A stitch in time saves nine - inaction of DG, VDG, PDG's and LCI

A leader should shoulder responsibility for making decisions that will have implications for many others.

However, that does not come naturally to most 'so called leaders'. Their natural inclination is to pass the buck to someone else.

In the case of Lions Club of Kota Kinabalu Host, decisions could have been taken by the club members when Past President Horace Ho Toh Chee tried to get PDG John Ho and me to bury the hatchet. I accepted but John Ho declined to make up.


It could have been amicably resolved when Past President Lie Chin Man and PP Horace Ho Toh Chee asked President Thomas Ho Thau Phin to sit with me and resolve the issues. This was attempted at least 3 times.

The BOD members could have easily resolved the matter after the few meetings arranged by the Past President’s council between Thomas Ho Thau Phin and me. Thomas had said (and it is recorded) that Thomas Ho (The president) will decide after consulting with John SF Ho.

The BOD could have checked the 10 page report by PP Lie Chin Man and the one page report by PP Horace Ho Toh Chee but they decided not to and in fact did not even record these in the minutes or pass the reports to all members not present at the BOD meeting.

I wrote several emails to VDG Pelly Lee but she decided to leave it in the lap of DG Eve Wong not realizing it will soon land on her lap which it now has.

I wrote to District Governor Eve Wong on 12.12.2016 and again on 20.12.2016 before I was expelled on 17.1.2017. She was frightened off by PDG John Ho.

I wrote to several PDG’s on the same date – 12.12.2016- and only PDG Lawrence Ting had the courtesy of writing and saying:  

As Immediate Past District Governor, I am not in the position to get involved in your club dispute.

You may seek the advice from District Governor Eve Wong on the possibility of settling the issue by Dispute Resolution as provided in LCI Standard Club Constitution and By-Laws (Revised June 30, 2016).

Well, it was not a dispute it was an offence being reported to be solved internally without going to authorities.

I met with Past President Arabi Wazani less than a week before the EGM and accepted to move on. His condition was that I should not have any conditions attached. Even this I accepted as I wanted to just leave it be and move on. Fortunately, for me PP Horace Ho was present at that meeting and can confirm my narration.

I wrote to LCI Finance on 12.12.2016 and to LCI Finance, Administration and Legal on 13.12.2016 and again on 18,12,2016 and they did not even respond. They could have easily taken the bull by the horn and got the DG to act.

Then all of a sudden DG Eve Wong met with me and I gave her the documents for CDRP together with the cash equivalent of USD 50 that is required for processing CDRP. She promised to meet me on her return on 17.2.2017.

She met with John Ho on 17.2.2017 and decided not to meet me. She must have been intimidated by him.

On the request of the Inspector in charge of my complaint to the police on derogatory remarks in my Facebook by John ho and his wife I wrote 2 emails on 4th and 7th January 2017 to John Ho and all members of the club for making up and moving on and he did not respond.

Recently I started getting emails from LCIF but after a few email exchanges LCIF decided to pass the buck to LCI legal instead of responding to queries that can be answered by LCIF.

LCIF, however, said that they have no record of grants given to Lions Club of Kota Kinabalu Host.

Here the saying ‘A stitch in time saves nine is apt.’

The Chinese equivalent is ‘Xiao dong bu bu, da dong chi ku.’