J-on

Personalised prescription

2012-02-16T13:39:00.012+08:00

By TOH SAW YI

The saying that one size doesn't fit all rings true in the medical field, especially when it comes to drug prescription.

Imagine a world where the medicines are tailored to your genome - no more allergy problems or side effects caused by medicines. Not to mention, you can prevent the onset of diseases, such as hereditary cancer, heart diseases and diabetes, that's genetically encoded in your body.

Indeed, this may sound like science fiction, but according to Professor Dr. Edmund Lee Jon Deon, a renowned and leading pharmacogenomics scientist, this seemingly impossible concept may just be more than a figment of imagination.

Stranger than fiction: Drugs that is especially catered to your health diagnosis may just be a viable thing.

The professor from the Department of Pharmacology at the National University of Singapore (NUS) recently gave a scientific talk entitled Pharmacogenomics and Personalised Medicine: Reality or Myth at UTAR.

Lee's impressive resume includes a variety of positions that ranges from being the vice chairman of Singapore’s Pharmacovigilance Advisory Committee (PVAC) to being the executive editor of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. He is also the Consultant Editor of Current Pharmacogenomics and Personalised Medicine (CPPM).

More than just a commercial buzz

Defined as the study of many different genes that determine drug behaviour, pharmacogenomics is considered a new of branch of science.

Through new information obtained from the Human Genome Project under this study, scientists have found out that genetics' approach is no longer applicable. Hence, the concept of "personalised medicine" emerges.

What that initially started as a commercial hype soon began to garner fast track mainstream prominence.

So, what this concept all about? In layman's terms, personalised medicine is all about making a medical treatment as individualised as the disease.

Or as Lee puts it, “Personalised medicine is all about treating you as a unique individual and not as an average person based on textbook treatments.”

By identifying genetic, genomic (including family history), and clinical information (including medical history) of a patient, physicians of the future will be able to make accurate predictions about a patient’s susceptibility of developing disease.

This diagnosis will include the course of disease, and the patient’s response to treatment as well as finding the means to tailor the medicine prescription to suit the individual's own physical health needs

Consider this – Cardiovascular diseases are one of the most devastating chronic diseases in Malaysia. On average, it caused the deaths of 30% of Malaysian citizens (of all ages), which is around 26,000 people.

Most heart disease patients do take drugs to combat their disease. In spite of that, they do not actually have their blood pressure under control.

What could possible contribute to this problem?

It's all trial and error!

Well, besides the fact that most patients do not change their lifestyles to cater to the drug, there is no real way of knowing how a patient will respond to a prescription.

In other words, this is all just a matter of trial and error!

In more technical terms, in order to understand how a drug behaves in a body, it depends on the chemical resonance of the body itself.

“Just take the King of Fruits, durians, as an example. Some people may say it tastes like garbage and sewage or other gross stuff, but some people may describe it as heavenly. It all boils down to everyone’s response to taste and it’s all genetically determined.” Lee articulated the point with this simple analogy.

Riveted audience: Lee presented his talk to a packed crowd at D209.

While doctors may assure their patients by saying that most patients respond well to the drug and that it has little to no side effects, that's a rather far-fetched notion for the majority of people out there.

The reality is that the particular patient may not be just like most people and might respond negatively or do not respond at all to the drug in question – in the case for medicines, it is true that one size may not fit all.

“Sir William Osler, one of the greatest icons of modern medicine, once said that no two individuals react alike and behave alike under abnormal conditions that we know as disease, ” Lee offered.

A matter of variation

The amazingness of human variability was proven in 2009 when worldwide professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) published a report detailing how patient response rates to medicines "can be very low", often hitting as low as 20 percent.

Next Generation Pharmaceutical has also reported that common asthma drugs, like Salbutamol, VentolinTM and Salmeterol, fail to work on patients with certain genetic make-up.

The report suggested that they may even make the condition worse. Not to mention, there will be a variety of other factors that will affect the treatment process. In short, as of now, it is just not possible to perfectly fit a medicine to a patient.

Think about this – What leads to the development of cardiovascular diseases?

Age is one factor (your blood vessels accumulates cholesterol as you age until the vessels get clotted that is), family history is another (if your relatives have high blood pressure, than your risk of getting high blood pressure will increase) – there are just too many to consider.

This is where personalised medicine jumps in. It is able to combine all of the information available to make more accurate predictions about who is really at risk for developing the disease and then target the person for treatment.

According to Lee, as of current, the percentage of successful predictions of a patient’s responsiveness to certain drugs is at about 60%. Furthermore, the current medicine is more focused on the reaction (treating a disease once a patient caught it and displayed symptoms) rather than the prevention.

Personalised medicine aims to change just that. It will be possible to predict susceptibility to diseases and to prevent or delay the onset of those diseases with precisely chosen medicines, therapies and customised lifestyle advice.

More effective and less toxic drugs can also be designed and prescribed to patients. What this means is that cases whereby patients sue their doctors due to allergy or other negative side effects to certain medicines will soon be a myth.

Besides that, with no more trial and errors, inflated health care costs can be reduced and doctors will be able to create a lifelong health maintenance strategy that suits a person’s unique genetic constitution.

Lee ended the talk urging present and future doctors or medical staff to take a more active part in the development of personalized medicine.

Indeed, with this kind of healthcare service within grasp, it’ll be no surprise to see even lower mortality rates due to diseases that can be prevented in the future.

“Doctors should just stop talking about it and actually do it. It’s about time to make personalised medicine more accessible to doctors and patients alike,” he concluded.

Biotechnology student Toh Saw Yi is a special correspondent for J-on.

名嘴王翠玲现身拉大自身经历鼓励实现梦

2012-02-15T00:25:00.002+08:00

周俐妤报导/摄影

（金宝13日讯）“不要后悔为何当初选择的路，努力、坚持，梦想不再是梦。”在我国发展的香港籍著名主持人--王翠玲现身拉大为大家指点迷津，以自己的经历来鼓励在场的观众实现梦想。

为了配合拉曼大学十周年校庆，霹雳拉大总校的学生事务部辅导处将举办一系列有关于如何实现自己的梦想的运动。其中包括王翠玲的脱口秀，于上周六（2月11日）晚上八点在大礼堂进行。

这场历时一小时半的脱口秀吸引大约五百位出席者，了解翠玲如何迈进梦想的同时，亦亲身体验王翠玲一贯幽默风趣主持的风格。

给予实现梦想诀窍

王翠玲以过来人的身份不断向学生们传授如何达成梦想的秘诀。首先，要认识并了解自己。接下来，好好锻炼自己,并在适当的时候发挥自己的长处；尝试在日常生活中寻找自己的角色，不要犹豫，也不后悔为何当初选择走上这条路。最后，要对自己负责任，那一切就事半功倍了。

王翠玲向大家分享一些自身的宝贵经验。

在大马发展的心路历程

翠玲表示，早期的她在不被看好的情况下主持大马制作的节目— On the Beat。大马人都认为当时她在香港演艺圈待不下去，才会成为过江龙到大马发展，就连自己的父母也不认同她的选择。

但是，时间可以证明一切，经过几年的努力，她终于得到了观众们的认同，在大马演艺圈闯出了一片天。此时，大会司仪问及是否这就可以证明给那些当初看不起她的观众并证明了她是行的。但翠玲并不认同这个观点，因为她不在乎别人的眼光，只要对得起自己那就行了。

“我自认是一个很幸运的人，因为我没有在自己的事业生涯上遇过大风浪；我也曾经投资失利，但这却对我的生活上没有影响，我只能在教训中学习，保证以后不会再犯同样的错误。”

在大马居住了十五年的她逐渐爱上这里的生活。和香港相比之下，这里没有狗仔文化，不用过着提心吊胆的日子，担心被偷拍，没有隐私权。她也非常满意自己的现状，希望自己能够在工作上比去年做得更好。

目前为止，王翠玲并无退休计划，她还要再扩大自己在大马的事业版图，她下月将会出版新书，四月则举行工作坊。

现场有三名幸运儿获选上台与翠玲进行问答环节，并获赠翠玲的新书及亲笔签名。

其中一名幸运儿，庄赢妮(商业管理系，一年级生）于活动结束后说道：“我真的被翠玲的演讲说服了，本来自己犹豫的难题却在演讲中得到启发，勇于朝我的梦想迈步。”

What's love got to do with it?

2012-02-14T15:21:00.000+08:00

By CHONG KAH YUAN

Flowers, chocolates and gifts followed by a fanciful candlelight dinner.

If these are the only things that pop into your mind at the mention of Valentine’s Day, think again.

The Malaysian community was once again shocked by the audacity of the PAS Youth, chief Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi in necessitating a Valentine’s date chaperone for engaged couples.

It really makes one wonder the circumstances behind this sudden stroke of inspiration.

While this has inevitably led to the anger and disagreement among the society, PAS attempts to soothe the riot by saying that Islam encourages acts of caring as long as moral barriers were not breached.

PAS’s brittle repertoire in this country is further inflamed when the flexibility of the moral sentiments are questioned.

The past dictations of PAS in barricading against Islamic immorality have proven to be neither effective nor impressive.

Instead, PAS considers holding hands a conduct against Islam, and if they are given the freedom to do as they wish, they would have gone out of their way to ensure that Muslim women employees are forbidden from wearing lipstick and high-heeled shoes which made a tapping sound!

Their latest endeavour to ostracise Valentine’s Day displays nothing but barbaric sensibilities which borders on offensive towards basic human rights and freedom.

Considering the fact that Malaysian is a country associated with democracy, this turn of event has proven naught but undo all previous efforts made to improve this country as a prime example of a democratic nation.

The facade that freedom is everyone’s right and privilege has once again been shattered by PAS, reminding all Malaysians of their extent of personal freedom in this country, or lack thereof.

This is where the line starts to blur, where many questions should the citizens of a democratic nation not be given a choice regarding this matter?

As proven by more than once, it is becoming indisputable that PAS needs a breakthrough in their mindset, as it is in Malaysia, Valentine’s Day is celebrated by everyone, inclusive of family and friends besides lovers.

By limiting Valentine's Day to the said Husband-Wife Day, the reason behind this change might have demonstrated too little convention nor flexibility.

PAS would do better by casting their effort towards other state affairs which demands more attention such as issues of crime, corruption and poverty in rural districts.

This would no doubt result in some positive developments toward the social construct of a country, instead of prodding at some negligible situation that is not even an issue in the first place.

Chong Kah Yuan is J-On's English desk news editor. This opinion piece reflects the opinion of the writer , it does not necessarily reflect the views of this publication.

Motivational event seeks to inspire students

2012-02-14T11:56:00.009+08:00

By SONG SOOK KIN and SOO LEE XIEN
Photos by MA FOONG MEI

UTAR, February 14 (J-on) – Perserverance and self-aspiration might seem like unattainable qualities to many. However, UTAR's Department of Student Affair Counseling unit begs to differ.

As part of the university's 10th Anniversary Celebration, the department is running an event that seeks to inspire the university's community through various motivational activities.

With the slogan “Launch Your Dream into Reality”, the four-day event which started yesterday is currently holding an exhibition in Heritage Hall at Block A..

The event's Public Relations Manager, Lim Sen Nee stressed that everyone should live their lives to the fullest.

"In the words of the late Steve Jobs, you should live each day as if it was your last," said Lim.

Hopeful faces: Lim (at the back) and other committee members hope that participants will be inspired by the campaign.

At the exhibition, visitors are encouraged to fill in the blanks on a blackboard that has the words, “Before I die, I want to…” on it. This is to remind them of their own aspirations.

Hooi Ka Lup, a Foundation student who visited the exhibition with a friend felt that the event is meaningful as he was inspired to never give up on his dreams.

Lesson learned: Hooi was inspired to never give up when pursuing his dreams.

First year Public Relations student, Tan Bee Kuan said that she enjoyed the various activities provided, especially the IQ game which tested her thinking skills.

All smiles: Tan who enjoyed the game stations felt that more people should be let known about the event.

In conjunction with this event, popular talk show host Wong Chui Ling will be giving a talk on February 11.

The event is joinly sponsored by The Voice Karaoke Centre and Chi Tat Recycle Enterprise.

赴一趟筑梦之旅梦想不再是一场梦

2012-02-14T01:00:00.002+08:00

苏俐婵 报导/摄影

（金宝13日讯）您有梦想吗？从展览、游戏、漫画故事、短片等激励教材中逐步堆砌您的梦想，梦想展览或许可以激励您大步迈向梦想之路。

这项主题为“梦想”展览会是由金宝拉曼大学学生事务部辅导处主办，从本月13日（周一）起至17日（周五）早上九时至下午五时，在学校大礼堂 (Heritage Hall)举行。

为配合拉曼大学十周年校庆，主办单位于本月一日起在学校展开辅导与心理健康运动（Counseling Wellness Campaign ），梦想展览则是活动之一。

“梦想走廊”以漫画的方式讲述有梦想的故事，参观者边欣赏边跟着梦想前进。

展览会除了摆放“梦想走廊”、展示一些激励人心的名人成功录、巨型的“梦想火箭”、短片分享，现场还设有五个游戏站，以富有创意有趣元素的激励性游戏带出实现梦想的概念。五个游戏站的主题分别为“对放弃说不”、“你和你的梦想距离有多远？”、“专注”、“避免分心”及“你在掌控之中”。

别放弃，用力吹！参与者用力地吹向整排的蜡烛，希望把它们全给吹熄。

桌上摆放的每个蜡烛都代表对梦想的负面想法，只要不放弃，一定可把负面给吹灭。

活动公关部负责人林思霓（公关系一年级）受访时指出，参与者可透过活动的游戏从中获得坚持不懈的精神，不管前方有多大的阻碍，多艰巨的困难，我们都不该轻易气馁和放弃。“只要我们勇敢地去奋斗，和坚持我们的梦想，它一定会达成的！”

“我们期望参观人数达1500人，而活动其中一个最大的‘卖点’是巨型火箭，参与者可以在我们提供的白纸上写下梦想，把它投入火箭内；从这个巨型火箭我们要带出的讯息是只要我们付诸行动，梦想就会像火箭般往上发射。”

全场的视觉焦点莫过于逾二米高的巨型火箭，一名学生把自己的写好梦想的纸条投进火箭内。

展览会其中一角摆放着“在我死前，我要……”的字样并在涂鸦板贴着苹果教父乔布斯的名言：把每天当作生命中的最后一天去生活，让参与者想象在离开这世界之前，要做些什么，实现些什么。

除此，现场亦重复性的播放一支真人真事的激励短片给在场者观赏，内容讲述着五个来自台湾平均八十岁 “不老骑士团”环岛经验。

学生事务部辅导处辅导员兼活动辅导顾问许莹莹指出，该活动挂着“筑梦之旅”的口号，希望借此能为参与者对梦想带来启发。

“辅导与心理健康活动属辅导处的年度活动，往年仅举办一个星期，而配合拉曼大学十周年校庆，今年办得比较大型，整个运动包含‘梦想走廊’、‘涂鸦板’、脱口秀和‘梦想展览’。”

另外，此活动是由The Voice及Chi Tat Recycle Enterprise赞助。

林思霓（后排）及许莹莹（前排左一）和筹委们希望参与者都对辅导与心理健康运动中有所启发。

Varsity engaging community through project

2012-02-11T23:59:00.004+08:00

By VINESH RAO VENGATRAMAN

UTAR, February 11 (J-on) – In conjunction with UTAR's 10th anniversary, the university is planning to reach out to the local community through a community engagement project.

The year-long initiative seeks to promote mental health well-being through various self-enrichment programmes that will be catered to the Kampar community as well as primary and secondary schools in the district.

An inaugural effort, the project is a joint collaboration between the Department of Student Affair (DSA) and the Counselling and Guidance Unit.

"This is a great project. Through this, UTAR will no longer be perceived as an elitist university that only focuses on the menara gading concept," said UTAR's Vice President Dr. Teh Chee Seng at the launch of the project at Heritage Hall today.

"Students need to know the importance of giving back to the community," said Teh while adding that the programme allows students to impart the knowledge they gained to the locals.

Mr Angus Ng Foo Yek, head of the Counselling and Guidance Unit said the project will help strengthen the interaction between the student and the local community.

"The project will also assist students in their self-development and self-enrichment skills," Ng added.

Reverend Kevin Lim Kar Ton from Kampar Chinese Methodist Church lauded the project.

Lim who attended the launch as one of the VIPs suggests that the university conducts programmes such as the Personality and Psychological Test to help locals further understand themselves.

Students who wish to engage themselves in this project can contact Mr Angus Ng at 05-468 8888 (ext: 2283) for more information.

招兵买马活动学会团体各出其招拉新生

2012-02-02T18:14:00.002+08:00

梁祖渝、叶萱姿/ 报道

邹丽莉/ 摄影

（金宝1日讯）金宝拉曼大学各个学会团体于本周一（一月三十日）至周五（二月三日）一连五天在C座食堂及H座教学楼底层进行招收新会员活动，吁请有兴趣者踊跃参与。

招收新会员活动于上午十时至下午五时进行，本周参与的团体包括摄影学会、华乐团、音乐学会、佛学会、华文学会、美术与手艺学会（Arts & Crafts Society）、国际学会等等。

各个学会各出奇招宣传自家活动，有的摆放长长的画板吸睛，有的更应景播放新年歌曲，希望能吸引更多学生加入其大家庭。

其中，音乐学会提供音乐初级班以吸引新生的目光。报名参加者可选择学习不同的乐器如流行钢琴，小四铉，吉他或小提琴。该学会筹委表示本届报名的情况反应热烈，目前已有不少的新生报名参加。

另外，罪案防范学会（Crime Prevention Society）也举办一系列活动来吸引新成员加入，如海报设计比赛、免费身体检查和售卖安全防范用品如防狼器等。配合情人节的来临，该学会以售卖各种与情人节相关的小饰品如棉花糖，巧克力花束和DIY制作彩色夹子进行筹募。筹募款项将作为Prison Break舞会的活动经费。

筹委们为自家学会筹款，售卖各类的手制精品、小吃、“巧克力花束”等。

青年企业家学会（Young Entrepreneurs Society）除了摆卖手工制品，也趁此活动宣传其系列活动，如露营（Bar Camp），投资讲座以及连同其它三个学会联合主办的商业及金融学院（Faculty of Businesses and Finance）舞会。

青年企业家学会售卖的手工制作面子套，小钱包，手机袋等，非常受学生们的欢迎。

华文学会配合农历新年及学会新春晚会—《和乐龙融庆新春》，播放新年贺曲，弥漫着新年的气氛。《和乐龙融庆新春》新春晚会是于本周六（4日）在大礼堂引爆，当晚精彩的节目包括四川变脸、华乐演奏等。

拉大书展书香弥漫学子蜂拥而至

2012-02-01T23:00:00.001+08:00

林小彤、段洁仪报导/摄影

(金宝1日讯）配合政府发放二百令吉“一个马来西亚”购书券给所有在籍大专生，金宝拉曼大学于本周在校园内举行两场书展，弥漫浓郁的书香味。

第一场书展是由拉大书店主办，于一月三十日（星期一）至二月三日（星期五），上午九时至下午五时在C座员工休息室举行，以方便在校学生使用购书券兑换书籍或文具。

与此同时，拉大中文研究学会也于二月一日（星期三）至二月三日（星期五）上午九时至下午五时，在B座教学楼底层主办“第三届漫卷诗书中文书展”；参展者包括商务印书馆、当今大马出版社，而出售的大部分书籍皆是中文书籍。中文小说、食谱、旅游书刊的爱好者均可在此购得他们的心头好。

众多在校师生抵抗不住书展的吸引力，纷纷前来书展购书。

据了解，于C座举行的书展一天内吸引逾一千名学生参观，除了课业上所需的参考书，学生还可在书展中找到英文小说、中文书籍、旅游刊物、名人传记等。

主办单位摆卖多种类型书籍，任君选择。

该书展负责人李先生表示，书籍均以低价出售，参考书价格介于五十令吉至一百令吉不等，其它书籍价格大约二十令吉至五十令吉，部分书籍还附有折扣。使用“一个马来西亚”购书券购买书籍的余额还可购买文具、电脑用品等。

李先生还指出，大部分学生偏向于购买英文小说与中文书籍，购买物超所值的书籍，学生显得兴奋不已。

哈利波特书迷开心地展示战利品。

“便宜了三十令吉的《哈利波特》书籍，我全都买了！”其中一名学生欢喜地表示。

“第三届漫卷诗书中文书展”实况。

“第三届漫卷诗书中文书展”从即日起至二月三日在B座教学楼底层举行，欢迎书迷们到场购买心头好书籍！

金宝一个大马街头美食节民众热烈响应

2011-12-12T18:05:00.006+08:00

张永佳报导/摄影

（金宝12日讯）天公不作美，却浇不息民众品尝美食的心情。一个大马美食节于昨日在金宝宝坊广场七时正引爆。

“食全食美”的一个大马街头美食节主题主要是为了响应大马旅游部积极推动本地美食的活动。这项活动成功介绍了很多道地美食，还吸引了本地与外地的居民到来。

内政部副部长兼金宝区国会议员拿督李志亮受邀前来主持开幕典礼并简短的说道：“一个马来西亚美食节选择在金宝举办是为了让金宝成为霹雳州其中之一的美食天堂。”

现场有逾四十档的美食档口,例如：大家姐板面、西米露、土产蕯奇马、碗仔翅、日本寿司、台湾碳烤鸡扒等等。各式各样的美食让金宝居民享尽口福。

金宝大酒店展示的食物样品—大明虾与鸡肉卷

夜市著名的莲蓉包，以愤怒鸟和藍精灵等造型來吸引顾客购買，一个二令吉。

配合即将来临的圣诞节，聚亿轩美食坊安排圣诞老人派传单宣传圣诞套餐。

现场也准备了许多小游戏让出席者前来参与，免费试玩的游戏让各个摊位都大排长龙，老少咸宜的游戏让大家都玩的不亦乐乎。游戏胜利者还能获得一个马来西亚赠品。

除此之外，在一边享受美食之余，现场观众还可以一边观赏由主办当局安排的精彩节目。首先，由拉曼武术团呈现的二十四节令鼓为美食节掀开序幕。逗趣而不失铿锵有力的节令鼓表演得到观众的如雷掌声。

拉曼武术团为现场观众带来精彩的二十四节令鼓表演。

来自怡保年仅六岁的“天才小童星”载歌载舞的表演获得观众的共鸣，观众们配合地一边哼唱一边挥手。她一共演唱了八首歌曲，演唱的曲目包括华语歌、英语歌、甚至福建歌，悦耳的歌声让大家听出耳油。

接下来的节目还包括四川变脸及舞蹈表演。近距离的变脸表演让现场观众看得目不暇给。性感的舞蹈表演更是为现场掀起了高潮，观众也随着舞曲把身子摆动了起来。

六岁天才小童星YOYO在台上载歌载舞。

四川传统文化表演—变脸，惊艳全场。

大约八时许主办单位现场燃放璀璨的烟花。

惟当天的遗憾是天空不作美，中途下起雨来了，但食客与观众撑起自己的雨伞继续逛与观赏，不减兴致。

这项活动是由大马旅游部主催，大马贩商总会主办，并由金宝小贩商业公会所承办的。

Varsity's Voice: Mixed reactions to Peaceful Assembly Bill

2011-12-03T02:16:00.010+08:00

By CHESTER CHIN

Photos by CALYN ONG and CHAN KAI WAEY

The Dewan Rakyat passed the Peaceful Assembly Bill (PAB) 2011 last Tuesday after allowing six amendments. The new law which is drafted four months after the Bersih 2.0 rally seeks to regulate public protests in Malaysia.

While the Barisan Nasional government claims that the PAB allows citizens to organise and participate in assemblies peacefully, the opposition as well as various society leaders have strongly condemned the act, citing concerns that it will impede the right to protest instead of protecting it.

J-on went around the campus and find out what UTAR’s varsity community has to say about this new law:

Sathye, Foundation in Arts student

“The PAB has good intentions behind its implementation. In a way, the act provides people with the proper and legal channel to stage protests and will help to safeguard the public’s security. As for the fine of RM10, 000, I believe that the amount would make people think twice before participating in any street protests."

Ong Sheau Wen, Department of Journalism lecturer

“The way I see it, the PAB provides a proper framework for people to peacefully assemble. Regarding the act’s provisions, I think that for everything we do, there must be rules and regulations that need to be adhered to. Rather than having no laws about a proper assembly conduct, this is an improvement and shows the present day government's effort to give the Malaysian people what they want. But then again, the 13th General Election is coming, so this could be an attempt to win the rakyat's heart.”

Chang Yi Chang, Department of Public Relations lecturer

“In a democracy, one cannot avoid public assembly or protest. The PAB can be regarded as an instrument of restriction to crackdown citizen’s protests. When this happens, it reduces the quality of the nation’s democracy. The government should instead be more liberal and hold more discussions with NGOs and pressure groups before implementing this rule.”

Parthivan, Foundation in Science student

“I don’t think this new law should be implemented. As citizens of a democratic country, we should be allowed to express our views, and this includes expressing ourselves through assemblies. With this new act, I feel that the police have the absolute power instead of the people. This is definitely not a good thing.”

Valentina Tay Shiying, English Language Y3T2 student

“I’m afraid that the police are being given too much power here. To me, the police force should only provide supervision to an assembly instead of dictating whether or not an assembly would be “peaceful”. On that note, I believe that every citizen in a democratic country must not be refrained from participating in an assembly to champion a cause that they believe in such as protecting their civil rights and maintaining peace.”

Riddick Lim, Foundation in Science student

“Law or no law, people would still take to the streets if they want to voice out their dissatisfaction. I don’t think the PAB will be effective in curbing “un-peaceful” assembly.”

* Varsity’s Voice is a segment on J-on where we publish thoughts from UTAR Kampar campus community regarding issues that truly matter to young people. Be sure to equip yourself with knowledge on current affairs because you’ll never know when our journalists will probe you with hard-hitting questions the next time you’re in campus!

金宝大雨排水不佳低地住宅区一度水深四尺半

2011-12-03T01:48:00.004+08:00

陈慧嘉报导

(金宝1日讯) 日前一场晚间暴雨，在短短一小时之内，华隆新村水淹四尺半, 36间房屋受影响。

昨日下午接近七时许下起倾盆大雨造成克兰芝河 （Sungai Keranji）河水水位高涨，导致华隆新村四条街房屋遭水突袭，造成36间民住宅被污水侵入，损失暂时无法估计。

四条受影响的街分别为华隆新村二号，三号，四号与五号街，其中二号与三号街的情况最为严重。这两条街涉及24间住宅，皆遭河水侵袭入屋。

水患问题是因这里地势较低，就犹如扇状般，所以当雨水泛滥成灾，华隆新村处于低洼区的房屋首当其冲。

处于华隆新村地势最低的住家外，水淹四尺半。（水位的高度如红圈）

大部分屋主面对惨重的损失。如：家里电器，家具，甚至有者的汽车更因来不及移走而遭水淹至车内的坐垫。

大部分屋主对此事都感到无奈，纷纷对当局未能解决这三十年来的水患问题而感到苦恼。因此他们要求当局正视此问题。

赵东林（50岁，退休人士）回忆起刚才的一幕，感觉到即无奈又担心。“我大约七时零五分回来家里吃晚餐，当时正在下着大雨。大约15分钟后沟渠的水开始泛滥，正想要把车子移走的同时，却发现已经来不及了，因为水来得好快。”

赵东林也透露马路的水深4尺半，所以他赶紧把玻璃门关上但家里也有一尺半的水位。“华隆新村街道经常风雨积水，问题已存在三十年，这次的水灾最为严重。”

赵东林住家内遭污水侵入，处理工作艰辛。

汽车来不及移走，导致污水进入车内。

民主行动党克兰芝州议员曾福仔前往灾区进行慰问与探访，并指出，“今晚这场豪雨自2009年挖深沟渠后最为严重的一次，期间排水系统还属正常。”他并提出会向水利灌溉局与地方政府反映此问题。

其中一间住宅的屋主与家人正在清理屋内的污水。

民主行动党克兰芝州议员曾福仔（左）与金宝县议会代表（右）。

轮舞天后生命分享，观众泪洒现场

2011-12-01T22:07:00.002+08:00

梁美琪报导/摄影

(金宝30日讯) 无腿轮舞天后何欣茹将生命的奇迹与在场的三百名出席者分享, 有者深受感动泪洒现场!

这场名为“你完蛋了吗？”讲座会，吸引了许多校内校外的观众。由于车子爆胎，讲座会延迟了半小时，但依然没有把现场的听众和大学生们的热情打沉。开场时轮舞天后即展现“特异功能”给现场观众观赏，何欣茹把异肢脱下再用它来抓背。何欣茹表示，在公众场合脱下她的异肢是她以前从来都不敢做的一个动作，但现在的她做到了，证明了她勇于从阴霾中走出来。

何欣茹的“特异功能”

曾经拿下学校田径比赛冠军的她，在一次越过火车轨道时不慎跌倒，被无人驾驶的电动火车撞到并被拖行了大约100多公尺。根据何欣茹的分享，她是在完全清醒的情况下目睹自己的双腿被粉碎，那一双刚为她获得“飞毛腿”外号的双腿瞬间让他变成无腿女孩。

在被医疗的100多天，何欣茹受尽了各种折磨，但他一滴眼泪也没有流过，因为9岁的她相信，只要她不哭和坚强，老天爷就会把脚还给她。但这个愿望并没有实现，何欣茹在她装上异肢后的那一天开始放弃了自己，过着绝望的日子，并把自己封闭起来长达14年。直到欣茹遇见了她现在的丈夫，欣茹封闭住的心才终于再度绽开并踏出社会。

轮舞天后何欣茹也和丈夫周鸿隆及儿子于现场呈现了一段“ 3+2亲子轮椅嘻哈舞”。这组由三人和两台轮椅所组成的舞蹈，把满满的爱和希望散发给现场的观众。

拉曼大学华文学会也特意为本月28日生日的欣茹安排了一项简单的庆生仪式。拉大华文学会讲座会负责人冯伟立透露，这次的讲座会有机会请到何欣茹，是要感谢美门残障关怀基金会，让本院与拉大生听到这场这么有激励性的讲座。

3+2亲子轮椅嘻哈舞，三个人，两台轮椅，散发出满满的爱。

拉曼大学华文学会讲座会负责人冯伟立。

CF spreads Christmas cheer with joyful musical

2011-11-29T19:31:00.013+08:00

By CHRISTOPHER KHOO

Photos by SHU TZE YUH and CHRISTOPHER KHOO

An evening of wonders displayed the true meaning of Christmas.

UTAR, November 29 (J-on) - When it comes to Christmas, most people think that the celebration is all fun and parties. Little do they know that this day stand for the birth of Jesus Christ.

Held on November 22 at Heritage Hall, Joy to the World was an event organised by the UTAR Christian Fellowship to share the meaning behind the significance of Christmas.

The event featured an assortment of performances that ranged from musical drama and choir to worship and prayers.

On the night itself, close to 800 students turned up. The turnout exceeded organiser’s initial estimation by 200 students and broke previous years’ records.

According to organising chairperson of the event, Yoong Keat Wei, he decided to hold a bigger scale celebration this year so as to reach out to a wider spectrum of the varsity community.

In a bid to attract more guests, no entrance fee was charged. When questioned, Yoong responded by saying that “gospel is free for everyone.”

Full house: A huge crowd of students is seated in the hall, anxiously waiting for the event to start.

Entertaining emcee: Master of Ceremony, Edward Chin, kept the audiences entertained on that night.

Guest of Honour : A short sharing of Joy To The World by the Guest of Honour, Dr. Sebastian a/l. K. Francis, Dean of FAS.

To Sing in Chorus :The worship team led the crowd in singing some Christmas tunes .

The highlight of the evening was the Christmas musical drama, Joy to the World, which the event was named after. Incorporating elements of gospel, dance routines, Christmas carols and acting, the musical tells the story of the search for a king that will reign over all.

Joy To The World : A musical drama that centres on the birth of Jesus and the history of Christmas celebration.

The event was also graced by Pastor Caleb Soon from Kuala Lumpur’s City Disciple Presbyterian Church (CDPC) who shared with guests the teachings and revelations of Christianity.

The event came to an end with the choir team leading the guests in singing well-known Christmas tunes such as Feliz Navidad and We Wish You A Merry Christmas.

Jollity and geniality : Performances on the stage is occasionally accompanied by a round of applause and laughter.

WANTED: J-on Special Correspondences

2011-11-27T15:24:00.016+08:00

Who says news reporting is only for journalism majors?

As part of J-on's effort to provide a wider news coverage for our readers as well as promote interconnected relationship among faculties, we're on the hunt for inter-faculty special correspondences.

If you have a flair for writing as well as an insatiable curiosity to know more, we want YOU! Or perhaps you love immortalising people and scene through photography? We want YOU too!

As an inter-faculty special correspondence, you'll have the opportunity to:

Report on news that occur within your faculty community
Bolster your photography skill
Develop a wide network with fellow UTARians
Be J-on's ambassador for your faculty

That's not all! You'll also have your own byline and stories published in UTAR's independent news portal.

To apply, write in to us and tell us why you deserve a spot in J-on special correspondence circle in 400 words or less.

Email your submission along with your name, faculty, course of study and contact number to utar.joneditor@gmail.com. Our editors will get back to you after reviewing your submission.

What are you waiting for? Gather your muse and start writing now.

Deadline's December 31 2011.

If journalistic endeavours is not your thing, not to worry. You can still be part of the J-on community by checking out our Facebook page and following us on Twitter.

征寻：J-On 特派记者

有谁规定新闻报道一定只属于新闻系专有呢?
为了促进各科系与各院系的关系，J-on正在寻找各科系的“特派记者”。
如果您拥有写作天赋及永不满足的好奇心，是的，我们要找的就是你！
或者，您喜欢贯穿人事物于摄影世界，是的，别怀疑自己，那就是你！
成为J-on的院系特派记者，您将有机会：

• 报导您系上的活动新闻

• 发挥您的摄影技巧

• 扩大您于拉曼大学的人脉关系

• 成为您系上的“J-on 代表”

还等什么呢？现在就向我们报名吧！告诉我们为什么您适合这个职位。（大约400字）
申请的稿件请附上您的姓名，院系与科系，然后电邮至 utar.joneditor@gmail.com。
我们的编辑会尽快审核您的资料。
事不宜迟，马上行动吧！

截止日期：2011年12月31日

Visiting professor presents Model UN prospect

2011-11-25T21:01:00.005+08:00

By TING ZHAO SONG

Photo by KEE CHIAN SEONG

UTAR, November 25 (J-on) – A talk entitled Model UN for Future Leaders: An Exciting Way to Get Students Involve in World Affairs was presented by Dr. Filiz Otucu, a visiting professor from Plymouth State University in Block A yesterday.

Otucu shared her 7-year experience being involved in the Model United Nations programme with the audiences, from establishing the Model UN society in her university, to leading her students travelling across continents to attend international conferences.

Model UN is a simulation of the United Nations as well as other international organisations which serves as a platform for student delegates from around the world to gather and discuss about international affairs.

Otucu said that the Model UN programme will benefit the varsity students in many ways. Apart from broadening students' knowledge on current issues, the programme also helps students to pick up negotiation, public speaking and conflict resolution skills among others.

Universal Appeal: Otucu stressed that the Model UN is a programme for everyone and anyone during the talk.

“Model UN prepares you for the world after college and equips you with the necessary skills for the working life,” Otocu said.

During her talk which lasted for about 2 hours, the visiting professor also encouraged students who do not have political science background to open up their minds to the Model United Nations programme.

"The programme has universal appeal. You could be a music major or a theatre major and still gain valuable experience by participating in the Model UN," Otocu offered.

For more information about Model United Nations, please visit http://www.worldmun.org/page/welcome.

幕前，幕后：新闻工作者的坚持

2011-11-24T18:47:00.003+08:00

马枫媚、苏俐婵报道

（金宝22日讯作为新闻最前线的工作者，即使冒雨采访、徒步走五公里之遥的路程到采访现场，记者仍然坚守职业岗位,只为了让观众获得最新消息。

黃婉秋简介

· NTV7华语新闻记者兼助理制作人

· 毕业于马来西亚国民大学（UKM）大众传播系

· 拥有多年电视采访、撰稿、配音、现场直播、特派海外采访、人物专访兼专题报道经验

· 兴趣：游走国内外大城小镇探索新事物

NTV7华语新闻记者黄婉秋向拉大新闻系的学生侃侃而谈数月前她的采访经验。她指出，某日傍晚临时接获消息指雪州乌鲁冷岳呀吃（Hulu Langat）发生土崩事件，必须即刻前往该地采访。

“由于案发地点偏远，我和录影师下车后还要步行近5公里的路程才能到达现场，加上当时下着细雨，我的头发早已湿透，狼狈不堪；不过在这种情况之下，作为电视记者，还是要保持淡定地进行现场直播的采访工作，而临场反应的掌握也非常重要。”

黄婉秋于星期一在金宝拉曼大学主持两个小时的“分享广播经验之谈”讲座，大方分享她多年的新闻传媒界的经验，揭开记者许多不为人知的幕后工作。

新闻广播记者绝对不可缺少的条件是积极与灵活快捷。黄婉秋在电视新闻界服务近六年，如今依然坚守工作岗位，从她的言谈举止中都不难发现她对新闻工作依然充满着热忱。

她说，电视记者除了出外采访，有必要时都会串场，即记者出现荧幕报导新闻，随后再回到电视台将所采访到的新闻写成文字、配音报导（Voice over）、或放些实际现场的声音或相关人物说话的原声（sound bite）等等，再将整则新闻做成一个配套或合成报导（package）。”。

她直言，持有大学文凭的本科生进入电视新闻行列确实占优势，但非大众传播系者都有机会加入，同时电视新闻记者必须具备端庄的外表以便上镜能吸引观众。

她认为，电视与平面记者的分别在于后者不必在荧幕前亮相，惟电视记者必须随时靠着快捷与临场反应的变通来报道突发的新闻。

黄婉秋以生动的方式分享她多年新闻广播界的经验。

她说，为了确保新闻内容万无一失，因此她在播报新闻之前一定查字典或是求证，确保新闻去蕪存菁。

“电视新闻比较注重画面和语音，我们是有画面才会播放新闻，不过若我们无法在案发现场取得画面，我们会考虑置放图片，再加上新闻报导的配音。”

她给予例子，录影师在赵明福的开棺仪式时是不被允许录影的，因此电视新闻选择播放静态的新闻图像来代替动态的录影片段。

步上时事轨道

黄婉秋说，作为一名新闻广播记者，必须具备良好的语文沟通能力、掌握语音、熟知新闻各项领域、掌握时事动脉；而性格方面则须外向、求知欲强、能吃苦耐劳。

“通晓三语是绝对不可或缺的，我们的电视台会向外界索取国际新闻，一般都会以英文为主，因此我们也得将英文新闻翻译至中文。”

记者在新闻串场和现场报导讲究的是临场反应、淡定、强调重点、不加入个人情绪，记者本属独立工作者，要摄影哪些画面都由自己决定，好让新闻更增添价值。

“我们一定要捉摸新闻的重点，仅能注重一个重点，不过这也得靠经验的累积。”她说，播报出来的新闻必须精简易懂，好让观众在短短的一分钟内吸收当日新闻的精髓。

崇拜出色主播方若琪

长得甜美可人的黄婉秋，穿了一系淡紫色的小洋裝出席分享讲座会，她不失天真地透露，她小时候的愿望是成为一名画家或时装设计师，与目前身为新闻工作者的身份截然不同。

她说，长大以后因为成绩关系，而进入了国民大学就读新闻系，随后就往新闻界发展。她坦言，她以前非常欣赏NTV7前新闻“三语主播”方若琪，大学第三年也到NTV7新闻部实习了两个月半。

“而我当电视新闻记者的目的很简单，基于社会太多老百姓诉求、政策不公，我希望透过自己小小的力量，让观众能够看到、听见群众微弱的诉求。”

黄婉秋（前者左5） 在分享讲座会结束后与出席者合照。

给予学生鼓励

座谈结束后，亲切的黄婉不但秋提供意见予在场的同学，并不厌其烦的劝说，年轻人应该要对工作充满冲劲，凡是都要勇敢地跨出去尝试不同的新体验，而非虚度人生。

由于电视或平面新闻的收入并不丰厚，因此单凭对新闻工作抱有兴趣与热忱的人实在不多。这方面，她也不忘鼓励即将毕业的新闻系学生勇于前往NTV7应征成为新一代的广播记者，以让这团火继续延烧下去，让群众更能了解社会的动态。

许多人往往都很羡慕在媒体界的电视记者能够接触不同的名人，尤其是艺人。但人们通常忘了每个记者都得下足功夫和艰辛的付出，才能顺利地完成工作。过程中，电视记者要克服的不仅是内心的紧张，亦得面对如何机智地完成采访工作。

因此，外界应该用不同于以往的想法，在观赏电视新闻的同时，除了要吸取新闻资讯以外，也能体谅及珍惜所有为新闻工作无私奉献的记者们。

讲座出席者包括拉曼大学文学与社会科学学院讲师郑文德、该校新闻系及中文系大专生。

Bigger turnout at latest instalment of UTAR Flea Market

2011-11-24T12:17:00.003+08:00

By RAVINYA RACHAEL RAJA
Photo by VINESH RAO VENGATRAMAN

UTAR, November 24 (J-on) - Excited voices and delicious aroma of foods wafting through the air dominated the UTAR Flea Market event which took place yesterday at Heritage Hall in Block A.

With a wider variety of stalls and items offered, the turnout was bigger compared to the previous instalments of the event.

Goodies galore: A huge crowd thronged the latest instalment of the UTAR Flea Market which offered a myriad of items for sale.

Visitors were greeted with an array of booths selling flowers, computer accessories, tarot card reading, pet shop, hair care products, clothes, shoes and many more.

Apart from that, the event also provided plenty of food and drinks to quell visitors' gastronomic cravings. Stalls that sold hot dogs, cupcakes, chocolate dipped fruits, ice blended drinks, sandwiches and many other food items enjoyed brisk sales at the event.

“Everyone here seemed so jovial and happy to take part in this affair.” said Dr.Sebastian K. Francis, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Science (FAS).

"The UTAR Flea Market is a good avenue for students to explore their entrepreneurial skill as well as provide them with a platform to kick start their innovative and creative potential," he further commented.

Cheong Mun Yee who set up a booth selling girls' accessories, was overwhelmed with the response given by both students and staff of the varsity.

“The day has been great so far with many people taking part in it. The increased number of stalls is clearly a crowd-puller this year,” said the second year Banking and Finance student.

Kiesha, a sophomore Psychology student felt that the price of goods was slightly higher this year. However, she was willing to spend the extra bucks as a gesture of support for her friends who operated a few booths there.

"There's no harm in marking up the price a little as long as the item is of good quality. Besides, we are all happy to give our moral support to our friends,” she said.

Westlake's decadent night culture

2011-10-29T17:26:00.048+08:00

By CALYN ONG, CHESTER CHIN, CHONG KAH YUAN, SONG SOOK KIN and TING ZHAO SONG

The Westlake township in Kampar is known for it's serene lake and beautiful park, but when dusk falls, all hell breaks loose.

Smashed beer bottles, cigarette butts and torn junk food packets.

Walk through the lakeside promenade and Beijing precinct at Westlake on a Saturday morning and chances are you'll be greeted by these items strewn across the pavement.

Moved by this filthy sight, our reporting team decided to look into the matter and discovered a debauched night life culture at the Westlake housing area in this quaint town

Clean up one’s act : The trail of rubbish left behind by midnight revellers at the Westlake lakeside promenade.

During one of the team’s midnight stakeouts at Seksyen 1/1 in Westlake, we came across a group of young people who were engaging in rowdy behaviour. They were shouting and screaming in ecstasy.

The team tried to approach the group but were stopped by a female member who said in Mandarin, “Don’t come near! War is starting”.

Minutes later, they started giving chase and threw a white powdery substance at each other while laughing hysterically.

On the same night, about 100 meters away from this group of students, a black Proton Wira was seen parked across the row of houses along the road. What sets this particular vehicle apart from the other cars there was the fact that it was blasting loud music from the stereo.

The shocking thing was that all this transpired at the wee hours of the morning when most people are fast asleep.

Lackadaisical management

Driven by this course of events, our reporting team approached Danish House Sdn. Bhd. at their office in Manchester. The company managed the majority of student accommodations at Westlake.

Not only that, their company is also responsible for providing neighbourhood security within this housing vicinity.

When asked for comments regarding these night activities in Westlake, the representative at the Customer Service desk declined to answer. When pressed further by one of our reporters, she hesitated before finally saying that the company can’t divulge such information to the public.

Unsatisfied with this rigid response, two of our reporters went undercover and visited the Danish House Westlake Oxford office.

Posing as students with a complaint regarding the ruckus at the Beijing precinct, the Customer Service officer gave our reporters a card which contains a mobile hotline number. She then proceeded by telling them that occupants can just ring up the number and security personnel will check out the issue.

Security with no authority

With this piece of information, we paid the guard house a visit at night and spoke to Salleh Din, a security guard who is in charge of night patrol at the Westlake neighbourhood.

According to Salleh, the noise and littering issue in Westlake is nothing new. The Danish House Management has received many complaints from the residents in the past.

When asked if the management is doing anything to solve this, Salleh gave the same answer as the one given earlier by the second Customer Service desk we visited.

“Yes, a hotline number is provided and the residents can call us if they find the noise too unbearable or probably if they happened to encounter any dangerous situation,” he said.

Salleh further commented that the security guards will only take action after midnight, unless the matter is an emergency and requires immediate action.

He added that sometimes those midnight revellers, whom he assumed are also varsity students, will talk back in a drunken stupor when reprimanded.

“All of this is quite worrisome because we have Tan Sri Hew See Tong living right across the Beijing Park,” Salleh further elaborated.

Hew, a tin miner-turned-developer is one of the individuals who gave Kampar a new lease of life by getting Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) to set up a campus in the town.

Double bind : The security guard faces difficulties in warding off the noise and littering issues as they have limited authority.

The security guard also voiced his concern over the rubbish littered after the many parties the students have at the Beijing precinct.

“We will take down their contact details beforehand if we see them having such gatherings. If any complaints are received regarding their party, we will contact them directly. But that is about all we can do. We can’t stop them from drinking or even stop the parties as we don’t have such authority.”

Nightly nuisance

The reporting team also found out from some Beijing residents that the late night disturbances have been occurring on a regular basis.

One of the residents, Fong Renee, said that the midnight commotion is nothing new and she's even starting to get used to the noise.

As for Wong Han Hui, a UTAR foundation student who is also staying at Beijing, her housemates and her usually pay no mind to the ruckus.

However, she'll get really annoyed during examination period as she can't concentrate with all the noise caused by the party goers who are not even residents at Beijing precinct. .

What Wong said was true as our reporters observed that the aforementioned rowdy group of students drove and cycled away from Beijing after the party ended.

Wong also added that some of the students were acting like imbeciles in her past experience.

“They were so rude when I personally asked them to lower down the level of noise. Instead of apologising, they just ignore my words. They even turned up the stereo volume!”

As if causing disturbance wasn't enough, the raucous youths will even leave a trail of rubbish behind.

The party aftermath that can be seen clearly in the morning has proven that most of the students do not clean up after their own mess.

Filthy complaints

To obtain more information regarding the depraved night culture which has emerged in Westlake, particularly the lakeside promenade, we went to the Kampar Municipal Council.

With the help of Mohammad Shafiq Mohammad Salim, an officer in the Sanitation Department, the team managed to attain a more in-depth analysis of the littering issue.

Drink it up : Evidences of intoxicant in the morning after of intoxicant consumption the night before.

According to Shafiq, the municipal council has received tonnes of complaints from the public regarding the filthy scene at the lakeside pavement.

“It is not just a matter of hygiene, these broken beer bottles left on the pavement can be very dangerous for the people who pass by the lakeside,” said Shafiq.

The lakeside pavement that links UTAR to Westlake is a highly utilised route in the morning. Some use it for jogging while most of the students who live in Westlake walk or cycle to UTAR through that pavement.

Shafiq told us that the council has yet to come up with a solution other than cleaning up the pavement every morning. He explained that the lakeside pavement is a public place. Therefore, neither the council nor the police have the authority to disallow people from having beer at the lakeside.

“We tried sorting the problem out by reaching the Danish House, but there was no fruitful outcome.”

Shafiq further lamented that when there is a bunch of youth in their twenties consuming alcohol at the lakeside, anything could possibly go wrong.

Bad reputation

All this risqué behaviour is presenting a tainted image of Kampar varsity students’ community.

The booming roars of the stereo so often accompanied by indecent squealing and loud whoopee draw a close resemblance with the infamous mat rempit found throughout the city.

Flotsam and jetsam : Instead of lively fishes, visitors of the lake are greeted with such unsightly scene.

That's not all, the people who indulge in this "recreation" also consume alcohols.

A shopkeeper who only wished to be known as Mr Tan told us that his sundry shop which is operating within Westlake has often time sold out many cans of beers at night.

When asked why he decided to carry alcoholic beverages knowing that most of the residents are students, Tan replied that it is an individual’s prerogative whether or not to purchase it.

“The thing about students is that when there is no parental supervision, they have to take responsibility for their own action. If they want to drink beer, then that is their own choice,” Tan offered and added that he is just a “shopkeeper”.

However, Tan is very skeptical of the security team’s effectiveness.

“Sometimes, this problem brings into question a matter of security here in Westlake. Why aren’t any actions taken to reduce the ruckus?” Tan who hails from Penang commented.

If a shopkeeper could have this notion despite being a resident of Westlake himself, then what would others possibly think of the security here? A security that allows the cause of disturbance to run wild and rampant in a neighbourhood where it is mostly populated by students?

To make matters worse, the wrongdoers are mostly varsity students. When outsiders have a chance encounter of this kind of scenario, it is inevitable that people would link the misconduct of the UTAR students to the university itself.

This in turn will denigrate the institution’s reputation as a respectable university.

A matter of gravity

From a bunch of boisterous, even downright reckless people who pump up the stereo, to people who kick up a huge racket screaming in the middle of the night, these are the epitomical acts of ignorance towards the consideration of others.

While the culprits may not have harmed other residents in any physical way, rumours have circulated that a certain motorbike gang have been going around swinging their helmets at passers-by along the walkway that leads to the housing area.

Ma Foong Mei, an undergraduate student of UTAR, was one of those who were alarmed by the news.

“People are saying that these mysterious bikers are injuring students who happen to be walking along the walkway. However, I do not know how far true the rumor is.”

At the moment, night patrols have also proved to be futile. There is only so much a security guard could do before a drunkard retaliates, sometimes dangerously.

Students in the midst of studying for their examinations would also have to bear the unwarranted pandemonium.

Time has come for the people calling the shots to step up and concoct a better solution to solve this issue before it blows up to a level that could threaten lives and the university’s reputation.

While fun and enjoyment should be part and parcel of the varsity experience, it shouldn't come at the expense of other people's peace of mind.

When that happens, it just becomes pure ludicrous recklessness.

Got an issue you'd like J-on to highlight? Play a part in citizen journalism and write in to us with the information you have.

Furniture shop at Taman Kampar Perdana set ablaze

2011-09-15T23:59:00.001+08:00

By EDMUND LEE TATT WENG

Kampar, September 15 - The series of arson attacks in Taman Kampar Perdana over the past few weeks has now given way to bigger and bolder fires.

This time around, it involved a furniture shop in Jalan Perdana which was almost burnt down.

A thick smoke had started to spread in front the shop in the vicinity nearby the scene

After a spate of arson attacks in Taman Kampar Perdana, the culprit is still at large. It could not be verified if the series of arson attacks had anything to do with the fire at the furniture shop.

However, the police has yet to conclude the cause of the fire and further investigations is pending.

This is the 16th case of deliberate fire in Taman Kampar Perdana and is the most serious incident thus far.

The onlookers saw the incident nearby the fire scene

The fire allegedly started around 7pm after the glass behind the back door of the furniture shop had been broken into.

Around 7.10pm, the fire department in Kampar received a distress call and reached the scene 10 minutes later.

The blaze was contained within 15 minutes after the firemen's arrival.

Two firemen putting out the fire.

According to Kampar OCPD Supt Abdul Aziz Salleh, police had detained a man for further investigations pertaining the fire which broke out.

However, when asked by the press, he stated that the fire might not be the work of the infamous Taman Kampar Pedana arsonist, and could possibly be a copycat.

The burnt down furniture shop owner Chuoa Chiung Xing, 25 was very distressed about the incident.

“I suspect this is probably work of the arsonist as the glass behind the shop had been broken. I believe this might have allowed something to be thrown into the shop.

“At the sight of the fire, I asked my workers to helped put it out. However, their efforts proved futile and the fire quickly spread to the front”, said the shop owner who's from Ipoh.

When asked about the damages incurred, Chuoa mentioned that the fire cost him around RM 30,000 as most of the furniture-making materials were destroyed.

Chuoa also added that business would be operating as usual after the incident as only the store area was burnt down.

“Luckily it’s only the store room which was burnt and the fire did not spread to the whole shop,” said Chuoa after the incident.

Another witness who spotted the incident was ADUN Malim Nawar Keshvinder Singh who was passing through the area during the time.

“When I passed by the area, I saw a thick smoke coming out from the shop. Without thinking so much, I quickly alerted other residents in the area and help to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher.”

Taman Kampar Perdana has been labeled ‘Taman Bakar’ after a spate of continuous arson attacks in the past few weeks.

Another eyewitness, a student who was having dinner at a restaurant near the scene said he heard a loud explosion.

“I rushed out to the scene and saw a thick smoke had accumulate behind the shop,” stated the student who declined to be named.

Residents of Taman Kampar Perdana are adviced by police and RELA personnel to stay vigilant and lock their main door at all times to avoid untoward incidences.

This warning also extends to all housing areas in Kampar including Westlake.

Flat becomes new arson target

2011-09-12T23:59:00.004+08:00

By OH CHIN ENG

Kampar, Sept 12 (J-On): Barely 24-hours after the last attack, the arsonist strikes again. This time, an empty unit of a flat is the new target.

The incident took place late evening today at one of the four blocks of the four-storeys flat at the end of Taman Kampar Perdana.

The public taking a peek at the unit at Taman Kampar Perdana where the arson attack took place today

A policeman who saw the smoke from afar alerted the fire and rescue department. He then rushed to the empty house which is located at the fourth floor of the flat. He broke the door down and put off the fire in the room.

Firemen taking a break after putting off and trying to identify the source of the fire

According to a reliable source who does not wish to be named, he suspects the culprits are students staying here and they might be in a group as they know this area so well and have managed to escape from the police.

This latest attack marks the first time a flat was targeted in a spate of attacks since last month.

The area cordoned off for further arson investigation

Kampar MP, Datuk Lee Chee Leong will make a visit to Taman Kampar Perdana again later at night.

No arrests have been made so far.

Related Article:
Bicycle torched in 13th arson attack at Taman Kampar Perdana

Bicycle torched in 13th arson attack at Taman Kampar Perdana

2011-09-11T22:22:00.006+08:00

By OH CHIN ENG

Kampar, Sept 11 (J-On): After a peaceful one week, an arson attack took place again at Taman Kampar Perdana or known as Eastlake, the place where many of University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) students stay.

Another arson attack happened in Taman Kampar Perdana today

Despite the tight security, a bicycle was torched at midnight while everyone was sleeping.

The UTAR student who stays in the house ran out to the police post at 4am yesterday upon seeing the fire. However the policemen was not there as it rained heavily. Therefore, he called the RELA personnel.

“When I reached here, the fire was already put off. I asked the student to make a police report but he declined. I suspect the attack was done by the local residents here,” said Kampar RELA platoon leader Captain Ng Kim Meng.

Kampar Rela platoon leader Captain Ng Kim Meng said students also must assist the security personnel in making rounds in the area

Head of Kampar Police Station, Sergeant Major Abdul Hadi Baba examining the burnt cloth found on the bicycle seat

According to Head of Kampar Police Station, Sergeant Major Abdul Hadi Baba, the incident happened between 3.30am to 4.30am.

The torched bicycle which happened around 3.3am to 4.30am

“Eventhough it was a small attack, the student should come out and lodge a police report,” he added.

Keranji BN Coordinator, Chang Gwo Chyang who was at the scene said, “The arsonists are challenging the police or they might be crazy or they simply want to go against the police.”

Keranji BN Coordinator, Chang Gwo Chyang (middle) and assistants of Kampar MP, Datuk Lee Chee Leong looking at the bicycle seat which was burned

He added that he will have further discussion with the police on the prevention of the attacks.

Police has set up a check point at the entrance of Taman Kampar Perdana last week. RELA personnels are also helping in making rounds around the area.

The house facing the field makes this arson case the 13^th arson attack in Taman Kampar Perdana.

A car and a motorbike parked at the compound were not set on fire.

Related Article:
Flat becomes new arson target

Lamppost falls on two cars after crash

2011-08-27T22:00:00.002+08:00

By AIMI HUWAINA & TAN HUI KIA

Photos by AIMI HUWAINA

UTAR, August 27 (J-on) – A car crashed into a lamppost causing it to fall on two other cars at the parking lot in Block H yesterday.

An officer from the university’s security department who witnessed the incident said, “The car went up the divider and crashed into the lamppost.”

The officer who refused to be named added that the driver is a tutor from the university.

The incident attracted a small crowd of onlookers including Shivashangeree who was passing by after her class.

“I first thought that the lamppost fell by itself but turns out, the fall happened after a car crashed into it,” said the Journalism student.

Meanwhile, it is believed that the blue Perodua Viva and silver Perodua Myvi which were hit by the lamppost belongs to a student and a lecturer respectively.

A dented bumper is spotted on the car which crashed into the lamppost.

The damages from the fall include a slight crack on the windscreen of the blue Perodua Viva.

大学城纵火案件人心惶惶

2011-08-25T16:02:00.000+08:00

警方校方加强保安巡逻

苏俐婵、陈凯薇报导

纪健雄摄影

（金宝24日讯）金宝大学城近来频发生纵火案件，目前已备受金宝警方及拉曼大学校方的关注，并将在该区加强保安，学生亦受促提高警惕。

根据警方的资料，警方目前仅接收到7宗有关纵火的案件，分别是七月一宗，八月目前有6宗，惟相信仍有受害者没有向警方投报。

迪尼思

迪尼思（拉大学生委会主席）指出，该会收到学生对于纵火案件的强烈投诉后，便立刻告知院长，而校方也与警方合作以便找出最佳的解决方案。

迪尼思指出，学生可在“东湖罪案防范讨论区”面子书群组，关注居住在东湖的学生的安全状况与跟进该住宅的最新状况。

“由于之前都没有人投诉有关案件，校方也不知情，所以我们迫切希望遭殃者出来投报，毕竟这案件涉及人们的安危。”

“经一事，长一智，不仅是大学城的住户，所有学生出入时都得提高警觉，就寝时把门窗锁好，多留意可疑人物。”

学生们在“东湖罪案防范讨论区”面子书群组广泛讨论纵火案件，更加关注当地治安。

临危不乱 逃出鬼门关

受害者梁丽媚（心理系学生）指出，8月17日午夜1时，独自在家睡觉的她突然惊醒，外头传来爆裂声，并嗅到一股烟味，当她打开房门探个究竟时，发现房外弥漫浓烟，完全看不清外面的事物。

她叙述逃生过程时说，当时她身处在二楼的房间，虽然慌张但仍临危不乱，她立刻寻找钥匙打开铁窗，从窗口逃出，顺着灯柱往下爬逃生。

“当时我的邻居见状后还拿出床褥放在路上让我跳下，但我在逃生时还是弄伤手脚，邻居也第一时间致电警方和消防局。”

梁丽媚

她指出，她的其中一名男性屋友从外头回到住屋时，以为她还在屋内受困，立刻灭火进屋救她。

“其实那时候我已安全出来了，过后我已致电给他报平安，我们目前已全搬离该住屋，但有的屋友还是选择租回大学城住屋，其中一个屋友则搬回怡保。”

她说，该住屋的门锁非但容易坏，有时甚至不能上锁，所以只把铁门安上而已。

祝健伟

祝健伟（心理系学生）与梁丽媚属屋友关系，他则是居住在楼下的房间，幸亏事发当时不在家而逃过一劫。

他就大学城发生纵火案件深感无奈，他所有的笔记和课本都被烧掉，目前只好向同学借来影印以筹备即将面临的考试。

“由于找不到理想租金的住屋，我最终选择搬回怡保，逢上课日再驱车往返校园。”

其中一间遭殃的住屋客厅被熊熊烈火熏黑，就黑漆漆的墙壁及天花板来判断，当时的火患强烈程度可想而知。

沈文康

沈文康（金融经济系学生）指出，他的邻居（梁丽媚）的住屋遭殃时，他屋友赶紧报警及致电消防局，不过当局很迟才抵达现场。

“我家大门平常都不会锁上，自从邻居住屋遭纵火后，让人忧心忡忡，因此现在都会随时把门给锁上。”

他说，他居住大学城一年多，也不时听闻该地区发生爆窃案件，惟为了方便上课，他不曾萌起搬离大学城的念头。

光天化日下纵火

袁家强（会计系学生）指出，他们租住的住屋于8月18日及19日连续两天遭恶徒纵火，而且恶徒都在光天化日下干案。

他说，首次遭纵火的时间是早上8时许，当时大家仍在熟睡中。当他闻到浓浓烟味，立刻下楼查看，发现客厅的落地窗窗帘着火，他们赶紧灭火，惟落地窗帘已被烧成灰烬，玻璃门也破裂。

他说，他与屋友并无发现易燃物，事后即刻向警方报案，为了安全起见，他们已将所有的贵重物品都搬上楼。“恶徒隔日再次纵火，时间也是早上，玻璃门还被烧至破裂，我们较后发现客厅木桌上有一件沾有煤油并被烧烂的衣服。”

周昌发

周昌发（电脑科学系学生）是与袁家强同住一屋檐下，他透露，其屋主知情后，已掏腰包300令吉更换玻璃门。

据周昌发所见，事发过后校方安全与保安部门(DSS)也派人巡逻有关地区，警方则于晚上展开巡逻任务。

“学生和住户本身也有责任做好保安措施，随时将大门锁上，出门时应该加以谨慎。”

窗帘被烧成灰烬，玻璃门则受不住高温而破裂。（照片由受访者提供）

温易达（电脑科学系学生）指出，8月3日午夜约12时，他赫然发现他屋友放在门外的裤子着火，也幸好他发现得早，及时将火扑灭，否则将在短时间内一定烧及旁边的轿车和住屋。

他说，据观察被燃烧的裤子，恶徒并没有使用燃烧化学物、汽油或煤油，仅纯粹利点燃易燃的传单燃烧其屋友的裤子。

他认为恶徒有精神问题，好玩，或牵涉商业利益，才放火燃烧，由于他没看见恶徒行事过程，惟他猜测恶徒造案时是骑摩哆。

“事发的前几天，有两名不明巫裔男子提着手电筒，光明正大地站在屋前照射屋内和观察院子环境，当时我们正出去用餐，原以为是公务人员，我们也不方便阻拦，因此不加理会。”

治安日益败坏

他直言大学城治安每况愈下，罪案几率逐渐上升，犯案手法亦愈来愈极端，以前只是偷窃，现在则是火烧住屋，严重威胁住户安危。

询及大学城有很多外劳居住，会否因而担心治安败坏，他则认为犯案者是不分种族的，尚且他们也仅为了生活和节省开支而寻找较廉宜的住屋居住。

他说，有学生在论坛内诉说警方的态度敷衍，处理案件的方式显得非常怠慢和慵懒，甚至不多加理会，不记录，不留案底，也不积极找出犯案者，推卸责任。

“警方应该加强巡逻，如此必然有助于减少罪案的发生。”

蔡伟杰

蔡伟杰（学生委会副主席）透露，学生委会分别在前天及昨天与警方和校方开会及为居住在大学城的学生进行汇报会，希望借此机会协助他们解决目前的安全问题。

他说，根据警方调查，有关纵火案件已被列为恶作剧，因为毫无发现任何易燃化学物。 “校方将组队每日早晚定时巡逻，警方也承诺将会加强巡逻。”

他呼吁学生若有意外发生应该立刻报警和通知校方，向警方施压，警方就会更加积极巡逻，并着重当地治安。“当然，学生应该发挥守望相助精神，还要靠大家的配合，我们才能顺利地解决问题。”

另外，金宝拉曼大学学生受吁储存紧急联络号码至手机，若发生任何紧急事情，可马上联络有关当局。

金宝警局	05-465 0020
学生事务处（DSA）	016-210 0864
安全与保安部门（DSS）	016-210 0863

光良金宝下着雨的签唱会

2011-08-23T18:17:00.001+08:00

夏孝荣报道/摄影

（金宝21日讯）大马歌手光良于金宝古庙大礼堂举办签唱会，一开场就连续带来首首温馨好歌，溫暖了近千粉丝的心。

在这场签唱会开始之前，天公不作美突然下起了雨，仿佛是为了配合了签唱会的主题。

签唱会开始之前，冷甲舞蹈团带来一段舞蹈名为《性感之舞》（Sexy Dance）,也成功地为签唱会暖身。稍后，就由请工委会主席陈炡信上台致词。接下来就有嘉宾上台进行敲锣仪式。

马来西亚青年运动工委会主席陈炡信致词。

嘉宾进行敲锣仪式。（左起）曾广煜，曾雪玲，陈炡信，张国强，宋先生，梁锦俊，张遥雄，李祖维及梁德致。

“Sexy Dance”由冷甲舞蹈团呈现。

光良一登场不忘向台下的观众和粉丝打招呼并为全场热情的歌迷带来一首歌曲“闪亮”。

光良以一身斑點白衫配牛仔褲閃亮登場。

签唱会主持人皓敏(988电台DJ)。

接着，光良连续带来“太天真”及“第一次”，让全场的气氛掀起高潮，还有的粉丝不断的高呼“光良我爱你”。现场不难发现有许多歌迷高舉串成“光良”字眼的螢光板，提升全场气氛，增添亮点。

随后的遊戲環節，由主持人皓敏及光良一同与歌迷玩游戏。游戏包括猜歌曲环节，也有幸运的歌迷上台与光良合唱。

光良及主持人皓敏与歌迷玩游戏。

光良走下台与热情的歌迷握手。

最后，光良以最新专辑的主题曲《台北下著雨的星期天》来结束签唱会第一环节。紧接着光良在歌迷們带来的光碟和海報上簽名。

光良呈现主题曲《台北下著雨的星期天》给歌迷们。

这次“台北下著雨的星期天”签唱会是由马来西亚青年运动（YOUNG MALAYSIANS MOVEMENT）所举办。

潘帅唱跳具佳，亲和力“触动”粉丝心

2011-08-20T15:24:00.002+08:00

陈慧嘉报道/摄影

（金宝17日讯）潘玮柏甫开场气势非凡，率领专署舞者势必“全面通缉”聚集在金宝拉大的一票粉丝。

早有歌迷于傍晚5时正就在拉大会场入口处驻守，以获取更多接近偶像的机会。不难发现在傍晚6时过后人龙由入口处排到另一栋教学大楼，但现场粉丝们都相当安分守己，耐心等候入场。

虽然粉丝们都难掩兴奋之情，但大家都守秩序，期待能够见到期盼已久的偶像。

五名粉丝来自拉曼大学公关学系（二年级）一起结伴来参加签唱会，他们表示非常兴奋因为能够见到潘帅并能索取他的签名，机会难得。

大约8时30分潘帅登场了！暌违大马两年的潘帅今次再度来马宣传最新专辑《808》。一开场话不多说就带来动感十足的《全面通缉》，唱跳俱佳的他穿上黑色上衣与黑色军装夹克，配上潘氏风格牛仔裤和靴子，帅气十足，一点都显露不出他坐了长途车的疲惫感（前一场活动是在MYFM电台接受访问）。歌迷对潘帅显出百分百的支持，都是以呼喊声回应，十分热情。

潘帅呈现《全面通缉》，精湛的舞艺使台下的粉丝不吝啬于他们的尖叫与欢呼声。

潘帅帅气的外表却又不时抛出笑弹发挥搞笑本色，粉丝被他妙语如珠的对话逗得笑声与尖叫声不断，全场近一千两百名粉丝陷入如痴如醉的状态。

会场安插了潘帅与歌迷的互动游戏，同时邀请了三名粉丝上台并由潘帅与他的舞者亲自教导歌迷如何跳《全面通缉》的舞步，并由台下的粉丝以掌声的多或少来评鉴参赛者，获得最多掌声的参赛者能够获得纪念礼待。

得奖者与潘帅要求一个爱的抱抱。

由于台上有出现两名女生，所以潘帅调皮的捉弄舞者并表示他们非常需要这段姻缘，“他们没有女朋友！你们要不要留下彼此的电话号码？”结果他被主持人Jym庄靖毅将一军，询问他的姻缘。潘帅巧妙的道出，“我很喜欢帮朋友配对牵线啊，因为成功了会很幸福和很有满足感哦！”

当被主持人Jym庄靖毅问到未来的专辑是否会全部创作都包办时，潘帅表示他不仅会自己创作，也会争取不同的机会向不同的创作型歌手合作，就如这张新专辑他与方大同合作《小小蚂蚁》。潘帅非常懂得虏获歌迷的心，一时逗趣地说即将演唱与方大同合作的“《Love Song》”，试探着在现场的歌迷有没有附和，果真有粉丝认同，结果被潘帅揭穿，“哦，被我发现你们混进来噢！”

潘帅与主持人Jym庄靖毅一搭一唱的对话使整场签唱会生色不少。

他在现场除了有舞者伴舞之下演唱《全面通缉》，此外，潘帅也分别唱了《UUU》，《小小蚂蚁》，《我们都怕痛》，《不得不爱》与展现他“饶舌功”的《触动》。之后进行了长约一小时的专辑签名会，潘帅对每个歌迷都报以灿烂的微笑。

这场签唱会是由环球音乐与DIGI联合主办，并配合拉曼大学企业学会的帮助下，签唱会顺利结束。

潘帅深情的闭起眼演绎歌曲《小小蚂蚁》。

女歌迷要求潘帅把舞步的拍子数慢一点，结果潘帅搞怪的把声音降低8度并配合歌迷的要求。

看潘帅的笑容就知道他很满意大家一起合唱《小小蚂蚁》的表现。

最后当然是来张全体大合照啦！

Liberal, My @$$

2011-08-06T19:07:00.023+08:00

By CHESTER CHIN

In principle, the three controversial Ramadan advertisements which the television network 8TV ran should have worked.

They have the perfect recipe of a good public service advertisement; comic relief in the form of an Asian version of Ugly Betty, social responsibility manifested through light-hearted sketches and gentle reminders about respecting another’s culture conveyed by gorgeous pseudo famous television hosts. All seems well and perfect, charming even.

However in practice, there were nothing remotely good about those ads.

Instead of coming across as hilarious, the Chinese girl was painted as an obnoxious person who has no control over her own actions with street manners reminiscent of a hooker along Chow Kit road.

And as opposed to being light-hearted, the sketches were so one-sided that it borders on illogical. Regarding the television hosts, who the *bleep* do they think they are to come across so self-righteous?

Alas, what you have is an onscreen concoction so derogatory towards a particular race that it is slapped with the capital “R” for “Racist” label.

Both Muslims and non-Muslims alike were disgusted by the racially discriminative undertones of the series of ads. Not only did the advertisements portray “Chinese” as a certain way, some Muslim MPs have even stepped out and criticised them for suggesting Islam as an intolerant religion.

It is times like these that you feel thankful for the majority of rational and grounded Malaysians out there.

The point here is that the “public service” ads were so audacious that it triggered the outrage of the general Malaysian public across all divide. Well at least everyone except 8TV’s CEO Ahmad Izham Omar.

Known for his somewhat liberal mindset, Ahmad Izham took to the microblogging site Twitter to apologise before promptly ending the tweet with “We’re sorry for the misinterpretation”.

Here is where the line is crossed and "liberal" turns into pure egoistical arrogance. To rub salt to injury, 8TV then released a rather grudging and half-hearted apology after taking the ads off air.

In an intellectual bid as saving grace, the television network even quoted Austro-British philosopher, Karl Popper and released an apologetic statement that goes like this ““As the famous philosopher once said, It is impossible to speak in a way that you cannot be misunderstood' and this is the unfortunate situation that has resulted from the 8TV Ramadan PSA.”.

Well, not that the public is not practicing the spirit of forgive and forget. But the process could have been easier if the network own up to their mistake and not be such a b*tch about it. They should provide a genuine apology instead of shrugging it off as a “misinterpretation”.

At the end of the day, the powers-that-be at 8TV need to recognise the powerful influence that they wield as a mainstream broadcasting station. As a matter of fact, they should practice what they preached on the series of ads and "not get carried away".

While the ads may have been retracted, the trail of unrest it evoked still lingers. Let this be a lesson learnt for everyone out there. Racial sentiment is still a provocative issue in our multicultural society.

At this point, there is really no use in denunciating the network and pointing fingers. The damage has already been done.

This post reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of J-on as a publication. > Follow Chester Chin at www.twitter.com/chesterchin

明珠肉骨茶

2011-08-05T00:30:00.001+08:00

陈慧嘉报导

陈慧嘉/夏孝荣摄影

说到肉骨茶，想必很难否认它在马来西亚食物排行榜的地位是数一数二的吧？别人不知，但是笔者第一个举双手赞成！

肉骨茶的由来，大家不妨到谷歌(Google)搜索就可略知一二。但是，笔者的目标先不提这世界上是先有鸡还是先有蛋，笔者在乎的是，哪边的食物能够刺激笔者的味蕾，勾起心里的那把火。

是的，非常抱歉，不小心曝露了笔者爱吃的嘴脸。借此机会就让笔者带你去尝一尝我已光顾了三年的 -- 明珠肉骨茶。

今次笔者与三名爱吃一族的友人驱车前往明珠肉骨茶。从金宝新街场驱车前往目的地只需大约八分钟。由于停车不便，当遇到人潮多时得把车停在较远的位子哦！笔者来到时大约下午二时正，顶着大太阳，但内心向往之不断快步前进,，因为笔者知道待会儿就能大快朵颐了！

还没走到店家门口已被肉骨茶的香味通过鼻子抵达了大脑中枢，迅速告诉自己“饿了，饿了”，得满足我们的肚子啊，所以速速找个位子坐下。

明珠肉骨茶。虽然外观不起眼，但是内有乾坤哦！

肉骨茶来啦！吃肉骨茶时，一定要先喝一口汤。肉骨茶的好吃与否，取决于它的汤。经过长时间的熬煮，盘老板巧妙的把肉的鲜味和药材的香味搭配混合一起，老板说有独家秘方在里头！笔者不但能够吃到肉的鲜嫩和汤的清甜。尔后加汤时又能体验到浓浓的胡椒味汤底。

整体说来，它油而不腻，没有呛鼻的药材苦味，却能在细细品尝后品出甜味。值得一提的是，明珠肉骨茶的肉骨大小适中，适合笔者的口味。因为大了会影响吃相，小了却吃不出滋味啊！

我们点了四人份肉骨茶，外加一份粉肠（原来的肉骨茶里面有粉肠但份量不多，由于个人偏爱所以外加一份），两碗油条，两盘油菜，四杯茶和白饭，要价不到50令吉。

这一煲是两人份。里头有瘦肉，肥肉，肉骨，粉肠，还有豆卜。若您想吃一人份，只需六令吉（不含白饭与茶水）。

由于出生于柔佛的笔者吃惯了柔佛式的肉骨茶，所以原以为金宝的肉骨茶会有好多的小菜陪衬，如：咸菜，卤鸡爪，阿叁鱼等等。由于地方习俗不一样，所以明珠肉骨茶有两种菜能选择，既生菜和菜心。吃多些青菜能够清一清肉骨的油腻哦！

经过汆烫和伴酱油的生菜，顶端撒上爆葱油，吃下去有“喀滋”的口感。

明珠肉骨茶七年前由盘继成（50）所创立。盘老板在冷甲拜师学艺，学习如何烹调美味的肉骨茶。尔后才迁移来现在所在的位置。店里有盘老板众多的得力助手 - 他的妻子和五个儿子。

但随着孩子日渐成长，大儿子出外做工，而二儿子也即将远赴台湾深造，三儿子在怡保培南独中就读，鲜少回来，所以两个小儿子一放学就非常懂事的在店里头帮忙招呼客人。

盘继成 （50）正在细心地调制汤底，以便客人能品尝到他的用心。

吃，是很主观的事情；口味，亦是很主观的事情。所以笔者只能根据自己的口味，来推荐笔者在金宝最欣赏的肉骨茶。介绍到此，您肚子里的胃酸是不是不断地在分泌？除非您不吃猪肉，否则，千万别错过品尝明珠肉骨茶的机会哦！

截稿为止，明珠肉骨茶每两个星期休息星期三和星期四，但由于二儿子即将出国深造，人手不够，所以老板打算另订休息日。营业时间从下午一点到晚上大约九点三十分，直到售完为止。

路线：若您在金宝新街场，朝怡保方向往前，途经TESCO，车程大约八分钟，明珠肉骨茶就在通往MALIM NAWAR的路口之前，（还没过红绿灯）。那儿有一排店屋，就在CALTEX油站附近。

Rock (and rolling) on!

2011-07-29T13:52:00.033+08:00

By CHESTER CHIN

With wild stage histrionics and screaming adulation fans, last Sunday’s MTV World Stage Live in Malaysia concert was a rocking affair where psychedelic LED visuals and bold live music took center stage.

Despite being held at a new venue and featuring rather lackluster artist lineup compared to last year’s one-two punch list of performers, that did not deter music fans from having one hell of a carnivalesque experience at this year's World Stage installment.

The energetic crowd cheered and roared throughout the concert.

“I want you to jump. I want you to jump until you touch the stars,” Jared Leto, frontman of the evening’s headlining act, 30 Seconds to Mars commanded the ecstatic crowd that thronged the i-City precinct in Shah Alam.

And oh boy, did the crowd concurred and went completely hysterical!

The concert pit became a mass orgy of writhing bodies as people jumped and waved their hands into the air to some of the band’s hit songs such as A Beautiful Lie, Attack and Search and Destroy.

It was evident who the man of the hour was that night when Leto took off his sunglasses and revealed his piercing blue eyes, much to the screams of female fans.

There's just a primal savage quality in those pair of eyes which added an enigmatic depth to the band’s dramatic music.

Jared Leto, frontman of 30 Seconds to Mars, emoted raw emotion while performing one of the band's songs.

Superficiality aside, Leto was every inch a true rocker as he belted the songs in ridiculously near-impossible voice frequency.

He also displayed a more sentimental side when he emerged solo onstage and performed a stripped down acoustic rendition of The Kill and Hurricane. I was slightly dejected that the song Alibi wasn’t performed, but given the time crunch, the band did good with their song selections.

The Los Angeles-based rock outfit didn't held back as they went all out to please the crowd that night. They returned for an encore performance of Kings and Queens and even invited over a dozen fans onto the stage.

Earlier, alternative rock band Neon Trees brought the house down when they performed half the track list of their debut album, Habits.

Neon Trees lead singer, Tyler Glenn charged through the crowd before hitting the stage.

The band’s frontman, Tyler Glenn had an awful grating live-singing voice. At times, his voice even sounded nasally.

But this little glitch was disguised by his larger-than-life stage antics.

It was a real treat watching him unravel wacky expressions and indefatigable dance moves, although at times I do have a suspicion that he was high on crack.

Glenn’s enthusiasm rubbed off on the crowd with everyone going into an euphoric state when the band performed Animal and Your Surrender, two of their more well-known songs.

Neon Trees definitely injected adrenaline into the crowd that night and emerged as the concert’s highlight.

While we’re at it, I should probably give a special mention to the band’s drummer, Elaine Bradley. The sole female performer of the night, she performed miracles with the drumsticks while looking like a million bucks.

Even the crowd approved when they gave her a roaring cheer during an introduction by the lead singer.

In matching white outfits, Korean sensation Beast came on stage amidst stunning background visuals and frenzied screams from thousands of K-pop fans.

I was slightly surprised to see that they made it to the concert.

Well you know, given our authorities and a portion of society’s conservative intolerance towards anything that remotely alludes to homosexuality, one would have thought that they’d be stopped at the airport.

The Korean boy band Beast showcased some slick dance moves while performing Beautiful.

The fans hollered their head off as the androgynous-looking boys executed polished dance moves and lip synced to some of their catchy hits like Shock, Fiction and When it Rains.

After a costume change that took like forever, the band returned and wowed the crowd with a performance of Special and Breath before concluding with their smash hit, Beautiful.

Scathing remarks aside, Beast seemed intent on pleasing the crowd and I’m sure they’ve satisfied the depraved wet dreams of all K-pop girl fans who were there that night.

Oh alright, I guess their lip syncing skill is not too shabby either.

Our local act, Pop Shuvit was also there to kick off the event with a very solid performance of their smashing hits Ol Skool Rocka and Oh! Sizuka as well as their brand new song Running Away.

Moots, lead singer of Pop Shuvit diving into the mosh pit. much to the delight and chagrin of the crowd.

Later on in their performance, the supergroup Project E.A.R. (East Asian Revolution) and Malaysian music legend Man Bai joined the local rockers on stage.

I was mortified, to say the least, when Man Bai sang Seperti Syurgamu with the band. His voice was horrendously pitchy and he even went out of tune at one point. It was a shame really because I count Kau Ilhamku as one of the best local songs out there.

Pop Shuvit concluded their performance and went out with a bang when the band’s lead singer Moots dived from the stage into the mosh pit.

But if you want my honest two cents, I’d say the crowd would rather grope Jared Leto than him.

Now, I have to admit that I’m not the biggest fan of rock music, preferring to stick to the likes of Adele and Rachael Yamagata.

However, this year’s third instalment of the MTV World Stage concert which was hosted by MTV VJ Utt and VJ Holly had enough vivacity and live temerity to excite even the most rock illiterate music fan.

It was definitely a head-banging session that provided fans with a thrilling concert experience that nears epic proportion.

A two-hour version of MTV World Stage Live in Malaysia 2011 premieres August 8 throughout Asia on MTV Asia channel (Astro Channel 713).

> Follow Chester Chin as he tweets about music and random musings at www.twitter.com/chesterchin

Charity night to raise funds for animal shelter

2011-07-29T00:05:00.015+08:00

By CHESTER CHIN

UTAR, July 29 (J-on) - Pure grotesque acts of violence toward animals. That seems to be the highlight of a video created by the Biological Science Society in support of their charity event, Paparazzi Night which is taking place on August 6.

The video which ran for slightly above five minutes compiled some very disturbing snippets of inhumane conduct towards pets and strays.

One of these includes the controversial case of the poodle abuse by a Malaysian couple which happened earlier this year.

“We always emphasise on helping each other as individuals. But often times, we tend to overlook the animals that are around us,” Tan Si Nan, chairperson of the Paparazzi Night offered via email.

Dubbed as a charity night to raise awareness on animal cruelty, the event aims to raise money for the Ipoh Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA).

To date, the animal shelter which is located on the outskirts of Ipoh houses 300 dogs and 100 cats, but has only 6 staffs managing them.

“All profits from this night will be channelled to ISPCA and we hope to get at least 300 participants,” said Tan who added that “each and every cents from the sale of the ticket” can help the animals there.

Tickets are priced at RM35 for non-members and RM30 for members. It includes a 20-dishes buffet course.

Animal lovers who are interested to partake in this event can head on to the society’s booth at Block C to purchase tickets.

Alternatively, you can contact Ms Culene Ko at 010-3700785 or check out their Facebook event page for more information.

1 Malaysia Forum heats up Heritage Hall

2011-07-23T22:50:00.002+08:00

By TING ZHAO SONG

UTAR, July 16 (J-on) –Some 400 UTAR students have attended the JatiDiri 1 Malaysia Forum that was held by JabatanPenerangan Malaysia on July 13, 8.oop.m. in Heritage Hall.

An attendance of more than 400 students in the Heritage Hall.

ChuahSwee Thin, an accounting Y2T1 student said that she has no idea what the forum is about, since it is free of charge and participants will be getting a certificate, she thought why not.

Chuah attends the forum with an open mind and looks forward to what the forum has to offer.

“The objective of this forum is to enhance the students’ knowledge in national unity and the vision of 1 Malaysia,” says SazeliGhazali, the program manager.

Ghazali (in red shirt) together with the organizing committees from JabatanPenerangan.

The forum was entitled using a Malay peribahasa “Di manabumidipijak, di situ langitdijunjung”.

The forum panel on the stage. From the left: Dato’ Mohammad Mansur, BazrulMahmad, and Dr. Kntayya.

One of the speakers, Dato’ Mohammad Mansur emphasized on the importance of embracing and applying the Rukun Negara in order to develop nationalism among Malaysians.

Then, during the dialogue session, Mansur received a blatant boo from the floor after he commented that undergraduates nowadays are narrow-minded.

The other speaker was Dr. Kntayya from Universiti Malaysia Sabah.

Kntayya told the audience that the keyword towards national unity is ‘value’.

Malaysians must first acknowledge the importance of unity, followed by the application in our daily lives.

According to Kntayya, Malaysia was placed 22^nd in the 2010 Global Unity Index, which was a remarkable placing for Malaysia, being a developing country with multi-ethnicity.

“There is no ideal state. It would be naive if we were to enlarge a small black dot and ignoring the big white circle,” said Kntayya in respond to a UTAR student who questioned about government’s effort in promoting unity among Malaysians.

The panel regulator, BazrulMahmad was also being challenged after he gave definition on a ‘real democracy’.

Mahmad said a real democracy is when the majority rules the minority while the minority shows complete loyalty towards the ruling ones, nevertheless the majority has to take care of the minority’s welfare as well.

One of the audiences thought otherwise and further condemned on the government’s actions in the recent Bersih 2.0 rally.

In respond to the Bersih issue, Mansur counter argued that the rally was not approved by the authority because the assembly of thousands will bring hysterical effect to the crowd and causing them to act irrationally.

The much heated up Heritage Hall was finally cooled down with the lucky draw session which has sent 10 students home bringing back a huge hamper each.

Y.B. Tuan Haji Ibrahim, the director of JabatanPenerangan giving away the hampers to the lucky winners.

别有一番风味的积莪营“自家特制面”

2011-07-20T00:34:00.000+08:00

黄渝婷报导/摄影

早餐，可说是我们人类在一天里最重要的一餐。所以说，怎么能随随便便就解决我们一天中最重要的一餐呢？为了可享受到所谓真正的早餐，这次笔者“单枪匹马”来到了积莪营（Chenderiang）巴杀寻找传说中的特制面，来满足自己的早餐食欲。

笔者从金宝骑摩哆车出发到积莪营需二十至二十五分钟，虽然路程有点漫长，但沿路放宽心情，朝着美食前进的心情，二十分钟就不知不觉过去了。

其村的早市巴沙有一所看起来豪不起眼的面档，加上看起来有些简陋，但那里所卖的面都是自家特制的面，在别的地方是吃不到的。

自家特制面档口

老板（右边）正在忙着煮面来应付客户需求

面上的叉烧肉也是自家秘籍哦！每一盘面只需RM 2.50（小盘）

不拖延时间，笔者马上点了一盘“干捞面”来尝尝。面一端上来，那香味似乎正在引诱笔者去品尝那面（不夸张），笔者迫不及待地马上尝了面一口。那面吃起来有弹性，就是大家所谓的“Q度”，面条吃起来润滑可口，再加上所特制的“黑酱油”，真是和面配得天衣无缝！除此之外，面上的叉烧肉的弹性度，厚薄度都拿捏得刚刚好，值得一提的是，吃起来不会粘牙哦！

喜欢吃面的朋友们，您们不妨可到来试一试，就可知道笔者在吃面那当时的心情了。虽然路程有些遥远，但别忘了能找到美食是值得的哦！

此早市档口每天营业，惟自制面售完为止，所以笔者建议早上8时就能出发前往了哦！

Dance event waltzed into a new record

2011-07-16T23:59:00.010+08:00

By CALYN ONG

Photos by SONG SOOK KIN

UTAR, July 16 (J-on) – A new record was set in The Malaysia Book of Records when a total of 188 pairs dancing couples participated in Waltz, with Love 2011 at Block K’s Student Pavillion on July 9. The event now holds the record for being the largest waltz gathering ever held in Malaysia.

Jointly organised by The Entrepreneurship Society, Dance Club and 1Malaysia Society of UTAR, the event also exposed students to a simple yet elegant form of formal dance.

Organising Chairman Ch’ng Winn Shern officiating the event with the VIPs: (from left) Dr Teh Chee Seng, Ch’ng Winn Shern, Dr Ngerng Miang Hong, Dinesh Pillay, Dr Lee Mah Ngee, Mr Lim Heng Hong and Mr Chiang Jeng Fong

In his speech, the organising chairman Ch’ng Winn Shern said that he got the idea to organise the record-breaking event from an Air Asia’s in-flight magazine he read during his journey from Kota Kinabalu en route to West Malaysia.

“I was browsing through the magazine when I spotted an article featuring students from the University of Melbourne setting the world record for the largest ever robot dance. At that moment, I decided to achieve something extraordinary in my life as a university student.

“I was also fortunate to find a group of committee who share the same dream as I do about half a year ago and from then onwards, we continuously worked hard in order to realise our dream of achieving something big as well as bringing UTAR’s reputation to a new height,” said Ch’ng passionately at the end of his speech.

The VIPs who were present at the event include the university’s Vice President Dr Teh Chee Seng, Faculty of Arts and Social Science’s Deputy Dean Dr Lee Mah Ngee, Faculty of Business and Finance’s Deputy Dean Dr Ngerng Miang Hong, Head of Department of Student Affairs Mr Chiang Jeng Fong, Executive of Centre of Foundation Studies (Perak Campus) Mr Lim Heng Hong and Chairman of Student Representative Committee 2011/2012 Dinesh Pillay K. Thayalan Pillay.

Dr Teh who was there to give the opening speech on behalf of the President said, “It is a good idea to hold the Waltz, with Love 2011 because UTAR strongly upholds holistic education.”

He also congratulated the organising parties involved for their commitment putting the event together.

Around 20 fiesta booths were set up at the event where both participants and audiences were able to redeem Wilber Pan’s showcase tickets with the tickets they have with them.

Apart from the record-breaking waltz dance and fiesta booths, programmes such as sand art, keyboard battle, singing and musical performances also graced the event on that night.

Wowing sand art showcase by a student who learnt the techniques from watching YouTube videos

Keyboard battle between two students who played several pieces of music including Pachelbel's Canon in D and Yiruma’s River Flows in You

Crowd cheered for an encore performance from the band, Moron 6 following their performance of Love the Way You Lie and Zombie.

The organising chairman personally played the piano to accompany the short musical performance.

When asked if there were any significant problems faced in organising the event, Assistant Public Relations Manager Chin Hui Xin said that there was a low turnout rate at first as the participants were too shy to find dance partners.

To overcome this, they came out with a new plan where students can sign up without a partner and the committee will help assign a partner to each of them according to their height.

Chin, emphasising that the event is mainly focused on building new friendship among the participants.

According to the Head of Dance Department Chew Kai Wei, both she and her assistant, Charmaine Wong Chze Yen, took up dance classes from instructors in Ipoh for three weeks in preparation for the event.

“The classes for the participants which started from Week 3 onwards were held every Saturday and Sunday from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.

“The participants vary from fast-learners to slow-learners. To ensure everyone can perform as planned, we uploaded a video onto Facebook where we guide them when they are practicing by themselves at home,” said Chew.

One of the participants, a second year Journalism student Chan Kai Waey, said that she is impressed by how big-scaled the event is and enjoyed the sand art showcase.

“I attended four classes and I managed to learn the steps in the first two hours as I am a fast-learner,” said Chan.

Chan Kai Waey, a Journalism Y2T1 student who participated in the event.

There was also a participant who easily stood out among the rest on the night of the event.

“I came with my friends today and hopefully this event will help carve a good memory of me as a student here in UTAR,” said Sebastian from Germany who will be graduating in January next year.

Sebastian, an Electronic Engineering student with his dance partner.

At about 10.30 p.m., 188 pairs of participants danced gracefully to the song Time of My Life, setting a new record in The Malaysia Book of Records for the largest waltz gathering ever held in Malaysia

Ch’ng receiving the certificate officially from an officer from The Malaysia Book of Records on behalf of the organising committee

The event which lasted for about three hours ended on a high note at 11.00 p.m.

J-on

Personalised prescription

名嘴王翠玲现身拉大 自身经历鼓励实现梦

What's love got to do with it?

Motivational event seeks to inspire students

赴一趟筑梦之旅 梦想不再是一场梦

Varsity engaging community through project

招兵买马活动 学会团体各出其招拉新生

拉大书展书香弥漫 学子蜂拥而至

金宝一个大马街头美食节 民众热烈响应

Varsity's Voice: Mixed reactions to Peaceful Assembly Bill

金宝大雨排水不佳 低地住宅区一度水深四尺半

轮舞天后生命分享，观众泪洒现场

CF spreads Christmas cheer with joyful musical

WANTED: J-on Special Correspondences

Visiting professor presents Model UN prospect

幕前，幕后：新闻工作者的坚持

Bigger turnout at latest instalment of UTAR Flea Market

Westlake's decadent night culture

Furniture shop at Taman Kampar Perdana set ablaze

Flat becomes new arson target

Bicycle torched in 13th arson attack at Taman Kampar Perdana

Lamppost falls on two cars after crash

大学城纵火案件 人心惶惶

光良金宝下着雨的签唱会

潘帅唱跳具佳，亲和力“触动”粉丝心

Liberal, My @$$

明珠肉骨茶

Rock (and rolling) on!

Charity night to raise funds for animal shelter

1 Malaysia Forum heats up Heritage Hall

别有一番风味的积莪营“自家特制面”

Dance event waltzed into a new record

名嘴王翠玲现身拉大自身经历鼓励实现梦

赴一趟筑梦之旅梦想不再是一场梦

招兵买马活动学会团体各出其招拉新生

拉大书展书香弥漫学子蜂拥而至

金宝一个大马街头美食节民众热烈响应

金宝大雨排水不佳低地住宅区一度水深四尺半

大学城纵火案件人心惶惶