12 theSun | WEDNESDAY APRIL 15 2009

speak up!

Creating a niche
budget may not these agencies. only be above-board but seen
be sufficient for Tourism Malay- to be anything but transpar-
such an exercise sia is supposed to ent. The days of the “you
and more money have put a freeze scratch my back, I’ll scratch
would have to be on work by the yours”, are over. Public
sought from the seven agencies spending is under public
Treasury. for an indefinite scrutiny. With hawk-eyed

market for politicians

“Malaysia is a wonderful
country and its people are
among the most hospitable.
If Australia is the Lucky
Country, then Malaysia is the
Blessed Country. Malaysia is
also unique in another way.
Not many countries have their
prime minister, deputy prime
minister and minister for
tourism welcoming tourists.
Many of you have visited the
country and will no doubt re-
member the giant billboards
along the highway with the
imposing picture of a smiling
prime minister, deputy prime
minister and minister for
tourism welcoming you to the
country. Now of course, after
March this year, you will see
a new set of billboards replac-
ing the expensive current ones.
In March 2009, Malaysia will
have a brand new prime min-
ister, deputy prime minister
and, in all likelihood, a new
minister for tourism as well.
Hopefully, they will not spend
too much on the billboards
for they might have to change
them again.”
– Former de facto law
minister Datuk Zaid Ibra-
him speaking at a forum in
Singapore last month.
“Interestingly, he (Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Najib
Razak) told editors at a brief-
ing later that he no longer
wanted ministers to have
billboards of themselves all
over the place – a practice
that both Azalina (Othman)
and Zulhasnan(Rafique) in-
dulged in. In Azalina’s case,
it was particularly egregious
with billboards of herself, Ab-
dullah and Najib plastered all
over the country in the name
of tourism. It is significant
that Najib remained silent
about the matter throughout
his tenure as deputy premier
but pointed this out to editors
in his very first meeting with
them as prime minister.”
– S. Jayasankaran, writing
in Singapore Business Times
last week.
ZAID’S prophecy of a new
tourism minister and other
remarks may have been said
in jest, but interestingly, there
was certainly some truth in
money having to be spent in
changing the billboards.
The consolation is that
advertising campaigns need
not be changed each time
there is a change in ministers
because the prime minister
has decreed that ministers’
faces should not be plastered
on billboards, lamp posts
and buses.
So, while Tourism Malay-
sia must spend lots of money
to change the advertising ma-
terial, it must be emphasised
that it is the product that has
to be marketed and not egos
of certain people which Najib
has chosen to abhor.
So, the good news is that
we will no longer see the
faces of Najib, his deputy Tan
Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and
Tourism Minister Dr Ng Yen
Yen but the bad news is that
the dwindling funds in the
Billboards
should be for
commercial use
– to promote a
product or a serv- CitizenNades agency insiders
ice – but some
politicians think by R. Nadeswaran
that by putting
their faces on them, they
could win a few extra votes
or get the people to think that
they are doing their job.
But then, don’t expect the
billboards to come down
overnight. There’ll be plenty
of excuses for that. Examples
include: “We have a contract
till the end of the year”;
“There is a penalty clause”;
“We will incur more ex-
penses.” No excuses, please.
This is an order from the
prime minister, no less.
While on the subject
of advertising, Tourism
Malaysia’s global account is
split between nine agencies
and efforts had been made
to consolidate its account
with two agencies – TBWA
and Sen Media-JWT. No one
knows the rationale for such
an exercise except that it was
a directive from the previ-
ous minister. A substantial
amount of advertising and
promotions budget had
already been allocated to
time and no cam-
paigns have been
launched.
A number of
confirmed that
they have been
asked to put their
work on hold.
“We don’t know what’s
going on. It’s confusing,
the work has stopped. All
agencies are in limbo,” one
agency head was quoted by
Asia Media as saying.
“We have staff that were
hired for this specific ac-
count and now we are doing
nothing. All we are doing is
waiting for TM to give us
some clarity. If they have
realigned then they should
let us know,” the trade publi-
cation quoted the same head
as saying.
The nine agencies were
selected after extensive
pitching. They were hired on
the basis of their ability and
experience. What then is the
reason for changing horses
in mid-stream?
With the advent of a
new government with new
policies matched by a Key
Performance Index for each
ministry, the issue of con-
tracts and tenders must not
people keeping watch over
public money, any deviation
from set principles will only
bring about embarrassment,
and perhaps a jail term.
By the way, Kuala Lumpur
City Hall recently issued an
ultimatum that billboards in
Kuala Lumpur must comply
with guidelines and owners
who fail to do so were given
a maximum of three months
to take them down.
Mayor Datuk Ahmad Fuad
Ismail said the guidelines
issued last December gave
importance to factors like
safety, location, design and
visuals, including aesthetic
value. But he should start
on his door-step first. The
billboards within the Gov-
ernment Servants’ Golf Club,
of which he is vice-president,
don’t seem to comply with
the guidelines. Will action
be taken or will it be a case
of tutup satu mata?
R. Nadeswaran has an affin-
ity with billboards as well as
the advertising industry, and
hence wants a level playing
field. He is editor (special and
investigative reporting) and
can be reached at: citizen-
nades@thesundaily.com.

letters
letters@thesundaily.com

Close chapter on draconian law Declare accident-free day

I WRITE in response to “Why we
need ISA” (April 13). In the debates
on the Internal Security Act, we
must understand two facts of life:
» We, as humans, are not perfect.
We are corruptible and often are
under the influence of our emo-
tions and desires. Even the most
steadfast person will flex to the
wind if it’s strong enough.
» Any form of power, big or small,
is corrupting.
Yes, it is true that the ISA played
a major part in saving our nation
and its democracy from the threat
of communism in its early years.
But this was a desperate meas-
ure for a desperate period. Now,
long after the communist threat
has been buried and our nation
continues into the 21st century,
the ISA, as has been demonstrated
in recent years, is no longer a
mere law or policy. It has become
a weapon. A devastating one that
destroys a person’s character,
image, reputation and honour.
It destroys families, relation-
ships, careers. It has become a
word synonymous with political
silencing and the indiscriminate
imprisonment of souls, innocent
or not. The sad irony is that it has
become a tool similar to those
used by communist dictatorships.
The atomic bombs of World
War II brought an end to the
worldwide conflict swiftly and
with minimal cost of lives (com-
pared to continuing a conven-
tional war that could last several
decades). If so, why don’t we keep
using atomic weapons instead of
standard bombs in every conflict?
Surely, it would end every one
of them faster than CNN can get
them onto our TV screens.
The point is: it doesn’t matter
what these weapons helped us
achieve in the past. It’s not about
how many Malaysians have voted
against it. It’s not about how many
people are voicing out against
it or how many are keeping
quiet. It’s not about how it’s able
to stifle unrest or destroy political
opponents.
The question is how danger-
ous, how corruptible this weapon
is in the hands of those who
could abuse it to their profit with
nothing more than a signature on
an official letter.
Trying to insist that we need
the ISA to run this country, is
like trying to insist every citizen
should have the right to own a gun
to help overcome the skyrocketing
crime rate.
Giving every citizen a handgun
can prevent crime only if every
single one of them is of sane mind
and will not give in to temptation
to use it against innocent beings
for their own benefit. In the same
way, the ISA can work only if every
single political leader, in control
of such a powerful weapon, is as
incorruptible as God.
ISA is not the tool for solving
our racial problems. You can’t stop
racist acts by imprisoning both the
innocent and the guilty. You can’t
destroy weeds by burning all the
plants along with it. If you want to
rid Malaysia of racism, you have
to go to the root of the problem.
The racial unrest and protests
aren’t the cause of problems in
our country, they are the result
of the problems. Silencing the
unrest is just covering the rot that
has taken hold deep within. If our
nation is to mature and achieve
true peace and stability, it has to fix
the problems and instability plagu-
ing its foundations: its citizens. Not
a single “race”, not a single class of
people, but every single one who
has been born and raised in this
great country of ours.
Benjamin Wong
Cyberjaya
to reinforce road safety
THE bus accident which took six
lives near Rawang on Monday is
another tragedy which could have
been avoided. The federal traffic police
chief was quoted as saying that “initial
investigations revealed that the co-
driver (who was at the wheel) had
six summonses for speeding and
five warrants of arrest and the driver
(who was killed) had eight outstanding
summonses for speeding”.
Why was the co-driver, with five
warrants of arrest, still permitted to
drive. The fact that the co-driver and
the driver (with eight outstanding
summonses) did not have their drivers’
licences suspended or even revoked
shows that, though traffic regulations
were flouted, laws were not stringently
enforced.
It is pointless to blame the authori-
ties for slacking in their enforcement
or the bus companies for their lax
employment procedures when hir-
ing their drivers and negligence in
monitoring them.
If we are discerning enough, these
are the weak links in our traffic and
transportation set-up. There are plenty
of rules but monitoring and enforce-
ment are mediocre at best and non-
existent at worst. And the consequence
is unnecessary loss of life and limb.
I am sure if the authorities come
down hard on traffic offenders and
blacklist the repeat cases, it will im-
prove the attitude of motorists.
The bus companies must offer their
drivers better employment and welfare
benefits. If drivers are rewarded by the
frequency of trips it will directly have
an unwholesome effect on their work
ethics, not to mention the toll on their
health.
I believe there is one bus company
which stipulates that its drivers follow
a strict schedule and disapproves of its
drivers completing a trip in less than
the expected time. This effectively
discourages speeding and the
company’s safety record is very good.
The federal traffic chief added, “This
is the worst road accident this year.”
For the sake of road-users’ safety and
peace of mind, we hope this “record”
will not be broken.
For road safety to be increased to
a sustainable level and road accidents
reduced to a minimum, the enforce-
ment authorities, the public transport
players and the road users have to
assume responsibility. No one can say
that it is the sole responsibility of the
other.
If we can mark one day in the year
as “Accident-Free Day” and consciously
work towards it, as we did for Earth Day
on March 8, the awareness generated
can be tremendous.
Tam Yong Yuee
Muar

Help, don’t run down state govt

“JUDGE CM Lim on his record”
(April 13) left me thinking whether
the writer’s motive was to advise the
Penang state government or to run
it down.
The writer claims that he voted
for the new government but yet he
has never reached out to support the
efforts of the current administration.
Being a senior Penangite, I am
ashamed of the writer’s use of the
phrase “Gostan Penang”. It is hurt-
ful and shameful for a Penangite to
use such phrases. He did not explain
what happened from 1995 to 2005
about the WiFi initiative. I am puz-
zled that he continues to avoid the
points raised by Jeffrey Chew about
PenangNet.
As for the Hardcore Poor Pro-
gramme, let’s realise that it is done
with good intentions. I am sure the
previous government had no idea
that it had so many hardcore poor.
I would like to advise the writer
to volunteer his time to the state gov-
ernment similar to the steps taken by
Datuk Lee Kah Choon.
I was told that the Chinese media
seemed to give Chief Minister Lim
Guan Eng the opportunity to reach
out to the masses. I am sure the
writer did not say much against the
previous government.
I have lived in Penang for almost
50 years and have only seen the vi-
sion of Tun Lim Chong Eu driving
the state to a different level. And I
have to give credit to Tan Sri Koh Tsu
Koon for his tireless effort in running
the past government. However, I
would term those years as “missed
opportunity”.
I extend my well wishes to the
chief minister of Penang for running
the state with limited resources. I
know many Penangites are behind
you and let no one run your admin-
istration down. Speak the truth, be
accountable to the people, be trans-
parent in your administration and
most importantly be competent.
Rajan Rajasamy
Penang