American Idol/ The Minister & The NGO's Journey

I only managed to catch the last 3 performances of American Idol tonight and snippets of the others. Came back late and am too tired to do a proper review. Sorry, folks!

But from what I've seen so far, I don't think Ace Young will be kicked out this week. He picked a good song and he sang it well.

Katherine McPhee was definitely the best performer tonight singing "Someone To Watch Over Me". What an amazing performance - she was cool, composed and vocally mesmerising, all at once. If she keeps this up, she will be an American Idol.

Second best performance tonight was by Paris Bennett. Can't remember the name of the song - but she sang it brilliantly and the judges loved it.

My gut feel for the bottom 3 this week is Elliot Yamin, Ace Young and Kellie Pickler.
And I think poor Elliot is gonna be kicked out.

Pixie - you're have gonna to pay up on your stake, I think. ;)

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Was busy with a 9th Malaysia Plan function tonight for the NGO tonight, where an idiotic Minister was granstanding to the audience and totally did not allow a panel which had 4 top GLC CEO's and 1 private sector CEO, answer any questions.

I had mixed feelings about tonight's function. The NGO made the most money that it's ever made in a single event and broke the record which I set in 2002, by a total of RM5,000+. I was pleased about that - it doesn't reflect well on The NGO, if event income records have not been broken in 4 years.

And part of the reason was this was the highest we've ever charged for an event (at RM80) and still managed to get an audience of about 120-130 people. (Although my event in 2002 is still holding the record for the largest turnout, for a single event at 180+ people)

But because of the Minister's monopoly on the audience tonight and where none of the panelists got to talk, I think this particular event gave the least value for the money spent. We never got to hear the experts talk on their particular domain expertise and niches.

Well, this is what happens when you get a Minister that's publicity-crazy. He's a politician 24-hours a day - and he doesn't even care how much value he's compromising for the audience's time and money.

He's not a dumb chap - he's a got a postgraduate degree in an engineering major. But sometimes, I feel that he does not have any respect for knowledge - or for the quality of knowledge, that can be garnered by others. He just likes the sound of his voice too much.

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About 3 years ago, in the same venue, I locked horns with the same Minister in a Q&A session. Things got so heated in the debate that he finally raised his voice at me and said, "SIT DOWN, YOUNG MAN!"

In a polite but nonchalant manner - I replied, "Thank You, Dato'". I was not going to give this man any face - any man who has to pull rank to win an argument with me, in front of over 100+ people - is not going to win my respect. Especially, when he's a Minister - I expect a bit more, from my nation's leaders - although almost always, I will get disappointed.

I remember Dato Ariff Nun of MDC walking up to me after the Minister has left and said to me, "You've got balls, boy!" and then he laughed that familiar laugh.

What was there to be scared of? I was right on the debated issue.

And you know what the ironic thing is? This Minister had a crucial role in shaping the initial form of The Program - the bad part. One that we're still stuck with today - from a personal decision made out of political expediency, because elections were around the corner.

There are times when I do regret making deals with bad men. But I didn't know any better, then.

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It was strange seeing the Minister again in the same venue and this time, when I was a part of the organizing committee for tonight's function.

And to see him agree with the views that he vehemently disagreed with, 3 years ago.

And for him to use the same words that the people in the NGO introduced about 4 years ago, within the industry and lobbied to the Government. I could see that he's beginning to understand and to reach the same conclusions that we've reached, about 3-4 years earlier.

Well, it's bloody well about time, Minister!

It was nice that he acknowledged the NGO's work all these years. He mentioned The Program in a very positive light as a product of the NGO's lobbying and I can't help but smile. And he (together with Badman of the newly re-branded Mad Decker organization) welcomed more policy feedback and implementation assistance from The NGO.

The Minister has even put a small new fund under the charge The NGO, to cover a certain domain niche focus area under the 9th Malaysia Plan.

But I still had mixed feelings, somehow. It has been a long journey up to this point of recognition - although The NGO was still a relatively small organization of a few good men, but it has gained much respect and traction over the years. But we've been lucky - most times, we've always had an eye for recruiting good people. The same is true of The Program, too.

But seeing the presentations by 2 of the CEOs tonight and the Minister made me a little concerned. Their ideas were stale and looked like old ideas repackaged in a new box. Where are the new ideas? Where are the breakthrough insights and strategies?

What is the point of the 5-figure salary for most of the senior staff of the organization if they're not thinking and just waiting for the answers to some of the problems that this nation faces, in this particular domain? We're paying fat cats that doesn't really do any hard thinking and does not even implement very well.


Yes, I'm consoled that they're welcoming our feedback from The NGO. It makes it feel like all the effort and nurturing of the last few years, by some of the pillars of the NGO, have not been in vain.

My only fear is that this is the key thing that they're depending on, to solve some of the more strategic barriers, that Malaysia faces. Be it from both a policy or an implementation perspective.

If part-time volunteer professionals in The NGO is all this country has to take the thought leadership to transform Malaysia to the next level - then, I'm worried.

I never had any doubts that The NGO is one of the most experienced and effective organizations within this domain - but if we're the best in their eyes - then, it may not be enough. Malaysia needs more than that, to make the next leap.

Because thinking and implementing policy for national issues - cannot and should not, be a part-time job. That would be like rowing with only one paddle, when everyone else is using two.

This country needs more and it needs radical changes in organizations that are of national importance.

We cannot keep having Ministers who don't listen and have over-grandiose ideas (but with little idea of how to implement it) and CEO's of GLCs that eventually begin to act, like their hands are tied to their political masters or their unwillingness to drastically reform the organization, preferring a slow, organic approach.

And truth be told, there'd be nothing wrong with that perspective. If this were still the 20th century.

National policies are too important an issue, to be left to whims and fancies of politicians. They're too important for our people and they're even more crucial at this stage of Malaysia's development - where it's either the leap is made or regression is but a certainty.

And unless Malaysia comes to that realization soon - it will be charting its course under ambitious, presumably well-meaning but strategically (and sometimes, intellectually) misguided hands.

Dear God,....keep us under Your blessings and keep us away from bad, indecisive and incapable leaders.

Amin!