WHY FIX IT WHEN IT IS STILL GOOD

I don't agreed with Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir statement which was published in all major newspapers on 2nd. December 2008, that the vernacular schools in the current format to be closed. I believed that there is nothing wrong with the present education system as this system had been around for more than 50 years. Eventually, the students will go on to study in the national schools at the secondary level.
I would like to share my experience as a student from the english medium school in the 1970's which had given me an all rounded and liberal education. I could mixed around with all races during my school days. There was no polarisation in those days. I still remembered some of my best friends are malays who used to cycle together to school from our kampung which was about 5 kilometres away. We conversed in English and Bahasa Melayu and we had many nostalgic experiences together. These successful malay classmates of my are still my buddies after so many years. Whenever we meet, we lamented the state of today's education system which had brought in racial polarisation and disharmony faned by politicians like Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir who aspire to be the UMNO Youth Chairman. Datuk Mukhriz, please leave politics outside the gates of all the schools in Malaysia and try to improve the education system which we inherited from the british. Mind you, you were one of them who had the same experience to benefit from this liberal education when you were young. Please try to improve the present education system, that is, the national school system, in order to attract more non-malay parents to send their children to these national schools. I promised you that I would encouraged my grandchildren to attend the national schools when I perceived that these schools are at par with the vernacular schools in term of discipline, high standard of teachings and dedication from the teachers. Multi- languages such as BM, BI and mother tongue languages are taught in schools. If possible, one foreign language for every child.We must have the will to improve the education system so that every students will have a global perspective and marketable when they leave the school system.

THE LAST STRAW THAT BROKE DATUK SAID IBRAHIM'S BACK.

The de factor Law Minister, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim resignation as Minister in the Prime Minister Dept. 0n September 15th. 2008, was not a surprise to those in the know. His recent outburst against the use of ISA against civilians and retorted he was willing to resign for his views.
He had tried his best as Minister responsible for judicial and legal reform and was committed to rebuilding public confidence in a judiciary which has been questioned since the 1988 judiciary crisis.
I express my admiration to a politician who dared to be different from the crowd by resigning as de factor Law Minister and set an example to all leaders for his political conviction. Many leaders of lesser mind will go along with the crowd in order to be secured in this esteemed position as de factor Law Minister. It's a long time that we have not seen any leaders resigning for his political conviction. Datuk Zaid Ibrahim had set a good example for any politicians to follow in future, that is, when the leader is not of the same views with his cabinet colleagues, he should resign from his post! He had made some of the recommendations for reform such as :
(1) Apology and restitution for the judges sacked during the judiciary crisis.
(2)Setting up a Judicial Appointments Commission but had been snowballed following objections from some Cabinet members
(3) Restoration of Article 121 (1A) of the Federal Constitution relating to civil and syariah jurisdiction but was also snowballed following objections from some Cabinet members.
Datuk Zaid Ibrahim had a bumpy six months ride as de factor Law Minister and the people will remember his initial judicial and legal reform and we hope that his successor will continue pursuing the reform which he had set forth.
May he be remembered as a marverick Law Minister who dared to voice his opinions and dared to be different!

ANWAR'S BLUFF

September 16th. 2008 was supposed to be an eventful date for Opposition Leader, Datuk Anwar Ibrahim's ascension to become the next Prime Minister, but it all came to nought. His claims of having enough 31 MPs' to the Barisan Pakatan Rakyat side to form the next government is a bluff and rhetoric. This had make the Rakyat anxious and uncertained about the certainty of his claims. The people should not be taken in by Anwar's antics for he is just an empty vessel who made the most noise. Let the present government under Barisan National which had the mandate of the people, administer the nation for the next 4 to 5 years. He may had the opportunity to form the next government come the next General Election provided the present government do not fulfill her promises to the Rakyat.
At the moment, we should address the gloomy economic situation brought about by the bickering of both sides of the divide. The people's bread and butter issue should be the upper most concern of the leaders for there are high inflation rate which had burned the pockets of the Rakyat. Further more, the recent filling of bankcruptcy by welknown banks in Wall Street, U.S.A. are cause for concern for all right thinking leaders. There may be a recession coming! The reluctance of foreign investors to invest in Malaysia dued to the uncertain political situation caused by the opposition party to form the next government is also one of the factors.
We need solutions to address the Nation's uncertainties in order to move forward so that the Rakyat welfare is the Nation's welfare. We should put our minds together in order to find solutions to solve the nation's problems but not by political rhetoric which had dampened the spirit of the Rakyat. STOP ALL THE POLITICAL RHETORIC FOR WE ARE TIRED AND DISGUSTED ABOUT IT!

September 16th. 2008 should be an eventful date but it was an anti climax. Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's claims to form the next government by boasting of having 31 Barisan National MPs crossing over to Barisan Pakatan Rakyat came to nought. His claims of forming the next government had caused a lot of tension and anxiety to the people. I would say it was an act of irresponsibility on the part of the defactor opposition leader just wanting to become the next Prime Minister without paying heed to the welfare of the people. I do not believe he has the majority of the MPS' behind him in order for him to become the PM by the back door. The people should not be taken in by Anwar's antics and bluffing. Why destabilised the present government which had been mandated by the people during the last General Election?

Is it a means to an end just by becoming PM without thinking about the stability and welfare of the Nation? He and his opposition MPs will have the opportunity to form the next government after the next General Election provided they have the mandate of the people! Then, I would congratulate him and the opposition MPs'. But not now! Please let the present government administer and rule the Nation and give them the benefit of doubt. If they don't govern well and effectively, then I would say the Barisan Pakatan Rakyat might be given the opportunity in 4 or 5 years time. For goodness sake! Please be an constructive Opposition Leader by giving constructive opinions and views in order the Nation to move forward.

The Nation is facing glooming economic uncertainties, high inflation rates which had burned the pockets of the common people, the reluctance of foreign investors to invest dued to political uncertainties, last but not least, the recent bankcruptcy of leading banks in Wall Street, U.S.A. are cause for concern. We should rally our citizens to meet the challenges head-on with dynamic solutions. My dear YB Datuk Anwar Ibrahim, it should your concern too in order to meet the challenges of the time so that the ordinary rakyat will have their bread and butter but not political rhetoric which does not bring any thing good to the Nation!

TIRED OF THE MIND GAMES OF ANWAR'S ANTICS

Sept. 16th. was supposed to be an eventful date but it was an anti climax.

TLK AS SPECIAL OFFICER TO MB PAHANG

I read with interest that a former 3 term state assemblyman for DUN Teruntum, was appointed as Special Officer to the MB of Pahang recently. He wasn't included in the list as the candidate for DUN Teruntum during the last 12th. General Election dued to many reasons. The main reason given by the top leadership was that he had already served 3 terms and had to make way for new blood. It was an open secret that most of the YBs' have already served 3 terms in their respective DUNs and why picked on him alone? After all, MCA Kuantan Division members had endorsed him during the last MCA Division Assembly that he stands as the candidate for DUN Teruntum and YB Datuk Foo Ah Kiow as

APPOINTED AS MCA KTN DIVISION TREASURER;

MCA Ktn. Division had the First Committee Meeting on 12-08-2008, Tuesday night commencing from 8.30 p.m to 9.45 p.m. In fact, it was rather a short and tame affair given by the fact that normally the first meeting would take some time for the fact that there would be a lot of appointments to be announced after the Party Election. Maybe it was dued to fatigue after the Party Election . The Party's nomination was on 24th.July 2008 and the Party's Divisional Assembly and Election was on 27th. July 2008. It was an intensely and all out battle from both camps to garner and secured votes from the Delegates. No wonder the First Meeting ended early!
Personally speaking, I was delighted to be appointed as Division Treasurer for the year 2008 to 2010 as was promised by our Division Chairman prior to the Election. I had to keep my fingers crossed as anything can happened in politics until the last minutes. My Branch comrades who had known of this news before the announcement, congratulated me for the appointment but I have to cautioned them for jumping the gun before the announcement. You know, anything can happen up to the last minute. For your information, I was politely asked to give way to Sdr. Francis Koh Heng Hok by not contending of Division Vice- Chairman post during the previous Party's Divisional Election in 2005. As I am a loyal Party's member and would not like to rock the boat. I had to wait patiently for the opportunity to be in the Executive Committee.
I have to thank the Division Chairman, Dato' Ti , for having confidence in me by appointing me as the Treasurer. Not doubt it is an appointed post and it is up to the pleasure of the Division Chairman to retain or to remove the Office Bearer as Treasurer as stipulated under the Party's constitution.This post carries heavy responsibilities as regards to the financial health of the Division. I shall do my level best to carry out my responsibilities faithfully, truthfully and with frugality so that the Party's financial health will be well balanced. This will only come about with the cooperation of all parties concerned to make our Division financially strong.
I shall end here without divulging any important information as it is against the Party's constitution. Good night.

1. I was taken by surprise early last week that Sdr. Laow Weng Choon , the MCA Deputy Chairman for MCA Ktn. Division , was called for an interview by MCA Disciplinary Board headed by Tan Sri Datuk Sri Chan Kong Choy and several Board members.
2. Sdr. Laow is the current Village Headman (Ketua Kampung) of Kampung Baru, Kuantan and also the Branch Chairman of MCA Kg. Baru, Kuantan. Our friendship had come a long way since our active involvement in grassroots politics for over 28 years. I found in him to be a sincere and trust worthy local grassroots leader and in particular, as Ketua Kampung. When the parents of the primary and secondary school students approached me to sign the neccessary forms to borrow books from the Education Dept. during the commencement of the school term,I will refer the poor parents to him for his signature and endorsement since he is the current Ketua Kampung. He had never failed the parents of the students in discharging his duties as Village Headman . Many a times, he will personally drove to the neighbourhood coffeeshops to meet and assist the poor parents to sign and chop the neccesary application forms. I would say he is an excellent grassroots leader who sacrifice his time and effort in assisting the less privilege local chinese community in Kuantan.
3.I was told by my sources that one local villager approached the candidate for Kuantan Parliamentary Seat, Datuk Foo Ah Kiow, that he was instructed by Sdr. Laow ,not to vote for BN candidate during his election campaign in Kg. Baru during the recent General Election. This local villager, had denied in the local chinese newspapers a few days later that he was instructed by Sdr. Laow not to vote for the BN candidate but was instructed by his employer! This incident was put to rest by the denial of the local villager and the case was closed there and then.
4.This unfortunate incident was formally brought to the attention of the MCA Disciplinary Board by Sdr. Wang Fook San, Sdr. Soh Kang Hai, Sdri. Chan Mon Chi ,Sdri. Khiew Juh Jiuan and Sdri. Khoo Guat Ngoh for further action after the lost of Kuantan Parliamentary seat to PKR. It was reported by the chinese press recently that Sdr. Wang didn't recollect this incident as much waters had flowed under the bridge,Sdr.Soh replied that he had already retired from politics and don't involve him any further, Sdri. Chan retorted that she was not there and Sdri. Khiew replied this matter should be resolved earlier and she was disappointed that investigation was conducted after more than four months.
5.Sdr. Laow was formally called to be interviewed by the The MCA Disciplinary Board early last week at MCA Headquarters from about 11.20 a.m. to 12.00 p.m. He was accompanied by several local grassroots leaders to lend him moral support as he was an innocent party. He was represented by Datuk Ti Lian Ker as his Advocate and Solicitor. I heard from the grapevines that five complainants had earlier met Tan Sri Datuk Sri Chan in one of the rooms. Tan Sri Chan should disqualified himself as Board Chairman as it was brought to the attention to the Board by Sdr. Laow's lawyer that the Board Chairman met the five complainants earlier on. But the interview proceeded without any one of the Board Members disqualifying themselves to the hearing. The proceeding ended half an hour later.
6. The questions I would like to ask are (a) Why was Sdr. Laow Weng Choon summoned for an interview after more than 4 months after the General Election? (b) Was Sdr. Laow being made a fall guy after the lost of the Parliamentary Seat? (c) Why brought out the issue when the local villager denied in the chinese press that Sdr. Laow was involved? (d) Was it the after effect of the recent MCA Kuantan Division Election that this issue was brought out to tarnish the image , standing and dignity of Sdr. Laow as Deputy Chairman of MCA Kuantan Division?
(e) Was it mere revenge after the the Divisional Delegates voted in all the incumbents team for all posts in the recent MCA Kuantan Division Election?
WHAT DO YOU THINK ?

OKT launches portal in race for MCA President.

This morning when I flipped through the Sunday Star on page N4, the bold print entitled "Ong Launches portal in race for MCA top post". The website (www.ongteekeat.net ) was launched at a ceremony in KL yesterday. He said he set up the website, which contained his writings and news reports about him, with the objective of sharing his views. What is his views concerning about the present and future development of the chinese community? First and foremost, he must have the courage and foresight to choose his running mates who must be impeccable in their private and public lives. He must not seen to be associated with tainted characters who have cobwebs in their cupboards such as cronyism, triads involvements, corruption, nepotism, favouritism, money laundering, immoral activities, money politics, lies, sex scandals, etc. etc. The public perception of him and his team must be aboveground and this must be put right before he aspires to be the President-in waiting. He was erroneously being labelled "lone ranger" and this can be a blessing in disguise because he is seen as a clean and vocal politician with no allegations of private and public misconduct. He does not has any past baggage to carry and the public image of him is spotlessly clean. Therefore, he will do well if he consciously select his running mates who share the same ideals and aspirations in order to move forward in this MCA National General Assembly And Party Election.
The opening salvos from his blog was encouraging and OTK remarked that "tainted" public figures could not be "cleansed" simply by owning up to their wrongdoings. I totally agreed with him concerning about this remark as it augers well in the mindsets of the Delegates as this is society social values and norms. Whether OTK dares to address this issues are yet to be seen is everybody guess! We have to give him the benefit of doubt and he has to deligently do his homework before he gets overwhelming support from the Delegates!

MCA KTN. DIV. ROUND TABLE TALK ON 19TH. JULY, 2008

MCA AGM AND BRANCH ELECTION FOR 2008 TO 2010.

The MCA AGM and Branches Election for 2008 to 2010. The past Office Bearers of every respective MCA Branches will have a new Office Bearers from year 2008 to 2010. Each respective Branch members will nominate and elect the new Office Bearers. The nomination date of the Incoming Branch Committee Members will be on the 10th. June 2008 from 4.00 p.m. to 8.00 p.m at their respective Branches addresses. The Branch Youth Section and the Branch Wanita Section will have their Annual General Meeting And Election on 14th. June 2008 and the Branch Annual General Meeting And Election will be on 15th. June 2008 at the respective addresses. Any potential Office Bearers will be busy for the next 15 days in order to canvass for votes among the Branch party members and to nominate their names to stand for the Branch Election.
Normally, it is a tame affairs for most Branches to elect the new Office Bearers but there will be contenders for a few Branches. Those who have served their respective area well will normally be re-elected for the new term and those who have failed in their duties to serve their respective area will not be re-elected by their Branch members. Every Branch Committee Members have the responsiblities to take care of their respective areas such as clogged drains, road potholes, uncollected rubbish, clogged sewerage, etc. etc. by reporting to the respective authorities in order to solve the areas problems. The local communities will be happier that most of the problems are being tackled by the respective Offfice Bearers as they are the grassroot leaders.
This will win the confidence of the local communities that their welfare are taken of by the Branch leaders. When the communities services are rendered over a sustained period, the local communties will vote for the candidates who have rendered their services.