Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Stupit Malayans
- 7 Reasons Why Khazanah Should NOT Undertake the Share Swap Between MAS and AirAsia
- Rangsangan Kerjaya Siswazah Selangor
- One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
- Fantasizing Hang Li Po
- Is it a crime to have a different point of view from Barisan Nasional/UMNO?
- Reforms smokescreen?
- Kek Lok Si Temple destruction of Ayer Itam River
- Who Are The Sultans?
- ANNOUNCEMENT: Comments in Malaysia Today
- Invitation to the MCLM forums on Rakyat Reform Agenda (RARA)
- Malaysian Scorpene Submarine Corruption Case Legal Briefing
| Posted: 21 Sep 2011 08:14 PM PDT By DUMNO Ha ha... Election coming oredi. We DUMNO non-non's will win again. You see, ah... We can give out a few ringgit here and there, and everyone will kowtow to us. Kiss our hand-lah, jilat our buntut-lah, and so on. We build a few mosques here and there, and people worship us. We control Allah. We really do !! We send the PM's husband to Vatican only so dat the Popiah wont invade Malaya like the Portugis. We scared kena attack ah! Popiah pray means we all hapis mampus liau! Opposition stupit. They dun control anything. They say only that they want to be honest. See-lah, Lim Guan Eng cant even manage a car park in Penang. How can anyone build a Kanchil-sahaja multi-storey car park? Kandang Basikal oso better, and cheaper. Buatan bamboo cukup-lah. And can charge $50million some more. At least DUMNO people got enough brains to make hamsup video of opposition leaders, and elect porn-stars to become presidents. Laidet, it keeps the people happy mah. They can watch hamsup videos of Politicians mah. Wait... Mat Sabo's hamsup video will come out very soon, and then you can buy from pirated DVD shop in pasar malam. Koot or not? Who say we dun love Malayans? What opposition do? Scream and shout only about honesty. Honesty do what? NOTHING !! You think Penang so great izzit? Pearl of the Orient izzit? We still got Putrajaya. And guess what? Putrajaya CONTROLS Penang !! Putrajaya dun give Penang looi, LGE can "chiak sai". HAH!! I oso can speaking Cheena. I got Cheena informants mah. They oso want to cari makan mah! Anyway, with 100% of Putrajaya voters working for us, you think anyone there got balls to vote for opposition ah? We make sure than 90% of all gomen employees dun make enough money to even qualify to pay tax, so dat they must resort to korupsi. You think gomen workers want to sell kachang puteh at roadside meh? Why you think DUMNO must keep Malayans poor and stupit? So dat they have no time to lawan us lorrrr... Why I say Malayan ah? Because Malaya was never Colonized mahhhhhh. Never Colonized means where got Malaysia? TAR was only our poster-boy-lor. And actually ah, Tugu Kebangsaan should be demolished. Why ah? Because it is UNTRUE, and unIslamic. Islam says CANNOT make human statues. So, Tugu Kebangsaan must be destroyed !! Esok I go ask uncle C4 to bring his bombs. On the same note, we will tell Muslims to give us all their unIslamic money. Yes. All RINGGIT is unIslamic. Why ah? Coz got picture of Agong on it lor. Islam says we cannot have pictures of humans mah. Actually, we will also go to central market tomorrow and arrest all those artist buggers. They have to cari duit somewhere else. Be polisman lah ! Can easily cari duit extorting money from all the stupit Cheena. The stupit Cheena scream and shout about Honesty, but still pay korupsi money to Polis werd. If Polis no space, the painters can oso work in MACC. As long as they can wear a uniform, they can be MACC. All those "anti-korupsi" badges is only for show, and oso to make some looi for the badge-making company, which belongs to me mahhhh. ** cough cough ** Skool ah? What is skool? We should start to shut down skools because it will make people cRever. If Malayans become cRever, then DUMNO Hapis !! No one can be cReverester than DUMNO. And that is why we HATE those who go to non-gomen skool. cRever Cheena we HATE!! cRever Melayu we HATE!! cRever India we HATE!! cRever Dan-Lain-Lain oso we HATE!! Unnersten or not? We NOT Prejudice !! WE HATE YOU ALL cRever people !!! STOP making yourselves cRever can or not !!! It makes us all look damn STUPIT !! Go watch some more Astro lah. Give you 32thousand channels for what? You pay to make yourself stupider ! Cepat cepat Go ! Go !! But, then again, we know that you will eRect us back into ofis once again, and again, and again, until lepas Jesus Christ come back and go away oso you will eRect DUMNO as Gomen. See you next eRection. Now dun disturb me. Go away while I go shop for another US$24million ring, or bangle, or maybe watch some more hamsup Video of Mat Sabo...... |
| 7 Reasons Why Khazanah Should NOT Undertake the Share Swap Between MAS and AirAsia Posted: 21 Sep 2011 05:52 PM PDT The timing of the share swap could not have happened at a worst time as it will largely benefit AIRASIA shareholders even without their own effort and Khazanah has given away a large portion of their net worth in MAS for free. By troubleshooters2011 1.MAS MANAGEMENT HAS INITIATED THE RIGHT STRATEGIES AND IMPLEMENTATION TO TURNAROUND THE COMPANY AND THEREFORE DO NOT NEED THE TIE-UP WITH AIRASIA A quick analysis on the current state of MAS indicates that they are on the right track. The three key cost factors that need attention are fuel, maintenance and manpower cost. With regards to fuel cost, MAS has taken some steps to reduce the unpredictability of the movement of fuel price. With a bit of tweaking they will get it within control as you cannot totally eliminate uncertainties linked to fuel pricing. On maintenance cost, the fleet renewal program will start to alleviate the impact of maintenance on the operating profits while shifting the cost towards the interest expense while creating a healthier balance sheet. If at all the national carrier is guilty, it is that the fleet renewal program should have been carried out earlier, say 2007 when MAS would have been able to hive off depleting assets at a higher value and not incurred high maintenance costs which would have increased y-o-y that has negative impact on the operating profits. The reduction of manpower cost or the rightsizing of this cost can be properly planned through natural attrition and redefinition of job scopes that need key union and association buy in for success. This has always been done as a top down approach but in all fairness, engagement at the shop floor needs to be intensified as it is the personnel at this level that will impact the bottom line in terms of efficiency, productivity and effective implementation. The timing of the share swap could not have happened at a worst time as it will largely benefit AIRASIA shareholders even without their own effort and Khazanah has given away a large portion of their net worth in MAS for free. This is blatant mismanagement at Khazanah and a thorough investigation should be launched to MAS is a source of pride for the nation. It started getting into trouble when vested interest came into picture and started to encroach on its balance sheet and profitable entities. While the aviation business model has changed dramatically over the decades and previous laurels of achievement may not be replicated due to the changing times, the aviation space is a critical playing field for the nation. Every country assists its aviation companies in one form or another, so we should not be fooled to think that it's a level playing field out there. What is required is a dynamic BUSINESS Model for MAS to prosper further. One initiative that could be explored is to privatize it and fix it rather than the share swap that will work on a model of cannibalisation shrouded under the so-called comprehensive collaboration. MAS is a Malaysian company with global reach and serves not only a commercial agenda but a national agenda in terms of promoting Malaysia as a tourism destination, to facilitate trade between countries under a G to G environment and also to facilitate outreach to new destination for strategic and commercial AIRASIA is a commercial entrepreneur driven Malaysian Multi National Company (MNC) having partnering arrangements in each of its chosen point to point country of destination and hub. Both derive their sources of income from different business approaches and with different objectives in mind. The objectives are not aligned and to align them would result in a different shift in strategy that could have a NEGATIVE impact on both companies' performance, more so for MAS than AIRASIA. Collaboration between the two companies is definitely a plus but need not be at the expense of each other and encroaching on each other's brand identity. What is currently prevailing between the two entities is a healthy competition and it keeps each entity on edge to ensure that they remain relevant aviation entities. But collaboration such as in the oil and gas space between PETRONAS and EXXON for example for the Tapis fields, SHELL and PETRONAS in the Gumusut-Kakap fields, MURPHY and PETRONAS in the Kikeh fields and a more dramatic win-win partnering arrangement between giants SHELL and EXXON in the Brent oil fields in the North Sea of Northern UK demonstrates the joint collaboration between two competing entities can be achieved without sacrificing each entity's identity and business objectives. SHELL and EXXON compete in other acreages in other countries around the world. What is needed is sincere partnering for common benefit. The move by Khazanah to invest in AIRASIA should be looked at purely as a commercial investment as it is investing in a company that is majority foreign owned if aggregated. Khazanah should look at AIRASIA for returns on investment and not as a strategic stake. AIRASIA is a company purely running on commercial adrenalin with an iconic entrepreneur. Khazanah has little say in AIRASIA and can easily be outvoted in the event parties invested in AIRASIA work in concert. Its stake in MAS is crucial as it helps control its own skies while operating a free skies environment. Air travel has become commoditized and should the country be outplayed in the aviation space, we could see colonialisation of our airspace and others gaining more benefit flying over Malaysian airspace. By having cross shareholding, should anything untoward happens to the industry, Khazanah will have to help 2 entities as it would not make sense for AIRASIA to insist on the share swap if it did not provide them financial 'cloud cover'. If Khazanah had kept AIRASIA shareholding as a ROI stock, the investment could be unlocked on reaching a specific return. As the shareholding in AIRASIA is only 10%, Khazanah is neither here nor there in terms of being able to influence policy; therefore it makes no sense to undertake a share swap where the vendors of AIRASIA have significant say in MAS but not vice versa. Any rebuttals and cross examination by Khazanah, Tune Air or any interested parties are most welcome. |
| Rangsangan Kerjaya Siswazah Selangor Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:24 PM PDT
Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad menjemput semua siswazah dan graduan dari negeri Selangor yang masih mencari pekerjaan untuk menyertai program Rangsangan Kerjaya Siswazah Selangor (RKSS) yang dianjurkan di bawah agenda CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Perangsang Selangor. Antara pengisian Program RKSS ini adalah penyediaan kursus-kursus latihan secara PERCUMA seperti berikut:- www.kps.com.my/csr-events/latest
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| One Step Forward, Two Steps Back Posted: 21 Sep 2011 02:35 PM PDT By Teresa Kok Once again, the Barisan Nasional Government has returned to its old trick of employing the courts to intimidate, oppress and imprison their political opponents, as seen in the case of PAS Deputy President Mohamad Sabu (Mat Sabu) who was charged with criminal defamation for allegedly having slandered police officers killed during the colonial-era communist insurgency this morning. If convicted, Mat Sabu faces up to two years in prison and a fine. Should that occur, he could be barred from contesting and campaigning in the next General Election. How convenient for Barisan Nasional. Is this BN's tactic to avoid having to face Mat Sabu in the next general election since his trial is scheduled for December 2011? It was only last Thursday when Prime Minister Najib Razak announced his supposed political reforms with platitudes like "no individual will be arrested merely on the point of political ideology" and "a more open Malaysia with a dynamic democracy." Barely a week has passed and he's already charged Mat Sabu over his opinion of historical events. So much for recognising freedom of expression. A truly open and dynamic Prime Minister would acknowledge that differences of opinion over the interpretation of history should not be argued in a court of law but resolved through dialogue and debate in an academic setting. Furthermore, Mat Sabu did not defame anyone, nor did he raise any racial or religious issue unlike the incendiary, racist and hate-driven statements and outright lies which have been repeatedly spewed by the likes of Utusan Malaysia and Perkasa. The Government has never taken any action against Utusan Malaysia and Perkasa, allowing them to continue to sow the seeds of fear and hatred with impunity. It is clear that the Government is practicing selective prosecution by taking Mat Sabu to court. I also condemn the Molotov cocktail attack upon Mat Sabu's home yesterday which follows an acid attack threat he received via SMS previously. These threats upon him and his family are criminal and deserve to be charged in court. I repeat my call to Polis DiRaja Malaysia to investigate this case, bring the criminals to justice and provide the necessary protection for him and his family. I urge Barisan Nasional leaders to issue public statements to condemn outright the threats upon Mat Sabu as a show of their stand against the use of violence.
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| Posted: 20 Sep 2011 10:22 PM PDT By dUMNO Haiya... you stupit Chinese simply think that Hang Li Po was this Darling drop-dead gorgeous Babe from Cheena. She maybe she looked like the one below? What if this was Hang Li Po?
People like to romanticise what all these Princes and Princesses looked like, and what if this was Hang Li Po's Son?
Don't laugh. What if the Sultan of Malacca found this to be attractive? Why does everyone think of all Prince's and Princesses as having sexy bodies like the one below? None of Malaysia's Sultans do, and the closest is the one which got away was her - Manohara:
How come no Sultan got a hold of Miss Indonesia?
Tak laku? Maybe, because people from the past used to love fat women. Look at all the Renaissance paintings. They had mostly fat women in it. In fact, the Masai Tribe rates women according to size, so a skinny one like Miss Indonesia was rather useless, and is rated as 5 cows. But BIG MOMMA Hang Li Po above would have been worth 40 cows !! Sexist? Of COURSE !!! I am DUMNO !! I AM sexist !! but it seems time and again, Malaysians keeps voting us back into power, so that we can sap your money, and make off with all the wealth of this country. See you next elections !!!
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| Is it a crime to have a different point of view from Barisan Nasional/UMNO? Posted: 20 Sep 2011 07:25 PM PDT
Charles Santiago The criminal defamation charge against PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu at the Butterworth Sessions Court this morning was trumped up to serve the political aims of the Barisan Nasional. By challenging the official account of the 1950 Bukit Kepong incident at a ceramah in Tasek Gelugor on Aug 21, Mat Sabu has opened discussions into a section of our history that needs to be reviewed. Just how proposing an alternative view of history can lead to a criminal charge is anyone's guess. The writing of history should be an academic one. History should be as objective as possible with little or no intervention from any party that wants to tweak it to suit their needs and goals. It is not the job of the government to write history - that should be left in the hands of the academics, historians and the public through agreed and established processes. If Barisan Nasional feels it has the right to determine what our history should be, then we should close down the history departments in our universities. The job of the government is to make sure we, as a society, learn from history and move forward. The initiative to explore alternative perspectives on history should not be stifled due to self-serving interests. Mat Sabu's only crime in this case is that he is a leading member of PAS which is increasingly perceived as an alternative to UMNO. The fact that this charge, which challenges the freedom of speech guaranteed in our Constitution, came just days after the Prime Minister announced a string of "reforms" involving restrictive laws says a lot to the commitment, sincerity and spirit in which the announcement on the eve of Malaysia Day was made.
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| Posted: 20 Sep 2011 05:45 PM PDT I would go so far to submit that no one was detained under the ISA based purely on political beliefs or alignment. By Douglas Tan Credit must be given to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for announcing the abolition of the infamous Internal Security Act, the lifting of three states of emergencies and along with that the Emergency Ordinance. It is our hope that without these laws, detention without trial in Malaysia shall now forever be confined to the annals of history. The Prime Minister has won his plaudits, most noticeably from the United States, and rightfully so. I mean why not give the man credit for what he appears to be doing, even if it is for the wrong reasons? If our nation, which has been plagued by oppressive laws even before independence, can boast ourselves to be a progressive democracy, the detention of political leaders, NGO heads not forgetting newspaper reporters has to been gotten rid of. Naturally this optimism of reforms have been dampened somewhat by his announcement that there shall be two alternative laws which would then place preventative measures in place to counter terrorism, safeguarding public order and put in place race relations legislation. The fear is that these laws may be sufficiently ambiguous for politicians to be detained without trial under the purview of these new laws. Datuk Seri Nazri announced that these laws would not be repressive, but as I know the learned Minister would understand that this is wholly dependant on the scope of these laws and their enforcement. Furthermore, the two safeguards Nazri mentioned are sufficiently ambiguous that they can be subject to abuse. The first safeguard is that one cannot be detained on the basis of political belief. The second is that extended detention can only be approved by the courts. The first safeguard is purely the subject of interpretation. Where the police would see fit to charge a politician giving a ceramah regarding views that he or she may have about religious practice, under the new law they can be detained. I would go so far to submit that no one was detained under the ISA based purely on political beliefs or alignment. Looking at the history of ISA detention, it is more as to what they had said, written or done which had landed them in hot soup with the government, not so much their political leanings. When elements of speeches can be taken out of context and the charges framed to interpret those elements as subversive, inciting racial hatred or disruptive to public order, charges under the new laws can certainly be laid. Perhaps the second issue, which is the judiciary, would be of another concern. This would be a safeguard only if we knew our judiciary was an independent body. With the farce of the Anwar Ibrahim case continuing, public opinion would not favour the judiciary to protect the interests of the public rather than the government of that day. If we were to have an independent and competent judiciary, our legal system would flourish. Would there still be bias? Certainly. However, we shall be assured that there would be no element of coercion for judges to make decisions pleasing to their political masters. In order for the Prime Minister to prove the sincerity about the reforms to be made, he should also ensure that there should be stringent laws forced against any interference in the judicial process. Judicial reforms would additionally have a positive impact on the economy and boost foreign investor confidence. Perhaps the subsequent string of attacks on the opposition parties was not particularly fair. Yes, Najib is responsible for announcing the abolition of the ISA, but the constant pressure from the Opposition, NGOs and the Rakyat certainly led to the action finally being taken. Smear campaigns are certainly part of politics and Pakatan Rakyat has to quickly re-brand and re-position themselves for the upcoming elections. There is no doubt that the Prime Minister's image has improved as a result of this, but will it be a political smokescreen or is it possible that the Barisan Nasional leadership can actually show some forward thinking? We will be watching closely. |
| Kek Lok Si Temple destruction of Ayer Itam River Posted: 20 Sep 2011 05:31 PM PDT By Lim Cheok Siang Jimmy It was irresponsible of MPPP to allow this to go ahead! Of course they could stop it. Is there some reason why this destruction has to happen? The ancient rocks painted by many old artists of Penang. Khaw Sia used to live round the corner. The temple has expanded so big and so fast that one begins to wonder whether it is about religion or big business? Kek Lok Si was started humbly. Its roots very clearly set out as the fundamental philosophy of fitting in with Nature. Nature was supreme in the founding Foochow Monks' philosophy. Their monastery outside Foochow was built among rocks. So was the original Kek Lok Si. This type of insensitive development must stop. The MPPP must assume responsibility for such destruction. The view of the Temple as one approaches Ayer Itam from the junction to Penang Hill train station is appalling. All the newer additions to it are out of scale. Dwarfing the original structures including the pagoda. The recently opened Goddess of Mercy Kwan Yin pavillion built at the cost of, I was told, RM40 million, not including the statue, is not only offensive to the eye but also money mis-spent. It is of course a great attraction for the proletariats but then, good taste has never been their inclination. Call me elitist ... it is good common sense that counts. China's long history is so full of good tastes and fine lifestyles. Malaysian Chinese are generally descendants of peasants; I am one of them. Being born with bad taste does not mean that you have to continue to consume it. Can people the likes of the monks, Board of Trustees and their consultants crawl out of the gutter of bad environmental taste and contribute towards the preservation and conservation of whatever little that this little Island has? In this respect, as the custodian of Heritage both man-made as well as natural, PHT should organise a meeting to discuss this issue for members who feel strongly about the destruction of a priceless natural setting of ancient rocks and trees. In the event that PHT is short of manpower, a "KLS Watch Group" could be formed. It is time for the Local Authority to take stock of their social and environmental responsibilities. I think gone are the days of Local Government running rough shod over the environment for the benefit of a few people. That site adjacent to an Old Temple was God's gift to the People of Penang. The Temple in its destruction of these rocks, old trees and stream deemed to be gifts from God, is not setting a good example for us mortals who look toward these religious institutions for our salvation. What would the high priest and the chairman of the Kek Lok Si Board and their architect (oh, almost forgot the engineers too), have to say when they meet God and is asked "Why did you destroy my gifts to people of Penang to enjoy?" I'll hate to be in their shoes ... Goddess Kwan Yin may perhaps show them mercy for their destruction. It is essential that PHT should be vigilant from being influenced by people with vested interests or those with hidden agendas about preservation and conservation. Organisations that are well established tend to become entrenched as they become 'gentrified'. Gentrification is getting well endowed and becoming pompous perhaps?? It also means that you are no longer in good condition or fit. Putting it another way, you are not "Lean and Mean". That is why whenever you have a new change in Government, it is good ... until they start to get 'gentrified'. PHT should not be like many NGOs that have lost their objectives and wallow in their "Gentrification". More people should get together to see how the message can get across. Perhaps shome external help? That is what Penang likes ... outside ideas. |
| Posted: 20 Sep 2011 04:17 PM PDT By John Doe I've written so much about Malacca. I've quoted and quoted till the cows came home, and still Malaysians don't get it. One of my longer pieces, "Demise of Malacca" had its Bibliography almost as long as the piece itself, and some people who made comments asked for the source(s) instead. Are Malaysians that blind? Do they not know what is a bibliography? ( http://www.malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/letterssurat/35605-the-demise-of-malacca ) Google this and read all those nonsensical comments made in other copy-paste-blogs, and see if one can identitfy who UMNO's cybertroopers are. Let's go back to Sejarah Melayu today, and look for the identity of the Sultans of Malacca, in "Parameswara is a certified Keling". ( http://malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/letterssurat/43394-parameswara-is-a-certified-singaporean-keling-not-a-joke ) FMT got it partially wrong when they wrote Kedah, not Malacca, the oldest kingdom, in reference to Parameswara's origin. Sejarah Melayu clearly describes how Parameswara was a Keling from Singapore, with much reference to his Hindustani roots to Alexander the Great. Or was it "Alexander the Gay?" ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvRWUCfAPs0 ) I hate quoting from Wiki, no academician in his right mind would. No academician quotes from Blogs either. However, here is the ONE TIME, which I will make a reference to Wiki, and it is in relation to Srivijaya. Search "Srivijaya" under Wiki, (as some UMNO blogger insisted that I do.) What does the Srivijaya Wiki-Entry state? "No modern Indonesians, not even those of the Palembang area around which the kingdom was based, had heard of Srivijaya until the 1920s..." Note that at every "important point" it's missing a real reference. See if you can count how many "citation Needed" there are in this entry. The majority of the quotes comes from "Munoz, Paul Michel (2006). Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula" Great guy as he is, few people know that Munoz is actually a retired French Sailor living in Singapore. If you want Munoz to be the MAIN reference to a "Glorious Melayu Kingdom, but am sorry that I cannot offer you any tangible evidence for it", then so be it. I will quote however, from one of the very links contained in this particular Wiki entry, and here is it's link: It came in, under entry number 4 of the Wiki Srivijaya-References section. This is an "edu site". And the big name present is Prof Dr Peter Bellwood, of ANU. So this must be good, right? And I quote: Apparently, even from their own "arsenal of references", it becomes clear that Srivijaya could have very well been a myth, as claimed by their "certified panel authors". So, there, you have it. My ONE AND ONLY ONE reference to Wiki, and it's only to bash the entry black and blue. So, bite the bullet, and source your info from either "dot edu" sites (meaning certified institutions of education), or take it from real books themselves. You can ceremoniously flush Malaysian History Textbooks into the Jamban, because they are nothing but full of crap. Just look at how Museum Negara displays tags errors in my Retarded Museum Negara piece: And note how I questioned "Why is the Sultan of Johor classified in the Penjajah Section of Museum Negara". UMNO called the Malaysian Sultans "Children of Prostitutes and Beggars" when they made the remark about "Pendatangs" ( http://www.malaysia-today.net/mtcolumns/guest-columnists/37699-beggars-and-prostitutes ) Some blog writer classified the Sultan as "Sultan dan Raja mereka (Malaysia) sama 'kaum' dengan orang gaji Indonesia-nya." translated as "The Sultans of Malaysia are of the same race as the servants whom Malaysians employ". To answer the titled-question, "Who are the Sultans of Malacca?" If one chooses to use Sejarah Melayu as reference, then one must come to the conclusion that the Sultans are descendants of "Alexander the Gay", (or is it Alexander the Great Gay?), heavily mixed with Kling, and Chinese, and Turkish, and should be called "Sultan Truly Asia". Is this what Ketuanan is about? Want to throw Sejarah Melayu out? Sure, along with it goes a huge lot of myths, such as the Sultan's marrying Hong Li-Po, because she is certainly NOT mentioned in ANY Ming Dynasty records. So, again, who is Hong Li-po again? A Prostitute? That would certainly justify UMNO's calling of "Prostitutes and Beggars". Unfortunately, they did not know that they were calling the Sultanate just that. UMNO would indeed be calling the Sultanate, as "Children of Prostitutes and Beggars". How does one spell "Les Majeste" again? Fortunately ISA is being deconstructed, however, we will wait to see how Malaysia can use the new laws to arrest these name-calling UMNO-guys. In the meantime, assuming Sejarah Melayu is correct, I can imagine a drooling Saiful gleefully collecting pictures of "Alexander the Gay", and placing them next to pictures of Malaysian Sultans, with his lustful thought that they are really of ONE AND THE SAME BLOOD !! Enough with all this nonsense !! Let's get rid of Allahyarham-UMNO once and for all, and reach for the REAL History instead. In the meantime, I must get back to my research. Shalom |
| ANNOUNCEMENT: Comments in Malaysia Today Posted: 19 Sep 2011 07:26 PM PDT
Readers can now post comments without needing to register first. However, the comments will need to be moderated and approved (or rejected) before they appear in the comments section. This is to avoid spamming and cyber-attacks. Please forgive whatever delays we might face because all the moderators are volunteers who have other functions to perform as well. |
| Invitation to the MCLM forums on Rakyat Reform Agenda (RARA) Posted: 18 Sep 2011 01:00 AM PDT
The Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement will be officially launching a series of forums nationwide on the 'Rakyat Reform Agenda' beginning from Monday 19th September 2011 in Kuala Lumpur at the Kuala Lumpur Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) from 7pm - 11pm. It is MCLM's fervent hope that in order for Malaysia to be the great inclusive nation envisioned by our founding fathers, we must return to basic principles. How will we achieve this? The answer - Through the Rakyat Reform Agenda (RARA), which is a four-point plan to: 1. Honour the agreements made in 1963 between the Federation of Malaya and Sabah and Sarawak prior to the formation of the Federation of Malaysia 2. Restore the national institutions to the Rakyat – the judiciary, Election Commission, police force, Attorney-General, etc. 3. Restore the liberties guaranteed to the Rakyat under the Federal Constitution by repealing the ISA, OSA, PPPA, UUCA and Sedition Act 4. Adopt the Social Inclusion Agenda, designed to raise the living standards of all marginalised persons in Malaysia. Apart from Kuala Lumpur, the MCLM RARA forums will also be held in Kota Kinabalu (27th Sep), Sandakan (29th Sep), Kuching (1st Oct), Penang (24th Oct), Ipoh (25th Oct) culminating in Johor Baru (27th Oct). Details on the time and exact venues at these locations will be provided in due course. We would appreciate if you can send your journalist to cover the KL event. MCLM Secretariat
For further information, please contact the MCLM Secretariat at Tel: 03-79827101/79712244 or Fax: 03-79829097 or Email: admin@mclm.org.uk
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| Malaysian Scorpene Submarine Corruption Case Legal Briefing Posted: 18 Sep 2011 01:00 AM PDT
The Solicitors International Human Right's Group (SIHRG) and Malaysian Human Rights NGO (SUARAM) will be hosting a briefing and fund raising event in relation to the French Scorpene submarine deal in which French giant shipbuilder DCNS is alleged to have paid millions of Euros in kickbacks to top Malaysian officials. Joseph Breham, a renowned French lawyer from Sherpa, a non-profit organisation dealing with human rights legal issues and Cynthia Gabriel from Suaram will provide up-to-date briefings followed by an open dialogue session. William Bourdon, a colleague of Mr Breham, who is also part of the French legal team, was unfortunately deported by Malaysian authorities in July this year en route to speak at fund raising events in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur. Please join us for what is bound to be an interesting and engaging evening. Date : Friday 30th Sept 2011 Venue : Lecture theatre BPP Law School, 68-70 Red Lion Street, London WC1R 4NY Time : Registration : 6pm Briefing and Dialogue Panel : 6.30pm-8.00pm A nasi lemak supper will be on sale at the venue. All proceeds will go towards the legal fund. Admission is free but donations towards the legal case are welcome. Please register at http://malaysianscorpenesubmarinecorruptioncaselegalbrief.eventbrite.com/ For further details pertaining to the case please see below: Briefing on the Scorpene Submarine Case Chronology: 5 June 2002: Malaysian Government signed an agreement with French DCNS and Spainish Navantia for the procurement of two (2) Scorpene class submarines. The procurement contract was through direct negotiation with the manufacturing companies, said to be with the service of Perimekar Sdn Bhd. According to the Government explanation, the contract was divided into two parts: a. Cost of two Scorpene submarines together with the package that covers Integrated Logistic Support and training amounted to Euro 969.15m (however on 14 May 2008, Najib told the Parliament that this part cost Euro 999.15) b. Payment to Perimekar Sdn Bhd in the name of "coordination services" for a period of six years, the sum was Euro 114.96m It is widely believed that payment for the second package was in reality the commission for Najib/Rosmah through Razak Baginda as the owner of Perimekar. With the exchange rate at the time, the cost was equivalent to: 1) Payment for submarine cost between: RM 2.14b (Euro=RM3.2 in 2002) – RM 5.43b (Euro=RM5.6 in 2008) (nowEuro=RM4.7) 2) Commission: probably about RM 540m (exchange rate at the time of payment) 26 July 2006: Royal Malaysian Navy announced these vessels will be named after the first and second prime ministers. The first hull will be named KD Tunku Abdul Rahman and the second hull KD Tun Razak. 24 Oct 2007: The first vessel, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman was launched by then Defence Minister Najib on at the DCNS dockyard, Cherbourg, France. (According to Sharribuu, Altantuya was in France with Najib during the launch) 3 Sept 2009: The first Scorpene submarine KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, arrived at a Port Klang naval base after a 54-day voyage from France. The second of the series, KD Tun Razak, is scheduled for delivery in late 2009. However it only arrived in mid 2010. 10 Feb 2009: It was reported that KD Tunku Abdul Rahman could not dive due to technical faults. The Navy sources admitted that the defect had prevented it from diving for three months. However the Government claimed that the problem was fixed in early February and it was allowed to undergo tropical water trial since then. As a result, builder DCNS SA extended the warranty for the submarine, which was supposed to expire on 25 January 2010, until May 2010 so the submarine could complete its trials as the first step to obtaining its Initial Operational Capability (IOC). 25 May 2010: KD Tunku Abdul Rahman warranty expired. 2 July 2010: KD Tun Razak, the second Scorpene submarine, arrived at the Lumut RMN Base. It was more than 6 months behind schedule. 7 July 2010: Marhalim Abas of the Malay Mail again reported that Malaysian submarine crews had remained on dry land since the first arrival due to continuous problems of KD Tunku Abdul Rahman; the crews risked to lose their submarine rating for unable to participate any trial dive. Both submarines are now parked at Sabah Sepanggar Naval base, to date neither of them had undergone the necessary tropical water trial dive. What is the actual cost of the Scorpene submarines? Agreement signed with DCNS/Navantia costed Malaysian taxpayer Euro 1.08b (with Euro 114.96m commission for Perimekar). Nonetheless, we later found out that the price did not include many items. What are the missing items that need additional payments? 1. Maintenance services: Malaysian Government had awarded a joint venture Boustead-DCN Bhd (BDCN) as the services provider for the submarine maintenance. Until today the cost had not been finalized. Nonetheless, in June 2009 Boustead Heavy Industries in a statement to Bursa Malaysia informed that the government had expressed an intent to award a contract worth RM600 million to its joint-venture unit for in-service support for submarines. 2. LIMA 2009: Defence Minister announced additional contract worth Euro37.5m (about RM150m) for the supply of Support and Test Equipment (S&TE) for Scorpene submarines. 3. Weapon not included: on 22 June 2010 Defence Minister answered parliament question revealed that the Government has paid Euro219.265m (about RM890m) for 40 units Exocet SM39 missile and 30 units Black Shark torpedo, to be delivered by 2013. 4. Infrastructure for submarine base in Sabah (not yet constructed)? 5. Training for crews, support staff etc. No price yet.
Grand total (rough estimate): Hardware: two Scorpene class submarines RM 5,430m Commission: in the form of services by Perimekar RM 540m Package for simulation and training, S&TE RM 150m Weapons: 40 Exocet missiles and 30 Black Sharp torpedo RM 890m Total: RM 6.98b Maintenance service (under negotiation) RM 270m (first year)/ RM600m (max) Money spent to date RM 7.3b If we add RM600m maintenance RM 7.58b (for 3 years) Uncertain for repair cost to overcome defect RM ???
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