nkf's report card out today

many wait in anticipation of a big storm. or would it be a storm in a tea cup? there are two groups looking at this saga. on one side are the supporters of a well run organisation that can raise millions easily. professionalism at work. on the other corner are those who want accountability and the need for propriety in the handling of public money. an article in saturday's today paper on 'looking beyond the gold tap' by a heng cheong leong or leong heng cheong, attempted to describe how effective, efficient and forward looking the old nkf management was. the 21 dialysis centres, a dedicated fund raising team, dedicated professionals and dedicated ceo. but he also raised the comment by peter drucker that charity organisations will not be judged by their results but by their intention. there is another issue about charity. our national ethos is not in favour of charity. do not expect charity. there is no free lunch. and for that we expect all the professionals to be paid their professional dues. they cannot be shortchanged for their dedication and expertise. the funny thing is that the whole organisation is built on charity, people's charity. free money, just ask and people give. how much is necessary is not an issue. how much to spend on the sick is not an issue. there are free money to be asked. is there any contradiction? what eventually happened to the nkf saga is not about charity or about how much good work were done. with that kind of money, many things can be done. and could more be done if the money is properly managed? that is another issue. what is now the key issue is whether there is misappropriation of fund, misplaced trust and the people's feeling of unease that there may be fraud. hopefully we will know the truth this afternoon. and hopefully the people will not be shortchanged in wanting to know the truth. the damage could be far more serious if the people perceived that things are amissed in the report. then it will no longer be the credibility of the nkf at stake, but the credibility of a nation will be put to doubt.

women and cedaw

the women are waving the cedaw card, convention for the elimination of discrimination against women. hey guys, how about cedam? other countries i am not too sure. but we need cedam in singapore. we need both. there are cases of discrimination against women. there are also discriminations against men, especially in our antiquated laws. and then national service is one big discrimination. not that i am for women to serve national service. but the guys need to be treated more fairly while doing a service to the nation. i hope cedaw is not calling for the closing down of crazy horse. it is a place where women are discriminated. they performed and the men watched and clapped and whistled. and they are naked while the men are fully clothed. now is that discrimination? the men paid for the women to do things to make them happy, do things at their callings. but some may say the women in crazy horse are showing how well perfected they are as a specimen. they are proudly exhibiting what nature has done for them, beautiful, feminine, charming and exciting. can't imagine men performing the same kind of show without dressing like women. what do women want? you ogle at them they give you the bitchy look. you ignore them and they get angry. they do not want to be ogled and also do not want to be left on the shelf. they dressed up to be seen but not to be seen. some dressed up to the nines but put a black sack over them. women, to be adored and loved, and to be pissed off.

mahathir and his political truth

Things Mahathir did not say .... when he was in power "The country should have a strong government but not too strong. A 90% majority is too strong. We need an opposition to remind us if we are making mistakes. When you are not opposed you think everything you do is right." "The Internet must be used extensively so that an alternative media would be available to publish and expose lies, be downloaded and distributed." "Although I am already 80-years old, I am not senile." (reproduced from littlespeck.com) when one is in power, one says and believes in a different set of rules that suits that position and situation. when one is out of power, a different set of rules apply. which is the better truth? it all depends on where one is. but i like the part that he said, 'when you are not opposed you think everything you do is right.' this will be a perpetual truth and will be repeated over and over again until one is thrown out of power. only then will one realise that all along one has been making mistakes but peddled as good decisions.

why are people so unhappy with khoo swee chiow?

if i were khoo swee chiow, and if there are people or organisations with money but do not know what to do, and are willing to give me for my little frills, i will take it. why should people blame him for his feat? he just sold his ideas and people bought it happily to the tune of $150,000. i will say well done swee chiow. never mind whether what you are doing is worthy or nonsensical. it is not your fault. next time tell them you will attempt to live inside a mpv for one month. i am sure the car manufacturers will eagerly queue up for the advertisement and pay you handsomely. and you might get the mpv for free as well. for commercial enterprises, they always have budgets for marketing. what i am concern with is people managing public fund. for public organisations or ipcs, they better be careful when they throw money away like sponsoring this kind of acts. i am still not sure whether the sponsorship money goes to any charity or just for swee chiow's little fun.

caricature of a face

i was watching lim hng khiang delivering his speech at the wto. at an instance i was engulfed by this feeling of sadness. i was wondering where it came from. then i realised that face, a face of sadness. why did he wear that sadness in front of the tv and at the wto. and he had that sadness with him all this while. the closest person that has a similar expression is ho peng kee. but his has a slight variation that appears more worried than sad. a face that carries a lot of problems and issues that bothering him. compare to lily neo, when she is making a speech in parliament, you just cannot disagree with her even if you cannot agree with her. she has that disarming sweetness in her that you just sit there and let her speak, without any anger or thoughts of opposing her, not even want to rush her. interrupting her would seem rude. it is amazing how a face can convey a message more than shouting and thumping tables. this leads me to ponder on the variety of faces that we see in the box. charles chong has lately appear to look like maitreya, the laughing buddha, with his big fixated smile. and there is wong kan seng with another kind of smile. the smile of a magician that can pull out all kinds of tricks to wonder you. and lim boon heng has that gentle look with a perpetual quiet smile like mona lisa. while khaw boon wan has the calm and serenity of a morning mountain. there are other variations. tan soo khoon has one that has the 'cannot tahan' look, that he cannot accept anything he sees or hears. while teo chee hean's face says everything is smooth flowing, everything goes, and life is a stroll. then there is yeo cheow tong who reminds one instantly of the word affordability. as i meditate over a peaceful sunday morning, many kinds of faces make their appearance in my imaginations. but not all can be put to a particular personality. i was trying to figure out who has a blur like sotong look, or who looks like he needs more sleep, a sleepy head. the face of a never say die look, a fighter, a gangster, or the face of a grandfather. or is there anyone that has the bob hope look, or a george bush, or a peace maker like tommy koh. a cocky look or the look of a maverick. or is there one that looks mean? i couldn't find one that has the mahathir's 'boleh' look. this is just a little distraction from the otherwise dull whinning of how things could be better. i hope people have a little sense of humour as i, myself, try to find a little of that in me that has long been lost.