As commented in response to Tony Pua's blog article (highlighted in my previous post)
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I think that the public will give recognition if it is due. Somehow though, I cannot help but agree with you ... the whole concept that is currently being pushed forward sounds really nice like a rather expensive advertorial but fear that the actual product does not match the description. The whole concept is good but the manner in which Perak was handled and peaceful dissent clamped sends out opposing messages. PKFZ -what's the latest dig on this? - UMNO seems to bulldoze through many other policy matters without considering the views of the component parties but does not offer any assistance to OTK? Our "favourite" Umno politician, KT of Selangor getting away with all his excesses also leaves the public feeling short changed and angry at his blatant disregard for public opinion and accountability. The MACC and police force is more a convenient and selective tool used by the government to serve its needs rather than an institution that the public can believe acts with integrity and independence. The whole point is that when the actions do not match the rhetoric, Malaysians will end up with a product which doesn't deliver but costed alot to advertise. I would rather they focused more on action and less on the packaging. Just got my first dose of propaganda on TV ..... looks nice but......Still, I would rather not continue to rant but will give the benefit of the doubt (yet again), watch and wait. Can someone explain more about Equinas to me?
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Finally - a politician worth noting...
Odette's commentary:
The article below is taken from Tony Pua's blog.....
I think that his sentiments really reflect what every thinking Malaysian feels and witnesses on a daily basis. Rhetoric is nothing if not substantiated by action. That is why most of us will only watch and wait. Actions ultimately speak louder than words...
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In brief, here are Najib's promises when he launched is 100-days in power celebrations:
The prevention of crime;
The fight against corruption;
Access to quality education;
The improvement of the living standards for the lower income group;
Improvement of rural infrastructure;;
Improvement of public transportation.So what's new? We have heard all of the above before from Mahathir's era to Pak Lah to now Najib. Will things actually change?We had such high hopes when Pak Lah made the above promises, but we all fell flat on our faces. Anyone remember the "18 big fish"? Or the "All out war against crime"? Or the twice announced public transportation fund in 2006 and 2008 (with absolutely nothing to show)?He has rightly placed the prevention of crime on top of the list. But he has shown that he is absolutely unwilling to reform the police force, for he is obligated to them to clamp down on all civil and political dissent. Najib was so engrossed in grabbing power in Perak, maximised the use of the police to suppress dissent, which resulted in crime rising massively in the state over the past 6 months.We are faced with the greatest financial scandal in living memory with the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal. But til today, all we see is Najib washing his hands completely over the issue. Such a big scandal afflicting Malaysia, and yet, not a word from the Prime Minister. All he has mentioned about the subject so far is that the MCA president will deal with it. In other words, "Let Ong Tee Keat sink all by himself, I'm not going to get my hands dirty on this." How does that sit with his promise to "fight corruption"?And public transportation? He must be joking. The most important move today is to consolidate all departments involved with transportation under 1 ministry/minister. And yet, when the Entrepreneurs & Cooperatives Ministry was dissolved under his cabinet reshuffle, the Commercial Vehicles and Licensing Board is transferred to the Prime Minister's office instead of the Transport Ministry. So we have the Prime Minister directly taking care of taxis and public buses, the Finance Ministry taking care of RapidKL buses, the transport ministry taking care of KTM and LRT, and the Works Ministry taking care of the road transport network. A complete recipe for disaster.And as for quality of education? We've not seen any moves yet from the Najib's administration on this except to reverse the teaching of Maths and Science back from English to Malay. My views are expressed here.I think Malaysians in general will do well not to have their expectations set too high, if they were to have any expectations at all. I'm certainly once bitten twice shy, and I never trust somebody who will use ruthless measures to suppress peaceful protests, clampdown media freedom and stifle dissent. At least for Pak Lah, he appeared to be more "liberal" with his management of opposing voices, whether intentional or otherwise.
The article below is taken from Tony Pua's blog.....
I think that his sentiments really reflect what every thinking Malaysian feels and witnesses on a daily basis. Rhetoric is nothing if not substantiated by action. That is why most of us will only watch and wait. Actions ultimately speak louder than words...
__________________________________________________
In brief, here are Najib's promises when he launched is 100-days in power celebrations:
The prevention of crime;
The fight against corruption;
Access to quality education;
The improvement of the living standards for the lower income group;
Improvement of rural infrastructure;;
Improvement of public transportation.So what's new? We have heard all of the above before from Mahathir's era to Pak Lah to now Najib. Will things actually change?We had such high hopes when Pak Lah made the above promises, but we all fell flat on our faces. Anyone remember the "18 big fish"? Or the "All out war against crime"? Or the twice announced public transportation fund in 2006 and 2008 (with absolutely nothing to show)?He has rightly placed the prevention of crime on top of the list. But he has shown that he is absolutely unwilling to reform the police force, for he is obligated to them to clamp down on all civil and political dissent. Najib was so engrossed in grabbing power in Perak, maximised the use of the police to suppress dissent, which resulted in crime rising massively in the state over the past 6 months.We are faced with the greatest financial scandal in living memory with the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal. But til today, all we see is Najib washing his hands completely over the issue. Such a big scandal afflicting Malaysia, and yet, not a word from the Prime Minister. All he has mentioned about the subject so far is that the MCA president will deal with it. In other words, "Let Ong Tee Keat sink all by himself, I'm not going to get my hands dirty on this." How does that sit with his promise to "fight corruption"?And public transportation? He must be joking. The most important move today is to consolidate all departments involved with transportation under 1 ministry/minister. And yet, when the Entrepreneurs & Cooperatives Ministry was dissolved under his cabinet reshuffle, the Commercial Vehicles and Licensing Board is transferred to the Prime Minister's office instead of the Transport Ministry. So we have the Prime Minister directly taking care of taxis and public buses, the Finance Ministry taking care of RapidKL buses, the transport ministry taking care of KTM and LRT, and the Works Ministry taking care of the road transport network. A complete recipe for disaster.And as for quality of education? We've not seen any moves yet from the Najib's administration on this except to reverse the teaching of Maths and Science back from English to Malay. My views are expressed here.I think Malaysians in general will do well not to have their expectations set too high, if they were to have any expectations at all. I'm certainly once bitten twice shy, and I never trust somebody who will use ruthless measures to suppress peaceful protests, clampdown media freedom and stifle dissent. At least for Pak Lah, he appeared to be more "liberal" with his management of opposing voices, whether intentional or otherwise.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Article from the New York Times - 9 July
Odette's commentary :
Once more, Malaysia has some adverse publicity in the foreign press. However, to be fair the journalist has misrepresented the facts in stating that it is an English ban, which is not the case.
English is an important medium of instruction for maths and science. Full stop. Anyone who disputes this is living in a state of denial choosing not to face the reality that English is essential for progress and advancement, especially in these fields. Proficiency in English is particularly important (try reading medical journals and you will understand what I mean)
It is sad that the BN government in Malaysia has allowed themselves to succumb to political pressures for an issue as important as this. Even more so, it demonstrates a lack of foresight , political will and weakness in policy making.
_____________________________________________________
In Malaysia, English Ban Raises Fears for Future
Bazuki Muhammad/Reuters
By LIZ GOOCH
Published: July 9, 2009
KUALA LUMPUR — P.S. Han, a teacher in Kuala Lumpur, has been using English to teach math and physics to 17-year-olds for the past six years.
From 2012, he will be forced to return to using the national language, Bahasa Malaysia, after the government decided to abandon English for the two subjects in a decision some consider to be motivated by politics rather than education.
“English has been used as the language of science for 300 years,” said Mr. Han, a teacher at St. John’s Institution. “You cannot really convey the scientific concepts to the students in Bahasa Malaysia at a very high level.”
“We have to face the fact that science knowledge is in English.”
The announcement on Wednesday, which came after months of lobbying by Malay nationalists, has raised concerns about whether English standards in the former British colony will slide and whether Malaysia’s competitiveness as a destination for multinational companies may suffer.
English has been the language of instruction for math and science in Malaysia since 2003, when former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad introduced the policy amid concerns that poor English skills were hindering students’ job opportunities.
Mr. Mahathir expressed sadness over the decision to revert to Bahasa Malaysia, saying that the decision would adversely affect children and make it difficult for them to keep abreast of scientific developments, the national news agency Bernama quoted him as saying.
The government cited a decline in students’ math and science grades, particularly in rural areas, as one of the reasons behind the switch.
However, Khoo Kay Kim, emeritus professor of Malaysian history at the University of Malaysia, said that teachers had not been adequately trained before the policy was introduced.
He described Malaysia’s English standards as “pathetic.”
“Fewer and fewer of our professors can now write in English,” he said. “We used to lead Asia in terms of English, and now we have allowed ourselves to slip below other Asian countries.”
Mr. Khoo said it was a “national shame” that the country’s oldest university, the University of Malaysia, had fallen behind other Asian universities in international rankings, a trend he attributed to declining English standards.
He also raised concerns that poor English standards may affect Malaysia’s international competitiveness, saying that multinational companies may struggle to find graduates with good English.
“If less and less Malaysians know English, how are multinational companies going to come into this country?” he said. “If we don’t have the workforce who can fit into multinational companies, how are they going to come here?”
Malaysia’s business community has long been concerned about the reported decline in English standards in schools. “The business community feels that English is imperative for Malaysia’s international competitiveness,” said Michael Yeoh, chief executive the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute, an independent research organization.
Mr. Yeoh said that more needed to be done to improve English standards, but questions remained over whether teaching science and math in English was the best method.
“We don’t really know exactly how this could impede on the study of English,” he said.
The Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry welcomed the government’s decision to increase the number of English teachers and teaching hours.
Its executive director, Stewart Forbes, said that the need to emphasize English must continue to be part of the government’s policy.
“Private sector companies in Malaysia continue to complain about graduates’ communication skills in general, and English skills in particular, and the government’s efforts to raise the level of English expertise are very worthwhile,” he said.
Some educators from Malaysia’s two largest minority groups, the Chinese and Indian communities, welcomed the decision to revert to using Chinese and Tamil for science and math in vernacular schools, local media reported.
However, many parents and the National Union of the Teaching Profession have expressed concern over the decision to scrap English.
Shazlin Aidani, a mother of three, said she wanted her children to learn math and science in English.
“When they graduate and go to work everything will be in English, not Bahasa,” she said.
Once more, Malaysia has some adverse publicity in the foreign press. However, to be fair the journalist has misrepresented the facts in stating that it is an English ban, which is not the case.
English is an important medium of instruction for maths and science. Full stop. Anyone who disputes this is living in a state of denial choosing not to face the reality that English is essential for progress and advancement, especially in these fields. Proficiency in English is particularly important (try reading medical journals and you will understand what I mean)
It is sad that the BN government in Malaysia has allowed themselves to succumb to political pressures for an issue as important as this. Even more so, it demonstrates a lack of foresight , political will and weakness in policy making.
_____________________________________________________
In Malaysia, English Ban Raises Fears for Future
Bazuki Muhammad/Reuters
By LIZ GOOCH
Published: July 9, 2009
KUALA LUMPUR — P.S. Han, a teacher in Kuala Lumpur, has been using English to teach math and physics to 17-year-olds for the past six years.
From 2012, he will be forced to return to using the national language, Bahasa Malaysia, after the government decided to abandon English for the two subjects in a decision some consider to be motivated by politics rather than education.
“English has been used as the language of science for 300 years,” said Mr. Han, a teacher at St. John’s Institution. “You cannot really convey the scientific concepts to the students in Bahasa Malaysia at a very high level.”
“We have to face the fact that science knowledge is in English.”
The announcement on Wednesday, which came after months of lobbying by Malay nationalists, has raised concerns about whether English standards in the former British colony will slide and whether Malaysia’s competitiveness as a destination for multinational companies may suffer.
English has been the language of instruction for math and science in Malaysia since 2003, when former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad introduced the policy amid concerns that poor English skills were hindering students’ job opportunities.
Mr. Mahathir expressed sadness over the decision to revert to Bahasa Malaysia, saying that the decision would adversely affect children and make it difficult for them to keep abreast of scientific developments, the national news agency Bernama quoted him as saying.
The government cited a decline in students’ math and science grades, particularly in rural areas, as one of the reasons behind the switch.
However, Khoo Kay Kim, emeritus professor of Malaysian history at the University of Malaysia, said that teachers had not been adequately trained before the policy was introduced.
He described Malaysia’s English standards as “pathetic.”
“Fewer and fewer of our professors can now write in English,” he said. “We used to lead Asia in terms of English, and now we have allowed ourselves to slip below other Asian countries.”
Mr. Khoo said it was a “national shame” that the country’s oldest university, the University of Malaysia, had fallen behind other Asian universities in international rankings, a trend he attributed to declining English standards.
He also raised concerns that poor English standards may affect Malaysia’s international competitiveness, saying that multinational companies may struggle to find graduates with good English.
“If less and less Malaysians know English, how are multinational companies going to come into this country?” he said. “If we don’t have the workforce who can fit into multinational companies, how are they going to come here?”
Malaysia’s business community has long been concerned about the reported decline in English standards in schools. “The business community feels that English is imperative for Malaysia’s international competitiveness,” said Michael Yeoh, chief executive the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute, an independent research organization.
Mr. Yeoh said that more needed to be done to improve English standards, but questions remained over whether teaching science and math in English was the best method.
“We don’t really know exactly how this could impede on the study of English,” he said.
The Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry welcomed the government’s decision to increase the number of English teachers and teaching hours.
Its executive director, Stewart Forbes, said that the need to emphasize English must continue to be part of the government’s policy.
“Private sector companies in Malaysia continue to complain about graduates’ communication skills in general, and English skills in particular, and the government’s efforts to raise the level of English expertise are very worthwhile,” he said.
Some educators from Malaysia’s two largest minority groups, the Chinese and Indian communities, welcomed the decision to revert to using Chinese and Tamil for science and math in vernacular schools, local media reported.
However, many parents and the National Union of the Teaching Profession have expressed concern over the decision to scrap English.
Shazlin Aidani, a mother of three, said she wanted her children to learn math and science in English.
“When they graduate and go to work everything will be in English, not Bahasa,” she said.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Systematic Problem for taxi licenses in the country
It was interesting to read in The Star today about the plight of taxi drivers in the city.....
It brings to mind an interesting discourse I had last year with a like minded cabbie in Penang.....
Travelling for business throughout Malaysia, I like spending some time chatting with cabbies on the way to and from various destinations – it surprised me particularly in Penang that taxi fares were ridiculously high. One had to pay RM10 – RM15 for a short journey of less than 1.5 km in many instances.
I hence enquired with the cabbie driver remarking that fares in Penang seemed higher than fares in other parts of the country. I was then treated to a long discourse by the cabbie on why this was the case. I was informed that taxi licenses are not granted to individual taxi drivers in Penang (and also throughout the country) . Rather, these licenses to operate commercial taxi vehicles are often granted to political cronies and connected parties allowing them to operate a fleet of taxies and dictating the terms and conditions for hire of such vehicles including, rental charges, maintenance charges and ownership of the vehicle in due course. The ultimate license holder enjoyed the benefits of control over the prices , up front monies and generally got a pretty good deal through the whole “arrangement”.
It seemed to me that the ones getting the short end of the stick were the cabbies themselves. Having to pay exorbitant rentals and with escalating fuels costs at that time, it was certainly difficult making ends meet. Any attempts by the cabbies to protest the unfair arrangements, were met with such replies as “if you don’t like it, don’t drive a cab” or were issued veiled threats not to renew the license for a particular taxi. I asked the cabbie if he had attempted to form a union to defend the rights of the cabbies or even to bring this to the attention of the Minister in charge – apparently, this cabbie had made such attempts even sending letters in writing to the policiticans handling that particular portfolio but it looked as though these attempts to raise this issue were merely sidelined or tossed onto the back burner. He looked thoroughly exhausted and defeated when telling me this as though all hope was lost.
Of particular irony when I read the papers today the comment from the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board and STAR reporters regarding the “Decade old fare structure” being the real problem. “After extensive studies, we have submitted a paper to the cabinet.....” JPJ... "If you still can’t earn a living, why not do other jobs? Did someone force them? It is really true that you cannot earn a living?”
To me, this warrants a review of the entire system for the issuance of taxi permits. That is the probably root cause of the whole problem. I am surprised that the reporters in The Star failed to mention this matter. It is unfair to push the blame to the cabbies all the time – they are the ones who have the least vested interests in the situation.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Comment from anonymous on Tony Pua's blog...
I found this comment rather interesting and relevant.....
"let this be a lesson to all the other PR state governments (kedah, penang, selangor). start hunting down all the BN sleepers and appointees in all levels of the state civil service and state GLCs. replace them all with technocrats, headhunted from the market (with the current global economic recession, there are plenty of talented and experienced msians overseas who will be looking for jobs...get them just like what shanghai is trying to do). build them up to be PR's trusted team of technocrats ready to implement policies and ensure they're are executed well.it's not going to be easy, but it sure is infinitely much better than sitting around like a sitting duck and let all these planted BN saboteurs screw you at every available opportunity, scuttle all your policies, and come the next elections PR get booted out because the rakyat wouldn't know nor care that PR's non-performance is due to sabotage."
"let this be a lesson to all the other PR state governments (kedah, penang, selangor). start hunting down all the BN sleepers and appointees in all levels of the state civil service and state GLCs. replace them all with technocrats, headhunted from the market (with the current global economic recession, there are plenty of talented and experienced msians overseas who will be looking for jobs...get them just like what shanghai is trying to do). build them up to be PR's trusted team of technocrats ready to implement policies and ensure they're are executed well.it's not going to be easy, but it sure is infinitely much better than sitting around like a sitting duck and let all these planted BN saboteurs screw you at every available opportunity, scuttle all your policies, and come the next elections PR get booted out because the rakyat wouldn't know nor care that PR's non-performance is due to sabotage."
Sunday, March 1, 2009
My questions to Dr M on why he decided to leave UMNO...
Dear Tun, It would appear that the main reason you are doing this is to force our current PM to resign. I have some questions: 1) What alternative do you have planned for UMNO's succession? 2) Will removing the current PM improve the state that UMNO is on now? - ie. Will money politics and corruption cease? 3) Will an independent judiciary be restored? Or is there a hidden agenda behind this? Just one more question : Who would you like to see as the new leader of Malaysia and please justify why? If this person can correct items 2 and 3 above, then maybe you are doing the right thing - if it is to be more of the same thing, Malaysia is doomed.
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