Green Earth program at Putrajaya (29th Jun 08)

Kulai Chilli

Some initiatives by the people at Precinct 16 Community took; planting vege in their home gardens. Small impact maybe, but 10 points for effort.

Curbing the oil price

US congress has recently approved bills to help combat speculation at Wall St that could drive crude price further up. Although the US is producing some 8 million barrels per day, it's consumption far surpassed the consumption of Asian countries put together (minus China of course), 3 times it's production rate. Although the production is huge and national oil company is non-existent, US citizens have never in their history demanded subsidy form the government for petrol purchase (or "gas" as the Americans call it from the word gasoline).

On a different note, Saudi has pledged to increase production to help lower the price; the $140-question is whether it could affect the price. The creation of US strategic petroleum reserve during the oil embargo decades ago proved that no one could stand a chance except for OPEC in influencing oil price (perhaps the stockpiling of some 1B bbls of crude in US and Japan needs to be also challenged). Perhaps the liberation of Iraqi oil and withdrawal of troops could calm the current hysteric market but then again, who knows what will happen. Chief Executives of some majors have officially and unofficially declared that the oil price should be in the region of USD70-90 per bbl. Whatever the reasons for this high oil price are, we are probably stuck with it for at least the next 6-18 months (that's me guessing of course and I'm no economist or analyst).

Chatting with some friends over teh ais yesterday, most were adamant that Petronas should be 'more transparent' in their accounts and that the subsidy reduction should have been implemented in stages. This is consistent with feedbacks from office folks, cabbies, the guy sitting next to me on the plane, neighbors, etc. Most do not agree with the subsidy reduction. Pity Petronas staff who have to put up with answering lots and lots of questions. Their bonus this year would also be affected, seeing how the opposition is trying to make everything an issue. Cabbies also disagree with subsidizing buses as they feel they service the city folks more efficiently than buses, therefore they are entitled to subsidies.

Malaysians being Malaysians, the old sensible plan of attack is to demonstrate. We've had demostrations led by PAS earlier and recently by Geramm (what a name). We'll have another giant demonstration next month which some have claimed to be a-million strong supporters. Some quarters claimed that they would increase the subsidies again if in power and have a magic formula to cure this mild recession. These are the same guys advocating international monetary entities to 'bail Malaysia out' from the Asian economic crisis. Imagine the Ringgit depreciated like the Rupiah - we'd all be millionaires!

25 Ahli UMNO Tamat Tempoh Hukuman

KUALA LUMPUR - Majlis Tertinggi (MT) UMNO hari ini memaklumkan seramai 25 ahli UMNO termasuk Tan Sri Mohd. Isa Samad tamat tempoh hukuman digantung keahlian akibat daripada kesalahan yang dilakukan dalam pemilihan parti pada penggal yang lalu.

Berikut ialah senarai pembebasan tamat tempoh hukuman gantung keahlian:

1. YBhg. Tan Sri Isa Abdul Samad (MT/ Ketua Bahagian) - Bahagian Teluk Kemang / Bagan Pinang
2. Haji Mohd Salim Bin Sharif @ Mohd. Sharif (Ketua Pemuda Bahagian) – Bahagian Jempol / Bahau Pekan
3. Jamaludin Bin Ropa (Timbalan Ketua Bahagian) – Bahagian Pandan / Industri Park
4. Zubir Bin Jamal (Jawatankuasa) – Bahagian Telok Kemang / Kundur Hulu
5. YBhg. Dato Amil Bin Yahya (Ketua Bahagian) – Bandar Tun Razak / Sri Labuan
6. Abdullah Zawawi Bin Che Omar (Ahli Biasa) – Kuala Krai / Temiang
7. Ahmad Shahreazal Bin Abdul Rashid (Naib Ketua Pemuda Cawangan) – Jelutong / Taman Nusantara
8. Abina Binti Saad (Perwakilan Cawangan) – Silam / Kg. Membatu (III) Tungku
9. Maeyah Binti Majid (Perwakilan Cawangan) – Silam / Taman Aman 3
10. Eddy Bin Wedley (Tim. Ketua Cawangan) – Kg. Kokos Batu 6 / Jalan Segama
11. Shim Bin Dougal (Perwakilan Cawangan) – Kg. Kokos Batu 6 / Jalan Segama
12. Asgali Bin Selamat (Setiausaha Cawangan) – Batu Sapi / Kg. Sungai Jipun
13. A.S. Nizam Bin Haji Surib (Tim. Ketua Cawangan) – Sepang / Kg. Datuk Abu Bakar Baginda
14. Tn. Haji Mokhtar Bin Mat Salleh (AJK Bahagian) – Rompin / Medan Mewah
15. Tn. Haji Jalaludin Bin Kassim (Ahli Biasa) – Muar / Parit Tunggal
16. Hamsani Bin Abdul Rahman (AJK Bahagian) – Machang / Kg. En. Endut
17. Rusli Bin Baba (AJK Bahagian) – Lembah Pantai / Bukit Persekutuan
18. YBhg. Dato Hj Azman Shah Hj Omar (Bekas Tim. Ketua Bahagian) – Jelutong / Kampung Nyak Putih
19. Abdul Karim Tahir (Kota Bharu) – Kota Bharu / Bunut Payong Hulu
20. Mohd Nawi Mamat (Ahli Jwatankuasa Bahagian) – Kota Bharu / Pohon Jati Bunut Payong
21. YBhg. Dato Kadar Shah Bin Tun Sulaiman (Ahli Biasa) – Muar / Bandara
22. Ramlan Bin Haji Askolani - Lembah Pantai / Kg. Petaling Baru
23. Daud Bin Mohamad – Lembah Pantai / Kg. Bukit Putra
24. YB Dato Ir. Onn Bin Hamzah (Ketua Bahagian) – Teluk Intan / Teksi Roda Tiga
25. YBhg. Dato Shahrir Abdul Jalil (Ketua Bahagian) – Lembah Pantai / Kampong Pasir Baru

Who's doing what, who's saying what

• "I hope this little book will be of some use to students, diplomats, politicians and researchers on Malaysian diplomacy and international relations, as well as on the thinking behind my policies and actions. You may not agree with everything that I did, but I did what I thought was right for the nation. Whether I was a good or a bad Prime Minister is, of course, not for me to say. When I am dead and gone, the judgement would be more accurate. Since I will not be around then, it would be quite meaningless to me. My children and friends would be the ones to savour the truth or bear the pain of whatever I am condemned for" TDM in "Dr M's selected letters to world leaders".
  
• "Saya akan buat ketetapan apabila sampai masanya, ada masa lagi." DSNR
• “This is an opportunity to inform the people of the many misleading and irresponsible statements being made against government decisions. I am ready for the debate,” Shabery on fuel duel with DSAI.

• Proton keluar kereta NGV Oktober
  

• "BNBBC boleh hukum saya", DS Nazri Aziz on dubbing the members of the club as "kebudak-budakan dan dari kelab samseng".
• "There won't be a day in my life that I'm not thinking about Microsoft and the great things that it's doing and wanting to help," Bill Gates on leaving Microsoft.

KJ John's article in Malaysiakini

Attempts to highlight this issue in public will render the move useless. The public will now question how much funds does this require and why such funds has been allocated to one school. Of all the publications chosen, he had chosen Malaysiakini. The article not only condemned the move, but indirectly blamed the former Finance Minister for accelerated growth in this country. What's your point KJ John?

The unholy trinity

KJ John | May 20, 08 12:43pm

In developed nations, whether in the East of West, old structures and institutions are honored and respected, not destroyed. In such "developed and mature thinking," which we sometimes call ‘civilized,’ all institutions which have survived more than 100 years are "classified as historic institutions. " Such institutions are part and parcel of the heritage of a nation.

Therefore, in the process of growing this status, as heritage institutions, it is critical that they are protected and preserved from predators. They then gain the status of "treasures or heirloom of the nation." The preservation agenda must be executed especially in the first 50 years of its life. Such a preservation and containment of heritage institutions is a civilized value or attitude.

In Malaysia though, in spite of 50 years as a nation, based on our accelerated model of physical development trying to achieve the biggest, the tallest and the fastest etc., there is the real and present danger that pride and greed have mostly driven the infrastructure development philosophy of this nation. To my mind, such a philosophy of development began with "the second tour of our former minister of finance," and after the birth of the Umno baru.

Under his and his mentor’s "tutelage" many public sector icons and institutions were earmarked for "physical redevelopment. " These included the Bukit Bintang Girls School (BBGS), the Stadium Merdeka, Stadium Negara etc etc, to name a few. No institution or building was too sacrosanct; in the name of such "redevelopment. " The definition of such "re-development" meant mainly what I call the "bigger and better syndrome." Greed and self-interest drove the development agenda. If it is bigger, it must be better. The quality of the content was always secondary in such thinking. This is what Pak Lah has since described as third world mentality?

Last weekend I heard the worst possible potential application of such an abuse of power paradigm thinking. I heard an unconfirmed rumour that the Royal Military College in Sungai Besi is up for grabs by such greedy perpetrators. Since the early 90s there has always been an incessant rumour that "the RMC which is situated very close to the prestigious Country Heights has been eyed by many ‘developers." This is true of most institutions with land to spare in choice locations. In fact, at one stage the rumour was so serious that an informal group of well placed and equally powerful Old Puteras (or OPs) even met with one or two Tan Sris and told them to "lay off the RMC." Fortunately, reason and logic prevailed then and there was full realisation that this was a constituency of influence one should never take lightly. That particular hostile takeover bid was effectively dead.

Unholy trinity

Since then, the Old Putera Association or the OPA, the alumni of the RMC has taken it as their public mandate to defend the RMC in its original and own location (after their first and only move from Port Dickson). While there were moves to redraw the boundaries of the college, the OPs took various and multi-faceted forms of action to retain and sustain their interests and those of their alma mater. The OPA, the organisation of RMC Alumni, is therefore morally obliged to defend and protect the RMC and all its inherent goals and ambitions, as originally conceived by the two co-founders: Tun Sir Gerald Templer and Tun Abdul Razak, our former prime minister. RMC "Old Puteras" are in fact all military-quality trained "to attack and destroy all who try to lay their hands or even pretend a hostile takeover." Nothing could be worse than trying to steal the goose that lays their golden eggs; even if the College is today only a shadow of the older brilliance.

In fact, as a show of their continued relevance and significance in the national development, and "redevelopment" of the nation, 50 RMC OPs marched on our 50th Day National Day Parade on 31 st August 2007. The squad of OPs was led by none other the OP Radzi Sheikh Ahmad as our Parade Commander. He as then a cabinet minister and ours was given the privilege by Cabinet to be the first squad on that historic parade. My column even highlighted why the RMC boys marched for the nation.

Much of the physical development and "redevelopment agenda" in Malaysia has gone very awry. Such infrastructure developers are today consumed with greed and cannot afford to see simple and plain green patches anywhere in the country. This materialistic model of development is destroying the beauty of our nation. These developers have no real pride in the nation. All they are interested is in making some quick money from physical development and then enjoying the profits from such unscrupulous deals.

Such perpetrators are what I have called as those consumed with the I-Me-Myself worldview. They believe in the unholy trinity of themselves and their self-interest, not in the holy one. Often, through high-powered connections, they identify and corner the site to be high-jacked. Then they conceive a plan to "massage the process of back-door takeover of the property; whether by fair or foul means." Often, such back-door deals include the collusion of government officials who "create the right opportunities for such theft." These could include losing of original documents, and working with falsified copies. And, when you have an equally crooked judicial system, sometimes, even fake documents can be accepted in place of originals. Such is the death of common sense and the rise of thievery in Malaysia!

Transparency needed

All such greed should have no more place in post-March 8th Malaysia. The new Malaysia needs openness, transparency and accountability wherein any and every public decision is truly made in the open public sphere and cannot become the secret storyline of a back-door plot. I therefore call on all Old Puteras to exercise their intelligence and information (and mis-information) gathering capabilities and let us declare war on these perpetrators of this potential crime of immorality.

Let us show all of them; whether big or small; whoever they are that OPs are not to be fooled around with; and that the two founders of the FMC/RMC will turn in their graves if this plot is actually hatched and executed.
Therefore this column in the public sphere of life is my call to all alumni of the Royal Military College (and the Federation Military College) to be aware of this potential plot and to organize ourselves to preserve and protect our dignity, sovereignty and integrity as human beings, and products of the college. All of us, as ordinary human beings, will agree that the RMC took ordinary individuals and made them into extra-ordinary ones; that was the capacity and capability of our alma mater.

To think that today, there are people out there who simply want to reduce "our birthing place" into a physical property to be traded like inanimate objects is the greatest insult to the alumni of the RMC. We, the alumni of the RMC, would like to make a statement; that we will leave no stone unturned on this matter until this illegitimate plot is frustrated. Otherwise, we might as well give up our memories and the pride that we have always taken in this great alma mater of ours.

May God curse such self-interested greed amongst the different and various Malaysians of all colours, shapes and sizes! May God continue to bless Malaysia.

Career Talks Low Priority at the Royal Military College

I've been told by our Army Lawyer Chief Instructor that the career talk will be postponed again (been trying to secure slots since January 2008). Ever since I took this portfolio late 2006, we had no problems securing slots. We've had successful talks conducted by prominent OPs in the aviation sector, legal profession, engineering, IT, oil & gas industry etc.

Based on our short observation and comments from the boys and teachers:

1. The boys seemed to be lost. Lost in the sense that they have no clue what to do after school. Perhaps the in-house consulting is non-existent or not effective.
2. The command of the English language is still poor.
3. Some (maybe most) boys who have chosen the military profession made that decision because it was the 'default' thing to do.
4. Unemployment among the boys after SPM is unknown and no one seems to care what the numbers are.
5. Failure of the establishment of Form 6 classes at RMC shows the lack of promotion or weakness in implementation.
6. OPA branded to be 'intrusive' in the upbringing of the boys.
7. Career talks conducted by predecessors indicated that the old puteras invited to give talks normally talk about themselves and nothing about the career.

Surely, there should be a level of compromise between trying not to have these idiotic OPs and attempting to invite OPs who are so willing to give a helping hand to their super juniors. I for one was inspired during my Putera days when several OPs took some time off from their busy schedule to give us a hint or two as to what being grown up is all about. At the OPA Annual Dinner last weekend, I had the privilege to sit with the Commandant, the President of Penang Free Alum, UIA Dean of Dentistry, President of TKC alum. Commandant was bragging to our guests about how effective the RMC system was in promoting the present puteras to these talks that would help shape their future. He was also lecturing me about how the OPs need to 'focus' in their talks and that OPs are not 'focused'. Clearly he hasnt attended any of my lectures or the lectures I've organized or perhaps my guest speakers in the past were merely 'not focused' OPs who have achieved something in their careers. In additional, it is clear that these talks are of low priority. The OPs who have committed themselves to give the talks had shown their disappointment when the slots given were canceled on numerous occasions. Obviously, moi had to eat the bullet and take the whacking.

We wonder why a staggering number of boys leave the college, balik kampung and end up being mat rempits, tapping rubber or simply 'menganggur'. What a way to 'serve to lead'.

Orang Melayu Lupa Asal Usul

Pemuda UMNO sokong titah Raja Muda Perak

Yes, I definitely concur with Raja Muda Perak that the Malays, especially the young ones, are guilty of this. Young professionals who were sons of NEP or NDP, benefited from scholarships for tertiary education, blessed with careers full of prospects are normally the ones who question the rights of the Malays in the constitution and advocating meritocracy. The word meritocracy is often used yet poorly understand, completely disgusting me especially when companies impose the requirements of Mandarin as a form of qualification and the hope that 'open tenders' will help alleviate equity imbalance. The silent discrimination in the professional workforce is not noticed by the general public but is clearly felt by the minor few who strive to survive in these corporations. The intensity is greater in the business world of dog-eat-dog world, especially when the equity distribution is severely distorted and imbalanced.

Be that as it may, the internal problems facing Malays, whether political, economical or social, are also making more and more young professionals disgusted with the powerful few. This must be addressed together especially by the young ones who have escaped poverty and destitute. The only viable vehicle is through active participation in the chosen political parties and the help out those who are struggling to make it a better place.

I call upon the sons of NEP/NDP to rise up to the challenge and not just become arm chair critiques!

Other news: energy-efficient MPs, from taking the bus to riding the bike to Parliament.

38th AGM - SOS

For those interested in the developments of the new campus of RMC, it saddens me to announce that there is a good chance we will be moved to a new location. The new location is most probably the big piece of plot owned by the Malaysian Army, behind the hill with the water reservoir. The National Defence University is rumored to take over our present location. Highlights during the AGM:

• The proposal to implement IB program at RMC was accepted with luke warm response from all quarters.
  
• The Ministry has not been authorized to carry on with OPA's proposal although the Minister has, in principle, agreed to the proposal.
• The RM100M allocation for RMC will be mostly spent on construction, instead of man power and academic resources
• The Board of Governors no longer functions as a viable tool to steer the college to greater heights, especially with the fact that half of them are not OPs
  
• There is lack of political will to get the proposal implemented
• The weak leadership at RMC suggests that RMC has been 'maintaining' its status in academic and sports performance, not sliding down as quoted by many.

We will join BBGS, Alam Shah and other prominent schools who have moved to new locations, all in the name of development. Heritage and traditions are no longer virtues in today's society. Many OPs in the past fought hard to get this money approved. I do not wish to see the look on their faces when they find out that the money will be used for 'good' use.

Happy Father's Day and OPA 38th AGM

I didnt realize it was Father's Day today until I had checked my email and had received a lovely note from my beautiful wife and son (yes I'm in the middle of South China Sea and not really up to speed with the ongoings onshore). Happy Father's day to all Fathers out there and here's an article about what Jack Ford thought of his father, the 38th President of the United States.

On a different note, to all OPs (short for Old Puteras, which is a term we use for the Royal Military College graduates), our Annual General Meeting for 2008 will be on Saturday, 21st June 2008, 1030hrs at Shangri-La's Selangor Room, KL. I urge all OPs to attend and participate in the discussion which will encompass the following topics of interest (besides the usual items discussed during AGM):

• the allocation from Mindef for RMC for the construction of a new campus in Sg Besi
• the proposal to incorporate the International Baccalaureate program
• the proposal to restructure Board of Governors

Basic Completion Concepts

5-1/2" chrome tubing ready to be ran
Crew prepping completion eqpt
Cycling the Tubing-Retrieved Surface Controlled SubSurface Safety Valve (TR-SCSSV)

The last time we covered basic drilling concepts, we were discussing the principles of perforation. After perforation, the wellbore would normally contain completion fluid which provides a hydrostatic column against formation pressure. Simply put, this keeps formation fluid from entering the wellbore until we are ‘ready’ to produce.

The last piece of tubular to be run is the completion string. A completion string consists of tubing (similar to casing, but normally are called tubing if the outer diameter or OD is < 5-1/2”) and completion ‘jewelry’. The common sizes I’ve ran are 2-7/8”, 3-1/2’ and 5-1/2”. Carbon steel or 13Chrome tubing is typically used in our environment. 13 Chrome tubing or sometimes called CRA (corrosion resistant alloy) is used for reservoir with high CO2 content.

Completion jewelry consists of downhole equipment such as safety valve (a barrier to stop flow of fluid up the wellbore), sliding sleeve door (SSD), packer (to isolate different zones of production), nipples (to enable installation of plugs or valves downhole with the use of slick line), downhole pressure gauge (to read downhole pressures obviously), etc. The choice of completion strategy depends on the operating company and its engineers, typically juggling between productivity of the well and cost, like everyone else.

Packers are used especially when we have more than one zone of interest. Packers isolate each zone from the other so that when you’re done producing from one, you could isolate the zone with a plug and perforate another zone. You could also produce from multiple zones simultaneously. Whatever tickles the reservoir engineers! Some companies have moved to monobore completion where the wells are packer-less and production casing-less. The tubing is cemented, the well is produced and junked with no potential for workovers (more about workovers next time).

Once the completion string is in the hole, a Christmas tree is installed. This is just a block with multiple valves that control the flow of the well bore into the surface facility. The Christmas tree is also the last line of defence against kicks and blowouts (unwanted or unplanned entry of formation fluid into the wellbore that could cause disasters at surface. I will upload some videos of kicks when I get back to the beach). FMC and Cameron are 2 of the major players supplying wellhead equipment and Christmas trees. Now that the Christmas tree is installed, we are ready to either test or produce the well.

Ketelusan dan perancangan ekonomi

Salam sejahtera, saya telah mendapat permintaan untuk menulis dalam Bahasa Melayu supaya dapat menarik lebih ramai lagi pembaca.

Pertama sekali, saya tertarik dengan artikel mengenai audit yang dibuat ke atas wakil2 rakyat di Amerika Syarikat. Akaun2 kewangan calon presiden di Amerika Syarikat diawasi oleh rakyat dan media termasuk pelaburan2 yang dibuat. Untuk kerajaan mendapat penerimaan yang baik, kita patut selidik bagaimana ini boleh dibuat di Malaysia supaya wakil2 rakyat mempunyai 'accountability' yang lebih tinggi tahapnya. Ini patut menjadi matlamat yang 'ideal' dan mungkin ada cara yang 'practical' untuk merealisasikannya.

Kedua, dengan kenaikan harga minyak yang tinggi di pasaran dunia, perlukah kita mencadang pembinaan projek2 yang tidak membawa kebaikan dalam jangka masa pendek seperti pembinaan tapak pelancaran roket di Sabah? Kita perlu meneliti program2 untuk memajukan 'alternative energy' atau sumber tenaga alternatif supaya negara tidak bergantung kepada petroleum sahaja. Insentif perlu diberikan kepada pengguna umum yang menggunakan gas untuk kenderaan mereka termasuk pemandu teksi. Pembinaan stesen NGV perlu digiatkan lagi supaya ada lebih 'access' kepada bekalan gas. Walaupun saya setuju dengan pengurangan subsidi untuk petrol, saya berharap kerajaan akan terus meneliti polisi2 untuk mengurangkan lagi beban masyarakat, mungkin dari segi mengurangkan bayaran tol, cukai pendapatan, menaikkan cukai ke atas syarikat2 minyak dan gas dan sebagainya.

Sabah sesuai jadi tapak pelancaran roket (Utusan Melayu 11 Jun 08)
KUALA LUMPUR 4 Jun - Kerajaan mengenal pasti kawasan pantai timur Sabah terutama di sekitar Tawau berpotensi untuk dijadikan tapak pelancaran roket.
Timbalan Menteri Sains, Teknologi dan Inovasi, Fadillah Yusof berkata, kajian terperinci perlu dilakukan bagi memastikan pembinaan tapak tersebut tidak memberi kesan kepada alam sekitar.

Beliau juga menjelaskan, kerajaan buat masa ini masih belum mempunyai cadangan yang kukuh untuk membangunkan pusat berkenaan.

"Untuk membina pusat pelancaran, beberapa perkara perlu dipertimbangkan dan yang penting adalah kesesuaian tempat tersebut.

"Antara keperluan tapak pelancaran roket ialah ia perlu mempunyai kawasan di sebelah timur yang tidak mempunyai penghuni seperti lautan atau gurun.

Subsidy Mentality 02

Points from YB Dato’ Shahrir Samad, Minister of KDNHEP, during a debate with YB Salahuddin Ayob, Kubang Kerian on RTM tonight:

Money saved from reduction of subsidy in 2006 was used up with rising costs due to increase in petrol price

• Profit made by Petronas (not revenue) has been reinvested into assets around the world to ensure sustainability of fuel source for at least 1-2 decades
• Money saved from subsidy reduction this year to be used to subsidize food
• PM-in-waiting DSAI wants to lower fuel price by subsidizing, contradicting his stance against TDM’s policy to subsidize fuel during the 1997 financial crisis and wanting to oblige to IMF
• We cannot continually deprive Petronas of growth by burdening it with subsidies, they have done their part by paying royalty and tax to the Federal Government
  
  My points:
  
• Petronas must be allowed to use its resources as it finds fit to continually support our economy and be allowed to compete with the major oil companies, the likes of Exxon and Shell
• The danger of this is that the royalty and income tax from Petronas constitute almost half of the revenue earned by the Government. We must be serious and committed to create a robust 2nd and 3rd engine of growth now before we run out of oil!
• Alternative energies must be studied and researched thoroughly. Yes, these are not popular alternatives to fossil fuel due to economies of scale but does that mean we should just sit around and do nothing? The results of the research need to be shared with the public more often, as I know that numerous agencies are working on this. Nuclear perhaps (the most misunderstood and 'political' energy source)?
• The network of LRT must be extended immediately. The National Physical Plan launched earlier in 2004 must be revisited and progress must reported.
• The government needs to start thinking about decentralizing KL and develop a second satellite city, perhaps Seremban? This will enable people outside of KL to enjoy economic growth and stimulate job creations instead of just relying on subsidies. Also, the city plan must include massive integration of public transportation the likes of New York subway system, Singapore's MRT or London's tube. It is too challenging to integrate that in KL.
• Taxi drivers must be allowed to charge more and especially during peak hours.

Then again, whatever the government does will be condemned. The construction of Twin Towers and F1 circuit were known to be wasteful, now they are deemed as icons of Malaysia. TDM was heavily criticized during his premiership, dubbed cruel and undemocratic. Now people 'miss' him being the PM. Can you ever win with the Malaysian people? No wonder we are far behind.

Energy shortage

• South Korea handing out US$10.2B to its lowest income citizens. The package will benefit 13.8 million people, which includes tax rebates for 78 percent of the country’s workers who earn less than US$37k a year. Govt will also pay for 50% of the increase in oil costs for bus drivers, truckers, farmers, fishermen
• “Every head of government across the world is dealing with this challenge now and it goes to global oil supply, in large part, the role of OPEC. OPEC needs to open the production lines to a greater extent. The G-8 provides an opportunity to apply the blowtorch to OPEC – and it’s time that happened”, Australian PM Kevin Rudd
• “Let’s not kid ourselves. There is one big gorilla in this market on the demand side, and it’s the US. We use three times as much oil as China with one-quarter of the population”, Severin Borenstein, a business and public policy professor at UC-Berkeley, who also directs the university’s Energy Institute
• “It’s a shock, but if you look at the rate of oil production globally, it has been 85 million barrels a day for three years in a row. We know demand is increasing because a lot of nations are still subsidizing oil, which ought to stop”, US Energy Sec, Sam Bodman.
  “Oil prices are surging not because of supply shortage, but because of massive liquidity” Mr Toshinori Ito, sr analyst at UBS Securities, Japan referring to the influx of financial funds into markets, helped by low interest rates.
• In Alabama, city officials have implemented a four-day week for 2,400 municipal workers and later for some 1,000 cops and firemen. This translates to about savings of USD1M. Minnesota to follow suit and save 1% of their budget from transportation cost – imagine that happening in Malaysia…. Not a chance!
• Airlines in India made combined loss of USD938M last fiscal year to Mar 08, urges for consolidation
• Japan’s PM’s house is the first fuel cell-powered home way back in 2005, residents urged to install at their homes
• Iranian drivers of luxury cars can no longer purchase subsidized fuel (currently priced at RM 0.36 per L).
• Price for oil by-products has increased. People should start minimizing usage of take-away Styrofoam and plastic bags and hawkers are urged not to force consumers to absorb the price increase – Better solution, don’t eat out.

taken from Straits Times, 9th June 08.

What can we do?

Young Malaysians (for now, let us define “young” as being below the age of 35) are typically idealists, always critical of current developments and continuously demanding for change and betterment. The numerous meetings I’ve had with contemporaries suggest that the ruling government is losing mass appeal among young voters and needs to do more to gain lost ground.

It is estimated that 65% of voters for the coming election will be people below the age of 35. This indicates the heightened importance of wooing young people for their precious votes. The major parties in this country need to do more to become more attractive.

Political parties need to:

1. Improve the membership application process: Not having forms and "misplacing” filled-up forms are no longer acceptable. It shouldn’t take more than a week to approve membership and issue membership no.

2. Organize more dialogues and forums for young professionals, regardless of political inclination or membership and establish a stronger network with the NGOs. Understand the perception of the young towards politics.

3. Embrace more volunteers and professionals into the party and not be afraid of losing one’s position. Similar to running corporations, a smart CEO will hire the best brains and managers and not afraid of losing his job to his subordinates. This does not mean that non-educated members have a lower value; however, parties need to always expand its pool of quality leaders to ensure continuity for years to come.

Youth party members must:

1. Strongly reject leaders who are selfish, arrogant and care too little about the development of society and economy.
2. Use their voting rights to implement change and not for monetary gains (easier said than done).
3. Continuously attract quality memberships

Young elected representatives must:

1. Approach young voters through forums and programs, not just spending time with the youth members of the same party to lobby for votes and strengthen one’s position.
2. Understand the effect of policies and obtain feedbacks.

Young professionals and entrepreneurs must first:

1. Master knowledge and become an expert in their respective fields.
2. Establish sound financial standing through elevation on the corporate ladder, investments or business position
3. Be more attuned to current political developments and learn from history.
4. Discard the notion that “my vote doesn’t affect anything”.
5. Formalize fruitful propositions (and not solely criticisms) through participation in NGOs or political parties or channeling their thoughts through their network.
6. “Turun padang” or reach out to the grass root level and help out: Things may not be as comfortable in the cities compared to the rural area.
7. Be part of the solution: Contribute one’s knowledge, time, energy and financial resources, avoid “cuci tangan” and don’t just let the politicians do the dirty work.

Young people need to realize that this is our country and it will be our “turn” one day to govern. The time to participate is now.

Iraq anyone??

DRILLING ENGINEERS
Job Requirements:

Company Name: Sheffield Offshore Services Pte Ltd
Job Category: Engineer - Petroleum
Education Level: Tech/Vocational Cert.
Req'd Experience: 3+ years
Desired Expertise: Drilling Engineering
Country: Iraq
Location: Kurdistan
Job Description:

3 different positions:
Drilling Engineer (Well-site)
Drilling Engineer (Mud Engineer)
Drilling Engineer (Mud & Cement Specialist)

Rotation: 28/28
To apply for this position, click *here*.

The subsidy mentality

YAB PM has announced that the price of petrol has to be increased to RM2.70 per liter. With the price of crude close to USD 140/barrel, the government has to make this very necessary but unpopular decision. Indonesia and India have recently increased fuel price and getting general backlash from the public. The fact is that the price is dictated by market forces and subsidy will dampen development.

Now that the government has decreased the subsidy, it is now their responsibility to report on what will be done with the surplus resource. This needs to be communicated well and implemented in the best of methods to avoid further backlash.

Of late, we hear everyone suddenly becoming experts in the oil & gas industry, demanding that Petronas subsidize this and that. Although Malaysia produces some 600,000+ barrels per day, the production is not contributed from Petronas alone. Petronas relies on her partners, the Exxons, the Shells, the Carigalis and others to jointly develop our resources. Royalty money is paid to Petronas and the crude is split according to individual Production Sharing Contract (PSC). It doesnt necessarily mean that the government of Malaysia makes 600,000 x USD 140 = USD 84M/day! The lack of communication to the general public forces people to assume all kinds of formula on how much the government makes from oil & gas production.

After the massive win by PR during the 12th GE, one guy has been pushing hard to get Petronas to subsidize the construction of the second Penang bridge and give out subsidies for low income families. There was also a question about Petronas’ Philharmonic Orchestra and whether the spending is justifiable. Heck, let's just sell the Twin Towers to the highest bidder because it was a wasteful project and auction off Seri Perdana and all bungalows for Ministers and senior Civil Servants.

First of, we need to give a free hand to TSHM to steer the ONLY Fortune 500 in Malaysia without any political intervention. He is the “unofficial” Oil Minister by virtue of Petroleum Act 1974 and he is more than capable to manage the mammoth company. We are lucky to have him because believe me, he is severely underpaid compared to CEOs the likes of ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron. I bet you if we increase his pay package, some quarters will start questioning why, why oh why (yes they have questioned why we are paying so much for the Petronas advisor).

Although the price of oil has increased and profit is rising, the cost of drilling wells has also increased tremendously. Rig daily rates can fetch anywhere between USD 100k-700k per day. Construction barge daily rates can fetch up to USD1M/day. We can’t afford to not invest more money in foreign countries as the findings in Malaysia have not been as extensive as before. The country will become a net importer in the years to come thus making it more imperative to increase investment and participation in other oil-producing countries. The subsidy on oil has to be decreased gradually despite pressures from the general public. If oil is expensive, we have to find creative ways to reduce cost.

For daily consumers, we need to find better alternatives to get to work either by taking public transportation, car pooling or buying fuel-efficient cars or converting to NGVs. Complaining will not help the problem. If the price of rice is too much, reduce rice consumption and increase consumption of bread. Inflation will come, it’s a matter of whether we are prepared to face it or not. The name of the game is maintaining competitiveness. If we fail to compete, we are destined to fall. If the local Mamak increases the price of icea Milo and roti canai, don’t go there, simple as that. Market forces will to some extent dictate the true market price.

Yes, people in the low income group will be affected tremendously. I believe Dato' Shahrir Samad is preparing a cabinet proposal to combat this problem. We shall see what the Government is planning and judge later.

Medical plan for exco village

The starmetro, Monday 2 june 08

“State govt to study proposal from company: The exco village at Section 7, Shah Alam, could end up as a major medical tourism attraction in Selangor if a proposal by a private firm gets the approval of the state government. Under the proposal, the colony with 10 luxurious bungalows would be turned into a medical centre. It is learnt that the state government was giving serious consideration to the proposal”.

“Retiree Lily Ang, 80, who resides in Section 24, Shah Alam, found the idea of turning the exco village into a major tourist attraction a joke. “Why would they (foreigners) come to Malaysia for medical treatment when they have better medical services and facilities in their own country?””.

When the Pakatan Rakyat swept 5 states during the last election, it played huge sentiment on corruption and cronyism. Penang has played the tune of making tenders open. We shall see how effective their implementation would be. How about Selangor? Would there be an open tender for the exco village conversion to a medical center? Who owns this company that had proposed the medical plan to the state govt? What are their ties with the current state government? Why are the policies in Penang not implemented in Selangor and other PR states? Where is the uniformity?

I do agree to an extent that the exco village was not an effective way of spending tax payers money. I do agree to some extent that they should be on sale and auctioned to the highest bidder. That would be a wise way of dealing with the bungalows. Or perhaps this is another chance of PR to replenish their coffers after the election?

Who knows? In the end, "the people deserve the government they elect".