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22 Dec 2009 - 15 Jan 2010 PP 14252/10/2010(025567)
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88
Lights, Camera, Action!
Papan’s Heroine Indelibly
Captured On Celluloid
T
he quietness and tranquillity of the century
old mining town of Papan
on the outskirts of Ipoh has
suddenly become punctuated with the sounds
of activity as a film crew
prepares to shoot on location, the story of the
town’s very own World
War II heroine.
But the townsfolk,
many of whom former
tin mine workers, ap-
peared to be unconcerned
and unexcited about it.
Some of them did not
know who Sybil Kathigasu
was, even though the town
had gained prominence
because of her esca-
pades during the Japanese
Occupation.
What concerns them is
that their daily livelihood,
and for some even their
regular mahjong sessions,
will not be disrupted by the
filming in the two-street
town.
Astro Eight-Part Series
Astro has chosen to produce an eight-part series on
the life of Sybil under its
‘Suatu Ketika’ programme
to be screened over the
Citra Channel before the
middle of next year.
continued on page 2
2
IPOH ECHO
‘Apa Dosa Ku’
Elaine outside the house at 74 Main Road, Papan
According to Astro
Executive Producer (Drama) Rohayah Ibrahim,
Sybil’s story was selected
“for her desire to help the
sick and injured and as
result she and her family
were tortured for doing
so.”
Hence Astro has
now titled the series ‘Apa
Dosa Ku’ or ‘What Is
My Sin’. The series will
be in Bahasa Malaysia
though the dialogue will
be in English, Chinese and
Japanese with accompanying subtitles. The production of the series was given
to Production House, Red
Communications.
Fitting Lead
And, who will be more
fitting to play the part of
Sybil than her own grand
niece, local actress Elaine
Daly.
“It was so ironic”,
said Elaine Daly, when
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
interviewed about being
approached to do the lead
role. “A month earlier I
was assisting another production house doing a documentary on the same topic and a month later I was
asked to play the lead role
of Sybil”, added the 32year-old Miss MalaysiaUniverse 2003.
Elaine said that when
she was approached by
Red
Communications’
manager Lina Tan to play
the part of Sybil, she was
merely told that she being
a Eurasian has the right
facial features. “Lina had
no idea that Sybil was my
grand aunt. Naturally I accepted immediately.”
h
Researching the Role
Prior to this, what information she had about her
grand aunt was what her
dad Phillip had told her,
that Sybil was a local heroine during the last war
and was tortured by the
Japanese.
Therefore to prepare
for the role she read up on
her grand aunt Sybil and
also contacted her Aunt
Betty in US, who is a cousin and a few years younger
than Sybil, to get an idea of
Sybil’s character.
“Obviously playing the
role is an amazing opportunity for me, a Eurasian actress playing the lead role
of a local Eurasian heroine
who’s not generally well
known. I hope to play the
role as best as I can and to
the best of my ability”, she
said confidently.
Ipoh Born Director
The Director for the series is Ipoh born Bernard
Chauly who gave us movies like Gol & Gincu and
recently Pisau Cukur.
Bernard was ‘thrilled’ when
Red Communications approached him to direct this
series. “I had read the book
‘No Dram of Mercy’ 10
years ago which my sister
Bernice recommended that
I read.”
According to Bernard,
the story for the series is
adapted from the book
which was written by Sybil
herself. “The book has so
many characters. We have
narrowed it down and enhanced some of the main
characters. These are the
Karthigasu family and their
friends, their dispenser,
driver and some of the key
guerrillas.”
Original Location
One aspect about making
this series that has awed
both Bernard and Elaine is
the shoot location at Sybil’s
home in Papan.
“You almost never get
a chance to retell a story
at an actual location”, said
Bernard. “Due credit must
be given to the proprietor of Sybil’s home, Law
Siak Hong (or Hong as he
is commonly known), for
preserving the memorial as
it is.”
Indeed the shop-house
has been preserved ‘as
it was’ very well. Elaine
sums it up pretty much by
describing “it gives me
goose bumps through my
spine. This is where it all
happened; the back door
where the guerrillas came
in and also the hole under
the staircase where the
wireless set, ‘Josephine’
was hidden, is still there.
Playing this role at this actual location is just so surreal”, she commented.
For Siak Hong, he is
glad that Sybil is being
given more exposure, although at the moment his
priority is trying to raise
RM25,000 to maintain the
premises for the long term.
“So far no major maintenance has been done on the
premises”, he said.
Sybil Medan Daly
and her husband Dr A.C.
Kathigasu lived along
Brewster Road, Ipoh,
which was both their home
Director Bernard Chauly with Elaine in the background
and dispensary. When
the war reached Ipoh in
December 1941, Sybil and
her family moved out to
No. 74 Main Road, Papan,
where they set up their
home and dispensary.
Award for Bravery
News of a doctor in the
town soon brought many
sick patients to their door-
The main roles. Seated (l-r): Beatrice Daly (Miriam
Fredericks), Olga Kathigasu (Sharon Stephen), Sybil
Kathigasu (Elaine Daly). Standing (r-l): Dispenser
Hanif (Lash Mokhtar), Dr A.C. Kathigasu (Paranee
Damodaran), Dominic Weaver (Matthew McGillvray),
Marie Weaver (Audrey Poh) and an extra
step including the Chinese
guerrillas who opposed
the Japanese occupation.
Unfortunately, she was betrayed and she and Doctor
Kathigasu were arrested
and tortured.
Sybil died in 1949 from
injuries inflicted during her
torture. For her humanitarian effort of caring for the
wounded guerrilla fighters
she was awarded the highest British civilian award
for bravery, the George
Medal.
Minimal Disruption
Minimal
disruption
was experienced by the villagers during the shoot.Two
mahjong shops across the
road with two occupied tables contributed their sound
effects of clacking mahjong
tiles. Nearby was a singlechair, non-air-conditioned
barber shop with an elderly
hairdresser cutting the hair
of an elderly gentleman.
There are three coffeeshops on the main road with
the one immediately next to
Sybil’s clinic having been
turned into an operations
room for the cast and crew.
Its owner, 56-year old
Kok Hoong Fatt, like most
of the townfolk, know ‘a little’ about the heroic deeds
of ‘Sybil’ and this, mostly
from his parents.
The screening of the
life of Sybil will soon alter
this ignorance for the residents of Papan as well as
others in Malaysia. Soon
the heroine who nursed the
sick and lived with courage
until six decades ago will
become a household name
in the hearts and minds of
the Malaysian public.
JAMES GOUGH
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
IPOHecho From the Editor’s Desk
w w w.ipohecho.com.m y
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Community
Newspaper
Privatisation Exercise
The resistance by opposition-held states in accepting two Acts of parliament
is considered petty and
frivolous by the authorities in Putrajaya. Although
the BN-held states are less
vocal, it does not necessarily mean that they are in
agreement with the federal
government. The two contentious Acts are the Solid
Waste and Public Cleansing
Management Act 2007 and
the Solid Waste and Public
Cleansing
Management
Corporation Act 2007. If
implemented the acts could
make local authorities redundant as they would
take away a huge chunk of
the responsibilities of local councils, leaving them
with practically nothing.
The Acts allow for the
setting up of a dedicated
solid waste management
entity, like Indah Water
Konsortium
Sdn Bhd
(IWK), which will oversee
the collection and disposal
of rubbish, grass-cutting
and even the cleanliness of
public toilets, markets and
local council roads. This
entity will take over the
management and operations of all disposal sites
currently managed by local
councils, including the task
of identifying new landfills,
transfer stations and the
management and technical
overseeing of incinerators,
if any. There will be little
left for local councils to
do. Even recycling activities by non-governmental
organisations and environmentalists will be affected
by the Acts.
These Acts, which are
supposed to have come
into force by the end of
2008, are actually a blow
for local democracy where
public participation is most
frequent and active. Basic
services such as rubbish
disposal and public transCORRECTION
In Issue 87 page 3, the
picture shows Keeshaanan
Sundaresan and not
Ranveer Singh
ACTS WILL MAKE LOCAL COUNCILS REDUNDANT
The onus is on the ratepayers themselves. They will have to put up with poor services, a noncommittal and toothless city council and, above all, an indifferent private company….
Wong Kah Wah with a copy of the
Waste Management Act 2007
port are best left to local
authorities, as they are the
ones who interact with the
masses on a daily basis.
A federal body organised
along the lines of a corporation is not suited for the
mundane job of soliciting
and acting on feedback
from ratepayers.
Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd, formed in
1994 and responsible for
providing sewerage services and the maintaining and
operating of over 5,750
public sewerage treatment
plants in the country, is a
classic example of a ‘failed’
privatised entity. In June
2000, the Government,
through the Ministry of
Finance Incorporated, took
over the entire equity of
the company from its owners and in return compensated them handsomely. In
spite of federal intervention IWK is still not out of
the woods. Its services are
far from satisfactory.
Private Sector Debts
In its haste to privatise,
the federal government
has, unwittingly, traded
the good for the bad. And
in order to encourage the
untested and the inexperienced to take on the impossible, the government
has to underwrite private
sector debts. Such guarantees severely distort competition. Those who benefit from the government’s
generosity will have an
edge over those without.
They will definitely outperform their opposite
numbers not because they
are more efficient or better
at serving their customers
but because they have access to cheap capital. This
unfair advantage will, invariably, cause them to
become complacent and
soon most will go belly up,
only to be rescued by the
government with the infusion of public funds and oil
revenue. Companies enjoying such generous largesse
tend to be less competitive
and will accumulate risks.
Bailout of Bank Bumiputra
(three times), Malaysian
International
Shipping
Corporation, MAS and
Renong are shining examples. The country has lost
billions since privatisation
began in 1984, a loss which
is having a contingent effect on our economy, presently.
Cost and Effect
Now let us see how these
two Acts would affect
Ipoh City Council per se.
Foremost, the nearly 1,000
staff involved in rubbish
disposal will be out of jobs.
They may be absorbed by
the corporation, purported
to be E. Idaman Sdn Bhd,
but that is only a guess as
the company may have
other ideas. Contractors
currently engaged to clear
rubbish, clean drains and
cut grass will see their
services terminated. And
having invested heavily on
hardware and manpower,
their financial losses may
be colossal.
The 112-acre landfill
in Ipoh at Bercham would
be further abused although
its lifespan is only up till
2010. The impact on the
environment is obvious.
What will become of the
120-odd council dump
trucks currently in service?
The company may buy
them but definitely not the
entire fleet as only about a
third is serviceable at any
one time. The council will
have to continue maintaining the vehicles, the drivers
and the repair facilities.
There have been talks
about building a sanitary
landfill on a 200-acre site
in Lahat. This hygienic
and environmental friendly
landfill is very expensive,
estimated at about RM200
million. Federal funding is
the only option, as neither
city council nor the state
has that kind of money.
What will be the responsibility of the corporation
towards the upkeep of the
dumpsite? Will it foot the
bill or otherwise?
On Hold
The onus, unfortunately,
is on the ratepayers themselves. They will have
to put up with poor services, a non-committal
and toothless city council
and, above all, an indifferent private company
whose only concern is the
amount of money it can
squeeze from our pockets.
Unfortunately, ratepayers
are in no position to decide as decisions are being
made for them, pro bono.
This does not bode well
for Ipohites.
The decision to adopt
the two Acts lies with the
current state government.
Pakatan Rakyat, when it
was in the controlling seat
had, unequivocally, rejected them convinced that
3
Fathol Zaman Bukhari
the Acts would bring more
harm than good. “Having a
private company monopolising the services, it’s inevitable that the cost borne
by the local authorities will
increase and the burden
will eventually shift to the
rakyat”, said Wong Kah
Wah, the Adun for Canning
recently.
At the last MBI
full-board meeting on
November 30, the mayor
intimated that the adoption of the two Acts had
been placed on hold. “The
council will continue with
the current arrangement,
including the hiring of
contractors”, said Roshidi.
The Local Government
Act 1976 and the Road,
Drainage and Building Act
1974 hold sway and can be
used to negate the subtleties. City Hall should take
cognisance of this.
Ipohites, meanwhile,
can heave a sigh of relief;
but for how long? Only
time will tell.
4
IPOH ECHO
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EDITORIAL
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Jerry Francis
REPORTER
James Gough
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COPYRIGHT
Materials in Ipoh Echo may
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form without the written permission of the publisher
PRINTER
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Tel: (604) 644 7507
USEFUL CONTACTS
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Daerah (IPD)
05 2451 500
999 (emergency)
Ipoh General Hospital
05-253 3333
Ipoh Ambulance
05-522 2506
993 (emergency)
Ipoh Fire Brigade
05-547 4444/994
(emergency)
THINKING ALOUD
by Ian Anderson
Public Knowledge
Just over a month ago it
became public knowledge
that Perak’s only surviving
tin mining bucket dredge
was “in danger of flipping
over”. In fact the problem
is not new as it started a
year ago and has become
more severe as the months
passed. The photograph
taken from the rear of the
structure, on November 28,
2009, shows how much it
has gone over to one side.
We would estimate it being
15 to 20 degrees.
So what should be done
and by who? That comes
down to responsibility and,
therefore, it is important
to establish ownership. If
we understand it correctly,
the dredge was originally
owned by Osborne and
Chappel (Q&C). Rather
than dismantling it and selling it, they took the publicspirited approach and, after spending a significant
amount on preparing it for
display as a tourist attraction, gave it – lock, stock
and barrel – to the Perak
State Government. The
latter spent around half a
million Ringgit on preparing the site, constructing
buildings, roads and car
parks and, after some delays, opened it as a tourist
attraction on the January 1,
2008, under the management of O&C and at their
cost – a fine example of
government and private
WITH PERAK’S HERITAGE SINKING FAST – WE FLOAT A
NEW PROPOSAL
Should our government be spending large sums of money on something that will
continue to be a drain on resources forever?
sector collaboration.
Collaboration
According to Menteri
Besar, Dato’ Seri Dr.
Zambry Abd Kadir such
collaboration is the very
lynchpin of tourism development. On November
29, Zambry wrote in his
introduction to the Perak
Tourism
Appreciation
Awards 2009 dinner programme:
“Tourism development
is a collaborated effort.
The success or failure depends on the efforts made
by both the government
and the private sectors. It
has been proven that these
joint efforts continue to
bear fruit ……………”
So what has happened
to the dredge? It meets the
requirement of collaboration as defined above, yet it
has been gradually sinking
for more than 12 months!
Just what went wrong
and who is at fault? The
recent statement by senior executive councillor,
Dato’ Hamidah Osman, in
an English daily, makes
it clear that the State has
“handed over” the dredge
to Century Mission Sdn
Bhd and they “should be
responsible for maintenance and upkeep”. She
also made the point that
“repair costs could run
Perak Immigration Dept
05-5017100
Perak Water Board
05-254 6161
Ipoh City Council
(Complaints)
05-253 1515
Perak Anti-Corruption
Agency
05-253 1982
State Secretariat
05-253 1957
Railway Station
05-254 7987
Airport
05-312 0848
Registration Department
05-528 8805
Tenaga Nasional Berhad
05-253 2000
Lembaga Air Perak
1800-88-7788
Directory Service
103
Rakan Cop
05-240 1999
Perak Women for
Women Society
012-521 2480
012-505 0547
05-5469715 (office)
Befrienders Ipoh
05-5477933/5477955
(4 pm-12 midnight)
AA Ipoh
019-574 3572
017-350 8361
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Taken from Behind Dredge showing tilt
HAPPENINGS
S
omething is brewing
in the corner of Jusco
Kinta City and as some
may have noticed, it’s a
new gym in town.
Fitness Embassy is a
gym that promises a fitness experience that Ipoh
has never seen before.
Tommy Hwang, 24
was once a gym enthusiast
who felt that Ipoh lacked
the kind of gym experience so readily available
in Kuala Lumpur with
its luxury facilities and
ambience. “Trying out
various gyms in Ipoh, I
noticed that our town did
not really have a kind of
high-end gym facility”,
said the Ipoh born and
bred Hwang.
Therefore
when
into millions of Ringgit”.
A company spokesman is
also quoted, as saying that
a proposal for repair of the
dredge has been passed to
the government, which indicates that the company
believes the government
still bears the responsibility.
Should the state government be spending large
sums of money on something that will continue to
be a drain on resources?
Make no mistake, an allsteel dredge, built 71 years
ago, floating in water and
subject to Malaysia’s humid climate can only deteriorate unless an adequate
maintenance gang can be
onsite every day to combat the decay. Take the
Sydney Harbour Bridge
and the Forth Bridge as
examples, both have a permanent team of painters
who, having painted from
end to end, return to the
beginning and start again.
Maintaining the dredge
will be a drain on government resources.
Mining Heritage
But there are those who believe that the Kinta Valley
should have a tourism attraction based on our tin
mining heritage. However,
despite all the nice words
written about heritage and
tourism in past issues of
Ipoh Echo, no one, not our
local philanthropists, old
tin miners or towkays have
come forward to set up the
Kinta Valley heritage gallery of mining and pioneer
miners, as been suggested
(Ipoh Echo Issues 83 and
84). Nor have they, apart
from Century Mission Sdn
Bhd, put anything substantial into saving the dredge.
Consequently, with no
NEW GYM IN TOWN
Patrick Ng, 29, owner of
the Kbox Karaoke lounge
in Jusco Kinta City, offered Hwang a partnership
in opening such a gym, the
groundwork was laid and
Fitness Embassy was set
in motion.
“We wanted to build
a gym that offers all the
trappings of a fitness centre and present it in a stylish manner”, said Hwang.
Fitness Embassy has
procured a five-year contract with Jusco Kinta
City and is set to open in
January, with soft launches in December.
Located just below
the Kbox Karaoke lounge
in Jusco Kinta City, the
gym promises a lavish setting and tight security.
“We have the latest
treadmill machines imported from Korea, sauna
and steam bath facilities
and even a nutrition counter.”
For now Fitness
Embassy is undergoing
construction and has set
up a booth in Jusco Kinta
City to recruit early memberships. “We have had
promising responses especially due to our early bird
promotions, with almost
200 applicants within
2 months”, said Fitness
Embassy marketing and
promotions
executive,
Nick Siew.
Although Ng and
Hwang
being
partners, Kbox and Fitness
Embassy are to be man-
Guardrails disappearing
other tin mining heritminers and being centrally
age available to visit, the
placed in Ipoh.
dredge does have major
No doubt some of the
significance to our state heritage enthusiasts will acand should draw tourists
cuse us of heresy for wantdollars to help pay for it, ing to scrap Perak’s last
if it was properly main- dredge. But to them we say
tained.
“be realistic”. Despite all
The authors of this ar- the headlines in the press
ticle strongly support savnothing has been done to
ing heritage where practi- overcome the problems.
cal, but the dredge with Furthermore, a recent meetits major problems is not ing of the Perak Heritage
one of them, as the cost of
Society, called to discuss
maintenance and manage- the dredge, was poorly atment will almost certainly tended and does not seem
outweigh any gains from to have helped the situation
tourism.
at all. So in reality we believe the project is doomed
to failure and fighting a losOur Proposal
ing battle never makes any
We would, therefore, propose the following. Let sense.
To Dato’ Seri Dr.
Century Mission Sdn
Bhd and the government Zambry, we wish to say
this:
save those pieces of the
“Now is the time to bite
dredge still suitable for
display, scrap the remain- the bullet and make that difficult decision. You will not
der and add the money
be popular in some quargained to the amount that
would have been spent ters, but even the doubters
over the next five years will see the sanity of your
in maintaining this lost action when they are able
cause. Then use this fund to visit the Kinta Valley
Heritage Gallery. ”
to follow up on the stateWe look forward to his
ment made by Dato’ Seri
statement of intent. DiRaja Tajol Rosli, in
February 2006, to set up a
new Kinta Valley Heritage
Ian Anderson is Director
Gallery managed, collaboof Ipoh World and esratively, by the public and
tablished its database
private sectors. This can
and website: www.ipohhave its own sections on
world.org.
tin mining and the pioneer
aged separately, however,
Kbox members are entitled
to some special offers.
“We will open from 6
a.m. to 12 a.m. everyday
and we promise to stay
open during the holidays”, said Siew with a
smile.
ISTA KYRA
SHARMUGAM
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
CHRISTMAS ROUNDUP
Christmas Across The Miles
with Ipoh Echo
CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR
FARE
RESTAURANTS
Beacon Point
41 Lintasan Perajurit 6,
Taman Perak, Ipoh.
Tel: 05-5469916
www.beaconpoint.com.
my
Christmas Eve buffet
dinner or Christmas Day
set lunch. Special set dinners on New Year’s Eve.
Orders for turkey available.
Christmas Day Lunch &
Dinner. Traditional Roast
Turkey; or Australian
Tenderloin; or Pan-seared
Threadfin. Call for reservations.
Citrus Wine & Dine
38-46
Laluan
Ipoh
Perdana, Ipoh. Tel: 055451010
David’s Diner
B-G-1, Greentown Sq, Jln
Dato Seri Ahmad Said.
Tel: 05-2425733/0195575733
Christmas Eve/Day Lunch
& Dinner – RM49.90++.
Turkey
lunch/dinners
available for 8-20 pax
ranging from RM350 onwards. Call for reservations.
Christmas Eve Dinner,
Denis JaZZ Bistro
HECTOR’S CHRISTMAS TREE
H
ector Netto has tended
diligently to his pine
tree in front of his house,
along Jalan Perajurit in
Ipoh Garden East, not realising that one day the
tree will be a conversation piece among residents and outsiders alike.
Hector 55, a civilian staff
attached to the Territorial
Army Training Centre or
PUSWATAN in Tambun,
hit on the idea of lighting
up the tree one December
morning in 2004 to usher
in Christmas. He and his
wife, Juliet Morais, decorated the tree with colour-
ful chilli lights and lit it
up at night. The couple
has been doing so every
December for the last five
years without fail. The
lighted pine tree, according to Hector, has been
used as a reference point
by outsiders finding their
way in Ipoh Garden East.
“Some have even stopped
to gaze at it”, he remarks.
Hector has every intention
to continue his service to
the local community. “It’s
my contribution to society, and Christmas is the
perfect time for giving.” 26 Persara Ipoh 1, Ipoh
Garden, Ipoh.
Tel: 05-5467926/
016-4841403
http://denisjazzbistro.
blogspot.com
Christmas Dinner Set:
RM49.90 nett. Appetiser
– tomato & mushroom
Brushetta; Soup – three
mushroom or tomato sweet
basil; Main course – Roast
American Turkey with
cranberry sauce or smoked
duck with honey mustard
sauce; served with: green
bean casserole, roast potatoes & candied yams, cauliflower cheese, old fashioned salad, garlic bread
or corn bread; Dessert –
Trifle, Christmas Brandy
Fruit Cake, coffee/tea.
Mushrooms; or Duck
Confit + Orange Chocolate
Pudding – RM95++. New
Year’s Eve: Hokkaido
Scallop + Herb Infused
Barramundi + Harlequin
Berries – RM95++. New
Year’s Day: Oysters &
Pumpkin + Twelve Night’s
Lamb Rump + Grilled
Turkish Figs – RM89++.
Indulgence
14 Jalan Raja DiHilir,
Ipoh. Tel: 05-2557051
Christmas Eve: Pumpkin
& Crab Cannelloni +
Kataifi Prawns & Cod;
or An Arty Lamb + A
Christmas
Strudel
–
RM95++.
Christmas
Day: Plump Pearl Prawns
+ Mullefeuille of Wild
CAROLS IN THE PARK
T
he first such event
to be held in the city
ushered in the Christmas
spirit and merriment with
the right tunes.
It was an entertaining
night. Seven carol groups
from the various Catholic
communities in the city,
including Sarawakians and
Filipinos, sang their hearts
out to the crowd from a
stage well decorated for
the occasion.
Also participating at
the event were the English
choirs of the Church of
Our Lady of Lourdes and
many Filipino children.
Organised by the
Church of Our Mother of
Perpetual Help (OMPH) in
Ipoh Garden, the event
was a great success. Many
of the estimated 2,000 people, who had gathered at
the car park, sat on mats in
picnic style in front of the
stage. They showed their
appreciation by joining in
5
a sing-along and swaying
with their lighted candles.
Food and candles sold help
raise money for several
good causes.
Two Santa Clauses,
who came in on motorcycles, were mobbed by
children as they distributed
sweets.
The night ended with
the performance of the
OMPH’s resident band
‘Edengreen’.
JF
FZB
HOTELS
Impiana
18 Jalan Raja Dr Nazrin
Shah, Ipoh.
Tel: 05-2555555
www.impiana.com
Christmas Eve: Buffet
Dinner & 5-Course Set
Dinner. Christmas Day:
Carvery Set Lunch, Hi-
Tea, Buffet Dinner &
4-Course Set Dinner. New
Year’s Eve: Set Menu,
Buffet Dinner & Supper.
New Year’s Day: Hi-Tea &
Buffet Dinner. For reservation, please contact extension 8009. See also pages
5 and 17.
Tower Regency
6-8 Jalan Dato’ Seri
Ahmad Said, Greentown.
Tel: 05-2086888 inquiry@
towerregency.com
Christmas Eve Gala Buffet
Dinner (Cinnamon Hall
Level 6, from 7pm) –
RM68 (adult), RM48
(child). At
Café@6
(Level 6), Christmas
Brunch Buffet – RM38++
(adult) RM18++ (child);
Christmas Day Buffet
Dinner
–
RM48++
(adult) RM28++ (child);
Christmas
turkey
–
RM45++. New Year’s
Eve (Grand Ballroom
Level 1) – RM600 nett
(normal table) RM800
nett (front table).
6
IPOH ECHO
LETTERS
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
@
mail /email
We reprint some of our reader’s comments from our online paper. Go to http: //www.ipohecho.com.my/
to read more. The views expressed in these letters are not necessarily shared by the Editorial Board.
We reserve the right to refuse or modify the letters we publish.
LOW-LEVEL POLITICS
Politics in our country has reached an abominable level. To say politicians resort to gutter politics is putting it mildly. It is one huge embarrassment when we get to discuss
politics with foreigners.
Facts have been distorted, lies and innuendos created. Character assassinations, legal
manoeuvring and questionable tactics stand out like a sore thumb. It has become too big,
too corrupt, and too controlled by special interests. Ballot access doesn’t seem a fundamental right anymore. Free and fair elections have become a myth. What have they done
to our once paradise of a country?
Noel F. D’Oliveiro
November 24, 2009
RUBBISH PEST
Other than cats and dogs, it seems that there are individuals who check out people’s garbage too. They search for the things they want either at the dumping areas, big dumping
bins or just right at your doorstep where you left your garbage bag for MBI to collect.
They rummage through the garbage bags scattering everything that were once being
packed nicely. I wanted to take their pictures but what can we do with the pictures? Get
them charged like a criminal? What can it do to stop the actual root of the problem?
What is the root of this problem? Poverty? Hoarding? Think about it.
Cilane
December 03, 2009
WHO REGULATES BUS COMPANIES IN IPOH?
When I read the cover story Transport Woes in October 1-15, 2009 Issue of Ipoh Echo,
I expected response from readers about their transport problems. Unfortunately there
were only a couple or so.
I would like to highlight the problem I experienced recently. Usually I take the 5.30
a.m. bus to KL. When I went to Medan Gopeng I was told that the bus schedules are
changed and the buses depart at 5 a.m., 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. All bus companies posted this
schedule at their counters, however, at 6 a.m. only one bus departed for KL. Why must
buses from all the companies follow the same timing? Why not depart at half-hour intervals between 5 and 7 a.m.? The service must be for the convenience of the public.
Currently, no bus passes through Maxwell Road and residents from Lim Garden,
Merdeka Garden, Cherry Park, Taman Idris and surrounding areas must walk all the
way to Silibin Road to catch a bus. There is a simple solution: buses travelling between Medan Kidd and Silibin can be rerouted to pass through Maxwell Road and Jalan
Hassan. By doing so, the residents of the said areas can have access to bus service. This
change can be made easily.
Whoever is responsible for scheduling and routing of bus service must implement
his.
A. Jeyaraj
PERAK HAS LOTS TO OFFER ON ECO TOURISM
Congratulations to Ms Chan Yuen Li for bringing Eco Tourism to the forefront of the
tourism industry in Malaysia by introducing the white-water rafting on Sungai Kampar
in Gopeng, thereby making Gopeng one of the top adventure destinations in South East
Asia.
May I humbly suggest we promote Eco Tourism in Perak as a whole, which I always maintain has lot to offer to adventure seekers.
Issue 87 also carries a write-up about The Roots – an Eco Resort on the banks of
the Kinta River in Tanjong Rambutan which can be included in the package of our Eco
tourism products.
Similarly the recently concluded 3rd Larut Hill International 4x4 Challenge 2009,
which was held in Taiping in November, attracted participation from 6 foreign countries, i.e, Denmark, Germany, Thailand, Australia & Japan.
Please check out the photos @ http://www.taipingtalk.com/pho...hp?cat=517.
The Adventure Park Larut in Taiping also provides lots of fun for adventure seekers; please check out the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Taiping-Malaysia/ATVAdventure-Park-Larut/108597791400.
Thus, lets work together to promote Eco Tourism which Perak has lots to offer!
Yee Seu Kai
December 01, 2009
Kinta Properties is organising a Santa Claus appearance and giving of gifts to children at the show house in Bandar Baru Sri Klebang Ipoh. Friday and Saturday, 25 &
26 December from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily. Light refreshments will be served. For more
information, call 012-5008018/019-5133315.
Universiti Kuala Lumpur Royal College of Medicine Perak is looking for actors.
Requirement: 30-40 people to act as ‘patients’ for medical students’ Phase 2 exams on
5th January 2010; 8 a.m.-1.15 p.m. (2 sessions, refreshments provided) or 8 a.m.-4.45
p.m. (3 sessions, lunch provided), at the Royal College of Medicine Perak. The actors
must be above 17 i.e., students waiting for their SPM or STPM results or older. The actors need to play the role of ‘patients’ who either give a history of their ‘illnesses’ or to
allow the medical students to examine them. Payment: RM100 for 2 sessions, RM150
for 3 sessions. Closing date: before Christmas. Contact: Dr. Wong Seak Khoon, Head
of Medical Programme: 019-5718818 skwong@rcmp.unikl.edu.my.
Gavel Club, SMK Gunong Rapat 1st Annual Hi-Tea. Saturday, January 9, 2010 commencing 3 pm at Ipoh Swimming Club. Admission: RM22 (members) RM25 (nonmembers). For details call Tarvinder Kaur at 019-2816212 or Izaqirah at 012-2810565.
E-mail: tarvinkaur@live.com.
Perak Heritage Hi-Tea & Website Launch on 9th January 2010 (Saturday) 4.30pm
at The Majestic Hotel Ipoh Railway Station, Ipoh. This event is open to members,
RM10 and non members RM15.For enquiries/ reservations, please call Phillip Pu 0125032408 or Law Siak Hong 017-5061875.
Ikenobo Malaysia Harmony Floral Art Centre is organising the 4th Ikebana Ikenobo
Floral Exhibition on 9-10 January 2010, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., at the YMCA hall in Ipoh.
Perak Academy ‘The Perak Lectures’ Programme. Perak – What Next? 15th January
2010 (Friday) Speaker: Mr. Karim Raslan; 29th January 2010 (Friday) Speaker: Dr. Lim
Hock Siew; Happiness – Life & Death, 26th February 2010 (Friday) Speaker: Mr. Koon
Yew Yin; He Never Left the Hills – The Real Search for Jim Thompson, 26th March
2010 (Friday) Speaker: Captain P.J. Rivers. For details please contact Wai Kheng at:
05-5478949 or 016-5518172. Email: contact@perakacademy.com.
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
KAMPONG TALES
CINEMA IN PARADISO?
by Yusuf Martin
P
erak once again rings
to the unique, and some
might say quite mystifying,
sounds of camera tracks
being laid, spotlights being erected, dollies being
pushed, best boys, props
masters, carpenters, costume designers, an earnest
producer wrangling and an
eminent director directing.
Yes, the illustrious and industrious film people are
back in town.
For more than a delicious decade Perak has
been a favoured spot for
enterprising film crews,
be they TV or cinematic.
Malaysia’s lushly green
and mountainous state
draws eagle-eyed location
hunters like bees to nectar,
mainly due to its immense
natural beauty, and because
it still has enough antique
buildings left standing to
represent any number of
bygone ages. Though, at
the present rate of ‘renovation’ and upgrading, one
wonders if Ipoh and its surrounds will have any aged
buildings left the next time
a film company comes to
call.
Back in the early
PERSPECTIVE
by Yusuf Martin
Y
ou shout at that idiot,
who blatantly continues to use his mobile
phone while the cinema
film is coming on. You
tell the couple, in the
row behind, that you really do not want to hear
all about the intimacies
of their family life, but
would much rather listen to the film. Finally,
after you have picked up
the dropped box of popcorn, you are faced with
the extremely loud advert
produced by the Motion
Picture Association of
America, placed poignantly before the main
film. The advert states:“You wouldn’t steal
a car. You wouldn’t steal
a handbag. You wouldn’t
steal a mobile phone. You
wouldn’t steal a DVD.
Downloading
pirated
films is stealing...........”
Downloading
pirated films may be stealing and it may be, of
course, necessary to remind people of that while
about to watch a film.
Unfortunately, books do
not have a similar advert
7
1990s, a Gitane smoking,
baguette munching French
film crew descended upon
Perak, bringing the illustrious, and, I for one, might
also say quite delectable,
Catherine Deneuve with
them. There they made that
masterpiece of French cinema – Indochine (1992). It
is rumoured that a certain
Robert Raymer, Malaysian
writer- par excellence, also
had a cameo role in that
film. Time moves inextricably on and a little later
the English film Director
John Boorman brought
Patricia Arquette to Perak,
to shoot Beyond Rangoon
(1995).
Anna and the King
with Chinese actor Chow
Yun Fat followed in 1999.
Local film maker Amir
Mohammad made his, subsequently banned, The Last
Communist, here, released
unseen in 2006, while another local boy, local to
Ipoh that is – Patrick Teoh,
TV/movie star, writer and
former radio personality, starred in Kinta 1881
(2007), also made around
Perak. In the very same
year Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon man, Ang
Lee, got us all hot and
bothered by filming Lust,
Caution (2007) in and
around Ipoh’s old town.
Maybe the kopi drew him.
Now it is the turn of
local film and TV director Bernard Chauly, Red
Communications
and
Astro TV, who are making
an eight-part series concerning the Second World
War heroine, mid-wife and
resistance fighter Sybil
Kathigasu.
Filming started recently in Papan, utilising
local traditional houses as
well as the actual building
where Sybil had set up her
dispensary and, later, free
clinic. Bernard Chauly,
known for his recent film
Pisau Cukur (Gold Digger,
2009),
and
Goodbye
Boys (2006) has brought
Elaine Daly, former Miss
Malaysia (2004), known
for her numerous film and
TV roles, to play the role of
the brave Sybil Kathigasu.
This is entirely fortuitous,
as Ms Daly is a dim distant
relative of Sybil’s.
The Astro Citra eight
piece series, of one-hour
episodes, which incidentally forms part of the
Suatu Ketika (a Time in
the Past) sequence, has a
working title of Apa Dosa
Ku (What is my Sin). This
new TV series follows
Sybil from the Japanese
occupation of Ipoh, to its
eventual liberation, by
the British. The TV series comes after the enormously successful theatre
production – Sybil, which
was a two-act play directed
by Dato Faridah Merican
(2008) based upon Sybil’s
collective memoirs – No
Dram of Mercy (1954).
In October of 2009 a
Kamal Sabran studio BW small
resounding call went out for
local participants to appear
at auditions in November.
Actors, extras, Eurasians,
Chindians, Malays, Indians
and an assortment of other
races were needed to appear in this new production
of the Sybil story. Many
came but few were chosen. One local enthusiast,
Audrey Poh, Ipoh book
club member, part founder
of Perak Heritage Society,
former committee member
and secretary of the Perak
Society of Performing Arts
answered that call. In the
Red Communications production for Astro Citra,
Audrey girds her loins to
play Sybil’s best friend,
and the godmother to Olga,
Sybil’s older daughter.
Law Siak Hong, esteemed current president
LETHAL LESSONS INDEED
placed inside their front
covers. However, judging
by the increasing number
of unscrupulous, or simply misled, people there
are around, perhaps books
should have an anti-plagiarism warning, read on...
Recently, a local
young author has had to
withdraw a collection of
her short stories from sale,
due to the plagiarising of
at least one story in her
book ‘Lethal Lessons and
other stories’. Adeline Lee
Zhia Ern, has apologised,
through her publisher –
Silverfish Books, claiming;
“I now realize that I
have made a mistake for
not informing my publisher about the inclusion
of the story in my book. I
did not in any way intend
to deceive my readers, as
at that point in time I liked
the story so much that I
thought that I would like to
share it with my readers.”
It is curious, then,
that the story – ‘Define
Happiness’, purportedly
by Ms Ern, has some small
alterations in the text, ‘butterfly’ changed to ‘moth’
etc.; not enough to mask
that it has been plagiarised
from ‘Happiness’ written by Sarah Provencal,
for Chicken Soup for the
Teenage Soul IV, by Jack
Canfield et. al., published
in 2004. However, it is
enough to indicate a sense
of purposefulness, a deceit,
about the whole endeavour.
Plagiarism is theft.
It is theft of ideas, theft
of the written material
created by other people.
Sadly, with the advent of
the new digital media, a
cut and paste culture has
developed in places once
praised for their learning.
This new post-modern,
mix and match, digital culture, is a culture in which
people tend to see other
people’s words, sentences,
paragraphs, and sometimes
even whole stories as fair
game. Students, though
endlessly warned that plagiarism is, in fact, theft,
will cut, sometimes-whole
sentences from the work
of several others, jumble
them together, paste them
into their own work and
appear erudite in their
studies.
Unfortunately, having
gotten away with such behaviour at an earlier age,
this modus operandi often
continues into tertiary education, and beyond.
In academia, plagiarism is treated very seriously, so seriously that
people found plagiarising often find themselves
losing scholarships, or
even tenures.
Sadly,
many young academics in
Malaysian institutions are
of Perak Heritage Society,
creator and curator of the
Papan museum for everything Sybil, has been
working closely with producer Angela Rodrigues,
director Bernard Chauly
and their hard working
film crew, to make everything run as smoothly as
possible during the shooting for the production.
Contrary to what I
have written above, the
Red Communications film
crew have been diligently
subtle in their approach to
film making, perhaps adhering to Star Trek’s Prime
Directive
(Starfleet’s
General Order #1) of noninterference. Despite the
film crew working in the
town, Papan is barely disturbed. It is only the interior ‘shots’ which require
some minute disruption to
daily lives, with puzzled
house residents looking
on, perhaps somewhat bemused by the coming and
goings.
‘Apa Dosa Ku’ (What
is my sin) airs on Astro
Citra channel in March
2010. It is an eight-part series, of one-hour episodes,
under the Suatu Ketika
banner.
Who knows, maybe,
someday, someone might
make a film of Tash Aw’s
The Harmony Silk Factory,
set in and around the Kinta
Valley.
under tremendous pressure to ‘publish’, and to
publish on a regular basis.
The pressure of coming
up with original work, the
easy access of the internet,
and the thought that no
one will know, may lead
a stressed lecturer, or PhD
student, to ‘borrow’ work
from another, or several
others.
In the recent past,
careless Malaysian students from the Wira
Institut in Kuala Lumpur,
were embroiled in a plagiarism scandal, and, more
recently, slipshod lecturers at the Universiti Putra
Malaysia (UPM) were involved in the use of other
people’s material for a
guide book, on writing effective resumes.
Nevertheless, plagiarism in Malaysia is not
just confined to learning
institutions. An editor,
of the previous illustrious, New Straits Times
– Brendan Pereira, had to
step out of his post due to
the plagiarising of work
by an American journalist
– Mitch Albom. Just as in
the Adeline Lee Zhia Ern
case, Pereira and Albom’s
works were considered
side by side, comparisons
made, and no doubt left
that the one work was
taken from the other.
It is a hard lesson to
learn. Nevertheless, stealing other people’s written
work is no less a crime
than stealing their mobile
phone, car or any other
materialistic appendage
you care to name. The
more serious crime, I believe, is the ethical crime
involved with plagiarising; the lack of thought
that taking another person’s creative endeavour,
publishing it as one’s
own, gaining plaudits for
it, might be wrong.
Moral
standards
seem to be slipping everywhere. There is a lack
of respect for other people, their property and
now their creative (written) endeavours. It must
be emphasised that stealing, in any shape, sense,
or form, is wrong and
should be punished – that
includes another’s written work.
TEACHER NEEDED!
For home-schooling for a 6
year old. Interested please
call 012-522 6242 or
012-523 6467
Ipoh Echo interviewed
Adeline in Issue 80.
8
IPOH ECHO
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
LETTER FROM ULU KINTA
T
here is something marvellous about living in
Ipoh. Set in the Kinta valley, surrounded by limestone hills and mining
ponds, nature couldn’t be
closer. There is jungle trekking, white-water rafting,
cave exploring and freshwater fishing.
However, one outdoorpursuit remains relatively
unknown. It is exhilarating, different and inexpensive. It helps, if you have
an affinity with animals
and love exercising in the
open-air. It leaves you fulfilled and refreshed. ‘It’ is
discovering the Ipoh countryside on horseback.
Hacking around Ipoh
is an eye-opener. The horses love this exercise and
you, seated on a horse, see
more, but also cover more
ground. Riders follow old
timber tracks or well-worn
Orang Asli jungle trails.
Unexpected Delights
There is camaraderie built
THE HIDDEN LANDSCAPE
when out riding, whilst
relaxing and chatting as
you trot along the winding riverbanks, see places
normally hidden from
view and explore areas off
the beaten track. You meet
farmers or vegetable growers who are as pleasantly
surprised as you; they, to
see riders on horseback,
and you, to unexpectedly
discover thriving garden
– and animal-husbandry
activities.
Probably, the best
greens come from these
well-tended
vegetable
patches. Fruit trees grow
in well managed orchards.
One orchid farm exported
flowers. Disused mining
pools were teeming with
fish and prawns. Colourful
birds, wild flowers and
ferns are abundant. And,
when both horse and rider
are tired, we would dismount at the sandy banks
of a stream, lie back on a
boulder, whilst we feast
our eyes on the unspoilt
scenery, inhaling fresh unpolluted air.
But, it isn’t all cuddly
and nice. An unmistakable stench and squealing
noises means that a pig
farm is nearby. There are
probably snakes, which
slither out of sight, but the
only one I ever saw, was a
lime-green snake, basking
in the sun. My horse man-
his anger is unleashed.
He knows which
horses are suitable for you
and your temperament. He
should know, farming and
horses are his life. For five
generations, his family
have been renowned farm-
YOUNG
PERAK
aged to avoid it. Hacking is
relaxing and de-stressing,
but it requires being aware,
responsible and safetyconscious.
Effortless but skill essential
The best bit is that it is almost effortless. The horse
does most of the work. You
tell the horse to go at whatever pace you want, where
you want.
It is essential that before going on a hack, you
know how to ride, and feel
confident with a horse. For
a novice, it is best to select
a quiet, well-mannered
pony.
Before I started to
ride, I thought, mistakenly,
that learning to ride would
be expensive. Or, that I
needed to own a horse.
Like most Malaysians, I
was terrified of horses –
they towered over me. My
closest contact with horses
had been a pony ride at the
fun-fair.
Meeting ‘Uncle’ Don
All that changed when I
met Don Johnson, (no,
not of Miami Vice fame),
a New Zealander who has
made Ipoh his home. He
is a familiar sight in and
around Ipoh, in his baggy
shorts, leather sandals, and
baseball cap which shields
his head from the sun. He
plies the highways, towing
his horsebox, transporting
horses to and from the various turf clubs on behalf of
trainers and horse owners.
‘Uncle’ Don, as many
in the horse trade call him,
is the best person to whom
you entrust your child,
or yourself, when learning to ride. Orphanages
and schools organising
horse-riding
attractions
will always call upon his
services. He is gentle,
knowledgeable and kind,
but mistreat the horses or
ignore his instruction, and
S
ers, horse trainers and jockeys, spread over three continents. Racing and breeding is in his blood. I should
know; it came straight from
the horse’s mouth.
MARIAM MOKHTAR
SRI MURUGAN
CENTRE HELPS
STUDENTS
ri Murugan Centre,
which was formed in
1982, has helped thousands of Indian schoolchildren from the national
schools and national-type
Tamil schools in Perak
in their education. It provides free tuition to students to prepare them for
their various examinations. In the recent Ujian
Pencapaian
Sekolah
Rendah (UPSR) examination, the centre assisted
165 pupils from national
schools and 164 in Tamil
schools in their study for
their examination.
The results showed
there were 85 high
achievers, including 26
with 5 As in the national
schools and 21 with 7 As
in Tamil schools. Its centres in Perak are in Ipoh,
Sitiawan, Ayer Tawar,
Gopeng and Tanjung
Rambutan.
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
ADVENTURE
SWIFT WATER RESCUE COURSE
Chan Yuen Li introduces another adventure course in Gopeng
D
aring to perform
rescue tasks in swift
water alone is not sufficient, it requires the addition of techniques which
reduce the risks and help
increase the chances for a
successful rescue.
Aimed at disseminating such techniques,
Nomad Adventures recently held its first ever
Swift Water Rescue
course at its Earth Camp
at
Gopeng.
Beside
21 Malaysians, there
were participants from
Singapore, the Philippines
and the United States.
The course instructors consisted of two top
American instructors from
Rescue 3 International and
Nomad Adventure director
and qualified Rescue 3 instructor, Chan Yuen Li.
Nomad Adventures
is the Malaysia-Singapore
representative for Rescue
3 International – a ground,
rope and water rescue
training company based
in California. Swift Water
Rescue teaches rescuers
the rules and techniques of
how to approach a rescue
in a flood or swift water
environment.
Normally
rescuers perform daring
rescue tasks without realizing what imminent dangers lurk beyond.
It is an acknowledged
understanding that a res-
R
Labrooy Road
of this year at Merdeka
Garden and the installation
of a sump pump.
Houses in the flood
prone area, which were
not affected in the past,
were flooded. Many of the
occupants were caught unprepared when the water
entered their houses.
In most cases, the
floods caused the water
closets in the bathrooms
to overflow with sewage
water. The worst affected
roads were Jalan Sungai,
Jalan Merdeka, Jalan
Muhibbah, Jalan Hassan
and Jalan Habib Abdullah.
Spokesman for the
Residents
Association,
M.Bala, said that when
new drains were constructed and roads paved in the
areas, the levels of the
roads were altered. Low
ground became slightly
higher and high ground became lower.
He said the new
drains were also under designed and could not cope
with the excess water. The
catchment pond was overflowing and the capac-
COMMUNITY NEWS
DOUBLE STANDARDS CLAIM
l-r seated Jaswant, holding a technical drawing of a 22
tyre trailer, Dato’ Lee and Ting (4th from left).
L
orry operators claim
JPJ practices double
standards.
A group of 22-tyrelorry operators have complained that the Ministry
of Transport and JPJ are
practicing double standards.
At a press conference coordinated by
Dato’ Lee Kon Yin,
the BN Service Centre
Chairman, the group led
by spokesman Jaswant
Singh Sadu, stated that
nel. Loh Teck Kwang, a
Quality Consultant from
Singapore who conducts
leadership and management topics, feels the
course content is suitable
for his classes.
Badarulzaman
Ramli, 46, Rakan Muda
Senior Instructor based
at University Technology
Petronas also agrees that
the course is good for
safety awareness and
team building.
Or you could participate like government
servant and adventure activist, Suzaihirma Ruslan
from Sungai Besi who
participated just “because
I love adventure and want
to be prepared”.
JAMES GOUGH
FLOODS HIT MERDEKA GARDEN AND SURROUNDING
AREAS AGAIN
COMMUNITY
esidents in a wide area
covering
Merdeka
Garden, Taman Idris and
Taman Muhibbah along
Sungei Pari were badly
affected by floods following a heavy downpour recently.
This was in spite
of the flood mitigation
project completed middle
Multiple trainings being done on the Kampar River
cuer does no one any good Typhoon Ketsana.
if they become a victim
”The floods were the
themselves.
worst in 40 years. The
This sentiment was waters were swift just like
echoed by Rescue Chief this in the Kampar River
from Pasig City in the but it was muddy and had
Philippines,
Ritchie a lot of floating debris,”
Angeles, 39, who described he said. Their training on
his experience during the lifeguard techniques was
recent floods caused by different from floods and
therefore they need to be
better prepared for the future.
Sharing the same
sentiments with Angeles
were the Rescue Chiefs
from Makati City, Hector
Reyes and Olongopo City,
Jeffrey Lapid.
Yuen Li is glad
that the course was well
attended.”Whitewater rafting on the Kampar River
is becoming more popular
and it should be sustained
with qualified guides of
international
standard.
Hopefully by offering this
course, the Kampar River
can become a centre of
excellence for swift water
and flood training”.
Incidentally
the
course is not just meant for
Search and Rescue person-
9
the JPJ guideline for the
maximum carry weight
for a 22-tyre trailer is 44
tonnes whereas the technical specifications allow for
a maximum weight of 66
tonnes.
However,
Jaswant
claims that certain operators operating similar trailers were given approval for
a maximum carry weight
of 60 tonnes, granted by
the Technical Section
of the Road Transport
Department. These ap-
provals are granted only
for transporting steel coil
cargo but Jaswant claims
that this was being abused
and operators with the
higher approved carry
weight were carrying
general cargo thus taking
away their business.
The group wants an
explanation on why there
are two approved weights
for the same type of trailers.
Another
member
of the group, Tiong Kik
Ling claimed that he had
brought this matter up with
the Minister of Transport,
Ong Tee Keat, twice this
year since March..The
goal of the group is to
obtain approval for 66
tonnes per vehicle as per
technical specifications or
have a standard approved
weight for all vehicles
of similar specification.
Dato’ Lee told the media
that he would be bringing
this issue up with Dato’
Ong Tee Keat.
ity of the sump pump not
adequate to discharge the
water fast.
Bala added that they
had meetings with MBI,
DID, PWD, Indah Water
and Batu Gajah Land
Office and until now there
is no solution. State DID Director
Dato
Abdul
Razak
Dahalan, who was contacted regarding the floods,
explained that the alert to
switch on the pumps was
received late.
He said the current
pumps need to be started
manually upon being alerted by the residents.
As to the floods solution, Dato Abdul Razak
said retention ponds need
to be constructed as proposed. The request for an allocation for the retention
ponds and other remedial
plans had been made to the
federal government last
year but the allocation is
not forthcoming due to being diverted to more urgent
locations.
On a short term measure, work has started to enlarge the sump pump and is
expected to be completed
by end of next month. A
larger automatic pump will
also be installed to replace
the pump currently in use.
A. JEYARAJ
10
IPOH ECHO
WRITING COMPETITION
From left: Judges: Jerry, See Foon & Fathol; Junior
winners: Jessica, Felicity & Nabilah
T
he Ipoh Echo writing
competition closed
with a bang recently
when prize winners
in both the Senior and
Junior categories were
invited to the paper’s of-
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
fice in Jalan Lasam for tea
and to receive their cash
prizes.
The
competition
which ran in six issues
of The Echo over a three
month period, saw a poor
response of only 10 entries
in each of the categories
with a trickle of entries in
the first two months and
a sudden burst in the final
week before the competition was declared closed.
In fact, some came in by
the skin of their teeth on
the very last day.
Promote English
The original intention
behind the competition
was to promote the use of
English as a medium of
communication, a mission
that is aligned with that of
the Ipoh Echo; and to stimulate creativity in thought
and expression. If the winning entries in fiction for
this competition are an indication, then creativity is
well and truly to be found
in abundance in Perak. All
three winners in the Junior
category chose fiction and
their stories are being featured here in this and future issues.
Junior Winners
Leading the way is, coincidentally, our Ipoh Echo’s
very own Miss Echo of
Issue 85, Jessica Lee JiunXiu, a 19 year old student
who has just completed
her A levels and is making
up her mind as to what and
where she will study next.
Her winning entry ‘The
Journey’ is featured here
on the next page. First runner-up Felicity Chong is a
17 year-old from Taiping
whose story ‘The Bus
Driver’ and second runnerup Nabilah Musa’s story
‘The Wonders of Perak’
will be appearing in forthcoming issues. The Ipoh
Echo predicts that these
budding young writers will
do Perak proud as their talents blossom into full flower later in their careers.
Senior Winners
In the Senior category the
first prize went to Sandra
Rajoo who wrote a lively and captivating piece
on ‘Ipoh’s Iconic Polo
Ground’ (this page) while
second prize went to Lam
Yean Ping’s (also from
Taiping) evocative, spinechilling fictional tale ‘The
Nest’ and third prize went
to Yew Sook Moy who as
the shy and relunctant winner, declined the invitation for tea and refused to
be photographed for the
Echo. Her winning piece
‘Will Perak Experience
a Renaissance?’ had an
urgency in its call for action, an incisiveness in
her style that belies her
amateur writer’s status.
The judges, consisting of Fathol Zaman,
Jerry Francis and SeeFoon
Chan-Koppen who between them share more
than 80 years of journalistic experience, had a hard
time picking the winners
as the standard was generally high and the winners
selected won by a narrow margin. Entries were
judged on six criteria:
composition, grammar,
style, expressiveness, captivating and storyline.
SFCK
WINNER: SENIOR WRITING COMPETITION 2009
IPOH’S ICONIC POLO GROUND
From left: Sandra Rajoo, See Foon & Jerry
Aziz Recreation Park after
ucked in a secluded
a former ruler of the state
corner of the suburbs
of Perak of which Ipoh is
of Ipoh, at the corner of
the capital city, this park
Brash Road and Golf Club
is better known to the loRoad, is a vast and majescals as the Polo Ground.
tic-looking park cum playApparently, in times past,
ground which caters to the
the playing field was
approximately 600,000
where royalty and the upresidents of this oldper echelons of society
fashioned city. Officially
indulged in their favourite
known as the Sultan Abdul
T
pastime, polo, a sport that
was a source of entertainment and recreation to the
upper classes then.
Besides the large field
that sits squarely in the
centre of the park, the Polo
Ground is also famous
for its fitness trail or par
course, with roughly 23
exercise stations of workouts with varying levels of
difficulty, placed at strategic points round the park.
One is given a choice of
exercise, be it step-ups,
push-ups, stretches or
body-bends, among others,
which come with easy-toread instructions specified
on big boards.
Big, colourful slides,
swings and see-saws make
up the children’s playground which take up the
front section of the park,
clearly visible from Brash
Road. This corner is always
teeming with children especially in the evenings
and school holidays.
And if foot reflexology is your thing, kick off
your shoes and get some
foot therapy on a reflexology path built at the front
end of the park. Stones and
pebbles of varying shapes
set closely together massage and apply pressure on
your feet to stimulate them
in order to benefit different
organs in the body. Walking
on this path in your bare
feet is certainly no walk in
the park!
Towards the far end of
the grounds is a small lake,
fringed by short flower
shrubs and rocks, enticing
all with its calm and tranquil waters. After a round
of exercise in the morning
or evening, it is pleasant to
just sit around this pleasant,
garden-like lake and enjoy
the serene and peaceful atmosphere.
The Polo Ground
comes to life very early
in the morning with loads
of people coming in for
their morning workout on
the vast grounds. Most are
regulars. Though comprising mainly middle-aged
and senior citizens, these
people show energy and
vigour in their daily routine. Some will be jogging
or brisk-walking along a
jogging track that circles
the entire field. Elsewhere,
little pockets of people are
seen clustering in their fa-
vourite spots in the park to
perform exercises of their
liking, be it Tai Chi or
line-dancing. The sound of
music is ever present in the
air and body movements
that synchronise with
rhythmical melodies show
the flexibility and energy
of these enthusiastic and
committed aficionados.
Even the Perak Sultan,
Sultan Azlan Shah, is a
frequent visitor here, and
the sight of outriders and
bodyguards signals his
royal presence. His Royal
Highness has no qualms
about joining Ipohites on
their daily, morning jaunt.
Likewise, his subjects are
equally at home walking
along the same track with
His Majesty.
When the sun rises
higher in the sky late
morning, and heat permeates the surroundings, the
Polo Ground slowly becomes deserted. By midmorning it is almost empty
and quiet. But this is just
a momentary lull in the
day in anticipation of the
evening crowd.
As evening draws
near, hordes of people return to the park. The difference is that, this time,
besides joggers and walkers, young adults and children make up the throng.
There to take advantage
of the park facilities after work and school, they
come just as frequently as
the morning visitors.
The playground gives
the children an avenue to
release pent-up energy,
and a chance to exercise
their lungs! Their infectious screams and laughter
permeate the air and punctuate the sky like balloons
bursting on a sunny day,
as they play on the swings
and slides. Older children
have no qualms about rushing all over the place, tugging at one another or even
quarrelling amongst themselves. They are watched
apprehensively by parents
and grandparents who sit
patiently on the benches in
the shade of the many trees
there, keeping an eagle eye
on their young charges.
The field is usually
monopolised by young
male adults furiously engaged in a vigorous game
of football. So engrossed
are these energetic young
men in their game that
they are quite oblivious to
the other goings-on in the
park! And during windy
days, it is not unusual to
see a spot of kite-flying,
with vivid, multi-coloured
kites dotting the clear skies
and families preoccupied
with this skill-demanding
sport.
As the sky darkens
to signal the end of daylight and the tired joggers,
sportsmen and children reluctantly prepare to leave
the park, the sounds of
people slowly filter off and
tranquillity and silence descends upon the area. The
day’s chapter may have
drawn to a close, but the
anticipation of yet another
day at the Polo Ground
surely lingers in tired and
relaxed minds.
Ipoh’s Polo Ground
may be unknown to outsiders but the park has become
a landmark of sorts to Ipoh
residents and is really an
enduring facet of Ipoh’s
landscape now and perhaps
more so in years to come.
SANDRA RAJOO
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
WRITING COMPETITION
T
he distant rumbling
grew louder as the
train approached. Shannon
picked up her bag and
made her way across the
platform to board the train.
She didn’t in the least
mind the 3-hour journeys
every weekend. Shannon
walked into the now familiar coach and found her
seat. Looking at her watch
she realised that it would
be another 15 minutes
before the train departed
from the station. She let
her eyes wander, watching
the many different people
enter the coach: chatty
students, serious business
men, bustling families,
even quite a number of
senior citizens.
“Excuse
me”;
Shannon looked up. She
moved her legs to let a
young girl about her age
take the seat beside her.
“Studying in KL?” asked
the girl in a friendly manner as she settled down.
Shannon as usual just nodded a shy yes in response.
“I’m Bianca, from Ipoh.
Studying in KL too.” The
girl continued as if hoping to start a conversation.
Shannon looked over and
replied “Shannon. I’m an
Ipoh girl too.” “Good to
visit home once in a while
eh?” commented Bianca
chattily. “Or are you one
of those crazy ones that
travel back and forth every
weekend missing out on
the whole KL lifestyle?”
she added with a little
laugh. “Well, if you put
it that way I guess you
could call me crazy.” said
Shannon loosening up.
“I just go back for ballet
classes; that’s it. Beats any
night life in the big city,
for me anyway.” Bianca
looked at her disbelievingly. “Soon you’ll realise it’s for more than that
you’re making these long
journeys for”, she said.
Shannon looked a little
confused but just smiled
and remained silent. The
train jerked to a sudden start. Bianca turned
to Shannon and said, “If
you’ll excuse me, I’ll just
grab forty winks”. “No
problem”, said Shannon as
she watched Bianca shut
her eyes peacefully. The
lolling motion of the train
as it rambled on the creaking tracks seemed to lull
her to sleep.
Glad to have some
time to herself again,
Shannon snuggled in
her chair and gazed aimlessly around the coach
at the masses of people
WINNER: JUNIOR WRITING COMPETITION 2009
THE JOURNEY
who seemed to occupy
almost every seat in this
coach. Her mind wandered to the conversation
between the two people
seated across the aisle on
her right who looked like
working men in their thirties. “Oh, and this time
I’ll make sure you have a
taste of the famous ‘nga
choy gai’”, said one enthusiastically. “I don’t mind
that as long as I get the
curry mee I specially came
down for”, came the reply.
“Don’t worry. I wouldn’t
miss it for the world either. And it’ll still be at the
same cheap price we got
it for the last time.” “At
that price I could eat multiple bowls and not feel
the damage in my wallet.”
“I’m sure we’ll be planning a third trip up here
maybe for the ‘tau fu fa’
before we even get on the
train back.” The conversation continued on and on
about how cheap and how
tasty and how much variety of food there was in
Ipoh. Suddenly Shannon
realiz\sed how much she
missed the delicious food
in Ipoh that she could get
at much cheaper prices
BOOKS
A FRIENDSHIP WITH BIRDS reviewed by Avril Mcleod
W
hat a delightful and
interesting book!
I found myself sharing
several things in common
with the author, Amar
(Dato’ Dr. Amar Singh)
after having read only
the Introduction! In this
he states that his interest
in bird watching “grew
to be a passion” when he
inherited two objects, a
pair of second-hand binoculars and a bird book,
Common Malayan Birds
(M.W.F. Tweedie). My
own interest was motivated twenty-three years
ago after inheriting my
father’s fifty year-old
binoculars and the purchase of the Collins
Pocket Guide to British
Birds (R.S.R. Fitter &
R.A. Richardson 1986).
In the introductory
pages Amar pays homage to an earlier pioneer of bird watching in
Peninsular
Malaysia,
G.C. Madoc, author of An
Introduction to Malayan
Birds (1943), written
while he was imprisoned in Changi during
the Second World War,
and limited to one copy.
In fact, Amar’s book is
dedicated not only to
the birds that have given
him so much pleasure
over the years, but also
to three pioneers of bird
watching in this country: Madoc, as above,
A.G. Glenister and M.W.F.
Tweedie. This chapter also
relates how Amar first
became interested in this
fascinating hobby and includes some interesting
facts about birds in general. Useful features include
a map showing migratory
routes as well as a diagram
describing the topography
(or common parts) of a
bird. Other important topics include: How to Watch
Birds, and Bird Ethics –
How to Respect Birds, the
latter stressing the importance of never approaching too closely, either for
photographs (especially
using a flash) or to inspect
a nest which could cause
the parents to abandon the
nest and young.
The species accounts
are dealt with in five chapters: The 10 most common
birds in your garden & their
relatives, other reasonably
common birds usually seen
11
in your garden, those that
fly past or over your house,
other reasonably common
visitors within the city/
town, and the unusual and
spectacular visitors to the
garden. This format will be
most helpful to those who
are just starting out on this
absorbing hobby. Anyone
who has a garden or access
to a nearby park or indeed
any green area containing some trees and shrubs,
should be able to see and
identify most – if not all –
of the species included in
this book and, given time,
add some of their own.
As the author states,
his book does not profess
to be a field guide. The
book is lavishly illustrated
throughout with photographs, all of which have
been taken by the author.
Amar has written
about his friendship with
birds with a great deal
of sympathy and understanding. He and his wife,
Datin Dr. Lim Swee Im,
who wrote the Foreword,
have studied their habits
over the years, recorded
them nesting, rushed to the
rescue when young have
fallen from nests and have
suffered when a favourite
resident passes away.
This is a very ‘user
friendly’ book with each
of the species discussed
having its own table at the
end of the relevant chap-
there than anywhere else.
“Maybe food is also part
of the reason I come back
to Ipoh”, she thought as
she listened to the friendly
argument about where to
go and what to eat first.
Her train of thought
was interrupted when an
elderly lady bustled her
way down the aisle past
Shannon to the row in
front of her. “Mrs. Wong!”
exclaimed the lady rather
loudly to the passenger
seated there. “I’ve been
watching you from behind
for sometime.” Slightly
startled by the loud exclamation, Mrs. Wong
turned around, “Ah May”,
she called, pleasantly surprised. “What are you doing here?” “I just visited
my daughter in KL”, was
the reply. “This is my
grandson”, said Mrs. Wong
indicating the boy next to
her. “He’s coming to Ipoh
for the weekend.” “Say
hello to Aunty Ah May”
she told him. “So you have
children in KL too”, said
Ah May. “I really don’t
understand why these people like to live in that busy
place”, she added after a
pause. “Ya, I feel so locked
ter giving Family name,
Scientific and Local Name
Status (whether resident
or a migrant), Size, Key
Descriptive
Features
(a brief description of
the species) Call, Food,
Nesting, and other notes,
if applicable.
The final chapter advises on ‘How to create a
bird-friendly garden and
city’ and gives a useful list
of things we can all do to
make our gardens attractive to birds and small
mammals. A few suggestions include planting some
trees and bushes instead
of cementing everything
over, and to put out seeds
or old fruit to encourage
the birds into your garden.
Adding a bird bath is also
recommended as several
species love to bathe.
This book will appeal all birders, whether
they are long-established
or just embarking upon
this fascinating pastime.
Those who simply want to
know a little more about
the birds seen around their
home or the local park will
find it informative and it
may even encourage some
to take up the rewarding
hobby of bird watching.
Avril McLeod is a British
expat who has lived in
Tambun over the last eight
years and in S.E. Asia
for over twenty. She is a
member of the Malaysian
Nature Society and she,
together with her husband,
Bob has travelled worldwide in search of birds.
up there. I’m always relieved to be back in Ipoh”,
agreed Mrs. Wong. “Ipoh
also has that sense of freedom where I can just drive
round and not spend half
the day lost or stuck in
traffic jams”, she added.
“Don’t forget the fresh
and cheap groceries we
get from the Ipoh market,
especially the crunchy
thick ‘tauge’”, said Ah
May. “It must be the water in Ipoh that gives only
us such delicious ‘tauge’”,
said Mrs. Wong. “That’s
what I heard.” “And it’s
also the water that gives
Ipoh girls their smooth
and fair skin.” Chuckled
Ah May. Shannon smiled,
quite proud to be an Ipoh
girl.
As she turned to the
window she noticed the
scenery had switched from
a grey concrete jungle to a
patchwork of green with a
deeper green of the mountains as a backdrop. The
never ending tapestry of
green that seemed to go all
around enthralled Shannon
for the first time. She never
noticed the green hills that
surrounded Perak before.
As she was staring out the
window in wonder a familiar majestic white station
came into view. Shannon
snapped out of her daydream to see her family waiting at the station
to pick her up for dinner
and straight off to ballet
lessons. As she looked at
their smiles she realised
they too, were a big part of
her reasons to come home.
This was a more insightful
train ride than she expected. She got up behind Mrs.
Wong and as she stepped
out of the carriage she conveniently dropped her bottle of ‘KL’ water into the
bin. “Maybe I should drink
more water from ‘home’”.
She thought with a smile.
JESSICA LEE JIUN-XIU
WHEN TIN WAS KING
Getting to know the ‘Who’s Who’ of Ipoh’s Past
D
r Ho Tak Ming, a
prolific
researcher
who has previously written a book titled ‘Doctors
Extraordinaire
and
Generations: The Story of
Batu Gajah’, has produced
another prodigious work
on Ipoh Town.
Titled ‘Ipoh When
Tin Was King’ it has a
message at the beginning
by Dato’ Seri Dr Abdullah
Fadzil Che Wan, the seventeenth holder of the Dato’
Panglima Kinta title.
The first chapter, The
Lords of Kinta delves into
the family that owned most
of the land around Ipoh in
the late 1800’s. This was
the tenth Dato’ Panglima
Kinta, Mohammed Yusuff,
who was the son of the
eighth Dato’ Panglima
Kinta,
Ngah
Abdul
Lassam and the nephew to
the ninth Dato’ Panglima
Kinta, Zainal Abidin.
The narrative then
moves to the Beginnings
of Ipoh and all the illustrious
personalities
that walked its streets
be they the ‘Coolies,
Towkays, Petition Writers
and Lawyers or even
Millionaires and Chetties’.
The book also gives
insights into the people
behind the road names
such as Foo Choo Choon,
Chung Thye Phin and Lee
Kwee Foh. Even Mui Tsai
and Nonyas, Wives and
Concubines,
Fossickers
and Ghari-wallahs are
made mention of in the
book.
There is even a whole
chapter about the founder
of the Ho Yan Hor herbal
drink, Ho Kai Cheong who
sold leong char at 10 cents
a glass in the early fifties
till current times where his
one product has spawned
a public listed company
manufacturing 300 pharmaceutical products that is
Hovid Berhad helmed by
his son David Ho.
In short the publication of this book promises
a wealth of information for
all Ipoh residents, currently
residing here or once upon
a time. The information
is so comprehensive you
might even discover you
are related to one of the
names in the book.
IPOH When Tin
Was King: 720 pages available at: Perak
Academy (05-5478949),
MPH
and
Popular
Bookstores: RM120.
12
IPOH ECHO
FEATURE
I
poh based Yayasan
Sultan Idris Shah for
the Disabled (YSIS) has
grown in the last 27 years
to become an internationally recognised centre of
skills training for disability
management.
It is also the first NGO
in the country to initiate a
skills training programme
that is being sought after
by staff of government-run
Pusat Permulihan Dalam
Komuniti (PDKs) throughout the country, special education teachers, trainees
from nursing colleges and
other caregivers.
The training programme is to support the
government’s efforts in
training up more skilled
and competent workers
in the right techniques of
disability
management.
About 900 personnel have
been trained at the centre
in Bercham. And steps are
being taken to elevate its
present certificate course
to that of Diploma level.
The centre working
in collaboration with the
International Association
for the Scientific Studies
of Intellectual Disabilities
(IASSID) and the Welfare
Services Department held
a series of workshops conducted by highly qualified
lecturers from Canada,
England and Australia on
various aspects of disability management.
Recently, it held a
one-week workshop for
the Japanese Overseas
Volunteers’ Programme,
second-year Physiotherapy
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
YAYASAN SULTAN IDRIS SHAH ATTAINS
INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION
YSIS even provides
free transportation to take
the disabled to and from
their homes to its centre
for their rehabilitation sessions, as many could not afford a vehicle while public
transportation is generally
not disabled friendly.
Its main rehabilitation
centre was completed in
2001 and over the years 11
other independent centres
were set up throughout the
state.
JERRY FRANCIS
HAZARDOUS ROAD
JUNCTION
State-of-the-art YSIS centre at Bercham
students from MAHSA
College, special education teachers from the
Ministry of Education,
and nursing students from
MRA Institute & Nursing
Colleges.
Discussions
were
held for students from
University of Illinois,
Boston University and possibly Harvard University
to come on attachment to
the centre.
For its concerted efforts in rehabilitating the
disabled, YSIS has received
due recognition with a host
of awards amongst which,
the Country Winner for the
Best NGO Award in 2005
organised by Resource
Alliance UK and Citigroup
Foundation; the Excellence
Award and the Best NGO
in Perak in 2006 from
the Registrar of Societies;
and in 2008 the dual endorsement of the Ministry
of Women, Family and
Community Development
and State Welfare Services
Department on its certificates to caregivers on
completion of the skills
training course.
The YSIS was established in 1982 and headed
by Tan Sri V. Jeyaratnam
as its chairman ever since.
Its sole purpose is to improve the socio-economic
well-being and quality of
life for adults and children
with disabilities, regardless
of race, religion and free of
any costs.
From the humble
beginning of a wooden
building, it moved into an
eight-acre site in Bercham
donated by the State
Government 10 years
later and gradually set
up a state-of-the-art main
centre, Pusat Permulihan
Sultan Azlan Shah.
Its free communitybased rehabilitation programmes, which based
on WHO’s modules using
multi-disciplinary and holistic approaches, render
among others physiotherapy, occupational therapy,
speech and language therapy, sound and sensory
stimulation therapy, music
therapy, play therapy, hydrotherapy and hippotherapy (riding for the disabled).
Apart from these,
its Social & Community
Development Unit runs a
comprehensive network
system to liaise with relevant government agencies
in helping to:
To apply for renewal
of motorcycle and car spe-
story set in the infamous
‘city that never sleeps’.
“The little ones practised for six months before
the performance but we
only had a week to pull
off ‘New York New York’
as the older dancers had a
tighter schedule”, said City
Ballet Principal, Rosalina
Ooi.
“The centre for women is a place for women
to bond, learn skills, join
a support group or volunteer in various projects.
We hope our centre will
be a place where women
can take charge of their
lives and move on even
after a negative chapter
in their lives”, said PWW
President, Dr Sharifah
Halimah Jaafar.
Datuk Michelle Yeoh
was invited to support the
event and delivered a short
speech that was projected
to the audience before the
performance started.
“This production communicates a sense of courage, optimism and hope for
a better future for women”,
said Yeoh in her video
message.
A pleasant surprise
was also given by Senior
Exco of Women Affairs
Datuk Hamidah Osman
with an additional donation of RM10,000 courtesy of the Perak government.
Guests were encouraged to support PWW’s
causes and works with
the sale of booklets and
donations outside the
banquet hall. The nongovernmental organization is a run by a group of
dynamic women volunteers that depend solely
on public funds and donations.
Their work include
promoting gender equality, preventing violence
against women, promoting respect and rape
awareness in primary and
secondary schools as well
as promoting women’s
health awareness. The society also offers support,
counselling and shelter for women in crisis.
ARTS & CULTURE
WHEN DREAMS COME TRUE
Dr Sharifah Halilmah (left) and Datin Rosalina Ooi
(with bouquet)
cast of 180 young
The collaboration by
dancers worked hard Perak Women for Women
to fulfil the dreams to (PWW) and City Ballet
build a shelter and serv- was held at the Perak State
ice centre for women in Banquet hall and was a
Ipoh.
glamorous affair with
‘When
Dreams graceful dancers parading
Come True’ is a charity in glitzy, colourful cosballet performance aptly tumes.
named as it helped raise
Little girls as young
almost RM35,000 for a as six years old strutted
service and resource cen- their stuff in a featuring of
tre for women located at ‘The little Mermaid’ fol52, Jalan Sultan Azlan lowed by ‘New York, New
Shah.
York’ that depicted a love
A
cial licenses for disabled;
Inform disabled and
their families of the availability of various government aids and allowances
and help them to apply for
them;
Assist disabled in getting sponsorship for their
assistive devices/prosthetics;
Assist them in job
placements; and
Plan community-link
projects which enable the
disabled to integrate with
members of the public.
ISTA KYRA
SHARMUGAM
A
t the junction of
Maxwell Road and
Jalan Kinta in front of the
Education Department,
is a rectangular structure
about 6 feet tall installed
in the pedestrian walkway along Maxwell Road.
This structure blocks the
view of drivers turning
right from Jalan Kinta
as they are unable to see
the oncoming traffic from
Maxwell Road. The cars
have to go into Maxwell
Road before they can turn
safely. Meanwhile, cars
from Maxwell Road turning right into Jalan Kinta
have their path blocked
by cars from Jalan Kinta
protruding onto their right
of way.
The
rectangular
structure has a concrete
base and a steel top. The
only marking on it is IS
044 Jalan Maxwell and
an unidentified symbol.
Not knowing who the
custodian for this is, the
Residents Association
of Lim Garden have informed MBI of the pending danger posed by this
structure and to remove
or relocate it. No action
has been taken.
The
Education
Department and Customs
Offices are in this area
and there is heavy traffic. Minor accidents are
common. MBI should
not wait for a nasty accident to happen before
relocating this structure.
A. JEYARAJ
DIRECT
ROAD FROM
BUNTONG
TO TAMAN
MAS
T
he old route to Taman
Mas from Buntong
was through Kampong
Kachang Putih. The road
is narrow with speed
breakers and is winding.
However, now the small
stretch of road branching from the roundabout
in Jalan Sungai Pari has
been extended to Taman
Mas. This is a direct road
and the distance to Taman
Mas is reduced. The road
is more or less straight and
traffic moves smoothly not
only to Taman Mas, but
to Falim and Menglembu
as well.
The residents appreciate the initiative taken
by MBI for providing a
pleasant drive.
However, the signboard for the name of the
road is missing. I called
Jabatan Perancang in
MBI and was told that the
name is Laluan Sungai
Pari. I hope signboards
will be installed soon
including a signboard in
front of the roundabout
indicating the destination
of the roads branching
from it.
A. JEYARAJ
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
TRAIPSING THROUGH TOWN WITH PEI-SHYEN
Ombak House
136 Jalan Foo Win Yin,
Canning Garden, Ipoh.
Tel: 05-542 6811
E
mbark on a spa getaway while still remaining in the comfort
and convenience of our
hometown Ipoh. Traipse
to Ombak Spa, just located in Canning Garden by
taking the Jalan Raja Kam
route after the roundabout.
Ombak House offers a
whole range of treatments,
including
Steambath,
Jacuzzi, and its signature
packages. Besides packages they also offer various
single-treatment massages
like Migraine Massage,
Cellulite Massage, Tungku
(garam kasar) Massage
just to name a few. Prices
start from RM15 to RM60.
Packaged treatments start
ing or painting, leave it to
Seng Tek to do a good job
for you. Besides framing,
Seng Tek also does lovely
custom-made oil paintings (which come from all
over the world including
Europe, Hong Kong and
locally), sells glass and
mirrors and ready-made
frames.
from RM70 to RM320,
and includes Post-Natal 3
Days Massage for mums
who have just given birth.
Besides that, they also do
facials and various other
treatments. You’ll just
have to traipse in to this
rustic, Malay-influenced
spa house to get a taste of
it yourself!
Chic
‘N’
Sleek
102 Jalan Dato’ Lau Pak
Khuan, Ipoh Garden, Ipoh.
Tel: 05-5489055
H/P: 016-5504900
[Christie]
C
hic ‘N’ Sleek is a
tailor with a difference. Wonderful fabrics
flow from Christie’s (the
designer and seamstress)
racks, showing rich hues
and intricate designs. The
material is sourced from
Kuala Lumpur, so its influence is very traditional
and local. Yet the designs
are not limited to just traditional wear. You can of
course choose the wonderful fabrics available to create your own lovely apparel. Material sufficient for a
long dress costs approximately RM70, and workmanship will add another
approximate RM250. You
can assure good workmanship because beading can
be done if chosen – not
all tailors do this. Whether
it’s for a dinner function, a
cocktail dress or just whenever you feel fanciful, turn
to Christie for your very
own custom-made outfit
and she will not let you
down.
Seng Tek Frame Trading
107 Jalan Dato’ Lau Pak
Khuan, Ipoh Garden, Ipoh.
Tel/Fax: 05-5463252
E
ach one of us has
memories in our lives
which we cherish, framing our best-loved photo
moments in frames. A
frame can add significant
value and meaning to our
favourite picture; it adds
a touch of detail and sentiment to it, depending on
what kind of frame we decide to frame our photo.
Be it a frame for a photo,
or a frame for an etch-
A
E-mail: resvihi@impiana.com
Website: www.impiana.com
To
Advertise
Call :
Ramesh
Kumar
016 553 1092
By Peter Lee
‘TEARS IN HEAVEN’
IMPIANA CASUARINA HOTEL IPOH GETS
NEW OWNERS
E
I
am sure acupuncture is
not unfamiliar to many of
us, especially the Chinese.
Indeed, acupuncture is believed to have originated
from China, and is a technique which involves inserting and manipulating
fine filiform needles into
specific points on the body
to relieve pain or for therapeutic purposes. Ren Kan
offers acupuncture treatments by a Chinese physician. Other treatments
involve cupping, skeletal
traction, massage, treatment
for frozen shoulder, strained
neck, hip pain, muscle pain,
men’s sicknesses and so on.
A unique factor about Ren
Kan is that besides being
just a treatment centre, it
also sells a range of organic
food. You will find many
health products on sale, so
traipse in for a dose of good
health.
ADVERTORIAL
BUSINESS NEWS
ffective 1st December 2009, the Impiana Casuarina Hotel, Ipoh, will be renamed as the Impiana Hotel Ipoh under the new ownership of Impiana Hotel
Ipoh Sdn Bhd.
This premier 4-star hotel in Ipoh will undergo a 6-month re-positioning exercise which will include the refurbishment of its 200 guestrooms, the Impiana
Grand Ballroom and the upgrading of the current hotel facilities. There is also
a plan for a Wellness Spa, a Gymnasium, a Fun-Pub and an Executive Club
Lounge.
The new Impiana Hotel Ipoh will be featured as a ‘Garden Retreat within the
City’ emphasizing on the lush gardens surrounding the hotel and a feeling of total
wellness when staying in this international-class hotel.
The Impiana Hotel Ipoh is managed by Impiana Hotels & Resorts Malaysia
(IHRM), a subsidiary of KAB Group of Companies. Other hotels managed by
the group are The Impiana Phuket, The Impiana Samui, The Impiana Resort
Cherating, The Impiana KLCC Hotel & Spa and the Impiana Private Villas Kata
Noi.
The Hotel Group also announced the appointment of Gerard Sta Maria, as
the General Manager of the new Impiana Hotel Ipoh.
Ren Kan Traditional
Healing Centre
22, Pesara Ipoh, Ipoh
Garden, Ipoh.
Tel: 012-5663379,
016-5667821 [by appointment only]
2-month-old
baby
girl survived an accident which killed her
parents, 2-year-old brother and maternal grandmother.
She stands to inherit
RM2 Million. The inheritance includes money
in banks, investment in
shares, properties, EPF
and insurance compensation. Her parents
died without a WILL or
TRUST in place. Her
2 uncles and paternal
grandmother now want to
adopt her.
Under these circumstances, the baby’s parents
would be deemed to have
died intestate and all their
assets would be frozen. In
13
order to unlock the frozen estate, the family will
have to apply for a Letter
of Administration (L.A.)
to administer the estate.
When the family applies for L.A., they have
to choose 2 administrators and find 2 Sureties/
Guarantors as it involves
a minor. Since 3 of her
family members want
to adopt her, the Court
would ultimately have to
step in to decide on the
appointment of a legal
guardian. The decision of
the Court may go against
the wishes of some family members, but the
Court will always decide
based on the best interest
of the child. The family
members may fight to be
appointed as the administrator or guardian for
self-interest. The time
frame to apply for the
L.A. can be lengthy and
costly.
If the baby’s parents
are non-Muslim, their
estate would be distributed according to the
Malaysian Distribution
Act, 1958 (Amended in
1997) i.e., ⅓ to the deceased’s parents and ⅔ to
the baby girl. The question is, “Do you want
such distribution to take
place?” If the answer is
no, then you must write
a WILL immediately so
that you can choose your
Executors, Guardian and
beneficiaries. In addition, you can also set up
a TRUST especially for
children who are minors.
At least by doing so,
we will not be left with
only ‘Tears in Heaven’
and watching from
the above, our loved
ones going through
the pain and suffering.
Peter Lee is an Associate
Estate Planning Practitioner
(Wills
&
Trust) with Rockwills
International
Group.
He is also an Islamic
Estate Planner providing
Wills & Trust services for
Muslims. He is based in
Ipoh and can be reached
at: 012-5078825/ 052554853 or excelsec@
streamyx.com.
FRESHLY HOME BAKED CAKES
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Pick your choice from Butter Cake, Cup Cakes, Marble Cake, Carrot Cake,
Choc Moist Cake and many more......
Each and every cake is passionately
baked and packed full with the best
quality ingredients.
For orders please call :- Letchumi (012-5991233) or visit: lmiscakes.blogspot.com
14
IPOH ECHO
IPOH IN BRIEF
More pics at ipohecho.com.my
IPOH INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP
NIGHT 09
GOPENG MUSEUM RECEIVES
RECOGNITION
M
T
he Gopeng Museum,
which opened its
doors to the public in April
2008, has been officially
recognised as a museum.
It has received its certificate from the Registrar of
Societies.
Mr Bernard Yaw, the
Chairman of the Gopeng
Museum
Management
Society, when contacted
stated that the museum
had to undergo scrutiny by
the State Museum office
before the certificate could
be issued.
According to Bernard
they
initially
named
it ‘Gopeng History Centre’,
but after taking into consideration the 30 years
spent collecting artefacts
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
about the old mining town
dating back over a period
of 150 years, they felt it is
qualified to be known as a
museum.
“Obviously I am very
glad that our society has
received official recognition as a museum. Our
Secretary Mr S.K. Phang
has devoted a lot of time
collecting and preserving
the historical items about
Gopeng for future generations”, said Bernard.
The Gopeng Museum
is located at 28 Eu Kong
Street, Gopeng. Since it
started in April 2008 an estimated 20,000 visitors has
walked through its doors.
JAG
eru Valley Resort,
with the support of
Ipoh International School
and
Ipoh
Properties
(MM2H) Sdn Bhd organised the first Ipoh
International Friendship
Night & Exhibition Fair
in Meru Valley Resort on
22nd November 2009.
The aim and purpose
of this annual event is to
bring together foreigners
working or staying in or
around Ipoh to meet and
make new friends, as well
as to familiarize themselves with the various
1FATIMAH FAMILY DAY
community associations
and programmes available
in Ipoh.
The day started off
with an exhibition and
craft fair where about
20
non-governmental
organizations such as
the Perak MalaysianJapanese
Friendship
Society, Perak Palliative
Care, Perak Women for
Women, Yayasan Sultan
Idris, NASAM, Persatuan
Daybreak,
Soroptimist
International and many
more, promoted their
services, programmes and
handicrafts. Meru Valley
was buzzing with excitement as people visited the
booths.
There was also a song
performance by Korean
students from the Ipoh
T
here were screams and
laughter as adults and
children participated in
various games and competitions organised under
a 1Fatimah Family Day
of the Fatimah Hospital in
Ipoh recently.
It was an enjoyable
Sunday for the staff, heads
of department and partners
of the hospital and their
family members. Some
of the attractions included
colouring and drawing
contests for children, horse
and pony rides, tattoo and
face painting, giant slide
and telematch. A clown
International School, as
they sang in their national
language and played various Korean musical instruments.
When night fell, a
scrumptious international
buffet dinner was served in
the Dome Restaurant. As the
theme was ‘International’,
many people came dressed
in their traditional costumes. It was a lively night
with lots of dance performances, interactive games
and lucky draws. Everyone
was also given a goodie
bag each, filled with items
sponsored by many local
organizations and companies.
The night ended with
much happiness as everyone was seen mingling
with newfound friends.
was also present to cheer
up the children with balloon sculpting.
Entertainment included dance performances
such as the Poco-poco and
Para-para Sakura. There
were also lucky draws
and presentation of various awards. As for food
and beverage, a hawker
fare style was set up. There
were popiah, tau foo fah,
sate, mee rebus, grilled
lamb, apom, chicken burgers, Ipoh White Coffee,
iced cendol, and icecream.
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
IPOH IN BRIEF
W
More pics at ipohecho.com.my
PRANIC HEALING
hether you call it
‘Chi’ (Chinese) or
‘Prana’ (Sanskrit), it is
the ‘Breath of Life’ or
in Sanskrit, ‘life-force’.
Pranic healing is a ‘no-
touch, no-drugs’ therapy
utilising ‘prana’ to heal
physical and emotional
ailments. No part of the
recipient’s body is touched
and no medicines are prescribed.
A recent talk on pranic healing given by Mdm
Indra Ramamoorthy from
the Centre for Prana Yoga
& Self Transformation,
Kuala Lumpur, was held
at KAMI (Kinta Action
on Mental Health Issue
Society Perak), 4 & 4A
Lebuh
Perajurit
3/2,
Taman Ipoh Boulevard
Timur, 31400 Ipoh. This
was followed by 2 days of
free pranic healing and a
2-day workshop for a basic
pranic healing course. The
CASE ADJOURNED
T
he 13 PAS supporters charged for illegal assembly outside the
Ubadiah Mosque, Kuala
Kangsar on February 6,
2009, will know their fate
participants were shown
how to feel the energy in
the room. With a series
of swirling, flipping and
stroking hand movements,
healing was performed on
a couple of participants.
Pranic healing can be
used as a complement to
traditional medicine. The
practitioner works on the
energy body of the person
which is cleansed and energised. Because the prana
is taken from the earth, sun
and air, the practitioner’s
energy is not depleted.
The Centre hopes
to open a branch in Ipoh
sometime in December. To
find out more, email: info@
pranichealingmalaysia.org
or visit: pranichealingmalaysia.org.
VWSL
when their case is mentioned again in January
2010. The case was deliberated at the Kuala
Kangsar Sessions Court
from December 7 to 9. The
accused are being defended
by a team of five lawyers
(see pic) led by Anthony
Augustine from Ipoh.
During cross examination
of the prosecution witnesses, it was established that
orders were given by the
most senior police officer
on the ground to the riot
police to fire tear gas indiscriminately at the crowd
BEST CAREGIVER
2009
Tai Mun Ching showing
letter of appreciation
A
father’s love knows no
bounds. This is evident
outside the mosque. One
of the accused, Hj Mohd
Nazeer Hameed 53, a
former policeman, recalled
events leading to his arrest,
“I got caught in the melee
after performing Friday
prayers in the mosque. All
I did was go to the aid of
someone who was down
on the ground but was
overcome by tear gas”.
Nazeer was apprehended
four days later on February
10 at his house in Pantai
Remis. To date nine prosecution witnesses had taken
to the stand. Sessions court
judge, Puan Norsalha
Dato’ Hamzah, adjourned
the proceedings to January
20, 2010. FZB
from the tender and loving
care showered by Tai Mun
Ching, 61, on his wheelchair-bound son, Tai Thean
Wei, 21, who is paralysed
from the neck downwards,
caused by a nasty car accident five years ago. The
dutiful father has been by
his son’s side since the day
of the accident. Tai Wei’s
case is not the only one;
in fact there are numerous
other cases which are under
the care of Yayasan Sultan
Idris Shah (YSIS). In conjunction with International
Day of Disabled Persons on
December 3, YSIS organised an award-presentation
ceremony, at its premises in
15
Bercham, to honour these
dedicated caregivers. For
his selflessness in attending to his invalid son, Tai
Mun Ching was adjudged
the best caregiver for 2009.
Other winners included two
mothers, a husband and
a maid. The awards were
presented by Dato’ Chew
Choong Seong and Dato’
Terry Lee, two members
of the Board of Trustees.
In attendance were family
members of the caregivers,
their charges and staff of
the foundation. The crowd
was entertained to dances,
songs and a magic show
courtesy of YSIS.
FZB FREE HEALTH SCREENING FROM
PCSH
P
erak
Community
Specialist
Hospital
(PCSH) organised a Health
Awareness Campaign recently at Tesco, Pengkalan
whose purpose is to create health awareness for
the public. PCSH provided Free Screening for
Blood Pressure Check,
Blood
Glucose
Test,
Body Mass Index, Diet
Counselling, Consultation
and Counselling by the
Medical Officer which received a good response
from the public.
16
IPOH ECHO
IPOH IN BRIEF
More pics at ipohecho.com.my
PRANA HEALING WITH WAND
S
Yet another healing modality……this time
with wand
ome 50 people attended
the Prana Healing with
Wand workshop held at the
Lotus Restaurant which
was conducted by P. Siva,
a Pranic healer. Siva, an
engineer by profession
received his training in
Pranic healing in India.
Prana healing is done
using the Prana Healing
Wand which has two sides,
one for sensing the aura
and the other to perform
healing. Siva demonstrated
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
how the Wand can be used
on oneself and on others.
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE DEMO
He demonstrated distant
healing.
There was a healing
session with participants
who had ailments. Those
with pain said there was reduction of pain and have to
continue treatment on their
own. Each participant was
given a wand.
Anyone
interested
in attending the next free
workshop can contact the
local co-ordinators: K.
Sagadevan 012-4684757 or
S. Jeybalan 013-5202275.
AJ
A
nderson
School’s
St John Ambulance
Malaysia (SJAM) division
held an emergency medical
COSMOPOLITAN’S INDIAN CULTURAL NITE 09
S
ome 300 students, lecturers, staff and friends
attended the Cosmopolitan
Ipoh
Indian
Cultural
Nite 09 with the theme
“Enlighten Our Culture”
-
TOURISM
held in Town Hall. In
his welcoming speech S.
Panneerselvam, President
of Indian Cultural Society
(pic, sixth from left) said
that the purpose of the
he
presentation
ceremony of Perak
Tourism Appreciation
Awards 2009 in Ipoh recently gives an indication of how aggressive
tourism development
in the state is to be pursued.
In fact, these two
months have seen quite
a number of activities
concerning tourism promotion in the state. This
includes the formation
of the state tourism
council and a series of
meetings to draw up a
tourism strategic action
plan.
The presentation
itself was an elaborate
affair filled with songs
and traditional dances.
The Sultan of Perak
Sultan Azlan Shah and
Raja Permaisuri Tengku
Bainun graced the night
held at a leading hotel.
GRAND WEDDING
I
t was a glittering affair at the wedding
ceremony for Pratap and
Saro Tiagi’s daughter
Anoushka, who married
James Stevenson and was
celebrated in grand style
at the Syuen Hotel re-
with the theme of necessity to learn Tamil. Pic
also shows from left: 2nd
– Pn. Nor Adela Dinyati,
Principal Cosmopolitan
College, 3rd – Dr. Janet
Ng, Regional Manager,
Cosmopolitan
College,
cently. Guests came from
the UK as did friends from
Taiping, Kuala Kangsar,
all over Malaysia and of
course Ipoh where the parents have recently moved
into the Meru Golf Resort’s
Riverside Residences. Guests were kept enthralled by the Hindu ceremony which was projected on huge screens in the
grand ballroom and afterwards treated to a sumptuous Indian feast.
5th – Pn Mariamma a/p
Ponniah,
representative
from SJK (T) Buluh Akar.
A NEW AWAKENING FOR TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN PERAK
3rd from left, Chan Yuen Li (Nomad), Ah-ha (Semai
Village) and Chuah Chow Aun (Charcoal) holding
their awards with the Semai community present
T
function was to strengthen
the relationship of students
of different faiths and races. He added that a sum of
RM1,200 is being donated
to Sekolah Rendah Jenis
(T) Buluh Akar to upgrade
their library.
The Guest of Honour
was Dato’ S. Veerasingam,
Advisor for Indian Affairs,
Perak State Government
(pic, fourth from left) and
in his speech requested the
students to make use of the
training facilities provided
by the government.
The guests were entertained with cultural
dances, songs and a drama
service demonstration recently as part of the school
co-curriculum and One
Anderson Celebration.
Eight
experienced
SJAM first aiders showed
some 100 students and
teachers on how to react in
accident cases.
According to the division’s chairman Jegathiswaran, the division had
been organising such activities every year to help students and teachers to learn
more about first aid.
He said the St John
Ambulance, Central Area,
would be able to run 24hour Emergency Medical
Assistance
Services
(EMAS) in future.
Also present were
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri
Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir,
former Menteris Besar Tan
Sri Ramli Ngah Talib and
Datuk Di-Raja Tajol Rosli
Ghazali, state dignitaries
and representatives from
Tourism Malaysia and
various tourist associations
and relevant agencies.
Six organisations and
corporations, which have
contributed towards the
development of tourism in
Perak, received the association’s Premier Awards,
while nine individuals and
entrepreneurs, who have
taken the initiative and
made their tourism products attractive to local and
foreign tourists, received
the President’s Awards.
Recipients of the
Premier
Awards
are
Musium Arkeologi Lenggong, Pulau Banding
Foundation,
Lembaga
Lebuhraya Malaysian and
PLUS R&R Sungai Perak,
Perak Academy, Ipoh
Specialist Hospital, and
Meru Valley Golf Resort;
while the recipients of the
President’s Awards were
Nomad Adventure Camp
(Gopeng),
Publication:
Limestone
Hills
and
Caves of the Kinta Valley,
Orang Asli Village of
Ulu Geroh, Sentosa Villa
(Taiping), Teratak Afrina
(Batu Kurau), Pangkor
Village Beach Resort,
Anjungan Beach Resort &
SPA (Pangkor), Khay Hor
Holding Sdn Bhd Charcoal
Factory
(Matang), and
Citrus Restaurant (Ipoh).
The awards presentation night also saw Datuk
Mohd Zainal Abidin bin
Haji Abdul Kadir retiring as president of Perak
Tourist Association after
22 years.
In his message to
the awards presentation,
Datuk Seri Zambry said
tourism development was
a collaborative effort. The
success or failure depended on the efforts made by
both the government and
the private sectors.
“It has been proven
that these joint efforts continue to bear fruit as we
see tourism maintaining
its position as the second
largest income generator
for the country”, he added.
“This 2009 Perak
Tourism
Appreciation
Awards, conceptualised
and implemented by the
Perak Tourist Association,
continues to recognise corporations and individuals
who are passionate tourism players. The recipients
of this award deserve the
accolades as recognition
of their contribution and
efforts to the tourism industry.”
According to Datuk
Zambry, the enthusiastic efforts taken by corporations
and individuals should be
emulated by all tourism
bodies be it private or gov-
AJ
ernmental. Therefore, the
acknowledgement provided by the awards serve
as encouragement and
inspiration for one and all
to continue in achieving
excellence in the industry.
JAG
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
17
CALLING DIRT VIGILANTES!
COMMUNITY NEWS
Greentown – a stone’s throw from City Council’s Complex – yet dirty
Heaps of rubbish are also
seen along a road in a vacant plot of land.
They have been there
for months. Is it not the
responsibility of the Ipoh
City Council to remove
the rubbish? City council’s
employees seem to be interested only to sweep the
Persiaran Greentown 9
t is a shame that the showcase. But regrettably
Greentown
Business it appears to be neglected.
and Commercial Centre,
One needs to just walk
a stone’s throw from the around to take note of the
Ipoh City Council, is full situation. There is litter
of litter.
everywhere, including botBeing a new busy tles and food containers,
commercial area in the along the pavements and
city, it should have been a under shrubs and plants.
roads, with the rest of the
litter being ‘swept under
the carpet’. If there was
a carpet in sight, and the
shrubs and plants, which
are meant to beautify the
area, have become hidden
places for the litter stashes.
Our photographs are
I
Vacant land at Persiaran Greentown 11
EDUCATION
OLYMPIA – WHERE OPPORTUNITIES
ARE BOUNDLESS…
Even a haunted house!
S
tudents from Olympia
College’s Cyber Club
and the Executive Business
Club built a haunted house
to raise funds and to create
some fun and excitement
at the college recently. In
line with the college’s encouragement of diversity
in all activities, students
are encouraged to be creative and in this project,
visitors who wanted to experience eerie apparitions
were taken on a tour of the
‘haunted house’.
Olympia College Ipoh
is a name to be reckoned
with, having produced
many qualified and competent professionals since
1995. Founded to meet
the growing need for private higher education in
the nation and a member
of the renowned Raffles
Education Group, the college is recognised as an institution for higher learning
not only by the Ministry of
Education of Malaysia but
also internationally, hav-
ing strong partnerships
with leading universities
in the United Kingdom,
United States of America,
Australia, Switzerland and
Canada.
Olympia has a long
tradition of welcoming
students from all over the
world, and is home to a
diverse community. Their
reputation for embracing
diversity has created a
strong international profile
and a dynamic environment-culturally, socially
and academically. It is
clear from speaking with
Olympia students that
they believe studying in
an international environment is both enjoyable and
contributes to their educational fulfilment.
At Olympia, all programmes are developed
systematically to ensure
students are equipped
with all the knowledge
and skills needed to forge
a successful career in tertiary education. Olympia
IPOHecho
Yo u r
Community
Newspaper
We are the Voice OF, FOR and BY the community.
Encouraging the use of English for communication.
W
e need your participation to be successful.
Write in, call us, send us your public service announcements and give us feedback. As our
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students can either study
on a full- or part-time basis, depending on individual needs.
The six schools in
Olympia Ipoh are: School
of
Business
Studies,
School of Hospitality
Management, School of
Information Technology,
School of Accounting,
School
of
English
Language and School of
Engineering.
Students can enrol
at certificate, diploma,
degree or post-graduate
level. Olympia emphasizes
Entrance of private carpark, Persiaran Greentown 9
clear evidence of how
How could we combat
dirty the place is. City
dengue and other diseases
Council should stop givwhen the cleanliness right
ing excuses and work toin the city centre is not even
wards a cleaner city. Use
maintained? The city counthe anti-litter regulations
cillor in charge of the area
against irresponsible resneeds to take a walk and
taurant operators and resisee for himself.
dents, if necessary.
JERRY FRANCIS
on quality and excellence
in their system of learning and training, as a way
to adapt to the economic,
social and technological changes taking place
around the world. The
college produces approximately 1,000 graduates
each year, graduates who
are innovative, have applicable skills and possess
leadership qualities that
are sought after in the employment market.
The affordable tuition fees and easy payment
schemes attract many stu-
dents from different income
groups. Financial assistance such as PTPTN and
scholarships are available
for deserving students.
A student’s experience
at Olympia is not wholly
academic. While practical
knowledge is important,
the college also places emphasis on soft skills – leadership, teamwork, management skills, Corporate
Social Responsibility and
public speaking. This is
achieved through extracurricular activities organized by the college.
18
IPOH ECHO
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
IS BANGUNAN PERSEKUTUAN IPOH A
WHITE ELEPHANT?
COMMUNITY NEWS
TOUCHED BY ‘ANGELS’
Mother-of-seven’s cherished wish granted
Visit by ‘angels’ to the family’s dilapilated house
I
t was like an episode of
the TV series ‘Touched
by An Angel’, when
Madam A. Vene suddenly
found her cherished wish
come true. For years, 46year-old Vene had lived
in a dilapidated wooden
house without electricity and water supplies
and struggled to keep her
seven children together
with a RM400 monthly allowance from the Welfare
Services Department. Her
lorry driver husband had
walked out of the house
about five years ago.
She works as a
cleaner for the houses in
the area, while eldest son
Mathiakasan, 15, sells balloons after school to earn
extra money. Her wish was
for better living conditions
for the family and aid for
her children‘s education.
Vene’s other children are
Anantha Arasi, 13, Tamil
Arasi, 12, Pogarajan 11,
Shamini, 10, Kugilan, 7,
and Uvarajan, 5.
Then out of the blue,
just before the recent
Deepavali, a group of
visitors from the Pantai
Hospital Ipoh (PHI) led by
the hospital’s chief executive officer Dr. Dilshaad
Ali, turned up at the family’s RM100-a-month-rent
house in Kampung Pundut
in Manjung. They had to
leave their cars at the main
road and walk for three
minutes to the house located in a secondary jungle not accessible by any
vehicle.
The visitors had come
merely to distribute sundry
items and clothes to the
family, but the sight of the
house and the living conditions were enough to emotionally move them to de-
cide there and then to help
relocate the family.
The group, which
included the hospital’s
resident consultants and
staff members, were on
its ‘Caring from the Heart
Project’ to the poor and
underprivileged people in
Lumut.
That visit had changed
everything. Indeed, the
family was touched by
‘angels’. Since then PHI
has moved the family to a
better house at Lot 5144
Kg Pundut, Jalan Lumut,
and purchased household
items for them. PHI is also
paying the monthly house
rental and groceries. The
next move will be to help
in the children’s education.
PHI, which is part of
the Pantai Group, advocates being socially responsible as a healthcare
provider. Its commitment
is to give back and reach
out to the community.
In conjunction with
its ‘Caring from the Heart
Project’, PHI also visited
and provided sundry items
and clothes to other families in Jelapang, Tambun,
Manjung, Lumut and
Hutan Melintang.
JERRY FRANCIS
B
angunan persekutuan
Ipoh which is located
along Jalan Dato’ Seri
Ahmad Said houses federal government departments. The complex comprises three blocks and
there are 22 departments
and Jabatan Penerangan
Daerah Kinta occupies one
block. Other departments
include Jabatan Tenaga
Kerja, Jabatan Kemajuan
Mesyarakat,
Tribunal
Tuntutan Pengguna and
Pejabat Keselamatan Kerajaan Malaysia.
A few years ago,
Jabatan
Pendaftaran
Negara and Registrar
of Societies moved out
to their own building in
Meru. After this move,
there is a perception that
the complex is empty and
another white elephant.
Online discussion groups
highlight this. However,
Norazmi bin Mohamad,
Building Manager of the
complex informed that on
the contrary, there is shortage of office space and
800 permanent staff and
more than 400 temporary
staff are working in the
complex. The offices are
cramped.
The main problem is
acute shortage of parking
space; there are 141 basement parking bays for staff
and 68 bays for the public
and even staff are parking
their cars elsewhere.
Norazmi said people,
especially those coming
from outside of Ipoh, face
severe parking problems
and are at a loss to find a
parking lot. The whole
locality has a parking
problem. As guidance for
people from out of town,
sign boards can be placed
indicating possible parking places in the area. One
solution is to a build multistorey car park.
The reality is Bangunan
Persekutuan Ipoh is not a
white elephant as many thi
AJ
nk.
JELAPANG LINK ROAD TO OPEN BEFORE CNY
R
esidents of Jelapang,
who enquired with the
Ipoh Echo when the slip
road originating from the
overhead intersection of
the PLUS highway before
the current Jelapang exit,
will be glad to know it will
be opened before Chinese
New Year or earlier.
The road had been
ready since September except for a short stretch. This
road will lead Jelapang residents and those living in
Meru Golf Resort straight
to an intersection just after Carsem, bypassing the
previous Jelapang exit and
three traffic junctions.
A spokesman from
PLUS when contacted, revealed that the signage for
the road had just been approved by the Malaysian
Highway Authority. However the road is suitable for
light traffic only. As such
the MHA has recommended that an overhead gantry
be erected at the entrance
to prevent access by heavy
vehicles.
JG
IPOH ECHO 22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
Your Com m uni t y N e ws p a p e r
COMMUNITY NEWS
ARTS & CULTURE
130 YEARS GUAN YIN TEMPLE
W
The Guan Yin Temple, beside the Brewster Road
bridge, celebrated the Guan Yin Festival recently
Free vegetarian food was offered to everyone
Buddhists believe this is the day the Goddess of Mercy
ascends to heaven
illiam Wordsworth
wrote it in his
poem, “Daffodills”, Too
Sooi Keng can show you
how to achieve it.
“Daffodils”
illustrated the peaceful solitude and pleasure begotten from the sight of the
golden flowers. While
Wordsworth penned it
beautifully for our imagination, Too has the secret
to make it a reality in our
living rooms.
A pioneer teacher of
Ikenobo in Malaysia and
with 13 years experience,
Too can teach you how
to create the serenity and
tranquility of the poem
mentioned; with any
flower you wish.
Ikenobo is the earliest origin of the Japanese
art that dates back almost
500 years. Inspired by
the scenic views of nature, the principles of this
art find its muses in the
mountains, flowers and
trees of Japan.
Manipulating items
such as bamboo, wooden
materials and pine, Too
creates masterpieces of
19
THE ART OF FLOWERS
flower arrangements to
soothe the eye and create
ambience in a room.
“The sight of the
flower arrangements is
meant to invoke a sense of
beauty and harmony with
nature”, said Too who has
been teaching the art in
Ipoh for the past six years.
“It all started when
my father-in-law kept
buying flowers for the
house and I had no idea
how to arrange them. As
I looked into the proper
ways of flower arrangement, I met my Taiwanese
teacher who introduced
me to Ikenobo and I have
stuck to it since.”
Too keeps one foot
constantly in the Ikenobo
world with trips to Japan
and Taiwan, where the art
is more prominently recognized.
“The knowledge has
been passed down and
preserved until today and
is still continually growing, which is why I need
to keep updated. Ikenobo
is a never-ending learning
process with many levels
to achieve.”
Currently Too operates the Ikenobo Malaysia
Harmony Floral Art Centre
which is the only centre in
Malaysia to be approved
and formally accorded
rights by the Ikenobo
headquarters in Japan. She
has about 40 students and
conducts her classes at the
YMCA, Ipoh.
“Try it out and you
just might fall in love with
it,” said Lee Shu Huei, 23,
who is also Too’s daughter
and youngest student.
“I started taking a
keen interest and learning
when I was 11”, said Lee
who has advanced so much
in the field that she is already qualified to teach.
“Western flower arrangements tend to overwhelm the vase or even
cover it completely, focusing more on the beauty of
the flowers itself. Ikenobo
incorporates even the vessel as an important feature.
The angles and stems,
shapes and features of the
pot are just as important
as the flower itself”, said
Lee.
According to Lee,
there are five main themes
under the art; Moribana,
Shoka,
Nageribana,
Jiyubana and Rikka. There
are many more subtypes
under these five themes
which also represent the
complexity levels of arrangements.
“The ultimate aim is
to achieve ‘Rikka’ which
is like a mini Japanese
scene”, said Lee.
With three prior exhibitions, Too has maintained a fairly low profile
about her Ikenobo works.
“My students and
teachers always prod me
towards bigger publicity,
but I have always shied
away from the limelight.
Finally I feel that it is time
for me to promote the art
with a bigger drive especially to Malaysians,”
said Too.
“That’s why we are
holding the exhibition to
showcase the works of
my students and hopefully attract more people
to be passionate about
this art.”
Ikenobo Malaysia
Harmony Floral Art
Centre will be holding
a two-day exhibition on
the 9th and 10th of January
2010. Admission to the
public is free and all are
welcome to purchase
the works of beauty to
help charities. The proceeds will be donated to
Jelapang Old Folks’ home
and two other charities
that support Thalassemia
patients and underprivileged children. Those
who may like to explore
the classes may contact
Carmen at 05-2556198
during office hours.
ISTA KYRA
SHARMUGAM
20
IPOH ECHO
EDUCATION
CEO Ms Cheng Mien Wee
S
unway College Ipoh
located in Sunway
City Ipoh, an integrated resort township in
Tambun, is a part of the
Sunway Education Group
and was established
with the aim of extending quality educational
programmes outside the
Klang Valley.
Commencing operations in 2003 with just a
few programmes, Sunway
College Ipoh today offers
a range of academic programmes ranging from
the Cambridge A-Level,
LCCI, CAT and ACCA
professional accounting
qualifications, to diploma
programmes specialising
in Accounting, Business
Administration, Business
Information
Systems,
Marketing,
Graphic
Design
and
Interior
Design.
Governed by the
Sunway Education Trust
Fund, soon to be con-
You r Commu nit y News paper
22 DECEMBER, 2009 - 15 JANUARY, 2010
SUNWAY COLLEGE IPOH:
DEEP FOUNDATION – BRIGHT FUTURE
verted to the Jeffrey Cheah
Foundation in 2010, the
Sunway Education Group
ploughs back operating
surpluses to grant more
scholarships and tuition
fee waivers to deserving
students.
Diploma Qualifications
Sunway College Ipoh’s diploma programmes span
over many areas of study so
that students are equipped
not only with recognised
academic qualifications but
also possess the knowledge
and hands-on skills to join
the workforce or to operate their own businesses.
Experiences acquired during their course of studies include the development of communication
and presentation skills,
working in teams and effective time management.
Diploma graduates from
Sunway College Ipoh also
have the option of furthering their studies to degree
level at Sunway University
College, or at other universities locally and abroad,
as the qualifications are
widely recognised.
Pre-University Studies
The Cambridge A-Level
qualification is the preferred requirement for
admission into top-tiered
universities the world
over because of its rigorous and challenging cur-
riculum that develops good
academic skills which prepares students for success
in their university studies. The reputation and global recognition accorded
to the Cambridge A-Level
qualification is attributed
to its track record of more
than 150 years, producing
students with strong academic skills that underpin
success in university studies, career and enterprise.
The A-level programme
at Sunway College Ipoh
comes under the purview
of this very reputable and
established international
examination board - the
University of Cambridge
International Examinations
(or CIE), which is an integral part of the University
of Cambridge.
Mr. Ng Kim Huat,
Regional Representative
of CIE in Malaysia, shared
that the syllabi of subjects
in the Cambridge A-Level
programme are constantly
revised and updated, to
keep the contents abreast
with current developments.
In addition, new syllabi or
subjects are continually
developed and added from
time to time. “The twoprong approach to curriculum building and revision strengthens the rigour
and academic standards of
the A-Level programme,
thus making it a very
‘lively’, current and challenging programme”, said
Mr. Ng to Sunway’s lecturers present at the CIE
Regional Conference 2009
in Singapore on 29 & 30
October.
CAT/ACCA
The
Association
of
Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is recognised and respected as
one of the top professional
Accountancy programmes
globally. An ACCA graduate is regarded as a very
qualified professional to
effectively manage the
financial affairs of a company. At Sunway College
Ipoh, school leavers can
access the ACCA professional Scheme through
the one-year Certified
Accounting
Technician
(CAT) programme, the vocational qualification designed by ACCA.
Other academic pathways at Sunway College
Ipoh include progression
into undergraduate studies at Sunway University
College located in Bandar
Sunway, Petaling Jaya.
At Sunway College
Ipoh, education is not just
about garnering qualifications. Academic staff
guide students to develop
their interests and talents,
share learning experiences
and contribute to society
through community-based
activities. The study pro-
grammes are designed to
Sunway College Ipoh
expose students to new has well equipped library,
experiences and opportu- computer laboratories, and
nities, and help them dis- learning facilities include
cover themselves.
an art gallery, audio-visual
“Whatever
your lab and multi-purpose hall.
present point (in your stud- Parents and students are
ies) may be, we will take welcome to visit Sunway
you beyond your present College Ipoh, or call for
position and help you set more information.
goals, and achieve success
Sunway College Ipoh
in your chosen pursuits”,
Tel: 05-5454398
said Ms. Cheng Mien Wee,
www.sunway.edu.my/ipoh
chief executive of Sunway
College Ipoh.
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Lourd Enterprise
7 Lorong Cecil Rae Canning Garden
Pasar Mini Manaf
17 Jalan S A Lingam Ipoh Garden South
Muhibah Hair Stylist
103 Jalan Dato Lau Pak
Khuan, Ipoh Garden.
6. Kedai K.S. Maran
(beside Maybank) 212 Jalan Sultan Idris Shah
7. Pooran Enterprise
5 Jalan Dato Onn Jaafar (opp. Super Kinta)
8. Rasu Enterprise
271 Jalan Gunung Rapat Taman Ipoh Jaya.
9. Bawal Jaya Enterprise
66 Psrn Desa Tambun 7 Desa Tambun.
10. Golf Reception Counter Meru Valley Golf & Country Club
11. Newsvendor (morning) In front of Simee Market
12. Chan Sam Lock Photo Studio
77-81, Jalan Sultan Idris, Ipoh.
13. S.Y. Dry Cleaning and Laundry
1 Jln. Chung Thye Phin, Ipoh.
14. LSF Sun Li Hardware Sdn Bhd
50, Jalan Ng Weng Hup Taman Pertama. 15. LSF Sun Li Hardware Sdn Bhd
16A Jalan Labrooy.
16. Mama’s Home Baked Bread Stall
(after 7 pm) Aneka Selera, Ipoh Garden.
1.
2.
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