GOSPEL TRUTHS? I hear some1 whisper, My Foot!

DESIDERATA has previously echoed the lament of one of my reticent readers Mitochondria who makes rare, but very discerning, statements of the state of affairs in the country.

I borrow one to reflect my state of mind today -- "getting very tired of being tired".From theSun October 7, 2005, AT THE DEWAN RAKYAT YESTERDAY


'Petronas profits go
back to the people'

ALL profits derived from the earnings of national
petroleum company Petronas go back to the people
and none of it is retained by the government,
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said.
In reply to a question from Dr Tan Seng Giaw (DAP-Kepong), he said this
could be seen from the RM16bilion which it utilised from Petronas'
profits of RM31billion, to subsidise the price of petrol and diesel.
"The remainder is deposited into the Consolidated Fund and used for
various development projects to benefit the people," Mustapa said.

To an oriiginal question from Jawah Gerang (BN-Lubok Antu), Mustapa said
Petronas' profits had jumped due to the increasing world oil prices --
from RM15.1billion in 2003, and RM23.7billion last year,
to RM35.6billion this year.

DESIDERATA: The honourable minister expects the Rakyat to take his answer as the Truth, the whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth. So help us, God!

In the last sentence about the profits, it's precisely my point that the national oil corporation's profits had not been flowed back to the Rakyat, as with increasing profits for three consecutive years as stated, fuel costs kept rising, leading to inflation, hence higher cost of living for the ordinary man in the street. You and me -- the 90-percent majority of citizens Joe&Jane?

The RM35.6billion net profits was for the financial year ended March 31, 2005 -- it also represented the year when in the 12 months, the pump prices of petroleum had gone up at least four times.

My argument is that, every thing being equal, with no other factor to consider -- just world price-local pump rice equation -- every time the world oilprice goes north, that is, rises, our pump prices should head south, that is, in economic parlance, go down.


The minister Mustapa has better practise accountability and transparency by making public the annual statement of Petronas accounts -- hey, it holds our national resource on the People's Behalf, yes? The Governmeent had already set up the National Institute of Integrity -- how about starting off practice at the National Treasury?

The Rakyat in the past two years had waited for Pak Lah's government to Walk The Talk as he promised on assumping office as Prime Minister November 1, 2003. We did not see much WALKING ...

Oh, the Government expects the Rakyat to place absolute faith in the elected-then-appointed Cabinet to tell us the whole Truth, norhing but the Truth, about Petronas' state of financial affairs.

With all the controversies involvong ministries with smaller budgets -- like MITI's APs given to "controversial grpoups or individuals"; Education Ministry's 90percent of School Computer Laboratories not usable after all payments having been made; Works Ministry's highways and bridges giving engineering problems in a short time after completion; ...ad nauseum...

Before I sign off with a sigh, just share a business item:

BURSA MALAYSIA FOCUSES ON WOOING BACK RETAIL INVESTORS

BURSA MALAYSIA is working hard to get retail investors to return
to investing as they did prior to the crisis, promising quality
is on top of its agenda, CEO YUSLI MOHAMED YUSOF
was quoted as saying by THE STAR September 27, 2005.
He said at a media briefing that foreigners normally accounted for
30-40 per cent of daily turnover on BURSA MALAYSIA, but felt
that the retail participation had come down significantly.
As at July 2005, foreigners accounted for 34 per cent of trading value
of companies listed on BURSA MALAYSIA. Foreigners own 30 per cent
of BURSA shares. Key among initiatives on improving quality on
BURSA MALAYSIA is the query of unusual market activity, requiring
companies now to state impending of the “state of flux” developments
that were taking place at a company, according to WONG KAY YONG,
head of listing compliance.

DESIDERATA: It is difficult to win back foreign investors' confidence
once it is lost. It had been lost because of, in my humble opinion,
lax regulations and enforcement,from Listing, Corporate Governance
Requirements and Observance to Punishment of defaulters and offenders.

Big (humougous?) offenders had been given penalties that amounted to
mere slaps on the wrists. White-collar crooks were able to swindle millions,
or hundreds of million ringgit and yet, though wondrous ways beyond layman's ken, got away with mere fines just a small percentage of their ill-gotten gains.

In the first place, had some of the companies who got listed truly
complied with the Profits/Potential Profits Requirements before they
were approved for listing?
There have been just too many companies placed under CN4 and S176, and also delisted finally, for the retail investors to laugh their way home from the banks.
How do you explain that share values of some companies could jump to triple digits and then within a short period, plummet to single digit?

How to do you expect retail players to come back for more (unless they suffer from masochism) when their banks pulled back their over-draft facilities when shares crashed,
But some young millionaires, and one-billionaire-on-paper, could get away by holidaying abroad? (Wow, when the market out there crashed 70-80percent, these lucky ones could still pay back every single sen ...Miracles do happen in ...Maybe they should teach us PublicJoe how to make money out of nothing?

SIGH: We have to make do by trusting
those people in cxharge to tell us the Gospel Truths.
Yes, truths is in the plural, because it depends on Who Tells Which...

I'm retiring now with a sigh too many.
Hey, Mitochondria, have you recovered?
What's thy secret?