Thursday, October 25, 2012

Hijab & Hudud wont make us more Taliban

I have been trying to understand what is the big fuss a bout covering up after a recent outrage about models needing to follow some dress codes for billboard advertisement. I believe this so called outrage is politically motivated since those tikus politikus still think every single Malaysian adore them. I honestly feel that people grew tired of the political slandering and self-praise but rather the people just want to see the result of good governance and policies.

I personally agree that models should wear decently on billboards. These models are someone's son or daughter or father or mother and the reason they were called models is because they should set an example to our kids. And just to point out, how many of you parents here would like to see your children wearing so revealing? I know I wouldn't for the sake of my unborn children.

The thought of setting out dress codes for models depicting the way of Taliban is somewhat far fetched. Please read what and who are the Talibans. Little did they realise, the sudden attacks on these Talibans, hudud and PAS will create an opportunity for racist, anti-Muslim scum from among our people to attack Islam the religion of peace and justice. Stupid Stats were also given out claiming 1.2 Million people will be jobless, cunningly said because more people will have their hands cut for stealing / bribery.

Islam's answer is simple. Do not steal, do not take bribes. And your hands will still be attached to your body!

I know PAS is only using hudud and the push for an Islamic state for their political gain. I bet they should because many of their supporters are Muslims who believe in the Islamic agenda. For many years PAS has been consistent about hudud until about 3 to 4 years ago when "ulamas" from the "Erdogans" camp site boldly stated that hudud should not be applied when there are still poor people who are forced to steal!

Says who? These Erdogans playing God now? I myself was left disappointed by these Erdogans stand and the leaders of PAS kept mum about it, maybe in a way to please other Pakatan component parties. Or maybe under the directive of the not so great "PM-designated" Anwar Ibrahim, the Tok Wali of the PAS-DAP marriage.

You ever wonder why suddenly people are talking about Hudud in Malaysia? It's all just bloody politics if you ask me. The sudden U-Turn by PAS leaders regarding Hudud is expected (I guess to the dismay of my former college-mate who is active in PAS but cannot do a turn around now). The Malay-Muslim supports are waning because of the Erdogans' lame stand on Hudud and when the leaders realise this, they publicly announce Hudud and Islamic State are still main parts of their agenda. Then, the game is back on. MCA started attacking Hudud and PAS and as you can see, they are on a roll.

But I must say hats off to those in PAS who are strong willed with principles. If people in Malaysia are so scared of hudud, they have to keep asking themselves, do I like to steal, to rape, to rob, to commit adultery, to kill and so on? Why are we supporting the criminals?

For a fact, I have been a fan of this Quranic rule although a former school-mate's wife thought otherwise. She was lucky I did not sue her haha! Living in Riyadh, I do not live in fear but I find it very peaceful because the bad guys are more afraid to commit crimes. If the law is strict, people are more afraid to commit crimes. If you now complain about the escalating number of crime rate, you should not be supporting the criminals now if the government would like to introduce stricter laws.

Of course we have to be realisitic. The word Hudud is a taboo for most Non-Muslims in Malaysia and thats why you will see MCA attacking PAS about it from all angles as we speak. What we should push for is stricter laws to punish the criminals. Few years for statutory rape, two years for the crook Khir Toyo, Indonesians facing the gallows for killing robbers for self defence, robbers only spending overnight at the police station and later released, justice for criminals who were shot by police calling trigger happy, prostitution ring sporadic, drug smuggling will not face death penalty anymore, leaders, public figures and "people with bright future" getting away easily are a few examples why you see people in our country are not afraid of committing crimes.

The problem of Talibans is that they make these rules in a way to show their power, to bring fear to the people as a whole so that their people bow to them like Gods.

For Malaysia, stricter laws should be introduced to bring fear to the CRIMINALS as a whole so that the CRIMINALS bow the good citizens and surrender.





Saturday, October 13, 2012

The Future of Property Investment in Malaysia

Hello. Hope you guys are fine. I'm taking a few minutes here to share about my opinion regarding the property market in Malaysia especially the ones in Klang Valley.

I have not ventured in properties outside KV as one of the rules of property investment is to really know the place you are investing. Thus, this opinion is strictly based on KV only.

The Government is doing a great job with the construction of MRTs to make Klang Valley a more convenient place to stay in terms of trying to go from point A to B. This should provide an investment opportunity to investors who might think better transportation networks would lead to better investment returns. This is usually true as long as the trains don't make so much noise pollution.

I believe the property prices for high rise residential should smoothen, if not decrease. Maybe it's about too late, people are eyeing for landed properties now. I myself did not invest in high rise buildings as I was a late starter and the prices for this type of properties were shooting up like there is no limit. So, I believe landed properties are still the safer bet. Of course I'm not betting here but rather knowing the situation I was facing at that time, landed properties tempted me more for its guaranteed capital appreciation.

Of course if it was the year 2006 (with good financial backup) I would have bought more than I currently have but linked-houses (Super Link or not) nowadays are going for minimum RM 700K for new sales. Still, people feel the price is fair for a landed property. The same cannot be said about high rise properties. At least according to a small time investor me.

Fret not. Some say there will be a bubble burst for the property market in Malaysia. If you ask me, yes, maybe for the high rise pigeon holes that are selling for a minimum of half a million. Not trying to be mean but I really, really think the prices for this kind of properties are astronomical! If you feel that you are ready to part away half a million for a small SOFO SOHO SOVO whatever you are calling it, make sure the financial plan is there for you or you will end up SOHAI. The rule is simple. For high rise properties, you are talking about the amenities that they have nearby and also the location. Plus, investing in properties of this kind should give a healthy ROI of at least 7%. It is indeed, a rental-linked property investment. Also, remember you have to compete with 200-400 other units to secure tenants or for some who feel flipping is a good idea. Yes, the bubble may come for these properties. When? Depends on how fast or slow the buyers will realise they are overpriced.

Those who invested in high-rises in 2009 and earlier should not worry though as the prices then were more reasonable. Half a million for a 700sq ft studio. Pfah!

The game the developer will play now is to sell townships and SP Setia, Mah Sing, Sime Darby and InP are the front runners in providing them. The areas might sound ridiculous now like Bandar Rimbayu, Semenyih, Klang, Bangi or Rawang. However, Kota Kemuning, Alam Impian, old Rawang, Bandar Bukit Raja turned out to be great as we speak. As land is somewhat scarce in Klang Valley, anything landed is the way forward it seems. The highly anticipated Kwasa Damansara is in the pipeline but I do not think it will come cheap. Nevertheless, you will see the sale to be very encouraging.

So, the future? GE or not the property market will still blossom. Of course the high rise residential and commercial properties will soften but for landed, rich Malaysians will be up and ready. I myself have a few targets on but will only make my debut on high rise when the right time (and price) comes. But remember, invest responsibly. Don't go above your threshold. You do not want to become bankrupt at a young age. Don't be too enthusiastic and then you forget the major rule of investment - positive cashflow.