Column | The Greenkeeper Writes
Published on June 16, 2020The Day After Part 10: Madam Wong
Something was bothering Madam Wong. She just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was not quite right. The GM had told her what had happened outside the meeting room. She wasn’t happy that the GM let those men get away with barging into the club, rudely look for a staff and then, allowed them to leave without at least finding out more information. She was especially upset when told that it was the security manager who overruled the GM and prevented the men from entering the meeting room looking for Roslan. They left when he took out his phone and called the police.
Madam Wong took a deep breath and decided to let it all go. It was all over now and not the club’s business anyway, it was Roslan’s. What was strange was that Roslan had no idea who those men were and what they wanted. He had been at the hospital and after that, recuperating at home since the lockdown. Nobody came to look for him at the house. Roslan promised to go to the police station and lodge a report.
She was, however, delighted that after Roslan left, Balan and Chong shared more ideas on how to cut cost from abandoning some part of the golf course altogether (she took note that maybe the land could be reserved for future development) and removing the landscaping that needed too much maintenance. They said that most golfers didn’t notice landscaping after the first two holes anyway; all they look for is their ball and the green.
She knew now that the upkeep of the green was the most important. Number two, the bunker. That was a surprise; she always thought that the tee was the second most important part of the golf course. “No,” Balan informed her “On the tee, we can decide where we want to put the marker so we can choose the best-grassed area for the golfers, but in the bunker, the golfers can be in any part of any bunker and neither we nor the golfers can choose.” What the team shall do is close off the bunkers that are not receiving too many golfers and use the sand to top up other ‘busier’ bunkers. If they can close 50% of the bunkers, that could save a ton of money for routine maintenance, regular repairs and sand purchase, thought Madam Wong.
They would also more aggressively recruit local workers to replace any foreigners that were leaving. The idea that foreign workers are cheap is misleading, thought Madam Wong. With their levies, various fees, hostel, food and whatever else, they were actually the same if not more expensive than local workers.
As for the myth that foreign workers were more productive, they were not; look at the amount of overtime the club is paying. The main advantage of a foreign worker is they last longer in the job compared to locals. And that is mostly because we are holding their passports, thought Madam Wong.
Now that many industries have closed their doors, there should be many young locals looking for work. We need to give our people a chance. Madam Wong had always liked Roslan’s idea of recruiting those with agriculture or horticulture certificates or diplomas and give them a chance to prove themselves. They have training with machinery, pesticides, fertiliser and also knew that they would have to work under the sun and in the rain from the day they start their tertiary education.
Madam Wong suddenly realised that there was someone at the door of her office. She had a small office that faced into the main office where the rest of the executives worked and the main office door was electronically locked. Who let this man in? A man in a black suit. It was one of the men outside the meeting room.
“Can I help you?” she asked him. She could feel a tightness in her stomach but she didn’t want to show any fear. He can’t do anything to me, there are plenty of people outside this room.
He walked slowly into the office, tall, broad-shouldered and quiet. His slow pace and quiet stare were supposed to be menacing, thought Madam Wong, but she was not afraid. Or was she? She felt another knot in her stomach.
“Why are you looking for Encik Roslan?” She decided to go straight to the point.
“We are not looking for him,” said the man in the black suit slowly sitting down in the chair opposite her. “We want the woman with him.”
“Rose? His wife?” Madam Wong was confused. “She should be easy to find. She’s a corporate executive.”
“No,” the man reached into his suit pocket and produced a photograph and handed it to her, “this woman.”
Madam Wong took the picture. It was of a young woman with short hair also dressed in a black suit. Wearing dark sunglasses, she managed to look scary but she also looked familiar. Something clicked in Madam Wong’s mind. “This looks like Nina. Roslan’s secretary. Why are you looking for her?”
“We have our reasons.”
“Are you the police? Is she in trouble?”
“Tell me where she is. Give me her address and our business is done.”
Madam Wong felt her temperature rising “Your business here IS done. I am not giving you anything.”
“She is not who you think she is.”
“And I am not who you think I am. Get out of my office.”
“She has three black belts and is a trained killer. As am I.”
Madam Wong stood up, leaned over the table, her face inches away from his and bit out, “Lucky I am not wearing a belt, otherwise I would take it off and beat you with it. Get Out Now.” Madam Wong said it quietly but somehow the threat resulted in the whole main office going quiet. All eyes were watching the man in Madam Wong’s office.
He stood up, picked up Nina’s photograph, smoothed his suit, turned on his heels and walked out of her office.
Madam Wong sat down, the adrenaline flowing through her caused her to feel giddy. But not giddy enough to ask the question everyone else was asking “Who was Nina?”
