Countdown to a potentially ill-fated VMY2020 Part 2

Cont'd from Now can everyone still fly? (Countdown to a potentially ill-fated VMY2020)

Visit New Malaysia 2020 would have been alright, no?

Kuala Lumpur (capital of Truly Asia), July 23: If you are like most people, you probably like the look of the new logo (above) better than the last (below). But not by much, I guess. So far, I read a lot of complaints about the tongue-twisting tagline. One commenter said: "For a moment I thought there's a new chicken rice shop in town ... pekk .. pekk .. pekk ... " 

Personally, I kinda like the cute Oakley-ed monkeys and penyu on the old one ..

Suddenly, it's not as bad as we thought it was

In any case, the design of the logo or the grammatically suspect tagline isn't the reason why the nation's effortS to attract 30 million international tourists in 2020 are headed for doom. 

Read Annie's Not right to treat our airlines like enemies for about of the whys this is a potentially ill-fated VTAMY2020. 

To be cont'd some more ...

Now can everyone still fly? (Countdown to a potentially ill-fated VMY2020)

You can check in anytime you like           But you can never leave* (without paying your levy)

KL 22 July: The Prime Minister unveils the new Visit Malaysia Year 2020 logo today.

I have no doubt the new logo would be better looking than the old, "odd" one (Dr M makes a monkey out of VMY2020 logo, 30 Jan 2018) and good enough to at least not turn away the foreign tourists.  

But while the Old Man does his bid to try and help the government woo the tourists, his own Ministry of Finance and the various airport authorities don't seem to be helping. 

The MOF, for example, wants to introduce a new airport departure levy that will make Malaysia the first and only country in Asean to charge every passenger leaving its airports. Does that sound like a tourist attraction to you? Of course not but there you are! 

Even the Tourism Minister, who is not known for great sound bytes, has gone on record to say that this would be counter-productive for tourism, particularly for VMY2020. Last week the Malaysian Muslim Consumers Association urged the Government to defer the levy "to until after VMY2020". The impact of the levy on the government's aim to attract 30 million tourists during the VMY campaign, said the association's chief activist Datuk Nadzim Johan, is just "too obvious (amat ketara)".  

On top of the levy, those flying Malaysia will still have to cough up $$$ in passenger service charge (PSC), which goes to the kitty of Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad, the government-linked company that runs all but one of the country's airports. Air Asia, the Malaysian-born leading global low-fare airline, has refused to collect the full RM73 per pax that Malaysia Airports charge in PSC (its boss Tony Fernandes says it's "like saying a budget should charge the same as a 5-star hotel"). 

To be cont'd ...

*With apologies to The Eagles 

Malaysian politics: Mirror, mirror on the (crumbling) wall ...

Lawan tetap lawan, 180719: A favourite pastime of unpaid Malaysian political observers (ie mostly all of us) is to speculate on when (not if) Anwar Ibrahim and Dr Mahathir Mohamad will engage in an open bloody fight like they did in 1998. Well, looks like the pundits will have to wait a little longer, at least until this unexpected confrontation between an ex Sifu and his favourite Disciple, between a freed Slave and his former, beloved Master boils over ... 

(p.s. There's only one winner, for you information, and that's neither Anwar nor Azmin).

One pundit sent me this: 

"Bila Anwar tengok sendiri dalam itu cermin ..."

"Brains behind sex clips": Since when was this a crime?

To read the full story, subscribe to The Malaysian Insight 

Can't brain this, July 17: Masterminds in Malaysia's video sex clips are never small fries, just like the actors in those video clips are never puny. 

Rahim Thamby Chik, for example. He was established as one-third of the "brains" behind Anwar Ibrahim's 2011 sex clip (or, in today's new media parlance, sex clip of someone who resembled Anwar Ibrahim). Rahim was former Melaka Chief Minister and Umno Youth leader, a VVIP all his life. If fate hadn't intervened, he might even be Prime Minister of Malaysia today instead of Dr Mahathir, or Najib for that matter.

If you ask him, he would probably maintain he did nothing wrong or criminal in relations to the 2011 sex clip. Semuanya demi bangsa dan negara. 

Read and watch: In pleading guilty, Rahim Thamby Chik claims moral victory - Malaysiakini

p.s. Rahim was fined RM1,000 for his part in screening the 2011 sex clip to selected members of the media at Carcosa [Read here]

Toyol and billions of "dirompak" GST money that wasn't stolen after all!

Updated:
Lawyers tell AG to read GST law in full (and Pakatan politicians to stop drama) - The Mole, 16 July
Guan Eng's "lies" burdening the people - The Malaysia Gazette, 17 July
The Dr M forced to come to his Finance Minister's rescue, yet again - Life of Annie, 16 July


Original Posting

KL, 16 July: Don't ask me why this rather funny story here about the boy toyol in West Java makes me reflect on Lim Guan Eng's situation over his GST claim. 

But for sure, I'm not the only one going awe-awe-awe. Almost all the major mainstream newspapers gave our Minister of Finance the "cover" treatment for the GST "lie" over the last 24 hours:

Here's Lim Guan Eng's "rompak" claim from August 2018:

GST refund shortfall at RM19.3 billion, bigger than
previously stated, says Guan Eng 

It took the PAC one year to get everyone to start scolding Guan Eng for his rompak allegation but better late than never, kan?

Same reporter, same paper, different tales

For the record, YB Khairy Jamaluddin had a lot to do with provoking Guan Eng into committing the grave mistake. But I find it (again) funny that Tok Pa was defending the previous government over the issue. This, of course, was shortly before the former Umno man crossed over to Guan Eng's side. And what has that got to do with the toyol mentioned at the start of this posting? I suppose I'm convinced that toyols do exist ...