GO TO HELL WITH 'EM

Last night, I was relishing the sweet moments of not having to attend any class due to the H1N1 contagion (has it been declared a pandemic by WHO?). On H1N1, don't eat pork should be the moral of the story.

Now, coming back to the story, becasue I didn't hafta attend my class yesterday after work, I went to a very popular hypermart in Kajang. There appeared sales galore with all those yellow ad cards hanging in the air or jutting out from the racks. Cut price, sales, bla bla bla...

RM4.89 for the 1.5L pack of Marigold strawberry milk ya!!! My still reliable momery said, in not so distant past, the price was around RM4.59. So, an increase of 30 cent or 6.54% is justified by the already forgotten oil price increase? What nonsense!!!

At the ground floor, among the lots was a chicken rice shop (no, not that Chicken Rice Shop you are thinking about) where I used to have my meals everytime I went there, until the day they served me very salty chicken rice which made me decide I had had enuff.

The issue here is, again, the cut price cutting customers' throats. I asked the girl at the counter,

"BIla harga naik ni?" She said, "Semalam." No whirlwind, no tornado, the price was up 30 cent from RM4.50 previously. 6.67% up. Another nonsense!!! I decided to find somewhere else to dine.

What's happening to us, Malaysians? While the Government is trying every level best to improve the well-being of the rakyat, there are still culprits out there trying to take advantage from the cooled-off period in the aftermath of the oil price spike. They (not all) lurk among the business community, with their sole aim of making profits to the maximum. Not that I can't afford to pay a lil' extra, but there are people who will suffer from these jerks.

Has the Government not done enough? When the service delivery and enforcement parts become the buck passed to the Government, those profiteers are cage-free, joyous and bouncy because the attention is steered away from them. When the fuel price had to be increased due to the pressure from the world's oil price hike, they argued their cost had gone up, therefore, they deserved incentives and the right to increase their service price (service quality, well, it's ok to remain or be reduced sikit-sikit la).

AND WHEN THE FUEL PRICE HAS STABILISED, THEY EITHER KEEP QUIET SO THEY WILL GAIN FROM THE EXTRA PROFIT DERIVED FROM HIGHER PRICE MINUS STABLE FUEL PRICE, OR THEY QUIETLY INCREASE THEIR PRICE.

CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL THEM TO GO TO HELL!!!

Tanda-tanda kemalasan menulis, so salin dari laman saya yang lain - yang pernah bacanya (Wira etc) jangan maraa arr...

On my way back from Santiago back in October 2007, I was blessed with meeting nice people who helped me out of near-miseries although it’s their first time seeing this ordinary bloke. What and how they helped me may feature later in my future postings. But now, I just wanna zero in on people’s niceness and kindness to others in general, no matter how they look and what language they originally speak, and the lasting power these 2 mahmudahs possess.

Don’t think about ageing sign yet. These days, people complain about a growing concern of individualism in the society. When I flash back 15 years back during the final lapse of my secondary education, images of nice people would evoke in my mind. They are either my relatives, teachers, dorm-mates, friends or even passers-by merely smiling at me at bus-stops or in restrooms. Perhaps, as life then was less dictated by the breackneck pace, people would tend to accomodate more time for others.

Coming back to 2007, my recent experience is supposed to negate any notion that mankind is dealing with a growing number of individualists. Well, whilst still many beg to differ, I think I hafta be comfy with a preconceived notion that wherever I go, there will always be kind-hearted people who won’t hesitate to lend a helping hand in unavoidable circumstances where I need help.

Come to think of it - I mean that we should still be able to roam the planet conscious that we may not be left alone in the dark - one should also wonder how the society’s tolerance level against individualism is gonna take shape 20 years from now. Okey, this time lapse may be a bit too far ahead for you guys, but hey, if you can still visualise your life 20 years back, that means life is so short and probably, in a blink of an eye, blink blink blink, you are 20 years older, you see. So then, will there be nice people in 2027? I bet there will, do you?

Hehe, is looking to far ahead a sign of ageing process in me?

Bye

Kriss 1904

Finally, my Kriss is back to life, resuscitated by a few hundred bucks and a bit of patience. It also has a semi-new look, after more than a year of injustice done by its master, myself that is. But more importantly, it can now take me to the nearby surau or shops. There have been requests by orang kampung to buy my Kriss for one k. So, my decision to not accept the offer seems to pay off. Hehe... After the recent fuel price hike at the local pumps, one could anticipate less people driving their gas-guzzling machines especially those of big cc. Alternatively, people may start considering riding motorcycles so as to reduce fuel consumption. A good sign for bike sales. I may be thinking towards riding to my office and class too although my Kriss hardly pretends like a safe ride. Or maybe, just maybe, I trade my bike in for a bigger and safer two-wheeler. Virago? Vulcan? Or Harley-Davidson? Hmm... Anyone wanna joyride with me?

Coming back to the record high fuel price, yesterday saw the highest level yet for the global crude oil price - USD141 pb is triggering more fears into almost all sectors of the economy. If the runaway increase of oil price becomes unstoppable, many economies will be badly hit, with Malaysia not excluded. Such dreadful scenario will spell disaster to Malaysia's economic plans, notably the Ninth Malaysia Plan of which Mid-term Review has been tabled by the Prime Minister at the Parliament. Already beleaguered with pressure after pressure, the last thing he would want is escalating costs of living due to higher price of food and fuel that is certain to hurt the rakyat. The question is, how well the Government is responding to mountains of challenges emanating from risks such as the 3F (finance, food and fuel), global imbalances, geopolitical uncertainties and other risks. Finance risk refers to the the international financial market turmoil which started with the US subprime mortgage crisis and the ensuing credit crunch.

The most immediate measures should also encompass finding an equally reliable alternative to petrol and diesel as the source of energy. It's heart-warming to learn that Proton, as announced by my ex-boss the MD/CEO, will roll out from its production line in Shah Alam its first car factory-fitted with the NGV tank latest by this October. In the other part of the world, Nissan is chasing Toyota and Honda in producing hybrid cars. Toyota will be, or probably has been, celebrating its 1,000,000th car running on a hybrid engine. Now its R&D is working very hard to perfect the lithium-ion battery technology to suit the need for economics of scale. You know that's the battery you see in your handphone or laptop.

Perhaps, as far as the global foreign direct investment is concerned, investors are now more sensitised to our ageing world, and environmental technologies will be the in-thing.

And for my Kriss, selling it off may not be a good idea after all if I still have my sentimental value - my Kriss 1904 is my first vehicle which, bought using my first salary, is a huge contribution to what I am today.

I love you Kriss 1904, muuuaaaarrrggghhh.

TDM, AI and PBP

With reference to my e-mail in my alumni e-group 19-May, the market did react (KLCI dropped from 1,295 points 18-May to 1,281 yesterday) to TDM's decision to quit UMNO although that is not the sole reason share prices on Bursa Malaysia continued its downtrend since 16-May; the other reasons being the overnight Wall Street fall, as well as regional markets' slump due to investors taking profits on concerns over inflation resultant from the new record high crude oil price of USD134 pb as at today.

In all, political defections stand out a main concern for the stock market. Just as I predicted. Now that our political dimension has shifted totally beyond the figment of our imagination, our politicians must respond swiftly and positively, be it with regard to TDM or AI or anything for that matter. Failing which, some of us will have to bail out our own stock portfolio in no time.

In another development, equally if not more important is the decision regarding the 30-year old territorial dispute on Pulau Batu Putih between Malaysia and Singapore that will be announced tomorrow, 4pm Malaysian time. We can watch it live on RTM1.

Just for the record, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision could see Singapore win all their claim ie PBP together with Middle Rocks and South Ledge, get one of the islands or leave the table empty-handed. Coin flipped, the status quo may remain with Malaysia resuming her authority over PBP and Singapore being allowed to operate their lighthouse there.

As Malaysians, let's pray we'll win our claim because that's what we deserve.

And the decision favoring Malaysia may yet be the Government's trump card in restoring confidence among the stakeholders, especially the rakyat, hence the much-awaited recovery of our stock market and also the economy as a whole.

The wind of change - for the good or bad?

The current development in our counrty's political landscape is
certainly not a good sign to our economic growth. Does TDM care about
it? Or does his action stem from his strong belief that unless he
does something dramatic such as relinquishing his party membership,
the party will not succeed in restoring people's confidence and will
fall to its knees in the next PRU, if not earlier.

There's always something behind a wise man's move; it's for the
remaining members to decipher the doctor's words. Has this got
something to do with Anwar Ibrahim's statement elsewhere that he's
ready to form a new federal government?

In Buletin TV3 19 May 2008, Tuan Guru Nik Aziz said if an internationally
acclaimed leader like the very wise TDM offers to join PAS, the party
will be riding on their luck. But where's TDM going after this? The
party which correctly anticipates TDM's next move will likely have the
extra edge to manouvre.

Whatever the outcome, the current scenario doesn't look good to our
economic growth. While other emerging markets like China, India,
Brazil, Viet Nam, and, ineterestingly, Thailand as well as Indonesia
are attracting more and more investors, Malaysia's image diminishing
in the investors' radar should remain our major concern. PRU12 result
itself drove most foreign investors' share sell-out on an
unprecedented scale to sink prices, mostly of government-linked
companies, further down where it's so difficult to recover. Any
subsequent unfavorable development in our politics certainly won't
help restore investors' confidence. Nor will both moves by TDM and
AI.

our ageing earth

She was trapped between 2 huge stone debris for 10 days. Only raindrops prolonged her life. The day she was rescued, the medic team diagnosed her with merely a crack in her thigh and a scratch on her face. This 60-year old woman cried in tears of joy mixed with endured pain. Imagine you lie down squeezed by 2 huge stones, unable to move left or right. Perhaps you can only move your fingers and mouth. And stay put for 10 days. Dare to?

I don't know how my body will react if i were in her situation; even half a day is a torture, let alone 10 bloody days.

This is but one morbid scenario in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake of 7.9 ritcher scale - only 1.0 less than that of Acheh - which totally wiped out the worst-hit Sichuan and killed to date 40,025 people and counting.

The quake is expected to trim China's soaring economic growth this year by at least 0.2 percentage points, lead to a one-month production stoppage and curb consumption in worst-hit Sichuan and neighbouring areas. The economic loss? About 67 billion yuan (RM31 billion).

How will this affect Malaysia?

After the US economy has been hit hard by its subprime mortgage crisis, and will likely fall into a recession, albeit mild, Malaysia has a cause for concern. The reason being, the US is Malaysia's main export market. So, when hopes are high for the US economic downturn to be offset by China's super robust growth, the China quake seems to steal the headline for the wrong reason.

And with the world oil price reaching a record USD130 per barrel, Malaysia should be more cautious and careful in its spending before it's too late.

if time can stop..

hmmm... I'm still wondering whether men can really travel through time? The way things around me are going now, even our PM would say 'I wish I could' if asked about the possibility of time-travelling. Gosh! Next week when all our MPs swear in on the 1st day of their new term at Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives), the watching nation can't wait to expect some kinda debates some have seen on tv between Gordon Brown and his opposition. This time, MPs from the much-weakened ruling coalition will hafta be on their toes all the time and expect enquiries and questions storming them across the aisle. Which also spells more work for civil servants, too, especially those who are required to be on duty during parliamentary sessions.

Big names like Hj Hadi, Mahfuz Omar, Chee Kiong and their cohorts will flex their muscles in powerful arguments during which many MPs surely will be forced to shrink into amateurs. Fingers crossed.

Politics aside, I also dream I could travel across the time dimension. Why?

Wait for my next posting...

love our earth

Our climate...

Dear readers,

It's almost one year since I last posted in this blog. Within a year, so many things had happened. Which may be good for me. And probably bad too. But one thing remains, I ain't getting younger. Looking at my age, I wonder how much I have contributed to the society I live in, let alone the world. Some people are young, walking with old heads and thriving to change the world. Whether or not what they've done that is changing or have changed the world is actually for their own personal gains, God knows. So, I don't wanna miss the train. I also want to change the world, with or without any returns awaiting. For a start, I'll write. Today, I vow to myself that writing should rank among my everyday priorities, even a liner would suffice. This may jive with our beloved Nabi Muhammad saw who says "Sampaikanlah kebaikan walaupun satu ayat".

Talking about changes, this reminds me of the next Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting in Guyana, 15-17 October, 2007, where Finance Ministers will discuss a special theme on Climate Change: The Challenges Facing Finance Ministers. What a chance for me to again feast my eyes on beautiful places because I know beaches in Guyana are so popular and have attracted tourists. During the last year's meeting in Sri Lanka, my Minister decided to have one day off to venture inward the island and breathe some fresh air atop the hill where tea plantation areas carpet every inch of the land in green.

Back to this year's meeting, climate change has been chosen as the theme probably because it is a major global development challenge which requires urgent action. Over the last few months, Europe experienced a peculiar weather - extremely hot in one area, extremely cold in another, while floods in China is not showing any sign of receding. In Malaysia, uhm... I believe you guys are aware of the terrible floods that wrecked houses, shops, roads, and even lives, in Johor. Talking about rare phenomena. While we are most grateful to the Almighty for sparing us from destructive natural disasters such as earthquake, tornado, typhoon and volcanic eruption, to name a few, floods is a kind of disaster no one should take for granted whenever it starts to happen and what the causes are.

The main causes to flash floods in the Klang Valley have been identified as rivers clogged with rubbish, people becoming litterbugs throwing rubbish into rivers, overdevelopment in areas that were used to be water catchments, and many many more. SMART tunnel was built to overcome floods problem in the Klang Valley. However, within as many as 2 days after the RM1.3 billion tunnel was officially opened, flash floods haunted KL again and one of the victims was the tailor shop who recently did my lounge suit. When asked by the Prime Minister, the relevant authority's officer explained that only the tunnel for motorists had been opened and not the tunnel to redirect flood water out of KL. Is this a test from the Almighty? Maybe. But, flash floods will come to haunt KL people again, and it's up to everybody who's involved to ensure the tunnel is really smart.