Travelling in Penang Public Bus

I was back in Penang for the holiday and travelled in a public bus for the first time since the revamp of the public transportation on the island.

It was really a scary and not too pleasant journey. The bus service in Singapore and Penang totally different and almost to an incomparable extent. There were so many aspects that could be improved, even without spending millions.

The most basic of all is the attitude and management of the buses and drivers. The condition of the bus was terrible and in fact worse than those buses I travelled 10-15 years ago. The attitude of the driver and bus conductor create an intimidating feeling on the passengers as if every passenger is immobilised without them. It was also evidenced that buses can stop anywhere along the road as long as someone raised his/her hand to flag the bus. Clearly, the management and administration could be improve and the company should always have the customers in mind as the most important priority.

City council and bus operators should focus more creating a more pleasant environment to encourage greater use of public transportation. Bus stops are filled with advertisement posters but one could not find any information about the bus services. I could not even find out the information of which bus actually will stop by. This reflected the hopelessness of the bus system because the bus stop is the first thing passengers will come across before even boarding the bus.

From these simple problems, the image of public transportation has scarred the image of Penang. As Malaysia is currently organising the Visit Malaysia Year 2007, perhaps greater effort and political will is needed to immediately improve the image of public transportation before it becomes a permanent feature of Penang.

In my opinion, Penangites are not asking for brand new and ultra modern buses. All the city needed is an efficient and friendly public transportation which include aspects such as consistent frequency of buses; pleasant attitude of drivers and bus conductor; clean and properly maintained buses; and proper bus stops with ample information on route were simple things that could greatly enhance the image of public transportation without going through a spending spree using the public fund.

Shock and Loneliness

The shock of seeing someone passed away in front of your eyes seems to have affected me more than I expected. I was still in a paranoid state of fearing being alone.

The question the counsellor asked was, "Does this problem of loneliness already existed?" If yes, perhaps the shock of such incident just escalated that feeling. I think perhaps he was right on this as I indeed felt lonely in Singapore despite the easy access of communication and not such a great differences in culture and lifestyle.

However, the next big question I began to ask following this incident is, "What God wants me to learn from this?" The more question I asked the more questions surfaced instead of answering it. In addition to that, I guess it takes time to get over the shock and then reflect on this moment. Certainly, I am not in the right frame of mind to reflect.

"Dear Lord, give me the courage to face all circumstances that I am facing. I acknowledge my weakness and inability to handle my emotions and fears in moment like that. Grant me the strength and carry me through these tough times. I commit myself into Your hands. Thank you Lord. Amen."

Condolences

Tonight, everything around the house (I rented a room) was quiet. I came back after dinner thinking no one is at home. I closed the door in my room and waited for ZL to come online. Sadly, she has to stayed back to finish off her assignment in office.

Then I was engaging in some online discussion with a friend from BB. Things were getting pretty bored as I was doing some reading for tomorrow's module while chatting online. Then I realise my landlady's son, BC, came back. While taking a break, I went out and said hi to him. After that, I went back to the computer and started to feel like writing some sort of farewell note of my BB ministry.

Just as I was about to logged on into the blogspot webpage, BC suddenly opened my door without knocking and called for help. Immediately, I rushed out of my room and saw the landlady lying there motionless. I then asked him to try to wake her up and I telephoned the ambulance. After calling the ambulance, I went to join BC trying to wake her up. I felt so helpless at that point, knowing I could do something like CPR but I simply lost the courage. Closer observation could see my landlady's face was already darken and the body was already stiff.

The ambulance arrived and pronounced the bad news. Then the police came and recorded statement from both me and BC. Then we waited for the relatives and doctor to come.

At that moment, I felt life was so fragile. I could felt the pain of BC losing his mother. I felt so helpless that I could not do anything to help or even comfort him. After much ordeal, my landlady was carried away from the house for the very last time.

Despite of all this incident, I hoped my landlady has accepted Christ as she was attending church but yet to be baptised. At least it was a great comfort knowing that she have heard of the good news and proclaimed herself as Christian.

I take this opportunity to express my condolences for the family.

"Dear Lord, may You bless the soul of Mdm L. Although she has yet to be baptised, nevertheless it was a comfort to hear that she has proclaimed herself being a Christian. May Your grace and comfort be with the family as they struggle silently within their heart for the lost of their loved ones, especially BC. Grant them the strength and courage in moments of sadness. May Your blessing be with them and ministered to them, especially those who have yet to accept your salvation. I commit their family into Your hands. Amen."