1Malaysia Reading Camp

Class activity: (From left) Bessey, Azura and Struys roleplaying with students during the reading campaign at SMK Seksyen 9, Shah Alam.

SHAH ALAM: More than one million students from 2,278 schools set aside 33 minutes and 30 seconds to read together simultaneously yesterday as part of Scholastic Malaysia's READ 2012 reading campaign.

The campaign, in its fifth year, broke last year's record with a 56% increase in student participation. But that was not its goal, as it aimed at promoting better reading habits.

Scholastic Asia-Pacific Education and Trade vice-president Linda Warfelsaid the reading campaign was part of Scholastic's desire to promote reading not just for academic purposes but also for recreation.

“When Scholastic turned 90, we decided to advocate reading seriously because reading is a cornerstone for the development of a child's communication skills, imagination and creativity,” she said.

Some local celebrities showed their support as READ 2012 ambassadors and read with the students at SMK Seksyen 9, Shah Alam.

TV host and Emcee Azura Zainal of Disney Channel fame said it was her second year of involvement in READ, and in previous years the main event was held in primary schools.

“This is the first time a secondary school is hosting it and I must say reading with an older audience is a different experience,” she said.

Azura added that she was nervous in the beginning, but after she and seasoned actress Joanna Bessey got the students to participate in their reading session, it became a breeze.

“We roleplayed as we read and we got the students to roleplay, too. I was surprised at how animated they were. Their enthusiasm was amazing,” she said.

Bessey said it helped that the books they used for the storytelling session came from the Hunger Games series.

“It's a lot easier to connect with the students with a book that is currently trending among teenagers since its content is geared toward their age group,” she said.

Other celebrities who became storytellers for the day were Sharifah Amani and mother, Fatimah Abu Bakar, Jojo Struys and Colin Kirton.

The campaign held in conjunction with the 1Malaysia Reading Camp was officiated by Education deputy director-general Sufaat Tumin who said that reading was key to becoming a developed nation.

kicked violently and stomped on in a brutal attack.

ALOR GAJAH: A Form Two student from SMK Pulau Sebang near here was killed when he was set upon by a group of five schoolboys from another secondary school over an earlier skirmish.

It's learnt that the victim, K. Saravanan, 14, from Gadek in Alor Gajah succumbed to neck injuries after he was kicked violently and stomped on in a brutal attack.

In the 2.30pm attack, the victim was waiting for the bus with another friend on the second floor of the Tampin Bus Terminal when he was confronted by the group.

The attack was believed to have started following a series of arguments between the victim and the group which often mocked Saravanan's style of walking.

However, yesterday the group of Form Two students noticed that Saravanan was sitting with only one friend at the bus stop when they decided to attack him.

A trader, at the bus terminal, who requested anonymity, said the group was known for bullying other students.

“This is not the first time the delinquent schoolboys had attacked other students as numerous gang fights have been reported at the terminal,” he said.

The trader, in his late 40s, said he heard the group cheering and only realised that they were beating up someone after the victim who was floored was seen lying unconscious.

The boys, he said, were attempting to resuscitate the victim when they noticed his mouth was foaming.

“The group fled the scene when a group of traders ran to the victim's aid,” he said.

The victim was rushed to Tampin Hospital where he died at 3.20pm.

Deputy OCPD Deputy Superintendent Abdul Rahman Jid said police detained all those involved in the incident between 6pm and 7pm yesterday.

Meanwhile, the victim's mother, M. Mala, 36, said her only son complained about the bullying by the group two weeks ago.

“He was afraid to attend school and I informed the school about the existence of the gang,” she said between sobs.

Konvokesyen prauniversiti

SMK Tambunan:- Majlis tamat pengajian atau konvokesyen prauniversiti SMK Tambunan akan diadakan pada 1 November 2012 bersamaan dengan hari Khamis. Majlis tersebut bertujuan memberi pengiktirafan kepada pelajar yang berjaya mengharungi cabaran pengajian prauniversiti di sekolah tersebut. Seramai 62 pelajar senior 2012 akan menerima skrol masing-masing pada majlis gilang-gemilang itu. Dijangka majlis tersebut akan dirasmikan oleh Pengarah Institut Perguruan Keningau.







Kombura Discovery: Tahniah kepada anda semua! Semoga anda mendapat bekal berkualiti menuju kecemerlangan.

May 13 incident touches on racial sensitivities

THE portrayal of the May 13 riots in the controversial film Tanda Puterais necessary to educate youths about the need for different races to live in harmony, said Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Maglin D’cruz.

He said the Government believed historical events should be depicted in a realistic manner given the level of maturity of the current youths.

“Even if depicting the May 13 incident touches on racial sensitivities, it is an important reminder to everyone on the need for racial harmony,’’ he told Loh Gwo-Burne (PKR-Kelana Jaya) during Question Time.

Loh had asked the ministry why the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas) had funded the movie which depicted the May 13, 1969, racial riots.

Maglin denied allegations that the film contained racist undertones, which might have a negative impact on viewers.

“As the movie itself has not yet been screened in cinemas, it is too early to say there are racist elements in it,’’ he said.

He revealed that the ministry, through Finas, allocated RM2.7mil to finance the movie under Syarikat Pesona Pictures Sdn Bhd, as part of its initiative to support the production of local patriotic films.

An application for a dream job

Posted on 21 October 2012 - 09:01pm

R. Nadeswaran

The Director General
Royal Customs and Excise Department
Putrajaya

Datuk

I wish to apply for the best job in the world which incidentally is in your department. Judging from what has been reported, you can do anything you like, spend government money as much as you want and not be answerable to anyone.

For more than 20 years, I have had the honour of "processing" news stories from the voluminous reports by the auditor general. Year after year, I would read the report and then write about the non-adherence to established accounting principles and the misuse of power and taxpayers' money. As usual, the perpetrators of such activities are never pulled up or penalised and in some cases, elevated to higher positions.

This year is an exception. After so many years of reporting and commenting, I decided not to touch the report but could not avoid being informed on this issue because it would mean not reading the newspapers or watching the news on television, which of course is required of me in my present position.

I was particularly interested in what happened in your esteemed department which prides itself as the largest source of tax collection for the nation. The brief facts that I have gathered are:

» A customs officer went on a shopping spree and chalked up a bill of RM1.82 million on equipment his department did not need in 2007.

» The officer had placed a verbal order on six types of gadgets and equipment, some of which exceeded the quantity needed, without following government procurement procedures.

» He quit giving 24 hours notice on Feb 26, 2008.

» No action was taken against him.

» A report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission was only done last week AFTER the AG's report was tabled in Parliament.

Since he quit, I believe that vacant slot has not been filled and I verily believe I have the qualifications, experience and knowledge to take his place. I also want to raise plenty of money for charitable causes because your department's procedures will allow me to do it.

What I want to do is to order 500 units of GPS Navman navigation system at a cost of RM6,174 each. I also want to order 100 siren bars, at the cost of RM11,819 each as well as an additional 1,000 Hella search lights at RM1,292 each. On top of that, I will buy 1,000 beacon lights at RM1,311 each, 2,500 rechargeable torchlights at RM1,217 each and 1,000 Garmin walkie-talkies at RM5,259 each.

That's not very much compared to the billions that the department collects. It just amounts to less than RM15 million – RM14,942,000 to be exact. I will place the order with my own selected suppliers. I would negotiate a deal with them. They would hike up the price by 100% and no one will know because there are no proper checks and balances in the system.

So, I will ask the sum of RM14.9 million be made out in 14 cheques – RM1 million each payable in the name of orphanages, hospices, homes for the aged and other charitable organisations. The balance of RM900,000 be spent on buying sports equipment for rural schools. I won't wait for a year to quit in a huff. I would tender my resignation in accordance with the Government Orders and leave after a month.

After this, I would demand that the goods be sent to the Customs Department and that the invoice be submitted to the Finance Department, which would duly pay the bill.

Why am I that confident that the monies will be paid? The department is obliged because I used the Local Order. You may claim that it was an "unauthorised purchase" which is true, but because you have set a precedent by paying for goods ordered by my predecessor, you can also settle this bill.

Going by past practices, I am confident that you will cover for me and protect me from any departmental or external inquiries. (You did so for my predecessor for five long years.)

You should also persuade the Treasury to pay the RM29 million bill and pray and hope that the payment is not detected when the officers from the auditor general drop by. (If not for these officers, no one would have known about the rogue officer's order in 2007 and the matter would have been hushed up.)

And if the AG does highlight it in his report, you'll just have to make a formal complaint to the MACC to put on record that you did take some action. That would be five years later, perhaps in 2017 by which time, I would have disappeared.

But even if I am traced and prosecuted, I can expect justice to be tempered with mercy (as in the case of the national bowler who was convicted of statutory rape) because I have done service to the nation. Besides, I would not have financially benefited as all money went to charity.

In the eyes of the public, I will not be put in the same position as my predecessor. I would be looked at like Robin Hood, taking from the rich and giving it to the needy.

I hope my application will be given due consideration.

Saya yang (akan) menurut perintah
R. Nadeswaran

The writer is editor (special and investigative reporting) at theSun and can be reached at: citizen-nades@thesundaily.com

An application for a dream job

Posted on 21 October 2012 - 09:01pm

R. Nadeswaran

The Director General
Royal Customs and Excise Department
Putrajaya

Datuk

I wish to apply for the best job in the world which incidentally is in your department. Judging from what has been reported, you can do anything you like, spend government money as much as you want and not be answerable to anyone.

For more than 20 years, I have had the honour of "processing" news stories from the voluminous reports by the auditor general. Year after year, I would read the report and then write about the non-adherence to established accounting principles and the misuse of power and taxpayers' money. As usual, the perpetrators of such activities are never pulled up or penalised and in some cases, elevated to higher positions.

This year is an exception. After so many years of reporting and commenting, I decided not to touch the report but could not avoid being informed on this issue because it would mean not reading the newspapers or watching the news on television, which of course is required of me in my present position.

I was particularly interested in what happened in your esteemed department which prides itself as the largest source of tax collection for the nation. The brief facts that I have gathered are:

» A customs officer went on a shopping spree and chalked up a bill of RM1.82 million on equipment his department did not need in 2007.

» The officer had placed a verbal order on six types of gadgets and equipment, some of which exceeded the quantity needed, without following government procurement procedures.

» He quit giving 24 hours notice on Feb 26, 2008.

» No action was taken against him.

» A report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission was only done last week AFTER the AG's report was tabled in Parliament.

Since he quit, I believe that vacant slot has not been filled and I verily believe I have the qualifications, experience and knowledge to take his place. I also want to raise plenty of money for charitable causes because your department's procedures will allow me to do it.

What I want to do is to order 500 units of GPS Navman navigation system at a cost of RM6,174 each. I also want to order 100 siren bars, at the cost of RM11,819 each as well as an additional 1,000 Hella search lights at RM1,292 each. On top of that, I will buy 1,000 beacon lights at RM1,311 each, 2,500 rechargeable torchlights at RM1,217 each and 1,000 Garmin walkie-talkies at RM5,259 each.

That's not very much compared to the billions that the department collects. It just amounts to less than RM15 million – RM14,942,000 to be exact. I will place the order with my own selected suppliers. I would negotiate a deal with them. They would hike up the price by 100% and no one will know because there are no proper checks and balances in the system.

So, I will ask the sum of RM14.9 million be made out in 14 cheques – RM1 million each payable in the name of orphanages, hospices, homes for the aged and other charitable organisations. The balance of RM900,000 be spent on buying sports equipment for rural schools. I won't wait for a year to quit in a huff. I would tender my resignation in accordance with the Government Orders and leave after a month.

After this, I would demand that the goods be sent to the Customs Department and that the invoice be submitted to the Finance Department, which would duly pay the bill.

Why am I that confident that the monies will be paid? The department is obliged because I used the Local Order. You may claim that it was an "unauthorised purchase" which is true, but because you have set a precedent by paying for goods ordered by my predecessor, you can also settle this bill.

Going by past practices, I am confident that you will cover for me and protect me from any departmental or external inquiries. (You did so for my predecessor for five long years.)

You should also persuade the Treasury to pay the RM29 million bill and pray and hope that the payment is not detected when the officers from the auditor general drop by. (If not for these officers, no one would have known about the rogue officer's order in 2007 and the matter would have been hushed up.)

And if the AG does highlight it in his report, you'll just have to make a formal complaint to the MACC to put on record that you did take some action. That would be five years later, perhaps in 2017 by which time, I would have disappeared.

But even if I am traced and prosecuted, I can expect justice to be tempered with mercy (as in the case of the national bowler who was convicted of statutory rape) because I have done service to the nation. Besides, I would not have financially benefited as all money went to charity.

In the eyes of the public, I will not be put in the same position as my predecessor. I would be looked at like Robin Hood, taking from the rich and giving it to the needy.

I hope my application will be given due consideration.

Saya yang (akan) menurut perintah
R. Nadeswaran

The writer is editor (special and investigative reporting) at theSun and can be reached at: citizen-nades@thesundaily.com

Malaysia's 36.3% of boys aged 13 to 15 smoked

A study showed that despite relatively high cigarette prices and low annual tobacco consumption, 36.3% of boys aged 13 to 15 still smoked.

PETALING JAYA: More than a third of Malaysian boys aged between 13 and 15 smoke, according to a global study on tobacco smoking .

The Tobacco Atlas showed that 36.3% of schoolboys here smoked cigarettes, making Malaysia one of the top countries in the world with the highest smoking rates amongst male teenagers in this age range.

(The statistics can be viewed here: http://www.tobaccoatlas.org/fact_sheets/1925)

Tying with Latvia, it lost only to the Federated States of Micronesia (36.9%), Tonga (37.5%) and Timor-Leste (50.6%) and Papua New Guinea (52.1%) in this area.

This was despite a surprisingly low annual cigarette consumption, which showed that Malaysians smoked an average of 539 sticks a year.

In comparison, its regional neighbours Thailand, Singapore, The Philippines and Indonesia recorded an annual cigarette use of 560, 547, 838 and 1,085 cigarettes respectively a year.

The report said: “Boys begin smoking during their youth in response to peer pressure, misconceptions that smoking is cool or enhances popularity, easy access to tobacco products, cigarette pricing, and tobacco marketing.”

It added that tobacco marketing and the low price of cigarettes contributed to youths smoking .

At the same time, the study also showed that 4.2% of girls aged between 13 and 15 smoked.

It was also revealed that 45.6% of men and 2.4% of women in Malaysia smoked.

This was also despite Malaysia having relatively high cigarette prices, amounting to approximately US$3.30 per a box of 20 sticks, compared to Indonesia’s US$1.40 and Thailand’s US$2.56. In Singapore, a box of twenty can fetch as much as US$9.29.

At the same time, Malaysia also seemed to have a low excise tax level, recorded at 47.5%. Indonesia, The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand had excise tax levels of 45.7%, 52%, 60.7% and 62.2% respectively.

The report said: “Youth, minorities, and low-income smokers are more likely than others to quit or smoke less in response to cigarette price increases.”

The study was published by the American Cancer Society in 2012.

Malaysia currently has stiff penalties for people who sell cigarettes to minors (18 is the legal smoking age). Those found selling smokes to children risk a RM10,000 fine and risk a two-year jail term.

The government also introduced graphic images as part of the packaging and labels slapped on cigarette boxes, showing the effects of miscarriages, gangrene and other conditions; all linked to smoking.

The minimum number of cigarettes that can be sold in a box is twenty; a measure aimed at discouraging students from buying.

It has also stepped up its “Tak Nak” anti-smoking campaign, complete with billboards, advertisements and various other means.

With all these in tow, it is not known how much of an effect they really have on Malaysia’s youth.

Ways to improve English

By FADZILAH AMIN

Read, write, listen and speak and you will get there.

Dimitar Berbatov, the handsome Bulgarian football player now with Manchester United (though maybe not for much longer), worked on improving his English by watching the Godfather films again and again, especially Godfather III.

This featured Andy Garcia, to whom Berbatov bears an uncanny resemblance. I won’t really recommend that method to all Malaysians, for fear you might give the wrong impression here! From time to time, I get letters from readers asking for ways to improve their English. Sometimes they want to improve it in general, but sometimes a reader like Mohd Sharafudin specifies certain aspects of his English that need improvement, like writing and speaking.

We are told that there are four skills to be developed in the teaching of a language: Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking.

Malaysians who started school in and after 1970 learnt English for 11 years up to Form Five. But a lot of them still find the need to improve their understanding and command of the language after leaving school.

Let me try and suggest certain ways in which they can do that.

Reading

Read books whose subjects interest you, and try if possible to get some advice on whether the books you have chosen are written well.

Also, choose books whose language provides some challenge to you, but not too much, because that might discourage you. If there are 10 or more words on every page that you don’t know the meaning of, find a simpler book.

I once taught a class of science students who were weak in English. The weakest (who was very good at mathematics) came up to me on the first day and said he had obtained a P8 for English in the SPM exam and couldn’t understand most things he had to read.

After much thought, I lent him some Ladybird fairy tales that my children used to read when they were in primary school. A week or so later, I asked his dorm mate if he had read them, and the answer made me really smile. His dorm mate said that both of them read the books and enjoyed them! At the end of the semester, the weak student had a clear pass in his English exam.

Sometimes you may hear of a good classic English novel, like Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, and you can’t find it in a bookshop.

There is also no library near you. You can go to the Project Gutenberg website at gutenberg.org/browse/ languages/en

Here you can find lots and lots of good books, but they are all out of copyright, meaning that they were first published more than 70 years ago. You can read them online or print them, all for free. But if you have some money to spare, you are encouraged to donate any sum you like to the project.

The books have been made available by people who have lovingly typed every word in so that these treasures can be read by everyone.

Dictionaries

Reading alone is not enough, of course. I really do think that Malaysians have to develop the dictionary habit. I have observed how reluctant so many Malaysians are to look up a word in a dictionary to find out its exact meaning or meanings.

This is such a pity, because never before have we had so many free dictionaries available, on the Internet. So please take advantage of that! Some of them even pronounce the words for you if you click on the right icons.

Here are the links to some of them: 1) oxfordadvanc edlearnersdictionary. com/online Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

2) dictionary.cambridge. org/online Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary and Thesaurus

3) macmillandictionary.com/ online Macmillan Dictionary and Thesaurus ldoceonline. com/ Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

4) oaadonline.oxfordlearnersdictionaries. com/Oxford Advanced American Dictionary for learners

5) merriam-webster.com/ Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, 11th Edition (an American English dictionary)

6) oxforddictionaries.com/ (type your word or phrase under the green rectangle that says “Dictionary” and you will get a definition that is more advanced than that of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, as well as the origin of the word)

If you want to see the definition of a word in several dictionaries, go to the site: onelook.com/, type your word in, click “Search”, and you will see the names of several dictionaries.

If you see “Compact Oxford English Dictionary” in the list, clicking on it will lead to the site oxforddictionaries. com/ that I listed above.

Writing

How about improving your writing? If you have no tutor or a friend to help you, just write a diary. You don’t need to write every day. But whenever you feel happy or upset or angry about something, try to write how you feel in your diary.

Never mind if it is somewhat ungrammatical at first: you will get better as you read more and write more. And if you feel upset or angry, writing it all down may actually help you feel less upset or angry.

The BBC has a useful website for learning English, where you can also improve your listening skills through listening to the passages that are read aloud, and the conversations between people.

Try browsing the following site: bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/ index.shtml

Speaking

Speaking may be the skill that is hardest to improve. Having a friend who is proficient in English would be helpful. If you don’t have such a friend, try getting a tutor, if you can afford it.

If you have neither friend of that description, nor cash to pay for a tutor, don’t despair. If you listen to the language often enough, you can try to speak it on your own.

Try reading aloud in the privacy of your home or room. It can be enjoyable.

Finally, what about grammar? The BBC website has a grammar section, and you can also try to get a grammar book from a big bookshop.

Browse around and find one that you think is at your level and also affordable.

> Fadzilah Amin taught English literature at university, but after retirement, started teaching English language. She believes we learn most when trying to teach others. Mind Our English is published once a week on Tuesdays. For comments or inquiries on English usage, please contact the writer at fedela7@yahoo.co.uk