AIR: MB PAKATAN TAK MAHU BERSEPAKAT?

2,3 hari ni memang hujan lebat dekat kuala lumpur. Tapi pelik bin ajaib, isu Selangor tak cukup air tak reda-reda. Jadi sekarang siapa betul, siapa tipu?

Jadi apa masalahnya sebenarnya, dan kenapa kita yang biasa-biasa ni jadi pelandok terperangkap antara dua gajah berentap?

Susah sangat ke isu ni? Kalau masalahnya ialah pili-pili di rumah penduduk Selangor kering kenapa tidak dicari jalan penyelesaian serta-merta.

Kalau kita lihat rentetan peristiwa, semua bermula bila Syabas mengatakan kadar air terawat di loji-loji rawatan air telah melampaui tahap kritikal dan minta Suruhjaya Perkhidmatan Air Negara (SPAN) benarkannya catukan air di Selangor.

Respon kerajaan negeri Selangor di sini bukanlah dengan mencari cara penyelesaian untuk masalah tiada air, tetapi sebaliknya membuat kenyataan yang Syabas tidak reti buat kerja.

Dan kalau kita follow berita-berita yang keluar selepas tu bergilir-gilir kerajaan Selangor dan Syabas keluar kenyataan dan gambar, masing-masing bawak cerita sendiri, bergambar depan empangan penuhlah, bergambar dalam loji kosonglah.

Nak cakap pasal fakta, lagi pening kepala. Dia kata kilang rawatan air dah habis guna, dia pula kata kilang tu boleh buat lagi. Macam tadilah, masing-masing bawak pakar dan jurucakap masing-masing. Kita rakyat nak tahu ada air ke tidak untuk buat kuih je.

Seolah-olah isu air ini sudah jadi satu pertandingan photo op dan press conference di antara mereka berdua, sedangkan rakyat Selangor jadi gundah-gulana tertanya-tanya kalau raya nanti ada air ke tidak?

Isu ini susah seperti yang digambarkan ke? Apa yang rumit sangat tentang air yang boleh berlaku pertelagahan seperti yang tengah berlaku sekarang ini.

MB Selangor, Tan Sri Khalid, selaku MB untuk semua dan bukan untuk mana-mana pihak yang berkepentingan sepatutnya tepikan tuntutan politik untuk selasaikan masalah ini secepat mungkin.

Tapi seolah dia tidak tunjukkan usaha untuk membentuk kesepakatan lansung di antara pihak-pihak yang terlibat di dalam krisis air ini.

MALAYSIA PENGENDALI PUSAT KESIHATAN KEDUA TERBESAR DUNIA

Gambar dari artikel Utusan

Baca tak Utusan semalam ni (baca di sini).  Tak sangkalah dalam diam-diam Malaysia telah menjadi pengendali pusat kesihatan kedua terbesar dunia mengatasi Hospital Corporation, Amerika Syarikat. 

DUNIA ok, bukan Asia. 

Pengendali pusat kesihatan kedua terbesar dunia, iaitu IHH Healthcare Bhd ataupun IHH, adalah IPO kedua terbesar di Malaysia lepas FELDA, dan akan disenaraikan serentak di dua negara pula, Singapura dan Malaysia.

Kalau kita tinjau blog-blog dan laman-laman pelaburan dan pasaran saham memang riuh pasal penyenaraian IHH. Memang setiap butir maklumat dikaji dan mereka bincang. Itu tunjukkan betapa minatnya mereka pada penyenaraian ini.

Utusan menyatakan perancangan rapi Khazanah telah meletakkan Malaysia sebagai salah satu hab pelancongan kesihatan dengan rangkaian hospital terbesar di Asia merangkumi negara seperti Malaysia, Singapura, India, China, Brunei dan Emiriyah Arab Bersatu.

Dan adalah dijangkakan rangkaian penjagaan kesihatan IHH akan menarik minat lebih ramai pelancong kesihatan (medical tourist) ke sini, sehinggakan Kementerian Kesihatan anggar tahun depan sahaja pendapatan daripada industri ini akan capai RM600 juta.

Malaysia sehingga kini pun telah menarik ramai pelancong kesihatan terutamanya di rantau ini, yang perlukan khidmat pakar-pakar kesihatan.  Bagus untuk ekonomi kita…

Bukan saja hospital, industri perlancongan juga akan terlibat – hotel, restoran, teksi, van dan macam-macam lagi.  Berapa banyak peluang pekerjaan and bisnes yang akan disediakan.

Itu bab kerja dan bisnes.

Dari segi perkhidmatan, kalau kita tengok IHH yang bertaraf global, mestilah servisnya pun bertaraf globalkan. Mestilah dapat menarik ramai lagi pelancong kesihatan. 

Bukan saja pelancong kesihatan, malah rakyat Malaysia akan bertumpu, harap-harap taklah mahal ya, nama pun hospital swastakan.  Yalah sekarang ni macam-macam jenis penyakit, ada tu tak pernah dengar pun.

Rawatannya pun canggih, kalau dulu kepakaran doctor or human touch tapi sekarang  doctor dibantu oleh alat-alat canggih.  Kadang tu tak nampak pun kesan belah.

IHH juga mampu menarik kembali doktor-doktor kita yang bekerja di luar negara melalui peluang pekerjaan di rangkaian globalnya, di negara ini terutamanya.

Ini akan banyak membantu mengisi kekurangan doktor pakar negara. Jika peluang yang tersedia kompetitif dan setanding dengan apa yang ditawar hospital-hospital di luar negeri, sudah pasti doktor-doktor pakar ini akan memilih untuk berkhidmat di Malaysia.

Kehadiran IHH ini akan menaikkan taraf industri kesihatan di Malaysia, semestinya. Apa yang terhasil dengan perkembangan pesat IHH bukan sahaja manfaat ekonomi tetapi juga membawa kesan positif kepada tenaga kerja. Lebih banyak peluang pekerjaan tercipta, pemindahan kemahiran dan teknologi berlaku.

Tidak mustahil akibat pertumbuhan IHH ini, Malaysia akan menjadi sebuah gergasi kesihatan global.

When your shopping needs fixing...

credit: vintagedept

Finally it arrives! You rip open the box, snatch it out, it’s great! You turn it over, AND THERE’S A TEAR DOWN THE MIDDLE!

Calm down, no one slashed your dress because they hate you, these kinds of things happen when you buy things online and, you can believe it or not, you can do something about it!

CAVEAT READER: The stuff in this article only applies for goods that you bought online from a LOCAL retailer. Remedies for purchases from overseas will be a lot trickier.

The easiest thing you can do is to get in contact with the retailer about your problem. Retailers don’t usually seek to create for themselves a reputation for spoiled goods so chances are something happened in transit, and they should allow returns. That being said, check their returns policy.

If your purchase was made at a shopping portal e.g. e-bay, mudah.my, friendlyfashion.my, these sites usually provide an option for you to report errant sellers. If attempts to contact them about your problem have been unfruitful, a public mark on their online reputation might motivate them to act.

If that fails too, perhaps its time to bring things into the real world. As a customer, you have the option of taking up your case to the Tribunal for Consumer Claims if your claim is less than Rm25,000.00.

Don’t let its big title scare you, no lawyers are involved in the tribunal’s proceedings (though it would still be a good idea to get legal advice). The tribunal’s hearings are heard by a Tribunal President who will guide the parties involved to reach an agreed settlement. Both parties will have the opportunity to present the facts of their case before a settlement is reached.

If the parties can’t come to an agreement, then the President will decide on an award based on the assessment of the facts and laws involved. The award has to be complied with, and failure to do so will result in a criminal offence under the Consumer Protection Act 1999.

So those are a few ways, you can mend a situation when something goes wrong with your online purchase. Shop smart!

Dr. Mahathir Shows No Sign of Slowing Down at Age 87

On his 87^th birthday, Dr Mahathir remains an omnipresent figure in and out of Malaysia.  Malaysia’s longest serving Prime Minister may have even upped the ante.

At the beginning of 2012 Mahathir was invited by the Financial Times to write an article for their Capitalism in Crisis Series.  His article entitled ‘West needs to go back to capitalist basics’ finds him on top form, dishing out sage words of advice to the western world.

“Europeans have to accept the days of Eurocentricism are practically over. Europe must look to the east as well for solutions,” he writes, ending the article with homage to his own ‘look east policy’.

In an interview with the BBC in February, the presenter Justin Rowlatt badgered him for a solution to the European financial crises.

In the course of a five minute interview he was asked repeatedly: “So what do you recommend? What should Europe do?  So what do you think we should do?  So what would you recommend that we do?  Okay. So coming back to Europe and Europe's predicaments, how difficult a situation do you think that Europe is in now?”

It seems that the shoe is well and truly on the other foot. Mahathir has lived long enough to see the world turned upside down from the turbulent days of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. 

To top it off Mahathir was recently named the recipient of the 2012 Rafik Hariri UN-Habitat Memorial award, recognizing leadership, statesmanship and good governance.  Mahathir will be honored in a ceremony in New York on September 28.

Within Malaysia Mahathir’s opinion is as sought after as ever, especially in the lead up to the upcoming general elections.  With quotes, articles and labels like ‘Mahathirism’ featured in the newspapers almost every day, you could be forgiven for thinking that Mahathir himself was running for election.

Mahathir’s embracing of technology, through the use of his blog, has made his views more accessible than ever, arguably more so than when he was Prime Minister. 

So whether he’s reiterating his regret in appointing Badawi as his successor, telling his daughter to be careful of what she says in the press, or lending his support for his son as potential candidate for MB of Kedah, he doesn’t have to rely on the mainstream media to get his message out.

It is unlikely that Mahathir will shy away from the limelight any time soon, not while he still resonates so strongly with the people of Malaysia.  There are no statues of Mahathir or streets named after him and there are no plans to commemorate him in this way; not while he remains very much a part of the nation he helped to build. 

Go Team TF!!!

And the MAHB vs AirAsia drama continues…

A few days ago, Tony Fernandes had vented his frustration over the bloated cost and delayed completion of KLIA2 on his blog. According to him, the current cost of construction could skyrocket to RM5 billion from the original RM2 billion and that it could only begin operation earliest by first quarter next year.

However, according to ‘sources’ close to the project, the construction cost will remain at RM3.9 billion. The ‘sources’ also said “that construction was on schedule and it was not a question of whether the airport would be ready on time but whether the operators of low-cost airlines could get their act together by then”.

I have to side with Tony Fernandez and AirAsia on this matter as what he wrote simply makes business sense.

In case anyone never realized, AirAsia is a low cost airline. To maintain a low cost service, AirAsia need to maintain low cost operation. If operation cost increase, AirAsia ticket price will increase. It will no longer be a low cost airline. So, can you really blame Tony Fernandez for looking at ways to cut cost?

It’s as simple as that.

MAHB failed to fulfill its responsibilities to its customer. As a customer, AirAsia has the right to not continue to wait for the perpetual delay on the completion of KLIA2 as it would jeopardize AirAsia operations. It’s like you ordered a regular size pizza but you’re getting the large size, and you are forced to pay for the large size price.

It is as if MAHB does not seem to understand the concept of low cost airline. AirAsia’s customers don’t need a 5-star, state-of-the-art facility; we just want to travel cheap.

It’s the same as eating out. If you want good cheap food, you go to a mamak restaurant. Never mind the steamy, loud, unhygienic environment, you want good cheap food and you’re content with what you get, as long as you don’t get food poisoning. However, if you want to go to a restaurant where it is air-conditioned, have friendly waiters or waitresses serving you and be around rich people, you’d want to go to 5-star restaurant or Mandarin Oriental KLCC.

It’s true that the current LCCT is too crowded, very noisy and I have to walk 20 minutes from the terminal to the aircraft’s parking area. And it would be nice to have better facility. But I’m not paying for a premium flight, so I’m fine with the low cost facility.

How to Conserve Water and Make Money

Photo: Playerx

Since the newspapers tell us everyday that we should start saving water, OH MY BUSINESS! started thinking about the kinds of businesses we can start to support water conservation.

Ok so maybe Malaysians don't know how to save water (or petrol, or electricity, or..) but let's face facts, what if one day water becomes really scarce, or worse, the government starts controlling how we can use water.

This is a list of ideas of businesses that deal with water conservation that can be successful when conservation becomes a serious matter. Also it’s great suggestions for eco-entrepreneurs (or ecopreneurs!).

5 Ideas for water conservation businesses:

1. Water auditing

Did you know people will actually pay for someone to come and check whether their water use at their homes or office is optimal or not? That’s what a water auditor does.

A water auditor will come and look at how water is used in a household or office, and give an estimation of how optimized its use is. In some areas, local councils set a level of optimal water use, and if an auditor finds that it is less than optimal, then the household or office will have to make changes and adjustments in the problem areas that the water auditor had identified.

2. Sell Low-flow fixtures (shower heads/ taps/ toilets)

A cheap way to conserve water is by installing a low-flow tap or water fixture that reduces the amount of water that flows out of your tap. Besides reducing the amount of water used, low-flow fixtures saves money on the water bill as well.

Low-flow fixtures are cheap and accessible and in a country like Malaysia that’s only getting on the water conservation bandwagon, there is bound to be a huge demand.

3. Start a leak detecting business

In buildings and complexes, finding a leak isn’t as easy as finding where water is dripping from. That’s where leak detectors come in. With the aid of dyes, ultra sound and electronic technology, they can detect with great accuracy where the leaks are without having to hack through walls.

4. Sell Rainwater Kits

One great thing about KL is how much rain we get. All that rain usually just flows into the drains and sewers, which is a missed opportunity for water conservation.

Rainwater harvesting kits and technology collect rainwater in a convenient and hygienic way so that it can be used for non-potable purposes, like gardening and doing the laundry. For tropical climates like ours, these kits should be as common as water filters. Also it saves money off the water bill.

5. Introduce In-pipe Sensors

Another promising water conservation technology that could be marketed  is in-pipe sensors. While leak detectors and water audits tell you where there are problems after it happens. In-pipe sensors can tell you how your water is being used real-time and can give instant feedback about how water is used in your premises.

Since this is a relatively new technology, there is plenty of room to grow when it comes to in-pipe sensors. 

And ultimately the job opportunities that these ecopreneurs will create!

Don't Let Selfish 167 Tenants Get In The Way

No. Seriously. Think. It is in the best interest of we, the 1.2 million rakyat who live along the proposed MRT line (including the 167 tenants mind you!) that will benefit from this new infrastructure?


Why are we making way for these 167 tenants? They (the 167 tenants) should realize that we are at the brink of a new era of development, where a few mega projects, (if executed well) could have long-lasting benefits from it. We’re able to get to work faster, spend more time with our families, less stress from long travelling time and enjoy a better quality of life compared to being stuck in traffic.


No. Seriously. Think. About the economic benefits. The massive magnitude of this project has the multiplier, spillover effect of about 2.5 times i.e. RM213 billion flowing into the economy over the next decade, say MRT Corp.


The RM213 billion is of course based on the impact of money going into the economy from the construction of the whole project i.e. construction of the MRT lines, the stations and the rolling stock.


Like the PLUS North-South Expressway (NSE) that linked all the major cities and towns from Bukit Kayu Hitam in Kedah to Johor Bahru and to Singapore. These towns and major cities along the 966km (600 mi) stretch that makes up the backbone of Western Peninsula Malaysia has elevated quality of life, hasten development, increase property prices in the area at a multiplier rate.


Taking the PLUS NSE as an example, not only we road travelers benefitted from faster and safer travelling time but these connecting communities benefitted from it as well because the highway stimulated the growth of local and regional entrepreneurs and created more business and job opportunities. Likewise, the MRT can be seen as the backbone of the Klang Valley .


No. Seriously. Think. I know these 167 tenants know all this and we don’t need to spell out our assessment of the long-term economic benefits of this project to them. Because they too see that there is little doubt we must proceed with them. However, they are trying their luck in getting a handsome payout. Selfish. No? Opportunist? DEFINITELY!


No. Seriously. Think. We must try and minimize the impact on those who will be directly affected and compensate them fairly and not let a small group of people derail what is good for the nation as a whole.


The Government must put their foot down and stand firm on this and not backtrack. (…remember the case of unwinding of the MAS – AirAsia share swap deal? A lot of good that did). Sometimes it helps not to take the populist approach… just sayinglah…

Berhati-hati sebelum ke jalan raya

Susah betul sekarang ni, mana-mana kita pergi nak kena berhati-hati sebab takut nanti kena rompak. Bukan dekat shopping kompleks, tepi-tepi jalan je, nak keluar rumah pun kena tengok betul-betul, silap hari bulan kita kena ragut depan pagar rumah.

Depan pagar rumah! Bayangkan tak ke susah hidup kalau dekat kawasan perumahan sendiri pun kita tak rasa aman. Kalau macam saya ni, tak adalah hidup dekat kawasan yang bahaya sangat, dah lama la jugak duduk dekat area kawasan perumahan saya. Kitorang dekat sini semua orang biasa je, rumah pun teres je, tak adalah nak bersekuriti dekat jalan-jalan masuk, tapi dah bertahun-tahun saya keluarga di sini tak pernah rasa takut macam sekarang.

Tapi memang teruklah kalau sampai nak keluar rumah pun dah jadi benda bahaya. Ceritanya macam ni, baru-baru ini jiran saya nak seberang jalan dari rumah dia, tak adalah malam sangat tapi orang tak ramailah masa tu dekat atas jalan. Dia pun nak pergi kedai beli barang-barang rumah, tiba-tiba dia kena tahan dengan seorang lelaki yang suruh dia bagi duit yang dia bawak dengan dia. Mujurlah tak banyak duit dia pegang masa tu, tapi trauma jugaklah akak tu kena pau macam tu. Nasib baik dia tak kena lagi teruk.

Macam tu lah keadaan sekarang ni, saya pun tak tahu macam mana nak cakap sebenarnya. Nak kata negeri kita ini tak aman, tak betul sebab kita boleh lagi hidup kerja macam biasa, tapi kalau nak keluar rumah pun dah jadi satu cabaran, ada benda yang tak kena ni.

Pak Menteri kata kadar jenayah kat Selangor ni dah turun. Ok kalau betul kadar jenayah turun tahun lepas, kenapa kami dekat sini macam kadar jenayah dah naik berganda-ganda??? Di kawasan rumah saya ini, jarang-jarang sangat nak dapat tengok polis meronda, adalah sekali sekala seminggu. Dato’ Hishamuddin jangan asik-asik cakap pasal statistik jenayah tahun lepas turun dan ’cadangan-cadangan Makmal Jenayah berkesan’ saja,  tapi kami ni rasa tak selamat.

Polis ke, kerajaan ke, rukun tetangga ke, kena jaga betul-betul dan bagi suasana aman tu ada semula di kawasan-kawasan seperti kawasan kami. Macam saya kata tadi, kami ini bukan orang berduit, tak mampu nak pindah ke tempat-tempat yang bersekuriti jaga, jadi yang kami boleh harap ialah kerajaan polis dan jiran-jiran sama-sama jaga suasana kawasan perumahan kami ni.

TRICUBES ABORTING 1MALAYSIA MAIL?

I came across an interesting article in MalaysiaKini this morning. According to the article, the share price of Tricubes Berhad dropped 70% to 3 sen. Sounds like one of the big highlights of The 1Malaysia Mega Sale Carnival 2012. 

I’ve checked Bursa Malaysia on Tricubes’ shares performance and true enough, the company is in deep sh*t. There's even a notice of suspension and de-listing.

For those who are unfamiliar with the company Tricubes Berhad, it is the company managing the 1Malaysia email service. The email service was introduced last year and was received poorly by the public. And today, nobody seems to remember about the silly 1Malaysia initiative.

The idea of 1Malaysia Email should not have materialized at all. To the public, the initiative is totally pointless. You can read the gist of the scandal at Wikipedia. And now, like a zombie, it has come back to bite the government in the @ss.

This 1Malaysia Mail project must have looked good on paper that got the government’s endorsement. Good initiatives on paper but lousy implementation. Where have I seen this before?

More thoughts should have been given before endorsing this initiative. And because of this, the opposition will have more ammo to attack the 1Malaysia initiative, which is a good initiative, by the way.

With Tricubes now hanging on a life support machine, perhaps it is about time for a review. Right now, I’m more interested in what the government has to say about it.