Malaysia Day? Why Not?

For the past couple of years or so, I've read more about ethnic & religious harmony, and national unity in newspapers and seen or heard it on broadcast, than I ever did in my last 25 years of living as a Malaysian. I don't really know how I feel about it. How do you feel about it?

In a way, it's a good thing; every minister in the cabinet came out saying, "Malaysians are lucky to be able to live in a multiracial yet harmonious country..." or "Our achievements today would not have been possible without the unity and stability that we've kept all these years..." or "The government safeguards the needs of all races and religions in ensuring everyone's development..." And then our beloved and respected Prime Minister Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak would every now and then appear on TV to spread the 1Malaysia ideology... Romantic, isn't it?

Okay, sarcasm aside, I do honestly sometimes think that it's a great thing. But what pisses me off is the fact that, before this whole 1Malaysia thing started, before all the ministers and the Prime Minister himself emphasized and kept mentioning about national unity and ethnic harmony these days, we never admitted that we were a racist country for a very long time.

To prove that, we are still so used to classifying ourselves by race and religion, or which state we come from. I can safely say that I'm one of the most non-racist or non-religion-classification-judgmental person (if you have a better noun or adjective for that, please correct me) I know. But to this very day, even after all the studies and experiences that I went through to become the non-racist person that I am today, I'm still tempted to answer, "Sino-Kadazan," or "Sabahan" or "Catholic" when being asked of my race or religion. That is not the worst part. The worst part is, there is a little sense of pride when I say that. Like a chauvinistic somehow... And that's sad...

Whether we like or not, or more importantly, whether we admit it or not, we are proud to be the race that we are, more than we are about our nationality. In a way, that's great. But in a larger perspective, that's not a really nice picture. At least I think so. That is because we are not proud as Malaysians. Even more sadly, I don't think we even identify ourselves as Malaysians, but as our respective races, state of origin, and religions instead.. Prove? Quick test; Try to answer "Malaysian," whenever anyone asks you what race you are. It's not that easy (I've tried). You would find yourself pausing before you could answer "Malaysian." And even when you managed to, I bet that the person at the other end would say something like, "Ya lah, I know. But what race?" Get it?

It's not your fault or mine. I think a huge contributing factor to our mindset today, is the fact that we were subconsciously trained to (I can go into details about this years of 'subconscious training', but that would definitely defeat the purpose of this post). It got so bad that I was ever even asked, "Sudah brapa lama di Malaysia?" by someone from the Peninsular, upon learning that my friends and I are from Sabah & Sarawak. This is an experience that I believe so many others share.

But sadness, anger, and disappointment aside, regardless of how long it took the government to declare September 16th as a MALAYSIA DAY, regardless of how many requests and arguments presented and brought forward to the government to finally acknowledge the day Sabah & Sarawak joined Malaya to FORM MALAYSIA, I think we should just all rejoice that well, Sept 16th is NOW Malaysia Day.

And despite the fact that the 1Malaysia concept came about a little too late I would say (although I think Dato' Seri Najib should have came up with the idea before the March 2008 general election to make it look more real and believable), maybe we should just all put our doubts, differences, disagreements (and sarcasms) aside, and give it a shot. 1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now? Why not. *wink wink*

Happy Malaysia Day everyone.

Cheers!

Still?

It's been awhile since i last update myself on the political and social news in Malaysia. I think the last thing I remember was, Kok, RPK and the Sin Chew reporter being detained under ISA for petty reasons. And a few other news I can't recall by now. Being in in this line gives you limited time, connection, sources, but mostly a sense of concern to give two pots about stuff like that.

Only today did I 'tergerak hati' to type on Malaysiakini's web address (and thankfully I still remember the login password) and enlighten myself with the latest updates. And my, my... It hadn't change a little.

While leaders around the globe are working on global crises, especially economic as we know how rapidly deteriorating it is, ours - as in Malaysian leaders - are still caught up in worrying about whether yoga affects Islamic faiths, and other issues pertaining to Malay's special rights/privileges. So, what's new?

Still waiting for things to change, even in the slightest ways, before I can blab more about this.

Out.

Of Optimism in Possibility

"… given the increasing diversity of America's population, the dangers of sectarianism have never been greater. Whatever we once were, we are no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers. …

And even if we did have only Christians in our midst, if we expelled every non-Christian from the United States of America, whose Christianity would we teach in the schools?"
- Barack Obama Call to renewal: keynote address June 28, 2006.

I was talking - or more of arguing - with a friend regarding the political issues in Malaysia, which sparked off upon learning the acquittal of Razak Baginda (unbelievable yet expected), and which eventually led to the topic of the US' most phenomenal and exciting presidential election ever. I must have talked of Barry Obama as if I'd known him personally and sounded so confident that he will bring about the change that we'd been long wishing for, because this friend countered my confident opinions by asking, "How do you know he will do as he campaigned and promised?"

And again, I reiterated the positive and optimistic attitude of opening to the possibility of change. I wouldn't possibly know if it's going to be better. But none of us know if it's going to get worse either. Change itself is a subjective word that doesn't indicate better or worse, positive or negative. But why choose to stay is stagnant situations rather than anticipate something that could actually be done something about? Better yet, why choose to stay in situations that are already shitty anyway?

And of course, I don't know if Obama is as multiculturally tolerant and determinant as he is in the speeches he delivers. But here's the thing; John McCain is no better, and yeah I'm judging by the gists of their speeches. But if McCain can't even proove his ability and magnetism through the way he delivers messages and keynotes, then... You get the drill. You may say that I'm too delusional; anticipating a change that would revive political scenes and eventually the world. But hey, better delusional than indifferent.

I in the first place, might not even be in place to comment anything about it; I can't vote for US president anyway. Malaysia's ministerial is also in a mess, better focus on that before bothering to comment on other countries' presidential election (did I say it is the century's most exciting elections ever???). But this is not about just any country. This is America we're talking about. And you know what they say, when America coughs, the whole world catches cold. =)

Just Forget About It?

Our PM today urged us to "Have faith in Najib, ignore Altantuya allegations." Read more here (if you have access to Malaysiakini, that is).

Okay, sure, I think I can do that. Not like I trust the source 100% anyway. But what about the issue regarding the submarines and Sukhoi jets purchase? That was huge. But then again, yea sure, I think I can get over that one too, not like I've seen the thorough records of the transactions and all. But there another thing; what about the 'Keris' issue dated way back in 1987? Okay, don't get me wrong I'm not trying to stir racial tensions here, just something to make you - those of you who think that Najib should be PM soon, or ever) - rethink your opinions. I mean, yea sure he can survive all the allegations shoved at him and he might make a good Defence Minister (I'm still not sure about him being Finance Minister though). But how is he gonna handle the more important task, which is to unite the people in this country? Owh, let's not get that ambitious. How is he even going to unite the people in HIS party? Look at UMNO itself, especially presently.

Oh... I can't even start to imagine what's our country gonna be like in the next couple of years.

Courage the Cowardy Sent Hero to Kamunting

"Syed Hamid berkata penahanan Raja Petra itu berasaskan kepada penulisannya yang mempunyai unsur menghina dan boleh membangkitkan kemarahan umat Islam." - BERNAMA.
Read more here.

Raja Petra is a Muslim. And he had in numerous ways admitted that he is, explained thoroughly why he thinks that the majority of the Malaysian Muslims are not applying it the way it should be applied - NOTE that he did not in any way insulted or offended the religion. The way I see it he was just criticising how the religion is being practiced by most Malaysians. I'm a Catholic who have three-years of Islamic education experience - though vaguely remembered - and tonnes of Muslim friends who agree with this guy (Raja Petra), so I know that he couldn't be wrong in convicting his opinions. So tell me, in what way are the Muslims enraged by his posts, and if so, were my three years of Islamic education distorted in any way, or are my faithfully practising Muslim friends wrong in having the same opinion like Raja Petra?

And if the answer to all these questions are "NO", is it safe for me to say that the Government are just acting like insecure babies?

Sept 16 (yea, the Government-Toppling thing)

It's 6.50pm of September 16, 2008. No news. Nothing. Niente. Nada. Aiso. Wala.
I didn't expect anything to happen really. And just because none of the government MPs jump ship, it doesn't necessarily mean that all the 9-16 furore was in vain and for nothing. Look at the bright side; didn't the opposition got the government to tremble a bit? And, as a result of that, Sabah and Sarawak are suddenly getting all of the attention, scared that the wooing of the opposition would convince them to jump ship. Fascinating.
If there's anything that went wrong in all this commotion, it's only the accuracy of the chronology. Anwar shouldn't have named a date. But hey, for all you know, something is already happening. We'll see.

"I Swear..."

It seems like crimes and wrongdoings these days can be easily 'cleansed' and justified just by taking oaths. First, the allegedly sodomized pretty boy. Then, the whole government crew asking Anwar to 'prove' his innocence by doing the same. And then, in the latest oath-taking trend updates, Najib did so too, 'proving' his innocence over the dead Mongolian's murder.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. You want to take oaths or cleanse your sins (as Najib would have it) in the Islamic way, go ahead. But why make a big fuss out of it? Why push people to do it? Because I think that when it comes to religion, willingness matters, meaning that you shouldn't challenge people to do it, nor dare them. Judging by the reports by the media these past couple of weeks, taking oaths have been made to sound like it's a sure thing that proves truth or justice. Does that mean that anyone who takes oaths by books deemed holy by believers are off the legal hook? That just because you SAY and 'admit' that you did not do something, means that you truly did not do it?

“Anwar says he cannot trust the police, courts and doctors. Don’t tell me even in Allah he does not trust?” he (Najib) told reporters while visiting Taman Sembilang in Seberang Jaya yesterday.

May I offer you my two cents on this? Err... Anwar did take the oath ten years back when he was first accused of the same case, sodomy (duh). But he ended up being sent to jail anyway, for six years (poor guy). So, I think it's not the case of whether or not he believes in Allah. I think it's the case of having have to do things and settle matters your way, dear Government.

Never before has a by-election been so heavily publicized, or being paid so much attention to. But I guess this one's a completely different one, as we're facing the possibility of having a sodomiser as a Prime Minister. Yes, the current ruling power is so worried that the Rakyat of Malaysia will be ruled by a gay fellow that they're doing all they can to gain the people's trust, including decreasing the fuel price by 15 cents (correct me if I'm wrong), two days prior to by-election polling day, when they could have done so weeks ago when the world crude oil price dropped (yea, it didn't just dropped days ago). Wow, how thoughtful.

By reading my posts, readers might have the notion that I'm anti-government and pro-Anwar, or a die-hard supporter of the opposition. News, I'm neither. I, like many others I bet, am just wishing for a change. I never said that the opposition will make good or better leaders than the shitheads we already have now. They (Anwar and his crew) will definitely bring changes should they win this. But for better or worse, God knows which. But for better or worse, it's gonna be a change, and that is all I'm looking forward to. Our Malaysia is already a mess anyway. Any change (good or bad) is better than sitting there taking all the shit the so-called leaders are giving us.

Even the media are getting to obviously biased. I don't know if it's just me or they are publishing/broadcasting all that is good about the government and criticising Anwar to his guts. Bikin sakit hati bah kalau tinguk brita skarang. Silaka. So you see, that is why sometimes I'd rather not pay attention to the media, coz they're just as screwed up as the government anyway.

It's five days to Merdeka Day, but who's talking about it? Comparing last two year's celebration with that of this year's, it doesn't feel as liberating as the former's. At least I think so. Lesser people bother about waving the Jalur Gemilang this year, or even giving a damn about it at all. What does that say?

Looking forward to August 31st had turned stale since couple of years back (yea, being a non-Muslim and a Sabahan, I have a lot to complain about). But this year, it's even worse. I'm only looking forward to it because of the holiday we'll be having on Monday (screammmmmmmmmm!!!). But i guess that all depend on tomorrow's result. Let's see what happens after tomorrow (I honestly can't wait). But in the meantime, I'll just pay attention to the EPL. Coincidently, Liverpool is playing against The Villains on the 31st of August. Yeap, I'm looking forward to that.

MAHATHIR

Got this from Ian who got it from Kuan Mei. Brilliant.

When Dr. Mahathir was Prime Minister of Malaysia

One lousy day in the middle of the economic crisis, PM Mahathir was feeling extremely frustrated and wondering how a neighboring country can be doingbetter than Malaysia .

One of his aides said, "I heard that the leaders consult Feng Shui masters to ensure prosperity for the country."

Dr Mahathir thought if that was the case, Malaysia Bomoh also can, and went to seek the top bomoh's advice in the country. After reviewing the case, the bomoh told Dr M that there were 2 things that he must do :

Bomoh : Step 1. You must blame the crisis on SOROS for everything.

Dr M : But Why ?

Bomoh: Because SOROS stands for 'Speculate On Ringgit Or Stocks'. You must blame him, and look at ways to control the ringgit and stock market.

Bomoh : Step 2 - You must get rid of ANWAR.

Dr M: What! why him?

Bomoh: Because ANWAR stands for 'A Nation Without Any Ringgit'.

Dr M: But how ? This is most difficult to do, he is popular with the people.

Bomoh : Aiyoh, you bodoh lah! Look at your name, MAHATHIR. Make AnwarHomosexual And Then Highlight It Repeatedly.

No-mood Random Post

Another massive traffic jam yesterday evening on the way home from work and I thought to myself, "What the hell? Another Anwar-related speculations???" The traffic was sooo damn bad. Asif and I were stuck in the car for 3-f***ing hours, remained static in one spot for 1-damned-hour. Can you imagine that? We were going crazy until I thought of a good idea to pass the time; found an NSync audio CD in his car and we put it on full volume (yea, it was REALLY loud) and sang, as well as dance, along. We must have looked like a couple of silly kids, or insane adults, singing at the top of our lungs, with the windows winded down, holding cigarettes in our hands and dancing... to NSync??? What the??? Well, what two spontaneous friends can do.

I officially consider myself as an anti-government, as I found myself blaming them every chance I got. But I'm no pro-opposition either, although i do believe that there are fabrications in a lot of the government's deeds - be it good or bad.

Hey, I checked out Saiful's med report from the Pusrawi Hospital, posted on RPK's blog. Looks genuine. Maybe it is. I don't buy it 100% tho. I read the mainstream media's side of the story too. As expected, they denied every claim. Kudos.

(read it here)

Nothing much today. Don't really feel like it.

Cheers.

Yours truly.

Mixed Up Priorities

Our ministers and MPs are fighting over what kind of cars to use; filling spaces of printed media just arguing about which one will cost them more/less. We are arguing about territorial sea and how many nautical miles do each side owns with Singapore. Our government is doing all within (or even over) their limits to stop a de facto leader from taking over governance, even up to the point of getting it all mixed up with the latter's personal life. So what if he had anal sex with a guy (note, i sad 'IF', indicating that i still don't buy the whole political ploy setup by the governmnet)? Now sendiri susah have to explain to diplomats about what's actully going on (i doubt it was a thorough, unbiased explaination tho').

All the attention to these - what i would consider as nothing that needs immediate attention - compared to other problems going on in this country. 127 juveniles are being locked-up, as of yesterday, which i bet will increase in number, given a few days. Our inflation rate had reached a number higher than ever (7.7%folks... 7.7). 2,957 people still lost, location unknown, still searched by family members, and yes, this includes children (http://www.rmp.gov.my/). A total number of 43,897 cases of murder, rape, robbery, armed attacks, etc. as of 2008 itself. 1 more league title before Manchester United beats Liverpool's record of 18 times league champion... (yes, this disturbs me too. Kidding). The list goes on. And these are only the number of recorded cases, excluding those unreported.

How can our authorities are acting so eager and determined about matters like what car should the members of the cabinet use, or did or did not Anwar sodomized Saiful? How can we spent millions on an astronaut program and another millions on dams when that money could have been spent on R&D for better security or more effective economy system? Are hydroelectric resources, low-maintenance Mercedes-Benz cars, more important than the lives of the people?

Who is supposed to ensure the betterment of the rakyat? Who is supposed to look after the safety of the rakyat? Is not that the police's, government's job? Oh, wait a minute, our police are all busy ensuring the safety of our MPs and Dato's. 50 police officers to guard one minister, when somewhere else a child is being kidnapped, raped and murdered. Nice job, officers. How mesra, cepat and betul you guys are. And the government, who is supposed to think of ways to reduce the burden of the rakyat in trying to make a living for a life that is becoming more and more expensive? Oh, they're busy trying to stop this one man from taking over power. Yeap, they're all too busy. Let's not kacau them doing their job.

Yes, i'm bitter. But do you think that i'm proud doing this? I mean, i'm talking about my government here. One is supposed to be proud of their country and all i ever do is say, "Screw them." When one criticises and chastise a government, there must be something wrong in what they're doing. Besides, I ain't the first person to do this. Thousands of other people are pretty mad at the government. That means, there must be something REALLY wrong in what they're doing. We can't be complaining for nothing, right?

Freakshow Stars

I swore to myself that I will not post another post of anti-government sentiment or that with influence of political connotations, at least until another interesting politically motivated scene comes up. But I can't help it, especially after seeing how our mainstream media can be really biased in their reporting.

I was reading a local english daily, N** S****** T****, and there was this sidebar on the second page, opinions on Tuesday's great debate. There were 6 to 7 opinions and to my expectations, all 6 or 7 clapped for the government side of the debate. They told of how Shabery did a great job and how he had presented the facts so well. You see, i watched the debate live. I know how it was and it was pretty obvious who was the better speaker. But uhm, yah, oh well, let's give Shabery a clap as well. At least he had the guts.

Anyway, as i was saying, biased comments. Out of the thousands who watched that debate, I doubt that there wasn't even one who was on the opposition's side. I am for one. But i truly believe that there were quite a lot of folks who raised up their hands in support of Anwar. The comments on the other hand, showed none of what anybody has to say anything good about him.

That is one thing. The second one; I was attracted to what Khairy said (yea, he was one of those giving their two cents worth on the newspaper). His exact words are kinda vague in my head, but what i do remember is that he talked about minyak. Back to March this year before the big-E day (in case you're wondering, it's Election Day), ya, Anwar did say that he promised a cut down on fuel price down to lower than RM1.92 per litre. Tuesday night, he promised a decrease of as much as RM0.50'; facts of which the government came in too quick to judge that Anwar broke his promise. Either Khairy is playing dumb, or he really is just plain stupid. Back in March when Anwar made his promise, had the fuel price gone up by then? I believe, anyone would know the answer to that. No. It hadn't, at least not for the second time. The second price hike (in a time-frame of one year) barged in last month, out of the blue, suddenly (i remember the MASSIVE traffic congestion as everyone lined up to rush for the then cheaper price of fuel. It was terrible with capital 'T').

Tell me if i'm just being too critical of the government. I have to say that i'm no supporter of Anwar either. I don't trust our government to be in the hands of any of these freakshow stars. Sodomist, 'explosive' murderer, hypocrites, racists, extremists, ah... the list goes on. But really, the government has really done a great job in turning Anwar into a big-time star. People are going to remeber him well. Seriously. I'm even finding myself starting to believe in his persuasion. Daym.

Cheers everyone. Time to go to bed. Nite nite **

Not Politically Motivated?

Anyone with the right mind would know that the arrest of you-know-who yesterday afternoon was politically motivated. What the hell was the Home Minister talking about?? “Whatever action being taken is according to the due process of the law... not poolitically motivated.”

Blimey. When an ordinary citizen gets sued for an offence, the summon letters come a week after. Yesterday we see that they had preponed the arrest. My my. When you said 2pm, then 1.59pm would still be considered as breaching the deal. One must be precise about these kind of things especially when it's regarding anything that includes the law.

When asked, they simply answered, they were afraid that he would not showed up. Okay, so he did not turn up on Monday and the authotirities are scared that he'd do it the second time. But yesterday, they did know that he was at the ACA for questioning and then called him up to confirm whether or not he was showing up at the police headquarters, a question to which he replied yes. He even asked the ACA to cut it short as he's afraid that he was going to be late. Well, they had asked that the so-called sodomist (i still refuse to believe he has any reason to f*** that 23-year-old-probably-bribed-victim-of-a-political-ploy guy) go straight to the police HQ from ACA. Okay, so he had taken a different route to stop by hus house. Can't a man say goodbye to his family and maybe freshen up a bit? He'd been at the ACA being questioned the whole morning. Not politically motivated, u say? ( http://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/).

I can imagine how these guys wake up yesterday morning and anticipated the time to come for them to arrest the de facto leader, dying to get their hands on him and have him arrested. It's probably not their fault. They are just being paid to do it, it's their job. It's the people that they're working for that i pity. The way the government handle this is soo terrible that now they're making a so-called sodomist look like a hero, and themselves like big-bad, foolish giants.

p/s: If Michael Moore is of this country, we would have a movie out of this. Our political scene is just so soap-opera, as one of my friends said. We have a so-called sodomist as an opposition party leader, and a possible murderer as the Deputy Prime Minister. How cool can a government be. *wink wink*

Cheers.

An Unbeatable Brilliant

"Brilliant. That old man still has it," was my first thought when i watched the "Tubuh Kerajaan Hari Ini, Harga Minyak Turun Hari Esok" debate between Anwar and Shabery. I found myself nodding to everyone of Anwar's points, and said "Cheh!" to every one of Shabery's. Does that make mean that i'm against the government and pro-opposition?

I'm on nobody's side. But i must admit that the de facto leader is damn convincing. He has a charisma that would make people who support him give their whole heart and soul to defend this leader. And i don't know if it's just me or the debater he was against was a bit too defensive. I must say that he did a great job lah, going against someone as great as Anwar (yeah, i really think he's brilliant). But i think that he was acting too defensive of the government that he came on too strong about it, which is too bad, coz wouldn't that make the Rakyat feel like the government is going against them?

In defending their decision to rise up the fuel price in this country, the government really should stop comparing our price with other countries. A lot of things should be taken into account; producing country, inflation rate, purchasing power, etc. And Anwar was right, we have nothing against Petronas. What's in question is the processes run by the government (like, somebody please tell me what the hell IPP is for? A body that regulates how much of Petronas' revenue goes to the government and to TNB or anything else so that it wouldn't look like the government is robbing Petronas off its money directly, is it)?

Of course, i hate to make an ass out of you and me. So i won't assume. But uhm, somebody please enlighten me if you may.

What makes me really look up to Anwar is how he always managed to maintain his composure, never losing his cools. With all the shit that he went through and still fighting to this very day, awesome i would say.

But i still think that the massive traffic jam was a set up, to give the rakyat the perception that "Because of Anwar, we had to endure this kinda shit." Don't you think? But yah, i don't wanna start being a movement leader or anything. Just sharing my two cents worth.

Cheers!

p/s: This had just got in. Anwar's arrested, two hours ago. I thought they said a 2pm deadline, not 1.15pm. and he was late because he was at the ACA for questioning. What the crap??

Selfish Scumbags

The massive traffic congestion two days back didn't die down as soon as i thought it would have. Yesterday while on our way back from the office, my friends and i had another 'discussion' about it, obviously being against the police and the authority over them who had assigned them that stupid task of having have to stand there doing nothing except placed con/corn/cone (Damn it, i forgot how to spell the word) by the road sides, making it impossible for the traffic to move smoothly, konon-kononnya to deter Anwar's followers from organizing a rally, which didn't happen *exhales breath*. Okay, i'm obviously still pissed about it. Everybody is lah.

I thought that the road bloack was set at such a bad time; early monday morning when people are rushing to get to work on time, left damn early just to beat the traffic jam. We were stuck in it for a complete two hours. Everybody came in late that day. And then the next day, the government just turn up in the front page of mainstream print media and apologized. Walaweh... Well, they're not paying for their car fuel tank anyway, neither do they have to drive, do they?

The worse part is that the police did NOTHING. Nada. Niente. Rien. They just stood there and talk. I assumed that they're on stand-by mode just in case a rally happens and get out of hand. But if that was what it was, are the cons/corns/cones (shit, i don't know how to the damn word) necessary? Was it really even useful for them to narrow the path for motorists to use? And if so, they didn't even warn us about it. So everybody ended up swearing all the way to work, honking each other, angry, and arrived at the office cranky. I hate to say it, but they can be very selfish sometimes.

Fighter Jets Over The Dying

I had just entered Tesco with my housemates when a middle-aged Chinese man approached us and enlightened us with all the information regarding MAKNA and cancer. Nope, i didn't yawn neither did i feel sleepy at all. I heard of MAKNA before this but i didn't know that we can actually register to donate through our bank accounts or income taxes, which is cool. There are packages available, you can choose from, according to how much you think you can afford to donate every month, totally up to yourself.

I was happy this man showed up and feed us with the inoformation. Although, it was actually a mistake because he thought we were working adults (i just got back from the office - yeah, where i'm doing my practical training in - so i was in my power suit, ha ha, which might have led him to think that i'm currently working). ANYWAY... Yah, as i was saying, it's good to know that such method of donation exists. I'll give it a thought once i start earning a stable financial resources called wage.

But throughout the entire time this man was telling me about the number of cancer patients in Malaysia alone, and the figures needed to help assist them in medication, i was thinking, "If only i have all the money in the world..." RM50,000 needed for a child with leukimia. But our government spent RM20,000 per candidate for election campaigns. We can even seal a US$900 million deal for fighter jets. Fighter jets and political party flags, over sick and dying children... How pathetic.

I have money. I get a RM3k loan for every six months. Yes, i might have spent it all on stuffs that most people including my mother would have deemed as unecessary. If only i had chose to give that RM1 to that beggar i passed by this morning at the monorail station instead of buying a RM100 PDI jeans, then maybe i have every right to chastise the government and the rich A-class folks earning RM50 000 a month for not contributing to MAKNA or any non-profitable organizations for that matter. But i had chosen the jeans over the poor beggar who could have had something for lunch with the RM1 i could have given him.

Shiite.

Truth Is Ugly

Since examination and assignment deadlines last April, i barely paid any attention to what's going on in the politics of this country, or to anything else in the news for that matter. And then semester break came which only worsened the condition of my awareness and information level. It itched me to not know what to say in return when friends or people who knows i'm into these things talk about it. My connection to the virtual world - where i normally feed my brain with the latest updates - was completely cut. I vowed that once i get connected again, on a frequent basis, i will read these kind of stuff again, intensively. And one of my favorites is always Raja Petra's. So i confidently went to my blog where i've listed Malaysia Today as one of y favorites, and clicked it. To my surprise, it's no longer there. It was hacked. I hope i'm not the only donkey who just found out about that. Boy how stupid i will look. But like i said, my connection to the virtual world was completely cut. It's not that the place that i came from do not have any ainternet connection, it's just that i barely have the time to sit and face the PC. But getting back to what i was talking about, one of my favorite website, hacked.

That wasn't all that happened after my comeback (cheh, macam star. Pui). Malaysian politics are definitely getting messier by the day. After only one month of taking a break, including not logging in into blogspot, the face of this country's governance and politics had gone ugly, and it looks like an unrepairable ugliness, which i hope would be otherwise. I desperately need to catch up with things, but there's just too much of it that i'm running out of breath. Sodomy case of you-know-who resurfacing, Altantuya's case still unresolved, Deputy Minister being involved in it, Raja Petra's arrests, the "no-confidence" stand of opposition parties, fuel price hike and the presumed agenda behind it, yada yada yada... The list goes on. Sigh.

As if it's not bad enough that there are people who just had to murder to resolve problems, rape to satisfy their lusts, drive fast and wrecklessly simply for the adrenaline rush, etc., we just have to have leaders - be it on the national level or states - who are self-centered, authority-hungry, power-abusive and self-profit-seeking, don't we? Great.

As ugly as things are currently, with the thinnest hope of things turning out to be better, let's not look at it with ignorance, nor pessimism. It's easier to be ignorant, and indifferent. That's what i've been for the past couple of months. And no, i do not like the feeling. When at first you thought that what you don't know won't hurt you, it's even more hurtful to know that what you don't know is actually happening and other people obviously know about it but you don't know about it. As Barrack Obama would have it, "Audacity of Hope", instead of arrogance. Do know, and hope that things will get better.

Bravo Malaysians

"BN lost its 2/3 majority for the first time in forty years." What a news to start off a day. I found myself smiling as i was getting ready for a futsal tournament Sunday morning when the radio announced the news. I had stayed up all night the evening before, watching the scoreboard, and everytime we see a color different from blue passing through it, my friends and i would slightly cheer. Abdul Rahid announcing that BN had won the election - as they always had for the previous terms - was expected, yet it was a huge relief that it wasn't a 2/3 winning at all, or else we risk having our constitutional rights continually being abused.

I take my hats off for those who had dared opted for change, namely Penang, Perak, Selangor, and Kedah (Kelantan is exceptional considering they had been ruled by the same opposition party for the past donkey years), and in some districts in certain states who had collatively voted for change. This year's election is sure a slap on the government's cheek waking them up and showing them that the rakyat are not stupid after all. And that they should do more than just sleep during parliamentary meetings, waving keris in the air, hiking petrol prices and not explaining why thoroughly, nor fix the roads only when it's near election dates.

Sabah remains as the biggest disappointment when it comes to this. I don't know who to blame (maybe i'm guilty as well for not casting any ballots), either the fact that most people in Sabah are still under-exposed to the source of Independent News, knowing that these news are only available online and most rural areas do not have immediate access to Internet, OR the fact that most of them only cared about having roofs over their heads, food to eat and clothes to wear, and nothing more. It would be a lie if a party, any party is to say that they do not use monetary rewards to 'fish' for ballots. And these people in Sabah, believed to be baited by, well, monetary rewards, ... the rest is history. Or they just simply do not see, hear, nor read news and inputs from other sides apart from the government's, therefore they don't know how these so-called democrats had been ripping rights off the people.

PAS is now the official ruler of Shah Alam. Rumor has it that lots of changes are going to be made, specifically about implementing Islamic laws in its administrations. My fellow non-Muslim friends and housemates are all saying, "Matilah kita ni." I laughed and said nothing but "Give them a chance." Honestly, i don't even know what i'm saying. PAS is being known as too radical in practicing its Islamic cultures and values. Even during the campaigning for this term's election, it said little in trying to convince the non-Muslims. All of its promises are dedicated to Anak-anak Selangor. So we are not the least excited when it won the election for our area. However, i believe that no governance of a country should be associated with any religion, especially in a country that claim to be democratic. Therefore, i believe that we shouldn't hate PAS just because it is an Islamic party. My religion didn't teach me to hate other religion, and i believe that Islam does too. So i hope our new ruling party will keep that in mind.

All in all, i'm delighted with the results. It seems like we woke up breathing fresh air on Sunday Morning. I'm not sure how these opposition parties will do in the next four years, although i hope nothing but the best for them. With the risk that the rakyat take to vote for change, they should be using that trust wisely, so as to ensure they'll get another round of winnings in 2012. Let us all cross our fingers.

Bravo malaysians!!!

A Letter To Whom It May Concern

Dear Dato',

Look, I appreciate the government's efforts in maintaining the peace and constantly ensuring the development of this country. And i know you and your people up there are worried sick by now; worried that you'll lose the upcoming election, seeing that the opposition is doing pretty well in trying to convince electorates to "VOTE FOR CHANGE". But why should you worry? The EC is obviously on your side of the game. Can't you see that they're doing everything to ensure your victory, even changing the rules the way they like and whenever they like it (I'm referring to the EC's sudden decision to not use the indelible ink for voting, four days before the big day. Four days). So, why worry? You guys have been winning the election for the past 50 years what. Why worry now, why wouldn't the EC cover your ass now, right? So just sit back and relax. We the citizens know what the government has been doing for us and there's no need for you nor the oppositions to affect our decisions and our stands. You don't have to tell us to not believe what the opposition had said. Neither do they have to convince us. We KNOW very well in our being that IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE. You see, it's a knowledge, which used to be an unconfirmed opinion. Now it's a stand.

I think that we've tolerating the government's nonsense for years now. I'm not trying to be racist, or bring up religious matters up and trying to relate it to political issues. But the truth is, it is interrelated, and yes, it affects the way we think about the governance about this country.

I'm a Catholic Sabahan. Being a Sabahan is one, being a Catholic is another. The one issue that is never even made an issue is the "lain-lain" classification of my race, our race, the aboriginals of what makes up larger than 50% of the country. When filling in forms of applications of what sorts, there are only four classifications of races; Melayu, Cina, India, Lain-lain. Sometimes, they'd be nice and put Bumiputera instead of Lain-lain. But even if so, why are we differently Bumiputera classified than the Melayu? It's bitter to talk about this. 50 so called years of independence and we still reasons to argue with the ruling party. Sad.

That's one thing (and trust me, you don't want me to go on talking more about it, it's tiring). The second matter is even worse. I'm sorry to say, the way the leaders in Malaysia (not all of them) interpret Islam is very scary, biased, and radical.We, the ones considered as minority religions (and i'm not just talking about Christians) had tolerated, closed our eyes and let our constitutional rights being ripped from us, conscious or unconsciously. I'd say that these leaders say one thing in front of us and say another behind us, when they're with their "crew". It's not impossible for me to list down a few of things that i feel unnecessary, ridiculous, unfair, and even cruel committed by the authority towards people of its different beliefs, race and creed. But that may take forever, coz a lot had taken place.

So dear Dato' Sri, that is why i want to vote for change. That's why there's a lot of us who wants to vote for change. I'd said earlier that i appreciate the government's efforts in maintaining the peace of this country, and I mean it. But keep in mind that peace had only survived because we've been tolerating your nonsense, and tolerance has a limit. Don't take it for granted.

Confessions of A Former Leader

"Mahathir Mengaku Anwar Ibrahim Dizalimi & Tidak Bersalah". Type this out on Youtube and you'll find the video (i don't freaking know how to link videos in posts, i've yet to learn). I bet most of you had already seen this video. Surprisingly, i wasn't the least shocked or amazed upon seeing the video. For one reason, i know Anwar is not guilty as charged. Secondly, despite the fact that Mahathir (in the video) "confessed" his power misuse, it could well be a mean of sarcasm. His sarcastic tone and grin makes it hard to believe that he even meant what he said. But for all it's worth, i think he was telling the truth (and doesn't feel guilty about it anyway).

Christopher Who?

I know this is a long-time-gone case. But i was having lunch with my friend and out of nowhere we were talking about the government. And it got into long-time-gone Anwar's case (dear authority, if any of you are reading this, don't apprehend me. I'm only practising citizen's right to think critically and express them freely. Cheers!). Anyways, yes, Anwar. Do u remember the guy who was one of his defense lawyers, Christopher Fernando? What ever happened to that guy? Why is his existence no longer acknowledged? If our memories serve us right, he is, or shall i say, WAS, one of the best lawyers in our country. He must be, as he was selected to defend a fallen leader's case, a case that even the illiterate knows of, a huge one, that shocked the whole country. And then suddenly when all the drama is over, he seems outcasted.

Now the question is, why? He is a lawyer. Lawyers' jobs are to defend their clients against all odds (be their clients guilty or innocent). So having said that, Christopher Fernando was left out because he was doing his job? What's that? Okay, we assume that he is being sanctioned because he defended a person who was not in the government's side.Now let's assume that Anwar is not one of them politicians, barely a threat to the government. So assuming that he killed somebody. And Christopher is his lawyer. Does that make Christopher the killer too? Now apply that to the actual case. Anwar, undoubtly, was a major threat to the government. He did something wrong, got caught, and was put behind bars. Does that make Christopher, being his lawyer, a perpetrator too? Should we push aside someone who defended the ruling party's enemy, just because he was doing his job as a lawyer?

And being so, think about it; does the judiciary makes decisions according to the government's whims and fancies? It seems to me, that even the judiciary is being controlled by the government. Funny. So much for democracy. We might as well declare ourselves an authocratic country.