Carolyn Khor's blog

Exchanging oranges for limes, but still better than nothing. Chief Minister of Penang, Lim Guan Eng is expected to propose on behalf of Pakatan Rakyat, Law Choo Kiang as Speaker and Ustaz Maktar Hj. Shapee as Deputy Speaker for the Penang State Assembly tomorrow (28/6/2013). Both are second term PKR state assemblyman for Bukit Tambun and Sungai Bakap respectively. Deputy Chief Minister 1 for Penang, Rashid Hasnon will second the motion. Lim had also, in his press release, made known that prior to the final decision, Penang PKR chairman, Dato Mansor Othman was unanimously proposed and supported by the Penang EXCO, consisting of both DAP and PKR members, for the Speaker post. He attributes the change to a consultation with Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim, PKR’s de facto leader and Parliamentary Opposition Leader. The initial move to propose Dato Mansor may be politically correct, or reversely, simply an olive branch from DAP to iron out the outburst of the ‘Tokong’ issue which emerged s...

The episodes of haze has returned yet again, and this is among two of the bad haze conditions faced since 1997 and 2005. There is no exception to human error when the health of the whole region comes under siege annually due to the clearing of land by palm oil and timber companies in Indonesia. So far, eight concessionaires have been identified by the Indonesian Environment Minister and National Disaster Mitigation Board, Balthasar Kambuaya. An environmental group known as Greenpeace claim that these plantations belong to Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean conglomerates. The forest fire are said to originate from Riau and Jambi, the eastern side of Central Sumatra. Based on reports by the NOAA satellite, there are currently 227 hotspots and it is expected to continue burning well into the following month due to the high temperature and dry weather. Efforts for cloud-seeding in the region have borne little results as clouds do not form over the hotspots. It is also imposs...

I left my sweet love o’er the hills, For I thought the stars would lead me home, But far beyond a thousand journeys, The faint echoes drum repeatedly: Please come home, Please come home.  The wind and breeze bear witness, To my dying wish I be laid to rest, In the grounds of my beloved birthplace, Where the smell of flowers bid me: You are home, You are home. But as I wander through the vast empty land, My guiding star I search in vain, And so a promise I give myself – Nev'r to stop till my love I find again: I’m coming home, I’m coming home. June 27, 2013 - Carolyn Khor