Sunday, December 30, 2018

Goodbye 2018.

Monday 31 Dec 2018.


Golf handicap 12.

That's in my "2018 Golf Notes". I'd jotted down "play to 12" as a resolution for 2018. Well, believe it or not, my MGA National Handicap System handicap card for December 2017 says "USGA Handicap Index 13.1; Course/Slope Rating 72.5/ 134; blue: 16; white: 15", while the same card for December 2018 says blue:11; white: 11". I made it. 

Not bad for 74. That's the age, not the rating.

On top of accompanying Dekna to the Courts in Ipoh and Muar several times, and to Penang once,  accompanying realtives for weddings they chose to hold as far away from home as possible, and 3 overseas family trips, with 13 hours of total flight time, and equal hours of waiting time, I'd accumulated  some mileage for 2018. I guess family matters matter.

Then there was the Great GE 14 on 9th. May, that saw an over-confident, over-bloated and over-everything-else BN thrashed after 61 years being in power. There was the unnecessary, wasteful bye-election in PD,  and soon,  the necessary but equally wasteful bye-election in Rantau, both in NS.

I attended BERSATU's NS Convention in PD 9th. December, and the first day of its National AGM in Putrajaya held 29-30 of the same month.

In both venues I saw the youthful composition of the crowd. That's promising.

There was palpable enthusiasm in both places. That's also promising.

No money changed hands for "expenses" in PD and Putrajaya. I was there.   This I've seen in PWTC every year, and I was there for 10 straight years.  Is that promising ?

There were lots of talk, of course. These were party politics, anyway.  But, as they say, talk is cheap.  People talk of  "the Malay Tsunami" in GE 14. They spoke of the UMNO rot and the current desertions of  its elected representatives, although Mahathir astutely downplayed the effect of this party-hopping. Because BERSATU stands to gain the most, and PKR and DAP are already making suitable  noises. They spoke in PD and Putrajaya of doing this and that, and not doing this and that. Would everyone who needs to act, do so ? Walk the talk, as it were. Syed Saddek said the right thing in Putrajaya - if BERSATU stops doing what it did before GE 14, it would lose GE 15.

Then there were the exFMC/RMC gatherings, in Mindef and Sg. Besi. Some old friends of half-a-century ago met. And I met Hafizi in Ipoh after 50 years. The years have taken their toll, family lives keep us all apart, but the fond memories linger.

The whole year I'd tried to catch up on my reading. That's an "F". But in doing so, I'd tried to reorganize my collection of books. I started with my golf library, but that's all I've done so far. I found out that I have 111 books under this topic. Maybe that's why I got the handicap 11 - it's 10%.

Well, no earth shattering records were made by me this year. No mountains were moved, nor the helpless of the world saved. But I kept the family together, and we're healthy and still wise. No wealth here, though. But it's ok.


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Monday, December 24, 2018

MPV goes North.

Monday 24 Dec 2018.



We finally reached home close to midnight last night, all the way from Padang Besar, Perlis, on Saturday, and after the wedding reception in Jitra, Kedah, Sunday.  The first 1,000 km on the MPV was supposed to take a week, and get first service in Seremban. Instead it was notched in one day, and got that service in Penang. And the new upholstery got tested by the 3 monkeys in less time! But it passed muster, and my old S Class steering somehow felt heavy in comparison.

Dekna had a court appearance in Penang Friday, and her colleague's belated wedding in Jitra, Sunday. That's how the MPV came in the picture, and Padang Besar got included. Haniff drove, so I just enjoyed the ride. 

The last time I drove up to Padang Besar was 20 years ago, when No.2 Son was in UiTM Arau. I used to go to Chuping 1982-85, when my job covered the sugar plantation there. It's under rubber now. And Aman Shah, the ex GM of the factory, is retired in Arau. The place, like other towns I've recently revisited after decades, has changed.

We spent the first night in Penang, and the other two in Alor Star. I always look forward to the breakfast spread when staying in hotels. Penang, as expected, was ok. I got up early, but was beaten to it by a couple of guys. Alor Star wasn't as good, and was also beaten to it by some early risers.

The road up to Padang Besar and back to Seremban was jammed, as expected, these being the school holidays now. Penang was jammed. Alor Star was jammed. Padang Besar was jammed. And all the R & R's were so jammed, cars couldn't enter and were parked along the highway. People are complaining of the price of petrol and the cost of living, but they don't seem to show it. Padang Besar stalls charged rm 5 for a young coconut, on "normal" days only rm 3, I'm told. But there was no shortage of customers, all weighed down with bulging plastic bags of purchases. And the last night in Alor Star, I went to a nearby shopping mall at 9 p.m. and there was a crowd in all the outlets, and they were buying, not simply window shopping.

Dekna's Kedah colleagues told her to try the "Laksa ikan seqok". I thought it's a variety of fish. Actually it's laksa with one whole fish on top. This Kedah dialect ! We tried it, together with satay. Excellent ! Maybe being hungry helped. I love the piece of fat on the beef satay. Later we also tried the kweitiau kerang; also good. In both places, we somehow managed to grab the last available table.

The Jitra wedding was in an air-conned hall. The setting was nice. We were early, so the food que was still ok. But because we also left early, Dekna learned later that we missed the "coffee table". She met many friends from Putrajaya, and missed a few who came later.

Dekna has still to get behind the wheel of her brand new MPV. Her recent eye-operation has kept her from it. She could try it in a few days time. Then maybe we can go South.


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Monday, December 17, 2018

Persona to Kia.

Tues 18 Dec 2018.



Yesterday was one long day. Of waiting. Waiting at the KL Courts. Waiting at Puspakom Setapak. Waiting at JPJ Setapak. Waiting at Kia, Federal Highway. 

The day started at 6 a.m. It ended at 10 p.m. That's 16 hours. That's two-third of the day.

It seemed a real waste of time, even if the job at hand was necessary, not trivial.

Dekna had to be at court to fix a hearing date. We arrived at 7.30. The canteen was just opening, the Registrar windows still shut. When her turn came, it was 10.15. That's three-and-a quarter hours of waiting. And business was completed in all of 5 whole minutes ! In this digital age, the Courts, like the Law it espouses, seems stone-age.

Then off to Puspakom. Documents had to be readied. The vehicle had to be readied. The queue was ready. But the lady processing the queue wasn't. After that the vehicle must follow the next queue. This time the men were ready. But the queue was a snail-crawl.

After that, off to JPJ just next door.  Again the digital age has left them stranded. The report at Puspakom had to be repeated physically because although the inspection done was by the same people for the same vehicle, the intended departments were separate, requiring a separate report, for the same vehicle, done on the same day, by a different department related to each other in the same office. So Puspakom and JPJ  took care of the rest of the 4.30 government closing time. That's 10.5 hours total thus far.

Off we rushed (this was rush hour now) to Kia on the Federal Highway. Their closing time was 6.  Our appointed time 5.30.  We made it. Whew!

Then the final documentations, the explanations, the demonstrations and the little trials. Now we were ready to leave. And the clock said 7.30. Then fuel tanks and stomachs to be filled, and the eternal road jams to be endured. And it was finally 10 p.m. Whew again !

Dekna bought her first car, a Persona, in Kuantan in 2011. The car is Malaysian, of course. It served its purpose, is still in good condition, and was sold to Bang Piei for 17,000. That's less than one-third of the original price. But after 7 years, it seems all right.

This Kia Grand Carnival 8-seater is  c.b.u. and Korean, and is 3 times the price of the Persona. For the next 9 years she'll have to make her monthly instalments, until age 43. Seems a long way from Korea to KL, a long time until 2027. I'll be 83. There'll be at least one new PM. There'll be at least 2 more General Elections. Would I see an L.A. in my house, and her contemporaries in  Parliament?  We'll wait and see.

In the mean time, let's enjoy the ride.


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Sunday, December 16, 2018

FMC Port Dickson reunion.

Sunday 16 Dec 2018.



This was the reunion planned a couple of months ago now finally happening Sunday 16th December 2018, exactly 65 years after Foundation Day 17 December 1953. The PD intakes 1952 -1961 organized themselves for this "FMC Port Dickson Budak Boys Get-together". It was a success.

"Budak Boys" seems like a misnomer of sorts if you take the joint translation, but through use all these years it now conveys the homely connotation rolling on the tongue, nostalgic and fond. The gathering today was pleasant, warm and enjoyable. This get-together  of 70's plus only refreshened memories of lost youth and the years that rolled by, but not sensed with sadness, rather  with sweet rememberance of friendships born and lives lived.

I had sought Hank's company, coming here. I wasn't sure of the directions, as this was the first time I would be coming to this new RMC campus, since they moved from the old Sg. Besi one that we moved to from PD in 1961. The agreed rendesvous time was 8 a.m. at Tesco Seremban 2. Then we'd feel our way through the old college route through Sg. Besi town, we thought, because Hank wasn't sure of the way himself.

In the end, it was simple. We took the old way, through Sg. Besi town, to the mosque, and got directions from the guardhouse, and arrived at the Wisma Perwira in good time. It's an impressive campus. The whole area has been planned well, and the question about "why change ?"  was placated with the results seen. Only the news I got later, that the golf course is no more, was the bad news.

We thought we'd be among the earliest to arrive, but people were already there ahead of us.

The usual stuff took place - the registration, the contributions, the food & drinks, the photographs, even a tree-planting event, and the speeches in the hall with the current Putras applauding loudly on cue. Nawawi made an impressive speech that related the good old with the better new. He had no notes, but he touched on all the right things. It was a pity that we couldn't mingle with current Budak Boys long. The next time we should introduce individually the outstanding among us, as an encouragement to the current students.

I had a great time reuniting with my 1961 intake. Aji was there, surprisingly looking youthful, with black hair and all. All the rest of us were grey ! I met Musa "Brunei" for the first time in 56 long years. He's a retired colonel now. He was so happy he invited me for breakfast the next morning, but I had to decline. There was Shah, Md Nor, Nor Shaari, Zaki Mahmud, Husin Senik, Nawi, Rahman Daud, Megat, Wan Wahid, Jalaludin, Arthur Samuel, Hamid Arshat, Mui Yoke Loong, Liew Yeow Keong, Md. Sham, Li Heng Tiong and so many others. But many that I can remember didn't make it, too. I think there were about 150 present. I said to Farid, before leaving, we should make this Foundation day an annual affair.

Going home, Hank and I decided to try the alternative route through Jalan Belimbing. In fact this is an easier way. We come out to Belakong, and reach the road to Lekas, the route straight forward and the road clear. Maybe because it's Sunday. 

We were back to Tesco before 3. We stopped for a cuppa before breaking up. Hank paid, as also the toll. But it was my car, so that about broke it even.


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Sunday, December 9, 2018

BERSATU NS

Monday 10 Dec 2018.


At the renamed The Grand Beach Hotel, Port Dickson, yesterday Sunday 9th December, 2018, BERSATU N.S. had its 1st. post-GE convention. I attended on the late invitation of Jefri, the pro-tem divisional head of  Seremban. About 500 attended. It was a youthful gathering, and I felt old, but not out of place.

The wily Rais Yatim, the present pro-tem head of BERSATU N.S., contrived this timely gathering. Mukhriz declared it open, and the PH MBNS also came, of course.

Timely, because it's been 7 months since the PH historic win at the GE14 polls. The UMNO-PAS led ICERD rally in KL yesterday is a reminder that 5 years are not too many years before GE 15 and another day of reckoning, and the barking dogs at PH's doors are not resting for one moment.

And the rakyats are watching.

No amount of cheering in the hall, and there was plenty enough, would save PH the next time around. The rakyat must stay convinced that PH is on the right track. The work is cut out for BERSATU. Their share in PH must be bolstered. Their support among the rakyat must therefore also be bolstered.

That the Dataran Merdeka rally on Saturday gathered less than the touted "million" ( the Police estimate was 55,000 of only young Malay men, women and children from as far as Johor and Kelantan; the reporters said it was double that ) and was dampened by rain isn't the point.  The fact remains, people can be instigated to show public support for a cause, even if they are vague about its real intent, and unaware of the real situation.  That interview Mukhriz related of the lady from Terengganu who said "of course I must come and support this anti-ICERD" and then couldn't explain what's ICERD, is revealing. UMNO-PAS have been in the business too long not to grab at a good chance to attack the new PH government, for whatever cause, true or false. The PH government had already announced its decision of not ratifying ICERD. So the rally was to get something already gotten. And Mukhriz also mentioned some slogans for "support Najib" and even "support Rosmah".

Rais, Mukhriz, and later Eddin spoke well enough. Combined, they touched on the reason why BERSATU was born, how it convinced the voters that  UMNO had forsaken the Malays, exposed what Najib & co had done, and joined-up with the 3 parties and led the voters in droves to oust the 61-year old BN out of office.

The 8 speakers from the divisions, plus the clever unscheduled squeezing by Ruslan Kassim ( he's been doing it from UMNO, PKR and Perkasa days) combined also covered the topics of the Manifesto (Kuala Pilah), agricultural products (Jelebu), NEP (Port Dickson), Malay rights (Rembau), unity (Rasah), the Constitution (Tampin), BERSATU (Seremban), and education (Jempol). The Srikandi and Armada wings also spoke of empowering women, and the socio-economic problems facing the country. These are pertinent topics that require action, although more effective speakers should  convey the messages.

Now after 7 months, the PH Manifesto is not measuring up to the GE boast.  Cabinet members are performing below par. And PKR and BERSATU divisional affairs are facing the same party problems that plagued UMNO in the last 10 years. 

I'd come prepared with my own notes, in case there was a chance to speak. I'd jotted down about BERSATU being a Malay / Bumiputra party that must take matters up where UMNO failed; about personal agenda replacing national agenda; about integrity and corruption; about abuse of power; about billion-dollar scandals; about courage and political will; about party elections, and about taking action here and now. But only 3 speakers spoke, simply because Rais declared 2 p.m. as closing time. I'll have other opportunities, I hope.


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Tuesday, December 4, 2018

A 74th birthday.

Wed 5 December 2018.



To-day is my 74th birthday. It's Wednesday 5th December 2018. It's 27 Rabiul awwal  of the new 1440 Hijriah.  All quiet on the western front. 

Yesterday I had a celebration of sorts at the IOI mall.  I'd tagged along for Sham's 60th birthday lunch by Kak Long, and Idah told them about mine, so we shared the same cake and Happy Birthday song, all 8 of us. 

Later we adjourned to Kak Long's house in Bangi, where we finally ate the chocolate cake. We left after asr prayers and stopped for early dinner at Man Tomyam, Seremban. I reached home as the magrib prayers were heard on the surau's loud speakers.

So I had free lunch, tea and dinner, and the birthday cake. Dekna had bought me a dozen Titleist ProV golf balls and a new t-shirt (they used to call them polo shirts) a couple of days earlier. So all in all I did ok. Except for the revisit of the back pain I had 2 years ago. Now I can't play for a while. It's been 2 weeks now. The last time it lasted 3 months. I hope it'll clear up in 1 or 2 weeks more.

Meanwhile I'm thankful for everything just now.


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Saturday, December 1, 2018

MUBARAK's 15th AGM.

Sat 1 Dec 2018.


A muted, half-day, low key, cheap 15th. AGM for MUBARAK MALAYSIA was held at the "3-star" Hotel Maluri on the outskirts of KL to-day. It used to be a top hotel in a top spot. Everything had been cut down: the venue, the duration, the expenses, even the ranking of the chief speaker. The menu was cut. No meeting allowance this time. It was as if to underline the need to lie low and spend lower, now that the chief sponsor is no more.

Only the talk was expensive.

The M.C. strayed from emceeing and talked expensive. The reciter of the "do'a" strayed from solicitations and talked expensive. There were many loud "amin's" towards the end of the "do'a" that the reciter either didn't catch or didn't care about, because they were meant to remind him that he was getting too long and straying too far from topic. The President was expensive. And Ku Li was very expensive. 

Expensive because there was no talk of remorse about BN's loss of a 61-year hold on power. No mention of mistakes made  and what could be learned from them. No regrets about obvious caprice uncovered. Expensive because everybody who spoke, spoke as if he was the winner. 

The M.C. took it upon himself to inject partisan politics in his welcoming and introductory long and laboured speeches.

The reciter of the "do'a" went out of his way, from pleading to the Almighty for Guidance, to injecting partisan politics in his supplications.

The President, without notes, rambled on and on about his expensive pet student program, the huge property development project, the ills of the social media, and finding new sponsors.

Ku Li spoke at great lengths about the beginnings of UMNO and Tunku and Tun Razak, the current economic downturn and the price of palm oil and rubber, ending most expensive of all, with the challange to the PH government to give back the reins of power  to UMNO since they cannot run the country.

All these speakers received applause from the elderly audience. Not loud, But enough.

And the close-at-heart issue of the irregular and modest pensions of the ex-wakil rakyats MUBARAK represents  was never raised, even as they were cause for anger at the last AGM.

Ku Li said the press has been pressing him about whether he'd leave UMNO. He'll never leave, he said. He forgot to mention 1986 and Semangat 46 and the de-registeration of UMNO caused by him and his people.

And Sainy, Yusof Misai and Dr. Krishnan all attacked me for my PH support, saying PH cheated and won PRU 14, and Sainy in particular gave PH 2 years before being toppled, and in front of Derma I challanged him to a bet, the way I did with Yusof Misai in Cameron Highlands, and he's yet to pay for my 1-week lunch.

I say that if this is how UMNO members deal with the historic loss in GE 14, they'll never learn the true lesson, and the loss would be repeated. I said this to Tham and Foo as we sat for tea, before I took leave for home.


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Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Rantau - a necessary bye-election.

Wed 28 Nov 2018.



Necessary, unlike PD, which wasn't.

The Judge over the electoral petition made sure this bye-election takes place. One, because the one on May 9th. was stolen by Mat Hassan. Two, to prove that Mat Hassan lost it the first time. I mean he's lost it, period. Because he'll lose this one, too.

Khairy didn't win Rantau for his Parliament for GE 14. That's the first indicator.

Rantau has a 53% Malay base, against 47% of non-Malays. Mat Hassan has to make sure all the Malays turn up to vote, a tall order, and all vote for him, a very, very tall order. PD showed that the Chinese and Indians know not to waste their votes on a loser.

Why did Mat Hassan directly or otherwise allow the "no-contest" episode to happen? He's not stupid, by any measure. He was there. He saw the commotion. He could, and should have stopped it. He was still the de facto MB. The authorities still respected him for it at that time.

Well, he had sensed that BN might have problems winning in the entire GE. His sure win would help. Help him, that is, and in no small way help BN if indeed it secured a slim win. All year he had followed Mahathir's visits to NS, sometimes incognito in unmarked cars. He had all the reports, official ones and more via the social media. If BN had scraped through, this court hearing wouldn't happen.

Yesterday MUBARAK NS had its meeting, and as expected this topic was mentioned. Not discussed, but mentioned. Yazid isn't one to discuss anything. He's there only to listen to the support he gets to all his ideas. In this case he had no ideas. And no support. Everybody should act independently, to support Mat Hassan or not. But no amount of lamenting by MUBARAK NS can change the mood of the Rantau voters. As I said to Ibrahim, just wait and see.



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Tuesday, November 6, 2018

MH0775 - BKK to KUL 1740 06 Nov 2018.

Wed 7 Nov 2018.


Idah very nearly got left at Swarnabhumi International Airport, Bangkok, Tuesday 6 November. Very, very nearly. All because she failed to check the departure gate, and lost track of time.

After lunch in town, we had plenty of time for the MAS flight MH 0775 for  6.40 p.m. to KLIA. When we passed through Immigration, it was only about 3.45, a good 3 hours early.  So early, in fact, that the live departure screen board had not even recorded any flight past 5 pm. I wanted to walk around. I had clearly reminded both Idah and Bal to frequently check the departures screen and note the gate assigned to our flight. I assumed that they would stick together until boarding time. 

They did neither of the two.

To kill time, I'd decided to check the endless outlets along the endless corridor.  The total length must be at least 1 km.  I kept checking the departure info. and finally our flight details came up, and the gate was "F" instead of the "D" originally mentioned. Wow,  I just hoped the women would have also seen this. 

I was wrong. 

At first they were  busy looking for the prayer hall. And worse, they separated, on Idah's  insistance. She was reluctant to walk around. Her legs were failing her, she explained. "I'll wait here". 

I'd walked slowly along the route toward gate "F", finding out  that this was the last gate. Finding it still closed, I turned back towards the opposite end, remembering that was where the women walked to.  I walked right to the end and couldn't find them. Hoping that they had by now known that our gate was "F", I turned back to "F". I stopped on the way to change the remaining Thai bhats that I had. 

As it was now close to the 5.40 boarding time, I walked faster. But still there was no sight of the  women. I sat on one of the long seats and waited. And waited. Passangers had begun to enter the now opened F gate. Now I was getting worried. 

Then I saw Bal, Kak Long and Sargent, pushing an empty wheel-chair.  And no Idah !. A quick exchange between us, and off went Kak Long and daughter and that empty wheel-chair in haste, looking for the missing Idah. "Kak Long knows where we left her" Bal assured me.

I checked the waiting hall again. It  had filled up, with a line still being processed by the ground crew, so that was a good sign.  The long line meant more time available.  Later I found out that the flight was full, making the processing longer. That gave more time.

Now I'd grown frantic, and Bal had turned very quiet. I said to her, worse comes to worse, she should board the flight alone and look after our loaded luggage in KL, and I'd try to join Kak Long in the later flight.

As I walked quickly to and fro between gate "F" and the other intersection, Bal shouted "There's Kak Long !"

How could we not have seen them rush  by ? The wheel-chair would have been very obvious. Yet there they were, going down the ramp ahead of us. Summoning Bal to hurry up, I ran to catch up with them, and I would try to stop the crew from closing the gate, if necessary.

Bal and I made it.  We were in fact the last 2 passangers.  We were asked to board the plane.

It turned out that Kak Long and Idah had an emotional reunion, when they finally found each other. Of course after this it would be a good laugh. Idah had stayed put where she was first left, but Kak Long had a confused idea of where it was, this being a very large place. And the other passangers must have  wondered how can you lose someone with a wheel-chair, and the empty wheel-chair is with you ?

I was thankful it ended ok, but when they served the meal in the air, the fish didn't taste good, unlike when we were coming to Bangkok. I also managed to spill the sweet, orange juice on to my right leg, and the sweet stuff went through my  pants and wetted my underwear. I had to pour tap water over the trousers in the toilet, wetting all of the right leg, just to try and clean up the juice. It finally dried up  before we reached KL.

Otherwise the 5 days in Bangkok were fun.

The last time I was here was maybe 24 years ago. It was the other airport - Dong Muang. The bhat was 22% cheaper. And nobody spoke English. But now the shopping malls are comparable to ours, if not better. And English is understood on the street, even if rudimentry.

Bangkok is a very large city of 12 million, compared to KL with 2.5. Surprisingly, being a Buddhist town, there were plenty of "halal" signs everywhere we went, even among the street food vendors. And in all the malls we visited, there were Muslim prayer rooms, complete with ablution facilities. It must be the Arab visitors, I think. Plenty of riyals there.

In spite of its size, the city streets were clean, including the narrow backstreets. And all the toilets I used were clean, whether in the malls, the restaurants, the tourist spots or at the Chatuchak open market. These 2 observations are something KL might want to ponder. Plus the behaviour of the drivers. Remember this town is 6 times bigger than KL. I didn't see one accident, one argument or even hear one angry "toot" from any of the vehicles on the clearly very congested roads.

We stayed at an apartment, with  2 bedrooms, each with attached bathrooms, kitchenette, and dining hall, all air-con and all nice and convenient. Worked out cheaper than a hotel room without the extra facilities.

The tour guide, "Pear", a 41-year old woman, spoke passable English, and was always punctual, when we never were. Each day was a full 12-hour affair, riding in a van, the male driver expertly manoeuvring through the heavy Bangkok traffic. And at the end of each day we'd be beat. But everyone enjoyed it.

Idah & I reached home at past midnight, Tuesday.

Kak Long wants to go to Bandung again. I said, maybe next time Istanbul?


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Thursday, November 1, 2018

BERSATU Seremban.

Fri 2.11.2018



On 6th Oct Maulud arranged for a meeting with Rashid and his "admirer" at SIGC. Four days later another bigger one was arranged by me at Ai's house, followed by the handing over of Rashid's letter to Rais Yatim in PD the night Anwar had a campaign gathering prior to the PD Parliamentry bye-election. Consequently, Rais called Rashid and a couple of his group-members to see him Monday 15th Oct, the day Anwar took his oath in Parliament. It was to be of no consequence, in the end. Just 30 minutes from the appointed time, Rais, through his secretary, cancelled the meeting that he had called for, giving no excuses and no alternative dates.

At Ai's house I had said that Rashid was probably too late  already, when he said the BERSATU NS deadline was 20th October. Yesterday I met Jefri and Halid at SIGC, and Jefri said the deadline was 17th. Mahathir said at the ceremony admitting Mustaffa Mohamad that the NS pro-tem committee up had been completed. There!

Yesterday I got Jefri to declare that he's the chosen Divisional Head of BERSATU Seremban. He rattled off the names of the others in the line up, including Halid and Yusoff Yaacob, who were present. I only wanted his comments on my proposal that 3 branches be set up in DUN Ampangan with Ai's friends' support. The issue of the rejection of Ai's friends' application was cast out because Jefri knows the writer of the letter, who has no such powers that only BERSATU hq has at the moment. I'm now to set up TDS branch, with or without Mazlan's participation, and Ai will set up 2 more, with Jiboi for himself, and one more, I forget the PDM.

I'd tried to explain my interest, and made comments on the number of branches and the need to attract the younger members for the future strength of BERSATU for the next GE. The paricipation of academics cannot be stopped, but they have the tendency of being very idealistic, when Malaysian politics demand a realistic approach. I said that BERSATU is a Malay party, upholding the special rights of the Malays and Bumiputras enshrined in the Constitution, but accepting the legitimate rights of the rest of the voters. This is unlike PKR and DAP, and even PAS, which has  non-Malay, non-Muslim "wakil rakyats".

The BERSATU AGM scheduled for 28-30 December would only see the divisional delegates, Jefri said. I said the branches must be set up quickly, to strengthen the division in the 2019 AGM.

I've not heard from Rashid, and Maulud, as expected, failed to turn up yesterday. It doesn't matter. For those who can spare the time and energy, the branches must become the centre of their attention.  We want to see the developments in 2019.


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Sunday, October 21, 2018

A sad sight of Isa.

Sun 21 Oct 2018.



I'd written elsewhere about the results of the PD bye-election on the 13th.  I need to post it in this blog, to complete my write-up on the subject.

First of all, this was a sad sight of Isa. The longest serving MB lost his deposit in his first Parliamentary election in his home base as an independent. I'd said before this, maybe we'd see Isa come home to roost. Instead  Isa came home and got roasted.

Let's look at some numbers.

The turnout was 30% lower than GE 14 just 5 months ago. This was  an unnecessary and wasteful bye-election. Anwar wanted to get into Parliament. The winner of GE 14 ever so obligingly gave way. He must have a million reasons. 

Anwar received 14.4% less votes for PH, compared to GE14, but got translated to an additional  33% bigger majority. His total votes was 71.3 % of all votes cast, compared to PH's 59.1% in GE 14, or an increase of 20.1%.

Anwar's percentages increases were at the expense of MIC's significant 18,515 votes, or 30.2% of total votes cast in GE 14.

PAS, as it often does, maintained members' loyalty and surprised everyone by beating Isa in his home territory. PAS' 7,456 votes  were  bigger than Isa's by a massive 76.3% ! PAS in fact enlarged its vote this time by 862, or 13.1%.

Isa's votes of 4,230 were only 9.7% of all votes cast. His and the other 4 independents combined only total 5,017 votes, or 11.5% of the total.

In trying to make some sense of the unexpected debacle of Isa in his own backyard, I should pose some questions, because I was there from 3 to 5.30 p.m., past the closure time for the polls. After lunch that day, I took the old PD road through Mambau, and stopped at two schools in Lukut used as polling stations, and one college nearer to PD town, and drove along the coastal road right through to Sainy's house in Pasir Panjang, slowing down at 3 other stations, observing the crowd, or lack of it,  at these places.  The duty officers' comments   and my discussions with Sainy at his house, all pointed to one clear thing: the poor turnout.The figure mentioned was "not more than 40%" And this was at 4 p.m., one hour before closing time.

40% of the total register of 75,381 voters is 30,152. This covered the time lapse of 8 hours. This worked out to a flow of 3,769 per hour. The final turnout was 43,483. That meant 13,331 voters cast their votes in the last hour, at a flow rate that was more than 3 times the rate all day. I should have seen a sudden surge of people, and the vehicles that brought them.  I didn't. That's the question. 

Some conjecture is also offered in the racial behaviour of the voting.

PD is 43% Malays, 33% Chinese, and 24% Indians and other races. PAS secured 7,456 votes. Isa 4,230. I say these 11,686 were Malays, or 37% of this racial group. This figure of only one-third of the Malays bothering to participate had been tossed around right through the last few days of campaigning. At 58.2% full turnout, the Malay voters totalled 18,623. Subtracting the 11,686 above would give Anwar 6,937 Malay votes.

Anwar's total of 31,016 votes, with Malays at 6,937, meant another 24,079 votes to account for, or 55.4% of the total votes cast. Assuming the same percentage turnout for both Chinese and Indians, with the racial mix for PD, the breakup of votes for Anwar would be 13,941 Chinese and 10,139 Indians and others. This meant Anwar's 31,016  votes were made up of  45% Chinese, 32.7% Indians and others, and 22.4% Malays. 

To summarise, I could say that the pro-PH voice of GE 14, after 5 months, was still strong. This in spite of the expected early glitches in being new in  government.   Fielding old-horse Anwar in haste, and being the third member of the same family contesting, couldn't have been very exciting to the voters.The lingering PH effect, helped by Mahathir & Co's appearance, pushed aside Isa and UMNO's support to nothing, really. UMNO's boycot was strange.  At least Isa had the courage to enter the fray.

Isa is not quitting just yet, or so it's been quoted. I know him. There's some good qualities in him. But often other considerations interfere. If he's not giving up, I say "good for you". But it won't be easy. A sad sight.


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Saturday, October 13, 2018

Aziz

Sat 13 Oct 2018.



On my mobile he's listed as "Jingkung". It's a word his wife used a lot at one time. I put it on him years ago, and openly called him by that name. Even if someone answered the call, and I asked for "jingkung", they all know whom I'm referring  to. 

His real name was Abdul Aziz Samah. 78-year old Aziz  died Friday morning, after being in a coma for more than 2 weeks. He was apparently cycling but somehow was brushed by a car. A group of people who knew him happened to be around and rushed to his aid. He was still conscious, and declined to be taken to hospital, but being heavy-set, they decided to call the ambulance. By the time they got him into the van, he lost consciousness, and they had to take him straight to hospital, where they put him on assisted breathing in the ICU. He was in that condition until he passed away at about 10 a.m. Friday morning.

We had gotten close through all the years since he got married to my cousin. When he was in JB and stayed in Larkin, I visited him. I would drive across the causeway still in my sarong in the morning to go to Woodlands to buy some tinned fruits and fresh fruits and simply drive back to Larkin. Those days the traffic was light, and the Immigration nominal.

When I was the ADUN for Senaling he helped at the office. He also helped vacate it when my term ended.

Whenever I needed things to be done in KP while I'm in Seremban, such as my gun licence matters, Aziz was my man.

Aziz is no more now, and a part of my life, too.  I read the Yasin as they lowered his remains into the "liang lahad". May Allah Forgive you, Jingkung.


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Thursday, October 11, 2018

PD D-Day -1

Fri 12 Oct 2018.



Last night at close to mid-night I finally caught Isa Samad at his Operations Centre (his old house) in Bagan Pinang.  I'd been trying to meet him since the week before nomination day, but his hectic schedule kept our paths separate.

Friday would be the last day of campaigning. Saturday 13th., an ominous date, would be D-Day.

Anwar, for whatever reasons, had chosen to seek mandate from the PD folks. He's an outsider here, compared to Isa. That could be the deciding factor.

Isa's entry into fray seems so natural. UMNO (and Mat Hasan in particular) chickened out. After all the bombast, PAS finally sent an unknown. But that is PAS. They'll send anyone to the polls. And except for Kelantan and Terengganu, their traditional strongholds, all would fall by the roadside, usually scrounging dismal numbers and making you think "don't they plan properly?" The 4 independents were drawn by the smell of blood, like Saiful, Anwar's nemesis in Sodomy II. Or maybe the stink of sewage. I don't know.

I've not attended any of Isa's campaigns. I attended one of Anwar's on Wednesday, where Mat Sabu and Rais Yatim were the notable speakers. Last night Muhyiddin accompanied Anwar for prayers (it was Thursday night or "malam Jumaat", a holy night for supplications) at the Bagan Pinang mosque close to Isa's hq. I came close to the Mahathir visit at the "Waterfront", but bad weather, bad light and bad traffic turned me away to Isa's ops room instead. But I'd been collecting the oral and printed feedbacks on the current situation. And they point to a close race. The national "icon" vs. the "local boy". And Isa is playing the local boy image  to the fullest.

You'll remember  the first recorded response by Anwar to Isa's entry in the race; he was dismissive. "He has enough problems". Maybe for a moment Anwar forgot that Isa doesn't have a monopoly on personal problems. In fact Isa said to me last night, Anwar has not attacked him personally throughout the campaign so far, so he, too, hasn't personally attacked Anwar, but added (rubbing his side pocket) he has plenty of material if he chooses to. Since that first remark, Anwar must have realized that Isa is small, but not small fry in PD.  That's why Mahathir and Daim and other national figures have been pulled by Anwar (that's political influence) to come to PD. Some pro PH commentators have said that their presence had spiked Anwar's rating.

I see that Isa is sticking to local issues, while Anwar tries to impress with his connections, from the liberal youth to Mahathir and the Agong, and talks of master plans for PD worth millions. Anwar's crowd is boosted by "outside" supporters in their flashy suv's and  escorts' flashing lights. Isa's company is always local, and they go to all the nooks and corners of PD because they know where to go. Even on nomination day, Isa's smaller crowd was all local, whereas Anwar's was boosted by at least 200 Kuala Pilah supporters, because I recognized them. This "local" vs "national" campaign is the decider, I think.

Well, we don't have a long wait. By tomorrow evening we'll know if Isa has  come  home to roost.


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Sunday, October 7, 2018

7-day suspension.

Sun 7 Oct 2018.



Yesterday I came to the club early for the fixed 4-ball, only to be told by the counter clerk that I'm suspended for a week, starting that very day. I said I've not been informed, by letter or 'phone.

I called the other 3 and told them. In their eagerness to not miss their game, 2 other golfers were contacted, separately. Now they have 1 extra. I don't know what happened after that. 

The club called me for a hearing about this member's complain against me on 7 September. He alleged that I punched him, and he fell, at the cleaning area. At the hearing this fellow  went berserk and said I must be stopped or I might kill him. He said I have a bad repuation at the club. He said he doesn't know me, and I'm no friend. He called me a "samseng" in front of the panel, and I pointed this out to the panel. He turned to me at one point and said "I can punch you". "Punch and see what happens" was my reply, looking straight at his face. We were seated together facing the panel.

I'd given my written reply to the show-cause letter the same day I received it by mail. I denied the punching. I said I was only joking when pulling the air hose. We know each other. We have  played together.  I've joked with him before. The air hose thing was nothing but  a joke.

I said at the hearing that only in cowboy movies you punch somebody in the face and that guy falls. This was because he  said he was punched once, and he fell. Even his glasses didn't fly off.

Jane came as the only witness that day. We never discussed the case before this appearance, it was all up to her. I was disappointed.  I heard her on the day of the incident calling out "he's only joking lah".  This time she didn't say this. Instead she was trying to sound motherly at the hearing, and said she tried to dissuade us from continuing whatever we were doing. I've been playing with her regularly for the past 24 years. She knows the type of person I am. The fact that my accuser is Chinese was a factor in her testimony, I feel.

The  7-day suspension surprised me. I thought they would bring it to the main committee first for a decision. Datuk Azhar said I should be informed first. They say I've 14 days to appeal. When the panel had the chance to find out what actually happened, they were busy reading out the clause on infringement, the chairman repeatedly saying that this is all unpleasant business. One member kept asking "who got to the air hose first ?", after I'd repeatedly said this guy had finished using it (at least this one Jane corroborated), but suddenly turned back for it, and I was already reaching for it, so we clashed. Otherwise the whole thing wouldn't have taken place.

Next time I'll really punch this idiot. Only I'll make sure it's outside the club. 


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Saturday, September 29, 2018

Kak Long doing a Kodo

Sat 29 Sep 2018.



Caught Kak Long doing a "Kodo" today.

Back when I was a State Legislator (1995-1999), Adang and Kodo used to work for me in Kuala Pilah. Adang was a Class F contractor who spent a lot of time with me at my office at the MARA building, now demolished.  Kodo (real name Baharin) was a paid Party man who helped me with my Party work. I gave him a table & chair in the office. He would help my female clerk most days. Otherwise he would move around my constituency. Kodo has since died of natural causes. I went for his funeral in Sg. Dua. I was no longer a State Legislator then.

Adang worked well with Kodo. They knew each  before I knew either of them. Adang called Kodo "atok".

By this time,  the hand 'phone was already widely used, but there were no whatsapp and the other softwares yet.  So we kept in touch constantly. None of us kept regular times at the office. Not even the clerk, paid by me out of my own pocket, just like Kodo. Adang worked voluntarily, though he benefitted in other ways. Because of that, they would call each other over my programme for the week. Some of my programmes took place at night. 

One day I was with Adang in his car. We were driving around KP town, looking for a place to have "teh tarik", when we spotted Kodo sitting in his car parked in front of shop. Adang stopped his car right behind Kodo's, and called him on his mobile phone.

             "Atok kek mano ni?"
          "Kek pejabat YB lah"
             "Atok jangan pembongak ! Se belakang atok ah!"

We all had a good laugh. 

This afternoon, after attending my late cousin's daughter's wedding in Kg. Datuk Keramat, Idah suggested we visit Kakak, Kak Long's eldest daughter, because she had a car accident last week. Kak Mot said it was  bad, and  the car was badly damaged, and Kakak was hurt. 

Before that we had stopped at the Serdang fruit-stalls and had "lempeng kelapa" and "ubi kayu rebus" with "kelapa parut". I also did my zohor prayers. We bought some "ubi kayu rebus" and "goreng pisang tanduk", still hot from the embers, for the stop at Kak Long's house in Bangi.

The main gate ( in Kak Long's house, the back of the house is the main entrance, the front of the house faces the fence  - Zainal is an electrical engineer, not an architect ) was locked, but the small gate beside it wasn't. Which seemed strange - why lock the main gate, in the first place? But Kak Long does strange things all the time. Idah went into the compound and called a few times without getting an answer. It's a big, double storey house, so probably they couldn't hear her. But the clothes hung to dry indicated that if Kak Long had gone out, it must be near by. So I called her. She answered.

             "Kak Long kek mano ni?"
           "Ade kat rumah"
             "Jangan pemongak! Uncle kek dopan rumah ni!"
           "Heh heh heh !, Ade kat luar, sekejap lagi sampai"

She did a  "Kodo" on me.

I needn't have brought the goreng pisang. She bought some, too. Trying to appease me for doing a Kodo on me. 

Kakak was hurt in the accident, but thankfully it wasn't very serious.  The seat belt and the air-bag helped.

The goreng pisang Kak Long bought also helped. She could have gotten into serious trouble for the Kodo trick.


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Friday, September 28, 2018

UMNO's future.

Sat 29 Sep 2018.



Md. Hasan said at the opening of  the  UMNO General Assembly yesterday that UMNO needs to be strengthened for it to continue to play a major role in serving the electorate.  This after the party, and Mohamad himself in person, had declined to contest the PD bye-election next month. So what's the raison d'etre for the existence of UMNO, if not to offer itself as a representative of the electorate ? Not contesting smells of cowardice. Or other more sinister motives. The fact that Anwar had balatantly abused the electoral system in the pursuit of a personal agenda gives UMNO even more reason to fight in PD. Under the circumstances, Mohamad's words are hollow.

It's not the structural strength of UMNO that's problematic. It's the mindset. If UMNO doesn't start  studying its spectacular loss at GE 14, the disintegration  won't stop. And one way a new perspective can help it is to get a fresh set of top leaders. The  80% of the current leadership that comes  from the Najib & co  cannot bring the change required. Yes, the current crop of leaders can change their mentality, but that looks highly unlikely. They'll help destroy UMNO by keeping Najib in spite of the overwhelming evidence of his wrong-doing.  UMNO had done this before. Onn Jaafar was replaced, and UMNO became stronger. Tunku was replaced, and UMNO became stronger. Tun Razak was replaced (he died in office) and UMNO became stronger. Hussein resigned because of ill-health, and Mahathir took over, hung on for 22 years, and kept UMNO  strong.  He resigned, and UMNO became very strong, winning for BN more than 90% in Parliament and 93 % of the states in GE 11 on 21.3.2004. 

Having voluntarily left, Mahathir created the right atmosphere for Dollah to take over, "the new broom" with new expectations, Parliament with 90%, and the states with 93 %  was the stamp of approval for BN.  But within 4 years ,when the electorate  saw the real ineffectual Dollah in action, they gave their stamp of disapproval, and BN got their worst result at the polls up to that point, a 63.1% win in Parliament, a 30% loss. That was the first sign of trouble.  Dollah was removed. 

But this time UMNO didn't get stronger. Najib took over, and almost from the start began his hanky-panky. So in GE13, his first elections as the PM, BN was given an even worse rebuke by voters, and won less than 60% of Parliament. That was the second bad sign. But it was ignored. 

Some brave leaders in the party warned Najib publicly. Instead of being echoed and supported by other concerned party leaders, as happened before, Najib got rid of them.  The rest, as they always say, is history. If UMNO had carried out the "operation" to remove the cause of the disease at that time, GE 14 would have had a different outcome.

I told Sainy a couple of days ago that UMNO for a while seemed to have taken drastic steps to change, post-GE 14. It had replaced the Wanita and Pemuda heads. It had even replaced the no. 2. But it came short when it came to the President and the Supreme Council. I said  keep them, and say goodbye to UMNO's comeback. 

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Thursday, September 27, 2018

The PD Battle.

28 Sept 2018.



So what I said in a previous related blog on the coming PD Parliamentry bye-election about "anyone other than Mohamad Hassan would lose to Anwar"  has to be revisited. I withdraw that brave prediction.

Mohamad himself told me a fortnight ago that Isa Samad might challenge Anwar as an Independent. I thought at that time that it was unlikely, because he has his own problems, and because he would be going against UMNO to do so.

Yesterday afternoon I called and later visited Sainy, my old State Legislative Assembly friend, at home in PD. I'd wanted to find out what's happening now that UMNO had publicly declared they're boycotting the PD bye-election. In my mind,since UMNO has no balls for it, Isa is the best candidate. He's a PD boy, and I know they love him in PD. I wasn't surprised to hear from Sainy, who said he was meeting Isa that very night, that, yes, he's standing for the election as an Independent. In fact Isa had called him to act as his proposer on nomination day this Saturday. Since Sainy is still an UMNO branch chairman, Isa had to find another proposer.

I gave Sainy two notes to pass to Isa later. I told him to tell Isa I support him, and if he wants, I could campaign with my Lukut Chinese golfing friends. Later back home I called Durai to look up as many of his Indian friends in PD for the same purpose. 

My first note was about the racial breakup of PD. Malays are slightly more than 40%, the Chinese almost 33%, the Indians 23% and Others 3%.

My second note contained the 10 points I told Mohamad Hasan why he'd be the best candidate. But for Isa, they remain 10 good points why he's now the best person with a fighting chance to beat Anwar. The Chinese don't trust Anwar. The Indians at worst could split 50-50. The Mahathir supporters would never vote for Anwar. I told Sainy, if you do a little arithmatic you'd find at least 50% of the votes could go to Isa.

Anwar must have a good reason to pick PD, but against local favourite Isa, he's a "foreigner". I told Sainy, don't compare UMNO against PKR. Compare candidate against candidate. A personality battle. Tell that to Isa tonight. 

Last I heard, UMNO may sack Isa. I didn't say anything about it to Sainy. What the hell, UMNO is disintegrating. Ignore it. Go house to house right now. Isa's fighting chance is real.


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Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Tiger's 80th. PGA win.

Tues 25 Sept 2018.



I'd wanted to write earlier, but was caught up watching the replays of the Tour Championship & Fedex Cup finals. That was the first time in 5 years that I'd stayed up to watch golf live on tv. Because for 5 years Tiger Woods didn't win.

The first time I watched Tiger live on tv was 1996, when he won his third US Amateur in a row. Before that he'd won three US Junior in a row, too.  Even Nicklaus, with 18 Majors to his name, cannot match that record. And at 42, Tiger, having just won his 80th. PGA title, looks likely to win 4 more Majors and equal Nicklaus's achievement.

I've been following Tiger's career for 22 years, through the ups and downs. I've kept many of his golfing records, and even have the cd's of his Junior and Amateur tournaments somewhere. For now, some of his golfing prowess can be seen as follows:

From 1991, at the age of 15, Tiger had won his first US Junior title, and then won  it for 3 straight years. Immediately following that, also for 3 straight years, he won the US Amateur title. Late the same year, 1996, he quit college and turned professional, age 20.

For 21 years now as a pro, Tiger has won 80 PGA titles( second only to Sam Snead with 82), including 14 Majors (second only to Jack Nicklaus with 18), and 26 other titles, making a grand total of 106. That works out to almost 4 wins per year for 21 years, and that includes  the last 5 years with nothing. Since Tiger normally plays about 18 tournaments per year, his success rate is a phenomenal 22%. I don't think any other golfer  can match that.  If, as the golf analysts say now, Tiger plays at the very top level for another decade, the possibilities are just mind boggling.

For the  just completed Fedex Cup Tour Championship finals, Tiger received a total of USD 4.62 millions. That's RM 18.5 millions for 4 days work, or RM 4.5 millions per day.  I don't have the figures for the last 2 years, but up to age 40, Tiger had won USD 110,061,012 in prize money alone. Added to his other earnings, Tiger collected an income of USD 1.35 billions. That's 1,350,000,000. For those 19 years as a pro, Tiger earned about USD 71,000,000 per year, or USD 5,916,666 per month, or USD 197,222 per day.  Multiply by 3.8 (RM), that's virtually RM 750,000 per day ! Some top bankers here get this in a month.

I know  I'm partly responsible for my nephew, Mizi, becoming a golf professional. As a teenager, he was rated among the top Malaysian amateurs, having won several national level tournaments. Naturally he became a young pro. Alas, the difference between amateur and pro golf is,  as they say, like "langit dengan bumi". Mizi didn't progress, and now at 30, with 2 kids of his own, it looks like "bye-bye" to pro golf, and he's already earning money away from the game that I thought he'd make his fortune in.

Sadly, he doesn't even watch Tiger.


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Sunday, September 16, 2018

Sam's first son-in-law.

Mon 17 Sep 2018.



Adam married Shiqin, Datuk Samsuddin Hasan's daughter, on Saturday at the Sime Darby Convention Centre. Last night, Sunday, was the Majestic reception. I mean, the reception at Majestic.  But the event, slightly delayed, was great.  The reception hall was great. The guests were great in their formal attire, all 700 of them fitting nicely into the classy hall.  The food was great. The polished musicians were great. Even the pauses between acts were managed greatly. But to me, all three speeches delivered at the beginning, the middle and the end of the reception were the greatest.

There were of course the facts. Adam is  Sam's first son-in-law. Seven more weddings should follow Shiqin's. Sam spent 3.2 millions on Shiqin's schooling, and for this Adam paid only 300 for the "aqad nikah". The 15-ringgit parking fee for all the guests was footed by Sam. The next 7-ringgit zakat-fitrah for Shiqin will be paid by Adam. In short, Sam is badly short-changed.

Then there was Sam's closing speech, the third and last one for the night, but the one with the punch.

Sam spared nothing, obviously, for the happiness of his daughter. He'd watched Adam from the beginning, and assured that Adam was Shiqin's choice, now gladly gives his precious daughter away, but with a proviso, smilingly given but steely cautioned, to take good care of her.

Sam came prepared with several full-scap pages of  notes, but he moved in and out of them at will. And it didn't lessen the impact of his massage, to me, and the audience. We were all listening. That, I assure you, doesn't always happen at weddings. The listening, I mean. His words were of fatherly exasperation and about jealous care for a much-loved daughter. His loss now should be Adam's gain, and combined, the new couple's happiness together should make up for the tender, loving care showered by father to daughter.

But before that the twins spoke, at two different times. At the beginning of the reception, the unmarried one spoke first. She had her notes, too, but I guess much of what she said was already written in her heart. She spoke of their love growing together, of their differences, yet  their dependence on each other, of their closeness, and now of being separate for the rest of their lives. And then she spoke of their dear departed mother who left them six years ago through illness, how she is so much missed here now, but how she, too, would have been happy with the new son-in-law. This was the emotional part of her speech, and it was shared by the audience.

When the bride spoke on stage, after the cake cutting ceremony, she carried no notes, but like her twin sister before her, her words were probably already written in her heart. She,too, spoke of the sisterly love, and now the sad separation, of the loss of a loving mother, who, again, would have been happy to see her happily married, and spoke of gratitude for the joy the wedding has brought to all concerned.

We'd decided to leave Seremban for the wedding early - at 5.30 p.m. exactly, for fear of the KL-bound Sunday evening traffic that normally occurs on weekends. But the traffic was not as bad as expected, maybe because we were early, maybe because Monday would be still a holiday. So we reached the hotel almost one hour before the appointed time. At reception's end we left, stopped at the Sg. Besi rest area, collected Auntie Ros from England Garden, and sent all three passangers back to S2, before I finally reached home at about 1.30 a.m. Monday morning, tired but happy. Happy enough that I sms'd a congratulatory message to Sam. "Great wedding" I said.


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Saturday, September 15, 2018

PD - not a certainty bye-election.

Sat 15 Sep 2018.



So Anwar has chosen PD as his next platform to launch himself back into parliament at the ripe old age of 72. He has never left the Malaysian political scene even with two jail terms.  This time he's finally apparently destined to be the next PM. Lest we all forget, the same old man who launched him into politics, speeded up his rise to the no.2 spot like a meteor, then stopped him short in his tracks, is again responsible for his unlikely comeback. I doubt that Anwar forgets. 

On his own, through all four GE's 10 -13, even with his seemingly incredibly unlimited funds, his dream of being PM was clearly just that, a dream. PKR never broke 40 seats in the 222-seat parliament, a mere 13% strength,  and for all intents and purposes, it would never improve, despite Rafizi's best efforts. Only PKR's more youthful stalwarts believe in its "reformasi" battle-cry. Then came the return of the old man. 

Students of Malaysian politics would forever debate the rationale of an unnecessary bye-election. Let's not talk of the waste of money, time and effort, even if that's true.  Just think for a minute the selfish motive and the abuse of the system. It's for one man running out of time to take the centre spot he claims is his God-given right. Is he scared he might miss his chance, like his miss in 1996?

The stunning fall of UMNO, and with it the BN government on 9 May, has caught Malaysians and the rest of the watching world by surprise. The victims were so surprised that the chief victim didn't even have an escape plan. If he had even the faintest doubt of winning the election, he would have packed his bags and booked his flight before the night the world came down on his ears, and within the hour he'd be in Jakarta, or wherever it was the pilot might have taken him.  Not 24 hours after defeat, and by then even the unplanned crowd at Subang airport was waiting, because they smelled chicken. 

The PH victory was manna from heaven for PKR, more so for Anwar, because it allowed a "pardon"  by a mercurial monarch given so fast that heads were turned by the whirlwind of events. The discarded rigmarole of the pardon proper meant that Anwar was intantaneously  eligible to contest. But the facts of his case are unchanged, and the truth of the matter remains unvarified.

Another fact not lost to the public is that a first-time parliamentarian hardly 6 months into his term has been made  way for Anwar who already has a  wife and daughter  in Parliament. The 6-month MP must have a million reasons to do what he did. 

The choice of PD, too, is cause for debate. Permatang Pauh would have been a natural and tested choice. Is there a trump card in PD?

The natural candidate from UMNO is Mat Hasan, the ex MB of NS. As Deputy President  of UMNO he's the right person to fight Anwar, the  leader of PKR, UMNO's political enemy.  Mat Hasan  has nothing to lose. Anwar is a worthy opponent. Mat Hasan's  stature in UMNO will shoot up, win or lose. Any other candidate, including the much loved Isa Samad, would lose. The only problem is, Mat Hasan is not keen.

Can Mat Hasan  win?

Is Anwar undefeatable ? is my question to that question.

This is not Permatang Pauh. Despite the 3-5 parliamentry loss, NS is still a strong UMNO state. UMNO Kuala Pilah lost Parliament by only 200 votes. And that because Hassan Malek at 72 is already too old and politically too weak.  Rembau, Jelebu and  Jempol are still UMNO-led.

The UMNO Deputy President has no known skeletons in his cabinet. Anwar has too many.

Like GE 14, Anwar must get Mahathir to campaign in PD. In spite of Rafizi's belittling of the old man's contribution, his presence could make the vital difference. But the old man has already said "I don't campaign in bye-elections". Get Rafizi to shut up, and the old man might still  come to PD.

Get Isa Samad to campaign aggresively. Work the Chinese and Indians. Don't turn off Mahathir's supporters. Get the ex-forces groups' support. All these might produce 40% of the votes, enough to get a simple majority. 

As I said, if it's anyone but Mat Hasan, UMNO might as well save its money and throw in the towel. On PD's beach!

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