Graffiti

Masalah graffiti di WA ini amat ketara sekali.

Contengan mural yang tidak diingini ini jelas kelihatan di bangunan-bangunan awam, sekolah, perhentian bas serta di bangunan kedai. Kenderaan pengangkutan awam juga tidak terkecuali. Pandangan anda hampir terhalang dek kerana goresan yang dilakukan ke atas cermin tingkap bas atau keretapi yang sedang anda naiki. Pelaku ini menggunakan cecair cat penyembur tin ke atas bangunan atau secara goresan (mungkin menggunakan duit siling) sekiranya dilakukan ke atas cermin tingkap kenderaan pengangkutan awam.

Pihak berkuasa tempatan di WA mengambil berat akan permasalahan ini. WA secara keseluruhannya membelanjakan hampir AUD25 juta setahun manakala, City of Joondalup Council (PBT kawasan saya) pula terpaksa membelanjakan sehingga AUD330,000 setahun untuk membersihkan graffiti di kawasan majlis mereka. City of Joondalup Council ini juga adalah PBT yang pertama di WA yang menawarkan bayaran tunai sebanyak AUD500 bagi mereka yang membawa kepada pendakwaan pelaku yang bertanggungjawab.

Hukuman yang dikenakan kepada pelaku yang didapati bersalah ini dikira berat juga. Kesalahan graffiti di WA ini dikira sebagai kesalahan vandalism harta awam. Bagi kesalahan pertama, ianya membawa kepada hukuman selama 1 tahun penjara dan denda maksimum sehingga AUD12,000. Ada ura-ura di pihak Parti Liberal (parti baru sekarang) untuk menggubal undang-undang yang lebih berat lagi.

Namun, di sebalik itu masalah graffiti tetap dan terus berlaku.

Terbaru, ianya dilakukan oleh makhluk mat saleh ni di dinding luar tembok rumah yang saya diami ini. Ianya merupakan pertama kali kami hadapi sepanjang 11 bulan menyewa di sini. Grafitinya amat jelas kelihatan, namun tulisannya sukar untuk dibaca. Sememangnya tembok luar yang memisahkan rumah kami ini dengan jalan raya (ditambah pula ianya juga adalah bersebelahan dengan laluan pejalan kaki), merupakan lokasi yaang amat sesuai bagi pelaku graffiti ini.

Kejadian ini saya sedari pada hari Isnin (22 hb) yang lepas, ketika mengambil anak pulang dari sekolah. Saya terus membuat laporan kepada City of Joondalup Council secara online melalui laman web PBT tersebut. Selesai membuat laporan secara online, saya hubungi Polis melalui nombor yang diberikan di laman web tadi. Akhirnya, pada hari ini saya dapati (tanpa saya sedari pun) graffiti tersebut telah dicuci oleh pihak kontraktor yang dilantik oleh PBT.

Dinding tembok kini kembali seperti sediakala, dan kembali menggoda pelaku-pelaku graffiti untuk menunjukkan bakat mereka.

Namun, tiada apa yang perlu saya risaukan kerana saya pasti masalah itu akan diatasi oleh mereka yang dipertanggungjawabkan.

Dean of Faculty of Accountancy, UiTM visit to ECU, WA

Date: June 5, 2009 (Friday)
Time: 3 - 5 pm
Venue: Building 2, ECU Joondalup

An informal meeting session was held between Prof Ibrahim Kamal, Dean of Faculty of Accountancy, UiTM Malaysia and key staff from ECU's School of Accounting, Finance and Economics. The session was organised by UiTM's Faculty of Accountacy staff that are currenly enrolled in ECU's PhD program in its Joondalup campus.

The ECU staff that were present were, Dr Clive Reynoldson (Head of School), Prof Malcolm Smith (Professor of Accounting), Dr Hadrian G. Djajadikerta (Faculty International Representative) and Dr Zubaidah Ismail (Senior Lecturer). Prof Malcolm, Dr Hadrian and Dr Zubaidah are also supervising/co-supervising these PhD students from UiTM.

The purpose of meeting was to discuss possible future collaboration proposals between these two universities. Prof Ibrahim began by explaining UiTM's vision and mission of achieving a Research University (RU) status. He took the opportunity to introduce ARI, our Faculty's own research insititute, which have been approved as MOHE's Centre of Excellence. He added that UiTM is basically on the right track in achieving a RU status and elaborated on MOHE's requirement to ensure that each university, particularly UiTM, has 60% of its academician having PhD qualifications.

Among the future collaboration proposals suggested by Prof Ibrahim were, PhD twinning program between UiTM and ECU, Undergraduate student exchange, appointment of Visiting Professor and appointment as Editorial Board members for our Faculty's publications, i.e. Malaysian Accounting Review, Journal of Financial Reporting and Accounting and Asia-Pacific Management Accounting Journal.

Dr Clive expressed his views that Malaysian Government was generous when awarding scholarship to academicians pursuing their post-graduate studies overseas. He was astonished upon knowing about various benefits that these public servants are getting of which are not a practice in other countries and Australia particularly.

In replying to Prof Ibrahim suggestions, Dr Clive and other ECU staff have expressed their interests to pursue onto this possible collaboration and believed that it would definitely bring greater benefits to ECU. The next step is to convey this intention to ECU's International Office and to make the necessary arrangement to materialise this matter.

We, the current PhD students are indeed hopeful that the collaboration will become a reality. It will certainly bring greater benefits to UiTM, future Malaysian students and to our beloved Faculty of Accountancy.

Last but not least, I would like to thank to those colleagues (in no particular order) for co-arranging this event: Halil, Rani, Zainun, Sharifah and Rahimah. Thank you very much for your cooperation and endless support.

"UiTM di hatiku..."