DON'T TRUST THE POLICE

YOU make plans to leave home for a couple of days and what do you do? You heed the call being made by the police time and again and inform the nearest police station. The record your details of departure and arrival and contact numbers and what happens when you come back in four days time?
Your house is burgled, ransacked and you are relieved of whatever cash and jewellery you had stashed away discreetly in your house.
Your privacy as been encroached, you feel intruded, your life had turned into a nightmare from what was to have been a joyful break.
Why?
1. The stupid policeman in the station can actually say that they cannot keep watch on your house 24 hours a day.
2. They say they are understaffed and only have three personell in that station.I ask myself then why bother opening a police station to give a false impression of a police presence in the area.
3. You are definitely not safe in your country.
4. I know for a fact that as a Malaysian, I am not safe in my country, in my neighbourhood, in my streets, anywhere for that matter.
5. What's the police for. To set up roadblocks and talk to motorists in the dark I guess.
6. Who's to blame? The police of course.
7. Were the neighbours alert? What neighbours? They only know how to say "Tak Tahu" and complain about your chiku tree encroaching in their space.


So what do we do?

1. DOn't inform the police.
2. HAve an alarm system only as a deterrent. Chances are the police would be too understaffed to respond.
3. Rear a dog. It too can be poisoned.


I hope the intruders who ransacked my home and robbed me rot in hell with the police in tow.

DON'T TRUST THE POLICE

You make plans to go on a trip for a couple of days especially during a festive break. So what do you do to secure your home.

You heed the call being made by the police every now and them to inform the nearest police station of your whereabouts, date of departure and date of arrival plus your contact no. Thinking that all would be well, you do just that.

You walk into the Taman Segar police station a day before you leave the house. They record the details and say "we will patrol the area".

Fours days later when you come back you find the front grilled gate open with the locks broken, door broken into and the house ransacked from front to back. The worst nightmare has just began.

You call 999 and you get connected with the police and when you do a stupid policemen says that you have to go to the nearest police station and lodge a poilice report.

So i tell this stupid policeman that my wife is frantic and traumatised to see the house which can no longer be secured but the stupid policeman insists.He advised us not to touch anything.

So we drive to the Taman Segar police station and another stupid policeman starts keying in the report and asks us what was missing. So we tell that stupid policeman that we were advised not to touch anything so how did he expect us to know what was missing. So by visually looking at the places which were encroached, weassumed the worse and that was jewellery stashed in very discreet places in the house stolen plus cameras and what have you.


Than the stupid policeman says that I should call the IO (investigating officer ) on my handphone which I did. And the IO whic is based at thePudu police station some 6 kilometres away says that I have to go there and sit before him so that he can record a statement. I did just that and told the IO that we were not in the position to come there and by right the police should be coming over. He grumbled and said that he would come.

Meanwhile i vented by frustration about our leave of absence and despite having done that, my house was broken into. They reply was "we cannot be watching your house 24 hours a day." And when we said that nothing happened on instances when we did not inform the police before leaving, the reply was; " We are understaffed. We only have 3 anggota ( staff ) at that particular station." What a load of crapp. If the stupid police force does not have enough cops , why bother having a police station to fool people that there is a useless police presence in your area?

The stupid policeman in the balai advises us that we go home and stay put and he will be coming over in a patrol car immediately to investigate .

We head home and an hour later the IO arrives. Mind you the immediate reponse team did not turn up as promised. The patrol car came an hour after the IO saying that they had to handle an accident nearby.

The IO starts to ask question and recorded the stuff which we knew for sure which were stolen. They inspect while another office takes pictures and dusted the area for finger prints.

Did you know that the Royal Malaysian Police Force, PDRM for short can only dust prints if there are any on glass or shinny metal surfaces and no where else. Wooden areas and other spots are out.


We lost all the jewellery which were cleverly hidden, my video camera, my Nikon SLR, all the watches and mind you the intruders had the audecity to enter the prayer room and ransack the place to remove jewellery which were kept for use on the deities as well as a bucket of coins which were saved for fulfilling a vow.

They even rancaked my rice container , salt container, dug into my salt lamp, broke a lot of porcelain stuff to name a few of the things which they did.

I impressed upon the IO that they carted away three large containers of 50 sen coins which were collected over the years by wife and something which was not easy to lift. A clue I said was that if someone attempted to cash in such a large amount of coins, your would get a lead. A blank look came from the IO.


After having done all that, they proceed to question the neighbours after giving a long lecture on why we sould not use Solex or Solex type locks as they could be undone with a sharp allan key type of tool.

They ask if there is an alarm system or a CCTV, both of which I do not have as I am not rich let alone famous but just an average Malaysian staying a typical housing estate type single storey terrace house, wanting to be safe in my own country.

The neighbourliness in KL sucks big time. You have neighbours who only know how to complain about your encroaching chiku tree, dried leaves which theyt have to clear and they even threaten to cut the tree which provides shade and fruits.

With all the commotion of intruders undoing your front gate locks and ransacking your house, breaking stuff, all they can say in "tak tahu" . Yes, they are Chinese. They even refuse to come out when the police were calling on them. A neighbour in front who is known to be the nosy one in the street says that he was not aroudn and did not see anything. His equally nosy wife was more interested to know what we lost . The stupid police team were actually condeming the Solex locks, cracking jokes and laughing rather than investigating. Another neighbour who we know for a fact never left home for kampung, told the police that they just came back minutes ago while the wife was seen collecting the dried clothes from outside.

So much for couldn't care less KL neighbours, Chinese in particular whose favourite reply is "tak tahu".

That was the end of the matter and the so called investigation by the stupid police of Cheras.

They managed to get 10 clear prints an God knows what will come out of it. The IO asked if we could identify our jewellery and "of course" we said.

The stupid police of Taman Segar police station asked us to come over again to the station to file in a "report tambahan" to which I said a detailed full blown statement had just been recorded plus photos taken and drawings done and I did not see the need for the "report tambahan".Oh , I almost forgot. They asked us why we did not "bela anjing".

SO what's the moral of the story?

1. Don't inform the stupid police when you leave town.
2. The police are not professional in handling crime victims.
3. Malaysians are not safe in their own country.
4. The police are a lot better in setting up road blocks and talking to motorists in the dark.
5. Burglars are ruthless and they know where to dig these days.
6. Don't trust the police.
7. As a Malaysian, you are not safe in your country.
8. Don't trust your neighbours.
9. No point being neighbourly.





For the record, my police report number is CHERAS/003647/10 dated 20/02/10 made in Taman Segar Police Station


May the burglars rot in hell with the police in tow.

HO HUP EGM RESTRAINED BY HIGH COURT

KUALA LUMPUR (FEBRUARY 4, 2010) : The much too often mentioned shareholders’ Extraordinary General Meeting of Ho Hup Construction Berhad fizzled out today when the organisers of the EGM were served with an interlocutory injuction restraining them for convening the meeting.
The injuction was taken out by Extreme Systems Sdn Bhd which is a major shareholder holding 27 per cent stake in the PN17 status company currently plagued by a tussle for management control.
The EGM was called for by Datuk Low Tuck Choy who also acts for Low Chee & Sons the company founded by Low Chee who is also the founder of Ho Hup. Low Chee & Sons control 23 per cent stake in the company and is represented by Datuk Low’s sibling Low Teik Kien in the present borad of directors.
This morning’s meeting which was to have convened at the Sime Darby Convention Centre in Bukit Kiara here, saw a trickle of shareholders turning up only to be notified by Ho Hup’s secretarial registration staff manning the venue that the EGM had been halted by way of a court order.
The meeting was to have covened at 10 am. Shortly before that, the lawyers for Extreme Systems Sdn Bhd William Leong & Co represented byits lead counsel William Leong Jee Keen turned up to served the restraining order.

The order was served on a registration staff at the entrance of the convention hall after being notified that the shareholders meeting had been restrained by the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
Shortly after, the LED venue display at the entrance to the convention hall read CXL ( cancelled). Mr William Leong went on to relay the contents of the restraining order to members of the media present.
He said the hearing was conducted over two days from Tuesday afternoon and the order was meted out by Judge Mah Weng Kwai in Chambers last night.
The restraining order was to pave the way for pending suit by Extreme Systems against the defendants which constitute Ho Hup Contruction Bhd and 28 others.
As such the order prevents Ho Hup Construction Berhad, former managing director Datuk Low Tuck Choy who holds 3 per cent share via Low Chee & Sons which holds 23 per cent and individual shareholder Choo Soo Har who holds 2 per cent share and 19 other minority shareholders from conveneing the EGM.
THE EGM was intended to vote out the present board of directors and appoint a board selected by Datuk Low . The directors named to be voted out ars Executive Vice Chairman Datuk Vincent Lye ( who owns Extreme Systems), the present managing director Lim Chong Choy, Dato Liew Lee Leong, Lai moo Chan, Longf MD Nor Amran Long Ibrahim, Modh Shahril Tan Sri Hamzah and Foo Ton Hin. The only board member whom the conveners plan to retainwas Low Teik Kien.
The EGM was convened in an attempt to vote in Tan Sri Kamarulzaman Shariff who is also director of Magna Prima Sdn Bhd, Hew Chin Tay, Yusob Md Tasir, D. Felix Dorairaj, Haji Slamat Hamzah and Chow Seck Kai.
An oral application for a stay of the restraining order by counsel Mr Rabindra Nathan who represented shareholders Datuk Low Tuck Choy , Chan Bee Ling, Low Lai Yong , APT Avenue Sdn Bhd and Tung Yin Peng was dismissed with costs.
Extreme Systems was represented by councel S. Suhendran.
Both Datuk Low as well as Datuk Vincent nor any other board member was present this monring at the venue.

Ends.

SILVER CHARIOT DAMAGED

Shame in a chariot mishap

The majestic silver chariot carrying the gold and jewel decked deities of Lord Muruga and his two consorts is an annual affairs which attract close to 100,000 devotees in the 14 hour procession from the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Jalan Tun H.S.Lee on the eve of the festival.

The religious procession is by far the largest in the country and attracts tourists as well as prompts engagement with the not only the Indian community but also the Chinese community who come forward to make offering, put up tents to serve free food and drinks to the devotees in the procession as well as those who take vows to carry kavadis or milk pots in that 15 kilometre journey while others chose to smash coconuts in the path of the chariot.

The silver chariot holds many interpretations as to its sanctity, it significance to life and mankind. It a divine process and a holy journey which should be capitalised on and its benefits harnessed in every way possible.

This year, without exception, the chariot ran into trouble and I squarely blame the temple authorities for not only understanding the virtues of the chariot albeit the chariot procession and have made it again a public mockery.

In the wee hours of the morning on Friday January 30, the chariot was stalled in Jalan Ipoh a few metres from the Sentul Police station at the overhead pedestrian bridge fronting SK Sentul Utama. Like the bridge in Batu 3 ½ Jalan Ipoh in front of Chung Hwa Independent High School, this bridge is also an electrically operated mechanical hoist type of steel bridge to allow the chariot to pass through.

While all caution is taken by the driver of the motorised vehicle pulling the chariot and the officials who are supposed to be in the know, the chariot could not pass under.

An incapable and amateur temple security boy actually instructed the chariot to proceed notwithstanding as the gold “kalasam” or minaret that forms the apex of the chariot could “bend” without breaking and I was shocked that they actually proceed resulting in the “kalasam” tip snapping. As if they had not done enough damage, three climbed on top of the chariot (an act that is never done when the deity is present inside the chariot) and tried to do all kinds of things to cut, if not hammer down the iron support within the “kalasam”.

Foolishly , a second attempt was made with a broken “kalasam” to pass through and this time the top most tier of the silver chariot was pulled away snapping the silver seams.
It then dawned upon them that the chariot should have been steered far left was the road was at its lowest to allow this towering chariot to pass through and so they did.

With such damage, the gold “kalasam” in pieces and all kinds of patch work done with a garland and a cloth to conceal the “topless” chariot, they proceeded.

The “kalasam” is actually the pride and source of beauty of the entire silver chariot and the main source of incoming universal energy for the deity which had only hours before been awakened and charged in the temple with a special pooja and prayers and mantras of sorts.

I walk with the chariot every year and have done so since I was 12 in 1971 when the chariot was a wooden one and at a time when only a hundred odd devotees would follow the chariot all the way. It is not an easy walk especially when tolerating the scorching sun of the noon heat as the chariot if on its final leg of the journey.

Much has changed since and today, a temple which claims to be the richest in the country has failed yet again to manage a procession which is a pride of the Hindu and Malaysian Indian community in the country.

The list goes on but I must highlight this incident as the chariot was stalled for a good one hour and 15 minutes and one many instances made to be unhooked from the vehicle and worst off reversed. A chariot on the move should never be reversed as its journey symbolises the journey of life which is meant to move forward moving. Now I understand that not only are the temple officials entrusted with such a task ignorant of what they are doing and what it stands for, but they are also intimidating the very responsibility of managing an annual pilgrimage by the deity which brings “life” to Thaipusam.

I personally find the Penang silver chariot journey much better managed although there, George Town comes to a standstill during a much longer 18-hour journey. But being a KLite , I pride myself of being son of KL that attracts the largest number of Indians in a single festival at any one time in the world and that’s Thaipusam in Batu Caves.

TURNING HO HUP AROUND

IF there is anyone who knows Ho Hup’s trail of troubles better, it must be Datuk Vincent Lye Ek Seang , the current deputy executive chairman.

Datuk created waves in the circle of builders when he bought into Ho Hup in December 2008 through his company Extreme Systems Sdn Bhd.
The best part of tis deal was he had bought into a company which was already a PN17 company with Bursa.

He is now seen as the saviour of the 50-year old Ho Hup turmoiled not only in accumulated losses due to mismanagement but also what has surfaced as a tussle between two groups trying to wrest control of the management.


The EGM scheduled for Feb 4 will decide whether the group led by ousted managing director Low Tuck Choy or the current management team headed by Datuy Lye, will survive and win the shareholders’ confidence which will give them the mandate abd suport needed to get the show on the road for Ho Hup.

Datuk Lye’s 13 months in Ho Hup has not been an easy journey but helping him with the clean up is Lim Ching Choy whom he brought over from Magna Prima where he still holds a small stake.

Ching Choy’s experience with Magna Prima and also his experience in turning around the Mah Sing Group augurs well in his makeover of Ho Hup which has so far pulled the company out of situation of threat to its operations.

One of the most shocking experiences for Datuk Lye was having to go to Madagascar to gace the government there at a time when Ho Hup was locking in intenrational arbitration over a project that was abandoned.

The board authorised Datuk Lye to make the trip in between May and June last year to meet the president of Madagascar Andry Rajoelina to reach a settlement.

Thia was at a time when there was instructions to detain any official of Hop Hup who attempted to enter the African island nation.

A month later an agreement was reached averting a potential liability of USD 43 million (RM150.4 million) and any loss of the plant and machineries which had prior toi that been seized from Ho Hup.

The plant and macineries which had a book value of RM33 million coild be used for future projects not only in Madagascar but also back in Malaysia.

Datuk Lye was not just a chip of the old block and true to his prowess in wheeling and dealing, managed to sign a memorandum of unerstanding between Ho Hup and the Madagascar government to assist their state-owned company - KRAOMA S.A. in the reinforcement and optimisaton.

Next on Datuk Lye’s agenda was to rescue and rehabilitate troubled projects that had been delayed - the most significant of which was the Jalil Sutera property development project.

Ho Hup re-commenced its contruction actiivities in December 2008 and managed to complete it ahead of the deadline given by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government which responded after purchasers had lodged complaints against the company’s hanling of the project.

One other project which had suffered a similar fate were also rescued such as the Phase 4 which was fully completed in January 2009 eight months ahead of schedule and just six weeks after the new managemen team took over.

The handing over of keys to the purchasers was officiated by the then Housing Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan.

This was followed by Phase 5 which was completed in June 2009, three months ahead of schedule whereas Phase 6 and Phase 7a were completed a month and three months ahead of scheduled in August 2009 and September 2009 in August and September 2009 respectively.

The subsequent Housing Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha went on to present the keys to the purchasers and presented a plaque commending Ho Hup for its ability to revive and complete projects.


Ends

THAIPUSAM BLUNDER 1

A strange omen that unidid itself


Did you all know that moments before the main pooja started inside the Sri Mahamariamman Temple in Jalan Tun H.S.Lee , to send of the deities on the chariot journey, a dimwit photographer who was right in in front of the deity tipped over the main silver thirvathaney.

This multi-flame instrument is the first to be lighted and showed in front of the deity whe the curtain is draw and the pooja begins.

The fact is it went rolling (into piece) , oil spilt, thread all over the floor and the worst part is the pandarams put it together except for the top most part which went "missing".

Oh boy! How embarassing. Strangely there was a kind sould in that crow who picked up that silver head piece and returned it to complete the assembly of parts which formed that ornate intrument.

The disgusting however was that the pandaram chose to pick up the wicks which were scattered on the and reused it. I thought they would have better brains than that and I assumed that all things done in a temple sould be clean and pure and sacred if it was for the use of prayers and for poojas or deities whichever the case may be.

The Chinese photographer was terrified and apologised repeatedly and gained the strange looks of those cramming in front of the surging crowd.

What crossed my mind was that it was not a good omen. I may be superstitious but what happened 3 hours later during the chariot journey may shed some light on my initial premonition.

The pooja went on as usual with some crucial mantras left out.

This was past midnight on Jan 29, 2010.

THE HO HUP REGULARISATION PLAN AND WHAT IT ACTUALLY MEANS - A 60 PER CENT 'HAIR CUT'

HO HUP is confident of getting the support of shareholders for their revised regularisation plan which they feel is the best way to get the company out of its current PN17 status and look towards reviving the company and the business.

The company is proposing a 60 per cent ‘haircut’ as opposed to the 95 per cent ‘haircut’ proposed earlier on June 24, 2009.

Going by their application to Bursa seeking an extension of three months to submit a revised plan taking into consideration additional factor, its managing director Lim Ching Choy, said the proposed reduction of the existing issued and paid-up share capital of the company by RM0.60 of the par value would result in a share consolidation on the basis of five ordinary shares of RM0.40 each into two shares has also been proposed.

“The present board had also proposed a placement of approximately 10 million news shares at an issue price of RM1.00 each and the identities of the placees will be disclosed to shareholders together with a full announcement on the proposed revised scheme, said Lim a statement released today.

The scheme will also see a proposed renounceable rights issue of up to approximately 30 million new shares at an issue price of RM1.00 per revised rights share.

“We are protecting the interests of minority shareholders and we know for a fact that they have been with this company for a long time and appreciate their loyalty and faith in the Ho Hup branding,” added Lim in an apparent response to a reaction by former managing director Dato Low Tuck Choy who was reported saying that he believed that what the current management was proposing was not in the best interests of minority shareholders.

Tuck Choy, through his family’s Low Chee & Sons Sdn Bhd’s holding and other direct stakes, controls about 27% of Ho Hup shares.
He had called for an EGM on Feb 4 to remove seven of eight existing Ho Hup directors, including executive deputy chairman Datuk Vincent Lye and managing director Lim Ching Choy.
Tuck Choy is not offering himself to be re-elected, but had proposed six appointees whom he described as “good, capable and experienced candidates” as replacements.
He said his younger brother, currently Ho Hup non-executive director Low Teik Kein, would remain on board as Low Chee & Sons’ representative.

However Lim said the present state of affairs of Ho Hup was very much due to mismanagement during the tenure of Datuk Low from 1994 till 2008.

“At the time of his exit the share price was at RM0.30 and it was based on that share price that a bigger capital reduction of 95 per cent was initially proposed.

“But the share price had since improved indicating that shareholders have gained confidence in the present management in reviving this 50–year old company that was declared a PN17 company with Bursa in July of 2008.”

Explaining the regularization plan further, Lim said the lower capital reduction this time round comes with the option to leverage on the company’s current 60-acre land bank which they have earmarked to develop Jalil Green City.

This will see a proposed reduction of the existing issued and paid-up share capital of the company by RM0.60 of the par value. A share consolidation on the basis of five ordinary shares of RM0.40 each into two shares has also been proposed.


This would mean that it would either be a 60 per cent capital reduction with the said parameters or a core land bank transaction in the event the proposed revised capital reconstruction is unsuccessful.

This means that the shareholders on Feb 4 will have two options and can vote either vote for the capital reduction or vote for the company to leverage on its core land bank to address the accumulated losses of the Ho Hup Group with certainty in Lim’s plan to bail out Ho Hup.

Lim’s two-pronged approach comes with a back-up plan in which the land bank transaction can be with arrangements to jointly develop the core land bank where the company can either enter into an option to secure buyers for the development projects within the land bank or a combination of the two.

“In essence, the new plan will see a lower amount of restricted shares indicatively to 10 million and a higher quantum of rights shares to indicatively 30 million shares.

Lim also refutes the possibility of a new substantial shareholder coming in with the proposed capital reduction with the rights and shares’ sale and he has clarified that the proposed private placement will be placed to both strategic and non-strategic investors.

“The selection criteria will take into consideration that they must add value to the operations of the Group and this can be done only if the investor understands or is familiar with Ho Hup’s business of property development and construction business and above all the financial viability of the projects.

The surge in the share price was among the key factors that had prompted Lim’s team to rethink their capital reduction footing and deciding on a 60 per cent ‘haircut’ as opposed to the earlier 95 per cent.



Nonetheless Lim continues to be firm with the fact that all the existing shareholders will remain as shareholders, assuming they subscribe, and the details of the proposed private placement will be made known by the board.

Lim has also assured that none of the placees are going to be parties related to the current major shareholders or Ho Hup directors.

On Dato Low’s alternative plan, Lim said that it would not fulfill the basic fundamental requirements for the upliftment of the PN17 status of Ho Hup.

Dato Low had claimed that a regularisation could be done without a capital reduction and had proposed an alternate plan which called for a renounceable one-for-one rights issue of 25.5 million irredeemable convertible preference shares (ICPS) with two warrants for each ICPS subscribed.

Lim said that this was because the amount of funding to be raised (RM25.5 million) is insufficient for Ho Hup’s debt management and working capital especially for the development of the 60 acres.

Moreover Lim feels that there is no guarantee that the free warrants will be exercised in the near future and hence has deemed the cash flow of RM51 million arising from such an exercise, as highly uncertain. This means that with insufficient funding, uncertainties will continue to plague Ho Hup’s continued operations as a growing concern as its current potential renders the company to remain as a PN17 company. This is bearing in mind that the Group had recently secured a loan for RM125 million to refinance its current loan to CIMB and can risk the foreclosure of its land bank in the absence of alternative funding.





Lim is also of the opinion that since any restructuring of a PN17 company has to ensure that the shareholders’ equity has to be more than 25 per cent of the share capital or the shareholders’ capital has to be RM40 million or more, Low’s alternative plan will not be able to fulfill such an obligation.
On Dato Low’s stand that he had asked to be served, Lim said that investigations by the authorities and the police were on-going since police reports have been lodged and a legal suit had been filed against Dato Low for RM250 million.
The company went under accumulating looses amounting to RM270 million over the 14 years of his tenure and we are very much focused on not only reviving the company but moving forward with new businesses as shareholders want returns on their investments.
We have tried to engage Dato Low on several occasions for discussions and had even written to him but he did not respond except for his statements reported by the media.