First there’s this whole rumour-thing about the DCM I going around for months already. Sounds like someone really had it in for him and wants him gone. Finally, he threw in the towel and has resigned.

So, who will be DCM I? Well, it looks like Abdul Malik, the exco who took over the former DCM’s religious affairs portfolio, is the next best candidate. It’s either him or the relatively unheard of Maktar Shapee of Sungai Bakap.

Then, we have the nature-lovers and environmentalists going all up in arms against the state government’s preprosterous proposal for cable cars to be built at Penang Hill. Really, this idea has been around for years and the reason it didn’t take off because it wasn’t very feasible. Besides, what tourism factor are they talking about? Do you see droves of tourists going to langkawi because of the cable cars? If anything, tourists are going to langkawi is because their beaches are way cleaner than ours.Not because of the cable cars. Sure, cable cars sounds like fun but heck, so do bungee jumping. Why not have that too, while they are at it? It is almost the same because with our culture of dis-maintenance, it is before long that the cable cars fall into disrepair and will prove as exciting as bungee jumping.

And the tiger park proposal is also another ‘duh’ factor.  A tiger park? Whatever for? The forestry department already thinks it is a great idea to shoot any tiger DESPITE THE FACT THAT THESE ARE ENDANGERED SPECIES just because they think it’s a killer tiger and we are talking about a tiger park here? Draw tourists? Yeah. Right. I am SO sure that people will start booking their flights and hotels in Penang just to see tigers.

I mean, if I go anywhere for a holiday especially in this economic downturn, I am sure it must be because of their cable cars and tiger parks. I mean what is a great holiday location without cable car rides and tigers locked behind small enclosures to gape at?

Never mind that the beach of that place is so dirty I am in danger of contracting some weird incurable skin disease after even dipping me toes in it.

Never mind that the taxi drivers are so rude and charge me 100 times more than the usual rate just because I am a tourist and the driver had determinedly refused to use the meter.

Never mind that the general cleanliness of the whole vacation place from tourist attractions to public toilets left much to be desired.

Who cares about hygiene, cleanliness and scrupulous taxi drivers when I can stare and gape at locked-up tigers and get to ride on cable cars? I mean, these are tigers I am talking about. And cable cars. Oh WOW. Cable cars are so much better than those loads of green stuff, otherwise known as trees, all around the hill. I mean, only weirdos won’t want cable cars instead of greenery.

Only a fool would prefer the pristine beaches of Phuket or the politeness of the Balinese.

And the Unesco heritage site of George Town is a total gem. I mean, we are talking about high rise buildings sticking up like sore thumbs in the midst of all those beautiful heritage enclaves. And what living heritage? Seems like the very living heritage of the town is dying out. But I am sure every single tourist that comes here wish to see high rise buildings within the heritage city and modernised buildings and more pubs and motels rather than the living, breathing cultures of the inner George Town.

I mean, pubs and loads of motels and boutiques are so much more interesting than businesses that have been handed down for generations and the people whose families have stayed there for generations. Nothing beats a cold draught of beer I tell you. Or an overpriced pair of shoes.

So, yeah, Penang is really a great and wonderful place what with the heritage city of George Town giving it prestige. It is…

Full of hillslope developments ready to tumble down anytime.

Full of high rise buildings, choking off the air and blocking up the views especially in middle of George Town.

Full of smog and smoke and pollution because the No Car Day *March 25* is just a fluke that not even the state government officials will pledge to, much less the general population.

Full of litter and rubbish in every nook and cranny because its people just do not care.

Full of rubbish politicians too busy mouthing off rather than solving problems.

Let us be the first state to be full of preposterous ideas like tiger parks and cable cars to draw more tourists. Maybe have a casino too. And Disneyland. Just cut off the whole of Penang Hill to build those. I am sure it can draw in more tourists.

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Then, as if it has nothing to do with him at all, the tourism exco Danny Law Heng Kiang starts pointing fingers and blamed everything and everyone except for the CM on his absolute total failure in organising the annual Pesta Pulau Pinang bazaar.

He blamed the lack of publicity for the failure. Of course, instead of shouldering the responsibility, he blamed the management company in charge.

Yep. Hell, you are the state exco in charge of tourism, culture, arts and heritage FFS! Instead of doing what you are supposed to do, you start blaming others when your project fails.

Please, grow a pair of these already - image 'borrowed' from karenknowsbest.com

You know, when these DAP fellas took over the government, my first thought was “Err…are they prepared and up to it?”. Then as the days go by, it is obvious they aren’t all that prepared. But still, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.

After all, they are new. We should always give newbies a chance. They will learn eventually. Yeah. Sure.

Admittedly some of them are pretty good in what they do. They actually do their jobs. Although I still feel darn annoyed when they still seem to be stuck in the Opposition mentality of blaming the former state government for everything, I thought, okay, they need time to adjust.

But then there are some of them who seemed stuck in a time warp. They are permanently stuck in an opposition mentality and all they know is to point the finger and blame. The thought of taking matters into their own hands and SOLVING the issue never crossed their minds.

Looks like Law Heng Kiang is one of them. You are a blardy exco FFS. Do your job. If you can’t even organise a successful Pesta Pulau Pinang which has become sorta a trademark for Penang after all these decades, then it goes to show that you really don’t know how to do your job.

And yes, please, grow some balls and stop blaming others for your failure.

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Luckily, she broke away and ran off to tell her brother who promptly brought reinforcement to catch the guy. They sent the amorous man to the police station and lodged a police report that he had molested his girlfriend.

I don’t know…it sounds a bit strange that they are actually a couple and the guy was sent to jail for not accepting the fact that ice princess do not like being touched. Maybe its because the girl is only 19 and the guy is 29 and a rubber tapper at that. Maybe she thinks he is going too fast. Or maybe, she is trying to break off and he tried to persuade her otherwise.

Or were there underlying reasons behind all this? I guess we will never know… What we know is that it never pay to be too amorous, eh? So, guys listen up! Don’t take the liberty to touch here touch there thinking your girlfriend won’t mind. There are laws in this country and she may have your horny ass hauled in for molest if she doesn’t like it! Ask properly and you shall not pay for it this way.

Now, back to the story. The guy got five months jail and today in High Court, where he had appealed against the sentence, the judge was scornful of the other judge who passed the sentence.

“Like this, people dare not go dating anymore,” the judge reportedly said.

So, the judge reduced the guy’s sentence and fined him RM1,500 instead.

Wah…RM1,500 he could even pay for two hours with the maths genius hooker in UK! And that is not only confined to touchy-feely all but the whole works!

Tsk..tsk..tsk… Although it may seem a mere slap on the wrist to those earning a lot, to this rubber tapper guy who is earning RM200 a month, it is 7 months of pay! Besides, if he can’t pay it, he will have to spend 3 months in jail.

So, the moral of this story is, respect thy women be it girlfriends, sisters, mothers, cousins, grandmothers, etc for hell hath no fury than an angry woman out for vengeance!

Women power rules! Mwahahahaha…

Update:

Here’s the full article from Star online:

Judge: Five months’ jail for hugging girlfriend is extreme

By PRISCILLA DIELENBERG

PENANG: A High Court judge found that the five-month sentence imposed on a rubber tapper for outraging the modesty of his girlfriend by hugging and kissing her as unwarranted because of the couple’s relationship.

“No one would dare to go dating again with such an excessive punishment, given the relationship. No man would want to ask our anak dara (young women) out anymore.

“This is the reality of life,” said Justice Abdul Rahim Uda

He was hearing an appeal by Mohamad Roslan Zainol, 29, against his conviction and sentence for outraging the modesty of an 18-year-old girl by hugging her at a beach in Telok Molek, Teluk Air Tawar, North Seberang Prai, at 9.30pm on Nov 29 last year.

According to the statement of facts, Mohamad Roslan was the girl’s boyfriend and they had sought shelter under a tree when it began to rain.

He then tried to kiss her and hugged her tight several times, but she struggled free and ran off.

The girl’s brother later took Mohamad Roslan to a police station and lodged a report.

A magistrate’s court in Butterworth had on Dec 3 last year jailed Mohamad Roslan five months after he pleaded guilty to the offence. His family later got him a lawyer and he was allowed stay of execution on the jail term pending the appeal.

Yesterday, Justice Abdul Rahim Uda said the sentence was unwarranted because of the couple’s relationship.

DPP Muna Mohamed Jaafar, who seemed to agree with the judge that the five-month jail term was excessive, said Mohamad Roslan had to be given appropriate punishment as a lesson for him and to those inclined towards such action.

Justice Abdul Rahim dismissed Mohamad Roslan’s appeal against his conviction, but allowed his appeal against his sentence.

In mitigation, Mohamad Roslan’s counsel A. Premanand said his client had repented and promised not to repeat such offences.

Justice Abdul Rahim fined Mohamad Roslan RM1,500 in default three months’ jail.

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Well, actually, honestly, it is not to serve you better but to give me more headaches trying to figure out Wordpress and its plugins and widgets from hell….heheheh…

So, lookout for a brand new Penang Views and News site coming up near you. You can access and read it anywhere, everywhere and anytime as long as you have internet connection!

Oh, you can already do that now…

What’s so different, you ask? Err… I dunno la. Been reading around other blogs and some auntie keep harping on how great it is to have own domain and etc and how great her hosting company is that I rushed and immediately signed up with Bryan.

What to do, I am a typical kiasu Penangite mah.

So, due to the pindah rumah, I may not be posting as much entries the next few days because I will be too busy struggling with Wordpress. Besides, all the MPs (including CM) are out of town in Parliament so probably not much going on in the political scene locally…

Remember, keep a lookout for the brand new, shinier website coming up soon!

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What I really do not understand about this whole debacle is the huge pointless fuss over Kah Choon’s appointment as a director in InvestPenang and PDC.

He no longer holds any position in Gerakan. FFS! He is only a mere member and the stoolpit party wants to take disciplinary action against him for becoming a director in two corporations??

So, does this mean all Gerakan ordinary members are not allowed to work in the civil service? Hey, they are serving the state government also wat, why not issue show cause letters to them too?

You mean to say from now onwards, the party affiliations of people are more important than their abilities, capabilities and efficiency in helping the development of Penang?

All this crap by the BN losers may make good reading material and even received with glee by observers waiting to see fireworks happen but I feel that it is time for them (the BN) to wise up and mature!

I mean, come on. Use your brain and think. Shouldn’t you as political leaders be concentrating on helping the people and the development of the state instead of waddling knee-deep in shit like this?

What is the point of all this furore anyway? What is so wrong about a person extending his hand out to help others or in this case, a capable leader like Lee Kah Choon extending his experience and capabilities to help the state?

So, it is more important for the party to ’save face’ is it?

And please, Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, you are way out of line to be hitting below the belt by name calling! Calling Lee inexperience is by far the worst thing you could have done!

May I ask you, Dr Koh, were you VERY EXPERIENCED when you took over as Chief Minister all those years ago?

Were you VERY EXPERIENCED when you took over the helm of PDC then?

I do not think so.

So, please, don’t throw stones when you live in a glass house and another thing, Lee Kah Choon is a way better man than you ever could be because he graciously turned your criticism around by saying that he will use it to prove you wrong!

I didn’t hear him calling you names.

Sigh…the state of maturity of our politicians, except for some Pakatan Rakyat fellas and the few BN fellas (or former BN) like Lee Kah Choon, leaves much to be desired.

When will they ever learn that politics is not about ‘I would die for my party’ but ‘I would die serving the people’?

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A scene from Peter Pan

The Disney On Ice – Amazing Journey show is great entertainment for the little ones and even some adult die-hard Disney fan.

101 Dalmations

Perhaps my expectations were high but I find it a bit of a let-down. Although my toddler enjoyed every minute of it, I find myself getting bored after the first few scenes.

In the journey, the five Disney hosts takes viewers to the lion’s den (Lion King) and from there to the doghouse (101 dalmations) and then on to the bottom of the sea (Little Mermaid). The costumes were beautiful but I find the props a bit lacking. The background was bare most of the time except for some special lighting effects. The music is…well…it is Disney so the music are those you hear in the related animated films.

The hosts of the whole journey

After an intermission of about 20 minutes or so, the journey continued on to Hawaii (Lilo & Stitch) and ended spectacularly with the boy who doesn’t grow up (Peter Pan). There was, of course, a finale where all the characters came out and skated around but it wasn’t very impressive as there were just too many and it ended up looking like a bunch of colourfully dressed people fighting for space in the makeshift skating rink.

A scene from Peter Pan

The finale

So, in short, this is what I think of the show:

Entertainment value: Good for children, okay for Disney fans, nothing great for others

Costs: Not worth the ticket price of between RM55 and RM205. If it is between RM30 and RM100, then it is just nice.

Costumes: Pretty good

Music: The same Disney theme songs for the animated films

Watch again: Only if my kid insisted on going and I can get a discount or free tickets again…

Fun factor: 6 / 10

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The nerve of some people, huh?

This arrogant has-been is none other than Datuk Abdul Rashid Abdullah, the former Deputy Chief Minister. This sore-loser, who normally do not have anything great to say anyway, has come right out and accused Lim Guan Eng of not being able to handle government administration and claimed that the Chief Minister has been hurling baseless accusations at the former state government over the land scam issues.

Aiya, Datuk Ngah-Ngah Abdul Rashid, you think Guan Eng will simply hurl accusations for the sake of pushing blame ka? You think he is so stupid to say all these out in public if he does not have any proof ka?

Then, to top if all off, he dared to say that Guan Eng had not sent him an official invitation to meet and discuss over the land scam issue.

Err…wahlau, this Pakcik Ngah-Ngah must be nyanyuk already la! He thinks he is the blardy King or Sultan to demand an official invitation from the Chief Minister in order to meet with him. He reportedly said to The Star:

“Where is the invitation to meet him (Guan Eng)? There was no official invitation from him for me to meet him at all,”

Our Chief Minister was, of course, very gracious about it. He issued an official invitation through the MSM to Abdul Rashid to go and meet with him and talk about the land scam issue.

Of course, Guan Eng also took a swipe at him la, saying it is too much if Abdul Rashid is expecting a formal, official letter from the CM to invite him over for a meeting.

Aiyar…the rest of us Penangites have to write in and send a letter to the CM to meet him and this has-been sore loser expects an official invitation from the CM??? Wahhh…he must really think he is so great to be afforded such special treatment!

Well, Datuk Ngah-ngah Abdul Rashid. Your arrogance will be short-lived as the CM has taken up your challenge to reveal all the dirty details of the land scams.

Lim Guan Eng has promised to REVEAL ALL DETAILS and guess who is in the midst of it all?

We shall see, won’t we?

A clue as to who may be involved, just look back and think…whose portfolio was it to handle all land issues in the previous state government? So, if there are land scams, wouldn’t the former exco in charge be literally in deep shit over this whole thing? How can the person in charge not know what’s going on? Unless of course he has been sleeping and not doing his job….

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It seems that Tanjung Bungah assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu was already alerted about the case way before the MSM got a sniff about it. He had visited the boy and referred the case to the Welfare Department.

Just as he was getting things done to help the boy, a Buddhist group heard about it and immediately alerted the MSM and the whole thing came to light. See, if Yee Cheu is one of those crazy publicity politician, he would have called a press conference to point at the rubbish-filled apartment and point at the boy and declare that he is so great to have found out and he is now helping the boy.

But no, instead, he quietly went about helping the boy, probably to preserve the boy’s dignity and identity (which is now all shot to tatters thanks to the MSM) for the boy is surely a child abuse victim. It is too bad that the MSM were given a tip-off before Yee Cheu could get things moving.

So, in the end the huge publicity angered the mother who had refused to give up the boy to his grandaunt who had wanted to adopt him. We will never know what the mother is thinking to leave the poor kid all alone for almost two years and only visiting him once every two to three weeks.

After all that hoo-ha which is widely reported by all the MSM, luckily Welfare exco Phee Boon Poh and Yee Cheu is still able to save the whole situation. It seems that legal action can’t be taken against the mother as this will mean the boy will have to be sent to a boys’ home which is not a good thing. We all know the welfare boys’ home here aren’t all that great either.

So they have talked to the mother and it looks like she has now changed her mind and may have consented to let the grandaunt adopt him after all. Of course, before allowing the grandaunt to take the boy, the welfare department will first contact the one in Kuantan to check out her background and the environment first.

So, if all goes well and the grandaunt legitimately wants to take care of the child (and not to use him as child labour or for something sinister), there is a happy ending for Jia Hui after all.

For now, he is staying with his grandmother and my prayers will go out to him and his five other siblings that they will have a better life.

p/s: I also heard that Jia Hui has a younger half brother staying with his grandmother and the welfare department are also looking into his case.

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Children are like God’s gift to parents and they should be treasured no matter what and regardless of their physical or mental conditions. I have known some parents who literally dump their disabled children at homes and never turn back. I have also seen parents who abused their perfectly able children for no apparent reason except maybe due to the parent’s own mental disability!

So, what is considered abuse and what isn’t? Abuse is when the child is neglected and not cared for and not necessarily mean physical violence. Abuse could be when the child is tortured mentally and left to fend for himself day in day out when he is still so small that he probably should not be allowed to cross the road alone.

Therefore, I am very disgusted when I read about poor ten-year-old Yeap Jia Hui’s plight.

Excerpt from The Star:

Home alone boy gets a family

PENANG: Ten-year-old Yeap Jia Hui, who has been living alone in a smelly rubbish-filled apartment at Ferringhi Mutiara Apartment in Batu Ferringhi for almost two years, now has someone to care for him.

Childless housewife Yeap Choon Lean, 59, will be taking Jia Hui home to live with her and her retired carpenter husband in Kuantan, Pahang.

Choon Lean, who is Jia Hui’s maternal grandaunt, had wanted to adopt him when he was born but his mother decided to hold on to him.

“Even before his mother abandoned him, I visited him every two to three months when I was in Penang.

“I do not have children of my own and I am happy to bring him home to Kuantan,” she said yesterday.

A happy-looking Jia Hui said he was delighted to able to live with his grandaunt.

“My grandmother cannot care for me because she is old,” he explained.

The grandmother, Law Ah Eng, 68, lives in an apartment several floors below but her relationship with Jia Hui’s mother, Yeap Kim Hong, 46, had been strained for almost a decade.

Jia Hui said his mother gave him an ATM card and visited him every two to three weeks.

“But she has not called or visited me for about two weeks and she has not banked in any money, normally RM20 to RM30 a month,” he said.

He said his schoolmates and teachers did not know of his condition and said he walked to school, bought food after school and attended extra classes three days a week.

“I do my homework before going out with friends and would be home by 8.30pm,” he said.

Jia Hui has five other half-brothers. He is Kim Hong’s fifth son.

“Nobody knows who Jia Hui’s father is,” said Ah Eng, who is also raising Kim Hong’s fourth son.

Although it may seem to come to a happy ending and finally someone wanted to take care of the poor neglected boy, I heard that this was not to be after all.

It seemed that the mother had kicked up a fuss at the Welfare Department, accusing them of trying to take away her son without her consent. The government service being the government service, gave in and did not do anything. They apparently allowed the mother to take him back and warned her to take good care of him.

I don’t know anything about the law here, but isn’t it wrong for the mother to have neglected her son for the past two years? Isn’t there a law to stop her from taking back her son due to such abuse? Isn’t leaving an 8-year-old to fend for himself for two years akin to child endangerment? Why isn’t the mother charged with child abuse? Isn’t it child abuse when she neglected the boy and let him fend for himself in a rubbish filled apartment all alone with only RM20 or RM30 per month to buy food?

Such a woman should not be allowed to have children at all! The welfare department should have taken the boy and given him to his grandaunt and take action against the mother! A mother who heartlessly left an 8-year-old boy to fend for himself should lose all her rights as his mother!

And most importantly, where are all the concerned ‘groups’ and ministers who would immediately jump into action to launch a ‘Save Jia Hui Campaign’ like they wanted to do for a full grown non-Malaysian hooker in UK who only happened to have a Malaysian mother?

Update: Welfare exco Phee Boon Poh and Tanjung Bungah assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu visited the boy. The mother refused to give consent for her son to be adopted by the grandaunt and Phee is now looking into using the law to force her to do so.

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This is the Penang view that greeted me every morning.
Can you see Komtar?

My little relaxation corner to relieve stress from work

This is what I see on a hazy misty morning.
I can also see Komtar and if I look harder, a tiny little slice of the sea.

The Penang view from CM’s office in Komtar

The Penang view with the Penang bridge barely discernible from CM’s office in Komtar

It is sad that all these views from high buildings, even Komtar, no longer offer the tantalising glimpse of the sea or much greenery. Sure, we can still see a tiny slice of the sea from Komtar but for how long more?

Penang is fast becoming a concrete jungle and though it may mean more housing for the people but at what cost? It is sad indeed that Penang may just end up like Hong Kong where every single available space is crammed with high rise buildings.

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