Borrow at Your Own Peril

Please help them sincerely and honestly

I still remember during my study years, the scholarship that we should received earlier was somehow delayed by the university causing some unrest among desperate students resulting in them picketing in front of the bursary office. From that day, I have been hearing hearing about how some institutions 'detained' the scholarship money for a few months to gain profits for other purposes. Whether this is true or not I may never know for sure.

Today, we have another alternative which government sponsored, the PTPTN. Basically such fund is to offer help and assistance for the needy and such it is commendable. However, today the 'interest' imposed upon the loan has become a topic of discussion. Being a government agency and also being an Islamic country, such interest should be a non issue since in Islam interest is strictly prohibited though some financial institutions disguised such as service fees or other names just to legalise it under Shariah.

Being an institution set up to help and offer assistance to the poor and the needy therefore it is illogical for them to impose even the minutes percentage of interest since according to Shariah it is strictly prohibited and studying is also considered a jihad. Besides, those who are pursuing their studies fall under the category of being legible for zakat. Usually when we talk about zakat, those who receive them are considered as poor.

It is inconceivable and insulting when others said if you do not have the means to repay the loan therefore do not borrow. Such statement is very inconsiderate since learning should not become a business commodity to press the poor and the desperate into further trouble. Learning should become a fun experience and not something that we dread about. They pursue their studies hoping that someday their life becomes better but by being forced to pay the interest , they have to pay them for sometimes before their could even dream of a better life.

Some Muslims even try to 'legalise' interest based on its quantity which shows their low level of understanding of Shariah. Under Shariah, if something is haram ,thus the amount become irrelevant. If it is wrong , it is wrong whatever the circumstances and if one tries to argue emergency which allows some excuses then where exactly the emergency in the case of PTPTN? There is not even an iota to say that they are in the state of emergency since they are being funded by the government and it is the responsibility of the government to provide assistance to the needy and not to make their life harder by imposing interest on something that will benefit the nation in the future. They always say that the society need to be grateful to the government but does the way PTPTN has been squeezing the lives of the borrowers something to be thankful about? CERTAINLY NOT!

The ends should not certify the means

Harare, Zimbabwe

Let the People read!

Tun M has somewhat issued a veiled permission to the government to release a book on him by Barry Wain. The books have been gathering dust since they arrived at Port Klang about a month ago. It is bewildering when the government has prevented the books from leaving the dock waiting permission from a figure who has long passed his relevancy. If it is true that TDM has something to do with the book being held than it is very obvious that he still plays a deep and irrevocable grip on the present government while the people whom the government should steadfastly served, no longer look upon him in his heydays.

The government should let the People read the book and let them analyse the truth of its contents. Furthermore, since it has nothing to do with the government but rather a former PM thus it is only prudent for the former PM to take legal action against the writer personally as prescribed by the law. He is free to sue the writer for defamation if he finds the contents defamatory and insulting to him. Indeed, it is a private matter and the government should not prevent the People from the opportunity of others' view of the former PM.

Just like in other developing countries, Malaysian politicians have long since utilised and manipulated government agencies to their advantages and sadly the higher echelon of the country civil service colluded with them willingly. Now, TDM dares the government to convene a Royal Commission to probe his alleged abuse of power but instead of him being the only accused, he wants to bring others down with him to the bottom of nowhere.

Convening a Royal Commission which has limited authority is surely a waste of public fund as the findings will become mere report without any effective actions taken just like what happened to the Lingam Gate case. So far, nothing has been done to prosecute those involved though the Commission discovered irregularities in the conduct of those involved. Likewise, the AG's promise to conduct in depth investigation of the missing jet engine is more likely a lip service to the People. The minister concerned was reported to have said that lower officers are involved in the fiasco but such major case needed an officer of substantial standing to issue permission to get the engine out of the camp and not a lowly sergeant or the like.

As Prof. Abd. Aziz Bari succinctly observed days ago Malaysia has become another Zimbabwe due to the acts of selfish politicians. To bring out Malaysia from the abyss of shame and mistrust calls for drastic measure come the 13th GE somewhere in 2012. Being born and live here, it is incumbent for all loyal Malaysians to see that change occurs after the next GE. We can no longer trust them to bring changes since their only concern is themselves.

COME THE 13TH GE, LET US ENSURE THEY ARE BOOTED OUT

Profits

The government proudly claims that GST will not burden the People when the Anti Profit Excess Act is enforced but looking and learning from present and prevailing situation. Seldom the People is protected against unscrupulous business practices. Even if there are laws to curb such practices but its enforcement is always questionable.

Just look at the time when the government decided to increase the civil servants' salary, businesses started to hike the prices even before they receive the increment on the pretext of increasing costs. In the end, the government seems powerless to protect and help the People. Falling back to existing laws has never been effective. We have abundant laws but those laws have more or less fail to achieve their intended objectives.

Of course it is unfair to blame the government for such predicament as the business community themselves need to be cooperative and not bent solely on increasing their profits since they too have social responsibility since without the buyers they too will face tremendous predicament. Business community has been known for ages for their manipulative tendency. Though the society is facing with economic recession, business community seem immune to those problems as they still find ways to maximise their profits.

GST: Another project of the BN government

The Chosen Ones

They may have to suffer indefinitely but they will persist

Listening to the plight of the Palestinians this morning immediately caused me to relate the plight of the democratically elected Perak government. During the discussion both the guests emphatically elaborate on the problems faced by the rightful government elected by majority of the Palestinians. Just like what happened in Myanmar, Iran? and of course in the state of Perak, the people were robbed of a democratically elected government.

The central government thus until today has been making excuses and creates all sorts of problems to legitimise their coup de etat. At the same time they sort of begging the people of setting aside their political difference for the greater good of the nation or state. To achieve the effect they invoke religion for their plea. In fact what they are doing is actually to create and enlarging the already muddled situation due to their back door tactics.

Having many agencies at their disposal, they continue to defy the morally act they should have done but saying that what they are doing is constitutionally sound as prescribed by the State Constitution. They seem to equate just and legal though both are totally different in both meaning and concept. Just like what happen in Palestine and Myanmar, they deliberately ignore the wish and choice of the people.

Many if not all in the present ruling coalition are seen or trying very hard to champion the plight of whom they call ' brothers and sisters' but they have forgotten or perhaps deliberately turn blind eyes to those who really suffered because of what Abu Mazin's regime has done to wrest and effectively isolate the rightful government lead by Hamas under Ismail Haniyyeh. For them that is not the issue as the prevailing concern is the establishment of a Palestinian nation. Whoever rule the country is not the issue as long as Palestine becomes a reality.

Perhaps they are right to say that as long as the Muslims unite everything will be all right. But, those so called Muslims are courting with enemies then of course they too become the enemies thus it is incumbent for the others to fight back. Their resilience and endurance for more than sixty years are really amazing. They continue to soldier on despite lacking the sophisticated toys proudly possessed by the Israelis.

It is sad that those within this nation of ours decide to turn away despite the obvious violation of rights by the current 'illegal government in Palestine. This point or issue is never discussed openly by those leaders since they too are guilty of doing the same. The instances are abundant and glaring but they quietly or noisily ignoring the facts.

Not only the overthrowing of a democratic government is being ignored but they deliberately take way the resources rightfully belonging to individual state by establishing the Federal Development Offices in all states controlled by the Opposition. In fact, to show that they are going away with it, Sarawak and Sabah until today have its own Federal Development Departments though in Sabah the name has been change to Sabah Development Office but in reality it is still the same as before. Why do they continue to treat those who voted for them differently? Perhaps, it's their deep mistrust, one may never know.

Bunch of robbers will bunch themselves together

Block and Ban

It has been awhile since the last I updated my blog, not that I have nothing to say but more because of my busy schedule, downloading materials and all that. Recently I am hooked with downloading reading materials and I like to read more than one books at a time. Having mentioned reading materials, the blogger succinctly remembers how the new book on the 4th PM by one Barry Wain are now being held by Customs simply because the contents do not really portray the images on a Statesman rather the book is more like an expose of his not so exemplary conduct as the longest serving PM of Malaysia. Clearly, he is still a force to reckon with though it has been 6 years since he 'abdicated'.

One good thing about globalisation is the fact that information has become like wind in the sense that it can penetrate even the minutes of hole and that is why I am not really worried about some books being held up or even worse banned by the government. Nonetheless, what about those who have no Internet access or do not even have the resources to get their brains to those 'hot' information? Of course, even the U.S and other developed nations have their own restrictions but we in Malaysia are just like some developing nations who prefer to block any dissenting views particularly if those views go against the authority.

One well-known economist, who by the way is on the opposite side of the present government, Prof. Jomo K. Sundaram has mentioned that Vision 2020 in which we see ourselves joining the likes of Japan and most European nations as developed nations will be delayed by at least 10 years meaning to say that it is no longer Vision 2020 but rather 2030 or even farther. I haven't really read his reasons but looking at our current situation and considering that 2020 is about ten more years then I tend to agree with his 'vision'. Being developed does not mean being merely economically advanced but being developed also reflects being civilly advanced but how could we be advanced if almost every dissenting view is harshly treated to the extent of misusing government arms and agencies by giving the dumbest reason - security.

Look at China, North Korea and Iran on how they strenuously trying to curb freedom of information to see the People tow the line prescribed by the government? We can say that they have failed, thousands have left North Korea since its establishment in 1953. Thousands went to protest at Tienanmen Square in 1989 as well as recently when thousands went to the street protesting against the outcome of the Iran Presidency election. All these serve as reminders to the authority that the best way to curb dissenting views is to give them venues to channel their grievances not just banning them altogether.

Let the People hear them and decide freely