Blatant Govt profligacy

The doubling of the cost of building a new Palace seems to be in most minds as observed in the column Squeezed in the Middle where the author expressed his doubt whether the increased cost of building the New Palace will endear the Govt to the public who are already being asked to bear increased costs of living by the imminent removal of most subsidies.

Likewise, the confirmation that the Govt did not resort to open tender procedures to award the 800 million New Palace job, New Palace to cost more
is a clear indication of continuing Govt profligacy in spending the country's hard earned wealth.

It is indeed hard for the 'man in the street' to accept that he has to face much higher costs of living, while the Govt continues to spend on what is perceived as 'redundant' projects, like the building of a new palace, or a New Parliament building.

In this respect, let me tell a story. When I was working in a Norwegian company a few years ago, and had to go to Norway (Trondheim) for management meetings, I was proudly shown a simple and old wooden building that was the summer palace of the King. It was such a simple structure, situated humbly in the middle of the town without much security and was open to the public most days, and to see that, one would not realize that Norwegians have one of the highest living standards in the World, and that the Norwegian Sovereign Fund is the world's richest. Substance seems to matter to them, more than form.

It is correct for the rakyat to demand that, for the Govt to institute reforms to the country that call for the rakyat to make huge sacrifices, the Govt must be seen to also make large steps in the same direction. Canceling the construction of the Parlaiament House and the King's Palace and maintain the present ones as part of our National Heritage is a big first step

Does anyone in TNB do any work?

Reading the news headlines in TheSunday Star Zapped by Charges [tenants give landlords "electric shock"], I must admit I am surprised at the level of inefficiency that the TNB has fallen to now. Let me explain why I say that. During my secondary school days in Muar (1960's), I was tasked by my father to cycle and pay the TNB (then called the NEB) bill every month, as the Station was situated out of town. My father being quite poor, and who had to support a large family, always waited for the RED reminder to arrive from the TNB, which gave him 7 days to pay failing which the electricity supply would be cut off. That was a most effective measure, and it made my father beg or borrow (but not steal) enough cash to settle the bills. This drama was always played out, until I finished schooling got a job, and helped him pay his bills on a regular basis.

Which makes me wonder now, why am I reading this headlines in the papers today. That TNB, being a blue chip corporation, practicing good governance in its affairs should be able to allow such debts to accumulate, and which is clearly not the fault of the landlords, is a very shameful disclosure by the media. In my opinion, if anyone in the operations and management control function has been doing his job, it would be a cinch to ensure such chronic debts do not accrue and are collected in a timely manner, and not endure the landlords to so much unnecessary trouble and unwarranted liability. The management would very easily be able to:

1. determine those households who habitually fail to pay their bills, say for more than 3 months, or whose debts have risen to more than 3 times the amount of deposit received for the household or business premises
   
2. issue a 'RED' reminder with a deadline to cut off supply in 14 days, if bills remain unpaid
3. Action to cut off electricity supply to the respective households, and even business premises.

Pray tell the long suffering public and taxpayers, with computerization and online billing, etc., how difficult will it be for TNB to enforce discipline among the users of electricity? In particular, I feel the Internal Audit and the Statutory Auditors must be asked to clarify this mess..

It is inefficiency in the operations to raise and collect debt, along with cost of fuel that give rise to higher costs, and TNB must do better than just to take such a 'tidak apa' attitude towards debt collection.

TNB has the power,--- so do it!

Savior of Cameron Highlands

I am watching TV3's Prime time program "Aduan Rakyat", and for 2 weeks Karam Singh has been awesome in his exposure of blatant abuse and corruption in the giving of lands illegally for agriculture and housing. The program has exposed the blatant disregard for the environment and even for the existing laws in place to protect the Highlands from further irreversible destruction. As Karam Singh mentioned in the beginning of the program 2 weeks ago, he has re-visited the site after 12 years, only to find that our treasured Highlands has been terribly abused, and raped beyond recognition. The authorities, when confronted, and in front of TV cameras have vowed to stop the carnage, but I am afraid, the minute TV3 finishes the program, the carnage will continue.

Can we hope that the good work done by TV3 can be protected, and the Highlands saved for our future generations?

Please carry on the good work TV3, and we the public must also join in with our support to protect our Highlands. We must campaign the Government to declare Cameron Highlands a Heritage Site, to be fully protected by law. Violation of the land should be declared a crime against the Nation.

Three Issues , One answer..!

Reading through this Sunday's Star, I found that the issues raised on "Stateless Malaysians", "Brain Drain" and "Unskilled Local Labour", can, surprisingly be answered with one word. Allow me to elaborate.

In the first news report, Number of Stateless Malaysians stun even Hishamuddin it was reported that the Home Minister said that the National Registration Department's mobile units had found that as many as 30,000 people did not have MyKad, 96,000 people did not have birth certificates and more than 60,000 people were holders of red identity cards, mostly in Sarawak..."

In the Sunday Star focus column Tracing the brain drain trend .. Dr Fong Chan Onn was reported to have said, "..As I have elaborated at the beginning of this article, under Malaysian law, a child born overseas to a Malaysian mother, whose husband is a non-Malaysian, is not entitled to Malaysian citizenship or even permanent resident (PR) status. This large pool of talent is just kept out of our shores. I vividly remember Datuk Syed Norulzaman (a retired Malaysian ambassador) lamenting to me last month over dinner about how his daughter, a JPA medical scholar at Dublin, worked hard over the years to qualify as a medical specialist. She unfortunately could not return to serve Malaysia because she married her Norwegian classmate, and their children are classified as non-Malaysians. With tears in his eyes, he said he had never felt so helpless as an ambassador because he could not explain to his daughter why Malaysia does not accept her children. And of the thousands of talented foreign spouses who have returned to Malaysia with their Malaysian husbands, what is happening to them? Medical experts, top-notch scientists or experienced teachers they may be, but they are not even accorded PR status and are not allowed to work here, their adopted home..."

And finally, in the Sunday Editorial,Shift Gear to Higher mode Senior Editor Wong Chun Wai said,".. Recently, I decided to hire a Malay­sian who had migrated to New Zealand as a trainer under a one-year contract. There were so many obstacles along the way that we finally gave up. It was easier hiring a foreign toilet cleaner... "

One word suffices to explain the reason for those issues raised above, the the word is "Distrust". Why is it so, after more than 50 years of Merdeka, that those entrusted with the formulation and implementation of Govt policies still distrust anyone who is a non Malay, or who is even associated with a non Malay? A look at the full stadium of Malaysians cheering our Thomas Cup Badminton team in their match against Denmark show that there is nothing wrong with Malaysian unity in diversity. And I personally think also there is nothing wrong with the 1Malaysia concept, if articulated with sincerity. Coming back to those issues raised in the papers today,

• why is it so tough for Malaysians born in Malaysia to get their Birth certificates and subsequently MyKads? It's a shameful thing for a citizen to have to hold on to a Red card, and treated like a 'pariah'
  
• Why do we distrust spouses and children who are married to Malaysians? If we don't even respect a Malaysian's choice of spouse, and expect him to treat his family again like pariahs, what would he think of his own country?
• If a Malaysian, who is qualified and wants to return to contribute to his country, why treat him with the same status as a foreign toilet cleaner? What is wrong with him having worked overseas, if his own country did not have provide the same opportunities at that particular time?

The Government can only succeed in its objective of an inclusive 1Malaysia, if it sincerely embraces all citizens, and accepts them as equals. And the first thing it has to do, is to actively eliminate all forms of actions that show and sow distrust among its citizens. Will citizens vote for a Government that treats them like other foreigners?

We must WALK THE TALK, but at the moment, it's more like balancing on a tightrope

Distrust the reason for one of our major woes

Root canal politics, and lessons to be learnt

I never miss Thomas Friedman, syndicated by your Paper, and today's column ROOT CANAL POLITICS,or the Death of the Tooth Fairy is also very good reference to the ills in our country. While the column specifically addressed the current turmoil engulfing Greece, and the imminent crisis that can hit Britain, in fact largely due to the excessive spending of the baby boomers, who believe that wealth can be infinitely created, and political stability maintained by pandering to the narcissistic needs of the populace, the current and future generations will be left heavily in debt, and with the environment destroyed, and resources heavily depleted. Some of the examples he has mentioned bear repeating here:

• Our parents were “The Greatest Generation,” and they earned that title by making enormous sacrifices and investments to build us a world of abundance. My generation, “The Baby Boomers,” turned out to be what the writer Kurt Andersen called “The Grasshopper Generation.” We’ve eaten through all that abundance like hungry locusts.
  

• Greece, for instance, became the General Motors of countries. Like G.M.’s management, Greek politicians used the easy money and subsidies that came with European Union membership not to make themselves more competitive in a flat world, but more corrupt, less willing to collect taxes and uncompetitive. Under Greek law, anyone in certain “hazardous” jobs could retire with full pension at 50 for women and 55 for men — including hairdressers who use a lot of chemical dyes and shampoos. In Britain, everyone over 60 gets an annual allowance to pay heating bills and can ride any local bus for free. That’s really sweet — if you can afford it. But Britain, where 25 percent of the government’s budget is now borrowed, can’t anymore.

• Here is how The Financial Times described it {British elections} “The next government will have to cut public sector pay, freeze benefits, slash jobs, abolish a range of welfare entitlements and take the ax to programs such as school building and road maintenance.” Too bad no party won a majority mandate in the British elections to do this job.

• After 65 years in which politics in the West was, mostly, about giving things away to voters, it’s now going to be, mostly, about taking things away. Goodbye Tooth Fairy politics, hello Root Canal politics.

Of course Malaysia is not in such dire straits, but if we do not stiffen the political spine and take hard decisions, that may be hugely unpopular, it would not be too far away before events witnessed in Greece might be happening on our doorsteps. For example, we talk about wanting to achieve a high income status, but is increasing the salaries of only civil servants without demonstrable improvements in their productivity be just akin to 'subsidizing' a high standard of living? The NEM seeks to assure all races of their rights and lives being protected, but can a certain quarter continue to clamour for assistance based on merely being a majority in the country, without the need to contribute the same amount of effort and productivity to drive the country forward? Can a minority be taxed and burdened to support the demands of the majority, which in effect, it should be the other way around?

It's not easy to make strong decisions being surrounded by parochial politicians, but we must learn from the mistakes of the others, and not wait for the mistakes to be repeated here. As Friedman said to the Americans, ...." Sitting in America, it’s hard to grasp the importance of the British elections and the Greek riots. Nothing to do with us, right? Well, I’d pay attention to the drama playing out here. It may be coming to a theater near you....."

Look out Malaysia!!

Stick with English

Reading the letter to TheStar by DR ABU BAKAR ABDUL MAJEED, DR MEGAWATI OMAR, of the Research Management Institute, UITM, Shah Alam -->Stick With English I was struck by what he said, that our children lament that the moment they are out of school, they discover that they need English in almost every aspect of their daily and academic lives, especially if they live in cities. They have been so handicapped that, even in the day to day functioning of their lives, these students and graduates seem to be dysfunctional. Switching back to Bahasa Malaysia as the medium of teaching the important subjects will only serve to aggravate the situation, leading to future Malaysians unable to challenge and compete in the global arena.

If I am not mistaken, one of those reasons given by the Education Ministry to switch back to Bahasa Malaysia as the teaching medium, was that the rural students have been unable to cope with English and have been marginalized in Examinations. In this instance it can be said that the "mountain" [ie. the rural students poor command of English] cannot come to "Mohamad", then "Mohamad" must go to the "mountain". Putting it in another way, do we want our rural students to continue to lack behind even in the day to day living in Malaysia, not to mention that they will be severely handicapped when they leave the country? Upgrading the education system to ensure the rural students can cope should be the objective of a caring Government.

Do we want to see Malaysians, especially the rural children, fall behind and live lives filled with insecurity and inferiority because of the deficiency in the English Language? Do we want to remain in the backwaters of progress, while even countries like Indonesia and Vietnam forge ahead?

We should re-think this issue. Can our leaders rise above parochial politics, or do they waver at the first sound of the naysayers? Malaysia's diverse mix of races will have more than its fair share of sycophants and self styled champions of 'race and culture', but the Govt has to be able to rise above such bigotry if our future generations is to have a chance in this challenging World

Think about it

We cannot afford to ignore the importance of English

How NOT to follow Greece

In his timely column on the continuing world economic turmoil now roiling Europe Malaysians must learn from Greek Crisis, excessive loans no good and the dire consequences it is bringing onto the countries affected Greek Crisis: 3 die in violent protests the writer Jagdev Singh has observed, that in order for Malaysia not to 'follow in" the path of the Greeks, it has to start removing the major bulk of the subsidies given the the people, and that is in the energy sector. I quote with thanks:

"..It’s the middle class that is the foundation to consumer demand and striking a balance between reducing such subsidies and keeping people happy will be a tricky task.

Appealing to people’s season of reason and articulating the consequences of not doing so may work.

People have to know that the precious resource the country is blessed with should not be frittered away. And while conservation and efficient use of energy resources will help reduce wastage and help the environment, people also need to be shown that their efforts are helping to build something worthy for the future.

Any programme of reducing energy subsidies should be met with a similar programme that will improve the economic welfare of the people...."

I would like to add here that, appealing to the sense of reason will not work, unless the Government has continuously demonstrated its desire to keep down extravagant and wasteful spending. For example, would it not be better for the Govt to, say, drastically reduce its expenditure on the Military and defense, and show that the reduction of that expenditure will be channelled towards improving the logistics and transport system of the country, and for example, make the LRT accessible to all regions, regardless of ridership? It would then make the removal of the fuel subsidy less "painful"

The Govt must also actively pursue the departments and officals who have spent their budgets in extravagance and on projects that have subsequently failed or have tremendously overshot its budget. In this respect the respected AG's report should be pursued to a meaningful end. At the moment, the middle class know that after the initial hullabaloo, inevitably the AG's report is left to collect dust. What a waste of trees chopped down to write the Report. Questions by the Auditor General still unanswered.

What I am trying to say is, Malaysians are reasonable by nature, they will accept that hard times are ahead of them, and that the Govt needs to do the necessary to keep the country safe and "healthy". But can they tolerate a continuing regime of extravagance and nugatory expenditure, and watch as the politicians continue to "roll in the fat" while they are asked to tighten their belts for the good of the country?

Let the present violent turmoil in Greece be a potent reminder of the "deep hole" we can dig ourselves in...

Thanks Jagdev