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Sunday, August 30, 2009

Program Bumi Hijau





YB Dr Leong dan saya dengan kerjasama Jabatan Pertanian Kuala Muda juga telah mengadakan Program Bumi Hijau ini pada sebelah petang di Taman Makmur, Gurun. Para peserta dari Taman Makmur, Padang Lembu dan kawasan-kawasan berdekatan telah juga di beri taklimat oleh Pn Khoo (Jabatan Pertanian) dan menerima kit pertanian Bumi Hijau sama seperti di Pekan Jeniang pada sebelah pagi. Sekali lagi, peserta-peserta terdiri daripada berbilang kaum.
Terimakasih saya ucapkan kepada Ketua Cawangan Taman Makmur, Sdr Jamil dan AJKnya, AJK Surau, AJK MCA Padang Lembu, Jabatan Pertanian dan pegawai-pegawai saya yang amat banyak membantu.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Program Bumi Hijau


Pada 13 Ogos 2009, YB Dr Leong dan saya telah menanjurkan satu program bersama dengan kerjasama dari Jabatan Pertanian Kuala Muda di dewan Kaum Tiong Hua,Pekan Jeniang dan Taman Makmur. Program Bumi Hijau (pertanian) ini adalah untuk menggalakkan para peserta untuk menanam sayur-sayuran di sekeliling rumah untuk mengurangkan kos sara hidup mereka selain memastikan mereka mendapat sayur-sayuran segar disekeliling rumah untuk dimasak. Setiap seorang peserta diberi benih sayur-sayuran, baja organik, racun serangga, penyodok dan pencakar untuk memulakan kebu di tepi rumah.

Alhamdulillah, ramai yang telah menyahut pelaksanaan Program Bumi Hijau ini. Saya juga amat berbangga kerana ketua-ketua cawangan UMNO dan MCA telah bekerjasama dengan baik untuk mendapatkan peserta-peserta dari pelbagai kaum terutamanya Melayu, Cina, India dan Siam.
Moga kita dapat menjalankan program-program sebegini rupa yang merangkumi pelbagai kaum dengan lebih banyak lagi pada masa hadapan.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Who will lose his "Ong" - Ong or Tiong

This posting is written with my greatest respect to both the YBs involved.

I could not believe my ears when I heard about the PKFZ scandal. It is an embarrassment to the Government and a black mark on the politcians, civil servants and all those directly involved in the PKFZ scandal. It is so big that I am surprised it took this long for the authorities to act. However, I thought to myself, better late than never. I am very happy and relieved that the authorities are taking action, investigating and making sure no stones are left unturned. Even the Dewan Rakyat Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is taking action and calling the parties involved to give explanations on the matter.

I must commend all parties for the pro-active stance taken and hope this will lead to many questions answered and those who wilfully and intentionally did wrong, punished. I have to say there seems to be new vigour and resolute from the authorities including MACC and PAC to investigate and act on the matter.

However, I am appalled and embarrassed by the Ong and Tiong drama which is playing out right in front of our eyes, It is downright silly and brings shame to Dewan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional. The behaviour is totally unbecoming of the offices they hold (Ong - MP, Minister and Head of MCA, Tiong - MP, BBNBBC Chairman and Sec Gen of SPDP). I wonder, apart from personal pride and ego, if they think what their actions are doing for BN and Parliament in general.

How can the rakyat and even their counterparts from other countries respect them if this drama continues and gets worse? Either way, the way things are going with claims of RM10 million changing hands and lawsuits of RM500 million, the case would end up with a finding that one person is lying and has to go, no two ways about that.

The BN whip should call both of them up and tell these two to keep quiet - argue privately and not air their "opinions" and "allegations" in public. Probably the PAC or even the committee in charge of MP behaviour should haul them up and reprimand them.

If you ask me who will win and lose, my personal opinion now is that both of them will lose, one way or other. And it will be very sad if that happens as these two individuals are actually good people and have done a lot for Malaysia.

To both of them, my personal plea is for them to stop all the squabbling publicly, sit down and sort it out for the sake of Rakyat and BN. Let's do work for the Rakyat.

Let's keep the Dewan Rakyat and its members as a place the Rakyat can be proud of and can respect.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Buka Puasa

I broke fast with a group of good old friends yesterday at a hotel in KL. It is practically an annual affair that some of us will meet up every puasa to break fast together. The good part of it is that not only the malay friends who fasted would be around, my friends from other races would also join us for the breaking of fast and to catch up with each other.

It was truly multi racial and embodied the spirit of multiracialism. Even my Chinese and Indian friends, who did not fast, waited for the ‘Azan’ before having a drink and eat with the rest who fasted. Tempting as it was with all the food and drinks were in front of them, I was happy and respected them more for respecting our religious requirements.

However, whilst waiting for the Azan and chatting between us, we could see that several other Malaysians who did not fast, were making rounds after rounds to the buffet spread and eating whilst others waited patiently. I was actually observing one family closely and could not believe that they managed two to three rounds at the buffet table before the rest of us broke fast. Needless to say, my non-malay friends were terribly embarrassed. Someone also made the remark that it was as though we were eating their leftovers. An awkward moment for all of us as we saw them attacking the buffet table and eating in front of us.

I am happy that non-Malays also enjoy the Buka Puasa buffet spread as much as those who fast. I am also very happy that Malaysia’s unique multiracialism society is still strong and continues to be a strength to the country. I would however like to suggest that all Hotels make it a rule that those who attend Buka Puasa buffets can only eat when the Azan is heard, not before. You can take your food before that but only start eating and drinking when everyone else does. That would be a simple but a very worthy act of courtesy to those who fast. From my experience and interaction with them, I am also sure that our foreign tourists, once explained to them the significance of the Buka Puasa buffet, would appreciate it and have no problems following the guideline.

Our country is blessed with multi ethnicity and multi faiths. It is a strength, not a weakness. But it is up to us, the sons and daughters of Malaysia to continuously build on this strength, failing which it shall be a time bomb waiting to explode.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

ISU PAS DAN BEER PART II

Saya berasa amat tertarik dengan komen Saudara/i Ezani didalam posting mengenai gesaan PAS Selangor dan arak. Saya ingin mengucapkan ribuan terimakasih atas komen tersebut kerana memang saya inginkan maklumbalas yang konstruktif daripada semua.

Izinkan saya tambah sedikit lagi berdasarkan apa yang telah ditulis oleh Ezani. Saudara/i Ezani telah mengatakan bahawa jikalau Datuk Hassan Ali ada menyatakan bahawa jikalau Cina dan India hendak minum juga arak, mereka boleh beli jauh –jauh. Itulah yang saya katakan, untuk mengharamkan penjualan arak di kawasan majoriti Melayu tidak akan membawa kesan mengurangkan minuman arak di kalangan orang Melayu. Mereka hanya akan naik motor, kereta atau apapun dan pergi ke kawasan jiran sebelah untuk membeli arak yang mereka hendak. Ini bermakna saranan Datuk Hassan Ali tidak efektif langsung.

Mengenai PAS akan tutup kilang-kilang arak jikalau ianya memerintah, saya bersedia menerimanya sebagai satu cadangan dan hasrat PAS jikalau parti tersebut memerintah. Namun saya musykil jikalau PAS sebagai satu parti dapat memerintah ataupun menjadi rakan kongsi yang senior di dalam BA. Jelas kita lihat bahawa PAS telah jatuh nombor tiga selepas DAP dan PKR dalam BA, atau menjadi junior partner di mana suaranya tidak diendahkan langsung.

Dari segi pecahan kerusi di dalam parlimen juga, saya tidak yakin PAS boleh menjadi senior partner di dalam BA. Daripada 84 kerusi yang dikuasai oleh BA, PAS hanya mempunyai 23 kerusi sahaja. PAS juga hanya bertanding sebanyak 67 kerusi daripada keseluruhan 222 kerusi. Dari segi BA pula, PAS bukanlah parti yang paling banyak bertanding kerusi parlimen. PKR adalah parti yang paling banyak bertanding dengan 94 buah kerusi. Jadi, saya harus bertanya, adakah PAS serius untuk menjadi parti memerintah, atau menjadi senior partner di dalam BA di mana suara dan pendapatnya didengari oleh rakan-rakan lain dalam BA?

Saya mohon maaf tetapi saya tidak dapat melihat keupayaan atau niat serius PAS untuk menjadi parti memerintah atau senior partner di dalam BA.

Saya bersetuju dengan Ezani bahawa arak adalah haram di dalam Islam dan patut di lakukan sesuatu. Namun saya tidak setuju kita menidakkan hak orang bukan Islam mengenai perkara ini. Saya akan cuba menyampaikan cadangan-cadangan saya di dalam posting di bawah seperti memberi penerangan mengenai kesan negatif minum arak dan sebagainya kepada Menteri yang bertanggungjawab mengenai perkara ini. Moga ianya dapat dilaksanakan untuk kebaikan kita semua dan saya yakin ianya langkah yang lebik baik dan positif untuk semua.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

TAKBIR! PAS TUKAR JADI TAKEBEER! PAS

Saya berasa terpanggil untuk komen mengenai memorandum PAS Selangor yang menggesa Kerajaan negeri Selangor untuk mengharamkan penjualan arak di kawasan-kawasan majoriti Islam.

Walaupun niatnya adalah untuk mengurangkan penjualan kepada orang Islam terutamanya anak-anak muda, namun saya harus mempersoalkan rasional cadangan ini serta keberkesanannya jikalau arahan pengharaman penjualan arak di kawasan majoriti Islam ini di jalankan.

Pertamanya, ianya kes pengharaman yang selektif yakni hanya di kawasan –kawasan di mana ramai penduduknya beragama Islam. Apa pula kepada kawasan-kawasan yang majoritinya bukan Islam tetapi terletak hanya bersebelahan dengan kawasan majoriti Islam? Jikalau individu tersebut hendak minum arak, beliau tidak akan teragak-agak untuk berjalan jauh sedikit untuk mendapatkan arak beliau. Bermakna pengharaman ini tidak akan berjaya langsung.

Pengharaman ini juga akan memberi satu kesan buruk yakni akan menghidupkan perniagaan seludup dan haram secara ‘underground’.

Bagaimana juga pihak berkuasa ingin mengenalpasti kawasan majoriti Islam. Adakah ianya 51%, 70%, 90% atau 99%? Apa pula hak –hak penduduk bukan Islam yang ingin minum arak? Adakah pengharaman penjualan arak di kedai-kedai ini adil kepada mereka yang bukan Islam?
Secara jujur, saya berpendapat PAS Selangor tidak berfikir panjang mengenai perkara ini. Ataupun PAS Selangor tahu ianya tidak akan dilaksanakan oleh Kerajaan Negeri tetapi mereka berasa tertekan oleh janji-janji pilihanraya mereka dahulu mengenai kes pengharaman penjualan arak? Ataupun PAS Selangor hanya melakukan ianya bagai gimik sahaja kerana takut mereka akan dilihat tidak Islamik?

YAB MB Selangor telah mengumumkan bahawa Kerajaan Selangor tidak akan mengharamkan penjualan arak di kawasan –kawasan yang di minta oleh PAS. Saya ingin bertanya Pas sekarang – Apa lagi? Apakah langkah PAS seterusnya selepas pengumuman MB Selangor?
Saya berpendapat gesaan PAS ini tidak praktikal. Kita harus menganalisa dahulu apakah sebenarnya masalah yang ingin ditangani sebelum melulu membuat sesuatu gesaan. Pada pendapat saya, apa yang inign di selesaikan adalah masalah:-

i. Orang Islam minum arak;
ii. Anak-anak muda Islam minum arak.

Benar, pengharaman di beberapa kawasan majoriti Islam mungkin akan menyebabkan mereka ini tidak boleh beli disebelah rumah, tetapi dengan scenario hari ini yang ada motor, kereta dan sebagainya, seperti yang saya sebut di atas, tidak ada apa yang menghalang mereka ini untuk naik kereta dan pergi ke kawasan sebelah untuk membeli arak. Dan ramai daripada mereka ini sebenarnya minum arak bukan sahaja dibeli di 7 –Eleven atau kedai-kedai runcit, tetapi di pub dan sebagainya.

Adalah lebih efektif dan menyeluruh jikalau beberapa langkah tertentu diambil termasuk:-

i. Pengajaran masalah dan kesan negatif arak kepada orang ramai (adakan kempen
kesedaran – berdakwah!);
ii. Memantapkan pemantauan dari pihak berkuasa dan mengenakan denda yang
amat besar kepada penjual dan pembeli yang ditangkap. Lesen perniagaan juga
patut ditarik balik serta-merta jikalau di tangkap menjual kepada orang Islam.
iii. Menghebahkan mereka yang tertangkap serta denda yang mereka hadapi kepada
rakyat. Ini akan menakutkan mereka.
iv. Memberi kaunseling kepada mereka yang didapati bersalah.

Saya juga ingin berkongsi satu pendapat daripada rakan saya mengenai isu ini. Beliau berkata bahawa dahulu semasa PAS hanya parti pembangkang tanpa memerintah negeri-negeri, PAS telah mengutuk dan mengatakan UMNO parti haram kerana membenarkan perniagaan pembuatan dan penjualan arak di Malaysia. Isu inilah diantara sebab UMNO dilabelkan parti kafir.

Sekarang mereka memerintah di beberapa buah negeri termasuk Selangor yang mempunyai dua buah kilang arak besar (di Shah Alam dan PJ). PAS kini tersepit dan terpengkap dengan kata-kata mereka dahulu yang memanggil UMNO kafir. Kerana itulah PAS Selangor mengambil langkah kononnya menggesa kerajaan Selangor mengharamkan penjualan arak di kawasan majoriti Islam walaupun mereka tahu ianya tidak akan berjaya. Sekurang-kurangnya penyokong mereka tidak boleh marah dengan mereka lagi kerana kononya mereka sudah cuba.


Bukan senang nak jadi pemerintah.

ISA Demonstration

A lot of friends have been asking me what to make of the 1 August 2009 street demonstrations. For the first time, two demonstrations were planned and held on a big scale, albeit separately, by two opposing groups on the same issue, one for and one against. They were also asking me if the Federal Government had backtracked on its earlier promise to review and revise the Internal Security Act (ISA) because the demonstrations all centred on the call for the abolishment of ISA.

Well, first and foremost, I checked around and I can confirm that the Home Ministry is serious in reviewing this Act, and a lot of other Acts also to make them more relevant with times. I am told the Ministry had formed a preliminary committee to look into the ISA Act. Yesterday, YAB DS Najib himself again reiterated in public that the Federal Government is committed to reviewing this Act.

So, why all the fuss? Why the need to demonstrate against the ISA when the Federal Government had promised and repeated time and again that they will take action to review the Act? The answer is – I DON’T KNOW. I don’t know why they did it after the Federal Government had promised that the Act will be reviewed and had also started the ball rolling by forming a committee. You cannot expect the review and revision to be done overnight. You have to give time for the experts to go through the Act thoroughly before announcing the proposed revisions. Or else, the Gerakan Mansuh ISA(GMI) which is backed by the Pakatan Rakyat politicians will just say the Government is rushing it and further criticise it.

From another aspect, if the opposition politicians are saying that they want the Act abolished and not reviewed and that they will not accept anything else, what about those who want the ISA to remain but with revisions? Are their voices and opinions less important compared to those who demonstrated against ISA that day? As it is there was another group, from Pakatan Rakyat itself who also demonstrated and sent a memorandum to the palace calling for the ISA be maintained with some revisions. The Pakatan Rakyat politicians using the GMI platform must also respect the opinions, wishes and voices of others. Or is it that we have changed the rule of the game, that it is now "whoever can demonstrate must be listened to and the Government should not care about others?"

Commenting on what happened on that day itself, I was sad that GMI went ahead with the demonstrations. Apart from being totally irrelevant because the Federal Government had already announced that the Act will be reviewed, the demonstration caused a lot of problems to many people. Cab drivers, businesses, the public and Malaysia as a country whose image is further tarnished by all these. And don't forget about the hours of traffic jammed up because of the demonstration. Then there are the indirect effects –investors’ negative perception of the political and security situation in Malaysia, potential tourists and others. I was also aghast when the Women Heads of PKR, PAS and DAP actually issued a joint press statement that the demonstration actually boosted business because many people came and had lunch around the area. Silly! Ask the business folks around there if they agree with that statement.

The police were I believe also overzealous in wanting to maintain peace and harmony. I appreciate that the police psyche is one that is to maintain law and order at all times and costs. I can also empathise what the police force might have been going through during the demonstration but I believe crowd control and prevention tactics are better than arrests. Maybe the police could have identified the ring leaders who are the troublemakers and arrest them whilst just cart away with a warning those who follow without knowing what the demonstrations were all about. However, in their defence, I was not there and do not really know in detail what transpired as a whole. I was told that there were many rabble rousers and some trouble makers who joined in because the demonstration was an opportunity for them to have fun. Whatever it is, it is not a bad idea if our police force were to be sent on a crowd management programme and come up with new methods for crowd control in the Malaysian context.

Anyway, I wish all of us would from now on pause a while, take a deep breath, think about our loved ones and what we want for our nation before we do something like this. We all love Malaysia and all of us have our own little idea what "utopia Malaysia" is. However, don’t forget that we are one of 26 million population in Malaysia, and that our opinions and ideas might not be what the other person is thinking of. From what I see, YAB DS Najib and his team of ministers have generally learned from the mistakes made in the past and are trying hard to rectify them. Give them space and opportunity to work. If they make mistakes, definitely tell them, but tell them in a proper manner. Never has it been our culture and way of life to demonstrate as what had happened on 1 August 2009, especially when the Government had listened to the Rakyat and promised to review the ISA.

I am also very happy that the YAB DS Najib had announced and the police had said they will consider allowing demonstrations in stadiums and so on. This will ensure public safety and those who are not interested in the demonstrations are not affected. You can also have petty traders there to sell their wares and so on. This option will allow whatever complaints and grouses still be heard , yet in a controlled and safe environment for both the public and demonstrators.

We have a lot of avenues and opportunities to make our voices heard, street demonstration is definitely not one of them.