3/04/2013

In Malaysia, violent robbery is so rampant, but so far no police action is taken.



 
Subject : MALAYSIA -- Always be alert nowadays for our own safety.

Where are the fucking policemen. Countless crimes happened at Petrol Stations but
no actions taken.


Dear Friends,

I just got my windscreen fixed today. Pls spent some time to read on & share out to your loved one to increase public awareness.

On Day 15th of Chinese New Year (Chinese calendar Valentine Day), Me , my husband Yip & my girl Xin Yu (7 years old) go through a Unforgettable Morning in Kota Damansara. We almost got Robbed at seksyen 4 'Shell petrol kiosk ' the one opposite P
etronas near Tropicana Medical Centre !

We scheduled to reach kelana jaya Lrt at 6 am, we leave from home around 5.40am, half way, my husband felt my car tyre don't have sufficient air, he stop by Shell seksyen 4 to pump at 5.50am. There is no one there except 2 foreigner worker in the shop( the shop was locked).

When my husband come down from the car, I immediately locked the car door(that is what I usually practice). He just started to pump, came a motorbike with 2 Malay guys, one of them come near my husband. Telling him " jangan bising! Wallet mari!" At the same time showing him the motor tyre lock in his hand, if my husband refuse, he will use that to attack him. When I saw the Malay guy get near him, I felt very uneasy in my heart, everything happen so fast, in split second, i saw my husband shouting while running ask me to go!(drive away) he run away bcoz he know I already locked my car & there is no chance for him to come in bcoz the robber are too near my car.
 
By running away he hope to lead the robber to chase him & to be away from us but when the robber saw him run so fast, he come back to attack my car, he uses the motorbike tyre lock & bang on my driver side window,in few seconds time, I manage to jump from the front passenger seat to the driver seat & on the second bang, I manage to reverse my car& go( thanks to my 8 mil tinted film , it save our family life, at least it last 2 knock, it buy me some time to drive away). i then drive towards my husband direction, it was so scary at that time, my right side view is totally out bcoz of the cracked window, I can't open the door even my husband was nearby coz the robber was really near him, it will endanger him as well, so while he is running towards the counter, I try to escort him there, I drove pass the counter but to my suprise the Shell staff did not even help to open the door, they just stood inside & watch.
 
I stop my car ,  feeling very scare bcoz I can't see my husband, my daughter at the back of the car cried very loud when she saw that both the robber now are on the motorbike chasing my husband the opposite way, she cried "pa pa", hearing her crying , my fear from level 10 change mode immediately to Anger level 10. Immediately, I reverse my car & in my heart , if those robbers ever touch my husband I will bang them with my car if I need to! Seeing my car coming very fast towards their motor bike, the 2 Robbers run away & I quickly open the door for my husband & we are safe.
 
Thank you God for protecting us despite just minor external injury of my husband Yip, bcoz he fall while they chase him & me twisted my right hand for turning the wheel super fast. We make police report after that & go to tropicana medical centre to get treatment. Moral of the story, be very alert & careful whenever you are irregardless of petrol kiosk or public places especially car park that are quiet, day or night. I would like to take this chance to thank God again for giving me & my husband Yip & my children another chance to live this life again. Thank you so much :)

Tolong, tolong, give back our dreams



4 senior citizens posted an open letter in TRE pleading to the PM to give back the Singaporean Dream of 5Cs, car, condo, credit card, country clubs and cash to their children. It was only a few years back that Singaporeans were all in their highs, dreaming of the 5Cs, to do good in life. Everyone was full of confidence to achieve his dream of a comfortable and better life. The appearance of this letter is kind of a sudden and exudes a sense of despair that things are not getting better.

Is this a true version of the state of affair in the island or just the imagination of some desperadoes? Housing prices are still shooting to the sky, COEs hitting $100k for a car, everyone is still going on holiday. Life must be good and many citizens must be living a life of plenty. A HDB resale EC costing more than a million while a new HDB penthouse is more than $2m. And they are all being taken immediately. They must be very affordable.

Why is there such a despair call? Boon Wan is promising that 2030 will see the life of Singaporeans getting even better with better quality living. Who is out of touch, who is misleading?

Let’s look at the 5Cs. Car is going to be a very rare and expensive item that many Singaporeans will not be able to afford. Their lives will be centred around taking public transport or if they can afford it, taking taxis. One C down. Condo living, this seems to be very affordable as all the launches was a sellout at whatever price. So this C is still standing. Credit cards are being issued to the Singaporeans like toilet papers and everyone is holding a handful in his wallets. So this C is doing very well, not considering the credit is stretched to the limits.

Country clubs are getting cheaper and cheaper from the heady prices they used to fetch. Are Singaporeans forming a queue to snatch up these goodies? Apparently not. So this C is losing its lustre.

What about cash? It is a well know fact that Singaporeans are asset rich but cash strapped. All the cash are wiped out quite quickly now with the new rulings on car purchases and the high property prices. Many are switching to credit cards from cash. Hopefully this interchange is sustainable to provide the people with a good quality life.

What is left of the 5Cs is probably 2, condo and credit cards. Car is out, country club not so attractive, cash a bit of a problem to many except the very rich.

What then is the new Singaporean Dream? Good public transport system, 4 rm HDB flat, more credit cards, and the chance to emigrate? And not to forget, to make new friends with the new citizens and PRs and foreigners, to learn new way of life and new languages? Another controversial dream, retiring early as jobs are getting rare for Singaporeans above 50.

Sinkie or Singaporean or a simpler term



When I used the term Sinkie to refer to Singaporean, it was more or a convenience without any negative connotations. Over time the term Sinkie has becoming more meaningful and prophetic. Many Sinkies or Singaporeans are having this sinking feeling and feeling very unease about it.

Many Sinkies would not mind using this term in its most innocent sense. I also notice that some feel very offended by it and get very heated under the collar. They all prefer to be addressed as Singaporeans. I must say that for Sinkies to want to be called Singaporeans is a good thing. There is still pride and identity left in this diminishing specie. Those abroad, some taken up PRs or foreign citizenships, still feel very Singaporean in them. You can take away his citizenship but you cannot take away their Singaporeaness, of having been a Singaporean.

Would Singaporean be a dying breed just like the peranakans? I will henceforth, in due respect to those Singaporeans who just want to be called Singaporeans, to avoid using the term Sinkie. I will have to find a shorter version to type.

There is still hope that the identity of true blue Singaporeans may survive the current crisis it is going through. Only when Singaporeans want to be Singaporeans, to want to maintain this unique identity in us, not some international citizen label or hotel guests that can go any where they like, will this Singaporean identity continue to exist in the form that we know, a kind of special feeling. But it is a losing battle if we are to constantly dilute it with more and more foreigners that are quite different from us. Another 1.6m is going to do more damage not just the characteristics of being a Singaporean, but we will become more like them, another new concoction, another rojak in the making.

Judge GIC by its long term results


In an interview with the Sunday Times, Ng Kok Song, the retired Group Chief Investment Officer of GIC summed up his views by saying that an organisation like GIC should be judged by its performance over a longer time frame. How long is this time frame is relative and subjective, but definitely not over a year or a handful of years. This kind of view is reasonable in general for a Sovereign Wealth Fund or any funds managed by the fund managers. Investment is a long term process as against gambling or daily trading. The volatility of the assets and equities under management may fluctuate wildly in the short term or even daily when there is a major event or crisis happening. The value of the assets or funds under management could plunge or swing up in response to such events. This is equally true of big institutions, or even the performance of govts. It is thus unfair to wallop a non performing fund over a short interval of time or during a crisis.

Today’s corporate culture and practices are often based on short term performance, or at least the remuneration and reward system is geared towards an annual payout. This has resulted in the management and executives planning and working for instant rewards and instant gratification. And the accounting system and reward packages, bonuses, payouts, handouts, perks, etc etc are all based on short term results or annual results. A good performance in a year could earn the management their life time income. A poor performance in a year could earn them half a life time income. A disastrous performance in a year could earn them multiple life time incomes.

What is the problem? Many fund managers, top management, and even govts, want to be rewarded immediately, on a year to year basis. This is natural as their tenure is short and could be terminated quite quickly. And they all want to be judged over the long term so that their bad performance can be averaged out to look better over time, or maybe a windfall or a lucky streak some years ahead could turn their fortune around. Or they could have left when bad times are here or the bad times that were hidden in the books could not be hidden any longer. The Olympus Camera company is one such example.

Last year, our Govt recorded a once in a life time GDP growth rate of 15%, much higher than any country in the world. And their super world class salaries were given an added boost with super world class bonuses based on this once in a life time growth rate in a year. Like any big institutions, the next few years may end in the red, no growth or minus growth, it doesn’t matter, the big bonuses are already in the bank accounts.

I somehow think the equation or formula is not very right. I thought since performance is best to be assessed over a long term, the remuneration or reward system should also be designed to be paid out over a long term as well. Both will thus average out the performances and the rewards in the long run. Tiok boh?

Why like that one? Still cannot figure out why? Heard of head I win tail you lose? To be reasonable, honest, responsible, accountable and respectable, and to be real, rewards and bonus system of an institution or govt must be in line with the performance assessment system. If the reward is based on immediate payout for the year’s performance, then the measurement must be based on a yearly basis. If not, it is simply screwy.

I like simple logic that every layman can understand.

3/03/2013

Sunday morning's joke of the day.

Anyone looking for a joke, please go to TRE and read the article, NTU's Professor speaks against anti immigrant policies. Ok, before I got misunderstood. It is a sick joke. Unbelieveable! I am truly astounded by the pearls of wisdom.