Shasha left for Alor Star with her parents on the eve of Aidiladha, just after the Asar prayer. She came to the house before she left and told the Nenek that Kakak nak balik ampong nak gi umah Tok Ad’. She was smartly attired and showed me her fanciful new belt that her father just bought. I told her lets exchange and no way she agreed. I disturbed her I wanted to come along and she replied “Tak boleh Atok……., sempit” (No more space).We stuffed her with some cookies, wafer, potato chips and other tit bits.
I called her father just before Maghreb and they were just at Ladang Bikam. There was massive traffic jam along the north PLUS Highway. It seems they only arrived at Alor Star past midnight. They could not even break at the R&R area as it was overcrowded. The cookies and the stuff came handy and that was their dinner before arriving Alor Star. Poor Shasaha and Darwis. The parents did not anticipate the balik kampong rush.
We missed her during Aidiladha. The house was kind of quiet. When she is around, we would be busy entertaining to her antics and her favorite is the wash basins. She loves playing with running water from the pipe and keep on washing the spoon and the plastic containers. The Nenek even bought for her a special stool for her to stand on. So, who is pampering her, now? The moment I am missing from the house she would frantically looking for me. For a short errand, the Nenek would tell her I am in the shower.
For a day or two Shasha does not come to the house, I would call the father to dispatch Shasha to my house.
Sometimes I wonder why people don’t love children. I hate to hear news about babies being abandoned in drain, toilets and rubbish dumps. Give it to me if they don’t want them. The children’s laughter and giggling is the best music to me.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Nuclear - an economic sanction.
I came across this article while browsing the antiwar.com and it make sense to me that economic sanction on any country for that matter normally do not work. Typical example was Iraq. There was no regime change until US and the Brits invaded Iraq illegally. What is the aftermath? Thousands or not millions of lives are either gone or misplaced. The biggest question in mind, Iraq had no Al Qaeda or Taliban. Sadam had been rid off, in fact hanged to death. So, what the fuck the Americans are still doing in Iraq soil. US had accomplished their objective by eliminating Sadam.
The US and the West insist on occupying Muslim Middle Eastern countries that does not adapt their styles of democracy and for the sake of Israel existence. I quoted Mahathir “ The Israelis ask others to fight for them”.
Quote:
Why Obama believes new sanctions will work where old ones have failed over the last 30 years is the very definition of insanity according to Einstein.
Not only are sanctions not likely to achieve the desired outcome (since successive Iranian regimes have not shown themselves to be Pavlov’s dogs), they are more likely to put at risk the general population rather than affecting the leaders of the government. For example, U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing is prohibited from selling aircraft to Iranian aviation companies. According to the International Civil Aviation Organization, that sanction places civilian lives in danger by denying Iranian aviation necessary spare parts for aircraft repair. More importantly, the likely reaction of the ruling regime is to transfer the effects of any sanctions to the civilian population. For example, critics of the sanctions placed on Iraq after the 1991 Gulf War argue that the sanctions contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis (largely children) due to disease from lack of clean water from banned manufacture and restricted import of chlorine, lack of medicine, impoverishment, and other factors. Meanwhile, Saddam Hussein stayed in power and continued to live in the lap of luxury.
Although Iran continues to claim that it is pursuing a peaceful nuclear power program, it’s naïve to believe that Tehran isn’t also interested in developing a nuclear weapons capability. And there is no reason whatsoever to believe that the Iranian regime can be punished via sanctions into giving up those nuclear aspirations. Why? Because sanctions don’t address their motivations for wanting nuclear weapons.
To begin, Israel has nuclear weapons (although the Israeli government officially neither confirms nor denies whether it has such weapons). Since Iran and Israel aren’t on the best of terms, it’s perfectly logical that the Iranians would want a nuclear capability to offset and deter Israel’s nukes. Indeed, that’s exactly why Pakistan developed nuclear weapons when its neighbor India joined the nuclear club. Another compelling reason for Iran to want nukes is to deter the United States from engaging in regime change. After all, what are the two things that Slobodan Milosevic and Saddam Hussein had in common? No nukes. Contrast that with Kim Jong Il in North Korea who has nukes and hasn’t been invaded by the United States. [Note that the above is not an argument that Iran should be able to have nuclear weapons, but that we need to understand their motivations for wanting them.]
There was time – long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away – when it might have been possible to negotiate a security guarantee with the Iranians in exchange for constraining their nuclear program. That moment was in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 when Iran appeared willing to cooperate with the United States against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. And the opportunity was thrown out the window with the Bush administration decided to invade Iraq in 2003.
So if sanctions won’t work, what options do the Obama administration have? Not good ones.
One is military action – whether limited or a full-scale invasion. Limited military strikes might be able to set back Iran’s nuclear program, but are not likely to eliminate it. Plus the Iranians would be even more motivated and would probably redouble their efforts. A full-scale invasion (which would be nearly impossible for the U.S. military already stretched thin by Iraq and Afghanistan) would mean another Pottery Barn "you broke it, you bought it" situation for the United States and occupation of yet another Muslim country – which would be just more fuel on the fire of radical Islam.
The other is accepting Iran as a nuclear weapons power (just as we have had to accept North Korea). This is certainly not the ideal or preferred outcome. But it may be one we have to learn to live with. Unless the regime in Tehran is suicidal (and they’ve shown no evidence of being such), Iran can be deterred from using nuclear weapons (either against Israel or the United States). And while we would have to be concerned about the possibility of transfer of nuclear weapons to terrorists, the "good news" is that no regime that has acquired any dreaded WMD capability (chemical or biological) has ever given those weapons to terrorists.
Finally, there’s this to ponder: Maybe we should be more concerned about the nuclear weapons Pakistan has (which have a more realistic chance of falling into the hands of terrorists should the Zardari government fall and be succeeded by a radical Islamist government) than the nuclear weapons Iran doesn’t have.
Unquote.
It is very difficult to eliminate terrorism. Imagine if a member of your family is being killed. Would you just sit down and keep quiet?? No way, Jose’. You would avenge the death and along the way another innocent bystander become a victim and it keep on escalating and escalating beyond control. Doesn’t mean here, I agree on terrorism but solution must be apprehended by talking and listening. The whole world acknowledges that the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq is illegal. Two wrongs do not make a right.
I am saddened by the stream of blood flowing from innocent victim of the Iraqis and the Afghans. Killing is not the solution to solve a solution. If you ask me to revert to 9/11, well sorry to say and I still believe, it was all orchestrated and a conspiracy by the Zionists. Why the Jews stayed away from the Twin Tower on 9/11??? You have the answer.
The US and the West insist on occupying Muslim Middle Eastern countries that does not adapt their styles of democracy and for the sake of Israel existence. I quoted Mahathir “ The Israelis ask others to fight for them”.
Quote:
Why Obama believes new sanctions will work where old ones have failed over the last 30 years is the very definition of insanity according to Einstein.
Not only are sanctions not likely to achieve the desired outcome (since successive Iranian regimes have not shown themselves to be Pavlov’s dogs), they are more likely to put at risk the general population rather than affecting the leaders of the government. For example, U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing is prohibited from selling aircraft to Iranian aviation companies. According to the International Civil Aviation Organization, that sanction places civilian lives in danger by denying Iranian aviation necessary spare parts for aircraft repair. More importantly, the likely reaction of the ruling regime is to transfer the effects of any sanctions to the civilian population. For example, critics of the sanctions placed on Iraq after the 1991 Gulf War argue that the sanctions contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis (largely children) due to disease from lack of clean water from banned manufacture and restricted import of chlorine, lack of medicine, impoverishment, and other factors. Meanwhile, Saddam Hussein stayed in power and continued to live in the lap of luxury.
Although Iran continues to claim that it is pursuing a peaceful nuclear power program, it’s naïve to believe that Tehran isn’t also interested in developing a nuclear weapons capability. And there is no reason whatsoever to believe that the Iranian regime can be punished via sanctions into giving up those nuclear aspirations. Why? Because sanctions don’t address their motivations for wanting nuclear weapons.
To begin, Israel has nuclear weapons (although the Israeli government officially neither confirms nor denies whether it has such weapons). Since Iran and Israel aren’t on the best of terms, it’s perfectly logical that the Iranians would want a nuclear capability to offset and deter Israel’s nukes. Indeed, that’s exactly why Pakistan developed nuclear weapons when its neighbor India joined the nuclear club. Another compelling reason for Iran to want nukes is to deter the United States from engaging in regime change. After all, what are the two things that Slobodan Milosevic and Saddam Hussein had in common? No nukes. Contrast that with Kim Jong Il in North Korea who has nukes and hasn’t been invaded by the United States. [Note that the above is not an argument that Iran should be able to have nuclear weapons, but that we need to understand their motivations for wanting them.]
There was time – long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away – when it might have been possible to negotiate a security guarantee with the Iranians in exchange for constraining their nuclear program. That moment was in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 when Iran appeared willing to cooperate with the United States against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. And the opportunity was thrown out the window with the Bush administration decided to invade Iraq in 2003.
So if sanctions won’t work, what options do the Obama administration have? Not good ones.
One is military action – whether limited or a full-scale invasion. Limited military strikes might be able to set back Iran’s nuclear program, but are not likely to eliminate it. Plus the Iranians would be even more motivated and would probably redouble their efforts. A full-scale invasion (which would be nearly impossible for the U.S. military already stretched thin by Iraq and Afghanistan) would mean another Pottery Barn "you broke it, you bought it" situation for the United States and occupation of yet another Muslim country – which would be just more fuel on the fire of radical Islam.
The other is accepting Iran as a nuclear weapons power (just as we have had to accept North Korea). This is certainly not the ideal or preferred outcome. But it may be one we have to learn to live with. Unless the regime in Tehran is suicidal (and they’ve shown no evidence of being such), Iran can be deterred from using nuclear weapons (either against Israel or the United States). And while we would have to be concerned about the possibility of transfer of nuclear weapons to terrorists, the "good news" is that no regime that has acquired any dreaded WMD capability (chemical or biological) has ever given those weapons to terrorists.
Finally, there’s this to ponder: Maybe we should be more concerned about the nuclear weapons Pakistan has (which have a more realistic chance of falling into the hands of terrorists should the Zardari government fall and be succeeded by a radical Islamist government) than the nuclear weapons Iran doesn’t have.
Unquote.
It is very difficult to eliminate terrorism. Imagine if a member of your family is being killed. Would you just sit down and keep quiet?? No way, Jose’. You would avenge the death and along the way another innocent bystander become a victim and it keep on escalating and escalating beyond control. Doesn’t mean here, I agree on terrorism but solution must be apprehended by talking and listening. The whole world acknowledges that the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq is illegal. Two wrongs do not make a right.
I am saddened by the stream of blood flowing from innocent victim of the Iraqis and the Afghans. Killing is not the solution to solve a solution. If you ask me to revert to 9/11, well sorry to say and I still believe, it was all orchestrated and a conspiracy by the Zionists. Why the Jews stayed away from the Twin Tower on 9/11??? You have the answer.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
My Aidiladha 2009.
It started on the eve. Immediate after Maghreb, Sabirin and I went to collect the pre ordered the two stick of “lemang”. We went back to the Mosque and joined the takbir and tahlil. After Isyakh we had a program of visiting several houses for communal takbir.
The first house was Haji Talib but we skipped. We straight away went to Wahab house and waited for their arrival from Haji Talib house. I just took a few scoop of keuh tiow goreng as there were several houses more to go. Imam Khairuddin and Imam Mat Jebah joined us and the third was Haji Dollah house. I had a plate of Singapore lontong. Nearby, we hopped over to Haji Kemat house and I served myself with only two sticks of chicken satay. The floor was spread with food. We then adjourned to Ali Termizi house. I just took a small cup of fruit cocktail pudding. Next the whole group came to my house. Imam Khairuddin went missing as he had something urgent to do. By this time everybody was full and no more interested with the lemang, ketupat pulut and the rendang that was served to them. They only addressed to the fruits, grapes and tembikai china. Imam Mat Jebah performed the doa selamat. The last house was Haji Sabaruddin and I only took a glass of kopi O and most of us were sitting leaning to the wall. Every house we went we recited the takbir and the recitation of doa selamat. There were about thirty of us in the entourage and I really felt the communal bond between us. Surprisingly, not even one of them was the Kampong PAS followers. The atmosphere was harmonious and warm.
While I was away, my wife niece came and brought three lemang, some rendang and ayam masak merah, contributions from the kampong folks. If I knew I would not have ordered the lemang. Now we have plenty of lemang and rendang. She also brought some cempedak from the family kebun.
The solat sunat Aidiladha started at 0815 hours. Everybody was anxiously waiting for the Nazir to deliver his speech and repeating the same unnecessary remark as what he did during solat sunat Aidilfitri. Few of the kampong sons was sitting at center 3rd saf waiting like a hungry lions. The moment something controversial, they were going to pounch on him. Fortunately, the Nazir did not deliver any speech; instead the Secretary who is equally unfavourable gave a five minute briefing on the sacrificing of cows at the following day. He looked and sounded nervous as he address the Jemaah, as hadirin hadirat instead of Muslimin Muslimat di Rahmati Allah. Nothing was mention about the status and developemnet of the New Mosque which is under construction. During the sunat solat Aidilfitri, a few months ago, they were very cocky elaborating the status and character assisination.
After the prayer, Imam Khairuddin and a few of my Mosque colleague came to my house and my wife prepared lontong as the main menu. We sat for breakfast and talked about several current issues pertaining to the Mosque current event and development. The number of cows to be sacrifice the following day had drop tremendously compared to the tenure of the previous Mosque Committee. That clearly indicated the Kampong residents are not responsive and cooperating towards the management of the current Mosque Committee.
After the zohor prayer, an old Rohingya lady came door to door selling for a living rang the door bell and we invited her into the house for Aidiladha feast. Food was plenty and during this auspicious day we should also consider the poor. She enjoyed the ketupat pulut and the rending. I was touched when she put up her hands in doa that the House owner would be bless by Allah with abundance and prosperous rezeki. We packed some food for her to take away and a few ringgits as sedekah. I told the family that perhaps Allah was testing our heart for our generosity towards the poor.
After Isyakh those friends who could not make it during the morning visit, came and we still have the lontong to serve them. It was about 2300 hours the last guest left.
I was about to doze off when I received an sms from someone that the Mosque Committee had fell and tied up the cows to be slaughtered in the morning. He thought that the job was too premature and cruelty to the animals. I thought so but what could I do? I forward the message to someone I knew. An hour later, another sms came from the same person and he sighed with relief that the cows were back to normal after intervention and reprimanded by several kampong residents. My perception of the whole episode – the Mosque Committee is a stupid bunch of morons. They lack the Islamic knowledge how to address the sacrifice rituals (ibadah korban). We must minimize the sufferings of the animals that we are going to sacrifice. What they did was extending the sufferings by prematurely felling and tying the cows for several hours before slaughtering. These people wanted to change everything what the previous Mosque Committee did. As I said before, if they could change the kiblat, they would not hesitate to do that even. I replied the sms by telling the person who sends me the sms to catch the particular Mosque Committee Member concern and throw him or them into the tiger den at Zoo Negara.
I finally have peace of mind and went to sleep.
The early morning tragedy can be summarise by the following Malay proverb:
”Bodoh tak boleh di ajar, cerdik tak boleh di ikut”. In simple term, what they do is right and they would not take guidance from anyone.
The first house was Haji Talib but we skipped. We straight away went to Wahab house and waited for their arrival from Haji Talib house. I just took a few scoop of keuh tiow goreng as there were several houses more to go. Imam Khairuddin and Imam Mat Jebah joined us and the third was Haji Dollah house. I had a plate of Singapore lontong. Nearby, we hopped over to Haji Kemat house and I served myself with only two sticks of chicken satay. The floor was spread with food. We then adjourned to Ali Termizi house. I just took a small cup of fruit cocktail pudding. Next the whole group came to my house. Imam Khairuddin went missing as he had something urgent to do. By this time everybody was full and no more interested with the lemang, ketupat pulut and the rendang that was served to them. They only addressed to the fruits, grapes and tembikai china. Imam Mat Jebah performed the doa selamat. The last house was Haji Sabaruddin and I only took a glass of kopi O and most of us were sitting leaning to the wall. Every house we went we recited the takbir and the recitation of doa selamat. There were about thirty of us in the entourage and I really felt the communal bond between us. Surprisingly, not even one of them was the Kampong PAS followers. The atmosphere was harmonious and warm.
While I was away, my wife niece came and brought three lemang, some rendang and ayam masak merah, contributions from the kampong folks. If I knew I would not have ordered the lemang. Now we have plenty of lemang and rendang. She also brought some cempedak from the family kebun.
The solat sunat Aidiladha started at 0815 hours. Everybody was anxiously waiting for the Nazir to deliver his speech and repeating the same unnecessary remark as what he did during solat sunat Aidilfitri. Few of the kampong sons was sitting at center 3rd saf waiting like a hungry lions. The moment something controversial, they were going to pounch on him. Fortunately, the Nazir did not deliver any speech; instead the Secretary who is equally unfavourable gave a five minute briefing on the sacrificing of cows at the following day. He looked and sounded nervous as he address the Jemaah, as hadirin hadirat instead of Muslimin Muslimat di Rahmati Allah. Nothing was mention about the status and developemnet of the New Mosque which is under construction. During the sunat solat Aidilfitri, a few months ago, they were very cocky elaborating the status and character assisination.
After the prayer, Imam Khairuddin and a few of my Mosque colleague came to my house and my wife prepared lontong as the main menu. We sat for breakfast and talked about several current issues pertaining to the Mosque current event and development. The number of cows to be sacrifice the following day had drop tremendously compared to the tenure of the previous Mosque Committee. That clearly indicated the Kampong residents are not responsive and cooperating towards the management of the current Mosque Committee.
After the zohor prayer, an old Rohingya lady came door to door selling for a living rang the door bell and we invited her into the house for Aidiladha feast. Food was plenty and during this auspicious day we should also consider the poor. She enjoyed the ketupat pulut and the rending. I was touched when she put up her hands in doa that the House owner would be bless by Allah with abundance and prosperous rezeki. We packed some food for her to take away and a few ringgits as sedekah. I told the family that perhaps Allah was testing our heart for our generosity towards the poor.
After Isyakh those friends who could not make it during the morning visit, came and we still have the lontong to serve them. It was about 2300 hours the last guest left.
I was about to doze off when I received an sms from someone that the Mosque Committee had fell and tied up the cows to be slaughtered in the morning. He thought that the job was too premature and cruelty to the animals. I thought so but what could I do? I forward the message to someone I knew. An hour later, another sms came from the same person and he sighed with relief that the cows were back to normal after intervention and reprimanded by several kampong residents. My perception of the whole episode – the Mosque Committee is a stupid bunch of morons. They lack the Islamic knowledge how to address the sacrifice rituals (ibadah korban). We must minimize the sufferings of the animals that we are going to sacrifice. What they did was extending the sufferings by prematurely felling and tying the cows for several hours before slaughtering. These people wanted to change everything what the previous Mosque Committee did. As I said before, if they could change the kiblat, they would not hesitate to do that even. I replied the sms by telling the person who sends me the sms to catch the particular Mosque Committee Member concern and throw him or them into the tiger den at Zoo Negara.
I finally have peace of mind and went to sleep.
The early morning tragedy can be summarise by the following Malay proverb:
”Bodoh tak boleh di ajar, cerdik tak boleh di ikut”. In simple term, what they do is right and they would not take guidance from anyone.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Aidiladha.
Aidiladha…..what it mean to me? It reminds me of the Aidiladha I spent in 1999 when I performed the Haj. I was in Mina, holding up in a tent, air cooled and cramped with the other Jemaah. I just had enough space to lie down and sleep. There was no comfortable mattress and pillow. My pillow was a cushion cover stuffed with my extra set of ihram. I was prepared for it. The carpet was my mattress and the space was so very limited that I could not even turn to my sides. I slept like a mummy. Sacrifice was the theme and be grateful what Allah had bestowed upon thee.
I arrived in Mina from the Desert of Arafat at the break of dawn before subuh. In the tent of about sixty Pilgrims was eight of my Mekah roommates and the other eight were accommodated in the neighboring tent. My first rite was throwing of the seven pebbles at the Al Aqabah jamrah. Once completed, I scissor off some strain of my hair and I could redress in my normal attire. Mina was packed with about three million Pilgrims. It was Haji Akbar where the ukuf fell on Friday.
For the next three days I hibernated in Mina. I dare not take the risk of entering Mekah early to complete my Haj rituals due to the over populated city and adhering to the advice of Tabung Haji. Transportation was limited and if I wanted to do it, I must walk about eight kilometers under the blazing desert sun back and forth. I was still obligated to complete the three days pebble throwing of the Satans at the three Jamrah in Mina. Living in the tent complex was chaotic, however tolerable and the highest degree of tolerance and patience required. Hundreds of Pilgrims have to make do with about twenty toilets. The shower and the toilet hole were in the same cubicle. You dropped an object it was impossible to retrieve as the drain ran through all the toilet cubicles. Pilgrims queued to enter the toilet and if at extreme emergency, no one could assist. One has to find the best hidden alternative somewhere to release. To pee, some Pilgrims make do with a bottle somewhere hidden. I had to sacrifice and very particular with the food I consumed. I avoided hot chilly stuff and eggs. To shower off, I normally chose around three or four in the morning where the crowd was at its minimal.
The moment I arrived back in the Hotel in Mekah, I enjoyed the bathroom cold shower and the comfort of the porcelain throne. I forgot it was mid afternoon and I was showering gleefully. After I came out from the shower, disaster struck. I was chilled to the bones and immediately I felt so cold that my roommates covered my near frozen body with seven blankets to warm me up. My roommates thought my time had come. I thought so. They wanted to summon the Medic but I was still at conscious stage. By Asar, I was up and about. Alhamdullilah. My roommates laughed at the stricken hero. That was the craziest thing I ever did in Mekah. Never have a cold shower during midday. The centralized air condition contributed to my misery. My wife was unaware what was happening as she was staying in a different suite and when I told her after Asar about my misadventure to the North Pole she reprimanded me for being too careless.
I accompanied my wife to perform the last Haj rite, the Haj tawaf and saie the following morning and we completed at 0845 hours. Those who complete the last Haj rituals were congratulated by fellow roommates and me too, now a Haji and my wife a Hajjah.
That’s the Aidiladha that I would never forget.
Note: With my description of Mina, those who have not perform the Haj, please don’t deter you. Without any sacrifice and hardship, the Haj is meaningless. You can have all the comfort in the world but you have to pay through your nose. Whatever, I still recommend Tabung Haji. Your well being would be taken care; insyaalah with the grace of Allah provided the nawaitu is sincere for the sake of the Almighty the Holy Creator.
I arrived in Mina from the Desert of Arafat at the break of dawn before subuh. In the tent of about sixty Pilgrims was eight of my Mekah roommates and the other eight were accommodated in the neighboring tent. My first rite was throwing of the seven pebbles at the Al Aqabah jamrah. Once completed, I scissor off some strain of my hair and I could redress in my normal attire. Mina was packed with about three million Pilgrims. It was Haji Akbar where the ukuf fell on Friday.
For the next three days I hibernated in Mina. I dare not take the risk of entering Mekah early to complete my Haj rituals due to the over populated city and adhering to the advice of Tabung Haji. Transportation was limited and if I wanted to do it, I must walk about eight kilometers under the blazing desert sun back and forth. I was still obligated to complete the three days pebble throwing of the Satans at the three Jamrah in Mina. Living in the tent complex was chaotic, however tolerable and the highest degree of tolerance and patience required. Hundreds of Pilgrims have to make do with about twenty toilets. The shower and the toilet hole were in the same cubicle. You dropped an object it was impossible to retrieve as the drain ran through all the toilet cubicles. Pilgrims queued to enter the toilet and if at extreme emergency, no one could assist. One has to find the best hidden alternative somewhere to release. To pee, some Pilgrims make do with a bottle somewhere hidden. I had to sacrifice and very particular with the food I consumed. I avoided hot chilly stuff and eggs. To shower off, I normally chose around three or four in the morning where the crowd was at its minimal.
The moment I arrived back in the Hotel in Mekah, I enjoyed the bathroom cold shower and the comfort of the porcelain throne. I forgot it was mid afternoon and I was showering gleefully. After I came out from the shower, disaster struck. I was chilled to the bones and immediately I felt so cold that my roommates covered my near frozen body with seven blankets to warm me up. My roommates thought my time had come. I thought so. They wanted to summon the Medic but I was still at conscious stage. By Asar, I was up and about. Alhamdullilah. My roommates laughed at the stricken hero. That was the craziest thing I ever did in Mekah. Never have a cold shower during midday. The centralized air condition contributed to my misery. My wife was unaware what was happening as she was staying in a different suite and when I told her after Asar about my misadventure to the North Pole she reprimanded me for being too careless.
I accompanied my wife to perform the last Haj rite, the Haj tawaf and saie the following morning and we completed at 0845 hours. Those who complete the last Haj rituals were congratulated by fellow roommates and me too, now a Haji and my wife a Hajjah.
That’s the Aidiladha that I would never forget.
Note: With my description of Mina, those who have not perform the Haj, please don’t deter you. Without any sacrifice and hardship, the Haj is meaningless. You can have all the comfort in the world but you have to pay through your nose. Whatever, I still recommend Tabung Haji. Your well being would be taken care; insyaalah with the grace of Allah provided the nawaitu is sincere for the sake of the Almighty the Holy Creator.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Summon to attend.
Half an hour to Maghreb, I was just relaxing when the door bell rang. My junior cousin Lat with his wife made a house call on a Monday evening. To me it’s rather peculiar, something important and was anxious about the motive.
Comfortably sat, he issued a white envelope containing a wedding invitation to his daughter’s wedding on 12 December 2009. He insisted that he came all the way from Petaling to my house to hand the card and conveyed the invitation personally as a respect to the elder. I thanked him for his courtesy and I commented that this should be the right way to uphold the "adat" as a Malay. Some even have discarded the adat, wedding invitation by sms or not at all. If we are "beradat", it also reflect the upbringing and the understanding of the social culture. We discussed about the wedding and all are prepared and well placed. About the wedding, insyaalah I would be there.
My wife was fasting and they were just in time to share the “meehoon” goreng. They also got to taste the ajwa dates I brought back from Mekah and the zam zam water as well. They certainly deserved the small gift from Allah that was brought back from the homeland of the Holy Prophet Mohammad (pbuh).
They left just after Isyakh.
Comfortably sat, he issued a white envelope containing a wedding invitation to his daughter’s wedding on 12 December 2009. He insisted that he came all the way from Petaling to my house to hand the card and conveyed the invitation personally as a respect to the elder. I thanked him for his courtesy and I commented that this should be the right way to uphold the "adat" as a Malay. Some even have discarded the adat, wedding invitation by sms or not at all. If we are "beradat", it also reflect the upbringing and the understanding of the social culture. We discussed about the wedding and all are prepared and well placed. About the wedding, insyaalah I would be there.
My wife was fasting and they were just in time to share the “meehoon” goreng. They also got to taste the ajwa dates I brought back from Mekah and the zam zam water as well. They certainly deserved the small gift from Allah that was brought back from the homeland of the Holy Prophet Mohammad (pbuh).
They left just after Isyakh.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Pasir Gudang good old Memories.
Late 1974 I was assigned to commission the newly constructed Palm Oil Bulking Installation of Felda Johore Bulkers Sdn Bhd at the new Port of Pasir Gudang. FJB made up of 70% owned by Felda and the rest 30% made of private sector comprise of Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd 12.5%, Sime Darby, Keck Seng, KLK, Agaliem etc. Prior to the assignment I spent six months at Palm Oil Bulking Co in Singapore to understudy the palm oil bulking and shipment operations. A month later before the PG assignment I had to lead the newly recruited workers of FJB for training at Felda Palm Oil Installation at Port Klang. I put up the workers at Ambassador Hotel Port Klang and I stayed at Jayapuri Hotel Petaling Jaya (now PJ Hilton).
In mid November 1974 we all move to the newly completed 32500 Metric ton storage tanks complex of FJB Pasir Gudang. The first few days at PG I stayed at Orchid Hotel Johore Baharu. Since May I had been staying in a Hotel. Later I rented terrace houses at Masai for the workers and arranged hire purchase with the Furniture Shop for the workers convenient. I occupied one of the terrace houses with Encik Maarof Kasman the other Superintendent and the Chief Clerk, Zainal Abidin Aksa. Masai was a cowboy town. The shops still roofed with attap with wooden walling. For food we have to make do with the one or two Indian Muslim Restaurants available. I monthly rented TV set and I personally was fined RM100 at JB Magistrate Court for operating a TV without a license. To kill the boredom in Masai, sometimes we would walk in into the Musical Bar and had cheap fun. The only road to Pasir Gudang from Johore Baharu was via Plentong and Masai. Rubber trees spanned the two lane roadway and at night it was dark and lonely.
Pasir Gudang Port – everything was new and barren. Most of the Port staff was recruited from Klang Port and they were idling around as the port was not operational. FJB was independent by itself and we were the busiest lot to prepare for the first intake of palm oil by road tankers and coastal vessels. There were plenty of cleaning and test run of the various machineries. We had to test run the generator as power often broke down. Water was a problem as FJB did not have personalized water supply tank. For transportation we depended on personal car and the Company Volkswagen combi. Once we were trapped overnight at the Installation when the Combi broke down in Masai. There was no power and the mosquitoes had a gala time.
I recruited and took along to Pasir Gudang two of the best Jetty Handyman of Esso Port Dickson where I previously worked, Ratnam and Ali. Their presence and capabilities make my job easier. I remember the first day the stock Clerks reported to work, I made them writing and rewriting the numerical 1 to 10 the whole day. I justified to them that their work would deal by numbers and figures and they must present the stock figures well read by those concern that had to address it. During later years I heard both the Stock Clerks came out successful within the FJB organization structure.
During one test run of the pigging system I was rushed to the nearest Clinic in Masai when the valve long handle hit me on my chest. It was so hard that momentarily I was out of breath and collapsed. Thank God nothing happened but soon after the mishap I organized a khenduri for the Installation and requested the local Imam to perform the doa selamat. After that all went well with no minor or major accident happened within the compound.
The first coastal vessel “Tutong” docked at the Oil Jetty. There was excitement throughout the port. The unfortunate incident happened. The administrative aspect of the coastal vessel arrival was neglected and we were only operational people. There was no appointed Shipping Agent for this coastal vessel and the Marine, Custom and Immigration formalities was not adhered to. Operation could not commence. Though the “Tutong” came from Jeranggau Trengganu, the Immigration still had to countercheck. The Custom has to get involve as palm oil is a taxable commodity. The Marine Department, of course was the major player as all vessels within Malaysia territories was under the Marine Dept jurisdiction. None of the three Government Dept was in Pasir Gudang, they were all based at JB. These entire three Departments were not aware of the arrival of “Tutong”. I panicked and I had to answer to all the hiccups but I could not be blame entirely as I was only trained on the operational aspect. I still had to carry the bug as I was the Leader of the commissioning team. The Marine and the Immigration problem were solved. However we came to a confrontation with the Custom Department. The Custom personnel worked on shift and they had to be interchanged and transported to JB Custom complex. It was Custom first experience handling bulk liquid in coastal vessels and the method of calculating liquid was alien to them. I had to give brief lecture on the technical aspect to determine liquid quantities. Every new Custom Officer that came to FJB from there on, the same thing repeated. Once the unloading operation completed I had to run to JB Marine Department to get the port clearance for “Tutong” to sail away for next destination. Phew! That was an experience that I would not forget.
It did not stop there. I faced a major conflict with the Port Traffic Officer. We were all tired with the hassle of “Tutong” administrative and operational aspect when yhe Traffic Officer immediately summoned us to remove the hose pipes back to the Installation. Since we were the only User I requested to leave the hoses at the jetty for time being but he insisted. I was terribly mad with his inconsideration to the extent that I uttered the four letter word to him. FJB Consultant (an Englishman, name forgotten) was smiling but he would not back me up. That was the trouble, the first job the Traffic Officer did at Pasir Gudang and they wanted to show their power.
I wanted to maintain environmental hygiene and cleanliness and I saw warong sprouting in front of the Installation. Without knowing that permission was granted by the General Manager of the Port Authority, I wrote for their attention. To my surprise the GM was not happy with my complaint and referred to the Manager. The Manager who was a Singaporean Chinese was playing diplomacy politic, I got the shelling instead. On top of that he asked me to provide water facilities to the warong operators.
One fine morning the received stock and the stock in storage did not tally, a shortage of 16 metric tons. I cracked my head where it went missing and it took me hours to crack the mystery. Suddenly it came to my mind the duplicate roll at the back of the weighbridge indicator. When I scrutinized the roll there was two similar weight reading running consecutively. It would not happen under normal circumstances. I suspected out of the three 16 tonner road tankers only two discharged its cargo and one went missing. On paper, the palm oil was bulked in but physically it was not. The next morning I called the Police Inspector and the weighbridge Clerk was called in. Within two minutes all the story came out and he with two other workers were dumped into the police lock up. What I suspected was true but I was very sad to see the workers I trusted betrayed me.
During weekend when I did not go back to Port Dickson (my family was still residing in PD) I caught a few guys and we just drove to nowhere for a spin just to kill the cowboy town boredom. Somehow Singapore was not on my list as I was bored with Singapore having stayed there for six months.
Somehow on 1.1.1976, I was promoted as Assistant Manager. The Manager was seconded from Guthrie Management Services Singapore. That Chinaman commuted from Ponggol Singapore to PG by boat. I encountered problem with three personnel, the Engineering Assistant, the Lab Assistant and one of the Clerk. The Engineering Assistant was an India graduate Automobile Engineer, the Lab Assistant was a science student dropout from University Malaya and the Clerk was a screwed up air condition Salesman. Two Bumis and the Clerk was Chinaman. The Clerk was the Watchdog for the Manager and he kept track all my movement in a special diary. They were not happy with my promotion and I also think the Manager was also not happy too. My promotion came from Guthrie Management Services Malaysia and at that time the Managing Director was a Mat Salleh, Lewis Bryan. Those three goons were having the impression that I was not suitable for the post but what they didn’t know I had eight years working experience in a Petroleum Refinery and my expertise was on liquid movement and storage operations. FJB operation is merely the movement and storage of palm oil products. Further to that I was an Executive of GMS Malaysia of which GMS were the Secretary and Managing Agent of FJB. I was merely on assignment to FJB.
It was during one of the busy day with my new position, on 14 January 1976 Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak passed away in London. I like this guy and I fully respect his vision. Pasir Gudang Port and FJB existence was due to him. Felda was his brainchild. Like a son losing his father, I shed my tears. I don’t know why, I have not even met him personally. Thank you Tun, with his “Dasar Ekonomi Baru” (DEB or NEP) policy, a Bumiputera like me was able to obtain an Executive job in a private sector run Companies.
One day the big boss in Kuala Lumpur requested me to fetch him at JB. As usual he normally came by flight and I waited like a bloody fool at Senai Airport. When the plane landed he was nowhere to be seen and I went back to the office in PG. To my surprise he was already in the Office of which he came vide the Causeway from Singapore, took the taxi to PG. I was reprimanded for not double checking and taking things for granted. I learnt my lesson.
During one Board Meeting, I overheard one Singaporean Malay Chauffer commented that the development of Pasir Gudang was very slow. Politely I told him, in Singapore you plant one telephone pole, two million people can see and I walked off. I understand later he asked who I was and someone told him, that was the Assistant Manager. Melayu? Never happen in Singapore.
For the first time in my life I gave a briefing to a Malaysian Cabinet Minister. The late Dato Asri, the Minister of Rural Development made a surprise visit to the Installation. I briefed him about the function and operation of FJB in the Meeting Room. Luckily he was in a hurry to go to Singapore and there were not much questions asked. I sighed with relief.
One night while watching TV at my residence in Masai I had an uninvited guest. A Chinaman tried to deal term with me to remove a tanker load of palm oil. Politely, I told him that I was the number two man and the Big Boss is residing in Singapore. Please refer to him and if he said ok, then I would do it for him. I was being polite and diplomatic but within me I was very scared. I was dealing with a mafia. There was no sign of him after that but when I walked the street I always looked at my shoulders.
One fine morning on the way to work I saw a commotion by the roadside and it was a car accident. Further investigation it was the Superintendent’s car ditched four wheel up to the sky in the drain. I personally recommended employment of this Superintendent, happened to be my former working colleague at Esso PD. The accident happened during the night when they came back from Masai town after dinner. I collected all his belongings in the car and took to the Office. I got to answer a lot of questions from my Boss regarding the accident and I managed to evade and destroy certain evidence pertaining to the accident. (The accident was more than a dinner in Masai and let it remain classified). I saved someone neck, that’s all I can say.
I was driving back to Port Dickson on one Friday evening that I met with a nasty car accident at Simpang Renggam. I put on my brake when I saw an oncoming spinning car and a Mercedes Taxi knocked my rear. The sudden jerk made me accidentally swung the steering wheel to the right and I landed into the ditch. Both the front and the rear of the Volvo 144 were badly damaged but I survived. Though it was not yet a ruling to wear safety belt then but somehow I put it on and that saved me. Perhaps my kind of working environment instilled my conscious to be always aware of safety.
The Security Guard was infatuatedly crazy in love with one of the young Lab Assistant and declared to his wife that he was going to marry her. All hell broke loose and the wife came charging to the Office. I had to explain to her nicely it was a case of one way traffic, only the husband was madly in love but there was no response from the young lass. That night a group of us visited the family house to explain the fact of the misconception. It was very difficult for me to explain to a typical kampong lady but somehow I managed to convince her. Problem solved. I became a marriage Counseller.
Early 1977 I moved to stay in Taman Seri Tebrau in Johore Baharu.
On 31 July 1977 I was transferred out from FJB Pasir Gudang to take another commissioning assignment at Port Klang. Guthrie Berhad Malaysia took me back to assist the big brother Kumpulan Guthrie Ltd.
I was the permanent resident of Pasir Gudang Johore for 2 years and 8 months.
In mid November 1974 we all move to the newly completed 32500 Metric ton storage tanks complex of FJB Pasir Gudang. The first few days at PG I stayed at Orchid Hotel Johore Baharu. Since May I had been staying in a Hotel. Later I rented terrace houses at Masai for the workers and arranged hire purchase with the Furniture Shop for the workers convenient. I occupied one of the terrace houses with Encik Maarof Kasman the other Superintendent and the Chief Clerk, Zainal Abidin Aksa. Masai was a cowboy town. The shops still roofed with attap with wooden walling. For food we have to make do with the one or two Indian Muslim Restaurants available. I monthly rented TV set and I personally was fined RM100 at JB Magistrate Court for operating a TV without a license. To kill the boredom in Masai, sometimes we would walk in into the Musical Bar and had cheap fun. The only road to Pasir Gudang from Johore Baharu was via Plentong and Masai. Rubber trees spanned the two lane roadway and at night it was dark and lonely.
Pasir Gudang Port – everything was new and barren. Most of the Port staff was recruited from Klang Port and they were idling around as the port was not operational. FJB was independent by itself and we were the busiest lot to prepare for the first intake of palm oil by road tankers and coastal vessels. There were plenty of cleaning and test run of the various machineries. We had to test run the generator as power often broke down. Water was a problem as FJB did not have personalized water supply tank. For transportation we depended on personal car and the Company Volkswagen combi. Once we were trapped overnight at the Installation when the Combi broke down in Masai. There was no power and the mosquitoes had a gala time.
I recruited and took along to Pasir Gudang two of the best Jetty Handyman of Esso Port Dickson where I previously worked, Ratnam and Ali. Their presence and capabilities make my job easier. I remember the first day the stock Clerks reported to work, I made them writing and rewriting the numerical 1 to 10 the whole day. I justified to them that their work would deal by numbers and figures and they must present the stock figures well read by those concern that had to address it. During later years I heard both the Stock Clerks came out successful within the FJB organization structure.
During one test run of the pigging system I was rushed to the nearest Clinic in Masai when the valve long handle hit me on my chest. It was so hard that momentarily I was out of breath and collapsed. Thank God nothing happened but soon after the mishap I organized a khenduri for the Installation and requested the local Imam to perform the doa selamat. After that all went well with no minor or major accident happened within the compound.
The first coastal vessel “Tutong” docked at the Oil Jetty. There was excitement throughout the port. The unfortunate incident happened. The administrative aspect of the coastal vessel arrival was neglected and we were only operational people. There was no appointed Shipping Agent for this coastal vessel and the Marine, Custom and Immigration formalities was not adhered to. Operation could not commence. Though the “Tutong” came from Jeranggau Trengganu, the Immigration still had to countercheck. The Custom has to get involve as palm oil is a taxable commodity. The Marine Department, of course was the major player as all vessels within Malaysia territories was under the Marine Dept jurisdiction. None of the three Government Dept was in Pasir Gudang, they were all based at JB. These entire three Departments were not aware of the arrival of “Tutong”. I panicked and I had to answer to all the hiccups but I could not be blame entirely as I was only trained on the operational aspect. I still had to carry the bug as I was the Leader of the commissioning team. The Marine and the Immigration problem were solved. However we came to a confrontation with the Custom Department. The Custom personnel worked on shift and they had to be interchanged and transported to JB Custom complex. It was Custom first experience handling bulk liquid in coastal vessels and the method of calculating liquid was alien to them. I had to give brief lecture on the technical aspect to determine liquid quantities. Every new Custom Officer that came to FJB from there on, the same thing repeated. Once the unloading operation completed I had to run to JB Marine Department to get the port clearance for “Tutong” to sail away for next destination. Phew! That was an experience that I would not forget.
It did not stop there. I faced a major conflict with the Port Traffic Officer. We were all tired with the hassle of “Tutong” administrative and operational aspect when yhe Traffic Officer immediately summoned us to remove the hose pipes back to the Installation. Since we were the only User I requested to leave the hoses at the jetty for time being but he insisted. I was terribly mad with his inconsideration to the extent that I uttered the four letter word to him. FJB Consultant (an Englishman, name forgotten) was smiling but he would not back me up. That was the trouble, the first job the Traffic Officer did at Pasir Gudang and they wanted to show their power.
I wanted to maintain environmental hygiene and cleanliness and I saw warong sprouting in front of the Installation. Without knowing that permission was granted by the General Manager of the Port Authority, I wrote for their attention. To my surprise the GM was not happy with my complaint and referred to the Manager. The Manager who was a Singaporean Chinese was playing diplomacy politic, I got the shelling instead. On top of that he asked me to provide water facilities to the warong operators.
One fine morning the received stock and the stock in storage did not tally, a shortage of 16 metric tons. I cracked my head where it went missing and it took me hours to crack the mystery. Suddenly it came to my mind the duplicate roll at the back of the weighbridge indicator. When I scrutinized the roll there was two similar weight reading running consecutively. It would not happen under normal circumstances. I suspected out of the three 16 tonner road tankers only two discharged its cargo and one went missing. On paper, the palm oil was bulked in but physically it was not. The next morning I called the Police Inspector and the weighbridge Clerk was called in. Within two minutes all the story came out and he with two other workers were dumped into the police lock up. What I suspected was true but I was very sad to see the workers I trusted betrayed me.
During weekend when I did not go back to Port Dickson (my family was still residing in PD) I caught a few guys and we just drove to nowhere for a spin just to kill the cowboy town boredom. Somehow Singapore was not on my list as I was bored with Singapore having stayed there for six months.
Somehow on 1.1.1976, I was promoted as Assistant Manager. The Manager was seconded from Guthrie Management Services Singapore. That Chinaman commuted from Ponggol Singapore to PG by boat. I encountered problem with three personnel, the Engineering Assistant, the Lab Assistant and one of the Clerk. The Engineering Assistant was an India graduate Automobile Engineer, the Lab Assistant was a science student dropout from University Malaya and the Clerk was a screwed up air condition Salesman. Two Bumis and the Clerk was Chinaman. The Clerk was the Watchdog for the Manager and he kept track all my movement in a special diary. They were not happy with my promotion and I also think the Manager was also not happy too. My promotion came from Guthrie Management Services Malaysia and at that time the Managing Director was a Mat Salleh, Lewis Bryan. Those three goons were having the impression that I was not suitable for the post but what they didn’t know I had eight years working experience in a Petroleum Refinery and my expertise was on liquid movement and storage operations. FJB operation is merely the movement and storage of palm oil products. Further to that I was an Executive of GMS Malaysia of which GMS were the Secretary and Managing Agent of FJB. I was merely on assignment to FJB.
It was during one of the busy day with my new position, on 14 January 1976 Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak passed away in London. I like this guy and I fully respect his vision. Pasir Gudang Port and FJB existence was due to him. Felda was his brainchild. Like a son losing his father, I shed my tears. I don’t know why, I have not even met him personally. Thank you Tun, with his “Dasar Ekonomi Baru” (DEB or NEP) policy, a Bumiputera like me was able to obtain an Executive job in a private sector run Companies.
One day the big boss in Kuala Lumpur requested me to fetch him at JB. As usual he normally came by flight and I waited like a bloody fool at Senai Airport. When the plane landed he was nowhere to be seen and I went back to the office in PG. To my surprise he was already in the Office of which he came vide the Causeway from Singapore, took the taxi to PG. I was reprimanded for not double checking and taking things for granted. I learnt my lesson.
During one Board Meeting, I overheard one Singaporean Malay Chauffer commented that the development of Pasir Gudang was very slow. Politely I told him, in Singapore you plant one telephone pole, two million people can see and I walked off. I understand later he asked who I was and someone told him, that was the Assistant Manager. Melayu? Never happen in Singapore.
For the first time in my life I gave a briefing to a Malaysian Cabinet Minister. The late Dato Asri, the Minister of Rural Development made a surprise visit to the Installation. I briefed him about the function and operation of FJB in the Meeting Room. Luckily he was in a hurry to go to Singapore and there were not much questions asked. I sighed with relief.
One night while watching TV at my residence in Masai I had an uninvited guest. A Chinaman tried to deal term with me to remove a tanker load of palm oil. Politely, I told him that I was the number two man and the Big Boss is residing in Singapore. Please refer to him and if he said ok, then I would do it for him. I was being polite and diplomatic but within me I was very scared. I was dealing with a mafia. There was no sign of him after that but when I walked the street I always looked at my shoulders.
One fine morning on the way to work I saw a commotion by the roadside and it was a car accident. Further investigation it was the Superintendent’s car ditched four wheel up to the sky in the drain. I personally recommended employment of this Superintendent, happened to be my former working colleague at Esso PD. The accident happened during the night when they came back from Masai town after dinner. I collected all his belongings in the car and took to the Office. I got to answer a lot of questions from my Boss regarding the accident and I managed to evade and destroy certain evidence pertaining to the accident. (The accident was more than a dinner in Masai and let it remain classified). I saved someone neck, that’s all I can say.
I was driving back to Port Dickson on one Friday evening that I met with a nasty car accident at Simpang Renggam. I put on my brake when I saw an oncoming spinning car and a Mercedes Taxi knocked my rear. The sudden jerk made me accidentally swung the steering wheel to the right and I landed into the ditch. Both the front and the rear of the Volvo 144 were badly damaged but I survived. Though it was not yet a ruling to wear safety belt then but somehow I put it on and that saved me. Perhaps my kind of working environment instilled my conscious to be always aware of safety.
The Security Guard was infatuatedly crazy in love with one of the young Lab Assistant and declared to his wife that he was going to marry her. All hell broke loose and the wife came charging to the Office. I had to explain to her nicely it was a case of one way traffic, only the husband was madly in love but there was no response from the young lass. That night a group of us visited the family house to explain the fact of the misconception. It was very difficult for me to explain to a typical kampong lady but somehow I managed to convince her. Problem solved. I became a marriage Counseller.
Early 1977 I moved to stay in Taman Seri Tebrau in Johore Baharu.
On 31 July 1977 I was transferred out from FJB Pasir Gudang to take another commissioning assignment at Port Klang. Guthrie Berhad Malaysia took me back to assist the big brother Kumpulan Guthrie Ltd.
I was the permanent resident of Pasir Gudang Johore for 2 years and 8 months.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Shocking Discovery - Part 11.
It was sad and disgustingly shocking to know that the Nazir, Secretary and the Acting Treasurer of the Mosque had somehow managed to transfer the authorized signatories of the New Mosque Committee account at Bank Islam Klang to their authorized signatories. Both are separate entity and manage by two different sets of Committee. The New Mosque which is under construction is being managed by the Committee formed during the Barisan Nasional regime and its co existence is duly recognize and authorized by Majlis Agama Islam Selangor as well as Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor under the patronage of the Orang Besar Daerah Klang. It had not being dissolved. The Mosque Committee only manages the administration of the existing Mosque not as to their perception that they also manage the affairs and welfare of the New mosque.
Lately there was in fighting for the takeover of the New Mosque, somehow the Mosque Committee failed even to the extent of running down the former Nazir during the solat sunat Aidilfitri. Those who were present during the solat sunat Aidilfitri were shocked and at the Mosque General Meeting on 30 September 2009 the Nazir and the Secretary were unanimously demanded to resign or to hold an Emergency General Meeting to remove them. Unconcernly they rejected the Kampong residents motion leaving the residents with no other alternative except to send a Memorandum to the Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor.
The discovery of the signatories changed was on 11 November 2009 when the signatories had well been changed since July 2009. No wonder they refused to resign or conduct an EGM arising from the 30 September 2009 AGM. I think they were laughing gleefully among themselves and how bloody fool the Kampong residents are. If they resign or being remove at EGM the malpractice at Bank Islam would be exposed. In the meantime they were playing with time, hoping that either MAIS or JAIS would hand up the New Mosque affairs to them. Then they would be in safe Heaven. However how smart the squirrel leap from tree to another, it bound to slip.
What the Nazir, Secretary and the Acting Treasurer did was a fraud. Clear cut case. Their similar attempt at Bank Muamalat Klang met with a failure when the Bank Officials countercheck with the Chairman of the New Mosque Committee, the former Nazir. For Bank Islam Klang, it was a blatant act of misleading the Bank to believe that they were the authorized Officials of the New Mosque. There was no minute of any Meeting presented to Bank Islam Klang and no authorized letter from the New Mosque Committee what so ever. Was it collusion between them and the Bank personnel? God knows. Somebody is working on it. To make matters worse they have withdrawn some money from the account and what puzzle the Kampong residents, the Acting Treasurer was a Bank personnel and he is very well verse with the Banking law and the Banking Standard Operating Procedures.
Where and how this fiasco is going to be settled? At this stage, I don’t know. The tree Mosque Officials and Bank Islam Klang has a lot to answer. Perhaps they would blame each other. It is also up to the discretion of the New Mosque Committee and don’t forget they are also answerable to the Kampong residents, including yours truly. Majority of the Kampong residents is already upset since solat sunat Aidillfitri. The outcome would be interesting and somebody has to face the consequences and take the brunt.
I had warned the Acting Treasurer, my friend and in 2007 Ramadan we went for umrah together. I told him to be extra careful working with the Nazir and the Secretary. He proudly told me “I have more money than the Mosque has, and am not worried”. I said fine with him and that was the last time we sat together for a chat and I would never want to sit with him again. Only humble people can be given due respect. Now he got into this shit and best of luck to him. Please don’t tell me that I did not forewarn him.
I regret that this sort of untoward incident happened in the Kampong where I live since August 1977 and the Kampong Mosque remain very sentimental to me. Most of my Mosque buddies had gone back to meet the Creator. For their sake and the peace of their souls, I defend this Mosque. It used to be a very harmonious and peaceful Mosque until the BN government collapsed. When PR took over, PAS is reigning with terror and the Mosque has been made as their station to vent their vengeance with the BN government. They changed everything. If they can change the “kiblat”, I am sure they would do it too. It is sad that the Mosque Institution is being politically manipulated.
Insyaalah……………..peace and harmony would be restored at this Mosque in due course. I pray to the Almighty Allah it would come soonest. Please join me by saying your silent doa.
Lately there was in fighting for the takeover of the New Mosque, somehow the Mosque Committee failed even to the extent of running down the former Nazir during the solat sunat Aidilfitri. Those who were present during the solat sunat Aidilfitri were shocked and at the Mosque General Meeting on 30 September 2009 the Nazir and the Secretary were unanimously demanded to resign or to hold an Emergency General Meeting to remove them. Unconcernly they rejected the Kampong residents motion leaving the residents with no other alternative except to send a Memorandum to the Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor.
The discovery of the signatories changed was on 11 November 2009 when the signatories had well been changed since July 2009. No wonder they refused to resign or conduct an EGM arising from the 30 September 2009 AGM. I think they were laughing gleefully among themselves and how bloody fool the Kampong residents are. If they resign or being remove at EGM the malpractice at Bank Islam would be exposed. In the meantime they were playing with time, hoping that either MAIS or JAIS would hand up the New Mosque affairs to them. Then they would be in safe Heaven. However how smart the squirrel leap from tree to another, it bound to slip.
What the Nazir, Secretary and the Acting Treasurer did was a fraud. Clear cut case. Their similar attempt at Bank Muamalat Klang met with a failure when the Bank Officials countercheck with the Chairman of the New Mosque Committee, the former Nazir. For Bank Islam Klang, it was a blatant act of misleading the Bank to believe that they were the authorized Officials of the New Mosque. There was no minute of any Meeting presented to Bank Islam Klang and no authorized letter from the New Mosque Committee what so ever. Was it collusion between them and the Bank personnel? God knows. Somebody is working on it. To make matters worse they have withdrawn some money from the account and what puzzle the Kampong residents, the Acting Treasurer was a Bank personnel and he is very well verse with the Banking law and the Banking Standard Operating Procedures.
Where and how this fiasco is going to be settled? At this stage, I don’t know. The tree Mosque Officials and Bank Islam Klang has a lot to answer. Perhaps they would blame each other. It is also up to the discretion of the New Mosque Committee and don’t forget they are also answerable to the Kampong residents, including yours truly. Majority of the Kampong residents is already upset since solat sunat Aidillfitri. The outcome would be interesting and somebody has to face the consequences and take the brunt.
I had warned the Acting Treasurer, my friend and in 2007 Ramadan we went for umrah together. I told him to be extra careful working with the Nazir and the Secretary. He proudly told me “I have more money than the Mosque has, and am not worried”. I said fine with him and that was the last time we sat together for a chat and I would never want to sit with him again. Only humble people can be given due respect. Now he got into this shit and best of luck to him. Please don’t tell me that I did not forewarn him.
I regret that this sort of untoward incident happened in the Kampong where I live since August 1977 and the Kampong Mosque remain very sentimental to me. Most of my Mosque buddies had gone back to meet the Creator. For their sake and the peace of their souls, I defend this Mosque. It used to be a very harmonious and peaceful Mosque until the BN government collapsed. When PR took over, PAS is reigning with terror and the Mosque has been made as their station to vent their vengeance with the BN government. They changed everything. If they can change the “kiblat”, I am sure they would do it too. It is sad that the Mosque Institution is being politically manipulated.
Insyaalah……………..peace and harmony would be restored at this Mosque in due course. I pray to the Almighty Allah it would come soonest. Please join me by saying your silent doa.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Shocking Discovery - Part 1.
11.11.2009 I had a shocking discovery about the Mosque under construction in Kampong Raja Uda. For the time being I would not blog the event and the subject matter as it involve the Authorities and I may contempt.
I would revert to the subject matter once it is in the hand of the Authorities and let all actions takes it course.
Sometimes it doesn’t pay to be smart. No matter how smart the squirrel jump, one fine day it would drop.
I would revert to the subject matter once it is in the hand of the Authorities and let all actions takes it course.
Sometimes it doesn’t pay to be smart. No matter how smart the squirrel jump, one fine day it would drop.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Kereta dah Mati.
On 5th.June 2009 the Mosque newly elected Nazir with another man OTK went to Raja Nazri house and insisted that the Van Jenazah to be handed to the Mosque Committee which comprised of mostly PAS members. The Van Jenazah actually belong to the Saham Wakaf Kampong and does not expense or utilize any cents from the Mosque coffer. The first in Malaysia, a Toyota Estima was bought from donations and the sale of the previous Toyota Lite Ace Van Jenazah. Raza Nazri by himself arranged for the philanthropies and the purchase with Pantai Holdings. The Saham Wakaf Kampong got the Van Jenazah duty free and arranged all formalities with JPJ. The Van Jenazah would be park at the Mosque compound for safety and the convenient of any of the kampong residents. It is the pride of the kampong residents when it is written on the Van body as Masjid Kampong Raja Uda.
After the successful takeover, the Nazir appointed OTK to be the Driver and he was flapping his wings within the kampong that the new Mosque Committee had taken complete custody of the Van Jenazah.
The kampong residents was astonish with the takeover especially members of the Saham Wakaf. The Nazir realizing his mistake passed over the Van Jenazah to JKKK under the custody of the Ketua Kampong. Another blunder made. The Driver remains the same person and the charges were to his whim and fancy without abiding to the amounts stipulated by the Saham Wakaf Kampong. The Van normally being washed at the Petronas Station but now OTK diverted to another Wash Car belongs to a PAS member. Haji Mazlan the owner of the Petronas Station has been kindly donating all petrol expenses of the Van Jenazah. At least OTK should give Haji Mazlan due respect.
God knows where all the Van Jenazah revenue being deposited. The Van Jenazah has its own separate account and from the monthly Bank Statement that Raja Nazri still receiving indicating nil entry. They can’t even abide to simple accounting procedure. If it goes into the Mosque account then I believe it contradict to simple accounting procedure.
On 30 September 2009 during the Mosque Annual General Meeting the kampong residents brought up the issue of the Van Jenazah. The Ketua Kampong was confronted and he promised to return the Van Jenazah back to the Jawatan Kuasa Saham Wakaf Kampong. The kampong residents requested it to be minute but up to this date the Van Jenzah is still under his custody. A subject on this matter was included in the kampong residents Memorandum to the Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor.
It was shocking that the road tax of the Van Jenazah expired on 16 October 2009 and nobody of the Mosque Committee, the JKKK, the Ketua Kampong or even the Driver himself realized. I wonder how they are going to renew the insurance and road tax. This road tax is exceptional, only JPJ can issue due to its special status as Van Jenazah. Like it or not, they still have to refer to Raja Nazri. Do they have the guts and face? Only shameless specimens would do it and the question is who? That’s the problem when one simply accepts responsibilities without considering the risks.
What if the Van Jenazah met with an accident when the insurance had expired? Who is going to bear the damage? The Nazir? The Ketua Kampong? It is most unlikely that the Traffic Policeman would stop the Van Jenazah but still it is an offence and due to their stupid overlooked, the whole kampong residents bear a very bad reputation. That’s the problem when status does not go along in tandem with knowledge and taking responsibilities. If you want to do something, does it properly otherwise don’t do it, give it to someone who can do it.
After the successful takeover, the Nazir appointed OTK to be the Driver and he was flapping his wings within the kampong that the new Mosque Committee had taken complete custody of the Van Jenazah.
The kampong residents was astonish with the takeover especially members of the Saham Wakaf. The Nazir realizing his mistake passed over the Van Jenazah to JKKK under the custody of the Ketua Kampong. Another blunder made. The Driver remains the same person and the charges were to his whim and fancy without abiding to the amounts stipulated by the Saham Wakaf Kampong. The Van normally being washed at the Petronas Station but now OTK diverted to another Wash Car belongs to a PAS member. Haji Mazlan the owner of the Petronas Station has been kindly donating all petrol expenses of the Van Jenazah. At least OTK should give Haji Mazlan due respect.
God knows where all the Van Jenazah revenue being deposited. The Van Jenazah has its own separate account and from the monthly Bank Statement that Raja Nazri still receiving indicating nil entry. They can’t even abide to simple accounting procedure. If it goes into the Mosque account then I believe it contradict to simple accounting procedure.
On 30 September 2009 during the Mosque Annual General Meeting the kampong residents brought up the issue of the Van Jenazah. The Ketua Kampong was confronted and he promised to return the Van Jenazah back to the Jawatan Kuasa Saham Wakaf Kampong. The kampong residents requested it to be minute but up to this date the Van Jenzah is still under his custody. A subject on this matter was included in the kampong residents Memorandum to the Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor.
It was shocking that the road tax of the Van Jenazah expired on 16 October 2009 and nobody of the Mosque Committee, the JKKK, the Ketua Kampong or even the Driver himself realized. I wonder how they are going to renew the insurance and road tax. This road tax is exceptional, only JPJ can issue due to its special status as Van Jenazah. Like it or not, they still have to refer to Raja Nazri. Do they have the guts and face? Only shameless specimens would do it and the question is who? That’s the problem when one simply accepts responsibilities without considering the risks.
What if the Van Jenazah met with an accident when the insurance had expired? Who is going to bear the damage? The Nazir? The Ketua Kampong? It is most unlikely that the Traffic Policeman would stop the Van Jenazah but still it is an offence and due to their stupid overlooked, the whole kampong residents bear a very bad reputation. That’s the problem when status does not go along in tandem with knowledge and taking responsibilities. If you want to do something, does it properly otherwise don’t do it, give it to someone who can do it.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
He did it again.
He never learnt and he did it again and again he fumbled. Subhanallah. The entire three Imams was absent during the subuh prayer on 9 November 2009. The Bilal attempted to put up Ali Termizi to lead the subuh prayer but the Nazir overruled and he lead the subuh prayer instead. He is the Nazir and the highest ranking Mosque Officials available. He fumbled during the doa qunut when he read the verse only meant for himself not for the makmum that he lead. He does not know the difference between “Allah hu ma dini” and “Allah hu ma dina”. Dini when you pray alone and dina when you become an Imam. He has got a long way to learn about the simple Arabic vocabulary applicable in the daily prayer.
Syukur alhamdullillah he did not perform the sujud sahwi as he had done sometimes in August 2009 when he fumbled the surah Al Baqarah during one Maghreb prayer. On this instance he did not even know that he had made a mistake.
After the prayer, some makmum just stood up and walked off. The Nazir recited the after prayer doa, paused several times and one of the makmum had to coach him to proceed. Finally only one or two hard core follower remained to amin his doa. He just made a mockery of himself and the talk of the kampong. I wonder when he ever learnt.
Not known to many including the Nazir, Ali Termizi prefers to remain at low profile and avoid exhibitionism. In actual fact Ali Termizi is more qualified than the existing four Imams. That’s a fact and he has certificates as proof. The present Chief Imam was once his makmum and many of LPK personnel can testify.
To become an Imam is not a plaything. The responsibilities are great and one must be knowledgeable. If one is not well verse with the criteria to be an Imam, don’t try to do it. It is a question of blessing and sins of the makmum that one is leading. When it becomes an issue it creates unnecessary “fitnah” and “tohmah”, eventually a sin on the beholder. Why want to create such when one can just leave the Imam Job to someone knowledgeable?
I would never be an Imam because I know the level of my capabilities and what more the responsibilities. Some Ustaz who frequent the Mosque to deliver the “Ceramah Ugama” always leave to the local Imam to lead the prayer. These people are religiously learned but they very well know the responsibilities lies. To be an Imam especially in the Mosque is not like playing hide and seek. What if immediately after one becomes an Imam, someone requested to perform a tahlil or suddenly a jenazah appeared? As an Imam the responsibility is on you.
Two days Imam intensive course at JAIS does not qualify someone to be a capable and reliable Imam. Of late someone with long tail serban putih and kopiah tajam can claim to be an Imam. Impersonating as big time ulamak and a Haji look who frequent Mekah. These people have not even reached Bangkok what else Mekah?
An Imam must be someone receptive to the makmum, so that the Jemaah can pray in tandem for the sole sake and with pure intention to face Allah in His house. In simple term, an Imam is the Leader at any time when we face Allah during prayer in the Mosque. If the Leader screwed up, the makmum followed suit.
Before we want to be an Imam, please for goodness sake evaluate ourselves whether we meet the criteria as required to be an Imam. Do the makmum accept me? I am free of “dosa besar”? My pronunciations of the Holy verses are correct? Slight deviation of pronunciation would lead to different meaning. Most of all, we must know the “sunat” and “wajib” in accordance with Imam Shafie subject on prayer that we adapted.
Syukur alhamdullillah he did not perform the sujud sahwi as he had done sometimes in August 2009 when he fumbled the surah Al Baqarah during one Maghreb prayer. On this instance he did not even know that he had made a mistake.
After the prayer, some makmum just stood up and walked off. The Nazir recited the after prayer doa, paused several times and one of the makmum had to coach him to proceed. Finally only one or two hard core follower remained to amin his doa. He just made a mockery of himself and the talk of the kampong. I wonder when he ever learnt.
Not known to many including the Nazir, Ali Termizi prefers to remain at low profile and avoid exhibitionism. In actual fact Ali Termizi is more qualified than the existing four Imams. That’s a fact and he has certificates as proof. The present Chief Imam was once his makmum and many of LPK personnel can testify.
To become an Imam is not a plaything. The responsibilities are great and one must be knowledgeable. If one is not well verse with the criteria to be an Imam, don’t try to do it. It is a question of blessing and sins of the makmum that one is leading. When it becomes an issue it creates unnecessary “fitnah” and “tohmah”, eventually a sin on the beholder. Why want to create such when one can just leave the Imam Job to someone knowledgeable?
I would never be an Imam because I know the level of my capabilities and what more the responsibilities. Some Ustaz who frequent the Mosque to deliver the “Ceramah Ugama” always leave to the local Imam to lead the prayer. These people are religiously learned but they very well know the responsibilities lies. To be an Imam especially in the Mosque is not like playing hide and seek. What if immediately after one becomes an Imam, someone requested to perform a tahlil or suddenly a jenazah appeared? As an Imam the responsibility is on you.
Two days Imam intensive course at JAIS does not qualify someone to be a capable and reliable Imam. Of late someone with long tail serban putih and kopiah tajam can claim to be an Imam. Impersonating as big time ulamak and a Haji look who frequent Mekah. These people have not even reached Bangkok what else Mekah?
An Imam must be someone receptive to the makmum, so that the Jemaah can pray in tandem for the sole sake and with pure intention to face Allah in His house. In simple term, an Imam is the Leader at any time when we face Allah during prayer in the Mosque. If the Leader screwed up, the makmum followed suit.
Before we want to be an Imam, please for goodness sake evaluate ourselves whether we meet the criteria as required to be an Imam. Do the makmum accept me? I am free of “dosa besar”? My pronunciations of the Holy verses are correct? Slight deviation of pronunciation would lead to different meaning. Most of all, we must know the “sunat” and “wajib” in accordance with Imam Shafie subject on prayer that we adapted.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Impromptu trip.
After the Friday prayer I bumped into Haji Fauzi and he invited for a trip down south to Johore Baharu. He asked me to convince his elder brother Pak Long Mustapa to join as well. Pak Long would come along provided I was in the entourage. The idea was, Haji Fauzi wanted to meet his long lost converted Siamese friend at Plaza Angsana at JB. They last met in 2004. We brought along spare clothing in case we would put up a night in JB.
At 1500 hours we started the journey down south. Fikri was at the wheel; Pak Long and I were enjoying the reclining mid seat as well as the scenery along the way. I too had also a mission – since I was making a trip to JB, my neighbor Haji Adenan asked me to deliver some documents to someone there. The person in JB would contact me upon my arrival. We made two short stop over at Senawang and Simpang Renggam rest area for refreshment and prayer.
We arrived at Plaza Angsana JB at 1915 hrs, met the contact person and the documents delivered. My job was done. Ustaz Ali Yatim, Haji Fauzi friend was eagerly and excitedly waiting for our arrival. After the formal greetings we sat down for business discussion of Ustaz Ali business operation and he kindly took us for a tour the package that he was demonstrating at the Plaza. We then adjourned to New York Hotel for shower and for the evening solat. We were on the 21st. floor and we had a panoramic view of JB by night and Woodland Singapore across the Straits.
At about 2130 hours we went back to Plaza Angsana and Ustaz Ali Yatim made a personal demonstration on Haji Fauzi and Pak Long Mustapa. It was all about the treatment of the eyes. Since I had undergone cataract operations I dare not try the eyes cleansing medication. However Ustaz Ali complimented with goodies of samples.
We decided not to stay a night at JB and with the aid of Pak Long Mustapa navigator hand phone we managed to find our way out from JB and hit the Plus North South Highway. In the mid 70s I frequent JB when I was working at Pasir Gudang but the JB that I knew of was very much different from the present JB. Now, new buildings and township had sprouted everywhere. I lost all my landmarks and beyond recognition. Skudai was just a small outskirt town then but now it is already part of JB. Along the highway we stopped at Macap rest area for dinner cum supper. The place is superbly clean and air condition. It should be as it is normally the first stopping area for Singaporeans and we should portray our Malaysian image.
It was a smooth cruising journey home and the weather was very good. The last stop was at Seremban rest area for Pak Long to fire his smoking pipe. We arrived at Port Klang at the wee of morning at 0330 hours. It was a good break for me, seeing and learning something new. Off late I have been mentally disturbed domestically and politically. The impromptu trip occupied my humble soul physically and mentally temporarily.
At 1500 hours we started the journey down south. Fikri was at the wheel; Pak Long and I were enjoying the reclining mid seat as well as the scenery along the way. I too had also a mission – since I was making a trip to JB, my neighbor Haji Adenan asked me to deliver some documents to someone there. The person in JB would contact me upon my arrival. We made two short stop over at Senawang and Simpang Renggam rest area for refreshment and prayer.
We arrived at Plaza Angsana JB at 1915 hrs, met the contact person and the documents delivered. My job was done. Ustaz Ali Yatim, Haji Fauzi friend was eagerly and excitedly waiting for our arrival. After the formal greetings we sat down for business discussion of Ustaz Ali business operation and he kindly took us for a tour the package that he was demonstrating at the Plaza. We then adjourned to New York Hotel for shower and for the evening solat. We were on the 21st. floor and we had a panoramic view of JB by night and Woodland Singapore across the Straits.
At about 2130 hours we went back to Plaza Angsana and Ustaz Ali Yatim made a personal demonstration on Haji Fauzi and Pak Long Mustapa. It was all about the treatment of the eyes. Since I had undergone cataract operations I dare not try the eyes cleansing medication. However Ustaz Ali complimented with goodies of samples.
We decided not to stay a night at JB and with the aid of Pak Long Mustapa navigator hand phone we managed to find our way out from JB and hit the Plus North South Highway. In the mid 70s I frequent JB when I was working at Pasir Gudang but the JB that I knew of was very much different from the present JB. Now, new buildings and township had sprouted everywhere. I lost all my landmarks and beyond recognition. Skudai was just a small outskirt town then but now it is already part of JB. Along the highway we stopped at Macap rest area for dinner cum supper. The place is superbly clean and air condition. It should be as it is normally the first stopping area for Singaporeans and we should portray our Malaysian image.
It was a smooth cruising journey home and the weather was very good. The last stop was at Seremban rest area for Pak Long to fire his smoking pipe. We arrived at Port Klang at the wee of morning at 0330 hours. It was a good break for me, seeing and learning something new. Off late I have been mentally disturbed domestically and politically. The impromptu trip occupied my humble soul physically and mentally temporarily.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Jews vs Muslims in Jerusalem.
I came across the following article written by Jeremy Sharon of guardian.co.uk. I think he must be Jewish.
Quote:
The Temple Mount, or Al-Haram Al-Sharif to Muslims, must rank as one of the most sensitive religious sites in the world. The sporadic riots of the past month at the site are therefore particularly alarming, as such incidents have the potential to ignite much wider unrest.
For that reason, it would seem to be in everyone's interest to reduce as far as possible tensions and friction at the Temple Mount to an absolute minimum. But the statements and actions of a number of Muslim clerics based in Israel, Palestinian politicians and even foreign governments have only inflamed and exacerbated an already explosive situation.
Of even greater concern is the underlying sentiment behind the recent riots, protests, declarations and denunciations. Whether or not "Jewish extremists" went up to the Temple Mount (and they did not) and irrespective of whether or not they planned to, the violent and vitriolic response to these rumors is indicative of a fundamental lack of tolerance for the religious beliefs of the Jewish people.
And the incitement has been widespread, coming from both political and religious sectors. The Islamic Movement in Israel, in particular, has made strenuous efforts to inform its flock that Jewish groups were planning to "desecrate", "storm" or otherwise "endanger" the Al-Aqsa mosque and arranged buses for worshippers to come and "protect" the site.
Sheikh Raed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement's northern branch and one of the principal provocateurs, declared to a crowd, "We'll liberate Al-Aqsa with blood and fire" and stated that Israel was seeking to build a synagogue on the al-Aqsa mosque. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad told a meeting of foreign ambassadors that the riots were due to "an assault by extremist religious settlers on the Temple Mount compound". The Syrian foreign ministry decided to stir the pot too, stating "[Damascus] believes the Israeli security forces' invasion of Al-Aqsa was part of Israel's scheme to Judaise Jerusalem and destroy the mosque."
Not one shred of evidence has been presented to back up any of these accusations, the reason being that there simply is none.
Such baseless incitement over one of the most sensitive places of worship in the world is incredibly irresponsible. The destabilising effect of this agitation undermines whatever small amount of trust there may be between Israeli and Palestinian interlocutors. Additionally, it further inflames wider Arab and Muslim opinion, which is similarly deleterious to the project of tolerance and coexistence in the region. Inventing wild myths about Jewish designs on Muslim holy places can only harm any prospects for the normalisation of ties between Israel and its Arab and Muslim neighbours.
Aside from the agitation is the disturbing notion that Jews seeking to visit, or even pray at, their holiest place of worship (the Temple Mount and not merely the Western Wall) should be seen as provocation, desecration or in any other way unacceptable. Jerusalem and the Temple Mount are an indelible part of the Jewish national consciousness. The very term for the movement to re-establish the Jewish national home, Zionism, derives from a synonym for Jerusalem, Zion. Every day, three times a day, Jews all over the world turn towards Jerusalem and pray for it to be restored to its former glory; they have done so for nearly 2,000 years. That Jews are actually banned by the Israeli government from praying on the Temple Mount is a quite astounding concession to the demands of the Islamic waqf that administers it.
But preventing Jews from praying at the Temple Mount is not the only goal. A far more insidious campaign is afoot, one that rewrites history by arguing that there never was any Jewish temple at the site, thereby seeking to delegitimise any connection that Israel and the Jewish people may have to it, and by extension, the land as a whole. In a region in thrall to an epidemic of conspiracy theories, the irrefutable archaeological and historical evidence attesting to the Second Temple alone is sadly deemed insufficient.
The failure to acknowledge the connection the Jewish people have to Jerusalem is symptomatic of a problem which goes to the heart of the political conflict; that the Palestinian body politic has never reconciled itself to the fact that the Jewish people have deep-rooted historical ties to the land and are not simply foreign invaders who wandered in a few decades ago.
However politically expedient, Palestinian and Muslim leaders must desist from the incitement against Israel and the delegitimisation of the Jewish people's connection to the land, if there is ever to be any political accommodation between the two sides. If the Palestinian public never appreciates the depth of feeling Jews have for their holy places and their historical homeland, then the state of Israel, within any borders, will forever be illegitimate in the eyes of the Palestinians and will remain a target for eventual removal. Such an attitude poses a tremendous obstacle to the future prospects of peace between the two peoples.
Unquote:
The intifada started when Ariel Sharon went to Al-Haram Al-Shariff compound or the Temple Mount to the Jews. Where is Ariel Sharon? Is he dead or alive? The Jews are planning to reinstall their Temple on the site where Al-Haram Al Shariff Mosque is now. Removing this Mosque by the Jews would be a disaster to the whole Muslim population and the aftermath would be religious conflict or war. Removing (or destructing) Al Haram Al Shariff Mosque would also involve Al Aqsa Mosque the third holiest Mosque to the Muslims. To start with, all Muslim countries in the Middle East must be weakened. 9/11 was planned so that the Jews and the West have the passport to destroy Iraq and Afghanistan. Iran is on the way. That is why the West is so afraid about Iran having nuclear arsenals. When all these Muslim countries are in rubble, militarily powerless, the populations disarray, the Jews would start destroying the Al-Haram Al-Shariff and the Al Aqsa Mosque. By then, the Muslims would be powerless and perhaps less resistance. The Jews with the help of the Christians would reconstruct their Temple on the same spot where Al Haram Al Shariff stands now.
Insyaalah……it would not happen, at least not during my lifetime. I must agree that such an attitude of planning to reconstruct a Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount poses a tremendous obstacles to the future prospects of peace between the Jews and the Palestinians, read as Muslims.
I seek for world peace. I am sadden with the destruction of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Quote:
The Temple Mount, or Al-Haram Al-Sharif to Muslims, must rank as one of the most sensitive religious sites in the world. The sporadic riots of the past month at the site are therefore particularly alarming, as such incidents have the potential to ignite much wider unrest.
For that reason, it would seem to be in everyone's interest to reduce as far as possible tensions and friction at the Temple Mount to an absolute minimum. But the statements and actions of a number of Muslim clerics based in Israel, Palestinian politicians and even foreign governments have only inflamed and exacerbated an already explosive situation.
Of even greater concern is the underlying sentiment behind the recent riots, protests, declarations and denunciations. Whether or not "Jewish extremists" went up to the Temple Mount (and they did not) and irrespective of whether or not they planned to, the violent and vitriolic response to these rumors is indicative of a fundamental lack of tolerance for the religious beliefs of the Jewish people.
And the incitement has been widespread, coming from both political and religious sectors. The Islamic Movement in Israel, in particular, has made strenuous efforts to inform its flock that Jewish groups were planning to "desecrate", "storm" or otherwise "endanger" the Al-Aqsa mosque and arranged buses for worshippers to come and "protect" the site.
Sheikh Raed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement's northern branch and one of the principal provocateurs, declared to a crowd, "We'll liberate Al-Aqsa with blood and fire" and stated that Israel was seeking to build a synagogue on the al-Aqsa mosque. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad told a meeting of foreign ambassadors that the riots were due to "an assault by extremist religious settlers on the Temple Mount compound". The Syrian foreign ministry decided to stir the pot too, stating "[Damascus] believes the Israeli security forces' invasion of Al-Aqsa was part of Israel's scheme to Judaise Jerusalem and destroy the mosque."
Not one shred of evidence has been presented to back up any of these accusations, the reason being that there simply is none.
Such baseless incitement over one of the most sensitive places of worship in the world is incredibly irresponsible. The destabilising effect of this agitation undermines whatever small amount of trust there may be between Israeli and Palestinian interlocutors. Additionally, it further inflames wider Arab and Muslim opinion, which is similarly deleterious to the project of tolerance and coexistence in the region. Inventing wild myths about Jewish designs on Muslim holy places can only harm any prospects for the normalisation of ties between Israel and its Arab and Muslim neighbours.
Aside from the agitation is the disturbing notion that Jews seeking to visit, or even pray at, their holiest place of worship (the Temple Mount and not merely the Western Wall) should be seen as provocation, desecration or in any other way unacceptable. Jerusalem and the Temple Mount are an indelible part of the Jewish national consciousness. The very term for the movement to re-establish the Jewish national home, Zionism, derives from a synonym for Jerusalem, Zion. Every day, three times a day, Jews all over the world turn towards Jerusalem and pray for it to be restored to its former glory; they have done so for nearly 2,000 years. That Jews are actually banned by the Israeli government from praying on the Temple Mount is a quite astounding concession to the demands of the Islamic waqf that administers it.
But preventing Jews from praying at the Temple Mount is not the only goal. A far more insidious campaign is afoot, one that rewrites history by arguing that there never was any Jewish temple at the site, thereby seeking to delegitimise any connection that Israel and the Jewish people may have to it, and by extension, the land as a whole. In a region in thrall to an epidemic of conspiracy theories, the irrefutable archaeological and historical evidence attesting to the Second Temple alone is sadly deemed insufficient.
The failure to acknowledge the connection the Jewish people have to Jerusalem is symptomatic of a problem which goes to the heart of the political conflict; that the Palestinian body politic has never reconciled itself to the fact that the Jewish people have deep-rooted historical ties to the land and are not simply foreign invaders who wandered in a few decades ago.
However politically expedient, Palestinian and Muslim leaders must desist from the incitement against Israel and the delegitimisation of the Jewish people's connection to the land, if there is ever to be any political accommodation between the two sides. If the Palestinian public never appreciates the depth of feeling Jews have for their holy places and their historical homeland, then the state of Israel, within any borders, will forever be illegitimate in the eyes of the Palestinians and will remain a target for eventual removal. Such an attitude poses a tremendous obstacle to the future prospects of peace between the two peoples.
Unquote:
The intifada started when Ariel Sharon went to Al-Haram Al-Shariff compound or the Temple Mount to the Jews. Where is Ariel Sharon? Is he dead or alive? The Jews are planning to reinstall their Temple on the site where Al-Haram Al Shariff Mosque is now. Removing this Mosque by the Jews would be a disaster to the whole Muslim population and the aftermath would be religious conflict or war. Removing (or destructing) Al Haram Al Shariff Mosque would also involve Al Aqsa Mosque the third holiest Mosque to the Muslims. To start with, all Muslim countries in the Middle East must be weakened. 9/11 was planned so that the Jews and the West have the passport to destroy Iraq and Afghanistan. Iran is on the way. That is why the West is so afraid about Iran having nuclear arsenals. When all these Muslim countries are in rubble, militarily powerless, the populations disarray, the Jews would start destroying the Al-Haram Al-Shariff and the Al Aqsa Mosque. By then, the Muslims would be powerless and perhaps less resistance. The Jews with the help of the Christians would reconstruct their Temple on the same spot where Al Haram Al Shariff stands now.
Insyaalah……it would not happen, at least not during my lifetime. I must agree that such an attitude of planning to reconstruct a Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount poses a tremendous obstacles to the future prospects of peace between the Jews and the Palestinians, read as Muslims.
I seek for world peace. I am sadden with the destruction of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Monday, November 2, 2009
The weekend.
Last Saturday morning the clique met Ali Termizi house at 1000 hours. The “akad nikah” ceremony was slightly delayed as the bridegroom was caught in a traffic jam. The Kadhi was right on schedule. It was a solemn ceremony where Ali Termizi himself performed the “akad nikah”, lost his macho and was closed to tears. I know and I understand it wasn’t easy to carry the task for giving away the daughter in marriage. The Marhaban group recited the selawat nabi and marhaban. When all was perfectly done, Imam Khairuddin performed the doa selamat and we adjourned for buffet lunch. We were requested to be present for the night function of the “berinai”.
After zohor and asar respectively, I declined an invitation by Mat Nor Katim and Datok Shaari as I wanted to avoid too much food. The lunch at Ali Termizi house was quite heavy.
After Isyakh, as promised the clique met again at Ali Termizi house. Barbequed lamb was the main menu and that was something that I must avoid. However, I just took few small cuts to satisfy the host. It was tasty and overcoming the temptation I helped myself to more having in mind I would take the crestor before bedtime. (Crestor is my prescribed cholesterol control pill). Wahab and Haji Nazri took on the mike at the karaoke set but Ali Termizi sent his son instead, as his proxy. I was safe as I was in my jubah and kopiah Turki. There was laughter, anticipation and excitement when Imam Khairuddin unwinds his serban. There was no way he would do it as it would be on the front page of Sinar Harian the next day.
Back home, MU was playing Blackburn late. I stayed awake watching the game and MU won with only 2 goals. Prior to that I was in time watching Liverpool got clobbered by Fulham by 3-1. Liverpool ended up playing with nine men as two were red carded. The fate of Rafael Benitez during the coming days would be interesting to follow.
Sunday – the program was the “khatam koraan” at 1000 hours. I absconded as I slept late. Sabirin called and together we attended Ali Termizi main function at 1230 hours. The weather was very accommodating and I met several faces from Lembaga Pelabuhan Klang who had long retired. I met Capt Anis and asked about his handicap. He told me, two? We all laughed when Capt Anis commented about Ali Termizi game. Ali can play well and start good but cannot last long. The Marhaban group was busy assisting Ali Termizi ushering the guests. Ali Termizi showed me his VVIP guest, but how come the VVIP was serving himself at the buffet? Both of us laughed. The VVIP was the most controversial specimen in the Kampong. There were few that came to the wrong house as there was another similar wedding function down the road.
The rest of the afternoon was solely recuperating. I had overdosed myself with food for the past two days. After Isyakh there was another invitation by Haji Shahabudin who would be going for Haj. I went home straight from the Mosque and watch the new Astro channels that I just got.
Next weekend there is another invitation in store, all the way from Port Dickson. No specific plan yet and Mak Itam would be disappointed if I did not turn up. Mak Itam was the Bachelor Mess Cleaner when I was a bachelor boy in Port Dickson. Her granddaughter is getting married and I know the bride parents. It is rather difficult not to attend as the bride’s father himself conveyed the invitation with a salam from Mak Itam.
After zohor and asar respectively, I declined an invitation by Mat Nor Katim and Datok Shaari as I wanted to avoid too much food. The lunch at Ali Termizi house was quite heavy.
After Isyakh, as promised the clique met again at Ali Termizi house. Barbequed lamb was the main menu and that was something that I must avoid. However, I just took few small cuts to satisfy the host. It was tasty and overcoming the temptation I helped myself to more having in mind I would take the crestor before bedtime. (Crestor is my prescribed cholesterol control pill). Wahab and Haji Nazri took on the mike at the karaoke set but Ali Termizi sent his son instead, as his proxy. I was safe as I was in my jubah and kopiah Turki. There was laughter, anticipation and excitement when Imam Khairuddin unwinds his serban. There was no way he would do it as it would be on the front page of Sinar Harian the next day.
Back home, MU was playing Blackburn late. I stayed awake watching the game and MU won with only 2 goals. Prior to that I was in time watching Liverpool got clobbered by Fulham by 3-1. Liverpool ended up playing with nine men as two were red carded. The fate of Rafael Benitez during the coming days would be interesting to follow.
Sunday – the program was the “khatam koraan” at 1000 hours. I absconded as I slept late. Sabirin called and together we attended Ali Termizi main function at 1230 hours. The weather was very accommodating and I met several faces from Lembaga Pelabuhan Klang who had long retired. I met Capt Anis and asked about his handicap. He told me, two? We all laughed when Capt Anis commented about Ali Termizi game. Ali can play well and start good but cannot last long. The Marhaban group was busy assisting Ali Termizi ushering the guests. Ali Termizi showed me his VVIP guest, but how come the VVIP was serving himself at the buffet? Both of us laughed. The VVIP was the most controversial specimen in the Kampong. There were few that came to the wrong house as there was another similar wedding function down the road.
The rest of the afternoon was solely recuperating. I had overdosed myself with food for the past two days. After Isyakh there was another invitation by Haji Shahabudin who would be going for Haj. I went home straight from the Mosque and watch the new Astro channels that I just got.
Next weekend there is another invitation in store, all the way from Port Dickson. No specific plan yet and Mak Itam would be disappointed if I did not turn up. Mak Itam was the Bachelor Mess Cleaner when I was a bachelor boy in Port Dickson. Her granddaughter is getting married and I know the bride parents. It is rather difficult not to attend as the bride’s father himself conveyed the invitation with a salam from Mak Itam.
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