Unfamiliar reflections

The ongoing political conundrum which was mostly based on the so-called ‘series of 1MDB scandals’ inadvertently has taken a toll on everyone.

The advancement of ICT technology and rampant use of social media which emancipated many into this new age near absolute democracy, unsolicited and more important unqualified opinions flung indiscriminately.

The recent WSJ story about the exhorbitant sum of USD700 million being credited into Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak’s personal Ambank account is the very talk of the town.

It drowns the previous contentious issues and rhetorics raised by Fourth Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad on 1MDB and all the reciprocated statements by Arul Kanda.

Even the dissastrous “Nowhere 2 Hide” by Sukaguam a few weeks ago has now been forgotten.

What is more glaring than these back-and-forth banters is the effect of it, on personal basis. The division is getting severe and it is probably evolved into ‘If you are not with us, then you are against us’.

It’s been exactly three months since we as a small band of brothers heard it from the horses mouth that “Najib must go!” and some of the justification for it.

That fateful Friday afternoon engagement was considerably awkward because ‘irregular faces’ turned up though it was thought it would be amongst ‘The usual suspects’. Surprisingly, it was at the expense of our usual near-casual engagements despite our intention was solely trying to understand a phrase that was kept being repeated at the end of every previous engagements the past three years or so, “I cannot be seen as disagreeing with everyone”.

Some of us finds it amiss because from the previous such engagements and the constant reminder of those parting words, the swords were suddenly drawn and the battle drums beatened. The longbow brigade started to shoot missiles towards across the field. Suddenly, the civil war started and it escalated upwards in head-spinning speed.

This is rather different because a handful of us were veterans alongside the Master from the last total-political challenge which saw the other chap had to bow away in near humiliation.

Nevermind the adverse multidimensional opinion and perception, which could be firmly rationalised or based on mere movement of tide.

The cost and effect of this round is very much like the one we did exactly nine years before that. The division gets clearer and friendships and bonds get wedged apart.

What we weren’t ready was how this round’s division gets even drawn clearer. Like the first time in seventeen years we have been discluded from an annual bukapuasa do which apparently has grown bigger.

Or the first time no bukapuasa with the good doctor since the year 2000, then at the Banquet Hall of Seri Perdana. Or the generous rememberance of a small box of dates since the past seven or eight Ramadhans ago.

Our prayer for this Syawal 1436H is that all these would be over soon and all these feelings of ‘betrayal’, ‘abandoning the struggle’ and ‘venturing to the dark side’ fizzles away.

Its been a long while since we had Uncle Don Taib’s steak sandwiches.

Unequivocally, we have to redeem our identity and friends are an integral part of that.

Thank you, 2012

It is the last day of 2012. Many events happened for the year. For us at BigDogDotCom, it has been a very good and memorable year indeed.

Our article on the ‘Ghost of Johor’ drew a lot of attention. It started a series of articles written by other bloggers about Johor and drew even more attention, which many talked about. Enough to be asked to ‘come for dinner‘.

Then, we were also reunited with an old blogging brother. It was nice to meet up with Raja Petra our common Malaysian favourite in the heart of West End.

Doa for heroes of Bukit Chandu: (dari kiri) Brig Gen Rahim, PAT Jen Tan Sri Zulkifli, Defense Minister Dato’ Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Dpeuty Minister Dato’ Dr Latif Ahmad & President of Royal Malay Regt Club

2012 had some of our proudest moments. We witnessed for the first time the Malaysian Defense Minister officially paid homage on the Remembrance Day of the 70th anniversary, to the gallant heroes of 1st Federated Malay Regiment who gave the ultimate sacrifice on the defense of Pasir Panjang Ridge at Point 226, Bukit Chandu on 14 Feb 1942.

We also saw how Fourth Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad gave a small group of sixteen year olds an interview.

Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and some form four students of Sek. Men. Damansara Utama

Another proud moment was the official delivery of Malaysia Airlines’ first A380-800 at Airbus Faciliy, Balgnac Airport, Toulouse, Southwest France. We were invited to fly back the aircraft 9M-MNA to Kuala Lumpur on 28 June 2012. Two days later, we witnessed the inaugural A380 service MH 002 flight to London Heathrow. It was also the 38th anniversary of MH’s service to the most favourite international destination.

Our criticism on highlighting Sime Darby’s selected employee reward scheme also drew a lot of attention. Naturally, we were targets from the Sime Darby executives’ flak. It was said even by Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak raised the subject matter.

We were part of special media outing with Royal Malaysian Air Force at TUDM Kuantan Air Base and Royal Malaysian Navy at TLDM Telok Sepanggar Naval Base, near Kota Kinabalu. We were some of the privileged few civilians who have been in both RMN Perdana Class submarine.

The unveiling of Malaysia Airlines 9M-MXA in original Malaysian Airline System livery

We also witnessed the 40th celebrations of Malaysia Airlines and the unveiling of the B737-800 9M-MXA in the original Malaysian Airline System livery, as part of the year long celebrations.

Thank you very much, 2012. It would stay as our most memorable year.

A very BIG THANK YOU to all

Big Dog, when was still a Small Pup with late uncle Mohamad Tahir Abdul Majid

I was born on the operating theatre at Hospital Assunta, Petaling Jaya at 240am 45 years ago at the very same day. Dr R S Mc Coy did a C-section to my mother as the baby in her wombs was already suffocating and getting weak. Not until two days later, she knew that her son survived.

God bless, I survived. And here I am forty-five years later.

I would like to offer my utmost gratitude and appreciation to all, who have been instrumental and participative in the process, for me to arrive at this point. Me arriving at this point include having a gem of a wife and a cheeky but ultra manja daughter. My parents, My parents-in-laws, my brother, sister, their spouses, my brother in laws sand their spouses, all my nieces and nephews, aunties, uncles, cousins and their off springs and all my distant relatives, who have been there for me as they should be, my relatives.

Not to forget my work colleagues and associates, clients and even competitors.

Then there are my mentors and those who I really look up to. Most of all, to those kind persons who took an incorrigible fellow like me under their wing, and part a thing or two, which I will always treasure and uphold.

Of course, my blogging brothers and sisters whose immense support, encouragements and faith me brought this blog this far.

A very huge thank you to all. God bless all.

*Updated 900pm

I was with an intense meeting with top management of a corporation. We exchanged views, but not without debate. This is a ‘surprise’ they had installed for me:

Thank you

God, help her

God fated everything. However, it’s up to us to do what efforts we can to make things better.

One of my former classmate will undergo a very risky brain surgery later today. She, unknowingly, had a vessel ruptured in the brain. Ten days ago she complained of pain in her ear and saw an ENT surgeon. After careful investigations, results discovered this rupture which has now caused swelling in her brain.

A Muar lass, she is now an expert of anti money laundering activities attached to an enforcement agency. She opted to join civil service instead of a promising career in banking after university.

May God be with her and the surgery team. May God give strength to her immediate family in their most trying time.

*Updated 900pm

The neurosurgeons removed fluids in an egg-shape about the quarter the size of her brain this evening.

Happy birthday, Mus

“Happy birthday, Mus”, is what I would say if I were to call him at this moment, instead of writing this and clicking on the ‘publish’ button. My best friend Mustaffa b. Dapat would have been forty seven today.

If he is still with us today, he would have been very proud to see the fruits of his handwork and passion. His ‘babies’ are now the nation’s most prized defense assets. At the time of his departure, no one in the country knows more about the DCNS made Scorpene submarines compared to him. The RMN Submarine project team was already in France. overseeing the construction then.

The first batch of Royal Malaysian Navy officers who earned their dolphins from Royal Australian Navy

He was called to be with Allah s.w.t. on 28 August 2004, two months before his 40th birthday. The cause of death is   ‘Steven Johnson syndrome’ and he passed away at the ICU of a hospital in Caen. He was transefered to Caen when his condition worsened. It was the effect when doctors at Louis Pasteur Hospital in Cherbourg administered penicillin to him three and a half weeks earlier.

Needless to say, I am one of the many who still sorely miss him. We still speak very fondly of the man who was the best Navy cadet in his cohort and later to be one of the first three Malaysians to earn their dolphins from Royal Australian Navy.

Appreciate the ‘Team Spirit’

Not much words tonight. Many missed the plot. Never the less, some were more observant. From the bottom of our probably enlarged hearts, we would like to express our utmost sincere appreciation for the ‘Team Spirit’ shown.

Papagomo berentap dengan BogDog

Isu PM Kristus: Perhatikan foto ini

DAP can’t shed of dragging church into politics

KJ Serang Bigdog, DAP Cuci Tangan…

Jeng…Jeng…Jeng…..Siapakah Yang Salurkan Maklumat Kepada Bigdog ?

KITOL KIMAK! SI KHAIRY KITOL DENGAN SENGAJA NAK MEMALUKAN PM!

Please read also:

Where everybody missed the plot

Church in Politics or Politics in Church?

Mulut KJ, mulut jobo ayam

They are journalists, crucify them!

The same degree of appreciation is also accorded to those who supported our work here, in bloggosphere and in the tangible world. Your kind encouragement is inspiring.

*Updated Friday 100pm

Addendum:

Panas penyakit kantoi Anwar berjangkit

May God bless all of us

Malaysian Prime Minister Dato Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and fellow Ministers Bernard G Dompok and Leo Michael Toyad paying courtesy call to Pope John Paul 11 at the Vatican City

Muslims are ordered by Allah Almighty to maintain respect with “People of the Book”, meaning Christians and Jews, as it is a fundamental belief that the Torah and Injil (Old Testament and New Testament) respectively are Divinely revealed books from the Lord of Heavens for mankind’s life in this temporal state.

We unequivocally state that this is our belief system to the point that even Churches and other places of worship should be respected by Muslims, and that priests and sages should similarly be respected.

This respect comes from love between mankind as brethren under one Lord, who has no compare. As all men are created equal under God, and creation stems from God, so thus must we respect every living soul as having been given the Divine breath.

Within the Malay-Muslim context, this is demonstrated by the very foundations of UMNO that championed the cause of Islam, particularly within the Malay community. Therefore, to take care of a sacrosanct constitution in pluralism of race and culture, a natural balance was evolved in the form of Barisan Nasional.

It is indeed refreshing and welcoming that Christians pray to their Lord who is one God (Mark 12:13) for Divine Intervention over matters of the state. In fact, we wholly insist on this being perpetuated as it leads to a stronger faith and reliance on the Divine Countenance and Mercy being also the hallmark of Muslims.

Let us also make this clear, all Muslims would surrender their life and limb for the love of the Son of Mary (peace be upon him) as God Almighty has declared him our Messiah for the end of times, and like his great ancestor Adam, was immaculately conceived, with the addition of the fact that both Adam and Eve (peace be upon them both) also did not have a biological mother.

We therefore beseech the Christian community, what was maintained as an issue was the Pastors’ pledge to bring a “Christian” Prime Minister to Malaysia and perhaps turn Christianity into an official religion. Would this DAP sponsored event not give bullets and lend credence to PAS’s drive for an Islamic state? Secularism of the constitution in emplacing Islam as the “official” religion is in fact a mainstay against encroachment of any religious group purportedly using religion for political prowess. Through conflict of religion, world wars are fought and borders are redrawn.

Surely, it would have been most appropriate being People of the Book, for the pastors to have made a pledge and prayer instead for the Prime Minister of Malaysia, to be “Godly” or “rabbaniyun” irrespective of religion to respect the spirit of democracy that they claim to be their hallmark. Further, it would have also helped if the prayer was made for the PM to be rightly guided. Surely as God-fearing people, they should have done this instead of blatantly dismissing the population in majority, who are obviously Malay Muslims happy with the present arrangement.

Congratulations to UMNO for the 65th anniversary today.

Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

No need for bloggers to stand in elections

We bloggers sometime don’t have to stand in elections. No need to go through strenous process of elections, to be mentioned in the Dewan Rakyat. That’s what Former The Malay Mail Exceutive Editor Datuk Ahirudin “Rocky” Attan told me (via BBM) last night.

I was imagining at my end that he irked his million Ringgit smile when he send me that.

Yesterday evening, YB Wangsa Maju MP Tuan Wee Choo Keong (who is also a blogger) mentioned Datuk Rocky’s and my name in his debate speech of the 2011 Budget, “Don’t give bananas to the monkeys”. He did not use “Ahirudin Attan” or “Zakhir Mohamed” but just our pseudonyms. It was in the context of the over-handedness and extra crisp and swift actions by the Minister’s Communication and Multimedia Commission officers on the Police report made by Minister of Information, Communication and Culture Dato’ Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim, Ph.D against Rocky’s “Santa Rais’s RM 1 billion handout” on the 12 October 2010.

This is and was never our intention to be noticed, nor attract attention to ourselves. Even comments from Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak and Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhiyiddin Mohd. Yasin were recorded on this and none of them is for Rais or his over-reactive action. With the exception of his own ministry ‘machais’, none took his side. None of the pro-Government/UMNO bloggers. Nor any of  the anti-Government/UMNO bloggers came to Rais’s corner, even though its against a pro-UMNO ‘rabid’ blogger.

None of the mainstream media took Rais’s position as well. In fact, pro-UMNO daily Utusan Malaysia is clearly not in support of that one single UMNO Supreme Council member on this.

Something progressive developed from this Rais’s antics. Bloggers for Malaysia came out of this. Bloggers are coming together again, to fight this ‘oppression’ against new media.

All these is without the fact that so many parties tried to bring Rocky and myself to meet up with the Minister. It include officers serving in various agencies reporting to the Minister, not without excluding the MCMC officers themselves. We vehemently refused. As we told some of these officers, “Rais is the complainant, Rocky is the suspect, MCMC is the investigating office and BigDog is the witness to the investigations. Is it proper that the IO wanted to bring the suspect and witness to meet the complainant in a middle of an investigations? More over, with the expressed instructions of the complainant”.

As the Cabinet Minister in charge of all of these, Rais should take full responsibility. He should honourably resign now. Do the right thing. Don’t wait till PM Dato’ Seri Najib “Not name him” in his next Cabinet reshuffle. It is very clear that he failed to engage the new and social media. In the plenary address to the 61st UMNO General Assembly on 23 October President PM Dato’ Seri Najib asked UMNO to embrace and engage new and social media.

Rais failed even before he started!

 

Remembering Mus

 

My best friend Mustaffa b. Dapat would have been forty six today if he was not called to be with Allah s.w.t., a little over six years ago. My greatest regret is that he never lived to see the fruit of his labour, the Perdana Class Scorpene submarines. He played a pivotal part of the DCNi and Armaris technical team which pitched for the contract between 2001-2.

He would have been the proudest Malaysian when KD Tunku Abdul Rahman arrived a year ago.

The last time I had the opportunity to celebrate this day with him was eight years ago. The coming winter then, Mustaffa was sent to Cherbourg to undertake the development of Royal Malaysian Navy’s and nation’s most prized strategic asset.

May Allah s.w.t. bless his soul. Adieu, mon kapitan!

Brunei embracing the ‘New Media’

IMPACT OF THE NEW MEDIA ON SOCIETY AND THEIR ROLE

Thank you Mr. Chairman Tuan Haji Bujang.

Your Royal Highness Princess Hajjah Hayatul Mutawakillah Bolkiah, Attorney General Yang Berhormat Datin Paduka Hajjah Hayati, my learned panelists, ladies and gentlemen.

I would to express my utmost sincere appreciation to the Attorney General Chambers for inviting and giving me an opportunity and room to share my thoughts and a little bit of the Malaysian experience in the ‘New Media’.

New Media

• It exist because of technological advancement in ICT, especially technology in broadband, engines and equipments itself, available widely at very affordable prices and rates.

• This is a new frontier and dimension of media as these advancements and massive availability revolutionise information, be it text, audio and now video. New media now being embraced by even children at unimaginable age, one and half decades ago

• The growth of the ‘New Media’ is exponential, allowed and gave a lot of room for User Generated Content (UGC).

• Everyone now seamlessly can say almost anything and everything, at the convenience of their circumstance anywhere equally in the globe and be ‘heard’, real time

• Suddenly, ‘Digital democracy’ is born.

This is the purest form of democracy where everyone could stand up and their voices and opinion could be heard. Most importantly, the intensity and outreach of these ‘voices’ are so  huge

Role of the New Media

It has a social, political, cultural and economical role in society, particularly amongst the internet savvy cybernet citizens of the world

• Social – More and more people are able to reach out in a borderless and seamless world of exchanging information. Examples are social networking portals such as Facebook, Twitter, Friendster and the various chat rooms, which evolved from then the famous bulletin board, irc and applet driven. Even e mail groups have now diminished its popularity

New UGC phenomena such as Youtube is really taking the ‘New Media’ by whirlwind storm. Case in point is that since the last 7 months, Youtube daily users doubled from 1 billion. Malaysians, especially the younger generation (particularly generation Y) caught on with this new ‘info-tainment’ phenomena.  A lot of materials, which include historical events and speeches not previously seen elsewhere are now made available.

• Political – ‘New Media’ facilitated more and more news portal which have political agenda to flourish and gaining more ‘market share’ in the attention for political news and opinion readership. The situation is more compounded when the Malaysian Government political leadership started to ‘dictate’ the More and more people exercise their democratic right via internet, text messaging and phone chats such as weblogs, sms and Blackberry messaging.

This is important as the new media impaired people’s thinking and how they form opinion, long before they go to ballot boxes.

Case in point – The Malaysian ‘Political Tsunami’ of the 12^th General Elections on 8 March 2008 where the ruling party Barisan Nasional unprecedentedly lost 5 + 1 states and for the first time since 1955, BN no longer control the psychological 2/3^rd majority in the Parliament.

It is the newest political propaganda phenomena that hit the Malaysian media scene where politicians turn to weblogs, to reach out. Opposition leaders such as Anwar Ibrahim and Lim Kit Siang are very active in their blogging and tweeting.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad is by far the most successful political blogger in Malaysia. In two years, his blog chedet.cc recorded 30 million visitors. This is by far more successful than all the mainstream media news portals combined.

• Cultural – More and more people are able to share their talents via the new media. In the Malaysian experience, a few young girls managed to be successful recording artistes from their render of their talents via Youtube. Case in point is Zee Avi and Yuna, which now have taken the entertainment business by storm

New Media also facilitated the growth of education. More and more content and methods are not available online and real time for a bigger target audience.

• E-commerce – New Media facilitated a lot business activities, on line. More information could be transmitted via the New Media, at much lower cost and thus giving higher value for money and margin. Not only for the sole purpose of A & P, New Media allows critiques to test the products and services offered, which eventually lends bigger credibility and acceptance.

New Media facilitated the lesser dependence on interactive  for counter services, such as in consumer banking., which has now taken a major prominence. Government and authorities too embraced the New Media to improve services, expand efficiency and better dissemination of information. Electronic payment system has now been employed to collect revenues such as local authority charges.

• Corporate Social Responsibility – The New Media managed to provide a very effective tool to highlight the plight of some individuals.

Case in point – Recently Rocky managed to raise money from highlighting the plight of a traffic policeman who is bedridden for an accidentally in the line of duty at the juncture where the Malaysian Police Force has been negatively discredited for the shooting of a 15 year old teenager.

My personal case in point is Prof. Hashim Hussein Yaacob’ s experience, January 2009. Prof. Hashim, then a penniless former lecturer of developmental economics and a social activist for the hard core poor rural Malaysians needed a CABG surgey, which cost about RM 40,000.00. He had no money and no pension as he was summarily terminated by USM Vice Chancellor, then Musa Mohamed. My blog posting managed to attract the attention of his ex-Royal Military College ‘Old Putra’ mates, which include people in high places such as bank and airlines chairman. It also attracted the attention of IJN Foundation.

The Malaysian Experience in New Media

There are existing laws in Malaysia  that govern New Media, such as Seditions Act, Penal Code and Official Secrets Act. All these laws are passed by the Parliament by representatives of the rakyat. The practicioners of new media must restraint themselves from ‘crossing’ these ‘legal lines’, otherwise they see themselves in hot soup.

• The most prominent example is Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamaruddin (RPK). For his scandalous and unsubstantiated claims of a particular VVIPs  present in the execution of a foreign national by serving police officers (then being charged in a highly controversial murder case and awaiting trial), he was charged for criminal defamation under the Penal Code. Instead of facing his Public Prosecutor accuser in a criminal court, he chose to run away and now in hiding as fugitive, strongly believed in the UK.

RPK has since lost his credibility and integrity as a blogger and his onetime ultra popular Malaysia Today has lost much of its readership.

• For a private charge, the most prominent is premier Malaysian daily NSTP sued bloggers Ahirudin “Rocky’s Bru” Attan and Jeff Ooi. That civil action brought upon bloggers into a bi-partisan together and the National Alliance of Bloggers (All Blogs) were born and that attracted more attention, which snowballed into something unprecedented, with regards to the ‘New Media’. Suddenly, socio-political (SOPO) bloggers became very veracious in their attacks against the Leadership, who were very close to Rocky’s and Jeff’s accuser.

The role of bloggers in influencing how Malaysians, especially the internet savvy became more prominent. This facilitate the exponential growth of SOPO blogging and alternative media in Malaysia, which contributed to the 8 March 2008 ‘Political Tsunami’.

A twist of fate inadvertently arrives. Rocky is now the Chief Editor of a powerful Klang Valley afternoon daily and Jeff Ooi is now the DAP MP for Jelutong

• In the corporate scene, articles produced in the blogs attracted far too much attention as some of the blogs are followed by the most affluent Malaysians.

  Case in point recently is the appointment of a former Opposition party Vice President as the Head of Corporate Communications, Petronas and the scandals in the world largest plantation conglomerate Sime Darby. That attracted a lot of attention and controversies.

Moving Forward

Existing laws is adequate for the legal parameters of Malaysian New Media. However, the more advancement in technology and reliable and accurate information being presented, the more new media practitioners need to profess and advocate for:

• Self regulating – Practitioners of new media who cannot provide reliable, substantiated and accurate information would be discarded and avoided. Malaysia Today is a very good example.

• The integrity of and between practitioners of the new media themselves would self impose the restraints

• Educate and create awareness – Good practices within new media self impose ethics would promote healthy and progressive development of the New Media.

I end my short presentation with again a huge thank you. I welcome any question and opinion.