PIPE

This is what my current job consist of. Witnessing the discharge of structural steel from vessels such as this, which just reached from Korea. I'm the one in white, BTW.






























































My G and I during her KL trip in May. Went to Swiss Garden Apartments in Lumut, palm-reading in Petaling Street and casino in Genting.

Thursday June 19, 2008

Sabah feels the strain

ALONG THE WATCHTOWER
By M. VEERA PANDIYAN

Pressure is mounting in the Land Below the Wind over the long-standing issue of illegal immigrants. The citizens there are fed up with constant lip service from the Federal Government promising to resolve the social problem.

FLIGHTS from Kota Kinabalu to Kuala Lumpur tend to start with a whiff of anchovies, dried prawns and salted fish wafting through the cabin. Thankfully, the odours are diffused as the plane’s air-con vents are opened before take off.

Given the taste and cheaper price, the ikan bilis, udang kering, and ikan kering are must-buy items to bring back from Sabah. Besides, the sellers at the Filipino market are impressive packers. They cut, fold and tie-up used cartons to resemble handy cases.

The busy market where T-shirts, trinkets and handicraft are also sold was among the last stops for my colleagues from the National Press Club who were on a goodwill tour to Sabah last weekend.

The trip, made memorable by the participation of fellow journalists from Sarawak, included a climb to Mt Kinabalu, white-water rafting and an island hop, besides meetings and dinners with fellow media folk, politicians and corporate leaders.

As we were leaving with our haul, a party of sorts was in full swing next to the famous market. A boisterous crowd gathered under a gaudy yellow tent decorated with balloons and posters. Teens strutted their moves to the beat of a Filipino hip-hop hit blasting from the speakers.

The makeshift show, conducted mostly in Tagalog and a smattering of Bahasa Malaysia by a DJ, was to promote the services of a money transfer company. Such spectacles are apparently common in KK where Filipinos are prominent.

The niche market is big enough for business to boom. And that’s just counting the “legals” with documents.

As for the illegal immigrants, it has been estimated that there are between 1.7 million and two million both from the Philippines and Indonesia. About half of them reputedly hold Malaysian identity cards, enjoying all rights of citizenship, including voting.

Then there are also the glue-sniffing street kids, abandoned offspring of illegal immigrants, groups classified as refugees, and the hordes that move freely from the permeable Sabah coastline to islands in Philippines and Indonesia.

No one knows the actual number of these people although the problem has been highlighted for decades. As such, it was no surprise that the recent announcement to set up a Cabinet committee on illegal immigrants was greeted with a big yawn.

The decision has only reinforced Sabahans’ views that the Federal Government is not serious about resolving the issue.

Besides DAP and PKR, Sabah Umno’s partners in the state Barisan Nasional, too, have openly dismissed the Cabinet committee, pointing out that similar panels were set up 2000 and 2006 with no tangible results. They feel that only a Royal Commission of Inquiry can resolve the problem.

Datuk Yong Teck Lee, the moustachioed and side-burned SAPP president, whose party declared that it had lost confidence in the leadership of the Prime Minister yesterday, has repeatedly questioned the Government’s reluctance in addressing the matter squarely.

He said tackling the issue of illegal immigrants should be the basic duty of any government as it is a matter of national sovereignty.

The age-old anxiety over the aliens has heightened in the wake of the Moro National Liberation Front’s former leader Nur Misuari’s touted threat to contest the ownership claim of Sabah at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Yong has demanded that the National Security Council (NSC) closely monitor developments in the southern Philippines, impose tighter immigration controls and even suspend ferry services between Zamboanga in Philippines and Sandakan.

But some leaders are of the opinion that closing the borders to people with long historical ties might result in bigger and costlier problems. Disruption of traditional business such as the dried seafood trade and other sources of income, they say, could lead to social unrest.

The risk of the insurgency in the poverty-stricken areas of southern Philippines shifting closer to home is certainly real.

Like Yong, Upko’s deputy president Datuk Wilfred Bumburing has been jittery over the rising number of aliens and Nur Misuari’s challenge.

The Tuaran MP has already warned Parliament that Malaysia could end up losing a much bigger piece of land than Batu Puteh if it did not do something about the problem.

Among the questions being bandied about now are: What if the matter goes to the ICJ and a referendum like the Cobbold Commission under which Sabah joined Malaysia is called? Which side will the immigrants with ICs vote for?

The breaking point has come for Sabahans. Besides the loss of jobs and opportunities, locals fear that the number of aliens had risen to levels that threaten to dilute their political strength and influence.

Their apprehension is understandable. For a state blessed with abundant natural resources, including vast areas of forests and oil and gas deposits, the poverty level is indeed appalling.

Anthea Mulakala, Asia Foundation’s representative in Malaysia reported recently that 24% of households in the Land Below the Wind live below the national poverty line.

Child poverty rate is 42% and more than one fifth of the population aged six and above has never been to school.

As she put it, Malaysia “enjoys the unflattering distinction of having the highest Gini coefficient in Southeast Asia, attributable to the high incidence of poverty in Eastern Malaysia. Sabah’s GDP per capita is less than 50% of the national average.”

(The Gini coefficient, developed by Italian statistician Corrado Gini, is used to show the degree of income inequality between different groups of households in the population. It is also used to show how inequality of incomes has been changing over a period of time.)

Mulakala also pointed out that most of Sabah and also Sarawak’s poor come from the non-Malay bumiputra population (61% of Sabah and more than 50% of Sarawak), highlighting the reality that the NEP has not been successful in alleviating these indigenous people from poverty.

But the natives are not taking it lying down anymore like they used to, especially after the latest round of fuel hikes. At the Pesta Kaamatan (Harvest Festival) gatherings, their rumblings were clearly heard amid the usual guzzling of lihing (rice wine).

The pressure is certainly piling up on the politicians, particularly non-Umno leaders of BN, most of whom are not as vocal as Yong. At the Pesta Kaamatan at Ulu Kionsom in Inanam, the SAPP chief said pressing for urgent solutions to Sabah’s problems should not be misconstrued as threats.

“We just want to make it clear to them. No point in puji puji (praising), sokong penuh (fully supporting), kissing the hand, angkat kaki (carrying the legs) anymore. These are not what the people want to convey to the national leadership through the component parties and MPs,” he said.

M. Veera Pandiyan, Deputy Editor, New Media feels that politicians in the peninsula can learn a lot about religious and ethnic harmony from fellow Malaysians in Sabah and Sarawak.

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/5/15/nation/21249868&sec=nation

Sabah for Sabahans

COMMENT BY FUI K. SOONG

The disenfranchisement and the resentment in Sabah towards federal politics and policies are very real, realities created by the BN administration. The dynamics that are being witnessed today is just a situation ripe to play mind games with.

SABAH for Sabahans” gained its zenith of popularity during the Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) rule in the state.

To a puritan federalist it is almost treasonable. But to many proud Sabahans who remember the 1980’s struggles, it was a term that gave rise to a generation of Sabahans whose political consciousness was awoken by a sense of identity that was multi-racial, open and most of all, confident. We stood tall because we had dared challenge the federal regime of the day.

With all the talk of Sabah MPs crossing over to Pakatan Rakyat, and if anyone believes this to be another wave of Sabah defiance, they are dead wrong.

Sabahans still stand in awe when we see the shape of Mount Kinabalu sitting in the blue hues of our state flag. And in reality, the mountain is an awesome sight by itself. “Sabah Maju Jaya” is still sung with great pride by every Sabahan with no exception to any race.

We should be so insulted to be painted as a bunch of shenanigans with no virtue, moral standing or principles.

The disenfranchisement and the resentment towards federal politics and policies thus far, are very real. But these are realities created by the BN rule. The dynamics that we witness today is just a situation ripe to play mind games with.

Sabahans have to live every day of their lives alongside reportedly, two million illegal immigrants compared to one million locals. Their children litter the streets in the cities begging for scraps and odd jobs, unable to attend school, as they have no official papers.

By the day, Kota Kinabalu is looking more like Manila than Malaysia. By any moral standard, how can we allow poverty and human suffering to come to this level – whether or not we choose to recognise them as full citizens is another matter.

Sabah ranked from being the richest state in 1970’s to being the poorest state. Using UNDP’s numbers, Sabah has a poverty rate of 23.0% compared to Wilayah Persekutuan-KL of 1.5%!

In the district of Nabawan, the poverty rate is as high as 70.8%, as 21,568 households live in hardcore poverty. The dropout rate is 50%, twice the national figure and most schools located in the rural areas are equipped with very poor facilities.

Children are so poor that they do not even have soap to clean themselves with. Children attend classes naked because parents sell their free uniforms to feed their families.

In the Ninth Malaysia Plan, the total allocation for Sabah makes up 7.69% compared with 15.06% for the Federal Territories.

These are just hard numbers.

Sabah won 24 out of 25 seats contested. However, it’s still only 25 seats out of the 140 seats garnered by the BN. The lack of representation at ministerial level in truth is limited when both the states combined only represent 1.7 million out of the 10.9 million registered voters.

While Sabah and Sarawak may have held a crucial deciding factor to retain BN’s simple majority in this elections, many of the seats were won due to lack of cohesion among the Opposition parties. The extent of gerrymandering also contributed to no small amount to BN’s wins in the state.

Is this why Sabah representatives often complain that they are not treated with respect in all the political platforms from the Cabinet to grassroots, including those within their parties?

Today, both sides of the political fence paint Anwar Ibrahim in the same breath as how we saw Pairin Kitingan or PBS in the 80’s.

To begin with, Anwar Ibrahim is no Sabahan. In the 90’s, he was Finance Minister and PM-in-waiting “hero-rised” as a leader with international stature but in small-town Sabah, the people saw him as no more than an errand boy for Tun Dr Mahathir.

That said, has there been a credible Sabah leader that has been able to articulate our pain and concerns?

Is it really about more representation in the Cabinet and more royalties? Younger generations of Sabahans, unlike previous decades, are less likely to be anti-Federal.

Many of them have studied in Peninsular Malaysia in both private and public colleges and universities. They know what is like to live in a greater Malaysia beyond their Sabah shores.

Most also know that the 20-point agreement (signed when Sabah joined Malaysia) cannot be practically implemented if we are to finally come to terms with being part of Malaysia.

But what does it mean to be a Sabahan when two-thirds of the population are illegals? If the BN government does not want the situation to be hijacked by the Opposition, this is the first thing it must address – bring back what matters most to Sabah, our land.

The illegal migrant situation has become so bad that we already have a second, if not third generation of Filipinos and Indonesians born in Sabah.

In the name of humanity, I am not sure if we can even morally deport them without causing social mayhem and a localised economic collapse. But we need a definite closure because we need to move on.

“Sabah for Sabahans” conjures a lot of idealism as well as realities for many Sabahans even today but it does not mean we are less proud of who we are and what we still stand for. RESPECT and DIGNITY.

Whoever captures that, gets to rule.

Fui K. Soong is CEO of Institute of Strategic Analysis and Policy Research (INSAP), a think tank of MCA, an organisation dedicated to research on the removal of barriers and bias in policies that impede Malaysian unity, racial harmony and economic prosperity. You can e-mail her at fui4545@yahoo.com.

Sunburst 2008 was worth the RM173 ticket.

My fave local band Love Me Butch managed to play halfway through the set because of the heavy rain. Syahrul's fly was undone almost throughout the whole time on stage.

Missed the Gigi show.

Hujan, Incognito, The Roots, Estranged (terpaksa), the blind dude, Che'Nelle (ini pun terpaksa) and of course John Legend and Incubus were superb.



















































With Jean, Juju and her 2 brothers, Khat and "Aminul's sister" and Shahrul. And the Coca-Cola shade under the rain.

Had lunch with the BMW Sauber F1 drivers Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica in KLCC.





















Some fellas who came won some friggin' cool BMW Sauber caps and backpacks. Those bastards. Ha-ha. At least I got a cool lanyard, autographed posters and some useless club magazines.

I'm no F1 fan but I'll be rooting for them. Fuck Alonso, Raikonnen and Hamilton. =P

So like I'm back in West Malaysia. Started working early February in a company in Kuala Lumpur. I miss my family, Jill, cousins, friends, karaoke, food and the free time I had back in lovely Sabah.

Fuck politricks.

Fuck the police.

Fuck Shaun Kingstone.

Fuck Acorn.

... and everything Insane Clown Posse says.

Oh, spear Britney! Enough with her already.

By the way, we need good movies. Movies nowadays suck.

So does rock music.

Ah, let it all go.

So like I'm planning to get either an XBOX360 or a PS3. Can't make up my mind yet.

I know this is quite late but COD4 is fucking awesome. So are the JabbaWockeeZ.

RIP, Arthur C. Clarke.

We need more Whose Line Is It Anyways, Demetri Martin, J. J. Abrams, The House Band and Coheed and Cambria.

Oh, enough with Ferrari and McLaren. Enough with Manchester United and Chelsea. Enough with Nadal. Enough with the war.

Done.

P/S Aliens do exist.

Guess where I just came back from.















I must say that the people in Bandung are seriously nice and go the extra mile to help you around. My lady and I were there for 3 nights and the people were lovely and the food was excellent.

Having our first meal in a roadside stall. Awesome 'mie ayam' which costs about RM1.90.












Having our 'pisang bolen' somewhere around Bandung. Sweet.

















Outside Bandung Indah Plaza.


















Outside Patradisa Guesthouse.


















Inside the Angkutan Kota. Our main mode of transportation around Bandung. Cheap, reliable, fast. All you need in a cab, I mean a minivan :)











Angkutan Kota.













Some donut shop inside Bandung Super Mall.


















First time at Wendy's in Jalan Braga, Bandung


















Outside the Argo Gede train from Bandung to Jakarta.












Inside the 3-hour train ride to Jakarta.













View from the train of the paddy fields there were simply breathtaking.












At the Stasiun Kereta Api Gambir, Jakarta. We only stayed in Jakarta for 3 hours as there were just too many people, cars etc.











Satay!

Holla everyone.

So I graduated. Went to Phuket with my girl. I forgot to bring my digicam so had to resort to a disposable camera which, as you can see, is really bad.

Phuket town


















Rooftop lodge in Phuket town












Phuket Fantasea












Phuket Fantasea












Simon Cabaret


















Mall in Patong


















Bangla Road, Patong


















Lost in Patong


















Karlsson's in Patong












Patong Beach


















Bus from Phuket town to Patong












Bye bye Phuket


















Went for the World Music Festival in Penang.

Batu Ferringhi beach.














Some Buddhist temple.













My friends and some of the performers of the second night.












Group picture before we were interviewed for Channel V.

(I had a blog for Marion when she was in 8TV before... big big crush on her, my legs were shaking just standing next to her)








My convocation in August.

My dad and mom.













My small group of friends.













Was also a bestman for one of friends sisters wedding, since they could not find one.

Men trying to be boys