Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Guan Eng received RM100k bribe with a smile, claims company exec
Thursday, June 23, 2022
Malaysiakini : The witness claimed that after getting a date for the meeting between
11am and 12am (date not specified) he prepared RM100,000 in an A4-size
envelope inside his computer bag.
āThis is for you, sirā
As
Lim looked on from the dock, Zarul claimed that after a discussion with
the accused on floor 28 of the Komtar building, the witness took out
the envelope and personally handed it to the accused.
āI did not
inform how much money was given and I merely said āThis is for you,
sirā. He (Lim) received the envelope that he was certain contained the
money.
āI then left from his office. He merely smiled upon receiving the envelope,ā Zarul claimed.
Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (ZCSB) senior executive director Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli
He alleged that the 2013 money was a milestone payment that originated from his company ZCSB.
In
relation to the purported 2014 bribery incident, Zarul claimed that he
took RM100,000 out of his other company Vista Lestari Development Sdn
Bhd in the form of a payment voucher (PV).
The witness claimed
that in the run-up to Chinese New Year festivities in January that year,
he again went to Limās office at Komtar by himself around 5pm.
Zarul
alleged that in the meetup with Lim, where no other officers were
present, the witness claimed he handed RM100,000 enclosed in a white
envelope to the island stateās then top executive.
The witness
claimed that before the bribe was given, he and the accused were
discussing the progress of the feasibility study of the project.
Zarul
alleged that Lim did not refuse to receive the envelope and that the
latter purportedly did not ask what was inside the envelope.
āI am indebted to YBā
āI
was inside YB (The Honourable) Lim Guan Engās room for only a brief
moment. YB appeared happy after receiving the envelope from me,ā the
witness claimed.
āI have no malicious motive against YB Lim Guan
Eng and at no time wish for them to talk and make false statement about
my statement.
āIn fact, I am indebted to YB Lim Guan Eng for
awarding the mega project to my company, whereby I was not someone known
(by the accused) to that of a major businessperson.
āThe award of
the project by the Penang state government headed by its then chief
minister YB Lim Guan Eng had elevated (me) as a successful bumiputera
businessperson.
āYes, I know that the act of promising percentage
of the profit from the project is an offence but I was confident that
anybody else in my shoes would feel indebted and wish to reciprocate
those who gave help.
āI also know that the act of asking for any payback and giving payment in relation to the project is also an offence.
āAll of these matters are corruption and an offence under the law,ā Zarul testified.
RM6.3 billion project
Proceedings before Azura will resume tomorrow for the witness to continue reading from his written witness statement.
The ongoing trial concerns four graft charges against Lim, who is also the Bagan MP and Air Putih assemblyperson.
One
charge, framed under Section 16(A)(a) and Section 23 of the MACC Act,
accuses him of using his position as then Penang chief minister for the
gratification of RM3.3 million as inducement for helping a company
belonging to Zarul to secure the island state's RM6.3 billion undersea
tunnel project.
The offence was allegedly perpetrated at the
Penang Chief Minister's Office, 28th Floor at Komtar in George Town,
Penang, between January 2011 and August 2017.
Under Section 23(1)
of the MACC Act, the offence is punishable with imprisonment of up to 20
years and a fine of not less than five times the value of the
gratification, or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
The second
charge, also under Section 16(A)(a), states that Lim, in his capacity as
the then Penang chief minister, solicited from Zarul bribes amounting
to 10 percent of the profits to be earned by the company as
gratification for helping the company secure the project.
The
offence was allegedly committed near The Gardens Hotel, Lingkaran Syed
Putra, Mid Valley City, Kuala Lumpur, between 12.30am and 2am in March
2011.
The charge, framed under Section 16 of the MACC Act,
provides for imprisonment for up to 20 years and a fine of not less than
five times the value of the gratification, or RM10,000, whichever is
higher.
Lim also faces two counts of causing two plots of land,
worth RM208.8 million and belonging to the Penang government, to be
disposed to two companies allegedly linked to the undersea tunnel
project.
The two charges, framed under Section 403 of the Penal Code, carry imprisonment of up to five years, whipping, and a fine.
The
offences were allegedly committed at the Penang Land and Mines Office,
Level 21, Komtar, between Feb 17, 2015, and March 22, 2017.
