What a maid-ful of problems

The ban by the Indonesian government to ‘export’ its maids to work in Malaysia seems to have put many families in a quandary as if they cannot live without them. The ban which is being triggered by the many reports of maid abuses by the employers has lased out a cry for justice by our Indonesian counterpart.

While we cannot deny that there are indeed cases of maid abuses, there are also many cases whereby the maids are causing havoc to the employers’ families with some in the brink of breaking-up. There have been many reported cases of thefts, violent abuses against children and the elderly which are equally inhumane committed by the maids. And the most shocking is the resorting to the use of hocus-pocus by some maids to cast spells on the employers by cooking foods with panties that are tainted with menstrual blood!

Despite these incidents, why then are some people seemed so helpless without them? How can the parents go to work with a piece of mind by leaving the children under the care of a total ‘stranger’ in the house? Can’t they talk to the in-laws, sisters, relatives or friends to look after the children (with salary of course)? Why can’t they seek the services of the many local babysitters or daycare centers in their vicinity?

The main reason given by the working families is the essence of time. Because they are working, they do not have the luxury of time to do household chores and by the time they got home, most probably they would be sapped of energy. Although I do agree this reasoning in general, my concern is still the well-being and safety of the children, which should be of paramount importance above all else. As for the household work, I suggest they get a local who can be engaged on a one or two day per week work basis.

Another reason which is not usually revealed is the fundamental use of economic: ROI (return of investment).

With the same amount of money paid to the local babysitter, one can use the maid to baby-sit and do all the household chores like washing clothes, car and cooking. And once the maid has finished the house work, she will be taken to the shop for further work which most probably will save the employer another worker’s salary. In some instances, the maid is even 'loaned' to the employer's siblings or relatives. With such a wonderful ‘product’ that is of multiple uses, reusable and transferable, it is any wonder why they are in great demand?

When one is confronted with constraints, where options are limited and pushed to a corner, then one needs to change and adapt to survive either in politics or business.

And in this case, adapt and change to solve this maid-ful of problems.

New kid in cyberspace

Just as we thought that the cyberspace is already crowded with too many news portals and out came a newly launched one: www. malaysianmirror.com

It certainly takes a lot of courage for the entrepreneurs to venture into such a competitive industry. To dispel the notion by the viewers as just another ‘me too’ product will indeed be a great challenge for the profitability of the company. Anyway, when so much of efforts and money have been poured in, I am sure the company must have solid plans ahead. Maybe they will go into a niche market where no one dares to venture and be different from the others.

When the mainstream medias are under the control of political parties, do you expect to get a fair reporting where truths and fairness prevail? For far too often we have come across news that are distorted to suit the political masters and truths that are half-told. In some instances, one newspaper is allowed to publish news that are seditious and detrimental to racial harmony with impunity.

And when explosive scandals that seem to involve some people with political connects, such news are either censored or swept under the carpet.

In this age of cyber era where the source for information is unlimited and uncensored, a solid platform is available for the people to seek the truths and issues can become clearer from the murkiness of our local reporting.

My philosophy for explosive news is as such: Believe 50% in the local mainstream medias and the other 50% from the cyber medias. I will do an analysis from the facts and figures from both sources and then conclude my own judgment, which normally do not disappoint me.

The wrongdoers can run away from facts but they cannot run away from the truths.

And truths kill.

The wise man is in town

1) The eight-day visit of Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew to Malaysia must have brought many nostalgic memories since his last visit decades ago. Singapore, under the stewardship of LKY has indeed come a long way since independence in 1965. With a land area of only 274.2 sq.m which is almost barren in natural resources, it has become the 5th wealthiest nation in the world in terms of GDP per capita. It is the foresight and the wisdom of LKY that he managed to achieve this miracle. Hence, like a superstar in town, everybody( except Mahathir) would like to be photographed with him.

2) A wise man makes friends, not enemies. It is better to have one more friend than to have one more enemy. With this wisdom in mind, LKY has been calling on all political leaders during his visit: Umno, MCA, Gerakan, DAP and even PAS. With the extension of such friendships, LKY hopes that any bilateral issues between the two countries can be resolved amicably.

3) During the ancient times in China, the concubines of the Emperor played an extremely influential role in the decisions making of the Emperor. Whether it is this wisdom or otherwise, LKY called on Rosmah because he had been told that she and her husband worked as a team and it was necessary for him to understand both members of the team.

4) In the areas of economic cooperation in the Iskandar economic corridor and the building
of the third bridge, LKY has stressed that decisions on cooperation has to be long-termed and cannot be cooperation today, non-cooperation next year and then back again, backwards and forwards. Imagine the embarrassment caused, if LKY were to say it blantly:"Please do not flip-flop in your decisions. I have heard enough of it."

5) Mahathir has mentioned that he sees no reasons for LKY to see him in an almost sarcastic manner. Many of us, maybe LKY too, just do not know the reasons why Mahathir has shown so much displeasure against Singapore. Could it be that there are still some unsettle personal scores while he was studying medicine in Singapore or it is just plain jealousy of what Singapore has achieved under the wisdom of LKY?
Maybe, when the time is up for Mahathir to go, he will let God know.


Related posts: Only fools do not follow:I
Only fools do not follow: II

Malaysia, what is the problem?

-->The debate over the teaching of English should never be an issue

For us to move forward the language must be pursued

Without a pass and grammar lessons, the quality certainly needs constant reviews

Or else, those scrolls will be treated just like another tissue

When buildings can collapse so easily

It is obvious for all to see that something must be fishy

To get things done, one needs to give some candies

Do not be surprised when there are more collapses with untold calamities

We were once a sporting nation that used to play soccer like a tiger

What we are seeing now are some glimmers that usually end with a whimper

When millions are already spent, how many champions are there for us to pamper?

And with so many failures, shouldn't those shameless seat warmers be goners?

Our transport system is plague with a never ending story heading to nowhere

Ticket touts here and there, traffic jams seem to be everywhere

Taxi drivers blatantly overcharging do not give a damn and just do not care

Are the authorities so helpless to act as if they do not even dare?

MACC, I see you see, do not be a folly

Show you bravery to nab those regardless of the identity

Through sports and unity

We can bring the country back to its glory

Back to square one?

-->

So the ulamaks have won in the just concluded Pas party election and which has set the political pundits’ tongues wagging with regards to the topic of political cooperation with its arc enemy, Umno.

While Pas has been steadily rising as a political force and appears to be able to replace Umno as the dominant party in the country, the logical question that everyone would want to know is: Why is the party President and his Deputy seem so keen to cooperate with Umno which is on the decline politically? Are there any plans or agendas which even the party’s spiritual leader Tok Guru Nik Aziz and its political allies in PR do not know?

If Pas is indeed pursuing to go ahead with its plan to cooperate with Umno, despite the outcry of PR supporters, then it will change the political landscape. There is no way that DAP and PKR will allow one of its coalition partners to cooperate with the political enemy.Thus, Pas will either have to stop the unity talk or be expelled from PR. In fact the war of words have already started among the component parties of PR, which must be to the delight of Umno.

If Pas were to join Umno, it will create a lot of unnecessary tension among the other parties in BN. Hence, Pas will be left to fight the political front mainly on its own. Perhaps, it will strategically plan and cooperate with Umno in the next GE which Umno will maximize this advantage to the fullest to regain the support of the Malays. We will again see and hear the rhetoric of racial issues which we all detest: pendatang , ketuanan Melayu, NEP and religion. Ultimately, Umno will gain the most from such cooperation and Pas will need to relearn its political history.

In the meantime, while we wait for the next GE, we need to prepare ourselves mentally to live through the political hell of racism again.

It is in the next GE, where there are many more millions of young new voters who are educated and cybermedia savvy and are able to differentiate between the rights from wrongs, truths from lies that the future of this country depends on.

Let them move this country forward.