Muslims are the Reason Why the World Became Modern

(Unknown author as this article was viralled via the Whatsapp application)

ISLAM has always been underestimated. An American Professor imagined the World without Muslims and found out the most surprising results! Ian Bremmer, a political scientist and a University professor, highlighted an important point that overall, Muslims account for just 0.00625%. Moreover, he actually imagined a world without Muslims and the post went viral in no time as the result is actually the opposite. Muslims are the reasons why the World became modern.

The professor, Ian Bremmer, highlighted all the inventions made by Muslims, right from toothbrushes to hospitals. Without Muslims you wouldn’t have: Coffee, Cameras, Experimental Physics, Chess, Soap, Shampoo, Perfume or spirits, Irrigation, Crank-shaft, Internal Combustion Engine, Valves, Pistons Combination Locks, Architectural Innovation (pointed arch - European Gothic cathedrals adopted this technique as it made the building much stronger, rose windows, dome buildings, round towers, etc.), Surgical Instruments, Anesthesia, Windmill, Treatment of Cowpox, Fountain Pen, Numbering System, Algebra and Trigonometry, Modern Cryptology, 3 Course Meal (soup, meat or fish, fruits or nuts), Crystal Glasses, Carpets, Cheques, Gardens (used for beauty and meditation instead of for herbs and kitchen), University, Optics, Music, Toothbrush, Hospitals, Bathing, Quilting, Mariner’s Compass, Soft Drinks, Pendulum, Braille, Cosmetics, Plastic Surgery, Calligraphy, Manufacturing of Paper and Cloth, and many more.

It was a Muslim who realised that light enters our eyes, unlike the Greeks who thought we emitted rays, and so invented a camera from this discovery.

It was a Muslim who first tried to fly in 852, even though it is the Wright Brothers who have taken the credit.

It was a Muslim by the name of Jabir ibn Hayyan who was known as the founder of modern Chemistry. He transformed alchemy into chemistry. He invented: distillation, purification, oxidation, evaporation, and filtration. He also discovered sulfuric and nitric acid.

It is a Muslim, by the name of Al-Jazari who is known as the father of robotics.

It was a Muslim who was the architect for Henry V’s castle.

It was a Muslim who invented hollow needles to suck cataracts from eyes, a technique still used today.

It was a Muslim who actually discovered inoculation, not Jenner and Pasteur to treat cowpox. The West just brought it over from Turkey.

It was Muslims who contributed much to mathematics like Algebra and Trigonometry, which was imported over to Europe 300 years later to Fibonnaci and the rest.

It was Muslims who discovered that the Earth was round 500 years before Galileo did. The list goes on and on.

Muslims are the Reason Why the World Became Modern. Had there be no Muslims, imagine how our lives would be today? Perhaps we would still be in the dark ages?

References:

German documentary https://youtu.be/L1boEHaKAzE

British film https://youtu.be/dOsHenGodD0

BBC report https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2550624671839359&id=1391449297756908

Artist's Impression of the Pemahsyuran Malaysia (Declaration of Malaysia)

PEMAHSYURAN

by Johan Ishak

2013

60cm x 90cm

Oil Paint and Ink on Canvas 

This art piece highlights the Pemahsyuran Malaysia, which is the Declaration of Malaysia, where it declares the formation of Malaysia in 1963. Whilst the Wayang Kulit (Shadow Puppet) in this piece is of Indonesian origin, it has relevance to the declaration of the formation of Malaysia. This is because Indonesia was opposed to the idea of Malaysia as they were promoting their own idea of a Malay archipelago, known as the Indonesia Raya. The Pemahsyuran Malaysia was written in Jawi, the land's method of expressing its language, Bahasa Melayu. Parts of the Jawi wordings of the Pemahsyuran Malaysia has been reproduced here in the art piece. It reads: "Bahawasanya, oleh kerana suatu perjanjian yang diperbuat pada sembilan Julai, tahun seribu sembilan ratus enam puluh tiga (1963), disekutukan Negeri Sabah, Negeri Sarawak, Negeri Singapura dengan Persekutuan Tanah Melayu dan bahawa persekutuan ini hendaklah dinamakan Malaysia", which means "It is declared following an agreement done on the 9th of July 1963, a merger of the states of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapura into the Federated Malay States is effective and such merged states shall be known as Malaysia"

Benteng Terakhir Dunia Melayu : Oleh Ninot Aziz

BENTENG TERAKHIR DUNIA MELAYU

Orang kita dah membelah lautan
Luas saujana mata memandang
Bintang di langit menjadi panduan
Tahu tujuan sekali pandang

Dah lama kita kenal darah putih
Tib ubat dan adat berpantang
Dah lama kita berhati bersih
Jangan dibiar di pijak-pijak orang

Orang kita beramah mesra
Menghidang lauk penuhlah meja
Rakan taulan dianggap keluarga
Ambillah semua apa dicita

Lama-lama bertukar kain
Kain batik menjadi kain kasa
Lama-lama kita ke lain
Bumi dipijak milik siapa

Jangan ikut Mat Jenin berangan
Memanjat kelapa mulalah gayat
Jangan Dunia Melayu jadi kenangan
Dalam korpus memori Hikayat

Terkubur benteng terakhir Dunia Melayu


Copyright 2019 © Ninot Aziz
All rights reserved.

Kelahiran Merdeka, Firasat Penggiat Seni

KELAHIRAN

Johan Ishak

2013

60cm x 90cm

Cat minyak atas kanvas

KELAHIRAN menggambarkan Merdeka di dalam konteks yang lebih pragmatik. Tiada maknanya Merdeka jikalau secara zatnya masih hamba di bumi sendiri. Oleh itu, biarlah perlakuan kita wajar dalam makna Merdeka. Setakat hendak melaung di sana-sini, dan penat menjerit; buat apa? Usaha gigih sampai memegang hak itu penting. Ilmu, ekonomi dan keharmonian kepelbagaian itu mustahak. Dengan sebab inilah, secara logiknya bintang itu di belakang bulan kerana bintang yang di hadapan bulan itu, bukannya bintang, tetapi bayangan bintang (contohnya satelit). Jalur merah bukannya secara realiti kemas, tetapi 'chaotic' kerana lambang keberanian itu umpama mengalirnya darah. Dengan itu, lukisan cat ini memenifestasikan darah yang mengalir. Biru perpaduan tidaklah sesenang 'rectangular', tetapi umpama hujan yang turun, ada kala renyai, ada kala lebat. Begitu juga dengan hubungan antara masyarakat majmuk. Seni aku ini praktikal. Mungkin ramai yang tidak setuju. Tidak mengapa. Terpulanglah dengan firasat masing-masing. Terserahlah. Apa-apa hal, Selamat Merdeka kepada rakyat Malaysia, dan 'You Will Never Walk Alone'

To Jawi or Not to Jawi?

By Johan Ishak
www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

TO JAWI OR NOT TO JAWI? That is the question many are unnecessarily questioning when there are loads of other issues worth thinking about. The fact that this article is written is already a waste of time. An article about mathematics, coding, entrepreneurship, work-life balance, civic or even e-Games would have been a better subject in the context of contemporary needs of our society. So, why question Jawi?

There needs to be a clear comprehension about what Jawi represents. Historically, considering its Arabic origin, it is probably fair to assume its close relationship with Islam. That is true because the use of Jawi in this land is dated way back to the 1400 or even earlier when the Muslim Arab traders came over for both, trade and spreading Islam. However, that strong perception is critically defined by virtue of time frame. Had we gone deep into history, the Jawi characters had even existed before Islam came into existence. Arabic is a branch of Aramaic, that is also the source of Hebrew. So, we can also easily say that this is an act of Jewish indoctrination (Pun intended). But, why do we associate it religiously? After all, isn't the numbering system of 1 to 9 came from Arabic as well? So, why question Jawi?

The sense of cultural identity can be defined by many aspects. Although linguistic or literature are not the only factors, they are indeed a common set of factors that many have accepted in identifying a particular nation. If you speak Japanese, you are most likely from Japan. If you speak Hokkien, you are most likely the decendents of the people of Fu-Chian. The Muslims, Christians and Jews of Turkey all speak and write Turkish. The Chinese in Thailand speak and write in Siamese. However, when you can speak French, you can either be French, Canadian, Swiss, Polynesian or even Tunisian. If you can speak Spanish, you can come from any country from the entire continent of South America except for Brazil. Really, Jawi isn't a big deal. So, why question Jawi?

In this day and age, art is forgotten quite pervasively. Ancient civilisations grew quite naturally because of how art was embraced. Art contributes to the diversity of cuture and Jawi is an art. The diversity of cultural elements is what makes culture, a culture. So, why not celebrate this diversity? Does writing in Roman makes us less Malaysian? If it does, why don't we question our irreversable use of Roman alphabets? If it doesn't (make us less Malaysian), why do we question Jawi that actually makes us more Malaysian in the context of national history? So, why question Jawi?

The emotional attachment one has to his or her origin often provides the basis to agree or disagree to certain policies. A Malay is likely to support Jawi and a non-Malay is likely to reject Jawi. The ability of how such emotional attachment can be disregarded is actually the measurement of tolerance. Like it or not, we are a multilingual, multireligion, multiethnic and multicultural society. Accepting a cultural heritage of this land like Jawi is also an act of tolerance. If, as a nation, we can accept the diversity of schooling methods that include Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (vernacular schools), convent schools or even legally operated Tahfiz or Sekolah Agama (Islamic Schools), then accepting Jawi that is a mere extension of that variation should not be a problem. So, why question Jawi?

The issue of overloading kids with many subjects to learn is probably the lamest excuse ever. Parents have been pressuring kids with so many expectations since the 80's. How many of us have been forced to learn piano, golf, ballet, Tae Kwan Do, Kumon, English 1119 and the numerous tuitions. They not only cost money but also time. Infact, they also contribute to the stress level of our youth. Don't we always say that the Youth is the best stage in life to absorb knowledge most effectively and efficiently? What happened to that confidence? Suddenly Jawi erases all that high expectations? So, why question Jawi?

But seriously, why? (... question Jawi)

Saifuddin Nasution Berbicara Tentang GST dan SST

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

Video 5

Video 6

Video 7

Video 8

Video 9

Video 10

Video 11

Video 12

Video 13

Video 14

Video 15

Video 16

Video 17

* kopihangtuah

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Misconception that the Role of Opposition is Not Needed

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

THE MISCONCEPTION that the role of opposition is not needed in the nation's political landscape is a disease that has pervasively spread across the country particularly amongst those who are blinded by the euphoria of change. Both Pakatan Harapan supporters and Barisan Nasional supporters have the right to question Government actions, whether those actions are done formally or casually, as long as those actions have significant implications to the country.

The citizens have made their choice during the recent General Election and with that, they put their trust in the ruling Government to administer the country in the best possible manner. However, a healthy political landscape should continuously have an effective opposition that can provide the check and balance. Therefore, to call people bad names like 'idiot' or 'moron' simply because they raised concerns over matters of national interest involving the Government, is by all means, unfair and undemocratic.

Recently, the following statement was made in the social media:

"The former Treasury deputy secretary-general Ramon Navaratnam said the national debt, on the other hand, should be reported as defined by the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and credit rating agencies, rather than an amalgamation of all debts. The debt issue should be reviewed carefully. It is believed that it is now wrongly defined and overplayed as ‘very bad’ with the total coming up to RM1 trillion. If current debts were compared to the GDP, according to the World Bank and IMF, it would hover at about 53%. That is fair and reasonable. But we should be cautious about it and not allow it to increase too quickly by spending money on projects that are not viable. So this 53% (debt-to-GDP ratio) is quite safe and acceptable. The “hype” of presenting the debt as dangerous could frighten small and unsophisticated investors who did not have the benefit of a good analysis of the debt issues. It might be good politics but bad economics to mix politics in economics.”

As expected, there were responses that are claded with blindness as a result of overwhelming euphoria that people developed after having the victory of changing the ruling Government during the recent 14th General Election. Some of those blind comments are:

Statement 1

To laymen debt is debt and they are worried to shoulder the payment. They want to know and the current Government is telling.

Response 1

Really? They are asking? Who is asking? The citizen was just fine with Bank Negara's assurance that the debt ratio is acceptable. Now that this self created formula of measurement has been announced, suddenly everybody jumps like a frog. This causes unnecessary panic. As a result, billions of foreign investments in both bonds and equity instrument have fled the country. That is really not sensible. Telling it in a manner that is inconsistent with the rest of the world or widely accepted benchmark can be damaging especially when foreign investors are elastic to such information.

Statement 2

Sometimes, I feel that the market prefers to be told lies on how good we are, rather than the truth. We have to look at substance over form.

Response 2

Are you impying that the formula used by Bank Negara Malaysia all this while and also by the other reserve banks of other countries, not to mention economists, is a formula that is lying to citizens? Come on, be pragmatic before accusing others of lying. If that is the case then all the other countries and their reserve banks are also wrong? We better move to Jupiter then. The point by Ramon is simple: the measurement formula to gauge the country's economic status is applied by all economists when making investment decisions. You suddenly announce using your own interpretation that destroys investors' confidence in the country and as a consequence, they fled. That is not good.

Statement 3

Whatever it is, "DO NOT MAKE CITIZENS' LIVES DIFFICULT". Most of the "middle-low-no" income earners for the past few years were living on tight budget monthly. Hopefully there will be more excess income under the new Government administration.

Response 3

What are you on about? We are not talking about citizens' disposable income. Do not simply answer based on emotions. Don't go on fuelling your euphoria of General Election with matters not relevant to the discussion.

Statement 4

RM1 trillion or RM688 billion, what difference does it make to us, poor Malaysians? It is still debt which needs to be paid for generations to come. Stop complaining and start working for a better nation for this country doesn’t belong to you and/or your crony. Also spend a bit more time analysing how the previous leaders can amass billions (tip of the iceberg) and how can we stop that from happening again. This is more beneficial to everyone. That status is fair but it is not important. My complains every other day (prior to the change of Government) is important because we finally kicked the corrupt Government out. Shouldn’t this be celebrated unless you are part of the corrupt regime? All I’m saying is we are good educated people, spend our energy to help this beloved country back to its feet. Not fault-finding on immaterial matters. No person, Government or country is perfect. But the fact that some said “it is just allegation against the previous Government” despite billions worth of cash and jewellery found just showed some people refuse to embrace the truth. Also this is very important for all of this is not just a matter of difference in political opinion, it is a matter of haq (truth) and bathil (false) which ultimately determines our last resting place in hereafter.

Response 4

That social media status is a fair one as it is highlighting an unfair economic perception to the country. In fact, that comment is from a respected person in the field of economic analysis. On the accusations on the previous leaders, we should not comment anything as we do not have the evidence. We should put our trust in the authorities and if some people are found guilty, let them face the consequences. Questioning matters of national economic interests is a more beneficial matter than talking about allegations that are still under investigation. To be honest, we should not dare to say that that allegation is true. If the police and authorities have obtained the evidence and the courts conclude it as true, then we should accept. So don't lecture on what people should believe as true or false. We must not react to half baked information and, again, as mentioned earlier, trust that the police will do their job. Celebrate? Celebrate when we ourselves do not know whether there is enough evidence and we want to celebrate based on a pending verdict? Perhaps that will be unwise. But to celebrate that the country is more open, that is alright, particularly for the chance to drive impartial journalism amongst media.

To put the above debate into perspective, one must know that billions of foreign investments have left the country and continue to do so. This is not an immaterial matter especially when it is on the back of a confused interpretation of a measurement definition like the national debt case. A financially learned person who has had fair share of analytics on Malaysia's economics and drafting policies like Ramon must be taken seriously. So, a responsible citizen must disagree when someone says that that matter is small. Fault-finding is a negative way of looking at it. We should call it 'constructive critism'. Do not be fooled by the misconception that just because we have changed the Government, the role of a political opposition needs to disappear.

As a closure, the below is the analysis of how much foreign investments have fled Malaysia (Apologies as it is not in English but I suspect you can understand):

* kopihangtuah

| mcmlxxv:viii:xxix |

Bicara Hutang Negara

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

Bicara Hutang Negara Part I

By Abdul Rahim Hilmi Zakariya

MEDIA seharusnya menjadi medium mendidik, bukan merendahkan akal rakyat. Kesimpulan kepada video pihak media baru-baru ini, pinjaman kepada Jepun kononnya akan mengurangkan hutang kerajaan. Katanya kerajaan sekarang berhutang RM1 trilion dengan kadar faedah 6% - 7.5%. Maka bunganya sahaja RM60 bilion. Jika Jepun memberi pinjaman dengan kadar faedah 1%, maka bunganya hanya RM10 bilion. Jimat RM50 bilion.

Pertama sekali, biarlah saya sebut betapa tak cerdiknya Tuan yang buat kira kira matematik ini. Secara teorinya, penjimatan dengan jumlah sebesar itu hanya boleh berlaku jika sekiranya Jepun meminjamkan RM1 trilion kepada kita. Mana Jepun nak cari duit banyak tu Tuan-Tuan nak bagi kat kita? Realistiklah. Hutang mereka (Jepun) pun hampir RM40 trilion. Ketika ekonomi Korea diambang kemusnahan tahun 1997 pun, mereka hanya diberi pinjaman USD21 bilion (RM80 bilion) oleh International Monetary Funds (IMF).

24 tahun lalu, Jepun cuma bagi pinjaman 50.3 bilion Yen (RM1.17 bilion) bagi membantu pembinaan Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Kut mana nak bagi pinjam sampai RM1 trilion? Dan lagi, pinjaman hutang luar di dalam matawang asing hanya boleh dibuat pada kadar maksimum RM35 bilion pada satu-satu masa. Sila rujuk Akta Pinjaman Luar Negeri 1963. Setakat ini, pinjaman luar Kerajaan di dalam matawang asing adalah sekitar RM20 bilion. Paling tinggi kita boleh terima pinjaman Yen Jepun adalah RM15 bilion.

Seterusnya, memukulrata pinjaman kerajaan berkadar faedah 6 hingga 7.5% adalah jahat. Pinjaman paling kontroversi Kerajaan adalah  daripada kerajaan China melalui Exim Bank yang mana kadar faedahnya adalah 3.25% untuk pembinaan East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). Ia cuma tinggi sedikit berbanding pinjaman Jepun untuk pembinaan KLIA (3%). Kadar faedah paling tinggi (yang saya tahu) dibuat oleh Kerajaan Malaysia daripada negara luar adalah pinjaman daripada Kerajaan Perancis bagi pembinaan Stesen Janakuasa Paka pada tahun 1983. Kadar faedahnya adalah 10.6%. Cukuplah projek membodohkan rakyat ini. Bersikap adillah kepada kawan dan musuh.

Bicara Hutang Negara Part II

By Najib Saahari

TUN MAHATHIR baru-baru ini ada bercakap pasal nak buat loan dari Jepun. Pihak media segera keluarkan explanation pasal hutang itu. Cepat betul.

Anyway, kita letak politik ke tepi dan marilah kita jawab artikel tu. Pertamanya saya nak memperbetulkan fakta separa benar yang dikeluarkan pihak media itu. Interest rate untuk hutang negara tidak sampai 6% -7.5%. Paling tinggi pun 5% lebih sikit. Mana datang 6% -7.5% tu? Sebab dia kira Private Public Partnership (PPP) sekali. PPP tu kira sekali keuntungan concession holder. Kedua, dalam video tu cakap kalau kita boleh jimat RM50 bilion kalau kita rollover kesemua hutang kita. Undang-undang tidak membenarkan hutang luar melebihi RM35 bilion (External Loan Act 1963). Macam mana nak rollover RM1 trillion?

Video tu bagitahu yang hutang luar ratenya lebih rendah jadi make sense untuk ambil hutang itu supaya negara dapat jimat kos membayar interest. Ianya betul kalau segala variable lain remain constant. In this case, variable lain tidak constant. Even interest rate itu sendiri tidak constant. Benda ni kita boleh ulas berdasarkan risk to reward ratio. Benda paling basic dalam investment. Jom kita ulas satu persatu.

Interest rate yang dikenakan rendah jika dibandingkan dengan interest rate dalam negara. Kita termasuk dalam kategori upper middle income country so in general kita akan dapat floating term. Floating term basically ikut LIBOR+basis point. LIBOR rate tidak tetap dan boleh berubah. If LIBOR rate naik tahun berikutnya, interest kita akan turut sama naik. Jadi itu satu risk yang perlu kita consider sebelum bersetuju dengan cadangan Kerajaan.

Risiko lain yang perlu dipertimbangkan ialah forex risk. Semua sedia maklum currency berubah setiap hari. Perubahan ini adalah risiko yang perlu dipertimbangkan. Jika Yen Jepun (JPY) naik 5% against Ringgit Malaysia (MYR), jumlah hutang akan naik sebanyak 5% juga. On top of that, nilai interest yang perlu dibayar juga akan naik kerana principalnya telah bertambah. Itu kalau 5% , kalau lebih? Mungkin kita tidak dapat berjimat, malah hutang negara yang bertambah. Untuk makluman JPY ialah safe haven currency. Pelabur suka membeli JPY, ini akan mengakibatkan JPY akan menaik di masa hadapan. Mengikut analisa, JPY masih lagi punyai ruang untuk menaik dan sekarang JPY memang berada di dalam jajaran menaik. Itu risk lain yang perlu juga diambil kira.

Jika kita rollover semua hutang kita, kita akan bergantung penuh kepada Bank of Japan (BOJ). Sebarang keputusan yang dibuat oleh BOJ akan mempengaruhi kita. Jika BOJ naikkan interest rate, JPY akan appreciate dan kedudukan kita akan terjejas. Basically macam hilang kedaulatan kewangan lah. Kita tidak mampu berbuat apa-apa jika BOJ decide macam tu. As for me, this is the worst thing that could happen to our country. Doa dijauhkan.

So berdasarkan point-point di atas, pada saya risikonya lebih tinggi berbanding reward interest rate rendah. For those who managed fund, they will know right away what to do if the risk is more than the reward - Buang proposal dalam tong sampah. Fakta ringkas - Tiada negara bankrap disebabkan oleh hutang dalam negara dan Greece dan Venezuela bankrap sebab hutang luar negara.

Rujukan:

https://asianbondsonline.adb.org/malaysia.php

https://www.jica.go.jp/english/mobile/our_work/types_of_assistance/oda_loans/standard/index.html

https://www.jica.go.jp/english/our_work/types_of_assistance/oda_loans/standard/c8h0vm0000aoex8o-att/2017_02_01.pdf

https://www.jica.go.jp/english/our_work/types_of_assistance/oda_loans/standard/c8h0vm0000aoex8o-att/2017_02_05.pdf

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/27/japanese-yen-may-strengthen-as-dollar-weakens-morgan-stanley-and-ing.html

* kopihangtuah

| mcmlxxv:viii:xxix |

GST Guide for Dummies

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST) is value added tax. When there is value add activities, it attract GST. Yes, end consumer pays. Intermediate buyer pays for value added portions. For example:

A sells material to B for RM100 x 106% = RM106.

B then incurs additional RM100 cost to add flavours or process the material into goods. So B incurred cost of buying material at RM106 plus RM100 value added costs and then less claimable GST of  RM6 = RM200.

B sells to C the product at RM300 x 106% = RM318.

C then incurs additional RM100 cost to repackage, transportation fees and marketing costs. So C incurred cost of buying goods at RM318 plus RM100 value added costs and then less claimable GST RM18 = RM400.

C sells to D the finished product at RM500 x 106% = RM530.

So the Government gets revenue of rm30 from the above scenario.

The formula SST would have resulted in the below:

({[(Rm100 x 110%) + rm200] x 110%} + rm200) x 110% = RM595.

So GST makes it RM530 but SST makes it RM595. Both methods make end consumer pay extra but the former only at RM30 and the latter at RM95.

Not only it is taxed at a higher rate of 10% SST, but the effect is also compunding making it more expensive as and when there are more value added activities up the value chain.

So some products that were taxed at SST of 10% to 15% now become cheaper if apply GST as shown in the above prices from RM595 down to RM530.

Some products that were not taxed at all previously will now be more expensive by 6% if apply GST as shown above where prices increase from RM500 to RM530.

Basic staple products at 0% GST remains the price at the same level where in the above scenario, remain at RM500.

All these are hypothetical. In the real world, many businesses jacked up prices well above the impact of GST. Yes, they are very, very irresponsible and may Allah burn their balls in hell.

The GST would have brought in RM40 billion revenues to the Government as opposed to SST that can only bring in RM20 bilion. The difference of RM20 bilion is approximately 8% of Malaysia's annual budget of around RM250 billion.

That is a lot especially when the nation is susceptible to the volatile revenues from oil and gas sources. RM20 billion can certainly contribute a lot to building schools, roads, supply electricity and water or even develop infrastructure such as MRT.

There are many ways that SST is not efficient and easy for people to evade. But I cannot remember those points. We will have to ask experts who were involved in devising GST. GST is supposed to be applied over a wider consumption base as opposed to SST and its mechanism makes it difficult for people to evade taxes.

GST is certainly a more effective and efficient system compared to Income Taxes and Company Taxes as those two are easily prone to tax evasion. Many of the SME businesses in Malaysia lie in their tax returns. How many times have you seen SME business men showing loss making accounts but yet, drive a BMW? I have seen many.

GST makes it possible for those who spend more, pay more taxes and vice versa. It is a method of redistributing wealth by taking away more from the rich and less from the poor.

Based on economics, fiscal policy and fair mix of capitalist and socialist spirit, GST is, in my humble opinion, a better tax regime. It may not solve all of the nation's problems but it can at least buy us the rights for the World Cup football for many years to come, if the Rakyat insists on it.

So, I am hoping that GST will be reconsidered as our nation's consumption tax method. If it cannot be implemented this year, perhaps 61 years from now - apparently, as history dictates, that is a fair expectation to predict the next change of Government.

* kopihangtuah

| mcmlxxv:viii:xxix |

The Aftermath of GE14

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

Therefore, we (citizens of Malaysia) should all assess, in all fairness, the performance of the PH Government in accordance with a set of generally accepted expectations, which should include, but not limited to, areas such as Sound Economic Policies, Robust Governance Structure, Preserving the Spirit of Constitutional Monarchy, Independence of the Judiciary Institution; and The Fair Rights of the People.

COGNITIVE DISSONANCE would be the perfect word for some of the recent Malaysian 14th General Election (GE14) voters whom have decided to switch from the incumbent Barisan National (BN) to the newly elected Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition. Despite the rumours or accusations thrown at the Election Commission of Malaysia (SPR), something must have been done right as the anticipated result did not happen (Continuation of BN as an elected Government). We can be assured of the independence (or perceived independence) of SPR; or perhaps, the tsunami was too strong of an inertia that nothing could have been done out of non-compliance that could have reversed the outcome. Today is 30 May 2018, exactly 21 days subsequent to the GE14 date of 9 May 2018; and many questions arose in the minds of the citizens of Malaysia after witnessing a series of drama produced by PH to date. Have we (Malaysians) voted correctly? This is the "Cognitive Dissonance".

To the PH supporters, this is a very unexpected victory and the sense of independence overwhelms their hearts. It is a joyful moment. It is the mark of a start of a new era. It is a celebration. This euphoria may or may not last long as these very voters will observe the newly elected Government to make sure their checklist is ticked from one manifesto to another. As and when these manifestos are met, they will become more convinced that they have voted correctly. But when expectations are not met, they may feel a swift of confusion and will start to wonder, who else could they have voted for because they would certainly not want to vote BN. At last, an easy and simple conclusion would be that none of the parties are worthy after all.

To the BN supporters who have, at the last minute, switched to PH simply because they wanted to clear the top leadership of BN, they will also wonder whether they have voted correctly. However, they are not concerned with the manifesto of PH. They are waiting to see whether the accusations (primarily on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal) made towards the BN leader (or ex-leader) is indeed true (or not). Of course this will have to wait as numerous investigations are currently happening and God knows what the results would be. The last thing they would want to hear is that he (the BN leader), is innocent - which would mean, they have voted incorrectly. Whatever the result will be, we hope that it is concluded based on the rules of law and that sufficient evidence is obtained. One pervasive expectation that this lot will be having is how BN (or more precisely, United Malay National Organisation (UMNO), the leading component party of BN) will rebuild its stature under the new leadership. If and when the new BN is worthy of remaining in the battle field, they might just get back their lost votes come the 15th General Election (GE15).

Putting aside political inclinations, both PH and BN supporters share a common element, which is, they are all the citizens of Malaysia. They are all with the power to elect, to change, to throw or to reinstate any party or coalition of parties. In this age and era of social media, the power of perception and social influence have never been so powerful before. Even a perceived negativity regardless of its truth, can easily dictate the fate of a political entity. This epitomises the true character of democracy which is, the power of the People. Having said that, it is only fair that both sides give the current Government a chance to prove themselves. After all, it has only been 21 days of governance (so far). Therefore, we (citizens of Malaysia) should all assess, in all fairness, the performance of the PH Government in accordance with a set of generally accepted expectations, which should include, but not limited to, areas such as Sound Economic Policies, Robust Governance Structure, Preserving the Spirit of Constitutional Monarchy, Independence of the Judiciary Institution; and the Fair Rights of the People.

In its manifesto, PH promised to abolish the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Whilst this is a popular approach to make the People happy, a more serious issue needs to be addressed, that is, the state of the nation's financial position. It is understood that Malaysia rely heavily on a few key sources of revenues namely the Income and Corporate Taxes, the Petroleum Industry; and Consumption Tax. We all know that taxes collected from individuals are never going to be enough because the average salary is low and that the probability of tax evasion is highly inherent the current Income and Corporation Tax system. We also know that the price of oil has declined significantly in the past few years wiping a chunk of revenue related to oil and gas - which leaves us with the Consumption Tax.

Prior to the GST, there was the Sales and Service Tax (SST) as a method of Consumption Tax. SST is only applied on a few luxury items at a rate higher than GST (say, 10%) whereas the GST of 6% is low but has a wide range of goods and services. Both taxes are subject to consumption. If you do not consume, you do not pay tax. GST casts a wider net where it attracts more consumption save for key staple products like daily food raw material. The BN Government had resorted to GST to replace the lost of revenue as a result of the Petroleum Industry recession to the tune of RM40 billion per annum. This is a significant portion of an average yearly budget of RM250 billion for Malaysia. It is expected that reapplying SST instead of GST will generate RM20 billion. Therefore, we will be short by RM20 billion. The PH Government needs to come out with a plan to address this RM20 billion and they need to do it fast. There has been some talk of listing Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) to quick fix the state of financial affairs but this I fear, will not prove to be a sustainable approach. GST, thus far, remains as the best approach sustainability wise.

One may wonder how else can the PH Government raise money to fuel their promises, some of which, looks like very cash-burning items. For example, the abolishment of road tolls. The cash collection from the tolls is mainly used for either servicing its debts or incur on-going expenses such as maintenance, salary and the like. The former is capital in nature and once settled, poses no more issues - but settlement will poke a huge hole to the coffers as infrastructure financing goes by the billions. The latter (operational expenditure) is on-going. The toll companies need to be self-sufficient. They need the operational cash flows. Is the Government going to use the tax payers' money to pay this? This would make the toll management akin to a Government civil service unit - a cost centre instead of a business unit.

Having parked the worry at the back of our heads, the set of manifesto by the PH Government is indeed a citizen-friendly one and touches the key sensitive spot in everyone's heart - which is, a better life (lowering cost of living). This includes:

1. the promise to review monopolistic industries such as satellite broadcasting, telecommunication, transportation (eg. Eastern Corridor Rail Line (ECRL) and High Speed Rail (HSR)), supply of rice, supply of medicine, and land development (including Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) and Bandar Malaysia);  

2. the promise to enhance financial strength of the people such as the continuation of the BN originated social financial aid, BR1M, relaxing the repayment of education loans, PTPTN, make available affordable homes for the youth, and petrol subsidies; and  

3. the promise to reform macro and micro economic structures involving petroleum royalty allocation to the oil producing states and fiscal policies to stabilise the Malaysian Ringgit. 

Enough about economics, what about the other aspects of a good Government? So far, we have not seen any significant decisions that can impair the spirit of preserving the Constitutional Monarchy, the independence of the Judiciary Institution; and the fair rights of the People. However, we are seeing some cracks in the new leadership. Having four component parties with different ideologies -  Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Parti Amanah Negara (PAN) - prove to be an uphill challenge to assimilate their expectations into a synchronised one. Within the past 21 days we have seen politicians from PKR claiming that the PH victory was not due to the Prime Minister's lead during GE14. We have also seen strong demands from all component parties insisting their nominations for the cabinet posts. Today, we are also seeing some quarters claiming that the decisions made, so far, were all unilateral decisions by the Prime Minister without the cabinet's decisions. The Rakyat (citizens) might just ask themselves, "So, what happened to the promise of limiting the power of the Prime Minister and also consensus decision among PH component parties?"

Appointing the Prime Minister as the Education Minister (which was, of course, later undone and given to another Member of Parliament) did not put PH in the right footing. In addition, appointing a Finance Minister who is still pending clearance from the courts with regards to the on-going corruption allegations certainly pours oil onto fire. The list goes on and it even includes the u-turn of charges to the ex-Deputy Prime Minister that had released him from a jail term. All these happened on the back of the promise for the Rule of Law! The PH Government must quickly consolidate its position, recalibrate their engines and address the public to abolish worries arising from all the fiasco. The public has now become an unforgiving one - to the extent that they question the appropriateness of the Minister of Defence's use of the army air transportation or the Deputy Prime Minister's use of the Government jet for non-official reasons. Simply put, PH cannot afford to behave like the BN Government (prior to 9 May 2018); or else, we may see another tsunami in GE15 but this time, the opposite direction.

* kopihangtuah

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The Unfair Political Ideology Corruption onto Kids

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

8 MAY 2018 late evening was quite a night to remember. It was the eve of the fourteenth Malaysian General Election (GE14) whereby two Malay political titans went against each other on an unprecedented live delivery of speeches on the television and/or on the social media, particularly on Facebook. Many political analysts have opined that GE14 is a "Social Media" General Election, such that political campaigns are much more effective on social media than on ground, at least when addressing the Millennials.

Dato' Sri Najib Razak, the incumbent Prime Minister from the ruling coalition party, Barisan Nasional (BN), and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the ex-Prime Minister from the opposition coalition party, Pakatan Harapan (PH), gave their speeches in their own style and unmistaken manner. The former stayed close to the need to unify and implement policies that are beneficial to the country and the latter predictably called for all to topple the current ruling Government as he accuses the current Government of various wrong doings (yet to be proven in the courts of law).

Whilst I was listening to both speeches on my two laptops, my son came up to me and asked, "Daddy, can I ask you something about politics?"

I was taken by surprise because my son was only 13 years old. How could he possibly understand anything about politics? I remembered myself being an 18 year old university student when I started to follow politics. On any account, I wouldn't want to corrupt kids with any political agendas. Given that such question was asked, I decided to have the conversation anyway and said, "Ask away son."

"My Chinese friend told me that his mother told him that the current Prime Minister's daddy was responsible for the killings of many Chinese when he was the Prime Minister back then. Is that true?"

I got the shock of my life when I heard that. What irresponsible parent the mother of the kid must be? I could not believe how unfair that was. How could you corrupt the minds of the kids with accusations that have no basis? Many who studied the 13th May 1969 dark event will conclude that the clash between the races was unfortunate but not specifically orchestrated by any parties. In any case, it was so bitter that many also agreed that it shall not be brought up in any inter-racial discussions for the sake of peace and unity. If this one friend of my son has a parent like that, how many more are there around with similar parents?

I looked at my son and said, "Firstly, do not engage yourself in any discussions about politics. Secondly, what is important is that you make friends with everyone regardless of whether they are Malay, Chinese, Indian or any race for that matter. Thirdly, no!, the Prime Minister's daddy was not responsible for the killings! ........ and finally, the next time I am with you at your school, show me your friend's mother. I may have to start giving her history lessons."

Not too long ago, my son's school had a sports day. My wife and I was in attendance to witness the ceremony particularly the opening speech by the Head of the School. To my surprise that had also upset me, the speech contained words such as, "...... soon we will be casting our votes. I therefore urge all parents to vote for the current Government to be displaced with a new one." Now, I looked around but nobody took notice. Maybe because they were too focused with their own gadgets or they are in total agreement. I find this unacceptable. It is a school sports event. Why must there be any speech about politics?

I was (and still am) so upset by this unfair political ideology corruption onto kids. Parents should bury dark inter-racial history away and start cultivating the sense of respect and care into the hearts of our young ones. If we bring with us the remembrance of such vengeance and darkness, we will never be able to eliminate the obstruction force that can destroy any hope for a true assimilation of all races as a single Malaysian identity.

Having experienced all this, which, by the way, not amusing at all, I am now compelled to feel inclined to the idea of abolishing vernacular schools. This is because the dark history our country has is because of the separation of the ethnic groups, be it education wise, geographically, socially or economically. This realisation came from a fair generalisation of the demography of my son's school that has over 90% Chinese students, and obviously, over 90% Chinese parents. It is a private school in an urban area, hence such racial mix was by natural selection of those with superior economic power (Chinese) and not by design - this is understandable. However, vernacular schools are by design - therefore, cannot be allowed to continue - for its continuation will only grow the dark force beyond redemption.

For Malaysia to really mean "Malaysia", we must no longer worry about the colour of our skin nor the blood we carry in our veins. For the record, I have mixed Malay-Indian-Chinese blood and my wife has mixed Malay-Indian-Japanese blood. We are proud of being a Malay but we never want that to reach an arrogant and destructive level - let alone having our kids to be so.

The Birth Mark, an art piece by Jalaini Hassan (below) portrays the essence of the article:

* kopihangtuah

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Arul Kanda Naik Angin Sebab Orang Tak Baca Laporan 1MDB Sepenuhnya

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Part 11

Part 12

Part 13

Part 14

Part 15

Part 16

Part 17

Part 18

Part 19

Part 20

Part 21

Part 22

* kopihangtuah

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Arul Kanda Urai Skandal 1MDB Kepada Rakyat

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

Pada hari Sabtu 28 April 2018 9.00 malam

bertempat di Dataran Mayang Shah Alam

Arul Kanda CEO 1MDB telah menguraikan

satu persatu hal-hal 1MDB seperti berikut:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Part 11

Part 12

Part 13

Kemudian beliau menjawab persoalan-persoalan dari hadirin-hadirat dengan penuh semangat kental.

.....

* kopihangtuah

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The Irresponsible Society

www.kopihangtuah.blogspot.com

SOCIETY as a whole is often generalised by common characteristics that are deemed pervasive whether or not that act of generalisation is fair or not. Such is the nature of society itself to be unforgiving towards itself. Everybody is fine when positive conclusions are made but everybody gets jittery when the bad act of some segments are extrapolated to the entire population.

Last Saturday I encountered two good examples of bad habits that can be easily generalised as our society's shortfall when it comes to their responsibility as the citizens of the country. At the Gegaria festival at Setia Alam Convention Centre, I saw a truck organised by the elections commission, Suruhanjaya Pilihanraya (SPR). In my mind, what a great effort to persuade citizens to be responsible. There was a queue, which is good.

As I see some people walking by, I stopped them, out of curiosity, and asked, "Excuse me Sir/Madam, may I ask why aren't you queing to register as a voter?" To my surprise, I got many "irresponsible" replies. Replies that warrant the generalisation about our society. This irresponsible attitude is apparent across all walks of life be it the different age groups, ethnic groups or any basic demography.

We have people who have turned twenty one but did not register as voters because they felt it is unimportant and a waste of time or even simply with "I do not have the time" type attitude. We have people who have registered but could not be bothered to vote because of the same reasons. We also have people who have conveniently booked their time that clashes with the elections for overseas leisure holidays.

When probed further, these people do have concerns over govermental matters such as taxes, the education system, health matters, public transportation issues, cost of living, income disparity, ethnic tensions, crime rates, public service quality, religion and many more matters that are important and require government intervention.

How on Earth are we, the good citizens of the country, are going to exercise our rights on these matters other than via the power of our votes? Are we going to continue barking on the social media platforms or march down the roads all dressed in one colour be it yellow or red? Are we going to continue embracing this irresponsible attitude and let our children follow our habit, our bad habit (being irresponsible voters)? Especially when the 14th General Election is just around the corner.

The second encounter is the attitude of wanting everything for free. It is as if we are treating other people's generosity as our right (to consume for free). We are not a socialist society. We are a moderate capitalist country. We are the believers of working hard and honestly to rightfully earn income and make our wealth grow. Our economy is the exchange of supply and demand. That social contract (supply vs demand) is sacred. Once we ignore it, we will literally become a society of thieves.

For example, a friend complained "Why is there a lot of advertisements on our national television channels? Why do we have to still pay tolls for the highways? If education is free, I should not even have to contribute via the PIBG (Parents-Teachers associations). Parking should be free. Hospitals are too expensive." The list is long with no ending. I hope these people realise that these matters are also relevant to the issue of being a responsible voter as discussed earlier.

I will not address all of the above but I will talk about television advertisements. The programmes you watch on the Free-to-Air Television (FTA TV) channel such as TV3, are free. You do not have to pay a single Sen. Now imagine, how on Earth will TV3 pay the salaries of their workforce? Those engineers, those cameramen, the TV hosts, the journalists and many more, are also entitled to earn income in this moderate capitalist country like all of you. They too have the rights as the citizens of the country.

There are also other costs such as telecommunication services, commissioning production houses, rental expenses and many more expenditure required of a TV station. How do they (TV stations) pay for these? Will the money fall from the sky? Well, this is why they have money coming from the advertisers. This is why there are advertisements.

What is more saddening, not only we want things for free, we are not alarmed with our habit of consuming pirated products especially those content that can be downloaded or streamed from the pirate sites. By law, this behaviour can be charged as a criminal offence as our country is a member of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (usually known as the Berne Convention, an international agreement governing copyright, which was first accepted in Berne, Switzerland, in 1886).

So are we an irresponsible society?

* kopihangtuah

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