12 
speak up!
Old tricks get one hot under the collar
MONDAYS are never easy for most
of us. Getting out of bed early, endur-
ing peak-hour traffic and anticipating
trudging through the week. Suffice
to say most of us are not in our best
moods on Mondays.
Thus, I went ballistic when I
received this message from Petaling
Jaya City Council (MBPJ) council-
lor K.W. Mak yesterday: “We were
nearby ur area. Some billboard guy
wanted to take away 2 car park lots.
Just wanted ur comments.”
Although knowing my mother will
frown on my choice of words, I could
not help it and replied: “Tell him 2
**** off! We have so many problems
with limited parking as it is!”
My outrage though was under-
standable. The two parking lots are
near a drain reserve and close to the
junction. Moreover, there was already
a billboard there! On top of that, due
to poor planning, the area where the
office is located, has inadequate park-
ing bays.
Mak responded: “Relax. We told
him that it was against road transport
act n street, drainage n building act to
block road. Just that d guy was plead-
ing, so I thought u ought to hear. Ha
Ha!”
While Mak may not be too happy
with me reproducing our communi-
cation, it is important to disclose them
to the public to show three things:
» that some of those in the billboard
business are still trying their luck to
get the local authority to bend the
rules;
» that the new breed of councillors
in MBPJ have time and again
proven that it is NOT business
as usual in Petaling Jaya; and
» that the new-and-improved
MBPJ adopts the spirit of con-
sultation with all stakehold-
ers.
So kudos to Mak and his
colleagues for standing their
ground. It is not easy doing
what they do, especially on
an allowance of only RM750 a Down2Earth
month. But they have displayed
dedication in carrying out the by Terence Fernandez
people’s will for the good part
of the last 11 months.
Hopefully this demonstration of
their policy of good governance will
trickle down to the staff of MBPJ
as they carry out their duties. The
council’s blitz in taking down illegal
billboards has been a long time wait-
ing for ratepayers here.
But that councillors have to be
present during the enforcement
operations illustrate two things: as a
show of support to enforcement of-
ficers who are frequently intimidated
by thugs employed by the PJ Mafia, ie
(some) billboard operators; and that
it is necessary to ensure that brown
envelopes don’t exchange hands,
bringing the blitz to an abrupt end.
So, the concerned company should
look for another site to put up its
uni-pole or billboard. The company
should also ensure that its site fulfils
regulations, and does not affect park-
ing lots and drains.
Don’t try pleading and appealing.
Old tricks, it seems won’t work – at
least with the current administration.
And just as I had simmered down from
the audacity of the billboard operator, my
blood begun to boil again as I received
requests from several parties for “nude pic-
tures” of the assemblywoman front-paged in
our report yesterday.
These voyeurs should learn to leave the
woman alone. As far as one is concerned,
she is the victim here and must be accorded
her privacy. More so, she has to be allowed
to continue to perform her duties as an
assemblywoman and executive councillor,
which I am told have been exceptional.
If this is part of the political warfare as
claimed by her supporters, then shame on
those who would stoop so low. This takes
gutter politics to record depths and would
Japan letters
letters@thesundaily.com
in worst
economic
crisis
since AIDS issues need
WWII
pg 19 more publicity
AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome)
was first recognised in 1981 and is caused by
HIV (the Human Immunodeficiency Virus). The
World Health Organisation estimated in 2000
there were 36 million people living with HIV/AIDS
worldwide. Till 1986 HIV/AIDS was non-existent
in Malaysia and from then till 2008 there have
been more than 60,000 cases reported to the
Health Ministry.
Men represent majority of the reported HIV/
AIDS cases (about 90 %), but what is alarming is
the rate of infection among women in Malaysia
has risen from 1.4% in 1990 to 16% in 2007 with
housewives and women with respectable carri-
ers outnumbering the sex workers and female
drug addicts.
In 2005, Durex Global Sex Survey revealed
35% of Malaysians admitted to having unpro-
tected sex without knowing their partners
sexual history. The health authorities project
if the present situation continues, by the year
2015, Malaysia will have 300,000 HIV carriers.
On the issue of pre-marital mandatory HIV
screening , Marina Mahathir, adviser to Malaysia
AIDS Council in her interview with Al-Jazzera
said this is not the way to go as:
» The cost is high, and with the prevalence
rate of the disease being at 0.016% of the
general population, the money is better spent
educating the people instead of testing them.
» Mandatory testing has failed all over the
world because it doesn’t raise the level of edu-
cation and no real counselling takes place.
» A negative test result does not mean a per-
son is not infected as there is a 3-6 month win-
Great day at the park
I VISITED Taman Metropolitan Kepong on
Sunday. I was told that on weekends, a large
crowd would gather at the park to fly kites.
As we were approaching the park from
the highway, we were not disappointed,
especially my son as he could see numerous
kites in the sky.
As parking space is limited at the park,
many visitors park along the highway and
this causes a minor traffic jam as vehicles
slow down in search of parking space. We
were lucky to get a parking space along a
by-road next to the highway, near the park.
My first impression of the park was good.
The authorities had done an excellent job
in rehabilitating a disused mining pool and
turning it into a recreational park.
Besides those flying kites, there were
families having picnics and we even saw two
couples having their wedding photo shoot at
the park. The park is well kept except for a
fountain which obviously has not been func-
tioning for a long time judging from the algae
and the colour of the stagnant water. The
theSun | TUESDAY FEBRUARY 17 2009
backfire on anyone who intends to score
points by taking a moral high ground.
As far as I am concerned, she is not
sleeping with anyone’s spouse, had not
taken nor given bribes, stolen land from
schoolchildren or alienated green lungs to
cronies – which in the books of any right
thinking human being are capital sins.
So those who are calling on her to step
down should first study her track record
and ensure that they are also whiter than
white.
Terence says those living in glass houses
should not cast stones. He is deputy editor
(special reports & investigations). Feedback:
terence@thesundaily.com
dow where the disease cannot be detected.
Statistics from 2007 from states which had
implemented mandatory testing show that eight
out of nine couples called off their weddings
after either partner tested negative for HIV.
Prof Adeeba Kamarulzaman, Malaysian
AIDS Council president, in a interview said that
the lack of knowledge among Malaysians on
HIV/AIDS worries her as people must realise
that there is so much advancement in the world
of HIV treatment that a person can live up to 49
years from the time they start treatment. On the
issue of mandatory pre-marital HIV testing she
said in a press statement that it will only work
if the gold standard of CONSENT, COUNSELLING
and CONFIDENTIALITY is maintained.
Pre-test counselling involves an assessment
of the risk of exposure and explores a person’s
knowledge about HIV infection.The counsellor
will also be able to assess how a person will be
able to cope with a positive result and help the
person plan for this possibility.
In cases of positive results the attending
physician should be ready to provide emotional
support, review coping strategies and organise
continued contact and medical follow-up. For
those with a negative result but who are at risk
of infection counselling on behavioural change
is needed.
Finally, the more knowledge and openness
there is to this subject the better the approach
will be to tackling this growing epidemic.
G. Ramesh
Petaling Jaya
4km jogging path around the disused mining
pool was impressive too. Around the mining
pool, we could see many anglers sitting near
the edge of the pool trying their luck. Some
of them used the “snagging” method to get
their fish which I thought was cruel and not
sporting at all.
However, my grouse is why are motor-
cycles allowed into the park by the authori-
ties? The fumes from their exhaust is not
healthy for those walking and jogging in the
park. The authorities should bar motorcycles
from the park and encourage cycling instead
which is a healthy activity.
For my son, the highlight of the trip to
the park was the ride on a tram car. He was
excited to get on it and the 30-minute ride
around the park was an enjoyable experi-
ence for him. I am sure he would like a
return trip to this park, the next time with
his own kite.
Michael Ng
Seremban