RUSHDY of Petaling Jaya is baffled how a Maxis telemarketer could call his fiancee and demand she cancel
her barred prepaid number in order to give it to someone else.

To make matters worse, no one in Maxis seems to know who that telemarketer is or the origin of the number
he called from.

"I called Hotlink and their postpaid department but was told that the number I mentioned is not connected
to Maxis," says RUSHDY.

AS a Child Court Advisor, I ask that we act with seriousness and speed with regard to provisions of the Child Act 2001 to prevent abuse that is on the rise.

Why such disregard for the Act which requires family members, doctors and child care providers to report any child abuse?

Why are we so lax on this law when failure to report can land offenders a RM5,000 fine or not more than two years in jail, or both?

However, teachers, councillors and members of the public should also report despite them not being required by law to do so.

GIRI of Kuala Lumpur claims Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) has been slow to issue him a cheque for the difference between his original loan and  the refinancing of his loan for an apartment in Kota Warisan Sepang.

"When I bought the apartment five years ago, I obtained a housing loan from BSN and they approved it within four months," he says.

"Last year, I applied for a refinancing of the loan on a longerterm basis so that I could get some cash from the  difference between my original loan and the new loan as I need money for further studies."

WHATEVER that has been said and done about the United States of America, I believe it is still a great country and the people there in general are a great people who still believe in fairness and freedom of expression.

For all the major "faux pas” committed by the great America, it has succeeded in being a superpower that believes in freedom of expression.

NOWADAYS, I appreciate any neighbourhood that embarks on programmes to mitigate crime and promote healthy living.

We must work together as neighbours but we don't do enough of that now. Some do not even know who their neighbours are.

PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has spoken out again on diversity and hit the spot when he says "embrace diversity to move forward" to build a harmonious and prosperous nation.

IT is heartening to hear many employers promising to cooperate with the Home Ministry on the illegal foreign workers issue (The Malay Mail, Feb 22).

The ministry had earlier advised  the Immigration Department to delayits nationwide crackdown on these unregistered employees, which was originally scheduled to take place on Feb 15, due to the Chinese New Year celebrations.

We have, in fact, been too lenient and compassionate towards this group for too long. Their presence has upset many quarters and the general public.

THREE women were recently caned under syariah law for engaging in illicit sex and this landmark punishment brings up an interesting point.

When will such punishment be extended to other offences which truly deserve such a deterrent sentence?

I am talking about an offence which claims many lives daily, where the perpetrators seem to 'get away' scot-free more often than not.

WE wish to refer to your report headlined “Government can’t pay to stop Damansara 21” (The Malay Mail, Feb 12).

The Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister was, of course, referring to the Damansara 21 Project that Medan Damansara residents have been opposing for some time now.

To put it very mildly, it is quite disappointing to read such a suggestion coming from the minister. Safety issues are not for bargaining so that a compromise can be worked out.

MANY road accidents, especially on highways and expressways, can be avoided if motorists observe basic safety rules and if the authorities give serious attention to some obvious contributing factors.

THOMAS is concerned about the dirty state of the food court, pastry stalls and market in Section U19, Sungai Buloh.

"The Shah Alam City Council should clean and spruce up these public amenities as they look unkempt and unhygienic, especially the stalls selling pastries," he says, and suggests that the council build new pastry stalls.

MY family and I moved into our current home in Taman Bukit Kepayang (Phase 6), Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, about six years ago.

It was a beautiful place, close to a hill which was covered with a lush forest. People loved to go hiking there while some visited a Hindu temple at the peak.

MY favourite British television series is MI-5, or Spooks as it is titled here in Malaysia.

I don’t watch the series on TV because of too many commercials and instead, get a whole season's episodes on DVD to see how MI-5 chief Sir Harry Pearce makes good decisions, controls his operatives with precision and professionalism, and keeps the nation safe from threats, both internal and external.

Next week, the best letter stands a chance to win a Tune Talk handphone.

Each letter must carry the sender's full name and contact number to be eligible. We welcome readers to write in but The Malay Mail reserves the right to edit the letters accordingly.

TO all Subang Jaya residents, please say what you want without fear or favour for the sake of everyone,  especially the children.

As long as no one sticks his head out to help others — including our elected State Assemblyman — to get Subang Ria Park duly gazetted as a public recreation park and a green lung for the township in perpetuity,
the issue will never end.

I WAS going to describe in my column this week about a book titled 19th Wife, a story of Brigham  Young, the prophet and leader of the Mormon church, then maybe allude it to Tiger Woods' 19th mistress and probably write about how Malaysians, especially the Malays, love to have mistresses. Then, I said to myself: “Nah! Boring!”

During my recent visit to Singapore, I realised why driving on the roads in the island is not nerve-wrecking; they
are a lot quieter and more peaceful than back home in Malaysia.

Why is it so? It’s because motorists in Singapore are not fond of using the horn on the road. Also, they do not cut in and out of traffic despite being caught in a jam.

ONNY of Taman Seri Keramat, Kuala Lumpur, alleges a breach of ethics by car repossessors  from a financial institution.

According to him, repossessors of AmBank (M) Berhad showed up at his house on the morning of Jan 11 when they forcibly moved his car that was parked outside the front gate and triggered the car's alarm.

ONNY claims the repossessors proceeded to hook up the car to a tow truck without informing him of what was happening.