ARTICLE 1
Pro-PPSMI groups to form coalition – UPDATED @ 03:10:21 PM 10-03-2012 – By Yow Hong Chieh – March 10, 2012
A section of the parents at the pro-PPSMI rally in Petaling Jaya on March 10, 2012. — Picture by Choo Choy May
PETALING JAYA, March 10 — Several parents’ groups said today they will band together in a coalition to push Putrajaya into reinstating the teaching of science and mathematics in English (PPSMI).
Concerned Parents of Selangor (CPS) head Shamsudin Hami said the new umbrella group, Association of Parents Groups for Reforming Education (ASPIRE), will allow for easier exchange of views between the government and pro-PPSMI parents.
“We cannot address matters in bits and pieces… To make the job easier, we are forming a coalition of parents’ groups,” he told reporters at a PPSMI rally at Padang Timur here that was attended by some 150 parents.
Shamsudin speaks to the press on the formation of a coalition of parents’ groups.
“With ASPIRE, there should be no more excuses. You don’t need to go state by state and waste time, waste taxpayers’ money. Just stick to ASPIRE, because ASPIRE consists of parents’ groups from Penang to Johor and Sabah.”
Also present were representatives from the Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE), Malacca Action Group of Parents in Education (MAGPIE), Herald of Penang Education (HOPE) and lawmakers Hannah Yeoh and Loh Gwo-Burne.
Shamsudin said ASPIRE will put together a “parents’ charter” on education which will encompass all the issues which have to be addressed in order to transform the education system, he said.
This included the removal of “culturally-biased, so-called knowledge” present in the national education syllabus, which is needed if confidence in national schools is to be restored, he said.
He reiterated that PPSMI must be made an option in schools, the implementation of which should be left to parents and not headmasters or even the Education Ministry.
Shamsudin added he remained hopeful that the government will listen to the demands of parents who favour PPSMI, noting that Putrajaya had promised to abolish the Internal Security Act (ISA) after receiving heavy criticism from the public and civil rights groups.
“Apart from whatever is written in the holy books, I don’t think that is chiselled in stone,” he said.
“PPSMI is only a policy. What about the ISA? It’s a law. It can be removed. So it’s all up to the people and the government. It needs political will.”
The government has come under fire from former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and pro-English lobby groups over its move in 2009 to revert to the teaching of science and mathematics in Bahasa Malaysia (MBMMBI).
Despite much criticism, Putrajaya has said it will not back down from the decision but would allow the final PPSMI batch to continue until they complete their secondary education.
MBMMBI, mooted in July 2009 as a replacement for PPSMI, came into effect in January last year for Year One students.
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Good work. This voting bloc should enforce democracy with the Ministry of Education. The ‘optionals’, and opt out option should always be part of a democratic government method in all laws. Next focus on 66.6% quorums at a one-man one-vote law, for all registered or professional societies and all levels of government AND considered against the UNHCR as well. Have Hannah and Gwo-Burne had a chance to ask Bar Council about the other problems some of us have been asking about?
ARTICLE 2
Times have changed! — Lim Mun Fah – March 10, 2012
I always heard my grandfather said that when I was young, and my parents said that too when I was growing up. And now, as I am getting old, I always say that myself.
Times have indeed changed. Everyone knows the truth. The problem is, have you changed to adapt yourself to the new era?
If the Lynas rare earths refinery plant was built in Kuantan 30 years ago, perhaps no one would oppose to it. Even if there were opposing voices, it would be too weak to have an effect.
Similarly, if the Pengerang oil and gas complex in Johor was built 30 years ago, it would not trigger a controversy. Even if it caused discontentment, the residents would still helplessly accept it.
However, times have changed. Today, the people’s awareness of environmental protection, demand for human rights and the pursuit of the right to know are much stronger than 30 years ago.
As the mentality of many government officials are still stuck in the era 30 years ago, they think that the people nowadays are not much different from those 30 years ago. That is why they have always underestimated the rebound from the civil society, and are caught in a dilemma.
The cover story of the latest issue of Yazhou Zhoukan is worthy of our reference and reflection as it analyses the continuation of the entanglement of business and politics of the British colonial era in Hong Kong.
Like Hong Kong, our bureaucratic system originated from the British colonial government. Although our country has been independent for over half a century, the traces of such entanglement of business and policy can still be detected everywhere, it is sometimes even worse than the practice in the past.
However, times have really changed, so has the political environment. Members of the public are now having harsher expectations of politicians. Secretive governance can no longer meet the public’s right to know. In particular, the people have been expecting more after the 2008 political tsunami. They ask for a more transparent policy, as well as more reasonable and fair governance. They also demand for better governance ability and higher morality from politicians and government officials.
Therefore, “official secrets” can no longer be used as an excuse to cover major decision-making and governance. Government officials have to be responsible for every word they said and every decision they made. The people will use the rights of citizens to question improper policies, condemn unreasonable and unfair phenomena. Meanwhile, the media will continue to follow up and report the latest developments. The National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal serves as the best example here.
Times have changed and progressed. Those who fail to catch up with the changes are destined to be eliminated by the times! — mysinchew.com
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The article write wrote : ‘Even if there were opposing voices, would be too weak to have an effect.’
There will always be an effect. Just that the spaces and numbers are smaller instead though no less if not more vobrant internally by measure of focus – as all memes are equal in value due to the diversity itself, none can be abolished. All views and methods are valid after all, so don’t worry about older generation subcultures (nepotism being the most decadant in anything but the smallest businesses) or the newest and least acceptable memes, there will be some who keep those alive like rarefied subcultures and such. The thing is to remember not to impose on others one’s views and to live and let live. Like Voltair said to fight for one’s right to think, fighting for the right to live as one will is the natural progression. To propagate whatever should be done only when consensual as per ethical considerations.
ARTICLE 3
Pakatan Must Forgo Power Struggle Within Their Parties – Yap Ee Wah – Saturday, 10 March 2012 14:40
Pakatan Rakyat deserves ridicule for neglecting the interests of the rakyat in exchange for their power struggle within their own coalition.
One latest example is the selection and appointment of new local councillors recently whereby DAP wrangled among themselves for power which thereby directly damages the image of Selangor. This has caused the loss of the tax-payers’ money besides affecting the system of governance within Selangor state.
Due to the infightings, the Selangor state administration is unable to reappoint the contractors for rubbish collection. Tonnes of rubbish have been dumped and accumulating everywhere in Selangor causing residents to air their grievances and complaints.
Pakatan internal power tussles in Kedah & Penang too besides Selangor
Another example of an internal battle for authority within a Pakatan-held state is Kedah whereby two of their state Exco members had a falling out with the Menteri Besar Azizan. Even with the intervention of the PAS Central Committee, their leadership was also unable to help resolve the problem there. Hence, the PAS top leadership had directly affected the functioning and administrative work of the state government as well.
I wish to reiterate that Pakatan having ruled Kedah and Penang for 4 years has caused so many problems. The biggest controversy at hand is that PAS has appointed a steering committee with veto powers headed by themselves to advise and oversee the administration of the state.
In addition, both the DAP Penang State Chairman Karpal Singh is also fighting with his Deputy Ramasamy just ahead of the upcoming General Elections. Supporters of both parties concerned are also fighting with one another. Ramasamy had even revealed that some grassroot leaders had asked “favours” from him.
Internal strife was also tense in DAP Selangor which witnessed the power scuffle arising from the abuse of Exco Ronnie Liu’s letterheads by his ex-political aide, Tee Boon Hock. Selangor State Speaker Teng Chang Kim was also called up by the DAP Disciplinary Board for his twitter statements issued recently.
Looking at the entire scenario, this is not a matter involving DAP alone, but a subject relating to both the state government and the rakyat.
YAP EE WAH is State Assemblyman for Sungai Pelek
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The Rakyat also are aware that BN has not yet implemented with that mandate :
1) Freedom from Apartheid/Fascism
2) Freedom from Religious-Persecution/Religious-Supremacy.
3) Equality for all ethnicities and faiths in all aspects of policy, Law and Constitution.
Don’t make announcements here that are meaningless here, use that mandate to grant the above or BN is FINISHED simply to be punished for non-use of that mandate. Also TERM limits and prevention of family blocs in BN as well. The nepotism issue is a glaringly obvious in BN as in PR.
ARTICLE 4
Develop System To Reward And Punish Civil Servants – Chai Kim Sen – Saturday, 10 March 2012 00:16
The government’s decision to withdraw the ‘exit policy’ for civil servants, which is meant to dismiss them for poor performance or lack of discipline, is a regretful decision as I believe that with the increase in salary for civil servants, the government should also not neglect to develop an administrative system of rewards and punishment in order to control the civil service’s attitude and efficiency.
The performance of the civil servants is the key to the success, or failure, of the government’s transformation programmes. They are also important to determine the nation’s competitiveness as well as represent the image of the Barisan Nasional government. However, in the past civil servants had adopted a ‘little Napoleon’ attitude which has backfired onto the BN government by making it scapegoats.
A notable example is when MCA President Dr Chua Soi Lek had sternly criticized officials of the Education Ministry for playing around with the date on SJKC teachers.
It is important for the government to set up a fair and transparent evaluation system for rewarding and punishing civil servants, even following the steps of the private sector which adopts the policy of dismissing employees, thus breaking down the bad perception that the civil service is unproductive.
Currently the civil service is besieged with bureaucracy, arrogance and inaction, along with the drawbacks of corruption and abuse of power. All these have created a negative impact on the government and the nation’s economy, and have caused the people to lose faith in the government.
For too long the Barisan Nasional has carried the burden of poor civil service and it is now time to implement a more effective system to clear the civil service or poor performers and ‘deadwood’.
The salary scheme must be based on meritocracy, with potential and experience being used to decide the increment of civil servant’s salaries, and bonuses and benefits being awarded based on work performance.
What the people want is a clean and fair public service mechanism which is more in touch with the people, and MCA believes that to enhance the quality and efficiency of public service administration, the system of rewarding and punishment is a necessary one.
CHAI KIM SEN is MCA Youth Secretary-General
(The views expressed above belongs to the author in its entirety and does not represent the opinion of Malaysian Mirror in any way)
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End the APARTHEID in BN and a win could be possible. And BN’s civil service is 1500% too large which could rive Malaysia into a Greece type situation where the IMF takes over the country.
ARTICLE 5
Don’t be fooled by PAS ‘pluralism’, says Wee – by Yow Hong Chieh – March 10, 2012
KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 — The public must not be “hoodwinked” by PAS’s claim that it embraces pluralism, MCA Youth chief Datuk Wee Ka Siong said today.
This was because PAS’s interference in the administration of Kedah without consultation with its partners in Pakatan Rakyat (PR) showed the Islamist party was anything but pluralist, he said.
Wee (picture) pointed out that this included the setting up of a steering committee with veto powers by PAS to advise the Kedah mentri besar and executive councillors on state administration.
“Who is PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang trying to kid when he extols PAS’s so-called but unproven and never-will-be-proven pluralism?” he said in a statement.
“Why should an external political party determine state policy when the state administration should be determined by the mentri besar in consultation with all PAS, DAP and PKR excos and elected representatives from their parties?”
The Ayer Itam MP said that PAS’s past actions showed that it did not have the interests of all Malaysians at heart.
This includes terminating liquor licences in Kulim, issuing a summons to a Chinese salon owner for her Muslim employee’s three-quarter sleeve blouse and tearing down the sole pig abattoir in Kedah, among others.
“We must recall that after the 2011 PAS Muktamar, Hadi Awang declared that the difference between the (PAS) proposed welfare state and an Islamic state was only a semantic one,” Wee said.
“Thus, I urge all Malaysians irrespective of religious creed or ethnicity not to be hoodwinked by Hadi Awang’s latest portrayal of PAS as all-embracing as they clearly are not.”
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BN is no more plural than PAS and PAS appears to be more flexible and possibly more likely to end apartheid than BN at this point. Whats so great about BNs 50+ years of APARTHEID? PAS are you ready to grant :
1) Freedom from Apartheid/Fascism
2) Freedom from Religious-Persecution/Religious-Supremacy.
3) Equality for all ethnicities and faiths in all aspects of policy, Law and Constitution.
If so, PAS is immediately more votable than BN. BN has the mandate but won’t grant the above 3 items, thats 1 down on BN automatically. WOuld PAS promise to grant the above 3 items if given the mandate? BN has the mandate and has not, so BN more rubbish than PAS where pluralism is concerned. PAS can say, ‘But PAS has no madate to grant the 3 items’. BN actually has the mandate, but does not grant the 3 items what’s BN’s excuse? BN is abusing the mandate by not using the mandate to grant the above 3 items.
malaysiandemocracy 