Double Whammy...

First Government went on the offensive that wow! Petrol Price goes DOWN!!! They kept their promise.. then... WE WILL DECLASSIFY TOLL CONCESSION AGREEMENT!

WOW!! WOW!!!

Then, the whammy... Sharir talking nonsense.. and PLUS after years of screwing us rakyat with more than 100% increase in toll charges since its inception is "helping out" by dishing out 10% discount on toll charges for usage from 12midnight to 7am..... 10%??? I leave it to your imagination if the 10% is an insult or a gift.

I guess we rakyat cannot do anything but feel glad and thankful to BN.... so guys.. go down on your knees and give thanks and praise to BN for being so thoughtful! Petrol price DOWN... Toll DOWN.. that must call for a celebration... uncork the champagne folks!!! We are gonna save so much money!!!

Great! We pay more for fuel!

Is that it?

Sharir says that Govt has ceased petrol subsidies!

Adding salt to injury, he says that the government is making "some money" if fuel is at RM1.92. (ie the already increased price before the lunacy of the government brought the price to RM2.70/liter).

Now see if this statement made any sense.

At present, the cost price of RON97 is below RM1.61, said the minister. This means that consumers are currently paying 39 sen above the actual price.

Shahrir said even after considering the 19 and 12 sen revenue per litre going to the energy companies and kiosk operators respectively - the government can still marginally profit from pump prices at the RM1.92 per litre level.

Moreover, the energy companies and kiosk operators pay the government in the form of taxes.

Now... government realized that they are going to lose revenue from Petronas due to lower prices.. but aren't they saving on subsidies already? How much was it last year? 50+ Billion (or was it RM7bil? The number changes to suit their fancy? Anyway, from my archive of articles I have noted that the reported subsidies were about RM56billion! Anyway... Fine... Fine.. they are paying back in cash to Malaysians this year... how bout next year? So, isn't taking out the burden of 7bil sufficient in covering the shortfall in taxes from Petronas? Why do they want to make profit? Are we going to get better medical facilities? Better universities??? Better schools? Better public transportation??? Didn't they say that by increasing the fuel prices they will give us better public transportation??? Have we seen any improvements??? And this nitwit has the gall to tell us that they now want to make some PROFITS????

Now... get this.. the noted statements in RED! Petrol Kiosk operators are paying in form of taxes... and please read it in conjuction with my article yesterday...

Meanwhile, petroleum dealers said they would feel the pinch with the latest fuel price reduction.

Malaysian Petroleum Dealers’ Association acting president Abdul Wahid Bidin said: “We hope this reduction will be the last. Otherwise, we won’t be able to plan ahead and doing business will be very difficult.”

Why is our dear Sharir trying to "protect" the profits of these folks? I am sure if these people find that the business is not rewarding, some other people would only be too glad to take over. Anyway, who are the operators of the petrol kiosks?

They pay taxes????? You make me laugh Sharir... these are all Sdn Bhds.. and do you know what people do with Sdn Bhd???? Its an entity for individuals to evade taxes... wait.. let me rephrase that, evading tax is an illegal action... MINIMIZE taxes...

So Sharir, tell me... you are helping some mofos to keep their profits at the expense of the rakyats??? Is that it? So, we poor rakyats who earn so much more lesser than these petrol station operators, have to pay higher fuel charges so that these mofos can maintain their "profits" so that they can PAY taxes back to the government???? Can you now provide us rakyat with the amount of taxes paid by ALL the petrol stations in Malaysia???

Are we Malaysians so gullible and stupid to even believe Sharir and all the nonsense he is telling us???

Petrol Down Again...

Is it good news? RM2.00/liter?

Ever wondered if this is about the lowest it will go? Sharir says that they will cap the lowest price to RM1.92... remember that?

Now, does this sound like deja-vu?

Meanwhile, petroleum dealers said they would feel the pinch with the latest fuel price reduction.

Malaysian Petroleum Dealers’ Association acting president Abdul Wahid Bidin said: “We hope this reduction will be the last. Otherwise, we won’t be able to plan ahead and doing business will be very difficult.”

And how could they feel the pinch???? hint.. hint... when the price it at its highest... they were reaping huge profits!!!! Now their profits are down due to lower prices! Bloody profit swines! These buggers just want to make huge profits regardless of situation... selfish rent seekers!

I wonder how would the plan and doing business be difficult when in other countries where market price mechanism is in place? They will just have to plan within the context of volatile prices... if they are unable to do that, then they CANNOT be business folks.. Imagine these are the buggers that complain that credit card commission is eating into their profits when prices are up.. now they are freaking complaining when prices go down... And are they the only ones that is having difficulty doing business???? Geez....

So, do you all think that even if crude goes down to USD40/barrel, they will cap the price at RM1.92?

Wait, before that, lets look at how our DPM and soon to be PM spins on government keeping to promises to reduce price...

He said the people would be angry with the Government because prices of goods were still high.

“The Government had kept its promise but traders are not doing their part,” he said.

My my.... my... my... Its the freaking government's fault in the first place that the prices of goods today remain high! What is there to blame the traders??? Remember dear Najib, traders work on demand and supply.. as long as there is demand.. why should they reduce price? The government in their stupidity has allowed the traders this opportunity to increase price. Don't they know that prices of goods are sticky.. it won't go down after it has gone up? Was he just born yesterday????

Pump Price Down 10 sen...

As expected, they had to ease the pressure and give some "Raya Cheer".

Pump price down 10 sen.... and Fergie.. I did tell you it will be before 26th didn't I? But I wonder which story is bleaker... whether the above reduction of just 10sen? When crude over the last month has dropped to a low of 90/barrel? Or THIS.

Horror of horrors? Inflation jumps the highest in 27 years!!!! 8.5%!??? The damage was already done... 78sen increase... the damage has taken roots.. no amount of reduction is going to bring down the cost of hawker food... nor cost of doing business as many businesses have adjusted salaries to staff due to the sudden increase in fuel prices.. the cost of doing business has risen! Talk about a brainless government that says, with all the subsidies in place, the increase in fuel cost will not cause inflation!? Now do you remember who said that??? Lala?

So, we are suppose to thank Najib and BN government for being so thoughtful and for reducing the fuel price a few days before Raya.... and all the while they said its end of the month... now anyone care to speculate that the next one if there is any will be done right before Deepavali??? Just to placate the Indian voters? And I just wonder if any in the horizon for Xmas and CNY?? All these events coming just a week before the month end...

New Finance Minister.. New Fuel Price?

I have anticipated all these while that the struggling BN government would want to do something popular in order to regain some lost "goodwill". They had forfeited their ISA card and if they persist with Abdullah, they would have forfeited their fuel price card as well. But now with the PM in waiting in charge of the Finance Ministry, he would want to secure his position as the new PM of Malaysia by doing something for the people....

While PM did ask us to "Wait la." to questions on fuel price reduction... the sounds coming out now is somewhat a bit different. Decision THIS WEEK.

Talk as they want... I can tell Malaysians that they will decide to lower prices at latest this Friday (26th Sept 2008)... ahead of the balik kampung rush for Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. But guess what? Despite it benefitting some who travel home by car... the biggest benefectors of this reduction would be the bus companies who have already charged a much higher price for their tickets and to earn some "windfall" from lower fuel cost... Still they wanna play hardball by saying the cabinet will decide on fuel prices.. come on la.. who do you wanna kid??? 15sen? 20sen? 25sen? Anybody's guess really but no doubt about it... the price will go down before 26th Sept 2008. So, to all out there, keep your tank to at less than quarter at all times... Saving RM5 per tank is quite a lot of money over one week.. :).

What would you pray for?

Our PM seems to be taunting us with the lowering of pump prices when he urge Malaysians to "pray" for lower fuel prices. HERE.

Speaking to reporters after chairing the finance council meeting in Putrajaya today, he said the government may review petrol prices again in October.

Yesterday, media reports quoted Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Samad as saying that petrol prices may be reduced before the Hari Raya festival.

What do you expect from a person who "cakap tak serupa bikin?" October???? If he does that, then I will eat my shoe!! I will bet that it will be done by the end of this month before the balik kampung rush for Aidil Fitri!

In fact, I will take this a step further.... I will try to kill TWO BIRDS with one stone...

I WILL NOT PRAY FOR LOWER CRUDE OIL PRICES
BUT
I WILL PRAY for PAKATAN TO TAKE OVER THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT!

In that respect, we Malaysians can expect:

1. Immediate departure of sleepyhead at the helm of the country.
2. Immediate lowering of pump prices.

Now... who would join me in that prayer so that we need not be held ransom by a person who has not an idea of how to run this country.

Crude Oil Slump!

I do not know how they compute pump prices based on crude oil price but one thing I know our government will do.... is to make these kind of remarks...

Pump prices to stay until end of the month.

Likewise the same statement was made last month but our dear PM relented and announced a pitiful 15sen reduction in pump prices from RM2.70 per liter to RM2.55 per liter on 21st Aug 2008 just a few days short of polling date for the Permatang Pauh by-election.

Yesterday, when news of Hurricane Gustav blew past and missed all the oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico, Nymex slump to about USD105 per barrel. It settled at about USD109 per barrel. When the announcement of reduction was made it was hovering at about USD115 per barrel but it spiked briefly to USD121 per barrel albeit just for one day. Hold your horses for a big reduction even at end of next month guys.... as USD is staging a strong rally and our RM has slumped against all currencies, the USD included... more "impressively" is how it fared against the Renminbi. Sigh... we are getting poorer by the day!

Now, back to the pump prices... going by the logic if crude stays at USD110 per barrel, we should be "accorded" another 15sen reduction? Pittance if you ask me...

So, with no more by-elections coming, I think one can safely bet, if there is any reduction in pump prices at all, it will be a couple of days before Raya.... they will have to ensure the masses balik kampung on a cheaper tank... otherwise, they can expect another 10% swing in popularity the other way round leaving them with probably 20% of the populace behind them....

Minyak Turun? Tak!! Turun gak...

Being defiant about petrol price decrease before Permatang Pauh election... when they reiterated (the govt that is) that the price will be reviewed once a month and the reduction will only be made on 1st Sept 2008.

Eat your hearts out guys... our PM flopped again! Petrol price goes down.. a measely 15sen to RM2.55.

How do you then trust a government when they say one thing and go about doing another?

But trust me, if no PP by election.. no petrol reduction so early one... they are desperate to ensure Anwar lose or win with greatly reduced majority.

HOW MUCH HAVE BEEN SAVED?

We have to wait till end of the month to see if pump prices will be reduced... of course it will be... with crude oil dropping significantly yesterday to settle at below USD119/barrel and more importantly the Permatang Pauh by-election looming!

I am sure the government must be saving even on the 30sen/liter subsidy with today's price. Sadly we Malaysians are still paying RM2.70/liter! RM2.70 was set when crude was about USD135/barrel if I am not mistaken. Sure it went up to USD147/barrel albeit briefly but it tumbled soon after.

Yeah, met up a friend yesterday and he was moaning about the fuel price. I am sure many Malaysians who consume more than 80 liters per month would do the same. So we moan together over a cup of teh tarik... gosh.. we cant even afford a decent jug of beer! Well another feather in the cap of our ever changing lifestyles.

In all these hardships that we endure, I would like to call upon the government to reveal to us, Malaysians, how much subsidies have been saved for the past 2 months since the price of crude tumbled? Mr. PM Sir, instead of just keeping quiet and promising price reductions, tell us, as we Malaysians would want to know MORE.

HOW MUCH HAVE BEEN SAVED FROM THE 30sen SUBSIDY PER LITER SINCE THE PRICE INCREASE?

500mil? 1bil?

By the way, what are the projects for the rakyat that has been planned or underway arising from the "savings" in subsidies? Personally I have yet to see and hear of any. Can anyone clarify if any has taken place?

70sen?

This grandiose plan sounds much better than the one time subsidy payment.... Can the nation sustain the subsidy for long? Anwar must have in place plans to drive the economy and not just to tide over the current inflationary pressure.

If the price were to be reduced by 70sen, that would mean we would be paying RM2.00/ liter. Top it up with the subsidy that some of us have received.... we are paying RM1.30-RM1.60sen depending on our usage! WOW! So now what? Will the bus drivers reduce their charges? Will the wan-tan mee manufacturer right down to the hawker reduce their goods? Will companies cut down on petrol allowances that they have painstakingly ammended? Then 70sen reduction doesn't really sound like a good idea after all but it would be welcomed in the short term as we would be able to cut our fuel expenditure by a couple of hundred a month... well at least for me.. :).

While Anwar convincingly argued that the reduction will not further burden or channel funds from other development into subsidies, I would be more willing to hear about those savings to be channeled into various other developments for the people. While we can argue till the cows come home that the 78sen increase have done a lot of damage to our pockets but looking at the bigger picture, many have coped decently well and that the country is not subsidizing the foreigners as much as before which is a good thing. Now, the trick is to channel all those savings back into the system for the people.

More scholarships, more universities, more hospitals and better public transportation to start with isn't a bad idea for BN. If only they do all those than to be looking for the extra million here and there to fund their grand plan of being the who's who in UMNO.

Pump prices to go Down?

Hey... I was moaning about it yesterday in Spare a Thought.

And later that evening, the following news came out... Here and Here.

So if they are looking at reducing pump prices... now would that mean transportation cost will come down and stuff at supermarkets will become cheaper? Will my favourite mamak reduce their roti canai by 5sen? Will the mix rice flers bring down their prices? Obviously not... we can only seek solace that we wont bleed as much next time we fill our rickety Protons and Kancils up at the pumps.

The official said "if oil prices remain between 120 dollars a barrel and 125 dollars a barrel for two weeks," then Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi could announce a cut in fuel costs in the weeks ahead.

I think we Malaysians would not moan that much if they let the market price rule the roost. Since they have already made their policy of 30sen subsidy... keep it as such and leave the market to rule the prices. Why must they wait to see if it remains for 2 weeks... then PM announce a cut in the WEEKS AHEAD? How many weeks will it be?

I guess, the next question would be the RM625 that was paid out... yipppeee? We could end up paying lesser than RM1.92/litre this year.. at least.. I have a feeling that next year there will be no more cash handouts.... so guys enjoy it while it lasts.. or lest we let Pakatan take over....?

Spare a Thought

With all the events happening in our country at light speed, I think many can be forgiven for being exhausted or even clueless as to what is happening right now. With the amount of spin by MSMs, we are even more confused rather than informed of the situation.

First we have our C4 DPM embroiled in the Altantunya murder... and Rosmah's name was dragged in as well by none other than RPK. Then we have one Saifool claiming that Anwar sodomised him... if that is not enough, we also were treated to some disobedience by Terengganu Exco who bought Mercedes for themselves and challenge Pa Lala to also ask ACA to investigate Monsoon Cup matters amongst others... definitely "lawan towkay" moves by Terengganu. Phew... you thought that it was just about that! Were we wrong... so very wrong... PAS-UMNO secret talks on unification!? Unthinkable happens! Well.. WELCOME TO MALAYSIA.

How can we Malaysians go to bed every night thinking, it will be a new day tomorrow without thinking.. What are these mofos going to come up next?

Hello BN! Since the election, we have had rice going up through the roof... even today when the prices have come down, with some say its only about 15% above the normal before the drastic increase, the retail price doesn't seem to reflect the actual market price.... why? Bernas screwed up? Bought high and now it has to be stuffed down our throat at high prices to maintain your profits?

Then they groan saying "we cannot sustain any more subsidies on fuel." It was USD130/barrel then... they raised petrol by 78sen and proclaim that they are still continuing with 30sen/ litre subsidy. Today its USD122/barrel.... pump prices are still kept at RM2.70... someone is making millions....

Then TNB says, its my turn... we, the rakyat getting screwed again! Electricity up 20%!

Poor rakyat gotta change lifestyle again!!!!

Next, our kids will have to walk to school... yeah... talk about changing lifestyle... BUS FARE GOES UP!

The government has agreed to raise fares for express and stage buses, but not up to 100 percent as proposed by the Pan Malaysia Bus Operators' Association (PMBOA)

Poor rakyat gotta be thankful that the government has "cleverly" negotiated the increase to not meet 100% of what was proposed!!!

Would you want to speculate what else is going to go up? Read BH today and a pic shows fishing boats grounded.... no more subsidized diesel.... I think with whatever space you have at home, please plant your own vegetables... going vegetarian isnt all that bad. Apparently it reduces flautulance and indirectly methane gas that is bad for the environment. We will also cut down on meat demand! Meaning they will rear lesser cows and I was told that cow farts causes the depletion of the ozone layer! Vegetables are good, it emmits O2! At least thats what I learnt back then in school.

Poor Clef been complaining about the rise in bus fare. I urge her to... change lifestyle... again... change lifestlye... listen to our government... they know best... they are the smartASS!

Soap Opera Malaysia Style

Said Hamid says, "We have nothing to hide!" and HERE

Must be all nice and dandy after Rais sent in the letter telling US to butt out of the matter... Botak may have thought he is safe to come out and say something more..... "credible"

Excerpts:

'He said 96 representatives from foreign embassies and consulates, including the Turkish and American ambassadors, were satisfied with his explanation on the case."

Makes me wonder what did he tell those flers in the meeting and what gives him the impression they are all happy about his explanation? Why would Ms. Rice be making that statement?

An Asean diplomat who also attended the briefing said Syed Hamid assured the envoys that the investigations into the allegations against Anwar were done in accordance with the law.

The diplomat said Syed Hamid also told them that they had a video of how Anwar was treated while in police custody but did not show it to them.

This one baffles me..... read between the lines what the diplomat is saying and what Hamid perceives.

Alas! Condoleeza Rice gave a stinging reminder to those who thought they had "indefatigable evidence" against Anwar that US (the self proclaimed Tai-Kor) that, it is NOT and INTERNAL AFFAIR.

Then... Kuala Lumpur tells Washington... "SHADDAP YOU!"

I wonder if Hamid is going to froth yet again and go off tangent and mutter something incomprehensible like he did on Hardtalk after this round of "everything ok" then "tak ok" situation.

Now I know why he is losing hair..... by the way Hamid.. we still remember the chaotic traffic scenes the last two weeks and we are still not amused by all your stupid statements about the need for DNA. With all these "issues" affecting your credibility.. I suggest, you tender your resignation with immediate effect.

Hydrogen Power

Over the last week, there was this news that I read that a 100% owned Bumi company has managed to produce a contraption that breaks down hydrogen on demand from water to be used in your car as FUEL. Apparently, well, if I am not mistaken, that is on a test basis at the moment where taxis are being used to test out the gadget. Also it claimed to be able to be fitted onto cars below 1000cc, I think this might as well put NGV out of business.

Prior to this, my friend has also told me that someone he knows has fitted his car with this gadget... costing below 2k. Claimed to be able to save up to 50% of fuel, I think 2k is a really small price to pay, considering the fact that NGV tank cost anything from 2k-4k to install.

Today in The Sun, it was reported that another company has successfully tested on busses and Mercedes Benz and was unveiled by Ong Tee Keat on Thursday. H-Fuel System claims to provide fule savings for both the diesel and petrol engine.... Touted as fuel saver and does not compromise on power and torque coupled with its environmentally friendly emission, this may be our ultimate choice of contraption for our car in the light of sky-rocketting fuel prices as well as deteriorating environment.

I am sure over the next 12 months, many more companies will come out with such a contraption. If I am not mistaken, about 2-3 years ago, there was this Professor from Malaysia who claimed that he wanted to produce a water powered car.... I think its becoming a reality. Ability to produce hydrogen on demand eliminates the need to store hydrogen which makes it very safe... as storing it can be very difficult due to its highly flammable nature.

I think, the purified water stations around will have better business with this contraption.... fill up water and GO! Even a savings of 30% of gas would have made the contraption a success... if they can really save 50% in their infancy... I think this product has a great potential ahead!

I cant find the link in their online news.. appreciate if you guys can find that link!

Got one here, here. On Hydroxene (2006)

A forum discussion on why the water professor resurfaced... :)

How do you define...

Personal attacks? Character assasination?

This is what our mis-Information Minister has to say:

Here

“Personal attacks would be more about criticising what he likes, his clothes or his face,” Ahmad Shabery told reporters at the Parliament lobby yesterday.

Malaysia's Information Minister

I swear I saw the dribble/ foam at the sides of his mouth the night after the debate.....

Winners? Anwar v Shabeery?

I was impressed with Shabeery. Indeed he is a better choice compared to Zam. I find him able to hold his own but he seemed more interested in discrediting Anwar with personal attacks which is more akin to an election ceramah. He should have stuck to the arguments for topic of the day. His argument that the price increase is unfortunate as world prices is rising fast and Malaysia has no other option but to follow suit so as not to burden the government with astronomical subsidy and suffer other economic consequences. Great argument, but he failed to address the matter. With reduced subsidies, it merely means that there are funds to be channeled to other pressing matters which he has failed to mention.. because the government has not given any thoughts or having any plans to improve the situation. Out of the many issues that the public are concerned with, he merely touched on food security. The numbers do not add up... 78sen, save 50bil. Reduce 50sen cost 5bil. Eh? Do we need 50bil in food security? Not too long ago, we were told that 1.2bil would be spent on subsidy for rice while under 1bil will be spent on cooking oil.

1 hour is never enough to debate the matter. One should question who has more ideas in addressing the matter. I never agree that pump prices should be reduced. But, I do agree that leakages should be given priority. Sadly Shabeery did not touch on that. In fact, his Tonto, Tan Sri Dr. Ahmad Kardi made himself look stupid in his supplementary question. Instead of asking a question to put Anwar in a corner, he created a corner for Anwar to shut him up. Zulkifli Sulong fared a tad better but he also got shut up for not extrapolating the prices of petroleum after the 30sen hike. Both Tontos were made to look like fools that night.

I do not understand Shabeery, he has limited time to make it count for him to explain the government point as to why they increase pump prices, but he chose to attack Anwar on a personal level which Anwar I must say answered him in the most dignified manner in that he is there to debate the issue and not to attack a person personally. However, many of Shabeery's allegations fell flat except for the 1974 demonstration which left very much unanswered. But for the other attacks, it is either Anwar answered it well and Shabeery did not have the chance to counter, OR, our dear Information Minister was mis-Informed yet again on past. Allegations as to Anwar was part of the government when the IPP contracts were signed... to which I think Anwar scored great points here to say that Finance Ministry and Tan Sri Ani Arope objected to EPU and the Prime Minister then and thatTan Sri Ani Arope resigned as a result.... Shabeery must be blushing at his own mistake. Questions as to multi billion bailouts with public funds met with muted response. IPP soaring profits went unanswered. At least Sharir Samad gave a better insight when he argued that the profits will go back to TNB and not the government and that it is a temporary measure.. what about long term.... Damn... Sharir should be our PM instead of well...

Net importer by 2015! That was a topic but again Shabeery was made to blush. Anwar's answer was simple enough for man in the street to understand. The problem here lies not in Shabeery not being able to articulate himself well. He has proven that he can. Poise and confidence, he took Anwar head on, but he has precious little ammo to take him through. IF... only IF, the government has announced austerity measures ahead of the increase as well as put in place concrete plans for public transportation, education, health, infrastructure etc and THEN announce the increase for funds to fund these initiatives, it would have vindicated Shabeery. He was on the defensive from the word go and the only offensive he can offer were potshots at Anwar on a personal level.

Anwar on the other hand does not offer much either. But he did outline steps he would take to realize his "vision". Which I think is good enough for the time being. But he too failed miserably to talk beyond the price reduction. Maybe he wanted to stick to the topic of the day.

No winners last night but if it has been telecasted by RTM, more Malaysians would emerge winners as we see arguments from both sides for the first time on TV. A step in the right direction? I hope for more debates of this nature and hopefully the marshalls are not that zealous in breaking cameras, tripping people and hammering the journalists in scuffles after the debate.

RM625.... When are we entitled?

Call me stupid. But I think the whole thing is soooo stupid.

Renewed my roadtax two weeks ahead and since I am on leave today to run some errands.... well, I lost my ATM card bout 6 months ago and now my account is about to be dormant, so I thought what the heck... ran around completing my things as I should.

So off to the bank, was a pleasant morning if not for the perpetual traffic jam... then it was off to TMPoint to pay my phone bill.. and got myself an Aztech DECT cordless phone for RM19.00! It was a promotion so I thought I might as well get one since the cordless I had for my room's extension has gone cuckoo for sometime now. Then I thought what the heck.. go and collect my RM625!!!

Went to the postoffice and thats where my nightmare began...

"Encik... yang ni encik tak boleh claim lagi." (My roadtax expire on 13th July 2008 had it renewed last week)

"Encik hanya boleh claim lepas 11hb July."

I said I was stupid because I should have asked before lining up for 1.5hours.

Seriously, they could have made this much easier.. for every qualifying road tax that was renewed, have the postal order/ cheque sent to the owner instead of having one to queue up for hours on end just to get your claims. This government is making things difficult even for you to get back your money!

IRB is another pain in the butt. My wife's assessment for the previous year was that she short paid RM800 in taxes due to her performance bonus... this year however after taking into consideration of current bonusses, she has overpaid her taxes by RM782. So, when we submitted her forms online, we thought well... the repayment should come back... last week got a letter saying they need to "investigate" the matter a little longer and that the taxes cannot be repaid back as of now... WTF! When we underpay, you come hounding us like Ah Long.... now that we want to claim back the freaking IRB esok lusa with you.

My tax is another matter altogether. After filling in the forms, IRB owes me..... RM75.24!!!! The cheque came super fast back to me. I was like... pay my wife's back taxes la... mine, you want to esok lusa.. you can esok lusa....

A Picture Speaks a Thousand Words

The title YB has in the past used to denote Member of Parliament or State Assembly. It was meant Yang Berhormat. Indeed a title that many in the past used to push some envelops and getting their crony's favour done.

Not until the last General Election. The term, YB was used to denote Yang Berkhidmats. Many people who campaigned along that line was endorsed by Barisan Rakyat. These are the people elected by us and thus would have to fulfil their duties in representing our voice in their respective assemblies or Parliament.

Then, there are some from the Blog scene that got elected and hence YB stands for Yang BerBlog!

On the downside... many indicate the stupid statements to come out from some Yang Bodoh... while Chua Soi Lek took YB to real dizzy heights.. then he was told YB stands for Yang Beraksi and Yang Berbogel... but today..... well.... read on..

Today a pic that came on in The Malaysian Insider gave a new twist altogether to the monicker YB. (Read the news tho for why these YBs are on an austerity drive.... ). Maybe Tian Chua needs to buck up on his riding skills he seem to lag far behind those from Kulim and Padang Serai! Yeah!!! My hometown boys are leading the bicycle race!

YB now stands for..........



YANG BERBASIKAL

HAIL THE NEW AP KING!

With the departure of Rafidah Aziz and the demise of Naza Motor owners and in comes the new International Trade and Industry Minister, Muhyiddin who announced that APs are here to stay.. now give birth to the new AP King... Datuk Shahrin Zahari, 28 years old. He has been given 1200 APs to import Hybrid cars for sale in Malaysia... Now.. Aint that a novel way to make easy money?

Now it makes me wonder... a Datuk at 28? Now what has he done to receive such a "distinguished" accolade?

I wont speak another word... read this in RPKs Malaysia Today for the take.

Apparently, Mofaz Group is making a comeback through Datuk Shahrin?

MalaysianJoe thinks this is just DISGUSTING! Probably another success story of true NEP at work? STINKS!!!!

The story about “subsidy”…

Nope.. Again I did not write this but it was popped into my mailbox by a friend.... Thanks Choo..

A man called Maha owns a farm which can produce 10 apples every day.
He has 5 workers to operate the farm.
Each of them eats 1 apple daily and it is enough to keep them operating the farm normally.
The remaining 4 apples, the landlord sells them at RM10 each and he earns RM40.
He uses the RM25 to improve the farm operation and facilities.
He gives RM2.00 to each of his workers and he keeps the remaining RM5.00 as profit.
Day by day, the farm is well developed and all of the 5 workers are happy with the money they can save.

When Maha passed away and there is a new landlord, Abdul comes to continue the farm operation.
He says to the workers:” We need to improve the farm quality and redefine our way of thinking.
From now on all of you only need to pay RM1.00 for each apple you eat.
It is very cheap as the price is RM10 each outside the farm.”
The workers have no choice but to pay RM1.00 for the apple they eat daily.
Their earning decrease from RM2.00 to RM1.00 per person.
As usual, Abdul sells the 4 apples and he gets RM40.
He uses RM25 for farm improvement and pays RM10 to his 5 workers.
He gets RM5.00 as profit. On top of that, he gets another RM5.00 from the apples that he sells to his workers.
In total, he gets RM10 as profit every day.

Soon, the apple price increases to RM20 each.
The new landlord gets a higher profit as he gets RM80 for the 4 apples he sells daily.
Then, he decides to give the farming improvement contract to one of his close friend, Samy.
Samy says:”Apple cost naik, improvement cost also misti naik.”
So, the farm improvement cost increases from RM25 to RM50.
In actual, the improvement only cost RM30.
The remaining RM20, Abdul and Samy share evenly among themselves.

Let’s calculate how much Abdul gets daily:

RM10 (from farm improvement cost)
RM20 (Net profit by selling 4 apples: [Gross profit, RM80] - [Improvement cost, RM50] - [Wages RM10] = RM20)
RM5 (from selling apples to his workers)

In total, Abdul gets RM35 daily compare to RM10 initially when he takes over the farm from Maha.
His profit increases RM25 and the workers are still getting RM1.00 daily per person.
The greedy Abdul does not want to stop there.
One day, he says to his fellow workers:” You see ah, the current market price for one apple is RM20 and you are only paying RM1.
See how lucky you are! I have to SUBSIDY RM19.00 for each of the apple you buy and total I need to SUBSIDY RM95.00.
This will greatly burden the farm and we might get bankrupt if we continue like this.
In order to avoid bankruptcy, I need to increase the apple price that you buy from RM1.00 to RM1.50 and I will bear the remaining RM18.50 per apple as my subsidy to you all. ”
So, greedy Abdul adds RM2.50 to his current profit and the number becomes RM37.50.

After you have read the story, I am sure you have already understood the meaning of “SUBSIDY” given by the government.

The RM95 subsidy never existed in the first place and so was the RM52 billion fuel subsidy generously “given” by the government

Cutting fuel subsidy is actually just a reason to steal money from your pocket.
Are you gonna stand there and let them rob you？