Malaysiaku, Negaraku

  Picture used only for illustration purposes          Since  it is difficult for the government to downsize the public service,  the Malaysian Government need not reduce the number of public servants, but it needs to at least be able to deploy them to more productive work.           While I believe the law should still be reformed to allow sacking of underperforming staff in the public service than what is permitted now, their contribution towards the economy of the country should be significant and turned into their Key Performance Index.          As it is, currently, ten workers are involved in road repairs by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), but only three workers would be seen working while the rest just stand there to watch.            This scenario which I saw at a junction at Jalan Bukit Maluri recently is no difference from the joke that once prevailed...

          Malaysia needs Integrity Business Network.           In the past, Chinese businessmen have always told me that in the Chinese business community, business operates on one simple word, "Trust." This was something that the older businessmen took pride of.            Businesses, they always said, can only thrive based on the word 'Trust.'           I am not a businessman but I have always attempted to live a life of integrity due to my faith in God.           However, i t pains me whenever I feel cheated by traders who go for the quick kill. I would often avoid these shops the moment I realise that I have been cheated.    A Good Example Recently             I drive an old Honda City. Gear box as you know can be very expensive to change. The car has reached about 20 years...

  Okay, someone has unlocked the secrets of the Menu Rahmah. It is no longer a secret that, if done well, businesses offering Menu Rahmah @ RM5 a meal will eventually make more profits.           For us Christians, we say God will bless us in return, when we start to bless others. Muslims say,  “Apparently in Rahmah there is charity…the secret of GOD that we don’t know. Thank you unity government."           Think about it. Right after the pandemic was over, I visited my favourite Penang curry mee stall at the Lim's Sisters in Sri Sinar, Segambut.         Back in 2018, I had written about Joo Tiang's Penang Curry Mee , Lor Mee and Prawn Mee selling at RM4 a bowl. This was way before Menu Rahmah was suggested.          I was curious if Joo Tiang's stall was able to survive. Most other restaurants that I wrote about previously had closed down.       ...

  Elementary, my dear Mahathir! In response to his letter to the editor    I feel compelled to respond to Federal Territories’ Perikatan Nasional (PN) information chief, Mahathir Mohd Rais’ letter to the editor accusing the present government of going on a witch hunt. A ​ new bee himself , he appears to be totally out of sync with what his voters have wanted to see corruption  ​being dealt with severe l ​y​ . Business people, especially those who are not so well-connected, find it difficult to pitch for government jobs without paying a bribe, especially when the projects are given to people within a certain circle. ​In fact, those against corruption are in the majority. Therefore, how can Mahathir claim that "many" are against the witch hunt that he accused the unity government of doing? Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim has shown his resolve to deal with corruption and in no uncertain terms, he said, "Investigate, including those in PKR."  ​Party Members Not Spar...

This is one way how the Ministry of Youth and Sports can be involved in building up well-motivated young people to achieve the career of their choice.           Even as young as 12, young people find it useful to get exposure of this nature.          I took these children for a few hours of exposure at the High Court Complex at Jalan Sultan Abdul Halim in Kuala Lumpur.          They were given a briefing about the Lower and Higher Courts. For the Lower Courts, they were able to visit a Magistrate Court while it was in recess.           For the High Courts, they had the opportunity to watch the court proceeding of a suit between the Attorney-General's Chambers vs Developer (first party) and Consultant (second party).          They saw how both the Prosecution Counsels and Defence Counsels examined and cross-examined one of the Defence Witnesses....

           It simply does not add up -- Ministry of Health's big budget of RM5.24 billion last year, the number of Covid-19 vaccine doses that had to be destroyed running into millions of Ringgit, ventilators purchased brand new that could hardly be used at all, yet we have no budget to convert contract medical staff into permanent positions.           Sheer malfeasance is the word to describe the Ministry of Health officials, and perhaps its former ministers, who were involved in the purchase of 136 ventilators purchased by the ministry through Phamaniaga Logistics between 2020 and April 2022.           Seeing that this is now a matter of much public interest, it may become necessary for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to be set up to carry out a more thorough investigation into the malfeasance, and  no stone should be left uncovered; in the worst-case scenario, if this was an abuse of power at...

  If Malaysians continue to adopt the crab culture, we will all end up in the frying pan.           Crabs in a basket are good at dragging each other down, instead of working together to find a way to escape.           With an economy that is already lagging behind other ASEAN nations, politicians from both political divides are still not getting their acts together.            They seem too pre-occupied with nothing other than to create more problems and to destablise the government of the day.  I do not need to mention Muhyiddin Yasin, Abdul Hadi Awang and the gang who are eyeing for Putrajaya.          In fact, a mention of names like Kedah  Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor and Permatang Pauh Ustaz Muhammad Fawwaz Mohamad Jan is sufficient to make people feel disgusted, especially with the actions and remarks these two politicians are making....

By Stephen Ng            I strongly urge the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim to look into the medicine prices in Malaysia.            Medicine is important to ensure the wellbeing of all Malaysians, and if the prices are beyond the abilities of the ordinary Malaysians to afford, many end up having to exhaust their hard-earned savings at old age.           In an article dated July 27, 2006 which I wrote in Bernama (see attached ), a survey carried out by a university lecturer, Zaheer Ud-Din Babar showed that “the price of  medicines in Malaysia is much higher than even in developed countries."           That was back in 2006; ever since then, prices of medicine have never gone down.            What is the use of giving the senior citizens special discounts on public transport services and cost of living allowanc...

            Today is February 3. Two things that caught my attention when I woke up this morning was an article by Rosli Khan about corruption and the third tier of government. After reading this article, I am trying to connect with Rosli as he and I share similar passions on all three areas - corruption, local government and public transportation.           The second thing was something more heart-warming in the form of this birthday card personally hand drawn and kept secret from me until this morning. Although I get this every year, the fact that it was quietly placed on my bed, it still came to me as a pleasant surprise.  More Voices Heard Now          After sending out Rosli's article to a number of people in the present government, including those who have retired from civil service, I received another article written by Lee Lam Thye speaking on the same topic: Local Government. ...