Life's Happenings

Pattaya International Fireworks Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Fri, 21 Oct 2022 07:01:00 +0000

Pattaya is definitely firing up its presence internationally. Covid19 has hit many nations really hard and Pattaya wasn't exempted from that hit.

The Thai government is helping out by organising another exciting event in the month of November.

Come to Pattaya on 25 & 26 November 2022 to witness the Pattaya International Fireworks Festival.

Pattaya's Beach Road will be closed to traffic from 8pm onwards. Better be at the beach much earlier as traffic will build up before that.

Either you start scouting around for a hotel rooftop for an enjoyable dinner on that night or book your favourite seating spot on the beach.

While you are looking at having a holiday at Pattaya, you can also book the pool villas managed by my team at the following Airbnb links:-

Sanook Villa

Villa Eden

Villa Bella

Mew Resort (5 villas)

#pattaya #thailand #pattayainternationalfireworksfestival #fireworksfestival #pattayafestival #thailandfestival #pattayaholiday #pattayapoolvilla #poolvilla #mewresort #sanookvilla #villaeden #villabella

Pattaya Seafood Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Fri, 21 Oct 2022 06:18:00 +0000

Pattaya, being a seaside holiday destination, will get huge daily supplies of fresh seafood.

Not surprise in seeing lots of seafood restaurants and lots of other types of restaurants are serving seafood too.

Terminal 21 Pattaya, the largest shopping centre in Pattaya and located at North Pattaya, is organising a seafood festival at their premises starting today till 24 October 2022.

Pattaya is not a big place, time taken to drive from South to North is about 15-20 minutes, of course depending on the peak hour traffic.

Should be garnering a lot of visitors as it's over a weekend and that visitors arriving in Pattaya are increasing as well.

#pattaya #pattayaseafoodfestival #thailand #thailandseafood #seafood #seafoodfestival #terminal21pattaya #terminal21 #northpattaya

Pattaya International Bikini Beach Race 2022

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Sat, 15 Oct 2022 10:34:00 +0000

If you are keen to join a beach run, you can participate in the upcoming Pattaya International Bikini Beach Race 2022 scheduled to be held on 29 October 2022.

It's a simple 5km fun run and will start at 6pm where you can witness the sunset while having good fun in the run.

Running route:

Where to stay during the Pattaya International Bikini Beach Race 2022
You would need a good place to put up in before the race and few good Pattaya pool villas will be able to meet that need of yours.

Sanook Villa (luxury 4RB)

Villa Eden (4BR)

Villa Bella (5BR)

Mew Resort (15BR - 5 Villas)

Mew Resort 1 (4BR)

Mew Resort 2 (3BR)

Mew Resort 3 (2BR)

Mew Resort 5 (3BR)

Mew Resort 6 (3BR)

There's also a Facebook page dedicated for the beach race - Pattaya Bikini Beach Race.

#pattayainternationalbikinibeachrace, #pattayabikinibeachrace, #bikinirun, #beachrace, #beachrun, #pattaya, #thailand, #pattayapoolvilla, #poolvilla, #mewresort, #phratamnakpoolvilla, #phratamnak

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 10:46:00 +0000

Planning for a holiday trip in Pattaya or you are wondering whether Pattaya is the place to go to for a shot trip?

More to come ........

Judas Asparagus

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 08:19:00 +0000

Through the eyes of a child:

The Children's Bible in a Nutshell

In the beginning, which occurred near the start, there was nothing but God, darkness, and some gas. The Bible says, 'The Lord thy God is one, but I think He must be a lot older than that.

Anyway, God said, 'Give me a light!' and someone did.

Then God made the world.

He split the Adam and made Eve. Adam and Eve were naked, but they weren't embarrassed because mirrors hadn't been invented yet.

Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating one bad apple, so they were driven from the Garden of Eden.

Not sure what they were driven in though, because they didn't have cars.

Adam and Eve had a son, Cain, who hated his brother as long as he was Abel.

Pretty soon all of the early people died off, except for Methuselah, who lived to be like a million or something.

One of the next important people was Noah, who was a good guy, but one of his kids was kind of a Ham. Noah built a large boat and put his family and some animals on it. He asked some other people to join him, but they said they would have to take a rain check.

After Noah came Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob was more famous than his brother, Esau, because Esau sold Jacob his birthmark in exchange for some pot roast. Jacob had a son named Joseph who wore a really loud sports coat.

Another important Bible guy is Moses, whose real name was Charlton Heston. Moses led the Israel Lights out of Egypt and away from the evil Pharaoh after God sent ten plagues on Pharaoh's people. These plagues included frogs, mice, lice, bowels, and no cable.

God fed the Israel Lights every day with manicotti. Then he gave them His Top Ten Commandments.

These include: don't lie, cheat, smoke, dance, or covet your neighbor's stuff.

Oh, yeah, I just thought of one more: Humor thy father and thy mother.

One of Moses' best helpers was Joshua who was the first Bible guy to use spies. Joshua fought the battle of Geritol and the fence fell over on the town.

After Joshua came David. He got to be king by killing a giant with a slingshot.. He had a son named Solomon who had about 300 wives and 500 porcupines. My teacher says he was wise, but that doesn't sound very wise to me.

After Solomon there were a bunch of major league prophets.

One of these was Jonah, who was swallowed by a big whale and then barfed up on the shore. There were also some minor league prophets, but I guess we don't have to worry about them.

After the Old Testament came the New Testament. Jesus is the star of The New. He was born in Bethlehem in a barn. (I wish I had been born in a barn too, because my mom is always saying to me, 'Close the door! Were you born in a barn?' It would be nice to say, 'As a matter of fact, I was.')

During His life, Jesus had many arguments with sinners like the Pharisees and the Democrats.

Jesus also had twelve opossums.

The worst one was Judas Asparagus. Judas was so evil that they named a terrible vegetable after him.

Jesus was a great man. He healed many leopards and even preached to some Germans on the Mount.

But the Democrats and all those guys put Jesus on trial before Pontius the Pilot. Pilot didn't stick up for Jesus. He just washed his hands instead.

Anyways, Jesus died for our sins, then came back to life again.

He went up to Heaven but will be back at the end of the Aluminum. His return is foretold in the book of Revolution.
Tags: Funny, Humour, Children's Bible

How to seek redress when abused by Malaysian authorities

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Tue, 22 May 2012 01:12:00 +0000

How to seek redress when abused by Malaysian authorities

If you know of anyone, let alone our citizens, who was abused, bullied, sexually harassed or mistreated by any member of our Msian police, immigration officers, army personnei or civil servants or any such like, you may lodge a formal complaint to the newly set up Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission or SIAP which stands for Suruhjaya Integriti Agensi Penguatkuasaan.

Please visit its website http://www.eaic.gov.my/ to know the procedures to file the complaint. You can contact 03-88886618 or email aduan@eaic.gov.my.

FYI, Datuk Paul Low who heads Transparency International - Malaysia was appointed as one of the six commissioners of this Agency and is currently holding the position as Deputy Chairman. Datuk Paul is a God fearing believer and he is very committed to do his part in these positions to weed out corruption and see justice served.

Please inform others of this Agency ... and remember, be advised to lodge a complaint with SIAP besides making a police report (which may not be effective in punishing those responsible).
Tags: Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission, SIAP, Suruhjaya Integriti Agensi Penguatkuasaan

Doctor, Why Are You So Irresponsible?

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:18:00 +0000

The doctor was called one evening for an urgent surgery. He answered the call, rushed to the hospital in minutes & went directly to the surgery theatre.

The boy's father, waiting in the hall for the doctor, yelled at the doctor on seeing him, "Why did you take all this time to come? Don't you know that my son's life is in danger? Don't you have any sense of responsibility?"

The doctor smiled & said, "I am sorry, I wasn't in the hospital & I came as fast as I could after receiving the call...... And now, I wish you'd calm down so that I can do my work".

"Calm down?! What if your son were in this room right now, can you calm down? If your own son dies now what will you do??" said the father angrily.

The doctor smiled again & replied, "I will say what "Job" said in the Holy Bible: "From dust we came & to dust we return, blessed be the name of God". Doctors cannot prolong lives. Go & pray for your son, and we will do our best."

"Giving advices when we're not concerned is so easy" Murmured the father. The surgery took some hours after which the doctor came out happily, "Thank goodness! Your son is saved!"

And without waiting for the father's reply he was heading for the door. "If you have any question, please ask the nurse!!"

"Why is he so arrogant? Can't he wait a few minutes so that I ask about my son's condition?" Commented the father to the nurse.

With tears in her eyes, the nurse said, "His son died yesterday in a road accident, he was in the burial when we called him for your son's surgery. And now that he saved your son, he is getting back to his son's burial."
Tags: Doctor, Surgery

Stay Foolish, Stay Hungry

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 04:25:00 +0000

Stanford Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, on June 12, 2005.

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents’ savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn’t see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn’t interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.

It wasn’t all romantic. I didn’t have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends’ rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn’t have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can’t capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, it’s likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

My second story is about love and loss.

I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.

I really didn’t know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down – that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple’s current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.
I’m pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.

My third story is about death.
When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn’t even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor’s code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’m fine now.
This was the closest I’ve been to facing death, and I hope it’s the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960′s, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Thank you all very much.

10 Hours Delays?

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 01:21:00 +0000

(as published in Malaysia Today on 19 Sept 2011)
By Lynne_c

On behalf of the passengers of Air Asia X flight D7 2686 from Kuala Lumpur to Incheon, Seoul on September 2, 2011, I would like to share our experience about a delay that cost us more than 10 hours and the shabby treatment that Air Asia extends to its paying customers.

The chronology of the events are as follows:

The flight, D7 2686 was initially supposed to take off at 11.00pm and reach Incheon at 6.00am the next day.

11.00pm - Captain of the flight announced a delay due to a route change which requires the plane to upload 2 tonnes of fuel. The reason given was non-approval from ATP for clearance from Ho Chi Minh to Taipei.

12.00 midnight - Captain announces another plan change, requiring the uplifting of 1 tonnes of fuel from the plane.

1.00am - The plane was waiting by the runway to take off when the Captain announced clearance from Taipei and said that he would decide in 2 or 3 minutes if he would repark the plane.

1.30am - Captain re-parked the plane at the terminal

1.50am - Passengers were told to disembark to T18 by the Captain

2.30am - After more than 3 hours stranded in the plane, the passengers were finally allowed to disembark to T18 where everyone rushed to the rest room or to purchase much needed food and drinks

3.30am - Cold croissant and cold mineral water were distributed to the passengers.

4.00am - Some of the Korean guests requested for blankets for their children. The passengers were told that the plane will take off by 5.00am

5.00am - A new announcement was made that the plane will take off by 7.30am

6.00am - Two of the passengers cancelled their tickets and left

7.00am - One of the Managers assured the passengers that the plane will take off by 7.30am. A second Manager then said that Air Asia could extend our flight to another day. But he could not qualify for food and accommodation.

7.30am - The passengers were asked to re-board the plane.

8.00am - The plane reversed out of the parking bay and was parked in another place in the middle of the airport with 2 ground crew still on board. The new crew sat in the front portion of the plane, behind the red curtain, laughing and joking

8.20am - One of the passengers, a Mr. Chew, got up from his seat to approach the crew to find out what was happening. He was told that there was no pilot and the new crew said that they had just arrived from Delhi and were only told to sit in to board us on the plane. Anoother crew member, a Mr. Narin Singh, openly said that there was no pilot and he was there to bring the plane to where it was currently parked (in the middle of the airport). When pressed for confirmation, he declined to comment. However, it was very clear that Air Asia had moved the airplane without a qualified pilot on board!

9.20am - The plane finally took off for Korea

The delaying tactics employed by Air Asia was obvious. On top of all that, the passengers were subjected to rude treatment and thuggish behaviour from the ground crew and staff of Air Asia. When a disagreement arose between two Korean ladies and the ground crew at approximately 5.30am, passenger Mr. Chew recorded the incident on his handphone, but he was subsequently threatened and browbeatened by the Air Asia security to delete the video or else his mobile phone would be confiscated.

To date, there has been no effort from Air Asia to reach out to its customers and at least make an attempt to compensate everyone for the ordeal they suffered at the hands of Air Asia. We have never received any official answer on the reason for the delay. From what we had found out verbally, someone in Air Asia forgot to ask for clearance through Taipei air space, which sparked off the whole fiasco.

I am writing this to you in the hopes that our experience on board Air Asia X flight D7 2686 will be shared with your readers. Was all these hassle and stress worth the price of a cheap ticket? My answer, and the answer of all my fellow passengers would be, a resounding No.

More than that, seeing how shabbily Air Asia treated its guests that night, how they verbally accosted the Korean passengers who were struggling to speak English, I can honestly say, I felt an emotion I had never felt in my lifetime - I was embarassed to be Malaysian because Air Asia is a Malaysian company.
Tags: Air Asia X, Incheon, LCCT, Taipei Air Space, Ho Chi Minh, ATP

An Unprepared Team A Danger To All

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 02:44:00 +0000

A team by the name of Putera 1Malaysia Club went into Somalia with the idea of conducting humanitarian aid mission in a particular war zone area with the famine crisis being the main concern.

Unfortunately, this team was so unprepared and went in a haste without knowing what they are heading into. Not only that they have risked their own lifes unnecessarily but they had to be protected by the security forces that were already busy with the war. And now, they have to worry for a bunch of innocent / naive people from Malaysia who were trying to claim a name by doing something good.

Things didn't went as planned and maybe the plan wasn't a good plan after all.

I'm so sorry to hear about the demise of our Bernama TV's cameraman, cameraman Noramfaizul Mohd Nor, in Somalia while following this bunch of unprepared team.

You have to read some true facts of what has happened prior to and during the so-called humanitarian aid mission leading to the demise of a Malaysian.

Failure to listen cost a life, an article in Star, depicted that a 7 member reconnaissance team of Malaysians arrived earlier to assess the safety situation for the upcoming humanitarian aid mission. The verdict - "Risky".

Was this "Risky" situation looked into or further planning with proper risk management being factored prior to the arrival of the 48 members of the Putera 1Malaysia Club?

Apparently, out of the 48 members, 40% of them were from the media. 18 of them? An experience army team going into the war zone will not allow so many media members to follow them else it may jeopardise their mission as they have to waste resource to save the media members if caught in a crossfire. It could have been more media members if not for the limited seats in the military aircraft. 74 media members were at the airport but only 18 were allowed to follow eventually. I really wonder what sort of briefing notes that had been provided to the media members in preparing them.

You don't send so many media members to cover a war zone story in a particular group. Moreover, this Putera 1Malaysia Club are not trained soldiers or they were carrying any weapons? Were they?

The 7 member reconnaissance team actually reported to Putrajaya first prior to the departure of the 48 members under the umbrella of Putera 1Malaysia Club. Their recommendations stated the following:-

a) that this team should make full preparations and leave after Hari Raya; and
b) concentrate their work and set up a clinic at one selected camp for the refugees.

Even though "Risky" but the team went ahead without listening to the advise as mentioned in items (a) and (b) as above. Outcome?

An international news agency journalist did mention that they have to go through a 3 days intensive training conducted by former commandos before they jump into the war zone. That too, does not guarantee their survival in a war zone.

To quote Putera 1Malaysia Club president Datuk Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim who asked everyone not to politicised or “cashed-in for cheap publicity" on the death of a Malaysian - you mean to say that people can't ridicule the club for its unpreparedness which caused a Malaysian to die unnecessarily?

The humanitarian aid mission was cut short immediately following the death of a Malaysian journalist. Why cut short the trip? If this team was so gung-ho about the mission, it should have gone ahead with the agenda that had been planned. A death shouldn't have derailed a humanitarian aid mission where its main objective was to save even more lifes.

This Datuk made the following statements to the press:-
a) We are preparing for a second mission but we have to settle several unresolved matters before we make another attempt.
b) The club would not rush into things and would take all necessary precautions and follow closely all standard operating procedures during the next mission.
c) 45 people, including pressmen, had signed for the next trip so far.

My comments on the above:-
a) You mean to say that the club didn't resolve certain issues for the first mission but still went ahead with it?
b) Admitting that this first mission was a rush job and SOP wasn't followed at all?
c) All the best to this 45 persons.

Immediately right after this tragedy, a cabinet minister said that "standard operating procedure should be created to serve as a guideline for all parties." Isn't this a little too late?

The cabinet minister also mentioned that "There should also be a reconnaissance done in these areas to determine the level of security." I think he hasn't been briefed about the 7 member reconnaissance team hahaha.

Worse still, our PM quoted this - "But if you're not prepared to take the risk, then stay home."

This blogpost is not written with selfish intention or any political agenda. It's in the minds of Malaysians who cannot understand why such humanitarian aid mission cannot be handed over to the professionals such as the Médecins Sans Frontières ("MSF") who have been there for years.

I respect the intention and the main objective of this trip but they should have prepared themselves in view of MSF International President Dr Unni Karunakara's experience in Somalia.

Irrespective of whether our journalist was prepared in mindset or knew what he was volunteering for or for the fact that many organisations have/would be contributing aids to the journalist's family, whoever organised the trip should have been more responsible for it as his death could have been avoided.
Tags: Putera 1Malaysia Club, Somalia Famine, Humanitarian Aid Mission, Somalia War Zone, Bernama TV, Noramfaizul Mohd Nor, Médecins Sans Frontières

The Mousetrap

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 02:49:00 +0000

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. The mouse wondered, "What food might this contain?" He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed this warning: "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is of grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it." You are on your own.

The mouse turned to the goat and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The goat sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose." Just too bad for you.

So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap . . . . . . Alone. Abandoned by his friends. No way out.

That very night, a sound was heard throughout the house - the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.

The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it. It was a venomous snake whose tail was caught in the trap.

The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. When she returned home she still had a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup. So the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued. Friends and neighbours came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the goat. But, alas, the farmer's wife did not get well... She died.

So many people came for her funeral that the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them for the funeral luncheon.

And the mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.

The next time you hear someone is facing a problem and you think it doesn't concern you, Remember:

As Malaysians we think in terms of racial divides. Do not set artificial boundaries when assistance is required. Go beyond the bastions of racial exclusivity. We are all vulnerable within the realities of a shared destiny. Do not leave your fellow Malaysians lost, abandoned and alone in times of dire need.

When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.
Tags: Mousetrap

Football Officials Charged By FIFA

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 00:26:00 +0000

The cats are being let out of the bags now.

FIFA has charged 16 football officials representing Caribbean nations.

They are as follows:-
David Hinds, Mark Bob Forde (Barbados)
Franka Pickering, Aubrey Liburd (British Virgin Islands)
David Frederick (Cayman Islands)
Osiris Guzman, Felix Ledesma (Dominican Republic)
Colin Klass, Noel Adonis (Guyana)
Yves Jean-Bart (Haiti)
Anthony Johnson (St Kitts and Nevis)
Patrick Mathurin (St Lucia)
Joseph Delves, Ian Hypolite (St Vincent and the Grenadines)
Richard Groden (Trinidad and Tobago)
Hillaren Frederick (US Virgin Islands)

I thought bribery happens within government or political enrivonment or in certain white collar crimes. Just for the sake of obtaining certain positions in FIFA, some people will go to the extent of bribing others.

Does this involve the bribing of these officials to manipulate the controversial selection of FIFA World Cup host?

I have already highlighted this in my previous blogposts of Never Before In World Cup Venue Selection and Scandals Involving World Cups 2018 & 2022.

Australia is just waiting to sue FIFA for losing out in the selection of being a World Cup 2022 host. To cover their costs, I supposed, in entertaining the FIFA officials or football officials from other nations plus costs incurred to prepare for the bid. In the end, Australia had spent up to Aust$46 million to FIFA.

I wonder who will be arranging to fix the winner for the coming World Cups.
Tags: FIFA, Caribbean, Caribbean Footballl Officials, World Cup 2018, World Cup 2022

Secret Of Living Up To 80 Years Old

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 02:57:00 +0000

I recently turned 65 and had to choose a new primary care physician for my Medicare program.

After two visits and exhaustive lab tests, he said I was doing "fairly well" for my age.

A little concerned about that comment, I couldn't resist asking him, "Do you think I will live to be 80?

He asked: Do you smoke tobacco or drink alcoholic beverages?"

"Oh no," I replied. "I don't do drugs, either."

"Do you have many friends and entertain frequently?"

"I said, "No, I usually stay home and keep to myself".

"Do you eat rib-eye steaks and barbecued ribs?"

I said, "No, my other doctor said that all red meat is unhealthy!"

"Do you spend a lot of time in the sun, like playing golf, sailing, hiking, or bicycling?"

"No, I don't," I said.

"Do you gamble, drive fast cars, or have a lot of sex?"

"No," I said. "I don't do any of those things."

He looked at me and said, "Then why would you want to live to 80?

I Shot Two Burglars

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 15:29:00 +0000

George Phillips, an elderly man, from Meridian, Mississippi, was going up to bed, when his wife told him that he'd left the light on in the garden shed, which she could see from the bedroom window.

George opened the back door to go turn off the light, but saw that there were people in the shed stealing things. He phoned the police, who asked "Is someone in your house?"

He said "No," but some people are breaking into my garden shed and stealing from me.

Then the police dispatcher said "All patrols are busy. You should lock your doors and an officer will be along when one is available."

George said, "Okay." He hung up the phone and counted to 30. Then he phoned the police again.

Hello, I just called you a few seconds ago because there were people stealing things from my shed. Well, you don't have to worry about them now because I just shot and killed them both, the dogs are eating them right now." and he hung up.

Within five minutes, six Police Cars, a SWAT Team, a Helicopter, two Fire Trucks, a Paramedic, and an Ambulance showed up at the Phillips' residence, and caught the burglars red-handed.

One of the Policemen said to George, "I thought you said that you'd shot them!"

George said, "I thought you said there was nobody available!"
Tags: Burglars, SWAT, Police, Fire Truck, Paramedic, Ambulance,

Did IWK Come?

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 12:51:00 +0000

Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd, at a press conference, stated that they will conduct desludging at housing estates at least once every two years. That means to say some area could see them coming to their housing estates more than once every two years.

Somehow, two years have passed at my housing estate and I didn't see them appearing at my septic tank area.

Was it just a NATO effect? Or was it that the reporters have reportedly wrongly?

Do they attend to your housing estate's desludging once every two years?

Reading: IWK Desludges Household Septic Tanks Once Every Two Years - Bernama
Tags: Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd, IWK, Desludging, Septic Tank

My Most Expensive Dumpling aka Bak Chang

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 01:21:00 +0000

Thanks to a couple friend of mine, they treated us to two gigantic dumpling aka bak chang.

The size is really humongous if you compare it with the size of the fork and spoon at the bottom of the picture.

Guess the price ........... it's RM200 each.

Yeah, we were treated to a RM400 supper plus grapes from Down Under (by another couple) if not mistaken.

It's really nice and the dumpling rice itself is not too oily and not too soft or sticky. Perfecto!

This is the most expensive bak chang I have ever tried. Will we get to eat it again next year? (hoping for that couple to read this blogpost)

You may ask "What is inside it that made it so bloody expensive?"

I was late for this supper and they opened up the second bak chang when I arrived. They looked highly upon me to finish it when five adults and two kids finished the first bak chang.

If you look at this picture, my friend dug up two pieces of abalone (just on the right side of the big spoon).

Other ingredients include scallop, shark's fin, higher grade mushroom, meat and ingredients normally found in smaller bak chang. Can't recall all of it.

This is a home made bak chang and made to order. My friend's company actually ordered 350 bak chang from this lady for her company's function. Really don't know what kind of function was that.
Tags: Bak Chang, Dumpling, Abalone, Scallop, Shark's Fin, Mushroom

Scholarship Mess for Malaysians

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Sat, 28 May 2011 16:46:00 +0000

The recent upheaval about the scholarships not being properly awarded to deserving students is just a ploy. A ploy or a decoy to divert your attention from something more serious. Or the next general election is upcoming and something has to be stirred up. Subsequently the government will come in to 'right' the matter and potrayed to be the hero again. A government that looks into the welfare of its citizen.

Why am I saying that it's a ploy?

This scholarship issue is an annual issue and when government exams' results are announced each year, you'll see people all over Malaysia crying unfairness where the government has either rejected or didn't even process their scholarship applications properly.

These news had been on-going more than a decade ago or even for the last two decades. Why is it being brought up now?

Why is the Public Service Department ("PSD") being picked on now? They should have been investigated twenty or ten years ago for the yearly issue. Why now?

Every year, many top students have been "robbed" off their eligibility to apply for a government scholarship. This is nothing new. Suddenly, the Chief Secretary to the government announced that they will look into allegations where scholarships have not been awarded accordingly to the rules. Then it's also the government's fault for not acting on it ten to twenty years ago. It took the government (say ten years) to act on such discrepancy after seeing so many top students not getting their scholarships year in year out.

Then MCA is now seen coming into the picture to help those "poor" students who have been "robbed" off their scholarship chances. They are blaming PSD also. But this is an annual affair. MCA just realised this?

Is PSD really at fault? Or were they instructed to do so otherwise? Certain people are calling for PSD's staff to be dealt with or taken to task or severely disciplined. Really want to know how will they be reprimanded after all these years of discrepancy.

Let me tell you, if you want to put up a show please do put up a better show.

Then there's this ngo (not naming as not to give them any chance of gaining useless publicity) coming into the picture asking for 67% of the government scholarships to be given to his race. In the first place, please do the first thing right first. What's that? Get a job for each and every single person of your race. Then I will say that your ngo's existence is valid and useful.

Then I read about the Pahang state government's scholarship offer for all of their sportsmen and sportswomen that are representing the state in the upcoming 14th Malaysian Games. Is this done in accordance with the nation's interest? Are we moving in this direction for the future as well? The USA and South Korea governments do have such annual budgets for scholarships for top sportsmen and sportswomen. That's the reason why theirs people are doing so well in sports.

But is the state government awarding it to the right people as in all of them are so bright in their respective sports? I hope that these awards won't go to waste just like that.
Tags: Malaysian Scholarship, Government Scholarship, Public Service Department, 14th Malaysian Games, Pahang State Government, PSD

Employment Scam?

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Fri, 20 May 2011 00:43:00 +0000

Received the following email from info@ukjob.com which has a subject title of "Golden Opportunity To Work in UK !!! Send Recent Curriculum Vita".

Did a search on KenGeo Alliance Oil and Gas and it doesn't even has a domain haha.

A further search led me to Email Fraud's blog and read that this KenGeo Alliance Oil and Gas was a scam. In this particular blog, the blogger mentioned that KenGeo Alliance Oil and Gas of USA was hiring instead.

You be the judge!

---------------------------------------------------------------------
National Head Office Houston
KENGEO ALLIANCE OIL & GAS COMPANY
14315 Katy Freeway, Suite 100
Houston, Texas 77094-1810 USA

Join Our UK Branch Today!! Send Recent/Update CV Only

KENGEO ALLIANCE OIL & GAS COMPANY has its Origination and main National Head Quater in Texas America. KENGEO ALLIANCE OIL & GAS COMPANY (UK) recruitment excise is currently going on and this is to fill some of the vacant positions we have presently.At KENGEO you can expect professional challenges and consistent support. It’s a combination that encourages growth, progress and long term career opportunities.

KENGEO ALLIANCE OIL & GAS COMPANY has long supported employee networks that provide career development information, act as an advisory group to management, build cultural awareness, and support community outreach for our diverse employees. Networks in the United States include the Asian Connection for Excellence (ACE); Black Employee Success Team (BEST); Global Organization for the Advancement of Latinos (GOAL); People for Respect, Inclusion, and Diversity of Employees (PRIDE); and Women’s Interest Network (WIN).

Here is the list of some of the vacant positions we have currently and some have not been mentioned here.If your area of specialization has not been mentioned here does not mean its not available, just send in your CVand we we look into it.

These Opening is for our Regional Office which have just been estabilished in United Kingdom.

List of Some Vacant Positions
_________________________________________
Consultant
Human Resources Officer
Marketing.
Account Executive.
Chief Accountants
Clerks
Data Processing Officer
All Managerial positions.
Quantity surveyor
Chef
Marine Officer
HSE officer
All Engineering positions
Drilling Engineers
Rig Engineer
Management and Project Management
General Manager/Manager Engineering.
Project Manager
Medical Officers.
Medical Consultants/Specialist
Mining Consultants.
All Engineering field
Engineering consultants
Financial Consultants.
Petroleum Geologist.
Welding and heavy fabrication.
Human Resources, Administration.
Medical Practioners
Professional Executive Secretary
_______________________________________________

This Vacany is to occur newly opened office UNITED KINGDOM which is about to begin from the end of this Quota. Applicant who is ready to relocate can send in CV,PASSPORT PHOTO to our Online HR Divison Email : oneaverecruit@yahoo.com Do contact the department with an update of your resume. Qualified Applicant will be invited to UK for their interview after proper screening of CV and applications.

Regards,
Mr. Henry Peters
Human Resources Officer
KenGeo Alliance Oil and Gas UK
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Tags: KenGeo Alliance Oil and Gas Company, KenGeo, Henry Peters, Greg Morris, Asian Connection for Excellence, Black Employee Success Team, Global Organization for the Advancement of Latinos, People for Respect, Inclusion, and Diversity of Employees, Women’s Interest Network

Is Your Job A Mismatch For Your Gifts?

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Thu, 12 May 2011 01:45:00 +0000

Is your job a mismatch for your gifts?
by Rick Warren

Each of you should go on living according to the Lord's gift to you, and as you were when God called you. This is the rule I teach in all the churches. 1 Corinthians 7:17 (TEV)

"If you are in a job that does not match the gifts, interests and abilities God gave to you, then give serious consideration taking steps to get out of it and into the job God has called you to."

God does not expect you to glorify Him with gifts you don't have. But He does expect you to glorify Him with gifts you do have.

To fulfill God's will for you life, you need work that expresses what God made you to be. If you're in a job that is not using the talents, gifts, abilities, and interests that God gave you, you may want to pray about whether or not you're in a mismatched job.

This is a serious problem and it's a spiritual issue. It is far more important than you may think it is -- because God has given you your gifts, talents and abilities, and one day He's going to say, "What did you do with them?" And do you want to say, "Well, I spent my life at a job that didn't use them."

Now, I know this raises some questions, you may be saying, "Rick, what if my current job doesn't express my gifts?" As someone committed to your fulfillment in life, living for the purpose God designed you for, I urge you toward this: If you are in a job that does not match the gifts, interests and abilities God gave to you, then give serious consideration taking steps to get out of it and get into the job that God has called you to by the very nature of who you are.

It's a very important issue for your spiritual life: Get into what God made you to be. The first step you need to take is some self-appraisal.

You need to ask yourself, "What did God make me to be? And, as the Bible says, "... Try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of the faith that God has given to you ...." (Romans 12:3, Phillips NT) During this appraisal, you may even discover that you are in the very job God wants you to be, and you can develop a new attitude about your work.

"Each of you should go on living according to the Lord's gift to you ..." (1 Corinthians 7:17, TEV) Pray about this - Are you in a job that doesn't match who God made you to be, or are you exactly where God wants you to be?
Tags: God's Will, Mismatch Job

Our Office Work Is God's Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Thu, 12 May 2011 01:40:00 +0000

Your work is part of God's plan
by Rick Warren

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)

"The gifts, the abilities, the talents, even the interests you have they were genetically encoded into you by God."

Your work can be an act of worship. No matter what you do, it's never just a job if you are a believer. This is because God designed you with talents, gifts and interests that He wants used for His glory.

You are custom-made. There's nobody like you in the whole world. And the gifts, the abilities, the talents, even the interests you have they were genetically encoded into you by God. God made you with a specific mission in mind and He wants you to use the gifts he's given you in your work.

The Bible says you are God's workmanship. The Greek word used for workmanship is poema. That's where the English word poem comes from you are God's poem! You are God's work of art. You are God's masterpiece.

Your work is part of God's plan for your life and that is why, as you work, you worship God.
Tags: God, Workmanship, Poema, Work Of Art, Masterpiece, Gifts, Abilities, Talents

No Communication In Telecommunication Company

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Mon, 09 May 2011 03:17:00 +0000

I have submitted my application for a telephone / broadband line via Telekom Malaysia Berhad at their TM Point, Bandar Puchong Jaya branch on 3 February 2011 under application reference number of 1-73TETA. On the day of registration, the man behind the counter said that my application can't be processed but my application will be recorded in their system.

The reason on why it can't be processed was due to insufficient lines being available in my Phase 2A residential area. Neighbours in Phase 1 and 2 (the nearest Phase 2 house is just five houses away). I took it as it is thinking that they know best. I was requested to call back within the next few working days to check on the application. The following numbers were given; 100 or 1-300-888-123 and all I needed was just to quote my reference number of 1-73TETA.

I called them once three times within the month of February 2011. Called them once at the end of March 2011. Called them once in the month of April 2011. Was given a report number of 1-444220995 but I deemed it as just a formality sake.

All these five calls were useless and futile.

The ladies at those call centres have standard response to each of my calls, that is they will record my concern / complain and will submit a report. That I will be contacted in due course after a few working days or I was requested to call them again if I didn't receive any calls from them.

It's 9 May 2011 today, more than three months since I have submitted my application.

To add insult to injury, my next door neighbour (meaning to say it's a Phase 2A resident) on the left has gotten their phone line installed just after Chinese New Year. I managed to catch the technician who came out from the neighbour's house as I was at home on that weekday. Spoke to the technician who said that there are plenty of lines available for my residential area to cater for the new Phase 3 area that has issued CF recently. I relayed my situation to him and he told me to just tell the people at the call centre to issue an instruction to install a line at my house. Don't need to submit any report anymore. Such a simple task but Telekom Malaysia Berhad made it so hard and cumbersome.

Further to that, a close friend who is living at the next street (it's also in the Phase 2A area) submitted an application towards end February 2011 / early March 2011 (can't recall exact date) has gotten their telephone line by mid March 2011. It took them two weeks plus only. This friend of mine submitted their application at the same TM Point centre as mine.

Then my neighbour (two doors away on the right and also a Phase 2A resident) received their telephone line at end April 2011.

What the heck has happened to my application?

Being a large public listed company, Telekom Malaysia Berhad has really got a lot to answer. Whatever excuse that they are going to give is actually absurd by now and if they do give one, they are actually treating their customers as fools.

Some people just had no sense of pride in their work or plain lazy or has no idea on how to resolve my issue. They can't think out of the box.

Why? Because they monopolise the telecommunication industry.

Recently, they had just talked about having the High Speed Broadband serving the whole nation. Here, a common citizen can't even get a normal telephone line and they are talking about high speed broadband for the whole nation?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I'm calling them a bluff and just painting the wrong picture.

They have more than a million Streamyx subscribers and even after launching the HSBB servicee more than a year ago, they have only gotten 60,000 Unifi subscribers. I'm not suprised if people are not getting their applications processed at all.

I'm saying that there's no communication system in Malaysia's largest telecommunication company i.e. Telekom Malaysia Berhad. It has been proven with my case here and I'm about to make their sixth attempt to check with them on my application's status.

I bet that they will tell me the same response which is "I will submit this report of yours and our people will call you within a few working days." It's all a bluff and many people should be sacked as they have failed their KPI for three months continuously.

So shameful to see Telekom Malaysia Berhad being a sponsor of Manchester United at the same time. My favourite football team is of world class status and how could it tie itself with a company that is of "First Class Facility But Third Class Mentality".
Tags: Telekom Malaysia Berhad, TM, Unifi, Streamyx, High Speed Broadband, HSBB, Broadband, Telecommunication Company

Defend My Right? But That's Not The Right I Want

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 14:04:00 +0000

The Malaysian Chinese Association's ("MCA") president is so thoughtful that he has gone over to Kelantan, who's on the verge of banning gambling in the form of lottery tickets, to negotiate on behalf of the non-muslims telling them that this has infringed the non-muslims' rights.

It was mentioned that he will defend the rights of the non-muslims. It's a big statement indeed. But is that the right that is applicable to all non-muslims. Is MCA wasting their time and other people's time. Many non-muslims would have preferred MCA to do something more useful and beneficial for Malaysia as a whole, not just for the non-muslims.

One questions, was it stated in the constitution that non-muslims must have those lottery rights?

If not, what right has PAS infringed?

Wait wait ..... it was mentioned that Big Sweep lottery was affected. Who owns Big Sweep and for that matter, who owns the other lottery tickets scheme in Malaysia?

And if PAS is stubborn and proceeds with their moves, MCA is sure that a legal suit will be brought against PAS. One of the reasons given is that Federal law permits the lottery schemes so it must prevail, not the state law.

Did you defend the rights of the non-muslims when the Christians had their bibles compounded and subsequently conditions were imposed for Bahasa Malaysia bibles in Peninsular Malaysia? If the government tells you not to interfere or said nothing, will you challenge the government in court?

Be consistent in your defending of non-muslims' rights. If you want to defend, please defend in all situations and not on selective basis. Please don't tell us that you have insufficient hands or your hands are tied due to specific laws. And why only non-muslims' rights?

Out of nowhere, MCA publicity bureau got involved by saying that PAS has the final say in the Pakatan Rakyat. Just weeks ago, DAP was mentioned to be taking that role. Maybe weeks later, it would be PKR's turn to take that final say role.
Tags: Malaysian Chinese Association, MCA, PAS, DAP, PKR, Lottery Tickets, Big Sweep, Non-Muslims' Rights

A Call For Patience

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 09:33:00 +0000

CHRISTIAN FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA

(PERSEKUTUAN KRISTIAN MALAYSIA)

Address: 10, Jalan 11/9, Section 11, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

Telephone: (03) 7957 1278, (03) 7957 1463, Fax: (03) 7957 1457

Email: cfmsia@yahoo.co.uk

7th April 2011

A call for patience and careful consideration

The statements of regret and appeals for forgiveness expressed by the Government of Malaysia with respect to the impounding and stamping of the Bahasa Malaysia Bible, the Alkitab, resonate deep within the Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM).

As a body that brings together a wide cross-section of the Christian community in Malaysia, we know about the sinfulness of man and have experienced the forgiveness of God. As such, we receive these expressions with all the sincerity with which they are offered.

We believe the Government’s proposals represent a basis for further dialogue and engagement towards a viable long-term and comprehensive solution.

As such, CFM feels that this process ought not to be hurried. Its constituent bodies are currently undertaking their own internal consultations prior to responding collectively to the 10-point resolution proposed by the Government.

We call for patience and perseverance, and continued prayer and quiet reflection, as we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us in our deliberations.

Yours sincerely,

(signed)
Bishop Ng Moon Hing
Chairman and the Executive Committee,
Christian Federation of Malaysia
Tags: Christian Federation of Malaysia, CFM, Bahasa Malaysia Bible, Alkitab, Christian Community

Being Labelled As An Extremist Christian

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 19:16:00 +0000

Looks like what was stated in the Christian Federation of Malaysia's ("CFM") media statement as per my previous blogpost has been deemed extreme and hence, the CFM has also been labelled as extremists in requesting for its Constitutional rights to be recognised.

Who said that?

The Islamic Defenders Organisation (Pembela), an umbrella body representing nineteen Muslim non-governmental organisations has, on 28 March 2011, came up to say that these Christians should apologise and should use a proper channel to voice out. They suggested that the Committee for the Promotion of Religious Understanding and Harmony Among Adherents is the right place to settle this issue peacefully.

In the first place, the Christians had only issue a memorandum and didn't even stage a demonstration.

Secondly, the Christians are reminding the government of the Constitutional rights.

I think this Pembela has forgotten two things.
One - that the government has encouraged all students to study/learn in the Malay language during school age. No more English language except for one.

Two - that lots of people in Sabah and Sarawak speak/read in the Malay language only apart from their tribal language.

I believed that the Allah issue would be the main thing that caused thousands of Malay language bibles to be detained by the government.

Then the Valentine's Day issue was also thrown at the Christians.

Lately, even a dance movement by the name of Poco Poco has been linked to Christianity especially on its movements which signifies a cross. I almost fainted when I heard that.

These are all divide and rule signs and these are the things that will hold Malaysia back for years to come. Surprisingly, all these protestors are not concerned with the drastic drop in the Foreign Direct Investment or the terrible corruption that has plagued so many government agencies. But we are more concerned with which language the Christians would use or how certain events are linked to Christianity.

Even a Christian prayer rally that was held in Kuching on 23 March 2011, atteended by 3,000 people, was construed as going against the government. It was condemned by the Deputy Federal Minister, Joseph Salang Gandum telling the Christians not to make a fool of themselves.

Out of a sudden, Idris Jala in representing the government and in full view of the upcoming state election in Sarawak, the government has decided that everyone can import bibles of any language into Malaysia. Do I hear any protest from the Pembela now?

Suddenly you see the mainstream media potraying the government as the saviour in this issue.

You call this nation building or whatever you name it, 1Malaysia?

The Interlok book that will be used as a reference book in the secondary school is also another issue. Since there are so many people that are unhappy with it, why can't the government just remove it from being one of the recommended books. Such a simple step but the government insist that it has to be the book. Why? Again it talks about the minorities in Malaysia.

This is a pure divide and rule policy that will help those in power to rule the subjects by creating disharmony amongst Malaysians. Yet many Malaysians would fall for it.

And in many cases, new things will crop up to create a big news in order to cover other news that were hogging too much of a limelight.

This blogpost is not to stir any hatred or any discomfort among Malaysians but if any of the above issues have created tensions, blame it on the current government. Malaysia will not flourish as long as all the races are divided.

Anyhow, CFM has welcomed the government's green light as a positive move.

But then all this negative news have 'flown' all over the world and they are already laughing at us.
Tags: Divide And Rule Policy, Extremist Christian, Interlok, Malay Bible, Nation Building, 1Malaysia, Pembela, Allah, Bible, Christan Federation of Malaysia, Poco Poco Dance

Pay More For Fast Results

noreply@blogger.com (Johnny Ong) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 15:26:00 +0000

Heard of this phrase before "pay more for fast results"?

Two types of services will see an increase of prices / fees in due course which will hit people like me and you.

Firstly - legal fees especially for the fees to be paid to lawyers who will appear in court on your behalf. The Bar Council has announced a potential increase of about 300% to 400% of the legal fees. One of the reasons given for the increase is that the lawyers would have more responsibilities.

With such an increase, it's very doubtful that legal avenue would be out of reach for the general public and the services would only be available / reserved for those rich and powerful.

Even at this point of time, I have friends who are not willing to go to court even though they could hold the advantage of winning a case. Reason? It's already expensive now. To justify the huge increase, it was said that lawyers will have to resolve the cases at a quicker pace to match the courts' KPI where it has to close a case at a faster pace.

For this quicker pace, you and I would have to be prepared to pay through your nose.

Then out of a sudden, the central bank allowed for the huge increase of motor insurance premium between 250% and 450% which will take effect from 2012. However, the increase will be on a staggered basis up to year 2016 before the real premium is left to the market forces.

It was a joke to say that the low income people won't be greatly affected as it's being staggered over a period of four years. What about four years later? The existence of low income people in Malaysia has evaporated?

Main advantage for the huge increase - so that you and I can make a faster insurance claim.

On both of the above increases, the word "faster" is so vague. There's no dateline put on it and it's just plain talk again. Who will lose in the end? The consumers again.

And the government dare to say that the inflation rate is still below 5%?

Reading: Motorists to pay higher insurance premiums but will enjoy faster claims - Star

Reading: Price for faster ‘justice’ - Star

Tags: Legal Fee, Bar Council, Court, Lawyer, Motor Insurance Premium, Central Bank