| Lee is a Petaling Jaya-born writer who worked in the IT sector and a business weekly before The Malaysian Insider. |
Under a cloud
October 06, 2011OCT 6 — It was a breezy Monday evening when I met up with an ex-schoolmate who was visiting from Los Angeles. The location was one of the trendy restaurants underneath the stunningly floodlit Petronas Twin Towers, the type of place where the decor unfortunately outshines the food and the service.My ex-schoolmate — let’s just call him SP — had done well for … Read More
Lessons from Public Bank’s 45th birthday bash video
August 17, 2011AUG 18 — The video of Public Bank’s 45th anniversary was already making jaws drop when it surfaced on my Facebook on Monday evening.And my anticipation was also heightened by stories told to me by ex-Public Bank staff about the company’s annual dinners so I expected something interesting to say the least.I was not disappointed as I watched the video on my … Read More
Should KL homebuyers go on strike?
April 16, 2011APRIL 16 — Homebuyers in KL and Penang have something in common with those in Melbourne and Sydney — increasingly unaffordable homes.Their Australian counterparts, however, have gone one step further from merely complaining about it and are actually participating in a campaign — led by lobby group Prosper Australia — to bring down house prices via a home … Read More
Pudu Jail demolition a slap in KL’s hopeful face
June 26, 2010JUNE 26 — In yet another all too familiar Malaysian contradiction, no sooner was it announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak that KL would be made a vibrant world-class city attractive to a high-skilled talented workforce than the bulldozers moved in to demolish yet another historic city landmark .Not only that, cries of protest over plans to … Read More
Move Parliament to Putrajaya, give KL back to Selangor
June 17, 2010JUNE 17 — I am all for moving Parliament to Putrajaya if it means reversing one of the most unfortunate incidents in Malaysia’s history – the “removal” of Kuala Lumpur from the state of Selangor.It is widely perceived that Selangor became a victim of racial politics when the Barisan Nasional government carved out the most valuable chunk of the state as a … Read More
Should we fear nuclear reactors?
May 07, 2010MAY 7 — Our country, which still can’t get its public transportation system right, is now planning to build a nuclear reactor. As related to me by one solar power industry player and which echoes what many, if not most, of us feel: “We have first-world infrastructure but third-world mentality. I am worried about bringing nuclear power to Malaysian shores. … Read More
Banging heads and brick walls
April 28, 2010APRIL 28 — Sitting across from AirAsia X CEO Azran Osman-Rani and watching him bang the table at one point in his frustration at how the government tries to limit competition in Malaysia for fear of damaging GLCs, I couldn’t help but feel like smiling.I felt like leaning back in my chair in AirAsia X’s office at the LCCT, clasping my hands behind my head, … Read More
A high-income country is not a developed country
March 29, 2010MARCH 29 — Unfashionable as optimism is in Malaysia today, I am actually quite excited about the New Economic Model (NEM) to be unveiled tomorrow. Based on what sources tell me, it is, to put it simply — good stuff.However, some people I have spoken to have been, quite understandably, indifferent to the NEM which is supposed to make Malaysia a high-income … Read More