LawEddie.com

(I received this from a friend and thought it will be interesting to have a look)

Can a family man with Salary RM3,000 survive in Malaysia

Let’s do some simple calculations here.

In Malaysia, the average family income is RM3,000 /month
(where father works, mother doesn’t).

I understand there are many families whose monthly income does not reach RM3,000,
but, to make things simple,
let’s take RM3,000 as the figure. Ok lah, right?

Okay, let’s start rolling with a family which has Papa, Mama, 1 daughter and 1 son. Ngam-ngam ….

Calculation starts…

Electricity and water bill: RM100
(No air-con, No home theatre, No water heater … ok?)

Phone bill ( Telekom): RM100

Meals for a happy family: RM775
(3 meals on RM25/day, RM25 for 4 persons…?)

Papa makan / teh-tarik during working hrs: RM155
(RM5/day, RM5 … can eat what?)

Car repayment: RM400
(A proton saga aeroback, 7 yrs repayment)

Petrol (living in city, traffic-jam): RM300
(go to work, bring son to school, only can afford one car running)

Insurance: RM650
(kids, wife and myself)

House repayment: RM750
(low cost housing repayment for 30 yrs, retired still have to work to pay!)

Tuition: RM80
(got that cheap meh? i don’t think so)

Older children pocket money @ school: RM20
(RM1/day, eat bread?)

School fees: RM30
(enough ah?)

School books and etc: RM100
(always got extra to pay in school)

Younger children milk powder: RM50
(cannot have the DHA, BHA, PHA one, expensive)

Miscellaneous: RM100
(shampoo, rice, sauce, toilet paper)

Oh wait!!! I have to stop here, so…
No Astro,
no movie @ cinema,
no DVD,
no CD,
no online,
cannot KFC,
cannot McDonald,
cannot go Park walk during weekend (petrol expensive),
no chit chat on phone with grandparents, and etc…

Let’s use a calculator to total up…. WALAO EH! Shit! RM3,610 already…

EPF belum potong, income tax lagi……..oledi RM3,610 ….

How to survive lah tuan-tuan dan puan-puan sekalian ???

Our Deputy Prime Minister asked us to change lifestyle?

How to change? Don’t eat? Don’t work? Don’t send children to school and study?

Besides that, I believe in Malaysia population, there are millions of rakyat Malaysia which still don’t earn RM3,000/month!!!

What is this? Inilah Malaysia Boleh… Sorry … it should be Malaysians Boleh , because we’re still alive and kicking!!

Our politicians must be mad!!!!

Please forward and comment boleh or tak boleh. No wonder so many Ah Loong around lah….

Written by Brian Tracy (edited by Freda from BFM)

Integrity is a value, like persistence, courage and industriousness. Even more than that, it is the value that guarantees all the other values. You are a good person to the degree to which you live your life consistent with the highest values that you espouse. Integrity is the quality that locks in your values and causes you to live consistent with them.

Integrity is the foundation of character. And character development is one of the most important activities you can engage in. Working on your character means disciplining yourself to do more and more of those things that a thoroughly honest person would do, under all circumstances.

To be impeccably honest with others, you must first be impeccably honest with yourself. You must be true to yourself. You must be true to the very best that is in you, to the very best that you know. Only a person who is living consistent with his or her highest values and virtues is really living a life of integrity. And when you commit to living this kind of life, you will find yourself continually raising your own standards, continually refining your definition of integrity and honesty.

You can tell how high your level of integrity is by simply looking at the things you do in your day-to-day life. You can look at your reactions and responses to the inevitable ups and downs of life. You can observe the behaviors you typically engage in and you will then know the person you are.

Your integrity is manifested in your willingness to adhere to the values you hold most dear. Its easy to make promises and hard to keep them, but if you do, every single act of integrity will make your character a little stronger. And as you improve the quality and strength of your character, every other part of your life will improve as well.

The below article is written by a lawyer, Richard Wee and is originally posted at Richard Wee Lopez’s blog. (Use with permission)

Parliament has to intervene when there is an issue of jurisdictional conflict between Syariah and civil laws.

LAST year, the Federal Court in the case of Subashini Raja singam v Saravanan Thanga thoray, by a majority of 2-1, dismissed the wife’s application for a court order to stop her husband, who had converted to Islam, from going to the Syariah court for a divorce and from unilaterally converting their infant children to Islam.

It was dismissed on a technical ground. Under Section 51, Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976, if one spouse converts to Islam, the other spouse can only apply for divorce three months after that conversion.

Subashini filed her divorce application just before that three-month deadline.

She had done so because her husband had filed a similar application in the Syariah court and that court was apparently prepared to grant a divorce order as well as an order for custody of her child despite her absence (she cannot appear in that court as she is not a Muslim).



However, the Federal Court made some interesting observations. One major issue in that case was the conversion of one of the children in the marriage to Islam by the converted husband.

Subashini had contended that the conversion was irregular and therefore void, as the law requires the consent of both parents when the child is converted to another religion.



But the majority of the Federal Court, in a Judgment delivered by Datuk Nik Hashim Nik Ab. Rahman FCJ said:

“The wife complained that the husband had no right to convert either child of the marriage to Islam without the consent of the wife. She said the choice of religion is a right vested in both parents by virtues of Articles 12(4) and 8 of the Federal Constitution, and Section 5 of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1961.



[Articles 12 (4) of the Federal Constitution provides that the religion of a person under the age of eighteen years shall be decided by his parent or guardian. Article 8 prohibits discrimination on the basis, among other things, of gender; and Section 5 of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1961 provides that both parents have equal rights in matters related to the child.]


“After a careful study of the authorities, I am of the opinion that the complaint is misconceived. Either husband or wife has the right to convert a child of the marriage to Islam.
The word parent in art 12(4) of the FC, which states that the religion of a person under the age of 18 years shall be decided by his parent or guardian, means a single parent.”



With respect, I disagree with this part of the decision. The 11th Schedule, Section 2 (95) of the Federal Constitution specifically states that singular words in the Constitution shall include the plural. So the use of the word “parent” in the Federal Constitution does not mean only one parent but both parents.



In the light of the majority decision of the Federal Court, it appears that the law as it stands now is as follows:



1. One parent can convert a child from one religion to another.



2. When that conversion is to Islam, the non-Muslim spouse may have no remedy because of the difficulties faced by non-Muslims in challenging the other party’s legal status as a “Muslim” due to various laws and court decisions.


It is my view that Parliament has to intervene to legislate this matter and correct the position of Subashini and those like her. The amendments should include the requirement that both parents must give their consent if a child below 18 years of age is to be converted to another religion.

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I received the below description about Patience from Freda of BFM, which I like myself and love to share with the entreprenuers.

“Patience is the ability to wait for the fruition of our goals. Or, as the ancient philosopher Epictetus is reported to have said nearly 2,000 years ago, “Nothing great is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig. I answer you that there must be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen.”

Being patient doesn’t mean sitting around waiting for things to happen. Instead, it means to work as hard and as long as necessary, without giving up, until we reach our destination. The ancient Egyptians didn’t sit around waiting. They made plans, preparations, and worked on their project until the pyramids were completed. The pyramids, then, are monuments to patience.

How can we commit to a relationship unless we have patience? Patience binds, heals, and supports relationships. Impatience is divisive. It severs friendships, dissolves marriages, breaks up families, and breaks hearts. So, patience is also about maturity. Patient people do not throw away pets and possessions or relationships and responsibilities simply because things aren’t working out as originally expected. Patient people bring out the best in them. Impatient people bring out the beast in them.

You say you’re not as patient as you would like to be? Not to worry, just be patient, for patience comes to those who wait. Aren’t all things difficult before they become easy? My final words on patience are taken from the eighteenth-century French naturalist, Georges-Louis Leclerc Buffon (1707-1788), “The ability to accept delay. Or disappointment. To smile at setbacks and respond with a pleasant, understanding spirit. To remain calm while others around are uneasy. This is Godly patience. Never think that God’s delays are God’s denials. Hold on; Hold fast; Hold out. Patience is genius.”

Excerpt by Chuck Gallozi”

Few weeks ago, I received a call from a lady (very well educated) who wanted to buy the Blogging & Law DVD from my company.

Since I will be around in PJ (she lives there as well) the next day, as such, I suggested to pass a copy of her ordered DVD to her personally.

When I met her, I found that she was in fact buying the said DVD for her son as her son is a blogger and she wanted her son be aware of his rights and liablities in cyberspace especially when comes to blogging activities.

This made me felt that many Malaysian bloggers (or those who care about their love one, as in this case) are responsible one. They are keen to know what content they should write and what they shouldn’t write.

As such, I think Malaysian bloggers MUST know the below 2 provisions of law under the famous Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (MCMC Act):

1. section 211 of the MCMC Act

“211. Prohibition on provision of offensive content.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both and shall also be liable to a further fine of one thousand ringgit for every day or part of a day during which the offence is continued after conviction..”

I am not sure if there is any blogger/webmaster being charged under this section. Please do share with me if you come across any case where blogger is charged under this section.

I think for those porn bloggers, if they are cought then they could be charged under this section by providing obscene content in their blogs.

2. section 233 of the MCMC Act

“233. Improper use of network facilities or network service, etc.

(3) A person who commits an offence under this section shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both and shall also be liable to a further fine of one thousand ringgit for every day during which the offence is continued after conviction.”

1st case – 6 Bloggers Charged for Insulting Sultan of Perak (March 2009)
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