Saturday, June 28, 2014

My Ramadhan thoughts.

On this the eve of Ramadhan 1435H, I woke up to the news of the cow head thrown at the gate of a DAP state assembly person's house in Penang. This same representative had earlier used the term "celaka" on UMNO.

This incident is sad enough on its own but the worse came later in the morning. A federal minister commented that the DAP representative deserved the cow head for having a loud mouth.

What has this country got to?

Just when you thought that things cannot get worse, JAIS (the state religious body for ISLAM) issues a statement that they will not return the bibles siezed from the Malaysian Bible Society. This despite the Attorney General's decision that JAIS has erred in siezing the bibles and the State government's instructions to return the bibles.

So as we approach the holy month of Ramadhan, it looks like the "defenders of Islam" are all out to disgrace the religion.
Islam teaches forgiveness and respect. It teaches tolerance and sensitivity.

However, what we see done by Muslims certainly run contrary to the teachings.
Nevertheless, lets pray that they will come back to their senses this holy month. May their fullfilment of their religious obligation to fast bring peace, love and respect to their hearts and soul.

Fasting is not just to abstain from food but to appreciate the suffering and challenges that those less fortunate have to endure. In appreciating it , our hearts are open to care, to love and to give.

However, one important element tends to gt forgotten and that is to live in moderation.

I wish JAIS and those defenders of Islam will come out with strong statements against waste and excessive spending on lavish Buka Puasa feasts and the likes.

Yes, coming together to break fast is encouraged but it must be in moderation and to always remember the less fortunate.

I wish all my Muslim and non Muslim friends a blessed Ramadhan. May GOD give us the strength and  courage to fulfil this religious obligation that it will bless our soul and make us better people that bring glory and not disgrace to GOD.

Im off now to celebrate Ramadhan eve with a visit to Masjid Jamek, to draw in the sight, the sound, the smell and the spirit of Ramadhan with my Muslim brethrens.

Amin.




Tuesday, June 24, 2014

The Petaling Jaya Folklore Festival

The Petaling Jaya City Council had successfully organised an International Folklore Festival in conjunction with their City Day celebration from 20th to 22nd June 2014.

I congratulate the City Council for a successful festival bringing cultural troupes from 14 countries plus many local troops from across the country.
Pre opening events were organised throughout the city at shopping malls with pocket performances. These pocket shows culminated with a grand opening which included street performances officiated by no less than the Mentri Besar himself.

What is significant for me about these performances is that culture unites us from across the world. We may have different instruments, colours, movements and language but we unite in rhythm and energy. We unite in a common language of music and a common story of love and unity.

Even within Malaysia, each state showcases their own unique cultural performances. Each tells a story of its own history but all reminds us the common uniting theme of respect, love and unity.

Yes it was a great week for me. I took the effort to interact with the performers from all over. I enjoyed the performances even more because I learnt the significance of the music, the movements and the story they were telling.

Well done Petaling Jaya!

Thursday, June 12, 2014

A child in need...

My son Darryl lost his handphone whilst playing basketball this aftrnoon.

He left his phone and his wallet on the bench whilst playing basketball with two others.

After the game, he discovered that his phone was missing along with RM50 from his wallet. The wallet was not taken.

Darryl and his friends suspected it was taken by one of their other friend who was loitering around when they were playing. But without proof, it remained a suspicion.

Later in the evening, he tried going to a nearby phone shop known to the family. Yes, his stolen phone was there, sold to the shop earlier on by a young boy for RM150.

CCTV recording showed it is his friend. The shop called the boy and told him to return the RM150 or a police report will be made. The boy immediately returned the money and pleaded for forgiveness.

He said he stole the phone as he needed money to pay for his tuition. He normally works for his tuition fee but have no job at the moment.

At only 16 years old, this boy has to take such steps to pay for tuition. The bigger question is why should he need tuition if our school system is sufficient.

This is a really sad situation for this young boy to go through. However he must still learn that theft is theft is wrong no matter your reason.

I can find it in my heart to forgive him but I sure hope that both he and Darryl will not forget this lesson in life.

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

To YB or not to YB

Surrendran has correctly highlighted the issue of honourifics amongst our elected representatives.

Yes, we refer to our elected representatives as YB: short for Yang Berhormat. The English equivalent would be The Honourable MP or representative of a given constituency.

These honourifics is in itself not wrong. It is a title of reference and respect for the people, not so much for the person.

What I find amusing and at times rather nonsensical how each of these representative would call each other YB in the Parliament. Yes, they all have the same name. It is not surprising that occasionally one would also forget the real given name of the person.

I would propose that the protocol in the House would be to refer to each other with the name of their constituency instead of YB.

The honourific YB is a formal salutation and restricted to use in formal events. In a formal event, the MC would refer to the elected representative as YB. Similarly, in dealings with government agencies, the YB is there as an elected representative and thus should be refered to as such. It is respecting the choice of the people more than just the person.

The elected representative should not and must not expect the constituents to refer to them as YB. However, in many instances it is the constituents themselves that uses the term as a form of social respect and there is nothing wrong with it.

The representative need not go around correcting his constituents. However the YB can sometimes remind his constituents to call him his name instead of YB.

If a representative is constantly on the ground and close to the constituents, it would be quite natural to be seen as a friend and be refered to as such, ie with his name.

Our elected representative should not feel overly egoistic and glow when refered to as YB by the man on the street. Many times, it is also meant to be a sarcastic term of reference for YB can also mean Yang Bodoh, Yang Biadap.

Thus lets not turn this matter into a storm in a tea cup. To YB or not to YB, let's just leave it to the individuals.

It is much more important that the elected representatives carry out the duties and serving the constituency.

By doing so than they deserve to be refered to as YB:  Yang Berkhidmat.