The rot is taking root ... fast. I love my country. I may be a non-Malay, a small entity within a minority population group, but I still love my country. It is sad that in this day and age, when the world is getting flatter by the day as so eloquently put by Thomas Friedman, I have to reassert my allegiance to my country. Friedman's book is a frightening read. Malaysia should be afraid but there is no urgency at all at any sphere of government. We continue to deliberately ignore the danger signs right in front of our eyes. Our education system is in shambles, divided by race and religion, fed by an inadequate curriculum. We have yet to know what will be our growth drivers for the 21st century. On some days, it is biotechnology, on others, it's manufacturing. Then we make half-hearted announcements about new measures to stimulate the stock exchange, which by the way is already one of the worst performing exchanges in Asia. In any case, the stock market is no indicator of true economic value generation.

What is lacking is a focused strategy explaining how Malaysia will move from point A to point B, in firm, deliberate steps up the value chain. One only needs to look at Singapore and understand immediately why this small tiny red dot is so successful. The little country is all about picking the right strategies and flawless execution. And they do something else different - they practice meritocracy. We are governed by Darwinian rules, whether we like or not - the fittest survive, the weak will fall to the wayside. The National Economic Policy was never meant to help the strong get stronger and push the weak into a more precarious situation. 50 years after independence, we are still grappling with major race relations issues which can potentially tear this country apart.

We remained cocooned in our shells which no longer seem as sturdy as they were once. The world is looking at our nakedness while politicians continue to play the dangerous race card of bumiputera-ism and the "others". There are already murmurs that the country is facing a cash problem - one look at comments by government complaining about the high cost of rehabilitating the desolate water-logged lands of Johor is hint enough for me that we are not exactly flush with cash and continued prosperity which many UMNO politicians seem to take for granted. Is that any wonder when as a trading nation, we are not pulling in much foreign money to our shores. Indonesia has already granted their Chinese citizens full status as "pribumi" equivalent to the bumiputera status in Malaysia. That means everyone is equal, with no special privileges. Malaysia on the other hand, continues to look at half its population with suspicion. How can a rot not take root?  ¶ 10:47 PM 0 Comments

  It's time to declare an emergency in Johor The number of people evacuated from their homes due to the worsening flood situation in Johor has crossed 110,000. The population of Johor is about 2.7 million; that means about five percent of its inhabitants have been forced to flee their homes, leaving any undamaged properties at the mercy of criminals. Plus the added threat of wide scale epidemics hitting the population, due to the stagnant waters which officials say will not drain out until March, means that an official state of emergency must be declared. It is not a time to vacillate and bicker amongst the dizzying number of Federal and state agencies. It is a time for firm leadership. The people are waiting expectantly for decisive action. A state of emergency is the best viable option under current circumstances. As it is, no top leadership in the government are present in the state in its hour or need. The Prime Minister has only made one visit in December before scampering off overseas. It is no surprise that he is still overseas now when he is morally obliged to be in Malaysia.

While the government may like to shy away from such a decision and hope all will be well, the opposite result is already in motion, with a potential catastrophic disaster which could involve large number of lives, already being formed. Some sources say that health situation in Johor is in dire straits - something which is being under reported by the mainstream media. The government has also ordered an additional 1,500 police officers into Johor, but I doubt that is going to make much of a difference to the chaos ensuing there.

This is now a job for the military. They have got the equipment and the trained personnel to bring some semblance of order and reassurance to the population. While some may argue that civilian control is more effective, we cannot deny the fact that the military has doctors, boats and trained personnel to make a big difference to the relief efforts and the worsening security situation there.

It is understandable that the government wants to keep the military in the barracks so that it need not worry about photos of armed soldiers appearing in the newspapers - both local and foreign. This year is after all, Visit Malaysia Year. A state of emergency will also mean the military will assume a bigger role in decision making, something which will be frowned upon by UMNO.  ¶ 4:50 PM 0 Comments

  Will we see more of our Prime Minister this year? Its amazing what the internet can do nowadays. I happened to read in Jeff Ooi's blog about the Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi opening a plush nasi kandar restaurant in downtown Perth, Australia. The restaurant is allegedly partly owned by his own brother. While that alone is nothing out of the ordinary, the sleeping Prime Minister graced this occasion on Dec 29th 2006 - a time when thousands of Malaysians were knee-deep in flood waters, frantically salvaging personal items, scrapping for food and enduring the trauma of damaged properties which will run into the millions of Ringgit. Of course, news of this restaurant opening may have earlier been earmarked for some local coverage by Abdullah's spin doctors, but quickly silenced upon the massive deluge laying waste to many parts of Johor.

Newspapers are still highlighting the squalid conditions that people are enduring as I write now, in the many areas still water-logged. Johor is essentially low lands and in the flood-hit areas, a lot of the villages are virtually uninhabitable. Even the docile Star is highlighting the trauma of the people there. Promised cash aids by the government is not making its way to the intended recipients. Tempers are flaring, and UMNO is losing ground. The highly vocal UMNO Youth, so quick to lash out and bully their way on the national political platform, were nowhere to be seen from the start of the floods till now. The new "champion" of Malays, Khairy Jamaludin never "turun padang" to help his people who has taken the brunt of this disaster. Perhaps he was also holidaying in Perth with his beloved father-in-law?

The Star made a few pathetic attempts to show the face of the MCA representatives working hard to help the flood victims. This disaster has also laid bare for all the world to see, the true extent of the fragile race relations in this country. Malays were focussed on helping their own, the Chinese complained that they had to pay soldiers and other government agencies money before they could be ferried off their water logged properties. Racial politics which has been a bane on our society, reared its ugly head again at a time when the country needed some assurance that people can after all, live together. The Prime Minister never issued any statements to his people, going on his own way, enjoying his holiday in Perth or whereever else he jet setted to during the year end period. Has he set the stage for another disappearing act for 2007? I do not expect anything different from this man.  ¶ 6:57 AM 0 Comments

  Her Truth When my hands caress
the gentle forms of her poetry
I want to communicate
in a language other than words -
Words tumble violently
Into nothingness.
Her poetry is all I understand.
She is my sun.

I do not know how else to tell her
she is beautiful.
She folds into shyness
upon my revelation.
Her poetry evokes
a thousand searing emotions
in me.
Alas, she knows not her truth
That burns my lips
and keeps my restless oceans
at bay.  ¶ 5:41 PM 0 Comments

  Top banker calls for a review of the NEP It came as a surprise today when I read Nazir Abdul Razak, the chief executive officer of CIMB Group and more importantly, the brother of the Deputy Prime Minister calling for the National Economic Policy to be reviewed, in order to make the country more competitive. Apparently, he made this call in an article he wrote for the Edge. He did not reject the policy but rather said it is time for the divisive policy to remoulded to fit the changing times. But being the banker he is, he seems to be more concerned about the damage the NEP is doing to the country's equity markets rather than what this policy is doing in accentuating racial suspicions.

He writes: "In our little corner, in the capital markets, for instance, if we have moved to free pricing for IPOs (initial public offerings), how dangerous is that we insist that bumiputeras have preferential allocation? Potential issuers today are being courted by exchanges throughout the world; in its present form, the NEP discourages companies from listing on Bursa Malaysia; how helpful is that to the country or indeed the bumiputera community?”

Interestingly enough, Nazir's brother, the Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has always come out in no uncertain terms to lambast all calls for a review of the NEP. Hardly surprising as the DPM has to play to the Malay gallery. But the fact that Nazir comes out in an article calling for a revamp of this policy, means that he would have gotten the greenlight from Najib to do so. Perhaps it is an act of shaking the tree a little bit, to see how might the fruits fall. Political observers will be perking up now, to see what this might mean for the Abdullah-Najib rivalry in 2007. It will also be interesting to see how the Abdullah, the Prime Minister, or indeed his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin, reacts to media queries on this subject

Why did Nazir make this statement? Is it is to appeal to investors - both local (read Chinese) and foreign - that are disappointed with the Prime Minister's inability to make changes to the current NEP policy which is fast becoming a liability? Is it a message to them that Najib will do things differently and make the country more competitive? I for one, do feel that this article may be just one of Najib's long term plan to unseat the sleeping Prime Minister.  ¶ 8:46 PM 0 Comments

  EPF's competence in question The Star today reported that the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), the guardian of our hard-earned pension fund, almost paid RM15mil for a wound-up company worth less than RM700,000. But the EPF still paid a 10 percent down payment of 10 percent or a whopping RM1.5 million, which according to the report, is refundable. Consider that 10 percent a write-off, because the conmen who succeeded in making the EPF fools, would have already spirited the money away in an offshore bank account.

Apparently it just took a smooth talking criminal a few hours to convince our so-called investment experts in the EPF to commit RM15 million into a local company which this man claimed had sealed a deal with an American firm with dealings with fast food chains. The report further said that the EPF personnel immediately signed agreements to give this man RM1.5 million after just viewing some graphs and listening to this conman. No background checks, no indepth studies carried out by EPF prior to making any investment decisions.

It is obvious that EPF has lost that RM1.5 million. In an ordinary investment house, such mistakes would mean the chop for the guilty party but that's not going to happen to these bumbling fools in the EPF. It will be business as usual, with mistakes like this pushed under the carpet, and conveniently forgotten. And to make matters trickier for the EPF, they did not find out about the scam; it was honest directors of that company put up by sale by the conman, who alerted the sleeping monkeys "guarding" our pension fund.

Malaysians have a right to know what the EPF will do to restore confidence in itself. As it is, EPF's dividend returns are paltry, barely 4 percent a year while pension funds in Singapore gives back many times that. EPF has made some questionable investments and it is clear that Malaysians are paying for their follies. This latest fiasco is just another shameful notch on its roster of mistakes, costing the taxpayer dearly.  ¶ 9:23 AM 0 Comments

  The lines on my hands ... The lines on my hands
Get longer
on the canvas
of my Indian skin.

Then, like clockwork,
They speak
in a language
I cannot comprehend.
It is an earthy language
Exploring alien lands

The lines on my hands
Mock me in song
They cannot leave me alone;
My history fuels the blood
In these lines.

I embrace the patchwork
that is me
and cling on
to
raw
hope
cutting
into me bloody.  ¶ 8:11 PM 0 Comments

  Happy New Year And so, 2006 has passed into history and a new year beckons all of us. There is talk about making 2007 an extraordinary year, being that the nation is set to celebrate 50 years of Independence. All this is well and good and most Malaysians will hope and pray that the new year is indeed a good year for all. In 2006, the country has taken quite a bit of battering in the area of race relations, poor governance and often punctuated by a-not-so-sterling leadership required for a country as complex as ours. While there is talk that the economy may show some signs of a resurgence, which inevitably will raise speculation of an early election, questions will still be asked about the nation's political will to forge ahead with new policies untainted by race preferences, in order to prepare Malaysia for the future. I don't, sadly, think that race-baiting tactics are a thing of the past, despite all this wonderful talk by politicans of a new era for Malaysia. I do hope that I am proven wrong. Well, here's to a new year. Hope springs eternal, does it not?  ¶ 8:41 AM 0 Comments