I first came to know of the Indonesian singer/poet, Ebiet G Ade by chance actually ... I was in Form 4 way back in 1980 when Sweet Charity, the rock band from Singapore came out with the hit song "Camelia". At that time, I thought the song was originally "owned" by Sweet Charity not knowing that it was a "cover version" of a song by the same title by Ebiet G Ade - the only difference is that Sweet Charity's version is the rock version of "Camelia".
There was one fine day that I bumped into a cassette entitled "Camelia" (1979) by the original singer, Ebiet G Ade and since then I never look back but falling in love with his songs.
Ebiet G Ade was born as Abit Ghoffur Aboe Dja'far on 21 April 1954 in Wonodadi, Central Java. He is the youngest son of Aboe Ja'far and Saodah. A singer & song writer who writes his own lyrics which often allude to social issues and current events in Indonesia.
He had produced abundance of hit albums such as the "Camelia" albums i.e. "Camelia" (1979), "Camelia II" (1979), "Camelia III" (1980), "Camelia IV" (1980), "Zaman" (1985), "Menjaring Matahari" (1987) and "Seraut Wajah" (1990). This is not to mention his later albums such as "Kupu-Kupu Kertas" and "In Love: 25th Anniversary" which was produced in 2007 to commemorate his 25th year wedding anniversary.
Among his hit songs are of course "Camelia", "Menjaring Matahari", "Kupu-Kupu Kertas", "Elegi Esok Pagi", "Berita Untuk Kawan", "Titip Rindu Buat Ayah" and of course my favourite song "Lagu Untuk Sebuah Nama"..
It is worthwhile I believe to reproduce the full lyrics of "Lagu Untuk Sebuah Nama" to understand and get the feel of who Ebiet is ...
The lyrics go like this:
"Lagu Untuk Sebuah Nama"
"Mengapa jiwaku mesti bergetar
sedang musik pun manis ku dengar
mungkin kerna ku lihat lagi
lentik bulu matamu
bibirmu dan rambutmu yang kau biarkan
jatuh berderai dikeningmu
makin mengajak ku terpana
kau goreskan gita cinta.
mengapa aku mesti duduk di sini
sedang kau tepat di depanku
mestinya aku berdiri berjalan ke depanmu
ku sapa dan ku nikmati wajahmu
atau ku isyaratkan cinta
tapi semua tak ku lakukan
kata orang cinta mesti berkorban.
mengapa dadaku mesti berguncang
bila ku sebutkan namamu
sedang kau diciptakan bukanlah untukku
itu pasti tapi aku tak mau perduli
sebab cinta bukan mesti bersatu
biar ku cumbu bayangmu
dan ku sandarkan harapanku."
I could only say the song, its lyrics and the music composition are brilliant indeed.... Just grab any of the albums which I mentioned above and listen attentively to the songs then you would understand why Ebiet G Ade to me is the most brilliant singer/poet this "Nusantara" ever have ....
Enjoy the songs ......
Monday, December 20, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
"Malaysia Boleh"!!! Oh Not Again, please ....
Malaysia as a nation is a peaceful nation with proud & patriotic citizens ready to defend this "Ibu Pertiwi" when needed ... This I firmly believe and I myself would do the same...
The only thing which bothering me is our overzealous in "doing things" ... We are so eager to prove the slogan "Malaysia Boleh" without even thinking of the after effects or the impact of it....
Two (2) news caught my attention...
The 1st news is not so bad actually. It was reported that a "Majlis Pelancaran Berkhatan Beramai-ramai Daerah Dungun" was held on 27 November 2010. It was reported by Utusan Malaysia on 28 November 2010 that about 1,000 - yes!!1,000 - male kids (between 10 to 13 years of age) would be circumcised free of charge at three (3) locations i.e. Pejabat Kesihatan Daerah, Hospital Dungun and a clinic at Bukit Besi.
I hope the relevant authority really take extra caution in this mammoth "exercise" with enough resources and those in charge of the circumcision get enough rest ... We are talking about these kids "life" and it's the utmost vital part of their anatomy which are at stake here!!! Anyway, as at to date, nothing untoward had been reported in the news so all must have gone well ...
The 2nd news was reported in NST on 8 December 2010 at pg 25 reported that an attempt to achieve "The most number of mountain climbers" into the Malaysia Book of Records was cancelled. The plan was to have about 2,000 people scaling Gunung Lambak in Kluang simultaneously and hence creating a record in the process.
The plan wan objected by the environmentalists, local residents and individuals who said to have 2,000 people scaling the small mountain of 515 meter tall & with a journey of 1.5 km to the summit would do more harm to the environment than good ...We are lucky as a nation as we still have sane people around!!
This reminds me of years back a certain former MB of Kedah - he is known for churning out mind blowing ideas anyway - proposed for a group bicycle ride/tour from Kedah to Dtaran Merdeka to celebrate Merdeka .... I have to salute Datuk Seri Samy Vellu who immediately instructed no MIC members should participated in the event as the long journey may not be safe as they might involved in road accident ....
I agree to the notion of "Malaysia Boleh" but we must also bear in mind that not everything is "Boleh" .....
Till we meet again ....
The only thing which bothering me is our overzealous in "doing things" ... We are so eager to prove the slogan "Malaysia Boleh" without even thinking of the after effects or the impact of it....
Two (2) news caught my attention...
The 1st news is not so bad actually. It was reported that a "Majlis Pelancaran Berkhatan Beramai-ramai Daerah Dungun" was held on 27 November 2010. It was reported by Utusan Malaysia on 28 November 2010 that about 1,000 - yes!!1,000 - male kids (between 10 to 13 years of age) would be circumcised free of charge at three (3) locations i.e. Pejabat Kesihatan Daerah, Hospital Dungun and a clinic at Bukit Besi.
I hope the relevant authority really take extra caution in this mammoth "exercise" with enough resources and those in charge of the circumcision get enough rest ... We are talking about these kids "life" and it's the utmost vital part of their anatomy which are at stake here!!! Anyway, as at to date, nothing untoward had been reported in the news so all must have gone well ...
The 2nd news was reported in NST on 8 December 2010 at pg 25 reported that an attempt to achieve "The most number of mountain climbers" into the Malaysia Book of Records was cancelled. The plan was to have about 2,000 people scaling Gunung Lambak in Kluang simultaneously and hence creating a record in the process.
The plan wan objected by the environmentalists, local residents and individuals who said to have 2,000 people scaling the small mountain of 515 meter tall & with a journey of 1.5 km to the summit would do more harm to the environment than good ...We are lucky as a nation as we still have sane people around!!
This reminds me of years back a certain former MB of Kedah - he is known for churning out mind blowing ideas anyway - proposed for a group bicycle ride/tour from Kedah to Dtaran Merdeka to celebrate Merdeka .... I have to salute Datuk Seri Samy Vellu who immediately instructed no MIC members should participated in the event as the long journey may not be safe as they might involved in road accident ....
I agree to the notion of "Malaysia Boleh" but we must also bear in mind that not everything is "Boleh" .....
Till we meet again ....
The tale of the "uncomfortable" RON 95
Few weeks back, it was announced - almost unannounced actually - that RON 95 would costs the consumers RM1.90 per litre - up by 5 sen from RM1.85.
This was reported in NST on 4 December 2010 at pg.8 under the heading "Price revision for RON 95 and sugar". It was said that this was the second wave of subsidy rationalisation and to made effective 4 December 2010. Apart from RON 95, diesel and LPG also experienced a hike so as sugar.
The move was made after Datuk Seri Idris Jala had earlier said that the rationalisation of these four (4)consumer goods would enable the government to reduce its subsidy expenditure, which stood at RM1.18 billion.
I am not an economist and have no comment on this. The only thing which struck me something is "going up" was when weeks earlier i.e. on 12 November 2010 to be exact, I read Sarawak Tribune which quoted the Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr. Awang Adek as saying "the price of RON 95 petrol would not be increased for a certain period of time so as to allow the people to feel comfortable with the current price."
The Deputy Minister was further quoted as saying the above when winding up debate on the Supply Bill 2011 for his ministry at the Dewan Rakyat on 11 November 2010.
This is so typical of Malaysian politician/minister, they would say things which are politically correct but not totally correct in reality - at least in the eyes of the Rakyat. I am not saying he is lying but judge it yourself .... To the Deputy Minister, I would say that he's only managed to make the Rakyat feel comfortable with the said fuel price for only about slightly more than 3 weeks' or so ....
Till we meet again & please do not feel comfortable with anything which came out from the politicians' mouth .....
This was reported in NST on 4 December 2010 at pg.8 under the heading "Price revision for RON 95 and sugar". It was said that this was the second wave of subsidy rationalisation and to made effective 4 December 2010. Apart from RON 95, diesel and LPG also experienced a hike so as sugar.
The move was made after Datuk Seri Idris Jala had earlier said that the rationalisation of these four (4)consumer goods would enable the government to reduce its subsidy expenditure, which stood at RM1.18 billion.
I am not an economist and have no comment on this. The only thing which struck me something is "going up" was when weeks earlier i.e. on 12 November 2010 to be exact, I read Sarawak Tribune which quoted the Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr. Awang Adek as saying "the price of RON 95 petrol would not be increased for a certain period of time so as to allow the people to feel comfortable with the current price."
The Deputy Minister was further quoted as saying the above when winding up debate on the Supply Bill 2011 for his ministry at the Dewan Rakyat on 11 November 2010.
This is so typical of Malaysian politician/minister, they would say things which are politically correct but not totally correct in reality - at least in the eyes of the Rakyat. I am not saying he is lying but judge it yourself .... To the Deputy Minister, I would say that he's only managed to make the Rakyat feel comfortable with the said fuel price for only about slightly more than 3 weeks' or so ....
Till we meet again & please do not feel comfortable with anything which came out from the politicians' mouth .....
Saturday, December 18, 2010
The Political Circus ....
I have to assert here that I am not a political animal ... I am not even aligned to any political party and I am not a member of one. This is not an apologetic statement to justify what I am about to post ... I am fully responsible for what I posted.
There were four (4) different political news which caught my eyes - distinct as they might be with each other but there seemed to be a linkage ...
STAR at World News (W37) on 23 November 2010 showed a group of Singapore Polo Team lined up for the water polo event at the recent Asian Games in China. At first sight, nothing bizarre as far as the photo is concerned ... It is reported that the team was wearing a custom made swimming trunks which feature Singapore flag's crescent moon and stars near the - of all part - groin area!!!
Under the Singapore Arms & Flag and National Anthem Act approval must be obtained from the Minister for Information, Communication & the Art for any costume to be made as part of any costume or attire provided there is no "disrespect". Any breach of the same would be subjected to fined up to maximum of RM (S'pore) 1,000.00.
It is not known what happened to those Singapore Polo Team members upon their return to Singapore. On the home side, perhaps our YB Dato' Seri Rais Yatim could start familiarising himself with our own Act on similar issues before some overzealous citizens start emblazoned our Jalur Gemilang onto an attire and to be worn at an inappropriate of the anatomy - and worst still (this is the current biggest sin I would say) to have the "1 Malaysia" symbol worn/shown disrespectfully ....
Back to Malaysia, NST on 4 December 2010 reported that three (3) NGOs - one of which is PERKASA - have lodged a police report against Parti Keadilan Rakyat president, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Ismail for allegedly making a sedition remark pertaining to "Ketuanan Melayu"... This I really have no comments as it is better to leave it to the police to investigate. For the record, the Malay Sultans such as HRH the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan of Perak & the Sultan of Johor had even given their royal statements on the issue - which is rather complicated as it touched on the broad subject of "social contract" ... I myself for sure would look into the old "naskah" of " Sejarah Melayu" for clues...
The 3rd news is reported in NST on 18 November 2010 where it was reported that a performance by 27 year old rapper-songwriter and film maker, Wee Meng Chee a.k.a. Namewee at an entertainment outlet in Kuantan was cancelled at the advise of the police and the local council. This was made to prevent any untoward incidents after the authorities received strong objections from several NGOs.
For the record, this Muar boy was the one who previously turned & "unwrapped" the National Anthem "NegaraKu" to a "rap" at the dismay & disgust of most sane Malaysians... The most unacceptable or rather amusing(?) episode concerning Namewee was when he was received - though not by red carpet - at the Parliament House by our very own Minister in Charge of Parliament affairs wearing T Shirt, jeans complete with the "rapper head gear"!!!! Few months back I have to spent several hundreds ringgit just to buy proper attire - long sleeve shirt, slack and a tie - when I was suddenly asked by my Company to go to the Parliament for a meeting with a Minister!!!! Am I choosing a wrong profession/career here?
The last news appeared in NST on 9 December 2010 where it was reported that the AG advised the former MB of Selangor, Datuk Seri Dr Mohammad Khir Toyo to stop making statements in the media regarding the later being charged for alleged corruption in Court. The AG categorically advised not to stage a "trial by media" which was in response to the press statements made by the former MB a day earlier to the press after he was being charged in Court. To the former MB, my advise is leave it to your lawyer to handle the case and save the talking later in Court ....
To sum up all the news above are about "contempt" - be it near contempt and about to commit a contempt ....
Have a nice weekend ....
There were four (4) different political news which caught my eyes - distinct as they might be with each other but there seemed to be a linkage ...
STAR at World News (W37) on 23 November 2010 showed a group of Singapore Polo Team lined up for the water polo event at the recent Asian Games in China. At first sight, nothing bizarre as far as the photo is concerned ... It is reported that the team was wearing a custom made swimming trunks which feature Singapore flag's crescent moon and stars near the - of all part - groin area!!!
Under the Singapore Arms & Flag and National Anthem Act approval must be obtained from the Minister for Information, Communication & the Art for any costume to be made as part of any costume or attire provided there is no "disrespect". Any breach of the same would be subjected to fined up to maximum of RM (S'pore) 1,000.00.
It is not known what happened to those Singapore Polo Team members upon their return to Singapore. On the home side, perhaps our YB Dato' Seri Rais Yatim could start familiarising himself with our own Act on similar issues before some overzealous citizens start emblazoned our Jalur Gemilang onto an attire and to be worn at an inappropriate of the anatomy - and worst still (this is the current biggest sin I would say) to have the "1 Malaysia" symbol worn/shown disrespectfully ....
Back to Malaysia, NST on 4 December 2010 reported that three (3) NGOs - one of which is PERKASA - have lodged a police report against Parti Keadilan Rakyat president, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Ismail for allegedly making a sedition remark pertaining to "Ketuanan Melayu"... This I really have no comments as it is better to leave it to the police to investigate. For the record, the Malay Sultans such as HRH the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan of Perak & the Sultan of Johor had even given their royal statements on the issue - which is rather complicated as it touched on the broad subject of "social contract" ... I myself for sure would look into the old "naskah" of " Sejarah Melayu" for clues...
The 3rd news is reported in NST on 18 November 2010 where it was reported that a performance by 27 year old rapper-songwriter and film maker, Wee Meng Chee a.k.a. Namewee at an entertainment outlet in Kuantan was cancelled at the advise of the police and the local council. This was made to prevent any untoward incidents after the authorities received strong objections from several NGOs.
For the record, this Muar boy was the one who previously turned & "unwrapped" the National Anthem "NegaraKu" to a "rap" at the dismay & disgust of most sane Malaysians... The most unacceptable or rather amusing(?) episode concerning Namewee was when he was received - though not by red carpet - at the Parliament House by our very own Minister in Charge of Parliament affairs wearing T Shirt, jeans complete with the "rapper head gear"!!!! Few months back I have to spent several hundreds ringgit just to buy proper attire - long sleeve shirt, slack and a tie - when I was suddenly asked by my Company to go to the Parliament for a meeting with a Minister!!!! Am I choosing a wrong profession/career here?
The last news appeared in NST on 9 December 2010 where it was reported that the AG advised the former MB of Selangor, Datuk Seri Dr Mohammad Khir Toyo to stop making statements in the media regarding the later being charged for alleged corruption in Court. The AG categorically advised not to stage a "trial by media" which was in response to the press statements made by the former MB a day earlier to the press after he was being charged in Court. To the former MB, my advise is leave it to your lawyer to handle the case and save the talking later in Court ....
To sum up all the news above are about "contempt" - be it near contempt and about to commit a contempt ....
Have a nice weekend ....
Non posted News For the Past Month ... Phewww!!!
I have been cutting several interesting news from the newspapers especially from NST for the past one (1) month or so .... I wanted to share the news through my posting but could not do so due to busy schedules ....
Here are some of the news - some of them are would be posted in my next postings due to their "news worthy" - if I may say so ...
The news were:
1. New Sarawak Tribune (24 July 2010 pg.3) - I really missed this out!!! It was reported that there was a leakage on the roof of the Members of Parliament (MPs) located next to the Dewan Rakyat. This was one of the series of leak incidents involving the august House , amongst others on April 28 2005 a leakage was reported due to obstruction of the flow of rain water and on May 7 2008 when water trickled out of an air conditioning vent at the side of the Dewan Rakyat. YB Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri gave a reason (read "an excuse"?) saying that the Parliament House is an old building. Anybody buying this?
2. New Straits Times (12 November 2010) - The northernmost mosque in North America was officially opened at Inuvik, a town of 3,300 people north of the Arctic Circle. The mosque building was shipped in an arduous journey of 4,500km over narrow, bumpy roads and atop a river barge to serve 80 Muslim residents of Inuvik. Subhanallah ...
3. New Straits Times (7 December 2010) - It was reported by AFP that 1,000 North Koreans were jailed for watching South Koreans TV shows and films. This is part of the Northern communist regime effort to stem an inflow of foreign culture from infiltrating thus corrupting the minds of the Northern part of the Korean Peninsular. A prison official in the northwestern city of Kaechon said it was the first time that the number of people jailed solely for watching the South's TV dramas has gone over 1,000. It is ironic that while these 1,000 or so "entertainment hunger" citizens spent unwanted time in jail the Great One Kim Jong Ill is perhaps watching western movies in his cineplex at his residence...
4. New Straits Times (9 November 2010 pg.14) - The Penang Gerakan vehemently opposed the plan by the Malaysian Historical Society Kedah Branch plan to seek the return of Penang to Kedah. The Society contended that Penang belonged to Kedah prior to an agreement signed with the colonial British administration in 1786. This plan was however opposed by Gerakan saying the move might pave way for Thailand to claim its rights over several Malaysian States .... Well, Kedah might have to eat her own words then - tit for tat!!!! To me the plan might be historically correct but it is politically wrong to do so .... It might caused so many far reaching impact from the major to the minor impact - one of which the number of of the stripes of our Jalur Gemilang may have to be reduced!!! On an extreme hypothetical scenario if this issue were to be legally adjudicated and assuming the Society were to get what the want, on a brighter side at least Kedah is still part of Malaysia - so there would not be a repeat of the infamous case Pulau Batu Putih fiasco!!!
The remaining news would be posted in my next posting & till we meet again ....
Here are some of the news - some of them are would be posted in my next postings due to their "news worthy" - if I may say so ...
The news were:
1. New Sarawak Tribune (24 July 2010 pg.3) - I really missed this out!!! It was reported that there was a leakage on the roof of the Members of Parliament (MPs) located next to the Dewan Rakyat. This was one of the series of leak incidents involving the august House , amongst others on April 28 2005 a leakage was reported due to obstruction of the flow of rain water and on May 7 2008 when water trickled out of an air conditioning vent at the side of the Dewan Rakyat. YB Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri gave a reason (read "an excuse"?) saying that the Parliament House is an old building. Anybody buying this?
2. New Straits Times (12 November 2010) - The northernmost mosque in North America was officially opened at Inuvik, a town of 3,300 people north of the Arctic Circle. The mosque building was shipped in an arduous journey of 4,500km over narrow, bumpy roads and atop a river barge to serve 80 Muslim residents of Inuvik. Subhanallah ...
3. New Straits Times (7 December 2010) - It was reported by AFP that 1,000 North Koreans were jailed for watching South Koreans TV shows and films. This is part of the Northern communist regime effort to stem an inflow of foreign culture from infiltrating thus corrupting the minds of the Northern part of the Korean Peninsular. A prison official in the northwestern city of Kaechon said it was the first time that the number of people jailed solely for watching the South's TV dramas has gone over 1,000. It is ironic that while these 1,000 or so "entertainment hunger" citizens spent unwanted time in jail the Great One Kim Jong Ill is perhaps watching western movies in his cineplex at his residence...
4. New Straits Times (9 November 2010 pg.14) - The Penang Gerakan vehemently opposed the plan by the Malaysian Historical Society Kedah Branch plan to seek the return of Penang to Kedah. The Society contended that Penang belonged to Kedah prior to an agreement signed with the colonial British administration in 1786. This plan was however opposed by Gerakan saying the move might pave way for Thailand to claim its rights over several Malaysian States .... Well, Kedah might have to eat her own words then - tit for tat!!!! To me the plan might be historically correct but it is politically wrong to do so .... It might caused so many far reaching impact from the major to the minor impact - one of which the number of of the stripes of our Jalur Gemilang may have to be reduced!!! On an extreme hypothetical scenario if this issue were to be legally adjudicated and assuming the Society were to get what the want, on a brighter side at least Kedah is still part of Malaysia - so there would not be a repeat of the infamous case Pulau Batu Putih fiasco!!!
The remaining news would be posted in my next posting & till we meet again ....
Free Flow Posting
It's been slightly more than a month since my last posting on 27 October 2010 ... I was bogged down with works and personal matters.
I am happy to note that my last posting re: "Making It Mandatory Passing History" received a comment from none other than Prof Dr Redzuan ... I am proud indeed Sir.
My posting regarding my childhood friend - Abang @ Syed Hishammudin Syed Adam also received a comment from Abang himself! I was so happy when I received his email the other day ...
The support & comments from all of you out there should be none other than spur me to keep on writing about life & everything connected to it - of course from my perspective but to be shared & pondered together ....
I also take this opportunity to wish a very big and warm "welcome home" to my friends who had just returned from performing their Hajj i.e. Norm, Atan & Khiri ... also to all Muslims worldwide....
Till my next posting .....
I am happy to note that my last posting re: "Making It Mandatory Passing History" received a comment from none other than Prof Dr Redzuan ... I am proud indeed Sir.
My posting regarding my childhood friend - Abang @ Syed Hishammudin Syed Adam also received a comment from Abang himself! I was so happy when I received his email the other day ...
The support & comments from all of you out there should be none other than spur me to keep on writing about life & everything connected to it - of course from my perspective but to be shared & pondered together ....
I also take this opportunity to wish a very big and warm "welcome home" to my friends who had just returned from performing their Hajj i.e. Norm, Atan & Khiri ... also to all Muslims worldwide....
Till my next posting .....
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