How should we judge a government?

In Malaysia, if you don't watch television or read newspapers, you are uninformed; but if you do, you are misinformed!

"If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing." - Malcolm X

Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience - Mark Twain

Why we should be against censorship in a court of law: Publicity is the very soul of justice … it keeps the judge himself, while trying, under trial. - Jeremy Bentham

"Our government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no
responsibility at the other. " - Ronald Reagan

Government fed by the people

Government fed by the people

Career options

Career options
I suggest government... because nobody has ever been caught.

Corruption so prevalent it affects English language?

Corruption so prevalent it affects English language?
Corruption is so prevalent it affects English language?

When there's too much dirt...

When there's too much dirt...
We need better tools... to cover up mega corruptions.

Prevent bullying now!

Prevent bullying now!
If you're not going to speak up, how is the world supposed to know you exist? “Orang boleh pandai setinggi langit, tapi selama ia tidak menulis, ia akan hilang di dalam masyarakat dan dari sejarah.” - Ananta Prameodya Toer (Your intellect may soar to the sky but if you do not write, you will be lost from society and to history.)

Friday, July 10, 2009

Hannah's distress call

It is blatantly obvious that BN over the years had been failing in its fiduciary duties as executors, custodians and trustees of public funds.

Whether it was the North-South Expressway or Port Klang Free Zone or Kg Buah Pala, the persons responsible seemed to have favoured the concessionaires or any party which had dealings with the government, at the expense of the public.

When faced with lop-sided contracts, some signed under dubious or even fraudulent circumstances, the new Pakatan state governments had the unpleasant tasks of unravelling illegal transactions. We should understand that the new state leaders have to be extra careful lest they be sued by them instead. It is so much easier to follow the flow instead of going against it. This takes time, effort and perseverance, and as Hannah mentioned, she had to fence off verbal attacks too. And this is just for carrying out her duties without fear or favour.

Honestly, I wouldn't like to be in her position nor would I be able to withstand such mental pressure.

The latest that I have read about Kg Buah Pala was the fact that the present government is now accused of failing to take action against fraudulent activities. It is 'damned you do and damned you don't'!

Pakatan state governments have been accused of not getting out of the opposition mode and are spending too much time digging dirt left by the previous governments. I likened it to moving into a house full of rubbish. Surely, the first thing to do is to clear the mess before or even while living in it. Selangor was worse than Penang in that documents were destroyed too!

The following is a message from Hannah which I copied from Malaysia Today, and it sounds more like a lady in distress. I hope those who value good governance in our leaders would give their full support to those like her.

Message from Hannah Yeoh

So many people have been telling me just how frustrated they are with the current political situation in our country. Some have told me that they regretted voting for change because of the political instability now and would prefer returning to their old style of voting - vote for stability and forget about having a stronger opposition and greater check and balance. I shudder at the thought of this!

One needs to remember the reason why we are seeing such great resistance for change is simply because there is much to lose for those who have been in power for so long. For decades there has been so much abuse of power, unchecked misuse of public funds and plain dirty corruption. With a stronger opposition now, they stand to lose their illegal sources of income and some may even be charged and sent to prison if they are found guilty.

With this in mind, they will fight at all costs to reclaim back power and to ensure they can continue to steal public funds from the people for their own enrichment. We are not just dealing with differences in politics; we are combating evil forces who will not rest till they secure back their powers and illegal sources of income.

Sometimes I feel equally frustrated and disillusioned about the political situation too. Sometimes I lie awake thinking of how to effect change in this land. Some days I cry while driving in between meetings thinking of what's left for the future generation in this land if we give up now.

I have endured much verbal attack from political enemies, accusation after accusation of me not doing anything for my constituents and etc. No one truly understands the resistance we face daily in discharging our duties except for my fellow PR assemblymen.

Robert Kennedy once said ‘*Progress is a nice word. But change is its motivator and change has its enemies.*’ Our enemies are resisting change but we must stand firm and continue to push for a competent, accountable and transparent government.

At the end of each day, as I lay myself to sleep, I ask God for strength, wisdom and protection to face the next. I look forward to the end of the term when I can tell the people of Subang Jaya that I have remained clean and have not stolen any of the taxpayers' funds.

As reminded by Raja Petra in his blog "*Please continue your struggle to make Malaysia a better place for our future generation. This country belongs to them and it is for them that we struggle.*" All hope is not lost. Come the next election, vote out the corrupt once and for all. Hang in there supporters and friends, the best is yet to come!


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