It is normal that any good speakers received large crowd to hear their speeches.The crowd need not be coaxed with free bus ride and goodies. I was astounded to read the statements made by our leaders in these few days.
The first is a statement made by our DPM who said ‘ it was up to the public to decide the (truth) of the accusations levelled against the National Feedlot Centre (NFC)’. This was made after the many accusation on the so-called ‘kondo lembu’. A friend formerly from UM quipped ‘his batch that time was quite teruk’.
The next was the youth and sports Deputy Minister answer in Parliament when asked why Indonesians were hostile towards the Malaysian football team during the SEA Games.The answer simply ‘the opposition posioned the Indonesian fans to vent their fury on the Malaysian football team’. My maid said ‘the Indonesion crowd shouted ‘maling’ or ‘pencuri’ because they were frequent victims of ‘kena pau’!
Yesterday, MB Pahang addressed a group of Uitm undergraduates advising them to think rationally and not too critically.The MB must understand that he was speaking to undergraduates and encouraging them to use less of their brain was an act of stupidity. The problem is that the speech contain elements of politic and delivered by a politician.He should advised the undergraduates to think positively,creatively, analytically and critically or on a higher note to practice lateral thinking or to read ‘Six Thinking Hats’ by the famous authority on creative thinking Dr Edward De Bono.In this way it will encourage our undergraduates to be thinking out of the box and not to be ‘katak di bawah tempurung’.Our undergraduates are so used to the ‘don’t do’ syndrome from small until they are grown up!.
Former leaders did not go to universities but they command a large crowd when they give speeches.Not surprisingly many tucked their well written speech in their pockets and spoke freely on common issues. Nowadays smart leaders shun away from politics because they are not winnable (ie no money) candidates.
Friday, November 25, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
BUDGET My View
A budget of RM 232.8bil for 2012 comes with a lot of goodies for the government servants and the lower income group. For those in the private sectors there is nothing to shout about except the employer has to increase contribution to EPF! I am not an economist but looking through engineer’s perspective on macro view.
I just couldn’t remember when was the last time we have ‘belanjawan berimbang’? For several years we have seen deficit budgets and currently has accumulated to RM456bil (53.5% of GDP). It seems that it is a practice to produce a deficit budget every year and including next year knowing very well looming uncertainties in global economy. A deficit budget of 5.4% in 2011 to 4.7% in 2012, will this be achievable? The government income is from taxes and if there is a recession ,trading activities will be minimal,hence the tax collected will be reduced, the deficit will increase. The budget has not included the expenses for the mega project like MRT (if I am not mistaken). With the cost of RM58bil for the MRT which is to be borne by the government spread over three years, will definitely increase the country’s debt. Countries which have over 60% debt / GDP like Greece, Spain, Italy and Ireland are currently facing economic problems.
Its good to have My First Home ceiling increases from RM 220k to RM 400k. A graduate from government sector earns Rm3000 and those from private sectors earn between Rm 2000-2500 could not afford the RM220k house if they do not have double income. The cost of houses at Klang Valley has gone up artificially. Link houses are in the range of 600k.One can get a good semi-d in Seremban for 200k. People are borrowing heavily to have the necessities such as houses and cars. The household debt/GDP is increasing from year to year and currently at 76% (major portion is on houses and cars).The increase of 10% tax on RPGT for houses sold within 2 years of purchase, I believe will have small impact. If serious enough the tax should be higher and a longer period will definitely have an impact to curb speculation.
The GDP forecast of 5%-5.5% for 2011 is very optimistic. In 2010 the GDP was 7.9% and the 1Qr 2011 was 4.6% and 4.0% in the 2Qr 2011. The downtrend was due to external factors especially the debt crisis in US and Euro zone. The situation in US and Euro zone has not improved since the last economic slowdown in 2008 and will continue until next year or so. Although there are a lot of goodies in the budget to spur domestic spending but this will be effective only next year. The people in construction business will agree with me that the ETP project will not get off the ground until the middle of next year. Hence the growth could not be more than 5% but according to analyst could be around 4%-4.2%.
The GDP forecast for 2012 is 5%-6% and again is too optimistic . Looking back at the downtrend and economic slowdown in US and Eurozone, analysts have anticipated recession in 2012, our economy will be affected too. It is noted that 26% of our export are from electronics and this year it has reduced almost by 5%. During economic slowdown people will be cautious in their spending and the budget goodies are not big enough to have impact on domestic consumption. The MRT project and other ETP projects are for big players and will definitely will spur the internal spending. However we have seen during the 1998 many mega projects such as Putrajaya, Bukit Jalil Complex and LRT were on ground and yet our country did not escape from recession. Internal spending alone will not prop but will cushion the GDP in view of weak external environments. Hence a growth of 5%-6% is hard to achieve but a figure around 3.8%-4% as analyst predicted is manageable.
Ir.GHAZALI IBRAHIM
I just couldn’t remember when was the last time we have ‘belanjawan berimbang’? For several years we have seen deficit budgets and currently has accumulated to RM456bil (53.5% of GDP). It seems that it is a practice to produce a deficit budget every year and including next year knowing very well looming uncertainties in global economy. A deficit budget of 5.4% in 2011 to 4.7% in 2012, will this be achievable? The government income is from taxes and if there is a recession ,trading activities will be minimal,hence the tax collected will be reduced, the deficit will increase. The budget has not included the expenses for the mega project like MRT (if I am not mistaken). With the cost of RM58bil for the MRT which is to be borne by the government spread over three years, will definitely increase the country’s debt. Countries which have over 60% debt / GDP like Greece, Spain, Italy and Ireland are currently facing economic problems.
Its good to have My First Home ceiling increases from RM 220k to RM 400k. A graduate from government sector earns Rm3000 and those from private sectors earn between Rm 2000-2500 could not afford the RM220k house if they do not have double income. The cost of houses at Klang Valley has gone up artificially. Link houses are in the range of 600k.One can get a good semi-d in Seremban for 200k. People are borrowing heavily to have the necessities such as houses and cars. The household debt/GDP is increasing from year to year and currently at 76% (major portion is on houses and cars).The increase of 10% tax on RPGT for houses sold within 2 years of purchase, I believe will have small impact. If serious enough the tax should be higher and a longer period will definitely have an impact to curb speculation.
The GDP forecast of 5%-5.5% for 2011 is very optimistic. In 2010 the GDP was 7.9% and the 1Qr 2011 was 4.6% and 4.0% in the 2Qr 2011. The downtrend was due to external factors especially the debt crisis in US and Euro zone. The situation in US and Euro zone has not improved since the last economic slowdown in 2008 and will continue until next year or so. Although there are a lot of goodies in the budget to spur domestic spending but this will be effective only next year. The people in construction business will agree with me that the ETP project will not get off the ground until the middle of next year. Hence the growth could not be more than 5% but according to analyst could be around 4%-4.2%.
The GDP forecast for 2012 is 5%-6% and again is too optimistic . Looking back at the downtrend and economic slowdown in US and Eurozone, analysts have anticipated recession in 2012, our economy will be affected too. It is noted that 26% of our export are from electronics and this year it has reduced almost by 5%. During economic slowdown people will be cautious in their spending and the budget goodies are not big enough to have impact on domestic consumption. The MRT project and other ETP projects are for big players and will definitely will spur the internal spending. However we have seen during the 1998 many mega projects such as Putrajaya, Bukit Jalil Complex and LRT were on ground and yet our country did not escape from recession. Internal spending alone will not prop but will cushion the GDP in view of weak external environments. Hence a growth of 5%-6% is hard to achieve but a figure around 3.8%-4% as analyst predicted is manageable.
Ir.GHAZALI IBRAHIM
Monday, February 21, 2011
Judging of Top Schools Not Done Fairly
WHILE THE Education Ministry’s move to give awards to high-performing schools is laudable, its implementation has caused unhappiness among some teachers.
A few years back, “performing schools” were accorded the title Sekolah Harapan Negara and later Sekolah Cemerlang. These schools were given monetary rewards.Not long after that, the Education Minister announced the “cluster schools”.The reward was RM500,000 per school. Now they have been rebranded as “Sekolah Berprestasi Tinggi” with an award of RM700,000.
If one were to go through the records, it can be seen that the same schools are benefiting every year.Most of the schools are in big towns or boarding schools. The day schools seem to be left behind.
A school principal once commented “It’s a futile exercise for us and we are fed up! Year after year, we are chasing for the moon!” Just look at the present 23 schools selected and you will see the trend.We can guess what type of schools will be selected next year.
For the so-called elite or boarding schools, it is plain sailing as they have good students while others toil with the leftovers.There is no control on day school intakes.For instance, good primary schools in “elite” areas will have to accommodate foreigners who hardly speak Bahasa Malaysia or English.
Sometimes the district offices transfer students from Band 7 schools (weak schools) to promising schools and this frustrates the teachers who have nurtured their students from day one.
Look at the big schools in town areas that have between 700 and 1,000 students and with a class of 40 students.How can one compare this to a rural school, such as in Ulu Lubai in Sarawak, where the number of students and teachers in the school are 30 and 12 respectively?
The school’s core business is to provide a good education to the students. Giving monetary rewards on a non-level playing field is demoralising, especially if it is done repeatedly.
PIBG,
Petaling Jaya.
My opinion as published in the'Views' the Star 21 Feb 2011
A few years back, “performing schools” were accorded the title Sekolah Harapan Negara and later Sekolah Cemerlang. These schools were given monetary rewards.Not long after that, the Education Minister announced the “cluster schools”.The reward was RM500,000 per school. Now they have been rebranded as “Sekolah Berprestasi Tinggi” with an award of RM700,000.
If one were to go through the records, it can be seen that the same schools are benefiting every year.Most of the schools are in big towns or boarding schools. The day schools seem to be left behind.
A school principal once commented “It’s a futile exercise for us and we are fed up! Year after year, we are chasing for the moon!” Just look at the present 23 schools selected and you will see the trend.We can guess what type of schools will be selected next year.
For the so-called elite or boarding schools, it is plain sailing as they have good students while others toil with the leftovers.There is no control on day school intakes.For instance, good primary schools in “elite” areas will have to accommodate foreigners who hardly speak Bahasa Malaysia or English.
Sometimes the district offices transfer students from Band 7 schools (weak schools) to promising schools and this frustrates the teachers who have nurtured their students from day one.
Look at the big schools in town areas that have between 700 and 1,000 students and with a class of 40 students.How can one compare this to a rural school, such as in Ulu Lubai in Sarawak, where the number of students and teachers in the school are 30 and 12 respectively?
The school’s core business is to provide a good education to the students. Giving monetary rewards on a non-level playing field is demoralising, especially if it is done repeatedly.
PIBG,
Petaling Jaya.
My opinion as published in the'Views' the Star 21 Feb 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Seram di TIkl
Aku melaporkan diri diasrama TIkl(Sekolah Teknik Kuala Lumpur)lewat sedikit dan tempat diblok B tidak banyak yang kosong.Walaubagaimanapun aku telah pilih Blok D2 kerana ada member lama Sdr Aris Maamur disitu.Blok ini jauh dari blok-blok lain dan jarang sekali dikunjungi senior-senior dan terlepaslah dari kena ragging!Dibelakang blok ini ada beberapa pokok-pokok besar dan sangat enak berehat di petang hari.Disini juga freshie-freshie dari blok lain datang untuk melarikan diri dari kena ragging.Bersebelahan pula ialah Blok D1 ia-itu 'sick bay'.
Suatu malam aku terasa sakit perut dan terus pergi ke bilik tandas diluar yang tak berapa jauh dari Blok D2.Waktu itu aku rasa lebih kurang jam dua pagi.Semasa dalam tandas aku dengar bunyi seperti orang berjalan dengan terompah kayu menuju ke tandas.Aku hairan juga masakan ada pelajar yang pakai terompah dizaman itu kerana setahu saya semua orang pakai selipar jepun.Saya pun buat batuk-batuk untuk menarik perhatian tetapi tak ada respon pun malahan bunyi terompah tu makin kuat.Aku pun bersiul pula lagu 'Beatles', bunyi terompah tu berhenti.Tetapi apabila aku berhenti ia berbunyi semula dan aku rasa kalau dia berjalan dan jauh meninggalkan tandas itu.Aku dengar seperti ada orang membuka shower dibilik air dan tak lama kemudian berhenti.Aku buat ahem beberpa kali tapi tak ada bunyi apa-apa dari arah itu.Bulu roma ku mula tegak dan badan ku menggeletar seram sejuk.Aku pun bergegas ka bilik air untuk membersihkan diri.Di bilik air itu pula aku nampak seketul sabun berwarna kuning terletak di atas lantai.Sabun itu masih baru lagi dan kuningnya macam kuning diraja bersinar dan sangat harum.Yang aku tahu warna sabun Palmolive atau Lux tak ada semacam itu.Tanpa fikir panjang lagi aku pun cabut lari........balik ke bilik!
Apabila sampai dibilik aku kejutkan Sdr Mustaffa Singah untuk menemani aku membersihkan diri.Tanpa banyak soal Mustaffa menemani aku ke bilik air tadi.Bunyi terompah tidak pula kedengaran lagi dan sabun kuning tadi pun tidak juga kelihatan.Misteri sungguh!
Hingga hari ini aku masih ingat peristiwa seram itu.Tak tau lah mana datangnya sabun itu dan juga mana perginya.Apa akan jadi jika aku pakai sabun itu?Putih kah aku atau kuning kah aku atau terus jadi invisible man!Aku pun telah membuat survey tak ada sesiapa pun pakai terompah!Jadi siapa kah itu....cobaan!
Suatu malam aku terasa sakit perut dan terus pergi ke bilik tandas diluar yang tak berapa jauh dari Blok D2.Waktu itu aku rasa lebih kurang jam dua pagi.Semasa dalam tandas aku dengar bunyi seperti orang berjalan dengan terompah kayu menuju ke tandas.Aku hairan juga masakan ada pelajar yang pakai terompah dizaman itu kerana setahu saya semua orang pakai selipar jepun.Saya pun buat batuk-batuk untuk menarik perhatian tetapi tak ada respon pun malahan bunyi terompah tu makin kuat.Aku pun bersiul pula lagu 'Beatles', bunyi terompah tu berhenti.Tetapi apabila aku berhenti ia berbunyi semula dan aku rasa kalau dia berjalan dan jauh meninggalkan tandas itu.Aku dengar seperti ada orang membuka shower dibilik air dan tak lama kemudian berhenti.Aku buat ahem beberpa kali tapi tak ada bunyi apa-apa dari arah itu.Bulu roma ku mula tegak dan badan ku menggeletar seram sejuk.Aku pun bergegas ka bilik air untuk membersihkan diri.Di bilik air itu pula aku nampak seketul sabun berwarna kuning terletak di atas lantai.Sabun itu masih baru lagi dan kuningnya macam kuning diraja bersinar dan sangat harum.Yang aku tahu warna sabun Palmolive atau Lux tak ada semacam itu.Tanpa fikir panjang lagi aku pun cabut lari........balik ke bilik!
Apabila sampai dibilik aku kejutkan Sdr Mustaffa Singah untuk menemani aku membersihkan diri.Tanpa banyak soal Mustaffa menemani aku ke bilik air tadi.Bunyi terompah tidak pula kedengaran lagi dan sabun kuning tadi pun tidak juga kelihatan.Misteri sungguh!
Hingga hari ini aku masih ingat peristiwa seram itu.Tak tau lah mana datangnya sabun itu dan juga mana perginya.Apa akan jadi jika aku pakai sabun itu?Putih kah aku atau kuning kah aku atau terus jadi invisible man!Aku pun telah membuat survey tak ada sesiapa pun pakai terompah!Jadi siapa kah itu....cobaan!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Bring Back The English Medium Schools
Way back in the sixties, our country earned praised as one of the best English speaking citizens in this part of the world. However since Bahasa Malaysia was implemented in the schools, the standard of English had declined. In arresting the situation our former Prime Minister made amendments and implemented English for Science and Mathematics (PPSMI).However the move did not produce the desired results. After much deliberation the Ministry of Education recently came up with a new curriculum ‘ Upholding Bahasa Malaysia and Strenghtening English’ aimed at improving the standard of English. The decision has received mixed reaction from parents. Will this move be a wise one? Many are pessimistic.
The government had wasted a lot of money as incentives for teachers in PPSMI but such move had failed . Even with the strategy in the new curriculum, many doubts the students will improve given the same environment. So, a wise move is to create an English-speaking environment , in other words bring back the English medium schools.
In implementing the education policy, one need to shape the future generation.The policy makers should disregard any political or sentimental influences.The target is to ensure the future generation would be progressive,dynamic and receptive to global competitiveness or changes. Currently many of the graduates from IPTA are in the government services whereas those from the IPTS and overseas universities found their jobs in the private sectors and multinational companies.The trend is that many of the non-Bumiputras and a few well to do Bumiputras opted for private universities because of the medium of instructions are in English. Many of the unemployed graduates are from the IPTAs and most of them are Bumiputras.
Recruitment agencies commented that there are many jobs available but lack of communication skills among candidates hinder their chances. At times the recruitment agencies advertised as many as fifty(50) vacancies for graduates of any discipline to work in financial institutions. In this case, training will be given by the employer hence graduates of any discipline were eligible to apply. In spite of the high salary,it was sad to see that there were few takers for obvious reasons. We always heard of jobless graduates but can we blame insufficient jobs?
Our former PM had commented that, because of lack of proficiency in English, quite a number of our officers were not mixing enough and always group among themselves at functions. I believe many may had encountered some embarrassing moments at forums or presentations when the speakers fumbled as they cannot expressed clearly.
Currently there are suggestions to bring back the English medium schools.This is one of the best solution and regarded as neutral grounds not only to alleviate the hue and cry but for the better of the nation.The students themselves can choose any medium they want. In this situation no one can blame the policy makers because the students decide their own future and a win-win situation will prevail .The government should waste no time in bringing the English medium schools back.
GHZALI IBRAHIM
Subang Jaya
The government had wasted a lot of money as incentives for teachers in PPSMI but such move had failed . Even with the strategy in the new curriculum, many doubts the students will improve given the same environment. So, a wise move is to create an English-speaking environment , in other words bring back the English medium schools.
In implementing the education policy, one need to shape the future generation.The policy makers should disregard any political or sentimental influences.The target is to ensure the future generation would be progressive,dynamic and receptive to global competitiveness or changes. Currently many of the graduates from IPTA are in the government services whereas those from the IPTS and overseas universities found their jobs in the private sectors and multinational companies.The trend is that many of the non-Bumiputras and a few well to do Bumiputras opted for private universities because of the medium of instructions are in English. Many of the unemployed graduates are from the IPTAs and most of them are Bumiputras.
Recruitment agencies commented that there are many jobs available but lack of communication skills among candidates hinder their chances. At times the recruitment agencies advertised as many as fifty(50) vacancies for graduates of any discipline to work in financial institutions. In this case, training will be given by the employer hence graduates of any discipline were eligible to apply. In spite of the high salary,it was sad to see that there were few takers for obvious reasons. We always heard of jobless graduates but can we blame insufficient jobs?
Our former PM had commented that, because of lack of proficiency in English, quite a number of our officers were not mixing enough and always group among themselves at functions. I believe many may had encountered some embarrassing moments at forums or presentations when the speakers fumbled as they cannot expressed clearly.
Currently there are suggestions to bring back the English medium schools.This is one of the best solution and regarded as neutral grounds not only to alleviate the hue and cry but for the better of the nation.The students themselves can choose any medium they want. In this situation no one can blame the policy makers because the students decide their own future and a win-win situation will prevail .The government should waste no time in bringing the English medium schools back.
GHZALI IBRAHIM
Subang Jaya
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