Bukit Bendera!

Penat tapi best!

Itu la perasaan yang dapat digambarkan oleh ahli-ahli usrah yang 'memanjat', atau lebih tepat lagi, berjalan naik Bukit Bendera pada hari Sabtu 17 Januari 2009 yang lalu.

Semua yang mengambil bahagian dikehendaki berkumpul di checkpoint Taman Botani. Sebelum perjalanan dimulakan, mereka telah mengedarkan risalah kepada orang ramai mengenai isu Palestin. Alhamdulillah proses pengedaran risalah berjalan dengan lancar.

Mereka memulakan perjalanan ke puncak lebih kurang jam 9.15 pagi waktu tempatan (waktu tempat lain tak hafal la pulak). Sebenarnya laluan yang digunakan tu merupakan jalan berturap tar, yang digunakan oleh kenderaan untuk berulang alik di antara puncak ke kaki Bukit Bendera. Jadi tak hairan la kalau sepanjang perjalanan tu, mereka sering di 'ganggu' oleh banyak kenderaan.

Ya Rabbi... Jalannya macam ular kena palu, curam pulak tu. Jenuh jugak la para 'pendaki' kita yang berpengalaman ni sedut oksigen. Di kiri dan kanan jalan pulak terdapat pokok-pokok hutan yang bermacam jenis. Jelas kelihatan beberapa akar pokok yang mencengkam jauh ke dalam tanah. Ada antara pokok-pokok tu nampak macam dah teruk sangat (dahan patah, berlubang teruk, dll) tapi masih tetap teguh berdiri, dan masih penuh dengan daun-daun yang hijau segar. Kan baik kalau kita macam tu, seberat mana pun ujian ALLAH yang datang, kita tetap tegar bertahan. Iman kita bak akar tunjang pokok tu, menjunam dan mencengkam jauh ke dalam tanah.

Alhamdulillah mereka selamat tiba ke puncak lebih kurang jam 11.00 pagi (itu pun setelah mendera kaki masing-masing selama lebih kurang 1 jam dan 45 minit) Terasa macam 2 marhalah, walaupun jarak sebenar hanya 5 kilometer. Subhanallah pemandangan dari atas memang indah, macam boleh nampak sampai hujung dunia rasanya. Ini baru tengok dari atas bukit. Betapa luasnya alam ALLAH ni, menggambarkan kepada mereka betapa maha berkuasanya ALLAH. Tentatif pertama mereka setelah tiba di puncak adalah untuk mengisi perut masing-masing (huhu... lapar..) Memang telah tersedia sebuah medan selera untuk para pengunjung Bukit Bendera. Pengunjung pun ramai, hujung minggu katakan. Nasib baik ada baki lagi risalah isu Palestin, dapat jugak edarkan kepada orang ramai. Para 'pendaki' kita jugak sempat melawat masjid di puncak Bukit Bendera (tak ingat nama masjid), teropong pemandangan Pulau Pinang :-)

Semoga dengan usaha kecil dan pengalaman bersama ini, jalinan ukhuwah di antara kita akan lebih erat lagi insyaALLAH.

Bergambar di perhentian kedua

Penat tapi bersemangat!

Tak sampai lagi...

"Perjalanan"



Old version of Penang Hill train



Drebar lori : Opp.. Opp.. Tumpang lalu...

"Carilah hikmah dalam setiap ketentuan Tuhan, supaya timbul rasa kesabaran dan kesyukuran. Setiap yang payah itu pasti ada kesenangan, setiap kesabaran itu pasti ada ganjaran. Jika sesuatu itu ditakdirkan untuk kita, tiada sesiapa yang boleh beri halangan... Namun jika sesuatu itu bukan ditakdirkan untuk kita, pasti takkan kita dapat walaupun sudah dalam genggaman..."

Malaysia can no longer be a centre for cheap labour

To all the my friends out there,

You have to aware on these....

Friday December 12, 2008
Malaysia can no longer be a centre for cheap labour
Comment by Wong Choon Wai


THE signs are everywhere, the global economy is slumping and it will be a while before growth becomes part of the landscape again.In its latest report, the World Bank said the world economy was now expected to slow to 0.9% growth next year from 2.5% growth in 2008.That would be the weakest expansion since the bank started keeping records in 1970.“For developing countries, the situation has really changed since the beginning of September,” said Hans Timmer, who directs the bank’s international economic analyses and projections.The extent of the downward shift in developing country growth rates is expected to be more dramatic than even during the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s or the bursting of the dot.Com bubble earlier this decade, with growth expected to slow from 7.9% last year to 6.3% in 2008 and 4.5% in 2009.Malaysia has been spared the worst, thanks to the reforms the Government introduced in the wake of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and its huge foreign exchange reserves.Economists note that Malaysia has enough financial resources to mitigate any fiscal adversity and domestic banks are also in a strong position to weather an economic downturn.But we will feel some pain.We will not feel the pinch as badly as Singapore, Taiwan and other countries with less diversified economies but we will feel the pain.The number of jobless Malaysians will increase as the demand for goods and services in our export markets contracts.Sales of cars and houses will slow as Malaysians zip up their wallets in anticipation of a slower economic growth.In 1998, during the peak of the Asian financial crisis, some 80,000 Malaysians were rendered jobless.It may be too early for the Human Resources Ministry officials and those in the manufacturing sector to estimate how severe the retrenchments will be.But we should take pre-emptive steps.We should set up a retraining fund so that those laid off can have their skill sets upgraded.At the same time, these workers should be given a monthly allowance of between RM500 and RM1,000 to tide them over during the downturn.The Government should also be more flexible in allowing the private sector to tap funds from the Human Resources Development Fund.The downturn will also present the Government with a slew of opportunities. For a start, how about making structural changes to the economy?Malaysia can no longer be a centre for cheap labour and low-cost production. The country simply cannot compete with the likes of China, Vietnam and Cambodia.What the Government has to do is repatriate the 600,000 foreign workers as promised and cut down dependence on foreign labour.Until that happens, companies will not favour innovation and measures to improve productivity.During this time, the National Economic Council, comprising ministers and representatives from the private sector and the unions, must also take the approach that nothing is sacred.If the Foreign Investment Committee is an impediment to foreign investments flowing into the country, it must be abolished.If the New Economic Policy has to be tweaked or held in abeyance during this difficult period, so be it.It is heartening to hear that the National Economic Council and the International Trade and Industry Ministry are on the verge of liberalising the services sector and keen to push through the free trade agreement with the United States.The point is this: Malaysia and the rest of the world are going to be facing a rocky ride in 2009 and possibly 2010. But at some point, recovery will happen.Malaysia must be in a stronger position to ride the upswing then.It can only happen if the Government presses ahead with structural changes to the economy.In every crisis, there is an opportunity.The window of opportunity is now. It is time to make the changes.

l Datuk Wong Chun Wai is group chief editor of The Star.