Jazz aficionados would by now be aware of the annual Penang Island Jazz Festival that has been staged since 2004. Well, this year, perhaps, because of the change in government, we are going to get a bonus! Come 30th April, 2008, there shall be a mini jazz festival at the New World Park along Burmah Road, Penang.
The event starts at 6.00 pm with performances by Penang based jazz outfits, each one performing for about forty-five minutes. The featured artistes are the following : -
Areca Jazz Ensemble
Q Jazz Collective
Northern Jazz Ensemble
Jeep Latino Jazz Band
The audience can expect styles ranging from Swing, Be-bop, Hard Bob, Fusion and Latin-Jazz in the repertoire. There will also be vocals featuring Dasha Logan and in all probabilities, Mohd. Razif aka Jeep. Entry to the event is free!
For the those alien to Penang, New World Park is now an “in-place”! It is now a complex of sorts, with theme restaurants, shops, a food court featuring indigenous Penang hawker food! The most famous, of course, is the Ice Kacang with fruit toppings!
So, jazz lovers, and generally, those who appreciate good music, wherever you may be in Malaysia, if you do have the time, do come to Penang and savour our local delights and, at the same time enjoy the music.
Groove to the beat and get fat!
people era, I mean.
Has the Bar Council been manipulated or coerced into hosting this dinner? That judicial reforms shall be unveiled at the dinner was a known fact. In spite of this, the Bar Council, Malaysia, has not seen fit to invite the Bench? Unbelievable! How could elementary protocol like this be ignored? It would be unbecoming of the Bar Council, Malaysia, to plead ”oversight” for this omission, which appears premeditated.
It really beats me to see certain quarters getting all excited about the event. How justice has been served with the announcement of financial compensations to the victims of the l988 Judicial Crisis and recognition of their exemplary contributions, may sound very good, but how sincere is the effort? A planned event, where one of the highlights of the evening was the announcement of the JAC, the Bench was snubbed! Why do I hear a very loud “We don’t want Judges here!”
The big question here is who is “we”. Is it the Bar Council, Malaysia? Or is it the government of the day, since they are the paymasters? If it was the government, then how on earth could the Bar Council, Malaysia, allow themselves to participate in this neat hoax? Why walk for justice?
Dear Bangsa Malaysia, all good things have to come to an end....the best romance, the best movie, the best football game & often, the best of friendships!! Talking about not being able to "get close" to the other races, I feel we have to look beyond ourselves. We tend to look for "similar" looks, behaviour, likes
& dislikes when we look to hook up to someone new (when lust doesn't blind us...hahaha!)& language, culture & the many years of brain-washing by our family/environment play an important role in determining whom we "click" with.
I must say "Kudos" to Yasmin Ahmad who has so subtly crossed the borders with her poignant & realistic movies.....can you deny the genuine "feel" of the movies, don't we understand what she is telling us through her movies? There is no hidden message, all is clear for any level-headed person to see.....united we stand! Malaysians, make her dream our reality! God Bless our sister Yasmin who deserves all our respect
for being brave enough to give us a glimpse of what Muhibbah is really all about.
A dinner paid for by the government and hosted by the Bar Council, Malaysia, where judicial reforms were unveiled, was held without invitation to the Bench! ??? I am speechless ………
……..(to be continued tomorrow)
Aiyah...What happen da..? The speech too boring for you? Or has the sleep virus of PackLah infected you too?
Penang 14th April:
Our worst fear may yet come true! Yes, this Bangsa Malaysia dream, we just may not see it in our lifetime. Not with the current crop of irresponsible BN politicians, especially those from UMNO, who on the pretext of championing the Malay cause, abused the NEP in the name of “Ketuanan Melayu”. The strong message from the Rakyat on that fateful day in March has been received with even stronger rhetoric. Rubbing the salt in, they now got some royalty involved.
After the reassuring statements by Raja Nazrin, whom I believe has all the hallmarks of a wise ruler, the speech by the Regent of Kelantan was a super shocker! Here, we have a member of the Kelantan Royalty screaming about the erosion of Malay dominance? My worry is there are still many gullible souls out there. It is unfortunate but true that there are those with lower levels of literacy and education who would become victims of these irresponsible orators. Fiery speeches delivered with passion, can drive people into a frenzy, and that my friend, is playing with fire! Mob rule is frightening! It is a wonder that the PDRM does not deem these speeches as seditious. Can I now adduce that the PDRM supports “Ketuanan Melayu”? Over to you, Mr. IGP.
“Every dark cloud has a silver lining” they say. At least tonight, in my opinion, the healing begins. According to “The Strait Times” (Singapore), in a piece by Leslie Lopez, the Government of Malaysia and the Bar Council, Malaysia, shall play host to the surviving victims of the 1988 Judicial Crisis. Tun Salleh Abas, Datuk George Seah, Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin and Tan Sri Wan Hamzah have confirmed their attendance. Acting against the Cabinet’s wishes, it seems BADawi shall apologize to them and reportedly they shall also be some financial compensations as well! There’s a bonus too! Judicial Reforms shall also be unveiled tonight at the dinner.
There are still quite a number who feels mere apologies are insufficient. I shall not delve into any debate, as it is too lengthy. I am just happy that the first step has been taken and we can move forward. Correspondingly, Bangsa Malaysia is in its infancy. We got to be patient and not give up. It is up to us to take the first step. Remember what’s his name? The guy who began his journey with the first step.
