i was one of the bloggers privileged to be part of a group who had been invited to have a “get-to-know-you” dinner with the new Federal Territory Minister, Datuk Raja Nong Chik and his wife on Wednesday evening, 10 May 2009.
Datuk came across as a down-to-earth man with none of the airs that are normally associated with most VIPs and the wannabes. He came without bodyguards and dressed in normal office garb much like the common office manager minus the “colonialist leash” we have all been patted down to accept through the generations as a neck-tie. His ministerialship it seems is one that had been thrusted upon him though he would have been happy to continue as a grassroot leader for Lembah Pantai and as an active NGO member on steroids.
Whether he likes it or not, Datuk has a job to do and that is to make Kuala Lumpur a truly beloved home to its millions of rakyat and a continuing successful tourist-destination for the holidaying millions.
The latter task is almost a given and the visitors will come as KL is considered a reasonably inexpensive destination with all its inclusive “Truly Asia” attractions and whatever the slogan embodies. The attrition would likely be a result of the global financial crisis and the drop of visitors, should there be any, can hardly be attributed to Datuk’s fault.
As i see it, Datuk’s job is already cut out for him in his former task (besides having also to look into the affairs of Putrajaya and Labuan) though he is not wholly on unfamiliar grounds. In his own words, “In my NGO days, I have had the benefit of shuttling (reads being pushed around) up and down DBKL headquarters no less than 200 times and I know what it is like to deal with this local authority.”
KL is a hot potato and whether one likes to admit it or not the “love-hate” relationship of its inhabitants and business entities with the city has more to do with what DBKL do or not do. This section of the civil service that’s 12,000 strong has been notorious for its bully, inertia and free-wheelings-and-dealings. The warlords ensconced in the multi-storeyed, electronic video-walled building in Jalan Raja Laut and the branches dotted throughout the metropolis are powers unto themselves. They do not see themselves as servants of the public but rather as lorders of them. Worse still, they care not a hoot whether their actions or inactions will have any kind of influence on how the electorate in this bustling city will caste their votes in a general election that will have a decisive bearing on who the government of the day will be. As long as they hold the mentality that ‘politicians come and go and we are here to stay’ speaks more of personal vested interests rather than nation-building.
i get the feeling that the Federal Minister’s job will not be an easy one as long as the status quo of the loathsome local authority is going to be reviewed. But i still wish for Datuk to be able to overcome his hurdles and prove to KL-ites that there’s a serious administrator who cares as much as them when it comes to delivery, transparency and accountability.
The good thing is Datuk Raja Nong Chik has an equally-minded Datuk Bandar, so i am told, in the like of Dato’ Ahmad Fuad Ismail to help him with his mission.
i certainly want the FT Minister to succeed but at the back of my mind i can’t seem to shake off this feeling that Datuk’s Achilles Heel may very well be the same local authority, Dewan Bandara Kuala Lumpur, which he is trying his benevolent best to “turn around” with the help of Datuk Bandar.
They (who?) say “great minds think alike and fools never differ.” Notwithstanding, I totally agree with you when your motto says: It is not who is right, but what is right.”
Go to my website to know what stem cells can do to help our body to stay healthy. That way, you may get better results in your stressed situation. Wallahualam.
“Racial polarisation in the country is not caused by the country vernacular school system but more by the government political, education and economic discriminative policies.” – an educationist said today.
The prime minister and all the Umno ministers will never admit that polarisation arises more out of the race-based policies and privileges one race gets over another.
Similarly, there are other areas of our daily lives where terminologies used have made us view certain practices as privileges rather than sacrifices. For instance, the bumi discount for houses.
The total sale value to the developer is still the same. It is just that the non-malay buyer is likely to be required to pay for some of the discount given to the malays.
But the longer the NEP policies continue and the greater the vehemence with which Umno politicians issue threats, terminologies will change and more people will talk about these practices or policies in words that may not sound as pleasing to the ears of the beneficiaries.
Obviously, at that point we shall probably see a new round of discriminations and disagreements. Unfortunately, as long as only weak people take on leadership roles within Umno, threats will continue, NEP policies will be sustained and corruption will prevail.
That unfortunately is the legacy we have as Malaysians.
The basic building blocks of unity, whether you are uniting different ethnic groups in a country or trying to re-engineer a corporation of differing cultural values, are the same.
The principal parties have to be treated as equals – nor special privileges no favours that would favour one group over another. Any privilege that is given should be given to all on the same basis – for example, special privilege given to the financially poor regardless of race or ethnic origin.
It is only on this equitable footing that you can foster true nationalism and build lasting unity, since each component group will have the same stake in the nation and has equal likelihood in reaping the rewards or suffering the consequences.
My recommendation to the government, not simply as a businessman but also based on pragmatism, is not to waste any more taxpayer ringgit on nationalism programmes until it has established the pre-conditions for its success.
What is sad is that, after almost five decades of independence, we have been unable in Malaysia, to bring globally vision leaders to the forefront – leaders who can see beyond racial boundaries to recognise the immense sociological and economic potential that can benefit all Malaysians.
That is why malay is the most arrogant, corrupted, racist and terrorist race in the world. To the world population, malay is only a minority. And yet, still keep on talking about Islam, Muslim, Syariah law. Shame on you!
My school in the 50s and 60s when terms like bumis and non-bumis did not exist.
Back then, there was a kind of kindred among school children then that does not exist today. We were racially different but we were all equal in every other way. Nobody was – special.
Today when a non-malay student goes to school, he has already been told over and over again by his parents that, “You will have to do superlatively in order to get into a local university.”
The child comes back having done creditably well, and doesn’t get the university course of his choice. But his malay classmate, with worse marks than him, gets more than he asked for.
All these double standards and retrogressive policies were put in place by our selfish politicians whose aim, rather than uplifting the malays, was to perpetually stay in power for their own good.
The end result is a new generation of Malaysians who are not united in the least.
The first thing to be done towards a real Bangsa Malaysia is to pull down all divisions that categorise us along racial and religious lines.
All, irrespective of race and religion, must be subjected to a truly merit-based system in every sphere of Malaysian life.
All political parties that exploit any form of religion should be banned.
[...] http://iamamalaysian.wordpress.com/2009/06/12/dato-raja-nong-chik-ft-minister-whos-a-man-on-a-missio... [...]