Hands off the Arab spring

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Soumaya Ghannoushi The Guardian

The US wants to turn the Arab revolutions into eastern Europe part 2. It is destined to fail

The first wave of Arab revolutions is entering its second phase: dismantling the structures of political despotism, and embarking on the arduous journey towards genuine change and democratisation. The US, at first confused by the loss of key allies, is now determined to dictate the course and outcome of this ongoing revolution.

What had been a challenge to US power is now a "historic opportunity", as Barack Obama put it in his Middle East speech last week. But he does not mean an opportunity for the people who have risen up; it is a chance for Washington to fashion the region's present and future, just as it did its past. When Obama talks of his desire "to pursue the world as it should be" he does not mean according to the yearnings of its people, but according to US interests.

And how is this new world to be built? The model is that of eastern Europe and the colour revolutions; American soft power and public diplomacy is to be used to reshape the socio-political scene in the region.

The aim is to transform the people's revolutions into America's revolutions by engineering a new set of docile, domesticated and US-friendly elites. This involves not only co-opting old friends from the pre-revolutionary era, but also seeking to contain the new forces produced by the revolution, long marginalised by the US.

As Obama put it last week: "We must … reach the people who will shape the future – particularly young people … [and] provide assistance to civil society, including those that may not be officially sanctioned."

To this end he has doubled the budget for "protecting civil society groups" from $1.5m to $3.4m.

The recipients are not only the usual neoliberal elements, but also activists who spearheaded the protest movements, and mainstream Islamists.



Programmes aimed at youth leaders include the Leaders for Democracy Arabic project, sponsored by the US state department's Middle East partnership initiative.

A number of Arab activists, including the Egyptian democracy and human rights activist Esraa Abdel Fattah, were invited to an event hosted by the Project on Middle East Democracy in Washington last month – one of many recent conferences and seminars. Meetings between high-ranking US officials – such as the House majority leader, Steny Hoyer – and the Muslim Brotherhood took place in Cairo last month, while the deputy chairman of Tunisia's Islamist Ennahda party has recently returned from a visit to Washington to "discuss democratic transition".

Washington hopes that these rising forces can be stripped of their ideological opposition to US hegemony and turned into pragmatists, fully integrated into the existing US-led international order. Dogma is not a problem, as long as the players agree to operate within parameters delineated for them, and play the power game without questioning its rules. It remains to be seen, however, if they risk losing their popular base in return for US favours.

Containment and integration are not only political, but economic, to be pursued through free markets and trade partnerships in the name of economic reform. Plans "to stabilise and modernise" the Tunisian and Egyptian economies – already being drafted by the World Bank, IMF and European Development Bank at Washington's behest – are due to be presented at this week's G8 summit.

A $2bn facility to support private investment has been announced, one of many initiatives "modelled on funds that supported the transitions in eastern Europe".

As usual, investment and aid are conditional on adoption of the US model in the name of liberalisation and reform, and on binding the region's economies further to US and European markets under the banner of "trade integration". One wonders what would be left of the Arab revolutions in such infiltrated civil societies, domesticated political parties, and dependent economies.

However, although the Obama administration may succeed with some Arab organisations, its bid to reproduce the eastern European scenario may be destined to fail. Prague and Warsaw looked to the US for inspiration, but for the people of Cairo, Tunis and Sana'a the US is the equivalent of the Soviet Union in eastern Europe: it is the problem, not the solution. To Arabs, the US is a force of occupation draped in a thin cloak of democracy and human rights.

No one could have offered stronger evidence of such a view than Obama himself, who began his Middle East speech with eulogies to freedom and the equality of all men, and ended it with talk of the "Jewishness of Israel", in effect denying the citizenship rights of 20% of its Arab inhabitants and the right of return of 6 million Palestinian refugees. In vain does the US try to reconcile the irreconcilable – to preach democracy, while occupying and aiding occupation.

The half-past-six JPA scholarships: half-boiled eggs and half-baked moves...

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ON THE BEAT WITH WONG CHUN WAI

The former have had bad press but they may be better than they are made out to be. But the latter cannot be excused at all.

I HAVE finally turned 50. The day started off with a breakfast of two half-boiled eggs with the right dash of soya sauce and pepper, and a cup of hot Milo.

It’s a simple pleasure in life and certainly most Malaysians would describe our traditional breakfast as heavenly.

I am sure it’s a Malaysian creation. I still do not know why Singapore has not staked a claim on this brilliant culinary work.

Maybe Singapore refuses to be associated with anything that’s regarded as half-measured, half-done or half-boiled. But hey, our national tolerance for mediocrity is higher, so if it tastes good, who are others to tell us otherwise.

I do not know whether our penchant for half-boiled eggs has anything to do with the national psyche but let’s not allow jealous foreigners to divide us. We do not want Perkasa to turn this into a nationalist frenzy over half-boiled eggs and we certainly don’t want Ibrahim Ali to issue “ada telur” dares to imagined foes.

Half-boiled eggs would be frowned upon in Western countries, where most hotel kitchens refuse to accept such orders as the eggs would not be cooked according to the stipulated health requirements.

Westerners, who cannot stomach what we eat, feel they could be exposed to salmonella, the bacteria that can lead to food poisoning. So never bother asking for half-boiled eggs during your holidays overseas.

Besides, what’s half-boiled eggs without kicap?

Older Malaysians have been taught from young that to stay healthy, we should have two half-boiled eggs every morning. I really do not know how, when and why some medical experts suddenly concluded that eating eggs, especially with the yolks – the best part of the eggs – can ruin your health.

One large egg is said to have 213mg of cholesterol, all found in the yolk, and eating too much of it can lead to a high cholesterol level. That’s what was said in one story I googled.

But I have also read that former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher had a strict diet of 28 eggs a week plus steak, salads and her favourite tipple – whisky – each time she campaigned.

That’s according to personal documents published by the Margaret Thatcher Archive Trust. She is turning 86 this year and we know for sure that this Iron Lady remains one of the best leaders the world has seen so far.

I am pretty sure Tony Blair and Gordon Brown didn’t like eggs. But I am convinced that Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz and Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen also eat plenty of eggs. They are sharp and look good. Gutsy, for sure, and they make many men politicians look like wimps.

Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo conti­nues to defy nature. But I’m not sure if it’s half-boiled eggs or tempeh, a popular Javanese soy product.

I do not know why but eggs always seem to fly in the direction of some politicians. Joining the fray over the award of Public Service Depart­ment (PSD) scholarships, maverick minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz has finally said the controversy should be discussed by taking into consideration the views of other parties, including the MCA and Gerakan.

He seems to miss the point – no one is saying that all PSD scholars should be sent overseas. What the applicants have complained about is that there have been those with less than 8A+, some allegedly with just 6A+, who have been sent overseas by the Government.

It does not matter what race or religion the applicants are but if you are not a top achiever, what are the possibilities of these scholars entering top schools like Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard or Imperial College London?

It does not make sense to use taxpayers’ money to admit them into middle or low-level universities.

Our grading system has already been questioned by top foreign universities. The high string of distinctions mean nothing to them now.

Yes, we are all aware the Prime Minister has promised that students who obtained 8A+ and above are eligible for PSD scholarships to study either locally or abroad. It’s a fantastic decision and everyone should be clear about it.

But procedures on scholarships should be clear and open. It really doesn’t make sense when there are mismatches, bad decisions and even questionable moves. It is precisely this resentment that has led to eggs being thrown at the faces of the PSD officials.

All the good intentions of the Government are now being affected because of these half-boiled, or rather half-baked, measures.

Good students deserve scholarships

I AM very disappointed over the current distribution of the Public Service Department (JPA) scholarships.
As the chairman of Higher Education Bureau, National MIC Youth, I strongly believe that Education should be fair to all students irrespective of race and religion.

All Malaysian citizens must have equal rights to a good education. Many work hard to earn their good grades.

Nobody is questioning the Federal Constitution here, so there is no need for certain groups to say that we have gone against the Constitution when we raise issues affecting the community.

What we are asking is for government scholarships to be given to deserving students regardless of their race and religion.

These students are the creme de la creme. Those who scored 8A+ and above expect to be given a scholarship.

While some of the top scorers are lucky enough to be “grabbed” by neighbouring countries for their outstanding results, many are forced to look elsewhere for funding

There are also parents, who have to use up their life savings to send their children overseas. Can anyone blame these students if they do not come home after graduation?

In recent years, our government has been trying to woo overseas Malaysians who have made great strides in their chosen fields to come home, simply because of their expertise and knowledge.

It would be such a waste to lose these top achievers to other counntries, and then complain later that there is a brain drain.

MAHAGANAPATHY DASS
Chairman, Higher Education Bureau
National Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) Youth

Social media and networking

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By TEE LIN SAY linsay@thestar.com.my

Guy Clapperton (pic), the author of ‘This is Social Media: tweet, blog, link and post your way to business success’ was recently in Kuala Lumpur to promote his updated book.

First published in 2009, this version offers new insights on using the social media as an efficient and measurable way for people to market their business.

Organisations, whether larger or small, are using social media and social networking to build robust communities of followers, to stay ahead of the competition and increase profits.

For business owners who want access to social networking tactics and reach new customers, Guy has simple, practical and real life examples for them.

SBW: What made you decide to write a book on social media?
 GC: Well, I freelance in the UK for The Guardian and The Times and I have been writing on small businesses and technology for many years. Back in 2007 to 2008, I felt I needed to get my brain around what was happening in the world of social media. There was none. My brain got into gear. There was no book on this subject, and this was something I was familiar with. I wrote to John Wiley Publications, and got a meeting with the director! They subsequently passed the book to Capstone Publishing, and thats how it all started.

What are some of the new developments included in your updated book since the first was published in 2009?
Well, I got a critic who mentioned that I was too dismissive about web designers in my first book. That could have been true. So, I wrote a little bit more on web designers this time around. I also expanded on Foursquare, which is one of the first social networks that really took advantage of mobile networks from the start.

What is different in your book compared with other social media books?
Buy my book because the other books are all Americans! (Laughs) Anyway, my book uses a common sense approach and incorporates lots of business and budgeting strategies. You know what’s in it for a business, how you can get involved, and how to incorporate social networking into your business plan.



What are some of the developments in social media that will shape our future moving forward?
Mobile social media is going to become very important. Imagine someone standing outside your business premises and then asking on Twitter quickly whether a few thousand people know anything good or bad about it. That’s going to be important.

Do you think Malaysian or Asian companies in general, have yet to fully leverage on the benefits of social media? What are the simple things they can do to use social media to enhance their businesses?
Clearly, having been here only a couple of days I’m no expert in Malaysian businesses. Several which are international as well as Asian - LG Electronics, Samsung and others - have done well and I understand AirAsia has been a very strong performer in social media. If they’re starting now I think the best thing to do is to find which social media their clients use and start marketing on those.

Do you think that social media should be one of the ways for companies to market their products? Will companies that refuse to use social media be left behind?
It’s certainly going to be part of the mix. Companies that refuse social media can have different reasons. They might have found their customers aren’t interested, which would be a good reason for not spending time on it. I’d certainly recommend looking again in a couple of years if you don’t think social media is right for your business at the moment - the customer is changing.

What are some of the misconceptions about social media?
People underestimate the cost incurred, they think that there is no need to pay. They don’t value the time. Hey, you’ve got to pay the guy monitoring your media traffic.

Also, social media works well only if done correctly and properly. You need to find out what the customer wants and target the right group of customers rather than sending a mass message to everyone. Also, people won’t be actively seeking you out - you need to get the message out.

You’re writing another book “This is Social Commerce” to be launched by year end. What was the inspiration for that? How different will it be from your current book?
It’s a continuation in many ways. The first book is the introduction, the second develops the theme a little, talks to more businesses in depth and looks at some of the opportunities which have arisen only because social media has made them possible.

Was it always your dream to publish your own book? How exhilarating was it, to see your books on the shelves?
I’ve wanted to be an author ever since I was a child and finding the book on the shelves was as magical as I’d hoped. Finding a big picture of me standing next to it in the MPH Megatore was a bit of a shock!

Will you ever consider writing fiction some time in the future?
I’d love to but to be honest I’m not sure that’s where my talent lie. My current publisher doesn’t publish fiction so I’d have to start all over again. And I do like what I do for a living at the moment - trying to go into another field might set me up for a fall.

World's Richest & Poorest Governments

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We know the world's richest man is Carlos Slim Helu of Mexico, followed by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet of USA  . How about governments? Which countries government is the richest (having most money that is, in US$. If you are expecting North American and European nations, you might be disappointed. While the countries look rich, wealthy European nations can't withstand a prolonged major financial crisis, just like Greece . The USA might have the biggest economy, but the American government is not at all rich; in fact, it can't even take out $150bn if asked to now without resorting to borrowing. To date the US government has borrowed $14 trillion! The UK , likewise, while the country/people are rich, the government isn't. The UK government's debt stands at $9 trillion now. World's Richest Government   Richest governments after 2008-2009 financial crisis: 1. China National reserves: $2,454,300,000,000 2. Japan National reserves: $1,019,000,000,000 3. Russia National reserves: $458,020,000,000 4. Saudi Arabia National reserves: $395,467,000,000 5. Taiwan National reserves: $362,380,000,000 6. India National reserves: $279,422,000,000 7. South Korea National reserves: $274,220,000,000 8. Switzerland National reserves: $262,000,000,000 9. Hong Kong , China National reserves: $256,000,000,000 10. Brazil National reserves: $255,000,000,000 Here are the rest, in million US $: 11 Singapore / 203,436 12 Germany / 189,100 13 Thailand / 150,000 14 Algeria / 149,000 15 France / 140,848 16 Italy / 133,104 17 United States / 124,176 18 Mexico / 100,096 19 Iran / 96,560 20 Malaysia / 96,100 21 Poland / 85,232 22 Libya / 79,000 23 Denmark / 76,315 24 Turkey / 71,859 25 Indonesia / 69,730 26 United Kingdom / 69,091 27 Israel / 62,490 28 Canada / 57,392 29 Norway / 49,223 30 Iraq / 48,779 31 Argentina / 48,778 32 Philippines / 47,650 33 Sweden / 46,631 34 United Arab Emirates / 45,000 35 Hungary / 44,591 36 Romania / 44,056 37 Nigeria / 40,480 38 Czech Republic / 40,151 39 Australia / 39,454 40 Lebanon / 38,600 41 Netherlands / 38,372 42 South Africa / 38,283 43 Peru / 37,108 44 Egypt / 35,223 45 Venezuela / 31,925 46 Ukraine / 28,837 47 Spain / 28,195 48 Colombia / 25,141 49 Chile / 24,921 50 Belgium / 24,130 51 Brunei / 22,000 52 Morocco / 21,873 53 Vietnam / 17,500 54 Macau / 18,730 55 Kazakhstan / 27,549 56 Kuwait / 19,420 57 Angola / 19,400 58 Austria / 18,079 59 Serbia / 17,357 60 Pakistan / 16,770 61 New Zealand / 16,570 62 Bulgaria / 16,497 63 Ireland / 16,229 63 Portugal / 16,254 64 Croatia / 13,720 65 Jordan / 12,180 66 Finland / 11,085 67 Bangladesh / 10,550 68 Botswana / 10,000 69 Tunisia / 9,709 70 Azerbaijan / 9,316 71 Bolivia / 8,585 72 Trinidad and Tobago / 8,100 73 Yemen / 7,400 74 Uruguay / 8,104 75 Oman / 7,004 76 Latvia / 6,820 77 Lithuania / 6,438 78 Qatar / 6,368 79 Cyprus / 6,176 80 Belarus / 6,074 81 Syria / 6,039 82 Uzbekistan / 5,600 83 Luxembourg / 5,337 84 Guatemala / 5,496 85 Greece / 5,207 86 Bosnia and Herzegovina / 5,151 87 Cuba / 4,247 88 Costa Rica / 4,113 89 Equatorial Guinea / 3,928 90 Ecuador / 3,913 91 Iceland / 3,823 92 Paraguay / 3,731 93 Turkmenistan / 3,644 94 Estonia / 3,583 95 Malta / 3,522 96 Myanmar / 3,500 97 Bahrain / 3,474 98 Kenya / 3,260 99 Ghana / 2,837 100 El Salvador / 2,845 101 Sri Lanka / 2,600 102 Cambodia / 2,522 103 Côte d'Ivoire / 2,500 104 Tanzania / 2,441 105 Cameroon / 2,341 106 Macedonia / 2,243 107 Dominican Republic / 2,223 108 Papua New Guinea / 2,193 109 Honduras / 2,083 110 Armenia / 1,848 111 Slovakia / 1,809 112 Mauritius / 1,772 113 Albania / 1,615 114 Kyrgyzstan / 1,559 115 Jamaica / 1,490 116 Mozambique / 1,470 117 Gabon / 1,459 118 Senegal / 1,350 119 Georgia / 1,300 120 Panama / 1,260 121 Sudan / 1,245 122 Zimbabwe / 1,222 123 Slovenia / 1,105 124 Moldova / 1,102 125 Zambia / 1,100 126 Nicaragua / 1,496 127 Mongolia / 1,000 128 Chad / 997 129 Burkina Faso / 897 130 Lesotho / 889 131 Ethiopia / 840 132 Benin / 825 133 Namibia / 750 134 Madagascar / 745 135 Barbados / 620 136 Laos / 514 137 Rwanda / 511 138 Swaziland / 395 139 Togo / 363 140 Cape Verde / 344 141 Tajikistan / 301 142 Guyana / 292 143 Haiti / 221 144 Belize / 150 145 Vanuatu / 149 146 Malawi / 140 147 Gambia / 120 148 Guinea / 119 149 Burundi / 118 150 Seychelles / 118 151 Samoa / 70 152 Tonga / 55 153 Liberia / 49 154 Congo / 36 155 São Tomé and Príncipe / 36 156 Eritrea / 22 Big national reserves doesn't guarantee prosperity however, for instance, the yearly expenses for China 's government is $1.11 trillion, their government must always think of economic growth and making more money. The Malaysian gov't overspent $13bn last year, if it goes on like this their reserves can only last for 7 yrs. The Singaporean government overspent $3bn last year, much of it rescuing their banks from financial crisis, if it goes on like this their reserves can last 68 yrs. The Swiss gov't overspent $1bn last year, if it goes on like this their reserves can last 262 yrs. A country normally can borrow up to 100% its GDP, a very strong industrial country or very financial stable nation can borrow up to perhaps 200% its GDP, debts over 250% GDP the country is bankrupted. Greece 's Debts Is 113.40% GDP, In Danger As It Is Not Considered A Strong Industrial Or Financial Country. Iceland Is 107.60%, Also In Crisis As It Is Not So Strong Industrial Or Financially. Singapore Debts Is 113.10%, Not In Hot Water Due To Its Global Financial Hub Status, And Also Its Financial Strength. It's Only Dangerous For Singapore When It Reaches 200% Japan Debts Is 189.30%, Still Under Radar As A Powerful Industrial Nation. It Needs To Panic Only At Around 200% US Has The World Largest Debts, But It Is Only 62% Its GDP, It Is Not In Any Immediate Danger Of Bankruptcy. Zimbabwe Debts Is 282.60% GDP, It Is A Bankrupted Nation. Malaysia Debts Is Currently At 53.70% GDP. Hong Kong And Taiwan Is Doing Pretty Good With Debts At 32-37%GDP South Korea Is Even Better With Debts At 23.5% GDP China Is Very Stable With Debts At 16.90% GDP Russia Is Like A Big Mountain With Debts Only  at  6.30% GDP There Are Only 5 Countries With No Debt (I.E. 0%) : Brunei , Liechtenstein , Palau , Nieu, And Macau Of China .

70% of Science Award Finalists Are Children of Immigrants

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Stephanie Pappas, LiveScience Senior Writer

Immigrant parents' focus on science and math pays off for their kids, a new report finds. CREDIT: © Jonathan Ross | Dreamstime.com View full size image

Immigration is a boon to American science and math, a new report asserts, noting that 70 percent of the finalists in a recent prestigious science competition are the children of immigrants.

The report by the National Foundation for American Policy, a nonprofit research group in Arlington, Va., states that many immigrant parents emphasize hard science and math education for their children, viewing those fields as paths to success.

Statistics supporting that belief: According to a recent Georgetown University study on the value of undergraduate majors, the lifetime median annual income for someone with a bachelor's degree in engineering is $75,000, compared with $29,000 for a counseling or psychology major. [Infographic: Highest-paying College Majors]

That study found that the highest earners are petroleum engineers, with median annual earnings of $120,000.

Only 12 percent of Americans are foreign-born, the NFAP report says. Even so, children of immigrants took 70 percent of the finalist slots in the 2011 Intel Science Talent Search Competition, an original-research competition for high school seniors.



Of the 40 finalists, 28 had parents born in other countries: 16 from China, 10 from India, one from South Korea and one from Iran.

"In proportion to their presence in the U.S. population, one would expect only one child of an Indian (or Chinese) immigrant parent every two and a half years to be an Intel Science Search finalist, not 10 in a year," wrote the report's author, NFAP director Stuart Anderson.

Finalists interviewed for the report attributed their interest in research to their parents' attitudes.

"Our parents brought us up with love of science as a value," David Kenneth Tang-Quan, whose parents emigrated from China to California, told Anderson, according to the report.

Still, children of immigrants face barriers outside of the education system. According to the Georgetown report, racial disparities in pay persist even within science fields. Whites with an undergraduate major in engineering out-earn Asians with the same degree by about $8,000 a year. African-American and Hispanic engineering graduates fare worse, making about $60,000 and $56,000 per year, respectively, compared with whites' $80,000.

Asians out-earn whites in the fields of health, law and public policy; psychology and social work; and biology and life sciences.

The fact that children of immigrants excel in science and math should be taken into account when making immigration policy, Anderson wrote: "The results should serve as a warning against new restrictions on legal immigration, both family and employment-based immigration, since such restrictions are likely to prevent many of the next generation of outstanding scientists and researcher from emerging in America."

You can follow LiveScience senior writer Stephanie Pappas on Twitter @sipappas. Follow LiveScience for the latest in science news and discoveries on Twitter @livescience and on Facebook.

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Get to know the auditors

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OPTIMISTICALLY CAUTIOUS By ERROL OH

There's a price to pay for taking audit quality for granted.

A LOT is being said about the audit profession these days. After all, why should the auditors be out of the line of sight in the frenzy of finger-pointing in the wake of the global financial crisis?

It's easy to assign blame on hindsight, but nevertheless, when large and seemingly invulnerable businesses have collapsed or have come close to oblivion as a result of large-scale mismanagement and fraud, it's safe to conclude that a lot of regulators and professionals have surely dropped the ball.

They have missed the warning signs and have failed to raise the alarm. There's no doubt that the auditors belong in this group.

In a consultation paper released last October, the European Commission (EC) observes: “While the role played (in the financial crisis) by banks, hedge funds, rating agencies, supervisors or central banks has been questioned and analysed in depth in many instances, limited attention has been given so far to how the audit function could be enhanced in order to contribute to increased financial stability.”

This so-called Green Paper, titled Audit Policy: Lessons from the Crisis, solicited responses to questions that were designed to help the EC figure out how to improve the European audit market. However, many of the issues raised are applicable in most other parts of the world.

Then, in January this year, the New York-based International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) came out with a thought piece called Audit Quality: An IAASB Perspective. This publication too sees a connection between the financial crisis and the auditors.

“The turbulent events of the global financial crisis have highlighted the critical importance of credible, high-quality financial reporting. They have also demonstrated the importance of considering the role of audit quality in the broader context of quality financial reporting.

Achieving quality financial reporting depends on the integrity of each of the links in the financial reporting supply chain,” wrote IAASB chairman Professor Arnold Schilder.

“As one of those links, the external audit plays a major role in supporting the quality of financial reporting around the world, whether in the context of the capital markets, the public sector or the private or non-public sector. It is an important part of the regulatory and supervisory infrastructure, and thus an activity of significant public interest.”



Naturally, the enforcement agencies sometimes have a more severe view on how the auditors have contributed to the crisis. Last December, the New York attorney general sued Ernst & Young, the longtime auditors of Lehman Brothers, whose application for bankruptcy protection in September 2008 is considered one of the triggers of the crisis. The lawsuit alleged that the Ernst & Young helped Lehman Brothers engage in a “massive accounting fraud”.

Another Big Four firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), also had to endure the harsh glare of publicity recently in the aftermath of a large corporation's downfall. In this case, the company is India's Satyam Computer Services, whose chairman confessed that the IT service provider's accounts had been falsified.
Last month, the United States' Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) announced a settled disciplinary order against five PricewaterhouseCoopers International firms based in India. Two of those firms were slapped with a US$1.5mil penalty.

This is in addition to a US$6mil penalty imposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the five firms. The combined $7.5mil penalty imposed in this matter is the largest that the SEC and PCAOB have assessed against any registered foreign accounting firm.

On May 16, the IAASB issued a consultation paper titled Enhancing the Value of Auditor Reporting: Exploring Options for Change. “The purpose of this international consultation is to determine whether there are common views among key users of audited financial statements and other parties to the financial reporting process about the usefulness of auditor reporting, and to explore possible options to enhance the quality, relevance and value of auditor reporting,” the board explains.

Clearly, now is as good a time as any to have discussions on the importance of the work of auditors. The question is, are Malaysian investors participating in this dialogue? Going by how shareholders are generally passive about the appointment of auditors of listed companies, the answer can only be no.

For that matter, when was the last time we hear minority shareholders openly and vigorously questioning the management and board's choice of auditors? It's standard for an AGM agenda to include the re-appointment of the auditors and the authorisation of the directors to fix the auditors' remuneration. Year in and year out, the shareholders at the AGM will dutifully pass such resolutions on the assumption that the directors and the auditors are doing what they're supposed to be doing when it comes to ensuring audit quality.
The average minority shareholder of a listed company probably doesn't even know which firm audits the company. There's this dangerous perception that all auditors are more or less the same, and that it's not up to the investors to demand for audit quality.

There are several questions that shareholders (and investors, in general) should be asking about the auditors and their selection by the management.

How were the auditors picked, and how did the board satisfy itself that it had found the best firm for the job? Who is the partner of the firm who will oversee the audit and how is he qualified to handle that role? Do the audit fees reflect the extent of work required? Bear in mind that in audit, a bargain is not always a good thing. If the same firm has been the auditors for a long time, is there a need to consider a change? How do the auditors ensure independence?

Yes, these are rather dull and procedural areas, but isn't it better to tackle these questions now than after the breakdown of a company?

Executive editor Errol Oh has said this before and he'll say it again many people don't understand what is it that auditors really do.

Electrons Are Near-Perfect Spheres

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By Wired UK

By Duncan Geere, Wired UK

A 10-year study has revealed that the electron is very spherical indeed.

To be precise, the electron differs from being perfectly round by less than 0.000000000000000000000000001 cm. To put that in context; if an electron was the size of the solar system, it would be out from being perfectly round by less than the width of a human hair.

The Imperial College team behind the research, which was conducted on molecules of ytterbium flouride, used a laser to make measurements of the motion of electrons, and in particular the wobble they exhibit when spinning. They observed no such wobble, implying that the electron is perfectly round at the levels of precision available, reflected in the figure above.



The co-author of the report describing the research, Jony Hudson, said: “We’re really pleased that we’ve been able to improve our knowledge of one of the basic building blocks of matter. It’s been a very difficult measurement to make, but this knowledge will let us improve our theories of fundamental physics. People are often surprised to hear that our theories of physics aren’t ‘finished’, but in truth they get constantly refined and improved by making ever more accurate measurements like this one.”

The next step is to up that precision level even further, using new methods to cool the molecules to extremely low temperatures and control their motion. The results are important in the study of antimatter, and particularly the positron — which should behave identically to the electron but with an opposite electrical charge. If more differences can be found, it could help to explain why far less antimatter has been discovered in the universe than predicted by theory.

Image: Lawrence Rayner/Flickr
Source: Wired.co.uk 

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