14 theSun | THURSDAY OCTOBER 22 2009

INTERVIEWS VIEWS

Show me the money

BALANCE sheets and about it, or maybe we’ve
cash flow documents used
to frustrate me. I don’t just
On forgotten. But how can
we when you and I know
want to balance them, I Pointe that this economic crisis
want a surplus. A little extra by Natalie is affecting all of us? And
for that rainy day or pretty Shobana Ambrose we cannot afford for
shoes I’ve been visiting at our money to evaporate
the mall. It just seems safer. because our currency has still not
When learning accounts in recovered from the 1997 economic
secondary school, it used to unsettle crisis.
me when there was a deficit – even This year, we might have a

COURTESY OF PENANG MUSEUM

though it was just an exercise in RM1.14 billion loss according to the
simple accounting, the lesson was latest A-G’s report thanks to a railway
a little bigger. “How can you spend line and mismanagement. Yes that’s
money you don’t have?” a lot of zeros. Zeros in the way things
Of course once I got my first were handled and probably will be
credit card, I quickly realised how handled. And zero in the surplus fund
easy it is to spend money you don’t we so desperately need.
have, and how easy it was to buy on You know the saying, money
credit and to live off credit. Especially doesn’t grow on trees, apparently
when credit is so easy to come by, even though our money is now made
that we even have modern day Ah of plastic, it seems to be decompos-

Suffolk House’s
as a British colony. She was, ac-
Longs at supermarkets haggling at us ing faster in the hands of the deci- cording to the research, used as an
with instant credit with cards. sion-makers. intermediary by the sultan while
In many more affluent countries, At the end of the day, if a negotiating with Light, but went on
surveys have shown that people bigger deficit is what we have to look to develop a relationship with him.
live off credit and countries live on forward while money gets “lost” in Rozells bore five children with
deficits instead of a healthy surplus. of oblivion, does it still mean that Light while remaining his com-

romantic secret
Simple economics will tell you the people’s interest are important mon-law companion. Due to her
that if we ignore the deficit, public and achievements of the country put “half-caste” Asian ethnicity, she was
spending will soon have to be cut, first? reportedly looked down upon by
and our taxes raised. A deficit in Saying that you’re working on the early British community of the
today’s economy does not drop in 10 reducing a deficit in the wake of period. Light never married her due
years, it only increases with interest outright mismanagement does to the social stigma associated with
and inflation. not create a sense of security and EARLIER this month, tually bequeathed by Light a British officer having a conjugal
I feel like I give a lot more money assurance that we as a country are the grand Suffolk House, to one Martina Rozells – his relationship with a native.
to the government than I get back safe and comfortable – far from it. It originally built in the 1780s lover and common law After Light passed away in 1794,
in services. And even though the makes me hold my breath and hope and now one of the oldest wife of over 20 years. But she struggled to claim the inherit-
Internal Revenue Board staff are the that this too shall pass. existing structures from the it was never transferred ance he had left for her and their
friendliest and most patient among It’s a simple balance sheet that British colonial era, was to her after Light’s death. children against a few English con-
government officers, it doesn’t make doesn’t get balanced. Releasing given special recognition Instead, the house was spirators who wanted the share.
giving money away to the govern- two stimulus packages in the inter- by Unesco. The historic sold in 1805 by Light’s ex- Interestingly, one of the children,
ment any easier. est of the people, and at the same mansion was conferred the ecutors to William Edward Colonel William Light, later founded
But I believe in giving to Caesar time doing a David Copperfield with “Award of Distinction” for Phillips, one of Penang’s the city of Adelaide. The famous
what is his, so I grudgingly part with millions does not equate to prevent- its restoration, in conjunc- TheNutmeg early governors. statue of Francis Light, which was
my money. ing an economic crisis from affecting tion with the world body’s Verses For the relationship unveiled in 1939, is said to have been
But on days when I read the us again. annual Asia Pacific Heritage between Light, who spoke modelled on William’s looks. The
Auditor-General’s report in the paper, Cuba Gooding Jr in the movie Jerry Awards. by Himanshu Bhatt Siamese and Malay, and statue today stands in the compound
I get really upset. Last year’s report McGuire won an Oscar for yelling at Set majestically on open Rozells, a local Siamese- of Fort Cornwallis in George Town.
stated that RM537.04 million of his agent to show him the money. So grounds along the banks of the Air Eurasian of Portuguese descent, During a special ceremony to
government money was spent on with the government as our agent of Itam River, the mansion had come was considered scandalous in receive the Unesco award, Chief
some American-based Columbia taxpayers’ money, and the Budget close to demolition as far back as the English colonial circles of that Minister Lim Guan Eng officiously
Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation being announced tomorrow, maybe 1839 and again in the 1950s. At one time. proclaimed that the Suffolk House
and only RM25 million was recovered we should be shouting “Show me point, it had deteriorated so badly The story of Light and Rozells is a had colourful journey that spanned
after the company went bust. Over the money!” Hopefully we get some that some people thought it was fascinating one. And it does not just decades, and was a testimony to the
RM500 million lost. answers, better services and hope- “beyond saving”. reverberate with a romantic drama perseverance of Penang’s conserva-
I can’t help but to wonder that a fully instead of money disappearing, What makes the house significant that transcends the cultural and tionists.
tiny fraction of that RM500 million the deficit disappears. was that it was built in the Suffolk social mores of the days of yore. “Suffolk is part of a living cultural
could be my income tax contribution estate, owned by the founder of The very acquisition of Penang heritage that contributed towards
or perhaps yours. My hard-earned Natalie does visit shoes and other the British settlement of Penang, and the establishment of the island making Penang what it is today with
money lost just like that. Is there stuff on her wish list until the budget Captain Francis Light. Considered as a ‘Prince of Wales’ settlement – an British colonial influences ethnic
an end to the story? I’m not sure, can afford them. Comment: letters@ the purest example of Anglo-Indian event that paved the way for the Brit- and cultural diversity matched with
because nothing has been reported thesundaily.com. architecture outside India, the house ish to foray into the rest of Malaya the rich spirituality, wisdom and
served as a Government House in – may well have been brought about moral precepts of the world’s major
the early 1800s, and witnessed some by the special relationship between religions,” he declared.
The story of of the most critical political events of Light and Rozells. But more significantly, Suffolk
Light and Rozells the era. The founding of Singapore, A few years ago, I had the op- House may just be the only physical
is a fascinating for example, is said to have been portunity to be acquainted with the heirloom left, of a great romantic
one. And it discussed by Sir Stamford Raffles in research of American historian Sue secret that held the key behind the
does not just the hallowed confines of the Suffolk Gross, who made detailed findings very origins of the settlement of
reverberate with House. on the little-known woman named Penang, and of the British expansion
But there is also a secret legacy of Martina Rozells. into the rest of Malaya.
a romantic drama romance that the house will forever What made the character of Ro-
that transcends be associated with, one that is still zells intriguing was that she was said
the cultural and largely unknown to the public. to be an adopted child of the Sultan Himanshu is theSun’s bureau chief
social mores of According to the Badan Warisan of Kedah, and was instrumental in in Penang. Comment: letters@thesun-
the days of yore. Malaysia, the Suffolk Estate was ac- Light getting hold of Penang island daily.com.

» From Page 13 Women have full rights to possessions

are handed down to the following
generations through the females
in the family, as opposed to most
customs in the world where
the family lineage is continued
through only the males.
In Sumatra, the Minangkabaus
still retain the custom where the
man takes his wife’s family name
on the consummation of their
marriage.
Although the men are still
responsible for the welfare and
heirlooms in the family, the
women have full rights to family
possessions.
However, this does not in any
way signify inequality in gender
rights. The Adat Perpatih teaches
a democratic system of conduct
and thoughts. Both men and
women are consulted during
Powerful ... The Ibu Soko appoint clan chieftains.
occasions to overcome obstacles
and to provide solutions. The
difference is that women are the
heiresses of the family and they
have rights to live in the family
house or Rumah Gadang.
On the other hand, the men
must leave their parents’ house
at an early age as it is not proper
to stay on and many believe that
this is one of the reasons for the
early migration especially those in villages and
by the Minang- agricultural regions.
kabau men from
West Sumatra. Economy
Nevertheless, The matrilineal system is strongly
some Muslims rooted in an agrarian society but
stopped prac- many men and women look out
tising certain for employment in the cities.
aspects of Adat Thus there is a huge possibil-
Perpatih which ity that in time to come the Adat
contradict Islam. Perpatih customs may no longer
be practised. It has been reported
Leisure and that many plots of land have been
entertainment abandoned and the custom’s
The Adat Perpatih is rich in culture system of inheritance has become
and tradition, which is reflected in merely symbolic.
its music, dance and games such As men find work elsewhere,
as Cak Limpong, Tumbuk Kalang they are no longer dependent
and Dikir Rebana. These have on their wives; and in their own
survived generations and are at homes, they now assert more
the core of the people’s lifestyles, authority than before.