What I call My Life - Adrian

1. You report to the Rakyat, not your party leader or coalition leader or any other bosses. Just to "repeat one more time", you report to the Rakyat.
2. The word "MP" does not mean "Many Perks" or "Master of the People". It stands for "Most Principled" ( It would also help greatly if you are also "Most Pleasant" as a person). For an MP, it's a privilege to serve and it's not privileges from serving.
3. Don't just talk; let us see positive action as well. We don't need any more hot air – the millions of cars on the roads and all the factories around produce enough of that already.
4. Like gold, your performance must shine. Being an MP is like running a maternity ward or a courier company --- you have to deliver. We did not put you there to make the numbers or to warm the seat in Parliament. Chair warming is just as serious an issue as global warming. MPs who just warm their seats will soon find their asses on fire.
5. No, we don't expect you to die for the country (because we know yours is an undying love) but we expect you to be committed and to work hard as well. This is not an unreasonable expectation because the future of the country and the welfare of more than 25 million people depend on what you do or don't do.
6. We do not require you to have the intelligence of a rocket scientist but you need to be well-informed on issues and you must also have the pulse on what is going on. (This is just in case we are being observed by some extra terrestrials and we need to uphold "Malaysia Boleh" and show them that there are signs of intelligent life forms in the Malaysian Parliament ).
7. Your words must be worth their weight in gold. And don't ever forget your election promises. We are not saints who will forgive and forget.  
   
8. We need you to be accessible so that we can raise issues and give feedback to you. MPs must not be like the Olympics that you get to see only once in every 4 years. 
   
9. You do not need to outdo Mother Theresa to be a living saint but MPs must have a certain "gold standard of behaviour" and have the proper decorum, especially in Parliament. People who cannot fit into the shoes of a good and respectable MP will definitely get the boot.
10. Always remember the "Yes" and "No" principle – you say "Yes" to all those things that are good for the country and benefit the rakyat while you firmly say "No" to all those things that don't. It's as simple as that.
11. Don't ever misappropriate our gold.
12. Finally," NO", you cannot bend the above rules. Remember, they are golden rules, not made of rubber.

The Tengku Mahkota of Pahang, Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah’s decision to quit as deputy president of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) to make way for new blood is an honorable gesture on his part. This shows that he has put the interest of football fans above his own. His willingness to apologize to every spectator only shows his magnanimity.

Malaysians in general and football fans in particular are deeply disappointed with the dismal performance of the national team in the on-going Asian Cup, which the country is co-hosting. We have been thrashed by teams like China and Uzbekistan who are rather new comers in international soccer scene.

The FAM should take collective responsibility for the debacle in the current Asian Cup . The whole committee should follow Tengku Abdullah’s footsteps and make way for new people to take over so that they can bring necessary new changes for the good of football in the country.

There is no doubt that the standard of football has been deteriorating over these years. From being an Asian power in the sixties we have been reduced, or rather reduced ourselves, to a shameful position in the most popular sport in the world. Countries which were unknown entities then have overtaken us to levels beyond our reach. We are now far behind Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia. Where have we gone wrong?

The two main causes of our continuing failure are politicization and commercialization of football and sports in general. Like in all the fields sports too is being seen as money spinning enterprise where professionalism, quality, national pride and ethics of the game take a back stage compared to monetary gains.

Politicization of football has resulted in favoritism rather than merit being the more important criteria in the selection of players and officials. There is general skepticism on whether the best get selected to represent the nation.

We have been focusing on the building of sophisticated sports complexes to host the various international tournaments. In fact we have gained a reputation internationally as good and efficient organizers of these tournaments. In that enthusiasm we have missed the main target that is to develop the sport among our own youth who have likewise become good spectators.

Despite its popularity, football in one of the cheapest games, that is affordable by the masses even in poor countries. All that is needed is a field that is a permanent one time investment, a ball and a pair of boots. Unfortunately playing fields which were easily and freely available to our youth during the sixties and seventies when we were an Asian football giant are hard to come by these days.

Development has taken heavy toll on football by eliminating all available fields. They have been replaced with magnificent mega structures, shopping complexes and stadiums especially in the major towns and cities. This in turn has transformed our youth from being active players to active spectators of football being hosted in the various modern stadiums. In the final outcome it is the organizers who stand to be the gainers, reaping huge profits from hosting the various tournaments. Commercialization of the sport had dealt a great blow to its development.

We do not need sophisticated and high-tech sports complexes as they are beyond the means of the vast majority of our youths. The single most important means of developing football is to take the game to the masses all over the country. Playing fields must be made available to them freely in schools and districts all over. Selection of the players must be solely on merit not on favoritism.

Officials well qualified in the game should be selected and given the freedom to manage the teams more professionally without undue interference.

We have the money and the talent, all we need is the will to get dedicated and loyal officials, managers and coaches who are genuinely interested to bring honor and glory, not for them but, for the nation.

Until we find these leaders, which appears to be a formidable task, we have to be contended being mere spectators, at the most organizers, of international football tournaments. In the meantime our aspirations of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup finals will only be a dream.