when must charities be closely watched?

when should we be concerned or start to worry? when a charity or organisation tells us that it is ok not to disclose their financial data or reveal what they are doing. or when an organisation says transparency is not necessary. or when an organisation says they are managed professionally, so trust them. or when they say they cannot find suitable people or qualified people to join them. or when they say they cannot find any volunteers. or when they say they have powerful patrons. or when they say it will take time for them to produce the data. or when they say the data are unavailable. or when they say it is on a need to know basis. or when they refuse to let in new members into the organisation. it was reported in the straits times today and i quote, 'ms maureen sung of asian women's welfare association thought it would be tough to find donors who are also experts on charity work. "we can't just pull anyone to be a board member. whether the person donates money is irrelevant." " what is needed is not people who are expert in charity work. there are enough experts in the organisation doing charity works. but people who can be the watchdog, to keep a check on these organisations. to make sure there is not going to be another case like nkf. you do not need someone to be an expert in charity to be in a charitable organisation. you need an honest and decent man to watch out for wrong doings. and when an organisation finds all sorts of excuses not to bring in independent people, the more it is necessary to bring in independent people.

nkf: where is the moral leadership?

so far only khaw boon wan has spoken and condemned many of the misdeeds, to the extent of calling people dishonest and indecent. his seems to be a voice in the wilderness. a lone voice amidst many other voices that actually praised the wrongdoers or glorified some of the acts. with conflicting views of eminent people being articulated, the public could be confused. what is right or acceptable? some wrongs seem to be not so wrong and some rights are not so right. khaw boon wan's position cannot be seen as the only right position when opposing positions are not denounced and allowed to continue to stand. for the public to know what is the official position, more must be said to endorse what is deemed the proper and correct way. this is sorely lacking for the time being. maybe many are not saying anything to prevent influencing the court as the case is still pending. but politicians must have a way to say things in a political manner without having to corner the court's thinking or decision when the case is heard. what does the country stand for? what is morally right and acceptable must be stated clearly. these cannot be compromised. the people needs moral leadership and guidance. what they are getting is a loud silence. where is the moral leadership when it is needed in a time like this?

noordin sopiee, the passing of a malaysian intellectual

malaysia, your time is near. probably the best brain in malaysia, had to pass away at a very young age of 61. it is a great pity and a great loss to malaysia. who else is there to carry on the intellectual flag? when the good and brilliant depart prematurely, is it a sign that all the greatness there is to be will not be there anymore?

sick people in the air

a forumer complained about the sick joke of a 'ghost' that frightened a newsreader in the straits times today. it was a very stupid thing to do as a joke. it takes a team of very sick people to choreograph it and air it as something they should be proud of, a great achievement. fortunately the poor girl did not die of shock. or she might end up in a mental hospital. you can never understand different individual's treshold for fear and pain. it just shows how dangerous when immature people are put in charge. this is another version of trying to compare annabel as a national hero.

when zen is not zen

i have a lot of admiration for sim wong hoo and his combative spirit to fight with apple. this is real talent. i would not want to mention anything that would be not complimentary to him or his products. but for him to get it right and fight a winning battle he must know where he went wrong. his zen is anything but zen. and apple's ipod is anything but zen. it is what zen is all about. quiet simplicity and elegance. nothing gaudy or confusing or distracting. that is the beauty in zen. the spirit of zen is in the ipod. being beautiful without trying. it is so unassumingly dignified. its design and colour is so quiet while the creative zen's design is just too noisy for zen.