How the "credible media" was manipulated - SC case

Singapore's Straits Times in a report today alleged that Securities Commission (SC) had failed to heed the recommendation of its own task force that Sime Darby Bhd was obliged to make a general offer for Eastern & Oriental (E&O) shares.
 
The report which would definitely put SC once again on a defensive mode was written by Straits Tmes' KL-based correspondent Leslie Lopez.

The first to pounce on the report was the pro-Pakatan Malaysian Insider (MI)

Excerpt of the MI story on Leslie Lopez's story (phiuh!) :

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 30 — A Securities Commission (SC) task force found that Sime Darby Bhd was obliged to make a general offer for Eastern & Oriental (E&O) Bhd shares after acquiring a 30 per cent stake in the property developer but was superseded by the regulator’s top ruling authority.
Singapore’s The Straits Times reported that the task force was of the view that a general offer obligation had been triggered as a new “concert party” was created between Sime Darby and E&O managing director Datuk Terry Tham, who jointly controlled more than 33 per cent in the property concern after the deal.
Malaysia’s takeover rules stipulate that any party that acquires more than a 33 per cent interest in a publicly-listed entity must carry out a general offer for the remaining shares.
A general offer can also be triggered if a new party buys less than 33 per cent but secures management control of the target company.
But the SC’s final ruling three-member committee ruled “in a majority decision” there was no general offer obligation as Sime Darby and Tham were not acting in concert, according to an affidavit by the agency’s second-most senior commissioner Datuk Francis Tan, which was sighted by the Singapore daily.
The committee also accepted the task force’s recommendation that the three groups which sold the blocks of E&O shares to Sime Darby did not collectively control the company and that the disposal did not trigger a general offer.

Somehow this MI story never mentioned Leslie Lopez as the writer of the Straits Times' story.

Ok, those who are in the know among the media people in KL should know the connection between Leslie Lopez and the top people in MI and their financiers.

This gang are the same who desired the Sime Darby's GO of  E&O, but was thwarted when SC ruled that there was no need for such a thing.

If you say you don't know who are these people, let me put it in brief...they prospered during Pak Lah's time...and now itching to do anything to sabotage Najib and the BN government.

Now, how did Leslie Lopez got the story?....My not so intelligent guess is that he got someone who feed him the necessary info or idea of such info. My bet is, these are Malaysians and he/she/they are Insiders.

Got it or not? Nice game plan isn't it?

Why need to have the story in Straits Times first?

Because, everything which came from across the Causeway sound and smell more kosher, isn't it? No personal vested interest, isn't it? Like that lah, more credible.

MI can always claim it's just doing a follow-up of that story....of course with some spice and spin added.

The much maligned SC are now fending on its own.

Guess, even those Malaysian cyberspace patriots who normally will jump to defend a Malaysian institution from these sorts of attack will shy away due to past differences with the SC top dogs and cats.

To make matters even worst for SC was that it can't even defend itself properly because the matter is now pending in court. Leslie Lopez conveniently left out this court case part despite after the SC people had logically explained to him that they can't comment due to it.

He put it there in his report that SC simply refused to comment, thus making it sound as if the regulator was not at all transparent...and arrogant.

With the general election being near, I see this whole thing as an attack not only targetting to undermine SC for personal vested interests but more importantly it is also an attack against the country's economy as a whole by creating unease and lack of confidence in the Malaysian stock exchange.

ps. To SC people who are pro-Pakatan - stop being gullible. Your heroes and their cronies are attacking the organisation where you cari makan for your family. They don't care for you. They will use you, chew you up and when they have the power and don't need you anymore, they will spit you out.  It's happening already.

A prayer for a dear friend

Dear friend,
I've never met you, don't know what you look like, don't even know your name.
Likewise, you do not even know of my existence.

But still, to me, you are a dear friend.
You was there when I was not around...when I should be there during those dark days many years ago.
Thank you dear friend,

At this moment, I'm in this room praying to Allah for your health to be restored.
I dreamt of you in my nap just now.
Woke up crying.

How I wish I could be there with the other, caring for you.
But I know I can't and never will be able to.

Nonetheless,
I pray that you continue to be strong.
I pray the same for your good family too.

Dear friend, you are an angel.
Allah loves you and will keep you safe.
Of that I am certain.

Do rest well and take care.

A nice cold place

Bloody cold out there.....posting this picture just to remind myself later how cold it is here today....but I'm happy....ok, take care n be merry....Cheers!!!!

R&R before the final push

Going off grid over the next few days.

Need to go check my new base where I am planning to move after the general election. I love Johor, but I think my job here will be done once Ghani Othman is no longer MB. I am quite sure he will be retiring after the election. Like him, I need to do other things too.

Anyway, I am going to use this break to rest and recharge before coming back to JB for the final push to the polls, which has now seems only going to be held in June.

Things seems to be fluid right now on the ground in Johor. There have been several surprises discovered during Ghani's latest visits to the kawasan2 peti undi.

Among others, things seems to be getting better for BN in Chinese-majority Kluang. Salute to the MCA people there. However, I hope they don't put Gan Peng Shiu there as a candidate. Sure lose one.

Things also seems to be under control in grey Segamat. Just that I hope those funny Umno people there will not try to sabotage their own party again this time around simply because they do not like their ketua bahagian anymore. Osman Jais may not be very handsome, but he works hard. Maybe YB Osman can volunteer to be the Khaled AlWaled of Segamat to ensure no sabotage happened? Hmmmm....who knows.....

Heard a group of prominent KL-based bloggers are coming down to join Ghani's lawatan peti undi in DAP-held Bakri starting tomorrow. It's the only parliament area in Johor held by the Pakatan people. Interesting. These top-notch bloggers will see for themselves how Ghani and his small team of lowly-paid loyalists work. Hopefully, they will get to see how the rumusan peti undi is done. Superb stuff that one.

Eh, enough lah...I'm turning off now. Until next time. InsyaAllah.

p.s  Rockybru, BigDog and A Voice, salute to you guys for trying to help save Johor. Very brave of you all. Thank you very much.

Jati diri Melayu Johor (updated)

Angin bertiup dari selatan
membawa khabar dari sultan
akan datang nanti
serombongan dari seberang

berlayar dari Blakang Mati
singgah sebentar di Pasir Panjang
sungguh menawan hati
redup sayup
saujana mata memandang

hai teluk belanga lah namanya
tempat bersejarah lagi indah
rakyatnya bersantun
budi bahasa
teruna dara

siapa memandang pasti kan tertawan
liut senyum malu si gadis rupawan
gerak tangkas pasti teruna berani
itulah kenangan hai di teluk belanga

puteri bertudung bersopan santun
menari zapin teluk belanga
budaya di junjung
dimartabatkan supaya masyhur
di sepanjang zaman

Ok, since some Johorean Malays may no longer like zapin because it was promoted by Ghani Othman, who is likely to retire soon, let me introduce this dance which may likely be the new number one dance in Johor in the next few years.. Enjoy!

I would just quit if I'm Ghani

Had dinner with a good friend who is a journalist last night.

He told me about his meeting with KL-based Johorean blogger BigDog earlier in the day.

Asked me what I think of Mr Bigdog's latest posting.

It's a bit long, I think. But I don't want to comment on it. I think I know where it was heading, but let it be lah.

I am honestly still in CNY mood. No energy to call up here and there to check on other blogger's postings or spend time doing research. BTW, I think I ate too many mandarin oranges. Caused extra gas in my tummy liao.

Well, even if I try to give my view, most likely BigDog will have his own take on it. No point going ding dong with him.

As far as I am concerned, pro-Umno KL-based Johorean bloggers like BigDog and A Voice had made up their mind that Johor MB Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman need to let go off his post ASAP. Based on their postings on Johor, I don't think they like Ghani too much anyway.

So, no point in arguing about that. After all, these good fellas want the best for their party. So, if they feel that Johor Umno will be better off without Ghani, then so be it. I am not even an Umno member, so, why should I be bothered too much. Let them be happy with the likes of Khaled Nordin or Osman Sapian as Johor MB.

By the way, heard Ghani was under pressured by his family members to quit as MB too. They were said to be tired of being slandered because many Umno people think Ghani wants so much to cling on to the post. My sources in PMO had even confirmed that Ghani had conveyed the message about his situation to PM DS Najib Razak. The PM was however said to be quite unhappy about it.

Actually, if I am Ghani, I would quit too. Being Johor MB is definitely not a walk in the park. And the slanderous and libelous stuff one needs to endure is great. And the family have to suffer along.

If Ghani is reading this, here is my message to him -

Datuk, I think you just quit lah. No point continuing sacrificing for all these ungrateful people. You are 65 already. Time to have a time for yourself and your family. Enough la those 16 years as MB, juggling between the interests of the rakyat, the palace, the corporate sector, the JCS etc etc.
  People said lots of nonsense about you and your family members over the years. As if you got so rich being an MB (how I wish those people could reveal the billions of ringgits that you had looted instead of just accusing you of these and that). Why don't you just let those buggers become MB. They want it so much, so let them lah. Let us see how Khaled Nordin or Osman Sapian brings Johor to greater heights, as they so fondly said so. You have done enough for Johor. Not only they are not thankful, but they even spit on you...and your family too.
  I know, you said this is a "perjuangan sepanjang hayat", but its ok lah. You cannot be too principled. Nobody really care about principles anyway these days. All that matters to them is whether you as MB can make them rich or not. They got contract or not....not withstanding whether they really work for it. If you don't give them (because they are just assholes who only care about their own tembolok) they will go on a warpath to kick you out. Hell, they are even willing to kick your wife and children too.
  So, Datuk Ghani, I think you just quit lah. I am also quitting Johor after this general election. Enough lah. Tired already liao.

Ok, happy or not. I told Ghani to quit already. What else you all want? Sheeeeshhhs......

ps. Datuk Ghani, almost forgot, please tell your people not to give up for now and continue with the preparations for the general election. You and they all must ensure BN still hold Johor before leaving. Must go with clear conscience ma.

It's gonna be a good year for the Chinese

Sorry, I'm a bit late in wishing a Happy Chinese New Year to everyone who celebrates the occasion via this blog.

I was actually giving some time for my earlier posting on
Remembering the good old man of Bukit Serene
to be this blog's main headline.

Well, at the time I'm writing this, it's still the first day of the Chinese New Year.
So, HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!

Personally, I think this is going to be a great year for the Chinese community.
Despite the rather gloomy economic forecasts, things shouldn't be too bad. Politically, the community will be the ones who will decide where this country is heading in the coming general election. The Malays are too fragmented to play that role. I think, they will choose wisely and not let this country falls into ruin due to racial polarization and stuff.

I can see that most Chinese people are enjoying themselves today. A lot of firecrackers being lit at midnight and later today. So, things must be good for the Chinese community for now..

Heard, even Guan Eng and family had flown off to celebrate CNY in Italy....flying business class some more....hmmm, good la if true....sometimes must enjoy also ma.

Guan Eng's father had meanwhile called for the Chinese to unite into one big dragon this year (for the coming general election, he said)....ok lor, if he want to say so...free country liao...just that later don't hantam Umno as racists la if they call Malays to unite, ok?.

I didn't get to go visit my Chinese friends today as I am working. Instead, I just ate some mandarin oranges which were send by the crates to my office by some well-wishers. Maybe, I will get the time to go on my CNY rounds tomorrow.

Ok lah. Everyone must be still busy celebrating. What do you expect....hehehehe....whatever it is,  please try not to lose too much at the mahjong table ya. CHEERS!!!!

Remembering the good old man of Bukit Serene

It is exactly two years today since I found myself shedding tears in front of the Puteri Specialist Hospital, Johor Baru.

I had rushed to the hospital that morning upon hearing that Sultan Iskandar Sultan Ismail was admitted during the night.

It was not the first time that the sultan was warded at the hospital. Still my anxiety upon hearing the news was real.

The first thing that I was told as I reached there was that the sultan was gravely ill.

I had immediately send several text messages to those I deemed needed to know.

Admittedly, I was emotional at that time. One of the text messages read something like this, "Let's pray the old man survive this. Johor still badly needs him."

When I got the information that MB Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman had chartered a flight to immediately return from accompanying PM DS Najib Razak in India, my heart sank. I knew at that point that there was not much hope left.

About 7pm, as Ghani arrived, my fear was confirmed.

Ghani was wearing the songkok with the strip of white cloth around it. He was already in mourning. The good old man of Bukit Serene, as I fondly called the Sultan among friends, was no more. I recited the Al-Fatihah for my beloved Sultan at that moment with tears in my eyes. Yes, I cried, and I'm not exaggerating it.

Some may think I must be some sorts of a royalist for shedding a tear for the Sultan. Well, the truth is, I am not.

I never had any personal engagement with the Sultan, never even got to shake his hand, let alone received anything directly from him.

But I do love Sultan Iskandar as if he was my own grandfather or someone like that. To me he was a good man in his own way and had kept Johor safe during his reign.

True, I had heard a lot of nasty things about him being a garang man. When he was young, he even lost his position as the Tengku Mahkota to his younger brother Tunku Abdul Rahman because of his temper.

But stories I heard from people I trust, made me believe that Sultan Iskandar was actually a kind person even during those time. He sincerely love his subjects and went to great lengths to do the best for them....of course, in his own way.

In an incident, related to me by my father when I was a teenager, Sultan Iskandar, who was then the Raja Muda had landed his helicopter near our home, which was a unit of delipidated laborers barracks. This was in the mid-1970s.

Upon making some inquiries, Sultan Iskandar went to the office of my father's boss and without saying anything, gave the man a tight slap.

After that, Sultan Iskandar told my father's boss that he was slapped because he let his laborers live in homes which were not even fit for animals. The next day, our barrack home got renovated, complete with a fresh coat of paint.

Sultan Iskandar did not go around slapping people for no good reason.

Nonetheless, what I love most about Sultan Iskandar was his principled way as a monarch.

HE NEVER TAKES ANYTHING FROM HIS RAKYAT.

As far as I know, Sultan Iskandar never asked the State government for anything which didn't belong to him. He may seems to be not the most friendly monarch to most people, but it is a fact that he loved his rakyat enough not to burden them with his demands.

Instead, he gave a lot to his rakyat, of which most were unrecorded. Among the few which were reported by the newspapers was when he gave his land in Bakar Batu, JB for the government to build new homes for residents of Bukit Chagar and Lumba Kuda whose home were to be demolished to make way for the new CIQ.



There are not many places or buildings in Johor named after Sultan Iskandar. When he launched the Iskandar Malaysia project in 2006, other than making that famous statement about the need to demolish the Causeway (and left Pak Lah red-faced), he had also suggested that the economic corridor should had been named after Datuk Abdul Rahman Andak, a 19th century Johorean nobelman who was instrumental in modernising the State. Sultan Iskandar, to me, was definitely not a glamour-seeker. Due to the lack of use of the name, Iskandar now symbolises quality and exclusivity in Johor.

And that, brought me to another Johorean man who is also not a glamor-seeker and was close to Sultan Iskandar.

It was well known almost to everyone that Sultan Iskandar treated Datuk Ghani, his longest serving MB like a member of his own family. He snubbed Pak Lah twice, in 2004 and 2008, when the then PM tried to replace Ghani with someone of his choice. That, to me was the most wise decision by Sultan Iskandar, as I suspected that he knew how much the Tingkat Empat boys at that time had greedily eyed Johor and looking for a foothold. By keeping Ghani to keep the wolves at bay, Sultan Iskandar probably prevented Johor from being sucked dry by those leeches. 

The Sultan and his MB shared many common traits. They are men of integrity and honor. Of course Ghani does not slap people even though sometimes I feel that he should when it comes to dealing with some people.

When Sultan Iskandar bestowed Ghani the highest Johor honour, the Darjah Kerabat 1, many had puzzeled over it as the award was rarely given to a commoner. It technically made one a part of the royal household.

The story that I heard was that when Sultan Iskandar was about to undergo an operation in Bangkok in 2003, it was Ghani who actually contributed his own blood for the operation as the sultan's blood type was of a rare type, which is the same as Ghani's.

However, I'm more inclined to believe that Sultan Iskandar appreciated Ghani simply because he was a monarch who was a good judge of character. He always wanted the best for his subjects and as for leadership, he would had wanted someone who is good to lead Johor, instead of someone who would only be good at saying YES to all his whims and fancies.

The last time I saw Sultan Iskandar was at the opening of Kota Iskandar, the new State administrative capital of Johor on March 16, 2009. He looked frail but was in jovial mood. In his speech, he had cracked jokes and pretended to be crossed with the speech he was supposed to read as it contained several "big Malay words". That was a good day, except that it was also the last time I ever saw Sultan Iskandar in person.

I will always miss that good old man of Bukit Serene.

Al-Fatihah.

    
(Note: Dear readers, please be careful not to make any seditious comments)

Another lousy day

Sorry ya. Today is another lousy day for me.

Cant post anything proper.

When I am like this, I rather relax and listen to good music.

If I try to write when my mood like this, I will end up bitching to no end. So I better shut up and chill.

This is good music. The artiste was not yet very famous when this was recorded.

An old war story

Met an old friend I haven't seen for a long time last night.

We hanged out over a few drinks and mostly talked about our "old war stories".

He is by the way my senior and mentor. A really cool dude, who takes no bullshit from anyone.

He was with me at No8, Jalan Setiamurni, Bukit Damansara when Anwar Ibrahim was arrested that tense night on Sept 20th back in 1998.

I was a Reformasi sympathizer at that time while he was, and still is a pro-BN guy.

At that time, I had wondered why my senior, who knows so much more than me and never compromised on his principles could be so sure that Anwar was not innocent.

I never asked him what were his reasons to take such a stand at that time as I did not want to offend him.

Whenever people asked me why I was sympathetic to Anwar at that time, I always said that the case against him was so poorly handled that it smells a conspiracy from the start.

I was young and rebellious. I was ready to side with anyone who was deemed to be victimized.

The image of Anwar, his soft-mannered wife and young children being victimized really didn't go down well with me.

The funny thing about it all was that I didn't even like Anwar previously. I encountered him several times before he was sacked from his DPM post and find him to be arrogant to those whom he can be arrogant with. His young aides and even his bodyguards were the same. Anwar was at that time at the pinnacle of his power.

But I brushed aside all negetive thoughts about Anwar after I went to his house a day after his sacking. On that day the house was packed with his supporters. But what caught my attention most was the sight of his daughter Nurul Nuha, then 14 crying at one corner and was being consoled by Wan Azizah. That was the turning point for me at that moment.

Now, I'm much older and more objective. I do not let my emotion rules my thinking anymore. Post 2008, I realized that this country is in danger of falling into the hands of hypocrites.

My friend finally told me last night why he was so sure that everything are not right about Anwar.

He was closely involved in the Anwar's case since a year before his arrest. He saw with his own eyes when Anwar abused his power by ordering the police to arrest and harass Umi Hafilda and his driver Azizan to retract their allegations of his sexual misconducts. Anwar was later convicted for that but many, including me at that time believed that it was just part of the conspiracy against him. My friend nonetheless told me how the policemen who had to execute Anwar's orders agonized over what they had to do.

Knowing my friend and what he stands for, I know he was not lying.

"Do you think the same thing will not happened again if that bugger really becomes a PM?" my friend asked.     

You really want Umno dead meh?

I have been following the Pakatan's "Asal Bukan Umno" (ABU) campaign with some amusement.

The campaign, as I understand it was to vote in anyone, except Umno and anyone related to that Malay-based party.

Umno is to these campaigners, the source of all evils in this country. Members of the party are deemed to be corrupt, insidious and immoral.

In fact, DAP leaders such as Guan Eng even equated Umno to the Nazis and the BN government something like the Germany's Third Reich. well, that one was mostly targeted for the Chinese audience la. Najib is something like Adolph Hitler? Are you serious?   

My understanding is that this campaign targeted ALL Umno members and those related to them. Ya lah - anything/anyone but Umno, isn't it? Good or bad Umno people, doesn't matter isn't it?

Is it really like that? All those pakchik-pakchik and makchik-makchik of Umno are evil? Are we very sure of that?

Well, there is this Youtube video clip starring that comedian turned Pas ustaz who goes by the name of Bob Lokman which I watched the other day.

It was of course done in the usual Malay comedy acting where Ustaz Bob was hanging out with his Pas friends at a kedai kopi and making fun of the government's financial assistance for those in the lower income group. It was not very funny to me at that stage, but then again I am not much of a Malay comedy fan.

Then came this man wearing a songkok acting as an Umno man. Ustaz Bob and his gang started giving a lecture on the evils of Umno to the guy and at the end told him to throw away his songkok. In its place they gave him a skull cap whereupon they congratulated him for jumping ship to become a Pas man.

Well, it was funny to me at that point as to me that reflects the simplistic mentality of the Pakatan people when they tell everyone, especially the Malays to throw away Umno.

Let's say after the next general election, Pakatan rules the country. What will happened after that?

Will BN still be there to be the opposition?

.My calculation, based on the reasoning of these ABU campaigners, Umno will die a natural death.

 

I do not think that BN will still be there once Umno is dead.

 So, will everything be honky dory in Malaysia then?

Umno, is the main force of BN, they said. BN is therefore evil as a whole. All those over 50 years of their rule has made Malaysia such a terrible place. Same as Zimbabwe. Really ka? Ustaz Bob have been to Zimbabwe meh? Guan Eng, you have been there ka?

Fine, which party is the main force of Pakatan? Don't tell me they are all equal. If I say I want Guan Eng as PM, would PKR and Pas object against it? I think they will.

Anyway, they said they want Anwar Ibrahim of PKR as PM. Are we so sure everyone in PKR are pure and sinless? Remember arrr....Anwar and the gang are mostly Umno rejects. Are we so sure they got kicked out of Umno because they are sinless people? Think carefully.

I wonder what was the doa of Anwar and Mahathir when that picture was taken.

Will this country be as perfect as .... let's say Singapore (this is if you ask the DAP fellas la).... once Pakatan takes over and Umno is dead?

Are we sure everything will be fine once Umno is no more?


Are we sure we want to vote just anyone (even an ultra of some sorts) if the Umno candidate is proven to be a good man/woman?


Is that how we should determine the future of our country? The future of our children?


 

My story : In the begining

My first memories were when I was about 4 years old.

At that time, my family was staying at a small house in Bukit Batu, near Kulai, Johor.

I was born at a nearby town not very far away from there.

My late father was a laborer who had to move us from town to town depending on his work.

My late mom was a housewife. She was semi-literate. She learnt jawi at a religious school when she was young but could not read the roman text. Later in life, she self-taught herself to read by going through the newspapers with the help of my father and my older siblings.

I was closer to my mom as my father was always away at work.

My father was the garang type. My older siblings were always scared of him. He, however, mellowed down as he grew older.

Despite my family being poor, I never remember us as being so. That was probably because I never mixed around with rich kids. Most of my memories when I was young were happy ones.

At the labourers' quarters where my family's house was located, the richest family was that of a clerk's. Their house got three rooms while ours only two.



Occasionally, my mom would go to their house and I sometimes tagged along. It was marvelous to see all those luxuries - TV, fridge, washing machine etc etc. At our house, the most modern stuff that we got those days were a radio and an old sewing machine. My mom used a kerosene stove to cook and had to shop every morning for fish and vegetables as we got no fridge. We only acquired the other stuff when I was about 10 or 11 years old.

Somehow, I can't remember being envious of the clerk's family. Just admiration for their "wealth", but definitely there was no envy.

My fondest memory at that time was when my mom let me walk with her to a sundry shop nearest to our home. That was about three kilometres away. The towkay was a very nice old Chinaman who always gave me a sweet or two. Even that was considered as a luxury for me. Sometimes my mom bought me aiskrim kapit for five sen, which was really a treat.

My older siblings however always told me that our family was much better off by that time. They said previously we were much poorer.

I had always wondered how much poorer we could had been.

I was told that before I was born, during Hari Raya, the most luxurious food that my family had was ikan kembung sumbat. That is mackerel with its meat scrapped out and mashed with coconut and spices before it was tucked in back and fried. Our family couldn't even afford to have chicken or beef.

For vegetables, my mom would go to a nearby vegetable farm where the Chinese ladies working there would be kind enough to give her some kangkung, sawi or young yam stems deemed not good enough to be sent to the market.

There was once when my mom assigned my eldest brother to get those vegetables but he ended up only with yam stems of poor quality. My mom did some investigating and one fine morning caught him stealing yam stems from a nearby pig farm.

The yam stems was meant to be eaten by the pigs. Apparently, my brother was too embarassed to ask the nyonyas and amois at the farm for the vegetables. He would rather steal from the pigs. Of course he kena walloped by my mom.

My father would be at his work place during day time while at night he would go around doing part-time jobs, especially repairing cars. Those days his day job salary was only about RM150 a month.

 It was in the 1950s and 1960s and before the NEP.

My mom used to tell me that my father spent all his salary buying books and paying the school fees for my siblings.

For food and household upkeeps, our family had to survive on his extra income of repairing cars. At that time, there were yet to be any buku pinjaman scheme or free school fees.

My mom said my father had insisted for all of my siblings to finish school, something which he himself never had the luxury. He only managed to get to standard five of the sekolah melayu. Many kids in our neighbourhood at that time never finished school as their families could not afford their education. My father's dream was for his children to be better than himself, a labourer - maybe they could become clerks, supervisors, nurses or teachers. He never thought that any of his children would one day become engineers, surgeons, lawyers or corporate hotshots. That was beyond his comprehension.

My mom said my father's only true investment in life was his children's education. She said it was pointless for him to try buying land as what most other laborers did at that time because they do not have that much money anyway. She reasoned that, let's say a labourer like my father managed to buy 10 acres of land. After his death, the land would have been divided between us and each probably would get a small portion. What's the point then if we have no education? That was why my father was single minded in trying to give the best education for his children using all the resources available to him.

By the time my father passed away five years ago, he left behind only our family's kampung house and nothing else.

Just before he passed away, he told us to sell off the house. His dream however did come true. All of us his children are doing fine. I am the only laborer of some sorts in the family.

By the way, my father was laid to rest not far from my mom, who passed away much earlier. Their final resting place was at the Muslim burial ground of my adopted kampung. We managed to bring my father to be near our mom despite him passing away far from that place. That was another of their shared dreams fulfilled.

Belajar lagu Cina

Today I am feeling sad and not in a mood to write.

So, since CNY is near, you all can instead learn this Chinese song. I've been singing it the whole day.

This is also just in case your Chinese friends ask you to go karaoke. Can impress them la.

Two new names for Johor MB post

I had previously posted here
Fortress Johor - Part 1 : A new MB? about what many believed to be the impending retirement of Johor MB Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman after the next general election.

In that posting, I had listed four main contenders who are vying for Ghani's post.

They are Khaled Nordin, Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad, Nur Jazlan Mohamed and Aziz Kaprawi.

Ever since that posting, I had heard murmurs of dissapointment among some people who think that I should had also included people like Hasni Mohammad and Dr Adham Baba.

Well, to satisfy their curiosity - I do not think the duo have much chance to take over from Ghani because they currently belong to the wrong Umno camps. Hasni may still have a chance if he can wait for another term but Adham is simply out of the race.

Actually, the four who made it to the list are also there by long shots as my sources in Putrajaya indicated that the sane Umno minds there still prefer Ghani to stay as MB for another term.

These federal Umno leaders who want Ghani to put aside his retirement plans feels that Johor will be in great danger if the wrong person takes over the MB post.

They are of the opinion that Ghani is the only one who have the gut to say "NO" to anyone in Johor or at least make a decent trade off if necessary..

If Ghani really goes after the election, they are quite confident things will no longer be the same for Umno or BN in Johor.

Nonetheless, the jockeying for the Johor MB post continues with two more names emerging of late.

The first one is RAZALI IBRAHIM, who is the deputy youths and sports minister, Umno youth deputy chief and Muar MP.



I was not surprised when a reliable source told me about Razali's name being aggressively bandied by his young aides as a potential MB.

I got no problem with Razali as he seems nice as a person, well educated and have great potentials. However, in my opinion, he still need some more experience and do more to develop his stature if he is to run Johor. For one, I do not think at the moment he is capable of handling the fiercesome Umno warlords.

I sincerely thinks that Razali will make a good Johor MB one day, but not for at least another term. He need to be seen as not being a young man in a hurry.

Another crucial thing he need to do is to advise his very aggressive young aides to cool off. Otherwise, they can seriously damage his future.

Meanwhile, the second name which just emerged recently is a real shocker.

Those who knows Johor Umno politics may think I have gone mad or something for naming this guy as a potential MB,

but I got this info from a really credible source.

The guy is OSMAN SAPIAN, the Kempas assemblyman.

Yup, unbelievable but true. Osman is in the running too.

He is seen in this picture with his "good friend" and boss in the Pulai division Nur Jazlan Mohamed  (who is also a MB candidate).



Don't ask me who are the backers of Osman Sapian as I am not at liberty to tell, but he is now considered as among the top three among the candidates.

Well, good luck YB Osman. Untung sabut timbul, untung batu tenggelam. Something like that lah.


Meanwhile Datuk Ghani, and his small band of loyalists are in Segamat today, checking the kawasan-kawasan peti undi in preparation for the coming general election.

They seems oblivious to all these talks about a new Johor MB.

"Engko jangan kacau aku lah," a Ghani's aide said to me when I called him in Segamat to ask about Osman Sapian this morning.

"Kita orang tengah sibuk ni. Pedulik apa aku Osman Sapian nak jadi MB. Kalau Ghani pencen aku apa susah. Aku nak balik kampung ngaji pondok."


(Reminder: Dear readers, please be careful about being seditious ya.)

Men better than animals....isn't it?

Woke up this morning and feels like writing about Shahrizat.

But, Bujai had already  wrote it here
Shahrizat takes leave as minister

A lot of other people probably going to write about her also.

So, I think I work on something more profound.

Well, the most profound piece for me today is this posting by Rockybru
Amnesty says Anwar's acquittal shows why Msia must scrap sodomy law

Honestly, I do understand why men always want to go a step further in what ever they are doing. It is in their nature to do so.

They always need to prove that they are on top of the food chain.

Men, after all, must be able to outdo the other species...in everything.

Well, personally, I don't think they should because they may still lose out to dogs.....

See, elephants and giraffes.....they seems to have other original ideas....men want to try like them also ka? Want to legalize this also ka?

 

Ultra men need to shut up

A lot of not so nice things have been said about Chinese-based BN component parties after the disastrous 2008 general election.

Some of the harshest critics are in fact their own friends within the coalition, particularly those from Umno.

MCA and Gerakan were said to be not working hard enough to win back the Chinese community's support and some of their leaders were accused of being Chinese chauvinists who would be ever ready to defect to Pakatan in the event BN were pushed to the brink of defeat.

I used to think so too, that is until of late.

I am not very familiar with Gerakan and therefore not very sure what they are doing these days, but from what I observed, MCA seems to be on the rebound.

No matter what the Pakatan people said about MCA president DS Dr Chua Soi Lek, I think he is working very hard to do the right things for the party ever since he made his dramatic comeback from the sex video incident.

There seems to be some sense of urgency now in MCA's preparations for the coming general election. Well, at least that is what I observed in Johor of late.

Ok, it is still not so tip top, but at least the grassroots members seems to be enthusiastic again.

MCA service centers are now mostly opened and doing what they are good at - providing services for the Chinese community and others, by tackling problems ranging from ahlong menace to daughters running away from home.

These may seems trivial for most people more familiar with big big issues such as Anwar Ibrahim's saintly persona and the super intellectuality of Guan Eng and his new oh so handsome look - but the truth is that, these grassroots problems and efforts by these MCA guys in solving them are the ones which would win over the people's trust and confidence.

I honestly believed that no matter how much we argue for our cause and how cogent  the evidence of wrong doings we throw at our opponents, it all doesn't really matter if we do nothing to make any impact on what really matters to the every day life of people.

After all, mere talks are cheap.

On this point, I think MCA is the best party in this country. I can't remember any of their good leaders who are fiery orators. All are hard workers who were judged by the results of their efforts rather than what were spewing from their mouth.

MCA works for the Chinese community all these years, and I don't think anyone can deny that.

Yes, some may accused them of being involved in corruption or even organized crime, but individuals who strays from the good path should not be used to condemn the ideals of the party.

Do not tell me that all DAP people are pure. Do not tell me that they do not know any gangster and not made deals with them. Come on lah, we are all not so dumb, ok?

All those good things done by MCA touched the very soul of the Chinese community - their schools, temples, guilds, etc etc. I do not think the Chinese community would easily forget.



The other day I had a chat with an MCA friend who runs a hardware shop in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah.

He said things are not yet as good as before 2008, but at least things are improving and it would not be getting any worse for the party.

"And it is bullshit that they are saying Johor BN only have less than 10 per cent of the Chinese community support," he said.

"Those people who made that calculations are from KL lah, what do they know about things in Johor. Look at what happened in Tenang, BN got more than 30 per cent of the Chinese votes what. It could be better but at least it was more than the less than the 25 per cent in 2008.

"And can you please tell your Umno friends not to keep saying we are not doing work and Chinese are all against BN.

"They think all Chinese people like DAP ka? What have DAP done so great for us that we all like them so much ? Please la har, tell them that.

"Oh, one more thing, can you please tell that bugger Ibrahim Ali and people like him to shut the f#@* up. They are making it difficult for us la. They want to win personal brownie points, go and fight among themselves la. Don't use us Chinese as  bogeymen to make themselves look like heroes. Real stupid f*^&s la those people."

Pussy willow for me this new year

Today is really not a good day for me.

Tried to finish my KPRJ story but got stucked and need to do some extra research.

It's getting a bit long and I may have to break it up into several parts.

Well, never mind lah.

For now I will just do small small postings only. Just for fun, eh.

Ok, today after work I am going to do my Chinese New Year shopping.

Yup, I do celebrate CNY. It's like some of you Muslims who celebrate Christmas la.

I started celebrating CNY during my college days.

I was the only non-Chinese in my class and when it's CNY my friends always asked me to come over to their house.

After doing my rounds I always end up at my best friend's house in Subang Jaya.

I will stay there for two or three days, mostly spending time playing black jack just for fun. Used coins only lar. Just for fun, ok?

I always wanted to join the others playing mahjong but my friend refused to teach me how to play the game.

She said I will just lose all my money. Her parents and uncles and aunts are mahjong experts. But I suspect she just don't want me to play as I will only slow down the game.

Whatever it is, it was all great fun you know.

I actually always went to my friend's house those days that her mom even got me special plate, cup and glass for me.

Well, my friend's family are the real Cina Bukit type and proud of it. They eat pork all the time. Her mom bought food for me from a nearby mamak restaurant whenever I am around despite me insisting to go and eat there myself. My friend always told me to be ok about it as her mom like me very much because I was actually her first non-Chinese friend. I always miss Mrs Law whenever CNY draws near like now.

Later today, I will go to Leisure Mall to buy those paper decorations for my cubicle in the office and my room at the rented apartment.

Oh...also this year I want to buy some Pussy willow for my room.

You don't know what a Pussy willow meh?

Here's a bit of it from Wikipidea (sorry aarr...my English not so good to explain properly. Need to cut and paste )
  
Pussy willow is a name given to many of the smaller species of the genus Salix (willows and sallows) when their furry catkins are young in early spring.

Since the Chinese like numerous blossoms on a branch, the many buds of the pussy willow make it a favourite flower for Chinese New Year. The fluffy white blossoms of the pussy willow resemble silk, and they soon give forth young shoots the color of green jade. Chinese enjoy such signs of growth, which represent the coming of prosperity.

Towards the Lunar New Year period, stalks of the plant may be bought from wet market vendors or supermarkets.

Once unbundled within one's residence, the stalks are frequently decorated with gold and red ornaments - ornaments

with colours and text that signify prosperity and happiness. Felt pieces of red, pink and yellow are also a common decoration in South East Asia.

Xie Daoyun's comparison of snow and willow catkins is a famous line of poetry and is used to refer to precocious young female poets.

What a DAP girl want

Had a chat with a friend from Kota Iskandar last night.

It turned out that she was not even interested in the KL High Court's verdict of Anwar Ibrahim's case.

"Anwar will not make much difference anyway," she said.

"He was not even the main contributing factor to the BN losses in 2008 as he was just there to take the credit from the screwed ups of the past BN administration.

"Do you really think Anwar would have been of any consequence if Pak Lah was not the Prime Minister back then?," she asked

Reflecting on what my friend said, I do have to agree with her.

My personal opinion is that, this coming general election will be decided mostly only by two factors :

1. How fragmented is the Malay electorates?

2. How much have BN win back the Chinese votes?

Some may argue that Anwar is the uniting factor of the Pakatan coalition. Well, maybe so to a certain extent, but now that he is saddled with so much baggage, I see him as more of a liability than anything else to PKR, Pas or even DAP.

The night before the sodomy verdict came out, I had a phone conversation with someone close to me who is a DAP supporter.



She was very confident that Anwar was to go to jail due to the "corrupt" judiciary.

"Let's say Anwar is found to be innocent by the court, and he lead Pakatan to victory and become PM....you like or not?" I asked.

"Choy!!!! Don't want lah. I actually cannot tahan him la. I think he really like men lar.....errr, can someone else become PM?" she replied, much to my surprise..

"Can, but who?" I asked back.

"Guan Eng lar....," she said.

Honestly, I rather have Hsien Loong as my PM.....at least he is more handsome what....

Justice then and now (updated 3)

UPDATED 3

The three explosions which injure five people outside the KL High Court today marked another notch in the increasingly volatile political landscape of our country.

It was often argued that we Malaysians are mature enough to handle all those freedom of these and that. Cautions of dangers posed by extremists among us were often dismissed as government's attempt to silence its critics and deny the people of those freedom.

Apparently, it's proven today that those dangers are real. Next time it could be even worse.

With the most crucial general election in this country's history to take place within the coming few months, lets pray that this is not going to be the year of living dangerously in Malaysia.

Now, it is up for our much maligned "anjing kerajaan" police force to handle the situation and ensure our safety.

Who had maligned our police force?

Easy la that one. They are none other than those who have been bad mouthing our justice system and the judiciary as well as other government institutions. Don't tell me you don't know. who they are. 

UPDATED 2

Come to think of it, here is an excerpt of Anwar's statement from the dock during the trial, where he made it clear to the world what he thinks of the court which set him free today

"I say it because as I’ve stated earlier, the court’s integrity has been completely compromised and bears all the classic symptoms of a show trial where the script has been effectively written and the outcome a foregone conclusion. I say it because as a presiding judge you have demonstrated beyond the shadow of a doubt your complete lack of impartiality. I say it because you have consistently refused to recuse yourself even in the face of mounting evidence of your bias against me. I say it too because you have persistently turned a blind eye to the gross violations of protocol and procedure committed by the prosecution while at the same remaining impervious to my protestations about these blatant irregularities that would have without more alerted any impartial judge as to the malice and bad faith of the prosecution."


UPDATED

 This is just in from NST SMS alert
NST 09/01: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim acquitted of sodomy charge.

True enough, the court had acted professionally and all quarters must respect its decision.

Does the Pakatan crowd outside the court influenced the decision? I don't think so. Our judiciary make their decisions based on facts....nothing more, nothing less, ok?

I am personally glad for Anwar's family. It would probably be too much for them to bear if he was found guilty again.

However, as it was back in 1998, I do not think the court's decision really matter in shaping the perception of the public.

Anwar was found guilty back then, yet it did not stop BN from suffering quite huge losses in the 1999 general election.

This time around, he was found to be innocent, but would that mean anything to the electorates?

Will it turn thousands to the Pakatan cause?

I don't think so.

This case is after all just a criminal case involving a man who allegedly had sodomized another man. Both sides presented their case and one of them wins. Ya, it's a bit more juicy as Anwar was again involved. But does it has anything to do with anything more than that? I really don't think so.

By the way, will the Pakatan people continue to accuse our judiciary of being influenced by the evil Umno/BN after this?

My answer to that is yes and no.

Yes, if a court's decision doesn't favors them, and no if a court's decision goes their way.

Well, nothing much you can do with hypocrites, eh?


ORIGINAL POSTING

Tomorrow is going to be Anwar Ibrahim's big day.

I wonder what is in his mind today.

I wonder what his wife and children think. Are they very sure of his innocence?

My mind wanders back to those restless September days of 1998.

It seems as if all that happened those days were just yesterday.

I can remember clearly sitting on the stone bench at the lawn of Anwar's house at Jalan Setiamurni, Damansara. I spent many days there , observing the whole thing unravelling before my eyes.

I was even there the night Anwar was arrested. 

Nurul Izzah was just 18 years-old, and my favorite of Anwar's daughters at that time, Nurul Nuha was 14. I can't remember the name or age of the other children.

.

Honestly, I was sympathetic towards them.

My personal opinion at that time was that Anwar's case was poorly handled by the government and that was what convinced me that he was innocent.

Fast forward to now,  the trial of Saiful Bukhari's case took three and a half years to complete.

It was postponed about 60 times. All upon the request of the defense team, who also tried twice to recuse the presiding judge.

Then there was that political sermon by Anwar as he refused to give a sworn statement to the court.

I was actually looking forward to that sworn statement by him as it would have been the only way to see him swearing his innocence while holding the Quran. Apparently he wouldn't do that even in court.

I also find that the current Anwar's defense team being clearly of lower quality compared to the one who defended him back during the reformasi days of the late 1990s.

The government have on its part clearly stayed away from the trial and went out of their way so as not to be accused of trying to influence the judiciary.

They even allowed tomorrow's gathering outside the court by Anwar's supporters, which to me is unprecedented indeed.

It makes me wonder, what if some other groups had also requested for them to be allowed to gather there, to demand for Anwar to be thrown in jail. Would they also be allowed to gather there?

Anyway, as far as I am concerned, the court had acted in the most professional manner throughout the trial and I believe it will do so again tomorrow.

Clearly, any right thinking person could see that  the perception of those who have inappropriately tried to influence the court have changed this time around.

Hsien Loong the handsome

Last month I wrote this
Bridge to happiness

That posting was actually prompted after PM DS Najib Razak's visit to Iskandar Malaysia earlier on the day.

I was full of hope for the "crooked bridge" project to be revived when Najib during the visit did not rule out the possibility of the project to be discussed in his next meeting with Hsein Loong, which took place several days ago.

It turned out that the bridge project was not discussed. At least that was what appeared in their joint-statement.

Instead they mentioned about the possibility of building a tunnel.

I am happy that Malaysia and Singapore seems to be on good terms. By the way, I kinda like Hsien Loong. He seems to be genuinely friendly and smiles a lot.



Well, at least he is more handsome than Lim Guan Eng lor....I think.

Eh...sorry....back to the tunnel.

Ok, I am all ok for Malaysia and Singapore to built the tunnel. Very good, I said. But will it replaced the Causeway? Will the water of  Tebrau Straits be freely flowing ever again?

Hmmm... here I promise to Hsien Loong that I will forever be a supporter of the Singapore football team if ever the answer to all that is yes. Of course except when the team is playing against Malaysia lah.

Intermission, again

I believe, especially at the end

A daring flying squirrel

I am going to concentrate on finishing my KPRJ story over the next few days.

Meanwhile, you all may ponder on this challenge by Mr Flying Squirrel About to Fall which he send on my previous posting.

Flying Squirrel About to Fall said...

The Medini Scam and Sri Lankan Connection

On the Medini deal, the multi-layer get rich scheme works like the following. Can Khazanah deny any of this?

1. IIB sold Medini land of 2,200 acres to Medini Iskandar S/B (75% IIB, 25% UWI Capital (One) Ltd) for RM 1 billion.
2. Medini Iskandar S/B later sold most of the land (2,120 acres) to Global Capital Devt S/B (60% Mubadala, 30% IIB, 10% Alpha (Five) Ltd) and Medini Central S/B (60% KFH, 30% IIB, 10% Alpha (Four) Ltd) for RM 4.2 bil (let's call them the Arab Consortiums).
3. Medini Iskandar S/B appoints Terra Lumina S/B as marketing agent to sell a section of 80 acres of Medini land, where Terra Lumina gets 30% commission on sales revenue. It is not known if the company has actually able to sell any land plot to foreign investors.

The questions are:

1) UWI Capital (One) Ltd, Alpha (Four) Ltd and Alpha (Five) Ltd are all domiciled in British Virgin Island. They are controlled by a person called Imran Markar, who sits on the Board of Medini Iskandar S/B, Global Capital Devt S/B and Medini Central S/B. Terra Lumina S/B is registered in Malaysia and is also controlled by Imran Markar.

Now the question is - who is Imran Markar? Why the need for offshore companies? Is he a proxy to some people who are supposed to get the kickback from Medini land sale?

2) Why is KNB itself investing in Medini when the land was supposed to attract Middle Eastern investors?

The initial purchase of Medini land by Arab Consortiums were supposed to attract investment from Middle East. But what happened now is that most of the lands acquired back by Khazanah JV and associate companies (eg. KNB-Temasek JV, KNB-Sunway JV etc, Gleneagles, UEMLand-IIB JV).

If Khazanah were to eventually buy back the Medini land from these Arab Consortiums, then there was no need to sell the land to them in the first place.

Why go convoluted ways (ie. KNB->IIB->Medini Iskandar->Global Capital Devt->Khazanah/SunwayJV) when you can just have direct transaction KNB->Khazanah/SunwayJV. By having multiple layers, you are creating profit leakage vehicles, which ultimately benefitting people like Imran Markar.

As an example, didn't Medini Iskandar S/B pay a dividend of almost RM 500 mil in 2008? Didn't this mean UWI Capital (One) Ltd's portion of 25% equivalent to a cool RM 125 mil? Guess who was the accounting auditor? It is E&Y!! The same culprit who went in to dig all procurement files of IIB!! And this is only the tip of the iceberg. Who knows probably the real figures could escalate up to RM BILLIONS when we sum up the total laundered money for all middlemen vehicle companies.

Compare that to the petty theft that Khazanah is pointing at IIB Management - they looked so pariah in comparison.

Now, who is that foreign agent Sri Lankan Imran Markar again? Isn't he the one bossing around in Iskandar and telling people that he has direct connection to Azman Mokhtar?

3 January 2012 01:03

A little chirpy bird and the IIB-gate

When I read what rockybru posted in his Friday intermission, I was kinda curious about how such a story could be leaked from a supposedly highly confidential board meeting.  So I began digging around, but in a leisurely manner, you know, it was a Friday after all, and a long weekend at that.  But when A Voice posted this, my digging became a bit more urgent as I see that the speculative nature of that piece will adversely affect the diligent work done by BN Johor to ensure BN victory in the coming election.

After a bit of arduous digging, I got access to a little chirpy bird. 

This little bird (who does not represent KPRJ, by the way) told me that the matter on how to handle the "IIB-gate" was indeed discussed in the board meeting and that it was an open discussion, more in the nature of "how do we handle this?... if we do this, what will happen? ... if we do that - what will be the implications?" etc.  

Apparently it was an open discussion, but what was minuted was that the final decision was made unanimously, with no one dissenting.

Turned out the KPRJ representative was not the only one who had reservations about the option of making a police report, there were 2 or 3 others (the little bird couldn't remember the details as it wasn't minuted, more of a discussion, and it wasn't that recent, etc.) who shared the same concerns.

Mostly these people were concerned about how such a decision will affect IIB day-to-day operations, the image thing, etc. ... probably because these people were not involved in the operational management and decision-making within IIB.

It was therefore strange  when the story that came out in rockybru's was very particular about the representative of KPRJ, and of him being a representative of the Johor State, or probably in this case Johor MB, I suppose.  What about the other board members who shared his concerns?  Why no mention of which organisations they represent?  Was it because they are all based in KL? What about the board member who was adamant about not involving the MACC?  The way it was worded looked like it was also made by the same KPRJ rep, as there were no other board members identified, wasn't it?  In fact, A Voice more or less stated in his article that it was so.  Was it?

What got me curious was, that the Haji Johar Salim that I had the pleasure to have encountered, does not at all reflect the corporate shark potrayed here.  Maybe my gut feel is wrong, for once, but it just felt wrong.


Further on, in his article, A Voice then linked Johar Salim with Lim Kang Hoe, and then to Abdul Ghani Othman.  Aha!  That was just too convenient guys, but all the same, very revealing.  They will then link this with the Utusan and Berita Harian story, and people will jump immediately and say ya la, that must be true, so and so is an Umno politician, so he must be corrupt, kan?  Then people will begin to demand for independent audits of these Johor institutions.  So the corruption matter will stay in Johor and the "corrupt" Johor politicians/state GLC heads/IIB rogues/etc., and will not touch any of the "pristine" pure-as-snow Khazanah people in KL kan?  Can you people who leaked and spun the confidential board meeting discussions be a bit less obvious?

And another thing, if you do a bit of proper digging, you would know that Dato Lim Kang Hoe serves a different political master/partner lah, definitely not a Ghani Othman proxy.

As for the Kulim Board appointments, you should read Benchmark and make your own conclusions.  I have sorta made mine.

In the matter of QSR and KFC being sold to CVC, and being backed by CIMB Investment, which is deemed to be bad news by A Voice, I was planning to write about the rationale of that move (my own speculative insinuations will be at work here, hehehe), but I must first confirm some of my facts with sources within JCorp and of course PMO.  After all, CIMB Investment is controlled by you know who.  In short, I personally think the move is a sensible one for JCorp in the long run and should have been done a long time ago, but what do I, a curious cat, know about corporate wheeling and dealing?

For example, if I were an ambitious person in a position of decision-making for a GLC investment arm, I would structure all the investments in such a way that if I were kicked out of the GLC, I can still be in control within the public-listed entity that control all the businesses, provided I fight tooth and nail to stay in control of the public-listed entity of course, or keeping it intact while I fight to get control.  I don't have to worry about liabilities, because the investments were made by the GLC, which will have very little benefit from its investments because the corporate entity will be under my control.  Hmmm ... maybe I should not write about it as my tiny brain is incapable of thinking of all that complicated corporate stuff.

Instead, maybe  I should complete that little article I was working on about KPRJ and its role in fast-tracking rural development as well as the many social projects it does for the public and how their assets have now grown to billions over the last few years, while maintaining a very low operating cost and a very small team.  However, if I were to write about this, I may be accused of being a mouthpiece of whoever.  Hmmm ... maybe I should not finish that article after all.

Personally, I feel sorry for poor Haji Johar Salim and the few (about 12 I think) KPRJ staff in general - never mind guys, KPRJ may not have huge sophisticated offices, or super duper vice presidents running around earning 5-6 digit salaries, or massive PR budgets to waste on newspaper pull-outs, or multi-million ringgit consultants producing impressive-sounding blueprints, but KPRJ has done good for many ordinary folks in Johor and I for one have no major complaints about KPRJ.

In any case, I am going to sit back for now and see how this whole thing unravels, unless of course I come across more insinuations/speculations/etc. that perk my curiosity.  Eh, what exactly did they say about curious cats?

Tai-chi masters and my dream car

UPDATED

Please read this posting again CAREFULLY for better perspective

One brave blogger and three interesting comments

Thanks

ORIGINAL POSTING

Thought of going on an all out offensive against the Pakatan gang as the new year begins, but now it looks like I will have to tighten up a few things first.

Now, out of the blue there are people who tried to link Johor MB Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman and Johor Umno with the Khazanah-IIB corruption mess.

This I have to check as some of the allegations, though without any solid evidence could potentially damaged not only Ghani's reputation but also Johor Umno's and BN's efforts to defend the State in the coming general election.

I strongly believe that this is the work of some tai-chi masters from KL.

Well, I will try to get the truth on this as fast as I can, so that I can go back to the urgent business of going on the offensive against the Pakatan folks. This, I think going to involve some serious research works on my part. Actually, such a waste of time and effort having to defend from an internal attack with the general election just around the corner, But what to do....this is Johor.

For the time being, I will leave you all to admire my dream car.

Yup, that is my dream car. Cute isn't it?  Don't telll me you don't know what car is that.  I know, I will never get it, but no harm in dreaming , right? Cheers.

Another fashionable reformasi, anyone?

So, it's really looks like we are going to have another major demonstration in KL on Jan 9.

Free Anwar Campaign, they said. They are already starting with the national road tour.

Errr....Anwar still free what....these people don't want to wait until he is not free first ka?

Well, I guess these people are more advance.

By the way, the whole thing makes me feels like I am somewhere in Indonesia....or rather the Philipines. Thought these people want to be something like Singapore? Singapore better what, very peaceful and neat.

Anyway, I have to admit that I have this wicked wish for the "gathering" to happen. I don't think the authorities will be too nice this time like it was during the Bersih 2.0. No more nasi beriyani meal for those nab for rioting.

I also want to see if Marina Mahathir is stupid enough to join them.

Also Ambiga and her Bar Council gang for that matter....well, I just want to see this bunch joining in the rioting just for the simple pleasure of seeing them smartly attired in suits and being hosed down by the water cannons.

Yes, I am that wicked....hehehe

On a more serious note - I pray that no one is moronic enough to bring their children along. Errr, Marina, please ya, I know you want to be as cool as your daughter, but this time I believe it is going to be really some serious heavy duty stuff and not just a fun and be cool like occassion.

As for the uni students taking part, hmmm...sorry to say this - boys and girls, you all are being stupid.
Well, I don't blame you. I was as stupid as you back in 1998.

I was at all the major events of the Reformasi era...Kampung Baru, Masjid Negara, Anwar's house at Jalan Setiamurni in Damansara....I was even there when they arrested Anwar that night.

Wah, I tell you...I was so semangat...wore that white ribbon all over the place. Sometimes I got embarassed whenever I remember those days.

I know you all boys and girls will not listen to me, but what the heck lah, let me tell you this....it's all just a con lah adik-adik.

Well, I know you all are still going to join the crowd. Really, I understand, it's the fasionable thing to do. Demi perjuangan dan keadilan, they said. Yes, I understand. I was conned too back then. Never mind. Whatever it is, please don't get hurt ya.

 Remember you parents who work hard to raise you into a smart adult and a uni student. Please try not to commit any serious crime during the rioting. It can destroy not only your life, but also your parents'.

I know, you have no intention to commit any crime...just a gathering for justice, they said....well, trust me, things will most likely get out of hand. I am speaking from experience. If that happened, try to stand to one side and avoid getting into any serious trouble, ok?  Take care.

A very good Malay movie

Started this new day of this new year by doing something I normally do not do. I watched a Malay movie.

The last time I watched a Malay movie in a cinema was many many years ago.

Not really a fan of Malay movies because I find most of them being of poor quality. Sorry to say that, but facts are facts.

But this movie I watched just now is very very good. It made me cried at one point. It reminds me of my own life. Never thought a Malay movie can make me cry, seriously.

It's Ombak Rindu.