www.wansaiful.com

A belated congratulations to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank for winning the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize.

The award vindicates the belief that trade, commerce and prosperity - not poverty and meaningless fighting - hold huge potentials for lasting peace.

Small step number 1: The Malaysia Think Tank’s profile on Atlas’s directory has been updated.

Small step number 2

A few slightly bigger steps:

1. By early next week, we should be incorporated.

2. The business plan is shaping up. 

3. I will then start formulating a budget. 

4. We two confirmed projects.

5. Professor Chandran Kukathas - whom Christine and John Blundell introduced to me  yesterday - and Abdul Wahab Al-Affendi have agreed to our proposals.

6. Met with an Analyst from Malaysia’s Centre for Public Policy Study on Monday.

I certainly did not expect this!

CPPS published a document on Malaysia’s corporate equity distribution recently. As expected, it received massive media attention.

Looking at the reactions by Malay politicians (see here and here)  I am truly baffled.

Malays must be the only people in this universe who would vehemently fight to maintain  that they are economically and socially backward.

The former PM even said that Malays would run amok if people thought that they are doing well in the economy ?!?

Where else would you find a group of people who becomes angry at the suggestion that they are doing well? 

The affirmative action policy should be scrap. Yes, make it gradual. Yes, plan for it carefully. But, there must be clear timetable and clear commitment to scrap it. 

From a Home Office publication: 

“In the 1980s, the largest immigrant groups [into the UK] were from the United States, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia“

“Today [in the UK] while 65 per cent of children live with both birth parents, almost 25 percent live in lone parent families, and 10 per cent live within a stepfamily.”