2008 going out with a whimper....

The year started with a great omph... there was so much anticipation especially in the political arena...and true to predictions...March 8 or if you like the chinese way of putting 083....the year the opposition roll back the tide ...the blue BN tide...kudos for Anwar Ibrahim's political savvy...getting PAS & DAP on side.......

The aftermath of the elections... the squatter issue, the wrongful use of the ISA on victims instead of on the pepetrators of sensitive issues....and now with the wisdom of hindsight, all masterminded by an unseen hand to undermine the credibility of the wounded Pak Lah and to force his hand to hand over the reigns to his deputy......

The Olympics in Beijing...serve out the coming of age of China...the sick man of Asia...its healing and restoration...and finally an Asian Giant.....after 200 years of abnormality China finally regains its rightful place.....

But the financial meltdown starting in the US when the Government refuse to bail out Lehman Brothers started the downward slide and the mighty crash of 2008...this crash like a big financial tsunami will soon engulf everyone and no one including Malaysia will be spared......

Maybe because of this, the unseen hand in Malaysia had been cautious in "sponsoring' more havoc.......fearing maybe this will send Malaysia into a steep decline, never to recover......when we will be comparing ourselves with Zimbabwe...the favourite African nation led by you know's friend, Mr. Mugabe.....

Mudflats of Bagan Jermal/Gurney Drive - 3

The benefits of having a fully restored Mangroves is the biodiversity that such a forest can attract. Mangroves are ideal places for all kinds of birds both local and migratory ones.....(the feathered types.....not the two legged ones that are attracted to the bright lights and where there's lots of money like casinos)

The forest is home to a rich micro-organic flora and fauna attracting fishes, mudskippers and birds....Even such a small patch around the Bagan Jermal area will bring much needed nature and add color to this urbanised landscape.....
Like the Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary located about 50 miles down south of Penang Island, the bird life will be very rich.... a total of 165 different species from 42 different families are found there. Of these 165 species, 47 of them are migratory ones flying from the northern hemisphere as far away as Siberia to the Southern Hemisphere and stoppping-over in Malaysia.

See this link for the potential that can unfold for this Mud-flats

http://www.wildlife.gov.my/webpagev4_en/bhg_ekokgula.html

(All pictures are from the the above link)

.......and Penangites should defend this mud-flats and not lose them to developers like what happened to the Tanjong Tokong mangroves, turned now into a potential Tsunami disaster zone of the future... a time bomb waiting to happen....

Mudflats of Bagan Jermal/Gurney Drive - 2

Once the planting of Api-Api is completed at the mudflats, more soil and mud will slowly be deposited and more mud-flats will form. This process can be repeated and slowly move towards the accumulation of more land......in the end a sizeable Mangrove forest will be formed.

Once this happens, a platform walkway can be constructed for people to enter the forests and this will bring the forests to the people. An interpretation programme can be developed so that people will be made aware and learn more of this unique environment......

Just imagine a unique mangrove forest right in the middle of an urban setting.....

Mud Flats of Bagan Jermal/Gurney Drive

Man should help accelerate the natural process that will happen at mud flats of Bagan Jermal/Gurney Drive. If ecology is allowed to take its natural course, the mud-flats will be populated by a mangrove species called Api Api in Malay. This species aka Avicennia is a pioneer in the Mangrove forest......if the Mangrove forests are still around within the vicinty...the mud-flats would had been inhabitated by this particular species by now....

Api-api is a pioneer species and its' presence marks the start of a natural succession which ultimately ends up as a "climax" Mangrove forests. Although not as complex as Tropical Rainforests, it is still a very fascinating and unique ecosystem.......

Penang should help this natural succession by planting Api-api....let us help grow back our mangrove Forests in Bagan Jermal...and not reclaimation destroy our unique ecology.

Rapid Penang vs the Competition

Besides Rapid Penang, there are two other bus companies namely Milan and KGNS. They run the Yellow and Blue bus respectively......Frankly I wonder why they even bother to do so.....their busses are crappy...noisy, produce alot of black smoke (inefficient & dirty)...

While Rapid Pg buses are not the world's best but at least they are reasonably clean and the air-cond's pretty decent.....

The reason why I griping is the buses of these two companies are unroadworthy and they (their drivers which I suspect operate as sub-contractors who rents the vehicle) hog the bus lanes in Komtar...refuses to move(trying to pick up customers)....and pollutes the air for the people who are waiting for the other buses to come.....

Unfortunately the State Government which has no power because the licencing power lies in the hands of the Entrepreuner ministry & JPJ is under the Transport Ministry, can only look and see........but I saw something that gave me a little bit of hope....4 members of the police (2 man & 2 woman) were on hand to see the buses did not block the flow of the traffic....

Times Square Dato Kramat Road

At the site of the old Eastern Smelting Company, located in Dato' Kramat Road, there is a new building ...like a phoenix arising, this new landmark will definitely transform this part of the town.

I'm pretty impressed with the owners/developers...they had really done a great job....even in land scarce Georgetown, they had allowed for lots of open spaces, giving the whole complex an ambiance of grandeur....they have also preserve/conserve the old office building of the Eastern Smelting Company and planted nice bamboo around it giving an exotic Japanese feel to it...

The new building had also exposed the road just behind it...the Kampong Jawa Bahru...a very charming tree-lined road that had been forgotten by most Penangites because of its location...the road is rustic and not developed. It starts from Dato Kramat Road directly opposite Perlis Road and then turns sharply towards Brick Kiln Road or Gudawara Road where it ends. After the sharp turn it runs almost parallel to Dato Kramat road, just behind the site of the Eastern Smelting Company.

Rapid Penang

Of late I have been taking bus rides on Rapid Penang. My initial conclusion is that on the scale of 1 to 10, I would rate it a 5, and that's not bad. I rate the public transportation system in Melbourne a 8.....it wouuld gotten a 9 if not for the bad service during the weekends.

We in Pg, still got a long way to go...I hope we get there....

Penang's heritage....yes we are prepared to pay to keep them!

The REHDA Chairman of the Pg branch, said that Penangites do not know how much it will cost them to have the UNESCO heritage city status.......well I do not know how much it will cost...just as I don't know how much it will cost me to keep my "heart"....but without it I will surely die.....

So will Penang...it will lose its soul, spirit and its character, if we allow the "tear down" crowd have their way....what is heritage to them, a hindrance to them an obstacle to their desire to put in another souless building....what is the use of ole shop house except that they are sitting on a piece of land in which they want to build any high rise....flat and rectagular shapes buildings ...souless...without any spirit...blocks of concrete protruding thru the earth.... If these people have their way....Pg would not Pg anymore....it would just like any other city......just like Mcdonalds, everywhere it tastes the same.....

No Penang should be able to pay the price in keeping our place unique.....and full of its own peculiar vibrant personality.....our old buildings......our priceless possessions...they tell us where we come from who we are...it enriches us...make us who we are people of Penang....

Don't give us a souless city....like the dead PGCC......don't take the heart of Pg.....yes we are prepared to pay any price to keep our heart!!!!

Chulia Street ---Penang (1)

While the Heritage people are focussing more on the Pitt Street-Armeinan Street enclave...I think Chulia Street is more interesting...it is alive and not dead...and it is truly a living heritage....

Where else can you find Chinese and Muslim monuments & mosques string along this truly remarkable road in Penang. Formerly know as Malabar Street in honour of those Indian Muslims from the Malabar Coast in Kerala State.....the ancestral home of many UMNO politicians (not to mention our TDM)...

Starting from the Penang Road end, the road meanders its way to Weld Quay. At the start, very near Odeon, its a Madrasah...next to it a very cheap hotel......

Just walk alone the road you find many interesting shops....some old...some retrofitted....and those retrofitted shope cater for the budget backpacker tourists.....cafes......tour agents.....money changers.....

Penang -multilingual road signs.....

I was at Beach street yesterday...and just opposite the Police Station, there was this road sign that got a federal Minister issuing stern warnings about the Pg Govt diminishing the importance of Bahasa Melayu as the national language...

Looking at it, I do not know what was the big deal....first and foremost it did not replace existing road signs...the new ones were just a small plague measuring 18 inches by 10 inches the most...it is so inconspicuous...you can hardly say that it is replacing any signs...

The additional signs provide interesting information about how the various communities name the streets....and Beach Street got so many names....along the different sections...it is insteresting and part of Pg's heritage...

Surely UMNO politicians are so bankrupt of ideas.....that they took this as their rallying cry...seriously, compared to the multi-lingual roads signs in the BN run state of sarawak....the signs in Pg are nothing....even the tourism road signs in KL are much bigger & more dominating...and they are in various languages and not only in Bahasa Melayu...and nobody make a fuss...

All this and many more give rise to the perception that if it is done by UMNO members or supporters it is alright.....

How else can you explain the defeaning silence when Mahathir suddenly decide to change the medium of instruction for Science & Mathematics from Malay to English.....and not even a whimper from the so-called guardians of the language.....

Appointment of Low as Acting GM of PKNS

Shame on you, PAS......if there is only a Colin Powell equivalent in your party... you would even win more votes..... This is what Colin Powell, a Republican Party member & former Secretary of State has to say about the negative campaign against Sen Obama...suggesting that he is a Muslim (& therefore by implication an unfit person to be a President).....

“I’m also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, “Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim.” Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he’s a Christian. He’s always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no, that’s not America. Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president? Yet, I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, “He’s a Muslim and he might be associated terrorists.” This is not the way we should be doing it in America."

Prices of goods go up fast but inches its way downwards

Bought a MAS ticket to KL and found the prices still remained the same as before even though the price of oil had plummeted from USD 140 to below USD70 per barrel.....yet the surcharge has not gone down...

I suppose all's the same including yr roti chanai...exception is the Hokkien mee in Pulau Tikus (one of the best in Pg) still RM2.50 for a bowl of the best Hokkien Mee in Pg.

Yeah it's always the same....prices are slow to come down...still got old stock lah

Walking the streets of Ole Georgetown

What a delight to walk casually along the old part of Georgetown...in particular along the roads near the banks ...the beach street-church street bishop street area....

Along Church street...the newly spruced up and restored Perankan museum is a sight to behold...I think it looks better than the cheong Fatt Tze house....

Rain in Penang exposes our stupidity

They say too much of a good thing can ruin it.....well rain has always been good for Penang...it flushes away all the filth in the streets and the sudden gush of torrential rain de-clogs all the drains and pushes all the sampah to the sea....and the great sea absorbs all the dirt and neutralizes it.

Thats' the theory anyway...but with the increase in population and the increased use of hydrocarbon based non-degradable material.......they all just float in the seas or sink down but don't disintegrate for a zillion years....piling up the garbage bin of last resort...no wonder our oceans are dying....

It is sad, how our newly acquired habits will finally ruin us. We used to wrap our stuff with old newspaper or brown paper but now we do it in plastic...we used to carry rattan baskets to the market but now we go there empty handed but come back with at least half a dozen or so plastic bags....

Slowly but surely we are choking ourselves to death....with plastic and more plastics...

Financial Melt down ---& will Pg be affected ?

If u hear what our BN pollies have to say...u would be forgiven to think that we Malaysiana are martians and we live light years awya from this planet earth..."we won't be affected."

Come on....even if our banks do not have with sub-prime loans in their portfolio, their clients business will be affected...the American consumers are already curtailing their purchases...consumers' confidence through out the world is at an all-time low....and this will translate to lower demand...& less orders for the manufacturers.... already the Chinese factories are feeling the adverse impact with many factories closing down and workers thrown out of jobs....

We will be affected and for places like Pg...the impact will even be worse....

The birds had flown away.....

Growing up in Penang in the 60's & 70's, one can still savour the sights and sounds of birds in the leafy suburbs of Penang. I used to stay with a relative at the Government Quarters located at the end of Macalister Road...and as a 7 year old boy could remember the many different birds that visited the big compounds there....

Notable amongst them are the noisy murais, a bird with a black and white plummage, that would zip up and down trees busy making a marvellous call....

The many types of Kingfishers would also call at the garden. There are the distinctively yellow ones, and a multicoloured one with blue and red feathers...

Occasionally, a pair of eagles would appear...they sometimes make a distinct call.....and at night the owls would come out and scare the 'daylights' out of me...

One thing for sure, i could not remember any black crows...they were in Butterworth near the Mitchell Pier....

But where have all the birds gone....

Blessed Penang

Came back from Laos today after a gruelling one week trip that involved trains, planes and taxis and a four hour traffic jam in Bangkok horrendous traffic......

Firstly, Penang is blessed with so many doctors, clinics, and hospitals, where any sick person can easily accessed. It does not matter whether they are rich or poor. The rich can go to the private clinics and the poor can go to Government hospitals and clinics.....

The quality of the Government hospitals and clinics here are excellent.....

Compare to the people of Laos...in my three visits to Vienchang & Savannakhet...clinics and hospitals are a rare sight...

Yes in so many ways we are so blessed... and we hardly know it!

When our leaders fail us.....what can we do

Sadly and very sadly our leaders had failed us....their sandiwara had been exposed....they were not interested in Malaysia...they are traitors to this land...

But as individuals, we, who are of Chinese descent should more than ever show love and kindness to our fellow citizens who are Malays and Indians and others......in a way that demonstrates our goodwill and our shared history and more importantly our shared futures....

Let us rise above our leaders, let us ordinary folks show our leaders that we are united in common decency towards one and another....

Disappointed in our leaders

One of the most noble political statement I heard is from John Macain, the republican nominee.....he said "I rather lose an election then let America lose the war"...he said it sinceriely....when faced with a very popular choice of calling the troops back from Iraq and then win the support of millions...he did the opposite...he supported the surge...even though he knew it was very unpopular and would cause him votes and even the nomination, nevertheless he voted and supported what he believed was right even though it was hugely unpopular and proved to be a costly decision.....

He put his nation first and his own interests, second.

Compare him with our PM......our man is but a puny weak person...fiddling while the whole nation spins off the tangent...

Many times when facing with a choice of doing the right but unpopular thing or the wrong but popular thing...he chose the popular one.....leaving the country to suffer the consequences of the bad choices he made....

Always putting himself first and the country second....thats' the perception he gave us...

Rain --what a blessing

Although it has been raining and the sun had been covered with clouds the last five days, it has been good.....the cool weather for a change is refreshing not only to the body but to the soul....hope it will cool down the inflamed passions stirred up by silly comments made by equally silly people...

Sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never do...that's my policy. Move on we must be bigger than the person hurling insults at us.....we go out to the world and achieve great things in world....

Not bad for "penumpangs' of Pg.....there is "Jimmy Choo", Prof Quah of LSE, Prof Woo etc etc..... and let the Leaders of Malaysia salivate and think what might have been.....

Sum of all our fears...malaysian fears

For years ... politicians of all ilk had been playing the race and religion card.... can they restrain themselves now? ...before the country spins out of control into a downward spiral .... like lebanon or sri lanka....

Better to cool it now....MCA...you ought to do it long ago..but you did not...now you want "show" you can defend your 'race"... forget it...we know you are doing it with an eye to the coming party elections...

Malaysians are flocking to the PKR_PAS_DAP pakatan....PAS for all....It is time to give PAS a chance...

Heavy rains do have its benefits

Heavy rains in Penang is not always a bad thing. Of course in the low lying areas, it cause floods and disruption in people' s daily lives.....for that we must always have the rescue boats ready....we must also ensure that clogged drains and rivers be unclogged everytime.....

Yet a heavy downpour like what occured yesterday do bring benefits to this place....first it clears the smog and the haze that hangs in Penang like a bad smell...the heavy rain sure flushes this awya and in the morning the air is fresh and crisp.....

Second the filth gets cleared away, it is almost like getting a clean bath...washing all the dirt away from the city...it refreshes the city and brings a sense of sweeping the old rubbish and bringing forth new life...

Penang - and its flash floods

Five hours rain and the whole city drowns in the floods that ensued.....problems ...clogged drains....indiscriminate throwing of rubbish down......

The dirt and filth comes back to haunt you...

Saving Gurney Drive?

Read in the Star, that the pollies visited the mud flats that appear when the tide is low. Like politicians that they are (no matter what shape or size) there is a pathological need to open their mouths and make pronouncements of what they want to do...i.e. to solve the "problem"...

They pronounce that they want to save Gurney Drive...(may I ask save Gurney drive from what?) That's when I think...it becomes dangerous...good intentions and muddled thinking or no thinking at all...just knee jerk reactions...

First of all, mr. exco, find out what cause the building up of the mud-flats in the first place...is it (as most people suspect) due to the massive reclaimed land in Tanjung Tokong.....years ago when most the excos and the CM was still residents in other states....there was a Mangrove swamp in Tanjong Tokong....probably the water currents were bringing the mud all the way from parts of South Kedah and north Seberang Perai or even parts of the Batu Ferringgi shore and depositing it in Tanjong Tokong.....but now there is a huge abutment...maybe that may have upset the current flow...and caused all this new land to be created at the Bagan Jermal end of Gurney Drive... who knows...

So do not create another problem by your trying to save Gurney Drive....u may end up creating more problems...find out first ...and for heavens sake...don't start 'reclaiming it" because you may cause the problem to shift to the Northam road end of GDrive.

Please, in all things environment err on the side of caution......

Permatang Pauh, Revisited...

Anwar won ....so ? but did Malaysia win? Did the community come together as one or was the election campaign so divisive that the schism so great that it cannot mend? In the heat of the elections the Chinese community again became an easy target..."pendatang asing" ... "orang tumpangan" ...epithets so easily tossed at the Chinese and the gall of it to the Chinese of Penang.... where their houses are sometimes older than some of the sultanates.......

Well, AAB says that person who said it did not mean it...wow...he can even read the mind of people now....great...but let the person who said it speak for himself.....

Penang.....the home of reformasi....where we are all anak malaysia......

Penang and its durians

It seems that everywhere in Malaysia local people will claim that their place of state or district produces the best durians.....In Perak, you have many such claims and places where durians are supposed to be the best in Malaysia, these areas are Batu Kurau, Padang Rengas and Tapah....In Selangor, it is Semenyih or even Ulu Langat....In Negeri Sembilan...you have Bahau and in Johore, Muar, Batu Pahat and Segamat....

I have to admit that i had tried durians in these places and they are good....excellent and very good indeed......but being a Penangite (prejudiced) I still think nothing beats the durians in Penang...if not for anything for the sheer variety of the wierd names of the clones.....Red Prawn.....Ku Leng Hoo, Hor Lor.....etc....etc etc.

Penang and its durians

Permatang Pauh, Province Wellesly

I remember Permatang Pauh as a place of pontoon bridges....which you have to pass on your way to BM and Nibong Tebal in the late fifties and early sixties....As the bridges only allow a single file of traffic to cross it, most of the time you have to wait for your turn. During the peak season (Fridays or Saturdays & Public holidays), the queue can be quite long and the wait always take ages before you can cross the the river.

During those long waits, I remember looking around the surroundings along the river. The nipah palms and mangroves would often conjure up images of crocodiles half-submerged in the river ready to pounce on any straying mischevous boy like myself.

I would also fantasize going along the river like Tom Sawyer on a raft..what an adventure catching fish and looking for treasure...

But today, Permatang Pauh means something all together different...it is D PLACE.....the beginning of the END for BN, or any pause, a comma, and then a discreet turn for the nation...who knows?

Olympic Opening Ceremony & me

Indeed the opening ceremony of the Beijing is truly spectacular and amazing and awesome...it exceeds superlatives...

Amidst the story telling and enacting of China's 5,000 year old history...the story of Zheng He and the brave seamen of Fujian for me epitomises my history...my ancestors...opening the south seas and coming to south east china....to malaya...

Cycling in Penang

Kudos to the CAP for organising the bicycle day in Penang...we should be encouraging people in Malaysia to cycle instead of taking to the streets in their cars.....

But then, our politicians' ideas of progress is to see lots of cars on the roads......more cars more progress....

I wrote something to about the cars that ate up Paris......not only Paris but Beijing as well...it takes the Olympics to realize that there a smog free sky is priceless.....

Oh when can we realise this.....

Penang or Georgetown listed as UNESCO Heritage City

What does it mean- heritage city? What benefits does it bestow and the obligations that comes with it? Should we celebrate it or mourned the conferment on Georgetown ?

Because of the heritage status........we expected everything to be freezed in time, no more development....or development with plastic feel to it an almost Disney type feel, very artificial....

Nobody told me anything and my opinions was not sought...and i pay my yearly assessment to support the Majlis..ie. the City Council....

The waters around Penang Island

On a clear day when your plane aligns itself for the landing at the Bayan Lepas Airport, have a look at the sea below you....and you will be greeted with sudden changes in the colour of the water.

There seems to be a sudden change of the colour from dark grey to green. There is also a black strip like oil separating these two different coloured waters....

Don't know what it is...but definitely...it does not look healthy or clean.

No more PORR..so what's the fuss..I thot you were against it...

Politicians...ha, they are all the same. Lim Guan Eng & all DAPers should be rejoicing that PORR is scrapped....when they were in the opposition they were so dead against it. Now they are the Government, they are fuming because PORR had been scrapped.

Maybe, now they see that maybe without PORR and the Monorail, Penang's economy may be headed for a recession....it is a real possibility...with everybody expecting a global recession to hit us because of a perfect storm created by a confluence of events...the US sub-prime meltdown and the skyrocketing oil prices.....

Talking and screaming from the sidelines seems easy enough....now it is different when you have to perform...nice speeches don't bring home the bacon...

Good luck...

New thinking for Pg's age old problem - congested roads

Should we lament the loss of two projects in Pg........ from monorail to nomorerail & porr or porrah to most Penangites....

While abandoning PORR is most welcome.....giving us a nomorerail system in place of the monorail is a big disappointment..... A GOOD PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IS WHAT PENANG DESPERATELY NEEDS.....

Penang does not have the capacity to contain more cars...(with limited land available and we treasure our green spaces and do no want to turn them into parking lots...where one day we might just have to look for trees in a tree museum....) Public transport is the most environmentally friendly solution to our woes.....

Can our new state Government come up with a Bold, New and Innovative Master Plan to overcome this setback dealt to them by the BN Fed Government?

Is our new PR Government up to it? ..... From what we can see in Tanjong Bungah Zoning issue.....probably not???

If they can, they will probably stay in Government for a long time....

New thinking..... from quotas for cars...peak hours...non-peak hours.... buses....cycle lanes.....water taxis...from batu kawan to bayan baru.....

Benefits of higher fuel prices

Obviously the main benefits of the higher fuel prices is "health". We all should be getting healthier... from the forced physical exertions we have to take...ie. we walk more because prices of fuel has make it more prudent for us to reduce the usage of cars especially for short distances....

More physical exertions means we get to exercise our hearts by walking more....Secondly the combined effects of the reduction in the usage of of our cars means less air pollution and smog...surely this could only bring better air, less asthmatic attacks, coughs and colds and sore throats...the reduction in the contaminants in the air...less cancer????

Besides better health....we would have less CO2...this translates to less global warming..every little bit helps...

Hooray for costlier fuels...

Penang - Walks

One of the joys of living in Penang is the numerous walking trails that we have here. We can walk to Penang Hill or rather hike there via the different trails available. One thing for sure, no matter what trails one takes one is sure to have pleasant views and most important of all, lots of work outs and buckets of sweat.

For the more adventurous the National Park that starts at Telok Bahang beckons. Here, one enters into a world, "millions" of years away from the hustle and bustle of the "normal" Penang we are so accustomed to. Situated at the North-western corner of the island, isolated from the rest of the island, this Park is a haven for those who seek the tranquility that emanates from Nature. Listening to rustle of leaves high up above the tree-tops and the bristling streams, where crystal clear water flows down and through stones...takes you to a zen like trance.....at peace with the world....

Yes, walks are not only good for your physical being but also nourishes the spirit...as you let nature, its sights and sounds lead you and take you to the essence of life, of being connected....as one with nature....

You get all that in your morning walks...

Laos - land of the gar fish

I met this fish in a floating restaurant in Laos. Just north of Vienchang, there are floating restaurants on one of the tributaries of the Mekong river.

The fish actually looks like a dwarf crocodile......with an extended mouth. it must be a very ancient fish that did not eveolved into a crocodile????? Does not make sense.....neither do evolution makes sense to me...

Laos......land of a thousand elephants

Sunset over the Mekong River. Picture taken in Vienchang or Vientianne the capital of Laos.

Relatively unspoilt, like Thailand in the fifties....people still cling on to their traditional customs....

People here have a polite and gentle culture.....greet you with "Sabai dee" instead of "Sawadee karp"....

Will be going to this land more often as we contemplate setting up a business there......

Lembu punya susu sapi punya nama.....

Its hilarious, reading about the spat between DAP & Gerakan over who is responsible in bringing the recent investments into Penang....

Of course, Lim Guan Eng tries to "hint" (to be fair he did not claimed he was solely responsible for bring those investments in but his underlings trying to claim all the credit) of the link between him & the investments......that got the Gerakan real upset....

But really the Pg DAP government got better things to do...anybody who knows how foreigners or for that matter even locals make investment decisions...know that it is usually a long drawn out affair...you do not make those decisions in month or two...it takes months and sometimes even years....

Hey, both of you DAP & Gerakan guys stop it. We Penangites are not stupid ok...we know how and who to give credit to.

Get on with the real work....the challenge for DAP is how to get Penang GDP growing in the midst of an impending slowdown in the world economy...how to attract FDI in at lest favourable climate...

It is easier criticize than to take action.....I wonder "how would Jeff Ooi advice the CM" on the Motorola investment that Jeff so savagely attacked Koh Tsu Koon....Would he still call it"bribery"...would he sacrificed the wellbeing of people in Penang so that he can be "politically correct"...

What would his advise be to Lim Guan Eng?

Penang - from the air

Thirty-five thousand feet from the air, one can see Georgetown or Tanjong and Butterworth or Bagan.

The inhabited places on the island is so "small" in size compared to the huge swathes of green behind it.

PKR-DAP Government in Penang

About 17 months ago, back in 30th & 31st January 2007, I was pondering about what the consequences would be if the Opposition was to take over Penang.....would the people in Penang suffer as a consequence.....Now that this has become a reality not only for Pg but Perak, S'gor, FT, Kedah & Kelantan.....collectively these states account for 57% of the country's GDP......

Will the federal BN government be the Government of all Malaysia, or just the government of the states where they are in control...thats the RM500 billion question?

How would the civil servants react? How are they are reacting now? Will they remain "the obedient servants or defiant servants"? Having serve just one party for almost 50 years (Pg during the short time when Gerakan was in the opposition)...can the civil servants learn to serve the new master?

Unlike, the former Unfederated Malay States, the former Straits Settlement and Federated Malay States do not have their own state civil service.....their civil servants come from a pool of governemnt officers who are dependent on the JPA & the KSN for the advancement in their careers.....and not on the respective MBs or CM.....how then, can the CM or MB "ensure" that these "civil servants" remain obedient and not defiant....

Not that easy....having serve as a Forest Officer i.e. a Federal Officer seconded to the state...I know what it is to serve two masters.....a matter which the Lord Jesus Christ had strongly advised his disciples from doing....as Jesus said..."no man can please two masters" ......
Interesting.....

It has been more than a year since my last entry

Yeah, it has been more than one year since i last blogged.....i sort of lost steam and interest....in between that time...lots of things had happened...the 8th March Political Tsunami had turned the politics of malaysia...more and more like the politics of thailand & philippines....

We seen how our TDM has morphed back into the DR. MAHATHIR...the Malay Ultra of the 1960's...it seems like he was retrofitted for action as the marginalised outsider he was in the 1960's.....

What a shame...instead of leaving behind a legacy albeit a tainted one, but a still a 'legacy' which the opposition MP for Jelutong admitted was 80% good...(don't know about that...but I'm willing to concede he did left more good than bad)....but with his "race baiting" .....had left him looking like kucing kurap politician that indulges in the politics of the gutter....

Instead of remembering him, as a PM who inspired Malaysians to be Malaysians, alas what we have fresh in our minds were his fear mongering.....

What a shame.....and how sad.....

Heritage Street....Beach Street...# 1

The old Wall Street of Pg, Beach Street, is getting back its old looks. The looks that was hers in 1930's, I presume, before all the facades were put up.....but now after 50 years of rent control with its repeal, some owners are bringing back its old looks....which is gives it real character..some photos will be coming ....watch out for this space...a picture is worth a thousand words...

Defending the 1957 constitution.....

In a talk organised by ASLI, Raja Nazrin, the Raja Muda of Perak, defined the 7 steps towards building a sense of belonging and common destiny binding all Malaysians of all races, religions and origins together in a common purpose....

The first step is to defend the integrity of the Federal Constitution, Rukunnegara and Vision 2020....of these the first is particularly important.

Yet, today many in the legal fraternity believes that our High Court Judges are abdicating their role as defenders of the constitution because of their reluctance to to be involved when there appears to be an overlap in the jurisdiction of the syariah & civil law as in the case of Moorthy & now in Subashini case.

Appears to be our judges are behaving like Pakistani judges now.....or rather our justice system have gone the Pakistani way.....hope not, it may lead to the complete breakdown of law & order....& the beginning of the end for malaysia....

Why Chinese parents shun national schools

While there is no denying that alot of Chinese parents are attracted positively to Chinese schools, there are many (particularly those who had been educated in the English medium schools of the past), find that they are push to the Chinese schools because the alternative is even worse.....for many of them it is a Hobson's choice....

Chinese Schools may grab headlines of brilliant students...the sad truth is that many hide their average and poor students...worse many discouraged them from attending their school so that the school's brilliant academic record will not be tarnished....thats why the dropout rate amongst chinese schools is very high ....almost 25% of the students who start off in std one, do not make it to form 5.....that's how great

So if your children are not academically inclined or if he is creative or likes to dream, and watch the clouds above form beautiful butterflies and dinosaurs...Chinese schools are definitely not for your kids....the system there will kill your children's love for education and books, his imagination...and the creativity and curiosity in them

But why national schools are not attractive to Chinese parents.....here we are dealing with the perceptions, not facts, but these perceptions determined the choices of the parents and like the PEPSI blind tests that showed that although the majority like the taste of PEPSI, yet when it comes to buying...Coke wins hands down...ie the perception that COKE tastes better than PEPSI determines the buying decision...SO IT IS WITH CHINESE PARENTS... the National School suxs.....period

Why???, the belief that the schools lacks discipline, the teachers lack commitment, and that the agenda of the school is to promote islamic beliefs rather than to educate and prepare their children for the future and for life....

So parents like me, who do not like the Chinese school system but are apprehensive about the national school system....are caught between a rock and a hard place....yup....better international schools if we can afford them...

Disunity amongs teenagers...and non Malays get the blame....

Everytime the issue of disunity that arises in the country the non-Malays get the blame...according to some government official who attributed the disunity to children going to vernacular schools...

Again an easy target and knee jerk reaction......instead of looking at the reasons why non-Malays are deserting the national schools.......because during my time in the 1960's and 70's the vernacular schools were actually growing smaller...but changes in the medium of instruction in the English medium schools led to even non _Mandarin speaking chinese (english educated parents ) to send their children to vernacular schools...because they knew the quality of teaching had deteriorated....no hope and no future...dead end...no language skills just like the current pool of unemployable graduates.....

Attending a High Court auction

Today was the first time I attended an auction in Malaysia...it is very interesting as they was much interest in the property. However, the court should exert some discipline on some of the regulars....there is one chinese man, apparently a regular, who started to make all the "sour grapes' comments when he failed in his bid...I saw him twice being outbidded....the moment he was out bidded he tried to get the crowd to follow him out of the room even though the auction was still going on...

I believed the court should bar him from all future auctions until and unless he starts to behave....otherwise the dignity of the court will be held in comtempt by the likes of him...

Doing a search on houses put up for sale at the land office

The land office in penang is pretty efficient for doin a search on landed properties in Penang....however there is a caveat for this statement...you must know the grant number , the lot number, the daerah and the mukim or seksyen.....otherwise its no go....how many people you wonder will know all this....most of us go by addresses and thats all...sure push us a bit harder, maybe we know whether it is Georgetown, or Bayan Bahru...district or daerah...most Penangites would not have a clue on which Daerah or district you are in let alone mukim or section....

Maybe the state goverment should think of something to relate all addresses to a database instead of this cumbersome way to go and get this info....

Anyway anybody know the names of the districts in the whole of Penang State.....9there are five I'm told--- 2 on the island & three on the mainland)....

Location upgraded...but ice kacang quality heads downwards...

The popular hawker stores at Swatow Lane have found new homes...in a newly constructed hawker center built on the site of the old "New World Park"....

The facilities are new, clean and certainly better then the days of yore....but unfortunately I think, the quality of the food had gone down in an inverse proportion to the quality of the premises....

Maybe ice kacang was never meant to be savoured under nice conditions but under the shade of an angsana or rain tree....

Views of the bridge from Queensbay Mall

The scene from the southern side of the bridge is quite panoramic....with pulau Jerejak at the side and the bridge spanning across two land mass is quite stunning...and more so if there is a small yatch steaming pass....

Pulau jerejak located temptingly near, just across a little stretch of sea invites us to savour its idyllic beaches and calm seas...the forested hills just behind it is quite pristine...one can see the meranti and seraya trees with its majestic crowns like cauliflower tops nestles just above the hills...and it is hard to imagine that just lying across the stretch of sea are the Intels and AMD and Dells producing the 21st century tools of which we acannot live without..yet just across the tiny stretch is a pristine jungle still unchanged for hundreds if not thousands of years...

Lost my wallet...but found hope in Malaysia

When I discovered I had lost my wallet, a sudden anguish comes piercing in my heart...I am not pining for the money lost but for the pain and agony that I thot awaits me when I go to the Government Departments to get a new set of documents.....

Well, the first thing one does with the loss of a wallet is you start ringing up the banks to inform them that your ATM and Credits card's lost....well HSBC scores high in this category compared to the one handling my problems at CIMB....compared to the HSBC guy, the CIMB person rates as one of the members of the Keystone Cops or an offspring of one of the 3 stooges, totally incompetent.....so hurrah for the world's local bank...CIMB have along way to go to match HSBC....

The next morning, the first thing I did was to make a police report....the Corporal (policewoman) manning the counter at the Patani road police station did the report efficiently...ask me a few questions on where I lost it...and in a matter of minutes, got my report....no sweat...syabas....

then its off to the National Registration Dept...and surprise surprise took me less than 40 minutes to get my temporary IC and in about 3 weeks time my new MyCard..wow...good no hassle service...again syabas..,..

i was full trepedition...when i have to approach JPj...my past experience tells me its a hell hole...frequented by touts and all sorts of low life trying to scrap a buck or two from the public...because of the incompetence of the JPJ system..BUT Lo and Behold...I managed to get my new drivers licence in less than 30 minutes...no kidding..

Well, all I can say is I lost my wallet but found faith in Malaysia

Penang-the 10th most livable city in Asia

Should be a better ranking, if we only can get our public transport right and enforce our hygiene and littering laws....

The best Penang food are not always found on the island....

Take for instance, Jawa Mee, the best I reckon is in Nibong Tebal....there is s tall run by a chinese with a Hockkien/Teochew speaking Indonesian maid (probably Javanese herself) that makes a very good Jawa Mee....the likes of which I have not tasted in Penang....In terms of taste there had been nothing in Penang that could match this stall's rendition of this ole favourite Nyonya Dish...from which I believed the Mamak adapted it to become their Mee Rebus....

The gravy is thick with a generous prawny taste...the sambal comes with a strong belachan flavour which makes the gravy taste quite heavenly....then the ultimate...the crispy flake-like prawn fritters, broken into bite-size pieces.....and as you sink your teeth into them...provides you with a nice crunchy and yet not too hard for teeth feel....and then finally the mee or beehoon is generously topped up with pounded peanuts which makes eating this meal quite exquisite....nothing in the island can even come close....

For those who are tempted, the store is located in Nibong Tebal Town itself, very near the Tenaga Nasional Office....it is in the 2nd block stores dividing the road...it is just next to the Bak Kut Teh stall...I will try the Bak Kut Teh...the next time I am in NT...

Bon Appetit

Penang Harbour Cruise by Night

Coming back to Penang Island late at night, one is met by an incredibly picturesque scene of Penang Harbour...

As one crusies along the Penang bridge...on your right towards the north, one can see the harbour lights romantically flickering from Prai Port to the North Butterworth Container Terminal and with the sea reflecting these lights back...it gives a festive atmosphere to the place... the reflections along the shoreline leads north towards the sands along the Mata Kucing beaches ...

And on the Georgetown side...you can see the once majestic Komtar...with its 48th floor restaurant lights on, the most iconic of Penang's structure..beaming across a wave of welcome...and the sodium lights of the Jelutong Expressway beckoning you back home....

Towards to south, you see nothing at first, almost pitch black except for the lights directly across the bridge, that comes from the Marine Police Base.....but as you get nearer to Penang Island suddenly, the southern lights break out.....revealing the gem of Penang's drive towards industrialisation...the lights of Bayan Lepas.....Yes the bright lights along Queensbay Mall and Gold Coast greets you....although at first blocked by the ex-penal island Jerejak...the lights of the south will suddenly beam on you as you drive past Jerejak island...

A harbour cruise on stop of a sailing ship....will be a fine way to dine and charm your friends or have a romantic interlude...

Departed - the film based on HK movie infernal affairs won the Oscar....

I supposed HK movies have come of age....Hollywood copies HK films and they win awards...not bad for the movie industry in HK....its very flattering when Hollywood imitates you...

How come the Hongkies can do it but not we Malaysians....that's the infernal question....we know we are not lacking in creative genius as the Hongkies...we are just as good....

Its the systems & institutions they have in HK that nurtures and encourages these artists...in Malaysia unles it is done by malays or in the malay language...it is not encouraged....sooo sad....

UNCTAD estimates for FDI differs significantly from PM & DPM

Yup....Uncle Kit had come out socking it to the Government with UNCTAD's figures which is much less than the ones announced by the government.....

In its preliminary estimates of FDI inflows in 2006, Unctad figures for Malaysia see a shrinkage of 1.6 per cent to US$3.9 billion from US$4.0 the previous year, while FDIs for the whole region of “South, East and South-east Asia” register an increase of 13.1 per cent from US$165.1 billion in 2005 to US$186.7 billion, with Thailand recording a 114.7 per cent increase from US$3.7 billion in 2005 to US$7.9 billion and Singapore a 58% increase from US$20.1 billion in 2005 to US$31.9 billion.

The Prime Minister should explain the RM6.4 billion difference in MITI’s FDI figure of RM20.2 billion (or US$5.7 billion) for 2006 and UNCTAD’s preliminary estimates of US$3.9 billion (RM13.8 billion) for the same year.

Lets wait for the explanation......

But much sadder is the fact the figures had risen for the whole of S.E. Asia.....Thailand had registered an an increase of 114% while Spore had an increase of 58%......

No wonder our neighbours are getting richer and we are falling behind......long live the the Never Ending Policy of promoting rent seeking.....

It is a sad day when both the Prime Minister & Deputy PM has to say "we did not cook the figures"

Something is funny in Malaysia...despite the very positive news or figures in the economy, the man in the street just cannot believe it.....is it because it is merely spin? or is there such a big crdibility gap between the leaders and the rakyat....that the rakyat just cannot believe the sandiwara played out by their leaders....but surely if the news is so good, how is it that the rakyat had been completely unaware of it......

Maybe the trickle down effect of the economic effects of the positive figures had not filtered down yet....or maybe it is just figures....they are just mere reflections of the intentions of business people and investors....there are still a lot of wait & see.....

What ever it is...the good news of the economy have only scattered impact on the the rakyat as whole...there gasn't been a ripple effect that touched all and sundry...in fact in this flat world.....there will be losers and winners.....

Apparently the winners in this flat world-economy in Malaysia are not widespread.....

Rapid KL...Rapid Penang....Rapid complaints...Rapid profits

Guess who is screaming out loud now.....after the news that Rapid KL/Penang will be taking over the public transportation system....our great Penang bus companies...Milan & KGN Hin Bus....the people that provided you the shitty services...now they scream....because they will soon be deprived of their bus routes....they claim that they (altruistically) had sacrificed so much for the beloved people of Penang...& now they are demanding that they be compensated with rm & rm from the feds.....

Sure Malaysia boleh mah.....first give them shitty services....which threatened the security of tenure for the BN government in the state (hey, if the BN government cannot even guarantee a proper bus service ...don't think they can do alot for Penang in a flat world, might as well vote them out..makes no difference any way!!!)...then when the Feds come in with RM to rescue the unpopular state government & goofy CM... start to claim that you have sacrificed for the people in providing the shit service and ask for compensation....what a way to make money....

I wonder where do the people of Penang stand in all of this muck....very far away the CM hopes.....maintain your rage people of Penang & see the BN out at least for one term...try out the DAP-Keadilan cuisine for a term...& c what they can turn out good, bad..or just plain dumb....

Pigging out during Chinese New Year

Despite my telling myself not to eat too much during this CNY period...I still do it....the food..the invitations all posing themselves so deliciously ...inviting one to sink ones' teeth into them an d just partake of just one morsel...

Rapid KL taking over Penang's transport....

Yes, thats the gift that the Feds are making to the good people of Penang...I'm wondering why just stop at public transport.....take over this little state with no more than RM300 million budget.....less than what the Forest Department in Sabah collects in a very bad year....

Yup....the CM without power and worse still without guts....if the Feds (UMNO) made the whole state a federal territory.....like KL and Labuan and Putrajaya.... then we can do away with charade of Penangites actually voting a CM that can rule them...and be accountable to them....now we can't even get the CVLB to be accountable.....thats why our Public Transportation system had gone down the drain....

Yeah..why stop at public transportation take the whole damned state.....

RM150 million for monrail.....

Yes, we better spend it before the next election.....the feds might just take it back....BN can't even run a proper public transportation system for a population of less than 2 million inhabitants....the public transportation we once had in Penang & Province Wellesly (i use the old name) is much better than the ones we have in the 21st Century...shame on you Tan Sri Koh....the bunch at Komtar is no bloody use....if they cannot even solve the public transportation problem....don't expect them to solve bigger & much more complex problems facing the State...

M'sian Deputy PM says "We did not cook the figures"

Yup, we heard it from the proverbial "horse's mouth" we did not cook the good economic figures.....hey CNY season lah... nowadays many chinese families eat outside or "tah pau" dishes cooked by paid chefs.....so no need to cook ourselves mah!!!

As I said....look at the "street smart indicators"...restaurants...massage parlours...karoake clubs.... how's business there? Number of tower cranes....how fast the number plate of cars change....the faster it changes the better the economy.....hey maybe we can do a study on it.....or maybe something like Freakonomics..... must get Dr. Yeah of RAM to do it as an indicator and test how reliable it is as a quick indicator.....

Spirit of Muhibbah...CNY greetings recieved from Sabah

I recieved this "Malaysian" CNY greeting from my fren Robert in Sandakan

Anjing pergi
Babi mari
Soi pergi
Ong mari
Tahun ini
Mesti lucky
Kena magnum
Kena loteri
Dalam MyBank
Banyak money
Selamat Tahun Baru Cina

Lunar New Year's eve...2007

Seems to be alot of good news of late.................. the KLCI is searing to the top......FDI had increased....it seems things cannot be wrong

Good new year for the country...and so it seems....maybe an election is around the corner....

Penang FDI best year ever since 1980's

The NST and Star came out singing this tune.....that Penang achieved its best FDI in 2006...the best in more than 27 years.

The NST has this to say
Investment in Penang is booming. With more than than RM5 billion invested last year, the state clocked up a high it hasn’t seen in 27 years.


......could it be true?

Really? who is coming...... the NST noted that penang can't even provide decent public transportation to move its labour force around....what a shame.....

Lots of good news for Malaysia or just plain ole' spin

Lots of good newsa been splashed over the local rags lately....one trillion rm in trade....KLCI reaching 1,200 points...more government spending....

The news, and government polies say so...but others have their reservations....what can a man in the street know?.....what indicators can we see....

First look at the restaurants.....are they packed? ...even on so call slow nights.....what about supermarkets and retail outlets ask around and see.....are they more tower cranes.....job advertisements....how many of them on Saturdays or on week days....

Going through these I find that the indications are that the economy is rolling along well this time (I don't know how it would do another 6 months down the track)...in Penang at least...the reastaurants are reasonably packed although not during the weekdays....more twoer cranes...especially along the Jelutong Expressways....and more job advertisements in the Star..even on the weekdays...

So things may not be as bad as the detractors are saying....

This hot dry Penang weather

Penang and the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia, has what geographers call the Indo-Burmese climate.....which simply means that the early part of the year (starts just before Christmas and ends in late March or early April) we have a very dry and hot weather.....the Chinese new Year weather....although last year we had a really mild one.....

But this year it looks like its going to be a scorcher....real hot and dry.... drink lots of air nyior....guarantee to cool down your system....

Pemudah formed to reduce red tape in Malaysia

Good luck.....the committee has only six months to achieve results....what a tall order....what took a life-time to accumulate cannot disappear in such a short-time.....old habits die hard...too much vested interests....too much "territory"....

Unrealistic to expect real significant changes to the Government's delivery system t5o change overnight because it is the same people doing it...just changing their clothes and some posters in office won't change an addictive behavoir that took a life-time to acquire....small-time clerks and even office boys wield tremendous power....watch how the towkay driving big Mercedes Benz talk to u ever so politely because u can either find the file or lose a file....

soo goood luck Pemudah.....hope u make it mudah....and not just NATO which is becoming the trademark of the Badawi government...big talk.....

Tun Dr. Mahathir......for the Nobel peace prize

Well, if it can attract more tourists to come to Malaysia and why not? To see another S.E. Asia's Nobel peace price winners who is not under house arrest....

There is no harm trying......maybe another Malaysian record.....making the biggest roti canai in the world or the longest anything....

Malaysia boleh mah!!!!

Tun Dr. Mahathir......trying to "try" George W. Bush & Tony Blair for war crimes.....

Its interesting how our exPM is trying to get Tony Blair and George W. Bush for war crimes.....and compare this to Sabahan politicians trying to find out how quite suddenly the population of Sabah surged over a short period of time making KadazansDusun Murut community the minority in Sabah...Project IC or Project M (I wonder what does M stand for)

I think the world community or UN would try Tony Blair or George Bush as much as Malaysia would established a Royal Commission to investigate the sudden surge of the Sabahan population.... as they say a Chinaman's chance or a snowflake's chance in hell before both these things can happen

Climate change & Malaysia...

Humans are to blame for the changes in world climate. A few degrees hotter....what the big deal....well more unpredictable weather, more rains during the rainy season (if there is going to be rainy season....or the rains will come anytime of the year without any predictable patterns at all) and droughts during the dry season...again there will be no patterns....so what?

It will affect us in Malaysia and the rest of the world precisely because of it's unpredictableness...old patterns of rain and dry season does not come at predictable times of the year...they just come in and out unpredictably....thats bad for the agriculture and tourism....and the unpredictable weather will also mean very high maximums and very low minimums....i.e if it rains it will beyond what has happened in the past and it dries up...it will go on for longer periods of time...

So this means the assumptions that we have used to build our infrastructure (bridges & culverts; or reservoirs) may not be able to cope.....we may have to rebuild .....so much $$$$$ down the drain (which may not be big enough to carry away the storm water)....

Welcome to disasterville

Is someone monitoring my blog?

I don't know about this...but since I started blogging abit about politics i.e. voting the opposition...I find sometime weird happening to my blogs...I cannot access it.....sometime...hey u out there....there nothing subversive here so don't waste time and money .....

I write what i feel...that is concern for the state of my oikos i.e my home and environment....its for its betterment...I believe in the democratic process.... and in the ballot box.....no matter how the powers may try to twist it within the rules to make it tilt towards them...surely if there is a surge of voter sentiment or popular swing.....it will surely reflect the people's decision...it happened in Kelantan, Sabah, and more recently in Sarawak.....it does not mean that the Opposition will win the Government but the popular votes will surely reflect the will of the people...and the BN government will have to respect that...world opinion and the investing world will see to it.....

So stop pestering my blog...ok....no subversive people here just plain ole me....no incitement....no libel or sedition.....just opinions and sentiments....

Can we trust Keadilan if we vote Opposition?

Yesterday, I was thinking about the consequences of voting the Opposition. Although I am not worried about the consequences of BN's backlash of depriving Penang of development funds....I really doubt whether they would seriously undermine our National Interests (not just UMNO's) to take revenge on Penang's voters....because if they do the International Companies and MNCs would just move from our shores and be very welcome in Vietnam or Thailand........

But there is another side to the proposition, what if Keadilan betrays its non-Muslims supporters by moving in with PAS in an unholy marriage......Islamic state with full syariah......then what? thats the risk.....

So the question is can we trust Keadilan????

What if Penang falls to the Opposition?

Penang people must be brave...they must not be scared to vote the opposition.....a DAP-Keadilan alliance would be good....

After that, the people in Penang must face the onslaught of the BN.....they will surely try to undermine the rule of the opposition by restricting funds for development and so on and so forth......

But the question is would the BN cut their nose to spike their face....PENANG IS THE HOME TO MANY MNCS ...the INTEL, DELL, AVIVA, AMD, BENQ......would the BN Federal Government risk driving them away not only from Penang but from Malaysia forever...?????

I doubt it, there will be lots of sound and fury...but in the end....who knows??? Never underestimate the stupidity of politicians....(look at George W. Bush.....and u know what I mean)...

But it still better to vote the Opposition then to let the BN take us for granted.....i.e no matter what they do ...we still elect them....there is no reason for them to behave any better....

Clock-tower at Customs House

When I come across from Butterworth to Georgetown by ferry, the first thing that used to catch my eye is the clock tower at the Customs House. Years ago when the Malayan Railway was only operating from Prai, one has the building where the clocktower stands served as the Penang Railway Station. I remember in 1958, taking a train with my father down to Kuala Lumpur & then to Johor Bahru. It was at this station we waited patiently to board the ferry that takes us from the Church Street Peir to Prai and then from Prai to Kuala Lumpur by train.

Yesterday, I took the ferry back. The tower greets you as the prodigal son that came back.....it welcomes you to the familiar sights and sounds....& memories....Today this landmark has been dwarfed by many....yet as one approaches the Raja Uda Pier from Butterworth, the familiar tower greets you like an old friend & beckons you never to forget your place and hometown.....

Yup beats coming back from Butterworth across the Penang Bridge...but the iconic twin towers of Penang and the water tower of USM greet you and welcome you home and I suppose in time they too will become landmarks that reminds us of all that is good and precious in Penang.

National Education Blueprint, ....Malaysia's attempts to leapfrog into the 21st Century

The two recent initiatives launched by the Government is indeed laudable.....abit too late but still better late than never....while our competitors are streaming ahead...we are still trying to play catch up....well as the Singaporeans say.."catch me if u can....". The Mid-East countries are asking Singapore to help them in the education systems...because they recognized it is world class.... they don't ask Malaysia even though a Malaysia is supposedly a model modern Islamic state.....(it is sad when malaysians especially our politicians begin to believe in our own PR material...what a laugh)

Regarding the National Educational Blueprint, the NST through its regular columnist this sunday recounted all the bad gripes malaysians have about the so called blue print...some evn said u turn blue before you can c something implemented....the columnist even cited a letter written by a malay who had send his son to a chinese school instead because as the letter writer saw it most the national schools had turned into small parochial semi-religous ones....so much hope...we have in our system...even politicians children are not educated in them....so it goes to show....how 'good" the system is....can the blueprint do it?

Maybe that is not the right question to ask? rather the right question to ask is who is going to implement the blueprint? is it the minister? NO....is it the Chief Education Officers ? No they are busy attending to the politicians PR exercises....

Who then will implement the blueprint ? the teachers and the assistant headmasters and headmasters......hello .... these are the ones who degraded our education system in the first place...enforcing their own beliefs and opinions onto to schools....and the inspectors and educational district heads that let them off......

These are the people who will implement the blueprint...the people that caused the rot in the first place....no wonder malaysians have lost hope....Humpty Dumpty had a great fall, and all the kings' horses and all the king's men could not put Humpty Dumpty together again....! Someone says that our education systems and institutions are the most racist and continues to perpetuate racists myths and beliefs....

Cleaning up after the flood, pledges & new resolutions to avoid the flood..

Can't help but feel a sense of deja' vu when our leaders start to pledge to make things right...clear drains, deepened the rivers and canals, desilt them...and so on and so forth.....like new years' resolution soon to be forgotten when the sun starts shining again...until the next flood....

RM300 million or more to repair damages to infrastructure.....really? not a 10% here and another 5% there....and we can truly see how far RM300 million will go these days.....

Promises, promises...words that are made in the heat of the night.....how unreliable....we have so much flash floods in KL and elsewhere...and it is always the same...deepened the rivers...desilt the drains...yet floods still come...

i wonder how singapore avoided the floods and devastation....i am sure there are not so far away that there are unaffected by the rains that hit southern johore....yet except for a few landslides and temporary flooding...the singaporeans had been spared.... did they pray harder than us? or is it that they had better drainage, better desiltation and lots of better maintenance and services than malaysia boleh? or bodoh? or rasuah?

Why Malaysia is losing out?

Well, finally the Government had finally admitted why we are losing out in terms of FDI. No less the PM himself informed us that it takes more than 30 days to start a business in Malaysia, compared to 2 days in Australia and 6 days in Singapore. It takes almost 300 days to build a factory or warehouse in Malaysia and half the time in Thailand, Singapore or Vietnam.....

Then, on NST yesterday, Syed Nazri cited an expat friend who waited 6 months to get his car into Malaysia compared to two weeks in South Korea....whats more the expat experienced all the stupid and silly reasons that cause the delay.....officers giving him the wrong forms...and after submitting and not getting response ..... the expat went to the dept to be told that he has filled in the wrong forms....

How many malaysians had suffered these indignities so many times.....that we just give up!!! Like the time we went in to file an application for a TOL, but was told that there were no forms available....."come back in a weeks' time" ...then we were told that the office cannot accept the applications because the office had run out of receipts.....but if we want to solve all these problems use a broker or if u are brave enough "incentivise" them....the new buzz word in dealing with recalcitrant "civil servants"......

The stories the expat told Nazri is not new and sounds and looks like the tricks and games people play to get us to give up or cough up.....

Not that these things are not known to the powers that be......but until now there were no incentives to offend the entrenched interests.....after all as the filipinos say "pakikisama" but with so many countries bucking up and offering better and superior conditions for businesses....well if they don't like what malaysia has to offer they can certainly take their businesses elsewhere.....and so they should.....

Good luck Pak Lah,...but u need more than luck and mere rhetoric...lets see some action...start sacking.....or it is just mere talk....all NATO haha....

Devastating Floods

When disaster comes...it sweeps everything....it does not discriminate it does not take 30% of this community ...nor does it spare any community....it just blows everything in its path...leaving nothing in its path untouched....

Like the Katrina hitting Louisana, the poor and marginal of all races are affected most. Just like the Afro Americans which comprise the most of the poor, the Malays and Indians in Malaysia especially in the flood affected states of Johore & Pahang, are most badly affected by the floods.....and so should the aid and help go to the most affected regardless of race or religion....and by so doing most of the Malays and Indians will mostly benefit from the Government's assistance...nobody can argue against that!

Just wish they could do the same thing with the affirmative policy...just help the most needy and vulnerable in our society regardless of race...and nobody can argue against that!

Better security for all.........

Thailand started the year with a big bang.......a bomb blast in downtown Bangkok...many are accusing Thaksin but his supporters are vehemently denying it......good luck to the Thais....maybe too much democracy in the recent past and now they are starting to get democratic diarrhea....

Should Malaysia go the Thai way by having too much democracy....marching in streets and protesting...maybe opening up too much in Malaysia is something we are too in mature to handle...

We misinterpret everything and take offence so eaily & quickly even though no offence is meant...just discussion.... haha....can we discuss...can we talk rationally....or we just submit...submit....and submit....

So if we all submit and submit....no discussion...pretend that everything is honky dory....thats why Malaysia is such a peaceful nation...because a significant portion of the Malaysians are very good at being submissive... so we get better security....

Welcome 2007

I believe that 2007 will be a crucial year for Malaysia......whether we can snap out of our downward spiral.....as Kit Siang said Malaysia used to compete with Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore....now they had advanced and we are now competing with the likes of Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia......how low had the "mighty fallen"......

NST belatedly reported in their new year editorial that malaysians are now worried about the expansion of the pie....and the PM in his new year message urged all Malaysians to work hard for the year to come....

But for me as a non-Bumi Malaysian, I say I'm opting out....why when the hard work needs to be done we are all Malaysians...when it comes to sharing the pie and how to share it we are told to shut up....well I will shut up and I will sit back and relax and let the rest of the guys go expand the cake......

I'll go fishing instead....good luck Hishamuddin, you beat the Thais, and watch out for the Vietnamese for me...and be careful of the Indons out there....and don't forget the Filipinos they can beat us if only they can refrain from shooting themselves in the foot....

As for me....why worry ...be happy !!!

Happy working......have an ulcer on my behalf ...Khairy...

31st December 2006 --what a year it has been

What a year 2006 had been for Malaysia.....first we have the crooked bridge saga and then no bridge...then it all came out in the open...the former PM attacking the current PM....then we have we keris bearing melodrama at the UMNO GA with some delegates threatening to run amok and let the keris be bathe with blood (whose blood...I wonder), the we officers belonging to the Elite Police force arrested for blowing to bits and pieces a Mongolian model said to have an affair with a political analyst ...... and last but not least we have the Mufti of Perak (you should know what he has done.....no need to say more)..... SURELY WE LIVE IN INTERESTING TIMES

Can Malaysia survive this???? A Case of fiddling while Rome burns......our FDI is on a downward spiral...and 2007 seems to be a more difficult year economically than 2006.... our brain drain seems to have gained strength recently.....probably our National Average IQ had probably gone down a few notches.....

INTERESTING.....INTERESTING....

PBA --No room for racist appointment

Congratulations to Jaseni, the newly appointed CEO of PBA......It is a pity that his appointment should be marred in such controversy. He probably is the best candidate for the job, even though he is promoted above his seniors....but that should not be a problem because they are all nearing retirement age....

UMNO in Penang should take the blame...for playing the racial card....instead of highlighting the need for better and more effective management, they choose to play the race card....

Nevertheless, I believed Jaseni is a suitable candidate for the job, not because of his race but based on his services and performance at the PBA...He should be assess not by the "colour of his skin or his beliefs" but by the his charcter and quality of service he delivers....and so it should be....

It does not matter whether a cat is black or white...all cats should be judge by their ability to catch mices....

Penang -Urban Revival or renewal possible??

After the repeal of the Rent Control Act...Penang or rather the city of Georgetown, the heart of Penang suffered a hole in it......many unable to pay the sudden increased in rent left for the outer suburbs...Bayan Bahru, Sungai Ara, Farlim...and even across the channel to Butterworth, Kulim, BM, SP.....

At night, many parts of Georgetown is like a ghost town, devoid of inhabitants....and there are attempts to revive parts of it...like Nagore Road....next to it will be the Swatow Lane Development......

Although places like Beach Street are still home for the Banks...but some Banks have relocated to Northam Road...like Citi Bank, Ban Hin Lee....

We are Malaysians....can we all sing this song???

Heard an Australian patriotic song……and wondered whether Malaysians can write such songs acceptable to all Malaysians and sing it …..descendants of settlers and indigenous people…..

We are one, but we are many
And from all the lands on earth we come
We share a dream and sing with one voice:
I am, you are, we are Australian

Can we say we are Malaysians? We are one but we are many?....Survey shows that we identify ourselves not as Malaysians but as Muslims, Chinese, Indians….although our passports say we are Malaysians when we go overseas but when we returned we are treated as the different races…..

Maybe we are not Malaysians……we are only Malaysian passport holders… a place to work and pay our taxes….thats all its so sad isn’t it……

And the Australian song goes…..

I came from the dream-time, from the dusty red soil plains
I am the ancient heart, the keeper of the flame.
I stood upon the rocky shore, I watched the tall ships come.
For forty thousand years I've been the first Australian.

I came upon the prison ship, bowed down by iron chains.
I cleared the land, endured the lash and waited for the rains.
I'm a settler, I'm a farmer's wife on a dry and barren run
A convict then a free man, I became Australian.

What a shame…..can most Malaysians sing an analogous version of this song…????

Back to Penang....reality the tearing down of Rifle Range Low Cost Houses

These low cost houses was built in the late 1950's and started to be occupied in 1959. I remembered because I used to live in the third house from the corner for two years 1959 & 1960. I remembered the time just before I went to kindergarten to just before I started primary school, we lived there i.e. before we moved down to jockey Road.....

The house have only two bedrooms....but one kitchen cum dinning room & a sitting room....nothing to shout at....

But look how well made it was...despite it being a low cost house built by the Municiple or City Council at that time....its remarkable...the structure, how sturdy they are...compared to the very highly priced houses we have today...built by peasants from indonesia, bangladesh & burma....

These houses were built to last...and by skilled tradesman....probably not much under counter money...contractors can really deliver good quality houses....throughout the entire 57 years of its existence...there were no complaints of shoddy workmanship...."cheating on building material" and the shennegians associated with government projects nowadays.... Bravo

We mourned the passing of an era....where good quality, integrity come from malaysia ...even in a low cost housing project....

12 Apostles --worth a revisit

Inlet - result of sea eroding the sandstone and dramatic collapse of the cliffs

Fantastic shoreline......water colour artists delight and paradise....

12 Apostles board.....

definitely worth another visit....

12 Apostles --Port Campbell NP

Fantastic coastline along the Great Ocean Road after Laver's Hill to Port Campbell.... The views with spectacular cliffs, foaming waves as its breaks... not to be missed......

Great Otway National Park....Trees & Canopy walkways

The forests at the Great Otway is known as the Beech forests comprising trees of thre main species, the giant (world tallest trees) Mountain Ash or Eucalyptus regnans, Blackwood or black butt (Acacia melanxylon) and Beech or Nothafagus…..

Spectacular forests, very mystical….if you were living here a few centuries ago…you too will be drawn to worship the “spirits” or sipirituality that in this place…gives you a very pantheistic feel to it….

The walkway affords you the opportunity to rise to the canopy to the tree tops of the forest and enjoy breathtaking views...and sense the majesty of the forest at tree-top heights......

then, there is a tower that rise to 47 m and you look down to the forest floor below....

Building confidence

Our neighbour, Thailand bungled big-time....they changed their forex rules without any warning or hints and then flip flop within 24 hours when foreigners exited their stock market, wiping out Baht 700 billion of value (or RM70 billion)...

Great way to build confidence.....I do not know how they can recover from the mess they had dugged for themselves....

In almost an analagous way, Malaysian politician did it to Malaysia...but the damage are probably less damaging in the short term...but in the long term ..who is to know? But because it may long term effects...the politicians...particularly the leaders can ameliorate its deleterious effects.....

But they must start to act like Malaysian leaders....not leaders and champions of sectional interests.....no community will gain if Malaysia fails....

it is too early to tell....after 1969...many of our non-Malay brains left......at the time the Malaysian economy was at par or above that of Taiwan and South Korea.... but today they are twice or even three times the size of our economy...many attribute this to the loss of brains from the country.....i do not know...what the latest brain drain will pull the country even further back...

Sunshine coast--beaches

Rich suburbs at Maroochydore

Maroochydore beach....with photo taken from Loo with a View.

Sunshine Coast ---the forest parks & green reserve

In adry and thirsty land, they appreciate green covers....that cools the day and gives shelter from the mid-day sun.....it refreshes the soul and body...a sanctuary for wildlife....corridors for them to cross over dangerous highways.....wildlife corridors allow animal to move along safely from fragmented reserves ....ensuring that animals do not get isolated and die without mating...mitigates against in-breeding when isolated animals are isolated....


Besides they enhances the environment...make suburbs look grand and property values appreciate...

Sunshine Coast---the forests

This the backyard forests of my sister's house located in the hills behind the beaches in the Sunshine coast. What is remarkable is that the people had not all bulldozed the forests to make way for more developments.

Despite the pressure there are still much of the original forests left.....although the pressure keeps on mounting everyday... as property prices soar..who can resists...there are 13 acres in the backyard..all of which are forested...

Sunshine Coast...the hinterland

Queensland's coast may be one of the most spectacular coastlines in the world. Fringing the pacific Coast, it becomes the playground to many who vist its shores.

But further inland, fenced in by hills the coastal hinterlands lies hidden communities that once thrived in these parts. They provide the economic backdrop to the coastlands....here farmers grow their crops, raise cattle and sheep,; little lumber towns such as Eudlo and Ilkley placed five miles apart...the distanc for which the bullocks can pulled...sawmills processing wood bound for the towns in Queensland and New south Wales....

These towns and communities dot the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast waiting to be discovered...

Sunshine Coast...a picture is worth a thousand words

Photos taken 2,000 ft above sea-level towards the west of Sunshine coast

Picture of Colum & Noosa taken from 25 km inland from a ridge about 2,000 feet high. Crystal clear view of the Pacific Ocean and the Sunshine Coast.

Malaysians losing faith in Malaysia

The Star on 16th December reported that the MCA President, his Deputy and most of the vice presidents of the MCA visited and paid respects to its founder Tun Sir Tan Cheng Lock. During the visit, he urged Chinese Malaysians to continue to believe in Malaysia and not lose faith. I wonder what prompted that……are Malaysians losing faith in their country???

The next day (17th December) New Straits Times reported that Migration agents are experiencing a sudden surge in enquiries to migrate. One agent reported that before 14th November (read before the UMNO General Assembly), he only received around 20 calls a day..but since then, prospective migrants are ringing non-stop. From the 14th to 19th November (read after the UMNO Assembly), they received a staggering 6,500 calls for Australia alone!!!!!...5,500 for NZ….4,000 for other countries….and 3,500 for other countries…. People are rushing to get out in droves!!!!!

WHY? WHY? WHY?
People are voting with their feet….many believed that there is no future for them in this country….Generally Chinese Malaysians love Malaysia, although their love is expressed in a different way….they are proud of its achievement….that is why only less than 50% of them renounced their citizenship even after decades overseas….Its a love that defies understanding. Maybe, many still believed in the promises of our founding fathers like Tungku Abdul Rahman and Tun Abdul Razak……promises made to secure the acceptance of non-Malays to a new independent Malaya/Malaysia….otherwise the British would have a good excuse to continue to rule a profitable colony for a longer period…maybe up to the 1970’s if they can…like Hong Kong which they retained and tried to keep beyond 1997.

But alas, maybe the Malay proverb rings true “Saperti kacang melupakan kulit”. Proverbs reflects the dominant traits of the culture from which it emerges…. So true that Tun Dr. Mahathir lamented to the Malays assembled at the UMNO General Assembly in 2002 (circa) through a “pantun” (poem), entitled “Melayu mudah lupa.”…..or Malays forgets easily….


How true and tragic for all and MALAYSIA!!!!!
Most non-malay Malaysians have a great sense of being rejected by Malaysia, their own country…..…despite their many and considerable contributions to the country…like Tun Dr. Mahatir once said, take away the non-malay contribution and Malaysia’s GDP would be like that of an African nation…..

Many feel that inspite of their contributions…they had been treated with contempt…most feel that the children of new arrivals from Indonesia are better treated than many of the children of non-malay Malaysians of many generations……


Good Riddance????
Those who migrate are not the young unlike the 1970’s and 80’s….these are most likely the middle aged….people from 35 onwards…people who owned houses…..

Good riddance??? We say??? Or should we reflect and think….or is it an indication of what is to come….Indians leaving Uganda during Idi Amin’s rule…..White South Africans leaving RSA…..Cubans, leaving Cuba after Castro took over…..No loss to the country….more homogeneity in Malaysia???

Can we afford an exodus of experienced and well-trained Malaysians? Australia, NZ or Canada just do not admit any Ah Chong or Samy….these ah Chongs or Samys are professionals or skilled tradesman….the kinds that a country need to leap-frog its GDP and economy to the next level….and these are lost to the country….they are not the ones which Malaysia admits by the hundreds of thousands through its back-door in Sabah…the unskilled labour from Indonesia and Sulu islands….

The sad thing is that many of the Ah Chongs and Samys will not be gainfully employed in their fields of expertise unless of course they are of world renowned….instead they will be in small businesses…maybe selling roti canai..or chow mien..or running post-offices…milk bars ..driving taxis…after the age of 40, it will be very difficult for anybody (migrant or native) to land a job………

New generation…new technologies…making your competitors obsolete
Most ah Chongs or Samys know the fate that awaits them, when they go…yet they do it..because they believe in the new country their children will stand a better chance…be on a level playing field… And their children are the ones that topped the VCE’s the HSC and SAMs in their respective states…going to choiced faculties to do courses they can never expect to get in their home countries….here they have a fighting chance…if they get their grades right.

Their host countries know this, they harvest the best brains, the relatively superior genotypes for their countries….within a generation the standards have gone up…. …”knowledge” economy…..blue ocean strategy….new products ….new technology.

Can Malaysia afford to lose talents and brains ?
Is not as if Malaysia has an abundance of talented and diligent people to spare. These people whether intelligent or not had demonstrated that they were relatively successful…ie. able to rise above despite handicaps….these are the ones that a country or an economy needs to face off the competition from a globalised world…those that have demonstrated their mettle….these are now lost to the country….like negative selection…the good ones or those above average ones leave and the country is left with more and more (in proportion) of the no-so good ones…while our poorer neighbours export their lesser talent, we export our better talents…

Malaysia burns its candles at both ends… and in the minds of many, unspoken thoughts is the question “Is there a future for Malaysia?” Quo vadis, Malaysia?