UMNO General Assembly 2014 - Will it be different ….

UMNO the leading party in 'Barisan National' (the Coalition which forms the government in Malaysia) will hold its 68th General Assembly 2014 from today (Nov.24) to November 29. It's preceded by an UMNO youth-club leaders convention which discussed the issue of 'hyper connectivity' in communication as faced by the world today.It's attended by student leaders from within the country and overseas.

From the Runner Up news to the General Assembly one can already have a feel of what's going to happen. There will be a lot of animated oratories and rhetorics on a number of issues faced by UMNO in preparation for the 14th General Election in the country, having suffered a number of reverses in the last election. Three States i.e. Selangor, Pinang and Kelantan had been lost to the Opposition while Kedah and Perak were retained by a narrow margin.The MCA - the Chinese component of Barisan- was badly defeated and so was MIC - the Indian component of the Coalition government.
the leaders on stage

The main trusts of the issues are obvious and well known- the plight of the poor urban Malays vs the wealthy Chinese tycoons, the increasing income gap between the Malays and non-Malays,the survival of UMNO in the face of increasing distrust and opposition (even hatred) by the younger generation of the country from all races, the erosion of the Malay culture and Language by foreign modernising influence, the need to transform UMNO to make it more relevant in this age(whatever that means)etc.
glittering highrise condos that few Malays can afford

Those are issues which the leaders and delegates seem to be concerned with. What about the concern of the common Malaysians? Misuse of power and corruption among the politicians ( and also government officials who are currently being hounded by the MACC ( Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission), escalating prices on all major consumption goods including toll rates, services charges and the price of gas, fear of further price increase due to the GST which will come to force next year, clearing doubts on the independence of the Judiciary in deciding on politically sensitive issues (like the sodomy case of the Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim), the declining effectiveness of the Police in combatting on-the-street crime,burglary, house-breaking, mugging, kidnapping etc, the lack of discipline among school children and the controversy surrounding the education policy, the wisdom of giving alms to the low income group through BRIM rather than working out a more permanent solution etc.
beggar boy in the midst of a wealthy community

There seemed to be a wide gap between what political leaders in UMNO and the 5300 prosperous looking delegates, and what the common Malay and man-in-the-street are concerned about. The lofty ideals and goals of political development with UMNO's problems of maintaining and gaining more support in the light of stronger opposition, may not resolve the problems of the poor and needy in the midst of plenty, increasing crimes in the street with brutal murders as against stepping up action against traffic offenders through the issue of more summons and higher fines, and increasing racial tensions due to lack of respect for each others' rights.

There're 755 proposals (Usul) which will be discussed according to the Chairman of the Committee on Proposals and Spokesman of the Assembly, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin. One wonders whether the real plight of of the people (especially the poorer Malays) in facing the escalating taxes, rates and charges, costs of buying a decent house while the towering and glittering condominiums in the cities will certainly not be affordable to the small businessmen and even the civil servants, and corruption seems to surface everywhere involving hundreds of millions or even billions of ringgit. The rape of the Cameron Highlands by unscrupulous farm operators, for example, shows how the rich and powerful can erode the wealth of the country with complete freedom. This in mo case is an isolated phenomenon.

Let's hope that UMNO's General Assembly this time brings forth more solutions to the critical problems faced by the country rather than mere resolutions on what the party has to do to survive.

Highrise swallowing Bungalows, Semi-Ds and Terrace Houses.

Everywhere in and around Kuala Lumpur we see high-rise buildings going up to more than 30 storeys, coming up or already towering above the old town centres and residential areas. This is more notable in suburban areas where the poorer of the urban settlers had made their single or double-storey homes in the early days of history. The new highrise buildings stick out like glassy lego cubes in various shapes and forms.


The new condos and apartments cost close to or even more than RM1M per unit now. There's no way the average income earner can afford it unless he or she is willing to be in debt for almost throughout his or her life.
Only the business tycoons, the wealthy and rich and the novo riches ( especially those who got rich after coming to power in the political system), can afford them. In and around the multi-storied and closely bunched-up concrete and glass structures, are constructed modern infrastructural facilities that cause land and property prices in the area to shoot up like crazy.


Beautiful. That's development and modernisation. That's progress for the nation.But what happened to the older and poorer inhabitants of the area, now made tremendously poor in comparison. Living there becomes terribly expensive with assessment and property taxes going up according to the new rate imposed in the area, the price of consumer goods and services shoots up, and the entire social structure of the past is destroyed, including the traditional local culture. The new societal way of living with the ego of the rich, the crimes and lawlessness that greed and wealth bring in human society, and the 'mind your own business' attitude among the new settlers, can make the area so foreign to the old settlers'


More importantly, they might not have become rich and 'accultured' enough to survive in that area. They are swallowed by a new form of dog-eat-dog life where survival of the fittest is the rule and the rich and powerful dictates everything. Must we be surprised at all if society as a whole in a developing nation then becomes haughty and disrespectful towards each other (unless you're of the same class), differences become more meaningful than similarities, there's no social cohesion to hold communities together, and the population fall apart as the nations becomes more urbanised.

One needs only to look at the suburban areas of Kuala Lumpur and all the major towns and cities in Malaysia to note the impact of the new high-rise culture on the traditional way of life of the people. Other than the economic impact in terms of rising cost for property, land, assessment and taxes, price of consumer goods and services, the high-rise culture spreads a new kind of individualistic, self-centred and disruptive attitude
that destroyed all the ethics of hospitality, mutual respect (in terms of religion and multiracial trust). community cooperation and solidarity which Malaysians have developed in the years prior to the advent of the high-rise intrusion.

Spend, spend, spend….

There's a belief in the economic circle that the more money a government spends, the faster will development occurs. Put more money in people's pocket and let them spend it lavishly. Demand for consumer goods goes up, the market expands and the economy will boom.

How wonderful. If that is true the government can then just allocate billions here and billions there, create mega projects here and mega projects there, approve hundreds of millions for this and that project at the whims and fancies of the leaders to please their supporters.Development gets going, the government gets more support,
people are happy spending money, and if you belong to the low income group you can get cash assistance from the government every now and them.
can everyone lives like this?
Question is: how does government get the money to spend? Tax the rich and kill the geese that lay the golden eggs, pull in foreign capitals by opening wide the doors of economic opportunities in the country, give foreign investors as much freedom as possible to take away the profits they make in the country, sell the assets of the country as much as possible, borrow money by selling bonds and debentures, make liberal use of deficit budgeting, or what?

Will the economy of the country really boom or will it boomerang? Shouldn't a country spend only as much money as it can afford at any time and ensure that the immediate needs of country and people be taken care of first rather than embark on very ambitious programs to become a rich and developed nation as quickly as possible? There's a Malay saying: "Mau kaya cepat" (to get rich quickly), and it leads to disaster. There is also the possibility of achieving an allusion of wealth, like what the credit cards can give to the middle-income wage earner. Only when the cash-flow takes a real dip will the actual damage be known.

Malaysians today seem to be really enjoying a generous budget for the year 2015 with a lot of tax cut and increases in cash assistance for the low income group. Shopping Malls and business centres everywhere seem to be
always full of people and the roads are jammed with luxurious cars. Heavy cranes and mechanical equipment are seen everywhere in the towns and cities constructing new infrastructural facilities and buildings to hasten the paste of development and modernisation.
this still exists
Yet…..there are gripes and groans of fear and disappointment about government spending. Despite announcements on the influx of foreign investment in the country the boom it brings are also having some boomerang effects. Prices of consumer goods are going up as usual and the price of condominiums and semi-D houses or bungalows are
going into millions. One can foresee the administrators and servicemen going back to the villages to build or purchase their homes for the towns and cities are becoming too expensive for them. Only the rich businessmen and political leaders can afford to remain in the cities.
candidate for a welfare home

One wonders how long the spend, spend, spend, approach to the economic development of the country can continue.
The earlier we reevaluate the spending capacity of the nation as against its income and liabilities, and give the welfare of the people more emphasis than economic development per se, the better.

Happy Deepavali to Our Hindu Friends

In general, Diwali (or Deepavali) signifies the triumph of good over evil, of righteousness over treachery, of truth over falsehood, and of light over darkness. What Dewali signifies seems to cover the major areas of concern that the whole world faces today. Evil ( the dark forces), treachery (design and intrigues), falsehood (misinformation and disinformation), and the "darkness" which is not ignorance but self-pride, superiority complex and the holier-than-thou attitude casts over our worldview and self-awareness, are the major causes of friction and divisiveness in the world today.
lets light up our hearts

I think we all can learn more from the spirit of Depavali in contrast to what we can learn from the other major festivals of various religions. Each religious festival has of course its own special significance and spiritual value but Deepavali seems to cover more areas of human concern other than the festivities, at least in theory. The pujaas and prayers as I understand it, really cover all aspects of human knowledge and relationship. Other than focusing on the triumph of good over evil, righteousness over treachery, truth over falsehood and light over darkness, they also cover the relationship between parents and children, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters - with a day in the week-long celebration to promote such relationship. I wonder if it also includes a prayer for humaneness, justice and world peace.
spread love and brotherhood

As a multiracial country, we celebrate Deepavali together with our friends, like other festivals including Aidil Fitri/Adil Adha, Chinese New Year, Christmas, Gawai etc. Visits from house to house no longer seem to be the vogue nowadays in preference to the "open house"celebration which may take place at the hotels, clubs and community centres. Even the greeting cards have all but disappeared in preference to greetings and well-wishes sent through the Facebook, SMS, Chatbox etc. This development makes the spreading of the festive mood, spirit and conviviality faster, more pervasive and hopefully more intensive.
let mother earth thrive

We wish all our Hindu friends happy Deepavali and may the festival of lights help to enlighten us all on the ultimate purpose of life on this earth and not be intoxicated by its fleeting ..material and physical pleasures. More importantly, let the leaders of the world learn a little from what is meant by the triumph of good over evil, righteousness over treachery (and deceits), of truth over falsehood, and light over darkness )of the deceptive kind). Let us light the candle of love and compassion in our hearts and cease the warring and killing of our own kind in the pursuit of our own convictions and desires.

Rubber price down...

Although Oil palm has taken over as the primary product of the country, rubber is still the main source of income for many Felda settlers and rubber smallholders in Malaysia. They used to enjoy a very comfortable life when the price was pretty high, even for the untreated latex. When the price of rubber was at its peak, even government servants like policemen and teachers left their job to tap rubber.
the oldest scene in Malaysia

Now the price of rubber has dropped. As reported by Rosli Zakaria of the New Straits Times (October 7, Business Times p. B7:
"At the current price of less than RM2 per kg it is realistic enough to say that many of the 500,000 smallholders, now earn less than RM700 a north and they have fallen under the poverty line. (Malaysia's poverty line is pegged at RM763 a month.)

"The are rubber smallholders living in rural areas, who were onces the backbone of the Malaysia economy. There is no end in sight for their woes unless ways are found to increase the demand and use of natural rubber."

Many smallholders have hung up their rubber-tapping knives to earn money from other small business activities. With the monsoon around the corner there is no hope for a rise in rubber price until March next year. Even factories which used to bus raw latex are closing down and laying off workers.
source of income for men

That's as bleak a scenario as it can be when the country is striving to become a high income nation. The price of petrol has just been increased by 20 sen per litter and the prices of other consumer goods are expected to do the same as in previous case of price hikes for patrol, including the bus fares for school-going children. To top the spiralling prices is that of homes and shophouses which are fast approaching the million mark in the case of the former while the prices of the letter will certainly drive the bumiputeras back to the villages.
and women too

What is the government doing to jack up the price of rubber? We used to hear of efforts by the Ministry of Primary Industries and that of Domestic Trade and Consumerism in previous years to hold discussions with world authorities on rubber and palm oil prices, to keep the prices at a reasonable level to ensure sustained production. We hear nothing of such efforts now except to control the prices of essential consumer goods, which in many cases are not effective enough, and giving alms (the so-called BRIM) to those earning an income of less than RM3000 a month.

Are we going to keep beating our breasts to say that we are going to become a developed nation soon with millions of people still waiting for the next instalment of BRIM to help out with their insufficient income. Are we still proud to say that our export has increased by the billions when the national debts keep rising and the import bill is eating away at our increased productivity?

The rubber smallholders used to be the backbone of our economy.Is nothing to be done to keep them as such because the backbone is now based on commerce and trade which the rural population has no say in? What's going to happen to the half a million rubber smallholders?

Celebrating the Hajis…..

Come October 5, hundreds of thousand new Hajis will complete their pilgrimage mission. Mecca and Madinah will be flushed with the new Hajis from all over the world. The new and modern facilities provided by the Saudi Government will really be put to the test in terms of their sufficiency and efficiency.From some of the pictures I see in the Facebook, even the three-tiered "tawaf" walkaway around the Kaabah is filled to capacity.
the 3-tiered tawaf walkaway seems full

The Muslims know what it means to complete the Haj mission as required by Islam if you're physically and financially able to do so. It completes your Fifth Rukun, the final requirement to become a "good" Muslim, at least in terms of your efforts to become so. Whether your Haj and other supplications to Allah, are accepted by Him depends on His magnanimity alone.

Those who have gone through the discipline and drills of completing the Haj mission, at both the physical and spiritual level, will certainly not want to recommit the sins of the past. They will surely shudder at the voraciousness, self-pride and haughtiness, the hostilities, cruelties and the ungratefulness of the people to their Creator, as seen in the world today. Religious decorum and sensitivity in some cases. just do not exist anymore, as shown by those involved in political struggle for power and war. The fear of God, by whatever name you call Him, seemed to have vanished. The weapons of war seemed to be their God, by which they live, threaten and control other people, and by which they will die. Material wealth on the other hand guarantees their wellbeing. There seemed to be no more place in their hearts for God, or any fear of Him and the day of Judgment….
a lot of trying experience involved

I wonder what the Hajis in Muslim countries feel about the atrocities and savageries of war in their country. Don't they want to resolve their differences in ways sanctioned or approved by Allah, or are they just to powerless to do so? I'm sure there lots of Hajis who are leaders in their midst. While "Jihad" is sanctioned by Allah and the Prophet (SAW), brutal killing is still not approved by any verse in the al-Quran….

Islam is a religion of peace but as some cynics would say, " You need to go to war to secure peace." The world today is too full of conflicting and contradicting believes, ideals (if not ideologies), aspirations, hopes and goals, to allow people to live in peace and harmony with each other. Yet, aren't all good and ethical ideals, values and the end-goals of life the same for all human beings ( excluding the perverts and insane!). I's only the means to achieve a happy life that differ and human beings are just fighting to uphold their belief in the best means, thereby becoming very mean at times!Don't human beings realise this simple truth?

Well the Hajis in Muslim countries might want to reflect on this as they celebrate the "crowning" of the new Hajis on the eve of Eidil Adha. For the non-Muslims, you have your own ways of acknowledging the height of spiritual achievement and levels of religiosity. If those at the very top can somehow bring home the discipline and experience of achieving the height they have achieved to the common men and women, it will be something like requiring all Muslims to perform the Haj. The discipline and the experience might help to rekindle the fear in God and the Day of Judgement in the people of today, to make this world a more peaceful and pleasantplace to live in. While modern science and technology had improved the facilities of life so much, the facilities will not ensure anything if people start harassing and killing each other due to their aspirational and ideological differences. Modern war machines will just hasten the destruction of the world.
spreading the spiritual experience

Let's learn a little from the Hajis, the Imams, the Priests, and the Men-of-God of the world. After all when we die we would all go to the same hereafter world to face our Creator. If you have the blood of innocent people on your hand, whoever your are, you'll certainly have to answer for it.

Giving Cash Assistance to the Low Income People….

BRIM - the periodic cash assistance given to people earning less than RM2,000 to RM4,00 a month ( a new limit), has received both positive and very negative comments. The amount varies from RM250 per issue for bachelors to RM650 for adults with family earning less than RM4,00 or senior citizen , and given with no string attached. So far government has issued it three times spending about RM14 billion offering relief to 17 million recipients (from memory and subject to correction)

The smiles on the faces of recipients when the money was issued are well documented in many press release. Some said that the money would be used to pay for the school expenses of their children, others to pay the road tax for their cars, yet others to buy a new handphone or a PC. One thing is certain where a purchase is involved. The money won't be enough for anything special and it offers only a one-time spending opportunity or relief from financial burden.
the recipients don't look poor at all

So, to what extends can the money help to alleviate the effect of poverty? And it's not coming every month or even once in three or four months. It comes when the government feels it's good to give the needy a little piece of cake or a lollipop….

What impact such spending on development and promoting the welfare of the low income group is certainly questionable. Of course, to those with a very meagre income a few hundred bucks is a lot of money and a big help. But can you count on it when it comes at unknown time and very infrequently? No wonder the exPM of Malaysia Tun Dr Mahathir says it's a complete waste of money. There certainly are better ways of helping the low income group to meet the high expenses of modern living on a regular and consistent basis.And more importantly, with better results. And certainly this is no way to help achieve the objective of raising the per capita income of Malaysians to US$15,000 by the year 20202 unless the issue that 90% of the income goes to about 10% of the population does not matter to the government, no matter who the 10% comprise of.
a common sight in the richer villages

It's a great feeling to spend a few days in the rural village where one originates from. As I've said often, weekend holidays offer the village a full view and understanding of the progress achieved by this country, in the villages where poverty is supposed to linger on tenaciously. But you see beautifully renovated houses, new ones coming up big and imposing, luxury cars lying around on the green courtyards, sophisticated handphones and I pads being carried around by young and old…..where's the poverty that justifies BRIM? Some young people that I met are just smiling when I mentioned about it, saying that it's just a gift from Pakcik Najib. In two days the money's gone and we will wait for the next give, when government needs our support.
a crowded compound when everyone is back

The real poor and sick that I met are none richer by the gift. The old and bedridden are not even able to apply for the gift. And there's no one to help them get it. Only the able, resourceful and determined secured the gift, although they don't seem deserving at all, or really appreciate it. But doesn't want some extra cash in your pocket.

Today ( September 16 )is Malaysia Day, the day Malaysia was formed. Was there any celebration or ceremony at all in the city, since I've been in the village? I don't see any sign of celebration, no flags flying on cars or on buildings, no excitement among the crowds. Have the people lost their enthusiasm for such celebration? I wonder why?