BN Leadersip Tips #320 - Reasons Don't Have to Make Sense

Based on an explanation inspired presumably by turtle soup, the Terengganu state government has defended the purchase of 14 Mercedes E200 Kompressor cars at RM3.43mil for the use of its state executive councillors and senior officials.

Extracted here, the explanation goes:

Please understand that the Proton Perdanas go through continuous long-distance journeys. It’s costing us a lot of money due to high cost of maintenance.

“We are not saying that the national car is not good but in reality we are coughing up more money for maintaining the Proton Perdanas, particularly the gear boxes,” he said.

Ahmad cited the example of the Proton Perdana of state Commerce, Industry and Environment committee chairman Toh Chin Yaw, which has twice undergone expensive repairs costing RM50,000 within 36 months.

As an onwer and user of 2 proton cars in the past, I have some questions on my mind which I have no other choice but to put in bold:

#1 - Where on earth has Toh Chin Yaw been to carry out his duties?? Will giving him a vehicle that cost RM 245,000 solve the issue? Is his bill the highest? Where does he take the car for servicing? Surely it has to be EON... And if the problem lies in the make, then is Terengganu giving the national car a massive thumbs down?
#2 - The Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata cost approx. RM 150,000 for the 2 litre variant. What is the justification of spending RM 1.4 million extra since all these cars are recognized for reliability?
#3 - What is the cost of maintenance by breakdown? And what are the items most regularly changed? Also, since these are state reps and councillors, exactly how far does the MB refer to when he says "continuous long distance journeys"? Maybe there's a case in there for road upgrades too...
#4 - When quoted "The funds to procure the cars were from our own coffers and has nothing to do with the oil royalties” - exactly whose coffers? The officials or the state "rakyat" money? Either way, there's questions to be asked...
#5 - Exactly how dumb does the state government think Terengganu people are?

In Remembrance of Dr Foo Ong Pin

My babies lost a paediatrician, I suspect, humanity lost a good man. May he rest in peace.

Here are the words of someone who knew him better.

Oil Crisis - Is OPEC a villian or well... something else

Speculators, not OPEC, 'causing oil price spike'

Posted Tue Jun 10, 2008 11:23am AEST
Updated Tue Jun 10, 2008 11:28am AEST
Oil drums from British Petrolelum

Speculation-fuelled: Rising oil prices have the world economy in turmoil (AFP: Paul J Richards)

A former Iraqi oil minister says record high oil prices are more to do with speculators, including central banks, than supply and demand.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is pressuring G8 leaders to push for OPEC to increase oil supply.

Isam Chalabi was Iraq's oil minister before the first Gulf War and has more than 40 years experience in the industry.

He says Mr Rudd's strategy will not work.

"The question of prices today is not related to supply and demand fundamentals - everybody knows that," he told AM.

"Everybody has said so and hence it is not a matter of increasing supplies because whoever is in need of oil has been able to get it, so there is no need of problem of getting the oil."

Brian Wilson, former British energy minister under Tony Blair, agrees.

"What takes it from $US100 to $US130 is that there is a huge speculative element and the actual connection between the paper trading price of oil and anything that is happening in the physical world is now extremely remote," he told the BBC.

Mr Chalabi says only regulation of oil trading will stop the price spike.

"The world consumes 85 million barrels a day, you have trading going on over a billion - some people estimate up to two billion - barrels a day, so if something really happens to put a hold on that, I believe that the price spike will not continue and maybe it will start to decrease," he said.