Now as the election draws near, we can see that the present government seems to be more and more desperate to please the people and show that they are really the right parties leading the country, from FELDA windfall, to huge tourism development plan, 5 years development plan to develop the orang asli (indigenous people).
Is it a coincidence that all this so call plan came about after it was speculated that the Government will be calling for a General Election either in June or September this year? For image polishing purposes perhaps?
Fortunately, only idiots, the uneducated and those with political connections will fall for this ploy again. And with the mainstream media spreading the propagandas’ of the ruling government (not surprising since they are own by the component parties) Vs the track record of the government, the opposition party should have more than enough bullet to help them clinch majority of the votes in the Peninsula Malaysia area. Why I say only the Peninsula Malaysia? That I will explain at the end of this article.
Now if I were to stand for election, here are a few rebuttals I will have for what is being reported in the newspaper.
Lynas at Gebeng, Pahang
Now, no matter how safe the government say the rare earth processing plant will be, what benefit is may bring to this country? With a pioneer status and a 12 year tax exemption, the company is not contributing the government official coffers. And with a staggering RM 2.5Billion building cost, how much is really spent on facilities? Others?
For 450 new jobs (not too sure how many to real locals), is it worth all the risks? Especially at such close proximity to population area? This rare earth plant is situated near to fishing village and the town ofKuantanwhich have half a million residents. Yes, our “beloved” PM say that they will not let Lynas operate if the government didn’t deem it safe, is that the same promise made on the MRR2 highway which saw cracks appearing after the grand opening? How about the collapse of the roof of the New Terengganu Stadium? Remember our lovely new KL court complex which cost RM290mil of the tax payer’s money?
Just before the official opening on May 3, 2 ceiling panels collapsed together with some lights
May 7th 2007
Cracks measuring 3m wide began appearing outside Magistrate’s court 4
Air-conditioning in one of the High Courts malfunctioned
May 9th 2007
Blackout
24th May 2007
Faulty pipe burst left cafeteria floor flooded in about 7cm of water
24th June
Portion of the ceiling collapsed in the cafeteria at the basement floor due to another burst pipe
14th September 2010
Flooding at Criminal High Court 2 on the fifth floor
Now the above is just to highlight a few incidents through the years. I’m sure all those buildings have gotten the approval seal of the respective government and agencies, and then we have Lynas at Gebeng. Imagine if one of the containment tanks suffers the same design and construction flaws, broke down, and radiation starts to leak out?
We already experience it once before many years back, but I guess the government just never learns especially when they are desperate for cash.
Malaysia’s last rare earth refinery was operated by Japanese company Mitsubishi Chemical, which is nowAsia’s largest radioactive waste cleanup site. Although close in 1992, the effect of the carcinogen is still being seen today.
So with all these, one can see that when one say something is up to Malaysian Environmental standard, you better be afraid, be very afraid, because that standard is set by our government which have a “fantastic” track record so far.
Investments in our country are of course always welcome, as it will help push us to being a developed nation, but if that investment might endanger lives and pollute a whole eco system, especially when it’s so near to populated area, then I rather reject it as there are still plenty of opportunities out there.
Speculation is also rife out there that the government is trying to delay the decision or any concrete action on the Lynas issue until after the election because:
If they won the election, then they will be in control for another 5 years and can do whatever they want with anything.
If they lose the election, then the responsibility will be on the new government which I’m sure despite how much they want to reverse the TOL decision given by the current government, it will not be easy, as there are bound to be some contract already signed and compensation clause if and when the contract is not follow through, and when the new government get sued by Lynas Corp, the then opposition parties (current government) will have a field day and extra “bullets” at their disposal.
What can we do then?
Be more proactive
Educate more people about this issue
Pressure Lynas to show concrete proof of all the safety measure taken and it’s contingency plan
Get the government to be more transparent on their dealing with Lynas
Who was the initiator?
Who was the point man in getting this project toMalaysia.
Was there any kickbacks? If yes, how much? To Whom?
More to come on the next article on Political rebuttal series
Proton. Why do we need Proton? Is it so that we Malaysians can have a sense of pride, knowing that we have a national car?
Do we really need a national car to make us feel more Malaysian? Does buying a local manufactured car make us more patriotic?
Do you know, that one of the reason why foreign cars inMalaysiaare so expensive because of the tax. Look at the below table taken from the Malaysia Automotive Association.
And now to show you an example on how ridiculous this is. If I were to sell my 2nd hand 2 years+ Honda City, with that money, I can go to US and buy a brand new SUV with some spare change in the pocket.
The reason behind the high tax? Besides the additional revenue to the government, it’s meant to shield Proton from competition. I agree, when Proton initially launch, this “shield” was needed, in order to help and give a chance to a new company and national icon to grow from its infancy stage. That was 1983. It’s 2012 now, 29 long years. Why are we still erecting a shield around it? In my opinion, if a company which has been around for 29 years, yet it cannot stand on its own feet and fight a fair battle, then this company should not be around, especially not at the expenses of the people or rakyat.
Like many other examples in Malaysia, I personally think this protectionism way of doing things instead of bringing good, have actually made some people or company complacent, living in their own tiny world, where there is no actual competition, these people do not know how to innovate and be creative in order to compete, thus the lousy products.
Do you know what Proton is most famously described among the people?
Cars that are made out of Milo(milk powder) tin
Power windows that never worked.
Air Condition that follows the outside climate. When the weather is hot, the air con is hot, when its cold, the air con is cold.
Last but not least, high fuel consumption especially the Proton Waja and crappy safety equipment.
It’s a car of last resort, force on to the people. InMalaysia, with crappy public transportation system, the people are force to drive. And with the low wages and high car prices, people are FORCE to buy local car.
We are always amaze when some foreign car company can design a car that is so nice and elegant, but we are equally amaze with the people in Proton, being able to design a car that is worst than their predecessor. In daily coffee sessions, you can probably hear people joked about the conversation Proton Engineers and designers are assumed to have every morning.
Employee: “Hey Boss, what are our tasks today”
Supervisor: “Let’s see how we can make this design even worst”
What so call Lotus technology and great CamPro engine used in the newer generation Proton cars are all pure and utter nonsense. Put it next to a Honda City (one of the lowest end model of Honda) and Proton will eat dust every time.
10 out of 10 people that I’ve asked would not buy a local car if they have a choice.
Now, some of you might say I’m profiling, criticizing Proton because it’s a local company. But you are so wrong. I have actually liked the design of a Proton model before, which is the Proton Satria NEO, a sporty 2 door coupe with so call Lotus technology. The outside look pretty decent, but the moment you open the door, all expectation just got shot down, that’s even though the expectation bar have already been set to the extreme low in your mind.
All made out of cheap looking plastics, and worst of all is the gear stick. And don’t get me started on the steering wheel. I’m not sure where Proton gets their ideas from, but I can definitely tell you it’s not from the elegant world. It was such a turn off.
Proton Holdings Bhd just announced its Q3 results (http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/3/1/business/10833236&sec=business#13305632568931&if_height=728) a whopping net loss of RM 88.2 mil compare to RM 68.1 mil in the previous corresponding quarter. Imagine, even with all the foreign brands car’s elbow being band behind their backs, Proton still did so badly. So why should we the people or rakyat suffer because of the incompetence of the people running the company.
There’s a phrase. “If you want someone to learn how to swim, you throw that person into the sea, when faced with a life and death situation, they will automatically pick that skill up and learn how to survive”
That’s what I think our local national car companies need. Take away the entire protective layer around them, let them compete fairly, and when faced with the dire situation, they will automatically improve themselves and start churning out good products. It’s only with competition that one will be force to improve.
What if they don’t? Well then, they should just dig their own grave and cover themselves up. But look at the bright side, at least the people or rakyat will be able to live their life happier, at least then they will be able to buy good quality car at the real international market price.
Everytime I see the logo or phrase, I feel a distaste forming in my mouth. It’s not that I don’t like the notion all races living in harmony, I’m all for that. I actually have some close friends which are from different race. What I don’t like, is the real purpose of it. To me it’s pure government propaganda campaign.
Anyone care to think, why we need this 1Malaysia thing in the first place. If you ask your parents, are if you are from that generation, you will know that, during that period, Malaysian of all races are living together in REAL harmony. People can openly talk and joke about so call “sensitive” issues.
However, in recent years, thanks to a certain political group, or rights group link to political group, the divide in society seem to be quite obvious, especially with a certain key media reporting about it, “fanning” it up. But is the situation that bad? I still chat and mingle with my Malay and Indian friends really well. We still joke about things. But some how, everytime a certain “word” or “issue” was uttered by the WRONG person, then BOOM…. the world go upside down.
Street Protest. The person get condemn publicly or on social media. Threatening letter, sometimes even containing live bullet sent to that person’s house.
Don’t you think since the launch of this 1Malaysia thing, instead of bringing Malaysians together, it’s actually tearing them apart? Less racial tolerance? Especially from a certain party of people?
Still remember the infamous statement by our MP? Labeling the Chinese and Indians? How about our “beloved” head of Perkasa and his “lovely” interview with Al-Jazeera? What a shameful day forMalaysiaand a slap in the face for Malaysians.
So ask yourself this, what benefit have the 1Malaysia slogan really brought to you? 1Malaysia… 1Malaysia… 1Malaysia…1Malaysia… everywhere you go, you see 1Malaysia… 1Malaysia Meal, 1Malaysia Shop, 1Malaysia Clinic, 1Malaysia Unit Trust Scheme, Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia (BR1M) etc. Are all really necessary or sustainable? Through taxes? Only a small percentage of people pay taxes inMalaysia. Or is itjust an act/PR initiative to bluff the uneducated or soften up the people, gaining their hearts for the election due soon. 1 example, Still remember when Najib introduce the 1Malaysian Meal, and say his meal cost only RM 3 and our “smart” PM actually believe that. :S
Wao… his even more detached from the real reality of Malaysia Society than we ever could have imagine. The moment the pictures came up, smart readers started bombarding it. And finallly it was admitted to be at least double that price!!! What a sham!!! More propaganda.
Have you ever ask yourself, if we are really 1Malaysia… then why we still have to tick our race when we fill up forms. Shouldn’t all race be ONE? Why are there still people asking Chinese to go back toChina? Or when people complain aboutMalaysia, they are ask to just leaveMalaysia?
It’s actually also quite laughable when some folks keep emphasizing how we 3 main enthic group are able to live in one country and prosper, and they say it likeMalaysiais the only one that achieve that. But HELLO????? have you seen other countries like theUS? They have even more different enthic groups living together.
So as I said, what a bunch of bull and propoganda.
Phew, it seems that I’ve been absent from my writing for some time.
The reason for that was because I was trying to work with the governement to collaborate on some projects that can be really beneficial to the society and the country as a whole. So I decided to refrain from commenting too much, looking at the big picture, hopping to increase the chances of callaboration.
But I guess it didn’t work out as plan, thus there’s no point in experessing my opinion freely on my own terms again.
No, this acronym is not used to describe the Military Alliance that most people would know of.
No, this term is used to describe the favorite past time of a large number of politicians and also government promises.
NATO stands for No Action Talk Only.
That being said, thank god not all politicians are like that and some are even frustrated about the empty promises by their counterpart and decided to stand out and stand up to do something. Something, that hopefully will be able to bring the country forward. That person is former Minister and President of MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association) party, Member of Parliament (Pandan) Dato Seri Ong Tee Keat.
Another sad day in Malaysia as I receive news of a clear cut case of road bullying and internet bullying. What was even more sad was it happened to my cousin.
On the 4th of June 2010, an initially great night turn into a pure nightmare. What happen? Here’s the story. The real story.
What a disgrace, what an utter disgrace. I don’t remember a time when I feel ever more ashamed to call myself a Malaysian. In response to the Israeli raid on a ship carrying aid to blockaded Palestinians in Gaza that killed at least 10 people on Monday, our governing party Barisan National’s Youth chief and Umno (The Dominating Malay Party) Youth Chief Khairy Jamaluddin, MP Rembau led 300 of his followers, along side MIC Youth Chief T.Mohan and a number of representative from various NGO’s burned 3 Israeli Flags, after stomping on it, right in front of the United Nations building today.
To all you chaps out there that didn’t had the chance to came upon this news, the official number of Malaysians that migrated for the year 2008 – 2009 is 300,000 and it’s rising. If I’m not mistaken, those are only the numbers for Malaysian migrating to western country. Taiwan, Singapore, China etc have yet to be calculated inside.
That can’t be true you say. Well, it’s true at least for the people around me.
This was in my mailbox sent by a friend yesterday. Some of you not from Malaysia must be wondering “Come On, this must be someone exaggerating some petty issues”, but sad to say, to many Malaysian’s, all those mention above hit a spot very close to home.
Fresh graduates and everyday Malaysians are finding it tougher and tougher to make ends meet. The salary has not change much compare to the days of our parents but the inflation however has gone up considerably. No longer can we get a bowl of noodles at 50 sens like our parent’s days. A plate of noodle cost around RM 4 – 5 now, and RM 2 for a drink. I remember getting a shock when I was billed RM 3.5 for a cup of Neslo (Nescafe + Milo) and it was at a hot and sweaty coffee shop and when you complaint about life in Malaysia, usually your foreign friend will say “oh, but your food is cheap”…. RIGHTTTT… CHEAPPPP…
Gordon Brown bow out gracefully to David Cameron in a peaceful handover of the PM post. Will Malaysia be like that if the Opposition gain power during the next election? I hope so, but looking at how the BN took control of Perak after Opposition already form the state government, the odds are not good.
I’m a outspoken person, and this page enable me to channel that energy into giving my opinions on current issues and how I think somethings can be done better. Our world is in a terrible state, and many of our previous generations people have failed us, the future caretaker of the world. Look at the multiple crisis we are facing due to the iresponsible act of a few. Through this page, hopefully we can reach out to the masses, telling them what is really happening around them & why they should care. If there are any inquiries, pls email me at kenling86@gmail.com
