As we all know (since fasting began on Sunday, March 2), none of the 29 official viewing locations managed to see it. Still, the sunset was stunning and the conversation stimulating – the alignment of seven planets was the most recent astronomical phenomenon to excite the growing community of stargazers – but that was interrupted by the sighting of a massive crocodile in the coastal waters, dwarfing the commercial ships on the horizon traversing the world’s busiest straits.
This could have been the same reptile spotted by residents and tourists in recent weeks, and there was a moment of panic as we saw it casually approach a fishing boat, but the sunset fisherman turned around at just the right time.
The same beach provided a gorgeous backdrop to the climax of the morning’s event – an acrobatic gamelan and drum performance from the renowned Hands Percussion – up the road at the Bayu Beach Resort.
In the 90s, this was a prestigious location, with many older PD and Seremban folks recalling many significant conferences and seminars there.
The proprietor has recently embarked on a major renewal, and I’m pleased that one manifestation is the Ideas Autism Centre Port Dickson, located on the second floor.
This is our third centre – after Rawang (established in 2012) and Nilai (2022) – operated by the offshoot of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas) that emerged out of research we conducted on education access for the disadvantaged.
(Apart from autism, the other focus was on refugees, resulting in Ideas International School, whose new campus is in MyTown.)
Port Dickson’s MP – who also happens to be the Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar – gave a fine speech highlighting the administration’s support for autism initiatives, and in the audience were supporters from across the state.
Just as with the other two centres, contributions came in the way of cash, architectural and interior design services, and the construction itself. I hope that the success of the centre will show that the rejuvenation of an area need not necessarily take the form of luxurious and trendy developments but can include the provision of education, care and therapy for the local community.
Also occurring next door at the Royal Port Dickson Yacht Club was the first leg of the Negri Sembilan squash junior league. It was a deliberate decision of the state squash association (of which I’m president) that although we have our superb new courts in Seremban 2, we should aim to elevate squash in all districts of the state so that people living outside the state capital have the chance to compete in tournaments that matter.
This in turn fuels a community of local players and coaches, so that as we look ahead to winning gold at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, there is a healthy pipeline in the next generation of players.
As the holy month began, news about corruption connected to a former prime minister emerged, complete with pictures of mountains of cash reminiscent of the scandal before Covid-19. Overall, the case involves RM700mil spent on government publicity during just a 15-month premiership.
It is, of course, no surprise that the public is routinely cynical of politicians’ motives (both in spending money and exposing the spending of their predecessors), but sometimes the cynicism is so bad that people are doubtful of civil society’s efforts to reform things.
Thus, while I’m delighted by the support we get for our autism centres and refugee school, I hope that we can get similar support for initiatives like political finance reform, budget transparency, judicial independence, and the strengthening of check and balance institutions.
Our nation needs both to escape the quagmires we are in.
Tunku Zain Al-‘Abidin is a board member of Ideas, Ideas Autism Centre and Ideas International School. The views expressed here are the writer’s own.
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