TwoSen

I AM unhappy reading about the “poor-quality culture” in our construction industry in the wake of a report that a 40m-long pedestrian bridge being built across Sungai Kilim in Langkawi has collapsed.

Towards the end of last year, we read about the caving in of a tourism building at Tasik Banding in Grik, Perak.

Early last year, it was the collapse of the new Fraser’s Hill road in Pahang, which is now closed.

What is happening? Is it a reflection on Malaysians that they do not take pride in their work? Is it a case of poor quality of engineering graduates or is it because our construction industry does not practise industry benchmarking of quality standards? Or, perhaps, it is due to inertia on the part of planners.

In all three cases, there were no deaths and hence, after six months, the issue will be forgotten. Can the project planners explain why these new structures collapsed?

The engineering and construction societies should also offer their explanations. Silence means they condone these disasters as acceptable and will only speak up if there are deaths.

HARBAN SINGH, Johor Baru

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

I HAVE lived in Taman Maluri, Kuala Lumpur, for 18 years. I felt safe as there was a monsoon drain next to my house.

Recently, Kuala Lumpur City Hall covered the monsoon drain and we felt a little threatened.

Things became worse when they built a metre-high platform next to our perimeter walls to plant grass.

Now, anyone can just jump over the wall. Fearing for the safety of my wife and two daughters, I wrote to City Hall but did not get any response.

Last Friday, my fears were confirmed when my new mountain bike was stolen. The next day, a set of my patio chairs was stolen.

Now my family is living in fear. My daughters are scared to go out to dry clothes.

I appeal to City Hall to remove or reduce the height of the platform for the residents’ safety.

ARUN S., Kuala Lumpur

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

I THINK it is a wise move by the Prisons Department to allow conjugal visits for inmates.

This comes in the wake of the parole system for inmates to make it easier for them to rejoin society.

Our prisons must move with the times and adopt corrective measures used by prisons in other countries.

HAMDAN IBRAHIM, Kuala Lumpur

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

NOW that it is 2008, it should be full steam ahead for the teaching of Mathematics and Science in English.

But is the policy being fully implemented in all schools, particularly in primary schools?

I’m afraid not. I know because I am a mother of a child attending a primary school in central Pahang.

Teachers there use Bahasa Malaysia with a smattering of English to justify their work in teaching these two subjects.

In teaching Science, not a single experiment was carried out. Children lose out on precious hours of exposure to the knowledge and language of their Science lessons. Mathematics is also in a sorry state.

Aren’t these teachers hand-picked to attend courses to conduct classes? What about monitoring?

Does anybody from the Education Ministry or education department care to do spot checks on these classes?

The headmaster is a well-meaning man who wants the best for his school.

But alas, since he himself speaks pidgin English, I’m sure he’s too shy to confront his staff on their lack of initiative.

People have to realise that primary school is where the maximum amount of learning can take place.

It is where pupils learn to have a good grasp of English as well as get the basics right in learning Mathematics and Science.

I urge the Education Ministry to bring in contract teachers who are proficient in the language to aid the school system.

An excellent policy requires rigorous implementation to make it a success. Leaving it to language-deficient teachers to pretend to teach is doing more harm than good.

M.M., Temerloh

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

RECENTLY, my friends and I went to Langkawi for a holiday.

Overall, we had an excellent trip, visiting the geo park and historical places. The people were friendly.

The only thing that disappointed us were the TV screens in Eagle Square, which advertised places for tourists to visit.

In most cases, there were grammatical errors and spelling mistakes in English.

We were embarrassed to see this. We urge the authorities to make immediate corrections to avoid embarrassing Malaysians.

KABITHA SIVAPATHAM and KEVIN VARGHESE THOMAS, Klang

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

RETURNING home from Ipoh on Feb 8, I stopped at the PLUS Tapah rest area.

It was not only tidy but had excellent toilet facilities.

It was like a hotel, as far as its cleanliness was concerned.

If there is a national certificate for cleanliness, it should go to PLUS.

BULBIR SINGH, Seremban

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

I WAS disappointed to read that Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid has stated that he saw culling as the solution to the problem of macaque overpopulation in urban areas (”Culling solution to macaque explosion” — NST, Feb 11).

There are non-lethal ways to address the problem of human-monkey conflicts.

The British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, along with non-governmental organisations and wildlife experts, have offered suggestions to Azmi regarding means of controlling the conflicts humanely.

These methods include reproduction control, relocation and, most importantly, educating the public to adopt behaviour that does not encourage monkeys to rely on humans for food.

Changing human behaviour is the most important single solution and should be adopted. Providing a food source reduces their innate fear of humans and makes them reliant.

Conflict between humans and wildlife over habitats is a growing issue facing many governments. Other countries have adopted humane methods of controlling their primate populations.

Only recently, the authorities in Singapore announced an all-out ban on monkey feeding and heavy fines for those who do.

I ask that the authorities in Malaysia look at similar measures to protect its indigenous population of monkeys.

SARAH KITE, Special projects adviser, British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, London

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

THE assurance given by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak (”We will do more for Indians” — NST, Feb 4) is wonderful news.

MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu had outlined issues relating to the Indian community requiring action.

Greater employment and promotional opportunities in the civil service, better education opportunities in public universities, more scholarships and an effective urban poverty eradication programme are in the pipeline for the Indian community.

However, there is another issue that was addressed by Samy Vellu that needs serious attention from the government: the poor state of the Tamil schools.

There are 525 Tamil primary schools in the country, categorised as either fully-aided government schools or partially-aided schools. The former are located in big towns and housing schemes and are modern concrete buildings owned by the Education Ministry and are fully funded by the government.

The partially-aided Tamil schools are located in estates and plantations. Most of these schools are old blocks, some built during colonial times.

Most of these schools are single-storey wooden blocks and look like longhouses.

They are owned by the estates, some of which have closed or been sold. The teachers in these schools are paid by the ministry.

The infrastructure of most of these schools is in a deplorable state. Canteens hardly exist and libraries are small. The environment is not conducive to learning or teaching.

The ministry should take over these schools and convert them to fully-aided schools status so that they can be funded fully by the government.

The ministry has always said they are unable to help these schools financially and build new blocks because these schools are located on estate land and, therefore, beyond their jurisdiction.

Furthermore, they are afraid that if the ministry builds new blocks and if the estate closes, the schools will be closed down, too.

What the government can do is either relocate these schools from the estates or undertake agreements with the estate management to improve their physical structure.

Tamil schools are the responsibility of the MIC.

Samy Vellu said the MIC was also the guardian of temples in the country. There are 26,000 temples, most of which are funded and managed well.

But there are only 525 Tamil schools and most of them are in dire need of funds and physical improvement.

SAMUEL YESUIAH, Seremban

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

AL Gore, I’m your biggest fan. I want to thank you sincerely for your efforts in saving Gaia from global warming.

Ever since you released your film about global warming, flew a few thousand kilometres in your private jet to attend Live Earth concerts and gave a speech at the Bali talks, global warming has been completely stopped.

But you must be a greatly generous prophet, because you are now using your powers to reverse global warming into global cooling.

Your miracles have caused record cold temperatures and snowfall in America, China, Brazil, South Africa, Iran, Iraq and even the desert lands of Saudi Arabia.

Antarctic ice levels are at their highest in over 30 years.

And now, the levels of Arctic ice that you were so deeply concerned about are back to February 2007 levels.

It is a testament to the effectiveness of good intentions and wishful thinking.

All those global warming rallies must have really appeased the great weather spirits. But we have to be careful that our enthusiastic sitting in armchairs at home doesn’t go too far, and result in a new Ice Age.

Some people laugh at me. They say that global warming was never a real threat in the first place. They claim that climate change is caused by natural processes.

But I know who is right: my hero and saviour of Earth, Al Gore.

SCOTT THONG, Ipoh

Source: NST – February 12, 2008

A NEWSPAPER highlighted a case where a company was distributing 25g packets of coffee mix adulterated with sildenafil. This mix was termed “kopi maut” (death coffee).

Sildenafil is a prescription medicine and only a doctor can prescribe it for a patient’s use.

The company has committed a serious offence by incorporating the drug in coffee powder meant for sale to the public.

There have been reports of loss of vision, irregular heartbeat, hearing loss and even cases of sudden death in people who have taken sildenafil.

We understand that the Pharmacy Enforcement Section of the Health Ministry is handling the case. We hope the company directors are made to feel the full brunt of the law.

The outcome of this case should be highlighted to increase public awareness and deter similar offences.

A Consumers Association of Penang survey found a number of brands of coffee mixes being sold in the market, usually in packets ranging from 20g to 25g each.

Some of the product labels list traditional ingredients such as tongkat ali. Some labels merely state “selected herbs” under the list of ingredients.

The brand names of some of these coffee mixes appear to hint at the products’ ability to boost sexual prowess in men.

CAP calls on the ministry to urgently look into the area of coffee mixes which contain traditional herbs.

Firstly, is it suitable for these herbs to be incorporated into coffee?

The Food Act 1983 states that premix coffee can contain milk, creamer and other food and permitted food conditioners. There are no provisions for the addition of medicinal herbs.

In general, manufacturers who use traditional medicinal herbs in commercial products should be required to obtain approval from the ministry.

Their products must be registered with the ministry and labels should bear the standard registration number.

The ingredients and their individual quantities in the product must also be listed in full.

S.M. MOHAMED IDRIS, for Consumers Association of Penang

Source: NST – February 12, 2008