Royalty Extraordinaire, that is Raja Zarith Sofia Sultan Idris Shah

This account was written by Dr Lim Teck Ghee of the Centre for Policy Initiatives.

With their front page headlines highlighting developments on the massive Sime loss, readers of the country's two main English papers may not have noticed the news report of the speech by Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris Shah, the consort of the Sultan of Johor, which was buried in the inner pages.

The occasion of the speech was a conference on 'Voices of Peace, Conscience and Reason' held on Nov 16 in Kuala Lumpur. The prime mover of the meeting in which I participated as a panelist was PCORE, a group that is representative of Malaysians who embrace and share the notion of peace as the way forward to achieve unity and integration.

Credit must go to the PCORE leadership for bringing together a diverse mix of young and older people from different backgrounds to voice their frank concerns on current issues and developments in the country.

For me the real star of the conference was Raja Zarith Sofiah. Readers who missed the news item may be interested in the excerpt from the news report of her speech.

"In her keynote address at the Voices of Peace, Conscience and Reason conference, she described the use of 'pendatang' to describe non-Bumiputeras as "hurtful and ignorant", and that more discussions were needed to address and resolve the gulf between ethnic and religious communities.

"Rather than simplify and shy away from sensitive issues, we should fight destructive rhetoric with constructive dialogue. It is shameful when apparently educated and mature individuals use such terms or suggest fellow Malaysians go back to where they came from.

Describing her own ancestral background as a mix between Sumatran and Peranakan Chinese, she said it was important to recognise the diversity of Malaysian society, brought about by centuries of interracial and interfaith marriages and communication." (New Straits Times, Nov 17, 2010)

This open and proud acknowledgment of her mixed ancestral background is quite unprecedented. It puts to shame the way in which many of our leaders who have a similar mixed ancestry either try to hide or suppress the inconvenient truth, or engage in flaunting or agitating a mono-ethnic or religious stance as if this has been part of their, and the country's DNA from time immemorial.

Raja Zarith Sofiah's speech was much more than what was reported in the newspapers. It also covered her personal experience and thinking on religions and the importance for Muslims to learn about other cultures and religions and their heritage.

She spoke from the heart, simply and without the need for any convoluted intellectual argument or high sounding clichés to drive home the importance of cherishing and protecting the country that belongs to all of us -- highly or lowly born; brown, yellow or black; and worshipping one, many or no god.

Readers may not be aware of the wide ranging accomplishments and interests of Raja Zarith Sofiah. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and Master's Degree from Oxford University (her BA is in Chinese Studies). Besides Malay and English, she is able to communicate in Mandarin, Italian and French. She is a patron of the arts, an artist and author who has written children's books including Puteri Gunung Ledang. She is also the columnist of The Star's 'Mind Matters' column, and let out that her articles are being put together in book form soon.

Although I am a republican at heart, logic tells me that we may need the type of monarchy she personifies more than ever to hold the country together and to remind us of our common humanity. With her and other royalty who care for the country in the way she does, there is greater hope that the nation can overcome the racial and religious demons that torment us.

Finally, I should point out that I was privileged to sit at her table where I and others -- during the lunch chit-chat on topics ranging from how the handphone and Skype have transformed our lives to the inconvenience of sleep apnea - learnt that she has sleepless nights thinking about the predicament of our country and our people, and wondering how best she can be of service. The insomnia that troubles her, I am sure, also afflicts all of us concerned about the way ahead for the country.

[Source: CPI]

This is the person whose neck many Selangorians would like to wring. Mark his name, Rozali Ismail, CEO of SYABAS, the water company who is going to make many people in the state much more poorer with his proposed water tariff 37% hike. The aim of the Selangor state government is to de-privatise the company so that the people will not have to bear the burden of the new tariff should it gets approved by the government. What is most unforgiving is that this guy earns a salary of RM425,000 per month, yes PER MONTH which is 19 times more than the salary of the prime minister, at RM22,826.65 a month. To rub salt into the wound, he is heading a debt-ridden company to the tune of RM2.9b. Don't these people have anymore CONSCIENCE left in them?

One more thing. This "Ketuanan Melayu" Rozali is the former branch Treasurer of UMNO. Now you see where we are heading?

Latest video : Demo for water right

Selangorians stood up for their water !!!

If UMNO regain Selangor, we will pay more for our water. The rot has to stop.

Tear gas, water canons fired at Pakatan crowd protesting SYABAS bailout

For the unbelievers - look again at the depth of the crowd!

Police fired tear gas and water cannons at some 10,000 people comprising mostly Pakatan Rakyat supporters trying to hand over a memorandum to the King to protest the federal government's bailout of SYABAS, a water distribution firm controlled by Umno crony Rozali Ismail.

Among Pakatan leaders who came to appeal to the King to advise Prime Minister Najib Razak to return the water rights of the Selangor people back to their state government were PKR deputy-president Azmin Ali, Mentri Besar Khalid Ibrahim, state exco Dr Xavier Jeyakumar and DAP MP for Klang Charles Santiago.

DAP's Ronnie Liu, PAS MP for Kuala Selangor Dr Dzulkifli Ahmad, PKR vice president Tian Chua and youth leader Badrul Hisham were also present.

Was this necessary? The crowd was huge but clearly peaceful

The pro-Pakatan crowd gathered at the Masjid Negara or National Mosque, while another group led by a pro-Umno NGO had made Merdeka Stadium or the National Stadium its base.

SYABAS raised tariffs

Selangor MB Khalid told the cheering crowd more than 250,000 people had already signed the petition to the King. SYABAS had also increased tariff by 37 percent last year, Khalid revealed, turning the applause into loud boos for the firm and Rozali.

The SYABAS chief has been accused of arrogant behavior and unabashed courtship of top Umno leaders to support his plans for monopolizing the state's water rights.

The Pakatan protesters had gathered at the National Mosque since 9am and began their march to the Palace a few kilometres away at about 1.30pm.

Return to us our rights

They were approaching the railway station when Federal Reserve Unit personnel blocked their way. But they refused to retreat, shouting 'Hidup Rakyat' and appealing to the police to let them pass as it was a peaceful march.

However, the police retaliated by firing round after round of tear gas and chemical-laced water at them, forcing many to scamper for cover.

Earlier in the day, police had set up roadblocks leading to the Palace in anticipation of the rally. They also guarded the maze of small roads in the vicinity of the National Mosque, where thousands had gathered to await word from the organizers to begin the walk to the Palace.

City police chief Datuk Zulkifli Abdullah told reporters he had informed Khalid that the march had not been approved. His men have picked up at least three people for questioning in connection with the protest.

[Source: Malaysia Chronicle]

Nostalgic Weekend - Western Union Band, Singapore

I have never heard of the group until some time in the mid-seventies when I the song "Living next door to Alice", a Smokie original, was played during a friend's home party. I made enquiry about the group and I was told that it was the Western Union Band (or WUB for short) from Singapore. In fact, they have been around since the late sixties and have recorded a hit track "Sausolito" which, somehow or other, escaped my notice. Anyway, I subsequently bought the album and I must admit it was worth my hard-earned (then) RM11.50. So who are the members who made up of the group?

The Western Union Band, featuring Chris Vadham, Danny Lim, Abel Gan, Peter Mangkok and Daniel Wee. Their first LP, produced by Reggie Verghese [lead guitarist of The Quests], included tracks like Howzat, Slipping Away, Movie Star, Wise Man, We All Fall In Love Sometimes, Needles & Pins, Come Together, Living Next Door To Alice, Nights Are Forever, First Cut Is The Deepest, Paper Roses Paper Dreams, Did You Boogie, Stand By Me & Sausolito. The second LP, managed by Jap Chong [also of The Quests], offered tracks like Yesterday's Sorrow, When You Walk In The Room, You Keep Me Running, Free Me, Ain't Nothing Gonna Keep Me From You, Takin' Care Of Business, I've Got Love, You Are The Woman, Every Kinda Of People, How Can This Be Love, I Will Still Love You, I Can't Hold On & Dust In The Wind.

Christ Vadham, however, went solo and made a name for himself.

Here are my three favourite tracks:







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The Quests, Singapore
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The year is coming to an end. Are we any hopeful of a better year ahead?

While driving to work last week, it suddenly hit me that we are almost at the end of another year. It then further dawned on me that within a few weeks, we would be into the second decade of the noughties and only 10 years away from the Vision 2020 target.

While stuck on what is usually the country’s biggest car park in the mornings — the Federal Highway — I wondered if, by 2020, we could at least reach touching distance of the fully-developed nation goal announced by former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 1991.

On a sugar high from the sweet coffee I had that morning, I thought to myself, perhaps we can. If we could just focus and take things seriously, maybe we can.

Then I took a look at the front page of theSun lying on my passenger seat and the reverie was shattered.

There it was. A little red pail sitting next to a little blue pail on the floor of our Parliament House.

The pails were put there to gather water from a leak on the roof-top. It is 2010 and we can’t even do the simple thing of ensuring that the nation’s august house is in tip-top condition befitting all that it stands for.

And this wasn’t the first time the roof had leaked.

We are a nation boasting one of the world’s tallest buildings (with another monstrosity on the way) and yet we have a legislative house that leaks more than a BP oil well.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz brushed the incident aside as “an act of God”.

I don’t think so, Mr Minister. God didn’t do this.

I’d be surprise if God wanted to have anything to do with our Parliament at all, given its history of less than palatable exchanges between MPs from both sides of the divide.

Even funnier was Deputy Works Minister Yong Khoon Seng. According to him, the roof leaked because it was old. Oh that’s it! Amazing deduction.

Thanks man, but it isn’t about the age of the roof. There are old buildings with old roofs all over the country that do not leak.

It’s about poor maintenance. You know it and the public knows it.

In May 2008, the same roof leaked and this was just two weeks after the then-Works Minister Mohd Zin Mohamed assured the public that it wouldn’t happen again.

And who can forget that time in April 2005 when then-Works Minister extraordinaire, the soon-to-retire Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, made a theatrical inspection and declared that the leak was “a small problem” despite it drenching the Dewan Rakyat chamber and bringing proceedings to a halt.

These things seem small but they are not.

It is reflective of the nation’s incompetence and wantonness. There is no building in this country more important than Parliament House. And we treat it so negligently. As Benjamin Franklin once remarked: “A small leak can sink a great ship”.

Fed up, I decided to stop reading the paper and surf the Net on my mobile phone instead.

And what do I find? — a news report stating that Malaysia plans to have its second astronaut stay in the International Space Station (ISS) for weeks or months instead of days.

National Space Agency director-general Dr Mustafa Subari estimated that at least US$20 million (RM62.2 million) was needed to fund the project.

We have a National Space Agency? What does it do? Does it have the technology to fix leaky roofs? Can it detect stolen jet engines or missing public funds from outer space?

A National Space Agency is as useful to the nation as a submarine that cannot dive when we don’t even have a minimum wage model and when about a third of the country’s working population still earn less than RM700 monthly.

We also don’t even have enough hospitals in Malaysia yet. With its 800 beds, Sarawak’s only public hospital in Kuching serves a population of more than 2.5 million of whom nearly 700,000 reside in the state capital.

According to National Heart Association Malaysia president Prof Dr Sim Kui Hian, who also heads the Sarawak General Hospital cardiac department, 800 beds are not even close to enough for purposes of serving Sarawak’s ever increasing population.

Dr Sim says that the problem stems from the fact that the health needs of Sarawakians are stymied or bound by bureaucracy. He was quoted in The Star as saying that “when the state Health Department highlights the need for a second general hospital, it must pass through the state Cabinet, then on to the federal Cabinet, then on to the Economic Planning Unit, then finally to the Finance Ministry. Somewhere along the line, our needs are likely to get distorted.”

This is surely surprising, given the fact that there seems to have been no bureaucratic problems in approving and setting up the National Space Agency.

It is, however, good to note that Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai announced two weeks ago that Sarawak is to have a second general hospital which is to be located in Petrajaya. The people of Sarawak will still have to wait until 2014 though.

In an interview given to the International Astronautical Federation (which seems to exist with the goal of “connecting space people”), former National Space Agency director-general Dr Mazlan Othman was asked two questions — Why does Malaysia need a space agency? and Isn’t starting a space agency expensive?

Her response, among other things, was that “not so long ago, only the Russians and Americans could afford to go to space. Now any country can start a space presence for about US$10 million. This is a modest budget.”

Tell that to the thousands of Orang Asli in the country who currently live in poverty. US$10 million would probably snap them right out of it instead of having to wait until 2020 — which is the government’s targeted date to reduce Orang Asli poverty to zero.

Anyway, Mazlan is no longer director-general of our National Space Agency. She is now the head of the United Nation’s little-known Office for Outer Space Affairs (Unoosa) which is a set-up that apparently searches for extraterrestrial communication.

Can you believe it? A Malaysian at the point of first contact. Not Jodie Foster, not Will Smith and not Bruce Willis. It’s our Dr Mazlan.

So in the event Mother Earth receives a visit from little green men, it won’t be Obama they’ll meet first when they say “Hello there, please take me to your leader”. It’ll be Dr Mazlan.

Perhaps she can ask the aliens how we can finally solve the tricky matter of our Parliament House’s constantly leaking roof.

Malaysia, the country I am confused with

Back in the eighties, I used to watch the TV series, "Mind your language". There was this one episode where Mr Brown was trying to explain to Max how cricket was being played. Max then tried to confirm Mr Brown's explanation in plain simple English. He said, "Mr Brown, what you are trying to say is, in cricket, when a player is in, he is not really in; and when he is out, he is not really out." Mr Brown concurred, and Max exclaimed, "My, what an English sport!" The same thing applies to politics in our country, that is, the way our politicians preach about what they plan to do but always ended up doing the opposite. Najib's "1Malaysia" is a good example. Does anyone knows what it is all about? It has come to a state where situations can be more than confusing. So, welcome to Malaysia, the land of the doublespeak.

One of the many spoofs in cyberspace

It's amusing to see UMNO is barking about 'Ketuanan Raja'. Don't you think UMNO should flip through history. Who was the one who withdrew the Sultan's power? Welcome to Malaysia!

MIC is busy bashing Selangor state government for being racist for denying Indian students rights for Selangor state scholarship. Ironically, what MIC has been doing for past 52 years when every year UMNO denies PSD scholarship for many excellent Indian students?-Welcome to Malaysia!

UMNO has been championing 'Ketuanan Melayu' for ages, yet 96 percent of poor are Malays- Welcome to Malaysia.

Police force is indulging in 'trigger-happy acts'. Fatal shootings involving minors and innocent civilians is rampant, yet Home Minister claims that we are 'safe' - again, Welcome to Malaysia

Those who should set a good example and educate the younger generation are spreading racial slurs. However, when complaints are lodged against them, the tables are turned against the complainants. Deputy Minister of Eduction reprimands them lightly', while on the other side, PM is sending a 'strict warning' against extremists? Welcome to Malaysia

Luxury summits, conferences, and forums are organized without fail but when it comes to action, everything also fails. Public money is wasted to boost some individuals' public relation. Welcome to Malaysia.

Efficient PEMANDU introduces NKEA, ETP, NKRA, KPI and etc but no database has been set up to date to prove the efficiency of those plans. All remains beautifully on white pieces of paper. Welcome to Malaysia

Attorney General is hiding relevant documents from the defendant in Sodomy II, but PM claims that Anwar is getting a fair trial despite a slew of international calls to drop the case. Welcome to Malaysia

Parliament's roof is leaking and a 'Prophet' pointed out that it is an act of God. Horrifying accidents occured in the past few months and flash floods hit some states recently. Are these also acts of God? Welcome to Malaysia

They can't even admire a satirical piece yet they plan for some big nuclear thingy and charcoal plants. Welcome to Malaysia.

There are families saving and scrimping to try to make ends meet while SYABAS's CEO is comfortably receiving RM425K salary every month. Welcome to Malaysia

Malaysians' grouses about poor public transport fell on deaf ears but when a YB tried using public transport and ended up going to Parliament by foot after his trial failed, he was highlighted in a mainstream media. Welcome to Malaysia.

Technically Malaysia is in recession and every Malaysian with average knowledge is aware about this. Yet, it is surprising that some dim-witted people fail to see how Warisan Merdeka could be disastrous. Especially when KLCC is not fully occupied still.

First Lady is preaching about rescuing children from poverty as poverty will rob their basic rights to education. On the other hand, taxes on luxuries items are removed. Are you able to make sense of this? If you know what I mean that is, but welcome to Malaysia!

Warts and all Malaysia is our 'unique' country. In Malaysia, we do not go for quality but follow the majority. Some think that we are we are dim-witted. We are ignorant, yet we dream to be astronauts. But an astronaut must be a genuine one who really makes it to the moon or bring back valuable scientific specimens for testing. And not 'wayang wayang' - if you know what I mean.

But, welcome to Malaysia!

[Source: Malaysia Chronicle]