The Light of Knight's Mind

Tribute to My Grandpa: Dato` Jaafar Hassan

2011-04-17T14:56:00.003+09:00

DATUK JAAFAR BIN HASSAN S.P.M.P.; D.A. (SARAWAK), P.J.K.; J.P.
MENTERI BESAR PERLIS YANG KELIMA
Dilahirkan pada 16 Mei 1925 di Kampung Jarak, Mukim Bintong, Kangar, Perlis. Mendapat pendidikan awal di Sekolah Melayu Bintong. Selepas tamat persekolahan, beliau menjadi guru pelatih dan bertugas di Sekolah Melayu Kayang sebelum ditawarkan mengikuti pendidikan perguruan di Maktab Perguruan Sultan Idris, Tanjung Malim, Perak.. Pengajiannya tidak dapat diteruskan akibat peperangan dunia dan ketika itu Tanah Melayu jatuh ke tangan Jepun. Beliau diberi peluang menjadi Penolong Penghulu di Mukim Kayang dan seterusnya dilantik sebagai Penghulu di Beseri selama 16 tahun. Datuk Jaafar juga mengikuti kursus pentadbiran dan pertanian di Pusat Pertanian Serdang, Selangor pada sesi 1948-1949. Pada akhir tahun 1950-an, beliau diberikan tugas sebagai Setiausaha Kebajikan Negeri ber Ibu pejabat di Sekretariat dan merupakan jawatan dalam Perkhidmatan Awam Negeri (SCS).

Di atas semangat untuk memajukan diri dalam bidang akademik, beliau telah mendapat pangkat dua dalam Senior Cambridge setelah berusaha sendiri dan mengikuti kelas bimbingan pada waktu malam bagi mengikuti kelas Bahasa Inggeris. Berkelulusan Ijazah Undang-Undang dari Lincoln’s Inn, London pada tahun 1961. Beliau memegang jawatan Pengadil Litar di Mahkamah Kangar sebelum menceburkan diri dalam bidang guaman dengan menjadi Peguambela dan Peguamcara di Alor Setar dan Kangar sambil bergiat dalam politik di Perlis. Pada tahun 1969, beliau telah memenangi pilihanraya kawasan Sanglang dan telah dilantik sebagai Ahli Majlis Mesyuarat Kerajaan Negeri di bawah pimpinan Dato’ Sheikh Ahmad Mohd Hashim. Selepas Dato’ Sheikh Ahmad mengundurkan diri, beliau dilantik menjadi Menteri Besar yang kelima. Beliau pulang ke rahmatullah pada 25 September 1987.

Makmal Sains Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Syed Alwi ketika dibuka dengan resminya oleh YAB Datuk Jaafar b. Hassan pada 7 November 1973

reference from: http://d40xn.blogspot.com/
http://www.jpnperlis.gov.my/smksyedalwi/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=2&Itemid=192

Thanks & Best Regards,

CEO award - more than just high recognition

2009-02-18T00:49:00.003+09:00

AIRASIA boss Datuk Tony Fernandes is a well-known entrepreneur, with a string of awards behind his name, for making his popular low-cost carrier a household name in Malaysia and the region.

However, there is one award that Fernandes won in 2002-2003, that he will always remember well - the Business Times-sponsored Malaysian CEO of the Year Award, which he won when piloting his then fledgling carrier to greater heights.

"Winning the award then definitely raised AirAsia's and my profile. The timing was good as we went from a company viewed with scepticism to a widely accepted concept for air travel," he said in an interview.

Fernan-des rose to prominence by turning AirAsia from a fledgling government-linked commercial airline into a highly successful public-listed company.

The CEO of the Year Award recognised the fact that although AirAsia was a small airline when it first took off, it was starting to make a difference with Fernandes at the helm. It also noted that the unique management style practised by him certainly differentiated its business from others in the industry.

The annual award generally recognises high quality entrepreneurial and managerial expertise and performance among leaders of Malaysian corporations.

Fernandes, however, said that while CEOs of corporations win awards such as the one awarded by Business Times, there is more to gaining such recognition.

"For me, it is not just the CEO himself who gains. When I won the award, it was also received on behalf of my team and company and it spurred me to do more for them. You are only as good as your team," he said.
"Award winners must also share their experiences with others to enable more people to gain perspectives from them."

On suggestions that past winners of the CEO of the Year Award form an alumni to share their experiences with budding corporate leaders and give back to society and the corporate world, Fernandes said it was a good idea, but such an alumni must have specific purposes.

"It would be a good idea to have a get-together of past winners of the CEO of the Year Award at least once a year, but it has to have a purpose. We should use the group to share experiences for the benefit of others," he said.

He said his personal choice of activity for such an alumni would be to speak to schoolchildren and students to give them perspectives on career choices early in life and guide them to where they want to go in their vocation.

"I find it hard to lecture to others, but to exchange views with young kids would be a good thing," he added.

"My advice to corporate leaders aspiring to be award winners is that you are only as good as your team. That is why it is important that you have a strong team and because of the team you are also able to win an award."

Key components of effective strategic management

2009-02-18T00:44:00.001+09:00

DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT (Part V)

MANY organisations still prefer to be measured solely on their bottomline performance, taking cognisance mainly of marketing, financial and operation management to represent the core operations of their business.

However, there is a growing number of farsighted and successful organisations incorporating "development management" as part and parcel of their mainstream management activity.

The predominant components of development management include, human asset management, research and development (R&D) and management information systems.

Human Asset Management

Human asset can be an enigma to an organisation in that it can be the most gratifying asset or the most insidious liability. Therefore human asset management has become particularly challenging for both local and international organisations.

There is an increasing awareness of how important human resources are to effective strategic management. They can be more involved and proactive to all activities undertaken by the organisation to ensure that actual operations conform as planned.

For the staff to be involved, they have to be motivated. Management must influence their staff convincingly without prejudice to work hard in order to accomplish specific objectives.

Communication plays a major component in motivation. Two-way communication is vital in gaining support for the organisation's objectives and policies. It also encourages staff to voice their concerns, reveal their problems, give recommendations and provide possible suggestions to solutions.

The next step after communication would be empowerment. A term which suggests the need to go beyond just communication; to that of decision-making. Therefore, authority must be given to this function to be effective, and the decision-making can be contained between the set "upper and lower" acceptable limits.

Without doubt, training of staff is absolutely important and must be continuous. Training should cover induction and on-the-job training on various new skills. With the ever frequent development changes in business practices, the workforce must be trained and retrained on new technology and methods of doing business in order to remain competent, competitive and relevant.

Research and Development

Not many organisations conduct R&D. Organisations who invest in R&D strongly believe that it will lead to producing superior products and services that would give them the competitive edge to address the changing consumer tastes and needs, new technologies, shortened product life cycles, and aggravated domestic and global competition.

The role of R&D in an organisation should support the execution of business, help launch new business, improve product quality, develop new products, improve production efficiency, and advance as well as expand the organisation's technological capabilities.

The cost for R&D activities may vary by company and industry. However, it would be prudent that total R&D costs do not exceed the manufacturing and marketing start-up costs.

Management Information Services

Information links all business functions and provide the basis for all business decisions. An effective management information system collects, codes, stores, syntheses and produces customised information that addresses and improves important operating and strategic issues.

Data collected from the internal functional activities and the external business economic and technological environment are integrated to support management decisions.

Data can only become relevant if they are evaluated, filtered, condensed, analysed and arranged for a specific purpose/problem in a given time frame.

The benefits of an effective management system are improved understanding of business operations, improved communication, a better analysis of issues and more informed decision-making.

As business organisations are becoming more complex, decentralised and globally dispersed, the role of information systems is growing more in importance. Management information systems allow organisations to establish distinctive competencies in their respective industries.

Therefore, the importance of development management, though supportive in nature to an organisation's operations, cannot and should not be underscored.

Know buying trends to stay ahead

2009-02-18T00:38:00.003+09:00

MARKETING MANAGEMENT
(Part III)

MARKETING management is the process of defining, anticipating, creating and fulfilling customer needs and wants for products and services. Therefore serious attention is required to focus on the marketing functions, to identify and evaluate the marketing strengths and weaknesses of an organisation, for any appropriate response for change to address customer needs and wants.

It starts with the products and services planning, which includes test marketing, brand positioning, design and packaging, features and options, and quality and customer service.

Test marketing is practised more often by consumer-oriented organisations than by industrial-oriented organisations, and normally conducted in shopping malls, hyper/supermarkets and public areas with high pedestrian traffic. It is effective in forecasting sales potential as well as avoiding possible losses from new products and services.

Selling of products and services must ensure that varying marketing activities such as personal selling and sales force management; advertising, sales promotions and publicity; and dealer and customer relations are well synchronised.

The effectiveness of the said selling activities may vary for different consumer and industrial products and services.

The current practice of selling through the Internet has been eating into sales of the traditional retailing marketing organisations. This trend is dramatically changing how business is done to stay relevant.

Pricing is a vital function of marketing management. Although the pricing of products and services is initially internally generated, it is also externally strongly influenced by customers, competitors, suppliers, distributors, and even the government. The latter may impose constraints on price-fixing and price discrimination on select products and services.

Also, it is necessary for an organisation to view pricing from both a short-run and a long-term perspective to be able to adjust to the vagaries of economic, political, social, technological and natural environmental trends.

Most "manufacturing" organisations do not market their products and services directly to their customers.

Even though marketing directly can often yield greater returns, such organisations may not possess the relevant expertise nor the financial resources for any forward marketing strategies. This is because distribution would include inventory and warehousing, transportation to sales territories, and wholesaling and retailing. Hence, the need to engage distributors, such as wholesalers, retailers, brokers, agents and vendors, among others. Selection of type and number of distributors should be determined on costs, control, reliability and efficiency.

Market research is the systematic collation, recording and analysis of information on issues relating to the marketing of products and services. It is essential for all marketing activity as it can reveal the strengths and shortcomings of the products and services, and the total viability of the organisation's marketing process.

Analysis of the research findings, if professionally executed, can indicate the direction and changes to be made for better performance and profits.

Another significant aspect of market research is conducting customer surveys to develop customer demographic and psychographic profiles and determine the optimal market segmentation and positioning strategies.

It is important to understand customer needs, desires and wants, by constantly monitoring present and potential buying habits and patterns. Only through these efforts can an organisation try to stay ahead of the competition.

Finally, it is critical to analyse the total costs, benefits and risks associated with all the marketing managing decisions before implementing marketing programme(s).

Financial stature is best measure of a company

2009-02-18T00:33:00.001+09:00

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT (Part II)

The three main decisions the Financial Management must undertake are: (a) Investment decisions (b) Financing decisions and (c) Dividend decisions.

The investment decisions would entail the allocation and reallocation of capital and resources to projects, products/services, assets and the functional activities of an organisation. This form of capital budgeting is required to translate strategic planning into strategic implementation.

Financing decisions determine the preferred capital structure for the organisation and the different methods to raise capital. Capital could be raised by selling stocks, taking loans, selling assets or a combination of the three. The financing decisions for working capital must take into consideration both short-term and long-term requirements.

Dividend decisions determine the amount of funds paid out to the stockholders, compared with the amount retained in the organisation. Dividend issues are concerned with the percentage of earnings paid to stockholders, the consistency of dividends being paid over time and the repurchase or issuance of stock.

Financial ratios are "dip-stick" readings of an organisation's financial performance at any point in time. It's true value is not in the individual ratio itself, but when it is viewed relatively under three separate circumstances.

How has the ratio changed over time - this provides an avenue of evaluating historical trends. It can be observed whether each ratio has been increasing, decreasing or remaining constant over time.

How does the ratio compare with competitors - financial ratio analysis among direct competitions can reveal a more accurate scenario. For example, an organisation's profitability ratio is moving up over time, but it may be trending down relative to its leading competitor. This is a cause for concern.

How does the ratio compare with the industry - for example, if an organisation may appear to have an impressive growth ratio, it may pale when compared to industry norms and standards.

Financial ratios are grouped into five categories:

Liquidity ratio - measures an organisation's ability to meet short-term obligations.

Leverage ratio - measures the extent to which an organisation has been financed by debt.

Activity ratio - measures how effectively an organisation is utilising its resources.

Profitability ratio - measures the organisation's overall effectiveness on returns generated by investment and sales.

Growth ratio - measures the organisation's ability to maintain its position in the industry and economy.

The organisation's financial performance is not only dependent on the functions of finance, but is also influenced by the functional activities of the company; competitors, customers, creditors and suppliers/distributors; and the economic, political, social, technological, and natural environments as well.

By Bernard Thamboo, Business Times

CEO credits mum for business acumen

2009-02-18T00:22:00.001+09:00

Tenaga Nasional Bhd president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh attributes his business acumen to his mother.

An accountant by qualification, it was Che Khalib's mother who gave him his first taste of running a business.

"My dad passed away when I was 13 years old. So my uneducated mother, living on my father's pension, decided to start a small home business selling ais kacang and laksa," he said.

The business then grew into a sundry shop in his hometown in Bayan Lepas.

"As the second child of four, I would help my mother with the business. She would also give me things to sell at school to pick up business skills," he said.

Known to many at TNB as the kedekut (stingy) CEO, Che Khalib said his mother played a pivotal role in developing his business skills.

Che Khalib became TNB's head in July 2004, just as TNB was searching for a new CEO and the Prime Minister was unveiling the GLC Transformation Programme.

"While some believe I was chosen by the finance minister, TNB had engaged an international head hunting agency for its search. Several candidates, including myself, were identified and interviewed by the board members," he said.

His appointment drew many congratulatory wishes and also an equal number of curious comments.

"I still remember Tan Sri Chua Ma Yu asking me why I chose TNB instead of opting for another GLC. TNB is not an easy business due to its complexity in terms of managing expectations of leaders, consumers, and staff.

"I wanted to take on this challenge because it is the only time I can repay the government. I'm a direct beneficiary of government assistance and wouldn't have been able to pursue my education as I came from a poor family," he said.

Che Khalib took on the job with sheer determination to see a change in TNB. His basic rules are; he does not want to leave the company feeling embarrassed having worked there and adhering to three guiding principles which are discipline, integrity and dedication.

Since becoming the CEO, TNB has rolled out its 20-year strategic plan and gone on to receive many accolades including the Prime Minister's Award.

However, the father of five, without hesitation, says his greatest joy is spending time with his family. "I don't go for teh tarik or golf sessions in my free time. I'd rather spend it with the family because I don't want to miss seeing my children grow," he said.

Excellence at the top

2009-02-18T00:18:00.002+09:00

MALAYSIA CEO OF THE YEAR

THE Malaysia's CEO of the Year award was launched in 1994 as a result of the collaboration between Business Times and American Express.

The idea was mooted by Hardev Kaur (then Business Times editor) and the late L.S. Chew from American Express to introduce an annual prestigious award to recognise top CEOs in Malaysian corporations.

They approached Bernard Thamboo (then general manager of Business Times) to design the criteria and mechanics of the judging process.

As the judging had to be credible and beyond reproach, the process needed to be quantifiable and measurable, and based critical success factors on the expertise of the CEOs and the performance of their organisation functional activities. This would facilitate a holistic evaluation for effective comparison.

A panel of independent judges is appointed every year from "captains" of key government agencies and the corporate sector to ensure professional and unbiased judging. For consistency and accuracy of the judging, a moderator intimate with the judging mechanism will guide the judges.

The judging is based on six critical areas:

* About the CEO - for outstanding display of visionary leadership qualities; outstanding ability in leading the company.

* Financial Management - for outstanding management of the company's assets, liabilities and equities.

* Marketing Management - for outstanding and successful marketing and positioning the company into an outstanding company at home and abroad.

* Operations Management - for promoting awareness of quality and excellence in productivity.

* Development Management - for promoting staff excellence through training programmes; creative use of technology to give the competitive edge.

* Corporate Social Responsibility - for community/environmental projects and activities that contribute towards nation-building.

The judging criteria was further fine-tuned in 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 to reflect the economic changes and give more focus on relevancy and currency.

The number of critical success factors has grown from 29 in 1994 to 54 this year (22 qualitative and 32 quantitative).

The judging process starts by inviting the public to nominate eligible individuals. The nominee should be the one who has the ultimate management responsibility for an organisation, be it a public-listed, private-listed or partnership company.

The CEO reports directly to a board of directors, accountable to the company's owner(s). Some CEOs are known to have other designations such as managing director, executive chairman, president, managing partner, etc.

The next stage is sending a detailed questionnaire to the nominees. Once all the completed questionnaires are received, a shortlisting process based on relevance and completeness in addressing the critical success factors will be carried out.

Finally, the panel of appointed independent judges will evaluate the shortlisted nominees individually.

The judges will award points to each answer in accordance with the established judging criteria and scoring guide. Using the scoring mechanism software designed for this award, the weightage and ratings from all the judges will be computed, summarised and ranked for the said judges to verify, review and decide on the winner.

The recognition of the most outstanding CEO would be an endorsement in the business community on the excellent quality, leadership and management skills. From past observation and feedback, new opportunities would ensue for the winners in one way or another.

Bernard Thamboo
November 2008

Fortunes of 40 richest Malaysians decline

2009-02-18T00:12:00.001+09:00

THE fortunes of Malaysia's 40 richest shrank by RM75.6 billion from RM171.9 billion a year ago to RM96.30 billion as at January 16 amid the global stock market meltdown, according to a survey by Malaysian Business.

The magazine's survey revealed that half of them recorded declines of 50 per cent with only 14 billionaires this time round, five short of last year.

Malaysian Business in its February 16 issue named "Sugar King" Tan Sri Robert Kuok as the richest Malaysian with a fortune of RM26.6 billion.

However, Kuok wealth which stood at a record of RM58.1 billion last year, had declined by RM31.5 billion.

His closest rival, T. Ananda Krishnan clocked in at RM20.1 billion.

At third-placed was Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow with a wealth of RM8.15 billion.

Meanwhile, Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng was fourth with a fortune that has halved to RM7.4 billion.

Taking the fifth spot at RM4.5 billion, down from RM11.1 billion previously, was Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan.

Others in the top-10 ranking were Puan Sri Lee Kim Hua, widow of Genting group founder, Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong (RM3.5 billion), Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary of the Albukhary Foundation (RM3.2 billion), Tan Sri Vincent Tan (RM1.8 billion), Tan Sri Tiong Hiew King of the Rimbunan Hijau Group (RM1.6
billion) and Tan Sri Azman Hashim of Amcorp group (RM1.4 billion).

The magazine said besides Genting's Lee, the other new entrants in the richest list were siblings from the YTL group, Datuk Yeoh Soo Min and Datuk Yeoh Soo Keng.

AirAsia's Datuk Kamarudin Meranun made a comeback to the list after a one year absence. — Bernama

10 (More) Reasons You're Not Rich

2008-10-12T16:50:00.002+09:00

by Jeffrey Strain

Many people assume they aren't rich because they don't earn enough money. If I only earned a little more, I could save and invest better, they say.

The problem with that theory is they were probably making exactly the same argument before their last several raises. Becoming a millionaire has less to do with how much you make, it's how you treat money in your daily life.

The list of reasons you may not be rich doesn't end at 10. Caring what your neighbors think, not being patient, having bad habits, not having goals, not being prepared, trying to make a quick buck, relying on others to handle your money, investing in things you don't understand, being financially afraid and ignoring your finances.

Here are 10 more possible reasons you aren't rich:

You care what your car looks like: A car is a means of transportation to get from one place to another, but many people don't view it that way. Instead, they consider it a reflection of themselves and spend money every two years or so to impress others instead of driving the car for its entire useful life and investing the money saved.

You feel entitlement: If you believe you deserve to live a certain lifestyle, have certain things and spend a certain amount before you have earned to live that way, you will have to borrow money. That large chunk of debt will keep you from building wealth.

You lack diversification: There is a reason one of the oldest pieces of financial advice is to not keep all your eggs in a single basket. Having a diversified investment portfolio makes it much less likely that wealth will suddenly disappear.

You started too late: The magic of compound interest works best over long periods of time. If you find you're always saying there will be time to save and invest in a couple more years, you'll wake up one day to find retirement is just around the corner and there is still nothing in your retirement account.

You don't do what you enjoy: While your job doesn't necessarily need to be your dream job, you need to enjoy it. If you choose a job you don't like just for the money, you'll likely spend all that extra cash trying to relieve the stress of doing work you hate.

You don't like to learn: You may have assumed that once you graduated from college, there was no need to study or learn. That attitude might be enough to get you your first job or keep you employed, but it will never make you rich. A willingness to learn to improve your career and finances are essential if you want to eventually become wealthy.

You buy things you don't use: Take a look around your house, in the closets, basement, attic and garage and see if there are a lot of things you haven't used in the past year. If there are, chances are that all those things you purchased were wasted money that could have been used to increase your net worth.

You don't understand value: You buy things for any number of reasons besides the value that the purchase brings to you. This is not limited to those who feel the need to buy the most expensive items, but can also apply to those who always purchase the cheapest goods. Rarely are either the best value, and it's only when you learn to purchase good value that you have money left over to invest for your future.

Your house is too big: When you buy a house that is bigger than you can afford or need, you end up spending extra money on longer debt payments, increased taxes, higher upkeep and more things to fill it. Some people will try to argue that the increased value of the house makes it a good investment, but the truth is that unless you are willing to downgrade your living standards, which most people are not, it will never be a liquid asset or money that you can ever use and enjoy.

You fail to take advantage of opportunities: There has probably been more than one occasion where you heard about someone who has made it big and thought to yourself, "I could have thought of that." There are plenty of opportunities if you have the will and determination to keep your eyes open.

Best Regardo.

Ijyoudesu.

新曲★I AM YOUR SINGER　サザンオールスターズ

2008-08-16T11:48:00.008+09:00

Souther All Star new song.
" I am your singer"
Enjoy !

以上です。

Islam Dilemma in Malaysia.

2008-08-16T10:47:00.006+09:00

Something to ponder about.

以上です。

A passion for fast cars

2008-08-10T11:34:00.003+09:00

The Star
By NURBAITI HAMDAN

PETALING JAYA: She looks like an ordinary girl-next-door but her achievements are anything but ordinary. At 18, Latifah Hamzah has achieved much more than her peers and her future is looking brighter by the day.

Latifah, or Hani as she is fondly known, will be attending the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Thursday after scoring 45 points – the maximum score – in the International Baccalaureate (IB) examination in May.

With such an exceptional score, MIT was not the only university that offered to accept Hani – Yale, Princeton, Cambridge and Imperial College have also opened their doors.

Hani will be reading mechanical engineering in MIT, a subject that she is most passionate about.

“I am fascinated by anything that moves, be it trains, aeroplanes or cars, especially fast ones!” exclaimed the Ferrari F1 team fan who lives in SS3, Petaling Jaya.

So passionate is Hani about her favourite racing team that she did a presentation on Ferrari’s data for her MIT admission interview.

“I compiled what was available of Ferrari’s technical notes from all the races last season off the F1 website. I looked qualitatively and theoretically at how it improved the car’s performance,” she said.

Born to a Chinese mother and a Malay father, Hani’s achievements did not come as a surprise to her close-knit family as she has been an outstanding student since young.

She scored 7As in Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (2001) in SJK (C) Puay Chai; she was a top scorer in the National Curriculum Tests 2003 in The Alice Smith School and obtained 13As for O-Levels in her boarding school, The Sevenoaks School, in England.

Hani is multiligual – she speaks English, Mandarin, Malay and French.

Despite the emphasis on academic excellence prevalent in our society, Hani has proven that one can excel in studies and still be a well-rounded individual.

She plays the violin and piano and music has taken her to many cities including Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Taipei as a member of the Asian Youth Orchestra.

Hani keeps fit by playing football and tennis as well as snorkelling. Being the outdoor person that she is, Hani has climbed Mount Kinabalu (although she had to stop at Laban Rata due to altitude sickness) and attended the Outward Bound School.

However, Hani, who was born in Subang, maintains that there is “nothing different” about her.

“I do not feel any different because of some stuff printed on some sheets of paper. Although it is nice that I got 45 points (for the IB exam), that doesn’t mean I was any less capable before the exams.

“The achievements are nice to look at but it is no substitute for friends and family. Achievements have to be built on for them to really mean something,” said the Kimi Raikkonen fan.

Asked about her dream job, she answered: “I want to be team principal of the Ferrari F1 team!”

以上です。

Words from the richest investor in the world

2008-08-09T13:09:00.002+09:00

"I don't look to jump over 7-foot bars; I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over."

"I violated the Noah rule: Predicting rain doesn't count; building arks does."

"If you have a harem of 40 women, you never get to know any of them very well."

"In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield."

"It's only when the tide goes out that you discover who's been swimming naked."

"Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can't buy what is popular and do well."

"Price is what you pay. Value is what you get."

Warren Buffett (1930 - )

以上です。

Yippiiee..i'm going back home. Malaysia here i come

2008-08-05T19:49:00.003+09:00

Good day,

I've been waiting for this confirmation quite long already. Today, i shot an email to two of my General Managers. The content more or less sounds like.."hey guys, do they have already come out with the decision or what's the status now?. If you know anything about this please let me know in advance."

No...initially, they don't have the answer with them. They got to recheck once again and follow up the matter. Promptly they contacted their counterpart in Malaysia to get the answer....

Anuar-chan..Anuar-chan..chotto ii..My GM asked me to follow him to one side of the corner. He showed me the letter...signed by my department's GM in Malaysia. The content of the letter is quite long...so to cut it short, the conclusion is..I've to go back to Malaysia..because they need me badly..hahaha.

Gosh, at last it's confirmed. The new chapter of my life is going to begin. This time it will be at a different playground. A playground which i've been there for awhile previously. So basically, i'll be back to where i was..but this time with new spirit and fresh soul..Yeah..Perodua here i come !!

DMC..goodbye..Japan, sayonara...

Best Regardo,

以上です。

Why Warren Buffett chose Coca-Cola

2008-07-30T21:34:00.004+09:00

The STAR
Ooi Kok Hwa

GIVEN the weak stock market, we think now is the best time to search for the good and solid blue-chip stocks for long-term investment. However, most investors always have difficulties in choosing the right stocks.

Today, we will look into how world famous investment guru Warren Buffett identified his favourite stocks. At present, The Coca-Cola Co is one of Buffett’s key stocks that he will practically hold forever.

We believe a lot of investors would like to know why Buffett chose Coca-Cola as one of his key long-term holdings when one Wall Street analyst at that time labelled it as a “very expensive stock”.

Established in 1886, Coca-Cola is the world’s largest manufacturer, marketer and distributor of carbonated soft drink concentrates and syrups. At present, it operates in more than 200 countries and markets more than 2,800 beverage products. Besides, it also owns four of the world’s top five non-alcoholic sparkling beverage brands: Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta.

Why did Buffett choose Coca-Cola? He likes caffeinated soft drinks. He acquired 7% of Coca-Cola stocks in 1988 for a total investment of US$1.02bil or at an average price of US$5.46 per share. As at Dec 31, 2007, Berkshire Hathaway owned 200 million Coca-Cola stocks, or 8.6% of the company’s outstanding shares.

Buffett’s original cost in this company was US$1.3bil. Based on the latest market value dated Dec 31, 2007, he achieved an annual compounded capital gain of 11.9% for 20 years. However, if we include all the dividends received, we believe his return from this stock may be more than 20% per annum!

Buffett considers Coca-Cola “inevitable” where it has low business risk and is suitable for long-term holding. To him, buying Coca-Cola has far less business risk over the long term than any computer company. Being the most recognised international trademark, Coca-Cola enjoys global power with very high competitive dominance and economies of scales.

Coca-Cola sells 1.5 billion servings everyday worldwide. As a result of its strong brands, the attributes of its products and the global distribution systems, it has a very high business consistency and performance throughout the years. Given the certainty of its long-term prospects, Buffett may choose to hold this stock forever.

He also finds that Coca-Cola has a simple and understandable business. Besides, Buffett likes to acquire companies with high profit margins and return on equity (ROE). When he acquired Coca-Cola in 1988, it reported a pre-tax profit margin and ROE of 19% and 31.8% respectively.

Apart from that, Coca-Cola also showed very high cash flow or “owner earnings”. Buffett defined owner earnings as reported earnings plus depreciation and certain other non-cash charges, minus the average annual capital expenditures required for a company to maintain its unit volume and competitive position. In 1988, the company showed an increase in owner earnings to US$828mil against US$262mil in 1981.

Buffett always advises investors to study the raw data in the financial statement and trust our own eyes rather than analysts’ summaries. When Buffett acquired Coca-Cola, he paid quite a high premium compared with the overall market average. He paid about 15 times and five times for Coca-Cola based on price-earnings ratio and price-to-book ratio respectively.

Given the strong performance and certainty in management quality, Buffett felt highly confident that he would be rewarded by the management’s ability to generate more owner earnings and to realise the full potential of the business.

A good company should pay dividends to its shareholders. If the company decides to retain its earnings for future expansion, every dollar it retains must translate into one-dollar market value. Buffett labels this as a one-dollar premise.

Since 1987, apart from paying good dividends, the overall market value of Coca-Cola has surged much higher that its retained earnings.

In summary, even though it is not easy to identify the next Coca-Cola, with hard work, the current downturn provides us a golden opportunity to hunt for good fundamental stocks for long-term holdings.

Kesan minda gajah sarkas

2008-07-20T12:44:00.002+09:00

Mingguan Malaysia

Orang Melayu dalam perniagaan sering dianggap mempunyai sikap ingin cepat untung, mudah putus asa dan mahu segala-galanya dibantu untuk berjaya. Sikap seumpama itu jika dibiarkan berterusan, ia akhirnya akan menyebabkan orang Melayu tidak akan ke mana. Sebaliknya mereka akan terus ketinggalan dalam bidang ekonomi.

Namun begitu dalam mengejar kejayaan, orang Melayu tidak harus melupakan lunas-lunas Islam. Mereka harus melaksanakan perniagaan demi mendapat keberkatan di dunia dan akhirat.

Justeru dalam usaha menyedarkan orang Melayu berhubung perkara ini, Ketua Eksekutif Kumpulan Johor Corporation (JCorp) yang juga Naib Presiden Dewan Perniagaan Islam Malaysia (DPIM), Tan Sri Muhammad Ali Hashim mewujudkan gagasan yang dipanggil Jihad ekonomi.

Malah, Muhammad Ali juga mahu orang Melayu menghapuskan minda gajah sarkas yang dianggap beliau hanya merosakkan golongan itu untuk mencapai kejayaan.

Dalam pertemuan dengan wartawan Mingguan Malaysia, ZULKIFLEE BAKAR, AMRAN AHMAD dan AZMAN IBRAHIM, beliau yang telah berjaya meletakkan nama JCorp di persada antarabangsa mengulas mengenai kesan minda gajah sarkas ini kepada ekonomi orang Melayu dan kenapa mereka perlu melepaskan diri daripada pemikiran seumpama itu jika mahu berjaya.

MINGGUAN: Apakah sebenarnya yang cuba ditonjolkan melalui jihad ekonomi dan bagaimana konsep itu boleh membantu peniaga-peniaga Islam untuk maju?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Apabila kita sebut tentang jihad ekonomi atau perniagaan, ia adalah konsep sama yang turut diperjuangkan oleh Gagasan Badan Ekonomi Melayu (Gabem). Kita di Dewan Perniagaan Islam Malaysia (DPIM) menerima konsep jihad ekonomi sebagai asas perjuangan, malah menjadikannya sebagai penyata misi dewan.

Mungkin istilah jihad itu boleh menyumbang sedikit kontroversi terutama apabila ada orang Islam sendiri yang bimbang dan takut, istilah tersebut akan mengundang tuduhan negatif oleh orang bukan Islam. Ia disebabkan jihad sering kali dikaitkan dengan keganasan. Namun begitu sebenarnya kita tidak perlu ragu dan bimbang kerana jihad bukan bermakna keganasan seperti yang didakwa.

Terdapat 40 ayat dalam kitab suci al-Quran yang menyentuh tentang jihad dan peperangan dan 20 ayat daripada semua ayat itu membawa jihad yang dipanggil dalam surah Al-Furqaan iaitu Jihad dan Kabilah. Maknanya, jihad yang lebih besar dan utama ialah menentang hawa nafsu dan keperluan mengatasi tuntutan nafsu yang merosakkan kita.

Bagaimana jihad ekonomi boleh membantu orang Islam dalam aspek perniagaan?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Dunia perniagaan menyajikan keadaan dan ruang yang mencabar nafsu manusia, terutama umat Islam kerana membabitkan aktiviti penjanaan harta kekayaan dan peluang untuk orang mengambil jalan ringkas sehingga menghalalkan segala cara, menipu, merosakkan alam sekitar dan menjual binatang yang dilarang untuk mengaut untung.

Di sinilah wujudnya peranan para peniaga Islam kerana kita memang mahukan kekayaan setelah ketinggalan sekian lama, tetapi kaedah dan cara yang digunakan dalam mengendalikan perniagaan itu yang berbeza. Apa yang dibimbangkan ia menjurus kepada cara merosakkan diri, keluarga dan alam sekitar jika tidak berpegang kepada ajaran Islam sebenar.

Oleh itu kita kena cari jalan dan kaedah menjalankan perniagaan yang serasi dengan ajaran Islam kerana walaupun bisnes bermatlamatkan keuntungan, menjana kekayaan dan mewujudkan peluang pekerjaan, tetapi kita perlu cuba menghindarkan diri daripada sifat tamak-haloba, rakus dan elemen individualistik sehingga merosakkan akhlak dan peribadi usahawan.

Kita perlu seimbang dan cuba mengelak daripada melakukan perkara-perkara yang tidak berakhlak dalam dunia perniagaan dan korporat walaupun belajar mengenai corak pengurusan Jepun, Singapura, China dan barat yang tidak mengenal soal halal haram, syurga neraka dan tidak mempercayai kewujudan tuhan.

Jadi, adakah usahawan Islam turut terikut-ikut budaya ini?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Mungkin kadang-kadang kita boleh terlupa, alpa dan terikut-ikut dengan budaya rasuah, berkaraoke, minum arak seperti yang diamalkan oleh peniaga bangsa lain.

Sebenarnya, ajaran Islam memberi kelebihan dalam dunia perniagaan. Jika kita kaji konsep brek kenderaan, kita akan mendapati ia ada dua fungsi iaitu memberhentikan kenderaan dan satu lagi yang sering kita abaikan iaitu dengan adanya brek itu, kita berani untuk memecut laju. Cuba bayangkan kalau kereta kita tiada brek, tentunya kita tidak berani untuk memandu laju.

Oleh itu, hukum syarak juga diibaratkan sebagai brek yang membolehkan peniaga Islam untuk berkembang maju, namun ada had yang perlu dipatuhi agar tidak berlakunya kecelakaan atau kemalangan.

Kaedah ini telah membuktikan kejayaan kerana banyak syarikat tempatan antaranya Petronas, syarikat-syarikat milik kerajaan (GLC) dan Kumpulan JCorp yang telah menerapkan konsep jihad ekonomi dalam berniaga.

Sejauh mana penerapan konsep jihad ekonomi di kalangan usahawan Melayu akan berjaya?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Selalunya, faktor utama yang menjadi punca kegagalan usahawan Melayu ialah sikap kurang yakin dengan diri sendiri yang diburukkan lagi dengan konflik fahaman songsang yang disebarkan oleh ulama-ulama yang tidak faham soal perniagaan.

Ulama-ulama ini mengatakan peniaga hanya mahu mengejar soal kebendaan dunia dan ini menyebabkan ramai usahawan Melayu yang teragak-

agak dalam menjalankan perniagaan dan akhirnya mereka mengundurkan diri.

Kita mesti ketepikan konflik dengan menjalankan perniagaan yang serasi dengan jiwa dan nilai hidup dengan selalu bersolat, berpuasa dan berzakat agar tidak wujud keraguan dalam diri.

Ini penting kerana jihad perniagaan bermakna berniaga bukan untuk kepentingan diri atau peribadi, pengorbanan untuk agama, bangsa dan negara, tidak melanggar hukum syarak atau undang-undang dan mencapai keuntungan.

Konsep jihad ini sebenarnya sangat kuat, ia mampu menyedarkan usahawan mengenai kepentingan berniaga untuk kemajuan agama, bangsa dan negara. Apabila sedar perkara ini, usahawan akan lebih bersemangat untuk menebus maruah dan berjuang habis-habisan bagi mencapai kejayaan dan bersyukur.

Apabila kita berjihad, orang luar juga mudah memberi sokongan kerana memahami usaha itu bukan untuk kepentingan peribadi dan oleh kerana itu, JCorp tidak melakukan penswastaan atau belian kuasa pengurusan (MBO) kerana lebih cenderung kepada pengurusan cara wakaf yang menyerahkan hak milik kepada Allah Taala dan manfaatnya dinikmati bersama.

Mengenai Islamofobia atau ketakutan terhadap aktiviti umat Islam, apakah perkara ini wujud dalam senario semasa dan menyekat perniagaan?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Dari pengalaman dan pengamatan saya, perkara seperti itu tidak berlaku dan kita harus ingat bahawa matlamat akhir perniagaan ialah jualan kepada pengguna dan pembeli.

Sebenarnya, golongan pengguna dan pembeli ini tidak mengambil kisah mengenai hal-hal berkaitan agama kerana kesemua mereka ada persamaan iaitu tidak mahu ditipu dan suka peniaga yang amanah.

Dalam sesetengah perkara, Islamofobia mungkin menjadi halangan tetapi bagi saya, apa yang lebih penting ialah reputasi perniagaan tidak tercalar dan jenama terus menyinar.

Kebanyakan orang barat tidak faham mengenai jihad kerana jihad dalam bahasa Inggeris ialah holy war atau peperangan suci. Mereka tidak tahu bahawa Islam secara jelas menyebut tiada peperangan yang suci, Islam adalah agama keamanan dan jihad itu hanya boleh dilakukan jika ada bukti orang teraniaya, tertindas dan ia tidak boleh dibuat sesuka hati, dan ada batas-batas seperti tidak membunuh wanita yang lemah serta anak-anak kecil.

George Bush guna istilah crusade apabila berlaku tragedi 11 September dan merosakkan fahaman orang barat mengenai Islam. Crusade tidak sama dengan jihad, tetapi dalam agama Kristian, Pope atau Paus mempunyai kuasa untuk memberi keampunan kepada orang yang pergi perang.

Bagaimana cara untuk menerapkan nilai jihad ini dalam warga korporat Islam?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Cara terbaik ialah dengan menunjukkan teladan menerusi bukti kejayaan usahawan yang mengamalkan konsep jihad perniagaan. Pertama, mereka mesti menjalankan perniagaan yang menguntungkan dan disusuli dengan corak pemikiran yang betul.

Kita harus ingat bahawa orang Melayu berada dalam kedudukan minoriti dalam dunia perniagaan pada masa ini walaupun bangsa itu menguasai lebih 60 peratus daripada populasi negara, jadi, kita kena berusaha memajukan diri.

Dua bulan lepas, Tan Sri ada menyebut tentang gajah sarkas di kalangan orang Melayu

MUHAMMAD ALI: Saya membawa contoh gajah dalam perumpamaan tersebut kerana kita semua tahu gajah adalah binatang yang hebat dari segi kekuatan dan saiz badannya.

Namun, sesuatu yang agak pelik kerana gajah sarkas yang diikat dengan rantai kecil tidak mahu merentap rantai itu untuk lari dan bebas seperti binatang lain.

Saya percaya ia berlaku kerana ketika ditangkap mula-mula dahulu, kaki gajah diikat dengan rantai besar dan cuba direntap berkali-kali, gajah tetap gagal melarikan diri dan akhirnya ia berputus asa.

Apabila putus asa dan kemudiannya diberikan makanan dan minuman secukupnya, gajah berkenaan mudah berasa selesa dan tidak lagi ingin bebas.

Bagaimana keadaan ini boleh dikaitkan dengan orang Melayu?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Sama juga, jika kita diberikan tongkat yang banyak, kita juga akan mudah berasa selesa walaupun terus dijajah.

Orang putih dahulu menjajah kita dengan mereka menjadi pegawai dan orang Melayu dilabelkan sebagai kakitangan. Kini, walaupun kita telah merdeka untuk tempoh 50 tahun dan dapat memerintah negara dengan bebas, rakyat kita masih dipanggil kakitangan.

Apabila bergelar kakitangan, bagaimana negara mahu bergerak sebagai ekonomi berteraskan pengetahuan kerana rakyat bekerja menggunakan kaki dan tangan sahaja tanpa berfikir.

Sebenarnya, kita sendiri yang tidak mengubah keadaan itu dan terus membawa minda gajah sarkas menuju masa depan. Kita tidak menilai semula keadaan ini dan ini mungkin apa yang berlaku hari ini.

Hari ini, wujud cubaan membawa masuk tulisan Mandarin, kita dahulu berkompromi soal ini dengan sanggup mengenepikan tulisan jawi sebagai tolak-

ansur dengan tulisan Cina dan India yang menerima tulisan rumi tetapi hari ini mereka mahukan semula tulisan itu.

Mungkinkah perkara ini berlaku kerana cengkaman politik orang Melayu yang semakin lemah?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Berbalik kepada cerita gajah sarkas tadi. Kita selesa dan menjadi lemah sehingga tidak sedar berkenaan kuasa yang kita miliki sebenarnya. Dalam perniagaan, jika kita pandai mengurus, pegangan saham sebanyak 30 peratus sahaja sudah cukup untuk membolehkan seseorang itu menguasai keputusan.

Bagaimanapun, orang Melayu terutama generasi muda hari ini tidak boleh dipaksa untuk berniaga secara serta-merta. Ini berbahaya kerana statistik global menunjukkan peluang untuk gagal sangat tinggi di kalangan mereka yang cuba berniaga pertama kali dan saya khuatir golongan ini terus berputus asa. Setelah gagal pada kali pertama, mereka turut hilang sokongan daripada ahli keluarga terutama ibu bapa yang selama ini mewarisi pekerjaan warisan sejak turun-temurun.

Perjuangan ini adalah untuk jangka masa panjang dan cara terbaik ialah bekerja dahulu bagi mereka yang sudah mempunyai pekerjaan tetap demi mencari pengalaman dan membina jaringan sebelum mula berniaga.

Namun ada juga orang Melayu yang mendapat projek atau kontrak segera?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Itu yang saya khuatir dengan golongan yang mendapat peluang perniagaan terhidang depan mata, memperoleh secara mudah hingga menyebabkan mereka tidak mahu berfikir, hilang semangat juang dan tidak mampu untuk berdikari.

Bagi saya, kerajaan harus meneruskan DEB tetapi menggariskan sempadan dan had, tegas dalam pelaksanaan dan tidak memberi banyak tongkat selain memastikan hanya yang layak mendapat peluang perniagaan.Begitu juga halnya dalam pemberian biasiswa, bantuan kepada yang layak sahaja.

Apa pandangan Tan Sri mengenai usaha-usaha menghapuskan DEB?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Pemahaman mengenai DEB boleh dianggap berbeza-beza antara satu dengan yang lain. Salah satu cabang dalam dasar itu ialah mana-mana syarikat yang ditubuhkan mesti menyerahkan 30 peratus pegangan saham kepada orang Melayu.

Apabila ia menjadi dasar, ini bagi saya satu kesilapan kerana tiada sesiapa boleh memaksa untuk menyerahkan hak. Sama juga dengan andaian banyak pihak di kalangan bukan bumiputera yang mengaitkan campur tangan kerajaan dalam pelaksanaan dalam dasar itu, justeru, apabila berbicara mengenai DEB, semua pihak kena faham segala aspek atau sampai bila-bilapun masalah tidak selesai.

Kita kena selalu berpegang pada prinsip keadilan yang diterima pakai oleh semua kaum dan memberi definisi kepada keadilan agar semua pihak mendapat bantuan sewajarnya.

Apa pesanan dan harapan Tan Sri kepada orang Melayu agar memahami kuasa ekonomi juga penting selain kuasa politik ?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Orang Melayu harus menyedari keperluan untuk berdikari dan jika ada keperluan untuk menentang arus dari segi menolak tongkat kerajaan jika mengetahui ia mampu membawa kemudaratan, maka kita perlu berani untuk menolaknya.

Kita lihat sahaja cara orang Cina berniaga. Apabila tidak menerima tongkat dan berdikari dalam berniaga, mereka ternyata mempunyai semangat juang yang tinggi dan berwibawa sehingga mampu bertahan dan kembali berkembang selepas melepasi krisis ekonomi.

Orang Melayu diingatkan jangan jadi seperti cerita itik yang terbang mencari kepanasan ketika musim salji, mereka singgah di satu kawasan dan dijamu dengan makanan sehingga tidak lagi mahu terbang. Mereka menjadi selesa dan apabila orang tidak lagi memberi makanan, mereka panik, tidak tahu berusaha dan akhirnya mati kelaparan.

World's first billionaire sportsman

2008-07-11T22:09:00.001+09:00

NEW YORK: Tiger Woods (pic) is on pace to pass US$1 billion (RM3.3 billion) in career earnings by 2010, becoming the world's first billionaire to accumulate his fortune by playing sports, says Forbes Magazine.
The 14-time major championship winner earned US$115 million in 2007 alone, said the American magazine which annually ranks the world's richest people with its Forbes' Celebrity 100 list.

English footballer David Beckham was the No 2 sportsman on the list with earnings of US$65 million.

"It will be an unprecedented occurrence," the magazine said. "There are plenty of billionaires who have excelled at sports like Switzerland's richest man and champion sailor Ernesto Bertarelli. But there are no billionaires who accumulated their fortune by playing sports."

The magazine goes on to say in its Wednesday edition that while tycoons like Bill Gates accumulated his wealth by holding a stake in a company with soaring profits, Woods is unique because his massive fortune was earned through pay cheques.
Woods is a sports marketers' dream, having earned more than US$750 million in endorsement deals to date in his career. At 32, Woods has won 50 tournaments faster than any player and is closing in on Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major championship wins.

The nine-time PGA Player-of-the-Year is extremely popular and likeable.

When he is playing in a tournament, television ratings increase by at least one third and often more -- like his recent stunning victory at the US Open in San Diego.

He has lucrative endorsement and sponsorship deals with companies like Nike, Buick and Gillette which help make up nine-tenths of his totals earnings and will land him US$90 million in 2008, says Forbes.

Nike Golf registered over US$600 million in sales in 2007. The American shoe giant didn't even have a golf line of shoes and clothing before it signed Woods to a contract in 1996.

Gatorade is also launching a new line of sports drinks, called Gatorade Tiger.

Woods is expected to miss the remainder of the golf season, while he recovers from knee surgery. He captured the 2008 US Open in a playoff despite playing with a torn ligament in his left knee. -- AFP

以上です。

Petronas syarikat ke-8 paling untung di dunia

2008-07-11T20:22:00.002+09:00

Oleh Suffian A Bakar
suffian@bharian.com.my

Duduki tangga pertama di Asia senarai Fortune Global 500

PETRONAS berada di kedudukan kelapan senarai syarikat paling untung di dunia dan yang pertama di Asia tahun lalu dalam senarai Fortune Global 500 majalah perniagaan Fortune.

Syarikat petroleum kebangsaan berkenaan yang dalam nilai dolar Amerika Syarikat (AS) meraih keuntungan AS$18.118 bilion tahun lalu, mengatasi syarikat terkemuka dunia lain seperti Microsoft, Toyota, Bank of America, Total dan JP Morgan.

Senarai syarikat paling untung di dunia itu didahului oleh Exxon Mobile diikuti Royal Dutch Shell, General Electric, BP, Gazprom, HSBC Holdings dan Chevron.

Syarikat minyak Itali, Total dan bank pelaburan antarabangsa JP Morgan pula berada di tempat kesembilan dan ke-10.

Petronas juga berada di kedudukan ke-95 dalam senarai keseluruhan Fortune Global 500 berdasarkan pendapatan syarikat.

Di kalangan syarikat Asia, Petronas yang meraih pendapatan dalam nilai dolar AS AS$66.22 bilion tahun lalu berada di kedudukan ke-16.

Senarai 10 syarikat paling besar dunia tahun lalu didahului oleh Wal-mart Stores yang meraih pendapatan AS$378.799 bilion, diikuti oleh Exxon Mobile, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Toyota Motor, Chevron, Ing Group, Total, General Motors dan Conoco Philips.

Senarai 10 syarikat paling besar di Asia pula dikuasai firma dari Jepun, China dan Korea didahului Toyota Motor (Jepun); Sinopec, State Grid dan China National Petroleum (China); Samsung Electronics (Korea Selatan); Honda Motor, Hitachi, Nissan Motor, Nippon Telegraph (Jepun) dan LG (Korea Selatan).

Sementara itu, syarikat automotif terbesar AS, General Motors, mendahului senarai mencatat kerugian paling besar, iaitu AS$$38.732 bilion.

以上です。

Gaji seorang CEO automotif

2008-06-29T13:35:00.000+09:00

Utusan Malaysia

Pastinya ramai yang mungkin terkejut dengan laporan mengenai cadangan menaikkan gaji pegawai tinggi syarikat milik kerajaan (GLC) sehingga 100 peratus di sebalik kenaikan kos perniagaan pada masa ini.

Lebih mengejutkan apabila mengetahui gaji Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif (CEO) firma-firma berkenaan semenangnya sudah besar sehingga mencecah ratusan ribu dalam masa sebulan dan ada yang hampir RM10 juta setahun.

Namun, itu adalah pandangan orang biasa yang kebanyakan tergolong dalam golongan rakyat berpendapatan rendah dan sederhana tetapi di kalangan warga dunia korporat, angka-angka besar gaji CEO adalah normal terutama dalam sektor automotif.

Jika dilihat gaji Presiden dan CEO Ford Motor Company dari Amerika Syarikat (AS), Alan Mulally, beliau dikatakan menerima AS$2 juta atau RM6.5 juta setahun dan jumlah itu tidak termasuk ganjaran lain seperti bonus dan pampasan lain yang semuanya bernilai AS$21.6 juta atau RM70.5 juta.

Pada masa yang sama, Mulally juga menerima imbuhan tambahan bernilai AS$1.4 juta atau RM4.6 juta melibatkan kad telefon, telefon bimbit, kereta dan pemandu serta tiket kelas satu untuk menyaksikan acara sukan berprestij.

Selain Mulally, Naib Presiden Eksekutif yang juga Ketua Pegawai Kewangan (CFO) Ford, Don Leclair pula mendapat gaji sebanyak AS$1,005,633 atau RM3,283,689 dan bonus insentif bernilai AS$3 juta (RM9.8 juta).

Ford yang beribu pejabat di Dearborn, Michigan adalah sebahagian daripada Detroit, pembuat kenderaan yang diasaskan oleh Henry Ford pada 16 Jun 1903.

Pada tahun lalu, pendapatan Ford meningkat kepada AS$173.9 bilion atau RM567.7 bilion menerusi pengeluaran sebanyak 6.553 juta kenderaan oleh 245,000 pekerja di 100 kilang dan fasiliti di seluruh dunia.

Sementara itu, CEO Porshe, Wendelin Wiedeking mendapat gaji sekurang-kurangnya empat kali ganda melebihi ganjaran yang diterima oleh pelumba sukan lasak dan berbahaya iaitu F1 dunia, Ralf Schumacher ketika beliau bersama pasukan Toyota.

Sebagai CEO kepada firma automotif ternama Jerman yang diasaskan oleh seorang jurutera kelahiran Republik Czech, Ferdinand Porsche itu, Wiedeking dikatakan menerima gaji sebanyak antara AS$89 juta (RM291 juta) hingga AS$103 juta (RM336 juta) setahun.

DaimlerChrysler AG dari Jerman mengumumkan CEOnya pada tahun 2006, Dr. Dieter Zetsche mendapat gaji pokok sebanyak EUR1.5 juta atau RM7.6 juta setelah didesak oleh pemegang saham gergasi automotif yang mengeluarkan kereta dan trak berjenama Mercedes-Benz, Maybach, Smart dan Freightliner.

Menurut syarat kontrak perkhidmatan Zetsche dua tahun lalu itu, beliau juga berhak untuk mendapat kenaikan gaji tahunan sekitar 150 peratus jika berjaya mencapai sasaran keputusan kewangan tahun yang sama.

Bagi Ketua Eksekutif General Motors Corp., Rick Wagoner, beliau tentunya lega apabila menikmati kenaikan gaji 64 peratus kepada AS$15.7 juta atau RM51.3 juta walaupun terpaksa menutup empat kilang membuat trak dan kenderaan utiliti sport (SUV) ekoran permintaan yang menurun.

Syarikat pengeluar kenderaan santai dan aktiviti luaran ringan AS, Winnebago turut membayar gaji yang besar kepada bekas CEOnya, Bruce Hertzke yang telah bekerja membangunkan perniagaan firma itu selama 36 tahun.

Hertzke dikatakan menerima AS$1.7 juta atau RM5.6 juta pada tahun lalu yang melibatkan gaji pokok sebanyak AS$535,246 setahun dan hampir AS$617,000 setahun dalam bentuk imbuhan pelan insentif bukan ekuiti.

Beliau juga menerima AS$43,800 setahun dalam bentuk pampasan lain, antaranya saham syarikat dan kenderaan milik firma yang mengeluarkan kenderaan rekreasi berjenama Winnebago, Itasca dan ERA itu.

ganjaran

Justeru, Khazanah Nasional Bhd. membuat keputusan tepat apabila dikatakan membayar gaji tahunan lebih RM1 juta kepada Pengarah Urusan Proton Holdings Bhd., Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohd Tahir jika dibandingkan dengan CEO-CEO firma industri yang sama.

Walaupun Proton belum sekukuh gergasi-gergasi seperti Ford, DaimlerChrysler AG dan General Motors Corp. yang memasarkan kenderaan keluarannya ke serata dunia, CEO Proton patut diberikan ganjaran setimpal terutama selepas memulihkan kedudukan kewangan syarikat pembuat kereta nasional itu.

Pemberian ganjaran setimpal penting kerana dunia kini berhadapan dengan suasana persaingan sengit terutama automotif yang menyaksikan banyak negara kini mempromosi aktiviti eksport setelah pasaran tempatan kian kecil kerana persaingan.

以上です。

Minyak, Petrol, Gasolin...

2008-06-05T22:02:00.003+09:00

Harga petrol sudah naik di Malaysia sebanyak 40% daripada RM1.92 kepada RM2.70. Ya sana sini di mana-mana sahaja orang berbicara tentang hal ini.

Sana minyak sini minyak. Minyak sudah naik. It has already taken effect. When? Today ! When was it publicly announced? Last night!!! Apa mau bikin. Harga barang-barang lain juga pasti akan naik. Bank Negara Malaysia menyasarkan peningkatan inflasi pada tahun ini akan mencecah sehingga 5%. Hai kalau begini, simpan duit dalam Fixed Deposit pon tarak untung wooo.

Minyak sana sini. Dalam masa terdekat ini bersedialah untuk kesan domino yang akan melanda. Setelah Malaysia dilanda Tsunami Politik, kini negara dijangka akan ditimpa kesan peningkatan harga minyak yang secara langsung mempengaruhi kenaikan mendadak harga barang dan utiliti secara besar-besaran.

Fenomena peningkatan harga bahan bakar ini di seluruh dunia memang tidak dapat dinafikan. Kesan global. Tetapi yang menjadi persoalannya adakah peningkatan sebanyak 40% secara mendadak dan tiba-tiba itu wajar sedangkan sebelum pengumuman dibuat oleh kerajaan, rakyat sudah dibebankan dengan peningkatan harga barang-barang keperluan lain dan makanan seperti beras, gandum, produk tenusu dan sebagainya. Itu sebelum kenaikan harga minyak. Bagaimana pula kesan selepasnya!!

Agak menghairankan. India bukanlah negara pengeksport minyak. Tetapi India hanya mengenakan kenaikan sebanyak 10%. Jepun pula menaikkan harga minyaknya baru-baru ini daripada ￥152 kepada lebih kurang ￥185. Kalau ditakrifkan mengikut taraf hidup di Malaysia, ianya sama seperti peningkatan daripada hanya RM1.52 kepada RM1.85. Tidak cukup dengan itu, kerajaan Jepun juga mengambil tanggungjawab melapor dan membentang di Parlimen justifikasinya mengapa peningkatan sebanyak lebih kurang ￥30~40 itu perlu dan tidak dapat dielakkan. Telus!!

Kerajaan Malaysia juga telah mengumumkan bahawa mulai 5hb Jun, polisi penetapan harga minyak akan berubah dimana ia akan di sandarkan dan ditentukan mengikut harga pasaran antarabangsa. Begitu juga dengan struktur subsidi juga telah bertukar. Cuma yang menjadi kemushkilan saya sekarang ialah, sekiranya harga minyak pasaran dunia menurun, adakah kerajaan Malaysia akan mengambil tindakan yang sama untuk menurunkan harga minyak di pasaran Malaysia?!

以上です。

What is Islam?

2008-05-31T11:27:00.004+09:00

Islam is not a new religion but the same truth that God revealed through all His prophets to every people. For a fifth of the world's population, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life. Muslims follow a religion of peace, mercy, and forgiveness, and the majority have nothing to do with the extremely grave events that have come to be associated with their faith.

How does Islam guarantee human rights?

Freedom of conscience is laid down by the Quran itself: 'There is no compulsion in religion'. (Quran; 2:256)

The life and property of all citizens are considered sacred whether a person is Muslim or not.

Racism is incomprehensible to Muslims, for the Quran speaks of human equality in the following terms:

O mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honoured of you in God's sight is the greatest of you in piety. God is All-Knowing, All Aware (Quran; 49:13)

(from: http://www.islamicity.com/ )

Equality of Human Beings

Islam not only recognises absolute equality between men, irrespective of any distinction of colour, race or nationality, but also makes it an important and significant principle, a reality. The Almighty God has laid down in the Holy Quran: "O mankind, we have created you from a male and female." In other words all human beings are brothers to one another. They all are the descendants from one father and one mother. "And we set you up as nations and tribes so that you may be able to recognise each other" (Quran; 49:13).

This means that the division of human beings into nations, races, groups and tribes is for the sake of distinction, so that people of one race or tribe may meet and be acquainted with the people belonging to another race or tribe and cooperate with one another. This division of the human race is neither meant for one nation to take pride in its superiority over others nor is it meant for one nation to treat another with contempt or disgrace, or regard them as a mean and degraded race and usurp their rights. "Indeed, the noblest among you before God are the most heedful of you" (Quran; 49:13).

In other words, the superiority of one man over another is only on the basis of God-consciousness, purity of character and high morals, and not on the basis of colour, race, language or nationality, and even this superiority based on piety and pure conduct does not justify that such people should play lord or assume airs of superiority over other human beings. Assuming airs of superiority is in itself a reprehensible vice which no God-fearing and pious man can ever dream of perpetrating. Nor does the righteous have more privileged rights over others, because this runs counter to human equality, which has been laid down in the beginning of this verse as a general principle. From the moral point of view, goodness and virtue is in all cases better than vice and evil.

This has been exemplified by the Prophet in one of his sayings thus: "No Arab has any superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab. Nor does a white man have any superiority over a black man, or the black man any superiority over the white man. You are all the children of Adam, and Adam was created from clay" (al-Bayhaqi and al-Bazzaz).

In this manner, Islam established equality for the entire human race and struck at the very root of all distinctions based on colour, race, language or nationality. According to Islam, God has given man this right of equality as a birthright. Therefore no man should be discriminated against on the ground of the colour of his skin, his place of birth, the race or the nation in which he was born.

(from: http://www.witness-pioneer.org/ )

Excerpt from: Malaysia Today (Raja Petra Kamaruddin)

以上です。

Barack Obama at Wesleyan Commencement Ceremony

2008-05-31T11:09:00.002+09:00

Full Text of Barack Obama's Prepared Speech

Wesleyan University Commencement
Sunday, May 25th, 2008
Middletown, Connecticutt

Thank you, President Roth, for that generous introduction, and congratulations on your first year at the helm of Wesleyan. Congratulations also to the class of 2008, and thank you for allowing me to be a part of your graduation.

I have the distinct honor today of pinch-hitting for one of my personal heroes and a hero to this country, Senator Edward Kennedy. Teddy wanted to be here very much, but as you know, he’s had a very long week and is taking some much-needed rest. He called me up a few days ago and I said that I’d be happy to be his stand-in, even if there was no way I could fill his shoes.

I did, however, get the chance to glance at the speech he planned on delivering today, and I’d like to start by passing along a message from him: “To all those praying for my return to good health, I offer my heartfelt thanks. And to any who’d rather have a different result, I say, don’t get your hopes up just yet!”

So we know that Ted Kennedy’s legendary sense of humor is as strong as ever, and I have no doubt that his equally legendary fighting spirit will carry him through this latest challenge. He is our friend, he is our champion, and we hope and pray for his return to good health.

The topic of his speech today was common for a commencement, but one that nobody could discuss with more authority or inspiration than Ted Kennedy.

That is, the topic of service to one’s country – a cause that is synonymous with his family’s name and their legacy.

I was born the year that his brother John called a generation of Americans to ask their country what they could do. And I came of age at a time when they did it. They were the Peace Corps volunteers who won a generation of goodwill toward America at a time when America ’s ideals were challenged.

They were the teenagers and college students, not much older than you, who watched the Civil Rights Movement unfold on their television sets; who saw the dogs and the fire hoses and the footage of marchers beaten within an inch of their lives; who knew it was probably smarter and safer to stay at home, but still decided to take those Freedom Rides down south – who still decided to march.

And because they did, they changed the world.

I bring this up because today, you are about to enter a world that makes it easy to get caught up in the notion that there are actually two different stories at work in our lives.

The first is the story of our everyday cares and concerns – the responsibilities we have to our jobs and our families – the bustle and busyness of what happens in our own life.

And the second is the story of what happens in the life of our country – of what happens in the wider world.

It’s the story you see when you catch a glimpse of the day’s headlines or turn on the news at night – a story of big challenges like war and recession; hunger and climate change; injustice and inequality. It’s a story that can sometimes seem distant and separate from our own – a destiny to be shaped by forces beyond our control.

And yet, the history of this nation tells us this isn’t so. It tells us that we are a people whose destiny has never been written for us, but by us – by generations of men and women, young and old, who have always believed that their story and the American story are not separate, but shared. And for more than two centuries, they have served this country in ways that have forever enriched both.

I say this to you as someone who couldn’t be standing here today if not for the service of others, and wouldn’t be standing here today if not for the purpose that service gave my own life.

You see, I spent much of my childhood adrift. My father left my mother and I when I was two. When my mother remarried, I lived in Indonesia for a time, but was mostly raised in Hawaii by her and my grandparents from Kansas . My teenage years were filled with more than the usual dose of adolescent rebellion, and I’ll admit that I didn’t always take myself or my studies very seriously. I realize that none of you can probably relate to this, but there were many times when I wasn’t sure where I was going, or what I would do.

But during my first two years of college, perhaps because the values my mother had taught me –hard work, honesty, empathy – had resurfaced after a long hibernation; or perhaps because of the example of wonderful teachers and lasting friends, I began to notice a world beyond myself. I became active in the movement to oppose the apartheid regime of South Africa . I began following the debates in this country about poverty and health care. So that by the time I graduated from college, I was possessed with a crazy idea – that I would work at a grassroots level to bring about change.

I wrote letters to every organization in the country I could think of.

And one day, a small group of churches on the South Side of Chicago offered me a job to come work as a community organizer in neighborhoods that had been devastated by steel plant closings. My mother and grandparents wanted me to go to law school. My friends were applying to jobs on Wall Street. Meanwhile, this organization offered me $12,000 a year plus $2,000 for an old, beat-up car.

And I said yes.

Now, I didn’t know a soul in Chicago , and I wasn’t sure what this community organizing business was all about. I had always been inspired by stories of the Civil Rights Movement and JFK’s call to service, but when I got to the South Side, there were no marches, and no soaring speeches. In the shadow of an empty steel plant, there were just a lot of folks who were struggling. And we didn’t get very far at first.

I still remember one of the very first meetings we put together to discuss gang violence with a group of community leaders. We waited and waited for people to show up, and finally, a group of older people walked into the hall. And they sat down. And a little old lady raised her hand and asked, “Is this where the bingo game is?”

It wasn’t easy, but eventually, we made progress. Day by day, block by block, we brought the community together, and registered new voters, and set up after school programs, and fought for new jobs, and helped people live lives with some measure of dignity.

But I also began to realize that I wasn’t just helping other people. Through service, I found a community that embraced me; citizenship that was meaningful; the direction I’d been seeking. Through service, I discovered how my own improbable story fit into the larger story of America .

Each of you will have the chance to make your own discovery in the years to come. And I say “chance” because you won’t have to take it.

There’s no community service requirement in the real world; no one forcing you to care.

You can take your diploma, walk off this stage, and chase only after the big house and the nice suits and all the other things that our money culture says you should by.

You can choose to narrow your concerns and live your life in a way that tries to keep your story separate from America ’s.

But I hope you don’t. Not because you have an obligation to those who are less fortunate, though you do have that obligation. Not because you have a debt to all those who helped you get here, though you do have that debt.

It’s because you have an obligation to yourself. Because our INDIVIDUAL salvation depends on COLLECTIVE salvation.

Because thinking only about yourself, fulfilling your immediate wants and needs, betrays a poverty of ambition.

Because it’s only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential and discover the role you’ll play in writing the next great chapter in America ’s story.

There are so many ways to serve and so much need at this defining moment in our history. You don’t have to be a community organizer or do something crazy like run for President. Right here at Wesleyan, many of you have already volunteered at local schools, contributed to United Way , and even started a program that brings fresh produce to needy families in the area. One hundred and sixty-four graduates of this school have joined the Peace Corps since 2001, and I’m especially proud that two of you are about to leave for my father’s homeland of Kenya to bring alternative sources of energy to impoverished areas.

I ask you to seek these opportunities when you leave here, because the future of this country – your future – depends on it.

At a time when our security and moral standing depend on winning hearts and minds in the forgotten corners of this world, we need more of you to serve abroad.

As President, I intend to grow the Foreign Service, double the Peace Corps over the next few years, and engage the young people of other nations in similar programs, so that we work side by side to take on the common challenges that confront all humanity.

At a time when our ice caps are melting and our oceans are rising, we need you to help lead a green revolution. We still have time to avoid the catastrophic consequences of climate change if we get serious about investing in renewable sources of energy, and if we get a generation of volunteers to work on renewable energy projects, and teach folks about conservation, and help clean up polluted areas; if we send talented engineers and scientists abroad to help developing countries promote clean energy.

At a time when a child in Boston must compete with children in Beijing and Bangalore , we need an army of you to become teachers and principals in schools that this nation cannot afford to give up on. I will pay our educators what they deserve, and give them more support, but I will also ask more of them to be mentors to other teachers, and serve in high-need schools and high-need subject areas like math and science.

At a time when there are children in the city of New Orleans who still spend each night in a lonely trailer, we need more of you to take a weekend or a week off from work, and head down South, and help rebuild. If you can’t get the time, volunteer at the local homeless shelter or soup kitchen in your own community. Find an organization that’s fighting poverty, or a candidate who promotes policies you believe in, and find a way to help them.

At a time of war, we need you to work for peace.

At a time of inequality, we need you to work for opportunity.

At a time of so much cynicism and so much doubt, we need you to make us believe again.

Now understand this - believing that change is possible is not the same as being naïve.

Go into service with your eyes wide open, for change will not come easily. On the big issues that our nation faces, difficult choices await. We’ll have to face some hard truths, and some sacrifice will be required – not only from you individually, but from the nation as a whole.

There is no magic bullet to our energy problems, for example; no perfect energy source - so all of us will have to use the energy sources we have more wisely. Deep-rooted poverty will not be reversed overnight, and will require both money and reform at a time when our federal and state budgets are strapped and Washington is skeptical that reform is possible.

Transforming our education system will require not only bold government action, but a change in attitudes among parents and students. Bringing an end to the slaughter in Darfur will involve navigating extremely difficult realities on the ground, even for those with the best of intentions.

And so, should you take the path of service, should you choose to take up one of these causes as your own, know that you’ll experience frustrations and failures.

Even your successes will be marked by imperfections and unintended consequences. I guarantee you, there will certainly be times when friends or family urge you to pursue more sensible endeavors with more tangible rewards. And there will be times when you are tempted to take their advice.

But I hope you’ll remember, during those times of doubt and frustration, that there is nothing naïve about your impulse to change this world.

Because all it takes is one act of service – one blow against injustice – to send forth that tiny ripple of hope that Robert Kennedy spoke of.

You know, Ted Kennedy often tells a story about the fifth anniversary celebration of the Peace Corps. He was there, and he asked one of the young Americans why he had chosen to volunteer.

And the man replied, “Because it was the FIRST time someone asked me to do something for my country.”

I don’t know how many of you have been asked that question, but after today, you have no excuses. I am asking you, and if I should have the honor of serving this nation as President, I will be asking again in the coming years. We may disagree on certain issues and positions, but I believe we can be unified in service to a greater good. I intend to make it a cause of my presidency, and I believe with all my heart that this generation is ready, and eager, and up to the challenge.

We will face our share of cynics and doubters. But we always have.

I can still remember a conversation I had with an older man all those years ago just before I left for Chicago . He said, “Barack, I’ll give you a bit of advice. Forget this community organizing business and do something that’s gonna make you some money. You can’t change the world, and people won’t appreciate you trying. But you’ve got a nice voice, so you should think about going into television broadcasting. I’m telling you, you’ve got a future.”

Now, he may have been right about the TV thing, but he was wrong about everything else. For that old man has not seen what I have seen.

He has not seen the faces of ordinary people the first time they clear a vacant lot or build a new playground or force an unresponsive leader to provide services to their community.

He has not seen the face of a child brighten because of an inspiring teacher or mentor.

He has not seen scores of young people educate their parents on issues like Darfur , or mobilize the conscience of a nation around the challengeof climate change.

He has not seen lines of men and women that wrap around schools and churches, that stretch block after block just so they could make their voices heard, many for the very first time.

And that old man who didn’t believe the world could change – who didn’t think one person could make a difference – well he certainly didn’t know much about the life of Joseph Kennedy’s youngest son.

It is rare in this country of ours that a person exists who has touched the lives of nearly every single American without many of us even realizing it. And yet, because of Ted Kennedy, millions of children can see a doctor when they get sick. Mothers and fathers can leave work to spend time with their newborns. Working Americans are paid higher wages, and compensated for overtime, and can keep their health insurance when they change jobs. They are protected from discrimination in the workplace, and those who are born with disabilities can still get an education, and health care, and fair treatment on the job. Our schools are stronger and our colleges are filled with more Americans who can afford it. And I have a feeling that Ted Kennedy is not done just yet.

But surely, if one man can achieve so much and make such a difference in the lives of so many, then each of us can do our part. Surely, if his service and his story can forever shape America ’s story, then our collective service can shape the destiny of this generation.

At the very least, his living example calls each of us to TRY . That is all I ask of you on this joyous day of new beginnings; that is what Senator Kennedy asks of you as well, and that is how we will keep so much needed work going, and the cause of justice everlasting, and the dream alive for generations to come.

Thank you so much to the class of 2008, and congratulations on your graduation.

Besto Regardo,
No doubt Senator Barack Obama is one of the great orators. His speeches always strike a chord of mine.

以上です。

そばにいるね（ステレオサウンド）青山テルマ

2008-05-25T15:07:00.002+09:00

Song: Soba ni irune
Singer: Aoyama Thelma featuring Soulja

以上です。

Hadis: Wanita yang terbaik

2008-05-25T10:39:00.001+09:00

Dari Abi Hurairah (RA. ) Rasulullah ( SAW) pernah ditanya: “Siapakah wanita terbaik” (solehah) . Jawabnya: “Ialah wanita yang menggembirakan kamu bila dilihat kepadanya dan sentiasa patuh dan taat bila disuruh, tidak menyalahinya pada dirinya dan hartanya dengan apa yang dibencinya (Hadis Riwayat Nasai dan Baihaqi).

Huraiannya:

Dalam hadis ini, Rasulullah saw menggambarkan bakal isteri yang solehah itu ialah wanita yang menawan dan pandai menggodanya. Disamping bersikap taat dan patuh kepada arahan suaminya dan tidak akan menyalahinya dalam sebarang kemahuannya (yang tidak bertentangan dengan agama) dalam pergaulan dan perbelanjaan hartanya. Itulah wanita solehah yang harus menjadi pilihan hati kaum lelaki.

Kesimpulannya:

Wanita terbaik bakal wanita pilihan itu ialah wanita yang solehah iaitu mereka menarik pandangan suami dan sentiasa taat dan mengikut kehendak suaminya.

以上です。

Kenali Taikun Automotif

2008-05-25T10:34:00.002+09:00

Industri automotif tempatan pernah melahirkan ramai taikun automotif seperti Allahyarham Tan Sri SM Nasimuddin S.M. Amin yang mengasas Kumpulan Naza, Allahyarham Tan Sri Yahya Ahmad yang membangunkan Kumpulan DRB-HICOM dan mendiang Tan Sri Loh Boon Siew yang digelar 'Mr. Honda'.

Di sebalik kejayaan-kejayaan yang diuaruarkan tentang taikun-taikun automotif tempatan itu, sebenarnya masih banyak yang harus dilakukan oleh negara ini agar industri automotif negara berkembang sehingga mampu menembusi pasaran global.

Lihat sahaja bagaimana taikun-taikun automotif antarabangsa seperti Henry Ford dari Amerika Syarikat, Chung Ju Yung dari Korea Selatan, Kiichiro Toyoda dan Soichiro Honda dari Jepun, Gottlieb Daimler yang mencetuskan jenama kereta mewah Mercedes dan Karl Friedrich Rapp, pengasas BMW membina empayar.

Bagi motosikal pula, William S. Harley dan Arthur Davidson dari Milwaukee berusaha membina jenama kenderaan dua tayar berkuasa tinggi itu sehingga digeruni semua termasuk gergasi motosikal dari negara Asia terutama Jepun.

Henry Ford yang hidup selama 84 tahun sejak dilahirkan pada 30 Julai 1863 'melarikan diri' dari kehidupan sebagai petani seawal usia 16 tahun untuk menjadi tukang mesin.

Selepas beberapa tahun, Ford menubuhkan Ford Motor Company dan memulakan pemasangan kenderaan secara besar-besaran sehingga menjadikan beliau antara orang terkaya di dunia dan dianugerahkan 161 paten AS.

Ford yang percaya prinsip kepenggunaan sebagai kunci kedamaian dalam mencapai kejayaan mengabaikan akauntan dalam menjalankan perniagaan, sebaliknya menggunakan proses inovasi dalam mencapai pengurangan kos termasuk memperkenalkan sistem francais di seluruh dunia.

Selepas kematiannya, Ford meninggalkan harta-hartanya kepada Yayasan Ford namun meletakkan adikberadik serta anak-anaknya menguasai perniagaan itu. Taikun dari Korea Selatan, Chung Ju Yung, 83 yang mengasaskan konglomerat Hyundai pula bersama-sama adiknya sehingga menjadikan syarikat itu sebagai konglomerat multinasional terbesar atau chaebol asalnya adalah anak seorang petani yang menjana kewangan menerusi pelbagai pekerjaan.

Mendiang pernah menjalankan pelbagai kerja antaranya menggali tanah, menghantar 1001 lembu ke Korea Utara dan membangunkan kereta pertama keluaran Korea, PONY sebagai model pertama buatan Hyundai.

Pengeluar kenderaan terbesar dunia, Toyota Motor Corporation pula diasaskan oleh Kiichiro Toyoda, yang menyambung kerja-kerja ayahnya yang mencipta enjin jenis A pada tahun 1934 dan mengeluarkan kereta penumpang pertama yang diberi nama Toyota AA tahun 1936.

Toyota yang mempunyai 522 anak syarikat turut memiliki dan menguruskan perniagaan kenderaan jenama Lexus dan Scion selain mempunyai kepentingan dalam Daihatsu Motors dan Fuji Heavy Industries, Isuzu Motors dan Yamaha Motors.

Pengasas kereta Honda, Soichiro Honda yang hidup selama 85 tahun dilahirkan di Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan merupakan seorang jurutera industri ringan Jepun. Sejak di zaman kanakkanak lagi, Honda yang tidak pernah mendapat pendidikan secara formal sepanjang hidupnya menghabiskan masa bagi membantu bapa beliau, Gihei, dalam perniagaan membaiki basikal.

Pada usia 15 tahun, Honda berhijrah ke Tokyo dengan mula bekerja di garaj sebelum diberi tanggungjawab lebih besar sebagai mekanik kenderaan selama enam tahun, selepas itu pulang semula ke kampung dan memulakan perniagaan membaiki kenderaan sendiri.

Hampir 10 tahun selepas itu, Honda mula mengeluarkan alat ganti untuk enjin kecil yang menjurus kepada pengilangan enjin berkuasa rendah untuk motosikal.

Bintang Honda mula menyinar pada tahun 1948 apabila mendiang menjadi Presiden Honda Motor Company dan mengeluarkan motosikal lengkap.

Pesaing Honda, walaupun dalam segmen pasaran yang berbeza iaitu Harley Davidson pula diasaskan oleh dua sahabat, William S. Harley dan Arthur Davidson seawal usia 20-an menerusi pelan pembangunan enjin berasaskan motor dan basikal.

Pada mulanya usaha penghasilan enjin motosikal oleh dua sahabat itu mengalami kegagalan kerana enjin ciptaan mereka tidak berupaya mendaki bukit di Milwaukee tanpa bantuan pengayuh.

Tidak berputus-asa, mereka membangunkan enjin generasi kedua yang lebih baik dengan 24.74 kubik inci atau 405 cc dan menjadi pencetus enjin berkuasa tinggi berjenama Harley Davidson yang terkenal serata dunia.

Jenama kereta mewah Mercedes pula asalnya dari nama anak gadis pengedar kenderaan dan penggemar sukan lumba, Emil Jellinek yang mempunyai anak perempuan bernama Mércédès Jellinek.

Walau bagaimanapun, sejarah menunjukkan Mercedes berasal dari jenama Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG) yang mula dibangunkan pada tahun 1900, selepas kematian salah seorang pengasasnya, Gottlieb Daimler.

Ketika itu, Jellinek mengadakan usaha sama dengan DMG untuk mendapatkan siri kereta lumba yang menggunakan enjin sempena nama anak perempuannya.

Jellinek berjaya dalam banyak perlumbaan sehingga berjaya menarik minat ramai peminat automotif pada masa itu sehingga beliau dilantik sebagai ahli lembaga pengarah DMG.

BMW atau Bayerische Motoren Werke (Bavarian Motor Works) pula diasaskan oleh Karl Friedrich Rapp pada tahun 1916.

Ramai percaya logo BMW adalah ilustrasi kipas yang berpusing dengan berlatar belakangkan kebiruan langit, mungkin sebenarnya ia adalah warna bendera bandar Bavaria.

Sumber: Mingguan Malaysia

以上です

Mengatur Langkah

2008-05-17T13:46:00.004+09:00

Sudah lama tak mengarut dalam blog ni. Maklumlah dihimpit kesibukan yang tidak kunjung padam. Sudah lama juga tidak mengarang dalam Bahasa Melayu. Terasa rindu pula untuk bermain bahasa.

Ungkapan "Man's life begins at 40" sudah acapkali kita dengari. Tapi persoalan yang timbul di kotak mindaku ialah kenapa 40 tahun. Apakah itu tidak terlalu lambat? Apakah yang dimaksudkan dengan 'life' di sini. Adakah ianya membawa erti bahawa pada umur 40 tahun seseorang lelaki itu sudah sepatutnya meniti suatu titian hidup yang stabil dalam erti kata dari segi kewangan, status sosial, mental, emosi, hubungan kemanusiaan dan kebijaksanaan?

Buat diriku secara peribadi, i set my `life' to begin at 30.. Ini membawa erti, pada ketika umurku 30 tahun, aku sudah berupaya menikmati suatu taraf kehidupan yang dinikmati oleh mereka yang secara umumnya berumur 40 tahun. Tapi apakah piawaian yang diguna ukur untuk menetapkan ciri-ciri kehidupan yang stabil yang perlu dicapai oleh khalayak yang meniti umur 40 tahun adalah sesuatu yang perlu dianalisa secara lebih menyeluruh dan khusus.
Erti pencapaian hidup bagi seseorang insan adalah suatu yang subjektif dan topik yang sangat luas untuk dibincangkan.

Hanya tinggal lebih kurang 2 tahun sahaja lagi sebelum umurku mencecah genap 30 tahun. 2 tahun bukanlah satu tempoh masa yang lama. Sudah tiba masanya yang kritikal bagiku untuk mengorak ayunan langkah yang lebih panjang dan pantas. Kaut sebanyak mungkin pengalaman yang mampu ditimba. Asah setajam mungkin daya memikir yang disegarkan dengan kematangan berhujah dalam menyatakan pendapat. Kesabaran, berhemah dan berprinsip. Inilah antara kualiti-kualiti yang seharusnya digilap dan diserlahkan bagi menzahirkan impianku. Impian My life begins at 30...

Salam mesra. Hingga berjumpa lagi di lain edisi.

以上です。

Anwar Ibrahim in 'Time' magazine's 100 most influential people in the world

2008-05-02T19:43:00.005+09:00

He is not in Parliament yet and is still putting finishing touches on a coherent Opposition in Malaysia but Time magazine have picked Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as one of the 100 most influential people in the world for 2008.

He shares the platform with the Dalai Lama, Hu Jintao, Vladimir Putin, Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton, George Clooney, Oprah Winfrey, Aung San Suu Kyi, Rupert Murdoch, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and others.

This is the fifth annual list of leaders, thinkers, heroes, scientists, sports stars drawn up by the US news magazine. The de facto leader of Pakatan Rakyat is one of a clutch of Asians who were listed in the leaders and revolutionaries category. The format calls for a prominent individual to write a short essay about each person on the top 100 list.

Anwar’s citation was penned by Paul Wolfowitz, the former US Deputy Secretary of Defence. This is what he wrote:

"During the 1990s, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and a group of US Senators organised a forum to exchange views among East Asians and Americans. Asked at one session about the role of Islam in politics, Anwar replied, 'I have no use for governments which call themselves Islamic and then deny basic rights to half their population.'

"This devout Muslim leader was an impressive and eloquent advocate of tolerance, democracy and human rights. So we were shocked by his arrest and trial in 1998 on charges of corruption and sodomy. I felt his real 'crime' had been to challenge Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, whose impressive record will be forever stained by his treatment of Anwar.

"I joined Senator Sam Nunn and others to speak out in Anwar's defence. When he was finally released from prison in 2004, US policy on Iraq was unpopular in Malaysia, and Anwar was harshly critical. It would have been easy for him to disown our friendship, but he is not that kind of person. He kept the channels of dialogue open, even while making clear our disagreements.

"Anwar, 60, is back in the centre of Malaysian politics. The coalition led by his wife Wan Azizah has become the main Opposition bloc. His future role can be determined only by Malaysians. One can hope that they will embrace his brand of tolerance, valuing dialogue across political differences, and that this courageous leader will continue to play a leading role on the world stage."

This recognition for Anwar comes at a time when he is still trying to stabilise the alliance between the DAP, PKR and Pas, and find a place for himself in the new political landscape of Malaysia. He was barred from contesting the election on March 8 because his conviction for abuse of power.

Over the years, Anwar has tried to fight off claims that he is a stooge of the United States and the West. That was one of the main planks in Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s attack on Anwar after sacking him from government and Umno in 1998. More recently, Anwar has had to defend his ties with Wolfowitz, who resigned as the head of the World Bank in shame and is viewed as one of the hawks in the Bush administration which encouraged the US to invade Iraq in 2003.

Still, Anwar’s inclusion in the top 100 list shows how far he has managed to rehabilitate his reputation since his conviction on sodomy was overturned by the Federal Court in 2004. In Malaysia, he has been touted as the prime minister-in-waiting and abroad Anwar has recaptured the media headlines.

The TIME 100

Leaders & Revolutionaries

* Dalai Lama
* Vladimir Putin
* Barack Obama
* Hillary Clinton
* John McCain
* Hu Jintao
* George W. Bush
* Jacob Zuma
* Anwar Ibrahim
* Kevin Rudd
* Bartholomew I
* Ben Bernanke
* Muqtada al-Sadr
* Robert Gates
* Michelle Bachelet
* Sonia Gandhi
* Baitullah Mehsud
* Evo Morales
* Ma Ying-jeou
* Ashfaq Kayani

Source: (The Malaysian Insider) Malaysia Today

Besto Regardo,
Go Anwar, go Anuar.

以上です。

Perodua breaks with tradition

2008-04-29T21:43:00.003+09:00

PERUSAHAAN Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd is "breaking tradition" for the first time in its 15-year history by introducing a new vehicle fully imported from Japan.

The second national car producer plans to launch the Perodua Nautica sports utility vehicle, a rebadged Toyota SUV, next month.

Perodua has always produced Toyota or Daihatsu vehicles at its plant in Sungai Choh in Rawang, Selangor.

Managing director Datuk Syed Hafiz Syed Abu Bakar stressed that it is more cost-effective to import the SUV than to assemble it locally.
"This is an urban lifestyle vehicle. The most volume we may get (for this kind of vehicle) is 300 units a month," Hafiz said in a recent interview at his office at the Sungai Choh facility.

He added that monthly sales of some 1,500 units of such vehicle are needed to justify any local assembly.

Hafiz said the 1.5-litre Nautica is also to "fill up Perodua showrooms more". It will complement the company's current passenger car line-up of the Myvi and Viva.

Perodua is targeting buyers who are in the market for a second or third vehicle with a four-wheel drive (FWD) capability.

There is a similar SUV like the Nautica produced by Toyota Motor Co in Indonesia. But the latter version comes with a two-wheel drive capability, Hafiz explained.

Kembara Replacement: Talk has it that the new upcoming Perodua Nautica will look more or like a Daihatsu Bego/Terios or Toyota Rush

Meanwhile, Hafiz said the looming Perodua rebranding is a continuation of its journey to change itself.

"The journey to make the company name more visible started two years ago. For some time now, our product brands such as Kancil and Myvi stand out more prominently than our corporate name, Perodua. We intend to change that situation," he said.

The rebranding revolves around Perodua's new brand vision and tag line "Fresh Thinking To Move Malaysia" and should be launched in June.

Source: New Straits Times Business Times

以上です。

My Sacrifice by Creed : Tribute to Anwar Ibrahim

2008-04-20T19:50:00.002+09:00

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia Prime Minister in waiting. By god's will.

After many relentless ordeals he endured, passed, and still keep on surviving with an earnest gesture of goodwill, i am very pleased to have this charismatic leader as the next Premier of Malaysia. For the time being, i can't think of other better candidate except him. Well, the perception can change anytime though. But for now, he's the man.

以上です。

Thanks Mom...お母さん、ありがとう。。。

2008-04-19T17:24:00.014+09:00

Wow it has been quite some times until i start to write again today.
I've been quite busy lately.
Anyway, i would like to take this chance by greeting all the great moms out there, Happy Mother's Day.

To my beloved mama;

Mom, you are the best,
You're different than the rest.
You make me stronger,
To stand on my feet for the future.
You are the only one,
Blessing from you is all i want.
Thanks for everything,
Without you my life is nothing.
I will always love you mom.
お母さん、ありがとう。。。

Song: 未来へ(Mirai ei)
Singer: Kiroro
Translation Japanese-English: Anuar Fariz Shuaid

ほら　足元を見てごらん
これがあなたの步む道
ほら　前を見てごらん
あれがあなたの未來
(Hey look at your steps
This is the way that you gonna walk through
Hey look forward
That's your future)

母がくれたたくさんの優しさ
愛を抱いて步めと繰り返した
あの時はまだ幼くて意味など知らない
そんな私の手を握り
一緒に步んできた
(Mom treated me with a lot of tenderness
Embracing love while moving on repeatedly
Then, i was still young not knowing the meaning
Still mom grasp my hand firmly
Together we walked on)

夢はいつも空高くあるから
屆かなくて怖いね　
だけど追いつつ'けるの
自分の物語(ストーリー)だからこそ諦めたくない
不安になると手を握り
一緒に步んできた
(A dream is always at high in the sky
Afraid that we couldn't reach it
But keep on chasing for it
Coz it's about your own story then don't give up
Whenever feel unsecured, grasp the hand
Together we walked on)

夢はいつも空高くあるから
屆かなくて怖いね　だけど追いつつ'けるの
自分の物語(ストーリー)だからこそ諦めたくない
不安になると手を握り
一緒に步んできた

その優しさを時には嫌がり
離れた母へ素直になれず
(Sometimes i hate to be treated tenderly like that
To mom whilst away i couldn't be as good as i used to)

未來へ向かって
ゆっくりと步いて行こう
(Toward the future
Slowly we walk on)

Besto Regardo,
This is a very sweet song with a touching and meaningful Japanese lyrics. One of the best song tribute to all the best moms. This song was first introduced to me by one of my Nihon-Go Japanese Sensei when i was studying in University Malaya in 1998 for the Japanese University Admission Preparation Course. Hmmm..those days really sweet.

以上です。

Let's get works done

2008-03-16T19:33:00.009+09:00

My fellow gentlemen,

Malaysia has decided and the verdict is out. It is already evenly one week after this beloved country of ours, outrageously smitten by what all those political analysts and pundits termed it as a 'political tsunami'.

Flashing back on the day of March 9th as a day after the fateful polling date, i woke up from my atrocious sleep with full of anticipation and excitement. It felt like a new world was born, with new fresh air to breath and it appeared to be a such wonderful day.

I'm so delight and grateful because above all, the 12th General Election was successfully conducted and changes for the new government to step into several certain states are being done orderly with out so much immense trouble. Of course there are few unwanted events occured, initiated by a few quarters of selfish 'dickheads' and 'nincompoops', which unconsciously propelled things to be more complicated, as some have gone too far in their attempt to turn a state into a bloodbath turmoil by agitating the fire of racial polemic on street.

Undeniably, i was disgusted with Lim Kit Siang's credulous statement which issued impulsively in response to PAS YB Ir Mohd Nizar's appointment by the royal household of Perak as the new MB of the state even though Kit Siang had revoked it back and apologized later on. Fortunately, blessed with the wisdom of Perak's King, the tussle has been loosen out. DAP should have been aware that it alone without any strong backup by PAS and PKR supporters will never ever managed to accumulate such magnanimous votes it is enjoying now. Therefore PAS-PKR-DAP coalition must at utmost, put the interest of the people and country above theirs. They must work diligently together as a proof to the people that they are reliable and there would be no regret on people's side for putting them at where they are standing now.

We, the people who put you there, and we, the people can kick you down from there. So watch out and don't try us! There's no more time for hanky panky dowry and bickering among yourselves but let's get down to work and start serving the people!! Rakyat has been so hungry for too long for a credible and clean governance and rakyat want you to act and walk your talk.

So far, i tend to see that Lim Guan Eng seems to be a professional leader. I haven't heard yet any policy or suggestion coming out from his mouth that to marginalize or deprive any race or quarters off their rights. Let's give him his grace chance since he just being at the helm for merely a week for god sake!
Thus, what UMNO Penang has done to take things to the street, while they are the ones who slammed the oppositions all this while is very unwelcome.

Besides that, what Ali Rustam the Vice President of UMNO said that the federal government should stop all the development projects which have been planned for Penang hence the Penangites are deemed to be realized who's the boss now, is only reveal the true colours of this man. On the other hand, i really applaud Koh Tsu Khoon stance who hits out with his statement that all the projects must be proceeded for the benefit of people and UMNO Penang shouldn't did as what they have done recently in front of Komtar's building as it was so improper.

For all i care now is i want the best for Malaysia and i don't give shite whether it comes from UMNO, PAS, PKR, DAP, MCA, GERAKAN, MIC, PPP or whatsoever. I'll hail the one who speaks, acts and thinks for the betterment of rakyat and i'll screw up the one who serves the rakyat like pariah but he himself thinks and acts like the worst pariah of all pariah in this world.

Last but not least, i would like to congratulate all the people regardless their political affiliations who is able to think deliberately and to stay calm in a peaceful manner despite being provoked by irresponsible groups. Banzai Malaysia!!

Besto Regardo,
Ingenuity and maturity is our culture.
Peace and Love Malaysia.

以上です

Gates no longer the richest, toppled by Buffett

2008-03-06T19:54:00.004+09:00

American investment guru Warren Buffett has been named as the richest person in the world, knocking his friend Bill Gates off the top spot for the first time in 13 years.

Buffett, the 77-year-old boss of the Berkshire Hathaway company, saw his　wealth jump from $52bn last year to $62bn because of the rising value of his shares in the firm.

Microsoft co-founder Gates, whose fortune rose by $2bn to $58bn was pushed into third position in Forbes' 2008 list of the World's Billionaires.
He was pipped to second spot by Mexican telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim Helu, who has an estimated net worth of $60bn.

Buffett announced in 2006 that he would give the majority of his fortune to charity. Ironically, most of it will benefit the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

For the first time ever, there are more than 1,000 billionaires on the list with 1,125 making the grade compared with 946 in 2007.
Their total net worth stands at a whopping $4.4 trillion.

And the average billionaire - if there is such a thing - is worth $3.9bn, that's $250 million more than last year

The US still has the most billionaires with 469, but Russia replaced Germany as the second-placed country with 87 billionaires.

This year's Top Ten contains a record-breaking four Indians, including steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, who is Britain's richest resident.

The last 12 months also saw an unprecedented number of young billionaires, with Forbes listing 50 individuals under the age of 40.

The world's youngest billionaire is Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, ranked 785 with $1.5bn to his name. Not bad for a 23-year-old!

The Top 10 World Billionaires Ranking:

1 Name: Warren Buffett
Citizenship: US 　
Age: 77
Net Worth($bil):62.0
Source: Berkshire Hathaway

2 Name: Carlos Slim Helu
Citizenship: Mexico 　
Age: 68
Net Worth($bil):60.0
Source: Telecom

3 Name: Bill Gates
Citizenship: US
Age: 52
Net Worth($bil):58.0
Source: Microsoft

4 Name: Lakshmi Mittal
Citizenship: India
Age: 57
Net Worth($bil): 45.0
Source: Steel

5 Name: Mukesh Ambani
Citizenship: India
Age: 50
Net Worth($bil): 43.0
Source: petrochemicals

6 Name: Anil Ambani
Citizenship: India
Age: 48
Net Worth($bil): 42.0
Source: diversified

7 Name: Ingvar Kamprad
Citizenship: Sweden
Age: 81
Net Worth($bil): 31.0
Source: Ikea

8 Name: KP Singh
Citizanship: India
Age: 76
Net Worth($bil): 30.0
Source: real estate

9 Name: Oleg Deripaska
Citizenship: Russia
Age: 40
Net Worth($bil): 28.0
Source: Russian Aluminum

10 Name: Karl Albrecht
Citizenship: Germany
Age: 88
Net Worth($bil): 27.0
Source: Aldi (Retailing)

以上です。

Lessons from Warren Buffett’s guru

2008-03-01T15:50:00.001+09:00

Source: Personal Investing By OOI KOK HWA, The Star

Phillip Fisher says he doesn't want a lot of good investments but a few good outstanding ones.

What can we learn from Philip Fisher?

Philip A. Fisher, one of Warren Buffett’s investment gurus, is known for his philosophy on the qualitative aspects of selecting a good company for investment. Buffett learned qualitative analysis from him.

Fisher got his early education at Stanford Business School. He joined an independent San Francisco bank as a securities analyst in 1928, and founded Fisher & Co, an investment counselling business, in 1931.

According to his book entitled Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits, one of the most important investment philosophies from Fisher is Scuttlebutt, which he also calls “the business grapevine”, in investing.

Scuttlebutt is the use of the business grapevine to analyse a company. We can obtain the information from customers, employees, suppliers, academics, trade association officers, industry observers, etc. This information is crucial in determining the character of its managers and the potential of the company.

A good company should exhibit unquestionable management integrity, own highly competitive products, be in a healthy financial position, have good cost control and be effective in its research programme.

According to Fisher, even though it is hard to know quality of management, a good management team should possess the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks efficiently and have good long-term planning. The management should also have high integrity and maintain good labour, personal and executive relations.

Fisher is a believer of growth investing. We need to select stocks that have great potential to grow their businesses. It will be a waste of time to hold on to stocks that have no growth potential. He believes that we can get capital gains by buying into these companies as their stock prices would go up in line with the increase in their intrinsic value.

It requires extensive research before you can get one. Fisher said: “I don’t want a lot of good investments; I want a few outstanding ones.” These companies can be bought at high historic price earnings ratio (PER) because there is a possibility that their stock price is reflecting good news you don’t know about yet.

The growth companies should demonstrate strong and well-directed research capabilities. These companies should also exhibit an above-average sales organisation. Besides, they need to have a sustainable profit margin and good return on capital. Normally, these companies are the market leaders in the industry and have the advantages of scale.

A consistent and predictable dividend policy will provide the minimum returns to investors. Although high dividends are good for investors, to maintain business growth, high growth companies need to retain a certain level of profits for future expansion.

If a company is paying dividends with little retained earnings, it will cause lower reinvestment, which will affect its long-term growth. As mentioned earlier, the main returns to an investor is capital gain. He believes that buying into high growth companies will provide the capital gain.

When to sell

Fisher believes in long-term investment. According to him, the most important thing is to select the right stocks. “If the job has been correctly done when a common stock is purchased, the time to sell it is almost never,” he said. However, if we select the wrong stocks, we need to sell.

We need to admit that we have made mistakes in our calculation. This attitude is important as not many retailers have the courage to admit their mistakes. Furthermore, we should not expect to be right all the time. We should be aware that we can make mistakes and we will make mistakes in our analysis, but more importantly, we need to learn from our mistakes.

Fisher said: “The chief difference between a fool and a wise man is that the wise man learns from his mistakes, while the fool never does.”

Fisher will only call a sell on a stock when the company or industry has changed and the stock no longer qualifies as a growth stock or a better prospect is available elsewhere. He will not sell a stock just because a stock appears to be selling for a significantly above average PER or because the stock price has increased.

He believes that most investors always make mistakes by selling their stocks with the hope of buying them back at lower prices. In most instances, the investors miss the stock when it recovers.

以上です。

10 signs you love someone...

2008-02-29T23:42:00.006+09:00

TEN:

You feel shy whenever they're around.

NINE:

You smile when you hear their voice.

EIGHT:

When you look at them, you can't see the other people around you, you just see him/her.

SIX:

They're all you think about.

FIVE:

You realize you're always smiling when you're looking at them.

FOUR:

You would do anything for them, just to see them.

THREE:

While reading this, there was one person on your mind this whole time.

TWO:

You were so busy thinking about that person, you didnt notice number seven was missing.

ONE:

You just scrolled up to check & are now silently laughing at yourself.

Besto Regardo,
Actually a friend forwarded this to me. And i can't help from laughing at myself after coming to number three until number one. It's so true. I think the person who discover this signs is a genius. Fantastic!

以上です。

Four Malaysians in Forbes’ philanthropists list

2008-02-28T19:37:00.005+09:00

The Star
By IZATUN SHARI

Four Malaysians made it to the Forbes Asia list of the region's most generous and interesting philanthropists.

Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary, Hishamuddin Ubaidulla, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim and Datuk Amar Leonard Linggi Tun Jugah were featured in the inaugural Forbes Asia Heroes of Philanthropy list in its March 10 issue.

Syed Mokhtar, 56, is founder and sole donor of a Muslim charity, Albukhary Foundation that assists the needy.

Established in 1996, the foundation funds remedial classes in English, science and math for 20,000 underachieving students each year and runs a college scholarship program for 300 students from more than 40 countries.

Syed Mokhtar controls Malaysia Mining Corp and holds big stakes in Johor Port and other businesses.

Hishamudin, 52, oversees Yayasan Ubaidi, a foundation funded entirely with profits from commercial buildings and the sale of land bought by his father years ago.

The foundation helps families who cannot make ends meet, pays some medical expenses, helps single mothers pay for tertiary education, assists hospitals that cannot afford equipment.

Hishamudin, who helps run the family travel agency, is also chairman of Deir Yassin Remembered Malaysia, a movement committed to ending the war between Israel and Palestine.

Former MP for Kota Baru, Zaid, 57, who owns the country’s largest law firm, Zaid Ibrahim & Co, set up the Kelantan Foundation for the Disabled in 1998.

The foundation serves 2,400 people suffering from Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other disabilities.

Linggi, 67, a prominent Iban businessman has varied dealings, including real estate, plantation, shipping, hotel and other companies.

Tun Jugah Foundation gets virtually all of its contributions from him. It focuses on preserving the culture of the Ibans in Sarawak. In 2003 it began compiling the first Iban dictionary.

This year Forbes put together a list of 48 philanthropists.

Others featured on the list included Chinese billionaire, Shi Zhengrong; China’s richest woman, Yang Huiyan; film star Jet Li; Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing; Azim Premji from India; Taiwan’s richest man, Terry Gou; Kyocera founder Kazuo Inamori from Japan; Jaime Augusto Zobel De Ayala II from the Philippine; Singaporean Mavis Khoo; Thailand’s Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi and Indonesia's Putera Sampoerna.

Besto Regardo,
I think i'd like to know more about Mr. Hishamuddin Ubaidulla. Got to do some researches on this good man.

以上です。

お花屋さん～ 'Bara no nai hanaya' Fever

2008-02-16T20:02:00.021+09:00

You know what makes me to always think such as, "Oh..how wonderful it is to be staying in Japan."? The decisive factor are several but one of them is because Japan can offer and produce a lot of good quality and awesome tv dramas..Cheii poyos la sikitkan..:-)

And the one that i consider to be among the best masterpiece is 薔薇のない花屋-'Bara no nai hanaya'. Well, i don't know. Some may in opinion of it's such a lame and boring drama but to me it's a wonderful human drama story.

Many things impressed me about it. I like the plot, the cast; Takeuchi Yuko (She is angelic and beautiful as always..俺の一人の恋人だぜ！), Kattori Shingo (He looks more matured in the drama..何か大人らしく演じていた), Shaku Yumiko (She's a bomb! gorgeous is her trademark) and the rest, and of course the catchy music song ずっと一緒さ - 'Zutto Ishou Sa'.

Now this is the drama that infused an obsession in myself to be a florist after returning back home to Malaysia one day..Ohanaya san !!

Fuji Terebi saikou!
Yamashita Tatsurou saikou!
Takeuchi Yuko...sugoku sugoku saikou dazei!

作詩：山下達郎作曲：山下達郎

抱きしめて
しじまの中で
あなたの声を聞かせて

こびりつく
涙を融かして
冬はもうすぐ終わるよ

いくつもの悲しみを
くぐリ抜けたそのあとで
つないだ手の温かさが
全てを知っている

あなたとふたりで
生きて行きたい
それだけで何もいらない
昼も夜も　夢の中まで
ずっと　ずっと　一緒さ

あなたとふたりで
生きて行けたら
何度でも生まれ変われる
時の海に　未来を浮かべ
ずっと　ずっと　一緒さ..

Hey guys, i'm honoured to introduce you my lovably sweet heart..muhahaha
↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓

No jealousy pleaseeee...

以上です。

Rezeki dan peluang.

2008-02-09T14:12:00.002+09:00

Perkara pertama yang terlintas di otak kepalaku apabila mendengar pengakuan secara berahsia daripada seorang rakan Jepunku ialah, "Apparently, man will never be satisfied of what he gets". Adakah ini merupakan suatu konotasi yang negatif atau sebaliknya? Pastinya setiap orang di antara kita mempunyai jawapan dan hujah-hujah yang tersendiri. It's something subjective when it comes to the matter of life since each of us will never walk through the exactly same steps and feel the same thing. Uniquely wonderful.

"Kereta company dapat, tempat penginapan di sebuah kondominium di kawasan elite Mont Kiara juga disediakan, position sebagai Assistant Manager, gaji dan benefit packages yang lain...damn too alluring, i must say . Yang menariknya, di samping segala imbuhan tetap dan elaun sampingan yang lain, dia juga bakal menikmati apa yang digelar elaun gratuiti (Elaun penghargaan kerana sanggup menerima tugas bekerja di luar negara!?) yang jumlahnya tidak kurang daripada ￥2,000,000 (RM60,000) yang akan diterimanya setiap kali akhir tahun. Boleh bayangkan, sudahlah gajinya di Jepun akan 'berjalan' seperti biasa, gaji bulanan di Malaysia juga dia akan perolehi, elaun gratuiti saja sudah mencecah RM60,000? Apa kejadahnya semua ini !! Hehe..rileks, sabar,...cool, cool down.. Itulah rezeki namanya. Umurnya baru saja dalam lingkungan 28-29 tahun. Ya semestinya masih muda dan bujang yang masih lagi belum lapok. Such a lucky dude...

This friend of mine is designated to do his secondment at one of Malaysian most prominent car manufacturers but wait a minute mate,...nope, he's not going to grab that offer. Yes, that's what he told me. He's not going to take the offer which i on the other hand believe, almost every layman in Malaysia is craving of and won't turn away their heads from. What on earth made him decided to turn it down? The answer is simple, because he got something else which seems a better offer and meets his dream of pursuing a great career in a great company.

Dengan sukacitanya dia mengkhabarkan pada aku, dia berjaya melepasi 2 kali tapisan ujian temuduga sebuah syarikat besar bertaraf konglomerat Jepun. One of the big 4 of Japanese zaibatsu. Ya aku pasti kalau aku sebutkan pasti ramai yang akan tahu. Mungkin di lain kali akan aku coretkan sedikit sebanyak tentang syarikat-syarikat mega Jepun yang berprofil tinggi dan sangat berpengaruh yang merupakan nadi tunjang dan tulang belakang kekuatan kuasa ekonomi Jepun.
Ya dia berjaya mendapat tawaran kerja di sebuah syarikat yang baru. Syarikat yang menjadi idamannya. Gaji basic tahunannya tidak kurang daripada ￥6,000,000 (RM180,000). Jauh melangkaui apa yang diterimanya sekarang ini. Walaupon dia sangat gembira, tetapi semalam ternyata dia agak susah hati dan seolah-olah menghadapi suatu dilema yang besar. Segalanya akan dibongkarkan akhirnya. Dia khabarkan padaku yang semalam dia akan beritahu boss-bossnya akan hasrat sebenarnya untuk resign . Haha i can expect how's the reaction of his bosses but well, i'm not really sure how the thing had actually turned out last night though. I'm gonna ask him about it this Monday.

Wah, wah..rezeki, memang rezeki ada dimana-mana dan hanya menunggu orang-orang yang rajin mencari dan kuat berusaha.

Besto Regardo,
Ops lupa untuk greet Gong Xi Fa Chai, Go Nen Hao..May it becomes as another properous year for us. Yeeeeee Saaaang!!

以上です。

Ajal jodoh di tangan tuhan ?

2008-02-03T18:49:00.002+09:00

Ya, itulah yang bisa diperkatakan oleh sebilangan besar ummat di sebelah kepulauan nusantara khasnya. Ungkapan ini juga tidak dinafikan dijadikan sebagai perisai yang mujarab acapkali aku diserang dengan soalan cepu emas (Cepu emas ? Kenapa ya ?), yang secara asasnya bererti " Bila pula kau nak kahwin ?".

Lalu aku dengan selambanya akan menjawab, " Hai, kalau sudah ada jodoh sekarang pon bisa aku kahwin. Tapi ajal dan jodoh itu kan urusan tuhan." Hehe..poyo tak jawapan yang semacam tu. Sudah menjadi fitrah bagi insan yang normal untuk mempunyai teman - bukan yang biasa tapi yang istimewa melebihi segalanya yang lain.

Apabila sudah sampai ke satu peringkat kehidupan, kita akan merasakan bahawa hidup ini kurang bererti, kurang enak, dan pudar keceriaannya. Kita mula merasakan bahawa kita juga inginkan teman yang istimewa seperti juga orang lain. Agaknya inilah juga perasaan yang menyelebungi Adam a.s sebelum dianugerahkan Hawa kepadanya. Maka apabila dipertemukan jodoh oleh Yang Maha Pencipta, maka terungkaplah kata azimat percintaan. Seperti apa yang tercetus antara Uda dan Dara, Romeo dan Juliet, Antony dan Cleopatra serta Awie dan Erra di dalam cerita Sembilu.

Aku tidaklah begitu terdesak (Cheii kononnyelah) tetapi aku juga tidak menafikan akan kepentingan berteman. Dulu aku tidak begitu meyakini akan hakikat "Ajal jodoh di tangan tuhan". Dulu, aku berpendapat jodoh itu ditentukan oleh manusia. Bukan aku seorang tapi ramai juga yang berfikiran bahawa jodoh perlu dicari dan diusahakan. Kalau tidak, ngak ketemu sampai ke tua. Hehe memang mudah ya untuk melempar kata-kata bermodalkan air liur, hakikatnya hingga ke lubang cacing tapi belum ku ketemu. Mungkin perlu terus mencari kerana jodoh itu bukannya tiada tapi cuma belum berjumpa. Tetapi apa pun bagi aku yang pasti, perihal mendapatkan jodoh bukanlah sesuatu yang mudah seperti memakan kacang menglembu. Ada pula yang berpendapat, jodoh tidak perlu dicari kerana ia akan datang dengan sendiri. Dan aku sekarang lebih enak dengan pendapat yang kedua ini. Ya, bagi aku, kalau bukan jodohnya untuk kita, ada saja yang susah dan terhalang, ada sahaja yang tidak kena, tapi kalau sudah jodohnya, segalanya akan mudah terjadi dan terjalin. Hati kedua-duanya dengan cepat mudah menerima. Kata orang, ada Chemistry gitu. Dan itulah yang semoleknya dan paling ideal.

Begitu juga dengan ajal. Suatu perkara yang agak rumit untuk dirungkaikan oleh pemikiran bathil manusia. Ramai orang yang takut dan cemuh apabila diperkatakan tentang ajal tetapi ada juga yang suka dan gembira apabila mendengarnya. Yang takut dan cemuh berfikiran bahawa ajal kematian itu suatu yang gelap, menyakitkan, sunyi, tidak ada hala tuju dan kosong - null. Tetapi bagi yang gembira, mereka berfikiran bahawa ajal itu merupakan suatu proses transit dari satu dunia yang penuh kepincangan, kepalsuan dan fitnah, ke suatu alam baru yang kekal abadi selamanya. Ke suatu dunia baru yang penuh cahaya kebenaran, nikmat dan bererti serta titik noktah destinasi perjalanan hidup iaitu bersua dengan tuhan rabbul alamin Yang Maha Agung. Apakah ini suatu yang pasti ? Bagaimana aku tahu sedangkan diriku sendiri bukannya pernah merasai ajal dan alam selepasnya itu ? Ya memang benar aku tidak menempuhinya, dan memang benar tidak ada sebarang cendekiawan, ahli saintis, ahli teologi, ahli sihir mahu pun seorang manusia pon yang mampu membuktinya secara zahiriah. Namun hati ku masih tetap berpegang dan yakin bahawa di sana ada dunia yang baru selepas kematian. Aku yakin kerana aku adalah orang yang mempunyai keyakinan - I'm a man of faith.

Tetapi tidak dinafikan bahawa apabila orang yang tersayang pergi meninggalkan kita selama-lamanya menjemput seruan ilahi, rasa sedih dan sebak akan menusuk jauh ke dalam jiwa. Sedangkan Rasul Muhammad S.A.W bersedih yang teramat sangat apabila ditinggalkan Khadijah, isteri kesayangan, dan Abu Thalib, bapa saudara kesayangannya, apatah lagi kita insan biasa.

Disebalik itu, jangan pula kerana ingin menuju ke alam kekal abadi, kita mengabaikan langsung kehidupan duniawi kita dan mengambil tindakan bodoh seperti membunuh diri sebagaimana yang diamalkan oleh beberapa kultus dan ajaran sesat sebelum ini, kononnya sebagai tiket ekspres untuk lari dari kebobrokan dunia menuju ke 'syurga'. Sebabnya, bukankah telah dikhabarkan kepada kita, bahawa faktor yang akan menentukan kebahagian atau kesengsaraan kita di alam seterusnya ialah amalam-amalan kita di dunia kehidupan kita ini sekarang.

Beberapa masa kebelakangan ini, kita dikejutkan dengan beberapa siri kematian di kalangan orang-orang terkenal. Benazir Bhutto, Suharto, Ishak Baharom - bekas mufti Selangor dan juga Lolok, penulis lirik yang berkarisma. Semuanya pergi meninggalkan dunia yang fana ini selama-lamanya. Walaupon mereka mati dengan cara dan sebab musabab yang berbeza, tetapi hala tuju dan destinasi mereka adalah sama - ke alam barzakh. Semoga roh mereka dicucuri rahmat Tuhan Yang Menghidupkan dan Mematikan. Amin.

Dan akhir kata dari aku, "Kahwinlah kamu sebelum kamu dikahwinkan"...ngehehe uhuk huk. Yes, abang aku sudah nak kahwin, aku harapkan semuanya baik dan selamat hendaknya. Barulah line clear lepas ini. Bukan untuk aku, tetapi untuk adik-adik aku lah pulak. Aku?...Haa aku tunggu Nagasawa Masami, Sawajiri Erika, Takeuchi Yuko dengan hmmm...siapa ya seorang lagi ? Kena cukupkan kasi empat, barulah power

以上です。

China dumplings made havoc in Japan

2008-02-03T18:24:00.001+09:00

A packet of the Chinese-made dumplings. People said they fell ill and vomited after eating the dumplings

Dozens of Japanese people say they have fallen ill after eating Chinese-made dumplings, prompting Tokyo officials to launch an inquiry. The frozen dumplings, known as gyoza in Japan, were made by Tianyang Food in China's Hebei province.

Japanese officials said they contained traces of pesticide, probably added in production or packaging in China. China said no traces of pesticide had been found in pre-export inspections, but ordered a halt to production.
The issue has triggered intensive media coverage in Japan and sparked public alarm.

The problems emerged on Wednesday, when 10 people were reported to have fallen ill from the dumplings - thin dough packets containing ground meat and vegetables which are then fried.

A five-year-old girl was in a serious condition in hospital, reports said. By late Thursday there were unconfirmed reports of dozens of cases.

The Japanese distributor, JT Foods, has recalled the dumplings and other products made by the same company. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said preliminary tests on two batches of the dumplings had found them to be safe. In recent months, Chinese-made products have been involved in several safety scares.

But Japan has also had its problems. Last year, confectioners admitted to mislabelling expiry dates on biscuits and rice cakes.

Besto Regardo,

A colleague of mine, a Chinese lady however dare to differ against the public opinion that the dumplings are not safe, by coming up with her own conclusion - the cause is not with the dumplings, it's the Japanese people whose antibody are so weak that they can't stand with the contaminated food !
Haha...so what do you think guys ?

以上です。

Pasangan kerap bertengkar panjang umur

2008-01-27T10:56:00.001+09:00

Ia mungkin kedengaran agak pelik, tetapi pasangan suami isteri digalakkan bertengkar kerana ia adalah rahsia panjang umur.

Penyelidik mendapati, suami isteri yang tidak membincangkan perbezaan pendapat dan memendam kemarahan antara satu sama lain berkemungkinan meninggal dunia lebih awal berbanding yang bergaduh.
Ia kerana cubaan menyelesaikan konflik - walaupun dalam tingkah laku menaikkan kemarahan - adalah lebih baik bagi kesihatan berbanding memendam perasaan.

Laporan akhbar Daily Mail menyebut, saintis mengkaji 192 pasangan selama 17 tahun dan meletakkan mereka dalam empat kategori.

Kumpulan pertama mengandungi pasangan suami isteri yang membincangkan kemarahan mereka dan kumpulan kedua diisi pasangan yang cuma suami menunjukkan kemarahan sebaliknya isteri memendam perasaan.
Kumpulan ketiga membabitkan pasangan yang cuma isteri menunjukkan kemarahan manakala kumpulan keempat mengandungi pasangan yang kedua-duanya memendam perasaan.

Penyelidik mendapati kematian ketika tempoh kajian dua kali ganda berlaku dalam kumpulan terakhir berbanding kategori lain.
Aliran itu nyata walaupun faktor lain seperti usia, merokok, berat badan, tekanan darah, masalah bronkus dan risiko kardiovaskular diambil kira. Di kalangan 26 pasangan yang kedua-duanya memendam kemarahan, 13 kematian dicatatkan.
Bagaimanapun, dalam tiga kumpulan lagi membabitkan 166 pasangan, cuma gabungan 41 kematian dicatatkan.

Profesor Ernest Harburg dari Fakulti Kesihatan Awam Universiti Michigan, yang menjalankan kajian itu berkata: “Apabila pasangan bersama, salah satu tugas utama mereka ialah menyelesaikan konflik. Selalunya tiada siapa dilatih untuk berbuat demikian. Jika mereka mempunyai ibu bapa yang baik, mereka boleh mencontohi cara penyelesaian, itu tiada masalah. Namun selalunya pasangan tidak jahil mengenai proses menyelesaikan konflik.

“Kunci utama ialah apabila konflik berlaku, bagaimana anda menyelesaikannya? Apabila tidak berbuat demikian, jika anda memendam kemarahan, dan anda berfikir mendalam mengenainya dan anda marahkan orang lain, dan anda tidak cuba menyelesaikan masalah, memang anda ada masalah.” - Agensi, Berita Minggu.

以上です。

Rebut hartanah di bandar

2008-01-22T19:01:00.001+09:00

Oleh ANUAR AHMAD

Pakar pelaburan hartanah selalu berkata, bila membeli hartanah sama ada tanah, kediaman atau ruang perniagaan, ada tiga perkara penting yang mesti difikirkan iaitu lokasi, lokasi dan lokasi. Sememang petua ini masih benar walaupun telah lama diucapkan.

Semenjak beberapa tahun lalu, para penganalisis hartanah telah pun meramalkan bahawa nilai hartanah untuk perumahan dan ruang perniagaan di bandar-bandar besar seperti Kuala Lumpur, Pulau Pinang dan Johor Bahru akan mengalami peningkatan harga berkali ganda.

Faktor kenaikan ini dikatakan bermula dengan pelaksanaan Rancangan Malaysia Kesembilan dan juga pelan jangka panjang kerajaan melaksanakan pembangunan koridor wilayah di seluruh negara. Ramalan para penganalisis ini nampaknya benar-benar berlaku sejak akhir-akhir ini bermula dari penghujung tahun lalu.

Jelas sekali permintaan terhadap rumah kediaman pelbagai jenis dan bangunan kedai sangat menggalakkan. Sokongan pihak kerajaan melalui perancangan pembangunan fizikal seperti pembinaan lebuh raya dan persimpangan bertingkat, stesen LRT yang baru di dalam bandar dan sebagainya telah menyebabkan kadar pertumbuhan bangunan-bangunan di bandar besar semakin rancak dilaksanakan.

Ditambah lagi dengan kejayaan kerajaan membawa masuk pelaburan luar negara berbilion ringgit telah meningkatkan lagi kadar pembangunan di bandar besar. Memang sejak 50 tahun merdeka, Malaysia telah membangun dengan begitu pesat sekali. Di sana sini berbagai rupa bentuk kediaman dibina.

Jika dulu masyarakat hanya mengenali jenis rumah banglo, teres, berkembar dan kondominium, kini pelbagai bentuk baru telah dibina. Bentuk rumah bandar, service apartmen, kondotel, villa resort telah mula diperkenalkan oleh pihak pemaju hartanah kepada masyarakat.

Pelancaran

Di sana sini, di bandar besar khususnya Kuala Lumpur, Pulau Pinang serta Johor Bahru, pelancaran projek perumahan dan bangunan kedai begitu giat berlaku. Rakan-rakan penulis di kalangan ejen hartanah begitu bersungguh-sungguh mempromosi kawasan seperti Damansara, Puchong, Cheras dan Bangsar.

Bagi sektor perumahan di Petaling Jaya, kawasan lokasi yang mendapat sambutan hebat adalah seperti di Kota Damansara, Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, Damansara Perdana, Damansara Pelangi dan Ara Damansara. Kawasan ini dianggap sebagai kawasan ‘panas’ oleh para ejen hartanah.

Kata seorang rakan berbangsa Cina, “Tahun ini di dalam kepercayaan Cina ialah Tahun Tikus, feng shui yang paling baik bagi hartanah di sekitar Kuala Lumpur ialah di Damansara dan Puchong,” ujarnya.

Antara percaya dan tidak, penulis berkesempatan ke satu majlis pelancaran jualan kondominium mewah di Pelangi Damansara baru-baru ini selepas dijemput berkali-kali oleh rakan. “Tak beli pun tak apa, datang tengok-tengok saja,” pujuknya. Perjalanan dengan kereta melalui Lebuh Raya Damansara Puchong (LDP) melalui Kelana Jaya dan Bandar Utama hingga ke Pelangi Damansara, jelas sekali menampakkan seluruh kawasan ini akan menjadi kawasan segi tiga emas yang baru selepas Bukit Bintang di Kuala Lumpur.

Pelbagai kedai dibuka dengan kemudahan seperti pasar raya, bank, kawasan untuk bersukan dan rekreasi disediakan oleh para pemaju di kawasan ini.

Sambutan di bilik pameran begitu meriah. Pengawal keselamatan terpaksa meminta para pengunjung bergilir-gilir kerana kesesakan berlaku di dalam bangunan. “Nampaknya ramai betul orang yang berminat untuk membeli,” sapa penulis kepada pengawal di pintu masuk. “Memang Encik, ada juga yang sudah mula tunggu dari jam empat pagi tadi,” balas pengawal dengan mesra.

Di dalam bilik pameran, para jurujual sibuk melayan soalan bakal pembeli. Tiba giliran penulis, jurujual pantas berkata, “Encik orang Melayu yang pertama saya jumpa hari ini.”

Penulis melihat jam di tangan, hampir jam 11 pagi. Sudah hampir dua jam bilik pameran dibuka, baru ada seorang bakal pembeli Melayu, fikir penulis. Melihat di sekeliling bilik pameran memang benar, hampir kesemua bakal pembeli adalah kalangan bukan Melayu yang sedang rancak untuk membeli hartanah tersebut.

Setelah urusan selesai, penulis sempat berbual dengan beberapa bakal pembeli dan rata-rata tujuan mereka membeli adalah untuk pelaburan jangka panjang. Ini bukan rumah pertama atau kedua mereka, malah ada yang sudah memiliki tujuh dan lapan buah hartanah rumah dan bangunan kedai yang disewakan.

Jelas senario ini menunjukkan satu klise masyarakat Melayu yang tidak begitu memandang serius soal pelaburan hartanah perumahan khususnya di kawasan strategik di bandar besar. Memang harganya lebih tinggi daripada kawasan lain yang kurang strategik tetapi dari segi nilai hartanah dan pulangan sewaan, hartanah seumpama ini adalah jauh lebih menguntungkan.

Jelas orang Melayu tidak bersedia untuk memiliki hartanah yang mahal dan berkualiti tinggi di bandar besar. Membeli hartanah yang mahal tentulah memerlukan modal tunai yang besar. Kerana tidak berkeupayaan, jalan keluar yang mudah ialah membeli hartanah yang bernilai lebih rendah di kawasan yang kurang strategik.

Itu pun jika masih ada yang berkemahuan untuk membuat pelaburan. Lebih ramai orang Melayu sekadar berpuas hati dengan memiliki sebuah rumah berkos rendah atau sederhana sahaja.

Semasa majlis pelancaran hartanah tersebut, penulis juga sempat bertemu dan berbual dengan sebuah keluarga Cina yang telah membeli kondominium mewah tersebut dengan wang yang dikongsi bersama-sama ahli keluarga. “Kalau seorang susahlah mau beli, tapi kalau kongsi ramai-ramai bolehlah beli lebih sikit,” ujar kakak sulung keluarga itu kepada penulis. Penulis dimaklumkan keluarga mereka sudah membeli enam kediaman untuk disewakan sejak tiga tahun yang lalu.

Melayari blog di Internet berkaitan hartanah di Kuala Lumpur, sekali lagi jelas kumpulan masyarakat Cina lebih ramai yang serius membincangkan tentang potensi hartanah di Kuala Lumpur.

Hampir kebanyakan blogger adalah di kalangan masyarakat Cina. Ada di antaranya merancang untuk membeli lebih daripada satu hartanah tujuan pelaburan walaupun baru mula bekerja. Rata-ratanya blogger adalah eksekutif muda yang baru berkerja, malah sejak awal lagi telah menyatakan sasaran dan berazam untuk membeli hartanah di lokasi berkualiti tinggi.

Persoalannya di mana orang Melayu dalam isu ini, khususnya generasi muda? Bagaimana masyarakat Melayu berinteraksi dan mendapat maklumat untuk meningkat pengetahuan berkaitan hartanah.

Tahniah dengan galakan kerajaan sehingga institusi kewangan Melayu dan syarikat berkaitan kerajaan (GLC) dapat memiliki dan melabur dalam bidang hartanah tetapi itu adalah satu isu lain. Isunya, di mana orang Melayu secara individu atau dalam bilangan yang ramai berusaha untuk memiliki hartanah di lokasi yang berkualiti tinggi di bandar besar.

Jelas sekali keadaan semasa menunjukkan individu Melayu belum bersedia berjuang untuk memiliki hartanah di lokasi yang berkualiti tinggi.

Nampaknya perlu ada usaha yang bersungguh-sungguh untuk menggalakkan masyarakat Melayu supaya lebih bersedia untuk membeli kediaman di kawasan yang ‘panas’ seperti Damansara, Puchong, Bangsar dan seumpamanya kerana prospek dan potensi yang tinggi untuk pelaburan.

Merebut

Oleh kerana kita hidup di zaman siapa kaya dia punya, siapa cepat dia dapat, orang Melayu seharusnya lebih bijak untuk merebut peluang yang ada. Para pemimpin Melayu sama ada dalam parti politik atau badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) harus perlu lebih terbuka mindanya dalam menafsirkan erti perjuangan bangsa.

Apalah ertinya kuasa politik dalam parti jika kita terpaksa menyewa pejabat untuk aktiviti parti daripada bangsa lain. Pemimpin Melayu harus bersedia bangun untuk mencari jalan bagaimana orang Melayu dalam jumlah yang ramai boleh melabur dalam hartanah secara individu.

Sememangnya tidak dapat dinafikan DEB dan RMK-8 telah berjaya menyedarkan orang Melayu tentang pentingnya penguasaan ekonomi tetapi nampaknya itu tidak mencukupi. Jika para pemimpin Melayu terdahulu telah berjaya melaksanakan usaha penambahan ekuiti orang Melayu melalui skim saham amanah dan penguasaan dalam GLC, pemimpin hari ini perlu menggandakan usaha untuk mencari jalan bagaimana meningkat keupayaan orang Melayu secara individu.

Strategi supaya setiap individu Melayu boleh menikmati tahap ekonomi yang lebih baik harus dicari segera atau lebih banyak hartanah yang berkualiti tinggi di bandar besar dimiliki oleh orang lain. Janganlah bila sudah terhantuk baru kita tengadah, bila sudah tiada baru kita merayu, dan bila sudah hilang baru timbul rasa sayang.

Menurut beberapa ejen hartanah yang berpengalaman, orang Melayu biasanya lebih cenderung untuk membeli rumah di kawasan perumahan yang baru dibuka di pinggir dan luar bandar. Mereka tidak tertarik untuk membeli kediaman di tengah-tengah pusat bandar atau kawasan elit kerana harganya yang mahal.

Walaupun kebanyakan perumahan yang baru menawarkan bayaran pendahuluan serendah 10 peratus daripada harga rumah, rata-rata orang Melayu tidak bersedia untuk mengeluarkan wang membeli perumahan yang berada di lokasi berkualiti tinggi.

Salah satu punca utama ialah tiadanya budaya menyimpan yang tegar di kalangan orang Melayu. Budaya menyimpan bila ada lebihan atau menyimpan bila perlu ditinggalkan oleh orang Melayu. Tanpa tabungan yang kukuh, orang Melayu akan terus ketinggalan dalam persaingan ekonomi sama ada hartanah, pelaburan saham, dan juga perniagaan.

Menurut kawan penulis berbangsa Cina, juga seorang peniaga yang telah berjaya, orang Cina kuat menyimpan. “Tak simpan duit mana boleh kaya, kalau mau mula bisnes pun mesti mau pakai modal, modal kecil untung kecil, modal besar, untung lagi besar,” kata beliau kepada penulis.

Memang penulis bersetuju dengan cakap beliau. Pada peringkat kerajaan, agenda tabungan dan simpanan untuk orang Melayu memang telah dilaksanakan tetapi dalam bentuk ekuiti.

Persoalannya sekarang orang Melayu perlu juga menyimpan supaya boleh memiliki hartanah di lokasi berkualiti tinggi di bandar-bandar besar, tujuannya bukan untuk bersaing dengan bangsa bukan Melayu tetapi supaya Melayu boleh berdiri sama tinggi duduk sama rendah dengan kaum lain, demi kestabilan, kesejahteraan dan keharmonian kaum dan negara untuk jangka panjang.

* ANUAR AHMAD ialah pensyarah Sosiologi Pendidikan, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

Malapetaka ekonomi kerana riba

2008-01-20T12:29:00.001+09:00

OLEH DR. ASYRAF WAJDI DUSUKI

SEPANJANG minggu lalu, media massa antarabangsa sibuk melaporkan kemungkinan krisis besar ekonomi bakal melanda gergasi ekonomi dunia Amerika Syarikat (AS).

Dalam satu laporan, Ben Bernanke iaitu bos tertinggi institusi mengawal selia sistem ekonomi dan kewangan AS (Federal Reserve), menjangkakan tahun 2008 bakal menyaksikan tahun terburuk sejarah ekonomi AS.

Kekalutan ekonomi AS yang bermula dengan krisis hutang perumahan subprima yang mencecah kerugian ratusan bilion dolar tampak semakin meruncing hingga merencatkan pertumbuhan ekonomi negara itu. Untuk makluman, hutang subprima ialah hutang perumahan yang diberikan pihak bank kepada golongan peminjam yang tidak mempunyai kelayakan kewangan yang baik.

Lazimnya bank hanya memberikan pinjaman berpandukan kriteria kelayakan kredit yang ketat seperti status kewangan peminjam dan sejarah pembayaran balik hutang yang positif. Namun, kerakusan mengaut keuntungan melalui urus niaga jual-beli hutang di pasaran tempatan dan antarabangsa merangsang institusi kewangan mempermudahkan pengeluaran pinjaman perumahan termasuklah kepada golongan yang tidak layak.

Hutang

Hutang-hutang daripada pembiayaan perumahan ini kemudiannya diperdagangkan di pasaran tempatan dan antarabangsa dengan menawarkan pulangan lumayan kepada para pelabur. Apatah lagi jika yang menjual sijil-sijil hutang ini adalah dari kalangan bank-bank ternama AS. Penyimpangan persepsi bahawa bank-bank AS tidak mungkin rugi juga meningkatkan kepercayaan pelabur untuk membeli sijil-sijil hutang subprima yang berkualiti rendah ini.

Namun keadaan ini tidak bertahan lama. Peningkatan hutang lapuk lantaran kegagalan peminjam melunaskan hutang mencetuskan pelbagai lingkaran masalah dan kesan-kesan negatif lain. Pelabur-pelabur yang rakus mengaut keuntungan daripada pembelian sijil hutang subprima ini tidak terkecuali daripada mengalami kerugian besar.

Natijahnya, kita lihat betapa seriusnya krisis hutang subprima ini sehingga menimbulkan malapetaka yang maha hebat bukan sahaja ke atas ekonomi AS bahkan terhadap ekonomi dunia. Peningkatan harga minyak yang mencecah AS$100 setong kerana kemerosotan mendadak nilai dolar akibat krisis ekonomi ini turut memberi kesan kenaikan harga pasaran komoditi dunia yang lain.

Pengguna seperti kita juga tidak ketinggalan merasai bahang kejatuhan ekonomi AS dengan peningkatan mendadak harga barang kegunaan asas termasuklah kesukaran mendapatkan bekalan bahan mentah.

Tidak sukar menelah punca kepada segala malapetaka ini. Malah bekas Pengerusi tersohor bank pusat AS (Federal Reserve) iaitu Alan Greenspan telahpun menjangkakan malapetaka ini dalam bukunya yang baru diterbitkan bertajuk The Age of Turbulence.

Sesungguhnya malapetaka ekonomi yang sedang melanda ini merupakan suatu natijah daripada kebobrokan sistem kapitalis berasaskan manipulasi kadar faedah atau lebih tepat lagi ekonomi berasaskan riba. Kerakusan manusia mengeksploitasi sistem kewangan antarabangsa termasuklah pelbagai keuntungan atas angin yang diperoleh melalui spekulasi ke atas kadar faedah menambahkan lagi masalah ekonomi yang sedia parah.

Hakikat

Menyedari hakikat inilah, Islam sejak dari awal lagi mengharamkan urus niaga ekonomi berasaskan riba yang amat terkait dengan unsur-unsur ketidakadilan, penindasan dan ekploitasi. Sistem ekonomi kapitalis berorientasikan riba dan manipulasi kadar faedah ini merangsang kegiatan mencari untung atas angin yang kadangkala tidak terkait dengan sektor pengeluaran mahupun perkhidmatan sebenar yang disebut istilah ‘real economy’.

Malah sistem ekonomi sebeginilah yang amat sensitif kepada krisis dan manipulasi hingga boleh memudaratkan seluruh umat manusia. Sebab itulah Allah menegaskan secara khusus bahawa urus niaga berasaskan riba tidak akan sesekali mendapat barakah malah boleh membawa kepada kecelakaan dan kesengsaraan.

Prinsip

Dalam al-Quran disebutkan: Allah susutkan (kebaikan harta yang dijalankan dengan mengambil) riba dan Dia pula mengembangkan (berkat harta yang dikeluarkan) sedekah-sedekah dan zakatnya. Dan Allah tidak suka kepada tiap-tiap orang yang kekal terus dalam kekufuran dan selalu melakukan dosa. (al-Baqarah: 276)

Apa yang pasti sistem ekonomi Islam menitikberatkan prinsip keadilan dan bebas daripada unsur-unsur penindasan. Keuntungan atas angin tidak dibenarkan dalam Islam. Sebaliknya setiap keuntungan yang dijana mestilah ada unsur ‘iwad atau pertukaran nilai (counter-

values) sama ada dari segi usaha (al-kasb), risiko (al-ghurm) dan tanggungan (al-dhaman).

Sebagai contoh, apabila Allah mengharamkan riba, Dia memberi alternatif jual-beli (al-Baqarah: 275). Keuntungan yang dihalalkan melalui jual-beli (al-bai‘) ialah apabila adanya usaha kerana penjual harus membeli barangan daripada pembekal sebelum menjualnya dengan harga yang lebih tinggi daripada kos asal. Penjual juga mesti bersedia menanggung kerugian (al-dhaman) dan risiko (al-ghurm) lain sekiranya barangan yang dijual itu rosak atau tidak terjual. Inilah sebahagian daripada elemen ‘iwad yang membezakan keuntungan dalam jual beli dengan faedah berupa riba dalam kontrak hutang.

Justeru tiba masanya umat kembali kepada sistem ekonomi Islam yang bukan sahaja bebas daripada unsur riba tetapi yang lebih utama menjunjung prinsip keadilan dan kebajikan dalam urus niaga, bebas daripada sebarang penindasan dan kezaliman. Keuntungan yang diperoleh melalui jalan halal akan menambah keberkatan. Sebaliknya keuntungan atas angin melalui urus niaga riba hanya menjerumus umat manusia kepada kecelakaan.

以上です。

The Resurgence of Proton Saga

2008-01-19T13:08:00.001+09:00

"It was first a story of success, later on of pain and even shame. Today, it is surmounting challenges to triumph once more."

The new Proton Saga model will be a worthy successor to the iconic first Malaysian car, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
"It will become the people's car, as well as the people's pride and joy. I am sure that it will live up to the standards and expectations set by the Saga," Abdullah said at the lavish launch of the new 1.3-litre, four-door family sedan yesterday at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

The new Saga reflected national car maker Proton Holdings Berhad's continuous efforts towards becoming a full fledged and globally competitive automotive manufacturer. It is reported that the development of the new model has been completed in 17 months, carried out within the targeted time line and budget. It costs RM 400 million to be developed.

The PM also stressed out that Proton was the catalyst for the development of human capital and talent in the automotive industry.
However, it was critical that Malaysia's car manufacturers responded to the increasingly challenging environment of the global industry, which was going through a consolidation phase, dictated by the need for greater economies of scale for survival and sustainability.

The new Saga is the 16th model for Proton since the first Saga came out 23 years ago in 1985.
Noting that Proton had started with profits but was later hit by “pain and shame” with financial losses, Abdullah said that the new age of success and triumph had begun.

More of New Saga coverage,details & photos at

Paultan : The New Proton Saga

以上です。

Businessman has the most expensive car in S’pore

2008-01-19T12:41:00.001+09:00

A BUSINESSMAN in Singapore bought a McLaren F1 sports car for £1.4mil (RM9mil), setting the record for the most expensive car in the island, reported Sin Chew Daily.

He bought the vehicle through an agent in Changi.
According to the agent, the vehicle, a limited edition model, was imported from Europe and would be registered overseas.
The agent said if registration was done in the republic, the price of the vehicle would be about S$9.82mil (RM22.46mil) due to various taxes.
Before this, the most expensive car in Singapore was a Jaguar XJ220 worth S$3.2mil (RM7.36mil), bought in 1992.
Last March, another Singaporean businessman paid S$3mil (RM6.9mil) for a Pagani Zonda F.

Besto Regardo,
The McLaren F1 supercar is one of the fastest, most powerful and most expensive road cars ever. It was developed by McLaren Cars Ltd, a subsidiary of one of the world’s leading Formula One Teams. The car features a 6.1-litre 60° V12 BMW V12 engine and it was conceived as an exercise in creating what its designers hoped would be considered the ultimate road car.
The McLaren F1 was the fastest “production” car ever built (having achieved a top speed of 240.14 mph) until 2005 when the Koenigsegg CCR recorded a speed of 388 km/h (241 mph), a record which has in turn been broken by the Bugatti Veyron, with a top speed of 407 km/h (253 mph).
McLaren F1 Vs the reigning of the fastest street car ever in existence- Bugatti Veyron
Only 100 cars were manufactured from 1994 to 1998, 64 of those were street versions, 5 were LMs and the rest were GTR models. After the initial production run 100 cars, McLaren have continued to maintain and add custom appointments to customer cars. Treatments such as new aerodynamic packages and custom interiors have been ordered by customers and McLaren has been happy to comply for right price.

以上です。

Bersama Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhary

2008-01-13T13:59:00.001+09:00

Jangan lupa asal diri

Syed Mokhtar Albukhary dan isteri Sharifah Zarah Albukhary pada majlis sambutan Maal Hijrah Peringkat Kebangsaan tahun 1429H di Putrajaya baru-baru ini. Pada majlis itu Syed Mokhtar menerima anugerah Tokoh Maal Hijrah Tahun 1429H daripada Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin.

Berikut ialah petikan wawancara istimewa Mingguan Malaysia bersama Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhary:

Mukadimah
Suasana di tingkat empat Muzium Kesenian Islam, Kuala Lumpur agak sunyi dan tepat pukul 11 malam 4 Januari lalu tokoh yang ditunggu muncul dengan berbaju T dan sandal. Beliau kelihatan segar dan memberi senyuman dari jauh.

“Minta maaflah lama tunggu, saya ni lagi malam mata saya lagi cerah,” ucapan pertama Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary, tokoh korporat yang menggerakkan Yayasan Albukhary, tetapi selalu mengelak daripada menjadi tumpuan media.

Yayasan Albukhary dikenali kerana kerja kebajikan antaranya mengeluarkan biasiswa kepada pelajar-pelajar miskin untuk menyambung pengajian, mengindahkan Masjid Negara, mendirikan Muzium Kesenian Islam serta mendirikan masjid. Salah satu daripadanya ialah sebuah masjid indah di Jalan Hang Tuah, Kuala Lumpur.

Tidak ramai yang mengenali Syed Mokhtar dari dekat. Apa falsafah hidupnya? Apa falsafahnya dalam perniagaan? Beliau yang dipilih sebagai Tokoh Maal Hijrah tahun ini menganggap institusi yang didukungnya iaitu Yayasan Albukhary lebih penting daripada dirinya.

Wawancara pertama Syed Mokhtar dengan Mingguan Malaysia diberikan pada 17 Oktober 2004 dan selepas itu beliau amat keberatan untuk bertemu dengan media apa lagi memberikan wawancara khas. Bagaimanapun setelah beberapa kali dipujuk akhirnya pada 4 Januari lalu beliau sekali lagi setuju diwawancara oleh Mingguan Malaysia.

Dalam wawancara ini Syed Mokhtar banyak menekankan bahawa kejayaan dan kekayaan bukanlah untuk diri sendiri tetapi untuk dikongsikan dengan golongan yang kurang berkemampuan untuk memberi peluang mereka mendapat ilmu sekali gus mengubah hidup pada masa depan.

Kerana itu beliau melahirkan rasa terkilan dengan sesetengah ahli korporat yang dilahirkan oleh Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB) yang menjual kepentingan dalam negara dan membawa dana ke luar negara semasa krisis ekonomi tahun 80-an dan 90-an dulu.

“Apa gunanya kerajaan melahirkan mereka dan bila sampai masa untuk membalas balik kepada masyarakat, mereka menjual kepentingan dan duduk di luar negara? Saya anggap mereka ini sebagai individualis Melayu yang pentingkan diri sendiri,” tegas Syed Mokhtar kepada wartawan Mingguan Malaysia KU SEMAN KU HUSSAIN, AMRAN AHMAD dan Ketua Jurugambar SYED AGIL SYED JAAFFAR.

Syed Mokhtar juga keberatan untuk bergambar katanya, “Awat tak habaq nak ambik gambaq. Boleh kita pakai elok-elok sikit.” Dalam wawancara yang banyak menggunakan bahasa loghat Kedah ini Syed Mokhtar mengingatkan supaya berhati-hati dengan nikmat yang Allah kurniakan.

“Kadang-kadang nikmat yang kita dapat boleh merosakkan kita. Kita kena kawal supaya nikmat tidak merosakkan kita. Yayasan Albukhary menjadi tempat untuk menempatkan lebihan yang boleh merosakkan diri kita,” pesan Syed Mokhtar.

Mingguan: Adakah orang Melayu begitu ketinggalan berbanding kaum lain jika diimbas kembali kemajuan yang dicapai oleh kaum bumiputera sejak 50 tahun lalu?

SYED MOKHTAR : Dalam hal ini, kerajaan banyak membantu. Kita bernasib baik dan bersyukur kerana mampu memiliki saham amanah dengan adanya agensi kerajaan seperti Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB).

Ia bukan sahaja membantu tetapi turut berjaya sebagai antara institusi saham amanah termaju. Itu dalam aspek pemilikan saham sahaja tetapi kita juga perlu mencari usahawan Melayu yang mahu mengkhusus dalam bidang peruncitan, pemborongan dan pengedaran. Saya sendiri berusaha keras sejak tahun 60-an, dari Alor Star, Kedah menerjah ke seluruh pelosok negara bagi mencari peluang perniagaan yang boleh diceburi.

Generasi terdahulu pada awal kemerdekaan mungkin agak ketinggalan dalam hal ini tetapi itu bukan alasan untuk kita tidak mahu ‘mengejar’ sebaliknya berusaha keras bagi menguasai bidang- bidang itu. Keadaan ini sememangnya mewujudkan jurang dalam ekonomi Melayu dibandingkan dengan bangsa lain terutama Cina dan ia diburukkan lagi dengan sikap beberapa usahawan Melayu pada tahun 80-an dan 90-an yang menjual kepentingan demi poket sendiri, melanggar Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB) yang memberi kekayaan kepada mereka. Golongan usahawan ini saya gelarkan sebagai individualis Melayu. Golongan ini mempunyai keupayaan tetapi tidak membantu masyarakat yang memerlukan bantuan. Saya fikir kita kena bagi balik kepada masyarakat. Dan apa yang dibuat perlulah sederhana kerana ini selaras dengan tuntutan Islam.

Apakah yang dilakukan oleh golongan individualis Melayu ini sehingga melebarkan jurang ekonomi Melayu dengan kaum lain?

SYED MOKHTAR: Golongan yang mementingkan diri sendiri ini bertindak menjual kepentingan yang dimiliki. Ini banyak berlaku dalam era 80-an dan 90-an. Semua ini berlaku sebab mereka merasakan kepentingan dan kedudukan kewangan mereka tergugat ekoran krisis ekonomi yang melanda negara.

Mereka mengambil tunai hasil penjualan saham syarikat yang dibangunkan di bawah DEB, cepat kecewa dengan perniagaan di tanah air sendiri dan memindahkan dana ke luar negara. Ini sekali gus mengurangkan bilangan usahawan Melayu yang ada di negara ini. Bukannya tidak boleh melabur di luar negara tetapi kenalah membawa balik ke negara ini.

Pandangan saya, jika golongan ini masih menjalankan perniagaan di sini dan mengalami masalah, tentunya ramai yang boleh membantu dan bukannya mengambil tindakan melabur di luar negara kerana mementingkan diri sendiri.

Syukur kepada Allah walaupun turut menerima kesan daripada krisis ekonomi pada kedua-dua era, usahawan Melayu seperti pengasas Kumpulan Sapura, Tan Sri Shamsuddin Abdul Kadir, Pengerusi AMMB, Tan Sri Azman Hashim, Pengerusi MKland Holdings Bhd., Tan Sri Mustapha Kamal Abu Bakar serta beberapa yang lain termasuk saya sendiri masih kekal di negara ini, tidak mengikut jejak golongan individualis yang menjual kepentingan dan melabur di luar. Kami terus kekal di sini kerana kami ada pendirian.

Mungkinkah keadaan ini berlaku kerana makna kejayaan kepada golongan individualis ini berbeza dengan makna kejayaan kepada Tan Sri?

SYED MOKHTAR: Bagi saya, makna kejayaan memang berbeza kerana mereka tidak mahu menginstitusikan perniagaan di negara ini. Mereka dilahirkan oleh DEB dan dapat peluang perniagaan tetapi kemudiannya menjual untuk kepentingan diri sendiri. Jadi apa guna kerajaan bangunkan, beri peluang dan jadikan mereka berjaya tetapi kemudian mereka hilang.

Ambil duit mereka dan tinggal di luar negara, cuba buat kajian dan anda akan tahu siapa mereka ini. Kalau orang Melayu tidak mementingkan diri dan kekal di Malaysia, alhamdulillah. Jadi kita tidak boleh hanya memikirkan diri sendiri. Saya sudah merasa semua nikmat di dunia ini, cuma mati sahaja belum rasa.

Nikmat yang Allah berikan tiada yang lebih lagi, mahu lebih bagaimana lagi? Kita kena lebihkan di negeri sendiri, tanah tumpah darah kita dan bukan luar negara. Bawa balik dalam masyarakat dan kongsi segala kekayaan. adalah salah jika duit yang diperoleh daripada bantuan kerajaan dilaburkan diluar negara. Jangan tipu diri sendiri.

Ini tidak boleh. Kita kena balik kepada asas. Sewajarnya kita perlu sumbangkan kepada negara.

Saya akan terus usahakan selagi ada daya dan kesihatan. Biar seimbang kerana mencari rezeki adalah sebahagian daripada amalan. Ilmu juga sebahagian daripada amalan. Saya timba ilmu daripada pengalaman. Bila bercakap biarlah mengikut kedudukan. Jika ada RM1 jangan kata ada RM10. Ikhlaskan diri dan bila ada kemampuan, buat kerana Allah dan tidak perlu tonjolkan diri.

Tan Sri mengalami kerugian RM2 bilion semasa krisis ekonomi dahulu. Apa yang berlaku?

SYED MOKHTAR: Tahun 1997, kita labur dalam syarikat yang disenarai awam demi mengekalkan pegangan 30 peratus dalam syarikat-syarikat ini, naik setinggi mana pun kita tidak jual. Jadi, apabila krisis tiba dan harga saham merudum, kerana ingin kekalkan 30 peratus, rugi lebih kurang RM2 bilion. Macam-macam perasaan ada tetapi kita cari jalan untuk lupuskan kerugian dan cari peluang perniagaan baru.

Saya selalu tidak fikirkan diri sendiri, cuba jaga orang-orang yang terajui kumpulan. Sebab itu banyak yang kekal, biar sederhana tetapi tidak rosakkan diri dengan nikmat. Kadang-kadang benda yang kita dapat boleh rosakkan kita. Lebih baik kita amalkan “tidak lebih dan tidak kurang.” Kita kawal agar nikmat tidak rosakkan kita. Yayasan Albukhary menjadi tempat untuk menempatkan lebihan yang boleh rosakkan diri kita supaya dapat berkongsi dengan orang lain.

Jangan lupa asal diri walaupun kita dah pergi ke serata dunia. Insya-allah, orang Melayu hari ini pun dah ramai yang keluar universiti dan masih belum terlambat untuk berjaya, cuma ada jurang lagi. Kita kena terus bangun supaya bangsa lain tidak pandang hina pada kita. Maknanya biar dia cerdik dan kita pun tidak bodoh, dia kaya dan kita pun tak miskin. Kita kena cubalah, tiada miskin dalam nilai dan pembawaan, perlu ikhlas dan komited. Demi komitmen terhadap ummah, kita bawa masuk pelajar dari negara lain, ada yang miskin sangat, kasut dan baju pun tidak ada. Bila kita buat semua ini, ia secara automatik membawa kita kepada keinsafan.

Ada berpendapat bahawa Tan Sri melabur dalam terlalu banyak perniagaan. Bagaimana Tan Sri menguruskannya?

SYED MOKHTAR: Sistem pengurusan saya terbuka. Buat masa ini saya sedang berusaha menginstitusikan perniagaan dan yayasan saya supaya bila saya tiada nanti, kesemua ini masih boleh berjalan sebab telah ada satu sistem yang teratur dan mantap. Itu yang saya kesal bila ada orang Melayu yang jual kepentingan dan melabur di luar negara semasa berlakunya krisis ekonomi tahun 80-an dan 90-an.

Dahulu, semasa kerajaan suruh saya ambil alih Pernas, saya kata nak buat apa sebab saya tidak tahu pengurusan hotel. Tetapi kalau Pernas jatuh ke tangan orang lain, ia satu kemunduran DEB. Semasa saya ambil alih Pernas harga tawaran lebih sedikit daripada harga pasaran.

Bagi syarikat MMC (MMC Corporation Berhad), masa kita ambil alih daripada PNB dulu, harga sahamnya adalah lebih rendah berbanding sekarang. Bagi DRB-Hicom, kita berusaha bagi meningkatkan lagi prestasinya. Tetapi usaha itu bukanlah suatu yang dapat dilihat hasilnya dengan cepat. Kita kena berusaha walaupun lambat. Sekali lagi, ini semua untuk institusi, bukan untuk individu. Tetapi selagi hidup, kita akan pegang saham syarikat-syarikat itu kerana kita membangunkannya dari mula lagi.

Sekarang orang Melayu ada dua fahaman – parti UMNO dan Pas. Kadang-kadang kita tolong satu pihak sahaja sedangkan kedua-duanya adalah orang Melayu. Bagaimana Tan Sri melihat hal ini?

SYED MOKHTAR: Kawan- kawan saya di kampung ada ahli UMNO dan ada ahli Pas. Itu hanya fahaman politik tetapi dalam aktiviti masyarakat dan perniagaan, tiada perbezaan dan masalah. Kita hormati pemikiran politik masing-

masing dan tentunya saya sebagai anak UMNO, kadangkala ada berdebat tetapi kita tetap berkawan dan tidak bergaduh sesama sendiri. Dalam masjid, kenduri kita sama-sama masak nasi kawah, kita makan sekali. Insya-allah, jika kita tunjukkan nilai-nilai positif dalam diri kita dan saling tolong-menolong dan kunjung-mengunjungi antara satu sama lain, satu hari mungkin mereka akan tergerak hati untuk ikut kita. Jadi kita kena berkawan dan tunjukkan cara yang betul.

Apa yang harus dimiliki oleh orang Melayu?

SYED MOKHTAR: Bagi saya orang Melayu kita kena ada sifat kuat berusaha. Sama ada kita dapat kejayaan atau tidak, kita tak boleh putus asa. Kalau dapat kejayaan kena bersyukur, tidak dapat pun bersyukur juga. Saya tidak melihat cara jangka pendek untuk berjaya. Saya percaya kita mesti melalui proses tertentu untuk kita mendapat kejayaan.

Ini kerana sebelum kejayaan diperoleh, kita terpaksa mengalami bermacam-macam cabaran. Kita kena kenal diri kita sendiri. Dalam agama pun Allah suruh kita kenal diri sendiri sebelum mengenali Allah. Maknanya kita kena menilai dengan jujur dan tidak boleh tipu diri sendiri. Sebab itu apa yang kita buat mesti ikhlas.

Asas mesti ada iaitu asas ekonomi kerana seperti Cina, mereka dibawa masuk sebelum merdeka untuk berniaga, India bekerja di ladang-ladang dan orang Melayu dijadikan petani. Jadi, sememangnya wujud jurang ekonomi antara ketiga-tiga ini. Kalau kita kecewa maka jurang ini akan semakin jauh. Walaupun sesetengah orang Melayu mudah kecewa namun sekarang ini sudah nampak banyak perubahan.

Jurang itu masih ada tapi saya tak putus asa dan terus belajar selok-belok berniaga beras semasa mula berniaga dahulu, kalau tiada kekuatan sendiri dan tiada pengalaman selok-belok perniagaan, susah untuk maju ke hadapan. Untuk orang Melayu maju, mereka kena kembali kepada asas dan tiada sebab untuk seseorang untuk tidak maju.

Sekarang ramai yang tidak sabar dan menggunakan jalan singkat dan kata mereka kalau ada jalan singkat, kenapa pilih jalan jauh? Apa komen Tan Sri?

SYED MOKHTAR: Kalau kita tak sabar, kita akan dapat hasil yang “tak sabar”. Tahun 60-an saya adalah salah seorang yang tak dapat peluang, yang orang patut tolong. Tapi alhamdulillah, saya tolong diri saya sendiri. Kita semua sama saja. Mak saya kata, “Hangpa tujuh orang keluar dari perut aku.”

Kerana itu dia tak bagi kami berkongsi bisnes. Tujuh orang kena ada kemahiran sendiri dan bila jumpa kasih sayang akan berpanjangan. Sekarang ini saya tolonglah sikit-sikit. Tapi yang penting mereka tolong diri sendiri. Setiap orang akan dapat peluang mengikut kemampuan dan tak boleh berputus asa. Saya anak DEB dan pendukung UMNO. Saya melalui proses, misalnya, mula-mula minta lesen nak berniaga kedai, minta lesen lori. DEB sediakan semuanya tapi ada yang hendak cepat kaya ambil lesen pajak kepada Cina. Beli lori tidak mahu mengusahakan sendiri.

Kerajaan yang didukung oleh UMNO memang ada polisi untuk menolong orang Melayu. Tapi DEB hanya bagi orang Melayu 30 peratus dan 70 peratus lagi kepada kaum lain. Sebab itu bila saya jumpa mereka saya kata, DEB bagi 70 peratus kepada mereka dan saya hanya tumpang 30 peratus, itu pun mereka hendak suruh kaji semula. DEB kayakan seluruh masyarakat Malaysia dan memberi peluang terbuka kepada semua kaum dan bukan kepada orang Melayu saja. Saya tahu perkara ini sebab saya menceburi perniagaan sejak dari awal lagi.

Sekarang ini ada semacam teori bahawa untuk berjaya mesti mendampingi orang politik. Apa kata Tan Sri ?

SYED MOKHTAR: Kita kena kenal orang politik, kena ada hubungan dengan UMNO. Bila ada hubungan dengan UMNO ada hubungan dengan pemimpin, bila ada hubungan dengan pemimpin kita ada hubungan dengan kerajaan. Kita tak boleh menggunakan cara singkat untuk mendapat peluang, lepas itu orang lain yang ambil.

Macam saya, saya terpaksa pergi jumpa pemimpin atasan kalau ada masalah perniagaan yang melibatkan kepentingan negara. Kita ada hubungan dengan kerajaan. Kita minta tolong pemimpin kita mengenai apa yang kita boleh buat dan setakat mana kemampuan kita. Bukannya mengambil lesen kemudian bagi kepada orang lain. Saya panggil orang jenis ini sebagai individualis Melayu. Orang jenis ini fikir untuk diri sendiri saja.

Bila umur 45 mesti ada apartmen di luar negara, duit RM50 juta. Jadi, ini bukan masalah UMNO atau DEB. Ini masalah orang Melayu yang tidak percaya kepada diri sendiri. Mereka percaya kepada duit dalam akaun. Tapi saya tidak bersimpati dengan mereka yang bersikap demikian. Sebab itu saya tubuhkan yayasan. Syed Mokhtar akan mati. Yayasan akan kekal sebagai institusi. Syarikat-syarikat perniagaan juga akan kekal diurus oleh profesional yang berkelayakan dan bukan ahli keluarga. Perniagaan perlu menyumbang kepada hasrat yayasan dalam hal-hal kebajikan. Untuk itu perniagaan perlu diuruskan secara profesional untuk memastikan ia terus berkekalan.

Jadi kegagalan Melayu bukanlah kerana DEB gagal?

SYED MOKHTAR: Kalau gagal, itu disebabkan oleh orang Melayu sendiri. Saya dilahirkan oleh DEB, dapat lesen lori, duit bantuan Mara, UDA bagi kedai. Tetapi DEB bukan kayakan orang Melayu saja, DEB kayakan seluruh masyarakat. Ini yang saya suka tekankan supaya semua orang faham.

Mungkinkah orang Melayu tidak sedar mereka ketinggalan?

SYED MOKHTAR: Saya fikir orang Melayu sedar tapi mereka mungkin tidak mahu menjadikan itu sebagai satu isu. Bagi saya, kalau sedar macam mana sekalipun, isu tetap di situ juga jika tidak mencari jalan mengatasinya.

Seperti saya selalu kata, benda yang benar akan kekal. Bagi saya, orang Islam bernasib baik kerana kita ada akhirat. Dalam Islam, ajaran dan budaya sudah lengkap. Ini meliputi cara hidup dan cara kita cari rezeki. Kalau kita ikut nilai-nilai ini tak payah nak pakai serban. Orang Kedah kata macam lebai kodok, bukan cerdik sangat. Tapi yang penting kita ada kekuatan itu. Kita tak perlu ada sifat malu kerana kita tak mencuri. Setiap orang, Allah bagi kekuatan.

Ramai tertarik dengan Muzium Kesenian Islam yang diasaskan oleh Tan Sri. Kenapa Tan Sri menubuhkan muzium ini yang tidak ada pulangan komersial?

SYED MOKHTAR: Saya dapat peluang apabila kerajaan bercadang membuka Muzium Islam semasa ekonomi berada dalam keadaan baik. Saya lihat ini sebagai peluang untuk saya menyumbang balik kepada masyarakat walaupun saya tiada pengalaman.

Nasib baik adik saya mempunyai pengalaman dalam bidang muzium ini, kami berbincang dan bersetuju untuk membangunkannya kerana ia boleh menjadi tempat untuk mempamerkan artifak-artifak Islam tempatan dan luar negara. Ia juga menjadi peluang kepada rakyat negara ini dan asing untuk menyaksikan artifak dari Turki, Istanbul dan muzium luar negara tanpa perlu ke negara-negara berkenaan.

Saya sedang berusaha untuk membawa kaligrafi, ukiran dan juga bahan-bahan seramik dari pelbagai negara untuk dipamerkan di muzium ini. Secara tidak langsung ini menunjukkan Islam itu global. Artifak-artifak Islam ada di seluruh dunia tetapi tidak semua orang boleh menyaksikannya. Dan Muzium Kesenian Islam berusaha supaya semua orang boleh melihat warisan-warisan Islam daripada artifak-artifak ini.

Agama Islam ada di mana-mana negara dan artifak-artifak ini banyak dibawa masuk ke muzium menerusi pembelian, pertukaran artifak dan penganjuran pameran bersama Muzium Britain, Kaherah, Singapura. Bila kita buat pameran, kita terbitkan satu buku dan hantarkan ke seluruh dunia. Dari situ kita dapat belajar persilangan budaya yang berlaku kepada Islam di China, di India dan seluruh Asia, di mana-mana sahaja. Orang boleh nampak bahawa Islam agama yang terbuka.

Jiran saya di Alor Star ada India dan Cina, tiada masalah untuk hidup bersama. Islam tiada bagi masalah kepada yang bukan Islam. Muzium ini menunjukkan Islam itu global. Seramik dan besi cukup hebat. Artifak ini ada yang dibeli dari luar. Kerajaan bagi kita simpan dan kita buat muzium ini kita serah kepada kerajaan dan kerajaan pajak balik muzium ini untuk 99 tahun. Muzium ini dibiayai oleh Yayasan Albukhary sejajar dengan objektif untuk membangunkan budaya dengan belanja RM5 juta setahun. Saya juga mahu orang bukan Islam turut mengunjungi muzium ini untuk melihat tamadun dan kesenian Islam.

Masjid di Jalan Hang Tuah dibina bukan di kawasan majoriti Islam. Apa tujuan Tan Sri berbuat demikian?

SYED MOKHTAR: Asalnya masjid itu kecil sahaja. Ada jawatankuasa datang jumpa saya dan berbincang, saya kata jika mahu membangunkan semula biar betul-betul walaupun kawasan itu setinggan dan tidak ramai orang Islam.

Mungkin ada orang yang menaiki motosikal boleh singgah, budak-budak yang tinggal di pangsapuri berdekatan boleh datang mengaji, ada syarahan. Sasaran saya ialah masyarakat bandar yang berpendapatan rendah. Hari Jumaat boleh sembahyang di situ, saya fikir kita buat kerana Allah s.w.t. kita buat betul-betul. Ikhlaskan diri dan buat yang terbaik. Masjid di Jalan Hang Tuah ialah sebuah masjid bandar untuk warga kota. Ini membolehkan orang yang bekerja di sekitar kawasan itu singgah sembahyang di situ.

Bagaimana pula dengan bajet yayasan?

SYED MOKHTAR: Memandangkan yayasan baru hendak diinstitusikan, maka kita sedang meneliti banyak perkara terutama pendidikan yang melibatkan tuisyen yang disertai oleh pelajar-pelajar antarabangsa dari negara-negara yang penduduk Islamnya sedikit sahaja. Muzium pula lebih kepada persilangan budaya dan teras yayasan buat masa ini ialah pendidikan dan muzium sahaja. Sepuluh tahun yang lalu saya laburkan dalam pembinaan infrastruktur dan sekarang sedang membina kolej di Alor Star yang akan siap pada tahun 2009.

Sebanyak 3,000 pelajar disasarkan dengan 30 peratus pelajar tempatan manakala selebihnya antarabangsa. Ramai dari negara-negara Islam yang kecil di rantau Asia Tengah. Budak-budak ini cerdik tapi miskin dan mereka diberi pelajaran dalam Sains dan Matematik.

Ada juga kita hantar imam dan bilal yang kurang mampu ke Mekah untuk mengerjakan haji. saya lihat mereka ini kalau mati pun Allah beri mereka haji tetapi tidak dapat pergi ke Mekah kerana tidak mampu. Oleh itu, saya pilih 60 hingga 70 orang setahun dan kita bawa masuk Tabung Haji seperti yang ibu bapa kita buat. Selalu yang dapat ialah tok siak, imam dan bilal dan saya minta kuota daripada kerajaan untuk berbuat demikian.

Tan Sri pernah beritahu mahu memodenkan sistem sekolah pondok di negara ini. Adakah rancangan itu masih ada dan relevan untuk dilaksanakan pada masa ini?

SYED MOKHTAR: Sistem sekolah pondok yang ada pada hari ini memerlukan perubahan, sekolah yang lengkap dengan kemudahan asas. Ini penting kerana kebersihan itu adalah asas kesihatan pelajar dan juga sebahagian daripada iman.

Kolej Yayasan Albukhary di Alor Star ada sistem, lapan jam belajar, lapan jam waktu tidur dan lapan jam lagi untuk buat kerja-kerja sukarela. Pembelajaran hukum agama asas seperti sembahyang dan mengaji adalah tanggungjawab individu dan mesti ada. Kolej tidak banyak tumpukan kepada agama kerana itu tanggungjawab individu, tanggungjawab dengan Allah. Kolej itu tumpukan ilmu dunia.

Bila kita susah, orang tolong kita dan bila kita nampak orang susah kita kena tolong. Objektifnya bila keluar dari kolej ini mereka berisi dengan ilmu, nak jadi akauntan atau ahli ekonomi, kita berikan pelajaran dan lepas itu kita lepaskan, tiada terikat untuk pergi ke mana sahaja. Sistem sekolah pondok hanya pentingkan agama. Agama adalah tanggungjawab kita, memang ada dalam jiwa cuma perlu diperkuatkan tapi perlu juga ada ilmu dunia.

Boleh Tan Sri berkongsi zaman kanak- kanak, terutama cara Tan Sri dibesarkan dengan didikan keluarga yang bagaimana?

SYED MOKHTAR: Macam biasa juga, saya pergi ke sekolah rendah dan menengah. Cuma masa itu keluarga saya susah. Bila habis sekolah menengah, duit tidak ada dan saya ambil keputusan untuk tolong ayah saya dan berusaha dari kecil untuk berjaya. Duit kita guna untuk kehidupan peribadi dan untuk tolong orang lain juga.

Kaum lain ada organisasi seperti persatuan Hokkien atau Kantonis tetapi di mana orang Melayu? Di Kedah tiada satu pun dewan orang Melayu. Bila saya buat kolej, saya suruh buat lima atau enam reka bentuk sebab orang Kodiang, Arau, Padang Terap dan Pokok Sena bukan mampu untuk pergi sampai ke Samarkhan, Istanbul, Isfahan untuk melihat reka bentuk asing itu. Bila anda pergi ke kolej itu ada lima konsep seperti Morish, Turki, Tupaki, Afrika Utara dan sekali gus mencerminkan Islam yang global. Secara peribadi saya memang minat kepada seni bina Islam.

Buat masa ini, sementara menantikan kolej itu siap, kita tempatkan di UIA, ada 372 pelajar dari 47 negara dan insya-Allah, kita akan buka kolej di Kedah dan tumpukan kepada pelajaran asas seperti Pertanian, Perakaunan, Ekonomi dan ICT. Kita juga pernah adakan program ilmu untuk anak-anak Islam Pakistan dan ramai yang berjaya dan bekerja di luar negara. Perbelanjaan sepenuhnya kolej itu ialah RM600 juta apabila siap kelak. Seluas 75 ekar telah siap dan sekarang kita ada pusat dialisis, masjid dan rumah anak yatim dan orang tua, justeru pelajar itu akan buat kerja-kerja sukarela.

Tan Sri bukan sahaja mengembangkan perniagaan tetapi juga melaksanakan pengembangan yayasan.

SYED MOKHTAR: Itu niat saya. Sambil berniaga sambil juga membuat kerja-kerja kebajikan. Kita sementara masih hidup, melebihi 2.5 peratus zakat yang disyaratkan oleh Islam dan dapat tolong anak bangsa, dan juga bukan Islam, 70 anak-anak Islam dan 30 peratus lagi dikongsi oleh pelajar luar dan bukan Islam. Baru-baru ini kita menaja pelajar dari China untuk belajar di UIA tetapi kita tidak paksa mereka masuk Islam.

Bagaimana Tan Sri bekerja?

SYED MOKHTAR: Saya bertindak mengikut keperluan tapi kena terus berusaha agar setiap masalah selesai secepat mungkin. Harus menyelesaikan isu. Tidur selalu lewat, lagi malam lagi cerah mata kerana saya suka buat kerja malam-malam.

Yang penting semua kerja jadi, kena selesaikan isu walaupun berat. Kalau yakin perkara benar, tiada masalah. Perkara yang benar akan beri kita kekuatan untuk terus berusaha, jangan lari dari tanggungjawab.

Senaman kita buat secara sederhana, makan dan minum satu pertiga sahaja.

Saya suka berusaha dan cuba setakat yang terdaya kerana ini Tanah Melayu, jadi Malaysia. Bila saya jumpa pemimpin UMNO saya kata UMNO Melayu punya dan BN Melayu dan semua kaum punya. Dari awal, saya kata saya anak UMNO dan DEB. Kalau UMNO bagi teladan buruk, orang Melayu kecewa dan kita kena jaga. Bendang pun kita jaga dan jangan pajak kepada orang lain. Tapi bila orang cash-out, kita bina jurang yang luas lagi. Pergi luar negara untuk pengembangan tidak apa, tetapi asas kita di sini.

Adakah sejak dulu lagi Tan Sri sudah nampak masalah pendidikan orang Melayu?

SYED MOKHTAR: Masalah pendidikan memang ada dari awal lagi. Dalam tahun 60-an saya hadapi masalah pendidikan sebab tak ada kemampuan. Saya tidak boleh bayar yuran semasa di tingkatan lima.

Masalah budak-budak Melayu yang tak mampu nak bayar yuran memang ada pada masa itu. Saya nampak masalah pendidikan tapi saya pun salah seorang daripada mereka yang memerlukan pertolongan. Tapi tidak ada siapa yang tolong membayar yuran sekolah. Mungkin masa itu tidak ada orang Melayu yang berkemampuan yang boleh tolong saya. Jadi, bila dapat sikit peluang dalam perniagaan, saya ada kemampuan untuk menolong orang lain. Orang kaya ada dalam semua kaum. Mereka kena membantu kaum sendiri supaya tidak tercicir. Yang miskin kita kena bantu.

Apa yang Tan Sri akan lakukan dengan wang tunai RM80,000 yang diterima bersama trofi Tokoh Maal Hijrah Peringkat Kebangsaan itu?

SYED MOKHTAR: Saya akan memberikannya kepada ibu saya. Masa dulu bila saya dapat RM1,000, saya hanya memerlukan RM500 saja. Bila saya dapat RM1,500 dan bawa balik ke rumah, mak saya kata RM750 cukup untuk keluarga. Baki RM750 bagi kepada orang tua-tua. Dari situ saya nampak perlunya jiran dan masyarakat dalam kehidupan kita. Saya dah ada interaksi dengan masyarakat.

Besto Regardo,
"Apart from the technical know-how, business in Malaysia is also about the know-who."

以上です。

悲しい色やね　（大阪 Bay Blues。。）

2007-12-22T16:40:00.003+09:00

(Audio only)

にじむ街の灯を　ふたり　見ていた

桟橋に停めた　車に　もたれて

泣いたらあかん　泣いたら　せつなくなるだけ

Hold me tight 大阪 Bay blues

「俺のこと好きか」　あんた聞くけど

Hold me tight そんなことさえ　わからんようになったんか・・・？

大阪の海は　悲しい色やね

さよならをみんな　ここに捨てに来るから・・・

夢しかないような　男やけれど

一度だってあんた　憎めなかった

逃げたらあかん　逃げたら　くちびる噛んだけど

Hold me tight 大阪 Bay blues

河はいくつも　この街　流れ

恋や夢のかけら　みんな海に流してく

Hold me tight 大阪 Bay blues

今日でふたりは終わりやけれど

Hold me tight　あんたあたしの　たったひとつの青春やった

Hold me tight...

ベストレガルド、
俺は初めてこの曲を聞いた時、すぐ好きになっちゃったやねん。。Perhaps this is one of the songs which i should sing at karaoke session when the time's come for me to say goodbye. It tells most of your feeling for that sayonara...

以上です。

故郷に帰るで。。Balik kampung yo !

2007-12-22T11:10:00.003+09:00

まだ早いと思うけど、今年どうも有難う御座いました。本当にお世話になりました。また来年も良い年を迎え、宜しくお願い致します。
明日、今度こそマレーシアにある故郷に帰ります。仕事の意味ではなく、２週間のバカンスです。楽しみですね！！
まあ。。帰ったら何をしようかなと頭のなかにそいう質問が浮かんで来たが、とにかくゆっくり休みましょう。美味しいものや懐かしい味などを食って、あっちこっちに遊んで、懐かしい顔と合えたらいいんじゃないかなと思います。今の気分は。。。ほんまにうれぴ～～。期待してるで。。それじゃまた来年な。あばよ！！！

Besto Regardo,
New year is coming. New hope, new dream, new resolution, new plan, new challenges, new calender, is coming. Time is moving fast and world is changing drastically, that's for sure. The past is history but let not ditch it from our memory. Let it be something exemplary. Yesterday was a hard day, but let's make tomorrow such a nice and properous day. It's all count on us !! Happy New Year...opss in 10 days time. Countdown baby!

以上です。

Saudi king pardons woman who was raped by 7 men

2007-12-19T19:47:00.001+09:00

RIYADH: King Abdullah has pardoned a female rape victim who had been sentenced to six months in prison and 200 lashes for being alone with a man who was not related to her, a Saudi newspaper reported yesterday.
Saudi Justice Minister Abdullah bin Muhammed al-Sheik told al-Jazirah newspaper that the pardon did not mean the king doubted the country's judges, but instead acted in the "interests of the people".

"The king always looks into alleviating the suffering of the citizens when he becomes sure that these verdicts will leave psychological effects on the convicted people, though he is convinced and sure that the verdicts were fair," al-Jazirah quoted the minister as saying.

The victim in the case, known only as the "Girl of Qatif" after her hometown in eastern Saudi Arabia, was in a car with a man last year when they were attacked and raped by seven men.

She was initially sentenced in November last year to several months in prison and 90 lashes for being alone in a car with a man with whom she was neither related nor married, a violation of the kingdom's strict segregation of the sexes.
The woman, who was 19 at the time of the rape, has said she met the man to retrieve a picture of herself from him because she had recently married.

The case sparked an international outcry, especially after the court more than doubled the sentence last month to 200 lashes and six months' prison in response to her appeal.

US President George W. Bush expressed anger at the sentence earlier this month, saying he wondered how he would react if it had been one of his daughters. But he said he had not made his views known directly to the Saudi king, a US ally.

The Justice Ministry has defended the sentence, saying the girl was having an illicit affair with the man.

The minister told al-Jazirah that the king was the only official who could issue a pardon, and he did so despite the government's view that the Saudi legal system was "honest" and "fair".

"The king's order consolidates and confirms what is known about the Islamic courts.

"Efficient judges look into different cases and issue their just verdicts and those convicted have the right to appeal."

The seven men who were convicted of raping both the girl and the man were initially sentenced to jail terms from 10 months to five years. Their sentences were increased to between two and nine years after the appeal. -- AP

Source: New Straits Time

Besto Regardo,
I am wondering why those bloody seven rapers have been spared from the lashes at the first place and they claimed that their legal system was "honest" and "fair" ? Speechless.

以上です。

ASB: Agihan pendapatan 8 sen

2007-12-19T19:16:00.001+09:00

AMANAH Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB) mengumumkan agihan pendapatan lapan sen seunit dan bonus satu sen seunit untuk Skim Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) bagi tahun kewangan berakhir 31 Disember 2007.

Jumlah pengagihan pendapatan dan bonus itu merupakan peningkatan sebanyak 0.45 sen seunit berbanding 8.55 sen seunit tahun lalu.Tahun lalu, ASNB yang juga anak syarikat milik penuh Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), memberikan agihan pendapatan sebanyak 7.30 sen dan bonus 1.25 sen.

Pembayaran berkenaan akan memberi faedah kepada 6.35 juta pemegang unit yang kini memiliki 55.22 bilion unit ASB.
Pembayaran pulangan kepada pemegang unit ASB itu membabitkan peruntukan berjumlah RM4.29 bilion, peningkatan RM798 juta atau 22.85 peratus bagi pengagihan pendapatan berbanding RM3.49 bilion yang dibayar tahun lalu.

Bagi pembayaran bonus pula, ASNB memperuntukkan RM354.47 juta.

Pembayaran pengagihan pendapatan dan bonus akan dikredit secara automatik dalam buku pelaburan (ASB) para pelabur.

Pengiraan pengagihan pendapatan ASB dibuat berdasarkan purata baki pegangan minimum bulanan bagi tempoh pelaburan sepanjang tahun kewangan 2007.
Pengiraan bonus pula, berdasarkan purata baki pegangan minimum bulanan untuk 10 tahun bagi tempoh 1998 hingga 2007.

Bagi tujuan pengiraan pengagihan pendapatan dan bonus, semua urus niaga unit ASB ditangguhkan mulai 21 Disember ini hingga 1 Januari 2008.

Pemegang unit boleh mengemas kini buku pelaburan masing-masing di ibu pejabat ASNB, pejabat ASNB atau ejen ASNB di seluruh negara mulai 2 Januari depan.

Hingga 13 Disember lalu, dana ekuiti pendapatan itu memperoleh pendapatan kasar RM5.13 bilion, meningkat 29.19 peratus atau RM1.16 bilion daripada RM3.971 bilion dalam tahun kewangan 2006.
Pendapatan dividen daripada syarikat pelaburan menyumbang RM2.81 bilion atau 54.8 peratus kepada jumlah pendapatan kasar itu.

Besto Regardo,
Hmm..tidak begitu memberangsangkan. I expect them to pay at around 10~11 % for the dividend. Well nevertheless, it's no doubt that ASB unit trust scheme is still among the easiest and viable investment option you can get so far in Malaysia. So how much your monies had been bred dude? It's counting time...heh

以上です。

Macam-macam: Lelaki pandu bahaya elak nyanyuk

2007-12-19T19:08:00.001+09:00

TOKYO: Seorang lelaki Jepun berusia 100 tahun yang kerap ditahan kerana kesalahan tidak mempunyai lesen memandu dan terbabit dalam nahas jalan raya, memberi alasan tersendiri mengelak tindakan pihak berkuasa - memandu menjadi tiket baginya mengelak nyanyuk.

“Memandu kereta mengelak nyanyuk kerana saya perlu berjaga dan berwaspada sepanjang masa,” kata Masaru Hori yang dipetik polis di Sendai, utara Jepun.

Kemalangan itu adalah yang kedua membabitkan Hori yang memandu tanpa lesen selepas ia dirampas polis apabila kejadian langgar lari Ogos lalu. - Reuters

Besto Regardo,
Jadi secara logiknya, berdasarkan petikan di atas dan hukum penaakulan mantikku, untuk mengelakkan seseorang itu memandu secara merbahaya dan laju di jalan raya, seseorang itu haruslah menjadi nyanyuk...kahkahkahkah..tak lawak pon !

以上です。

Bill Gates: The skills you need to succeed

2007-12-16T18:54:00.002+09:00

VIEWPOINT
By Bill Gates
Chairman, Microsoft

One of the most important changes of the last 30 years is that digital technology has transformed almost everyone into an information worker. In almost every job now, people use software and work with information to enable their organisation to operate more effectively.

That's true for everyone from the retail store worker who uses a handheld scanner to track inventory to the chief executive who uses business intelligence software to analyse critical market trends.
So if you look at how progress is made and where competitive advantage is created, there's no doubt that the ability to use software tools effectively is critical to succeeding in today's global knowledge economy.

A solid working knowledge of productivity software and other IT tools has become a basic foundation for success in virtually any career.
Beyond that, however, I don't think you can overemphasise the importance of having a good background in maths and science.

If you look at the most interesting things that have emerged in the last decade - whether it is cool things like portable music devices and video games or more practical things like smart phones and medical technology - they all come from the realm of science and engineering.

Today and in the future, many of the jobs with the greatest impact will be related to software, whether it is developing software working for a company like Microsoft or helping other organisations use information technology tools to be successful.

Bill Gates
Lifelong learning is vital

Communication skills and the ability to work well with different types of people are very important too.

A lot of people assume that creating software is purely a solitary activity where you sit in an office with the door closed all day and write lots of code.
This isn't true at all.
Software innovation, like almost every other kind of innovation, requires the ability to collaborate and share ideas with other people, and to sit down and talk with customers and get their feedback and understand their needs.

I also place a high value on having a passion for ongoing learning. When I was pretty young, I picked up the habit of reading lots of books.
It's great to read widely about a broad range of subjects. Of course today, it's far easier to go online and find information about any topic that interests you.
Having that kind of curiosity about the world helps anyone succeed, no matter what kind of work they decide to pursue.

Bill Gates is chairman, chief software architect and one of the founders of Microsoft, the world's largest software company. From July 2008 he will end his day-to-day involvement in the company and focus on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and its global health and education work.

Besto Regardo,
And to me, one simple task one could do to gain knowledge is reading, reading, reading and asking the experts. Ops sorry that would be counted as four.
Alright Anuar you lazy bonehead, commencing from today you are commissioned to read　completely at least, one 'intellectual' material per month. Ehem ehem...tuuuut stuff should be subsided...gradually. :-P

以上です

Festival of Rights 2007

2007-12-08T20:17:00.002+09:00

Now, I say to you today my friends, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the Malaysian dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: - 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. As i am overwhelmingly inspired by Martin Luther King Jr and in conjunction with Human Rights Day, let's together we make our stance clear about equality, justice and freedom of all mankind. Peace !

Song: FREEDOM
By : Sir Paul McCartney.

Besto Regardo,
Can't wait for leaving on a jet plane. Another two weeks to go. I'm coming home...ops for just two weeks break though.

以上です。

The tiger is black, back again.

2007-12-02T14:15:00.002+09:00

This is the car that is going to be the next saviour of the ailing tiger after the previous launched Persona. By referring to a press release reported yesterday, it seems that the tiger has eventually managed to unleash itself from the dark dungeon of losses.

Proton now has come to black again after suffering six consecutive quarterly losses. It has recorded a net quarterly profit of RM3.5 million on revenue of RM1.3 billion, compared to a loss of RM250 million on a turnover of RM1.27 billion the same period last year. Certainly it's everybody guess that this is due to the encouraging sales factor contributed massively by Persona.

Well, i assume that Proton is currently in a such good position to keep on the momentum after seeing this next to come Proton's new model also widely known as BLM (Base Line Model). This BLM will be launched somewhere in the early of 2008. Honestly, judging from the looks i bet it will be another hot cake for Proton and only if the price tag is attractive enough. Yup sad to say though, certainly this kind of economist theory only applies in the state of Malaysia. Packaged with nice looking and low price, there you go. Sometimes it sounds like i am just another pimp in the town...ya know what i'm sayin.

Besto Regardo,
Yo i went to Osaka Motor Show yesterday. A lot of bloody great machine and nice chickies too. Hmm geramnye !! I'll come up with the pictures and cover up another day.

以上です。

Malaysia's Most Valuable Brands (MMVB)

2007-11-17T12:23:00.002+09:00

Maybank Group was ranked the country’s most valuable brand, followed by Public Bank, Maxis, Genting and Celcom.
Global brand consultancy Interbrand was commissioned by the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Malaysia (4As) to evaluate the top 30 brands in the country based on financial analysis, role of brand and brand strength, culminating with the MMVB.

The valuation is based on a proven methodology by Interbrand which pioneered the brand valuation practice and is now recognised worldwide for its annual global brand valuations with corporate publication Business Week.

Malaysia now joins a select few countries in Asia that have commissioned such a study by Interbrand. Taiwan, China and Singapore are the other markets that have recently embarked on similar studies.

No. Brand - Ranking (RM)

1. Maybank - RM9.638 billion
2. Public Bank - RM6.861 billion
3. Maxis - RM5.303 billion
4. Genting - RM4.586 billion
5. Celcom - RM4.070 billion
6. CIMB - RM3.42 billion
7. Astro - RM3.3 billion
8. Hong Leong - RM3.095 billion
9. Perodua - RM2.442 billion
10. DiGi - RM2.094 billion
11. Giant - RM2.064 billion
12. MAS - RM1.719 billion
13. Sime Darby - RM1.524 billion
14. TV3 - RM1.099 billion
15. Petronas - RM918 million
16. YTL - RM730 million
17. RHB Bank - RM653 million
18. Ambank - RM650 million
19. Air Asia - RM332 million
20. The Star - RM318 million
21. Dutch Lady - RM298 million
22. Kurnia Insurance - RM291 million
23. Proton - RM238 million
24. MAA Insurance - RM231 million
25. Affin Bank - RM228 million
26. Padini - RM211 million
27. Parkson - RM124 million
28. Sunway - RM90 million
29. Mamee - RM87 million
30. Bonia - RM74 million

The inaugural ranking would assist in emphasising the role of brand contribution in business performance. The rankings provide top line measures of economic performance, stating what the brand is worth overall and among competition.

The total value of those 30 brands in the MMVB07 list is around RM56.5 bilion, which is the estimation of fiscal year yields from a research study implemented for 5 years.

MMVB’07 is different from other brand researcher where it only takes the brand value into account and not the total asset owned by a company. So this justifies why Petronas is not at the top place as everyone might presumes.

To be eligible to be evaluated as the most valuable brand in Malaysia, the company must be established and developed in Malaysia or owned by a public listed company which based in the country for at least 10 years.

Besto Regardo,

以上です。

Dizzy lazy bloody sleepy

2007-11-16T02:01:00.002+09:00

Yo yo whassup. Somebody please...help me. I can't sleep.

The digital clock on my computer screen shows that it's already 2:05 AM. But i am still here blinking my stoney eyes and sticking my arse in front of this machine.

My whole body apparently gives a signal that i am damn too tired to stay up until this late. Hey tomorrow is working day...yawn. I want to sleep but it seems that i don't fall asleep at all. Perhaps this is a kick i got from a cup of coffee i drank during lunch break today. Darn...didn't me realize me is so week against coffee?

My eyelids are too heavy to stay open but as i lay down, my mind start to working. It doesn't want to stop thinking. Yawn.....i'm sleepy but i can't sleep. I've worked damn hard lately, channeling most of my energy towards work. My job's responsibility is piling up. Busy...oooh yeah i'm a busy man now. Yawnnnn....ooh yes. At last, now i think i do really feel sleepy. My eyes...oooh my eyes....can't stand anymore. Now i found another merit of blogging that is as an effective medicine to make you fall asleep. Yeah thank god. It such a great gift to able to sleep. Yawnnn...my eyes...ooh. It's now 2:29 AM. Got to go dude...tomorrow got to work. Yeah good heaven. Eventually i am out.....yawnnnn. Good night and have a sweet dream....

以上です。

The 90/10 Principle

2007-11-03T10:19:00.001+09:00

What is this principle? Ten per cent of life is made up of what happens to you, while 90% is decided by how you react. What does this mean? We really have no control over 10% of what happens to us.

We cannot stop the car from breaking down. The plane will be late arriving, which throws our whole schedule off. A driver may cut us off in traffic.

We have no control over this 10%. The other 90% is different. You determine the other 90%.

How? By your reaction.
You cannot a red light but you can control your reaction. Don't let people fool you; YOU can control how you react. Let's use an example.

You are eating breakfast with your family. Your daughter knocks a cup of coffee onto the business shirt. You have no control over what just happened. What happens next will be determined by how you react. You curse.

You harshly scold your daughter for knocking the cup over. She breaks down in tears. After scolding her, you turn to your spouse and criticise her placing the cup too close to the edge of the table. A short verbal battle follows. You storm upstairs and change your shirt. Back downstairs, you find your daughter has been too busy crying to finish breakfast and get ready to school. She misses the bas.

Your spouse must leave immediately for work. You rush to the car and drive your daughter to school. Because you are late, you drive 40 miles and hour in a 30mph speed limit.

After 15 minute delay and throwing US$60 (about RM220) because of a traffic fine, you arrive at school. Your daughter runs into the building without saying goodbye. After arriving at the office 20 minutes late, you find you forgot your briefcase. Your day has started terrible. As it continues, it seems to get worse and worse. You look forward to coming home.

When you arrive home, you find a small wedge in your relationship with your spouse and daughter.

Why? Because of how you reacted in the morning.
Why did you have a bad day?
A) Did the coffee cause it?
B) Did your daughter cause it?
C) Did the policemen cause it?
D) Did you cause it?
The answer is "D".

You had no control over what happened with the coffee. How you reacted in those five seconds is what caused your bad day. Here is what could have and should have happened.

Coffee splashes over you. Your daughter is about to cry. You gently say, "It's okay, honey, you just need to be more careful next time." Grabbing a towel you rush upstairs. After grabbing a new shirt and your briefcase, you come back down in time to look through the window and see your child getting on the bus. She turns and waves. You arrive five minutes early and cheerfully greet the staff. Your boss comments on how good the day you are having.

Notice the difference?
Two difference scenarios. Both started the same. Both ended different.
Why? Because of how you reacted. You really do not have any control over 10% of what happens. The other 90% was determined by your reaction. Here are some ways to apply the 90/10 principle. If someone says something negative about you, don't be a sponge. Let the attack roll of like water on glass. You don't have to let the negative comments affect you! React properly and it will not ruin your day. A wrong reaction could result in losing a friend, being fired, getting stressed out, and so on.

How do you react if someone cuts you off in traffic? Do you lose the temper? Pound on the steering wheel? A friend of mine had the steering wheel fall off. Do you curse? Does your blood pressure skyrocket? Do you try and bump them

Who cares if you arrive 10 seconds later at work? Why let the cars ruin you drive? Remember the 90/10 principle, and do not worry about it.

You are told you lost your job. Why lose sleep and get irritated? It will work out. Use your worrying energy and time into finding another job. The plane is late; it is going to mangle your schedule for the day. Why take out frustration ion the flight attendant? She has no control over what is going on. Use your time to study, get to know the other passenger. Why get stressed out? It will just make things worse.

Now you know the 90/10 principle. Apply it and you will be amazed at the results. You will lose nothing if you try it. The 90/10 principle is incredible. Very few know and apply this principle.

The result? Millions of people are suffering from undeserved stress, trials, problems and heartache. We all must understand and apply the 90/10 principle.

It can change your life!!

By Stephen Covey (Management Guru)
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Stephen Covey is the author of international best seller The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

以上です。

Hey Hey You You !!!

2007-10-27T13:14:00.001+09:00

Hey hey you you !! I wanna be your....

ANIME-Kodomo no omocha (kodocha)
SONG-Girlfriend
BY-Avril Lavigne

以上です。

Amazing Robot Dance

2007-10-27T11:17:00.001+09:00

Enjoy it folks..

以上です。

Genting founder dies

2007-10-23T20:18:00.001+09:00

Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, founder and honorary life president of Genting Group, passed away at 11.20am Tuesday at the Subang Jaya Medical Centre.
The tycoon, who turned 90 in April this year, was renowned for his vision in transforming Genting Highlands from an unexplored hilltop to one of the world's most successful casino resorts.
The fifth child in a family of seven children, Lim migrated from China's Fujian province in 1937 at the age of 19 with only a small suitcase and US$175.

The idea of a hill resort was chanced upon by Lim amidst the crisp air of Cameron Highlands in 1964. Lim was then working on a hydro-electric power project at the popular hill resort, patronised mostly by British colonials seeking cool refuge from the tropical heat, when he foresaw a prosperous Malaysia of the future desiring a cool mountain holiday resort within the reach of all Malaysians.

To date, Genting Highlands Resort has five hotels and two apartment blocks at the hilltop and Awana Genting Highlands Golf and Country Resort.
The company, founded in 1965, has since expanded and diversified from its initial hotel and resort activities to plantations, properties, paper manufacturing, power generation, oil and gas, electronic commerce and information technology development under Genting Group.

According to Forbes Asia, the Genting Group founder was third richest in the country with a net worth of US$4.3bil (RM14.6bil).
Lim is survived by wife Puan Sri Lee Kim Hua, and their six children and 19 grandchildren.

以上です。

Nilai baik warga Tokyo wajar dijadikan teladan

2007-10-20T19:59:00.001+09:00

Oleh Mohamad Muda (Yang berkunjung ke Tokyo dan Kyoto, Jepun, baru-baru ini)

KATA orang, kalau ke Jepun atau mahu maju seperti masyarakat negara matahari terbit itu, jangan jadi seperti orangnya, tetapi ikut nilai dan budaya hidup serta disiplin kerja mereka, antaranya tekun, menepati masa, menghormati orang lain dan sentiasa mengutamakan kebersihan.
Memang benar, walaupun cuma seminggu berada di Tokyo dan Kyoto ketika mengikuti lawatan kerja rombongan Yayasan Pelajaran Mara (YPM) memantau pelajarnya di dua bandar itu baru-baru ini, amalan nilai positif di kalangan masyarakat negara berkenaan dapat dilihat di mana-mana, terutama dari segi kebersihan.

Sebagai contoh mudah, sebaik penulis bersama rombongan YPM keluar bangunan terminal Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Narita, selepas enam setengah jam penerbangan dari Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA), mata tertumpu ke suatu arah (sekali pandang macam kandang) yang turut tersedia beberapa tempat membuang puntung rokok - tempat khas untuk merokok rupanya.
Dari segi kecanggihan terutama sistem pengendalian dan pengurusan penumpang, pada pendapat penulis, KLIA jauh lebih hebat berbanding Narita. Bagaimanapun, Narita ada kelainan sedikit kerana turut menyediakan tempat khas untuk perokok di luar bangunan terminalnya, barangkali untuk menjaga kebersihan persekitaran.
Di KLIA pun ada disediakan kemudahan sama di luar terminal, tetapi berbeza sifatnya. Malah, di negara kita di mana-mana, terutama di bandar dan tempat awam, malah perhentian bas tepi jalan sekalipun, ada disediakan tempat membuang sampah dan puntung rokok. Hairannya, puntung rokok tetap bertaburan.

Keadaan itu dipercayai berpunca antara lain kerana perokok tidak memanfaatkan kemudahan disediakan, sebaliknya masih membuang puntung rokok ikut suka. Kedua, bekas habuk rokok itu sendiri tidak dibersihkan pihak berkenaan sekalipun kandungannya melimpah hingga menyebabkan bau dan menyakitkan mata memandang.
Apa yang ingin penulis nyatakan ini bukan mengenai bahaya merokok kerana semua orang tahu kesan dan akibatnya, tetapi dari sudut kebersihan dan disiplin. Dakwaan bahawa perokok pengotor dan tidak berdisiplin adalah benar selagi mereka yang ketagihan tembakau itu tidak berusaha mengubahnya.

Tanggapan itu mampu diubah jika perokok sendiri sedar tanggungjawab mereka, antaranya menjaga kebersihan - tidak mengamalkan budaya jentik atau pijak puntung rokok merata-rata. Selain itu, mereka seharusnya merokok di kawasan sesuai atau difikirkan tidak mendatangkan kemudaratan kepada pihak lain, khususnya perokok pasif.
Sebagai contoh, ketika mengunjungi beberapa tempat tumpuan ramai di Tokyo, antaranya Asakusa yang memasarkan pelbagai barangan kraf dan cenderamata, Akihabara terkenal sebagai pusat barang elektrik dan elektronik, Ginza yang mempunyai pelbagai gedung pakaian jenama, Ueno tersohor dengan peralatan golf serta Takeshita Street di Harajuku, tempat tumpuan remaja moden Jepun, penulis perhatikan rata-rata perokok Jepun memanfaatkan kemudahan disediakan.
Mereka bukan saja memastikan puntung rokok dibuang di tempat disediakan, malah terlebih dulu berhenti atau berdiri berhampiran ketika melepaskan 'hajat' itu dan hanya berlalu pergi selepas selesai. Apa yang membanggakan, orang luar termasuk dari Malaysia juga berbuat demikian, tidak pula menjentik atau memijak puntung rokok itu merata-rata.

Jika di Malaysia dilancarkan kempen 'Tak nak merokok', di Tokyo pula ketika itu berlangsung kempen 'Jangan buang puntung rokok merata-rata'. Oleh itu, tidak hairan jika di beberapa kawasan tumpuan penulis kunjungi itu terlihat di mana-mana tergantung sepanduk kempen berkenaan.
Dalam hal ini, walaupun penulis difahamkan masyarakat Jepun memang kuat merokok, tetapi kerana disiplin dan sentiasa mengutamakan kebersihan, bukan tiada tetapi agak sukar untuk melihat perokok di kalangan masyarakat negara itu yang merokok sambil berjalan terutama di tempat awam, apatah lagi ketika membuat sesuatu pekerjaan.

Satu lagi aspek yang sempat penulis lihat dan rasai sendiri, walaupun remeh tetapi besar ertinya, ialah sikap menghormati orang lain di kalangan masyarakat yang suatu ketika dulu dicop sangat ganas itu, terutama sewaktu penaklukan negara kita lebih enam dekad lalu.
Selain mementing dan menepati masa, orang Jepun kini dilihat sangat menghormati tetamu atau orang lain. Contohnya, seorang pemandu van sewa berkali-kali memohon maaf kerana dia tidak sempat memakai kot sewaktu kami menaiki vannya, pada hal pakaiannya ketika itu kemas termasuk bertali leher.

Dalam pengalaman lain, peniaga atau penjual tetap mengucapkan terima kasih kepada pelanggan sekalipun tidak membeli barangan mereka selepas membuka atau mencubanya. Sambil tunduk hormat, mereka tersenyum lebar, bukannya mengomel atau mengata pelanggan, walaupun penat melayan.

以上です。

RM1.111 trillion aset jutawan Singapura

2007-10-20T19:02:00.001+09:00

Kira-kira 67,000 jutawan di Singapura memiliki aset kewangan yang dianggarkan bernilai AS$323.7 bilion (RM1,111 bilion) tahun lalu, peningkatan sebanyak 24.5 peratus daripada 2005.
Jutawan di Singapura dilaporkan mewakili 2.6 peratus daripada bilangan keseluruhan jutawan di Asia-Pasifik tetapi jumlah harta yang dimiliki mereka mewakili empat peratus daripada keseluruhan nilai harta jutawan di rantau itu, kata Laporan Kekayaan Asia-Pasifik Merrill Lynch dan Capgemini.
Jumlah harta yang dijana jutawan lebih tinggi kerana didorong oleh bilangan ultra jutawan yang tinggi di Singapura.

Daripada 67,000 jutawan yang memiliki sekurang-kurangnya AS$1 juta atau RM3.44 juta (tidak termasuk rumah kediaman dan barangan pengguna), seramai 928 daripada mereka adalah ultra jutawan yang memiliki aset kewangan lebih AS$30 juta (RM103 juta).

Analisis demografik jutawan berkenaan juga menunjukkan majoriti jutawan di Singapura berumur antara 41 dengan 55 tahun.
Jutawan di Singapura memiliki purata harta $4.9 juta (RM11.24 juta) - lebih tinggi daripada purata $3.3 juta (RM7.57 juta) di rantau Asia Pasifik.
Bilangan jutawan di Singapura meningkat 21.1 peratus mencecah 67,000 tahun lalu, daripada 55,000 pada 2005, pertumbuhan paling tinggi di rantau Asia Pasifik.

Besto Regardo,
67,000 jutawan di Singapura!! Fuh, agaknya berapa ramai pula di antara rakyat Malaysia yang layak bergelar jutawan. Ingat, standardnya bukan minimum RM 1 juta tapi AS$1 juta　dan ini tidak termasuk nilai rumah kediaman dan barang pengguna seperti kereta mewah sebagainya!

以上です。

‘Superman’ misses teh tarik and roti canai

2007-10-20T17:12:00.001+09:00

He feels like a Superman in space and he misses teh tarik and roti canai.
This was what Malaysia’s first Angkasawan Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor told a group of Malaysia Amateur Radio Transmitter Society (MARTS) members in Penang on Thursday night.
During the one-minute conversation, Dr Sheikh Muszaphar described his space life on the International Space Station (ISS) as “flying from one corner to another like Superman.”
He also said that he spent less than 10 minutes to change his clothes in space and expressed his happiness at getting “a call” from Malaysia when the ISS crossed Malaysia.
Roti Canai and Teh Tarik is generally a favourite breakfast menu for most MALAYsians. I think it's time for them to change to the healthier menu already and this should be a nationwide call. Just take a look at what Japanese and Europeans eat for their breakfast will ya fella.

Besto Regardo,

As usual, it sounds typically MALAYsian mindset. Whenever they are out off the country or even out into space, MALAYsians will always resort to "Oh i miss roti canai, teh tarik, sambal belacan, budu, tempoyak, cencalok...etc" in order to show off how much they miss the country and the country is always at their heart. Can't MALAYsians come up with different version of statement next time instead of mentioning foods? Why it always got to do with food? Or it would be more comprehensible and make sense to me should they claimed "Oh i miss satay, lamb chop, chicken chop, nasi kandar, nasi beriani, mesh potato with macaroni salad, banana split ice cream, fresh milk...". Well at least, these are relatively healthier, nutritious and most importantly delicious than the previous list.

以上です。

The Richest Banker in Malaysia

2007-10-18T20:22:00.001+09:00

This is a story about a man who have been through all the hardships and odds but eventually today, he is the highly reputed multi billionaire and one of the richest figure in the country. He owns bank for god sake !!!
Public Bank's Teh beats all the odds
By ELAINE ANG, The Star

Teh Hong Piow – A Banking Thoroughbred traces the eventful 40-year financial odyssey of Public Bank Bhd founder and chairman. The story tells of how Public Bank is the cornerstone of Teh's life: Public Bank is him and he is Public Bank. They are synonymous. The book will hit bookstores nationwide soon. Proceeds from the sales of the book will go to charity.

STARTING a bank by any measure is not only rare but also exceptional.

For a young man – with only 16 years' experience in the banking industry and sharp business acumen – to set up his own bank and turn it into one of the country's finest financial institutions was a near impossibility.

Nevertheless, Teh Hong Piow, then 36, beat all the odds and became the founder, owner and managing director of Public Bank Bhd, which opened its doors for business on Aug 6, 1966, in a three-storey building at No 4, Jalan Gereja in Kuala Lumpur.

Even from the start, Public Bank was no mediocre bank and different from the others – its niche was retail banking but with a new twist targeting the man-on-the-street.

The strategy bore fruit and the bank achieved positive results in record time, registering a profit after only five months of operations.

By the end of 1966, the bank's paid-up capital was RM12.75mil. On Sept 15, 1966, a second branch was set up in Malacca, while Public Finance, a wholly owned subsidiary, started business on Sept 24, 1966. On Jan 7, 1967, another bank branch was opened in Ipoh.

On April 6, 1967, Public Bank was listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange with a paid-up capital of RM16mil, a record then for a commercial bank.
Malaysia's first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj is warmly welcomed by Teh Hong Piow at the official opening of Public Bank on April 4, 1967.

The bank grew at an astounding pace, turning in profits every single year – even during the Asian financial crisis.

To Teh, it was an exhilarating adventure from the beginning. He was never doubtful of the success of his venture. Nor did he see it as a gamble. As with all businesses, one needs to take a calculated risk.

So how did it all start?

Where most ventures do – with ambition – in this case an unshakable ambition driving the eager young Teh, who began life as a small trader in Singapore.

Teh had dabbled in tin mining, tourism, textiles and garments and property development, none of which gave him the fortune he sought.

When he got a job as a bank teller he found his true, unswerving vocation. He wanted to do nothing else but banking and nothing less than owning a bank.
Teh at the office

Teh joined the banking industry as a clerk in Oversea Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) in 1950, at the age of 20. Within five years he was made an officer.

His starting salary was just S$130 a month, hardly enough to provide for his family. Teh has four children – three daughters and a son. His wife, a teacher, was drawing a bigger salary. However, his main objective was not the pay but a chance to learn the banking trade.

OCBC gave him the first defined glimpse of his dream – to start his own bank. Malayan Banking was the seminal phase, which developed him to the point when he was ready to take the plunge and realise his dream.

In 1960, the 30-year-old Teh left OCBC to be part of a small group which helped start Malayan Banking. He was one of the management staff charged with building the bank from scratch.

He rose swiftly through the ranks and became general manager within four years.

In 1966 came the decision to strike out on his own.
Teh - Boys Brigade

One of his earliest breakthroughs – a foray into housing development – generated some RM10mil, which was used as seed money to set up the bank.

For his management team, Teh enlisted the support of one of Malayan Banking's founders, Khoo Teck Puat, to take with him 10 Malayan Banking staff. One of them was Public Bank's current managing director, Datuk Seri Tay Ah Lek, who along with the rest were supposedly on secondment. The rest, as they say, is history.

Tan Sri Teh, as he became officially known from 1983, has seen his ambition fulfilled beyond his wildest dreams. And for one who's not known to rest on his laurels, he aims to take Public Bank to greater heights – making it a world-class player.

Teh has started the ball rolling with the acquisition of Hong Kong-based Public Finance Ltd (formerly JCG Finance Co Ltd) in 1990 and Public Bank (Hong Kong) Ltd (formerly Asia Commercial Bank) in 2006 as well as operations in Indochina.

The bank's key performance indicators are comparable with those of Hong Kong's Hang Seng Bank, the most profitable and efficient bank in the Asia-Pacific.
Hence the question, is Public Bank on the way to join the ranks of global banking giants such as HSBC Holdings plc, Citi and Bank of America Corp?

With Teh, nothing is impossible.

Source: Teh Hong Piow – A Banking Thoroughbred

Besto Regardo,
Tan Sri Teh is currently standing at No. 3 in the Malaysia's 40 Richest List-compiled by Forbes, placing him only behind Robert Kuok, the top sitter and Ananda Krishnan.

以上です。

Iklan Raya Petronas 2007

2007-10-09T21:09:00.002+09:00

Setiap ketibaan 'festive season' maka tidak kurang diantara kita yang akan menunggu buah tangan yang bakal disajikan oleh Petronas yang sememangnya mempunyai reputasi dalam menghasilkan koleksi iklan yang kreatif, bermutu tinggi dan berupaya meninggalkan kesan di hati sanubari.
Syawal bakal menjelma lagi. Maka dikesempatan ini, ingin saya mengucapkan,

　　　　SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDILFITRI & MAAF ZAHIR BATIN 　　　　　　　　　 KEPADA SEMUA

Besto Regardo,
"Burung apa ayah?"..."Burung murai"..."Burung apa ayah?"..."Burung murai,"..."Burung apa ayah?".."Burung apa ayah?"...."Burung apa ayah?"..Kalau aku kecik-kecik dulu tanya soalan berulang kali kat ayah aku, mau kena pelempang Jepun bagus punye hinggap kat muka. Kalau dah besar pulak, ayah aku tanya berulang kali, aku menempelak macam mamat dalam kisah iklan tu...pon aku akan kena pelempang dan di tambah flying kick. Tapi nanti kalau aku dah tua, aku nak test anak aku dengan bertanya soalan yang sama berulang kali macam dalam kisah tu. Kalau anak aku jawab dengan nada yang tension macam mamat tu, aku akan jawab seperti ini, "Itu bukan burung murai...itula burung ngko...kahkahkahkah" sambil pelempang Jepun aku pulak hinggap kat muka anak aku..Moral dari kisah yang dipaparkan dalam iklan tu ialah dari peristiwa sebegitulah maka terciptanya peribahasa "Mulut murai"...Sekian. Cheers everybody...it's Raya time..yeahhhh. Tapi aku kat sini biasalah raya sensorang pasal aku Hans Solo.

以上です。

秋が来た、そして三連休だ！！

2007-10-07T23:49:00.002+09:00

結局、秋の季節が出てきた。しかし現在は１０月になっても関わらずまだまだ暑いと感じられる。もしかしてこれは俺だけの考えかなと思ったけど、同僚に聞いたらやはり同じような答えで言い返った。やっぱり地球温暖化が関係しているのだろうか。これからあるいは来年、再来年、５年後、１０年後。。。世界もそうだが、何よりも人々はどう暮らしているのだろうかが心配だ。

今週の週末が何か若干長く感じられる。明日も休みだし、体操日である為日本全国で休日になるわけ。体操日か。今の俺は明らかに運動が非常に不足だよな。でもそんな関係ない。。そんな関係ない。。へへ小島しおうのネタとぱっくり、申し訳ないけど。三連休だぜ。良いんじゃないか。しかし、休みということは良い事であっても、俺の気持ちには何か気がすまないと。。だってば、やる事がないもん。。。結局、詰まらないの日になってしまい。何か役に立つ事をすれば良いと思うだけど、何をすれば良いのか中々自ら決められない。インタネット及びテレビ。。それだけかな？さああ、本でも読めようか。情けない男になりたくないなああ。俺なんてこういうふうになるわけないじゃん。でも右側の画像は俺がいつもやっている事だと思う。ただ俺の体性がデブじゃなくてタフの方だ。。うふふふ

今はこの本を一生懸命に読んでいる。。。へへへ、いいえ実はぼちぼちでやっている。

以上です。

There must be a better way to alleviate poverty

2007-10-06T13:20:00.001+09:00

By : Johan Jaaffar

IT is a familiar sight at most eateries in the city. There will be people with every trick in the book coming to your table asking for money. Some have perfected the art of begging — it is almost impossible not to give. Some would call it harassment of a charitable kind, others find it simply a menace while many would welcome these people as an excuse to give away their hard-earned money.
After all, what is RM1 when the price of a fried ikan kembung is as much as RM6 in many eateries. But the problem is, they keep coming back. Begging is a vocation replete with techniques, rules and artistry.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not against unfortunate people who live in abject poverty. I have worked with many non-governmental organisations to alleviate the misery of the poor. However, the hardcore poor still exists among us. At least six per cent of our people who actually live from hand to mouth. In fact, the prime minister has made it his obsession to address the issue. We must not hand poverty to the next generation, he told the Umno general assembly not long ago.

But there is more to it than just begging. What I saw and found out irked me. Begging is big business for its “promoters". Back in the early 1990s, the paper I edited investigated a syndicate running a begging scheme. They had vans sending these people to various locations in the city — bus stations, major thoroughfares, shopping complexes and markets. Many of the beggars were foreign mothers with small children. They were placed at strategic locations and were made to look destitute. The monies collected — which were substantial — did not benefit the beggars.

Beggars and promoters exploit the good side of Malaysians. We are just too charitable. And we easily fall prey to such scams. Many of these so-called beggars do not deserve to be on the streets. Many of them are healthy, even those who are disabled should resort to other ways of making a living. No, they don’t want help, they just want it easy.
There was a frail old woman who used to frequent my favourite watering hole in Bangsar. She was almost 70. She was selling kuih bahulu and batang buruk for RM10 a plastic bag. She could have begged but she chose to earn her money. There are many street performers making their rounds in Kampung Baru. These will sing you a song for a ringgit or two. Busking is the only way, probably, to see them through college or simply to survive in the city. There was a blind man who carried a sign that said, “Pak Ali Bekam". The art of extracting “dirty blood” from the body is an age-old tradition. Pak Ali earns about RM30 a day performing his Dracula-like ritual. He could have begged.

There is no reason to beg in this country, full stop. For Muslims, there are just too many of the state-managed institutions to take care of the poor. Every Muslim has to pay zakat every Hari Raya. The proceeds are meant for the poor. Of course, sometimes I wonder where the money goes to considering there is still poverty among Muslims in this country.

The government, too, has undertaken various schemes to help the poor. Yet, from time to time, the press highlights how the poor survive in atrocious living conditions. I blame the welfare officers and wakil rakyat for their oversight in such cases. And, of course, the leakages in the delivery system.

This is a land of plenty. No, I don’t mean everyone is fortunate enough to berbuka puasa at five-star hotels most of the time, drive expensive cars or have second homes in faraway lands. No one is born equal. But there is enough for everyone to ensure there is food on the table, their children can go to school and to pay bills. Of course, there are the rich and famous living in their enclaves replete with an army of maids and helpers.

On the other hand, there are the flat and squatter dwellers. And many among us have to work hard to earn a decent living. True, being charitable is one of our positive attributes. But we must look at the bigger picture in managing the beggar menace. You can’t change anyone’s life by giving out RM1.

I am impressed by the many charitable works done by various quarters. There are philanthropists who give out billions to charity. There are also ordinary people who have done wonderful things to mankind. I saw on Oprah recently how a cheque of US$1 million (RM3.6 million) donated by legendary rock star Jon Bon Jovi had helped families devastated by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans to rebuild their lives. There was the story of John Wood who made himself rich working for Microsoft. In 1998 while visiting Nepal he saw how children were deprived of books. He left the company to set up Room to Read, a non-profit organisation that promotes books and literacy in many Third World countries. After all, education is an escape hatch from hopelessness and despair.

There are many who were inspired by the sight of poverty and destitution.

They did something about it. The worry is, we are largely ignoring the plight of the poor. There is another world out there away from the bright lights, the glamour, and the affluence. It is solely guilt that propels us to give money to those who beg. By condoning begging, we can’t help the beggars in the long run.

There must be a better way to solve poverty. There must be a strategy to eradicate poverty once and for all.

It's autumn...

2007-09-29T14:47:00.001+09:00

Yeah apparently i start to feel the chilly weather since one or two days ago instead of sizzling hot atmosphere. Such an indication that summer has gone, autumn has come.

So to all dudes in Japan, you can start to pack in all your summer-time fashion stuffs and take out your autumn collections.

Well, in Japan, when talking about autumn season or known as aki　in Japanese（秋）, koyou (紅葉)- a scenery of reddish maple's leave, kaki (柿)- persimmon fruit, and another kind of kaki (牡蠣)- oyster, are sacrosanct. Hmmm i can't wait for having good serve of oyster's dishes. Nyum nyummmmy~

So boys and girls, enjoy the season will ya..though 'gloomy' is something that autumn is naturally perceived as.

ベストレガルド、
秋が来たでえええ～あっという間、既に一年間も経過したよね。本間に早いだよな～時間って。まああ～後しばらく頑張ろう。そうだと言われてもとにかく俺は日本に住む事は大好きで～～す。ただ現在の状態を続いていけば詰まらないだよな。あれがほしい、これがほしい、それがほしい、みんなほしい。。でも今一番欲しいなのは。。愛だああああああ～～～～～～～～～～～～～。へへへへへうふふふふふふ。

以上です。

Yasuo Fukuda is the new Japan Premier

2007-09-23T20:24:00.001+09:00

The question of who's going to take the hot seat from Shinzo Abe as the next Japan Prime Minister has already been answered. Yasuo Fukuda, 71, a moderate lawmaker,is set for the throne after defeating conservative former Foreign Minister Taro Aso. Mr Fukuda won 330 of the 527 valid votes cast (63% of the ballot) against 197 for Mr Aso.

A member of the political elite, Mr Fukuda is the son of a prime minister from the 1970s and was former chief cabinet secretary (官房長官）- the top government spokesman - under Mr Abe's predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi. He was widely perceived as a strong supporter of Mr Koizumi during the latter's endeavour to call for a drastic reformation on certain government policies.

What amazed me most, is how Japanese uphold their democratic values and professionalism to ensure the best for the sake of nation. The seat is opened for anybody deemed to be eligible as a candidate and it's apparently no such thing as win without a contest.Both candidates had been given fair opportunity to run for the campaign and equal media coverage.They could appear in any channel and debate for their policies and views.This kind of phenomenon not only holds in the event like this premier electoral but also applies during the nation general election. All the leaders either from the ruling or opposition parties will have their right and freedom to voice out their concerns and views. I was a bit impressed when sometimes ago, i saw in Japanese TV, all the representatives of their respective political parties sat together around an oval table, face to face, debating for the sake of the country and its people.Mind you, there was nothing terrible went on, no defamation, no teasing, no stupid statement and absolutely there's no such thing as riot purported when unsatisfactory conjured. I wonder, is this can or when it can be applied in Malaysia where all the political parties being given a fair chance to play and run on the same field.

以上です。

American Ramadan

2007-09-22T19:25:00.002+09:00

Hey dude, why don't you check this video out.It's a documentary sort of about several muslims practice fasting in the month of Ramadhan at States.

以上です。

Malaysians grieve in this holy month

2007-09-21T17:53:00.001+09:00

Can't you see how sweet and innocent she was? Those bloody bastard has destroyed the future of the nation.

I am appalled, tragic, and anxious. My heart pounded hard and fast as my unblinking eyes kept rolling down through the news bulletin.In the holy month of Ramadhan when we suppose to be exaggerating, the uninvited predicament turned up.

Only a barbaric son of a bitch and a totally fucked up psychosis beast will do such thing. It is so terrible. Even animal will never do such devilish act.I could not resist the question of " What if this happened to my family? What if it happened to one of my sweet nieces?" I am speechless.

Malaysians grieve on what has happened to a cute Nurin Jazlin Jazimin. She has gone, leaves us in such a tragic way.She has been abducted, tortured, molested and murdered in a way that even her true parents were at first adamant the child found was not their daughter. She was only 8 years old little girl, for the god sake ! Poor little Nurin.It's even more unbelievable that this tragedy occurred in the state of Malaysia which claiming to be a progressive and civilized Islamic nation.
Dear Nurin, may god place you among those in heaven. Justice for Nurin, and justice for all please!

Post-mortem results revealed that Nurin died after a brinjal and a cucumber were forced into her private parts, rupturing the intestines. She suffered bruises to the head and cuts on the lips, signs that she had been beaten. I could not imagine
which fucking moron has no conscience to do such bloody act to a helpless little girl.

The latest report says that Police now has established a special investigation team to help in resolving Nurin's murder case.
Images taken from the closed-circuit television cameras near where Nurin’s body was dumped, have been digitally enhanced and police are now looking for a couple in a silver Perodua Kenari.Sources disclosed that the woman captured on tape is a Malay in her 20s. The driver is also in his 20s. Footage showed a woman walking out of the entrance next to the book distribution company, where the bag with Nurin corpse in it was later found.Police are also looking into the possibility that the suspects are linked to two other sexual attacks of children in Kampung Baru recently.
I am afraid to say that Malaysia now is no more a safe country for kids. Sad, angry and sorry ...that sums up my feeling to what happened to you Dear Nurin.May those fucking bastard murderer brought forward for the justice. For me no other option than to be executed...sentence to death!! Go to the hell you Son of Bitch. And may the curse of Nurin wraths upon you till eternity.
No more playing with Kak Ngah from now on. Kak Ngah has gone leaves us in this disparity sick world.Nurin or also been called as Kak Ngah is the one in yellowish baju kurung. Al-Fatihah

Besto Regardo,
Why can't all the human beings live in this one world happily altogether.Why must there should be a sick bastard SoB MF transgressor among us? Huh..i really don't understand.

以上です。

Selamat Berpuasa and Happy Ramadhan Al Mubarak

2007-09-13T19:25:00.002+09:00

I would like to wish all Selamat Berpuasa and Happy Ramadhan. May god bestows us the strength to perform quality ibadah.

So what's everybody have for iftar.Me...oohhh so sad.

以上です。

Embattled Japan Premier Resigned

2007-09-13T19:04:00.001+09:00

Shinzo Abe, the youngest prime minister in the history of Japan post World War Era has announced his resignation from the premier post yesterday afternoon.

I was appalled after hearing the shocking news from a friend of mine at office.Abe held the throne for less than a year.He had been criticized hardly following unveiled scandals one after one involving his cabinet ministries pertaining politics and money matters.But that is not the only possible reason that has been given for Mr Abe's decision.Some analysts talk about concerns over his health - and rumours that he has been under great "strain" were confirmed by the chief cabinet spokesman.

There are multi diverse comments on his decision but i must say that i am impressed and take off my hat for him.He has the gut to take the responsibility and this shows he's a man with high dignity.My full respect upon him.

Besto Regardo,

No wonder Japan can emerge as one of the most advance and richest country in the world in such a short period.The people's conscience, ethic and mentality reflects it all.

以上です。

Cara Jepun bina modal insan

2007-09-13T19:00:00.001+09:00

Oleh: HAIDAR NAJIYAH IBRAHIM

Daerah Maizuru hampir sama dengan kawasan ‘kampung’ lain di Jepun. Dalam suasana pagi yang dingin, kawasan luar bandar seperti ini kerap berkabus, tetapi tenang dan harmonis. Maizuru hanyalah sebuah pekan kecil di pinggir laut sebelah utara Pulau Honshu. Ia jauh dari hiruk-pikuk kehidupan kota yang bising dan sibuk segalanya. Bandar besar terdekat dengannya ialah Osaka, kira-kira dua jam perjalanan bas, atau Kobe, kira-kira sejauh ke Osaka juga.

Dalam musim dingin, pada pukul 6 pagi sudah kelihatan matahari di ufuk timur. Pada pukul 8 pagi, matahari sudah tinggi di negeri matahari terbit ini. Inilah masanya, kelihatan suasana agak sibuk. Ketika ini berduyun-duyun di jalan, anak-anak kecil menuju ke destinasi masing-masing, iaitu sekolah. Namun, keadaannya tetap tenang, tidak berserabut dengan hiruk-pikuk dan deruan kereta di jalan-jalan. Anak- anak kecil dan murid-murid sekolah rendah boleh dikatakan hampir kesemuanya berjalan kaki ke tadika atau sekolah mereka.

Inilah kelainannya. Sejak dari umur tadika mereka berjalan kaki ke tempat belajar. Agak jauh. Malah ada yang berjalan hingga kira-kira setengah kilometer dari rumah masing-masing. Dengan itu, tidak berlaku kesibukan kenderaan di hadapan pintu sekolah mereka. Tidak ada deruman enjin motosikal di dalam kawasan sekolah. Keadaan sangat tenang dan harmonis.

Semasa pulang, keadaannya juga demikian. Murid-murid kecil ini pulang bersendirian, tanpa dijemput oleh ibu bapa mereka. Bagi yang berjauhan biasanya mereka kelihatan berjalan berkelompok.

Mengapakah orang Jepun membiarkan anak mereka berjalan sendirian pergi balik ke sekolah? Sikap ini mungkin sukar untuk kita padankan dengan keadaan kita di Malaysia. Jika difikirkan tentang kemampuan tiap keluarga, mereka jauh lebih mampu, kalau setakat hendak menghantar anak ke sekolah dengan kereta masing-masing.

Ini adalah suatu cara mendidik anak mereka, mungkin supaya mulai belajar berdikari. Bagi kita mungkin tidak terlalu mudah melaksanakannya, memandangkan keadaan keselamatan yang masih menghantui kita. Baik keselamatan yang bersifat jenayah mahupun keselamatan jalan raya. Kita boleh memuji mereka kerana telah berjaya menghasilkan situasi yang begitu selamat untuk rakyat mereka.

Pelajar peringkat sekolah menengah pula, kebanyakannya menunggang basikal ke sekolah. Mereka tidak menaiki motosikal seperti kita. Atau naik bas. Atau dihantar oleh ibu bapa. Mereka selesa menunggang basikal.

Suasana seperti ini sungguh berlainan dari suasana pagi di tempat kita. Cuaca mungkin membantu mereka mempunyai sikap seperti itu. Mengayuh basikal dalam keadaan yang dingin tidak terlalu memenatkan. Keadaan cuaca panas mungkin menjadi suatu penghalang utama kepada kita untuk menyuruh anak-anak mengayuh basikal ke sekolah. Namun, ada banyak sikap positif lain yang boleh kita pelajari.

Jepun tidak mengadakan pakaian seragam bagi murid sekolah rendah di seluruh negara. Mereka hanya mempunyai pakaian seragam bagi sekolah menengah masing-masing sahaja. Jadi, pakaian seragam bagi sesuatu sekolah tidak sama dengan sekolah lain. Itu bagi sekolah menengah. Bagi murid sekolah rendah, langsung tidak ada pakaian seragam yang khas. Mereka boleh memakai pakaian apa sahaja yang sopan. Baju, seluar dan kasut tidak perlu seragam.

Jadi, bagaimana kita hendak kenali anak-anak sekolah di luar kawasan sekolah? Mereka boleh dikenali kerana membawa beg sekolah yang sama. Jadi, yang seragam hanyalah beg sekolah mereka. Inilah identiti anak-anak sekolah di Jepun. Mereka hanya boleh dikenali ketika menggalas begnya.

Beg seragam ini dijual oleh pihak kerajaan. Kalau di tempat kita, perkara beg ini sudah tentu boleh menjadi isu besar, kerana harganya ialah antara 30,000 hingga 50,000 Yen, iaitu kira-kira sama dengan RM1,000. Namun, bagi mereka perkara ini sudah biasa. Walaupun mahal tetapi berkualiti tinggi. Lagi pula, soal harga bukan perkara besar bagi mereka kerana rata-rata berpendapatan tinggi.

Beg ini diperbuat daripada kulit. Dan hanya beg inilah yang akan digalas oleh seseorang murid itu, dalam sepanjang pengajiannya di sekolah rendah, dari darjah satu hingga enam.

Ukurannya tidak terlalu besar. Sepadan dengan buku-buku mereka hanya sebesar buku komik Doraemon. Tidak terlalu berat dan memenatkan untuk digalas sejauh setengah kilometer. Corak buku yang tidak terlalu besar ini juga berlaku bagi peringkat sekolah menengah dan kolej-kolej pengajian peringkat lebih tinggi.

Setiap murid mempunyai sepasang kasut berwarna putih yang mesti ditinggalkan di sekolah, tidak boleh dibawa pulang ke rumah. Semua murid pergi ke sekolah dengan menggunakan kasut sendiri, kemudian ditukar dengan kasut khas ketika berada di sekolah. Kasut sendiri disimpan dalam rak khas, hinggalah ditukar semula semasa hendak pulang. ‘Pengurusan keseragaman’ kasut seperti ini dilakukan di sekolah rendah dan juga menengah.

Selain itu mereka juga mempunyai sepasang lagi kasut khas untuk memasuki dewan sekolah. Perkara ini diamalkan supaya lantai dewan itu tidak cepat rosak. Kasut khas ini tidak dibenarkan dipakai di luar atau menyentuh tanah kerana dikhuatirkan sebarang pasir yang melekat boleh mencalarkan lantai.

Perkara ini sangat penting dan dipatuhi oleh semua murid mereka. Semenjak kecil mereka telah ditanam disiplin seperti ini. Mengajar disiplin adalah kunci utama pengajaran mereka di peringkat awal.

Butir-butir pengajaran secara ‘terperinci’ mungkin telah kita remehkan, tetapi tidak bagi orang Jepun. Misalnya, tentang disiplin ketika makan sangat ditekankan di sekolah. Di sekolah rendah, makanan tengah hari disediakan dan murid-murid bergotong-royong sesama sendiri untuk mengedarkan makanan.

Di Malaysia mungkin perkara ini boleh menjadi isu besar dan boleh disalah tafsir sebagai ‘penderaan’ murid, terutamanya yang masih berumur sangat muda. Murid diwajibkan membasuh pinggan sendiri setiap hari, dalam sepanjang pengajian mereka. Mereka juga terpaksa mengangkat dan mengagihkan sendiri makanan yang disediakan oleh pihak sekolah. Semuanya mereka belajar urus sendiri dengan bantuan guru. Dan mereka melakukannya dengan penuh kegembiraan.

Setiap hari murid bertugas yang dilantik akan mengangkat periuk makanan yang dimasak oleh tukang masak sekolah dari bilik masakan ke bilik darjah dan membahagikan makanan ke dalam bekas yang dibawa sendiri oleh murid-murid. Tetapi yang menjadi perhatian saya adalah terlampau telitinya mereka: Murid yang bertugas dan guru juga, tidak pernah lupa memakai pakaian ala chef yang lengkap dengan apron, penutup kepala serta mask. Perkara pakaian khas seperti ini menjadi kewajipan semenjak kecil lagi, hingga tertanam dalam sanubari mereka. Keadaan inilah yang tidak ada di negara kita dan mungkin boleh dipelajari dalam pembinaan jiwa.

Murid-murid akan membawa bekas makanan masing-masing ke tempat pengedaran makanan dan beratur dengan tertib untuk menunggu giliran masing-masing. Setelah makanan diedarkan kepada semua murid, mereka akan duduk di tempat masing-masing menunggu untuk memulakan juadah dengan serentak, iaitu apabila dibenarkan oleh gurunya.

Makanan yang disediakan itu pula memang memenuhi keperluan untuk tumbesaran, tetapi tidak berlebihan. Contohnya ubi kentang sebagai karbohidrat, ikan sebagai protein, berserta sayur-sayuran dan susu. Mereka juga akan menjamah makanan sehingga habis. Ini suatu kemestian. Kalau tidak habis semua orang akan tunggu sehinggalah murid itu menghabiskan makanan sendiri.

Setelah selesai makan, semua orang basuh pinggan sendiri. Murid yang bertugas pula menghantar semula periuk-periuk ke tempat penyediaan makanan. Mereka juga diajar supaya patuh kepada sistem kitar semula bahan sisa. Sebagai contoh, kotak susu akan diletakkan di dalam plastik khas dan tidak boleh dibuang sesuka hati. Sisa-sisa makanan dibuang ke dalam plastik yang disediakan.

Perkara remeh seperti cara-cara membasuh tangan juga diajar dan diamalkan setiap hari sebagai latih tubi. Perkara ini mula diajar semasa umur prasekolah (tadika). Sebelum makan, selepas makan, selepas main, selepas kerja dan sebagainya, tangan mesti dibasuh. Perkara ini sudah menjadi habit. Membasuh tangan pula mesti guna sabun khas untuk tangan. Banyak iklan ditonjolkan dalam media seperti televisyen yang menyarankan kanak-kanak supaya membasuh tangan. Kadang-kadang penekanan seperti ini nampak remeh bagi kita, tetapi sangat penting bagi mereka.

Di setiap sekolah rendah diadakan padang, taman permainan dan kolam renang, di seluruh negeri Jepun. Oleh itu mereka dapat melaksanakan kehendak supaya semua rakyat Jepun tahu berenang. Perkara ini mungkin masih sukar untuk kita capai kerana pengurusan yang memerlukan belanja besar.

Namun, mereka mempunyai cara untuk membantu mengurang perbelanjaan pengurusan ini. Nampaknya, mereka kurang gemar kepada acara sambutan majlis secara besar-besaran. Contohnya, seperti hari penyampaian hadiah atau sambutan hari guru, hanya dilakukan ala kadar. Sikap seperti ini diteruskan sampai ke peringkat universiti. Memanglah kelihatan tidak ‘meriah’ langsung! Tetapi ini mungkin cara mereka untuk berjimat.

Rakyat Jepun mempunyai jiwa yang penuh disiplin dan ‘sivik’. Biar di mana saja mereka berada. Di tempat kerja atau di jalan raya. Mereka adalah bangsa yang tekun bekerja dan memiliki jiwa hendak berlumba-lumba. Ini adalah hasil ‘latih tubi’ disiplin yang diterapkan sejak zaman kanak-kanak.

Bagaimanapun, bukanlah semua perkara yang dimiliki oleh rakyat Jepun ini baik belaka. Misalnya, akibat pemodenan melampau, anak-anak muda kurang minat untuk menyambung pelajaran ke peringkat tinggi seperti universiti. Ini adalah akibat daripada kemudahan mereka untuk mendapat kerja. Setelah tamat diploma di ‘kosen’ (politeknik), mereka boleh terus bekerja dengan gaji yang lumayan. Oleh itu, mereka tidak berminat untuk menyambung pelajaran di peringkat universiti hanya dengan alasan bagi mendapat kerja yang bagus. Ini berbeza dengan sikap kita di Malaysia. Di Jepun, pelajar yang telah memiliki diploma kolej yang berminat ke universiti hanyalah untuk pengembangan akademik individu sahaja. Tiada kaitan dengan peluang kerja.

Kebanyakan tempat kerja cuma menitikberatkan merit dan kerajinan kerja untuk kenaikan pangkat. Tiada kaitan dengan sijil yang dimiliki. Dalam hal ini pemegang diploma dengan pemegang ijazah universiti tidak banyak berbeza ketika bekerja. Hanya prestasi kerja masing-masing yang diperlukan untuk kenaikan pangkat dan sudah tentunya kenaikan gaji.

Selain itu, masalah buli semakin menjadi-jadi, baik ditempat kerja mahupun di sekolah. Sungguh kerap kita baca kejadian bunuh diri angkara buli yang keterlaluan.

Demikianlah. Di sebalik ketenangan pagi yang berkabus dalam musim dingin ini, ada pula keresahan jiwa dalam segelintir rakyat Jepun. Tiap seorang mengejar cita-cita untuk menjadi yang terbaik dalam bidang yang diminatinya. Kadang-kadang ada juga yang terbabas dalam perlumbaan menjadi manusia terbaik itu.

- HAIDAR NAJIYAH IBRAHIM ialah pelajar tahun akhir Maizuru Technical College of Technology, Kyoto, Jepun.

Sumber: Utusan Malaysia

以上です。

George Bush is scary

2007-09-08T16:55:00.002+09:00

This is what has happened in White House. President Bush in a tussle with Condoleeza Rice...

以上です。

Today's locution

2007-09-08T12:04:00.001+09:00

You don't have to talk if you have nothing to talk.Otherwise, you only risk of making fool out of yourself...and others as well.

以上です。

Kerja paling lumayan di Malaysia

2007-09-07T19:48:00.001+09:00

Apakah kerja yang paling lumayan boleh didapati ni tanah air.
Do you have the answer? Nop? Well i do have mine. This job is special.You don't need any outstanding academic qualifications, or flourish working experiences.

All you need to be deemed as fit for the position is extremely good at 'extra curricular activities'.Once you are authenticated for the job, you'll be entitled for all the benefits and good reimbursement from your kind employer.Ok to cut short, please refer hereunder for your perusal:

Designation/Title: Minister
Superior: Prime Minister
Employer: Government of Malaysia
Basic Salary: approximately $13000
Allowances: Damn too many.I can't list up all..what come to my head are; elaun pengangkutan, elaun outstation,elaun ke Parlimen,elaun elektrik,elaun rumah,elaun driver,elaun minyak,elaun air,elaun orang gaji,elaun sara hidup, elaun blablablablablabal elaun elaun....
Transportation: Car will be provided by the employer.Normally will be chauffeured in Proton Perdana
Settlement: Official mansion will be provided by the employer.Normally if you are federal minister, your mansion will be in Putrajaya.
Office: You'll have your own ministry building which also located in Putrajaya.
Responsibility: Also damn too many..but it's up to you whether you cognizance of your mountainous responsibilities or just fuck with them.
Age for retirement: Not relevent
Prospect: Having huge opportunity of business networking and pursuing toward the financial freedom for eternity.

Basic requirement:
1) Join one political party
2) Run for the constituency or state election (If state election,your title will be chief minister; Menteri Besar,MB or Ketua Menteri,KM.)
3) Has excellent skills at talking or orating or talking noncence or loyar buruk or merapu or 'taichi'.(either one)
4) Good at extra curricular activities or simply known as 'melobi'
5) High degree of passion.This is important factor should you risk of becoming as a target where all the people and your foes will release their wrath upon.

Ok that's all the hints that i can render you.Should you have the iron gut, you are cordially welcome to apply for the job.Me?....Yeah i'll try for it someday perhaps..why not? It looks finger licking good...hmmm delicious !
For the record, among the successful candidates who made it through the year 2006..asta lavista baby

以上です。

Halim of UMW named top CEO

2007-09-06T19:40:00.001+09:00

UMW Holdings Bhd group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Halim Harun has emerged as the proud winner of Malaysia's CEO of the Year 2007 Award.

The 13th edition of the Malaysia CEO of the Year Award was organised by Business Times, the business section of the New Straits Times, in association with Maybank, the sole issuer and manager of the American Express charge cards.

Business Times executive editor Rajan Moses said the search for Malaysia's CEO of the Year 2007 began in March and saw the return of Bank Negara deputy governor Datuk Zamani Abdul Ghani as chairman of the panel of judges.
According to Zamani, Halim was chosen from a list of 80 nominations because of his hands-on management style and keen eye on business opportunities such as forging ahead in the oil and gas sector.

It took the panels more than eight hours to come up with this decision because the CEOs are graded on different criteria. It was to identify their talents and look at the business opportunities created by those CEOs.

The judges looked at six areas, including the CEO's skills and contributions, financial management, marketing management, operations management, development management and involvement in community, environment and nation-building activities.

Halim said that he was able to bring his team to great heights and post four record-breaking earnings because he decided that UMW had to concentrate on four core businesses - motoring, equipment, oil and gas and manufacturing.

"What initially was lacking was leadership and direction, which I was able to bring to the table. I've encouraged my team to be innovative, progressive and always think outside the normal perimeter," he said.

He added that his style of leadership was getting down to the basics and focusing on expanding the four core businesses.

"Oil and gas will be the legacy I want to leave behind for UMW after starting it in 2002. I'm proud to say that after three years, the oil and gas business has become the second largest contributor to the company's profit, right behind motoring," said Halim.

以上です。

Five-nation naval exercise begins

2007-09-04T23:18:00.001+09:00

US Navy carrier USS Nimitz is part of the exercise

The navies of the United States, Australia, India, Japan and Singapore have begun a massive naval exercise, codenamed "Malabar", in the Bay of Bengal.

Thirty-four ships and submarines from the five countries have joined the six-day exercise, about 100 nautical miles off the Andaman archipelago.

Some analysts say the war games are an attempt by these countries to contain China's growing power.

The participants deny this, but Beijing

has expressed its concerns.

"This will perhaps be the biggest ever peace-time joint naval exercise in Asia," Indian navy spokesman Captain Vinay Garg said.

The ships and submarines would take part in anti-piracy manoeuvres, reconnaissance and rescue missions and improve ways of working together, he said.

Two super-carriers of the US navy - USS Nimitz and USS Kitty Hawk of the Pacific fleet - will be joined by India's lone aircraft carrier, the INS Viraat, in the exercise.

A US nuclear submarine, USS Chicago, is also taking part.

India has denied claims that the exercise is aimed at China. "This is simply directed at ensuring security of the sea lanes of communication," Deputy Defence Minister Pallam Raju said.

The six-day exercise has been fiercely opposed by India's left-wing parties, who see it as "India's growing subservience" to the US.

Reference: BBC News, Calcutta

Besto Regardo,
Take it easy man.What's with all the fuss.It's just another kind of military exercise by the alliance.Why the heck should China feel the heat when Malaysia feel nothing.What..Singapore? Yeah what's wrong with Singapore joining the drill.They just intend to determine whether their arms and cutting edge gadgets are functioning well or schlock.I think the only reason if only there's one,is because China is not cordially invited to participate.

以上です。

Ah-Ha - Teaching English

2007-08-26T17:00:00.002+09:00

It's time for you to polish your bloody English, boy !! Haha anyway this video is extremely funny thus...here it is.

以上です。

Islam mudah, tidak menyusahkan manusia

2007-08-26T14:33:00.001+09:00

Oleh: DR. ASYRAF WAJDI DUSUKI

Islam merupakan agama yang mudah dan tidak pernah bermaksud menyusahkan manusia. Sebaliknya, kedangkalan manusia memahami Islamlah yang sering mengundang perilaku songsang segelintir umat hingga Islam tertampil bagaikan agama yang rumit dan banyak pantang larangnya.

Situasi sedemikian pastilah bertentangan dengan realiti dan tabii Islam itu sendiri sebagaimana yang dijelaskan Allah s.w.t.: Dan berjihadlah kamu pada jalan Allah dengan jihad yang sebenar-benarnya.; Dialah yang memilih kamu (untuk mengerjakan suruhan agamanya); dan Ia tidak menjadikan kamu menanggung sesuatu keberatan dan susah payah dalam perkara agama. (al-Hajj: 22).

Rasulullah s.a.w. ketika mengutuskan Muaz dan Abu Musa ke Yemen, turut bersabda: Sesungguhnya agama Islam mudah....permudahkanlah dan jangan kamu menyusahkan, sampaikan khabar gembira dan jangan membuat mereka lari. (Riwayat Bukhari dan Muslim).

Sebab itulah syariat Islam sama ada berkaitan ibadah (peraturan berhubung kait dengan hubungan antara makhluk dengan Tuhannya) mahupun muamalah (bersangkutan hubungan sesama manusia) tidak pernah meletakkan bebanan ke atas manusia di luar kemampuan dan kudratnya. Bahkan dalam ibadah umpamanya terdapat hukum yang dinamakan rukhsah yang memberi kelonggaran beribadah terutamanya apabila wujud kesukaran untuk menyempurnakannya.

Sebagai contoh, Allah mengharuskan berbuka puasa pada bulan Ramadan bagi yang bermusafir dan orang sakit. Begitu juga mengharuskan sembahyang jamak dan qasar bagi musafir, tayamum ketika ketiadaan air atau jika air mendatangkan kemudaratan dan pelbagai lagi.

Kesepakatan ulama terdahulu mengenai prinsip kemudahan dalam Islam inilah yang membentuk satu kaedah fiqah masyhur, ‘al-masyakkah tajlibu at-taisir’ yang bermaksud kepayahan membawa kepada kemudahan (Imam Al-Sayuti, Al-Ashbah Wa An-Nazoir). Berasaskan kaedah ini, para ulama menyepakati bahawa apabila seseorang berhadapan dengan situasi susah hingga menyukarkannya melaksanakan kewajipan syarak secara sempurna, maka kesusahan dan kesulitan itu menjadi sebab untuk dia mendapat kemudahan dan keringanan dengan cara dipermudahkan pelaksanaannya dan dibuangkan kesusahan yang melanda.

Berdasarkan prinsip ini jugalah, isu-isu berkaitan dengan muamalah maaliah atau urusniaga kewangan telah banyak dapat diselesaikan oleh ulama kontemporari terutamanya yang bersangkutan dengan kekangan semasa. Sebagai contoh, senario dunia pelaburan masa kini umpamannya, amat sukar untuk umat mendapatkan pelaburan yang seratus peratus bebas daripada unsur-unsur haram seperti riba.

Hakikat ini juga pernah dinyatakan Rasulullah dalam sebuah hadis: Akan tiba suatu masa pada manusia, di mana semua orang terjebak (memakan) riba. Ditanya, “Apakah semua manusia?” Jawabnya: “Yang tidak langsung makan akan juga terkena debunya. (Riwayat Ahmad, Abu Dawud dan An-Nasa‘i).

Menyedari realiti inilah, ulama kontemporari berpendapat bahawa adalah harus untuk melabur dalam syarikat yang beroperasi di dalam aktiviti perniagaan yang bercampur di antara unsur-unsur halal dan haram. Dengan syarat, aktiviti utamanya adalah halal tetapi terdapat sedikit sahaja unsur haram dalam operasinya.

Sebagai contoh, sebuah syarikat perladangan yang aktiviti utamanya memasarkan produk perladangan halal tetapi turut memperoleh pendapatan faedah daripada simpanan tetap (fixed deposit) dalam bank konvensional. Maka dalam hal ini, Majlis Penasihat Syarak Suruhanjaya Sekuriti Malaysia memutuskan bahawa seseorang itu tetap dibenarkan melabur dalam syarikat perladangan tersebut selagi mana nilai perolehannya yang berunsur riba tadi tidak melebihi 10 peratus daripada keseluruhan perolehan syarikat.

Ketetapan ini berdasarkan prinsip yang dinamakan ‘umum balwa iaitu suatu kaedah yang memaafkan sebahagian daripada unsur haram yang amat sukar dielakkan terutama dalam senario dunia perniagaan kini yang tidak boleh lari daripada elemen riba secara total. Imam As-Sayuti dalam bukunya Al-Ashbah Wa An-Nazoir turut memperincikan prinsip ‘umum balwa sebagai salah satu sebab yang membolehkan kelonggaran diberikan berpandukan kaedah syarak ‘kepayahan membawa kepada kemudahan’.

Demikianlah hebatnya Islam yang merungkai pelbagai permasalahan dan kekangan yang dihadapi umat dalam melaksanakan tanggungjawabnya sebagai khalifah Allah di muka bumi. Sebarang kesulitan dan kepayahan yang dihadapi tidak wajar dijadikan alasan untuk curang terhadap Allah sehingga melanggar segala batasan syariat.

Apa yang paling mustahak dalam mengaplikasikan instrumen syarak yang cukup luas ini, aspek warak atau takutkan Allah harus mendominasi pemikiran dan sikap kita dalam bermuamalah. Sikap warak inilah yang akan membentengi umat daripada sebarang bentuk penyimpangan, pelampauan mahupun keterlanjuran hingga mungkin terjerumus ke dalam kancah menghalalkan yang haram dan mengharamkan yang halal. Waiyazubillah.

以上です。

Top Gear on Korean & Malaysian Car

2007-08-24T22:24:00.002+09:00

Enjoy the clip mate !!

PART I

PART II

Besto Regardo,
I really love watching Top Gear.Jeremy Clarkson and his buddies render something about car from different perspective...and good entertainment as well.Hahahaha LMAOL!Cheers all...

以上です。

I smell something fishy....Is it a sign ?

2007-08-23T19:06:00.001+09:00

Aku tidaklah begitu arif tentang perihal dunia politikus tetapi aku tidak juga begitu bodoh untuk tidak mengambil tahu langsung mengenai perkembangan semasa di tanah air.

Sejak kebelakangan ini, tidak dapat tidak untuk aku mengakui akan hakikat terdapat kecenderongan di kalangan pengamal media massa di tanah air untuk berlumba-lumba menyiarkan liputan berita yang berkisarkan sentimen perkauman.

Bukanlah tidak wajar langsung bagi mereka untuk menghidangkan berita yang menyentuh isu perkauman tetapi agak ironi kerana sebelum ini, berita yang seumpamanya bagaikan sesuatu yang taboo untuk diperkatakan secara terbuka apatah lagi dengan pantang larang yang ditetapkan oleh pihak-pihak tertentu.Kononnya atas dasar memelihara perpaduan kaum.Adalah tidak wajar juga bagi kita untuk menafikan hak kewartawanan di kalangan pengamal media namun apa yang berkocak di peta minda, meruntun persoalan di naluri hati aku ialah,"Kenapa secara tiba-tiba,sejak baru akhir-akhir ini sahaja khalayak dihidangkan dengan berita yang berkait sentimen perkauman".Adakah udang di sebalik ketam atau ini merupakan percaturan pihak tertentu untuk memastikan kepentingan mereka terjamin.Aku dapat menghidu sesuatu yang tidak kena...i can smell something fishy behind...Fikir-fikirkanlah.

Pada mulanya, kita dikejutkan dengan pendedahan tentang video lagu Negarakuku yang didendangkan oleh Meng Chee, pelajar Malaysia yang berasal dari Muar dan kini menuntut di Universiti Taiwan.Aku berkesempatan menatap video muzik tersebut di Youtube dan seharusnya aku perlu bersikap jujur dangan mengatakan bahawa aku agak terpesona dangan nyanyian Meng Chee.Sedap..sememangnya sedap suara dan irama rap yang didendangkannya...lebih slurrppp dari duta Maggi tanah air.Tetapi bakatnya yang hebat itu mengundang kontroversi dan celaan dari kalangan disebabkan beberapa rantaian lirik yang tidak enak didengar.Aku berpendapat, agak kurang matang bagi Meng Chee untuk mempersoalkan tentang beberapa isu berkaitan agama tetapi adalah lebih tidak matang pemikiran sesetengah pihak yang kononnya terbakar jiwa mereka dek penangan Meng Chee itu sehinggakan mendesak agar hak kewarganegaraan Meng Chee dilucutkan dangan seta merta meskipun yang telah membuat salah sudah mengakui akan kesalahannya dan meminta maaf.Aku juga sedikit kaget kerana isu yang sebegini tetap kencang dikipas dan disajikan setiap hari bagaikan ianya merupakan suatu bencana besar yang melanda negara dan lebih mengancam berbanding isu-isu 'panas' lain yang seharusnya lebih diberi perhatian yang sewajarnya dalam pembentukan sebuah negara yang 'cemerlang, terbilang, gemilang dan...'

Belum pun habis isu Negarakuku, menyusur pula berita 'panas' tentang HINDRAF (Hindu Rights Action Force) yang bersuara menyatakan bahawa nasib kaum India di tanah air tidak diberi perhatian dan pembelaan yang sewajarnya.Kemudian timbul pula pelbagai berita-berita panas lain seperti tuntutan pihak pemuda parti politik MCA agar projek-projek dan tender kerajaan di buat secara terbuka,penghapusan Dasar Ekonomi Baru, kes "Penternak babi di Alor Gajah diberi kata dua" oleh KM Melaka,isu sebuah akhbar berbahasa Tamil, Makkal Osai yang menyiarkan gambar Jesus sedang memegang sebatang rokok dan satu tin bir pada muka surat depan,dan pelbagai lagi isu yang berkaitan tuntutan dan permintaan sesuatu kaum ke atas hak mereka terutamanya dalam aspek pendidikan dan ekonomi serta celaan sosial.
Who messed up and ignited the bloody mayhem in the historical fold of the country.What was behind the mostly traumatized event.I bet you not a single Malaysian has a gut to scrutinize and divulge the facts or whatsoever pertaining 13th May 1969.Kua Kia Soong ? He is not Malaysian!.The professor is Singaporean, just in case he was unknown to you.Do you think today's Malaysian youngsters have any idea about 13th May ? I doubt that and i think most of them don't wanna give a shite about it.

Mengapa isu-isu sebegini datang menyerang secara tiba-tiba bertubi-tubi bak tsunami melanda negara pesisir Lautan Hindi suatu ketika dahulu? Adakah ini merupakan suatu petanda bahawa ikatan permuafakatan antara kaum di Malaysia masih ampuh meskipun negara bakal meraikan hari kemerdekaan jubli emasnya tidak berapa lama lagi atau adakah ini semua hanya sandiwara pihak tertentu yang sememangnya akan menggunakan taktik yang sama acapkali menjelang pilihanraya umum.Ini bukanlah kali pertama,bahkan ia seolah suatu kelaziman apabila menjelang pilihanraya umum, gendang perkauman akan dipalu sekuat dan sekerap yang mungkin.Khalayak khususnya orang Melayu akan ditakutkan seolah hak-hak dan kehidupan mereka akan terancam dengan berita-berita dan tuntutan yang agak agresif oleh kumpulan-kumpulan yang mewakili kaum tertentu.Rakyat digertak dengan api perkauman yang sememangnya suatu yang sensitif untuk dipersoalkan secara terbuka dan membuta tuli.Sigh...I hope there is no hidden agenda behind all these exposure.

Namun apa yang pasti, kita mengharapkan tanah air ibu pertiwi akan sentiasa dirahmati oleh kuasa hakiki yang Maha Esa.Kita mengharapkan kemakmuran,keadilan,permuafakatan ,kemajuan dan keutuhan jatidiri maruah rakyat akan termakbul di bumi bertuah,Malaysia.

以上です。

Fahami 5 mitos, salah tanggapan pasaran saham

2007-08-23T18:50:00.001+09:00

# Pasaran saham ialah kasino!
Tidak, pasaran saham BUKAN kasino. Melabur dalam saham pada dasarnya berbeza daripada berjudi. Membeli saham atau stok mewakili pemilikan dalam sesuatu syarikat dan memberikan hak kepada pembeli menuntut hak terhadap aset syarikat dan berkongsi keuntungan syarikat.
Selalunya, pelabur berfikir bahawa membeli saham adalah cara untuk mencuba nasib dan mendapat keuntungan dengan cepat. Tanggapan ini salah.

# Hanya untuk orang kaya
Tanggapan ini tidak tepat kerana sesiapa saja yang mempunyai pengetahuan pelaburan yang baik dan sedikit wang simpanan boleh melabur dalam pasaran saham.
Pelabur berjaya bukan mereka yang kaya, tetapi mereka yang menggunakan maklumat dengan berkesan dan mendapatkan bantuan daripada golongan profesional berlesen untuk membuat keputusan berdasarkan maklumat.

# Masa paling baik untuk melabur ialah ketika pasaran ‘bull’
Ketika pasaran ‘bull’ atau ketika pasaran sedang naik dan aktif, bukanlah satu-satunya masa paling baik untuk melabur.
Berbekalkan maklumat yang baik dan pemilihan saham yang teliti, pelabur boleh membuat keputusan pelaburan yang baik pada bila-bila masa saja, sama ada ketika pasaran ‘bull’ atau bear (apabila pasaran jatuh dan tidak aktif).

# Mustahil melabur tanpa ‘maklumat panas’
Walaupun tanpa ‘maklumat panas’ (hot tips), pelabur masih boleh membuat keputusan pelaburan yang baik jika mereka melakukan penyelidikan sendiri.
Pelabur mesti memahami dengan jelas mengenai pelaburan mereka dan tidak bergantung hanya kepada maklumat panas.
Sekiranya pelabur tidak mempunyai pengetahuan atau mempunyai hanya sedikit pengetahuan mengenai pelaburan, lebih baik jika mendapatkan khidmat nasihat penasihat pelabur. Pastikan mereka mempunyai lesen yang sah.

# Beli saham harga murah ketika pasaran ‘bullish’
Membeli saham harga murah ketika pasaran ‘bullish’ (bullish market) dengan harapan harganya akan naik ketika pasaran sedang ‘bullish’ bukan satu strategi pelaburan yang berkesan. Strategi lebih baik ialah membeli saham syarikat yang mempunyai asas yang baik pada harga berpatutan.
Ini kerana harga adalah hanya satu bahagian daripada pelaburan saham.

Jangan keliru dengan konsep pelaburan nilai (value investing). Ini bukan bermakna membeli saham apa saja syarikat yang harga pasarannya sedang menjunam, seperti kata pepatah lama Wall Street, “Those who try to catch a falling knife will only get hurt”. Pelaburan nilai ialah membeli saham syarikat berkualiti tinggi yang dinilai rendah oleh pasaran.

Sumber: Perbadanan Pembangunan Industri Sekuriti(SIDC)　sidc@sidc.com.my atau layari laman web Pelabur Malaysia di www.min.com.my.

以上です。

Endurance Test in Nara...yeah why not ?

2007-08-16T22:18:00.001+09:00

A great journey starts with the first step.Yup that's what people say.Well, in my case, it turns out to be "A great journey starts with a couple of SMS".

A good buddy of mine, Imai Taro (Well he has nothing to do with Ultraman Taro though)would never cease of asking me to join him for any occasion that sparked in his brain. Last Tuesday, he sent me the first SMS as invitation to join him cycling up to the 931 meters Mount Rokko. I'd really love to give a nod for any outdoor stuff kinda of but the fact is, it was too bloody hot out side nowadays.Gosh natsu in Japan is hell hot.

Anyway eventually we did ascending Mt. Rokko but with our arse sitting in his Wagon R.We sealed mutual concession that instead of bringing along my mama charinko, i should take book or something readable. So i decided to get with me the book that i am in the midst of - "人を育てるトヨタの口ぐせ" or in English simply translated as "Toyota Jargon".I bet you, this book is one damn fantastic bible for anyone to grasp about Toyota Management style and easy to comprehend since the Japanese language applied are not that complicated.Good for gaijin !

When we arrived at one spot on the mountain, it felt rather chilly.We were lucky since it was a clear day thus big part of Kansai region- covering Osaka metropolis,Kansai Intl Airport until the city of Kobe, was visible.There were crowd of people and tourist which attracted much of our attention.Haha 美人をさがせ～。

After enjoying the beautiful scenery,we landed at one cafe shop.Apart of having cafe latte and cappucino, much of our time spent on reading and chatting.On that occasion, Imai asked me about my plan for summer holiday."Well nothing particular dude".I replied."Hey is there any place you wanna go in Japan".Followed Imai. He suggested Shikoku, Wakayama, Gifu, Takayama to me.I didn't really mind much so i left to him to decide and the day after....we shot to Gojyo-shi.Without proper planning, i hope to find something extraordinary at Gojyo.We arrived at Gojyo eki at around 4 pm and the journey was damn hot and exhausting.Imai dictated that we go to the MontBell youth hostel-our temporary ghetto, on foot.God...can't you see it's bloody burning! Anyway walking we did...for about 3km under the heating sun.
Montbell at Gojyo Youth Hostel.I'll put other pictures next time if, Imai generously handed me some of his collections
We spent only a night at the hostel.I must say the hostel was quite nice and valued for the money we paid..3900 yen each per night.There, it was the first experience for me getting into the public bath and ofuro.いっすね。。全裸で～。On the first night, we spent most of our time on reading.それぞれの本に夢中。。興味しんしんだったな。でもさ、良い事のは俺らの部屋の隣にめっちゃいいカップルがいた。彼女はすげい美人でセクシ～。うわあああ鼻血でちゃうよ。

Next day we got up quite early at about 8 am.After having breakfast,we packed our stuff and checked out at 10 am yet we decided to spend some extra time there...still.Nevertheless, Imai and i had nothing to do..so to kill the time, each of us took out the book and slowly....until at one point,we decided to stop reading and do something else.

Actually MontBell is a very well known brand for the outdoor activity.Therefore there were numerous kind of activities provided for visitor to join, experience and challenge.They have rafting, canoeing, or kayaking in Yoshino river, mountain biking, cycling, trekking and so on.Due to cost constraint, we decided to take the cheapest option - cycling, that cost us 400 yen each.Upon received the bicycle, we travelled as far as we could along the Yoshino river.I must say it was a very memorable experience and i did enjoy the beautiful scenery of the unspoilt nature.It was awesome and truly remarkable view.The only slack was the heating sun.It was vehemently hot and we did really test our endurance in the adventurous trip.

We departed form Gojyo for Osaka at around 3:30 pm.The train we boarded didn't even have air cooler but ceiling fan instead.Gossh..unbelievable in the state of Sakura.But that's what we experienced.

Thank god that we made our way safely and i'm really looking forward for another voyage..next plan; perhaps to have a bite of sanuki udon at shikoku, and autumn at Kamikochi in Shinshu. Honma iiideee~
以上です。

A most peculiar language

2007-08-14T15:24:00.001+09:00

OVER A CUPPA WITH HOO BAN KHEE

ENGLISH is the most global language of all; it is used not only by the people of the former British Empire, but also by international organisations.

It is not the easiest language to master. Its spelling system is sometimes idiotic and its pronunciation, illogical. But, admittedly, it is one of the most well-developed languages in the world. Because it is so widespread, the language tends to take on a life of its own, with peculiar variations, once it has taken root in a particular nation or region that is not its country of origin.

Of course, the standard for good English is still BBC English, but that is rarely spoken today, even in London, except among upper-class people.

Elsewhere, native English rules. There is American English, which is slightly different from Australian English which, in turn, is quite different from Indian English. And none of them resembles BBC English or the Queen’s English. But the variations can be charming, even endearing, to those who speak and understand the lingo in question.

Malaysia, too, has her own variation, which we all know as Manglish. To master Manglish, you have to speak like a rapidly-firing rifle and spice up your sentences with lahs, mehs and lohs.

Not all English-speaking people can understand our brand of English. But give them time and they might just be charmed by it.

In Singapore, Singlish – as spoken by Phua Chu Kang – prevails despite Lee Kuan Yew’s tremendous efforts to promote standard English.

The Japanese, Koreans, Taiwanese and mainland Chinese tend to imitate American English, which does not go down well with South-East Asians, who speak mostly with a British accent. The feeling is mutual. While they find our English awkward, we find theirs jarring to the ear.

Frankly, Manglish is unique. Some of the common expressions we use daily are baffling to those not quite used to our style. There are instances when we are guilty of “murdering” or abusing the English language because we fail to grasp the correct meaning of certain words.

I remember a brief conversation with an old Englishwoman while I was waiting for a bus, during my short stint in London years ago. She asked me where I was going. I told her I was going “marketing” and showed her the shopping basket I was carrying.

“Oh, you mean you are going shopping,” she corrected me politely. Marketing, she added, would mean promoting and selling goods in the market.

I thanked her but deep down in my heart, I said to myself: “Hey, back home, we all go marketing every day. Anything wrong, meh?”

My other linguistic encounter was in the Lake District, England, where I once took my family for a holiday. There are beautiful lakes and picturesque hills, with quaint little hamlets and charming farmhouses, some of which have been turned into B&B-style accommodation for tourists.

We went up the meandering mountain road to soak in the panoramic views and inhale the crisp mountain air.

Later, we met a group of elderly tourists, with whom we engaged in small talk. I expressed how much we had enjoyed the refreshing view. “We even went mountain climbing!” I said excitedly.

“Oh, that’s mountain-walking. You don’t do mountain-climbing here,” one of them said pleasantly. I was rather baffled.

I later learned the difference between mountain-climbing and mountain-walking.

Malaysians are in the habit of ending a sentence with lah, mah, man, one and loh. These are local expressions assimilated into English, which give it a local flavour. The use of the words is so ingrained in us that even when we are on business trips overseas, we spill the words out spontaneously. We presume that everybody will understand what we are saying.

Not quite. Try it and if you find your listeners knitting their brows in intense concentration, trying to understand what you are trying to say, it’s time to step on the brakes.

First, slow down. Most of us speak too fast and pay little attention to pronunciation. Second, try to economise on the use of typical Malaysian words such as lah, loh and meh for the sake of the untrained ear.

However, when you are in a foreign land and feel a little homesick, it is exciting to hear Manglish. It evokes a feeling of brotherhood. You want to get closer to the people speaking it and find out more about them. Are they students, tourists or Malaysian expatriates? Hey, what are you doing here? Where is your kampung, man?

Languages evolve. We don’t write and speak the way we used to decades ago.

Along the way, we have dropped many words which we found to be unfashionable or incongruous to our present-day lifestyle. And we have coined or borrowed words that are more in tune with the times.

The language used for smses is an excellent example of this even though purists must be hopping mad with the way we corrupt the language. But then languages are living entities; they grow. We adapt and borrow words from other languages. New words are coined every day while old ones, which do not fit in, just die a natural death.

So there’s nothing wrong with our lah, loh and meh. We are just being creative. We are waiting for the day when such words are included in the Oxford Dictionary, alongside words like “amok” and “kowtow”.

Only then can we say that English is a truly global language.

以上です。

10 panduan untuk melabur di pasaran saham

2007-08-14T12:52:00.001+09:00

ANDA ingin melabur di pasaran saham tetapi tidak tahu caranya? Di sini diberikan panduan ringkas.

Langkah 1:
Lakukan ‘ujian kewangan kendiri. Analisis objektif kewangan, kekangan (halangan) dan ketahanan terhadap risiko. Tanya diri sendiri sama ada anda sudah bersedia dari segi kewangan untuk melabur di pasaran saham? Jangan sekali-kali meminjam untuk melabur di pasaran saham kerana sentiasa turun naik, anda boleh kehilangan wang yang dipinjam.

Langkah 2:
Syarikat broker saham anda dan wakil peniaganya (remisier) mesti dilesenkan Suruhanjaya Sekuriti (SC). Untuk semakan, layari lawan web SC di www.sc.com.my atau hubungi 03-6204 8000 (Jabatan Pelesenan).

Langkah 3:
Bagi membolehkan anda melabur di pasaran saham, anda perlu membuka akaun CDS (Sistem Depositori Pusat) dan akaun dagangan di syarikat broker saham anda. Akaun ini adalah untuk kegunaan eksklusif anda. Jangan benarkan sesiapa, termasuk wakil peniaga anda menggunakannya untuk urus niaga mereka sendiri.

Langkah 4:
Ketahui produk yang diurusniagakan di Bursa Malaysia. Buat penyelidikan dan dapatkan maklumat secukupnya dari segi ganjaran dan risiko serta cara melabur dalam produk terbabit daripada wakil peniaga anda. Anda boleh melawat laman web Bursa Malaysia di www.bursamalaysia.com atau laman web Pelabur Malaysia di www.min.com.my untuk mengetahui lebih lanjut mengenai produk pelaburan yang ditawarkan.

Langkah 5:
Pelajari prosedur urus niaga. Gagal memahami sepenuhnya mengenai prosedur urus niaga boleh mengakibatkan kerugian yang disebabkan kesilapan teknik. Minta wakil anda menjelaskan kepada anda.

Langkah 6:
Ketahui mengenai syarikat yang ingin anda melabur. Sebelum melabur, buat penyelidikan terhadap syarikat yang anda bercadang untuk membeli sahamnya. Kenali syarikat itu dengan membaca prospektus, laporan tahunan dan artikel dalam akhbar. Keputusan pelaburan anda mestilah berdasarkan maklumat. Elakkan khabar angin (tips).

Langkah 7:
Berikan arahan yang jelas. Arahan anda kepada wakil peniaga mestilah jelas. ‘Fifteen’ (15) lot dan Fifty” (50) lot bunyinya mungkin sama di telefon. Berhati-hati kerana di pasaran saham, komunikasi yang tidak betul boleh menyebabkan anda mengalami kerugian yang banyak.

Langkah 8:
Semak nota kontrak anda. Selepas anda berurus niaga, semak dengan teliti setiap nota kontrak sebaik saja anda menerimanya. Jika terdapat sebarang kesilapan, hubungi syarikat broker saham anda dengan segera untuk membuat pembetulan.

Langkah 9:
Pantau pelaburan anda. Jangan biarkan pelaburan anda tanpa dipantau. Perkara yang anda tidak ambil peduli itu mungkin nanti boleh menyusahkan anda.

Langkah 10:
Penuhi tanggungjawab dan laksanakan hak anda! Sebagai pelabur, anda mempunyai tanggungjawab untuk dipenuhi dan hak untuk dilaksanakan. Tanggungjawab yang dimaksudkan ialah sebagai pemegang saham sesebuah syarikat. Jangan mengabaikannya. Pelajari lebih lanjut mengenai tanggungjawab dan hak anda dengan melayari laman web Pelabur Malaysia secara percuma di www.min.com.my.

Jika pembaca mempunyai sebarang persoalan mengenai pelaburan (saham atau amanah saham), sila ajukan ke sidc@sidc.com.my atau layari laman web Pelabur Malaysia di www.min.com.my.

SIDC sebelum ini adalah cabang latihan dan pembangunan Suruhanjaya Sekuriti Malaysia yang dikenali sebagai Pusat Perkembangan Industri Sekuriti.

Sumber daripada: Berita Harian

Besto Regardo,
To me the best and fastest way to learn is to get a good mentor who has proven track record in the said field.

以上です。

The Light of Knight's Mind

Tribute to My Grandpa: Dato` Jaafar Hassan

CEO award - more than just high recognition

Key components of effective strategic management

Know buying trends to stay ahead

Financial stature is best measure of a company

CEO credits mum for business acumen

Excellence at the top

Fortunes of 40 richest Malaysians decline

10 (More) Reasons You're Not Rich

新曲★I AM YOUR SINGER サザンオールスターズ

Islam Dilemma in Malaysia.

A passion for fast cars

Words from the richest investor in the world

Yippiiee..i'm going back home. Malaysia here i come

Why Warren Buffett chose Coca-Cola

Kesan minda gajah sarkas

World's first billionaire sportsman

Petronas syarikat ke-8 paling untung di dunia

Gaji seorang CEO automotif

Minyak, Petrol, Gasolin...

What is Islam?

Barack Obama at Wesleyan Commencement Ceremony

そばにいるね（ステレオサウンド）青山テルマ

Hadis: Wanita yang terbaik

Kenali Taikun Automotif

Mengatur Langkah

Anwar Ibrahim in 'Time' magazine's 100 most influential people in the world

Perodua breaks with tradition

My Sacrifice by Creed : Tribute to Anwar Ibrahim

Thanks Mom...お母さん、ありがとう。。。

Let's get works done

Gates no longer the richest, toppled by Buffett

Lessons from Warren Buffett’s guru

10 signs you love someone...

Four Malaysians in Forbes’ philanthropists list

お花屋さん～ 'Bara no nai hanaya' Fever

Rezeki dan peluang.

Ajal jodoh di tangan tuhan ?

China dumplings made havoc in Japan

Pasangan kerap bertengkar panjang umur

Rebut hartanah di bandar

Malapetaka ekonomi kerana riba

The Resurgence of Proton Saga

Businessman has the most expensive car in S’pore

Bersama Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhary

悲しい色やね （大阪 Bay Blues。。）

故郷に帰るで。。Balik kampung yo !

Saudi king pardons woman who was raped by 7 men

ASB: Agihan pendapatan 8 sen

Macam-macam: Lelaki pandu bahaya elak nyanyuk

Bill Gates: The skills you need to succeed

Festival of Rights 2007

The tiger is black, back again.

Malaysia's Most Valuable Brands (MMVB)

Dizzy lazy bloody sleepy

The 90/10 Principle

Hey Hey You You !!!

Amazing Robot Dance

Genting founder dies

Nilai baik warga Tokyo wajar dijadikan teladan

RM1.111 trillion aset jutawan Singapura

‘Superman’ misses teh tarik and roti canai

The Richest Banker in Malaysia

Iklan Raya Petronas 2007

秋が来た、そして三連休だ！！

There must be a better way to alleviate poverty

It's autumn...

Yasuo Fukuda is the new Japan Premier

American Ramadan

Malaysians grieve in this holy month

Selamat Berpuasa and Happy Ramadhan Al Mubarak

Embattled Japan Premier Resigned

Cara Jepun bina modal insan

George Bush is scary

Today's locution

Kerja paling lumayan di Malaysia

Halim of UMW named top CEO

Five-nation naval exercise begins

Ah-Ha - Teaching English

新曲★I AM YOUR SINGER　サザンオールスターズ

悲しい色やね　（大阪 Bay Blues。。）