LONE

Monday, January 31, 2005

Of Tai Chi-like Belly Dancing

All those Selangor PAC members who were greatly riled at the lost opportunity when their trip to Egypt and the chance to attend a belly dancing show was cancelled at the 11th hour; take heart. There is news that the renowned star belly dancer Tamalyn Dallal will be here on Feb 28. Dallal will be here at the invitation of Sun Yoga’s director Dr Jacqueline Koay. According to Dr Koay, Dallal will be performing for those who appreciate the art of belly dancing. Obviously those Selangor PAC members who are fans of this art form will have no problems getting invites to Dallal's performance. So all is not lost for these PAC men.
The report in the STAR also mentioned that dancer Sherlyn Koh, founder of Sherlyn's Belly Dance, as saying that belly dancing is “a spiritual and imaginative form of exercise and far removed from the provocative entertainment that many tend to associate it with”. She further added that it is an art form like tai chi and qigong. It should also be considered as a form of healthy fitness exercise. Such is the manner that belly dancing is properly viewed by those who truly appreciate it.
Now, being more knowledgeable about belly dancing and "bellyrinas", Pak Lah and those in the DAP should try and understand the art form and also understand why it has been included in the Selangor PAC men's itinerary of the Selangor PAC men's educational trip to Egypt.
If only ADUN Lee had been more knowledgeable about this art form, he would then, not have to do the about turn regarding his views of the PAC men's Egyptian trip and could have successfully defended it being on the itinerary as a very healthy educational item. If only the STAR [kew cher] had come to the rescue of ADUN Lee earlier.

To read more of these dastardly PAC men and the lone ranger with moral courage amongst them, read this editorial in Sin Chew online :: The Belly Dancers' Butts And Selangor Public Accounts.

| ¶ 1/31/2005 03:34:00 PM

Sunday, January 30, 2005

Land of Extremes?

We used to have the tallest buildings in the world, a most sophisticated airport of the future, one of the greatest PM in the world and a highway/expressway which has its toll going up 10% automatically every 3 years. We also had a fungus-infested new hospital which was out of use within a short span of three months, a flyover which had 'cracking' pillars, schools without access roads and now we have a school with only one teacher to 70 pupils.
This is our land of extremes. This school we are told is SK Labang which is in the interior of Sabah. It is not that our Education MINIstry has been sitting on its backside and not posting teachers to schools in remote areas. But these teachers are just not turning up at such schools. SK Labang is in the constituency of Pensiangan and is just three hours by rough road from Pensiangan, the nearest big metropolis. So why aren't the teachers turning up? The Pensiangan MP, Bernard Maraat, said that many of the absentee teachers might have declined their postings because many of the remote schools in his constituency did not have housing for teachers and lacked water and electricity. A teacher's accommodation in Labang consisted of a rough house built by villagers and drinking water came from the river. Lacking electrical supply, condition in Labang is like having perpetual Tenaga outage the whole year long. Can anyone imagine that, no such comforts as air-cond, TV, fans, cool drinks from a fridge after a hard day's work........
The nation now has the luxury of two Education MINIsters, surely they must have done their home work and knew about schools like SK Labang. They say two heads are better than one, so can we expect solutions soon to problems faced by schools like SK Labang. Maybe we should be putting 'smart schools' on hold or even the new aim of 'smartening' our present regular schools and just ensure that schools in a similar state as SK Labang are able to function in a manner expected of them. Surely, there are capable MINIsters out there who are able to think out of the box and settle this matter in no time, that is if they put their minds to it.

| ¶ 1/30/2005 05:36:00 PM

Saturday, January 29, 2005

Karpal Warded After Accident

Both BERNAMA and Malaysiakini have reported that DAP chairman Karpal Singh has been warded after being involved in a traffic accident in Penang last night. He was in a taxi on his way home from the Penang airport when the accident occurred.
Penang DAP deputy chairman Chow Kon Yeow said Karpal was admitted to the Gleneagle Medical Centre soon after the accident. He was warded in the ICU after MRI scanning.
Karpal’s son Gobind Singh told malaysiakini this morning that his father’s condition was stable.
Meanwhile, BERNAMA reported that Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang, who was present at the medical centre, saying that party members should not be unduly alarmed over the matter as Karpal was in the good hands of medical doctors. He also asked DAP supporters and Malaysians in general to pray for Karpal's good health. And may he get well soon and be on his feet again.

| ¶ 1/29/2005 02:23:00 PM

Thursday, January 27, 2005

Let's Have Local Govt Elections Again

Many may not be aware that we had elected local government prior to our independence in 1957 and for the first seven years of our independence from 1957 to 1964. Till 1963 , we were known as the Federation of Malaya. These elections were suspended on the ground of national emergency arising out of Indonesian Confrontation with us over the formation of Malaysia

The Indonesian Confrontation ended in 1966, but local government elections never came back and for the past 40 years or so were never held despite a commission stating that it was healthy to do so. The federal gomen decided not to do so on the grounds that elected local government was open to corruption and abuses of power!

So what we had for the past 40 years were nominated local councillors and thhe majority of them came from the BN coalition parties. Usually these councillors were nominated mostly as a reward fro their good deeds. But have these nominated proved to be less open to corruption and power abuses? The record of nominated local government has shown the opposite to be true, such a system is even more vulnerable to corruption and power abuses. There being no way for the ratepayers to exercise a check-and-balance role which is to be found in elected local government. At least when local elections were held, the track records of the local councillors were subjected to scrutiny each time when they have to seek a renewal of their mandate. And during those years there were exempelary local councillors like C Y Choy of Penang.

After some 40 years without accountable elected local councils, it is time for the people to demand that local goverment elections be returned to the people. Pak Lah must walk the talk and ensure that public funds are well made use of and not squandered for unnecessary 'luxury' items like FRP railings and so on.

| ¶ 1/27/2005 03:27:00 PM

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

KL City Hall's Good Intentions

KL City Hall must have an unlimitless supply of funds if we consider what it is splashing on granite kerbs, drain railings and rubberised tactile blocks.
According to a report in STAR Metro, these granite kerb blocks don't just look good but they can last much longer. But the price, a hefty RM542 a metre [no typo here], while the regular concrete ones cost RM27 a metre. So the next time, one is in Jln Leong Yew Koh in TTDI, do admire them and think of the 20m concrete metres each of the granite metre represents.
When one is in Jln Datuk Sulaiman, again in TTDI, and one comes across the Fibre Reinforce Plastic [FRP] railings protecting drains which incidentally are less than a metre deep, just feel how expensive railings feel like, so smooth and so cold. These railings cause just RM486, a metre run. When compared to the regular steel railings which cost some RM98 a metre run, one can definitely get that expensive, quality, state-of-the-art feel. Also do remember that pilfering of any thing, steel or iron made, is going on big time presently and that these FRP railings, though damn expensive are not in demand and are therefore comparatively theft-proof. Oh yes, they also require little or no maintenance and do not require messing repainting, every now and then.
Pop over to Brickfields and Jln Parliament and try out the new yellow rubberised tactile guide blocks for the blind. These cost only RM100 a piece while the older not-so-tactile concrete ones were economically priced at RM6 only. City Hall certainly does not believe in quantity over quality. One surely cannot say that City Hall is miserly when it comes to taking care of the visually challenged. But surely, they would be better catered to if these guide-block-walkways could be spread over a bigger area.
City Hall certainly believe in nothing but the very best for its city dwellers. But what about those potholes and the uncovered manholes which are to be found in other areas of the city? City Hall will, probably in the near future, probably have those potholes covered with the hardest of the hardest of bitumen [HHB] which will require no maintenance at all and have those manholes with missing covers covered with theft-proof, non-steel, 'bolehnite' [BN] reinforced ones . Of course being quality products made to last almost forever, HHB pothole filler and BN covers will naturally come with hefty chunky prices. But as mentioned earlier, nothing but the very best for those citizens, denizens and contractors and all under City Hall's best care. Compared to the amount alloted for the belly-dancing Egypt tour and London-US-Dubai tour, one must be thankful that City Hall is certainly ensuring that the tax-payers' funds that it is managing is well spent. Go figure that out.

| ¶ 1/26/2005 10:56:00 PM

The Peg, The Peg::Malaysia's Response

Excerpts from article by AP ::

Malaysia to Maintain Ringgit Peg
Tuesday January 25,
Malaysia Sees Robust Economy As Reason to Maintain Ringgit Peg

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- Malaysia said Tuesday there was no urgent need to alter the country's currency peg to the U.S. dollar because the local economy remains robust.

"My own belief is that the economy is fundamentally very, very good. The window of opportunity (to change the peg) isn't narrowing," Malaysia's Second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop told reporters.[--]

In the last year, the ringgit dropped by 4.1 percent against the euro, 5.1 percent against the British pound, and 3.2 percent against the yen.

There has been broad speculation in the market in recent months that Malaysia will let the ringgit strengthen this year, as some economists have recommended, given the country's strong economic position and expectations for continued growth.

Gross domestic product growth is expected to have reached 7 percent in 2004, to be followed by an estimated 6 percent this year, the government has said.

However, some private economists have estimated growth of less than 5 percent this year. Deutsche Bank, for instance, said in a recent report that 2005 GDP growth will likely come in at 4.4 percent due to slowing global demand.

Electrical and electronic goods make up around 50 percent of the total value of exports in what is largely an export-driven economy.

Nor Mohamed said the government was likely to achieve its target of paring the budget deficit to 4.5 percent of GDP in 2004 from 5.3 percent in 2003, and is on track to meet its 3.8 percent target this year.

Nor Mohamed reiterated that the government should have no difficulty meeting its funding needs via the local market this year.

"Given that domestic liquidity is large, the preference is for domestic borrowings," he said when asked about global bonds. Malaysia's hasn't tapped the global bond market since 2002.

| ¶ 1/26/2005 09:18:00 AM

Sunday, January 23, 2005

The Peg, The Peg::Change Imminent?

Talks regarding review of the Malaysian currency peg of RM3.80 to the USD has been going on for a long time. Almost a year ago, in Jan 2004, the executive director of the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER), said pegging the ringgit against a basket of currencies would be more viable as it would allow greater flexibility and lead to a more stable exchange rate. At that time, the ringgit had weakened nearly 18% against the euro, 10.2% against the yen and had also depreciated against regional currencies. Pak Lah had responded then by saying that there were no immediate plans to change then but made it clear the government was willing to review the peg if the situation merits it.
The weak ringgit is a boon to exports but made imports expensive especially those paid in yen or euro. Parents with children studying overseas also had to come out with more ringgit to pay for their studies and living expenses. Foreign funds coming into the country were also drying up.
The reluctance to review the peg appears to be tied up with what China would be doing regarding her own currency peg. If China does not review her own peg, Malaysian exports will become less attractive and our exports would suffer. So it appears that China is holding the trump card and Malaysia would have to watch China very carefully.
MIER expects that a review would come about if any of these 3 breaking points is reached ::
1.the euro fell to 1.40-1.50 against the dollar,
2.the yen fell below 100 or
3.the Chinese yuan is revalued
none of this has yet taken place.
Recently, the man who imposed the peg, the Tun, has joined a growing number of critics pushing for a review of the peg and even said that the time is ripe now. The Tun said, "From the onset, we have said that although we have a fixed exchange rate, we can fix it at any level we want. That is the most important thing... the freedom to fix the exchange rate." He added, adding: "I feel the time has come for us to review because we have lost a lot as the value of our currency has fallen."
What the Tun had said was rebuffed by Pak Lah and the Bank Negara Governor. They insisted that there will be no review in the immediate future and that changes to the peg would only occur when they are required to be made and only when these changes were for the benefit of the people. All great sounding stuff but tells nothing about when or what will be happening soon.
But despite these denials that there will be changes soon, Barclays Capital noted in a research paper that foreign cash has been pouring into Malaysia, hiking its foreign reserves by 19 percent or USD10.7 billion in the fourth quarter of last year alone. All this money is being parked to await benefits from a repegging. So despite the uncertainty, it appears that speculators are betting that Malaysia will bow to growing pressure to review its currency peg to the shrinking US dollar. And many analysts believe that not only are they right but the government should make a change soon. Barclays forecasts a change in the pegged rate of 3.80 ringgit to the dollar around mid-year, while some economists have urged more immediate action. MIER said recently that the "window of opportunity" for change from a position of strength was shrinking. So based on these pressures the probability of a review is imminent. And knowing that this is Boleh Land, we may wake up one day after the CNY and find that the greenback is only worth RM3.20 or less.
What can joe public and the exporters and importers of goods do in these trying times? Don't commit to purchase foreign imported goods especially those needing payments in USD? Sell off investments held in USD? Sell off as much as possible inventories presently held? i'm no economist, just an ordinary joe trying to make sens out of the whole peg issue. Any economic expert out there willing to lend a hand at understanding the issue?

| ¶ 1/23/2005 11:05:00 PM

Samy Says No No to PLUS

Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu is reported to have issued a directive to PLUS aka MINUS to stop collecting fines from motorists for "overstaying" on the highway. As a result of Samy's directive, PLUS said it had "temporarily suspended its toll cheating operations along the expressway. Is PLUS appearing defiant? Note the keywords "temporarily suspended", so this may not be end of the matter. PLUS has also been instructed by the Works Minister to submit a report on the toll fraud to his ministry, apparently by tomorrow, that fast, Datuk Seri?

According to the STAR, earlier Malaysian Highway Authority director-general Datuk Dr George George said PLUS should not take such arbitrary action as legal issues were involved. The NST report has this to say ::

Earlier, PLUS corporate communications assistant general manager Khalilah Mohd Talha said under its contract, it could take action to ensure the integrity of the toll system.

Malaysian Highway Authority director-general Datuk Dr George George said the move by PLUS was legal.
"It (PLUS) would not simply take action without adequate basis," he said.
"Highway users who feel they have been wrongly fined by PLUS can take legal action."

So is the "overstaying" fine within the rights for PLUS to impose as per the supersecretive contract and is the fine legal? Over to you, DS Samy and the gomen.

The Pan-Malaysia Lorry Owners Association (PMLOA) and the Automobile Association of Malaysia (AAM) have come out with 2 suggestions to detect toll cheats ::
1. Have the vehicle numbers printed on the toll tickets on entry into the highway
2. Install CCTVs to check on vehicles as they enter the highway.

If the toll cheats have really hurt PLUS, surely these two suggestions would have popped up in the minds of PLUS backroom boys/girls and have been implemented long ago. It is obvious that the onus is on PLUS to come up with a good system to curb these toll cheats. This issue of toll cheats and exchange of toll tickets has been around for a long while and is certainly not a recent issue. The fact that PLUS has not bothered, makes one suspect that its bottom line has not been much hurt. Has PLUS another reason for imposing the recent "overstaying" fines?

It would be interesting to see whether PLUS has data regarding how badly these toll cheats are effecting its bottom line. If it has, please make the data public. Or is PLUS just looking for a not so innovative but more lucrative way to up its bottom line by fining innocent motorists [these innocent ones probably providing a much bigger pool than the actual toll cheats] who happened to stay longer than what PLUS thinks they should, on its highway? The innocent highway users should not be subjected to this. PLUS should not, in the interest of looking after its collection, caused further hassle to the highway users. With the red tape and the run around, many of those who have been fined in the past couple of days would not bother to get back their money. In most cases, to get back the RM10 fine would probably cause the highway user more in terms of time and monetary expenses.

The latest say on this issue is by Najib, he says that the gomen would look into the legal aspect of the action taken by PLUS to impose fines on motorists for taking longer than usual to complete their journey on the North-South Expressway. The gomen would determine if there was basis for PLUS to do such thing. So it does look like Samy's directive is certainly not the end of the matter as pointed out at the start of this posting.

| ¶ 1/23/2005 03:09:00 PM

Lionised Internationally Says BT S'pore

Would you agree that Anwar is lionised internationally? Ignored at home, i would agree. Anyway read this article :: [In his own words] in the Business Times Singapore [BTS].
Excerpts from the said article ::

He may be revered abroad but in Malaysia where he was Malaysia's deputy premier until he fell out with his then boss Mahathir Mohamad in 1998, Mr Anwar is resolutely ignored.
There is nothing about him in the newspapers, not a mention on television or radio. A recent TV interview he gave Al-Jazeerah, for example, never aired on Malaysia's satellite TV which also carries the Arab station.[--]

Mr Anwar was sacked on Sept 2, 1998 for 'moral misconduct' and was tried and convicted on separate charges of abuse of power. He served his full sentence on the first charge but walked out of prison when he was acquitted of the sodomy charge by Malaysia's Federal Court on Sept 2 last year. For his part, Mr Anwar claims he was convicted on trumped-up charges brought against him by people who feared his ascension to power.
But why go through all that when he could have quietly faded away, an offer Dr Mahathir apparently made. 'It was a Faustian bargain,' Mr Anwar replies. 'I accept, everyone thinks I am guilty.'[--]

But what was the final straw that ruined the [Anwar-Mahathir]relationship? 'It wasn't just one thing. There were a lot of people surrounding him (Dr Mahathir) who said I could not be trusted, they were worried about my anti-corruption drive. The Time cover was certainly an issue that was used by the people around him.'
(Mr Anwar was hailed 'The Future of Asia' by Time magazine in a laudatory 1997 article that was largely critical of Dr Mahathir).
The Asian financial crisis seems to have compounded matters. 'The fall of Suharto, that worried him (Dr Mahathir). He said this is not the way to treat leaders. Then the bailouts happened. Treasury and Petronas, and you know the rest.'[--]

The former deputy premier has mixed feelings about current premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi although he thinks that, on a personal level, the premier is a good man. The two met when Mr Anwar dropped in on Mr Abdullah's Hari Raya open house celebrations. Indeed, the amount of time the premier spent with Mr Anwar set tongues wagging in Kuala Lumpur.

There is another article in BTS, [The importance of being cheerful], this gives a glimpse of the time Anwar spent in Sungei Buloh. Here are some excerpts of that article ::

IN 1998, K Thirumal, a former Malaysian walker who won consecutive gold medals in various South-east Asian Games during the 1970s, was a warden in a Malaysian prison in Sungei Buloh, 25km north of Kuala Lumpur.
There he met Anwar Ibrahim, then an inmate awaiting trial on charges of abuse of power and sodomy.
Mr Thirumal told friends, and Mr Anwar's family later, that he'd expected to see a broken man. Instead, he found the former deputy premier cheerful and, unusually for the mighty who have fallen, not prone to bouts of self-pity.[--]

'Ultimately, life is what you make of it,' he says. 'You can give up or you can choose to keep your spirits high. I chose the latter, devoured every book I could find and kept myself busy.'[--]
How was life in prison? 'Actually, I plan to write about it because I kept a diary. But, you know, the days blurred and sometimes they were exactly the same so I would get fed up and there would be no entry on some days, But, for the record, I was in solitary confinement all through my term, I wasn't allowed to mix with other prisoners.'[--]

There was no TV, no radio, and no newspapers,' he says a little wearily. 'But I did get old issues from the guards or from my lawyers. Still, unlike Mandela, however, who had to undergo hard labour and prison brutality, I received nothing but kindness and support from the guards, even all the officials.'[--]

The former prisoner countered it by staying positive. 'Whenever I met the family, we made it a point never to talk about problems. We only talked about the good times, the kids, their education.
'We'd sing songs together. I asked my kids to learn the songs that I liked, you know, Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka. I told them to be happy. You know many inmates, when their families come, they all cry.
'I said, never, no one should cry. Ever!'

| ¶ 1/23/2005 12:47:00 AM

Saturday, January 22, 2005

The ACA's Guessing Games

It now appears that the ACA likes to play guessing games. First it was this about a Sarawak deputy federal MINIster being the subject of an ACA probe and now it is this about another ACA probing of another Deputy MINIster.
The distressed Sarawak 5, all of them said "Not Me Lah" and said that they will submit a joint-letter to Pak Lah to express their regret over the matter. This has prompted some to say that one of the five must be lying.
Now to continue with the guessing game, the ACA has said, as mentioned in this NST report ::

A deputy minister is under probe for allegedly influencing the award of a Tenaga Nasional Berhad contract worth RM1.6 million. The alleged wrong-doing happened in 2002 when he was not a deputy minister but a Member of Parliament.
Sources told Berita Harian the MP used his position to enable a company, which was not a TNB vendor, to obtain a contract to supply electrical boxes.

So what do we know about this deputy MINIster who is being probed? The deputy MINIster is a male, a newly appointed deputy MINIster, was a MP before the 11th general election, most likely not one of the Sarawak 5. Any guess who he is? Will all the deputy MINIsters who fit the just mentioned profile, start saying "Not Me Lah" and gather at Parliament one day to draft a letter of regret to Pak Lah? Let's wait and see.
For those who can't wait for the ACA to finish the probe under its usual remarkable speed and would like to solve this puzzle, go to this blog post and click on one of the links which will allow you to see the list of new deputy MINIsters. Happy hunting!

Here's a shortcut.

| ¶ 1/22/2005 07:12:00 PM

Friday, January 21, 2005

deja vu & deja moo

Deja Vu (pronounced "day-ja voo") : these are French words which mean "already seen"; the peculiar feeling that a place, situation, person, action, or conversation is familiar and has already been experienced.

Deja Moo (pronounced "day-ja moo") : these are one French and one English word; the peculiar feeling that you've heard, seen or experienced this bullshit before.

| ¶ 1/21/2005 11:31:00 PM

PLUS turning MINUS

It looks like PLUS has been pretty quick at taking the "think out of the box" advice to heart and coming out with a solution to "toll cheating".
PLUS said the surprise fine for overstaying operation which began yesterday against "overstaying" highway users was to curb toll cheating among highway users. And it claims just after one day that it has yielded the desired result as the number of toll cheating cases had decreased compared to previous days. PLUS please show us the stats. Enlighten us, let us share the numbers. Or is the whole exercise an opportunity to increase PLUS bottomline? How does a fine for overstaying prevent or curb toll cheating, please explain or is PLUS just grabbing at any straw.
Opposition Leader, Lim Kit Siang, urged PLUS to immediately stop the fine operation, which he described as illegal. Lim said Works Minister Datuk Seri Samy should direct PLUS to stop the fine for overstaying operation as PLUS had no authority to implement the fine.
Just imagine what could possibly happen if the backroom boys in PLUS seriously takes up the 'think out of the box' advice and come out with more brilliant ideas of boosting PLUS income further, in the near future we may see the following charges levied on the poor already overburden highway users ::

Parking fees in rest areas
Fees for using toilet and wash facilities
Fees for filling up at petrol stations
Fees for clearing up after accidents

want me to list more? As far as i am concerned, PLUS should only be charging for use of the highway and that also it has to ensure the correct allowable charge per km is being charged and collected. It should not be allowed to collect further charges and fees and fines. Some have called the recent toll hike, highway robbery; definitely PLUS should not be allowed more.
It is time, Datuk Seri Samy let the people know about the supersecretive contract the gomen had signed with PLUS. Keeping that contract under wraps is certainly not consonant with the gomen's mantra of transparency and accountability. The people have a right to know what is in it, so that PLUS cannot just spring further surprise charges, fees or fines on us. We have got to say enough is enough PLUS, you are turning MINUS certainly!

| ¶ 1/21/2005 08:23:00 PM

Fine for Overstaying on N-S Highway

The toll has gone up 10% on the N-S Highway and now for the first time we are told that there is a fine for overstaying. It appears that PLUS has set a time limit for the duration a vehicle can stay on the highway after entry. See this story in the STAR about this tow-truck driver who was shocked when he was fined RM10 for spending more than three hours on the Jelapang-Kuala Kangsar stretch of the N-S Expressway. A trip normally costing RM3.50 was hiked up to RM13.50.
When this form of highway 'robbery' started? Does anyone know? Has PLUS got the right to impose such a fine? Will DS Samy like to enlighten and clarify?
According to the report in the STAR, PLUS has the following to say ::

PLUS advised the said tow truck driver to write in to the concessionaire to explain on why he took more than three hours to make a journey that normally takes an hour.
Users who were fined but have valid reasons for delays can contact PLUS at 03-7981 8000 or lodge a complaint at the nearest toll plaza.

In the meanwhile, the next time you enter the highway do ask the ticketing officer how long you are alllowed to stay. For even if you have valid reasons to stay longer, you will have to undergo the hassle of explaining to PLUS why you have overstayed! So remember, if you need a break and forty-winks or a bite or a leak, don't overstay!
Check out also Opposition Leader, Lim Kit Siang's media statement :: "PLUS given 24-hour ultimatum to immediately withdraw unilateral, arbitrary and illegal fines on North-South Expressway users for allegedly “overstaying” in the expressway or face nation-wide protests."

| ¶ 1/21/2005 10:55:00 AM

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Dengue Fever::The Rising Tide

It looks like we are in for more dengue cases to come, it is another rising tide. It may not have reached epidemic proportions but if uncontrolled it would be heading in that direction. To check out on the present situation and maybe a clearer picture, clicked on the links below ::

1. Dewan Rakyat Sets Aside One Hour To Debate Motion On Dengue Fever :: 18th Jan
The Special Dewan Rakyat session Tuesday set aside one hour to debate a motion on dengue fever as the aedes mosquito spread fever has reached a serious magnitude, with more than 1,000 people being diagnosed with the ailment in a week.
The motion moved by Dr Raman Ismail (BN-Gombak) was accepted for debate by Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker Datuk Lim Si Cheng as it fulfilled the three criteria -- a specific issue, urgent and of public interest -- under Article 18.1 of the House Standing Orders....
Dr Raman, in tabling the motion, said dengue fever reported to have attained a serious proportion in several states, especially in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Pahang, had created a critical situation, threatening the lives of Malaysians, particularly those residing in epidemic areas....

2. Action Against Errant Local Authorities :: 18th Jan
The Health Ministry has the power to take action against local authorities which fail to ensure that the areas under their jurisdiction are free from dengue.
However, issuing compound fines was not the solution, said Health Ministry's Disease Control Division Director Dr Ramlee Rahmat Tuesday....
"Under the law, the ministry can take action against anyone and not necessarily individuals," he said and noted that the ministry had issued compound fines on schools and hospitals before.

3. KL Hospital Prepares For Upsurge In Dengue Cases :: 18th Jan
Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) is preparing its facilities and medical staff to deal with the expected rise in dengue cases here and in Selangor in the next two weeks, Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said...
There are currently 150 dengue cases in HKL, accounting for nearly eight per cent of the 1,700 patients in the hospital.
"This is definitely an increase compared to the average of 30 cases several weeks ago," he said.

4. Dengue Cases In Johor Up 37 Per Cent In First Week :: 18th Jan
Dengue cases in Johor in the first week of the year showed a 37 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, state Health Department (Public Health) Deputy Director Dr Daud Abdul Rahim said Tuesday.
During the first seven days, 71 cases of dengue fever and three cases of haemorrhagic dengue fever which did not lead to death were reported against 22 cases of dengue fever and six haemorrhagic dengue fever cases that were not fatal in the corresponding period last year, he said....
Last year 3,056 dengue cases were reported in Johor compared to 3,211 cases in 2003, marking a 4.8 per cent decrease.

5. JB City Council Opens Control Centre To Check Dengue Spread :: 19th Jan
The Johor Baharu City Council (MBJB) will open a vector-borne disease control centre and enforce Section 18(1) of the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act 1988 to check the spread of dengue fever in areas under its jurisdiction.
Johor Baharu Mayor Datuk Wahid Dahlan said 45 dengue cases were reported in the first two weeks of this year or 23 cases a week compared to an average of 11 cases a week last year.
"This is very worrying," he told a press conference here Wednesday.

Obviously this time around, Dengue has got the MOH and gomen worried. Worried enough for it to be given an hour of debate time in Parliament. The motion was moved not by the opposition but by a gomen backbencher.
The lackadaisical attitudes of the MOH, local health authorities, local council and people have contributed to this dengue menace. People are not too keen to have their houses sprayed near dinner time, i know of some who would lock up their houses and go somewhere else when they know that the fogging teams are coming. Such behaviour will not help in dealing with dengue. The MOH needs to go around and educate the people more. What Dr Daud said is very true :: "This is caused by the attitude of residents who do not care about the condition of places that are potential aedes breeding grounds which include their homes and surrounding areas."
The MOH's attitude also does not help much. It tells us that it has the power to take action against local authorities which fail to ensure that the areas under their jurisdiction are free from dengue. And in the next breath, says "issuing compound fines was not the solution." Why so friend-friend with the local authorities? Just make one as an example and the rest will toe the line. All for the good of the nation. The time for cooperation and not taking action is over. No more play-play, it is time to bring on the 'sledgehammer'. The MOH should show that it means business when lives are in danger. The other local authorities should follow MBJB's example and really get serious to ensure that the Dengue situation does not worsen.
Daunting times lie ahead as the chinese new year will be upon us soon. During this festive season there will be plenty of 'short term migration', some of those infected will travel back to infect others while others will be travelling to the dengue areas to get infected and eventually take them home after the festivities. So will there be an "outbreak" after the festivities? Just thinking aloud.

| ¶ 1/19/2005 09:10:00 PM

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Of Courtesy & Noble Values & Rude Manners?

On 11th Jan, our beloved PM launched the Gomen's five-year long Budi Bahasa dan Nilai Nilai Murni aka Courtesy and Noble Values campaign to makeover Malaysians, one and all ie gomen MINIsters, civil servants, joe-public into courteous people possessing noble values such as transparency, trustworthiness, integrity, fairness, honesty and accountability, and one may add others like incorruptibility, generosity, kindness, and so on. It is quite obvious, that these noble values are in short supply in all strata of Malaysian society. People always say "monkey see, monkey does". It is obvious that it is not enough for the top Malaysian leader to just have a campaign to instil these noble values in one and all, what is more important is that he, himself must not only possess these noble values but ensure that he and all his appointees in the cabinet and gomen pratise them. In no time other lesser ones will follow.
During the launch of the campaign, among other things said the PM had said the following ::

Abdullah said the expression “First Class Infrastructure, Third Class Mentality” aptly reflected the concerns many Malaysians had about today’s society.
Noting that the country's economy, infrastructure, development and use of technology had advanced, he said:
“However, our mentality and attitude have not progressed in tandem but have declined instead.”
The erosion of values, he said, had resulted in “negative syndromes” such as inconsiderate driving and disrespect for public property being accepted as norms.
“We have placed courtesy as a fundamental and a thrust in our national development policies and philosophies, from the Rukun Negara to Wawasan 2020.
“However, it is clear that our aspirations in the area of mental and spiritual development are not reflected in the present realities,” he said.
The Prime Minister said Malaysians should guard against being influenced by the coarse and aggressive behaviour portrayed in the media.

Following the launch of this campaign, the STAR, the People's Paper, conceived the contest entitled "The Rude Malaysian". In this contest there were 16 “rude” situations and participants were asked to rank which one “is the rudest.” Is it of any surprise that, on cue, the rudest habit that Malaysians have is inconsiderate driving! Didn't someone say, "monkey hears, monkey regurgitates".
It would have been much better if the STAR had a contest, maybe entitled "Noble Values Possessed by the Malaysian Gomen" and we be allowed to rank the noble values in terms of importance. Or alternatively, to evaluate each of the noble values as possessed or practised by the gomen; scoring each value with a score between 0 to 5. O representing none of the value concerned and 5 presenting 100% of the said value. Will such a contest see the light of day?

| ¶ 1/18/2005 10:52:00 PM

Free e-mail Management Software

If you have donated RM50 or more to any of the many funds for victims of the recent tsunami, Chrysanth Software Sdn Bhd would like to reward you. The company is giving away free copies of its recently launched Chrysanth Mail Manager software. This programme is said to be capable of functioning as a portable spamblocker hosted in a thumb drive. So if you have donated RM50 or more recently just fax a copy of your receipt to 03-80762918 or e-mail a copy of the receipt to tsunamidonation@chrysanth.com.

The software is said to be worth RM118 for a fully licensed copy.

For more details of what the software can do, visit the company website at www.chrysanth.com This campaign ends on 28th Feb 2005.

| ¶ 1/18/2005 11:14:00 AM

A Figment of A Reporter's Imagination

According to a Malaysiakini report, the PKR president has refuted mainstream media reports on a merger proposal between her party and PAS. Wan Azizah said, "The news reports were mischievous, had no truth and misquoted both party leaders.” She further added, “The reports were by design, we are already in a coalition, so why should we form another coalition or talk about merger?” PKR has been a partner with PAS in Barisan Alternatif since 1999. DAP was also a BA member but left the BA after the general election because of disagreement with PAS Islamic state agenda.

Meanwhile the STS has this to report ::

MALAYSIA'S most prominent political dissident, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, yesterday slammed media reports that said Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) had rejected a merger with his Parti Keadilan Rakyat, describing them as incorrect.

The former deputy prime minister made it clear that he did not mention the word merger during his weekend meeting in Kelantan with PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat.

He said both leaders instead agreed that the two parties should work together.

AS for Pak Lah, he has wisely decided to remain silent when asked about this proposed PKR-PAS merger. BERNAMA reported so ::

Asked on news reports on the indication by PAS and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) to form a coalition, Abdullah declined to comment.

"That's all about them. There's no need for me to comment," he said.

So there we have it. Did he proposed a merger, was the word merger even mentioned? Was it a figment of a reporter's imagination?

| ¶ 1/18/2005 10:31:00 AM

Sunday, January 16, 2005

Of Anwar, PKR & PAS

Anwar and PKR president Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail recently journeyed to Kelantan. The STAR reported that in a first official meeting between PKR advisor, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and Nik Abdul Aziz, Anwar said PKR had invited PAS to merge. According to the STAR report, titled :: PAS spurns PKR's offer :: Nik Abdul Aziz told Anwar, "There is no need to dissolve PKR," adding that history had proven that PAS could work with any party.

BERNAMA has also reported about this PKR-PAS meeting, its report was titled :: PAS, Keadilan To Discuss Coalition, no mention was made of a PKR-PAS merger being proposed and spurned! The report mentioned that PAS and PKR expressed their desire to form a coalition to enhance their impact on the country's political scene.
Other excerpts from the BERNAMA report ::

Speaking to reporters, Anwar said the issue of merger was dependent on the discussions to be held between the two parties.
"I am optimistic (since) there is progress from the efforts that we made before this. As for a coalition, that will depend on the outcome of our discussions," he said.

Reuters, probably quoting the STAR has also reporting about the PKR-PAS meeting under this heading :: Malaysia's Islamic opposition rejects merger offer.

So was there a merger offer made by PKR to PAS? Was the offer spurned? Was it just a figment of a reporter's imagination?
A coalition and a merger certainly are not the same thing, lets await further spins and clarification.

| ¶ 1/16/2005 04:44:00 PM

Saturday, January 15, 2005

Not Me Lah

On 11th Jan, outgoing Sarawak ACA director said a federal deputy minister from Sarawak was being investigated by the agency after a report was lodged against him.

On 12th Jan, Deputy Rural and Regional Development MINIster, Dr Tiki Lafe, said in Putrajaya yesterday that he had not been approached by the ACA in connection with any investigation and he was not aware of any such investigation.

On 13th Jan, Opposition leader, Lim KS, calls on the other three Sarawak federal deputy ministers to take a leaf from Tiki and publicly exclude themselves from public speculation as being the subject of ACA investigation. Lim also added, "It would be better all round for public integrity that there is a proper identification of the deputy minister concerned than to let speculation to take wings and to put unfair pressure on the deputy ministers who are not implicated and their families."
Deputy Transport Minister, Douglas Uggah Embas told Malaysiakini in Kuching today that he had asked said ACA director who was being probed and the latter replied, "It's not you, Datuk." Said ACA director was also said to have told Douglas Uggah Embas that he made the statement after being 'cornered' by the press in Kuching.

On 14th Jan, Lim KS continues to speak on the same topic after 2 more Sarawak federal deputy ministers have denied that they were the deputy minister being investigated by the ACA. The Sun reported that two other Sarawak deputy ministers have denied that they are under ACA probe, namely Housing and Local Government deputy minister Datuk Robert Lau Hoi Chew and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Joseph Entulu Belaun. Lim KS wonders whether Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister, is the one under ACA investigation as he is the only one out of the five Sarawak Federal deputy ministers who had not issued a denial.
Malaysiakini reports that Deputy Foreign Minister Joseph Salang is the last of the five deputy ministers from Sarawak to publicly deny any involvement in the reported probe by the Anti-Corruption Agency. He told Malaysikini, "I am not aware of any investigation by the ACA against me nor have I been approached by the agency."
So we are now back to square one all of the five deputy ministers have said, "Not Me Lah".
So it is up to the said ACA director to come clean and name the name and let the other 4 to get on with their lives and duties. For now another cloud is over their heads, all five of them. For if what the said ACA director said is true then one of the 5 deputy ministers is a liar.
Pak Lah could also come out to name the deputy minister concerned, as he must obviously be in the know, and clear the 4 out of the 5, all of whom have said, "Not Me Lah".

On 15th Jan, surprise of surprises, could we possibly see this being reported in the media ::

Said ACA director, who was quoted in Berita Harian on 12th Jan, as saying :: "A federal deputy minister from Sarawak is being investigated by ACA for malpractice", says, "Not Me Lah".

With all 6 saying the same "Not Me Lah". We can then finally conclude that "There Was No One Lah". And finally, finally the 5 deputy ministers and the said ACA Director [the new Selangor ACA chief now] and their families can continue with their lives and get on with their duties once again. Malaysia Boleh.

Update
On 15th Jan, it looks like the above scenario will not materialise. The state ACA director concerned, Mohd Jamidan Abdullah, when told that all the 5 Sarawak deputy federal ministers have said, "Not Me Lah", had this to say :: "They can say whatever they want but our investigations are continuing." And when pressed regarding when the probe would be completed, Jamidan said :: "I don't want to comment on that." There you have it folks, his lips are now sealed. So it is over to Pak Lah now, or will it also be "Mum's the word".

| ¶ 1/15/2005 12:04:00 AM

Friday, January 14, 2005

TENAGA Blackouts

The TENAGA website may say "We Light Up Your Life" all the time, maybe it should also say occasionally "We Blackout and Mess Up Your Life at Times'.
Apart from yesterday's outage, there has been at least 4 other major blackouts in recent memory. They are as listed below ::

1st Sept 2003 :: Power failure also hit five northern states, Perak, Penang, Perlis, Kedah and Kelantan, resulting in between RM20 million and RM30 million in losses. The disruption was caused by the tripping of the power line between Bukit Beruntung in Rawang and Batu Gajah in Perak during maintenance work.

3rd Aug 1996 :: Blackout involving the entire Peninsular Malaysia crippling for hours. This was caused by grid failure. The 14-hour blackout caused billions in losses. This blackout was dubbed the "Black Friday" because it happened on Friday, it caused "massive chaos" in city centres as it occurred at 5.17pm when most people, especially office workers, were on their way home. The power supply was restored at about 12.30am the next day. It looks like the "blackout hantu" knows when to strike and when it can hit and hurt most. The latest also occurred at rush-hour ie the lunch-break and caused massive chaos.
The disruption was caused by the breakdown of the switch gear outside the Sultan Ismail power station in Paka, Terengganu.

29th Sept 1992 :: 9 out of 13 states were without power for up to two days as TNB. This was the biggie. It was said to have been caused by lightning which damaged the grid in eastern Malaysia, crippling power stations in the peninsula. This blackout affected 18 million people and caused losses to businesses amounting to RM220 million.
Some say the outage was because TNB was unable to meet a surge in demand. Since then, a number of independent power producers were enlisted to help supplement demand for electricity.

29th June 1985 :: Blackout in 11 states for many hours due to a trip on two transmission lines between Paka (Terengganu) and Kampung Awah (Pahang). This tripped all the power stations connected to the national grid. This blackout also hit at lunch time causing the resultant chaos.

Yesterday's blackout was due to a failure of a switchgear in the Kapar power station This caused four states and Putrajaya and parts of Kuala Lumpur to come to a standstill and a five-hour power blackout in the southern region of the peninsula. STAR has a photo gallery of the chaos caused. The question of compensation from TNB must be on the minds of those consumers affected by this blackout. TNB is supposed to meet soon after further investigations on the cause(s) by an independent body to decide this. Apparently TNB's foreign consultant had said that TNB has a "robust" system only last year. With this outage, TNB certainly has many questions to ask that foreign consultant.
The PM is reported as saying, "I hope TNB will make sure there will no more blackouts." Will his hope come true? Probably not in my lifetime. Anyway he has TNB to thank for for his candlelit lunch at the opening of the National Biodiversity Council meeting.
As with each power blackout in the past, TNB will be appointing a consultant to sort out the mess and recommend remedial actions, this time around the company named is Advanced Power Solution (APS). It is expected to come up with a preliminary report in a week's time. But as for wishing and hoping that there will be no more blackouts, that would be wishful thinking. So just keep your emergency lights and fans fully charged, your spare batteries for the PDAs, HPs and laptops fully charged and those left over candles handy.

| ¶ 1/14/2005 11:36:00 AM

Thursday, January 13, 2005

Blackout In The South

The Klang Valley and the Southern states of the peninsula have been affected by a blackout. BERNAMA reports that several parts of the Klang Valley, including Putrajaya, were affected by a power failure which occurred at about 12.30 pm. The other states affected are Melaka, Johore and Negri Sembilan. The KLIA has also been affected.
People are advised to stay off the roads as the traffic lights are out and traffic jams are expected. The unexpected blackout unfortunately began at the start of the lunch break and rush hour.
Tenaga Nasional has yet to come out with a statement but radio reports say that the blackout is probably caused by problems in Klang.
Will the blackout go nationwide? Just wait and see and keep your fingers crossed. The last almost total nationwide blackout was in '96. If you have emergency lights, take them out and charge them while electric supply is available. Low on petrol, go fill up your car. Also remember to charge up your PDA and laptop batteries. Hunt for those candles left over from christmas and aromatherapy sessions.
Blog while you can.

Latest ::
This is what the STAR has to say ::
KUALA LUMPUR: A problem at the Kapar switchyard at the Port Klang Power Station caused it to trip at 12.16pm, resulting in the National Grid losing 1,700MW, says Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB).
TNB Deputy president/deputy chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Hadi Mohd Deros said to avoid the whole nation from suffering a blackout, Tenaga had to carry out load shedding after that.
"This led to Negri Sembilan, Malacca and Johor experiencing total blackout. In the Klang Valley, this caused the KL East and Pudu Hulu intake stations to trip, causing outages in several parts," he said.

Malaysiakini has also a report out on the chaos said to have been caused by the outage.

| ¶ 1/13/2005 02:27:00 PM

Ugly Malaysians II

This is a continuing series from the previous blog post :: Ugly Malaysians.

1. Tsunami aid cheats. These are reportedly of 3 categories ::
a. Tsunami survivors who inflated their losses
b. Those who have not been affected by the tsunami but registering as tsunami victims
c. Those who take the opportunity to benefit from the occasion eg those who siphon off donations in cash or kind meant for the tsunami victims.
The Penang ACA Director said that the ACA will act against the tsunami cheats under Section 11 (C) of the Anti-Corruption Act 1997. The penalty if found guilty would be a jail term of 14 days to 20 years and a fine of RM10,000 or five times the amount claimed, whichever was higher. i had never thought that the ACA could be so efficient and is williing to take on such small fishes/cheats. But it is probably the view that it holds regarding such cheats. For the Penang Director, who was representing the ACA DG, had this to say :: "The people who try to take advantage of the situation are inhuman." It would be interesting to follow up and see how many of these "inhumans" the ACA will eventually nab.

2. Non-compassionate employers. According to the Human Resources MINIster there are some bosses who sacked or cut the salary of tsunami survivors in their employment on the grounds that they took excessive leave of absence following the tragedy or failed to come to work. It looks like the gomen, apart from the Campaign on Courtesy and Noble Values, will soon have to launch a Compassionate Malaysian campaign. Some Malaysians certainly must have lost their hearts becomig heartless and too materialistic.

3. The Robber Taxi Driver. It is reported that the taxi driver-cum-robber has finally been caught by the polis. He is reported to have robbed his passengers to a tune of RM50,000! His modus operandi was to threaten his passengers with harm with a parang which was kept under his seat. There was a total of 9 polis reports made against him. Polis believe that there are more victims out there. With him in polis custody, there is one less threat out there for taxi pasengers.

4. Unscrupulous Petrol Station Owners. The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs MINIster says that several petrol stations nationwide have established long-term contracts with undeserving parties to supply them with subsidised diesel. There are also operators acting as “middlemen” to illegally export diesel to neighbouring countries such as Thailand and Myanmar. Obviously the enforcement by his MINIstry has been lacking for all this to have happened resulting in the recent diesel shortage. Not only the method of offering the subsidy to those eligible should be reviewed but those tasked with enforcement, should also buck up.

Despite the above mentioned 'ugly ones' there are many many more Malaysians out there who are ever ready to lend a helping hand and contribute handsomely when trouble or disasters strike. As the PM says, Malaysians are generally good at helping one another and even others and this must be nurtured and cultivated as part of the Malaysian Culture

.
| ¶ 1/13/2005 10:18:00 AM

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

Of Lackadiasical Civil Servants & Non Courteous Malaysians etc

Is it possible to remove the lackadaisical attitude of our civil servants?

Is it possible to instill courtesy into Malaysians, roadusers and all?

Is it possible to have freedom as far as information is concerned?

Is it possible to instill enthusiasm into our students?

Is it possible to instill honesty into all politicos?

Is it possible to free the malaysian Media?

Is it possible to have a level playing field?

Is it possible to have a PM fair to all?

All is possible, when the seas run away from the shores?

| ¶ 1/12/2005 04:28:00 PM

No Hasty Granting of Residency

So far 3 survivors of the tsunamis have been rescued at sea and brought back. They are 23-year-old Malawati, who was rescued by a fishing vessel, Hoom Xiang 8, in the Indian Ocean and the second was Rizal Shahputra, 20, who was rescued by the crew of the MV Durban Bridge, also in the Indian Ocean and Ari Afrizal who was rescued by the container ship Al Yamamah.
Rizal Shahputra, 20, was swept 100 nautical miles from his home into the middle of the Indian Ocean by the devastating wall of water on 12/26 but was found alive by the crew of Panama-registered ship MV Durban Bridge and brought to Port Klang on Wednesday morning. Rizal who has lost his family, some relatives and his house to the deadly tsunami waves, had his hopes of staying on in Malaysia apparently granted. NST has the following to report ::
Miracle survivor Rizal Shahputra has got his wish - he will be allowed to stay and work in Malaysia.
Home Affairs Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid said the determination displayed by the Indonesian to live after floating at sea for nine days was something a lot of people here should emulate.
"His character is a perfect example. There are not many individuals out there with such characteristics.
"Such determination is a rare trait in a person, especially when faced with extreme hardship.
"He is most welcome to start anew and work here.
"We support employers to take him in.
"I will also personally assist him," Azmi told reporters at his Ministry.

If the NST report is true, has a too hasty decision been made, will it lead to a deluge of requests by others to stay. It must be remembered that soon we will be getting ready once again to round up and deport illegal immigrants after the 'tsunami amnesty'. MINIster Azmi says he did not believe that the gesture by the Malaysian Government in this case would result in a flood of requests from other foreigners. He added that Rizal's case was different. This prompts the question what's the difference?
It is clear that Gerakan vice-president senator Datuk Dr S. Vijayaratnam does not share MINIster Azmi's views. BERNAMA has the following to report ::
"We sympathise with their plight but one or two cases could well open the floodgates to opportunists seeking a better life in Malaysia, giving the oceanic catastrophe as an excuse," he said in a statement here.
He said that even now, certain unscrupulous individuals were trying to deceive the authorities to get relief and financial aid.
"What is to stop purely economic migrants from resorting to similar tactics? As it is, we already have enough problems with illegal immigrants," he said.
Vijayaratnam said the government should cease granting right of stay to foreign tsunami survivors.
On humanitarian grounds, they could be picked up, nursed and nourished back to health and sent right back to where they came from, he said.

Who is right? Should we be granting more, right to stay and work here or not? Will what the gomen is granting Rizal, open the flood gates? So should we be more careful about the whole thing?

| ¶ 1/12/2005 12:40:00 AM

Saturday, January 08, 2005

Charity Begins in Tsunamied Aceh

Just look at the following articles and headlines, it looks like our PM must have been greatly affected following his survey of tsunami devastated Aceh. Following his survey of Aceh, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said today that Malaysia is committed to assist in the reconstruction of Aceh. Malaysia will help to rebuild Aceh over next decade he added. Our deputy PM also echoes the PM's committment. The PM is reported as saying :: "The government is also prepared to help bear the education costs for 38,000 orphans of the tsunami and I have already discussed this with the Indonesian president." Of course, when he said the gomen is prepared to help and bear the costs, he really meant the Malaysian people; for he next said :: "Malaysia will continue to provide aid to the victims of the tsunami. Both the Malaysian government and the Malaysian people." Such sweet charity, such generosity, such compassion and magnanimity. Check out the links below for more details::

Malaysian PM visits Banda Aceh
M'sia Committed To Assist In Aceh's Reconstruction, Says PM
M'sia Committed To Rebuild Aceh - Najib
Report: Malaysia to help rebuild Aceh over next decade says prime minister
Malaysia to pay for education of 38,000 Indonesian tsunami orphans - Abdullah
Aceh Students In Malaysia Get Partial Fees Exemption
Malaysian Armed Forces To Build Temporary Hospital In Aceh

Our PM is be fully aware and subscribe to this quote by Jack London ::

A bone to the dog is not charity.

Charity is the bone shared with the dog,

when you are just as hungry as the dog.

Our PM and deputy PM's sweet charity and caring compassion know no bounds. Just check out what is in store for our local tsunami victims, for having been so generous in our desire to help in Aceh, we must also be aware that "Charity begins at home". And surely the local tsunami victims and survivors can expect no less from the PM and gomen. According to the NST, RM56 million [though more can be expected] have been collected for the Malaysian Tsunami Victims Fund and awaits distributions. Majority of the funds collected were reportedly by the following ::
"The New Straits Times leading with a whopping RM28.08 million followed by The Star (RM10 million), Utusan Malaysia (RM3.12 million and another RM450,360 for the Aceh Humanitarian Fund), The Sun (RM2.1 million), Sin Chew Jit Poh (RM1.4 million), Nanyang Siang Pau (RM1 million), China Press (RM400,000), Tamil Nesan (RM253,618), Nanban (RM150, 000) and other Chinese language newspapers collecting more than RM50,000.

But what's this, almost two weeks after 12/26, the National Disaster Management and Relief Committee Chairman, and our deputy PM too, says that the gomen would only announce 'Distribution From Tsunami Victims Fund On Monday'. And just hold on, on Monday the committee will only be meeting to decide the criteria for the distribution of aid to survivors of the tidal waves which killed 68 people in the country, it won't be distributing as yet. As for the second group of survivors, those whose houses were destroyed or damaged, they would receive contributions based on the assessment done on the directive of the Cabinet and this should be completed within three weeks. As for the third group, especially the fishermen, Najib said their damaged boats were being repaired by the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry and the gomen would make a contribution to them from the Victims Fund. For those who have lost their homes, transit houses were being built for them and would be ready in another week.
Our Human Resources Minister said on Saturday, that tsunami survivors or next of kin should apply to our generous Perkeso. They must know that they are eligible for benefits such as survivors pension, medical treatment costs and funeral expenses. This announcement by the MINIster may have come a bit late, but then it is 'better late than never'. So it looks like there will be no massive reconstruction and rebuilding for our own victims and no 'i will take care of all your education needs' for our orphans. Instead the PM wants the rakyat to understand the gomen's aid to other countries and that "Charity need not necessarily begin at home". He said :: "In our country, the number of people killed was not high, 68 deaths, compared to the other countries and the destruction here was also not that bad."

| ¶ 1/08/2005 11:29:00 PM

Friday, January 07, 2005

Tsunami Aid

Tsunami aid from many helpful and concerned countries have tsunamied in after the initial trickle where the US of A started with a miserly USD15 mil. Criticism of 'scroogey' Bush by the UN brought out a more charitable US especially after other countries started pledging more than her.
So far official aid pledges have snowballed and the latest are as follows ::

Australia :: US$764 million
Germany :: US$674 million
Japan :: US$500 million
United States :: US$350 million.
Asian Development Bank :: US$325 million
World Bank :: US$250 million
Norway :: US$183 million
France :: US$103 million
Britain :: US$96 million
Italy :: US$95 million
Sweden :: US$80 million
Spain :: US$68 million
Canada :: US$67 million
Denmark :: US$66 million
China :: US$61 million
Taiwan :: US$50 million
South Korea :: US$50 million
European Union :: US$40 million
Netherlands :: US$34 million
Switzerland :: US$23 million
Belgium :: US$16 million
Ireland :: US$14 million
Portugal :: US$11 million
Austria :: US$11 million
Luxembourg :: US$6.8 million
Finland :: US$6 million
New Zealand :: US$3.6 million
Singapore :: US$ 3 million
Greece :: US$1.34 million
Hungary :: US$1.2 million
Poland :: US$1.0 million.
Saudi Arabia :: US$30 million
Qatar :: US$25 million
United Arab Emirates :: US$20 million
Kuwait :: US$10 million
Algeria :: US$2 million
Bahrain :: US$2 million
Libya :: US$2 million
Turkey :: US$1.25 million.
Michael Schumacher :: US$10 million
Taiping Prison Residents :: US$793.68
Petronas Oil Advisor :: ______

Looks pretty obvious which are the stingy countries now. Why is the OIC chairman, who happens also to be the Malaysian PM, silent on rallying the rich but stingy members to come out with more aid.
The other point is that pledges are just pledges and are only good when they are honoured. Remember TELEJantung, SUKOM, Bob Geldof & Band Aid etc. See also this article :: A tidal wave of hypocrisy in the Times. See also this article in the Independent :: £2.2bn pledged: but will the world deliver this time?

| ¶ 1/07/2005 10:56:00 AM

Thursday, January 06, 2005

Should Passenger Cars Go for Compulsory PUSPAKOM Inspection?

Pusat Pemeriksaan Kenderaan Berkomputer Sdn Bhd (PUSPAKOM) was created according to the Malaysian gomen's vision of achieving a quantum leap in the quality of vehicular inspection. Presently PUSPAKOM does mandatory half-yearly inspection of commercial vehicles to gauge roadworthiness of commercial vehicle and ensure compliance with Road Transport Act 1987. It would increase PUSPAKOM's bottomline if all passenger cars are also subjected to half-yearly or even two-yearly checks. But it looks like it is not to be at least for the moment. According to a BERNAMA report, PUSPAKOM CEO said that the gomen has no plans to carry out compulsory inspection of passenger cars even though PUSPAKOM is ready to handle such a task.

In the meanwhile, the gomen has encouraged the following to have their cars/vehicles inspected at PUSPAKOM on a voluntary basis ::
All vehicles
Second-hand or refurbished car prior to their being purchased
Cars/vehicles which are being purchased with loans provided by financial institutions
.

According to the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs MINIster, out of 180,000 vehicles inspected over the past 10 months, 2,500 with engine and chassis problems were found to have been cut and joined by unscrupulous dealers who were just out to make profits. Now such cars would prove to be problems on the road. A good reason for someone thinking of purhasing a second-hand or re-cond or refurbished car inspected prior to purchase.

PUSPAKOM provides the following core services, 10 point inspection and these additional services.

But does compulsory roadworthy testing works? Does it reduce accidents? Is it possible to cheat at such tests? For answers to all these check out this link. One will be pleasantly surprised.

The Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) has the following views ::
Compulsory systems of vehicle inspection are not completely effective in this role and a well designed and executed alternative such as a random inspection system can be just as effective.
A combination of an on-road inspection system together with inspection of a randomly chosen small sample (say 5%) of all motor vehicles over five years old, would be a good alternative.
Maintaining a safe and roadworthy vehicle is the responsibility of the vehicle owner.

So will you still be sending your car for PUSPAKOM inspection?

| ¶ 1/06/2005 10:32:00 PM

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

Ugly Malaysians

We, Malaysians, can shock and shame ourselves sometimes. In the face of the tsunami devastation, we were just petting ourselves on the back and saying how caring and how ready we were to help those in distress but over the past couple of days we do have cause for shame.

1. Read The Night of Shame on MMail online, On the night when we lost to Indonesia in the Tiger Cup semi-finals, some Malaysians showed their ugly side. In the fracas following that match which we lost. As a result, 4 Indonesians were badly injured.
Check out this Counterpoint article too :: Death of Malaysian Football is Complete

2. Read this Screenshots item too :: Tsunami: What had happened in our backyard?. According to this article, there were many things done in our own backyard, for which we have to feel shame.

3. This IPS article :: TSUNAMI IMPACT : Malaysian Gov't Playing Politics with Aid? is also worthy of a read. It says :: "Critics here have accused the Malaysian government of delaying the distribution of badly needed emergency supplies to survivors in Malaysia's coastal areas, northwest of the peninsula." So do we also have 'an ugly gomen'?

Some Malaysians have obviously started the year 2005 smearing our faces in shame.

| ¶ 1/05/2005 09:04:00 AM

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

Mangroves & Tsunamis

From BERNAMA ::

Mangroves Best Natural Barrier To Mitigate Tsunami, Says Environmentalist
By P. Vijian

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 4 (Bernama) -- Environmentalists' pleas to conserve mangroves to protect the ecosystem has gone unheeded for a long time.

But today, apart from being the favourite habitats of birds, fish and micro-organisms, mangroves are considered the best natural barrier to protect coastal communities from the onslaught of tsunamis.

Global Environment Centre director Faizal Parish said fresh reports coming from tsunami-devastated regions revealed that in some areas mangrove forests helped to mitigate the impact of strong waves and gushing sea water.

"Data from our counterparts in India says that in places where mangroves were replanted or intact, the level of danger was lesser compared to places where mangroves were displaced.

"They act as barriers, reducing energy from the sea and collect debris which causes more damage (to the people) than sea water (during a tsunami).

"If there are mangroves, then people have a chance to hold on to the mangroves," he told Bernama Tuesday.

Faizal said that over the last 50 years, the sea level had increased by 27 cm as a result of climatic changes and in the next 100 years experts predict that the sea level could rise by one metre.

"If we have a high sea level, the impact of tsunamis would be much greater. That means coastal populations are not only vulnerable to tsunamis but also to regular storms. The rising sea level will definitely affect Malaysia," he added.

Faizal mentioned that the rising sea level would also lead to other environmental hazards such as coastal erosion, storm impact and salinisation of ground water.

The coastline of West Malaysia, mainly along Selangor and Perak, was better protected by mangroves compared to Kedah and Penang, both of which suffered severely following the Dec 26 massive earthquake that rocked Acheh, Sumatra.

"Mangroves play a vital role; they reduce coastal erosion and reduce damage from waves. The future strategy will be to restore or protect mangroves along the coastline," added Faizal.

He said many victims of the unprecedented tidal waves were coastal dwellers who relied on fishing and sea resources for their livelihood, adding that their future was likely to be bleak.

"Many of the poor coastal people were fishing communities dependent on fish breeding or natural resources in the mangrove areas. If these areas were significantly degraded by the tsunami, their future livelihood would be affected," he said.

If conditions were good, mangrove forests, which lie between the sea and land, will easily take about three to five years to grow, he said.

Looks like if we don't look after nature and the environment, we will eventually have to pay and at times it is with our lives.
Below are more links to articles and blogs regarding human activities, mangroves, coral reefs, shrimp farming and tsunamis ::
Mangroves Can Act as Shield against Tsunami
Rape of the mangroves- The Times of India
Rage of the tsunami (and destruction of natural coastal protection)
`Mangroves vital for mitigating impact of disasters'
Restoring Mangroves
The Biology Refugia
WAVE OF DESTRUCTION
Human Activities Contributed to Tsunami's Ravages

Wasn't it recently in our 'Pearl of the Orient' that we cleared mangroves to make way for development, transferring bird nests and so on. Hopefully the recent tsunamis will teach us to respect nature and the environment better.

| ¶ 1/04/2005 10:37:00 PM

Sunday, January 02, 2005

Why No Tsunami Warning

A week has passed by since the event of 26/12, the tsunami catastrophe. The number of those who died as a result of the tsunamis is still being counted, the total death toll is now more than 141,000, more than 80,00 alone in Indonesia. Many are still missing and not accounted for. In the meanwhile the world has responded well to this tragedy and aid is pouring in for the survivors and those affected by the tsunamis. What is now called the "second wave of death" is feared from diseases in the tsunami devastated places.

The general consensus is that there would have been fewer deaths if timely early warnings had been available and given. In Malaysia the lack of such warnings are being questioned by those affected and also by opposition party DAP. The DAP is calling for public inquiry to find the answers to why the various government authorities had failed to sound any warning of danger although it had two to three hours lead time. Malaysian tsunami death toll remains at 66 with 203 injured and 6 missing. Penang CM TanSri Koh has called for proper criteria for early warning. He said the National Disaster Relief & Management committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Razak needed to fix the criteria and procedure so that all parties would know how to respond when a national disaster occurs.

Now there is a Swedish paper, Expressen, reporting that tsunami warning was halted in Thailand out of concern for tourist industry. This report stated that Thailand's daily, the Nation, said ::
Just minutes after the earthquake in the Indian Ocean on Sunday morning, Thailand’s foremost meteorological experts were sitting together in a crisis meeting. But they decided not to warn about the tsunami "out of courtesy to the tourist industry," writes the Thailand daily newspaper The Nation.

The experts got the news around 8:00 am on Sunday morning local time. An hour later, the first massive wave struck. But the experts started to discuss the economic impacts when they discussed if a tsunami warning should be issued.

------

"We finally decided not to do anything because the tourist season was in full swing," the source said. "The hotels were 100 percent booked. What if we issued a warning, which would have led to an evacuation, and nothing had happened. What would be the outcome? The tourist industry would be immediately hurt. Our department would not be able to endure a lawsuit."

This report by the Nation has not been independently confirmed, this is mentioned by the Washington Post.

CNN reports that the tsunamis may be Sweden's worst disaster. There are more than 3,000 visitors from Sweden among the missing in Thailand. 59 Swedes have so far been confirmed dead. With a population of only 9 million, Sweden's expected loss of life proportionately matches that of Indonesia, and is exceeded only by Sri Lanka says the CNN report.

In Malaysia, Malaysiakini has this question :: Tsunami disaster: Gov’t negligent? Our PM has called for a postmortem in order to prepare future rescue plan, more than that the postmortem must enquire into why there was no early warning this time around, why there appeared to be a paralysis of the various gomen departments involved in national disaster management. MGG has also questioned :: The collapse, through gross negligence, of the national disaster systems and centres. Will the postmortem that is going to be carried out provide us with a clearer picture of what happened in Malaysia after the Sumatran quake was registerd by the Seismology Division of our Meteorological Services Department?

In Thailand, the Nation, also called for a thorough postmortem study to determine what went wrong, particularly with the rescue and relief capabilities and readiness to respond to crises. It questioned why there was no warning that a tsunami could strike after the news about the earthquake off the shore of Sumatra was flashed by news agencies. It also questioned why after the shocking magnitude of the calamity was known, there was another tragedy. Nobody was in charge to direct the rescue and relief operations.

This is also important we will definitely take care of ourselves first before expecting others to take care of us. We will have to learn some lessons from these tsunamis and have a higher sense of personal safety. Those who are supposed to take care and warn us may have wrong priorities when disaster are about to occur or soon after it occurs, so do remember safety first is very important :: "oon chieng tai yat"

| ¶ 1/02/2005 11:22:00 PM

Saturday, January 01, 2005

A New Year Breaks

It is the dawn of a new year. With the old year having ended on such a tragic and unhappy note and many of us finally waking up to the fact that we should not be so complacent and that mother nature is out to test us all the time. Before 26/12, the word, tsunami carried little or no meaning, little or no fear was associated and to many it was just a japanese word meaning we know not what or for that matter, care. Now that we know and have learnt to fear it, lets pause for a couple of minutes and remember those who were swept away by the tsunami and those who have been left behind, surviving the devastation and just that, surviving to pick up the pieces. Lets start the year with generous hearts and donate generously to one or more of the funds for the survivors.

The other thing we can do is pray for the wellbeing of those who have survived. For those afflicted with trauma and wounds, there is fear of infections and for those with little food and poor sanitation, the fear of waterborne diseases. The tsunamis are unlikely to come again so soon but for the survivors, without proper health facilities, shelter, food and medicine, fending off diseases is the next biggest challenge.

For those of us who were fortunate enough not to be affected, give thanks for being so fortunate and from this day cherish our lives and those of our loved ones more and pray for peace and safety from disasters for all.

Good Morning and Good New Year to All.

| ¶ 1/01/2005 03:39:00 AM

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