The oil price hike is inevitable and the rakyat needs to accept it since the rakyat had given an overwhelming majority to the present government. As I had said earlier , BN means 'Barang Naik' and this phenomena is going to remain, whatever the rakyat do or says.

Now to add salt to the wound, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak announces that every LPG cylinder will have a sticker to denote the amount of subsidy the government is providing. The government wants us to be thrifty, so why does it not practice that? The cost of stickers (from printing, pasting and so forth) could be used to reduce the price of the LPG cylinders.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi now comes with news that he is going to announce some encouraging news for the rakyat in wave of the oil price hike since the people are unhappy. But what he is going to announce, we need to wait and see. Previously, we could forecast his move, but since of late, he has turned out to be very unpredictable.

The police, meanwhile, should understand that with the hike having a direct impact on them, the people are going to take to the streets to show their dissatisfaction. They have no other means unless there is going to be a general election now. Rather than pointing the finger at the rakyat, the inspector-general of police should brief the PM that something needs to be done in order to maintain peace and stability.

The police force should use tact in controlling human behaviour rather than using force like what they resorted to during last Friday's peaceful demonstration at the Petronas Twin Towers.

Will an improved public transportation system really materialise or will the subsidy savings be misused? Only time will tell. Even if it is misused, we will only know if we have changed this government.