Have You Been Complaining / Grumbling?

Since the announcement of the increase in the fuel price of up to 40% together with the increase of 20% in the electricity tariff from 4 June 2008, you could almost find a particular blog posting about it in every single Malaysian blogs.

Many people are now questioning how does the petrol subsidy works. I did some simple analysis and found it amusing too.

What's the meaning of subsidy and it could be explained in the following example by Seventh Rangers:-

Ahmad is a fisherman. He sells a fish to you at $10 which is below the market value of $15. Let's assume that he caught the fish from the abundance of the sea at little or no cost. Ahmad claims that since the market value of the fish is $15 and he sold you the fish for $10, he had subsidised you $5 and therefore made a loss of $5.

Question : Did Ahmad actually make a profit of $10 or loss of $5 which he claimed is the subsidy.

Answer: Ahmad makes a profit of $10 which is the difference of the selling price ($10) minus the cost price ($0 since the fish was caught from the abundance of the sea).
There is no subsidy as claimed by Ahmad.

You get the picture now?

Lastly, did you vote in the last general election that was held on 8 March 2008 that caused a political tsunami?

If you were eligible to vote but didn't vote or not even registered as a voter, would like to remind you that you also have no right to voice out / complain / grumble about all the recent fuel price, electricity tariff, increase in food prices, etc.

Why did I say that? Well, in a way you didn't exercise your right in telling what you wanted on 8 March 2008. So, your voice is being forfeited now till the next general election which is 5 years down the line. Cruel of me to say that to you, right? That's the fact. Mention this to those who did vote and they will agree with me.

Next time, go and vote.

And if you did vote, for whichever party, this is the end result because of your vote and you can shout out your grievances too. Permit granted!

Related post - Is Malaysia's Fuel Price Cheaper?
Tags: Fuel Price, Electricity Tariff, Petrol Subsidy, General Election, Political Tsunami, Voter, Malaysia

Lifetime Beer Supply for a Goal

An Austrian brewery company, Ottakringer Brauerei AG ("OBAG") , in motivating and hoping that it will spur their beer drinking football players, has offered this - lifetime beer supply if you score a goal in the Euro 2008.

The Austrian players must salivating over this extraordinaire support provided by the brewery company. May have a problem though. Every single Austrian players could be rushing towards goal. Does an own goal count?

Ivica Vastic has gotten the supply now since he scored a last minute penalty against Poland last night. Fantastic mate! OBAG's Chief Executive, Sigi Menz, said that he will personally send the first year's supply to the respective players(s). One more game to go against Germany and who else will join Ivica Vastic.

Yeah, only one more as I don't expect them to advance from the group stage. Next time then.
Tags: Ottakringer Brauerei AG, Beer, Lifetime Beer Supply, Sigi Menz, Ivica Vastic, Austria, Euro 2008

Friend's Flat Up For Sale

Friend's flat is up for sale as she's moving out. The said flat is located right behind the Swiss Garden Hotel, at Jalan Pudu. Just 3 minutes walk to the happening place at Bukit Bintang (the street where the government is turning into a shopping haven) and Jalan Alor (varieties of restaurants and hawkers).

It's right at the city centre with bus stops nearby with Pudu Raya within walking distance. Status of the land is freehold (you can verify further on this later).

The home is 1,100 square ft with balconies and comprise 4 bedrooms with 2 bathrooms and 1 toilet. A corner unit on the 1st floor and no maintenance fee is required to be paid (good in terms of rising cost everywhere).

As the home is located right behind the KL police heaquarters it's quite safe.
Selling price - RM260,000 (negotiable)
Tags: Flat For Sale, Kuala Lumpur, Swiss Garden Hotel, Jalan Pudu, Bukit Bintang

Predictions for Euro 2008

One of my colleagues said this "How come there are no predictions for this Euro 2008?". I did my predictions for the last World Cup 2006 while I was stucked in Sudan then. Have you been reading my blog all this while?

Here goes ............... after watching all the teams playing one match each:-
Group A - Normally the host country do stand a chance to progress to the next round but it won't be this time for the unfortunate Switzerland. Not ending up at the last place is already a good account for the team.

Turkey's qualification is not a fluke and the country has been performing well internationally since their superb World Cup 2002 third placing. That was history. Now, it's a different ball game.

My bet is on both Portugal and Czech Republic. Not because Portugal has two Man United players but Cristiano Ronaldo will make a difference in the team as he's on a stampede now. If Portugal is able to pull themselves together with this young and matured team, they will top the group. Last four within their range?

Meanwhile, Czech Republic will have to beat Turkey to grab the second spot. Losing Tomas Rosicky to injury and with Pavel Nedved, a good playmaker, not being selected this time will hamper their run in.

Group B - Austria, a team that last qualified for a major football tournament was way back in the World Cup 1982 held in Spain. That was my first World Cup on seen on TV. They are in this tournament owing to them being one of the host. So, mediocre teams still could play in a major tournament by hosting it ............ hehe

Poland's tall and well-built players will be a good advantage for them but they lacked top class players in their side.

Croatia, did well to disappoint many english football fans, will be a team to watch. They could be a tournament dark horse just like what Greece did in Euro 2004. They should grab the second spot in the group.

Germany, always strong with their team tacticals and strategies, will once again pose as a strong challenger to qualify for the finals. To top their group and advance all the way to the last four, possibly the finals.

Group C - Wow, on the night of selecting which four countries were to be placed in this group, I'm sure that the head coach would have suffered a heart attack. Even though the name of Romania may not ring a bell to many non-football fans, they are still packed with many good football players but alas their group is packed with three other better teams. Chances of qualifying for the quarter-finals is actually quite dim unless they produce shocking results.

France is in the midst of many adjustments with reliance on a number of veteran players. Veteran players' fitness are a doubt there. The younger batch of players do not seem to have enough big stage experience. I would say lacking the required punch.

Italy's defence is always their stronghold but losing Fabio Cannavaro, the team captain and main centreback, would hamper their football campaign here. Hopefully they get to drink the winner's champagne in the end but it's quite a big hope indeed. Qualifying as a second placed team is a bonus with France giving a strong challenge.

Netherlands or still being referred to as Holland, always a favourite in whichever major tournament owing to the superstars in their ranks. Sadly, after witnessing the trio of van Basten, Gullit and Rikjaard dominating Euro 1988, we have not seen another Holland team of such calibre. Somehow, this team could change the scenario with an equally strong players in all positions. Last four candidate too?

Group D - What's the chances of the defending champions in this tournament? As Greece has been placed in this group, I would rate their chances being nil. Haven't been impressive in their qualifying rounds. I could see many veteran players still in the team and they are not young anymore. Their role could just be the spoiler in this group, causing one of the other three teams to miss the quarter-finals.

Sweden has to rely on the old Henrik Larsson again? Knew that he did quite well in his brief spell with Man United but this is a tournament where you need to be at your peak. Most of their players are overseas based and heavy football seasons may cause fatigue on their older in age players, thus under-perform.

I do not know why I had a feeling that Russia could still qualify after being thumped by Spain. They just have the right kind of players, young and hungry for football success. Having a Russian team that had just won the UEFA Cup last month does provide a positive boost for Russian football. One of those days that their team is being rated on the high side.

No doubt that Spain will qualify from this group unless they commit suicide on their own. In all the previous major tournaments, I have always ranked them highly. Reason was because in each of the tournament, their team was always packed with superb players. Same goes with this team. Who would dare to turn their eyes away from a strikeforce comprising Fernando Torres, David Villa with Fabregas, Xavi and Iniesta giving full support just right behind the duo. Definitely a last four candidate.

So much for my predictions.
Tags: Euro 2008, Euro 2008 Predictions, Football Predictions, Football, Soccer, UEFA, Austria, Switzerland

Process in Obtaining Rebates for Car Owners

In order to get the rebates in view of the recent increase in fuel prices, car owners have to go to the post offices to fill up a form. I repeat - CAR OWNERS themselves!

I have been getting my general insurance agent to renew my car insurance / road tax all these years and now I have to do it myself for the road tax otherwise I can't get my rebate. Isn't this step causing lots of inconvenience for all the citizens.

Wasted time driving to the nearest post office, look for a car park, take a number and wait for your turn in the post office, processing of road tax, drive back to home. Ain't this a terrible inconvenience.

According to the guidelines provided, the post office personnel will have to check on your eligibility in applying for the rebate. Thereafter, a thumbprint is required on the said document. Will wait and see whether cash is paid on the spot or postal orders will be given as mentioned earlier.

In Step 5 of the process, the post office personnel is to verify the thumbprint. How are they to verify that I'm the right owner for the car just with that thumbprint? Do they have a full set of database of thumprints for all car owners in Malaysia?

Please note that there is one BIG CATCH which has not been mentioned anywhere in the mainstream media. Those car owners who renewed their road tax for 6 months period WILL NOT get the rebate. You have to renew your road tax for a full year in order to qualify for the rebate.

This is another inconvenience created for the Malaysian citizens who may want to pay their road tax semi-annually in view of their respective financial situation. At the front end, the announcement of the rebates for all car owners seems to be a good offer by the government to offset against the hike in fuel price. But now, red tapes along the way are going to prevent many from getting their rebates.

I wonder who will we bump into at the post offices since all Tuns, Tan Sris, Datuks, Cabinet Ministers and billionaire tycoons will have to be present for the thumbprints.

Good luck to all car owners and if you have renewed your road tax from 14 June 2008 onwards, please enlighten us on the full process.

Related post - Rebates for Car Owners
Tags: Road Tax, Subsidi Petrol, Petrol Subsidy, Lesen Kenderaan Motor, Car Owner, Pos Malaysia, Post Office

Sudanese Airplane Burst into Flame

A Sudan Airways plane (an Airbus A310 model) burst into flames upon landing at Khartoum airport. There were claims that it didn't crash land but somehow caught fire on its right wing which spread on.

When you look into the picture here, the plan was split into two already. A normal fire couldn't split a plane into two unless some big impact caused it, either it had crash landed or a major explosion.

From various websites, it was mentioned that only 28 persons have perished and another 66 missing out of a total of 217 passengers.

During my stay in Sudan for two years plus, only one small incident happened where the affected plane overshot the runway.

From the police chief's mouth, it was mentioned that due to bad weather caused by sandstorm, the plane crash landed. The bad weather mentioned by the police chief could be due to the visibility caused by a sandstorm hitting the capital city yesterday.

If you are wondering how bad a sandstorm is, on two occasions, colleagues of mine were quick enough to take some pictures here and here while we were running into our cars to escape the sandstorms.

During my stay there, a colleague related his travelling incident with the same airline. He boarded the airplane in Port Sudan and supposed to fly back to Khartoum, the capital city. Lots of people have boarded the plane but when it comes to the departure time, the airplane didn't move.

The pilot was not to be seen too. Something with the airplane that he dare not come? Later the passengers saw him boarding after a loooooooooooooooooooong wait. Found out that he went to see a football match involving the Sudan football national team. The football players were supposed to board the same flight back to Khartoum and the rest of the passengers have to wait for them to arrive. That's their kind of service.

Reading: Many killed in Sudan jet blaze - Al Jazeera

Related posts:-
* SANDSTORM !!!!
* Another Big Sandstorm
Tags: Sudan, Khartoum, Sudan Airways, Airbus A310, Crash Land, Sandstorm

18,000 Brought to Prisons in 11 Days

Bangladesh created an all time world record for pulling in 18,000 persons into prisons countrywide in a space of 11 days beginning from 28 May 2008. Reason given was to ensure safe communities in view of the upcoming general election to be held in December 2008.

Totally dictatorial situation in Bangladesh. No democracy at all even though it was supposed to be one. Human rights organisations such as the Human Rights Watch and Democracy Watch said that such arrests have no basis and it was political driven. The situation started when two major political parties, Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, decided not to co-operate with the military-backed caretaker government in the upcoming general election.

The two political parties said that those arrested by the caretaker government were in fact their members. In applying the Emergency Powers Rules, it allowed the caretaker government to make the necessary arrests without police warrants and place the person in prison till the caretaker government felt it is right timing to release them.

But the caretaker government said that those arrested were actually criminals. Wow, that's certainly highly efficient on the part of the Bangladesh police. They would be the best police team in the whole wide world with such arrest ratio in eleven days.

The Malaysian police contingent has lots to learn from their Bangladeshi counterpart.

Scotland Yard would be sending a team to Bangladesh to learn a trick or two from the police force in capturing so many criminals without any of the criminals being tipped off on the police actions.

All this sounds like those disputed arrests under my government's Internal Security Act ("ISA") where people held under the ISA were detained without trials and released upon the government's approval and not the courts. Under ISA rulings, as long as the government felt that they have enough suspicions of you, they could place you under ISA detention for a minimum two years.

Reading: 18,000 held in Bangladesh 'political crackdown' - CNN Asia

Last but not least, I really wonder whether Bangladesh has enough prison cells to fit in the 18,000 human beings. Or how many human beings are being squeezed into one cell?
Tags: Prison, Jail, Lock Up, Bangladesh, Political Crackdown, Awami League, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Human Rights Watch, Democracy Watch