A TALE OF TWO ROYALTIES
Recently when I asked somenone what he thought of the Kelantan royalty issue, he remarked: "Oh, she's gone home to huru-hara in Indonesia."
He was joking, of course - a rare trait in a lawyer - as he knew I was referring to the other royalty issue: the oil money allegedly owed by PETRONAS to Kelantan.
But I suppose one has to maintain a certain level of lightheartedness to see the two issues with a degree of levelheadedness.
The Kelantan Prince's alleged abuse of his estranged Indonesian wife Manohara, initially sensationalised by the media, is slowly losing its appeal even in her home country, especially when bits and pieces of what look like legitimate and credible information about her mother and her possible motives keep surfacing.
Personally, I have always maintained that no one would really know about what goes on behind closed doors, be it of a palace boudoir or of an ordinary folks' bedroom. And there are always, always, always two sides to a story, any story.
One should hope that given due time and appropriate perspective, a clearer picture would emerge to cast away doubts and unhappiness so that the Prince and his bride could re-build their life (if they choose to) and live happily ever after.
The same degree of levelheadedness should apply when it comes to the Kelantan oil royalty claims. One needs to question the basis of the claims. Are they based on sound legal ground, or are they politically manipulated?
The lawyer with the sense of humour said the claims do not hold water, much less oil. He said it has been legally established that all states in Malaysia are only entitled to royalty payments if oil and gas are found and produced within their land and water territories. Their water territories are only up to three nautical miles from their respective shoreline. The areas beyond the three nautical miles from the shoreline are under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government.
Now, it is also factually known that there's no producing oil and gas fields within the three nautical miles from the country's shoreline. The producing fields offshore Kelantan are in the waters jointly claimed and owned by the Thai and Malaysian governments. Another area is jointly claimed and owned by the Malaysian and Vietnamese governments.
But what about Terengganu, and Sabah and Sarawak, which are enjoying the oil and gas royalty? Terengganu, it seems, received some sort of ex-gratia payments until these were disputed a few years ago. This dispute is still being resolved in the courts of law. Sabah and Sarawak are another story, I was made to understand, as they had long receivid the oil benefits even before the country came into being.
To those who are quick to say that Kelantan has been robbed of what is rightfully hers, I would suggest that they should do a bit of research. Learning about the history of your own country would also help.
And those listening to these people should take the claims with a cupful of salt.
Sea salt.
Recently when I asked somenone what he thought of the Kelantan royalty issue, he remarked: "Oh, she's gone home to huru-hara in Indonesia."
He was joking, of course - a rare trait in a lawyer - as he knew I was referring to the other royalty issue: the oil money allegedly owed by PETRONAS to Kelantan.
But I suppose one has to maintain a certain level of lightheartedness to see the two issues with a degree of levelheadedness.
The Kelantan Prince's alleged abuse of his estranged Indonesian wife Manohara, initially sensationalised by the media, is slowly losing its appeal even in her home country, especially when bits and pieces of what look like legitimate and credible information about her mother and her possible motives keep surfacing.
Personally, I have always maintained that no one would really know about what goes on behind closed doors, be it of a palace boudoir or of an ordinary folks' bedroom. And there are always, always, always two sides to a story, any story.
One should hope that given due time and appropriate perspective, a clearer picture would emerge to cast away doubts and unhappiness so that the Prince and his bride could re-build their life (if they choose to) and live happily ever after.
The same degree of levelheadedness should apply when it comes to the Kelantan oil royalty claims. One needs to question the basis of the claims. Are they based on sound legal ground, or are they politically manipulated?
The lawyer with the sense of humour said the claims do not hold water, much less oil. He said it has been legally established that all states in Malaysia are only entitled to royalty payments if oil and gas are found and produced within their land and water territories. Their water territories are only up to three nautical miles from their respective shoreline. The areas beyond the three nautical miles from the shoreline are under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government.
Now, it is also factually known that there's no producing oil and gas fields within the three nautical miles from the country's shoreline. The producing fields offshore Kelantan are in the waters jointly claimed and owned by the Thai and Malaysian governments. Another area is jointly claimed and owned by the Malaysian and Vietnamese governments.
But what about Terengganu, and Sabah and Sarawak, which are enjoying the oil and gas royalty? Terengganu, it seems, received some sort of ex-gratia payments until these were disputed a few years ago. This dispute is still being resolved in the courts of law. Sabah and Sarawak are another story, I was made to understand, as they had long receivid the oil benefits even before the country came into being.
To those who are quick to say that Kelantan has been robbed of what is rightfully hers, I would suggest that they should do a bit of research. Learning about the history of your own country would also help.
And those listening to these people should take the claims with a cupful of salt.
Sea salt.
PHILISTINE LEADERS VS FIFTH GRADERS
A friend sent me this quote today, which I think aptly describes part of our country's state of affairs today. Well, at least when it comes to the way some of our elected leaders think and behave.
"Welcome to our land of philistines. Here we devalue the intellect, engage in trivial pursuits, encourage dumbing down and embrace a culture of flattery. We treat people like children.”
Case in point? Some MPs are bent on making themselves sound very stupid and uninformed just to play to certain audience, not unlike contestants on Fox's "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader".
Why do they keep doing that is beyond me. I mean, I do understand the concept of taking populist positions to advance political careers. But to what extent?
If by making uninformed statements only make them look and sound stupid, I don't mind so much. That's after all their decision.
But what about the rakyat that voted for them and hang on to their every word? In what way would stupid and uninformed statements help the rakyat?
None! They will continue to be misled, and their children will grow up misinformed. Life is after all a cycle. Good begets good, and vice versa.
So grow up. Be the leaders you promised to be. The rakyat are your paying audience. Give them what they truly deserve.
CONSPIRACY BUBBLE HAS BEEN BURST
I came across this article in the Singapore Business Times, written by its KL Correspondent S. Jayasankaran (formerly of The Far Eastern Economic Review).
MALAYSIA INSIGHT
Bursting conspiracy bubbles
Petronas is neither hiding accounts nor squandering assets; central bank chief quit Khazanah board to head off conflict
HERE seems to be an increasing trend towards conspiracy theories and finding scapegoats in Kuala Lumpur these days.
And the latest, going by remarks uttered over television, relates to Petroliam Nasional, or Petronas.
There are two distinct themes here. The first, echoed by First Son-in-Law and Umno deputy youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin is that the oil corporation isn't transparent because it allegedly does not publish its annual accounts. In short, by being deliberately obtuse, Petronas could be playing fast and loose with the people's money.
The other alleges that the national oil company is making obscene profits at a time when the ordinary people are reeling from a 41 per cent hike in fuel prices.
Both themes are incorrect, although the first could have been true back in the 1980s when Petronas seemed very secretive. Not any more.
The national oil corporation is an international borrower, having raised money through both Yankee and Samurai bonds and international bondholders expect nothing less than complete transparency from issuers.
Petronas bonds have always been snapped up and generally held until maturity. Its accounts are also lodged with the Companies Commission and can even be downloaded from its website. As a former investment banker, Mr Khairy should have checked before shooting from the hip.
There is no denying that Petronas is making record profits - which have risen to RM46.4 billion (S$19.4 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2007 from 2003's RM15 billion.
Out of that amount, however, it gave RM20 billion back to the government in dividends. It has over RM102 billion cash and investments and it will probably make net profits of over RM70 billion for 2008.
But the company should not be attacked for using some of that money to forage for new supplies here and abroad. New investment is the key to its survival so it should be commended for doing so, not pilloried.
On another matter, we might want to consider the sudden resignation last week of Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz from the board of federal government investment agency Khazanah Nasional, an event that set tongues a-wagging in the capital because the central bank governor has traditionally sat on the agency's board and, indeed, chaired its audit committee.
Actually, Ms Zeti resigned from the audit committee more than a year ago and her resignation from the board was always just a matter of time given the potential conflict of interest following Khazanah's increasing investments in the banking sector, both locally and abroad.
Ever since Azman Mokhtar took over as the agency's head in 2004, Khazanah has expressed its intentions to increase its exposure to the financial sector.
Indeed, it immediately went about this by increasing its interest in the Bank of Commerce to over 25 per cent from 8 per cent and then engineering the consolidation of that bank with Bank Bumiputra to form CIMB, Malaysia's second largest bank.
One can only imagine Ms Zeti's discomfort when CIMB set about its hostile takeover of Southern Bank almost two years ago. The latter had even appealed to the central bank for help at one stage.
And now that Khazanah is beginning to eye foreign takeovers, it is best that Ms Zeti leaves lest her foreign counterparts in central banking look askance at her position.
And the latest, going by remarks uttered over television, relates to Petroliam Nasional, or Petronas.
There are two distinct themes here. The first, echoed by First Son-in-Law and Umno deputy youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin is that the oil corporation isn't transparent because it allegedly does not publish its annual accounts. In short, by being deliberately obtuse, Petronas could be playing fast and loose with the people's money.
The other alleges that the national oil company is making obscene profits at a time when the ordinary people are reeling from a 41 per cent hike in fuel prices.
Both themes are incorrect, although the first could have been true back in the 1980s when Petronas seemed very secretive. Not any more.
The national oil corporation is an international borrower, having raised money through both Yankee and Samurai bonds and international bondholders expect nothing less than complete transparency from issuers.
Petronas bonds have always been snapped up and generally held until maturity. Its accounts are also lodged with the Companies Commission and can even be downloaded from its website. As a former investment banker, Mr Khairy should have checked before shooting from the hip.
There is no denying that Petronas is making record profits - which have risen to RM46.4 billion (S$19.4 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2007 from 2003's RM15 billion.
Out of that amount, however, it gave RM20 billion back to the government in dividends. It has over RM102 billion cash and investments and it will probably make net profits of over RM70 billion for 2008.
But the company should not be attacked for using some of that money to forage for new supplies here and abroad. New investment is the key to its survival so it should be commended for doing so, not pilloried.
On another matter, we might want to consider the sudden resignation last week of Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz from the board of federal government investment agency Khazanah Nasional, an event that set tongues a-wagging in the capital because the central bank governor has traditionally sat on the agency's board and, indeed, chaired its audit committee.
Actually, Ms Zeti resigned from the audit committee more than a year ago and her resignation from the board was always just a matter of time given the potential conflict of interest following Khazanah's increasing investments in the banking sector, both locally and abroad.
Ever since Azman Mokhtar took over as the agency's head in 2004, Khazanah has expressed its intentions to increase its exposure to the financial sector.
Indeed, it immediately went about this by increasing its interest in the Bank of Commerce to over 25 per cent from 8 per cent and then engineering the consolidation of that bank with Bank Bumiputra to form CIMB, Malaysia's second largest bank.
One can only imagine Ms Zeti's discomfort when CIMB set about its hostile takeover of Southern Bank almost two years ago. The latter had even appealed to the central bank for help at one stage.
And now that Khazanah is beginning to eye foreign takeovers, it is best that Ms Zeti leaves lest her foreign counterparts in central banking look askance at her position.
I LOVE MY COUNTRY. I LOVE PETRONAS.
Now that we know that PETRONAS had contributed RM336 billion of its accumulated profit to the Government over the past 33 years, logically we should now be questioning how this money was spent and allocated by the Government. I mean, this is a huge sum by any standard. PETRONAS says the amount is 65% of its accumulated profit. That means, for every RM1 profit that PETRONAS made, it gave back 65 sen to the Government. How this money is spent by the Government is not PETRONAS' responsibility.
As for their personal performance, I was told that each of the PETRONAS’ employees has to sign an individual performance contract at the beginning of the company’s financial cycle stating his or her performance target for the year and what he or she has to deliver. If by the end of the year he or she doesn’t deliver, there’ll be no salary increase or bonus.
I would think this is rather stressful. On top of that, they are required to cut operational costs in their own areas of responsibility by at least 30% a year. I guess this is one of the reasons why when other oil companies record minimal rise in profits, PETRONAS continue to perform excellently, because staff helped keep operational cost down while the costs for equipment, drilling etc rose exponentially.
The past few days, we also heard and read allegations made by the Penang Chief Minister YAB Lim Guan Eng about PETRONAS. Personally, I feel most of these allegations are incitement or “hasutan” in nature. He claims that PETRONAS has private jets and helicopters, and PETRONAS’ officials live lavishly like kings in huge mansions.
I don’t know which PETRONAS’ officials he is talking about. A lot of people know that Tan Sri Hassan and his family stay in a modest house in a not-so-posh area in Ampang. Even some taxi drivers who have had to drive staff to his house expressed their disbelief that he actually lives there.
Yes, he does travel for business by a leased jet. But I guess I wouldn’t expect him to fly commercial – with various flight connections, potential delays or cancellations – when he has meetings, negotiations and billion-dollar deals to make. Time is of the essence, so is safety.
Looking at Mr. Lim’s continuous attacks, I’m led to believe that he might have a personal agenda against Tan Sri Hassan. A little bird told me that the two of them used to work together in an accountancy firm long ago. Could there be old grouses at play here? I don’t know.
Like I said in my previous posts, I expect a lot from my elected political leaders. When they promise they would bring about change, I thought they would behave differently from their counterparts, they would be fair, they would tell the truth to the rakyat and so on. I forgot politicians are politicians -- they are not accountable for anything.
A MONTH OF HOPE AND HOPELESSNESS
It's been exactly a month since the masses spoke and elected their leaders: the men and women they believe would effect change and create some kind of impact on their lives -- at least for the next five years or so.
Yet, what have the leaders done? Not much.
Unhappy campers and gang are not done pointing fingers at each other, instead of really looking deep inside themselves, drawing strength -- and perhaps finding solutions -- from comments and criticism to heal and start delivering what the masses really deserve.
After all, the mandate is theirs again to lead (yes, lead). So, please start leading.
The newly empowered opposition coalition is faring better, if only slightly. At least the component parties are showing some conciliatory efforts towards meeting the expectations of their respective constituents. Although some of the stuff they said and the statements made left me quite disappointed.
In this new order of things I am hoping for a much better deal -- more informed, learned and honest leaders way above those whose BS we were so used to having.
The newly empowered opposition coalition is faring better, if only slightly. At least the component parties are showing some conciliatory efforts towards meeting the expectations of their respective constituents. Although some of the stuff they said and the statements made left me quite disappointed.
In this new order of things I am hoping for a much better deal -- more informed, learned and honest leaders way above those whose BS we were so used to having.
If you a Chief Minister and want some company to come finance a project, let's say a bridge, in your state you'd better spell out a proper commercial mechanism of how this company could come in, because in the end, the company (like any other profit-oriented entity) would only enter into something on a commercial basis. After all, it is a company.
You just don't go and say, "Hey, I know you have loads of cash, so you should use some of it to finance my bridge."
And if you're a newly elected MP and want to show that you know stuff, you'd better make sure you do know stuff. Making claims that the cost of producing oil has not changed much from donkey years before does not make much sense, especially when operating expenditures have skyrocketed to the heavens above. So you'd better make sure you have your calculations right when you speak.
I find it really frustrating when people in the position of power position themselves as experts in something they don't know crap about. And the sad part is, what they say -- how political or politicised -- becomes gospel among the misguided masses.
Please, the masses deserve better.
I LOVE MY COUNTRY
I am so very happy nowadays. In fact, I have never been happier. And yes, the results of the recently concluded general elections have a lot to do with my current state of happiness. They were exactly what I had wished and hoped for.
Some of the candidates who won really deserve the votes, including the MP of my constituency, who was re-elected with a "thumping" majority. Yes, she has been doing a good job. I am happy for her, for me, for everyone in the constituency.
Yes, I am happy. Blissful? Not really. Euphoric? Far from it. It's only been a few days since the votes were cast and counted, but there are already some disturbing developments. Not that these were totally unexpected.
Statements and suggestions have been made by our newly elected leaders. Some are really misinformed, some irresponsible, and some presented as the absolute truths without any corroboration. Which makes one wonder over the wisdom of one's choice for one's leader.
When we vote for a leader, we vote for his ability, his aspiration, his wisdom, his foresight, his vision, his passion, his compassion and his honesty, humility and sincerity in wanting to lead us to a better place, to better things.
We don't want a leader who promises us the moon and the stars but never tells us how he would bring down the moon and the stars to us. We don't want a leader who makes bold demands and claims but doesn't really understand the rules and reality of things.
Leaders must lead, not mislead. They must be informed, not misinformed. We've had enough of those.
It's time we changed. For real.
Note: Wetbenang had been temporarily indisposed, which explains why this site was dormant for a while. He apologises for his long absence, but promises a gradual comeback.
I am so very happy nowadays. In fact, I have never been happier. And yes, the results of the recently concluded general elections have a lot to do with my current state of happiness. They were exactly what I had wished and hoped for.
Some of the candidates who won really deserve the votes, including the MP of my constituency, who was re-elected with a "thumping" majority. Yes, she has been doing a good job. I am happy for her, for me, for everyone in the constituency.
Yes, I am happy. Blissful? Not really. Euphoric? Far from it. It's only been a few days since the votes were cast and counted, but there are already some disturbing developments. Not that these were totally unexpected.
Statements and suggestions have been made by our newly elected leaders. Some are really misinformed, some irresponsible, and some presented as the absolute truths without any corroboration. Which makes one wonder over the wisdom of one's choice for one's leader.
When we vote for a leader, we vote for his ability, his aspiration, his wisdom, his foresight, his vision, his passion, his compassion and his honesty, humility and sincerity in wanting to lead us to a better place, to better things.
We don't want a leader who promises us the moon and the stars but never tells us how he would bring down the moon and the stars to us. We don't want a leader who makes bold demands and claims but doesn't really understand the rules and reality of things.
Leaders must lead, not mislead. They must be informed, not misinformed. We've had enough of those.
It's time we changed. For real.
Note: Wetbenang had been temporarily indisposed, which explains why this site was dormant for a while. He apologises for his long absence, but promises a gradual comeback.
LIFE, DEATH -- PART IV
So glory to Him in Whose hands is the dominion of all things, and to Him you will all be brought back. -- Surah Yaasin: 83
The mobile rang. It was 1.45pm, Saturday, August 4. “Salaam, Abang. Are you still on the way? Oh, that’s about 45 minutes to here already. I just wanted to tell you that Uncu has passed away. Ten minutes ago. Drive safely, and see you here soon.”
Ayong, ever so polite, ever so calm, hung up. Many more people to call, many things to arrange for.
My heart sank, and sank, and sank. I had so wanted to visit Uncu again, but duty and travel had not permitted. And that Saturday, I resolved to go see him.
The three-hour ride to the hospital felt like forever. It's always like that, isn't it? Time seems like an eternity when you want less of it, but flies by in a blink when you desperately need more of it.
Three years ago, I promised myself that I wouldn’t turn into this person who’d put work and everything else before family and loved ones.
I kept that promise for two years. This year, the promise was broken. And with that, several hearts as well.
Sorry I am. Shame I bear. Regrets I live with.
There is a time for everything
And a season for every activity under heaven
A time to be born and a time to die
A time to plant and a time to uproot
And a time to kill and a time to heal
A time to weep and a time to laugh
A time to mourn and a time to dance
A time to embrace and a time to refrain
A time to search and a time to give up
A time to keep and a time to throw away
A time to love and a time to hate
A time for war and a time for peace
– From the film "Two Brothers" by Richard BellCAR THEFTS: TERRORISTS CONNECTION?
According to the police, luxury vehicles stolen in Malaysia are smuggled overseas for sale to fund terrorist and criminal organisations.
Between January and May of this year, close to 5,000 luxury vehicles were reported stolen in this country for this purpose, an increase of 11.5 per cent compared to the same period last year, says a Bernama report. That's 1,000 vehicles a month.
These vehicles make up part of the three million units stolen from Asia, Europe and North America annually, worth an estimated US$21 billion.
Describing the theft and smuggling of vehicles as a worldwide phenomenon, Federal CID director Datuk Christopher Wan said: “Such proceeds from ill-gotten gains might be used to supply and strengthen criminal or terrorist organisations."
Trafficking and smuggling of stolen vehicles, says Wan, are mainly the work of structured and sophisticated global criminal groups.
No rocket science theory, here. Otherwise they'd have been completely busted by now, kan, despite repeated newspaper headlines claiming they've been at least crippled.
OK, if luxury vehicles are stolen to fund terrorist and criminal organisations, what about the not so luxury makes? What organisations are being funded by the proceeds from their thefts?
A friend of mine lost his car from a parking lot at the Bukit Jalil stadium a couple of days ago.
When we went to lodge a report, the police said car thefts in that particular area were now a regular occurrence.
Assuming that the police can't really do much about the problem -- after all car theft rings are extremely sophisticated and organised -- the parking lot operator at the stadium should at least do something about this.
Install some measures to make it slightly more difficult for car thiefs to drive away from the lot. Think of the interest and peace of mind of the hundreds of your customers who park there on a daily basis.
This is not too much to ask, if you ask me.
WE ARE FAMOUS
When it comes to getting bad press, Malaysia is an over-achiever. The country and its people seem to always be in the limelight for all the wrong reasons, one after another.
The focus du jour is a certain murder intrigue, last week was the maid escape, and a few weeks before were the bocor brouhaha. So depressing, so embarrassing, so exasperating.
I was in Indonesia last week, and Ceriyati the poor maid made news everywhere. Her plight received the attention of all major newspapers and TV stations. There were demonstrations in the city, particularly near the Malaysian embassy, where her family members rightly demanded justice.
(I wish Malaysians were as spirited as their Indonesian brethrens, so that every time a Malaysian citizen is robbed, raped or murdered by Indonesians living here, we would all be motivated to hold demonstrations. And at the rate crimes are committed nowadays, we could hold demonstrations every day).
Anyway, a few years ago, domestic help abuse was rather unheard of in Malaysia. Often times, cases of abuse happened only in our southern neighbour. I worked in that tiny republic then, and almost every week you’d read of people somewhere hurting their maid. Now, it’s happening more in Malaysia.
According to a report by Foreign Correspondent, Malaysia has become Asia’s largest importer of labour, most of whom come from neighbouring Indonesia. Across the country Indonesian maids are keeping house and minding children, freeing up the country’s middle class to make money. Ninety five per cent of the maids are from Indonesia. Coming here to work is well within their comfort zone because they speak almost a similar language and most are Muslim.
But once they are here, the story take a different turn for some unfortunate few. Some are sexually abused, some physically harmed, while some others don’t get paid.
Officials at the Indonesian embassy in Kuala Lumpur, which has sheltered thousands of allegedly abused maids, say they have a pattern along employers’ racial make-up.
The Ambassador was quoted as saying: “If sexual harassment, it must be done by Indian ethnics. And for torture, slapping and so on, it’s by Chinese employer, while payment problems are from Malays."
Whatever it is, something must be done, and quickly too, to stop the abuse. There has been a lot of talk, but little action, taken. The onus must be on the government – both Indonesian and Malaysian – to work on the solution. Change the legislation. Introduce minimum wage. Give the maids off days.
And those who abuse their maids? Give them maximum punishment. Teach them a very expensive (and painful) lesson that they have no right whatsoever to hurt another human being. The miserable few hundred ringgit they pay a month (if they do pay) do not earn them a slave who’d be on their beck and call 24/7.
If all fails, perhaps we can all devise a way to let them taste their own medicine.
WHEN YOU FACE DEATH, DIRECT ACCESS IS BEST
(Telekom Malaysia today clarifies a few things in the NST over its 999 number. Please see my additional text.)
From next year, only 999 will, again, be used as the common number for all emergency calls. This, says Internal Security, is “in line with efforts to coordinate all emergency calls made to the police, health and fire and rescue departments as well as other security agencies”, which currently use different numbers. The move is also made to “overcome the problem of ‘missed’ and crank calls, it says. And Telekom Malaysia has been tasked to handle the new system.
Under the current system, the 999 number is for police and ambulance, 991 for Civil Defence Department and 994 for Fire & Rescue. The latter two numbers were introduced in 1991, ironically to address the problem of missed and unanswered 999 calls back then.
I guess a single number is a good idea, as there would be less confusion on the part of the public over which number to call during emergency situations. What’s not such a good idea, in my humble (and maybe ill-informed) opinion, is to let Telekom Malaysia operate the number, when the police has been requesting that all distress calls be directly routed to its command centres to reduce the time it would take to respond to emergencies.
According to NST, the police have contended for years that emergency response times could be drastically reduced if 999 calls are patched through directly to its dispatchers. The police also believe that emergency response times would continue to be slow while Telekom Malaysia operators take emergency calls because 999 is a "hunting" line. At present, emergency calls are handled by the same operators who usually handle enquiries on telephone number listings. (Telekom Malaysia says 999 is not a hunting line, and calls to this line are not put on queue. The calls are also handled by emergency service centre staff, and not the operators who also handle regualr enquiries).
This means a call put through from Kuala Lumpur to 999 could be picked up by an operator in Kuala Terengganu or Kuching if the operators in the city are busy, for example. Delays arise when operators unfamiliar with streets and addresses in the city spend valuable seconds or minutes determining the exact location of a caller who may well be facing a life and death situation. (Telekom Malaysia says it takes six seconds to verify emergency calls, and another 10 seconds to hand over the call to the relevant parties such as the police or ambulance.)
The Telekom operator would also have to spend time locating the correct police station or command centre to relay the information. Such delays appear to have driven the police to set up their own hotline service, Rakan Cop, in 2004. The service has helped speed up police response times tremendously. But this could be even quicker if 999 calls are patched through directly to police command centres, according to NST’s sources. (See above paragraph).
According to NST also, Telekom Malaysia refuses to hand over control of the 999 number to police unless it is paid between RM500 million and RM1 billion for its user database, to which the police need access to facilitate faster response time.(Telekom Malaysia denies ever asking for money for its subscriber database. It says 999 is a free service as part of its social obligation, and caller information is given free on a call-to-call basis)
Like millions of other Malaysians, I am extremely anxious over this. When you are faced with a life and death emergency situation, you’d want to receive assistance within the fastest possible time. In my opinion, unless Telekom Malaysia has something brilliant up its sleeve to improve the current situation, it would be best to leave the handling of 999 calls directly in the hands of the police.
(Telekom Malaysia says it has been working with the police for the past 30 years, and from its experience, only one per cent of the more than 40,000 emergency calls it receives daily are genuine. The rest are crank calls. Telekom says it sees its role as a filter service provider to ensure only genuine calls get to the police or other emergency response bodies.)
But then, what do I know?
WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY
Today the whole world observes Environment Day. Across the globe, new initiatives, campaigns and pledges are launched, implemented or promised, some costing millions and millions of dollars.
Today the whole world observes Environment Day. Across the globe, new initiatives, campaigns and pledges are launched, implemented or promised, some costing millions and millions of dollars.
Well and good, I say. Let’s hope that these initiatives, campaigns and pledges are all long-term efforts geared towards achieving sustainable results and lasting difference in our life and the lives of our children.
But we cannot just leave this responsibility of taking care of our earth to the government, NGOs and other bodies alone.
We all know how “efficient” the government is at managing the environment, kan? And most NGOs -- bless them – while strong in will are lacking in resources.
So we all must do our part. Actually there are so many little things that we can do. And all these little things, when practiced collectively, will make a huge difference.
Today’s NST lists down some suggestions on Page 17. And part of its editorial says this:
“… there is every reason to nurture the small initiatives of individuals choosing to shun plastic bags or private transport, or learning to recycle household waste, switch off lights and conserve water in their lives.
It is in such baby steps that the true distance can be covered, perhaps not towards reversing the monumental forces of climate change now upon us, but slowing them down long enough to ensure humanity a chance to adapt and forestall environmental catastrophe, and survive on a planet so grievously changed by the rapacious activities of just one species — our own Homo sapiens.”
UNDERUSED, OR INDIFFERENT MEDIA?
The Star reports today that during the discussion on global media strategies on HIV/AIDS, the 100-odd delegates who attended the Asia Media Summit 2007 in KL agree that the media is under-utilised when it comes to spreading awareness on the disease, and that coverage on HIV/AIDS is not done on a continuous basis.
A South African media chief concurs that while the media is a powerful tool, it is not doing enough to connect with young people – who are most susceptible -- and educate them.
How apt. How sad. But that’s a fact.
We don’t have to go far. Take a look at our beloved country. For a nation that has more than 81,000 people infected with HIV/AIDS (as per the same Star report), there ought to be more concerted educational efforts done by the authorities, NGOs and the media.
But I feel the media, on their own, ought to take more initiatives to continuously educate their young readers on the issue. Life, after all, does not revolve around AF winners or celebrity scandals alone!
The South African delegate further observes that many young people know about HIV/AIDS, but exactly how much they know or understand is a completely different story.
“The media has the responsibility to connect and speak the language of young people for they are the ones most susceptible,” he said.
Information on HIV/AIDS must, as the delegates say, spread faster than the disease.
A Case of Anak Rintik?
Talk about our young people, The Star also carries this report:
Rakan Muda show fans riled by rowdies throwing bottles and cans
Bottles and cans flew across an outdoor arena when several youths got restless during an open-air show at the Bukit Kiara sports complex here.
The commotion occurred while Akademi Fantasia 5 runner-up Ebi Kornelis was performing at the show, which was being held ahead of a Rakan Muda event.
The rowdiness subsided after Rela members rushed to calm the crowd before Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi arrived to launch the programme.
Ironically, another throwing match occurred during the reading of the Rakan Muda pledge.
More than 20,000 youths attended the event.
It turned ugly when a few overexcited spectators started to throw some bottles and cans to the other side.
Well, you could say that they were inspired by their elders who threw bottles and sticks at each other during the recent Ijok by-elections.
Yup. Kalau bapak borek, anak pun boleh jadi rintik lah.
GLOBAL WARMING: A MEDIA SPIN?
Well, at least one Malaysian Cabinet Minister thinks so.
At a luncheon today during which he was supposed to deliver a talk, among several not-so-focused topics he touched on, the Minister seemed to question the validity of media reports on global warming, wondering whether they were not just some hoo-ha motivated by commercial considerations.
And he is the Information Minister.
I am appalled, to say the least. I could not believe my ears! No wonder Malaysians in general are ill-informed about global warming, and topics related to it are not widely covered or discussed in this country. I guess the Minister wants to wait until the catastrophic consequences of global warming hit us before he wants to seriously think of mitigation?
Wait, he’d be dead by then. How unbelievable!
Anyway, Bernama has this story generated from the same function.
One Earth to Call Home
Did you know that every person in the world consumes about 20 kg of plastics each year?
So, if you were to multiply that by six billion (that’s approximately the current world population), would you be able to visualise the amount of plastics used globally per year?
And because plastics are hardly degradable, can you also imagine the task of managing their disposal?
Nope, I don’t think you can. Yet, we are so in love with plastics we can’t live without them.
Did you know that a plastic milk jug takes one million years to decompose? That nearly every piece of plastic ever made still exists today? That if you lined up all polystyrene foam cups made in just one day, they would circle the earth?
It is however encouraging to see that a number of manufacturers have come up with degradable premix resins, including homegrown PETRONAS.
The company has started producing and marketing its first environment-friendly and degradable premix resin since last year. It says more grades are coming.
No to Roti Canai Hike
I guess roti canai lovers everywhere can heave a sigh of relief now that the authorities have said no its price hike recently proposed by a restaurant operators association.
I am relieved, too, as roti canai is my twin godsons’ favourite breakfast. They each can eat two pieces of roti canai, dipped into fish curry gravy, at any one go.
Let’s all see how much longer the price will stay as it is.
HIKES HERE, HIKES EVERYWHERE
As expected, as soon as the 15 sen per kg price hike of flour took effect on Monday, roti canai sellers everywhere now want to increase the price of their ware by 10 sen.
So in the near future, your favourite Mamak restaurant or stall could be charging you 90 sen for a piece of this delicacy.
They say the 10 sen hike is justified, as not only has the price of flour gone up, the prices of other ingredients of roti canai, like cooking oil and margarine, have too, not to mention the rising costs of everything else.
Make sense? I don’t know. What I know is, it doesn’t take one kg of flour to make one piece of roti canai. So, you do the calculations lah.
An immediate random poll by a local tabloid found out that the majority of the public does not mind the hike, like they did not mind the new subscription fees Astro announced a few weeks ago.
I don’t know what income brackets these people interviewed by the tabloid belong to, but obviously their opinion could not possibly be a true representative of public sentiment.
Talk about Astro fees’ hike, I read this interesting commentary, buried deep in today’s NST’s Tech & U section.
Astronomical hike in paid TV
By Lim Yeh Ern
Astronomical hike in paid TV
By Lim Yeh Ern
From unmarked squatter houses to the high-rise condos throughout the nation, it’s not uncommon to find that familiar Astro grey satellite dish pointing up at a cant angle to the heavens. It doesn’t take an economist to figure out that such high ratio of subscribers to the only paid channel service spells monopoly.
With the newly launched satellite, Astro also introduced several new channels, but just when you thought you were getting more value for your hard-earned cash, in comes a letter telling you that there’s going to be a price increase to your existing package next month and that the new channels will only be free until end of August 2007.
Astro’s excuse for the hike has ironically been live telecasts of football matches – isn’t that the biggest money spinner for Astro in the first place? And if that’s so, shouldn’t the price hike only affect the sports package?
With the US dollar pegged lower, shouldn’t we be getting cheaper movie packages instead? What really gets me are the advertisements, be they those corny Astro advertisements or annoying third-party advertisements. It's advertisements galore all the way. Isn’t this already a paid service?
Astro’s tagline should be Making Astro Richer. How is it making our life richer when we pay for the service and then have to watch advertisements which pay Astro again at the same time?
If the paying customer gets a ringgit for watching every advertisement, we would have paid the difference at the end of each month just to watch Astro.
The letter continues, “We remain committed to make significant investments to bring high quality and engaging local and international programmes to you”.
Define high-quality. Image quality is so poor Sony has to come up with an image enhancement technology for their LCD TVs specifically for Astro channels. And what about improved reception with that new frangled satellite? I’m still stuck at home without anything to watch whenever it pours!
Short of unsubscribing, I guess existing subscribers are just going to have to make do with less channels and make it obvious that they don't like being taken for a ride.
Exactly my sentiments...
TEACHERS DAY, SPECIAL DAY
Today is Teachers Day. In schools across the country, thousands of teachers are being honoured, praised and feted for their great contributions and tireless efforts in imparting knowledge and in helping to shape the mind, perception, personality and character of this country’s future citizens and leaders. Indeed, today is not just a meaningful day for teachers alone, but also for their students and their parents.
I was with my twin godsons last night, on the occasion of their 11th birthday. After dinner, after the cake was cut and consumed, our conversation – as always – turned to school and related topics. In excited tones they related to me their parts in the activities planned by the school for Teachers Day. Azrie and his contemporaries would enact a special dedication to all the teachers at their school, while Edrie would perform solo his own version of a current popular tune.
Each of them has also bought a little something for their class teachers and could hardly wait for today to show their appreciation. “Cikgu banyak tolong Along belajar, Uncle, sebab tu Along nak bagi hadiah ni,” said Azrie. “Ha ah la Uncle, cikgu Angah pun sama. Angah suka sangat cikgu Angah,” Edrie chipped in.
I know both boys had put quite a lot of thought in choosing their little gifts for their teachers. The gifts, though quite practical, did not cost much as these had to be paid for by their own money. But the joy they’d feel in giving their little token of appreciation would be priceless. Of course, between their parents and me, we always remind the boys that there are a lot of other ways of appreciating their teachers: by paying attention to what they teach, by showing them respect, by doing the homework, by doing well in school, etc.
Come Teachers Day next year, I wonder whether they or thousands of their contemporaries would still have the opportunity to experience this joy, because some smart people from the Business Ethics Institute of Malaysia are calling for a ban on the culture of giving gifts to teachers by students on Teachers Day. This, they say, is tantamount to corruption and bribery. This culture, they say, is also not in line with the National Integrity Plan. I’d have thought and expected that an institute of such calibre would have much bigger ethics agenda or issue to pursue and champion.
But anyway, to argue their point, these smart people cited a couple of cases where a parent went overboard and gave personalised Teachers Day cards together with expensive pens to his son’s teachers, and another where teachers requested specific gifts from their students. Some schools, they say, sell gifts for students to buy.
So, they are urging the Education Ministry to issue a directive to all schools and learning institutions to stop teachers from accepting gifts from students on Teachers Day.
I’m not quite sure how true or widespread is this “trend”. If it is true or widespread, I’m sure it can be curbed. Instead of calling for a ban, the Business Ethics Institute – since their people are so smart and are so ethical -- may want to help the Ministry/schools come up with a set of guidelines for teachers on what is acceptable and what is not in terms of Teachers Day gifts. Something like what is practiced at certain companies I know, where employees are not allowed to accept certain types of gifts and/or gifts of certain monetary values.
And certainly not a ban directive! Please don’t take away the children’s joy in presenting their little gifts to their teachers, and their teachers’ in receiving them.
TEARS IN LOJING
A lot of people have said a lot of things over the past few weeks about the Lojing issue, which isn’t too surprising, given the so many parties said to be involved in this huge environmental mess.
And a lot more fingers (and toes, too, I bet) have been pointed and wagged. They still are. This is, after all, a country where blame is still very much the game.
If it wasn’t for the seriousness of the issue, it’d have also been quite fun to read, and watch, the verbal ping pong between the Federal and Kelantan State governments and the rest of the other players.
Well, at least eight companies are facing legal action for their part in the fiasco.
However, Lojing’s environmental degradation is not about to stop while the culprits wait for their day in court. The thousands and thousands of hectares of forest and its sensitive ecosystem will not heal by itself. Neither would the bald hills and terrains re-vegetate by themselves overnight.
So, come on people. Stop pointing the fingers. Use them to poke at those fat asses to get moving instead!
I drove by Lojing last week, en route to KL via Cameron Highlands, my most favourite route to take when returning to the city from Kota Bharu.
From the highway, you wouldn’t be able to tell where exactly the location of this particular environmental rape is, but damage was everywhere I looked, all the way to the neigbouring Cameron Highlands. Hills are barren, red earth exposed. It was a sad, sad sight.
And yes, highland vegetable farming is in full swing.
Virtual Malaysia, the official portal of the Ministry of Tourism, says Lojing’s elevated location “makes it ideal for planting fruits like persimmon and honey oranges, as well as fresh vegetables”.
Something that the good people at KADA had long realised, I guess, before they decided to lease out more than 2,000 hectares of Lojing land to farmers from Cameron Highlands.
It would be interesting to see what both the Federal and the State governments’ next course of action is.
GLOBAL WARMING : BE WARNED
Today, the NST front-paged my favourite topic: global warming and its dreary consequences. And as a bonus, it carried two full pages of reports, with a promise of more articles in its Friday edition.
And BBC World also ran its reports.
You'd be alarmed to know that by the year 2025 (that's 18 years from now), global temperatures would have risen by 1 degree Celcius.
What would that mean, you ask? Well, our children would have to endure heatwaves, floods (worse than anything we've ever witnessed), drought, tropical storms, surges in sea levels etc, all more intense, more frequently.
Coastal land could be submerged, arable land would turn into dust bowls, food and water shortage would happen, with malnutrition and diseases in tow.
All this, with only an increase of 1 degree Celcius? What about if the increases were higher? Well, these would happen:
- if the temperature increases by 2.4 degree Celcius, coral reefs will become extinct
- by 3.4 degree Celcius, rainforests turn into deserts
- by 4.4 degree Celcius, ice caps melt and will displace millions of people
- by 5.4 degree Celcius, sea levels rise by 5 metres
- by 6.4 degree Celcius, life as we know it is exterminated
Bleak? Yes. Can we do something? You decide. All of us decide.
Today.
Meanwhile, the past week or so saw the following ...
A Ceiling Over Our Heads
Number One is hopping mad, and rightly so, over a series of ceiling collapses in new and relatively new government buildings. It does reflect very poorly on the maintenance culture, or the lack of it, in this country. What is it again -- first world facilities, third world mentality?
The Circus Left Town
Yup. The circus left Ijok. Everybody upped and left. All parties involved have to be congratulated and commended for putting up an entertaining show for a week or so. Now the circus has left, it’s up to the elected ADUN to pick up the pieces, and make good on his promises.
A Cry Over Spoilt Milk
I was on my way to work last week when a short news update was aired on a radio channel. The case of food poisoning at Sekolah Kebangsaan Kota Kuala Muda on Wednesday, April 25, said the announcer, was because of some “miscommunication” at the school.
I believe the radio announcer quoted Kedah Health Department Director Dr Hasnah Ismail, who was also quoted by The Star the following Friday as saying that the incident would not have happened had the school head followed the directive issued by the Education Ministry on April 18 asking all primary schools in Kedah and in the northern region to stop supplying milk to students pending investigations on two earlier similar cases.
The directive was Swarovski clear. “Do not distribute the milk pending investigations (agaknya)."
So, where did this “miscommunication” come in? Did the school head not read, nor understand?
People, we are moving towards smart schools.
Really.
EARTH DAY, EVERY DAY
Last Sunday, 22 April was Earth Day 2007. It passed without any hoopla and with much apathy, in a truly typical Malaysian fashion.
Last Sunday, 22 April was Earth Day 2007. It passed without any hoopla and with much apathy, in a truly typical Malaysian fashion.
I woke up that day expecting to find loads of thought-provoking editorials and earth-friendly articles in the pages of our newspapers. Again, I was greatly disappointed.
The silence from our leaders was also deafening – no quotes, no smart pesanan, no nothing.
Earth Day 2007 was of very little significance, I guess, when compared to let’s say, stories about which celebrities were being bomohed by which artistes, or the goings-on in Ijok.
Global warming – what’s that? Lambat lagi lah dia punya effect or impact, why worry?
OK. Perhaps it’s too much to ask our leaders to come up with a strong message on environmental protection and progress, especially when all their energy at this point seems to be channeled to that little Selangor constituency.
But the newspapers? I thought they could have done a bit more to educate the rakyat and their readers about what they could do, in their own little ways, to help preserve the planet for our children, their children and grandchildren.
Every little tip they publish would go a long way to help make every day the Earth Day.
In Sentul, the Myanmarese couple has been reunited with their children, I read from a small, single column article in a newspaper.
I bet it was a teary and emotional reunion, had the newspaper carried a picture. But hey, never mind, what’s important now is that parents and children are back together.
They have also asked to be left alone.
We’ll see.
ANOTHER CIRCUS, AT A SLEEPY HOLLOW
"Undi anda rahsia."
That was the slogan widely broadcast (and popularly understood) in the run-up to elections when I was growing up as a child.
I remember when my late father, my mother and those in my family old enough to vote went to cast their ballot, they would be greeted by smiles and nods of encouragement -- from people of opposing sides -- on the way to and at the voting centre.
Activities leading to the election day -- from the nomination process to campaign ceramahs to the voting day -- were also relatively incident-free. No shouting, no jeering, no insults, and certainly no objects thrown at each other.
Gone were those days.
Elections today -- even by-elections in the remotest of areas -- are a full-blown circus. Thousands of supporters, would-be voters and leaders would descend to the sleepy hollow armed with slogans, flags and placards, with verbal vocabularies to match.
And in the case of Ijok, they also came armed with drinking water bottles. And the FRU, with its water cannon truck, was there too to complete the picture.
Yup. Only in Boleh-Land.
In the meantime, the Yin saga circus is still playing in Sentul. The Myanmar couple is out on police bail, courtesy of Suhakam. I hope and pray that the Press would cease hounding (and torturing) them with speculations. Let the police complete their investigations. Focus on other issues to sell your papers.
No ideas? Set camp in Ijok for the next eight days or so. I'm sure the circus there will give enough fodder for weeks to come.
REUNIONS
This past weekend was a weekend of happy reunions, indeed.
The missing child Yin was reunited with his parents, at last, and the whole nation heaved a huge sigh of relief.
I got all choked up when I first heard the good news Saturday night. Tuhan Maha kaya, I thought. The prayers of Yin’s parents, and those of many others, had been answered. Alhamdulillah.
I couldn’t even begin to imagine how the parents must have felt, how they must have suffered during the 14-day ordeal.
When my twin godsons were Yin’s age, I took them shopping at a department store, and they decided to play hide and seek among the racks of clothes. I couldn’t find them for a couple of minutes, and I almost went crazy!
Now that Yin is back safe and sound, let’s not start passing judgment or making speculations about the Myanmarese couple who found and returned him to the arms of his parents.
Please let the authorities do their job. Let’s not allow this become another circus, although this morning I read the papers with a heavy heart that the couple’s neighbours were already bringing out the sandwiches.
And the photo ops for politicians and their wives are still in full swing.
Typical!
During the weekend, I was also “reunited” with Azrie and Edrie, my twin godsons. I had not seen them since December. We went shopping Saturday morning for shirts, shoes and pants. They are growing up so fast sometimes it’s almost hard to believe that they are already 11 years old!
In the afternoon, together with my colleague Ju, we went to an orphanage to visit and have tea with our “adopted” children. It was a reunion of sort for Ju, who last saw her “daughter” in October. Me, I visited Amar, my “son”, only last month when he turned 15.
Anyway, tea with the kids was a sobering experience, even for the twins, who got along quite well with their 23 newfound brothers and sisters. In fact, Amar, largely regarded as the orphans’ eldest brother, asked me to bring the twins along again for my next visit. Insya Allah.
This afternoon, out of the blue, a long-lost friend I went to college with called. I had not heard from her in more than a decade, I think. So, we are planning for a reunion. Soon, I hope.
Tuhan Maha kaya.
“The supreme happiness in life is the conviction that we are loved.”
- Victor Hugo
- Victor Hugo
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