Thursday 21 April 2011

@1Malaysia.com.my

Peace be upon all my wonderful readers.

The 1Malaysia email project has been one handed straight into the furnace of online furore. Receiving as much negative feedback as Rosie's hairdresser, the Project was announced by Prime Minister YAB Dato' Sri Najib Razak, expecting great applause for reaching out via new media. After getting a welcome so warm it was just short of boiling, Najib tweeted just before his curfew that "the 1Malaysia email project is funded solely from the private-sector, receiving no Govt. funding whatsoever."

Here's the thing: Why is the private-sector suddenly so keen on funding national-scale projects? Are we not in the worst recession in recent history? And more importantly: Why are private-sector projects getting media-time with Najib? If the private-sector has enough money to blow on insane ideas like this, then surely they can afford their own advertising.

Over & over again, I am being told that these 'private sector projects' is being done for the betterment of The People. Here's something for you:

RM50,000,000, the total amount spent on the 1Malaysia email project, can buy you:

- 12,000,000 packs of nasi lemak for the poor.
- 1,200 longhouses in Sarawak.
- 4 schools.
- 1 hospital.
- Electricity in rural areas.

Bearing in mind that there are some areas of Sarawak that have yet to receive electricity, it begs the question of WHY these private-entities funding 1Malaysia projects like this one believe they are doing so "for the People." The inconvenient truth is that the private-sector doesn't give a flying f*** about the People; they want to ride the glamour-train set forth by the 1Malaysia moniker.

I, being a regular Rakyat Malaysia with a blue MyKAD, can think of endless ways to spend RM50,000,000 that would bring more use to the People than somewhere to send your e-newsletters. That is all its good for anyway, with encryption standards so low I could hack it with a brute-force attack from my BlackBerry.

When all is said & done, the 1Malaysia email project is set to tank, just like every project carrying the 1Malaysia brand.

... suey ah. *wink*



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Sunday 17 April 2011

Oh, Bumi Kenyalang...

Sitting quietly in this hospital room, I watch closely the live updates on the Sarawak state-elections. My laptop's mechanical whirr of cooling fans keeping me company, I watch as the Rakyat speak after spending thirty-years uder Taib Mahmud.

Despite the many controversies surrounding Taib of late, the irony here is that Taib himself was voted back into office by his constituents. So one must ask: Although we are well-aware of his profiteering from the State, has he also played the role of the Chief Minister over the past thirty-years toward the profit of the People, too?

At this juncture, we must remember that although we *know* of Taib amassing his wealth through shady-means within the State, there is not one shred of evidence to date showing clearly of his profiteering. This may either be his genius at work, covering his tracks wherever he can... or this may just be the truth. It is easy to make like RPK & make outlandish allegations (and then retract them in cowardice on national television), but it is the mark of a true 'politikus' to show the World true reason to distrust a political figure.

One must not point fingers without believable reason.

However, the campaigning is over. THE RAKYAT have spoken, and Barisan Nasional is back for another spin. But, it is not a complete loss for the Opposition; this state election has given them significant inroads to the People, through which they can establish better footing for the next time SPR waltzes into town.

If this state-election has anything to say, it is this: The Opposition is not yet strong enough to stage a takeover, but they're getting there day-by-day. And if Barisan Nasional doesn't buck-up their game, their time may run out much sooner than they expected.
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Saturday 16 April 2011

Revelation.

In the years after birth, the human will develop certain mental & psychological properties that will shape that said human into an individual. These things range from the way they walk, the way they talk, even the way they take their coffee. This is one of the most fundamental developments of human life, the process where a human becomes a true, individual person.

Often after that said person has set their ways, there are sometimes certain events that can change this individuals' ways. These events usually occur when someone hits the proverbial 'rock bottom'; where that person has reached a low-point in their lives, leaving only one way to go: Up.

'Rock bottom' is different from one person to another, and the events leading to this low-point also vary wildly. A doctor may be led to a low & depressing period in his life when he loses one of his patients (be it by his error or not), while a hardened criminal may hit this period when he finally gets caught red-handed & is thrown in the clink. The theme here is the same: Regardless of your stature or position, every person will hit this period at some point & their actions during this period, often destructive, will forever change their lives.

Hitting rock-bottom is within itself a very traumatic experience. And I can say, with full confidence, that I have hit my rock-bottom before. Several times, in fact. And each time I find my way out of this rut, I have emerged anew; a man (or boy) with a new lease of life, with new principles & outlooks & a generally renewed being.

I will not hide my low-points, because I believe in the old saying that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. That said, it is important that I acknowledge these things that have yet to claim my life or my mind. However... I wish to make it very clear that I am not in any way proud of my actions, even if they have led me to become a better man, a better footstool of Allah S.W.T. and His Messenger, Nabi Muhammad S.A.W., a better citizen of the world, and a better student of the Globe.


I recently hit rock-bottom once again. This time, with much more serious ramifications. So serious are these ramifications, that I care not to tell the tale. What I wish to share, however, is the profound effect of my latest trip to my own, personal hell.
I come from a very well-educated, and very well-respected family. Both of my Great-Grandfathers held posts as District Officers during the British Occupation; Sultans of their era. As such, my Grandparents and their siblings were raised with staunch values & beliefs, and with a great respect of their forefathers. I too was raised with these values & beliefs; age-old teachings that have shaped me into who I am. And yet, somehow, the rebellious inside of me manages to make an appearance every once in a while, wrecking very serious damage every time it does.

This time however, I found myself at a point so low that most people wouldn't even consider it possible for themselves.

I don't even make a slight attempt to hide the fact that I am indeed an elitist. I prefer riding personal transportation (in the form of motorcars or taxi-cabs), I enjoy being pampered with buffed nails & styled hair, and drink hazelnut lattes from Starbucks. As such, I've always had a false belief that I enjoy a relatively high social ranking.

The events that recently took place in my life basically bitch-slapped that right out of me.

These said events, which I will not elaborate upon, made me realise one very simple truth. One that I have known for years, yet have only recently made a part of my personal fabric.

Every person on this Earth was created by the Universal Architect. He has put every person here for a reason. As such, we must respect His creations as they go about their lives, fulfilling this higher purpose.

I was recently placed in a situation where I was within the ranks of people I falsely believed were beneath me. It made me realise that, in a moment that hit me with almost as much as a two-ton truck, that I am no better than anyone in this world. We all are upon the same level. We all return to Him, do we not? It does not matter if you are a multimillionaire businessman, a lawyer, an engineer on an offshore oil-rig, a garbage collector, or even a thief. We are all here, doing our parts, playing the roles given to us by the Universal
Architect.

(Note: The reason why I use the term Universal Architect or Architect of the Universe is because I'd like to present a form where a higher being is represented, without having to resort to the terms we use, be it Jesus, Yahweh, Allah, etc. The term represents a higher being, a higher power, which I believe that all people upon this Earth have faith in at some point in their lives. It is a term adopted by the Freemasons, a brotherhood that transcends race, blood & religion.)

The Architect designed this Universe ever-so-meticulously; creating many fabrics of existence, with as many fabrics of creations. He created man, with as much painstaking effort as he created the ant. All of His creations co-exist on this Earth, each with its own role. The ant is the worlds' little clean-up team, the bee is the grower of the forest, and so on. The role of man is very complex; the roles of individuals even more complex. There are doctors, tasked with the immense role of healer & creator of healing tools. There are lawyers, defenders of the innocent, prosecutor of the guilty. As there are the good, there are the bad: There are thieves, teaching us that we must work hard as so we are never placed in as desperate a situation as they. There are murderers, reminding us how fragile life is and how we must be appreciative of every breath we take. And there are the insane, quietly demonstrating how very quickly all that you see & know can distort, leaving you blind & disorientated.

Regardless of whom we are and what our role may be on His Earth, we must pin this one simple truth: We are all the creations of the Architect. We all have our roles to play, with each of them bringing a change that He obviously wants in this world of His. There is no better, no lesser. Not in the World He designed.
We are swayed by material indulgences. We prefer to speak to the man in the Armani suit rather than the man in the torn jean-shorts. We have been brainwashed, taught by those around us to believe in material wealth & the black-and-white of life. What we do not see (or have been conditioned not to see) is the massive grey area that exists in this world.

Within this grey-area exists many people who seem to fit in neither the black- or white-area of society. The people of this grey-area are often those who mean well, and those who do whatever they possibly can to get by. Those who do what need to be done without a care for what may be entailed by doing so. Ruthless as it may sound, they're still human beings.

This will be all from me tonight. Maybe tomorrow, if there's nothing on my mind & I feel like rambling some more, I will elaborate on this grey-area of society.

Goodnight.
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Saturday 9 April 2011

Bumi Kenyalang, and other things that fly (or rather, fall).

With the Sarawak elections just around the corner, King Taib Mahmud looks set to get a royal kicking to the curb by the Rakyat. Personally, I like him. P-E-R-S-O-N-A-L-L-Y. As a fellow Rakyat (though not of Sarawak), and him as a politician, I believe the State is better off without him. It is no real secret that the State has been effectively ass-raped of her natural treasures and resources, leaving it in a more dire need of cosmetic surgery than Puan Sri Ragaad Kurdi. Ugliness (and large noses) aside, Taib is in need of a newer replacement (pun intended), and fast. After all, we don't want Puan Sri to start getting political ambitions now do we? *cough*FLOM*cough*

And what's this about another MACC flyaway? Almost as quickly as Ahmad Sarbani descended those three floors into the tennis court (why is there a tennis court at the MACC building anyway?) the IGP quickly mentions that the "Teoh & Sarbani deaths are different." Different, eh? Let's check out the facts that every lay-man can understand:

Was Sarbani under MACC investigation? Yes.
Was he under MACC care at the time? Yes.
Was he left unattended near a window? Yes.

...

... SAMA LAH TU, BODOH!

The irony here is that with the funding MACC gets, they don't have CCTV. MACC buildings & offices not only need to be low-rise or on the ground floor, but they need legal waivers you sign upon entry, so you won't make a fuss if you strangle yourself or waltz conveniently out of a suspiciously open window. Kan.
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Of Life in general.

Salaam. Peace be upon the World & its inhabitants.

It has been long since I last updated Choc-O-Blog. So here I am, making amends. Much has changed, and a lot has happened. So I shall try to reduce all that into something short & concise for all of you. Read: "try".

The biggest change in the life of this Blog & its Writer is the switch of name & medium. Rather than 'Choc-O', I now go by the very quicker 'Chocs'. On top of that, I've switched my main social medium from Blogspot to Twitter, with the corresponding Twitter handle, @ChocsMYS. For this, I blame @Elviza (http://elviza.wordpress.com), the Glam-Queen of Twitterjaya. (Yeah, I know that last bit wouldn't make sense to non-Twitter addicts. But... do try to keep up, ya?)

Being a teenager allows me a lot of personal freedom. That said, I intend to make full use of my youth & reinvent myself. Again. You, my dears, have watched me change often already, so its time to watch me go at it again. Don't worry; you were like this when you were almost-sixteen too. If you can remember that period, of course.

One of the biggest personal developments of late is my new-found (or reinforced) love of the Malaysian music industry. I've always been a fan, but I've been seriously considering a professional career in the limelight. Why? Because I'm so awesome. Ya. But seriously, people regularly tell me I have vocal talent. Some that I know, most of them strangers. I don't want to toot my own horn, but have you heard some of the new Malaysian talent? So flat & powerless. Thank god the musical arrangements are good.

Anyway, I'd like to mention that I'll be performing alongside my good friend & R-&-B sensation ALTIMET, for Acoustic Nights @ KLPac in the coming months. It'll be of his new single, a song I hold very dear to my heart (about an equally touching topic), 'Kotarayaku.' Dates are to be confirmed, but I'll update all of you when I get details. Insya'Allah, all will go smoothly.

In line with the new look, feel, image & name, I plan to revamp this blog entirely. The name (and possibly the URL) will change soon, in line with MY new name too. I'd like ChocsMYS.blogspot if I can. If I can't change the URL (I'm a bit of a techtard, so I don't really know), then I'll set up another blog & maintain this one the way it is. (If I maintain this one, it'll be more of a personal blog, with the other one being more of the SoPo me).

NOW. For the stuff you all expect from me. Watch the next posts for some political fun-poking. Ooh ooh, I may get arrested for this.
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