I think the article, "Building bridges of respect" in The Star today is cool.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/11/29/focus/5202297&sec=focus
Looks like there are people among the grassroots who are interested in interfaith dialogues.
I was listening to the Kairos Public Forum for Christians on THE REAL JESUS CHRIST OF HISTORY: Jesus of The Bible versus Jesus of the Documentaries (National Geographic/Discovery /BBC) when towards the end of the forum a Muslim man stood up and greeted us, "Shalom" and told Kairos to organise an interfaith forum on Jesus of the Bible and Jesus of the Quran. The director of the Kairos said he welcomed such dialogue, as he had had dialogues and debates with Muslim scholars in the past, but it has to be done with care.
While seeing a couple of curious Muslims coming to the forum in church was refreshing, the man's suggestion was really unexpected. If only many Malaysians are as open-minded.
I hope many more Malaysians would have meaningful dialogues and try and understand each other. This could enable us to live in peace and harmony.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Future Prime Minister
I am still in a daze that Datuk Seri Idris Jala has been appointed a Minister (without portfolio) in the Prime Minister's Department. He resigned yesterday from his post as MAS CEO and managing director.
I had a wishful thought earlier this year that he would be a Prime Minister one day. I had not met him then or know anything about him except to read about him in the newspapers. The part that struck me about him was his setting a minimum wage for the staff at MAS. He made sure that none of his employees earned less than RM1,000 so to ensure that they would be adequately provided for. Although it would have been ideal if the amount was RM1,500, it was certainly a step of faith for him to increase the salary when MAS was still in the dumps.
I knew then that what he did was an indication that set his heart apart from any other CEOs or leaders.
The other person I had such a wishful thought was former head of Mercy Malaysia Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood, whom I had personally met.
What’s outstanding about these two personalities was their amazing strength in bringing transformation in society wherever they are. Unlike many people who would rather gripe, complain and criticise, they did what they could in their own capacity to bring about changes to the lives of many around them.
We need top leaders who have a heart for people and not a heart for power and money. This is the change we must strive for and bring down those who had misused power and squandered away our hard earned money.
There are many reasons why I think a good leader must give extra care and attention to the poor and needy in society.
1. The poor and needy is in most part a reflection of failure in political, economic and social systems. A good leader must disband the oppressive systems.
2. It reflects that he/she understood God’s heart and will. (He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honours God – Proverbs 14:31) A large number of oppressed grassroots is a sign of spiritual failure and a rebellion against God’s will for mankind – love God and our neighbour (people) - and the failure is seen in the lack of care for the needs of the downtrodden regardless of race and religion.
3. If the rich and powerful turn a blind eye to the poor and despair and wealth disparity widen to a disgusting level, the increase in crime rate may hit back at them. Our lives are, I am afraid, synergistically linked. What goes around comes around.
For now, it is impossible for Idris and Jemilah to be Prime Ministers due to the prejudicial mindsets of some conservative Malaysians - one because he is not a Muslim and a Malay (although he, being a native, has a rightful claim more than any of the former and current Prime Ministers) and the other because she is not a man. For these reasons, they will surely face many obstacles and objections if they are ever considered for the top leadership post.
However, if Idris or Jemilah is destined to be a Prime Minister one day, it will happen.
I had a wishful thought earlier this year that he would be a Prime Minister one day. I had not met him then or know anything about him except to read about him in the newspapers. The part that struck me about him was his setting a minimum wage for the staff at MAS. He made sure that none of his employees earned less than RM1,000 so to ensure that they would be adequately provided for. Although it would have been ideal if the amount was RM1,500, it was certainly a step of faith for him to increase the salary when MAS was still in the dumps.
I knew then that what he did was an indication that set his heart apart from any other CEOs or leaders.
The other person I had such a wishful thought was former head of Mercy Malaysia Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood, whom I had personally met.
What’s outstanding about these two personalities was their amazing strength in bringing transformation in society wherever they are. Unlike many people who would rather gripe, complain and criticise, they did what they could in their own capacity to bring about changes to the lives of many around them.
We need top leaders who have a heart for people and not a heart for power and money. This is the change we must strive for and bring down those who had misused power and squandered away our hard earned money.
There are many reasons why I think a good leader must give extra care and attention to the poor and needy in society.
1. The poor and needy is in most part a reflection of failure in political, economic and social systems. A good leader must disband the oppressive systems.
2. It reflects that he/she understood God’s heart and will. (He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honours God – Proverbs 14:31) A large number of oppressed grassroots is a sign of spiritual failure and a rebellion against God’s will for mankind – love God and our neighbour (people) - and the failure is seen in the lack of care for the needs of the downtrodden regardless of race and religion.
3. If the rich and powerful turn a blind eye to the poor and despair and wealth disparity widen to a disgusting level, the increase in crime rate may hit back at them. Our lives are, I am afraid, synergistically linked. What goes around comes around.
For now, it is impossible for Idris and Jemilah to be Prime Ministers due to the prejudicial mindsets of some conservative Malaysians - one because he is not a Muslim and a Malay (although he, being a native, has a rightful claim more than any of the former and current Prime Ministers) and the other because she is not a man. For these reasons, they will surely face many obstacles and objections if they are ever considered for the top leadership post.
However, if Idris or Jemilah is destined to be a Prime Minister one day, it will happen.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Should pass English but please plan ahead
On Monday (June 8), Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was surprised to learn that English was not a compulsory subject for students to pass their Form 5 SPM and wanted public feedback on the matter.
This is my take: a sudden new policy blast is certainly not my policy. I am not in favour of a sudden policy that compels students to pass English in SPM. There should be long term planning because it is unfair for students weak in the language to catch up at such a short time.
However, ultimately the language should be made compulsory for students to pass. This will push them towards attaining a basic but strong command of the language. Acquiring the language skill will give our nation the extra competitive edge while it functions as a useful language to have when we travel or live and work in other countries where English is widely spoken.
More English learning facilities need to be channelled to rural folks who do not have the opportunities and exposures to the language that city folks have. Informal and fun way of learning English should also be broadcast in the evenings when people are home. The Government cannot just make a policy and not provide the necessary tools for improvements.
Note: Those who want to give feedback on whether to make English pass compulsory in SPM should call the Education Ministry's customer service line at 03 - 7723 7070 or e-mail in their views to mailto:tokpkpm@moe.gov.my.
Below is my brother KK's view about English and education in Malaysia written as it is.
MUCH ADO ABOUT ENGLISH
The issue isn’t Eng as medium of instruction in Math/Science but rather the standard of local education, be it Eng, Sci or Math. Teaching Sci/Math in Eng doesn’t mean that the standard of Sci/Math or even Eng will improve. It’s the standard that we set that determines that. If I am not mistaken, Singapore ‘A’ level students do not get as many ‘As’ as our students (to the point that its ridiculous, like a bunch of ‘buah rambai’, 20 As???) – which means the passing level there is very much higher.
Even if Eng is maintained as medium of instruction in Sci/Math or even if Eng is set as a compulsory passing subject, the passing mark can be lowered and the problem remains.
The Germans n the Japanese (fr ashes of losing WW2) use their mother tongue as medium of instruction in sch n yet they are now leaders in commerce, technology n governance.
WHY???
Simple reason; they do not compromise on high standards n they are extremely discipline in achieving their targets. Setting high targets will mean less of a ‘feel good factor’ ie getting a string of As and by setting high standards, perception will slowly change towards appreciating excellence, in that to ace SPM/STPM is not easy and that a few As is a very high achievement.
This reasoning is relevant to our standing in the academic world (local university standing which hs fallen). The Philippines have many local universities but which are hardly recognized internationally to the point that their graduates work as maids. Why cant these graduates get decent jobs in the US (since the Philippines have close ties with them)? Could it be that the standards of universities in Philippines have been compromised n are considered low?
We must ask ourselves that very same question……have we compromised our standard of education (and in general, level of excellence)?
We must also be truthful to ourselves in answering that question no matter how painful it can be. Only then can we proceed onto the road to recovery.
Once I had a conversation with a Malay man. He mentioned that Malaysia has progress much and that the government has done a great job. He reasoned that Malaysia just needed a bigger population so that with an increased workforce, productivity will in turn increase.
I reasoned with him that that perception is disastrously flawed.
1. A car that has been moving at 100 kph now accelerates to 120 kph does not mean that it is going faster if other cars are accelerating even more, say to 150 kph.
Progress is relative and by that analogy, we may be losing ground – similar to our standard in football in which poor nations like Myanmar, Cambodia can thrash us.
2. Malaysia is blessed in that it has many natural resources – and a relatively small population base. Her bountiful riches can be easily shared around compared to our neighbor Indonesia, who is also very rich in natural resources but is burdened by a huge population base.
So to be more productive, we must not just increase our workforce per say but to improve the quality of our workforce – through education.
In my opinion, to achieve Vision 2020, we need a fundamental, systemic change.
1. to reintroduce the importance of Eng as a core passing subject in sch as it is required in accessing the world.
2. or even to maintain Eng as the medium of instruction for Sci/Math.
3. to improve the standards of our teaching profession as the copies can only be as good as the mould.
4. most importantly to re-set our standards and our perception to excellence.
There will certainly be much resistance towards this as there will be transitional pain esp in the rural communities.
This matter will also provide ample fodder for political sharks to capitalize on.
But march on we must – or be left behind.
The biggest obstacle to progress is the resistance to change as it often entails much work and heartache.
To conclude, we must set high standards in school to produce good quality students n thereon a good quality work force and towards being a developed nation.
This is my take: a sudden new policy blast is certainly not my policy. I am not in favour of a sudden policy that compels students to pass English in SPM. There should be long term planning because it is unfair for students weak in the language to catch up at such a short time.
However, ultimately the language should be made compulsory for students to pass. This will push them towards attaining a basic but strong command of the language. Acquiring the language skill will give our nation the extra competitive edge while it functions as a useful language to have when we travel or live and work in other countries where English is widely spoken.
More English learning facilities need to be channelled to rural folks who do not have the opportunities and exposures to the language that city folks have. Informal and fun way of learning English should also be broadcast in the evenings when people are home. The Government cannot just make a policy and not provide the necessary tools for improvements.
Note: Those who want to give feedback on whether to make English pass compulsory in SPM should call the Education Ministry's customer service line at 03 - 7723 7070 or e-mail in their views to mailto:tokpkpm@moe.gov.my.
Below is my brother KK's view about English and education in Malaysia written as it is.
MUCH ADO ABOUT ENGLISH
The issue isn’t Eng as medium of instruction in Math/Science but rather the standard of local education, be it Eng, Sci or Math. Teaching Sci/Math in Eng doesn’t mean that the standard of Sci/Math or even Eng will improve. It’s the standard that we set that determines that. If I am not mistaken, Singapore ‘A’ level students do not get as many ‘As’ as our students (to the point that its ridiculous, like a bunch of ‘buah rambai’, 20 As???) – which means the passing level there is very much higher.
Even if Eng is maintained as medium of instruction in Sci/Math or even if Eng is set as a compulsory passing subject, the passing mark can be lowered and the problem remains.
The Germans n the Japanese (fr ashes of losing WW2) use their mother tongue as medium of instruction in sch n yet they are now leaders in commerce, technology n governance.
WHY???
Simple reason; they do not compromise on high standards n they are extremely discipline in achieving their targets. Setting high targets will mean less of a ‘feel good factor’ ie getting a string of As and by setting high standards, perception will slowly change towards appreciating excellence, in that to ace SPM/STPM is not easy and that a few As is a very high achievement.
This reasoning is relevant to our standing in the academic world (local university standing which hs fallen). The Philippines have many local universities but which are hardly recognized internationally to the point that their graduates work as maids. Why cant these graduates get decent jobs in the US (since the Philippines have close ties with them)? Could it be that the standards of universities in Philippines have been compromised n are considered low?
We must ask ourselves that very same question……have we compromised our standard of education (and in general, level of excellence)?
We must also be truthful to ourselves in answering that question no matter how painful it can be. Only then can we proceed onto the road to recovery.
Once I had a conversation with a Malay man. He mentioned that Malaysia has progress much and that the government has done a great job. He reasoned that Malaysia just needed a bigger population so that with an increased workforce, productivity will in turn increase.
I reasoned with him that that perception is disastrously flawed.
1. A car that has been moving at 100 kph now accelerates to 120 kph does not mean that it is going faster if other cars are accelerating even more, say to 150 kph.
Progress is relative and by that analogy, we may be losing ground – similar to our standard in football in which poor nations like Myanmar, Cambodia can thrash us.
2. Malaysia is blessed in that it has many natural resources – and a relatively small population base. Her bountiful riches can be easily shared around compared to our neighbor Indonesia, who is also very rich in natural resources but is burdened by a huge population base.
So to be more productive, we must not just increase our workforce per say but to improve the quality of our workforce – through education.
In my opinion, to achieve Vision 2020, we need a fundamental, systemic change.
1. to reintroduce the importance of Eng as a core passing subject in sch as it is required in accessing the world.
2. or even to maintain Eng as the medium of instruction for Sci/Math.
3. to improve the standards of our teaching profession as the copies can only be as good as the mould.
4. most importantly to re-set our standards and our perception to excellence.
There will certainly be much resistance towards this as there will be transitional pain esp in the rural communities.
This matter will also provide ample fodder for political sharks to capitalize on.
But march on we must – or be left behind.
The biggest obstacle to progress is the resistance to change as it often entails much work and heartache.
To conclude, we must set high standards in school to produce good quality students n thereon a good quality work force and towards being a developed nation.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Makkal Sakthi explained
Coincidentally, after writing my thoughts on Makkal Sakti on Monday, there is an explanation on Makkal Sakti being opened to all. I wonder what had triggered that response because I don't think it could be due to my article. Not many people know about it. Perhaps there were others too who had felt what I had felt, who knows. Here is the story in The Star:
Thursday May 28, 2009
Makkal Sakthi ‘open to all’
KLANG: The newly-formed Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party (MMSP) is not exclusively for Indians and its founders hope that Malaysians of all races will join it.
Pro tem secretary-general Kannan Ramasamy said the MMSP was registered as a party with an open membership.
“The party constitution does not classify the party as Indian-based,” he explained.
He said the party’s open membership was in line with the Makkal Sakthi concept, which was basically about people power regardless of race and religion.
He said the party’s central working committee would have representatives of every ethnicity in the party.
However, Kannan said that due to the many unresolved issues facing the Indian community, the party’s “initial work would revolve around the community.”
“Our pilot project is to look into the problem of statelessness among Indians,” Kannan said.
Kannan also said that the party offered free membership for the first 100,000 who signed up.
Thursday May 28, 2009
Makkal Sakthi ‘open to all’
KLANG: The newly-formed Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party (MMSP) is not exclusively for Indians and its founders hope that Malaysians of all races will join it.
Pro tem secretary-general Kannan Ramasamy said the MMSP was registered as a party with an open membership.
“The party constitution does not classify the party as Indian-based,” he explained.
He said the party’s open membership was in line with the Makkal Sakthi concept, which was basically about people power regardless of race and religion.
He said the party’s central working committee would have representatives of every ethnicity in the party.
However, Kannan said that due to the many unresolved issues facing the Indian community, the party’s “initial work would revolve around the community.”
“Our pilot project is to look into the problem of statelessness among Indians,” Kannan said.
Kannan also said that the party offered free membership for the first 100,000 who signed up.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Makkal Sakti does not deserve its name
I thought the message from the results of the March 8 General Elections last year was clear enough - that many Malaysians from all walks of lives DO NOT want politics based on racial lines. And here we go again the latest party, the Malaysia Makkal Sakti Party, being formed (registered on May 11) to fight for a certain race only. That is a total disappointment.
Makkal Sakti means “people’s power.” Why is it not formed to fight for all of Malaysian’s poor? It should just be called Indian power.
Now, who is going to fight for the poor of the other races? The orang asli makes up the poorest group in the country. Don’t tell me an orang asli party too should be established to fight for their rights. This will never end. Hopefully all parties from the Government coalition Barisan Nasional and the opposition Pakatan Rakyat will realise by now that poverty cuts across all races. Even if there are many middle class Malays and Chinese, it should not deprive the poor from these groups from being helped.
If there is any party that we urgently need now is a Labour Party and a Green Party. Look at how workers are exploited and the earth raped by greedy and deprave fools.
Our wages at this period of time are the worst I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. It’s obvious which side the present Government is siding – the employers, of course. It seems to collapse at the slightest pressure from them, for instance, in its effort to implement the double levy policy on foreign labour and keeping jobs for Malaysians. If the Government is serious about this effort, it can always start gradually and do with a mix of locals and foreign workers until their contracts expire.
The Government accepted the employers’ argument that it would be difficult for them to look for locals to do certain jobs such as cleaning and waiting at the table and that the cost of labour among locals would cause food prices to go up.
However, the Malayan Trade Union Congress and consumer groups pointed out that employers themselves had not provided fair wages and working hours, and decant or safe working conditions. Moreover, while locals are likely to spend their money here and stimulate the current sluggish economy, foreign workers will send their money back to their home country instead.
I wish that some conscientious employers can prove that they can be competitive by hiring locals despite a higher wage structure. It is hard to believe the excuse that employers often gave, that they cannot find locals to do the job. How was it that we were able to do it a few years ago and suddenly we could not? All so sudden. If employers have difficulties making ends meet, then perhaps other factors be looked into. The Government should set some limit to the exhorbitant rentals of commercial premises.
Enough said for now. I shall touch more on wages in my next blog.
Makkal Sakti means “people’s power.” Why is it not formed to fight for all of Malaysian’s poor? It should just be called Indian power.
Now, who is going to fight for the poor of the other races? The orang asli makes up the poorest group in the country. Don’t tell me an orang asli party too should be established to fight for their rights. This will never end. Hopefully all parties from the Government coalition Barisan Nasional and the opposition Pakatan Rakyat will realise by now that poverty cuts across all races. Even if there are many middle class Malays and Chinese, it should not deprive the poor from these groups from being helped.
If there is any party that we urgently need now is a Labour Party and a Green Party. Look at how workers are exploited and the earth raped by greedy and deprave fools.
Our wages at this period of time are the worst I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. It’s obvious which side the present Government is siding – the employers, of course. It seems to collapse at the slightest pressure from them, for instance, in its effort to implement the double levy policy on foreign labour and keeping jobs for Malaysians. If the Government is serious about this effort, it can always start gradually and do with a mix of locals and foreign workers until their contracts expire.
The Government accepted the employers’ argument that it would be difficult for them to look for locals to do certain jobs such as cleaning and waiting at the table and that the cost of labour among locals would cause food prices to go up.
However, the Malayan Trade Union Congress and consumer groups pointed out that employers themselves had not provided fair wages and working hours, and decant or safe working conditions. Moreover, while locals are likely to spend their money here and stimulate the current sluggish economy, foreign workers will send their money back to their home country instead.
I wish that some conscientious employers can prove that they can be competitive by hiring locals despite a higher wage structure. It is hard to believe the excuse that employers often gave, that they cannot find locals to do the job. How was it that we were able to do it a few years ago and suddenly we could not? All so sudden. If employers have difficulties making ends meet, then perhaps other factors be looked into. The Government should set some limit to the exhorbitant rentals of commercial premises.
Enough said for now. I shall touch more on wages in my next blog.
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