On the 19^th of April, my school had its 18^th Annual Sports Day at the MPSJ stadium. It was coincidentally my 17^th BIRTHDAY too!

So this year I chose to march with the prefects. The Red Crescent Society has been really good to me but I decided that it was time for me to “go back to my roots”. Either way, I believe that I would have had an amazing time on sports day anyways.

During rehearsal.

Joanna, myself, Charmaine and Tajjeev

The moment has come.

And then off we go…

Yup! That’s me with the country flag. Hehe.

WHOO HOO!!! Nicely done, prefects!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Look at Alya! She’s the one in pink.

If she had not told me what uniform unit she’s in, I would have easily guessed that she’s apart of the Worldwide Nurses Union… if there’s such a thing. She looks so nurse material!

Omg. I never ever thought that this picture which I look during a visit to SJMC would one day come in handy.

Joanna, once again, giving the cold cold cold stare.

The eleven flag bearers
(there were fifteen of us actually)

I look like I was out there fishing or something.

GREEEEEEEEEEEEEN

“Light unto the world” – Motto of Seri Suria High School.

Ha ha! Thought that it would serve as a good caption for this photo.

Candid!

Sheng Ling and I and flag

Classmates

Farhana, myself, Sheng Ling, Adrienne and Alya

Sheng Ling, Joanna, Ju Yinn, Annie,
myself and Reuben

An hour or two before noon, I went out for brunch with Adrienne, Lu Quan and Sheng Ling at a cafe called Leo’s. I was so poor that I could only afford a glass of lime juice. And Lu Quan was like “oh, I am so not gonna let you touch my food!” and ended his statement with an evil evil evil laugh. Grr. I had to starve while watching my friends eat… on my birthday! This is too much! This is cruelty to its maximum!

After that, Lu Quan drove us back to the stadium. He has his driver’s license already so I was not that worried. It was my first time sitting in a car whose driver was born in the same year as I am! It was fun at first… until Lu Quan made a bloody U-turn at a junction which had a signboard erected above the ground saying fucking ‘NO U-TURN!!!!’.

HELLO?!

Once the car halted at the roadside, I immediately leaped right out of the car and counted my blessing for I have lived to see another day.

Hehe. I was right on time for the march past results. The prefects were gathered at a spot on the tracks. It was great to see my juniors and colleagues all got together. The march past has certainly unified us as a team and as a family. There is this English proverb which I really really really really REALLY believe in: With unity comes strength. I think, for us, to win or to lose, it doesn’t really matter much. It’s the ever-lasting friendship and the ‘brotherly love’, as our ex-Head Prefect Si Onn put it, that we built together which matters most — beyond winning the competition itself.

Hope

VICTORY!!!

We’re the FIRST RUNNER-UP yo!

League table

Year Position	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
1	PREFECTS	KRS	KRS	RELA	RELA
2	?	PREFECTS	RELA	KRS	PREFECTS
3	?	RELA	GIRL GUI.	SCOUTS	KRS
4	-	-	RED CRES.	PREFECTS	PKBM
5	-	-	SCOUTS	?	SCOUTS
6	-	-	PREFECTS	?	-

Note: Correct me if I am wrong. Thanks!

We’re BACK in the top 3 circle babe!!!!! Whoo hoo. Well done prefects!

Too bad our seniors weren’t there to witness the super historic moment when we regained our recognition as the marching squad to beat. Although not in first place, we have achieved milestone. We have accomplished what our seniors have been working hard for. This year, we’ve done it! WE’VE DONE IT!

EVERYBODY DO THE PREFECT CHEER WITH ME! *Thup thup thup thup thup thup thup thup thup thup thup… TERBAIK!* Teee heeee.

Right after the march past results, I was totally taken off guard when the prefects sang me the happy birthday song and presented me with a cake! Whoa. I don’t think that I’ve been surprised in front of hundreds of parents, teachers and students in my life before. Heeeee. Totally did not expect that coming. Thanks, everybody!

I got these pictures from Sheng Ling’s camera! Okay okay… I got almost all of the pictures from her.

LOL! Look at Xiao Fern! So “kan cheong” (worried) that I would look…

Super shy lah

Happy!!!

I’ve never had so many huge grapes on my birthday cake before. LOL!

While being in the debate team is the coolest thing that has ever happened to me, being a school prefect is THE most incredible thing that I’ve committed myself to throughout my awesome days in high school thus far. Period. Being a prefect has enriched my life with all the good values — from leadership to teamwork, confidence and responsibility —  that there are no books, seminars and speeches in this world I can ever learn from.

I am so proud of you guys, prefects!!! Just wanna let y’all know how truly truly truly honored am I to be apart of this amazing family. TERBAIK…

THANK YOU ALL FOR MAKING MY 17^th BIRTHDAY THE BEST BIRTHDAY I’VE EVER HAD

P.S. Thanks Khaled, Sheng Ling, Ellysha and Gok Heng for the pictures.

I just turned seventeen five days ago (April 19). Usually I would make a big deal out of my birthday but this year, for the first time in my life, I didn’t really seem care at all…

I had a really rough week before my birthday. I was sad. I was tired. For a day or two, I felt as though I had lost my sense of direction and purpose in life. I felt empty. It was one of those moments when I feel totally dejected.

I almost wanted to cancel my birthday lunch since the exams are around the corner. I figured no one would come. Amelia said she couldn’t make it. Elaine wouldn’t go if Amelia’s not going. Both Adrienne and Ryan told me that their mom wouldn’t let them go out. It would be better if I stayed home and rest anyway.

But I eventually went on with the idea since I would have nothing to do after my interview with the prefects. Yongming said he’ll 100% be there (he missed my 16^th birthday party! Of course he had to come this year!). And if everybody says no to my invitation, at least I know Yongming will be there. Ha ha.

I didn’t really know exactly how many people would be attending for the lunch until the actual day itself. In the end, almost everyone whom I invited turned up — including Adrienne, Amelia and Elaine! Yayyyyyyy!!!

Had trouble deciding on what to eat at first. There were so many restaurants to choose from. I was torn between Italianni’s and Tony Roma’s. But I chose Tony Roma’s in the end ’cause I really really really love the food there.

My super super super awesome friends!

My chicken pasta

Elaine’s fish

Alan’s barbecued chicken drumstick

Kai Yee’s roasted chicken

Lu Quan’s cheese burger

Oh, Tony Roma’s would be so delighted to see almost all of their lunch sets featured on my blog.

Bon Appétit y’all!

Omg, I ruined the whole picture.

Yummmmmm…

LOL, Kai Yee…

Me!

Elaine, myself and Amelia

Gok Heng and I

Yongming and I

Nothing really happened during my birthday lunch this year. I have learnt my lesson to be more cautious NOT to fall off the chair. Some drama did trigger however between Eng Khim and one of the Tony Roma’s waiter.

Like me, Eng Khim ordered the chicken pasta.

Sometime during the lunch, Eng Khim demanded for a free coleslaw from Tony Roma’s.  According to Eng Khim, according to the menu (get what I am saying?), all main course, including the chicken pasta come with a side dish. In this case, the side dish was coleslaw which Eng Khim was surprising to me, dying to have.

While I was forcing the last spoonful of pasta down my throat (What?! $19.90. Don’t waste!), I thought to myself:  “Whoah, the plate of pasta so big already still want coleslaw?!”. I ordered the same meal and had the exact same proportion and as the birthday boy, I didn’t even complain. Too much!

Poor waiter. He got a piece of Eng Khim’s mind. Eng Khim even requested to see the manager.

Instead of trying to stop the feud between Eng Khim and the poor waiter, I wickedly encouraged the quarrel by giving words of inspiration to Eng Khim like “Eng Khim, you’re the man!”, “Fight for your rights!”, “Hak pengguna!” (consumers rights), “Even though you’re small in size, show who’s boss!” and etc. Ahahahahaha.

I am so damn evil, I know.

Okay, enough of this whole quarrel story… moving on…

It was my favorite part of all— gift unwrapping time!

Happy!

Thank you Elaine!

Carefully removing the sellotape…

Thank you  Adrienne! Thank you Sheng Ling!

Whoah, very tired already lah!

Thank you Yongming!

Thank you Kai Yee!

Thank you Amelia!

Thank you Eng Khim! Thank you Gok Heng!

Thank you Pin Wen!

Thank you Ryan!

Right after I finished opening all my presents, the Tony Roma’s waiters and waitresses came out with a huge martini glass of ice-cream with a small slice of chocolate cake on top of it… just like last year!

Super happy…

Shy!

Hehe…

Promoting the ice-cream…

I did my gentleman thang. I fed the girls with the ice-cream. I also did it last year and it’s now a tradition.

Feeding Kai Yee.

After that it was all mine. Muahahahaha!

Yummm…

Yummm… yumm… yummm…

Yummm… yummm… yummm… yummm… yummmmmmmmmmmm

Our very last group photo!

After lunch, all of us walked aimlessly around the shopping mall. Eng Khim, Lu Quan and I played bowling while Yongming and Kai Yee just sat and watched. The rest went back home.

Kai Yee and I

I finished last place in the stupid bowling game! UGHHHHHH…

And oh! Thanks Lu Quan for paying for the game Ha ha.

All in all, I had so much fun. Thank you guys for celebrating my (belated) birthday with me. You guys don’t know how much y’all mean to me. I hope y’all had a fulfilling lunch! I also hope that y’all will be there with me to celebrate my 18^th, 19^th, 20^th… 100^th birthday and beyond.

P.S. Please scroll downwards to read about the debate competition which I recently competed in not long ago.

So gotta finish up this blog post by tonight. I MUSTN’T PROCRASTINATE!!!

Subang Utama High School – 0 : Seri Suria High School – 1

It’s the end of the road for us

Two months ago, I was chosen to compete in The HELP University College National English Debate Competition. The competition was scheduled to be held in April this year. The others who also qualified were Reuben P., Nicole P., Annie Z. and Lu Quan. Nicole dropped out from the debate team due to other obligations.

A week before the competition officially began, the four of us who were left standing in the debate team as well as the junior debaters attended a debate workshop held in the college itself. What I was actually looking forward to was the balloting session AFTER the whole workshop.

During the balloting session, representatives from the 66 participating schools all around the country would draw lots in order to determine their respective motion and opponent. I represented my school for the balloting and pulled out a paper that matched with a school I’ve never heard of before — Seri Suria High School.

The motion of our debate was: This house would not experiment on animals for human benefit. As you can see in the table above, we were the government. Ironically, not long ago I happily dissected a frog and unintentionally killed another when I didn’t have to during biology class and proudly posted 49 pictures of the dissection on my blog. My frog dissection post garnered 143 viewers, making it the third most viewed page in my blog according to a statistic done by wordpress.

For all I know, everyone who got the same motion googled and landed themselves on my blog INCLUDING Seri Suria, our opponent.

In the days that followed, we had intense brainstorming sessions and debate practices. All of us have worked really really really hard. Yeah, I had to skip many of my classes but it was a sacrifice I had to make. I am very sure that law and politics are the two major fields I would go into when I am a little older.  I MUST make it into the debate team.

When it was finally time for us to choose our position, I unhesitatingly yelled “SECOND SPEAKER!” and self-declared it mine. LOL. Thank goodness my teammates were kind and tolerant enough not to object. I chose to be the second speaker ’cause it’s a little bit of what the first and third speaker do. Lu Quan took the role as first speaker while Reuben was made the third speaker.

Lu Quan, the cool and composed one ; Matthew, the emotional and passionate one ; Reuben, the sharp-witted and shrewd one.

We make up a totally balanced team!

Annie was our superb reserve! I think throughout this whole amazing process, Annie has not been given the credit she deserves. Annie has been the glue that kept us all together. She was the one that kept us all focused. She was the one who kept everything organized. She typed almost all of the ideas and rebuttals that we all brought up. Without fail, she managed to send all the important documents to each and everyone of us by midnight. She is truly an amazing team player.

And oh, one of the most awesome thing being in the debate team is that I got to socialize with really really really cool people. I’ve built friendship with many people whom I’ve never spoke to before such as Priya, Adrees, Kanishta, Muqri, Emily, Farhan, Zhi Zhiang, Eniza and etc. I also got to know Jeremy and Guang Yi a little better. Everyone has been really really really supportive. And wow, you guys should have seen how we gradually bonded throughout our preparation for the competition and how it thrived after the first round of the debate despite our defeat. I was so so so so so so so so so so heartbroken and disappointed after the debate but to have them around — fooling, laughing and singing together in the van really really really made that evening much better for me.

Anyways, throughout the week before the competition, we toured around the school to present our speeches. It was a part of our training routine. As the days go by, we slowly emerged from ordinary public speakers to exceptional debaters.

I asked Mr. Jacob if he sees the winning team in front of him (the four of us) and he said YEAH! I could see it in his face that he really meant what he said and he really really really really really believed that we would soar in the competition. He seemed to be extremely proud of us.

We have worked so hard.

*****

THE DAY WE ALL HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR…

Like every other mornings, Annie, Reuben, Lu Quan and I gathered at the school library. But that morning was a rather momentous one for all of us.  We had our final discussion, final preparation and final rehearsal. And I still had my reply speech to memorize.  I was going totally insane man!!!

Later that morning, we concluded our “debating tour” in 5 Kappa where we graciously presented our speech for the final time before the actual competition. The students of 5 Kappa were quite active in offering Points of Information. I made Xiao Fern extremely mad ’cause I apparently twisted and turned what she said. Ha ha.

Me.

We left for Help University College at 11:45AM and arrived thirty minutes later. Had one of worst bus experience ever. I was so nervous that I wanted to purge.

We were one of the early birds there. Since we were so early, we all decided to enter the lecture room where our debate would be held first.

That’s me in the middle… looking ever so tense as always.

Later, Mr. Jacob told us to loosen up by doing various types of weird exercises.

“Mouth exercising”. LOL.

An hour later (yeah, we were THAT early), our opponents from Seri Suria High School as well as the honorable adjudicators entered the lecture room. This is it. Everything we have worked for came down to that debate. We HAVE to win. We CANNOT lose in the first round.

The government.

The opposition.

Yeah, you’ve probably guessed it right. I was the shortest Member of Parliament. Even Joo Lee, the first speaker of the opposition team (WHO IS A GIRL F.Y.I.!) is taller than me. Grr…

I always believed that big things come in small packages so I did not feel daunted or whatsoever.

Lu Quan, the first speaker affirmative presenting our case.

In Lu Quan’s speech, he mentioned something about animal experimentation and I quote:

“The contribution of animal experimentation in the field of scientific and medical study has been over-dramatized.”

Do you know what is more over-dramatized than the contribution of animal experimentation? Our opponents’ highly exaggerated American accent! OMG. At the end of the debate, I found out that their teacher also speaks in an American slang. OMG. That was so freaky. I wonder if everyone in the school speaks like that. I am not jealous…. I am just dumbfounded to the maximum.

(I know I look like crap here but this is the only picture, so…)

For all my life, everything I do, I do with a deep sense of passion. That Tuesday was no different.  I surrendered all the energy I had left in me after having only three hours of sleep the night before. I showered the audience with my emotion. I gave my all. I was all out to win. I fought really hard to retain the pride and glory Subang Utama High School once tasted in the debating arena back in 2003.

And we, as a team certainly gave Seri Suria High School a good run for their money. We were so good during our last few practices and we even topped our own performance in the actual competition itself. We all certainly raised the bar for our opponents.

Throughout my speech, Joo Lee was trying to stare me TO DEATH. I know lah I am so hot and even hotter when I speak but she did not have to show her affection towards me in front of everyone. Hah, she thought that her lethal stare would intimidate me but little did she know, I am immune to all her stupid stares. I’ve seen a lot of them throughout my life. In fact I speak better when all eyes are on me. I like to be under the limelight. I was trained to speak in public.

After the opposition team had presented their reply speech, it was my turn to speak once again. As the reply speaker of the government, I ought to rebut the points brought up by the opposition and sum up all the things the government have said. It was down to the wire.

“Trust me. I have everything covered.”

… was what I whispered to my teammates right before I gave my reply speech. I was feeling confident. And then I asked if they trusted me.

Lu Quan and Reuben both patted me on the back and said “we trust you”. Wow. For the first time in my life, I had a gratifying feeling of what is it like having a brother — a brother who believes in me, a brother who has total faith in me and a brother who absolutely supports me…

Being the only child in my family, I tend to do things by myself. In a way, it has made me an independent person. But to be apart of the debate team, it has showed me the true values of teamwork and comradeship.

I later went on to deliver my four-minute-reply speech. I think I spent too much of my time rebutting the points laid out by the government and less on the emotional part which I actually do best. When the bell indicating that I had 1 minute left on the clock rang, I started to freak out for I had THREE HUNDRED AND NINETY FIVE words left to say. I initially allocated two minutes for that. Mr. Jacob was already waving and giving signals for me to close my speech from afar. I was so nervous that I started to slur and fluster.

In the end, I only spoke for 3 minutes and 20 seconds. I think I could have done better.

The chief adjudicator entering the lecture room after her little discussion with the other adjudicators.

Being in the debate team is one of the coolest thing that has ever happened to me.

Too bad it had to end so soon…

Note: For a systematic list of all my speeches, click here.

HELP University College National English Debate Competition 2009

April 14, 2009
Round 1

I was the second speaker affirmative. Yes, I am very proud to say that.

A very good morning I bid to the members of this most august house. The motion of today’s debate is that this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits. Ladies and gentlemen, we, the government team strongly agree with this statement as we believe that animal experimentation is not necessary in order to gain benefits for mankind. Now, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to rebut all the points laid out by the opposition.

The first speaker of the opposition team has stated their stand that animal testing is in fact the most reliable source to find cures for animals and humans. Ladies and gentlemen, look at the motion of today’s debate. The motion of today’s debate is that this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits, FOR HUMAN BENEFITS, ladies and gentlemen. What has finding cures for animals got to do with today’s debate?! Next, the first speaker of the opposition team also mentioned that antibodies, vitamins, insulin are all based on animal testing. Ladies and gentlemen, there are many alternatives which have proven to produce antibodies, vitamins, insulin and etcetera that do not involve the use of animals. These alternatives include tissue cultures, mechanical models and etcetera which I will further elaborate in my speech later on. And also, the second speaker of the opposition team brought up about testing on chimpanzees being able to produce cures for AIDS. Ladies and gentlemen, yes, we agree that chimpanzees are 95% genetically the same as human beings. But however, you cannot ignore the fact that chimpanzees are histologically, anatomically and physiologically different than us. Moreover, their body shape is different, the internal arrangement of their organs is different, the elasticity of their tissues is different and the postoperative effects are different! So the fact that experimenting on chimpanzees being able to find cures for AIDS as mentioned by the first speaker of the opposition team is rubbish.

Today I, as the second speaker will be speaking on why experimenting on animals is morally and ethically wrong as well as the alternatives to animal experimentation.

The small, shivering cat huddles against the corner of her tiny cage, trying to sleep but was kept awake by the ever-present pain in her head and her body. The electrode tests require electrodes to be strapped to her head and electrical shocks delivered straight to her brain. Ladies and gentlemen, she is sleep-deprived and dazed with pain, she is barely conscious. All she can do now is shake with fear and pain and hope that it will all end soon. Fortunately for her, it will – tomorrow the scientists are going to decapitate her and remove her brain to study the effects of their experiment. (source: http://www.youthagainstanimalcruelty.org)

Ladies and gentlemen, I would love to tell you that this is a made-up story, but it’s not. It’s a real scientific experiment, and it’s happening right now as we speak. Ladies and gentlemen, worldwide, hundreds and millions of animals die each year in laboratory experiments, experiments whose methods are unnecessarily cruel and whose results are often inconclusive. Ladies and gentlemen, animal experimentation is UNETHICAL, IMMORAL and IMPRACTICAL, and I will present our case against it!

Ladies and gentlemen, according to Louis P. Pojman, author of The Quest for Truth, there have been accounts of animals in labs being drowned, I repeat, ladies and gentlemen, DROWNED in oil to study effect of oil spills, and given LSD to test aggression. Scientists also insert rare and painful genetic diseases and viruses such as cancer and HIV. Ladies and gentleman put yourself in the shoes of these animals. These animals suffer. These animals feel the pain. Ladies and gentlemen, would you like it if you’re a perfectly healthy human being and some doctor picks you as his guinea pig and forces a needle filled with HIV virus into your body? Would you like that? Of course not! THIS IS TOO MUCH!!! THIS IS CRUELTY TO ITS MAXIMUM, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!!!

Many of the tests researchers imposed upon animals are excruciatingly painful and it, one way or another, lowers the animals’ quality of life. As mentioned by the first speaker, many of the tests on animals produced insignificant results. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to move on. And therefore, I, as the second speaker of the government team will now list to you the alternatives to animal experimentation.

Ladies and gentlemen, there many effective alternatives to animal experimentation such as clinical studies of humans, test tube research, also know as ‘in vitro’, scans, computer simulations, mechanical models, human genetic research, tissue cultures, computer-aided drug design and list goes on and on and on.

Ladies and gentlemen, okay, how exactly do tissue cultures work? Human cells and tissues can be kept alive in cultures and used for biomedical research. The FDA scientists have indeed managed to produce anti-cancer, anti-tumor and anti-AIDS agents as well as other types of drugs, vaccines, antibiotics, and therapeutic proteins through tissue cultures. The U.S. National Disease Research Interchange provides more than 120 types of human tissue to scientists investigating diabetes, cancer, muscular dystrophy, glaucoma, and other human diseases. Now ladies and gentleman, I proved to you that there are indeed better and more effective alternatives that do not involve the use of animals.

Moving on, we have mechanical models. Ladies and gentlemen, in the mid sixties, chimpanzees and bears were used in crash tests which analyses the crash compatibility of automobiles. They were actually forced to sit on rocket sleds and these rocket sleds were purposely made to crash onto rigid walls. And now, thank goodness ladies and gentlemen, General Motors have found an alternative which is to use of crash dummies in their crash tests. Ladies and gentlemen, crash dummies are indeed an excellent example of mechanical models which I’ve clearly mentioned earlier on. Crash dummies have been proven to produce much more accurate results and are more effective than the animals previously used.

Before I take my seat ladies and gentlemen, allow me to reaffirm my team’s stand this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits. Why ladies and gentlemen? Human experimentation is indeed cruel and using animals for our benefit is certainly not necessary.

With that, thank you.

A very good morning I bid to the members of this most aghast house. The motion for today’s debate is that this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits. The government stands strongly by this motion and I, the second speaker affirmative will now present to you my reply speech.

Ladies and gentlemen, the second speaker of the opposition team has mentioned that the layout of organs is, I quote, “pretty much the same”. I am sorry but these four words, “pretty much the same” does not sound really convincing to me. And also, the second speaker of the opposition team also said that the size of the heart of a white mouse is the same as humans. Ladies and gentlemen, is he trying to tell us that the size of his heart is the same as a white mouse? This is just ridiculous, ladies and gentlemen!

The second speaker also mentioned that we do not use cats in experiment and that we cannot put ourselves in the shoes of these animals. Ladies and gentlemen, there are humans who do volunteer to be experimented. We, humans have to sign a waiver or an agreement if we would like to be experimented. These volunteers are fully aware of the risks that they will face throughout the experiment. Ladies and gentlemen, humans are not forced to undergo experimentation. The doctors do not just invade their homes and force needles filled with diseases into their body.

He also questioned my third speaker that how sure is he that animals feel pain? According to Peter Singer, a prominent scientist who studies animal behavior, pain is referred to the firing of C-neurons. And yes, animals do have C-neurons. Moreover ladies and gentlemen, we learnt in biology that animals and humans do have receptors in their skin – therefore yes, animals do have feelings. They feel pain, pressure, heat and etcetera!

And he also cited that the government loves animals and for that reason the government creates legislations and laws to protect the animals. He then went on to mention that he personally do keep pets at home. Seriously ladies and gentlemen, so what if he keeps pets at home? What has that got anything to do with this debate?!

Next, the third speaker of the opposition team has constantly been denying our alternatives and gave remarks that they are not impractical. The third speaker of the opposition team failed to mention why they are impractical. Even if he did, it was rather vague.

He also stated that mechanical models are not sophisticated enough for medical advancement. Ladies and gentlemen, computers can actually produce 3-D structures of drug molecules on screen, allowing scientists to study their potential. The high blood pressure medication- Captopril have developed using this new technique.

In addition, the third speaker of the opposition team also questioned about keeping animals as pets and asked if keeping pets is ethically wrong too. Ladies and gentlemen, animals which are kept as pets need not endure prolonged suffering. Do you infect your pet dog with chemicals? No! And therefore it is totally wrong to say that keeping pets is unethical!

Ladies and gentlemen, my first speaker has clearly stated how the results of animal experimentation differ from its primary objectives. So why do we want to continue this barbaric and outdated practice which yield inconclusive results? Ladies and gentlemen, do you think it’s fair? Do you think it’s fair to force these animals into prolonged suffering? Is this what God would want us to do? The golden rule of society is whatever you what your neighbor to do for you, you do for your neighbor. So ladies and gentlemen, would you want animals to perform painful experiments on us if our roles were reversed? And we as humans, the more intelligent species have a moral duty, obligation and responsibility to protect these animals.

With that, the government stands strong by the motion that this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits.

Thank you.

Sorry guys, I am really really busy lately. I have a debate competition coming up soon and I was too busy doing my research and stuff.

I actually uploaded like tonnes of pictures for the blog post which was supposed to be posted last month. But I had no time to compose an essay on it so… I’ll just keep it as a draft until I find the time to complete it.

For this entry, I’ll be posting up the speech which I did last Friday. It was for my Malay oral speaking presentation by the way.

Salam sejahtera saya ucapkan kepada yang dikasihi guru Bahasa Melayu kita, Puan. Nor Azilah dan rakan-rakan sekalian. Berdirinya saya atas pentas ini adalah untuk menyampaikan lisan saya yang bertajuk “Perpaduan penting dalam pembinaan negara dan juga cita-cita saya sebagai Perdana Menteri Malaysia“

Para hadirin yang dihormati,

Perpaduan negara merujuk kepada satu bentuk penyatuan pelbagai kelompok yang mempunyai latar belakang sosial, agama, budaya dan bahasa yang berbeza di bawah satu identiti nasional. Perpaduan dalam erti kata berupaya menangkis semua gejala yang mampu memecahbelahkan masyarakat.

Para hadirin yang dimuliakan,

Memang tidak dapat dinafikan bahawa cogan kata “Malaysia Boleh” mempunyai signifikannya yang tersendiri dalam menaikkan semangat rakyat Malaysia. Dengan semangat ini, kita dapat membina satu rakyat yang berdaya saing dan meletakkan nama Malaysia gah di persada dunia. Untuk memastikan semangat ini terus membara, pemimpin-pemimpin negara haruslah berkhidmat dengan penuh kesetiaan dan rasa tanggungjawab demi pembangunan dan keamanan negara.

Tuan-tuan dan puan-puan,

Selain itu, Bahasa Malaysia juga memainkan peranan penting bagi memastikan keutuhan dan perpaduan Malaysia dapat dikekalkan. Bahasa Melayu sebagai bahasa kebangsaan seperti yang tertakluk dalam Perlembagaan Malaysia dapat menghindarkan rasa prasangka antara kaum kerana Bahasa Melayu mudah difahami dan ditutur oleh semua pihak. Rasa kekitaan dan integrasi nasional itu penting agar detik hitam lipatan sejarah negara seperti Peristiwa 13 Mei 1969 tidak berulang lagi.

Para hadirin sekalian,

Langkah yang terakhir yang saya akan bentangkan hari ini ialah peranan ibu bapa dalam masyarakat. Kaum ibu bapa dinasihatkan agar membawa anak-anak mereka ke muzium-muzium agar dapat mempelajari tentang sejarah negara. Mereka harus didedahkan kepada susah payah dan pahit gentir yang dilalui oleh nenek moyang kita dahulu kerana golongan muda inilah merupakan bakal pemimpin negara kita dalam mempertahankan kedaulatan negara dan bangsa.

Rakan-rakan sekalian,

Saya percaya bahawa anda semua sudah tentu tahu bahawa cita-cita saya adalah untuk menjadi Perdana Menteri Malaysia. Ok. Anda semua mesti ingin tahu apa yang saya akan lakukan untuk Malaysia sekiranya saya dapat menjadi Perdana Menteri negara ini.

Yang pertama sekali, saya akan mengubah struktur politik dalam negara dengan menubuhkan sebuah parti yang mengunakan konsep kerjasama kaum seumpama dengan Parti Kemerdekaan Malaya yang ditubuhkan oleh Dato’ Onn Jaafar pada tahun 1951. Saya juga akan mengunakan fahaman Satu Malaysia yang dikemukakan oleh Perdana Menteri kita, Dato’ Sri Najib Razak. Saya percaya bahawa fahaman Satu Malaysia ini dapat mengekalkan dan meningkatkan perpaduan dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia.

Seterusnya, saya juga akan mengurangkan usia mengundi dalam pilihanraya di negara ini dari 21 tahun kepada 17 tahun. Saya rasa para remaja dan belia harus diberikan pengiktirafan dalam pembentukan masyarakat negara. Tujuan saya untuk mengurangkan usia mengundi adalah untuk memberikan hak kepada para remaja. Hak yang saya katakan itu ialah hak untuk bersuara- hak untuk mengeluarkan pendapat – hak untuk membuat pilihan!

Para hadirin sekalian,

Siapa kata bahawa pemikiran remaja seperti kita tidak matang? Siapa kata bahawa remaja seperti kita semua tidak tahu apa-apa tentang politik dalam negara? Siapa kata bahawa remaja sahaja yang bertindak mengikut emosi dan membuat pilihan mengikut janji-janji manis sesebuah pihak? Adalah tidak rasional dan munasabah sekali untuk memandang rendah terhadap kebolehan dan kemampuan remaja. Maka, saya berpendapat bahawa mengurangkan usia mengundi kepada 17 tahun adalah AMAT sesuai sekali!

Kerana masa tidak mengizinkan, saya terpaksa mengakhiri ucapan saya pada hari ini. Sebagai kesimpulan, kita mesti bersatu padu untuk membina satu masyarakat yang cemerlang, gemilang dan terbilang.

Sekian, terima kasih.

(Don’t worry. I’ll be translating this speech to English once I have the time)

From the start, I knew what I was gonna speak about and I chose to speak on racial unity simply because it was a topic I feel strongly passionate about. Racial unity, fairness and equality are the things I am fighting for and will continue to fight until the day I see it come true. And moreover, I wanted to be no one else but me. That speech allowed me to be ME!

I admit, I could have done a little bit better. But most of my classmates gave me two thumbs up nonetheless (THANK YOU!). I shall ask more of my friends on their reviews on my speech after the weekends. I really hope my teacher liked it though.

I think I did okay considering that I had two speeches to memorize the day before — my oral speaking presentation speech and my debate speech.

Who knew I could pull off a motivating speech in Malay. I should start recording my speeches!

My classmates and I. Spot me!

I felt compelled to post at least one picture on this blog post since I am sure most of you are not interested in words.

P.S. Comment on the speech please!!!