A Pray for My Brother..

God..

Please bless his mother in the afterlife
Forgive her sin
and let her children`s pray to flow continuously for her

God..
Please grant him strength
to get through this difficult time
Please grant him patient
so he could think clearly and finish all things that have to be done
please grant him wisdom
so all his little brothers and sisters can follow him as an example

God..
Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help
Keep us on the right path

Dedicated to Roma
my roomate & "big" bro

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The Power Game in Perak

Two nail-biting events marked the onset of year 2009. The first one happened between London-St Petersburg when hard fought negotiation had occurred for almost 1 month to transfer unsettled Andrey Arshavin from Zenit St Petersburg to Arsenal FC. And it ended happily both for Arshavin and Arsenal.

What about the second one?

The second event don`t have any relation at all with football :)) but it occurs also in January and it is still ongoing until now -_-


Like most of commonwealth nations, Malaysia adopts Westminster system which is parliamentary system with monarch as head of state, both in federal government and state governments. So, the government can be replaced if it loses its majority. Therefore by just 3 seats majority, the opposition will only need 2 seats in order to bring down the government through by elections or defections..

It started at March 2008 when The Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition won a slim majority in Perak against UMNO led Barisan Nasional (BN) by merely 3 seats majority. At that time, DAP won the biggest seat for PR (18 seats) followed by PKR (7 seats) and PAS (6 seats). However the Perak constitution only permit Moslem as Menteri Besar (MB) and DAP has none moslem state assembly member, therefore Mohd Nizar from PAS became Perak MB. Almost every act of his administration (from land title to Camry issues) was critisised by the Malaysian mainstream press.

After that, events full of twist and turns, defect and re-defect occurs between end of December 2008 until today. It begins with Nasarudin Hashim, a state assemblyman from BN who defected to PR on 25 January 2009. After his defection, there was talk of another defections from BN to PR. However suddenly 2 PR Assemblymen from PKR, Jamaluddin Mat Radzi and Mohd Osman Jailu, went missing on 31st January 2008 and shockingly declared 3 days later that they "became independent" but gave their allegiance to BN. They were joined by Hee Yit Foong the following day and also surprisingly... Nasarudin Hashim who re-defected back to BN! Then, Sultan had audience with both parties and decided to install Zambry Abd Kadir as a new MB from BN. However, Mohd Nizar is still claiming until now that constitutionally he is the rightful MB.

Recently, Perak Assembly speaker from PR, V Sivakumar, also added more controversy by suspended Menteri Besar Datuk Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir and his six excos from the state assembly for 18 and 12 months respectively for contempt of the assembly. Thus if it is well within the speaker rights, who is the real MB of Perak right now??

Seeing all this twists and turns, as an amateur political observer I`d like to give my 2 cents :P

Defect and re-defect
One of the characteristic of Westminster system that I`ve previously mentioned is the dangerous of small majority or a weak coalition that will easily bring down the government. Worst of all, if the fall of the government is caused by "bribery-triggered" defection. Not only it is morally wrong but it will also cause instability and even chaos

So how to prevent it? It is by preventing the defection itself using an "anti defection act". Therefore if a member of parliament (or state assembly member in this case) want to switch sides, he/she will have to resign his/her seat and contest in an by-election. In other word, let people decide if your defection can be justified :D

Bypassing the State Constitution
As BN gained majority in Perak State Assembly after the defection had occurred, I found it was such a blunder by DPM Najib Razak to directly meet The Sultan of Perak in order to bring down the PR Government. If BN truly command majority of the state assembly, they should pass vote of no confidence to the current MB in order to force his resignation (which is in line with the constitution). So the question is why they didn`t do it? To save time or they weren`t sure winning the vote of no confidence?

Snap election
Well.. seeing all this chaos, I think it`s better for the Sultan to dismiss The Perak Assembly and hold fresh election.. (and hopefully the winner gets large majority :P)

Presidential System
Generally I still love presidential system compare to Parliamentary system :))

References
How The Perak State Government Fall
Perak Constitutional Crisis (from wiki)
Westminster System that is used in Malaysia and most of commonwealth nations (also from wiki) Read more!

Outlandish-Look Into My Eyes

Outlandish is a hip-hop band from Denmark. It was formed in 1997 and consist of Isam Bachiri, Waqas Ali Qadri and Lenny Martinez. All the band member have cultural background from outside Denmark and even Europe. Isam has Morrocan background while Waqas and Lenny have Pakistani and Cuban-Honduran respectively. The group can be considered as a contemporary nasheed group because of its tendency to voice problems associated with moslem in western countries and also moslem in general

Look Into to my eyes is one of their single from Closer Than Veins Album. It tells us story of Palestinian child who compares between his/her condition with his/her peers in USA. The song is originated from poem written by Gihad Ali, a volunteer with the Arab American Action Network (AAAN) and the Palestine Solidarity Group based in Chicago.

I found the video clip of this song is unique and touchy. The video clip uses Red Riding Hood story as an analogy for Palestinian-Israel conflict. Maybe because the poem uses a child point of view so it is best to visualizes the lyric by using popular children story, (i.e. The Red Riding Hood).In the video clip, The red riding hood is a Palestinian girl with kafiyeh and slingshot while the big bad wolf is an Israeli soldier.

Enjoy the song.. and don`t forget to pray for our brothers and sisters in Palestine, especially in Gaza Strip..

Video Clip Link

Look Into My Eyes

Look into my eyes
Tell me what you see
You don't see a damn thing
'cause you can't relate to me
You're blinded by our differences
My life makes no sense to you
I'm the persecuted one
You're the red, white and blue

Each day you wake in tranquility
No fears to cross your eyes
Each day I wake in gratitude
Thanking God He let me rise
You worry about your education
And the bills you have to pay
I worry about my vulnerable life
And if I'll survive another day
Your biggest fear is getting a ticket
As you cruise your Cadillac
My fear is that the tank that has just left
Will turn around and come back

Yet, do you know the truth of where your money goes?
Do you let the media deceive your mind?
Is this a truth nobody, nobody, nobody knows?
Has our world gone all blind?

Yet, do you know the truth of where your money goes?
Do you let the media deceive your mind?
Is this a truth nobody, nobody, nobody knows?
Someone tell me ...

Ooohh, let's not cry tonight
I promise you one day it's through
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters
Ooohh, shine a light for every soul that ain't with us no more
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters

See I've known terror for quite some time
57 years so cruel
Terror breathes the air I breathe
It's the checkpoint on my way to school
Terror is the robbery of my land
And the torture of my mother
The imprisonment of my innocent father
The bullet in my baby brother
The bulldozers and the tanks
The gases and the guns
The bombs that fall outside my door
All due to your funds
You blame me for defending myself
Against the ways of my enemies
I'm terrorized in my own land (what)
And I'm the terrorist?

Yet, do you know the truth of where your money goes?
Do you let the media deceive your mind?
Is this a truth nobody, nobody, nobody knows?
Has our world gone all blind?

Yet, do you know the truth of where your money goes?
Do you let the media deceive your mind?
Is this a truth nobody, nobody, nobody knows?
Someone tell me ...

Ooohh, let's not cry tonight, I promise you one day it's through
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters,
Ooohh, shine a light for every soul that ain't with us no more
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters,

American , do you realize that the taxes that you pay
Feed the forces that traumatize my every living day
So if I won't be here tomorrow
It's written in my fate
May the future bring a brighter day
The end of our wait

(pause)

Ooohh, let's not cry tonight, I promise you one day it's through
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters,
Ooohh, shine a light for every soul that ain't with us no more
Ohh my brothers, Ohh my sisters,

[with kids]
Ohh let's not cry tonight I promise you one day is through
Ohh my brothers! Ohh my sisters!
Ooh shine a light for every soul that ain't with us no more
Ohh my brothers! Ohh my sisters!

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From City of Manchester Stadium to Gaza Strip

2 September 2008

It has been confirmed. Manchester City is now owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan through his Abu Dhabi United Group after £210 millions takeover. The surprise has not yet to stop. In the closing time of the August transfer window, Manchester City succesfully snapped Robinho from Real Madrid after paying £32.5m. It is definitely the most shocking transfer news in August

How rich is Sheikh Mansour and his family?

The Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) is part of the oil rich state’s sovereign wealth fund ADIA which manages £500billion of assets and is the world’s second biggest institutional investor, behind the Bank of Japan, according to the Oxford Business Group. Abu Dhabi manages oil reserves worth an estimated $1trillion !! (£555billion) and it is believed that the personal fortune of Sheikh Mansour reaches $22 billions!!

27 December 2008

After long blockade since HAMAS fully controlled Gaza Strip, Israel finally launched their attack to Gaza. Operation Cast Lead began at 11.30 AM. 50 fighter jets and attack helicopters perform air strike that killed almost 300 people. The attack was regarded by Palestinians as Massacre of the Black Saturday because it produced the highest one-day death toll in 60 years of conflict.

10 January 2009

Emirates News Agency has reported that Sheikh Mansour had donated fund to built operation rooms and wards at Al Shifa Hospital Gaza. The exact amount of money is not reported.


16 January 2009

It was reported that ADUG had put £100 millions ($150 milllions) transfer bid for Kaka of AC Milan. If agreed, this would have been the largest ever transfer fee, more than doubling the previous record (£46 millions for Zidane`s transfer from Juventus to Real Madrid) . Ultimately, the deal collapsed. The proposed deal sparked a widespread debate on the ethics and sustainability of such large transfer fees. Arsene Wenger even described the proposed transfer fee as "not in real world"

Meanwhile far away at Gaza Strip, The bodies of 23 Palestinians were pulled from the rubble in the Tel al-Hawa district of Gaza City after Israeli tanks withdraw in the pre-dawn hours. Palestinian medics say at least 1,155 Palestinians have died over the past three weeks since Operation Cast Lead began.

18 January 2009

Israel declared an unilateral cease fire after 22 days of fighting. According to Palestinian Center of Human Rights, 1284 Palestians had been killed, 894 of them are civilians. In addition, 4336 Palestinians were wounded. In addition, Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics put the damage because of the 22 days battle at $1.5 billion: The direct damage suffered by Gaza residents is estimated at $400 million, while the damage to infrastructures is estimated at $1 billion.

At the same day, far away from Gaza, Manchester City has succesfully signed Craig Bellamy for £14 millions from West Ham United after their £100 millions offer for Kaka had been rejected

=====================================================================

Alhamdulillah, Sheikh Mansour hasn`t forgot Gaza..

Neverthless by imagining the staggering amount of proposed Kaka transfer bid and Sheikh Mansour personal fortune (plus his family also). I believed that if he want to, he could transform Gaza into a better place than its pre-war condition

Just Imagine.. his family asset is around $1 trillion (£555 billion). And it is reported that his personal fortune (according arabianbusiness.com) is around $22 billions!!

how many houses can be rebuild?
how many hospital can be rebuild?
how many university can be built?
how many Gaza people will move to other side of poverty line?
(60% Gaza residents are below poverty line before Operation Cast lead was launched)
how many....?
how many....?

I know you can do it, Sheikh. We are brothers in Islam :)

reference
- Sheikh Mansour news in Daily Telegraph
- Sheikh Mansour news in Daily Mirror
- Sheikh Mansour tops new football rich list
- First Gaza Damage Estimation : $ 1.4 billions
- Sheikh Mansour donation to Al Shifa Hospital, Gaza
- The Effects of the 2008-2009 Israel-Gaza Conflict
- Kaka`s mega transfer bid
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Rain drops and Falling on my head

Dunno why but lately i often humming this song. well most likely because it is rainy season right now in Malaysia and also in Indonesia :D

Some people relate rain with sadness and tears but for some people rain is a blessing from The Almighty. I myself opts for the last mentioned opinion..

Ok, lets cut the introduction part and let us sing together.. :D

Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head

Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed
Nothin' seems to fit
Those raindrops are fallin' on my head, they keep fallin'

So I just did me some talkin' to the sun
And I said I didn't like the way he got things done
Sleepin' on the job
Those raindrops are fallin' on my head, they keep fallin'

But there's one thing I know
The blues they send to meet me won't defeat me
It won't be long till happiness steps up to greet me

Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
But that doesn't mean my eyes will soon be turnin' red
Cryin's not for me
'Cause I'm never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
Because I'm free
Nothin's worryin' me

It won't be long till happiness steps up to greet me

Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
But that doesn't mean my eyes will soon be turnin' red
Cryin's not for me
'Cause I'm never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
Because I'm free
Nothin's worryin' me
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Accepting the Reality

sometimes fact are stranger than fiction. Something that we couldn't have thought to be happened, suddenly become reality.

Someone that is very close to us, suddenly hates us

Something that we possesses, suddenly gone

Someone that swears his/hers loyalty to us, suddenly betrays us
or someone that we have pledged our loyalty, suddenly abandon us

all of these could happen just in the blink of an eye. So when it happens, what could we do? well we could be desperate, feeling gloomy all all the times, wondering by saying what if... what if.., blame yourself (or others) and the worse of it, committed suicide

Does all things that have been mentioned above could solve the problems? does the reality revert back to its previous state, just like when we press undo button in a word processor? well.. most of the case, it never occurs. The reality stays as it is.

What is the best solution?
No other than accepting the reality... and think positive. Maybe there is something good behind all this that we couldn't understand at the moment. And Always believe that God gives u the best ;)

"you may dislike something which is good for you, and you may like something which is bad for you. GOD knows while you do not know" (Al Baqarah : 216)

And Just like the old song

Que Sera, Sera,
Whatever will be, will be
The future's not ours, to see
Que Sera, Sera
What will be, will be.
(Doris Day-Que Sera Sera)

Keep Smiling ;)

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Steve Berry-The Romanov Phrophecy

I remembered glancing this book at Gramedia BIP Bandung along with other Steve Berry`s book, "The Amber Room". Unfortunately I`m kind of person who prefers to borrow novel instead of collecting them :P. Lucky for me I found this book in PTSL UKM :D

Russia.. an inspiration for Steve Berry to create his novel “The Romanov Prophecy”. Tsar Nicholas and his long lost direct descendant combined with An American hero involvement and a nasty secret organization surely create some “thrill” :D So whats the story?

After experiencing communism and capitalist democracy, Russian finally opt revert back to tsarist form of government. Sounds weird? Well just like comment from Peter The Great at the opening page of the novel,

Russia - A country in which things that just don`t happen, happen..

Anyway.. so the people set up a committee to choose appropriate candidate with blood ties to previous tsar as their new tsar, similar like a selection in a pop idol contest.. So, In this sort of revolution, a nasty unnamed organization consists of representative from discontent Russian military and bureaucracy, Russian “mafiya” as well as “the new rich class” (yeah, I know what all of you thinking, sort of Roman Abramovich… :O ) tries to influenced the outcome of the selection process in favors of their candidate or I should say, their puppet candidate named Stefan Baklanov.

In this situation, our hero emerge.. an Atlanta lawyer named Miles Lord. Initially, he is ordered to perform a background check to Baklanov to ensure that there is nothing wrong with Baklanov`s claim to the throne and there is no one with stronger claim to the throne other than Baklanov.. unknown to him, his bos (Taylor Hayes) collaborate with the nasty organization. Then puzzle solving begins.. starting from Rasputin’s prophecy about the collapse of Romanov dynasty and its restoration, Felix Yussoupov and Kolya Maks with their Holy Band and finally the search of Tsar Nicholast long lost descendant in America…. The ending? Well you should read it for yourself

What become interest for me is the front cover blurb and author`s foreword page. It mentions Dan Brown name although it is not a “Da Vinci Code” type novel (kind of novel who is thought or maybe aim to reveal a shocking hidden facts about your religion). Until I realize some similarities between this novel and The Da Vinci Code. For both novels, the main protagonists consist of a man and a woman (Lord-Petrova vs Langdon-Neveu). The main protagonists are betrayed by someone they regard as their close allies (Taylor Hayes vs Sir Leigh Teabing). Two secret organizations, the good one and the nasty/thought to be nasty one (holy band-unnamed nasty secret organization vs priory of sion-Opus Dei). The nasty/thought to be nasty secret organization hires assassin(s) to eliminate the protagonist (Droopy,Cromagnon and Inspector Orleg vs Silas). There are puzzles to solve (Yussoupov riddles vs Priory of Sion riddles). Part of the puzzles or riddles are hidden in a bank safe deposit box (Commerce and Merchant Bank vs Bank of Zurich). and finally both conclude in a shocking revelation (long lost direct descendant of Tsar Nicholas II vs secret Jesus descendant). Wew.. what a similarity.. :D

Despite that similarities, there is of course some differences. The one that I notice from beginning is Berry`s decision to eliminate the secrecy of Hayes act of betrayal at the early stage of the novel. Thus there is no element of "whodunnit" in this novel. Moreover, in Romanov prophecy, the nasty secret organization is nasty for real :P but in the Da Vinci Code, it is revealed that Opus Dei is being "used" by Sir Teabing.

thats all for my book review.. looks longer than the previous one :p

Useful links
- Wikipedia-Da Vinci Code
- Steve Berry`s website

NB : it seems that the lost 2 bodies of Tsar Nicholas family has been solved. see here for the detail
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For the love of the game

Now let`s talk about football out of life in Emirates Stadium :D

Tonight is Capello first competitive match with England. And lucky for him, they will against Andorra who ranked by FIFA at 186th. But who knows that the part timers can upset the profesionals just like Andorra did when eight years ago they forced mighty France to win only by last minute penalty :D

part timers? yeah most of Andorra players are part timer. Here are some of them

Koldo Álvarez de Elaute (GK) = school football coach
Joseph Manuel Ayala (MF) = builder, he built the Andorra`s town hall!
Julia Fernandez (DF) = work in tourist business
Oscar Sonejee (MF) = salesman
Antoni Lima (DF) = football administrator
Jordi Escura (DF) = physiotherapist (looks like they don`t need off field physiotherapist)
Marc Pujol (MF) = student

The list was reported at March 2007, I don`t know if one of them change his job or become full time footballer.

It has been a general knowledge that football has become a giant industry. Some of the player can be categorized as millionaire, such as Frank Lampard with his 151,000 Euro per week salary. So.. it`s not a strange phenomena if nowadays some football players are branded as "play only for the money". I wont mention a name but all of you could think one from many examples of football player of this type :D

Back to the Andorra case, before their tonight match against England, I`ve found an article in goal.com that really touch me :) particularly at the last sentence when Manolo Jimenez, one of the other Andorra part timers, said

“I’m not a full-time professional, I play for free, for the love of football,"

Manolo Jimenez (left) in an Euro 2008 Qualification Match against Croatia (September 2007)

Yeah he play for free.. just for love of the game. I imagine that every weekend at Andorra National league which only comprise of 8 team, he plays with FC Andorra with such a joy that cannot be described by money lover footballers :D

Reference
- Andorra`s amateur dare to dream
- Andorra National team page at wikipedia
- Andorra`s weapon of Mac`s destruction
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