PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

The Fund-raising Committee of our Club is indeed working very hard. So far we had 4 major or full meetings and 5 minor meetings. The major ones comprise the complete members of the Fund-raising Committee while the minor ones were to decide on specific issues about the marketing kit and entertainment.

Matters about the fund-raising project called the 48th Anniversary Dinner Show are moving according to plan. The two most important matters on the agenda are the marketing kit and the entertainment. We need to finalize the design of the kit in order that Rotarians of our Club can proceed with the sales of the dinner tables. And at the same time, we are also going all out in getting advertisements for the souvenir programme for the evening. The marketing kit should be ready for distribution in early October and then we are given about two-and-half months to do some solid marketing. Of course, the advertisements should also be within the same time frame. Thank you for the members’ input to the kit. It’s wonderful that we’re ready to give ideas for the good of our Club.

The entertainment will be something that we can be proud of. It’s going to be a show that leaves behind memories of our Club and its great achievement. The Leonard Tan Show will feature songs and dances and another well-known singer. All the performances will blend into our theme for the evening ‘Make a Difference.’ As PP Rupert Goldman often remarked at the meetings, “We need to put on a good show because the sponsors are going to pay a lot for the dinner tables. They should not feel cheated.” We will certainly deliver an excellent performance. So far we’ve met up with the show people not fewer than 3 times and the last one was 23rd Sept after the luncheon meeting. After seeing the video clip, a sample of the show and much discussion, we are quite pleased that the show is now to our expectation.

Rotarians of our Club, I appeal to you to come forward to assist in raising RM500,000 for this year and the next two. Then we’ll not be hampered by financial constraint in our projects. I sincerely need your help.

I must thank the Rotarians who have hosted the after-dinner meetings. Thank you Woon Hud, OSS, Jack, Seng Chuan and Kia Keong. I must thank all the members who have been so consistent in their attendance. I must also thank Rupert and Eric for the tremendous effort they are putting in. 

The shortage is all the more felt when the huge expansion of universities in China, Korea, India and South East Asia means that demand is greater than supply. In China, for example, the universities are attracting high quality academic staff to develop the image of their universities. In this way, local students would stay home to do their tertiary education instead of going overseas. 

There’s a need to address problems related to academic staff.

Not all academic staff are born to teach but they can be trained to be good teachers. On this premise, the university should reach out to the staff that are committed to teaching as a career and provide them with training facilities to better themselves. It’s a fallacy to believe that a PhD holder can teach. Yes, he has knowledge or the content but imparting the knowledge is altogether different. The university is required to help in language, techniques and the science of teaching.

The expectancy of a comfortable salary is something the university should also address. Studies have indicated that university salaries are usually not comparable to the corporate sector. 

This week’s speaker is none other than our club member PP Tara Singh Gill who has been with the LLN for a number of years holding senior positions. Tara took us back to the early days in Malaya then when in 1894, the first power plant was started in response to the need for the mining areas in Rawang. This initiative also benefited Rawang because the town had street lights, a luxury in those days. This was the beginning of more to come. In 1895, the K.L. Railway Station had electricity supply which spread to K.L., I suppose the Chinatown area in 1905. Realizing the need to reap the natural resources, a British company supplied electricity to the tin mines and dredgers using generators. And in 1929, the Perak River Hydro Electricity Company was established, commissioned by a British company that supplied electricity to vast areas around the mining areas of Ipoh. Following this, the hydro power stations in Ulu Langat supplied electricity to Raub and Bentong between 1.5 and 2 megawatts. Then in K.L. along Bangsar Road, there were street lights. With this development, the 1st Electricity Act was enacted in 1949. The electric company was called the Central Electricity Board that became the LLN and it later was corporatized under the current name of TNB. So much for history.

As the demand for electricity increases, the capacity of power stations also has increased and this increase is associated with coal, gas and oil. The Independent Power Plants or IPPs use mostly gas to generate electricity. The IPPs installed a capacity of 11,000 megawatts but only 8,000 were used. Under an agreement, TNB has to absorb the surplus capacity. And also under present law, only TNB can transmit and distribute power.

Here’s good news. TNB is researching into energy efficiency. It is working towards using renewable energy such as solar energy, wind power and bio-fuel. Currently only 40% of fuel comes from gas. Whether consumers are going to pay less for energy remains to be seen.

Thank you, Tara for a very informative talk. We all enjoyed it.