What a year we have had - 2009
A fighter jet without an engine? What a shocker. Honestly, imagine if we were suddenly under attack from some evil alien race or the little red dot down south.
The siren at the air force base would sound waking our finest fighter pilots. They would then proudly don their uniforms, kiss the flag and grab their helmets while running down the tarmac towards their respective planes.
Up the ladder and into the cockpit they go just like in “Top Gun”. The nation cheers them on, our only hope for survival in the hands of these fine young soldiers.
They then smack on their helmets and push the start button expecting a roar from the engine of the F-5E Tiger fighter jet. Nothing happens. Not even a meow.
“What in the world is happening?” shouts the fighter pilot to the aircraft engineer down below over the sound of bombs exploding in the background.
“Hang on man — don’t worry. Let me check and fix the problem” replies the engineer as he hurries up the ladder.
“Hurry up, man, I can hear the enemy approaching,” urges the pilot.
“Sorry, brother. I believe the problem is much more serious than I first thought. The whole entire engine is missing!” screams the engineer in horror.
Another bomb explodes, this time even closer. The brave pilot looks up to the skies, removes his helmet and prays that the nation’s two Scorpene submarines do not share the same fate.
By the way, could someone do a headcount of our Scorpene submarines please? If jet engines could be spirited away, I fear for the safety of KD Tunku Abdul Rahman and KD Tun Razak.
Also while we are at it, could someone also please ensure that all six missiles, anti-ship surface missiles and anti-submarine torpedoes are accounted for onboard both our nation’s defensive pride and joy.
No point swimming about underwater without weapons. Then the only thing that will be afraid of our navy’s might will be baby whales and other small sea creatures.
Last week, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was reported to have advised people not to sensationalise the missing fighter jet engines issue. You absolutely cannot be serious Mr Minister.
This fiasco is a sensation all by its own. One cannot sensationalise it any more. The facts speak for themselves.
Also, how about the fact that these engines were detected missing since 2007? It has been two whole years. Were we waiting for the thieves to use them and then pass them back to us?
On Christmas Eve, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail gave his assurance that his Chambers would go “all out” in this case.
Wow. Thank you so very much. Did you think the nation expected anything less than “all out” in every case?
Speaking about going “all out”, we simply must get to the bottom of this murky state of affairs involving serious capital flight from Malaysia through illegal money changers.
It is not good enough for Bank Negara to simply shut down these money changing firms. They merely provide the service because there is demand.
To get to the bottom of the matter, it is the unpatriotic individuals, who blatantly ignore the government’s efforts to keep capital within the country that must be punished.
Surely when Bank Negara shuts down these illegal money changers they must have had documentary proof that monies were wired out. These documents must have also carried the names of the individuals who gave the wiring instructions and other details like amount, currency and destination.
A Bank Negara official was reported to have said that the crackdown was part of an “ongoing surveillance” of the activities of the country’s 875 licensed money changers.
Could someone send the MACC an invitation to be part of this “ongoing surveillance”? In fact, the MACC may treat this article as the invitation. Apologies for the lack of pomp and ceremony.
After all, they fought hard at the Court of Appeal to do their job after office hours so what is a little round-the-clock surveillance over people who inexplicably have millions of ringgit in their accounts.
Just last week a father whose child is studying in Britain lamented to me about how many forms he had to fill up just to send his son money from Malaysia.
Pity he did not have a friendly neighbourhood money changer on his speed dial.
The tragic death of Teoh Beng Hock, the racism of Utusan Malaysia and the continued failure to address sensitive religious issues such as conversion, Malay-language Bibles and the word Allah are just some of the matters that irreversibly taint 2009.
Add that to the caning sentence imposed on Kartika Sari Dewi and the endemic corruption and abuse of power still prevalent everywhere in this country and we get a year that cannot stand up and be proud of itself. As said by Queen Elizabeth II in 1992 — this has turned out to be an Annus horribilis.
2010 has to be better, surely it cannot get worse! Common sense must take its place at the forefront along with the dismantling of racist policies and machinery and a more effective enforcement of the law of the land.
Happy new year to all. May the next year be better than the last. May 2010 be an annus mirabilis.
mysinchew
29/12/09
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