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The homo sapiens who top the food chain and have been the dominant species for the last i-dunno-how-many centuries, have demonstrated that despite they are essentially selfish assholes.
We cannot live without our environment, without the flora and fauna around us. We are very much dependent on them for survival. But we certainly don’t act like we do. Here’s an example
The many residents of Kota Damansara don’t want a green belt to be turned into a burial ground. The Selangor Government wants to do exactly that. Isn’t burial ground something that should have been part of a long term Local Plan/Structure Plan for the respective district? Or at the very least, part of the development blueprint by whoever developed the area?
So, to protect their negligent hides, they jump on the first empty space you can find for “burial ground for 6,000 Muslims”. A forest reserve. The residents who protest against the burial ground move have basis. Kota Damansara is a desert-like new suburbia with barely any trees. Why not leave an existing natural forest alone? The Malaysian Nature Society too hold activities like birding, and nature treks at these places. That means it is a relatively rich biodiversity area.
At the rate we are going, children of Klang Valley will soon not remember a bird other than crows, will not know insects other than roaches, and will not know trees other than the landscape-favourite palm trees by the roads.
A small forest reserve has to die so that some human beings can have a burial ground for their dead. That’s ok. Let the rape continue till one day there’s nothing left.
Oi Fools!!! What’s happening to your brains? Addled by repeated trips to the border? How come you get a virgin forest logged bare when it is part of the National Park? Isn’t that just plain ILLEGAL?
The Star’s report on March 26
Massive land-clearing activities at Lojing Highlands in Gua Musang, Kelantan, involving 25,000ha, is a disaster in the making,warned Natural Resources and Environment Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Sazmi Miah.
“The activities are clearly a blatant disregard for the laws on highland development,” he said.
He added that the ministry would immediately freeze all approvals for environmental impact assessment (EIA) applications at Lojing.
“We will not approve any EIA until we are able to rectify the current environmental damage at Lojing,” he told reporters after carrying out an air surveillance to check on land-clearing activities at Cameron Highlands and Lojing Highlands.
Sazmi said one badly destroyed area at Lojing Highlands was the clearing of 300ha of flat land situated about 1,400m above sea level for a paku-pakis (fern) planting project.
“We don’t know how the state government can do this as we only allow agriculture development to take place at areas below the 1,000m mark,” he added.
So the ball was at the Kelantan government’s court. What is this? The way I see it, 25,000 acres of virgin forest is being raped by 22 companies (with only 5 of them backed by EIA supported approvals). A matter of economic gain?
The way I see it, the state govt, if it does not do anything about this issue fast, Kelantan will be barren land, and even BN will not be interested in the state anymore. Nothing to rip from the earth….Petroleoum will go dry in a couple of decades. What happens to the Kelantanese people then?
Umno’s Annuar Musa said this
State Umno liaison committee chairman Datuk Seri Annuar Musa told a press conference that Umno would press the state government to freeze all logging activities pending an investigation by an independent committee.
He stressed that there was nothing political about the issue as environment preservation was a concern for all political parties.
That statement triggered an involuntary snigger. Pigi dah ! The actions of state governments in other parts of Malaysia is not forgiveable either. Take Selangor and what happened to Bukit Lagung Forest Reserve. Parliament actually de-gazetted some 200-hectares (so I was told) of this forest reserve behind FRIM. Development is also taking place there.
So don’t pretend to be suddenly conscious abt the Environment.
IGP Tan Sri Musa Hassan is the man with the plan, and for the future of the police force in this country, I hope he gets the support of the governance collective (that includes you, you and you politicians).
The only practical and reasonable way to weed out corruption among the police force is to remove the temptation and make it a respectable living. A 20% hike above the other civil servants’ pay seems a reasonable enough start for me.
Here’s what he told The Star. The opening paragraph speaks my thoughts
The police want 20% more in basic salary than any government servants so that more and better-qualified people will be keen to join the force, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan said.
He said a new and better scheme of service was needed as the force was undergoing a massive restructuring exercise.
“This must be done if we want to reduce corruption and also to reach out and provide better delivery to the public.
“The restructuring exercise will also see the deployment of additional manpower and logistic support to highly populated and crime-prone districts in the country,” he told The Star in a special interview in conjunction with the 200th year celebration of the police force today. - Sunday Star (March 25)
He added that he had submitted the proposal to the Public Service Department.
So he had submitted his proposal. Action first, and then talk. The man means business indeed.
Take away the temptation of graft. And elevate the profession to something us Malaysians respect. Plenty of our young men and women will see their future in law enforcement then.
When I see those traffic cops at gridlocks throughout the city come rain or shine, I take off my hats to these guys. It can’t be pleasant, but they do it.
When I am lost and the safest place to stop is a police station, these guys and gals have helped me countless times. Granted, there are bad apples, but any organisation has rogues anyway. Let’s not punish the collective.
Two hundred years of service…I think it is long past time for some dignity.
Trawling the local blogs today somewhat warmed the proverbial cockles of my heart. I came across this posting at Rocky’s blog that gave me a definition of digital democracy.
The posting also included what I take to be Tan Sri Musa Hitam’s speech as he launched a book by Ooi Kee Beng on former DPM and consummate public servant Tun Dr Ismail, probably one of the finest politicians (by that I mean, he led an exemplary life) this country has seen.
A part of Musa’s speech I reproduce here, courtesy of Rocky Bru.
“I guess the late Tun (Dr Ismail) never imagined how our nation has become so so internet savvy in such a short time. Certainly, though, he would be happy to know that in spite of the furious debates on what used to be these taboo subjects, they are not accompanied by the inevitable unrest and even violence that used to be the order of the day! This is what a leading professor calls “Digital Democracy”. And Thank God for that!”
Maybe as a retired politician, Musa has none of that insecurity issues that plague many of the serving (dare I say self-serving) politicians and ministers. His words above says a lot about the man’s intelligence. What clever articulation, to say something that significant, surreptiously and to nonchalantly attribute it all to what he thinks his hero would have said or thought. Musa is cool : ).
First came Zero Squatters 2005, then came the Zero Unemployment (which according to real world situation, is not possible cos there will always be residual unemployment).
Now, the Malaysian IGP Tan Sri Musa Hassan has pledged Zero Tolerance to “outside interference” in police investigations, in an interview with The Star yesterday. Firstly, the very reference indicates there existed outside interference before. In all fairness, maybe it doesn’t now. And maybe this year pigs will really fly.
Musa has shown a marked will to clean up the police force and a no-nonsense, I-mean-business demeanour that was heartening, since he took over from predecessor Tan Sri Mohd Jamil Johari. I’m an essential romantic who’d like to believe that he means what he says.
I also hope that the political climate will allow him to do his job, especially there is this high profile murder case of Altantuya Shariibuu looming close, and let’s not have another case thrown out due to shoddy investigation. This time, international eyes will be closely trained on Malaysia.
According to The Sun report not too long ago, police handling of of two rather well known cases; the Norjan Khan murder as well as Chinese national Xu Jianhuang’s mysterious death raised a lot of questions.
I have one final question. Former MBSA engineer Haniff Basree was acquitted of the murder of young Noritta Shamsudin, abt two yrs ago. That must mean the killer is still at large, to my naive mind. What happened to that case then? All throughout the trial, I wondered what happened to her missing phone and her supposed li’l black book. Calls can be traced, so there shud be no problems with knowing who were the people she called. Was her phone tendered as evidence? Or her call statement perhaps?
Just can’t help but think there was more to that story there. What say you, readers?
The current gloomy weather, the roaring thunder and white-hot lightning that accompanies pouring rain makes it easy to forget that not too long ago, we used to have glorious glorious sun, and breathtaking sunsets.
Here’s a picture that reminded me of just how magnificent the colours of dusk really are.
This was a chance shot of a passing ship that was rapidly disappearing into dusky oblivion. Taken from Tanjung Harapan, near Northport, in Port Klang with my trusty little Sony Cybershot. Had to use a tripod and this was a timed shot. My hands were not steady enough.
Things like this makes me sick. It should make any right thinking person outraged. Quite beneath that sensationalised “enthralling” dirty diary report is the sad truth. This teenage girl was violated by an adult male under whose ostensible care she stayed.
How much worse can it be? The corruption of a young girl’s mind is complete and irreversible. It changes her being, and will forever alter how she sees her world. This was done by her brother-in-law and she probably thinks it is ok. He will blame it on hormones.
What does the state say about this?
Statutory rape is defined by the Malaysian Penal Code as sex with a minor (under the age of consent…in Malaysia, 18). Punishment includes caning and a jail term up to 14 years.
Now the suspect arrested is the victim’s sister’s husband. In my book, he has failed both the “guardian” and the “responsible member of society” test. There is nothing preventing this guy from preying from other young girls, even if he has a wife.
I think it would be a major deterrent if he was just castrated.
Our misinformed Minister Zainudin Maidin has told newspapers not to quote websites and give the impression that there is credibility in their stories.
Is there no end to the crap that has been spewing from this “never been” of a minister that no one likes and very few tolerate.
Here let’s go through The Star’s report.
He said most websites on the Internet were provocative and run either by those who were frustrated journalists or frustrated in politics.
“Most” is a convenient escape clause mister. So if i say i’m not, you’ll just say “Saya tak kata semua” By the way, aren’t you sorry excuse for a journalist and a pathetic example of a politician as well? So you should know about “frustrations” eh? Even that verbal diarrhoea Badruddin Amiruldin has his comic timing as a claim to fame.
“Do not quote them because you are disgracing yourself as you are the authority. Do not give credit to such anarchist websites,” he said
You are telling newspapers what and when to do things? If things are newsworthy, they will pick it up and investigate. What anarchist websites? These are Malaysians just like you and me. Just a couple of days after we hear of Fu’s “friendly calls”, you had to jump in with your own statement. Yo Maidin…you are fast becoming an irrelevance, and your so un-funny attempts at making your presence felt always falls flat. You don’t know the meaning of irrelevant? Ask Augustine Paul.
Blogs and mainstream media can complement each other in the unearthing and dissemination of information. But then such an ideal marriage is a utopian concept your limited grey cells can’t grasp.
“If the Government can educate the newspapers to be responsible, it can also do the same to the websites by law or whatever way.
Heheh…Mister Accidental Comic, FYI the government does not educate the newspapers. These publishing companies have several Swords of Damocles by way of the Printing Presses and Publications Act and the Internal Security Act, to name a few, hanging over them.
Just ask The Star and several newspapers that has “kena” in your lifetime.
You talk from the arse man!
The year was 1999. It was General Election in Malaysia. The second time I voted in my life. Managed to sneak off to vote for my candidates, even though it was helluva busy day. I vote back in my hometown in Negri Sembilan.It was a rather uneasy election.
With the Anwar fiasco of the previous year, the angry masses wanted to prove a point. There was a lot of gab, a lot of fiery posturing during the campaigning period.
Later that day when votes were counted, the ruling party candidate scraped through with barely 15-votes majority. That’s how close it came. That’s when this whole “every vote counts” philosophy became real for me. My single vote mattered.
So I vowed then to vote every time there’s an election. Those of you who bitch and moan about the state of things, spiraling cost of living, corruption, lack of accountability… everything that is wrong with the government, well here’s your chance.
Go visit your nearest Election Commission office and sign up as a voter by this Friday. That is if you wanna vote in the next General Elections. Make some effort people. It is your country!
YOU ARE NOT WORTH THAT MALAYSIAN IDENTITY CARD IF YOU DO NOT VOTE!!
So go out there people. The people must have a hand in deciding their political fate. It is a hallmark of democracy after all.
There is a tremendous feeling of empowerment one feels when some principles one stands for, through a lifetime filled with challenges is finally recognised.
Being consistent is very very difficult when life throws you curveballs of all shapes and sizes everyday. I’ve been there, and i’m still undergoing it.
But this week i stand vindicated. I am seen for the essential good person I am. What more do I want? Thank You God!
An open letter to a minister who is supposed to “sell” Malaysia,
Dear Tengku Adnan,
For the record, I would like to state that I am an employed woman, who is so busy she even turns up at work on a Sunday. So I do not fall under your “80 % of bloggers are unemployed women” category. Secondly, the onus is on you as the accuser to prove that impossible statement of yours “all bloggers are liars”.
Lots of corporations have woken up to the reality of Internet as the new media and the power of blogs. Just ask Maxis about Jeff Ooi and the chocolate incident.
If you have not woken up to the fact, you must be sleeping along with a certain someone who has had a power nasi kandar lunch Down Under and still reeling from the kickass after-effects of the kas kas. Get the hell out of Putrajaya man, the sleepy hollow is getting to you.
Nila Tanzil is a foreign visitor and she had a bad experience in Malaysia (or so she wrote). You don’t have to believe her. You just have to investigate the matter. This has the potential to backfire in your face, and at a truly expensive cost to the Visit Malaysia Year 2007. So just do it man. But instead you choose to bitch on TV. Kaki-Dalam-Mulut disease or what?
You have been a politician for a while, and now the Minister of Tourism. Don’t they teach you Diplomacy 101 or did you tuang that class? Either that or you had one too many before that TV appearance.
This translation of what the Minister said is picked up from another blog (I hope I have your permission for this Susan) and is from Mandarin to English.
- “Bloggers are liars. They use all sort of ways to cheat others. From what I know, out of 10,000 unemployed bloggers, 8,000 are women.“Bloggers like to spread rumours, they don’t like national unity. Today our country has achievements because we are tolerant and compromising. Otherwise we will have civil war.“Malays will kill Chinese, Chinese will kill Malays, Indians will kill everybody else.”
The hand that rocks the cradle, rules the world. Never am I more conscious of the fact than when I see Amma. Her strength, resilience, stoic acceptance of something she can’t change, righteous anger with injustice all amazed me and still does.
I was 12 when i stood head to head with her. Now, I have grown a full head taller while age and infirmity has shrunk her smaller than I remember. Still, she’s my amma. The reason why I am in this world.
Amma is the unifying factor in a fractious family that’s filled with a lot of love and anger and grief. Amma, whose birthday we never knew, always remembered ours. Amma, whose forgetfulness was a source of comic relief and much confusion, had lots on her small shoulders, but still manages a ringing laughter when something tickles her funny bone.
Whenever the family is in crisis, the one person still standing under all that battering, is her.
Amma, there can be no tribute to women, without you as the centrepiece.
As we celebrate the International Women’s Day, I would like to salute women around me who have loved, inspired, led, and lighted my path at different points of my life.
They are:
Auntie Malliga: cool mom. her ability to relate to others and at the same time retain so much of her integrity and faith is amazing.
Marsh Ooi: A friend, a tigress of a mother, a staunch ally, a loyal friend. I’m thankful to have her by my side, always lifting me up.
Bridget Menezes: A consummate lady whose every word speaks the language of peace.
Janet Lee: An inspiration to all whose life she touched, as much has her father and grandfather had been.She exudes love, peace and so much caring it is impossible to ignore. She’s my teacher.
Victoria Robertson: A picture of elegance and beauty, she is also study in articulate-ness (is there such a word) and most of all resilience and maturity.
Jeyanthi Kaliappan: A woman who will give her everything for those in need. A study in selflessness. My sister.
Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali: Will we ever have such an elegant symbol of grace, quiet strength, intelligence and loyalty in our lifetime than Malaysia’s former First Lady?
Dear Maran,
It has been almost four days since you left us without goodbye. But then, very few of us actually have that gift, to bid farewell to a loved one leaving the world. I’m at peace though, because I’ve always told you what you meant to me. There were little left to be spoken that we didn’t understand already.
Seeing you lying there was heart-wrenching, to say the least. And I have known you for less than two years. Tell me brother, how it would have felt to all those whose lives you have touched for many years. Only time will give us all solace.
Not a single person I spoke to who knew you, had a single negative thing to say about you. And I could tell they meant it. That’s how pure you were. Your corny jokes still haunts me, your jocular tone still rings in my ears. Your honesty and sincerity re-affirms my shaky belief in the goodness of my fellow humans.
Your last conversation a week ago, your enthusiasm when you told me of impending nuptials, your happiness, your sincerity when you told me you need a friend like me, will stay with me throughout my life.
You lifted me with your positiveness when I was down in the depths of despair. For that, and the gift of you, I am ever grateful to God.
Rest In Peace my friend. We will all miss you.
Sometimes you wish you don’t have to wake up in the morning. Certainly not to see a horribly cruel sight like this.
Amid, a three-month-old baby elephant was, according to zookeepers at Malacca Zoo, probably separated from his mother. Rescued from a theme park where he was found tied up, this little jumbo is now in good hands, thank God!
He is on the mend alright, but this emaciated little elephant might take a year or more to be normal and healthy again. Kudos to those who do not think twice about rescuing and healing an animal,we certainly need more of them.
It could have been the fast currents during the December floods in Johor that separated Amid from his mom. The toll that the unprecedented floods people’s lives, livelihood and damage to property was widely chronicled, yet here was the untold story of how disasters (natural or man-induced) could have devastating impact on our natural surroundings.
It is is quite common in developing nations to see more emphasis given to material development, often at the expense of the environment and natural habitat. Yet, Malaysia is doing better economically than some of its neighbours, isn’t it?
What was the elephant doing at a theme park? Was there any action taken against the theme park for harbouring a protected animal? Do they have licence?
Doesn’t the Malaysian Wildlife Protection Act 1972 provide for mandatory jail sentence for cruel treatment of animals? The Star article does not name the theme park involved, but it did indicate that Amid was rescued a month ago. The perps must not go scot-free. This is unconscionable!
