This Hari Raya

I just had a beautiful, satisfying dream. And it prompted me to wake up, log on and blog about something important that has been happening in the Arab world of late. Because what is happening in the Maghreb is of incalculable importance to the rest of the world, including us in Malaysia. If the events of the Arab Spring were to usher in a new era of fairness, justice, transparency and truly democratic, representative governments in a part of the world long mired in corruption, darkness and repression, then the Arabs who have succeeded where so many others have failed would now become as beacons of light to the rest of the world, including us in Malaysia. May God bless them and guide them in their hour of need.  

Wherefore art thou, leader of the free world?

I'VE ALWAYS been fascinated with America. Maybe it's because i was a child of the cold war, read news articles during the 80s about Mr Nyet and the bad old USSR and the USA under Ronald Reagan saving us all from the "Red Menace". But then again, politics will be politics and the winds do change. Right now the wind blows towards China. I'm not sure that i like the Motherland that much, having a first-hand experience of what her culture has to offer. I'm still pretty much Amerikkka-centric, and i don't know if my peers feel the same way, but i believe that the best hopes for the free world still lies with the US-of-A. I was disappointed in the Bush junior presidency as i thought that Dubya Bush was just a privileged scion of the Bush Dynasty with zero brains on the table (as far as I can tell). Bush junior was all gung-ho minus substance. As opposed to Bill Clinton's presidency. And the current president His Obama-ness has so far come across as a good man but a bit soft. I'd like Obma to live up to people's MAIN expectations of the man whom they elected by a landslide to be the leader of the free world and do more to revive the American economy. I'd like America to remain number 1. Because i still trust in the good old US of A. I hope my trust is not misplaced?

The case for a two-party system in Malaysia

In Malaysia we have been ruled continuously by the Barisan Nasional government under various coalition names for the past 53 years. That's a long stretch by anyone's imagination and we have seen tremendous progress over that same time frame. But we have also seen numerous and colossal blunders from (to name just a few off-hand) the Bank Bumiputra-Carrian Group Scandal of the late 70s in which Jalil Ibrahim, the bank bumiputra auditor sent to Hong Kong to investigate the Scandal and who uncovered evidence of wrongdoing was murdered in Hong Kong (Jalil's murder case has not been solved to this day - the culprits were never brought to justice), highway concessions which were veiled in secrecy, privatisations carried out in name only but which really awarded largesse to politically-connected companies and now the Altantuya murder scandal which until today has never been clearly investigated and subject to scrutiny. We have had people like Mahathir saying that we should be "grateful" for government largesse and hence vote for the government. Wrong. The largesse comes from tax payers and the government is beholden to, never the master of the people. Gratitude does not figure in the picture unless you are corrupted so hopelessly that you see yourself as the giver of alms to a poor and deprived people when you yourself are being paid out of their pockets. What cheek, what temerity! I always get mad whenever the "gratitude" or "loyalty" card is bandied about. Voters have the right to vote for whomever they chose. Our votes cannot be bought. If we let our votes be bought we deserve the government that we get. And we haven't had a very good government so far.

Which goes to say lots about how we as a people are and what we are made of. Your vote is a precious commodity and before you exercise your vote you need to think seriously about the consequences of who you vote for. Cos you will be stuck with the donkey or monkey or hare or turtle that you voted for, for the next 5 years.

In Britain there are the Conservatives and Labour parties. In USA, the Republicans (GOP) and the Democrats. Even in India now there is the Congress (I) Party and the BJP. They all enjoy a 2-party system. I'm not saying that a 2-party system is the best thing but it is the minimal that a true democracy should grant its people. Otherwise, what is the point of an elections? It will just be a formality to re-appoint the same old faces to the seat of power.

Remember, the people whom you vote for has the power to pass laws that affect you. They have the power to decide how much taxes you pay, how those taxes will be spent, the educational policies, your future, your kids' future and the future direction of the country.

In a 2-party system, say if Malaysia has Barisan Nasional and the Pakatan Rakyat, it is simple straightforward and better. If Barisan fails to perform, vote them out. Vote in Pakatan. If Pakatan fails to perform, vote them out and vote in Barisan. In this way the politicians will be accountable and made to bear the burden of their policies. If they administer in a "As-I-Please" way, they will be booted out next elections. This is the true essence of a democracy. Not just to formally observe elections and put the same people back to power again regardless of what they do or say. Don't vote tribal, don't vote ethnic. Vote for who is more accountable. If they are not accountable, kick them out. Simple as that.

The time for a 2-party system in Malaysia is long overdue. I am sick of hearing people complain and bitch but at elections vote back the same clowns who gave them a hard time. Use your vote and don't take it lightly. Vote for the alternative if the incumbent is not performing. Don't settle for cheap slogans and cheap hand-outs. You deserve better. Your kids deserve better.

Miracle in Sibu

A few days ago Yours Truly made a dire prediction that the Sibu, Sarawak Parliamentary by-election would go the same way as the one in Hulu Selangor, Selangor. That massive vote-buying, promises of cash and aid infusions and "development" projects from the government would sway voters into voting for the government as it swayed the people of Hulu Selangor. I was wrong. The Opposition has won the Sibu seat, albeit by a slim majority of 398 votes. My respect for the people of Sarawak has gone up by at least 5 points (10 being perfect)to the region of 7 1/2. Perhaps it was the choice of candidate which mattered at the end of the day but the fact is that the people of Sibu rejected the corrupt and welcomed into their fold a veteran opposition campaigner who had thus far not won in any of the elections which he had thrown his hat in. This is good news indeed, it is very encouraging news and there is a ray of light. My hopes for a just and vibrant democracy in Malaysia hs revived and come back to life again. I am planning a little celebratory feast tomorrow.

fevered ramblings

a dry hacking cough, fever at 38 degrees celcius and bed-ridden for most of this afternoon was how yours truly came to be. i gallantly went to work till shortly after 11.20am today when the dry hacking coughs made their presence volubly heard in my office. Not wanting to waste more manpower by transmitting my flu/cough viruses to my esteemed co-workers, i took MC for the rest of the day. The Minah at the company clinic was wearing a surgical mask when i explained to her how i probably caught the flu/cough from my mum. The stetoscope, tongue depresssor and head thermometer examination was over fairly quickly and she prescribed some antibiotics, cough syrup and fever pills. On my way home i dropped by at the local wet market to pick up some papayas and pineapples, fruits that i like to think will have a beneficial effect on my sickly condition. Reached home and quickly showered, had my lunch and took the minah's medicines and went straight to bed. Woke up around 3pm, had a tea of sliced peeled apples (2 apples) took the minah's medicines again and read today's papers and a book. Time runs really slowly when you're not working. Then when you're working it doesn't run fast enough for you to clock off work and run back into the safety of home and hearth. But anyway, the flu virus seems to be everywhere now so a word of caution to my friends and the wise : stay away from crowds. unless your own brings home the virus, which means you're fated to be sick.

I'm almost tempted to go for the free H1N1 flu jabs at the government clinic nearby but most of people i spoke to have shyed away due to fears about getting sicker or possible side-effects after receiving the H1N1 jabs. But the thought continues to play out in my head and i will probably make up my mind about whether to get the free H1N1 jab over the next few days.

Headlines news today: Malaysia to get 1st nuclear power plant up and running by 2021. I don't want to sound like a wet blanket, but as i recall in the not-too-distant past calls have been made loud and clear to preserve south east asia as a nuke-free zone much in the same spirit as New Zealand? But having said that, i do recognise the need to source for power other than our oil and coal power stations. Hmmm, i hope our nuclear power plant won't be like the power plants in SimCity that explode after 20 years. And i think of how they're going to get rid of the nuclear waste. Cruises to nowhere? load them onto ships and keep paying the sailors, hahaha. But what about solar power? We're practically drenched in sun in Malaysia, no fear of lingering overcast days here. Anyway, whatever the outcome, let's pray and hope that we live to see our kids/grandkids live in a safe and secure environment free of the mushroom cloud.

the importance of being earnest

Going out on a field project today with my office co-worker we got to talking as he drove me in his proton waja to the project site which is just a little out of town. We talked about everything and anything - politics, the government in Malaysia, the MCA, the government's affirmative action programmes, kids, you name it, we probably talked about it. He is a Straits-born baba-nyonya and he is very experienced when it comes to field work so he led me along and i mostly listened. Work apart, i found his views interesting and yet somewhat unsettling. He felt that all government projects, especially projects in Malacca, were a means to an end. the means was the project, the ends was kick-backs and bribes returned for securing the projects, into the pockets of our state politicians. While at the project itself that we visited we heard of a request from a JKK (Jawatan Kuasa Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung - Village Development & Safety Committee) member that the non-bumi lots facing his house lying just outside the project boundary be moved so that his house would face the bumi lots. The allocation of bumi lots in any project in Melaka is usually about 60% of all lots and the blueprint is drawn up by the state government solely without the developer's influence or input. So this request from the JKK member came as a surprise. Coming back to my co-worker, he felt that projects such as the airport expansion plan in malacca was done to grease state politicians' pockets. "Why do they do it there and not somewhere else where there is empty land? You see, when they acquire land where there is housing already they get kick-backs too". On the journey home we spoke awhile about other things such as the government's allocations for vernacular schools. His take: "Well, they take nice photos with a big mock cheque but later when they cash the cheque it always bounces one". He even thought that fast food outlets such as KFC and McDonald's charged non-bumis service tax of 5% but exempted Malays from paying service tax. He was positive that his sources were true. When we were at the project i was approached by a man whose wife was a Sarawakian bumi. He wanted to know if his wife, being a bumi, was entitled to the bumi discount and could buy a bumi lot. We told him that under existing Malacca State land regulations they could not qualify for bumi lots as the bumi lots are reserved for Malays only. The man said:" Well, then they should say in the poster only for Malays instead of for Bumis which is misleading". Another non-bumi visitor openly voiced his dissatisfaction with the status quo and wondered if his children would rebel against this system. "We can take it, but how do we explain this to them?" was his take. On the road home later my co-worker told me that corrupt officials loved to resort to court action because all the judges were on their (the corrupt politicians') side.

I've heard about enough and this comes up all the time. Jaundiced views or close approximations to the truth, your guess is as good as mine. I am surprised that people believe half the things they believe, some of which are true and others a wildly exaggerated version of somebody's experience heard via hearsay. The bottom line is that the Malaysian government's credibility is very low and this makes it all the harder for the government to do its job. How do you perform when people are so willing to believe the worst things about you? As i write this i believe that the government has just come up with the broad brush strokes of the New Economic Model. I hope that they get it right at the implementation level especially and make sure that state governments conform to the liberalised regime and not merely carry on with business as usual. By golly, one gets tired of hearing the same old hash over and over and over again.

Freedom: Too much or too little?

Read a NST news report on Tuesday, Feb 16 that Kelantan Menteri Besar and PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat also known affectionately as "Tok Guru" observed that: "cases of babies being abandoned are the result of too much freedom among the youth". I can't tell whether he is mis-quoted and after all, this is the NST we are talking about, the government mouthpiece, but i'd like to share some thoughts on the subject of freedom in Malaysia. I don't think that too much freedom is the cause of social ills. Rather, it is the lack of a good educational system that is to blame. Freedom does not mean wanton disregard for morals. Freedom does not mean abandoning one's values and condoning acts of mindlessness. It is rather the opposite. True freedom leads to enlightenment and into the light away from the darkness. Freedom means achieving one's true potential as a human being. Freedom means getting closer to the truth. The word "freedom" is much abused and our understanding of it through popular media is warped. We confuse freedom with chaos. the two does not mean the same thing nor does one inevitably lead to the other. The problem is one of culture. In conservative Malaysian culture, freedom is not a top priority. Observance of rites, social graces and customs are top priority. Not freedom which is almost alien to Malaysia. But herein lies the paradox. Our observance of the culture of obedience and adherance to authority does have its positive points but it also means that our leaders are given awesome powers and we have seen in recent years how this power has been wielded to serve only the narrow interests of the vested few. So in retrospect, and with all due respect to Tok Guru who is an honest, pious and humble soul, i beg to differ. Our social ills are due to our lack of education and lack of guidance which comes partly from the lack of freedom, true freedom. Freedom to information and freedom to seek the truth. We need more freedom, Tok Guru, not less. We need guidance and more education to go with that greater freedom. Some hiccups will occur in the process but it doesn't blacken the worth of true freedom. Let's have some more in-depth perspective here.

heightened political and economic risk

Deputy Prime Minister Muyhiddin Yasin dismisses the Hong Kong-based political and economic risk consultancy (PERC) report in Jan 2010 that Malaysia's risk index has risen up a notch from December 2009 as coming from people who know not about Malaysia. I wish it were so. But with the Anwar Ibrahim trial for sodomy charges and what looks likely will be his eventual conviction next year, one fears for the worse in malaysia. If Anwar is convicted and goes to jail again, one can expect a showdown between Pakatan Rakyat supporters and Barisan Nasional's. All of which is bad news for Malaysia. As things stand, foreign direct investments to Malaysia are at an almost all-time low and there has been a precipitous outflow of funds from between 2008 and now. Bank Negara Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz has brushed aside these concerns and attributed them to the world economic slump. But Malaysia alone has experienced these remarkable outflows. None of our other neighbours who are also affected by the world slump, has seen such outflow of funds. If the political stability which Malaysia has long been credited for has become our past glory sans post-March 2008 general elections, one can see where everything is headed. If there is an Anwar Ibrahim conviction and there are civil disturbances, the government WILL clamp down on civil liberties and use all available means to rein in anyone perceived to be linked to those disturbances. And past experience tells us that they tend to do so indiscriminately and with sledge-hammer blows instead of finely-tuned, accurate and just. It will be an excuse to crack down and for the government to re-assert control and hopefully (for the government) that by doing so, it regains its lost two-thirds majority in Parliament, that psychologically all-important water mark for the government to re-claim its legitimacy. One hopes that it will not come to that. But forces going in that direction have already been unleashed and it is hard to stop them once cut loose. It's a sad but all-too-familiar scenario for Malaysians. Our liberties will be pawned for the benefit of the minority ruling elites. At the end of the day, ordinary Malaysians, whether conscious of it or not, will bear the price for it. And what a terribly steep price it will be.

Repression in the name of my feudal lord

Once again, Home Minister Hishammuddin Tun Hussein (note the last 2 names being that of his illustrious father, the late former Prime Minister Tun Hussein Onn) is threatening and gesticulating wildly only this time without physically brandishing a keris in his hand. The Home Minister has been actively encouraging people to lodge police reports so that police will have an excuse to crack down on bloggers. And he says he will not let detained blogger Aduka Taruna off the hook that easily even if others will. All in the name of upholding the institution of the monarchy that was precipitated by bloggers dissing the late Sultan of Johor who was in truth a ruler enmeshed in many "incidents" during his time as the boss supremo of Johor. Hishammuddin, you should be ashamed of yourself. You are the total opposite of the man your father was and had he been alive today, he would surely disapprove of your rough-and-ready actions. How do you justify clamping down on bloggers? Are you saying that the rulers are beyond reproach no matter what they do? Do you expect people to remain silent in the face of abuse and tyranny? Shame on you.