Saturday, December 12, 2015

The UMNO 2015 AGM has just ended. Call it the Najib show.

12.12.2015.

Najib wound up today the opening speech he made on the first day. Nobody else, not the Vice Presidents, certainly not the Deputy President, were allowed to speak.  Every time he shouted into the mike, the delegates roared back their approval. And so ended the 2015 Najib show. And democracy in UMNO. 

Has it solved anything ?

Is the behaviour of the delegates  consonant with the rest of the party members not in PWTC ?

Where do party members speak about real issues ? The whole world has been talking about 1MDB and the 2.6 billion donation, and not a word of explanation, nor the demand for it, came out from either the delegates on the floor, or the Supreme Councillors on the dias. The sacred creature Najib created has been declared off-limits from the AGM. This way maybe the mess will go away ?

Having the floor to himself, in front of a captive audience, Najib sounded magnanimous. 

"Be a gentleman - I'm a gentleman"
"I'm offering the olive branch" 
"It's up to Muhyiddin, to make peace or war"
"Have a big heart"

Of course Zahid and Hishamuddin, the two loyal Vice-Presidents, echoed Najib. Zahid asked Muhyiddin, his party superior, to have a big heart, like his boss. Hishamuddin asked Muhyiddin, also his party superior, to apologise, to his first-cousin, Najib. Both must have  swallowed their prides when they were asked not to speak,  a childish cover for the Muhyiddin's ban at speaking.

Sure, be big-hearted, and carry that invisible olive branch. By all means be the true gentleman. But sack Muhyiddin first. Sack Shafie Apdal. Sack the AG. Transfer all the officers at short notice.

Some gentleman !

"I'll fight to the end !" What can he say, since he refuses to go ?

Muhyidden isn't playing to the script. He says he has nothing to apologise for. 

The 2,000 odd delegates behaved as expected, cowed by the President standing in front of them. That's UMNO politics. As the current PAC Chairman said, everybody is "cari makan".

The rest of the Malays in the country have been watching. They're not cowed by  the UMNO President. In 2008 they deserted UMNO in large numbers at the polls, because of the ineptitude of the then President. Muhyiddin became the kingmaker; the President was ousted and Najib took over. But Najib learned a lesson. Oust before being ousted ! But the rousing welcome Muhyiddin received when visiting the Youth, Wanita and Puteri AGMs whose openings he was denied,  was not been missed by Najib & co. 

Najib has won the battle.   For now. The show is over.  Now for the war.


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Thursday, December 10, 2015

Najib's speech at UMNO's AGM 2015.

11.12.2015.

I have to write this bit, even as the AGM is still going on, and even if this time Veteran UMNO Malaysia was given only 5 Observer's passes.  I didn't get one.

I want to say that in his opening speech, Najib did all his usual shouting and rabble-rousing, and obviously hitting out at his two most prominent critics who were present, knowing full well that they can only squirm and swallow their anger  because they can't answer back. Some guts, Najib !

You quote the UMNO constitution about the role of the Deputy President to assist the President. But you fail to mention the role of the President to allow the Deputy President to be one.  Why would you let Party members go through all the hassle of  party elections and select all these committee members if you're not going to let them do their work ? In as much as the President is owed respect for the post he's elected to, so does the Deputy President own the right to act out his position, which obviously includes speaking at party meetings like this one. 

You shout about democracy and popular vote. Denying the popularly elected Deputy President the basic right of speaking is democratic ?

Forget about tradition in UMNO, that the no. 2 man always opened the Wings' Conference. What does the Party Constitution say ? 

With today and tomorrow, there are still two days left. Let's see what happens.


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Monday, December 7, 2015

Datuk Wahid.

7.12.2015.

We got to know each other, Datuk Wahid and I, because from 1978 to 1995 we were together in Damansara Utama. Our wives became close friends. We sort of tag along.

This afternoon Idah and Dekna, with Wafa brought along, together with me visited Wahid at the Tawakkal Hospital on Jalan Pahang. For the last two months their children had put him in the Senior Citizen ward in the old wing. He's suffering from  early dementia.

Idah and Kak Zah cried as they embraced each other. When we moved to Seremban in 1995, No. 1 Son, and later No. 2 Son, stayed at the old house in D.U. for a short time. During the fasting month Kak Zah used to send "buka puasa" to the house. Once when she called and got no answer, she phoned Idah, who requested she called again. In fact it was already eight, and No.1 Son had fallen asleep without breaking his fast. Kak Zah did all that. We can't forget that.

Wahid couldn't recognize any of us.

He should be about 78, because he is the same age as Bang Tai, who was 76 when he died. They were old MCKK friends.

Wahid cried and kissed Idah's hands when we took leave. Some sad thoughts must have passed through his mind.

Kak Zah said the hospital stay costs 5.5 K per month, not including the medicine. Idah was thinking why not get a nurse to care for him at home. It'll be more covenient. And cheaper.



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Sunday, December 6, 2015

Is UMNO defunct ?

7.12.2015.

As a party member since 1987, with 10 continuous years as a delegate to the annual General Assembly from 1987 to 1997, four-and-a-half years as a State Legislator from 1995 to 1999, and currently a Central Committee member of the UMNO Veterans Club, a State Committee member of the Ex Wakil Rakyat Society (MUBARAK), as well as an incumbent UMNO Branch Committee member, I have every right to a say in the shenanigans going on in UMNO right now, even as it's preparing for the 2015 Annual General Assembly this week. 

The Party controls the government. Not the other way round.

Muhyiddin is the no. 2 man in UMNO. He was elected by party members, not appointed by the President, like the loud General Secretary, Ku Nan. To deny Muhyiddin the right to speak in the Party's Annual General Assembly is simply wrong. If members allow this to happen, they deserve the destruction that's befalling the party. 

It was the PM's right, even if it was not right, to remove Muhyiddin, unceremoniously, from  the DPM's office. That was administrative. But to do that in the Party's affairs is flawed. 

Even as the discerning rakyat debate on the cheapness of the DPM's sacking, this constitutional manipulation demands immediate correction. Or face the dire consequences. 

Najib, and all who back him for whatever motives, cannot discard the Party's constitution and traditions just like that. All are watching, not just the 3.5 million UMNO members. 

Even if attention is given to the 2,000 odd delegates gathering at the PWTC in the next few days, their response to this public display of personal revenge  on the part of the President will decide what happens to UMNO as a political power in the Malaysian political scene.  I say "even if" because notwithstanding the General Assembly, the grass-root members will have a mind of their own, and they had voted with their hearts in 2008. They can do it again.

The question is, is Najib so scared of Muhyiddin ?

I say that if this error is not corrected, UMNO is defunct. Mark that date "7.12.2015"



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Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Yusof Ahmad.

24.11.2015.

There he was, on bed no.5 in the HDW (High Dependency Ward), with an oxygen tube in his mouth, a feeding tube in his nose, and other wires on his body to monitor his heartbeat and bp, in deep coma, my old friend,  Yusof bin Ahmad, 76, at the Sungai Buloh Hospital outside KL. It was about 12.40 p.m., visiting hours, today Tuesday 24th November, 2015.

The attending nurse said he's now 5 days in coma. It's the heart. Yesterday was bad, and the doctor had given him the maximum dose of whatever he was administering. Surprisingly today, though still in coma, he seems better, though the bp is still low, and he remains in critical condition

The old TMS group had whatsapped the news 2 days ago. I had to be in KL today, and as usual I took the bus. When I finished my business at about 11.30, I took the train from KL Central to Sg. Buloh, then a taxi to the hospital, which was less than 10 minutes away.

I first remembered Yusof when he and my future "biras", Shafiei Ramli, were demonstrating the marching movements on the TMS field, in front of the school hostel. They had both just came back from the Outward Bound School, Lumut. This must have been around 1959 ! (56 years ago).I wasn't acquainted with either of them at that time, but I knew their names. Shafiei was the headboy. I can't remember if Yusof was a Prefect. I called Shafiei after my visit just now.

Later in life Yusof married my second cousin from Sawah Lebar. Yusof is from Gunung Pasir. This was his first wife. She died much later from breast cancer, and he remarried, a bit later, his present wife,  from Seremban. For a while they were running a mobile market van in Paroi Jaya, where they were staying.

When Yusof was working at the Survey Department at College Road, KL, at first the family was renting a house in Kampong Baru, close to office. Later they moved to Ampang Jaya, and we became neighbours, one street away. Then I moved out, but they stayed on until the wife passed away in hospital in Kuala Pilah. Actually the first time she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she responded to medical treatment, including mamosectomy. Years later the cancer tragically returned. 

I used to go out with Yusof, when we were in KL, both when he was in Kampong Baru and Ampang Jaya. Of course we visited each other often in Ampang Jaya, but lost contact when I moved out, but now and then we'd bump into each other. The last time I spoke to him was on his mobile, when my brother Ajit gave me his number. At that time he was staying with one of his kids in Seremben 2, where Ajit is. That was after his eldest daughter, born when they were in Ampang Jaya, had just died, also from breast cancer.

I didn't stay long at the hospital. I pray Yusof recovers.

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NB
Sadly, Yusof never recovered. He died one day after my visit.
May God Bless you, my friend.


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Saturday, October 17, 2015

Jali.

17.10.2015.

Jali was just 51 when he died, 14 years ago.  Sakinah, his widow, gave me his age just now during their son, Fitri's, wedding.

When Sakinah passed the invitation card to Idah about 2 weeks ago (unnamed, but the message passed was well understood), I had straightaway determined that I'd not miss this reception.

Jali was one of the three Terachi first cousins I'd felt close to, more than Bang Sarip, Kak Ngah, Daro,  Jamlus,  Wok and Wati,  although Bang Sarip stayed with us for a while in Tanjung Malim.  The other 2 were Udin, a teacher with an American M.A., and Khalid, a police sergeant.  

When in Felda I visited Jali at his staff quarters in Segamat and later in Seri Ledang. The first time I met Sakinah was at Induk's house in Terachi. It was Hari Raya or a wedding, I can't remember. But I remember noticing the rows of gold bangles she was wearing, and I said "so much gold !" At the wedding just now they weren't there, but I still asked about them. She laughed.

When I got the card and saw the address of the reception venue I knew Fitri must be doing well. This was at up-scale Bukit Jelutong. I was right. In fact all 6 children of Jali are university educated, the last girl doing her Law finals at UUM (GPA 3.2 she said). Jali didn't go to university, but would have been very proud of his children.

Sakinah said the Felda plot is now hers, all of 10 acres now about to be replanted with oil palm. My experience says that should give her nett 3K monthly for at least 25 years. With Jali's pension and the children doing famously, she'd be  comfortable. That is fantastic for the memory of poor Jali. Fitri himself has a First Class engineering degree.

I had to choose between Sakinah and Dek Ma, who had arranged for Dahlia's remarriage at the same day today, but as I said, it was an easy choice. In fact Ajit called while on my way to Bukit Jelutong and I told him, but Dek Ma's call came when I was inside the petrol station and the phone was in the car. I saw the missed call but did not call back.

We were the first guests to arrive - it was only11 o'clock , but stayed  until the couple had sat on the "pelamin", and then, in spite of the  light rain, took our leave. It was about 1.40. A nice wedding, we both remarked. I'm glad we came. We said prayers for Jali.



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Thursday, October 15, 2015

The sickness in UMNO.

15.10.2015.

Basically many Malays are sick of UMNO. That's its main ill. And it could be fatal for the party.

Maulud, at 75 a long-time member, this morning during golf said it. I'm sick of UMNO. "I dah meluat."

There are two main scenes.

Officially, party leaders high and low, new and old, say they support the President. So they attack everyone who sounds anything like critical of Najib. There seems to be no limits to their public condemnation and the offensiveness of their language. Even the statement made by the Malay Rulers has been painted over to show lack of substance.

However, on the streets to almost a man everyone says Najib should go.

Najib supporters say this mamak Mahathir is senile and made worse mistakes in his time.

So is that admitting Najib's mistakes now ?

We are talking about the current problems. Mahathir has left office. The questions waiting for answers are right in front of us. No clear answers are given. The committees set up by Najib to purportedly find answers have been saboteged by Najib himself. The whole world has taken notice, based on newspapers in the US, Singapore, Switzerland and others countries.

The Bank Negara Governor and the AG are publicly locking horns now. Those supporting Najib are calling Zeti careless and lazy. A State leader two days ago in a speech in a closed meeting said how can Bank Negara revoke something it has given 5 years ago ?  This is a world-recognized Central Bank Governor we're talking about, while everybody knows the questionable appointment of the new AG. It's not merely filling of form, as sneered by the AG. In which case all court cases are filling of forms, anyway. Any  permission can be revoked. Surely the AG himself accepts that. More so if some conditions have been broken, not known before the committment.

There was an analogy given about working together in a boat, and throwing the captain overboard would be disasterous.

That was not an accurate description of the current political mess. We are not in a boat out at sea. UMNO's President is not the captain sailing any boat. He has very serious questions he's unable or unwilling to answer.  That means big trouble for GE 14, the disaster waiting to happen to the party. If he cannot explain these issues, or if he's guilty of any crime committed, his downfall would bring UMNO down with him. UMNO has to be led by someone else before that happens. UMNO had rejected Onn Jaafar, its first President, when he tried to bring non-Malays into the party. The party had governed the country since then. Up to now, that is.

Party members, all of them, and not just the 25 Supreme Council members, and not just the 192 divisional heads, claimed to be  3.5 million strong, must decide between an erring President or the Party. This is "pening kepala" lah !


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Sunday, October 4, 2015

Acik at Boting.

4.10.2015.

For some time now I'd wanted to visit Acik at Boting. She'd moved in with Nosa Ngatngat, I was told, since Jimikoling moved back his belongings to Acik's Senaling house. At that time Jimikoling only came back weekends, but now apparently he's moving back for good. In fact he came to Boting about 10 minutes behind us this afternoon and said he's rewiring the Senaling house, so that was proof. Jimikoling is a trained wireman.

This Boting plot was acquired by Pakcik Udin, and is a few acres in size. Nosa built the original house when Pakcik Udin was still alive. This was my second visit to the house, and I was surprised by the rebuilt house. It's been tastefully enlarged and redesigned inside and out. The fixtures were also nicely done. I thought Nosa said it cost her 200 grand ! The original house was less than 80 grand.

I asked to see Acik's room and was shown the middle bedroom with two single beds, a cupboard, a wall a/c and a stand fan. So I said to Acik she should just stay with Nosa here and forget about her Senaling house. I said Jimikoling loves his wife (his third) and Acik must accept that, and not be bothered about her ways.

Acik is my last remaining aunty. All other siblings of my late mother are gone now. Acik herself is almost 80 now, I figure. She's still healthy, but is becoming more forgetful. She couldn't recognize No. 2 Son at Calit's kenduri yesterday.

The Boting house should be good for Acik. The house sits in the middle of agricultural land, and the green scenery looks pleasant to me. There's a surau and a mosque nearby, so that part of her daily routine should be covered, though I don't think she goes to the surau anymore The only drawback seems to be the distance to the nearest neighbour. 

I should try to visit her more often, I resolve.


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Saturday, October 3, 2015

Amal and her wedding.

3.10.2015.

Yesterday, Friday 2nd. of October 2015, Amal was married off by Calit, her dad, my youngest brother, at Husayn Mosque, S2 at about quarter to four, to Wassim. Today, Saturday, the reception was held at Warisan Puteri.

On both days it was the meeting again of relatives and friends of old that I more than anything else savoured.

I was seated at the main table next to Dato' Dr. Nordin Keling, a 90-year-old relative from Tg. Jati, the former Veterinary Sec.Gen. Like Suman a.k.a. Ibrahim Keling (Dato') his younger brother, Nordin is quite deaf without his hearing aid. Between the loud music and his condition, our attempted conversation largely failed.  I had to practically put my mouth next to his  ear ! He said he's 1 year younger than Mahathir, and they know each other. He said Mahathir would always ask how old is he. Dr. Nordin asked me what I think of Ku Nan, the UMNO Sec. Gen. He said he remembers him when he was a contractor for the veterinary services, and Najib was in the Ministry. 

I was part of the receiving party, so until the married couple arrived, I met most of the guests that came. Most of the old relatives and friends were still recognizable through the wrinkles and white hair.  Nab the "wassup girl" was there. "G-man" the PKR donation collector and Fahmy, my PKR nephew also came, and I corrected him about spelling his own father's name - it's Muhammad Fadzil, no just Fadzil, I insisted. Then "Jimikoling" and "Deka" and "Jingkung" and "Kito", Cikgu Othman's son, a very long-time neighbour from Tobek Koring  came, and  so many more, all seemed to have made the trip. My two ex-Appeal Court Judges golfing kakis also made it, and I put them together at one table.


Yesterday Timah prepared the high tea for 100. There were at least 150 that came. So you know what happened. To-day KRS prepared food for 750.  1,200 came. Guess what happened.  Food that was supposed to last until 4 p.m. didn't survive 1 o'clock.   Idah was so nervous, she was sweating, but Calit & Nina seemed cool. The next day Calit came to the house and cried in front of Idah. Luckily I was at golf.


After the "menyembah" ceremony at about 3.30, conducted by Bang Piei, the reception only slowly trailed off, in spite of the "food crisis". I met some more friends who had come late, and the food didn't seem to matter. Other than that, I think Calit pulled off a successful wedding reception.  I saw the 24-year-olds truly happy, and that was the important thing. 

We stopped at Man Tom Yum on the way home. I had a  coconut drink and mee ladna (no chicken), followed by black coffee. Everybody else ordered different food and drinks.  I saw Wok at   the next table with her own group.  So now everybody is refuelling because of the "food crisis". Wok is a cousin and a full-fledged  Police Superintendent now attached to SPRM Putra Jaya. I made her pay for our table  before they left ahead of us. I gave her Dekna's number, and asked  her to call Dekna, adding if they have lunch together  Wok should pay because she has  worked longer and has  a bigger pay.


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Saturday, August 22, 2015

Rizal

23.8.2015.

I had to decide yesterday, Saturday 22nd August, whether to send Rizal on his betrothal, which was decided earlier, or attend my grandson Husyn's 1st birthday ? It was an easy choice because I'd committed to Rizal first. Also, this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, while Husyn has many,many more birthdays coming. Plus, I'm the leader of Rizal's delegation.

So, after my last visit to Felda Sg. Lui maybe 35 years ago, here I was again, entrusted with asking for a young woman's hands in marriage to the second son of my fourth brother. 

If  I didn't ask Idah to go to Mashitok's house to get the clarification for the proposed ceremony, we would probably be still in the dark. Mash did come to the house two weeks ago to tell me and Idah "Rizal nak bertunang." That was all he said, literally. Even at the last minute Yah said he didn't want the "tepak sireh." Two days later we went to the house to clear things up. In turned out Mash and Yah, too, were not sure. It was all up to Rizal. After waiting for some time, being told he was on the way home from work, we went back to my car, and Rizal arrived just as I switched the engine on. So there at the car window I got the itinerary all sorted out, and here we were at almost 12 noon, the appointed time, at Aisha's house, Sg. Lui, where the parents and family were already waiting.

I'd prepared a small write-up of some pepatah-petiteh a la adat meminang Nogori, but couldn't print it up because my 8-year-old hp stupid printer decided to quit on me, and my regular computer repairer said it's cheaper to replace than repair, and I'm not about to buy a new one. So I made up my mind early that I'd just go by the seat of my pants.

It went ok. We were there at 12, and we were ready to wrap things up before one, with "menyarung cicin" & photos, and lunch all thrown in. In fact the four of us in my car were even able to visit Bang Kalang just around the corner. Bang Kaland a.k.a. Razak Yaacob a.k.a. Jalaluddin Yaacob is the younger brother of the late Bang Sudin, my biras.

Nothing is cheap nowadays. Aisha's parents want a 10,000 dowry. I suppose the two of them can share that sum. After all they're going to get it for themselves. I might even suggest to Rizal to write a cheque - just don't bank it, ha ha. I said to the father, details should be discussed between Rizal & Aisha. We want everything to end well.

On the way home we stopped for cendul pulut at Bal's classmate's warong at Air Itam, had coffee at Cik Ani's house in Bahau, visited my parents' graves at Melang, bought cempedak and pisang goreng at Paroi (made Calit pay !), and finally reached the house. Wafa and her twin brothers were at S2.


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Saturday, August 8, 2015

Is the PM a crook ?

9.8.2015.

Events are unfolding at an incredible pace, in UMNO's business and all it touches.

Looking at the answers given by Najib & Co, incredible is an apt adjective.

I was a delegate to the Seremban UMNO division annual general assembly on 1st. of August. I came dutifully at 8.30, the appointed time. I asked both the Secretary and the executive secretary about the programme for the day, because the letter said  the meeting would be at Pusat Dakwah, but the opening ceremony by Najib at Kelana Resort. That's typical UMNO confusion. When the answer was everything at Pusat Dakwah on Najib's instruction, "to cut costs" ( ha ha !), morning session for opening ceremony, after Zohor for the meeting proper, I left the hall and came back around 1.50.  Mohd. Nor Bakar, the fish monger told me Isa and the freshly sacked Hasan Malek were there. In fact the tv showed  Hasan Malek sitting in the front row right in front of Najib.  If I was sacked, I wouldn't be anywhere near Najib, at least not in in first 3 days. Anyway, I'm not trying to get a chairmanship at a GLC , I suppose!

In the aftermath of the shoot-out of the 28th. of August, when the DPM Muhyiddin, the Minister Shafiei Apdal , (and of course poor Hasan Malik), the AG were summarily sacked, and 4 of the PAC members were kicked upstairs, Najib effectively sabotaged his own self-designed framework for the  defence of the 1MDB debacle. Events may well materialise to the contrary, but to my mind this is the ultimate suicidal act.

At the Pusat Dakwah function, JASA, the UMNO propaganda arm, had distributed  "22 Jawapan Najib Razak." The smartly and expensively  printed booklet obviously is an attempt to "answer" all the criticisms that have for the last several months been hurled at Najib. There are 22 listed answers by count. In fact some of the answers are related to others, so there are actually 14 answers, not 22. Even here there is  something missing !

To the 14 groups of questions, I would add 7 that I think Najib should also answer:  the 2.6 billion "donation",  the sacking of the DPM,  2 Ministers and the AG,  the 25-million diamond ring, Isa Samad's role in Felda and the financial nightmare looming, the fall of the ringgit,  the rise of the cost of living, and the image of a concerned leader.

Taking the ringgit's fall first, I remember talking to a senior MoF officer who served under both Mahathir and Dollah, who later served in NS, who observed that Mahathir had a DAILY meeting beginning at 8.30 SHARP to monitor the ringgit crisis in 1997. When Dollah took over, sometimes the meeting, which continued, took place, sometimes not, but always NEVER  on time. Now I wonder if Najib chairs similiar ringgit-crisis committee meeting anymore.

On the 2.6 billion "donation", well nobody would have known about the money if the WSJ had not blown the lid. Even then Najib certainly took his time in admitting it, when he could have started saying it was this extremely generous donation before the GE 13 the moment it was exposed. Now he thinks he's turning the table on PKR and DAP by demanding that they also must declare their political contributions. Najib cannot expect us to believe the excuse of "party funds" when even the Deputy President of UMNO did not know about it when the humongous gift was first made. And to use his private a/c ? And on the subject,  there are videos of Najib saying clearly how "trust a/c" are  to be administered. 

I have spoken to a former member of the Malaysian Bench, a former First Board Plantation executive, a former head of a State Special Branch, a nasi lemak seller, and many of my friends of various political inclinations, and ALL say:  it's beyond belief anyone would give THAT much, unless it's for something in return, in which case it's corruption of the highest order; that this contravenes the Money Laundering Act; that since this was 2 years ago, the Income Tax Act has also been broken.    

On the whole-sale sackings, it's true that it's Najib's right. But the way he was using his right was wrong ! He doesn't know right from wrong.

When Anwar was sacked, he had committed a crime. What crime has Muhyiddin committed ? 2 days after he spoke out, again, against 1MDB, in an UMNO closed forum, suddenly Najib jumped out from his usual lethargic modus operandi  and fired the Deputy President and a Vice President of his own ruling party (and that Vice President from Sabah, the state that probably saved BN in the last general elections). If  Najib goes now, it's UMNO that will decide who becomes the PM.  The leadership of the party would pass to the incumbent Deputy President. 

The AG is not the secretary to the Cabinet. He beholds his position to the King, and his removal must follow strict constitutionsl ritual. His health ? He says differently, but the Chief Secretary seems to know better.  Not a dismissal ? Clearly there's constructive dismissal if ever there was one ! And talk about nicities - Gani has only until October to reach his retirement age, and Najib could have made a personal call. 

The 4 members of the PAC being "kicked upstairs"? This, together with the removal of the AG, is obviously sabotaging the mechanism that Najib himself put in place in the defence of the 1MDB debacle.
  
In view of that 2.6 billion, in retrospect, the story of Rosmah's  25-million diamond ring is not exactly ridiculous.

And why is Isa Samad still in Felda ? The KWSP and similiar government-connected funds were used in the IPO that saw FGV shares starting at 4.50 or thereabout. It's now 1.60. So what happens to the retirement funds and the rest of the investors ? And what about the losses in the current accounts, and the bad investments in and out of the country ? I hear Isa now has an escort car when he travels. Raja Alias who built Felda to what it was before the politicians took over, would sometimes drive his little Honda ( the old tiny breed, not the new super variety) to work. He'd probably hide his face "malu" if he had the Felsco escort. But then, he may not need protection.

I know Najib, like Mahathir, used to "walkabout" also. Has he done so recently ? Does he know the actual cost of living right now ? Yesterday I bought some fruits on the PLUS. I couldn't believe the prices. You should check it out, too.

You see and hear all the time leaders in the West cutting short whatever their doing  to asap attend to domestic catasrophies. They know they  are put there by the people, and the least they can do is to at least appear to show concern,  especially when tragedies strike. When floods strike and mountains move Najib just carries on playing golf with the US President or visiting rich friends in the Middle East. In the latter case he even drags two Vice Presidents along, when either one or both can cancel the trip. The rich and powerful host would have understood. So much for "rakyat didahulukan"!

Now back to the 14 questions.

The Altantuya case is settled as far as the Courts of Law go. The question that Mahathir had raised is who gave the instruction to the two officers convicted ? He's not accusing Najib.

That Malaysia is a corrupt country ? Come on lah !

That BRIM is corruption ?  You give out cash for what ?  Is it to buy votes ? Do all the receipients deserve it ? My neighbour, a retired school teacher (not a graduate) who drives TWO Mercedeses, because they have a school catering service and houses for rent, duly gets her BRIM.

The 1MDB issue. Has enough been said ? Certainly not enough has been explained. And now the "Salam 1 Malaysia" has been removed on tv. Afraid it's being equated to 1MDB ?

The crooked bridge ? This was a Cabinet decision. Do facts change when Cabinet changes ? Why are excuses been offered NOW ?

That Najib's performance was better than Dolah's ? More UMNO seats, yes. But combined Parliament BN seats were 63.1% in GE 12 with Dollah, and less than 60 % in GE 13 with Najib ! Which is worse ?

That EPU is being bypassed. Just talk to the Government Servants. Just look at the PMO's set up. And all the "Pemudah" etc.

The abondonment of the Bumiputra "agenda" ? Talk to the Bumiputra contractors at the District Offices. The 1 Malaysia slogan - now playing soccer at the district selection the Indian players cry out "1 Malaysia!" and they have to take in one or two more of them. That's not a problem, but the intonation is the "Malay quota" concept of the Bumiputra agenda in the big scheme of things is being openly challanged and succumbs for the sake of appearance and correctness.

Has crime rate increased since the abolishment of ISA (and the Emergency Ordinance) ? Don't just quote figures nobody can countercheck. Listen to the stories being told also. And Singapore must know something we don't for keeping THEIR ISA  intact.

The purchase of the new executive jet. It's timing, my friend, it's timing. You make people pay more for everything and you splurge on a new jet ! How dumb can you be ?

It's true the GST has noble intentions, and just about all the countries in the Free World have done it. Since the implementation, have you studied the impact and the implementation ? It's supposed to be a restructuring of tax, some more and some less. But I pay GST for everything now, so it's all more now. Even paying for my daughter's PTPTN I have to pay GST where I paid no such tax before. Explain that.

Finally, this Mahathir thing.

Sure, the old man made a lot of mistakes in his 22 years. In such a long time who wouldn't ? But it looks bad if you make the same mistakes after him. In less time.

When Lim Kok Wing told the old man to be careful to not lose his legacy ( probably prodded by his boss) I can almost see the smirk on the old man's face. The point is,legacy you don't dictate. History dictates. We shall see what has been done in the 22 years Mahathir was PM, all the good, the bad and the ugly.  The thing is, Mahathir's premiership is over and can't be undone. It's the current affairs that we must put right while we can. 

Maybe the biggest mistake Mahathir made was making Najib  PM.


It would be a sad, sad day for UMNO if a son destroys what the father painstakingly  built.




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Thursday, July 23, 2015

S.I.T.C. cookhouse.

23.7.2015.

Padir (that's what we call him in the family) was maybe in Std 1 or 2. As usual in the morning, weekends, we'd wander around the College. One time we found ourselves at the cookhouse, where the cooks were cutting and frying  fish that day, inside the netted area. It was to keep the flies out, but there were still plenty inside because they were entering and leaving the room and the pesky pests simply followed suit.

Lots of fish were on the large knee-high cutting table. This was the meal for the entire College. They were expertly cutting out the innards and cutting each fish into two or three, and throwing the pieces straight into the large "kwali" with cooking oil boiling. One would stir the frying fish, and scoop out the cooked ones, and pile them into the waiting enamel basins. The cooks were not really paying attention to us boys, curiously watching the whole thing. We were inside the netted area - the cooks didn't seem to object and went on with their work.

I saw Padir picking a couple of cooked fish sections. I know we could slip out with a few. Just then the Assistant Steward suddenly appeared. We didn't see him coming.  He exclaimed "what are you  doing here, get out !" Then he grabbed Padir by the shoulder and demanded "what have you got there !" Padir had quickly put his hands behind his back when the Assistant Steward suddenly jumped on us. I guess he must have let the fish drop. The Assistant Steward chased us out of the cookhouse.

This was the new guy helping the real Steward, Jamaluddin, whom we knew, because he was staying with his family in the staff quarters area we all shared, and his son Jalalulmahli Jamaludin was one of our age-group friends.

Jamaluddin went to the Malaysia Hall, London as Steward years later. His son joined the Armed Forces , though I remember him as a "softie".

Padir ended as Group MD for the Felda Group, which had training centres, restaurants, and hotels with kitchens of their own. I wonder if he ever tried to pinch any fish there ?



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Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Glad to be back.

21.7.2015.

Phew !

Can't remember when I last posted on my blog. The problem was my cpu acting up before the fasting month, and I was too lazy to fix it. But this morning I finally went to the computer shop and had it done, and here we are.

Much has happened in the mean time. Malaysian politics, which I follow, is in deep shit. The Malaysian economy is, also. My pension is getting smaller and smaller. Shit. So what is new ?

Sadly, there have been several deaths, in the family, among friends, and in the neighbourhood. R.I.P. dear departed. I'm glad I was able to attend most of the sad funerals, except for Pa' Cu Kamil's.  Sharif chose to just sms me instead of making a call, and I only looked at the message just before the breaking of fast. I called Calit to go and visit together, mistakenly thinking Sharif meant the passing was 6.30 pm, when actually it was 6.30 am ! I was 12 hours too late !

Pa' Cu attended all my children's weddings. I even managed to get him to deliver a talk at the UiTM in front of Dekna's class when she was reading Law there. Pa' Cu would spend hours talking to my father into the wee hours every time he came back to Bukit Temensu in those days. My father wanted him to join UMNO and become the MB !

There is great news, too. After completing the required three-year experience, Memi had been admitted as a Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, Glasgow, in March.  The Certificate arrived during the fasting month. Anyway, he's joining Shell next month, as an ACCA.  

I spoke to Yusni about 1MDB when he came for Hari Raya on Sunday. I know, coming from Pekan, he's Najib's man, but he listened to my comments without interrupting. Whatever opinion he's having about the whole issue, I think what I said made some impression.

I'm on the second day of my Syawal fast today. I'd plan to do six straight days this year, but I've to take a break Thursday because Bangdek is having a khenduri at his house, a thanksgiving for Aza getting her PhD in Education. So I'll finish Sunday, instead.


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Saturday, April 18, 2015

Visiting Anna.

19.4.2015.

After a lengthy loss of contact, yesterday Saturday 18th April, Ari, Wira, my wife and I managed to visit ailing Anna at her PD house, the endowment of Anak Din, her husband who died 11 years ago. Ikhwan had given Anna's mobile number, and several calls followed by  several wrong turns finally brought us to her corner lot 3-room terrace house at Jalan 3/7 Taman Intan Perdana, Telok Kemang. Anna and her new husband were waiting for us.

What brought us to visit was the news that she nearly lost a foot due to diabetic infection, but was saved by "maggot treatment." I've read and seen such cases some years ago on the internet, but not the rest of the group. They were naturally puzzled by the "ulat" thing. Anna confirmed it, and it was as I'd seen on the internet. Back home that night I showed the video to Idah on my p.c.

After her husband died from illness when based at Sungei Besi, Anna was diagnosed with severe diabetes. She's now on 2 insulin injections daily, has lost weight, and depends on her husband for their household chores. The right foot infection started innocently enough  with a sore and some hard scratchings, and before long it became a large infected open wound on which she claimed to have spent RM 7,000 for hospital visits and various treatments without improvement, and ending with the PD Hospital's two final options  - amputation or maggots treatment. The choice was simple, and it worked !

Even when Anak Din was in Kuala Lipis (that was how they knew Siti Norhaliza, and in fact she came to Sg. Besi for their daughter's wedding before Anak Din passed away) and Nenasi, Pekan, we visited. He was transferred to many places before his last posting to Sungei Besi. Ari said he went to all of them. Anak Din was Ari's nephew.

Now that Anna is in ill health, Husin, a widower and her new husband, is looking after her. He's 61, a year older, and isn't working anymore, but they're managing on Anna's pension, and they say it's enough for them, and yesterday it appeared so. The children from both past marriages are all married with children of their own, staying all over the place but mostly in Pahang, so visits are infrequent, but Anna said she understands and doesn't mind. Cik Ani called last night asking about our visit which she heard about, and I told her to visit Anna soon.

Anak Din died well before retirement age, but since my marriage into that extended family in 1971 until his untimely passing in 2004, I had acquired a liking for his jovial nature, among others. He got his good looks from his late mother, and was quite a ladies' man. In fact his "casanova" ways got him in trouble, and there are a few instances that I know of. But he raised a good family, and they have remained, in spite of separation, close.


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Saturday, April 11, 2015

Najib vs Mahathir - the ongoing debate.

12.4.2015.

The ongoing debate isn't between Najib and Mahathir in person. It's between each other's "camp", and I use that word loosely because apparently the anti-UMNO group is also in Mahathir's corner, for their own obvious motives.

Let's start with Najib's recorded televised response to the mounting Mahathir's questions.  In the latest posting, Mahathir didn't accuse Najib of any crime, the least of it about  murdering Altantuya. Dollah came out of his "elegent silence" (Musa Hitam's words, defending Dollah against Mahathir) to say that Najib didn't kill the Mongolian. One would think that Dollah, if ever he publicly comes out to say something, would utter pearls of wisdom that compensate long silences, not giving light, unsolicited opinions on questions that are not even asked of him, but that's Dollah, I suppose. Mahathir was asking a months old question about a very specific subject : 1MDB. 

In an examination, marks are given for the answers: full marks for the fully correct answers, and  sliding down with the quality of the answers. No marks are given for answers where no questions are asked. And there is a time frame for giving the answers, not forever.

And unlike questions and answers in front of attending press, a staged event without impromtu questions carries less weight. 

True, Najib touched on 1MDB, but he didn't specify on  the many related transactions, figures and personalities that have been bandied around at least from December last year. And then he spoke about BRIM, the Crooked Bridge, and his relgious oath about Altantuya. So on the quality of the answers, what marks should I give Najib ? I'm not  Malik Daim and give "0". But I can hardly give too much more than that.

If there's nothing to hide, why can't Najib follow Muhyiddin and KJ's advice and explain everything right now ?


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Friday, April 10, 2015

An ACCA in the house.

10.4.2015.

Today, Friday 10th. April, three and a half years after completing his examinations, having now completed the 36-month working experience stipulation, I received a written confirmation of No. 3 Son's accredition to the Glasgow ACCA. He's now a full member of The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants,  reference 1203184, and is entitled to add "ACCA" after his name. 

The booklet says he is now part of ACCA's community of 170,000 found in 180 countries. This membership increases his employability and earning potential, and adds international mobility to his career. Not long ago an architect acquintance talked to me about the demand for ACCA's in this country.

I called him, and sms'd the message to the Group whatsapp. Everybody got excited, including No.3 Son himself. Since his birthday is coming at the end of the month in tandem with Ajim's and Wafa's, I suggested he sponsors a joint celebration in a nice restaurant in PJ or KL.

He can charge the expense under "customer relationship".


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Sunday, April 5, 2015

The Old Man and the Malays.

6.4.2015.

The kris is drawn.

Mahathir has made it clear. He wants Najib out.

On advising Najib through more diplomatic channels, he says he has been doing it "quietly" and through "intermediaries" for four years. That mode is now declared over.

Will Najib draw his own kris ?

Other Malays have drawn theirs. 

The Hon. Secretary of Veteran UMNO Malaysia had quickly posted his anti-Mahathir comments, calling him "hysterical", on the internet, with or without the Chairman's consent, I don't know. Certainly I don't support his comments.

Other bloggers have quickly thrown their weights behind  Najib. This afternoon before the start of the Taman Dato' Shahbandar Branch Annual General Meeting, Kudus the Ketua Cawangan made some nasty comments about Mahathir to me. I retorted what Mahathir has said contains nothing new to the public. I said I agree to the points raised. I said the audience is not just the 3.5 UMNO members, it's also the rest of the 29 million Malaysians. I said Najib is free to answer the questions raised by Mahathir. Kudus was also free to answer back my defence of Mahathir.  He didn't. 

The old man is concerned with the political fate of the Malays. That was what he said, and I buy that. In his estimation Najib is not doing a good job of it. He says Najib has "too many scandals" right now to remain an effective leader. The public outcry about 1MDB, the Altantuya case, and the purchase of the aircraft in particular demand answers. The government's, and by the same token Najib's, answers haven't been forthright. Mahathir thinks this spells trouble for UMNO in GE 14. This spells trouble for the Malays.

Mahathir wasn't a spring chicken when he became PM on 16th. July 1981. He was 56. But the 21 years 11 months and 6 days he was PM is the longest ever of the 6 PM's. 

Mahathir went through 9 General Elections, from no. 2 to no. 10. He won his first election as MP for Kota Star Selatan, Kedah, but lost his second try on 10th. May 1969 because the Chinese voters deserted him for his strident pro-Malay stance. When the Kuala Lumpur race riots broke out three days after DAP made big gains in Selangor (and some other states like Penang), copies of Mahathir's open letter criticising  the Tunku  were widely circulated in KL.  It earned Mahathir a wide following, especially from the young Malays. But it also earned him the wrath of the Tunku and got him sacked from UMNO. 

He was an "outsider" from 1969 to 1974.

In 1972 Razak, through Harun Idris, brought Mahathir back into UMNO. He was 48. Three months later he was voted into the party's Supreme Council with the highest votes, but lost the VP contest to Sardon, Hussein Onn and Ghaffar Baba. He was made a Senator.

In GE 4 on 24th. August 1974 Mahathir won the Kubang Pasu Parliamentry seat unopposed and made the Education Minister, considered a senior portfolio and a stepping stone to premiership.

At age 50 in 1975 Mahathir was elected UMNO's VP together with Tengku Razaleigh and Ghaffar Baba. 

On 14th. January 1976 Razak died in London. Hussein became PM, and after a 10-day deliberation, appointed Mahathir DPM. Ghaffar, who was once Acting PM when Razak went abroad for an extended period, resigned.

In 1978 Mahathir was elected Deputy President of UMNO.

In January 1981 Mahathir was made Acting PM when Hussein went to London for heart surgery. In July the same year Hussein resigned as PM because of ill health. Mahathir became PM 12 years after he was sacked from the party.

You can list all that he has done as PM for  22 years, both the monumental and the mundane.  Admittedly they're not all good. Nothing is ever "all good". Remember the Memali case in Kedah, the deregisteration of UMNO in 1987, and the financial crisis that pitted Malaysia against IMF and the World Bank, and the Anwar case ? But the Malay agenda had followed "the Malay Dilemma". The old man and the Malays are in the same boat. He can't be dismissed just like that. He deserves being listened to. He has earned that.


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Friday, April 3, 2015

Careless Malaysians ?

4.4.2015.

I put a question mark because I'm not sure I can make it vividly clear while quoting the recent tragic news about the loss of a very young life because of the escalator accident, and not be callously disrespectful to his family. I feel the pain because I have a family of my own, and I don't want any harm to come to them, just as the boy's family surely didn't want him to be hurt.

This isn't the first accident on an escalator in this country. I rack my brains to figure out how anyone could fall off an escalator. The warning signs, the basic safety features, the slow speed of the moving steps - all appear to make the contraption safe, short of stopping it entirely. It takes some effort to slide out of the protective handrails and fall.

Malaysian cleaners on  buildings, too, take extra effort to court danger. They climb on high ledges, stand tip toes on window sills, wear no safety wires and hook no nettings. 

When we park our cars the only consideration is to put them  as close as possible to the shops we intend to go to without actually driving our cars inside the the shops. Other considerations like not blocking the road, and inconveniencing other motorists, are  never considered. 

Road workers, even on the PLUS highway, nonchalantly do whatever they're supposed to do, without warning cones and safety reflective  jackets, and blissfully ignore the 120 k.p.h. vehicles that can crush them to a bloody mess in an instant hurtle inches from them.

Of course all of us chat, whatsapp and everything else that we all do on our moblie devices (they're no longer called 'phones, you know that! ) while driving, and that includes on motorcycles. 

Not long ago, some of the Club's workers were cutting down a large tree just after the 18th. hole. (Why the Club wanted to cut it escapes me. It seems the Club is in the business of slowly removing all the trees they never even planted, and end up as a treeless golf club. That'll be an achievement for a golf club anywhere in the world.) Another staff, one of  the tractor drivers, came by on his bike, to go for a break. Seeing his friends just about to bring the tree down, he took the chainsaw from Man's hands and proceeded to finish the final cut on the tree trunk. He didn't take note of the branches, although he must have made his plans to jump away from the falling trunk. Tragically one of the branches whipped his neck as the tree came down, and took his life right then and  there.

I can go on and on and make my case. It's happening all the time. Life and limb are surely as valuable here as in other countries. Why are  Malaysians more careless ?


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Sunday, March 29, 2015

Najib's daughter's wedding.

29.3.2015.

I've just returned from Najib's daughter's wedding at PWTC to-day. It was befitting a PM's khenduri, the set-up, decor and presentations. I was told the PM had catered for 20,000 guests !

The TWO, yes, two invitation cards I received told me I'd better attend. But because I was determined to go by bus, Idah backed out. I said people are trying to avoid traffic. The bus takes you to the Central Market LRT, where the LRT Kelana Jaya Line  takes you to the Mesjid Jame' interchange and you take the LRT Sentul Line that stops at PWTC right on the doorstep of the wedding reception.

I left Seremban early, giving myself two hours for the journey and a walkabout at KL Sentral. I had breakfast at the "Swiss Oven" with some chaps with the Formula 1 Teams from Sepang, and I walked about, and was still 15 minutes early. It was just as well, because I was able to enter the "Dewan Merdeka", and not "Dewan Tun Razak 1,2 &3" where it was buffet style. At "Dewan Merdeka" we were set 8 to a table. Those who came later had to be diverted to the other venues.

The musical interlude was pleasant, especially the young choir and dance troupe. They were tastefully dressed in Malay costume, and being children, all looked cute, made highly visible on the multiple huge screens strategically placed throughout the PWTC.  The crowd was typically Malaysian, of course, stingy with the  applause. In fact I was the only one clapping at my table.

The couple looked resplendent in their Malay costumes. The groom seemed serious, though, while the bride was chatty, now and then turning and saying something to her new husband.

Although we were set at the table, with the dome and all that, all around the hall there were also stalls offering all kinds of mee and laksa, teh tarik and cendul, and cakes. In fact when the ceremonies were finally started at half-past one, after the reciting of do'a and the newly-wed had joined the others on the bridal table, I noticed those close to the stalls had started to pick up their laksas etc, so I joined them. So I had Penang laksa before I dug into my nasi beriani.

I didn't wait for the official ending - it was almost three. Before I left, together with others with the same idea, I bumped into Kassim Tadin.

"What am I going to tell Najib afterwards, you're leaving early ?" Kassim joked.
"Tell him I've to do my solat zuhur lah" I said.

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Thursday, March 26, 2015

Pa' Ijoi

26.3.2015.

Pa' Ijoi a.k.a. Ahmad Zulkifli died Saturday 21st March (30th Jamadilawal), not quiet 60.

I think it was a fortnight ago that he came to the house on his way home from Bangi. After some refreshments he took a nap on the carpet in the sitting room. I gave him a cushion as a pillow. He woke up around Asr.

Exactly a year ago he had a minor heart attack and was hospitalised at the Kuala Pilah Hospital, but for only a few days. The hospital staff had said "yours is a serious case, uncle."

In fact a few years ago Pa' Ijoi, who would kiss Dekna whenever they meet, something even I don't always do to this only daughter of mine, went for some tests at IJN, and was later scheduled for angioplasty. He never went.

Pa' Ijoi was a strapping guy with a matching love for good cuisine, who didn't give too much concern for his high bp and blood sugar. Because I have the same problems, I often advised him to watch out his food intake and not to forget his medication. God Decides when it's time; we should also take care of ourselves.

We were on our way to lunch when Idah got the call from Balkis in the car - Pa' Ijoi was "unconscious". The long lunch planned was cut short; several calls were made - to Ari, Bangdek, Kak Long Izan, Dekna and some others I can't remember now. I also called Balkis again, and this time her reply was ominous. Pa' Ijoi was foaming in the mouth and wasn't responding at all. Balkis was alone. She spooned some sugared warm water but it just spilled out from Pa' Ijoi still lips. She said several people she had called were at the house already, and the ambulance from Juasseh had been called. I tried to calm her. Then I called my brother Dr. Din at his clinic in Bahau, and asked him to have a look immediately. I found out later that he came quickly, before the arrival of the ambulance and with another doctor. But it was already too late. When I pieced the sequence of events, I put the time of death at 2 p.m. In the official Police report I believe they put it at 3. We arrived at at the house at about 3.45 p.m.

I felt specially close to him. Ai and I always teased him with "Chi oledi". It was that song by Tom Jones, and Pa' Ijoi was staying with Bangdek in Ampang Jaya, and Ai was also staying there, attending school there, I think, and the song went "She's a lady..... !", but Pa' Ijoi, not knowing English and learning the song by ear was giving it his own pronounciation ! When Bangdek moved to the Jalan Tun Razak government quarters, Pa' Ijoi followed him. They gave him the servant's room behind the kitchen that came with the quarters. Because Kak Zawiah would lock the kitchen doors quite early at night, Pa' Ijoi would go to the shops nearby for late-night snacks. To this day I don't think Bangdek knows about this. I used to bring my .22 rifle whenever we went back to the house in Lonek, and Pa' Ijoi loved to shoot and suggested I leave the gun with him. He had a firearms licence and his own double-barreled shotgun and was a good shot. Hari Rayas he'd wrestled me to get the "ang pows" I'd carry with me to distribute to his three kids. I would tease him about PAS and PKR of which he was sympathetic, and me with my UMNO ties. In fact if he was UMNO he would have been "Ketua Kampong" long ago. Ketua Kampong is Government, and paid.

When I helped bathe his remains on the house varendah on Sunday morning, his body was firm and sturdy, and he looked as if in deep sleep. We laid him to rest next to his mother's grave. Kamil, his only son, led the funeral prayers. When I arrived on Saturday, after reciting the Yasin sitting close to his head, I called Kamil and said he should lead the funeral prayers as his last service to his late father, and I showed him how to do it. Ari and Idah gave their agreement. I didn't ask Balkis, but I believe everybody was happy that Kamil led the prayers in the mosque. The practice is encouraged by the shari'ah, but is uncommon. It was 11 a.m. and for a kampong congregation, the 100 plus people attending was surprisingly large. It showed the great relationship Pa' Ijoi had built in the kampong, having opted for early retirement and returning home several years ago.

Though only a brother-in-law, Pa' Ijoi was close to me, visiting each other more often than my own siblings. Durian and rambutan seasons always meant the fruits would reach my house, one way or another. We have delicious "durian kampong" and great "budak sekolah" rambutans, and also mangosteens behind the Lonek house. Sometimes so much rambutans were sent to us, and there are just the two of us, there would be left-over fruits that would turn black in the plastic bags they came in.

Without him I don't know if I'll go back to Lonek, or if I do it would not be with the same feeling. I wish the three children well. I encouraged Kak Long to sit for her STP instead of finding employment after her SPM. She followed the advice, went to  SITC in Tanjung Malim,  and is now a graduate teacher in Sarawak. I encouraged Kak Ngah to open her own tailoring business and she has. I have told her husband, now that they have moved to Palong, to get a van and farm out tailoring jobs to seamstresses around the complex, and open business to the big-spending and large settlers' community. Very early in his young life, I tried to encourage Kamil to play golf: my own sons didn't take to the game. But Kamil picked tennis, like his father, but the game remains a past time. I'd wanted him to be like what Mizi, his cousin, is now - a pro golfer. Incidently I feel some responsibility in Mizi's case, too. I was the first person to bring him to see the PGA teaching pro Tony Maloney who was in Cheras at that time.

Now there are only two brothers left - Bangdek and Ari.


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