Last weekend I was invited to launch the 30th Kinderland Anniversary Charity Concert and Carnival.
Kinderland centres from all over Klang Valley and even Ipoh were present. I usually try my best to attend events concerning children. They refresh me and remind me of the cause I’m fighting for. Children are the hope of our nation. We must leave behind an inheritance that they can be proud of. In my speech to the parents, I told them not to underestimate the lessons they teach their kids when they’re young. I shared with the parents a painful lesson I learned from my dad when I was seven. When I was in Standard One, my classmate used to give me and my sister some of her daily allowance (about fifty cents everyday). Those days, fifty cents could buy me lots of junk food in school. When her mom found out, she reported this to my teacher (who was my neighbour) who then reported this to my dad. When my dad heard this, me and my sister were called to face his wrath! I still remember what he said to me when he made us kneel before him in our living hall. He took out a ruler and he said “this is to teach you never to take anything that does not belong to you“. That was the first and only time my father ever hit my hand (Note:I have to make this clear, I am not encouraging parents to hit their children). That experience is still so vivid to me. He disciplined me and I knew my dad did that because he didn’t want his children to steal from others though we were not well to do. That was the lesson I learned when I was seven and today at the age of 29, I still carry that lesson with me and that ladies and gentlemen is how my fight against corruption has its root from – never to take anything that does not belong to me and that means taxpayers’ money! You can teach your children how to fight corruption, teach them good values while they’re young so that when they grow up, they will not depart from them.