The Gambit at Hulu Selangor

Assalamu alaikum and Good Day dear readers.

I nearly fell off my seat when I first heard of Datuk Zaid Ibrahim's (DZI) selection by the PKR bigwigs for the Hulu Selangor by-election which was announced in Serendah on Tuesday night. More surprisingly, the announcement was made in advance of Barisan Nasional's planned announcement on 15 April, which earlier declared their intention to field a candidate from the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC).

Being an old goat in politics, DSAI could have taken the cerebral option and a safer bet in Dr Halili Rahmat, a neurosurgeon by practice and a local respected figure. However, the glutton that had defined his character all these years reared its head again and BN's bait in the possibility of pitting PKR against an MIC candidate got the PKR supremo hasting an early decision. What a pity, I must say.

On one hand, the liberal DZI appeals to likeminded voters who are cognisant to his views on many issues including his comments on the legitimacy of the steps taken by HRH the Sultan of Perak in resolving the impasse of the Perak State Government.

On another hand, the make-up of the majority rural community would mean that his persona may not be entirely appealing, especially in defending the track record of PKR in dealing with bread and butter issues ever since the party successfully wrested P94 from Datuk G Palanivel (DGP) in 2008.

It is obvious that from the beginning, the BN coalition had already made their calculations prior to the death of the late Hulu Selangor incumbent, Allahyarham Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad. Subsequently, the MIC red herring was thrown intentionally to get PKR all woozy and overconfident. Apparently the gambit tactic is working so far and PKR might regret the naivety of their chief in taking in the bait.

The only block for me to point out on a comfortable BN win at Hulu Selangor is in the stubborness of MIC in sticking to none other than DGP. Although intended to show unity and undivided support for the candidate, this gesture nonetheless gives rise to accusations of putting the BN leadership in a spot. Secondly, by risking the outcome of BN choosing an alternative candidate to DGP, the MIC stands to be ridiculed for having a disillusioned view of the whole scenario in Hulu Selangor and not listening to the sentiments of the voters, who irregardless of ethnicity, are yet to absolve the MIC leadership from the bad handling of issues related to the Indian community. Thirdly, members overlooked for this candidature may decide to field themselves as independents, indirectly challenging the currently weak MIC leadership.

All in all, I see this by-election going into a tight race of sorts. My recent findings through last week's trip to Hulu Selangor showed the level of support for either side is still unclear. Come Saturday however, this would surely change. And perhaps, DZI is DSAI's red herring after all!

Regards and Wassalam.

A Bosnian Pleasantry

It has been about fifteen years since Bosnia-Herzegovina emerged from the rubbles of war devastation which resulted from inter-ethnical atrocities among its three major ethnic components with the true aftermath of this deep socio-political gash still subject to debate. However, an undisputed fact is that Malaysia (having derived from its own experience), had always been acommodating and vocal in its support for a peaceful and just nation of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

To this effect, Bosnians hold dear YABhg Tun Mahathir Mohamad (TMM) as head of an international friend and contributor to the rebuilding and subsequent progress of the Balkan country. How fitting then, to coincide with the commemorating of its independence, the community of Bosnia-Herzegovina through University Of Sarajevo (UNSA), has conferred TMM with its distinguished 'Honorary Doctorate of the University of Sarajevo'.

The Dean of the UNSA Faculty of Machine Engineering, Professor Dr Ejub Dzaferovic, had this to say in his proposal submission of TMM's candidacy:

Mr Mahathir proved, in his international activities, his sympathies for Bosnia and Herzegovina and peoples living there, by taking an active role as the 'Ambassador of Peace' in settling down war conflicts, and later, by helping reconstruction and development of our country. He was trying to transpose his positive experience that correct inter-ethnic relations can be achieved only by justice, consistency and economic prosperity, even to the peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In order with that, his role has been very active in connecting economy and universities of both countries via international projects. The University of Sarajevo has a very considerable cooperation with universities in Malaysia and with Malaysian companies as well. The cooperation reflects in mutual realization of teaching and scientific projects.

Congratulations to TMM for the award which further enhances the image of Malaysia in the international arena. As a discerning Malaysian Malay Muslim, I am both proud and thankful, and hope that the cooperation between Malaysia and Bosnia and Herzegovina be further deepened, especially in the field of higher education.


Regards and Wassalam

Menabur Budi Pada Yang Pasti

Assalamu alaikum dan Salam Sejahtera para pembaca yang budiman

Sejak kecil saya meminati tanaman dan berkecimpung di dalam hobi berkebun. AlhamdulilLah, setelah usia ini semakin lanjut, saya menjadikan hobi ini sebagai riadah untuk mengeluarkan peluh. Selalunya saya akan ke rumah orang tua saya pada setiap hujung minggu untuk berziarah dan di sana saya akan mencuri masa bagi melakukan hobi ini. Antara yang saya usahakan adalah tanaman cili, terung, mangga, pisang, ubi kayu dan ubi keladi.

Jelas hobi ini ada kelebihannya yang tersendiri. Sepertimana tajuk artikel ini, berkebun merupakan aktiviti menabur budi kepada tanah, yang pasti memberikan pulangan. Bukan hasil tuaian yang saya maksudkan, tetapi pengeluaran oksigen kepada alam yang menjadi bekal kepada semua hidupan. Hasil tuaian adalah bonus kepada usaha ini yang apabila tanaman mengeluarkan hasil, merupakan sesuatu pengalaman yang mengujakan.

Antara hasil yang diambil

Mangga yang dibungkus dengan surat khabar dan akar pokok jalar

Pisang Raja digoreng buat hidangan minum petang yang lazat

Saya mengesyorkan hobi ini kepada semua pembaca tidak kira usia ataupun di mana lokasi anda. Semoga usaha ini memberikan kita jasmani yang sihat, rezeki yang berkat, dan udara alam yang selamat.

Sekian dan Wassalam.

Epitaph of a Brother

Assalamu alaikum, Happy Holidays and Good Day dear readers

I have been privileged to know a man which I consider my brother. His passing was a shock to me, and I am still at pains to accept his demise. Hopefully my sharing with you will make this easier to take.

He was one of the rare kind. The Bobby Mercer character in 'Four Brothers'. It was once said that Horatius needed two to defend Rome at the Sublician. Well, in 'Abang Onn', he would have probably needed only one.



Inna lilLahi wa inna ilaihi rajiuun. Ila hadratin Nabiyy ahmadim Musytaba Muhammadim Mustafa RasulilLahi sallalLahi alaihi wa sallam. Khususun ilahi ruhi Mohamed Onn bin Sulaiman, kiramin al Fatihah..


Kind regards and Wassalam

Kedaulatan Raja

Assalamu alaikum and Good Day to all readers

The recent Federal Court ruling on the legitimacy of the sacking of Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin (DSMNJ) and the subsequent appointment of Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir (DSDZAK) by the Sultan of Perak was met with a wave of emotions from both sides of the divide.

Whilst the ruling BN camp breathed a sigh of relief and joy, the Pakatan Rakyat coalition expectedly denounced the decision, and declared among others that it was 'shameful', and 'a black mark in the history of the country’s judiciary'.

Some may understand the disappointment of the former ruling government, but what made me sit up to write this piece is the remark by a someone who has had a history with the judiciary.

The party’s political bureau chief Datuk Zaid Ibrahim said the court has decided that the principles of constitutional law, parliamentary democracy and justice were subservient to political wishes.

“It means that the Malay Rulers now have an absolute power over the Chief Executive of the State.

The Sultan now not only has the power to refuse the appointment of anyone proposed by the government of the day as the Mentri Besar that he disapproves of, he also has the power to dismiss the said Mentri Besar if he so wishes,” he said.

He said it seemed that the constitutional requirement that a constitutional head only acted on the advice of the Mentri Besar or the Prime Minister was now no longer applicable.

The last remark made me think deeply on his intended agenda. Putting the will of the people against the supremacy of the head of state is a very dangerous game, especially if the learned ruler had taken steps deemed appropriate to resolve such an intricate impasse.

Moreover, how can impartiality be dispensed by a Mentri Besar or Prime Minister if the very issue at hand is the survival of the incumbent as the head of the exco?

I am shuddered by the fact that Kedaulatan Raja is being poked and questioned but worse, politicized with such henious intentions.

Only Allah swt can have pity on these poor souls.

Regards

Facilitating Quality Changes in Malaysia Higher Education via Training

Dear readers

When one discusses the matter of quality in Malaysian higher education, it is difficult to actually point out what 'quality' really means. Of course you may want to read on 'quality' before you proceed with this piece but suffice to say I am safe with it meaning 'fitness for purpose' and 'value for money'.

Quality was previously perceptively equalled on the age of existence. University Malaya, for example, was a cradle of many current leaders for the fact that it was there in existence when no other local institutions were. Quality in higher education can also mean size, ie the volume of the institutional grants or revenue, or its expertise. To this, Universiti Putra Malaysia is an example as it stands tall among its local peers with around RM50m in annual grants allocated.

Infrastructure is another keyword in discussing quality in higher education institutions. Universiti Tenaga Nasional for example, was certified a 'Quality-Environment (QE)' university.

The recent development of this sector as an industry has led to a blurriness of fact on what construes a quality institution as there are now many classifications of universities; APEX, RU, IPTAs, GLC IPTs, HEPs and Self-Accredited Universities are all jargons that have found its way into our higher education lexicon and few are understood by laymen. Are these classifications done to tell the apples from the oranges or are they all inclusive? To resolve (and may I add stereotype) the 'quality' issue of Malaysia higher education institutions, several tools and indicators were introduced. Having said that, are tools like SETARA, COPPA and COPIA, MyRA and My3S used to form a ranking or a pyramid of hierarchy, or is the purpose of these mechanisms are to facilitate the self-regulation of the industry?

Whilst it may have noble intentions, it can be argued that additional burden of reporting is increasingly becoming a strain on administrators of the higher education industry as the very institutions that they administer are now under intense scrutiny, with the influx of international students deeply contributing to the latter. Allocations of funds need to be made to equip the members of the institutions in rudimentaries of educational accountability such as in delivering realistic Learning Outcomes (LOs) in programme curricula, as well as ensuring that the support systems of the institution (such as a dedicated International Office and counselling facilities) are adequately provided.

To this effect, the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia has itself gone into transformation. In December 2005, the Quality Unit of the ministry merged with the National Accreditation Board to form what we now know as the Malaysia Qualification Agency (MQA). The ministry also created the Higher Education Leadership Academy also known as AKEPT to provide learning and networking opportunities for higher education administrators.

Whilst the former is widely known for its contribution in assuring quality of local higher education, the contribution of AKEPT is comparitively less visible, partly due to the probable fact that their reach is still limited (by budgetary constraints, perhaps).

To this the ministry may like to consider the expansion of educational faculties to provide formal scholarly studies in the field of higher education itself. The growing numbers of institutions would mean a higher demand of trained professional educational administrators with entrepreneurial knowledge to boost. With a strong structure in place, backed up by quality professional administrators, it can be argued that the factory of Malaysia higher education could churn changes on the current fate of the local scene.

The higher education industry is now slowly but surely moving into the next stage of growth, which is the consolidation phase. When the market expands on a certain structure of quality, the 'shophouse colleges' will surely be edged off fashion and die out of natural causes. These structures of quality are now aggresively being put in place, both in the public as well as the private sector.

The regulators nonetheless need to ensure that the institutions themselves are able to keep up with this new direction and pace along the highway of change. Why not by putting the correct brains in their driving seats?

Cheers

The Lonely Fight

There seems to be no end to the predicament that is spelt as MCA right now. Political jostling for the much coveted top two posts is also distastefully evident with the contrasting statements given by the Central Committee (CC) as well as the thinly veiled shoving off by the CC members of the top incumbent, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Kiat (DSOTK).

It can be argued that the current president was initially the benefactor of the deep-rooted division in MCA; his neutral stance as well as his outspoken and 'lone ranger' image earned him the respect but not the adoration of his partymen. And so it was felt that DSOTK was the better alternative than the representative from the opposing camp.

With all these motive undercurrents whirling in MCA, it is of no surprise that the recent MCA Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) yielded the result it did; the delegates are in summary, not happy with the conduct of the CC headed by DSOTK. The climax of this ugly game also comes at the heels of the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal which implicates Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing (DSTKS), the Chairman of the Barisan Nasional (BN) Backbenchers' Club.

Anticipating the sorry situation the president is in, the generals have now turned onto their leader with the hope of making a quick kill. DSOTK, realising that his lead of the party is all but over now faces the lonely task of ensuring the bickering of his charges does not result in an implosion of the party, a worse outcome than the laughing stock that the MCA currently is.

As a chief partner in the BN administration fold, the discerning rakyat are surely looking at this situation with dismay. As a Malaysian Malay Muslim, I am in the view that the current MCA is a liability for the ruling coalition, concurring with the feedback I received from a friend, a year ago.

However, the spirit of togetherness that defines us Malaysians should be no more obvious than now; it should be us who facilitate the mending of the relationship of our neighbours. Therefore, it is important that we show our concern on the need to end this feud quickly and offer our help should it be needed.

Having said that this gesture to mediate must not be taken as a way to interfere with our neighbours internal matters. Worse is statements that is intended to sway public opinion for or against parties in the conflict.

At the end of the day, everyone should realise that turmoil benefits no one.

Kind regards and Wassalam