Sweep Away, Kick Away, please!

Finally when someone tries to do something productive for a change, he gets brickbats instead of bouquets! Whatever his underlying intention, Selangor Menteri Besar's broom award is a step in the right direction. Well, maybe it is not in the Malaysian psyche to be publicly 'humiliated' but I believe the individuals involved should look beyond and improve the services rendered instead of making hue and cry in the media!! What more with other parties joining the witch-hunt fray, which includes our sleepy PM for a change...

But after drawing the latest round of flak, he decided to take one step back and two steps forward: to give the boot! Of which I think would be even more effective than the broom!

So congratulations Mr. Toyo...you may not be so toyol after all...but please walk the talk!!! We will all be watching your next move...

SANoT (Some Action, Not-only Talk)

Hmm, have I been proven wrong again? Or is this another General Election smokescreen gimmick? The Anti-Corruption Agency finally waking up? Or will it doze off again? It appears there has been strong enough calls from the public to stir this sloth from its slumber: here we have them making some arrests relating to the Auditor-General reports, some other unrelated arrests and a smattering of prosecution. Of course we have the now famous quote by the ACA Director-General:

“There is no such thing as going after only the small fish and letting off the big ones. We do not discriminate when it comes to such matters.”

Yeah, right...

Or is it just to show that the ACA is finally doing something? Well the mainstream media will use this to the fullest.

Please don't take us for fools. We await the arrests of several senior minsters, UMNO leaders, MCA ex-leaders, local councillors etc. to show your resolve. Until then, only the small fish suffer; the sharks still swim out there, waiting for their next bite!

NATO As Usual

Yeah right...it's all NATO until we see some real arrests and prosecution. The media can spin all the stories they want; we all know it's just staged. Going after the small fry when the real culprits are left unpunished, or worse, free to continue their looting ways. That is why such incidents happen again and again - so much for a efficient civil service.

Come on, even the village idiot will not purchase something for a price he could find cheaper elsewhere, unless there is some obvious benefit to him. If that is the way this country is run, then we are doomed...or are we already? The fact that it is so blatant makes this country the laughing stock of the world; no wonder we are surpassed in every degree by our neighbours.

Well, I would give them the benefit of the doubt, but there's none left. At least we get a cheap C-grade movie out of it. Again, another long sigh...

Windfall Indeed?

Pay rise for civil servants
Civil servants pledge to be responsible and disciplined

Wow! Now that is a huge amount: RM 8 billion a year - the amount needed to fund the salary hike granted by the to 1.2 million civil servants starting from this July. Granted that this has long been in coming, one cannot shrug off that nagging feeling on the government's affordability, and whether such a hike will contribute to a feeling of increasing inflation. It was hoped such a pay rise would lead to increased efficiency and productivity among civil servants as well as reduced levels of corruption but I will not hold my breath. As long as there is no 'get out if you're not functioning' mentality, coupled with an impartial assessment of civil servants' performances, we will continue to experience the current levels of service, albeit with a slight improvement (I hope).

Nik Aziz: Pay rise timed for elections
The public sector deserves raise and Government can afford it now, says PM

Gracious as the move was, one cannot hide from the fact that such a move was ultimately politically motivated, what with the General Elections around the corner. Why wasn't the pay hike approved last year - with increases in petrol, electricity and water tariffs and oil prices at its height? No one can deny such a move now is definitely politically motivated. But of course not something that came out of the blue. The Government was slowly preparing for this - the recent increase in working hours in all Government Departments was an example.

While there is no increase in basic utility and petrol prices this year, one cannot say the same after the General Elections. While we may be able to afford it this year, how is the Government going to fund the increased salaries in the coming years? The world economy is leaving us behind while we bicker about equity percentages in our businesses, delaying approvals for businesses which wish to set up shop in this country, and which of our laboured industries we intend to save. The Malaysian stock market is a laboured entity, pushed and prodded at the whims of foreign investors. There is only one way: the very people that so-called benefits from the salary increase - the people of this country. I expect widespread increases in utility, petrol and toll prices after the elections, maybe not immediately but eventually. And God forbid, a rise in the income tax.

So a windfall indeed? Maybe, but we are going to have to pay...literally, eventually.

As expected...

As expected, civil servants will get a pay rise this year - though the quantum has not been decided yet. Our esteemed Prime Minister say they (the civil servants) deserved it. And while the jury is still out on that particular statement, my own view is that a salary adjustment is long overdue - the last being in 1993 I think - but it would not lead to better productivity or service, nor would it reduce the need for civil servants to have part-time jobs, as some have hoped.

Reason: inflation. Those decision-makers probably need to go and do shopping for themselves at the local wet market, (or hypermarkets for that matter), fill their own petrol tanks, pay their own toll charges, pay their own utility bills or (what the heck!) just eat out at your local coffeeshop/mamak stall for them to realise this. While the pay rise have been hoped to lighten the burden on civil servants, who is to say that this would not lead to further increases in the future? "Hey, last time we increased the petrol price, you say no pay rise - now you should not complain ma..."

And for the ruling government to use this as a gimmick for their election plans - widely anticipated it may be - would only distract the short-sighted and money-minded; larger issues remain ignored and unsolved. While I'm sure this latest gimmick will win the ruling coalition a number of votes and ultimately the coming general election, I'm not so sure that things will remain upbeat after the elections are over...

My crystal ball reads: 'toll and utility increases across the board after the general election' and sad to say, it is hardly wrong...

Another holiday

Today's a holiday, for civil servants at least. We had the inauguration of our new Yang-DiPertuan Agong - hence the off day. Why I am not sure. The banks were closed too; but most of the private sector continued working as usual. Guess the inauguration isn't a big deal after all.

I tried to watch the Inauguration ceremony on TV in the morning...all ten minutes of it. Guess it took way too much time. An watching a lump of maturing cheese on the Internet was way more exciting.

I think I had better luck (and better reason) sleeping the day away. Zzzzzzzzz...

P.S., the cheese part is real: Lump of Cheese

The raise is coming! The raise is coming!

Government offices to open from 7.30am to 5.30pm

Well, this is something new...but I wonder whether it will work wonders for productivity. Judging by experience, no. An extra hour of work is of no difference if you can waltz in 15 minutes late and waltz out 15 minutes early, and spend an extra 15 minutes each for the two 'mandatory' coffee breaks. The work mentality of majority of civil servants have been so entrenched that a little change would not even create a ripple. What we need is a wholesale shake-up, which will not happen even if the cows actually come home.

But I guess this is a government ploy. Why? Because the elections are coming. Because the civil servants want a raise. So there has to be a give and take. Now you 'work' one hour more so we can give you the raise you richly deserve.

Go figure...