D3500 Welcome to Malaysia!

Today marks the first day of the District 3500 Goodwill Visit to Malaysia.

A delegation of 16 young and vibrant Rotaractors from District 3500 (Taiwan, ROC) will be spending 6 days with our club.

This District Event is hosted by our club and is by far the biggest project our club has undertaken.

The challenge is up and our club prepares to face the same.

Wishing all Rotaractors from D3500 Taiwan ROC a great stay here in Malaysia and hope we will learn many things from each other and great friendship fostered.

Centennial RYLA Report Part 2

Contributed By Rtr Harnniann


RYLA Starts

After the unnecessarily lengthy, boring, and no fun at all opening ceremony (which I do not want to waste much time elaborating), the RYLA 2005 started at last. We had ice breaking games, which again was extremely childish and uncreative. We were asked to get to know 5 persons in 30 seconds then later we have to find out 3 things he likes and 3 things he dislikes. Uurghh!

After the ice breaking (I hoped it did crack the ice berg), we were divided into 4 groups: the red, the green, the orange and the yellow. I was the yellow. Each group will come up with the group name, group cheers and group leader.

It is worthwhile to state here that the only two youth exchange students, a Canadian and a Brazilian were both in my group. As everyone was very shy and unimaginative, it took a long time for us to start talking. But one medical student broke the silence and suggested we called ourselves “yellow, yellow dirty fellow”. How lame is that?! So, I said what about “Bananas”? To my surprise, the Brazilian boy said that was a good name and everyone just concurred. So that’s our name, “The Bananas”.

Since the Brazilian boy is the tallest among us so we picked him as our leader (another sign of being uncreative and unimaginative).


The Talks

After lunch, we had our first talk. Before I go into the talks, I wish to say that from here onwards, everyone pays punctuality only lip service. Time is no longer of the essence. There was no usher, no enforcer to tell us it’s time to drop our fork and spoon and rush to the auditorium. So as you can imagine, everyone took their own sweet time to have lunch, dessert, fruits or even enjoying a small chat with new friends while our speakers were patiently waiting for us in the auditorium.

The talks started 15 minutes late and from there onwards none of the talks for the next 3 days were punctual.

As you probably can tell from the schedule, RYLA offered us a great deal of talks with a variety of topic ranging from as trivial as knowing ourselves to issues as big as racial harmony. However, there are only a few talks worth highlighting here.

Our very first speaker was Mr. Paul Jambunathan a.k.a Fishy Jambu. He is a psychologist by profession. His topic was “who am I?”. He talks about knowing ourselves, our emotions and our feelings. One thing I like about his talk was that he wanted us to be different. Not to follow blindly. He gave an example of himself. Had he followed his father’s advice he would end up being a doctor. Not to say that being doctor is not good, but more importantly, being a doctor is not something Jambu wants or enjoys. He wants to be a psychologist. He listened to his inner self, defied all the advice of the elders and dared to be different. So, I learned to be different.

Dolly Kee is a woman you seldom if not never see walking on the street. The way she wears, conducts herself and speaks is impeccable. She is so unreal. She speaks on “Image Power”. This was what she said, “image is not a way to fool others, but rather a communication tool to express our strengths, attributes and attitudes. It is therefore vital that we take charge of all these “image tangibles” and make them work for us instead of against us”. She did some demonstrations to show us how important image is in our society. Unfortunately, I feel that she had spent too much time focusing on the wrong issues. We all know that image is important so by looking professional it would help us in giving other’s a good impression of ourselves. But she missed the bigger and more important picture. She didn’t touch on “how” to wear professionally. Her main focus was on “why” to wear professionally. What a waste. She was an interesting speaker who caught her audience’s attention. She started her talk by asking. “do you trust me?” It was a very bold question. Nevertheless, lucky for her, some of the audience actually said yes.

I was given the task of introducing the only speaker in uniform—the ex-OCPD of Klang. I am quite sure some of you may have heard of him already. He is now the head of the Prosecution and Investigation Studies, Royal Police College, Cheras. His topic was “youth and crime”. The highlight of his talk was when he showed us picture of a human body badly slashed, chopped, sliced, cut, severed whatever words you want to call it in a gang clash using power point. Then he asked us whether we are ready for lunch. Come one man! There went my appetite. The pictures he showed were really ghastly and I bet you could not find them in any newspaper. But I guess the picture served its educational purposes. Now, everyone would think twice before engaging a fight blindly. Oh, one more thing before I leave our ex-OCPD alone, during Q & A sessions, someone asked him how many people he had killed. He asked us to guess. So we shouted numbers like 2, 10, 25 and 28. I was stunned in disbelief when he told us the actual number. During his career as a policeman, he had shot dead 169 people (here’s the catch: he didn’t say criminals or bad guys). From the manner he told us, I guess he feels proud about it.

Apart from the above talks which I specifically highlighted, we had speakers who talked on racial harmony and Rakan Muda (both were disasters from the start and I failed to see the relevancy); who talked on chairing a successful meeting, managing personal and club’s funds, organizing successful club projects etc. Ok, speaking of successful club projects, do you all know what are the criteria of a successful project? The key word is “originality”. Why? Come on now, folks. That’s food for thought.

I have some comment about the talks. I also voiced this out during forum time at the end of RYLA. If you look at the schedule, it was really tight. And worse still, we were all confined in the four walls of the auditorium and had to be seated like schoolboys. Further, there are some sessions which had 3 to 5 talks in a row with short coffee breaks in between. Please bear in mind that the majority of the participants were people like me who had left school for a number of years. And to ask us to sit down for a few hours listening to speakers after speakers without any form of physical activities is unwise. Another word to describe this scenario is “torturing”.


I expected more outdoor activities like rock climbing, canoeing, tug of war, sports etc but what I got was classrooms, meeting rooms, conference rooms and auditorium. At first when I looked at the program called “Rakan Muda”, I thought we were going to have fun doing some kick a** activities. Instead, we have some Timbalan Pengarah schooled us on the background of Rakan Muda. Sheer disappointment.



(To be continued)

Without fear or favour (Season 2) Part 2

Contributed by Rtr Harnniann


Andy was in shock. His eyes were floating and difficult to stay focus. From his oily face and red eyes, I knew he had not slept for more than 24 hours.

He was unable to organize his speech. Though poorly narrated, I could more or less sum up as below:-

He was having a drink in Bukit Tinggi at around 2am in the morning. Suddenly a gang fight occurred. LCD screen was smashed and glasses were thrown. He was not involved in the fight (he emphasized that repeatedly).As he was concerned that his car (parked in front of the entrance) might be hit by the flying objects, so he drove his car away. But when he was in his car, a stranger went into his car and demanded Andy to send him home. Andy was afraid so he did what was demanded. He sent that guy home. After sending this stranger home, Andy went back to the crime scene again out of curiosity. There he was questioned then arrested by police.

While in the police lockup, he was not beaten up. He was asked to surrender all his personal belongings. No statement was recorded from Andy. Basically the police ignored him totally. He waited and waited but the police did not tell him why he was arrested and when he could be released. He concluded that he was “shui” (bad luck) being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

That was pretty much what Andy told me. There were many missing links and questions in his story but I reckoned I have got sufficient information at the moment. I could grill him for more details at later stage if necessary.

I wanted to give him a lengthy lecture about not to stray at mamak or street at wee hour, but I thought Andy was not able to take it. A little more stress or guilt built on him, he would definitely snap.

After taking statement from Andy (now officially my client), I have to figure out what to do next.

Andy was brought to Magistrate Court because the police wanted to apply remand order to detain Andy for a longer period to enable police to investigate. I have to make out reasons to convince the Magistrate why further detention is not necessary.

I took out a blank sheet of paper and started digging my brain to recall what I have learned about remand order in college. I jotted down whatever points I could think of.

“Hey, Harnniann, my father did not know I am here.” Andy said suddenly.

“Ok, don’t worry. I will handle that. Leave it to me” I took out my handphone searching for his dad’s number.

“tell them not to come” Andy whispered softly.

I did not need to ask why.

Andy was in a horrible state: barefoot, red eyes, dirty shirts, oily face and hair, and most terribly, on handcuffs. No one will want their parents to see them on handcuffs. That stigma will scar their memory forever.

I called Andy’s father and told him his son is in Klang Magistrate Court. Andy’s dad was initially in a great mood and was in no way ready for such news. But he stayed cool.

“Is it because of drug?” Andy’s father asked forcefully.

“No, uncle. Nothing like that. Don’t worry”

“I will be there in 5 minutes” then he hung up.

Immediately after I finished my call, Andy and the rest were led into the court room.

I grabbed my suit case and the few papers I just jotted quickly and followed them in.

Inside the court room, the real action begun…



(to be continued)

A Woman Should Have

Contributed by PE Hui Hui

March 8 was International Women’s Day. I was touched after reading this poem sent by a friend on that date.

Please, nod and chuckle if you have to. I am sure this poem applies to all of us, woman around the world. For the men, read this poem it with an open mind and heart.

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
.....one old love
she can imagine
going back to...
and one who remindsher how far she has come.

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
.....enough money within her
control to move out and
rent a place of her own
even if she never wants
to or needs to...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
..... something perfect to wear if
the employer or date of her dreams
wants to see her in an hour...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
..... a youth she's content
to leave behind...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
......a past juicy enough that
she's looking forward to
retelling it in her old age....

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
......a set of screwdrivers, a
cordless drill, and a black
lace bra...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
.....one friend who always makes
her laugh . and one who lets
her cry...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
......a good piece of furniture
not previously owned by anyone
else in her family...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
......eight matching plates, wine
glasses with stems, and a recipe
for a meal that will make her
guests feel honored.

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
......a feeling of control over
her destiny...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
.....how to fall in love without
losing herself...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
....how to quit a job,
break up with a lover,
and confront a friend
without ruining the friendship...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
.....when to try harder ...
and when to walk away...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
....that she can't change the
length of her calves, the width of her hips,
or the nature of her parents...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW..
......that her childhood may not
have been perfect...
but its over...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.....
.....what she would and wouldn't
do for love or more...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
.....how to live alone... even if
she doesn't like it...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
.....whom she can trust,
whom she can't,
and why she shouldn't
take it personally...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
.....where to go...
be it to her best friend's
kitchen table...
or a charming inn in the woods...
when her soul needs soothing...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
..... what she can and can't
accomplish in a day...
a month...and a year...

People say what we are all seeking is the meaning of life...
I think what we're really seeking

In a nutshell..

"If you look at what you do not have in life, you don't have anything, If you look at what you have in life, you have everything."

Centennial RYLA Report (Part 1)

Contributed by Rtr Harnniann

During last club meeting, I promised to publish the report prepared by me 2 years ago about the Centennial RYLA I participated for members' reference. Here it is.

Good evening, Rotary Club of Port Klang! I really appreciate the opportunity extended to me in allowing me to take part in RYLA 2005 held at Permata, Kajang. Now, it’s pay back time. As a sign of my appreciation, allow me to share with all of you briefly my experience, observation and everything else in RYLA 2005.


The Beginning

At first, President Michael (as he then was) really did give me the expectation/impression that he will hold my hand and bring me to attend RYLA so I had nothing to worry about. Hey, obviously I was wrong.

I did not know the exact location of Permata, Kajang though I downloaded the map from the RYLA website. One day before RYLA, a Rotarian (the name I could not remember) called me and asked whether I need transport. I thought this could save me all the hassles so I said yes, I need transport. But her reaction was rather surprising, “har? You need transport ar?... you cannot drive there meh?” I said I can drive if necessary then she happily asked me to drive over there just following the map. I thanked her anyway for the hospitality.

I started my journey at 8.25am and without much problem I reached Permata at about 9.15am. After getting clearance from the guards, I observed that there was no sign at all to tell me where I should go! I didn’t even know where to park my car. So I guess I’d have to use some common sense. I parked my car under one big tree, took my luggage and walked to the auditorium. I tried the auditorium first as I thought the open ceremony would take place over there. I was wrong. There was no one there. Then, I tried the sport centre as I thought they would need a big space for registration, gathering and also briefing. I walked all the way under the hot sun only to find out I was wrong again. No one was there.

I got lucky the third time, it was the hostel. I guess I was one of the early birds to be there. I saw a few young (and not so young) people wearing the same shirt hanging around at the foyer. I approached one young man and informed him that I was there for RYLA. Without a smile he said nonchalantly, “tell them your name and register yourself.” Wow! President, can I go home now?

Fortunately the young Indian lady at the registration counter was very friendly. She asked for my name and gave me a file, a bag of goodies and a RYLA t-shirt. She also handed over my room key to me. My room was D35. I headed straight to my room to check it out.

My Roommates

I was the earliest to get into the room so I had the privilege of choosing my bed. It has 4 single beds but I think for economical purposes they put two mattress on the floor so that it could accommodate six persons. I chose the one next to the window. After a while, my roommates started to check in one by one.

Now, let me introduce my roommates:-

First, we have Chandra (Now DRR Chandra). He is a friendly man from Bayu Perdana Klang but he is from Rotaract Club of Bangsar. He owns his own business in Bayu Perdana dealing with computer software. Next is Thaya. His business card suggested that he is a negotiator. What’s that? He explained, “I do real property”. Oh, a real estate agent who calls himself a negotiator.

Then we have Wah. I could easily tell that he was not very happy to be there. He spent half his time in RYLA talking on his handphone, can’t wait to get out I guess. Later I found out that he was there because he was chosen by his company for training as part of the ISO requirements. Ok, now we have two late comers. One is Imran and another is Scott Lee. Imran has a wonderful athlete body and he plays professional hockey. Scott Lee on the other hand is a man of few words. You know, the silence is golden type.

The Hotel and Facilities

When I first reached Permata I couldn’t believe my eyes. I had this impression that I was going to some place like the national service camp. But I was dead wrong. Permata is something like a resort or villa with swimming pool, nice greeneries, sport centres, tennis court and great view. Once I settled down, I called Eric Yap, my boss to tell him how excited I was. Now that the Rotary Club of Port Klang had sent me here for vacation! I told him I am going to enjoy myself here and he told me that I had no idea what I’ve gotten myself into. Well, he was right (or at least partially right).

To be continued...

From the DRC

Speech given by District Rotaract Chairman PP Arthur Yeong during Charter Night of Rotaract Club of Asian Institute of Medicine Science and Technology

Guest of Honour DGN Dr Rajindar Singh
My dear Rotaractors & Guests
My fellow Rotarians

Today is the seventh day of the Lunar New Year and the Chinese traditionally celebrate the birth of Man on this day by having raw fish. It is therefore auspicious that we are celebrating the birth of the Rotaract Club of Asian Institute of Medicine Science and Technology.

My message is simply this : the survival of this Rotaract Club will materially depend on two key persons : the Rotaract President and the Rotarian Advisor.

Of course the President being one person can only do so much. She will need the support and cooperation of each of her Board Members. Garnering those two elements may be the most difficult part of the job.

President, you must bear in mind that as the chief executive of your Club, you are responsible for every single thing concerning the Club. If you have a Director who does not perform, that is your fault. If a project fails, that is also your fault. If a Director resigns, that too is your fault. You are ultimately answerable for everything that goes wrong.

Having taken all the brickbats it would only be human to reach for the bouquets when they come, if they come. However I urge you to make that extreme sacrifice of always giving the credit to your Directors and Members. I urge you to only bask in the glory that reflects off them. I know this is unfair, but it is the mark of a great leader and President.

PP Ann Ang I understand that you have the privilege of being advisor to RAC AIMST. Welcome to a little known but elite band of Rotarians in this District. They are the ones who attend Club Meeting after Club Meeting, Board Meeting after Board Meeting of Rotaract Clubs. They dispense advice when it is sought, they correct the same mistakes year in year out. This group of our fellow Rotarians have to bear with their well meaning advice being rejected by Rotaractors. They have to be strong for there is much to put up with. These Rotarians walk that fine line between keeping the Rotaract Club on an even keel and controlling and running the Club. The former is a duty, the latter would be a sin.

However should your Rotaractors ever contemplate carrying out anything legally or morally wrong, you must come down hard on the side of what is legal or moral.

Do not underestimate the value which your Rotaractors will place on your presence at their Meetings. When the Rotaract Year is over and they look back, they would have forgotten much of what you have said but they will always cherish your always being there for them.

The most valuable things you can give your Rotaractors are neither money nor sponsorship but your love and attention.

As of last week, AIMST was the third largest Rotaract Club in the District after UTP and Bernam Valley, with 70 members. I congratulate you on that and I leave it to you whether you should try to be the largest. As I have always told RAC UTP, it is not good enough to be the biggest, it is better to be the best.

All in a day

Contributed by Rtr Vi-Vien

It's 7.30 pm on a Friday night and I'm sitting in my office waiting for a phone call. At 6.30 p.m., we were informed of revisions to be done and that we needed to get a job sent for color separation to output for materials for printing tonight (Thanks for not informing us earlier on in the day and working with us on it when we sent the artwork over at 3 p.m.!).

10 minutes ago, my client was just rushing me for the final artwork so that she can go home (I want to go home too! If you had reverted earlier we could all have gone home by now!). Then, after I get it rushed up and send it over to her, she informs me that she's already on her way home and asks me to send it to her personal email account (Oh, wonderful! So now we all have to wait while you get to go home). She will check it when she reaches home and give me the approval to proceed to develop material for printing. My colleagues and I wait patiently for another fifteen minutes. Still no call yet.

I wait patiently while my colleagues come up to me every 5 minutes to ask if they can get it done and go home already. Soon. Soon. I always say, wishing to go home soon as well. After half an hour, I call my client, thinking I have given her ample time to reach home and check her email. "Are we ready to proceed?" I ask. "Give me a bit of time. I've got something to do at the moment and haven't checked my email." she says. "Please hurry ok?" I say in a cheerful tone (What!?!? You're not having your dinner while we wait for your go-ahead are you?). My colleagues ask me again right after I put down the phone.

So? Can output for materials already?
Wait, she hasn't seen it yet.
What! How long more do we have to wait?
Soon, I want to go home as well....(Please don't chase me anymore, I'm already rushing the client!)

I call the client in 5 minutes time again.

Have you seen it yet? Is it ok to proceed?
Wait, I'm just opening my email. Call you back in a minute.
Ok.

Phone rings 5 minutes later...

Hi, is the artwork ok?
Ok, just add in this and this and then you can send it out for color sep.
Ok, please send me an email to confirm your approval.
OK.

I put down the phone. Get the artwork revised (Colleagues reaction: What! Change again??? How many times does she want to change things?) and inform my colleagues of the good news that we can proceed after this changes. Then we check the artwork to make sure there are no mistakes and send it out.

That's the downside of my work. The odd hours we have to work, never knowing when you have to stay back late, and getting torn between the clients and the creative team, handling complaints from both sides. The above is a true scenario when a job is almost 90% complete [where we say it's in the FA (final artwork) stage]. I have left out the long winded process of developing the artwork from scratch. This scenario may not happen most of the time but it does happen, and it happened more than once for me.

The upside of my work? The satisfaction and pride you get when you see your work in the magazine. Or in the newspaper. Or in your mailbox. Or even on the television and you get to tell your family and friends "Look! We did that!"

So I'm not really complaining about my work. Everyone has got periods when they are stressed out in their jobs, no matter what they're doing. Just as long as we think it's worth it at the end of the day, all we really want is to vent our frustrations every once in a while right?

Also, please bear with us when we start boasting or ranting about an ad we produced when we show you one. Some people say, this is the only thing that keeps people working in this industry.

P.S: Captions in red are what went through my mind at that moment. No hard feelings to all those who are working on the client's side. We know that you are busy too, but please do not take the agency for granted. We're also just doing our jobs and are not supposed to be on standby 24 hours a day. ;-)



Blogmaster's note: This hardest part in publishing this article is the COLOUR! When I copy and paste Vi-Vien's article into the blog, it became ALL BLACK... the red colours caption were gone! For a colourblind to find out which sentences to highlight red is painstaking. I even have to seek the help of my colleagues to check whether I miss out any red colours caption. Whoosh!

Watching you grow up

Contributed by President Feldman

I woke up in the morning of 20th August 2006. I was anticipating the Durian Feast we were going to have with the Rotaractors to celebrate our 2nd successful Installation at Uncle Shung Lee’s house. It was then Mummy told me that she’s bleeding slightly. We arrived in Sunway Medical Center an hour later and the nurse quarantined Mummy. After 12 long hours waiting in agony, you finally came. I can still remember seeing you coming out of Mummy’s body bluish in color. When you arrived, your eyes opened so long staring at everything around you. The nurse took your measurements, 50cm & 3.16kg. Nurses cleaned you up and put you in the room with all the little friends, where you lied wrapped up with only your face visible. There, your little swollen eyes are still opened wide, yawning away, but still stubbornly keeping yourself awake. Your first visitors were Godma & Uncle Wei Yih. They managed to see you staring around from the glass window at the baby room. After two hours pass your delivery, you finally gave up and fell into wonderland, the first sleep out of mummy’s womb.

Six months has passed us by unknowingly. Everyday when I am at work, I am anticipating the time to go home and see this little girl of mine. On Wednesday 7th March 2007, we went to see Dr. Tan and took your measurements. You were 69cm & 8.26kg. Now, you can move around in the living room on your pink walker, grabbing anything that you can reach and putting in your mouth. It comes to no surprise now because it was also Wednesday that we discovered that our little baby is growing her first tooth, at the bottom front. Now, you are also learning to crawl. The only difference of you crawling is while other infants are crawling forward, you are squiggling wormlike backwards. And somehow when you try to reach something at the front, you will stretch and bend further away from the object. I guess your biological compass is still a little confused right now, but Daddy’s pretty sure you will get it very soon. You now have a very pretty face (with exceptions of numerous mosquito bites all around because you slept with Mummy & Daddy), and are full of energy.

Everybody is complaining their hands ache whenever they carry you, but you must be very lucky because those people never seem to give up. You get so used to people carrying you, now you’re spoilt. You cannot lie down and play very long. You seemed to have swallowed an amplifier because when you scream, god will jump out of his bed. Nevertheless, you have brought joy into the family. Your sweet smiles and laughter has been very contagious.

Leanne, having you around has brought a new life for most of us, especially Mummy & Daddy. It has been tiring enjoyable, but it is something we are looking forward to. We have much plans lined up for you, and we will be here, watching you grow.

Thanks for the suprises

Contributed by Rtr Harnniann

After writing about my last year birthday in this blog, I was thinking this year birthday I might not have anything interesting to write. Surprisingly I do have.

8th of March is International Women's day and also my birthday.

On the 8th evening, my Boss PP Eric aksed me whether I bought a cake to celebrate my birthday at the office. He said he was hungry. That got me so upset that I replied that it was him and the rest that should buy me cake! At that exact moment, my colleagues brought in a surprise cake for me (which they secretly bought during lunch time). We sang birthday song and enjoyed the fruitcake. Thanks for the surprise!

At night, after eating dinner with my client (who also celebrated his birthday on the 8th) my wife Rtr Engtee and I went home straight. During the journey home, Engtee was complaining about not having the idea and time to plan a surprise for me. She said she wanted to but apologize for her failure. I said I understand. We are all working adults and we have limited time to plan surprise.

BUT, the surprise did come. When I was crawling to my bed, I touched a square object hidden under my blanket. I took it out and realised it was my surprise present. It was John Grisham's latest novel titled "The Innocent Man" (not paperback but hard cover!!). A couple of days ago Engtee had innocently asked me about which John Grisham is interesting as our friend Kexin wanted to read it. I told her the latest was "The Innocent Man" but I had not read it because the paperback has not come out and there it is, now I have my first John Grisham in hardcover. Thanks for the surprise!

Just when I thought all the birthday surprises were over, it popped up again 3 days later.

Engtee and I argued about bringing a cake (which she claimed was for her office farewell party) to the Medical Camp in Bukit Cheeding, Kuala Langat. She said she wanted to bring the cake there so she could pass the cake to her colleague who will travel all the way from Pandamaran to Bukit Cheeding. I told her that idea was very stupid and if her colleague was willing to travel all the way from Pandamaran to Bukit Cheeding just to pick up a cake, her colleague was stupid too.

It ended up the cake was for my birthday celebration together with the March babies of our club. So I got a surprise birthday party with my fellow club members at the Medical Camp. Thanks for the surprise!

I am going to end this article the same way I ended last year's:-

"I think God is fair and at the same time unfair. Fair, in the sense that everyone (whether you are poor or rich, boy or girl) has a birthday; unfair, because not everyone has the privilege to enjoy a meaningful and unforgettable birthday celebration. I am grateful that I am the lucky one."

Leaving for GSE

Dear all,

Just wanna say good bye and take care, I shall see u in a month time!

The team & I are leaving from KLIA on Tuesday night and should be back by April 17th. (if I am not eaten by the Cannibalism Tribe!!)

Hereby, thank you all for all the great times we have had and I shall come back with a bag full of tales and watever should I get... ;)

Regards,
Rtr Lloyd Cheam

PS: Have fun with the Taiwan Visit, take lotsa pictures!!!
IPP, dont stress out too much, good luck.

For more info and pics on GSE (Group Study Exhange) please click here. Thanks!

Without Fear or Favour (Season 2) Part 1

Contributed by Rtr Harnniann

Before I go into the core of this article, please allow me to share with you some interesting facts about being arrested and detained.

Section 28 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code (Act 593) provides that no police officer shall detain in custody a person arrested without a warrant for a longer period than under all the circumstances of the case is reasonable.

Section 28 (3) further provides that such period shall not exceed 24 hours (except with special order of a Magistrate).

From the above, it does not need a law professional to tell us that, in short, section 28 means that after the police arrested and detained a person, necessary action(s) must be taken promptly without any delay and a person being so detained must be released within reasonable period which shall not exceed 24 hours.

But there’s a catch. The “24 hours rule” is not absolute (please do not believe the Hong Kong drama) The detention period may be extended to more than 24 hours if a Magistrate by a special order (normally called “Remand Order”) pursuant to section 117 authorizes so.

Section 117 gives Magistrate discretion to authorize the detention of a person for a term not exceeding 15 days.

Ok, with the above as the backdrop of this article, I shall now proceed to the core.

Very seldom do I handle criminal cases. It is not that I do not have the opportunity: Klang is a place never suffers hunger for crime. Please visit the Klang court when you are free and you shall be amazed by the number of suspects being handcuffed and hauled in and out of the courtrooms.

Most of the time, I turned down the brief. Partly because I was not trained as a criminal lawyer during my pupilage thus accumulating little experience in this field. Partly because I do not have the stomach for such works. Let me explain why.

Yesterday afternoon when I was driving back to Klang from PJ, I received a phonecall which caller id showed “private number”.

“Hello?” I answered.

“Is Andy (a fictitious name) your friend?” a guy asked very rudely.

“Why you need to know?” defensively

“Andy is in Klang Court now, you want to come over or not?”

“Why is Andy in Klang Court?”

“Police applying to extend detention period”

“Ok, I am coming” I answered decisively.

Maybe I have omitted some important facts. Andy is a very close friend of mine. During my days in high school, I often spent nights at his house, sharing the little single bed of his. Because I so used to going to his house, his parents treat me like their son. Sometimes, Andy’s mum even referred Andy as my “god-brother”.

After the conversation with a complete stranger, I hit the accelerator and sped along Federal Highway. In my mind, two things appeared:-

(1) I have to rush to the Court quickly because the police and Magistrate will not wait for me. Don’t you imagine that the Magistrate will say, "ok, we shall wait for awhile while waiting for your lawyer to arrive.” If the Andy’ name is called up before I manage to be there, the Magistrate will proceed to hear the application in my absence and Andy will have to face the whole system alone and defencelessly.

(2) I have never done a remand order application before!!

I reached Klang Court in 20 minutes, parked my car, put on my blazer and rushed to the court building.

The first floor of the building was crowded with people in handcuffs and chains. The space was filled with human odour and the smell was terrible. The luckier ones were sitting on the bench outside the courtroom and the not-so-lucky ones were squatting.

I scanned the room. Andy was sitting on the edge of the bench, handcuffed. He appeared exhausted and was unaware of my presence.

I patted his shoulder. He jerked his head up and looked at me. He was unable to force a smile. The first thing he said was “thanks for coming, please help me”.

The thing about being a lawyer is: people always look at you for comfort and strength because they have none.

The truth is I had no idea how remand order application was going to be like. I studied about it once in college but I had since given it back to my tutor after I passed my CLP exam.

But at that material time, I could not appear weak. My friend was begging for help! I reckoned I could figure it out when I face the Magistrate.

So I decided to act as if I have done this a thousand times before and today is just another routine of my working days.

I uncapped my pen and took out a piece of paper.

“Are you hurt? Did they beat you up in lockup?” trying to sound like a seasoned criminal lawyer.

“No” thank God.

Then I centred my questions on the arrest. What actually happened?

When I collected all the answers from Andy, I was dead shocked.

Welcome to dark side of reality.


(to be continued)

Office Demolition Photos