Patrolling Petrol

According to news reports, the government plans to introduce a new fuel subsidy mechanism on May 1st which will see the amount of subsidised fuel tied to the engine capacity of a car. The Government had planned to introduce a tiered pricing system for petrol, depending on engine capacity, while foreigners would have to pay the market price. According to reports, the plan called for the mandatory use of MyKad to differentiate Malaysians from foreigners, requiring the need for MyKad readers at petrol stations.

The plans however have been shelved.

Who came up with that idea? Aren’t the government aware that cars with small engine capacity are not necessarily cheap? The RM195,000 Mini Cooper has an engine capacity of 1,598cc and the 1.8L Mercedes E200CGI cost in excess of RM300k. The 2 litre variants of the Accord, Camry and Mazda 6 cost RM150k. These are not exactly cars for the low income group but yet they fall under the <2,000cc category. So how does giving subsidised petrol to those driving cars below 2,000cc help the lower income group?

"A new structure, merely based on engine capacity, does not solve any problem,’’ said Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd in a statement to StarBiz.

“As BMW Malaysia views the situation, the problem with designing a fuel subsidy programme around the engine capacity of a vehicle is that small engine capacities alone do not necessarily mean better economy,’’ said BMW Group Malaysia managing director Geoffrey Briscoe.

Making policy u-turns seems to be a regular feature of the Najib administration. Well, this time it’s not really a policy but it was officially announced so it makes it an almost policy.

It was also rumoured that the MyKad will be used as a mechanism to allocate the subsidies. The details were sketchy but if fully implemented it could effectively distribute the subsidy to those deserving but at the same time may lead to abuse if there is no limit to the amount of petrol each person is allowed to buy. For example, a wealthy person who is not entitled to the subsidy may use his driver’s Mykad to purchase petrol thus enjoying the undeserved subsidy.

In order to make the Mykad to buy petrol system work, the card must have the income details of the MyKadholder, which is to be updated every year based on, perhaps, LHDN records. It should also be tied to JPJ records, which will disallow the non-car/motorcycle owning MyKad holders from enjoying (and abusing) the subsidy.

Subsidies would be preferred for essential goods and services such as foodstuff, healthcare and ummm … fuel. Having said that, subsidies are not something favoured because it distorts free market pricing as well drains the public finances. Then again, it is the duty of the government to assist those genuinely in need of assistance; to lower their cost of living by in this case, lowering the cost of fuel. Subsidies are only good if it reaches the intended recipients.

“The public has to realise the fuel subsidy scheme is not sustainable as it impacts the Government’s finances. Removing the subsidy would reduce over-consumption and promote more efficient use of our country’s resources, a “fully market-driven” system is a better option in the long run,” said RAM Holdings Bhd chief economist Dr Yeah Kim Leng when contacted by StarBiz.

For the record, many countries, including those less developed such as Indonesia and Sri Lanka are practising a free-float system, where fuel prices were based on global oil prices.

Maybe the government could introduce a system whereby car owners above the age of 18, earning less than RM3,000 per month be given an entitlement to say, 150 litres of petrol a month at a subsidised price. Motorcycle owners will get a lower entitlement. For those owning both, two entitlements will be issued. The entitlement can be in the form of a card which can be read by the machines at the petrol station (if kad mesra and bonuslink can, I’m sure this is possible too). Every time petrol is purchased, the card is credited. I’m sure the forgers will immediately work on forging the card but that is something the authorities will have to ensure does not happen.

Pro UMNO Media – A Danger to the Ummah

Is the title too strong? Too rude? Inviting Kamunting residency? Asking for a death by C4?

Frankly, I don’t care.

Seriously.

I just found out that the UMNO run states of Johor, Perlis and Pahang won’t be organising any Maulidul Rasul procession this Friday. Strangely I didn’t hear of Utusan criticising the 3 MBs for being anti-Islam, and insensitive toward Muslim sensitivities for not organising the parade.

Lim Guan Eng on the other hand was branded a chauvinist, racist bigot for no reason. Apparently the “no-parade for Maulidul Rasul in Penang” was merely a suggestion and Penang will be having a procession lead by DCM1 Mansor. Various programmes are planned for the day including prayers and Quranic recitals (a 3 day event) and an expo on Islamic civilisation.

CM Lim even invited DPM Muhyiddin and ex-PM Pak Lah to join in the procession!

It seems that Penang didn’t organise any Maulidur Rasul processions in 2003, 04 and 05. Was Koh Tsu Koon labelled a racist SOB then? Did UMNO protest and filled pages in the Utusan condemning the BN-Gerakan CM for insulting Islam by not having a Maulidul Rasul parade?

Come on la guys, play fair. If you call Penag’s Lim a narrow minded Singapore imitator for “not” having a Maulidul Rasul procession; wouldn’t Johor’s Ghani, Pahang’s Adnan and Perlis’ Isa fall under the same category?

Pakciks and makciks in remote Terengganu or Perak will believe whatever Utusan say and will view Lim Guan Eng as a racist, anti Muslim extremist. They will believe Nik Aziz would do anything to please the Chinese and is a DAP sympathiser. But is that the true picture? Or is that what UMNO wants the rakyat to believe so they can eliminate their opponents?

I beg UMNO please stop digging your own grave. Your time and resources are better used to raise the living standards of the Malays; the race you claim to represent.

Out of Ideas

UMNO politicians are really desperate. They are going all out to destroy the PR to the point that they are making a fool out of themselves. UMNO leaders accuse Lim Guan Eng of being anti-Islam by cancelling the Maulidul Rasul procession. Nik Aziz too decided not to have any procession this year. Is he anti-Islam too?

In Mekah and Madinah, the Prophet’s place of birth and final resting place, there is no annual procession to mark his birthday. It is not wrong to have a procession to honour his birthday but it should be made into something mandatory. Instead of spending money on the procession why not use the resources for something more beneficial like funding orphanages or helping the poor.

Everything the opposition does and say is viewed by UMNO as being anti-Islam and anti-Malay. Why can’t UMNO focus on making this country a better place to live in, rid this country of corruption, wastage of public funds, bad roads, lousy politicians…

A group of Indian Muslims burnt Lim Guan Eng’s effigy in protest of his unfair treatment of the Malay traders in Penang. I see this as a good sign that the racial relations in Penang have improved – an Indian group protesting against the bad treatment of Malays! And yes, UMNO is a multiracial party; it admits Indians as well as scores of Sabah Bumiputeras into their fold, as long as they are Muslims. Maybe UMNO wants so much to be like PAS …

I want to support UMNO, but so far they haven’t given me any good reason to.

p/s I heard the new Scorpene submarine Najib and Razak Baginda bought cannot go underwater due to some technical problems … a reporter termed it as “kapal selam yang tak boleh menyelam”

Perhaps We Need a Drastic Change (updated)

I haven’t written anything political for a while not because there is nothing to write but because it’s so nauseating to read and write about Malaysian politics at the moment.

Last week, the courts decided that BN is the rightful government in Perak and Zambry is the rightful MB. PR decided they won’t fight anymore and announced that they will work with the BN government in implementing projects beneficial to the rakyat. Being the opposition, they will definitely oppose a lot of government initiatives, that’s their job and that’s what they do best – oppose, but it is also heartening to hear that they will support any initiative which is good for the rakyat.

The opposition in Kelantan however, seem to prefer to oppose as opposed to helping the rakyat. I mean, who in their right frame of mind would reject 5% of a lot of Ringgit in return for a measly RM20million compassionate payment? The Kelantan BN-UMNO opposition, lead by Federal Minister Mustapha is going all out to deny Kelantan (and her rakyat) of their rightful oil royalty. Doesn’t make sense at all. Or is there a hidden agenda? Jeng-jeng-jeng …

Ku Li tries to defend Kelantan’s right to the oil royalties. Some quarters accuse him of defending the decision to deny Terengganu of their oil royalty in 2000 but in actual fact he was against the wang ehsan and even offered himself to be a witness in Terengganu's lawsuit against the Federal government.

Actually, oil royalties was not what I intended to write about. I want to talk about change, drastic changes.

The changes I would like to see are;

• Anwar Ibrahim taking an indefinite break (retire perhaps?) from front-line politics to clear his court case.
• Ku Li to quit UMNO and head the current opposition.
• PKR to elect a President, Deputy, VP, Secretary, Youth Head, Treasurer who was never linked to UMNO/MCA/MIC.

There is a saying (Chinese, I think), if the fish head is rotten, the whole fish will rot (please don’t confuse this with the Saxo-Ukrainian saying – if the fish is head is rotten, don’t make curry). In other words, the head i.e. the leaders cannot be allowed to be a liability. If the leader becomes a liability, kick him/her out ASAP.

Maybe what this country needs to overhaul is the politicians and not the political system.

Steak 101

The ever popular Wikipedia defines steak as a cut of meat, usually beef, cut perpendicular to the muscle fibres. The act of cutting the meat perpendicular to the muscle fibres is to improve the perceived tenderness of the meat. The name steak apparently is derived from the Old Norse word “steik” which means roast, if I understood it correctly.

There are many types of steak, each coming from different parts of the cow;

Tenderloin - found in the middle of the back between the sirloin and the rib. The most tender because the muscle making up the tenderloin is hardly used. It is also the most expensive. When the tenderloin is cut into pieces, we get fillet mignon steaks.

Rib-Eye – is a cut from the beef rib. Meat from the rib section is tender and fattier than other cuts of beef making it one of the juiciest, flavourful, popular and expensive steak cuts. Also called Scotch Fillet and Spencer Steak.

T-Bone – cut from the short loin and has a T-shaped bone in the steak, hence the name. The bone separates the smaller tenderloin section from the larger portion of the top loin.

Porterhouse – also contains a T-shaped bone but comes from the thick end of the short loin. Has bigger tenderloin portion compared to the T-Bone and hence is more tender than the T-Bone.

Sirloin – comes from the hip, near the rump. Sirloin steaks are tougher than cuts from the loin or the rib.

Strip Loin – cut from the strip loin, a muscle that is relatively low in connective tissue, making it very tender.

Top Loin – it is basically Porterhouse or T-bone steaks but minus the tenderloin portion, and the bone.

Chuck – a cut from the neck to the ribs

There are many ways of cooking steak;

Raw – uncooked, the way tigers eat their meat.

Very rare – cooked very quickly leaving the inside barely cooked although the outsides have some evidence of contact with fire.

Rare – cooked slightly longer than very rare, the insides are slightly warm but still bloody.

Medium rare – centre will be fully red and warm.

Medium – cooked half-way.

Medium well - the way I like my steaks.

Well done – fully cooked.

Overcook – for fans of burnt toast.

Not all steaks are steaks though.

A Salisbury steak is not a steak but a burger made from ground beef.
Tartar steak is a finely chopped raw fillet of beef.