Retirement village in oil palm plantation

I was discussing with some investors on the viability of setting up retirement villages in Johore, inside oil palm plantations. The return would surely be much better than what oil palm can give, and faster. With low land and labour cost, it is an attractive proposition. The only hitch is security. How to keep the place safe and really safe that safety and security would never even be an issue, that safety and security can be taken as a given? For retirement villages, the residents may be rich, but old and feeble. They are very vulnerable and safety and security will be the number one concern. This is a comparative advantage that has yet to be exploited for financial gains.

Malaysia's comparative advantage

Najib is saying it again to reassure foreign, esp Singaporean investors, that the IDR is a long term investment and there will be no flip flops of policies again. I think the Malaysian govt knows very well the problems and issues and is trying to alleviate the fears of investors. But talk is one thing. It is actions and concrete rules and regulations that the investors are waiting. And Najib also understand the huge comparative advantage which Johore has vis a vis Singapore in terms of land and labour cost. The Malaysian govt should exploit this fully as the ridiculous land and property prices and rentals in Singapore would make Malaysia extremely attractive. Why are the Malaysians waiting? This is the time to compete aggressively with Singapore and wrestle as many investments as they can to Johore. And it is so easy if they can ruin in the parochial and kampong mentality of the local politicians and keep them at bay. A rich and prosperous Johore is good for everyone. And Johore stands to gain to become the most developed and industrialised and modern state of Malaysia. Only if they have the political will to grab the bull by the horns.

The beast of Cyberspace 5 govt agencies are going online to tap the power of the internet. They want to participate in feedbacks and two way communications with their customers. They must have seen the goodness and the evolving role of cyberspace and do not want to be missed out. The importance of cyberspace and internet as a communication tool are growing by the days. But the fear is always there. How to manage and control feedbacks and information, how to censor the undesirable, how to not hear the bad news? Political observer, Viswa Sadasivan said, '... a good starting ground could be sectors that are less "risky" and where the citizenry-government rules of engagement are 'less rigid", such as sports, the environment and tourism.' This fear of the cyber beast is frightening. Any wrong move will see them being devour to pieces by the beast. Got to tread gently. So frightening.

The changing and unchanging political dynamics

For more than 40 years, the political dynamics and the way politics are played out have hardly changed here. Like it or not, it is a system based on a powerful personality dominating all political decisions and policies. Once decided, there it goes. Right or wrong, good or bad, let's move on. It looks so simple and easy to run this place. The same pattern of a domineering leader at the top was also the case for Malaysia and Indonesia. There were Mahathir and Suharto, all very powerful personalities that do not allow anyone to mess around with them. And between these three key players, many things could be done, deals struck, just by their own wheelings and dealings. Between LKY and Suharto, they have reached a certain understanding and would honour their agreements. In the case of Mahathir, though he had all the power to make deals, at the later stage of his political life he came out as one that would break deals or interpret them in whatever ways he wanted or to his benefit. There is nothing that is cast in stone. Everything is changeable. That was the political scene then. The same pattern and style of politics still exist in the little island but no more in Malaysia and Indonesia. They have changed with the passing of Mahathir and Suharto. More pressure groups are getting stronger and getting heard. More demands are made on their leaders that prevent them from exercising their power as PM or President. They no longer have the absolute powers of their predecessors. This is frustrating to Singapore. Making deals are no longer between two personalities, a four eye meeting to solve all issues. Things are going to be dragged on and on and nothing done. This is the new dynamics of the region. We have remained quite the same in the way we do things. The rest have changed. How to make deals anymore?

The Seniors Game

LKY is roaming the streets of Jakarta. And we see a smiling Suharto meeting his old friends as if nothing has changed. Time stood still. It was yesterday once more. It will be fun if Mahathir was there too. The reappearance of the seniors give one a very strange feeling. When they are not around, the yudhoyono, Sudarsono and the who dunno, and their counterparts here all look so real, big men, national leaders. But in the presence of the seniors, they appear so young, so youthful, so fresh, like freshmen. The faces of the seniors are too domineering and too overwhelming for the young leaders. They have a presence that cannot be matched by the new leaders.