Malaysiaku, Negaraku

By Emmanuel Joseph OK so Izzah is a three term ex MP in 2 states, leader of several international NGOs and think tanks and a trained engineer who also has a Masters in ASEAN and international relations, former founding member, 23 year veteran VP of a party and headed  3 different States and formerly was the face of the party struggle, rejected appointments when her party won 3 elections in Selangor, 1 election in Negeri Sembilan and 1 Federal Elections and appointments when her mother was DPM. So you had no problems with her shouldering all that work for free, for 23 years. Now you have a problem with her father appointing her as a glorified office helper with an official name and no official pay. Same people were moaning and crying when she refused a post Dr M wanted to appoint her to (that TVET thing in 2018), now equating her with parachute politicians, overpaid empty posts, overnight President's daughters and such. Look, I agree with no nepotism lah. But I mean when the same pe...

  By Lee Lam Thye  (Star) 23 Jan 2023 While the new Prime Minister DS Anwar Ibrahim is raising the bar in terms of dealing with pressing national issues, it is also important to look into matters that are peculiar to urban and semi-urban dwellers. The best way to do this is to constantly monitor the operations of local councils and have them quickly address all shortcomings. Currently, there are a total of 155 local authorities, consisting of 19 City councils. 39 Municipal councils and 92 District councils. These local authorities are jointly responsible for providing and maintaining a host of services including health services, social services, waste disposal, recycling and collection, trading standards, roads and transportation, housing, safety and health. There have been a number of issues that have been cropping up on a regular basis. There is the problem of poor drainage and maintenance systems leading to frequent flash floods the cumulative effect of which caused huge lo...

This is a very good article by Rosli Khan. He hit the nail on the head about the local government and corruption. I have been saying using my own examples with my local council. Original article here. https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2023/02/03/new-role-izzah/ I have no problem with Nurul offering her services directly to her father on pro bono basis. In fact, she should be paid a salary that commensurate with her experience and within the range of salaries paid to others within the ministry. Read my blogpost.  Maybe her next assignment? Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government and Development, Nga Kor Ming has to prioritise the revamp of the local government.  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ An interview given by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesday during which he zeroed in on his fight to eliminate corruption caught my attention. So did reports circulating over the ...

            Much, -- in fact, too much -- has been said about Anwar Ibrahim's daughter, Nurul Izzah being appointed as senior economic advisor.           Finally, the Prime Minister has given his reason for appointing Nurul as an advisor. The thing about Anwar is that he knows what to say and says it when the time is right.          To me, it is obvious that Nurul Izzah's appointment is not only welcomed, and it can hardly be argued as 'nepotism.' As defined by the Cambridge dictionary, it is "the act of using your power or influence to get good jobs or unfair advantages for members of your own family."            I believe, if I had consulted the late Gopal Sri Ram, he would agree with me on this. The former federal judge remained low key during the trial of Najib Razak and Rosmah Mansor because he knew the moment, he said something -- in fact, anything -- he wou...

Rakyat Malaysia yang beragama Islam tergores hati kerana seorang ahli politik di Sweden membakar kitab suci Al-Quran.           Di negara Barat, mereka tidak ada undang-undang yang melarang perbuatan keji seumpama ini. Itulah sebabnya kerajaan Sweden sehingga hari ini enggan mengambil tindakan terhadap ahli politik tersebut.           Sejurus kemudian, satu pula kumpulan cuba membakar kitab Torah, kitab suci orang Yahudi. Tujuan mereka hanya setakat menunjukkan betapa hipokritnya kerajaan Sweden untuk membenarkan Rasmus membakar Al Quran di depan Kedutaan Turki.           Sebenarnya bakar-membakar kitab suci agama orang lain sudah kerap berlaku di dunia yang pelbagai agama dan bangsa.            Lazimnya, ini perbuatan pemimpin-pemimpin yang bersifat ekstremis. Mereka hanya ingin mendapat perhatian dari orang ramai. Kemungkinan besar mereka ini mempunyai sakit jiw...

  I find it obnoxious for two of Bersatu leaders to make disparaging remarks when Minister of Local Government and Development, Nga Kor Ming mentioned in a press interview that his ministry has received confirmation from the Government of Singapore to send experts from the Housing Development Board of Singapore in February.           Both  Bersatu supreme council member Faiz Na'aman and its  information chief Wan Saiful Wan Jan are uttering what I call "toxic rubbish" when one accused Nga of undermining "national sovereignty" and the other saying that the entry of these HDB experts will undermine the fate of the bumiputera.  Politics of "Toxic Rubbish"           It is as good as saying that if the country continues to be led by such narrow-minded green horns, Malaysia will return to the stone age. Truth is we won't become Flintstones, but we will be known to the world as another North Korea or Iran. This is ...

  Click the image above to read the article Anwar's visit to Permatang Pauh should be emulated by all politicians                When Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia's Prime Minister finally made it to visit Permatang Pauh during his recent official visit to Penang, it brings him closer to the voters who may have thought that he had abandoned them.                As the proverbial Malay saying goes, some politicians have become like ' kacang lupakan kulit. ' After winning the general election, they disappear into their ivory towers and hide away from the people.                When issues are brought to their attention, they spread rumours that the complainants are "difficult to work with," when in the first place, they had never met the complainant personally nor spoken to her.                Their arrogance o...

            Anwar Ibrahim hit the nail on the head when he said that the cost of living is the result of corruption and cartels .           And, he is right to say that the public is keeping an eye and more willing to report any form of corruption, because we have reached a level that we can no longer tolerate the culture of paying bribes.          It is time for business people now to step forward to highlight their complaints, if there is any attempt to squeeze them for money. After all, n o business person with a right frame of mind would be happy to pay bribes if they can do without it.           It is those with the connections with the authorities who are willing to pay bribes in order for them to monopolise the market.         Such cartels I believe also exist in almost every sector of our economy, and not confined to only the...