Another DAP Press Statement on Hudud

Kenyataan media oleh Lau Weng San di Petaling Jaya pada hari Sabtu, 27 Disember 2008:

Hukum Hudud – Jika UMNO tidak bersedia, mengapakah pula mencabar orang lain?

Desakan dan cabaran yang dilemparkan ke atas parti-parti komponen Pakatan Rakyat (PR) untuk menerangkan pendirian parti masing terhadap Hukum Hudud oleh parti-parti komponen Barisan Nasional (BN) merupakan sesuatu yang sangat ganjil dan tindakan hipokrit.

PAS dipaksa untuk menyatakan kedudukannya berkenaan dengan perkara ini oleh UMNO di mana kedudukan PAS ini bukan sesuatu yang baru dalam arena politik Malaysia.

Apa yang menghairankan ialah apabila UMNO mencabar PAS untuk menerangkan pendiriannya tentang Hukum Hudud, adakah UMNO sendiri juga ingin melaksanakan Hukum Hudud?

Jika UMNO sendiripun tidak bersedia untuk melaksanakannya, mengapakah UMNO pula mencabar pihak lain untuk melaksanakannya? Adakah ini bermakna UMNO sendiri akan melaksanakan dasar ini dan yakin dapat mendapat sokongan dan kepercayaan daripada parti-parti komponen yang lain di dalam BN?

Apa yang sepatutnya ialah parti-parti komponen BN harus bertanya kepada UMNO adakah Hukum Hudud akan menjadi sebahagian daripada dasar BN sehinggakan UMNO sanggup bertarung dan berlumba-lumba dengan PAS untuk melaksanakan dasar Hukum Hudud?

Oleh itu, cabaran dan desakan yang mereka lemparkan kepada parti-parti komponen PR merupakan satu tindakan hipokrit yang bertujuan untuk memesongkan perhatian rakyat terhadap isu sebenar yang terus meyelubungi tanahair kita seperti kemelesetan ekonomi yang bakal bertukar lebih teruk selepas bulan Februari 2009.

Sesuatu dasar itu tidak akan menjadi dasar PR melainkan mendapat persetujuan sebulat suara daripada kesemua parti komponen PR. Dalam kes ini, DAP berpendirian teguh bahawa Hukum Hudud tidak bersesuaian dengan masyarakat majmuk Malaysia dan oleh itu ianya tidak sesuai dilaksanakan di Malaysia.

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* Setiausaha DAP Selangor, Ketua Pemuda Sosialis DAP (DAPSY) Bahagian Petaling Jaya Utara dan ADUN Kampung Tunku

Why Ban Avril Lavigne, PAS FT?

I heard that PAS FT wants to ban Avril...

Imposing ones morality on another is ridiculous as morality is simply subjective. So for PAS FT imposing their morality on others will be equally be wrong. Avril Lavigne is a Five Star-Grammy nominated pop/punk/rock/fashion and actress. And whatever said about her type of music, she is decent, loyal and a model for the young to follow especially the young ladies. Nothing in her music talks about sex or drugs or any declination of moral behaviour. Her music is very youthful.

She prefers healthy living i.e. in eating a lot of fruits and vegetables. She is a catholic (conservative) and married to Deryck Whibley whom she date since 2004.

She is also involved in a number of charities such as Make Some Noise, Amnesty International, AmericanCPR.org, Camp Will-a-way, Music Clearing Minefields, U.S. Campaign for Burma, Make-A-Wish Foundation and War Child and a number of youth aids foundation to raise money and educate people worldwide about HIV/AIDS. Maybe PAS FT don't know that Miss Lavigne also covered 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door for War Child's peace songs album.

Most of her concert tours are donations to the charities that she is involved in.

I am not advocating for Avril as she need not be defended BUT nevertheless I hope for some sensible opinion from PAS.

By the way, she always wear decently during her concerts and never had dancers or herself dancing provocatively or indecently.

Voting Along Party Lines vs Voting Along Your Conscience

Datuk Shahrir Samad's motion got an AYE with 129 voting for and 78 voting against it. This vote also reflects a vote of confidence on the Prime Minister (as well as the Government) when the BN won with the difference of 51 votes. After all the hue and cry on whether Sabah and Sarawak MPs will vote against the motion as a result of SAPP's threat on the vote of confidence motion.

But what I am more surprise is how are MPs are to vote. This is a dilemma especially by BN MPs. Should they vote against the motion, they will be subjected to Party Whips and will be disciplined like how school discipline teacher will act with a whip. In our history of events in Parliament maverick MPs are either suspended or forgiven, depending on time and space. Some were forgiven like Bung Mokhtar, some resigned from their position like Datuk Shahrir or some got suspended like 'you know who' all because of voting against the party.

Love or hate the motion, vote according to your party's instruction. Do you have a choice? Nope, not at all. Of course Party Whip will say "spirit of Barisan Nasional". Now I wonder, what spirit are we talking about? Maybe I should ask, what ghost is the Party Whip talking about? I find it hard to chew . Especially when motions such as allowing a price increase that affects day to day consumption like petrol, food and papers and what-have-you.

Everybody I have spoken to is suffering. Today, I met almost 9 people in my office and all told me that they cannot stand any longer. The increased is almost everything all started with the increase in petrol prices to RM2.70. As a result of that Malaysians all over facing a domino effect. You and I will see food increased such as rice. Developers will increased on their house prices by 30%. Raw materials such as aluminium and iron will definitely faced a sharp increased. Transportation is definitely. Grocery items are coming up for sure, that includes rice, eggs, flour.

My office boy is asking for an increase....
Crime will shoot up....and that is definite. And these MPs (not asking our consent) supporting the price increase!

What does our conscience says?

Honestly I am still not ready since the 1998 economic crisis. And I believe everybody shares the same view as I am. Is Malaysian ready? But what the government says, CHANGE LIFESTYLE.

But for heaven sake, will the country be ready for change? I think the government is just started thinking about having good public transportation or Hybrid cars or Cars using gas or whatever why not increase local ventures such as local food product to increase our revenue instead of relying on imports. I thought we are oil producers and I always thought that we are rich. Look at our land rich in agricultural products. This is God's gift to us.

Simply put, we just have bad and hopeless managers managing and administering our country.

We pay taxes and this is what we got. How sad.

Another Reason Mengapa Minyak Tak Perlu NAIK

I got permission to cut-paste this superb article by Humble Voice on the recent petrol hike. Reading this, all the more petrol/oil/diesel price should not go up.

THE RM56 BILLION RINGGIT QUESTION

(Also posted in Malaysia-Today)

I am referring to the article in Malaysiakini: Pump price at 'market levels by August'.

First of all lets get some basic facts right.

Firstly Malaysia is a net exporter of crude oil. So the government did NOT subsidize our petrol. The RM56 billion ‘subsidy’ per year is the extra amount that the government would have earned if it had exported all of our oil production. There is no 'spiralling bill', the government did not lose any money because it is our own oil and we are not paying anybody for our oil supply.

Secondly – when the government scrapes the so called ‘subsidy’ that it did not pay any money for in the first place – it is forcing the rakyat to buy back our own resources at a much higher price. Each and every one of us will suffer because of this, especially the poor.

The hike in oil prices has not caused hardships to our government. On the contrary it has already earned record profits for Petronas. And now our government is going to squeeze even more profits by squeezing the rakyat. Put it bluntly, the Barisan Nasional government will get filthy rich form the blood money of the rakyat.

Now the 56 billion ringgit question. What will the Barisan Nasional government do with the RM56 billion windfall per year? We already suffered a price hike on our petrol almost a year back, and have we seen any accounting on what has been done with the extra money that the government collected? I remembered that there were some talks of using the money to improve our public transport system. But so far I have only heard about the ailing KTM, failing bus companies and government cutting subsidry to Rapid KL.

Don’t you feel suspicious of what is going to happen to this hefty sum of money? RM56 billion is a mind boggling sum of money, it is almost enough to build 5 Putrajaya according to the official figure. The last thing I want to see is for the money to end up in political machines and lining the pockets of politicians and their cronies. I hope our Pakatan Rakyat representatives will see to it that every sen of it is accounted for.

I am not against raising the price of petrol. It is a matter of urgency that we cut our dependency on fossil fuels now as it is the main source of green house gas that is causing havoc in our weather patterns and ecosystems.

Even if global warming and destruction of our ecosystems is not your concern, you still have to consider the fact that crude oil price is not going to come down. Some analysts even projected that crude oil may reach USD 200 per barrel by 2012. Have you asked what is going to happen to our economy when our oil reserves run out in 5 years time?

Don’t you find it amazing that nobody is talking about these pressing issues now? This whole issue about oil subsidy is completely beside the point. The way it was phrased as if it was costing our government a hefty sum of money was completely misleading. The more pertinent point is really how we can best make use of the last of our rapidly depleting resource to safeguard our future. I have not seen any sensible policies regarding this from the Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat camps as yet. It is already sparking riots in many parts of the world, including our close neighbors, and yet nobody here seems to think that we have a problem.

I don’t think we can look towards our government for answers. Our so called ‘leaders’ are engrossed in fighting and bringing each other down, unscrupulously stirring up racial sentiments for their survivals. They never have the track records of putting the interest of the rakyat in the forefront anyway. The whole political scene is simply disgusting and depressing beyond words.

This is the time that ordinary people like you and I have to come forward and take charge. Count ourselves lucky that we have a 5 years grace period to get ready for the end of cheap oil. But we need to make sure that every ounce of our resources is used wisely for the survival of our future generations. That can only happen if we, the rakyat, unite as one single voice to demand for the right things to be done.

There are a lot we can do together, and we are not isolated either. There are already over a million environmental and social justice organizations around the world that we can work with right now. The fisrt step is to realize that we have a problem in hand. This is not just any ordinary problem. What we are facing is a problem of epic proportion that is going to require the cooperation of the whole world.

Demonstration Malacca Style...

the two chiefs (in their own right) discussing terms

YB Sim surrounded by members of the press and media

Malacca Opposition parties and members of the public were very upset with the recent hazy announcement made by the Prime Minister a couple of weeks ago regarding the rising cost of petrol to RM2.70 per litre. As a result of that, two demonstrations and protests were organised by the DAP and PAS separately. DAP had one two weeks ago (pictures above) whereas PAS had theirs today (21st June 2008) (below).

YB Sim and Saudara Sofi exchanged greetings after demonstration

the demo led by Saudara Sofi and Hasbullah

part of the passionate crowd

DAP team

The uniqueness of Pakatan Rakyat

The crowd organised by DAP had more than 100 people at Melaka Sentral excluding state DAP leaders. We were very organised and followed strictly the instruction by the police. We followed the timing of the police. 15 minutes means 15 minutes, no hailer, just a couple of chants and a couple of banner. In fact the police officers commended our very good discipline amongst us (hehe)

Where as today's crowd was more or less between 50-80 people including YB Sim Tong Him (MP Kota Melaka), YB Goh Leong San (ADUN Kesidang), YB Lim Jack Wong (ADUN Bachang), YB Tey Kok Kiew (ADUN Banda Hilir) and myself from the DAP. The rest are from PAS led by Saudara Sofi and Hasbullah Pit @ Sebol. A bit disorganise as we were not sure where the said demonstration were to take place. So it was more of a wait and see. So much so that YB Sim was a little late as he was waiting the other far end from the demonstrating place. Maybe there were lack of communication between everybody.

The difference between the one organised by DAP and PAS is simply this, though their number may be small compared to us in the earlier demonstrations, they (PAS) are definitely a voice that represents the larger majority who are against the recent petrol increase. Though I used to consider them as extremist, but knowing them after the election, they are not extremist but merely passionate like us (DAP).

So there were chants such as "Undur Pak Lah" and "Minyak Turun" amongst others chants with honking of the motorcars and motorcycles passing by us. Speeches were made by the organisers.

I never seen such enthusiast my friends and saudara from PAS. That I must take my hats off to them (Compare to us, one shout and only 10 followed the chants, the rest probably don't know what is going on). So, Good job and BRAVO to my friends from PAS.

I now wonder mana PKR ar....?

Oil Oh Oil...

An excellent piece of work by Humble Voice which I have cut and paste the whole works. Enjoy reading it and you will have at least a bird's eye view on how much oil money to the government. While reading it, I began to have curiosity in my mind as to "mana wang itu"

The Mystery of Our Vanishing Oil Money

When common folks talked about our oil revenues we usually think of Petronas and the government as being the same entity. That was my perception when I wrote my last article: The 56 billion ringgit questions, but little did I suspect that I would have to completely reconsider my understanding almost the moment I posted the article.

I posted the article on 3:45pm June 4, and moments later I received an SMS that petrol price is going to go up. I was about the chuck the SMS away until I logon to Malysiakini and confirmed that the news was true indeed.

I was shocked by the suddenness and quantum of the increase as Najib’s reassurance of no price hike was still fresh in memory, and Shahrir was only hinting of a price adjustment in August the day before. My first reaction was that Pak Lah has just hammered the last nail in his own coffin.

I am not an economist by any means, but I came from a poor family and I have been through the years where every cent counts. It was completely baffling to me why Pak Lah would make such a sharp increase in petrol prices while the whole country was still reeling from the pain of the recent hike in the prices of food and other essential items. The combined effects are going to cause so much hardship to so many people that I seriously doubt Pak Lah is going to survive the fallout of it. And it got me thinking hard...

The Mystery of Our Oil Money

Let’s get back to the mystery of our oil money. After many hours of research and considerations – I came to realize that the relationship between Petronas and the government is much more complicated that it looks on the surface. The two are not the same entity after all; and by some recent announcements I think there could even be open hostilities between them. Read:

• Petronas could go bust by 2018 if all its profits are handed to the Government…
• Petronas should not be made the scapegoat for the fuel price hike

One key understanding is that although Malaysia is a net exporter of crude oil, our products are of very high quality and are primarily for export while we consume lower grade oils that are mainly imported from the Middle East.

While the exploration, production and export our crude oil are handled almost exclusively by Petronas, the import side is a bit more complicated. The importing and retailing of petroleum products are carried out by companies like Shell, Exxon, Petronas, etc. These companies are mandated by the government to sell below cost, thus they are compensated for their losses by the Government in the form of subsidy.

Yes – our government does subsidize our petrol. But it also receives money from Petronas in the form of royalty, taxes and dividends. Petronas is reported to have contributed 52.3 billion ringgit to the government for the financial year ended March 2007.

Is that a fair contribution to the government? I will be eagerly waiting for Petronas supposedly full disclosure. I don’t give much hope that the full disclosure will reveal details like why some big shots get to live like a king with private jet and helicopters, but it should give some basis for some intelligent guess-analysis.

How much is the Government getting from Petronas?


The graph above shows Petronas contribution to the government over the past few years. I plotted it along with the yearly average crude oil price. The yearly contribution was obtained from Hassan Marican interview in RTM1 reported in Guang Ming Daily and the average oil price from EIA. As you can see Petronas contributions go up nicely with the price of crude oil, as most of us would expect.

What will be Petronas contribution for this year? That will be everybody’s guess. Would it be 70 billion? 80 billions? Whatever it is, it seems that Petronas is mightily reluctant to cough out its profits to the government.

How much is the petrol subsidy costing our government?

Our daily crude oil consumption is 501,000 barrels, or 183 million barrels per year. Each barrel is 158 liters, and typically yields 73.8 liters of petrol, diesel and other by products after refining (data from EIA).

Our yearly petroleum consumption is thus:
183 million barrels X 73.8 liters/barrels = 13.5 billion liters.

At the current crude oil price of 130 USD per barrel, the market price is RM 3 per liter for petrol (according to Shahrir).

Our government’s yearly subsidy on petroleum can be calculated as follows. For lack of data I will assume that the cost price of petrol and diesel is the same.

Before Price hike:
The average price of petrol and diesel =
 (RM1.98 + RM1.52) /2 = RM 1.75

Subsidy per liter = RM 3 – RM 1.75 = RM 1.25
Total Subsidy = RM 1.25/liter X 13.5 billion liters = RM 16.9 billion

After Price hike:
Average price of petrol and diesel  =
  (RM 2.7 + RM 2.52) / 2 = RM 2.61
Subsidy per liter = RM 3 – RM 2.61 = RM 0.39
Total Subsidy = RM 0.39/liter X 13.5 billion liters = RM 4.0 billion

What do all these figures means?

Firstly, since Pak Lah took helm, Petronas has contributed RM 146.5 billion to the government. Petronas has been in operation since 1974 and contributed a total of RM 336 billion to the government. Pak Lah’s first 4 years in office received 43.6% of Petronas 35 years of total contributions. It is more than what Mahathir received in 20 years, inflation adjusted. And it does not even include this year’s contributions!

Is your reaction that of disbelieve? Are you wondering where have all these money gone to?

Mahathir is known for his opulence and extravagance and have created monsters like Twin Towers and F1 circuits to match his distorted ego. But what have Pak Lah done that is worthy of being mentioned? To give you a perspective, it costs RM 11 billion to build Putrajaya, and the order of RM 20 billion to build all our toll roads. Whatever happened to this mind boggling 147 billion ringgit? It seems to have just vanished in thin air. Something must be seriously wrong somewhere.

Now the 56 billions petrol subsidy quoted by Shahrir. My own calculations indicate that it should cost the government RM 16.9 billion. My calculations do not include subsidy for gas, but would it amounts to the RM 39 billions difference? Either my calculations are completely wrong or Shahrir is bullshitting. I would appreciate if somebody can verify my calculations.

My calculations show that with RM 52.3 billion contribution from Petronas the government should still be making a net profit of RM 30+ billions. And the recent price hike is going to bring extra RM 17 billions to Pak Lah’s coffer. Is it conscionable for the government to make such an obscene amount of money at the expense of such widespread suffering of the people?

I am shock beyond words by what I discovered today. The level of corruption and mismanagement by the Barisan Nasional government is way way beyond than my wildest imagination. It sickens and disgusts me to the point that I just want to cast the whole Barisan Nasional government to hell right away. Right now I will not hesitate for a moment to lend my support for Pakatan Rakyat to step in to take over the government.

Do I believe that Anwar is able to bring down the price of petrol and give Sabah and Sarawak 20% oil royalty? I have no doubt that he can, if he managed to gain back the control of the oil money. I do not agree with his oil policy, but that's a separate issue altogether. At least with Pakatan Rakyat there is hope that ordinary people like us is able to participate to bring about the right changes.

This is the time for us all to wake up. If the level of suffering and darkness of the current moment is not enough to wake you up, I don’t know what will.

Look who is suffering now? We all are. Does the 50 years of racial politics bring about the supremacy of any race? I hope our sad state of affairs is convincing enough to show us that racial politics can not work. It never will.

We have to forget about race, religion and other trivial differences and stand united as one. This is the time to exercise our collective power, our makal shakti, this is the only strength that we have to cast out the slime bag power mongers that are hell bent to destroy each other and bringing down the whole country with them.

A Gloomy Day....

Below are articles taken from the Star, and are real life people trying hard to meet end's need for the family. Earning RM3,000.00 in big KL is a no joke. I was told that many now going back to their home town to work. Some depend on God, some depend on extra job, some cut cost, cut entertainment and food, cut extra curriculum activities, some probably cut college or university. So is that what the government is askingher rakyat to change it's lifestyle.

And sadly, the federal government is not doing what it preach. :(

A gloomy day ahead...

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PETALING JAYA: With three school-going children, housewife Joyce Tay is “depending on God” to make ends meet as her household income of RM3,000 is no longer sufficient.

Her children attend three different schools located distances apart in Penang, which adds to her burden.

The 47-year-old said her household expenses usually exceeded income, and her technician husband had to work extra hours to offset the rising cost of living.

“The last time petrol prices were increased we had to cut down on unnecessary items and be more thrifty. And with the latest increase in prices of fuel and foodstuff, there is nothing left for us to cut down on,” lamented Tay.

On average, Tay said she gave RM300 in monthly allowances to her children, with another RM500 or more spent on groceries and several hundred ringgit on utility bills.

As for petrol consumption, the family's previous usage amounted to RM500 per month, which has now increased drastically.

“We’ve cut down on usage of electricity and water, and even eating out now is rare.

“Sadly, I’m also forced to tell my children to cut down on their extra-curricular activities after school hours because we can’t afford to travel so often,” she added.

As for her eldest child who is in Upper Six, Tay expressed concern in not being able to finance her tertiary education.

“There is difficulty in managing the household income. My daughter will have to go to college or university soon.

“We truly have to depend on God to help us,” she said.

Inflation is also affecting insurance sales executive Nicholas Sage, who complained that there was “no quality of life” for his family.

“Whatever we earn, we are just spending it to run our lives. We are always in debt,” said the 37-year-old, adding that their monthly expenses worked out to almost RM9,000.

He and his bank executive wife, Tina Matthews, 35, who earn a combined income of RM6,000 per month, have three primary school-going children.

ANOTHER....

PETALING JAYA: At 5pm sharp every day, clerk Badrishah Bani, 43, rushes off from his office to start his second job – as a petrol station attendant.

Being the sole breadwinner of his family, Badrishah said he had no choice but to take up another job to make ends meet, following the increase in petrol prices.

The father of three said on average, the total household expenditure was RM100 or more per day.

“With RM3,000, how is it possible to pay for everything?” he said.

He said his previous RM500 expenditure on groceries per month had increased by at least 20%.

“Although essential items such as chicken and vegetables have gone up by only a couple of sen, it still accounts for a lot of money accumulatively,” said Badrishah.

However, he has refuses to cut down on his food bill, as he believed there should always be food on the table.

All entertainment and holidays for his family have been put on hold to ensure there was sufficient pocket money for his children, two of whom are studying.

On loan repayments for his car and house, Badrishah said this alone took up RM850, while another RM1,000 was spent on household utility bills.

Meanwhile, a single mother has resorted to setting up a stall selling breakfast near her house in Cheras since the fuel price increase.

The mother of three, who only wanted to be known as Mary, said she had to wake up at 4am to start preparing the food to be sold.

Her 25-year-old daughter, who earns RM800 a month working as a part-time waitress, helps her out at the stall.

Previously, Mary only relied on the RM680 from her husband’s pension.

Will there be Cost Cutting in Malacca?

Terengganu EXCO did just that, i.e. cost cutting (read here). Federal Government also did that albeit only 10%, I now wonder whether Malacca State EXCO will just do that. It's only 10%. It does not pinch either.

But then again, Malacca is spending lots of money for all type of construction namely, Eye of Malaysia oops Malacca, Theme Park somewhere in Klebang, Menara Berputar, Beautifying Malacca River, so call Medical Hub (I believe this is at 'perancangan' stage), Go Kart (somewhere out there), and lots more... all what I call at projek Melaka Mega. And yes not forgetting some Putrajaya type of construction that will cover a huge area in MITC. Here goes the million and million of ringgit.

Two issues I wonder:-

(a) Whether our State Government do likewise to heed the call by the Federal Government.
(b) How much is our state debt as at to date?

Any answers?

Melaka Bandaraya Unfair

Looks like the Eye is really coming to Melaka. It was reported in the Star today, a ground breaking ceremony performed none other than Ketua Menteri.

How much?
I was informed that it will cost about RM43 million.

Whose money?
You and I, not Ketua Menteri.

Where will it be located?
At Kota Laksamana, kawasan DAP pulak. PutLAH at your own constituency in Bukit Baru.

Further to that, there will be a mariner close by that cost about RM24 million project. Not forgetting the Menara Berputar that cost a walloping over RM20 million of our money.

With all the attractions, Malacca will one day change to Melaka Bandaraya Unfair. Not funfair. I seriously don't know what is our Ketua Menteri is up to, changing Historical Malacca to a major theme park. I think what our state government should do is to preserve and conserve the historical site instead of making it a laughing piece for all. Why don't make Malacca rich by preserving it's historical and cultural richness for all to see. Malacca is indeed blessed by who and what we are. And nobody can change that.

So why don't the state government used the money to improve the roads, drainage, public transport and mitigate flood that is very rampant in little Malacca.

I thought that the Federal Government intending to curb expenditure, but this little Malacca state government never seems to understand.

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By MARTIN CARVALHO

MALACCA: The state’s RM40mil Eye on Malaysia project will include several features to make it a one of its kind tourist attraction.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam said besides the ferris wheel, there would also be a 90m water screen and entertainment rides.

He said the project was being carried out under a 60-40 joint-venture between Kumpulan Melaka Berhad (KMB) and current operators of the Eye On Malaysia, MST AD Suria Sdn Bhd.

"The 60m ferris wheel is scheduled to arrive here in September and operational by Oct 18,” he told reporters after officiating the groundbreaking ceremony here on Monday.

Mohd Ali said a month of festivities along the Malacca River would be held to announce the Eye’s move from Taman Tasik Titiwangsa to its permanent home at a 2ha site at the Kota Laksamana coastline next to a RM24mil marina project.

Once operational, he said the ferris wheel is expected to attract 700,000 visitors in a year.

How to Change Our Ways

I received an e-mail here from a friend. Though I have read this earlier, I thought I may want to post it here. IT seems hilarious but it is true. An average income of each family is RM3,000.00. That depends on whether one is working and the other is not OR a combine salary of all both husband and wife of RM3,000.00. Mind you, that many families monthly income does not even reach RM3,000.00.

"Okay, let's start rolling with a family which has
Papa, Mama, 1 daughter and 1 son. Ngam-ngam ....

Calculation starts...

Electricity and water bill: RM100 (not forgetting that electricity tariff will be up soon)
(No air-con, No home theatre, No water heater ... ok?)

Phone bill (Telekom): RM50

Meals for a happy family: RM775 (maybe got to be lesser)
(3 meals on RM25/day, RM25 for 4 persons...?)

Car repayment: RM400 (that is because it is a Proton)
(A proton saga aeroback, 7 years repayment)

Petrol (living in city, traffic-jam): RM300 (that is because it is a Proton)
(go to work, bring son to school, only can afford one car running)

Insurance: RM650
(kids, wife and myself)

House repayment: RM750
(low cost housing repayment for 30 yrs,retired still have to work to pay!)

Tuition: RM80
(got that cheap meh? i don't think so)

Older children pocket money @ school: RM20
(RM1/day, eat bread?)

School fees: RM30
(enough ah?)

School books and etc: RM100
(always got extra to pay in school)

Younger children milk powder: RM50
(cannot have the DHA, BHA, PHA one, expensive)

Miscellaneous: RM100
(shampoo, rice, sauce, toilet paper)

Oh wait!!! I have to stop here, so...
No Astro, no movie @ cinema,
no DVD, no CD,
no broadband,
cannot KFC, cannot McDonald,
cannot go Park walk during weekend (petrol expensive),
no chit chat on phone with grandparents, and etc...

Let's use a calculator to total up... WALAO EH! Shit! RM3,405 already...
EPF belum potong, income tax lagi........

How to survive lah tuan-tuan dan puan-puan sekalian ???
Our Deputy Prime Minister asked us to change lifestyle?
How to change? Don't eat? Don't work? Don't send children to school and study?

Besides that, I believe in Malaysia population, there are millions of rakyat Malaysia which still don't earn RM3,000/month! !!

What is this? Inilah Malaysia Boleh... sorry .... it should be Malaysians Boleh because we're still alive and kicking!!

Our politicians must be mad!!!! "
Please forward and comment boleh or tak boleh. No wonder so many Ah Loong around lah....

Who Sould We Compare, Singapore or Saudi Arabia?

I cut and paste from the Star the comment by Opposition Leader, Datin Sri Dr Wan Azizah regarding the recent fuel hike. She did a good one by comparing the difference of petrol prices
of exporting country such as United Arab Emirates (UAE) where the price is RM1.19 per litre, Egypt (RM1.03), Kuwait (67sen), Saudi Arabia (38sen), Nigeria (32sen) and Venezuela (16sen).

She also say that the government is ridiculous in comparing with non exporting countries like Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia.

She also commented that the fuel price hike is "disappointing and unacceptable"and the effects of the increase would be seen in the increase of consumer goods.

Well I am not just worried about consumer goods, what about the rise in diesel of RM1.00 more. This certainly has an impact on raw materials such as the building industry.

And what can the government do? Asking us to change our lifestyle. What? Maybe we should all cycle bicycles.

Not August Meh?

This is what happen when you have a sudden announcement on the petrol hike in Malaysia. Adakah Kerajaan ini berjiwa RAKYAT? And I damn thought that it was in August. Thank God that I ignorantly pumped full tank this afternoon.

this one at Petronas in Cheng. Jauh lagi, at least a kilometre.

this one is Caltex

Can you see the shell logo? Cars queuing for petrol

welcome to Shell

Sometimes I wonder why are we so stupid in voting Barang Naik every time when the general election is called. CORRECTION, half of MALAYSIANS are so stupid. So much so that because of this half, it affects the majority.

AND what you have BARANG NAIK.

So to all Malaysians, CONGRATULATIONS FOR VOTING BARISAN NASIONAL.

There are more to come...

Price Hike in August? Part 2

Twinkle, twinkle, Malaysia,

How I wonder how you are!

Up and above RM2.70 so high,

Like a diamond in the sky!

Twinkle, twinkle, Malaysia,

How I wonder how you are!

Nah it is all wrong. 5th June 2008 12am. The day where all are waiting and it has come to past. The rise is 0.80 cents and that totalled to RM2.70.

What we have campaigned during the election is true. I wonder why can't the Government through Petronas do something for a better Malaysia. I mean logically, if price went up, do you think at the end of the day Petronas will continue to profit.

Price Hike in August?

Yup that was what the Minister is saying. Are we ready for the coming hike in August? It is now in everybody's mind, how much will it cost? Now per litre is RM1.92. Will it go up by RM2.20? Some say RM2.50. Be that as it may, it will definitely past the RM2.00 mark. There goes an economic turmoil.

Boleh tahan ke?

Will it take Another 50 years?

YB Salahuddin Ayub (MP for Kubang Kerian) says it's ok with the present school uniforms from an Islamic perspective. Sense and maturity prevails over lack of understanding and emotional outburst. Nevertheless an atmosphere to agree to disagree on issues.

Malaysians lack openness and maturity in debating and talking issues that are sensitive such as race relations, religious tolerance and even difference in ideology. Though we have with us a small issue on school uniform, I know and everyone here knows that there other bigger and hotter issues that are still under the rock. Time can only tell when it will explode. As such it is of importance a detailed and open discussion on those matters.

As such I am all for an open discussion and forums so that Malaysians of all walk of live can have a dialogue. But as far as I can see, this will take another 50 years.

©News Straits Times (Used by permission)

KUALA LUMPUR: The baju kurung worn by schoolgirls is not sexy, Pas said yesterday.

Pas Youth chief Salahuddin Ayub said there was no problem with the present school uniforms from an Islamic perspective.

"As long as the baju kurung is tailored according to the traditional interpretations of the garment and not too tightly, I don't see any problem," he said.

On Wednesday, National Islamic Students Association of Malaysia vice-president Munirah Bahari reportedly said the school uniform worn by schoolgirls was sexy.

Her comments caused a furore among teachers, students as well as various women groups, who said that her claims were baseless.

Munirah said: "The white blouse is too transparent and it becomes a source of attraction", and that it could encourage "rape, sexual harassment and even premarital sex".

Salahuddin said, however, said it was unlikely that the school uniform contributed to such social ills.

"Cases of rape and free sex are not caused by one or two simple factors. Teenagers today are exposed to all kinds of influences, including all sorts of pornographic material because of the borderless nature of information."

Blackout in Duyong Part 2

A candlelight dinner for two in Duyong. Very romantic just for everybody who stays at the vicinity of Semabok Dalam right to Family Store at Duyong. Especially the month of May, three times deep blackout. Either everybody in Duyong fail to pay their electric bills on time or a power tripped due to unforeseen circumstances. Well that is what our TNB boys will always singing the same tune once when there is a blackout.

Yes, again the same ole same. The fifth blackout in Duyong after the general elections. I am wondering whether are we living in the 21st century or at zaman batu purba where we used fire to light up our gua. But what da hack.... Malaysia Boleh.

Now let me put up the dates for all to see...

23rd March 2008
21st April 2008
15th May 2008
18th May 2008
19th May 2008

May must be a hantu month for Duyong. Oi Gan Tian Lu, can do something ar? Sudah jadi YB and exco dah diam kah? Apa ni? Sorak sikit kepada TNB lah. Or at least somebody must face the sack. This is too much. School children is taking their exams. College students are also taking their exams. So pleaseLAH do something.

Blackout in Duyong

Dear me or rather Dear Orang Duyong. This is the four blackout in Duyong after the general election. I have just received a sms replied that the electricity came back at about 11.05pm. I was told the blackout started from 8.00pm. Unfortunately for the folks in Duyong, this is the fourth times and that it happened almost at the same timing. The last blackout was just a couple of days ago. What can I say Malaysia Boleh!

Lepas 50 tahun kemerdekaan we are still living in jungles with such lame excuse that the electricity tripped. I seriously cannot believed that 4 blackout in less than two months. This is utterly nonsense for Melaka Bandaraya Bersejarah.

Duyong would mean that the blackout is from Semabok Dalam to Family Store in Duyong.

Flood in Melaka

Tok Sidang & YB Sim was seen talking about some matters relating to accommodation for the night in a school nearby but was told that the keys were not with him. I was seen carrying the umbrella.

The Chief Minister's wife of Penang came to see the flood situation

YB Sim demonstrating how deep

This is how bad in Durian Daun Dalam

I just came back from Durian Daun Dalam at about 2.30am. I got to apologised for my early exit as I got to prepare three cases tomorrow. Anyway three YBs (YB Sim Tong Him, YB Goh Leong San and YB Betty Chew) were around to make sure that the Kebajikan guys really do their job and not just sandiwara it.

I am certainly not happy with what happen late Tuesday and at the wee hours of Wednesday morning. I, together with our YBs stayed with the people after a down pour in almost every part of Malacca. I must say many places within the constituencies of Kota Melaka flooded. Yes it was really bad. The place I was at, the flood was slightly above my knee. Among other the places are Pengkalan Rama Dalam, Durian Daun Dalam, Semabok Dalam, Kota Laksamana, Kampung 7, Lorong Bukit Cina, Banda Hilir and as far as Masjid Tanah.

DAP Melaka Legal will be looking at the matter closely and to possibly identify a course of action against any individual, corporation or even the state government for fault lies solely on the negligence of the state. As such I'm serving this NOTICE to everybody that may be involved in the matter.