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Friday 31 July 2009

Anti-ISA demo

There are going to be roadblocks everywhere in KL tomorrow. Yup, that's right. To prevent the people from demonstrating against ISA. Najib says rallies are pointless as they are reviewing the ISA. We never wanted a review sir. We want abolishment. And if you say rallies at pointless, why do you need roadblocks then? Just let them demonstrate if they want. Are you afraid of the demonstration sir? Never ever underestimate the power of rallies. Look at BERSIH almost 2 years back. Where does that lead us? Denying BN 2/3 majority.

Of course I won't be going to the demo. I wanted to, but I just can't. But I still support the demo anyway. To those aligned with ISA, please, I don't share your views. I have my own views. So, no point trying to give me whatever links of supporting ISA. That is FINAL. DO YOU HEAR??? Sure, you are free to visit my blog anytime. It's your right. But trying to change my views about why I am against ISA, don't even think about it. Because it won't work.

Wednesday 29 July 2009

Shadows

Shadows... Shadows... In the world we're living on...
Shadows... Shadows... In the world we're living on...
Shadows... Shadows... We're alone in the world we own...
Shadows... Shadows... We're alone in the world we own...

SHADOWS. There's no way we can run from our shadows of the past. They are witnesses to what we do in the past. Ouuu yes, they were there all the time... Only we didn't realise it. We just treat it as nothing but a shadow. So... what's a shadow? When did it first exist? I don't know. I will never know. As far as I know, shadows will be glued to us until the day we die.

Why is this post about shadows? I don't know. I've done it unknowingly, unconsciously. Digging up my dark past is a dangerous job. I only wish I could erase it from my memory. I only wish I hadn't done what I wasn't supposed to do in the first place. I regret my past mistakes. I will never forget them. It will be a lesson until the day I die.

Don't judge me based on my past. Judge me based on my present and future times. The Chamber of Secrets are safe and sound in my head. But how long can I keep it? Do I have the capability of keeping dark secrets until the day I die?

*Sigh* I don't know what drives me to post this. But it makes me wonder... What's the purpose of living on Earth? To have fun? To eat a lot of good food? To study? To seek knowledge? To die? I don't know. You answer me then...

Tuesday 21 July 2009

2nd Semester

My 2nd semester in uni started yesterday.

1st on the agenda: Business Law. It can turn out to be an interesting subject, although it requires a lot of reading.

2nd on the agenda: Malaysia Studies. The lecturer of this subject is a killer interest. Not only does he speak slowly, he doesn't stop. Zzzzzzz.......

After that, my day in uni is finished for the day. At 3.15pm, I went to Sunway Pyramid to watch the 6th Harry Potter movie with 3 friends: Amy, Sabrina & Lydia. I can safely say that most of the images imagined in my head when reading the book before that is what I imagined.

6.30pm, I went back to uni. I stayed there for an hour or so to study. At 7.40pm, I went back home.

It was an eventful 1st day back in uni, although I was suffering from a bout of food poisoning (4 days running) and sinus. The early semester stress is over. OFF TO WORK.

Sunday 19 July 2009

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Robert F Kennedy back in 1968:
"GDP does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our courage, nor our wisdom, nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile, and it can tell us everything about America except why we are proud that we are Americans."

Saturday 18 July 2009

MU 3-2 Malaysia

I got a ticket for the match at the last minute, the day before the match. One of my friends got an extra ticket so he sold it to me. So yea, I'm definitely going to the match.

I arrived at the Bukit Jalil stadium 30 minutes before the kickoff at 5.30pm and it was so many people walking towards the stadium. Not to mention business opportunities to sell MU merchandise, Malaysia merchandise, horns, food, drinks, etc... can be seen along the way walking to the stadium.

Alrite, to cut the story short, let's get on with the match. If you are to tell me that Malaysia is gonna put up one hell of a fight and get close to even winning the match, I wouldn't have believe it at all. No one knew the result that is in store.

Cheers all over the stadium as the match kicks off. Malaysia had some decent chances before Rooney scored in the 8th minute. Celebrations went wild. 1-0 United. My comment: "Hmm, ini guarantee Malaysia kena belasah macam dulu."

MU started to control the match as the Malaysian team fight for their lives not to concede another. Another United goal duly came through Nani in the 28th minute after being set-up nicely by Rooney. 2-0 United. My comment: "Huahuahua, ini guarantee 6-0."

Everything seems normal for the rest of the way until something unexpected happened. Right before half-time, the Malaysian goalkeeper kicked upfield only for Evra to misjudge the flight of the ball. The ball fell to Amri Yahyah who saw Van der Sar off his line and a speculative shot over the keeper flew into the net. All the MU and Malaysian fans celebrated like mad. 2-1 United. My comment: "Aik? Sejak bila pulak Malaysia pandai score lawan MU?

And so, half-time it is. 2-1 to United. I can bet almost no one expected Malaysia to score against MU at this point.

2nd half began 15 minutes later. The score still 2-1 until another unexpected event happened. Ben Foster, who replaced Van der Sar at half-time for his runout in the game, completely missed the pass by one of his defenders and guess who was on hand to slot it home? It's that man again. Mohd Amri Yahyah, Selangor captain. That was his second goal of the game. 2-2. Everyone started chanting "Malaysia, Malaysia, Malaysia, Malaysia!" My comment: "Haaa??? Malu aa kalau MU kalah nih..."

The moment when Michael Owen came on, there were raucous cheers from all MU fans, including me. We all wanted to see Owen in action. Does the Merseyside man still has it in him?

The game went on with a draw being very likely. A famous result against Man United, I thought. 15 minutes from the end, another bright moment MU fans had been waiting for, Ryan Giggs. He received a similar reception from MU fans as they had done for Owen.

5 minutes from the end, Gibson played a wonderful through pass for Giggs, who was thwarted by the Malaysian keeper along the way, but the ball fell to Michael Owen, who beat his marker and then calmly slotted home into an empty net. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OWEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3-2 United.

Then, the final whistle blew and everyone stood up and applaused the MU and Malaysian players for such an entertaining match. But the scoreline says it all... 3-2 United. No one would have predicted the result in the first place.

Oh well, I should have bought a Malaysian merchandise before I went home. From what I think about the match, Malaysia played like they are one of the English Premier League clubs. They defended their goal like it was made of gold. Well done Malaysia for giving the MU players one hell of a runout.

Thursday 16 July 2009

My Semester 1 results

Alhamdulillah, thank Allah for my success in the 4 subjects I have taken for Semester 1 - The results are as below:

AFW1000 - Principles of Accounting & Finance
Result: 77/100 (Distinction)

ECW1101 - Introductory Microeconomics
Result: 76/100 (Distinction)

ETW1000 - Business & Economics Statistics
Result: 72/100 (Distinction)

MGW1010 - Introduction to Management
Result: 76/100 (Distinction)

MPW2143 - Islamic Studies
Result: Unknown

Well, I just don't know my results for Islamic Studies. I may soon find out. As I end this post, I thank Allah once more for making my success possible. Without his gift of knowledge, I don't know how to survive this evolving world. Alhamdulillah.

Wednesday 15 July 2009

Manek Urai by-election

PAS retained its Manek Urai seat by a majority of only 65 votes. Oh well, a victory is still a victory. However, for BN to reduce the majority significantly from 1,300 last time is really something.

PAS historically doesn't really perform well in Kelantan by-elections. Look back at Pengkalan Pasir (2005). It was won by PAS in the 2004 General Election by a narrow majority and BN wrest it back with a comfortable majority of 1,800. Yes, it brought PAS into a very critical state in the Assembly at the time. A razor thin 23-22 seats.

Annuar Musa challenged Tok Guru Nik Aziz to dissolve the Assembly, but Tok Guru says there's no need for it. And so, PAS held on to Kelantan by that razor 1 seat majority in the assembly until the parliament dissolves in February 2008, by our then PM, Tun Abdullah Badawi.

And so, BN hopes were high in wrestling back Kelantan after 17 years of rule. "Blue wave in Kelantan" as the mainstream media reported. Awang Adek dreams of being the new Menteri Besar of Kelantan.

However, come election day, BN were almost wiped out in Kelantan. They only won 6 seats out of the 45 contested. Even the Pengkalan Pasir seat that they won back in 2005 fell back to PAS, who won by a 2,300 majority, a swing of 4,100 in majority.

Oh well, Awang Adek's dreams of becoming the new Kelantan MB came up short and guess what? He's now our Deputy Finance Minister. Even better than his dream of becoming the new Kelantan MB. :P

Back to Manek Urai. It's a Malay heartland. 99.3% are Malay constituents. So, the results has clearly shown that no party has the clear Malay support. It's truly split in half. Not to mention Kelantan politics is different compared to other states. They look at the candidate, first things first, not party. If the candidate is good, they'll vote for him, regardless of his party, even if he/she is a PAS or UMNO supporter. They will vote for the candidate.

Take a good example of its incumbent, Allahyarham Ismail Yaacob or more affectionally known as Paksu Wel. He had first contested the seat in 1986 and won. After that, he endeared himself to the Manek Urai people from that point on. He is a good person, very helpful in solving the problems constituents faced over the years. His leadership of that kind can be considered irreplaceable. Just look at the 2004 General Election, when he did not contest, BN manage to win by a slim majority of 53 votes. Yes, Manek Urai people wanted him as their 'wakil rakyat' as he had been with them for 18 years, and they have shown their dissatisfaction to PAS for leaving him out of the fold by voting for a BN victory.

PAS has learned their lesson from that point on and come the next General Election, held on March 8 last year, Paksu Wel is back contesting for PAS and the result? Winning by a majority of 1,352. That says it all about Paksu Wel. Truly a people's leader. Everyone in Manek Urai knows Paksu Wel very well after all these years. Then, Allah gave him a test. Gaot. It affected his health badly and when the time comes, he returned to his Creator back in May. May Allah bless his soul. Al-Fatihah.

Wednesday 1 July 2009

Blatant abuse of power in the run up to Manek Urai by-election

We are facing yet another by election, this time in Manik Urai, Kelantan.Even before nomination day, already several controversies have begun to surface.Please read news Items 1 & 2 before proceeding to article below.

Item 1
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MP seek clarification on Army abused for campaign in Manek Urai

Quote :
Apparently, the Defence Ministry has instructed the army to launch ‘projects’ at Manek Urai in Kelantan in order to increase support for the ruling BN coalition ahead of the by-election there on July 14.

Source : http://mafrel.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/mp-seek-clarification-on-army-abused-for-campaign-in-manek-urai/

Item 2
--------
MANIK URAI, 23 Jun (Bernama) -- Seramai 187 guru dan warga pendidik yang layak mengundi pada pilihan raya kecil kawasan Dewan Undangan Negeri Manik Urai pada 14 Julai ini diseru supaya memilih calon Barisan Nasional (BN) bagi memastikan Pelan Induk Pembangunan Pendidikan (PIPP) berjaya dilaksanakan.

Timbalan Menteri Pelajaran, Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi berkata walaupun pemilihan calon merupakan hak seseorang individu, namun sokongan terhadap kerajaan akan memastikan PIPP dapat dilaksanakan demi faedah generasi masa depan.

"Kita berharap para guru dapat membantu menjayakan agenda pendidikan negara ini," katanya.

Puad berkata kerajaan kini dalam proses untuk membina negara bangsa yang cemerlang menerusi sistem pendidikan yang maju.

"Kita juga sedang meningkatkan taraf guru dan untuk itu mereka mestilah bersama kita," katanya.

-- BERNAMA
Source : http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/bm/news_lite.php?id=420166

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On 22nd May 2009, PAS Elections Director Datuk Mustafa Ali said"Barisan will surely lose. So it might as well not bother to contest,"
I agree with Datuk Mustafa Ali, PAS has held the Manik Urai seat for 5 terms, when BN could not even retain its Kuala Terengganu seat
where it was the incumbent in a by election.


BN of course has decided to contest, that is their right, but the actions highlighted above are not within their rights.
After a hatrick of by election losses BN seems desperate for a win in Manik Urai.
Desperate is an understatement, more like blatant abuse.It is an election offence to use MINDEF and the Education Ministry.
What happened to Najib's statement that there will be no more "Maggi Mee" or instant projects that are rolled out just before elections ?
Or is the BN afraid that it cannot play its postal voter trump card owing to the fact that there are only 25 postal voter's in Manik Urai ?

The Deputy Education Minister has no business canvassing votes from teachers under a thinly veiled disguise of advancing the education agenda
then making a statement that implies that their status will be upgraded if the vote was given to BN.
In most developed countries the Minister of Defence and Education would have resigned in shame.

What is SPR doing about this ? Are they ignorant that it is an offence to use public facilities for election purposes ?
With all the hue and cry they made over "pondok panas" and reminders to stop campaigning on polling day,
have they now conveniently forgotten that campaigning can only start on nomination day on 06 July and stop at
midnight on 13 July ?
SPR should stop all campaigning and issue warnings to any party that flouts this rule whether Opposition or BN.

SPR will for the first time, be issuing coloured stickers to identify the party vehicles -- BN will have blue stickers, Pas green and independents orange.
Since this will be to control traffic for party vehicles ferrying voters to the polling center's, why discriminate by color codes ?
Does it matter from which party the vehicles belong to if their function is to ferry voters ? Or is there a hidden nefarious purpose ?

If SPR cannot do their job without fear or favor they should just step aside and allow MAFREL to show them how it is done.

While I am at it I also want to point out PDRM's misplaced sense of priorities, what is the big idea behind deploying a police
force of 1,000 to oversee a by election in a sleepy hollow with a population of 25,000 (of which only 12,293 are registered voters)
while high crime townships like Klang with a population of 1,000,000 is policed by a force of only 700 ?
The standard reply " to ensure security " will no longer fly, when time and again the police have been known to break up opposition
"ceramah" and intimidate supporters.

Another blunder is attempting to charge Kelantan menteri besar Tok Guru (Nik Abdul Aziz) under sedition for his chastizing of UMNO,
I suppose instead of engaging Tok Guru on what he said, once again they are bandying the sedition card, an act that has been thrown at
many dissenters but somehow was never used against blatantly seditious politicians who are alligned to BN.
In George Town, Kelantan Barisan Nasional secretary Datuk Md Alwi Che Ahmad said the state Barisan wanted Nik Aziz to make a public apology to the coalition or face possible legal action.
Alwi then goes on to say ‘‘Nik Abdul Aziz should also not travel in any MAS aircraft since it is a government-linked company.”
UMNO Penang factions seem to be the most vociferous and boorish but seem to shoot of their mouth without engaging the brain.
What has that got to do with anything ? Going by Alwi's rationale should he also leave Penang, as the state is ruled by the opposition ?

In the coming days we can expect the compliant mainstream media with its obedient spinwriters dishing out heavy doses of propaganda,
while insulting the intelligence of the general public with the worn out strategy of using psywar to coerce voters to back a perceived "winning horse".
Remember all those spinwriters who came up with a barrage of analysis on why BN will win in the Permatang Pauh by elections ?
Remember the NST front-page article "Blue wave sweeps over Kelantan" in the run up to the 12th General Elections ?
Well, we all know that not only BN lost, but were trounced after making those grandiose proclamations.
Read my lips : Psyway ala Khir Toyo's " zero opposition in Selangor" will not work.

Democracy is not just about free elections but fair ones, even if you are a BN supporter you should voice out these concerns
to your elected representatives, because sooner than you think the tables could be turned in the not too distant future.
I can assure you that I would lambast Pakatan Rakyat too if they condone similar abuses in the event they obtain federal power.

Vijay Kumar Murugavell