Passing of the Malaysian "Toilet King"

Me only heard of his name a few days ago when news of his passing came out in the papers. There has been a lot of changes in the Malaysian political scene lately and him being a deputy minister would have to be contented with less public attention - hence not many, including meself, would have been familiar with his name.

However, the thing that grabbed me attention about his passing was his so called reputation as the "Toilet King". Apparently, unknown to most of us, this "Rags to Riches" man had been waging a relentless war against dirty public toilets in the country. Again, not many of us may have realized the fact that he spearheaded the "clean toilet revolution" in the country during his tenure as the Deputy Housing and Local Government Minister back in 2004. Along the way he also set up the first toilet association in Malaysia – Quality Restroom Association Malaysia (QRAM), in which he was its chairman from 2005 to last year!

Me cannot agree more when he said that “Public toilets are a gateway to a country and reflective of the country’s development and their people’s culture”.

The thing that made me want to make this entry was also to highlight the sorry state of the toilets found in most of our mosques in this country. Apart from many of the toilets not being kept clean, the accessories such as the water hose, hangers or locks were often found missing or faulty. Me once had the harrowing experience of rushing into a mosque's toilet and soon realized that there was no door to lock!

In stark contrast to most public toilets in this country, me still remember, during me Aussie days, there was even a toilet being used as a voting center as it was the most convenient and most cleaned place that the authority could find at that time.

No doubt we still have a long way to go in this respect, but never give up easily, all quarters should double up their efforts to educate the public especially our young ones on the importance of keeping things clean. These efforts should not only be left to the authority, it should also be the responsibility of us all.

We would not want the efforts started by the late "Toilet King" being wasted just like that, we should continue on his legacy to make our surrounding clean as we should all appreciate that cleanliness is a virtue that knows no boundaries....

Lessons from The Beatles

Me stumbled upon this article when going through The Malaysian Insider yesterday and thought it would be a good read for those Beatles fans out there. Me used to remember the Beatles during me younger days especially the unique "Temenggong Juggah" hair style which became the craze during those good old days back in the 60s.

What lessons we could learn from the Beatles? Well, as enumerated by the writer, we could look at the following good things which has come out from the "crazy" days of the Beatles mania if we want to succeed "big" in life:-

Firstly, when we do things, ignore conventional approach - do it differently and do it as we know best and most importantly it is to our liking. Secondly, never get too complacent too fast, get uncomfortable, get restless, try we must, on every "tricks" in the book while climbing the success ladder. Get to the bottom of what we really want to do and never give up easily eventhough the tasks in front of us looks too daunting and full of hurdles...the important thing is, to have a go first, and with a bit of luck, just like the Beatles, they managed to win "big" by conquering the US music audience after being successful and complacent in their home turf - UK.

Thirdly, the magic lies in the power of pursuit - as mentioned by the writer, "In order to succeed, sooner or later we had better take some action even before we are ready.Movement will educate us, especially if it involves getting out of our comfort zone. Maybe it’s just a normal part of the process of maturing and sharpening our skills, and holding back will only make us narrow our repertoire by doing things that we’re only good at, when you don't even start yet!"

Further, as he mentioned, "It’s possible to feel inadequate and crippled by the fear of failure – oh, don’t we all have that! – but perhaps mistakes can be good sometimes. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to actively seek failure but mistakes can tell us what to do and, more importantly, what not to do. It’s part of growing pains and maybe that’s why life is called The School of Hard Knocks" - as me always told meself, me, graduating from the University of Nothingness...

And finally, the greatest lesson of all is on the aspect of leadership, a true leader should not think of self glorification but should always put the welfare of others in the forefront, instead of his own success, a good leader should always pursue the success of his "flock" or the group he is leading, in this way, at the end of the day, if we are not too greedy and self centered, we will eventually get both, our self fulfillment as a leader and most importantly bringing success to the group that we led...

After reading the article above, time to enjoy the Beatles' nostalgia, me favorite Beatles song...



Room 721,
Concorde Hotel, Shah Alam
07 April 2010.

Dilema Melayu Kita

Me came across this You Tube clip lamenting on the pitiful state of the Malay folks by a Malay singer named Cikgu Naim from Kelantan...maybe a lot of you have come across this clip but to me, being from the west coast, the Kelantanese dialect of the song has added a witty twist to a rather cynical song dealing with a very serious subject matter touching on the sad state of affairs of the Malay folks even after more than 50 years of independence.

Indeed, as mentioned in me previous entry, the Malay Dilemma Revisited, the Malay folks are still the simpleton they used to be despite the valiant efforts made by the power that be, to propel the Malays into this modern world.

Hope you enjoy the song and take the cue of where we are at the moment and where we want to go in the future as a society...in comparison with other more progressive ones...



Transcript of the song in Malay...

"Apa erti kemerdekaan
Bagi umat Melayu kita
Tak seh terima perubahan
Anak cucu menjadi mangsa
Orang lain duk rebut peluang
Takkan kita nak tengok saja
Masa tetap berjalan
Sesaat tak tunggu kita

Dilema, dilema, dilema Melayu Kita

Orang lain hidup bersatu
Kita balah sama sekampong
Bangsa lain hidup maju
Bangsa kita masih mundur
Orang cakap jaya selalu
Angguk kepala macam Jepun
Ikut stail dulu-dulu
Jadi katak bawah tempurung

Dilema, dilema, dilema Melayu Kita

Anak orang naik kapalterbang
Anak kita naik teksi
Anak orang makan hotel
Anak kita kedai kopi
Anak orang jual barang
Anak kita la duk beli
Tak dok pitih rela hutang
Tanah pusaka jual lagi

Dilema, dilema, dilema Melayu Kita

Kereta orang kereta Mercedes
Kereta kita Moris Minor
Kereta orang asap nipis
Kereta kita asap bunga
Kereta orang hidup dengan servis
Kereta kita mampus tolak sokmo
Beli baru tak leh pitih
Beli beras pun hutang sokmo

Dilema, delima, delima Melayu Kita

Anak orang baca buku
Anak kita duk ghalit sekerap
Anak orang masuk ke U
Anak kita masuk lokap
Anak orang minum susu
Anak kita duk togok ubat
Macam mana kita nak maju
Kalau tak seh ubah sikap

Dilema, dilema, dilema Melayu Kita

Anak orang gi Masjid
Anak kita tepi jalan
Anak orang duduk mengatib
Anak kita duduk gewey
Anak orang perangai baik
Anak kita serupa jembalang
Duk cari bala penyakit
Tak seh fikir masa depan

Dilema, delima, delima Melayu Kita

Apa erti kemerdekaan
Bagi umat Melayu kita
Tak seh terima perubahan
Anak cucu menjadi mangsa
Orang lain duk rebut peluang
Takkan kita nak tengok saja
Masa tetap berjalan
Sesaat tak tunggu kita

Dilema, dilema, dilema Melayu Kita"

When come to dealing with cultural changes, it is not always easy to make the change especially with those steeped in their traditional values even though others around them have changed...we can only hope, one day, with knowledge and perseverance, the desired results would materialize in the future generations to come....

InsyaAllah...Ameen.

Me Words of Wisdom - Part 2

A promise me have to keep...Me selected words of wisdom on Time and Success....

Me Tryst with Time….these are wonder words on time and what it really mean to us…..

“Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.” - Diogenes Laetius

“Tomorrow life is too late; live today.” - Martial

"Nothing is worth more than this day." - Goethe

"Yesterday is a canceled check; Tomorrow is a promissory note.
Today is all the cash you have; Spend it wisely - Author Unknown

"The value of life lies not in the length of days, but in the use we make of them" - Michel de Montaigne

"When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive -- to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love." - Marcus Aurelius

"If you want to make good use of your time, you've got to know what's most important and then give it all you've got." - Lee Iacocca

"The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life." - Muhammad Ali

"First I was dying to finish high school and start college.
And then I was dying to finish college and start working.
And then I was dying to marry and have children.
And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough for school so I could return to work.
And then I was dying to retire.
And now, I AM dying -- and suddenly I realize I forgot to live." - Author Unknown

Hence, we must not procrastinate anymore, go and take your time to:-

Take time to call a friend that you haven't talked to.
Call a long lost relative and see how they are doing.
Go to the park, feed the ducks;.
Look through old pictures and reminisce about good times.

And

Most importantly, make sure your loved ones know how you feel about them never let there be any doubt." - Jackie Sagner

Me Formula for Success...

These are motivational words for us to follow if we ever want to taste the success in life…..

"Tomorrow has a place for those who demand more of themselves today." - Author Unknown

"Search for the things that you are good at.
Work at them until you are the BEST.
You are guaranteed to succeed." - Contributed by Joe Brown

"We are all equipped with a gift or talent, which used correctly, will lead us to fortune and success." - Contributed by Joe Brown

"People seldom see the halting and painful steps by which the most insignificant success is achieved." - Anne Sullivan

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do." - John Wooden

"Ones best success comes after their greatest disappointments." - Henry Ward Beecher

"There is only one success - to be able to spend your life in your own way." - Christopher Morley

"Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go." - William Feather

Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it." - Henry David Thoreau

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out." - Robert Collier

"If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success." - John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

"Six essential qualities that are the key to success: Sincerity, personal integrity, humility, courtesy, wisdom, charity." - Dr. William Menninger

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."

"Flaming enthusiasm, backed by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success." - Dale Carnegie

May these wise words be our guiding light to proceed with this life with time and success on our side and making full use of the time that we have left….….in our journey to eternity...

At home in KL 09 March 2010……

What?! The French is Going "Halal" Too?

Me noted with great interest on a recent news article that mentioned about some dissenting voices made by a few French lawmakers against a French fast food chain that had made "halal food" as part of their standard menu.

Although the move for a halal menu by the fast food chain (which was in fact majority owned by the state!!) was simply a matter of survival based on a "supply and demand" business decision. This goes to show that the "Light of Truth" from the more than 5 million Muslims currently living in France, could no longer be "suppressed" as had been happening for ages. In the end, it is bound to surface from the smallest of crevices or cracks and find its way to the hearts of the populace.

The move and the subsequent controversies the "halal menu" generated is to be regarded as "healthy" and to an extend could be an eye opening experience for the French society at large, where the norm had always been to dismiss the Muslim beliefs and practices as "primitive" and "intolerant", even though the controversy itself has "helped" to reinforce the wrong notion among the French that Islam is a religion bordering on "insanity" for they could not "see" why the followers of the blessed Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. had to abide by certain rules and regulations with regards to halal food, as ordained by Allah the Almighty, which do not make any sense at all to them - in the context of their Western upbringing.

In fact, for the West, the controversies surrounding Islamic practices had not diminished much especially in the post 911 period where it had begun to breed the kind of Islamophobia the likes of which had not been seen before in the West. The proponents of the West, post-911 period, had cited numerous examples of the Muslims trying to "colonize" the West, either through their "population explosion" strategy or Muslim empowerment in its various forms such as the halal food, wearing of the Islamic garbs or the hijab for the Muslim ladies.

Again, to the proponents of the West, the fear is real, if left unchecked, some of the right thinking Westerners would most probably turn to Islam in droves and that would be to them, the beginning of the end of their Western ideology!

Hence, all efforts should not be spared to deny the Muslims, living in the West, their rights to live in accordance with their believes and practices. This can be seen either from the numerous books being written or films being produced with the single minded purpose of fanning anti-Muslim sentiments across the Western world. Hoping that this will create a "fear factor" in the hearts and minds of the Westerners which could act as a barrier from them getting to the bottom of the truth, whose light is beginning to shine ready to fill up the religious vacuum existing in the Western society.

Recently, that fear factor had been aptly symbolized on top of the current "halal menu" controversy in France, by the banning of Minarets for new mosques in Switzerland and the banning of the Hijab or Burqa in France itself which had captured the imagination of millions the world over.

Who knows, what started of as a basic "supply and demand" business proposition in the halal menu controversy in France, could be the beginning of further opening of the floodgate of acceptance of more Islamic practices in France and the Western world in general, we never know, it is all in the "Hands" of Allah, for He works in many mysterious ways.

No doubt, as Muslims, we must believe that Allah will never, ever, abandon His religion, Islam - the peaceful way of life, and that He will continue to ensure that His "Lights" and the Truth are not going to be forever remained buried in the hearts and minds of those who presently "fear" His religion....with His Mercy, it is not impossible, for those proponents of the West, to be the proponents of Islam instead, chosing Islam as their way of life. A way of life meant for the Western society as well the entire Ummah....Ameen.

Lastly, me would like to take this opportunity to again thanks me honored guests for the great support given to this blog for the past one year for today also happens to be the 1st anniversary of "JustSaySolah"!! Happy reading....