Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Kazakh trip, IPPs, Khir Toyo and Rosmah's handbag to dominate Parliament
- Selangor water assets worth RM12b, says MB
- Ku Li calls for RCI on power deals
- ‘Check on club’ Mashitah: Obedient Wives’ Club’s links with Al-Arqam a cause for concern
- Al-Arqam still active under different guises
- MACC hit by red tape in Taib probe
- As poll looms, Anwar flogs Pakatan states to voters
| Kazakh trip, IPPs, Khir Toyo and Rosmah's handbag to dominate Parliament Posted: 11 Jun 2011 12:02 AM PDT
(Malaysia Chronicle) - Prime Minister Najib Razak's recent Kazakhstan trip, lop-sided IPP agreements and former Selangor mentri besar Khir Toyo's RM6.5 million cash renovations are likely to top the list of questions to be asked when the mid-year Parliament session starts on Monday. The seesion will last from June 13 to June 28, and Malaysians can expect a lively debate from the Pakatan Rakyat lawmakers led by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim. However, whether Prime Minister Najib Razak's government will be as forthcoming with credible answers is less likely, gauging from past records. Nonetheless, Pakatan MPs have vowed to get to the bottom of allegations that Najib and his wife had abused public money by timing an official visit with the engagement of their youngest daughter to the son of a wealthy and powerful Kazakh official. They plan to demand that the first couple comes clean on their expenses. Malaysians have been outraged by the possibility that PM and his wife had flown in their personal guests for the engagement under the guise of 'official entourage'. "Najib needs to separate out his personal guests from the officials who had valid reasons to go to Kazakh. Just imagine all the first-class air fare, hotel fees and what-not. It's no joke you know," Kuala Selangor MP Dzulkefly Ahmad told Malaysia Chronicle. His colleague, Pokok Sena MP Mahfuz Omar, questioned whether the large Kazakh-bound entourage of 200 people was necessary if the trip was just to return an official visit made by the Kazakh prime minister to Malaysia in 2006. This was the reason given for the trip, according to UMNO Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin. Mahfuz also pointed out that less than 5 nations had attended the World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF), held at the sidelines of the Kazakh visit, the secondary reason given for the trip. Mahfuz demanded that the PM explain the basis for spending so much money and taking such a large group to the forum, when back home, Najib was asking the people to tighten their belts and accept a slew of price hikes. Handbag shocker PAS leaders also plan to raise the issue of Rosmah's prized handbags, alleged to be worth RM1 million and called on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the matter. "This is not a frivolous issue at all. How can she afford such expensive bags. How come she and Najib can spend so much beyond their means? There are serious issues. The RM1 million can be put to good use in building facilities in the rural towns, giving scholarships and so forth," Mahfuz told Malaysia Chronicle. Meanwhile, PKR Women's chief and Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin said the "spendthrift" ways of the first couple made nonsense of the warning given by Idris Jala, the minister in the PM's Department, who in 2010 issued a wake-up call to the nation. Idris had warned in no certain terms Malaysia could go bankrupt by 2019, the same way as Greece did. Yet instead of biting the bullet and leading the way, Zuraida expressed disappointment that Najib and Rosmah had chosen to "live it up" at the nation's expense. "Things are no longer the same. There is now a strong opposition in Malaysia and we keep questioning and grilling them. They can be stubborn and arrogant but they do so at their own peril. Voters will surely teach them a lesson in the next election," Zuraida told Malaysia Chronicle. Khir Toyo oozing cash Another hot topic to be raised in Parliament is where did Khir Toyo find RM6.5 million cash to renovate his Bali-themed super-luxury mansion in Shah Alam. According to Mahfuz, the BN government was deflecting attention from the source of Khir Toyo's wealth. Instead of hunting to the ground the source of the possible corruption, how widespread it is, and if others are involved, the Najib administration has only charged Khir for purchasing the mansion at a much-discounted rate. "When a politician has amassed wealth beyond his pay-cheque, his source of funds must be investigated and his network or syndicate busted. Until that is done, the public will surely accuse Khir Toyo's trial as being just an eye-wash," said Mahfuz. The PAS vice president also called on the MACC and the Income Tax Department to investigate. So far, the agencies - for reasons better known to themselves - have kept mum on the topic. Meanwhile, Zuraida urged the public to be vigilant and insist that the government gives full and credible answers.
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| Selangor water assets worth RM12b, says MB Posted: 10 Jun 2011 12:01 PM PDT By Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 — Selangor mentri besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has revealed that the state's water assets is valued at RM12 billion, 12 times more than an evaluation provided by the federal government recently. Khalid, who had initially valued the assets at over RM10 billion, had appointed independent auditors to publish a full report of all water assets in the state to ensure that Selangor's takeover of the state water industry from four water concessionaires is done in a "fair manner." "Last night, I was told after spending RM760, 000 to review all of the water assets belonging to the state government, I would like to announce that the state's water assets is valued at RM12 billion. "That is the problem with Umno, they don't know how to count," he said during a ceramah here last night. Selangor's water assets were valued at only RM1 billion by the federal government's wholly-owned Water Asset Management Company (PAAB). Both state and federal governments have been locked in a struggle over water assets in Selangor since Pakatan Rakyat (PR) took control of the state in 2008, with neither side wanting to give the other control over the critical industry. The state government had made an offer of RM9 billion for the assets of the concessionaires but the group had rejected it, calling the offer "ambiguous." The national water industry restructuring scheme has been delayed by a dispute over the price of the privatised assets in Selangor, which also provides water to the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya. Selangor made the RM9 billion combined offer to the four water concessionaires in Selangor — Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn Bhd (PNSB), Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas), Konsortium Abass Sdn Bhd (ABASS) and Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (SPLASH). Selangor, which already owns 80 per cent of the state's water supply assets, is preparing to take over the remaining assets after Putrajaya said it did not object to direct negotiations between the state government and concessionaires.
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| Ku Li calls for RCI on power deals Posted: 10 Jun 2011 11:06 AM PDT (The Malaysian Insider) - KUALA LUMPUR, June 10 — Veteran politician Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah today called for a royal commission to probe Tenaga Nasional Berhad's (TNB) contracts with independent power producers (IPPs), saying the lopsided deals may be burdening consumers. "The commission must investigate and propose the best suitable measures to be taken by the government to ease the burden to be borne by the consumers following the inevitable increase in the electricity tariff after the IPPs charged higher rates to TNB," the Gua Musang MP was quoted by Bernama Online today. The Cabinet raised power tariffs by an average of 7.12 per cent effective June 1, in a bid to trim a growing subsidy bill and widening fiscal deficit. But the move has also thrown the spotlight on the purchasing power agreements that TNB is engaged in with the IPPs. Opposition lawmakers have rounded on the Najib administration for wielding the knife on consumer subsidies while leaving the gas subsidies to the power producers — to the tune of RM19 billion this year — largely untouched. The perception that the IPPs continue to enjoy the billion-ringgit subsidies courtesy of political patronage was reinforced when former TNB chief executive Tan Sri Ani Arope openly criticised the power purchasing deals as "economic plunder". Ani had caused a stir in 1996 when he chose to resign from his executive chairman post rather than sign the imbalanced deals, which saw the first generation of IPPs created. "TNB is the whipping boy. TNB has no control of the price it has to pay to the IPPs. Get to the source of the problem," said Ani.
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| ‘Check on club’ Mashitah: Obedient Wives’ Club’s links with Al-Arqam a cause for concern Posted: 10 Jun 2011 11:02 AM PDT By Nik Imran Abdullah, NST KOTA BARU: The basic principles and beliefs of the Obedient Wives' Club must be looked into given the club's link to Global Ikhwan Sdn Bhd, an offshoot of the now defunct Islamic religious movement, Al-Arqam. Deputy Minister in Prime Minister's Department Datuk Dr Mashitah Ibrahim said the principles behind Al-Arqam might influence the thinking of the club's founders and that those subscribing to its ideals might be victimised by their husbands."We have to establish the basic principles of the club and where it came from," she said after opening the Kota Baru Puteri Umno divisional meeting at SM Tanjung Chat yesterday. |
| Al-Arqam still active under different guises Posted: 10 Jun 2011 11:01 AM PDT By Hariz Mohd, NST KUALA LUMPUR: Al-Arqam, the banned religious movement, is still active, with more than 5,000 members throughout the country and operating under different names. Currently led by its late founder Ashaari Muhammad's wife, Khadijah Aam, authorities believe its members are still aggressive in spreading the movement's aurad muhammadiah doctrine. |
| MACC hit by red tape in Taib probe Posted: 10 Jun 2011 10:56 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud is being probed by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission for alleged abuse of power in his position as Sarawak chief minister. By Lee Shi-Lan, NST A source familiar with the case revealed that investigations began at the end of last year following several reports against Taib, including allegedly possessing properties in excess of his emolument and alleged abuse of power as the CM. Senior MACC officers declined to reveal the exact nature of investigations against Taib, saying it would be improper and would jeopardise their work. The Sarawak MACC is conducting investigations into the properties owned by Taib in the state and elsewhere in the country. MACC chief commissioner Datuk Seri Abu Kassim Mohamed had confirmed on Thursday that Taib was being probed over allegations of corruption. Taib was also being investigated by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) after the President of the Swiss Confederation, Micheline Calmy-Rey, passed the matter to them. Finma normally investigates cases of money laundering in Switzerland, with emphasis on fighting corruption and the restitution of embezzled funds to respective countries. |
| As poll looms, Anwar flogs Pakatan states to voters Posted: 10 Jun 2011 10:50 AM PDT By Shannon Teoh and Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 — In two key frontline states last night, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim moved to convince voters to allow Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to govern them as a general election is expected within a year. With Barisan Nasional (BN) promising to take back Selangor and PR needing just four more seats to win Negri Sembilan, the opposition leader took to the stump to talk up the achievements of his coalition's state administrations. Speaking to about 500-strong crowd in Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan, Anwar said that good leaders are those focussed on making people's lives better. "We don't want to talk about personal scandals. We talk about the rakyat," the PKR de facto leader said, referring to sodomy and sex video allegations levelled against him recently. He claimed that Penang's surplus budget of RM2 billion last year as compared to the RM1 billion deficit when PR first took over in 2008 was an example of this. Anwar also cited the abolishment of the Sultan Mahmud bridge toll in Terengganu when PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang was mentri besar between 1999 and 2004. "BN says we don't know how to govern. What they mean is we don't know how to steal," the former deputy prime minister said. He said PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat was a prime example of this after 21 years as Kelantan mentri besar saw him "take no timber, land or contracts." "What is the meaning of government and power? It is to reduce the people's burden," he said before attacking BN's recent hikes in electricity and fuel prices. Earlier in Sepang, Anwar also emphasised the importance of moving Selangor's development forward. "Selangor must aim to get more investment and fast track approvals for projects because only through this can the state government continue its programme for the people," he told a crowd of over 300 people.
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