Questions about the Melaka event.

Here.

Before I talk about more about a possible change in leadership in MCF, I would like to do a small academic exercise here. Lets use the upcoming Melaka event.

Some background. The last Malaysian Open in 2011 was a milestone of sorts. What happened as reported to me was that Dato Tan told Hamid and Najib that if they wanted to have the event they will have to write the proposals and do the lobbying themselves. Dato Tan will just do the introductions. This was the beginning of a new learning curve for them. Nothing wrong there. Learn to fish.

The next major event was the Asian Amateur. Now from this event it became very apparent how much money can be made from an International event if you know how.

But if you now combine the learning from the 2 events there is the possibility that certain people in MCF may suddenly see the way to the really big bucks. Now is that good or bad?

Lets look closer. MCF is an NGO. It cannot legally make profits. All profits must be ploughed back to the organisation to fund the development of chess in Malaysia. Therefore all funds must go into an MCF account. And I have argued that the surpluses be accumulated to pay working officials in MCF. Why do I say that?

If this does not happen, then there is the very strong possibility of corruption. MCF officials cannot profit directly from an event. This will lead to conflicts of interest and abuse of authority. Officials may now only want their position in order to secure private deals and profits.

If this happens it will be wrong and probably illegal. So the proper structure for the Melaka event is that it is given to a private enterprise like Datcc for instance. Datcc now gives a endorcement fee to MCF and into MCF accounts. And MCF now pays their officials a salary. That is the transparent manner of doing things.

If not there maybe corruption. But of course this is only an academic exercise to see how an NGO should work. I am sure MCF officials know the law and will never be caught doing anything illegal.

MCF is supposed to develop chess in Malaysia. It is not for the officials to privately profit. If they want to profit from chess they must form private enterprises but then they must either step down from their official post or not be party to decisions with conflicts of interest if they are to remain.

If that happens Malaysian chess can be properly developed with focus on all important aspects. Tournaments are important of course but equally important and maybe more important are developing Malaysians that can stand tall in International events and with a fighting chance to win the top prizes.

In my mind the tournament cannot be deemed a success if the foreign field walks away with all the top prizes and certain "officials" walk away with the rest of the money and MCF gets nothing except only Fide fees which goes directly to Fide.

For success we need MCF to do what MCF is supposed to do ie development,training and organise select National interest tournaments. And private enterprise to do what they are supposed to do ie to bring in extra resources and expertise beyond the ability of Associations. Doesnt that make more sense?

Question. Can you now see why the Asean training in 2010 was such a landmark? The first proper training by a GM for juniors before International representation. And why do you think it was attacked so intensely? Could it be because it was a distraction from making money by certain officials? But not the legal way. Not the proper way. Is more light starting to shine on our problems?

But of course Melaka wont be like that. This is just an academic exercise. It hasnt and it wont happen like that I am sure. There is wisdom within MCF.

Time for a dragon leader in MCF?

Change of leadership in MCF is in the hands of the State affiliates. And this change can come from an AGM. Maybe even the next AGM. So I hope the State Representatives will consider my arguments here.

Within the MCF context, the change that can have the most immediate if not profound impact is the change right at the very top ie The Presidency. In actuality power is fairly evenly distributed to all elected committee members but Malaysian culture generally defer to the very top. So it is here that I suggest we begin looking.

Past wisdom dictated that the President is someone with access to funding and sponsorships. And so our past Presidents were selected on that basis. Today I will argue that this assumption may be flawed. I think a very necessary other ingredient is a powerful vision. And we need that President to be able to transmit that vision to the rank and file. Ergo we need the head to wag the tail and not vice versa.

I hope we can start thinking about this today. Like I said all we need is 10 minutes more of thinking time to change our fortunes for the better but this isn't going to happen unless there is good leadership.

If we are not careful, I believe all our successes from last year to date can be reversed. So lets not rest on our laurels. If you like what has been happening in Malaysian chess for the last one year or so, with the upsurge of interest and energy, I ask that you help complete the change and move our fortunes forwards (not backwards)

I will talk more on this subject later and perhaps throw in a few names to help kick start further deliberation and consideration.

Today's Contemplation.

Fear of failure and fear of the unknown are always defeated by faith. Having faith in yourself, in the process of change, and in the new direction that change sets will reveal your own inner core of steel.

-- Georgette Mosbacher

Lesson 101 in how to actively undermine baby tiger dragons.

The first way is the most obvious and much talked about here. That is of course via the selection process or banning.

All coaches and trainers want to increase their prestige by claiming to have a strong national player in their stable of players. It's a testimony of the success of their system. Nothing wrong with that if done the right way.

But there are some who are so desperate that they will try to force players to stay with them when they have obvious failings. And the method they use is via the selection process or banning. "Try to leave my stable or not kowtow to me and I will not select you or I will ban you from whichever sphere I have influence in". Now this is obviously wrong, isn't it?

The other way is not by brute force but by subtle manipulation of fears. "Join me and I will ensure that you are selected even if you are not the strongest player. I will manipulate the system or do side deals. I will help you to have fat fide rating with my means and use that as a basis for selection. Plus I will do lots of side promotions and selected showcase tournaments so other people are fooled". Sound familiar?

In the first method the players are eventually broken or just leave chess. In the second they are they are brought so far from reality that they eventually become cannon fodder in tough International competitions.

We can reverse our fortunes by ensuring there are no shortcuts, no backdoor entry. The proper way is fighting through tough local tournaments, tough selection. Go through proper and tough training by coaches and trainers who know how to be tough and yet nurturing. And the saplings will become Oak trees.

We need both proper selection as well as an end to arbitrary banning so that this can happen. This simply will ensure that the focus is now turned to improving their skills. Not knocking off the others players in order to hide their own inadequacies.

Can you see why the things that are happening around you now is happening? Can you see why we are now so so far behind our neighbours in chess? We are but 10 minutes from changing this. We have selection. Now we need to stop unscrupulous organisers from arbitrary bans.

Evidence of game change?

Farouqi beats IM Mas. Here.

Is this the evidence of changes coming from bringing in selection? I like to think so. Lets see what happens when we remove unreasonable banning. Will more success come? Is it worth a shot?

Results of Kelantan Close. Here.

Sabah just completed their selection for National Close. I believe with selection a new energy was released in Malaysian chess.

Game changer.

I hope you will really think about this post. I will attempt to explain how we can get the Associations to really support the development of chess in Malaysia. It's just 2 steps to our own GM's and super GM's.

1. Get proper written selection criteria for representation for State or Country.

2. Remove the power for arbitrary banning of players from any tournament.

The first we already have at the National level. It is not perfect but its a beachhead all the same. Let me explain why.

Think about this. Why was there so much resistance to such a reasonable demand as written selection? Did you see the attacks on the people and bloggers who asked for selection? Why such deep anger and fear? Let me postulate a little here.

Lets visualise 2 scenario's.

The first. We have leaders who know how to bring us success; if we now have leaders who are busy building on that vision of our own GM, would they take out so much energy to resist what is purely common sense?

Why do you need the power to ban without any proper grounds? Why not just have some basic rules to determine the policy and procedures? I estimate about 10 minutes worth of thinking here to get a simple draft out. Why nothing for 30 years? That is the big big question now isn't it?

So lets visualise the second scenario. Now if we have leaders with no ideas on how to develop us, how would they behave? They have no answers but they want to be leaders. What powers will they need to control both the players and the parents from asking legitimate questions? Especially the parents. What buttons will they need to control them? Yes. It is simple. Attack their child so they don't dare to openly ask questions. Reduce them to whispering in dark corners. Sound familiar?

These 2 tools have been used to keep Malaysian chess backwards for 30 years. I have seen many many strong players broken by the lack of those 2 simple rules. And frightened parents brought to heel.

We now have selection, brought to you from the pain and sweat of the few that dared to fight for it. And so we are now just one small 10 minute step from turning our fortunes around. Just one more step.

Insist on proper policies and procedures for banning. Get rid of the abuse by unscrupulous people. Right now they can ban if they don't like your face, don't like your questions, don't like the fact that you are not rich, dont like the fact that you are richer than them, don't like your smell or your colour; If they don't like that you play better chess than their students or their children etc etc.

Now do you see why we are so backward? Instead of supporting the strong players, they use these tools to support their weak ones. Dont select the strong players, ban them if necessary.... "I don't need to give a reason. It is my prerogative".

One more step and 2012 will indeed be the year when Tiger dragons will be born in Malaysia. What say you? Do you want that change? Just one more step and we can turn 30 years of failure into success. We just need someone in MCF to spend 10 minutes on this problem of the correct basis for banning.

ps: Do note that it is usually the strong that are not selected, banned etc. The weak have already kowtowed in order to be selected (in the past at National level but still the same in one State at least that I know of). Like I said earlier, the moment you kowtow to unreasonable demands/fears you are no longer tiger dragons. Does that make sense? Isn't that the definition of being broken against your will or better judgement?

The coming of selection has already shown up some successes. The first junior in the senior team, fighting IM's and players who bring us medals, etc etc etc.

Now we need the last game changing step. Just one more step to responsible officials and Malaysian success in chess. Stop the abuse of power of banning of players without grounds.

With these 2 steps in place, we will see that Malaysian GM. Either believe me or ask MCF for their solution. And then compare the answers.

Dragon CNY musings.

In the beginning the Maharajahs invented chess to teach the nobility and top generals the art of war without having to go to war itself.

Chess teaches strategy and tactics. But within those lessons it also teaches much more. It teaches the nature of opportunity. It teaches the consequence of actions lead by fear. It teaches discipline, training and planning when you reach the level where you ask the question, how do I win? So chess teaches a lot of what we need to succeed in business and life.

But if you look even closer you will see that chess needs to be in the hands of the noble for it to retain its character or it's partial lessons can easily be turned to create strive and destroy from within.

I am sure the Maharajah's intention was to build. It was not a weapon meant to destroy their own citizens or empires.

We have but to look at the history of MCF to see what happens when chess is taken over and lead by ill equipped sergeant's without vision, knowledge or guidance.

What happens when the sergeant thinks he is the Maharajah or even worse, when he begins to think he is the empire itself?

Today's Contemplation.

In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves.

-- Buddha

Editors note: Does this saying have any bearing on chess? I wonder.

Kid stuff

Here.

Oliver Barbosa becomes Philippines 3rd super GM

Here.

What have they got that we haven't? Why can't we even get one GM? What is their Associations doing that we are not doing? Do they have more resources than us? Do they have more talent than us? What has gone wrong?

We need to ask MCF these questions and MCF need to find us the answers.