Focus on Problems to Solve or Benefits to Enjoy...

As GE13 draws nearer for Malaysia, the campaigns ( overt or covert) become more intense and heated.There seemed to be two competing focus of attention highlighted by the leadership on both sides of the platform, and one common malady. That malady is of course, character assassination, using verbal attacks on the personality of the leaderships. to impinge or discredit the party they represent. That has been going on election after election. Malaysian politics never seemed to rise above that level, although the Malaysia public may have become sick of it.

There are so many national issues that need to be dealt with and yet the media is often filled with personal attacks and allegations on the character of political leaders. Of course, there are truths about character deficiencies and even moral turpitude which must be told. But there is a limit, beyond which, the allegations or criticisms become nothing but pure insult. Do our politicians know and respect this limit, I wonder.Even bedroom habits and preferences sometime enter the public forum....


The two competing focus of attention seemed to be on the urgent socio-economic issues facing the nation in this transformation period and the need to deal with them, as opposed to the need to retain the peace and benefits of development that we've enjoyed so far without making any fundamental changes.

It seemed to me (and hopefully I'm wrong) that the current leadership is focussing too much attention on the latter. The public is flooded with reminders on what has been achieved so far, the progress, comfort and luxuries that have been brought in by the past and present government, the peace and stability so far enjoyed, the new cash and financial assistance given to families with an income less than RM3000 per month, the assistance given to school children etc, and are duly warned that they should not jeopardize all those by making an irresponsible decision in the next election.

Of course, all governments must rest on its laurel and track records to win the election. But harping on them all the time without bringing up the issues that the country faces in the near future, the problem that have arisen out of current development through no fault of the government but merely as a natural product of social changes, and previous faults or shortcomings (to be admitted as an act of humility) which need to be remedied, will raise a question of complacency and self-indulgence.

It must be mentioned that every time the current leadership praises itself and what it's doing, some members of the public will sniff and snort. Certainly there are weaknesses in the current state of affairs, and that's why a political transformation was required. What changes are therefore to be made, and what has been seen to be done?Or are we going to have more of the same thing?

I certainly think that the government should reduce its self=praises and smugness and get on to some serious self-criticisms, to ensure the public that 'complacency' is not in the government's vocabulary. Self-praise can only make the public more suspicious. Go to the villages today and one can see a lot of impressive development. Yes, but there are villages where the chidden's playing ground are overgrown with "lalang", drains and ditches are clogged and smelly, roads are full of potholes, etc. When you see this and the complacent smiles of the headmen, then listen to the self-praises of the top leadership in government, we know that he is not getting all the information that he should from the ground level. This has been the cause of BN's defeat in the past and should be immediately corrected, over and above the political transformation that is taking place.

Working knowledge, Work Discipline and Work Attitude

All of us can work in the field that we have a certain level of skill we've been trained in or acquired through work experience. The skill and knowledge level is reflected by the remuneration scheme we've been admitted into.

But not all workers in the same remuneration level produce the same kind of work output in terms of quantity and quality. Even after going trough the same training, work experience and technical equipment. Why is that so? More interestingly, some workers with less experience and training or even academic qualification can produce better work output than those with better training and higher qualifications.

After years of observation, reflection and reading the management literature I can now distinguish three distinct aspects of work i.e., work knowledge and experience, work discipline and work attitude. Yes, administration and management gurus have known about this and discussed these aspects of work before. But always took them together and not single them out as separate abilities, requiring separate training and incentives.

We've often heard and seen workers who are very good at their work but observe no discipline and work only on what they like, doing the rest in a lackadaisical manner. We see on TV police detectives who always solve the case but left a lot of things topsy-turvy causing the boss to go bonkers? They break all sorts of rules and regulations and can get away on TV but never, you bet, in the real world. On the other hand there are the strict disciplinarians who observe all the rules in the book but become a stumbling block to useful investigation and necessary action to be taken immediately. As bosses they often frustrate the action-oriented workers and drive them up the wall. These bosses are often very obstinate and persistent, putting even very effective workers in trouble, until some higher-ups give reprieve them.

What management guru2 have often focused on is work-attitude. Yes there are all sorts of attitude towards work but a good work discipline is considered able to be able to overcome some negative attitude. Not really. A worker who really loves to help his or her clients and consider them as friends will continue to be different from one who treat them as potential victims to be skinned alive, no matter how much training he or she undergoes.Such workers consider a client who asks a lot of questions as trouble makers, not an intelligent member of the public.

So,are the so-called modern training programs geared towards treating each of these aspects of working, separately? Giving more technical and academic training for workers with poor work discipline and work attitude will be a mere waste of resources while workers with the wrong attitude towards customers and clients can never improve even with strict disciplinary control. We see many of these workers in the government sector because turning the potential clients away is no loss to the department and nobody cares.

Growing fruit trees ....

Growing fruit trees in an orchard or a big housing compound is no problem. The only problem is we seldom do it if we are not a farmer by profession. Just how many fruit trees have you planted and tended to fruition in your life?

I grew up in the village and therefore love to plant fruit trees. But my home on the outskirt of KL consists of a SemiD house and a small plot of land in front and by the side of the house, separating it from the neighbor's. Not satisfied with the small space at my disposal to plant the flowers and the trees that I like - my wife soon commandeered the former concern - I did buy an acre of agricultural land outide the city to become my sweatshop. Yes I filled it with all sorts of fruit trees including cikus, mangosteen, mangoes ( which never fruit because the land is said to be unsuitable),langsat and dukong, while some durian, rambutan, and cempedak tress have already been grown on the land when i bought it. I've already been enjoying the fruit of my labor.

But the fruit trees I grew in my little compound in front of and by the side of my semiD dwelling, raised some different issues. First my wife claimed that the roots of the mango and rambutan trees planted some 10-20 feet away from the building is causing cracks in the concrete foundation, drains and skirting.As a result two mango tress, already bearing sweet and juicy fruit had to be demolished.Only one rambutan tree, constantly bearing fruits that can easily outclass any in the market in terms of taste and fleshiness, remained, amidst the flower trees she had grown. The dead leaves from the tree were constantly bothering her while any crack in the concrete drains was attributed to the tree roots.

A new problem arose when our neighbor chose to extend his home up to the fencing. The leaves and branches of my rambutan tree grew above his roof and almost touched the window of the upper floor. The dead leaves and twigs began to mar the roof. Lately, some monkeys also began to visit my rambutan tree to feed on the sweet and succulent fruits. More complaints about rubbish and disturbances. The neighbor insisted on cutting away the trees entirely but I only agreed on trimming it, leaving no branches or leaves overhanging his roof. The result is as seen in the pic. How easy it is to do away with a tree when it took me years to let it grow. Two other mango trees in the compound of another house in my hometown, had also been demolished by my wife after some heated argument.

Why do people hate to have fruit trees in the compound of their home? They prefer to plant all sorts of flower trees, some getting as wild as those in a secondary jungle. But they love them. But not fruit trees. They prefer to buy the fruits at an exorbitant price in the market rather than grew the fruits themselves.I believe most city homes, even single-

story terrace house with a little compound, can accommodate a fruit tree or two, if kept properly pruned and trimmed.

What's this animal called 'Corruption'.

I thought that Malaysia had been doing extremely well in eliminating corruption with a number of big fish ( erstwhile called 'sharks) being nabbed and disabled. No, they are not incarcerated really. Just disabled for a while, then restored. But, everyday we hear through the media (especially, the non official channels) that more corruption is going on, and at very high levels....

And so I keep asking myself, what animal is this corruption? Especiaaly since we hear about it in all levels of societies - the so-called post industrial, the industrial and pre-industrial. Is it a kind of communicable disease or sickness like the HIV,TB,drug-abuse and obesity which we can never really eradicate unless we kill off the victims who may not be entirely responsible for the infection.

May be there's something in corruption that underlies every normal economic and business transaction in our everyday life. In other words there could be bits and pieces of corruption in every economic and business dealings and even social transaction , and only when the degree gets too obvious and unethical like asking for money to close an eye over certain rules, do we call it corruption.

Do parents who reward their children with an enhanced allowance or an expensive gift in return for a favor, indulge in corruption? No, that's motivation maybe. Do shopkeepers who give their regular customers a big discount, indulge in corruption? No, that's...what? Just a favor? Incentive? Do the Police who reward a thief in roping in other thieves indulge in corruption? No, that's a reward as it is blendly called. Do political leaders who shower their supporters with gifts, financial assistance and other promises, indulge in corruption? No, those are the benefits for electing them to the offices they hold. Do businessmen who give out a big commission for a huge purchase indulge in corruption? No, that's business.

When many of the things mentioned do not constitute corruption, then what is it? The law may say it's getting a reward for not doing anything that deserves it, abusing power to gain something substantial etc etc..But there's also a bit of that in all legal and monetary transactions.I would be happy to call corruption just an unethical swop of goods or favors. When one person has something that another person wants and the latter has something that the former wants, a swop can occur. Is that illegal? Certainly not if the swop is ethical. You give me what I need and I give you what you want. Only when what you give is not rightly yours, it belongs to the people who gave you the authority to utilize public money, resources or the power to exercise certain action, does it become unethical. It becomes corruption.But when I use the power that I have to get a bigger piece of the rewards I am normally entitled to (like my pay),or raise the price of things so that I can get some of the payment made, that's stealing.
Worse than that, if I squeeze money from another party that is squeezing money from other people or the public, that's more like an animal eating up another animal...

So, what corruption? Manipulating the rules and regulations to benefit oneself is certainly no corruption. Everyone does it sometimes. Every good businessman does that.
I am only left with one answer. If it's done ethically, it's not corruption. If what is offered and what is taken is unethical (or illegal), then it's corruption, often happening at very high levels. Until that which happened at higher levels is stopped, how can we expect it it to be eradicated at lower levels?

Of course, the court of law will decide if and when a charge of corruption arises. The question is: does the court of law take into consideration the ethics of the case or just the facts as it sees fit? I've no answer to that.

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year...

An age-old greeting but never too old to use. The older folks must be very happy to hear that old things (antiques) continue to appreciate in price nowadays.

So how is Christmas? I see all the shopping malls coming out in bright lights and fanciful Father Christmas and reindeers. I can hear all the boisterous parties and making-merries, the popping of champaign bottles, the merry greetings and the yo-ho-hos
of the familiar sonorous voice (or its imitation). Yes, the TV is agog with Christmas programs and even the traffic in the streets of Jakarta is smooth like on a 'hariraya' day, as reported by a Facebook friend.Folks are staying in-door to enjoy Christmas with their families.

Yes and I am resting after a few days of hard toil and back-breaking work on a small untended farm (see previous entry). The day is nice and cool, the skies and dark clouds are not turning that dark and threatening as I thought it would in the later part of the day.( Huh, it's already drizzling as I wrote this but ironically the sky seems bright.)

Oh well, let it rain for that can make the in-house parties all the more interesting. Many might not even be conscious of the fact that in a few days time 2013 will stare us in the face. With a smile or with a frown? Some of us can decide on what it will be (with all the means to make it so) while others must face the inevitable with dignity and courage. For Malaysians GE13 is on the slate and they have to make a choice at the ballot box. Do they want more of the same or do they want a change: that's the question.

I would not want to enumerate the issues at hand on this auspicious and festive occasion.But certainly the escalating cost of things - housing, consumer goods, medicinal supplies, charges, rates etc.- as prompted by a lavish spending on the part of the government to prime-pump the economy, must be brought to focus. The push to become a high income nation seems to trigger a push-up in the price of many things that Malaysians used to enjoy at half their current prices. (The price of 'roti canai', 'teh tarik', 'nasi lemak', 'ikan bills', 'gula', toll rates and cost of patrol are often quoted as examples).The prices of houses, apartments and condos, are simply sky rocketing with no obvious intervention from the government.

The new form of road traffic control where regulation-violators are caught by cameras - the Automatic Enforcement System (AES) - has also become a hot issue as is the highly liberal spending habit of government, overshadowing the age-old UMNO-PAS rift and animosity issue.

No matter what, the new year and 2013 is coming up. Are you smiling or frowning? That can tell a lot about your stand on current controversies facing the government, whether you are pro, con, or couldn't-care-less. But one thing is certain. Those benefiting from the BRIM, the cash-gifts from government, the bonuses and other direct assistance, are certainly smiling. The only question that might pop up here and there is: why only now and not years ago?

Merry Chirtmas and a Happy New Yeart to all.

Working in the Field...

How many of us town folks have really worked on the field, clearing the wild shrubs and undergrowth, the elephant grass and the thorns, using simple and traditional agricultural tools? No, no giant mowers or tractors. Use them and you'll only be watching, not working and sweating it out.

the land to be cleared

I bet many will just say: why torture yourself when there are so many modern mechanical equipment to do the works for you. All you've to do is drive them or get someone to do it. Just pay.....

Well that's the modern men and women, the softies, the flabbies, the obese for whom work is only in the posh and luxurious offices.The place to sweat it out is the gym, the golf course, the tennis and badminton courts etc. Sweat it out a little then spend hours in the spa....

Well, the pleasure of really working in the field with your bare hands is just something else which, I'm sure, many of us have forgotten. No, I'm not talking about a small patch of garden which has just been left fallow and is now overgrown with some wild grass and shrubs. I'm talking about an acre or so of thick elephant grass with wild shrubs and thorns that can rip your pants or skin. After a heavy downpour the land is soft in places and a tractor which tried to clean up the land got bogged down silly. (see pic).

the tractor was bogged down silly

You just have to set up a makeshift camp and work on the land with simple equipment like the hand-carry or flymowers, the rakes, the hoes and the 'parangs' (hacker long knives!). I never thought I could do it with the help of the wife and two other friends.It was a real challenge and we are not young and brawny people. And the weather kept changing like an old spinster's mood, very hot and dry in the morning, warm and wet in the afternoon. (No, a spinster's mood doesn't necessarily change like that and can take many other forms.)

My body and joints ached and grumbled every night after a hard day's work. But we pressed on clearing a small patch each day. And when it was all done, oh my, what a wonderful feelingI had. It was like the greatest conquest of my life, and my body took it with a hesitant relish. We're now ready to take up the job of planting whatever we want in the field.

no complaint from the wife

What is more, since the place is close to a village town where my wife hailed from, many villagers saw us sweating it out and many dropped by for a friendly chat. Some teased us, calling me a miser and a cheapskate, making my wit work on the field. But she just laughed and said that she enjoyed cutting the elephant grass with a sharp hand carry mower - the flymow. The owner of the nearby eatery where we had our food and refreshment was most happy as much as the repair-shop owner who took care of the problems that our light equipment had.

work almost done

Most importantly the friends who helped us were jubilant. They were happy that the money we spent did not go to just a single tractor owner and could be shared between them.

The Pleasure of Driving....

Driving on the country roads and even in the vicinity of city and town areas, used to be a pleasure. Especially with the loved ones by your side. You could talk and chatter all you want, crack jokes, and of course, say sweet nothing to someone holding your hands and showering you with sweet....smiles.You really don't need both hands to drive.

Not anymore. Driving in the jammed up roads of today is nothing less than a torture. In the cities especially at peak hours, it can turn one into a nervous wreck.Aside from the bumper-to-bumper crawl when your whole attention must be focused on the brake lights of the vehicle in front of you, you've to keep watching what the cars on the left and right lanes (if you took the middle one) might do. A sudden swerve into your lane, with or without any signal, will make your heart jump into your mouth, in spite of which some curses or blasphemy might issue from your throat. Chances are the interloper into your lane might even get angry with you for not letting him or her change lane. That will make your blood pressure shoot up.

That's not all. The second driver on your left or in the back seat might get rattled up by your inappropriate reaction to the intrusion. Or the driver on your right might get riled up by your sudden swerve to avoid the same, that is if your didn't really bump into his side. The disturbance caused could be simply disparaging.

One would have thought that driving on the rural countryside with the beloved one on your side could still become a romantic cruise. It's certainly not so anymore. The road could be jammed as in the city area or too many lightweight motorcycles could be bothering you. But teen that is not too bad, Worse is the speed limit set up everywhere, especially on straight and nice roads where putting an arm around the loved one's shoulder is still exciting. Before you realize it, you could be overspeeding or committing some other traffic offenses as caught by the AES or police cameras. Yes, you can claim trial but the pleasure of driving is no more and the road has become a risk not only to your life but also your purse.

Since the Automated (Traffic Control) Enforcement System was launched two months ago in Malaysia, it was reported that over 250,000 summons had even issued using 14 cameras.This means that if 28 cameras were used over four months a million summons could be issued, grossing a possible fine of RM300 million, or almost a billion a year. Multiply the number of cameras and a few billions can be made on the road users who must pay other taxes and tolls, and a continually increasing cost of gas. This is indeed the easiest way of making money ( please don't call it highway robbery!), next to imposing a heavier toll. Since more and more cars will be coming onto the road every year, this really looks like a very promising business,