SeaDemon Says

So much has been said by many parties about the Causeway/Bridge fiasco. The latest salvo was unleashed by Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, Minister in the PM’s Department against former PM, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. My father’s written about it several weeks ago in one of Sunday Star’s editions. Professor Emeritus Datuk Dr Khoo Kay Kim has also spoken about it. Some people asked me what I thought of the whole issue.

To me, the question of building half a bridge on our side and then connecting it to the present causeway on Singapore’s half should not be a problem to us Malaysians. I don’t see any legal issues there as far as International Relations goes. As long as the Malaysian side can guarantee that Singapore’s water supply from Johor is not affected. We are not asking the Singaporeans to play along and build their half to match ours, for God’s sake! I’m sure had the bridge been built, it would have helped alleviate some of the traffic flow problems the causeway is notoriously known for. When the Singaporeans reclaimed part of the straits that would have put the Royal Malaysian Navy’s recruit training center at Tanjung Pengelih, and the Port of Tanjung Pelepas in jeopardy, did Singapore bat an eyelid when we protested? No. I don’t think so. Why? It was perfectly within their jurisdiction to do whatever they please within the confines of their national boundary. So why should it have affected us had we continue to build the half-bridge?

To me, the only sound the Singaporeans would make would be due to economic and military interest. First, coastal traders from the west coast no longer have to sail through Singapore’s southern waters to get to the east coast. That may also help boost coastal trading between the east and west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Secondly, a causeway is a more solid channel for Singaporean tanks to get to Segamat in the case of hostilities with Malaysia. A bridge would have been easier to be blown up in the event of hostilities.

Maybe we are all still half-past-six…

Saw this boat as I was walking back to Nazri 2. The owner must have once been so proud to own this boat. Now, as you can see, it is sunset for this boat…

That is how love and life is for us too…

Very stormy day today…

Storms will come, I’m sure…but tell me can you stand the rain?

10 years ago I participated as an exhibitor of this exhibition…at that time trying to sell a GPS-tracking and fleet management system that is made in Malaysia (which was why no Malaysians found it interesting…but Hughes Satellites was very interested to know how we got the accuracy then in 1996).

By the way, it has been a fruitful visit, met lots of old friends, both from the Air Force and the Army (still serving as very senior officers, and those who like me, are somewhat still serving the King). I’ve found one half of what I was searching for and found and extra interesting thing.

Let’s see what I can do with these infos.

Tun Ghafar Baba passed away this morning. He was 81 years old. He was the Deputy Prmie Minister of Malayisa from 1986 to 1993 when he was challenged by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim fot the UMNO’s Deputy President’s post and subsequebtly lost to the latter.

When Anwar was sacked from UMNO in September 1998, Ghafar was seen going around giving speeches and although many thought he would return to mainstream politics, he never made his mark as Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah could.

Although his life towards the end was shrouded in some personal controversies, Malaysians should remember him for his deeds as his political life spanned both pre-independence and post-independence.