I am depressed over the Graphic Calculator which I sold for only RM260 and that Indian man freakin’ took a book for “free” which was not even in the deal at all! The son is innocent but those people are who I hold grudges on, I guess. I admit that it was partially my fault because I was not being aware. However, I would never believed to be cheated by another Malaysian as such. He told me that there was going to be a Fair and calculators will be sold for RM200. Being afraid that I might not at all be able to sell the calculator, I just took his offer.
That was just plain idiotic of me and I regret it now. Malaysians…. Because one gives a bad impression, it stays like this for the rest of our lives. What happens if foreigners who travels to Malaysia experience such? Would you think that they would ever want to come to Malysia again? It is how the Malay proverb ’sebab nila setitik, rosak susu sebelanga’ describes this situation. Not only during this incident that I experience such dissapointment, but while watching Amazing Race Asia, the Malaysian mums were in my opinion, not playing fair. I know that I should be supporting the representatives from my country but sometimes, you just can’t agree to something that is morally wrong. In that episode, the Japanese team got eliminated.
What happened? Well, they were using tricks to have the Japanese team go the wrong way and what if that happens to you? Wouldn’t you feel frustrated to be cheated? That is just wrong, man… It is just a freakin game and to me, they have gone too low. As this programme will be telecasted world wide, what would other people think of them?
Anyway, I did sell my notes to this guy who’s brother studies in IMU as well. I binded it for him and it wasn’t as cheap as I thought it would be but heck, it could have been more expensive. I really hope that the notes would be of very good use to him. That would make me feel proud and happy as the owner. I know that right now, I sound mad to treat my notes like my “baby” but what the heck, I wouldn’t part with it unless I know it has a good owner or at least a decent looking owner.
Other than that, two new friends I made, Vivek and Shan helped me sell my books and I too, helped them sell theirs. It was a mutual thing. I have a bag of books reserved for a girl. I sure do hope that she turns up tomorrow, otherwise, I’d have a headache having to sell the books all over again. I guess I can’t complain much except for being conned by the Indian men.
They were even asking me to reserve my notes and I did in the beginning but in the end, they didn’t come. So, it’s a good thing that there has been an arrangement for someone else to get it from me. My classmate was suppose to sell his stuff with me but he sold everything for a much more cheaper price that I think was too good to be true! Another classmate of ming, Eu Jin was unbelievable too. He sold his original books for a very very cheap price. I think I should have bought from him and sold it for a way higher price. What the heck, it was initially RM20 only until he changed it to RM40. Selling it for RM60-80 would still be reasonable considering that it is an original.
Oh well, what has happened has already happened. So, tomorrow is a new day and I am going to help Shan sell his books. Now, I’m wondering if I should sell my assignments. Hehehe… Nah, that’d be unfair…. *I’m so tempted to do so though* I am just feeling disgusted at how parents, yes, and I mean PARENTS who lie to take advantage of pre-adults. It is not called preparation of the outside world although it is the outside world. Rather, I believe that in conducting business or sales, it is the parents' role to play in guiding us. Did I stressed on PARENTS? I'm not saying that all parents does this, but more like parents ought not to do this because not only does it set a bad example and pose negative effects on other teenagers but it is also them that ought to be civilised. Just because I can't understand tamil doesn't mean they can criticize me in tamil. (I was just lucky to have an Indian friend beside me who translated every thing they said.)
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;;
Most people feel that we all deserve a pat on our back for helping Tee Hui Yi, our media's latest poster girl, to pull through the toughest time in her life. Congratulate us, 'cos we're all moral human beings who have now come forward, more aware of the plight of those awaiting organ donations, thanks to our brave little Hui Yi.
Think about it: isn't it just the coincidence that when a sweet little innocent girl enters hospital on the brink of death is saved by the good doctors at IJN (Institut Jantung Negara) - and they deserve kudos all around on their work - the number of organ donors who have pledged to a noble cause suddenly increases exponentially?
So unto you all I say this: hypocrites. That applies to the lot of you.
All this while we have been nothing more than chemicals; reactive more than proactive. We wait for something big and disastrous to happen before we start taking real steps to rectify matters. Need to be reminded how? Just remember two names: Canny Ong and Nurin Jazleen.
Oh, I'm sure before that there were a whole bunch of you trying to sound the alarm; need for greater awareness, more security, better lighting, etc. Good work to those of you who did bother to try, thanks for being socially aware (and I mean it). But still? No one bothered to listen, or even do anything. As a result, we have the media having a field day going about sensationalizing the rape and murder of two innocent souls.
Then we have the traditional response from the government: pledges to improve the situation, calls for the guilty to be apprehended and punished for their heinous crimes, and chills down the collective spines of the public as the gruesome and horrific details begin to emerge.
And don't tell me it's what the government's supposed to do. Where was all this fiery talk and promises before the even happened? And let's not even talk about the other issues: tired bus drivers, tilting lamp posts, little potholes, to name a few.
The government holds the responsibility of ensuring the safety of people within this country. We may not be going to war anytime soon, and perhaps we're not as likely to be bombed to kingdom come by idiot religious extremists, but the longer this attitude keeps up, the more people are going to suffer and/or die. Does it then count as sacrificing oneself for a noble cause, if that's the only way the government is provoked into responding promptly to any pressing issue?
- saintmaverick -
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;;We have, in our lives, seen various types of leaks, leaks in plumbing, leaks through the roofs etc. But examination question leaks? Now that is certainly interesting.
Just recently, the newspapers have reported that in the recent UPSR (Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah or Primary Schools Assessment Test) examinations, several, or more, questions especially from the Science and English papers have been leaked out to students even before the examinations began. In fact, it was even alleged that some teachers managed to get hold of some of the questions from the real examination papers that they managed to give their students some last minute exercises based on those leaked questions. Many parents were surprised that such a thing is happening and one even reported the matter to the police.
Do understand that as the public examination papers are PRIVATE and CONFIDENTIAL, as such, if anyone is found circulating the questions prior to the real date of the examinations (for open examination papers) and after the examinations (closed examination papers), the accused can be sentenced by law. I do not know what the true penalty is, but I doubt if it is light.
What has our Malaysian society become now? Here we emphasise the importance of education and how it will bring us a brighter future, yet, some corrupted parties perform certain illegitimate measures just to defeat the purpose of having education. It is true that our education system has become too exam-oriented, but as examinations are part of learning, why is it that we cannot respect the way assessments are being done?
Why is it that some parties go through all sorts of illegitimate measures to, somehow or rather, assist students who have not put in sufficient effort in their studies to score during examinations? Have they not thought about whether what they have done is fair to those who have put in genuine effort in their studies? Has nobody ever thought of the consequences if this was allowed to happen every year?
As far as I am concerned, there was so few a year when no question leaks were reported. The worst part of all is that questions that leaked out are not those of higher level ones such as the SPM or STPM, but UPSR examination questions! I am made to understand (as I have already gone through the UPSR stage) that UPSR is indeed a time when primary school students, though they are required to put in effort in their studies, should not be under such intense pressure.
Education is not just about getting A's for examinations. In the end, it is knowledge that counts, as well as its application. A student who has put in sufficient effort in his or her studies may not be able to score well during the UPSR examinations but they might be more knowledgeable in some other ways, and as such may help them score far better during their secondary school examinations.
I might understand why some corrupted people might want to get the questions leaked for examinations such as SPM or STPM, but UPSR as well? Deontologically speaking, no matter for what reasons, examination questions must be kept private and confidential and must not be leaked out no matter how much temptation there is. But sad to say, the scenario in our country has somehow got worse.
For heaven's sake, this is only a primary school assessment examination, not a university entry one. Having that one A less does not mean that the student is a failure. When is it that our society will learn and comprehend that for the sake of the future generations, we must preserve our integrity? If certain groups of people just will not stop doing what they have done, they are just going to bring this country down. In the end, it is their children's future that turns bleak.
What do I think about those people who tried to get hold of examination questions, you ask? Pathetic. Period.
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;;
From The Star newspaper:
Sex romps when parents are awayA worrisome trend, no doubt?
Five schoolgirls and several boys held no-holds-barred sex romps when their parents were not at home, Harian Metro reported.
The girls, aged 13 to 17, allegedly gave their bodies willingly to the boys, who grouped under the names “Geng Apache,” “Pangkah Shell” and “Budak Shell,” the tabloid said.
The boys favoured these girls from three schools in Putrajaya over others because [saintmaverick: this is the "best" part] they are said to be promiscuous and need not be “forced” into having sex.
Sources told the paper that the girls were so daring that they carried out their exploits at either their or the boys' homes after school and when the parents were not at home.
However, their illicit activities were exposed after 25 schoolboys were caught smoking and sniffing glue in two houses at Precincts 9 and 11, Putrajaya.
Several of the boys confessed that they had had sex with the girls over the past few months without any of their families knowing about it.
Sources said no action had so far been taken against either the boys or the girls, because no police report has been made.
What is it that drives youths to be so - "daring", as it were, to offer their bodies to others for mere physical fulfillment?
Now, lest you mistake me as playing the role of the Supreme Moral Guardian of Humankind, I'm only inclined to wonder what turned our youth into sex-crazed (not that loving sex is wrong, mind you, but you can only take it so far) carnivores? Is it the media (there we go blaming them again)? More open societal attitudes towards a previously taboo issue? Let's hear about what you think.
P.S. - This should deal a blow to gender stereotypes that boys are more sexually aggressive and dominant than girls. Hurrah, gender equality! *sticks tongue out*
-saintmaverick-
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;;There are a lot of things I am amazed with. But nothing could amaze me more than this piece of news:
DONG Jiao Zong (United Chinese School Committees Association of Malaysia) is unhappy with Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein’s remark over the medium to be used for Science and Mathematics in next year’s UPSR examinations.
Hishammuddin said recently that the ministry need not decide on the medium of instruction for the two subjects in next year’s UPSR examinations.
Sin Chew Daily reported that it was unfair to Chinese schools if the medium directly affected the teaching and studies of the pupils.
“Any policy must have a comprehensive plan that fulfils the people’s will and interest before it is implemented,” Dong Jiao Zong said.
Dong Jiao Zong also stressed that Chinese must be the medium for the Science and Mathematics examinations in next year’s UPSR.
“Either using English or both English and Chinese in the examinations is not acceptable,” it said.
Quoted from The Star Online
There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the mentality towards improvement, huh? I seriously have no idea what Dong Jiao Zong is trying to prove here, but to reject even bilingual exam papers is too much. Why, is it wrong for the government to introduce the medium of English indirectly in examinations as an avenue to learning? Besides, the government isn't imposing the teaching of Science and Mathematics in English straightaway, but rather through phases.
What is so hard for students and teachers to adapt to the new medium of instruction? Given the amount of time needed for students to catch up, it is not a problem at all right? Even students who were taught Science and Mathematics in the Malay medium could get used to the switch. What would set those learning the same subjects in Chinese apart from those who learn in the Malay medium?
I think Dong Jiao Zong, in a way, is being quite narrow-minded. They look at short-term results, and always in the now. We must look ahead! So many university students now would testify how lessons are carried out in English, and how many would resent not being able to learn up their subjects in the English medium. Would that not have made their higher education learning much easier?
English, though not the most widely spoken language, is still the INTERNATIONAL LINGUA FRANCA. Face it, you still have to pick up your English well no matter how much you love your mother tongue. What is the harm learning up a new language properly? Does learning Science and Mathematics in English degrade the Chinese language as how many people have argued that it would degrade the integrity of Bahasa Malaysia? Nonsense! This is all absurd, asinine!
Dong Jiao Zong also stated that it rejects the use of English as the medium for Science and Mathematics because thorough planning must be made that fulfils the interest of the people before the teaching of the two subjects are to be done in English. Again, nonsense! Is the government so foolish as to implement something new which is not for the benefit of the people? Does Dong Jiao Zong not know how much money has been spent by the government to train teachers and on other expenditures for the implementation of English as the medium of instruction for Science and Mathematics? If it is not for the good of the people, why would the government have spent so much?
People might argue that education in Chinese will apparently make it be the international lingua franca of the future. It could be possible. But on what basis would Chinese be the international lingua franca? If it is based on the number of people speaking the language, then Chinese should have been the international language long ago. But no, English still is the language used in business, trading and even education. So, if Dong Jiao Zong wants to focus on the now, English is the now.
Personally, I find that I can accept English as the medium of instruction. If we, the people can accept it, why can't Dong Jiao Zong?
If anybody thinks on the line of Dong Jiao Zong, please, do speak forth your ideas! I want to be impressed.
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;;As they say, the rest is history and I would very much conclude that it wasn't a wasted effort spending and slogging 3 days in a sub par "international" hotel. Mind you, MITC is supposed to be an international hub for Melaka, located in the "Cyberjaya of Melaka". Okay, perhaps this isn't a very good start to this entry, seeing me give cynical comments on the hotel; but indeed it was rather shabby and did not potray a good image for such an international event. The organization was a bit, as I would say, disorientated; but everything took a rather cool and calm, friendly approach to people.
Skipping the sequence of events, there are a few things that I actually managed to realize during these 3 days. I would like to firstly state how grateful I am that I have Malaysian tastebuds. Throughout this event, I got to know African people and observed that during lunches and dinner, they could not eat much because their tastebuds were not accustomed to many types of different food. They did serve foreign food and we Malaysians merrily had our very own share. Asking them, they told me that the food was too salty, too spicy, too sour, too sweet. You may have never realized this, but we have the upperhand when going for international events. We just take whatever food thats comes by to us (not the Fear Factor kind though) and we don't have much of a problem adapting to eating different things.
Another one thing I realized was the importance of Sejarah or History, that we studied for many many years in high school. Gosh, you have no idea how all that studies came in handy during the 3 days there. Questions ranging from, "Why is Malaysian so diverse?" or "How did Malaysia come about?" or "What is the significance of the Red Square in the middle of Melaka?" to "Why was A Famosa built?" And it didn't stop there, at every question, there were little branches. It was a constant pop quiz. I was hyper, so I knew more people and more people knew me, I put myself in the spot vulnerable to questions, but I was okay. I loved it. I loved showing the uniqueness of my country, I loved telling them about the historical sites and our nature reserves. There was so much to say and too little time.
The event's objective itself was to come out with a declaration for the role of Youth in the field of tourism. I was volunteer as well as participant at the same time. During the discussions, I really loved the fact that there foreign delegates were people representing their countries. Not any random people who you pick from high schools or youth organizations, but leaders, and members who had eloquence and stood out. Every foreign delegate had pride in their country. They spoke with confidence and assertiveness and that brought me to question whether I would be a person worthy of representing my country in more international events.
I think it was great, the whole experience I mean. Being able to step forward as a Malaysian and tell people what Malaysia is all about and our culture and history. When in the moment, the urge to say, "my country is beautiful and unique" will just definitely come by. Also, you feel very proud when you clad yourself in traditional attire. I know I felt very Malaysian on the last night's dinner. The whole event wasn't "very much" international, but enough to give me a taste of how things can be in such an event, and I like it.
I feel like taking this one step further. I don't just want to volunteer in these events, I want to represent my country in international events. The pressure is high on you when in the moment because your country's reputation falls on your shoulders, your English, your manners, your dressing, your ethics are all under scrutiny, but in the end friendship is built, knowledge on various countries increase and finally it is all worth it.
Here are some pictures :
Mini Malaysia, Ayer Keroh, Melaka
A hand at dancing
From Bosnia, discussion about Cultural Tourism.
Ms. Memory from Zimbabwe.
At the Chief Minister of Melaka's house.
South Africa and Gambia representative.
Batik Designing.
From Hong Kong, Yemen, Korea and Malaysia.
They got too hyper.
:)
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;;OK, I have utterly no intention to badmouth my sponsor, but this is something that I would like to highlight regarding efficiency of a certain department.
You see, I've moved to a new house, therefore I have to inform the university that I have changed my address. This I have done, but it seemed that the university will not notify my sponsor (I think it is best that I leave the name of the sponsor out) about my change of address. Therefore, I shall have to do it my own. And I did!
I decided to contact the sponsor on my own through the telephone. First, I got the operator. Then she connected me to the sponsorship unit. After a few beeps, I was connected to an answering machine. Taking note of the extension number, I tried making a direct call a few hours later. Still answering machine. I called up the next day. Answering machine. I called up two days later. Answering machine. I called up today. ANSWERING MACHINE!
Fine. So I contacted the operator again and told her that the extension I had is never answered. So, she connected me to the Secretary Department and there I had a conversation with another lady whose colleague I wanted to contact was unavailable. The dialogue was like this:
Henry: Pn. Zaitun?
Lady: Bukan, Pn. Zaitun tak ada. (No, Pn. Zaitun is not in.)
Henry: Oh, erm...
Lady: Ini pasal apa? (What is this about?)
Henry: Saya scholar *sponsor name* dari UTP, dan saya telah telefon extension 1153 banyak kali dah. (I'm a *sponsor name* scholar from UTP, and I've been trying to contact extension 1153 countless times.)
Lady: Oh! Extension tu memang tak ada orang jawab. (Oh! There will not be anybody answering that extension at all.)
Henry: Huh? O.o"
So, was that extension a bogus extension? There is never anybody attending to that line! So why have that extension in the first place? If that extension will never be answered, might as well do away with it straightaway and save the operator some trouble.
Aside from this extension glitch, all in all the lady who attended to my whims was quite polite. She then told me that I can contact two officers from the sponsorship unit and ask me to notify them about my change of address. They will get things done immediately.
But really. I was annoyed to know that extension 1153 exists, but is never answered. I do wonder why.
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;;UNDUK NGADAU PAGEANT, Sabah's favorite pageant of all :)
0 mad rant(s) RANDTed: Tasha Green at 2:50:00 PMUNDUK NGADAU PAGEANT has been a tradition carried out since the 1960s and it is the most famous pageant/event in Sabah, especially during the harvest festival a.k.a Kaamatan Festival here.
having Kaamatan in Sabah, is like, Christmas in May here in Sabah. banners will be put up, discounts here and there for the kaamatan season and everyone's busy having their own open houses and stuff. its truly a celebration to cherish. and again, its that one day where your parents would let us young people drink from all that aramaitii sesson. aramaitii meaning, A LOT OF PEOPLE or RAMAI ORANG NI! in kadazan.
the closing ceremony of the Kaamatan Festival is the biggest of them all here in Sabah. every year, the KadazanDusun Cultural Association (KDCA) will host this big event in the Hongkod Koinsanan compound, located in Penampang, the heart of the kadazandusun community.
i went to the event yesterday at about 9am. i was told that if i wanted to have a seat in the hall, i had to come early eventhough the main event would start at about 1pm. yuck! haha. 
this is only 30% of the audience. apparently, the hall was soo booked that at least 100 over people didnt have their sit so they had to stand at the corner to be apart of the event.
the pageant started of with 36 contestants from districts and sub-districts all over Sabah. one contestant on the other hand, is a representative from west malaysia. KDCA's Klang Valley branch had hosted the event there to find a representative for west malaysia. apparently, the klang valley representative is actually from PERAK. :)
so the pageant is like this.
1st stage : introducing yourself while talking in one of the local language. ie, in kadazan or dusun language.
2nd stage : doing the catwalk
3rd stage : the Q&A session
the judges evaluate the contestants like this...
40% for beauty
20% for presentation
20% for outfit
20% for IQ
from 36 contestants to 15 contestants... and finally, short-listed to 7.
in the end, only one contestant would get the crown and it was....
Jo-anna Henley Rampas of the Tuaran district.
im glad she won as she was great! she's beautiful and smart :)
anyway, more photos and reviews in my blog. go there ok?
till then, iv gtg. take care!
love,
jasmine
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;;Of Leaks, Ceilings, Sewage and Chauvinism
2 mad rant(s) » Add your own! RANDTed: Albert at 7:40:00 PMbasement storeroom is now full of
s***sewage
In the UK, Parliament is basically the House of Commons. Here in Malaysia it's now infamously known as the House of Leaks. Our nation is also the home of a really disgraceful court complex. To make matters worst there is the chauvinist mosquito and the sexist one-eyed jack making a crude and vulgar joke about a opposition woman MP which insults all women and shows that they don't respect their own mothers. What has happened to my country!?
Several years ago the government spent RM 90 million to renovate the Parliament. Down the road the symbol of Malaysia is leaking in multiple places as written in this article. It's obvious somebody did something fishy, it smells of corruption. To make matters worse we then have two chauvinist monkeys denying the leaks while making a broadside vulgar insult at women just to attack the opposition. It becomes even more disgraceful with the deafening silence of Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs, the asinine apologetic ministers and politicians. At the end of the fiasco all we get is a "fake" apology. At least now the government as admitting that there are leaks. Why does a leaking Parliament have to symbolise the moral bankruptcy of some of the people's representative!?
The new court complex in Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur is another shame of Malaysia. First we had a crumbling roof which begs for awe and anger. Why did the contractors make an unsafe building? After that, the cafeteria ceiling had to "rain" because of a piping problem in the complex's cafeteria with press present. The incident reached a sickening low when a guard trying cover up the incident by trying to rough up reporters and shouting obscene words. That insult to guards even challenged the photographers to a fight. It's a shame that the judiciary is being undermined by obvious a shoddy building. Is corruption present here too? You guys can answer that question.
For the finale, the court complex's basement storeroom is now full of
Fusion16 wrote: "Our Prime Minister, while delivering his speech from his ultra-modern office located at Putrajaya, cowers in fear, wondering whether the poorly maintained roof will fall down on him". Soon the catchphrase won't be "first class facilities, third class mentality" but it will be "first class facilities as a facade, third class facilities in reality, third class mentality" if all these shambolic incidents keep repeating.
~multum in parvo~
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;;13th May Incident: The Truth At Last
5 mad rant(s) » Add your own! RANDTed: stmaverick at 12:53:00 PMWhen I was a student in secondary school, I always wondered about the May 13 riots that happened nearly 40 years ago in Malaysia. My history textbook barely devoted even a paragraph to this issue.History classes taught students about historical bias. But to know that such misdeeds have been done to hide the bloodiest day in our history? Unthinkable!
Among other things, it only states that:
- the violence was triggered by the Chinese-dominated opposition supporters’ provocation in celebrating their electoral victory which saw the ruling Alliance Party suffer a major setback;
- racial tensions that arose due to economic disparity between the major races also contributed to the riots;
- the riots were the basis for the formation of the National Operations Council (which most Malaysian students would know - if they remember at all - as MAGERAN, or Majlis Gerakan Negara) under Tun Abdul Razak, and;
- this led to the formulation of the New Economic Policy, which aimed to uplift the economic standards of the Malays (and is still in place today).
Not-so-recently, Dr Kua Kia Soong released a book unveiling the truth behind the infamous May 13th riots. His book, May 13: Declassified Documents on the Malaysian Riots of 1969, is the result of three months of research at the Public Records Office in London to study records and declassified documents on the riots.
The book also debunks some of the myths behind the darkest period in our country's history and paints a different, shocking picture into the reasons behind its occurrence.
[...] the May 13 incident was a coup d’etat against the Tunku [the Prime Minister at the time] by the then emergent Malay state capitalists - backed by the police and army - to seize control of the reign of power from the old aristocrats to implement the new Malay agenda. [...]
[...] A secret document from the British cabinet office featured in the book showed that barely a week after the riots broke out, the Central Intelligence Agency had figured out what Tun Razak was planning - “to formalise Malay dominance, sideline the Chinese and shelve the Tunku”. [...]
[...] The role of the security forces in the May 13 bloodshed was also questioned in Kua’s findings. “Even at that time, people in the diplomatic core (were wondering) how come the day the riot broke out, Razak met with the chiefs of the police and army but they did not do anything,” he said. [...] “They are one of the most effective in putting down the communist insurrection [which was] a far, far more difficult operation than putting down riot, but they could not put down (such riot [sic]) in 1969 for days, for weeks," [...]
[ note: Susan Loone has made available a comprehensive summary about the riots from Dr Kua's book ]
History classes taught students about historical bias. The tales of old would be told by those with power and wealth, rewritten as they saw fit. Even King Xerxes alluded to this in the movie '300':
There will be no glory in your sacrifice. I will erase even the memory of Sparta from the histories. Every piece of Greek parchment shall be burned. Every Greek historian and every scribe shall have their eyes put out and their tongues cut from their mouths while uttering the very name of Sparta or Leonidas will be punishable by death. The world will never know you existed at all!
But to know that such misdeeds have been done to hide the bloodiest day in our history? Unthinkable! At the worst it would have only remained a conspiracy theory, a rumour, nothing more. Now the evidence shows otherwise.
Now the government has moved into 'damage control' mode, unwittingly providing the book with free publicity:
Ministry seizes controversial May 13 bookBut a press statement by SUARAM indicates the government might not have been officially involved at all:
May 15, 07 8:56pm
The Internal Security Ministry confiscated 10 copies a controversial book with new claims on the May 13 racial riots from a major bookstore in the Midvalley shopping centre today. According to the publishers of ‘May 13: Declassified Documents on the Malaysian Riots of 1969′, a team of ministry officers visited the MPH bookstore this afternoon. The officers advised the popular bookstore not to sell the book as it may be banned.
According to a letter issued by the ministry officers to the bookstore, the books were confiscated from the shelves for suspicion of being an “undesirable publication” based on Section 7 of the Printing Press and Publications Act 1984.
The act empowers the minister to ban any publication which is “prejudicial to or likely to be prejudicial to public order, morality, security, the relationship with any foreign country or government, or which is likely to alarm public opinion”.[ courtesy of MalaysiaKini ]
We have been informed by our distributor that ten (10) copies of SUARAM’s latest publication titled, “May 13: Declassified Documents on the Malaysian Riot of 1969″ by Dr. Kua Kia Soong, were taken from MPH Midvalley yesterday afternoon by officers from the Ministry of Internal Security.
The reason given by these officers led by Ahmad Faisal Arshad was that the book had contravened the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984. We were further informed that these officers had advised the bookshop not to sell or display the book.
It must stressed that there are no orders coming from the Ministry of Internal Security pertaining to this book. Further, the book contravenes no part of the said Act. We consider the actions of Ahmad Faisal Arshad and his team to be arbitrary and illegal.
SUARAM views the seizure of those ten (10) books as illegal, and demands that KDN pays for the ten books or return these books to the bookshop within 7 days; failing which, we will instruct our legal counsels to take action.
Now three senators from the Dewan Negara are calling for this book to be banned, while Deputy Internal Security Minister Fu Ah Kiow states that the ministry will look into the book's contents and take action soon.
But Dr Kua has this to say about the possibility of his book being banned:
“In the age of the Internet, what does banning a book mean? We can put it on the Web, you can’t do anything.”
Bravo, Dr Kua! :)
It now remains to be seen how this new controversy will develop. The question is, about the youth who were never there during the bloodshed and violence, will they even bother to know about this?
~verus rara avis~
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;;Who came first, the chicken or the egg?
8 mad rant(s) » Add your own! RANDTed: Unknown at 12:37:00 PMHmmm, the world must be wondering what kind of people Malaysian are, with our politicians behaving no better than low-cultured folk. I refer to the recent event of a certain government MP who was reported to have made a derogatory remark to a female Opposition MP (read the Star article)
First thing, I really fail to see the connection between the possibility of leaks in the Parliament building and the monthly cycle of a woman. It was hell rude, if you don't mind me saying. I thought debates, especially one so important as a Parliamentary, were supposed to be intelligent exchanging of views with a healthy dose of wit, rhetoric, charisma and sarcasm. This latest episode (following on a string of other numerous verbal blunders) just shows how much more we have to go in becoming a progressed nation, mentally.
Before proceeding, let me clarify that my reference is The Star's coverage on that incident. I quote the paper: '“My advice is that MPs should be careful with their words next time,” he (Speaker Tan Sri Ramli Ngah Talib) said amidst cheers and the thumping of tables by the backbenchers.'
And that's just it?? *incredulous* The cheering and thumping of tables seems as though the other backbenchers think that making jibes as such is acceptable. Or is it because it was in their favour, and not the Opposition's?
Another from the article: 'Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz said Fong should have taken the matter in her stride.
“It is normal to play with words,” he said, adding that it would be wrong if the statement had been made with malicious intent.'
I do agree with his statement but plain rudeness staring you in the face with a defiant eye shouldn't be accepted. Especially from a person of public influence.
We keep hearing of these incidents from time to time. When will our politicians learn to take responsibility for their words? We wonder why are they even there and realise, damn! we voted for them. What kind of people have we elected to lead our country? People who are merely skilled in talk (which borders on the nonsensical at times)? Which brings me to the question - who are the bigger idiots, us or them?
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;;What are we compared to Singaporeans? We might say they are very kiasu in every aspect of their lives; they are too disciplined for their own good; some Malaysians hate their strict law enforcement down there. So are we better than them?
Take a look at ourselves for an instant, we have quite a number of faults.
- Malaysian are true devils on the road, just look at those imbeciles who weave through the highway like there is no tomorrow. Have you seen motorcyclists who wish for a horrible death? Anyone here who are speed demons like many Malaysians.
- Mismanagement is already seeping into some institutions and companies, for example there is this college in Kuala Lumpur which fails to pay part time lecturers and goes on to scapegoat one of them. We even have contractors chosen by the government who do shoddy work. Did a roof give way on top of a judge?
- "Tidak apa" attitude is already part of our culture. Most hawkers show utter contempt to the cleanliness of drains while people support such behaviour by patronising those hawkers. When someone screams for help we have idiots who stare. Even the Comrade always gets stared at when he goes out just because I can't walk.
- We youth totally fail at reading books. I can assert that most students never touch any books except their academic books. To make matters worse bookshops such as MPH are mosquitoes out to suck the blood of customers. We people also must ask our government where are our libraries? Many newspapers have also published countless articles on our book problem.
- Everyone knows that we are a corrupted nation, just look at the newspapers for stories that smell of corrupt that come out pretty often. If you dive into political blogs you may even end up shuddering in disbelief at the level of graft in Malaysia. Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index (CPI) shows that we are sinking deeper into corruption each year. Everybody also knows piracy will never be wiped out so long the underworld bribes the enforcement officers.
Need more of the ugly side of us. Yet again we have to be called people with third class mentalities with first class facilities. What a shame!
Singapore is so much better than us. Drivers there are angels albeit some still turn into devils on Malaysian roads. Mismanagement is almost non-existent in Singapore, they are top notch in management. "Tidak apa" attitude is quite alien there. Corruption almost doesn't exist down in the island and corrupt people are always jailed just look at their rankings on the CPI. Books are everywhere in Singapore as they have countless public libraries unlike us. Finally, Singapore is so ahead of us in everything, they are a developed nation while we are considered less developed for crying out loud. Still want to compare ourselves with Singaporeans?
~multum in parvo~
P.S: My Public Law lecturer says that if Singaporeans are kiasu we are "bodoh".
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;;Sometimes you wonder how some folks (especially in Malaysia) have the audacity to talk without thinking. Really, judging from the things they type, it's glaringly obvious that these people never really bothered to zip up their mouths for awhile before shooting off it at others. Naturally they also don't bother giving a damn about being polite or civilized at all. I thought a forum was for people to exchange ideas, not ruthlessly beat them down whenever they express one that doesn't tally with yours!
Case in point: check out John Lee's blog, Infernal Ramblings, at the chatbox in the right-hand sidebar.
Now pay attention to the mad rantings of the person nicknamed "joshvinder". Start from bottom to top, right before the nickname 'No Eggs'.
Disheartening, no? With such people trawling the blogosphere and spreading ill will everywhere they end up, it's hardly any wonder why our Information Minister is so anxious to rein in Malaysian bloggers; including the rest of us who had nothing to do with it in the first place.
It's sickening to be reminded that there are many more "joshvinders" out there in the country right now. On a forum once, I was heckled by another 'experienced' user (by nature of the obscenely huge number of posts he has put up to date) who used a variety of colourful and fascinating words on me due to a disagreement of sorts in which we ended up.
Alright, maybe I was at fault for misreading his message and responding rather harshly - but it was never intentionally done. The next thing I knew I was embroiled in a flame war all on my own! Needless to say, I found out from many other users that he has abused them online many times - even witnessing myself him starting up another flame war with another user of that forum.
And it wasn't just about the issue we were discussing at that point - at times he'd go on to insult our parentage, our heritage, our culture, our education, etc. Basically he took a potshot at everything related to us in an effort to draw us in to the conflict with our own weapons. I was damn near close to breaking. Still, bad experiences that could have cost me my friendships helped remind me that that was the last thing I should do.
I have since stopped posting at that forum due to his insolent nature and coarse language. I thought a forum was for people to exchange ideas, not ruthlessly beat them down whenever they express one that doesn't tally with yours! That defeats the purpose of the whole thing entirely, no?
Any of you here have ever had that experience before? Being heckled online by someone hiding behind a pseudonym? It certainly makes you wonder how some immature people can so freely abuse the rights to freedom of speech which democracy has granted them.
[ related article: Bloggers' Code of Conduct: The Great Debate ]
~verus rara avis~
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;;These two blog posts on Lim Kit Siang's blog and Disquiet really makes my blood boil. Please click on the links and read them. Here we have Selangor Religious Department (Jais) officers forcibly tearing apart a family because the mother was found to be a Muslim due to her adopted parents' religion. The father,P Marimuthu was told that his five children must be placed in a rehabilitation centre. He now has been separated from his family for two weeks.
This is a gross violation of our rights under the Constitution! Islam cannot be forced on non-Muslims. Voice your condemnation to the government for this unjust act. Call for the government to reunite Marimuthu's family. Stop Talibanisation!
~multum in parvo~
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;;Twice a week on RANDTS.. I have to say that is an uphill task for me but I will try... haha... Today my topic is Malaysian passive behavior. An interesting pattern I am becoming to notice from media sources like this one is that somehow our education system seems to be lacking the ability to create bold and competitive individuals.
As an economics major, I do have a certain leaning towards capitalism. I am still more of a skeptic than one would assume of an economics student, but I do not deny many of the strengths of the system, a major one being competitive markets. We all know competitive markets drive the price down, in general its a good thing, because competition breeds quality. The idea can be extended elsewhere, and everywhere. Competition is great. Look at the AirAsia-Malaysia Airlines rivalry and how it has driven prices down. Malaysia airlines can no longer slack off and hire people unnecessarily. Consumers are getting prices that almost equal the cost of production.
However, look elsewhere and we see that there isn't competition in plent of other markets in Malaysia, and even if there is, it isn't Malaysian driven competition. For example, the hypermarket market is dominated by Tesco, which is British, Jusco, which is Japanese, and Carrefour, which is French. The sole local successful representative is Giant. Others like Mydin and The Store are being swollen up by the intense competition. As for construction companies in Malaysia, almost all the big projects are carried out by UEM. Astro dominates the cable tv market and TMnet has a monopoly of high speed internet services, though that is a diminishing monopoly. The point being made is that Malaysians are not competitive enough. Even in politics, we all know who has the monopoly. The reason for their monopoly is not necessarily that they are the best government in the world and everyone is happy with the administration. The problem is there is no competition. Our political arena is not attracting the best of bests. and because of that, the government at times has the opportunity to short change the public. Even I am not imply that we quit voting for the weighing scale. All I am implying is we need a stronger opposition front, which can challenge, question and keep the government on its toes so that the people in power know they are not irreplaceable and maintain a sense of quality and integrity in delivery. There needs to be greater efforts to battle monopolies, a good governmnet would encourage competition; even competition with itself.
Refer to the article about the Commonwealth and you will see that no one, despite the qualifications is interested in a leading position in the Commonwealth. It shows that our Malaysian population is passive.
Are we producing competitive Malaysians. Are our young ones trained to compete, to challenge the status quo, to dream a better tomorrow? Or are we conditioning them to be good employees which regurgitate facts well?
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;;He just coldly said,"Gimme all your money."
Have you ever been mugged? Well three of my friends including arbiter (Jaspreet aka. Kwatra) my best friend and fellow RANDTSter have experienced an encounter with muggers. One was mugged, one was "saved" and another fought back and escaped. Here are their tales.
Let me first talk about Shum my fellow Law classmate from Ipoh who told me about almost being mugged or robbed yesterday.
On Tuesday afternoon he walked back to his rented home from KDU to drop of his laptop before heading to Ikea. His home is not really far from the college. He had his laptop with him. As he reached the gate of his residence there were two suspicious Indian guys standing in front of the gate across the road. Shum became suspicious and spooked so he quickly opened his gate and dashed in the house. After keeping his laptop he went for the door of his home. Upon opening it he saw the suspicious men again. This time was standing in front of his gate and the other was obscured by bushes. Fearing for his safety he called Melvin (big and tall Punjabi) and gang to "save" him. When Melvin and gang arrived, the Indian guys disappeared. Shum was saved for the day.
Jaspreet's experience was far scarier as it involved violence, strength, bravery and speed. I was told this true story last week about Jaspreet being grabbed from behind a couple of weeks ago by juggernaut himself.
He was walking on a road near KDU one morning. All of a sudden an African criminal-student one head taller than him grabbed our friend from behind. He just coldly said,"Gimme all your money." Not wanting to give up his stuff Jaspreet turned and quickly pushed the black menace to the ground. He then just quickly darted to the Petronas station nearby. After a while Jaspreet walked out of the petrol station and his assaulter was nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately, Jaspreet didn't see his attacker's face so there was no use reporting the incident. However, I suspect there's an African criminal studying in KDU.
Let's now shift our attention to Denish from Bahau, my new friend for a violent finale. He told me yesterday about being mugged not too long ago.
Denish was walking around his neighbourhood on one night. Out of nowhere two Indian criminals grabbed and dragged him into a dark back alley. One of them immediately gave our poor friend two punches. The other grabbed Denish's handphone. They claimed Denish was disturbing their sister which was obviously a lie. They then shouted a few profanities and warned him about disturbing their "imaginary" sister. He was then pushed to the ground and those thugs walked off with his handphone. Denish is a tall and slightly thin dude. Was he easy prey or numbers emboldened those human trash?
The stories of my friends prove that crime can really hit home!
Crime is now a serious issue in Malaysia. Do you fear the current crime rate? Please share your encounters with criminals as comments for this post too. I know that my language is as stiff as wood so maybe you all could elaborate your experiences in a more fluid way.
~multum in parvo~
P.S: Don't worry too much about crime instead try eating sliced papaya enhanced with a squeeze of lime just as I always do.
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;;Its about time I wrote a new post for RANDTS. Somehow, education has turned out to be my thing on this blog. It isn't intentional, but somehow, these kinda things seem to flow..
So, its about time the Education Ministry got it right. After all the crap over the past years, from PTS to the whole SPM A chasing phenomenon, to the deterioration of teacher quality and the STPM-Matriculation fiasco, I think it is about time they got ONE thing right.
The whole cluster school idea makes perfect sense. Why? For one, we all know that in every school, there are a certain number of parents who will get involved through the PTA. I don't want to over idealise the influence of parents, but I have to say, it will be good for them to play a role in shaping the school too. Most of them know, through their kids who the crappy teachers are. They also know, through their kids, what kind of crap goes on in schools. In other words, the PTAs role in schools will be to get their children's interests across. The PTA will keep teachers in line too. Seperation of powers is here a good thing. Giving parents a larger say means more checks and balances in schools
Ok, that whole PTA thing, isn't the main thing that makes the cluster school idea great, though it does guarantee a higher level of success during implementation. What makes it great it that finally excellent students wont be held back. The whole standardized test thing has obviously left many unchallenged, hence the tendency to take 17 subjects in SPM. The excellent kids have mastered the exam process so well that its no sweat for them anymore. Its about time we allowed them to move on to bigger things. With cluster schools, each school will be able to create a niche for themselves, be it through sports (hockey for Anderson and RPS) brass band (Victoria Institution and Keat Hwa) or debate (Damansara Jaya, RMC). These fields which are right now merely "cocurricular" can now be intergrated into the school system. In my university here, you get college credit for playing in the marching band, to my knowledge, when I was in SMI, all you got was a certificate, and maybe a darker skin colour.
Another way cluster schools could prove useful, is if teachers were allowed to teach classes outside the syllabus and for students to be awarded credit for that as well. Stuff like European History, Advanced Math, Psychology, Sociology, Theatre, Public Speaking, Music: both contemporary and classical, all should be taught to students who are capable of handling the subjects. They provide an opportunity for the excellent ones to test out the waters in these fields. Ever wondered why our local music scene is so "lemah"? Maybe because schools don't teach music. Why does local TV suck, maybe we don't encourage acting enough in schools. Lets not hold the good ones back with our current system. I'm all for these cluster schools.
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;;"Bear in mind that STPM is internationally recognised while matriculation programmes are not generally recognised outside Malaysia."
I submit that every astute student and parent with teenage children in Malaysia knows that Matriculation is behind STPM in terms quality. In this article,
According to the Education Ministry’s Matriculation Division director Prof Datuk Dr Zainal Abidin Ahmad, results for the matriculation students will only be out in April but based on last year’s performance, he expects a high number of top scorers.
He stresses that contrary to common perception, matriculation programmes are equal to STPM in standard and quality.
“The exam papers are written by the same people that write STPM papers. The marking system is also rigorous with a three-tier process that includes external markers, usually the same ones as STPM,” he says.
The main difference is the structure of the programme, he explains:
“Matriculation is modular, which means that students do a few modules per semester, at the end of which students are tested. In the next semester, they do new modules.
For STPM, students study for about a year and a half and sit for a big examination at the end of it. STPM may be harder to do, but that does not mean that it is better.”
An academic from the UPM medical faculty shares that he finds STPM holders cope better in their studies.
UKM’s medical faculty dean, Prof Datuk Dr Lokman Saim, however, says that according to a study done by his faculty, there is no difference between the achievements of matriculation and STPM holders in UKM’s medicine programme. “What many students don’t realise is that having a CGPA 4.0 does not make a good doctor,” he adds.
The ministry's matriculation programmes do not only feed into public universities, but also private colleges and overseas programmes.
It is being increasingly accepted by foreign universities, notes Dr Zainal Abidin, and the division is also working towards agreements with more foreign universities. More importantly, he adds, matriculation programmes have become the choice programme for many SPM holders. “Last year, we received 25,000 applications for 20,000 places, including for the 10% non-bumiputra places. We had 1,800 straight-A students of all races entering the programme last year,” he says.
The
- "Matriculation students do their Pre-U course in a year or less, while Form 6 students have to undergo 1.5 years of study." (My experience and many of my friends' experiences is shorter courses are usually not as good as long courses. Why does KYUEM produce world class undergraduates? Because they offer 2 year A-Level courses not 9 month South Australian Matriculation courses. The longer you study the more you learn!)
- "Another point is that matriculation programmes are modular, and examinations conducted in semesters, which means matriculation students will only have to focus on several topics in that particular semester. STPM students on the other hand have one major exam." (People could prove Jason's point by sitting for all their Degree exams in one exam period. You will see that only the best of the best survives.)
- "Why doesn’t the Government standardise the exam and make it compulsory for matriculation and Form 6 students to sit for the same exam?" (I wonder what will happen if we give Matriculation students a
shocksuprise by forcing them to sit for the STPM.) - "Bear in mind that STPM is internationally recognised while matriculation programmes are not generally recognised outside Malaysia." (I submit that STPM is accepted for entry into the University of New South Wales, King's College (University of London), the KDU Oxford Brookes Law Twinning Programme, even my course, theUnivesity of London external LLB doesn't accept Matriculation, etc. Tell me which course is better!)
P.S: " It (Matriculation) is being increasingly accepted by foreign universities," notes our
Thanks tony p for inspiration.
~multum in parvo~
(Images courtesy of Paper Napkin)
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;;Is Malaysia populated by selfish ignorants and fools? If statistics from this article are not deceiving then I submit that the answer is yes.
90% of 991 calls are crank calls! Malaysians have reached an appalling low! Their actions actually borders the criminal as lives can be lost when legitimate calls are drowned out. Do you know how ill equipped this hotline centres are? I tried calling when there was a fire in my neighbour's house and the line was engaged. Imagine if there were people roasting inside.
There also have been cases of little kurang ajar kids calling for fire engines when there was no fire. Here we should fine their parents. Were they teaching their kids to be little rascals? I'm sure there are also many bored adult imbeciles who call 991 for amusement. Altogether I really, really wonder why people are like that. Don't these monkeys know that people could die because of their stupidity?
Look at it this way, apathy has taken over society. Public services are meant to be abused. The world is all about me, myself and I. Education doesn't seem to be the issue here. Nobody would first learn that 991 as a number for amusement. 90% of callers cannot have such shallow minds to call 991 being ignorant of its purpose. At least 30% of people can reason like me. Yet the refuse and rather act like imbeciles a make crank calls to the bomba.
One of the few solution seems to be to fine crank callers heavily. I suggest a RM1000 fine. The people must be severely reprimanded too. Then we can also jail pranksters who indirectly cause harm. Next we must have an explicitly graphic advertisement campaign to scare educate the public.
I hope nobody who reads this makes prank calls to the firemen. All views on this third class mentality are welcomed. 
(Images courtesy of Paper Napkin)
~multum in parvo~
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;;
This article from The Star seems to confirm that our government doesn't seem to be able to implement policy in a consistent manner. Why does a top student have to be worried about getting a scholarship!? It's absolutely ridiculous!!
Melisa Sia Yuk Ying of the Kian Kok Middle School here, who scored 16A1s and wants to do medicine, is now worried that she will not be given a scholarship meant for top scorers as her name is not on the list.
Just like many cases of wronged top students politicians have hijacked her problems. They now have made statements seemingly in support of her but more importantly the MCA politician has gotten free publicity about a "good" deed. That's just too bad. you scratch my back, I massage your back.
I know Bank Negara reserves scholarships for top SPM scorers according to the Syndicate's list. Because Melisa isn't on the list she's going to have a problem. However, I also won't surprised if Melisa gets her hopes dashed as Bank Negara even dared to even reject the Top Malay Scorer for SPM 2005, Ahnaf. A cynic would point out Bank Negara used Ahnaf to further the vendetta of some politicians against Singapore. At that time Ahnaf was on Asean scholarship in Singapore.
Now Melisa and her parents are going after Hishamuddin. Why does everything have to be so political. Our government shouldn't always allow the issue wronged top scorers become an embarrassment about irregular government policy. Nothing changes.........
~multum in parvo~
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