I started this blog with the serious intention of starting a meaningful discussion on professional selling in Malaysia (and wherever else, for that matter. Sales is sales, wherever you are.) However, the pick-up has been rather slow. I have not seen any comments from my first post except from some known friends. But, never lose heart. I'm sure that members of the selling profession out there will come in to participate to make this blog "lively" and a "learning" arena.
But, today, I'd like to put aside selling for a moment, and comment a little about the going-ons on the 2nd day of our new Parliamentary session on April 30.
Now that we Malaysians are given a 30-minute peek on National TV for every day that Parliament is in session, we thought we would be witnessing history in-the-making each day, momentous decisions made, serious discussions held, sober elected (thus elite) members of this very august body conducting intelligent discourses that would map out the country's future well-being.
We felt very let down indeed! For instead, we see and hear name-callings (and like the 17-year old Fifth Former said in today's NST paper, he thought only boys playing around in the school field ever did that!!!), disrespect for a wheelchair-bound senior "mouth", raucous behaviour fit only at a Mat Rempit starting line-up, and an elected (after being elected as an MP) Speaker of the House being unceremoniously ignored when trying to maintain order in the House.
Hmmmm.. what an exemplary conduct for "leaders" to show to the whole nation, for any one of those vociferous members could be a Minister or Deputy Minister or Parliamentary Secretary or whatever else if the circumstances were right or different. I, for one, could never submit myself to the leadership of any one of them. Did we choose the wrong candidates? Hmmm.. I wonder.
I think that "bullying" tactics, "herd" mentalities, hecklings and other methods that actually only help lower dignities and self-respect (and other peoples' respect toward you) should not be used in our Malaysian Parliament. Don't use manipulations and manipulative techniques. Even salesmen don't do that anymore. Let them be the favoured methods in other countries where passions and primitive overkill rule. But not here in Malaysia. We will be a developed nation by Year 2020, and those types of behaviour are no longer in vogue. They could be acceptable in the "Kedai Kopi Kampung" parliaments of my childhood days. But not in the Dewan Rakyat. Pleeaaassssseeeee!!!! I beg of all of you Members of Parliament.
My friends and I wonder whether the subsequent session, after the 30-minute National TV Parliament Akademi Fantasia show, is more subdued and more serious. If the parliamentary debates after that were directed toward nation-building rather than TV image-building and ego trips, perhaps then, we can still maintain our faith in our elected Members.
We also wonder at how 30 minutes of very precious time in Parliament have been wasted. Those 30 minutes are very expensive indeed. They could surely have been put to more productive use. Again, what a fine example to show to the nation.
And I also hope that the knee-jerk response of a Minister to review the advisability of continuing with our newest popular TV Show (and perhaps discontinuing it) is just that .. a review. Malaysians expect more from the Members of Parliament they elected, and, after yesterday's shameful displays, many of us would perhaps be reviewing and regretting our decisions to change sides during the last elections. And also, hopefully, those same Members may be changing their acts on our next episode in Parliament.
But, today, I'd like to put aside selling for a moment, and comment a little about the going-ons on the 2nd day of our new Parliamentary session on April 30.
Now that we Malaysians are given a 30-minute peek on National TV for every day that Parliament is in session, we thought we would be witnessing history in-the-making each day, momentous decisions made, serious discussions held, sober elected (thus elite) members of this very august body conducting intelligent discourses that would map out the country's future well-being.
We felt very let down indeed! For instead, we see and hear name-callings (and like the 17-year old Fifth Former said in today's NST paper, he thought only boys playing around in the school field ever did that!!!), disrespect for a wheelchair-bound senior "mouth", raucous behaviour fit only at a Mat Rempit starting line-up, and an elected (after being elected as an MP) Speaker of the House being unceremoniously ignored when trying to maintain order in the House.
Hmmmm.. what an exemplary conduct for "leaders" to show to the whole nation, for any one of those vociferous members could be a Minister or Deputy Minister or Parliamentary Secretary or whatever else if the circumstances were right or different. I, for one, could never submit myself to the leadership of any one of them. Did we choose the wrong candidates? Hmmm.. I wonder.
I think that "bullying" tactics, "herd" mentalities, hecklings and other methods that actually only help lower dignities and self-respect (and other peoples' respect toward you) should not be used in our Malaysian Parliament. Don't use manipulations and manipulative techniques. Even salesmen don't do that anymore. Let them be the favoured methods in other countries where passions and primitive overkill rule. But not here in Malaysia. We will be a developed nation by Year 2020, and those types of behaviour are no longer in vogue. They could be acceptable in the "Kedai Kopi Kampung" parliaments of my childhood days. But not in the Dewan Rakyat. Pleeaaassssseeeee!!!! I beg of all of you Members of Parliament.
My friends and I wonder whether the subsequent session, after the 30-minute National TV Parliament Akademi Fantasia show, is more subdued and more serious. If the parliamentary debates after that were directed toward nation-building rather than TV image-building and ego trips, perhaps then, we can still maintain our faith in our elected Members.
We also wonder at how 30 minutes of very precious time in Parliament have been wasted. Those 30 minutes are very expensive indeed. They could surely have been put to more productive use. Again, what a fine example to show to the nation.
And I also hope that the knee-jerk response of a Minister to review the advisability of continuing with our newest popular TV Show (and perhaps discontinuing it) is just that .. a review. Malaysians expect more from the Members of Parliament they elected, and, after yesterday's shameful displays, many of us would perhaps be reviewing and regretting our decisions to change sides during the last elections. And also, hopefully, those same Members may be changing their acts on our next episode in Parliament.
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