First Burial in my Family

Ideas For Harapan Fund

When I heard the formation of Harapan Fund, I thought it must be a joke. It would take a lot from Malaysians to even get to RM1bn, and we are talking of RM1,000bn here. After mulling for a while, I think its a splendid idea:

a) we need to stop any other fake funds from duping the public for the same cause

b) no matter how little each of us contribute, we need to feel we have the same vision and hope to "right" the government finances

c) if we say, my one contribution will not matter... thats the same as saying my one vote won't matter ... it is our every "one vote" that carried democracy and brought about a change in government in spite of outrageous gerrymandering and other obstacles stacked against us

d) we are reminded of the great outpouring of support by the South Koreans during their financial crisis... they netted over US$2bn... its not the sum, its the solidarity


There was a cunning snippet suggesting that each TanSri contribute RM10m, and each Datuk RM1m each.  I would go further and suggest that all official billionaires in Malaysia contribute RM100m.


We can make this a joyful task. Some F&B outlet has started already. Do a promotion... if you eat at XYZ, the outlet will contribute RM1 for each patron to the fund. Malindo has started a similar scheme for 3 months, RM1 for every passenger.

Marathons and half marathons should be sponsored for the Harapan Fund cause. When we have dinners/reunions/birthdays, do a special round of fund raising for Harapan Fund.

I am thinking of roping a few to shave our heads bald. If each person can get 100 sponsors RM10-100, its a fun way to raise funds.

Let's all try and make this a merry, muhibbah event.

Should We Buy "Tainted" Counters

There's basically no better way to describe these counters. Tainted might be least offensive word. To all investors, again many will go back to the crudest, simplest form of decision making - anchor and adjust. We anchor on what we know, and adjust for new information.

Hence something that was 3.60 before the election and now stands at 1.60 looks mighty tempting. But we also know the new paradigm will also means that to get back to the 3.60 is almost inconceivable.

Glory to the risk takers. These counters will have a lot of volatility, downs and rebounds. Rumours and newsflow will be flying like fake news in a thunderstorm of hope and lies. Day traders and prop traders will love these counters, hence beware of getting caught by them.


What Might Happen To Them

- These counters while tainted, are not like BN appointees whom you can just fire. If they are found to be in cohorts with previous government in doing "illegal activities" such as: collusion, bid rigging, over pricing, rebates, unjustified commissions, bribery, circumventing laws or approval processes, cosy monopolies, highly preferential awardment of contracts, etc. Hence construction firms, if hit, will be gravely affected owing to the large sized contracts and.or dependence on certain personalities/unit. The trouble with construction firms is that there is little in ways of differentiation. Most can do most type of construction. Unless you have specific expertise (deep tunneling etc..).. the more you will be at the mercy of the new paradigm.

- There are some counters that have a decent business model going. Even if they were tainted, the business might still be good. To that end, there will be no need to reinvent the wheel, but if the owners are not deemed as "suitable owners" going forward, one sense that these counters may be "persuaded" to sell to a GLC. However, let's not kid ourselves, the price won't be fair or high.


Conclusion

I will stay away from tainted counters till there is a firm hint of change in ownership. Otherwise if you must, treat them as quick punts... and be good at trading.

Spongebobs, Parasites & Leeches

Senior Corporate / Investment Pros / Company Owners ..

I Hate

Its funny how many times investment pros get asked to do a deal on a contingent basis - i.e. only get paid if the deal gets done. I wonder what would our parents think when we tell them that we work on a contingency basis, after they have spent their life time savings sending us to college. What is this mentality, this contingent mentality - it happens way too often in Asia, not so much in First world countries. Our brains do not matter, effort does not matter, only success?? 

Why the aversion from commitment fee, engagement fee, out of pocket expenses?? You go and try to get some US investment bankers on a contingency deal - they'd laugh at you. Are some people not worth a salary? When you take advantage of people like the situations cited above, you are a parasite and a leech - you suck people dry, you will not share till you've got your share, you will be rich though but not many will cherish your time on earth.

Another prime example of sponging off people are usually the very senior corporate people, they will "pick your brains" for ideas, insights, opinions, analysis of situations, corporate deals, business developments, industry turning points, etc.. Somehow, these people think it is absolutely OK to engage others to suck their ideas, sponge on their brain power and take credit for them. I know of so many hedge/ fund managers who will listen to your picks, buys them, make tons, and never bother to return the favour via stock orders or a call. Many senior investment pros and senior management people feel it is part of their "ability" to cultivate these various pots of honey to suck them dry occasionally to help them protect their position. Its like high school all over during the exams, and the brats are still looking over to copy your work (and doing so much better than you).

Don't get me wrong, it is OK to exchange ideas among friends (genuine friends). It is also important to let the other person know what your motives are upfront. It is also important to have the graciousness to acknowledge your sources, and where possible, to repay them back in kind or even materially. How many of us do that? It is exactly similar to those people who will ask a doctor at a social setting about how to treat their medical condition - so what has changed that makes it OK not having to pay for professional advice, just because we are at Starbucks??

Too many investment pros and senior corporate management people regard a conversation or a Q&A session with another professional as just a conversation - while a lawyer can charge tons per hour for the same service. Don't be a parasite or a leech, it is a pure reflection on your character, unless you are the manipulative sort of character (who would do very well in the corporate world anyway)... give proper due and recognition to professional comments, analysis, opinions... (unless they are voluntary in the form of blogs like mine). Always be upfront, "I need to hear you views on... if you don't mind ... but stop me if I am overstepping the line..." .... "Thanks, I appreciate your time, is there anyway I could repay you ..." .... "Hey, I made xxx for taking your advice, I hope you will accept this US$200,000 check from me" .....

If you are a corporate parasite or an investment leech, and see nothing wrong with it cause it helps you get to where you are - cheers, and go lick your own balls cause you can (no backbone). Riches, fame and power will never compensate for lack of character, integrity and fair mindedness.

I am now branded a Bad Monster Mother

My youngest daughter Arliza today said that my recent divorce and my eldest daughter getting married without informing me was due to my fault of being a bad mother so that is my karma.

Arliza worship my ex-husband and her sister because they spoil and give in to her whim and fancy.

Me, I am the monster who tells her not to sleep too much, demands that she helps out with housework, take in the clothes, wash the plates, sit down like a lady and not like a trishaw puller, reminding her all the time not to come back late from any outings. For someone who stays in UM, I am supposed to keep a room just for her as all her friends have their own room.  Her friends’ mothers give them pocket money, a car to use, buy them latest phone, no need to do house work, mother never nag or scold etc.  Arliza always compare me to her friends’ mother.

Recently Arliza complaint I don’t even know her favourite food.  Arliza forgets that even if I cook her favourite she does not eat them because she has a habit of eating outside food.  To her my food is not up to her standard as my vegetables are home grown and chicken are reared by me.

To Arliza, I do nothing at home and should go out to work instead.

Today, children are indoctrinated with materialistic value, selfishness and disrespect for their parents.  Even though my children are taught to help out around the house most of them do not do it once they go to University. We were once a close knitted family but then things began to change when the different socialization practices by peers and friends have more influence on them.  Hence I am mocked as a monster kafir mother.

Arliza, I would like to know who gave birth and took care of you for 23 years.  Did you know when I was physically sick of being mother and father even though I had a husband then?  Did you know how I felt when I was blamed for your so called father’s heart attack and had to close the restaurant business? Have you ever asked me how I spent my day?  Have you bothered to ask why I had stopped buying Raya clothes for myself for the past 10 years? Did you know I had spine problem for 33 years? Do you know what kind of food I love to eat?  You have the luxury of driving a car and a friend to drive you around.  Me I only got the public transport. Does the house auto clean by itself?  I can go on and on and your answer will be the same.  

I AM A BAD MONSTER MOTHER WHO DOES NOTHING AT HOME.

I voted for a change

I am very, very concern with Mahathir and Kak Wan latest action of accepting UMNO into PH.  Before GE14, PH was strongly against UMNO members’ way of running the country to the ground.

Now PH are laying the red carpets for UMNO to join PH.

If DAP were to take in MCA members and make them Ministers or Deputy Ministers, would people like Mahathir, Daim and Kak Wan give in to such action.

What about the feeling of existing members in the PH coalition?  Why are the members not given a chance to be Ministers or Deputy?  Why give it to ex UMNO members.

I believe Pribumi is going back to its old way and will turn PH into the UMNO Baru style of running this nation.  This is very sad.  As a voter who fight for change, I am getting the old garbage bags again and this is what concern me the most. Corrupted leaders in UMNO are given a chance to screw us again.

So far no action are taken against people like Abu Kassim, Gani Patail and certain ex Judges, instead there is the excuse of needing them.  This kind of excuse is simply BULL SHIT. Malaysia has a population of 34 million, surely there are handful of better men and women who can replace Abu Kassim, Gani Patail etc.

BTN, Jakim, Jawi, Tahfiz schools all should be shut down immediately. 

Why is there a need to have another religious school in Pantai Dalam?  What the heck is PH going back to its words of putting religion into our lives.  Malaysians are already being screwed left right and center with religion.  Let religion be confine within our own homes.  NO MORE RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS.  Malaysians want and demand for schools with no religion and racism taught or implemented in anyway.  Our children should be taught as Malaysian with no division.

MAHATHIR AND DAIM SHOULD GIVE OTHERS A CHANCE TO BE MINISTERS AND DEPUTY MINISTERS.

Malaysians are looking for Great Attitude not crooks from the past and butt lickers.

Clair de Lune

If ever there was a song or a piece of music that deserves its own special posting, it has to be Clair de Lune. You cannot even call it a song as that seems to be belittling the music. Yes, it has to be called that masterpiece composition by Claude Debussy.

If you ever needed to find solace, calmness and one with the world, just listen to Clair de Lune, possibly my favourite piece of music ever, and I am sure many of you feel the same.

If ever I were to get lost on an island for years, and I can only have one piece of music... this would be it.

Listening to Clair de Lune kind of makes me feel that all people of the earth are so alike. I don't think anyone on earth do not feel the same when they listen to this song ~ any race, any nationality, any political affiliation, any religious group, everyone ~ we all feel the same kind of wonderment and will be moved by it. Coincidence or the humanity of it all.

Translated, its called Moonlight, named after Paul Verlaine's poem of the same name. For such a wonderful piece of music, I tried to locate the movies which have used the piece of music. To my horror and to Debussy as well, many do not do justice by parading the music alongside so-so movies with even blander plots.

Topping the list of horrors has to be using Claire de Lune in Twilight, of course. There are many movies including Ocean's Eleven & Ocean's Thirteen, Seven Years in Tibet, Atonement, Man On Fire, The Darjeeling Limited, Ficció, El próximo oriente, The First Day of My Life, The Right Stuff, Antonieta, Casino Royale, Gran Turismo 4, The Game, Mùi du du xanh - L'odeur de la papaye verte (aka The Scent of Green Papaya), Tôkyô Sonata, Valley of Abraham,Bloodsport 3 (OMG), Castaway, Dog Soldiers, ... I must have missed some somewhere.

Movies that feature the music appropriately: Tokyo Sonata, Castaway and The Right Stuff. But the best movie has to be Frankie & Johnny, starring Al Pacino and the wonderful Michelle Pfieffer. The movie was way under-rated, the story enchanting and the acting was amazing. The song was waaayyyy appropriate. In fact, I thought the entire plot and movie was made so that they could feature the song towards the last 15 minutes of the movie.



Anthony Tobin 2007, piano solo.

The tough task here is selecting which of the four versions you like best. They are all wonderful. I think for this piece, less is more, I love David's version best.



David Oistrakh plays beautifully, recorded in Paris, 1962, with Frida Bauer on piano.


John Williams & Julian Bream


Julian Lloyd Webber with his cello and full orchestral accompaniment.

Malaysia's Debt - Deconstructed

Nobody is spooking anyone by revealing the level of debt the country is facing. Before we can properly address the debt, we have to be honest and come clean. No point pussyfooting here. Some said that that jolted the markets. While the stock market is an important aspect for a open trading country like Malaysia, volatility in the market cannot be minimised at the expense of the greater good. I believe most Malaysians would not mind suffering over the short term as long as the good of the country is being prioritised.


There are rules in placed where federal government’s debt-to-GDP ratio should be lower than the 55% self-imposed debt limit. If the previous government deliberately misled or went over that limit, as it appears to be so, there should be "censures" and a deliberation on possible legal consequences for the mismanagement and misinformation.

(not trying to trivialise the matter, but have a look at our current standing among the rest of the world, while I balked at 80% of GDP figure, it is nowhere near critical or unmanageable)

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng put the ratio at 80.3% of GDP, or about RM1.09 trillion in debt as at end-2017. There are just too much off balance sheet items. Not all of the debt is bad. The majority based on viable and economically beneficial projects. Nonetheless, you don't want to be servicing RM70b a year in interest year in year out (assuming an estimate of 6%p.a.).

One, must reduce the overall commitments. 

$Hypothetically - Plugging leakages, eliminating wastage, better revenue collection ~ RM30b.

$Renegotiation or cancellation of certain big projects ~ RM100bn

$Reclaiming Stolen Funds/Assets - Again, the figures could be fluid ~ RM20bn.

Listing of Petronas - This is a brilliant idea. Last year's profit was RM45bn. Using 20x = RM900bn market cap. Government sells 25% = RM225bn. Although I am against selling vital resources, but we can get local funds to take up 7%, and let retailers to take up another 3%. The company pays decent dividends. When our country's balance sheet is better, we may even consider buying back and taking Petronas private later on. ~ RM225bn

$ indicates plausible figures, that may vary substantially, one way or another; nonetheless, these are all "positive" newsflow to come in the months ahead. The new government is right to get all the bad news out first. Then only we know what we are dealing with. So far, the figures are not good but in my view, much more manageable, and trust me when I say it could have been a lot worse.

 (the key is to look at the colour representing each country)

There are plenty of ways to raise funds, some of the less popular ones include a temporary tax on palm oil and log exports. Reintroduction of SST. 

Basically, a country has just 3 ways to raise funds: Taxation, Borrowing and Printing of money. Without going into details, none of the 3 can be considered as options as things stand now.

EPF/KWAP - The best "net cash flow" entity in the country are EPF, KWAP and the like. EPF alone has about RM800bn in investible funds and that figure has a net growth in contributions alone of around RM15bn a year. If you factor in the compounded growth rate from returns, it should be a RM1 trillion vehicle in 2-3 years.

As things stand, EPF already has a problem finding sufficient investible local currency assets. There are a lot of companies under Ministry of Finance.

To date, MOF (Inc.) holds direct majority shareholding in 66 companies as below:

MOF (Inc.) Majority Shareholding Companies
#	Company
	MAJORITY
1.	1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB)
2.	Amanah Raya Berhad (ARB)
3.	Astronautic Technology (M) Sdn Bhd (ATSB)
4.	Bank Pembangunan Malaysia Berhad
5.	Bank Pertanian Malaysia (Agrobank)
6.	Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd
7.	Cyberview Sdn Bhd
8.	Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad (EXIM Bank)
9.	FELCRA Berhad
10.	Halal Industry Development Corporation Sdn Bhd (HDC)
11.	IJN Holdings Sdn Bhd
12.	Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd (IWK)
13.	Inno Bio Ventures Sdn Bhd (IBV)
14.	Institut Terjemahan dan Buku Malaysia Bhd (ITBM)
15.	Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd (JKSB)
16.	JKP Sdn Bhd
17.	Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB)
18.	Khazanah Nasional Berhad
19.	Kumpulan Modal Perdana Sdn Bhd (KMP)
20.	Malaysia Debt Ventures Berhad (MDV)
21.	Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation Sdn Bhd (MDeC)
22.	Malaysia Kuwaiti Investment Corporation Sdn Bhd (MKIC)
23.	Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd
24.	Malaysian Bioeconomy Development Corporation Sdn Bhd
25.	Malaysian Venture Capital Management Bhd (MAVCAP)
26.	Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT)
27.	MIMOS Berhad
28.	MyCreative Ventures Sdn. Bhd.
29.	MyHSR Corporation Sdn Bhd
30.	Pembinaan BLT Sdn Bhd (PBLT)
31.	Pengurusan Aset Air Berhad (PAAB)
32.	Perbadanan Nasional Berhad (PNS)
33.	Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS)
34.	Prasarana Malaysia Berhad
35.	Prokhas Sdn Bhd
36.	Rangkaian Hotel Seri Malaysia Sdn Bhd
37.	Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd
38.	Sepang International Circuit Sdn Bhd (SIC)
39.	SIRIM Berhad
40.	Small Medium Enterprise Development Bank Malaysia Berhad (SME Bank)
41.	SRC International Sdn Bhd
42.	Suria Strategic Energy Resources Sdn Bhd
43.	Syarikat Perumahan Negara Bhd (SPNB)
44.	Technology Park Malaysia Corporation Sdn Bhd (TPM)
45.	UDA Holdings Bhd
	MAJORITI – SPECIAL PURPOSE VEHICLE (SPV)
46.	1Malaysia Sukuk Global Berhad
47.	AES Solutions Sdn Bhd
48.	Aset Tanah Nasional Bhd
49.	Assets Global Network Sdn Bhd
50.	DanaInfra Nasional Berhad
51.	East Coast Rail Link Sdn Bhd
52.	GovCo Holdings Berhad
53.	K.L. International Airport Bhd (KLIAB)
54.	Malaysia Development Holding Sdn Bhd
55.	Malaysian Sovereign Sukuk Sdn Bhd
56.	Pembinaan PFI Sdn Bhd
57.	Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Berhad
58.	Perwaja Terengganu Sdn Bhd
59.	Piramid Pertama Sdn Bhd
60.	Pyrotechnical Managers Holding Sdn Bhd
61.	SDE Solutions Sdn Bhd
62.	Syarikat Jaminan Kredit Perumahan Berhad
63.	Syarikat Jaminan Pembiayaan Perniagaan Berhad
64.	Syarikat Tanah & Harta Sdn Bhd
65.	Turus Pesawat Sdn Bhd
66.	Wakala Global Sukuk Berhad

  Subsidiaries owned by MOF (Inc.) companies such as Khazanah and PETRONAS are also considered MOF (Inc.) companies through indirect ownership.

A study should be made of the companies to see which are generating decent returns, that are steady and predictable. Looking at the list, MOF will probably have to restructure some of the companies to come up with a vehicle or two that are investible by EPF and the like. 

Sell those assets to EPF/KWAP/PNB. It kills two birds with one stone. We will raise funds to pay down debts, while our local pension/savings funds get an asset that gives a decent return back to Malaysians.

Legalising Sports Betting - This will be seen as an unpopular vote but it is the right time to bring this up in the new era of transparency and social pragmatism. You can choose to ignore it but a substantive portion of the grey/hidden economy involves illegal betting. We have legalised gaming with Genting, 4D, lotto and horse racing. The country has taken up archaice and greedy taxation laws to those legal units - thereby bringing about the rise of illegal gaming outfits. 

If you tax the revenue at 30%, the remaining pool will have a lot less to offer the winners. Its this gap that gives the illegals a huge edge. They can offer 10%-20% discount on your bets and still come out ahead.

A revamp of betting rules, taxation on revenues, and bringing to legality sports betting is needed. Currently the service tax from legalised gaming runs between RM3-6bn a year. While it is hard to estimate the illegal markets, suffice to say it is at least double or triple the legal size. Hence we could be talking an additional revenue of RM6-15bn a year. It is definitely worth studying further. Like it or not, the gambling is already happening, the country might as well benefit from it.

Conclusion: It is not a debilitating task to whittle down our debt figure. The 80% figure while monstrous, is nowhere what many other countries are already facing, and for most of them the outlook is much bleaker. Bad news first, flow of good news will come later.

Recharging The Economy: Paying down debt is one thing. Cutting spending does not help. Does it means that the government will be curtailing investment into the economy? Short answer is NO. Here are just a few suggestions and there could be hundreds of ways to do this.

a. Luring long term foreign investment in specific industries, in specific locales.(Hint: eco-tourism).

b. Improve the velocity of money by energising the small caps market with a RM4bn fund (please read previous post).

c. Increase re-participation of insolvent members of country by adopting a better insolvency laws platform, such as the ones in Singapore/HK where bankruptcy is canceled after 4-5 years (please read previous post).

d. Encourage start ups from the region to locate their HQ in Malaysia via incentives, ease in visa requirements, support from local start up funds, etc.

Hold your horses till after Hari Raya

(Borneo Post) – A lawyer has questioned why Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his wife are still not arrested by the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) pending investigation into the SRC international case.

Hamid Ismail, the Sabah PAS Head of Legal Unit, said despite the seizure of nearly RM130 million of cash (as at 24th May 2018), designer bags, watches and jewellery from the former prime minister’s house and three condominiums linked to him, the value of which was impossible to estimate due to the sheer volume as reported by the media, Najib and his wife still move freely. They could even issue press statements to the media and Najib could update his Facebook status.

“This is amongst the questions that I, as a practicing criminal lawyer, have in my mind. I note that in early October 2016, MACC had arrested a former Sabah Water Department director and his wife, and also the deputy director in the famous Sabah water scandal. It was reported in the media that on the first day of its raid, MACC seized RM114 million worth of assets – RM53.7 million in cold cash – from the said two senior officials. Six days later, they traced RM30 million more stashed in foreign banks and another RM30 million in land titles. At the time, all of them were arrested and later remanded,” he said in a statement today.

Hamid said the same happened with Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, his brother, two Umno Sabah Youth chiefs and Warisan Youth chief at the end of 2017.

MACC arrested and remanded them in relation to a probe into the alleged misappropriation of funds from rural development projects in Sabah. Raid was conducted only after remand order was granted.

“I understand that MACC has called Datuk Seri Najib twice to their office for his statements to be taken and still there is no arrest. I presume this is done under section 30(1)(a) of the MACC Act 2009. That section states that an MACC officer investigating an offence under the Act may order any person to attend before him for the purpose of being examined orally in relation to any matter which may, in his opinion, assist in the investigation into the offence.

“I have no objection to this course being taken by MACC. They have the power to do so. But the point I want to raise here is that if this is the course taken by MACC in a very high profile case, in the future, MACC should take the same course in investigating cases of the same nature or low profile cases. In other words, MACC should not use section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code to remand a person beyond 24-hour arrest for the purpose of completing the investigation. MACC should be consistent about this.

“Thus, if Datuk Seri Najib is not arrested and remanded pending completion of an investigation despite massive amount of cash and expensive items seized, a man investigated for agreeing to accept or receiving RM500 or RM5,000 bribe should not be arrested and remanded for one day or more to complete investigation. All persons are equal before the law and entitled to equal protection of the law,” he added.

***************************************************

Everyone is curious why the biggest and dirtiest crooks are not arrested.

Being a Malaysian one must understand the sentiment of the Malays and respect Tun Rahah Noah's request that her son be with her this Hari Raya before serving his life sentence inside the cell of Sungei Buloh.

That is why being born with a silver spoon has more advantage than people like you and me.

Kedah will have a new Menteri Besar

When one repeatedly put a silver spoon fed donkey as Menteri Besar, it is like telling the Rakyat to go back to their old ways.

This GE14 is about change.  The change not only for a few states but as a whole nation.  It takes courage and the Malays did it.

Population in Malaysia stands at 34 million.
75% are considered Bumiputra cum Malays
12% Chinese
6%   Bangla
4%   Indians
3%   Others

Mahathir may be a World Class Leader but that does not mean his children carry the same DNA.

Kedahan loathe Mukhriz when he utter the words I AM BACK.

This is not the first time Mukhriz was the Menteri Besar of Kedah but second and already people can see the same old silver spoon fed donkey has not changed. At age 54, this donkey will remain the same as he is used to living without a brain.  Mukhriz need his father Mahathir and Daim to tell him what to do.  Mukhriz has not learnt his previous lessons well.  Today he still surrounds himself to people who lick his backside with wide open mouths.

Is it the fate of Kedahah to have such a rascal again?

Some people think the Sultan of Kedah love Mukhriz more than its people.

I am of the opinion that if nothing is done to remove Mukhriz as Menteri Besar then do not blame UMNO, the Malays and the rest of the Rakyat when the changes take place soon.

Be prepare for PAS to take over once again.

Mahathir and Daim should understand the sentiment of Kedahan instead of securing their children's future.

Name me one kid of Mahathir and Daim who are not spoon fed.
https://dinmerican.wordpress.com/2016/01/21/mukhriz-mahathir-the-remote-control-menteri-besar-kedah-darul-aman/
http://anotherbrickinwall.blogspot.my/2013/01/desperates-resorting-to-sabotage.html

Mustapa Mohamed coming back as Minister of International Trade and Industry

Mustapa and his associates have been invited to join Pribumi.
In return Mustapa will be named as Minister of International Trade and Industry.
I am okay with Mustapa BUT Mahathir seems to want the old foxes from UMNO to join Pribumi.
UMNO is the reason why Rakyat have come out in full force to vote them out.
Now red carpets are spread out to welcome UMNO members.
Is Pribumi not capable of recruiting new member from 34 millions citizens?
I still believe there are many in PH who should be given a chance to come up instead of giving UMNO members a second chance to continue with their dirty old ways.
My other concern is why must Mustapa associates be given advisory posts in the same Ministry and Prime Minister's Department?
Like all Malaysians we demand for new faces and fresh blood not people from UMNO AGAIN.

Open Letter - Some Recommendations To New Government

Investing Funds

I have spoken on this in the past. We have about 1,100 listed companies and the majority are the market capitalisation of RM500m. We already have a situation whereby local pension funds are finding it tough to investable vehicles locally. Hence the need to invest an increasing amount overseas. Thats all fine. However most funds cannot invest in small caps, hence you find many decent small caps not having the support of long term funds on their register. Yes, there are plenty of under performing and even dubious small cap counters. But we are not helping matters by ignoring the small caps.

Part of the reason why so many small caps have to resort to "manipulative" share price activities to "make money" is due to a lack of genuine long term funds participating in small caps. If the situation is remedied, we can see an explosion of interest in good small caps. In the longer term, small caps will alter their behaviour to pursue good financial management goals to attract these long term funds.

We don't even need a huge fund. EPF can allocate RM4 billion for a small caps local fund unit, targeting listed companies below RM500m market cap. Say there are 600-700 listed vehicles that qualify to be investable. Assuming 200 are "performers" .. we are talking roughly RM20m position in each. the flow on effects will be enormous. Retail investors will be better persuaded to follow "good" small caps. Small caps with a decent growth story will find it easier to seek for more capital for growth and expansion. Velocity of money will translate to a more robust small caps market. In turn, the appetite among other small caps yet unlisted, will find Bursa to be a better location to get listed. This will go a long way to losing good potential listings to other jurisdictions such as HK's GEM.


Judiciary

AG: A most important post. A shoo-in by most would see Ambiga as a popular choice. However, the real world is not so simple. As much as we would like to see all things transparent, and all things above board. we have to be mindful that the real world involves personalities and politics. There are plenty of gray areas. While we need somebody who is respected and capable, we also need someone is able to move us gradually from gray to not to gray, and to white or shades of white. Being too idealistic may show us up as a growing nation not so prepared for the full truth. I can see somebody who is more politically astute while holding the rightful credentials assuming the post. Do we take baby steps or do we have the political will to take the plunge. Hence I would understand if Ambiga is not chosen, but I wish she will be the final choice. 


EPU

Rafizi Ramli to head EPU. Enough said.


Old Habits Die Hard

Can we eradicate corruption and cronyism outright in a flash. Again, idealistically impossible. Even in the case for Hongkong, which was a grand beacon for eradicating corruption via the establishment of ICAC and the spring cleaning of the police force - eventually it took more than 5-10 years for things to take root before anti-corruption became part of the larger business culture.

To that end, to facilitate culture change: MACC must be one armed with teeth; needless to say the judiciary/AG must be free from influence; the Whistleblower Act must be revamped to protect whistleblowers. Once the machinery and laws are in place, it will permeate itself into the workings of all dealings. Full eradication will still be years away but we need to set it on the right path.


Safety Nets 1

As a caring nation, we must have some sort of unemployment benefits or unemployment insurance. As things stand, once we lose our employment, we are left to fend for ourselves. Unemployment can arise when there are structural changes to the industries a country can support. We cannot and should never be locked in a low cost exporting country.

Employer and employees can contribute a small sum to fund the Unemployment Benefits fund. Simple workable rules can be adopted from proven schemes in other countries. One should at least have worked more than 1 year to qualify and benefits if suddenly unemployed, 3 months full salary, 3 months half salary. It is important that safety nets not be a crutch but a helping hand to ease the burdens somewhat.

To that end, we must limit the number of foreign workers and start them at a higher basic pay, say RM1,500-1,800 a month. Enough about protecting our low cost production industries, or else we will never move up the economic transformation curve for higher wages and higher value add industries. No point producing graduates if the better jobs are not forthcoming. 

Of course, there will be those who argue that graduates we are producing do not measure up - its a chicken and egg thing. Now that we can evolve, with a renewed perspective on education, parallel changes must be enacted across other spectrums such as industries, workforce composition and attracting the "right type of foreign investments".


Safety Nets 2

Our bankruptcy laws are archaic, and unnecessarily favours the banks/finance companies.The trouble with our system is that bankruptcy runs in perpetuity (i.e. almost never ending till you die). Unlike in HK, Singapore and many forward thinking economies where you only have 4 or 5 years to pay down your debt and after that you are free from the debts.

Why is it so important to implement a limited period for bankruptcy?

1) Being bankrupt means you are also literally removing around 5-8% of the working public and 5-8% of households from participating in the real economy. Cannot do business, cannot get loans, even job hunting may be a problem every now and then.

2) The Malaysian archaic system overly favours the banks and financial lending institutions. When its in perpetuity, the banks can clamp down on you for the rest of your life. We have to make banks and other lenders also responsible for their part in giving out the loans. Look, even creditors to EU give haircut once Greece is in trouble. That is why banks in Malaysia can be so bloody aggressive with credit cards, they know they have a very long recourse to make your life a living hell.

3) The 250,000 figure (back in 2013, the present figure could be around 400,000) will jump soon. Why? Just look at the way they are dishing out the study loans under PTPTN. Look at the surge in personal loans by non bank institutions, look at the aggressive credit card schemes. When you give out RM30,000 or RM40,000 or RM50,000 to someone and their job is only likely to pay them RM2,000-2,500 when they graduate, if they graduate, and if they can find a job then, ... you are going to have huge problems. Plus, we haven't got to the credit card users yet.

4) Even people who end up in jail for a few years and come out, they are free ... not if you are a bankrupt, man, they will drag you till you go to your grave.

5) The onus needs to shift back to the banks and other institutional lenders for a more balanced and equitable solution. For far too long have the banks been operating giddily under such a protective umbrella in their favour. There has to be a fairer distribution of risk for lending and borrowing. I am not suggesting that debtors need not pay, I am saying you need to give them a limited timeline.

6) When you take out 5-8% of the household from the real economy in perpetuity, it has a lot of indirect repercussions: cannot get study loans for children, making it very difficult to reverse their position as their job prospects may be affected as some companies frown on their status, etc. Needless to say, these 5-8% will also NOT play a part in the real economy in an effective manner - talk about dropping an anchor on the economy, it weighs heavily especially if its in perpetuity.

To that end, I would suggest to make the threshold for making a person bankrupt to be raised to RM50,000, and that automatic cancellation be enforced after 4 years.

Safety Nets 3

Is our civil service bloated? Probably. However I would suggest that we slow the hiring of new people for civil service and adopt a redeployment and retraining of existing civil servants to rectify the problem. as a caring nation, we cannot just effect changes with a swift cut without giving due recognition to the consequences. It is also the past governments' fault that they are in such a situation, not the people working there. 

It is a known fact that it is "easy" for civil servants to obtain loans from certain banks/finance companies. Unfortunately, instead of helping them, this has more often than not, burdened them further. The on-going automatic deduction from salary to pay down loans has to be revamped.

Electoral Issues

Easy peasy. Make everyone who is 21 and over automatically registered as voters. Redraw boundary lines using population sizing - each Parliamentary seat to make up between 50,000 to 100,000 voters. Less than 50,000 will be merged to nearest constituency, more than that spillover to nearest constituency. Same for state seats. Plus all the other Bersih proposals for improvements in the electoral system.

Sabah & Sarawak

Needs better autonomy. Better sharing of oil royalties. A special investing committee to look into bringing the right industries and value-add industries to East Malaysia. A more cohesive approach to build up eco-tourism there as there are plenty of opportunities to harness economic activity from that.

Twilight Zone

Malaysia is not in a twilight zone. Things cannot happen without good reason, and people cannot just disappear without the truth being uncovered. The high profile deaths/murders over the past 10 years cannot just be swept under the carpet.