Fuck you, big time editors, media handlers

The parliament has not yet been dissolved.

So how Chun Wai?

You simply simply wrote this one or what?

The Star expects parliament to be dissolved between March 28-30

Put on front page some more.

Got people all worked up over it.

• Annie's theory ; if Pakatan wins

You all big time editors got your datukship for writing fake news, is it?

Bugger.

Well, yet....

...another cock-up...

....I guess.

Never mind, I believe Chun Wai is just the same as those Media Prima big time editors.

Take instructions from their handlers at PMO, wrote whatever they were told and then end up looking like dickheads when the whole plan was changed.

It's like that with them these days.

And sometimes when they don't get instructions from their handlers, they just write nonsense like in this case....

• Wang Kelian, waiting for Zahid and IGP

....and call it "world exclusive" or something.

Won all kind of Malaysian journalistic awards some more for such flights of fancy.

MPI, what's wrong with you all?

Stupid or what?

You all pakat-pakat with the big time editors to give awards to their favourite kiss ass reporters, is it?

Eh...I'm still waiting for Zahid and IGP to clear that one up....or whatever.

It's laughable, okay.

No credibility whatsoever as far as I'm concerned.

And they blame people for believing the mostly trash in social media.

Make anti-fake news law some more.

What? You all forcing us to ditch social media and read newspapers again, is it?

Want us to pay for it some more, is it?

What? You all think we all people are lambs that you can herd here and there?

Fuck you, big time editors, media handlers.

Real arrogant bastards.

Proposed anti-fake news law not so bad (updated)

UPDATES (on March 28, 2018 at 7.18am)

Got a call from a friend over this issue yesterday evening.

He said he read this post and wanted to express his unhappiness with the proposed anti-fake news law.

My friend is actually pro-BN.

He said introducing such a law so close to the general election was wrong as it could backfire badly on BN.

"It will give ammo to the opposition for their campaign. No one likes to have his freedom restricted in any way. This is especially so among the young people," he said.

My friend is not trained in law like me but he has a good read of the law.

He said according to the bill, the law will give the Attorney General the power to decide what are fake news.

"That is bad. People are already complaining about the AG having too much power and here we are giving him even more power," he said.

My friend also suspected that the introduction of the anti-fake news law is just a continuation of the proxy war between factions in Najib's camp.

He said this part of the proposed law was likely designed to cut down to size members of a faction who have been using a prominent blogger based in UK to attack their rivals,

It covers all mediums and extends to even foreigners outside Malaysia as long as Malaysia or its citizens are affected.

Well, my friend does have a point there.

That part of the bill does look kinda weird.

By the way, I also found that many people are saying this about this issue;

Proposed anti-fake news law should have safeguards

excerpts;

“Minister of Communications and Multimedia Datuk Seri Dr. Salleh Said Keruak should consider having a special committee comprising journalists and communication experts to study every fake news case. Get an ex-judge to chair the committee,” suggested Ahirudin.

“This special committee, if you ask me, should not have any politician on board. None. Not even ex-politicians,” he said.

ORIGINAL POST

This is an Associate Press story picked by Wichita Eagle, a US publication;

Malaysia government proposes

10 years in jail for fake news

excerpts;

The anti-fake news bill, which must be approved by parliament, calls for penalizing those who create, offer, circulate, print or publish fake news or publications containing fake news with a 10-year jail term, a fine of up to 500,000 ringgit ($128,000) or both.

The bill defines fake news as "any news, information, data and reports which is, or are, wholly or partly false whether in the form of features, visuals or audio recordings or in any other form capable of suggesting words or ideas." It covers all mediums and extends to even foreigners outside Malaysia as long as Malaysia or its citizens are affected.

Read more here: https://www.kansas.com/news/business/article206808879.html#storylink=cpy

The writer of the report is Eileen Ng. She used to be with NST, The Star and the now closed Malaysian Insider.

Used to be chummy with her, but we haven't seen each other for quite a while. Glad to know that she's with AP now.

Well, if you click on the link above and read the entire report, you may find that it's quite slanted to the opposition's side.

As for the opposition, they are meant to oppose this sort of things.

So, I'm not surprised that they are against this proposed law.

But never mind.

Actually, I'm also against any new legislation which further restricts freedom of speech and had feared the worst when the government said it's going to introduce this anti-fake news law.

However, I have seen the content of the bill for the law which was forwarded to me by a friend and have to say that it's not as bad as I had feared.

It's not like detention without trail for those suspected of writing fake news or something sinister like that.

To make it simple, I don't think I have to be scared of this law if I don't write anything fake.

It's nothing really new from the existing laws on the matter, actually.

Basically, it just said don't write or spread fake news or you go to jail or fined heavily.

I'm fine with that because I don't do this fake news business in the first place.

I always try my best to check the facts first before writing something serious.

If I'm not sure about something, I don't write about it.

For example, 1MDB.

I think we can write about the issue without making up things or simply believing in what were told to us by others

That would be the best.

Of course, the government guys shouldn't go around telling people that everything that is not coming from them are fake news.

That's stupid.

By the way, we need to also realise that the authorities need to similarly make sure a fake news is genuinely fake, before charging its author under such a law.

They can't simply simply charge people on this one, okay.

And if the mainstream media publish or broadcast fake news, they can also be charged under the proposed law.

You all who are unhappy with newspapers and television stations should keep a look out and lodge a report to the police or MCMC every time they publish or broadcast anything that could be fake news.

That would be fun, I think.

Whatever it is, I didn't see any provision in the proposed law which will make it very easy for the authorities to penalise people, what more if the person involved was innocent.

So, don't be too scared.

Bottom line is, just don't write or share things that we are not sure of.

We are after all responsible for what we tell others.

A terrible bus service

It's now 2.02am.

Can't sleep because I'm worried about my friend who is on her way back to JB from KL.

She's having problem and I told her to write about it and send to me via WhatsApp.

This is what she sent just now;

The ticket which I bought at TBS in KL today stated that I would start my journey to Johor Baru at 7pm.

My SUPER COACH reached TBS only at 8pm.

After a short drive, the driver said he hadn't had dinner yet so he stopped the bus to have his meal. 

None of the passengers complained because it was not good to let people go hungry. Moreover "a hungry man is an angry man".

The driver also told us before he went off to have his meal that "he would leave anyone behind if he came back and if a commuter was not on board".

Well, this proves the saying "angry man, hungry man".

Anyway, he later stopped at the Yong Peng RnR for toilet break, which was expected.

But not far from there at the Simpang Rengam rest area, he made another unexpected stop.

He told a lady passenger that he was too sleepy to drive and he needed to sleep for an hour, or there was possibility of an accident.

The lady passanger was sympathetic. She said "at least the driver was being truthful".

My questions to the bus company. Where was the second driver? How come the driver didn't have to follow a time schedule?

Maybe SPAD can find out. There were about 10 passengers onboard with me, including a child and a senior citizen.

The bus continued its journey to Skudai at 1.51am.

Ends

My friend also sent me pictures of the bus,

I tried to call the hotline of Road Transport Department to report the problem but can't get through.

Hopefully someone there will see this post and do something with this nonsense.

As I'm writing this, my friend has not yet reached her destination which is in Skudai,  JB.

She will probably reach there by 3am.

Then she has to take a taxi, or Uber or Grab to get home.

I'm going to stay awake until she got there.

Hopefully so.

Whatever it is, this is an example of a terrible bus service.

Real third world country kinda stuff.

Aiyooo....another cock-up

First there's this story by Berita Harian

BN dijangka umum senarai calon lebih awal

excerpts;

Sumber berkata, satu majlis khas kemungkinan diadakan di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC) di sini untuk semua bakal calon.

Pada majlis berkenaan, Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak selaku Pengerusi BN dijangka menyampaikan surat watikah sebagai calon kepada mereka terbabit.

Mengenai tarikh majlis penyampaian watikah itu, sumber berkata ia bergantung kepada bila pembubaran Parlimen dan tarikh penamaan serta pengundian ditetapkan Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya (SPR).

Menurut sumber itu lagi, perkara ini tidak pernah dilakukan sebelum ini, tetapi ia berbeza kali ini, bagi memberi semangat kepada semua calon untuk berdepan PRU-14 yang disifatkan sebagai 'ibu kepada segala pilihan raya'.

The BH story was written by veteran journalist Kadir Dikoh.

That then created a firestorm of rumour.

The "majlis khas" at PWTC was later on reported to be held on April 2.

BN umum senarai calon penuh 2 April 

But last night someone forwarded this to me;

PMO MALAYSIA:-

22 Mac 2018

KENYATAAN MEDIA

PENGUMUMAN CALON PRU14

Pejabat Perdana Menteri ingin menjelaskan laporan akhbar hari ini bahawa pengumuman calon Pilihan Raya Umum ke-14 akan dibuat oleh YAB Perdana Menteri Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak pada 2 April hanya merupakan satu spekulasi pihak media.

PEJABAT PERDANA MENTERI

22 Mac 2018

1) PMO FACEBOOK

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2097230746959560&id=1060496417299670

2) PMO TWITTER

https://twitter.com/PMOMalaysia/status/976765447906344960?s=19

When I saw that, I told myself that this was yet another cock-up by the BN media handlers.

They just can't make up their mind with what they want to do.

I know BH would not publish such a story without directive from "above".

And they keep doing this nonsense.

Just look at the mess they created with the "lost" Felda land issue.

• Felda land noises, just another palace intrigue

and this one,

• Simply simply give free ammo

All that in BH.

I wonder what is really happening to the newspaper after they purged its top editors there via the last Media Prima's VSS exercise half a year ago.

• Media Prima after the civil war

Well, maybe their new three-in-one newspaper concept is not really working very well.

Either that, or maybe they are in the process of downgrading BH by ruining its credibility and later closing it altogether to save cost.

They seemed good at that....tak cukup untung tutup, nak naik pangkat cantas orang....well, whatever.

Ground Zero, Ayer Hitam

I don't think this recent news is good for BN, especially in my home state Johor.

DAP's Liew Chin Tong to take on 

MCA's Wee Ka Siong in Ayer Hitam

First, let us look at the facts during the last general election in 2013.

Results,
P148 Ayer Hitam
Wee Ka Siong (BN-MCA) 22,045 58.4 percent
Hu Pang Chaw (PR-Pas) 14,735 39.0 percent
Wee Ka Siong won with a majority of 7,310

Racial composition of the 42,913 electorates -
Malays (56 percent), Chinese (38 per cent), Indians (4 percent)

Ka Siong, who is the deputy MCA president has been the Malay-majority Ayer Hitam MP since 2004.

Chin Tong won in nearby Chinese-majority Kluang in 2013 by beating prominent MCA leader Hou Kok Chun by a majority of 7,350. Kluang, which is my hometown has almost double the size of electorate compared to Ayer Hitam at that time. Chin Tong is formerly the MP of Bukit Bendera in Penang. He won there in 2008.

In my opinion, Chin Tong's move to the Malay-majority Ayer Hitam for the coming GE14 is as important as the move by former Johor MB TS Abdul Ghani Othman to contest the Chinese-majority Gelang Patah against DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang in GE13.

Ghani became the first Umno leader to do that in an attempt to stop the Chinese tsunami of 2013.

Chin Tong is trying to do about the same this time, but the other way around.

A DAP guy contesting in a Malay majority constituency in Johor, the state known as the tiang seri of Umno.

I agree with Lim Guan Eng on this,

Pakatan's dream lives or dies on Ayer Hitam result

They are banking on a Malay tsunami, or at least a significant shift to their side among the Malay electorate.

If Chin Tong can pull this one off in Ayer Hitam, then that means Pakatan stands a good chance to win most of the crucial semi-urban constituencies.

Yup, if he wins there, that's the end of Umno's dominance in my home state.

And more importantly, if Umno loses in Johor, that means it's going to lose elsewhere too.

Of course, if Wee Ka Siong losses there despite the Malay majority votes, that's the end of MCA too.

Still, it puzzles me that Chin Tong dares to make the move in the first place as it is very risky for him.

He may had done his calculations, which he is good at, and the results indicated that he has a chance to win.

But, Ayer Hitam actually has among the best BN election machinery in Johor led by its Umno division chief Samsol Bari Jamali, who is also the party's current state information chief.

I personally saw him in action in GE13 and I can confirm that the guy is good.

I was told by those on the ground in Ayer Hitam that Samsol Bari is among the few Umno division leaders who still apply the very effective micro management strategy employed by Johor Umno during the previous general elections.

The strategy was perfected during Ghani's leadership where emphasis was given for the leaders to go all the way down to the kawasan peti undi to make sure all the problems of the electorate were seen and solved.

I was made to understand that most other Johor BN leaders are using a different strategy under their current boss DS Mohamed Khaled Nordin but I'm not sure what it is.

Whatever it is, a friend who actually talked to Samsol Bari a few days ago told me last night that the guy is confident that Chin Tong has had his calculations wrong about Ayer Hitam.

That, we have to simply wait and see.

Whatever it is, I'm quite sure Ayer Hitam will be the most important fight of GE14.

I'm going to give special attention to it.

DAP's image, Ong Kian Ming and a bit of Sajat

A friend read this post by my guest blogger Simon,

On Ong Kian Ming's possible move to Kepong

and concluded in this note to me that;

1. DAP should proclaim itself as a Chinese based party and indeed the party representing a vast majority of Chinese

2. It must behave as a big, prominent party and discard the clique-ish image, also a party deemed anti Malays.

3. Tan Seng Giaw is the sort of personality DAP should promote not discard. He is seen as moderate and sensible.

4. Ong Kian Ming, on the contrary, is Kit Siang's protege. Promoting him to the No 1 DAP seat in the country - Kepong, at the expense of Seng Giaw, will deepen its image as a party significantly more radical than MCA.

My friend also asked;

1. Is Kit Siang prepared to loosen his grip on the DAP?.

2. Is there a sort of succession plan? Son to be the sole strongman? What is the image of DAP in 2020 and beyond?


Well, as for asking DAP to proclaim itself as a Chinese-based party instead of its current claim of being multi-racial, it's as good as asking Nur Sajat to proclaim that she/he is a man.

Everyone knows what Nur Sajat is, but since the person claimed to be a lady, there's nothing that can really be done about it, okay. Terima saja lah seadanya.

On the matter of DAP discarding its clique-ish and anti-Malay image, I think these are equally difficult to achieve.

Being clique-ish is actually part and parcel of a political party like DAP. That's why people like Ong Kian Ming, who is part of the Guan Eng's team can move to "better constituency" where the risk of losing or reduced majority is lesser.

Being seen as anti-Malay is also actually not the biggest of DAP's concerns. It has always only contested in non-Malay majority constituencies. So, people want to say DAP is anti-Malay doesn't really matter to them. In fact, they had benefited from it as more Chinese, who are angry with the supposedly Malay establishment will vote for them.

Tan Seng Giaw? Ya, he's one of the better DAP leaders and MPs. But the guy is old. And he is no Lim Kit Siang, okay.

If Ong Kian Ming wants his seat, I think DAP will give it to him. Kepong is a DAP stronghold anyway, so, the party wouldn't see any problem with that. They probably want to save Ong Kian Ming's ass too in case it's true that Serdang will have more Malay voters this time due to the delineation of the electoral boundaries.

And my friend is right about Ong Kian Ming being a Kit Siang's protege. That makes him more important than Tan Seng Giaw.

So what if people see DAP being more radical than MCA in term of being a Chinese party. As I wrote above, that's better for DAP in securing the Chinese-majority seats.

Kit Siang loosen his grip on DAP? Cannot be. It's business as usual for the old man. He seems still all very powerful along with his son Guan Eng. I think he will continue the way he is for a few more general elections. If Dr Mahathir can, Kit Siang also can. No problem one.

As for DAP's succession plan, I think that's very clear. Now Lim Kit Siang, after that Lim Guan Eng, after that Lim....something....and that will go on indefinitely.

Image of DAP after 2020? It's going to be the same la. They tried to be less Chinese but not very successful what. For instance, their attempt to include more Malays turned up like this,

Zairil's third time

 So, that's that.

Oh, here's a bit more of Sajat,

Funny eh.

Annie's theory ; if Pakatan wins

Yesterday,

The Star expects parliament to be dissolved between March 28-30

The newspaper put its speculation on its front page.

Very brave, actually.

The Star's reputation is at stake here.

However, today, there's no followup on the story by officials.

Nobody has confirmed or deny the story.

Still, the story was written by the newspaper's top guy Wong Chun Wai.

I think Chun Wai must be very sure about his sources.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have published the story.

So, I'm inclined to believe him.

The only thing that puzzled me though, was that these kind of cock sureness about election dates and such used to be that of news organisations closer to the BN and Umno leadership such as Utusan or New Straits Times.

Well, maybe things have changed.

Whatever it is, the general election is very near.

Good lah.

Better get it over and done with.

Hopefully we can move on with more important things in life after that no matter which side wins.

However, I believe if BN wins, the fighting will continue.

The opposition people have never win, so, if they lose I think they will as usual fight again for another election.

But BN people on the other hand have never lose. So, I believe BN and Umno will close shop if that happens.

Pas?

I think Pas will close shop too.

I think everyone will jump ship to join the winners.

But this I think will not stop the fighting either.

Once BN and Umno are gone, the Pakatan people will start to fight each other.

This is unavoidable.

They will split into the establishment and opposition as it is now.

My bet is that PKR and DAP will form the government as a multi-racial coalition while Pribumi and Amanah become the new opposition in the form of a Malay Muslim coalition.

Sabah and Sarawak parties I believe will gang up with PKR and DAP as their coalition is multi-racial.

Yes....I think that will be the scenario if Pakatan Harapan wins.

Interesting isn't it?

Well, I just hope this country will not burn down after that.

But then again, that's just my stupid theory.

So, you all don't get too scared, okay.

Enjoy this from a classic rock movie instead,

Cool right?

Cheers.

Zairil's third time

What is this la....?

When this one first came out, they sort of denied it...said it's gutter politics lah and what not.

Then finally the other day

DAP's Zairil and Dyana get engaged

Okay, fine....personal stuff and sorts....

But how about this,

Read what a Chinese ultra wrote about this tak malu punya kes,

The Yeo Bee Yins in Life and Morality. China & War

This is what I wrote at the height of campaigning for the Teluk Intan by-election,

• Stupid Malay men

It's my second most read post of all time.

Guess DAP tried to groom her but this Zairil fellow overdid it at that time.

On Ong Kian Ming's possible move to Kepong

GUEST BLOGGER

By Simon Eco Chin

As a nation, we may, eventually, choose to rate and rank high-profile politicians on their individual merits rather than praise or harry them for their party affiliations.

Among a selection of bright young politicians  constantly generating worthy content, is the 42-year-old MP for Serdang, Ong Kian Ming.

A former consultant and a politicial analyst, he is a writer who consistently shares his thoughts on social media.

Just the other day, Ong Kian Ming singled out KTM Komuter for criticism, suggesting that the 21-year-old service has drawn too many complaints.

Widely tracked with every pronouncement earning impressive views, Ong Kian Ming should probably follow up with visuals of his experience as a KTM Komuter rider. The Malaysian public will benefit from the presentation of more facts. There is a KTM station in Serdang. Ong Kian Ming must have surely tried the service. You could journey from Serdang northwards to Segambut, Kepong and beyond.

Intriguingly, I read somewhere that this young politician is being lined up as a candidate for the parliamentary seat of Kepong, a DAP stronghold, to replace Dr Tan Seng Giaw, the 75-year old parliamentarian.

This is probably unfair; but, Ong Kian Ming's vociferous presence in a movement to say "No"  to a waste-to-energy plant in the Kepong constituency has fuelled speculations of a switch.

It is true that he has been associated with environmental causes ever since he was elected to Parliament in 2013.

Still, the possibility of a switch to Kepong has lately gained traction now that Serdang is expected to be part of an expanded parliamentary constiuency that will include Bangi, in the redelienation of electoral boundaries.

Question is, does the MP see himself as a truly Malaysian politician able to be elected from a Malay-majority seat. Or, is he about to move to a seat long deemed safe for the DAP.

There is another possible scenario of Ong Kian Ming preparing to defend his Serdang seat. That there is a Bangi forest reserve and the fear of indiscriminate development in the area, may persuade him to stay given his activism as an environmentalist.

It is obvious that his credentials as a conviction politician will be put to test.

Already he is seen as a high-risk taker by planting himself in this movement opposing the proposed waste-to-energy plant in Kepong, from the off, when the full details were not immediately available.

Perhaps it is inevitable for him to raise the decibel in order to maintain a high profile. In any case Ong Kian Ming has been exposed to scrutiny.

Evidently, technology has neutralised some of the early concerns he raised, such as the emission of dioxin and ferun, or the permissible buffer separating the proposed plant from the nearest residential areas. As for the argument that there is already a landfill in Bukit Tagar, this sounds altogether weak. It reeks of the usual not-in-my-backyard syndrome.

Experts should be similarly robust in articulating their enlightened views.

Driving the conversation on waste-to-energy in past 5 years,  Ong Kian Ming,  had at a point, rubbished a Minister's suggestion that he Google a particular detail.

The learned parliamentarian was telling Malaysians and future constituents that he was accustomed to thorough research and analysis.

We are in an era where a basic understanding on anything could actually be gleaned, rocket science included. Well, one can always Google "rocket science".

Hence, flawed arguments on waste-to-energy could be easily detected and countered

To cite a fragile argument, the MP for Serdang may suggest that Japan is phasing out waste-to-energy incinerators. Visuals will pop up within seconds to show the exact opposite.

As Malaysia enters a phase of full disclosures and transparency, every single policy decision and  contract awards shall be thoroughly examined.

Opposition politicians will, of course, occupy frontrow seats. Equally exciting will be the counter-examination on intentions and pronouncements of those voluble personalities.

It will be interesting to watch this showdown;  Ong Kian Ming vs officials, planners, experts, politicians supporting a City incinenator.

We wish to see a clean fight of a rigorous inspection of facts with lots of visuals. There can only be one winner - the Malaysian public.

Padi Rescue, exploiting farmers' woes

GUEST BLOGGER

By Lebai Sudin

Lain Bengkak, Lain Dibebat.

Aku mengambil masa lama untuk menulis lagi. Terima kasih kepada Annie kerana memberi ruang ini. Tentunya aku masih mahu mencoret soal padi dan beras. Kalau ada yang bosan dengan tajuk ini..apa nak buat..sebab bagi aku ia adalah soal yang cukup penting. Komoditi paling strategik negara - makanan utama.

Lebih-lebih lagi, sebelum Tahun Baru Cina (9 Feb) aku sempat hadir pada satu dialog oleh Majlis Tindakan Ekonomi Melayu (MTEN) di Damansara. Nama ini pun agak pelik sikit. Majlis bermaksud Council..memberi maksud suatu badan berkuasa. Tapi MTEN bukan badan kerajaan, ia adalah NGO. Nama ni agak misleading sikit dan kelirukan orang.

Apa pun…programnya adalah dialog Industri Padi & Beras Negara. Aku pergi kerana kebetulan aku menulis isu ini, dan aku tertarik kerana antara panelnya, Prof Dr Jomo Kwame Sundaram yang aku minat ketika belajar ekonomi dulu.

Ketika aku tiba di tempat itu, program sudah mula dan baru tamat tayang video. Tak tahulah apa kandungan videonya. Aku jengah-jengah keliling, rupa-rupanya Dr Jomo tak datang, dan aku mula rasa kecewa. Sebab aku nak tau apa pendapat nama sebesar Dr Jomo mengenai isu padi dan beras ini. Masa belajar dulu aku sering juga merujuk jurnal dan buku tulisan Jomo termasuk soal penanam padi di Kelantan dan di Kedah.

Ada lebih kurang 50 orang yang hadir. Ada pengilang, pemborong dan petani. Katanya, ada orang Bernas juga, tapi tidak pula mereka minta ulasan dari orang Bernas apabila ada menyentuh hal Bernas.

Panel pertama bekas pengarah LPN, Ahmad Anuar Ibrahim. Dia cerita sejarah LPN dan sejarah padi negara. Aku tak jelas kemana dia nak bawa perhatian dan pemikiran audiens. Dia rasa pesawah perlu dibela kerana pendapatan mereka tak mencukupi. Dia cadangkan naikkan subsidi padi..hmmm.. malas aku nak komen.

Tapi, dia pun ada jelaskan bahawa LPN ditubuhkan pada 1971 dan tidak ada kena mengena dengan petani. Peranan LPN adalah selepas tuai (post harvest), melibatkan pengilang dan pengguna.

Jadi tak tepatlah kalau MTEN menyertai NGO yang menamakan diri mereka sebagai Padi Rescue nak menyelamatkan industri beras dengan menuntut supaya LPN diwujudkan semula.

Menyedari hal itu, di dialog berkenaan, moderatornya Fitri Amir Muhammad sebagai koordinator Padi Rescue mengatakan pula perjuangannya bukan mahu menubuhkan semula LPN, tetapi menghidupkan kembali fungsi LPN.

Tapi kalau LPN pun asalnya terlibat post harvest… tak tepat juga.

Ini kerana, panel ketiga, Prof Datin Paduka Fatimah Mohamed Arshad, Institute of Agriculture and Food Policy Studies, UPM, berkata memberi tumpuan kepada transformasi di peringkat pengeluaran adalah lebih penting dalam industri beras negara. Katanya, tak perlu cerita pasal kilang dan pasaran, yang penting tingkatkan pengeluaran beras negara.

Beliau melihat seluruh industri padi kelemahannya adalah di peringkat pengeluaran. Pesawah kita masih ditakuk lama.

Memang ada sistem saliran, ada guna baja, tanam dan tuai guna mesin, tetapi mereka tak maju dan tak mampu berdirikari, masih macam sara diri secukup hidup.

(Aku tak ulas di sini pasal panel kedua, Bekas COO Bernas Ahmad Ilham. Aku kena cari fakta sikit nak laporkan apa yang beliau cakap…artikel akan datang akan aku sentuh hal ini).

Prof Fatimah berhujah bahawa pesawah terkongkong dengan penggunaan benih, baja dan racun. Beliau berpendapat pesawah tidak dapat kebebasan untuk menjalankan kerja sawahnya mengikut kehendaknya. Sebab itu, katanya, hasil pertanian di atas tanah milik pesawah adalah tidak memuaskan. Bab ini aku kena selidik lebih lagi. Apa yang aku faham, beliau maksudkan pesawah kita tiada kawalan ke atas input pertanian, jadi tak dapatlah mereka menentukan bagaimana seharusnya tanah mereka digunakan dan apa jenis benih, baja dan input yang patut digunakan.

Prof Fatimah berkata, untuk membangunkan pesawah faktor-faktor penentuan perlu diambil kira iaitu modal insan, tanah, air, buruh, baja, modal dan teknologi. Mesti ada amalan sawah yang baik. Tumpuan harus kepada meningkatkan pengeluaran (output) dan mengurangkan kos input. Maka, perlu ada pembangunan sektor input tempatan.

Nah…aku tak lah berminat nak menulis macam ahli akademik. Tapi itu pendapat orang yang pakar. Katanya lagi, pembekalan baja perlu diliberalisasi untuk beri pilihan kepada pesawah. Ini satu lagi perkara yang aku akan cuba cari-cari maklumat mengenainya.

Pendapat Prof Fatimah ini ada dilaporkan oleh NST Online.

Pendapat seperti ini barangkali menarik untuk diterioka lebih jauh. Sebab, pada sesi soal jawab, seorang lelaki memperkenalkan dirinya sebagai petani dari Tanjung Karang, memberi pandangan bahawa pesawah kita yang silap sehingga mereka tidak maju dan berjaya sejak sekian lama.

“Siapa kata pesawah tak boleh buat duit…siapa  yang ada tanah 3 ekar dan kata tak cukup beri hasil, bak sini, bagi saya usahakan tunjuk macam mana boleh bawa hasil.” itu kata-katanya yang masih aku ingat.

Beliau kata kesilapan pesawah adalah guna baja dan guna racun. Tidak semua baja sesuai dan racun lebih merosakkan dari bawa kebaikan. Kalau betul-betul bersawah, berbudi kepada tanah, pesawah tak akan miskin lagi.

Cara perawakannya nampak beliau tahu apa yang diperkatakannya dan melihat kepada gaya penampilan beliau kelihatannya seperti seorang yang meranduk sendiri tanah sawahnya.

Kalau nak ikut hasil kajian Prof Fatimah dan pandangan orang bernama Faizal tu, tumpuan perlu diberikan kepada membangunkan pesawah iaitu meningkatkan pengeluaran.

Tapi betulkah semua pesawah tidak maju dan miskin?

Apakah masalah industri beras ini adalah masalah pengilang, pemborong dan peruncit iaitu soal pasaran?

Aku rasa Padi Rescue kena jujur dalam hal ini - peringkat post harvest (lepas tuai) atau peringkat pengeluaran yang perlu diberi perhatian.

Jangan Lain Yang Bengkak, Lain Yang Dibebatnya.

Note : Please also read Lebai Sudin's last post Sharing the cake of Malaysia's rice industry

Jazlan, you all in Pulai don't need Chinese votes is it?

I have to admit that I'm a bit lost on whether BN is serious in getting back a certain percentage of the Chinese votes for GE14.

This follows the recent whacking of elderly tycoon Robert Kuok.

First, there were all sorts of accusations of the guy financing the opposition parties.

A minister even joined the fray by openly attacking him.

Then suddenly there was a statement from PMO defending Kuok.

That's strange because  earlier, a prominent blogger known to be controlled by someone at PMO had churned up series of articles whacking Kuok.

I thought probably the eunuchs at PMO are having another round of fight again. One gang wanted to whack Kuok, while another gang wanted to defend him.

But I'm not sure.

However, just yesterday the MCMC ordered the blogger to take down those articles from his website.

MCMC is now the big brother editor of everyone, I think. It decides what people can publish or not.

Meanwhile, Kuok himself had denied the accusations.

It's all quite confusing.

Can't they make up their mind?

And of course MCA which represents the Chinese side of BN got into the act and kena whacked also.

Here's Kempas assemblyman Tengku Putra whacking the MCA over the Kuok issue in his blog post,

WORMS COMING OUT OF THE WOODWORKS 

excerpts;

In Johor, MCA was the only party that didn’t submit their numbers from their groundwork to the State BN for analysis. Instead they keep on giving positive percentages plucked from the sky without justification.

It was also reported by a newsportal that Ong Ka Chuan “urged DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang to train his guns on Umno leaders, Raja Petra and not MCA, if he was unhappy with the attacks against Kuok”

This shows their readiness to be subservient to the chauvinist opposition party while breaking ranks with the ruling coalition.

I Hope The Good Prime Minister Will Take Cognisance Of This And Ensure That No Cabinet Seats Are Again Wasted On Them If They Further Fail To Win Their Seats Which By The Way, Was Won On The Backs Of Malay Voters!

Hmmm....it's as if BN, or to be more exact Umno doesn't need Chinese votes after all.

But I doubt that's the case.

Seriously, is Kempas secured enough for BN just with Malay votes?

Maybe Jazlan, as Tengku Putra's division chief of Pulai can clarify this.

Jazlan, why is it that your anak buah simply simply whacked MCA like that with GE14 just around the corner?

On this one, I'm actually asking as a voter of Pulai.

Whatever it is, I think the whole stupidity was so unnecessary.

These people should just do their work instead of talking too much.

Buta-buta lost votes like that for what?

Really, just when the Chinese have cool off a bit, these people simply poured oil on the fire.

Kes terlebih pandai la ni.

Don't they realised that they need all the votes that they can get?

The Malay votes are already further split, therefore I don't think they should hope too much for a solid Malays support in Kempas, Pulai, Johor or any other part of the country.

The need to be inspired

I'm really getting slow and blur these days.

Didn't even realise this blog turned five years old two days ago.

So, no yearly review this time.

Last month also, I did only 10 postings, which is the lowest ever.

Guess I'm just not so interested with what's going on around me at the moment.

Too much bullshit, actually, that it's not worth my attention.

Better to watch Korean drama.

Funny isn't it....I'm saying that with GE14 just around the corner.

But really, all the political nonsense have been repeated over and over the past two three years.

What else new to write every day?

Seriously, if you all read the newspapers, do tell me what's so exciting about their political coverage these days.

Most of the stories were planted by the editors' political masters, anyway.

Who wants to read those?

Some are even outright stupid....like that BH's supposedly Felda exclusive two months ago.

Nowadays, they even tried to peddle us all kind of bullshit such as the three-in-one newspaper idea, whatever that is.

Okay, maybe the PMO people swallowed that, but those people don't care about journalism in this country.

They just want to take care of their interests.

Fuck journalists, they said.

For them, journalists are just slaves to be used to achieve their personal agendas.

The news portals are not much different too, okay.

They are simply boring.

More or less the same shit over and over again.

The other day a young lady who was applying for a college placement asked me whether it's a good idea for her to do a journalism course.

She wasn't sure what to do with her future.

I told her to do something else.

Maybe she should study English and Mandarin instead.

I think those would be of better use to her later on in life than a degree in journalism.

We can do with more people with good English and Mandarin.

Bahasa Malaysia?

Bahasa Malaysia tak pa, orang tak komplain kita hentam apa pun kalau guna bahasa kebangsaan ni.

Kalau bahasa Inggeris grammer semua kena sempurna betul, kalau tak orang kutuk kata engko bodoh lah apa lah.

Biasa lah tu.

Anyway, I told her it's tough to be a good journalist in this country.

The environment is just not right and the industry is controlled by stupid pricks.

That's why the social media is thriving as the main source of news these days....fake or not doesn't seems to matter. People trust them better than newspapers or TV stations.

I hope the young lady took my advice and be better than just being a journalist.

Her father is a former journalist, by the way.  I think he would agree with me.

And hopefully her English and Mandarin will be better than mine.

Well, it's raining outside at this moment.

Hujan panas.

I'm not planning to go out today but tomorrow I have a long ride north visiting my uncle.

So, I'm conserving my energy now.

Just lying down in my room.

Missing my mother. Missing my beloved.

Ma, beloved, this is for you,