Political illiterate

“The worst illiterate is the political illiterate. He doesn’t hear, doesn’t speak, nor participates in the political events. He doesn’t know the cost of life, the price of the bean, of the fish, of the flour, of the rent, of the shoes and of the medicine, all depends on political decisions. The political illiterate is so stupid that he is proud and swells his chest saying that he hates politics. The imbecile doesn’t know that, from his political ignorance is born the prostitute, the abandoned child, and the worst thieves of all, the bad politician, corrupted and flunky of the national and multinational companies.”

The reception at Gelang Patah

Tonight somewhere at the Gelang Patah parliamentary constituency. Looks very encouraging but how will this crowd translate into real votes come 5 April 2013?

Volunteering in Malaysia

I pulled this picture off my friend's whatsapp today. Just look at the crowd of volunteers outside the DAP Penang headquarters building in Rangoon Road, Penang. Red t-shirts, yellow t-shirts, green t-shirts. This is volunteer work at its best, all done willingly; nobody's getting paid, unlike the other side. Guess everyone is now gearing up towards the General Elections on 5 May 2013. Have you decided who to vote for? I have....

China Week in Penang this June 2013

Just a few days ago, I received an email from an Old Free schoolmate who asked me whether I could lend some publicity on my blog for his event. Together with another person - who, by the way, is an Old Xavierian - they had set up a company called Malworks Sdn Bhd which linked up with several other like-minded organisations elsewhere.

But more importantly, Malworks is bringing in some artists from China to showcase their talents this June when the George Town Festival is in full swing.

Unfortunately as my friend told me, their efforts to apply for funding with MyCreative Ventures (a government-linked company) and Pemandu were unsuccessful, no doubt being a new company with no track record and, if I may venture to add my own opinion, without the correct cables to pull.

Anyway, their company is looking to raise some funds and publicity for this worthwhile cultural project to chug along towards a successful conclusion at the George Town Festival.

If you are reading this, can you help in whatever way you can? More details below from Ong Peng Seng (my friend's business partner at Malworks) which I have included here:

Hi Xaverians and Friends - Old and New Ones

Exciting and potential changing times - I am sure many of you are busy with the impending election just round the corner.

Some of you may know that recently I have been coming back to Malaysia from the UK to set up Malworks Sdn. Bhd. Malworks was set up in October 2012 as a Malaysian Primary Creative Hub to link into our network of Creative Hubs globally - in the UK we have Ping Works and in China, China Works, etc.  They are all at different stages of development.

The most advance Creative Hub set up to date is Ping Works in the UK - see our website to give you a better idea of our vision.  The website is work-in-progress and the development costs are heavily subsidised by our members, so do excuse us if it is not 100% ready.  Ping Works is a not-for-profit organisation set up to support up-and-coming and established creative people in the UK.

One of the main purposes of the Hub is to enable creative people a platform and opportunity to trade with each other and host events locally and across each other's country.

In Malaysia, the first such event is to bring Chinese artists from China to exhibit their work during China Week over the George Town Festival (GTF) period, 7 June 2013 - 7 July 2013. Joe Sidek, the director of GTF formally invited Malworks to participate. Besides artists, we had looked at bringing over performers - musicians, dancers, martial artists, magicians, singers, acrobats and also Royal chefs (chefs in ancient times who would cook for the emperor) - to show off Chinese cuisine at the event.

But GTF and their sponsors were unable to match the costs for bringing over the performers and chefs for 2013.  In any event, Malworks, plus our partners in the UK and China, will now bring over a group of five Chinese artists to exhibit their work and teach master classes during GTF.  The artists will be in Penang from 15 June 2013 to 22 June 2013 and exhibiting and running their master classes at Alyssa Galeri (opposite the former Loke Thye Kee Restaurant) in Penang Road. 

Please feel free to pass on this detail of the exhibition to all your friends, work colleagues and people who you feel would like to attend and/or support us. Thank you.

Sponsorship appeal. The artists, Malworks and our partners in the UK (Pingworks) and PRC (China Works) have contributed financially to enable the exhibition to proceed at GTF BUT we are also constantly looking for Financial and/or In-kind Support to enable us to put on more events and also to assist more creative people and members of our network of Creative Hubs globally.

So if you can support in any way do let me know. Details below and my mobile number when I am in Malaysia is 017 394 1327. All contributions, big or small for this event, greatly appreciated. You can also contact Jim Lim from Malworks who is also the owner of Clove Hall Boutique Hotel mobile: 012 545 0957.

We would like to show the best of our Malaysian, Penang hospitality to our artist guests from China.  THANK YOU and hope to see you all soon, either socially and/or at the exhibition. Feel free to contact me if you need to know more information and/or if you want to reconnect with me.

Best regards
Peng Seng Ong          
Executive Director, MBS Limited                       
M 07944 517524                 
E  p.ong@mbs-ltd.com        
W www.mbs-ltd.com          
&
Founder & Director, Ping Works Limited/1 Creative Hub
E  peng@pingworks.org
W  www.pingworks.org
&
Founder & Director, Malworks Sdn Bhd
M 017 394 1327

Lotus blooming

I took a peek into my neighbour's compound today and noticed that his lotus plants had pushed up two flower stalks. One is on the verge of opening up very soon. I hope to be able to record its progress. Will be interesting.

Who still reads The Star nowadays?

Standard questions have always been met with standard answers and I tell you, I do have a small arsenal of standard answers to standard questions that are thrown my way.

Amidst all the fun and laughter at meeting up with my former colleagues from the old Ban Hin Lee Bank days at our recent gathering, I was almost invariably asked whether I still wrote my chess column for The Star newspaper. Seemed that many of my former colleagues remembered me more for my writing than my activities in the bank! And some would even claim to be still reading my stories.

Of course, having already stopped my contributions for slightly more than a year now, my standard answer would be to reply that "No, I do not write for them any more. It's been more than a year since I stopped." And then we would grin at each other, maybe out of mutual embarrassment.

But lately, even this explanation alone was getting on my own nerve. After all, it was such a b-o-r-i-n-g reply, right? What's more, it bordered on me being slightly apologetic for stopping writing in the first place. As if it was all my fault that I stopped. Nothing was further from the truth. And yet, my standard reply couldn't have been more monotonous.

Couldn't I be more creative with my repartee? Luckily, I could still think on my feet and came up with a wittier comeback line.

"Aha," I would tell them, "I can see that you have not been reading the mainstream newspapers for a long while!"

They'd look at me kinda funny, as if I have seen through them. Having knocked them slightly off-balanced, I would add quickly: "But then, who reads The Star newspaper nowadays? I don't; I do not subscribe to their type of writing anymore."

We would then break out laughing. I tell you, it's great when you share the same wavelength with other people!

Can bad credit buy you a used car in America?

When I first knew Steve several years ago, all I knew about him was that he was an American expatriate engineer living in Malaysia because he was working in one of the multi-national companies in the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone.

He spoke with a long drawl which both amused and distracted me initially. But when I got to know him better, Steve turned out to be one of the most colourful chaps that I had met.

He said that he was from Texas, the Lone Star state. People there, he used to tell me once, drove some of the biggest cars in the country. And some of the Texans changed cars so often that there was actually an active secondary market for used cars.

But he cautioned that one must definitely know where to go if one wants to pick up a decent second-hand car. No point picking one up from an unknown dealer who is not trustworthy enough.

“Say,” he drawled, “call me if you know of anyone going to Texas and needing to buy a used car near Dallas or Fort Worth. I can point him in the right direction: AutoUSA.

“This establishment sells used cars of decent qualityfrom their branches in Irving and Arlington. If you are looking to buy something reasonably affordable and reliable, their used cars Irving or Arlington branches should be your obvious destinations.”

If I'm not mistaken, the business also goes by the name of AutoUSA Texas. I came across this name once about two years back when I was doing an Internet search for a project on used cars. Even back then, they were quite established already and they always prided themselves as a provider of financing to prospective buyers who had a less than acceptable credit rating.

AutoUSA claimed a unique position among car dealerships because through them, people with bad credit now had a fair chance to own vehicles. In-house financing was available to those with damaged credit so that when AutoUSA sold them a used car, they also arranged financing. They were willing to take a chance on the buyers by extending credit to them.

It was rather coincidental that Steve and I happened to wander onto the same subject of AutoUSA and second-hand cars so long ago! Steve has since moved on to Singapore and I have quite lost touch with him. But in the few brief months we knew one another, yah, he was a small well of information on things Texan.

78th anniversary of a non-existent organisation

Would you believe it? Last Saturday, about 230 people came back to Penang just to celebrate what I coined initially as the 78th anniversary of an organisation that no longer existed. Many travelled from Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru for this occasion but there were also a few who had returned from as far away as Canada.  

Would you believe it too that we may be building up enough momentum for an 80th anniversary (Octogintennary) in two years' time? I did make a suggestion that future gatherings should be held on a weekend as close as possible to the 17th of September, the actual date of incorporation of the Ban Hin Lee Bank in 1935. That should give the gathering more significance.

The hawk-eyed will notice the presence of Dato Seri Goh Eng Toon in this group photograph. I wouldn't say where: he could be on the stage, he could be at the edge of the picture, he could be in the centre, he could even be one of the guys sprawled in front, just go look for him carefully in the picture. 

The important thing was, for a brief few hours he was one equal with us. He was the last chairman before BHLBank was swallowed up by Southern Bank in 2001. He was game enough to come and he expressed great happiness and surprise to see the huge camaraderie among the people who once called Ban Hin Lee Bank their second home. A deep revelation to him. 


But the bank never really disappeared from the minds and hearts of many of us who once worked there. Maybe not everybody shared the same sentiment but for us who did, gatherings such as this one could only reinforce the friendship that had been built up through the decades: a friendship that cannot be forgotten easily just because the organisation exists no longer.

For most people, the friendship that matters the most in one's lives are the friendships that were nurtured during schooldays. Today, my old schoolmates - some going back to kindergarten days - count as among my good buddies.

However, it is something else to find friendship on a large scale among former colleagues from your working lives. Unless someone can prove me wrong, the former staff of the Ban Hin Lee Bank could be the only example where ties have remained steadfast despite the years. 

Of course, it helped that everyone had been affected together when the organisation ceased functioning in 2001. Simply put, it was an event that was beyond our control. Everyone was caught in the same turmoil and when the boat sank figuratively, everyone was thrown into the same deep end of the sea. For everyone of us who were affected, we now shared the same affinity for one another. 

Needless to say, we survived. One way or another, we survived. And so it is very natural that almost 12 years later, we remain thankful for the experience that had hardened us. Maybe somewhere along the way, there was after all something of real value and meaning in the bank's corporate culture because today, we are still able to come together, look each other deep in the eyes and greet one another as old friends. Battle-hardened old friends. 

Bao Sheng's durian timetable for 2013

This is the latest durian timetable for 2013, as released by my friend, Durian Seng, of the Bao Sheng Durian Farm in Sungai Pinang, Penang. I haven't attempted to clean up any of the text yet because I'd like the information to speak for itself:

New Durian time table - 2013年。新榴莲时间表 June July August

D604 1 - 23 June / 15 July - 5 August 2013 黄肉乾包。黏喉。香滑顺喉 rating 3+ 最低消费 RM10 起跳。顶级RM35/公斤

Lipan 蜈蚣 3 - 23 June / 17 July - 15 August 2013 米色。肉黏喉代苦。纯粹芳香。香滑顺喉 rating 4+ 最低消费 RM25 起跳。顶级RM55/公斤

Kunpoh angbak 坤宝红肉 3 June - 3 July / 15 July - 12 August 2013肉红。黏喉代苦。四十年树龄以上会代黑色。rating 4最低消费 RM20起跳。顶级RM45/公斤

Little red 小红 5 - 28 June / 15 July - 8 August 2013 肉红。香甜顺滑。rating 3+最低费 RM15 起跳。顶级RM25/公斤

D600 10 June - 2 July / 15 July - 5 August 2013 金黄色。味苦。rating 3+最低消费 RM15 起跳。顶级RM25/公斤

Kapri 甲必利 15 June - 5 July 2013 百色肉。味苦。纯粹芳香。四十年树龄以上会代黑色。rating 4+ 最低消费 RM20 起跳。顶级RM35/公斤

D11 十一号 15 June - 5 July / 20 July - 15 August 2013 肉米色。味香甜。黏喉。rating 4 最低消费 RM20 起跳。顶级RM35/公斤

Horlor 葫芦 18 June - 8 July / 1 - 20 August 2013 色金黄。黏喉。纯粹芳香。rating 5 最低消费 RM25 起跳 。顶级RM60/公斤

Red prawn 红虾 。季节 20 June - 8 July / 5 - 20 August 2013。色粉红。 味觉甜中代苦。纯粹芳香。肉嫩黏喉。顺滑可囗。果肉浓厚无纤维。四十年树龄以上会代黑色。而刚掉落会让舌尖有麻痹的感觉。挑战味蕾。叫馋舌为之颤愕。 Rating 5 Star 最低消费 RM30 起跳。顶级RM70/公斤

Green skin 青皮D15 18 June - 8 July 2013 色米黄。味甜代苦。肉嫩顺滑可囗。四十年树龄以上会代黑色。rating 4+ 最低消费 RM20 起跳。顶级RM45/公斤

D99 20 June - 10 July 2013 金黄色。甜中代苦。纯粹芳香。肉嫩黏喉。果肉浓厚 rating 3+ 最低消费 RM15 起跳。顶级RM35/公斤

D15 25 June - 15 July 2013 金黄色。甜中代苦。黏喉。果肉浓厚 rating 3-最低消费 RM15 起跳。顶级RM25/公斤

Kunjit 黄姜 20 June - 5 July / 20 July - 5 August 2013 深黄色。甜中代苦。黏喉。rating 4 最低消费 RM30 起跳。顶级RM55/公斤

Bak eu 白肉油 22 June - 5 July 2013 白色肉。甜中代苦。黏喉。纯粹芳香。果肉浓厚。rating 4+ 最低消费 RM20 起跳。顶级RM35/公斤

Ganjau 长帝 25 June - 15 July 2013 黄肉。甜中代苦。黏喉。果肉浓厚。rating 4 最低消费 RM15

Permatang Pauh it shall be

Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader in the recently dissolved Parliament, reassured his supporters that he would defend his parliamentary seat of Permatang Pauh in the coming 13th General Elections.

“While my intention was to help the campaign in Perak and if I look at it rationally and strategically, it would have to be Tambun but because of the heart, soul, relationship and spirit of Permatang Pauh in their support for me, I have to defend my seat,” he said.

Anwar announced his decision at a ceramah at Taman Pauh amidst cheering from a crowd that I had estimated to be about 5,000 strong.

Pangguni Uthiram festival, Bukit Mertajam

This set of pictures of the Pangguni Uthiram festival in Bukit Mertajam was recorded on 26 March 2013 which was 10 days ago. I just had the time to review them and pick the best for display in this blog.

Methinks, this festival in Bukit Mertajam rivals the main Thaipusam festival on the island in terms of popularity among the Indians. There is also a chariot procession during the day followed by a fire-walking ceremony at the 120-year-old Sri Mangalanayagi Amman Devasthanam Temple in Kulim Road but I was not able to find the time to witness them.

The small Sri Rutra Kaliamman Temple in Jalan Sepakat, hardly a 10 minutes' walk from my house, was one of the starting points for the procession to the Sri Mangalanayagi Amman Devasthanam Temple. 

Inside the compound of the Sri Rutra, various groups of devotees were in various stages of getting themselves ready to wind their way to the main temple. It would be a 2½-kilometre walk, normally taking perhaps about 30 minutes, but with all the pitstops at the temporary temple sheds along the way where the devotees would be required to dance before their deities amidst loud blaring music, the journey could take even as long as two hours to complete.

Although I've witnessed the ceremonies at the Sri Rutra temple once or twice before, every Pangguni Uthiram festival brings a fresh experience to me. There are always new things to behold. And some old things too, if I may add. 

But really, I don't have to go out to Penang and get myself caught up in the massive traffic jams along Western Road just to see the same, similar sort of celebrations at Thaipusam. Here then are some of the more interesting human nature pictures I recorded in Bukit Mertajam 10 days ago.

 

Did I mention that I also came across some old familiar sights? Well, here is one. A cart being pulled by a Chinese devotee. I've noticed him before. He joins in the festival every year, face all decorated with little hooks and chains and with big ropes attached to the big hooks on his back, and he will pull this cart all the way till journey's end. 

Malaysia deserves better!

Open Letter By DAP Secretary-General Lim Guan Eng To All Malaysian Voters Following The Dissolution Of Parliament To Make Way For The 13th General Elections:

To All Malaysians Who Believe That Malaysia Deserves Better

As we count down towards this ground-breaking 13th General Election, you can play a significant role in changing the course of our country’s history. By simply daring to change, you bring a brighter future for a Malaysia free from fear, free from ignorance and free from corruption.

Malaysia Deserves Better!

This historic general election will be about the economy and which party has the correct policies, ideas, ideals and principles to make our livelihood better.

Malaysia is caught in a middle-income trap. Many find it hard to believe that in 1966 Malaysia’s GDP per capita of USD350 was ahead of South Korea’s USD130. Almost fifty years later, Malaysia has improved to USD9,977 whilst South Korea jumped ahead of Malaysia to USD22,424.

Since March 2008, a two-party system gives us both a choice but also make our choices count. Countries that were once less developed than us like South Korea and Taiwan have transformed into high-income economies while we remain stuck in the middle-income trap.

In 1963, Malaysians were richer than the Koreans and Taiwanese, with a per capita income of 13.6% relative to US income, whereas Korea and Taiwan per capita incomes were both lower at 10.7% and 12.6% respectively. Fifty years later today, Malaysia is way behind being only half as rich as Korea and Taiwan.

There are three critical success factors namely a functioning democracy, fighting corruption and building human talents. Bad governments that fail to deliver are replaced through democratic elections by good governments resulting in progressive reforms and improvements. Corrupt leaders are replaced by those with integrity. And the country’s prosperity is underpinned by building and retraining human talent.

The greatest gift that a good government can bestow to our future generation is not cash handouts but knowledge, education, a just system with integrity and equal opportunity. Only then can we live with dignity and our young live better than us.

Malaysia Deserves Better.

In contrast to these two countries, Malaysia is No.1 in the world in terms of illegal capital flight per capita, with a loss of RM32,000 for every Malaysian, which is more than even China with a loss of RM6,400 per capita during the same period of time. No wonder then, that our national debt has doubled from RM267 billion in 2007 to over RM502 billion today, five years later.

To top it off, Malaysia has been running a budget deficit for 15 years in a row. The last time Malaysia recorded a surplus was when Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim was Deputy Prime Minister. It is imperative that he be elected as Prime Minister to put Malaysia back in the black.

By learning from South Korea’s three critical success factors, we can arrest Malaysia’s graceful decline. Pakatan Rakyat has proven that we can run a clean, accountable and transparent state governments. We have overturned deficits into surpluses, reduced our state debts, increased our assets and reserves, and managed to save billions of public funds through open competitive tenders. More importantly, we have channelled our savings to the people through our people-centric social programmes. With your help and support, we can do the same for Malaysia.

Malaysia Deserves Better!

I also wish to assure you that policies which will benefit the people will not bankrupt our country – only corruption will. Our promises in our Pakatan Rakyat Manifesto amounting to RM46 billion can easily be funded by an “anti-corruption dividend” of 25% from the RM206 billion worth of annual government procurements and projects. Twenty-five percent amounts to RM51 billion in savings that we can potentially reap, which is more than enough to pay for our promises.

Let us move forward to an international and intelligent state – one that educates and nurtures talent; one that promotes and rewards diligence, expertise and entrepreneurship; one that is liveable by being clean, green, safe and healthy; and one that practices integrity, justice and people-centric governance.

Malaysia Deserves Better.

The only progress is change. Only when you have the courage to change, then can you live with dignity. The time has come for us to connect with each other as Malaysian brothers and sisters.

Where your problems be it Malay, Chinese Indian, Kadazan or Iban are our problems. Where your leaders, are our leaders. And where your children, are also our children. And where your hopes are our aspirations.

We do not want to fear the government but the government to fear us. Join us in giving hope to you and the young.

Let us connect with each other so that we can face the challenges of the future together. In preparing for the future, let us not let BN steal our children’s future as they have stolen ours for the last 56 years. Ini kali lah!

Malaysia Deserves Better.

Sincerely,
Lim Guan Eng
DAP Secretary-General

Insipid announcement

At long last, Najib Abdul Razak announced the dissolution of the Malaysian Parliament this morning after 11.30a.m. I didn't manage to catch the whole announcement but just a snippet of it where he was trying to justify the accomplishments of his government. What the fuck, with him looking so sombre, it sounded more like an apology of sorts to me. Rather pathetic. Lukewarm. Didn't inspire much confidence at all.

Oh Cheng Chan, Part 2

Last October, I managed to trace an old newspaper clipping from 16 July 1897 - that's 116 years ago - that reported the death of a man named Oh Cheng Chan who happened to be my great-great-grandfather. While trying to flee from a robbery at a house in Waterfall Road, he suffered some severe physical injuries.

Only a few days ago, I uncovered another old newspaper clipping from the same year (13 July 1897) which gave a little bit more insight on the robbery.

"On Saturday last, between the hours of 9 and 10 pm, the house of Mr. Cheah Chen Eok called "Villue", on the top of a little hillock in the Waterfall Road was entered by a party of gang robbers, numbering about 15 men and jewellery to the amount of about $8,000 removed. It appears that, although a considerable number of Mr. Cheah Chen Eok's friends were in the house, no resistance was offered, the inmates making themselves scarce. No clue has yet been found as to the robbers."

Cross-referencing this information with the calendar from 1897, I can safely determine that the robbery happened on 10 July 1897 (the Saturday mentioned) and my unfortunate great-great-grandfather passed away on 14 July 1897 (the following Wednesday).

And the only other conclusion that I can garner from the news report is that he and Cheah Chen Eok, the millionaire who built the 60-foot Queen Victoria memorial clock tower at the Esplanade in George Town, knew one another. I surmise that my old ancestor must have been a regular visitor to Cheah's mansion in Waterfall Road, Penang. The mansion must have been splendid but all that remains of it now are the entrance and the steps behind it, which people in Penang now refer to as Moon Gate. Today, this is a popular starting point for people to walk up Penang Hill.

As the house was built on a hillock, the window from which he jumped must have been of a considerable height from the ground. At the height of the robbery, I suppose the window must have appeared as a plausible escape route to him and others. Whether they reckoned with its height from the ground, especially if the ground was uneven and undulating, nobody knows. But what I suspect is that my old ancestor must have landed awkwardly on his feet while trying to break his fall, fractured the bones in his thigh and possibly suffered some other serious internal injuries. Suffering four days before dying, wow, the man must have been in great pain.

In the last few days too, ever since I learnt of this fresh information, I got to know that Cheah Chen Eok's wife was a daughter of another Penang millionaire, the very influential Foo Tye Sin. Obviously, she was a Foo, which is the Hakka version of the Oh surname which my great-great-grandfather possessed.

It bothers me some that I've reached a dead end presently as I've been unable to trace her full name or whether my old ancestor had any blood ties at all with Foo Tye Sin. All the authoritative books or old newspapers that I've read so far bore no further information about any of Foo Tye Sin's daughters.

Time to control our own destiny

I'm actually quite sick and tired. Sick and tired of what, you may ask. I'm sick and tired of hearing one particular question being asked ad nauseam wherever I turn. I go and meet with friends at the market, I'm asked the question. I go for meetings and functions, I'm asked the question. I go attend my friend's book launch, I hear the same question. And lately, people are also asking me the very same question on facebook as well.

I tell you, I am sick and tired. As if I'm Mr Know It All. As if I'm the Prime Minister of the country.

Well, I am not Mr Know It All. And I am not the Prime Minister of Malaysia. Therefore, I cannot tell you what you want to hear. Go and ask him, lah, don't ask me! Go and ask the "no balls" Prime Minister when he is daring enough to dissolve Parliament and call for a General Election. Might be tomorrow, maybe in April or ... perhaps never, if he has his way! Whatever, he is just making a mockery of the democratic and election processes...

I tell you what. We have got to unshackle ourselves from past convention. Now is no longer the time for the citizens to be completely beholden to the Prime Minister. Especially when we have one like Najib Abdul Razak. He thinks he can still hold the country to ransom by not dissolving Parliament. And because of that, we keep hearing that oft-repeated question ad nauseam (again and again and again), and we think we cannot do anything about it.

But there is really something we can do. Maybe not the whole country can do it, but certainly what we in Penang, Selangor, Kelantan and Kedah can do. Funny that suddenly I remember that we are living in the Pakatan Rakyat states.

We don't have to wait for the Prime Minister to dissolve Parliament before we dissolve our own respective State Assemblies, right? We hold our own destinies in our own hands, right? We can still force the issue in our own little ways, right? What if the respective Chief Ministers and Menteri Besars ask their Governors and Sultans for dissolution of their State Assemblies, right?

It may be unprecedented but I am sure it can be done. After all, the Selangor Menteri Besar had already threatened to dissolve his own State Assembly after the Chinese New Year but have not done so yet. So why don't the three other Pakatan-controlled states take the cue from this man and collectively dissolve their State Assemblies?

I'm sure if the four states were to do this together, it will put a lot of pressure on the Prime Minister to do what's right for the country and that is to dissolve Parliament - now, immediately, at once, instantly, promptly, right away, without further delay - and call for the General Elections. If he can do that, only then would I say that finally, he has recovered his own lost balls.

Forty-plus years of friendship

Really shouldn't miss occasions such as this. Old school pals getting together for a long jaw. This picture was taken on Saturday night. In case anyone's wondering, this was the CF hawker centre in Weld Quay, Penang. It's right opposite the Chew Jetty, at the corner of Weld Quay and Armenian Street Ghaut. Can't miss it; always full of people at all hours.

In the picture: Teik Wah, myself, Kah Theang, Andrew, Thuan Chye and his wife.

Get more of Thuan Chye's bullshit, won't you?

I received the invitation quite a while ago. Kee Thuan Chye, and old classmate from my secondary school days, had emailed to invite me to the official launch of his latest book, "Ask for no bullshit, get some more." I promised him that I would be there at the refurbished Loke Thye Kee at the corner of Penang Road and Burmah Road.

So when 6.30p.m. (the appointed time) came around yesterday, I duly made my way to the Loke Thye Kee, climbed the flight of stairs and ... squeezed into a hall already filled with people. I wasn't even the first few on the scene. Scores of people had already taken up the best seats in the house and I had to pick my way gingerly to the front where I could spy some still empty seats.

Looked around and noticed a few familiar faces. There, right in front of me were Kah Theang and Andrew, while further away were Teik Wah and his wife, Jo, and Oon Hup. Also mingling in the hall were Philip, Teck Chye and Esther, Swee Heng and his wife, Soo Hay, Ban Seang and Boo Yeang.

Boo Yeang was instrumental in getting the book's official launch going again after the embarrassing fiasco at the Penang Club. He saw the injustice and started looking for another venue for the launch. It helped that Ban Seang was the main man behind Food People and could offer the Loke Thye Kee as the alternative venue.

But what was this fiasco that I had just mentioned? Well, it was last month that we got to know that the Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng, had agreed to launch Thuan Chye's book at the Penang Club premises on 28 Feb. The launch would be followed by a forum titled "After GE13, where to, Malaysia?"

All arrangements had been finalised but then, two days before the event, the Club's management developed cold feet and told Thuan Chye that he could no longer use their premises. According to Thuan Chye, the club would no longer allow the Chief Minister to officially launch the book at their premises.

This about-turn has many implications but the most serious among them was the disrespect that the Penang Club had shown to the office of the state's chief executive. Even the Chief Minister himself had said later that this was a serious error of judgment that can never been forgotten.

Anyway, the Penang Club's loss was now the Loke Thye Kee's gain. The place was quite filled with well-wishers that had come for the launch, as can be seen from the picture below, taken at about 6.45p.m.

Everybody was expecting the Chief Minister to arrive at 7p.m. but a call came to say that his arrival would be delayed by about 15 minutes because his car had broken down. He was somewhere along Perak Road then. Here's me with Thuan Chye soon afterwards.

By then, the crowd was getting a bit impatient and in order to fill in the time before the Chief Minister's arrival, Thuan Chye decided to do some readings from his book. His favourite fall guy was, of course, the former Prime Minister. Everytime he spoke of him, I could feel the sarcasm oozing out from every syllable he uttered. The crowd loved it, by the way, judging from the responses to his readings.

Ah, so finally, at 7.25p.m. the Chief Minister arrived. Strange, no stains on his clothes. No dirt on his fingers. I guess somebody else must have repaired the car for him. Ha ha...

With the CM now present, the programme finally got on its way. I was holding on to my breath when Thuan Chye gave his speech. Would he, or won't he? Those who were there at his last official book launch at Clove Hall in Penang last year would remember that he had let rip with an expletive aimed at Guan Eng's direction. All in good, clean fun, but still he managed to shock everyone, including his guest. But there was no repetition here. Thuan Chye kept his speech very tame, I must say, perhaps leaving it to the CM to provide the fireworks. And at last, Guan Eng spoke. I think he was less prepared to speak at this book launch as compared to last year. But he did speak well off-the-cuff and he made quite a lot of mention of the Penang Club fiasco. The crowd hung onto every word he said.

And as can be seen, the crowd had swelled until it was only standing room at the back of the Loke Thye Kee. My estimate: about a 200-strong presence. Oh, by the way, Ban Seang, the air-conditioning was not powerful enough. Maybe you should consider installing more powerful units if you plan to have more functions like this in the future.

And this was the moment of the launch. The unveiling of the red cloth by the book's publisher, and watched by Guan Eng, Thuan Chye's wife and the members of the forum. That's Liew Chin Tong in the picture. He confirmed the already known fact that he would be contesting in a Johor parliamentary seat in the coming General Elections.

Nothing much to say about this last picture, is there?