Mediating Party

“The mediating party responsible to form the new government must be seen to be clean, fair, and just to the opposing coalition parties.

Way before that could happen, the mediating party must first and foremost, investigate the nature of one new coalition party comprising loose political parties whose approval under the Societies Act is suspiciously instantaneous considering the time taken to scrutinize their constitution before approval can be given because the announcement for their formation is barely a week old.

Therefore to contest as a coalition and endorsing the Prime Minister of their choice is at best, illegitimate, null and or void.

The rakyat hopes that the rules set before the contesting coalition must be made wisely and done in the true spirit of our Federal constitution. Well are they?

In our constitution, each and every citizen is granted full rights to be treated equally and fairly. Thus, when both opposing coalitions vying to form the government are tested, the rules upon which they are tested upon must preferably be grounded in the truest sense, fair and just, so that it would also reflect well on the mediator. The mediator should also be seen to possess this wisdom and ability, and free from being influenced by unwarranted opinions.

Thus, the MPs whom in this crisis are also rakyats must not be compelled by their own parties nor act under any duress from their respective party to support a candidate not of their choice or not of their own free will.

In that manner, each party in the opposing coalition has no right to call for an en bloc endorsement of a candidate. This is because we should all respect the freedom of opinion granted to every citizen of our country including the freedom of choice as enshrined inside our constitution.

Apart from that, both parties must not be denied reasonable knowledge or have access to relevant facts at hand.

A mediator or the authority who mediates is thus compelled to demonstrate his duty freely and render such assistance when needed by notifying the opposing party and preferably obtain the consent of the opposing coalition before any announcement is made.

If both parties are or has agreed to the results , then can it change hands.

The fate of having a candidate sworn in as the 8th prime minister therefore has no basis and is void. The announcement was premature, the coalition is not legitimate and furthermore it is not based on mutual consent. The fate of not having an audience granted to another legitimate coalition is also questionable.”

Picking on Crumbs

“It is obvious that we are a failed state. After the dust has settled, we’d still be suffocating from the drawbacks of statelessness, of polarization, corruption, megalomania, entitlement, quota and many others. Our leaders maneuver like fickle leeches behind their warm smiles and handshakes, I shudder to even think of threats and invasion that could compromise national security. Our politicians has taught us how frail social contracts could be, as each of them controls two decks of cards at any one time. Our country is at the brim of economic depletion yet they happily picked on the crumbs. Their populist maneuvers of treachery and deception even amongst comrades, is now infamous, and leaves a sour taste in our mouths. As we shuffle the deck of cards in our hands, within it are more robbers than there are cops. Boy do I fear.”

Hats Off

Quote unquote, None other than Tun. This grand plan has Tun in the background as architect, Muhyiddin as his ears and project architect and Azmin as the clown cum scapegoat. It is devised to make Azmin lose his credibility by technically asking him to head the merger between strange bedfellows with the agreement that Tun will join him but did not and also made the Chinese despise him when he excluded the DAP in the scheme of things. Azmin is a serious contender towards the future PM’s seat which he wanted badly to award it to none other than Mukhriz. Literally, it is a plot to kill Azmin’s political career.

To make it convincing that Azmin is indeed the architect, Tun resigned as PM and PPBM chairman claiming his disassociation and washing his hands off Azmin , but not as Pakatan Chairman. PPBM still has Muhyiddin as President. It is also designed to make PKR lose seats when those who hopped to follow Azmin’s white elephant plot are left in the lurch (which to Tun is the simplest way to gain more members for PPBM when the hoppers fall back). That is why PPBM called for Tun’s reinstatement. It is also the simplest way to get rid of incompetent ministers from his cabinet while retaining his popularity. It is al in the plan. In short, PKR loses more seats therefore power in the supposedly ruling coalition, and to reduce DSAI’s influence and credibility as well, another contender to Mukhriz.

Today Tuanku cast a secret ballot for all the MPs. If done by show of hands, the outcome cannot be manipulated by Tun.

Tun executes everything including timing to perfection. He is the deceiver, the treacher and grandmaster chess player. Really I put his hats off to him.

Unity Government

Forming A Unity Government?

The recent spate of events leading to the fallout of the ruling coalition has exacerbated concerns amongst the rakyat and stakeholders including political parties which left all the MPs in dire straits after the Prime Minister announces his resignation.

The questions that concerns us now is what if no single coalition commands a comfortable simple majority to govern Malaysia, how then would the Agong diffuse the deadlock?

Constitutionally, it had fallen upon the lap of Tuanku to determine who would be the next Prime Minister of his choice. To do that, it was understood that Tuanku has decided to interview each and every MP to determine the which coalition each of them belongs to so that Tuanku could do a headcount, then picks the prime minister from the coalition which enjoys the simple majority.

As of today, the Agong has granted an audience with the heads of the ruling coalition party as well as all the other opposition parties. The Agong has also summoned all the respective legitimate MPs to the palace for an interview.

Amidst all this, another interesting speculation has rife saying that the Agong is contemplating the possibility of forming an all inclusive quote unquote ’Unity Government” comprising MPs from both political divides to end this stalemate and to put their heads together for the betterment of Malaysia. Now is that possible? In a situation such as this, many concerns suddenly creeps up, a few glaring ones that seriously deserves some thoughts are:

1. HOW ARE THEY CHOSEN?

What are the guidelines and standards used to choose the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers with or without Portfolios, their Deputy Ministers as well as Political Secretaries?

a) By Meritocracy? Educational level

b) By Popularity? Those who command the Highest percentage of win in a Local or General Election? Likeability

c) By Fairness? Quota? Race? Religion? Age? Sex?

d) By Capability? Experience or Professionalism

e) By Reliability? Demonstrating Loyalty and Efficiency when tasked.

f) By Ability? Creative, Imaginative, Problem Solver.

2. WHO THEN ARE THE OPPOSITION, PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE AND BACKBENCHERS AND HOW ARE THEY SELECTED?

The importance of opposition and backbenchers must not be discounted in a Unity Government since they are inclusive with no opposition in sight.

a) Who are they and how do they qualify?

Non Governmental Organisations

Professional Bodies such as Bar Council, PAM, Master Builders Association etc

Representatives from all the different Political Parties

b) What are the measures to ensure all of them stay effective and are not intimidated, threatened or bullied?

c) Does inclusiveness includes Independent candidates and are each of them eligible to be in the Cabinet?

d) What are the measures taken to ensure they carry out their duties without fear or fervour

3. MODE OF GOVERNANCE?

a) Are we still adopting the Westminster model of governance?

b) Is the Election Commission still operating on the same mode and model?

4) PARLIAMENTARY RULES

a) As Standard Operating Procedure

b) As Code of Conduct

c) Policy Making

5) HOW ARE YOU TO TABLE THESE NEW LAWS?

The process and procedures?

As solutions like this are thought about, the list will certainly expand as more and more irregularities float to the surface. It is very likely that hiccups will soon appear if the entire structure is not effectively thought out, analyzed, planned, with lots of trial run, before it is being enforced. Therefore it is highly anticipated that there should be more open engagements about the newly thought out.system and its efficiency, measured against its cost as compared to the older model we are so used to.

Then again, as tomorrow arrives, a whole new set of complications may again emerge considering the fickleness of each political party and their brewing itch and eagerness to control…

Party Hopping

“If the head doesn’t move, the tail won’t wag.”- A Chinese Saying.

Backward or forward, the events leading to the attempted coup captivates the rakyats imagination over the frail state we are in. Who is right or who is wrong and who are we to believe, all depends on what we know, learnt and experienced and how much of correct information we are input with. Therefore everyone has their own opinion. Our opinions depends on the information we are fed, right or wrong thus people can be engineered to believe in falsehoods. Social engineering can be as subtle a tool or it can be as forceful. People can be changed by aligning them with a school of thought daily or we can make them accept by duress. And they are best done when young.

What is more trying is how each one of us imagine our country to be. That varies from one person to the next. Thus, we must all seek to discern for ourselves as to what is that we want and expect balanced against what is good for the country as a whole so that we can all be of one mind to see our nation move forward. Then, we act on it.

Our actions are a consequence of much deliberation and our intentions are all adhered within the ambit of the laws set. Unless we want to become a bandit. For the fact that many rightful things can be compromised says much about how frail these regulations of ours are when they were drafted and approved to be tabled and passed as law. To the bandits, they explore loopholes to benefit themselves. The question now beckons… are we in the mood to make good these superficial laws without the hassle of getting motions upon motions passed in parliament? And do we have the time and energy to do so?

But can we become that morally correct individual when mass social engineering which began some sixty years ago stressed on the protection of one race by sidelining others and lucrative contracts went to their own pockets mobilising religion, royalty and its entitlement thereof as their shield to thwart criticism whose concessions include the massive awarding of government and government linked contracts some of which stretches till perpetuity, and the ample job opportunities created in the civil service allotted to everyone with or without the proper qualifications or merit?

If not for the current governments safety net assurance given to every civil servant that their job would be retained even if they vote against the former government, the failed state we are brimming on because of foreign debts, the 1mdb fiasco, the abolishment of tolls etc etc, we can rest assure that the old government would be here to stay till kingdom comes.

Then, we also saw political parties sleeping with strange bedfellows whose ideology never for once synchronises all for the sake of winning. But so it was done, and so it was for the Rakyat to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Thus, did we really choose the deep blue sea? Was there even a journey to begin with when the signs say the ships were all docked except for one flying car and a few black shoes meant to insult our IQ and potholes on the road obviously too many to be filled in within a few years? Certainly there were ministries that out performs the rest in KPI but they were few and far in between.

Because of our failing economy, all eyes were on the new government to come out with fresh policies to rescue our economy. Till today. there was none that we could shout about. Instead we hear of consolidations as our ringgit slides against the greenback and retail stores becoming bleak. What was on the books were factors too shameful to announce, and a hole so deep one could dive in to eternity no one imagine it could be rescued or maintained in anyway except from surfing on the ‘no choice’ policies the old government adopted.

The question that beckons is who were responsible for the massive plunder and can fresh procedures halt the plundering ? And are these changes forthcoming?

There is always this misnomer about what powers could bring to a leader and with it, the entitlement believe that the government’s coffer automatically becomes your own personal bank account. One could stop thieves from plunging from the outside by hiring security guards and affixing CCTV’s etc but what is at stake here are the lackaidaisical SOP’s which compromises our government’s coffer. And what are the ways lucrative contracts already awarded or enforced be stopped, annulled or made void? Stricter measures are yet to be seen or announced in public one wonders the transparency.

Where the economy is concern, all eyes were on the Economics Minister and the International Trade & Industry Minister. They should both be given the golden turkey award for their failure to rejuvenate the economy. And another golden turkey for engineering this party hopping thing to save their own arses from getting burnt.

No right-minded leader would be so daring as to betray his own party and his own cabinet in favour of another not unless they are already on the conveyor belt heading for the chopping block because of some fresh developments perhaps. Any which way, actions like this only invites citizens revolt. A popular Chinese saying goes like this “If the head doesn’t move, the tail won’t wag.” Can this be applied to the current fiasco that is happening in front of our eyes right now? Or that we are all cataracted from the unholy truth by deceivers who are all masters of the game?

Today, some leaders created history albeit a big fiasco. What is imminent is that the Rakyat is in a quandary not helped by a plunging composite index. Should the nation sacrifice so much at the expense of these Gobloks whose strangest of mathematical equations bends on populist votes? At this moment, the facets of these bobbleheads are unclear but one thing clearly remains. The economy did not fair well, infighting becomes the agenda for those in power, and there are SOPs to be reviewed and potholes to be filled. Good governance will be our saving grace. But when is that going to happen?

I hope all the Rakyat is as clear as day who we should support and who we don’t. With or without an election brewing or despite the outcome. Too much politicking and everyone is fed-up. Party hoppers whoever they are should be expunged without a blink at the first opportunity. My two cents.

~Krisis Politik Negara Kita ~ Satu Puisi~

Puting berliung dah bergelora

Disana sini berhuru hara

Apakah kisah selepas bicara

Bola disepak tak sampai ke jaringnya

Izinkan saya berbicara

Yang pusing sebenarnya kepala saya

Sama seperti penyelap cermin kereta

Saat ke kanan saat ke kiri, akhir jatuhnya

Takkanlah rakyat mudah lupa

Diketepikan sebenarnya suara kita

Maruah dicabar salah siapanya

Jika nasib terkatak ditangan musuhnya

Termimpi mimpi terharu haru

Wahai politikus generasi baru

Malam dah tiba kiralah bulu

Besok sekali lagi permimpin terbaru

Dan terbaru…

Dan terbaru…

Socialist Republic

“We do not need a non partisan government unless there are backbenchers. But we can have a think tank whose duties are to help our pm solve our day to day problems, decide and determine its directions but the execution is performed by the various local councilors.

We already have Director generals in every single ministry to administrate and determine all the needs. And Ministries cannot stop functioning just because a few goons created a deadlock.

All official correspondences should be handled by a correspondence bureau which encrypts every incoming and outgoing correspondence. All official statements and criticism should be handled by the information bureau. No one is allowed to say anything to the media except for the pm or backbenchers.

But we do need a procurement bureau that handles all required needs sent in by Director generals from the military all the way down to schools. Their standard operating procedure must be 100% competent , transparent and accountable.

Director generals cannot endorse purchases. They can only write in to express their needs but through the approval of the councillors who is tasked to verify its accuracy. Councillors cannot endorse purchases also. They submit to the think tank and through regular meetings , the think tank assesses every single requirement before they are submitted to bank Negara. All procurements beit a box of pencils or one unit of air condition – all needs large or small goes through an open tender process handled by Bank Negara. Long term purchases are restricted to a six months term so as to give ample opportunities to other tenderers.

One single app accessible and enjoyed by everybody takes care of the entire process starting from the dg just like how we track our parcel shipments thus every stakeholder including the dg can monitor it’s progress all the way to when the purchase arrives!

Retire all the politicians and political leeches. Let them find their own way home so that we don’t need to encounter Orang Besars on the road and their entourage of outriders so that they won’t get comfortable and lazy creating disunity with their racial and religious distortion.

Retire also the censorship department.

Return all their Mercedes Benz’s and Bentley’s and large lodges provided by ministries then sell them for a profit. We no longer want to see institutional vehicles being used for personal camping or vacations.

For those not in the know, welcome to the Socialist Republic of Malaysia. In fifty years time, we’d be as rich as Singapore and China?

Fiduciary Duty

It is not up to the technically retired home minister to determine the fate of the so called ltte supporters. His endorsement is based upon findings and recommendations from the attorney generals office and thus it is his fiduciary duty to act upon those findings through the recommendations of the AG’s office. In short he act upon the advice of the AG and if the AG passes a judgement based upon the evidence or no evidence, it is not the Home Minister’s right to contradict it. Not like he can opine anything he likes without proof nor rely on his own opinion nor suspicion nor implicate openly his personal reactions about ltte. That is a grand abuse of power! Not like we can’t see through it all his malicious defiance.

Balconies

In the West, balconies are for sunbathing and breakfast. In the East, either they collect dust or they become a convenient utility space grilled up for washing machines, mops, pails, plants, pets, clothes line, shrine, and newspapers.

Pinnacle

Yes an asteroid is going to zoom pass the earth tomorrow but no, it’s not going to hit the Burj Khalifa. Still it’s 87mil km away. But wait, since you’re so scared, why built it so tall? So you could stare down from the pinnacle way up, and frighten yourself?

Disclaimers

It’s your liberty to write the most lopsided disclaimer and have them splashed all over your agreements and contracts but if it is not within the ambit of umbrella rules, you are basically victimizing yourself with your imagery authority over others.

Meeting Personalities

There wasn’t any objection from the rest of the committee members after the matter was raised up by someone who merely exercises his rights to his opinions. If there were, I am sure the presiding secretary who controls the meeting would have put it to a vote beit a secret ballot or by show of hands.

In every committee there are bound to be sitting ducks. Types of committee members most frequently encountered are:

1. Those compelled by higher authority to be their eyes and ears

2. Those who exploit or abuses their own authority riding on the position

3. Those with vested or self interest and talks only when their personal interest is ignored or infringed

4. Those who wants to milk the institution

5. Those who wants first hand information on the going-ons so they could plan their on-goings

6. Those who uses this channel as a backdoor for political mileages , recognition, awards and rewards. The so-called megalomaniacs

7. Those who are real sitting ducks not ready to take on any responsibility or be of service to the institution they sometimes even forget their own name when called

8. Those programmed to gain. By selling. Beit their own collection, artists, artworks, shows, information, backside or to curry favor.

To get those who are genuinely there to look after the objective, interest and correct running of the institution and contribute to their progress are rare.

Self sacrificing individuals such as these are few and far in between. The question that beckons now is which individual or party controls the vetting process and what are their set vetting standards? And why are the presiding secretary so submissive to individual complaints which should by right after the artworks are installed and exhibited, be sent in through a suggestion/feedback form stating the grounds for complaint rather than be raised as a matter in meeting agendas or in ‘Any Other Business?’ Was it raised in ‘Any Other Business?’ And are there suggestion/feedback forms?

No one knows. No one thought it important.

Compel

Buddhism doesn’t compel. It seeks only to inform. That doing good brings much reward. Nirvana, rebirth, generational blessings, it enables followers to earn merits for the repentance of their sin. So followers flood homes of slighted individuals, infirmaries and the underprivileged, soup kitchens and help diffuse suffering. Day in day out. My dad used to comb seven temples every year during CNY without fail, then gave alms to the poor who lined the gangways. We as childrens help distribute the Ang Pows.

And what do Christians do? Trying to be holier than thou, grimacing that they are more wounded than Christ on the cross, scorning drunkards and driving beggars away from church grounds, bargaining salvation to those with hungry stomachs in exchange for food, going gaga over parish elders, deacons and pastors, praying for more blessings for themselves. Don’t get me wrong . I believe in Christ. But not the laities who kept the altar to themselves. Maybe all the altars should be removed since their understanding is so lowly.

Wuhan

Bad time to be sick. Walk into a clinic now and everyone avoids you like you’re a directionless prick from Wuhan. Cough and the whole meal on a Chinese roundtable dinner belongs to you. Maybe you should pretend to faint inside the bank.

Opposes

The one who opposes is merely exercising his right. What is worrying are the rest who played dumb which means they condone. And the irony is why aren’t disagreements put to a vote? That’s standard meeting procedure.

And the usual committee members excuse when things go wrong is “It iis a voluntary job and I don’t earn anything from it!”

Well your mere acceptance does not absolve you from responsibility even if you are cajoled in.

Sharing Groups

I am an appraiser. You can look me up in the international society of appraisers profile. My forte is Asian. My advise is this.

Sharing groups are an impetus of your own growth as a collector- learning, discovering and growing together with like minded individuals with a common interest. Enjoy it. And have a good laugh with opinions that doesn’t agree with yours. But sharing images in the public domain subject your postings to public scrutiny which may sometimes be unpleasant to your ears for the fact that opinions can vary and differ. Everyone has high expectations towards their own property thus, trained specialists has a hoard of well designed statements to cushion the impact it may have on your ears so as not to risks offending you.

In this case, my advise is to heed only opinions by specialists that are accurately concluded once your property is physically and meticulously inspected and tested and not purely by pictures alone.

Apart from material justification which most tests results can accurately reveal, handling is as important and so is an in depth knowledge about the crafting of the object with some grounded philosophy in this case Buddhism. But if an expectant bronze figure turns out to be a big conglomerate of assorted metals, don’t you think that authentication is already established rendering the visual assessment and physical handling useless? And for what good does it bring forth if visual ascertainment and handling results no matter how convincing does not pass the material test?

One glaring feature a lot of collectors neglect is the philosophy part. Ask yourself if the face of the Buddha exudes enough tranquility and is the workmanship too frisky for sacred objects made for reverence. This of course comes with experience and specialists looks for signs such as this. And of course the obvious signs of wear and tear and aging.

Trained specialists are especially careful in dispensing negative remarks like fake or forgery quite commonly used in the public by those not in the know because at the end of the day, it is about their reputation more than anything else.

Peace be with you.

Easy Way to Earn Money

2 boys were talking and one said to the other, “There is a easy way to earn money. The other boy said, “How?” the boy replied, “Tell people you know their secret.”

The boy jumps up to his dad, “I know your secret!” dad replies, “Please don’t tell your mom heres $10.”

The boy then runs to his mom, “I know your secret!” mom said, “Please don’t tell your dad here’s $15.”

The boy then tries it on the mail man, “I know your secret!” The mail man opened his arms and said, “Come, give your dad a hug!”

(Author Unknown)

Knowledgeable Collectors

“Knowledgeable collectors collect with their eyes, and not their ears. They collect quality works, not names. They seek narratives, not only aesthetics because contemporary art is about narratives. They give artists hope by supporting their artistic journey when they are alive, not only after they are dead. And they look beyond monetary rewards and cheap bargains, allowing the art scene to flourish, instead of attempting to influence or dictate its directions.

Knowledgeable collectors understand that every auction record beit higher or lower becomes a new price benchmark for the same series of any particular artist because auction results are the only publicly available source of reference. They understand that discounts and bargains can only happen backdoor where transactions are discreet so that the artists highest auction record remains but not fluctuate at its whim.

Knowledgeable collectors continually support a high record with another higher record each time an artists work of the same series appear at the auctions. They understand that comparable price records beyond three years are off limit to appraisers whom may risk losing their license for breaking the rules.

Right Learning

“You don’t learn how to be rich from one who has never been rich likewise you don’t learn how to draw from someone who can’t draw. That said, if you want to be in business, but none of your lecturers has ever made it in business, just perhaps, you may have attended the wrong school.”

Art Fairs

“An art fair is a device to promote Western art to a wider audience at the expense of Eastern galleries who thought it glamorous to get into the bandwagon without understanding the basics of the market which the Western galleries literally dominate because every important artist is inside their pocket whose one painting easily offsets the cost of one booth, and they control and own every important magazine, app, museum, auction houses, curator and putrefy every art news to their advantage leaving the Eastern galleries with nothing short of disposing all their hard earn monies into one silly fair and still make a loss.

And if the prices of their Eastern artist escalates more or less at par with the Western artist’s which is a one in a million chance, most collectors if given a choice will hop over and collect Western art without a second thought because of the ready market and the fame of these artists created by the West the same way financially more well off people will dump their local cars for foreign makes.

This is the unfortunate circumstance right minded Eastern galleries has to bear with whilst the naive galleries continues to mimick the Western galleries thus many went high and dry and got bananas to go home with and a load of sponsorship obligations to repay instead of happily going home with fat sales to content with.

Prove me wrong for no right minded Western galleries will join an Eastern set up Art Fair for all its worth simply because they are first and foremost very discriminatory, second, it doesn’t support their umbrella Western dominion objective and third, if it is not a Westerner who controls or set up the fair, then, it is not a Western control art fair and they won’t join so that you will gradually cease to exist to prove to you it is a business model not worth pursuing which in short, is theirs to do and control.

A booth at prestigious art fairs cost about USD100k. Do you realize how many works a gallery has to sell if the artworks are only worth USD1K each within that 4 days spread but the only time you do some selling is only the first 3 hours of vernissage? Still that can only offset your booth cost but not your shipping, insurance, set up, manpower, and whatever else.

In short, an Eastern Art Fair has got to be contented and survive on its own depending on Eastern booths alone or perhaps third world booths from Africa, Middle East or South America. And the only reason one sees Western galleries appearing in China Art Fairs is because of one reason only. it is a big market. Guess what they are selling? Western Art of course.

And that’s the sad truth about art fairs.”

Silent Killer

( In memory of the victims of coronavirus)

Silently she walks in

To your domain

With a strain in hand

Her alluring fragrance makes

You teary, nose slimy, throat choky

Temperature rises…

She held you captive,

For a moment, then leaves

A sprig in your hand

To baton on…

A melodrama perhaps?

Or a quaint love story?

She knows

That you will do anything for her

As you hung on the cliff

Circumambulating and spinning

Softly she ushers, your mind over

Into the vortex of deep slumber…

No harness, no more sprig

No one knows your secret affair

With that lady who veils your night

A kiss and your mind soothes

A blanketed reflection

Of pale regret

The lady is wicked

She’s a silent killer

No more said.

Making a Classic

“What you don’t like now, you will love later. What you love now, you won’t like later.”

(That is the classic ingredient crucial to the making of a classic where design is concern. Simply said, a handsome man displays no character as compared to a wrinkled old man on oil, paper or print. The initial insignificance you rejected and it’s ugliness would eventually grow on you, if you allow it time to sink in.)

Animal Virus?

“Back in the heydays across the Southeast Asian plateau where every other plantation owner is entitled a shotgun permit, wild life hunting was a common sport for the male gender, a habit acquired from colonizers, what used to be regarded as ‘the sport of Kings!)

Wild life meat and body parts were believed to be medicinal and beneficial thus many people consume them as elixir and courage booster, whilst the aborigines and Bomohs kept the bones, skins and whiskers as amulets because of the believe in their spiritual, magical and healing aspects. Supposedly, it wards the wearer against evil spirits, harm or impending danger. Teeth of wild boars, tigers, and palm of bears were strung around necks and arms or fashioned as anklets. Some were hung at the entrances to homes whilst others were lodged onto headgears and staffs.

Whilst CITEs has now classified some of these species as endangered, and health authorities has pinpointed some of them as the possible culprit towards the new strains of viruses plaguing the air, everyone of Southeast Asian origin can attest to have seen bottled snakes and centipedes in Chinese medicinal shops and witnesses the tradition of drinking the blood of snakes and the devouring of its meat, cooked in various styles especially herbal alongside porcupines, monitor lizards, civet cats, flying foxes, frogs and even turtles. This practice is very much a part of life. It has existed for centuries and is still very much alive today. In countries like Thailand or Indonesia it adds as a curious tourist draw, but the irony is, why didn’t the deadly mutant virus manifest then and does it’s mischief but managed to stay submerged? Why then must it be a couple of chickens a few years back, then swine, and now rats and bats? And why China?

Science has repeatedly warned us against unhygienic practices and the dangers of eating uncooked meat without highlighting the difference between what they discourage as compared to the ritual of eating raw Sashimi popular amongst the Japanese, abalone and Yee Sang as for the Chinese, and steaks done rare in the West. Were there viruses all along involving marine animals and the mutation of it as well that we do not know of?

More than ever, even when the practice of poaching for wild meats must end for reasons of conservation, wild life should not be made the convenient scapegoat for someone else’s shoddy hygiene and animistic tendency. In Southeast Asia, perhaps all these exotic meats were all well cooked except for the blood of snakes consumed with brandy. Has wasabi something to do with the annihilation of parasites found in raw meats the same way it was believed that brandy can do that to blood? Maybe but who knows?

There are other instances such as this which if left unanswered or unresolved, will quickly lead to more conspiracy theories regarding its outbreak. Biological or chemical leakages is high on the list, not helped by Wuhan’s close proximity to the viral research institute. There are also concerns linking them to the West’s marginalization of China over its meteoric economic rise. Can we blame the speculators from speculating?

As the world anticipates in suspense over the confirmed root cause and source of the virus, epidemicians the world over together with WHO are working around the clock to curb its lethal spread and eradication, besides developing a convincing antidote. Meanwhile, face masks and hand sanitizers flew off shelves like hot cakes as unlucky victims collapses one by one like dead flies. The question is should all the innocent humankind pay for the inoculation, injection or oral servings of antidotes to these global pharmaceuticals concerns if ever they found one?

Meanwhile, what can responsible citizens do to help contain and arrest the widespread blunder rather than seeking others to blame for the mistakes?

Social responsibility should start at home and the practice of self quarantine for those unwell seems best to retard the spread. Refraining from going out unnecessarily and if possible, postponing trips abroad is necessary. Hygiene and the constant usage of masks and hand sanitizers, washing of body parts that comes in contact with supermarket trolleys, lift buttons and door handles, does better for those who are compelled to go out particularly to places where a high volume of traffic is encountered.

We must also realize that this problem aren’t the fault of animals but people and people alone. How it is transmitted, where it is transmitted, the fear of being infected is very real because the virus is practically invisible to the naked eye, is carried by the wind and one may not know if he or she is infected or is a carrier so, stay safe everyone!