Second International Borneo Tattoo Convention - It Benefits Sibu

When I first learned about the 2nd International Borneo Tattoo Convention, I was very much excited about it, knowing very well that it would be beneficial to Sibu.

You might dispute that the impact this time is not that fantastic, but never underestimate its potentials for the tourism of the central region.

If we too easily let tourism-related opportunities to slip away, then the central region would lag even further behind.

Let's grab all opportunities to highlight Sibu worldwide- it is not easy, but as the tattoo convention has proved it to you, it is also not too difficult.

The picture above shows some co-workers of the convention attending to the tattoo artists from worldwide whilst checking in to Premier Hotel (http://www.premierh.com.my/).

I admired very much the two talented disc jockeys who provided non-stop light moments at one studio. They kept the momentum going - and they simply made the place a lot more lively! What a good job they had done.

The picture shows them indulged in their work.

Second International Borneo Tattoo Convention - A Pictorial Record

My repeated attempts to upload images to my blog failed to work last night. Not bowing to failures, I gave to it another try - and, great, I got it this time!

Pictures speak louder than words. The pictorial record serves as a permanent reminder to all people in Sibu to do their bit for our tourism, as Cr. Robert Lau and Mr. Chambai Lintong have exemplified.

If we all set our minds on Sibu and gear it to a destination of visits by tourists, then, I believe there is plenty of hope for our dear home town.

With our government playing the lead role, let's all do it for Sibu for the benefits of everybody.

Alexander Hilbert, hailing from Switzerland, proudly shows off his tattooed body. More people have started to appreciate this bodily art. With Alex is Annie, a staff member of Premier Hotel.

Naza and J. Terdn , of Spanish descent, are more than happy to let me take a snapshot of them. They are showing to us that art is for appreciation.

A tattoo artist with meticulous skill and care is working on "a living design on a living canvas".
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Second International Borneo Tattoo Convention - A Living Design On A Living Canvas

The very much awaited 2nd International Borneo Tattoo Convention has finally kicked off in Sibu- the central region of Sarawak with vast potentials but presently still undercultivated in tourism.

Potentially a tourist puller event, the tattoo convention deserves back-up from our government to a greater extent. Sibu needs more of this type of art-related function to popularise the region as a tourist destination.

Tourism is just about selling what we have- and since we are rich in tattooing art, let's utilize it to the full to develop this industry.

Tattoo is a form of art on human bodies. To put it more artistically, it is a living design on a living canvas, as one medical specialist quoted to me in a studio at Bukit Aup this afternoon.

Tattoo artists from all over the world made full use of Bukit Aup to set up, individually, tattoo studios. The tattooing skill opened my eyes to this art- and I hope it would be an eye-opener to more people in Sibu for the next two days!

Veils over involvement in gangsterism - Part 2

The BERNAMA 's release had not lifted the veils- it merely made them become more transparent now, taking people one step closer to the true identities.

A practising lawyer in Sibu questioned the credibility of the news release, pointing out that since all police investigations are classified as official secrets, it would have been law-infringement on the very first place to divulge the information through release.

Very logical argument- but he missed out one crucial point. BERNAMA is a national news agency- essentially it is a government press arm. It logically follows that all its releases carry certain weight by virtue of its status. As far as I understand, all its releases are subject to tight screening.

It would be, therefore, quite unbelievable under these circumstances, for BERNAMA to release news nationwide with no basis. Simply put, a hearsay would not get through the strict filtration procedure of BERNAMA.

Veils over involvement in gangsterism - Part 1

Sibu is again in the limelight, dwarfing even the on-going trial of of the blasted-to-death murder of Alantuya, a Mongolian model.

BERNAMA, our national news agency, made four days back a release that took the whole nation in general and Sarawak in particular, abruptly shaken, leaving the masses with mouths wide open and turning to each other with puzzling looks.

High ranking political leaders carrying Datukships with suspected involvement in gangsterism is already not freshly baked news. There have been talks high and low- and wild guessing is like bush fire spreading all over. Just go to kopitiam for a cup of kopi-o and you will appreciate better what I mean.

But the veils remain tight over the faces, thus prompting even more buzzing with rumours.

Virus infection

My own computer at home was infected with virus, thereby causing its functioning to be very much down.

Then this anti-virus software advert kept popping up, most annoyingly, asking me to download with credit card payment the programme. Seriously, it drove me crazy.

The whole phenomenon seemed to be a well-planned marketing strategy by certain unscrupulous virus writers- sending out virus programmes and then following up with software advert to profit out of it. Gosh, they must be making tons of money worldwide!

I called one computer technician for advice. Reformatting to put it back to normal was his suggestion. Left with no choice since I am only a jack, I took his golden words.

My blogging is going to be affected for the next two days.

WFCMC 5th Mission Convention- Day 5

It is a rich experience to work together as a team for the mission convention. I am most touched by the team members' deep commitment to their respective jobs. Beaming with satisfaction, they show that they are in fact enjoying their work.

Teamwork requires dedication, coordination and people skills. From my observation, these three essential elements are present in our team . On top of that, the team members are also moved by the love of Lord to humbly serve Him. Added together, these contributing factors have made the work-flow a lot smoother.

Our teamwork success is certainly more than just the result of a good work culture - it is the love of Christ that inspires us to work together for the good cause of God's work.

Editing on old posts

Bloggers are actually at liberty to go back to edit their old posts. This feature is provided for in my blog and, sadly, I was wholly not aware of it until two days ago.

I inadvertently misspelt and omitted crucial words, and, worse still, I quoted the title of the mission convention erroneously which I felt miserably upset. I remember I told Allen that the mistakes were not retrievable and I had to live with them-just imagine how terrible it would be!

This discovery, therefore, excited me greatly and put me at ease. I tried it out immediately and- great, all my spotted errors have now been rectified.

The mistakes were like thorns in my flesh- painfully uncomfortable. I had a strong urge to ease off- and the only way was to remove them. And now they have gone away. What a relief!

During my childhood, playful as I was, I used to get thorns pierced through my skin. Sharply painful, I would call my mom to remove them by using a needle.

From this I learned one thing- thorns must be got rid of and, likewise, mistakes have to be rectified for relief to set in.

WFCMC 5th Mission Convention- Day 3

The morning tea break is fixed at 10:40 am- right in timing for a stretch and freshening up after talks by high-powered speakers.

The huge group has to be split into three for the break respectively at pool-side, on levels one and two.

Yesterday morning, the split turned out to be overcrowding on level 2 where the ballroom is located. This scenario was hardly a surprise- human desire is to take advantage of convenience, and the tea counter outside the ballroom is certainly much more conveniently located than the one on level 1.

Break time provides an excellent opportunity for fellowship- you see, mingling with the crowds is not easily available in a tightly scheduled convention like this. Everybody seemed to be grabbing minutes and seconds to get the most out of it. What a wonderful scene it was!

Watching the crowds having fellowship brought back many memories of my student life in Australia when I was with Oversea Christian Fellowship. Every fellowship gathering then ended with a tea break- not so much to refresh but to use it to hold back the crowds for an even closer fellowship time. I truly loved it!

WFCMC 5th Mission Convention-Day 2

I was enlisted as a volunteer of the convention. Having an opportunity to serve such a big group with diverse nationalities for good cause is a blessing not to be missed- because if you let it slip by, you have to wait for another 30 years.

Volunteers are support group to provide back-up services without which the whole machinery would not be functional. I have high regard for this role-in fact I grabbed it when given.

We helped out in attending to tea breaks, lunch and dinner in the role of ushers- simple but important.

All of us put in our best efforts to make the participants feel homely- and, so far, we have positive responses.

The programme for this evening was Welcome Banquet at the Sibu Trade Exhibition Center. Grand in scale, the banquet took up the whole capacity of the center, laying out a total of 230 tables for 2300 guests. The exhibition is, perhaps, as of now, the largest function hall in Sibu.

The eight-course dinner was served with speeches and presentations in intervals. It concluded with a benediction by Rev Bill Anderson, Chair of Birmingham District, UK.

WFCMC 5th Mission Convention- Day 1

Most of the participants from West Malaysia arrived this morning by AirAsia flight, thus making the reception counter jammed with crowds. They were all eager to check in and get settled down for a rest after a tiring flight.

Our challenge is to provide good service to guests. This includes efficient check-in with tolerable queue-up time. All tired out guests would crave for fast check-in to drop their luggages for a rest. If they have to be held up for unduly long at the reception counter, our experience tells us that their patience would be worn away and might soon turn into grumble.

We were satisfied with the check-in job this morning-efficient and courteous, in return with some encouraging comments. Praise Lord for that!

The participants had their dinner at Blue Splendour Restaurant in Wisma Sanyan. It got to be an experience for most of them to sample the typical local foods.

The grand opening ceremony started sharp at 7:00 pm in RH Hotel. It was attended by approximately 1600 Methodist Church members.

WFCMC 5th Mission Convention

This morning Premier Hotel received the first group of participants of WFCMC 5th Mission Convention. The convention, due to kick off tomorrow, will have its grand opening ceremony at 7:00 pm in RH Hotel.

The early birds are all West Malaysians- small in number but inevitably with some technical crop-ups at the check-in point. However, with fast handling, all of them settled down in their respective rooms with no undue delay.

As a hearty welcome, one horizontal and two vertical banners are prominently put up at the main entrance and in the lobby to usher in participants from all over. A welcome warm touch will do wonders, believe me!

The title of the convention was erroneously written in my post on June 18. It should be correctly called World Federation Of Chinese Methodist Churches 5th Mission Convention. This was entirely an oversight on my part. My apology goes to those concerned.

Golden opportunity, indeed, it is for Sibu to open up its hidden paradise to such a big group from worldwide. We should value it.

Today is Duanwu Festival

During my childhood, I loved Duanwu Festival- zongzi, sumptuous dinner on the festival day and the legend of it all stay vividly clear in my memories.

Wrapping zongzi was very much an affair of my granny and mom who were skilled over the years. As for the siblings, we were just bystanders watching with much anticipation.

During these old days, zongzi were boiled by burning wood in cooking-oil tin (measuring 2.5'x1') with the top cut open. The aroma of the steaming zongzi was just irresistibly tempting.

It was lots of fun eating zongzi the whole family together which I cherish very much.

Never missed during the festival was the telling of the story of the legendary Qu Yuan by dad.

My childhood days are just most memorable! How nice it would be if time could flow back.

********************

Yian spent the afternoon preparing a lot of home dishes for the dinner. Her culinary skill deserves my word of praise-more often than not she comes up with home-cooked dishes that are quite mouth-watering.

We had for dinner this evening some of her specialties: Fish fillets with prune sauce, fried eggs with sea-cucumber, deep-fried meat ball, deluxe fried noodles, satay ayam with sauce, roasted chicken, etc.

My family had a wonderful time together with the good foods.

Allen spotted an error

Allen viewed my new post after he came back from the night tuition class. Sharp as he was, he spotted a typing error in memories. "Dad, can you still rectify it?", he asked with apparent concern. I told him it is not retrievable-I have to live with the mistake now.

Allen made me feel uneasy at the fault. There is strong urge in me to make a rectification through another post. Here it is.

Sometimes Allen is more meticulous than me. Maybe I need to be sharper next time.

Eventful June In Sibu

June is a bustling month for Sibu. We are now on countdown to three events, namely Borneo Cultural Festival, 2nd International Borneo Tattoo Convention and 5th Mission Convention of World Federation of Chinese Methodist Churches. These culture and church-related activities contribute spin-off effects to tourism in Sibu, in one way or another.

The 5th Mission Convention, organised by Sarawak Chinese Annual Conference, shall run consecutively for five days from 21st to 25th of June with very compact schedule. It shall gather together a total of 1265 Methodist Church members (from local:648; from outside Sarawak:617).

Aptly dubbed international because it draws in particupants from all over the world: Sabah,West Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan,Hong Kong, Australia, Indonesia, U.S.A., England, Canada, Korea, New Zealand, Phnom Penh, etc.

It is an honour for Sibu to host the mission convention. Held once in every five years, the venue for the event is rotated. So, for Sibu to play host again, by a rough estimate, it has to be something like 30 years later.

I hope they would all leave Sibu with sweet memories!

Father's Day

Today is Father's Day in Malaysia and many other countries. Inaugurated in the early 20th century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and parenting by males, Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide, and typically involves gift-giving to fathers and family-oriented activities.

Early in the morning, I received this leather briefcase of Poloking brand from Allen and Pauline. They pooled their savings together to buy it for me as Father's Day gift.

The little briefcase gave me a very warm touch-it was a show of their love and thoughtfulness.

My present briefcase is quite worn out; the gift, therefore, came in handy.

Very thoughtful of Allen, indeed, to have bought it for me!

Father's Day is a meaningful secular occasion to honour fathers. It is never intended to be a show of love on this particular day only- in actual fact, it serves to remind to take it as an everyday affair!

Happy Father's Day!

A striking headline

This striking headline gave me a moment of sorrow early in the morning- not that I was acquainted with her, but for the loss of a precious life.

The tragedy took place on the highway at Sarikei side. Freshly graduated from a local college, her 4WD collided with a coach and she was killed on the spot.

I am sure all feeling readers would have sorrowed over the death- you see, gone was the life of a young graduate with very bright future ahead of her.

Actually come to think of it, our earthly life is just too swift- in fact, it is just a glimpse in the eyes of our God.

God plans a much more valuable life for all of us in eternity- through accepting Jesus Christ as our personal saviour.

God promises to give the gift absolutely free so long as you repent and receive Jesus Christ into your life as saviour.

My breakfast at Palace Cafe

I went to Palace Cafe located on the ground floor of Palace Theatre Building at Workshop Road for my breakfast this morning.

This kopitiam (in Hokkien,coffeeshop) is medium-sized, reasonably hygienic and rather simple -looking. The tawkey (in Foochow, owner) takes on both kopi-o and kampua stalls, side by side, and manages quite well. He lets out the mee stall to add to varieties.

I ordered a cup of techi kosong (tea with evaporated milk- minus sugar) and a toasted bun (with kaya and margarine filling). I love it for breakfast- light, yet tasty. I always keep my morning meal simple to avoid bloated feeling.

This kopitiam perhaps serves one of the best techi in Sibu- of course only to the best of my knowledge. One reason could be the tawkey is dead serious in making tea for his customers- that 's why it turns out to be irresistibly good.

The kopitiam tawkey works with great zeal and he is sociable. A keen learner, he goes to English tuition class after work. Occasionally, he would bring up to me for sharing the flaws that he found in his tutors' teaching. The moments were light over the exchange of views.

The tawkey's untiring learning spirit is most admirable. At times, I think I have something to learn from him!

I had a truly enjoyable breakfast this morning.

My tmnet streamyx line

My tmnet streamyx line has been a source of frustration. By a rough estimate, barely about three quarters of the time the line is hooked up. In other words, a quarter of my fee goes down the drain!

Driving me crazy to the extreme is when I am ready to post, the line all of sudden goes off. On a few occasions the blinking signal skipped my attention and I unknowingly went ahead to press to send, and- alas, gone was my work!

This sort of breakdown in line connection would easily take half an hour to restore. It really kills our time-and, worse still, we are paying full fee for the access service.

I am certainly not alone in crying out for better connectivity!

tmnet streamyx promises to provide "always on" connection to the internet. But judging from the quality of service I am getting, I am not hesitant at all to say that I am a very unhappy consumer.

I understand that tmnet monopolises the market in Sarawak in internet service. Standard economic theory tells me that, in a monopoly situation, overall social welfare declines, because some consumers must choose second-best products.

It is, therefore, high time for another player to come in to provide competing services for the betterment of consumers at large in Sarawak.

Scammers

Today scammers abound the market! This bunch of crooks have been around for long time, just that with the advent of modern IT, they sneak around now preying on unsuspecting innocents much more easily than it was imaginable just five years back.

In June 2000, I received a faxed letter from South Africa seeking collusion for mutually beneficial financial deals. The sugary letter sounded so convincing that it could easily put an unsuspecting recipient off his guard and fall to it. I chose to ignore it.

Nowadays, facsimile is seldom used by the scheming cheats. Instead they make use of internet and SMS to disseminate cooked-up stories.
The stories of preys being trapped by sweet talks continue to be endless despite reminders through media.

Actually scammers just capitalise on human lust for easy and quick gains. If you open yourself to their slick talks , then you are sure to have a nightmare to go through.

Ignore them is the advice. Professor Milton Friedman (the winner of Nobel Prize in Economics in 1976) had this golden quote for everybody: "There is no such thing as free lunch."

Scammers don't give out free lunch for nothing, never! Don't ever go for it-you will regret if you do.

Swan-the emblem of Sibu

This stone-carved statue of a swan- the emblem of Sibu-is a project of Sarawak 3rd 6th & 7th Divisions Lin Clan Association, Sibu Branch and Sibu Municipal Council under smart partnership.

Sibu has exemplified in government-with-people partnership to beautify the town through adoption plans.

The projects all worked out so impressively well that the smart partnership idea has been adopted by some other local governments.

Now back to swan as the emblem- the legend has it that in olden days, swimming swans made Rajang River a wonderful scene, so much so that it was at one time called Swan River.

Swans are uniquely adorable and with their legendary origin, they best symbolize Sibu. They are simply a living emblem!

Spiralling food prices

Yesterday I met W. J. with his family shopping at Sing Kwong Supermarket. Our chat inevitably touched on the recent pinch in the market- the spiralling food prices.

W. J. is in public service sector. "The living nowadays is getting more expensive-it is terribly suffocating," he grumbled. The just announced pay hikes for government servants will certainly ease the tightness to certain extent for W. J. But how about those in rural and private sectors? I am afraid they have to go on belt-tightening!

Inflationary pressure on foods is building up at an alarming rate globally. So cost of food is actually now a worldwide concern, not being confined to any particular area.

This year, on average, the food price index has gone up to a new high. This trend is likely to continue and it is going to hurt consumers at large even more.

According to analysis, three factors contribute to this burning issue. First, the global climatic change has affected crop production, thereby sending market into imbalance; second, the biofuel has caused a surge in demand for crops, and, third, there is heavy speculation by global hedge funds on commodity futures.

The present rising-price scenario is nowhere going to ease off soon. When you go shopping again, be prepared to fork out more!

Duanwu Festival and zongzi- omission spotted

I regret for an inadvertent omission from the above post, the correct text of which should read as follows:

......they decided to throw food (now called zongzi) into the river to feed the fish so that they would not eat Qu Yuan's body.

I appreciate your understanding.

Duanwu Festival and zongzi

My daughter Pauline holds up a bunch of zongzi and says yammy!

Zongzi is a reminder that Duanwu, a traditional Chinese festival held on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, is just around the corner.

To keep up this tradition, my wife Yian never misses wrapping zongzi. Her home-made zongzi are taste-buds -tickling.

That day she told me she decided to try a new recipe- curry-flavoured filling. It sounded great!

We went to shop for glutinous rice and were most surprised to find that the supermarket almost ran out of stock of it. This never happened before. Was there an imbalance in the local market? I really have no idea.

The basic ingredients of zongzi are glutinous rice and filling of varied flavours. Yian used bamboo leaves to wrap them up into pyramid shape and had zongzi fastened into bunches. The final phase was to steam the zongzi to cook.

Zongzi is best taken steamy hot when it is aromatic. Never miss it if you come to Sibu.

Duanwu has its most commonly believed origin way back to Warring States Period (340 BC). The festival memorializes Qu Yuan, a poet, who committed suicide by drowning himself in a river to show his disgust with the corruption of the Chu government. The local people loved him so much that they decided to throw food (now called zongzi) into the river to feed the fish so they would not eat Qu Yuan's body. They also paddled dragon boats and tried to scare the fish away by the thundering sound of the drums aboard the boats.

Today, people eat zongzi and race dragon boats in memory of Qu Yuan's death.

Duanwu is a Chinese cultural heritage. Don't relegate it to superficial status and overly commercialise it. We have duty to uphold its true cultural values.

Old classmates' meet over lunch

We met long, long after we left Chung Cheng Secondary School (now called SMK Chung Cheng) this afternoon. From memory, we only had one or two organised get-together, but thereafter, we have not had any proper old classmates' gathering.

Mr. Ting King King provided this wonderful opportunity for us to chat away and cherish the old days' memories- we were being invited to his son's wedding reception lunch at Blue Splendour Restaurant.

When we met up, we had had a lot of expressions of surprise, wonder, admiration, etc. Not surprising because we had been out of touch for so long except for a few..There was a lot to catch up, share with and laugh over the old times.

It was a happy meet over a sumptuous lunch. We all left behind contact for a much-desired future gathering.

(In the group photograph: seating left to right

Hii Leng Ngo, Hii Ai Bing, Ngieng Hung Yien,

Wong Leh Ting, Ting Huong Hee,

Law Siew Kiew

standing left to right

Tiong Toh Chiong, Hii Doh Ming,

Tiang Hua Ung & Mrs, Ting King King & Mrs

Tie King Tai, Chieng Yew Hoon, Lau Sie Guo,

Hii Tiing Khen)

Sibu is transforming

On our Gawai visit to Kg. Tutus on June 1, we had to pass through a long stretch of plantation road. The gravel-surfaced road is solid despite the heavy downpour for the whole of the night before.

The two sides of the road are seemingly with endless rows of oil-palm trees. The green is refreshing and it induces passers-by to nature-loving.

Oil-palm is fast coming up to replace timber as the major economic base of Sibu. We used to have people telling us that they were in timber line. But now the scenario has changed- most of them have crossed over to oil-palm plantation as the timber resources diminish in Sibu.

In other words, we are presently witnessing a transformation of economic base in Sibu-from that of timber to agriculture.

The mushrooming oil-palm estates tell us that the trend for Sibu has more or less been set.

Pak Lah'S Remarriage

Our Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will remarry on June 9 after long speculation. The bride-to-be is Jeanne Abdullah,53, a manager of the Prime Minister's official residence, Seri Perdana.

Abdullah's remarriage, although widely talked about, still came as a surprise. This is going to be exciting for all Malaysians as we await for the First Lady.

This year Pak Lah (Abdullah as dearly called by Malaysians) has given us a lot of of surprises: bull market in KLSE, Iskandar massive development project in JB, abolition of RPGT (Real Property Gains Tax), relaxation of rules on foreigners buying Malaysian properties, pay revision for the government servants, his own remarriage,just to name a few.

We believe he has some more in store in view of the upcoming election. When the timing is right, he will throw out to make the whole nation "Wow! Wow!".

Pak Lah, we wish you the best!

Hyperlink not successful

Yesterday I installed a link in my post to the website of the 2nd International Tattoo Convention for easy visiting. But the hyperlink failed to work.

This reminds me that I have to sharpen my skills in IT to deliver a better job.

As I told my buddy Hock Lai before, I am only semi-literate in IT. There is plenty more to catch up.

Life is actually meant to be a learning process. As one Chinese proverb puts it rightly: there is no end to learning in your life. The ex-Premier of Singapore Mr. Lee Kuan Yew was illiterate in computer. After he stepped down from premiership, he had to learn to use computer in his daily work.

During my time at Monash University, our professor used to tell us to take learning as a life-long continuing process. His words still stay clear in my memory.

Both Mr. Lee Kuan Yew and my professor have motivated me to keep on learning.

2nd International Tattoo Convention

This huge billboard erected at Pintu Gerbang Sibu ushers in the 2nd International Tattoo Convention.

The upcoming event has aroused curiosity in Sibu. Not surprising because the folks here have misconceived the art of tattoo. They view it as a mark of vice. It is a sad thing that this local culture has been relegated.

If you have not fully appreciated this art on a person's skin, you now have a wonderful opportunity to open your eyes to it.

This international convention is organised by the Sibu Municipal Council in collaboration with Borneo Headhunters Tattoo Studio. It is scheduled to be held from June 29 to July 1 at Bukit Aup Jubilee Park.

Just to excite you, it is going to bring together international acclaimed tattoo artists from all over the world. Our local talents in traditional music, dances and art of tattooing will also be highlighted.

Borneo tattoo, our very rich culture, has been known all over the world because of its cultural and traditional roots. We should be proud of it.

This convention has important missions in hand, namely to preserve our beautiful culture and tradition and to promote tourism for Sibu. It,therefore, means business.

All things are made to happen. This applies to the 2nd International Tattoo Convention also. Two prominent lawyers in Sibu, namely Councilor Robert Lau and Mr. Chambai Lindong, initiated for it to come to Sibu. Both of them have been working day in day out tirelessly with personal sacrifices for this event.

They have done a great thing for Sibu. Let us give them a big round of applause.

You may visit the convention's website athttp:// www.borneotattooconvention.com

UMNO's inroad into Sarawak-now on high profile

The UMNO's stalwarts in Sarawak who are working to pave the way for the party to come in are on very high profile now. They formed a fleet of vehicles to sweep through the state on a massive membership-drive. It seems that the inroad into Sarawak is heating up.

There is no official confirmation yet. This has added a mask of secrecy to the matter and the market is flooded with rumours.

Something amiss must be going on with strong implication to the state politics. Maybe an invisible hand from the Federal is at work on it. From the openness of the movement, it is reasonable to arrive at that assumption.

The Registrar of Societies in Sarawak is presently mute on the legality of the underground drive. Is there some kind of directives from the higher level?

All Sarawakians can't afford not to follow through!

Gawai Dayak Visit - in picture

Our Gawai Dayak visit To Kg. Tutus was very much enriched by this traditional music performance in the ruai of the longhouse. We were greatly enthralled by the fine rhythm. The music shows the richness of the Iban culture.

VMY Badges-late decision or late delivery?

We just received 100 VMY (Visit Malaysia Year 2007) badges from the Ministry of Tourism. Our front-liners are required to put on the badge to create awareness and to add impact to the tourism promotions.

This little support material is cute and certainly is for good cause. We all love it and give the Ministry our big hand.

But what we are bemused is the timing of the despatch of the badges-we received them when VMY is almost halfway through. The intended publicity is therefore very much less (as far as the VMY badges are concerned).

There is no doubt that the VMY badges came late by any standard. What is of interest is: is it due to administrative delay in despatch or simply a late decision on VMY badges?

A real showdown

YB Dr. Soon Choon Teck recently set up Dudong Constituency Elections Office and put up a signboard outside the office. This was certainly unpleasant to the other faction, but there was no apparent course open to them since setting up an elections office did not contravene the party's rules.

I just learned that the office would be opened on June 4, to be officiated by YB Datuk David Teng. YB Datuk Sri Wong has been invited to attend the function. The opening has been scheduled in such a way as to coincide with the branch level celebrations of the party' anniversary by Sibu branch of SUPP.

The market talk is that YB Dr. Soon's faction is making a pre-emptive strike in an effort to gain an upper hand over formation of the proposed Dudong branch. Did they receive a pat on the back ? It would be interesting to watch out.

Gawai Dayak

Today (1st of June) is Gawai Dayak. It is a public holiday in Sarawak.

Gawai Dayak is a festival celebrated both as religious and social occasion. The word Gawai means ritual or festival. Dayak is a collective name for native races in Sarawak: the Iban, Biduyuh, Kayan, Kenyah, Kelibit, Mulut people and a few more. According to historical records, Gawai Dayak started in 1957 by Mr. Ian Kingsley, a radio programme organiser. It generated a lot of interest among the Dayak community.

I went for Gawai visit this morning with my GM and some other staff to Kg. Tutus. The kampung (in BM, means village) is accessible by road, albeit only of plantation estate gravel-covered standard.

We went to John's (our security supervisor) , Renang's(our assistant bell captain) and their relatives' houses.They all served tuak(rice wine) and traditional delicacy like penganan(cake). John also prepared roasted glutinous rice in bamboo (called ngelulun pulut), chicken curry, beef curry and mixed vegetables for us. The longhouse folks also entertained us with the traditional music at the ruai (an open gallery which runs through the entire length of the longhouse). We had a wonderful day of visiting.

Malaysia is blessed with racial harmony which many other countries admire. Visits during festive occasions among racial groups is one way to maintain harmonious relationships between races. We have to keep up this tradition.