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Why I would leave Malaysia

Hafidz Baharom
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2011

MAY 26 — There are a few things in every nation that a person can’t handle. With our nation now in a state of brain drain (or maybe not), it comes as no surprise that there will be people wishing to migrate for what they may consider greener pastures. I have mine as well even if the country’s national flag features a red maple leaf.

The truth is, I do love this country. To be more specific, I love my hometown of Shah Alam. I love the friends I grew up with even if some of them continue to argue that I should join PAS for some odd reasoning that I personally can’t comprehend. I love my dysfunctional and quirky family and perhaps would even go so far as to say that I love the people in the country when they’re not bigoted idiots running on emotional steroids.

What I don’t enjoy in this nation is the fact that we have a government and government agencies that are run exactly like our Parliament, where a whip is so strictly enforced that minority opinions cannot be promoted. In 2009, Shahrir Abdul Samad said that a Member of Parliament from his own party should be censured, and this motion was denied because nobody would go against the whip. Continue reading “Why I would leave Malaysia”

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When belts cannot be tightened anymore

Hsu Dar Ren
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2011

MAY 26 — I chatted with an old patient of mine after a consultation yesterday. He was probably suffering from the side effect of stress and not enough rest. I enquired about his job and he told me that he is working two jobs now; a daytime office job and part- time taxi driving at night. He had to do this to make ends meet.

So I told him what any doctor would tell his patient under these circumstances– to rest more.

Then he started to pour out his woes to me: that he has already been tightening his belt over the past few years, that he dreads to think of ways to tighten it some more, since the cost of living is creeping up and food prices are going to shoot up. He told me that there would come a point that the belt cannot be tightened anymore, and that point is fast being reached. Continue reading “When belts cannot be tightened anymore”

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The reasons I stayed

Adrian Ng
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2011

MAY 26 — There are actually more reasons to leave than stay in Malaysia. But then again, I decided to stay… at least for now. Why?

1. I love the food; I can step out in the middle of the night and still find my favourite food — nasi lemak (tambah telur mata kerbau) with teh tarik kurang manis.

2. I love the weather here, though it sucks at times, but it is still better than being in 20 inches of thick snow or being roasted to death in a 42-degree heat wave. Continue reading “The reasons I stayed”

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10 Days in May (34)

Tweets @limkitsiang:-

TBH RCI – What game MACC up2 demanding special treatment in not meeting yesterday’s RCI deadline 4submissions – while complied by others?

Bar Council justified complaint working “round the clock” 2comply with RCI deadline 4submissions – Y MACC exception w Friday extension?

Question Grave Public Importance:Y MACC need more time than others 2submit what happened 2TeohBengHock dat fateful day @MACC Shah Alam hqrs?

Fully endorse PAS ShahAlam MP KhalidSamad query whether there is any MACC cover-up http://bit.ly/kloK8j MP questions silence on Sarbani case

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Speaking up and facing the reality

Andre Sequerah
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2011

MAY 26 — Growing up and studying in a missionary La Salle school in the ‘80s was one of the best experiences ever. In general, boys from all the races mixed together and student populations then were well balanced between all the races.

Yet, even at that time, there were rumblings on the horizon. One of my closest Malay friends, a smart chap, was sent away after lower secondary school to further his studies in a boarding school.

When I went to one of the top engineering universities in the UK, I learnt two things. One was that from the viewpoint of a good friend of mine, a Frenchman, the thought that I had to tick a little box to state that I was under the category of “Others” to state that I was Eurasian was ghastly and hinted of racial prejudice. It was my first realisation of what the word could truly mean as I had never questioned that act before. Continue reading “Speaking up and facing the reality”

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10 Days in May (33)

Tweets @limkitsiang:-

Who is greatest threat/wrecker of Najib’s 1Msia concept? No 1 outside. From very bosom of Umno eg its organ UtusanMsia w 1Melayu agnst 1Msia

Utusan’s anti Najib 1Msia campaign has full support from Umno old guards headed by UMNO No.2 Muhyiddin. Is Utusan loyal 2Najib or Muhyiddin?

Wld Utusan dare 2b so irresponsible as 2publish seditious/treasonous Christian Msia bogey if Utusan editor not assured of immunity/impunity?

Who assured Utusan of immunity/impunity 4seditious/treasonous ChristianMsia bogey? Y has Utusan editor thrown all journalstic canons 2winds? Continue reading “10 Days in May (33)”

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Abolish race quota for PSD scholarships, says ex-FT education chief

By Boo Su-Lyn | May 26, 2011
The Malaysian Insider

PETALING JAYA, May 26 — A former Federal Territory education director today pressed the Najib administration to abolish the race quota in Public Service Department (PSD) overseas scholarships.

Abas Awang, who is now the PKR education bureau chief, said the government should consider the long-term interest of Malaysia which aims to become a high-income nation by 2020.
Continue reading “Abolish race quota for PSD scholarships, says ex-FT education chief”

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MMA concerned Lynas plant will wreak harm

By Yow Hong Chieh | May 26, 2011
The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 — The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) stepped into the controversy today over Australian miner Lynas’ rare earth plant near Kuantan, expressing “grave concern” that waste products could wreak harm on those living nearby.

The association, representing the country’s 13,000 doctors, stressed that the possible health risks presented by radiation from “extremely toxic” thorium outweighed the economic benefits from the project.
Continue reading “MMA concerned Lynas plant will wreak harm”

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DAP: Opposition pressure forced Putrajaya to postpone subsidy cuts

By Clara Chooi | May 26, 2011
The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 — The DAP triumphed today in Putrajaya’s postponement of fuel and gas subsidy cuts, claiming it was largely due to opposition pressure that forced the government to back down.

It however warned that the celebration would likely be short-lived, predicting that the cuts would be imposed after snap elections.
Continue reading “DAP: Opposition pressure forced Putrajaya to postpone subsidy cuts”

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Power subsidies: Their mistakes, our liabilities

Malaysiakini Your Say | May 26, 11

‘I doubt anything substantial will come out of the re-negotiation as the IPPs and Umno are sitting on the same side of the table.’

Transparency of IPP contracts ‘long overdue’

Kgen: The lopsided IPP (independent power producer) agreements are the result of Dr Mahathir Mohamad forcing TNB (Tenaga Nasional Bhd) to sign on the dotted line.
Continue reading “Power subsidies: Their mistakes, our liabilities”

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IPPs: A case of the poor subsiding the rich

Malaysiakini Your Say | May 26, 11

‘Why is it that one minister called it ‘subsidy’ but another minister said it is not. This is ridiculous BN ways at work.’

Chin’s ‘savings, not subsidy’ remark shocks DAP

Onyourtoes: I think both Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Peter Chin are missing the fundamental issues on IPPs (independent power producers):
Continue reading “IPPs: A case of the poor subsiding the rich”

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Make lists of scholarship recipients public

Malaysiakini Vox Populi | May 26, 11

‘Then there will be no arguments as to the veracity of the selection process. Until that is done, there will be quarters that won’t trust nor believe PSD.’

Abolish PSD’s racial quotas, urge NGOs

WangMalaysia: More than 8,800 students getting 9A+. Malaysia has loads of talent! I remember during my time, those getting 8A1 count for less than 30 throughout the country.
Continue reading “Make lists of scholarship recipients public”

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Longing For A Free Mind (Part 12 of 14)

By M. Bakri Musa

Q& A (Cont’d): Pakatan, UMNO, and Mahathir

Q4: Pakatan declared that it will take away Malay special privileges. Why should I vote for that coalition?

A4: Your greatest fear, and reason for not voting Pakatan, is the possible loss of your special privileges. Thanks to the agitations of leaders from the increasingly shrill Mahathir down to the ever-frothing Perkasa’s Ibrahim Ali, affirmative action is now an existential issue for Malays.
Continue reading “Longing For A Free Mind (Part 12 of 14)”

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MCA – Heartless, Soulless, Hopeless

Tweets exchange:-

limkitsiang – 8.04am
I hope that one day I can return – John Malachi (TMI) http://bit.ly/kbN4sv

limkitsiang – 8.08am
Cry of a Msian – “as I write this in tears 2nite, I hope that 1 day I can return ..2do what I was doing b4 I left” http://bit.ly/kbN4sv

giamsk – 8.10am
Voice of a refugee? So sensational RT @limkitsiang: Cry of a Msian – “as I write this in tears 2nite, I hope that 1 day I can return…
Continue reading “MCA – Heartless, Soulless, Hopeless”

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I hope that one day I can return

John Malachi
The Malaysian Insider
May 25, 2011

MAY 25 — I am a Malaysian living abroad. I graduated as a doctor in Australia and went back to Malaysia in the early 1990s. From the first day I started working in Malaysia until the day I left, I have worked all the 15 and a half years of my time in Malaysia in public hospitals, not a single day in private practice.

In the mean time I got married and have two beautiful children. I went through the system, however unfair it was, being posted to hospitals that no one wanted to go to, and being sent on a merry-go-round around the country with two kids and a wife in tow.

I have had many opportunities to leave the public health sector to go into private practice – I was even offered a consultant specialist job in Singapore, but I hung on to the government hospitals, willingly foregoing better opportunity and financial rewards. Continue reading “I hope that one day I can return”