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Tonkatsu anyone? Posted: 02 Sep 2011 05:37 PM PDT Hire Katsu and Ebi Furai Zen of pork fillet and prawns ... a must-try. — Picture by Eu Hooi Khaw KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 — A few years ago, on a trip to Tokyo, I was taken to a tonkatsu restaurant that was well-known for these deepfried, crumbed pork cutlets. It was kurobuta pork, no less, and I got a history lesson from JT on how Japan and Taiwan are the only two countries in the Far East where the Portuguese brought the black pigs, and there they stayed and multiplied. The restaurant was run by a family, and the father held on tight to his recipe and way of cooking, allowing his wife and daughter to only cut the fresh, sweet cabbage and serve the customers. Buta Kakuni or braised pork is flavourful here. — Picture by Eu Hooi Khaw But then he produced the most fantastic tonkatsu, with the breadcrumb coating thin and crispy, the meat tender and succulent, and it being kurobuta pork, brought the flavour, aroma and texture several notches higher. So it was with this still in my mind that I came to Tonkatsu by Wa Kitchen at the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. We zoomed in on the Double-boiled Pork Soup, the Set 2 of Rosu Katsu Zen which is breaded pork loin cutlet with sliced cabbage, tofu, pickles, miso soup and rice, Buta Kakuni or braised pork, Hire Katsu (pork fillet) and Ebi Furai Zen (deepfried breaded prawns). Later, Buta Kushi Yai or pork slices on a skewer was added on. Before we started on our meal, we had to make our own sauce for the tonkatsu in a small bowl which had deep grooves along the inside and a wooden pestle. We ground roasted sesame seeds in this, which released a wonderful fragrant aroma. Into this was poured a dark sauce of apple cider combined with honey. The tonkatsu lived up to my expectations. There was this crispy crunch of the coating of golden crumbed pork loin as my teeth sank into succulent, tender pork. Dipped into the piquant, delicious sauce, it doubled the pleasure. I also liked the cabbage drizzled with this sauce. We had ordered the deepfried pork fillet of Hire Katsu and Ebi Furai (prawns). It's a good mix for those who want a taste of both. The prawns were smooth, sweet and springy, not overdone, and came with a mayonnaise dip. Making your own sauce here is fun. — Picture by Eu Hooi Khaw The Double-Boiled Soup of pork belly, shiitake and shimeji mushrooms and leek was sweet and lovely, and had the natural essence of all these ingredients. It was the first time I had double-boiled soup in a Japanese restaurant, and I would have this again on my next trip here. The Buta Kakuni is like our Chinese Tung Po Yook. The chunks of braised belly pork layered with fat were so tender they melted at the bite. I loved the well-balanced sweet sauce the meat was bathed in. Buta Kushi Yaki is thin pork slices alternating with fat threaded on a stick, as in yakitori, and barbecued. The meat tasted so good as it was: it had a delicious aroma from the grilling. Have a bite of the juicy spring onion head with this to balance its richness. There is a wide range of ice-cream for dessert – from macha and sesame to lavender, mango and yoghurt. I had a yoghurt ice-cream which was light and tart and was the perfect ending to a satisfying lunch. The food is reasonably priced at Tonkatsu, which is good for repeat visits. The Rosu Katsu Zen is RM27, the Hire Katsu and Ebi Furai Zen is RM29. The Pork Soup is RM16, Buta Kakuni RM18, Buta Kushiyaki RM15 (two skewers). Tonkatsu is located at Lot 6.12 Level 6, Pavilion KL, Jalan Bukit Bintang. Tel: 03-2144 2292.

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German Storl springs shot surprise in Daegu Posted: 02 Sep 2011 07:25 AM PDT Storl makes a throw in the men's shot put final in Daegu on September 2, 2011. — Reuters pic DAEGU (South Korea), Sept 2 — German youngster David Storl emerged from the shadows to claim a surprise victory and the men's shot put gold with his final throw at the world championships today. The 21-year-old former world junior and youth champion's sixth throw of 21.78 metres, a personal best, enabled him to pip Canada's Dylan Armstrong to gold. "After the qualification, a lot of my competitors were saying 'who is David Storl?'," he said. "Now they know. Today I had my biggest and greatest competition ever." Storl had taken the early advantage with his second throw of 21.60 but Armstrong, the world leader this year, hit back with 21.64 on his fourth throw to give him the edge going into the last round. Belarussian Andrei Mikhnevich of Belarus, the 2003 world champion, beat American defending champion Christian Cantwell to third place with a throw of 21.40 to claim the bronze. "When I look at my passport, I can see how old I am," said the 35-year-old. "But mentally I feel stronger than many years ago. "Nobody expected (Storl) to win because he is very young. But I predict a great future for him, I hope he will become very famous and successful." — Reuters

Bolt back to business as ‘VCB’ strikes gold Posted: 02 Sep 2011 06:46 AM PDT DAEGU (South Korea), Sept 2 — Veronica Campbell-Brown ripped Allyson Felix's 200 metres crown from her grip today while another Jamaican scorched up the road to redemption and into the hearts of the Daegu crowd at the world athletics championships. Usain Bolt, the world's fastest man, sealed his reputation as the sport's greatest showman as well as its fastest athlete with a peerless display of both charm and chutzpah, powering his way through two heats of 200 metres. Bolt back at his showboating best after winning his men's 200 metres semi-final heat in Daegu on September 2, 2011. — Reuters pic "It's my favourite event. If I get a good start and execute, nobody beats me," he said, the old swagger back after a humbling disqualification in the 100 metres final for a false start. "Expect always the best from me. I am focused on getting everything done." While Bolt was whipping a capacity 45,000 crowd into a frenzy with a potent mix of speed and good-natured posturing and posing, another figurehead at these championships was forced to say his goodbyes early. Double amputee Oscar Pistorius was axed from South Africa's 4x400 final relay team, the quartet he had led off to a national record just a day before. Their decision appeared to have been vindicated today when the South Africans took silver in the final, beaten only by the US team. Pistorius continues to break down barriers, however, as he will be awarded a silver medal after running in the heats. Having lost his 100 metres crown on Sunday to Jamaican understudy Yohan Blake, it was clear Bolt felt he had to make amends. "I know I am still the best," he said of the 100. "Of course I'm disappointed because I didn't give myself the chance to go out there and execute my best." He did well to mask that disappointment, however, and he was back to the good-natured showboating of old. The crowd feted him like a rock star, screaming and shrieking in response to his every theatrical salute. This was no one-sided love affair. Bolt sent a section of the crowd into a frenzy when, grinning, he hurled his running spikes into the crowd, before disappearing into the bowels of the stadium to prepare for one more tear down the track in the final. The disappointment of his false start in the 100 may have been forgotten, but not the lesson learned, and he was last out of the blocks by a considerable margin. Such is his dominance over 200 metres, however, the world record holder is in no need of a lightning start to retain his title. Not many had picked Campbell-Brown for the women's 200 metres title here, with Carmelita Jeter in sensational form having won the 100 metres and Felix more determined than ever having missed out on the 400 metres gold earlier in the week. But an eager "VCB" was first out of the blocks and found an extra gear in the race to cross the line first, ahead of Jeter with Felix third. "I want to thank God for giving me the strength," Campbell-Brown told reporters. "I have a world silver, so finally I got the gold medal. I knew I had to run a strong curve." The melodic Kenyan national anthem rang out once more in the Daegu stadium when Vivian Cheruiyot took the women's 5,000, adding it to the 10,000 she won earlier in the championships. In the field, burly German David Storl took shot put gold with his final throw, hurling it 21.78 metres, a personal best, while in the women's javelin Russia's Maria Abakumova struck gold with a throw of 71.99 metres. American Dwight Phillips successfully defended his world long jump title, claiming a fourth world title to add to his 2009, 2005 and 2003 gold medals. — Reuters

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Knightley stars in film on birth of psychoanalysis Posted: 02 Sep 2011 07:29 AM PDT British actress Keira Knightley (left) poses with US actress Eva Mendes during a photocall for in competition film "Last Night" by Massy Tadjedin at the Rome Film Festival on October 28, 2010. — Reuters pic VENICE, Sept 2 — Canadian director David Cronenberg's latest movie "A Dangerous Method" explores the role a little-known Russian woman played in the birth of psychoanalysis at the turn of the 20th century. Between the recognised titans of the discipline Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, played respectively by Viggo Mortensen and Michael Fassbender, came Sabina Spielrein, portrayed by Keira Knightley. The psychologically troubled, fiercely intelligent young woman was a real-life patient first of Jung and later Freud. Some historians also believe she had an affair with Jung, and in the film he sets out on a path of sexual liberation and obsession with his charge prompted by the debauched and dangerous Otto Gross. For Knightley, a role involving scenes of hysteria and sexual spanking was a departure from the demure, restrained characters for which she is best known. Asked whether she enjoyed the role, she told reporters in Venice where the film has its world premiere today: "It's great fun. I'm an actress so I'm obviously crazy anyway so I think I drew on that. It's fine." Cronenberg joked that he chose his cast based on their need for treatment. "I'd like to just say that my cast has a great need of psychoanalysis — it was why I cast then actually. "It was to sort of introduce them gently to the idea that they needed help, a lot of help. And you can see they're much better people. Before they were messes when I found them." Leading figure Spielrein went on to become a respected psychoanalyst in her own right, and in the film her ideas challenge both Freud and Jung to rethink their own approach. Cronenberg said his cerebral costume drama about what he called an "intellectual menage a trois" was "very accurate." "There's so much in the letters," said the 68-year-old director of hits like "The Fly" and "A History of Violence". "At this era in Vienna there were maybe five to eight mail deliveries every day. It was like the internet before the internet. "There are tonnes of letters amongst all these characters and in those letters they quote each other ... So there's a lot of material out there which is the basis for the screenplay." Oscar-winning writer Christopher Hampton penned the script, which is based on his own play "The Talking Cure". For Mortensen, who also starred in Cronenberg's "A History of Violence" and "Eastern Promises", the key to playing such a well-known figure as Freud was not to get too bogged down in the detail. "In the end it's not an academic exercise, it's not a documentary movie, it's a drama that's interesting, that sometimes is funny, that sometimes is tragic, that doesn't deal with the academic issue so much." Cronenberg said Freud's ideas were considered dangerous at a time when many people believed man was on a one-way path to enlightenment and progress. "Freud, with psychoanalysis, said this is not true, this is a very thin veneer of so-called civilisation ... and that these ... unconscious things could erupt in a very disastrous way. "This was on the eve of the First World War, which of course ended the dream of progress and so-called European civilisation." A Dangerous Method is one of 22 movies in the main competition at this year's Venice film festival, and is due to hit US theatres in November. — Reuters

Madonna’s crown slips with mediocre movie reviews Posted: 02 Sep 2011 07:05 AM PDT US singer Madonna gestures as she performs during her Sticky and Sweet tour at the O2 Arena in London on July 4, 2009. — Reuters pic VENICE, Sept 2 — Madonna may be the "queen of pop", but her crown as movie director slipped this week after most early reviews of her second feature film "W.E." ranged from middling to poor. The picture, which had its world premiere at the Venice film festival yesterday, is loosely based on the life of American divorcee Wallis Simpson, whose affair with King Edward VIII led to his abdication. Madonna said she had been fascinated by the story for some time, pondering why a man would make such a huge sacrifice for love. Andrea Riseborough stars as Simpson and Abbie Cornish as a modern-day woman who becomes obsessed with the person who prompted a constitutional crisis in 1936. Britain's Guardian newspaper did not spare Madonna's feelings with a one-out-of-five star review. "Could it be that Madonna is in deadly earnest here?" wrote Xan Brooks. "If so, her film is more risible than we had any right to expect; a primped and simpering folly, the turkey that dreamed it was a peacock." Others were less damning, although the general tone was negative and one website quipped that it may be time for the 53-year-old singer to abdicate as a film maker. Todd McCarthy of the Hollywood Reporter opined: "Madonna's second foray into directing is pleasing to the eyes and ears, but lacking anything for the soul." And Mark Adams, chief critic for Screen Daily, wrote: "Madonna aims high as she seeks to tackle love, celebrity, fame, abuse and disappointment, often hitting her targets — and sometimes not — but always offering up images that are beautifully shot and staged." He singled out Riseborough's performance, which he described as "quite brilliant". The Daily Telegraph gave W.E. three stars out of five, while Baz Bamigboye of the Daily Mail was generally complimentary. "A lot of people will loathe it, simply because it's been made by Madonna," he wrote. "But if they were to watch it with no knowledge of who directed, they would be pleasantly surprised. They might even find much of it enjoyable, although the odd moment may have them wondering if Madge has committed treason." Some of Madonna's collaborators on the picture had wondered whether viewers' judgments might be coloured by their opinion of the 53-year-old celebrity. "When an iconic, global entity is involved it will be interesting to see how people react to that and whether people can judge the film without their own baggage or how they've felt about Madonna for 30 years," producer Kris Thykier told trade publication Variety. The budget of W.E. is estimated to be around US$15 million (RM45 million), and it hits movie theatres in North America in December. — Reuters

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Travel around Thailand gets easier as low-cost airline boom continues Posted: 02 Sep 2011 06:30 AM PDT Thai Airways planes on the tarmac of Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. The country's main airline plans to launch a low-cost service for internal flights. — AFP pic BANGKOK, Sept 2 — A night on a sleeper train used to be a mark of prestige for travellers in backpacking paradise Thailand, but all that could be about to change thanks to the rapid growth of low-cost airlines. Thai Airways, the country's main airline, confirmed this week that it is to launch another low-cost carrier in July next year, operating from Bangkok to allow travellers to travel easily within the country. The flight times of the new "Thai Smile" will be co-ordinated with those of Thai Airways, a statement said, allowing vacationers to fly in and transfer to another destination without needing to transit Bangkok. A total of 11 aircraft will be operating from Suvarnabhumi Airport, the capital's main hub, to popular tourism destinations such as Ubon Ratchathani, Khon Kaen, Chiang Rai, and Surat Thani. Thai's booming tourism trade and economic development have made it into a popular target for low-cost airlines — Thai Tiger Airways, a partnership with Singapore carrier Tiger Airways, is also slated to take off soon. Less popular with tourists, but still useful ways of getting around, are Thai Nok and Thai Wings, which also offer internal flights at fairly low prices. All this could mean even lower prices from AirAsia, Malaysia's famous red carrier, which has made a name for itself with travellers to the country by rapidly expanding and flying to some 25 destinations from Suvarnabhumi, including many outside of the country. The multitude of low-cost airlines in Thailand is sure to please budget-conscious travellers — but it could mean the end of a night on a Thai train as a quintessential backpacking experience. — AFP-Relaxnews

Sweden’s fictional murder capital a peaceful place Posted: 02 Sep 2011 12:36 AM PDT YSTAD, Sweden, Sept 2 — "This is a very peaceful place," says police inspector Charlotte Lindh as families flock past towards an open-air flea market on a bright Saturday morning. "I am happy I can bring up my children in Ystad." At the other end of Stora Ostergatan, the main street through the southern Swedish port and market town, milling shoppers halt on the main square to applaud parading military bands and Scottish pipers, in town for an annual festival. The medieval idyll of brightly painted thatched cottages and narrow cobblestone streets are for real in Ystad. The bookshop just off the square, Stortorget, is crowded as are the cafe terraces around it, with waiters threading through the tables balancing trays with coffees and pre-lunch drinks. Just like any small provincial European town in the seasonal sunshine on the first day of a warm weekend? Perhaps, but Ystad, with its 17,000-odd regular inhabitants, is different. For millions of thriller fans around the world, the medieval idyll of brightly painted thatched cottages and "olde worlde" — but with all mod cons — hotels is the murder-and-mayhem capital of Scandinavia. Around its narrow cobblestone streets, the thoroughfares of the modern suburbs and the port, stalk the shades of the police heroes and heroines — as well as the villains — of the 11 "Wallander" novels of 63-year-old Swedish writer Henning Mankel. Three series of Swedish television films, eagerly snatched up by broadcasters across the globe, have added many more mystery stories to the canon — all with plots approved by the author if not written by him. And Irish-born international star actor Kenneth Branagh has played the key role in British television versions — also popular in Sweden — of three of the novels, with more being shot around the town this autumn. First launched into the world by Mankel in 1991, the gruff, introspective Inspector Kurt Wallander of the Ystad police has tracked killers and other assorted villains through the town and the picture postcard countryside beyond. The death rate in each novel runs at an average of four. Right there on Stortorget (Old Square), the unathletic, fast-food addict inspector has a fight to the death to stop a criminal master-mind wrecking the world economy in an intricate international operation to be sparked from an ATM machine. In one of the films, a suicide bomber seizes the minister of defence on the square and in another a hostage-taker blows himself up there when he is cornered by Wallander and his team of male and female detectives. In leisure moments, the inspector frequents the bookshop and the cafes. But a street away he finds the murdered body of a police colleague and just outside the square the crooked local member of parliament is shot dead despite a heavy police guard. "One could say it is a pity that our quiet town has to become known for all this fictional violence," says hotelier Peter Schonstrom, whose "Anno 1793 Sekel Garden", built into a medieval tannery, features in two Wallander books. "But I am not complaining. It certainly brings in business." His hotel offers, without fanfare, a Wallander suite. Tourist officials say thousands of visitors are drawn to the town — at the centre of the largely rural Skane region where locals are said to speak Swedish with a Danish accent — every year, mostly because of Wallander. Germans and Poles come on the regular ferry services across the Baltic. Others from further afield — and Japanese Mankel fans are among the most enthusiastic — fly to Copenhagen and cross by train across the Kattegat sea arm to nearby Malmo. "Our beaches are great" — and indeed they are — "but I think only the Norwegians come for them," says a town guide. There are nearby pre-historic sites and Scandinavia's oldest medieval fortress, which also figure in Mankel's novels. The Stortorget (Old Square), around which much of the 11 "Wallander" novels of Henning Mankel revolve. Are the locals bothered by the town's criminal reputation? "Not at all," says Andreas, an assistant in the bookshop — which stocks, but discreetly, most of the Wallander novels in German and English, as well as Swedish. "It gives a bit of spice to life around here." The Ystad police, in their familiar — to Wallander film fans — dark blue uniforms and folding caps, are happy with their fame, posing willingly for snap-happy tourists. "We love Wallander," says Ewa-Gun Westford, spokesperson for the 120-strong local force. "In fact, we named our canteen the Cafe Wallander. But of course life here is nothing like the books," she adds. "Since 2009, there have been two murders — one in a family row and another when some card players got into a fight. Most of what we have to handle are everyday things like burglary and theft, and we do have a bit of drugs too." Mankel, who has a house outside town but lives mostly in Mozambique where he runs a theatre company, placed Wallander's home in the early novels at Mariagatan 10, a two-floor ochre-painted apartment block in an eastern suburb. As a visitor stops to take a photograph of the building that featured in many of the Swedish films, a police car appears and the driver, with a grin, slows down so he can be in the picture. Then, waving, he moves off. Despite the worldwide fame of Ystad, there is little sign of any local effort to cash in on the Wallander name — not a Wallander T-shirt, tea-towel or baseball cap in sight, nor, beyond the police station, a Wallander cafe or bar. But "to meet demand from our visitors", the tourist office issues a detailed small guide to the Wallander sites and runs an hour-long tour twice a week on an ancient red fire engine. "Making money out of Inspector Kurt?" sniffs a shopkeeper. "That would be cheap." — Reuters

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Managerial dud Matthaus won’t trouble England Posted: 01 Sep 2011 04:20 PM PDT SEPT 2 — Lothar Matthaus was a magnificent player, one of the greatest of his generation — and that's saying something considering he was a contemporary of Diego Maradona, Michel Platini, Ruud Gullit, Hristo Stoichkov and Gheorge Hagi, among many other wonderful talents. With the obvious exception of Maradona, the German midfielder was as good as anyone. In particular, Matthaus was almost unstoppable during the 1990 World Cup Finals in Italy, propelling West Germany (as they still were, despite the previous year's fall of the Berlin Wall) to the crown with a series of devastatingly powerful displays. He was also tremendous for Inter Milan and Bayern Munich, winning nine league trophies over the course of a glittering career. However, great players do not necessarily make great coaches, and Matthaus's managerial career has been as undistinguished as his playing days were awesome. He started off in 2001 with Rapid Vienna, where he endured mixed results and lasted less than a year. Since then, similarly undistinguished results have followed in similarly low-profile positions: Partizan Belgrade, Red Bull Salzburg, the Hungarian national team... all have vainly hoped that Matthaus's magic as a player would somehow re-materialise as a manager. All have been left disappointed. Now Matthaus is in charge of Bulgaria, where he's continuing his previous form as a manager by making a pretty poor job out of their European Championships qualification campaign: With five games played, they have just one win (against hopeless Wales) and two goals to their name. Qualification is already an almost impossible prospect. On Friday evening, Matthaus will hope to at least restore some pride by leading Bulgaria to a point or more against England in Sofia. Don't get too excited about his chances. To be fair to Matthaus, he doesn't have a huge amount to work with. Bulgarian football is in a mess, with a dreadful domestic league riddled by allegations of corruption and "favours" to the big clubs. Unfortunately for me, I've been given the sorry task of watching a number of Bulgarian A-League games for my work as a commentator, and it's rarely been an enjoyable experience. The football is dire — no better than fourth-tier English fare — played on awful surfaces in front of miniscule crowds. The only entertainment is generally provided by regular dust-ups between players as they grow frustrated at yet another terrible refereeing decision. Yep, it's really bad. To illustrate how poor domestic Bulgarian football is, last season's runaway champions Litex Lovech have already been knocked out of both the Champions' League and the Europa League (Celtic and Rangers fans may be cringing in embarrassed recognition). Unsurprisingly in that context, the best Bulgarian players escape the dross by heading abroad as soon as possible, and their lack of commitment to the national team is illustrated by the fact that their most high-profile player, Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov, has already retired from international football. So, Matthaus doesn't have much cause for optimism as Fabio Capello's men roll into town tonight. For England, the only real concern will be complacency (and yes, I know, that's a trait English footballers aren't exactly strangers to) because Capello's squad, injury-hit though it may be, is inordinately better than anything their opponents can offer — as evidenced in England's 4-0 win over Bulgaria at Wembley a year ago. With Manchester United pair Wayne Rooney and Ashley Young in red-hot form, England should prevail without too many problems in Sofia — even if Bulgaria's back line provides a significantly tougher obstacle than Arsenal's excuse for a "defence" at Old Trafford last weekend. For the more interesting of this weekend's Euro qualifiers, look instead to Tirana, where perennial strugglers Albania will look to build on their surprisingly strong start by upsetting resurgent France in a wide open Group D. The Albanians are complete unknowns even in their own back yard, but they were shock winners against Belarus in their last home game and will treat the visit of France like a cup final. And there could be a cracker in Dublin as Ireland host Slovakia — two of three teams (along with Russia) joint top of Group B at the start of the weekend. The Irish are playing with a chip on their shoulder after their controversial elimination from the 2010 World Cup thanks to the intervention of the Hand of Henry, but they won't find it easy against a strong and determined Slovakian team who possess some dangerous creative midfielders in Napoli's Marek Hamsik and Fenerbahce's Miroslav Stoch. Both teams know that defeat would give them a huge uphill task to qualify, and the partisan Irish fans should create a terrific atmosphere: if you watch one game this weekend, I'd suggest you make it that one. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.

Yes, they’re Gunner change! Posted: 01 Sep 2011 04:03 PM PDT SEPT 2 — The transfer window has shut and with it the biggest change in footballing philosophy ever. The Arsenal has seen the light and signed battle-hardened professionals, albeit a little late but nonetheless exempting the fact that survival is more important than the brand of football. The word survival used here is to mean the continued status of being a big club and behaving like one while also portraying a certain direction and aura. The signings will make a big difference, especially the acquisition of experienced international defenders Per Mertesacker and Andre Santos. A back four of Bacary Sagna, Mertesacker, Thomas Vermaelen and Andre Santos will not concede too many goals between now and the end of the season. The signing of Mikel Arteta will hopefully not go down the Andre Arshavin and Thomas Rosicky way, totally lacking hunger and desire. The biggest dilemma perhaps is in trying to solve the lone striker position. The incumbent is Robin van Persie, who had his best goalscoring campaign for the Gunners last season but could most certainly be better utilised in a more natural wide position. The signing of Park Chu Young is interesting as it seems to push Marouane Chamakh further down the pecking order. Will the Moroccan jump or be pushed as, after a good start to his Arsenal career, he has lost favour with Arsene Wenger? His sporadic appearances suggest bigger issues and his ability is a waste on the bench. Perhaps the departure of Yossi Benayoun from Chelsea is a little strange but Arsenal certainly has made a very good signing. His ability to play anywhere in the "3" of a 4-2-3-1 makes him a certain starter for the Gunners. In transfer activity outside of The Emirates, the move that has shocked me is Raul Meireles leaving Liverpool for Stamford Bridge. I can only imagine that Meireles was unhappy at not being a regular in the starting line-up at Liverpool. Or, is his move more to do with Steven Gerrard being ready to make a comeback? Whatever the reason, Chelsea certainly have bought a goalscoring midfielder and is he the option to replace Frank Lampard, one wonders. Wait a minute, Meireles is not better than Gerrard but could be better than Lampard? Now, that is something to think about surely. Meanwhile, the less said about Spurs the better. Seriously, the club still don't realise that it was never about the players coming or going, but always going to be about getting the best out of the players available. By that, I mean better training and coaching is what is needed, not more signings. On a final note, the only disappointment for me following the end of the transfer window is Wesley Sneijder not moving to the English Premier League. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.

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Exco Kedah: Tiada rancangan gantikan Azizan, semua OK Posted: 02 Sep 2011 02:02 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR, 2 Sept ─ Pemimpin kerajaan negeri Kedah berkata tiada cadangan untuk menggantikan Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak sebagai menteri besar ekoran masalah kesihatan wakil rakyat PAS itu. Ketika dihubungi pagi tadi, tiga Exco kerajaan mengakui terkejut apabila terdapat usaha untuk menggantikan Azizan seperti yang dilaporkan akhbar hari ini. Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Agama Islam, Pelajaran dan Koperasi negeri, Datuk Mohamed Taulan Mat Rasul berkata beliau hanya mengetahui perkara itu pagi tadi apabila diberitahu terdapat "berita sampah dalam akhbar" mengenai pentadbiran Kedah. "Saya tidak tahu. Saya belum bertemu sesiapa sejak dua hari lalu kerana Hari Raya. Hari ini, ada orang beritahu ada berita sampah dalam akhbar. Mungkin saya perlu bercakap dengan kawan-kawan tentang perkara ini," katanya. Muka hadapan akhbar harian berbahasa Inggeris mengatakan Azizan (gambar) mungkin akan berundur kerana masalah kesihatan, mendakwa Presiden PAS Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang akan menemui Sultan Kedah. The Malaysian Insider difahamkan Hadi akan mengadakan kunjungan ke Kedah akhir minggu ini. Laporan akhbar itu menyebut beberapa pemimpin meminta supaya beliau berehat disebabkan masalah kesihatan tetapi Azizan enggan berbuat demikian, dengan menegaskan ada banyak perkara hendak dilakukan. Bagaimanapun Mohamed Taulan, yang juga Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (Adun) Tokai menegaskan, semuanya "okay" dengan kepimpinan Azizan walaupun kurang sihat. "Sebenarnya, semuanya okay... cuma beliau kadang-kadang penat dan doktor tidak membenarkan ramai pelawat kerana ia membuatkan beliau tertekan dan letih. Tapi yang pasti... ada yang melawat beliau pada pukul 2 pagi atau 3 pagi," katanya. Selain Mohamed Taulan, akhbar itu juga mencadangkan dua nama untuk menggantikan Azizan ─ Adun Anak Bukit Datuk Amiruddin Hamzah (Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Industri dan Pelaburan, Pertanian dan Industri Asas Tani, Bioteknologi dan Pembangunan Luar Bandar dan Basmi Kemiskinan) dan Adun Pangkalan Kundur Datuk Phahrolrazi Mohd Zawawi (Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan, Kerja Raya, Bekalan Air, Sumber Air dan Tenaga). Seperti Mohamed Taulan, Amiruddin juga melahirkan rasa terkejut apabila diberitahu tentang perkara itu, sambil berkata beliau tidak tahu jika ada perubahan barisan kepimpina. "Bagi saya semua ini hanya berita. Tapi saya rasa, jika beliau (Azizan) kata beliau sihat maka beliau sihat. Itu hak individu bukan orang lain. Jadi saya tidk tahu dari mana mereka dapat berita ini...anda perlu periksa denga wartawan," katanya. Beliau menegaskan tiada sebarang masalah dalaman antara pemimpin PAS untuk merebut jawatan menteri besar dengan menambah ia "bukan cara PAS." "Kami semua menyokong Azizan. Beliau telah meminta kami mengambil alih beberapa tugas terutamanya semasa Ramadan...kami memberikan sokongan penuh," katanya. Amiruddin juga bersetuju berita Azizan mungkin sengaja dicipta untuk memecahkan perpaduan PAS di KEdah. Terdapat 16 Adun PAS dan tiga Adun PKR -jumlah keseluruhan 36 kerusi. Phahrolrazi menolak untuk memberikan sebarang komen mengenai perkara itu, merujuk namanya disenaraikan sebagai salah seorang daripada calon yang mungkin menggantikan Azizan. "Bila saya jadi tumpuan dalam perkara ini, ia lebih baik untuk saya tidak berkata apa-apa. Tetapi ya, sudah tentu kami bimbang akan kesihatan beliau dan kita sentiasa memberikan sokongan kepada beliau," katanya. Sementara itu dua Exco PKR S. Manikumar dan Lim Soo Nee ketika dihubungi terkejut tentang perkara itu. Manikumar berkata perkara itu perlu diselesaikan dalam kepimpinan PAS pusat tetapi menekankan lebih baik sekiranya Azizan kembali sihat dan meneruskan tugas sebagai menteri besar. "Kita perlu memberi masa kepada beliau. Ini bukan soal untuk menggantikan beliau tetapi kita perlu pertimbangkan banyak isu lain... corak pentadbiran akan berubah...ia akan jadi sangat berbeza," katanya. Lim berkata Azizan bersungguh-sungguh untuk meneruskan tugas beliau tetapi menambah, beliau akan menyerahkan kepada PAS pusat untuk membuat keputusan.

Pakatan pertahan Mat Sabu, dakwa Umno-BN palsukan sejarah Posted: 02 Sep 2011 01:31 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR, 2 Sept - Pakatan Rakyat mempertahankan Timbalan Presiden PAS Mohamad Sabu (gambar) dalam isu kontroversi berkaitan kenyataan mengenai tragedi Bukit Kepong, sebaliknya mendakwa Umno-BN secara sistematik 'memalsukan' sejarah Malaysia. "Kami juga mempersoalkan naratif sejarah yang ditulis oleh 'pihak yang menang', yang dalam kes ini ditulis oleh Kerajaan Umno-BN dan perkakas propaganda mereka. "Dalam hal ini, kami ingin memberikan kritikan tegas terhadap usaha sistematik berdekad-dekad lamanya untuk 'memalsukan' sejarah Malaysia, agar hanya sumbangan Umno dan sekutu mereka yang diiktiraf sementara sumbangan jelas dari nasionalis Malaysia dan pejuang kemerdekaan yang lain dipadamkan," kata kepimpinan Pakatan Rakyat dalam satu kenyataan dikeluarkan hari ini. Kenyataan dikeluarkan oleh ahli jawatankuasa kerja PAS pusat Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, Pengarah Komunikasi Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad dan setiausaha antarabangsa DAP Liew Chin Tong. Dengan memetik kenyataan Winston Churchill pernah berkata bahawa "sejarah ditulis oleh pihak yang menang", kata mereka, di Malaysia, bukan sahaja sejarah malah berita semasa juga ditulis mengikut skrip mereka yang berkuasa. "Beberapa hari kebelakangan ini, media milik BN telah menyerang Mat Sabu secara berterusan sebagai seorang simpatisan komunis. "Mereka telah memfitnahnya sebagai mengagung-agungkan pengganas komunis yang menyerang polis di dalam tragedi Bukit Kepong," kata mereka dalam kenyataan itu. Pemimpin Pakatan Rakyat ini berkata kedua-dua dakwaan itu tidak benar sama sekali. "Kami percaya Saudara Mat Sabu tidak berkata demikian dan secara tegas mengutuk putar belit yang tidak bertanggungjawab oleh pimpinan dan media Umno. "Pertama sekali, Mat Sabu tidak sekali-kali menyebut tentang komunis ataupun PKM. Kedua, usahanya untuk menarik perhatian terhadap sejarah sebenar yang luas telah diputarbelitkan," katanya lagi. Justeru kata mereka, pihaknya mahu menegaskan bahawa mereka tidak mempersoalkan sebab Mohamad cuba menimbulkan persoalan terhadap naratif sejarah negara. "Tetapi kami secara serius mempersoalkan laporan cuai dan berniat jahat Utusan Malaysia, yang sekali lagi menggunakan hujah palsu dan tipu helah dengan niat yang jahat," kata kenyataan mereka. Kata mereka, apa sudah jadi kepada tokoh-tokoh seperti Dr Burhanuddin al-Helmy, Ahmad Boestamam, Ishak Haji Mohamed (Pak Sako) dan ramai lagi? "Bagaimana dengan pertubuhan dan gerakan seperti Kesatuan Melayu Muda (KMM) dan Parti Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya (PKMM)? Mereka merupakan peneraju sebenar aktivisme politik Melayu. "Kita juga mempunyai Perlembagaan Rakyat yang terhasil 10 tahun sebelum Merdeka oleh Pusat Tenaga Rakyat dan All-Malaya Council of Joint Action (AMCJA). "Usaha PUTERA-AMCJA ini bukan sahaja bersejarah dari segi usaha mereka, malah merekalah pakatan politik pelbagai kaum pertama negara," tambah kenyataan. Ketiga-tiga pemimpin ini berkata, harus diingat perjuangan kemerdekaan bukanlah usaha Perikatan semata-mata. Perjuangan murni ini berlangsung di pelbagai medan dan lapangan, dipimpin pelbagai tokoh dan menerusi pelbagai cara, kata beliau. "Bukankah pengorbanan tokoh-tokoh menentang penjajah seperti Tok Janggut, Abdul Rahman Limbong, Tok Ku Paloh dan ramai lagi juga mesti disertakan? "Tetapi pemimpin Utmno idak mampu menerima kepelbagaian ini. Sejarah yang ditulis Umno ialah hanyalah satu versi yang tiada ruang untuk berbeza pandangan," kata kenyataan mereka. Malah tambah mereka, "hakikatnya, jika kita membaca sejarah Malaysia menerusi tokoh-tokoh seperti Dr Burhanuddin, Boestamam, Pak Sako dan lain-lain lagi, kita akan mendapati kisah aktivisme sosial, pejuangan kebangsaan, antikolonialisme dan kemudian ketakutan institusi dan penindasan yang menyaksikan mereka dan ramai lagi ditangkap dan ditahan di bawah ISA oleh kerajaan Perikatan/BN setelah difitnah, antara lain, menjadi talibarut komunis." Tegas mereka, buku-buku sejarah negara bukan sahaja kehilangan satu atau dua bab, tetapi satu sejarah yang selari tetapi telah berjaya dipadamkan daripada rekod rasmi negara. "Jelas sekali lagi bahawa Umno mempunyai kepentingan untuk mengekalkan versi sejarah mereka memandangkan ini menjadi asas kepada pemimpin serta kekuasaan mereka, malah menutup tipuhelah mereka untuk menindas pihak lawan dan penentangan sah setelah lima dekad berkuasa. "Sekali lagi kami menegaskan bahawa Mat Sabu tidak salah dalam usaha mempersoalkan persepsi yang wujud tentang sejarah negara," kata mereka sambil menambah, yang menjadi kesalahan ialah hakikat bahawa rakyat Malaysia telah dimanipulasi sekian lama oleh perkakas propaganda Kerajaan Umno-BN.

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