Tribute to Khoo Khay Jin (1948-2011)
4 min read
The community of social science scholars and public intellectuals in Malaysia and Malaysianists are once again shocked and grieved, this time to hear of the unt...
Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 – A Further Blow to Democracy
6 min read
In his Malaysia Day message delivered on the eve of September 16, 2011, Prime Minister Najib Tun Abdul Razak announced what many initially thought was good news...
Gurney Drive Memories
4 min read
One can feel the heart of the city beating with a stop-motion movement as the high rise luxury condominiums grow into a dense forest. As I gazed at the seafront...
CUSTODIAN OF MAINLAND PENANG
4 min read
As with all municipalities, the wellbeing of the residents is partly in the hands of those who run the local authority. In Seberang Perai, this is the Majlis Pe...
Seberang Perai - The Adopted Child Matures
13 min read
A brief historyA peek into the history of the state clearly shows the reason for the neglect of Seberang Perai by the government of Penang. When Francis Light...
More and More Malls in Penang
9 min read
Penang’s retail landscapeIn recent years, shopping malls, hypermarkets and departmental stores have been rapidly growing on both the island and the main...
1Care – A Careless Reform
6 min read
IntroductionAneurin Bevan (1897-1960), the UK’s Minister of Health immediately after the Second World War, once stressed that where medical needs exist,...
Civil Society and Pakatan Governments
6 min read
Interestingly, many individuals from nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) made the decision to join (then) opposition parties and contest in the 12th General El...
Faces of Industrial Penang: Hamdan – Doer and Dreamer
6 min read
Tell us something about your background.My early years were in Penang. I left Penang Free School to pursue a degree in Economics from the University of Lond...
Microcredit, Macro-Goals
6 min read
Poverty eradication has always been a tall order, and approaches to do so over the years have been subject to much debate.You may have heard of Prof Muhamma...
What ’s The Deal When Government Gives Away Money?
5 min read
Speaking as a layman, I’m aghast that the government is giving out so much money these days, as if there’re lots more where it’s coming from...
Encore, Penang World Music Festival
5 min read
It wasn’t so long ago that Penang played host to some of the best international acts that the music world had to offer. This was at the Penang World Music...