Stays in Melaka blessed with lots of good food and great people, had never been a disappointment The “Sleepy Hollow” tag had been shed off long ago and this city is now bustling with activities during holidays and weekends.
It had been sometime since I last set foot in historical city of Melaka. The long X’mas weekend provides me the opportunity to experience the splendor of this small city only to realise that I had add further complications to the choke-a-block narrow streets of the UNESCO Heritage Historical City last weekend. Traffic was reduced to a crawl almost daily.
Very interestingly, the traffic jams are concentrated in the heritage belt of Jalan Laksamana, Jalan Bunga Raya, Jonker Walk, Dataran Pahlawan and Taman Melaka Raya where all the action is. This had resulted in Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam in an almost immediate re-action to request from Federal Government added funds to build coastal roads to reduce traffic congestion here.
Hotels made brisk business on sale of rooms and with the Malaysia Savings Sale going on, shoppers took the opportunity to shop at leisure.
I received an SMS from a friend looking for accommodation in Melaka on 26 December for 2 days which I bluntly replied “go online and book direct with hotel”. Hotel had closed out the dates almost 2-3 weeks ago and last minute room requirement is near impossible during this weekend. Lucky for me, I always have readily accommodation whenever I get into the state.
During the stay, I headed to Serkam (for ikan bakar) through Padang Temu when I noticed that UMNO had organized a party assembly in Melaka during X’mas with party flags majestically hung on the lamp posts along Jalan Ujong Pasir.
Those flags mushroomed overnight and I was thinking again, whether this was another blatant UMNO manouvre of disrespect to other race and religion as they had done during last year’s Deepavali celebrations.
Further probing, I found out that Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and a host of other VIPs are attending the National Level X’mas Day Open House celebrations in Portuguese Settlement on December 27. Whatever the intentions were to hang those party flags to coincide with the celebrations is utterly disgusting and deserved condemnation!
A elderly Melaka Malay lady I met at the roti canai stall along Jalan Ujong Pasir, quoted “UMNO Melayu dah hilang adat!” It was a sensible comment that political party flags should not be hung since the event will be attended by foreign tourists, dignitaries, 43 Miss International Tourism contestants and 50 foreign journalists.
Monies to organize this event came from the Government coffers and belong to the public which rightfully is a public event. This is where the inability to differentiate between party and government events is always a problem for UMNO which eventually led to abuse of public funds.
“Hilang adat satu tapi yang lagi teruk, UMNO dah tak tahu bezakan baik sama buruk.” added a local Malay gentleman.
“Chong sama si Joseph ni (referring to his buddies with him), kita dah berapa tahun duduk gerai ni makan sama-sama, tak pun kita rasa benci antara satu sama lain tapi kerajaan mau kaga-lagakan kita. Mana boleh!” he added with his Chinese and Eurasian friends in their late-fifties nodded in agreement.
Joseph added in a mixture of English and Bahasa Melayu which have been a norm in Melaka “In my years living in Malaysia (Malaya those days), I rasa, 4-5 tahun kebelakangan ni yang paling buruk.”
The sentiment echoed those of people in Kelantan and Terengganu whom I met recently, which would safely conclude that they have rejected UMNO style of politics after 50 years in power. The Kuala Terengganu Parliamentary seat by-election this coming January ’09 would possibly prove disastrous for UMNO and perhaps the only state in Malaysia with “2 Menteri Besar”.
Had UMNO lost its plot in differentiating a public event with a political event??
Shame on you UMNO!
Monday, December 29, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monsoon Cup - Hello KK and Bye Terengganu
Is there anything new about present batch of Government leaders making a cohesive decision before announcing?
Afraid not and reflects the weak leadership besides the "Ketuanan Melayu" mentality of the majority UMNO represented leaders in the Malaysian Government whom are turning the country into their "self-owned" country instead of representing the rakyat.
The latest being the announcement by Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, Minister of Tourism, who had got herself into a real mess and adding futher confusion to announce that Monsoon Cup may be held in Kota Kinabalu (KK) instead of the traditional location of Kuala Terengganu.
Is this a punishment to the present "renegade" Terengganu State leadership for
(a) not agreeing to Idris Jusoh to continue as Menteri Besar,
(b) purchase of the Mercedes fleet as official cars for the State Excos and subsequent expose of
the high maintenance costs,
(c) the request for petroleum royalties to be managed by the state and
(d) taking over of the Islamic theme park from Patrick Lim led group?
It takes another few days prior to the the announcement for the Prime Minister to quote "Terengganu Government and organisers of the Monsoon Cup should bring the event to greater heights" which could literally translate as goodbye Terengganu and hello KK.
To critics and analysts, this move seems appropriate now that the PM does not have any deemed vested interest in the projects around Pulau Duyung including Crystal Mosque and Taman Tamadun Islam which had all been taken over by the State Government.
With the headlines screaming "Monsoon Cup set to go places" and "Uncertainty Over Monsoon Cup", people of Terengganu can safely bud farewell to the sailing sport which PM Abdullah loves the most albeit the made in Turkey luxury yatch which he had intended to park among the elites whom had purchased properties in Pulau Duyung.
People of Terengganu with many still living in poverty and retaining their decade old passed down activity as fishermen, had till today wonder what benefits or entertainment had they really derived from the hosting the event. The fact that Pulau Duyung was "grabbed" as the event location reflects the "couldn't care" attitude of the previous Government in cohort with Abdullah led Federal Government.
Isn't this bullying?
Or imagine what the RM4million minimum cost used to organised this event by the State Government with more financing coming from Federal Government or rather tax payers money could have been put into better use since it's inception.
With KK hosting the event, it would at least help bring the East Malaysian people and state closer to the Federal Government. In addition, it would be seen as an easier route to manage such events without State interference or objections as one may see with the Terengganu Government today.
Whatever it is, the writings are on the wall and waiting for the actuality to take place. Be informed.
Afraid not and reflects the weak leadership besides the "Ketuanan Melayu" mentality of the majority UMNO represented leaders in the Malaysian Government whom are turning the country into their "self-owned" country instead of representing the rakyat.
The latest being the announcement by Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, Minister of Tourism, who had got herself into a real mess and adding futher confusion to announce that Monsoon Cup may be held in Kota Kinabalu (KK) instead of the traditional location of Kuala Terengganu.
Is this a punishment to the present "renegade" Terengganu State leadership for
(a) not agreeing to Idris Jusoh to continue as Menteri Besar,
(b) purchase of the Mercedes fleet as official cars for the State Excos and subsequent expose of
the high maintenance costs,
(c) the request for petroleum royalties to be managed by the state and
(d) taking over of the Islamic theme park from Patrick Lim led group?
It takes another few days prior to the the announcement for the Prime Minister to quote "Terengganu Government and organisers of the Monsoon Cup should bring the event to greater heights" which could literally translate as goodbye Terengganu and hello KK.
To critics and analysts, this move seems appropriate now that the PM does not have any deemed vested interest in the projects around Pulau Duyung including Crystal Mosque and Taman Tamadun Islam which had all been taken over by the State Government.
With the headlines screaming "Monsoon Cup set to go places" and "Uncertainty Over Monsoon Cup", people of Terengganu can safely bud farewell to the sailing sport which PM Abdullah loves the most albeit the made in Turkey luxury yatch which he had intended to park among the elites whom had purchased properties in Pulau Duyung.
People of Terengganu with many still living in poverty and retaining their decade old passed down activity as fishermen, had till today wonder what benefits or entertainment had they really derived from the hosting the event. The fact that Pulau Duyung was "grabbed" as the event location reflects the "couldn't care" attitude of the previous Government in cohort with Abdullah led Federal Government.
Isn't this bullying?
Or imagine what the RM4million minimum cost used to organised this event by the State Government with more financing coming from Federal Government or rather tax payers money could have been put into better use since it's inception.
With KK hosting the event, it would at least help bring the East Malaysian people and state closer to the Federal Government. In addition, it would be seen as an easier route to manage such events without State interference or objections as one may see with the Terengganu Government today.
Whatever it is, the writings are on the wall and waiting for the actuality to take place. Be informed.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Multi Lingual Road Signages an UMNO issue!
What are road signages for?
Simply directing road users to the right destination whether they are local or foreigners. It is internationally accepted that many tourists rely on tourist guides as well as translated travel materials to help them in enjoying the beauty of the country they visit. It is the respective country or state to ensure that they welcome their tourists with warmth hospitality and make their stay memorable.
Similarly, should the tourist enjoy the travel in the country visited, the photos and "word of mouth" are powerful tools marketing the country as a tourist destination. If this is allowed and understood by the UMNO led Malaysian Government, then they do not need to spend the millions of Ringgit in promoting the country!
Ooops ...... someone along the corridors of power would lose an opportunity to rake in millions should the above happens.
Going back to road signs, many or shall I say all road signs in Kuala Lumpur are also in Arabic including residential/housing areas. So what's the big fuss about multi lingual road signs when the road names in Bahasa Malaysia is still the same?
It boils down to the UMNO Malays who are still driving hard their "Ketuanan Melayu" mentality to protect their "personal" economic rights instead of looking at a global perspective and it is no wonder that the Malaysian leaders remained "jaguh kampung".
Looking at how the mainstream media, Utusan Malaysia owned by UMNO had twisted the issue of multi lingual road signs here is simply deplorable and disgusting! Doctoring an image and publishing it is simply misleading the readers which gives rise to false reporting and we do hope that the Home Ministry would review the license of Utusan Malaysia as they efficiently do.
Such actions of a mass media are rightfully with malicious intent and should be condemned outright!
Those protesting against such move by the Penang State Government had vandalised the signages and this is a blatant protest against the multi lingual road signs. Aren't the police or UMNO going to take actions against the people who are damaging public property if they look to champion the nation?
Malaysians, reject such acts and condemn the narrow mentality of UMNO and it's Utusan Malaysia! Leave it to UMNO to vandalise and fight the issue where we do confirm now that bullying is their way of life.
Simply directing road users to the right destination whether they are local or foreigners. It is internationally accepted that many tourists rely on tourist guides as well as translated travel materials to help them in enjoying the beauty of the country they visit. It is the respective country or state to ensure that they welcome their tourists with warmth hospitality and make their stay memorable.
Similarly, should the tourist enjoy the travel in the country visited, the photos and "word of mouth" are powerful tools marketing the country as a tourist destination. If this is allowed and understood by the UMNO led Malaysian Government, then they do not need to spend the millions of Ringgit in promoting the country!
Ooops ...... someone along the corridors of power would lose an opportunity to rake in millions should the above happens.
Going back to road signs, many or shall I say all road signs in Kuala Lumpur are also in Arabic including residential/housing areas. So what's the big fuss about multi lingual road signs when the road names in Bahasa Malaysia is still the same?
It boils down to the UMNO Malays who are still driving hard their "Ketuanan Melayu" mentality to protect their "personal" economic rights instead of looking at a global perspective and it is no wonder that the Malaysian leaders remained "jaguh kampung".
Looking at how the mainstream media, Utusan Malaysia owned by UMNO had twisted the issue of multi lingual road signs here is simply deplorable and disgusting! Doctoring an image and publishing it is simply misleading the readers which gives rise to false reporting and we do hope that the Home Ministry would review the license of Utusan Malaysia as they efficiently do.
Such actions of a mass media are rightfully with malicious intent and should be condemned outright!
Those protesting against such move by the Penang State Government had vandalised the signages and this is a blatant protest against the multi lingual road signs. Aren't the police or UMNO going to take actions against the people who are damaging public property if they look to champion the nation?
Malaysians, reject such acts and condemn the narrow mentality of UMNO and it's Utusan Malaysia! Leave it to UMNO to vandalise and fight the issue where we do confirm now that bullying is their way of life.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Why sing the national anthem?
State Police chief, Deputy Comm Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar: Why sing the national anthem?
Come on get real!!
This only shows how shallow the enforcers mindset are which is no different from the present Malaysian Government leaders. Every action opposing the policies or decisions are met with much apprehensions or suspicions.
Negara Ku is being sung on many non-Government occassions/events including sports, concerts etc. where mass crowd are present and a show of patriotism and love for the country. It is no different with this "No to ISA" group as a means of peace loving citizens of Malaysia to see a better tomorrow for us and our future generations.
The police are not expected to stand at attention during the singing as in the many Government functions when they are on duty but the point of contention here is that there were no friendly advice or perhaps exercise discretion by waiting till the singing is over to disperse peacefully.
His officers heard the "protesters" singing the national anthem but he did not and yet they are at the same location!!!!
Is he deaf of what????
Also, it would be best if he can elaborate who he is referring to with that statement "... someone could have taken advantage of the situation to stir up trouble there." So who is that someone? Does he knows something which we do not?
Reading all these excuses just felt so lame.
His line of statement placing "protesters" as "criminals" reflects just how the police looks at the Malaysian rakyat. It's frightening!
Come on get real!!
This only shows how shallow the enforcers mindset are which is no different from the present Malaysian Government leaders. Every action opposing the policies or decisions are met with much apprehensions or suspicions.
Negara Ku is being sung on many non-Government occassions/events including sports, concerts etc. where mass crowd are present and a show of patriotism and love for the country. It is no different with this "No to ISA" group as a means of peace loving citizens of Malaysia to see a better tomorrow for us and our future generations.
The police are not expected to stand at attention during the singing as in the many Government functions when they are on duty but the point of contention here is that there were no friendly advice or perhaps exercise discretion by waiting till the singing is over to disperse peacefully.
His officers heard the "protesters" singing the national anthem but he did not and yet they are at the same location!!!!
Is he deaf of what????
Also, it would be best if he can elaborate who he is referring to with that statement "... someone could have taken advantage of the situation to stir up trouble there." So who is that someone? Does he knows something which we do not?
Reading all these excuses just felt so lame.
His line of statement placing "protesters" as "criminals" reflects just how the police looks at the Malaysian rakyat. It's frightening!
Simple Task Made Difficult!
What can we say with the Tourism Ministry leader more interested in filling up their personal pockets despite the many claims for spending to promote tourism abroad when a simple task such as updating a website cannot be executed decently!
Looks like Jejak Azalina was not able to "jejak"(track) for the website update with the recently launched "The Malaysia Savings Sale" by DPM when the website http://www.malaysiamegasale.com.my/ as advertised on the promotional banners etc. are still with the previous sale carnival and the upcoming sales carnival is just 2 weeks away. Efficiency?
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