thrown into crisis; it sells to the theatrical, medical and black communities too but Orthodox Jews represent a significant proportion of its business, especially at the pricier end of the range.

Final words from Rabbi Pini Dunner [the nephew of Rabbi Ahron Dovid Dunner, the Rabbi who went to India] :: "To a secularist all religion is strange, and because Judaism is defined by the things you do as much as the things you believe, then much of what we do will be deemed strange. But when you believe in God then the things that control your life go beyond the preoccupations of secular materialism."

Everyday i learn a thing or two, there is still so much more yet to learn.

| ¶ 5/21/2004 04:36:00 PM

Veteran Journalist's Demise

The Star’s London-based veteran journalist, Taiping-born Tan Kah Peng has died after a long battle with the big C. He was called to rest on 19th May in London.
Tan had his early education in Taiping and subsequently went to Australia for his tertiary education, there he obtained his degree in politics from Monash University in Australia.
In the early 1970's he joined the NSTP; then for some years, when Datuk Paul Leong was MP for Taiping, Tan was his political secretary.
In 1990, he returned to his first love, journalism, and joined the Star as an associate editor and after a brief sabbatical rejoined the paper in 1996 when he was transferred to the paper’s London office. His last posting there was as the Star's European Union Bureau editor.
Farewell a fellower Taipingnite.

| ¶ 5/21/2004 03:13:00 PM

Thursday, May 20, 2004

Victim asked to Catch Thief

Some of you may have missed this item in the Star online as it was in the Parliament Section (?why).
Don't bother searching for the news item. i'll summarise it for you. This is what the item is about; a 'story' told by a Johore ADUN in the Johore State Assembly. It is about the victim of a snatch theft. The victim while walking somewhere in Tampoi had his sling bag snatched by 2 men on a motorbike. In the bag was the victim's passport among other things. The robbers later contacted the man and demanded RM2,000 for the return of his belongings, after some 'tawar menawar' a sum of RM500 was agreed upon. The victim then made a polis report and informed the polis of the pending exchange of cash for passport and other things. Guess what the investigating officer [IO] told him? DIY-- the IO told him to fulfil the the robbers' demands and catch the robbers himself. End of story? Not yet.
The victim went for the exchange meeting, parted with RM500 and got ONLY his passport back. After listening to the Stones' [i can....]Satisfaction, and being not satisfied, the robbers tried their luck again the next day and contacted the victim offering to return the rest of the belongings for another RM1,500. Victim got smart this time around, approached said ADUN. Said ADUN took victim to the district deputy police chief. Polis Chief took prompt action and all 3 greedy robbers (2 has now become 3?) are now in the lockup. End of story? Not yet.
What happen to said IO? Transferred out? Demoted? What?
Moral of story? Victim of snatch theft, don't go make polis report, see ADUN or Polis Chief!

| ¶ 5/20/2004 04:43:00 PM

Are Foreign Maids Tortured?

::You don't have to go far for the answer. Just take a peek at the front pages of the newspapers today or see this blog and see the heaps of shock and disgust dumped on the alleged perpetrators of the abuse. We certainly have 'sickos' in our midst. Why didn't the employer's spouse lift a finger? Why didn't the neighbours react? Are we really such a sick, horrible, non-caring nation?

| ¶ 5/20/2004 02:22:00 PM

Wednesday, May 19, 2004

Are Detainees Tortured?

Are our detainees in the Kamunting Kem Perlindungan or polis lockups or Bukit Aman 'safe houses' tortured? Ask this question and one would get one of four possible answers :: Yes, No, Don't know and Don't want to know lah.
Just to be sure what we are talking about when we mention torture, this is the way the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment defines it :: "any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted" on a prisoner. Wonder why the spiritual aspect has not been included.

Recently a foreign news report said that Jemaah Islamiah (JI) suspects had submitted a complaint to the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) that they were routinely stripped, slapped, kicked and subjected to sexual abuse during police interrogation.

In response, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Noh Omar said that all people detained under the ISA at the Kamunting Camp in Taiping, Perak, are being treated well and the claim that they are being tortured and abused is unfounded or unproven. What Datuk Nor Omar is not saying is that there is NO torture but the torture is not proven.
The Home Minister (and also PM) refuted allegation that ISA detainees had been ill-treated like the Iraqi prisoners at Al-Gharib. Again in this instance the PM is not saying that there is NO torture but any torture is unlike those suffered by the Iraqis in Al-Gharib.
Am i reading correctly what they are saying?

See here, here and here for the torture claims by detainees and others.

| ¶ 5/19/2004 09:44:00 AM

Tuesday, May 18, 2004

Forged MyKad [aka Malaysia (not so) Smart Kad]

MyKad was first launched in 2001. The new identification card cum digital multipurpose smart card was meant to be a boon to the Malaysian users. It was touted to be secured and tamperproof. But many of the captive potential users had their reservations and apart from using it as an identification card, many did not make use of its other applications like driving licence, international passport, health information and e-cash. These other applications are to this day underutilised for fear of unauthorised access to sensitive information.
This anxiety about the misuse of information contained in these cards have resulted in many not hurrying to change from the old IC to MyKad. The government has insisted that the change must be effected by the end of 2005. Many MyKads are also in the national registration 'pejabats' awaiting collection. This has caused the government to come out with the suggestion of a fine for those who don't collect their MyKads.
Now the anxiety and fears of the people have been realised, recently none other than the Home Affairs Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid has come out to reveal that there are forged or tampered MyKads around. Though he has insisted that the embedded smart chips were clone-proof, these tampered cards carry photographs other than than those of the real card owners. Syndicates are said to have tampered with stolen MyKads and sold them to illegal immigrants for RM6K each. The other revelation made, this time by the polis, is that there are insufficient MyKad detection machines around if forgery of the smartcard by foreigners becomes serious. Certainly a sad state of affairs!

| ¶ 5/18/2004 10:05:00 PM

Obesity and the Ultimate Healthy Diet

::Recently, mention was made that more Malaysians are getting overweight and obese. The last survey done by the MINIstry of Health from 1996 to 1997, found 4.4% of the population were obese and the survey also found that 16.6% of Malaysians are overweight. So presently, the number of fat Malaysians must be more than 20 in every 100. We are obviously catching up with the 1st world people as far as this aspect is concerned.
So what is meant by obesity, is it the same as being overweight? Though the term "obesity" is often used interchangeably with "overweight", they are not identical. Obesity may be defined as the excess accumulation of body fat sufficient to endanger health; it occurs when energy intake (in the form of food) exceeds energy expenditure (in the form of resting metabolism and physical activity). Overweight, on the other hand, means only that the person carries more weight than is "normal" for his/her height.
Being underweight, normal, overweight and obese is actually a continuum. One can slip from one category to the next, the progression of weight being easier for most than the other way around. Weights and heights of people vary from country to country and from one culture to another. So in order for international comparison to be made, an international measure of obesity has to be used and most often the BMI or Body Mass Index is used. BMI is the ratio of body weight in kg divided by square of the height in metre. A BMI of between 18 and 25 will put you in the normal group, between 25 and 30, makes you overweight and more than 30 pushes you into the obese class I group, 35 to 40, obese class II, more than 40 you are in the "super-obese" or obese class III group. But the BMI has been said to be an unreliable measure of obesity when used alone. This is claimed by the International obesity task force chairman Prof Philip James.
A better measure of obesity would be using BMI in combination with waist measurement in order to take muscle bulk into consideration. Using the BMI alone, one may conclude that that the body builder Hidayat is obese and the singer Siti Nur underweight! Another ratio used is the waist-to-hip ratio, this takes into consideration the distribution of body fat.
The most common causes of obesity are overeating and lack of meaningful exercises. These are the two activities most of us over indulge in. So in order to overcome obesity we will have to eat less and exercise more
There are all types of diets mentioned claiming to help weight reduction, numerous pills and tablets promising weight loss and also patches which one just need to stick-on and magically the extra fat would disappear. Some even claim that one can continue eating and still lose weight! Don't believe them. As mentioned earlier, the only two effective means of getting rid of unwanted fat is to eat less and exercise more.
For those who are still waiting for the perfect diet, take heart, work is still in progress. The Medical Research Council in UK has been given some £2.7m to to research and seek for the ultimate healthy diet. This study is expected to take four years to complete, in the meanwhile those who are on the popular Atkins diet, there is good news for them, two studies published in the journal : Annals of Internal Medicine : found weight loss was greatest when people followed an Atkins-style diet. But please note these two studies were funded by the Robert C Atkins Foundation.
If you like to try out our local Weight Management Information Centre WMIC, check out this site. Here you can find out your BMI and get some weight loss tips. Happy weight loss!

| ¶ 5/18/2004 03:44:00 PM

Monday, May 17, 2004

And...the Thomas Cup goes to China

::Having won the Uber Cup on Saturday by beating South Korea by a 3-1 margin, China was gearing herself up to take home the Thomas Cup tonight after a long wait of some 14 years.

China Uber Cup Team with the Trophy

But like Saturday night battle for the Uber Cup, the Sunday night Thomas Cup tie between China and Denmark for the Thomas Cup was an equally long marathon affair. Both the Uber Cup and Thomas Cup finals started at 800pm and finished closed to 200am. The score lines were the same, China winning both 3-1. The winning ties were the same for China, 1st and 2nd singles and the 2nd doubles. So for the first time in 14 years, China will go home with both Cups, what a triumph for that YongBo Li and the Chinese Players.
The best tie of the night had to be the match between Bao Chun Lai and Kenneth Jonassen. The Dane winning the first set, 12-15; the Chinese the 2nd at 17-15 and hence forcing a rubber. During the rubber, Jonassen, at the change over chalked up a score of 8-4 and collected 2 more to make it 10-4, only then did Bao got into the game. With one service, Bao took the score to 12-10 in his favour finally winning the set and the match, 15-12. Both must have had a torrid time during the 3 sets and at times both looked so wearied and tired out, but they certainly fought their way till the very end. China winning point was won by her 2nd double pair of Sang Yang-Zheng Bo, they beat the Danish pair of Eriksen-Lundgaard (the reigning All England champions) in straight sets, 15-13, 15-8.
So once again the Thomas Cup is remaining in Asia and long wait for a non-Asian country to take it home continues. Denmark probably had its best chance to do so at this year's competition but that chance did not become reality.

| ¶ 5/17/2004 01:47:00 AM

Sunday, May 16, 2004

Volunteerism :: Bad for Volunteers' Health

::We all know that voluntary work is good for the community and society at large and there is much thanks to be given to those volunteers in which ever field they may choose to provide voluntary help. And many would agree that doing voluntary work does bring good to the volunteers themselves but with the good is there any bad, especially to the health of the volunteer?
Researchers from Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, asked this question of over 500 people about their involvement in voluntary groups.
And what did they found is that most of those who did voluntary work linked it with a negative effect on their health.
The study is published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health [JECH] and is reported in by the BBC online.
Excerpts from the BBC report ::

Writing in the journal, the researchers led by Dr Anna Ziersch, said: "This research indicates that involvement may not be beneficial for individual health, and that for the individuals involved there is some evidence that this involvement may in fact be detrimental for their own health.

"The relation is complex, and while we were able to consider some of the elements of the relation between civil society group involvement and health, there may be hidden differences between types civil society groups."

Celia Richardson, of the Mental Health Foundation said:

"The benefits of work and the social inclusion it can bring are well known.

"Volunteering offers many similar benefits."

But she added: "Volunteering, like work, has to be structured and managed to ensure that stress is minimised.

"If people are feeling over-stretched or are witnessing depressing and difficult situations they aren't trained to deal with - and if they aren't offered appropriate protection or counselling - then it is not difficult to imagine they could feel there are negative health consequences attached to volunteering.

"Volunteering is best in an environment which is planned properly to maximise the benefits to the individual as well as the organisation."

So what do you all think of volunteerism especially those presently already involved in voluntary work? Remember don't overstretch yourselves, do only what you have knowledge of or training for and do remember to take note of your own health.

| ¶ 5/16/2004 05:57:00 PM

Saturday, May 15, 2004

Thomas Cup Final---China Vs Denmark

::Earlier in the afternoon, China easily beat South Korea, 3-0, to make it to the final. The Chinese women qualified for the Uber Cup final with an effortless 3-0 victory over Japan. So China stayed on course for their first Thomas and Uber Cup double in 14 years. If they do so, it would be a feather in the cap of their 'cocky' coach, YongBo Li.
Later in the night, the Indonesians and Danes battled for the other spot in the Thomas Cup final. The last time the Danes were in the final was in 1996, where the eventual winner was Indonesia. Indonesia had been in the last 6 finals, losing to Malaysia in 1992 and winning the remaining 5. The Danes had hoped to win both the doubles and a single. And that was what they did against the Indonesians.
The Danes started off losing the 1st single, Peter Gade was beaten by Sony Dwi Koncoro. Then their double pair of Paaske-Rasmussen beat the Indonesia, so it was one-a-piece. The tie between Jonassen and Hidayat proved to be a thriller with Hidayat finally beating Jonassen in 3 sets. The Indonesians needed to win the 2nd doubles to send the Danes packing but it was not to be so. In another titanic battle, the Danish pair of Erikssen-Lundgaard give their all and won another point for the Danes.
With two-a-piece, it was left to the 3rd singles to fight it out to see who gets into the final. The Danes played Peter Rasmussen against Indonesian youngster, Simon Santoso. This prove to be the Danish delight for Rasmussen managed to win the final point and with that the Danes will be meeting China in the final of the Thomas Cup after a wait of 8 years. So for the time being the Istora Senayan roar has been silenced.
Watching the Danes play with their fighting spirits, never say die attitude and giving their all, makes one wished that our players had thhese qualities to show instead of . In a campaign a to lose or not to lose startegy will lead us nowhere except to the exit. 'Cocky sounding' though he may be YongBo's "“We want to win all our matches. We don't care which team we play. The most important thing for China is to stay undefeated” strategy maybe the strategy for us to adopt in future campaigns and in order to do that we have to start preparations yesterday.
All said and done, i will be rooting for Denmark this final and if she should win, it would bring YongBo down to earth a rung or two.

| ¶ 5/15/2004 03:11:00 AM

Friday, May 14, 2004

Toddlers' Mission Impossible

::Many of us must recall seeing toddlers trying to sit on dollhouse chairs or trying to get into small toy cars and end up laughing at the poor dears. Many of us would also wonder why these toddlers are attempting their 'mission impossible' .
Researchers from the University of Virginia, Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign set out to understand why toddlers, who actually know better, do these things. They carried a study of 18- to 30-month-old children and found these kinds of errors --scale errors -- to be common in this age group. Videotapes show many participants in the research seriously trying to slide down miniature slides, squeeze into tiny toy cars and sit in dollhouse chairs.
Small children are able to discriminate size of objects, so why do they then act inappropriately and not like adults or older children. The answer lies in there being two brain systems involved in the utilisation of visual information. Judy DeLoache, Kenan Professor of Psychology, University of Virginia, and lead author of the study explains ::

The provocative part of the answer to that question fits with theories that implicate two neurally and functionally distinct brain systems underlying the use of visual information. One brain area is involved in the visual recognition and categorization of objects ("That's a chair.") and with planning what to do with them ("I'm going to sit down."). A different area is involved in the perception of object size and in the use of visual information to control actions on objects.
The children's dramatic failures to use size when interacting with familiar objects may reflect immaturity in the interaction of these two brain systems.
"In scale errors, the usual seamless integration between the two systems in the brain momentarily breaks down, and the size of an object is not incorporated into a child's decision to act on it."

For further details of the study carried out go here.
For video clips of the children in the study in their actions, go here and you may have some laughs.

| ¶ 5/14/2004 10:26:00 AM

Thursday, May 13, 2004

Thomas Cup-Exit for Malaysia

In the quarter-final tie between Malaysia and Indonesia, Malaysia had hopes of getting through by winning 2 singles and 1 double; Indonesia was thinking of winning 1 single and 2 doubles. But as it turned out Malaysia lost in the first and second singles and the second doubles, only winning the 1st double.
Against the prevailing thinking the Malaysian 1st double pair of CHOONG TAN FOOK & LEE WAN WAH bt LULUK beat HADIYANTO & ALVEN YULIANTO 15-12, 15-6.
Even though the 2nd double pair of CHEW CHOON ENG & KOO KIEN KEAT lost to the Indonesians, they went down fighting all the way and this pair was a revelation. They lost 9-15, 15-13, 12-15 to the Indonesian pair of FLANDI LIMPELE & ENG HIAN.
For a detailed account of the tie, go here.
Now where did how strategy go wrong and we are again coming home empty handed, our coach Misbun explains.
Malaysia last won the Thomas Cup in 1992, ie 12 years ago. For an account of the final tie between Malaysia and Indonesia on that occasion see this account at SuaraMalaysia.
Badminton fans, especially those interested in the Thomas/Uber Cup Championships, here is an interesting site :: BadmintonPlanet.

| ¶ 5/13/2004 08:38:00 PM

In Defence of Nurses

::International Nurses' Day was celebrated yesterday. How many patients are aware of that? How many patients wished the nurses taking care of them "Happy Nurses' Day" yesterday? Sitting in the waiting space while waiting my turn yesterday, i noticed only a handful of patients were aware that yesterday was not exactly like the other days and had smiles and wishes to pass on to the nurses. The rest had the glump and/ro impatient looks on their faces. So can we really expect the nurses to in return smile and be more people-friendly as they go about their work?
When launching the International Nurses'Day celebration themed "Working with the Poor , Against Poverty", the Deputy Health MINIster commented that the majority of nurses are not people-friendly these days. This was reported by Bernama. He urged the nurses to enhance their communication techniques and skills to create a more conducive working relationship when attending to patients.
The Star reported that the Deputy Health Minister said that the majority of nurses now were not as efficient as their predecessors and lacked expertise, professionalism and communication skills and were not people-friendly. He sounded like he is lamenting of the 'good old days' or is he complaining of the poor training given or the poor application of training?
Rather then just making sweeping statements, the deputy Health MINIster might want to look deeper into thhe state of affairs of things and then come out with a better understanding of why things are so.
The smiling and people-friendly civil servants are something of the by-gone days, the civil has been removed from the "civil service." By the Deputy MINIster own admission there is a shortage of nurses in service, coupled with the heavy workload and the increased expectations of the increasingly unsmiling clientele, things can only deteriorate. In any situation there are always two sides of the coin to be considered--that of the provider and that of the receipient of the service.
As for the training aspect, the MINIstry is the main provider of training of the nurses and if there is any shortcomings in the training, the MINIstry should first look at itself. As Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye rightly pointed out :: “The Government should consider from various angles as to how to improve the nursing profession and give them a better deal.” Only then may we expect better people-friendly service from them.

| ¶ 5/13/2004 12:33:00 PM

Wednesday, May 12, 2004

Sixth Former Blues

::Next Monday, 17th May, the lower 6 Classes will start. According to the Star yesterday, Over 6,000 Sixth Formers may be left out in the cold, and that just in Johore. The reason for this state of affairs is apparently because there are insufficient classrooms!.
The other grouse is that many who met the minimum requirements to enter Form Six this year have not been given pplacees because of this classroom shortage. To make matter worse, some of these students who have been left out have discovered that their friends with lower aggregates in the SPM examinations have been selcted. It looks like our MOE has screwed up again.
The minimum requirements for entry into the Sixth Form the cut off point is 18 for Science and 8 for Humanities, the best three subjects in the SPM being considered. Apart from this, manu parents i have spoken to too, said that there is also an age requirement. The student should be at least 17 years this year. This hass resulted in those who were super-promoted after doing well in the former PTS examination [taken during standard 3, the cream being allowed to skip standard 4 and going on straight to standard 5]. These PTS students are now told that because of their young age they are not eligible to enter lower 6! What is the message being sent out, "you are not eligible being too young and too smart!". Those at the MOE who formulated this age requirement, need their heads examined!
As far as the shortage of classrooms and that all eligible will be given a chance to continue their studies are concerned the newly apppointed MINIster of Education has come to the rescue. What he had to say sounded very reassuring ::

“If there are not enough classrooms to accommodate these students, then we will build more classrooms in the next few weeks,” he told reporters after launching the Teacher’s Day SMS “Sanjungi Guru Kita” (Honour Our Teacher) programme here, yesterday.
Education Minister Education Minister Datuk Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said no one would be denied entry as long as they met the minimum entry requirement.

i hope that when he said all that, that he was aware that the classes are to start on 17th May which is just days away.
Education director-general Datuk Abdul Rafie Mahat has also come out to say his piece. He said the lack of classrooms was not a nationwide problem and the ministry had planned ahead to cater for the increase in intake. He assured those students who met all the requirements but whose names were left out of the list given to schools could appeal directly to the respective state education departments.

| ¶ 5/12/2004 12:19:00 PM

Monday, May 10, 2004

Thomas Cupper or Thomas Caper

::The antics of the players presently taking part in the Thomas Cup competition in Indonesia is slowly turning the competition into a circus of sorts. This was reported by the mainstream papers like the New Straits Times, the Star and the Malay Mail. Bernama appears to have looked the other way.

The Star said :: Malaysia wanted to lose the tie. Thailand were just as eager to throw the match. In the end the Thais got their wish.

The Malay Mail said :: Smashing act by Thailand. Malaysia defeated Thaiand 5-0 but the manner in which the Thais played left a sour taste as they put up an act which even fooled the Malaysians.

Bernama said :: M'sia Choose To Qualify The Hard Way. Malaysia boldly took the direct route to the quarter-finals and will take on either host Indonesia or China after whitewashing Thailand 5-0, in their second Group C match, at the Istora Senayan here Sunday night.
Malaysia who had also beaten debutants South Africa by a similar score, topped Group C, thus eliminating rumours that the 1992 Thomas Cup winner might be contemplating to lose the match to Thailand and avoid meeting China or Indonesia.

Simon Cowell said (of the record) :: What a mess, that was one most unentertaining bout of Badminton, better seen in the Kara-O-ki Stadium than at the Senayan Stadium.

Sir George Alan Thomas said (when interviewed at his resting place) :: I never thought I'll see this day. The Competition was never meant to be so. I had insisted that there should be the play-to-win spirit throughout and all matches had to be played.

Lone said :: Great spin by Bernama. Hopefully there won't be further attempts to bring the Competition to more disrepute. We just have to watch the big one that's coming up, when China plays Indonesia. Don't believe 100% what that wily Yong Bo Li has to say :: “We want to win all our matches. We don't care which team we play. The most important thing for China is to stay undefeated.” He may just change his mind and play-to-lose when China meets Indonesia in order not to face Malaysia early! Watch this space.

| ¶ 5/10/2004 04:49:00 PM

Kayveas Gets Scolded

The recent drowning of a PLKN trainee who was from Taiping has resulted in the MP for Taiping, Datuk Kayveas, being at the receiving end of a scolding. The family of the trainee concerned, T Saravanan, who died in a drowning accident in Gua Musang, Kelantan, are very unhappy with the manner and the lack of empathy the PLKN has shown with regards to their only son's death.

According to news reports, T Saravanan's remains was sent back to his father's Taiping Hospital Quarters not properly attired and there were unexplained bruises and wounds on his body. Fearing that his son may have been bullied and assaulted, he made a police report and requested for a 2nd postmortem. A forensic expert from Ipoh, arrived at the hospital mortuary at about 2pm (considering that it was a Sunday, this was an extremely prompt response). After this post-mortem (the 2nd one , as an earlier one was said to have been performed in Kelantan), the forensic expert conveyed his findings to the father, who said he was satisfied the examination had ruled out his suspicion that his son was a bully victim.

MP Datuk Kayveas was at the receiving end when he paid the family a visit. He had this to say :: "The NS trainers could have conveyed what happened in a more sympathetic manner to Saravanan's family than just saying 'We are informing you that your son is dead'." He added, "They should also have provided some help {and may i add sympathy and understanding) for the family, not just wash their hands and go." But this was exactly what the PLKN has done in this incident. The Star reported that on Saravanan's death, the PLKN representd by one, Datuk Sirajuddin Salleh, had this to say ::

The NS Department had not been informed earlier about the picnic the trainees were having.
“It was not in their itinerary but the trainers must have organised the outing to motivate the trainees who have been in camps since the start of their NS stint,” he said when contacted in Petaling Jaya.
On complaints about the way the body was handled, Sirajuddin said: “I have not been informed of this but I am sure the hospital staff knew what they were doing. Nevertheless, I will investigate the matter.”

It is hoped that when the PLKN going into feedback mode in the near future, prevention of such incidents should be considered and in the event of such happenings, a more sympathetic and personal manner of handling should be in place. Can we expect this of the MINIster in-charge of PLKN?

| ¶ 5/10/2004 09:56:00 AM

Govt to Review Education Policy in Uni

The Higher Education Ministry will review the education policy in local universities to meet the country's skilled manpower needs in Science and Technology. Training modules at Skills Training Institutes under the purview of the Human Resources Ministry would also be revised to ensure the institutes 'churned out' trainees suited to the industry requirements. Is this the right way to go about things?

The policy revision would involve 60 per cent student intake in the Science stream and 40 per cent in the Arts of the 500,000 students studying in public and private universities and Skills Training Institutes run by the Human Resources Ministry.

The Higher Education Ministry appears to have great plans for our universities and training institutes, but before it goes about tinkering with the higher education policy, will it be going around getting feedbacks from the educators, the students and the public. Hopefully, it would not, once again, adopt the top-down approach and try to shaft things down other's throats. Proper research and brainstorming should be carried out first before making changes.

| ¶ 5/10/2004 01:27:00 AM

| ¶ 5/10/2004 01:00:00 AM

Sunday, May 09, 2004

2nd Drowning of PLKN Trainee

::On April 23, first-phase trainee Awang Mohd Fazil Awang Borhan, attached to the Simalajau Camp in Bintulu, drowned while on a swim with 36 other trainees at Sungai Cina in Matang, Kuching, Sarawak.

Now a 2nd PLKN Trainee has been reported to have drowned while on a picnic at Sungai Taman Wangi in Gua Musang. This trainee is said to be from Taiping. He has been identified as T. Saravanan, 18, from 1614A Hospital Quarters, Taiping, Perak, who was in the third batch of the PLKN programme and was at the Ethnobotany Camp in Gua Musang, Kelantan.

He was among a group of trainees with 10 trainers who had gone on the 9.30am picnic and swim at the site, which was three km away from the camp. At 1130 am his absence was noticed and a search was launched to find him. He was finally found at about 140pm.

The PLKN Deputy Secretary-General (Management) Datuk Sirajuddin Salleh said that the picnic was not sanctioned by the PLKN, another attempt to be dissociated?

This blogger offers his condolences and shares the grief the trainee's family must be going thorugh, for his mother, Mother's Day will never be the same again.

| ¶ 5/09/2004 08:42:00 AM

To Lose or not to Lose

There is this Star sport news item regarding our badminton team which is in Indonesia playing for the Thomas Cup, it is with the headlines :: To Win or Not to Win. i would rather tend to see the situation as :: To Lose or not to Lose, ie when we meet the Thais.

In the normal situation when a team plays in any competition, the main purpose is to win. So why is our Thomas Cup badminton team having this dilemma after having beaten the South Africans 5-0? The Star article says it all.

The Thais can also adopt a similar 'play to lose' strategy when they meet Malaysia, in that event the Malaysia-Thailand tie would be painful to watch and not be fair for the badminton fans. This 'play to lose' strategy is being thought of because of the desire not to meet Indonesia or China in the quarter-finals. In order to take home the Thomas Cup, the winning team would have, along the way, to beat either China or Indonesia. To our Thomas Cuppers, endeavour to do your very best and forget about losing, aim to win all the way, whoever your opponents may be. There is no shame losing when you play to win but to play to lose to Thailand and then be beaten by South Korea would not only be a disaster but also a dishonour to the sport. So do please think carefully all those involved in strategising.

| ¶ 5/09/2004 12:18:00 AM

Saturday, May 08, 2004

Torture of Iraqis terrible

Who was it who said the above? Almost all of us would agree with him that the recently reported torture and humiliation of Iraqi prisoners were terrible, horrible and inhuman.
But what does he have to say when it was happening in his own backyard, the torture of ISA detainees during his 22 years in power, the death of prisoners and detainees in police custody and of course Anwar's black eye and assault soon after being arrested? The physical, mental and spiritual tortures these detainees were subjected are mentioned in accounts and affidavits given by these detainees as well as in books like "Two Faces" which was written by Syed Husin Ali. An eye-witness account of Anwar's arrest can be read here. See this Malaysiakini article for the many indignities suffered by the ISA detainees, many of which are similar to those suffered by the Iraqis.
While good at passing judgement on the acts of others, is that same person willing to similarly condemn all that needs condemning during his watch? If not then he should not assume the moral highground and pass judgement on others. Similarly it goes for our present PM, he may talk about integrity and the setting up of a National Integrity Institute, would he like to take a look at the mirror. Syed Husin Ali when commenting on Pak Lah's advice to the US and British troops to stop such torture treatment of Iraqi prisoners, has this to say, "Your criticisms of the US and Britain will sound hollow if you do not follow them up with appropriate actions on happenings behind our own backyard."
The latest to join in the condemnation of the Iraqi torture and humiliation is none other then our DPM. Bernama carried this headline :: "Apology Alone Not Enough," Says Najib. The following are excerpts of some interesting statements made by our morally upright DPM ::

"Those involved should be severely punished but the overall treatment of prisoners should also be reviewed by the US government," he told reporters after launching the Tun Razak Youth Leadership Awards Programme 2004 here.
"If we want to act in international relations and convice other people to accept our views, we must first have moral conviction that other countries can respect.
"If we, as a country, lose our moral values, and other people don't respect us, it's difficult for us to play a role in helping to resolve conflicts and so forth," he said.

All i have to say is that "people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" and "those who have thrown stones have no reasons to complain when others do." It looks like our leaders are ever ready to condemn others and not themselves.

| ¶ 5/08/2004 03:01:00 PM

Friday, May 07, 2004

Does Pak Lah really want the Truth?

Pak Lah has had his 6 months as PM. From almost day 1 after having taken over he has been telling us to tell him the TRUTH. But to date, many of us must be wondering "Does Pak Lah really want the TRUTH". Many of us have been trying to get his attention but there has been little or no response or even if there has been any of the weakest of responses, they have come from his proxies, when the truth is told.
Soon after the 11th general election, he was told that the EC had really mucked up big time, this time around. And when told that an independent body, preferably a Royal Commission, should look into the mess; his answer was merely to deny the truth and said that there was no need for such a Royal Commission.
The problems associated with the implementation of the PLKN were brought up in the mainstream media as well as the alternative ones and almost daily there were to be found complaints regarding the shortcomings of the programme. These were crying out for his attention. The PM chosed to remain silent leaving others to deny the truth by saying that the media had blown things out of proportions. Is this the appropriate behaviour or demeanour of a man who is seeking the truth?
Recently there was a suggestion to telecast live the proceedings of our Parliamentary sittings. A person such as our PM should be keen for us to see the truth of what is happening in that august house. But did he wholeheartedly agree to this? His two proxies, the Minister in-charge of Parliament and the Information Minister were quick on the mark to give all sorts of stupid reasons why such telecasts should not take place. Reasons given included not subjecting the people to the antics and misbehaviour of the alternative MPs, the exorbitant costs involved and negative consequences of such telecasts.
A press which is not kept on a leash and is free and not beholden to the powers-that-be but free to report the truth without fear or favour is most important for the PM if he really and truly is a keen seeker of the truth. But in the past 6 months of his helmsmanship little has been done to liberate the presently gaggged local press. We would have expected the PM to have made some moves in that direction by repealling the Printing Press and Publishing Act [PPPA]. We would have expected him to move to act on some of SUHAKAM's recommendations on press freedom. Not a squeak from him so far. Instead we find this former SUHAKAM chairperson and former deputy PM calling for a "fresh look" at press freedom in this "changing times' of ours, looks like "reform" is still a feared word! The call was made by Musa Hitam when he delivered a keynote address at a forum to commemorate World Press Freedom Day organised by the Asian Institute of Development Communication. Is Musa another of the PM's many proxies? Is there any reason why the 'man who wants the truth' fears being involved directly in opening up the 'locked gates' to the way to seek the truth?
Who was it who said :: "The TRUTH is truly out there. But those seeking it may fear doing so as the TRUTH may not be what they truly seek!"

| ¶ 5/07/2004 04:09:00 PM

'Rojak'Songs--no longer Banned

At first when asked about the ban on 'rojak' songs by his MINIstry, the Info MINIster said he was not aware and would probe. After probe probing around, he must have discovered that it is true. And he has now announced the lifting of the ban on 'rojak' songs, those Malay songs like P. Ramlee's classic hit 'Madu Tiga', Anita's Seksis, Ruffedge's Tipah Tertipu, Too Phat's Alhamdulillah and KRU's Bade, which contain English words in their lyrics.
Excerpts from the Star report ::

Kadir said the problem of the so-called ban did not arise anymore and airing Malay songs containing English words was no more a major issue with the Information Ministry.
[......]According to Kadir, his ministry was currently drawing up their own standards on the guidelines for songs.
and “As a responsible ministry, we have a persuasive influence role. I would like to urge all those involved in the entertainment industry as well as those related to work together as a team; never mind about the laws and regulations,” he said.

So it looks like there truly was a ban on such songs which the MINIster was unaware of earlier on, now that he is aware he has declared the ban lifted. But is iit truly so? With the mention of the Info MINIstry coming out with its 'own standard guidelines for song', you know he is going to effect a reverse ban on 'rojak' songs. And you know he is talking kok when he says "never mind about the laws and regulations"! Is the Info MINIster so 'rojak' that he is, himself, talking 'rojak'.

| ¶ 5/07/2004 12:05:00 PM

Thursday, May 06, 2004

Of CDs and DVDs Rot and Care

If you have been ever so careful handling your CDs and DVDs and taking great care not to damage their clear undersurfaces, you may be going about things wrongly. If you think that CDs and DVDs are forever and immortal, think again.
Just came across this article :: CDs and DVDs Not So Immortal After All :: from AP. There is such a thing called "CD Rot" where the aluminium layer of the disc, CD or DVD, are destroyed and the disc subsequently is unable to function. So these discs are not indestructible.
This rot can be caused by poor manufacturing and/or poor handling and storage. See here on how to take good care of your valuable discs.
The other thing to remember when you are buying CD-R or CD-RW or for that matter DVD-R, following the oft heard advice to buy name-brand discs for maximum longevity may not turn out true. This is because manufacturers frequently change the materials and manufacturing methods without notifying users. So one batch may be good, another batch sucks though they may carry the same manufacturer's label. So if you want your data or songs or whatever kept on these discs to last, take good care of them. Or better still store things in other media like compact flash cards or those removable drives.

| ¶ 5/06/2004 11:07:00 PM

Printing Press and Publications Act 1984

The Printing Press and Publications Act 1984-PPPA was a hot topic at a Press Freedom Forum entitled "Testing the Limits". This forum was organised by the NUJ-National Union of Journalists Malaysia.
Among the editors at the forum the main concern of the day was regarding the PPPA and its restrictions on news reporting. The editors including Steven Gan of Malaysiakini, Wong CW of the Star and Zainon Ahmad of the Sun all called for the repeal of the act or relaxation of its licensing regulations. Presently there is a need to renew a newspaper licence annually, this could be made once-off or every 5-years, they suggested.
Apart from doing away with the Act or reforming the Act or removing some of its more restrictive regulations, the other point made by Wong of the Star is that newspapers "should always be run by professional journalists and not politicians." Coming from an editor of a newsspaper owned by a political party, what does it truly mean?
Our new PM, has talked so so much about transparency, good governance, zero corruption. He surely must understand for all that to be achieved, a free press which provide all the news that matter without fear or favour is of great importance. In these days of the internet and the world wide web, what the muzzled local press won't or is not allowed to publish, alternatives will do so. So all his talk talk will remain as kok talk and not bear any fruit if he does not take steps to liberate the press and the ACA as well.

| ¶ 5/06/2004 12:40:00 PM

Wednesday, May 05, 2004

Worming out of Live Parliamentary Telecasts

The PM has declared earlier on, that his government would be more transparent, wants to hear the truth, has no place for corruption and will work with the people. We are all waiting to see all that has been promised. What better way to see that our MPs both BN and non-BN are doing their jobs and earning the MPs pay is for us to see them in action in Parliament live.
Ever since the idea of live telecast fo Parliament sittings has been revived and proposed once again, the PM through his proxies, the MINIster in the PM Dept, in-charge of Parliament and the INfo MINIster, have been trying to give reasons why these live telecasts cannot materialised. First it was the fears of negative consequences, then it was the prohibitive cost and now it is " the Government would not have qualms about live telecasts if the Opposition 'behaved itself'."
This was reported in the NST, excerpts from that news item ::

He said the Government did not want the public to see how the Opposition shouted or behaved in an unruly manner in Parliament.
"They will start showing their antics. It is not possible to show all that live over television.

Gomen wants to protect people from the antics of the non-BN MPs! Hey let the public see and make up their our minds and opinions as to who really are the clowns.

"Both the Labour and Conservative parties have been the Government and as such the MPs from both parties know how to behave. But in Malaysia, the DAP has never been the Government and thus they would not know what can be revealed."

Praises for British MPs as well-behaved 1st world ones. So our MPs are third world ones, what's wrong with that as long as they have 1st world ideas like having live telecasts of Parlimentary debates?

Nazri also feared that the public may not understand certain parliamentary procedures such as the quorum, or lack of it.

Finally, the oft given reasons for most things, the dumb unable to understand anything public. i may agree with this partial especially the dumb voters who put in this so -and-so in Parliament in the first place. They must have forgotten that it was this same MP who made this statement, "I have to teach him that politicians are not called the political masters and him the government servant for nothing."
How many more stupid reasons are they going to come out with in their attempts to try and worm their way out?

| ¶ 5/05/2004 11:27:00 PM

Tuesday, May 04, 2004

Live Webcast of Parliament

At a press conference recently, DAP chairman Lim Kit Siang urged the Cabinet to reconsider its decision against live broadcast of parliamentary sittings or allow the DAP to provide a live webcast with a RM500,000 start-up grant.
Soon after Lim KS mooted this idea, the MINIster in-charge of Parliament came out to say that there would be more negative consequences than positive ones. Later on the Info MINIster came out saying that live telecast was too expensive. But his MINIstry seems to have dough aplenty as it was reported having splash on a victory celebration dinner for the BN in honour of its landslide victory. Taxpayers' money which could have been spent better, like having live-telecasts of Parliamentaryy proceedings.
Surely the taxpayers would be better served being able to follow what is going on in Parliament. And there are taxpayers clamouring for this as can be seen by the letters to Malaysiakini website, see here and here. Even the backbencher club [BBC] chairman has come out in support, but of course he would like the taxpayers to see the fumblings of the alternative MPs.
Coming back to the idea mooted by Lim KS, it should receive the support of the taxpayers. Those who are IT savy and would like to help can contact him.

“I invite Malaysians who have the expertise to provide a live webcast of the Parliament in the most technically competent and cost-effective manner to volunteer their services,” Mr Lim KS said, adding that he could be contacted at 012-281 2828.

So all those able to and interested, please get cracking. Oh yes, one more thing before i go, Mr Lim KS might want to contact the CIP Cradle Investment Programme for a startup grant. After all the CIP has supported ideas like Durian Packaging Technology for Export Market and Mobile Fans Club! Good luck, Mr Lim KS, the CIP promises to turn "Dreams into Reality". The taxpayers, meanwhile, await eagerly in anticipation.

| ¶ 5/04/2004 03:21:00 PM

Ill-Disciplined Headmistress canes Teacher

They say :: "Spare the rod and spoil the child" , but this headmistress in Perak seems to have taken it too far. While discussing of all issues, 'student discipline', she became upset with a male teacher she was having the discussion with and proceeded to assault him with a cane. Apparently she lost her temper after the male teacher raised some objections to what was under discussion. A good enough reason for assault, one may ask?
The poor man suffered bruises on his body and later lodged a police report on the assault.
Bernama reported that after discussions between the two concerned and the Hilir Perak District Education Officer, the matter was settled amicably. Just imagine that. This must be a first in Perak. Certain living up to the slogan :: Perak No. 1.
This high-handed action by the headmistress certainly won't augur well for discipline in schools in general and in her Rungkup school in particular. Looks like the headmistress, herself is badly in need of being disciplined. Imagine the humiliation the male teacher concerned must have suffered.
Lately the media has been full of stories of abuses and humiliation of Iraqi prisoners by their American and British captors. This incident may not exactly rank with them but no matter what, it is still a humiliating assaut.

Update:: It looks like the caning incident won't end so amicably for the headmistress after all. The NST reported on Thursday that the headmistress concerned will likely be "demoted and transferred" as the Perak State Education Dept after a meeting decided that "a person should only hold the job if he or she can handle it". So the male teacher concerned may likely get "justice" after all.

| ¶ 5/04/2004 10:18:00 AM

Monday, May 03, 2004

Rich Site for Health Related Articles

Came across thus site while browsing the net and having little else to do. The URL is http://www.medicinenet.com. Here you will find a wealth of health related articles.

The articles are produced by US Board Certiified doctors and are ::

Reliable and objective -- each article is written, edited, and reviewed by more than one U.S. Board Certified doctor.
User-friendly -- articles are written by doctors in easy-to-understand language.
Comprehensive -- doctors not only present scientific knowledge, they also explain how they make treatment and diagnostic decisions.
Relevant -- doctors select articles and news items that are clinically relevant.

The site has the following sections with alphabetical listings of articles ::

Diseases and conditions
Symptoms and Signs
Procedures and Tests
Medications
MedTerm Medical Dictionary

It also provides RSS feeds according to fields of interest.

It is relatively easy to surf the site and to get from one article to another related one. The search function is realtively fast for searching the site. The medication section can be a little confusion as american brand names are used---you probably won't be able to locate often used headache remedy like panadol listed.

Those who are interested in their health can go to tthe following index sites :: Men's Health and Women's Health and Children's Health

| ¶ 5/03/2004 12:02:00 PM

Sunday, May 02, 2004

Too Early Petrol Price Hike

In Boleh Land, kiasu things do happen. Star reported that a petrol kiosk operator in Jalan Melang, Kuala Pilah was arrested fro raising petrol price earler than that decided by the gomen. This greedy kiasu operator reportedly raised the price some 30 minutes before 30th April became 1st May.
Having just read what Jeff Ooi has to say regarding the petrol kiosk he filled up last night where he was charged the new price some 15 minutes too early, can't help wondering whether this Jalan Melang petrol kiosk also had the star sign.
If what Jeff says is true that the servers were clocked ahead of time by this petrol company then many more consumers must have been affected like Jeff. The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs MINIstry should get to the bottom of this.
The Star news item said that for an offence committed under Rule 21 of the Control Supply Regulations, the penalty carries a term of up to two years, a fine of up to RM15,000 or both, if convicted.
Are there more out there who have been similarly short changed? You can e-mail your complaints, here or ring toll-free number :: 1-800-866-800 in order for the MINIstry to act. The MINIstry website promises an answer within 3 weeks.

| ¶ 5/02/2004 05:05:00 PM

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