TwoSen

WE have been visiting Malaysia since our children were born in the late 1980s. A recent visit has prompted us to write this letter.

Over the years, we have seen how Kuala Lumpur has grown. We love the way the city lights up at night. But what has happened to the good old taxi service?

We noticed that the service began deteriorating a few years ago. Back then, you hailed a taxi, got in, stated your destination, the meter clicked and you were on your way. Today, you have to chat up the taxi driver before he decides whether your destination suits him. Forget about meter use and expect exorbitant fares.

The excuse taxi drivers usually make is “jam everywhere”, no matter what time of the day it is. And rainy days mean an extra charge as well.

Then there are the arrogant drivers who hang out at hotels and shopping plazas. If they had their thinking caps on, they would have noticed that most tourists walk right past them as they already know of their scams.

We dread having to catch a taxi in the city. It saddens us to see these drivers tarnishing Malaysia’s image.

But at the same time, we would like to say terima kasih to those drivers who provide the “Good Old Taxi Service” — it makes the day much nicer.

CHRIS and DONASingapore

Source: NST – August 26, 2008

I REFER to the news report, “Abdullah: Fuel price cut not politically motivated” (NST, Aug 24) in which Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was quoted as saying that traders needed to pass the benefits of lower fuel prices to consumers. “Please hurry up and reduce the prices. Help one another.”

Traders should heed the prime minister’s call to reduce prices.

Not reducing the prices (which were raised as a result of higher fuel prices) would in a sense amount to economic sabotage — an unpatriotic act.

Consumers’ associations should, besides making statements to the media, do something concrete for their members by opening up cooperative stores.

The prices of goods set by these stores should serve as a benchmark for others to follow. Such a move will send a strong message to retail outlets and their powerful “guilds” to set realistic prices for the goods sold by their members at their outlets.

M. GANESHADEVAKuala Lumpur

Source: NST – August 26, 2008

I AM writing in response to the issue of the on-off ban on Canadian pop star Avril Lavigne, which has left Malaysian fans feeling angry.

Fans are happy to know that the concert will go on after all.

Kudos to the those who gave the green light for the Aug 29 gig.

Since the Avril concert ban has made headlines around the world, it has left many Malaysians questioning what democracy and freedom of expression is all about.

A friend in England wondered how Avril could be considered “indecent” or “a bad influence” to the point of being banned.

She said Avril was one of the few female artistes who can truly sell her voice and talent rather than rely on her looks or dance moves.

Her songs are meaningful and display her talent in songwriting.

Why ban a talented singer like Avril who can sell music without resorting to selling her looks and indecency?

The news that the concert was given the green light shows there is still a ray of hope for talented foreign acts from different musical genres to be able to perform on Malaysian soil.

I hope this incident will not repeat itself, otherwise it will only drive away good foreign artistes to perform elsewhere in Asia.

CHRISTOPHER K. BIRCHKuala Lumpur

Source: NST – August 26, 2008

IS life in Malaysia that bad that Parti Keadilan Rakyat de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibra-him needs to form the next government in a hurry?

Yes, we have problems but life here is good compared with many other countries.

Malaysia is heaven compared with Zimbabwe and North Korea.

Anwar is out for revenge against Umno and he does not care how he hits back.

P.J. , Ipoh

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

IT was thoroughly disgusting to see world No 1 badminton player Lin Dan throw his racquet and shoes into the crowd on winning the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics recently.

The world body must put a stop to this sort of behaviour before under-wear and bras start flying in the air.

T. RAJENDRA, Petaling Jaya

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

I WRITE in response to “Tony Blair’s lecture: He should not have been invited” (NST, Aug 21).

The Faculty of Law, Universiti Malaya, initiated the Sultan Azlan Shah Law Lecture Series in 1986 to honour Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak for his contributions to Malaysian law.

The former British prime minister Tony Blair delivered his talk “Rule of Law and Good Governance” on Aug 1.

Leaving our own sentiments aside, we must admit that he expounded the virtues of good governance, judicial importance and democracy with clarity and eloquence.

Whether we conceive his deeds to be good or bad, only history will judge the man for his actions as prime minister.

Let us not forget that Blair was gracious in accepting the invitation. As it was UM’s prerogative to invite him, perhaps it can justify its choice.

DR F.S. MALHI, Ipoh

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

I WOULD like to highlight a problem that I encountered with Telekom Malaysia in April, which has not been resolved till today.

I subscribed to TM’s newly-launched “Streamyx Combo 1″ package in late March and it was successfully activated in early April. At the same time, I also subscribed to an “add-on” package named “Voice Plan RM28″, which allowed customers to make unlimited calls from their homeline to any TM fixed line nationwide, with a fee of RM28 per month. According to TM, once the Streamyx Combo and the “add-on” packages were activated, I would no longer need to pay my existing monthly fixed telephone line charges.

But to my dismay, TM still continued billing me the monthly fixed telephone line charge of RM25.

Although I have been to TM Point Mentakab branch three times to highlight this matter, I have yet to receive a favoura-ble reply.

My TM account number is: D20613-774-3601.

RIDHUAN LAU ABDULLAH, Mentakab

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

THE 2008 Beijing Olympics is over and the only trophy we have to show to the world is a silver medal in badminton.

It may not be much but it is something we should, and must, be proud of.

What we must tell our children and grandchildren is that one can never achieve anything without making some sacrifices.

What Lee Chong Wei and Misbun Sidek did was not just for themselves, but for all Malaysians.

The world may not talk so much about a silver medal winner but whenever they talk about gold, they would be sure to talk about silver medal winners and, then of course, of Malaysia.

Nowadays, sporting heroes are not that easy to come by. There are so many things to put together that it is almost impossible to do it all alone.

Just look at how long it took for Chong Wei to get where he is now.

If an individual were to try it all by himself, he would be down and out in the blink of an eye.

In that sense, we must not forget the people behind this success.

In fact, there is one person who stands out as the man behind Chong Wei’s success and that is none other than Misbun Sidek.

Misbun has an uncanny ability to spot a winner.

He first saw Chong Wei a few years back and took him under his wing to train, nurture and bring out his true potential.

Misbun’s sacrifices and all the dedication that he put into training Chong Wei paid off when Chong Wei took the silver medal.

Although Chong Wei was the winner of the medal, the real winner here is none other than Misbun.

He did what no other trainer has done in the past, and that is to fully believe in and trust his charge.

So, as Chong Wei is getting all the accolades and the rewards, we must also ensure the same for Misbun.

Lest we forget, please reward the man who made it possible for Malaysia to win a silver medal in Beijing Olympics 2008.

MOHD GHAZALI OSMAN, Ipoh

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

WHEN the chips are down, it is only the best who prevail.

Lee Chong Wei took on the best in the world and returned with a silver medal, the only Malaysian to do so. The others returned empty-handed.

For the magnificent effort Chong Wei made, I suggest the prize money of RM300,000 be raised to RM500,000 as a wedding present for Chong Wei. Even though Chong Wei was defeated in the final, he showed total commitment to badminton and absolute patriotism to Malaysia.

In an interview, I heard him say that he was representing the nation. Yes: nation above self.

YEOH SENG HONG, Penang

Source: NST – August 25, 2008

IT has been brought to our attention that the Pahang government is favourably considering YTL Cement Bhd’s application to extract limestone from Gunung Jabak Puyuh in Jengka, Pahang.

We also note that the YTL Group considers itself to be an environmentally responsible corporate citizen. YTL has supported several significant environmental projects, currently and in the past, and is a large contributor to nature conservation in Malaysia.

In addition, YTL prides itself on taking the lead to minimise its corporate footprint on the environment and prides itself on leading the fight against climate change by minimising its carbon footprint.

Not many are aware that Gunung Jabak Puyuh is a hill of extremely high conservation value as it harbours important archaeological artifacts and a substantial number of rare flora and fauna.

The larger Gunung Senyum, less than 1km west of Gunung Jabak Puyuh, is a popular recreational attraction as it has several easily accessible caves. In fact, the Pahang Forestry Department is currently managing the hill as a recreational site.

Bukit Jabak Puyuh, being a satellite of the larger Gunung Senyum, is less visited but is thought to be biologically as diverse as Gunung Senyum.

Limestone hills are like islands surrounded by tropical rainforest. Their habitat is very different from the surrounding area. Limestone hills in Ma-laysia tend to have shallow soil cover and are hotter and very much dryer.

Plants and animals living in this harsh habitat have evolved over eons to adapt to this condition. Due to this, many flora and fauna found on limestone hills are rare and endemic, sometimes found on one particular hill only and nowhere else. Although limestone hills cover less than one per cent of Malaysia’s land area, they contribute more than 20 per cent of Malaysia’s plant endemics.

Gunung Senyum and Bukit Jabak Puyuh are no different. Of the 48 known snail species found in these hills, 11 are endemic to Malaysia and of these, six are site-endemic, that is, only found on these hills. Limestone hills are also known for caves where a whole range of unique plants, animals and geological features are found.

Gunung Senyum and Bukit Jabak Puyuh are both important biodiversity reservoirs. The sad thing is that many limestone hills, including Gunung Senyum and Bukit Jabak Puyuh, are little studied.

Although in a perfect world, limestone hills would not be quarried, we are however pragmatic enough to realise that cement and other limestone-related products are necessary in our modern lives and that, for the moment, extraction of these materials must be allowed to a certain extent. However, there are technologies and quarrying methods widely available, such as basement quarrying, which neither deface nor destroy our natural, above-ground resources.

Utilising such methods is an opportunity for YTL to show leadership both in environmental stewardship and technological advancement.

More than 90 per cent of our limestone resources lie underground. Therefore, it makes more sense to utilise these than to destroy and deface what we can see. It is our hope that YTL will reconsider their plans for the sake of Malay-sia’s biodiversity.

HYMEIR KAMARUDIN, President, Malaysian Karst Society, Ipoh

Source: NST – August 25, 2008