You Are Visitor Number
scince july 2007
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
I'm Back....
Hi friends and family... for the being I deactivated my Facebook... so.. will updated myself thru this blog's...
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The Malaysia that could be — Kalimullah Hassan August 21, 2010
A wonderful speech which should be read and practised by all Malaysians. May the Lord bless and guide Malaysia and its multi-racial citizens.
The Malaysia that could be — Kalimullah Hassan August 21, 2010
AUG 21 — It is a great honor for me to be here today and I want to start by congratulating you and your families on your success.
Although I did not attend university — for a variety of reasons, chief being that we were not rich and that I was not smart enough to be given a scholarship — I have, every moment in my life, acknowledged the value of a college or university education. There’s always that tinge of regret in me when I hear my friends speak of the fun they had in campus, the pranks they played, the girlfriends they met, the midnight oil they burnt during exams and the pride with which they took to the stage to receive their scrolls and enter the new phase in their lives.
Today, it is your turn to feel the pride of receiving your scrolls after having worked so hard. Today is a great day for you. You are young; you are raring to go; you want to make your name; you have dreams; you have hopes; you have your whole life ahead of you.
Many of us here on stage are in our twilight years. We have lived our lives as best as we could and made our mistakes along the way. Some learn from their mistakes; some don’t. It is those who learn from their mistakes who make it in life. For those of us in this twilight stage of life, time is a luxury we don’t have. But you, graduating students of UTAR today, you are on the fringes of a new beginning with all the time ahead of you.
The only thing that remains is for you to set your goals; work hard; believe in yourself; persevere; and God willing, one day, in the future, you will be able to say — I am proud of what I have achieved and I am proud of what I am.
Graduating students, respected audience, and friends:
As you prepare to go out into the world, I would like you to share one thought with you. In my life, the one thing I have always been proud of is my belief that this is a great country which could be greater; and that I am proud to be a Malaysian — first and last.
Today, the theme of my message to you is that only you can decide how you are going to live and that it is you who will decide what your Malaysia, your future generations, and your world will be long after we are gone. At a time when Malaysia is seeing daily debates on race and religion, you have a heavy burden to bear; you, the young generation, will decide which direction Malaysia takes and I hope today, I can share a little of what our generation went through so you can learn from our mistakes and build on the right things we did.
While we learn from our own mistakes, we should also learn from history. Unfortunately, human beings are prone to forgetting history. Allow me to talk about one personality who has shaped many lives and changed the course of at least his country, the United States of America. I want to talk about the American civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King Jr, a great man, who like us, had a dream. I want to talk about him because his thoughts have bearing on us as well.
Dr King died for his dreams but the whole world can continue to learn from him; especially us, a country that is multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-religious; a country our founding fathers had hoped would symbolize the dream that they had; that was no different a dream from the dream Martin Luther King Jr had. I quote Dr King in one of his most famous speeches, where he spoke about his American dream. He said:
“I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions.
“This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream -- a dream yet unfulfilled;
“A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few;
“A dream of a land where men will not argue that the colour of a man’s skin determines the content of his character;
“A dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity;
“The dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.”
Today, more than 40 years after that speech, a black man is the President of the United States of America; a black man, it is proudly said, lives in the White House. Today, to a large extent, Martin Luther King’s dreams have come true in his country. Remember, even in the 1960s, after Malaysia had become independent, after the United States had been independent for almost 200 years, blacks and colored people were not allowed to eat at restaurants which were reserved only for white people; they could not drink from the same tap as the white man; they could not ride on the same bus as the white man; and in many parts of rural America, the Ku Klux Klan regularly lynched and killed blacks for sport. Therefore, America took major strides in civil liberties in the last four decades that countries throughout the world can learn from.
As I say this, today, I stand here and ask you — have the dreams of our founding fathers been fulfilled?
Some people say that it took the United States more than 200 years before the true American dream could be realized. They say we are a young nation, only 53 years old, and we should be proud of what we have achieved. Yes, we have achieved a lot. Yes, we never had the kind of discrimination and civil rights abuse as the United States had for more than 100 years. But that doesn’t mean we too should wait 200 years to realize the dream our founding fathers or we have.
I believe that if our founding fathers were looking over us right now, they would be proud to see the physical achievements of our country; but their hearts would break to see the path we have taken in addressing each other as fellow Malaysians. If they looked at the news; at what right-wing charlatans and extremist groups are doing and saying; at the daily racial baiting and taunting, they would weep.
And, no, we cannot wait for 200 years like the United States of America to expect change because today, the world moves at too fast a pace and we are already lagging. If we don’t change, then we will forever be known as the “the Malaysia that could have been.”
Once sleeping giants like China and India can transform themselves from two extreme ends of ideology — one the world’s largest communist country, the other, the world’s largest democracy — to seize the opportunities, and from slumbering giants, catapult themselves into the forefront of the world economy; countries once deemed backward like Indonesia and Vietnam are charging ahead; all around us we see that those who dare to take the brave step forward, move forward. So, no, we cannot afford to wait 200 years to realize our dreams of the “Malaysia that should be.”
Graduating Students
As you go out into the world today, your Malaysia is different from the Malaysia I grew up in. My Malaysia was the Promised Land; it was a Malaysia where our differences mattered so much less than our similarities and our shared dreams; it was a Malaysia where we ate at each other’s homes, where we played games together, where we grew up together and where we have remained friends even in the winter years of our life.
Your Malaysia is a different Malaysia. It is a Malaysia which, unfortunately, is today again struggling to find an identity, more than half a century after independence. It is a Malaysia where every day we find our differences accentuated. It is a Malaysia where it seems the spirit of family, of togetherness, of oneness is a spirit which only the twilight generation reminisces about.
My Malaysia was a Malaysia where we dreamed of venturing out, seeking opportunities and building our homes and prospering our country. Today, my Malaysia is a small part of a global village where opportunities abound in the world around us. In your new world, you are an international citizen, shackled only by the limits you set yourself.
In the year 2007 and 2008, almost half a million Malaysians left this country to work abroad. That, respected audience, is almost 2 per cent of our population — and probably accounts for more than five per cent of working professional and skilled Malaysians — a disturbingly large number for a developing country like ours.
A study by the Institute of Gerontology, University of Kuala Lumpur, showed that we are an aging country. The number of older non-working persons in Malaysia doubled from 1980 to the year 2000 from 700,000 people to almost 1.4 million; in 2020, it will be 3.4 million people. Against this backdrop, half a million skilled Malaysians of working age leaving the country is
unsettling. Will we end up being a country of old people?
We can see the phenomena in many small towns and villages in rural Malaysia where the young have left for opportunities in the cities and abroad and their kampongs and home towns become dwellings of old folk. They build a new life and return perhaps for the annual festive holiday or balik kampong, and don’t look back again. Magnify that at the level of our country — if our young and skilled continue to leave for opportunities abroad, is it possible that we, too, could one day become a country for old men?
There must be reasons why Malaysians want to leave such a wonderful country. Could it just be diminishing opportunities here and better opportunities elsewhere? Unhappiness? Politics? Marriage? Discrimination? Or what?
It cannot be an easy decision to leave your country because we are, I am sure, all familiar with the saying: Hujan batu di negeri sendiri lebih baik daripada hujan emas di negeri orang.
How many times that I have been abroad on work or leisure for extended periods and I remember how lonely it feels after just a few weeks. That feeling of emptiness is real. And there have been times when I have been to certain countries ravaged by poverty or infighting and war; then, the only thing I want to do is literally kiss the ground the moment I land at KLIA. Why then are people leaving?
There was a time when people from other countries wanted to come to Malaysia because it was seen as a land of opportunity and a land of promise; a land of honey and sunshine; a land where dreams could come true. That, ladies and gentlemen, was my Malaysia, the Malaysia I grew up in.
It is still a great country, and we owe that to our founding fathers but it is a different Malaysia today; a sad Malaysia. In that respect, how could anyone fault you if you say our generation is to be blamed for giving you the Malaysia you inherit?
But please do not mistake what I am saying. I believe that Malaysia has very good people and God’s given treasures; we can still be a great country - but only if we work towards making it great.
Let me now talk about my Malaysia. I wonder how many of you are fans of Lat, the cartoonist?
Many of my generation grew up on Lat’s cartoons. He is an extraordinary human being who epitomizes the true Malaysian spirit which, I believe, our forefathers envisaged. In Lat’s cartoons we would always see the portrayal of Malaysian life where all Malaysians worked together, played together and lived together in harmony. But there was one cartoon by Lat two years ago which showed all his multi-racial characters huddled under an umbrella made out of the Malaysian flag; they were taking shelter from politicians, right-wing activists and chauvinists who spewed racial invective.
To me, it was a sad cartoon. It was a tragedy of the new Malaysia that we live in today. Two years after that cartoon, not much has changed. In fact, if anything, it has become worse.
Yes, it is true that it was not all glorious sunshine and camaraderie in our country since 1957; and yes, it’s true that we did live through the madness of May 13, 1969. But save for that stint of insanity in our history, we have largely had good years.
I want to remember the good things we had, the good friends we had and my story is not different from the story of most of us who grew up before and immediately after Independence. The childhood I had in my hometown Kroh (Pengkalan Hulu now) on the border with Thailand, and later in Penang, was similar to that of Lat in Perak.
Today, most of our childhood friends still keep in touch and though we do not meet regularly, we are still friends. You see that in Lat’s cartoons over the last three decades as he rolls out his own life story.
Where did we take that wrong turn in nationhood that we ended seeking refuge under the flag? When did racial baiting and taunting become an almost everyday affair?
My Dear and Respected Audience
I don’t think anyone of us can say when we started taking the wrong fork in the road to come to where we are today. Perhaps, the undue obsession with politics over the last decade, perhaps greater awareness of a generation unscarred by the hardships of a post-independence era, perhaps greater and more open access to information, and perhaps more awareness of civil rights and liberties has contributed to accentuating differences. The question is - can we do anything about it? I believe we can.
As in everything, character is normally shaped in our formative years — at home, in our neighborhoods and in schools.
In the book Character-Building Thought Power the question is asked whether we have the power to determine at all times what types of habits shall take form in our lives. In other words, is habit-forming, character-building, amatter of mere chance, or do we have it within our own control? The answer is yes, we have, entirely and absolutely. Look at the case of the United States and Martin Luther King Junior. Would anyone in America have thought in 1960 that one day, a black man would be President of that great country and those minorities — blacks, Indians, Hispanics, Chinese and Jews — would occupy senior positions in Government? If there were any, it would have been the most optimistic of `human beings who would have envisioned that.
The book states that there is a simple, natural, and thoroughly scientific method to build character - a method whereby old, undesirable, earth-binding habits can be broken, and new, desirable, heaven-lifting habits can be acquired — a method whereby life can be changed, in part or in its totality, provided one has sufficiently will.
The key to it is thought. Everything you do, every conscious act, is preceded by a thought. Your dominating thoughts determine your dominating actions. Repeated actions crystallize into habit; and the aggregate of your habits is your character. In simpler language, practice makes perfect. If you practice negative acts, for example lying, stealing, cheating, it becomes natural to lie, cheat and steal. But if in your mind, you believe that lying, cheating and stealing are bad, are wrong, and you tend to do the opposite as much as you can, you will become a truthful, honest, do-good person.
It is a simple psychological law that any type of thought, if entertained for a sufficient length of time, will, by and by, reach the motor tracks of the brain, and finally burst forth into action. Murder can be and many times is committed in this way, the same as all undesirable things are done. On the other hand, the greatest powers are grown, the most God-like characteristics are engendered, and the most heroic acts are performed in the same way.
The thing clearly to understand is this: That the thought is always parent to the act. In other words, you are what you think.
Here let us refer to that law of the mind which says that whenever one does a certain thing in a certain way it is easier to do the same thing in thesame way the next time, and still easier the next, and the next, and the next, until in time it comes to pass that no effort is required, or no effort worth speaking of; but on the contrary, to do the opposite would require the effort. It’s like playing tennis or badminton or football. If you learn to smash correctly, to lob properly, and do it again and again,you will never lose that skill. But if you don’t set your mind to it, and don’t practice, you will never get it right and always leave it to chance, or to a fluke shot.
Thus a simple effort to control one’s thoughts, even if at first failure is the result, and even if for a time failure seems to be about the only result, will in time, sooner or later, bring one to the point of easy, full, and complete control.
From the individual to the society; every earnest effort adds an increment of power that will eventually accomplish society’s objective.
Now, allow me to go back to that path we took in our road to nationhood that has led us to where we are today.
If we subscribe to the belief that thought leads to character building, then how we live with each other in a multi-racial, multi-religious society begins with us, at home, with our children, in the neighborhood we live and in the schools our children go to.
My wife and I grew up at a time when most parents strived to send their children to English medium schools. Although I come from a small rural town my late parents sent my two elder brothers to an English medium school in Baling, Kedah, more than 10 miles away. Today, that distance does not seem very much. But think back 1960 in communist infested jungles around Kroh, narrow winding roads, irregular bus service, not enough trained teachers and you will see what sacrifices our parents made to ensure we received a good and balanced education.
The character of schools was then different. The students were from all races and denominations; and let’s face it; children are the most innocent and least prejudiced beings in the world. They grow up accepting each other, no matter what their color, no matter what their religion. Those formative years formed our thoughts and our character and thankfully, most of us carried that on into our adulthood.
Our elders, too, were not as prejudiced, living with each other in mixed neighborhoods, accepting each other’s differences, each other’s cultures and each other’s different beliefs. Sure, it was not all hunky dory but they were, although poorer, a happier society.
But despite that, May 13 happened and it shattered the myth of one happy country and we tried to rebuild ourselves. We had campaigns in earnest such as the “muhibbah” campaign in schools; we had the Rukun Negara; we had Rukun Tetangga; our leaders strived to salvage our shattered dreams and we did recover, largely because it was a societal effort. But there was terrible cost to pay and many people migrated during that period, most, never to come back again.
Today, again, we seem to be taking the wrong path again – churches being burned, mosques and temples desecrated; right wing groups touting race over nationality, threatening those who don’t think like them, discriminating and differentiating…..
Today, as a parent of four grown-up and growing children, I want to state that despite trying to put all our prejudices aside, my wife and I found that there were occasions when we were shocked at the things that our children picked up in school. They would utter things in innocence which displayed prejudices we did not impart upon them. It was after a lot of soul searching that we concluded that in our schools today, children were separated because Chinese parents preferred to send their children to Chinese schools, where they felt the education system was better, and, generally, Malay and Indian kids went to national-type schools. That has resulted in unintended consequences where bumiputras are the vast majority in national type schools and the Chinese, the majority in Chinese-type schools. In each environment, those outnumbered felt more comfortable within their own race group, their own silos, and some, across the spectrum, displayed the prejudices that their own parents had. There is something seriously lacking in our education system today; but unfortunately, change has not come despite all the negative fallouts where from young, our children are deprived of growing up in a true Malaysian environment.
Since my wife and I knew that we could not change the system, we asked what could we do?
I can tell you that it was not easy. We exposed the children to our friends, so much so that many of our old friends and their children, of different racial and religious backgrounds, are also today their friends. We encouraged them to learn about other cultures and other religions as much as we encouraged them to learn about their own religion. We have visited temples and churches in places we have gone to and we did not discourage them from sleeping over at the houses of their friends and vice-versa, no matter what religion, culture or race.
At times, we felt we were fighting a losing battle because growing up in the impersonal city is so different from the kampong or small towns where camaraderie is easier, where prejudices are less. But today, that the kids are adults or near adulthood, we are grateful that we persevered because they have grown up shedding prejudices and accepting people as people, rather than as Eurasians, Chinese, Malays or Indians.
It has also helped that there are many inter-racial marriages within our immediate and extended families and weddings and family get-togethers bring together our Chinese, Kadazan, Indian, Pathan, Iban and Malay relatives. But it has certainly not been a smooth ride because societal pressures have often threatened to derail our own dream of a one Malaysia.
When the kids were overseas — the two elder ones are back after graduating — my wife and I used to take them and their friends out for dinner. We enjoyed taking them out as well as listening to them talk, and marveled at their innocence, at their inability to grasp why people should look at each other and evaluate each other by race, religion or colour. They are idealistic but I wish that more of us shared this idealism.
Listening to the children and their friends, I often felt a great sadness because I knew that one day soon enough, they would finish their education, come home to Malaysia, and if things did not change, they, too, would eventually get a little influenced, become a little prejudiced and lose a little of their innocence.
They would find it a little disconcerting to be referred to by their race because overseas, they just find comfort in hanging out together; because in their mind, they are just Malaysians in a foreign land. They are not black. They are not white, yellow or brown. They are just Malaysians.
Maybe I have become too cynical but I often wonder what people would say if I were to ask them “what race are you?”
Take my nephew, Johan, for example. My brother’s wife is Chinese. Johan looks every bit a Chinese. What race is he? My wife is of Malay, Gujarati and Sinhalese descent. What race are our children? You will be amazed to know that because of this inability to determine what race we are, my children are deemed to come from different races, as stated on their MyKad. My eldest is listed as a Pakistani; my second and youngest as Malays; and my third child as Indian. I refused to argue with the National Registration Department because as far as I am concerned, my kids are all Malaysians —
first, second, third or last.
I can give you other examples. My friend Mervin is a Malayalee who grew up in Kuala Lumpur and Kuantan. He married a Kadazan from Tamparuli in Sabah. They are Catholics and they now live in Hong Kong, hoping to come back in a few years when he retires.
Their daughter, Natasha, married Reza, a Shia Muslim, originally from Iran, born in Pakistan and who moved to London. Both are working in Singapore now. What race is Natasha and what race would their children be?
I could talk about Ayub, my Indian Muslim buddy, and Alya Chew, his Chinese wife, or about my friend Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad and his Australian wife; about my cousin Shakeel and his Canadian wife; or his brothers Atique and the late Shamin and their Chinese wives; or my long-time friend Maniam @ Wong Joon San s/o Alagan, a Bahai from Muar, who married his Chinese sweetheart Jenny Tan, and who are staying in Hong Kong now.
What race are they? What colour are they? Who is the Malaysian? THEY ALL ARE.
One Malaysia, Bangsa Malaysia, Middle Malaysia – all these are slogans, designed, I believe, with ostensibly noble intentions. But as long as these slogans and intentions remain on billboards lining the highway from KLIA to Shah Alam; as long as they appear only in advertisements on television and in the newspapers; as long as they remain merely on our lips, we will not achieve anything.
Who among us does not want these dreams achieved? But if we want these dreams to come true, one Malaysia must be in our hearts, not only on our lips.
Graduating Students, respected audience
Barack Obama said people have a choice — they can either remain as bystanders and go on with their lives and let others talk about the world they want build or they can work towards building that world.
I have been inspired by many of Obama’s speeches. He said, of people who want change, that:
Throughout your life, you will face many challenges in seeking change; and there will be many periods when you will be at the crossroads, wondering whether it is worth your while; whether you should not just narrow your interests and get on with your own life than trying to be a crusader for the larger good.
“But I hope you’ll remember, during those times of doubt and frustration, that there is nothing naïve about your impulse to change the world. Because all it takes is one act of service - one blow against injustice - to send forth what Robert Kennedy called that ‘tiny ripple of hope’. That’s what changes the world.”
So never give up. Never allow disappointment to stop you in your tracks. You have to pick yourself up and go on. And if you do that, you will do well by yourself and by your country.
Graduating students of UTAR
My generation is fading into the twilight of our sunset years. It is now up to your generation, to transcend this challenge. And you will be doing so in a world that is as different from ours as night is from day.
The globalised, interdependent, interconnected era we live in today means that when you leave this hall and set forth on your journey of life, you will do so not as Malays, Chinese, Indians, Punjabis, Ibans or Kadazans. Perhaps not even as Malaysians. You will undertake the journey as GLOBAL citizens, competing and collaborating across communities and across borders. The IT revolution has placed in your hands the tools and the opportunities to fashion this world in line with your own ideals and hopes.
The future is in your hands.
And now, having imparted those words of “wisdom”, allow me to relate an old Indian tale.
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said: “My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside
us all.
“One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
“The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee replied: “The one you feed.”
As you leave this evening, and go on to a new life and new future, just ask yourself one question – which wolf will you feed?
Before I end my speech, let me come back to Martin Luther King’s dream. Something else that Dr King said perhaps bears context to our Malaysia today. He spoke about the lack of the spirit of human generosity in today’s world and I quote:
“When we look at modern man, we have to face the fact that modern man suffers from a kind of poverty of the spirit, which stands in glaring contrast with a scientific and technological abundance.
“We’ve learned to fly the air as birds, we’ve learned to swim the seas as fish, yet we haven’t learned to walk the Earth as brothers and sisters.”
So go out today and make the Malaysia that should be. It is in your hands how you want to shape our country.
God bless and thank you.
* Datuk Seri Kalimullah Hassan is a veteran journalist who delivered this speech at the UTAR Convocation
The Malaysia that could be — Kalimullah Hassan August 21, 2010
AUG 21 — It is a great honor for me to be here today and I want to start by congratulating you and your families on your success.
Although I did not attend university — for a variety of reasons, chief being that we were not rich and that I was not smart enough to be given a scholarship — I have, every moment in my life, acknowledged the value of a college or university education. There’s always that tinge of regret in me when I hear my friends speak of the fun they had in campus, the pranks they played, the girlfriends they met, the midnight oil they burnt during exams and the pride with which they took to the stage to receive their scrolls and enter the new phase in their lives.
Today, it is your turn to feel the pride of receiving your scrolls after having worked so hard. Today is a great day for you. You are young; you are raring to go; you want to make your name; you have dreams; you have hopes; you have your whole life ahead of you.
Many of us here on stage are in our twilight years. We have lived our lives as best as we could and made our mistakes along the way. Some learn from their mistakes; some don’t. It is those who learn from their mistakes who make it in life. For those of us in this twilight stage of life, time is a luxury we don’t have. But you, graduating students of UTAR today, you are on the fringes of a new beginning with all the time ahead of you.
The only thing that remains is for you to set your goals; work hard; believe in yourself; persevere; and God willing, one day, in the future, you will be able to say — I am proud of what I have achieved and I am proud of what I am.
Graduating students, respected audience, and friends:
As you prepare to go out into the world, I would like you to share one thought with you. In my life, the one thing I have always been proud of is my belief that this is a great country which could be greater; and that I am proud to be a Malaysian — first and last.
Today, the theme of my message to you is that only you can decide how you are going to live and that it is you who will decide what your Malaysia, your future generations, and your world will be long after we are gone. At a time when Malaysia is seeing daily debates on race and religion, you have a heavy burden to bear; you, the young generation, will decide which direction Malaysia takes and I hope today, I can share a little of what our generation went through so you can learn from our mistakes and build on the right things we did.
While we learn from our own mistakes, we should also learn from history. Unfortunately, human beings are prone to forgetting history. Allow me to talk about one personality who has shaped many lives and changed the course of at least his country, the United States of America. I want to talk about the American civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King Jr, a great man, who like us, had a dream. I want to talk about him because his thoughts have bearing on us as well.
Dr King died for his dreams but the whole world can continue to learn from him; especially us, a country that is multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-religious; a country our founding fathers had hoped would symbolize the dream that they had; that was no different a dream from the dream Martin Luther King Jr had. I quote Dr King in one of his most famous speeches, where he spoke about his American dream. He said:
“I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions.
“This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream -- a dream yet unfulfilled;
“A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few;
“A dream of a land where men will not argue that the colour of a man’s skin determines the content of his character;
“A dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity;
“The dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.”
Today, more than 40 years after that speech, a black man is the President of the United States of America; a black man, it is proudly said, lives in the White House. Today, to a large extent, Martin Luther King’s dreams have come true in his country. Remember, even in the 1960s, after Malaysia had become independent, after the United States had been independent for almost 200 years, blacks and colored people were not allowed to eat at restaurants which were reserved only for white people; they could not drink from the same tap as the white man; they could not ride on the same bus as the white man; and in many parts of rural America, the Ku Klux Klan regularly lynched and killed blacks for sport. Therefore, America took major strides in civil liberties in the last four decades that countries throughout the world can learn from.
As I say this, today, I stand here and ask you — have the dreams of our founding fathers been fulfilled?
Some people say that it took the United States more than 200 years before the true American dream could be realized. They say we are a young nation, only 53 years old, and we should be proud of what we have achieved. Yes, we have achieved a lot. Yes, we never had the kind of discrimination and civil rights abuse as the United States had for more than 100 years. But that doesn’t mean we too should wait 200 years to realize the dream our founding fathers or we have.
I believe that if our founding fathers were looking over us right now, they would be proud to see the physical achievements of our country; but their hearts would break to see the path we have taken in addressing each other as fellow Malaysians. If they looked at the news; at what right-wing charlatans and extremist groups are doing and saying; at the daily racial baiting and taunting, they would weep.
And, no, we cannot wait for 200 years like the United States of America to expect change because today, the world moves at too fast a pace and we are already lagging. If we don’t change, then we will forever be known as the “the Malaysia that could have been.”
Once sleeping giants like China and India can transform themselves from two extreme ends of ideology — one the world’s largest communist country, the other, the world’s largest democracy — to seize the opportunities, and from slumbering giants, catapult themselves into the forefront of the world economy; countries once deemed backward like Indonesia and Vietnam are charging ahead; all around us we see that those who dare to take the brave step forward, move forward. So, no, we cannot afford to wait 200 years to realize our dreams of the “Malaysia that should be.”
Graduating Students
As you go out into the world today, your Malaysia is different from the Malaysia I grew up in. My Malaysia was the Promised Land; it was a Malaysia where our differences mattered so much less than our similarities and our shared dreams; it was a Malaysia where we ate at each other’s homes, where we played games together, where we grew up together and where we have remained friends even in the winter years of our life.
Your Malaysia is a different Malaysia. It is a Malaysia which, unfortunately, is today again struggling to find an identity, more than half a century after independence. It is a Malaysia where every day we find our differences accentuated. It is a Malaysia where it seems the spirit of family, of togetherness, of oneness is a spirit which only the twilight generation reminisces about.
My Malaysia was a Malaysia where we dreamed of venturing out, seeking opportunities and building our homes and prospering our country. Today, my Malaysia is a small part of a global village where opportunities abound in the world around us. In your new world, you are an international citizen, shackled only by the limits you set yourself.
In the year 2007 and 2008, almost half a million Malaysians left this country to work abroad. That, respected audience, is almost 2 per cent of our population — and probably accounts for more than five per cent of working professional and skilled Malaysians — a disturbingly large number for a developing country like ours.
A study by the Institute of Gerontology, University of Kuala Lumpur, showed that we are an aging country. The number of older non-working persons in Malaysia doubled from 1980 to the year 2000 from 700,000 people to almost 1.4 million; in 2020, it will be 3.4 million people. Against this backdrop, half a million skilled Malaysians of working age leaving the country is
unsettling. Will we end up being a country of old people?
We can see the phenomena in many small towns and villages in rural Malaysia where the young have left for opportunities in the cities and abroad and their kampongs and home towns become dwellings of old folk. They build a new life and return perhaps for the annual festive holiday or balik kampong, and don’t look back again. Magnify that at the level of our country — if our young and skilled continue to leave for opportunities abroad, is it possible that we, too, could one day become a country for old men?
There must be reasons why Malaysians want to leave such a wonderful country. Could it just be diminishing opportunities here and better opportunities elsewhere? Unhappiness? Politics? Marriage? Discrimination? Or what?
It cannot be an easy decision to leave your country because we are, I am sure, all familiar with the saying: Hujan batu di negeri sendiri lebih baik daripada hujan emas di negeri orang.
How many times that I have been abroad on work or leisure for extended periods and I remember how lonely it feels after just a few weeks. That feeling of emptiness is real. And there have been times when I have been to certain countries ravaged by poverty or infighting and war; then, the only thing I want to do is literally kiss the ground the moment I land at KLIA. Why then are people leaving?
There was a time when people from other countries wanted to come to Malaysia because it was seen as a land of opportunity and a land of promise; a land of honey and sunshine; a land where dreams could come true. That, ladies and gentlemen, was my Malaysia, the Malaysia I grew up in.
It is still a great country, and we owe that to our founding fathers but it is a different Malaysia today; a sad Malaysia. In that respect, how could anyone fault you if you say our generation is to be blamed for giving you the Malaysia you inherit?
But please do not mistake what I am saying. I believe that Malaysia has very good people and God’s given treasures; we can still be a great country - but only if we work towards making it great.
Let me now talk about my Malaysia. I wonder how many of you are fans of Lat, the cartoonist?
Many of my generation grew up on Lat’s cartoons. He is an extraordinary human being who epitomizes the true Malaysian spirit which, I believe, our forefathers envisaged. In Lat’s cartoons we would always see the portrayal of Malaysian life where all Malaysians worked together, played together and lived together in harmony. But there was one cartoon by Lat two years ago which showed all his multi-racial characters huddled under an umbrella made out of the Malaysian flag; they were taking shelter from politicians, right-wing activists and chauvinists who spewed racial invective.
To me, it was a sad cartoon. It was a tragedy of the new Malaysia that we live in today. Two years after that cartoon, not much has changed. In fact, if anything, it has become worse.
Yes, it is true that it was not all glorious sunshine and camaraderie in our country since 1957; and yes, it’s true that we did live through the madness of May 13, 1969. But save for that stint of insanity in our history, we have largely had good years.
I want to remember the good things we had, the good friends we had and my story is not different from the story of most of us who grew up before and immediately after Independence. The childhood I had in my hometown Kroh (Pengkalan Hulu now) on the border with Thailand, and later in Penang, was similar to that of Lat in Perak.
Today, most of our childhood friends still keep in touch and though we do not meet regularly, we are still friends. You see that in Lat’s cartoons over the last three decades as he rolls out his own life story.
Where did we take that wrong turn in nationhood that we ended seeking refuge under the flag? When did racial baiting and taunting become an almost everyday affair?
My Dear and Respected Audience
I don’t think anyone of us can say when we started taking the wrong fork in the road to come to where we are today. Perhaps, the undue obsession with politics over the last decade, perhaps greater awareness of a generation unscarred by the hardships of a post-independence era, perhaps greater and more open access to information, and perhaps more awareness of civil rights and liberties has contributed to accentuating differences. The question is - can we do anything about it? I believe we can.
As in everything, character is normally shaped in our formative years — at home, in our neighborhoods and in schools.
In the book Character-Building Thought Power the question is asked whether we have the power to determine at all times what types of habits shall take form in our lives. In other words, is habit-forming, character-building, amatter of mere chance, or do we have it within our own control? The answer is yes, we have, entirely and absolutely. Look at the case of the United States and Martin Luther King Junior. Would anyone in America have thought in 1960 that one day, a black man would be President of that great country and those minorities — blacks, Indians, Hispanics, Chinese and Jews — would occupy senior positions in Government? If there were any, it would have been the most optimistic of `human beings who would have envisioned that.
The book states that there is a simple, natural, and thoroughly scientific method to build character - a method whereby old, undesirable, earth-binding habits can be broken, and new, desirable, heaven-lifting habits can be acquired — a method whereby life can be changed, in part or in its totality, provided one has sufficiently will.
The key to it is thought. Everything you do, every conscious act, is preceded by a thought. Your dominating thoughts determine your dominating actions. Repeated actions crystallize into habit; and the aggregate of your habits is your character. In simpler language, practice makes perfect. If you practice negative acts, for example lying, stealing, cheating, it becomes natural to lie, cheat and steal. But if in your mind, you believe that lying, cheating and stealing are bad, are wrong, and you tend to do the opposite as much as you can, you will become a truthful, honest, do-good person.
It is a simple psychological law that any type of thought, if entertained for a sufficient length of time, will, by and by, reach the motor tracks of the brain, and finally burst forth into action. Murder can be and many times is committed in this way, the same as all undesirable things are done. On the other hand, the greatest powers are grown, the most God-like characteristics are engendered, and the most heroic acts are performed in the same way.
The thing clearly to understand is this: That the thought is always parent to the act. In other words, you are what you think.
Here let us refer to that law of the mind which says that whenever one does a certain thing in a certain way it is easier to do the same thing in thesame way the next time, and still easier the next, and the next, and the next, until in time it comes to pass that no effort is required, or no effort worth speaking of; but on the contrary, to do the opposite would require the effort. It’s like playing tennis or badminton or football. If you learn to smash correctly, to lob properly, and do it again and again,you will never lose that skill. But if you don’t set your mind to it, and don’t practice, you will never get it right and always leave it to chance, or to a fluke shot.
Thus a simple effort to control one’s thoughts, even if at first failure is the result, and even if for a time failure seems to be about the only result, will in time, sooner or later, bring one to the point of easy, full, and complete control.
From the individual to the society; every earnest effort adds an increment of power that will eventually accomplish society’s objective.
Now, allow me to go back to that path we took in our road to nationhood that has led us to where we are today.
If we subscribe to the belief that thought leads to character building, then how we live with each other in a multi-racial, multi-religious society begins with us, at home, with our children, in the neighborhood we live and in the schools our children go to.
My wife and I grew up at a time when most parents strived to send their children to English medium schools. Although I come from a small rural town my late parents sent my two elder brothers to an English medium school in Baling, Kedah, more than 10 miles away. Today, that distance does not seem very much. But think back 1960 in communist infested jungles around Kroh, narrow winding roads, irregular bus service, not enough trained teachers and you will see what sacrifices our parents made to ensure we received a good and balanced education.
The character of schools was then different. The students were from all races and denominations; and let’s face it; children are the most innocent and least prejudiced beings in the world. They grow up accepting each other, no matter what their color, no matter what their religion. Those formative years formed our thoughts and our character and thankfully, most of us carried that on into our adulthood.
Our elders, too, were not as prejudiced, living with each other in mixed neighborhoods, accepting each other’s differences, each other’s cultures and each other’s different beliefs. Sure, it was not all hunky dory but they were, although poorer, a happier society.
But despite that, May 13 happened and it shattered the myth of one happy country and we tried to rebuild ourselves. We had campaigns in earnest such as the “muhibbah” campaign in schools; we had the Rukun Negara; we had Rukun Tetangga; our leaders strived to salvage our shattered dreams and we did recover, largely because it was a societal effort. But there was terrible cost to pay and many people migrated during that period, most, never to come back again.
Today, again, we seem to be taking the wrong path again – churches being burned, mosques and temples desecrated; right wing groups touting race over nationality, threatening those who don’t think like them, discriminating and differentiating…..
Today, as a parent of four grown-up and growing children, I want to state that despite trying to put all our prejudices aside, my wife and I found that there were occasions when we were shocked at the things that our children picked up in school. They would utter things in innocence which displayed prejudices we did not impart upon them. It was after a lot of soul searching that we concluded that in our schools today, children were separated because Chinese parents preferred to send their children to Chinese schools, where they felt the education system was better, and, generally, Malay and Indian kids went to national-type schools. That has resulted in unintended consequences where bumiputras are the vast majority in national type schools and the Chinese, the majority in Chinese-type schools. In each environment, those outnumbered felt more comfortable within their own race group, their own silos, and some, across the spectrum, displayed the prejudices that their own parents had. There is something seriously lacking in our education system today; but unfortunately, change has not come despite all the negative fallouts where from young, our children are deprived of growing up in a true Malaysian environment.
Since my wife and I knew that we could not change the system, we asked what could we do?
I can tell you that it was not easy. We exposed the children to our friends, so much so that many of our old friends and their children, of different racial and religious backgrounds, are also today their friends. We encouraged them to learn about other cultures and other religions as much as we encouraged them to learn about their own religion. We have visited temples and churches in places we have gone to and we did not discourage them from sleeping over at the houses of their friends and vice-versa, no matter what religion, culture or race.
At times, we felt we were fighting a losing battle because growing up in the impersonal city is so different from the kampong or small towns where camaraderie is easier, where prejudices are less. But today, that the kids are adults or near adulthood, we are grateful that we persevered because they have grown up shedding prejudices and accepting people as people, rather than as Eurasians, Chinese, Malays or Indians.
It has also helped that there are many inter-racial marriages within our immediate and extended families and weddings and family get-togethers bring together our Chinese, Kadazan, Indian, Pathan, Iban and Malay relatives. But it has certainly not been a smooth ride because societal pressures have often threatened to derail our own dream of a one Malaysia.
When the kids were overseas — the two elder ones are back after graduating — my wife and I used to take them and their friends out for dinner. We enjoyed taking them out as well as listening to them talk, and marveled at their innocence, at their inability to grasp why people should look at each other and evaluate each other by race, religion or colour. They are idealistic but I wish that more of us shared this idealism.
Listening to the children and their friends, I often felt a great sadness because I knew that one day soon enough, they would finish their education, come home to Malaysia, and if things did not change, they, too, would eventually get a little influenced, become a little prejudiced and lose a little of their innocence.
They would find it a little disconcerting to be referred to by their race because overseas, they just find comfort in hanging out together; because in their mind, they are just Malaysians in a foreign land. They are not black. They are not white, yellow or brown. They are just Malaysians.
Maybe I have become too cynical but I often wonder what people would say if I were to ask them “what race are you?”
Take my nephew, Johan, for example. My brother’s wife is Chinese. Johan looks every bit a Chinese. What race is he? My wife is of Malay, Gujarati and Sinhalese descent. What race are our children? You will be amazed to know that because of this inability to determine what race we are, my children are deemed to come from different races, as stated on their MyKad. My eldest is listed as a Pakistani; my second and youngest as Malays; and my third child as Indian. I refused to argue with the National Registration Department because as far as I am concerned, my kids are all Malaysians —
first, second, third or last.
I can give you other examples. My friend Mervin is a Malayalee who grew up in Kuala Lumpur and Kuantan. He married a Kadazan from Tamparuli in Sabah. They are Catholics and they now live in Hong Kong, hoping to come back in a few years when he retires.
Their daughter, Natasha, married Reza, a Shia Muslim, originally from Iran, born in Pakistan and who moved to London. Both are working in Singapore now. What race is Natasha and what race would their children be?
I could talk about Ayub, my Indian Muslim buddy, and Alya Chew, his Chinese wife, or about my friend Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad and his Australian wife; about my cousin Shakeel and his Canadian wife; or his brothers Atique and the late Shamin and their Chinese wives; or my long-time friend Maniam @ Wong Joon San s/o Alagan, a Bahai from Muar, who married his Chinese sweetheart Jenny Tan, and who are staying in Hong Kong now.
What race are they? What colour are they? Who is the Malaysian? THEY ALL ARE.
One Malaysia, Bangsa Malaysia, Middle Malaysia – all these are slogans, designed, I believe, with ostensibly noble intentions. But as long as these slogans and intentions remain on billboards lining the highway from KLIA to Shah Alam; as long as they appear only in advertisements on television and in the newspapers; as long as they remain merely on our lips, we will not achieve anything.
Who among us does not want these dreams achieved? But if we want these dreams to come true, one Malaysia must be in our hearts, not only on our lips.
Graduating Students, respected audience
Barack Obama said people have a choice — they can either remain as bystanders and go on with their lives and let others talk about the world they want build or they can work towards building that world.
I have been inspired by many of Obama’s speeches. He said, of people who want change, that:
Throughout your life, you will face many challenges in seeking change; and there will be many periods when you will be at the crossroads, wondering whether it is worth your while; whether you should not just narrow your interests and get on with your own life than trying to be a crusader for the larger good.
“But I hope you’ll remember, during those times of doubt and frustration, that there is nothing naïve about your impulse to change the world. Because all it takes is one act of service - one blow against injustice - to send forth what Robert Kennedy called that ‘tiny ripple of hope’. That’s what changes the world.”
So never give up. Never allow disappointment to stop you in your tracks. You have to pick yourself up and go on. And if you do that, you will do well by yourself and by your country.
Graduating students of UTAR
My generation is fading into the twilight of our sunset years. It is now up to your generation, to transcend this challenge. And you will be doing so in a world that is as different from ours as night is from day.
The globalised, interdependent, interconnected era we live in today means that when you leave this hall and set forth on your journey of life, you will do so not as Malays, Chinese, Indians, Punjabis, Ibans or Kadazans. Perhaps not even as Malaysians. You will undertake the journey as GLOBAL citizens, competing and collaborating across communities and across borders. The IT revolution has placed in your hands the tools and the opportunities to fashion this world in line with your own ideals and hopes.
The future is in your hands.
And now, having imparted those words of “wisdom”, allow me to relate an old Indian tale.
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said: “My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside
us all.
“One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
“The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee replied: “The one you feed.”
As you leave this evening, and go on to a new life and new future, just ask yourself one question – which wolf will you feed?
Before I end my speech, let me come back to Martin Luther King’s dream. Something else that Dr King said perhaps bears context to our Malaysia today. He spoke about the lack of the spirit of human generosity in today’s world and I quote:
“When we look at modern man, we have to face the fact that modern man suffers from a kind of poverty of the spirit, which stands in glaring contrast with a scientific and technological abundance.
“We’ve learned to fly the air as birds, we’ve learned to swim the seas as fish, yet we haven’t learned to walk the Earth as brothers and sisters.”
So go out today and make the Malaysia that should be. It is in your hands how you want to shape our country.
God bless and thank you.
* Datuk Seri Kalimullah Hassan is a veteran journalist who delivered this speech at the UTAR Convocation
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
An open letter to the Prime Minister of Malaysia
Dear Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak
I write to you as a deeply concerned and saddened citizen of Malaysia . For most of the 45 years of my life, I have been proud to be Malaysian. Recently, I have become heartbroken to be Malaysian.
I am profoundly grateful to write this with the support of both my local communities in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo and California , U.S.A. , and a larger world community. That said, I take full ownership of and sole responsibility for the views articulated in this letter; I express them from my stand as a mother, an earth citizen and a leader.
I founded and lead a public charity and non profit organization both in Malaysia and in the U.S. , to bridge between worlds and build partnerships for ecological conservation. I have been at the front lines of the founding and mobilization of Green SURF (Sabah Unite to RePower the Future), the civil society movement opposing the construction of the 300 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Lahad Datu, Sabah, on the edge of the Coral Triangle, one of three of the world's most bio-diverse ecosystems. You know. You signed the 6-nation declaration between Malaysia , Indonesia , Philippines , Papua New Guinea , East Timor and Solomon Islands to collectively protect this 1.6 billion acres of ocean. You also know of course of your pledge at Copenhagen to reduce carbon emission intensity by up to 40% by 2020. You likely also know that the plant will displace fishing communities who have been there for a long time - irreparably contaminating their livelihoods forever. And if you listened, you would also know that they do not want the "development" that your government is imposing on them.
One of the priorities of Green SURF was to study clean energy alternatives to the coal-plant, and propose them to the government. We collectively invested tremendous time and resources to identify and commission the expertise of Professor Daniel Kammen at Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory of University of California , Berkeley to conduct the Clean Energy Options for Sabah report. We had no notion of the outcome of the study, and results showed that Sabah is in an exceptional position to shift towards clean energy due to the availability of natural resources. We are in fact in an opportune position to lead the nation and the region in clean energy - the kind of leadership the world so urgently needs now. I wonder if you know that Sabah is the last coal power-free frontier of Borneo . FYI, the 5 core NGOs in Green SURF are amongst the largest, oldest and most recognized conservation groups in Sabah and Malaysia - collectively responsible for most of the conservation work in the nation, with partnerships that span the world.
We have tried every avenue available to communicate to you the results of our findings and to engage in discussion about the future of energy for Sabah . After months of unsuccessful attempts to meet with you, I can only conclude that you do not want to meet with us. This confuses and disturbs me. Your words in public are about listening to the rakyat (people) and hearing their views. A sizeable portion of the rakyat of Sabah has been doing everything within their power to be heard by you. To no avail. We have given you the benefit of the doubt that word is not getting to you, and yet we have met with those around you who promised they would convey our message to you. Many months, memos, reports, letters, faxes, emails and phone calls later, and we have not received a single response from you or any member of your administration. We also did our best at state level government, and have huge support from within the government but ultimately the message is that this is untouchable because "ini Najib mau" (Najib wants this).
Sir, my most consistent experience of your administration is stone walls, arrogance and insincerity. I am shocked by the behavior of the leadership of my nation. I find it patronizing, archaic, oppressive, blatantly and self-righteously elitist and top-down. I do not experience your administration as democratic, transparent, open, accountable or responsible. There is a deep incongruence between what you are projecting externally and what we have experienced internally. I can only surmise that you intentionally run your administration in this manner. Otherwise, it would mean that your leadership is incompetent and ineffective.
I am angry, and I am not willing to accept systemic disempowerment of our people. I am writing this open letter as a last resort. Sabahans are speaking up because we are deeply troubled and scared about the fate of our ecological and cultural legacy, and what we will be able to hand down to our future generations. Please show true leadership and listen. You and your administration have much to do to regain a modicum of respect amongst many Sabahans. If 1Malaysia is more than a PR campaign and is truly intended "to provide a free and open forum to discuss the things that matter deeply to us as a Nation", please walk your talk.
Yours sincerely, for the children,
Cynthia Clare Ong Gaik Suan
IC# 650423 12 5708
c.c. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
United Nations General Assembly
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Human Rights Watch
Amnesty International
The Parliament of Malaysia
Suhakam - Human Rights Commission of Malaysia
Professor Daniel Kammen, Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, University of California , Berkeley , U.S.A.
FaceBook, Twitter, blogs and websites
Local, national and international mainstream and alternative media
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(passed by United Nations General Assembly, 1948)
Article 21.
* (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
* (2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
* (3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.
I write to you as a deeply concerned and saddened citizen of Malaysia . For most of the 45 years of my life, I have been proud to be Malaysian. Recently, I have become heartbroken to be Malaysian.
I am profoundly grateful to write this with the support of both my local communities in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo and California , U.S.A. , and a larger world community. That said, I take full ownership of and sole responsibility for the views articulated in this letter; I express them from my stand as a mother, an earth citizen and a leader.
I founded and lead a public charity and non profit organization both in Malaysia and in the U.S. , to bridge between worlds and build partnerships for ecological conservation. I have been at the front lines of the founding and mobilization of Green SURF (Sabah Unite to RePower the Future), the civil society movement opposing the construction of the 300 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Lahad Datu, Sabah, on the edge of the Coral Triangle, one of three of the world's most bio-diverse ecosystems. You know. You signed the 6-nation declaration between Malaysia , Indonesia , Philippines , Papua New Guinea , East Timor and Solomon Islands to collectively protect this 1.6 billion acres of ocean. You also know of course of your pledge at Copenhagen to reduce carbon emission intensity by up to 40% by 2020. You likely also know that the plant will displace fishing communities who have been there for a long time - irreparably contaminating their livelihoods forever. And if you listened, you would also know that they do not want the "development" that your government is imposing on them.
One of the priorities of Green SURF was to study clean energy alternatives to the coal-plant, and propose them to the government. We collectively invested tremendous time and resources to identify and commission the expertise of Professor Daniel Kammen at Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory of University of California , Berkeley to conduct the Clean Energy Options for Sabah report. We had no notion of the outcome of the study, and results showed that Sabah is in an exceptional position to shift towards clean energy due to the availability of natural resources. We are in fact in an opportune position to lead the nation and the region in clean energy - the kind of leadership the world so urgently needs now. I wonder if you know that Sabah is the last coal power-free frontier of Borneo . FYI, the 5 core NGOs in Green SURF are amongst the largest, oldest and most recognized conservation groups in Sabah and Malaysia - collectively responsible for most of the conservation work in the nation, with partnerships that span the world.
We have tried every avenue available to communicate to you the results of our findings and to engage in discussion about the future of energy for Sabah . After months of unsuccessful attempts to meet with you, I can only conclude that you do not want to meet with us. This confuses and disturbs me. Your words in public are about listening to the rakyat (people) and hearing their views. A sizeable portion of the rakyat of Sabah has been doing everything within their power to be heard by you. To no avail. We have given you the benefit of the doubt that word is not getting to you, and yet we have met with those around you who promised they would convey our message to you. Many months, memos, reports, letters, faxes, emails and phone calls later, and we have not received a single response from you or any member of your administration. We also did our best at state level government, and have huge support from within the government but ultimately the message is that this is untouchable because "ini Najib mau" (Najib wants this).
Sir, my most consistent experience of your administration is stone walls, arrogance and insincerity. I am shocked by the behavior of the leadership of my nation. I find it patronizing, archaic, oppressive, blatantly and self-righteously elitist and top-down. I do not experience your administration as democratic, transparent, open, accountable or responsible. There is a deep incongruence between what you are projecting externally and what we have experienced internally. I can only surmise that you intentionally run your administration in this manner. Otherwise, it would mean that your leadership is incompetent and ineffective.
I am angry, and I am not willing to accept systemic disempowerment of our people. I am writing this open letter as a last resort. Sabahans are speaking up because we are deeply troubled and scared about the fate of our ecological and cultural legacy, and what we will be able to hand down to our future generations. Please show true leadership and listen. You and your administration have much to do to regain a modicum of respect amongst many Sabahans. If 1Malaysia is more than a PR campaign and is truly intended "to provide a free and open forum to discuss the things that matter deeply to us as a Nation", please walk your talk.
Yours sincerely, for the children,
Cynthia Clare Ong Gaik Suan
IC# 650423 12 5708
c.c. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
United Nations General Assembly
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Human Rights Watch
Amnesty International
The Parliament of Malaysia
Suhakam - Human Rights Commission of Malaysia
Professor Daniel Kammen, Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, University of California , Berkeley , U.S.A.
FaceBook, Twitter, blogs and websites
Local, national and international mainstream and alternative media
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(passed by United Nations General Assembly, 1948)
Article 21.
* (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
* (2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
* (3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Pokok Durian Ajaib!!!!!!
Kita mungkin biasa nampak buah durian di atas pokok, tapi pernah kah anda melihat durian berbuah dibawah pokok?....heheh... kalau tidak percayah... lihatlah sendiri....
Macam tidak boleh dipercayai kan...tapi Percayalah..... sebenarnya durian ini dikenali sebagai Durian Kura-Kura atau nama saintifiknya Durio Testudinarium. Durian ini tumbuh secara liar di hutan borneo dan setakat ini tidak dipastikan sama ada durian ini ada ditanam secara komersial or persendirian. Menurut sumber rasanya tidaklah semanis seperti durian biasa tetapi baunya lebih kuat (menyengat) daripada durian biasa....
Friday, September 25, 2009
Padah Marah
Bila kita balik kerja 8 jam ke 12 jam tentu letih sampai rumah ingat
nak rest
tapi anak pulak buat hal....
ingatlah.....marah mcm mana sekalipun, jgnlah bertindak keterlaluan..............
Sepasang suami isteri - seperti pasangan lain di kota-kota besar -
meninggalkan anak-anak diasuh pembantu rumah semasa keluar bekerja.
Anak tunggal pasangan ini, perempuan berusia tiga setengah tahun..
Bersendirian di rumah dia kerap dibiarkan pembantunya yang sibuk
bekerja bermain diluar, tetapi pintu pagar tetap dikunci. Bermainlah dia
sama ada berbuai-buai di atas buaian yang dibeli bapanya, ataupun memetik
bunga raya, bunga kertas dan lain-lain di laman rumahnya.
Suatu hari dia terjumpa sebatang paku karat. Dia pun melakar simen
tempat letak kereta ayahnya tetapi kerana diperbuat daripada
marmar,lakaran tidak kelihatan. Dicubanya pada kereta baru ayahnya.
Ya... kerana kereta itu bewarna gelap, lakarannya jelas.Apa lagi kanak-kanak ini pun
melakarlah melahirkan kreativitinya. Hari itu bapa dan ibunya bermotosikal ke
tempat kerja kerana laluannya sesak sempena perayaan Thaipusam.
Penuh sebelah kanan dia beredar ke sebelah kiri kereta. Dilakarnya
gambar ibu dan ayahnya, gambarnya sendiri, lukisan ayam, kucing dan
sebagainya mengikut imaginasinya. Kejadian itu langsung tak disedari si pembantu rumah.
Pulang petang itu, terkejut badaklah pasangan itu melihat kereta
yang baru setahun dibeli dengan bayaran ansuran, berbatik-batik. Si
bapa yang belum pun masuk ke rumah terus menjerit, "Siapa punya kerja ni?" Pembantu
rumah yang tersentak dengan jeritan itu berlari keluar. Dia juga beristighfar. Mukanya merah padam ketakutan tambah-tambah melihat wajah bengis tuannya. Sekali lagi diajukan ertanyaan keras kepadanya, dia terus mengatakan "Tak tahu... !" "Duduk di rumah sepanjang hari tak tahu, apa kau buat?" herdik si isteri lagi. Si anak yang mendengar suara ayahnya, tiba-tiba berlari keluar dari bilik. Dengan penuh manja dia berkata "Ita buat ayahhh.... cantik kan !"
katanya menerkam ayahnya ingin bermanja seperti selalu. Si ayah yang hilang sabar merentap ranting kecil pokok bunga raya di depannya, terus dipukul bertalu-talu tapak tangan anaknya. Si anak yang tak mengerti apa-apa terlolong-lolong kesakitan sekaligus ketakutan. Puas memukul tapak tangan, si ayah memukul pula belakang tangan anaknya. Si ibu cuma mendiamkan
diri, mungkin setuju dan berasa puas dengan hukuman yang dikenakan. Pembantu rumah melopong, tak tahu nak buat apa-apa. Si bapa cukup rakus memukul-mukul tangan kanan dan kemudian tangan kiri anaknya..
Selepas si bapa masuk ke rumah dituruti si ibu, pembantu rumah menggendong anak kecil itu, membawanya ke bilik. Dilihatnya tapak tangan dan belakang tangan si anak kecil calar balar.
Pembantu rumah memandikan anak kecil itu. Sambil menyiram air sambil dia menangis. Anak kecil itu pula terjerit-jerit menahan kepedihan sebaik calar-balar itu terkena air. Si pembantu rumah kemudian menidurkan anak kecil itu. Si bapa sengaja membiarkan anak itu tidur bersama pembantu rumah. Keesokkan harinya, kedua-dua belah tangan si anak bengkak.. Pembantu rumah mengadu. "Sapukan minyak gamat tu!" balas tuannya, bapa si anak. Pulang dari kerja, dia tidak melayan anak kecil itu yang menghabiskan masa di bilik pembantu. Si bapa konon mahu mengajar anaknya.
Tiga hari berlalu, si ayah langsung tidak menjenguk anaknya sementara si ibu juga begitu tetapi setiap hari bertanya kepada pembantu rumah. "Ita demam... " jawap pembantunya ringkas.
"Bagi minum panadol tu," balas si ibu.. Sebelum si ibu masuk bilik tidur dia menjenguk bilik pembantunya. Apabila dilihat anaknya Ita dalam pelukan pembantu rumah, dia menutup semula pintu. Masuk hari keempat, pembantu rumah memberitahu tuannya bahawa suhu
badan Ita terlalu panas. "Petang nanti kita bawa ke klinik. Pukul 5.00 siap" kata majikannya
itu. Sampai waktunya si anak yang longlai dibawa ke klinik. Doktor mengarahnya ia dirujuk ke hospital kerana keadaannya serius. Setelah seminggu di wad pediatrik doktor memanggil bapa dan ibu kanak-kanak itu. "Tiada pilihan..." katanya yang mencadangkan agar kedua-dua tangan
kanak-kanak itu dipotong kerana gangren yang terjadi sudah terlalu teruk. "Ia sudah bernanah, demi nyawanya tangan perlu dipotong dari siku ke bawah" kata doktor. Si bapa dan ibu bagaikan terkena halilintar mendengar kata-kata itu.
Terasa diri tunggang terbalik, tapi apalah dapat dikatakan. Si ibu meraung merangkul si anak. Dengan berat hati dan lelehan air mata isterinya, si bapa terketar-ketar menandatangani surat kebenaran pembedahan.
Keluar dari bilik pembedahan, selepas ubat bius yang dikenakan habis, si anak menangis kesakitan. Dia juga terpinga-pinga melihat kedua-dua tangannya berbalut putih. Direnung muka ayah dan ibunya. Kemudian ke wajah pembantu rumah. Dia mengerutkan dahi melihat mereka semua menangis.. Dalam seksaan menahan sakit, si anak yang keletah bersuara dalam
linangan air mata.. "Abah.. Mama... Ita tak buat lagi. Ita tak mau ayah pukul. Ita tak mau jahat. Ita sayang abah.. sayang mama." katanya berulang kali membuatkan si ibu gagal menahan rasa.
"Ita juga sayang Kak Narti.." katanya memandang wajah pembantu rumah, sekaligus membuatkan gadis dari Surabaya itu meraung seperti histeria. "Abah.. bagilah balik tangan Ita. Buat apa ambil... Ita janji tak buat lagi! Ita nak makan macam mana? Nak main macam mana? Ita janji tak conteng kereta lagi," katanya bertalu-talu. Bagaikan gugur jantung si ibu mendengar kata-kata anaknya. Meraung dia sekuat hati namun takdir yang sudah terjadi, tiada
manusia dapat menahannya.
jangan sedih........
so dah dapat pengajaran... kan ...
bila balik nanti tengok la anak-anak anda....
mana yang lebih berharga.........
Have A Wonderfulday...
nak rest
tapi anak pulak buat hal....
ingatlah.....marah mcm mana sekalipun, jgnlah bertindak keterlaluan..............
Sepasang suami isteri - seperti pasangan lain di kota-kota besar -
meninggalkan anak-anak diasuh pembantu rumah semasa keluar bekerja.
Anak tunggal pasangan ini, perempuan berusia tiga setengah tahun..
Bersendirian di rumah dia kerap dibiarkan pembantunya yang sibuk
bekerja bermain diluar, tetapi pintu pagar tetap dikunci. Bermainlah dia
sama ada berbuai-buai di atas buaian yang dibeli bapanya, ataupun memetik
bunga raya, bunga kertas dan lain-lain di laman rumahnya.
Suatu hari dia terjumpa sebatang paku karat. Dia pun melakar simen
tempat letak kereta ayahnya tetapi kerana diperbuat daripada
marmar,lakaran tidak kelihatan. Dicubanya pada kereta baru ayahnya.
Ya... kerana kereta itu bewarna gelap, lakarannya jelas.Apa lagi kanak-kanak ini pun
melakarlah melahirkan kreativitinya. Hari itu bapa dan ibunya bermotosikal ke
tempat kerja kerana laluannya sesak sempena perayaan Thaipusam.
Penuh sebelah kanan dia beredar ke sebelah kiri kereta. Dilakarnya
gambar ibu dan ayahnya, gambarnya sendiri, lukisan ayam, kucing dan
sebagainya mengikut imaginasinya. Kejadian itu langsung tak disedari si pembantu rumah.
Pulang petang itu, terkejut badaklah pasangan itu melihat kereta
yang baru setahun dibeli dengan bayaran ansuran, berbatik-batik. Si
bapa yang belum pun masuk ke rumah terus menjerit, "Siapa punya kerja ni?" Pembantu
rumah yang tersentak dengan jeritan itu berlari keluar. Dia juga beristighfar. Mukanya merah padam ketakutan tambah-tambah melihat wajah bengis tuannya. Sekali lagi diajukan ertanyaan keras kepadanya, dia terus mengatakan "Tak tahu... !" "Duduk di rumah sepanjang hari tak tahu, apa kau buat?" herdik si isteri lagi. Si anak yang mendengar suara ayahnya, tiba-tiba berlari keluar dari bilik. Dengan penuh manja dia berkata "Ita buat ayahhh.... cantik kan !"
katanya menerkam ayahnya ingin bermanja seperti selalu. Si ayah yang hilang sabar merentap ranting kecil pokok bunga raya di depannya, terus dipukul bertalu-talu tapak tangan anaknya. Si anak yang tak mengerti apa-apa terlolong-lolong kesakitan sekaligus ketakutan. Puas memukul tapak tangan, si ayah memukul pula belakang tangan anaknya. Si ibu cuma mendiamkan
diri, mungkin setuju dan berasa puas dengan hukuman yang dikenakan. Pembantu rumah melopong, tak tahu nak buat apa-apa. Si bapa cukup rakus memukul-mukul tangan kanan dan kemudian tangan kiri anaknya..
Selepas si bapa masuk ke rumah dituruti si ibu, pembantu rumah menggendong anak kecil itu, membawanya ke bilik. Dilihatnya tapak tangan dan belakang tangan si anak kecil calar balar.
Pembantu rumah memandikan anak kecil itu. Sambil menyiram air sambil dia menangis. Anak kecil itu pula terjerit-jerit menahan kepedihan sebaik calar-balar itu terkena air. Si pembantu rumah kemudian menidurkan anak kecil itu. Si bapa sengaja membiarkan anak itu tidur bersama pembantu rumah. Keesokkan harinya, kedua-dua belah tangan si anak bengkak.. Pembantu rumah mengadu. "Sapukan minyak gamat tu!" balas tuannya, bapa si anak. Pulang dari kerja, dia tidak melayan anak kecil itu yang menghabiskan masa di bilik pembantu. Si bapa konon mahu mengajar anaknya.
Tiga hari berlalu, si ayah langsung tidak menjenguk anaknya sementara si ibu juga begitu tetapi setiap hari bertanya kepada pembantu rumah. "Ita demam... " jawap pembantunya ringkas.
"Bagi minum panadol tu," balas si ibu.. Sebelum si ibu masuk bilik tidur dia menjenguk bilik pembantunya. Apabila dilihat anaknya Ita dalam pelukan pembantu rumah, dia menutup semula pintu. Masuk hari keempat, pembantu rumah memberitahu tuannya bahawa suhu
badan Ita terlalu panas. "Petang nanti kita bawa ke klinik. Pukul 5.00 siap" kata majikannya
itu. Sampai waktunya si anak yang longlai dibawa ke klinik. Doktor mengarahnya ia dirujuk ke hospital kerana keadaannya serius. Setelah seminggu di wad pediatrik doktor memanggil bapa dan ibu kanak-kanak itu. "Tiada pilihan..." katanya yang mencadangkan agar kedua-dua tangan
kanak-kanak itu dipotong kerana gangren yang terjadi sudah terlalu teruk. "Ia sudah bernanah, demi nyawanya tangan perlu dipotong dari siku ke bawah" kata doktor. Si bapa dan ibu bagaikan terkena halilintar mendengar kata-kata itu.
Terasa diri tunggang terbalik, tapi apalah dapat dikatakan. Si ibu meraung merangkul si anak. Dengan berat hati dan lelehan air mata isterinya, si bapa terketar-ketar menandatangani surat kebenaran pembedahan.
Keluar dari bilik pembedahan, selepas ubat bius yang dikenakan habis, si anak menangis kesakitan. Dia juga terpinga-pinga melihat kedua-dua tangannya berbalut putih. Direnung muka ayah dan ibunya. Kemudian ke wajah pembantu rumah. Dia mengerutkan dahi melihat mereka semua menangis.. Dalam seksaan menahan sakit, si anak yang keletah bersuara dalam
linangan air mata.. "Abah.. Mama... Ita tak buat lagi. Ita tak mau ayah pukul. Ita tak mau jahat. Ita sayang abah.. sayang mama." katanya berulang kali membuatkan si ibu gagal menahan rasa.
"Ita juga sayang Kak Narti.." katanya memandang wajah pembantu rumah, sekaligus membuatkan gadis dari Surabaya itu meraung seperti histeria. "Abah.. bagilah balik tangan Ita. Buat apa ambil... Ita janji tak buat lagi! Ita nak makan macam mana? Nak main macam mana? Ita janji tak conteng kereta lagi," katanya bertalu-talu. Bagaikan gugur jantung si ibu mendengar kata-kata anaknya. Meraung dia sekuat hati namun takdir yang sudah terjadi, tiada
manusia dapat menahannya.
jangan sedih........
so dah dapat pengajaran... kan ...
bila balik nanti tengok la anak-anak anda....
mana yang lebih berharga.........
Have A Wonderfulday...
Friday, June 19, 2009
My Bro Special Day's...
Congratulation to both of you.... May you marrige last forever...
Like this photo..on the way to bride's house...
Keluarga lelaki
Keluarga perempuanTuesday, May 19, 2009
Memoir..
Just want to share the photo that i taken as a souvenior to our Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KTTHA) during His visit to my Department on 23rd April 2009.
From Left; My Ketua Pengarah Tn.Hj Mohd Akhir Md. Jiwa, KSU Dato' Dr. Halim Man, Menteri KTTHA YB Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui, Tim. Menteri KTTHA YB. Noriah Kasnon dan yg kicik n separuh ja tu... 'Datin' Siti Barlianton Ahmand Baghdad (jiran sblh di ofice..ekekek)Saturday, May 9, 2009
'SIN'
What is the essence of sin? How does the Bible define it? First John 3:4 (NIV) states: "Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness." The New Living Translation reads "Sin opposes the law," while the traditional KJV rendering defines sin as "transgression of the law." But it is not just any law that humanity has broken-it is God's law. Humans have rebelled against their Maker, pretending that they themselves are the measure of all things rather than in humble trust submitting to the wisdom and love of God.
Why did God punish Adam and Eve for what seemed to be an insignificant matter? It may have seemed unimportant, but there was a crucial principle involved. "There was nothing poisonous in the fruit itself, and the sin was not merely in yielding to appetite. It was distrust of God's goodness, disbelief of His word, and rejection of His authority, that made our first parents transgressors, and that brought into the world a knowledge of evil. It was this that opened the door to every species of falsehood and error."—Ellen G. White, Education, p. 25.
God has done for us all that infinite love could. In return He asks of us love and obedience. In a time in which the world is plagued by rampant lawlessness and a relativistic philosophy—which claims that good and evil depend simply on cultural circumstances and communal and personal preferences—there must and will be a people who will staunchly defend God's standard of holiness, the Ten Commandments.
Why did God punish Adam and Eve for what seemed to be an insignificant matter? It may have seemed unimportant, but there was a crucial principle involved. "There was nothing poisonous in the fruit itself, and the sin was not merely in yielding to appetite. It was distrust of God's goodness, disbelief of His word, and rejection of His authority, that made our first parents transgressors, and that brought into the world a knowledge of evil. It was this that opened the door to every species of falsehood and error."—Ellen G. White, Education, p. 25.
God has done for us all that infinite love could. In return He asks of us love and obedience. In a time in which the world is plagued by rampant lawlessness and a relativistic philosophy—which claims that good and evil depend simply on cultural circumstances and communal and personal preferences—there must and will be a people who will staunchly defend God's standard of holiness, the Ten Commandments.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Lates Fashion On Stage... Who Wanna Try?
Recently happened in Singapore Fire Fashion Show
Kalau la jumpa orang macam ni sedang jalan2 apa la korg buat?...
Monday, April 27, 2009
Najib perjelas gagasan Satu Malaysia
BERIKUT adalah sedutan transkrip sidang akhbar Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak sebelum pertemuan dengan editor media tempatan di kediamannya di ibu negara, semalam.
- Konsep Satu
Ia tak sama.
- Di bawah konsep Satu
- Ini bukan bererti kita mengenepikan dasar afirmatif, dasar untuk menolong kaum bumiputera asalkan dasar itu dilaksanakan dengan cara yang adil dan memberi pertimbangan kepada golongan bumiputera yang layak mendapat sesuatu pertimbangan daripada kerajaan.
- Biar kita keluar daripada cara bertindak dalam tembok etnik yang kita amalkan sejak sekian lama. Itu juga pada saya maksud konsep Satu Malaysia.
SAYA telah mempengerusikan mesyuarat Kabinet yang pertama pagi ini. Antara perkara yang saya telah tekankan pada mesyuarat pagi ini, supaya barisan Jemaah Menteri yang baru dapat memenuhi harapan rakyat yang begitu tinggi, di mana Jemaah Menteri perlu menepati apa yang diharapkan rakyat.
Saya menggariskan empat perkara. Integriti, kebolehan, kesetiaan dan kesungguhan. Kabinet perlu berteraskan kepada Kabinet yang dekat di hati rakyat, mesra rakyat, sanggup turun
Saya telah nyatakan dalam persekitaran politik hari ini, rakyat semakin kritikal. Oleh itu, kita tak boleh anggap ini sebagai perkara biasa tetapi mesti mempamerkan barisan kepimpinan yang sanggup melakukan perubahan dan pembaharuan.
Sehubungan ini, saya telah menyatakan betapa pentingnya Jemaah Menteri untuk berurusan dengan semua lapisan masyarakat. Kita tak boleh anggap kerajaan tahu segalanya. Kita perlu membuka pintu kepada dialog dan perbincangan dengan pelbagai kumpulan supaya keputusan yang dibuat kerajaan nanti merupakan keputusan yang benar-benar bersandarkan kepada kehendak rakyat.
Saya juga ingatkan ahli Kabinet supaya tidak dianggap sebagai kerajaan yang memihak kepada mana-mana kumpulan istimewa khusus (special interest group) atau mana-mana badan korporat.
Walaupun amat penting untuk melaksanakan dasar-dasar yang mesra kepada sektor swasta tetapi kesudahannya kita mesti ambil apa-apa keputusan bersandarkan kepentingan rakyat pada keseluruhan.
Saya juga telah menyebut tentang pencapaian yang diharapkan oleh rakyat bahawasanya rakyat tidak mahu mendengar sesuatu yang kita janjikan atau sesuatu diumumkan. Rakyat mengharapkan pelaksanaan secepat mungkin.
Oleh itu, pendekatan KPI akan dilaksanakan di mana pihak Khazanah telah ditetapkan sebagai badan untuk membantu kerajaan menggubal KPI dalam tempoh sebulan. Saya telah berjumpa Ketua Eksekutifnya, Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar untuk menempatkan bilangan tenaga yang mencukupi untuk melaksanakan penggubalan KPI ini dalam tempoh tersebut.
Di samping itu, KPI ini juga akan melibatkan pembahagian tugas kepada timbalan menteri secara tersusun. Setiap timbalan menteri akan diberi bidang tugas supaya timbalan-timbalan menteri dapat menyumbang kepada tindakan dan pelaksanaan yang dilakukan kerajaan.
Semua menteri akan dinilai prestasi masing-masing dalam tempoh enam bulan. Saya telah tetapkan pada bulan November nanti kita akan lakukan proses penilaian atas prestasi dan pencapaian setiap menteri dan kementerian.
Ada juga pandangan bahawa sesetengah keputusan itu merupakan keputusan yang merentasi beberapa kementerian yang tak boleh dikhususkan kepada satu kementerian sahaja.
Kita akan ambil kira perkara ini. Yakni kalau kita menentukan KPI, ia akan mengambil kira mana yang boleh kita khususkan kepada sebuah kementerian dan mana yang perlu kita ambil kira peranan yang dimainkan kementerian lain.
Dengan adanya sistem KPI ini, saya percaya prestasi kerajaan, pencapaian kerajaan, insya-Allah akan bertambah baik dan berkesan lagi.
Saya juga mengingatkan, bahawa rakyat hari ini mengharapkan pendekatan yang berbeza. Dan kita tidak perlu kepada pendekatan yang terlalu mementingkan luaran (ritual) ataupun kedudukan kita sebagai anggota pentadbiran. Tetapi kita mesti sensitif dengan pandangan rakyat dalam apa juga yang kita lakukan.
Saya bagi contoh, kalau kita hendak promosi pelancongan misalnya Pulau Langkawi. Apabila kita buat papan iklan, tak payahlah kita letakkan gambar Perdana Menteri dan menteri berkenaan sebagai sebahagian daripada kandungan papan iklan tersebut.
Dan kalau ada hari-hari tertentu kita buat sepanduk, banting dan sebagainya, tak payahlah gambar menteri atau Perdana Menteri ditonjolkan.
Kita nak tunjukkan yang kita tak penting kepada perkara seperti ini. Yang penting ialah untuk menunjukkan bahawa kita sebuah kerajaan mesra rakyat dan pentingkan kepentingan rakyat lebih daripada kedudukan dan jawatan yang ada pada kita.
SOALAN: Mengenai penyusunan agensi ada dijelaskan (dalam mesyuarat Kabinet)?
Saya sudah buat keputusan dan JPM akan keluarkan kenyataan. Tidak ada masalah apabila sesuatu kementerian dibubarkan. Misalnya Kementerian Pembangunan Usahawan dan Koperasi (MeCD). Ini kerana agensinya tetap tidak dibubarkan. Ia ditempatkan di bawah kementerian lain yang akan melaksanakan tugas seperti biasa.
Seperti Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), kita kembalikan agensi itu kepada Kementerian Kemajuan Luar Bandar dan Wilayah. Pada masa dulu, agensi itu di kementerian tersebut juga. Ketika zaman Tun Ghafar Baba, Mara di bawah kementerian berkenaan.
Dan, Menteri Luar Bandar sekarang adalah seorang Naib Presiden UMNO (Datuk Seri Mohd. Shafie Apdal). Takkan dia tak boleh kita harap, untuk laksanakan program Mara umpamanya. Jadi, saya tak nampak polemik tentang pemansuhan kementerian ini sebagai sesuatu yang patut dijadikan isu. Ini sebenarnya usaha kita untuk mewujudkan kerajaan yang lebih kecil dan efisien.
Ada disentuh mengenai Majlis Penasihat Ekonomi?
Ya, saya ada bayangkan. Tapi perincian termasuk mengenai pengerusinya akan saya umumkan kemudian. Saya terangkan kenapa Majlis Penasihat Ekonomi ini diwujudkan. Saya akan pilih hari lain untuk terangkan.
Apa tindakan selanjutnya jika ada menteri yang berada di bawah tahap memuaskan apabila penilaian dilakukan November ini?
Saya percaya menteri-menteri sedar bahawa masa depan kerajaan bergantung kepada pencapaian mereka berdasarkan KPI. Mereka tahu bahawa mereka mesti ambil serius apa yang patut dilakukan.
Jadi, saya berkeyakinan mereka mampu melaksanakan tanggungjawab yang telah diberi. Penilaian itu bukanlah satu kaedah bersifat pemantauan semata-mata tetapi satu cara untuk membantu menteri-menteri berkenaan jika mereka hadapi hambatan yang kerana keputusan dibuat oleh kementerian yang lain umpamanya.
Jadi kita boleh gunakan masa penilaian itu untuk menyelesaikan kekangan dari segi pelaksanaan dan pencapaian kementerian mereka.
Pihak mana akan melakukan penilaian berkenaan?
Penilaian itu akan dibuat oleh sebuah unit di bawah JPM yang akan menilainya bersama-sama ICU. Mereka akan lihat pencapaiannya. Dan, apabila saya bincang dengan menteri berkenaan, menteri berkenaan akan bentang juga apa yang mereka telah buat.
Sama-samalah kita bincang nanti dan kita tengok apa yang mereka lakukan dalam tempoh enam bulan.
Dahulu kerajaan juga ada sistem report card, tapi nampaknya ia tak berkesan?
KPI ini kita ada sistem. Kalau kita buat satu-satu keputusan, ia mesti didokong oleh sistem yang diwujudkan. Jadi kita sudah wujudkan sistem. Ini bukan saja keputusan tapi disokong dengan sistem.
Sistem itu ialah, pertamanya Khazanah mainkan peranan. Saya sudah wujudkan tuntutan menteri berkenaan di bawah JPM dan ICU akan main peranan.
Jadi kita ambil pendekatan bersistematik. Kalau kita hendak buat sesuatu ia mesti berasaskan sistematik. Jika tidak, ia akan dilihat retorik. Ia mesti didokong dengan sistem yang bersesuaian.
Ini bukan seperti biasa tetapi sesuatu yang berbeza sebab saya sudah janjikan pembaharuan. Saya komited kepada rakyat untuk bawa pembaharuan dan saya serius untuk bawa perubahan.
Boleh komen mengenai rasa kecewa masyarakat India mengenai bilangan dalam Kabinet?
Yang paling penting ialah apa yang kerajaan akan buat untuk komuniti India. Kita akan buat apa yang termampu untuk komuniti India, ini bukan satu isu besar.
Boleh gambarkan suasana mesyuarat Kabinet yang pertama dipengerusikan Datuk Seri hari ini?
Saya rasa elok tanya pada menteri lain tentang apa yang mereka rasa (ketawa kecil). Pada saya ia berjalan baik. Maknanya saya kata, saya punya kesimpulan berilah yang terbaik, sumbanglah yang terbaik untuk negara. Itu mesej utama saya.
Selain itu, saya kata penting untuk mereka mendapatkan kepuasan kerja. Kita pun nak bina semangat kerjasama di kalangan barisan Kabinet. Satu keluarga yang boleh sokong antara satu sama lain. Yang penting kita boleh laksanakan dengan jaya.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
How expensive is our "SHIT"
Yesterday i was assingned to take picture of Pantai Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP) becouse the picture that taken before is not achived the quality needed to print 16"x18" size. This picture will be given as a souvenir to our new appointed Ministry. We choose this picture as it's show our nature of works, to built sewerage treatment plant for public confort and health. For some of you who didn't know what is STP, it's a plant that treated the water discharged from you house (mainly at town) including water from the toilet, bath room and kitchen. This sewerage must be treated before discharged into the river or sea so that it contain no harmfull to environment and people.
The picture above is one of the few new latest technology build in our country and we are among the leader in this industry in SEA after Singapore. And how much is the cost?... before you can make a guess let me tell you that people who recieved this accomadation only pay rm8 for a month and you know that it's the cheepest in the world? Maybe it's not suprise you becouse you didn't know the cost of the whole process, right? But i bet you'll be suprise once you know. This plant is connected with a sewer tunel with the size that can fit 4 or 6 rapid bus and it undernet KL City. So most of KL folks 'dirt' (shit) are flowing in this tunnel to the STP. So how much is the cost? If I tell you it is about half a billon RM, can you believe it? well believe it.. and we had another plant like this in Penang that cost almost RM1B. We are not talking about the operational cost that reach hundreds thousand per month. What amaze me the most is... there are so many people who refused to pay the rm8 per month tarif and even worst they requested for more reduction.....
So guys, remember every time you seat and relieve you self at the toilet bowl, you 'dirt' will undergo a very expensive journey just to make sure you have a healthly environment. And please..PAY YOU BILL... to make sure this process will continue...
Friday, April 17, 2009
My Schedule
Mei 29 : Sabah here i'm home...
Mei 30 : Church
Mei 31 : - At friend house for inquiry on her wedding ceremony.
- doing some siteseeing and landscape photography
- Fishing (klu sempat)
Jun 1 : Working my 1st task as wedding photographer (my kazen wedding)
Jun 2 : Outdoor after wedding portraiture.
Jun 3 : Photo editing... afternoon p main snooker at goshen..
Jun 4 : Working my 2nd task as wedding photographer (my Bro wedding)
Jun 5 : Photo editing and doing some request family photography
Jun 6 : Church and Rest
Jun 7 : - Going to Tamu
- (maybe my 3rd task on wedding photographer at friend weeding)
- Fishing with Marudu Caster.. (harap2 dpt..)
Jun 8 : Rest and prepare for KL return...
Jun 9 : Depart to my second home... uwahhh...
Mei 30 : Church
Mei 31 : - At friend house for inquiry on her wedding ceremony.
- doing some siteseeing and landscape photography
- Fishing (klu sempat)
Jun 1 : Working my 1st task as wedding photographer (my kazen wedding)
Jun 2 : Outdoor after wedding portraiture.
Jun 3 : Photo editing... afternoon p main snooker at goshen..
Jun 4 : Working my 2nd task as wedding photographer (my Bro wedding)
Jun 5 : Photo editing and doing some request family photography
Jun 6 : Church and Rest
Jun 7 : - Going to Tamu
- (maybe my 3rd task on wedding photographer at friend weeding)
- Fishing with Marudu Caster.. (harap2 dpt..)
Jun 8 : Rest and prepare for KL return...
Jun 9 : Depart to my second home... uwahhh...
Monday, March 30, 2009
Give Love to Someone Today
There was a blind girl who hated herself just because she's blind.
She hated everyone, except her loving boyfriend. He's always there for her. She said that if she could only see the world, she would marry her boyfriend.
One day, someone donated a pair of eyes to her and then she can see everything, including her boyfriend.
Her boyfriend asked her, "now that you can see the world, will you marry me?" The girl was shocked when she saw that her boyfriend is blind too, and refused to marry him.
Her boyfriend walked away in tears, and later wrote a letter to her saying. "Just take care of my eyes dear."
This is how human brain changes when the status changed.
Only few remember what life was before, and who's always been there even in the most painful situations.
Life Is A Gift
Today before you think of saying an unkind word
Think of someone who can't speak.
Before you complain about the taste of your food
Think of someone who has nothing to eat.
Before you complain about your husband or wife
Think of someone who's crying out to God for a companion.
Today before you complain about life
Think of someone who went too early to heaven.
Before you complain about your children
Think of someone who desires children but they're barren.
Before you argue about your dirty house, someone didn't clean or sweep
Think of the people who are living in the streets.
Before whining about the distance you drive
Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet.
And when you are tired and complain about your job
Think of the unemployed, the disabled and those who wished they had your job.
But before you think of pointing the finger or condemning another
Remember that not one of us are without sin and we all answer to one maker.
And when depressing thoughts seem to get you down
Put a smile on your face and thank God you're alive and still
around.
Life is a gift
Live it
Enjoy it
Celebrate it
EMBRACE IT
And fulfill it
And while you are at it give love to someone today
Love someone with what you do and the words you say
Love is not meant to be kept locked inside of us and hidden
So give it away "Give Love to someone today
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
E-mail Kepada Menteri2 dari Sabah & Sarawak
Kehadapan YB Datuk ;
Saya adalah mewakili penjawat-penjawat awam yang berasal dari Sabah & Sarawak dan bertugas di Semananjung
Kami juga ingin bertanyakan kenapa kami tidak layak mendapat elaun COLA sedangkan tujuan elaun tersebut adalah untuk meringankan beban bagi penjawat-penjawat awam yang bertugas di bandar-bandar besar yang kos sara hidup semakin hari semakin tinggi. Alasan yang mengatakan sebab kami telah mendapat EPW adalah sangat tidak logik.
Oleh itu amatlah diharapkan agar pihak YB Datuk yang dapat memberi perhatian terhadap perkara ini agar nasib kami penjawat-penjawat awam dari Sabah dan Sarawak yang berkhidmat di Semanjung
Sekian dan terima Kasih
p/s: email yg sya telah kirim awal tahun 2008. dan mcm biasalah no respond..
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Mengapa Yahudi Bijak?
Hari ini saya berfikir-fikir apa yg harus sya post di blog ini. Actually terlalu banyak yg ingin sya kongsikan bersama-sama dari topik kesihatan sehingga lah politik. Tapi susah klu mengharap online di office ja selalu ada gangguan sehinggakan idea tu terbantut. So kali ini sya cuma kongsikan suatu email yg sya terima hari ini dan sya rasa bagus juga untuk kita baca dan pertimbangkan dalam kehidupan kita. Enjoy it....
Setelah berada 3 tahun di Israel kerana menjalani housemanship dibeberapa hospital disana, ada beberapa perkara yang menarik dapat saya perhatikan untuk dijadikan tesis ini, iaitu "Mengapa Yahudi Bijak?". Memang tidak dapat dinafikan ramai cendikiawan berbangsa Yahudi, dari segala bidang, Engineering, musik, saintis dan yang paling hebat ialah bidang perniagaan, dimana ia memang paling tersohor. Hampir 70% perniagaan di dunia dikuasai oleh kaum Yahudi, dari kosmetik, pakaian, pemakanan, senjata, perhotelan, perfileman diHollywood dan sebagainya.
Ketika tahun kedua, akhir bulan December 1980 dan sedang saya menghitung hari untuk pulang ke California saya terfikir apakah sebab nya kaum Yahudi begitu pintar? Kenapa tuhan memberi kelebihan kepada mereka? Apakah ini suatu kebetulan? Atau olah manusia sendiri? Adakah bijak boleh dijana? Seperti kilang pengeluaran?
Maka saya pon tergerak membuat tesis untuk Phd saya, disamping kebaikan untuk umat sejagat dan dapat hidup secara harmoni. Untuk pengetahuan anda tesis yang saya lakukan ini mengambil masa hampir lapan tahun, ini kerana untuk mengumpulkan data-data yang setepat mungkin.
Antara data-data yang saya kumpulkan ialah pemakanan, adat resam, ugama, persiapan awal untuk melahirkan zuriat dan sebagainya dan data data tadi saya cuba bandingkan dengan bangsa dan kaum kaum lain.
Marilah kita mulakan dengan persiapan awal melahirkan zuriat. Di Israel, setelah mengetahui yang sang ibu sedang mengandung, pertama kali saya perhatikan ialah, sang ibu akan sering menyanyi dan bermain piano dan si ibu dan bapa akan membeli buku metamatik dan menyelesaikan masalah metamatik bersama suami, saya sungguh hairan kerana teman saya yang mengandung sering membawa buku metamatik dan bertanya kepada saya beberapa soalan yang beliau tak dapat menyelesaikanya, oleh kerana saya memang minat tentang metamatik, tentu saja dengan senang saya bantu beliau. Saya bertanya kepada beliau, adakah ini untuk anak kamu? Beliau menjawab, "ia, ini untuk anak saya yang masih didalam kandungan, saya sedang melatih otak beliau, semuga ia menjadi genius apabila dewasa kelak" Perkara ini membuat saya tertarik untuk mengikut perkembangan beliau seterusnya. Berbalik kepada metamatik tadi, tanpa merasa jenoh beliau membuat latihan metamatik sehingga beliau melahirkan anak.
Seperkara lagi yang saya perhatikan ialah pemakanan beliau, sejak awal mengandung beliau gemar sekali memakan kacang badam dan korma bersama susu, dan untuk tengah hari makan utama beliau ialah roti dan ikan tanpa kepala bersama salad yang digaul dengan badam dan berbagai jenis kekacang, menurut beliau daging ikan sungguh baik untuk perkembangan otak dan kepala ikan mengandungi kimia yang tidak baik yang dapat merosakkan pengembangan dan penumbuhan otak anak didalam kandungan. menurut beliau ini adalah adat orang orang yahudi ketika mengandung dan ianya menjadi semacam kewajipan untuk ibu ibu yang sedang mengandung mengambil pil minyak ikan.
Ketika saya diundang untuk makan malam bersama orang orang Yahudi, perkara pertama yang saya perhatikan ialah menu mereka. Setiap undangan yg sama perhatikan ialah mereka gemar sekali memakan ikan (hanya isi atau fillet) dan biasanya daging tidak akan ada bersama dimeja jika ada ikan, menurut mereka, campuran daging dan ikan tak elok dimakan bersama. Salad dan
kacang adalah suatu kemestian, terutama badam. Seperkara yang pelik ialah mereka akan memakan buah buahan dahulu sebelum memakan hidangan utama. Jangan terperanjat jika anda diundang kerumah Yahudi anda akan dihidangkan buah buahan dahulu. Menurut mereka, dengan memakan hidangan kabohidrat (nasi atau roti) dahulu kemudian buah buahan, ini akan menyebabkan kita merasa ngantuk dan lemah dan payah untuk memahami pelajaran disekolah.
Di Israel, merokok adalah taboo, apabila anda diundang makan dirumah Yahudi, jangan sekali kali merokok, dan tanpa malu mereka akan menyuruh anda keluar dari rumah mereka dam merokok diluar rumah mereka. Menurut saintis di Universiti Israel, siasatan menunjukkan nikotin dapat merosakkan sel utama pada otak manusia dan akan melekat pada genes, ini bermakna keturunan perokok bakal membawa generasi yg cacat otak ( bodoh atau lembab). Suatu penemuan yg dahsyat ditemui oleh saintis yg mendalami bidang genes dan DNA. Para perokok harap ambil perhatian. (Ironi nya, pemilik pengeluar rokok terbesar adalah ?? tekalah sendiri..!)
Perhatian saya selanjutnya ialah melawati tadika mereka, Pemakanan anak anak tadi cukup dikawal, makanan awal ialah buah buahan bersama kacang badam, diikuti dengan menelan pil minyak ikan (code oil lever) Didalam pengamatan saya, kanak Yahudi sungguh bijak dan rata rata mereka memahami 3 bahasa iaitu Hebrew, Arab dan Inggeris dan sedari awal lagi mereka telah dilatih bermain piano dan violin, ini adalah suatu kewajipan. Menurut mereka bermain musik dan memahami nota notanya dapat meningkatkan lagi IQ kanak kanak dan sudah tentu bakal menjadikan budak itu bijak. Ini menurut saintis Yahudi, gegaran musik dapat stimulate (semacam senaman untuk otak) maka itu terdapat ramai sekali genius musik terdiri dari kaum Yahudi.
Seterusnya ke darjah 1 hingga 6, anak anak Yahudi akan diajar metamatik berkonsepkan perniagaan dan pelajaran sains amatlah diberi keutamaan. Di dalam perhatian peribadi saya, perbandingan dengan anak anak di California, ianya jauh berbeza tentang IQ dan boleh saya katakan 6 tahun kebelakang!!!. Segala pelajaran akan dengan mudah di tangkap oleh anak Yahudi. Selain dari pelajaran tadi sukan juga menjadi kewajipan bagi mereka dan sukan yg diberi keutamaan ialah memanah, menembak dan berlari, menurut teman saya ini, memanah dan menembak dapat melatih otak mem fokus sesuatu perkara disamping mempermudahkan persiapan untuk perhidmatan negara.
Selanjutnya pemerhatian saya menuju ke sekolah tinggi (menengah) disini murid murid ditekan dengan pelajaran mata sains dan mereka digalakkan mencipta produk, segala projek mereka walaupon kadangkala kelihatannya lucu dan mengarut, tetap diteliti dengan serius apatah lagi ianya berupa senjata, perubatan dan engineering, idea itu akan dibawa ke institute tinggi di Politeknik dan Universiti.
Satu lagi yg di beri keutamaan ialah fakulti perniagaan. Saya sungguh terperanjat melihat mereka begitu agresif dan seriusnya mereka tentang perniagaan. Diakhir tahun diuniversiti, para penuntut dibidang niaga dikehendaki melakukan projek dan memperaktik kanya dan anda hanya akan lulus jika kumpulan anda(10 pelajar setiap kumpulan) dapat keuntungan sebanyak $US1juta! Anda terperanjat? Itulah kenyataan, dengan rangkaian seluruh dunia dan ditaja sepenuhnya oleh syarikat milik Yahudi, maka tidak hairanlah mereka dapat menguasai ½ perniagaan didunia! Siapakah yg mencipta design Levis yg terkini? Ianya dicipta di Universiti Israel oleh fakulti bisnes dan fesyen.
Pernahkah anda melihat cara orang Yahudi melakukan ibadah mereka? Salah satu caranya ialah dengan menggoyangkan kepala mereka, menurut mereka ini dapat mengaktifkan otak mereka dan menambahkan oksijan dikepala, banyak ugama lain di Timur Tengah, seperti Islam juga ada menyuruh umatnya menunduk atau menggoyangkan kepala, ini guna dapat mensimulasikan otak kita supaya bertambah aktif. Lihat orang orang Jepun, mereka sering menunduk nundukkan kepala dan ianya sebagai adat. Ramai orang orang Jepun yg pandai? Adakah ianya sebagai kebetulan? Kegemaran mereka ialah sushi (ikan mentah). Adakah ini kebetulan? Fikirkanlah!
Berpusat di New York, Dewan perniagaan Yahudi bersedia membantu mereka yg berminat untuk melakukan bisnes (sudah tentu untuk Yahudi sahaja) jika mereka ada idea yg bernas, jawatan kuasa akan memberi pinjaman tanpa faedah dan pentadbir dari jawatan kuasa tadi akan bekerjasama dengan anda untuk memastikan yg perniagaan mereka menurut landasan yg betul. Maka itu lahirlah Starbuck, Dell comptr, Cocacola, DKNY, Oracle, Perfileman di Hollywood, Levis, Dunkin Donut dan ada beratus kedai ternama dibawah naungan dewan perniagaan Yahudi di New York. Graduan Yahudi dari fakulti perubatan New York akan disarankan untuk mendaftar dipersatuan ini dan digalakkan memulakan klinik mereka sendiri dengan bantuan wang tanpa faedah, barulah saya tahu mengapa hospital di New York dan California sentiasa kekurangan doktor pakar.
Kesimpulanya, pada teori saya, melahirkan anak dan keturunan yg bijak boleh dilaksanakan dan tentunya bukan semalaman, ianya memerlukan masa, beberapa jenerasi mungkin? Persiapan awal adalah ketika sang ibu mengandung, galakkanlah siibu melakukan latihan metamatik yg mudah tetapi konsisten disamping mendengar musik klasik. Seterusnya ubahlah cara pemakanan, makanlah makanan yg elok dan berhasiat yg baik untuk otak, menghayati musik sejak kecil adalah baik sekali untuk penumbuhan otak kanak kanak, dengan bermain piano dan violin sudah tentu dapat melatih anak anak mencerdaskan otak mereka demikian juga sukan yg memerlukan konsetrasi yg tinggi, seperti memanah, bola keranjang, dart dan menembak.
Merokok menjanjikan jenerasi yg moron (goblok) dan sudah tentu genes bodoh akan mengikut ke jenerasi siperokok. Lawatan saya ke Singapore pada tahun 2005 amat memeranjatkan sekali, disini perokok seperti dianak tirikan dan begitu susah sekali untuk perokok dan anda tahu berapa harga sekotak rokok? US$ 7 !!! ini bersamaan perbelanjaan sehari untuk makan anda!! Saya puji sekali sikap pemerintah Singapore dan menkjubkan sekali!!! dan seperti Israel ianya begitu taboo dan cara pentadbiran dan segi pembelajaran mereka hampir serupa dengan Israel, maka itu saya lihat banyak institusi pelajaran mereka bertaraf dunia walaupon hakikat nya negeri Singapore hanyalah sebuah pulau sebesar Manhattan!!
Anda mungkin muskil, benarkah merokok dapat melahirkan jenerasi goblok, saya telah menemui beberapa bukti menyokong teori ini. Lihat saja Indonesia, jika anda ke Jakarta, dimana saja anda berada, dari restoran, teater, kebun bunga hingga kemusium hidung anda akan segera terbau asak rokok! Dan harga rokok? Cuma US$ .70cts !!! dan hasilnya? Dengan
penduduknya berjumlah jutaan orang berapa banyak kah universiti terdapat disana? Hasil apakah yg dapat dibanggakan? Teknologi? Jauh sekali. Adakah mereka dapat berbahasa selain dari bahasa mereka sendiri? Mengapa mereka begitu sukar sekali menguasai bahasa Inggeris? Ditangga berapakah kedudukan mereka di pertandingan metamatik sedunia? Adakah ini bukan
akibat merokok? Anda fikirlah sendiri.
Di tesis saya ini, saya tidak akan menimbulkan soal ugama atau bangsa, adakah Yahudi itu zalim sehingga diusir dari semenjak zaman Paraoh hingga ke Hitler, bagi saya itu isu politik dan survival, yg ingin saya ketengahkan ialah, mampu kah kita dapat melahirkan jenerasi yg bijak
seperti Yahudi? Jawabanya ialah mungkin dan tidak mustahil dan ianya memerlukan perubahan, dari segi pemakanan dan cara mendididik anak dan saya kira hanya memerlukan 3 jenerasi sahaja. Ini dapat saya lihat sendiri tentang cucu saya, ini setelah saya mengajar anak saya melalui program yg telah saya nyatakan diatas tadi, pada umur 9 tahun (cucu saya) dia dapat menulis esay sepanjang 5 mukasurat penuh. Esay nya hanyalah mengenai Mengapa saya gemarkan tomato!
Selamat sejahtera dan semuga kita dapat melahirkan manusia yg bijak dan bersifat mulia untuk kebaikan manusia sejagat tanpa mengenal batasan bangsa.
Dr. Stephen Carr Leon
Setelah berada 3 tahun di Israel kerana menjalani housemanship dibeberapa hospital disana, ada beberapa perkara yang menarik dapat saya perhatikan untuk dijadikan tesis ini, iaitu "Mengapa Yahudi Bijak?". Memang tidak dapat dinafikan ramai cendikiawan berbangsa Yahudi, dari segala bidang, Engineering, musik, saintis dan yang paling hebat ialah bidang perniagaan, dimana ia memang paling tersohor. Hampir 70% perniagaan di dunia dikuasai oleh kaum Yahudi, dari kosmetik, pakaian, pemakanan, senjata, perhotelan, perfileman diHollywood dan sebagainya.
Ketika tahun kedua, akhir bulan December 1980 dan sedang saya menghitung hari untuk pulang ke California saya terfikir apakah sebab nya kaum Yahudi begitu pintar? Kenapa tuhan memberi kelebihan kepada mereka? Apakah ini suatu kebetulan? Atau olah manusia sendiri? Adakah bijak boleh dijana? Seperti kilang pengeluaran?
Maka saya pon tergerak membuat tesis untuk Phd saya, disamping kebaikan untuk umat sejagat dan dapat hidup secara harmoni. Untuk pengetahuan anda tesis yang saya lakukan ini mengambil masa hampir lapan tahun, ini kerana untuk mengumpulkan data-data yang setepat mungkin.
Antara data-data yang saya kumpulkan ialah pemakanan, adat resam, ugama, persiapan awal untuk melahirkan zuriat dan sebagainya dan data data tadi saya cuba bandingkan dengan bangsa dan kaum kaum lain.
Marilah kita mulakan dengan persiapan awal melahirkan zuriat. Di Israel, setelah mengetahui yang sang ibu sedang mengandung, pertama kali saya perhatikan ialah, sang ibu akan sering menyanyi dan bermain piano dan si ibu dan bapa akan membeli buku metamatik dan menyelesaikan masalah metamatik bersama suami, saya sungguh hairan kerana teman saya yang mengandung sering membawa buku metamatik dan bertanya kepada saya beberapa soalan yang beliau tak dapat menyelesaikanya, oleh kerana saya memang minat tentang metamatik, tentu saja dengan senang saya bantu beliau. Saya bertanya kepada beliau, adakah ini untuk anak kamu? Beliau menjawab, "ia, ini untuk anak saya yang masih didalam kandungan, saya sedang melatih otak beliau, semuga ia menjadi genius apabila dewasa kelak" Perkara ini membuat saya tertarik untuk mengikut perkembangan beliau seterusnya. Berbalik kepada metamatik tadi, tanpa merasa jenoh beliau membuat latihan metamatik sehingga beliau melahirkan anak.
Seperkara lagi yang saya perhatikan ialah pemakanan beliau, sejak awal mengandung beliau gemar sekali memakan kacang badam dan korma bersama susu, dan untuk tengah hari makan utama beliau ialah roti dan ikan tanpa kepala bersama salad yang digaul dengan badam dan berbagai jenis kekacang, menurut beliau daging ikan sungguh baik untuk perkembangan otak dan kepala ikan mengandungi kimia yang tidak baik yang dapat merosakkan pengembangan dan penumbuhan otak anak didalam kandungan. menurut beliau ini adalah adat orang orang yahudi ketika mengandung dan ianya menjadi semacam kewajipan untuk ibu ibu yang sedang mengandung mengambil pil minyak ikan.
Ketika saya diundang untuk makan malam bersama orang orang Yahudi, perkara pertama yang saya perhatikan ialah menu mereka. Setiap undangan yg sama perhatikan ialah mereka gemar sekali memakan ikan (hanya isi atau fillet) dan biasanya daging tidak akan ada bersama dimeja jika ada ikan, menurut mereka, campuran daging dan ikan tak elok dimakan bersama. Salad dan
kacang adalah suatu kemestian, terutama badam. Seperkara yang pelik ialah mereka akan memakan buah buahan dahulu sebelum memakan hidangan utama. Jangan terperanjat jika anda diundang kerumah Yahudi anda akan dihidangkan buah buahan dahulu. Menurut mereka, dengan memakan hidangan kabohidrat (nasi atau roti) dahulu kemudian buah buahan, ini akan menyebabkan kita merasa ngantuk dan lemah dan payah untuk memahami pelajaran disekolah.
Di Israel, merokok adalah taboo, apabila anda diundang makan dirumah Yahudi, jangan sekali kali merokok, dan tanpa malu mereka akan menyuruh anda keluar dari rumah mereka dam merokok diluar rumah mereka. Menurut saintis di Universiti Israel, siasatan menunjukkan nikotin dapat merosakkan sel utama pada otak manusia dan akan melekat pada genes, ini bermakna keturunan perokok bakal membawa generasi yg cacat otak ( bodoh atau lembab). Suatu penemuan yg dahsyat ditemui oleh saintis yg mendalami bidang genes dan DNA. Para perokok harap ambil perhatian. (Ironi nya, pemilik pengeluar rokok terbesar adalah ?? tekalah sendiri..!)
Perhatian saya selanjutnya ialah melawati tadika mereka, Pemakanan anak anak tadi cukup dikawal, makanan awal ialah buah buahan bersama kacang badam, diikuti dengan menelan pil minyak ikan (code oil lever) Didalam pengamatan saya, kanak Yahudi sungguh bijak dan rata rata mereka memahami 3 bahasa iaitu Hebrew, Arab dan Inggeris dan sedari awal lagi mereka telah dilatih bermain piano dan violin, ini adalah suatu kewajipan. Menurut mereka bermain musik dan memahami nota notanya dapat meningkatkan lagi IQ kanak kanak dan sudah tentu bakal menjadikan budak itu bijak. Ini menurut saintis Yahudi, gegaran musik dapat stimulate (semacam senaman untuk otak) maka itu terdapat ramai sekali genius musik terdiri dari kaum Yahudi.
Seterusnya ke darjah 1 hingga 6, anak anak Yahudi akan diajar metamatik berkonsepkan perniagaan dan pelajaran sains amatlah diberi keutamaan. Di dalam perhatian peribadi saya, perbandingan dengan anak anak di California, ianya jauh berbeza tentang IQ dan boleh saya katakan 6 tahun kebelakang!!!. Segala pelajaran akan dengan mudah di tangkap oleh anak Yahudi. Selain dari pelajaran tadi sukan juga menjadi kewajipan bagi mereka dan sukan yg diberi keutamaan ialah memanah, menembak dan berlari, menurut teman saya ini, memanah dan menembak dapat melatih otak mem fokus sesuatu perkara disamping mempermudahkan persiapan untuk perhidmatan negara.
Selanjutnya pemerhatian saya menuju ke sekolah tinggi (menengah) disini murid murid ditekan dengan pelajaran mata sains dan mereka digalakkan mencipta produk, segala projek mereka walaupon kadangkala kelihatannya lucu dan mengarut, tetap diteliti dengan serius apatah lagi ianya berupa senjata, perubatan dan engineering, idea itu akan dibawa ke institute tinggi di Politeknik dan Universiti.
Satu lagi yg di beri keutamaan ialah fakulti perniagaan. Saya sungguh terperanjat melihat mereka begitu agresif dan seriusnya mereka tentang perniagaan. Diakhir tahun diuniversiti, para penuntut dibidang niaga dikehendaki melakukan projek dan memperaktik kanya dan anda hanya akan lulus jika kumpulan anda(10 pelajar setiap kumpulan) dapat keuntungan sebanyak $US1juta! Anda terperanjat? Itulah kenyataan, dengan rangkaian seluruh dunia dan ditaja sepenuhnya oleh syarikat milik Yahudi, maka tidak hairanlah mereka dapat menguasai ½ perniagaan didunia! Siapakah yg mencipta design Levis yg terkini? Ianya dicipta di Universiti Israel oleh fakulti bisnes dan fesyen.
Pernahkah anda melihat cara orang Yahudi melakukan ibadah mereka? Salah satu caranya ialah dengan menggoyangkan kepala mereka, menurut mereka ini dapat mengaktifkan otak mereka dan menambahkan oksijan dikepala, banyak ugama lain di Timur Tengah, seperti Islam juga ada menyuruh umatnya menunduk atau menggoyangkan kepala, ini guna dapat mensimulasikan otak kita supaya bertambah aktif. Lihat orang orang Jepun, mereka sering menunduk nundukkan kepala dan ianya sebagai adat. Ramai orang orang Jepun yg pandai? Adakah ianya sebagai kebetulan? Kegemaran mereka ialah sushi (ikan mentah). Adakah ini kebetulan? Fikirkanlah!
Berpusat di New York, Dewan perniagaan Yahudi bersedia membantu mereka yg berminat untuk melakukan bisnes (sudah tentu untuk Yahudi sahaja) jika mereka ada idea yg bernas, jawatan kuasa akan memberi pinjaman tanpa faedah dan pentadbir dari jawatan kuasa tadi akan bekerjasama dengan anda untuk memastikan yg perniagaan mereka menurut landasan yg betul. Maka itu lahirlah Starbuck, Dell comptr, Cocacola, DKNY, Oracle, Perfileman di Hollywood, Levis, Dunkin Donut dan ada beratus kedai ternama dibawah naungan dewan perniagaan Yahudi di New York. Graduan Yahudi dari fakulti perubatan New York akan disarankan untuk mendaftar dipersatuan ini dan digalakkan memulakan klinik mereka sendiri dengan bantuan wang tanpa faedah, barulah saya tahu mengapa hospital di New York dan California sentiasa kekurangan doktor pakar.
Kesimpulanya, pada teori saya, melahirkan anak dan keturunan yg bijak boleh dilaksanakan dan tentunya bukan semalaman, ianya memerlukan masa, beberapa jenerasi mungkin? Persiapan awal adalah ketika sang ibu mengandung, galakkanlah siibu melakukan latihan metamatik yg mudah tetapi konsisten disamping mendengar musik klasik. Seterusnya ubahlah cara pemakanan, makanlah makanan yg elok dan berhasiat yg baik untuk otak, menghayati musik sejak kecil adalah baik sekali untuk penumbuhan otak kanak kanak, dengan bermain piano dan violin sudah tentu dapat melatih anak anak mencerdaskan otak mereka demikian juga sukan yg memerlukan konsetrasi yg tinggi, seperti memanah, bola keranjang, dart dan menembak.
Merokok menjanjikan jenerasi yg moron (goblok) dan sudah tentu genes bodoh akan mengikut ke jenerasi siperokok. Lawatan saya ke Singapore pada tahun 2005 amat memeranjatkan sekali, disini perokok seperti dianak tirikan dan begitu susah sekali untuk perokok dan anda tahu berapa harga sekotak rokok? US$ 7 !!! ini bersamaan perbelanjaan sehari untuk makan anda!! Saya puji sekali sikap pemerintah Singapore dan menkjubkan sekali!!! dan seperti Israel ianya begitu taboo dan cara pentadbiran dan segi pembelajaran mereka hampir serupa dengan Israel, maka itu saya lihat banyak institusi pelajaran mereka bertaraf dunia walaupon hakikat nya negeri Singapore hanyalah sebuah pulau sebesar Manhattan!!
Anda mungkin muskil, benarkah merokok dapat melahirkan jenerasi goblok, saya telah menemui beberapa bukti menyokong teori ini. Lihat saja Indonesia, jika anda ke Jakarta, dimana saja anda berada, dari restoran, teater, kebun bunga hingga kemusium hidung anda akan segera terbau asak rokok! Dan harga rokok? Cuma US$ .70cts !!! dan hasilnya? Dengan
penduduknya berjumlah jutaan orang berapa banyak kah universiti terdapat disana? Hasil apakah yg dapat dibanggakan? Teknologi? Jauh sekali. Adakah mereka dapat berbahasa selain dari bahasa mereka sendiri? Mengapa mereka begitu sukar sekali menguasai bahasa Inggeris? Ditangga berapakah kedudukan mereka di pertandingan metamatik sedunia? Adakah ini bukan
akibat merokok? Anda fikirlah sendiri.
Di tesis saya ini, saya tidak akan menimbulkan soal ugama atau bangsa, adakah Yahudi itu zalim sehingga diusir dari semenjak zaman Paraoh hingga ke Hitler, bagi saya itu isu politik dan survival, yg ingin saya ketengahkan ialah, mampu kah kita dapat melahirkan jenerasi yg bijak
seperti Yahudi? Jawabanya ialah mungkin dan tidak mustahil dan ianya memerlukan perubahan, dari segi pemakanan dan cara mendididik anak dan saya kira hanya memerlukan 3 jenerasi sahaja. Ini dapat saya lihat sendiri tentang cucu saya, ini setelah saya mengajar anak saya melalui program yg telah saya nyatakan diatas tadi, pada umur 9 tahun (cucu saya) dia dapat menulis esay sepanjang 5 mukasurat penuh. Esay nya hanyalah mengenai Mengapa saya gemarkan tomato!
Selamat sejahtera dan semuga kita dapat melahirkan manusia yg bijak dan bersifat mulia untuk kebaikan manusia sejagat tanpa mengenal batasan bangsa.
Dr. Stephen Carr Leon
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
