If Full Fare : 38 trips x say RM2.5 million average cost = RM95 million
Discounted Fare : 38 trips x say RM1.6 million average cost = RM60.8 million.
Investments (a portion only) = RM33b + RM347b + RM40b = RM420 b !!
Conclusion : The more trips the better.
23-year-old university student claimed she was asked to transfer RM5 to an immigration officer's personal bank account when she collected her new passport, despite having already paid the renewal fee online. NSTP FILE PICTURE
Immigration Department should not force people to buy the passport plastic protective cover
A 23-year-old university student has alleged that an immigration officer in Johor Bahru asked her to transfer RM5 to a personal bank account after she collected her renewed passport, despite already paying the required renewal fee online, New Straits Times reported on Saturday 30 November 2024.
Events in Syria have been moving at super speed since the day after the ceasefire in Lebanon was signed on 27th November 2024. Serious fighting has broken out all over the country. Lets see who are the main players on the ground, who are their foreign backers and how this upsurge in fighting has affected these foreign backers.
First the foreign backers involved are :
Main players on the ground are :
Hayat Tahrir Shams - Syrian rebel groups have simply got up and started winning territory. Some of them have been advancing 50 miles per day. Parts of Aleppo have been captured by the HTS or Hayat Tahrir Shams (Organisation for the Liberation of the Levant). Keep these guys in mind. They are ex Al Qaeda but also seem to be 'independent' of Al Qaeda. Some say they are strongly backed by Turkiye.
In the map here they occupy grey areas around Idlib and Aleppo.
Syrian government forces backed by Russia - they still control the largest part of Syria (red colour on the map). Russia has replaced its ground commander in Syria. Things are bad now for Russia and the Syrian government troops (Bashar Assad) but things are still developing.
The Syrian Democratic Forces or Kurdish forces. They control the yellow areas on the map and they are strongly backed by the USA. In my opinion the Kurds are the coolest people in the Middle East. Kurds are not Arab, Persian or Turkish. They are Kurds. A large majority of them are Sunni Muslims but they are not psychos like the rest of the Arabs, Persians and Turks. Some of their toughest soldiers (the Peshmerga women) are females.
The Shia Hezbollah which is fully financed and supported by Shia Iran was a strong fighting force in the Syrian civil war, helping to prop up the Shia Assad regime. The Hezbollah has been almost totally wiped out not only in Lebanon (their home base) but Hezbollah in Lebanon also pulled back many of their fighters from Syria. They have also been wiped out by Israel. Hezbollah is now super weak in both Lebanon and Syria. This means Iran too is super weak in Lebanon and in Syria. The Israelis just killed another senior Iranian general in Syria. It is unlikely that the Hezbollah and Iran will recover from this debacle.
The huge upsurge in fighting in Syria began just one day after that ceasefire in Lebanon (on 27th November).
The Russians were caught off guard because they are busy in Ukraine. Hezbollah and Iran are not major threats anymore. For the past weeks Israel has been bombing Iranian and Hezbollah targets inside Syria. Looks like they knew of this upsurge in rebel movement.
Here is a video that explains things in a nutshell. The religious freaks are getting their heads bashed in.
Non-Muslims can also read this if you are interested. You may find this useful.
Today we will look briefly at the word 'cut'. In Quranic Arabic it looks something like this : قَطَّعْنَ . This Arabic word and its derivatives appear 36 times in 26 verses of the Quran.
In the story of Joseph (Yusuf) in Surah 12 of the Quran there is the episode of some women who were so mesmerised by Joseph's appearance that they unknowingly nicked the palms of their hands with the knives they were using at that time.
Yusuf Ali Surah 12:31 "When she heard of their malicious talk, she sent for them and prepared a banquet for them: she gave each of them a knife: and she said (to Joseph), "Come out before them." When they saw him, they did extol him, and (in their amazement) cut their hands: they said, "Allah preserve us! no mortal is this! this is none other than a noble angel!"
Here is the relevant part of the verse again :
فَلَمَّا رَأَيْنَهُۥٓ أَكْبَرْنَهُۥ وَقَطَّعْنَ أَيْدِيَهُن : When they saw him, they did extol him, and (in their amazement) cut their hands . .
They were so amazed at Joseph that they indeed cut their hands. It is unlikely that they cut their hands off completely or chopped off their hands completely. It is most likely that they nicked their hands with the knife.
The same word for cut قَطَّعْنَ also appears in the well known Surah 5:38 which is referred to as the verse of cutting the hands of the thief.
Surah 5:38 وَٱلسَّارِقُ وَٱلسَّارِقَةُ فَٱقْطَعُوٓا۟ أَيْدِيَهُمَا جَزَآءًۢ بِمَا كَسَبَا نَكَـٰلًۭا مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌۭ
Yousuf Ali Surah 5:38 As to the thief, male or female, cut off his or her hands: a punishment by way of example, from Allah, for their crime: and Allah is Exalted in power.
Here are some other verses where the same Arabic word appears.
Surah 27:32 قَالَتْ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلْمَلَؤُا۟ أَفْتُونِى فِىٓ أَمْرِى مَا كُنتُ قَاطِعَةً أَمْرًا حَتَّىٰ تَشْهَدُونِ
Yusuf Ali Surah 27:32 She (Queen of Sheba) said: "Ye chiefs! advise me in my affair: no affair have I decided ( قَاطِعَةً ) except in your presence."
Here in 27:32 the same word is translated as "decided".
Surah 6:45 فَقُطِعَ دَابِرُ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ ۚ وَٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
Yusuf Ali Surah 6:45 Of the wrong-doers the last remnant was cut off ( فَقُطِعَ ). Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher of the worlds.
The word cut off ( فَقُطِعَ ) in this verse refers the fringes of some wicked people who were isolated.
1. Mula sekali berita aneh dan tidak masuk akal. Menteri kata peperiksaan di sekolah dihapuskan atau dibatalkan untuk mengelak pelajar sekolah daripada menghadapi tekanan (mengelak tension dan pressure).
Saya pun mati akal macam mana nak jelaskan kepada si Menteri itu perkara yang paling asas dan basic. Kalau kita guna lojik yang sama (atau yang tidak ada lojik) apakah perlunya mengambil ujian lesen memandu? Ujian lesen memandu pun tension juga. Why not kita biarkan saja pegawai menguji lesen memandu berbual dan kenal-mengenal pemohon lesen memandu dan luluskan saja lesen memandu dengan berasaskan perbualan dan kenal-mengenal saja? Tak payahlah bikin tension dengan ujian dan peperiksaan. Mana tahu nanti dia bunuh diri.
Macam mana pula dengan pelajar universiti. Sekali sekala ada juga pelajar universiti yang bunuh diri mungkin sebab tekanan atau pressure menghadapi peperiksaan di kampus. Why not kita batalkan peperiksaan untuk ijazah, diploma, sarjana dsbnya? Suruh lecturer dan professor buat 'penilaian dalam kuliyah' saja (lecture theatre based assessment). 'Si Aishah itu ok, dia boleh jadi doktor. Ok Aishah, you have passed your medical degree. You can be a doctor now. Tahniah dan selamat maju jaya.' Selamatlah Aishah - tak payah ambil peperiksaan dan tidak perlu bunuh diri pun.
Saya boleh nampak masa depan pelajar sekolah kita - gelap gulita. Dulu kita menyertai sistem penilaian Sains dan Matematik antarabangsa PISA scoring system. Malang sekali disebabkan Menteri dan gomen pada ketika itu tidak tahan tekanan akibat pelajar sekolah kita menduduki tempat yang sangat rendah dalam penilaian PISA maka mereka mengambil keputusan untuk tidak lagi menyertai penilaian PISA. Mereka tidak tahan malu dan tekanan. Patutnya mereka bunuh diri tetapi of course mereka lebih suka jadi Menteri dan pemimpin. Who cares about PISA? Pasal apa pula nak bunuh diri?
Walaupun kerajaan sudah bertukar beberapa kali malangnya kelemahan sistem pendidikan kita macam itu juga lah. No improvement. Membatal sistem peperiksaan sekolah hanya confirm-kan kelemahan sistem pendidikan kita. Menteri pun mati akal - tak tahu nak buat apa.
Hello berapa ribu kes pelajar sekolah yang sudah bunuh diri sebab tidak tahan tekanan ambil peperiksaan? Sila tunjuk statistik kes bunuh diri. Jangan buat-buat cerita palsu pula.
Jika ada kes pelajar sekolah bunuh diri itu bukan salah pelajar tetapi adalah kesalahan guru dan pengetua sekolah. It means awak tak layak jadi guru dan pengetua sekolah. Setiap kali ada kes pelajar bunuh diri, lebih elok guru sekolah dan pengetua dibuang kerja saja. Sebab kebodohan awak membahayakan nyawa kanak-kanak kecil.
Juga kesalahan pegawai pendidikan dan Menteri Pendidikan. It means you are stupid and you have failed the students. Maksudnya awak tak tahu buat kerja. Awak tak faham apa pun mengenai pendidikan. Awak tak faham apa itu compassion and care in education, atau apa benda itu evidence based learning yang sangat membantu pelajar fahami pelajaran mereka. Guru dan pegawai pendidikan sudah jadi serupa kaldai yang memikul buku.
Surah 62:5 كَمَثَلِ ٱلْحِمَارِ يَحْمِلُ أَسْفَارًۢا ۚ
"samalah seperti keldai yang memikul bendela Kitab-kitab besar (sedang ia tidak mengetahui kandungannya)"
Ibu bapa menjaga anak, mencari kerja untuk membiayai keperluan hidup famili, mereka membayar cukai kepada kerajaan dan juga melantik pemimpin kerajaan untuk menjaga dan mendidik anak mereka di sekolah. The parents sacrifice and trust you. Ibu bapa membuat banyak pengorbanan dan meletakkan kepercayaan pada kerajaan dan Menteri. Tetapi kerajaan pula gagal - tak tahu nak jaga dan mendidik kanak-kanak di sekolah.
Lepas itu mereka melepaskan diri, cuci tangan pula - untuk mengelak tension, tak payah masuk penilaian PISA, tidak perlu mengadakan peperiksaan di sekolah.
One good news saya dengar hari ini kerajaan negeri Sarawak tidak setuju keputusan kerajaan pusat untuk mencuci tangan sebab tak tahu menyelesaikan masalah pendidikan. Negeri Sarawak akan kekalkan sistem pendidikan yang mengadakan peperiksaan tahunan, peperiksaan serupa UPSR dsbnya. Sebelum ini negeri Sarawak juga telah mengambil keputusan akan menumpukan kepada bahasa Inggeris dalam pengajian sekolah. Saya yakin dalam masa akan datang sekolah di negeri Sarawak akan mendahului sistem pendidikan kita.
Life is tough. Hidup manusia ini penuh cabaran. Lebih baik kita ambil kesempatan zaman persekolahan untuk mengajar anak-anak kita cara yang baik dan berhemah untuk menghadapi cabaran hidup. Guru yang terlatih dan berkebolehan, sistem mengajar yang efektif, buku pengajian yang evidence based dan berguna bagi manusia (tak payahlah cerita dongeng 1001 Malam ok) sangat penting untuk membimbing anak-anak kita di sekolah. Juga jangan bebankan guru dengan tugas lain yang membuang masa yang tidak membantu siapa pun. Juga batalkan amalan kutip duit untuk menyambut birthday guru kelas pula (siap dengan beli birthday cake sekali). Dan pastikan guru masuk kelas pada setiap hari sekolah. Jangan pula guru ponteng kelas - atas apa sebab pun. The system has many problems.
Tetapi balik kepada isu pelajar bunuh diri - berapa ribu atau berapa ratus kes bunuh diri yang telah berlaku ? Can we see the real statistics? Jangan pula buat alasan untuk melantik "consultant outsourcing" untuk memberi kaunseling kepada kanak-kanak sekolah cara-cara mengelak daripada bunuh diri. Consultant besar akan minta duit besar. We know this game.
2. Berita sedih nombor 2 adalah cadangan mengadakan pesta banjir di negeri Kelantan.
You can repeat lah 'We are Kelantanese, we are Kelantanese'. Oklah, and then what? Tetapi siapa pula yang mahu travelling ke Kelantan atau ke mana pun dalam musim banjir? Kalau jalan sudah tenggelam kereta dan bas tak boleh lepas. Flight pula boleh kena cancel. Nak buat surfing pun kalau angin ribut bagaimana pula dengan keselamatan orang? Takkan nak suruh kereta ambulans standby - just in case berlaku bencana.
"surfing along with traditional food"? Kalau restoran sudah tenggelam, macam mana mereka nak masak dan sediakan traditional food? Takkan orang nak duduk dalam restoran sambil berendam kaki dalam air banjir? Tambah
lagi air banjir itu air kotor - sudah campur dengan air jamban. Sebab
itu pada musim banjir berlaku kolera, cirit-birit dan muntah-muntah. Macam mana lah kepala otak kau orang ini functioning?
Banjir itu bencana. Rumah tenggelam, harta benda rosak, kanak-kanak kecil mati lemas. Awak nak jemput pelancong datang tengok orang dalam susah? Psycho betul-lah.
Violent protests started since sometime ago. It is getting worse. Some reports say that some Pakistani Army units are taking sides with the protesters. For those who like to say karma, this is perhaps karma for Pakistan getting involved in bringing down the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh. These are sh-thole countries.
There are a few live feeds of the violence. Here is one : https://www.youtube.com/live/oQFiTGhpb4w?si=Kog1AmwBRFI8w4jx